Well, what can I say? That was definitely unexpected. He didn't die from being stung to death like he thought. Nope, he died... from a skull.
In the black void, Hades stared blankly at the panel in front of him.
[You Died]
[Revive?]
[Y/N]
"…Seriously?"
He had no idea what just happened. One moment he was holding the skull, next thing he knew, he was here.
"Well, I guess I shouldn't be picking up random stuff off the ground… even a kid would know better," he sighed.
Shrugging off the whole death thing, he hit [Yes] without hesitation. Honestly, he was just hoping the respawn would drop him somewhere a little less... cursed.
This time, he respawned in a cave. There was no light except for the occasional blue glow from crystal-like formations embedded in the walls.
"Spawned in a cave? Damn." he muttered.
The ceiling was low, just slightly higher than an average adult. Jump, and you'd definitely crack your head. It was a bit more forgiving in width though, about three meters across. Small puddles dotted the uneven ground.
Without overthinking it, he started walking, curious to explore. Along the way, he used [Inspect] on anything that looked remotely interesting.
[Yellow Mana Crystal: A crystallized form of mana created by high mana concentration]
Hades rubbed his chin and muttered, "It says yellow mana, but it's clearly blue. Is Athena dumb or something?"
Even though he spoke softly, his voice echoed throughout the cave, bouncing off the stone walls. He tried pulling one of the crystals out, but it was lodged too deep in the rock. "Guess I'll just leave it for now," he shrugged.
Nothing escaped his inspection, rocks, more rocks, and, yep, even more rocks. He kept walking and inspecting everything he saw. After about an hour of this, the novelty started to wear off.
"Heyyy," he groaned, "I was having fun since, y'know, I haven't moved in years, but this is insane. It's been over an hour and nothing's changed."
Filled with frustration, he kicked a small rock lying on the ground. But then he froze. Cold sweat formed on his brow as a terrifying thought hit him. He died earlier just by picking up a skull, and he got chased by a swarm of hornets all because of a randomly thrown stone. He glanced nervously at the mana crystal nearby.
"I'm just glad that didn't kill me," he muttered, then shifted his gaze to the rock he'd just kicked. It was still rolling, gradually picking up speed. That's when he noticed for the first time, that the cave floor was sloped. He hadn't even realized.
"Phewww, I was really overthinking," he sighed, wiping his forehead. "First day and I'm already developing PTSD."
He touched his chin, thinking. "Hmmm, should I go down or turn back?" He could feel the fatigue setting in his legs were sore, his stomach growled, and his throat was parched. "Well, I've already walked for over an hour. If I go back, it'll take another hour just to return to where I started. Kinda feels like a waste of time."
He glanced down the path. "Luckily, this cave only has one direction to go. At least I won't get lost."
Continuing his very thrilling journey which so far had been mostly rocks, rocks, and a few mana crystals. Hades eventually lost track of time. He had no idea how long he'd been walking when he finally arrived at a massive cavern. Stalagmites rose from the ground and stalactites hung from the ceiling.
He slowed down and took a good look around. The walls were slightly damp, and the mana crystals here were noticeably larger than the ones he'd seen earlier. Still, no signs of life. No bats, no bugs, nothing. Just silence and the occasional drip of water.
The cavern had several paths branching off in different directions, but what really caught his eye was at the center. A strange formation that looked like a miniature volcano, about a meter tall. Only, instead of lava, the middle was filled with a glistening, mysterious liquid.
He stepped carefully toward the center and leaned in to take a closer look. At first glance, it looked just like water. Clear, still, and oddly calming. Curious, he used [Inspect].
[Liquid Mana: A concentrated form of mana. Can be used for crafting or as a magic source.]
"Wowww, this seems like it's pretty valuable," he muttered. "Would be nice if I could just scoop some up and sell it. Or maybe use it for myself later on."
He opened his inventory and tried to store the liquid, but it wouldn't let him. Turns out, you can't just shove loose liquid into your inventory, you actually need a container. "So the inventory isn't omnipotent after all," he sighed. "Where am I supposed to find a bucket in a cave?"
He stood up, brushing off his knees. "Well, I should probably find an exit first. No point carrying mana if I can't even get out of here alive."
He glanced up toward one of the cave paths that looked like it sloped upward, maybe an exit? With hope, he headed in that direction.
But surprise, surprise... it was a dead end.
With a heavy sigh, he turned back, retracing his steps to the main cavern. When he got there, he picked up a few rocks and arranged them in a straight line near the entrance of the path. "Guess I'll need some kind of system," he muttered. "Don't want to keep going in circles."
This little ritual repeated itself more than a few times. Every hopeful tunnel led to yet another dead end. And now, the creeping hunger and thirst he initially brushed off were becoming impossible to ignore. The sensations were so realistic, it felt no different than real life. And no, there was no option to mute them or turn it off in the settings either.
Eventually, tired and frustrated, he found himself standing in front of the glowing basin once again, staring at the shimmering Liquid Mana.
"…It's either death by starvation or trying my luck with this magical cave juice."
"On second thought, I'm just gonna try my luck a couple more times. I'll probably die from some weird virus or something. Might even cause an outbreak drinking from random water," he muttered, picking another path that didn't have his stone markings.
"Haysst... should've expected it," he sighed, staring at yet another dead-end cave.
He was about to turn back when he noticed a small puddle off to the side. At first, he wasn't going to bother with it.
Until...
He suddenly heard a splash. Looking closer, he spotted a fish nearly blending in with the stones. With the dark cave and its camo-like skin, no wonder he didn't notice it right away.
He wondered where the fish came from, then noticed a few small holes in the stone. That's probably how it got in. But now, it looked like it was struggling to find its way back.
"Great, looks like I won't starve after all," he said, inching closer to the puddle, doing his best not to startle it.
Then, with a quick swoop, he went in for the grab. The fish panicked and thrashed, smacking his hand with its caudal fin. Which, to his surprise, actually packed a punch.
"What the fuck! That hurts!" he yelled, yanking his hand back. It was bleeding badly. He could even see a bit of bone poking out. Cold sweat ran down his face.
"Should I lower the pain settings? ...Nah, that'd kill the immersion. Keep it at full," he muttered through gritted teeth, glaring at the fish like it was his archenemy.
"I'm not letting my dinner get away. Not after that." He didn't even know what time it is but that wouldn't matter.
Steeling himself, he dove back in, this time not to grab, but to punch. To his shock, the damn fish punched back... Well using its fins of course.
After going back and forth, he was out of breath. His stomach growled, both arms were bleeding, and he even had a small cut on his cheek. The fish wasn't doing much better, it had lost the energy it started with.
He had tried yanking it out earlier, hoping it'd just flop around and die, but it had been too slippery, too fast.
Now though, running on pure adrenaline, he reached out with his bloodied hands. The fish, slower now, couldn't dodge. He managed to grab it and fling it out of the water. It flopped around for a bit, but without water, it eventually stopped moving.
Hades was completely spent. He dropped to the ground, panting hard. Maybe being bedridden for years had turned him into a bit of a masochist, because despite all the pain and exhaustion, he was grinning from ear to ear.
With his scarred body, bloody hands, long messy hair, and a smile plastered on his face, he honestly looked like a total creep. Good thing no one else was around to see him.
Suddenly,
[Exp+++]
[Level Up!]
[Level 17]
"What the heck? Was it that easy to level up?" he muttered, staring at his panel, completely dumbfounded.