20 Death Flower

The dizziness made him fall to the ground on one knee. His breathing was ragged but he was breathing slowly in and out to calm himself down.

Levi didn't see the attack come. He wasn't sure if the bear was the one or some other monster decided to meddle.

Though he'd be damned if he would let himself die or lose consciousness again. Levi reckoned that if he showed the slightest of weaknesses, all the hard work of making the creatures fearful would disappear.

Just like when he was in his Hub, his flesh started moving on its own — mending the broken pieces together. It was a shame because that would leave a scar.

"That was close." He let out a sigh of relief.

[At least you didn't die.]

The system was utterly impressed with his unwavering will. A will that caused the creatures around them to start to fear and respect him.

It worked perfectly because they were no longer attacking.

His happy energy leaked onto the unknown territory around him, as he skinned the bear for its hide. He was happily humming as he did. He'd never done animals but he found the job wasn't too different.

Levi made careful incisions on the ankles and wrists of the creature using the stingers he'd fashioned into weapons. He was a bit of a geeky nerd in his previous life so of course he'd read about this.

[You really do enjoy cutting things up huh?]

It noticed how suddenly calm he was, that's when it knew that their job, their main goal into this world wouldn't come easy. Not when the host enjoyed killing to this extent.

"Don't worry system, I've felt what it's like to have something ripped from you. I'll do try my best not to kill."

Even as he said that, he wasn't convincing enough. The system decided to let him be for a while, its job was to guide him and it would be damned if it failed its mission.

Managing to completely separate the hide and the meat, he had to wash it somehow but a body of water was nowhere to be seen.

"I have to wash this before scraping the meat and fat off of it." He bit his lip.

[Searching...There's Nyx Valley a mile from here but I don't recommend it though because...]

It didn't get to finish and Levi was already running in that direction. The last thing he wanted was for it to dry before making it a proper fabric for clothing.

Getting there quicker, he dropped the meat by the river. He warily looked around to ensure he was alone and there was nothing creeping on him, there were flowers on the bank.

Kneeling to get a closer look, he recognised the beautiful red flowers that had a crown on its head and stamens resembling the legs of a spider.

"I know this." He smiled a little remembering good times from his past life.

[Death flower...]

Levi could feel a familiar but strange energy coming from them, he made a mental note to get a good look at them when he was done and entered the murky waters.

The system didn't have time to tell him that the river was used to transport the dead, so it was full of unfortunate souls. But surprisingly they didn't bother him as he worked on the pelt.

He couldn't see anything but he felt a great sense of uneasiness. There was nothing more important to him at the moment than to make himself something to wear.

Moving from this to that, he even started a fire too at some point. Boiling the brains of the bear to smear all over the pelt before soaking it again in Nyx Valley.

It had been long since he ate anything tangible, so he started roasting the bear. But the meat tasted like death. He only hoped not every creature tasted like this because he was sure about one thing, the place he was abandoned in was most likely remote.

He did all the necessary stages, even used the fire's smoke to dry it. Now came the real challenging job, sewing together the fabric, making pants and a shirt or jersey.

Levi forced the giant spiders to give him threads and used their pincers as needles. Doing all this by himself brought a big sense of self-worth, it was exhilarating.

After weeks of working on clothes, he finally managed pants although they were a bit big. He didn't mind, he was a growing boy after all. He simply rolled up the helm.

As for a shirt, he didn't even try. It was just too complicated. So he opted for a cloak with a hoody. It had fur so it was warm.

"Finally, I feel like a person again. Being naked is truly the most humiliating form."

[Well done Master.]

The system was utterly impressed. What was even more impressive was the fact that Nyx Valley seemed to have strengthened his fabric but of course the owner was oblivious to that fact.

With a full stomach and clothed he felt a bit tired. Though he knew sleeping here was suicide, so he walked up to the flower. Touching it, a surge of energy was sucked into his Hub.

It was electrifying so he quickly jerked his hand away from it. "What the hell?"

[Strange power, maybe don't absorb it? We don't know what it's going to do.]

Feeling rebellious, Levi did the complete opposite. The first thing he told the afterlife system was that he wouldn't be controlled, so he was following through with that deal.

He would live this life the way he wanted to. Given he stayed away from killing, the system wouldn't punish him and his soul will he safe.

He sat on the riverbank and started touching each flower, taking in their energy. An energy he didn't think would create any changes within himself.

Apart from the deathly sense he got from it, it wasn't that different from Gi. He concluded that it must've been Gi but for the dead.