I was the "pretty prop" of the team—the useless ornamental piece in a highstakes, lethal simulation. To survive, I spent every waking second desperate to please my teammates.

I ate the smallest rations, did the grunt work no one else wanted, and allowed myself to be used as live bait whenever the situation turned south. But they never liked me.

Their hearts were reserved for the team’s darling, Lulu.

On the ninetyninth time they abandoned me to face certain death while they rushed to protect her, something inside me finally snapped.

The weight of the world felt too heavy, and I was simply… done. I stepped off the edge of the abyss, plummeting into the dark.

I didn't want a miracle; I just wanted the silence of the end. But a monster from the deep caught me. "Are you… are you the bride… the one they sent for me…?" 1 Left behind. Again.

I dragged my battered body toward the edge of the ravine, my breath hitching in my chest with every staggered step.

It wasn’t just a cliff; it was a jagged, bottomless scar in the earth, choked with a thick, swirling mist that echoed with the guttural cries of things that shouldn't exist.

I didn't care about the noises anymore. I didn't care about the shadows. I only cared about the edge. “Warning: Toxicity levels have exceeded 87%. Vitality is dropping.

Estimated time of survival: Seven days.” The System’s cold, mechanical voice pulsed inside my skull.

I shook my head, a dry, hollow laugh escaping my cracked lips. “I’m not making it to seven days, System,” I whispered. “I’m checking out early.” Death wasn't a threat anymore.

It was a promotion. It was the only way to finally be free of them. I lifted my foot, stepping into the void.

For a heartbeat, the wind roared, lashing at my bloody face, cold and biting.

And then, through the gale, I heard Jax’s voice. 2 “Do you have any idea how long we’ve been looking for you?” Jax stepped through the thicket, his face twisted in a mask of pure irritation as he hacked away the brush with his machete. “I told you—if we get separated, you stay put.

Why do you always have to wander off and make things difficult?” He stopped about ten feet away, his arms crossed. “Your only job is to be the lure, and you can’t even do that without causing a headache.

Come on. Get up. We’re heading back.” Habit took over for a second.

I almost forced a smile, almost tried to explain that if I hadn't "wandered off," the pack of shadowhounds would have torn me to ribbons while they were busy shielding Lulu.

But then I realized I didn't have to explain anything. I had spent two years playing the part of the devoted servant.

To them, I was just the jealous, petty shadow of Lulu, constantly "competing" for a shred of their attention. Every time the floor gave way, I was the one they let fall. Fine.

I’d fall all the way this time. “I’m not going back,” I said. I didn't smile. I didn't plead. My voice was as flat as the horizon. “The System says I’m dying anyway.

I’m resigning from the team. I’m choosing to end it here.” 3 Jax froze, his brow furrowing in genuine confusion. He looked at me as if I were speaking a foreign language.

Then, his lip curled into a familiar sneer. “God, you’re such a drama queen,” he spat, looking away in disgust. “Is this your new way of getting attention?

Everyone’s dealing with the mist, Rowan. We’re all fine, but suddenly you’re ‘dying’?

Do you really think we’re that stupid?” He took a step toward me, his face darkening. “Look, we forgot you for a second today. I get it. But stop throwing a tantrum.

How long are you going to keep trying to compete with Lulu? It’s pathetic.” When I didn't move, he reached out to grab my arm, his hand like a vice.

I stepped back, dancing on the very lip of the precipice. “I said I’m not going back, Jax.” His expression shifted from annoyance to pure rage. “Fine! You want to die? Go ahead!

Go tell the Captain. If Gideon says you can quit, then I don't give a damn where you rot—” I didn't wait for him to finish. I simply leaned back. Gravity took me.

The world rushed upward, the sky shrinking into a narrow ribbon of grey. Jax’s sudden, panicked scream echoed through the canyon, but I didn't listen.

I closed my eyes, the roar of the wind in my ears sounding like a lullaby. Finally. Darkness. 4 I don't know how long I was out. When I woke, I wasn't on cold stone.

I was lying on something shifting—thick, pulsing vines that moved like a bed of snakes.

Cold, slick tendrils began to coil around my ankles, slowly creeping up my legs, binding me to the earth.

In the gloom ahead, a massive, twisted ancient tree loomed, its bark looking like distorted faces frozen in a scream.

The sheer aura of predatory power coming from it made my heart hammer against my ribs. “Bride…” A voice, raspy and young, like someone who hadn't spoken in centuries, drifted from the shadows.

It was a low, abyssal hum that made my skin crawl. “Is it… the bride? Sent from above…?” I shivered, the realization hitting me like a physical blow. I hadn't died.

I had landed in the heart of a nightmare’s nest. “So beautiful…” the voice whispered. “I like it…” The vines suddenly jerked, dragging me across the mulch toward the massive trunk.

The monster—whatever it was—nuzzled its tendrils against my cheek, humming with a terrifying, rhythmic excitement. “Pretty wife… so soft… so much better than the others… I want to eat you… I want to keep you…” 5 My eyes snapped wide.

Tears, hot and uncontrollable, began to flood down my face.

Two years in this hellish game, and I had been treated like garbage by the humans I called "family." I had been mocked, ignored, and discarded.

And now, at the very end, the only thing in this entire world that actually wanted me… was a monster. My chest heaved.

I let out a broken, jagged sob, turning my head away in shame. “Thank you,” I choked out. “If you’re going to eat me… please, just make it fast.

I’m so tired of hurting.” The massive tree seemed to flinch. The movement of the vines stopped. “No… no crying…” the voice rasped, sounding genuinely distressed.

A delicate, purple flower sprouted from one of the vines, brushing against my cheek to wipe away a tear. “Don’t eat… won’t eat you… Wife… please, don’t cry…” The vines began to shift again, but this time they weren't binding me.

They were lifting me, carrying me with a strange, clumsy tenderness toward the light far above. “Sending you… back…” Before I could process what was happening, the vines thrust me upward through a hidden crevice.

I stumbled onto the solid ground of the forest floor, gasping for air. I scrambled back to the edge, looking down into the mist, my heart aching with a weird, misplaced grief.

But then, a whip cracked through the air, wrapping around my waist like a serpent and yanking me backward. It was the FrostBolt Whip.

It was Gideon. 6 Gideon retracted the whip with a flick of his wrist.

He didn't look at me as I sprawled on the dirt; he just glanced at Jax. “So this is the ‘suicide’ you were screaming about?” Nearby, Rhett leaned against a tree, a mocking smirk playing on his lips. “Wow.

Our little porcelain doll is actually playing the martyr now. How dramatic.” Jax was still panting, his face red with a mix of leftover fear and rising fury.

He stared at me, his eyes burning with accusation. “You played me,” he growled, stepping over and hauling me up by my collar. “You knew there was a ledge down there.

You knew it wasn't a real drop! You staged the whole thing just to make me look like a fool, didn't you?

All that talk about ‘not having many days left’—you’re just desperate for us to pay attention to you again.” He squeezed my throat, my feet dangling off the ground.

I clawed at his hand, gasping. “I… I didn't… lie…” Jax let out a harsh, cold laugh. “Still acting?” Rhett sighed, checking his nails. “Put him down, Jax. Let Lulu check him.

We don't want him claiming we ‘abused’ him later.” As if on cue, Lulu stepped out from behind a tree, skipping slightly, her wide eyes full of forced innocence. 6 (cont.) “Rowan is perfectly fine!” Lulu chirped, her voice like sugarcoated poison. “I just used my ‘Aura Scan’ skill.

His vitals are stable, and there isn't a trace of toxin in his system. Jax, don't be mad at him. It’s our fault for being so protective of me today.

Rowan just felt left out, so he made up a story. He’s just scared.” Lulu closed her eyes, clasping her hands in prayer.

A soft, white halo shimmered above her head. “Oh, may the Heavens forgive your lies, Rowan.” Looking at her—the picture of pure, unadulterated "goodness"—Jax’s anger seemed to evaporate into a weary sigh.

He dropped me like a piece of trash. “You disgust me,” Jax muttered, turning his back on me.

I curled into a ball on the dirt, clutching my chest where the hidden poison was already beginning to liquefy my insides. Despite the agony, I started to laugh.

It was a small, broken sound. I looked up at Lulu, my eyes cold. “The one who needs to pray for forgiveness isn't me, Lulu.

It’s you.” 7 When we first entered this game, things weren't like this. We were a team. Then, I awakened a passive skill: Allure.

Because of my appearance, the game gave me a natural buff that made NPCs and creatures more likely to be welldisposed toward me. But in Lulu’s mouth, that skill became a weapon.

The day our former Captain, Shaw, died, she stood before the team, sobbing. “Rowan’s skill… it’s not just for monsters. He can manipulate people into loving him.

Captain Shaw didn't die for the mission—he died because Rowan charmed him into throwing his life away.” In that moment, everything changed.

They started looking at me with suspicion, then resentment, then hatred. Every time we faced a boss, I was the one pushed to the front to "charm" the beast while they stood back.

I would burn through my mental energy, keeping the monster at bay while they swooped in for the kill and then walked away from me as if I were a plaguebearer.

Lulu’s lies built a wall between us, stone by stone, until I was the villain in their story—the manipulative, "pretty" little snake.

No matter how much I tried to help, the narrative was already written. 8 “Say whatever you want,” I said, trembling as I forced myself to stand. “I’m leaving the team.

Where I go and how I die is none of your business anymore.” Lulu’s lip quivered, and she looked at Gideon with watery eyes.

Gideon immediately stepped into my path. “What is your problem?” he asked, his voice like ice. He looked at my hand clutching my chest and scoffed. “A cheap trick.

Only Jax was stupid enough to fall for it. Let me be clear: if you keep acting this out, you’d better actually die.

Otherwise, this performance is going to have a very ugly ending.” I didn't answer. I just tried to walk around him.

Gideon’s hand twitched, reaching for me, but he stopped himself—as if he were afraid that touching my skin would somehow "infect" him with my supposed filth.

Instead, he used his whip to bar my way. “Fine,” Gideon said, tossing a small injector of antitoxin at my feet. “If you’re done with the drama, pick that up and get in line.

You can leave the team after we finish this sector. Until then, you will fulfill your obligations as a member.” His eyes were dead. “Rowan, my patience is gone.

Stop acting like a spoiled child.” 9 Once, I would have scrambled for that injector. I would have thanked him with tears in my eyes, desperate for even a crumb of his approval.

But now, I just looked at the silver tube rolling in the dirt. I felt nothing but a vast, empty silence.

According to the rules of The Weeping Woods, once the toxicity level hits 60%, standard injectors are useless.

They might dull the pain for a minute, but the rot is already in the bone. “I don't need it,” I said.

I looked up at him, matching his coldness with a blank stare of my own. “Keep it for yourself.” Gideon froze.

For a split second, I saw something flicker in his eyes—a tiny, sharp spark of confusion. Maybe even a hint of alarm. 10 He recovered instantly. “Suit yourself.

We don't have enough resources to waste on dead weight anyway.” He turned to the others. “Move out. Rhett, watch him.” “With pleasure,” Rhett drawled.

He reached down, picked up the antitoxin I had rejected, and tucked it into Lulu’s pocket. “This is better off with our Lulu anyway.

She’s the one actually doing work.” Lulu looked at me with fauxconcern. “But… shouldn't he…?” “Forget him,” Rhett said, giving me a rough shove in the small of my back. “Move it, little actor.” I stumbled, nearly falling over my own feet.

Behind me, I heard Rhett’s lazy chuckle. “Ha. Look at that. Still faking the limp.” I didn't argue. I just stared at the path ahead, my heart throbbing with a dull, rhythmic ache.

Suddenly, a purple petal drifted from the canopy above, brushing softly against my cheek like a ghost’s kiss. I caught it in my palm and looked back.

In the distance, hidden by the fog, a massive wall of vines was blooming with vibrant, violet flowers. 11 The hours that followed were a blur of agony.

Because Rhett was "babysitting" me, I couldn't even try to end it.

Every time I lagged, he’d make a comment about my "performance" or my "pathological need for attention." He didn't realize that I wasn't looking for attention.

I was looking for an exit. By the third day, the toxicity hit 93%. I collapsed into the mud, my lungs burning as I gasped for air that felt like liquid lead.

The others barely glanced back. “Damn it, the mist is getting thicker,” Jax complained, wiping sweat from his brow. “How much further to the Heart of the Woods?” He looked at Lulu, his voice instantly softening. “You okay, Lu?

Want to take five?” Lulu nodded, pouting about how tired her legs were.

The team immediately called for a break. “Here,” Jax said, tossing a dry protein bar at me before hurrying back to Lulu’s side. “Oh! We have beef jerky today!

And lemon drops!” Lulu cheered. She glanced over at me, a small, triumphant glint in her eyes. I leaned against a mossy trunk, the smell of food making my stomach turn.

While they were busy laughing and sharing their "premium" rations, I dragged myself into the shadows and disappeared. 12 Deep in the woods, I found a black pond.

The water was as still as a mirror, dark as obsidian. I took off my boots and waded in, inch by inch.

As the cold water rose to my waist, I heard a sound—a boy’s clear, bright laughter. I blinked, and the world shifted.

The mist evaporated, the water turned crystal clear, and the sound of birdsong filled the air.

A teenage boy sat by the water’s edge, smiling at the fish. “Hello there, little ones,” he whispered.

I realized with a jolt that this was a phantom memory—a lingering echo of a world that existed before the game took over. I tried to reach out to him, but the vision shattered.

The sky turned black. The pond surged, turning a sickly, visceral red. Pale, severed limbs bobbed to the surface. I scrambled back, falling into the mud.

A shadow coalesced behind me, wrapping its cool, dark arms around my shoulders.

I heard that same raspy voice I’d heard at the bottom of the ravine. “Don’t die in the cold water,” the shadow whispered. “Die in my arms instead… Wife.” 13 The Heart of the Woods.

According to the lore our team had collected, the original guardian of this forest was a sixteenyearold boy named Silas.

Legend said he had tried to stop poachers from killing the sacred deer. In their rage, they had drowned him in this very pond and dismembered his body.

His left eye and lower half were thrown into the water. His upper body was buried beneath the Great Tree. Since then, the mountain had been swallowed by mist.

To appease his spirit, the local villagers used to sacrifice a "bride" every year, throwing them into the ravine.

But the curse never broke. 14 “Are you… the Guardian?” I asked, my voice trembling. The shadow hummed, a shower of dead leaves falling from his form. “I… forgot.

I have been here so long. So lonely. Until you fell.” He buried his face in the crook of my neck. “For the first time, I want something.

I want to keep you.” He squeezed me tighter. “Stay with me. Let the vines grow over us. In the spring, I will grow the most beautiful flowers around your head.

In the summer, I will shade you with my leaves. In the autumn, I will bring you the sweetest berries.

And in the winter… I will wrap myself around you so tight that you will never feel the cold.” I listened to him, and for the first time in years, a strange warmth filled the hollow space in my chest. “That sounds… actually quite nice,” I whispered, a genuine smile touching my lips.

We were both monsters, in a way. Both discarded. If the end meant sleeping beneath a great tree, protected from the world, it wasn't a bad way to go. “Take me now, then,” I said.

Silas didn't answer. A sudden gust of wind blew through the clearing, carrying Jax’s distant, angry shouting.

The shadow dissolved into a pile of dry leaves, vanishing before the team could find me.