Smelled Alright

I woke up as the sun was going down, and I was covered in blood. There was a feeling of euphoria coursing through my body, and I felt more alive than I ever had before.

I looked around and saw the two corpses of what I could only assume were demons lying on the ground, their blood staining the earth. I didn't know what had come over me, but something inside me had changed. The mask… it was like it was calling to me, and I could feel its power coursing through my veins.

I knew that this wasn't going to be the last time that I was killed, but for now, I needed to get out of there before someone found me. It wouldn't be long until those things were missed, and whoever sent them would be coming looking for answers.

I started walking back toward town when something caught my eye in the bushes. It was a small rabbit cowering in fear, and without thinking twice about it, I leaped on top of it and bit it in half. Disgusted with myself, I chewed the first half and then tossed the other in after it, my mouth making metallic chewing noises.

I looked back at the town and then turned away, grabbed my pack from the horse, and started to walk into the twilight. Going back to the town, or any humans right now, was a bad idea. It was clear that this mask was doing something to me, but I wasn't sure just how much it was my Biting System. The strange gift I was given upon being summoned to this world.

[Killstreak Buff 5/125: For every 5 creatures killed, strength and speed are increased by 5% for 24 hours. Stacks up to 25 times.]

Another one of the messages appeared, but no amount of swiping or thinking would allow me to interact with the message, and soon it faded away. There was so much that I didn't know, but I think I had figured at least one thing out.

That was the reason why they had been so quick to get rid of me without making any fuss. One, they were scared of me, and two, if I failed and was eaten, they would get to summon a new hero. The second was more of a conjecture, but it sounded reasonable.

But why did they summon me in the first place? If they just wanted someone to get rid of a few monsters, there were plenty of other people more qualified for the job. I was just an average person that had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but my planet was exploding, so this was technically the better option.

There had to be more to it than that, but for now, I needed to focus on finding a cure for this curse before it took over completely and turned me into a monster. The problem is that unless I went back to the crazy bastard that put the thing on my face, I was going to have a hard time figuring this out. At the same time, I was more likely to bite his face off.

Decisions, decisions.

In the end, I decided that I would just keep on walking. I was here to kill monsters, so that was just what I would do until I could get strong enough to control my urges. This mask scared me, and then the thing that I became when it took over. It was like a flip was switched in my head, and I just lost my shit. A person took over, and suddenly I just wanted... no, I needed to kill. Whatever this mask was, it was evil, but I was supposed to be a hero.

'Not in this life, child. You will fight it and give your soul for those wretched creatures, but in the end, things will always turn out the same. You are a monster, just like me.'

The voice froze me in my tracks. It was like a cold wave washing over me, and I knew exactly where it was coming from.

The mask.

"Partner! Are you lost?" A male voice asked, and I slowly turned around to find a human with jet-black greasy hair pushed back. He also had pelts on his shoulder, but all I could smell was a wet dog, and I could sense a wrongness emanating from him. This was the first human that I had come across since waking up, but something told me that he wasn't just a regular person.

"I'm not lost," I said before looking away and starting to walk again, but he grabbed my arm.

"Let go of me," I growled, and he quickly released me as if he had been burned.

He looked at me with wide eyes before taking a step back. "Sorry about that! It's just that you look like you've seen a ghost!" He chuckled nervously as if trying to diffuse the situation, but it was clear that he was scared shitless of me by the way his eyes kept darting around. "Anyway, where are you headed?"

"What are you? You smell like a wet dog," I asked, and then the man backed up but smiled at me, but it started to stretch with his face.

"So you can smell me, but you don't know what I am, but you look like a human, except for your face," The now clearly a werewolf said as it loomed over me. I sniffed, but he didn't seem hostile.

"You don't want to fight me? You seem very calm right now, but what if I told you that I was a hero and I am going to kill the Monster Kings?" I asked, still trying to figure out what to do with this creature because I didn't have the urge to bite him. Something about that seemed to register with me that I might be able to trust this creature for some reason.

There was also my newfound sense of smell, and I noticed that when I ate the rabbit, I didn't really taste it the same as before. My body might be slowly changing and adapting for me to be able to use it more efficiently. I hoped that was the case since I didn't seem to have any control over it.

"The monster kings? You mean those abominations that have been terrorizing the humans?" He asked as he looked at me, and I nodded. "I might be able to help you with that since I hate them just as much as the next guy."

There was something about his demeanor that made me trust him, so I told him my name, and he introduced himself as Gregor before asking me to follow him. He said that he knew a place where we could talk in safety, and I had no reason not to believe him besides my sense of smell.

So I followed him.

The worst thing that could happen is he leads me to a den of werewolves that all wanted to eat me, but then the psycho mask would take over. I didn't want to toss myself into danger, but this was the first person or thing that hadn't tried something on me, but that was followed by a yet, so I stayed on my toes.

"So, what is your story?" Gregor asked me as we walked, and I told him how I was summoned to this world by some old man and put into this body. I even told him about the mask but left out the part where it turned me into a killing machine since that would probably freak him out.

"Interesting," He said when I finished, but he didn't say anything else on the matter, which made me sigh in relief. "I was born a werewolf, but my pack was killed by humans when I was just a pup. They took everything from me, so now I just roam these woods looking for vengeance."

"Then why would you help me?" I asked in confusion. "I thought you just said that you hated humans?"

"I do, but I can tell that you're different. You have the potential to be great, and I want to see the Monster Kings brought to their knees. They are useless and refuse to help any other monsters! We need a real king that knows how to inflict vengeance. Not all humans have to die, and neither do all monsters. Some monsters are more humane than most humans. The world is not so black and white, so will you let me help you?" He asked, and I thought about it for a moment before nodding my head.

"Thank you," He said before leading me deeper into the forest toward what looked like an old abandoned cabin. "This is where I live, and we will be safe here."

"Do you really trust me that much?" I asked, sniffing, and his scent was still the same.

"You smell calm, but that thing on your face is evil. If the mask did not like me, I would already be dead, so I trust you," Gregor said as he gestured to the door, he had just opened.