A handsome, 18-year-old man ran across the road as he checked the time on his wrist. His long, black hair fluttered in the air but it did not hinder his keen vision. Avoiding the signposts and blockades on the streets like an expert adventurer, he reached the entrance of the building made in architectural glass and exhaled deeply. "Finally, I am here."

He took out his identification card from his wallet and swiped it over the scanner just right next to the electronic door. A series of whirring sound came next and a mechanical voice interrupted his ruminations. "Welcome to the Department of Field Exploration, Olivier Law." The door opened and he entered the establishment.

"Hello, Mr. Law," A redhead lady in white lab gown greeted once she saw him rushing on the hallway. "Are you scheduled for today?"

"Yes, Miss Rosalia," Olivier answered as he stopped running and bowed toward her. "I can't wait to arrive in Glendale."

"Oh, so you're assigned in that world? I hope you can bring a lot of resources when you come back."

Olivier smiled vibrantly. "That's my intention. It's the only reason why I became a world explorer - to help humanity from the brink of extinction. Since Mother Earth got almost destroyed by our carelessness, I think it's time for everyone to help what we can do to preserve our world."

Rosalia's expression became gloomy. With a sad tone, she replied, "Indeed, Earth was a planet full of resources but we did not learn to take good care of it until it's too late. The ozone layer was depleted, forests were burned, even the animals were not spared from our greediness. Catastrophes happened frequently and the human population was reduced to half. Luckily, Sir Christian Law invented the Portal machine and it became a big stepping stone for us to find new means to survive."

Once Olivier heard her mentioning his stepdad's name, he became exuberant and pumped up. "Heh! Dad has always been like that, his life was solely committed to his studies but I can't blame him. After all, he saved a lot of people due to his work and his dedication paid off."

"That he did." Rosalia gave him a concerned look and patted his shoulders. "Don't worry. Your dad is still out there, alive and kicking. I don't know what world he was transported into but he is a resourceful one. He will not kick the bucket easily."

Olivier appreciated what she did and smiled. "I know. I hope everything will be cleared and the investigation will answer some of our questions. He should have gone to Glendale as well but our contacts in that world said that they never saw him arriving."

"Well, it's not the proper time to reminisce some sad memories. I am confident that you can apply everything you have learned from your 10-year-training under the Special Agents Department. I'll be waiting for your good results." Rosalia kissed him on his right cheek and whispered, "Please be safe and return in one piece."

Olivier smelled the rosy breath from her mouth and felt the blood rushed to his head. Even then, he acted like it was nothing and laughed it off. "I've got to go, Miss Rosalia. Good day." He quickened his pace and followed the directions until he reached the office at the end of the narrow hallway.

He opened the door and peeked inside, only to find his colleagues already prepped up for the transfer.

Glen Dickens, a 25-year-old stoic engineer who gave up his dreams to volunteer on world exploration. Even though his friends warned him about the dangers he could meet, his desire to join the team did not wane.

Stella Louise, a long-time medic, just retired from the army and spent her time as Rosalia's assistant. When she found out that the department was looking for volunteers, she resigned from her post and applied for the job.

Together, they were part of Team 25 assigned to travel to Glendale. Glen was in-charge with the logistics while Stella's job was to keep the volunteers healthy. Olivier, on the other hand, was the fighter of the group and was involved with security.

Glen looked at the door and saw Olivier approaching them. Displeased, he shouted, "Hey! Why are you late? Stella's been worried about you."

Stella snorted as she prepared her medical kit. "You better get inside the capsule so we can arrive at Glendale early. Our contacts keep asking me and it's getting annoying."

"Sorry, guys. Since I don't know when we can return to Earth, I visited my mom's grave before I came here. I just ran from the cemetery to the lab." Olivier went to the locker and grabbed his bag, which he prepared beforehand. He then moved closer to the 3-meter capsule allotted to him, which was comparable to a phone booth, and swiped his identification card on the scanner. At once, the metallic panel opened and he entered the portal machine. He gave them a thumbs-up sign before closing the door.

Even though the area inside was small, he felt fine because he was not claustrophobic. He remembered what his dad said and took out the small chest from his bag. He opened it and saw a sealed bottle. Slowly, he lifted the bottle, uncorked it and took a sniff. His face brightened when he noticed the fruity scent and chuckled. "Dad knows what flavor I want despite him being busy." He then drank the content in one go.

When he realized that nothing was happening, he frowned and muttered, "I wonder what effect it did have on my body." He did not dwell on it much longer and secured the bag on his back, only to noticed that the booth was shaking. "An earthquake?!"

The tremor started weakly but the intensity went stronger after a minute passed by. Olivier pressed his hands on both the opposite walls to avoid crashing. Even then, the shaking did not stop and he could hear the alarm ringing outside the portal machine.

A static voice reverberated within the area. "Warning. Please follow the protocol and get to the safety chamber."

Olivier was about to go outside when he felt his body tingling - like some ants were gnawing his insides - and his muscles cramped. Even though his pain tolerance was high, he could not move at all because his body was not listening to him. The last things he noticed before he became unconscious were the blinking lights and the mechanical voice, saying, "Error. Please disembark the Portal Machine."

=====================================================

Olivier slowly opened his eyes, his body sore all over. He slightly tilted his face sideways and saw the bloody corpses beside him. Some were mutilated and others were beheaded but the brutality of the scene indicated that a massacre had just happened within the area.

He did not move right away, sharpening his ears to hear any sounds that might give him clues. At the right side, he heard several people cussing and shouting at each other, probably enemies who were about to battle to the death. All he did was lie on the ground until the pain subsided. He waited, the time felt an eternity as he lied on the ground, and stood up once the area was silent.

Curious, he scanned the area and had a vague idea as to his current location. The thick trees reminded him of acacia and oak, which was depicted from the books. Small rodent-like animals were seen scurrying away as if they were afraid of something. The purple mushrooms were thriving on the ground, lighting up the dark corners of the forest. The only scene that marred the view were the piles of corpses littered on the forest floor. Even then, the strong stench of blood did not make him gag because he was used to such scenarios. He was a true warrior on the battlefield and this made him all the more relaxed. "So nostalgic."

He glimpsed sideways and noticed his bag several meters away from him. At once, he picked it up and checked his belongings. "Inflatable bedding...food pills...phone...portable traps..."

When he realized that everything was still intact, he exhaled in relief. After securing his things, he wore his knapsack and cautiously approached one of the dead bodies and stooped down.

"This looks just like a human being. I wonder if they have the same body composition..." Olivier traced his fingers on the corpse's skin and felt that the body was similar to that of a male human. Even the clothes they wore were practically the same, except for the strange wolf-like image that was etched on his forehead.

Oliver investigated the other corpses and found out that they all had animal-like markings on their bodies. Most of them had these images on their arms while a few others were engraved on their feet. Some of them had their markings on their chests as well. He suspected that it had a significant meaning but it was impossible to determine its importance just based on these findings.

The situation was urgent and he had to find a safe place to spend the day and recover his strength. He wondered if his teammates were also transported to the same world.

Luckily, he had the chip to help him analyze things.

Unbeknownst to all, the chip implanted in his head was the reason for his high intelligence. As far as he could remember, the chip was already with him and he had no idea as to why he had this inside his brain. One time, he asked his stepdad about this but he just brushed him away, not believing him even for a second. His stepdad even insisted that he was just making things up.

He hid behind the trees and crouched before activating the chip. Several holographic texts appeared right before his retina.

***************

Starting Analysis...

Determining Location...

Atmosphere Comparison to Glendale: 35%

Atmosphere Comparison to Earth: 99%

Checking Status Condition...

Health: 98%

Latent Potential is being awakened because of Serum-X...

Physical Stamina Regeneration is increased...

Strength is increased...

Agility is increased...

Endurance is increased...

Vitality is increased...

Comparison to Human: 50%

New Genes detected...these cells can devour any living being and rob them of their life essence...

*******************

Olivier frowned when he read the prompts. "So the liquid I drank earlier was called Serum-X. Is this the reason why my physical attributes increased?"

With the chip's help, he discovered a lot of things. First, the environment was too similar to that of Earth. Second, this was not Glendale. Third, his body was changed by Serum-X, altering his very core and awakening something within. "Fifty percent human..."

The last message gave him an ominous feeling, and he was all the more curious about his identity. "Dang! I wish I could meet Dad again."

Olivier heard several faint footsteps from the right clearing. In a flash, he jumped up and gripped the dangling branch before somersaulting toward the nearby tree. He stabilized his footing and crouched as his senses became sharper.

Three people entered the forest clearing. All of them wore chainmails on their upper bodies partnered with metallic greaves, cuisse, and sabaton on their lower parts. The only part that was not covered was their head. As far as Oliver was concerned, they were comparable to the knights he read on books.

"Og shalika hari kulaki."

"Meru."

"Meru."

They scoured the piled bodies as if they were looking for something. After several minutes, they left the area.

Oliver waited for several minutes before jumping down. "I wonder what they are searching for. I should let the chip analyze the language of this world so I can't be hindered by communication barriers."

He was about to leave when the chip suddenly showed several prompts.

******************

Satiation Level: 0%

Your body will begin the force-feeding procedure...

******************

Olivier felt dizzy and toppled on the ground. When his hands touched the dead bodies, his whole arms transformed into a fanged eel-like creature and started biting the corpse.

He saw many bizarre things in his life but this was the first one that frightened him. His arms kept on eating the chunks of meat no matter how many times he tried stopping. Soon, he witnessed the dead bodies being devoured without his consent. "Is this what the chip meant by force-feeding?"

Even though it was disgusting, he could not help but moan in satisfaction every time his transformed hands swallowed some meat. It lasted for several minutes until the chip gave him another prompt.

******************************

Satiation Level: 100%

Analyzing Life Essence Absorbed...

Comparing Life Essence to Earth Counterparts...

Wolf Essence: 100%

Integrating Essence into your body...

Operation successful...

*****************************

Olivier did not know what to make of it because this was the first time this thing happened in his life. He was about to stand up when something was triggered in his mind.

This time, he was seeing himself transforming his whole body into a wolf.