[System activating]
[ Mana source detected... ]
[ Revitalization of host ]
[ Processing ... ]
[ ... ]
[ ... ]
[ Revitalization complete ]
A monotone voice that sounded awfully like Francesco's reverberated in Ossa's mind, one that was not still conscious.
The dark green glow on Ossa's body dimmed, but not before it gave the young girl a fright.
Seeing a skeleton was one thing, but to have it glow with an eerie light made it even worse.
The little girl, who had stumbled, crawled as she tried to get away from the skeleton, which still lay there motionless.
"Wait... I don't need to run; the pup is not here. It might have left me behind without knowing. I guess I will not get to die at its parents' hands...Maybe the skeleton can have... Yeah, the skeleton can kill me." Her thoughts rang as she stopped crawling, turned her back, and looked at the unmoving skeleton with an awkward smile.
A smile that was painful to watch, screaming, "I have accepted my fate."
Resolving herself to die by the skeleton's hands, she slowly and hesitantly walked towards the skeletal figure. It resembled an earthwork, beautifully and naturally integrated into the soil, with flowers blooming on its bony structure.
"Mr. Skeleton, please don't let it hurt," the girl said painfully as she placed her hand on the skeleton's body, expecting it to devour her on contact.
In response to the touch, Ossa's eye sockets, which were usually hollow, lit up with a dark green light that flickered from time to time.
The young girl, seeking death, jumped back in fright when she noticed Ossa's eyes.
Ossa, unmoving for centuries, started to twitch as it moved its body, slowly pushing itself out of the earth that had almost become part of it.
The girl looked in horror as the skeleton pushed the earth from it, rising, vines ripping, moss and dust pouring off its body.
"Why do I want to run away... I shouldn't run, I want to die," she thought, trying to resolve herself to die, but her little hands shook with anxiety and fear as Ossa stood up completely, the dark green flickering light serving as its eyes stared at her, its thoughts unknown.
"Stop shaking, dammit..." She held her shaking hand, pressing it, as she tried to calm herself.
"Remember you are not wanted; you have no reason to live. It's best to die... So stop shaking," she said out loud, tears running down her face.
Ossa, who had just woken up, could not make heads or tails of what was going on. Like a newborn, his green eyes darted around, curious about everything.
His gaze stopped on the girl as he noticed her crying. He continued to stare, and before he knew it, he started moving toward the young girl in tattered clothes, her silver hair almost unrecognizable as it was dirty and disheveled.
The girl's tears fell, her eyes closed as she tried to fight her natural instinct, which was telling her to keep on living.
Her eyes still closed, she felt a cold, slim bony object brush her cheeks, seemingly trying to wipe away the tears.
"That's cold," she exclaimed, opening her eyes to meet those of Ossa, whose face was a few inches away from hers.
Surprised and frightened, she moved back, creating distance between them.
Ossa looked at her with curiosity, his body bent in the same position he was in when he was trying to wipe away her tears.
"Was it trying to help me?" the girl thought as she looked at Ossa curiously.
He, in turn, looked at her, still creepily bent in the same position.
"Mr. Skeleton, are you a nice skeleton?" she innocently inquired, staring at Ossa with her wide crimson eyes.
Ossa, who could not understand her, continued to look at her.
"It seems it does not understand me," she thought. "Hey, do you understand me?" She inquired, now approaching the skeleton.
She slowly, but without fear, walked towards Ossa and once again inquired.
"Can you hear me... If so, nod," she said.
Ossa, who could not hear her, did not move, still in his position, his green eyes locked on her, trying to understand the creature before him.
GROWL!!! GROWL!!!
The little girl heard sounds behind her, turning to see the pup back, snarling at Ossa.
"Hey... You came back, did you find your parents?" The girl asked, now approaching the creature that barked and growled at Ossa.
She abruptly stopped in her tracks, not because of the pup's bark but because she sensed danger.
Before her thoughts could race and her body moved, three adult shadow wolves jumped toward her, their black pelts strangely shimmering in the light of dusk.
She froze in fear as the creatures were in mid-air, their target, her small body.
Ossa, feeling a strong attraction and curiosity, dashed towards her, his arms crossed to shield them from the sharp fangs of the shadow wolves.
Stunned by the sudden appearance of the skeleton, the three predators jumped back.
They moved, circling Ossa and the little girl.
"Wolf!"
The pup jumped into the fray, taking a bite at the ear of one of the predators as he was not part of them.
When it had parted with the girl after taking the lead, it realized it had left her behind and came back to get her.
As he moved back, he was spotted by shadow wolves from a different pack, curious about the lone pup they followed, bringing us to our current predicament.
Whine!!!
The pup whimpered as it was easily thrown off from the adult wolf's head, crushing him on the ground.
"No!!!" The girl screamed as she saw the pup hit the ground.
Involuntarily, she rushed towards it, through an opening created by the wolves.
Noticing an opportunity, one of the wolves melted into the shadows of the forest leaves, which could almost dissolve into the darkness that was slowly creeping in.
It emerged behind the girl who had now squatted in front of the pup, brushing her hand through its fur, trying to comfort it.
With its jaw opened, it tried to take a bite out of the girl's neck.
Ossa, from nowhere, appeared in front of the predator, stabbing its bony fingers into the creature's opened mouth.
[Ding, Killed normal shadow wolf]
##########
#. #.
The Novel is participating in this year's WSA, show your support through comments, power stones and golden tickets. They go a long way to let others also notice the book.
Thank you.