I remained lying on my back, staring at the gray sky without focus. The clouds were moving slowly—or maybe I was the one who had lost my sense of time. My entire body ached; it wasn't a single pain I could pinpoint, but an intertwined web of aches, as if every nerve were demanding its due all at once.
I tried to move my fingers. They responded… barely.
I took a deep breath, but my chest immediately protested, and the breath came out broken. "Hah…" A weak sigh escaped me.
I was alive. That fact alone was strange enough.
The system screen appeared faintly before my eyes, this time without any preamble:
[Warning]
Host condition unstable.
Continuous bleeding.
Immediate rest or injury treatment is recommended.
I almost laughed, but the laugh got stuck in my throat. "Rest?" I whispered with exhausted sarcasm. "In a place like this?"
The cold began to creep into my limbs. I tried to sit up, but my back screamed in protest, forcing me to stop, biting down hard on my lip to keep from screaming.
I looked at my thigh. The blood hadn't stopped.
Then— a light prick struck my chest, followed by a familiar warmth. The same sensation. But this time… weaker.
The system screen appeared again:
[Processing level-up…]
I held my breath unconsciously. Memories of the previous integration passed through my mind like a silent warning, but my body didn't convulse, didn't scream. The pain was there, but it wasn't an explosion… it was a deep, slow ache, as if my bones were being realigned without care.
[Level-up complete]
[Current level: 2]
I finally breathed out. A long, trembling exhale, as if my chest had been restrained for a long time.
Then the lines began to appear one after another:
[Base stats improved]
[Health: +1]
[Strength: +1]
[Endurance: +1]
I waited.
The pain didn't disappear.
The wounds didn't close.
The bleeding didn't stop.
I carefully moved my injured leg. Pain tore through my nerves clearly; my teeth clenched, and cold sweat ran down my forehead. "Hah…"
I tried to sit up. I failed.
Then a second time. I succeeded… barely.
I sat there panting, my back hunched, staring at the ground in front of me without focus. The blood on my thigh was still there—dark and sticky, not fully dried yet. As for the wound on my shoulder, it throbbed clearly, like a silent counter reminding me every moment that time was not on my side.
"So…" I muttered hoarsely, my voice barely leaving my throat. "Why aren't you healing me? Aren't I supposed to recover when I level up?"
As if the question had finally been acknowledged, a faint flash appeared, followed by another notification:
[Warning]
Severe host injuries may lead to loss of consciousness or death.
Immediate search for shelter or primitive medical supplies is recommended.
I stared at the lines for a few seconds, then let out a short, broken laugh devoid of any humor.
"Isn't that obvious even to a blind man?" I said with weary sarcasm, as if the system had given me a truism rather than a solution.
I reached for a nearby rock and leaned on it, then tried to stand. The moment I put my weight on my legs, they trembled violently, and my body tilted to the side. I tensed and stopped immediately before I could fall, panting and grinding my teeth.
I waited a few moments, forcing myself to balance, ignoring the faint headache that had begun pressing behind my eyes. Then, very slowly… I stood.
But the pain was present in every single cell. Every step was a blunt warning.
I looked at the monster's corpse one last time, and a naïve thought slipped into my mind, born of everything I had read in stories before: shouldn't it leave something behind? A crystal… a core… any loot that proved the fight hadn't been meaningless?
I approached it hesitantly and stood over its motionless body, trying to ignore the disgust and the tremor creeping into my limbs. I picked up a sharp rock from the ground and carefully plunged it into its belly, searching through the tough flesh, feeling around, probing, as if refusing to believe that the end could be this simple.
But there was nothing.
No crystal.
No core.
No trace of a reward.
I felt a slight disappointment. I pulled the rock out, left the corpse behind, and began dragging myself away from the place.
My steps were slow and unsteady, as if the ground itself were trying to stop me. Long minutes passed as I walked without a clear destination, breathing with difficulty, feeling warm blood seep from my wounds with every movement. After a time I couldn't measure, the features of the land began to change before my eyes.
A vast forest appeared on the horizon—its trees unnaturally tall, their trunks thick, their branches stretching so high they seemed to touch the clouds. I stopped in place, staring at it in silence.
Fear immediately crept into me. A forest like that couldn't be safe. If a single monster had brought me to this state, then what might be hiding in there?
I hesitated. The idea of going around it or searching for another path was tempting… until the sound of my stomach interrupted my thoughts—a weak growl, but enough to remind me of a reality I couldn't ignore. I was hungry… and thirsty at the same time. On top of that, my injuries were still bleeding slowly, draining what little strength I had left.
I swallowed hard and looked toward the forest again.
I didn't really have a choice.
Either I stayed where I was and waited for the end…
or I moved forward, no matter what awaited me there.
I clenched my teeth and forced my feet to move, heading toward the forest, knowing deep down that this step might be more dangerous than the fight itself.