The dust clouds from the explosion are gradually settling, leaving behind shattered, scorched rocks lying still with smoldering flames about to extinguish. Near the deep crater created by the blast, a gigantic creature with a grotesque shape looks even more disgusting when charred black. Not far away, Seraphina drags her heavy legs toward the river. She immerses herself in the cool water, feeling as if she has returned from death once more; all her wounds, from minor to fatal, have vanished without a trace. Her previous belongings were all left behind—some destroyed by the explosion and fire, and the rest because she didn't want to risk going back. Just like the first time she woke up in this world—with her body completely naked. If not for the explosion from the convergence process [Fate of the Flame], Atroviax, and the sentient flame she possesses—which truly mourned its master... Perhaps she became a dish, served in many different portions. And now it's her turn to mourn her only outfit.
Is this the redemption from the one who caused me this trouble in the first place? she grumbled, looking at the small flame hovering above her fingertip. The flame suddenly shifted color slightly, as if avoiding her question—or perhaps she was just imagining it.
Regardless, she had won, but the next times wouldn't be so fortunate. She knew there were more disgusting things lurking out there. The best thing to do now was to stay as far away from that charred corpse as possible, as it could attract creatures in the area. She had to be cautious about her presence, using [Dorminate] to check the surrounding area. She discovered those disgusting things had started to act; each individual had its own territory, and now they were all heading toward the burnt mess. These spider-like creatures were somewhat different from those in the old world; they didn't spin webs. The black gems on their heads weren't eyes; they resembled some kind of antenna that could detect moving objects. That's why when she accelerated, that disgusting thing detected movements in the environment and then approached its prey.
Careful with every movement, stealthy and alert to every signal received from the [Dorminate] trait she sensed. She spent nearly two days escaping that silent hell. Outside the ravine was a slope with jagged rocks protruding. The river had now become a massive waterfall, pouring into a lake the size of a world-class stadium, as if it were formed from a nuclear explosion. And as usual, standing on the slope—before her was the familiar scene of the forest and towering trees. Suppressing her frustration and fatigue, she observed, casting her gaze as far as possible and covering the entire area. Although she was quite accustomed to using enhanced vision in both eyes, this required intense concentration and extraordinary brainpower. The development of Dragonkin [Dormant] into [Stirring] brought many benefits in scouting and attacking enemies. Combined with the enhanced [Dorminate] attribute, it helped her identify and lock onto targets from afar, along with strong physical abilities to launch precise spears—like how she did with the spider.
Unobstructed by any objects, she could see the horizon from here. She began analyzing the most feasible and safest paths. After a while of observation and planning, she immediately controlled her blood flow, forcing her body back to its normal state—because the amount of information received from her eyes had reached its limit.
It's really hard to get used to this... Muttered, placing a hand on her head.
The terrain around this area was quite rugged, like a maze—the paths weren't clear, only traceable by the positions of distinct trees that had been marked and estimating distances. This time, the destination would be the south. The lake had blocked all roads leading north and east—the direction of the sunrise, making it nearly impossible to escape this forest if she continued straight. She remembered that the coarse fabric she had worn before proved that the Skywarden's hunting range was vast. Most of the things that bird brought back to its nest were large in size, and if she encountered such things again...
"This time, if any danger lurks, I'll burn the forest first!" She said with a triumphant smile, then stepped to the right.
Slowly descending the slope, from now on, she would have to wander in this new forest without the river's water source. She would have to find another or look for some juicy berries. But more importantly, Seraphina glanced around herself—she still wasn't used to the parts of her body; one could say she was "hot" in many senses.
If she later happened to meet someone else, or at least a humanoid and friendly creature, she wouldn't know how to explain her situation. An internal struggle swirled in her mind—in the end, the solution was simpler than she thought.
Act weak... After all, no one could leave a beautiful girl alone in such a gloomy forest.
Or perhaps she would be considered a witch who lured prey with her allure...
"Damn it! Where can I find an outfit in this damn place?" Cursing that destructive power, she continued on her path to find a way out.
The sky had turned color, the red sunset proudly high above, the sun hidden behind the mountain range. This made everything seem darker and gloomier. As a habit, she looked for a safe shelter for the night. But a thought suddenly flashed—there was something she had never tried when lost in the forest: moving at night. The primal fear of the dark, of the unknown, and of the unseen had made her temporarily seek refuge in a safe place. But now it was different; with her superior physique, she could endure hunger for 2-3 days and go without water for a day while still moving. Her vision and sensing abilities were no longer human limits but those of a dragon, as if this place were home and the host could move freely. As long as she didn't trespass illegally, nothing could harm her.
When everything was engulfed in darkness, the sun gave way to the stars. At this moment, she realized the night sky in this world was filled with stars. They seemed to be watching her every move, making her feel as if she could touch them. This was something she had never had the chance to experience in the old world. A world full of hardships but still very beautiful; light shines brightest when surrounded by darkness.
In the dark forest, a bright red star gently moved. Her fiery red hair floated, emitting gentle rays of light, enough to attract the gaze of all kinds of creatures. But no creature dared to approach; a dangerous aura emanated from the broken sword held in her slender arm. The purpose of this outing was to find something, another source of light besides herself.
This thing really knows how to lower its master's confidence, Looking at Atroviax.
Previously, besides knives and guns, she only knew about such weapons in popular fantasy works. They were often described as the king of melee weapons. It's just a pity that the king in her hand was somewhat powerless due to illness, as the sword hilt was severely scratched, making it hard to recognize the engraved patterns above—moreover, a sword with immense power contained within surely had a sharp blade, especially for a historical masterpiece like it. But unfortunately, for some reason she didn't know, it had been... broken.
From what she remembered in the life-and-death moment when facing the spider, she had imagined herself holding a long-handled knife. The moment she stabbed it with all her remaining strength, it was only slightly longer than her poor stone knife. This proved she wasn't the cause of Atroviax's breakage; it had been broken since she received it.
As a recent habit, she pondered about herself once more—just needing the information she was seeking, information about this new Chronicle.
Chronicle: [Atroviax].
She felt a bit regretful that Skytear had disappeared, but quickly dismissed it because she knew if she hadn't used it, death would have taken her. Returning to the main issue, she found the information she was looking for. A line of description... was cut off?
Description [Atroviax]: Metal crystallized in the veins of the giant king, melted in the dying breath of the ancient dragon emperor, forged by the last remaining will of the dwarf ancestor. The sword born from the death of emperors, only then could the sword...
The information was cut off, cutting off the emotions surging in her mind at the moment. Swallowing her disappointment, looking at the break on the blade, she knew why this bastard was so tight-lipped. Besides the Dragonkin, she also knew two other races: giants and dwarves. To forge this sword, the price was too extravagant. Now she knew about the sword's past, but its purpose in the past was entirely unknown.
Holding the sword hilt with the broken blade, she felt a bit disappointed that the thing that could help her fight dangers wasn't very dangerous—unless she stabbed the broken blade into vital spots and finished the opponent with the released heat.
Examining Atroviax once more, she shifted her attention to the information about Fateshards.
Fateshards: Fate of the Flame [Crystallization]
As expected, it had changed from [Converging] to [Crystallization]. All processes depended on the burning progress of the giant tree, meaning it had completely burned out the moment she gambled on her intuition that she would explode once more. This was inevitable, as if it had been arranged since she woke up in this world. That the destruction she brought was inevitable and unchangeable. Everything happened unreasonably; she had gone through near-death experiences no less than three times, each time with the appearance of a whispering voice, saving her from the dire situations she faced. Except for the first time...
The current glowing state she was displaying entirely depended on the attribute [Flambound] changing to [Endrise]. As if sensing its master's attention, the flame burning above her twisted; if it could speak, it would probably be shouting "it's me, it's me" with a finger pointing at itself.
Is there anything less unusual in this world?
Continuing her journey, crossing a raised mound, she entered a forest with a distinct change in vegetation and species. This place had only one type of tree with smooth, jet-black bark... More frighteningly, the sky was completely obscured, the bright stars replaced by a reddish-brown color, reflecting the light she was emitting.
Noticing the abnormality, she decided not to go deeper into this forest. She decided to turn back, looking for the mound she had climbed over. But it seemed she was right; this place truly gave an unusual feeling. The mound she had once crossed... had completely disappeared without a trace.
"Hey... this world really is like crap, not joking at all," she gritted her teeth, breathing evenly to prevent her wildly beating heart from jumping out of her chest.
Even though she had been going back in the opposite direction for a long time, her legs had started to feel tired, or simply she was completely stressed out from being lost in this damn place. She wanted to climb one of these trees to see her current position and find a way out, but when she got close to one, she realized she had already moved to a different location. Everything was getting stranger by the minute, and her instincts told her that there wasn't a single dangerous creature nearby—not even an insect. She herself was like a flickering torch, weak and close to going out... then everything sank into darkness.