World of Rules

3: The Forest

"De" moved swiftly through the forest, effortlessly passing trees and rocks, ignoring the sounds of insects and the wind rustling through the branches. He walked lightly, vanishing into the shadows as if he were a specter.

He had no idea how long it would take to reach the city, but he wasn’t in a hurry. This was his chance to explore this new world and understand the rules that governed it.

After a while, he suddenly stopped.

Looking at the ground, he noticed non-human footprints—deep claw marks dug into the soil, and scratches covered the nearby trees.

"A beast?"

This wasn’t surprising. In a world where the strong devoured the weak, humans weren’t the only ones struggling to survive.

Moving cautiously, De followed the tracks until he reached a small clearing among the trees, where he saw a massive creature before him. It resembled a wolf, but its body was covered in black scales, and its eyes glowed with a cold blue light.

"What is this beast..." De muttered as he observed it calmly.

He didn’t know what exactly this creature was, but it was a type of wolf—a first-tier beast, yet highly dangerous to ordinary humans.

The wolf suddenly lifted its head as if it sensed something, and its sharp eyes locked onto De’s.

Without hesitation, the wolf lunged toward him at a speed beyond an ordinary person’s expectations, but De didn’t move.

The moment the wolf’s fangs reached his neck, De vanished and reappeared behind it, extending his hand covered in black smoke.

"This ends here."

De unleashed his energy, and the black smoke rapidly spread, devouring the wolf’s body, piercing through its tough scales as if they were mere brittle paper.

The wolf howled in terror, its body trembling violently before collapsing, leaving behind only decayed remains and blackened bones.

"My power isn’t what it used to be, but this will do for now," De muttered as he looked at his hands.

After killing the wolf, he felt a surge of primitive energy flow into his body. This wasn’t unfamiliar to him—killing other beings could help strengthen his foundation and enhance his body.

By devouring and plundering, his strength would continue to grow.

However, he wasn’t interested in staying here to hunt weak creatures. He needed to reach the city and learn more about this world.

Taking a deep breath, he continued north, determined to take his first real step in this new world.

---

De moved north through the forest when he suddenly stopped.

"L— Let’s run!"

But De had no intention of letting them escape.

He vanished again, and when he reappeared, his hand was buried in one man’s throat, while another had already fallen to the ground, his head severed.

Only one man remained, his body shaking uncontrollably.

"W— Wh— Who are you?!" the last survivor stuttered, barely able to stand.

De gazed at him indifferently and raised his hand.

"W— Wait! I can give you information! Please—"

De wasn’t interested.

In an instant, black smoke engulfed the man’s body, reducing him to nothing more than a dark stain on the ground.

Silence returned to the forest.

"Haa... Haa..."

The brown-haired young man was still there, staring at De in terror, unable to speak a word.

De slowly approached him, his expression unreadable.

"You’re just a messenger, right?"

The young man quickly nodded, his body still trembling.

"Good. Where is the nearest city?"

"N— North... After crossing the river... You’ll reach it..."

De didn’t say another word. He simply turned and continued on his way, leaving the young man behind, still struggling to process what had happened.

After a moment, a sudden scream echoed through the forest, only to be cut off abruptly.

"Leaving him alive might cause trouble later. Silencing him with death puts me more at ease."

De continued walking, heading toward the city, already forgetting what had just happened.

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