Chapter 3: A Reason to Save

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A week after Y and L had set out on their journey, they found themselves taking shelter in an old cave, its damp walls cloaked in silence and shadow.

Y sat by the fire, carefully examining the worn pages of the Hunter’s Book, its fragile parchment steeped with the scent of time.

He spoke as his eyes traced the faded ink:

Y: “This book… it’s incredibly useful.”

L smiled faintly.

L: “Not surprising. They say it was written five hundred years ago.”

Y raised a brow, intrigued.

Y: “Interesting…”

A brief silence lingered, broken when L leaned slightly forward, her voice hesitant yet brimming with curiosity:

L: “So… you’re saying this world is just a game?”

Y set the book aside, meeting her gaze with steady eyes.

Y: “I wouldn’t say it’s exactly a game… but it resembles one. Very much so. And the kind I favored most.”

L’s eyes narrowed as she studied him.

L: “Is that why you know so many details?”

Her curiosity sharpened.

L: “And how… did you all come to this world?”

His expression darkened, his tone dropping as he recalled the memory.

Y: “I remember… there was an important event happening in the game we were playing. Then suddenly, everything turned upside down.

There were so many players… a close-knit community. We knew each other, even if we weren’t all friends.

In truth… there were some who hated me.

And I can imagine many of them have already died here…”

He paused, drawing in a long breath before speaking again, bitterness muffled in his voice.

Y: “In games, there’s always another chance… but here? Opportunities are rare.”

He lifted his gaze toward the dark sky, the firelight flickering in his eyes.

Y: “I arrived in this world about three months ago.”

…

As they sat beside the campfire, a pack of wolves emerged from the trees, their yellow eyes glowing in the dark. The beasts lunged, but the difference in strength made the skirmish brief. With swift strikes, the two cut them down one after another until silence reclaimed the night.

Yet L noticed the look in Y’s eyes as he stared at the fallen wolves—a look tinged with sorrow. She stepped closer, her voice soft.

L: “Are you alright?”

Without shifting his gaze from the lifeless bodies, he replied:

Y: “I’m fine… I’m just wondering. Why did these wolves attack us?”

L: “Perhaps they were hungry.”

He shook his head, his voice hardening.

Y: “No… this is different. I know this feeling well.”

He crouched beside one of the wolves, carefully inspecting its body. His hand froze at a strange mark etched near its neck.

Y muttered sharply: “What’s this mark?”

L leaned closer, her eyes narrowing with concern.

L: “That… is used to control beasts. Usually by demons.”

Y’s eyes widened, surprise laced with suspicion.

Y: “Demons? What are they doing here?”

L’s voice carried unease as she answered.

L: “I’m asking myself the same thing…”

Y rose to his feet, his fist clenched, voice firm.

Y: “Then let’s find the answer. Agreed? We begin our reconnaissance.”

They began their exploration, following the wolves’ tracks and the source of the strange mark. Silence weighed heavily over the forest, broken only by the crunch of leaves underfoot and cautious steps weaving through the trees. After hours of searching, they came upon a crumbling ruin, hiding within it a shadowed entrance to a secret lair that led deep into an ancient labyrinth.

Inside, the air was cold and damp, the walls etched with faded carvings that whispered of a forgotten age. Y relied on his sharpened senses and long-honed instinct to detect traps, while L moved with steady steps, her crimson eyes glowing faintly as she traced the trails of magic lingering in the corridors.

L, her voice calm as she examined one corner:

“You seem familiar with these traps.”

Y smirked faintly and replied:

“Yes… There was a man named Mayazaki, a genius at designing traps and secret places. I learned a lot from him.”

L continued:

“Demons don’t bother hiding their magic. They’re easy to sense and avoid.”

Y nodded as his gaze swept over marks carved into the wall:

“With demons, magical power is everything. The strongest commands obedience. That makes deceiving many of them… rather simple.”

The deeper they ventured, the heavier the tension grew. Then they stopped abruptly.

Before them lay a strange sight: a small white fox, trapped inside a complex magical circle. Her shining eyes glimmered in the dark, her frail body trembling under the weight of its bindings.

Y rushed forward, but her weak voice stopped him:

“Stop! This circle is far too dangerous… stepping in recklessly will tear your body apart!”

L crouched, examining the glowing lines inscribed on the ground:

“This is a magic-absorption circle… entering it is difficult, and once you step inside, it will drain the magic of anyone who enters—on top of the physical damage it inflicts.”

The fox whimpered, her voice trembling:

“Whoever designed this wasn’t ordinary… it devours any magic used near it. You can’t step in using magical force.”

Y said quietly:

“I’ll try my luck… maybe I can manage.”

He carefully extended his hand toward the circle. The moment his fingers breached the barrier, a sharp explosion rang out, blasting his arm back with a spray of burns.

Moments later, demons began gathering, drawn by the noise and the energy pulsing from the circle. At once, L’s voice rang out firmly:

“I’ll handle the demons. You—focus on saving her!”

Amidst the chaos, Y’s thoughts raced as he analyzed the circle again:

“Stepping inside causes an explosion… and once inside, it drains magic. But I don’t have much magic to begin with…”

He frowned, considering:

“What if I destroyed the ground beneath it? No… the circle’s too wide. But my weapon… it can pass through. Why?”

A demon lunged at him. Y caught the creature with iron grip and hurled it into the circle. A deafening blast shook the chamber. Seizing the demon’s weapon, Y thrust it toward the circle—only for it to disintegrate instantly.

His eyes narrowed on his own blade.

“My gut tells me… my weapon is different. But I still don’t know how to wield it.”

He sank briefly to the floor, staring at the tangled runes, before rising suddenly with resolve.

“Maybe it can lessen the damage… I have no other choice.”

Another demon charged. Y dodged swiftly, seized the fiend, and used its body as a shield. With a powerful stride, he hurled himself straight into the magic circle.

The labyrinth roared as a colossal explosion shook its foundations, dust and rubble cascading in every direction.

The fox cried out in terror:

“What have you done?!”

But then her eyes widened with shock, her crimson irises glowing faintly.

“The blast… it was weaker than expected. The weapon… it absorbed part of it.”

As the haze cleared, Y stood at the circle’s center, his body torn and bloodied, smoke rising from his clothes. Without a word, he stepped forward, lifted the fox gently into his arms, and carried her out of the circle.

The fox whispered weakly:

“Are you… alright?”

From behind, L’s voice answered, cool and detached:

“Don’t worry. You’ll get used to this kind of recklessness.”

But then she froze—because though unconscious, Y remained standing, his body refusing to collapse. She murmured under her breath in astonishment:

“Men like you… don’t deserve to die in a place like this…”

Gathering the last of her strength, she began weaving healing magic over him. But a shadow loomed—another demon appeared behind her, blade raised to strike.

Before it could fall, Y’s body moved on its own. His weapon lashed out, cutting the demon down in a single fatal blow, his eyes still closed.

The fox gasped, her eyes wide with disbelief:

“Y-you’re… still protecting me, even unconscious? Do you do this because you want to play the hero? Or… because you think it’s your duty?”

From deep within his battered body, his faint voice emerged, barely more than a whisper:

“Do we really need… a reason… to save a stranger?”

Her eyes softened, and at last, she smiled through her sorrow:

“Thank you… for saving me.”