Chapter 17: Isabella and Bubu

Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Isabella and Bubu Isabella huffed, crossing her arms as she glared at the air. Not that it mattered—since Bubu had no physical form to glare at—but the effort counted. "Don’t even talk to me, system. I mean it." Bubu was silent. Good. Isabella turned away, squeezing water from her clothes, but then immediately whirled back around, voice rising in frustration. "You don’t even care about me! You left me in that river! If he hadn’t brought me clothes, were you seriously just going to leave me there? Were you just gonna sit back, sipping ghost tea, watching me suffer?!" "Host—" "No! Don’t ’Host’ me! I could’ve DIED. Naked. Do you know how humiliating that would be?!" Bubu giggled. GIGGLED. Isabella’s eye twitched. "Bubu, I swear to—" "Host, you weren’t going to die. At most, you would’ve become one with nature. Think about it! A free mud bath! Freshwater exfoliation! Wildlife bonding!" Isabella gaped at the audacity. "Bonding?! You wanted me to bond with mosquitoes?!" "They could have been your first friends in this world!" Bubu chirped. "I HATE YOU." "Oh, Host, no you don’t~" Isabella dramatically fell onto the nearest rock, groaning. "I don’t want to hear another word from you. Don’t talk to me. Don’t breathe near me. Don’t even THINK about me—" "Anyway!" Bubu cut her off completely unfazed. "Let’s talk about your space! Congratulations on unlocking it!" "I SAID, DON’T TALK TO ME." "Host, I am a system. Talking to you is literally my purpose." Isabella gritted her teeth, grumbling under her breath. "Now!" Bubu continued, ignoring her tantrum. "Your space is super amazing! It’s like a personal storage realm! You can put things inside, and they won’t rot or spoil! It also keeps them clean! And—wait for it—it expands as you level up!" Isabella rolled onto her side, dramatically looking away. "I don’t care." "It can also hold food, weapons, clothes, rare artifacts—" "Don’t care." "And guess what? Time moves differently in there! You could store a steaming-hot meal and take it out days later, and it’ll still be fresh!" "Still. Don’t. Care." "Host, you are literally wasting your breath when I know you care~" Isabella kicked the air in frustration. "You could also place people in there—" She sat up violently. "WHAT?!" "Oh, not yet. You’re still too weak." Bubu giggled. "But later on, you could throw someone inside if they annoy you!" That... actually sounded useful. No. She wasn’t giving in! She huffed, crossing her arms again. "I’m never using it." "Mhm. Sure." A long silence stretched between them. Isabella shifted uncomfortably. She glanced at the pile of clothes Zyarn had brought her. Fur, warm, actually well-made. She hesitated. Then, without another word, she scooped up the extra pieces and placed them inside the space. Bubu exploded into loud, triumphant laughter. "HA! I KNEW IT! HOST, YOU ARE SO EASY!" Isabella groaned, dragging a hand down her face. "I hate you." "Hate me all you want, but guess who just used her space? You!" Isabella refused to dignify that with a response. Instead, she brushed herself off and got ready for her next task, pretending none of this ever happened. Isabella stared at the remaining uncompleted tasks displayed in front of her, and she choosed the one she was completing next. [Task: Gather 10 edible herbs without poisoning yourself.] She squinted. "But no like really, without poisoning myself? You make it sound like I’m a toddler who eats random things off the ground." Bubu, ever the unbothered system, chimed in. "Host did almost eat a deadly berry a day ago." Isabella’s eye twitched. "That was different! It looked like a blueberry! And I was starving!" "Excuses. Anyway, if you succeed, you get 35 points." Isabella pursed her lips. That’s true, 35 points was a lot. She had no idea what she’d eventually use these points for, but she wanted them. Needed them. Still, why did she have to do all this herself? She sighed, running a hand through her damp hair. If the system had just left her alone, she wouldn’t have had to suffer through bathing in a random river, fighting for food, or dodging terrifying animals. But... she wouldn’t say it out loud, but maybe—maybe—this whole thing had been helpful. Maybe she felt just a tiny bit proud of herself. Her moment of reluctant appreciation was rudely interrupted. "Reminder! If anyone helps Host in completing the task, points will be deducted times two ." Isabella froze. Then— "WHAT?! THAT’S UNFAIR!" Her screech echoed through the trees. She stomped her foot, furious. "How can you just—just take away my points if someone helps me?! What kind of unfair dictatorship is this?!" Bubu remained cool as ever. "It’s for your personal development." Isabella inhaled sharply. "You always say that! That’s your go-to excuse for everything! I’m suffering! I’m DYING out here!" "And yet, Host is still alive. Congratulations." Isabella was this close to throwing herself onto the ground in protest. Instead, she groaned loudly, dragging her hands down her face. "Fine! FINE! What if someone just shows me where to find the herbs? That’s not helping exactly, right?" Bubu made a sound that could only be described as a smug hum. "That is acceptable. They may guide you to the herbs, but no one can pick them for you." "Great," Isabella muttered, rolling her eyes. "Real generous of you." She squared her shoulders and started walking. If she was going to find these herbs, she needed to go where people actually knew things—like the village. As she approached, she noticed something strange. The moment she stepped into the village, everything stilled. Conversations stopped mid-sentence. Movements halted. A group of women carrying baskets froze like statues. A child chewing on some kind of fruit let it drop from his mouth. And then— The whispers began. She could hear them, murmuring in hushed, awed voices. "Who is she?" "Is she real?" "I’ve never seen anyone so clean..." "She looks like a goddess..." Isabella blinked, realization dawning on her. Oh. Ohhh. These people had never seen anyone this beautiful—or this well-kept—before. She resisted the urge to smirk. Of course, they were stunned. She was breathtaking, after all.