I was frozen for a while, stunned by the girl's recent revelation. She is my older sister? and... the most shocking part, she was the one who made me reincarnate into this disgusting body!
My desire to attack her was now even greater after hearing such a thing.
"And now, all that's left is to find my little brother and prove it to everyone. How clever I am!"
'How stupid you are!' I screamed in my mind.
The girl kept swaying with joy, but for some reason, I didn't have the strength to attack her. Was it because she looked like Emily? But that didn't erase the fact that she was responsible for my repulsive reincarnation into this body. I decided to stay a while longer,observing her.
She turned around and began to run hurriedly, I assumed, in the direction of the village. I didn't move from my spot, because if I got too close to the place, I would cause havoc. I'll just wait and see if they don't find me.
...
Hours passed, and I saw no signs of human life in the surroundings. Apparently, no one believed her story, which was obviously understandable; not even I would have believed a girl babbling nonsense about having resurrected her dead brother. For someone my mental age,perhaps I shouldn't hold such a grudge against a girl. But she was a special case; because of her, I am going through immense stomach pain from the voracious appetite that grows inside me all the time.
Damn it, I feel like I'm going to lose control. I'm so hungry. I lay down on the ground,looking at the sky, contracting my abdomen as I writhed in pain.
Blrrrg...
The sky is darkening; night will fall soon. Shit.
In my previous world, the Blooders became very aggressive and harder to kill at night, which is why hunters like me preferred to hunt them before the sun set completely. That reminds me of the first time I fought a horde of Blooders after dark; they almost bit me then, but luckily, I got help from another group camping nearby.
Back to the present, I am now in the same situation as the Blooders when they go crazy at night. If I don't eat anything right now, I will lose control of my body, and my state of madness will manifest to devour the entire village. Huh?Devouring the entire village... that sounds like a great idea; just thinking about it makes my mouth water, hehehe. What the hell am I thinking?! I'm gradually losing my sanity. Hold on, consciousness; I didn't go through hell for over 20 years straight for nothing. Even without part of my jaw, I felt a burning sensation in my mouth and throat, as if I'd been hit with a hot pan on that part of my face.
"Hello?..." a voice sounded in the distance, behind the cluster of trees and bushes where I was.
It's her again... 'Stay away from me, I'm dangerous right now!' My body trembled violently, not from fear, but because I was losing my sanity, and saliva flowed from my torn mouth like a waterfall.
"Egil, is that you?" Upon hearing the name she mentioned, my body stopped trembling for a moment. Egil? Even though my brain is rotten, I know perfectly well that was the name of this body's previous owner. "Egil... I know... you're angry with me. They told me that the dead... get angry when you disturb their eternal rest. Forgive me! I didn't mean to wake you; I was a fool."
This girl is apologizing to me. I would accept her apology if she would get away from here as soon as possible!With my blurry eyes, I could barely see the silhouette of the girl standing opposite me. She still doesn't know I'm here. My eyes only made out the girl holding a lit candle in her right hand and a wooden bowl in her left. She was wearing a white nightgown-style pajama that reached her ankles.
"According to the books I read, I have to give you a bowl of my blood to keep your anger under control," she said as she placed the wooden bowl on the ground. "This is the price I have to pay for reviving a dead person; I have to feed you my blood once a week." She retreated slowly before running away. "I'm so sorry!"
As soon as she disappeared into the depths of the forest, apologizing for the last time, I jumped toward the bowl full of blood, trembling. I took the bowl with my dry, rotten hands and brought it to my mouth.
Glup... Glup... Glup...
As I drank from the bowl, I felt my throat begin to cool from the burning sensation in my jaw. My body stopped trembling, and my sanity was able to return.
'Bleeh...' I finished all the contents. It wasn't delicious at all; it just tasted like a slight hint of iron (like blood). I think it was pure instinct to finish all the blood to relieve my abdominal pain and the burning in my mouth. Wait, so the Blooders didn't devour people just for the sake of it? They only did it to... relieve their pain and discomfort? Now I understand how horrible it is to be a Blooder in the flesh.
My hunger has subsided for now, but it's already night, and I feel my body stronger, faster, and with more energy. It must be due to the effects Blooders have at night. I can't sleep; I think my brain is so rotten it no longer needs rest to stay alive. What will I do tomorrow? I'm so lost. I have no purpose here other than to be that girl's pet. 'Ahhhg' Thinking about that won't get me anywhere. Maybe... I should start by getting to know this damned forest. After all, I have plenty of time and nothing to do. Why not explore the area a bit?
I got up from the ground and noticed I was naked, but I felt neither cold nor heat. And this body's "little friend" had already fallen off due to advanced decomposition. Poor me. My vocal cords were destroyed, as if someone had stabbed my throat with a large knife, and I could only babble primitive noises.
I carved some trees with stones and placed rocks in specific spots. Done. I've marked reference points in case I get lost.
Remembering the way back, I embarked on a short walk around the area. Walking through the bushes, many local animals were already asleep, and I disturbed some of their sleep. Suddenly, a large number of fireflies gathered around me. They were various colors and a bit larger than those in my previous world—about 3 cm high and wide—while in my world, they were barely 1 mm high and wide (or less).
'How beautiful...' I said, hypnotized, completely relaxing among them. Some landed on my body...
Arch...
'Huh?' I heard a noise at my side. I turned my head slightly to see a firefly tearing off a piece of my rotten flesh, chewing the piece with delight. Suddenly, all the fireflies around me landed on my skin, trying to devour me too.
'Ahhh!' That was my only reaction upon seeing all these insects trying to eat me. They were scavengers! In a sudden movement, I tried to swat them away by slapping my body, but it didn't work. My only option was to run!
Pat Pat Pat
I ran like crazy in random directions, trying to avoid those bugs. The fireflies in this world are so terrifying! And then...
Clap...
Due to carelessness, I tripped over something on the ground, falling down.
Splash!
I felt my whole body get wet and colder. Apparently, I had fallen into a shallow river. I looked toward the surface to see if the insects had moved away... And indeed,they had. More specifically, they didn't cross the river with me. Are they afraid of water? Suddenly, some of the flickering lights of the fireflies disappeared, and they began to move away from the area. I watched as the lights gradually shrank until they vanished. I don't know what happened there.
I swam toward the spot to get a closer look.
Rib... Rib...
That sound was a frog. When I got close enough, I observed the supposed frog that had scared those bugs away.
'So big!' It was a great surprise to note the colossal size of the frog. It was the size of a Husky dog and was chewing on something that produced a colorful substance oozing from its mouth. It was eating the fireflies.
Bon appétit. I accidentally brought dinner to this monster. I think... possibly, fireflies will be my greatest enemy in this world. Maybe I should adopt a frog like this in case something like this happens again. But for now, I'll move away and leave the scene.
...
The sun began to peek over the horizon, tinting the dark blue sky with a golden-orange hue. My legs wobbled as I walked.
Phew... Good thing I learned the way back to my comfort zone. I say that because this is the only area I know in the whole forest. I approached the empty bowl and sat next to it, playing with the dish for a while as I thought. This place is full of fantastic animals. I wonder if these types of animals exist exclusively in this area or all throughout this world.
There's probably also magic in this world, remembering what that girl said about a ritual that revived me in this body. What kind of magic did she use on me? With that power to bring a soul from one parallel world to another completely different one, wouldn't that be forbidden magic? Now that I think about it, I can understand the language she speaks. I think it's something this body already knew. Recalling the expression on the girl's face, I deduce that she was very innocent. Perhaps she believed her brother would revive by magic without a single scratch, like any person who hasn't seen the process of human decomposition with their own eyes. I also wondered if there were more like me, a Blooder. If there were, how come an apocalypse hasn't broken out in this world? Then I could consider myself a special individual.
I thought for a long time as I rolled the bowl back and forth like a wheel. Until suddenly, I felt a need for information about this world. If it's a parallel world and possibly one of magic and fantasy, then the history, language, races, mathematics, science, geography, and era are all different from mine.
'I need information,' I told myself. But the biggest obstacle to my goal is how I would get it. I can't go around the villages scaring people while asking for information with my terrifying appearance. My only option is to explore the area to see if there's an abandoned house with old books that I can read to gather information.
...
After exploring the area further, I found absolutely nothing. This is starting to frustrate me, and without realizing it, it's almost midday. I know because I used the method of sticking a stick in the ground and watching the shadow move. To know if it's midday, the stick should have no shadow because the sun will be at its highest point. Having said that, I returned to my comfort zone.
Pat pat pat...
I heard footsteps not too far from me, coming from behind some trees to my right. I hurried to hide behind a bush, crouching down, waiting for the approaching individual to appear.
Slss...
"Whoah," a girl with blonde hair and turquoise eyes emerged, her face exhausted. That... She was the girl from yesterday. "I have to get used to passing through here; I almost tripped on a rock," she murmured with an annoyed expression.
What is she doing here? I wondered. I noticed she was carrying a small metallic bell in her right hand and, in her other hand, a book with a very worn cover.
"Egil..." I heard her say my supposed name. "I hope you're well, you know... I'll say it again. I'm so sorry for waking you, and I hope you forgive me." Immediately after, the girl tossed the small bell in a random direction since she didn't know where I was.
"I know you're here. I know because the ritual I cast on you was a spell based on master and servant, and now my soul is bound to yours. I understand if you don't want to see me. Maybe you still hate me, but at least answer me with the bell I threw. Ring it once for 'yes,' and ring it twice for 'no'." She lowered her head, closing her eyes with worry. "Would... you forgive me?"
She's waiting for my answer. Honestly, I don't want to forgive her, but something tells me she doesn't deserve my hatred. She was a very careless girl who innocently believed she could revive her brother without any problems, and now she regrets what she did. Based on my experiences and my adult mind, she is still very young and has a whole opportunity ahead of her. If I were the original soul, perhaps I wouldn't forgive her, but since it's me, honestly, the best thing is to forgive her. I think she has already learned her lesson by drawing a large amount of blood for me. I picked up the small, shiny bell, which was barely the size of an adult thumb, and rang it.
Ring... A clear, metallic sound resonated in the air.
The girl raised her head, her eyes wide open as she looked straight ahead.
"Really... you would forgive me?" I noticed her nervous face as she repeated the question.
Ring...
I rang the bell again to make sure. She looked relieved and gave a slight smile.
"Can I see you?..."
Ring Ring
"I see, hehe. But if you want, I can teach you the things I couldn't do as your big sister when you were alive. I heard you never had a proper education due to lack of money," the girl commented, then raised the old book with strange writings, trying to show it to me. "I can... teach you like in school. Look at the book I found for you. I know it's not very good, but at least it contains subjects like language, mathematics, and history."
That's it! That's what I was looking for. She can teach me the basics. But... she spoke about this body's past situation as if it were unrelated to her. So I deduce that we grew up in different places, separately.
Ring...
I quickly rang the bell in approval. The girl's face broke into a big smile; she was obviously very happy.
"Great! Do you want to start now?"
Ring...
The girl sat down against a nearby tree and leaned on it.
"Okay... let's start with history. I'll tell you the origin of the world..."
I positioned myself in a spot where I could hear well but without getting too close to her. Sitting 5 meters away from her, I could still hear her clearly and distinctly, perhaps due to the sensory and physical enhancements brought by the Blooder virus.