They Hated Me in My First Life, But Now I Have the Love System
Chapter 324: Inside the Forest of Regrets

Chapter 324: Inside the Forest of Regrets

She knew she could ask the Love System for directions.

It would have been so easy, a single question, a few good points spent, and they might find a way out.

But she clenched her fists at her sides.

No.

She had made a promise to herself.

She needed to grow stronger.

She needed to rely on herself, not a system.

Besides, her good points were running dangerously low.

Without a steady way to earn more inside this cursed forest, she had to save every last one.

And now that they weren’t any closer to escaping, a new fear crawled into her chest

If they didn’t leave the Black Forest before the month ended, she wouldn’t have enough points left to renew her life.

If that happened…

Nnenna swallowed hard.

She would die here.

Lost in this endless sea of trees.

The thought made her shiver despite the humid air.

It was scary. no doubt about it.

But Nnenna wasn’t panicking anymore after a few minutes.

She quietly reminded herself that every day, little by little, she was still earning good points.

The impact she had made before entering the forest was paying off.

The points trickled in slowly, like tiny drops of water, but they were there.

And she prayed, prayed hard, that when the time came, they would be enough to save her life.

She looked up at Abuchi, who still hadn’t come down.

Her heart tightened a little.

He must have seen something bad, she thought.

And now he doesn’t know how to break it to us.

Just as she suspected, after a few long minutes, Abuchi finally climbed down.

His face was grim, the usual spark of hope missing from his eyes.

He gathered the group together and broke the news quietly.

“There’s nothing,” he said.

“Forest on all four sides. As far as I can see.”

The words dropped like stones into the heavy silence around them.

The other two boys exchanged glances, trying hard to stay calm, even though fear flickered in their eyes.

Karen, however, couldn’t hold it together.

Her voice cracked as she looked from one face to another, her hands trembling slightly.

“What do we do now, guys? What do we do?

Are we going to die in this forest?”

She asked, fear dripping from every word.

Abuchi didn’t know how to answer that question.

The answer? He didn’t have it.

He knew the kind of answer he should give, the one a leader ought to say to keep everyone calm, but the words refused to come out. His mind was blank, heavy with doubt.

But before he could even open his mouth, someone else spoke up.

“No, we aren’t going to die,” Nnenna said firmly, stepping forward.

Her eyes locked onto Karen’s, steady and unshaken.

Abuchi turned to look at her, and for a moment, he forgot to breathe.

The certainty in Nnenna’s voice, the calmness that wrapped around her like an invisible armor… it wasn’t just comforting. It was powerful.

It reached not only him, but every single person standing there.

It was almost funny, he thought.

Wasn’t he supposed to be the leader?

He was supposed to be the one giving them hope, keeping them strong…

Yet here he was, needing strength himself, and it was his little sister who stood tall, radiating the unshakable belief that they would survive.

She wasn’t faking it either.

Everything about her, from her firm posture to the clear light in her eyes, screamed one thing:

We are not going to die here.

Abuchi lowered his head slightly, a faint, grateful smile tugging at his lips.

Maybe, just maybe, they would get through this after all.

“Okay,” Abuchi replied, his voice steady but his heart still heavy.

With their newly found assurance, they kept moving.

For the next hour, the group pushed forward, hacking through thick branches, stepping over tangled roots. Sweat dripped down their backs, their clothes clinging uncomfortably to their bodies. But then, finally, something familiar appeared up ahead.

Karen froze.

“Wait… isn’t that…?” she said, pointing.

Everyone turned to look.

There, caught on a sharp branch, was a piece of cloth, torn fabric from Karen’s jacket. The same jacket she had worn when they first entered the forest.

A cold silence fell over them.

The realization hit like a punch to the gut.

They had been walking in circles. For two whole weeks.

The weight of that truth crushed down on them. Even Nnenna, who had held her calm earlier, found her confidence wavering under the heavy blow.

John broke the silence, his voice almost a whisper at first, then rising into panic.

“We’ve been going in circles for two weeks?!”

He shook his head violently, his hands trembling.

“How?! We checked the map! We were moving forward! How could this happen?!”

His words echoed the fear and confusion in all of them.

After all, they hadn’t just relied on Abuchi.

All of them had checked the map.

All of them had believed they were going the right way.

And now, it was like the forest itself had been playing tricks on them.

The Black Forest… the Forest of Regrets…

Now they understood why it had such a cursed name.

While everyone else stood frozen in shock, Karen’s mind raced.

An idea sparked.

“Wait a minute,” she said suddenly, her voice sharp with urgency.

“We passed this place just a few days after we started, right? That means we’re close to the entrance!”

The others turned to her, hope flickering in their tired eyes.

Karen pushed forward, frustration leaking into her words.

“We can just go back! Find another route!

Forget this crazy forest! We can take our chances with the airport, or the bus, or even those cargo guys. We don’t have to keep doing this!”

Her voice cracked at the end. She was tired. Exhausted.

And now that an exit seemed so close, she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

John nodded slowly.

What Karen said actually made sense.