‘Forget about it. Let see what these blessings are.’

 

Gift of Tongues – You are blessed with the ability to understand and speak in the language of the living.

 Eyes of the Death – You are blessed with the ability to see and interact with the soul of the death.

 

'Damn! Of all the things that can happen to me, this third eyes are still haunting me even to this place?? This is not a blessing, this is a curse!’

"Now, where am I again?"

Recalling that all this while she was escaping blindly, she opened the map for the first time.

“Ah, damn. Whatever it is. Another day, another adventure. Who knows what interesting adventure lies ahead. Be positive, come on, gather yourself! Fun adventure! Narnia! Frodo! Here I come!"

After convincing herself to move on, she trekked to a nearby stream to quench her thirst.

The stream runs shallow but strong. A sparse forest surrounds it. The trees stand tall over the softly running water as their branches hang low, occasionally dropping a leaf or two into the water. Luna knelt down as she scooped the water with her hand, taking a deep breath before she drank the water down her throat. 

‘Ahhh.. This is the best water I ever had in my life.’

The water was refreshing. Now that her thirst were quenched, she craved for something sweet. Perhaps some fruits or berries will do, but where can she find it? All those anxiousness and adrenaline rush drained her mental energy, and nothing can calm her down other than sweet. Yes, sweet – or sugar, exactly.

“Aha!”

Growing abundantly on the clumpy, mossy mattress of the forest floor nearby the stream was a shrubs of berries. The thought of getting poisoned from consuming poisonous berries had long left her logic. She plucked the wild berries from the bush and placed them in her mouth, a smile rose on her lips when the taste of sweet berries satisfied her crave.

 

You have consumed Grass Berries.

Consuming it will help to satisfy hunger and recover stamina.

 

Congratulations! You have unlocked a new skill: Herblore (Novice rank)

You are now able to identify common herbs.

With enough experience, you will be able to differentiate between cures and poisons, preventing death before you stuffed that berries inside your mouth.

 

“You’re obviously mocking me, are you?”

She had just walked few feets away from the berry shrubs when the bushes rustled, accompanied by a faint snuffling hiding behind the bushes. She almost reached the wooden branch on the ground, but the red ball monster was faster. It leaped from its hiding place. It was round, red, and furs covered its body. A pair of red eyes almost hidden under its fur. Charging towards her, it suddenly opened its mouth, its fang were sharp and pointy.

The red ball monster were a foot away from her. The only weapon she had was her body – she lifted her leg, kicking the red ball monster hard.

The red ball monster was sent flying against the pine tree before it fell hard on the ground. It giggled angrily at her, its body trembling. As fast as she could, she kicked and punched the red ball monster with all her might. Her strength grew stronger as she thought about everything that had happened to her since the past few hours. She was frustrated and angry, and she need an explanations.

‘Damn! I need more berries!’

 

Congratulations! You have unlocked a new skill: Brawling (Novice rank)

You have a pair of arms. Now stare fiercely at your opponent and punch that brat hard on their face.

 

You have killed Furred Monster (Level 1).

You’ve earned 18XP point!

 

Luna gazed at the dead monster on the floor as its body slowly dried out and dissolved into black dust, disappearing into thin air within a minute. On its deathbed, a small round ball about the size of berry glowed in purplish color. She poked it with a stick before picking up the purple core, observing it curiously.

‘Can’t believe all those years fighting with Samuel finally paid off.’

 

You have gained one Purple Core (Low level core)

 

She had no idea what purple core are, but she was interested with it. She kept it inside her pocket, perhaps she will find the answer soon enough.

Luna had trekked farther along the path for another half an hour or so when another monster appeared cackling from the dense bush. She tried to find the direction of the sound. Her grip fastened on the wooden branch, her adrenaline pumping fast.

As the cackling grew louder and louder, she spotted from the corner of her eyes, two black monsters about the size of a domestic cat. Leaping towards her with their sharp bare fangs, their movements are agile and fierce. 

‘Damn it, they’re fast!’

The black monster latched onto her arm, dragging her whole body down to the ground. She didn’t expect such a small monster actually managed to drag her down, as if she was pounced by a hundred pounds beast.

The other black monster bit her thigh, almost breaking her apart. The forest that was eerily quiet a few moments ago was now filled with her loud squeal as she rolled on the ground, desperate to break free from the black monster.

Frantically, Luna grabbed the black monster by the neck with her free arm and smashed it with the other black monster that was still hanging by her thigh. She clenched her teeth in rage, bearing the pain on her body as she crushed the black monsters several times without mercy.

 

You have killed two Myrth Monster (Level 1)

You’ve earned 36XP point!

 

Her pants were ripped and her clothes were stained by her own blood. With her heart pumping fast, she sat down on the ground with pale face. She felt like a part of her soul just flew away, shaken by the near-death experience she faced a few moments ago. 

‘This adventure… Is it really worth it?’

Luna began to question her excitement of going into a lifetime adventure a while ago. How she wished she’s home sipping coffee and playing computer games instead. She was a home person, this kind of physical activities are too much for her. She would rather smashed her keyboard instead of her hand. 

‘Forget about Narnia or Frodo… I want to go home… Please wake me up from this nightmare.’

It took her a while to accept the whole new experience she just had. Disheartened, she picked up the purple core on the ground with a new resolution.

“I must survive.”

After being attacked by another four monsters in the forest, her whole body was a total mess. With tattered clothes and wounds all over, Luna finally made her way out of the forest. Quite proud of her achievement, she finally gained enough experience to advance to level 2.

 

***

 

Luna stood up at the white wooden gate, her eyes fixed on the small plate by the fence.

'Whatever blessing that damned Queen bestowed upon me, its surely a blessing. Such strange characters, and yet I am able to understand this whatever language in this world. God, bless her soul. Whatever happened to her, I guess I owed her this one.'

[Cottage No. 01 Lady Rethe]

‘Seemed like I arrived at the right address.’

She heads over to the blue door, knocking the door for a few times. After several minutes, she gave up knocking and made one round at the cottage, hoping to catch a sight of someone.

Disappointed, Luna headed back to the front door and yelled, “Hello, is anyone home?”

She was about to knock down the door with her full strength when the doorknob glowed in brilliant red color. Shortly after, a faint image of a lady projected out from the doorknob, like a hologram screen. Dazed with whatever magic she saw, she stood frozen.

“Hello. I am currently out on business. I will be back as soon as possible. Please come back later.”

The projection disappeared before she could even digest the information.

“Eh, wait! What? Coming back later??”

Frantically, Luna touched the doorknob for a few minutes, only to be left with disappointment when she didn’t get any desired response.

“Forget it, I will just wait. I’m too tired to make a move anyway.”

As she looked around, Luna found a spot under a tall oak tree. She sat down and leaned back, slightly massaging her tired and blistered leg. 

The next thing she knew, she dozed off.

The evening sun cast long shadows on the ground. The slanting rays of the setting sun gave a warm orange tinge to the sky. 

Underneath the old oak tree, a girl was laying on the ground. The soft wind blew her hair, brushing past her skin. Lost in her own paradise of pork chop and ice cream buffet, drooling ungracefully with a grin on her face.

"Excuse me, lady. Are you okay?” 

A petite figure of a lady with a pair of rabbit ear and sharp incisors stood above her, in her hand was a straw basket full of herbs and flowers. Startled by the humanoid rabbit figure, Luna fell on her back and knocked her head on the tree. 

“Oh no, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. Are you hurt?” A soft voice came out from her rabbit-like mouth, her eyes fixed on the ragged lady sleeping like a log on her lawn.

“Haha.. I’m fine, I’m fine. My bad…” Luna rubbed her head awkwardly.

“It's not safe to sleep here. The evening sky is turning dark soon.” She pointed at the sky. 

Luna looked up at the red sky and sighed. 

'I need to find a place to sleep tonight.’ 

“Are you Lady Rethe?” She finally came to her sense. A little disappointed now that the delicious buffet in front of her had disappeared, her stomach rumble as she spoke.

“Yes, I am Lady Rethe. May I know what business you have with me?”

“Ahh, finally. I’ve been waiting for you for hours 'til I fall asleep under this tree.”

Smiling sheepishly, she pulled a parcel from her pocket.

“A parcel for Lady Rethe, as requested from Lord Teiri.”

She froze for a moment, her eyes fixed on the wooden box. A hint of fear and anxiety written all over her face. Her pink face slowly turned pale. 

 

Congratulations! You have completed the quest! 

• Sir Teiri has requested you to deliver a parcel safely to his daughter, Rethe at Cottage No. 1, Fraysea Village

You’ve earned 50XP point!

 

“Lady Rethe, are you okay?” 

Nervously, she reached out her fair hands and pick up the wooden box as she murmured, “What happened?”

“It’s a long story.” Luna sighed.