"Damn it! When will this work ever be done?!" I groaned, resting my head on the desk as the laptop screen lit up my dark room. Hundreds of documents sprawled before me, and the homepage was a complete disaster under the massive weight of work that had fallen on my shoulders.
"Damn this pandemic! All we needed was to work from home! I should be out there, or at least playing games on my PC. But guess what?! Here I am, stuck in this cursed chair for two straight days of my vacation, organizing company documents from home!!" My voice grew angrier and more hysterical. I just wanted a break! Please! Just some sleep!
"At least I finished part of it… no one will complain now," I sighed in relief and glanced at my desk, littered with empty energy drink cans and coffee cups. These drinks were what barely gave Joseph the energy to get through his work.
'Time to sleep,' I thought, getting up and heading to the mini fridge in my room to grab my medicine. I suffer from insomnia and can't sleep with all the thoughts racing in my head.
I hastily popped a pill with a glass of water, laid down on my bed, and thought I was finally going to sleep. That… was a mistake.
My chest felt like it was about to explode.
My breathing was rapid.
Pain stabbed through my chest.
Before I knew it, I blacked out…
Or maybe it wasn't just fainting. Perhaps this was the end…
---
BOOM! BOOM!
Ahhh~ I felt at peace, as if I'd slept for two full days and my brain was flooded with dopamine and relaxation. Ahhh~ I don't want to move… except for these annoying explosions, everything else was fine. Just let me sleep!
"Sil–#ss As–#@l! We don't have t#me!"
BOOM!
Huh? What's that sound…?
'Wait a second?! Hold on?! An explosion?!!!' My cursed brain suddenly caught up with reality. Holy hell, explosions! How am I supposed to sleep now?!
BOOM!!!
Suddenly, I felt like I couldn't breathe! My brain was screaming at me, reminding me I wasn't in any better state than a man on the brink of death, gasping for air… Wait… I am! Please! Someone! Help me!
By God's grace, air finally filled my lungs… but something was off. It felt forced, unnatural. I felt heat on my face and someone's breath. Artificial breathing. Thank God. I thought I was dying.
I laughed to myself nervously. My heart was pounding: Ahh~ I must've been on the brink of suffocation, and a beautiful girl saved me with artificial respiration, right?! I've seen this in so many novels and games! Yes! This must be it!
When I finally opened my eyes… I was stunned. No, the reason I was saved wasn't just some random beautiful girl. I could only see half of the face of the person helping me. A handsome man, deep blue eyes, brown hair… and the worst part?
His face was red?! Why is he blushing, you bastard?!
And he was looking away from me?! Embarrassed?
As soon as he realized I was awake, he quickly stepped back.
I started coughing violently, doubled over, and vomited. It went on for a few minutes, all while I heard the sounds of swords clashing and explosions around me.
I wiped my mouth with my sleeve and lifted my head slightly to see what was happening, though my vision was blurry and all I could hear was ringing in my ears. I needed a few moments to adjust.
Once the chaos died down, two figures approached me. From their footsteps, I could already guess who they were.
"Are you okay?" a girl's voice called from the shadows. I lifted my head, took a few seconds to adjust, and then saw her.
Wow… she was beautiful. I couldn't help staring. Pink hair, eyes the color of a clear sky, and a smile so innocent it could melt your heart.
And the person next to her…
"..." He stood silently, arms crossed, watching me as if nothing had happened. The miserable bastard!
My eyes turned aggressive. Normally, I wouldn't get angry at someone who saved me… but still! Why was this man blushing when he helped me?!
Why did my luck suck so much?! Why did he have to like… me?!
The girl positioned herself between me and the man and smiled. "Please, we need your cooperation. We have to get out of here — this area is corrupted. If you have anything, I ask you to hold off for now."
When she smiled, I felt like Cupid had struck me with his arrow. Ahhh~ could this be love?
But even beyond that… I had so many questions.
"Huh? Evacuation? Corruption? Attack? What are you talking about?" I asked, confused.
"Um, the corruption is… hmm—" The girl tried to explain, but the man cut her off.
"We need to move," he said firmly.
The man took a deep breath, then continued explaining to the girl beside him, "Amy, can you carry her? She seems to have taken a hit to the head. I'm a swordsman, while you're a spellcaster. It won't slow you down."
"No problem," the girl replied with a smile.
"The one who hit her on the head was you, you bastard!! Who said I can't move?!" I glared at the man and struggled to stand.
"See? I can move perfectly fine!"
The girl hesitated, then said worriedly, "Okay, okay, you can move on your own. Just make sure to follow us. But before that, take a weapon — at least you can try to defend yourself." She helped me get up by supporting my shoulders.
Why did she have to be this kind? Heh!
'Whatever,' I thought. I looked around and saw weapons scattered everywhere — swords, spears… but I hesitated to grab any.
I mean, sure, swords are every man's dream, but I didn't want to hurt myself like an idiot. I stood there frozen for a few moments… then I saw it. My hope, my light… I stepped forward and confidently grabbed it as if I owned the world. And that weapon was… the bat!! The most masculine weapon in the world!!
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hello there!
i hope you find this novel to your liking! this my first time.
sorry for bad english; i write in my mother language and use chatgpt to translate. if there is any grammar, spell or any confusing sentence please let me know so i can fix it