The journey north had brought me misery and hunger.
I was now lying curled up in some filthy cave, which served as my shelter from the blizzard outside.
Following Zod's advice, I had been traveling north for weeks. On the open plains and highlands, hunting was hard for me. Over time, I mastered hunting birds and smaller rodents to perfection. I had perfected [Spit Venom] as well.
One thing kept bothering me. Even though I had mastered the second head and still maintained full control over my body, if I didn't force my companion to spit venom, he would very rarely use this ability on his own. Perhaps it was just a hypothesis, but I suspected he was the type of warrior who preferred to sink his poisonous fangs into prey and tear it apart alive… Apparently, I was the one doing the thinking here.
I didn't intend to die in this place. I was shivering from the cold, and even covering myself with found clay and moss didn't help. My scales were not designed for the middle of such a nasty winter. The frost crept between them, as if deliberately trying to pry them apart from the inside. I glanced at my high [HP] and went to sleep — at worst, in the morning I'd spend a couple of hours getting ready for the road and a decent hunt.
I woke up numb and weak. I felt like I had a fever — if reptiles can even get one! My head hurt — I had no idea about my companion, yet I had to keep moving north. Zod had promised me that there lay the Suthern Wild Forest — wild and full of prey. It stretched for thousands of kilometers, and it had not yet been tamed or claimed by any nation!
Once again, I saw those nasty plains and grasses buried under heavy snow. With each step, they cracked, scaring off prey and chilling all four limbs terribly. I knew, however, that this was the price I had to pay to survive in this world. No one said it would be easy.
If it weren't for Zod's blessing, I would already be done for. I had received not only an incredible special ability, [Berserker's Fury], but also a sudden jump of eight levels, brutally imposed on my body without any adaptation period. Berserker's Fury multiplied my strength, agility, and endurance, but it came at a cost — when I used it, I lost control, surrendering my body to pure instinct. Even with all that, I barely managed during my expedition north. Constant hunger and piercing cold were slowly wearing me down, day after day. There were moments when I truly thought I would just lie down in the snow… and never get up again.
But today was my lucky day.
I sensed a horde of weak auras approaching from the north — dull, heavy beings moving forward without an ounce of caution, like a herd that had never known a real predator. Most likely, they were bisons. I had only seen them from afar before, though I had often come across thousands of their hoofprints, deeply carved into the frozen ground. They were skittish and herd-bound… and I was hungry.
That day, even a small risk couldn't stop me from eating something better than weak birds.
The second head was already salivating!
I went with a tried-and-true method. I dug myself into the snow, completely erased my aura — I had become quite good at this — and patiently waited for my prey to appear. Hunting is like war. Most of it is waiting for the confrontation. Long, exhausting waiting… until you finally hear the opportunity!
Now!
I leapt with full force from a snowdrift over a meter and a half high, which were plentiful around, and charged at a panicked creature of immense size.
It struggled and fought, but couldn't escape my [Poisonous Bite], which I sank directly into its calf. The second head reached it moments later, tearing with its teeth, yet the beast managed to break free and flee deeper into the panicked herd.
A mighty roar scattered hundreds of them back north, from where they had come. I just had to follow the scent of blood. The poison would do its work, and finally, I would feast on the prey abandoned by the rest of the herd.
The scent of blood led me like an invisible thread, winding between snowdrifts and the tracks of hundreds of hooves. The second head kept lifting its snout, sniffing the air, emitting low, guttural hums of satisfaction. The poison was already coursing through the prey — I could feel it. Every step it took became heavier, more unsteady.
The tracks grew more chaotic. Deep hoofprints intertwined with grooves in the snow, as if the massive body was starting to lose balance. The steaming blood stained the white with a reddish-brown hue, and the frost only slowed its congealing.
It was only a matter of time.
I followed calmly, without rushing. The cold nipped at my scales, but adrenaline and hunger kept me moving. In moments like this, I was truly glad I hadn't been reborn as some herd-bound, dim-witted herbivore, doomed to run forever and die in panic, because "that's how nature works." If I had been bison number thirty-seven in the herd, I probably would have thrown myself first under the predator's fangs out of sheer frustration.
Being a monster had its perks.
Finally, I saw him.
A massive male lay on its side, breathing heavily. Each inhale formed a steaming cloud, and its powerful muscles twitched in spasms. Its eyes were wide open, filled with fear and confusion. Instinct told it to rise, flee, join the herd, but its body no longer obeyed.
I focused.
[ Species: Thick-Skinned Southern Bison
Evolution Stage: Adult Herd Guardian
Level: 12
Threat: NEGLIGIBLE ]
"You weren't lucky today, little bull… The will of the stronger reigns. Hm," I thought.
I stepped closer, and the second head was already eager to attack. I did not protest. One quick bite to the neck, then another. The skin was tough as some decent armor, but teeth and poison did their job. Warm blood flooded my muzzle, and the prey's body finally went still.
Silence.
Only the wind roared across the plains.
I began to eat, breaking ribs, tearing muscles, ignoring the cold. The fat was thick and heavy, but that was exactly what I needed. I felt warmth slowly spreading through my body, as if something inside me had cracked and shifted to a new rhythm.
Then a familiar impulse appeared.
[ Passive Skills: (..), Cold Resistance, (..) ]
It was like a hand lifted from me. The frost ceased being an enemy. It was still present — but no longer paralyzing me. My scales seemed to harden, and my breath stopped trembling.
In this snowy wasteland, I couldn't imagine a greater reward.
After that nourishing meal, I felt true relief. It was a bison that had filled me to the brim. The food would last me for days, and my body finally, if only for a few days, regained its full potential.
As I moved further north, the first trees appeared — harbingers of the approaching Southern Wild Forest. The aura of this place was tangible, subtle fluctuations of magical energy dancing in the air. The snow gradually receded, revealing grasses and remnants of vegetation, yet in the next month of my journey across the plains, I did not manage to hunt another bison. Despite this indulgence, I felt strong and ready for the next challenges.
No matter what, I wouldn't die here. I wanted to find a good place to live and slowly regain strength and get knowledge about this world. I hadn't joked about wanting to help Zod, nor had I taken his words lightly. For my own good, I had to become stronger. I had to become the number one hunter in this Wilderness!
I began by familiarizing myself with the flora and terrain. Deciduous trees dominated here, still bare, occasionally still snow-covered.
Trunks blocked the wind, and the varied terrain gave this place a strange atmosphere of mystery. I felt surrounded by thousands of animals; I could go in any direction and encounter something worth hunting. A perfect place!
Another thing I had to keep in mind was caution. I didn't want to end up like a few months ago, barely escaping a band of armed ape-people. In this place, there could be far larger and stronger races and groups!
I couldn't forget that.
So first, I found myself a lair.
A fallen tree with massive roots in the forest thicket made a perfect staging area. I could shelter from rain and wind, and the fact that it was slightly elevated from the ground and protected from unpleasant dampness was yet another big advantage!
I finished scouting the area by evening, planning to hunt at night. After all, nature hadn't given me [ Night Vision ] for nothing. The green-blue world of wilderness lay open before me.
Carefully, I moved through the newly explored location. Dense bushes, which served as natural camouflage, were everywhere. Hill after hill, stream after stream, I pushed forward. Finally, I noticed a faint aura, almost imperceptible, yet surely belonging to something larger than an insect and standing out in the area.
Step by step, also focusing on quieting the second head, which surely wanted to charge into the unknown and tear the prey apart, I approached the target.
I hid between a boulder and a thorny bush, where no one would likely fit. Thanks to my scales and iron-like skin, it was merely a discomfort I was willing to endure. I waited patiently.
Finally, through the branches, in the darkness of a moonless night, I spotted with my reptilian vision someone small and frail, as if it hasn't eaten in days. Green-skinned, short hair, roughly cut. Cloaked in tattered rags, it was pulling up some weeds, most likely low-quality herbs whose effects I wouldn't have felt.
I looked at it and saw white inscriptions.
[Species: Forest Goblin
Evolution Stage: Elder of the Settlement
Level: 9
Threat: NEGLIGIBLE]
Better than nothing.
Finally, it came within range of my venom spit. I was about to strike, to end its life and eat it, when I heard:
"Daddy, why aren't you back yet? Everyone's waiting for you!" A childlike voice, belonging to a white-haired goblin girl, even smaller and more delicate, barely emitting an aura. "Foraging at night is dangerous… There's always tomorrow."
"Gege! Payment is due in a week! As if something scares me more! If I don't find something valuable this time, someone will die again! You know what happened to your older brother…"
I only heard sobbing and sensed immense sadness in the air. I felt sorry for them, and besides, I wouldn't kill a child's father. I might be a monster, but I hadn't killed a speaking being yet, and I had no intention of doing so anytime soon.
I was slightly intrigued by the story, but in my hydra form, they would have probably died of fright at my sight rather than attempt to converse — especially since I couldn't speak, and they likely didn't know telekinesis or writing!
I didn't expect that three other goblins would unknowingly flank me from behind; apparently, they were unlucky enough to cross my path. I decided to act quickly — there was no shortage of prey here, and these poor goblins with their problems didn't need to become one of them. I charged.
I spent 1 [MP] to ensure the second head wouldn't attack, and sprinted with all my might. The two goblins panicked so badly, they almost died of fright; the little goblin girl jumped in front of her father, crying, probably utterly shocked as the over two-meter hydra dashed past them in some direction.
Now I knew how those thugs felt, who had terrified a girl in the park during my past life.
Master of life and death — one desire, one impulse in an alcoholic frenzy, and I could have ended those goblins lives.
Terrifying…
After the goblin incident, I had no intention of returning to the lair for now.
The goblins were likely intelligent creatures. Desperate or scared, they could piece facts together. I didn't want them to discover my lair, only for me to wake up one day surrounded by green hordes.
So I veered the other way, back from where I came.
I ran for a long time, almost without rest, letting instinct guide me through the thicket. Roots, bushes, and uneven terrain were no longer much of a problem — my body had adapted to the forest faster than I expected. The second head was visibly pleased. This terrain suited it well.
Night hadn't even passed before I found another prey.
A wild boar was rooting with its tusks in the underbrush, completely absorbed in its activity. Massive body, short tusks, thick hide. The perfect target.
This time, I didn't bother with subtlety.
I surged forward with a force I didn't expect from myself. A short, brutal burst. Earth sprayed from under my paws, and the boar didn't even react. I slammed into it with my full mass, knocking it down and sinking my fangs into its neck before it could let out a full roar of pain.
The fight was short. Chaotic. Bloody.
The second head could vent for all time. It tore the flesh with such fury that, out of pure caution, I bit the boar as far from its tusks as possible.
When the boar died, and most of the fat and meat had been consumed, I felt that familiar, pleasant impulse again.
[ Special Skills: (..), Charge, (..) ]
[ Charge — a short, sudden burst of speed. Increases endurance and resistance to damage during the surge. ]
I lifted my head, inhaled the forest air, listening to the crack of the boar's bones. The second head wanted to leave not a single piece wasted.
I got myself a useful skill. In this terrain, it would certainly come in handy, though I wouldn't want to have to use it for escape…
Dawn found me in motion.
I was still roaming the area, looking for a temporary resting place.
When the first rays of sunlight pierced the treetops, a new sound reached me. It didn't belong to the forest.
It wasn't natural.
Clashing steel, the grind of iron. Screams, sounds of battle. The smell of blood…
I stopped on a rise and looked down. Somewhere in the distance, among the trees, a rushing river gleamed. Its roar carried through the woods, drowning out the sounds of combat from that side. But to me, it was clear. Chaotic.
I heard a woman's scream, just like before…
Someone was in need!