"What do you mean you want to push back the deadline!? Do you have any idea how many times I've made an exception for you?! You should've been grateful while begging on your knees! Why do I have to take the blame every time you seek pity!? Do I look like your nanny or something!? This is the last time, if you don't pay even a month's worth, then you could say goodbye to those scrawny arms and legs!"
With the shut of a door, comfortable silence finally arrived.
With a small sigh, my feet helplessly brought itself to go back home. Even so, giving out the money still did not bring a sense of regret.
She's saved my life many times before, if I can't even give her this much then I wouldn't have deserved her kindness.
With a heavy heart, I began thinking about what to do with the money problem. Despite being told that I might be losing a limb soon, I don't really feel that scared.
After all, it's pretty easy to tell whenever someone's just speaking from emotion. Their eyes would tremble uncontrollably if the emotion taking over was frustration mixed with anger. Most of the time, anything that comes out of their mouth at that point would just be useless blabber of a madman.
Although, I knew best to not take light of such a threat.
At some point of my thought, I've arrived at the building. Entering the bar-looking place, I greeted the owner who nodded back.
After going up the stairs, I entered the door a few rooms from the stairs.
Feeling burnt out, I immediately laid down on the hard bed while reminiscing about the past.
It feels absolutely surreal that a person could lose so much in such a short time. The years and years of time it takes to build the foundation collapses in the blink of an eye with just a single mistake.
I'm not talking about myself, of course.
Rachel. A person who was once thought of as the holiest individual in the world.
A saint. She's the embodiment of such a word. There's no other better way to describe her. With beauty far surpassing the average person, she's the first in line for any future saint arrangement.
But that was back when she was still a child. Even with a mana pool wider than the ocean, people still find some way to criticize her.
Calling her the cause of the previous saint's downfall.
In fact, that's not such a wrong statement.
Had the past saint not sacrificed herself to protect the orphanage that she was living in, she would've been the one who'd go on to fight the Demon King.
The founding of the Lesvania Empire 15 years ago marked the day the Demon King fell to the Hero's Sword.
Not being alive at such a historical moment in time is truly unfortunate.
Did you know Rachel was one of the heroes who defeated the Demon King?
Of course, everybody knows. And yet, nobody knew how old she was when the war happened.
A war that went on for 5 years. She had entered the war at the age of 10. Not even reaching adolescence. By the end of the war, she should've received the celebration of a lifetime.
And yet, she was met with harsh eyes and disgust.
Due to the death of the Leader of the Hero's party, she was made to take the blame for it all.
Truly a wrenching story for anyone who has heard of it.
Grabbing the book on the small shelf, I hugged it to sleep.
—
"God damn it!" I knew I should've not taken interest! Now I'm regretting my decision.
Pushing up my lips, I took note of the sharp fangs protruding from my gum. It definitely looked sharper than any pencil I've sharpened before.
As I was checking out my new sets of teeth, the ears above my head stiffened.
Just to be clear, I can't control their movements. They're like a whole new sentient being who moves on their own accord.
Definitely one of the weirdest feelings since learning to write left-handed.
As for the topic of gender, I've noticed this the moment I got here.
These mounds on my chest, they're boobs. A very elegant and normal sized boob. Would these be categorised as medium or small?
I don't know. Fortunately, they don't really restrict any of my movement. Being able to see my toes had also helped out a ton these couple of days.
With these wolf-like ears, plus the swaying of a fluffy limb near my rear, my biggest concern is my gender. After all, all my license and registration had my previous look on them. How am I supposed to apply for jobs with a face AND gender that doesn't fit my identity cards?
…Such a pain this world is. I could easily make out the fact that not only did my gender change, my race probably did too.
With the addition of animal ears plus the tail, solving the puzzle became child's play.
I won't comment on my own looks, doing so would be an insult towards my previous male persona.
"It can't be helped, clothing is still a problem right now."
I've been procrastinating the search for clothing for days due to not wanting to acknowledge my predicament. Does that mean I need to wear female clothes now?
God no! Please!
I've already lost a family member (male genital), I don't want to lose out on my own dignity too!
I'll have to make do with some leaves for now.
Right after washing up, I began hunting for some fishes.
It's a bit weird how easy I'm able to catch them using my bare hands. Perhaps it's this body's instinct? If so, that's quite a fortune in the midst of misfortune.
My ears and tail had implied that I'm a part of some feline race, cat or wolf? I've got no clue.
Never was I an animal person back then, I doubt I would be one in this body.
After catching my dinner, I returned back to my small camp.
After reaching this point, a dreaded situation once again fell upon me. I needed to make a fire.
Most people have no idea how hard it is to make a fire without the correct equipment. It requires more patience than keeping watch on a baby!
Like, I don't even know where to start.
I do know the basics like collecting dried leaves and wood dust but starting the fire is the problem.
How do I create enough friction to produce a spark without equipment? That's like telling an artist to draw without a pencil!
Unfortunately, there's nobody to respond to my complaints.
Sigh…
I still have no idea how I started a fire yesterday…
Let's just pray and hope for the best.
Holding onto two sticks, I began rubbing them together on top of the wood dust.
I don't know if I'm doing them correctly, but last time, this was exactly how the fire started. In which case, I started to believe that this was how it was supposed to be done.
Fire needs oxygen and a material to burn. The wood dust is set, now the oxygen…
"Fuu…" blowing into it softly so as to not let the wood dust fly away, I noticed a small spark at the intersection of the two sticks before it exploded… Wait, it exploded!?
POOF
A small set of flames the size of my fist covered the wood dust. In a panic, I grabbed a few handful of branches and dried leaves to keep the fire alive.
After calming down, a smile pasted itself on my lips. I've succeeded yet again. Now I can eat cooked fish! Hooray!