The red scare passed without so much of a scare. It just wasn't scary the second time, it was like a stupid Halloween trick.

"No wonder why rarely any scavangers die; they're all smart enough to hide. The stupid beasts treat this layer like some sort of dumb arena..."

I tapped my knees and recited the strange voice in my head when I was drowning.

[Through the unified World, End, and Beginning; Heavens, Hell, Earth- I alone will reach this World's End].

When my mouth finished the word "End", I paused. I had almost forgotten the full verse by now.

What had been playing through my head when I was sinking in the void? Why had I been interpreting it the whole time? It was just some stupid hallucination in my head.

No.

That was what I thought at first, that it was some echo chamber of my pessimistic thoughts. But after observing the world for a bit, I realized that there was knowledge in the lines that I couldn't have known or guessed.

For instance, "Earth, Hell, and Heavens". Could that potentially imply that this was the concatenated layer? Hell denoted the abyss below, Heavens denoted the layer above, and Earth denoted this layer. Then they concatenated every red scare, Heavens attacking any light that came below.

Light wasn't supposed to come somewhere besides Heaven afterall!

But how could I have known that knowledge? When I woke up, I was stuck in a sea of darkness and then inside a cave. How could I have guessed the dynamics of this world?

I shook my head and thoughtfully considered the possibilities.

Is this some kind of scenario where I lost my memories? Or perhaps, some external persons is providing me knowledge. Maybe its Saria? Ayaka through the communication device?

Come to think about it, the last time I talked to Saria, she showed me a desert. But no, that desert was bright and orange while this one is dark and blue.

Furthermore, if Saria or Ayaka knew about this place in advance, they would have told me something at least.

I sighed and shook my head.

For that I didn't know, everything I uttered were no more than a mere guess. Shooting an arrow into an endless void, living life wondering if I hit the target or not.

"I should focus on things that I do know instead!"

Without another thought, I stood up and exited the cave.

From there, the world had cleared as usual. No sound except for the crittering noises above and below my layer. 

I sighed and started another journey.

On the way, I toyed with the bone and the transient shard. 

How long before I encountered a monster? I lifted a hand and counted the total number of hours I had been here.

Each red scare was about 4 hours. There was about a 15 minute window between the noises in the sky fading and terror arising. There was about a 5 minute window before the red sun rose. 

Between each red scare was about an hour. 

That means I had been here for nearly 10 hours. 10 hours, and the only monster I ran into was my dear Abomination lizard friend!

But my luck was not infinite. Within the next few hours of traveling, I would surely encounter an enemy. If I did, then the strategy was simple.

I wanted a weapon! The transient shard was nice, but its range was too short. While my LI shards provided me good range coverage, a weapon no longer than a water bottle was useless against terrors that would rip me in half in a single swipe.

"The truth is though, I don't think I can thrust a spear..." I mumbled to myself as I pulled out some pieces of the abomination tendon.

Eventually, I was able to get the shard hafted to the bone.

Proud, I lifted the javelin into the air. With its rusty bone and tiny light wrapped in brown stretchy meat, it was no glory. But it sure looked menacing!

"Oooh? This is fancy. I didn't like engineering for nothing! I shall call this [Spear of Light Oblivion]!"

I brandished Light Oblivion. 

The moment Light Oblivion pierced flesh, the goal was to run as far as possible. Then, a flying deity would do a great job and slaughter the monster for me.

Truly a light oblivion!

My only job is to stab it deep enough to spark and then run.

I grinned.

"Monsters? I'm not afraid of you! Come and get me!"

Before long, my wish came true. 

There were several prominent dangers up till now. Firstly, the big three basics of survival: aka food, shelter, and water. Then, the terrain challenges of pitch darkness, steep falls, red scare.

However, the one that stuck out to me the most was running into monsters. Because, no matter how careful one was or the preparations they made, if they couldn't beat monsters, then they couldn't continue the path.

In normal nature like even Antarctica, it was possible to equip and arm oneself to survive. Food, water, warmth, shelter from chilly breeze, whatnot. Even bring a gun or two in case one meets a polar bear. 

In this world, I had more or less obtained everything I needed to survive. I didn't need to worry about being lost because I was already lost!

However, there was one distinction between the harshest places in the world above and this [Dark World].

That is, humans are at the bottom of the food chain. Everything was a menacing, hunting polar bear that had strength no human could have. 

In the distance, a bear-sized woodlouse-looking insect crawled across the sandy dunes. Its antenna's emitted faint light, just barely illuminating the areas that surrounded its legs.

Two terrifyingly long mandibles protruded from its head. The edges were shiny like a knife, ready to cut through even the thickest meats.

It moved slowly... wait no! It was just adjusting its legs. When it ran, that crap could likely move at the speed of a snake?

Horrifying... everything here is horrifying!

I slowly brandished Light Oblivion as I stepped back. Could I kill this thing? The terrible creature's entire body was coated with a tough armor. It was in essence, a short millipede!

How does one kill a millipede that has jaws the length of a human arm?

I bit my lip and griped Light Oblivion.

No! You mustn't get scared!

This creature isn't the strongest monster that you'll encounter! If you can't beat it, you might as well die anyways!

The woodlouse in the distance paid no attention to me. Instead, it just chewed on the remains of a dead beetle.

It was enormous... how does it not get hunted down during the red scare? I thought. Did it seriously know to find a cavern every time? Or did it not give two shits that this world made it stupidly difficult to survive here as a large creature.

"I guess natural selection doesn't apply to this world," I thought bitterly.

Still, I leveled Light Oblivion in my hand. The answer was still the same, no matter what this creature was.

Fight or die.

That was the true principle of combat. 

If I couldn't get pass the creature, sooner or later I would die. If I tried to sneak past it, there was a possibility that the creature would suddenly attack me.

Which is better? Me ambushing the bug or the bug ambushing me?

I set the bag and my fur coat on the side of the wall as a breeze of cold air brushed against my skin. However, I didn't shiver and grinned.

Without a second thought, I flew at the woodlouse with Light Oblivion in my hand.

The woodlouse turned out to not be as fast as I thought. It bolted towards me with its mandibles, attempting to snatch me. 

Predictable.

I hopped over the swinging teeth as if I was playing jump rope.

Hey, I was actually not bad at this! Life is just that easy when your enemy isn't an almighty monster like Khosrow!

"I'll thank dad later for teaching me," I muttered as I sprinted around the creature.

What tricks did this bastard have? Did it spray poison crap from its back?

The woodlouse slowly turned, realizing it missed me. It was sluggish and slow, like a clumsy child swinging a jump rope.

Actually, that was worse! Those kids could be quite the menace sometimes!

"How did this weak little bug actually end up surviving up here?" I muttered to myself.

I ducked past the blades again and ran to its back. I aligned Light Oblivion to the woodlouse's back and thrusted with all my might.

"Go to hell, weak bug!"

But the sharp end of Light Oblivion bounced off its back without so much of a scratch. The woodlouse screeched and its head suddenly sprung backward.

"Shit!" I yelled, leaping back. "This bastard isn't weak at all!"

The woodlouse snapped, its mandibles swiping the air like a car driving through a lane. A second late, and I would've been caught in its jaws!

My heart pounded in my chest as I ran across the sand. The woodlouse chased me relentlessly, seemingly desperate to cut me in two.

What is this stupid armored bug? Flip it over! The underside! Go for the underside!

My legs burned, sweat pouring down my forehead. I felt like falling face forward into the sand. My heart hurt from the sudden jump in my heart rate.

Feeling tired, I stopped and glanced back.

The woodlouse had suddenly stopped too and instead stared down at me. It must have realized that it couldn't catch up to me.

Was it calculating something? The level of intelligence this bug had was incredible! What a shame however. I wasn't here to get past you, I'm here to kill you!

I spun around and ran towards the woodlouse, brandishing Light Oblivion. As I approached its head, my arm leaned back.

It suddenly lunged at me, thrusting its clawing jaws at nearly the speed of a car. And you know what they say about cars, it was impossible to dodge one. It got me in its beautiful trap!

"Sorry, buddy," I said with a grin as I reached my hand out. "But I win this one."

Because then my body slammed against the ground!

A glorious long shaft of darkness suddenly materialized in my hand, caught onto the woodlouse's mandibles. When I pushed up, my body slammed against the ground.

Just narrowly allowing me to get under the head.

"This is for scaring me shitless!" I growled. Then, I thrusted Light Oblivion through the woodlouse's neck.

The poor insect was tough indeed! Any strike from on its armor bounced off without a scratch. But its underside? It felt like a piece of paper!

The spear stabbed through the woodlouse's neck. I twisted the spear, making sure the poor bug got a good taste of the crystal!

I hurled myself out before the woodlouse crushed sand with its body. I snatched Light Oblivion out from under before the spear would turn into a pancake.

The spot Light Oblivion pierced was a vital area. Now the only thing left to do is run.

Actually, there was no need to run. The woodlouse stopped moving. Instead, it just sat on the ground, paralyzed.

I had hit a nerve! A real nerve!

The woodlouse laid on the ground, motionless. White blood slowly spread like gentle water pouring onto grass.

I cautiously approached the still bug.

"Should I get one of the flying abominations to kill it? No, it's too risky. Who knows if I'm the one they decide to kill?" I grumbled.

Besides, such weak creatures should be finished by yours truly!

The issue was, is it still alive? Did it need another stab or two? What if it suddenly jumped forward and struck me?

Just for good measure, I lined my arm with its head. 

"LI Shatter."

A black shard launched from the air and stabbed deep into the woodlouse's under chin. Rather than a shriek, the woodlouse was unresponsive.

"So it really is dead. Easy peasy," I grinned as I wiped the sweat off my forehead.

Should I call myself [Corpse Collector]?

After tossing on my fur coat, I looked at the dead body of the woodlouse. "What useful remains to gather from this poor creature?" I muttered as I used the tip of Light Oblivion to cut through the flesh on the bottom.

I dug through its body, hoping to see something more useful than what I currently had. But in all honesty, I didn't see anything except for flesh and muscle. There weren't even bones this time!

Maybe there were things useful on the outside of this corpse.

Could it be that [Dark World] didn't have some system to reward you for kills, and you had to slaughter monsters, manually collect things, and then sell them or craft things with them?

"My poor engineering skills will be used to manufacture everything..." I spat out a groan as I plopped down to dig more remains.

Where was those awesome RPGs where monsters automatically gave weapons and cool stuff? All these monsters only drop some raw materials.

"Blacksmiths must be highly valuable," I muttered as I stuck the crystal of Light Oblivion into the woodlouse's abdomen and pushed around its content.

Speaking of which, I wondered if those black beetles were aggressive. How strong were they? Would they fight me for the dead corpse of this woodlouse?

I nodded. "We'll find out when they come! But what do I need to live? Let's see... My biggest priority is food. I can wonder about other things later."

I cut out some tendons of the woodlouse. Indeed! While bugs of normal sizes seemed to be nothing but blood, an enormous one had plenty of "meat-like" structure to eat!

Happy, I cut out several chunks before my bag got full, alongside some other materials. I smirked at my harvest.

"If I'm this strong, I don't need to worry that much about food! It looks like I can just hunt for it."

Water. Food. Shelter. Monsters.

By now, it seemed that food and shelter were no longer problems. I could hunt and gather food, and plenty of caves in the side of the walls were large enough to hide from the red scare.

What about water? Water was still luck based, though I had a feeling that I didn't need to worry too much about it. A lot of water sources existed for some reason.

In other words, the biggest and only problem by now were monsters. What if I ran into a monster that was more powerful than me? Like the weird flare Abomination things above the surface? Or those flying terrors in the sky?

I shuddered. 

Indeed. I was still at the bottom of the food chain. Being able to kill simple things doesn't make me any more special. This wasn't the surface above, this wasn't a world where humans dominated.

I had a feeling the further I went down, the more terrible the monsters would become. This woodlouse wasn't that strong at all; I was still faster, smarter, and with Light Oblivion beaten the creature. 

The full strength of it hadn't been used yet. Besides, there were still a few tricks with my LI skills that I have yet to show, other than sudden bodily turns and movement using element of surprise.

"I wonder what kind of creatures will overpower me... actually, let's not think about that Mr. Corpse Collector."

I picked up my bag and walked past the corpse of the dead woodlouse.

"Really? The red scare hasn't started again?" I stared at the sky with a frown. The familiar sounds of the sky and beneath remained in my ears.

The previous two red scares had came in high frequency. Yet an hour or two has passed now, and there was still no red scare.

"I wonder if I can make myself some form of writing pad." I muttered. "I would like to draw a map and take notes."

I pulled out some hard skin I cut off from the woodlouse and laid it on the ground. It was the size of a small, square table. With enough force, Light Oblivion was able to carve just a tiny crack.

"This oughta be the worse writing experience ever," I groaned. "Some brushes become so fat with a little pressure, this one feels like lifting a dumbbell to draw a thin line!"

But still, I didn't complain! As a forgetful bastard, anything that could help me remember things were great!

I scribbled some notes onto the skin. After I wrote for a few minutes, I tucked it back into my bag and stroked my chin.

"Hmmm... What kind of monster will I run into next? Everything but that abomination seems to be insects so far. Perhaps a praying mantis? A scorpion? A spider?"

I slowly gazed at the darkness that spread in front of me. My light only illuminated a small radius around me, just enough to see a few feet in front.

"Somehow, this is like a funny analogy to life." I grinned.

What was at the end of the trail? Would I find something interesting? Would my [Unending Death] fail to function at the end? Perhaps the end of the trail was where this world ended.

[I alone will reach this World's End].

That's right. I was alone. For someone with [Unending Death], perhaps the only true death was the death of self; a loss of conscious, a reduction to a shell.

Wishful and spiteful: the two emotions that created contrary no one could explain; Driven lives with goal following versus undying rage preventing tales from ending.

But in the end, weren't they both the same side of the coin?

Everyone who was wishful was spiteful of failing their wishes, and everyone who was spiteful was wishful of satisfying rage.

Then what was on the opposite side of the coin?

-An apathetic zombie.

I slowly smiled and shook my head. I took a step forward in the dunes.

Step. Step. Step.

A gentle breeze blew my hair across my forehead as I looked at the pitch void of the unknown world.

“What a great future. The end of all of this, huh.”

With everything that happened, it was the only thought I could think of.

"-Let's reach that ending."

I slowly adjusted some of the three springs that I had manually crafted. They were designed and produced from some shells and the coils were made from woodlouse's neck tendons.

"What is the spring force of these?" I muttered as I set one onto the rocky ravine ground. A heavy fomp, and up into the air one would fly!

It was beyond dangerous to use myself as the first test subject. If this thing decided to malfunction, I could be launched beyond the ledge and die.

I took a rather large piece of hard shell filled with sand and got ready. 

"Here goes nothing!"

With a strong toss, the hard shell landed onto the spring. There was a clicking noise, then the shell launched several meters into the sky.

"Holy shit! That was like, a ten pound rock!"

I clapped my hands, proud of my other invention.

Vertical Teleporter. The idea was that I could hurl my body meters into the air in an instant to dodge anything the size of a train that dashed towards me.

The only problem was speed.

I reset the spring and tweaked its coiling.

"There, this one should have a much lower activation time! Though it is also easier to blow myself up with it though..."

I smiled as I placed the springs into my fur coat. I continued to walk among the ravine, thinking to myself while staring at the cliffs rocky and still walls.

Vertical movement and a fancy weapon. Hour by hour with every kill and every new tool, I getting more powerful. I had some natural talent to use Light Oblivion... Thank god I had some training classes before Khosrow jumped and ruined the city.

Back then, I thought all of those were useless because I was up against a literal god! But when fighting more my-level creatures, suddenly everything seems to be critical!

I suddenly stopped.

But see, there was also a big problem. 

The [Dark World] wasn't any more fair than the real world. Up till now, I had just been lucky. I was blessed with an undead body of an Abomination, I found miraculous caves and shelters to avoid red scares, I even encountered a weak monster to kill and collect from.

There is a philosophy that everyone can only be so lucky in their lives. A finite number of luck that slowly drains each time one lucks out.

And it seems that my luck had run out and I walked straight into the reality of the [Dark World].

Because a hundred meters in front of me, an enormous centipede covered in red black scales stared at me. In this pitch black world, how could I see it?

The centipede's eyes glowing red. Centipede's aren't supposed to have eyes! Yet, this one clearly did. Its  scales illuminated an ambient magenta. It was larger than any insect on Earth, any fish on Earth, any bird on Earth.

It was at that moment I also realized, the sounds of the two worlds above and below had gone silent. Not because a red scare was coming.

No. This creature was the red scare.