After waking from that dream that made me realize who my target was, I still had a major problem to solve: water.
Although I'd decided to stay and investigate my power while waiting for all my memories to return, water was the most vital thing; as for food… let's just say that the more insects you eat, the more they taste like shrimp.
After a while, I started searching the corners for some place where there might at least be a few drops of water. You can't imagine my disappointment after more than an hour had passed and I hadn't found anything but an old, cracked water bottle.
"Hours of searching for this? Ugh, I hate this week—I almost died like three times just this morning."
Although it seemed like an exaggeration, in the end I was probably going to die of dehydration if things kept going like this.
I couldn't contain my rage. Hours of searching just for that? A canteen? I grabbed it in a fit of fury, throwing it aggressively against the wall—something that, even if it only shifted the weight of a stone on the ceiling, calmed me down a little.
I had already given up, and I was already thinking about leaving earlier than planned. Dying with a sword in my chest is better than dying of dehydration—something one of my favorite fictional characters used to say.
"A man must die with honor, haha, how absurd."
It seemed like I was going crazy; I was already on my way out when I saw something that left me paralyzed.
"A cockroach?"
You must think I've turned into a madman who stares open-mouthed at such a disgusting insect, but think of it another way.
Cockroaches are insects that live in dark, damp areas; if there's one right in front of me, that must mean there's water not too far away.
Patience is a hunter's friend, and I showed plenty of patience.
I watched the cockroach for the rest of the day, following it everywhere—from the cages to the farthest corners—protecting it from the other insects.
To tell the truth, this situation was more of a game of chance. Cockroaches can survive a week without water, and I was already on my fourth day.
I didn't even understand how it was still alive, so I asked the beast from the other time.
His answer was astonishingly simple.
"Huh? Oh, it's because of the malice. Now get lost."
At that moment, I just wanted to punch him, but the liver I had in my mouth was a good reason not to.
Still, I was able to figure out the details on my own.
It seems that the malice reacts to my needs and not to what I want—or so I think.
When I tried to make a gun again, all it did was dissolve the creature I was holding in my hand. I theorized that even though I couldn't create a weapon, the dissolution of the creature in my hand must be giving me some nutrients.
That would explain why I lasted so long without drinking water.
Still, it also seems to have its limits; it was only delaying the inevitable. I killed countless insects just to extend my survival time without water by two days—maybe two and a half.
That insect, which everyone sees as the most repulsive thing nature could create, was where I placed all my hope.
Following the eye like a cat follows a red dot, my situation seemed utterly absurd to me, but it also helped me regain my senses.
Hours had already passed, and the cockroach still didn't seem ready to look for water; my patience was already at its limit.
"Goddamn it, what am I doing? Why am I following a fucking cockroach?"
I was already on edge from this situation; I didn't have enough patience left.
I got up from the floor in a rage, fists clenched, heading toward the exit.
When I reached the cell of that beast, I interrupted its sleep by delicately kicking open its door.
I didn't know what to say next. Well, the anthropomorphic bipedal beast that terrified me just to look at had turned into a young adult about 80 centimeters tall, with brown hair covering his eyes.
"Is it really him? I mean, there were only two of us, right?"
He woke up, as if this whole situation didn't bother him in the slightest.
"Oh, you're back. What brought you here this time?"
He said, scratching his back, revealing a physique that was undeniably beautiful.
You couldn't even imagine how jealous I was. While I had to survive on insects and spent my days chasing a cockroach to find water, he was eating and sleeping without a care in the world.
"I'm leaving here. I can't find any water, and I don't have any more insects to eat. Are you coming with me?"
"Well, I don't have any meat left to eat either. Just let me get ready."
The beast walked over to the three lifeless bodies—those three children who no longer responded.
"You —I gasped—, …you killed them?"