A flaming black dot plummets from the sky at extreme speed, like a meteor about to strike the planet.

  As I get closer to the ground, it becomes clear that the “meteor” is a boy wearing a black cloak. I collide violently with the earth, destroying the forest around me. Thick, black smoke rises from the crater and, after some time, disperses. My body, scattered into pieces in all directions, is not a pleasant sight.

  My body regenerates, returning to how it was before. I get up, still staggering and dizzy.

  "Where is the sky and the earth?"

  "What day is it today?"

  "Has the flying saucer arrived yet?"

  I quickly remember where the ground is, realize that I don’t know what day it is, and, above all, that the flying saucer hasn’t arrived. That means I won’t be able to watch that episode anymore. Now I’m in another world. I admit I’ll miss those things, but I also feel excited. Getting to know this world might be even better. I still believe this world isn’t made of nothing but woods and forests.

  The dizziness finally fades, and I manage to walk again. As soon as I take my first step, I trip over something and fall face-first into the mud.

  I lift my face.

  Wait… this mud has… poison.

  I quickly get up, wiping the poisonous mud off my face. I rest my hand against a tree and stop to analyze the situation. I put my thoughts in order and organize the new discoveries I’ve made.

  "First. Don’t trust cute and small creatures."

  "Second. If dark or black clouds start to approach, run away."

  "Third. If a strong wind begins to form, run away."

  "Fourth. If you see bones scattered across the ground, run away. The place is probably poisonous."

  "Now, about my regeneration."

  "From what I understand, it’s passive and depends on my Source to sustain itself."

  "As long as I’m injured, I’ll keep healing, as long as my Source lasts."

  "If my body’s Source runs out, the regeneration probably won’t work or will be very slow."

  "Another point is that I can speed up the healing if I focus on the spot I want to regenerate."

  I take a deep breath and remove my hand from the tree, but I notice something attached to the trunk, a white flower, very beautiful.

  "It looks like that flower I tried to take care of in my old world."

  "What was its name?"

  "Ah, right… it was a calla lily…"

  The flower fires a transparent jet straight at me. I try to move away before it hits me, but the liquid is faster, striking my face.

  I close my eyes instantly.

  "Grrr…"

  I almost forgot.

  Fifth. Don’t trust the plants in this place.

  I should’ve known that plants can’t be trusted, or rather, that nothing coming from this forest can be trusted. Even so, I wonder what this substance on my face is. I feel a burning sensation and see smoke rising.

  I sigh, because I know exactly what it is.

  "It’s acid."

  I stay calm and wait for the regeneration to act. Strangely, not even the acid on my face bothers me as much as before. I’m actually calm about it. Did I lose my sensitivity to pain, or did I simply gain tolerance?

  With my face healed, I open my eyes.

  I think I gained both.

  I look around. All I see are colossal trees and dense forest stretching from right to left, with nothing recognizable about the place. I’m more lost than ever. Standing still won’t help, and lamenting even less. I start walking and decide to head toward one of the mountains I can see. At that moment, it seems like the most sensible choice.

  I take my first confident step, but the ground gives way. There’s no time to react. The earth simply disappears beneath my feet, and I plunge into the hole.

  ***

  The afternoon sun that day scorches the highest leaves of the trees.

  On the ground, I struggle desperately to move; my feet slowly sink into the quicksand.

  My eyes catch a blur rushing past. Its green mouth, filled with teeth, nearly bites my neck, but I manage to raise my right fist in time and punch its chin. Immediately after, grabbing its stem, I force it down into the quicksand.

  Another one leaps out in front of me, but I manage to grab it by the stem. Its mouth nearly bites my face, but I push it away, keeping a firm grip on the plant monster.

  Getting a better look at it, I realize this plant monster resembles a carnivorous plant with serrated teeth, lacking eyes, nose, or ears, and it is almost my size.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  The monster thrashes, trying to break free, but with my strong grip, I snap its stem and kill it instantly.

  But I can’t stop crossing the quicksand. I glance back and see a cluster of carnivorous plants trying to cross it as well.

  ***

  Desert biome.

  The crushing sun spares nothing beneath it.

  A few dried bones and monster skulls scattered across the sand are proof of that.

  With my hood up, I walk while limping, holding my left arm so I don’t fall, as thick smoke rises from my body and clothes.

  "Who would’ve thought I’d run into acid rain mixed with poison."

  Today was a hard day. The last storm was brutal. I never imagined that two such destructive storms would merge into one. And to make things worse, after surviving that terrible weather, a pack of four-legged creatures, similar to coyotes, almost up to my waist, with black fur, tried to have me for dinner. I barely managed to defeat them.

  The smoke stops rising from my body, and most of my wounds are healed.

  I return to walking normally.

  But thanks to that, I keep walking without direction.

  I don’t even know which way to go now.

  I was using a mountain as a reference for north, but now I don’t even know which mountain I was following.

  I raise my hand in front of my eyes, casting a shadow to better see the horizon. In the distance, a forest reveals itself, imposing and mysterious, and without hesitation, I decide to head in that direction.

  My bare feet burn against the sand, each step accompanied by the sound of dust-filled wind as I move forward. My mind returns to the paths I’ve taken before. I’ve already walked through lands of all kinds and faced monsters ranging from strange to bizarre.

  I look at the hole in my chest, which still hasn’t fully regenerated.

  Is this damn thing not going away?

  My regeneration, even when I focus, doesn’t heal this wound quickly.

  I walk through the sand, but my eyes keep drifting back to the wound in my chest. Even with my regeneration, it heals slowly. This injury appeared even before I fought those coyotes. All because of that horned rabbit.

  I lowered my guard without realizing it. I know. I was stupid. I should’ve learned by now. The forest already warned me: the cuter it is, the more dangerous it becomes. Even so, I ended up trusting that creature to be different. That little, adorable, bouncy thing looked like a plush toy.

  But when I realized it, it started emanating dark energy and made a fast, violent leap, stabbing me in the chest. The blow was so strong that we were both thrown far away, my back slamming into trees and knocking them down along the way. Still, I managed to retaliate and finish off that miserable creature. But the wound it left on me remains.

  I look resentfully at my own chest.

  But the worst part isn’t just the injury.

  I touch my cloak, observing the torn hole in the fabric.

  That rabbit really did some serious damage.

  Lucky for me that, somehow, my regeneration can deal with the wound.

  "Hum…"

  So if the rabbit had pierced my heart, would I have died?

  Most likely.

  Next time, I’ll be much more careful.

  I stare into the emptiness and then look up. For a moment, it feels like I’m looking this way. But all I see is the horizon.

  There’s something strange.

  Maybe it’s nothing. It’s probably just in my head.

  I keep walking.

  Well… aside from those setbacks, I survived another day.

  I stop walking and remain completely still.

  I look around, sensing that something is wrong.

  Immediately, I make a huge leap. In the next instant, a colossal mouth, many times larger than me, erupts from beneath the sand, almost swallowing me in a single bite.

  The creature has a pale yellow coloration and has no eyes, legs, or arms, only a mouth. It looks like a giant worm. It moves from side to side, trying to locate me, but soon realizes that I’m above it, about to fall straight into its mouth.

  The giant worm raises its head and leaps. I lift my hand upward and invoke enormous flames, hurling them directly at the worm.

  The flames explode inside the creature, making its body shake violently. I clench my fists and use the force of the fire to push myself away, landing hard on the sand. But the worm doesn’t die. It keeps writhing, making the ground tremble around it.

  Its body emerges from the sand, revealing its massive length. I keep attacking, firing several jets of fire. The creature thrashes, roars furiously, and charges toward me.

  I realize that the flames aren’t being as effective as I expected.

  I change my method of attack. I plant my feet firmly in the sand. As I move my hands, the sparks fade away, giving place to water. I release a current strong enough to push the worm far away.

  The creature resists, showing no apparent damage. The worm raises its head, but a burst of fire slams it back into the ground. I don’t waste time. I keep attacking, giving the worm no chance to counter. The worm screams threateningly, but I’m not intimidated.

  My hands are slightly burned, but the regeneration heals them.

  I need more power.

  I take a small leap forward and launch a sphere of fire, which explodes upon hitting the creature. At first glance, there’s no obvious damage, but the worm shows clear signs of retreat. Even so, it doesn’t give up and advances toward me.

  I concentrate the flames in my hands and charge forward.

  Let’s see if this doesn’t make it go away.

  I concentrate the greatest amount of fire I can, press my feet harder into the sand, and unleash the flames with both hands. The fire tears through the sand and explodes against the giant worm. The blast makes the ground shake and generates thick, black smoke that engulfs the monster.

  I hear a roar, but it’s clearly one of pain. When the smoke is disturbed by the worm’s movement, I can see the severe injury I caused. I managed to seriously wound the monster.

  Because of that, the worm finally retreats, fleeing beneath the sand. When I feel its presence disappear completely, I let out a sigh of relief.

  I sit down on the sand, a bit more relaxed.

  "Good thing… it ran away."

  I look at my own hands and arms and notice that they’re slightly burned, but the regeneration is already at work, slowly restoring my skin.

  I suffered fewer injuries this time, compared to the previous ones.

  Once I feel better and healed, I get up from the sand and continue on my way. Now that the danger has passed, I realize how much stronger this new power has become. From what Eladreo told me, and from what I’ve been showing so far, I must have awakened my Skills.

  I awakened the power of fire and water. I discovered this recently, when I passed through some volcanoes along the way. It was so sudden that, while fighting an ifrit, I noticed sparks coming from one hand and water gushing from the other.

  At first, my Skills injured me severely, but thanks to regeneration and constant battles, I no longer suffer as much, at least, not like in the beginning.

  I get closer and closer to the forest. At last, I manage to cross the desert.

  Funny. Why do I keep explaining things to myself?

  I guess it’s so I don’t go crazy.