Snip. Snip.

A gray, overcast sky clad the world in dim light. Dark hedges snaked off into the distance, laden with white roses. In the low light, the roses glowed with a low phosphorescence, lighting the hedge maze in eerie pale green.

Snip.

Steel clippers shut with a snap, and another rose fell. The heavy flower bounced down the neat stone path, dropping petals behind it. As it rolled, the rose’s glow faded, until it merged into the dark tangle of thorns and jagged-edged leaves. The remaining flowers bobbed gently on the breeze, blissfully unaware of their fellow’s fate.

The clippers opened again. Steel flashed for a moment, and another eerie green-white rose struck the ground.

Bright greenish light colored the wall of the maze. It grew brighter, and the shade of a young girl floated out of the depths of the gardens. Clad in a white dress, long wavy hair flowing over her shoulders, she glowed in the same white-and-phosphorus as the roses. She stared at the gardener, her expression blank.

The gardener continued on, unaware of the girl.

The girl blinked slowly, then turned away and drifted on. The roses shone through her transparent form. The very tips of the weeds pushing between the garden stones tickled the tips of her dangling toes. She turned the corner and vanished into the hedge maze once more.

Over and over, the clippers opened and slammed shut. Slowly progressing down the path, the gardener clipped the bushes back into shape. One clip removed an old, half wilted rose. The next removed an overgrown branch. The man himself was unremarkable, an average face and dark hair, sallow skin and sharp cheekbones. Spidery hands operated the clippers, and oddly bright blue eyes reflected the pale light of the roses as he marched along. Dressed in dark clothes, he nearly blended into the dark hedges.

Footsteps, almost silent on the overgrown cobblestones. A man in tight leather armor turned the corner, all black studs and fluttering black scarves. Six daggers stuck out from thigh sheaths, three to a leg. His eyes lit up at the sight of the gardener, and he jogged closer, gesturing over his shoulder. “Over here!”

“Russ! James found him!” a woman called.

Clanking, heavy footsteps grew closer. Another man, this one in metal armor, a heavy sword hung over his shoulder, clomped into view. A woman in crimson robes followed him, a leather-wrapped tome under one arm.

The man in armor, Russ, took in the gardener. His lips twisted, and he eyed the shiny steel clippers in the gardener’s hands. “He isn’t going to come at me with those, is he?”

The woman shook her head. “He’s an NPC. All he can do is garden. He’s completely harmless.”

“And, unlike the NPCs in town, there’s no guards here to stop us. We’re totally safe,” James, the man in leather armor with the daggers, replied.

“Just to be sure, though, can you cast a restriction spell, Sandra?” Russ asked nervously.

Sandra sighed and rolled her eyes. “As soon as you start, he won’t be trapped any more. There’s no point.”

“Still… what if he turns out to be a Lost One?” Russ pointed out.

“Does he look like a Lost One?” Sandra asked, laughing.

“Yeah, he’s not a kid, nor is he glowing, or floating, or anything that the Lost Ones do. Don’t be so paranoid, Russ,” James said. He slapped his friend on the back. “You’ve got this. It’s the easiest way to level up, it really is. The Tower wouldn’t work so hard to stop you from doing it if it wasn’t easy.”

“Can you blame me? I snuck in here. I’m not high enough level to be in the Garden. Of course I’m nervous,” Russ muttered. He drew his sword and approached the gardener.

Snip. Another rose hit the floor.

At the last second, Russ hesitated again. Biting his lip, he sighed. “I don’t know. This doesn’t feel right.”

Unaware of the danger, the gardener clipped on, moving at the same steady pace as ever.

“What is it? Russ, don’t worry. I searched for hours and hours, killed all kinds of NPCs, dodged all kinds of guards and traps and what have you. This guy is the best NPC to go after. There’s no consequences. None. As long as the Lost Ones don’t see you killing him, nothing will happen, and even if they do, there’s a two-minute grace period before the Lady of the Lost can get all the way out here,” James said, waving his hand dismissively.

“Are you sure?” Russ asked.

James drew a dagger and threw it at the gardener. It thumped into the gardener’s back. The gardener staggered forward from the weight of the blow, almost falling over.

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“Whoa! James!” Russ shouted. He jumped back, raising his sword.

The gardener caught himself on the yew trees and pushed himself upright, careful not to harm the rose vines growing over them. Ignoring the dagger dangling in his back, he walked on, still clipping away. Blood coursed down his back, slicking his shirt to his skin.

“See? Like I said. If he was a Lost One, he’d be screaming for mommy right now. But look! Completely silent. He can’t call the Lady of the Lost. We’re fine. You’re fine,” James placated him.

Russ twisted his lips. “He’s even bleeding…”

“Monsters bleed, too. It doesn’t make them real,” James said. He stepped forward, callously yanking the dagger from the NPC's back.

“He’s just an NPC, Russ. He isn’t a real person. He doesn’t feel anything. Think of him as a human-shaped monster,” Sandra assured him.

“A human-shaped monster that won’t fight back,” James said, shooting Russ finger-guns.

“Besides, it’s not like we’re going to sit here for hours and grind to level one hundred or something. Level ten is nothing. Fifty kills or so, and there you go,” Sandra nodded, crossing her arms.

“Well, he’s only level one. We might need to move on after level five. But it’s a good start,” James said.

“The Lost Ones…” Russ said hesitantly.

“We’ll keep a lookout for Lost Ones. Go to town!” James assured him.

Sandra nodded. “Worst case, we can flee the Lady of the Lost. If we work together, James and I should be able to hold her off until someone comes to help us defeat her. She’s got pretty good drops for a level twenty-plus field boss.”

Taking a deep breath, Russ centered himself, then raised his sword. “Alright. I’m ready.”

The gardener raised his clippers again. Russ swung his sword. As the clippers closed, Russ’ sword cut into the man’s neck.

Blood flew. The man’s head struck the ground and rolled away. A moment later, the man’s limp body struck the ground, knees first, then torso. Pouring from his neck, blood pooled on the ground, soaking the white roses to a brilliant crimson. Amidst the dark and pale garden, the red roses struck a lurid note, almost obscene.

The final rose dangled, half-clipped. It dropped off the bush a moment later, landing on the man’s chest. Its phosphorus light extinguished. The petals drooped.

Russ backed away. His hands trembled, the sword flashing as it shook. He clasped a hand to his mouth as his face paled.

Sandra sighed. “Don’t vomit. Come on, Russ. He’s a human-shaped monster. Not a human. A rat, basically, but… human-shaped.”

Russ shuddered. He turned around and puked into the bushes.

James and Sandra exchanged a look. James put his hands up helplessly. Sandra shook her head, lips pressed together.

“He’s a Fighter. We need a melee tank,” James said patiently.

“I know, but…” Sandra said. She turned a meaningful gaze on the puking Russ.

“What else are we supposed to do? No one wants to join a low-level party with nothing but a Rogue and a Mage. Where else are we going to find a Fighter who wants to join us?” James argued.

The bushes shook. A black-clothed man stepped out of the bushes with the same bright eyes and high cheekbones. He knelt, picking up the clippers with his spidery hands, and turned back to the roses.

James nudged Russ. “Russ, look. Look, like I told you. He respawns.”

Russ turned. His eyes dropped to the bloody body on the floor, and he lurched, clasping his mouth again.

“Over there, Russ,” Sandra said, nudging him toward the live iteration of the gardener.

Turning, Russ’s eyes widened. His jaw dropped. “He’s—he’s back!”

“Yeah. He respawns. He’s an NPC,” James stressed. He patted Russ on the back. “Look at your status. How much EXP did that one kill get you, huh?”

Russ frowned. He tapped the air, and his vision unfocused. A moment later, his eyes widened. “Whoa, no kidding!”

“So? What do you think? He respawns. He doesn’t react. He’s a monster in human flesh. It’s no effort to kill him, you aren’t in danger, and you get a ton of EXP,” Sandra said, nodding at Russ encouragingly.

Russ looked at his sword, looked at the gardener, then looked at Sandra and James. “Why doesn’t everyone do this?”

“Well, it’s hard to find an NPC that doesn’t proc guards or monsters when you kill them. I put in a lot of work to find him, you know?” James said, slapping the gardener’s shoulder.

Russ flinched. The gardener swayed in place, but moved on.

Nothing more than a lump of meat. A monster in human flesh. Russ swallowed, then nodded to himself. “I’ve got this.”

“Yeah. Take advantage of it while it lasts! The Tower hates this kind of exploit shit, so make sure you get as high as you can. Tomorrow, the Tower will probably update, and it won’t be so easy to kill him. It’ll add guards, or move him… something,” Sandra said, waving her hand.

“Tomorrow? We have a week, at least,” James returned.

“Still. Tower doesn’t like it. We can’t count on coming back to him,” Sandra said.

“Now that’s true,” James agreed.

Russ raised his sword. “You two keep a lookout. Like you said.”

“Yeah, yeah. Got it,” Sandra said, giving him a thumbs up.

Taking a deep breath, Russ narrowed his eyes at the gardener’s neck. He swung.

A head went flying. The gardener toppled again. To the left, the bushes trembled. Another gardener reached for the fallen clippers.

Russ slashed. Before the man even gripped his clippers, his head rolled among the bushes’ roots and the fallen roses. Another gardener spawned. Another head tumbled away.

Spawn.

Die.

Spawn.

Die.

Over and over. Russ huffed and wiped his brow, out of breath. He lifted his sword and slashed again, for what felt like the hundredth time. A pile of dark-clothed bodies grew beneath the roses.

“Come on, hurry it up,” Sandra said, tying her hair up. She adjusted the tome to her other hand and shivered faintly. Wrinkling her nose, she rubbed the back of her neck. “It sucks here.”

“I’m getting there. I’m level five already,” Russ replied, raising his hand again.

“The Lost Ones aren’t going to stay away forever. We’ve gotten lucky so far, but one could decide to camp here any minute,” James reminded him.

Another gardener stepped out of the bushes. Russ raised his sword. “I know! I’m going as fast as I can! He only spawns so fast!”

Russ’ sword fell.

A glimmer of hatred materialized in the gardener’s eyes. For just a moment, his hand clenched into a fist.

Another head flew through the air. Blood sprayed over the bushes, setting the flowers bobbing. The body hit the ground.

“Fore!” James called, lifting his hand to watch the head soar.

Russ flourished his sword and stepped forward. “Alright. Almost level six.”

“Hurry it up,” Sandra said, barely stifling a yawn.

The bushes rustled. A gardener stepped out of the roses.