The First Transmigrat

[Day 900]

I feel fresh.

No longer bound—not physically, but mentally. Something has shifted inside me, like a weight finally removed. Not one I could see or touch, but something heavier. Invisible chains that I had grown so used to, I forgot they were there.

Now they're gone.

I woke up before the sun rose, sharper than I'd ever felt. My breaths were deeper. My thoughts—clear. The fog that clung to me since I arrived in this world was gone.

I wasn't in a cage anymore.

I opened the floating panel again—Transmigration Group Chat—and typed the usual.

Still alive.

Just those two words. Then I closed the panel and walked away.

The stars were still fading from the sky, and for the first time in a long time, I didn't feel alone. I didn't feel afraid. I felt like something was finally beginning.

[Day 904]

Still no response.

Still no change on the panel.

Nothing happened.

But something inside me felt like it was about to. It wasn't dread. It wasn't anxiety. It was a kind of alertness—a readiness that hadn't been there before.

If this had happened earlier, I might've shrugged it off. But now… I've changed. My instincts are sharper. The smallest shift in the wind makes me stop and scan the horizon.

Training helped.

I can speak fluently now, write without fumbling. Even my thoughts flow faster, clearer.

But something else was bothering me today.

Aldric.

He still hadn't returned.

I had let him go for just a moment. Just a walk near the stream to gather herbs. And now… he was gone.

At first, I thought he was just slow. He was weak. Cautious. Always careful. I thought maybe he lost track of time.

But now—there was nothing. No footprints. No trail. No sound.

It was like he vanished into thin air.

I grabbed my spare spears and rushed into the forest. The underbrush parted easily beneath my feet as I moved like a shadow. I searched every possible route he might've taken.

Nothing.

I kept circling back, checking again and again. Leaves undisturbed. No broken branches. Even the nearby beasts seemed more restless.

It was too clean.

Too quiet.

I clenched my fists. I was careless. I assumed he was safe because he had no powers. Because I was near. Because I was strong.

But strength means nothing if I can't protect those around me.

I went back to our camp and checked all my supplies. Nothing was taken. My food was untouched. Weapons still in place. The gear he used—still here.

Who disappears without taking anything?

And then it hit me.

Aldric had mentioned a group of four travelers he met once. Outsiders like us. He'd talked about them briefly, said they passed through the southern region a few weeks back.

Could they be involved?

If so, where were they now?

I sat down, closed my eyes, and forced myself to breathe. My thoughts were spiraling.

Calm down.

Panic won't help.

In my current state, only one creature in the entire region posed a threat to me: the Lightning Wolf. Everything else was manageable. Survivable.

Still, I couldn't shake the feeling.

I waited a full day. Just in case. Just in hope.

But no signs. No footprints. No return.

So I packed my gear, slung my weapons over my back, and headed south.

The terrain changed as I moved. Denser trees, mossy roots, strange bird calls echoing across the canopy. The sun here felt heavier somehow, like the air itself was thicker.

That's when I saw it.

A barricade.

Wooden stakes forming a perimeter. A watchtower built from rough logs, manned by a lone figure with a makeshift crossbow. It wasn't much—primitive, even—but it was a sign of structure. Of organization.

A base.

I didn't wait.

I walked straight in.

The alarm was instant—yelling, movement, panic. People scrambled like ants, shouting warnings and rushing to arms.

I didn't attack anyone. I didn't even draw my weapon. But the moment they saw me, they froze like statues.

I must have looked like a monster.

Their eyes weren't just afraid. They were terrified.

No one fired a shot.

And even if they had, it wouldn't have mattered.

I stood in the center of their base, took a deep breath, and shouted:

"Bring me your leader!"

The noise stopped.

People exchanged glances, wide-eyed and trembling.

Then he came.

An old man, short and stocky, with a grizzled beard and sun-scarred skin. His eyes were wary but not hostile. He walked with a limp, but his posture was firm.

He bowed slightly.

"Sir… it must have been exhausting to come all this way. Please, come inside. We don't have much, but whatever we have is yours."

I followed him in.

A small hut—wooden walls, simple table, a few chairs. He gestured for me to sit, then stood across from me, hands respectfully behind his back.

I got straight to the point.

"Tell me everything you know about this place. About yourselves. About your enemies. Everything."

He didn't hesitate.

Same story as before—they came from another world. Another ruined place. Not all from the same timeline or planet, but each from apocalyptic worlds on the brink of collapse. War. Disease. Famine. Some were soldiers. Others refugees. Some criminals. Others scholars.

I listened carefully.

Then he mentioned something new.

"The northern base," he said, "was attacked recently. A giant wolf. Most of their group didn't survive. The few who did fled south and took shelter here."

Lightning Wolf. It had to be.

He continued, talking about the dangers of the forest. The beasts they'd cataloged. A massive black bear with bones for claws. A python that could crush trees. A crocodile that swam through mud like water.

He said the forest seemed endless.

No cities. No towns. No humans. Just people like us—transmigrators, scattered across the landscape.

"No native humans?" I asked.

He nodded.

"None. At least… none we've ever seen. Only monsters. Demons. And… well, us."

I narrowed my eyes.

"Any humans stand out to you? Strange? Unusual?"

He hesitated.

Then answered slowly.

"A few, perhaps. They're your age. Different. Dyed hair. Tattoos. Quiet types. We don't ask much. They keep to themselves."

"Bring them here," I ordered.

He sent someone out.

They came in after a while—three young men and a girl, all around my age. Piercings. Strange marks. One had his hair dyed neon green.

I studied them.

Nothing unusual. No strange auras. No flickers of hidden power.

Just kids.

One of them smirked at me. The others avoided my gaze.

A waste of time.

I dismissed them.

The old man stood the entire time. I never asked him to, but he did. I remained seated.

Power plays itself out in silence, not volume.

I stood, finally, and said:

"If you hear anything—anything—about someone named Aldric, contact me."

He nodded vigorously.

"Of course. We'll keep watch."

I left the base not long after.

As I walked back into the wilderness, the silence returned.

Something is wrong.

Aldric's disappearance isn't random. Someone took him. Or something did. But why now? Why not before?

And why leave everything else untouched?

I feel it again.

That strange pressure in the air.

Like the world is holding its breath.

And I'm starting to think… this is only the beginning.