Being thrown into the dark misty room, beyond the towering gates, Somnu once again found himself in a dire situation.

  This time, the immediate shaking and heavy breaths, along with the rapid pounding of his heart, were not simply just an automatic reaction of the active fears being enhanced. After what he had gone through recently, both Somnu’s mind and body were screaming at him to retreat.

  And it wasn’t just those sounds telling him that either…

  “Caaw!!”

  [The Sleeper Somnu {ERROR} is under the effects of multiple fears.]

  [Alert: Encountered Nightmare Creature is of a higher rank.]

  [Advisable: Do not confront it! Retreat to fight another day.]

  Fala, and even the System were cautioning to retreat.

  All the signs were advising Somnu to run once again, as far away as his legs could carry him.

  Screw that!

  However, Somnu had made his vow, and he was going to keep it no matter what came his way from then on. He had to fight through the shaking nerves, the fear inside of him.

  He gritted his teeth and clenched his sickles as tightly as his shaking hands allowed him to.

  The feelings of powerlessness and helplessness from his last encounter were quickly rushing back to him.

  I don’t want to feel like that again… I won’t let that happen!

  “!”

  The moment he raised his head to meet the figure stepping out of the dark fog, Somnu realized what he was up against.

  “SKREEECH-HHHRRRR!!”

  Before he could even process what he was seeing, the towering monster figure let out an ear-shattering screech that almost sounded like wood scraping or vines tightening.

  And with it, almost as if it were a signal, the silhouetted serpentine tendrils behind the dark fog came alive and flew at their new prey.

  “Crow-shit!”

  SWISSHHH!

  Somnu immediately relied on a jump to dodge the first vine that seemed made out of ancient bark, then swung both his sickles in a cross shape in front of him. Violet slashes flashed through the air. Although he wasn’t sure of the outcome, he was glad to see the newest skill cut his first target.

  And yet, the vine quickly regenerated and joined the onslaught of other tendrils making their way to the scarecrow who invaded their territory.

  Dammit, there are too many of them at once!

  “Caaw!”

  “!”

  Just as he was growing desperate fighting off the undying vines, a flaming torch descended from the sky and hit its target straight on.

  Not a moment later, the wooden vines and roots burst into flames, halting their assault.

  “Go Fala! That’s my girl!”

  “Caaw!”

  Finally able to take a proper look, and with the help of the new flames lighting the way, Somnu was now able to take in everything around him.

  While the dark fog still covered most of the room, Somnu was able to get an idea of how big and wide it was. From the perfectly lined up pillars creating a middle path where a tattered and mangled carpet now laid, along with all the hints that led up to this room such as the towering gates, it became quickly apparent Somnu was in some kind of ancient throne room. Even if he could not see beyond a few dozen steps away from him, let alone the throne itself.

  To make matters worse, the Nightmare Creature he was facing now seemed to be in control of the entire space, as if the fog itself was at its disposal.

  The one thing Somnu couldn’t figure out was…

  Why the hell is a Leshen monster in a place like this?! This isn't a forest!

  Naturally, Somnu had already guessed what the monster was based on its appearance.

  The creature towered over the throne room’s floor, made up of a grotesque fusion of gnarled wood, ancient bark, and twisted vines. Its skeletal form appeared almost humanoid, but where flesh should have been, only layers of moss and creeping rot clung to its bony, jagged figure. From its torso sprouted long, throned branches, twisting around its limbs as if they were part of the creature’s anatomy.

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  Closer, hollow eyes, burning with a deep crimson light, gazed from beneath an antlered skull, which was adorned with twisted roots like a makeshift crown of a forgotten ancient god. The very air around the creature felt thick and heavy as more mist surrounded it, as though nature itself bent to its dark will, each breath it took sending a whisper through the twisting vines.

  Not allowing himself to be distracted by the sight, Somnu quickly sent another slash towards the torso.

  “RRRNNNGGG-KREEAAHH!”

  “!”

  With another guttural screech mixed with the sound of scorched vines and roots stretching through the flames, Somnu’s attempt was quickly sidestepped.

  “You’re right, kid.”

  “Huh?!”

  Taken aback by the sudden odd voice, Somnu blurted out as he dodged another vine and cut the one behind it with a single swing of a sickle.

  He was glad at least all his farming experience had prepared him to masterfully wield his weapons.

  “By all means, this creature should not be here.”

  Although the voice sounded through his ears, it almost doubled as an echo inside his mind. Otherwise, he could not have heard it from the constant snapping of roots and vines pushing to get to him.

  “What do you want, old geezer?!” Somnu shouted. “You put me in this situation and you want to chat now?! I’m kind of busy here!”

  “I’m grateful that you are willing to take on a task I am unable to fulfill.” The voice of Eamon followed the challenger with every step he took in his fight against the flaming vines.

  “Willing?! You forced me into it!”

  “You could not begin to understand how long I have sat in front of those gates, forced to let this abomination roam free inside this sacred hall, my oath binding me from taking action against it…” Slowly, the old knight’s voice grew heavier.

  “... What does that have to do with me? Besides, half the time you’re just making stuff up!” Somnu shouted back, relying on Fala to briefly distract the Leshen as he cut through the vines and stepped closer to his target, directly into the mist.

  “This is a sacred home being invaded and attacked by this hideous creature.” Eamon began to explain. “It needs removing, this home needs protecting…”

  “!”

  “You’re a scarecrow, aren’t you? Do your job and scare it away.”

  Tsk, witty old fool… Somnu thought with a click of his tongue, his target growing clearer in front of him behind a faint mist.

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  “Get out of my head!”

  With a quick leap, Somnu launched himself at the Nightmare Creature’s cracking and twisting torso, his grip on Eclipsed Requiem tightening.

  “!”

  However, the moment he stepped into the light mist hovering between them still, allowing the dark fog to creep in, his limbs suddenly felt much heavier.

  What?!

  Looking at his hands, he saw his skin quickly being consumed by a wood infection. They were turning into the very vines and roots the Leshen was controlling as extra limbs.

  That’s when he finally realized that thus far, he had only been affected by a few enhanced active fears, but he had not encountered any abnormal effects.

  The Slowing Rabbit had stopped him in his tracks and slowed him down.

  The Contagious Corpses made his skin rot and almost forced him to eat it.

  The scarecrow monster forced him to run away, and he was thankful whatever else it could do didn’t activate for some reason.

  And as for the countless Nightmare Creatures that appeared after that, Somnu would rather not remember that horrible experience.

  However, now, it seemed like the Leshen was creating this fog around the room, leaving only an almost apparent path in the middle towards it. It welcomed anyone to try and get close, only to be turned to wood at the slightest contact from the faint mist surrounding it.

  The old geezer had told him his tactics were too obvious, even to monsters, and yet he still charged head on, only to fall into the Leshen’s trap.

  “GRUHH-CRAACK!”

  Branches snapped, vines twisted and roots broke as the Nightmare Creature growled and turned to face its doomed prey.

  Slowly, but surely, it descended closer, like a spider approaching the poor bug that fell into its net.

  “Caaw!”

  “!”

  However, before it could reach that prey, Somnu’s figure flew backwards towards the gate once more.

  “You two!” He blurted out, noticing both Fala and Grudgekeeper teaming up to put distance between him and the monster.

  While Fala tightly held on to an unlit metal torch with her oversized talons and flew back, Grudgekeeper extended a makeshift limb from the hoodie and grabbed onto the end of the pole to catch a ride.

  “RRRNNNGGG-KREEAAHH!”

  “That was close!”

  Upon reaching the gate, Somnu focused on his limbs, noticing them slowly turning back to normal after putting enough distance from the enemy.

  However, he wasn’t allowed a moment to breathe before quickly having to dodge and cut another onslaught of vines.

  Dammit! How am I supposed to do this without getting close?! He thought, attempting to change his tactics.

  But to no avail, he had no time to consider changing his methods now. Then, he quickly came up with an idea.

  No matter what everyone else said, Somnu seemed to have his own style of fighting.

  The only problem now was…

  I really don’t like what I have to do again…

  Most of his ideas always seemed too unconventional and risky for his tastes.

  And yet, he needed to rely on them once more if he wanted to win, to survive.

  To protect.

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