The realm of the Well turned out to be quite real, and very very large. Dallion spent hours walking in the direction of the large mountains before it became obvious that it would take weeks, if not months, to reach them. If there was a way to escape this place, that wasn’t it. Apparently, the village chief hadn’t lied when he had said that the only way to exit was to defeat the guardian… or fail trying.

“Kill the monsters, defeat the guardian,” Dallion said. His football coach in high school had said that shouting your goals out loud was already half a victory. The only thing that Dallion felt right now was stupid. Even so, there was a sense of wonder in the air. Being in a new world gave off a sense of adventure, just like the first time he’d gone to a mall, or a retro-arcade. There was something magical about the newness of everything. It was as if the reality hadn’t had a chance to age yet.

Reaching down, Dallion picked up a stone and tried to awaken it. Nothing happened. It seemed that only one awakening was possible at a time.

Kill the monsters, the boy thought.

Despite his heightened perception, he wasn’t able to see any of the creatures the village elder had mentioned. At the same time, he could sense that they were there, hiding out of view.

“Kill the monsters,’ defeat the guardian,” the boy said again. “How hard could it be?”

Adjusting his buckler, the boy started the long trip to the central mountain. The time he had wasted searching a way out had its effect. By the time he had reached the foot of the mountain, the sun had already set. With night came cold and a sense of fear. So far there hadn’t been either sight or sign of any creature. From what little Dallion knew about wildlife, that suggested the creatures to be nocturnal, which meant he needed to set up a fire for the night. The only problem was that other than stone and water, there was nothing else in this world, not even a piece of moss. Undoubtedly there probably was a chapter in some old scout’s book describing how to ensure shelter in similar circumstances. Since Dallion didn’t know it, he did the only thing he could come up with—huddle up against a solid wall of rock, sword in one hand, buckler covering up as much of his body as possible.

Fear gave way to cold, which gave way to calm, and finally drowsiness. After what seemed like an eternity, Dallion dozed off. As he did, the sound of running water slowly changed into a rhythmic dripping. The sequence was familiar… very close to that nightcore song that played non-stop at campus. It was one of the last songs he remembered before waking up in this world. Or had he awakened?

The boy could almost hear the melody ring in the distance, he could almost hear the laughter of his friends, smell the alcohol and vape smoke. All he had to do was open his eyes and—

A loud roar ripped the mental image in Dallion’s mind. His reflexes acted on his own, jolting him up to his feet. The dozens of hours spent training had had an effect, making Dallion swerve just as the green and red combat markers appeared. Like a blader doing a seven-twenty spin, he evaded the attack then continued the action, landing a slicing attack in the creature’s torso.

Realm section mended!

Overall completion 3%

The creature let out a blood freezing scream. In the darkness it was little more than a black animal-like silhouette. While the attack had sliced the beast in two, causing it to disappear in a puff of smoke, Dallion still had no idea what it was. One thing was for certain, though—if there was one, there would be more.

So much for a quiet night’s rest, the boy grumbled mentally.

Three percent mended… That meant there were at least thirty more creatures he had to defeat. Of course, that assumed that the realm completion level had been zero before. Thinking about it, Dallion quickly came to the conclusion that he had found one more reason to hate calculus.

“As they say, when life gives you lemons…” he shouted to give himself a boost of courage. “Squeeze them in life’s eyes. Time to do some mending!” he charged out of his “shelter” and into the open.

The clouds had broken just enough to let the blue moon’s rays cover most of the mountain. Normally, Dallion would consider the view inspiring, maybe even suitable for a date. A dozen panther shapes further up the mountain made him revise his estimates.

Dallion gritted his teeth. Nearly every strategic advice guide he’d seen, from the somewhat serious to the outright memes, was adamant that they who had the high ground would be victorious. Dallion didn’t have it, so his only chance was to get it.

The boy took a deep breath and charged forward. The moment he did, red markers appeared, giving him several attack options. The logical choice was to attack the nearest creature, so Dallion took it.

Sensing him, the three nearest panthers rushed down. One leapt directly in the direction of the boy.

The red footsteps turned red and green. The markers shifted. Dallion barely had to glance at them while raising his buckler. His advantage in speed allowed him to greet the creature’s claws with ease, the improvement in body helped him stand his ground, and his newly developed skills…

COMBINATION ATTACK

Dealt damage increased by 200%

COMBINATION ATTACK

Dealt damage increased by 200%

COMBINATION ATTACK

Dealt damage increased by 200%

Two more beasts had joined in shortly after the first, all three had been easily dispatched with such ease that Dallion almost felt bad for the creatures. The panthers must have felt the same, for they no longer charged at him one by one, instead gathering into one growling pack. In the moonlight, over a dozen of them were visible like shapes of black ink.

Realm section mended!

Overall completion 9%

“So, each of you is two percent.” Dallion smiled. Red markers filled the air.