The desert seemed endless under the moon, shining bright in the distance, but the soothing wind made the experience a bit more bearable.

After walking for hours, the scenery gradually changed.

From the untouched sea of sand, were now emerging remnants of old civilization.

Ruins, huh

She scoffed, clearing her dry throat.

Coming across buildings, albeit ancient, seems encouraging, but I can't help but wonder for how long I have to keep going straight.

The weather is decent, and I don't have any symptoms of hunger or thirst, but still, not having any supplies fuels my anxiety.

After a while, she spotted a small stone cottage, in the middle of the ruins.

This will work as a base, for now. It may not be ideal for living, but I guess it's pretty acceptable for one night since I am pretty tired.

She yawned, and after approaching the building, entered and laid down

It's big enough for one person and it works as a shelter, so I guess this...is...fine...

She fell asleep on the cold hard stone but did not pay it any mind.

The sun, pointing right at her face, awakened her from her slumber.

Morning to me.

After a few vigorous yawns, she opened her eyes and looked around.

It's so quiet and peaceful.

At that moment, she noticed.

A small, little blue marble rested right next to her hand.

Upon closer analysis, there was the number 11 on it.

...incredibly suspicious.

But I don't have that much choice either.

I will take it.

She enveloped the little marble in her hand.

Soon a screen prompt appeared in front of her eyes.

>

Temporary skill?

This seems familiar, but needless to say, I have whatsoever no recollection, interesting.

>

>

>

>

>

A frontflip does not seem helpful at the moment, but isn't it kind of cool?

Plus, now it's safe to assume that there are more of these Containers.

Leading to the evidence that the utility range of those temporary skills may vary depending on factors that, right now, I don't have any knowledge of.

The prompt screen vanished in mid-air, leaving no trace.

In high spirits, the girl stored the marble in a pocket of her pants and departed.

The area, at first showing occasionally remnants of what seemed to be houses, opened up in a beautiful untouched valley.

The sand under her feet was no more, and in its place, the soft and fresh grass filled the area, revealing, right in front of her, a breathtaking view.

The dunes were now replaced by towering snowy mountains at the right and left border of the path, inviting the girl to adventure through.

The broad blue sky, the majestic waterfalls, and the vibrant flora completed the landscape.

The intense wind, blowing her hair, gave her a push.

Refreshed and excited, the girl proceeded forward, full of hope.

She did not look behind.

The girl decided to head towards the waterfall, which seemed to be the best place to set up a shelter to quench her thirst, now exceptionally strong.

The natural trail leading to her destination was crammed with exceptionally vivid flowers and plants, creating a picturesque and eye-catching environment.

Bees and butterflies were freely flying around the beautiful meadows.

The girl approached one of the flowers.

A bloomed calendula, this place sure is peaceful, isn't it?"

I'd love to take one, but in my pockets, it would just wither, so I am not going to bother.

I still need to take care of my thirst, so I'd better move on.

She walked following the path, which was getting steeper the more she advanced, stopping for a few seconds now and then to regain her breath.

The waterfall ahead of her was giving her the strength to keep going.

Her muscles were sore, her throat was dry, and her stomach was empty.

Her body was not in the best conditions to proceed, but she advanced.

Suddenly, she noticed that her feet were drenched in water.

The loud burbling of the waterfall welcomed the girl.

Her instincts took over, and upon looking at the small lake at the base of the waterfall, she dived right into it.

She gulped down the water, and her sense of self slowly came back to her.

"This is so good!" she yelled, looking at the pristine emerald green water all around her.

Checking if the marble was still in her pants, and upon confirming it, she removed her clothes and placed them on the edge of the lake, enjoying her bath, almost to the point of falling asleep.

The cold water pampered her and, after being satisfied, she exited the lake and relaxed, to dry up.

Looking at the panorama, thanks to her high point of view, a castle was detected in the distance.

It was not close, but not far either.

Should I go there? I need some new clothes, and not only that, I need to gather some intel.

But, for whatever reason, I am not quite fond of the idea of seeing other people.

Whatever, now that I am not thirsty anymore, I will need to take care of my hunger.

She inspected a nearby blue and round plant, touched it, and went for it.

Let's hope it's edible!

It was slightly crunchy on the surface, but the inside was juicy and rich in taste.

The flavor reminded her of mint and lemon.

Now satisfied, she closed her eyes, started sunbathing, and fell asleep.

She woke up at night.

The moon was high in the sky, sending a reflection into the lake.

Her surroundings, which during the day were bustling with life, were now replaced by absolute quiet, only interrupted by the regular burbling of the waterfall.

Standing up, her body had gotten used to its weight, and there was no trace of the pain that had been experienced the precedent morning.

Moving around, the muscle soreness was gone.

With her body in good shape, she wore her clothes, now dried up completely, and headed down the path.

I will eventually go take a look at the castle, but for now, I want to improve my body physical strength and endurance.

She took a stone from the ground, strayed from the path, and started marking trees with an arrow pointing towards the route, going deep into a forest.

Beech and Birch's trees were scattered around the place, but thanks to the moonlight she had a clear vision of her surroundings.

Zealously marking every tree, she kept going, until her nose picked up a strong scent.

This smell... Isn't it blood?

Cautiously walking towards the smell, she finally found a dead deer.

Several teeth marks were on its body, hinting that there were predators in the area.

She carefully examined the corpse.

Large and sharp claws tore its neck apart, blood is still gushing out.

She switched her attention to the ground and noticed a large number of footprints.

Wolves, a whole lot of them.

I wonder why they left, but it has nothing to do with me.

She refined the stone, sharpening its tip, and started skinning the deer to collect the pelt.

Placing the deer, belly up, the girl sliced its genitals and removed the musk glands.

She stopped for cleaning and sharpening the stone tip and resumed her job.

Splitting masterfully the hide from the tail to what was left of the throat, she peeled off the hide back on each side and opened the chest cavity by cutting one side of the sternum.

Since it was impossible to accurately cut the gullet, the girl beheaded the deer to ease the skinning process.

She cut off its bladder, removed it, and threw it away.

By pushing the anus into the open body cavity, the skin was now ready.

She rolled the carcass, to let all the blood drain out and removed the hide making cuts above the legs.

Cleaning the sweat on her forehead, she looked at the result.

"It seems that at the very least, I can manage the basics of survival in the wild, not too shabby!" she said, puffing her chest.

She covered her body with the newly acquired skin and headed back to her base.

Walking up the path now that she was not hastened by thirst was a mystic experience.

The small, little fireflies made her company enlightening the path ahead.

This surely was a productive day, I am looking forward to tomorrow.

Starting to hunt seems like the best objective right now, and making a small bag to at least carry things around would be useful.

I can't wait.

Upon coming back, she carefully placed the skin next to the lake and enveloped her body in it, to protect herself from the cold of the night.

Tired due to executing actions her body was not used to, she went to sleep again, thinking about the adventures to come.

But that night, nightmares haunted her.

--

??? body was stabbed repeatedly with a sword.

She kept screaming in pain, but the people kept throwing pebbles at her.

No one helped her, no one saved her, no one even tried to show her innocence.

She always had been alone since the day she was abandoned in a forest.

Surely she should have died easily, after all, she was a couple of months old and unable to fend for herself.

And yet, someone or something helped her live through.

Every day, she was fed with food, which while not being delicious, kept her alive.

She never met that entity, and she was hoping even now to be rescued.

But nothing happened, if anything, the pain became even more extreme, until finally, she exhaled her last breath, and died.

--

She woke up in the morning, with tears running down her face without knowing the reason.

Annoying.