Beasts fled throughout the forest.
[Warning! Danger!]
[Warning! Danger!]
[Warning!]
[Run south!]
I heard you, so stop distracting me!
Sliding through the tall grass, he stopped. He pushed himself into a thicket and remained there. His once-calm heart slowed, and his breathing ceased. The approaching sound came as a strange hum, like the rapid beating of a great number of wings. He couldn't move or make any noise; it was already too late to run, and even if it weren't, he had nowhere to go.
The leaves above his head rustled as the creatures passed. They had dark, matte carapaces, and their silver horns shone in the sunlight. They looked like beetles, but they were so large that it seemed strange to say such a thing out loud. However, after seeing bees shake trees with a touch and a bear crush a rock by resting a paw on it, his notion of "normal" had become a bit muddled. At this point, the beetles seemed small, acceptable perhaps, but hardly welcome.
Are all the creatures in this place really so strange? The ferocious roar of a river reached him, bringing a faint smile to his face. What's next, a flying fish?
[...]
...You've got to be kidding me, something like that actually exists here? What kind of world did you bring me to, anyway?
[...Stay away from the river and you'll be fine.]
River? What riv— Ah, forget it... I get it now.
Their eyes met as the enormous creature rose from the clear, whitish-looking waters. They both froze, or perhaps time slowed down, but it didn't last long. When the fish turned with its strangely sharp and grotesque, blade-like teeth, the man scrambled under its long, bluish body, where scales seemed interspersed with patches of greenish fur.
Fur...? Clinging to the riverbank, he watched the creature fly away, ignoring him. Don't tell me that fish is treading the path of the dragon?
His ironic laugh faltered when he noticed the system's lack of response.
Seriously...?
[Almost...]
[...There's still a long way to go, so keep running.]
Yeah, sure, but running where?
The gigantic trees around him were like small buildings, and the monsters fleeing in herds, like cars. The forest and the skies were its streets, and being the weakest and slowest in the entire place, he—the man—was the pedestrian crossing at an inopportune moment. A single mistake was all it would take for him to die; he had already seen death approach several times. His situation made him question the hasty decision he had taken, without enough information or any guarantee of safety. Trusting a strange, transcendent panel was proving to be a terrible bargain.
Speak up, where exactly am I going—?!
The sky darkened, and looking up, he saw an approaching rock that looked more like a small mountain. He threw himself behind another rock and curled up, pulling his knees to his chest and protecting his head. Everything trembled, including his mind. The roar was so deafening that covering his ears made no difference. Rock fragments shot out in all directions, embedding themselves in trees and scarring the ground.
Great...
His senses were so disoriented that when he tried to stand, he fell.
Forest of Demonic Beasts... This place is more like hell.
[That's why I told you that you shouldn't be here right now, Noah.]
Oh, right. And who was it, exactly, that dragged me here?
[...]
Noah, yes. Noah Evil, the name suggested to him by the robotic and somewhat childish female voice that had not only sent him to another world but had also given him a new, scarless body. By far, the most pleasant part of all this madness.
Carefully, he moved through the rubble as his senses slowly stabilized. So much dust surrounded him that nothing could be seen a hand's breadth away, and his blurred vision didn't help in the slightest. The upside was that, perhaps due to the strange body the system had given him, the dust caused no reaction, no matter how thick it was. He felt for a handhold and, with slow steps, moved onward, skirting the mound that had fallen from the sky. Unable to see, he had to rely on his other, equally disoriented senses to guide him. Moving on didn't seem like a good idea, but there was no other choice. To the north, the walking mountain, the very source of the tremors that had been shaking the forest, was running in his direction.
What did you say that creature's name was again?
[But... I haven't said anything about it...?]
[Are you going mad already, Noah? In just a few minutes?]
...The name.
[A little politeness won't kill you, you know?]
[...Demonic Lion King. It's a very powerful legendary beast.]
How powerful?
Noah stopped, hiding behind the rocks. Before him, a monstrous shadow passed through the dust.
[As you can see, powerful enough to make most of the creatures in the forest keep their distance when it decides to move.]
Most—?!
Finding himself in a clear area, he scanned his surroundings. There seemed to be nothing on the entire plain, but it was better to be sure. Hiding back in the dust, he circled the open field until he reached the trees.
So there are other creatures as dangerous as it is here?
[A few.]
At the edge of the dust cloud, as he continued on his way, surrounded by trees where he could hide if necessary, Noah froze. His body grew heavy, and with the echo of a howl, the reason for his reaction was revealed.
With fur as white as snow and eyes as bright as the moon, wolves that could swallow him in a single bite walked over the hill ahead without showing any great haste. It was clear that these creatures were different from the others he had encountered so far. The others had either not noticed his presence or had simply ignored him, as getting away seemed to be the most important thing for all of them at the moment. If they didn't flee, they perhaps weren't confident they would survive. However, without any hurry, the wolves gathered on the hill, one after the other. They had noticed him; yes, Noah was sure of it. The weight of their gazes pinned him in place, motionless in a futile attempt to survive, like the last struggle of a doomed prey. It wasn't fear or lack of time that made them leave him alive, but their indifference toward such a small and harmless creature.
On his knees, Noah failed to control his breathing and felt his heart accelerate for the second time since he had arrived in this forest. The first had been a consequence of the thrill when he realized that he was, in fact, treading on new lands.
Of those other creatures... He took a deep breath, trying to regain control. Is one of them a wolf?
[Yes.]
[But he wasn't among the ones you just saw.]
[His gaze alone would kill you.]
I see...
Leaning on the tree beside him, he pushed himself up. He continued his run along the path that grew steeper and steeper, despite the persistent questions in his mind. All the frightened creatures were heading west, but never south or east. Why? Noah couldn't understand. His mind searched for the reason with every step, knowing that the beasts themselves were the answer.
Dangerous creatures... He turned upon reaching the top of the small hill at the end of his path. He had stopped encountering many monsters after a while, and then they all disappeared. He had thought it was just luck or that most had already fled. However, as he stared at the horizon over the treetops, the truth revealed itself to be quite different from his assumption. Various beasts roamed further ahead, moving away from the creature his eyes could now see more clearly.
Not a mountain; what rose in the distance was a majestic creature that, if its mere steps weren't terrifying enough to shake the entire enormous forest, Noah would have dared to call beautiful. Its body was so strange that he entertained the idea that it couldn't be touched, even as its steps continued to leave craters wherever it passed. There seemed to be no fur, not even on its enormous and brilliant red mane, for it appeared to be made of flames. On its paws, the only things that didn't seem to be wreathed in fire were its claws. Its tail was not much different, except that the flame that enveloped it was golden.
Noah swallowed hard.
System... of these "dangerous creatures"... are any of them near me right now...?
[...]
...In this cave...? - He turned, looking at the dark and strangely menacing hole.
[...Throw a rock into it.]
Do you think I'm an idiot?! Who the hell would do something so absurd?!
Taking more careful and silent steps, Noah turned his attention to the cave's surroundings. It was dangerous, but since he was already here, it also seemed to be the fastest and "safest" way to leave the forest. Although he hadn't spent much time with it, the system's voice seemed more hesitant than usual. It was strange, making him think that it didn't agree with its own proposal.
[You need to do this, Noah... It's an opportunity.]
All right, now try saying that with a little more confidence and maybe I'll believe you.
[...]
[I told you that my main function is to assist you in your quest for power, and informing you of great opportunities is part of that.]
How exactly is provoking a creature, one that makes all those monsters not even think about getting near it, going to turn into an opportunity? Do I get stronger every time I die, is that it? If that's the case, give me a rope or a knife and I'll do the job myself.
[...That's not it...]
[You just have to make them fight each other.]
I have to...? Noah stared at the gigantic lion in the distance, whose paws were as large as the surrounding trees. Seriously, are you even listening to yourself? Are you sure you're not defective? Who would be dumb enough to start a battle to the death over something so absurd?
[...Throw the rock, Noah. Or...]
Or...? Go on, I want to hear the rest of it.
[...You'll have to go back to your old life.]
Ah, so that's how it works... This is the freedom you were talking about?
Clenching his fists, he considered it.
[I... It's the rules.]
[...Potential great opportunities cannot be ignored.]
Potential?
[...Forget that part.]
His eyes on the ground, Noah crouched. The rock in his hand felt heavy and awkward.
[...]
[If you're thinking of just going back, know that this function can be deactivated in the future.]
Oh, really? But it won't be that simple, I imagine.
[I can't say any more about...]
So I have to figure it out myself? What a pointless rule...
Hiding behind one of the many trees, he looked at the dark entrance.
If this doesn't work, and I die here... will I go back?
[...]
...No, right?
He held his breath for a moment, then sucked in air as he threw the stone with more force than he'd expected. He wasn't that strong before, but this wasn't his old body, so that didn't matter. For someone who had run through part of that immense forest in a few minutes without showing any signs of fatigue, it seemed consistent, though strange. He crouched behind the trunk, curling up in an attempt to hide himself as much as possible.
His heart raced with apprehension. However, as time passed, it began to calm.
Nothing happened.
...I tried, and it didn't work. So that stupid rule can't do anything to me, right?
[...Stay down, Noah.]
What—?!
The hill trembled, and it didn't stop. The impacts continued, one after another.
From below?!
[It's coming.]
With part of his body exposed from the protection of the tree, Noah saw the roof of the cave launched skyward with a single strike. A rock landed further ahead, but his eyes didn't follow it. From the newly created hole emerged something both mesmerizing and terrifying.
Right in front of him rose a gigantic being, whose mere presence made Noah lose all hope of survival. The reason the beasts kept their distance from this place was now more than evident.
A... dragon...?