Haruto stared at the cracked ceiling above him, his breathing slow and uneven.
"I don't know how many days I can survive like this…"
His stomach growled loudly, breaking the silence. He pressed a hand against it, wincing slightly. The hunger had become unbearable.
The room he sat in was in terrible condition. The walls were full of cracks, small holes letting in cold air. Water dripped steadily from the ceiling, each drop echoing through the empty space.
Drip… drop… drip…
Haruto lowered his gaze, his expression dark.
"Why…?" he muttered under his breath. "Why was I born like this…?"
His fists tightened.
"My level is only one… and this skill…" his voice trembled slightly, "it took everything from me."
His family.
His life.
Everything.
"…All because I'm a beast tamer."
For a moment, he remained silent.
Then his eyes slowly closed.
"I still remember that day…"
The Adventurers' Guild was crowded and noisy.
Haruto stood quietly near the entrance, his eyes scanning the room as he searched for a party to join. Around him, adventurers laughed, talked, and formed groups—but no one paid him any attention.
Gathering his courage, he approached a nearby group.
"Um… can I—"
Before he could finish, one of them shoved him hard.
Haruto fell to the ground.
"We don't need trash like you," the man said coldly.
Laughter followed.
Haruto clenched his teeth and slowly pushed himself up
but before he could stand properly, a hand reached out toward him.
"Are you alright?"
Haruto looked up.
A young man stood in front of him, offering a hand with a calm expression.
Before Haruto could respond, another voice spoke sharply.
"Hey. What do you think you're doing?" another member of the group said, glaring at the man who had pushed him. "Is that how you treat someone weaker than you?"
A girl beside him crossed her arms.
"Exactly. Just because he's weak doesn't mean you can treat him like that."
The group that had pushed Haruto clicked their tongues and walked away.
Silence followed for a moment.
The young man helped Haruto to his feet.
"Sorry about that," he said casually. "There are a lot of idiots like that around here."
Haruto shook his head slightly. "…I'm fine."
The man studied him for a moment before smiling faintly.
"Well, that's good." He paused briefly. "Actually… we're looking for someone to join our party."
Haruto blinked in surprise.
"R-Really?"
"Yeah," the man replied. "We need someone to carry supplies and help with basic tasks. If you don't mind, you can join us."
Haruto nodded quickly. "I…I want to join."
"Great." The man smiled. "Let's introduce ourselves first."
He placed a hand on his chest.
"My name is Sōta Minamoto. I'm an A-rank, and I use sword skills."
Another stepped forward.
"Kaito Yamazaki. B-rank. I'm the tank."
The girl spoke next.
"Nanami Okamoto. B-rank. Support."
"And me," the last one added, "Akihiro Takeda. B-rank. Archer."
All of them looked at Haruto.
He hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"…Haruto Kurosawa," he said quietly. "E-rank… Beast Tamer."
The group moved through the forest in silence, the sound of footsteps and rustling leaves filling the air.
Haruto followed behind them, carrying the supplies, struggling to keep up. His shoulders already ached.
No one spoke to him.
After some time, they reached the dungeon entrance—a massive gate standing in the middle of the forest. Its surface was worn and ancient, covered in strange markings.
Haruto couldn't help but stare at it for a moment.
"Let's move," Sōta said.
The gate slowly opened, revealing darkness beyond.
They stepped inside.
The first ten floors didn't take long. Monsters fell quickly under their attacks, leaving Haruto with nothing to do but watch… and carry the load.
The party had already reached the eleventh floor.
So far, the journey had been smooth. They had cleared every monster in their path without much difficulty. Haruto remained at the back as always, carrying the bags and collecting monster stones left behind.
He hadn't fought even once.
As they moved through a long stone corridor, something caught their attention.
A crack in the wall. It wasn't natural it looked like a hidden entrance.
Sōta stepped closer, narrowing his eyes. "What is this…? A hidden path?"
Nanami quickly pulled out a map and opened it. Her brows furrowed.
"…There's nothing here," she said. "This path isn't on the map."
A brief silence followed.
Sōta's lips curved slightly.
"I think the dungeon created this recently," he said. "If we explore it, we might find something rare."
Haruto's expression tightened. A bad feeling crept into his chest.
"…Shouldn't we report this to the guild first?" he said carefully. "If there's a powerful monster inside"
"Relax," Sōta cut him off casually. "We can handle it."
The others nodded without hesitation.
And if we map it ourselves, Sōta added, "we'll get extra rewards."
That was enough to settle it.
Without waiting any longer, they stepped inside one by one.
Haruto hesitated for a moment… then followed.
The passage was dark and narrow.
They activated a light magic item, casting a faint glow around them. The walls looked older than the rest of the dungeon, covered in cracks and strange marks.
The deeper they went, the heavier the air felt.
After a few minutes, monsters appeared.
But these monsters were different stronger and faster than anything they had faced before.
The party fought them quickly, but even Haruto could tell—they weren't normal enemies.
Still, they continued forward.
Eventually, the path opened into a massive circular chamber.
Haruto's breath caught.
The ceiling stretched high above them, disappearing into darkness. A spiral of stone steps led downward, deeper into the dungeon.
And at the bottom
A black dragon lay sleeping.
Its massive body covered the floor, its scales dark as night. Each breath it took was heavy, slow… but powerful.
A river of dark water flowed nearby, separating the chamber. On the other side, a narrow path led further in.
Haruto's voice barely rose above a whisper. "…We should leave." His hands clenched at his sides, but the others pressed on without a glance.
They began moving down the stairs carefully, step by step, trying not to make a sound.
The dragon didn't move. It was still asleep.
When they reached the lower level, Sōta suddenly pointed ahead. "Look," he said quietly.
On the wall, there was a strange mechanism a lever. "And there's another one on the other side," he added.
Haruto followed his gaze. He felt it again, that strange feeling, like something was wrong, like… he had seen this before. But he pushed the thought aside. Sōta was stronger, more experienced. He must know what he was doing.
"If we pull both levers at the same time,"
Sōta said, "that door should open." He pointed toward a sealed stone door across the river.
Then he turned to Haruto. "You stay here. We'll go to the other side and handle anything dangerous."
Haruto hesitated. "…Alright."
The others crossed the river carefully and reached the other lever. "Ready?" Sōta called. Haruto nodded.
They pulled the levers, and a loud rumble echoed through the chamber. The stone door began to open.
At the same time, the dragon's eyes snapped open. Haruto froze. A deep, terrifying presence filled the air.
The dragon slowly raised its head. Behind him, the others had already slipped through the door.
Then—the door slammed shut. Laughter echoed faintly from the other side. Haruto's eyes widened. "…No…" The truth hit him instantly. He was never part of the team. He was just bait.
Panic surged through his body. He turned and ran up the stairs but it was too late.
The dragon opened its mouth. A blazing fireball shot toward him. The explosion shattered the stairs beneath his feet.
Both paths were sealed.
The door behind him had already shut, and the stairs leading upward were gone, reduced to nothing but shattered stone. Haruto's escape route had completely disappeared.
Panic rushed through his body.
He stumbled back and quickly hid behind a large piece of broken stone, trying to steady his breathing. His chest rose and fell rapidly as fear gripped him.
"Why…?" his voice trembled. "Why is it always me…?"
Tears blurred his vision as frustration and despair overwhelmed him.
For a moment, his hands shook uncontrollably—then, without thinking, he grabbed the bag from his shoulder and threw it as far as he could.
The bag flew across the chamber.
The dragon's head shifted instantly.
A second later, a blazing fireball shot from its mouth, striking the bag midair. The explosion burned it to ash in an instant, scattering black fragments across the ground.
Haruto froze.
His breath caught in his throat.
That single attack… had completely erased everything.
Slowly, he pulled himself deeper behind the rock, his body trembling.
"How…?" he whispered under his breath. "How did I forget…?"
His fingers clenched against the stone.
"In this world… no one helps people like me."
His voice grew quieter, heavier.
"To them… we're nothing but trash."
Memories flashed through his mind.
Sōta reaching out his hand. The moment he was helped up. The brief warmth of being accepted.
For a second, Haruto had believed it.
That he finally had a place.
But now
His expression twisted.
"It was all fake…" he muttered.
His teeth clenched as anger mixed with despair.
"They knew… they knew from the start."
His thoughts raced, connecting everything.
"They brought me here on purpose… used me like bait… like a pawn…"
A hollow laugh escaped his lips.
"I'm such an idiot…"
Before he could think further
A sudden sound echoed behind him.
The dragon moved.
Haruto's body tensed instantly.
A low, rumbling breath filled the air
Then fire.
A massive fireball shot toward the rock he was hiding behind.
"—!"
The explosion slammed into the stone, shattering it completely.
The impact sent Haruto flying through the air, his body thrown violently across the chamber as heat and force engulfed him.