"I might be lost. I have no idea where I am right now."

In the deep fog enveloping a vast garden, I muttered to my viewers.

Since then, I’ve defeated two creatures resembling zombies.

They moved slowly, and I could easily take them down with Shadow Bind, but in this endless garden of similar structures, I’ve completely lost track of my location.

The name "Fog-Enshrouded Garden" isn’t just for show—there’s no distant view of the outer wall, no distinctive landmark to guide me. Even if I carefully noted the positions of bridges or stone statues, pinpointing my exact location within this layer would be extremely difficult.

"With no points to exchange for a map, I’ll just have to find the exit somehow."

Even as I muttered this, my mind remained calm. I already knew from Reifrea that the Misty Great Garden was a place where one could easily get lost.

That was precisely what I'd planned—deliberately doing it to boost viewership.

"If we can just reach the outer wall, we might find a staircase by following along it. Let's aim for that as our first goal. On this level, even using Darkness Fog won't hide us from monsters; they'll detect us regardless, so we can't avoid combat. It's quite a dangerous situation, but we'll do our best."

Going into a labyrinth alone without knowing what kind of monsters might appear was nothing short of suicide.

By the time thirty minutes had passed, I might very well be dead.

Even though I understood it, seeing the rapidly increasing number of viewers, I became convinced that this was indeed the right choice.

After all, the price for gaining Nanami's life must be a life of equal value.

Moving through the vast garden while hiding in the darkness fog,

the sky maintained a faint light, completely opposite to the second layer. A normal explorer would understand why this level would be easier to fight on.

— You're in danger

— Pay attention

While searching for the exit, a voice suddenly echoed from somewhere.

In the next moment, a powerful impact struck from the side—

"Guh!? W-what—?"

Fortunately, I managed to block the strike with my gauntlets, avoiding a direct hit, but I was still sent rolling across the ground, the cold stone tiles mercilessly scraping against my clothes and the skin beneath.

A sharp pain surged through my left arm, which had taken the blow—perhaps my bone was broken.

Lifting my face, I saw a tree there.

No, not a tree—a tree monster.

It had been disguised as one, and I hadn’t noticed until I’d nearly walked right up to it.

Its branches swayed wildly, and it lumbered forward slowly, not looking particularly threatening, but it was large and clearly strong.

In fact, I’d already taken serious damage from just one strike.

"…I never thought I’d encounter something like that—some grotesque tree creature. I wasn’t wearing much armor, so I might have broken a bone."

Even so, I still had the composure to speak.

As I spoke, my left arm throbbed intensely, and red blood kept flowing from the abrasions.

Yet, somewhere deep within me, a voice insisted, "This is fine," "This is a good turn of events."

I left my useless left arm as it was and readied my dagger.

The opponent was a monstrous tree creature.

It was impossible to tell where its joints were—branches serving as arms, their tips sharp and dangerous, capable of piercing through with lethal force.

Whether it had crawled out of the soil or had always been shaped this way, its root-like base writhed like octopus tentacles, slowly advancing toward me.

"This is the first time Darkness Fog hasn't worked. I think it's perceiving us through something other than sight."

Even though I was speaking calmly, my whole body was drenched in cold sweat. My breathing grew ragged.

"Shade Shift!"

A shadowy doppelgänger, half of myself, materialized.

It was just a minor illusion—whether it had any effect on an opponent who didn’t rely on sight was uncertain, but it was better than nothing.

"Phantom Warrior!"

A shadow warrior appeared, loudly clashing sword against shield to draw attention.

Luckily, the opponent seemed sensitive to sound, diverting some of their focus in that direction.

I swiftly circled around and took position behind the wooden creature.

Immediately, I activated my technique.

"Shadow Bind!"

As shadowy tendrils wrapped around the branches, I plunged my short dagger into it.

"Hard!"

Unlike a living being, the opponent was made of wood itself.

There was no way to pierce it with a dagger—it simply lacked the strength.

I rushed forward aggressively, but I couldn't possibly bring my blade to its weak point.

As I struggled, the binding began to loosen.

"Summon Knightbug!"

I summoned a Knightbug and put some distance between us.

It was impossible with just one arm.

I pulled out a mid-tier potion I'd bought from the guild, from my Shadow Storage, and poured it directly onto the wound.

Whether it was the adrenaline from battle or not, I no longer felt pain, though I could sense the numbness fading.

I thought my left arm might not heal without even a moderate healing scroll, but slowly, sensation was returning.

Thankfully, it seemed it hadn't actually broken.

"Gudomo ooooh!"

The monstrous tree, stripped of its trunk and branches by countless insects, roared and shook its limbs with a rasping sound.

"W-what... what is this...?"

New presences—no, distinct cries—could be heard from around them.

"Could it be... calling for companions...?"

The guess was correct; two massive men, each gripping giant clubs, slowly approached from beyond the fog.

While it was clear that one could be distracted by a single monster, the reality of such a situation had never truly sunk in.

(Should I run...? But... )

Fortunately, these creatures moved rather slowly.

If I scatter spells while fleeing, I should be able to escape without issue.

—Running is, of course, a viable option.

—But what good would that do?

I came here alone, determined to win at all costs.

I've made up my mind to secure the highest viewership and claim first place.

Such resolve shouldn't be so easily shaken.

I came alone—deliberately even got lost.

That wasn't to escape in a crisis, no.

I came here precisely because of this situation.

"I managed to get my left arm moving again. Three opponents is a lot... but I'll do it."

Once I made the decision, something inside me shifted, and my resolve solidified.

I'll ignore the tree monster for now and dash toward the large man.

(That one can hear the Dark Fog.)

I instantly expand the darkness, pinning him with Shadow Bind, then leap in whole body and drive the short blade into his weak point.

I carried out the move twice in succession and finished off the large man.

My body moved in a way that surprised even me.

Perhaps focusing on death had sharpened my concentration.

I left the large man’s spirit stone lying there, then turned to face the wooden monster.

No matter how tough the monster, it was still just wood.

I used the Phantom Warrior to draw its attention, circled around behind it, immobilized it with Shadow Bind, and then attacked.

Using three techniques in a single strike was tough, but I didn’t know any other way.

Thinking about how, with Reflair around, even just Darkness Fog would have been enough, it was clear that fighting alone was too much to ask.

But I’d known that from the start.

I do it because it’s impossible.

That’s why it’s possible.

After three rounds of combat, the wooden monster transformed into a spirit stone.

It was the worst match for me, but thanks to that, my live viewer count broke through 400 million.

Not bad.

"I've taken some damage, but it was a great battle experience. Now, let's move on."

I pretended to be calm, putting on a carefree expression.

My body was already growing hot from overusing spiritual energy.

It's impossible to keep fighting like this repeatedly.

Afterward, as I wandered searching for an exit, I defeated fifteen large goblins, eight zombie-like creatures, five small demons, and five large men.

The wooden monster didn't appear again, and nothing else showed up besides that.

Other monsters were ultimately no match against Darkness Fog, and as long as that remained effective, it was possible to significantly weaken the opponent. I just needed to stay calm and take their lives. Of course, a certain amount of decisiveness was required, but I had accumulated considerable experience in that regard.

I could also feel, as I defeated each monster, a gradual absorption of spirit energy, resulting in a noticeable improvement in my physical abilities.

"I think I've come to understand the way of fighting using dark spirit magic quite well now. Even if stronger monsters appear, I can't say for sure, but I finally grasp the meaning behind claiming that Reflair still works even at the third layer."

As I spoke, I descended the stairs—about ten steps, the memory of which I recognized from before.

Straight ahead, the stairs leading up to the second layer stood open like a gaping mouth.

It was true I had been lost, but in reality, I had quite a strong sense of direction.

As long as you always know which direction you came from, you won't truly get lost.

But to the viewers, it'll probably seem like I luckily made it back to the stairs.

"It's the exit! Thank goodness... I was about at my limit, but now I think I can make it back alive."

Even as I narrated, I felt how painfully obvious it was.

I'm probably just a terrible, obvious actor. Maybe observant viewers will catch on, but well, the commentary is just an extra anyway.

In the end, there's nothing but action to prove it.

"With that, today's solo exploration comes to a close. Starting tomorrow, we'll be exploring again as a party, so please look forward to it."

With that closing line, I wrapped up the commentary and plunged into the darkness, racing through the labyrinth.

To be honest, wandering lost through unfamiliar floors was physically and mentally exhausting.

Still, the reason I can do something like this might be because I've constantly experienced the sensation of death being right beside me in that forest.

Anyway, today I'll treat myself to something delicious.

Today's exploration was mostly live commentary from the dark, and probably wasn't very entertaining, yet in the end, viewership surpassed five hundred million.

My current provisional overall rank is 14th.

As expected, my prediction was correct.

It's fair to say that risking my life served as the catalyst, dramatically boosting my rank.

— And this result is also proof that people truly wish for my death.