A small while passed before I eventually made it out of the ruins. I breathed heavily, before sighing in exhaustion. Going down the staircase was hell of a lot easier than going up them — though that may have been because they were never intended to be climbed the way I did, which is by basically using my body as a spring.

No idea how it worked so well, but here I am.

Now at the top of the staircase, I threw one more look back and down the stairs, as they led back down into a black abyss. I still was sort of processing what had happened in these ruins just now...

I entered expecting to find a tomb - which I suppose I did - but I also found an apparently ancient god that was trapped inside of there? Plus the whole thing with that supposed 'spell' where he transferred his entire being and power into my body...

All of it pretty much confirmed that I wasn't in my original 'world' anymore. No.. I was somewhere different. Somewhere, where I can never see my family ever again — no matter how much I would like to, even as a snake now. This thought... It is sort of painful to think about.

I would even say that it is like a sharpened sword was stabbed straight through my heart before being twisted, just to add some more pain to the already painful truth that I was forced to now accept.

I shook my head lightly, trying to clear it as much as I could. Sitting around and loathing about it all day was not going to help me in any way.

No, I have been given another chance despite not earning or deserving such a chance - I shouldn't waste it.

Looking around, I began to slither back towards the forest in order to begin my exploration. After all, that will be the only way I can find out more about this place... This world that I have been born into. And it will be the only way for me to find a way to find a host body for Arabor to inhabit, so he can walk this world once again.

It was a bit difficult to slither back up the rather steep slope that made up the 'walls' of this crater - which had the ruins in the middle of it - however, I eventually managed to do it and get back onto the grass at the top, before exhaling and slithered forward a bit.

Before I re-entered the forest, I threw a gaze back at the ruins for one last time — kind of unsure whether I had made the right decision with what I had just done. Was it the right decision to help Arabor get back out into the world free? I can't say I quite understand this world or how it works due to it most definitely not being the same one as the one I was originally born in, however....

Surely the decision I made in the ruins will have major consequences for this world?

'...Well, nothing I can realistically do about it anymore... After all, what is done, is done.'

I thought before turning around and looking away from the ruins, gazing back into the thicket of trees that made up the forest I had awoken inside of and then been exploring for a bit.

Time to continue exploring this place now. Hopefully I am able to find something that can help me in some way in this world.

Taking in a deep breath, I was a bit nervous about entering the forest once more — since I had no idea what could be lurking inside of it. Those hermit crab creatures from earlier gave me quite the spook when I encountered them, even if they weren't hostile towards me in any way.

After a moment or two of more hesitation, I exhaled before finally moving forward — slithering into the trees and entering the forest once again, disappearing among the bushes and vines that dropped from the treeline.

Back inside the forest now, I was slowly slithering through it, my eyes darting all over the place as I looked all around me. The forest somehow... felt more ominous now. There was this strange pressure almost being pressed down on top of me.

It's a bit hard to explain, but I would describe it as feeling like something heavy was on top of me, with me having no way to 'remove' the heavy thing. Unless I simply entered a different part of this forest that was like this, I did not remember it being like this when I first moved through it.

I continued to move forward through the forest, keeping my eyes wide open for any potential threats that may loom for me.

If this was the world I was used to, my biggest threats would probably be owls, eagles or even humans — but in this world... Who knows what could be walking around and potentially looking for something to turn into a quick meal for itself? Nothing in this place is as predictable as it would be in my 'old' life.

.....That is so strange to say.

It's even stranger to think about it — calling my life that I had been living before death as 'my old life'... Something about it just... Didn't feel right to me.

Then, while I was continuing to slither forward, a sudden shadow leapt through the treeline before leaping down towards me and landing in front of me, knocking me back — sending me flying against a tree, which I hit pretty hard.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Thankfully, I didn't feel like it had broken anything or harmed me too badly, but it still hurt as I lifted my head up and looked towards the shadow that had just 'attacked' me.

With the dirt cloud that was kicked up slowly fading, I was able to make out a wolf-like figure standing and growling towards me, its eyes crimson red and fur made up of what looked like multiple segments, each one alternating between the colours black and grey. The wolf also had two tails, which was the thing that stood out to me the most.

'Just what the hell is that..?'

As soon as I questioned it, a sudden rectangle appeared right in front of me, which startled me and caused me to slither back a bit — backing up against the tree.

The rectangle was kind of see-through, while also coloured a very light blue colour. It also had texts and lines 'written' on it in white lines, with what looked like information?

I really wasn't sure.

However, as I took a bit of a closer look at it, I managed to recognise it as similar to menus you would see in RPG games. Perhaps it was some kind of window that was giving me information about the creature...?

Before I could finish that thought however, the strange wolf leapt towards me, dashing to attack with howls and growls coming from it, as it leapt at me and slashed at the tree where I had been sitting.

Thankfully I managed to quickly slither out of the way — shedding a slight sweat as I watched the thing mercilessly slash at the tree trunk and even rip apart the ground I was just on top of. This thing was not here to make friends or anything — it most definitely was here to kill me.

Though, that was obvious from its first leap down towards me, where it knocked me back with its weight alone.

Once out of the way of danger, I threw a look back at the rectangle, reading the information it had. It was just basic information, telling me what I guess was the species name of the wolf as 'Inferior Direwolf' — so it was sort of similar to me, as that voice I heard inside of the ruins said that I had also apparently 'evolved' into an Inferior Serpentine.

The other bit of information the rectangle presented was the creatures... Level? And it was level 3.. I am a bit — lost. Even though I recognised the similarities between this rectangle and an RPG game menu, I never have actually played much RPGs or really much games at all.

The only things I ever played were some random football games I found, since I found those to be kind of interesting.

The 'Direwolf' stopped attacking the tree trunk and the ground below it, before looking towards me and growling — before howling loudly. So loud, that I actually felt a bit of pain from just listening to it. However, after a couple of seconds... I couldn't hear the howl anymore as it just sort of disappeared. It was silent but the wolf definitely didn't act like it had gone quiet.

I was a bit confused at first, however then I remembered one fact that I had learned a couple of years ago in my 'old' life — snakes can only hear low frequency sounds, not high ones.

Which meant... That the wolfs’ howl had simply gone out of my hearing range, thus why it appeared like it had gone completely quiet but did not act like it. Well — I am not complaining.

The Direwolf eventually stopped its howling, before looking at me and dashing towards me, its mouth wide open as saliva fell all over the place.

I quickly slithered away, before dodging the Direwolfs attempts at grabbing me and tearing me apart, before eventually slithering onto a tree bark, with the Direwolf leaping onto it, standing on its back legs as it shook the tree lightly, while attempting to reach me with its mouth.

Looking down, it was a scary sight — with the Direwolf going absolutely nuts all over the place as it raged on and attempted to even climb the tree. I was so scared, I simply froze in place — quickly wrapping around a thin branch, before closing my eyes. This is what I was talking about when I said I had no idea what could be lurking in this forest.

The Direwolf eventually began shaking the tree so violently, the branch I was wrapped around simply could not hold on and snapped, falling down and sending me falling down towards the Direwolf as well. Terrified, I wiggled all over the place midair, before closing my eyes tightly and opening my mouth wide open, with my snake fangs aimed straight down at the wolf.

The Direwolf managed to bite onto my tail a bit, sending me swinging towards its neck. As soon as I felt it in my mouth, I immediately bit down upon it, getting a tight grip onto it and sending the Direwolf into a frenzy, while it thrashed around, letting go of my tail.

After a couple of moments of just raging all over the place and thrashing, the wolf suddenly stopped, before letting out what sounded like a low groan, which I did manage to sort of hear, before it suddenly swayed and fell down to the ground.

I still kept a tight grip onto its neck, however feeling the movement subside, I opened my left eye before looking around confused. The Direwolf was suddenly unmoving and almost lifeless....

Letting go of it, I slithered away from it, before examining its body a bit. Is it... Dead?

Experience threshold has been reached.

You have risen to level 4.

Common Skill [Hunter] acquired.

It's that voice again... I have risen to level 4? I am not an expert in RPGs or anything like that, but I'm pretty sure this was just like one...

Right?

And a skill acquired... This is too much confusing information for me to understand and absorb so quickly man. I shook my head lightly, before exhaling a bit heavily and looking back at the dead Direwolf. Its lifeless body creeped me out a bit, so I simply turned around and slithered away from it.

I had just taken the life of another living thing... Mind you, it wasn't a human — but that Direwolf was still a living creature just like me, even if it did try to kill me.

...But then again, if I want to not waste this second chance that I have been given — Then I shouldn't feel bad about taking a life when I was just defending myself. No... As far as I was concerned, within the kingdom of animals — it was survival of the fittest.

This Direwolf was not the last creature I was going to be forced to kill, there's no doubt about that. But still... Even with that in mind — I feel just a tiny bit bad about killing it.

I disappeared into the treeline and bushes after a bit of slithering, leaving the lifeless wolfs’ body laying on the ground, its blood seeping down into the grass around it.