A NEW WORLD

Chapter 7

After the incident where Zoro stole the limelight and took down the formidable floor boss, things were pretty lively on the 18th floor following that. Most of the half-dead looking warriors seem to have regained their spirits that have been extinguished by the black hulk. Which is a good thing, Zoro supposed, but he would rather if they didn't swarm him and fired too many questions all at once for him to even understand them.

"Amazing..truly...THAT WAS AMAZING!"

"Which hellhole did this man crawl out from, ya bastards?! Kah kah kah! That crazy strength, which familia do ya belong to?"

"I owe my life to you, I'll make sure to repay my debt someday! Could you please tell us your name?"

"How are you so strong?!"

"Ahh ya hair...no—that ain't matter! Where'd cha come from?!"

"Young lad, spit out your name so this old man can spread the tale of an incredible hero that saved us. Wahahah!"

"That was my first time seeing a first class in action, nyan!"

"Three swords? Never heard of anyone like that before,"

"Oi! The town of Livira and its people are grateful to ya, we'll treat ya big the next time you visit us. My name is—"

It endlessly went on, Zoro have had second thoughts whether he should actually act on his warnings and cut these people up. Of course, the swordsman wouldn't truly follow through his actions with that line of thought, but empty threats won't really work on this group of brash individuals. When you have been living your life staying on the edge every day, actively placing yourself in risky situations by fighting against strong monsters, it left that effect on you—and Zoro could understand that. After all, he was one of those people. But it doesn't make him immune to headaches, though. They are acting like flies, flying all over him, just plain irritating and noisy. Zoro was standing in the middle of the crowd with his arms crossed over his toned chest and his gaze cast downwards in frustration—causing the upper half of his face to be overshadowed, and in turn it attracted more attention to the patch of green on his head. His patience was gradually wearing thin again and a tick mark inevitably appeared on Zoro's left temple. Just as the adventurers braced themselves for they believed they were on the receiving end of another verbal abuse, an unwanted character surfaced from Zoro.

"All of you are noisy as hell!" He retorted, with his usual gruff voice but it subtly display how pleased he was at the reaction people are showing to his—frequently remarked as monstrous by the weaker members in his crew—strength before he deliberately continued in a rather grouchy attitude. "Hero? Who the hell wanna be a hero?" Applying a bit of force and unnecessarily drawing out his words while giving off the most annoyed facial expression he could muster. He looked like a petulant child as he always did whenever he was having an argument with a particular blonde chef.

A sweat drop manifested on the back of everyone's head as they pulled a couple steps away from Zoro.

'A tsundere, eh?' That thought reflected on everyone's face as they contemplated on Zoro's strong personality and just as they were about to resume the one-sided interactions between them and the swordsman, a voice interrupted their progress.

"I think it's only fair to give him some space. Even for him, it must have taken a huge toll on his body. The cost of defeating the Goliath. Everyone, please go help the others tend to the wounded." A feminine voice could be heard coming from outside the horde of people and that prompted everyone to swivel around to look at the owner of the said voice.

"Elf girl.." Muttered one of the people from the group, a demi-human and younger looking adventurer compared to the rest of them. Recalling back the situation, almost immediately he had a guilty expression on his face. As if it was a transmittable disease, a gloomy aura enveloped the whole group and it had put a damper on everyone's mood, the only one left unaffected was Zoro. After most of them finally recollected their cool head, seemingly in an affirmation to themselves, they gave a curt nod to one another before walking off and breaking the small circle formation surrounding the green-haired man.

Now left alone with the stranger, Zoro slightly relaxed his tense muscles from the newly acquired peace but just enough to show that he was still on his guard if she decided to pull anything weird. He dropped his arms to his side and let out a quiet sigh before turning his head to his left side facing her direction in order to return her stare. Standing a few feet away from him, was the elven lady that kept interrupting him with the monster. Ryuu Lion. Truthfully, the girl had so many questions to ask the mysterious man who saved them but at the same time she understood it was none of her business and that everyone has their own story to keep.

Ryuu is an elf with exceptional power and beauty. Her bright blonde hair falls short underneath her hidden pointy ears, barely reaching her shoulders with layered bangs covering her forehead. Her skin is as white as snow which caused her to be referred to as a fairy on several occasions by others. Her current attire is a mid-length green cloak with a hood in the shape of a flower and a white sleeveless top under it. She also comes with a pair of long brown gloves that cover almost the entirety of her arms and boots that reached her upper thighs with a white sash over a green undergarment, where she keep her wooden sword and a pair of short swords tucked in. Ryuu's sky blue orbs maintained the eye contact with Zoro's dark eye and as if given an approval, that jet black eye stirred a movement out of her and she began to approach him.

"Can you walk?" She spoke in her natural calm and cool mannerism. A snort coming from Zoro was an answer enough to her question.

"Don't underestimate me, woman. That thing couldn't even kill my boredom. I could ask you the same thing." Zoro broke the eye contact eventually and averted his gaze elsewhere. Ryuu's next response was very much unnecessary as Zoro had already figured out the answer to his question with brief inspection from his part.

"In all honesty, my whole body is hurting at the moment.." And they continued in their idle talk while the scenery zoomed out and the noises around slowly but surely started to sound muddled as if they were underwater. Even the picture of them started to waver like a reflection on the surface of water, it ripples with every slight movement in the room. Unbeknownst to everyone else, a presence has been watching them through a crystal ball with magical properties from the start until the downfall of the Goliath—or not exactly.

'Did I imagine it?'

Zoro has been glaring at an empty air the whole time, his eye now was a bottomless pool of darkness and void of any human feelings. The hint of a smile that graced his face just a moment ago was instead replaced by a sneer. A shudder run throughout her body, it was as if his gaze penetrated through both space and deep inside her flesh. As if a hunter watching his prey as intensely a hawk watching a mouse.

"Fuhuhuhu.. What is he, a wild animal? Oh no~ I'm getting too excited!"


Bell woke up to an immediate shot of pain coursing throughout his whole body starting from his left ribcage. Even though it wasn't entirely as bad as it was a few hours ago, thanks to all the low tier potions he received from others, the direct hit from the Goliath that his lanky body had tanked was simply reduced to a disturbing coloured bruise mark on his left torso.

Bell slowly climbed up to his feet while trying to avoid making any immediate movement. Suddenly, a hand entered his line of sight, a silent offering to help him up. He tilted his head upwards to see if he can recognise the owner, expecting it was just Goddess-sama but to his surprise, a forest fairy appeared in his field of vision. Bell immediately turned bright red, both his hands fumbling in front of him in a sad attempt to cover his heated face, his previous thought about not moving so recklessly was already forgotten. A jolt of pain spread all over his body once again, resulting in Bell letting out the most unmanly scream in front of Ryuu Lion.

After much ruckus—coming from his part meanwhile just a quiet chuckle escaped from her—they finally fell into a comfortable silence once again inside the tent. Bell couldn't afford to embarrass himself anymore. Trying to display some amount of manliness, Bell sat himself up after he respectfully declined her questioning gaze. There's a new wave of pain that hit him but he withstood it like a true man. Next as he tried to stand up, focusing completely on his teetering legs, he finally managed to stand straight. Every muscle in his body was complaining as a result, but he could still handle it.

"How long did I sleep—" Bell started before he was interrupted by the appearance of two little girls rushing inside the tent.

"BELL-KUN! YOU'RE AWAKE!"

"Bell-sama! We heard a scream?"


Even though the floor has been shrouded in darkness for hours, the night has only just officially begun. A gathering of people huddled by the campfire, someone is stirring a stew in a huge pot, the adventurers of town Livira were kind enough to provide them with the ingredients as a token of appreciation for what happened today. They sat in a circle around the fire waiting for their dinner, watching the fire as if hypnotized by it, holding their hands out to get just a little more of the gentle heat. With the fire as their tiny sun for the evening, casting long shadows over the stool and log they sat upon. The warm flames curled, swayed, flicking, and crackling as they lick at the dry wood and sent feeble sparks to die in the air.

"I see, so you woke up having no idea where you are and what was going on?" The glow from the fire sent its warmth and light far out, flashing red reflections in the curiously twisted eyes. Hermes sat with his legs crossed at the knee with his left elbow resting on top of it. His chin cupped in his hand, and a thoughtful look marking his young and handsomely face. He's still wearing the same clothes from before with the exception of his hat. He had taken it off much earlier, leaving his golden hair to fall prettily around his face.

"Yeah." Zoro gave a bored reply while poking the fire with a stick, to move the log and coal so it could burn better. "Hey, when will dinner be done?" He asked the girl currently in charge for their dinner, who he has had the pleasure to be acquainted with this evening, along with everyone else. Chigusa, the timid looking girl panicked at being address by Zoro couldn't form a proper response and was left with her mouth agape when Hermes decided to speak again.

"And, you have not the slightest clue what a familia is? Or anything about the dungeon?" A strange glint of mischief reflected in his eyes. His bright coloured eyes smiled constantly, and Zoro wondered to himself that perhaps the glow of the light might be the reason why they looked so alive.

"You going to keep making me repeat myself?" Zoro distrust the man sitting on the opposite direction of him, the fairly young looking man kept watching him like he's about to eat Zoro as a whole. He has a feeling that this man called Hermes is not what he actually portrayed himself to be, that this man have yet to show his true nature.

"Kukuku..you have no idea who you're talking to Zo-ro-kun." Hermes stood up as if issuing a challenge to Zoro, his upwardly slanted eyes still in a silent laugh.

"Her-mes-sa-ma!" With a swift kick to the shin, Hermes fell to the ground cradling his leg that was the victim of the abuse. "Enough with this game of yours. Roronoa, do you believe in a god?" Asfi scolded the blonde god before she decided to cut the chase and address the swordman directly.

"Hai, hai~ Of course I was joking, Asfi-neesan is so uptight!" All the while, Hermes continued on in the background.


Bell and the rest of the group went back to the surface after defeating the Goliath, which was the morning after that disastrous event. By some miracle, every member of their group survived the ordeal. Each of them went their separate ways, to inform those closest to them of their safe return. One went up to his goddess, Hestia, to express his gratitude and buried the remains of a weapon, one went to bring their group members up to speed, and still another removed the hood and went back to working at a bar without anyone noticing. At the same time, a gag order was issued to all of the adventurers who had witnessed the events on the eighteenth floor.

The appearance of the floor boss at a safe point was an Irregular beyond comprehension. The Guild declared it to be an "act of the gods"—henceforth classified as a "Calamity". To avoid excessive confusion, Hestia and Hermes both received a strict warning, as well as a penalty—their explanation of the circumstances was ignored and forbidden to speak of it ever again. However. It was impossible to keep the voices silent forever. That's the way of the world. Especially with the appearance of a new player in the game of the Gods. The rumours of an unknown swordsman single-handedly slaying a monster class rex would soon spread out to the whole labyrinth city of Orario. In fact, it wasn't even long enough before the gossip reached every adventurer's ears.

"Green-haired swordsman who uses three swords? A character like that doesn't exists.."

"Ehh? Who the heck? All of them must've worked together to defeat it."

"You dumbass! Did you forget that Loki Familia just returned from their dungeon expedition, they already saved Livira once before. Those shameless bastards probably took their credit!"

"The hair is green, right? Ahh there is that elf queen, Reveria Riyos Alf. A misinformation then, swordsman my ass!"


Zoro entered the exit as he lifts the fabric door out of the way before the scenery outside came into his view. Surrounded by trees on all corners, and a few more tents have been pitched around the yurt he's currently occupying. He wondered why there are random groups of survivors from the day before camped around him, not that Zoro cared, it was a simple inquiry. They were kind enough to provide him with food and informations, those two reasons were enough to make Zoro accept their company and indulge in their curiosity. It was a strange sensation, waking up in this world again, especially after absorbing all the information from the blue-haired girl last night. He had thought that this was all a dream and soon enough he would find himself awake on a ship again. It was a wishful thinking, it would not be an understatement to say that he had been too hopeful.

Zoro started walking forward, heading towards no tree in particular. The leaves and branches created a kind of dome canopy over his head. However, sometimes small rays of light managed to slip through the small openings in between the leaves and shone down to the ground. Zoro could feel a warm sensation on his face. To top it all off, he can clearly see blue through the leaves. He ran his hand through his crop of green hair and decided to just give up trying to understand the place. He was told they're inside a labyrinth of monsters called the Dungeon. Hence, no sunlight should be able to make it down here—so how come there is still a shade and a blue sky? Zoro thought he had already found the answer to that yesterday, but to his knowledge the Goliath had also left a giant hole in the ceiling of this place. And yet there is still a 'blue sky' and a warm 'sun' on the other side of those leaves. Zoro continued his path into the woods, completely ignoring all the admired looks he received from the people around him. He left the camp area and continued his walk until he arrived in part of the forest completely untouched by humans, it spread out even wider as the canopy towers above him.

It's a rare case where Zoro didn't get lost in the middle of his route to somewhere, and it was all thanks to his sense of hearing, he only needed to follow the sound and it would without fail lead him to the place of his destination. The sound of flowing water is getting closer and could be heard more clearly before the sight of a small river running through this forest is seen. Clear and sparkling crystals of all sizes and shapes came into his view as well, looking absolutely gorgeous and pleasing to the eyes. The entire forest is illuminated by the soft glow of azure light these crystals emitted. Even the forest floor is covered in little blue fragments, along with a good amount of green moss and tree roots. It's a mystifying, wondrous sight. It's impossible not to stand and stare. But Zoro didn't pause in his steps at all, he kept walking towards what seemed like a semicircular arch-like entrance to a secret open area bathed in white light.

The pirate had to cover up his eye the first time he stumbled upon this space earlier this morning. The forest opened up to a new and brighter path as Zoro's eye adjusted to the light. His existence now only a tiny dot of life in this new landscape. The first view he took in was the great plain that spread throughout his entire vision, so rich with green but it couldn't beat the tropical rainforests his crew has been to in one of their many adventures in the Grandline. Crystals are scattered on each corner of the landscape. A most perfectly smooth surface of an amazingly pure blue on his left, it was a giant lake with a gigantic rocky island sticking out in the middle of it, and the forest's green spreads out to Zoro's right.

Slightly inclining his head backwards, from this place his eye can catch a glimpse of the ceiling without having to climb up a tree. As he had observed this morning, the entire ceiling of this level is covered in a sheet of crystals, as they were yesterday. They go from corner to corner and all the way around, like a field of blooming flowers looking down from above. Gone was the sight of a giant hole in the 'sky'. And the light from the crystal shines bright, thus creating the afternoon atmosphere on the 18th floor. The living dungeon had repaired itself to how it was before in just one night. This is the place known as the safe point, level eighteen, where monsters doesn't spawn off of the wall. A world full of nature and crystals far below the surface. The Under Resort.

'Hmm, giants could swing one of those crystals around like a dagger. Ehh how lucky,'

Zoro lowered himself to the ground beside a huge trunk of tree, while at the same time removing all three wooden scabbards by his side. He leaned his back against the rough exterior of the wood, with one leg propped up and the other folded under the former. His arms resting on his haramaki, not crossed but just casually draped on top of one another. The swords, while still in their respectful sheath, were supported up by the tree and leaning at an angle on his shoulder. Zoro's arms loosely looped around them. He came to this area in hope to catch an afternoon nap and clear his head from his dishevelled state of mind.

"Gods and Goddesses huh?" Zoro spoke outloud to himself. As he did so, he summoned the memory from yesterday's conversation.

"Are all the monsters in the dungeon this fairly weak?" He had asked Asfi at some point, after listening to the explanation from her.

'Weak…'

Three figures simultaneously dropped to the ground on all fours like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Takemikazuchi's children took it especially hard because they weren't much help in the fight during the day. Those words instantly sent them spiraling into a short period of depression. Their skin rapidly losing colour and turning pale, pupils seemed to have shrunk in size, and a dark aura hovered above them. The trio repeatedly mumbling the words "hopeless" and "useless" to themselves as they sat together—forming their own little triangle—whilst rocking their body back and forth. The sight reminded Zoro of the cook's reaction to his hand drawn bounty.

'Oi, are you guys okay?'

"The deeper in the dungeon you go, the harder the difficulty level of the monsters you get. But it's dangerous to venture deep alone, even if it's you." A different voice cut in, before the lithe frame of a woman show up. The brilliance glare of the flames engulfed her petite body that was exposed to night air. She just left the tent where the boy with snow white hair was resting in. Zoro who was sitting close to fire, and has been relentlessly poking at it with the stick in his hand, lifted his chin a little to see her better. That insignificant action in result casted a shadow over his left side of face. He also raised a questioning eyebrow at the end of her sentence before Ryuu can completely finish herself.

"Since you are unfamiliar with the area, it's a high probability you will get lost."

"That's not the problem, this man can't even follow a straight path!" The short memory slowly dispersed itself and Zoro was seen alone again, leaning all his weight against a tree.

"Shut up, that Red..just suck at giving directions." That accusation automatically escaped his mouth as though to justify himself when there was nobody around to even hear his explanation. Eventually, Zoro managed to rest his eyes and doze off, a bubble of snot even coming out of his nostril—it inflates and deflates in sync with his breathing and loud snoring.


Arise.

Heed me.

Roronoa Zoro.

I hold all the answers you seek.


A/N: HELLO, FIRST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO THANK EACH AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU FOR READING, FOLLOWING, FAVOURITING, AND REVIEWING THE STORY! I DEEPLY APPRECIATE YOUR TIME AND FEEDBACKS. ALSO SORRY FOR ANY MISTAKES, I HAVE A WEAK GRAMMAR BUT I HOPE THIS CHAPTER IS TO YOUR LIKING. I WANTED TO WRITE A LONGER CHAPTER BUT I CAN'T DECIDE WHICH STORY I SHOULD GO WITH. I RECENTLY STARTED READING THE SPINOFF AS WELL, AND I COMPLETELY FELL IN LOVE WITH LOKI FAMILIA. SO I NEED TIME TO DECIDE WHETHER I SHOULD MAKE ZORO JOIN THE WAR GAME OR MAKE HIM VENTURE DEEP IN THE DUNGEON AND RUNNING INTO MEMBERS FROM LOKI FAMILIA. OFC IM GOING TO MAKE HIM GO BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THE TWO STORIES IN THE FUTURE BUT I CANT DECIDE WHICH ONE I SHOULD GO WITH SPECIFICALLY FOR NEXT CHAPTER. THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, SEE YOU NEXT TIME!

Boyzpwn: That's the nicest thing you could say to me because I read pretty much all crossovers involving Zoro as well! Thank you so much for your time, I hope you will continue reading this.

Choppah: I don't write comedy well *cries* but I gave it a shot in this chapter. Tell me what do you think about it, I hope it wasn't too cringy for everyone? I think I'm only good at writing descriptions... I find the dialogue between the characters to be very boring and plain. Also, thank you for your feedback, I appreciate it! I will try to make the story more enjoyable for everyone.

Star: I hope that short fight was to your satisfaction, I really need to improve my skills on how to write fighting scenes. I just glossed over the whole thing and try to end it asap because I suck at writing it. I will do more research so I can include more badass Zoro moments! Thank you for your time and I hope you will continue telling me which part in the story captivated you the most much later in the future!

TomahawkESP: I sure hope so! Thank you and I hope you will enjoy this chapter as well *punches the air*

Guest: I'm really glad it was to your liking, no biggies! Do leave me more with your thoughts and I shall consider writing it!

Jjcoop95: I'm happy to know you liked it, I've always thought to myself "omg how cool do you think it would be if Zoro's earrings could make chiming sounds?!" And then, I decided to write it myself lmao and yes he will be joining different parties throughout the story. That's a sweet idea, I should totally write a hot spring or bathing scene in the future!

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING IN THIS STORY, ALL THE CHARACTERS BELONG RIGHTFULLY TO THEIR RESPECTFUL AUTHORS.