“Aaargh!” I finally swung the st strike from my sword as the st swallow butterfly hit the flower. With a faint, almost anticlimactic pop, the flower’s health bar plummeted to zero. The oversized pest let out a faint hiss before colpsing into a pile of withered petals, its dusty pollen dispersing into the air like fetti celebrating my questionable victory.[+45 EXP]

  [+25 on EXP]I started to move my legs again, but my stamied so much after striking that flower for a whole mihout rest that I couldn’t move. My legs were shaking and I turned my head, only to e face-to-face with the skeleton. Its hollow eye sockets stared back at me, so close that I could feel its ent breath.Catherine, I’m sorry. It seems like I o lo back. I watched the skeleton raise its arm above me. I tried to lift my own arm to shield myself, but my body had long since given up. My muscles felt like wet noodles after the flower fiasco, and eveiwitch seemed impossible. Even my sword, my supposed lifeline, slipped from my fingers and vanished bato the void it came from.“I hope I go bad py gacha again…” I muttered with a tear in my eyes. My mind wao all the shiny five-star Mashiro I’d never get to pull, the pity ters left unfulfilled, and the event banners I’d miss.The skeleton finally swung down its bony arm. Instinctively, I shut my eyes tight, brag for the iable pain. My fox ears twitched involuntarily, anticipating the blow. But instead of agony, I felt... something else. A light, aressure on top of my head.It was soft? Gentle? Almost like a weirdly reassuring pat. fused, I cracked one eye open and looked up. To my plete surprise, the skeleton’s bony hand etting my head.“What... what are you doing?!” I stammered, utterly dumbfounded. My ears flicked us touch as it tihe bizarrely affeate gesture. The skeleton tilted its head slightly, as if it couldn’t uand why I looked so baffled. Its hand remained, awkwardly stroking my head like I was some kind of lost puppy. “Are you… not a bad skeleton?” I wasn’t sure if I was asking it right, but the skull of the skeleton nodded. It wasn’t a jerky, mindless motion; it was almost like a gentleman's gesture, as if it was trying to say, "Of course, I’m a well-mannered skeleton."“I… thought I would die again…” I said while finally gaining enough strength to wipe my tears away. My voice was shaky, “I guess you aren’t like that mean silver haired cssmate that kept haunting my dream, huh?”The skeleton paused, almost as if pting my words. Then, with anentle, almost apologetic gesture, it lowered its bony hand and gave a soft, creaking nod, as if to say, “Nope, definitely not like that guy.”I sighed in relief, no, it was… disappoi. I looked at the skeleton's hollow eyes once more, and without realizing, tears once again struck me. I absentmindedly stared at the status window o the skeleton, that annoying game-like interface that had been floating in the er of my vision. I finally realized what made me feel this way.“No, I ’t…” I said, with barely any coherent babbling. “I was hoping you were gonna kill me so I might go back to earth again…”The skeleton tilted its head, almost like it was trying to process what I’d just said. If I didn’t know aer, I’d swear it looked... fused? Maybe even ed? But then again, it was a skeleton. Could it even feel anything?“Hey, mister skeleton.” I muttered, “why do I stay here in this world anyway? This is only my third day, but I already hate it. There’s no puter, I couldn’t just check my phone whenever I was bored, the bed here is rough, there’s no Ad there were lots of mosquitoes when I tried to sleep. And don’t even think about my daily gacha pulls. I need my gacha, okay?! Why am I even here?!”I paused, waiting for the skeleton to give me some kind of ahough I wasn’t sure what I was expeg. Maybe a cryptit prophecy or a motivational speech about embrag my new destiny? Or better yet, a way to actually go back to Earth, where at least I had Wi-Fi.Instead, the skeleton simply stared at me. its empty sockets fixed oh an almost serene ck of judgment.“Oh, e on, I’m not being that dramatic!” I sighed, throwing my hands up. “I mean, I’m teically still alive, right? Which is cool, but this world is like... primitive. No i? No gaming? No food delivery? I don’t know how long I survive here without even a snack bar for fort.”I sighed, exhausted, as I looked down at my frilly purple and bck dress, now in tatters. My long silver hair, streaked with hints of pink, was a tangled mess from all the running and wild sword swings. Sweat g to my skin, making everything feel even more unfortable.“I need a long, chill, bath time after this,” I muttered, pushing the skeleton's hand away from my head. I stretched my arms above me, letting out a slight moan as I tried to ease the stiffness in my muscles.I stared at the skeleton, unsure of what to do . That is, until a sudden ssh echoed through the air, and before I could eve, the skeleton was sliced ly in half. The botered to the ground in a heap, pletely lifeless.“Are you alright, Miss?” a familiar voice called out, pulling me from my daze. I looked up to see a young, handsome guy standing there, sheathing his sword with a fluid motion. The or on his sword was just as beautiful as his face. “I’ve heard from the children, so I rushed here.” He gave me a reassuring smile, though his intense gaze still lingered on me as if assessing the situation.“Ah… you are…” I muttered, my voice trailing off in a dull monotone as I tried to piece together who he was. My brain still felt foggy from the adrenaline rush and the enter with the skeleton. The handsome stranger looked at me with a slightly puzzled but amused expression, as though he expected me tnize him.“Oh dear, I haven’t introduced myself yet, haven’t I?” He raised his right hand and held it ft and bowed slightly like a knight. “Greetings, my dy. I’m S, the bodyguard of the merts you saw this m.”His formal introduade my brain short-circuit for a moment. I blirying to process the situation, still not quite sure whether to be grateful, annoyed, or just pin fused. His handsome fad well dressed outfit gave quite the impression of a noble, even a priher than a bodyguard.A long, royal blue cloak with a silver csp hung gracefully from his shoulders, swayily with eaent. The cloak’s edges were embroidered with a subtle pattern, hinting at his high status. On his belt, a beautifully ornate sword rested in its scabbard, the hilt ed in fiher and adorned with a gleaming gem in the ter.“I see..” I muttered, my eyes heavy with exhaustion. “Thank you, Mr. S.” With a slight nod, I began to shuffle away from him, my feet dragging as I made my way toward the vilge.

  “My dy, wait!” S called out from behind me, his voice filled with urgency. I felt his presence drawing nearer as he hurried towards me, his handsome eyes sparkling with an odd mix of aermination. “Let me escort you.”I sighed, feeling a little a his persistent knightley attitude. Turning my head to face him, I gave a tired but firm look. "I walk alone. Please... leave me alone."However, the moment I finished speaking, a loud, obnoxious rumble erupted from my stomach. My fastantly flushed red, and I quickly looked away in embarrassment, uo meet his gaze. The sound of my stomach growling was the kind of thing that could only happen at the most inve moments.An awkward silence filled the forest. I took a peek only to see him smile, his expression soft yet knowing, as if he were waiting for me to say something. The longer I stayed silent, the more I could feel the tension building. Finally, uo bear it any longer, I muttered, "I’m not that hungry…"“Miss, you’re practically starving,” S chuckled, his smile widening. “It won’t be proper of me to leave a dy like you walking alone in the forest with her grumbling stomach. Please, allow me.”I sighed i, “Fine. You ese to the vilge.” “Thank you, Miss,” S said with a slight bow, his smile still present as he walked alongside me. His movements were graceful and measured, almost as if he were in his element. The more I observed him, the more it seemed like he was someone who took his duties very seriously—almost too seriously at times.