Being a cat was, physically speaking, fantastic.
Riku... now Nero had spent the last decade of his human life dealing with chronic back pain, stiff knees, and that specific, heavy exhaustion that comes from sitting in a cheap office chair for twelve hours a day.
Now, he was liquid.
He flowed over a moss-covered root, his spine flexing with a rubbery elasticity that felt borderline illegal. He leaped from the root to a low-hanging branch, his claws extending automatically to grip the bark. There was no jarring impact, no grunt of effort. Just a soft thump and a perfect landing.
Agility E? Nero thought, balancing effortlessly on a branch no wider than a broom handle. If this is E-rank, human olympians must be F-rank.
"Incorrect," Sophia's voice cut through his satisfaction. "The ranking system is relative to the average power of this world, not Earth. An E-rank Agility here would allow a human to outrun a galloping horse. You are currently faster than an Earth cheetah, but in the Great Forest of Eldoria (God-Rot Forest), you are effectively slow food."
Nero's ears swiveled back. You know, you're really good at killing the mood.
"I am designed to ensure your survival. Overconfidence is the leading cause of death for reincarnators. That, and trying to pet the Acid-Spitting Wyverns."
Nero ignored the sass and focused on the path ahead. It had been two days since he woke up.
Two days of running, hiding, and eating things he tried not to think about.
The forest was a vertical labyrinth. The ground was death, monsters prowled the fern-covered floor, beasts with scales like plate armor and teeth the size of daggers. The canopy was also death, giant raptors with four wings circled the blue sky, diving occasionally to snatch up anything foolish enough to break cover.
The "Safety Zone" was the middle layer: the complex network of thick branches, vines, and hollow trunks about twenty meters off the ground.
Nero paused, his whiskers twitching. The air pressure had changed.
Something is coming.
He pressed himself flat against the dark bark of the tree limb. His black fur, a void against the deep green shadows, made him nearly invisible.
Below him, on the forest floor, the underbrush exploded.
A creature burst into the clearing. It looked like a boar, but covered in jagged, rock-like protrusions instead of fur. It was foaming at the mouth, its eyes rolling wildly.
Chasing it was a shadow.
No, not a shadow... but rather a wolf. But a wolf that seemed to be made of oil and smoke. It moved silently, its paws leaving no imprint on the mud.
The wolf lunged, its jaws snapping shut on the boar's hind leg. There was a sickening crunch. The boar squealed, thrashing, but the wolf held fast, shaking its head violently until the boar collapsed.
Nero watched, mesmerized and terrified.
Sophia. Analyze.
[Analysis Initiated.]
[Target: Shadowstalker Wolf.]
[Rank: D+]
[Abilities: Shadow Melding, Silent Step, Rend.]
[Status: Hunting.]
Rank D+. Nero swallowed hard. His [Wind Cutter] had barely scratched a Rank E rabbit's neck before killing it. This thing would tear him apart.
But... look at how it moves.
Nero watched the wolf dragging its kill into the bushes. The way its silhouette seemed to blur, making it hard for the eye to focus on it. It didn't just hide in the dark; it became part of it.
I need that, Nero thought. I'm a black cat. Stealth is my birthright. If I can learn to blend in like that, I won't have to run every time a twig snaps.
Sophia, can I copy [Shadow Melding]?
"Negative. [Shadow Melding] requires a Dark Element affinity, which you currently lack. However, you can use Omnisophos to derive a simplified version based on physical principles."
Physical principles?
"Light refraction and mana suppression. You cannot become a shadow yet, but you can bend the light around your fur to become harder to perceive. Analyze the concept of 'Optical Camouflage'."
Nero stared at the fading form of the wolf. He focused not on the magic, but on the result. The blurring edges. The way the wolf suppressed its presence.
He closed his eyes and imagined his own fur. He imagined pulling the shadows around him like a blanket. He poured mana into his skin, willing it to stop reflecting light.
Don't be seen... be one with the void.
A headache spiked behind his eyes, the cost of forcing his brain to engineer a new reality.
[Drafting Schematic...]
[Reference: Shadowstalker Wolf (Visual Data).]
[Mana Cost: 20.]
[Skill Created: Presence Erasure (Level 1).]
[Description: Reduces the user's visual and auditory presence. Enemies are less likely to notice you unless directly in their line of sight.]
Nero opened his eyes. He didn't look different, but the world felt... quieter. The wind didn't seem to rustle his fur as loudly. He felt like a ghost.
Good, he thought. Now, let's find water.
///
Travel was slow. Nero moved branch to branch, heading generally North. Why North? Because Sophia had mentioned the mana density was slightly lower there, implying fewer apex predators.
He was learning the rhythm of his new body. The tail was a counterbalance; if he swung it left, his hips twisted right, allowing for mid-air course corrections. His whiskers were radar; they felt the subtle currents of air pushing around obstacles before he even saw them.
But the most pressing issue wasn't monsters... it was thirst.
He hadn't had clean water in twenty-four hours. He'd licked dew off leaves, but it wasn't enough.
Sophia, scan for H2O.
"Scanning... Water source detected. 400 meters North-East. Caution: Multiple life signatures present."
Monsters?
"Unknown. The signatures are small, bipedal, and clustered... likely tribal."
Nero paused mid-jump. Tribal? Like... people?
"Intelligent life forms. Yes."
Hope, dangerous and bright, flared in his chest. If there were people, there might be civilization. Walls, beds... maybe even grilled fish.
He altered his course, moving with renewed speed.
Ten minutes later, he smelled it, smoke. And not just woodsmoke, it's the smell of something rotting, mingled with unwashed bodies.
Nero crept toward the edge of the tree line. He was high up, perched on a massive oak branch that overlooked a clearing.
He looked down, and his hope died a quick, brutal death.
It wasn't a human town.
It was a muddy, miserable collection of huts made from rot-wood and dried mud. A wooden palisade, barely a fence, circled the perimeter. The "buildings" were falling apart.
And the inhabitants...
They were short, reaching maybe the height of a human child. Their skin was a sickly shade of green, scarred and covered in warts. Their ears were long and pointed, drooping sadly. They wore rags that barely covered their emaciated frames.
Goblins.
Nero had read enough fantasy novels in his old life to know what goblins were. Vicious, mindless pests, rapists, murderers. The lowest of the low.
But these... didn't look vicious.
They looked defeated.
Nero activated [Presence Erasure] and crept closer, lying flat on the branch to observe.
In the center of the village, a fire pit was smoldering. Around it sat about thirty goblins. They were sharing a meal.
Nero zoomed in with his feline vision. The "meal" was a pile of purple roots and a single, small lizard that they were meticulously dividing into thirty tiny portions.
They're starving, Nero realized.
A commotion near the largest hut drew his attention.
An old goblin, his skin wrinkled like a dried prune and holding a crooked staff, hobbled out. He was arguing with a younger, taller goblin who had a scar running down his nose.
Nero couldn't understand the language. It sounded like a series of grunts and high-pitched clicks.
Sophia, translation?
"Analyzing linguistic patterns... Language identified: Common Goblin. Downloading syntax... Complete. I can translate in real-time."
The sounds in Nero's ears shifted, morphing into understandable words.
"...we cannot wait!" the scarred goblin was shouting, waving a rusted dagger. "The Orcs will be back in two moons! If we do not pay the tribute, they will eat the children this time!"
The Elder leaned heavily on his staff, his eyes weary. "And what do you propose, Grak? We hunt? The forest is angry. The Great Beasts are waking up. Three hunters died yesterday trying to catch a Boar."
"Better to die hunting than to be eaten by Orcs!" Grak spat. "I will take the hunting party to the River of Scales."
The surrounding goblins gasped.
"Madness!" the Elder wheezed. "The River is Gator territory! You will all die!"
"Then we die!" Grak screamed, his voice cracking. "Look at us, Elder! We are already dead! The humans hunt us for sport. The Orcs enslave us. The forest eats us. We have nothing!"
Grak threw his dagger into the mud in frustration. He fell to his knees, burying his face in his hands.
Silence descended on the village. A heavy, suffocating despair.
High above, Nero watched.
His tail flicked involuntarily.
This is... pathetic.
He had expected monsters. He had expected a threat. Instead, he found a group of people who were just as stuck in the grinder as he had been in Tokyo. Working hard, suffering, with no way out, waiting for the inevitable truck to hit them.
The Orcs demand tribute, Nero mused. So there's a hierarchy here. Goblins are at the bottom.
He turned to leave, this wasn't his problem. He was a cat that needed to survive. Getting involved with a failing goblin village was a great way to end up as a snack or collateral damage.
He turned around, ready to jump to the next tree.
Crack.
The sound of splintering wood echoed from the forest edge, opposite to where Nero was.
Every goblin in the village froze.
From the dense foliage, a figure emerged.
It towered over the goblins. At least two meters tall, with skin the color of bruised pork and tusks jutting from its lower jaw. It wore crude leather armor and carried a club that looked like it was made from a tree trunk.
An Orc.
And behind him, two more.
The Elder trembled. "T-The tribute is not due for two days!" he squeaked.
The lead Orc laughed. It was a wet, guttural sound. "Boss got hungry," the Orc grunted. "Changed the deal."
The Orc kicked the flimsy gate. The wood shattered like matchsticks.
The goblins scrambled back, huddling together. Grak, the scarred goblin, snatched up his dagger and stood in front of the women and children. He was shaking so hard the blade vibrated, but he didn't move.
"Run!" Grak shouted.
"Cute," the lead Orc sneered. He raised his club.
Nero watched from the branch.
Walk away, Riku, he told himself. You are a cat. You have 15 Mana points left. You have one offensive skill. That Orc has a skull thicker than your apartment walls.
He looked at Grak. The goblin was terrified. He knew he was going to die. But he stood there anyway.
Just like Riku had stood in front of the truck.
Damn it.
Nero sighed. Or rather, he hissed softly.
Sophia. Analysis on the Orc.
[Target: Forest Orc.]
[Rank: D]
[Vitality: C]
[Weakness: Eyes, Throat, lack of Magic Resistance.]
C-Rank Vitality. My Wind Cutter won't decapitate him. It might just give him a shaving cut.
"Correct," Sophia confirmed. "Direct confrontation has a 98% probability of your death."
I don't need to kill him, Nero thought, his golden eyes narrowing. I just need to make him wish he hadn't come here.
Sophia. I need a new skill. Now.
"State the concept."
Nero looked at the smoldering fire pit in the center of the village. He looked at the dry, thatched roofs of the huts. He looked at the wind blowing through the trees.
Fire, Nero thought. I want to burn.
"You lack the Fire Element affinity."
I don't need to generate fire, Nero countered, his mind racing with the logic of a salaryman finding a loophole in a contract. I have [Wind Cutter]. Wind is just moving air. Friction creates heat. If I compress the air tight enough, fast enough...
"You are attempting to use aerodynamic heating to ignite a plasma discharge? With your mana pool?" Sophia sounded almost impressed. "That is theoretically possible. But you won't create a fireball. You will create a spark."
A spark is enough.
The lead Orc stepped forward, raising his club to crush Grak.
Nero leaped.
He didn't jump at the Orc. He jumped over the village, soaring through the air like a black missile.
As he reached the apex of his jump, directly above the Orc's head, he unleashed his mana.
Create Skill: [Ignition Wind]!
[Skill Created: Ember Gust (Level 1)]
[Mana Cost: 10]
Ember Gust?... Well, Whatever.
Nero slashed his claws.
It wasn't the clean blade of the [Wind Cutter]. It was a chaotic, superheated burst of air. It slammed into the back of the Orc's neck.
It didn't cut deep. But it burned.
"ARGH!" The Orc roared, dropping his club and clutching his neck. The smell of singed hair filled the air.
Nero landed gracefully on the roof of the Elder's hut. He stood tall, looking down at the confused monsters.
"MREOOOW!" (Get out of my yard!)
The sound was amplified by his mana, echoing like a thunderclap.
The Orcs froze. The Goblins froze. Everyone looked up.
There, on the roof, silhouetted against the sun, was a small, black creature with eyes that glowed with unnatural intelligence.
The lead Orc looked at his hand. There was blood, and a blister burn. He looked up at the cat.
"A... cat?" the Orc grunted, confused. "A snack?"
Nero didn't flinch. He sat down, wrapped his tail around his paws, and tilted his head.
Showtime, Nero thought.
He activated [Omnisophos].
He didn't attack. He simply projected his Intent.
He recalled the feeling of the Truck. The sheer, unstoppable force of death that had claimed him. He projected the aura of the entity that had reincarnated him.
[Skill: Fear Aura (False) - Activated.]
For a split second, the Orcs didn't see a cat.
They saw a shadow that loomed larger than the trees. They felt the cold breath of the grave.
The lead Orc took a step back. His instincts, honed by survival in the forest, were screaming one word: Predator.
"This... this is bad voodoo," one of the other Orcs muttered, backing away. "Black beast. Bad omen."
"Shut up!" the leader roared, though his voice wavered. He grabbed a stone from the ground and hurled it at Nero.
Nero didn't move. He calculated the trajectory instantly.
Too slow.
He tilted his head two inches to the left. The stone whizzed past his ear.
He yawned.
It was the ultimate insult.
The Orc leader turned red. "I'll skin you!"
He charged the hut.
Now, Nero thought.
He cast [Wind Cutter]... not at the Orc.
At the smoldering fire pit below.
The blade of air struck the embers, kicking up a massive cloud of burning ash and coals directly into the charging Orc's face.
"MY EYES!" The Orc screamed, blindingly flailing his arms. He smashed into the support beam of the Elder's hut. The hut shook, but held.
"Run!" Nero meowed—no, he projected the intent so strongly the Goblins understood.
Grak snapped out of his trance. "Attack his legs!"
The goblins, seeing their oppressor blinded and screaming, found a sudden surge of courage. They swarmed. Not with skill, but with desperation. They stabbed at the Orc's ankles with their rusted knives.
The other two Orcs, seeing their leader blinded by a "demon cat" and swarmed by the vermin, panicked.
"It's a curse! Run!"
They turned and fled into the forest, leaving their leader behind.
The leader, blind and bleeding, swung his club wildly, knocking two goblins away, before tripping over the fire pit and falling face-first into the mud.
Grak didn't hesitate. He jumped on the Orc's back and drove his dagger into the gap of the neck armor.
The Orc twitched, and lay still.
Heavy silence returned to the clearing.
The goblins stood panting, staring at the dead behemoth. They had done it. They had killed an Orc.
Slowly, thirty pairs of wide, yellow eyes turned upward toward the roof of the Elder's hut.
Nero sat there, looking bored.
He licked his paw and groomed his ear.
Status Check, Nero thought.
[Mana: 3/50]
[Stamina: Critical]
[Adrenaline wearing off.]
He was exhausted. If they attacked him now, he would die.
The Elder stepped forward. He looked at the dead Orc, then up at Nero. He dropped his staff and fell to his knees.
"The Black Beast..." the Elder whispered. "The Spirits have sent a Guardian."
Grak looked up, blood on his face, awe in his eyes. He dropped to his knees as well.
One by one, the goblins bowed.
Nero stopped grooming himself. He looked at the bowing goblins.
Well, he thought. I guess I have minions now.
Sophia, add 'Become a King' to the To-Do list.
"Task added. Priority: High. Current Priority: Do not fall off the roof."
Nero stood up, his legs shaking slightly, and let out a commanding, high-pitched meow.
The Legend of The Black Cat's Monster Nation had begun.
( END OF CHAPTER 2 )
Status Screen:
Name: Nero
Race: Black Cat (Variant: Midnight Prowler)
Title: Reincarnator
Mana: 50
Miracle Skill: [Omnisophos]—All-Wisdom, Analyze, Deconstruct, and Reconstruct
Active Skills: [Wind Cutter Lv.1], [High Jump Lv.1], [Presence Erasure Lv.1], [Ember Gust Lv.1], [Fear Aura (False)]
Passive Skills: [Night Vision], [Poison Resistance (Minor)]
Attributes: Strength: G, Agility: E, Magic: F, Vitality: G, Intelligence: A+
Element Affinity: Wind