In every direction he could see. North, south, east, and west. Nothing but an infinite sea of trees with violet and silver leaves. Occasionally interrupted by hills and rocky formations. No sign of cities, no sign of roads. No sign of intelligent life.
Kyne stood still, scanning the horizon once more, as if a second look might reveal something he had missed before. Nothing.
"Well." He said, in an almost cheerful tone.
"At least I know I'm in the middle of nowhere. That… might actually be good."
He had read a few webnovels before, in the rare moments when he managed to focus on something that was not his morbid curiosity. He was not completely lost with the idea of a system, a fantasy world, and transmigration.
And if this world was even minimally similar to the ones described in the stories he had read…
"Dragons." Kyne murmured suddenly, his eyes widening slightly.
"Do dragons exist here? And what would it be like to be burned to death by a dragon's breath?"
The idea was so exciting that he almost laughed out loud. Yes, he would definitely have to test that in the future. If dragons existed.
He looked up at the sky. The two suns were lower now, the smaller one already touching the horizon. Night would arrive soon, and he had still not found any place to stay. No shelter, no cave, nothing.
But it was fine, Kyne thought. Even if the night was dangerous, and he suspected it was, nothing would truly happen to him.
The worst thing that could happen was dying, and that was definitely not bad. It was now more of a learning experience than a threat.
He decided to walk. He chose a direction at random. Opposite to the smaller sunset, and began to move.
Hours passed. The forest was denser than it appeared from afar, with undergrowth that sometimes emitted a soft glow when touched.
Kyne encountered several small creatures: glowing insects, lizards with hard scales, and animals that quickly hid from his approach.
At one point, he saw a swarm of flying insects that looked like fireflies, but with elongated bodies and pointed mandibles. Curious, Kyne extended his arm and let them land on him.
The insects bit him. Several times.
Kyne watched, fascinated, as a mild numbness began in his arm. But it stopped there. The numbness did not spread. His heart continued to beat normally. His breathing remained calm and steady.
"Poison resistance, right? Looks like it's working…" Kyne murmured with a small smile.
The venom of these small insects was not potent enough to kill him, only to cause temporary discomfort.
A few minutes later, the numbness disappeared completely.
That was when he noticed another basic need. Something that, in his excitement with deaths and resurrections, he had completely ignored.
Thirst.
His mouth was dry, his throat rough, and along with the thirst came hunger. A dull discomfort in his stomach reminded Kyne that his last meal had only been a piece of dry bread and that he had not even finished eating it.
"I need to find a river, or a lake, or something like that." He said to the silent forest.
"Otherwise I'll die of thirst after a while. Well… hunger can wait a little longer, I guess."
But as he continued walking, no source of water appeared. The forest seemed dry, with only the nighttime moisture beginning to condense on the leaves.
Darkness fell completely when the second sun disappeared beyond the horizon. Night in this world was different from any night Kyne had ever experienced.
The darkness was deep, but not absolute. A gigantic moon, three times larger than Earth's moon, rose in the sky, bathing the forest in a pale bluish light. And along with it, stars appeared, forming a beautiful starry pattern with their lights pulsing.
Kyne, who lived in a large city, had never seen such a beautiful night sky.
"Hm… I think I definitely like these experiences too." Kyne said with a satisfied smile.
It was while he was thinking that, suddenly, he heard something.
A low, hoarse grunt, coming from somewhere to his right.
The sound was unexpected, and Kyne jumped, letting out a small startled cry.
"Fuck, what was that? That scared me!"
He turned quickly, eyes scanning the darkness between the trees. The moonlight created deep, shifting shadows, making it hard to distinguish shapes.
He saw nothing.
He heard a rustle behind him.
He started to turn, but he was too slow.
The impact came to the back of his head. Not a strike, but something heavier, more blunt. Kyne had the bizarre sensation of feeling his own skull give way, like an eggshell being crushed.
There was no pain this time. Just a flash of white light, followed by instant darkness.
[Your head was crushed by a Rank F+ Horned Monkey.]
[You received: Impact Resistance (F-)]
[You will resurrect in 3… 2… 1…]