On my first day in the forest, I wasn’t very hungry—probably because I’d already stuffed myself during that earlier frenzy. But I guess growing kids really do need fuel. After sleeping in a tree hollow for just one night, I woke up the next morning with my stomach growling loudly.

Time to find food, and test my current body’s limits. Sure, I was only two years old, but as a Corpse Eater, I figured I could manage. A two-year-old wolf hunts on its own, right? So with some effort, a half-breed like me should pull it off too. My eyes landed on a family of wild rabbits in a nearby burrow. These weren’t ordinary rabbits—they were nearly my size, with snow-white fur, blood-red eyes, and sharp horns on their heads. Honestly, they looked a lot like me.

When I’d checked my reflection in a puddle earlier, I saw my own silver-white hair, crimson eyes, and a short, blunt horn on my forehead. Once my bangs grew out to cover it, I’d probably pass for human. No one would guess I was related to those ugly, lumbering Corpse Eaters. Being a half-breed, I resembled those white rabbits more—right down to the tiny horn on my head, just like their kits.

Perfect. I’d target the baby rabbits. The adults’ horns looked terrifying—razor-sharp blades nearly my size. One headbutt from them would kill me. But the mother rabbit’s burrow held two kits. My prey. I’d wait for her to leave, then sneak in and take them. Raw meat wasn’t ideal, but better than eating another Corpse Eater. Sorry, little ones—I had to survive. It’d been a whole day since my last meal.

I crouched in my tree hollow, watching the rabbit family. Finally, near noon, the mother set off to forage. I waited another half-hour after she vanished, then crept toward the burrow.

Two kits were basking right at the entrance, curled into fluffy white balls soaking up a patch of sunlight filtering through the leaves. Lazy little things—no need to dig into their den. How had such defenseless rabbits survived in this forest? I gripped a bone club scavenged from a Corpse Eater’s remains, silently chanted "Amitabha," and swung hard at the first kit’s head.

One strike, and it was done. This Corpse Eater body was surprisingly strong—my swing packed an adult’s force. Now for the second one. But it had already bolted back into the burrow. Then, the unexpected happened. Another full-grown white rabbit burst out. Its blood-red eyes burned with fury, locked onto me.

I froze. That horn looked sharper than the mother’s—this had to be the father. Of course there’d be a dad. He’d probably been napping inside all along. What was I thinking, rushing in blind? Run!

The rabbit lowered its head like a bull, charging with horn aimed at me. I spun and sprinted back to my tree hollow. Climb! I scrambled up the trunk in seconds, using my Corpse Eater agility. Safe now? I glanced back—the rabbit defied physics, scaling the near-vertical bark after me.

No escape. Time to fight. I gritted my teeth, leaped down with a roar, and swung the bone club at its head. Dodge the horn, aim for the skull. I twisted mid-air, avoiding the thrust, and slammed the club down with all my weight.

*Crack!* The bone splintered, but the rabbit stumbled back, losing momentum and crashing to the ground. The fight wasn’t over—it backed off, ready to charge again. Too slow. I pressed the advantage, rushing forward before it could gain speed. But I misjudged. Instead of retreating, it lunged. I dodged desperately, yet its horn still pierced my shoulder.

Agony seared through me. Not finished! I mimicked my twin’s womb-biting trick, sinking my fangs into the rabbit’s neck. Warm blood flooded my mouth as its horn twisted deeper into my flesh.

Endurance test. I swallowed the blood, bit again for the artery, and drained its life while clinging tight. After fifteen minutes, the rabbit went limp in my arms. I yanked its horn free—my shoulder wound was deeper than I’d thought—but I’d won.

Exhausted, I collapsed onto the snowy forest floor. Early spring, I guessed. The melting snow would’ve killed a human, but my Corpse Eater blood kept me warm. This injury? Nothing serious for my kind. Food secured, I eyed the rabbit carcass—about the size of a three-year-old child. Later, I’d ambush the mother when she returned. For now, I’d survive my first days in Sylia Forest.

Twenty days later, I still hadn’t found any sign of civilization. This infant body was inconvenient, but oddly resilient. My shoulder healed in under three days. With a bone club and strength that defied my age, I’d scraped by hunting rabbits in the freezing woods. Until—*it* found me.

A three-meter-tall, ash-gray bear. Was it the raw rabbit blood attracting it? No matter how I hid or ran, it always tracked me down. And it breathed fire. What kind of fantasy world was this?

I was faster, but an infant’s stamina couldn’t match a beast that size. It always caught me during my gasping rests. Cornered in a slope’s crevice, its roars closing in, I knew delaying meant death. Fight or die.

The bear hadn’t spotted me yet on the lower slope. I leaped from the ridge, swinging the bone club at its skull. It sensed me too late—the club that had felled a dozen rabbits smashed into its hindbrain.

No effect. It just staggered, then backhanded me with a paw.

I crashed down, deep gashes tearing across my chest.

Bone-deep pain.

Its jaws opened wide—a blast of fire roared toward me.

Ah, fire. So warm. So hot. Burning.

If only I had fire, I could cook meat.

About to be roasted alive.

I craved cooked food—raw rabbit was awful.

Pain seared every inch of skin.

Fire meant roasted meat.

Was this the end? Well, after freezing for weeks, dying warm in flames wasn’t so bad.

The inferno lifted me, threw me, swallowed me whole.

Beneath the burning skin, my blood ignited.

Then—the same thing happened as when the Corpse Eater ate me. I plunged into frenzy again. But this time, I stayed conscious through the soul-crushing agony. Progress. Strange, having awareness while my body moved on its own.

Instinct took over. Like a vengeful spirit, I tore into the bear’s flesh—predator and prey reversed in seconds.

Standing amid scattered bear chunks, I slowly regained control.

Ugh. The pelt’s ruined. Looked so warm—I’d hoped to wear it. Couldn’t I wrest back control during the frenzy? Maybe study its fire-breathing trick.

I sighed at the shredded meat scattered around me.

Man, I really wanted cooked food.