Chapter 257: Giant Creatures 15

Through the window, Perry Yates saw a large black rat attacking the side of the RV.

The large black rat was the size of a small lamb—abnormally fat, with red eyes. It repeatedly slammed its body against the vehicle, letting out shrill squeaks.

Seeing this, Perry Yates commanded the plants outside to wrap themselves around the large rat’s body.

As the vines tightened, their thorns pierced the large black rat’s flesh.

After a few twitches of struggle, the large black rat fell still.

Perry Yates had just dealt with the rat, but before she could even sigh in relief, a loud crash suddenly erupted from the front of the RV.

The loud noise woke Amber Sheridan, who had been resting.

"What happened?" Amber Sheridan asked.

"A rat was just attacking the RV."

Perry Yates briefly explained what happened. "I just took care of one, but there must be others."

The two of them followed the noise to the driver’s cabin. Just as they suspected, Perry Yates saw a rat even larger than the first one. Its fur was gray, shimmering silver under the moonlight as it chewed on one of the RV’s tires.

A glance in the side-view mirror confirmed it: the RV’s front-left tire was completely flat.

As if sensing it was being watched, the gray rat stopped chewing and suddenly looked up. Its red eyes were filled with defiance, as if to say, ’Come and get me if you’ve got the guts.’

The next second, countless hair-thin plants shot up from the ground, binding the defiant gray rat. In a matter of moments, the rat’s plump body was sucked dry, leaving behind a shriveled husk.

Watching this unfold, Amber Sheridan looked at Perry Yates. "Nicely done."

Perry Yates blinked, her expression a mask of innocence and surprise. "That wasn’t me."

Amber Sheridan was speechless.

Just then, Perry Yates seemed to sense something. Her brow furrowed. "Quick," she said to Amber Sheridan, "pack your things. We have to leave, now."

"But the RV..." Amber Sheridan said, hesitating.

"We have to abandon it. I can only hold it back for a few minutes, tops. Hurry and pack, or we won’t make it."

Hearing the urgency in Perry Yates’s voice, Amber Sheridan wasted no time and immediately went to their storage area to gather their supplies.

They had kept plenty of daily necessities in the RV for easy access, and all of it had to come with them.

After all, while they had gathered a fair amount of items, the supplies they had collected specifically for this round of the game weren’t plentiful. It was just barely enough to get by.

Perry Yates was even more spartan; since she didn’t need to eat, she only ever bought food one meal at a time.

Once they had packed everything, the two left the RV without a backward glance.

The two of them climbed up a tree. Once they were sure the spot was safe, Perry Yates’s tense expression finally relaxed, and she let out a long breath.

Seeing her relax, Amber Sheridan couldn’t help but ask, "What was that all about?"

Perry Yates’s expression had been so grave, after all—grave enough to abandon the RV.

The RV’s front tire had been destroyed, but they had a spare on board.

"I sensed a carnivorous plant under the RV," Perry Yates stated plainly.

"A carnivorous plant?"

Perry Yates nodded. "Yes. The same kind that attacked the gray rat. It must have been chasing it. After it ate the rat, it sensed us and decided we were next on the menu."

"Then why didn’t you just ’eat’ it like you do with the other plants? Why did you run instead?"

From what Amber Sheridan knew of Perry Yates, she wasn’t the type to run from trouble.

’No, I am,’ Perry thought.

"The plant’s main body isn’t nearby. It’d be a pain to find it."

Just then, a loud noise erupted from the distance. They watched as their RV was heaved into the air and flipped over by a massive plant bursting from the ground beneath it.

But that wasn’t all.

The plant’s vines and leaves forced their way through the vehicle’s seams. The immense force tore apart the RV’s chassis—which was supposedly built from the toughest metal—like it was paper.

The terrifying power made Amber Sheridan’s eyes go wide with shock.

’The power of these plants is not to be underestimated,’ she thought. ’It’s absolutely terrifying.’

「Day eighteen of the game.」

With the RV gone, Perry Yates and Amber Sheridan had no choice but to find a new shelter.

However, as the game entered its later stages, safe places were becoming increasingly scarce.

They had initially wanted to blend in with other survivors, but after some thought, they decided against it. Their appearance was just too different. Take their hair, for instance.

Among a crowd of people with crudely chopped short hair or shaved heads, Perry Yates and Amber Sheridan’s hair stood out like a sore thumb. If they joined a group of survivors, they would almost certainly be targeted.

Ever since the encounter with the rats last night, animals had become more common. They would occasionally see creatures darting through the forest or birds flying overhead.

Perry Yates noticed that the appearance of these animals coincided with another change in the surrounding flora. The once uniformly green forest was now dappled with other colors.

"This must have been a flowerbed."

Perry Yates and Amber Sheridan arrived at a new location.

The rampant plant growth had completely obscured its original form, but they could just barely make out that it had once been a flowerbed, planted with all sorts of colorful flowers.

’At the start of the game, these flowers had seemingly lost the battle against the weeds, unable to push through the overgrowth. Looking at them blooming now... have they reclaimed their dominance?’

Amidst the field of blooming flowers, one rosebush stood out. Its most magnificent blossom was the size of a washbasin. Dewdrops clung to its petals, making it look exquisitely delicate. Just getting near was enough to be enveloped by its rich, sweet fragrance.

"Wow! It’s beautiful!"

A delighted voice suddenly cried out from the other side of the flowerbed.

Perry Yates peered through the dense foliage and saw a group of five people passing by.

It was a group of three men and two women. One of the women, who sported a messy but clearly trimmed—if inexpertly cut—short hairstyle, was staring at the rose in the center of the flowerbed with a look of delight.

"If you like it so much, I’ll go pick it for you," one of the men said in a gentle voice.

"For real? Oh, thank you!" the girl replied, beaming.

Just then, another young man, one with glasses, spoke up. "We shouldn’t waste time. A flower that fragrant will give away our position."