*BANG!*
The Wyvern launched it's jaws and chomped on the rocks encircling the nest.
This had happened several times and the Wyvern was growing weary and impatient.
It was intelligent enough to know that it was dealing with the offspring of a Harpy.
So the fact that a mere hatchling was evading it so effortlessly made its cold blood churn.
*snarl!*
The Wyvern growled in frustration and it continued its onslaught.
"Haha! You can't touch me you damn gecko!"
Berkah shouted mockingly, easily evading the Wyvern's jaws.
Though it could not understand the words coming out of Berkah's mouth, something about the tone really pissed it off.
It increased the speed of its onslaught, determined to devour Berkah.
The sounds of jaws snapping echoed above the clouds for several more minutes.
"This body is so amazing!"
Berkah exclaimed.
"I don't even feel tired at all, my old body could never!"
"Yes! This is it!"
He dodged again.
"This is how I've always wanted to move!"
He effortlessly evaded once more.
"No — this is even better!"
He shouted, his deep blue eyes burning ferociously.
[But wait... I'm like two years old right now, how am I moving like this?]
He mused.
[Perhaps it's the anatomy of a Harpy?]
[No, it's not just that... ever since I've began dodging this lizard my body has been filling up with energy.]
[It feels like...]
He evaded the sharp jaws of the Wyvern midair.
[Like I'm tapping into my energy reserves.]
[Does this have to do with that energy I felt before I hatched?]
Berkah had reason to believe that he felt stronger after encountering the "gecko" in front of him.
He felt he had access to more energy and strength, like he had unsealed a hidden reserve of power, causing it to overflow.
Intense heat built up within his body, causing his heart to pump so fast that it felt like it would explode, and the entirety of his pale skin adopted a pinkish hue.
"*huff*, I feel like I'm on fire but it feels good!"
[What is this feeling?!]
He grinned brightly.
He was overrun by a feeling of unexplainable ecstacy, his hairs standing on end.
[It's way better than zaza for sure!... not like I've ever tried it.]
Suddenly...
His back hit the stone walls of the cave.
"Huh?"
[Has this lizard been luring me into a corner?]
Though not that impressive, the Wyvern possessed a significant amount of intelligence, cornering its prey was merely a hunting tactic.
The Wyvern extended it's leathery wings and blocked the sides to prevent Berkah from slipping away.
[Shit... I got too excited, I might be screwed here.]
[No... I have to keep calm and wait for it to attack.]
The Wyvern coiled up its neck once more and launched it's head toward Berkah with its mouth agape.
[Easy. I'll just jump on top of its head and —]
[!!]
Suddenly, the Wyvern ceased its momentum and instead extended its neck above Berkah.
[... A feint?!]
The Wyvern launched its head down toward Berkah and struck his tiny frame with the bottom of its jaw.
*Thud!*
His body crashed down onto the nest, sending an intense pain throughout his body.
The grass and feathers in the nest did nothing to cushion the impact.
"Ugh!"
He cried out in pain, his body almost embedded to the ground.
"That hurt more than being hit by a truck!"
Berkah exclaimed, the sensation of being rammed by "Truck-kun" still fresh in his psyche.
"This body is abnormally sturdy... That definitely had enough force to turn me into paste."
He muttered, forcing his small frame to stand.
Berkah wondered if all Harpy hatchlings were as durable.
[The adults might be able to tank a nuke if a mere two year old can tank so much force...]
Berkah stood upright, his body slightly trembling from the pain that lingered.
The Wyvern casted its reptilian eyes that resembled the rays of dawn at Berkah, tilting its head in confusion.
Even with its feeble intelligence, the Wyvern knew that it was simply impossible for a mere Harpy hatchling to survive the full brunt of that attack.
"...*huff*,*huff*."
Berkah struggled to regulate his breath, not because he was exhausted from all the evasion and the attack from the Wyvern.
But because...
"My body is burning up, what the hell!"
"I have never once been sick since reincarnating, why the hell do I have a fever all of a sudden?!"
Berkah's body was burning so hot that you could cook up an omlette on the surface of its skin.
*BA-DUMP!*
"Urk!"
His heart almost pounded out of his chest.
Purple veins appeared all over his body on cue with his heartbeat.
"AAAHH!"
He felt intense pain, like magma was being poured into his being.
The Wyvern discarded its previous confusion and coiled up its neck once more, bearing its razor sharp teeth.
It impatiently launched its jaws, casting a shadow over Berkah's tiny frame.
[Seriously this world's difficulty is insane! How is a 2 year old supposed to fight a Wyvern without a system?!]
[Fuck... am I really gonna die?]
[I was just born though...]
Berkah chewed his lips.
"Like hell I will!!!"
He roared, his blue eyes shining ferociously.
*CHOMP!*
The Wyvern was certain that it had the Harpy hatchling in its mouth this time and prepared to swallow him whole.
[!!]
But then suddenly, it struggled to close its jaws, it was as if an immense force was preventing it from closing its mouth.
"*snarl*, *growl!*"
It vocalized its confusion and frustration, exerting all its strength on closing its jaws.
"AAAAHHHHH!!!"
Berkah let out a roar that left his throat burning, his tiny arms pressed against the roof of the Wyverns mouth.
"I refuse to be eaten by a damn gecko!"
The once bulging purple veins slowly fading, his body rapidly releasing steam.
Upon realizing that its prey, the Harpy hatchling, was still alive and the cause of its jaws refusing to shut, the Wyvern panicked and flapped its leathery wings.
*Fwosh!*
"Ugh! It stinks in here! Ever heard of a toothbrush bro?!"
It rapidly ascended into the sky, violently shaking its head to forcibly swallow Berkah.
"Aaah! Stop it!"
Berkah struggled to maintain his posture, his hands steadily slipping.
[Fuck! I'll be swallowed whole at this rate.]
He balled up his tiny fist and...
*Bang!*, *Bang!*
He punched the roof of the Wyverns mouth.
"*SNARL!*"
The Wyvern screamed in pain, Berkah's blows were evidently effective. The creature shook its head and relented, releasing Berkah from its mouth.
[!!]
[I'm falling!]
"Aaahhhh!!!"
Gravity claimed his tiny frame, looking down he beheld the almost imperceptible outlines of his nest, a testament to how high in the air the Wyvern had flown him.
"*Growl!*"
The Wyvern did a nose dive directly toward Berkah, aiming to finish him off.
*Fwosh!*
It descended like lighting!
[...]
[My body is filled with energy...]
[I can feel it flowing through my veins...]
[Is it mana?]
[I know that if I just focus I can...]
He clenched his fist.
Berkah felt the intense energy gush through his veins at his command.
And...
*Crackle!*
A blue vibrant color enveloped his fist, burning ferociously like a raging flame.
The Wyvern drew closer, its already slit pupils constricting and its growls laced in bloodlust.
"Bring it on you fucking gecko!"
And...
*BANG!*
His fist connected with the Wyverns nose and his mana exploded, the force of the blow propelling its body away from Berkah.
Its facial scales were torn, splattering its blood in the air, its golden eyes rolled to the back of its head and it too was claimed by gravity.
The recoil of the blow propelled Berkah horizontally.
[Shit! Shit! Shit!]
The outline of his nest was gradually becoming more perceivable due to his plummet.
[Will I make it?]
He mused, the wind violently caressing his black curly hair.
[No! I won't make it!]
[Unless...]
He glanced back at his pitch-black wings fluttering on his back.
[They are still undeveloped so there's no way I can fly.]
[But If I can just...]
He extended his wings and gradually, the velocity of his propulsion decreased.
"I'm gliding!"
"Hahaha!"
He glanced at the clouds which were a long distance beneath him.
"So beautiful..."
He muttered.
He turned his gaze back toward the nest.
[Although I am tempted to just go off on my own, seeing as how there's fucking Wyverns in this world, who knows what else is down there!]
He cried inwardly, the fear of death strongly lingering in his mind.
[Besides...]
"I've grown attached to my... Harpy parents. It would break their hearts if I suddenly went missing."
He gradually drew near the nest that lay at the very top of a mountain.
[I need to circle around to decrease the momentum or else...]
He instinctively, yet carefully tilted his wings and circled around the nest until he finally decided to land.
[!!]
[Did I still have too much momentum?]
"Ugh!"
He crashed inside the cave headfirst.
"Ouch..."
He stood up, rubbing his aching head.
" Guess I still need to practice landing..."