TLBP 03

CHAPTER  03……………………………..

1. Everything is hard the first time. Everything is hard the first time. #2

━Kyuiiing!

The slime caught between my front paws writhed and squealed sharply.

I didn’t know whether it was trying to escape from me or attack, but either way, it was futile.

I was surprised to find that there could be a creature more pathetic and lowly than a beast that gnaws on tree bark.

The soft, cool sensation against my paw felt surprisingly pleasant. It was like touching a black plastic bag filled with cold water, tightly sealed.

━Kyuiiing!

I pressed the wriggling thing firmly with my paw and stuck out my tongue to taste its body, just to check if it had a terrible taste or some kind of numbing poison.

Oh.

I shivered in surprise. The slime’s surface felt bouncy, as expected, and unexpectedly sweet.

It was probably the same feeling as licking a large grape jelly.

Lick, lick, lick.

━Eee…

Startled by the beast constantly licking its body, the slime trembled and made a pitiful noise. It probably sensed its impending death.

Watching the tiny creature shiver like a little animal, I felt a fleeting sense of pity.

Though I had killed mosquitoes and ants without hesitation, killing and eating a larger creature felt almost sinful.

Could I really take the life of this creature recklessly, when it might think and feel like I do?

Yet, even with those thoughts, my tongue didn’t stop licking.

Lick, lick.

While I continued licking the slime, my eyes darted up to the sky. The sun was setting.

Once night fell, I would have to flee up the trees and tremble to avoid predators’ eyes. I couldn’t be sure there would be another chance like this.

━Don’t hate me too much.

I squeezed my eyes shut and opened my mouth wide toward the slime in my paw.

Humans, having left the wild, are inherently creatures that survive by eating other animals.

All the meat I had eaten so far had been processed, but originally, those animals were creatures like this slime.

━Isn’t survival like that?

Kyuiiing! The slime’s final agonized sound echoed pitifully through the sunset forest.

The thoughts about life and the wild lasted only briefly. Satisfied with the sensation of eating the soft slime, I rubbed my full belly.

Despite the sweet surface, its body tasted oddly salty and bland, like konjac seasoned with soy sauce and salt. All in all, it was edible.

There seemed to be no poison or harmful substance. On the contrary, I felt a surge of energy from being full, which was pleasantly satisfying.

When I swallowed the last bite, letters appeared before my eyes:

[Experience gained.]

Experience… it felt just like a game.

━

The sun had already set. Like yesterday, I climbed the tree trunk and rested on a high branch.

Now that my stomach was full and my body felt safe, problems I had momentarily forgotten surged back into my mind.

Where exactly was I, and what had happened to me?

Words like “Nest of Ancient Beasts” and stats describing strength and intelligence rose before my eyes. Not wanting to see them, I swished my paw to scatter the letters.

I had no idea why I was in this situation.

What had happened to my body?

Would my parents worry if I stayed out of contact for too long?

The loneliness of being thrown into a forest of beasts wrapped around me.

It was not the lighthearted or bittersweet feeling of leaving home to be independent, but an existential solitude. I shivered.

Leaving home on my own and being adrift in an unknown world were as far apart as heaven and earth.

Faces of family and acquaintances kept haunting me.

Would I ever see them again?

Feeling melancholic, I inhaled deeply and exhaled until there was nothing left in my lungs.

It was a breathing method I used back in the small dorm to sort through complicated thoughts.

“Stop thinking pessimistically.”

Thinking further wouldn’t bring answers, and nothing would change, so I shook my head violently to clear my mind.

I decided to focus on surviving first; then I could figure out what had happened.

I was surprised at my own strong will to live. Humans truly are creatures that adapt and change according to circumstances.

Survive.

I clenched my front paws tightly and resolved. Having eaten a slime alive, I had nothing to hold back.

Then, amidst the rustling leaves, an irritating, rattling sound reached my ears.

It seemed to come from the grass below. I listened carefully.

The rattling continued.

It was coming from directly above the tree where I rested.

Looking up instinctively, I felt a chill run through my entire body.

A spider the size of a human face moved across the tree trunk.

Its black body, long legs, and bristly hairs made me instinctively frown.

I shuddered as if bugs were crawling over me. Its large fangs rattled and it made a disgusting noise.

━Zzzz.

It wasn’t fast, but it wasn’t harmless either.

Unlike the slime’s cute noises, this spider could surely cause serious trouble or sickness if I tried to eat it.

I moved away from it, distancing myself from the trunk.

Branches creaked but seemed strong enough to hold me.

Just as I thought I was safe, something sticky caught on the back of my head.

I turned and screamed.

A massive spider web, invisible while climbing the tree, had ensnared me.

“Sticky!”

I struggled to tear it off. The gluey strands clung to me as I moved.

━Zzzz.

The spider, previously slow, suddenly charged toward me. I lost balance and fell through the branches.

From the grass below came a black shape with a growl. I tumbled to the ground.

━Grrr.

━D-damn it!

Three red eyes glared at me. The wolf that attacked me last night was still hunting me tonight.

━Kraaang!

Its claws pressed mercilessly into me. I narrowly dodged its snapping jaws, scratching its snout with my claws.

━Krahk!

Startled by my counterattack, the wolf backed off slightly.

‘Not as heavy as I thought.’

Confidence surged; I felt stronger than yesterday.

Unlike yesterday, after eating the slime, I was stronger by at least that much.

━Grrr…

The wolf bared its long fangs and threatened me.

I raised my arms high to appear bigger and growled fiercely.

━Arrrr!

Surprisingly effective, tension crackled between us.

We stared each other down. My heart felt like it would burst.

━Kraah!

The wolf charged straight at me. I stumbled, struggling with my paws.

We tumbled like laundry in a washing machine, hitting and clawing at each other. Its jaws wavered under my claws.

The wolf recovered and bit my shoulder. Pain shot through me. I clawed its forehead and eyes.

━Die! Die!

━Kegeng!

Its muscular body was strong, but the eyes seemed vulnerable. The wolf released its bite in agony.

I bit its neck just as it had done to me.

━Kraaa!

The wolf thrashed violently. I squeezed its neck with all my might.

‘For the first time, the instinct to kill sparked in me.’

Its resistance was painful, but I could not release my grip.

━Sssik, sssik…

Air hissed from its jaws. I twisted its neck violently, screaming.

━Die already!

A solid cracking sound came. I exhaled and relaxed.

The massive wolf collapsed over me. I pushed it aside with one arm.

━You’re not the only one with teeth.

I soaked in the thrill of victory, slowly rising. The sharp pain made me grimace.

During the fight, I hadn’t noticed, but my shoulder was badly wounded, bleeding heavily.

━Ugh, this hurts.

The wounds throbbed, and my stomach growled from hunger.

The world blurred red before my eyes. I had to replenish iron and protein quickly.

━You tried to eat me, so you must have expected the reverse too, right?

I slobbered blood or saliva. Could I eat raw meat? But then, as a creature of nature, I thought, somehow it would be fine.

I opened my mouth wide and bit the wolf. The long fur filled my mouth, spat out, and repeated several times. The warm, metallic, raw taste spread through my body.

I shivered from the wild, primal taste, full of life.

My wounds healed rapidly, vitality surged through me. My body glowed faintly with white light.

[Experience gained.]

[Level up.]

I gasped briefly. My body returned to pristine condition, fully healed.

Like a game character leveling up, my HP and MP seemed maxed out.

Curious, I glanced at the stats that appeared:

Species: Beast lv.2
Strength: 10
Agility: 6
Endurance: 8
Skills: 《Omnivorous》 《Sturdy Claws》

I nodded as if understanding something.

Next to the species name, the level was displayed. Strength and endurance had each increased by 1, likely from leveling up.

It was hard to feel exactly how much stronger I had become, but leveling up was a good thing.

A world where one could actually level up like in a game.