He woke slowly, drifting in the river's steady push. His body no longer ached from knives or pans or flames. He flicked his tail, testing. Everything worked.
The hunger came almost immediately, sharper now that he knew what eating felt like. His gut twisted, demanding.
The System's new word glowed faintly in his mind.
[Skill: Bite]
He flexed his mouth. It felt strange—like trying to use a tool he didn't know how to hold. But it was his tool. His only weapon.
He swam upward, awkward but determined.
Threads dangled into the water. Worms wriggled at their ends, filling the current with scent so strong it made his head spin. The hunger pulled him closer.
Last time, he didn't know what to do. This time, his jaw worked with a different confidence. He nudged one of the worms, set his teeth, then clamped down.
Tear. Warmth. Food.
The piece slid into his mouth. Flavor burst across his tongue, filling the hollowness in his belly. For the first time since waking as a koi, he felt something close to satisfaction.
[Bite: proficiency +1]
The System's voice hummed like a teacher marking a correct answer. He didn't care. All he cared about was the heat spreading in his body.
Another worm dangled nearby. He lunged and ripped it away before the hook could snag him. He retreated into reeds, chewing clumsily, victorious.
[Bounce: automatic dodge successful]
His fins quivered. I'm getting it. I'm actually getting it.
He spent the day practicing. Worms, bugs, even a careless beetle that fell into the river. His bites became quicker, cleaner. Sometimes Bounce saved him from hooks when he grew overconfident, jerking him aside at the last second.
By midday, the hunger had dulled. He wasn't just surviving now—he was learning.
That was when he felt it: the pressure of something else in the deep.
The water shifted, a silent coil winding beneath him. The river hummed with tension.
An eel burst from the silt.
It came fast, body twisting, jaws wide. He froze—then Bounce seized him, snapping him out of the strike zone. The eel's teeth slashed past, snapping water where he'd been.
For once, he didn't flee. Hunger burned hotter than fear.
He circled, awkward but determined, and lunged at the eel's flank. His new teeth found soft flesh behind its jaw. He bit down hard, tearing away a strip.
The eel spasmed. Its body coiled like a whip, trying to crush him. Bounce yanked him sideways just in time. The tail missed his belly by a breath.
He attacked again. Another bite. Another strip of meat. Warm blood clouded the water. The eel thrashed, strength fading. Finally, it rolled in place, motionless.
He floated above it, stunned. He had killed something. Not by accident, not with a meteor bounce—but by choice. By Bite.
He ate until his belly swelled with warmth.
[Bite: proficiency +3]
[Minor tissue repair effected]
The words pulsed calmly in his head, but to him it felt like a roar. He wasn't just prey anymore.
The river changed after that. He noticed things he hadn't before: the lazy pull of nets rising in the current, the flicker of shadows that weren't fish but boats. He swam cautiously, weaving through reeds, Bounce keeping him one step ahead.
At dusk, the smell of smoke drifted from shore. Human voices laughed above the water. A net plunged suddenly, walling off escape.
He felt the panic rise in other fish, saw them swarm uselessly against the mesh. He didn't join them. He scanned, found a gap where two ropes sagged, and let Bounce angle him just right. His body slid through the seam as if the river had opened a door.
Shouts rang out above. The net came up heavy, dripping with silver bodies—but not him.
[Bounce: proficiency +2]
He flicked his tail, proud in spite of himself.
Later that night, under the shimmer of starlight, he practiced again. He snapped up bugs drifting on the surface, picked apart a crayfish hiding under a rock, and even stole a worm off a hook without touching the metal. Every success filled him with a little more certainty.
Weakest existence? Maybe. But weakness could learn. Weakness could grow teeth.
As dawn broke, the System spoke again.
[Host: Level -100]
[Skills: Bounce, Bite]
[Status: Functional. Survival probability: improving.]
He laughed in his head. Not much of a compliment, but enough.
He swam on, belly warm, teeth sharp, dodges cleaner than ever. The river stretched endlessly ahead, full of dangers waiting to swallow him.
But for the first time, he thought: Let them try.