Chapter 1: Nen Abilities
Chapter 1: Nen Abilities
Pain!
So much pain!
My head… My heart… unbearable pain!
Haru Takashi slowly regained consciousness, as though emerging from a state of oblivion. He felt as if he were submerged in a weightless pool of water. Despite the warmth and comfort the sensation should bring, his heart was pounding violently, threatening to explode. Numbly, he realized that strange, scorching-hot yet bone-chilling energy was attempting to burrow deep into his heart.
Stop it! My heart's really going to burst!
After what felt like an eternity, Haru Takashi suddenly opened his eyes. The surreal feeling of awakening hit him, followed by suffocating pressure from being bound and buried under a heavy mass. Struggling desperately, he pushed off the oppressive weight covering him, freeing himself from the awkward position he was trapped in. Exhausted, he collapsed onto the ground, sprawled out in relief.
The sky was ablaze with a crimson sunset, and tall, wild grass filled his vision. Only then did Haru Takashi realize—how did he end up lying in such a desolate wilderness?
He vaguely recalled being stuck at home due to the pandemic, bored out of his mind. He had just fried some rice and was about to find something to watch to pass the time. He was an honest, law-abiding citizen; how did he end up here, eyes closed one moment, then open the next?
As he exhaled in frustration, a sharp, metallic tang filled his nostrils. His eyes widened. Why does it smell so strongly of blood?
Sitting up abruptly, he slipped and fell face-first to the ground, limbs weak and trembling.
A dead man's face in a black suit appeared before him, lifeless and staring with wide, glassy eyes.
Haru Takashi's scalp went numb as an icy chill raced down his spine.
Surveying his surroundings, he saw bodies scattered among the overgrown grass. It dawned on him—he had been buried under a pile of corpses! Bullet casings, handguns, and other items were strewn around the area. A gang shootout? But what kind of era is this? Who would still be so brazen?
Lowering his gaze, he noticed another body beneath the pile—a woman in a gray coat, eyes half-open in death. Though he wasn't a coroner, he could tell she had been dead for some time. Her stiff hand clutched a disheveled, empty swaddle.
Haru Takashi's breathing quickened. In disbelief, he glanced at his own hands, then up his arms. His limbs were thin, small, and the skin was as tender as a child's—nothing like the nearly thirty-year-old man he was. At best, he looked three or four years old!
He had transmigrated?
And he'd crawled out of that swaddle from beneath the corpse pile?
Overwhelmed with confusion, Haru Takashi just wanted to escape the death-filled scene. Crawling and stumbling through the tall grass, he pushed forward with trembling hands and feet.
When he parted the grass once more, his eyes caught a silhouette on a distant hill—a ferocious beast outlined against the setting sun. Though its shape was blurry, its glowing beastly eyes locked onto his from afar.
It felt like a bucket of icy water had been poured over him. Haru Takashi froze.
It's over!
Heart sinking, he quietly let the grass fall back into place and collapsed, hoping the beast hadn't noticed him.
Turning his head, he found a wolf's tail poking out from the grass, less than half a meter from his face.
Holding his breath, Haru Takashi's eyes followed the tail to its source. A massive gray wolf, weighing at least 200 pounds, was feasting on a corpse in a black suit. The sickening sounds of tearing flesh and crunching bones filled the air. Haru Takashi couldn't believe it—how had he not heard this earlier?
Slowly retreating, he kept his eyes on the wolf's back.
Suddenly, the wolf stopped. Haru Takashi froze.
After scratching its neck with a hind leg, the wolf resumed eating. Haru Takashi exhaled silently and resumed inching backward.
Then, he heard the last sound he wanted to hear—rustling grass on either side of him. Two more wolves emerged, blood dripping from their mouths, their green eyes fixed on him.
Can this get any worse?
The first wolf, now finished with its meal, turned to him, licking its fangs as if mocking him.
…It really can.
Haru Takashi understood. These wolves had known he was alive all along—they had been toying with their prey!
The three wolves formed a triangle around him, advancing slowly with threatening growls. Retreating further, Haru Takashi's back hit the original pile of corpses.
As the wolves closed in, a survival instinct kicked in. His mind raced for a way out, but every idea seemed absurd. He didn't even know the rules of this new world, and now he was about to become wolf chow!
Then, in the corner of his eye, he noticed a single strand of soft hair float away from his head.
A strange calm settled over him. Leaning against the corpse pile, Haru Takashi stared down the wolves.
Unseen to the naked eye, a white light surrounded the strand of hair, bending it into the shape of a pentagram before it landed silently on one wolf's ear.
A golden glow flashed briefly, leaving a rose-gold pentagram mark behind.
Haru Takashi stared in shock. What just happened?
But so did the wolf—it seemed equally confused, its human-like expression mirroring his own.
Did I… just possess this wolf's body?
There was no time for answers. Seizing the moment, Haru Takashi, now controlling the middle wolf, lunged at the wolf on his right, sinking his fangs into its throat.
Blood sprayed. The remaining wolf attacked from behind, clawing at Haru Takashi's possessed body. Every scratch felt agonizingly real, but he pressed on, locking his jaws on his target.
His real body, trembling in the corpse pile, watched in terror. If his possessed wolf lost, he'd be the next meal!
Forcing himself to focus, Haru Takashi willed another strand of blood to form into a pentagram. But before he could activate it, his energy gave out.
He had no choice but to fight to the bitter end. Sinking his wolf's fangs deep into the enemy's throat, he tore it apart, the wolf collapsing in a lifeless heap.
Panting heavily, Haru Takashi realized: I'm alive. For now.
But a fresh howl echoed through the wilderness, signaling more wolves closing in.
This nightmare is far from over.
(End of Chapter)