[Llyne's Side]
I barely dodged the boulders, but my foot caught on the rubble, and I crashed onto the ground.
"AGHHH!"
Pain tore through me like a shockwave. The glass fragments buried in my body shifted—scraping, slicing, digging deeper into soft flesh.
Splat.
Something warm gurgled up my throat. I touched my lips.
Blood.
"Ugh…"
BAAM!
The dungeon was collapsing. It didn't care about my pain. It didn't care that I was crawling, barely clinging to consciousness.
I tried to stand. The pain said no.
So I slouched. Slouched and dragged myself forward like a broken puppet on strings. I could see the exit. But between me and freedom—
—waves of stone. Crashing. Tumbling. Rolling death.
No place to run. No time to think.
I glanced at my skill window.
[Skill: Dash] – usable.
But…
"Can my body even handle it?"
My health bar flickered like a dying flame. A red trail painted the floor behind me.
"This hurts even more than those monsters…"
The exit was within reach—but piled boulders sealed the way shut.
Tsk!
I drew my twin daggers and slashed. Every swing carved away the rock—but every motion tore at my insides.
[Warning! HP is drastically decreasing.]
Slash. Slash.
More rubble fell. More blood spilled.
[Warning! Your HP is below 10%.]
Huff. Puff.
I forced air into my lungs. My vision blurred. My grip wavered.
But I kept cutting.
[Warning! Your HP is below 5%.]
Blink. Blink.
My fingers were numb. My consciousness was slipping. My body was a ragdoll stitched with agony.
The last thing I saw was my bloody hand—reaching for the doorknob—as my HP hit 0%.
Click.
The door creaked open. My body dropped like a corpse.
"…"
"…"
I was face-down. Still. Breathless. The cold earth kissed my cheeks.
Breeze…?
I stirred. My fingertips brushed the ground.
Grass?
Suddenly, my lungs spasmed. I gasped. Coughed. Blood surged, then receded. I flipped onto my side, breathing like I'd surfaced from drowning.
This scent…
"…I know this place…"
I opened my eyes—slowly.
A flash of light. A clear sky.
"…Is this what it feels like to die?"
I sighed.
Ping!
[HP and MP fully recovered.]
[Congratulations. You have cleared Stage 3.]
[Skill: Dash Lv. 6 → Lv. 7]
[You and your teammates have leveled up to 40.]
"…I'm alive?"
I blinked at the system window, too dazed to process it.
I pinched my cheek.
"Ow… It hurts…" I smiled weakly. "I'm alive! I really survived!"
I laughed, barely believing it. My body—whole. The glass—gone. "Thank goodness for that post-stage full recovery… Life-saving, literally."
I looked around. "I'm back in the forest."
"...yne! Llyne!"
A voice?
"Hm?"
I turned—just in time to see a shadow leap toward me.
"Rona here!"
Thud!
"AAAGHH! Rona!! GET OFF!"
Rona jumped off me, grinning like she just found a new toy.
"You were lucky," a familiar voice chimed in. "Your HP was at 1% when you opened the door."
"1%?! I thought I died…"
"Nope," Isaac said with that know-it-all smirk. "Told you you'd be fine."
I held out both hands, and Rona pulled me up.
"Llyne, about that room…" Isaac's voice turned serious.
I looked away. "So what now?" I rubbed Rona's head. She was bouncing around like a rabbit on sugar.
Isaac sighed. "Don't know. But Mr. James did mention a surprise, remember?"
"I wonder what kind of surprise." I stretched. My joints popped.
"Probably not a good one," Isaac muttered.
"Maybe food?" Rona was already drooling.
I chuckled. "Hopefully."
[Congratulations. You have passed all 3 stages. As promised, a surprise has been prepared for our little bunnies!]
"Little bunnies?" I squinted at the blue screen. "So Mr. James was the one behind all the passive-aggressive system prompts?"
"Where's the surprise?" Isaac crossed his arms.
[No rush. IT'S COMING. 😈]
Rustle.
"…Huh?" My ears perked. "You heard that?"
"Hm?" Isaac raised a brow. "Heard what?"
Rustle! Rustle!
"THAT sound!" I pointed nervously.
Shaa. Shaa.
Strange noises. From everywhere. Trees swayed—not from wind. They… moved. On their own.
"Weird. Trees don't move, right?" My voice cracked.
We armed ourselves, eyes sharp. The forest pulsed with eerie life.
FLAP. FLAP. FLAP.
A flock of birds shot through the air like their lives depended on it. They didn't even look back.
The trees went still.
"It was just birds?" I slumped to the ground. "Holy crap, I thought it was tree monsters. My poor heart…"
I watched the birds vanish into the sky. "Ouish… Bad omen…"
"I guess that was the surprise?" Isaac muttered, not realizing what was still coming.
"No tree friends?" Rona looked genuinely sad. "I wanted to make friends with them."
"You… wanted to be friends with tree monsters?"
"Rona loves making friends. No matter who they are."
"They'd eat you."
"But if we're friends, they wouldn't."
Isaac scoffed. "Right."
[Hello, hello~ My little bunnies. Disappointed about not making friends? Don't worry—your new friend is just shy. He'll reveal himself soon.]
"Really?" Rona's eyes sparkled.
[Just don't stare at him too long, or he'll bite. 🐺]
"...Bite?" I blinked. "Did that just say bite? I should've let Rona eat Looney the mascot."
"Oh wow," Isaac said dryly. "Can't wait to meet our new friend."
[Looks like your new friend is ready to show himself. Do welcome him with open arms… before he eats you up. MWAHAHAHAHAHA!]
We froze.
"…Oh crap."
RUMBLE!
My soul nearly jumped out of my body. "NOT AGAIN!"
RUMBLEEE!!!
The tremor threw us into the air like dolls. Gravity did the rest.
WHAM!
My face slammed into the ground.
"MY FACE!!" I screamed, bounced again, slammed again. Rinse and repeat.
Isaac wrapped his arms around a tree, shouting through the chaos. "GRAB ONTO SOMETHING!"
I could barely hear him, but I got the message.
"Wha—?!"
RUMBLEEE!!!
I staggered toward a nearby tree, legs like jelly. I lunged and clung to it like a koala holding a bamboo shoot.
"This place is so beautiful… Why the hell are there earthquakes every five minutes?!"
My brain rattled in my skull. My voice trembled. "I feel like my brain's gonna fly out!"
And yet—over the chaos—I heard Isaac's mocking tone.
"You have a brain? I'm utterly shocked."
I turned my head, eyes twitching. He was snickering.
"Grrr~ I swear, I'm gonna whoop your ass after this, Isaac. Mark. My. Words."