Rise of the Weakest Awakener: I Only Have Concept-Level Skills-Chapter 49 --A Sinister Village

Thus, out of caution, John chose not to touch a single bite of the food provided.

Time passed quickly.

Before long, it was deep into the night.

The once lively and noisy village—filled earlier with children's laughter and the clucking of chickens—

now fell into an eerie, unnatural silence.

Only the occasional chirp of insects broke the stillness.

The quiet was so absolute, so jarring, that Helen frowned deeply as a strong sense of foreboding rose in her chest.

During twilight, she had seen many children playing in the fields, livestock bustling in the pens, dogs barking in the streets.

But now, all that natural ambient noise had vanished without a trace.

"Doria," Helen whispered, her voice tense,

"don't you feel that something's wrong? It's way too quiet..."

Still half-asleep, Doria waved her hand dismissively and mumbled,

"It's nighttime. Of course it's quiet. What's so strange about that?"

She turned over, pulling her blanket tighter and preparing to drift back to sleep.

Helen, however, felt sleep fleeing from her entirely.

Her alertness grew sharper with each passing second.

Earlier, she had only sensed that something was wrong with the village.

Now, a visceral warning surged from deep within her soul.

Something was coming—something dangerous.

Trying to reason with herself, Helen recalled their situation:

She and Doria had been penniless, desperate for food and shelter.

If not for the kindness of these villagers, they would probably have been left wandering the mountains, possibly starving to death.

Thinking this way calmed her nerves—slightly.

She forced herself to close her eyes, hoping to ease her mind and drift into shallow sleep.

Time ticked onward.

Outside, the full moon was gradually swallowed by thick clouds, plunging the village into total darkness.

Without the moonlight, the village transformed.

From every corner, thick, sinister red mist began to seep forth.

It billowed like smoke, rolling silently through the streets and alleyways,

eventually enveloping the entire village.

Then—

the tightly shut doors of many houses creaked open.

Figures emerged, moving with slow, lurching steps like corpses risen from their graves.

The villagers gathered silently, their movements eerily synchronized.

Together, they began marching steadily toward a specific location within the village.

Their footsteps were heavy and uniform,

each step pounding the earth like the beat of war drums.

The ground itself seemed to tremble faintly with each impact,

and fine dust rose around their feet like swirling silver sand.

At that moment—

Helen's eyes snapped open.

She found herself engulfed by sticky, suffocating red mist.

No matter how she tried to run,

a blurry shadow always remained behind her, pursuing her relentlessly.

Her aimless sprinting only made the shadow draw closer, inch by inch.

From behind her, a low, drawn-out chant echoed:

"All for the village..."

"All for the village..."

The moment Helen caught the words clearly, they seemed to burn themselves into her mind,

repeating over and over like a demonic curse she could not shake off.

Desperately, Helen shook her head, trying to stay lucid.

She struggled to remember—

Who am I? What am I supposed to do?

What is that shadow chasing me?!

Confusion swirled around her like an undertow, dragging her thoughts deeper into chaos.

Instinctively, she clutched her head with both hands, the pain from her fingernails pressing into her scalp jolting her slightly.

That jolt of pain helped her recover some clarity.

She remembered—

She had come to this village with her sister Doria.

They were supposed to be asleep together in their room!

Why was she now standing outside the room, surrounded by thick red mist?

Panic tightened Helen's chest.

Suddenly, she became acutely aware of a presence right behind her.

Something—or someone—was following closely, close enough that she could feel the breathless sensation of crawling insects on her skin.

She whipped around—

Standing behind her was Doria.

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But Doria's appearance was horrifying.

Her eyes were blood-red, gleaming like two rubies soaked in fresh blood!

"Doria!"

Helen's heart clenched in fear.

It was obvious—Doria had been possessed or controlled!

Without hesitation—

Helen flicked her finger, summoning a glowing Tarot card into existence.

The card flew to Doria's forehead and attached itself there.

This was a special card designed to awaken slumbering souls.

However, the moment it made contact, it burst into flames, burning away instantly.

Helen's frown deepened grimly.

She prepared to summon more cards to rescue her sister,

but just then—

a sharp pain twisted through her stomach.

It felt as if something was writhing inside her gut,

struggling violently.

The pain turned her face pale and left her dizzy,

unable to concentrate.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

Suddenly—

loud, urgent knocks hammered at the door ahead.

Helen's breathing grew rapid and shallow.

She now realized the truth:

The food they had eaten must have been tainted!

Everything—the villagers' strange kindness, the festive meals, the eerie quiet—

it was all a setup!

The villagers were not normal!

Suppressing her terror, Helen lowered her voice,

staying completely silent—

refusing to open the door.

Yet behind her—

Doria was already moving toward it, as if drawn by the sound.

Helen rushed forward, blocking her sister's path and pushing her back toward the center of the room.

Under no circumstances could that door be opened!

But just as she forced Doria away—

Creak—

The door swung open.

Standing there was one of the women who had warmly welcomed them earlier.

Only now—

her mouth was twisted into a grotesque clown-like grin.

With stiff movements, she said coldly,

"Dear guest... come now. Everyone is waiting for you."

Helen swallowed hard.

The atmosphere was so oppressive, so wrong, that her body instinctively screamed to flee.

Yet before she could move—

Doria's hand clamped down on her wrist like an iron shackle.

Behind the strange woman—

more villagers emerged one by one, crowding the entrance.

Each of them wore the same eerie smile.

Their eyes glowed like crimson lanterns, shining in the suffocating darkness.

Helen felt despair grip her chest.

Now she understood completely—

The food they had eaten was poisoned or cursed.

That was why even she, a Gold Rank Awakener, had been unable to resist.

Doria, a Silver Rank Awakener, had succumbed even faster.

They had both fallen into a carefully prepared trap—

and now...

they were on the verge of being consumed by this cursed, sinister village.

Knock, knock, knock!The sound of knocking echoed from the door of John's room.Despite the repeated knocks, the door remained shut.Several villagers standing outside began to push hard, trying to force the door open, but something behind it seemed to be blocking the way. Even with their combined strength, they couldn't budge it.

Bang!At last, after a few burly men slammed into it together, the door burst open.But the room inside was empty—there was no sign of John.The table, once laden with delicious dishes, appeared untouched.Worse still, the bread, butter, ham, and other delicacies had all transformed—into unidentifiable insects and bones.The sight was deeply unsettling.