Piper had found herself in what appeared to be the centre of a corn maze.

Alone this would not frighten her as she had heard about such attractions, but the combination of being in a dungeon separated from her friends and the intentionally frightening atmosphere caused the young and impressionable dhampir to become quite anxious.

Her first thought was to ignore the clear and intended path forwards. She simply turned towards the opposite direction and tried to walk through the corn; but of course that was pointless and only resulted in a pretty serious injury.

Even touching the relatively smooth parts of the corn gave Piper a truly ghastly cut along her arm. If not for her [Blood Manipulation] skill blood would have gushed out of the wound like a crimson waterfall - instead she stopped the blood from leaving the wound which had an unintentional, but positive effect.

Having so much blood present at a wound allowed it to clot much faster than it normally would have and form a scab. This, mixed with the undead race's naturally fast regeneration resulted in the wound disappearing in less than a minute - fast even under normal circumstances.

I'll have to remember that. Piper thought as she looked over her arm.

Her next thought was to cut through the plants and create her own path, but that too failed. First her sword bounced off of the stalks of corn and even seemed to take some damage, but Piper hadn't expected much; while it was not the same sword she had been given upon creating her character, it was still not a very good weapon. Her second attempt had her using [Blood Manipulation] to try and cut away at the corn.

[Blood Manipulation] as an improved version of [Blood Control] didn't just let Piper control blood that wasn't hers, but also gave finer control over all blood. With such control she could utilise the blood directly as a weapon by changing its shape to be much closer to a blade; it certainly wasn't perfect as it was quite difficult to maintain the shape for both her mental energy and mana capacity.

However, even with her blood blade, as she had come to call it, Piper was unable to even leave a mark on the corn stalks.

With a resigned sigh, slightly trying to hide her subtly growing fear, Piper resigned herself to walk through the maze.

With reluctant steps Piper headed in, but not before noticing a rain cloud gathering in the distance from which rain fell in quantities Piper had never seen before. It was immediately obvious that such rain was not natural and that it was a perfect destination.

Bailey's skill is really conspicuous. Piper chuckles to herself. At least it makes it easy to know where she is though.

With a goal and a path, Piper headed into the maze.

Immediately upon her first turn her fear became much more palpable. Taking a single corner had overwhelmed Piper with confusion and disorientation like she had never felt before - worse still was that she knew it wasn't natural.

After her first time playing, Piper read up about the general abilities of the undead and learned her first dungeon conquest had felt so easy because undead had a list of immunities and resistances longer than almost any other species in ELO; including mental manipulation. However, something about the maze she had entered was capable of altering her mind which meant it must be an incredibly strong mental or illusion type magic.

That alone was frightening, but for all of that to be true and for it to be true in a horror themed dungeon upset Piper to unfair degrees.

Soon enough the wind stopped sounding like wind. As it rushed past Piper's pointed ears she swore she could hear mocking laughter behind her, but with every abrupt turn of her head she found nothing.

She desperately wanted for some kind of monster to just jump out and try to rip her to pieces, the tension alone almost killing her, but nothing ever came. She wandered for what felt like hours, her HUD clock somehow disabled, with only [Blood Manipulation] to calm her nerves.

As she walked she used [Blood Manipulation] on increasingly small quantities of blood, imposing her will as best she could and gradually building proficiency in the skill. It was a difficult task as the quantity became smaller, but eventually Pipe would gain complete domination over the blood - able to form complex shapes out of even a drop of blood.

While the maze was frightening, confusing and down right tedious, it had offered Piper the perfect opportunity to practise a skill that she had at one point only considered useful for combat.

She could turn a single drop of blood into a perfect sphere, a tiny tentacle or even something as complex as a tiny icosahedron. Furthermore, as her control over blood became more refined she found that she no longer needed as much mana to do so. All of this came at only 12% proficiency in the skill, a shockingly low amount for what Piper felt she could accomplish.

With her level of control she could pull blood directly from her body without having to first create cuts or injuries; even tiny amounts of blood could become deadly needles that flew at impressive speeds - though control did increase in proportion to distance. She had even managed to use blood to coat her blade in blood and improve its cutting power.

"Haah..." Piper sighed as she played around with the blood floating above her hand, trying to make something even more complex, "This is becoming annoying."

Piper's fear had begun to wane as nothing happened. The wind had become less frightening in its laughter and whispers and with no threat presenting itself beyond suspiciously sharp corn Piper didn't feel any real fear any longer.

As she reached a fork, she lost some control over her blood at having to split her focus between choosing a direction and manipulating blood. It splashed over the floor and Piper sighed as she drew more from her palm and continued her practice, heading down the right path.

This monotony continued even longer. No fights or danger, just walking along a path surrounded by corn; Piper was becoming sick of seeing no new scenery when she noticed something from the corner of her eye.

On the ground, slightly hidden behind a stalk of corn was a tiny drop of red. Crouching down Piper's anger caused her face to go red as she immediately recognised the red patch as the tiny amount of blood she had dropped onto the floor near the forked path.

"I've been walking in circles for fucking hours!" She yelled, her anger causing her to kick up dirt and flail her arms around. Piper was not one to act emotionally, putting on a strong front in most situations, but even she could not stand how she had been spending her time with absolutely no progress.

As she tantrumed in the corn maze, the mocking laughter of the wind picked up - as if revelling in her late discovery.

"Do something already you prick!" She yelled out to no one in particular, not expecting anything to actually happen.

Definitely not expecting the corn to begin to part, creatures emerging from within. Piper stopped what she was doing as she looked around at the monsters that had appeared. They looked quite similar to when her sister had shown Piper and her friends the base character model of the abandoned doll race, but bigger and somehow more menacing. They had bodies made from potato sacks and moved like they had no joints, each monster was adorned in different mismatched clothing with the general theme of farming. Straw poked out from their sewn joints and along what seemed to be their faces were three gaping wide holes that were full of the same material as if stuffed beyond capacity.

Piper quickly inspected the five monsters that were slowly approaching her, mocking her with their unhurried speed.

[Haunted Scarecrow (30) (Monster)]

Piper didn't really know what a scarecrow was, but she already felt as though she had developed a phobia of them. She wasted no time in producing a number of bloody needles that flew towards their opponents, sweat running down her forehead as she had to focus on 5 different sources of blood.

Each needle pierce straight through the scarecrow's heads, knocking them back slightly as they stumbled against the force - their jointless bodies struggling to remain upright. But just as Piper began to think she had killed them - headshots usually having that effect - they sprung upright and continued walking, the wind laughing with frightening intensity.

"Shit." Piper mumbled as she pulled more blood from her body, sending it out in a burst towards the scarecrows that had quickened their pace. They were knocked back and Piper quickly gathered the blood around her sword to increase its sharpness as she headed towards one target, cutting into it with ease. The material it was made of came apart like a warm knife through butter, but that had only caused more trouble for Piper.

As she cut through the chest of one scarecrow, the straw inside seemed to come alive, stretching out and wrapping around Piper's neck and arms. The straw quickly began to tighten and choke the young dhampir. She struggled as hard as she could, her judgement clouded by what seemed to be an impending death, but she could not break free of the intertwining straw.

In a brief moment of clarity she was able to take control of her blood. Cutting through her neck and arms from the inside, but also breaking free from her bindings; blood gushed from her wounds, but Piper quickly stopped more blood from rushing out. 

I need to make distance. Piper thought as she noticed the other four scarecrows coming closer. However, as she moved the corn blocked her - cornering her entirely.

The wind laughed again and Piper got the feeling her five foes were not responsible for the blockade. 

She watched with annoyance as the one scarecrow she had damaged seemed to patch itself up, gathering with its allies and heading towards her. The only thing stopping the fight from being a one-sided slaughter was the awfully slow speed of her enemies.

Piper wasn't sure if they were just slow, or it was the lack of any real muscle or joints, but these creatures moved like bumbling toddlers.

With her back against an incredibly sharp wall and her enemies closing in Piper had to think fast. Places that were usually instant-kill spots were unhelpful and cutting the monsters open actually worked against her - she was still healing the cuts on her arms and neck.

This sounds like what my sister told me. Piper thought, thinking back on her conversation with Liz. They must have something like the doll anatomy attribute.

This left Piper with only one choice - whittle down their HP with fast, yet powerful attacks. This was certainly easier said than done, but Piper was confident - her skills would assist, but sheer slowness of her enemies would allow her to completely decimate their formation - she was sure of it.

With her half-baked plan in mind Piper readied her sword and rushed forwards. She slashed into the closest scarecrow, cutting open its sack chest and slashing through some straw; however, unlike last time she did not stop there and spun her body to cut into the next scarecrow. Repeating this action she found herself at the opposite end of her enemies charge and before they could even position their feet to turn Piper was already making her way back towards them to attack with both her sword and a blood blade she was straining heavily to control.

For five minutes Piper continued her strategy of running back and forth between the scarecrows and building up as much damage as she could; since they were always halfway through a turn in order to catch her as she passed by, they never could. It was their own insistence on catching her that stopped them.

There were times things became risky; the straw managed to extend and bind itself around her, but Piper already knew how to stop that - as unpleasant as it was to injure herself.

It took more than five minutes, but the fight came to an end with five piles of straw and sacks slumped onto the ground. Piper smiled as she levelled up, it was only a single time but she was now only one level from thirty.

Just as Piper let out a sigh of relief, the wind returned, but it was no longer laughing. The wind was enraged, screaming in anger at the prey who had trespassed into its domain and defied its fate. As the wind picked up the corn bent and swayed with such fervour that it seemed to almost rip from the ground and as the wind began to calm, Piper watched an army of haunted scarecrows bumbling through the fields - some ripping their own limbs off as they forced their way through the sharp fields of corn.

Piper trembled slightly, her fear returning, but not quite for the same reasons.

She wouldn't be able to fight off every enemy approaching and she knew it; she needed a way out and quick.

She looked around hastily, but even being so careless she noticed that a group was coming from a single direction - as if forgetting to properly spread out.

Piper released a tiny smirk as she ignored the threats coming from her sides, charging straight forwards like a racehorse only to weave and cut and jump her way through the crowds of scarecrows. As she cut into them, often cutting off limbs and heads - only for the monsters to keep fighting - she regularly had to cut through her own flesh in order to free herself from the bindings of straw that attempted to mummify her on the spot.

A new and third kind of fear enveloped her every time she felt straw begin to force itself down her throat or up her nose or into her ears - but every time she defied those primal feelings and allowed her blood to burst outwards and free herself.

In the panic of it all she didn't even notice the crowds thin or her level increasing or the acquisition of new skills. She was so focused on escaping that she pushed through them all and collapsed onto the floor, passing by a single line of corn and gaining even deeper cuts, falling flat into an empty area. The only thing she felt was relief as no straw came after her.

However, as Piper panted deeply for air her fear was reignited at the wicked laughter carried through the wind - heavier and crueller than she had ever heard it. Looking up she could see why, the source of the laughter directly in front of her:

[Tattie-Bogle (40) (Mini-Boss)]

(A/N: It's basically just an old Scottish word for scarecrow - but in my opinion it sounds menacing. I'll explain a bit at the end)

Piper did not need the inspection to tell her the monster in front of her was more powerful than the haunted scarecrows she had been facing before - just energy it gave off felt so incredibly evil that Piper struggled to push herself to her feet.

She and the monster were alone in an empty field; nothing around for miles, except for themselves. The creature was identical to every other scarecrow Piper had seen: The same ratty cloth skin; the same mismatched clothes; the straw poking out from within; the same gaping smile and eyes - only they weren't really the same. The smile on all the scarecrows fell mocking, but Piper could feel the cruelty behind the smile of the monster in front of her.

Neither party moved, Piper exhausted and frightened. The tattie-bogle was tied to a post and unable to move - the guardian of Hell's Acres.

As Piper stared she thought she heard a rumble below her; the ground shaking ever so slightly. Not believing for a moment this was a coincidence, Piper forced herself to roll to the side - just barely escaping death as from below a stalk of corn shot up right where her heart would have been. However, despite escaping death Piper could not escape injury all together as the corn took half of her pinky finger as well as cutting into her ring finger.

Piper cursed as she finally found the strength to rise to her feet, only to jump to the side again as another stalk of corn shot up below her. The wind had picked up in its cruel laughter once again, the tattie-bogle enjoying watching Piper dance like a monkey in an attempt to evade death.

As a dhampir, Piper could not really feel exhaustion, but her mana exhaustion was undeniable. Fighting through a horde of monsters as well as stopping her own blood from gushing out of a number of wounds caused a tremendous mana loss. 

Looking into her inventory she used her final mana and health potion, bringing both just above half - desperately hoping it would be enough to fight the boss.

I can't believe this thing is just a mini-boss. Piper cried to herself as she tried to close the distance. However, just as before her mind almost became clouded; like the world around her was slanted and sloped; making approach just that much harder.

Still, Piper pushed through and launched a blood blade at her enemy, cutting into both its clothy body and the straw beneath - Piper knew there was no real strategy for fighting creatures like this beyond just keep attacking. What Piper hadn't expected was for not just straw to burst out and attack her, but also a swarm of crows that pecked away at her skin like they were searching desperately for food.

Piper fell to the ground with a number of problems. Straw was tightening around her limbs; crows both pecked away at her flesh and obscured her vision; her vision was further disturbed as some kind of mental manipulation skewed everything just enough to confuse her; corn erupting through the ground, as if attempting to impale her like a cruel effigy; and finally, the laughter just wouldn't stop. A cruel and maniacal laughter that almost echoed into Piper's soul.

Everything seemed hopeless, but Piper refused to give up - knowing there had to be something she could do. With only one real option, Piper opened her status menu in hopes of something useful.

She had risen in level, from 29 to 32, and gained a skill from her progression:

[Connected Cut (1) (B-): When activated the user gains a 50% increase to the power of their next slashing attack. For every smoothly connected slash following this, the power increases by a further 50% with an upper limit of 500%. Failing to connect a slash before 250% results in a 3 second {imbalance} debuff. Correct of slashes scales with skill level]

Piper recognised it was a really powerful skill, but also dangerous - especially in her current situation. If she were to activate it now, the disorientating effect the tattie-bogle created and her lack of practise with both a sword and the skill would likely result in an instant {imbalance} debuff followed by an immediate death.

However, Piper did not despair at her skill not being able to help her, as another certainly could:

[Blood Tyrant (5%) (S+): Blood bends to your whims as you are its king (Expand)]

[Skills learnt through grimoire (2/?)]

• [Blood Manipulation (15%) (A): Able to manipulate blood inside the user's body and outside of a body. Draining blood from the user's body reduces HP. Mana drain and control over blood scale with INT and proficiency]
  •  
• [Blood Burn (1) (C+): Ignite your blood to explosively increase physical ability. Excessive use may cause {Burn} status debuff. Conversion of HP/blood into physical stats scales with INT and skill level]

It was a skill with clear and defined dangers, but Piper felt it was exactly what she needed.

In an instant her body almost flared to life; a deep, burning heat running throughout her entire body - heat she had not noticed was absent after becoming an undead. She felt far hotter than she ever had, but in a way it was comforting, the power it gave her body as red steam permeated from beneath her skin was intoxicating.

In a single move Piper cut through multiple stalks of corn, breaking free of her bindings and putting down almost a dozen crows.

The laughter quietened, becoming more cautious and angry, but the little dhampir didn't stop there. With her new found power she charged forward without disorientation; cutting through anything that came close to attacking her. The laughter soon stopped and was replaced by a familiar enraged gale, but Piper didn't care as she blasted her way forward with explosive power that she had never felt before.

Even when damage was done, she felt powerful - the blood coming from her cuts at boiling temperature and so destroying anything it touched.

It did not take long for Piper to arrive at the feet of the tattie-bogle, bringing both her sword and boiling blood high to attack. However, the tattie-bogle wasn't going to allow itself to be killed so easily.

The straw within its chest wound around itself becoming thick and powerful, ready to clash with blades coated in boiling blood.

The clash came and the two were evenly matched. Blood and metal meeting iron-like straw; but neither gave way.

Soon, Piper's body became racked with pain - the heat rising to levels even she found uncomfortable. She knew she needed to end everything now - if she didn't... She would die. With barely a thought beyond winning, beyond surviving; Piper burnt through as much blood as she could, increasing the strain on her body, but also increasing her own strength as well as the heat coming from her bloodied blade.

This final act was just enough to tip the scale, a mixture of her strength and the heat of her weapon cutting itself through the tattie-bogle's straw shield. In one attack, the creature and its post were split in two - falling to the ground before dying with one final attempt to reconnect itself; the force of Piper's attack killing it once and for all.

However, the young dhampir was not unharmed. She was severely anaemic and with her blood evaporated into the air she fell to the ground somehow paler than she already was; yet she remained smiling, her fangs clear and on display as the Hell's acres rippled and disappeared to place Piper just beyond the threshold of a ten metre, direct path from where she had started her journey into the maze.

Her HP was rock bottom, but she had survived and if there was one thing an undead could do - it was heal.