In the Ark, Starting as Griseo

Patriot didn't recognize the figure currently cutting through the enemy ranks and swiftly racking up kills, but that didn't stop him from feeling a prickle of apprehension.

Even from a distance, he could see Sakura's agile movements and feel the sharp, biting sword energy.

After Sakura quickly killed nearly half the enemy soldiers and their leader, the remaining group completely collapsed. Many fearful individuals began to consider retreating, and some even acted on it.

However, Sakura was faster than them...

Once again, gushing crimson stained the pristine silver frost, blooming large swathes of blood flowers.

Patriot, witnessing everything from not far away, didn't intervene. He simply watched quietly, remaining wary of Sakura and preventing her from charging over to harm anyone.

But after dealing with all the enemies, Sakura didn't even spare Patriot a glance. She stood quietly in place, looking at the corpses littering the ground with a complex expression.

"Huu..."

She let out a soft breath. Once Sakura calmed down, she put away the ordinary long sword in her hand into her system space.

Then, with a grip in the air, an exquisite katana shimmering with a faint purple light suddenly appeared in her hand.

[Seven Thunders of Purification: Clamor] was the current name for the sword form of Seven Thunders of Purification. Of course, this form also had an ultimate state called [Seven Thunders of Purification: Clamor Thunder Sight].

However, for no necessary reason, Sakura had no intention of revealing the ultimate state.

What she intended to do now by taking out this God Key was to test if it truly contained Sakura's killing memories.

"Swoosh—"

As the sword was slowly drawn, many memories of killing flashed before Sakura's eyes. Looking at these memories, she felt considerable pressure for a time.

Then, when the pressure in her heart reached a certain point, she stopped drawing the sword and sheathed it back into its scabbard.

"Swoosh—"

As soon as Sakura completed this action, all the killing memories, including the fragments she had just seen, instantly vanished. They were all sealed within [Seven Thunders of Purification].

Without these memories, Sakura felt instantly much lighter, completely freeing herself from the impact of having killed so many people.

"..."

After testing her new weapon, Sakura leisurely turned her head to look at Patriot, who had been watching her the entire time, and met his gaze.

However, this situation didn't last long. She quickly averted her gaze, and after putting down [Forget-me-not], she prepared to leave.

For now, Sakura didn't want to interact with Patriot and the others. Even if she planned to appear as a "guardian" later, that would be after returning to the Reunion camp.

For now, both sides should go about their business. Lingering here would only waste each other's time... it was completely pointless.

"Who... are you...?"

Seeing Sakura about to turn and leave, Patriot finally spoke.

"..."

Faced with the sudden question, Sakura didn't answer. She immediately exerted force and vanished from the sight of Patriot and the others in an instant, accompanied by the wind and snow.

Sakura's speed was too fast, so fast that Patriot didn't even have a chance to stop her.

"Go check... if anyone... survived over... there, and then collect... their weapons... and equipment." After watching the pink figure disappear for a moment, Patriot finally issued new orders.

After collecting their belongings, Patriot continued to lead his team, heading towards the mine at full speed.

Inside the mine warehouse—

Sensing that Sakura had completed her mission and tested her weapon, Griseo blinked her large eyes, a flicker of joy crossing them.

This joy was so great that it even made the little loli, who had just shed the color of Alyona, feel less uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?"

Sensing Griseo's happiness, Alyona, standing beside her, showed a hint of confusion in her eyes and then asked softly.

Upon hearing Alyona's question, Griseo didn't hold back, whispering in her ear, "We're leaving here soon. The people coming to pick us up are almost here."

"Eh..."

Hearing this, Alyona froze completely.

Clearly, she hadn't expected that the thing making the little loli happy would be this kind of news...

At the same time, Alyona felt a bit nervous. Going to a new place meant facing the completely unknown.

"It's okay, I'll be with you."

Looking at her stunned companion, a hint of helplessness appeared in Griseo's violet eyes. She reached out, gently stroked Alyona's head, and softly reassured her.

"...Okay!"

Alyona felt the warm touch on her head, and the nervousness in her heart suddenly subsided by more than half. After reacting, she immediately nodded heavily at the little loli.

It wasn't long before Patriot arrived at the mine with his team.

After he arrived, before the two sides could even exchange information, they quickly began packing up... taking everything useful and portable.

Both Patriot and Yelena knew very well that this was no place for a chat. Every moment spent here carried significant risk.

So, they decided to discuss any matters after they had safely returned to the camp.

Without wasting much time, after confirming everything was loaded... and all preparations were complete.

The group, carrying supplies and protecting the rescued Infected, majestically departed the vast mine, leaving behind a place that was a nightmare for many.

ps: This chapter is over 2000, almost 3000 words. I honestly can't write anymore. I don't know if I ate something bad or what, but my stomach has been churning and I feel like throwing up.

I'll write a separate chapter for the "On Shelves" announcement later. That should be enough words to meet the requirement. I'll be shelving tomorrow. My head is also buzzing with pain, it's annoying.

On Shelves Announcement

I didn't expect this book to be shelved so hastily. It feels like I've been rushing a lot of drafts these past two days, and this is the first time I've ever written to the point of feeling sick.

This book will officially be available tomorrow. I hope readers who enjoy it will support me.

To be honest, I didn't expect this book to do so well. Before I started writing this novel, I considered five or six other themes, and I even started writing them and saved some drafts.

But in the end, without exception, I felt they were all no good... and I gave up on them, not releasing them.

Some started off okay, but as I wrote further, they began to feel like they were falling apart, or I discovered major plot holes.

Because of this, I felt a bit self-defeating. After coming up with the theme for this novel, I decided not to save any drafts and just dive in headfirst.

But surprisingly, the results have been quite good, and it even climbed all the way up from the trial push, getting all three pre-shelving recommendations. It's really strange.

Also, you don't need to worry about me abandoning this book. Whether it's for my own enjoyment or because of its performance, I won't.

If readership significantly declines later on, I will definitely write less and finish it sooner, but I won't just cut it off.

If the income drops too much, my plan would be to reduce the number of times the protagonist transforms and focus on a few important ones to finish it quickly.

But if the performance remains consistently strong, then I can only say I will definitely keep writing. After all, the theme is there, and if I wanted to, I could even go as far as the exaggerated 9 million word count of the book next door.

Also, don't worry about me running off with the money; that's not going to happen either.

While the rewards for this bounty looked like a lot, I didn't actually receive that much. I'd say it's roughly 50/50. This amount of money is less than what I'd earn writing novels honestly for a month. In this situation, who would run away?

Regarding the bounty rewards, I have another exam in mid-May. Starting tomorrow, I'll be back to a schedule of studying and writing, so don't expect me to churn out tons of extra chapters every day.

Of course, I will still fulfill them. It will probably be an extra chapter a day or every two days. If I haven't finished them by the end of my exams, I'll release a big batch then.

Also, as I mentioned before, I've been retired from both of my games for a while now. I might remember the major plot points and can look them up, but I can't guarantee I'll remember all the minor details.

So, if there are issues with minor settings in my book, it's likely because I genuinely don't know or couldn't find them.

If you notice anything, please let me know in the discussion thread. I'll correct it if I see it. If it's something without basis, then no.

Of course, you can also point out issues with major plot points, but please don't argue.

Finally, tomorrow is the official shelving day. The first subscription is very important to an author, so I hope readers who enjoy the book will support me.

Alright, everyone get some rest. I'm about to collapse... I haven't pulled an all-nighter like this in a long, long time, and now everything aches.

Oh, and I just did something stupid. This "On Shelves" announcement you're reading is the second version. The first one, when I wasn't thinking clearly and without a backup, I accidentally deleted.

Honestly, I almost broke down then...

April 7, 2023 --

Chapter 56: Arrival and Chat (Seeking First Subscription)

"..."

At this moment, Griseo and Alyona were both held in Mr. Wolf's arms, quietly following the main group.

Because they were bringing back quite a few people this time, the group's overall progress was not very fast, so the little loli was getting a bit bored.

"...!"

However, Griseo's boredom vanished in an instant as she suddenly remembered something terrifying, something she had almost forgotten.

That is, besides leaving a "note," she hadn't told Alina or Talulah about sneaking out this time... She'd probably be disciplined when they got back, right? Definitely disciplined!

After spending a night in the mine and making a new friend, Griseo had almost forgotten about this. Remembering it now... she started to feel a little guilty.

After all, the little loli knew that even with a note, Alina and the others would still worry!

Oh no, as she thought about it, Griseo suddenly felt like she had committed a grave sin... It would be best to just admit her mistake obediently when they got back.

"?"

Alyona turned her head, looking at Griseo, who had suddenly become quite guilty beside her, a big question mark appearing above her little head.

The longer they spent time together, the more she realized that she often couldn't keep up with the little loli's train of thought...

Because the group was moving too slowly, Sakura's pace during this operation was also very slow. She was trailing far behind the main group.

If she got too close, Patriot might notice her, which could lead to unnecessary misunderstandings and conflicts, and that wouldn't be good.

After all, the reason Sakura followed was very simple... she was just going to be a "guardian."

It would be troublesome if a misunderstanding occurred and they couldn't communicate peacefully.

Inside the Reunion camp—

"If we calculate the time, Patriot and the others should be back soon. Alina, are you ready on your end?"

As if remembering something, Talulah looked up at her close friend beside her and asked curiously.

"Of course, I've already made and added plenty of space... If it's still not enough when the time comes, I'll make other arrangements." Upon hearing this, Alina nodded gently.

"That's good. After letting this batch of new Infected rest for a few days, we'll be moving to a new location."

Reunion had been stationed in this location for long enough; it was time to find a new base. If they continued to stay here, they might attract unwanted attention... and lead to big trouble.

Therefore, Talulah had previously discussed with Patriot, Yelena, and a few others to devise a detailed relocation plan.

The original plan was to relocate a few days after rescuing the Infected from this mine.

However, because of a certain little loli, the Infected had already been rescued ahead of schedule... so the relocation plan could also be moved up slightly.

"Oh right, if Patriot and the others are returning, it means the little one will be back too. Alina, have you thought about how you're going to educate her?" After discussing important matters, Talulah suddenly broke into a smile and whispered to her close friend.

"Sigh, I haven't thought about it. Actually, I can pretty much guess why little Griseo snuck out, and because of that, I don't know what to say..."

When Griseo was mentioned, a hint of worry quickly flashed in Alina's eyes, and her expression became quite helpless.

"Moreover, I think I underestimated her abilities. Should I ease up on protecting her?"

"Indeed, I don't think that little one can be measured by ordinary children, in all aspects."

Speaking of which, Talulah first recalled the painting from the night before last, and then the graffiti on her face. Her expression also became helpless, leaving her with a mix of laughter and tears.

After thinking for a while, Alina finally said her thoughts helplessly: "Then, I'll talk to little Griseo when she gets back tonight."