Exhaustion caught up to me faster than fear.
I leaned my back against the rough bark of a tree near the forest's edge, knees drawn slightly inward. My body felt heavy—too heavy to stay alert for long.
No… I need fire first.
The thought surfaced weakly.
I should prepare. I shouldn't sleep like this.
Even as I argued with myself, my eyelids grew heavier.
The world faded.
I woke up to darkness.
For a brief moment, panic surged through me—until I noticed the pale glow filtering through the canopy above.
Moonlight.
Broken and faint, but enough to see.
I exhaled slowly.
At least I wasn't blind.
The forest at night felt different. Not louder. Not more dangerous.
Just… closer.
Shadows pressed in from every direction. The air was colder now, damp against my skin. I stayed where I was, back against the tree, forcing myself to keep my eyes open.
I'll wait until morning, I decided.
Then I'll move.
Time passed strangely. My thoughts drifted. Sleep tugged at me again.
Then—
Tap.
I froze.
Tap. Tap.
Footsteps.
My heartbeat slammed violently against my ribs.
No…
I couldn't move.
Even if I wanted to run, my body refused to respond. Fear rooted me to the ground, breath shallow, muscles locked.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound drew closer.
A figure emerged from between the trees.
A clown.
She stopped a few steps away.
White-painted face. Muted red lips. Dark outlines around her eyes. Her expression was blank—completely emotionless.
She didn't laugh.
She didn't speak.
She just stared at me.
I stared back, frozen, accepting whatever came next.
Slowly, she crouched until we were at eye level.
Up close, something about her unsettled me even more.
She wasn't grotesque.
She wasn't exaggerated.
Beneath the makeup, her features were calm. Sharp. Almost… beautiful.
Her gaze drifted downward.
She looked at my naked body.
Her expression didn't change.
Seconds stretched into minutes.
The silence became unbearable.
My face burned—not from fear this time, but from raw embarrassment. My fingers twitched, instinctively trying to cover myself.
I swallowed.
"…Can you," I said hoarsely,
"stop staring?"
She sighed.
The sound was quiet. Almost bored.
"Choose your companion beast," she said flatly.
"Cat. Or bear."
I blinked.
"…What?"
The questions burst out of me all at once.
"Who are you?"
"What is this place?"
"Where am I?"
"What do you mean companion?"
"Is this a dream?"
"Am I dead?"
"Why am I naked?!"
She didn't react.
Not even slightly.
Her eyes remained dull and unreadable, as if my words never reached her.
Eventually, I ran out of breath.
Silence returned.
Seeing she had no intention of answering, I let out a tired sigh.
A few moments passed.
Somehow, I accepted it.
Not because I understood—but because I was too exhausted to resist anymore.
"…I was never really a pet person," I muttered.
Taking care of myself had always been enough of a struggle. Taking responsibility for another life felt… heavy.
"A cat and a bear," I said quietly.
"Those are my only options?"
She didn't respond.
"…No dog?" I tried.
Nothing.
I nodded slowly.
"Yeah," I whispered.
"Why am I not surprised…"
I let out a long breath.
"Fine," I said.
"A bear."
For the first time, she moved differently.
She nodded once.
Then snapped her fingers.
The sound was sharp.
The world dropped away.
And I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
When I woke again, sunlight filtered through the leaves.
And beside me—
Something warm stirred.
Morning light brushed against my eyelids.
Warm.
Gentle.
I slowly opened my eyes.
The first thing I saw was something small sitting beside me.
Round.
Fluffy.
Very fluffy.
"…Huh?"
It was a bear.
No—a bear cub.
She was small enough to sit comfortably beside my leg, her fur a soft, pale brown that looked unreal in the sunlight. Her ears twitched when she noticed I was awake, and a pair of large, glossy eyes immediately locked onto mine.
For a second, we just stared at each other.
Then—
"Squeee."
The sound was high-pitched and soft, nothing like what a bear should sound like. She raised her front paws clumsily, wobbling as she did, as if waving at me.
Hey. Hey.
That was the feeling I got.
I froze.
"…You're kidding."
She squeaked again, clearly pleased.
Cute.
No—dangerously cute.
Before I could process that a clown had apparently gifted me a bear, she turned around and dragged something toward me with surprising effort.
Clothes.
I blinked.
"…Oh."
She pushed them against my leg, then looked up at me expectantly.
Somehow, without thinking about it too hard, I understood.
A girl.
The realization didn't feel strange. It just… fit.
I nodded slowly and accepted the clothes.
"Thank you."
She puffed out her chest proudly.
The clothes were simple—nothing special. A plain T-shirt and a pair of soft night pants. Clean. Comfortable.
I put them on.
They fit perfectly.
Not loose. Not tight.
As if they'd been prepared in advance.
I exhaled quietly and nodded to myself.
"That's better."
The bear cub circled me once, then plopped down in front of me and looked up, tail swaying faintly. I hesitated for half a second before reaching out.
My hand rested on her head.
Her fur was warm.
Soft.
Alive.
I stroked her gently.
She melted instantly, letting out a pleased little sound as she leaned into my touch.
Something inside my chest loosened.
Only then did the pieces connect.
The fruit.
The warmth in my body.
The way I understood her intent without words.
"…So that's it," I murmured.
"The fruit wasn't food."
It was a beast-taming fruit.
I looked at the bear cub again.
"…Guess that makes me a beast tamer."
She lifted her head at the word me, eyes bright, and squeaked once—sharp and proud.
I laughed quietly.
"Yeah, yeah. I get it."
I glanced around the forest. The towering trees. The silence. The unknown waiting just beyond sight.
I was still alone.
But not completely.
I looked back down at her.
"…I'll call you Nola."
She froze.
Then—
"Squee!"
She bounced once on her paws, tail wagging so hard her whole body wobbled.
I smiled.
For the first time since arriving in this place, the silence didn't feel suffocating.
Just quiet.
Peace never lasts.
It faded slowly, quietly—like warmth slipping away once you stop paying attention to it.
I stood up and immediately felt it.
Weakness.
Not dramatic. Not sudden. Just a dull, persistent reminder from my body that calm didn't equal safety.
Hunger twisted in my stomach.
Nola noticed before I said anything. She lifted her head, sniffed the air once, then looked at me with a small tilt of her head.
"I know," I murmured.
"Me too."
We started walking.
The forest swallowed sound. Thick roots curled across the ground like sleeping creatures, forcing me to watch every step. Sunlight barely reached the forest floor, and when it did, it felt thin—filtered, fragile.
Trees.
More trees.
Endless trees.
No fruits.
Again.
I let out a quiet sigh.
"Of course."
Nola stayed close to my leg as we walked. She wasn't heavy, but I could tell her energy was dropping. Her steps were slower now, tail no longer wagging.
Mine weren't much better.
Every minute drained something from me. My breathing grew rougher. My legs burned faintly, a warning I didn't want to ignore.
"We need food," I muttered.
"Soon."
That was when I felt it.
Not a sound.
Not movement.
A presence.
I stopped instantly.
Nola froze with me, her body going rigid. She didn't squeak. Didn't move. Her ears flattened slightly.
Danger.
The feeling crawled up my spine.
Slowly, carefully, I crouched and pulled her into the bushes with me.
Through the leaves, I saw it.
A goblin.
It stood alone in a small clearing ahead, thin and hunched, green skin dull under the weak light. Its eyes darted constantly, fingers twitching around something sharp in its hand.
I held my breath.
My instincts screamed at me to stay hidden. Every part of me agreed.
Nola pressed closer to my chest, silent warning flowing through the bond.
Don't.
Minutes passed.
The goblin didn't leave.
It paced. Scratched. Sniffed the air.
It was uncomfortable to watch—like something that didn't belong, yet very clearly did.
"…I can't stay here forever," I whispered.
Hunger made the decision for me.
Carefully, I set Nola down deeper in the bushes. She resisted slightly, letting out a soft, worried squeal.
Be careful.
I nodded, forcing a small smile.
"I'll be back."
I picked up a stone.
Rough. Heavy. Solid.
I tightened my grip.
My fingers locked.
The sensation was immediate—weight anchoring into my arm, strength flowing inward instead of outward. My wrist steadied. My shoulder drew back naturally.
I rose just enough.
The goblin turned.
I threw.
Pain tore through my arm as the force ripped forward. The stone cut through the air and struck the goblin's head with a dull, final crack.
It collapsed without a sound.
Silence rushed back in.
I staggered, dropping to one knee, clutching my arm as it screamed in protest. My fingers trembled, half-numb.
"…That hurt," I breathed.
The bushes rustled.
Nola burst out and hurried to my side, squeaking anxiously as she pressed herself against me. I rested my good hand on her head, steadying myself.
"It's done," I said quietly.
"We're okay."
For now.
I looked at the goblin's body.
Not with triumph.
Not with relief.
Just acceptance.
Hunger doesn't care about morality.
And neither does this place.
I stayed where I was for a while.
My arm throbbed dully, not sharp enough to scream, but persistent—like a reminder carved into muscle. Nola pressed against my leg, her warmth steady, grounding.
A few meters away, the goblin's corpse lay motionless.
I watched it without blinking.
So that's it, I thought.
That's what killing looks like.
Then the body began to change.
Blue light seeped out of the goblin's flesh, faint at first, then brighter. The form blurred, edges breaking apart as if reality itself was undoing the shape. No sound. No smell. Just dissolution.
The corpse disintegrated into countless blue particles.
They rose slowly into the air, drifting upward like dust caught in a beam of light, then vanished completely.
In its place—
Something remained.
A small glass bottle sat on the ground where the goblin had been.
Green liquid shimmered faintly inside it.
The word Healing was etched simply onto the surface.
I froze.
Not shock.
Not excitement.
Stillness.
My thoughts stopped. My breathing slowed until I could hear my own heartbeat echoing in my ears.
So this was how it worked.
Killing didn't just remove danger.
It paid.
Nola didn't move. She didn't squeak. She just sat there, eyes fixed on the bottle, as if she understood exactly what it meant.
I stood up slowly and walked over.
My hand hesitated for a moment before picking it up.
Without ceremony, I drank it.
The liquid was cool. Almost tasteless.
Warmth spread through my arm instantly, sinking deep into muscle and bone. The ache faded. Strength returned—not explosively, but enough to notice.
I flexed my fingers.
I could throw another stone now, I realized.
Maybe even two… before my arm gives out.
The thought didn't make me smile.
I wasn't happy.
I wasn't relieved.
I felt… focused.
I turned away from where the goblin had been and sat down in the grass. Nola padded over and stayed close, her presence quiet but firm.
What's the point of all this? I wondered.
The answer didn't come.
Instead, a translucent panel flickered into existence in front of me.
Name: Arin
Age: 25
Bonded Beast: Bear (Cub)
Sanity:3%
???
???
I stared at the number.
Three percent.
Zero wasn't stability.
Zero was who I used to be.
I clenched my fist, then laughed.
Not softly.
Not nervously.
I laughed out loud, head tilting back as the sound echoed between the trees—raw and uncontrolled, like something breaking through a crack.
"So this is it," I muttered.
"No animals to hunt. No fruits to eat. Just trees, grass… and killing."
Nola let out a long sigh and sat down in front of me, ears drooping slightly.
Stupid master, her presence seemed to say.
That's why I'm here.
My laughter faded.
"This isn't just about survival," I said quietly.
"It's about surviving without losing myself."
Minutes passed.
Eventually, the tension drained from my body. I let out a slow breath and leaned back, exhaustion washing over me.
I looked down at Nola.
She met my gaze, then stepped forward and climbed into my lap, curling up without hesitation. Her weight was light. Warm. Real.
I rested my hand on her head and began to pet her slowly.
The forest remained silent.
My thoughts stopped racing.
The panel flickered again.
One line changed.
Sanity:2%
I noticed it.
I nodded once.
Nola shifted slightly and let out a content sound.
For now—
That was enough.