Is everyone ready?
Yeah!
The group built up their courage while standing before the closed main door. They were so tense that they might jump as high as a cat out of water if someone touched them from behind.
"Relax..." Bassano cautioned calmly. "We aren't leaving the safe zone yet."
Ah-!
They smiled awkwardly, finally remembering their talk about the safe zone, which included the mansion and the immediate surrounding yard.
Since they arrived, they've never been outside the mansion. Even so, they had seen the yard through the mansion's many windows.
It was just that over the last 2 days, It was only on the first day here that they vaguely glimpsed out the windows.
On their first day upon arriving, they were very panicked and more concerned about their reality to properly scrutinize the yard. Under Rudolf's encouragement, they slowly woke from their zombie-like stupor and began touring the gigantic mansion before falling into a deep sleep.
They were tired, and their brains were burnt from so much crying and worrying. But when they woke up, the entire mansion was inky dark. That was yesterday, the day of darkness... 24 hours of darkness.
Though the creatures couldn't cross over the yard, the windows were closed for their own good, as many of these creatures went wild during that time, crashing into the invisible barrier that kept them safe.
The feeling of being surrounded by thousands and thousands of demonic creatures, who appeared as giants, was enough to give man sleepless nights.
This was why the windows were shut. It was to keep their sanity and hope of survival up. So today was the first day they stepped out the door and properly saw the outside world.
What was this?
Chris's jaw dropped to the floor. They had a fountain all this time?
Hmmm…
"The fountain and the well at the back are the only sources of water we have... However, we must use them cautiously, as excessive use will dry them out for a couple of weeks before they can spring up again."
Bassano was talking from experience.
There was a time when they didn't have water for 2 weeks before it slowly returned. There are also stories from those in the past about the waters drying up.
By analyzing and extrapolating the data to make calculations, he and many people in the past calculated how many buckets of water could be drawn in a day without straining their water source.
It was tricky since the fewer people they had, the more water for them. But this was a reality they didn't want to face since it was beneficial to have more people and more teams for missions like food gathering, monster information gathering and so on.
In one of the past periods when there were over 700 people here at once, one could imagine how little water they had daily to share amongst themselves.
Bathing wouldn't be an option until more people died.
Jenny looked around curiously.
From the door to the barrier was about the width of a football field. The lawn was green with a faint hue of red, thanks to the red sun above.
"Why don't we try planting on this soil?"
Merlin shook his head bitterly. "It never works. All we get are more blades of grass.
Rudolf frowned. "Why do I feel that someone is messing with us?"
He wasn't the only one. Everyone here thinks the same, wanting to know the grand schemer who put the show together. Obviously, that person wasn't human. But so what? They just wanted to see what the son of a b**ch looked like!
[Loki in the heavenly prisons.] :... Who is thinking about me? Ahh... It's so boring up here. Might as well sneak out and mess with Morning Star again.
[Lucifer, who was sent on a wild goose chase]: Screw you! You already sent precious items to these dangerous first worlds, and now you want to mess with me again? You've got some nerves!
.
Rudolf and the others walked across the open field, reaching the perimeter.
"In the days of daylight, the creatures aren't as active as during the dark days. Nonetheless, they are still lurking around in various parts of this world… Those over there, we call dirt monsters."
Grawwllll!!!~
The heart-stopping sounds from the Golems on the other side made them flinch back. Golems in video games were made of mud and looked far smoother!
It had teeth as long and as sharp as a wolf's, but its skin was made of soil that looked rotting and mushy, with several disgusting maggots swimming in it. And with its giant hands and feet that left a disgusting trail wherever it passed.
They walked like apes and seemed to have low intelligence too. But they sure as well were scary!
What happened to their confidence earlier? Everyone in Rudolf's group found their legs wobbly, not of their own intention.
At the forefront was Vladimir's group, who were the ones testing the water with these creatures. They sometimes risked their lives to step out, while some took notes and recorded vital information about the creatures surrounding their safe zone today.
"Bassona, you're here!" Vladimir acknowledged. "If you want to leave for your mission, leave the safe zone from the back, toward the South-East corner."
That was the only sight they tested that had no creatures appearing. They had to do this daily to see which region had the least possible threats, especially since they did missions frequently.
With the advice from Vladimir, the group turned around, headed back into the mansion, and made their way to the South-East back door.
Exciting the scene, they realized that the backyard space was broader than the front, having the addition of multiple slopes in all directions.
"Alright. Brace yourselves. Once we go between those 2 slopes, we'll be in dangerous territories... Remember, no loud talk... Only whispers."
"Right!"
Rudolf's group nodded and moved with their paired partners from Bassano's team.
Each newbie moved along with 1 or 2 people from Bassano's group. Bassano and Rudolf stayed ahead while Chris, Merlin and another from Bassano's group walked at the very back.
Like so, their journey began across the many sharp, ridged terrains... until soon, the unexpected happened.
Follow current nov𝒆ls on freew(𝒆)bnov𝒆l.(c)om