CHAPTER 87: UNDYING HANBEI

"Damn!"

"Natalie got taken out instantly?!"

"Not just taken out, her whole left hand was chopped off!"

"This is brutal... she just gave us a live demonstration of what real pain looks like!"

"Hahaha, that’s talent right there!"

The chat exploded in shock. Nobody had expected Natalie to fall so quickly. She hadn’t even lasted three seconds before collapsing.

Meanwhile, Natalie herself wasn’t paying attention to the scrolling barrage of comments. Her heart was pounding wildly, her face pale with shock. She immediately touched her left arm and, thankfully, let out a sigh of relief.

Her hand was still there.

It was just part of the cutscene. But in that moment, she had really felt it, the terrifying sensation of her arm being severed. The realism of this game was far too much.

Shaking the thought away, she focused back on the screen. She noticed something strange: even after Genichiro had cut her down, the blood-red word [DEATH] didn’t appear. The game was still going.

Genichiro calmly slid his sword back into its sheath. His voice carried cold disappointment, "Pathetic. To think it would end so quickly..."

Natalie grit her teeth. "Tch! Still acting all high and mighty!" But she could only watch.

"This boy... I’ll be taking him." Genichiro turned, signaling to another figure who stepped into view, a masked warrior in a feathered cloak. On his shoulders was the unconscious young master. Clearly, Genichiro’s subordinate had already secured the boy.

The two figures vanished into the distance, and Natalie’s vision went completely black.

"Damn it... so the chat was right, it was a scripted loss." Natalie sighed. "But come on, why is it always me getting killed by the cutscene? Shouldn’t I be the one killing the boss instead?!"

The chat roared with laughter.

"Hahaha! Natalie spitting facts!"

"Did you really think the dev would let you win so easily?!"

"Genichiro’s no joke. Four slashes and Natalie was done for!"

"But hey, since he had a health bar, that means he’s definitely beatable later on."

"Exactly! In every one of New World’s games, there’s always some way to flip the script. Remember how in Silent Hill you can clear an event early? Or in Subnautica you can save the cabin girl and unlock co-op? There has to be an alternate outcome here too!"

"Yeah, once the game is released, I’m trying it for sure. Though... Genichiro looks ridiculously strong."

As the viewers debated, Natalie’s screen lit up once more.

When her vision cleared, she was lying beneath a cracked, wooden ceiling. The smell of old incense filled the air. She slowly sat up and realized she was inside a dilapidated temple lined with weathered Buddha statues.

In the corner of her HUD, her health bar showed only a sliver remaining, but she wasn’t dead. Somehow, she had survived.

"You’re awake..."

A deep, gravelly voice came from behind her. She turned quickly and saw an old man in tattered monk’s robes, squatting in the shadows beside an oil lamp. He was carving wood with a small blade, his entire body covered in thick, white hair like some kind of beast. Most strikingly, he only had one arm.

Natalie’s stomach tightened. She instinctively looked down at her own body, then froze.

Wait. Didn’t Genichiro slice off her left arm?

But she still had a hand... or rather.

"What the hell?!"

Her left arm was no longer flesh. From the elbow down, it had been replaced by something inhuman, an intricate prosthetic. It looked like it was carved from bone and reinforced with wood and metal. The fingers moved smoothly, the joints eerily lifelike, but beneath the surface she could glimpse a web of mechanical components.

She flexed it. It moved naturally, almost like her real hand.

"This... what’s going on?!" Natalie cried.

The chat erupted again.

"Yo! Cyber wolf upgrade!"

"That’s not metal though... looks more like old wood and bone."

"Steampunk Sekiro vibes!"

The Wolf’s voice echoed, equally shocked, "What happened to my left arm...?"

The old man didn’t even look up from his carving. His tone was calm, almost indifferent, "That is the Shinobi Prosthetic. It was once mine. But now... I am nothing more than a sculptor. Such tools are wasted on me. So I passed it on to you."

His blade scraped against the wood as he continued, "This prosthetic will not only replace your lost arm... bring me any shinobi tools you find, and I can fit them to this hand. Then, you will know its true power."

A game prompt appeared before Natalie’s eyes.

[Shinobi Prosthetic: Crafted from bone and reinforced with intricate mechanisms. Can be fitted with various tools, granting different abilities in battle.]

"Shinobi Prosthetic..." Natalie muttered. She raised her arm again. The texture was cold, stiff, yet eerily real. She almost believed her human hand had truly been replaced.

"This... this is insane. It feels real."

The Wolf’s voice finally asked the question hanging in both their minds, "...Why am I here?"

"I dragged you out of the reed fields," the old sculptor said calmly. "Couldn’t just leave a half dead man to be eaten by stray dogs."

"Then... how long was I asleep?" the Wolf asked hoarsely.

"A while," the sculptor replied in his slow, gravelly voice. "But don’t worry. Your young master still lives. He’s been taken to Ashina Castle. His blood, however, will soon be used..."

"Blood? What blood?"

"They call it the Dragon’s Heritage," the old man explained. "A bloodline said to hold mysterious power. Your master carries that blood, hence, he is called the Divine Heir."

"So that’s why Genichiro came after him..."

"Naturally."

The viewers in Natalie’s livestream exploded with comments.

"Wait, this sculptor knows way too much. He is definitely not normal!"

"Yeah, yeah! He’s just pretending to be some hermit!"

The old man’s voice cut through their chatter, "Enough. I’ve said too much already. Do as you will... I must return to my Buddha carving."

He fell silent. Only the rhythmic tap tap tap of his chisel echoed through the ruined temple.

Natalie understood, that was the signal she could act freely now.

"Alright, let’s get out of here first," she muttered, guiding the wolf out of the temple.

Outside was a vast bamboo forest. The wind rustled through the stalks, filling the air with a soft swish swish. The temple stood deep in the grove, a lonely relic hidden away.

"Wow... another gorgeous scene," Natalie sighed. She quickly noticed a stone statue by the path, an ominous Buddha with three heads and six arms.

Approaching it, a prompt flashed before her eyes.

[Sculptor’s Idol: Sit before it to rest. Resting fully restores Vitality and the Healing Gourd. Can also teleport to other Idols.]

"Oh, I get it. This is the save and way point!" Natalie clapped her hands.

She immediately sat cross legged before the idol. A green aura enveloped her, the screen dimmed for a moment, then returned bright and clear. Her health bar was now full.

"Yeah! Natalie is back in business!!!" she shouted, doing a flashy recovery back flip. She was increasingly obsessed with that move, it looked so damn cool.

Ahead lay a small courtyard, its mud ground littered with fallen bamboo leaves. In one corner stood a man.

He wore battered Ashina armor and a sword at his waist. A mask covered his face.

"Friend... or foe?" Natalie muttered, inching closer.

The masked man noticed her. "I don’t recall seeing you before," he called out. "May I know your name?"

The wolf stayed silent. He was, as always, a man of few words, stoic, reserved, speaking only when absolutely necessary.

"Oh? Not even a name?" the man chuckled. "Still... judging by your bearing, you’re no ordinary wanderer. Then forgive me, but allow me to test your blade!"

Shhhk!

Battle music erupted as the man drew his sword in one swift motion. A health bar appeared above his head.

"Eh?! Bro, why do we have to fight right away?!" Natalie yelped, but she wasn’t about to back down. She drew her blade too.

The man’s strike came fast, too fast. Natalie reacted a beat too late.

Slash!

One-fifth of her health vanished instantly.

"Damn, that hurts!" she cried, gripping her weapon tighter.

The swordsman pressed forward, but this time Natalie was ready. She parried, once, twice, three times in a row. Sparks burst in every direction. The man’s posture gauge filled rapidly until he staggered, red marker flashing.

"Got you now!"

Natalie lunged, plunging her blade deep into his chest in a deathblow. The man collapsed.

"That’s what you get!" she sneered, feeling triumphant. His speed was sluggish compared to earlier enemies, easy pickings.

The chat cheered.

"Natalie’s getting sharp!"

"That execution was clean."

"Wait, wait, look!! He’s still moving!!!"

Sure enough, the ’dead’ swordsman twitched. With an eerie crack, he straightened up again, defying all logic.

"WHAT?! He revived?!"

"Undying bug alert!!"

"Yo, is this a zombie samurai?!"

Even Natalie jumped back in shock.

The man coughed and spoke, voice heavy with despair. "Don’t be alarmed... I cannot die. No matter how many times I fall, I’ll only stand again..."

The wolf’s expression darkened. Even his calm demeanor wavered. "...What are you?"

"They call me Hanbei the Undying," the man replied. "A cursed body... a worm lives within me. So long as it endures, I will never die."

Natalie’s jaw dropped. "What the hell?! There’s really something like this here?"

Chat spammed messages in disbelief.

"This isn’t pure history anymore... it’s got supernatural elements!"

"Undying bug-man... nightmare fuel!"

Hanbei sighed. "Well, since I can’t die, why not make use of me? If you wish... I’ll be your training partner. Cut me down as many times as you like."

1623 Words.