“Anyway, leave here already! What are you doing just standing here?!” I yelled urgently as the skeleton walked painfully slowly towards us.“B-but… I lost my doll that S gave me in that forest there…” Elise poiowards just past the skeleton walking. There was also a bigger boy that chimed ie the obvious helplessness in his voice, “our secret base is there! We 't let that undead ruin it!”I sighed as I listeo this group of children. I once again took a closer look at the skeleton’s description. Its movement shouldn't be too hard to avoid.“Listen, just deliver those ingredients to Lisa, okay? She seemed really sick, so please, get to her as soon as possible.” The moment I mentiohat, Elise's expressio pale. I pat her shoulder with a smile, “I’ll get that doll for you, so just go.” As soon as I said that, she immediately rushed towards the vilge.“Elise, wait!” Another boy I didn't know the name of ran and followed her. Roy also started to move his legs, alongside with the other children. Including the oh a scraped knee. I thought you stayed here because you were hurt?! I couldn’t help but mentally retort at them.After there was only a skeleto and me, I finally readied myself for my secret on. There were only around six meters from me and the skeleton, but it was enough distao do something I already pnned on doing anyway. I banished my sword away to prepare for it.

  “Time to run!” I yelled, particurly to no o myself. I ran towards the opposite dire of the children, which was almost directly towards the skeleton. It was moving so slow that I barely o dodge, no, the skeleton didn’t eveo bother catg up and just stood there. I made sure to stay close with the skeleton so that it didn’t chase the children. After a while, it finally started to painfully walk towards my dire. I went towards the secret base the childrealking about while making sure the skeleton was following me.“Heh, this looks easier than clearing the tutorial level in a gacha game—what could possibly g?” I muttered fidently, eyeing the seemingly straightforward objective ahead of me.I kept running, no, scratch that—it wasn’t even running. It was more like a casual stroll to the children’s hideout, with the skeleton trailing behind me like it had all the time in the world, about seventeeers away. If I didn’t know aer, I’d swear it was just enjoying the walk, too.After what felt like ay—or at least long enough for me to sider starting a versation with the skeleton about its skincare routine—I finally reached the children’s hideout. It’s a simple hut made with various leaves and small logs with a strong and leaning precariously against a massive tree that looked like it had been around sihe dawn of time.“How nostalgic…” I muttered, remembering my childhood days as the other children would take me out to their hideout whenever my mom would be te pig me up at the park. I rushed ihe hut without a door and snatched the doll I saw Elise was holding this m.I saw the skeleton still walking towards me. Its bo were scraping against the dirt, a good teers away now. It looked almost pitiful, like a stray dog chasing after someone who’d long stopped g. I gave it a passing gnce, sighed, and casually walked around it. Once I was clear, I broke into a full sprint toward the vilge, leaving the poor skeleton to awkwardly turn around.“Mission cleared! Pull rates up for victory snacks!” I yell, skipping pyfully in the forest without any care in the world. The trees swayed gently, probably judging me, but I didn’t care.My stomach was growling intensely. I stopped mid-skip, realizing that hopping around like an idiot wasn’t going to fill me up. With a sigh, I adjusted my pace to a normal walk. Gng to my side, I noticed that the skeleton was so far behind now. It was almost too far to be seen.“Aaah!” I cried out in surprise, my voice eg through the forest. While I was busy cheg the distant skeleton behind me, my foot caught on a vine.

  “Ugh, e on!” I groaned, desperately trying to shake off the vine. But the more I tugged, the more it seemed to have a mind of its own, slithering up my leg like some kind of revenge-hungry pnt. “Hey, stop it! I’m not your lunch!” I yelled at it, as if that would do anything. But, naturally, it didn’t listen. The vines only tightened, ing around my leg like a gy silver haired cssmate.I gnced behio see the skeleton slowly ing closer towards me. The once distant skeleton roximately around thirty meters, now closer to twenty ers. At this rate, it would take a minute for it to reach me.“e on, e on,” I muttered, yanking at the vines with increasing desperation.Suddenly, a stinky smell emerged close to me. I g my left to see a sudden gigantic flower, blooming right before my eyes. It was like something straight out of a nightmare. The petals unfurled with an exaggerated slowness, releasing a cloud of dusty powder that floated through the air like a toxic fog. I gagged, swatting at the air in an attempt to clear it. “What is this? A walking disaster of bad smells and pollen?” I was half tempted to gag, but then I remembered—skeleton, twenty seveers away, slowly closing in. No time for flowers or their questionable hygiene.Looking at the skeleton suddenly made me realize something. “I have a sword!” I quickly summo. The sword from the gacha system materialized in my hands. Without wasting any more time, I swung the bde at the vine ing around my leg. A swallowtail butterfly materialized as soon as my bde touched the vine, and It zipped toward the giant flower with incredible speed, a blur of wings, as it collided with the bloomials.(-13 Physical Damage)(-2 Physical Damage)As soon as the text bubble popped up o the flower, I immediately focused my attention on the flower o me and used my Identification Lv. 1 to it. <>Health Points: 625/640 [97.65%]Category: Pnts

  Description: A stinky flower. It mostly just stands there, catg anything that moves like it’s the world’s worst vacuum er with its vines. Harmless to creatures the size of a mouse, but ioo much of its dust, and you might find yourself regretting life choices—or at least, regretting your nose for the hh, e on!” I yelled in frustration, swinging my sword like a mad fox girl, ung a barrage of strikes at the flower. With each hit, a swallowtail butterfly appeared out of nowhere, charging straight at the flower like a tiny, angry army. But no matter how many butterflies I summoime was still tig, and that skeleton was getting closer with every sed.I kept my eyes glued to the health bar, watg it drop at a painfully slow rate. Fifteen seds of non stop swinging, and all I’d mao do was whittle its health down to 400 HP. 400?! Seriously?! Was this flower secretly a tank? This was taking forever! I could hear the skeleton’s footsteps growing louder, and at this rate, I'd be turned into skeleton food before I even fihis stupid flower!"Help!" I screamed into the forest, hoping some miracle would happen. My arms were on fire from swinging the sword non-stop, but the flower just wouldn’t die! Meanwhile, the skeleton was getting closer and closer, its bony form now only halfway from where I first saw it.I anting like I’d just run a marathon, my entire body screaming in protest. My arms felt like they were made of lead, every swing of the sword sending shockwaves through my numb muscles. My chest heaved with each desperate breath, and my legs were trembling like they might give out any sed. But I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t afford to. The skeleton was closer now—way too close—and I could feel its cold, relentless preseng toward me.

  With each swing, my vision blurred from exhaustion, but I kept going. My grip on the sword was slipping, but I forced myself to hold on, hag at the flower with wild desperation. This flower was the only thing standiween me and the nightmare that was about to catch up. But the damn thing wouldn’t fall, and the skeleton was almost within reach.

  Every sed felt like ay, my body screaming for mercy, but I refused to stop. If I didn’t take that flower down, I’d never get out of here alive.Health Points: 175/640 [27.34%]Another fifteen seds passed. Fifteen more seds of relentlessly hag at this ridiculously high HP flower. Each swing of my sword felt like it was getting weaker, but still, the flower refused to give up. Meanwhile, the skeleton—well, I refused to look at it. It was getting too close for fort, but if I even thought about that thing, I might just panid fet how to swing.“Damn flower, please just die already!”