Ever asked yourself where the treasure boxes in games come from?

I'm a Treasure Box in the Final Boss Floor

Chapter 3: The Shift

‘Things suddenly change.' That’s what I realized at that moment.

It was always the same. This dark corner of Terminia’s depth was my window to the world. I saw monsters fight over it. I saw humans killed in it. I saw the shadow of the dungeon’s master occasionally too. Yet, nothing about this spot have changed. No monster nor a hero came close enough to open me.

It was when the Goblins were partying one night, the wall behind me, that kept making cracking noises, finally collapsed.

‘Ah, things suddenly change.’ It was the first change I had in all of my memories. I don’t remember time before the current dungeon master. I don’t remember time before I was in this place either. I was a baby Box then, after all.

The collapse of the wall meant looking outside got harder. I saw the same scenes but with a narrower, blurry vision. I got used to it after a while. Some changes aren't sudden, it seems.

Goblins were driven out one day.

“This is for our village!“ A trio of heroes shouted as they burned them. The trio never saw me behind the cracks of the wall and kept moving forward. They never came back.

A long time after I last saw Goblins, skeletons started to raise.

I realized later why their rags looked familiar. These Skeletons are the remains of the fallen heroes who passed by me over time. Somehow they started to move. “Kehkehkehkeh.” They laughed.

It was the same after all. I was behind the wall, now I’m between its remains. The location was ruled by Goblins, now its Skeletons. Heroes come and go, but they never step in my direction.

‘Things change, but they stay the same.’ In that deep corner of Terminia, all I had was this paradox.

Even if things changed, they will stay the same.

“Ah, finally… We finished them off! Huh?”

“What? Another enemy?”

“There’s something under the debris.“

“…A treasure chest?”

‘…?' I couldn’t process what was happening.

A bunch of heroes, moved the remains of the wall that covered me. My vision became clear again.

**click*
I was opened.

“What did you get?”

“A simple healing herb. Do you think it’ll be useful against the boss?”

“Nah… Leave it there.”

“No, give it to me. Let’s take it just in case.”

I was opened.

I was opened.

I was…

Now what?

Yes. Things suddenly change..

My whole purpose vanished, just like that.

Chapter 3 - END

Chapters List:

• Prologue

• Chapter 1

• Chapter 2

• Chapter 3 - Current

• Chapter π

• Chapter 4

• Chapter 5

Author Notes

How about that as a cliffhanger?

If the final part of the chapter took you by surprise, it means I succeeded. I tried to make this chapter all about the suddenness of change.

The Box tells the tale of the dungeon as it saw it, and reminisces about the changes that it witnesses, and how little they're essentially the same after the change. Then something truly irreversible happens! A bunch of heroes come and take the item inside of our box. Its dream, now fulfilled, but it was so sudden. Even I haven't processed it yet.

I guess goals always work like that. Once you reach them, they feel anticlimactic. The emptiness you'll have can only be filled by replacing it with another goal. I wonder if our Treasure Box has something like that.

What do you think?

This is about the halfway point of my story as far as I planned it out. What do you think will happen next? Can't wait to see your comments.

Thanks for Reading & Salam (Peace)

• "I'm a Treasure Box in the Final Boss Floor" by @ahmadmanga is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

• The cover image for this series is created by me.

• This story is also on Hive's Ecency.