The crimson glow faded, and darkness swallowed me whole.
Then came an ominous silence.
My brigand instincts hiss, “Run!”
I snap back, “Enough!” They must not find us…
At last, the lurking dungeon exhales — its minions howl in impotent rage somewhere in the distance. I break into a smile — dodged it!
They call me Lucky Adam for a reason. I alone had heeded our wolf’s warning and plunged into a fetid pond on a gut feeling.
A heartbeat later, the beast was consumed by a forked tongue of blue flame that erupted from around the corner. The fire then whipped toward the petrified adventurers, only to dissolve before their eyes. The moment they exhaled, the serpent itself followed, having sniffed out life.
Neither anti-magic amulets, nor resistance spells, nor even our warriors’ heavy armor made any difference — my best-ever party of seven was incinerated. And the river of fire roared past, leaving behind molten pools and suffocating vapors.
Never had I witnessed such devastating magic. Was it a demon pursuing us?
Then a chilling realization strikes me — I could have seen neither the spell nor its aftermath! I was drifting away underwater…
Have they found me? Is my mind no longer my own?
I listen inward — no, my thoughts are still clear. Yet an elusive presence swirls around me, drawing closer. I pretend to be dead, but in vain. It seeps into my hideout, then coalesces into a cold, measured voice in my head:
“Didn’t I tell you to bypass the outpost?”
It can’t be…
“Didn’t I warn you, Adam?”
Damn you, wizard! So he’d been watching us all along!
“What have you done, you vainglorious fool?”
I have nothing to say — and he won’t shut up.
I try to force him out of my head, but our thoughts begin to bleed together, until I can no longer tell what’s real and what’s been planted. Yet one truth stands unquestioned:
“… Beware! This dungeon is the deadliest battlefield in existence — born of the Collision that draws creatures from worlds afar into its depths…”
Now the footsteps outside echo in an unnatural pattern. How can they not see me? Oh, right — the wizard’s mind games.
“Get up already!” His voice cuts through the haze — sharp and commanding. “Now!”
I try to rise, but my body won’t obey. Battlefield, you said? More like a graveyard…
But you know what, damn wizard? I’ll make this dungeon bleed!
Take my memories — hidden stashes, secret routes, every trick that kept me alive — and make them count!
Turn the page to Adventurers: The Beginning (Chapter 1)