On the windowsill sat a woman's head, with a headless corpse behind it.
The headless corpse held a violin in its left hand, while its right hand gently caressed the head.
Helag stopped digging and stood up, locking eyes with the head. The scene fell silent.
All the Demon Flowers closed their eyes and drooped their heads.
The headless corpse raised its left hand, placing the violin on its shoulder, then lifted the head and moved it along the strings. Blood dripped down the strings, and threads of blood wrapped around the violin.
The woman's head seemed to be lost in the beautiful music, eyes closed and smiling, savoring the violin's melody.
In Helag's vision, a large amount of negative energy particles began to gather around the window.
Without hesitation, he fired three Corrosive Arrows at the headless corpse playing the violin.
The arrows hit, and the spots where they struck began to corrode, sizzling.
The woman's eyes opened in anger, her face contorted in pain.
Helag raised his hand, his ring glowing as a small Fireball spell quickly formed and flew towards the target.
The violin music resumed, and the headless corpse's right arm suddenly swelled, transforming into a massive, red-furred arm.
The arm was larger than the headless corpse itself, looking grotesquely out of place.
The Fireball struck the giant arm, causing it to char and emit the stench of burning flesh.
The violin music played again, and the headless corpse swung its arm, punching at Helag.
The distance was too short for Helag to dodge. The punch hit his three-layered shield, sending him flying several meters before he landed on the ground.
Quickly adjusting his stance, Helag rolled to dissipate most of the impact and drew his longsword.
Thanks to his shields, he was mostly unharmed.
Helag checked his shields. The outermost Ice Shield had taken significant damage and could probably only withstand one more hit before shattering.
"Blessing of the Wind Spirit…"
Helag used another enchanted item, boosting his agility by two points.
He focused on the headless corpse and charged.
The violin music played, and the arm swung again.
This time, Helag had enough time to react and space to maneuver.
With Deep Blue's assistance, he easily dodged the attack.
The headless corpse's movements were clumsy, each attack taking time to recover.
Helag seized the opening, quickly closing in and slashing at the violin.
He had noticed the violin was surrounded by negative energy particles. Each time it played, the headless corpse moved, indicating the violin was likely controlling it.
His sword struck the violin, producing a metallic clang.
Helag wasn't surprised, having expected the violin to be tough.
Gripping his sword with both hands, he began hacking at the violin, each strike producing a loud clang.
The violin wasn't invincible, soon showing signs of damage.
Helag grabbed the violin and smashed it against the ground.
The music stopped abruptly, but Helag didn't. He continued smashing the violin against the ground and walls, creating a scene of utter destruction.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The loud noise resembled a construction site.
Helag didn't know how many times he had struck the violin. When he finally stopped, he saw that several strings had snapped, and the body was severely damaged.
He threw the violin to the ground and stomped on it.
"Corrosive Arrow!"
"Small Fireball!"
Helag cast several more spells until the negative energy particles dissipated from the violin.
Looking up, he saw the headless corpse slumped over the windowsill, its right arm returned to normal.
The right sleeve was torn, revealing a pale arm.
"It should be dead now."
Helag glanced at the broken violin on the ground, feeling like he had violently destroyed something.
The Demon Flowers in the garden cautiously lifted their heads to look at him. When Helag turned, they quickly averted their gaze, as if terrified of him.
Seeing no more anomalies, Helag resumed digging, with over ten Demon Flowers left to harvest.
Soon, the garden was filled with the sound of moaning again.
Anyone not looking might think an inappropriate party was happening in the open garden.
About half an hour later, Helag finished digging up all the Demon Flowers, collecting forty-two in total.
After scanning the garden for anything else of value, he prepared to leave.
The town had many houses, and this garden was just part of one.
As Helag continued forward, the footsteps resumed behind him.
This time, he was more cautious. Given his recent experience, he suspected each lit house contained something.
Just because he had dealt with the violin didn't mean he could handle everything else. Caution was essential.
Following the town's path, Helag noticed more houses than before.
He remembered that when he first entered Creek Valley Town, there hadn't been this many houses at the foot of the mountain.
"Sir! I finally found you!" Robert's voice suddenly called from behind.
Helag turned to see Robert, panting and calling out to him.
"Don't come any closer," Helag said, drawing his sword and pointing it at Robert.
Robert awkwardly stepped back. "I'm sorry, sir. It's really me. I'm not some kind of creature."
"Where did you go?" Helag asked coldly.
Robert looked confused. "I don't know. I remember us drinking in the tavern, then you were gone. I ran into the town to find you, but there was no one here."
"Then I knocked on a house's door, and suddenly I was inside. I panicked and tried to open the door, but it was locked tight."
"I tried the window, but it was locked too, and incredibly sturdy. I couldn't break it."
"Just when I was desperate to get out, I found myself back on the street and saw you ahead."