“Haaaaaaaaah…”
The sigh escaped me before I even realized it.
Considering everything I’d been through, this felt like a checkpoint. A real one. But despite surviving, I couldn’t find the strength to stand.
So I sat there, on the grass, enjoying the peace while staring into the distance.
It was… actually boring.
Sure, the landscape was breathtaking. Rolling greenery, soft wind moving through flowers, bird shadows gliding across the ground.
But nothing happened.
Only wind.
Only silence.
I tilted my head back—"Ocuh!"—and stared at the sky, watching winged shapes circle lazily overhead.
One thought crossed my mind.
"I really wanna eat a bird."
Yeah.
…
Time passed.
Hurt and bored, I returned to the eternal status window, dragging my fingers lazily through the settings of the Cleanse skill.
It's... unusable now, right?
I mean, who'd be able to tell what would happen if the spider thread got washed away and I just bled out. Hell, even if it didn’t, I doubted I could survive a direct hit from that ridiculous skill.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
I also wasn’t eager to discover whether slime jelly and water mixed well… or if it would simply dispose of my only healing crutch. And the gust of wind that had nearly blown me away last time?
Yeah. That would probably turn into a flying lesson this time.
(?-﹏-?)
At some point, boredom blurred into something stranger. My vision shimmered slightly, and shapes began forming in the distance.
A figure.
A woman in shining armor.
White and gold, sunlight reflecting so brightly it stung my eyes. She rode a light gray horse with effortless control, her posture radiating confidence. A sword rested at her hip, a shield strapped across her back. Blonde hair streamed behind her in the wind.
I blinked slowly.
“…Wow,” I muttered. “Now I’m hallucinating knights.”
The figure grew closer.
Wait.
She was actually getting closer.
Behind her rode several others—armored riders in steel-gray plate, mounted on sturdy brown horses.
“…Oh.”
I straightened slightly.
“…Oh! People!”
Relief flooded me so quickly I almost laughed, though I forced myself to stay calm.
Good.
Very good!
A schizophrenia debuff was the last thing I needed right now.
The riders slowed as they approached, forming a loose semicircle around me. The lead knight guided her horse forward until we stood face to face. Her cold stare settled on me, piercing cyan eyes warning that questions were coming.
“You there!” she called sharply. “What happened here?”
A little intense, but fair.
I raised my good hand, weakly, to greet her.
“Ah—hi. Hello. My name is Diana. W-who are you people?”
The woman studied me carefully before answering.
“We are knights assigned to city security. I am Captain Zarra von Gaahr.” Her voice carried authority without needing volume. “The river carried blood downstream into our city. We were dispatched immediately to investigate the source.”
Her gaze moved across the clearing; the trampled grass, the dried blood, the dragged trail leading to where I sat.
Then her eyes returned to me.
To my torn clothing.
To the alien organ filling my ruined shoulder.
Her stern expression faltered.
Shock slipped through.
Followed by something softer.
“…Diana,” she said more quietly, scanning the area once more. “Is all of this…”
She hesitated.
“…y-your blood!?”
A beat passed.
“Would you please tell us what happened here?”
? STATUS WINDOW ?
══════════════════
Name: Zephyr Diana*
Race: H?um??aN?
Sex: Female
Age: 17
══════════════════
Level: 5
XP: 7 / 16
══════════════════
System Points: 18 ??
Dice: 0 ??
══════════════════
? VITALS ?
══════════════════
HP: Don’t Die ?
MP: 50 / 50
MP?: 3 / Min
SPD: N / A
══════════════════
? TITLES & SKILLS ?
══════════════════
? Reincarnator ?≡
├ Status Window
├ Appraisal
└ Converse
══════════════════
? Extra Skills ?≡
├ Dice「D4」
└ Morph
══════════════════
? Unlocked Naturally ?≡
├ Carpenter
├ Blacksmithing
├ Accuracy Ⅰ
└ Poison Resistance
══════════════════
══════════════════
? KNOWLEDGE ?
══════════════════
? Arcana ?≡
├ Fireball Ⅰ 「3 MP / Cast」
├ Torch Ⅰ 「5 MP / Min」
├ Sleep ? 「6 MP / Cast」
├ Cleanse Ⅰ 「7% MP / Cast」
└ Surge ? 「25% MP / Cast」
══════════════════
? Weaponry ?≡
├ Sword ? Swordsman
├ Spear ? Lancer
├ Knife ? Rogue
├ Scythe ? Executioner
├ Bow ? Archer
├ Claws ? Savage
├ Shield ? Tank
├ Guillotine ? Executioner
├ Kunai ? Rogue
├ Shuriken ? Archer
└ Trident ? Lancer
══════════════════
? Bestiary ?≡
├ Demonic Rabbit
├ Salmon
└ Dark Spider
══════════════════
? Culinary Grimoire ?≡
├ Roasted Demonic Rabbit
└ Roasted Salmon
══════════════════
? Lexica Botanica (Plants) ?≡
├ Dreamrot
└ Sapling*
══════════════════
? Lexica Botanica (Biomes) ?≡
├ Redwood Forest
├ Oakwood Forest
└ Flower Forest
══════════════════
?? MORPH ?≡
══════════════════
? Demonic Rabbit ?≡
├? Toggles
├ Rabbit ears
├ Rabbit feet
├ Rabbit tail
├ Demonic horns
├ Demonic fangs
├? Permanents
├ Jump boost +
├ Superior hearing +
├? Abilities
└ Paranoia Bite
══════════════════
? Salmon ?≡
├? Toggles
├ Slippery skin
├? Permanents
├ Water breathing
├? Abilities
└ None
══════════════════
? Slime ?≡
├? Toggles
├ Slime membrane
├? Permanents
├ Ultra-slow regeneration
├ Pain tolerance
├? Abilities
└ None
══════════════════
