Story Start —
At the start, we see a young man—barely in his teens.
"Damn… time's already run out. I can't see anything in the dark anymore… but I have to keep walking. I'm sure outside I'll find a way to—"
Before he could finish—
He coughed.
Blood came out.
"Ah… it feels like my lungs are burning from the inside… my throat is screaming for air…"
He kept walking.
Slowly.
Step by step.
Up the stairs.
Not because he didn't want to hurry—
But because he couldn't.
His legs weren't stepping anymore.
They were dragging.
---
Finally—
Light.
Sunlight.
He stepped into it.
His whole body was covered in wounds.
His skin was darkened… almost burned.
His hands looked worse—like they could barely move anymore.
One hand pressed tightly against his stomach.
There was a deep wound.
---
He looked up at the sun.
For a moment…
He didn't think about the pain.
Only one thought came to his mind:
Beautiful.
---
But it didn't last.
His body screamed again.
Pain flooded everything.
---
"Shit…"
"Before entering this cursed place… I even thought it wouldn't be that bad…"
"It's worse than back there…"
"At least there… they stopped after beating me…"
---
He took out a bottle.
Made from cleaned snake skin.
One hand still holding his stomach—
He used his teeth to open it.
Some of his teeth were already gone.
---
The moment it opened—
He drank.
As much as he could.
Greedy.
Desperate.
---
Water cleared his throat.
Air rushed in.
He took one deep breath—
Like it was his last.
---
So this is what air feels like…
All this time…
He only cared about food.
He never thought about breathing.
---
He remembered—
Living near a narrow road.
Black smoke.
Pollution.
Dirty water thrown outside by others.
That was how he survived.
---
"Luxury…" he thought.
"Clean air… clean water…"
---
He poured the remaining water over his head.
It ran down his face.
His body.
Cooling him slightly.
---
"My head's burning… if I don't cool it, I'll die from that first…"
---
He moved forward.
---
Trees surrounded him.
Huge.
Tall.
Like buildings.
He had never been inside real buildings—
But this felt the same.
---
Then—
That tree.
---
One tree.
So massive…
Its branches stretched beyond sight.
Compared to it—
Every other tree looked like grass.
---
It feels like it's holding the world…
He named it silently:
World Tree.
---
He reached his bag.
Also made from animal skin.
Sat down.
---
He took out dry wood.
Another bottle.
Different from the water one—this one had grass wrapped around the string so he could tell them apart.
He poured liquid on the wood.
Carefully.
He didn't want to waste even a drop.
---
Then—
Four metal rods.
Tied together.
He cut the string with his teeth.
Separated them.
---
He struck two rods together.
Again.
Again.
---
A spark.
Fire.
---
The flame rose.
He placed the metal rods into it.
---
Then—
He took out a needle.
Made from some kind of plant.
Sharp.
With spider web tied as thread.
---
Slowly…
He began stitching his stomach.
---
Not perfectly.
But enough.
---
When he finished—
The rods were glowing red.
---
He swallowed.
"This… is going to hurt…"
---
He bit down on a piece of snake skin.
Grabbed the rod.
And—
Pressed it against his wound.
---
His body shook violently.
Tears streamed down.
He wanted to scream—
But no sound came out.
---
When it was over—
He collapsed.
---
Like something inside him had broken.
---
Then—
A message appeared.
---
"Well done. You improved."
"You obtained: Blood of Dark Raven Kin."
"Do you want to consume it?"
---
His eyes were barely open.
"…why not…"
"Not like I can do anything else…"
---
"…Yes."
---
A single drop of dark blood fell from above.
It landed on his head.
---
And then—
It moved.
---
Like it was alive.
---
It crawled into his body.
---
His skin—
His bones—
His muscles—
Everything began to change.
---
It felt like his body was being replaced.
Like something inside him was eating him—
And becoming him.
---
Pain.
Beyond anything he had ever felt.
---
He tried to bite his tongue.
He couldn't.
His mouth opened on its own.
He tried to scream—
Nothing came out.
---
His tears turned dark.
---
His back—
It felt like something was tearing out—
Forming—
Wings.
---
Then—
Silence.
---
His body stopped moving.
His wounds began to heal.
Slowly.
---
Time passed.
---
He woke up.
---
It was night.
---
His face changed instantly.
Fear.
Pure fear.
---
Without wasting a second—
He grabbed the metal rods.
Dug into the ground where the fire had been.
Softened it.
---
As night fully arrived—
He buried himself.
Leaving only a small gap for his nose and eyes.
---
Because he knew—
Morning was survivable.
Night was not.
---
He looked at the sky.
---
A shadow.
---
He would never forget the first time he saw it.
The first night.
---
It came from the World Tree.
---
A massive, dark figure.
Descending.
---
Taller than the trees themselves.
---
A message appeared in front of him.
Hatchling of the Dark Raven Kin.
His eyes slowly lifted.
…Hatchling?
"How… is THAT a Hatchling …?"
The thing standing before him was larger than any living thing he had ever seen.
Bigger than the buildings in his city.
Bigger than the world he knew.
In front of it…
I looked like an ant.
Something it could crush anytime.
If that was a hatchling…
He swallowed, his throat dry.
What would the adult look like?