The glow from Lucas's pajama ducks shimmered faintly across the cavern floor as he took a hesitant step closer. The figure ahead wasn't moving anymore, its faint blue glow flickering like a dying candle.
"Alright," he muttered, voice echoing slightly. "Approach the creepy glowing corpse — what could possibly go wrong?"
The silence pressed down on him. He held the lantern higher, though its flame barely clung to life, the glass cracked from the earlier stumble. The light mixed with the ghostly green glow of his pants, painting everything in weird, sickly colors.
He crouched a few feet away from the armored body, eyes narrowed. "If you jump up and grab me, I swear to God…"
The man didn't move.
Lucas exhaled slowly, gripping his mining pick tighter. He reached out the handle and gave the armored figure a cautious poke. Nothing. Another, a bit firmer this time — still nothing.
"Well," Lucas said, "either he's dead or committed to the bit."
He edged closer. The armor wasn't like anything he'd seen before. It was old — ancient, maybe — a strange hybrid between medieval plate and something else entirely. Thin lines of glowing blue energy pulsed weakly along the seams, fading in and out like veins of light beneath the metal.
The chestplate was cracked in several places, revealing glimpses of dark fabric beneath, soaked with something that shimmered faintly. The metal bore strange inscriptions — looping runes that reminded him of the cave markings, only these seemed to move if he stared too long.
Lucas frowned, leaning in. "You've got… magic graffiti on your armor. That's cool. Totally normal."
He reached out a little more, then froze. The faintest sound escaped the man's helmet — a slow, rattling breath.
Lucas's heart jumped. "Oh, hell no."
He stumbled back, raising his pick instinctively. But the sound came again — weaker this time, but unmistakable. The man was breathing.
Lucas hesitated. "Okay. Okay, that's… better than undead. I think."
The figure twitched slightly, one gloved hand shifting against the floor. Lucas took another cautious step closer, lowering his weapon. "Hey, buddy," he said, voice uncertain. "You, uh… doing okay down there?"
No response. The man's head tilted slightly, the faint blue light under his helmet flaring weakly before dimming again.
Lucas crouched beside him, still keeping his distance. "Alright, so you're not dead, but you're also not, like, great. I can relate."
The man's breathing hitched. Then, to Lucas's surprise, a low voice rasped through the metal of the helmet — weak, strained, and fragmented between languages.
"...the… depths…"
Lucas blinked. "Sorry, what?"
The man coughed, a faint trail of blue light escaping between the plates of his armor. "The… corruption… spreads… light… fading…"
"Yeah, that's great and all," Lucas said quickly, glancing nervously around the cave. "You wouldn't happen to have a health potion or a translation app on you, would you?"
No answer. Just another low, wheezing breath.
Lucas sighed. "Look, man, I'm new here. Just respawned, or reincarnated, or whatever. I've got no shoes, no map, and my only companion is my glowing sleepwear. You're gonna have to meet me halfway."
The blue glow from the man's chest flickered again, catching Lucas's eye. He looked closer and saw it — a crystal embedded just above the man's sternum, cracked and faintly pulsing. Every time the light dimmed, the man's breathing faltered.
Lucas frowned. "Okay, so that's either your heart, a battery, or a really bad piercing."
The man stirred again, his voice even weaker now. "...the light… must… endure…"
Lucas bit his lip. He could turn back, pretend he hadn't seen this, and maybe find a safer way out. But he'd never been great at leaving things alone — especially not when someone looked like they were dying in front of him.
"Goddamn it," he muttered, lowering himself beside the man. "Fine. I'll try something."
---
The moment his hand touched the cracked crystal, a freezing pulse tore through his arm. The air vibrated, blue light crawling up his skin like lightning veins.
A sharp chime echoed in his head.[
Level Up! Lv. 2 Achieved]
HP +10 | ST +5 | STR +1 | INT +1 | MP bar unlocked
A second chime came right after not giving him chance to react to the level up.
> [Energy Link Established]
> [Skill Unlocked: Sacrificial Aid — Lv. 1]
> Sacrifice a portion of your own vitality to restore another's life force.
> Conversion Rate — 2 HP → 1 HP restored.
Lucas's eyes widened. "Wait, what? That sounds incredibly one-sided!"
Before he could pull away, pain bloomed in his chest — a deep, pulsing ache that stole his breath. A red number flashed before his eyes:
> –15 HP
The blue crystal on the man's chest flared, light flooding the cracks, and the man's breathing grew stronger, steadier. Lucas stumbled back, gasping.
"Fantastic," he wheezed. "So healing literally hurts me. I'm a rechargeable health potion now."
He froze. "Wait… I am rechargeable, right?"
He swiped at the floating window, searching frantically. "Come on, come on, don't do this to me. It doesn't say anything about getting the hit points back!"
As he started complaining about the description being silent on the issue, the skill window shimmered — and suddenly expanded on its own:
> Sacrificial Aid (Lv. 1)
> Converts the user's vitality into restorative energy for others.
> Lost vitality may be recovered through:
> • Potions
> • Healing spells
> • Rest (Duration dependent on Constitution Level)
Lucas exhaled in relief. "Okay, so naps are officially medical treatment now. Good to know."
He leaned back against the cavern wall, still catching his breath. "Guess I'll live… eventually."
Another notification chimed softly — but this one looked different. The border of the screen shimmered gold instead of blue.
> [Ability Acquired: Explain it to Me Like I'm 5]
> System descriptions and tooltips are now expanded for user clarity and comprehension.
Lucas blinked. "Wait… that's a real ability?"
The description window politely added:
> Because the user has demonstrated confusion beyond acceptable thresholds, the system will now provide simplified explanations.
He stared blankly at the glowing text. "Did the system just… call me stupid?"
Another small pop-up appeared.
> Affirmative.
Lucas groaned. "Unbelievable. I get my first ability and it's a tutorial tool for idiots. Great start, Lucas."
---
He slumped against the cavern wall and flicked the translucent screen with his finger. It rippled like water. "Alright, genius interface, let's see what else you can do."
A faint ping answered.
> Command not recognized. Please simplify for a Level 1 user.
Lucas squinted. "Okay… show… stats?"
A new window popped up helpfully.
> [Health: 85/100]
> [Stamina: 97/100]
> [Mana: — Error — User does not meet minimum requirements.]
He frowned. "Great. Even my magic stat refuses to exist."
Another smaller window appeared under it, gold-tinted this time.
> Mana: The energy required for spellcasting. You don't have any.
Lucas laughed dryly. "Thanks, system. Real confidence boost."
He tapped again. "Explain 'Rest' like I'm 5."
> Rest: When you stop doing dumb things long enough for your body to fix itself.
He snorted, half-amused, half-insulted. "You're getting bold, huh?"
The screen shimmered once more.
> Acknowledged.
Lucas sighed, dismissing the panels. "At least sarcasm's universal."
He turned his gaze back to the fallen explorer. The man's breathing had evened out, and the blue light from his crystal heart pulsed steadily. Lucas studied it, feeling a strange pull in his chest — the same subtle drain from before, still faintly lingering.
He muttered, "If that thing tries to charge itself off me again, I'm cutting it off from the grid."
---
The cavern was quieter now — too quiet. A single droplet hit stone somewhere deep in the dark. Lucas lifted the lantern, watching its glow reflect in a dozen tiny fragments scattered across the floor.
He noticed faint handprints in the dust near the tunnel wall. Not his. Someone — or something — had been here before them. The marks trailed off toward the deeper passage, half-erased by scuff marks and claw grooves.
Lucas's stomach twisted. "Perfect. Monster footprints. Because why not?"
The silence grew heavy. He could almost feel the cave listening. Every breath sounded louder, every heartbeat slower.
That's when he heard the crack.
---
The crystals above them flickered once, then again — the steady rhythm breaking. The glow dimmed. The man on the floor stirred, his head twitching slightly as if in pain.
Lucas leaned forward. "Hey! Hey, stay still. You're not—"
The man's hand shot out suddenly, gripping Lucas's wrist with surprising strength. His voice rasped out, barely audible.
"They… are coming."
Lucas froze. "Who's coming?"
The man's grip loosened. The blue light flared, then began to fade again, dimming faster this time.
"Oh, come on!" Lucas said, shaking him gently. "Don't do the dramatic fade-to-black thing! I just healed you!"
But the man was gone again — unconscious, or worse. The only thing left was the faint blue pulse of the crystal on his chest.
Then Lucas heard it — a deep, guttural growl echoing from somewhere deeper in the tunnel.
He turned his head slowly toward the sound. The crystals on the walls began to crack, shards dropping to the floor one by one, each one dimming as it hit the ground.
The growl came again, louder, closer. Something heavy was moving in the dark — scraping metal, breaking stone, breathing.
Lucas stood, gripping his mining pick tightly. "Nope," he whispered. "Nope, nope, nope."
He glanced down at the unconscious explorer. "Buddy, if you wake up, just… pretend you didn't see me running."
Another growl shook the cave, deeper now. The faint blue light pulsed in time with it, as though the whole cavern was breathing.
Lucas swallowed hard. "I really should've stayed in bed."