The Final Hunt

“Praises to you. You have succeeded in reaching the fifty second floor landmark.”

Standing amidst a grotesquely dark natural garden, full of rotten plants that hold laughing skull bones as their flower buds, and large rocks with hundreds of carvings that resemble crying human faces, the four of us are greeted by the fifty second floor’s guardian. However, unlike the previous, this guardian holds no book at its feet.

“The nestling, Nehman Ho. You have no prior authorization to enter this floor. Please state your reasoning for this violation. Your punishment will be executed shortly after, before you can be allowed to take the trial.”

“I had a feeling that would be the case,” I groan loudly, while still making sure to avoid eye contact with the floor guardian, “Listen, I don’t know what happened, or how it happened. I just remember meeting someone, and ending up here after a bright light confined me.” I finish while scratching the back of my head.

“What is the name of the person you claim to have met?”

My motion stops, before I stare blankly towards the black flame trapped inside the mirror-head of the floor guardian. However, unlike what happened with the sixty sixth floor guardian, my body feels fine, allowing me to be able to speak directly to the figure before me without shying away.

This one seems a bit less godlike than the other guardians I met, doesn’t it?

“...Nakai Shinji. His name is Nakai Shinji.”

The floor guardian remains silent.

“Why so quiet?” I follow up, baiting for an answer as I approach the guardian slowly.

However, the guardian ignores my question.

“Recorded.”

“Chen Xi. Although you have prior authorization to enter on this floor, you also have no current authorization to enter this floor. Please state your reasoning for this violation. Your punishment will be executed shortly after.”

Chen points towards me with a worn out expression, “Ask him. Whatever reason he ended up here is probably why I also randomly ended up here.”

“Recorded.”

“Lennon Wanes. Natalie Varquez. Access has been granted-”

“That won’t do!” I loudly interrupt, waving my hands in the air, “I can’t let my new possessions be taken from me like this.”

I glare directly towards the floor guardian, “I won’t let that happen…not ever again.”

“Did you just call us your…possessions?” Lennon asks as he looks towards me with a confused expression, “I thought this was a partnership? Like a new party of-”

“Quiet!” I say as I point my index finger towards Lennon, before moving it towards the guardian, “Why should I be punished for something I had no control of? What violation have I committed in being sent to this place against my will? If anything…you as the floor guardians are the ones that should take responsibility for this,”

“Bro!” Lennon shouts, “Enough! Do you even know what you’re saying right now?!”

“Just shut up and let him speak, Lennon,” Natalie interjects, as she continues to stare towards me with a pair of blushing cheeks. She then mutters quietly, but enough to catch my ear, “If being his property is what it takes to finally escape from this place and reach Pandora, then so be it.”

I ignore the two of them and continue on, “The floor guardians should be the only ones allowed to advocate for who can and who cannot move through the floors. Even the Tori must obey that law.”

“Yet,” my voice deepens, “You’ve allowed a lone man to overextend his power to the point he goes beyond even your greatest strength, and your sole mission; leaving you as the ones viable to this so called punishment. So I ask you again…why should I be punished for something I had no control of…and you should have had control of, but didn’t?”

The floor guardian remains silent as I stand directly in front of it, not willing to budge from my position. As I look down to the guardian’s empty feet, a grin then appears across my face.

“Or perhaps the better question is…where is your book?”

The guardian turns its face a hundred and eighty degrees, as if hiding the content of the flames trapped inside the mirror from me. The small laughing skulls that act as the flower buds of the surrounding garden, along with all the crying human faces carved into the rocks, then turn to face me directly.

“It was taken from us by Nakai Shinji, and we have been unable to retrieve it back ever since,” the faces and bones all speak out simultaneously, “Because of that, everyone that attempts this floor’s trial, whether or not they have succeeded or not, will be trapped taking that trial for eternity.”

After a brief moment of contemplating the information, I begin to laugh out loud, putting everyone else off as my laughter becomes overbearing for them.

“I see,” I say as I wipe a tear from my eye, “So that’s how he was able to send us here. He knows that this floor’s trial would also force me to be stuck in it forever, getting rid of me without having to lift a finger.”

An extremely sinister grin escapes me yet again, “It seems even the great Nakai Shinji fears me.”

“So what are you going to do now?” Chen asks after kissing her teeth, “Your plan to find him and his group goes out the window if you can’t keep climbing the place. May as well give up,”

I turn to Chen with a cheeky smile, “I’m surprised. I would have expected you to become adamant about me taking the trial. If I take the trial, and wound up there forever, won’t you be free from me?”

Chen squeezes her face, “Huh? Are you really that much of a fool? Every time you take damage in there, I’ll feel it, and the stupid mark you fixed on me will force my body to heal yours in exchange.”

Chen places her hands on her hips, and shakes her head aggressively as she continues to look down to the garden’s floor, “If there was a way to escape from you since what you did to me, I would have found it by now. But if you die, I turn into a stick, and that’s it for me.” Chen raises her head to look at me, now that the guardian’s mirror face is no longer in range of her vision, “I guess I really am stuck with you for good now…until you go and get yourself killed at least.”

“In other words, the value you have for your life trumps the hatred you have for me. Glad to know.” I respond cheekily.

After staring at Chen for a brief moment, I glance over towards the other two.

Unlike Chen, they have no genuine reason to follow me along with this hunting plan I fixed up.

It’s a good thing I promised to kill them where they stood if they tried to reject me.

Though, I’m sure that’s not the only reason they went along with it.

“Guardian,” I say as I turn to face the back of the guardian, “Are you allowed to disclose information of another human’s whereabouts?”

“Such matters do not fall under our discretion,” the skull bones and carved faces respond, “However, we can attempt to contact the creator about your inquisition.”

“The creator?” Lennon jumps as he looks towards Chen, then Natalie, and finally realizes that it is alright for him to lift his head towards the guardian as well, “You mean Pandora?”

“Yes. The creator is known by the name Pandora.”

“Go ahead,” I persist, “I would also like to know what happened to the individual Tori I should have been seeing in the lower floors, who all apparently fled towards the higher floors in a hurry.”

“Recorded. Allow us to proceed.”

The floor guardian begins to turn to face us once again, causing Chen, Natalie, and Lennon to quickly deflect their visions away. However, I remain focused on the black flame I am seeing within the mirror-like face of the guardian.

…magnificent.

Suddenly, black liquid begins to trickle down from the top of the mirror-head of the floor guardian, eventually leading the entire mirror-head to become drenched in the substance. As it happens, the vision of black liquid, most likely Tori blood, begins to morph at the center of the mirror-head, until a divine appearance of both light and darkness radiates, swallowing my eyes whole in the process.

Chen screams, as her eyes also appear to have suffered the same fate. But slowly but surely, due to the power within her, she is slowly able to heal herself, therefore healing me. As my eyes return to my eye sockets, I smile confidently.

“Pandora. How nice it is to meet you. Although, it's unfortunate that I am unable to see you in all your glory.”

The divine presence says nothing for a brief moment, creating an awkward moment of silence for everyone present.

“...Nehman Ho…” The divine presence finally says with a soft voice, “What business do you have with me while still on the fifty second floor?...”

“Apologies, your excellence. I simply have a few inquiries. And perhaps even an offer, if you are willing to hear me out.”

“...an offer?”

“As you probably are already aware of, I was thrust into this strange place not too long ago. You have probably tried to kill me numerous times, sending some of your precious Tori to kill me time and time again. Yet, here I am. I’ve made it this long, without dying even once. That’s got to be some kind of record, don’t you think?”

Pandora ignores my remarks.

“But the thing is, it seems that your precious Tori are moving a bit…strangely, down here. If you don’t mind my asking…I would like to ask why that is?”

“...what do you wish to gain from knowing the answer to that question?”

“I don’t know! Perhaps I am simply being overconfident, but see, I would have expected a better challenge from the likes of you. I should have gone through thousands of the things by now, so all I’m wondering is…where has my prey gone?”

“...Nehman Ho. You are a shrewd man, indeed.”

“Oh, you flatter me.”

“...very well. The answer you are looking for, is that they have all fled to the highest floor. If you are seeking why, then please take up your own challenge, and find out for yourself.”

“Mhm. And what about Nakai Shinji?”

“...what about him?”

“...what is he?”

“...a man.”

“No, I mean, what is he, compared to others? What is he to this place, that he is given reign where he also should be suffering? What is he…”

“...to me?”

“...right.”

“...that’s simple enough. He is the reason for my existence. Without him, this world would not exist.”

“Wait. So you’re saying…in other words…”

“...that is correct. Nakai Shinji is the first man to have arrived in this place.”

“So this power that he has…he’s equivalent to you? He’s like the co-creator of this place?”

“...no. This world was created in order to house Nakai Shinji, specifically.”

“...then why are others also here? Christoph, Chen, Zedak, Kedaz, Lennon…me. Why did we all get pulled in here?”

“...Nakai Shinji. He is the one that pulled you all in.”

“So that damn bastard decided to isekai random people from the world just to make his own a little bit more fun? Is this some kind of joke?”

“...it is not.”

I grab hold of the edges of the mirror-head, enraged.

“Everything I built! Everything I worked so hard for throughout my life to achieve! You’re telling me that bastard pulled me away from it all, on a whim?!”

Pandora remains silent. My chest begins to tighten.

“I’ve got a son waiting for me at home! I’ve got people employed by me that have mouths to feed!”

My chest begins to tighten.

“Tell that bastard I’m coming for his head, and will make it a centerpiece of the mansion in my own heaven after I reach you at the top!”

“I hear you, loud and clear, Mr. Ho.”

I jump back, shocked by the familiar voice suddenly intruding on the conversation at hand.

“Shinji!” I grit out from my teeth, while smiling bitterly.

“I notice that you have acquired your own party of four, now. You sure work fast,”

“How did you get in this call?! Where the hell did you flee to?!”

Nakai Shinji laughs, “You have an interesting way of trying to provoke people. But that isn’t something that can work on me.”

An aggressive grin appears across my face, “Why are you so sure? You were scared enough to place me on this specific floor, knowing the ‘trial trap’ that it possesses. So let’s try not to act so high and mighty, Shinji, dear,”

“It is nothing but a challenge, my friend. All of my subordinates await you and your friends, across each of the three trials I set. First, you will face-”

“I don’t give a damn who you set first, second or third, so save your breath.”

“You will face Bo, who’s itching to play with you, just as he did last time. Please be sure to take care of your ears this time, Mr. Ho. I won’t be there to save them this time.”

“Looks like someone else likes to play the provoking game,” I respond while smiling cheekily.

“Of course, Bo also has acquired one of your former marks for himself, so be sure to be careful. He’s a tricky one.”

My left eye flares up, and I lick my lips in anticipation, “Perhaps you aren’t so bad after all…granting me a gift like this,”

Nakai Shinji chuckles, “There goes that confidence of yours again. Or, I believe a better term for it would be…your obsession.”

“Call it whatever you want. It’s given me the world, and now it's going to give me yours.”

“...I look forward to your effort.”

“Don’t just try to leave all nonchalantly like that! Where are you?”

“Haha, apologies. I thought it to be obvious. After you clear all three challenges across three random floors of my choosing, you will be transported to the first floor, where I am currently situated.”

“So not only do you fear the one-on-one, and send your minions to do the dirty work for you, but you are also just going to wait comfortably for me to push my way through and come kick your ass? Is that what you're saying?”

“Don’t you worry. Even with no other new puppets to play with, there are still plenty of Tori up here to keep me company. And I’m sure that soon, you will too.”

“I don’t understand. What do you mean by that?”

“...oh? Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed by now? The lack of safe zones?…the lack of fresh faces?…”

My focused expression begins to morph into that of one that just realized details were missed throughout the time spent here.

“Safe zones are areas where white feathers are gathered, in which monsters never roam.” The overly kind woman leans in to add, “They spawn randomly for a few hours after every death zone, where we just rescued you from. In other words, after every newbie is spawned.”

“Whenever we venture out, we always make sure to have a recovery point. Normally that would be a safe zone of white feathers, or a nest to be exact. There haven’t been any safe zones lately, which is odd enough. But you, yourself, seemed to be a good recovery point, since Tori typically don’t seem to appear near this specific area anymore.”

A concerned expression appears across my face, “...don’t tell me,”

“Mr. Ho…you are the last person to have arrived in this place…”

***

As the four of us all enter the trial that Nakai Shinji has set for us, we all look up to see an enormous red and black dome surrounding our heads, with Bo standing atop a tightrope that stretches from the area near the top of the dome, to the area at the bottom of the dome where the four of us are situated. All around the dome are markings like graffiti, splattered with grotesque drawings of people being tortured and slaughtered against their will.

…those graffiti must have been real people.

Within the dome lay hundreds of sets of torture machines, all hailing from the medieval times to the twentieth century. Cackling laughter can be heard coming from all directions of the dome, imitating that of the laughing bones that greeted all of us that were pulled into this world. Four decapitated horses trot around the large area of the dome surrounding us in the center, carrying around massive scoreboards with the words LAUGH POINTS written at the top of them, and each of our names at the bottom.

“The dragon’s head has arrived!” Bo screams aloud, as he claps three times in quick succession, “I’m not sure what generation you are from, but we have been waiting for you a long time, Mr. Ho.”

“I definitely did not apply for all this!” Lennon screams as he pulls my collar, “You said a hunt is what we’re going on! The way it's looking, we are the ones being hunted!”

With a swift overhand hook, I knock Lennon down, pulling him off my collar, “Get off me.”

Lennon stumbles, until his right foot stumbles onto the last end of the rope that is attached to the area directly in front of us. As his right foot makes contact with the rope, Lennon implodes in the same manner that Christoph, Zedak and Kedaz had done.

Bo begins to laugh so hard that he clutches his belly, and Lennon’s scoreboard explodes as soon as the number rises to 10,000.

Natalie remains quiet, but her heartbeat could even be heard without having to make contact with her chest. My eyes flare up, both in shock and rage. Chen steps back calmly, with her arms remaining folded.

“W-w-what generation are you from, if we may ask?” Natalie shouts out, shaking tremendously, “You’re speaking like you’ve been here for a loooong time, haha.”

I guess she really can adapt to anything.

“I most certainly have,” Bo responds while tilting his head to the side and sticking his right index finger against his bottom lip, “I was a renowned jester during my time in the previous world.”

“Then how did you end up here?” Natalie asks, “And why do you serve…him?”

“No biggie really,” Bo says as he tilts his head to the other side, “I’m sure he pulled me in here like the rest of you because he wanted to meet me in the flesh. It’s just…he’s the only one that truly acknowledged my work. He even said he’s a fan of mine. Nobody has ever been so kind to me the way he has, and encouraged me like he has. I love him. Like a son would his father, you know? I never really got along with my real father. Or even my mother.”

Bo begins to bite his nails, “I never really got along with anybody really. But I wanted to. I really really did. That’s why I decided that I would do everything I could to make them laugh, and became a jester! It was so fun, doing stupid tricks and telling stupid jokes all the time.”

Even in meeting him before, I never realized how much this guy loves to talk about himself.

“But isn’t it strange? They almost never laughed. It’s like something was wrong with them. So I thought, maybe their funny bones were broken? I had to check, you know, something like that is a serious problem to have. But when I did, the funny bones were perfectly fine. It was weird, you know? Like what could be the problem? Then something strange happened. They were all, you know…crying. Screaming. All types of strange calls that made no sense to me. I never remembered hearing them before…except for maybe from my mom a few times because of my dad? Strange, right? But for some reason…even after every time my mom would cry out like that…I found myself laughing. Isn’t that funny?”

Natalie’s face appears grossed out as soon as I glance over to see her reaction, “...what?” she asks, extremely carefully.

“They were screaming and screaming, like ‘ah, my arm!’ and then ‘ah, my leg!’ I didn’t really get it at first, but I just found myself laughing harder and harder, you know. And that’s when it hit me…a true jester’s job isn’t to make someone laugh…it’s to make it so that others make them laugh!”

“It was a true revelation! One that I carried out faithfully!” Bo screams as he lifts his hands into the air, “Until…one day, they said I had to retire. I guess I shouldn’t have tried to use the princess of the kingdom to make me laugh. She really was funny though. I’ve never heard such wonderful screams before, you know.”

“I’m gonna be sick,” Natalie mutters quietly as she covers her mouth.

“But then, just as they were about to force me to retire from my job as a jester…he appeared! He wrapped me in a warm hug, and told me that I’d be free to continue my profession for as long as I wish! I was elated! To think my work had even been recognized to such a degree by a god! I am so grateful to the boss! You know?”

“No, I don’t know,” I yell out, while cleaning out my ears, “Now if you’re done rambling, can we get this over with. I got a date on the first floor that I can’t afford to miss.”

Bo grins deviously, “Unfortunately for you, Mr. Ho, that date will belong to me…as soon as I blow your head off and toss it into the boss’ collection.”

I return his grin with a sinister one of my own, “Right…I almost forgot. I owe you a little date of our own…after you were so courteous with me when we first met.”

Not to mention…I’ll be taking those marks for myself.

Bo’s devious grin widens, “Although barely, you did make me laugh last time. I’m looking forward to seeing how much more you can make me laugh this time.”

My sinister grin widens as well, “Interesting. I was just about to say the same thing.”

“The rules are simple,” Bo shouts out, “With proper use of the mark of the witch that allows me to harbor a similar puppet power to that of the boss, mixed with the mark of the joker, I will force you to endure six hundred and sixty six forms of torture! If the laugh points exceed ten thousand points, then you will implode! But, if you manage to survive all six hundred and sixty six tortures, then this tightrope will snap, and you will have the opportunity to kill me fair and square!”

Bo waves his right hand high into the air, and shouts, “Let the games begin!”

In a flash, the entire dome becomes covered in darkness, and I race up the rope, completely unaffected by the mark’s power. Bo begins to freak out at the top.

“Wait! NO! STOP! How can this be?! This isn’t how the game is supposed to go!!” Bo screams.

My sinister grin widens as I reach the top and grab Bo’s face with the palm of my right hand. The dragon serpent at the crown of my head roars aggressively towards Bo, who screams so loudly that saliva covers my entire palm.

“Sorry…but I’ll be taking that,” I grit out through my smiling teeth, causing the dragon serpent to instinctively rip out everything that Bo possesses, from his jester clothes to the marks he had placed within his psyche.

As Bo continues to beg for forgiveness from behind the cover of my right hand, the dragon serpent swallows up everything it had ripped out, even the clothes. Without a second thought, I then grab the two sides of Bo’s head, and twist it so many times across his neck that I lose count of the amount that his head had spinned around and around.

The dome begins to self-destruct, but instead of freaking out and running for safety, I turn to see Natalie and Chen remaining focused on the vision of me from down below. Even while covered in the disgusting blood of an insane jester, I focus on racing down carefully across the tightrope before it fully disentangles and leaves me no way to get back down without jumping off and breaking something. As I reach the two of them, I walk past them both, before stopping in my tracks and slowly turning back towards the both of them.

“What?” I ask.

“...nothing. Nothing at all.” Natalie replies, with her eyes still wide open in shock.

Chen shakes her head, before walking past me and continuing toward the bright white door that opened for us. “I always knew there was something off about you, so it’s too late to act creeped out now.”

I turn my head towards Natalie, who notices, and eventually decides to follow suit and walk towards the door in the same manner as Chen.

I glance over towards the blood that had been splattered across the area where Lennon imploded, and then towards the mangled body of the unfunniest jester to ever exist.

A soul for a soul.

A grin appears across my face, as I then stare towards the backs of the two women left in my party walking towards the door.

“Nakai Shinji. I will find you. And when I do…I’ll be sure to take everything from you…just as promised.”

“And once I do…I’ll finally be able to return home…with your head as a keepsake.”

I, myself, now begin to walk confidently towards the door, as the dragon serpent starts to hiss loudly.

“Now then…let the final hunt continue!”