Becoming a God Starts with Acting-Chapter 62: [The River God’s Wife] - Nerio’s Part (11)

"These wooden planks... won’t turn into monsters, right?"

Alexis’s hesitant voice, tinged with fear, rang out.

Jack immediately raised his voice: "What the hell are you talking about? Don’t say things like that at a time like this! They’re just wooden planks, that’s all!"

His voice grew louder and louder as if doing so could reassure him.

"Enough nonsense. Move quickly."

Ace’s cold voice silenced everyone at once, but they all remained on high alert.

Meanwhile, inside the house, Taylor was pacing anxiously. Elena couldn’t help but say softly, "Being restless won’t change anything. Sit down for a bit."

Taylor replied irritably, "I want power, Elena. I heard that facing danger helps awaken one’s abilities faster." As she spoke, she glanced at Matthew as if seeking confirmation.

Matthew nodded and said, "That’s right. You might awaken your power when facing danger or after escaping your first dungeon..."

Before he could finish, Taylor cut him off: "But I want power now, in this dungeon! Feeling so powerless like this is driving me crazy!"

Matthew frowned slightly at her. "However, the danger inside the dungeon has increased significantly. I really wouldn’t advise doing anything reckless."

Taylor let out a cold huff, unconvinced. She said nothing more, but her face was filled with frustration.

Not long ago, she had been just a strong-willed girl. But now, her personality was becoming increasingly aggressive and impatient.

The dungeon’s corruption again, Matthew thought to himself.

At that moment, Elena suddenly turned to Kely and asked, "Are you feeling any better? Do you remember what you saw earlier?"

Kely, in extreme tension, flinched at Elena’s question and immediately shook her head repeatedly. "No, I didn’t see anything... It was just a terrifying monster, that’s all..."

Matthew noticed something off in her response. There was something she wasn’t willing to say.

Leon scoffed from the side. "Ha, pathetic. Just seeing a single monster, and you’re already scared out of your mind?"

Taylor snapped angrily, "And you were crying your eyes out because you didn’t want to go outside for a mission! Why don’t you take a good look at yourself? See just how weak and cowardly you are!"

Leon trembled with rage at Taylor’s words but didn’t dare lash out. For some reason, his instincts screamed at him not to say anything foolish right now—something about Taylor was off.

Matthew, too, frowned slightly as he looked at Taylor but said nothing. Instead, his gaze shifted toward Nerio, sitting on a chair, lost in thought.

He approached the boy and asked, "What are you thinking?"

Matthew had already prepared himself for silence, but to his surprise, the boy suddenly lifted his head and looked at him. His legs swung back and forth, and his adorable face carried a small smile as if he had encountered something amusing. Then he said, "I’m just looking at something interesting."

Matthew instinctively glanced down at the ground where Nerio had been staring—nothing was there. He could only force a smile, unsure how to interact with this peculiar child.

Just then, Nerio raised a finger to his lips in a playful, secretive gesture and chirped, "You’ll find out soon enough."

His large, round eyes curved slightly, filled with pure joy, yet Matthew felt a chill run down his spine for some reason.

That’s impossible. Matthew shook his head vigorously, forcing himself to look away from Nerio. He wondered if the dungeon’s corruption was also starting to affect him.

[I swear, there’s something strange about Nerio!]

[He’s just a kid. He’s too beautiful, so it gives off a weird effect that scares simple-minded people. That’s all. Just a bunch of cowards overthinking things.]

[But for a moment, I felt like I was facing a demon!]

[Come on, no demon could look this cute. Nerio is an angel, no doubt about it!]

[I can’t wait for this innocent beauty to be tainted by blood and betrayal.]

[This dungeon is full of surprises. We haven’t even made it through the first night, and I’m already looking forward to the moment these guys meet Leonard tomorrow. LOL. This first group in the dungeon is something!]

Most of the comments flashing across the screen were just people spamming their thoughts, hoping for more bloodshed—nothing beneficial.

Meanwhile, at Ace’s group, they anxiously carried the wooden planks to the river near the forest’s edge.

The path to the river was about three meters wide, flanked by tall wooden stakes. On either side, lush green trees and grass flourished, yet the ground beneath their feet was parched and cracked as if it hadn’t seen a drop of rain in countless years.

"Wouldn’t the villagers carrying water back to town spill at least a little along the way?" Alexis asked, puzzled.

Her face full of irritation, Julia replied, "The villagers already said—they can’t bring water into the village."

Clow adjusted his glasses. "Can’t? So it’s not that they don’t want to bring water back, but that they physically can’t bring water into the village?"

As they had already seen, the entire village was dry and desolate, utterly devoid of water—not even a single drop.

"Why don’t we bring some water back to the village ourselves?" Jack laughed, throwing out the suggestion, his face filled with anticipation and eagerness to experiment.

[Don’t worry, young man. Sooner or later, the village will be flooded, whether you want it or not.]

[And that’ll also be when you humans get buried in this dungeon. LOL.]

Maya frowned slightly at Jack’s reckless curiosity, but Ace didn’t object. Instead, he said, "We’ll try tomorrow. I’ll dunk you in the water myself if you don’t dare."

Jack shivered, genuine fear flashing across his face. Without hesitation, he said, "Just use a normal person to test it. Or that kid Nerio—his ability seems useful enough."

He cast a glance toward Clow as if signalling something.

Maya couldn’t see their expressions but couldn’t help feeling angry at their blatant cruelty.

However, she knew now wasn’t the right time to speak up—she should wait until they returned to their rooms and inform everyone.

That is, if she survived.

With that thought, Maya’s deep gaze shifted toward the vast river that had come into view.

The river was quite large, and the curved section connecting to the village wasidest point. Looking out into the distance, beyond the thick fog, the far shore was completely obscured.

Perhaps that was the dungeon’s boundary.

The water’s surface was eerily still—so unnervingly silent that it felt like no living creature, not even the smallest one, existed within it.

That unnatural stillness made their imaginations run wild. Would some grotesque monster suddenly break the surface and lunge at them, slicing their throats open before they even had a chance to react?

Alexis shook his head violently, trying to steady himself.

The closer he got to the riverbank, the more he felt his mind slipping.

Ace’s voice was cold. "Leave the wood here. Don’t go too close to the water. We’ll investigate tomorrow."

By the riverbank, wooden planks had already been assembled into a rough structure. It wasn’t clear what it was yet, but it looked like a raised platform—perhaps it would eventually form a large altar.

An altar for a wedding?

The thought was unsettling. One look was enough to tell that whatever "wedding" was meant to occur here wouldn’t be anything good.

Julia gazed up at the platform, and her vision began to distort for some reason. The structure before her was no longer just a pile of wood—it had transformed into a full-fledged altar.

And standing atop it was a tall, thin figure with unnaturally long hands and an eerily gaunt body.

The wind swept past, causing her long hair and crimson robes to billow. But upon closer inspection, Julia realized—the robes weren’t red.

They were stained red.

Blood.

Thick, fresh blood was still dripping down the altar, spilling into the river, turning the water into a sea of crimson. The blood spread and spread, creeping closer and closer toward Julia.

As if sensing her gaze, the woman on the altar turned to look at her.

A pale face. A grotesquely twisted smile.

Something about her was horribly, inexplicably wrong.

Yet Julia recognized that face.

It was her own.

"Aaaaaaa!"

Julia’s scream sent a jolt through the group. Maya immediately rushed over. "What’s wrong? Are you okay?"

Julia snapped back to reality, gasping for breath. She stared at Maya, then at the others, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Cold sweat dripped down her face—gone was the seductive composure she had when they first entered the dungeon.

Even though Maya wasn’t particularly fond of dark espers, she couldn’t help feeling a twinge of concern for Julia’s state.

Meanwhile, Ace raised an eyebrow. He glanced at the altar, then back at Julia with an unreadable expression.

Instinctively, Julia avoided his probing gaze.

Ace smirked but said nothing about her reaction. Instead, he said, "Alright, let’s head back."

Julia swallowed hard and quickly followed them.

Everything felt almost too peaceful—more than they had anticipated.