The forest is beautiful.
I mean, I've observed countless worlds from my divine perspective, seen the birth of galaxies and the intricate dance of ecosystems across dimensions. But there's something fundamentally different about being in it rather than observing it from everywhere at once.
The way sunlight filters through the canopy in golden shafts. The smell of damp earth and pine. The crunch of leaves under my feet—my feet, singular location, singular moment in time.
It's… nice.
Also, I'm starving.
Right. Mortal bodies need fuel. I glance around, activating Appraisal for the first time since arriving. A bush nearby glows faintly in my vision.
[Appraisal]
Blackthorn Bush
Toxic berries. Causes severe stomach cramps and vomiting.
Noted. I continue walking, scanning for anything edible.
[Appraisal]
Wild Strawberry Plant
Edible berries with sweet flavor and high natural sugar content.
Finally! I pluck a handful and pop them in my mouth. The flavor explodes across my tongue—sweet, tart, incredibly fresh. I've never actually tasted anything before. This is amazing. I'm gathering more strawberries when a movement catches my eye.
A rabbit.
Not just any rabbit—this thing is the size of a medium dog, with fur that glows with an iridescent sheen. Its eyes are a soft amber, and its ears twitch while revealing sharp jagged fangs.
[Appraisal]
Manahide Hare
Vicious. Attacks on sight. Muscles are unusually dense and built for bursts of speed. Sensory perception is highly refined, allowing it to predict movement in an almost telepathic way.
Perfect. I've always wanted to try eating rabbit.
I step toward it.
The rabbit's head snaps up. Its eyes lock onto me, pupils dilating. Then it bolts.
[Wright] "Wait, come back! I just want to eat you!"
That comes out wrong, but the rabbit is already gone.
I continue walking.
Something large moves nearby.
A boar crashes out of the tree line—massive, easily three hundred kilograms, with tusks the length of my forearm and dark fur glinting in the sun. Its eyes glow red, and I can feel the air around it vibrate with raw aggression.
[Appraisal]
Steelhide Warboar
Dense, armor-like hide made of magic-infused steel. Mana radiates from its tusks and body when it prepares to charge, generating shockwaves through the ground.
A boar!
The boar locks eyes with me. Then, I see fear.
Its aggressive posture collapses. The red in its eyes drains away, replaced by panic. It squeals—a high, desperate sound—and bolts away so fast it trips over its own feet twice.
[Wright] "Are you serious right now?"
This is getting ridiculous.
I spend the next hour trying to hunt. Three more rabbits flee at the sight of me. A pack of wolves, predators that should be aggressive, take one look at me, whimper, and scatter like I'm a natural disaster.
One wolf trips over a log in its panic to escape. I feel bad for it.
[Appraisal]
Frostfang Wolf
Thick fur capable of repelling magic yet soft to the touch. Fangs are reinforced and slightly longer than normal. Moves with coordinated pack precision.
By the time the sun dips lower, I'm genuinely frustrated. I have a small collection of berries, mushrooms, and herbs, but I want meat. I've read so many cooking manga. I know exactly how to prepare game. I just need something to actually stay still long enough for me to catch it.
I'm examining a particularly interesting-looking plant when I notice something odd.
A large rock. Grayish-brown, roughly dome-shaped, about a meter in diameter. It's sitting in a small clearing, perfectly still.
Something about it feels… off.
I activate Appraisal.
[Appraisal]
Black Tortoise
Descendant of the legendary Genbu. Shell reinforced by dense mana layers. Body stores large reserves of mana. Capable of high elemental magic. Faster than it looks.
A turtle. A monster turtle that's pretending to be a rock.
I crouch down next to it, amused.
[Wright] "I can see you, you know."
No response. The turtle is committed to the bit.
[Wright] "Your shell is very convincing, but Appraisal doesn't lie."
Still nothing.
I feel a pang of sympathy. This poor creature is absolutely terrified. It couldn't run fast enough—turtles never can—so it did the only thing it could: hide and pray its defense holds.
I sit down cross-legged next to the shell and sigh.
[Wright] "Look, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just… really hungry and everything else keeps running away. But you're obviously scared, and I feel bad. I won't eat you."
Silence.
Then, very slowly, a scaly head emerges from the shell.
The turtle is actually kind of cute. Dark green scales, wise-looking eyes, a small horn on its snout. It watches me warily, ready to retreat at any moment.
[Wright] "Hey there."
The turtle blinks.
[Wright] "I'm Wright. Just reincarnated today, actually. It's… an adjustment."
Why am I talking to a turtle?
Because I'm lonely, apparently. Divine existence was solitary by nature, but at least I had Caelum, Lysandra, and Nyx to talk to. Now I'm just a guy in a forest talking to a scared reptile.
The turtle tilts its head, then takes a tentative step forward.
[Wright] "You're not running. That's a nice change."
Another step. The turtle is close enough now that I could reach out and touch it.
Slowly, carefully, I extend my hand.
The turtle sniffs it, then—to my surprise—gently bumps its head against my palm.
[Wright] "We're friends now, huh?"
The turtle makes a soft churring sound.
[Wright] "I'm going to call you Donny. You look like a Donny."
Donny the turtle seems to accept this. He churrs again, then suddenly turns and scuttles off into the forest at surprising speed.
[Wright] "Wait, where are you—"
He's already gone.
I sit there, bewildered, wondering if I just hallucinated my first friend.
[Donny's Perspective – 30 Minutes Earlier]
Something is wrong with the forest.
Donny has lived in these woods for a thousand years. He's watched kingdoms rise and fall beyond the treeline, seen the forest grow from saplings to ancient giants, outlived countless generations of kings and demon lords. As a proud tortoise descendant of the legendary Genbu—there's nothing in these woods that can challenge him. Nothing. His shell has turned aside dragon fire and griffin claws. His magic can pierce the strongest hides of any monster. He even defeated the occasional foolish hero trying to claim his shell as a trophy.
All of them failed.
But right now, even he feels it.
A presence, moving through the forest. Not hostile, not predatory, just… overwhelming. Like standing at the base of a mountain and feeling the weight of all that stone above you, except this is raw, incomprehensible, barely-contained power.
The white wolves are running. Not hunting. Running. These are monsters that can destroy cities if left loose.
Donny pokes his head up from the berry bush he's been snacking on and watches as an entire pack tears past him, eyes wide with terror. They don't even notice him—they're too busy fleeing.
Then the steel pigs stampede through. Then the tricky hares. Then the pointy ears.
Everything is running away from something.
Donny is fast. Deceptively fast. When he wants to move, he can cross the forest floor faster than most creatures can blink. He hasn't met anyone who can outrun him. Except today.
He knows, instinctively, that he can't outrun this.
So he does what a tortoise does best: he tucks into his shell and prays.
His shell is his pride. A thousand years of mana absorption, reinforced by the bloodline of the legendary Genbu itself. Dragons have tried to crack it. Arch mages have tried to pierce it. All have failed.
Whatever this presence is, it can't break his shell.
He hopes.
The presence gets closer. Donny can feel it now, a suffocating weight that makes even his millennium-old instincts scream to run, hide, burrow into the earth itself.
He stays very, very still.
Footsteps. Human footsteps, which is absurd because humans don't carry this kind of presence. Even the strongest human heroes he's encountered over the centuries were nothing like this.
The footsteps stop right next to him.
[Unknown Voice] "I can see you, you know."
Oh no.
[Unknown Voice] "Your shell is very convincing, but Appraisal doesn't lie."
It knows.
Donny's heart pounds. He's committed now. If he moves, it might attack. If he stays still, maybe it'll get bored and leave.
[Unknown Voice] "Look, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just… really hungry and everything else keeps running away. But you're obviously scared, and I feel bad. I won't eat you."
Wait.
Not going to hurt him?
Donny processes this. The presence is… sitting down? Next to him?
He risks extending his senses beyond the shell. The overwhelming power is still there, but there's no hostility. No predatory intent. Just… a tired human sitting cross-legged on the ground.
[Unknown Voice] "Hey there."
Slowly, Donny extends his head.
The human is young. Dark hair, strange clothes, eyes that seem far too old for his face. But he's smiling—a gentle, slightly sad smile.
[Unknown Voice] "I'm Wright. Just reincarnated today, actually. It's… an adjustment."
Reincarnated?
Is that why he's so powerful? This isn't a human. This is something old wearing a human shape.
But he's… lonely?
Donny understands lonely. He's a solitary creature by nature—his kind don't get along with each other. The last time he saw one of his kind was about 800 years ago. He hopes they're alright.
The human—Wright—extends his hand.
Donny sniffs it. No threat. No malice.
He bumps his head against the palm.
[Wright] "We're friends now, huh?"
Friends.
Donny hasn't had a friend before.
[Wright] "I'm going to call you Donny. You look like a Donny."
Donny the turtle. He likes it.
And if they're friends, and Wright is hungry, well… Donny knows where the rabbits hide.
He turns and zooms into the forest, activating his burst speed. Time to hunt.
[Wright's Perspective]
I'm examining another plant—some kind of wild onion, according to Appraisal—when I hear rapid scuttling.
Donny bursts out of the undergrowth at an amazing speed. Wow, turtles sure are fast.
In his mouth are three dead rabbits. He drops them at my feet, looking incredibly pleased with himself.
I stare.
[Wright] "You… hunted these? For me?"
Donny churrs proudly.
[Wright] "Donny, you're amazing!"
I could kiss him. I don't, because that would be weird, so I pat him on the head. He lets out a content churr.
I scoop up the rabbits and inspect them. Freshly killed, clean catches. Perfect.
[Wright] "Okay, okay. Let me show you what I can do."
I've read so many cooking manga. All of them in existence. Now it's time to put them into practice.
I pull out my Creation Magic and materialize a simple knife. Mana seems to gather from the surroundings and transform into something tangible in my hand.
The blade shimmers into existence, perfectly balanced and sharp.
Donny's eyes widen.
[Wright] "Impressed? Watch this."
I set to work butchering the rabbits. My hands move with surprising confidence—muscle memory from reading thousands of chapters about cooking techniques, somehow translated into actual skill. I skin them cleanly, separate the meat from bone, set aside the organs.
[Wright] "Donny, can you gather some firewood? Dead branches, nothing green."
Donny zooms off again. He returns minutes later with a pile of perfectly dry wood clutched in his mouth and balanced on his shell.
[Wright] "You're the best."
I arrange the firewood and use Elemental Magic to light it. Unlike Creation Magic, mana seems to be drawn from within me and materialize onto my fingertip. I shoot out a small spark into the firewood. Fire blooms to life, crackling cheerfully.
While it builds, I prepare the meat. I skewer rabbit pieces on sticks I've whittled down, then season them with the herbs I found earlier as well as salt and Cajun seasoning that I made with Creation Magic. For the herbs, Appraisal says these are: wild thyme, mint, rosemary, and notes that they're great for grilling meat. I'm glad I picked these up!
The smell as they start to cook is divine.
Donny watches with fascination as I rotate the skewers, making sure they cook evenly. Fat drips into the fire, causing little flare-ups. The meat turns golden brown.
[Wright] "Cooking manga knowledge for the win."
Finally, finally, the meat is ready.
I pull a skewer off the fire and blow on it to cool it down. The first bite is transcendent.
Tender. Juicy. Perfectly seasoned. The herbs complement the natural gamey flavor of the rabbit, and there's a slight smokiness from the fire.
[Wright] "Oh my god."
I devour the first skewer in seconds and immediately start on the second. Donny gets his own portion—I set aside some cooked meat for him, which he eats with obvious relish.
We sit by the fire, eating in comfortable silence as the sun finally sets. Stars begin to appear overhead—real stars, visible from a single point in space rather than perceived from everywhere at once.
I finish my third skewer and lean back, completely satisfied.
[Wright] "Donny, this retirement thing might actually work out."
Donny churrs in agreement.
Then I feel it.
A pressure. Low in my gut. Familiar yet completely foreign.
Oh.
Oh no.
[Wright] "Donny."
He looks up.
[Wright] "I need to poop."
Donny tilts his head, confused.
[Wright] "I've never had to poop before. I don't… where do I even…?"
The turtle continues to stare at me.
[Wright] "This is a disaster."
Mortality is complicated.