"HAPPY NEW YEAR", shouted Mateo at the top of his lungs, an effort to satisfy his mother's wish about a cheerful, festive normal family, the type of family that was the exact opposite of theirs.
"Huh", Mayeo let out a sound, courtesy of his confusion at not hearing the deafening sounds of fireworks or New Year's screams of hopefuls.
Hopefuls who believed that this was their year and things were going to look better for them, only to be left crushed once again before the first quarter of the year ended.
Looking around with a carefree attitude, Mateo mentally noted the unique features of his new environment.
He found himself surrounded on all sides but two, firming a sort of hollow cylinder with what he believed to be cobblestone.
On his left, some distance away stood a wooden table with what seemed to be a variety of weapons laid upon it.
To his right was something that made him belief that he was stuck in one of his fantasies again, MIASMA.
Though he didn't know what miasma really looked like, the weird substance floating towards him fit the bill of what was usually described and depicted in novels and anime.
A dark purple gas-like substance that set off alarm bells in your head and made your skin crawl.
Deciding to follow the advice given by very credible sources, he stepped away from the moving fog of death and went to the weak looking table which gave off the impression that it would collapse at any extra pressure applied to it.
Now close enough, he could see all the weapons clearly along with the glaring details and defects they all had.
At first glance he could tell the similarities all the weapons shared, they were all old, worn out and melee based.
Laid out on the table was an average looking double edged sword with one edge more chipped than the other, one curved dagger also chipped, a metallic sai with bent crooked tips, a club with faint hairline cracks, an ax with a damp rotting handle and blunt blades, likely from overuse and a spear which looked straight to the extremely untrained eye but was slightly curved and unbalanced.
Eliminating three without a thought he was left with the ax, the club and the dagger.
The ax was good for keeping a distance and abusing the law of gravity in its attacks, its only problem being the decaying wooden handle, a problem easily solved by sacrificing his suit vest.
The club was also a good enforcer of the law of gravity, plus it was the closest relative to the weapon he was most familiar with, a metal bat, only it attacked a wider area and with a heavier impact.
Its only problem was the fact that it looked to be on the verge of breaking, but Mateo convinced himself that it could survive a few hits.
The dagger was the least defected one in his opinion, its only disadvantage against the other two being the shorter range, but other than that he would be cool swinging it about and bringing glory to his fellow Otakus.
With the ever-present miasma creeping closer, Mateo made his choice a picked up the club, watching as the other weapons and the table faded out of existence, just like he thought would happen.
Now armed with a weapon and decked out in a three piece suit to serve as armour, he trudged on, his unique habit of wearing sneakers with every outfit saving him from an uncomfortable walk.
After a brief walk, the torch- lit tunnel split into two.
On the left, some distance away stood a dog-like creature, if it could even be called that.
About 3 feet tall at the shoulders, there were a few features about the abomination that stood out.
Aside its vacant eyes, the creature looked to be made entirely of bones at first glance, the little pieces of flesh on it carrying bite marks to serve as a tale of its cause of death.
The creature also breathed out purple fumes, its canines darkened by the miasma promised a painful experience upon contact.
The bits and pieces of exposed bone had a dark purple hue to them which pulsed rhythmically, probaly a result of the taboo magic which denied the quadruped of rest by summoning it to battle once more.
With sharp looking claws and canines to attack him with and hard solid white bones for defence, this wasn't a creature he could take on.
Choosing the only other option, Mateo turned to his right and walked through the translucent barrier keeping his foe away.
Standing at about 4 feet tall, just a foot taller than the other option, his opponent was probably the undead version of the universal beginner monster.
A Goblin.
Characterised by the stereotypical long warty nose and green skin turned ashen by the forces of death, he found himself face to face with the beginner mob monster of every fantasy, only it was dead.
How it was moving with a huge gaping hole where its heart should be, he would never know, though he believed it could be attributed to the miasma.
Tap Tap Tap
The zombie goblin approached him, nails scratching against the cobblestone.
With the calm and collected gaze of a veteran, he positioned the club behind his neck, arms stretched taut as he calculated the best time to swing.
Tap Tap Tap
It was finally here.
Catching it in its mid-air leap, Mateo swung with everything he had.
BANG
The undead goblin was flung down, gravity working against it as the club found its mark and blasted its soft rotting skull open.
"Hoooh, that was easy", Mateo exhaled, releasing most of the tension his muscles felt after noticing that the corpse wasn't moving anymore, hopefully dead for real this time.
!Cling!
A dull metallic sound rang out of nowhere.
Tensed once more as he looked around warily for the source, he decided to relax after all if anything invisible wanted him dead, there was little he could do.
Redirecting his energy, he checked on the club happy to notice that it was more durable than it looked after finding no major cracks on it.
Slinging it over his shoulder he continued walking, conveniently ignoring the dark stains on his trousers and now his shirt.
Another brief walking session later, another barrier.