Chapter 3: Voice from the Heart

Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Voice from the Heart

Seraphina Sinclair froze. She whipped her head around, tightening her grip on the military knife, ready to attack or dodge at a moment’s notice.

Yet aside from her and the Sunflower, there was nothing else alive in the room!

Seraphina Sinclair paused for a beat, then suddenly turned to look at the Sunflower.

"Delicious... I want it."

It was a childlike voice, like a young kid’s.

’A child?’

Seraphina Sinclair remembered the Sunflower’s initial Description: it was just a child.

’Could that have been the Sunflower talking?’

Seraphina Sinclair swallowed hard and asked hesitantly, "What do you want to eat?"

There was no response.

It seemed the Sunflower couldn’t understand her.

Seraphina Sinclair finally realized what was off. The child’s voice had appeared directly in her mind, as if... she could hear the Sunflower’s thoughts.

’Wait, now’s not the time to be focusing on that!’

Seraphina Sinclair shook her head. Her gaze swept across the room. If the Sunflower said it wanted to eat, the only possibility was the puddle of goo on the floor!

She searched the room but couldn’t find any kind of container to hold the goo.

If she hesitated any longer, the black goo would completely seep into the floor.

Gritting her teeth, Seraphina Sinclair pulled off her short-sleeved shirt, quickly wrapped it around her hands, and carefully scooped up the goo from the floor.

The goo was surprisingly a single mass. As Seraphina Sinclair tugged at it, even the portion that had started seeping into the floorboards pulled free.

Fighting back nausea, Seraphina Sinclair carried the black goo over to the Sunflower, her brow deeply furrowed in disgust.

"Smells so good! Delicious!"

The childlike voice grew excited.

Seraphina Sinclair nodded to herself. ’Looks like I found the right thing.’

She carefully placed the black goo into the Sunflower’s pot. A strange sight followed: the Sunflower’s bloom began to glow, swaying back and forth as if it were chewing, slowly devouring the black substance.

[Current Sunflower Growth Rate: 10/100]

’10/100?’

’So killing ten Rotting Corpses will be enough to evolve the Sunflower?’

The Sunflower was still slowly consuming the goo. Since she couldn’t use the Hand-cranked Sunlight Lamp to make it produce sunshine during this time, Seraphina Sinclair stood to the side and decided to check the chat channel.

She scrolled for a good while but saw no one mentioning that their Sunflower could talk, nothing about evolution, and almost no one had even mentioned the black goo.

The chat channel was mostly filled with idle chatter. It was the first day, and though the Rotting Corpse had served as a grim appetizer, most people had dealt with it easily and hadn’t yet felt a true sense of crisis.

"So, what are we supposed to do now?"

"Crank the Hand-cranked Sunlight Lamp until my arm falls off, then turn it on, shine it on my dear Sunflower, and wait for it to produce sunshine."

"You’re supposed to load the sunshine into your room card, right? Has anyone tried it? How fast do you move forward? Are there monsters in the black fog?"

"Who’s that fast? We all got a manual and the basic rules, right? Didn’t you read the description? It’s 100 sunshine per hour! And you can only get three Supply Boxes a day, plus there might be monsters!"

"And what about this F-level goddamn water bottle? I poured 500ml of water in, and I can only get 400ml out! Where the hell did my 100ml go? Water bottle! Answer me!"

"The guy above obviously didn’t read the Description. It clearly states the bottle consumes 20%. You really had to ask?"

"But that’s weird, right? Why would I put water in the bottle just to pour it out again? Can’t I just water the plant without the bottle?"

"Oh, look at Mr. Smart Guy here. You think this is Azura, where plants drink bottled water or something? The system gave you the bottle for a reason, which means you probably *have* to use it. What happens if you water the Sunflower directly and it dies? What then? Are you willing to gamble your life on it? Ridiculous."

’So the nutrient liquid must also be exclusive to the elite starter pack.’

After the Sunflower’s Hunger Level was depleted, she could use the liquid to restore it by 100. By that calculation, she could get six Supply Boxes today.

That was three more boxes than someone with a standard start.

’A significant lead.’

Seraphina Sinclair nodded to herself. Watching the Sunflower finish the black goo, she took out the Hand-cranked Sunlight Lamp and started cranking.

This damn machine had to be cranked several times just to produce the faintest glimmer. If the light was too weak, the Sunflower wouldn’t photosynthesize, meaning it wouldn’t glow or produce any sunshine.

After many, many turns, the lamp’s brightness suddenly jumped up a notch.

"Sunshine... so warm..."

The childlike voice rang out again.

Seraphina Sinclair watched as the Sunflower began to stretch its stem, striving to position every leaf directly under the lamp’s rays.

’What a good little one.’

After about half an hour of cranking, Seraphina Sinclair’s arm was aching and numb, but she didn’t dare stop.

The lamp’s light grew brighter and brighter. The Sunflower’s head gradually tilted upward, its little smiling face looking particularly content, as if it were basking in real sunlight.

A distinct golden light began to glow from the center of the Sunflower’s bloom.

Seraphina Sinclair stared intently. The next moment, the Sunflower’s face gave a sudden twitch...

PFFT!

A brilliant golden Little Light Ball shot out from the center of the bloom, hovering in the air and rotating slowly.

Seraphina Sinclair stared at the Little Light Ball, unable to resist reaching out to touch it.

The moment her fingertip brushed against the ball of light, it instantly dissolved into a golden stream that wrapped around her wrist before melting into her skin.

[Sunshine +25]

[Current Sunflower Hunger Level: 75/100]

’Each ball of light is worth 25 sunshine value?’

"So that’s how you collect it..."

Seraphina Sinclair was lost in thought, but her hands never stopped cranking. As long as she kept going, the Hand-cranked Sunlight Lamp wouldn’t dim.

The second ball of light was produced much more quickly than the first.

Seraphina Sinclair cranked for nearly an hour before the ache in her arm became unbearable, forcing her to stop.

When the sunlight lamp went out, the Sunflower’s glow faded with it.

"The sunshine is gone."

The childlike voice sounded disappointed.

The Sunflower’s leaves curled in on themselves again.

Seraphina Sinclair couldn’t help but touch one of the Sunflower’s leaves. ’I’ll start cranking again after a short rest, why is the little flower so disappointed?’

She set down the Hand-cranked Sunlight Lamp and paced around the small cabin.

The stool, now missing a leg, was useless. The dilapidated wooden bed was in an even more sorry state, its bare boards exposed and somewhat moldy.

Without any blankets or a mattress, there was no difference between sleeping on the wooden floor and sleeping on the bed.

The chat channel was still lively. Many people had already collected some sunshine and were now resting with sore arms, just like her.

"Any girls wanna send a pic? I got nothing right now, but I’ll make it up to you once I get a room of my own."

"Jerry, Jerry! It’s Tom, contact me! Let’s team up, get powerful, and make it big again!"

"Just got 25 sunshine. Good thing 100 sunshine only buys an hour of travel. As long as I get it done before dark, I’ll be fine. I can crank more this afternoon and still make it in time."

"Have any of the pros started moving yet? Anyone got tips to share?"

"Not yet. Send me 50 sunshine and I’ll share all my info with you from now on. The earlier you get in, the more you profit. Invest in me, you won’t regret it!"

’Are people already running scams?’

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

’It really takes all sorts.’

She shook out her arm. It didn’t feel as sore anymore, so she picked up the Hand-cranked Sunlight Lamp again. Once the light grew bright enough, the Sunflower began to glow once more.

’You lose momentum if you stop. Best to finish it in one go!’

Steeling herself, Seraphina Sinclair resolved to deplete the Sunflower’s entire Hunger Level in one go this time!

[Sunshine +25]

[Sunshine +25]

[Current Sunflower Hunger Level: 0/100]

[Your Sunflower needs to rest.]

As the notification appeared, the Sunflower before Seraphina Sinclair’s eyes visibly wilted, collapsing into a shriveled heap.

Seraphina Sinclair: "?"

’It looks kind of... dead!’