We had regrouped in an empty chamber with the other groups after leaving the room that held the green key. Wex and his group were nowhere to be seen—they had been confirmed dead.
As time passed by, the dungeon became more dangerous.
The narrow passageway that we entered a while ago had led us into a vast, dark hall. But it wasn't any safer. Some parts of the floor were scattered with deep pit holes, their bottoms lost in darkness. Black ink slowly spilled from cracks in the walls, curling through the water like smoke. And every few seconds, a strong current of seawater rushed through the hall from random directions, hard enough to knock someone off their feet. Despite the strange sounds and shifting currents, there were no monsters in sight.
Then we realized that it wasn't a normal room. This was the trap room of the dungeon.
Then, all of a sudden, a surge of seawater burst forward at our direction.
I slammed my dagger into the floor and dug my boots in, holding on tight so I wouldn't be swept away. The others did the same, gripping whatever they could.
"Is everyone alright?" I shouted over the roar of the water.
An old healer pointed behind me.
I turned and froze in place. A male mage was being dragged along by the current, flailing helplessly toward a dark pit.
"HELP!!!" he screamed, coughing as the seawater forced its way into his mouth, choking his words and making his voice garbled.
Without thinking, I lunged forward, grabbing the back of his robe just in time, pulling him back onto the floor.
He wheezed, clutching his chest as he stumbled and rolled across the floor, water dripping from his hair and clothes.
"I'm starting to hate this place," he muttered, gasping for breath.
"Next time, don't flirt with the water," I said, panting and brushing seaweed off my arms. "You were almost a goner back there…"
He peeled seaweed off his face and gave a nervous chuckle.
"Y-Yeah... thanks for saving me," he said.
I gave him a thumbs up and said, "No problem at all!"
Finally, we reached a small chamber that is said to contain the red key. The walls were made of smooth stone, slick with moisture, and faint streams of black ink trickled down from cracks above. The ceiling stretched high, lost in shadow, where glowing jellyfish floated slowly, casting a dim blue light like a firefly in the dark. The air was cold, carrying the faint scent of salt and rust.
There were no enemies in sight, but something about the place felt wrong to me.
"Keep your guards up," the old healer said, eyes scanning the chamber. "There's something fishy about this..."
Then, I noticed it—cracks spreading across the stone floor. Thin at first, like spiderwebs, then widening fast as the sound of splitting rock echoed through the chamber.
"Wait—!" I shouted, sweat running down my forehead. But before I could say another word, the floor collapsed beneath us.
All of us screamed as we dropped into the unknown pit like coins into a slot.
We hit the ground hard, water splashing around us. My back ached from the impact, but what's important is that I was alive. When we pushed ourselves back to our knees, we realized we had entered another chamber. It was vast, like a chapel. Black pillars surrounded the chamber, shrouded in thick, rolling fog.
There was no time to catch our breath as shapes began drifting out of the fog—thin, skeletal figures wrapped in tattered robes and seaweed. Bones jutted through decayed flesh, barnacles clinging to their shoulders. Their pale faces were twisted in a haunting grin, and faintly glowing eyes fixed on us. Fingers stretched forward like creeping shadows.
A system window appeared above their heads:
[SEA LICHES] — (LVL 25)
The Sea Liches' yellow eyes flared as they slowly raised their arms, and a cold, wet chill swept through the chamber, carrying the stench of decay and salt.
"Sea liches…" I muttered, tightening my grip on my dagger. "What were they again? Damn it… I forgot…"
Then, the Sea Liches began to fire cursed brine orbs from their palm that floated toward us. The orbs moved sluggishly, almost lazily.
The high-level warrior raised an eyebrow. "How are they even supposed to hit us with that? It's way too slow!"
A flash of memory hit me. Cursed brine orbs were deadly. Even at their slow pace, they could accelerate and kill a player in one hit.
"TAKE COVER!" I yelled, sprinting toward the back of a pillar, my voice tight with fear. "THAT THING CAN KILL YOU IN AN INSTANT!"
"In an instant?" the high-level warrior scoffed, bracing himself. "That's nothing but pure comedy! I WILL LEAD THE CHARGE!"
The old healer, the Archer in Gold, and the rest of our small group ducked behind cover, listening to my warning.
"Hey!" I shouted, trying to grab the high-level warrior's attention. "LISTEN TO ME!"
But he didn't listen. Instead, he let out a cocky grin.
"HERE I COME!" he roared, swinging his sword as he charged straight at the Sea Liches.
His eyes widened in shock as the cursed brine orbs he had mocked suddenly accelerated, moving at impossible speed.
"What the—" his voice cut off, eyes wide as the deadly orbs closed in, striking him square in the chest.
The impact exploded in a horrific burst of screaming skulls, each shriek echoing off the chamber walls.
"So it slows down for three seconds, then it accelerates..." the Archer in Gold thought. She glanced down at her clenched fist. "I'm level twenty-six... I should be able to do a lot of damage. I'll attack when they start channeling again."
The old healer nodded quietly, observing. "So the boy was right," he thought. "He's clever… I'll give him that."
"What the hell…" I muttered as the high-level warrior's body flew backward, slamming against a pillar with a sickening crack before collapsing onto the slick, waterlogged floor.
Panic erupted. The low-level and injured players scattered in every direction, slipping through the shallow water, their screams echoing through the chamber like wildfire.
"NOOOO!!!"
"RUN!"
"GET ME OUTTA HERE!"
"WE CAN'T WIN AGAINST A LEVEL TWENTY-FIVE MONSTER!"
"HIDE BEHIND A PILLAR! GODDAMN IT!" I shouted, voice cracking over the chaos. "ARE YOU GUYS DEAF?!"
The Sea Liches began channeling their cursed brine orbs again, the water around them rippling with unnatural energy.
I pressed my back against a pillar, taking a shaky breath. "I need to help that warrior," I muttered to myself. "I have to."
And I did.
Pushing off the pillar, I sprinted across the shallow water, each step sending small splashes scattering around my boots. The slick floor made my footing unsteady, and the moment I reached the spot where the high-level warrior had fallen, I froze. His armor lay twisted and dented, the helmet cracked and lying askew, and his massive sword rested a few feet away. But the rest of him was simply gone.
"Shit…" I whispered, voice trembling. "N-No way…"
Before I could react further, a wave of cursed brine orbs streaked across the chamber, hissing as they pierced through the air like deadly arrows.
One orb came straight at me.
"WATCH OUT!" a male archer shouted at me.
I reacted just in time, diving behind a pillar as the orb slammed into the spot where I'd stood a second before. It exploded into a swarm of screaming skulls that tore through the air, their shrieks echoing off the chamber walls.
I pressed a hand to my chest, gasping for air.
"Damn… that was way too close…" I thought.
A female warrior lunged for cover behind a pillar, and the nearby female archer spun to escape. But it was too fast—impossible to dodge. The cursed brine orb struck them both head-on. In an instant, their bodies shattered into fragments. All that remained were a steaming helmet and a steel bow clattering across the wet floor.
The Archer in Gold pressed herself low against a pillar, her eyes locked on the Sea Liches. Her breath was steady, every muscle tensed.
"Come on…" she muttered. "Start channeling your damn attack already…"
The Sea Liches began channeling their attacks again.
"There we go," the Archer in Gold said, her crimson eyes focused on the Sea Liches.
She pushed off from behind the pillar, rolling low across the wet stone floor as a cursed orb streaked past where she'd just been. Coming out of the roll, she rose smoothly to one knee, bow already drawn. The string of her bow twanged with a sharp snap as she activated a skill: Multi-Shot, launching three arrows in quick motion. They shot forward in perfect formation, cutting through the mist and striking three Sea Liches in the chest, staggering them back a few steps.
The old healer leapt forward, slamming his wooden staff into the ground and activating a skill: Protection. A burst of blue light radiated around him, forming a glowing shield that blocked an incoming cursed brine orb. He then activated a skill: Lesser Blessing, and a faint golden light wrapped around his arms, boosting his attack damage. Dropping his staff, he charged straight at the staggering Sea Liches. His fists glowed as he swung wildly, each hit landing with a heavy crack of bone and a burst of mist.
"HERE! HERE! HERE! MORE! MORE! MORE!" he shouted, his voice echoing through the chamber as he kept punching. The Sea Liches couldn't even fight back—each blow shattered them until they finally crumbled into smoke and vanished.
"That didn't even make me sweat!" he shouted, wiping sweat that dripped down from his forehead. "Oh... maybe a little..."
I stared at the old healer. "A battle healer?" I thought. "He must've maxed his attack damage and speed attribute instead of intelligence..."
Then I triggered my copied skill: Frenzy.
"I'm pretty sure I can take them on for a bit now," I thought, clenching my fist. "I've leveled up to seventeen after those skirmishes earlier."
I charged forward, my dagger tearing through the Sea Liches as I darted between the pillars. They retaliated, firing bursts of cursed brine orbs.
"Shit!" I shouted, sprinting in zigzag pattern to avoid one as it homed toward me.
"I got you, mate!" an Australian male healer shouted from behind a nearby pillar. He thrust his staff forward, activating a skill: Protection.
A burst of blue light flared around me, forming a shimmering barrier just as a cursed brine orb exploded against it, the impact shaking the ground beneath my feet.
"Thanks…" I panted, rolling to cover behind another pillar. "You saved me back there!"
The male healer gave me a small nod.
"You can thank me by killing the rest of these Sea Liches!" he shouted.
"I'll try!" I shouted back.
"I just need a perfect timing," I thought, tightening my grip on my dagger. "Once it starts channeling another cursed brine orb, I'll attack."
I turned to the left, spotting the mage I'd saved earlier from the trap room. His robes were ripped, his face pale as he tried to fight off three Sea Liches at once. He couldn't activate a skill due to panic. In the end, a cursed brine orb hit him point-blank, shattering him into fragments.
Before I could process it, a scream rang out behind me. The male healer who had saved me moments ago froze as a cursed brine orb slammed into his chest. In an instant, he too shattered into fragments, leaving only ripples in the shallow water where he had stood.
I was so focused on fighting that I didn't notice what was happening around me. Players were dying one after another. Cursed brine orbs struck down the injured who tried to run, and the low-level players hiding behind pillars were found and attacked at point-blank range by the Sea Liches. They were too scared to even move.
That's when it hit me—I remembered that this wasn't just a game. This was real. If we died here, then we would die for real.
"We're losing..." I whispered, my voice barely audible over the chaos. "We're dying..."
I became afraid. I couldn't move my body. I couldn't even process a thing anymore. I felt like a man who was put in a den of lions.
Then, four Sea Liches turned their glowing eyes toward me, moving closer with every step.
"Come on," I thought, trying to move my frozen legs. "Move... let me run, fuck!"
The Sea Liches started channeling cursed brine orbs.
"So this is how it ends, huh..." I thought, staring at the cursed brine orbs that were slowly forming in their palms.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
"What a shitty way to die..." I muttered.
But before the Sea Liches could attack, an arrow cut through the fog and pierced them all in an instant, dissolving into mist.
When I slowly opened my eyes, the Archer in Gold stood in front of me with her bow raised.
She glanced at me with a cold, steady look.
"Don't be a burden," she said in a cold tone. "Get up and be a man."
I stared at the ground, my hands shaking. Then I hit my forehead lightly with my fist—once, twice—trying to force my thoughts into focus. The fog, the fear, the cold… everything faded for a brief moment. Silence. A tiny spark of clarity.
"I have to man up and clear this dungeon," I thought.
I pushed myself to my feet, legs still unsteady but holding.
"For Lars... and to leave behind the old me, the weak version of myself."
I clenched my fists, feeling my breathing steady.
"I have to be stronger."
As a single drip of water from the ceiling echoed through the floor, I moved.
I charged at a weakened Sea Lich that was channeling an attack, water slapping under my boots. I leapt behind it, grabbed the back of its rotten head, and drove my dagger into its neck again and again, hard enough to feel the blade slip a little each time.
Rage consumed my body. My breaths came hot and loud.
"I'LL FUCKING KILL ALL OF YOU!" I screamed, over and over, the words tearing out of me as I kept stabbing until its health points finally plummeted to zero.
The old healer looked at me and sighed. "He's gone mad..."
"Everyone, this is the last Sea Lich!" the female mage in green robes shouted, her voice echoing through the fog. She raised her staff high, activating a skill: Fireball, flames swirling around its tip.
"Take this, you disgusting bastard!" she shouted.
A blazing fireball shot from her staff and smashed into the Sea Lich's chest. The explosion sent water and smoke bursting outward. It let out a shrill, gurgling cry as its burned skin peeled away as its health points dropped fast.
The female mage clenched her staff and took a step back, breathing heavily. "It's not down yet!" she yelled.
"I'll finish it!" said a female assassin in black lightweight armor, her voice sharp and full of confidence.
Her twin daggers gleamed green as she activated a skill: Viper's Strike. She vanished in a blur, rolling through the mist and reappearing behind the Sea Lich. She drove both daggers into its back with a clean, wet sound.
The Sea Lich's body jerked as black water spilled from its wounds. It tried to run away, but the assassin twisted her blades, pulling them free in one smooth motion. Then it gave a final, broken screech before collapsing, its form dissolving into mist that faded into the cold air.
The assassin exhaled slowly, flicking black liquid off her daggers.
"Assassinated," she muttered, her eyes steady and cold.
The fog thinned and peeled away, revealing a pedestal with a red key resting in the center.
I stood frozen, panting heavily, dagger trembling in my grip as my eyes locked on the pedestal.
"We did it..." I muttered.
A system window appeared above it.
[YOU HAVE ACQUIRED]: [RED KEY]
In the end, six players remained alive. The Archer in Gold, me, the old healer, the female mage in green robes, a female assassin in black lightweight armor, and an injured male warrior who hid behind a pillar.
All of us were battered, burned, clothes torn, potions long since emptied. Our eyes were hollow, dulled by too much death. My silver dagger was chipped along the edge, its shine worn away with each fight.
Now, we stood before a yellow stone door. Its surface was ornate, carved with ancient patterns, and it pulsed faintly like a wounded heart. Unlike the others we'd seen, this one was sealed behind a shimmering barrier. Above it, letters were carved deep into the stone, glowing softly with sea-light script.
"Abandon certainty, all ye who enter here," the old healer translated. His voice was calm, but his eyes weren't. Deep laugh lines framed them—the kind a kind man would have—but the sad curl of his smile said he'd seen this scene before.
"What does that mean?" I asked, even though a part of me already knew.
He chuckled weakly, shifting his weight on his old staff. "It means we might die today."
Without a word, the Archer in Gold drew her bow, the string tightening with a quiet hum. She let go. The arrow shot forward, shattering the barrier into shards of light.
No one spoke. But we all thought the same thing: It's do or die.
We stepped through the entrance as one.
Inside, the chamber was massive. It was perfectly circular, seamless, and silent. A thin mist drifted low across the floor, where a shallow layer of water turned the floor into a mirror. Our reflections shimmered beneath us and stretched across the mirrored walls, repeating into endless darkness.
And there, at the very center, stood a pedestal bathed in warm, golden light. Resting upon it, untouched, the Yellow Key.
"Is it… over?" the female mage whispered, her voice barely audible as she pressed a hand against her chest, eyes wide and trembling.
I scanned the chamber carefully — the mirrored walls, the endless reflections, the way the light bent in places it shouldn't. Everything looked too perfect.
Then I saw it.
My reflection.
It blinked. I didn't.
"H-Huh?" I thought.
The air suddenly cracked. The glassy floor rippled like heat rising off stone. The mirrored walls twisted, then bled long streaks of shadow spilling outward like ink in water.
Then they stepped through.
Our reflections. Perfect doubles. Same weapons. Same gear. Same faces. But their eyes glowed faintly yellow. And the way they smiled... it wasn't confidence, it was certainty—certainty that they were going to kill us.
A system window appeared above their heads:
[CLONE] — (LEVEL ???)
"Huh? Why's their level unknown?" I said.
"I think—" the female assassin's words were put to a stop as her clone suddenly vanished in a blur of motion and silence. In the next heartbeat, it reappeared behind her, blade already approaching her throat.
She reacted just in time, her dagger snapping up to block the strike. Sparks flicked across the mirrored floor as the blades scraped together.
"Sneaky," she said, pushing back hard. A sharp grin tugged at her lips. "Just like me, huh?"
Then, the remaining clones cocked their heads and stared at us. They suddenly moved like the female assassin's clone—they vanished in a blur of motion and silence.
The first strike from my clone came fast. It came at me before I could even think. I barely got my dagger up in time to block. The clash of steel rang through my ears. My arms trembled from the impact.
"I-It's strong… and fast..." I muttered through gritted teeth, my heart pounding in my chest. The clone twisted its wrist, pressing harder, forcing me back step by step. "Are they buffed or something? Damn it…"
My clone didn't hesitate to make a move. Didn't overthink. Every step matched mine, mirrored perfectly, as if it had practiced my movements a thousand times.
Then I feinted left. It didn't fall for it.
"Shit!" I yelled mentally as it launched a counter-attack.
Its dagger cut across the right side of my chest. It was quick, clean, and precise, unlike me.
Pain ripped through my side—it was shallow, but deep enough to remind me that I wasn't fighting some random monster. I was fighting myself.
I spun, delivering a sweeping kick that knocked him off balance.
"You can't do that, can ya?" I said.
It got up and cracked its neck—and as soon as I heard the sound of its joint popping, it lunged at me.
I feinted left as it got closer. And this time, it fell for it. It took the bait.
I let out a wide grin as it missed its attack. Then I swung my dagger toward its chest.
But to my surprise, it was I who took the bait. It ducked under my swing, elbowed me in the ribs, and kicked me aside.
As I landed on the floor, I realized that this wasn't just a fight. It was a test. Every bad habit, every shortcut, every weakness I thought I'd hidden. It knew them. And if I didn't adapt, if I didn't become something more than what I was, I wouldn't walk out of here alive.
The Archer in Gold was faring better, barely. She unleashed a volley of arrows that caught her clone off guard, but her clone reacted just in time, dodging the attack. Their arrows sliced the air, splitting mid-flight. And then she was down to her last quiver.
Across the room, the old healer and his clone were locked in a battle of blessings and curses. Every time he tried to cast a blessing skill, the clone nullified it. He clenched his fist, jaw tight, and punched the clone, engaging in brutal hand-to-hand combat.
The female mage in green robes and her clone clashed in fire and water spells, each trying to outmaneuver the other. But in the end, she succumbed to her clone's flames, leaving her in shattered fragments.
Not far away, the female assassin and her clone moved too fast to track. Steel flashed again and again until exhaustion slowed her down. The clone didn't hesitate. One clean strike—then silence. She fell to her knees and shattered into fragments.
The injured male warrior roared and charged at his clone, their swords clashing in sparks. But his wounds slowed him. The clone's blade slipped past his guard, cutting deep. He fell hard, armor scraping against the mirrored floor, and didn't get back up. Then he shattered into fragments.
Now, we were down to three.
I dodged a brutal strike from my clone. Barely. My arm was already trembling from blocking its strikes.
A system window appeared in front of me as I distanced myself a bit from my clone.
[WARNING]: [LOW HP!]
[HP]: [20/100]
[MP]: [100/100]
"You've got to be kidding me..." I muttered.
My clone cocked its head, tilting it like a predator as it walked toward me.
Then I did something it wouldn't. I screamed and threw the dagger directly upward. I charged at it the moment it blinked its eyes. It expected a punch. I dove low, sweeping its legs, grabbing the falling dagger mid-spin, burying it into its side as we crashed into the floor. It then writhed and vanished.
The old healer took the opportunity when he punched his clone, making it off balance. He extended both hands and activated a skill: Purification. A pulse of light spread from the clone's body as it shrieked in pain and vanished.
The Archer in Gold feinted left, then snapped her aim, releasing a brutal point-blank shot. Her clone collapsed with a thud. She dropped the bow, arm trembling, bowstring fraying under her grip as she gasped for breath.
We all exhaled, the weight of the battle pressing on us. I tried not to drop my dagger from sheer exhaustion.
"I feel like my body's about to collapse…" I muttered, tightly gripping the hilt of my dagger. "This is bad…"
The old healer laughed, shaking his head. "I guess it's just the three of us now. That dungeon raid leader was all talk, no strength! MUHAHAHAHA!"
"You're not funny, old man," I said. "Stop that."
"Calm down," he said with a shrug, his laugh lines deepening. "It's just my way of coping."
I didn't respond.
"Let's finish this and get out," the Archer in Gold said, her voice tight, eyes scanning the chamber.
The yellow key lifted gently into the air, floating toward us. Then, all the keys we collected suddenly appeared and floated into the air, spinning and slowly vanishing into thin air.
"What the hell was that for?" the old healer said, scratching his head.
A system window appeared in front of us:
[4/4 KEYS COLLECTED]: [DUNGEON BOSS ROOM IS NOW OPEN!]
Then, an old stone door covered in seaweed rose beneath the center floor of the chamber.
"There goes your answer, old man..." I said, pointing at the stone door.
He laughed. "MUHAHAHAHA! THAT WAS SO DRAMATIC!"
"We shouldn't go and fight the boss with low health points, right?" he added.
He raised his staff and activated a skill: Lesser Healing.
It made my health points come back to seventy percent.
"Thanks, old man," I said.
"No problemo, kiddo!" he said, giving me a thumbs up. "Now let's go and finish this!"
Then we pushed the door to open it.