Chapter 15: Spending the Night on the Crane

Chapter 15: Chapter 15: Spending the Night on the Crane

Seraphina Sullivan made an instant decision and moved quickly toward the waterfall.

The rain-slicked ground made her footing slippery, but she couldn’t afford to worry about that now.

As she got closer, the roar of the waterfall grew louder, and a fine mist filled the air.

However, when she finally reached the last stretch of the path leading to the waterfall, the sight before her brought her to a screeching halt.

A long bridge spanning the canyon blocked her path, but its center had been blasted away, leaving a massive gap.

Twisted rebar jutted out menacingly.

The entire bridge was split in two.

A warning sign stood at the head of the bridge, with words scrawled in bright red paint: [MILITARY RESTRICTED AREA - DO NOT CROSS]

"What in the world happened here?" Seraphina Sullivan muttered to herself.

She crouched down and found several shell casings and scorched marks at the head of the bridge.

The military had clearly engaged in a fierce firefight with parasitic creatures here, even blowing up the bridge to stop something from spreading.

Seraphina Sullivan gazed unwillingly at the other side. The waterfall was within arm’s reach, yet the broken bridge made it unattainable.

Her plan to pitch a tent by the waterfall was completely ruined.

Just then, she suddenly felt the rain stop.

Seraphina Sullivan jerked her head up to see the last sliver of twilight being swallowed by darkness.

Strange, overlapping howls echoed from the distance. The parasitic mutants lurking in the shadows were about to become active.

"Damn it!" Seraphina Sullivan gritted her teeth and scanned her surroundings, suddenly noticing a tall crane towering over a nearby construction site.

Its yellow steel frame stood out in the twilight, and the operator’s cab was at least twenty meters off the ground.

’Hiding up there should be enough to stay safe for the night, right?’

Seraphina Sullivan’s eyes lit up.

At that height, it would take the parasitic mutants some time to climb.

Plus, the view from up there was wide open, allowing Seraphina to spot any approaching danger in advance.

’I can make it over there!’

With that thought, Seraphina Sullivan sprinted toward the construction site.

But as the sky grew darker, the surrounding shadows seemed to come alive, each dark corner appearing to hide a deadly threat.

Although it wasn’t raining, pools of water still covered the ground, which might buy some time.

Reaching the base of the crane, Seraphina Sullivan tilted her head back to look at the towering steel frame and couldn’t help but swallow.

’It’s so high. What if I fall?’

But she didn’t hesitate. She grabbed the cold steel frame and began to climb.

"Boohoo, why couldn’t I have started out invincible!"

To distract herself, Seraphina Sullivan started complaining, even cursing out her heartless boss.

CREAK— The rusted metal made a sound that set her teeth on edge.

When Seraphina was halfway up, a gust of wind blew through the night, causing the entire crane to sway slightly.

Seraphina’s heart nearly leaped out of her chest. Her fingers gripped the steel frame so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

’Don’t look down... Don’t look down...’ she repeated to herself, forcing her gaze upward toward the operator’s cab.

Sweat soaked her back, mingling with the lingering rainwater and making her clothes cling clammily to her skin.

Finally, her trembling hand found the handle of the cab door.

After scrambling inside with the last of her strength, Seraphina Sullivan immediately locked the door and used a seatbelt to strap herself tightly into the operator’s chair.

WHOOSH— She let out a long sigh of relief, only then realizing her legs were shaking uncontrollably.

Through the cab’s dusty glass window, the dead-silent town unfolded before Seraphina Sullivan like a grim tapestry.

Pale moonlight spilled onto the empty streets, casting an eerie, silvery-gray pall over everything.

In the distance, a few twisted, dark figures squirmed about with unnatural movements.

They would stop intermittently, craning their mutated necks to sniff the air.

Then they would suddenly accelerate, lunging into a corner with the twitching movements of a marionette.

Under the moonlight, their deformed limbs cast long, spindly, spider-like shadows on the ground.

Seraphina Sullivan subconsciously tightened her grip on the seatbelt, her knuckles turning white from the pressure.

She reached into her Space and pulled out a dry towel to wipe her still-dripping hair.

The damp strands clinging to her neck irritated her.

"This long hair is so getting in the way," she muttered. "I’m definitely cutting it short after this dungeon is over."

Seraphina Sullivan had taken off her Anti-Poison Mask a while ago. The moment she read in the newspaper that the infestation was caused by the Parasitic Bloodworm, she had stored the mask in her Space.

But now, she took out another item.

The [Analysis Glasses].

The glasses had two abilities perfect for nighttime observation.

[Night Vision Mode] and [Remote Locking]

She put on the glasses.

"Night Vision Mode, activate," she whispered.

Seraphina Sullivan looked outside.

The world before Seraphina’s eyes suddenly became as bright as day.

The world was cast in the deep green of a night-vision display.

It showed the very place where she had seen the dark figures earlier.

Seraphina then had the Analysis Glasses activate their Remote Locking ability.

The distant parasitic mutant became clearly visible—it was a parasitized stray dog, its spine piercing through its skin in a jagged ridge.

Beside it was a human mutant, its limbs elongated to a grotesque degree, using sharp bone claws to dig through a trash can.

Suddenly, all the mutants froze.

It was as if they had discovered something.

In unison, they turned to face the same direction.

Seraphina quickly adjusted the angle of her glasses.

At the far end of the street, a figure was running, stumbling as they went.

Judging by their clothes, it was clearly another Player who had entered the dungeon, just like Seraphina.

Seraphina immediately focused, using the Remote Locking function of her Analysis Glasses to activate [Eye of Resume] on the frantically fleeing figure.

[Name: Marcus Maxwell]

[Gender: Male]

[Professional Skills: Talent: Plant Control: Can manipulate plants to grow rapidly]

[Weaknesses: Afraid of the dark!]

[Note: One of the Players randomly selected by the system]

"A Player?" Seraphina’s brow furrowed, but her attention was quickly recaptured by the scene before her.

The two parasitic mutants—the deformed stray dog and the human mutant with twisted limbs—had spotted Marcus Maxwell and were now lunging at him with incredible speed!

The canine mutant opened its gaping, bloody maw, drool flying everywhere.

Meanwhile, the human mutant’s bone claws glinted coldly as they aimed straight for Marcus Maxwell’s throat!

However, Marcus Maxwell wasn’t just going to stand there and die.

He suddenly whipped a handful of seeds from his pocket and flung them at the two attacking monsters!

"Talent: Plant Control—Grow!"

In an instant, the seeds sprouted wildly in mid-air. Countless vines shot out like living things, immediately wrapping around the limbs of the two parasitic mutants!

The canine mutant, its throat bound by thick vines, made a choked, whimpering sound.

The human mutant, meanwhile, was tripped by the vines and slammed to the ground, struggling to tear away its bindings.

"Amazing!" Seraphina couldn’t help but whisper. "That Talent isn’t just for planting, it can be used for attacking too?"

However, before she could finish her thought, something unexpected happened!