Plik.
I plucked a pale green oval-shaped leaf, similar to a mint leaf without serrations along its edges. Then I slipped it into the cloth pouch at my waist.
Rivia Leaf, F-rank herbal. Usually used as a basic ingredient for light wound-healing potions, such as minor cuts.
I looked up.
The blue sky stretched between the tree branches. Clouds drifted slowly, as if this world had never cared about who lived beneath it.
Back then, that sight had filled me with excitement.
When I first realized that I had died after being hit by a truck, and awakened in the middle of a field of unfamiliar grass, I truly believed this was the beginning of my story.
The sky was different. The air felt clearer. And I, who should have been a corpse, was instead standing there with steady breath.
Of course I thought this was what people called 'reincarnation' like in the stories I used to read.
But reality was far quieter than my imagination.
There was no mysterious voice greeting me.
No exalted entity offering me invincible power.
No status window appearing before my eyes.
Even this body… is just an ordinary body. This is still my weak body.
I waited.
One month.
Six months.
One year.
Two years.
Living in a small village while nurturing the foolish hope that one morning I would wake up with powers that had finally appeared too late.
But that never happened.
There was only me, a twenty-one year old youth, picking herbs in the forest and selling them just to eat the next day.
No grand destiny.
No hero's calling.
Just life… moving along as usual.
Pathetic, isn't it?
I drew a slow breath. Not to admire the sky, but to steady myself before walking again.
*
As time passed, the sun climbed higher.
I stopped beneath a fairly large tree and sat leaning against it without paying attention to my surroundings.
Not because I was careless. But because this area was still the outer part of the forest, relatively safe compared to the deeper sections.
My hand reached into the small pouch at my waist. A piece of dry bread from earlier that morning was still there.
I bit into it slowly. "Bland," I muttered softly, yet I kept eating it.
My name is Takahiro, as you already know. I am too lazy to explain it again.
As a fan of the isekai genre like me, deep in my heart I still kept a bit of hope that one day 'that' would surely come to me.
Whatever it might be.
Because I believed that if I had been reincarnated, I must have a purpose. Destiny would not go through the trouble of giving me a second chance without reason.
I finished the remaining bread in my hand, then immediately opened my water pouch and drank to help swallow the last dry bite.
Gulp. Gulp.
"Hah…"
The roughness in my throat finally disappeared.
Rustle… rustle…
The bushes in front of me swayed gently.
I stood up instinctively and stepped back. My hand reflexively drew the knife from my waist. My heartbeat immediately quickened, fast and heavy.
"What is that…" I whispered.
I had entered this place many times. Usually there were only wild rabbits or other small animals. But my instincts told me it was not them.
Rustle…
The movement became clearer.
Then something leapt out.
A wolf with gray fur and a thick black stripe running along its back. Its claws and fangs were visible even from several steps away.
Without thinking, my body moved first. I jumped to the side and rolled across the ground just as the wolf pounced. The wind from its body brushed my cheek.
"What the hell…?" I muttered, quickly getting up and pointing the knife at it. "Why is a black-backed wolf outside the forest?"
Their territory was far deeper inside. Not here.
The wolf slowly turned. Its lips lifted, revealing rows of fangs slick with saliva. Its eyes locked onto my movements, calm yet filled with killing intent.
Rustle… rustle…
The bushes moved again.
Not from the front. But from the side.
Thump… thump…
My heart pounded faster, as if it would leap out.
A flash of thought crossed my mind, wolves never move alone.
One by one, the silhouettes of other black-backed wolves emerged from behind the bushes. Their bodies were slightly smaller, but clearly one pack. They spread out slowly, forming a half-circle.
The first one stood at the very front.
Larger.
Calmer.
He had to be the leader.
"This is bad…" my breathing grew heavier. Cold sweat ran from my temple down to my neck. "A pack of black-backed wolves…"
The knife in my hand trembled. Even one on one I was not certain I could win. Let alone an entire pack.
Gulp.
I swallowed hard. The fear was real. Sharp. In two years of living in this world, I had never felt as though my life stood at the tip of a spear.
Now I knew.
With the last scraps of courage I forced myself to muster, I steadied my footing. Then I turned and ran without looking back.
I burst through the bushes, branches striking my face and arms. My breath shattered into chaos.
"Help…!" my voice was hoarse. "Someone, help me!"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Heavy steps pounded the ground behind me.
Not one.
Many.
Thud thud thud thud!
They were chasing me. "Damn it!" I was truly frustrated. "Go away! My meat doesn't taste good!"
Of course they did not care.
Their hot breath felt closer. And for the first time, I truly understood why the villagers always forbade me from going into the forest.
Even if it was only the outer part.
*
Without knowing the direction, I kept running
Branches struck my face. Thorns tore the skin of my arms. My breath broke apart, my chest felt like it would explode.
Behind me, the sound was still there.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
They had not given up.
"Why… are you…?" I gasped, barely able to form words. "Why are you still chasing me?!"
I did not even know that black-backed wolves marked their prey. Once they chose, they would not stop until one of them fell.
Rustle!
I burst through another bush.
Then suddenly the ground in front of me vanished.
My steps halted abruptly.
A cliff gaped before me. Deep. Dark. The wind rose from below like the breath of something waiting.
I slowly turned around.
The pack slowed down. No longer running. They walked slowly, spreading out, closing the distance patiently.
Their eyes were not in a hurry.
They knew I was trapped.
"Damn…" my breath hitched. Exhaustion, fear, anger, all mixed together. "So this is the end?"
My hand trembled as I drew the knife. I stepped back once
Pebbles fell into the ravine.
Behind me, death waited.
In front of me, death yawned.
I let out a small, desperate laugh.
"How amazing… what kind of reincarnation is this…"
The wind blew hard.
"To hell with you, damn destiny!" I shouted at the sky, my voice breaking.
Whoosh!
The pack leader leapt.
I only had time to see a gray blur before my body was struck. Its fangs sank into my back. Pain exploded, hot and wild.
"Aaaah!"
We fell together.
Crack.
The ground at the edge of the cliff split beneath our weight.
I realized it.
The edge was fragile.
The wolf tried to pull away, struggling as the earth crumbled further.
Instead, I wrapped my arms tightly around its neck.
"If I die…" my breath ragged, blood warm against my back. "You're coming with me."
The crack widened.
Our bodies tilted.
For the first time, I smiled.
"Hahaha…"
The ground finally gave way.
And the world turned upside down.
*
*
*