Walking down the lonely path of the Uncharted Forest, Ethan heard the faint voices of people approaching. He stopped and hid in the bushes to avoid being seen. As the voices got closer and clearer, Ethan recognized who they were: the hero party, alongside their newly recruited healer. Ethan remained silent and eavesdropped on their conversation.
"We can't thank you enough for joining our party, Ms. Bernadette," Leo said. "Our former healer was so weak that he couldn't even protect himself. To be honest, we had been putting on an act to be kind towards him, though he was nothing but dead weight. Eventually, we got tired of him."
Bernadette remained silent, as she didn't know these people well yet. They might be pretending to be kind just to use her. She had accepted their offer not because she wanted to be a hero, but to see the world outside—a break from her usual routine as a priestess.
Looking at the dark, narrow path ahead, it looked as if a road to a nightmare had risen up from hell, a forest so foggy it resembled a horror movie. Shin, the assassin, tried his best not to show his weakness: fear. "This forest is uncharted, are we really going in there?" he asked. "Cristin already told us about the disappearance of adventurers."
"And you believed her?" Leo asked, mocking Shin. "She must be only trying to scare us. Don't be a pussy, dude. You're not a girl. You're not Ethan. You're not weak."
Ethan, listening quietly to their conversation, felt a fire of rage wanting to explode from his body. He had had enough of them, but to avoid trouble, he prevented himself from showing up. "Not now," he whispered to himself. "Not until I'm strong enough to get my revenge."
The hero party finally stopped chatting and continued their journey. When he was sure they were gone, Ethan stood up and was about to leave when a sudden scream of a woman broke the silence of the forest.
"Fuck!" Ethan cursed under his breath. It shouldn't be his business whatever happened to those people—as if he cared—but his conscience reminded him of his humanity.
Decidedly, Ethan stepped into the unknown: the mysterious place where anybody who entered disappeared without a trace. He tracked where the voice came from and found Bernadette, left alone by her comrades. A massive worm-like creature was crawling towards her, ready to chew her to pieces with its mouth watering and full of pointed teeth.
"Watch out!" Ethan exclaimed, saving Bernadette from doom.
"Who—who are you?" Bernadette asked.
"We don't have time for that. We must get out of here now before that monster eats us," Ethan said, helping the healer stand up. They ran together, but fell when Bernadette twisted her ankle.
"With so many other times, why did it have to happen now?" Bernadette questioned.
The worm-like creature opened its mouth wide, revealing those pointed, sharp teeth like that of a chainsaw. It suddenly attacked, causing them to roll over the ground to avoid being swallowed. Ethan's back hit against a fallen tree and he coughed out blood. As he wiped the blood with the back of his hand, a system notification popped up in front of him.
Urgent Quest: Eliminate the Hydralisk
With his back still aching, Ethan stood up. He wondered how he could kill such a massive monster. The pressure he felt was much stronger than the king of goblins. Its name was also written in red. Looking at its monstrous HP already discouraged him. He knew he couldn't defeat it with only his raw strength. He needed a weapon.
"Inventory," he said. "Equip." And two crescent-shaped daggers appeared in his hands.
Meanwhile, Bernadette, who had just regained consciousness, wondered how Ethan could still stand up after that attack. He had shielded her, but he looked unhurt. Her eyes followed him as he charged towards the monster at full speed with a pair of daggers in hand. He moved so fast, and she failed to track his movements.
"Who—who are you, really?" she wondered.
Despite his improved strength and agility, Ethan still found it hard to counter the hydralisk, especially due to the thick scales covering its body. He wondered why he had to risk his life for someone he didn't even know, all while dodging its attacks. His fatigue was slowly growing. He had to end it soon before it could end him instead.
Ethan applied a poison buff to his daggers and stabbed the hydralisk in its weak spot—the eyes. He did it again and again like a psychopath losing his mind. The monster let out a deafening screech every time, green blood splashing everywhere, until the monster finally gave in.
Exhausted, Ethan lay down on the ground on his back, his face covered in blood. The dead monster lay beside him. A satisfied smile crept onto his lips before he lost consciousness as his fatigue reached 99.9 percent.
An hour later, Ethan woke up feeling warm. As his eyes opened, two large melons were hanging in front of his face. "What a nice view," he said, wondering if he had died again and was already in heaven. "They are so big."
"You're finally awake?" a sweet voice of a woman asked.
Surprised, Ethan suddenly stood up. Then he realized that his body wasn't aching anymore and all his wounds were gone. "Did you... Did you heal me?" he asked.
"Not really," Bernadette replied. "Your wounds healed on their own. I only used holy light to clean you up. You're so strong. How did you defeat that monster? You saved my life. Thank you so much!"
"It must be my natural healing ability," Ethan thought. "You're with the hero party, right?" he asked. "Where are they?"
"You're right. They abandoned me when they saw that monster. I thought I was going to die, but you saved me," Bernadette replied. "Who are you, by the way, and what are you doing in this forest?"
"It's a long story," Ethan said. "I'll tell you if you can keep it a secret. Can I trust you?"
"Of course you can trust me. You're my savior after all. I owe you my life," Bernadette replied. "Unlike those people, you're a real hero. You risked your life to save me while they ran away to save themselves. They are so shameless and selfish."
"I understand how you feel," Ethan said.
"Do you know them?"
"How could I ever forget the people who abandoned me?"
"So you're Ethan? Their former healer?" Bernadette asked.
"That was then. From now on, my name is Shadow, and I'm going to hunt them to the deepest and darkest place they hide. Hahahahaha!" With ecstatic laughter, Ethan put on his hood and walked away.
"Wait, Ethan—nay, Master Shadow. Let me come with you!" Bernadette followed him.