As soon as she landed, she spun around sharply, eyes locking onto me.
But I was already gone.
I appeared right behind her.
She reacted instantly, stabbing backward with the arrow in her hand like it was a dagger.
But I caught her wrist mid-thrust.
"It’s over," I said with a small grin. "You did well, Hawkeye."
She glared at me, breathing hard.
For a second, I thought she was going to attack again, refuse to accept the end.
But then... the tension drained from her shoulders. The fire in her eyes dimmed.
She slowly withdrew her hand.
"I failed," she muttered, eyes downcast.
"You didn’t," I said firmly. "You’re a great archer, Zarah."
"So I’ll go with you tomorrow," she said almost instantly. Eagerness in her eyes.
"Certainly," I replied with a nod.
That made her grin, though she quickly looked away, trying to hide it.
She’s cute, I thought. But scary as well.
Because seriously... what was that?
I turned to glance at the area where she’d fired to pin me down and saw three arrows half-buried in the earth—one of them still vibrating slightly from the force of impact.
"You really don’t hold back, do you?"
"I’m weak," Zarah said without hesitation. "I can’t afford to."
I paused for a moment, then gave a small nod.
That... actually made a lot of sense.
"Well, you won’t be weak," I said, stretching my arms. "Not for long."
Zarah tilted her head. "So... are we finally going hunting?"
"Not tonight," I replied.
Before she could ask why, I activated [Warp].
We blinked away, reappearing deeper in the forest—right at the base of a massive tree.
This was where I planned to complete the last task in my daily quest:
• Scale a steep hill or tall tree.
But just as I looked up, to access the height—A low growl stopped me cold.
Zarah who I was still holding whispered.
From one of the upper branches, a sleek shape moved.
Its eyes glowed faintly, muscles tensed and ready to pounce.
[Wild Leopard – Level 8]
Of course another beast had taken up residence in the tree. It made sense—this was prime territory for any predator in the forest.
But this wasn’t some powerful apex creature.
Just a level 8 leopard.
Not even worth the effort if I was thinking about XP.
The beast moved with grace, climbing down the trunk with impressive agility. Then it crouched low—and lunged at us.
Zarah immediately tried to pull her hand free, instinctively reaching for her bow.
But I tightened my grip, keeping her hand locked in place.
She gave me a confused, slightly panicked look—like she was wondering if I’d suddenly lost my mind.
But I wasn’t being reckless.
I blinked high into the air, just a few meters above the massive tree with Zarah.
Then I activated [Swap], exchanging Zarah’s position with the leopard’s.
In an instant, I was holding one of the beast’s front paws—
While Zarah was now safely on the ground.
The leopard twisted mid-air, clearly disoriented by the sudden shift. It caught sight of me and immediately swiped with its claws, trying to lash out.
But gravity was already doing its job.
And I helped it along with a swift, merciless kick to the ribs.
The beast let out a sharp snarl as it plummeted downward—straight toward the forest floor.
It crashed to the ground with a heavy, bone-jarring thud, and let out a strangled cry—painful, but not final.
The fall hadn’t killed it... just left it battered, probably with a few broken bones. It struggled to rise, one paw twisted awkwardly beneath it.
I blinked down beside Zarah.
"Finish it off. " I said calmly.
Still spooked from what had just happened.
"You’ll level up from it," I added. "Consider it a reward for your earlier display."
That seemed to get through to her.
While Zarah drew her bow, eyes fixed on the wounded leopard, I turned my attention to the tree.
I took a deep breath—
Then started to climb.
It was harder than I expected. The bark was rough, and my hands stung from gripping uneven grooves. I slipped more than once, nearly losing my footing.
But I pushed through.
And after a slow, careful ascent, I reached a sturdy branch high above the ground.
[Daily Quest Complete]
[You have received a Healing Potion.]
[You have received 3 Free Stat Points.]
[You have received 1 Item.]
The rewards popped up one by one.
They were similar to what I’d gotten from penalty quests—
A healing potion, three stat points, and one mystery item.
What is this item exactly?
A magic artifact? A potion?
I now had two of these mystery rewards sitting in my inventory, unopened.
Curiosity got the better of me.
So I chose to open the first one.
[You have received item: Pen]
Write out your grievances.
I blinked at the message. Then stared at the item again.
I froze, unsure whether to laugh or feel insulted.
And what was with that cryptic line beneath it?
Write out your grievances?
Was this supposed to be some sort of joke?
Unfortunately... it wasn’t.
A soft flash of light pulsed in front of me, and a pen materialized—falling right into my hand.
I stared at it, mouth slightly open in disbelief.
It was... an actual pen.
Black body, silver tip. Ink included.
For surviving the penalty zone? For grinding through danger and clawing my way out?
Write out my grievances?
At least pair it up with a notepad.
I clenched the pen in my fist, resisting the overwhelming urge to hurl it into the forest.
Deep breath, Eli... deep breaths...
I exhaled slowly, calming myself.
No point in losing it over a pen.
Who knows. Maybe the second item was something useful.
There was no way the system would troll me twice in a row... right?
I opened the second item, bracing myself but hoping for something—anything—better.
[You have received item: Towel]
Cleanse your sweat after completing your daily quests.