The force of the portal made my body glitch. After a few minutes—which felt like a decade—my boots hit solid ground, my vision was blurry. It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to the bright light outside the portal, I glanced back. It had vanished without a sound.
("You have entered Etopea: Planet.")
I let out a deep breath and scanned the surroundings. It looked... normal, I expected creepy trees, dark clouds, maybe a crimson-red moon. But no—my assumptions were off. The sky was bright blue, the sun above blazed with heat, clouds were white as snow, and tall trees stretched wide around the little plain I stood on.
("Warning: Vital signs indicate elevated cardiovascular activity, esteemed user.")
The voice suddenly echoed in my head, then vanished like it was never there.
In a calm tone, I asked, "Do you just speak, or are you actually useful?"
("Awaiting your esteemed command, so that I may fulfill my designated function.")
I narrowed my eyebrows. "Oh? Then tell me how to clear this floor."
("Primary objective: Initiate and complete loop termination protocol to successfully clear Floor 1: Etopea.")
"What loop?"
("Information unavailable.")
I sighed, "Okay... guess I'll find it myself."
I glanced around, unsure which direction to take. Exhaling, I headed toward the forest, nothing could be seen beyond the trees. As I stepped into the dense woodland, the ground felt damp beneath my boots. I crouched down and pinched a bit of soil between my fingers—it was clay, just as I expected. That explained the overly tall trees, i scanned the area.
"If I'm right... there should be a river nearby."
I looked around. All the trees looked the same. I lifted my head and glanced at the sun—it was low but climbing, still hanging in the eastern region, but I wasn't sure. I turned my wrist, my watch had stopped moving.
"If it's still in the east it should be around six to eight a.m." I muttered.
"System, tell me where I am."
No response.
After a minute of silence, I gave up and surveyed the ground. A small, shallow pool nestled between some tree roots—it was still, perfect, I crouched beside it and pulled out a needle from the pouch in my boot. Rubbing it against my sleeve in one direction, I murmured, "Thirty times should be enough."
I plucked a flat leaf from a nearby plant and gently laid it on the surface. Slowly, I placed the needle across it. A few seconds passed, the leaf shifted slightly… but the needle began spinning—never pointing in a single direction.
I crouched lower, narrowing my eyes.
"Tch. Seems like this place has no direction."
I thrusted my daggers into the tree beside me, seized the closest branch, and hoisted myself up. Every movement was measured as I climbed, careful with each branch I held.
Once I climbed high enough, I scanned the area. In the distance, a narrow path came into view. I climbed down without wasting time and made my way toward it.
Crossing over fallen tree trunks, I stopped at the forest's edge, near the path. A group of humans stood gathered around a carriage, which carried cages. One of them, a man with a thick sword strapped to his back and a scar running across both cheeks, stared in my direction. I quickly ducked behind the trees. Something about the way they looked and the Cages told me something was off.
I listened to them intently.
"Please! Let me go!"
"Shut up, you piece of shit beastkin."
"Oi, close that mouth. No one's saving you from us," another voice snapped.
"Leader, what should we do with the other woman? She's badly injured."
"Just toss her somewhere, damaged goods aren't worth anything. But before that, we'll have some fun, tie her up against the cage for now."
I carefully peeked out. The cage was large enough to hold several people. A man came into view, hair tied up, dragging a woman by her hair. She looked like she was in her mid-twenties, with long white hair and fox ears.
That must be a beastkin.
Same filth like my world, trafficking.
My first mission in the military was to gun down slave traders. I hated those bastards—doing something so disgusting and inhuman act for money. I had trailed them for two days, holding back, until I lost my patience. One of them killed a woman right in front of me. I was still learning how to control my emotions back then. But now thing's were different.
("New Quest: Save the beastkin from the slave traders. Rewards will be granted accordingly.")
This thing pops out of anywhere.
("New Quest: Save the beastkin.")
("Optional: Player may reject the quest.")
("Completion Rewards: Random item drop and Elen Tower Coins.")
I thought, examining—what would be more profitable? Take the risk or not?
I calmly observed the slave traders, quickly counting their numbers, five of them.
I pondered my head for a few minutes, fighting my urge to help or just walk off. But the rewards looked like they could help me going forward.
Alright, I'll do it. I came to the conclusion without thinking much longer.
I'll need a plan. Even though I knew I could kill them, they still outnumbered me, which was a disadvantage.
I ran through my options and came to a decision.
I decided to trail them. The carriage began moving, drawn by three tightly harnessed horses at the front. But moving quickly through the ground wasn't easy—the trees stood close together, and the terrain shifted subtly the farther the carriage went.
Almost two hours passed, evening had already settled in; time seemed to flow differently here. I quietly hid behind a large boulder, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.