Annino

Name is given by Death. These are not just words, but a sign, a symbol that you have been recognized. It is proof that death has become your family and the thread that connects you to death itself. By giving you strength, it also becomes a chain for control.

Death, in turn, does not interfere in the affairs of its apostles. But if someone is disobedient, they will be punished instantly.

"So, you're saying that death made him its apostle but didn't give him a name. Who is he?"

"A human," the interlocutor replied.

"Are you kidding me?... Well, forget it," said the hero, turning around. He saw a huge wolf, full of muscles but without skin or fur, just with slightly darkened flesh, as if it had just begun to decay.

Taking the sphere from the slime that had become after the decay of Alpha's previous flesh, the hero threw it right at Alpha. When it touched her, the sphere burst like a bubble, and all the black slime began to be absorbed into the muscles. The body began to shrink, and the sound of cracking bones was heard. Then the muscles began to blacken, and after that, the skin began to grow, followed by fur.

Before the hero's eyes appeared a small wolf, the size of an average dog. After everything was over, the little wolf did not get up. He just continued to sit on the sand.

"It's done. Only the soul remains... Hmm, what to do?" the hero thought. If he had more time, he would have studied these empty souls. But he had less than ten minutes left.

"Hmm... What if I... No, it won't work. Or maybe not... What if I don't? Ah, do you have a good book, soul?"

"Name is given by Death. It is not just words, but a sign, a symbol that you have been recognized. It is proof that death has become your family and a thread that ties you to death itself. By giving you strength, it also becomes a chain to control you.

Death, in turn, does not interfere in the affairs of its apostles. But if someone is disobedient, they will be instantly punished.

"So you mean that Death made him its apostle, but didn't give him a name. Who is he then?"

"A man," replied the interlocutor.

"Are you mocking me?... Mmm, it doesn't matter," said the hero, turning around. He saw a huge muscular wolf, but without skin or fur, only slightly darkened meat, as if it had just started to rot.

Taking the ball from the slime that became after the decay of the Alpha's previous flesh, the hero threw it right at Alpha. When it touched her, the ball burst like a bubble, and all the black slime began to be absorbed into the muscles. The body began to shrink, the sound of bones crunching was heard. Then the muscles began to darken, and after that, the skin began to grow, and then the fur.

Before the hero's eyes, a small wolf appeared, the size of a medium-sized dog. After everything was done, the little wolf did not get up. He just sat on the sand.

"Finished. Only the soul remains... Hmm, what to do?" thought the hero. If he had time, he would have studied these empty souls. But he had less than ten minutes left.

"Hmm... Do you have a good book, soul?"

"Yes, but what will you offer in exchange?" replied the book.

"This is my gift. For my... what's his name? Ah?... Mmm, never mind. This is my gift for him."

"Pay!"

"What a miser, that's all. Energy and the soul of a wolf and a gorilla. The first one has already completely fallen, and the second one is almost empty. But they are not suitable. So, I need another one. Come on, show me the list."

"Accepted. You can exchange all of this for the following souls: 1 Beast Soul, 2 Magical Beast Souls, 3 Holy Beast Souls."

"That's it? Where's the demonic one? Greedy creature, open it up."

"Pay!"

"Ah!!... You ungrateful bastard, a particle of humanity. With this, your master can heal his wounds a little."

"Accepted. You can exchange all of this for the following souls: 1 Beast Soul, 2 Magical Beast Souls, 3 Holy Beast Souls, 4 Demonic Beast Soul..."

"The soul of the Demonic Beast. The soul of the Black Hound."

"Accepted. Exchange starting in 3, 2, 1... Exchange successful. Thank you for the exchange."

"Wow, what a bitch. At least he said thank you... It's good to have the right kind of soul... With you, everyone's asshole will be blown out."

Taking the Black Hound's soul in his hand, he infused it into the body of the black wolf. After the soul entered the body, it began to change. Several spikes appeared all over the body, and two horns grew on the head. The tail with a needle at the end completely transformed and became similar to a dog's tail, and very soft to the touch.

His mouth filled with teeth, and the eyes that looked at the Duke turned black. Rising to his feet, the hound looked around in confusion, then tried to move one paw and then the other. It seemed as if he was learning to walk. Seeing the Duke in front of him, he began to sniff him.

"You gave me a good soul," said the Duke. "He'll adapt quickly and can think rationally, not just act on instinct. This is exactly what I need. Now I just need to give him a name. Not Yato, not Tenbris... Well, let the boy come up with a name for him. After all, I won't be taking care of him."

After petting the dog several times, the Duke put him on the sand, and he closed his eyes. After that, he looked at the tattoo where the book was sitting. Watching the tattoo, he began to reminisce about past days and even touched it several times. After a minute passed, he broke the silence, saying:

"I have to go. Teach and tell him about the price of my summoning and the gift."

"Mmm... Five more minutes. The lock... Oh right, I've been reborn." - Standing up, he looked at the black wolf.

The black wolf licked his face. Seeing the man stand up, the wolf stopped and stepped back a few paces. Then it sat down on the sand and watched him.

"What kind of wolf is this, and where is it from? What happened after I fell asleep? Ah, the pain...mmm... it hasn't gone away. What is this pain?" Suddenly, a blue panel appeared with the words:

"Congratulations. You survived this battle. But it's too early to celebrate. This world is full of danger and monsters thirsting for your soul."

"Can you tell me who he is and where he came from?" he asked, pointing to the black wolf wagging its tail.

"This is the Black Hound, a demonic beast. It can control shadows and, like any magical creature, can evolve. To do this, you need to feed it magical items or souls. It has several dog leashes. Description: The Black Hound is located in the upper layers of hell. It hunts enemies hiding in the shadows. Shadows are like home to it. And those who try to disturb it will experience what darkness is like."

"Cool... But where did he come from?" he almost shouted and pointed his finger at the wolf, who wagged its tail and turned its head away.

"This is your reward!" replied the stranger.

"What reward for?" skeptically asked the first one.

"For survival. In addition, you get access to tasks. They are not mandatory, but completing them can be rewarded with very valuable items," explained the stranger.

"Show me the tasks," requested the first one.

"Here are the tasks:

Learn to survive. You are still too weak. To increase your chances of survival, learn to use one offensive spell.

Ways of the Necromancer. A necromancer without tools and servants is nobody. Create your first staff that you will command.

Undead. The dead are like air to a necromancer. But sometimes it's better to have a few strong ones than many weak ones. Kill a few strong enemies and turn them into undead," the stranger read.

"Hmm. This sounds more like an RPG. Who are you, book? Tell me, what did I pay for this summoning, and what is humanity?" the first asked.

"Summoning uses the help of Ancestors to temporarily transfer control of the body to one of the previous owners. Summoning requires energy and humanity to be paid. Energy, which is in you and in my reservoir, is called necro energy or energy of the dead. It is gathered from corpses and ghosts. Humanity is a part of the soul that represents everything that can be called human. Without it, you will lose all emotions and become numb. Humanity is also called faith, which every believer must have. Currently, your soul is wounded and needs healing."

"I don't understand what humanity is. Energy is understandable, but something's wrong with this. Could you explain it differently?"

"Imagine a bottle of water. You can fill it, but you can't take the water out without breaking the bottle and creating a hole. In this case, the bottle is your soul, and the liquid inside is humanity, representing your life, feelings, and emotions. Humanity is the energy that nourishes your soul and allows you to preserve the human element. I hope you understand now."

"I understand, but how to heal my wound?"

"You must consume the soul. The more powerful the enemy, the stronger their soul. Be careful, a strong soul may resist yours and strive for dominance. If you lose, you'll become a slave or disappear."

"I can't understand what humanity is and what to do with an adult wolf, or rather, a dog... Come here."

Upon hearing the command, the black hound stood up and approached its owner.

Seeing how the dog joyfully began to lick his hand, he allowed her to enjoy it for a moment. Then the dog sat down on its haunches and began to wag its tail from side to side.

"Truly like a dog. Do you have a name?" he asked, looking at his hand. After this, he instinctively wiped his hand on himself. "Damn, I forgot I'm naked."

Looking at the dog, he noticed that she shook her head from side to side. Answering his question, she said she didn't have a name.

"How can I call you then? Maybe Imperium... No, then maybe Annino?"

Upon hearing the suggested name, the dog thought for a few seconds. Then she stood up and began to jump and play.

"As I understand it, you're happy. Then it will be Annino, or just Ann, or even An. And now let's go. I don't want any more surprises. But first, we need to gather our things."

As soon as he finished speaking, the dog, like hot wax, ran into the shade. He waited for a few seconds, then returned with all the belongings.

There was a wooden stick, a beetle horn, a saw, as well as teeth and a few hairs from a bat. The only thing missing was his cloak. He forgot he was already wearing it. The most important thing was how to carry all these things.

"Hey, Annino, can you somehow keep these things in the shade?"

The dog looked for a few seconds and nodded in response, confirming its readiness to carry out the task. After that, it went to the blue panel that read:

"Attention: The world that uses the Black Hound is small, and it will take time to transport or retrieve necessary items. Therefore, I recommend being more careful and selective about what you want to give your servant."

"So, I only need to give away those things that I definitely won't need in battle. Now please move those items," the man said.

Annie took the objects in her mouth and disappeared for a few seconds to transport them to her small world. After completing the task, the dog returned and sat down, barking a few times to let her owner know everything was ready.

"Good girl. You did so well," the man praised the dog, petting her head for a few minutes. Then he stood up and looked around, saying thoughtfully, "Where should we go now? Staying here would expose us to danger. Hm, Annie, do you sense any enemies nearby?"

The dog barked a few times at her owner and then pointed her head in a direction.

"What are you trying to tell me? I don't understand. Book, do you understand what he's saying?" the man asked.

"He warned you that enemies are in that direction," the book replied.

"Okay. Then let's go in the opposite direction," he said, turning around and slowly walking away from where he woke up. The dog happily followed him.

Looking at his hands, he noticed his copy, which he had restored while waiting for Annie. He saw a lot of sand covered in blood and meat, as well as rocks and one huge stone, but they all disappeared behind the trees. Only now did he realize that there were a few trees near the burrow. But that no longer mattered. They needed to get away as far as possible now.

***

Somewhere deep underground, it was hot. In the prevailing darkness, a weak snoring sound was heard. But it was stopped by a strong earthquake.

Opening its yellow eyes, the reptile began to circle them lazily, trying to figure out where the earthquake came from. Before its eyes, the image of how the Duke of the Grave appeared and fought with Gar began to play out.

"The Duke of the Grave? What made him awaken from eternal sleep?" the creature was surprised to see one of the necromancers now.

Watching the battle, it was able to understand that both were weak. They no longer possessed bright and powerful magic. The Duke could summon a powerful army of undead from all kinds of creatures, and Gar could create anything from stone without drawing or hitting sand. He could also summon stone servants of any size and as many as he wanted.

And now they were pathetic imitations of themselves. If only they hadn't lost then, they wouldn't be suffering silently now. Closing its eyes, the creature showed that it didn't care.

After a while, it opened its eyes again to watch the battle, watching Gar's death. It was able to see how the Duke transformed Alpha's corpse into a demonic beast.

But then it saw how the mist began to circle and cover the Duke. After the inexplicable mist exploded, a black body fell out of him. Watching it and its soul, it was able to see that this creature was new to this world, and its soul was wounded.

Part of its humanity was taken away. And if it doesn't solve this problem, it will become weaker in the spiritual plane. It will be easier to control it until the feeling leaves it. And memories will decay in darkness. It will lose itself.

And it had plenty of soul energy. Even the quantity and quality of its energy were comparable to that of a newborn human. Even those who knew it would envy this energy. In the past, it would have laughed it off and ignored it, but now everyone wants this treasure.

This person can live in this world for 72 years without degradation. And it ignored the waste of energy and the fact that it could gather and steal from others.

"72 years. Can this world last another 72 years? ... Try to kill him and take everything from him ... What am I saying? I'm starting to lose myself. I won't last long. Ah... he left. Now I'll go straight to him ... I remember there should be a house. Let me watch him. And then I'll see what to do next."

The orange eye watched every movement of the black man and his dog. In the darkness, full of silence, it...

***

He walked through the forest, which was becoming darker and the trees were getting closer together.

He looked around, although he couldn't see in the darkness. It was useless if enemies were hiding. It reminded him of how a lizard fell right on him. But fortunately, Anino saved him. Although he had a few cuts and what looked like a suction on his lips. They swelled, but to his surprise, they recovered in half an hour.

"Anino, I still can't understand, you can sense enemies. How did you not feel that enemy on the tree? Then he wouldn't have damaged my lips," he said.

Anino guiltily lowered her head and began to whimper. Even if she can sense others, it doesn't mean she can find everyone, even masters in shadow attacks. Besides, she was born recently, so she still needs a lot of time to become a master and become even stronger.

"Yes, I understand. Don't be too hard on yourself. Okay? Good boy," he said, directing his right hand to stroke her head. He remembered how that beast was bloodthirsty and tore that thing apart. He is even afraid to step now. He no longer wants to feel someone violating his face and lips. Patting the sad dog on the head with a painful heart, he went further.

Fortunately, there were no more surprises like that. The problem was that he needed to find a shelter where he could stop and become stronger. Perhaps some of the current quests would help him achieve his goal. First, he needed to learn spells, second, create weapons, and third, create an army of strong creatures. However, in reality, two out of three quests were impossible to complete at the moment.

"How am I going to create a staff? I'm not a wizard from Hogwarts," he said thoughtfully. "Creating an army of strong creatures requires killing such creatures, which is also a problem. Therefore, there is only one option left - to learn spells. But where and how can I do that?"

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice the small wooden house that was right next to him. But when his dog, Annino, started barking to get his attention, he turned around.

As soon as he heard his dog's voice, Annino ran towards the house. Watching the dog, he finally noticed the house, which stood alone with a few trees.

Seeing the dog running towards the house, he started to rejoice. "Finally, I will meet someone alive whom I can chat with and learn more about this world," he thought.

Approaching the house cautiously, he looked around and slowly approached the door but didn't open it. First, he looked around the place, but found nothing, everything was clean. However, when he looked at the door, he noticed that it was covered in dust. The old stone door was cracked many times, and there were even claw marks on it. "How difficult it is to hold a tool in your hand," he thought, "but one must be prepared."

The handle was black with... what? He approached and examined it. The handle was also covered in dust, which meant that it hadn't been used in a long time. "It will be opened again," he thought and slowly pressed the handle, then pulled it towards himself. At the same time, the door made a strong creaking sound.

"Annino was a good boy and stood guard," he thought, "He sat and watched so that no monsters appeared out of nowhere. He even looks like a kitty. Oh, how cute! But no, you prefer cats, and snakes too."

Behind the open door was an empty room, but it was filled with blood, and the walls were covered in claw marks. The floor was covered in dust. After inspecting the room, he noticed two more doors and one window. The window was broken, and the metal bars were torn apart.

Examining the window, which was not so big, he realized that whoever did this was small in size. But the strength was enormous, and he understood that this creature must have eaten a lot of mamaliga. After that, he wanted to inspect the remaining two doors.

But instead, he looked up. There he saw bloody symbols filling the entire wall. All these symbols were words. He couldn't understand what they said, but after observing for some time, he was able to find several styles in which the same person wrote. At first, it was neat and symmetrical, but then it became more grotesque, and the symmetry disappeared, as if the person who wrote it had gone a little mad. He didn't understand what was written there, but still couldn't tear his gaze away, as if it meant something. These bloody words mesmerized him as if a beautiful dancer was performing in front of him.

After a few minutes, he was finally able to tear himself away from the ceiling and began inspecting the first door. Finding nothing, he opened it. Looking inside, he saw a room with empty shelves and another door. Closing the door, he turned to the second door and then saw that Anin was sitting at the entrance, turning his head outside and inside. So to speak, he was watching the owner and also keeping an eye out for unexpected enemies.

Like the first one, the door was full of dust. Opening it, he realized that this door, like the first one, didn't make a sound. This scared him, and he turned to the first door, but nothing happened there. The door remained closed as it was. And he waited, as in horror movies, for a monster to appear, but it didn't.

Turning to the door, he saw that the room was empty again. There were debris from the bed on the floor, and a torn doll was sitting inside them. Entering the room, he began inspecting the bed, but found nothing interesting. After that, he started inspecting the doll, which was almost a meter long, but didn't touch it with his hand.

Instead, he started poking the doll with his spear, but there were no scary moments that he hoped for. After a while, he took control of himself and took the doll in his hands, starting to inspect it. It was torn to such an extent that it was ready to fall apart.

However, something made him hold onto this doll, but what could it be? He decided to look under the doll's clothing and noticed that it was covered in skin, and something red, like a thread, was going in and out of the skin. When inspecting the doll's body, he discovered something interesting. This doll had a dumpling. Touching it, he felt a faint chill and the same feeling that arises when touching a girl's intimate body parts. Fortunately, nothing happened, as it might have seemed at first.

After examining the dumpling more closely, he noticed that there was a red thread tip inside of it. Without hesitation, he stuck his fingers inside the doll and pulled on the thread with force. The thread slowly came out, and the seams themselves began to move. At the end of the thread, it was left inside the doll's skin. After the thread had completely emerged, the doll broke apart into pieces and turned to dust. Strangely, when his fingers were inside, he felt warmth and some slippery substance, as if he was really inside a woman. It was disgusting and strange, but also frightening.

Looking at the red thread, he felt danger, but also realized that it could be useful.