"AHHH!"
As soon as I saw the information on the system, I turned around and ran as fast as I could. Looking back, I could see him staring at me before he turned away.
He wasn't interested!
This fact gave me strength and I ran even faster. In an instant, I was far away from where I had appeared, which allowed me to catch my breath and hope to escape from wherever I was.
Unfortunately for me, these hopes did not last long because the moment I relaxed, the ground began to shake. With a loud roar, a huge centipede rose up in front of me.
"Leave me alone!"
At first glance, this centipede was as big as a building on Earth.
[The Last Titan]
[Xomar, the S+ Rank Centipede Titan]
[The last living species with Titan blood]
[13th generation descendant of Nayra, the first Colossus]
[Weakness: Large gaps between scales, exposed flesh vulnerable to attack]
[Recommendation: Flee]
Why is another creature higher than rank S appearing!?
"I'm not even good enough to eat, why are you attacking me!?"
The centipede lunged in my direction, so I prepared to try to escape. At that moment, another roar appeared behind me, and when I looked, I saw a Trent summon several branches and engage in a fight with the centipede.
I took advantage of this and ran away as fast as I could. During the short journey, I encountered several high-rank creatures, but fortunately for me, they were inferior to the Champion I had encountered before.
After what seemed like an eternity, I managed to get out of the forest I was in. I couldn't help but let out a cry of joy when I saw a red plain completely devoid of life.
I could still hear the loud explosions from the fights going on in the forest, so after resting, I ran again with all my strength. I quickly found a small lake in which some insects were swimming, although it remained crystal clear. Seeing that the insects would not cause any problems, I approached and took a drink, which quenched my thirst.
"Wait... I had forgotten something important for a second."
I leaned over the water to see my face.
"...I look very different."
I said, amazed by my new appearance. My face didn't have that sharp, angry look, and I even had a nice, natural smile. Otherwise, my body looked the same as before. I had a considerable amount of muscle, and my height wasn't that different from before.
"It's supposed that whenever you transmigrate into another body, you retain their memories. Will that be the case for me too?"
As I lost myself in this question, a voice called out to me from behind, visibly agitated.
"Hey, you!"
When I turned around, I could see a purple-haired elf running towards me, with a sword hanging from her waist. Maybe she's an adventurer.
"You, come with me quickly. A strong light just exploded from the forest an hour ago, and it may have been caused by a high-ranking creature. Let's go to the city quickly!"
A strong light? So the fighting started before I arrived.
"W-wait, where are we?"
"Did you hit your head? Or did a hypnotic spell attack you? It doesn't matter, once we get to the city, they'll examine you,"
said the elf, as she took my hand and pushed me forward.
Where am I?
<<<---Hernesto Pov--->>>
"AAHHH!"
A loud scream woke me up with a start, completely alert.
"W-what happened!?"
I asked, watching Marie scream in horror as she stared into nothingness. Alice and Rhynea woke up next to me, just as alarmed as I was.
"What's going on, Marie?"
"Ta-Taren vanished into thin air!"
Vanished? What do you mean... Before I could even speak, a system window opened in front of me with a message.
[Hello Velric, I am Anaphaeba. Taren has just left for another place at the call of the goddess. To avoid any inconvenience, she gave you this.]
As she spoke, another window appeared.
[Gift: 7th circle hypnosis magic, one use!]
[Use this magic as quickly as possible, or else things could get complicated.]
Wait, I don't even know how to use magic, Anaphaeba!
[Just accept the gift, it will be used instantly.]
Doing as she said, a strong purple light shone on the small place where we were sheltering. Following that, Marie's screams ceased, and along with her, the other two women stared blankly at one spot before regaining their senses.
"Velric... Where are we? Did you bring us here?"
The three women looked at me curiously as they surveyed their surroundings. Rhynea created a small ball of fire with which she lit a piece of her clothing wrapped around a stone stick that she used as a torch.
"Y-yes... Things got complicated with the puppeteer, but I was able to defeat him at the last second."
At my words, they all looked at each other before letting out moans of pain.
"I-I think so... but then how do I have my arm?"
Marie said, holding her head.
"And how is it that we are in this small cave? I thought you specialized in swords."
Alice backed up, letting out a groan of pain.
Anaphaeba, the spell only erased Lukas from her memories, it's not what I thought!
[That was the point. Things got complicated, so I advised you to help them. The rescuers will be here soon."
Rescuers!?
At that moment, loud explosions echoed from the other side of the wall, accompanied by screams and metallic clashes. The wall dividing the place broke, and a group of people emerged from it.
"They're here, get them out now!"
shouted the one who seemed to be the leader, a grown man with a gray beard, as he slashed at the creatures that appeared.
<<<>>>
It has been four days since they rescued us and took us to the guild hospital. I was curious to know how they found us, but fortunately, I didn't open my mouth, and they explained that they received the signal for help from a magic scroll. None of us had anything like that, but Anaphaeba explained to me that it was something implemented instantly. The guilds were full because the most famous dungeon was on an important day and no one wanted to take any risks, so thanks to that, the entire guild was deployed.
During this time, I asked Alice why she went to an S-rank dungeon knowing her condition. She explained that her younger sister needed a rare and expensive medicine, so she and her two sisters, Marie and Rhynea, decided to raid the dungeon in an attempt to take advantage and loot the bodies of the dead creatures.
But everything got complicated with the appearance of the puppeteer. Until now, they don't remember anything about Lukas, and even when the others searched for the fifth member, they found nothing. I had to lie as best I could to make them think there were only four of us, even though they saw Lukas.
Anaphaeba, it's been four days and I'm much better. Can I ask what happened to Lukas?
[...Since you're in better condition, I think it's okay to tell you. The one you know as Taren is dead. However, Luk-]
What did you say?
Without meaning to, my voice came out colder than I expected, which silenced Anaphaeba.
[Taren is dead, more specifically, he was erased from existence.]
A heavy silence filled the room I was in. My breath had stopped and I couldn't think clearly. Lukas died? The Lukas who dragged me to this place and taught me everything about this world? A strong urge to vomit ran through my body, which I was able to resist briefly.
[No, you didn't let me finish. Taren died, Lukas is still alive.]
W-what?
[It was my mistress's mistake, so I took him to another body, on the continent of Aetherium.]
Why is he there? Wasn't there a body closer by?
[For a soul to invade another body, it has to be done delicately and when the soul of the main occupant is weak. The owner of the previous body died and Lukas took his place.]
I'm sure many people die closer by.
[It also has to be compatible with the body.]
Ah... that makes more sense.