JUST END MY SUFFERING!

...

...

...

*Grunt*

"I don't want to wake up..." the distorted voice said, obscured, feeling blue as each second passed; the whisper didn't wish to fade away, just a few more seconds as all that it wanted.

"$/#&%#$%/#$($&%$#"

A faint hum vibrated through his very bones, "Know... I... Know."

It struck him loud and sudden, like a hammer to glass, shattering the comforting void. He deliberately breathed as if he had been drowning in an ocean and had just barely clawed his way to the surface.

"That was such a quixotic idea. And I don't even like to use complex words."

Of course, something was going to happen. The priestess was going to wake him up, and he would have to do something, perhaps fight to the death against the limit breakers or save someone who was helplessly captured. That was just how things worked.

He muttered, his voice thick with drowsiness, "I have the unparalleled strength to defy reality, yet I won't last more than an hour fighting before imploding." His eyes fell upon the pondering reflection, staring at the sorrowful remnants of his soul. He wasn't a master at this, but the priestess did a good job of "fixing it."

Reflexively, he let out an inquiry that wasn't meant to be answered; it was just to let time flow through. "Why are you still leaking fake love and hate?"

It was both pitiful and awe-inspiring. It was so strong, yet so unbearably fragile... it was a paradoxical state of being, and it defined him.

"$#"#$#$#$#$

"Ye, you are right, Daniel. I should stop the narcissism and glazing."

It was an honest thought. He had long since outpaced this place. Even after the recent blow to his power, the so-called "nerf" that should have crippled him, he remained a lot stronger than when he first entered the event, and not by a small margin; the difference was staggering. He could stand against Limit Breakers in single combat with no cheap tricks, no last-minute power-ups, just sheer strength.

The only problem right now is learning to manage stamina over extended periods of time; merely existing has become a herculean task, let alone fighting for prolonged periods against many enemies.

...

That left only one question, "I wonder…" he murmured, with eyes distant and a childlike glee, "I wonder if my whims can be met."

"$#$"$$%##$"

Ugh...

His experience with the alternative versions of himself had been... less than ideal.

They weren't psychopaths in the sense of the word, and the number of traits that he and they shared were quite scary, yet in the imaginary political compass that compromised everything, they were too radical for the simple tastes he had.

And yet...

Here he was, considering the same path, making the same choices, abusing the same loopholes. Taking the illusion of choice when he walks through a different door, just to arrive at the same ending.

A silent cacophony of unintelligible voices quietly burst through his mind:

"!%$&%$$%&%&$%"

Such a great question!"

"%$%#$$##$"

No, that's called gaslighting..."

A new door appeared before him. Different from the last. His legs got to work, screaming like pariahs at the notion of having to interact with more people.

...

...

...

Like a four-year-old abruptly gaining consciousness at their own birthday party, Dante woke up.

He took exactly five pointless seconds to process the absurdity of his life, inhaled deeply for no reason other than force of habit, and materialized himself back into the physical world. Back into the struggle. Back into the cycle.

Someone else from the priestess party spoke, "Your presence as deterrence worked,--"

"Goodbye!!!"

Not even letting them finish, he was already planning to escape the place before things got too complex. What were the rewards he got? They are in his inventory, but each second he passed near this priestess was threateningly bad; he could care about what he obtained from turning off his brain and waiting for time to pass.

"If you ever need me just call me!" A chain materialized mid-air, yanking him back with force, wrapping around his neck. "Really?" He glanced at it with mild irritation, "pretty please?"

The priestess' face contorted with some unspoken affliction, her tail curling tightly at the tip as she sighed, "May thine days be many, and thine woes few."

but her words were like a whisper brushing his mind, "That's class." the usual small of politeness painted his face, "Cya!"

*Snap*

The curtains of the theater opened. The streets were bustling. People moved like clockwork pieces, each on their own trajectory, oblivious at the sight of the lone aspect muttering to 'ghosts,' which, given his circumstances, was actually a conversation.

"Quite fancy not being alone in my head right now; all of you seem to take care better of me than, well, me... Just don't forget to call me if anything big has to be done within the system."

"%#$$%#%#$"

"Look, I'm not an agglomeration of things thrown into the wall hoping that something sticks."

"#$%%#$%$"

"Okay, the potions are just a coincidence."

"%$#$%#%#$%$#"

He turned backward, "That's an idea too innocent and the other too cynical."

"#$##$$%$#"

His eye twitched. "We don't know."

"#$%#$#$--"

A small groan left his soul, "ARGH! I TOLD YOU I DON'T KNOW!"

"SYSTEM! Search for something to meet the love version; she used fake love, so our predicaments, in theory, should be the same."

A soft chime resonated in his ears, and then a delicate pink ticket materialized in his hand. The number and the whimsical elegance were unmistakable; it was the same ticket to meet the same alternative he had once visited.

"Huh..." He was showered in a rain of incredulity, blinking in disbelief, "I'm starting to freak out."

"#"$!$#%"

he looked at the sides, trying to sense some dangers. This was wrong. This was too convenient. His stomach churned with a self inflicted unease, becayse his life simply didn't work like this.

"You are telling me things are going like I want?!"

The icy hand of desperation coiled around his heart. It was an unsettling sensation, a warning that ticked like a distant clock. He got in a reverend pose, looking at the sky. "I beg thy! AQARATH, MY GOD, OR WHATEVER NAME YOU HAVE!"

He muttered, staring at the ticket like it had personally offended him. "Please! Don't tell me that I'm stuck with this status because it afflicted my soul, and now I'm tangled with the elements of hate and fake love no matter what."

His voice cracked, exasperation began bleeding through, piercing him, he wanted to sink into the ground and cry, "PLEEEASE!!!!"

Heads turned from all sides towards the extravaganza, "PWEASE!!!!!" Distant judging eyes locked onto him, filled with mild concern, coupled with some whispers swimming in the air.

'Isn't that the new aspect?' 'Is she already insane?' "how did she even win?" 'they say she won against them.'

""#$#$$##$"#$#$%$$#$#$#$%#$#$%$#$"

"Look, my body, my temple, so don't tell me how to rearrange my offerings; if I want to behave like a Dorito, I shall behave like a Dorito." 

"#$#$%R#$%"

He took the ticket out and got ready to shred it, "Mmm? That's what's the rush? Uh... I don't know. Maybe right now, the enigma of my body is alarming, and I will implode in a few months if I don't do anything?"

Daniel voice stopped being white noise, echoing crystal clear, "You absolute... *Sigh* Giving 1 step forward, and going 2 backwards... I'm not even suprised anymore."

*SHRED!*

----

As I said, I'm gonna finish this before this month (I already finished 2 chaps)