Something else.
I slowed immediately, my grip tightening
I moved carefully, lowering my steps as I approached the source. The smoke became thicker, the smell stronger.
Then—
I saw it.
A small clearing.
Blackened ground.
Ashes.
The remains of a fire.
But no one was there.
"…Too late."
I looked around cautiously.
No movement.
No voices.
Nothing.
Only the crackling sound of dying embers.
Someone had been here recently.
Very recently.
The realization settled heavily in my chest.
I wasn't alone.
The thought should've felt comforting.
Instead—
It made me more careful.
I stepped closer slowly.
The fire pit was rough, messy. Stones arranged unevenly around burned wood.
Human.
Definitely human.
Then my eyes caught something near the edge of the clearing.
A leg.
Small.
Greenish-gray skin.
Bent unnaturally.
"…A goblin?"
The word slipped out before I could stop it.
Because that's exactly what it looked like.
Short body.
Sharp claws.
Large ears.
Like something straight out of a fantasy game.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
A faint screen appeared.
[Entity Identified]
[Goblin – Low-Level Monster]
"…Right. Of course it is."
At this point, I probably shouldn't have been surprised anymore.
Still—
Seeing the name made it feel strangely real.
Not "creature."
Not "monster."
Goblin.
Like this world already had rules I didn't understand.
I crouched near it carefully.
The leg had been separated cleanly, probably during a fight.
The rest of the body wasn't nearby.
Which meant either someone killed it and left—
Or something else interrupted.
Neither thought was comforting.
I stared at the goblin leg for a moment longer.
Then—
A message flickered briefly in my mind.
[Consumable Material Detected]
"…Consumable?"
I blinked.
My gaze slowly returned to the leg.
"No."
The answer came immediately.
Absolutely not.
I had eaten those wolf-like things because I had no choice.
But this?
This felt different.
Too human.
Too close.
"…No way."
I stood up immediately, taking a step back.
The system stayed silent.
Like it didn't care either way.
I rubbed my face tiredly.
"…I'm talking to a system now. Great."
A dry laugh escaped me.
It faded quickly.
My eyes drifted back toward the goblin leg again.
Consumable Material.
The words repeated in my head.
"…What does that even mean?"
Healing?
Strength?
Another skill?
I frowned.
The system never explained anything properly.
It just threw information at me and expected me to survive.
"…Annoying."
I looked around the clearing again.
No bodies.
No blood trails.
No bags.
Nothing useful.
Just ashes.
And the goblin leg.
My stomach tightened slightly.
Not from hunger this time.
Curiosity.
Which honestly felt worse.
"…This is how bad decisions start."
I muttered quietly.
Then paused.
"…But good decisions haven't exactly worked out either."
That was the problem.
Normal logic didn't apply here anymore.
This place rewarded strange things.
Fighting.
Eating monsters.
Adaptation.
Skills.
If the system marked something—
It probably mattered.
Even if I hated it.
I crouched again slowly.
"…I'm not eating this."
The thought alone made me uncomfortable.
But burning it—
Maybe that would do something.
Maybe not.
Still—
It felt safer than testing whatever "consumable" meant.
I gathered dry branches quietly, building a small fire like before.
This time, it was easier.
I held out my hand.
Focused.
A faint warmth spread through my palm.
Then—
A spark.
Small flames caught onto the dry leaves.
"…Still works."
A little relief slipped into my voice.
The fire grew slowly.
Not large.
But enough.
I stared at the goblin leg for another second.
"…This is weird."
Then tossed it into the flames.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
The fire crackled softly, orange light flickering against the trees.
Then—
The flames changed.
They burned brighter suddenly, shifting slightly in color.
Not red.
Almost blue.
I froze.
"…What?"
A strange heat spread outward from the fire, warmer than before but not painful.
The goblin leg blackened quickly, burning faster than it should have.
Then—
A message appeared.
[Foreign Energy Detected]
[Absorption Available]
"…Absorption?"
The heat intensified.
Not around me.
Inside me.
I staggered slightly, grabbing the nearest tree.
"What the hell—"
The warmth spread through my chest, then my arms, then deeper.
Not painful.
But overwhelming.
Like my body was suddenly too awake.
The fire dimmed again.
The goblin leg was gone.
Completely reduced to ash.
A final message appeared.
[Minor Fire Affinity Acquired]
[Ignition Skill Efficiency Increased]
I stared at the screen silently.
"…You're serious."
A nervous laugh escaped me.
Then another.
Not because it was funny.
Because this entire situation felt insane.
I looked down at my hand slowly.
Focused.
A flame appeared again.
But this time—
It was steadier.
Smoother.
The small fire danced across my fingers without flickering wildly.
"…Okay."
I swallowed slowly.
"That's… useful."
The warmth faded gradually, leaving behind a strange sense of lightness.
Not stronger exactly.
But different.
Like something inside me had shifted slightly.
I sat near the dying fire quietly, staring into the ashes.
My thoughts felt louder here.
Back then—
A normal day meant school.
Phones.
Noise.
People complaining about homework.
Now I was sitting in a forest, gaining powers from burning goblin legs.
"…Mom would actually faint if she saw this."
The image appeared in my head so suddenly that I laughed quietly.
A real laugh this time.
Short.
Tired.
But real.
Then silence returned again.
The fire cracked softly.
The forest watched.
And somewhere out there—
Other people were surviving too.
Or trying to.
I looked toward the dark trees beyond the clearing.
"…So someone was here."
That mattered.
More than the skill.
More than the goblin.
Because it meant this place wasn't empty.
And if someone survived long enough to make fire—
Then maybe there was more ahead than just monsters.
Maybe.
I stood slowly, brushing ash from my hands.
The small flame flickered once more in my palm before fading away.
Then I looked deeper into the forest.
"…Guess I'll keep moving."
And this time—
The darkness ahead didn't feel quite as endless as before.