Vernisha approached the blue-and-white wall of energy, ready to leave the dome. The world, though completely black, was as visible to her as if it were still daytime—just with a dark tint.

  She had Crusbull to thank for that. It moved with pride, stepping on blood-red mushrooms that clustered together among the green and blue blades of grass.

  A breeze rolled across the field, making the distant grass ripple. A moment later, the ones closer to her followed suit, and then the wind finally reached her. She felt nothing. Earth armor.

  At first, she assumed the mushrooms were poisonous in some way. But whenever she stepped on them, they just let out a slouch sound, spraying red liquid as they were crushed beneath her feet.

  She wasn’t nauseous, and her skin didn’t itch or burn. However, she was irritated in another way. She looked like she had just run through a murder scene.

  She sighed, dipping her chin. But when she raised her head, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest.

  An eyeball, twice her size in diameter, was staring at her. It floated a meter away, its red pupil as thin as a knife. A thick yellow ring surrounded its pupils, crisscrossed with bulging, red-veined tendrils that pulsed with light—growing brighter and brighter, threatening to blind her.

  “You better stop now!” a man in armor shouted. “Show me your ID, or—”

  It was just her luck—a damn guard.

  He came charging at her.

  Vernisha leapt to the side, dodging a wide, transparent red beam. She had expected it to vaporize her, yet oddly, the grass beneath it wasn’t burned—it just froze in place, completely still.

  She assumed it was some kind of freeze beam.

  Then the man grabbed her arm and prepared to swing her into the air. “Damn little kid—”

  She acted fast, slamming her rock-covered elbow into his nose, aiming to break it.

  There was no crack, but he cussed and staggered back. “You little bitch!”

  She wished these fools wore helmets, though it did make things easier for her.

  As soon as he turned back to her, fist clenched, she struck again—this time rapidly, furiously. Her elbow finally sank deeper than before, and finally, she heard the crunch.

  Panicked, he threw her away, bent over, and clutched his face. Blood streamed down his wrist as he screamed, “Reye, kill her! Kill the little fucker!”

  The floating eyeball swelled like it was being inflated, its pupil widening in rage.

  Vernisha swung her hand downward, summoning her newest monster—a white sphere with a row of flexible, looping arms orbiting it like a planet’s ring.

  The eyeball’s beam was almost ready to fire.

  It was too slow.

  Sphere shot out its arms, stabbing into the eyeball’s side and swinging it away. The beam fired, but it barely missed them, blasting a rectangular crater in the ground.

  For whatever reason, the eyeball’s speed was garbage, which probably meant its offensive or defensive abilities—though she doubted the latter—were on another level.

  Vernisha took a deep breath, bracing herself, then sent out Forwing.

  The pain came fast and hot—searing agony. She collapsed to her knees, but she wasn’t instantly losing her mind this time. That was an improvement, and it made her wonder how much more her mind had to adapt before this became a viable strategy.

  Anyway, her white bird soared above, its crimson-red wings beating the air.

  “Feather Dance.”

  The monster eye was still being rotated from Sphere’s attack. Then, a storm of feathers glided down, blinding the man to everything but a single red beam slicing through a tiny section of the feathers.

  As he eagerly looked for her so he could kill her, feathers clung to the blood on his hands and mouth.

  She wondered how confused he must’ve been, seeing his monster’s beam heading straight for him—then it suddenly stopped.

  She didn’t know what he had been about to do.

  Another flash of black. Vernisha absorbed Sphere back and sent out Crusbull.

  Then, a powerful wave of transparent red energy blasted outward, sweeping away the feathers—and her. She was flung through the air, pain stinging every inch of her body. She tumbled across the ground until her back slammed into a black boulder half her size.

  The guard smiled and pointed at her, no longer caring to stop his nosebleed. He just let it run down his neck. “I’m going to—”

  That was too bad for him.

  A second later, there was a thud—and he went soaring through the air before colliding headfirst with a tree.

  Crusbull had taken him from behind.

  It dashed toward her, and she hauled herself onto its back, gripping its horns tight. Her head pounded, but she ignored it. Before activating Hyper Chase to escape, she blanketed the area with Feather Dance again and absorbed Forwing.

  The man shouted something, but it was quickly drowned out by the thudding of Crusbull’s hooves.

  It wasn’t a stable ride. Getting jerked back and forth wasn’t exactly fun. But she didn’t care. She didn’t know all the damn laws, but she was pretty sure attacking a Monster Zone guard—assuming that was what he was, since he asked for her ID and didn’t act like a pedo, which meant either that or he was a psycho killer—was illegal.

  She wondered if he would report it.

  A little girl escaping after caving in his nose? A grown-ass man like him? She doubted it. She knew she wouldn’t.

  Then again, maybe it was different since she was a vlandos.

  She thought it through. The System erased the biological advantages between the sexes and age after a couple of levels, and mod points could probably temper with the biological differences. Logically, the only real shame should come from levels—getting beaten by someone lower than you. But a young child would almost always be a lower level.

  Still, optics mattered.

  His coworkers would find out. He’d be humiliated.

  Her conclusion was that he would most likely keep his mouth shut, so she didn’t need to worry too much.

  Still, she would have to take a break from monster hunting. Who knew what was going through that man’s head? It was probably swelling with revenge.

  She hated that. Out there, she felt free, like all her deep worries vanished. She felt powerful—seeing her stomach get riddled with wounds, only for them to be fixed in seconds.

  She didn’t see how anyone couldn’t love that.

  Vernisha let her thoughts continue as Crusbull ran.

  And the leveling. Watching the System ask her what kind of power-up she wanted. Mod points. The ability to modify her body however she saw fit.

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  It was cool.

  She smiled as Crusbull lifted her slightly into the air before bringing her crashing back down.

  Her smile was bright and warm. She loved the System. The changes it made to her. The fact that she had control over herself.

  Right now, she was playing it safe—focusing on physical improvements. But once she got more comfortable... once puberty hit, and with a proper diet, her body should fix itself.

  Then she’d craft her ideal form. Her dream body.

  She hadn’t thought about that in forever... I mean, there wasn’t much you could do to change your skeletal shape or how your body naturally stored fat. Building muscle in certain body parts had its limits.

  Some of those scamming bitches on Tiktok used to make her think otherwise when she was in her teens... saying:

  Do these exercise, and in no time you'll get a small waist!

  So, today is hips day... First, I have to say. You have to believe in yourself...

  Remembering that shit pissed her off... but things were really different now.

  Fuck, she could make her pupils yellow if she wanted. Make her hair curlier—thin out her lips or fatten them up. Gain higher cheekbones. The fact that she had that kind of control... it felt unreal.

  A strange knot formed in her stomach. Excitement, maybe.

  Ha...

  Her mouth opened wide, and she threw her head back, laughing wildly. “Ha... hahahahaha!”

  Crusbull weaved through the tall trees, leaping over small bushes speckled with green, tennis-ball-sized berries.

  Then she spotted something ahead.

  A person.

  She squinted, trying to make out their shape, wondering if she should go around or... if this was about to turn into another fight.

  Crusbull zeroed in on them.

  A big guy.

  Then she realized—it was Ferzan.

  “Stop.”

  Crusbull slowed, digging up dirt along the way, then came to a halt right in front of him.

  Arms crossed. Not pleased.

  He stared directly into her eyes. Even with her on Crusbull’s back, he was still taller.

  She started the conversation. “Sup?”

  “Why are you in Earth Armor?”

  “Oh.” She looked down at the cracked rocks covering her body from head to toe, making her look like a golem. “Wait, how do you know it’s me?”

  He frowned in confusion, then asked, “Haven’t I seen you in Earth Armor before?”

  Oh. He had. She nodded slowly. “My clothes got burned—melted into my skin. So... yeah.”

  His eyes widened in alarm, and he stepped closer. “You need medical attention now!”

  “No, no. I’m fine. Perfect, even.”

  “What do you mean, you’re fine?” He stopped, his expression tightening. “You said it melted into your skin... You’re joking?”

  She should’ve reassured him from the start.

  “It didn’t go deep,” she explained. “I used the water snake to help me. What’s its name again?”

  “Aqusare. And you should get checked, just in case.”

  “Seriously, I’m okay. I just need clothes. This rock armor is uncomfortable as hell.” She didn’t want to think about the bruises she’d have if her skin wasn’t tougher.

  “Oh.” He took a step back. “Right. Sorry.” Raising his hand, he split the air, forming a swirling portal of water. “I think I have some clothes in here...”

  “Doubt they’ll fit me.”

  He half rolled his eyes. “You don’t say...”

  So he was capable of sarcasm.

  She nodded and absentmindedly drummed her fingers against Crusbull’s neck. “So, were you waiting for me?”

  “I was spying on you.”

  “Oh...?” She tried to hide her distaste for that.

  “I started late, though. Fell asleep, woke up like an hour ago. Anyway, don’t do that again.”

  “Do what?” she asked, keeping her tone neutral.

  He realized she didn’t like being ordered around and rephrased. “You went into a monster zone alone. It’s dangerous.”

  “I was in there for hours, and I’m fine.”

  “Through sheer luck...” He pulled out a huge white shirt with a red snake design, coiling from the bottom of the back to the collar. Then he took out a pair of massive blue pants. “I thought I had some spare clothes from Katie...”

  Muttering under his breath, he clicked his tongue. “You can wear these. I outgrew them years ago.”

  The shirt looked like she’d need to grow another ten inches for it to fit properly. And the pants... what a pain.

  She thanked him and changed in privacy. She forgot to trade the sphere monster back for her Twirlflower. She really needed to get a Monster Farm.

  She sneaked back into the bedroom by hopping between window ledges, gripping each one, pulling herself up, jumping, and repeating. She did it all one-handed—her other hand busy holding up her pants to avoid an embarrassing mishap.

  The window was still open, the curtains swaying back and forth. They didn’t get in her way as she climbed through.

  The damn shirt was so big that she could fit three more arms into the sleeves, and it hung past her knees. She looked like an old-timey wannabe gangster, except her pants weren’t sagging—they were just dragging across the dark blue carpet.

  She collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep.

  Vernisha dreamed what she always did.

  A black fog swirled aimlessly, shifting without direction. It stayed like that for a while until suddenly, Caren appeared. His hair was disheveled, and deep cuts bled freely across his chest.

  The darkness was gone. In its place stood the ruins of a city under a bright blue sky. He lifted his head, locking eyes with her. His gaze sharpened, filled with an intent so intense it felt like he wanted to kill her.

  He had no right to look at her like that, not when he was the biggest piece of shit.

  “What? What the hell do you want?”

  He didn’t answer.

  She asked again, her voice rising. “You want to die again? ’Cause I’ll gladly do it!”

  Her heart pounded, but she wasn’t bluffing.

  Back in that temple, she had killed a man. And she was… fine. She just felt weird. Killing wasn’t a big deal to her.

  Caren finally spoke, his voice hoarse. “You’re a freak… You gave your life to the man who hates us all… You are evil.”

  It was that shit again.

  She clenched her fists and told him to get out of her head. He was dead and should just stay dead.

  He blinked a few times before his body began dissolving into smoke. Her heart hammered as she looked down at her left palm, staring at the seal.

  Then her eyes snapped open, and she let out a deep breath. Above her were the wooden planks of the bunk above hers.

  She turned her head. Katie wasn’t in her bed. The sheets were wrinkled, her blanket balled up near her pristine white pillow. A few strands of her red-and-yellow hair lay on it.

  Vernisha sat up—and nearly lost her pants in the process. She grabbed them quickly before they could slide down again. She hated this.

  Shaking off the irritation, she went into the bathroom, took a quick but thorough shower, and returned to the pile of clothes she’d been given. It seemed someone had added even more to it.

  She searched for something simple. A blue dress with a white sari caught her eye, but then she reconsidered. She picked out a pair of knee-length black pants and a yellow, loose-fitting shirt with petal-shaped sleeves. That would do.

  Dressed, she left the room.

  It was probably late since she didn’t feel even a little tired anymore. Then she remembered something.

  She called up her stats.

  Strength: E11

  Combat Speed: E8

  Traveling Speed: E9

  Endurance: E11

  Defense: E10

  Mind: E3

  Her Mind stat was on another level. She had already suspected as much, but just to confirm, she asked the System whether there were hidden stats under stats.

  Yes.

  Mental focus was definitely one of them. It was still surprising that Mind hadn’t broken into D-rank despite all the upgrades. She figured stat values worked like levels. The greater in value it became, the harder it was to increase. That, and Mind was a bundle of multiple stats, with mental focus being just one component.

  She walked toward the stairs, running her hand along the polished wooden railing. The deep brown color reminded her of the railings back home on Earth, at her parents’ house.

  At the foot of the stairs, a man was dusting a golden cup—easily a foot tall—that caught the light from the open windows and nearly blinded her.

  Squinting, she greeted him. “Hello, sir.”

  The brown-haired man turned to her, adjusting his long, sleeveless black jacket. It nearly reached his knees and matched the rest of his dark attire—pants, shoes, and the long-sleeved white shirt beneath the jacket.

  Clearing his throat a few times, he asked, “How can I help you?”

  Stepping to the side, finally escaping the glare of the cup’s reflection, she asked, “Have you seen Ferzan?”

  “Yes, he’s in the dining hall with the family.” He gestured to his right, where a massive brown door stood against the red wall. Paintings of food hung in framed displays—most of them featuring meat, vegetables like lettuce, red cucumbers, diced white meat over blue pasta that looked like spaghetti but was flatter and wider.

  And plenty more.

  She thanked him for the directions and ran down the stairs before heading toward the dining hall. Knocking first, she then pushed the door open.

  The ceiling was white, adorned with circular glass fixtures. A green carpet, soft underfoot, resembled the fur of a feline, its surface marked by an intricate white spray ink-like design forming an elongated “Z” that stretched across the room.

  At the center of it all sat Abella, Ferzan, and Katie at a rounded brown table with smooth edges. A white table runner lay neatly across it.

  Abella greeted her with a polite nod. “You’ve finally risen. I hope your sleep was restful.” She gestured toward the seat beside Ferzan.

  “It was. Thank you for asking.” Vernisha took her seat and was immediately met with a plate of wet, green, soft-looking, wrinkled spheres that carried the scent of chicken gravy, lettuce, and onion.

  Abella pierced one with a food needle, sliding through it effortlessly. A thick purple jelly oozed from the puncture, spilling onto her plate in slow, glistening drips. “You must be under a lot of stress.”

  Vernisha hesitated, assuming she was referring to her grief. “A bit, yeah.”

  Abella lifted the sphere to her mouth, biting it cleanly in half. More jelly seeped from the exposed center, stretching before breaking into slow, viscous droplets.

  It looked sweet.

  Ferzan nudged her lightly with his elbow. “It’s just a mix of meat and vegetables with fruit jelly.”

  “Looks like diabetes.”

  He chuckled.

  Abella then spoke again. “Does killing monsters help with that stress?”

  Vernisha immediately glanced at Ferzan, feeling a flicker of betrayal and wondering why he would tell her about last night.

  But before she could say anything, Abella clarified, “He didn’t tell me anything. I can see it. You’ve gained a new level, a new monster, some new skills… and a life buff.”

  Vernisha froze, a cold shiver running down her spine. It felt like Abella was peeling back her skin and staring straight through her. She didn’t understand how Abella knew all that. Levels, sure, but everything else?

  Abella caught her unease and said, “I don’t mean to frighten you. I only brought it up so you’d understand—hiding things from me is a waste of time. But just to be clear, I have no issue with what you do.”

  She took another bite, chewed, swallowed, and then said, “But do it legally.”

  She looked directly into Vernisha’s eyes. “Become an adventurer.”