Ekant woke up at 7:00 a.m. sharp.
For a moment, he forgot where he was.
Then the faint ache in his face and the tightness around his nose reminded him.
'Surgery… right.'
His routine was almost identical to the previous night.
Breakfast was light, soft, and carefully prepared. Tea was warm, not hot. Snacks were chosen so they would dissolve easily the moment they touched his tongue.
He still wasn't allowed to brush his teeth—any pressure could reopen the wounds.
Bathing was also forbidden for the same reason.
It felt inconvenient, but he endured it silently.
Right now, he had something far more interesting to think about.
Time.
It was still early morning.
He had free time until 1:00 p.m. local time.
That meant—
Three to four hours of uninterrupted gameplay.
Plenty.
Monday arrived quietly.
His little brother, Tiyan left for school at 6:30 a.m., his bag slung over his shoulder, reminding Ekant not to move too much.
His father, Ken left for work at 7:00 a.m., giving Ekant a light pat on the shoulder before leaving.
His mother, Dhriti stayed behind, returning to her house chores after making sure everything Ekant might need was within reach.
They had already prepared everything.
Food.
Water.
Medicines.
Emergency buttons.
Ekant was, in every sense, taken care of.
His only worry— studies— made him smile wryly.
He had already completed the second year of high school seven times.
It was ridiculous enough that even teachers from Nalanda University had once stared at him in disbelief.
'Yeah… studying isn't my problem. For now though.'
After breakfast and morning medication, Ekant rested for a while.
Then—
He logged in.
Whoosh.
His consciousness slipped away.
And a moment later—
He was back.
Standing in the safe zone near the ocean, waves crashing gently in the distance, salty wind brushing against his face.
Before he could even move—
A system message appeared.
〈You have encountered: The Tree of Life, Bargaj〉
"…."
Ekant froze.
Every single instinct in his body screamed the same thing.
'I'm done.'
'His mind went blank.'
'Then raced at terrifying speed.'
'So this is it?'
'Am I supposed to die now?'
'Do I need to make another character?'
'Will I be able to reclaim the name 'NoName' again?'
His thoughts spiraled.
He immediately considered retreating deeper into the safe zone. The length of it was unknown— maybe infinite?
But there was a problem.
There was no visible boundary.
No sign.
No indicator of where safety truly ended.
He had no intention of testing that boundary with his life.
'I'll wait,' he decided immediately.
'I'll wait here for days if needed.'
His heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might escape his chest.
〈You are being protected by the Safe Zone from: The Tree of Life, Bargaj〉
The message appeared just in time.
Because at that very moment—
A killing aura flooded the air.
Invisible.
Oppressive.
Heavy enough to crush the soul.
If Ekant were in the real world, his heart would have stopped instantly.
Even here, his legs trembled.
Swallowing hard, Ekant decided to at least look.
He moved carefully —from the shoreline back toward the forest.
And then he saw it.
A banyan tree.
No— calling it a tree felt like an insult.
Its trunk was so massive that thousands of people could take shelter beneath it during heavy rain. Thick aerial roots descended like pillars from the heavens, forming natural halls and corridors. Its canopy stretched endlessly, blotting out the sky itself.
Leaves rustled softly, yet the presence was overwhelming.
Ancient.
Watching.
Alive.
From a third-person perspective—
It felt like a predator gazing at prey that had already accepted death.
I'm definitely dead, Ekant thought calmly.
Unbeknownst to him—
Bargaj, the Tree of Life, was not here to kill him.
He was here to test to him.
A deep, resonant voice echoed through the forest.
"Who are you, mortal?"
The killing aura intensified.
Ekant couldn't respond.
Words refused to come out.
"I asked you, mortal," the voice thundered again, now layered with supreme killing intent.
"Who are you?"
The intent struck.
Ekant collapsed to his knees in less than 0.00001 seconds.
〈Safe Zone cannot resist this pressure〉
〈You will not die〉
At this moment even system was helpless.
Before the pressure could crush him—
The White Bear Key shot out of his Spatial Ring on its own.
It hovered in the air.
And began absorbing the killing intent.
Silently.
Effortlessly.
The forest went still.
"…"
For the first time in millions of years—
Bargaj was speechless.
He had lived since the birth of this land.
Yet he had never seen anything capable of absorbing killing intent itself.
After a long pause, the pressure vanished.
"So…" Bargaj sighed, his voice no longer hostile, only weary.
"You are the one who destroyed the Blood Rose Garden to its core."
Ekant gasped.
Air rushed into his lungs as if he had just surfaced from deep water.
He stood up shakily.
"I—I am 'NoName'," he said honestly.
"I use it as an alias."
He deliberately avoided his real name.
Bargaj's voice softened.
"As you may guess," the tree spoke, "I am a tree. To be precise—the ruler of trees and plants in the Beginner's Forest."
"You may call me Bargaj."
Then, without wasting time—
"How did you kill the Blood Roses?" Bargaj asked.
Ekant hesitated.
Then answered truthfully.
"This key did it," he said, pointing at the White Bear Key resting on the sand.
"I'm merely its owner."
"I found it… yesterday."
The leaves trembled.
'It must be the work of the .' Bargaj thought grimly.
Aloud, he said,
"Since you destroyed the only Blood Rose Garden in the Beginner's Forest, you deserve compensation."
Leaves parted.
From within the massive trunk, a sword emerged—hidden beneath layers of vines and roots.
"And," Bargaj added seriously,
"do not use that key recklessly. It may kill innocents."
The sword floated toward Ekant.
His hands trembled, but he remembered—
He was safe as he was in safe zone. Even system has claimed he would not die in safe zone.
He reached out.
And took it.
〈You have received: The Sword of Life〉
〈Granted by: The Tree of Life, Bargaj〉
Ekant stared at the sword.