“Wasn’t this supposed to be a strategy game?”

“The monster I’m looking for is a high-level one. It’s a dragon-type monster that flies through the sky, killing anyone it comes across.”

Jepar was no longer smiling. Eden realized that the monster was none other than ‘Seruka.’ That meant there was only one thing I had to do.

‘Seruka info.’

Immediately, a window displaying the monster’s information popped up above Jepar’s head.

Eden was hurriedly reading this when a loud, chilling whistle echoed from somewhere.

Fweee—.

Everyone instinctively turned to look. Eden turned as well, but the forest was still and quiet.

“What was that noise?”

When Jepar asked, the person beside him shook his head in confusion.

“I… I don’t know.”

Fweee—.

As the sound grew closer, Eden felt a chill run down her spine. She turned back to the information window.

Eden’s eyes widened as she read this. Then, all of a sudden, a whistle sounded right by her ear.

Fweee—!

Eden immediately shouted,

“Everyone, take cover!”

She grabbed Asmun by the collar and pushed him hard to the side. Both of them tumbled off their horses, while Karon, Jepar, and the sharp-eyed soldiers quickly ducked down.

And…

Fweee!

A colossal shadow swept over their heads, accompanied by an eerily close sound.

“Aaaah!”

In a flash, Seruka swooped down and snatched one of Jepar’s soldiers right off his horse.

“It’s him!”

Everyone froze, staring blankly at the suddenly appearing Seruka. Despite the chaos, Eden strained to keep her focus and read the rest of Seruka’s information.

“What?”

As Eden gasped, Asmun, who had fallen to protect her, frowned. But there was no time to doubt him as the sound of Seruka dropping again filled the air.

Asmun quickly enveloped Eden in his arms, while Karon and Jepar’s soldiers quickly regained their stance, preparing for a counterattack.

“Swords are no good…!”

But it was already too late. Karon had leapt up onto a horse’s back and swung his sword, aiming at Seruka’s neck as its jaws gaped wide.

Bright flashes flickered in the dark forest as Seruka’s massive head fell to the ground, severed. Without its head, Seruka was unable to maintain its balance and plummeted.

Thud!

The ground shook violently under the tremendous weight, and Eden squeezed her eyes shut in fear. The surrounding area fell silent as if a spell had been cast.

It was a surprisingly anticlimactic battle.

“……”

Only after witnessing Seruka’s head completely severed did Asmun finally let go of Eden, who was still held tightly in his embrace.

Eden looked up at the dinosaur-sized body of Seruka.

“I’ve never seen one before.”

Karon wiped the blood from his sword as he gazed at Seruka. Jepar also looked seriously at the twitching corpse of Seruka. Such an easy kill.

“Yeah. It’s been showing up randomly for about ten days, devouring nearly a hundred. It would’ve been better if it had died without losing its head.”

The horrific words came out in a surprisingly indifferent tone. Then,

“Everyone, get back!”

Eden yelled at the top of her lungs.

“The head! The more you cut, the more it regenerates!”

At her absurd claim, everyone’s gaze shifted back to Seruka’s corpse. Right then, just as Eden said, the flesh around the empty neck began to writhe grotesquely—

“Ugh!”

A long neck started to sprout from within.

“Oh no…

Karon muttered a curse under his breath, gripping his sword tightly. Just at that moment, another head popped out next to the first one.

“What the—…”

Karon glared in disbelief.

Rawr—!

Seruka, now with two new heads, glared at Karon with its four eyes. The red glimmers in its eyes were unmistakable signs of its rage.

As it growled and thrashed, Jepar commanded his soldiers,

“Kill it. No matter what.”

At his icy tone, the soldiers moved into action immediately. Magic scrolls were thrown at Seruka without pause. All hopes that magic wouldn’t work turned out to be futile as Seruka’s regenerative abilities kicked in with alarming speed—

“What the hell….”

Seruka was growing uncontrollably bizarre and massive.

“Priest! Do you see any weaknesses?”

Karon, who had rushed to Eden’s side, asked desperately. Eden’s face was pale, and she couldn’t string a sentence together, just gaping.

“If there are none, we should leave this to the Grand Duke and retreat.”

Asmun replied coldly, annoyed at being pulled into this mess, and Karon frowned.

“Are you really saying there are none?”

Karon’s voice grew frantic. Eden bit her lip.

Of course, Seruka was ultimately just a monster designed by the creator, which meant it would have weaknesses.

But…

‘The creator, XX, is seriously insane.’

Eden silently cursed while clenching her fist. Entering from within meant she would have to be eaten by that monster, as the last paragraph said.

How else could she cut it from the inside?

‘What kind of crazy person would risk that just based on an apprentice priest’s words?!’

Of course, that crazy person was right next to her. Eden glanced at Karon, who seemed determined not to leave without defeating Seruka.

As Eden hesitated, unable to respond easily, Karon tightened his grip on his sword, preparing to dive back into battle. Knowing it was futile, yet seeing no other way.

Attacks were still pouring out from Jepar’s side, with no sign of the expensive scrolls running out.

Clearly, Jepar had come prepared to take down Seruka today.

If they failed to kill Seruka, the losses would be significant for both sides. Perhaps Karon, Jepar, Asmun, and maybe even Eden would be at risk.

‘Damn it…’

Eden bit her lip, trying to think of what to do when suddenly—

“Aaaah!”

Seruka snatched one of the soldiers. Everyone froze in shock as the furious Seruka gripped him tightly, ready to crush him.

“Aaaah! Please, no!”

As the sound of cracking bones echoed, Eden’s eyes filled with shock.

“Aaaah! Save me!”

As the screams redoubled, Eden’s body stiffened. This was an entirely different kind of fear than the game-like scenario where monsters died. A ‘person’ was dying right in front of her.

“Attack!”

More attacks rained down, but the enraged Seruka showed no sign of releasing its hostage. The soldier screamed in agony as his bones snapped.

In the midst of the chaos, Eden’s heart raced uncontrollably.

‘Wait… This isn’t a game.’

Eden’s face went pale as she covered her mouth. The soldier couldn’t withstand the incredible force and fainted, hanging limply. Seeing that, Eden couldn’t think, ‘Just another NPC dying.’

The situation right before her was nothing short of reality. The reality that had unfolded because she accepted an event quest.

“We need to go back and bring in more forces.”

Asmun, who was relatively calm, suggested this, but Karon countered,

“We can’t just leave them here.”

“Then the Commander of the Holy Knights can stay behind.”

Asmun retorted coldly, turning to find Eden, trying to grab her to escape—only to freeze in place.

“Priest…?”

Eden, who had been behind him, had vanished without a trace. Startled, Asmun and Karon heard hurried footsteps. As they turned, they saw Eden rushing by, leaping onto a horse.

“Priest!”

Karon called out to Eden in shock. Asmun, stunned by her sudden action, noticed the sword in her hands and frowned. A sharp sensation hit him at the back of his head as his gaze shot toward his scabbard.

“…!”

As expected, the scabbard was empty. Asmun looked back at Eden, realizing the sword she held was his. Finally comprehending what Eden was trying to do, he sprang to his feet.