Danger. What is danger? Is it something you can avoid if you’re cautious enough? Is it the result of your rashness or indecision? Or is it dictated by fate?

Fear. What is fear? Is it a selfish desire to protect something you own? Your body, money, future, or life? Or is there more behind the paleness and the goosebumps?

My heart was starting to palpitate faster than ever before, and I realized that I could no longer keep my calm. I was throwing myself into danger, into the clutch of peril. And paradoxically, fear itself was the reason. My hair was standing on end, and a chill ran down my spine. I was afraid for another human life, and I was scrambling to protect her.

Was she someone important to me? No, I barely knew her; in fact, this was the first time I saw her. She was another adventurer, one of the hundreds who entered the labyrinths in search of wealth and fame—one of the hundreds who didn’t know how to use their weapons but chose to explore the endless mazes. An amateur. A girl with a death wish. I couldn’t call her anything else.

She was around my age or a year younger. Her hair was the color of a golden wheat field, and her clothes were more somber than a widow’s. I assumed that she was aiming for stealth, but her hair’s luster was bound to ruin her camouflage. It reflected the faint light of the crystals and minerals that lined the walls, and this soft reflection was enough for the lurking monsters to detect her.

The moment I entered the cavern where she was—the unnerving sound of water droplets in the background—I saw the consequences of her oversight. She was attacked by a Laikos, a three-eyed wolf, ten feet tall when it stood upright. It was an Aberration, a monster born after a demon invaded the body of an animal. It meant trouble for someone like her.

“Run away, quickly!” I shouted. “You can’t beat it alone!”

But it was useless to warn her. She brandished her short sword, screaming as if she could have scared the nightmare away. But nothing could frighten off a Laikos. Her aimless struggle was ended by a single roar. Shocked by the noise, she tripped, dropped her sword, and covered her ears.

It was then that I felt the fear. It was then that I rushed voluntarily into danger. I dropped the bags full of today’s loot, lit a weak torch, and drew my sword. I felt as if I had been under a charm or a spell, compelled to protect her from the skulking Grim Reaper. Before the monstrous claws could tear her face, I had placed my sword in their way.

“It’s time to back off, you overgrown wolf,” I smiled, trying to appear in control. But the Laikos roared, showing its gruesome canines and carnassials, and I realized that I couldn’t hold it back for much longer. I needed the girl to get out of its way, so I said, “Get up! You need to run to safety. I’ll keep it busy.”

Luckily, she didn’t cower behind me for long. She responded to my words and bounced back to her feet, balancing herself quite well for someone in such a desperate situation. Then she ran toward the entrance of the cavern. It was the right decision.

Now that I’ve got some space, it’s time to get rid of you, big guy.

I backed a step away, and the Laikos charged at me. It had been a while since I faced an Aberration this intimidating, but I remembered the combat techniques needed to counter its moves. They were built into me, ingrained along with everything that the Exploration Guild had taught me. I absorbed the monster’s charge with my sword, then slashed the side of its body with a quick advance.

This should’ve dealt some damage.

I grinned, but a snarl from the injured beast told me that it was too early to celebrate. One slash wasn’t enough. The Laikos was still standing. The light of my torch died, and its three eyes glared in the dark.

Before it charged at me again, I removed throwing knives from my belt. There’s no time to light another torch. If I blind the Laikos, I will carry the win. But its eyeballs fetch a good price… I hesitated for a second before I remembered that the girl was still in danger. Since someone else’s life was on the line, I decided that I needed to play it safe.

I aimed for the eyes that shone in the darkness and released my throwing knives. The Laikos cried in pain, and I charged at it with my sword. It sensed my movements and thrashed around blindly, but I slipped through its attacks like a slime and stabbed it in the chest. With another roar, it fell to its knees and then lay on the ground. Its body began to turn into dust, and black fumes rose in the air. The fight was over.

“The labyrinth is not a place for amateurs,” I said to the girl, whom I assumed was somewhere in the dark.

I knelt down to check the remains of the Laikos. The eyes and ears (the most expensive alchemic ingredients) couldn’t be salvaged, but some of the teeth were still intact. If I removed them from the corpse now, they wouldn’t turn into dust.

“I would’ve told you to visit the guild and register for training. But I guess it’s too late for that... Anyway, you shouldn’t wander alone again. What were you doing in this cavern?”

I didn’t hear a reply as I struggled to pull out the Laikos’s teeth. Was she still shocked or upset? She did seem like a sensitive girl. Her long blond hair was paired with an innocent round face. I had glanced only once at it, but it was very memorable. It was clear that she wasn’t just an adventurer; perhaps she was a nobleman’s daughter who had gone rogue.

She managed to collect herself and escape the danger, so she has some potential. I left the Laikos’s teeth and sprung to my feet. I’ve been looking for someone to work with, and isn’t this a chance? I’ll keep her safe, and she’ll help me carry back more items. No, no, no, she’ll never agree after I lectured her. But... I did save her life, so maybe I can ask her to help me only today.

“I’m sorry. I know this is a bit sudden, but…” I turned around, but there was no one in the cavern, not even her silhouette in the dark. “Hello?” Did she run off somewhere? I walked to the cavern’s entrance and said, “Hello? The Laikos is dead. I’m not lying, I swear.”

A realization hit me. I stopped calling for the girl and looked around me. I even lit another torch. Then I was sure. My bags were gone. All the items and valuables that I had gathered throughout the day disappeared. My mouth hung open, and I dropped my sword. The words of my teacher echoed in my head. They were part of the first lesson I was taught at the guild.

“Listen, Lance. Rule number one: don’t trust anyone you meet inside the labyrinths, even if it’s an angel from heaven, even if it’s a long-lost friend. Only amateurs, or idiots, go around trusting everyone.”