Aya had seen some bad situations before.
Getting chased by adventurers? Bad.Getting smacked around by giant wasps? Worse.Having her house burned down, forcing her to flee for her life? Seriously, what the hell does the universe have against me?
But THIS?
This wasn't just bad.
This wasn't just a nightmare.
This was an absolute, full-course, nightmare soufflé with a side of despair and a sprinkle of "you will not survive."
Her useless, sadistic SYSTEM had teleported her straight into a monster-infested cave—no, wait—a freaking labyrinth where even the weakest monsters lurking around could turn her into an unrecognizable smear on the floor.
She wasn't just in danger.No, no. That would be too merciful.
She had just been given a death sentence.
Oh, and to make things even worse?
She realized something even more horrifying.
➤ [You have entered: The Bottomless Labyrinth]
A labyrinth.
A labyrinth.
Which meant—
Traps.
Hidden, instant-death, you'll-never-see-it-coming TRAPS.
Aya twitched violently, clutching her tiny ant face.
"Great. GREAT! Not only am I in a monster-infested dungeon, but now I have to worry about the floor trying to kill me too! Why not just throw in a lava pit while you're at it, huh?! Make it a real party!"
The system, of course, offered no comforting response.
"Excuse Me, I Did Not Sign Up For a Hell Difficulty Run"
Aya skittered forward carefully, her tiny legs trembling with each step.
The cave—or rather, the labyrinth—was too dark, the kind of oppressive darkness that didn't just exist, it stared back at you.
The air was thick with the scent of damp earth, old blood, and something that smelled disturbingly like… expired despair.
Her antennae twitched as her survival instincts went into overdrive.
She could feel it.
She wasn't alone.
Something massive moved in the distance.
A sound—**low, guttural, and far too close for comfort—**echoed through the cavern.
Aya froze.
Then—
SKITTER. SKITTER. SKITTER.
A lot of legs.
A lot of skittering.
'Oh. Oh, I HATE that.'
Aya slowly turned her head.
Emerging from the shadows, something crawled into view.
A giant, multi-eyed, chitinous horror that looked like a centipede and a tarantula had a baby—a very large, very aggressive baby.
Its many, MANY glistening eyes locked onto her tiny ant form.
Aya felt all the blood drain from her nonexistent human face.
"...Oh."
The monster opened its grotesque mandibles, revealing a mouth filled with saw-like fangs.
Aya nodded solemnly.
"Ahaha… ha… I'm going to die, aren't I?"
RUN. JUST RUN.
The monster lunged.
Aya bolted.
System: The conditions has been met
➤ [New Skill Unlocked: Survival Instincts - LV 1]
"Oh, NOW you give me a skill?! NOW?!"
Her legs moved faster than she thought possible, her tiny body practically FLYING across the stone floor.
Behind her, the giant centi-spider-thinglet out an ear-piercing screech and chased her at horrifying speed.
Aya screamed.
"WHY DO YOU EVEN EXIST?! WHO DESIGNED YOU?! STOP!"
She dashed through a narrow tunnel, her tiny ant legs working overtime.
She was so close to escaping—
Then—
CLICK.
Aya instantly regretted everything.
➤ [You have activated a trap!]
"…Oh, come ON!"
The ground beneath her collapsed.
Aya plunged straight down into the abyss.
The last thing she heard was the frustrated screech of the monster as she disappeared into the unknown depths of the labyrinth.
What Fresh Hell is This?!
Aya had survived some ridiculous situations before.
But this?
This was beyond ridiculous. This was a full-on, over-the-top, scripted by a sadistic game developer level of BULLSH*T.
Aya had survived some ridiculous situations before.
But this?
This was beyond ridiculous. This was a full-on, over-the-top, scripted by a sadistic game developer level of BULLSH*T.
The massive, multi-eyed horror that had been chasing her skidded to a stop above the ledge, its numerous eyes scanning for her.
For a moment, it hesitated, flicking its forked tongue.
Aya held her breath.
Then—
CLANK.
Something clicked beneath the monster's feet.
➤ [Trap Activated: Rockfall]
Aya watched in stunned silence as a section of the ceiling collapsed, dropping tons of boulders onto the monster.
With a deafening, earth-shaking crash, it was buried under an avalanche of stone.
Dust filled the cavern.
Silence.
Then—
DING!
➤ [Monster defeated by environmental hazards. No EXP gained.]
Aya's eye twitched.
"...WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'NO EXP GAINED'?! I WAS THE ONE WHO ACTIVATED THE TRAP! WHERE'S MY REWARD, YOU STINGY SYSTEM?!"
But no answer came.
Of course.
Aya huffed, dusted herself off, and scuttled away.
{I think we all been aware by now that Aya had survived and lived through many unfortunate situations}
But THIS?!
This was a whole new level of cruel.
She had just barely managed to escape that walking eldritch horror by activating a random trap (that she totally meant to use, obviously), and now she was running for her tiny, fragile ant life.
Her legs blurred beneath her. She could see something things luring in the shadows, but she wasn't going to look back.
Nope.
Not today.
She just needed to keep running until she found a safe spot—
Then, out of nowhere, her body completely locked up.
Like a puppet with its strings cut, she froze in place.
[Skill Activated: Survival Instincts - LV 1]
A passive skill that activates in life-threatening situations, increasing your chances of survival—but in unpredictable and often inconvenient ways.
Effect:
Slightly improves survival chances in deadly situations, but without any control over when or how it activates.
Doesn't grant intelligence or combat ability—only raw, desperate survival instincts.
The skill may trigger in completely unexpected or humiliating ways.
Limitations:
No guarantee of survival—only a slightly better chance.
No control over activation. It triggers instinctively.
No guarantee that the method of survival will be painless, efficient, or dignified.
Aya blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
This was—This was a joke, right?
What kind of trash skill was this?!
Did this garbage system seriously give her a skill that activated whenever it wanted and only increased her chances of survival slightly?!
Not guaranteed.
Just slightly.
That's like saying, "Hey, you'll probably survive, but, uh, also, you might die horribly. Who knows?!"
"Oh, this is bullsh—"
She still couldn't move.
Her body had stiffened on its own.
Like a coiled spring, her antennae twitched violently.
"HEY! WHAT THE HELL?! I STILL NEED TO KEEP MOVING!"
The system, as usual, did not respond.
Aya, gritting her mandibles, glanced around.
There was nothing behind her.
No monsters. No traps. No mysterious floating death blades.
So why—
Then she looked down.
And her soul left her body.
Something was wrong.
Very, very wrong.
Aya swallowed hard. Slowly, she turned her head.
At first, she thought she was hallucinating.
But no.
It was really there.
The Abyss That Had No Right to Be That Big
Right in front of her was a massive, gaping chasm.
No, not just a chasm.
A gargantuan hole stretched before her.
A hole so large that the entrance alone was the size of a town.
And the depth?
The bottom?
Nowhere in sight.
It was just an endless, swirling abyss of nothingness.
Aya, completely frozen, stared at it in horror.
Just a swirling, infinite black abyss.
Aya's soul left her body.
She could not comprehend something so big.
It wasn't just dark—
It was wrong.
This wasn't just a deep hole in the ground.
This was a gaping maw leading straight into an eldritch nightmare realm.
Aya stood motionless, her tiny legs twitching.
She took a deep breath.
"...WELL, NOW I KNOW WHY THIS PLACE IS CALLED THE 'BOTTOMLESS LABYRINTH.'
She let out a hollow laugh.
It was bad.
VERY bad.
But if she pretended it wasn't that bad, maybe it would somehow become slightly less awful.
Aya took a deep breath.
"...So this is what it feels like to stare into the abyss. Huh. Meh. Not as bad as I thought."
Her mandibles clicked.
Her antennae violently twitched.
Her legs shook.
Her soul screamed.
Yeah, no. She was 100% panicking.
The walls of the abyss stretched endlessly, jagged and sharp like some kind of gothic horror décor straight out of a nightmare.
"Welp. Guess I won't be sleeping tonight."
And as if that wasn't bad enough—
The ground was covered in a sticky, mossy substance that made a horrible squelching noise every time she moved.
"Oh, fantastic. Because nothing says 'cozy survival home' like stepping on cursed, squishy moss."
Aya's tiny body sagged.
"I hate this place so much."
She let out a deep sigh, about to turn around—
Then stopped.
A chill ran down her exoskeleton.
Aya's entire body tensed.
something from the darkness was coming toward her she could here it.
Nope.
Nope, nope, NOPE.
She wasn't sticking around to see what it was.
Aya turned and BOLTED.
She sprinted away from the massive pit, not daring to look back.
Her tiny ant heart was pounding.
Her antennae were vibrating.
Everywhere she ran, she could feel things watching her.
There was no safe place.
The darkness was alive.
And it was waiting.
Aya bit her mandibles together.
"This is fine. This is TOTALLY fine," she muttered. "Just a bottomless death labyrinth full of nightmarish creatures. No big deal. Completely normal Tuesday."
She paused.
Then glanced up.
"If there's a god out there who doesn't want me to be a snack, PLEASE HELP ME."
Silence.
Nothing.
Not even a miracle pity buff.
Aya sighed.
"Yeah, that's what I thought."
And she kept running.
Sneaking 101 (A.K.A: The "Don't Die" Plan)
Aya had officially reached the "acceptance" stage of grief.
Step 1: Denial—Already over that.Step 2: Anger—Oh, she had PLENTY of that, but no time to yell at the universe.Step 3: Bargaining—Yeah, she tried praying. No divine help.Step 4: Depression—She was actively fighting not to spiral.Step 5: Acceptance—Welp, guess she was stuck in this hellish death labyrinth forever.
No matter where she ran, she could never be completely safe.
Which meant one thing.
If she couldn't outrun everything…
She'd have to sneak.
Aya gritted her mandibles and activated [Stealth – LV 4].
A soft shimmer washed over her exoskeleton.
She wasn't completely invisible—but she blended just enough with the shadows to give her a chance.
"Okay. Just gotta stay low, move slow, and avoid anything that looks like it can swallow me whole."
…Which was everything.
She crept forward.
One careful step.Two careful steps.
Then—
GGRRROOOOWL.
Aya froze.
That wasn't a monster growling.
That was her stomach.
"…Oh, for the love of—"
She clamped her mandibles shut, her tiny ant body trembling.
She was so freaking hungry.
It made sense, really.
Ever since her house burned down, she hadn't had a proper meal. She'd been too busy trying NOT to die to even think about food.
But now?
Her stomach had other ideas.
Aya sighed.
"Okay, new plan: Find food before I pass out and die."
The Bone Zone (Why Does This Keep Getting Worse?!)
Aya carefully scuttled through the dark corridor.
Every few steps, she paused—listening, watching, praying she wouldn't bump into anything with too many eyes and too many teeth.
That's when she saw it.
A pile of bones scattered along the path.
Not just a few.
Dozens.
Maybe hundreds.
Some were HUGE, like they belonged to creatures three to ten times her size.
Others were small. Humanoid.
Aya stared.
Her stomach growled again.
"...Oh no."
Were these… actual bones?
Like, dead-body bones?!
Aya gulped.
She was so screwed.
The Internal Debate (A.K.A: The Moral Crisis of a Starving Ant)
Okay.
She had two options.
Option A: Keep moving, find some less suspicious food source, and not think about the very obvious murder site she just walked into.
Option B:Stay, eat the bones, and hope they don't belong to anything that will haunt her conscience forever.
Aya's stomach growled aggressively.
Her antennae twitched.
"...I hate my life."
She took a deep breath.
Then lunged at the pile of bones.
The Most Undignified Meal Ever
Aya chewed on the bones as fast as possible, trying not to think too hard about where they came from.
At first, it was horrible.
They were hard, dry, and disgustingly crunchy.
But she had no choice.
Every bite made her instincts scream in protest, but her hunger was stronger.
Tears of pure regret welled up in her tiny ant eyes.
Why? Why did her life come to this?
She used to eat rice, vegetables, meat! Even instant ramen was a luxury now!
Now?
She was crunching on mystery bones in the depths of a godforsaken nightmare cave.
"I swear, the moment I get stronger, I'm eating an actual meal."
She continued chewing.
Then—
CRACK.
The sound echoed through the cave.
Aya's soul nearly left her body.
Oh. Right. The Monsters.
Something growled.
Loudly.
Aya froze.
She wasn't alone.
Somewhere in the darkness, something had just heard her chewing.
Something big.
Something very, very awake.
Aya's antennae twitched violently.
She glanced at her skill list.
[Stealth – LV 4] → Still active.[Survival Instincts – LV 1] → NOT activating.
…Wait.
Why wasn't it activating?!
This was literally a life-threatening situation!
Did this stupid skill seriously think she was FINE?!
"Oh, you have GOT to be kidding me."
The Sprint for Her Life (Again.)
Aya didn't wait.
She scuttled backward.
She scanned the shadows.
Then—
A pair of glowing red eyes flickered to life in the dark.
Followed by two more.
Then four.
Then eight.
Aya's breath caught.
"Nope."
She turned.
And.
She.
RAN.
"WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING TO ME?!"
"Friendly" Neighborhood Monsters (A.K.A. Aya's Daily Suffering)
Aya had survived a lot of nonsense today.
Nearly eaten by a horrifying, unknown creature.
Almost tricked into running straight into danger by glowing red-eyed monsters.
Learned that her Survival Instinct skill had a cruel sense of humor.
And now?
She was staring at a massive, pulsating, acid-drooling, flesh-melting slug monster.
Because of course.
Because the universe hated her.
The Eyes in the Dark
She knew she was being followed.
Those red eyes in the shadows? They weren't just watching.
They were testing her.
The creatures didn't attack. Not yet.
Aya's antennae twitched.
They're trying to figure out what I am.
Whether I'm food or a predator.
Aya swallowed nervously.
If she kept running, she'd look like prey.
If she stayed still, she might look like something dangerous.
So she did the stupidest, bravest, most reckless thing she could.
She turned around and stared right back.
The Bluff That Almost Worked
The red eyes flickered.
The creatures froze.
They hesitated.
Then, slowly, they backed away.
Aya's mandibles clicked in disbelief.
Wait. Wait, wait, wait. Did that actually work?!
Did I just bluff an entire group of monsters?!
For the first time ever, she felt a tiny bit powerful.
For the first time ever, she thought, maybe I have a chance in this world!
And that's when—
Her Survival Instinct Skill Activated.
Aya instantly knew she was in even bigger trouble.
Her legs locked up.
Her body screamed at her to move.
And then she saw it.
Something huge.
Something slimy.
Something that looked like it belonged in the deepest pit of nightmares.
Meet the Slug Monster of Doom
A hulking silhouette loomed ahead.
It was massive—easily the size of a carriage.
Its skin was translucent green, pulsing with some unnatural glow.
It oozed.
It dripped.
It left behind a trail of sizzling, hissing acid that melted the ground wherever it touched.
Aya's soul left her body.
Why Does Everything Want to Kill Me?!
Aya threw herself behind a rock, barely resisting the urge to scream.
Okay. Stay calm. Think.
1. The monster is slow. That's good.2. The monster is disgusting. That's bad.3. The monster can probably melt me into a puddle of sadness and regret.
Her antennae twitched.
Plan?
New plan.
Survive.
Somehow.
Preferably without getting dissolved into a sad little ant puddle.
The Slug Monster's Next Move
Aya held her breath as the slug inched forward.
It moved painfully slow—each step a horrifying squelch as its massive body dragged across the floor.
The air stank of acid.
Aya felt her antennae burn just from being close to it.
Yeah, okay. Zero chance of fighting this thing.
She had to escape.
But how?!
Option One: Running.
Terrible idea.
That acid trail would make it impossible.
If she stepped in it, she'd probably evaporate instantly.
Option Two: Climbing.
She looked up.
The walls of the bottomless labyrinth were slick, jagged, and terrifying.
Also, if she climbed up, she'd just be closer to other horrifying monsters.
Hard pass.
Option Three: Stealth Mode.
Aya activated [Stealth – LV 4].
Her body shimmered slightly, blending into the shadows.
Not invisible, but definitely harder to see.
Maybe… just maybe… if she moved slow enough, she could sneak past.
She took a step forward.
And that's when—
Her Stomach Growled.
Loudly.
Like, comically loud.
Loud enough that it echoed off the cavern walls.
Aya's entire body froze in horror.
The slug monster stopped.
It turned slightly.
Oh no.
OH NO.
Aya's Life Choices Flash Before Her Eyes
Why.
Why.
WHY.
She hadn't eaten in forever.
She had been running for her life all day.
Of course her stupid stomach chose NOW to make a scene.
I'm gonna die.
I'm gonna die because my own body betrayed me.
The slug monster twitched.
Then—
SOMETHING EVEN WORSE HAPPENED.
From above, something massive dropped onto the slug monster.
A new creature had arrived.
Something even bigger.
Something with glowing yellow eyes and massive, serrated mandibles.
Aya watched in silent horror as the two creatures clashed.
Acid splattered. Flesh tore.
It was a battle of titans.
And in that moment, Aya realized—
This was her chance.
Aya's Great Escape Plan (™)
Aya crawled backward, careful not to make a sound.
The slug monster was distracted.
The new monster was engaged in a death match.
And Aya?
Aya was going to sneak away like the coward she was.
The Stealth Fails Spectacularly (A.K.A. Aya's Life is a Suffering)
Aya was so close to pulling off a perfect stealth escape.
The slug monster was distracted by the terrifying battle of titans happening right in front of it.
Aya had activated [Stealth – LV 4] and was moving as carefully as possible.
She was inches away from safety.
All she had to do was take a few more steps and get the hell out.
And then she stepped on something disgusting.
A horribly wet, horribly loud, and horribly squelchy pile of something.
SQUELCH.
Aya froze.
The sound echoed.
Oh no.
What… what did I just step on?
She looked down.
Her soul left her body.
That Wasn't Moss.
She had thought she was stepping on moss.
She was wrong.
So horribly, disgustingly wrong.
It was not moss.
It was not plant life.
It was the liquefied, melted remains of the previous monster.
Aya almost screamed.
Instead, she clamped her mandibles shut, swallowing the sheer horror building inside her.
Nope. Nope. NOPE.
Just keep moving.
Forget what you saw.
Forget what you felt.
Just keep moving.
And then… it happened.
Aya was so close to escaping.
She was so close to getting away.
But then—
Her stomach betrayed her.
Again.
THE STOMACH GROWL OF DEATH
A loud, deep, utterly traitorous GROWL rumbled from her stomach.
The kind of growl that echoed through the entire cavern.
The kind of growl that made it VERY obvious that something alive was standing there.
Aya froze.
The slug monster stopped.
The air fell deathly silent.
The slug slowly turned its grotesque, slimy head toward her.
Aya: :DSlug: :IAya: D:
A low, guttural hissing noise bubbled from the slug's throat.
The air thickened.
A burning, acidic stench filled the cave.
Aya's entire body tensed.
Oh no.
OH NO.
THE SLUG ATTACKS
SPLAT!
A massive glob of green, sizzling acidrocketed toward her.
Aya DOVE to the side, rolling frantically as the sludge splattered against the ground.
SIZZLE.
The stone floor melted instantly.
Aya's soul left her body for the third time today.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" she shrieked.
THE SLUG CHARGES
The slug should not have been fast.
It was a slug.
It was a huge, bloated, disgusting, slimy slug.
Slugs are not supposed to be fast.
But this thing?
This thing moved like a horror movie monster in its final form.
It lurched forward at horrifying speed, its slimy, pulsating mass rushing straight at her.
Aya's entire body screamed.
THE GREAT ESCAPE (™)
Aya did the only thing she could.
She turned and RAN LIKE HELL.
Her legs went into MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE.
Her antennas flailed in sheer terror.
Her tiny bug heart pounded like a drum of DOOM.
"I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS!!!"
RUN FIRST. THINK LATER.
Aya didn't know how long she had been running.
Seconds? Minutes? Hours?
Did time even exist in this hellhole?
Did it even matter when something was TRYING TO EAT HER?!
Her tiny ant legs burned.
Her stamina bar was draining dangerously fast.
[SP: 10/100] WARNING!
Her lungs felt like they were on fire.
But she couldn't stop.
Because behind her…
Something massive, bloated, and disgustingly slimy was SLITHERING AFTER HER.
THIS WAS NOT HOW SHE EXPECTED TO DIE.
Being squished? Maybe.
Falling into an endless abyss? Sure, that was a possibility.
Becoming a horrifying monster's snack? Okay, that was probably inevitable.
But getting dissolved into SLUG SLIME?!
ABSOLUTELY NOT.
ESCAPE ROUTE: SPOTTED.
Just as Aya thought her legs were about to give out, she saw it.
A narrow crevice.
It was small—barely wide enough for her to squeeze through.
But it was her only chance.
THE FINAL STRETCH.
Aya lunged.
She threw herself at the gap, forcing her tiny body inside.
For one, agonizing second, she thought she was stuck.
But then—
SLAM!
The slug monster crashed into the boulders behind her.
A frustrated, guttural gurgle rattled through the cavern.
Aya did not stop moving.
She pushed herself deeper into the tiny space, her legs trembling, her entire body shaking.
She was alive.
She was safe.
She was absolutely, completely traumatized.
THE SLUG IS NOT AMUSED.
The monster outside let out a furious hiss.
And then—
SPLAT.
A massive glob of acid splattered against the rocks.
Aya flinched.
But nothing happened.
The acid dripped uselessly down the stone.
She was too deep inside.
She was out of its reach.
SHE WON. KIND OF.
Aya collapsed onto the cave floor.
Her breath came in short, wheezing gasps.
Her antennae twitched in pure exhaustion.
Her legs felt like jelly.
She closed her eyes.
For one blessed second, she allowed herself to just… exist.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE: YOU'RE NOT DEAD. CONGRATULATIONS!]
DING!
A familiar screen popped up in front of her.
[System Message]
🎉 Congratulations! You've survived your first strong monster encounter in the Bottomless Labyrinth!
🔹 Reminder: DO NOT GET SPOTTED AGAIN. YOU WILL NOT BE LUCKY TWICE.
Aya stared at the glowing text.
Then she looked at the furious slug still waiting outside.
Then back at the system message.
Then back at the slug.
Then back at the system message.
"...I hate everything."