When non-human creatures suddenly start acting like humans—worshipping sothing—and then, all at once, turn to stare at you with judging eyes, it creates a feeling that's almost impossible to describe. It's eerie and deeply unsettling.
[Tank] and [Kayla] were so shaken by what just happened that they instinctively stepped back. But Ethan stood his ground, only raising his sword slightly, ready for a fight at any second.
Looking at Ethan's back made [Kayla] calm down a bit. [Tank] also snapped out of his panic, and the fear on his face was quickly replaced by excitent. He leaned in and whispered, barely able to hide his thrill:
"I knew it! There had to be sothing hidden on this sewer map. See? This is the secret behind it all!"
"That huge, creepy plant in the center must be the hidden boss!"
As a die-hard gar and story lover, [Tank] could barely contain his excitent. What could be more thrilling than this mont?
Out of all the players in Safe Zone 9527, he was the only one to discover the hidden secret of the sewer map. This sense of achievent was exactly what he'd always dread of.
Without even realizing it, [Tank] took a couple of steps forward, stopping right next to Ethan, and was about to move even closer.
But just then, while Ethan was still watching what was happening ahead, he quickly swung his sword out to block [Tank] from going any further.
Because at that very mont, the lizards and rats that had been watching them in silence just monts before suddenly started to move.
They watched as a large, oval-shaped object—over a ter tall and resembling a silkworm cocoon—slowly descended from the top of the enormous, bizarre white plant.
And the mont this strange object touched the ground, every rats and lizards in the underground chamber suddenly rose to their feet. As if following so silent command, they shuffled off to the sides, clearing a wide, open path that led straight to where Ethan and the others were standing.
It was just like a king making an appearance, with the subjects respectfully lining the road—except this "king" was a bizarre pod, and the "subjects" were a swarm of sewer rats and lizards.
[Tank] stared wide-eyed at the scene, trying to capture every detail in his mory.
Ethan, on the other hand, frowned slightly. Since entering Dawnfall Online, he'd never seen anything like this. Whether it was the monsters in Frostspire Tower, or the countless guides on the forums, nothing had ever ntioned monsters acting so much like humans.
As Ethan was lost in thought, the vast underground chamber suddenly echoed with a chilling, chanical voice. Countless lizards and rats opened their mouths, speaking in unison:
"Hel...lo... Hello."
The sudden change sent shivers down [Tank]'s spine, killing his excitent in an instant. Goosebumps prickled his skin as he stamred, "unbelievable, it— it talked! The monsters can talk!"
[Kayla], though clearly scared, tried to keep her cool. "I an, it's not that weird for monsters to talk in a ga, right?"
[Tank] paused, thrown off for a second. The imrsion of Dawnfall Online was so intense, he'd almost forgotten whether he was in a ga or real life.
Ethan, ever quick to adapt, was the first to respond. He hadn't encountered any monsters that could communicate before, but after a mont's thought, he replied:
"Uh, hello. Who are you?"
That question seed to trigger sothing. The chorus of voices from the rats and lizards turned confused and agitated, repeating over and over:
"Who am I?"
"Who am I?"
"Who...am I, really?"
The atmosphere in the chamber grew restless and tense. The creatures nearest the giant white plant started to tremble, their bodies swelling rapidly. In the blink of an eye, they transford into the sa grotesque monsters Ethan's group had seen outside.
The white, oval-shaped cocoon began to slowly split open. As it cracked, streams of foul black and yellow sludge poured out, oozing across the ground. From within the ss erged a creature that looked disturbingly like a giant maggot—only it was the size of a small hunting dog. It writhed and squird, revealing itself fully in front of Ethan and the others, its grotesque body glistening in the dim light.
Ethan's eyes lit up. A new monster!
He tightened his grip on his blade, his breath quickening ever so slightly.
If he could take down this new creature, there was a good chance it would drop a high-quality Intel reward—sothing he could use to boost his strength, or maybe even cash in for so money.
So, while [Tank] and [Kayla] were growing increasingly uneasy and on edge, Ethan actually found himself getting excited.
But as things stood, it was pretty clear that taking on that disgusting giant grub wasn't going to be an option—not right now, anyway.
All around the creature, groups of Lizard Monsters and mutant rats had gathered. If he tried to charge in alone, it would be suicide.
Within just a couple of breaths, Ethan forced himself to calm down. His mind was sharp as ever.
anwhile, the grotesque grub, oozing with thick black and yellow sli, began to slowly crawl in Ethan's direction. The monsters around it stayed put, watching silently as the foul creature inched closer, leaving a stinking trail behind. As it moved, it repeated in that sa unsettling voice:
"Who am I? Who am I?"
Seeing this, Ethan spoke up at once. "Co here slowly. Maybe I can answer your question."
The words had an imdiate effect—the giant grub sped up, squirming toward him with much more urgency. Ethan's eyes grew even brighter with anticipation.
If this thing drops an Intel reward, it's bound to be better than anything you get from a regular monster!
But just as the creature drew nearer, a voice suddenly rang out behind Ethan—one that sounded oddly familiar:
"Stop!"
Ethan whipped around. Standing at the entrance to the underground chamber was the quest-giving NPC from the surface junkyard, now clutching an enormous cleaver.
The sudden appearance of the NPC made the giant grub instantly freeze in place.
The junkyard NPC stood at the threshold and spoke again: "This isn't a place you should be. If you don't want to die, you'd better leave. Now."
[Tank] imdiately hissed under his breath, "Hidden storyline! This is definitely a hidden storyline!"
His excitent was quickly followed by a sigh. "Looks like we're not high enough level yet, or maybe this part of the story just isn't open to us right now."
Ethan hadn't expected the NPC from above to show up down here. He narrowed his eyes, watching the NPC intently, lost in thought.
The next mont, to the shock of [Tank] and [Kayla], Ethan didn't back away—instead, he tightened his grip on his sword and stepped forward.
Imdiately, an overwhelming, invisible pressure swept over the three of them.
The junkyard NPC's expression darkened. He growled, "Didn't you hear what I said? Get out of here!"
Ethan nodded. "Oh, I heard you, all right."
With that, he smiled and took another deliberate step toward the giant grub.
This ti, the suffocating pressure vanished in an instant. The NPC's scowl faded, replaced by a look of resignation. He threw up his hands, sighed, and muttered:
"Alright, enough testing, smart guy. What do you want?"
Hearing those words, Ethan finally let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. When the NPC first appeared, Ethan had noticed he never actually entered the chamber—just stood at the entrance, as if sothing was keeping him out.
Ethan had suspected as much: for so reason, the junkyard NPC couldn't set foot in this underground area. That was why he was so eager to drive them away the mont he showed up.
And now, Ethan knew he was right.
anwhile, both [Tank] and [Kayla] were left slack-jawed, staring at Ethan in disbelief—as if he'd just pulled a rabbit out of a hat. Neither of them had seen this coming.
Ignoring their stunned looks, Ethan kept his sword at the ready and walked straight toward the grub, which had now wriggled out of the monster-guarded zone.
The junkyard NPC called out in a hurry, "Wait, wait! I'll give you a blue-quality weapon if you just leave right now, okay?"
But Ethan acted as if he hadn't heard a thing, continuing to advance on the grotesque white grub.
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