Chapter 9
Swoooosh—.
After a flash of blinding light, we found ourselves in the middle of a dense forest.
All around us, towering trees formed an impenetrable wall, and the open sky above stretched out without a single cloud. This place looked like a deserted clearing.
The faint breeze brushing past us, the sunlight filtering through sparse leaves, and the white butterfly fluttering over the grass—all of it confirmed the reality of our situation.
Standing under a massive ancient tree, we exchanged bewildered glances.
This marked our second time being teleported.
Yet, it still felt just as awkward and unfamiliar.
‘The surroundings are quiet, so I guess no other teams are nearby.’
Whether it was a stroke of luck or misfortune, it seemed like each team was dropped in a different location.
Moreover, since no quest message had arrived yet, it appeared that the main mission hadn’t started.
In other words, we had enough time to get our bearings and strategize before diving into combat.
‘First, we should confirm everyone’s skills and establish our positions.’
That would certainly increase our chances of survival.
Lyria was naturally our tank, and Yeriel, with his healing skills, would be the healer.
As for the other two, I wasn’t entirely sure what skills they possessed, so we’d need to discuss it.
With a basic plan in mind, I turned my head to share my thoughts.
But then…
‘Wait, where did everyone go?!’
‘Ding!’
—BabyMeh (inaxxx): What’s up with her? Just standing there, thinking alone again.
ㄴ Yoonha (heexxx): It’s like she’s dead on her feet.
—RodoCultForever (kkkxxx): Is this really a team? They’re all scattered everywhere…
—Erri (errxxx): What’s Lyria doing by herself?
ㄴ SweetPotatoHotteok (gogxxx): Isn’t that dangerous?
I quickly scanned through the comment section that had popped up, my eyes halting abruptly at the last comment.
‘Lyria’s in danger?’
It didn’t seem like there was anything dangerous around here…
As I slowly turned my head, I saw the gentle sway of pink hair not far away, creating soft trails in the air.
“Wow!”
Lyria was walking through the grass, her steps as light as a baby chick’s, completely mesmerized by the lush greenery she was seeing for the first time.
Because of her status as an illegitimate child, she had been confined mostly to her room or the mansion’s garden.
Seeing this vast expanse of nature was probably overwhelming for her.
But contrary to what the comment said, there didn’t seem to be anything dangerous.
“Look at this, sis! It’s a huge blue flower!”
That’s when it happened. Lyria began to approach a flower that looked like it would snap her hand off the moment she touched it.
“Wait, that’s dangerous!”
Fortunately, Yeriel, who was nearby, grabbed Lyria’s hand just in time, ending the situation without incident.
“I wanted to give it to you, sis….”
Lyria tilted her head, a harmless expression on her face.
“…This?”
“Yes, because you like blue flowers! Do you not like it?”
“Uh, well….”
Yeriel, caught off-guard, looked at me with a troubled expression. I let out a small sigh.
‘That was close.’
Come to think of it, there was a line in the original story where Lyria got bitten by a carnivorous plant and suffered for an entire month.
What else happened again?
It would be great if I could recall and prevent them in advance.
As I pondered over the original story, I instinctively turned my gaze to the presence I felt beside me.
“Eek!”
It was none other than Xenon.
When did he even get here?
Having that handsome face suddenly shoved in front of me was really bad for my heart.
I clenched my lips and glared at him as he furrowed his brows at me.
“Could you not sneak up on me like that?”
He just stared at me with disdain as I jumped in shock, then whispered in a low voice.
“Your senses are lacking.”
He’s the one who snuck up on me without a sound, and now he’s saying what?
What an irritating guy.
If I had to spend time with someone like this in a team, I felt like my stomach would be destroyed from all the stress.
“Judging by how you sneak up on people so well, were you a thief or something?”
Since I had already dropped the honorifics, I figured I might as well keep it that way.
After all, the world had ended, and what was the point of being polite to a jerk?
“I’d appreciate it if you made a bit more noise when you approach.”
I snapped, letting my annoyance show, then took a deep breath to calm my wildly beating heart.
But, what’s this…?
Schrinnng—.
Why did he suddenly pull out his sword?
‘Wait, when did he even draw that?’
Don’t tell me he’s going to start swinging his sword just because I made a snide comment?
“H-Hold on! It was a joke…! You’re not seriously going to pull a sword over a trivial—”
I hurriedly tried to defuse the situation.
But there, on the blade he drew from the ground, was dark blue blood.
What is this…?
“Don’t just stand there stupidly in the middle of enemy territory.”
When I looked down, a giant snake, at least five meters long, lay dead with its head pierced through.
“The debt has been repaid.”
The snake had been neatly impaled by a sword and killed instantly without a chance to struggle.
Seeing Xenon shake off the blood from his blade and sheath his sword, I froze in place.
“And I was a hunter, not a thief.”
Wait… So, I…
I lashed out at the person who saved my life?
“W-Wait, Xenon! I misspoke….”
“I don’t concern myself with trivial matters.”
Before I could finish, he coldly cut me off and walked toward Yeriel and Lyria without a second glance. Watching his retreating figure, a thought crossed my mind.
I really got on his bad side right from day one, didn’t I?
“Haha….”
Is it the fate of Wendy Porcelain to always end up being disliked?
Is that it, damn author?
I internally cursed the author, who might be watching from somewhere, and sluggishly made my way to where my companions had gathered.
***
“Alright, everyone’s here.”
Lyria and Yeriel were already together, and Xenon, who hadn’t said a word to me since, was quietly cleaning his sword.
Lastly, Eden emerged from the opposite thicket and quietly positioned himself beside me, completing our group.
“Why do you think the angel sent us here, sis?”
Lyria glanced at Eden before pulling me closer and asking.
“There’s probably some monster we need to defeat here. Or maybe we need to find a specific item.”
Yeriel offered a reasonable hypothesis.
His eyes met mine, and he smiled warmly, the sight almost blinding.
“Well, whatever we’re here for, we’ll find out soon enough. There’s always a flashy notification window, right? But before that….”
I shifted my gaze back to Lyria and naturally continued.
“Shouldn’t we first learn about each other’s skills? If we’re going to work as a team, we need to know each other’s strengths.”
The first priority was to understand the abilities of our teammates.
I knew Lyria’s skills from the original story, but the others were still a mystery.
“That’s right! Since we’ll be working together from now on….”
Lyria, seeming excited like she was making friends for the first time, shyly smiled and took the lead.
“I’m Lyria Porcelain. My skill is….”
Lyria concentrated for a moment, furrowing her brows, and then gently conjured a warm, soft flame at her fingertips.
“I can summon a hearth. It’s warm, cozy, and helpful when we need to rest.”
Currently, Lyria’s only manifested skill was Hestia’s Hearth.
It had various uses and could accelerate the recovery of fatigue and minor injuries, making it a simple yet seemingly insignificant skill.
This skill was just the beginning of the numerous abilities Lyria would eventually develop.
“That’s wonderful. Fire is essential for survival. Lyria’s fire is gentle and warm, just like her, and it feels comforting.”
Yeriel clapped his hands and sincerely admired the hearth, despite it seeming unimpressive to anyone else.
True to his first impression, he was a genuinely considerate and bright person.
“This is my skill.”
Following the natural order, Yeriel opened his palm and made a small white bellflower bloom in his hand.
“Um, could you close your eyes for a moment?”
Yeriel, seemingly unsure how to demonstrate, picked up a nearby rock and then…
Thud!
…smashed his own finger.
“Yeriel, what are you doing?!”
Even the normally calm and collected Xenon flinched, his mouth hanging open in shock.
The rest of us stared at him, as if we’d just witnessed a ghost.
“Oh, don’t worry.”
With his usual gentle smile, Yeriel pressed the bellflower against his mangled finger.
“Amazing, right? Although it looks a bit gruesome….”
With a crackling sound, his finger began to mend itself back to its original state.
It was a mystical yet eerie sight, and we could only watch in stunned silence.
“This is one of my three flowers: the Bone Mending Flower. The others are the Flesh Healing Flower and the Blood Coagulating Flower, but it’s better not to use them recklessly since I can only produce a few each week.”
As expected of an avatar of a top-tier deity.
But, to break his own finger just to demonstrate… What kind of person does that?
“Did I scare you a little? I’m sorry, everyone.”
Yeriel looked around with an apologetic expression. After staring blankly at him for a moment, I finally managed to recover and respond.
“It’s an incredible ability, Yeriel. With you around, we won’t have to worry about any injuries.”
“Hmm, not quite. Injuries should always be avoided. Not getting hurt is the best way.”
That’s not something someone who just broke his own finger would say….
Before I could get more confused, I shifted my attention to Eden.
“Eden, what’s your ability?”
—
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