Frightened Woods.
A group of two wandered around the forest with no destination in mind. They ignored the regular creatures that stalked them and focused on the path ahead.
Seth looked at his brown-haired friend. Despite his jovial expressions, Seth didn't feel too weirded out by him.
'Calling him a friend is an exaggeration, but…'
Nevertheless, the old Seth would have discarded Knight a long time ago. So, it was definitely an improvement.
"Yo, have you been to the brothels around here? You haven't, right?"
"..."
Seth decided to ignore that question anyway. He continued looking straight until a thought hit him.
"Knight, what level are you?"
"Level 3. Why do you ask?"
Seth said, "Nothing. Since you have been here longer, I thought you would have a high level."
"It's getting harder to hunt every day. Killing regular creatures doesn't help me. And I'm not confident about taking howlers without the help of my brothers. What about you?"
"I'm at Level 4."
"Wow! How is that possible?"
"A bit of luck… I guess. I'm not human like you. I'm a vampire which gives me an advantage. Taking on one howler is not that difficult for me," Seth bragged a little.
He made sure not to reveal important details about himself.
"Ehh! You are a vampire?! Show me your fangs! Can you blood-suck or transform into bats?! Bite me!"
Seth paused his footsteps and flashed a disgusted look at Knight. "No, I will not show you my fangs. And a big no to biting you. I bet your blood taste like sh*t!"
"Hey, that's not fair. I want to be a vampire." Knight protested.
Seth responded, "The system is fair. Our first experience was a near-death experience. It compensated us, didn't it? So, you must surely have something good. At least, better than mine!"
"Yeah, I have a pretty good skill."
"Hmm…"
Seth didn't pursue the topic. It wasn't something he wanted to know. Plus, he bet it was a good skill, unlike Seth's skills which were just annoying.
Seth sighed after a while. "Do you know where we are going?"
"Uh, about that… many adventurers encountered Baba Yaga in this forest range. I think when she's ready, she will appear to us."
Seth asked, "How would she do that?"
"Usually, she–"
"..."
Seth was in front of Knight, so when the latter stopped talking he treated it casually and waited for Knight to continue. Yet, thirty seconds passed but there was no action from Knight.
"Knight…?" Seth called out.
There was still no reply.
"Knight? Knight!"
Seth finally turned his head behind. There was no one there. Just him, the trees, and a low-pitched chime that disturbed his sensitive ears.
"Just what is this sound?" Seth frowned as he tried covering his ear.
The chimes were thin and sharp. It stung his ears until they began to bleed. He could feel his insides warping as the sound invaded his body.
Suddenly, it stopped.
'No, I can still hear it, but it is not as dangerous as before.'
Presented in his view was a trail of white flowers stained with blood. The flowers beamed in his sight like a beacon of light, but the aura they gave was that of desolation.
'What is this? The trail… it is leading somewhere.' Seth noticed.
A debate sparked in his head. One part of him wanted to follow the trail, while the other part thought that this was too similar to horror movies on Earth. The characters always die when this happens.
Seth sighed for an umpteenth time.
He plucked one of the flowers and brought it to his face.
While it might seem like he was inspecting it, his mind was elsewhere. He soon reached a decision.
'This trail. It is a summon. Hehe, I have to follow it.'
He didn't waste any more time and walked the path of the trail. His hands transformed into claws as he was ready for any surprises. Even without daggers and a crossbow, he was still dangerous!
Soon, he arrived at a dead plain filled with rotten flowers and grasses. The air was filthy and a foul stench danced everywhere.
At the center of this plain was a wooden hut. It seemed to hover above ground level, but when Seth gave it a second look, he discovered gigantic chicken legs anchoring it above ground. Currently, the legs bent, not revealing their true length.
Seth moved to the entrance of this hut. From the windows of the hut, he spotted glowing red light.
Seth realized. 'Someone is inside.'
After taking a deep breath, Seth jumped to the doorstep and raised his arms to knock on the door. Before his hand could contact the door, the door slowly pushed open, revealing the interior of the hut.
As soon as Seth entered, he heard a peal of terrifying laughter that kept on reaching higher volumes. The hat's light was snuffed as Seth became submerged in darkness.
"Kekekekeke."
"Kekekekeke. You are here." A bone-chilling whisper reached him.
Seth kept a composed face despite his increasing fear. "Well, I was summoned."
"Kekeke. Yet, you came. Kekekeke."
A mystical force pushed Seth into a chair. He tried resisting it, but it was too strong.
Suddenly, a red crystal beamed in front of him. It shed light on his close surroundings. He was seated across a small oval table filled with beads and red crystals. A crystal ball appeared at the center of the table, but the light in it remained dim.
"Kekekekeke. Curious and curious, are you?"
Seth traced the voice to his direct front. The radiance of the red crystal showed the person seated across from him.
The figure was hunchbacked and possessed the face of a grandmother. Yet, when Seth gazed at her, he was instinctively repulsed.
Multiple boils lurked on her face and her face took on a scrawny appearance as if it was devoid of body liquid. Her eyes were as red as the crimson moon.
Yet, her teeth remained her scariest feature. A set of iron teeth that she occasionally clashed together to strike fear in Seth's heart.
He thought to himself as he struggled to keep composed. 'Those teeth are far sharper than my fangs. There is no doubt that it easily cuts anything apart.'
Dressed in rag clothes, Baba Yaga said, "I smelled you miles away. You smell delicious… delicious. And your mind is too convoluted, the tastiest of the tastiest. Kekekekekekekekeke. I want to eat you."
Seth frowned and asked. "What is stopping you? You didn't summon me to eat me, right?"
"Kekekeke. I want to eat you, but I can't. Instead, I summoned you to entertain your thoughts. Kekekekeke. Tell me, what do you desire?"
"What do you mean?" Seth gave Baba Yaga a hard stare.
"You reek of an impossible desire. You want something! Keekekeke. Tell me… no, tell us, what is it you want?"
The red light beamed again, ushering a brighter light that revealed more details about the hut.
Seth shivered as he saw two figures standing beside Baba Yaga. Each of them was on the opposite sides.
They had the same appearance as Baba Yaga. The same eye. The same crooked ear. The same saggy breast and scrawny skin!