Sproutail was lighter than Kai expected.
The little creature perched on his shoulder with an easy balance, leaf-ears twitching as it sniffed the air. Its tiny claws poked through the fabric, but not painfully—more like a child gently gripping a parent's sleeve.
Mira's Flarekit circled them both, tail-tip flickering like a candle flame. Every so often it barked at Sproutail, then immediately shied back, unsure whether it had just greeted someone or challenged them.
Kai watched the two creatures cautiously, but both seemed content. Neither sensed the wrongness in him, or if they did, they didn't mind.
Mira clasped her hands together, practically glowing. "This is wild. I've only played for like… two hours before today. I didn't know the beasts felt so real."
"They didn't used to," Kai said quietly.
She didn't hear the difference in his tone.
"Okay," she said. "So what now?"
Now? In the original game, the Guide NPC—meaning Kai—would deliver a little tutorial:
How to release and recall beasts.
How to view stats.
How to try basic moves.
Then a practice battle with a harmless critter.
Kai remembered the exact steps because he'd skipped them so many times.
But the script didn't feel as strong now. It tugged at him, like a faint rope tied around his ribs. If he focused on it, he could sense the shape of the expected dialogue pressing at the back of his mind.
Explain the basics. Demonstrate a move. Smile. Send the player to the next quest.
Kai inhaled and let the script nudge against him without following it.
"Let's head outside," he said. "There's more room."
Mira nodded enthusiastically and whistled to Flarekit, who bounded after her.
Kai stepped out of the small Guide's hut and into Alder Village's central clearing.
It was almost peaceful. Trees rimmed the space, leaves casting soft shade. A couple of NPC villagers tended small gardens. Smoke drifted lazily from a chimney. Nothing in sight hinted at the glitch event that would swallow the village in less than two weeks.
Sproutail chirped and scampered down Kai's arm onto the grass. Its paws pressed tiny dips into the dirt. It looked around with unguarded curiosity, tail bobbing.
Kai fought back the uneasy thought that this innocent creature might become a target soon.
"Alright," he said. "Let's start with something simple."
Mira stood at attention like a student waiting for instructions.
He gestured to her capsule. "Hold your hand over it and think 'status.' The capsule should show you Flarekit's basic stats."
She tried it, and a translucent panel flickered into view—only visible to her.
"Ooh! Okay, it says Power medium, Finesse high, Guard low… Spirit medium…" Her brow furrowed. "My Will score is only 'fair.' Should I be worried?"
"No," Kai said. "That one gets higher as your bond gets stronger."
"Bond?" she repeated. "Is that like… friendship points?"
Kai almost laughed. "Something like that."
He crouched and tapped on Sproutail's forehead gently. The beast looked up, big eyes bright.
"You have a Spirit-heavy starter," he said. "That means you'll probably learn a skill before you learn a battle move."
Mira's eyes widened. "Wait, skills? Like… talent trees?"
"Sort of. But they just come out naturally. Beast instincts handle most of it."
Flarekit paused, sniffing the air again, then yipped in excitement. A tiny ember danced along its tail as if in agreement.
Mira squealed. "This is seriously the cutest thing I've ever seen."
Kai nodded, though his gaze drifted toward the woods beyond the village.
There, between the trunks, something felt… off. A faint static in the back of his skull. Not a sound. Not a sight. More like a memory of a bugged collision box from the game—something that shouldn't exist in the real world.
He pushed the thought aside as Mira turned to him again.
"So," she said, "should we try battling something? You know, for practice?"
Kai hesitated.
In the game, practice battles used docile critters called Chirrils—squirrel-like creatures that barely fought back. They gave tiny amounts of experience and taught players how battles flowed.
But this wasn't a game anymore.
If a beast got hurt, it bled. It limped. It cried.
Kai's stomach tightened.
He needed to teach her, though. If the corrupted beasts came early, even beginners would be in danger.
"Alright," he said. "Let's do a practice battle. But we're not looking for anything too strong."
He looked at Sproutail. "Up for this?"
Sproutail chirped and hopped twice, a confident little bounce.
Flarekit growled—not aggressively, but with the proud, puffed-up bravado of a puppy who'd just learned what its teeth were for.
Mira clapped. "This is going to be amazing!"
Kai hoped she'd still say that afterward.
They didn't go far—just to the edge of the trees where the sunlight still reached the ground. If this world followed the game's spawn logic, a Chirril should wander nearby.
He scanned the low shrubs until a tiny brown shape hopped into view. A round-headed creature with a fluffy tail and oversized acorn cheeks.
Perfect.
"That's our target," he whispered.
Mira stepped forward. "Okay! Flarekit, let's do this!"
Flarekit trotted ahead, tail swaying, confident as a champion.
The Chirril froze mid-hop, twitched nervously, then squeaked at Flarekit as if asking why a stranger was yelling at it.
Mira pointed. "Flarekit, use—uh—Ember?"
The word didn't feel forced. She genuinely didn't know what else to say.
Flarekit's ears perked. Its tail flame pulsed. Heat shimmered around it, faint but real.
Kai's breath caught.
This was the part he wasn't sure about.
In the game, moves triggered automatically when commanded. Here… beasts had to decide how to use the command.
Flarekit exhaled sharply. A tiny burst of fire—a small glowing spark—shot from its tail and popped like a firecracker against the dirt.
The Chirril shrieked and bolted sideways.
"Good!" Kai shouted. "Now move with it! Don't stay still!"
Mira blinked. "Flarekit, chase it! But don't bite it!"
Flarekit complied, darting after the fleeing critter. It wasn't graceful—more like an excitable puppy pouncing at a bouncing toy—but it was effective. The Chirril looped around a stump, squeaking in alarm.
Sproutail watched from Kai's feet, eyes glittering.
He crouched. "If you want to help, wait for an opening. Don't hit Flarekit."
Sproutail nodded—a tiny, serious motion.
Kai felt a strange warmth. A tiny bond. Real, not scripted.
Flarekit lunged again. The Chirril dodged and found itself trapped between Flarekit and a rock.
Mira pumped a fist. "Yes! Flarekit, do Ember again!"
Flarekit inhaled, tail glowing brighter.
Before it fired, Kai's instincts prickled.
Heat plus dry grass. Ember hitting the ground. Flarekit still learning control.
"Mira!" he snapped. "Tell it to aim upward—don't hit the grass!"
She reacted instantly. "Flarekit, shoot high!"
Flarekit flicked its tail upward. The Ember arced and burst in the air like a sparkler, harmless but bright.
The Chirril tried to flee, but the light startled it. It stumbled.
Sproutail seized the chance. It leaped, twisting midair. Its tail glowed green. It struck the ground next to the Chirril, releasing a burst of leaf-shaped motes.
A shockwave radiated through the grass.
The Chirril froze, its limbs trembling as a soothing green aura wrapped around it. Its muscles slackened. Its aggressive twitching softened.
"That wasn't an attack," Mira said, stunned. "What was that?"
"A skill," Kai murmured. "Sproutail used Calming Dust."
He hadn't expected it this soon. It usually took several levels in the game. But skills weren't locked behind numbers now. They were tied to instinct.
Flarekit approached the Chirril carefully. The little critter huffed once, then slumped, overwhelmed but unharmed.
Mira exhaled in relief. "We did it!"
Kai nodded. "Good job. Both of you."
She beamed like a kid who'd won a tournament.
Flarekit trotted back proudly, chest puffed out. Sproutail hopped up Kai's arm again, chirping triumphantly.
"Alright," Kai said. "Let's recall the Chirril so it can recover."
Mira blinked. "Wait—we can… heal wild monsters?"
"Not heal. Just remove the battle stress."
He approached the Chirril slowly. It didn't try to flee—Sproutail's calming effect lingered. Kai placed his palm above its head.
A green pulse of energy radiated from his hand.
The Chirril blinked, shook itself, then hopped into the bushes as if late for an appointment.
Mira's mouth dropped open. "You can do healing? As the Guide?"
Kai froze.
He'd forgotten that part.
NPC Guides had minor support abilities. They were never mentioned in the game, but they were coded for the tutorial.
He had just used one.
"Yeah," he said finally. "Comes with the role."
She leaned in, fascinated. "What else can you do?"
Kai didn't answer right away.
Because another sensation hit him.
A tiny chill down his spine. A distortion in the air, so small he'd normally ignore it.
Something flickered in the forest beyond the clearing.
It wasn't an animal.
It wasn't human.
It was a ripple—like static bending sunlight. A dark patch flickering between tree trunks.
Kai felt his heartbeat thump against his ribs.
The corrupted event wasn't supposed to start yet. Not for days.
But that flicker…
It looked too much like the early-game bug that spawned corrupted beasts.
Mira didn't notice. She was too busy cuddling Flarekit, laughing as it licked her cheek.
Sproutail noticed.
Its ears flattened. It hissed softly, posture sharp, tail trembling.
"Kai?" Mira asked, sensing the change in his expression. "What's wrong?"
He didn't take his eyes off the flicker.
"Stay close to me," he said quietly.
Mira followed his gaze.
"What is that…?"
The flicker pulsed.
Not forward. Not back.
It pulsed downward—into the ground—like something sinking.
Kai held Sproutail close, heart racing.
Not yet, he thought.
Not this early.
The air crackled faintly. A sound like a glitched audio file whispered through the leaves—there one moment, gone the next.
Then everything went silent.
The flicker vanished.
Mira's breath caught. "Kai… what was that?"
Kai didn't answer.
Because deep in the forest, something else moved. Softly. A rustle. A distant crack. A sound like claws scraping bark.
His body felt heavier with each passing second.
Not days.
Not weeks.
The corruption was already seeping through the code of the world.
And he was the only NPC who knew what that meant.