Lavayla's body shifted slightly in her sleep. The arm she'd curled protectively around the baby loosened. A moment later, she rolled onto her back, her left arm swinging over to the other side as she sprawled out, completely abandoning her earlier careful position.
The baby didn't stir. He simply adjusted with the movement, his tiny hand now resting against her side.
A few minutes passed.
Lavayla hummed softly, then turned back onto her side. Her eyelids fluttered. She stretched her legs, arched her back a little, and her hand rose to cover her mouth as a long, drowsy yawn escaped her.
Only after finishing her lazy stretch did her eyes finally open.
The first thing she saw was not her bedroom's chandelier or her glossy white ceiling with the soft golden fixtures she used to admire every morning. No soft glow, no elegant molding. Instead—
A rough, uneven surface of high stone filled her vision.
Her head tilted on the makeshift pillow, black hair spilling everywhere.
Hm? When did I change my house ceiling design?
Her brows pinched together.
Wait. This doesn't look like a ceiling. It looks like a—
'Hello, host~! I hope you had a lovely sleep?'
Lavayla froze.
'Oh, host! Did the sleep wipe your memory? Because why can't you remember that you are in a cave in a primitive world, and you died in your previous life during sleep and transmigrated here?'
Her eyes widened.
What?!
Before she could scream, it was like someone yanked open a door in her mind. Everything rushed back at once — the forest, the kid, the beasts, the system, the foraging, the cooking—
All of it slammed into her memory in one messy collision.
Lavayla groaned loudly and dragged both hands down her face.
"Ugh… no, no, no…"
She rolled over onto her stomach and buried her face in her forearm, wanting to sink straight back into unconsciousness.
In her sleep, Lavayla had thought it was only a dream, that everything wasn't real. But she was wrong. So wrong.
Her dream was an illusion — this was reality. She wished it were the other way around. She wished this entire ordeal was nothing but a nightmare she'd never lived through. A nightmare she could simply blink away.
But it wasn't.
She could still sense the python's hot breath on her back when it chased her. She could still feel the wild adrenaline flooding her veins as she ran, clutching the baby like her life depended on him and his on her. She remembered the bridge shifting in and out like something straight out of a fantasy novel. She remembered the helpless despair dragging her down after she crossed it. The Lirralk beast she'd killed herself. The foraging. The feeding. Eating things she would never have even looked at in her past life.
Everything was still there in her mind. Still vivid.
It was not a dream. Nor a nightmare.
Lavayla cursed under her breath. She could cry, scream, or lament until her lungs gave out, but none of it would change a damn thing. Absolutely nothing.
As she lay there, sinking into her bleak mood, the system chirped into her mind, bright and unbothered, 'Host~ you have been asleep for four hours, three minutes, and it's already noon. So, I don't know if you are already feeling hungry, but remember there's a beast in your space vault that you still need to harvest its core, and also you can use the beast's meat to prepare lunch or dinner so that your mission can be completed. You did complete your mission, but you didn't use the beast's meat, so the points haven't been awarded to you. Host, you need points right now, so I would advise you to harvest the beast's core first, prepare lunch with the beast's meat, and get your points. So, what do you say, Host? Shall we get going? ໒( ͡ᵔ ▾ ͡ᵔ )७'
Lavayla didn't move. Didn't even lift her face from her arm. She only shook her head weakly.
"No. Just… give me a second to get myself together, okay? It's not every day you wake up in a fucking primitive forest, think it was a dream, go back to sleep, and then wake up again to realize it wasn't a fucking dream. Or a nightmare."
'Okay, host. You can use a few minutes' rest while lying down, and then you have to sit up to get the sleep out of your body. I'll give you 10 minutes~'
But only a moment later, the system spoke again — its tone surprisingly soft.
'Host, I understand that you still are not accustomed to everything that has happened to you. And I want you to know that I'm sorry about that. And I may talk to you in a kind of way that has been annoying you. But that is just how I was programmed, Host. It might seem like I don't understand or want to understand what you are going through, which honestly I don't. But I just want you to know that you can take the time, all the time that you want. I'll give you the point anyway.'
Lavayla blinked slowly. The cave ceiling was still stone. Her situation still sucked. But she couldn't pretend the system's awkward attempt didn't touch her even a little.
A small smile formed before she turned onto her back.
"Okay. I'll harvest the core after the ten minutes are up."
She shifted, finally looking toward the baby. Still asleep.
She frowned. "Is he supposed to still be asleep?"
'The baby? He was awake for up to thirty minutes after you slept before sleeping again, and he woke up after almost two hours, used another twenty-five minutes to play with your hair and face before sleeping for the second time. He has been asleep for one hour now. I reckon he will be hungry when he wakes up.'
"Oh. I see." Lavayla sighed. "Then I'll have to buy another baby formula for him. I really need those points."
She ran her fingers gently over his soft, scarce hair, then pushed herself to her feet. Her joints cracked. Her muscles complained. She stretched her arms up, twisted her neck, and rotated her shoulders before walking toward the cave entrance.
Lavayla stepped into the sunlight filtering across the cave mouth. The air was warm, heavy with the scent of dry leaves and earth. With a thought, she summoned the beast from her space vault. Its massive body dropped to the ground outside the cave entrance with a dull thud.
She crouched beside it.
The beast was already cold, its once-vibrant energy gone, leaving behind only a heavy carcass. Lavayla exhaled and dug a shallow pit right beside its lower abdomen, one of her hands held the dagger while the other one swept the soil aside, moving automatically since that the system had explained the basics. Dirt collected under her nails, but she ignored it.
Once the pit was done, she wiped her palm against her thigh, then knelt again beside the beast. She closed her eyes, breathing deeply—once, twice, three times—trying to steady the twist in her stomach.
Her hand lifted.
The dagger hovered above the abdomen.
Closer… closer…
Then she stopped.
Her fingers trembled. Her breaths shortened. Finally, she pressed her free hand to her head, gripping her hair hard enough that her scalp protested.
"I can't—just—wait," she muttered through clenched teeth.
The system's voice chimed in immediately, annoyingly soft but painfully clear. 'Host, I would need you to know that as time goes on, since the beast is dead, the power in its core will dissipate. So you should hurry~!'
Lavayla snapped her eyes open. "Alright, alright, I get it."
She forced her shoulders back, tightened her fist, shook out the anxiety weighing on her chest, then stared down at the dead creature.
She whispered to herself, "I'm doing it now." Then she paused, "Where's the core located again?"
'Host, the Lirralk's core is at the base of its sternum, slightly right of center. About two inches inward.'
"Right, right." Lavayla placed the dagger exactly where the system had indicated, took one last breath, and pushed.
The skin parted under the blade, and blood immediately poured out. The small pit she'd prepared filled first, catching the worst of it before it could spill everywhere. She braced her hand on the beast's chest and cut deeper.
She swallowed hard, cutting through the abdomen in a slow, clumsy line. The smell wasn't pleasant—raw meat and old blood making her wrinkle her nose.
Her fingers brushed something hard inside the cavity. She grimaced, dug in, and closed her hand around a smooth, warm surface. With a sharp pull, she yanked it free.
A small orb, pale blue with thin glowing veins, pulsed weakly in her palm.
The system chimed immediately, sounding pleased.
'Core successfully harvested! Host, you did well—'
"Yeah, yeah."
•••
Holding the now-washed core in her hands, still dripping from the water she had scrubbed it with, Lavayla asked, "Okay, how do I absorb it?"
'Um, host, you do know this is a beast world, right? There are almost no humans here, so there's no concept of humans absorbing energy from beast cores. Do you understand what I'm saying? Which means… I—'
Lavayla frowned immediately. "Does that mean I can't absorb it? But he said I could."
'Yes, host, let me finish.' The system cleared its nonexistent throat dramatically. 'What I'm saying is that I am the only one who knows how you can absorb it. But it's not something I can just hand over. You get stronger through struggle here — hunting, killing, foraging despite danger. So the method of absorbing core energy isn't something that can simply be given for free.'
"Okay, just get to the point. What do I need to do? Do I have to do something to get it?"
'Yes, host~! Now, listen— in the beast world, there are beastmen and beast warriors. There is a limit to how much energy an ordinary beastman can absorb. Beastmen only have two forms — their human form and their beast form — so their capacity is fixed. They can only absorb up to nine levels of beast energy. You remember what I explained before, right? Beast animals are divided into low-tier, mid-tier, and high-tier. Each tier has three levels, and that makes a total of nine. Beastmen follow the exact same structure — nine levels.'
'But beast warriors…' The system's tone grew proud. 'Beast warriors have eleven levels. They're far stronger. They not only have enhanced physical strength and appearance, but they also gain additional abilities in both their beast and human forms. Some can use minor elemental abilities, some can manipulate force or objects, some have specialized senses… though the powers aren't too extensive since this continent is a low-level magical world.'
Lavayla blinked. "Okay, so…?"
'Humans, host, have a different anatomy entirely. You can't absorb a beast core the same way a beastman or beast warrior can. For a human to absorb one, there's a process. A proper technique. It's written in manuals and certain items and criteria are needed for the advanced methods.'
She narrowed her eyes. "So you do know the method."
'Of course I do~ But listen— since you're only aiming to strengthen your physique for survival for now, that is the easiest method. Your body needs to adapt to this world, so I can give you that method.'
"Then give it to me."
'You have to buy it, host.' The system sounded almost apologetic. 'The physique-strengthening manual alone costs fifty thousand points. You do not have that. And the other, higher-level manuals require even more criteria and points.'
Lavayla stared flatly. "Fifty thousand?"
'Plus additional points for activation, yes.'
"So basically… I can't absorb the core."
'Not without the manual, host.'
Lavayla hissed. "Then I don't need to absorb it."
'What? Host—'
"I'll prepare lunch and you'll give me my reward for both the morning and afternoon food." She stood up immediately, ignoring the system's indignant noise, and shoved the beast core back into the second vault.
'Host, what are you talking about? There is no mission for preparing food in the afterno—'
"Well, now there is. Give me a large plastic bucket from the mall. Cheapest one."
The system sputtered, but a bucket appeared at her feet anyway.