Chapter 1: A Head Without a Body The world has been remarkably boring for the past week. Not peaceful. Not relaxing. Just boring. You have been lying motionless on the forest floor, staring at the same patch of dirt and moss ever since those giant ants decided that tearing you apart was apparently the appropriate response to trespassing. Your arms are somewhere behind you. Your legs are somewhere farther away. Your torso is still several meters from where your head ended up. And somehow, despite being a collection of scattered undead body parts, you're still conscious. At least you don't need to breathe. Or eat. Or sleep. Small blessings. The forest around you is quiet. Then— Voices. You hear laughter in the distance. Three women. Judging from their voices, they've clearly known each other for a long time. [Rea]: "I'm telling you, Hitomi! That wasn't a shortcut!" [Hitomi]: "You led us through a swamp." [Rea]: "A scenic swamp." [Coni]: "It had leeches." [Rea]: "Tiny ones!" [Coni]: "One crawled into my boot." A brief silence follows. [Rea]: "...Okay. Maybe it was a little dangerous." [Hitomi]: "You said that three hours ago." [Coni]: "And you said the same thing yesterday." [Rea]: "You're both terrible friends." Their footsteps draw closer. You could try shouting. Unfortunately, your current condition makes that considerably more complicated than it should be. You have no lungs. No throat. No body. Just a head. Still, somehow, your voice works. So you call out. [MC]: "Hey! Over here! Little help?" The conversation abruptly stops. Silence. Then— [Rea]: "...Did you hear that?" [Coni]: "Yeah." [Hitomi]: "Stay alert." The cheerful atmosphere disappears instantly. You hear weapons being drawn. Metal slides from a sheath. A crossbow is cocked. Something heavy scrapes against the ground. Footsteps approach cautiously. Then three figures emerge through the trees. The first is a tall red-skinned oni woman wearing a black-and-white kimono. A nodachi rests in her hand, already drawn. Beside her is a black-haired werecat woman with feline ears, blue eyes, and a crossbow aimed toward the surrounding forest. And behind them stands an absolutely enormous woman carrying a gigantic warhammer. The three scan the area. Nothing. No monster. No ambush. No visible person. Just trees. Blood-stained earth. And you. Your severed head is lying beside a moss-covered rock, facing completely away from them. Rea's ears twitch. She slowly turns her head toward you. [Rea]: "Uh..." She points. [Rea]: "Is that...?" Coni squints. [Coni]: "A head." [Rea]: "I can see that." [Coni]: "Good. Then we agree." Hitomi approaches first. Her eyes narrow as she studies the ground. There are signs of a recent struggle everywhere. Deep grooves in the soil. Broken branches. Large footprints. And scattered pieces of what appears to be an undead body. Hitomi's expression becomes serious. She crouches and carefully examines you. [Hitomi]: "Undead." Rea steps closer. [Rea]: "Zombie?" [Hitomi]: "Most likely." Coni looks around. [Coni]: "Where's the rest of it?" Rea points toward the nearby trees. [Rea]: "There's an arm over there." She points again. [Rea]: "A leg over there." Then another direction. [Rea]: "And... I think that's its torso." Coni stares at the scattered remains. [Coni]: "That's a remarkably inconvenient way to die." [Rea]: "It's already dead." [Coni]: "More dead, then." Hitomi sighs. [Hitomi]: "Enough." She reaches down and carefully picks up your head. Your face is now directly in front of hers. She examines your eyes. No movement. No reaction. Nothing. Her golden eyes narrow. [Hitomi]: "It's inactive." Rea leans over her shoulder. [Rea]: "Definitely dead." Coni folds her arms. [Coni]: "Obviously." Then your eyes open. You look directly at them. [MC]: "Hi." The three women freeze. Complete silence. Rea's ears shoot straight upward. Coni's jaw drops. Hitomi's eyes widen. For approximately half a second, nobody moves. Then— [Rea]: "AAAAAH!" She jumps backward. [Coni]: "WHAT THE—?!" Hitomi instinctively drops you. THUD. Your head lands in the dirt. Three weapons immediately point toward you. The oni's nodachi. The werecat's loaded crossbow. And the Gargantua's enormous warhammer. Rea's tail has practically doubled in size. [Rea]: "IT TALKED!" [Coni]: "THE HEAD TALKED!" [Hitomi]: "Everyone, remain calm!" [Rea]: "HOW?!" [Coni]: "IT'S A HEAD!" [Rea]: "I KNOW!" Hitomi maintains her stance, though even she looks genuinely shaken. She slowly raises her nodachi. [Hitomi]: "Undead." Her voice is controlled. But there's an unmistakable edge of disbelief behind it. [Hitomi]: "Identify yourself." Rea keeps her crossbow trained on you. [Rea]: "And don't make any sudden movements!" She pauses. Then looks down at you. [Rea]: "...Actually, never mind. You don't have a body." Coni grips Earthshaker with both hands. [Coni]: "Can a head make sudden movements?" Rea looks at her. [Rea]: "I don't know!" [Coni]: "Then we're in uncharted territory." Hitomi takes a slow breath. She lowers her weapon slightly. [Hitomi]: "My name is Hitomi. I am an adventurer of the Platinum rank." She gestures toward Rea without taking her eyes off you. [Hitomi]: "This is Rea." Rea raises one hand while keeping the crossbow aimed at you. [Rea]: "Rea. Platinum-ranked adventurer. Scout and marksman." Hitomi gestures toward the massive woman. [Hitomi]: "And she is Coni." Coni gives you a suspicious stare. [Coni]: "Coni. Platinum-ranked adventurer." She pauses. [Coni]: "Tank." Another awkward silence follows. The three women stare at your severed head. You stare back. Rea's ears twitch. [Rea]: "...Hitomi?" [Hitomi]: "Yes?" [Rea]: "Are intelligent zombies supposed to exist?" Hitomi's expression becomes grim. [Hitomi]: "No." [Coni]: "Skeletons?" [Hitomi]: "No." [Coni]: "Talking corpses?" [Hitomi]: "No." [Rea]: "Heads?" Hitomi looks down at you. [Hitomi]: "...Especially not heads." Coni slowly lowers her hammer. [Coni]: "This is weird." Rea nods. [Rea]: "Very weird." Hitomi's gaze remains fixed on you. She has fought monsters. She has faced armies. She has walked into places where ordinary adventurers would never dare to step. Yet somehow, a severed undead head casually saying hi has managed to leave her more unsettled than most of them. She takes another cautious step forward. [Hitomi]: "Who are you?"