Meanwhile, Yue, who had just finished drinking Hajime's blood, was staring at El with an inexpressible feeling, whether it was interest or the same sense of awe as Hajime.
With a gaping mouth, blood flowed around the lips and Yue said, "Your strength..." Yue said, unable to believe what she saw. "Not normal..."
Hajime frowned, still not fully believing what was happening, but he decided not to jump to conclusions.
"This... doesn't make sense. You just... destroyed that monster in one jolt!?" he said in a flat tone, though there was a sense of wonder in it. "Who exactly are you, Adrian?"
Yue wiped the blood still dripping from her lips with her fingertips, then looked at El with a calmer expression.
El turned his body around calmly, looking at Yue and Hajime with a friendly smile. "Just people who forgot to count the floors," he said in a light tone.
Although his words sounded casual, in his mind, El was already making a judgment on the situation, as if he was judging their surprised expressions.
"Good surprised expressions, 100 Points for Hajime and Yue," El whispered to himself, judging how their reactions were so perfect.
Hajime and Yue looked at El with wide eyes, as they simultaneously shouted, "Impossible!"
In response to that reaction, El felt a little satisfied, even though she had only witnessed the chaos caused by him.
The feeling was like a predictable game, it was only a matter of time before everything was revealed.
El just smiled with feigned awkwardness, touching the back of his neck as if feeling a little embarrassed.
"Hahaha..." a light chuckle escaped his mouth, though she didn't feel embarrassed at all.
Instead, El was amused by the situation that was happening in front of him.
However, despite the lightheartedness and laughter, El still paid attention to Yue and Hajime's every movement and expression.
***
Currently, El, Hajime, and Yue were sitting in front of a fireplace. The atmosphere was quiet, filled only with the sound of the fire crackling softly.
They shared stories with each other, stories about how each of them came to be in this place.
Yue started by telling about her past. Meanwhile, El and Hajime were busy grinding rocks to make gunpowder.
Although El already knew the story, he chose to listen quietly, appreciating the moment.
Yue was once a noble, more precisely, a queen. At a very young age, her magic power had surpassed everyone around her.
Her regeneration magic was extraordinary, able to heal any wound, even those that should have been deadly.
However, one day that gift slowly turned into a curse.
People began to fear him. Whispers arose behind his back, calling him a "monster" in tones of disgust and fear.
Even her own family betrayed her. Her uncle, someone who was supposed to protect her, led his followers to stab Yue in the back, sealing her away in the darkness of this labyrinth.
Perhaps they thought Yue would die. However, her body resisted destruction. The wounds healed, time no longer had power over her. She did not age, did not die.
Finally, Yue could only wait in solitude, trapped in darkness for centuries. The world kept changing out there, but she remained in the same place-silent, lonely, and eternal.
Now it was Hajime's turn to tell the story. Back then, before everything changed, he was just an ordinary student, weak, quiet, and never stood out.
One day he and his classmates were summoned to another world, but Hajime was only assigned the profession of "Synergist," a support class considered useless in battle.
Everything changed when they sundenly reached the 65th floor of the Orcus Labyrinth. In the chaos of battle, someone from his group betrayed him, and made him fall into the abyss, to the true 1st Floor of True Orcus.
At the bottom of that darkness, he almost died. His left arm was ripped off by a giant bear monster.
Luckily, Hajime managed to escape by punching a hole in the cave wall, a reckless act that led him to an unexpected discovery: The Divinity Stone, which drips with an extraordinary healing liquid.
But despite his good fortune, Hajime remained trapped in despair.
Hunger, pain, and wounds that, although healed, still scarred his soul, made him cross the final line: eating monster flesh to survive.
His body began to change. The monster meat filled with magic power twisted his body and soul, turning him into something that could no longer be called fully human.
And there, the old Hajime truly died, replaced by someone who would never let himself be stepped on again.
On the other hand, Yue cried silently, touched by Hajime's tragic story.
Although Hajime had now discarded his past and no longer cared about his classmates, the wounds he had endured still left a deep mark.
His goal now is only one: to return to his world.
However, the word "home" broke Yue's heart. She had nowhere to go back to. Everything had betrayed her, and time had stolen everything she had.
Seeing the sadness in Yue's eyes, Hajime looked at him for a moment and then said, "Then, come home with me."
A smile slowly appeared on Yue's face. There was hope, small but real. Hajime also smiled slightly, and on the other side, El, who had only been a spectator, also smiled and nodded slowly.
In El's heart, the thought of recording this moment came to him.
As an anime fan in the past, watching the "Live Action" moment of anime romance happen right in front of his eyes was too precious to miss.
But, forget all that for a moment.
With Yue and Hajime's story completed, it was now El's turn. It was their agreement from the beginning, sharing stories with each other, no matter how dark or strange.
Both of them were now staring at El, filled with curiosity that slowly gnawed at their minds.
How could someone be that strong? Flicking a Scorpion Monster whose shell was made of Azantium to death was not an ordinary thing.
And again! Someone this strong chose to chat. Obviously! This was quite unusual!
Yue just stared silently, her eyes sharp but curious. She didn't say anything, just observed El who was so quiet and almost expressionless, as if holding too many things behind her calm face.
Meanwhile, Hajime stopped his activity. The hand that had been grinding the ore stone now stood still. Sweat dripped lightly on his temples, not because of the heat of the fireplace, but because of the same curiosity.
El smiled kindly, as if he had expected that reaction, then began to tell the story. "Actually, I'm also from Earth-"
Before he could continue, Hajime immediately interrupted his with a surprised expression.
Hajime quickly approached, grasping El's shoulder. "From Earth? Seriously? Do you know anything about the missing classmates?!"
"Wait until I finish talking first," El said calmly, still smiling while closing his eyes for a moment and raising her left index finger. "I'll ask you later. Don't rush."
Hajime sighed softly, lowered his head slightly and took a few steps back to his original seat. "Sorry... I was too impatient."
"Hajime is impatient..." muttered Yue in a flat tone, almost expressionless.
Hajime snorted in annoyance, glancing at Yue who replied with a flat look while rolling her eyes slightly, making the atmosphere a little awkward but also warm.
Seeing their interaction, El chuckled a little before speaking again. "Before I continue, there's one thing I want to emphasize first: Your home Earth, Hajime, and my home Earth... seem to be different."
Hajime frowned, his left eyebrow rising, clearly confused. "Different Earths? How do you know?"
"From your unfamiliar human scent," El replied while pretending to think seriously, looking at Hajime and Yue in turn. "At least I think... maybe we're from a parallel world?"
El then continued in a light tone. "On my Earth, people have superpowers and supernatural abilities. A world where miracles are commonplace."