Chapter Eighteen: When Emotion Turns Into Tears

Perhaps there was, but Ash was too lazy to dwell on it. He focused on running along the winding forest path, savoring the exhilarating rush of warmth coursing through his body, until all his worries were shattered. Laughing heartily, he turned to Bob, who was running beside him, and asked, “So far, this challenge can’t really be called a nightmare, can it?”

Bob, cloaked and pale-faced, nodded vigorously. Excitement radiated from his smile, his voice barely able to contain its delight: “Compared to last time, this is practically a fairy tale!”

“Good! Let’s hope this fairy tale lasts till the end!”

Ash’s boisterous laughter made the gray-skinned werewolf behind them stomp in frustration. Despite hastening the advance of the bloodvine line, it failed to capture any remnants of Ash’s soft tissue. The three giant tree mercenaries, first terrified by Ash’s frenzied slaughter, then halted by Bob’s fiery orb, missed their best chance to strike. Now, chased relentlessly by the bloodvine, they ran for their lives, offering the werewolf no hope at all.

“Damn, damn, damn! Gone! All my provisions are gone!” The gray-skinned werewolf was bristling with rage. Its meticulous plan for total annihilation had been thrown into chaos by Ash. Calculating the losses, it realized it would be missing four meals. As for the traps in the latter half of the challenge, the werewolf had no expectations left—they were designed for the overwhelming advantage of the Giant Tree Institute’s side, but proved no obstacle for Ash and his companions.

Seeing the outcome nearly sealed, the werewolf could only sigh and shuffle into the wooden cabin, changing into the old grandmother’s clothes and collapsing onto the bed, brooding, “Such a pity… Why couldn’t I finish off that wretched brat?”

“How did I survive? Is the split soft tissue truly retrievable?”

The abrupt turn of events swept away the gloom among Ash’s group, and in high spirits, Ash began to inquire about the precise effects of the active soft-tissue bio-suit from Drifting Wine. Noticing his health down to a mere tenth, Ash gently pushed aside Drifting Wine’s hand and, while running, used the healing items he’d scavenged.

Fortunately, the hapless victims crushed by the bloodvine wave had left behind useful healing supplies. Though they acted gradually rather than instantly, it was enough, for with numbers now even, Ash’s group held absolute advantage.

Otherwise, the gray-skinned werewolf wouldn’t have retreated to hide under the covers.

The answer to Ash’s question seemed to affirm that Lady Luck favored them. The challenge’s shifting circumstances grew increasingly favorable, even when Ash had been split into four pieces.

A moment earlier, Drifting Wine, preparing for a desperate rescue, suddenly saw Ash returning on his own, a piece of soft tissue landing right at her feet.

In that instant, her mind held only one thought: to protect this active soft tissue. She was even willing to sacrifice her last matchstick for it. Seeing Ash single-handedly reverse the situation, she felt that if she couldn’t manage even this, clinging to life would be meaningless. When she discovered the green “gel” could be picked up, a smile crept onto her lips. She swiftly scooped it into her arms and ran, forgetting even to call out to Bob.

She was dazed, unable to comprehend how Ash managed all this. Both of them were players who had trained together, yet while Ash was storming the enemy ranks like a force of nature, she could only stand behind, firing ineffective crossbow bolts.

Though her heart brimmed with questions, Drifting Wine bit her lip and hugged the soft tissue tightly to her chest, running with all her might, leaving the bloodvine far behind as she dashed forward. Determined not to let Ash’s efforts go to waste, she didn’t witness Bob, battling through a splitting headache, launching another explosive fireball to drive back the giant tree mercenaries. Bob, though unaware Ash could be revived, saw Drifting Wine risking everything to protect that piece of soft tissue and realized he needed to keep her away from danger.

Even with only three melee mercenaries left, they posed a lethal threat to the pair. Bob deliberately stayed behind to shield Drifting Wine from any rear attacks, unintentionally guarding Ash’s chance at survival and preserving their advantageous position.

Drifting Wine’s only thought was to keep running without looking back. When the five seconds for Ash’s revival had passed, she reached for him, pulling him up with a smile and continuing forward.

“Thankfully, I managed to do this.”

Drifting Wine was deeply grateful; Ash, in her moment of confusion, had become the arrow that pierced the fog, helping her regain a little confidence. She believed Ash harbored secrets she had yet to uncover, but chose to keep her curiosity in check, for the forest path was quickly ending—a dilapidated cabin appeared before her.

“We’re here!” Drifting Wine exclaimed in excitement.

“Good! Listen to me, everyone—let’s not go inside yet. Let’s use the cabin as cover and deal with those three troublesome foes first!”

With his health restored to a safe level, Ash decisively launched an all-out attack. The bloodvine line, a matter of life and death, could force the three giant tree mercenaries, now cut off from retreat, to face the combined assault of Drifting Wine and Bob.

The tide of battle finally turned. The Giant Tree Institute’s members now faced the same dilemma Ash’s group had earlier: either wait for death or fight desperately.

Even if they managed to reach the cabin door alive, they would have to face Ash, now recovered and ready for battle.

“It’s over…” one mercenary thought in despair. The earlier sight of Ash breaking through and slaying their leader had left them terrified, but what shocked them even more was that Ash, despite being repeatedly wounded, had survived.

Seeing Ash halt before the cabin door and quickly turn to take a fighting stance, the mercenaries’ spirits were shrouded in darkness. They longed to avoid this harbinger of death, but the bloodvine line relentlessly pressed them forward, forcing their weary legs toward their doom.

In the end, the newly confident Drifting Wine and Bob joined forces to eliminate one moving target, while Ash leveraged his strength and the challenge’s rules to achieve a double kill, and managed to slip into the cabin before the bloodvine line could reach him.

He couldn’t care less about what monsters or demons lurked inside, for the greatest danger had already passed.

“Very good, hurry up and finish, hurry back, so I won’t waste time enjoying my provisions!” On the other side, the gray-skinned werewolf could only find amusement in misery, but seeing the three mercenaries easily dispatched, it couldn’t help but tear a blanket to shreds.

Creak!

The old, neglected wooden door groaned painfully. As Ash and his companions entered, they found the cabin decrepit, thick with dust and cobwebs, showing no signs of habitation. Yet oddly, a basket of brightly colored cakes sat on a table in the corner, and a small figure in a red hooded cloak sat at the table, turned away from them.

“Little Red Riding Hood?” Ash ventured, but received no reply. His probing eye was blocked, revealing no information. He nodded to Drifting Wine and Bob, then parted the webs and cautiously approached the corner. After another unanswered question, he braced himself and reached out to tap Little Red Riding Hood’s shoulder.

Snap!

The red cloak shifted, and the figure turned. Ash instantly stepped back and warned in a low voice, “Close your eyes!”

Anyone could sense something was wrong with this cabin, so everyone quickly shut their eyes. Yet caution could not spare them from the challenge’s mechanisms.

[Notice: You have been subjected to “Soul Gaze” from “Little Red Riding Hood.” As your Will score is below seven, you will enter the “fear (intermittent)” state at a general level for the remainder of the challenge, occasionally losing control of your actions.]

[Notice: The “Bloodvine Bracelet” effect “General Fear Resistance” has activated, allowing you to escape the “Soul Gaze” fear effect.]

“If only those people weren’t so useless, I would have changed the challenge rules. But if I changed them again, it would exceed the limit. Ugh, this is so annoying—I won’t think about it!” The gray-skinned werewolf, already aware of the outcome, was on the verge of despair. Lying on the bed, it mused, “Even though four are gone, having some is better than none. At least I won’t have to gnaw on dried bloodvine anymore…”