Chapter 54
Chapter 54
Chapter 54: Chapter 54
’ System Upgraded.’
Ingrid froze as the familiar voice suddenly sounded inside her head, her eyes widening in disbelief. She thought it was a hallucination, something that happened within the last few minutes of your life, but the familiar ’ding’ from the system sounded again.
{ LORNA123 SUCCESSFULLY REACTIVATED. SSS LEVEL SYSTEM UPGRADED to SSSS LEVEL. LORNA123 Upgraded to LEVEL 10 SYSTEM. }
Several notifications echoed in Ingrid’s head and for some reason, everything else was moving in slow motion. Even the Zombie hands were also moving in slow motion.
’ Host, Lorna123 at your service! Did you miss me, host? !’ Lorna’s cheerful but mechanical voice echoed in Ingrid’s head and that was when she believed that Lorna was finally back!
’Lorna!’ Ingrid cried, ’I missed you! You don’t know how close I was to death! If you hadn’t come on now, I would have actually died. Where the hell did you go?’
’ Host, focus! If you keep wasting time asking questions, you’ll die! I’ll explain everything to you after you’re out of danger but for now, you have to focus on keeping yourself and the others alive! Host, do you wish to activate the Solidifying Skill to harden the ground and restrict the target’s movement?’
Ingrid nearly wanted to laugh at the question. Of course she wanted to use it! However, when she remembered how short the skill’s duration had been before, she immediately made another demand.
’Use it, and upgrade it to Level Five! I don’t want to waste this chance on a skill that only lasts a few seconds!’
{ Confirmed. Solidifying Skill upgraded to Level Five. Duration: 150 seconds. }
The moment Lorna finished speaking, a strange vibration passed through the ground beneath the Evolved One as the slowed time became normal. The soft earth surrounding its legs began to harden rapidly, turning from loose soil into a dense, solid mass that trapped the creature in place. Its enormous body lurched forward, but its legs refused to move, leaving it stuck halfway into the ground with one arm raised threateningly toward the trees.
The Evolved One stared down at its trapped legs as though it couldn’t understand what had happened. It pulled once, then again, its muscles bulging as it struggled to free itself, but the hardened ground held firm. Its confusion quickly turned into fury, and it released a deafening roar that shook the surrounding trees.
It worked! The solidification skill worked!
"Now!" Ingrid shouted, tightening her arms around Lysander’s neck. "Lysander, move! We have to get out of here!"
Lysander didn’t ask a single question as to why the ground had suddenly hardened. He immediately tightened his hold around her and leaped toward the next tree, using his injured body to carry her through the branches as quickly as possible. Behind them, the foxes followed.
Ingrid glanced back once and saw the Evolved One still fighting against the hardened earth, its enormous arms thrashing wildly as it tried to tear itself free.
They had two minutes and thirty seconds. That was all the time they had before the skill wore off, and Ingrid knew they couldn’t afford to waste even a single second. If they couldn’t put enough distance between themselves and the creature, they needed to lead it somewhere other people could fight it. There was no way she and the others could defeat that monster alone, especially with Lysander’s injuries and the foxes’ limited ability to protect themselves.
The thought made her grip Lysander more tightly as he continued jumping from one tree to another. She could feel the strain in his arms, and every time his injured side brushed against a branch, his breathing became heavier.
He was pushing himself far beyond his limits to keep her safe, yet he hadn’t complained or asked her to make things easier for him. Ingrid wanted to tell him to slow down before he hurt himself even more, but with the monster behind them, she knew that stopping was not an option.
A fresh roar suddenly echoed behind them, and Ingrid’s heart sank as she turned to look. The Evolved One had finally realized that brute force alone wouldn’t free it, and it was now tearing at the hardened earth with both hands. The ground cracked beneath its tremendous strength, and Ingrid watched in horror as the creature managed to pull one leg loose. It wouldn’t take long before the other leg was free, and the thought of having to face that thing again made her stomach twist.
’ Thirty seconds remaining, ’ Lorna announced inside her head.
’Thirty seconds?!’ Ingrid nearly screamed. ’Didn’t you say the skill would last for 150 seconds? How can there only be thirty seconds left already?’
’ Host, 150 seconds is the total duration. The skill was activated some time ago, and the remaining time is now thirty seconds. Please stop wasting time questioning the system and concentrate on your survival.’
Ingrid wanted to argue with her, but she swallowed her complaints when she realized Lorna was right. She had no time to complain about the system’s attitude when their lives were at stake. Instead, she quickly tried to think of somewhere they could go before the creature broke free completely. She couldn’t see much beyond the thick trees, and with Lysander carrying her at such a speed, she couldn’t risk asking him to stop so she could look around.
They had to find people that could kill this thing, and fast! Lorna should know a way!
’Lorna, show me a map!’ she demanded inwardly. ’I need to know where we can find people who can deal with that monster!’ Ingrid really hoped there was something like that.
’ Okay, Host. Several kilometres ahead, there are six level 4 zombie hunters waiting near the area where the people sent to destroy this settlement have gathered. They may be able to assist you, host. Go towards them.’
Ingrid’s expression changed immediately. Hunters! She had no idea about the level but that was exactly what they needed. She wasn’t sure whether the people waiting ahead would be willing or even capable of fighting such a terrifying creature. Still, they were their best chance, and she wasn’t about to let that opportunity slip away.
’Show me the map now!’