Endless Evolution As A Skeleton In A Game-Like World

Thalia and Olivia got home after a short carriage ride back to the Transcontinental Hotel.

The moment they stepped into the living room, the yellow light softly came on, illuminating the space in a golden glow.

The cooling device automatically came on, and soft music began to emanate from the record player by the side.

Olivia sat down on the couch and grabbed her boot, pulling it off and discarding it by the side. Then she massaged her sore foot.

"What do you think Ark is doing with the association?" She looked at Thalia, a little concern flashing in her green eyes.

Thalia took off her jacket and placed it on the armrest. "Since people died, the association probably just wants his side of the story."

"Don’t worry about it." She smiled. "He should be back in a few minutes..."

Thalia had been in some of those questioning sessions in the past. Since player deaths were not a new thing in Eden, they would often just ask enough for documentation before letting the person go.

Olivia got to her feet and stretched. "Alright then." She smiled and began walking towards the kitchen.

"Isn’t that the door to the kitchen?" She had seen Olivia already consume an ungodly amount of food at the restaurant. How was it that she was still hungry?

Olivia froze at the door, her hand wrapped around the handle. "Because I’m going to the kitchen doesn’t mean I’m going to get food!"

"Then what are you going to do?"

"Eck!" Olivia squeaked. A few seconds passed before she hurriedly said, "I’m—I’m going to do the dishes! Yes, I’m going to do the dishes!"

"Anyways, you can bathe first, I’ll be done soon!" She quickly added before entering the room and slamming the door shut.

Thalia stared at the door for a few seconds. "But you said the cleaners do the dishes..." she muttered to herself, before walking into the bathroom.

She arranged a warm bubbly bath and when it was just right, she took off her clothes and hung them on the railings.

Then she got into the warm water, her tail dipping in first, before the rest of her body slowly sank in.

"Mmm~"

Thalia let out a satisfied groan as the water worked its magic on her skin. Every item in Olivia’s bathroom was expensive, and for good reason.

The bath she was currently enjoying was filled with a special liquid that soothed the body and caused intense relaxation.

Soon, Thalia began to feel sleepy. Her eyes slowly drooped closed, and her body felt weak.

A small smile settled on her lips. Today had gone far differently than she had imagined...

Back when her mind was a mess, she could hardly go a day without envisioning murder. But now, her mind was clear, she could finally close her eyes without feeling like she would wake up a monster.

And it was all thanks to Ark...

Thalia had to repay him back, she owed him her life, and she would do whatever she could to return the favour.

She laughed as a bubble floated out of the water and popped on her nose.

Another bubble floated up into the air and she tried to touch it, but her movements were sluggish, her hand never leaving the water.

"Hmm?"

Her vision was slowly getting darker, as though black smoke was clouding her eyes.

She tried to force them open, but they felt heavy, as though weights had been placed atop them, pulling them down.

Thalia tried to move her hands next, but her muscles would not cooperate.

’What is going on?’ Panic immediately flooded her when she realized that her entire body had gone stiff.

This was not the work of the bath liquid...

’Is this... poison?!’

Just as she began to struggle, the water splashing onto the white floor, a woman suddenly materialized out of thin air, right in front of her.

"A stealth skill?!" She tried to say out loud, but her lips would not move. She could not scream, she could not even ask what was going on.

The woman was dressed in dark grey leather armour that clung to her body. Her brown hair was tied up in a neat bun, and she had a mask shielding the lower part of her face.

Thalia had no idea who the strange woman was, but she knew exactly who had sent her.

On the woman’s shoulder were three iron stripes. It was the ranking system of the association, meaning she was an Iron Rank Player!

Why had the association sent an Iron Rank player after her?!

Did they figure out what had been happening in the cave? And if they did... Thalia’s eyes suddenly widened as her thoughts were clouded with worry.

’What happened to Ark?’

Thalia’s struggles intensified, but it was no use. Whatever poison the woman had used on her was potent. Her nervous system was slowly losing its ability to regulate her body, and her mind was dimming with each passing second.

"Shhhh..." the woman summoned a lance and raised it as she got next to the bathtub.

’Ark! What have you done with Ark!’ Thalia screamed out in her mind, feeling hot tears appear in her eyes.

Ark had saved her, he had pulled her out of a deep darkness she never had any hope of crawling out of.

And yet...

And yet he had gotten into this mess all because of her!

"This will be over soon..." the woman whispered, oblivious to Thalia’s inner turmoil, as she drove the lance forward.

Stab!

The lance plunged right into Thalia’s chest, boring a hole at the other end of the bathtub.

The bath water was tainted in a bright shade of scarlet. Thalia’s struggle ceased, her heart stopped, and her head lulled forward, as blood dripped down her nose.

The woman placed a foot on her chest and yanked out the bloody lance, before staring at her.

Bloodied water began to pour out of the hole on the other end of the bathtub, staining the white tiles red.

The woman pulled out an artifact and captured an image of Thalia’s body, before turning around and making a call with her system.

— Mission report. A gruff voice came from the other side.

"The target has been neutralised." She pulled out a piece of candy and popped it into her mouth. "I will bring her in soon..."

"Sending an Iron player to handle a bronze and copper, the commander must really want this woman dead, huh?"

— That is not for you to know.

The man replied curtly.

— And the Harrow girl? Did she discover you?

"The barrier worked seamlessly." The woman smiled within her mask. "She didn’t hear a thing. Although... this will be a nasty way to find out."

She stared at the blood that had coated the floor.

A ripple spread through the puddle...

"Huh?" She raised a brow. She had not taken a single step, how was it that—

Behind the woman, a large, dark figure had appeared, looming over her like a demonic fiend.

The woman froze.

She could see the shadow splayed on the wall in front of her...

— Lance one? Lance one, can you read me? Lance one!

A lance to the heart... she had definitely landed the blow! And even if she missed by a few centimeters, she had definitely hit a vital artery or lung.

How could someone be conscious after that attack?!

She immediately tried to turn around, lashing out with her weapon.

But her lance was blasted away by Thalia’s tail, her body wrapping around her in the space of a second.

The woman clawed at the thick scales, struggling to break free. But her body had been held at an awkward angle, there was no way to use any of her weapons either.

And worse of all, Thalia had augmented herself. Her body was coated in a black aura that multiplied her strength and durability.

No matter how much she struggled, her efforts were in vain.

’I have to find Ark, no matter what!’ Thalia thought.

An Iron Rank was durable, but Thalia was at peak Bronze Rank, with a body designed to constrict more powerful foes...

"H-how?" The woman squeaked as her mask fell off. "I s-stabbed your heart!"

"You missed...." Thalia replied. After her fight with Ark, she had grown more cautious about attacks to her heart, so she was almost always ready to shift her position slightly to avoid fatal blows.

The woman’s spear cut through the right part of her heart, but the damage was not enough to paralyze or kill her.

Thalia squeezed harder, her muscular body grinding over the woman’s flesh. And then—

Pop!

The woman’s struggles ceased and her eyes closed in death.

Her body was engulfed in a bright light, just before it fragmented into shimmering particles.

Thankfully, Issen was a safe zone, she would not die, meaning Thalia had not made more trouble for Ark.

The woman would go down a rank as a penalty, but she knew what she was getting into by coming here.

Thalia tried to move forward when she stumbled and crashed into the dresser.

She was breathing heavily, blood spurting out of her chest like a broken tap, but she gritted her teeth and swallowed the pain.

Thalia could already feel her muscles reattaching, it was only a matter of time before she was fully healed.

But she could not wait...

"I must... find Ark..."

She crawled into the living room, leaving a trail of thick blood on the floor.

"Olivia!" Thalia screamed out, but she did not get any answer.

Just as she got to the center of the room...

There was a sound of breaking glass.

Thalia’s bloodied face snapped towards the window, her eyes widening as she saw something bright charging towards her—

?!

There was a flash of light so bright that it was as though it were day, searing heat that melted every metal in sight, and a gust of fire and ash that reduced everything to cinders...

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