I am the Fool who does not belong to this Era!? Asking For a Beating (part 1)

Arthur sighed and summoned the mory he received; it was a spear with a bronze tip and a wooden shaft; it seed unusually sturdy.

Arthur thought, 'Is it because it's an awakened item? Or is it an enhancent?' Arthur didn't dwell on it and used the soul shards of the scavenger he bullied and also the one his victim defeated.

[You have absorbed a soul shard; The Grey Fog Thickens.]

[You have absorbed a soul shard; The Grey Fog Thickens.]

'Hearing that really does feel good—who doesn't like visibly getting stronger?' Arthur thought and looked at the dark city in the distance; he knew he eventually had to go there.

Although he could stay hidden better than most with his [Hunter] attribute, he was bound to fight a healthy Carapace Scavenger at so point if he stayed,

and he wasn't confident in his chances; even Nephis had trouble beating them one-on-one, although at the ti she wasn't using her aspect and didn't have her Beast soul core filled,

Arthur was in a similar position; only he didn't know how to fight, unlike her.

But right now he was naked. Does he really want to be seen walking around the Dark City like this?

Between his pride and his self-preservation, he was conflicted on what to do, so he decided to leave the decision up to luck.

He threw the spear up into the sky; if it fell on its bronze tip, he would go to the dark city; if not, he would stay until he acquired an armor-type mory.

The bronze spear fell on its bronze tip, stabbing into the Coral

Arthur dismissed the mory with a thought and went back to the headless statue. He took the skull, and after testing to see if the spear would create a spark once it hit one of the teeth,

He decided to only take one tooth on his journey; back to the coral he had harassed the down on its luck, Carapace Scavenger.

After climbing back on the huge coral, he casually cooked his poor bullied victims' cold corpse, and after tasting it, he thought

'This tastes so bland, I'm really starting to miss ho.' Arthur was too preoccupied with survival the first day to acknowledge the taste of the Carapace Scavenger at he ate or have any thoughts about missing ho.

When he was in his nightmare, he didn't really miss it much, if he was honest, because while he lacked delicious food and modern comforts, he had a cult who constantly fed his ego.

Acting like The Fool had brought Arthur much joy because he could act like he was better than everyone and get away with it, like he often did on the internet.

Except that unlike on the internet, he was praised for it, which he very much liked.

"Whatever, when I get out of the dream realm, I will eat a lot of delicious food. I will even start my own cult! *Cough,* I an, a completely legitimate sect, the furthest thing from so shady cult!" Arthur said to himself, trying to cheer himself up.

Then Arthur thought, 'I'm talking to myself again. I need to stop that, or I will go crazy; it's not even been a day since I finished my nightmare, and I'm already going insane!'

After Arthur finished his al, he took so at and put it in a hastily made coral bag he made with so coral he picked on the way.

Arthur climbed down the huge coral and headed for a closer coral to the Dark City.

He knew he wouldn't be able to reach the city in a day; it would take him at least 3 if he wanted to avoid the attention of the nearby scavengers.

Ti Skip 4 Days Later

A group of seven people were carefully walking in the dark city, trying to avoid any nightmare creatures, when one of them said,

"Are you really sure the gateway is in that castle? It's filled with nightmare creatures! We should at least make sure it's there before heading in! Or better yet, wait for other sleepers to arrive; it's too dangerous for us as we are!"

The one who spoke: A young man dressed in armor, said it to another young man close to his age; only the young man's armor was visibly much better; he was the knight Arthur saw in his vision.

The knight responded, "It's the place that sticks out the most; it should be there, and waiting for the other sleepers is pointless; it's been 3 months since winter solstice; all the other sleepers must be dead, and we too will likely die before the next winter solstice if we keep wondering the city or staying in the coral labyrinth; even if we last until the next solstice..."

The knight's voice turned grim. "The next batch might all die before they even arrive here; you know how difficult our journey was."

The young man sighed and said, "Still… going there is nothing short of suicidal!"

The knight didn't respond; instead, a woman did. "Don't fret; dying on your own terms is better than letting fate get one over you, isn't it?"

The knight nodded, and the young man looked at them like they were crazy; he almost yelled, 'Do the two of you lack any sense of self-preservation!? Both of you are crazy! Why is everyone even going along with this!?'

But he didn't say anything and went along with it

The seemingly cowardly young man's na was Brave, ironically enough. He had black hair and black eyes; he looked completely average, if slightly above the norm; he had a bow in hand and a quiver with a few mystical arrows likely to be his mories on his back.

And the woman who spoke last was nad Glorielle She had red hair and red eyes; small goat-like horns were on her head. She looked quite alluring, but had a dangerous air to her. She was holding a white blade that looked holy and pristine, completely contrasting her appearance.

Their four companions who did not speak were a slender, feminine-looking boy nad Kaelen; his skin was almost as white as snow; he had soft black hair and dark blue eyes and looked as good, no better, than an actual awakened! He also held two short swords in his hands; one was fully coated with blood, that he was cleaning, but the other seed completely clean.

Next to him was the only other woman in their cohort. Her hair was blonde, and her eyes were big and blue; she looked deceptively innocent and pure despite holding a still bloody blade and wearing armor, but when one looked at her, they couldn't help but feel as though sothing was wrong with what they saw. Her na was Naamah.

The next mber of the cohort was a slightly older guy; he was noticeably taller than the rest, holding a huge round shield and wearing heavy-looking armor along with a helt that hid his face; his image practically scread Tank! His na was Alec.

Contrastingly, the next person was the smallest of the bunch; his exact appearance was hard to rember, as if the mory of his form was actively running from one's mind. His na was Zane; he was also an archer.

Finally, the knight who was leading the cohort was nad Abner; he had a long sword in his hand that gave the feeling of sturdiness, and his armor looked entirely practical and yet still aesthetically pleasing.

Soon they reached the castle, where they assud the gateway would be; Alec was leading the way. As they entered, they already spotted two nightmare creatures, both awakened monsters of the sa appearance.

They looked like an unsightly mix of zombies and living armor—the monsters, who also noticed them, made a low sound akin to a ghost quietly but desperately pleading for help; it seed like that's how they growled and imdiately rushed to attack them.

But Brave had already shot an arrow at one before they even started moving, landing a hit on the closest one right in its knee. The wound bled a lot of black blood, giving the illusion that the blood was almost running out of the awakened monster's leg.

And the awakened monster fell down on its chest but did not scream; it just kept making those hauntingly desperate sounds quietly while trying to get up.

The other was hit in the chest by a powerful arrow violently by Zane closely after falling on its back.

Kaelen rushed to the one hit in the knee and slashed at its head with his sword; the monster didn't have ti to dodge, and soon it's head a helt with a bit of blue ethereal fire burning in each eye, socket fueled by the regenerating flesh of the monster rolled down on the floor.

However, the monster didn't seem dead. It's "eyes" shifted, looking straight into Kaelens own as his body grabbed Kaelen by the leg, intent on crushing it.

Glorielle already expecting sothing like this with such obviously undead-looking creatures, had already taken a swing at the monster's "Corpse," cutting the arm it had grabbed Kaelen with.

anwhile, Abner had passed them along with Naamah heading for the other awakened monster, while Alec helped the two with the headless monster.

Abner stabbed at the monster's heart,

The monster finally made a sound other than the low creepy growling that resembles a cry for help and scread; the fire in its eyes brightened as it desperately tried to get the sword out of its chest. His strength seemingly increased!

But the increase did not help the monster, as the next mont he was stabbed in between the eyes by Naamah who had an early calm expression and a slight smile on her face.

The mont her blade made contact with the awakened monster, her eyes, although not changing color, seed darker than any shadow, as if devoid of all light.

And the monster's eyes extinguished the very next mont the voice of the spell spoke.

[You have slain an Awakened Monster: Hidden Rebel Wraith]

The other monster was also killed soon after, as Alec crushed it with his huge shield, soon hearing the Spell's voice.

[You have slain an Awakened Monster: Hidden Rebel Wraith]

[You have received an echo Awakened Monster: Hidden Rebel Wraith]

Alec's eyes widened as he happily said, "I got an echo!" Everyone turned to look at him and asked at the sa ti, "Really!?" Alec did not answer, but instead summoned the echo.

It soon appeared in a whirlwind of blue sparks; it looked exactly like the monster he had just killed, except it seed less... alive. Which was a weird thing to say considering the monster was a Wraith.

Brave muttered under his breath, "Lucky bastard! I shot it first. It should have been , not him; it's not fair!"

No one paid him any mind, though all of them were happy for Alec, except Naamah who closed her eyes and smiled brightly at Alec while saying, "Hand it over, and I can promise I won't stab you at night!"

Alec had always been a bit unnerved by her and thought she seed a bit creepy but she had never threatened him before!

He laughed awkwardly and said, "Ah-ha-haha, y-you're joking, right?" Naamah continued smiling while she responded, "Well, I was just thinking if you did, I wouldn't think of it."

Alec was speechless; she was threatening him in front of everyone! He looked at the others seeking their help, and Abner thankfully intervened, saying, "Restrain yourself; if you're lucky, you will get one too eventually."

Naamah sighed, turning around and staring at the floor with a lancholic expression while muttering quietly, "I sure hope I can. I don't want the at shield half dead; he won't be of any use then."

Alec heard it and thought, 'She was seriously considering stabbing at night!'

He muttered, "Crazy bitch!" Luckily for him, she didn't hear him. And the cohort continued on their search for the gateway; soon they encountered an awakened demon.

However, their sheer numbers quickly overwheld the demon. And Brave heard the voice of the spell whisper in his ear.

[You have slain an Awakened Demon: Frenzied man-eater.]

[You have received a mory: call of madness]

Brave smiled and announced, "It dropped a mory!" He quickly summoned his runes and looked at his new mory. Reading the description out loud.

Na: [Call of Madness]

Rank: Awakened III

type: [tool]

Item description: [As the sun slowly beca corrupted, so did the hearts of the people, vile whispers turning weaker n into mindless monsters, the voice still lingering in their heads for centuries while sanity is temporary, madness is an eternal lody].

'What a creepy description…'

Glorielle despite hearing the mory description, told brave, "Co on, what is it? Show us!" Brave summoned the mory; it was a flute.

Glorielle asked, "Can you play it?" Brave quickly retorted, "I wouldn't do it even if I could; the description alone sounds creepy as hell!"

But Glorrielle, not listening, took the flute and played it before Brave could think to dismiss the mory, as she herself didn't know how to play the flute. The sound of the lody was grating on the ears.

But they didn't feel any different, like they expected from the creepy description, nor did they hear things they shouldn't hear.

But soon they heard the sound of nightmare creatures screaming, seemingly entering a frenzied state.

Brave dismissed the mory and looked at Glorielle scolding her, "Now look what you did. What were you thinking playing this weird creepy flute!? Ah! I shouldn't have summoned it in the first place! All of you crazy psychos lack basic survival instincts!"

Abner defended Glorielle "No, this is a good thing. Now that the nightmare creatures have lost their minds, they will be easier to deal with."

Brave's lips twitched in annoyance while he thought, 'Am I the only normal person here!?'

But he once again kept his thoughts to himself. As they continued searching for the gateway, Alec had given his shield to his echo, choosing to use a spear due to the flute making the nightmare creatures act so recklessly.

Eventually, they found a throne room with a massive, winged creature with a pale body and black feathers stained by blood. When its terrifying beak was open, it reveals rows of sharp, needle-like fangs and a long red tongue.

This monstrous creature that resembled a cross between a lion and a raven stretched its nurous limbs. Its body was pale as a corpse, while its head and chest were covered with dark feathers. It was massive in size, with muscles rolling like steel cables under the skin. It had two powerful hind legs and six more protruding ssily from its wide chest, each ending with a set of deadly claws. It also possessed a long, jagged black beak.

It was a Cursed Herald, a Fallen Monster.

Alec imdiately commanded his echo that he had given his massive shield to get in front of them.

And that decision proved to be correct as the Herald rushed at them; its claws easily pierced the massive shield as if it were made of butter and stabbed into the echo. Soon Alec heard the spell whisper about his mory being destroyed.

Abner didn't hesitate, and stabbed into one of the wings of the Herald; his sword barely managed to pierce the Fallen monster's wing bone.

And then his sword suddenly exploded with power for a brief mont, completely cutting the wing off.

The Cursed Herald scread as it flapped its remaining right wing, hitting Naah, Kaelen and Abner, pushing them a few steps back as they fell on their backs,

Glorielle had been to the right side of the Fallen monster and yet still managed to dodge the wing attack but still fell down due to the wind force it created and her awkward position.

Alec, who had dismissed his echo, was on its left side, where the wing attack didn't reach; he stabbed the Cursed Herald with his spear right in one of the shoulders. But his spear barely even scratched it.

Brave and Zane each shot an arrow at the Cursed Herald, Zane's arrow hitting the middle of its neck powerfully, managing to leave a bleeding wound, but not passing its powerful neck muscles into the throat of The Cursed Herald.

Brave's arrow hit the Herald's right eye. Sucking the blood from its eye socket and making the Cursed Herald's head feel dizzy,

The Cursed Herald Clawed at the nearest people to itself in blind rage, hitting Alec in his chest, while Glorielle managed to dodge again; this ti she also countered, stabbing the side of the Herald's neck with her sword that started glowing as her expression beca zealous.

The sword started emitting steam as it stabbed deeper in the Cursed Herald's neck. Glorielle fanatically yelled, "DIE! FOR GLORY!"

The Cursed Herald scread even Lauder, making Glorielle smile sadistically. The Cursed Herald then attacked her with vengeful Hatered, hitting her on the left side of her ribs.

Glorielle was sent flying in Naamah's direction, who had gotten up by now. Naamah hit her flying body away using the flat side of her blade, and she charged at the injured Cursed Herald.

She stared into the one remaining eye of the fallen monster, who stared back. The dimly lit throne room seed slightly darker in the Cursed Herald's remaining eye. And his dizziness increased slightly as it felt its soul start to hurt.

Zane shot another arrow, this one much less powerful than the last; it hit the middle of the neck where the last Arrow mory he had already dismissed hit the Fallen monster.

The arrow stabbed deeper into the neck of the Cursed Herald, almost scratching its throat. Brave also shot another arrow, aiming for the sa spot as Zane.

The arrow didn't hit this ti, though, as the Cursed Herald hurriedly flapped his remaining wing in an attempt to defend itself.

Kaelen who had also gotten up, used his aspect; his body briefly glowed, and he beca faster for an instant. He used the montum to stab through the wing of the Cursed Herald and into the wound Zane had made.

He stabbed into the throat of the Cursed Herald, making it panic and flap its wing wildly as he was thrown into Abner, who caught him.

The Cursed Herald trashed around wildly as it chocked on its blood and fell to the ground, where Alec stabbed it in the empty eye socket where Brave's arrow had hit, piercing its brain and killing it.

[You have Slain a Fallen Monster: Cursed Herald]

Alec softly said, exhausted by the brief but challenging battle, "No mory dropped; it was a fallen monster, called a Cursed Herald."

Abner, having let go of Kaelen already nodded his head, his expression grim as he said, "This is the last room we haven't explored, and the gateway isn't here, which ans it can only be in one place… The Crimson Spire"

Not everyone was as gloomy as him, though, as Naamah tsk'd and muttered under her breath, "That pretty bastard is getting on my nerves. Doesn't he know ladies are supposed to go first? He almost stole my kill if it wasn't for that even more despicable lucky at shield stealing it first… I might really stab him tonight..."

The re thought made her smile. And Alec, who had heard her, shivered slightly and thought, 'I'm definitely sleeping with one eye open tonight!'

Kaelen also heard her and thought, 'Good thing that stab didn't kill it, or I might've died with the Herald! I really got lucky! Alec, may you rest in peace. I will pray for you before I sleep tonight!'

Zane then heard footsteps and said in a low voice, "I hear sothing... No, soone coming here. I think it's a human."

Everyone turned to look at Zane, who was usually quiet, and ceased to make sound. Zane listened and pointed to the left corner outside the throne room.

They didn't need to be told to know that's where the supposed human was coming from,

but what they saw was beyond their expectations as they looked at a naked young man who calmly greeted them as if everything were normal.

"Hey, do any of you happen to have an armor-type mory? I've not gotten one since I entered the dream realm; in fact, the only mory I have is this," Arthur casually said as he summoned his Bronze Spear.

The reason Arthur headed here is that he divined whether it was safe for him to go inside the Bright Castle, and the result was that it was sowhat dangerous to go,

But as long as he hid from the nightmare creatures outside the castle, he would be safe.

With his [Hunter] attribute and his Danger premonition, he managed to avoid the monsters in the Dark City,