"Sister! Wake up!" A tiny voice cried. "Please! Wake up! S-sister… Hic… Please!"
Serena groaned in pain, slowly opening her eyes as she regained consciousness. Her head was pounding and she felt something heavy on her torso.
W-what's going on? Serena thought to herself, confused by the situation.
She clearly remembered dying back on the ship, so how could she be alive right now? There was no way she could survive with those injuries. They were a death sentence.
As her blurry vision cleared up along with the brain fog, she found herself gazing up at a dark brown ceiling. A small, chubby face suddenly appeared hovering over her as the weight on her torso disappeared.
Serena sat up slowly, holding the back of her head as the pounding in her head became a dull ache. She soon turned her attention to the small child, probably around five or six, in front of her, wondering who he was.
"S-sister!" The child wept, tears steaming down his dirty face. "You're awake!"
Before Serena could process his words, the young boy flung himself onto her, arms wrapping around her neck.
"Y-you were sleeping for so long after Old Mary hit you." The boy cried on her shoulder. "T-there was b-blood and… Hic…"
Serena held onto the little boy as he cried. She wasn't sure what was going on or how to comfort him, so she just quietly patted his back as she observed her surroundings, trying to figure out what was going on.
Glancing around the place she was in, she noticed that she was in some kind of cave. The air was damp and stuffy, almost as if she had walked into an attic that hadn't been aired out in decades.
It only took her a few moments to figure out she was no longer in her world. The strange environment and the fact that the sobbing boy in her arms had cat ears and cat tail told her she had been reborn in his sister's body.
She wasn't exactly sure how or why this had happened, but there was no other explanation for what was going on. At least to her knowledge. She had to have traveled through time and space.
The question now was where she was and how to find a way back home. There were grievances within her heart that she had to settle now that she had been given a second chance at life.
"S-sister?" The young boy glanced at her with big golden eyes.
Serena turned her attention back to the kid and gave him a stiff smile. "Sorry… My memories are a bit hazy because I hurt my head-"
Before she could finish speaking, the kid cried out, "I'll get the Healer!"
"Wait!" Serena tightened her grip on him before he could run off. "Just tell me what happened. I don't need a healer."
"But Sister-" The child started, but Serena placed a hand over his mouth.
"No buts." Serena stated, removing her hand covering his mouth. "I'll be fine. Just tell me what happened."
She wasn't sure how the original owner of this body got into this state, so she wasn't ready to trust anyone here. Not even the Healer. Her first death had taught her a harsh lesson, one she never planned on forgetting.
"O-okay…" The kid murmured. "Old Mary came by the cave to tell you something… You had a fight with her and she slapped you. I-I saw you fall on the ground and she left saying she'll come by tomorrow."
As he spoke something tingled in the back of her mind. She bit her lip to stop herself from crying out in pain, images flashing before her eyes. Finally something popped up in front of her:
[Memories Restored]
[Host Confirmed]
[Binding System To Host…]
"K-kiro…" Serena murmured, now knowing the kid's name thanks to the memories she had gotten. "Can you get me some water please?"
Kiro's eyes widened before he eagerly nodded, "Yes Sister!"
He grabbed a small clay jar lying in the corner of the room before racing out the cave, nearly tripping on his long tail as he ran out. Once he was gone Serena sighed before she glanced back at the blue screen in front of her.
While she enjoyed reading old stories about systems and traveling to other worlds, Serena had never really believed in them. But now, not only was she reborn, but she had some kind of system too.
It was almost unbelievable, making Serena pinch herself to confirm everything was really happening. She hissed in pain as she pinched her arm, no longer able to deny the truth.
"System, where am I?" Serena asked, wanting to confirm something else.
[The Beastworld]
So, she really had been reborn into the beastworld. And from the looks of it, it seemed she had been reborn into the same world as a story she often read.
It was an incomplete story, or perhaps just missing the last volume since it was an old one, about a young woman sent to the beastworld. She gained many followers and built an empire, advancing the beastworld into a new age.
Of course, it didn't come without a cost and many side characters died protecting her from danger. Including a snow leopard beastman named Kiro.
It could be a coincidence, but comparing her new memories and the book knowledge she had of one of her favorite side characters, it was a bit much.
There was no doubt in her mind she had been reborn as Kiro's older sister Serena. She was the only remaining family member of his after an unexpected flood and mudslide washed away half their tribe and killed their family.
The original Serena was protective of her younger brother, caring for him as her own after the tragedy of losing their parents, siblings and Serena's mate. However, things soon went downhill.
Their tribe, desperately needing salt to survive, sold Serena and two other females to the Forest City, forcing Kiro and Serena to part ways. From then onwards, Kiro was alone in the world, bullied by his tribe.
He almost died several times and became a cold beastman, vowing revenge for what the tribe had done to his family. Kiro landed up destroying the tribe when he was older and soon crossed paths with the female lead.
She showed him kindness and love, making Kiro fall for her. But before he could make his intentions clear, the female lead was attacked by several rootless beastmen and he died protecting her as her mates came to rescue her.
It was such a tragic story for a character, making Serena think that the author was too harsh. But now it seemed the universe was giving her a chance to change things.
She couldn't prevent the flood, it already happened over a month ago, but she could stop the tribe from separating her and Kiro. Afterwards, she would make sure Kiro lived a good life before finding a way back home.
Then she would have her revenge.