Chapter 9: (SAFETY?)
I bolt out of the door, expecting the shadowy figures to vanish the moment I move—but they don't. My body rushes straight through one of them. I raised my sword and slashed it but it just got through its body like I'm hitting an air, and the figure simply tilted its head and smiles.
"What…? It didn't work!?"
Before I can breathe, another shadow lifts its arm. A spear cuts through the air with a sharp whistle, flying straight toward my forehead. My mind freezes, but my body moves on its own—my hand shoots up, trying to cover my head.
Thud!
The spear slams into my raised hand. The only thing stopping it is the old cloth wrapped tightly around my arm. My arm shakes from the impact, the force pushing me back a step.
The moment the spear bounces off my wrapped hand, I don't wait—I turn and run. My legs kick off the ground hard, almost slipping on the dirt as I sprint through the trees.
"Ha… ha… ha…!" My breath tears out of my chest. "How will I kill them if they can't die when i slash!?"
My footsteps pound. Leaves crack under every step. Branches whip against my arms as I push through the trees, not daring to look back.
System Showed up.
[NOTICE]
Weaknesses – Sun
HP – Unknown
AP – Unknown
Mana – Unknown
"What—sun? Seriously!?" I shout between gasps. "Ha… ha… then how am I supposed to survive!?"
My lungs burn as I jump over a fallen trunk, almost tripping. I grab the bark with one hand and push myself forward again.
"There are still five hours before sunrise!" I yell, voice cracking. "Five hours! I can't run for five damn hours!"
"Damn it… ha… ha… damn it!" I clutch my chest as I inhaled and exhaled. "System! Give me something! Any information!"
But there is only silence… and the rustling of leaves as the figures close in.
The system window flashed in front.
[GET OUT OF THE HILLS AND PLAINS]
"For… what reason!? Ha… ha… ha…!" I panted, clutching my side. "Why now?!"
[Cannot be shared]
"Wait… wait, the river!" My mind raced. If there's any chance to survive by leaving the plains and hills, then that place has to be the river!
I darted toward it, my legs burning with every step. Sharp rocks bit into my bare toes, and spiky weeds tore at my calves. Each breath came ragged. My arms swung wildly, pushing branches out of the way, my fingers scraping bark.
Halfway there, I dared a glance behind me. Then, without warning, arrows rained down. Seventeen arrows flew towards me, piercing the ground and thudding dangerously close to my body.
"Blurgggg…!!!" I screamed, twisting to dodge one that nicked my shoulder. Pain seared through me, but I kept moving. "I… I'm so close…"
A sharp whistle of another arrow grazed my neck. My legs buckled under the sudden weight of exhaustion and pain, and darkness swallowed me whole.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my room, gasping and soaked in sweat, the taste of blood and fear heavy in my mouth. My chest heaved. I had failed… again.
I tied the shirt around my hand again, pulling the knot tight. The other cloth I wrapped around my chest, pressing it flat to stop at least a few arrows or spears from going straight through me. My hands were shaking, but I forced myself to keep going.
"Again…" I muttered. "I'll do it again… until I get out of here."
I pushed the door open and bolted outside.
As I sprinted. My feet pounded the ground, each step sending a shock through my swollen toes. The clothes I wrapped around my body managed to block some arrows—thunk, thunk, thunk—but not all. A few still sliced through the fabric and grazed my skin, leaving slash and bruises.
"Haa… haa… damn it…!" I stumbled, then forced my legs to move faster. "Just let me reach it… just once!"
Again and again, I died.
Again and again, I revived.
By the 36th time, blood soaked through the cloth on my back where an arrow had pierced straight in. Every breath felt like squeezing chest. But I didn't stop—I wouldn't stop.
And finally… I reached it.
The river.
It stretched in front of me like something alive—crystal‑blue water shimmering quietly under the moonlight, flowing fast and cold. Mist rose from its surface, wrapping the edges in a pale silver glow.
"I… I made it…" I whispered, knees trembling. "I finally… made it…"
But then—
The footsteps behind me stopped.
Every single one of them.
I slowly turned my head.
The shadowy figures stood just a few meters away, frozen in place. Their smiles—those terrifying, twisted smiles—were gone. Their faces Their eyes, glowing intensely never moved away from me.
"What…? Why did they stop…?" I asked,.
They stared at me angry like I had stepped somewhere I shouldn't. Like I had broken a rule they never expected me to reach.
The wind carried the sound of the river behind me.
The system window blinked softly in front of my eyes.
[SAFETY REQUIRED]
My legs finally gave out. I dropped onto my knees, clutching my chest, trying to breathe through the stabbing pain spreading from my back.
"Finally… I can rest…" I gasped, my voice shaking. "Ha… haa… system… why do they look angry this time? They were smiling before. Why their expression change?"
[Historical Data can't be given]
I scoffed, biting down on the pain as I pressed a hand against my pierced back. "If you won't give me any hint, then fine… but my body—haa—my body won't stop shaking. It hurts. My back hurts. My lungs feel tight. I feel… weak."
[Owner, why do you seem unaffected by dying multiple times?
Are you immune to it, or have you grown used to the experience?]
I stared at the glowing text, disbelief spreading across my face.
"What kind of question is that…?" I whispered, my voice trembling with exhaustion. "Immune? Used to it? Of course not. Why would you even think that?"
I leaned forward.
"It's painful every time," I said quietly. "Like the first. Like the tenth. Like the thirtieth. Like the thirty‑sixth. It hurts exactly the same. And I swear—no one can ever get used to dying."
The system stayed silent.
"There is no creature that doesn't feel pain when they die," I continued, the words spilling out of my mouth. "Death is pain. Pain is death. One exists because of the other."
"You won't understand it… because you're a system. You can calculate death, record death, announce death—but you can't feel it."
I lifted my trembling hand, watching it shake uncontrollably.
"But I do," I whispered. "Every. Single. Time."