Chapter 23

Darkness. The lack of smell. The taste of moist on his tongue, the sound of a metallic clacking from a typewriter. A hand clenching his. Leon looked around. On his left hovered a golden text. He let go of Ava’s hand and approached it, stepping on what seemed to be air, but which didn’t give way. The text grew bigger as he came closer.

‘ENEMY LIMIT REACHED

CALCULATING THE 80 STRONGEST LOOTED MONSTERS FROM PLAYERS ENTERING THE LEVEL

PROGRESS: 63%’

Leon’s throat dried up, and he backed away, bumping into something semi-hard.

“W-What does it say?” Hert asked.

Leon turned and tried to conceal the text with his body. “That it’s going to be tough to beat this level.”

Hert stepped past him, and Leon spun around.

The text had changed.

’GENERATING LEVEL’

Hert grabbed Leon’s arm. “What did it say?”

“It…” Ava’s voice was barely audible in the completely silent area. “It calculated the monsters we will have to beat. Eighty. It’s too many.”

Hert threw Leon backwards. “Go into the tower with you? How did you come up with such an idea? I should have never listened to you.”

The empty area transformed into a ten feet wide corridor with walls made of black stone, and everlights lit up the path.

‘FLOOR FULLY GENERATED

TIME TO COMPLETE THE FLOOR: N/A

0 of 12 CHESTS OPENED’

Leon collapsed onto the floor, his heart beating so loud he couldn’t hear anything else. What had he done? He put them in this position. Just a week ago, he’d fought four wolves at once and almost died. Eighty. They would all die. Even if he could take on ten or twelve wolves per day, they only had two camps. Even with Ava’s Boost Moral, and Leon’s saved level up, those only went so far. Depending on the monsters’ levels, he might only beat fifty of them before they had used everything they had stocked up. If only he’d listened to Margaret. She’d given so many hints, and he hadn’t understood them. He’d doomed them all.

“What the hell are you doing?” Hert kicked Leon’s side. It hurt, but didn’t give damage. “Get us out of here.”

Ava put a hand on Leon’s shoulder and looked into his face. “At least we can try. If we find and open the chests quickly, I’m sure we won’t need to beat them all.”

“Fat chance of that,” Hert huffed. “You killed me when you came into my life. I had a good thing going.”

“Making hooks. And again, no one forced you to come with us,” Ava hissed. “You could have gone alone. I’m here because I believe Leon is my best chance of getting out of this game. You should be grateful he invited you.”

“Making hooks is good enough for me, and I would have gone alone, or not at all, had I known about this.”

“Leon.” Ava pulled on his arm, and his muscles finally softened enough for him to stand. “Look on the bright side. Without you, I wouldn’t be here. I would still be a Scab, living in the Slums. Whatever happened, I won’t regret the time I said yes to joining you. We both want to live and get back to the world that we left too soon.”

Leon didn’t answer. How could he, after what he’d done to get here? It was better that he left it unsaid. His own secret.

“There!” Hert said, pointing the hammer toward the end of the corridor.

A wolf with a bright yellow “Gray Wolf Level 4” tag wobbling over its head stood before them. Leon opened the inventory, took out the long sword, and sprang forward. If they could gather courage, they would go far. They had to. Not only for Ava; Leon slashed out, hitting the creature over the chest; not only for Hert; he kicked the wound, and the wolf sank back to launch at him; but for his family. With a roar, Leon jumped toward the wolf, swinging the sword onto its body. It backed away to jump at him again, but Leon sprinted, raised the sword, and sunk it into the creature’s back. It sank down, lifeless.

Text appeared before them.

’1 of 80 MONSTERS SLAIN’

Then both the text and the body faded away.

“Well, that’s one down,” Hert said. “Let find those chests and get out of here.”

*******

What had sent Leon’s heart thundering with the huge number of enemies now only dealt a small ache. They had continued down the corridor and to the right, took a left when the path divided, and continued like through the straight corridor for over five minutes.

“Where are they?” Ava whispered as they walked through the endless corridor. “The only one we’ve met was the one at the beginning.”

“I have a bad feeling about that,” Hert said, creeping after them.

“You have a bad feeling about everything,” Ava said.

“I agree with Hert.” Leon clenched his jaw. “Something is wrong.”

They continued forward.

“Wait, there’s a chest!” Ava hurried ahead and crouched by the side of the wall. “Should I open it?”

“I don’t know,” Hert said with a frown.

“Well, it’s the only way we’ll beat this floor.” Leon shrugged.

The chest was made of white marble and parted in the middle.

As Ava lifted the lid, Leon’s vision blurred, and the area transformed before their eyes. Two brick walls grew over the black ones, and they were some place else. Rain poured from the night sky as he, Ava, and Hert stood in a dark alley, where the dumpsters overflowed with trash, lit only by a blinking street light. Car horns sounded in the distance. The squeaking rustle of metal reached them.

“Where are we?” Ava asked, stepping forward. “Did we come back to life?”

Just as she finished the question, the alley flooded with light from behind them, showing a middle-aged man in sweater and jeans trying to climb the fence a few yards away. Leon turned around. A rusty red Toyota stood there, leaving only two small passageways in or out. Leon looked at Hert. He had paled.

“Stop right there! The police will be here any second. You have nowhere to run.” Hert stepped into the light and spoke with a loud voice that echoed as if it had come from far away, when he was only a few steps behind them. Not the tank-Hert, but a copy, wearing a black suit and sporting a chunk of curly black hair, holding a handgun which was pointed at the man. “Just give up.”

“How did you find me?” The man at the fence pressed his back against it, pressing his fingers through the loops.

“Oh, you left clues. I followed them. You’ve been a wanted man for a long time.”

“Ah!” Ava shouted.

Leon spun to his right. A level 6 wolf stood over her body, and she was pressing the staff against its jaw with both hands. It took a second before Leon realized what happened, then he sprang forward, sword raised.

“What clues?” the man shouted, unaware of the attack.

Leon swung the sword at the wolf, leaving a gash in its side.

“You killed all those people, and you think you left nothing to trace them back to you?” fake-Hert shouted back.

Ava pushed at the wolf one more time, and Leon landed a blow under its jaw. The wolf fell back, shook its body, and lowered itself to launch at him.

“You have no proof!” the man yelled.

Blue lights shone in flashes over the bricks. “The police is here. Give up.”

The wolf sprang forward and knocked into Leon’s chest, flinging him onto the ground. Leon kneed its stomach, and it snarled in his face, showing yellow teeth.

“Never!” The man launched forward with a knife in his hand and passed Leon and Ava.

Leon slashed the sword over the wolf’s back, clumsily, but still effective, and as two gunshots rang out, the wolf fell to the side and disappeared. The fallen man did not.

Ava stretched out a hand to help Leon to his feet as two police ran past them, weapons at the ready.

A police patted fake-Hert’s shoulder. “You did what you had to. I’m sorry I didn’t get here in time.”

The surroundings faded away, leaving them in the dimly lit corridor with black stone walls.

A text flowed at the top of Leon’s vision.

‘1 of 12 CHESTS OPENED

2 of 80 MONSTERS SLAIN’

Then the text disappeared.

Hert stood staring straight ahead, and Ava looked from the open chest to the silent man.

“Was that you?” Ava asked, stepping closer to Hert. “You looked so different with hair.”

Hert opened his mouth, closed it, and gave a curt nod.

“You didn’t look like police, though,” Ava mused. “But why did we see it, anyway?”

“The guide…” Leon said, “She said something about getting a reminder. But I don’t know what the purpose of showing something from the past. Especially since it happened quite a while back.”

Hert scratched his bald head. “Yeah, that was about twelve or thirteen years ago.”

“I don’t want to continue if it’s like that,” Ava said and bit her lip.

Hert snorted, seemingly back to himself. “You have some deep, dark secret you don’t want us to know about?”

Ava didn’t answer, but stepped up to Leon and grabbed his arm, pulling him close to her. “A person can change. You know that, right?”

“Um… sure?” Leon wanted to step back, but didn’t. Why didn’t he enter the tower alone? Why didn’t he go to the first floor directly after he got the quest? There were just some things he didn’t want to remember, let alone share, if that was what they faced when opening the chests.

“We don’t have a choice than to live through this, right?” Hert said. He cleared his throat. “I shot him because I had to. He had a knife.”

Leon nodded and walked on. No exiting once inside the first floor. No matter how much he wished it was different. Which memories would the game pick to flaunt around? And to what end?

Ava let her hands fall from his arm and followed a step behind him. They walked in silence. After a minute, they all saw the white chest lying in wait by the side of the wall. Ava and Leon stopped, but Hert walked past them. Ava grabbed after his arm but missed.

“It must be one of you two who will have to live through this one,” Hert said. “It will be interesting to see.”

He opened the lid.

The corridor changed again, but this time, they found themselves in a large, bright, old-fashioned office with vast windows that showed a blooming garden outside.

A slim, fair-haired man with hawk-like eyes sat behind a mahogany desk, his lips in a straight line. He sat with his fingers combed into each other and faced a younger Ava with straight ginger hair that almost reached her waist. It was clear that it was her, even though she sat with her back against them.

Ava stepped forward, wearing a frown and clenching the staff to her chest.

“But Dad, going to school is just so boring,” fake-Ava said with a drawling, echo-y voice. “And public schools are full of losers.”

A glint of recognition entered Ava’s eyes, and she stepped forward. “Stop. Stop it.”

The man sighed. “You need to learn the value of the people around you, even if you consider them beneath you.”

Ava shot forward, held her staff in one hand and clapped the other over her twin’s mouth, but the voice still came through. “But they’re low class, they have no manners, and most are just plain stupid. Why would they have any value, like, at all?”

Ava spun toward Leon, her eyes frantic. She shook her head. “Don’t listen, okay? This is a lie!”

“Sure,” Hert said, crossing his arms. “You’re such a sweetie.”

The man pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “Avalene, I hoped to see more growth from you.”

“I was fourteen!”

Fake-Ava crossed her arms and Leon stepped back as two wolves jumped through the windows; one level four and one level five. Leon took in a stance and held the sword up in front of him. So this was where the monsters were? That meant they’d have to face them all before they could exit the floor. Not good.

“Why would I put an ounce of effort into befriending lowlifes?”

The wolves jumped toward him, and Leon lashed out at one. It fell back, but the next second, the other wolf had reached him. He kicked at it, and the foot landed on the wolf’s shoulder. It yelped and sank away. Then, the first one attacked again.

“I built my business from the ground up and it started with me going to public school. I wanted you to learn some humility, to see that they are just like you and me.”

Leon slashed out with the sword. It hit the level four wolf over the legs, and it fell down, limping. It growled as it sank back, but Leon didn’t let it. He sprung forward and plunged the sword into its back. It fell lifeless to the floor. Then he turned to face the second one.

“That was you, not me, Dad. And I get good grades, so it’s not as if I’m stupid. Do you want me to be as stupid as they are?”

The wolf walked half a circle around the party, then Leon launched at it, swinging the sword wide. The wolf took the hit in its side, but dodged in time to avoid any real damage.

“That some of them don’t have the same economic stability we do doesn’t equate to them being dumb. Reach out to them, make friends. The least you can do is try.”

Someone knocked on the door behind them, and Leon automatically threw a glance that way. Fangs tore into his leg and he screamed in pain, but managed to stay on his feet. He threw a hit down on the wolf’s head, and the damage finished it.

“Ava, this discussion is over for now, but we will talk more about it later.” The man rose, and fake-Ava did too.

The vision disappeared, leaving them in the dark corridor again. Leon felt over his leg, and though it stung, it didn’t seem to bleed.

’2 of 12 CHESTS OPENED

4 of 80 MONSTERS SLAIN’

“I’m not that person anymore,” Ava said, tugging on Leon’s arm, as if begging him to look at her.

He met her eyes, and tears shone there. Were they fake? He’d wondered about how she sometimes seemed so uncertain, only to express something completely different in the next sentence. It was true that people could change, though. He had too, in the short time he’d been here. He’d gone from having no goal in his life to having one after his death, and it had transformed him into someone who did things that mattered. At least he’d like to think they did, but the notion muddled a little with how his intentions to train and grow strong had turned out.

“Say something,” Ava begged.

“It’s okay,” Leon said, but even to his own ears, it sounded hollow. He believed he could trust her, but he supposed that the rest of the chests would prove whether he was wrong.

“You were a spoiled brat,” Hert said and shrugged. “Plenty more where those come from, in that world. Nothing to be so ashamed about. I did a lot of stuff in my teens that seemed like the right thing to do, but has me rolling my eyes now.”

Ava’s head sunk to look at the floor. “It’s… it’s shameful.”

“Have you ever killed someone?” Hert asked. “If you haven’t, you have pretty minor troubles on your plate. I don’t know why you’re taking it so hard.”

Ava clenched her jaw and stalked on. Leon almost called out to her, but stopped. She had to deal with it in a way that suited her. And Hert was right. It wasn’t a big deal; not really. Teenage arrogance. But there had to be a reason why the floor decided to show this memory in particular. There must be a goal, but he couldn’t see why this part of Ava’s memory would show. What would show up for him?

They continued for a minute, and then the corridor suddenly widened into a round room. Along the left and right wall stood ten chests; five on each side. In front of them were stone stairs leading to a white marble arch filled with blue light, and twelve chains crossed over the opening. Two of them had fallen onto the floor, where they lay in piles.

“Which one should we start with?” Leon said.

“Probably doesn’t matter,” Hert said while Ava walked to the left.

She bent down to the first chest in the line, seemingly eager to open it, like all her worry from before had passed. It should have, really, considering they had only viewed a scolding, but still—it was another shift in how she behaved.

Hert patted Leon’s back. “Let’s see what the level wants to show us, Mr. Beat-em-all.”

“Are you ready?” Ava flicked the lid open before he could answer, and their reality changed once more.

They stood in an almost full reception area, where fake-Leon and Jane stood in black clothes and looked into an open coffin. Tears streamed down both of their faces, and Leon pulled Jane into a hug. His sister broke free from his grip and clenched her hands around the edge of the coffin, looking into their grandmother’s sunken face. Uncle Jerry stepped forward and lay his arms around their shoulders. His always unruly hair had been combed to submission with wax, but a small tip had risen at the back.

“She’s gone to a better place.”

It was weird to look at yourself from afar; knowing it was you, but wasn’t, even if he seemed to have transported into the real time and place.

Memory-Leon stepped away from his uncle. “I barely knew her.”

Uncle Jerry grabbed his shoulder. “I know she slept for so long, but you two were close. You should take this time to say goodbye. You’ll regret it if you don’t. Trust me.”

A pang went through Leon’s chest. Uncle Jerry… the loss seemed so long ago, but still so fresh.

Three wolves launched into the hall, uncaring about the people in the room and leaping through them. Like in a trance, Leon raised his sword. Two level four wolves, and one level five.

“But we don’t even know what she died from,” Memory-Leon said. “How can you sink into sleep for two years and be gone? Just… leaving us behind?”

The wolves sprang toward them, and Leon jumped to the side, landing a blow as he did.

Uncle Jerry sighed. “I suppose we’ll never know. The way of the world is a mystery, so we should appreciate every living moment.”

Leon turned his head toward Ava and Hert. “You can jump in and help at any time.”

Ava sprang forward, holding her staff in both hands. She swung it as a club when the wolves launched at them again and knocked one of the three to the side. Leon hit one of the others while the third pummeled into his body, making him lose his balance, but he kept standing.

A man with brown hair in a rented black suit came up to the siblings, holding his arm around a slim woman’s back.

“Jerry is right, you know.” His father patted Memory-Leon’s shoulder. “Life is supposed to be lived, and we should treasure it. Even when life has gone, it leaves something behind. Treasure the memories you have.” He released his arm from around his wife to pull Jane into a hug.

Hert stepped forward and swung his hammer in an upward motion, and a crack sounded from the beast’s jaw. Leon finished it with his sword.

“Goodbye, mother,” Leon’s mother whispered, leaning into the coffin to plant a kiss on the deceased’s forehead. Then she turned and wiped away a tear. “Don’t begrudge her for something she couldn’t change, Leon. Remember all the things you did together. You meant the world to her, like you do to me.”

Ava stepped back as the two wolves sprang toward her and Leon leaped forward. He took a hit on his leg, but the swing damaged the level five wolf badly enough that it should die from one more hit.

Memory-Leon hugged his mother and stepped up to the coffin. “Goodbye, grandma.” He frowned. “What is that red blotch on her forehead? Mom isn’t wearing lipstick.”

Hert kicked at the wolf, and it switched targets to him. He jumped back from the attack, holding his shield in front of him. The fangs hit the wood, but didn’t leave a mark. Leon ran forward and slashed into the wolf, which sagged down. Then he spun around with a swing, gracing the remaining wolf’s head. It dealt minor damage, but it was enough. It sank down.

Uncle Jerry stepped forward and looked at Leon’s grandmother. “Strange. One would think it would stop once the blood stopped circulating.” Then he cleared his throat. “It’s probably just a nick in the makeup. Let’s close the lid.”

His mother pulled the lid closed with Jerry’s help. “Rest well, mother.”

The reception hall faded and left them in the circular room again. The corridor they had entered from had melted into the walls, closing them inside.

“What was all that about?” Hert asked. “Kind of a boring memory.”

Leon nodded slowly. That time was when the severity of their disease had shown itself for the first time. They just hadn’t known it yet.

Ava hugged him. “You seem to have a lovely family. Is that why you fight so hard to get back?”

“… Yes.”

3 of 12 CHESTS OPENED

7 of 80 MONSTERS SLAIN

“Do you want to take a break?” Ava said, concern written across her face.

Leon sighed and looked at his fatigue. It had reached 54%. “No. Let’s do one more. With your help, we might be able to beat this floor.”

“Or die trying,” Hert muttered.