The wind brushed against my body gently as I lay on the domain of the second serpent. The sound of the small creatures chirping—the sound of the water flowing down the mountain—woke me up. After being quiet for a long time, the noise was lively. I slowly opened my eyes and got used to the soft light from above. Everything felt sharper and clearer, awakening my senses to a level I never imagined possible. The pain in my body stopped. There were no aches or pains. While sitting up, I moved my fingers and stretched my arms. It felt amazing. It felt even better to see that my body had fully healed, my beautiful face restored. My skin didn't feel like it was burning, and where it was now smooth and scar-free. My burned body had been fixed. Not a single scar. As soon as I looked at myself, my face turned red with embarrassment. My clothes were burned to ashes, and I was almost naked. I clenched my hands and, feeling angry, yelled, "Can I at least keep the last bit of dignity I have left on me?"
"System, give me something to wear, I said out loud.
The answer came right away: "Clothing given." All of a sudden, a black T-shirt, jeans, and shoes were on me. I let out a joyful sigh and ran my hands over the soft fabric. I said, "Not bad." It wasn't fancy, but it made me feel like myself again, or at least like the person I was becoming.
When I looked up, my eyes looked around the battlefield, and I realized that the icy domain of the second serpent was gone. Instead there were streams of water running their way down to a clear, sparkling creek below. As I looked at the clear water, my stomach growled loudly. I realize that I haven't eaten anything for a while. I stumbled toward the creek, following the stream of water. When I got to the edge, I got down on my knees and dove my hands into the water, pulling it up to my lips.
Even though the cool drink made my sore throat feel better, I was still hungry. The cold water helped me ease the pain in my throat. I took a few more sips and was almost done when I heard the sound of something moving behind me. I looked back over my shoulder slowly. They were the first thing I saw. From the bushes by the creek, they came out. As they got closer, their sharp eyes scanned the area. The first group of goblins gathered by the water. They were small and rough. Some of them drank from the creek, while others stayed alert and twitched their fingers around their wooden clubs. They were careful, as if they were ready for anything. Their boss, a huge goblin with bloodshot eyes, stepped forward, and he had a club made out of giant rock. I stopped moving and tensed up as I tried to stay as still as possible, hoping they hadn't seen me. Then I heard a soft snap, and then a cracking sound came from under my foot. I stepped on a dry branch. "God damn it," I muttered. The heads of the goblins snapped at me.The air became tense. They were about to move when they heard a sound coming from behind the trees. A pack of wolves followed. Their bright red eyes shone like flames as they walked toward the creek. As they moved, their huge bodies shook with power as their claws scraped against the ground. They moved together as one, and their eyes carefully looked over the area. A huge, muscular wolf with dark fur stepped forward to be their boss. Its growl sounded like it came from deep inside its chest, and its claws hit the ground like weapons. The pack did what it said, and now their eyes were on me. I didn't have time to answer. Another set of heavy footsteps echoed through the area, making the ground shake a little. The boars came from the other side of the creek. They were big, and their tusks were huge with spike-like fur. These boars were not like other boars; they were wild giants. The first few snorted and drank from the creek like crazy, but their boss, a huge boar with thick, dark fur with spikes, looked around. Its tusks looked like bent blades and were very sharp, able to cut through anything in their way. The leader of the boar looked at me with eyes that were full of quiet challenge. Each animal had shown up one by one and gathered at the creek. Now they were all looking at me.
The stress in the air was too much to handle. I knew I couldn't do anything. The monsters growled and snarled, and their evil eyes focused on me. With my hand tighter on my knife, I slowly moved away from the creek. As I slowly made my way toward the forest, I kept my eyes on them. Once I left their sight, they went back to drinking water. Then realization hit me: those monsters have cores, and the leader probably has a stronger core. If I kill them, I can consume their core and get stronger.
I knew I couldn't fight them all at once; it was too risky, but if somehow I could kill the pack boss, then I could easily kill the minions.
I stood behind the trees in the forest and watched the monsters like a predator watching its prey. I had to come up with a plan to separate the boss from the group. After looking around at the scene, an idea hit me.I got down on my knees and picked up a rock from the ground. After taking a big breath, I moved slowly and carefully. Then I threw the rock at the wolves with everything I could muster. As the stone flew through the air, it hit the pack leader hard. The result happened right away. The wolf boss turned his head quickly, and its bright red eyes narrowed in suspicion. The pack tensed up, and the boss let out a deep growl that let the rest of the pack know something was wrong. The sudden movement caught the goblins' attention, and they looked over at the wolves to see what was going on. Then one of the goblins felt threatened, so it raised its weapon and charged at the wolves, who were now lining up to defend themselves. In the heat of the moment, the goblin swung its wooden club, but it hit the boss of the boars in the face instead of a wolf. The boar roared angrily and snapped its tusks, which caused chaos. The monsters turned on each other because they were no longer interested in the water. The goblins hissed and yelled, the wolves bared their teeth, and the wild boars charged at anything that got in their way. Each group was tense, and their natural urges to protect themselves were stronger than any desire to work together. While this was happening, I hid and watched the chaos happen as the monsters got mixed up in their fight. While the members of the group fought, the leaders stayed somewhat separate and tried to keep order. But the break gave me the opening that I needed. Now I could see the goblin leader clearly. He was on the edge of the fight. I got my dagger ready in my hand. I dashed from behind and appeared under the goblin leader's throat before he could respond. I stab my dagger deep into its throat and slice downward, removing its head in a clean motion.
Then the wolf leader saw me; it realized that I was a bigger threat. It growled and then leaped at me, snapping its sharp claws at me. As it lunged, I sidestepped, dodging its claw. In a single motion, I struck my dagger downward, severing its head cleanly in a single strike.
At last the boar came. The huge animal pawed the ground. It snorted and lowered its head as it got ready to charge. I clenched my teeth when I realized that my dagger wouldn't work its changes toward me. I carefully planted my foot and let the blade fall to the ground. The boar roared and stomped toward me, and the ground shook under my feet. As it got closer, I braced myself and grabbed both of its tusks. The beast's raw power was frightening, and as my feet dragged across the ground, pushing me backward,. I felt strength flowing through my body. I felt confident. I slam one of my feet on the ground. With my own roar, I turned my body around and used its momentum against the boar to flip it over my head. Before slamming it against the ground, but I wasn't done yet. As the beast lay in agony, I reached for my dagger and immediately stabbed it in the head to end its suffering. The minions, seeing their leader is dead, tried to flee, but I was too fast. It ended before they knew it.
There was silence on the battlefield. As I looked at the bloody scene, my hands were shaking and my breathing was heavy. Around me, goblins, wolves, and the huge boar were all dead. I didn't waste any time; I went straight for their mana cores and ate them all at once. The energy flowed through me and left me feeling full, yet hungry. I thought of the dry wood. When I was sneaking through a forest earlier, I saw some branches that were lying around. My mind was focused as I picked up a few of them and put them in a small pile. Then I focused on my core and reached for a strong wooden stick. I slowly put the energy on the stick. As it lit on fire and turned into a small flame, I could feel the warmth spreading. I got down on my knees and used the fire to cook the boar, wolf, and goblin meats. As soon as I took my first bite, it was the most disgusting thing I have ever eaten. It tasted like rotten garbage; it was vile. I can't stop choking because it tasted so gross. My stomach turned it down. It was hard for me to swallow, so I chased it down with water. If I want to stay alive here, I have to force myself to eat even though the food isn't good. I wish I could have found some rabbits here.
When I finished the last bite of meat, my stomach slowly settled. The taste of rotten garbage was still there, but at least I wasn't hungry anymore. After consuming the mana core of the monsters, my mana cores sent waves of energy through me. Each wave of power made my body feel stronger and alive. I tighten the grip on my dagger as I enter the forest. The hunt wasn't over yet; I needed more cores and power. "Training, montage," I shouted. I went deeper into the woods with the rush of energy pumping through me. The trees' shadows made long, twisting shapes on the ground. It looked like the trees in the forest were moving. As I moved forward, I saw some new skull-shaped dogs with red, hollow eyes sniffing around the edges of the trees. There were goblins hiding in the bushes. They were smaller than the ones I slayed before. There were few boar and well as more wolf-like creatures. There were also snakes that moved through the grass, which I hated. Birds flew high in the air, their wings beating like drums. They were all dangerous, especially the snake and its poison. I quickly killed each of them one by one. The dogs that looked like skulls charged at me quickly, their claws cutting through the air, but I was faster. I quickly stepped to the side and slashed my dagger across their necks. In an instant, their bodies fell apart. Same story with the goblins. As it lunged at me, I stabbed one in the chest. Then I turned around and used quick, measured strikes to kill the others. The boars charged, but I was able to avoid their tusks, which made them defenseless, and with a single strike, they were dead too. Next it's the snake. Even though their bodies were twisting and coiling like snakes, they were fast, but they were nothing once I was able to dodge its strike. They all fell to the ground, their poisonous fangs no longer a threat. The birds were fast, but I was faster; with one sharp cut, I caught them in midair, and their bodies hit the ground. I got hungrier with every kill; with every kill, I wanted more and more. I continued to consume the cores, and if I was hungry, I would devour their meat. Each core I consumed, the stronger I felt. The greed for power consumed me, driving me to complete madness. I stood in the middle of the clearing, breathing hard, blood dripping from my dagger. The bodies of the monsters lay around me as I moved forward, their eyes empty, their cores teared from their bodies. My vision blurred, and I can't remember how many of them I killed or how long I have been hunting. But it didn't matter. Nothing mattered. I want more power.
A twisted grin spread across my face as I bit into another core in my hand, the faint energy flowing through me. The rush was weak, almost nonexistent, but I didn't bother me. I needed more. I wanted more. Each kill became easier than the last; my slash became quicker, sharper, deadlier. The creatures didn't even feel like threats anymore. They were just fuel for my growing power.
I let out a loud, wild, and angry laugh as I looked around at the carnage I created. The clearing was filled with blood, and the scent of death filled the air. My heart pounded with exhilaration. But when I consumed the last core, my smile faded. It nearly gave me anything. The weak creatures weren't enough anymore. I needed a stronger monster. Bigger challenge.
I stared at the dagger in my hand, my grip tightening until my knuckles turned white. My hands trembled, but not from fear or exhaustion. It was the sheer need for more. I felt like a predator who had outgrown his territory, too powerful for the prey surrounding him. These weaklings weren't even worth the effort anymore.
"They're useless," I muttered to myself, my voice low and trembling with frustration. "All of them… too weak."
I wiped the blood off my face with the back of my hand, but then I noticed a dark hole in the side of a hill that was partly hidden by plants and bushes. It was a cave.
I was frustrated and upset, and I walked toward the cave I had found. The constant killing was still making my chest hurt. There was no longer any thrill in the hunt. Instead, there was a hollow ache that no amount of cores could fill. As I got closer to the cave, the cool air coming in from the opening touched my bloody skin, and I felt something change inside me. The anger and frustration started to go away. The chaos I had left behind was very different from the cave's darkness and peace. I found a way inside. The rough stone walls felt comfortable against my fingers. My mind wasn't racing for the first time in what seemed like forever. Thoughts didn't bother me as much as they did during the hunt. It was like the cave itself was a safe place that calmed all the chaos within me. I sat down on the ground and rested my back on the cool, smooth rock. The peace felt strange, but I was glad to have it. Slower, more steady breaths came in as the weight of being sleepy kicked in. I could no longer feel the energy that had been powering my every move for hours, maybe even days. I lay down on the cold stone floor, my muscles sore from overuse. Every second that went by, my eyes got heavy. There was no denying the fallout from nonstop hunting. My body could not take it anymore. The cave was quiet; the only sound that could be heard against the walls was my own. My anger and fury were gone, replaced with a stillness that went deep into my bones. And as soon as I closed my eyes, I finally gave in to sleep.