Yulan looked around, seeing countless wolf corpses, and frowned, not understanding where they came from. After all, when she was pretending to be dead, there were healthy and strong wolves ready to kill anyone, but now they lay lifeless.
But what was most strange for her was her classmate Lin, who stood in front of her, pointing with a bone.
"Y-you killed them all?" she asked, watching Lin's expression.
Lin's face didn't change as he replied:
"Yes. It was quite difficult when dozens of wolves attack you from all sides at once, ready to tear you apart." Lin looked at the girl with a cold gaze.
"While others were lying and pretending to be dead to survive." At his words, the girl shuddered slightly.
He instantly understood how the girl managed to survive under such circumstances, and it didn't please him much. What he disliked most was when others used him, making him look like a fool, while they reaped the fruits of his labor.
Of course, he was a hypocrite for thinking this way. After all, if he found himself in a similar situation, where someone else was fighting while he could simply lie down and then leave, he would have done the same. But being the fool was never a pleasant feeling.
Yulan tensed a bit and looked at Lin's bloody bone, which he used to kill the wolves. Feeling strong fear, she took a step back and said:
"I had no choice... You saw how strong those wolves were, I could only pretend to be dead to survive."
Lin snorted coldly:
"What I hate most is when someone uses me. You did exactly that, using me to survive yourself. And now that you're out, what do you think I'm going to do with you?"
After his words, Yulan felt that Lin's figure started to grow darker, leaving only violet eyes.
"Demon!" she screamed mentally, but gathering her courage, she slowly said:
"What are you going to do? Apparently, we are still in the Dead World. Although the laws work differently here, that doesn't change the fact that you'll be punished for murder!"
Several seconds passed, but there was no answer. Yulan tensed under the heavy silence, but then she heard a male voice:
"I wasn't planning to kill you," Lin sighed, turning around and walking toward the wolves, saying:
"Even though I dislike being used. I won't kill; there's no point in that. Besides, I still need you," he approached a dead wolf and opened its head, examining the brain.
The girl froze for a moment and exhaled, realizing that she wouldn't be killed. But she didn't relax and looked around, seeing mountains of wolf corpses and small craters emitting steam.
She was surprised and thought:
"Lin did all this? Seems so, since I didn't see anyone else here... Who would've thought that the quiet handsome Lin would turn out to be such a cold-blooded person, ready to kill his classmate just because they tried to survive..."
Yulan looked at Lin's back.
"He's clearly not ordinary. His usual manner of speaking and facial expressions are completely different. If at school he was quiet and unremarkable, here he radiates the aura of a beast or even a monster... Of course, I'm glad I survived, but being with such a person," she sighed, "I'm really unlucky!"
While Yulan was observing the battlefield, Lin was cracking open wolf skulls, trying to find something useful in them.
He fully sensed Yulan's gaze and most likely understood her thoughts about him. But he didn't try to change them. Everything was going according to his plan, which he devised within seconds of meeting her.
In fact, he wasn't too angry with her; it was all just acting, to show her that he wasn't the weakling from school.
When a person instinctively feels fear, they either try to avoid it at all costs or fight it to death with whatever power they have.
Yulan, being a fragile girl, clearly belonged to the first group. Although he didn't know if Yulan was Awakened, by her face and words, he understood that she was simply lucky to pretend to be dead and survive.
Did anyone think such a girl would have the strength and will to fight him? Don't make me laugh. Lin knew very well how to intimidate people so that they completely submitted to him. For him, Yulan was just another pawn he could use for his own purposes.
The underworld taught him how to live to get what he wanted.
In his case, the most desired thing he wanted — was revenge!
He would do anything to achieve it, even if he had to use a fragile girl!
That was Lin's goal!
...
Yulan slowly approached Lin and asked:
"Are you trying to find Soul Shards in the wolves' brains?"
Lin lifted his head, seeing the beautiful girl, and replied expressionlessly:
"Yes. As you understand, Soul Shards and Distorted Chests are very valuable items, and obtaining them is my goal, especially since the Red Gates are closed." He looked at the wolf corpses and said: "If you want, you can help me, but don't expect a reward."
Yulan frowned and looked at the opened wolf heads, filled with blood and brain matter.
"...I'd rather not," she replied in a quiet voice.
Lin shrugged and paid no more attention to the girl, continuing his work.
For several hours, Lin did nothing but crack open wolf heads in search of Soul Shards.
The bright sun stood in the sky, fully illuminating the world. And Lin sat cross-legged with a smile on his face.
In his right hand, he held a strange chest the size of a head, and in his left hand, a beautiful faceted violet crystal the size of a chicken egg.
These were the items he obtained after examining more than a hundred wolves!
"I was already thinking I wouldn't get anything from this battle. But now, looking at what I hold, I can't hide my joy."
Yes, it was a Beast Chest and a Low Soul Shard!
He found them while examining countless wolves.
"I think now is the perfect time to open the chest," Lin looked at the surreal chest in his right hand and wished to open it.
[Do you wish to open the Beast Chest?]
—[Yes]—[No]—
Lin thought: "Yes", and then saw the familiar circle appear before his eyes, divided into sections from White to Green, indicating the item's rank.
The circle spun rapidly before slowing down and stopping on the White section.
Lin sighed and accepted his luck. He looked at the dropped item.
[Fallen's Sword.]
[Rarity: White.]
[Ability: (none).]
[Description: An ordinary blade of an ordinary warrior. Rusty like century-old iron, and its efficiency is absolutely zero! Last used... [Information missing!]]
"What's with these descriptions? Why don't they keep the item's history, but constantly insult instead?" Confused, Lin decided to ignore it and focus on the item itself.
Lying on the ground was a rusty two-handed sword, its appearance terrible, as if it hadn't been cared for in centuries.
Lin stood up and picked up the sword, slowly examining it.
"It's quite heavy... But its appearance... Is it even usable? Won't it break during battle?" Lin grabbed the sword with both hands and swung it vertically.
Whoosh.
The wind parted slightly, but didn't reach the desired effect Lin expected.
"Although the sword isn't bad, its condition makes it hard to use. Its properties are also greatly weakened because of its state..." Lin enjoyed using various swords in battles, but wielding such a sword gave him an unpleasant feeling.
"Anyway, this is my first weapon obtained from a Distorted Chest." Slightly pleased, Lin looked at Yulan, who was sitting on the green grass, and sighed:
"I think it's time to move on."