Dawn Raven in one hand, broken spear in the other, Adyr finally reached the skeleton chamber. He hadn't seen a single one on the way; it seemed they had all gathered here. With no master left to serve, they stood in eerie stillness, waiting without purpose.
But the moment they saw Adyr and the master they once served held in his hands, they stirred. Their jaws snapped in uneven rhythm, bone clacking against bone with sharp, erratic clicks.
Click. Clack. Click. Clack.
The silence broke, replaced by the unsettling chorus of chattering skulls. But they didn't advance. They just stood there. And that was exactly how Adyr preferred it.
He stepped toward the nearest skeleton and, without hesitation, drove the rusted tip of his spear straight through its skull. The bone cracked with a dry snap, and the skeleton collapsed without resistance.
None of the others reacted. They simply kept clattering their jaws, empty and mechanical, completely mindless.
But unlike them, something did react. The Dawn Raven suddenly began to stir, restless and twitching in his hand.
"Oh… they're your friends?" Adyr asked, genuinely curious. "Sorry," he added, driving the spear through another skull, "but they're far too vulnerable to be friends."
He wasn't in the mood to empathize with the raven. It was, after all, the one responsible for turning them into mindless skeletons in the first place.
Tuning out its protests, he focused on the task at hand. One precise strike after another, he crushed each skull with minimal effort, conserving both time and stamina.
After an hour and a half of relentless grinding, he finally stopped and looked around. The chamber was a bone-littered graveyard, filled with collapsed skeletons and shattered skulls. The energy crystals were already harvested.
He had counted 163 in total. He consumed 153 of them and pocketed the remaining 10, thinking they might serve another purpose later. The ones he used gave him a neat 15.3 boost to his energy.
He then opened his status panel to check the final state.
[Physique]: 10
[Will]: 4
[Resilience]: 4
[Sense]: 3
[Energy]: 15.6 / 21
[Free Stat Points]: 2
"It's enough to register another level 2 talent, but not nearly enough for an evolution," Adyr assessed.
The energy he had gained in such a short time wasn't small, but it wasn't sufficient either, especially with other concerns weighing on him. For one, were energy crystals always this easy to find?
This skeleton chamber might be a rare farming spot. And since he still lacked a proper understanding of this world, he had to consider the possibility that opportunities like this wouldn't come often.
Now that there were no threats left, he took a moment to look around. The cave had clearly been used in the past. There might have been hidden passages or forgotten valuables. With no reason to rush, it was worth checking.
Using his recently improved [Sense] stat, he began a careful search. Most of what he found was worthless: bone dust, rust, and broken debris.
Eventually, he came across a few swords, shields, and pieces of armor. Judging by their make, they likely belonged to the Vesha's guards. None of it suited his fighting style. He had little experience with swords, and the armor pieces were too small to wear.
Still, not wanting to leave empty-handed, he gathered what he could carry. Even if he couldn't use them, they might be worth something later.
And just like that, he left the cave behind. A strange sense of closure settled in, marking the end of the first arc of his journey in this world. It left him with a quiet, satisfying calm.
It was still midnight outside. The monochrome sun cast its dim, unnatural glow across the land, bathing the world in an eerie, almost enchanting light.
He returned to the carriage. Vesha was still asleep. Without waking her, he quietly stowed the items he had collected into a corner and stepped back outside.
Not far from the carriage, he spotted the two horses. They hadn't wandered off, still grazing silently in the distance.
Up close, their beauty caught him off guard once again. He couldn't help but stare, momentarily mesmerized. Their deep midnight-blue coats shimmered under the dark light, marked with pale patterns that looked like scattered stars. In the stillness of the night, they looked like living verses from a forgotten poem.
He approached slowly, careful not to startle them. Their behavior might differ from horses he knew, so he kept his movements controlled. Once close enough, he didn't reach out immediately. Instead, he picked up a bit of grass and offered it, building trust first.
One of them quickly noticed, its gaze shifting to him and the offering in his hand. Adyr raised his hand and gently stroked its mane, which felt like strands of black silk. Surprisingly social, they responded better than expected. It was almost laughable how easily he had earned their trust.
I wonder if they have energy crystals in their skulls, he thought for a moment. Not that he intended to check. He needed them alive to pull the carriage.
After checking their harnesses and reins to make sure everything was in working order, he felt the hunger creeping in. He picked at the meal he had left warming over the dying fire, ate just enough to take the edge off, then climbed into the carriage and logged out.
—
Adyr, as always, left the game helmet plugged in and ready. He picked up the candle from the table and stepped out of his room.
Downstairs, the living room was pitch dark. Niva was nowhere to be seen. He went back upstairs to check her room and found her asleep, alone, in the large bed she normally shared with their mother.
The way she curled into herself, her stillness—it looked like the weight on her mind was dragging her into something deeper than sleep.
Quietly, he closed the door. Right now, sleep was the best thing for her. A break from reality. A way to escape whatever was gnawing at her mind.
He headed back downstairs, put on his shoes, and stepped outside. After each session in the game, he had a habit of doing a short workout to keep his strength in check. This time, he decided to do it outside.
He wasn't wearing goggles or a mask. He took a deep breath of the contaminated air.
Normally, even with his [Physique] stat at 10, the air left a harsh sting in his throat and lungs. But now, he felt nothing. The first explanation that came to mind was the influence of his [Resilience] stat.
The streets were completely silent. Not a soul in sight.
The sky above was buried beneath thick clouds, sealing away the moonlight before it could reach the ground.
Adyr stood there for a while, his dark eyes fixed on the sky. The darkness above seemed to be in a silent standoff with the darkness inside.
Killing the clouds—how satisfying would that be? He thought.
A murder, carried out to release the moonlight from its prison.
But did he have the power to do that?
''Not now…. '' He said.
Not yet.