A Tree in White

The moon hung high above, its silver light spilling through the jagged canopy like liquid glass. It was the only thing keeping me tethered, the one faint reminder of beauty in this suffocating darkness.

Each step felt heavier than the last, as though I was wading deeper into a swamp, sinking into an uncertain future that threatened to pull me under.

I was lucky—too lucky. So far, no beasts had crossed my path.

But luck is fragile in a place like this.

There were moments I had to throw myself into the bushes, clutching my breath as my heart slammed against my ribs. Shadows moved past me, grotesque silhouettes in the darkness. Their guttural sounds sent cold shivers crawling across my skin.

In those moments, I prayed—not to any god, but to anything listening—that they wouldn't notice me.

Darkness… it does strange things to the human heart. It makes cowards of us all.

Naive.

That's what I was.

I should've waited until morning. I should've prepared more. But no—I had rushed in headlong, thinking determination alone would carry me.

Naive. Still too naive.

I didn't even know how much time had passed. My feet were moving, but sluggishly now. My steps faltered, losing their strength.

And then… I stopped.

Because suddenly, impossibly, it was there.

A tree—pure white—towering in front of me.

Its bark was smooth and pale, glowing faintly as though it drank the moonlight itself. Its twisted branches stretched high, like skeletal arms trying to claw at the stars.

I hadn't seen it a moment ago.

It wasn't there.

Now it was.

A sharp chill stabbed down my spine.

The forest was silent—deathly so—as if even the monsters feared this place.

I stood frozen, unable to tear my eyes from it.

Had I found the tree… or had it found me?

This didn't make sense.

It shouldn't make sense.

And yet, here it was.

I stood frozen, staring at it.

My breath came heavy and uneven as I forced myself forward. One step. Then another.

It loomed before me now, impossibly still, as though it were waiting.

My hand trembled as I reached out.

The moment my fingers brushed against the rough surface of its bark, a wave of cold shot through me.

For a heartbeat, nothing happened. Only silence.

Then—

A blinding white light erupted from the tree, swallowing my vision.

I gasped, but the sound caught in my throat as an unseen force yanked me forward.

Before I could react, before I could even think, the world around me vanished.

I was falling.

No—floating.

Suspended in a vast, formless space that defied all sense of direction.

The air—or whatever passed for air here—was thick and heavy. It pressed against me like invisible chains.

Panic clawed at my chest. My body refused to respond. I couldn't move. Couldn't speak. Even breathing felt like an act of rebellion.

Time passed.

Seconds? Hours? Days?

I couldn't tell.

I wasn't sure I wanted to.

Then—

> [ "For the Heavens to Blossom… you must first understand Death." ]

The voice came from everywhere and nowhere all at once.

Mechanical. Hollow. Too deep, too resonant to belong to any human throat.

The words sank into me like cold iron.

> [ "First Trial: The Death of a Hundred." ]

My stomach dropped.

A trial? Here?

There had been no mention of this in the novel. Not a single word about trials or conditions.

A fresh wave of dread surged through me.

If I didn't survive this…

At least I tried.

The void shuddered violently, as if reality itself were tearing apart.

Light—blinding and merciless—engulfed me once more.

And then—

Nothing.

I felt myself being dragged deeper into the abyss, helpless against its pull, until everything went black.

---

My eyes snapped open.

Shock jolted through me like lightning.

I tried to stand—instinct, raw and desperate—but my body betrayed me.

My legs buckled. I crumpled to the ground, my head smacking against hard-packed dirt. Pain flared, but it was distant, dulled by confusion.

What the hell…?

Grit clung to my face, grinding into my skin as I turned my head with agonizing effort.

A blazing sun stared down from above, merciless and unflinching. Heat scorched my body, searing my skin, baking me alive.

Where… am I?

With labored breaths, I tilted my head to the side.

A broken-down colony stretched out before me—crumbling shacks, splintered beams, and the faint stench of decay.

People.

Dozens of them, sprawled across the dirt like lifeless dolls. Some groaned weakly, others didn't move at all.

Panic clawed at my throat as I tried to speak.

Nothing.

My mouth was a desert—dry, cracked, and burning. Not a drop of saliva.

Thirst.

The word echoed through my skull, growing louder with every heartbeat.

I needed water. I needed it now.

But my limbs wouldn't obey.

My arms felt like sandbags. My legs were iron weights, bolted to the ground.

It was like I wasn't even in my own body anymore.

Move.

Move, damn it!

I screamed in my head, but no sound left my lips.

The prison of this useless, fragile body tightened around me.

Was this Mikael's body? Or someone else's?

Nothing made sense.

Time dragged its claws across me, slow and merciless.

Hours bled into days.

The sun came and went. Hunger hollowed me out. Thirst set my throat on fire. My cracked lips bled. My vision blurred until the world melted into a haze of heat and dust.

Every breath became a war.

Please… stop.

But it didn't.

Not yet.

I don't know when my thoughts dulled, when even desperation faded.

Only the truth remained.

Death.

Pure and simple.

Hunger and thirst gnawed the last scraps of life from me until my eyes slid shut.

They didn't open again.

My second death in this world.

---

My eyes shot open.

Again.

This time, I didn't try to move. I already knew—my body wouldn't respond.

A salty, metallic stench assaulted my nose.

The air was thick, heavy, almost liquid.

Where…?

A faint drip… drip… drip… echoed somewhere in the distance.

The ground beneath me was cold, slick. My fingers twitched weakly against it.

Wet…?

Not water.

Blood.

I tried to turn my head. Muscles screamed in protest, but I forced it anyway.

All around me were bodies—mangled, torn apart like paper. Eyes stared blankly into nothing. Mouths frozen in silent screams.

The metallic stench became overwhelming, coating my tongue, making me gag.

I wasn't in a colony anymore.

This was a cave.

No light. No warmth.

Only darkness and that awful, rhythmic drip… drip… drip…

Then I heard it.

Shuffling.

Something was moving in the dark.

A low growl rumbled from the shadows.

Every instinct in my body screamed predator.

Move! my mind shrieked, but my body ignored me.

I couldn't even flinch as the sound grew closer.

Click… click… click…

Claws. Long, hooked claws scraping against stone.

My chest heaved. My breath came in short, sharp gasps.

I could feel it now—its presence.

Cold. Ancient. Hungry.

A pair of glowing eyes appeared in the dark.

Amber like molten gold.

Locked on me.

The thing didn't pounce immediately.

It circled. Slow. Patient.

It's toying with me.

The thought made me want to scream, but no sound came.

Then, with no warning, it struck.

Pain exploded in my side as teeth sank deep into flesh.

I couldn't even thrash, couldn't fight back as it dragged me across the stone floor. My vision went red.

The last thing I saw was its massive jaws clamping down on my neck.

Crunch.

Darkness swallowed me whole.

[Second Death – Complete]

[98 Deaths Remaining]