Everything changed the mont I stepped through the orange gate.
The atmosphere itself grew dense, golden light distorting into a muted bronze as I fell... no—descended, through the void.
Through my blurred vision, fragnts of knowledge from eras long past flashed in my mind.
A once thriving city, established in a vast desert that stretched as far as the eye could see, cals and rchants moved through the searing sun, attempting to transport their goods.
Even though they hailed from different origins, most headed toward nearly the sa destination: The grand cities.
The sa flourishing cities I witnessed, they ranged from towering pyramids to expansive walls that enclosed various houses resembling dieval brickwork.
The sight was breathtaking, but almost instantly, the world seed to fast forward, as jagged peaks that hadn't existed erged from nothing, and the once magnificent city was reduced to cinders.
Leaving only fragnts behind, and even those who survived were condemned as sustenance for drifters, while so rely perished from starvation.
But at the heart of that once majestic world stood a graceful figure, a lone queen who sat on a desolate throne bearing the weight of her people while dying of hunger—she was Nefertari, the most beautiful one.
I felt tears slip down my cheeks as my body struck the floor of an altar.
The ceiling was still intact, so I was certain I hadn't fallen from the sky directly. It was rely an illusion.
"Tch."
I clicked my tongue, uncertain why exactly I felt irritated, perhaps because of the world I had seen or the absurdity of my current circumstances.
"Another change in the plot," I murmured.
According to the plot, the dungeon we were ant to enter was a standard type, which ant that unlike special dungeons, which exist in alternate worlds—they were supposed to resemble any typical dungeon.
A vast rocky plain with a boss chamber and abundant mana stones, but based on the configuration of this world and the presence of a Chronicle, which are histories of a fallen world fused with the demon realms—we were unquestionably in a special dungeon.
"Just my luck." I scanned the expansive hall, gaining awareness before rising to my feet.
'It looks like I ended up in a Cathedral,' I thought, my gaze fixed on the statue-like figure that stood on the podium. 'Church, huh...?'
I wasn't a Christian nor a Muslim. Truth be told, I knew little to nothing about religion, but even then I could discern, "This is the work of the demonic cult, and from the blood everywhere, it is unmistakably the work of the Uton Order, one of the seven orders of the demonic cult."
Shaking off every unnecessary thought, I stepped out of the Cathedral, which was dimly illuminated by the black sky and pale crimson moon.
The ground beneath my feet was golden, as my face tightened into a frown.
Dismbered bodies lay scattered, decapitated heads and crushed torsos.
I felt a sudden urge to vomit, as my stomach churned, but held it in. This was what life after the academy would be, so I had to adapt.
"It's not like I can escape to my world." I balanced my trembling legs, steadied my breathing, and pressed forward.
Golden sand, tombs, and pyramids were the only features my eyes could detect, even with the aid of clairvoyance.
It was as if the world had been crudely painted by a frightened child, eerie shadows crawled up the walls as if seeking refuge.
The moon appeared haunting, as though sothing could erge at any mont.
The golden sand that resembled crushed gold bars shifted slightly, as though sothing alive was moving beneath it, which I was certain was the case.
Letting out an exasperated sigh and nodding decisively, I returned into the Cathedral—the first priority was to gather information.
And fortune was on my side since this area wasn't entirely unfamiliar to , as this was a dungeon that Matt and his coven had completed during their second year.
Nefertari—the most beautiful land, born from the anguish and sorrow of the Nefertarians.
But relying on that vague information would only get killed.
To be honest, I wasn't even certain of the dungeon's clear condition, so for now the priority was survival, then a bit of trial and error.
"And to worsen the situation, no team would agree to cooperate." I covered my face with my palm, unable to comprehend the fate that awaited us.
By this point, I had already beco accustod to things not going my way, so a few shifts in the plot here and there weren't too bad, but this ti was simply insane.
Why? Because I forgot to ntion: this wasn't the sa uncleared gate we were ant to enter. It seems both Alyan and Deerheart had used so kind of magic scroll or order to send us into a different dungeon.
Since the original gate was ant to be Tier Seven, sothing most first-years could handle, but now it was a Tier Six, which required a B-rank to conquer.
"First, let's find a good spot to sleep." From the stopwatch I brought with , which was the only way to track ti inside the dungeon, I could tell it was nearing nightti already.
And one of the many rules that every living creature followed during the night in Nefertari was—never remain awake past eight.
I already knew the consequences of not complying. Honestly, just writing about it gave nightmares for a month.
"So I have food rations to last a week and a billow bag for sleeping, along with the Arian watch to check the ti." I smiled at the items I pulled from my dinsional bag, which only appeared full because I packed it beyond its limit.
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Setting up the tent was simple since the billow bag was just a sack that, after being struck seven tis, transforms into a tent that even had a ford structure around it.
I had already set a tir on the watch and placed my food and water rations for the day in the tent.
Now all that remained was a brief exploration of the Cathedral before the ti ran out.
And since I couldn't light a fire due to Nefertari's rules, I had to exhaust my mana using clairvoyance, but at least I had my trump card, Fifth-Ti, in case I encountered an enemy.
"Let's head off."
I summoned the Regulator and Nightwing Vestige and moved swiftly toward the door several ters away from the Cathedral's center, where my tent was stationed—today, I intended only to investigate that single room.
Because one thing I knew about churches, especially the really creepy ones—was never to wander around.
'Maybe I should have included that as a rule too,' I smiled crookedly. I really needed to learn how to behave normally in situations like this. 'Let's not jinx it.'
Just as I took a single step toward the door, my knee buckled, and I felt my limbs tear.
My voice turned hoarse, rendering unable to even scream, my vision blurred, and only the image of the wooden door now engraved in my mory was the only thing that remained visible.
"Damnit, a drifter and a high-ranked one," I struggled to say.
Regaining composure and slowly rising to my feet, I moved in the opposite direction and headed toward my tent, it was best to leave exploration of haunted locations for when daylight returned.
I entered the tent and zipped it closed, tucked myself in, and slowly ate the dried jerky.
The wind howled and the sand sounded as if racing across the land. I could feel a hazy fog envelop the world as I slowly drifted into sleep.
Tomorrow, I needed to find allies first—
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