Hoku just kept running even if it meant running into more of... whatever that thing was. Even if it meant slipping on his wet clothes or tripping in the dark or cracking his skull running into some jagged cave wall. He just needed to hope for the best. His legs burned, and his arms ached from carrying.
The tunnel was dark, twisting around like a snake, 'better than staying with that thing.' He thought.
Truth be told, he still held out hope that he was still on earth, even if his otaku ass wouldn't rather be anywhere else but here, maybe not here specifically, but regardless, a part of him was still human, missing the reality he took for granted.
Finally, the noises calmed down, and tremors were far behind him. All he heard were occasional sounds from up above, from what he hoped were bats. At last, he had a chance to rest and sort out the objects he had been carrying around. He brought his phone, a 30-cm ruler(potential weapon), and the previously empty can of Fanza that was now filled with cave water. He puts them down to the side and lets himself slide down against the wall of the cave, eyes half-closed, soaking in the new calm atmosphere.
He was now past the tunnel at a part that's a little more open. The top seemed endless and daunting; he didn't dare look up, and there was a solid wall to his right about 10 meters away. The left wall was the one he was leaning on.
Actually, upon closer look at that wall, there was a faint, yet familiar blue glow shining onto him. He looks for the source, and he realises it has an opening to the side. He peers through, and to his surprise, he sees the lake. The opening is intentional, almost too intentional, like spying down a stairway to the hallway. He scans his eyes across, but all he sees is the lake and an enormous hole beside it, 'yikes'.
Something cold touches Hoku's neck, and before he can shout or even scream, his hand instinctively swipes behind him, smacking it to the side
"That's definitely not something from planet Earth," he sighs. There's a small creature lying on the floor, it's white, maybe pinkish, not a bat, but some strange kind of plant-like pod with little wings and a small face. It's been smushed :(
Jarringly, a woman's voice rings out in his head. Hoku slaps again, this time at his ears, but there's nothing else there.
[You Have Defeated A Trivial Unbound: Singing Bud]
[You Gained 1 EXP]
[5 Credits Have Been Added To Your System]
"You again, huh…" Hoku said, standing up now, looking at the words in the sky. "So I guess this confirms it. I'm… actually in some kind of game"
'It's not unbelievable after the thing with the hand in my monitor '
The system continued with a different tone; however. Oddly enough, his interruption seemingly made her mad.
[!Warning Combat Without Alphasuit Detected!]
[Penalty Issued]
"Huh? What penal-AAAHHHHRGH!"
In a moment's instant, Hoku felt a sudden pain across his whole body, like being hit by a baseball bat. His nose started bleeding, and he dropped to one knee. "You Bitch!"
He slaps again, this time at his mouth, but not because he thought that something was on his body, but instead because a bone-chilling, unnatural roar tore through his ears. He almost forgot that there was some unimaginable horror stalking him, and the cave tunnels were just wide enough to accommodate its passage. He intensely stared at the entry point he had come from, then breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that the beating footsteps were getting weaker again. But his uneasiness wouldn't go away just yet.
Another small bud enters his view. Hoku braces, but it takes no interest in him, instead landing on the floor next to its murdered friend. "That was an accident, okay?" He whispers. It innocently bounces on the floor and starts moving in Hoku's direction, who, in response, shifts away with his hand out. "No, stay right where you are, little guy."
The bud didn't listen, now beginning to hum softly as well.
Hoku wipes the blood from his nose, picks up all his stuff, putting his phone in his pocket and his ruler at the back of his pants, as he gets ready to move again, unwilling to take any chances, though exhaustion is starting to get to him.
As he starts running away, he finds that the hum is following behind him
Additionally, Hoku hears another join in from up above, making a duet,
then a triplet.
then a quartet.
quintet?
'What comes next? This is getting ridiculous.'
Hoku looks up, expecting to see a choir group of buds greeting him. "What on earth?"
The entire ceiling is alive, an incomprehensible number of tentacle-like vines squirmed at the top, making Hoku nauseous simply by looking at it. But that wasn't his primary concern. The buds were raining down. more than he could have ever imagined.
He was trapped in a snowstorm.
Hoku moved with extreme haste. They were scattering in every direction, and the humming was getting so loud and harmonised that it started to sound like an opera house. And with the calming melody came a sharp drum as the beating sound of the beast reached its crescendo. Reawakened by the singing, it now approaches from behind with a terrifying rhythm.
'C'mon, keep going. ' He thought, feeling the strain in his muscles, making his way down the cave. The passage was straight. To his left, the carved opening in the wall followed him like a snake. He no longer saw the river, but instead a different portion of the cave system. Presumably, if he had run to the other side of the lake, that's where he would've ended up. To his right, the wall persisted a few meters away, boxing him into a corridor of melody.
A few buds would land near him, some even on him, singing in his ear. "How far does that thing go?" he complained, referring to the plant that was the roof.
Then Hoku found the worst and best possible thing before him.
Four Branching paths, two in the middle and two on the sides, he paused for a second. "System minimap!"
[No Such Command]
'Worth a try,' he thought, then immediately chose the one on the right. However, that moment's pause let a couple of buds land on his head and shoulders. He shuddered and instinctively knocked them off.
[You Have Defeated A Trivial Unbound: Singing Bud]
[You Have Defeated A Trivial Unbound: Singing Bud]
[You Have Defeated A Trivial Unbound: Singing Bud]
[You Have Defeated A Trivial Unbound: Singing Bud]
[You Gained 4 Exp]
[Congratulations, You Levelled Up!!!]
[You Are Now Level 2]
[20 Credits Have Been Added To Your System]
"NONONONONO"
Hoku shielded his can of water and immediately braced for impact
[!Warning Combat Without Alphasuit Detected!]
[Penalty Issued]
[Penalty Issued]
[Penalty Issued]
[Penalty Issued]
A rush of intense pain, like being dropped off the roof of a house, came over him.
Hoku missiled downwards, grasping at his heart.
"Why-why are they so fucking delicate!?!"
The buds taunted him with their song.
He curled up on the floor, covering his ears, drowning everything out, until all he could hear were the growing vibrations in the ground coming from the beast just around the corner.
"What the hell did I do to deserve this?" He cried out.