บท 30: Man Versus Self

The moment Yuuta clicked 'Yes' on the prompt, the surrounding area suddenly turned black as if he just reverted to his blindness once again. Fearing that he was already back in the real world, Yuuta clicked his tongue to confirm that he was already up and awake in his room. The thought that was in the forefront of his mind right now was to report the Lucid Dream Server of a bug that forced him to wake up from his Lucid Dream.

But the moment he clicked his tongue, he realized that he was nowhere near his room. He was probably still in the game but in a pitch-black location. There were no prompts nor warning from the System indicating where he was right now but he didn't really mind. He knew that the Lucid Dream Server can get so out of the ordinary that it shouldn't really surprise him anymore.

Yuuta opened and closed his eyes, hoping that his eyes would just adjust to the darkness of the room. But it was to no avail. No matter how hard he tried to focus his eyes on something, he couldn't see anything.

"Is this part of the test? If I remember correctly, I'm already done with the 'man versus man' conflict, and then what followed after was the 'man versus society' conflict." Yuuta mumbled to himself, trying to avert his focus from the uneasiness he was feeling. "So, the third and last test should be... man versus self? So I'll be fighting myself? Or is it just a vague description of the level?"

Yuuta shook his head. Now he was starting to regret that he didn't let his sister read the entirety of the guides that his father gave him. Still, he was already here and the only thing he could do right now is to finish the third test no matter what.

Unbeknownst to Yuuta, a purplish haze started to envelop the room where he was. This occurrence correlated to the time when Yuuta started feeling uneasy. When the room was filled with hazy smoke, it became a little bit brighter. Well, just bright enough for a regular person to see through the other side of the room. But as for Yuuta, he couldn't really see anything, let alone sense anything from the room. As far as he knows, he's in an empty room all by himself.

And yet, even after all that, Yuuta remained unfazed. He immediately raised his hands in a boxing stance as if preparing for someone to engage him in a fight. But just as he did so, a jab landed straight at his face.

"Aghk~!" Yuuta exclaimed

Before Yuuta could realize what was going on, he was sent hurtling backward, his breath stolen from him. He landed rear-first, making his recovery a bit slower than before. And just when he was about to pick himself up, he received a knee on his chin, followed by a side jab towards his cheek and then a solar plexus.

As he gasped for a breath of air, Yuuta's eyes widened. He recognized these unorthodox moves before. Or rather, he perfectly knew what they were! 'But how? This is not possible? I'm the only one who could pull these off? Even the timing is on-point with mine!'

'No wait, I'm the only one who could pull this off. That much is certain.'

Yuuta backflipped and then sidestepped to avoid a flying kick from his mysterious opponent. And just as he did, something heavy charged from his side. There was no doubt about it... he's fighting someone that knows exactly how he moves?

To be more specific, he is fighting a shadow of himself.

The realization quickly sunk in and Yuuta couldn't help but click his tongue in slight annoyance. 'So this is what Miki was saying when she said the third test would be man versus self. I'm literally fighting myself right now.' Yuuta said to himself as another set of punches came flying from his side. He easily dodged them, however, since he knew they were coming.

And thus, the cycle of predicting his opponent's move and dodging them began. Yuuta tried to counterattack a couple of times but his opponent ended up just blocking him. That's why he just relied on dodging while his opponent attacked. That way, he won't run out of his precious energy while the fight dragged on.

Yuuta also assumed that his opponent is blind as well, just like how he's blind at the moment. But then again, there was no way he would know about it since he doesn't have the slightest idea of how his shadow looked like.

<Warning: the Test has begun.>

"I know I know, I didn't wish for my sight to return. Or at least, I just thought of it." Yuuta tried to reason out with the notifications in his head even though there was no point in doing so.

Suddenly, a hand chop landed on Yuuta's nape, almost rendering him unconscious. He didn't know where it came from, nor was he able to detect it. As far as he knew, his shadow was just running six or so meters away from him and now he appeared right behind him, giving him a chop on the neck.

While Yuuta tried to figure out how his shadow managed to do that, he received two consecutive kicks on his chin before another punch to his solar plexus robbed him of the air in his lungs. He stumbled to the ground and writhed in pain.

"I don't move like that," Yuuta mumbled as he rolled to the side. Fortunately, he managed to dodge a deadly kick to his head in the nick of time.

Yuuta is one of the many few who had their own fair share of lucid dreams before the VR game was released. That's why he knew exactly that everything that happens in a lucid dream is how exactly it would happen if it were possible in real life. For example, a person flying in mid-air in a lucid dream would be impossible in real life so no one knows how that would feel if it were possible. However, when it comes to real-life occurrences just like being punched in the gut or being stabbed a hundred times, it would feel just like real life. That's why Yuuta shuddered to think what would happen if he were beaten to a near-death by his shadow.

Also, there were a few cases in the past wherein a lucid dream felt so real for one person that they died while they were in a lucid dream state. Yes, something like that was possible. After all, the hippocampus is located in the mind. If one were to experience extreme pressure, be it mental or physical, on any portion of the brain, a worst-case scenario of death, as a result, wouldn't be that far-fetched.

"Can I still log out?" Yuuta asked himself, clicking in front of him. To his dismay, nothing appeared in front of him.

Then he realized that he was blind right now so he probably couldn't see where the panel was for him to log out. Right now, he had no choice but to defeat whatever it was who was in front of him. If he didn't, then that would be game over for him. And just like any other underground fighters, Yuuta got used to the challenge and he wholly accepted the pressure weighing down on him. Right now, the only thing in his mind was to keep on fighting and never show a moment of weakness. No matter what happens, Yuuta was fixated on winning the match, right here and now.

For the second time, Yuuta braced himself for another wave of attack from his shadow. This time, he was prepared for it so he managed to parry a few blows and dodge a few consecutive kicks. Now that both of them have warmed up, neither yielded to the other and they were evenly matched. Aside from the constant grunts that came as they threw their punches, not a single word was uttered in the duration of the fight.

One hour, two hours, three hours. The fight dragged on longer than Yuuta had expected. Right now, he was already nearing exhaustion and from the 'feel' of it, he could tell that his opponent was getting physically drained as well. However, both sides relentlessly and aggressively continued on with the sole purpose of winning.

When they reached the fifth-hour mark, Yuuta completely forgot about the time and just proceeded to fight with his counterpart. Yuuta was sweating a lot and he could feel the floor getting wet because of it. And yet, the shadow had no desire to concede.

Yuuta didn't want to have it the opponent's way as well, that's why they both came to a standstill with neither side taking the lead.

"This can't go on forever... how many hours have I been playing the game?" Yuuta asked himself but his thoughts were interrupted yet again by his opponent. For some reason, he can't really find an opening when it comes to his opponent and in return, his opponent can't find any openings on him either.