Chapter – 09
Swooooshā.
After a flash of blinding light, we opened our eyes in the middle of a dense forest.
Tall trees surrounded us on all sides, and above was a wide-open sky without a single cloud. The place almost looked like an abandoned clearing.
The faint breeze, the sunlight filtering through scattered leaves, the white butterflies fluttering above the grassāeverything proved this was reality.
Standing beneath a massive ancient tree, we looked at each other with uneasy expressions.
This was the second time we had been transported somewhere.
And yet, situations like this still felt unfamiliar.
‘It’s quiet around hereā¦ looks like no one else is nearby.’
Whether that was fortunate or unfortunate, it seemed each team had been dropped in a different location.
And since no quest message had appeared yet, it looked like the main mission hadn’t started.
Which meant we had enough time to organize ourselves and make a plan before any real fighting began.
‘First we need to check everyone’s skills and decide positions.’
That would increase our chances of survival.
Lyria was obviously the tank, and Yeriel, who had healing abilities, was the healer.
As for the other two, I didn’t know their skills yet, so we’d have to talk.
After organizing my thoughts, I turned my head to share my opinion.
But thenā¦
‘Why is nobody here!?’
Ding!
ā I’m just a baby (inaxxx): There she goes again, standing there lost in her own thoughts.
ć“ Yoonha (heexxx): She looks dead while standing again.
ā Long live novel readers (kkkxxx): Are they even a team? They’re all standing separatelyā¦?
ā erri (errxxx): What’s Lyria doing alone?
ć“ Sweet potato pancake (gogxxx): Isn’t that dangerous?
As I quickly scanned the suddenly appearing comment window, my eyes froze on the last comment.
‘Lyria is in danger?’
Nothing here looked particularly dangerous thoughā¦
As I slowly turned my head, I saw pink hair swaying gently not far away.
“Wow!”
Mesmerized by the lush scenery she had never seen before, Lyria wandered through the grass like an excited chick.
Because of her status as an illegitimate child, she had mostly stayed confined indoors.
At most, she had walked around the mansion garden.
So it made sense that such vast nature fascinated her.
But just like I thought, nothing seemed dangerous.
“Big sis, look! It’s a huge blue flower!”
That was the moment.
Lyria cheerfully approached a flower that looked like it could bite your hand clean off if you touched it.
“That’s dangerous!”
Fortunately, Yeriel, who was nearby, grabbed Lyria’s hand before anything happened.
“I wanted to give it to big sisā¦”
Lyria tilted her head innocently.
“…This?”
“You like blue, big sis! Don’t you?”
“Uhā¦ wellā¦”
Watching Yeriel struggle to respond, I let out a small sigh.
‘That took ten years off my life.’
Come to think of it, early in the original story, there was a part where Lyria got her hand bitten by a carnivorous plant and suffered for a month.
What else happened again?
If I could remember in advance, I could prevent things.
While I was digging through my memory of the original story, I naturally turned toward the presence I felt beside me.
“Hrk!”
It was Xenon.
No, seriouslyāwhen did he get so close?
His handsome face suddenly appearing in front of me was extremely hazardous to my heart.
I stared at him while frowning.
“What are you doing sneaking up without making any sound?!”
As I jumped in shock, Xenon looked at me like I was pathetic and spoke quietly.
“Your senses are lacking.”
Says the guy who approached without making any presence.
What a jerk.
If I had to stay on the same team as someone like him, my stomach wouldn’t survive the stress.
“The way you hide your presenceā¦ were you a thief in your previous life or something?”
Since I had already dropped formal speech, maybe I should just keep it that way.
The world had ended anyway.
Why should I be polite to someone unfriendly?
“I’d appreciate it if you made some noise next time.”
I snapped irritably, trying to calm my pounding heart.
But thenā
Shingā
Why was he suddenly drawing his sword?
Waitā¦ when did he even pull that out?
Was he seriously about to attack me just because I made a sarcastic comment?
“W-wait! It was a jokeā¦ you’re not petty enough to pull a sword over something likeā”
I hurriedly tried to calm this lunatic.
But then I noticed the dark bluish blood on his blade.
Whatā¦?
“Don’t stand around like an idiot in the middle of enemy territory.”
When I looked down, I saw a monstrous snake over five meters long lying dead with its head pierced through.
“I’ve repaid my debt.”
The snake hadn’t even had time to struggle. It had been cleanly impaled and killed instantly.
Watching Xenon flick the blood off his sword and sheath it, I froze.
“And I was a hunter. Not a thief.”
So just nowā¦
Did I just snap at someone who saved my life?
“Wait, Xenon! I didn’t mean what I saidā”
“I don’t concern myself with trivial matters.”
Before I could even finish, he answered coldly and walked toward Yeriel and Lyria.
Watching his back, I thought:
Great. I’ve already been marked as unlikeable on day one.
“Haā¦ hahaā¦”
Was being disliked simply Wendy Porcelain’s unavoidable fate?
Was that it, you damn author?
I silently cursed the unseen author as I walked toward the group.
“Alright, looks like everyone is here.”
Lyria and Yeriel were already gathered.
Xenon was still silently cleaning his sword without saying a word to me.
Finally, Eden emerged from the opposite bushes and quietly took his place beside me.
“Why do you think the angel sent us here, big sis?”
Lyria pulled me slightly toward her while glancing at Eden.
“Maybe there’s a monster we need to defeat here. Or perhaps something we need to find.”
Yeriel offered a reasonable guess.
When our eyes met, she gave a gentle smile that almost seemed to glow.
“Well, we’ll probably find out soon. A loud notification window always pops up anyway. More importantlyā¦”
I naturally continued while turning toward Lyria.
“Shouldn’t we check everyone’s skills first? If we’re going to work as a team, we need to know each other.”
The first priority was understanding our teammates’ abilities.
I already knew Lyria’s skills from the original story, but the others were unknown.
“Right. We’re companions now.”
Perhaps excited about making friends for the first time, Lyria shyly smiled and stepped forward first.
“I’m Lyria Porcelain. My skill isā¦”
She focused for a moment, then gently traced a warm, soft flame at her fingertips.
“I can summon a hearth. It’s warm, comforting, and helps when resting.”
For now, Lyria had only manifested Hestia’s Hearth.
A modest skill that could be used in various ways and helped accelerate recovery from fatigue and injuries.
Just a small and seemingly insignificant ability.
But this was only the first of many skills she would eventually awaken.
“That’s excellent. Fire is essential for survival. Your flame feels warm and comforting, just like you, Lyria.”
To outsiders, it might look like nothing more than a trivial fire.
But Yeriel even clapped in admiration.
Just as I thoughtāshe was kind and bright, just like her first impression suggested.
“My skill is this.”
Taking the next turn, Yeriel opened her palm and made a white bell-shaped flower bloom in her hand.
“Could you all close your eyes for a moment?”
After thinking briefly about how to demonstrate it, she picked up a nearby stone and thenā
CRACK!
She smashed her own finger.
“Yeriel, what are you doing?!”
Even the usually cold Xenon looked shocked.
Everyone stared at her like they had just seen a ghost.
“Ah, don’t worry.”
Yeriel simply smiled as always and rubbed the crushed flower against her broken finger.
“It’s fascinating, right? Though it looks a bit unpleasant.”
Then, with a series of cracking sounds, her finger began returning to normal as if by magic.
The team could only stare blankly at the mysterious yet disturbing sight.
“This is one of my Three-Color Flowersāthe Bone-Flesh Flower. The other two are the Flesh-Healing Flower and the Blood-Healing Flower. But I shouldn’t waste them. I only get a few each week.”
As expected of someone sponsored by a high-ranking divine constellation.
But breaking her own finger just to demonstrateā¦
What kind of person was she?
“Did I startle you? I’m sorry, everyone.”
Looking at the apologetic Yeriel, I finally managed to recover from my shock.
“That’s an incredible ability, Yeriel. With you around, we won’t have to worry about injuries.”
“No. Injuries should always be a concern. Not getting hurt is best.”
Coming from someone who just broke her own finger, that sounded ironicā¦
Before my brain could hurt more, I turned toward Eden.
“Eden, what’s your ability?”
