The blaring alarm pierced through the stillness of a dull morning, shaking Ren out of his slumber. He groaned, lazily stretching his limbs, and slammed the stop button with a force that would've shattered it—if not for its stubborn durability.
"Another boring Saturday," Ren muttered, dragging himself to the cramped bathroom of his tiny apartment. After a quick wash, he threw on a pair of casual clothes and left for work, not bothering to eat. Life didn't wait for people like him.
Ren was your average anime-loving, overworked orphan scraping by in a monochrome world. No family, barely any friends, and nothing remotely special about his existence—just part-time jobs and survival. Locking up his shabby apartment, he walked to work in a daze, his body moving on autopilot.
That was, until the blaring horn of a truck jolted him back to reality.
The sound ripped through the air like a warning from fate. Ren turned just in time to see the oncoming vehicle barreling toward him—but before panic could fully take over, something—someone—crashed into him, knocking him out of harm's way.
"Watch where you're walking, kid!" the truck driver yelled, zooming past.
Ren blinked in disbelief, staring up at his unexpected savior. A familiar face. "Evelyn…?"
The girl brushed her long black hair behind her neck and took his outstretched hand. "You're lucky I spotted you. Another second and you'd be roadkill."
Ren chuckled softly, still shaken. "Maybe I should've just let it happen."
Evelyn frowned but said nothing.
"Heading to work too?" he asked as they began walking side by side.
She nodded. Evelyn was one of his coworkers at a small, barely-surviving restaurant. Like him, she juggled multiple jobs to make ends meet.
A few minutes later, they arrived at the restaurant—only to find it locked. That was odd.
Ren furrowed his brow, but before he could say anything, Evelyn's voice rang out.
"What the…?"
He followed her gaze. A massive truck had veered off the road, now hurtling toward them with no time to react.
BAM!
Everything went black.
In those final seconds, as the world faded, Ren's thoughts spiraled—not with fear, but with quiet resignation. He had nothing to lose. No one to mourn him. Evelyn, on the other hand… she had a sick mother and a little sister. She had something worth living for.
I hope she makes it out.
But death didn't come the way he expected.
A foul stench invaded his nostrils, dragging him back to consciousness. Ren opened his eyes to darkness—but strangely, he could see perfectly. The scent of blood was thick in the air, and he quickly realized he was being carried... by the jaws of a massive beast. Strangely, it didn't hurt. It was like how a lioness carried her cub.
After a while, the beast gently laid him down.
He looked up, and his breath caught.
Before him stood a colossal fox—its silver fur shimmering with an ethereal glow, three majestic tails swaying behind it. Blue markings adorned its forehead, giving it a divine, mythical appearance.
"What the hell…? Where am I?!" Ren panicked, trying to run—but his body wouldn't respond properly.
He glanced at himself… and froze.
His limbs were wrong. His point of view was low. His body felt alien. He had paws. He had four limbs and… a tail?
It hit him.
"Wait… did I just get isekai'd?"
Everything around him was too vivid to be a dream. But fate hadn't granted him the typical protagonist treatment. No prince. No cheat powers.
"I got reincarnated as a damn fox?!"
While he was still reeling from the shock, a strange voice echoed in his mind—no, not a voice exactly, but a thought. A maternal presence, gentle yet firm.
"Eat me. It's the only way you'll survive."
Ren blinked. "What?"
He looked back at the fox—his mother, apparently. She lay weakly beside him, her breath ragged, eyes full of warmth and sorrow.
"I don't have much time left. You're starving. If you don't consume me, you'll die too."
Ren felt bile rise in his throat. "There's no way I'm eating my own mother. I might be a carnivore, but I'm not a damn cannibal!"
But the presence in his mind persisted. She knew. She understood. And she had already accepted her fate.
Then—
Ding.
A screen materialized in front of him, like a hologram straight out of a game.
---
[System Alert]
You are advised to devour your mother in order to survive. Your current condition is critical. Estimated time to death: 2 days.
[Name: Not Assigned]
Race: Mythical Tailed Fox
Status: Poisoned, Starving
Level: 1-Tailed Fox (F-Rank Mythic Monster) – 0/100% EXP
STR: F-Low
SPD: F-Mid
VIT: F-Extremely Low
Mana: F-Mid
INT: E-Low
Skills: Devour (Unique Rank)]
---
Ren's face twisted in disbelief. "These stats suck… I'm literally the weakest monster in this world!"
He turned to his mother again. Her breathing was shallow. But even now, the love in her gaze remained unwavering.
She was already gone, even if her body still lingered.
Tears stung his eyes as he made his decision.
"…I'm sorry."
He clenched his jaw, and with trembling resolve, whispered the command:
"Devour."