Chapter 19: Prey

  [Déjà vu System: Level 6]

  [Loop Count: 7]

  [Experience Points (XP): 936 / 2000]

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  Yana and I reached the entrance of the tomb. Noticing her guild master, she immediately went to speak with her, leaving me alone as I knew no one else beside her among the other adventurers gathered for the quest. I tried to look friendly, but no one dared approach the lowly level 50 Spellsword. Or so I thought…

  “Hey, excuse me.” I heard someone call to me from behind.

  Turning around, I saw a man with black, lightweight armor - a level 57 Rogue. An aura of darkness, similar to Yana’s - yet significantly larger, surrounded him.

  “Yeah?” I asked warily, watching the dark aura around him twist and writhe, as if it was alive.

  He smiled softly, quite uncharacteristic for a Rogue, and quite the opposite of the initial feeling of dread he invoked in me. “I just saw you standing there alone, and well…I’m alone as well, so I figured we could share each other’s company before they let us inside.”

  Despite his friendly appearance and words, I couldn’t shake the odd feeling I was getting from this man. It was as if my entire existence was telling me to back away from him.

  I glanced in Yana’s direction, but she was still speaking to Lady Mikaela.

  “Well, I’m not here alone, actually. My friend is here as well.” I said, hoping the fact that I was here with someone would make him back off, realizing I wouldn’t be an easy target in case he was planning to rob me or something. Rogues weren’t exactly known for their kindness and friendliness.

  “Oh, the red-haired woman over there with Lady Mikaela?” the Rogue asked, the soft smile never leaving his lips.

  I nodded slowly, still getting the creeps from him.

  “She’s gorgeous, I must say.” He said before tapping me on the shoulder. “You’re quite the lucky guy.”

  “…for this run, we…” I suddenly heard an Echo, the voice eerily similar to this man’s.

  He was talking about runs. Did he…did he know about the time loop? But who was he? My last conversation with Chronos suddenly popped into my mind.

  Goren!

  But the moment I realized who he was, it was too late.

  [Condition Applied: Paralysis by “Blue Rose Thorn” by Goren Shein]

  “Hey, Spellsword. How’s it going? You missed me?” Goren leaned in and whispered. Then he laughed softly, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and bringing my paralyzed self closer to him. “What am I saying? Of course not. You don’t even remember me.”

  I tried to speak, but the paralysis he inflicted on me denied me even that.

  “Still, it’s interesting.” He mused. “Despite your memory loss problem, you still somehow managed to understand something was off. I wonder how…Are your survival instincts just that good?”

  He forcefully moved my head in Yana’s direction. She was still engrossed in her conversation with Lady Mikaela, not paying attention to us.

  “Before I kill you,” Goren said, his grin widening, “I’ll kill her again.”

  Again?!

  “I’ll kill her again and let you watch. Right. From. This. Spot.” He chuckled darkly.

  Everything inside me twisted. I tried to break free, but I couldn’t. None of my stats were high enough to counter his paralysis.

  Yana finally turned toward us, and Goren waved to her, a smile on his face, his arm still wrapped around my shoulder as if we were the best of friends. “Smile at her, Spellsword.”

  That dirty piece of shit! Chronos was right to warn me about him, but how could I even prepare for something like this? His memories from his previous runs were likely intact. He knew me and waited for me to arrive to make his move. We hadn’t even begun the quest yet, and here he was, already holding me in the palm of his hand.

  Yana noticed something was off - I could see it in her expression - but Goren didn’t wait.

  “Stay here.” He whispered, giving me one final smile before he made his way toward Yana.

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  I wanted to scream for her to run, but no voice came out.

  He killed her right in front of my eyes. Right in front of everyone’s eyes.

  Then, when a commotion began and he was targeted by every other adventurer in the vicinity, he shifted his focus to me. Throwing his dagger, landing it perfectly in my head.

  [Health: 0% - You Have Died]

  ***

  I woke up on a grass field, immediately reaching to the side of my head where Goren had struck me with his dagger. My heart raced with fear, and I had to take deep breaths to calm down.

  Goren! That bastard…we hadn’t even entered the tomb yet, and he had already attacked me, making Chronos’ prior warning useless. It seemed like Goren knew I wouldn’t be able to remember him and capitalized on that to kill me quickly, acting all friendly to make me drop my guard.

  But why? What does he want?

  Wait…why can I remember how he killed me?

  I focused on my surroundings, and everything came into place.

  I was in Chronos’ domain.

  This time, Chronos wasn’t swinging that weird metallic club of his at a ball. Instead, he was seated next to the glass table. The moment I noticed him, he was already pointing at the chair opposite him.

  “Sit.”

  I stood up and joined him at the table, sighing heavily as I sat down.

  “I told you to keep your distance from him.” Chronos began, his tone low. He didn’t even bother making eye contact, his focus instead was fixed on the horizon.

  “What?” I snapped, my frustration boiling over. “What do you mean ‘keep your distance from him’? The motherfucker killed me five minutes after I arrived! I didn’t even have a chance to react!”

  Chronos turned to me instantly, finally meeting my gaze. The intensity of his glare was enough to make me shift nervously in my seat. It looked like he was about to snap, but instead he took a deep breath before speaking again, this time in a clearly forced calm that made him sound even more intimidating.

  “Your current self didn’t have the chance to react. Your past selves had plenty of opportunities to push him away. Instead, they gave him just enough to feed his obsession with you until you reached this sorry point.”

  “But I can’t even – “

  “Remember what your past selves did?” he cut me off, completing my words. “So. Fucking. What? They're still you, dumbass! Don’t try to shake off the responsibility!” he leaned forward, slamming his hand on the glass table, cracking it on impact. Then, he made a spinning motion with his finger and the crack reversed itself and disappeared.

  I sighed again, realizing he was right. Whatever I did in my past runs, it had been enough to let this Goren get close to me. Close enough to learn everything he needed to kill me without breaking a sweat.

  “Still,” I muttered, my eyes darting to the ground to avoid Chronos’ glare, “you could’ve at least left his image in my mind. You warned me about him, but without knowing what he looks like, I can’t exactly – “

  “Does the dark aura around him and the message that he’s marked not scream enough of a warning for you to get it?” Chronos said, sounding exasperated.

  I swallowed hard. Of course, I was stupid for not reacting the moment I saw Goren’s dark aura. But even if I had…

  “He would’ve still killed me.” I replied quietly. “He was way too strong. Even if I reacted quicker to his presence, nothing would’ve changed.”

  Chronos leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. “This is probably the first time today you’ve said something right.” He rolled his eyes before continuing. “Either way, it’s your fault it got to this point. In previous runs, he offered you kills, and you took them, despite my warning for you to stay away from him. You fed his ego and his hopes until it finally exploded.”

  I shook my head slowly. I couldn’t remember any of what he’d described, but Chronos had no reason to lie. And, knowing myself, it was painfully likely that I had done exactly what he said - accepted Goren’s help, all for the sake of leveling up faster.

  “I guess you’re right. I can’t remember any of it, but…I guess you’re right.” I admitted after a short pause. Then, lifting my gaze to Chronos, I tried to muster some confidence. “But I’m sure I can turn things around. I’m finally leveling up for real. Eventually, I’ll gain enough XP to – “

  “He killed you eight times already, Aidan.” Chronos interrupted, his tone cold, sending an icy chill down my spine.

  “W-what?” I stammered, fear suddenly gripping my chest at the unsettling revelation.

  Chronos leaned forward, his eyes narrowing. “Your last seven deaths were by his hand. Each time, right next to the tomb’s entrance, before the quest even started.” He paused, giving his words a moment to sink inside my terrified mind. “He’s killed you eight times in total.”

  My heartbeat quickened, and my breathing grew shallow. I couldn’t believe his words. Eight times? My mind raced.

  I glanced at the Déjà vu system menu.

  [Déjà vu System: Level 6]

  [Loop Count: 14]

  [Experience Points (XP): 936 / 2000]

  I clenched my fists.

  Is he saying I’ve been stuck at the same level for seven runs already because Goren kills me before I can gain a single XP?

  When I woke up this morning, I wondered why I was still only level 6 despite dying fourteen times already. It seemed odd, but without memories of my previous runs, I just assumed I’d hit some serious hurdle. Turns out, that hurdle was a psychotic Rogue, dead set on killing me over and over again.

  “Look at this.” Chronos said before reaching out and touching my forehead with his index finger.

  An overwhelming flood of memories crashed into my mind. Goren. It was all Goren. I saw him killing me and Yana in eight different ways. He laughed each time, his twisted smile haunting. He was enjoying every moment of it, every second he made me suffer.

  The memories invoked a physical pain as well – sharp, burning, aching - as if my body remembered every wound, every injury, every lost limb. I gasped and dropped from the chair, clutching my chest, struggling to breathe.

  “Relax.” Chronos commanded, snapping his fingers. A soothing wave of calmness suddenly washed over me, dulling my panic.

  I looked up at him, my voice trembling. “Why is he doing this? Why does he kill me every time? What did I even do to him?”

  Chronos sighed deeply, pinching the bridge of his nose as if the answer he was about to give was unsettling even to him. “His System is…different than the one I gave you. Sickly enough, it rewards him for killing you specifically. He confirmed that the first time he killed you, and now he can’t get enough of it.”

  I felt the knot in my chest tighten. “What can I do?” My voice cracked. “If he keeps killing me like this, I’ll never progress. I can’t – “

  “I know.” Chronos said, his voice firm, cutting me off. “That’s why you’re here now.”

  My panic attack ceased immediately as I watched him. He gestured for me to return to my seat.

  “What’s the plan?” I asked with urgency right as I sank back onto the chair.

  Chronos’ expression darkened, his shoulders slumped, his looked disgusted. “We need to strike the problem right at its heart.”

  “How do we do that?”

  Chronos let out a long, reluctant sigh, rising from his chair slowly. His face twisted with the same disgust from before, but this time mixed with visible disappointment. “I can’t believe I’m actually saying this,” he muttered, his voice bitter, “but…we need to visit that bastard Dolos.”

  "Whaaaaat?!" Balthor and Pix called out in unison.