Surviving These Unfair Scenarios [LITRPG - DIMENSION HOPPING]

The sterile, white walls of the lobby stretched around them, bathed in the soft, eternal glow of its simulated sky. Adam, his body now fully recovered from the excruciating pain of his re-entry, stood beside Gregor. The air hummed with the usual quiet activity of his teammates moving to and fro, but for Adam, the world felt distant, muted by the profound purpose that now consumed him. He had chosen his path, a perilous journey into the very heart of his own being, and a direct confrontation with the entity that had twisted his will and controlled his flesh.

Gregor, his rugged face etched with a rare concern, led Adam to a secluded corner of the lobby, a section where the ambient hum was softer, a place where no other member of the team had come before. It was here, in this quiet place, that Gregor himself had attempted to bridge the terrifying gap between the living and the dead, honing his [Speak with Dead] skill.

"This is it, Scholar."

Gregor rumbled, his voice a low, steady sound.

"The place I designated. I've tried to push my skill here the last time but couldn't get much farther, so you'll be the one to truly test it first."

Gregor paused, rubbing his grizzled chin, his gaze thoughtful. He explained what little he had gleaned from his own attempts to connect with the spectral realm.

"From what I've managed to prove, the best way to establish contact with a spirit, beyond simply having the right skill, is to clear your mind completely and put it utterly blank."

He looked at Adam, a grim set to his jaw.

"It sounds simple, right? But it's far from easy. The moment I try to enter that 'trance,' all the negative emotions and anguish of the restless ghosts connected to my karma, rush into me. It's like a tide of despair… Pfft, a horrible experience if I say so myself."

He watched the boy closely.

"But perhaps you will be different. As far as I know, your connection to the dead isn't through a skill, like mine, right? You are part undead. Perhaps it will be easier for you."

Adam listened, his brow furrowed in concentration. He tried to analyze the situation, to find a logical framework for what Gregor was proposing, but he had to admit that matters of esotericism, of spiritual communion, were uncharted territory for him. His knowledge, even the one that he obtained thanks to Malzaphir, felt utterly useless here. The intricate pathways of science and logic offered no guidance in this ethereal landscape. All he could do was trust... Trust in the experiences he had already endured, trust in Gregor's limited but hard-won insight, and most importantly, trust in the words of Nikolai. If he had inadvertently stumbled into the Undead Empress's inner world before, then perhaps he could do it again, this time on purpose. The thought was daunting, yet a spark of grim determination ignited within him. He was tired of being a puppet, tired of being controlled. This was his chance to reclaim agency and to understand the strings that pulled him.

They sat facing each other on the polished wooden floor of the secluded lobby area. The ambient hum of the system was a distant murmur, replaced by the soft, rhythmic breathing of the two men. Gregor closed his eyes, his posture rigid, his face a mask of intense concentration. He immediately began to channel his [Speak with Dead] skill. A faint, almost imperceptible blue aura flickered around him, a delicate barrier against the unseen forces he sought to connect with. Even so, his features tightened, a subtle tremor running through his body, betraying the immense effort required to maintain the fragile connection with the tormented souls linked to him. The weight of their unseen anguish pressed against him as a burden he willingly bore.

Adam, opposite him, attempted to follow Gregor's instructions. He cleared his mind, pushing away the endless stream of analytical thoughts. He sought a blank slate, an empty canvas for the spectral whispers. He focused on the faint pressure he remembered in the back of his head, the subtle echo of the Empress's presence, trying to pull it closer. He stretched his senses, searching for the ethereal gateway and the familiar sensation of shifting reality… But nothing happened. He felt no surge of connection, nor a pull towards the inner darkness.

He tried again, pushing harder to force his will, but the emptiness remained. He merely sat there, eyes closed, breathing evenly, utterly disconnected.

Gregor, without opening his eyes, began to guide him in a low and steady voice.

"Don't force it."

He murmured, his voice a low rumble.

"Relax. Let your mind become a void. Don't seek them, let them find you. Allow yourself to drift. Think of the absence, not the presence."

Adam tried, focusing on the void, on the lack of sensation, but his analytical mind rebelled. For a long while, nothing happened. The silence in the lobby stretched, broken only by the hum in the surroundings.

Just then, Li and Emir arrived. They moved quietly, their footsteps barely audible on the wooden floor. Li assessed the scene with an unreadable expression, followed by Emir, who had his young face brimming with curiosity. They remained silent, standing a respectful distance away, observing the two meditating figures. Another long period passed, measured only by the rhythmic rise and fall of Adam and Gregor's chests.

Adam tried everything he was suggested, every mental trick, every attempt to quiet the incessant hum of his own thoughts. He searched for the subtle pull or a familiar disorientation that signaled a shift in reality, but still nothing. Gregor continued to guide him, offering advice on how to breathe, how to feel, how to surrender to the unseen. Then, finally, Adam felt something… A faint, distant tug, a fleeting sensation of cold emptiness, a subtle shift in the air around him. It was there, for a split second, and then it vanished, slipping away like smoke. He gasped, his eyes flying open in frustration.

"I felt it…"

Adam exclaimed, his voice tight.

"Just for a second. A cold emptiness. Like… like falling. But then it was gone."

Gregor opened his eyes, a flicker of grim satisfaction in their depths.

"Well, at least it's some progress."

He rumbled with a sigh.

"That's good. It means the connection is there."

He thought for a moment, his brow furrowed. Adam, meanwhile, continued to enumerate his previous experiences, trying to find a pattern or a key factor he might be missing. He explained that when he had been in the Empress's inner world before, it had always been involuntary. It had happened every time he lost consciousness, even before the ghost managed to fully free herself, or even recover her power. He described the consistent disorientation and the feeling of shifting into a similar, empty space whenever his mind slipped into unconsciousness.

A shared glance passed between Gregor, Li, and Emir. A silent, immediate understanding bloomed among them. Gregor's eyes widened.

"Then there is a possibility that you could access that place… if you were to lose consciousness?"

He said slowly, his voice laced with dawning realization, and Adam nodded.

"It's probable. In fact, I can even guarantee that the Empress wouldn't act to fully possess my body while I'm here in the lobby. It happened with the parasite two scenarios ago; she didn't fully take over then either. The system seems to maintain a baseline of stability here. But that's not the problem."

Adam sighed, a frustrated sound.

"The problem is… I don't know how to induce unconsciousness in myself. My very race, my Demi-Lich nature, prevents me from even sleeping. It's a constant state of awareness, so I can't simply… turn myself off."

He ran a hand through his hair, a grim set to his jaw, mentally enumerating various impossible solutions, from head trauma to extreme energy depletion, none of which were viable or safe.

While Adam was lost in his own thoughts, meticulously enumerating absurd options for self-induced unconsciousness, Li subtly nudged Emir. He leaned down, whispering something into the young boy's ear. His voice was too low for anyone else to hear, a murmur that barely disturbed the quiet silence of the lobby. The kid's small head nodded, his eyes wide, a flicker of understanding passing through them.

Adam continued to ramble, listing increasingly desperate and impractical methods for inducing unconsciousness, completely oblivious to the silent communication unfolding behind him, while Emir, with a child's natural stealth, began to approach him. He moved with the quiet grace of a shadow, his small feet barely making a sound on the wooden floor. Adam was too engrossed in his own dilemma to notice the boy drawing near until it was too late.

Then, without warning, without even a soft brush of movement, Emir positioned himself directly behind Adam. His two small hands rose, quick and precise, and placed themselves firmly on either side of Adam's head. The boy barely had time to utter a surprised expression.

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"Eh?"

A small sound of bewildered inquiry, before Emir's skill activated. A small, swirling vortex of pure darkness, a miniature black hole of conceptual void, seemed to emanate from his tiny palms. It was not a physical force, but a profound, absolute emptiness.

Adam's consciousness, bombarded by this sudden void directly applied to his mind, shattered instantly. His internal lights went out, and his body, devoid of the active will that animated it, crumpled. With a soft thud, he toppled forward, his face meeting the polished wooden floor of the lobby with a loud thud. A profound, almost comical silence descended upon the group, broken only by the rustle of Adam's clothes as he lay motionless. Emir looked down at his unconscious friend, then up at Li and Gregor, and a faint, timid blush spread across his cheeks.

"Oops…"

He mumbled, his voice a soft, almost innocent whisper, a child who had just knocked over a fragile vase.

A faint, almost imperceptible smirk touched Li's lips, though he said nothing. While rendering a Demi-Lich unconscious in combat would be nearly impossible, Emir's darkness fruit and Void Ki didn't just absorb physical energy. They created a conceptual void. Applying this directly to Adam's head—an idea conceived by Li—acted like a system reset button for consciousness. This method, which most probably would be almost fatal for a normal person, proved effective... Adam was out.

——————————

The world dissolved around Adam. One moment, he was face down on the lobby floor, and then the next, his eyes snapped open, and he found himself staring up at a familiar, oppressive grey sky.

He was back. Back in the shattered, desolate landscape of his inner world, a haunting reflection of the ghost world he had endured in his first scenario. He pushed himself up, rubbing his head, a phantom ache lingering behind his eyes. He looked around, realizing that everything was exactly as he remembered it from his last involuntary visit: the twisted, collapsed skyscrapers, their skeletal frames reaching for the dead sky, and the dread atmosphere. Buildings submerged under layers of ash and blackened roots, cars rusted and fused with the terrain, and a profound, oppressive emptiness, devoid of wind or any sound but the echo of his own movements.

But there was a subtle, yet profound change. This realm wasn't the empty, mournful void he had wandered through before. This time, the ruined city was alive with specters. Figures of Ghoul-types, the human skeletons devoid of legs, that dragged themselves across the cracked streets, their bony limbs scraping against the debris. Enormous, faceless Feral-Types, the wolf-like creatures with heads that were nothing but gaping maws, padded silently through the shadows. Small, aberrant Drake-Trypes, the dragon-like phantoms, their forms translucent and ephemeral, flitted through the broken skyline. And in the distance, silhouetted against the perpetually dim light, he could discern the monstrous, towering form of a Demon-Type ghost, its presence radiating a palpable sense of ancient malice. This was his summoned army, the very legions of the damned he had unleashed multiple times already, now filling his inner world.

He reached out mentally, trying to connect with Malzaphir or with the Overmind Parasite, but as before, there was no response. He was alone again, but perhaps not entirely. He wondered if Nikolai would be here as well.

Adam began to walk, his footsteps echoing unnaturally loud in the profound silence of the ruined city. He explored the familiar landmarks, the twisted remains of a shattered marketplace, a collapsed office tower, ensuring everything was as he remembered, a subconscious need for order even in this realm of chaos. The ghosts he encountered paid him no mind, at first. The skeletal figures dragged themselves past him, their empty eye sockets seeming to look through him, the faceless wolves padded by, their massive jaws silent, and the tiny dragon-like aberrants flitted through the air, ignoring his presence. They were like the background elements of a twisted dream, seemingly oblivious to his presence, simply existing.

But as Adam continued his exploration, a subtle shift occurred. It was imperceptible at first, then slowly, chillingly, became undeniable… The spectres began to notice him. The Ghoul-Types, previously unseeing, would turn their empty eye sockets just a fraction more as he passed; the faceless wolves would pause, their head-mouths tilting, as if catching a scent, and the aberrant dragon-like creatures would slow their flitting, hovering their translucent forms, their unseen gazes subtly shifting towards him.

It was a slow, terrifying dawning of awareness, a creeping realization among the spectral legions that their master, or perhaps a new presence, was among them that shouldn't be. The air grew subtly heavier, the hum of their collective, silent presence intensifying. He felt their unseen eyes on him, a growing, chilling scrutiny.

Adam tried a door, a heavy, rusted metal slab leading into what looked like a subterranean complex. It was already corroded and weakened by time, and with a soft groan, it buckled, collapsing inward with a deafening crash that echoed violently through the silent ruins. The sudden, jarring noise ripped through the oppressive quiet, shattering the illusion of their passive existence.

In that instant, every quadrupedal phantom, skeletal figure, and aberrant dragon within earshot snapped their heads towards the boy. Their collective, silent gazes, previously curious, now turned predatory. A cacophony of shrieks, snarls, and guttural roars erupted from them, filling the ruined city with a terrifying, unified sound of malice. They surged forward, a tidal wave of spectral fury, their forms blurring as they descended upon Adam.

Adam reacted instantly, his mind screaming for his skills. He tried to activate his mutation abilities, to manifest his cursed spear, to call upon the raw power of his Demi-Lich form. But nothing happened... In this world, his skills and his connection to the system's mechanics remained dormant, making him utterly and terrifyingly human.

He lunged backward, barely dodging a snapping jaw from a faceless wolf phantom. He spun, his feet scraping on the cracked asphalt, weaving through the spectral charge. He evaded a skeletal claw, then narrowly avoided the ethereal bite of a flying ghost. He was fast and agile for some reason, meaning his physical abilities were enhanced, but he was unarmed and surrounded by a tide of furious, unthinking predators. He knew he couldn't escape them for long; there were too many enemies, and he was too vulnerable. He could feel their cold, spectral breaths on him, the razor-sharp edges of their intangible claws, about to overwhelm him, and dragging down into the abyss of his own summoned nightmares.

Just as the spectral tide was about to engulf him, two shadows, impossibly fast, leaped over Adam, shielding him from the impending danger. They landed with silent, powerful grace, their forms instantly recognizable.

One was Abbess, her sculpted body clad in the traditional Shaolin monk uniform, with her long, white hair flowing around her. Her red eyes, usually so serene, burned with a fierce, protective light. Her black, sharp nails extended, ready for battle. Beside her was the 'Sacred Guardian of Envy', a gleaming, golden human skeleton encased in radiant golden armor with a brilliant blue flame flickering within its chest. It wielded a massive, cursed golden sword, its presence radiating an aura of ancient, powerful guardianship.

They charged, not with a roar, but with a silent, devastating attack, slamming into the mass of rabid ghosts. The summoned spectres shrieked, their forms momentarily disrupted by the impact, and recoiled, scattering and finally fleeing before the sudden, overwhelming power of Adam's personal guardians. They didn't dissolve or disappear, but they fled, retreating into the deeper shadows of the ruined city.

Adam stared, utterly bewildered, his eyes wide with surprise.

"Abbess? Guardian?"

He gasped with a tight voice.

"What are you doing here?"

He was about to ask more, when a small, luminous phantom skull, with its eye sockets glowing faintly, began to float playfully around his head, emitting a series of delighted, ethereal chimes. Adam recognized it immediately; it was his Spectronomicon. It was here too, for some reason.

He pushed himself up, rubbing his head, the shock of their unexpected presence almost as disorienting as his sudden arrival.

"You're all here?"

He asked, disbelief lacing his voice. The Guardian of Envy turned its skeletal head towards him, the blue flame in its chest flickering. Abbess simply nodded as her red eyes met his. But before she could speak, a young, familiar voice cut in from directly behind Adam.

"Well, unlike the ghosts you usually summon, which are just power borrowed directly from the Empress, these three you acquired and cultivated yourself. It's not so strange that, even in these circumstances, they still consider you their master."

Adam whirled around. Standing there, walking towards him with his hands casually tucked into his worn jacket pockets, was Nikolai, smirking as always.

"Hey, dude, surprised to see you back so soon."

He looked exactly as Adam remembered him: sharp features, light brown hair, that same relaxed confidence in his posture, as if nothing, not even death itself, could shake him.

The palpable tension in the ruined world slowly diffused, replaced by a strange, almost surreal sense of normalcy. Adam found himself talking with Nikolai, while his personal guardians—the Spectronomicon, the Guardian of Envy, and Abbess—stood quietly to the side, waiting with loyal patience.

Nikolai explained that he had been in this same empty world until a moment ago. Then, without warning, all the ghosts and phantoms had returned in a sudden, overwhelming surge, filling the desolate landscape. He also noted that the Empress had returned, now fully free and in her complete, terrifying form, though he didn't elaborate on where she was. Even Adam's three personal summons had appeared here, despite Abbess confirming that previously, they had existed in a particular sub-space only for themselves and a few other select ghosts. It seemed that following the Empress's liberation, Adam's internal spaces and the Empress's own mental landscape had somehow merged into this shared, chaotic reality.

Adam, still reeling from the unexpected turn of events, explained his presence. He recounted his conversation with Nikolai the last time he was there, highlighting his decision to follow his friend's advice and his desire to understand the true nature of the Empress before deciding how to finally deal with her. Nikolai listened, his easy smile unwavering, then nodded.

"That's good."

He said, his voice casual.

"Very good, in fact. But…"

He paused, his expression shifting slightly with a subtle hint of weariness in his eyes.

"There's a 'but'?"

Adam asked, furrowing his brow. Nikolai sighed.

"Yes, a 'but'... Now that she's free, the Empress is far more unpredictable than before. The last time I tried to talk to her… She almost made me disappear entirely, or so she said. She's not exactly in a conversational mood, I'd say."

Adam's face tightened.

"Then what should I do?"

He asked with a hint of desperation in his voice. Nikolai merely shrugged, his usual relaxed posture unwavering.

"You're the smart one, aren't you? You figure it out. You're good at thinking inside the box, so maybe that is what you need right now."

He then gestured towards Abbess, the Guardian, and the Spectronomicon.

"Besides, you're not entirely alone anymore. Remember, you have them."

His words were a simple yet profound reminder of the loyal power Adam commanded. The chapter ended with the boy's thoughts turning to his next step, a complex problem now compounded by the volatile presence of the Empress.

"And you?"

Adam asked, looking at Nikolai, with a faint hope in his voice.

"You'll help me too, right?"

Nikolai blinked, and a small, almost imperceptible nervous tic appeared at the corner of his eye. But ultimately, he sighed, a long, drawn-out sound, as if resigning himself to an inevitable fate.

"Eeeehh... Well, okay. Fine."

The casual acceptance, so typical of him, belied the immense gravity of the task ahead.