Unknown Suffering

"...ad... So sad... Why do i have to be this sad..."

I heard a suffering voice as i was waking up.

"Why..."

"So sad..."

As i got up from the ground, i saw multiple black human-like figures with white eyes walking around me with a strange posture.

Where am i?? What happened after i fainted?

Is this a dream...?

I was in a seemingly endless dark grey space. The ground was really dark, almost black, and there was a fog-like substance in the air.

In the distance, there was a bright white light, as if there was a white sun in that strange place.

"Hey... Do you know why?" Asked one of the black figures after turning back and looking at me.

"... Know what?" I reclutantly asked the black figure standing before me.

"Why... Why do i have to be so sad..." Asks the black figure while crying white tears from his eyes.

Tears and sadness... Is this place somehow correlated to the Tear Of Pure Sadness...?

"How did you end up in this place?" I asked the crying black figure.

"I don't know... The only thing i remember is standing in a crowd... Watching my family being burned alive... By some knights..." Slowly responds the black figure while crying even more.

Does every black figure in this place have a sad memory like that? But why did they end up in here...

"I remember something more..."

I hear a black figure talking from behind me.

"I was standing in the battlefield... And after i saw my friend... Die right in front of my eyes... Because of a demon... A blue necklace and a red ring appeared... In front of me..." The black figure explained, while talking at a really slow pace, just like the other figures.

"I felt a strong urge to touch them... So i touched the necklace... And after that... I don't remember anymore..." Continued the black figure.

"I see... Thank you for telling me. May your friend rest in peace..." i said to the black figure.

"Thank you... For listening to my story... Really..." The black shadow thanked me with tears running down his cheecks and a smile on his face. As he smiled, countless yellow particles and a dim yellow light enveloped his body, then, he began slowly disappearing...

"I envy him so much... It finally ended for him..." Says one of the black figures walking around.

"I hope it will end for me too..."

"Why do i have to suffer here..."

All the black figures began speaking words of envy towards the soon to disappear figure...

After it completely disappeared, the yellow particles scattered away, coloring the strange fog in the air of a faint, but warm, yellow.

All the figures stopped talking and resumed walking around, while questioning the reason they were in such a place, suffering...

Could it be that every black figure here has used the power of the Tear Of Pure Sadness? But then, why am i normal...

"...ay!... Ray!... Are you okay?! Wake up!!" I hear a familiar voice, worried, from the sky and, a second after, i opened my eyes, as if i was sleeping the entire time.

"!!... Thank goodness... You're fine..."

It was Haru's voice that woke me up. She was now hugging me, probably out of relief.

"!" After staying hugged to me for a few seconds, Haru backed away a bit while blushing.

"A-Anyways, i told you to not go alone! If i didn't find you, you would have been..."

"Yes... I was careless this time. I didn't think there could be a Boss Monster in this cave." I said while getting up from the ground.

I was covered in bruises and my clothes were all ripped and covered in blood.

I don't even know how i survived after crashing on crystal, my ribs were all probably broken...

"A Boss Monster?! You mean like that thing you, Mia and Mr.Adam fought on the Fifth Floor?!!" Asked Haru, shocked by what i said.

"Similar to that, but it was a big monkey this time." I responded while taking my spear that was lying on the ground.

"Seriously... I'm so happy you're still alive..."

"By the way, what are all these ice spikes around here? There are even some ice statues of those monkey monsters over there" Asked Haru while pointing at the Snow Monkeys who had been turned into ice thanks to the Tear Of Pure Sadness.

"After the Boss Monster screamed something, they turned into ice and these spikes emerged from the ground, it was probably his ability." I responded, lying to her.

I can't tell Haru about the Paradox System and [Analyze]... And even if i did, she probably wouldn't even believe me.

I have to get stronger...

I can't stay like this, or i'll be in serious danger everytime something does not go as planned, like the encounter with the Boss Monkey this time.

[Alert! The energy coming from the Lost Soul has been successfully processed! Converting the energy into Paradox Energy... Done!]

[Alert! Because of the additional Paradox Energy, you gained +1 STA!]

What?! I gained a stat point this easily?

It talked about a Lost Soul... Could it be...

The black figures?

Was the Lost Soul the one that had vanished in that strange yellow light?

If so... Everytime one of those figures vanishes, i gain a stat point!

That black figure began vanishing after thanking me... Pheraps, i have to relieve their sadness, even if it's just a little bit.

The only problem is, how do i get back in that strange black and white space?

"So you were here. Don't worry, the others are fine" As i was thinking, i heard a voice a few meters away from us.

It was Mia, she was walking towards us.

"Good, how much time did you spend while searching for me?" I asked Mia.

"About 3 hours. We were starting to think you were dead..." Responded Mia.

She looked kind of relieved the moment she saw me. Maybe she atually has some emotions deep down in her heart?

"Let's get going. We either find an exit, or we die here, in the sheer cold of this forsaken cave." I said with a serious tone, while adjusting my ripped clothes a little.

We then started walking towards the only side we didn't explore, the northen side of the cave.

I wonder what happened to the people inside The Tower after we got teleported in here...

Chapter 28-End.