Exactly as the basilisk went through the abyss-like expanse it lost all its sense of time. The world around it faded into nothing but darkness, devoid of any kind of life.
At least in the godforsaken land where it came from, there were dead bones and barren lands to look at.
However, in this boundless void of darkness, it was utterly disoriented, with no grasp of its whereabouts or what fate awaited it.
Yet strangely this uncertainty brought a peculiar sense of contentment to the Basilisk.
The enveloping darkness held no threat, causing neither harm nor any specific sensation. Thus, the basilisk simply remained motionless, hoping for a miraculous turn of events.
It was during this silent vigil that, buried deep within the darkness, the Basilisk stumbled upon a glimmer of light.
The Basilisk felt as if it was drifting weightlessly in the endless void, prompting it to instinctively navigate through the darkness, as if swimming towards the beckoning light.
It swam through the darkness, paying no heed to the passage of time. With no fatigue weighing it down, its sole focus remained on pursuing the light in these depths of darkness.
Eventually, after an indeterminate amount of time, it finally reached the source of light. Suddenly a brilliance of flash overwhelmed its senses as it instinctively shut its eyes tight.
Gradually adjusting to the intense illumination, the Basilisk cautiously opened its eyes. The first thing that came into view was a creature standing before it.
This being had two elongated appendages extending from its lower body, allowing it to move. Another pair of stick-like extensions hung on either side of its body, topped with a head-like thing with black moss covering its head.
However, what made it stand out was its eyes, which looked almost identical to its own, with a deep crimson color.
It didn't know how or why but it instinctively knew this creature is commonly known as Human.
The Basilisk was accustomed to sudden influxes of new information often.
Ever since it came into existence and had seen nothing but death, all knowledge it gained has seemed to be ingrained within its being or arriving in a timely manner without question or explanation.
Thus, the manner in which this information surfaced didn't concern it. What actually mattered was the sudden presence of life before its eyes.
As it gazed upon the tiny human, witnessing life for the first time, a shift occurred within the Basilisk's predatory instincts.
Rather than viewing the boy as potential prey, an inexplicable connection stirred within, bridging a strange familiarity between them.
Beneath the little human's leg, the Basilisk also noticed another human-like being. However, unlike the strange connection, it felt with the boy, encountering this other human stirred only its primal instincts.
The hunger that had lain dormant for who knew how long surged forth, ignited by the sight of potential prey.
Despite its existence devoid of consuming living beings until then, the Basilisk recognized the need to feed even though it's not mandatory for its existence.
The sight of the other human triggered an immediate hunger, compelling it to crave food and consider devouring it.
The little human swiftly retrieved something from the deceased human's body and fled.
The Basilisk slowly emerged from the darkness and devoured the dead human remains in a single gulp, attempting to appease its hunger with this quick snack.
Immediately after consuming the human, a surge of something unfamiliar swept through the Basilisk. It recognized this sensation as new information, a revelation that triggered a deep-seated loyalty within.
The Basilisk, now bound to the one who had fed it for the first time in its entire existence, resolved to follow its new owner until his life came to an end.
Without dwelling on how it acquired this knowledge, the Basilisk slithered into the dark forest, moving with purpose as it sought to find the boy who had fed its first meal.
—-------
Karl who was still unconscious, remained unaware of the dangerous situation he was actually in. His throat was mere inches away from the three-eyed panther's claw, which was about to slice his entire neck in one deadly sweep.
Even as the Basilisk closed in on the three-eyed panther with remarkable speed, it hadn't quite reached a distance where it could intervene and stop the panther from harming the boy.
Just when the serpent king feared that its newfound owner, or perhaps a possible friend, was on the brink of departing this world due to its own moment of carelessness, suddenly an unexpected turn of events unfolded right before its very eyes.
—-------
[Download Completion: 33%]
[Error]
[Error]
[Threat detected to the host life]
[The Host's life is at immediate risk]
[Pausing the download process temporarily.]
[Host is unconscious]
[Activating the Emergency Protocol]
[Emergency Protocol Activated]
[Accesing Administrator Control]
[Temporarily gained Administrative Authority]
[Searching for available abilities to neutralize the imminent threat.]
[Searching…]
[Error]
[Error]
[No abilities found]
[Consuming all the EXP points available]
[EXP points consumed]
[Searching for suitable abilities to unlock]
[Searching…]
[Suitable Ability found]
[Unlocking the ability Gift Of Ouroboros]
[Unlocking the skill Ring of Jörmungandr]
[Activating the skill Ring of Jörmungandr]
Under less than a fraction of a second, a whirlwind of events unfolded.
As the three-eyed panther's claws were just about to cleave Karl's neck, his eyes snapped open with such suddenness that it startled the panther, causing it to jerk in mid-air.
The entire world around Karl seemed to shift into a high-definition slow-motion sequence from a movie.
Despite the mere inches separating the panther's claw from Karl's neck, time elongated to such an extent that the remaining distance the three-eyed-panther's claw needed to cover seemed as though it would take several more hours to reach its target.
Upon close inspection of Karl's crimson eyes, one would observe a mesmerizing sight, a symbol of a coiled serpent materializing within his both pupils.
These serpents in his eyes began to rotate counterclockwise in a hypnotic circular motion as if they were endlessly consuming their own tail.
As Karl gazed deeply at the slow-moving panther, a radiant glow akin to the Basilisk's emanated from both of his eyes. While everything around him seemed to slow down dramatically, Karl's movements of his eyes remained at a normal pace.
The intense dark crimson glow grew brighter and enveloped the entire body of the panther, which appeared suspended in mid-air as if it was drifting.
The brilliant radiance enveloping the panther withdrew immediately as soon as it covered the entire body of the beast in a mere second, as the glow retracted back into Karl's eyes.
Both the coiling serpents devouring their own tails faded from his pupils. Throughout these moments, he remained perfectly still, opening and closing his eyes once.
Time seemed to return to its usual flow around Karl. The three-eyed panther, suspended mid-air with eyes still wide in panic and confusion, gradually disintegrated into fine dust, its entire essence blending seamlessly with the surrounding atmosphere.
[Target's Life consumed]
[Host's Life is extended by 150 days]
[Initiating search for immediate threats to the Host.]
[No immediate threats have been detected.]
[Adiminstrative Authority revoked]
[Deactivating the Emergency Protocol]
[Additional Mental Energy consumed unlocking a new ability and a skill]
[Calculating the time remaining to complete the download process]
[Calcuation completed]
[The remaining time to complete the download is estimated to be 6 hours 32 minutes.]
[Resuming the download process]
The forest descended into silence once more, Karl still unconscious and the serpent king frozen in place, its panic-stricken eyes fixed on the face of the 'innocently' sleeping boy.
Its mind raced to comprehend what the hell had just transpired before its eyes in a mere fraction of a second.