"...WHAT, THE FUCK..... Haaaaah, well, this is a pretty shitty start... System, where have I teleported to?" As Axel teleported out of the labyrinth and took his first step, he somehow managed to step on a large pile of literal shit on the ground. His prior excitement about exploring the world was instantly extinguished by this shitty event. His survival knowledge kicked in, and he quickly discerned that this large pile of feces was probably intentionally left here to mark the territory of a large predator.
[You have teleported to a random deserted spot roughly ten kilometers out of the labyrinth.]
"Ten kilometers, huh? Just let me clean up this shit first and look for the fucker who did this." Axel took out his water pouch and washed off the filth from his boots, then proceeded to track down the culprit, which was easy enough since he found many claw markings on the trees around the area.
Following the marks, he stumbled upon a giant sleeping beast in a clearing in the forest. It was roughly three meters tall with the form of a panther, its entire body covered in black fur. You could basically imagine it as a giant black panther on steroids. There were piles of bones scattered all around the clearing, along with signs of tattered clothes and equipment. It seemed that this creature was quite the apex predator in the area.
Axel was confident in his skills to take on the beast, and even if things went south, he still had Sylva as insurance. He quietly snuck up on the beast, intending to sneak attack and catch it by surprise. His attempt failed when the beast woke up after sensing a foreign smell. Axel quickly unsheathed Sylva and went in for a quick hit while the beast was still standing up.
"ROOOOAAAR!"
The beast cried out in pain as Axel sliced its back leg. With Sylva as a weapon, she was much sharper than normal weapons and cut cleanly through its tendons due to her being much stronger than the beast. Now, with only three functional legs, Axel effectively crippled its speed, which was his main concern, as most four-legged predators are fast and agile.
The beast tried to retaliate, but Axel retreated as soon as he landed his hit, leaving the beast frustrated. Now that the beast wouldn't be as agile, Axel pulled out his blowdart and started shooting darts laced with paralytic liquids. The beast managed to repel the darts at first with its claws, but as Axel started circling around, it had a hard time twisting its body. Eventually, Axel circled to its blind spot, and the beast couldn't react in time. He landed a dart on its rear.
Whoosh
"RAAAAWW-AW--wr..." The dart worked wonders as it immediately began to take effect, paralyzing the beast and leaving it at Axel's mercy.
"Hmm, a giant black panther, my first victory in this world. You would make a good trophy... Oh?" As Axel was about to finish off the beast, he looked into its eyes and saw the beast making a sorrowful, pleading expression, wanting to cling to life.
"Rawr! Rawr!" At the same time, Axel heard cries and noticed two little cubs running out from the bushes, standing in front of their mother, shielding her from Axel.
"A mother, huh? And some brave little cubs... Well, things just got a bit more complicated." Now that there were baby panthers interfering, he instantly lost interest in killing them. Though he wouldn't consider himself good, he also wasn't heartless enough to massacre a family, even if they weren't human.
"So, it would either be leaving them alone, or..."
"You can understand me, right? Or do I have to do it the hard way?" Axel tried to communicate with the beast, which nodded its head with some difficulty, as it was still paralyzed.
"Great, really don't understand just how animals in a fantasy world can fucking understand human languages," Axel murmured. "Anyway, submit to me, and I will cure your paralysis. Of course, I will take care of you and your kids as well."
The beast struggled to decide for a little while, and Axel waited patiently. He didn't have to worry about the paralysis wearing off, and even if by some chance the beast overcame it, it still couldn't fight properly or run away with its back leg cut. There was also the burden of the two little cubs.
"RAA-RGH!" In the end, the beast relented to Axel's terms. Even though it was the apex predator of the forest, the area was running out of prey. Moving to other places would mean fighting other monsters to claim territory, which was difficult with two cubs as a burden. Most importantly, the beast sensed Axel's genuine intention to kill her a moment ago but stopped when he saw her children protecting her. She was betting that they wouldn't get mistreated if they submitted to Axel.
"Alright then, here's the antidote and some healing potions." Axel threw the items in front of the beast, as he couldn't get close yet with the little cubs still wary of him.
The beast called for its cubs to bring the antidote and the potion to her mouth. After drinking them, she felt the paralysis wearing away and her legs healing slowly but surely. She stood up, and under Axel's wary gaze, she bowed her head—a symbol of subordination. She briefly considered rebelling by escaping or attacking Axel once healed, but as she stood up, she felt an overwhelming pressure crashing down on her. She had never felt such dread and despair, even when Axel was about to kill her. She immediately abandoned all rebellious thoughts and submitted for the sake of her and her children. If the beast wasn't covered in fur, it would be obvious she was sweating buckets from the pressure.
The pressure vanished the instant she bowed her head, making the beast sigh in relief. With that, Axel tamed his very first monster outside of the labyrinth.