He took a steady breath. He knew the skill only gave him three attempts. Three chances to claim a stronger undead.
Everything else was luck.
Aiden closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on the corpse.
"Alright," he whispered. "Let's see if this world favors me today."
Aiden placed his hand over the corpse and activated Lord of the Dead.
A faint ripple passed over the body… then faded.
Nothing happened.
"Failed," Aiden muttered, clicking his tongue.
He tried again. This time he focused harder, pouring every bit of intent he could muster into the skill.
Another ripple.
Another failure.
Aiden let out a frustrated breath. "Am I too low-level for this guy…?"
But then he paused, thinking it through. He had killed this man himself. That should've made the undead conversion easier.
"So it's just bad luck," he concluded with a sigh.
This was his last attempt.
Aiden steadied his breath, placed both hands on the corpse, and triggered the skill once more.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then black aura surged out, engulfing the body like a hungry mist. Bones cracked, flesh withered, clothing fluttered as the corpse was stripped down to its essence.
The darkness twisted… and a skeleton slowly pulled itself upright, still wearing the tattered remains of the man's outfit. In its hand was the same sword it used during the fight, now coated in a faint shadowy sheen.
Aiden's eyes brightened.
"Not bad," he said with a satisfied grin. "You definitely look stronger than my first skeleton."
The new undead stood at attention, silent and obedient, awaiting its master's command.
Aiden's stomach suddenly growled loud enough to make him flinch.
"Great…" he muttered. "Now I'm starving. Where am I even supposed to find food in this place?"
He looked around. All he could see were trees, tall, silent, endless.
"And why is there even a cemetery in the middle of a forest?" he added, shaking his head. "Who thought that was a good idea?"
With no village or people in sight, Aiden made a decision.
"I guess, I can only hunt." he said. "Might as well use the chance to see what my new undead can do."
He glanced at his newly summoned skeleton, the practitioner-turned-undead now standing behind him like a silent guard.
It didn't take long for Aiden to spot a pig-like creature wandering between the trees. He crouched behind a bush and squinted at it.
"Looks like a pig… but with horns," he whispered. "It should be edible, right?"
No one answered, of course. He was alone in a world he barely understood.
Aiden pointed toward the creature. "Go. Kill that thing."
His newly made undead moved immediately.
To Aiden's surprise, the skeleton's movements were smooth almost fluid. Nothing like the stiff, clunky motions of the first skeleton he raised. This one had been a trained practitioner in life, and its body remembered every movement.
It dashed forward with practiced footwork, silently closing the distance. The horned pig noticed too late. The skeleton shifted its stance, pivoted lightly on one foot, and slashed in a clean arc.
A true martial artist's strike.
The pig squealed once before collapsing to the ground, dead.
Aiden blinked, impressed. "Good."
As Aiden watched the skeleton drag the dead pig back toward him, he couldn't help feeling… a little happy.
Happy that he got reincarnated into another world.
On Earth, things were different. His life there had fallen apart the moment his parents died in that accident. But Aiden knew the truth it wasn't just an accident. It was because of that guy, the same bastard he had been fighting right before he ended up in this world. The one who speed recklessly down the road and ruined everything.
Aiden might've won that fight in the game too, if it had been one-on-one.
But that guy had an entire guild backing him up. A top-five guild, no less. Dozens of elite players. Meanwhile, Aiden had only his undead, fighting alone against a small army.
He clenched his fists, jaw tightening.
"Well… I guess this world gave me a second chance," he muttered.
And he planned to use it.
Aiden tore off the last chunk of meat from the roasted boar and swallowed it with a tired sigh.
"Wow… I really ate that whole thing by myself," he muttered, wiping the grease from his hands onto his worn trousers.
The boar hadn't been particularly tasty, half-burnt in some places and undercooked in others, but it did its job. Warmth spread through his limbs, and he could finally feel strength returning to his body.
He stood, stretched, and looked around the familiar trees one more time.
"That's enough hiding," he said quietly. "Time to see what's beyond this place."
With that, Aiden stepped out of the forest he had spent days surviving in. Sunlight greeted him first, followed by a breeze carrying the scent of open land. A dirt road cut across the clearing, its surface packed by wagon wheels and footprints. It stretched both left and right, disappearing into the distance like two separate destinies.
Aiden chose a direction at random and began walking. His boots kicked up dust with each step, and the forest behind him slowly shrank until it was only a dark smear against the horizon.
After a while, the silhouette of a small settlement emerged first the rooftops, then the full shape of the town. Aiden slowed his pace, eyes widening slightly. The town's outer wall was built entirely from thick wooden logs, sharpened at the top. It looked sturdy enough.
Smoke rose from a few chimneys, and distant voices drifted over the wall laughter, shouting, the everyday rhythm of life.
Aiden exhaled, a mix of relief and anticipation tightening in his chest.
"Alright," he murmured. "Let's see what kind of world is waiting for me."