From the moment she entered the Verne Town dungeon, Ivy had been watching carefully. She had a sharp eye for detail, and her first priority was always the same—figure out which people were real players, and which were just the town's original NPCs.
---
Yesterday morning, she had been sitting by her window when she saw the neighbor on the right—Lucas—kneeling in front of his door, scrubbing away at something on the tiles. She'd seen the faint black marks there before. Now she watched with interest to see how he'd react.
When his gaze shifted—just for a moment—toward her own door, she caught it.
"Is he a player?"
Her lips curved upward. If he was… that meant he was also a competitor. And Ivy didn't believe in mercy for competitors.
---
Her mind began working instantly, fitting the observation into a plan. Her skill set wasn't flashy, but in the right hands, it was lethal. And unlike most, her mental stability didn't waver in the dungeon—a huge advantage.
[Player: Ivy]
Life: 359 (You've taken no damage; your health is perfect.)
Stamina: 233 (Yesterday's work drained you a bit; now recovering automatically.)
Strength: 412 (Not your specialty, but above most players.)
Luck: 72 (Better than 73% of players.)
Brainpower: 92 (Sharp and calculating.)
Spirit Value: 101 (Exceptional. Your mental value hasn't dropped since you entered.)
Skill: Puppet Thin Thread
Overall Evaluation: B – higher than 80% of players.
Yes—her calm mind was the reason she'd survived so many rounds. That, and her Puppet Thin Thread skill.
---
Those little black specks on Lucas' tiles? They were her doing.
With a flick of her fingers, she had used the almost-invisible Puppet Thin Thread to place them there. They couldn't be scrubbed away. If a villager failed the strict cleanliness inspections, the NPCs would drag them off without mercy.
It was a clean, quiet way to eliminate someone.
---
She'd been so sure of the outcome, she'd even chuckled to herself.
"You can only wait to die, neighbor."
But then… Lucas moved.
---
He broke eye contact with her, squatted again—and pulled something from his inventory.
Her smile froze.
What is that?
---
[Item: Super Powerful Suction Cup]
Type: Tool
Quality: Ordinary
Attributes: None
Description: Greater suction power than ordinary cups; more stable, even distribution. Price: 10,000 points. Dusty from lack of use.
Notes: Marketed as a home essential… widely considered useless for its ridiculous cost.
---
Ivy stared, incredulous, as Lucas pressed the suction cup to the tile outside his door. With a light pull, the entire tile came up—perfectly intact—stuck to the suction cup.
Lucas inspected it, nodded in satisfaction, and muttered to himself,
"Ten thousand points… worth every bit."
Ivy almost choked.
"Do you think points grow on trees?!"
---
He held the suction cup and tile in one hand and began walking toward the iron railing that separated their yards. She instinctively stepped back.
Why am I… uneasy? she thought.
Then she forced herself to stand tall. There was no reason to fear an average-looking player like him.
---
Still, she called out sharply, raising her voice to project confidence.
"What are you doing?"
Lucas didn't answer. He vaulted the railing with practiced ease, landing silently on her side. Straightening, he reached into his pocket and drew out a kitchen knife, the blade faintly stained.
Then he smiled—shy, almost polite.
"Sorry… I want to swap tiles with you."
---
Her eyes widened.
"You—"
She never finished the sentence.
The knife flashed toward her in a blur.
---
Her reflexes were fast. Her fingers twitched, and nearly invisible threads sprang from her body, fanning out like a spiderweb.
[Skill: Puppet Thin Thread]
Type: Permanent Possession
Quality: Legendary
Effect: Threads can bind the body and, more dangerously, the heart. Control the heart, and the body follows.
---
The threads wove a net around Lucas, tightening, ready to drain his mental value and turn him into her puppet.
Her lips curved in triumph.
"Got you."
---
But her smile died in the next instant.
The threads unraveled into motes of white light, dissolving into the air as if they had never existed. And the kitchen knife… was still coming.
---
In that instant before it touched her, her sight went red.
---
[System Notice: Player Lucas was attacked by Puppet Thin Thread. Mental value -10.]
Lucas knelt, studying her without malice.
"Women are dangerous… you actually lowered my mental value by ten points."
Ivy coughed up blood, her mind spinning.
How? How could her threads fail?
---
Lucas stepped back, careful not to let her blood touch his clothes.
"If I kill you, I'll just get sent to the confessional again… and I'm not in the mood for that."
He glanced at her wound, remembering the confessional's trials, and grimaced.
"I'll let you keep breathing—for now. Die slowly."
---
He set to work swapping the tiles. With the suction cup, he lifted the marked tile from his door and replaced it with one from hers. When he was done, he walked back over to her collapsed body, grabbed her by the leg, and deliberately flipped her so the deep gash in her back faced downward.
Then he dragged her across the yard.
---
Every step left a dark smear of blood.
---
After circling the yard twice, he finally released her, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"There… You'll never pass the next health inspection now."
---
Ivy lay there, pale and gasping, rage burning in her eyes. She wanted to scream, "You should have just killed me outright!" but all that came out was another wet cough.
---
And with that, Lucas walked away, suction cup in one hand, kitchen knife in the other.
Soft-hearted? Maybe.
But in Verne Town… even kindness could be deadly.
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