Chapter 3 - TRAINING MISSION

"Hot..."

"Did I wake up late today too..."

Hari opened his eyes. What he saw was a blue sky with a massive sun, almost double the size of the usual one. As he lay there, he started to remember the conversation that had taken place yesterday.

"So I transmigrated, hmm... My hand is white, not the usual brown. Is it too white? Maybe it's the skin tone of Europeans. I don't have any close contact with them before."

"Let's check my body then... Oh, I got a six-pack. My junior is also big. A twenty- to twenty-five-year-old body, I like it. Now let me check my face... I should find a mirror first. Anyway, where am I?"

Only after that did Hari check his surroundings.

"What the f#@$..."

He was on top of a mountain. Looking around, he saw only a vast green rainforest surrounding this several-thousand-feet-tall peak. Hari felt like the lone survivor in the world.

"DING"

A blue transparent screen popped up in front of his face. On the screen, he saw a loading button. Then...

"DING"

"DEMO DIVINE EMPLOYEE SYSTEM STARTING"

"TRAINING MISSION STARTING"

"MISSION: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

SURVIVE AND FIND HUMAN SETTLEMENT IN 30 DAYS

MISSION REWARD: CANDIDATE'S SYSTEM WILL ACTIVATE COMPLETELY"

After Hari read the mission, the screen vanished, leaving him feeling devastated. He decided to climb down the mountain first. He found a side of the mountain that had no steep cliffs and decided to descend through it. He gripped a stone and slowly climbed down. After a while, he started to get the hang of it, understanding that his body was much better than his counterpart on Earth. After two hours of climbing, his muscles started to get sore. He began to feel thirsty and hungry. There wasn't a single leaf around him, only stones.

Hari knew if he took a rest now, he wouldn't be able to move his muscles again. He continued to climb down. Hari knew he needed at least ten hours to descend, but he wanted to live. He was not ready to die again.

After a few more hours, Hari's body climbed down like a machine. Everything became blurry for him. His breathing became adjusted with his climbing. It started to find its own rhythm.

One more hour passed. Hari was in a half-conscious state. At that time, a white fog-like strand formed in front of him and he inhaled it. Every time he breathed, the creation and inhaling of strands became a part of his respiratory system. Then the number of strands increased. Every time he breathed, his body began to pulsate with it. Every blood vessel, nerve, and muscle started to get baptized by the inhaled white fogs.

Three hours later, Hari's consciousness became clear again. He felt his muscles were no longer sore. There was more energy left for him to climb down. To his surprise, there was only 30 percent left to descend.

Hari continued to climb down. At that time, he started to feel something moving alongside his nerves, stimulating his muscles.

"Is that mana? How come I can use it as part of my body? Is it because this body was created for becoming a divine employee? Anyway, it is my body now. I should research after reaching somewhere safe."

Hari reached the bottom a few hours earlier than he had calculated, thanks to his improved body. He started to become thirsty and hungry again. He began searching for food and water in the forest.

Hari found some wild strawberry-like plants and some fruits. After getting back some energy, he thought to sleep somewhere near the mountain.

Hari knew he was safe near this mountain because he didn't see any living animals, birds, or even insects near the mountain and for a few kilometers around it.

Hari thought there might be some big predator near the mountain, so he wanted to leave as soon as possible. But after thinking again, he decided to stay the night here because of two reasons. The first was the absence of insects. Insects live almost everywhere in the world; no big predators care about them. So he concluded that it was not any animals, but the mountain itself that kept animals away.

The second reason was that he had spent around ten hours on this mountain and hadn't encountered any danger. It felt like a safe zone. If it wasn't, he might be dead by now.

In the morning, the next day, Hari climbed up the mountain a few hundred meters to locate river areas. He knew these types of rainforests definitely had a river or a big pond. To find them, he needed to look for valleys or earth depressions. After looking carefully, he decided to move north.

After walking for two hours, he heard the sound of running water. A few minutes later, he saw a small river with clear water. He ran towards it and drank a few mouthfuls. He had never appreciated plain water like today. After quenching his thirst, he found some hollow tree stems for water containers.

After resting for a few minutes, he decided to leave the place. As per the mission, he needed to find a human settlement in 30 days.

If what God had told him earlier was true, then civilizations before the cataclysm were already destroyed. Survivors of the last civilization started anew. The newer civilization would likely be built around water bodies. Even if they had the technology, it would take a few hundred years to rebuild. So the best chance of finding a settlement was to move in the direction where the river flowed.

Hari started to walk alongside the river, collecting some fruits along the way. After walking for a few hours, he began to hear the sounds of crickets. He knew he had left the protection of the mountain. He knew he was not safe anymore.

It was already evening, so Hari decided to stay here. He caught some fish using a makeshift spear from a branch and ate them raw. He didn't have the courage to build a fire in this strange new world. After that, he built a temporary shelter using leaves and branches against a boulder and slept there.

The next morning, Hari felt a cold sensation on his cheek. He slowly opened his eyes and saw a white deer with blue markings around its body. After a few seconds, the blue markings shifted to yellow.

"What a cute animal," he murmured, reaching out his hand. "I need to give it a pat."

"Come here... come here," he coaxed gently.

As his hand neared the deer's glowing head, the creature opened its mouth, revealing a set of sharp, majestic, lion-like teeth that clashed together with a menacing "BITE, BITE" sound.