Chapter 5: The Snake

Twice in one week. That had to be some kind of record.

The ogre’s iron grip tightened around my throat, its rancid breath washing over my face like a gust of concentrated death.

Not that I had enough air to actually choke on the smell, but if I did, I probably would’ve passed out from that alone.

My hands twitched as I desperately clawed at the massive fingers crushing my neck, but there was nothing left in me to fight with.

My Regeneration kicked in, frantically trying to patch my body back together, yet it simply wasn’t enough.

Not against a monster like this.

My vision began to blur as darkness crept in from the edges, my chest burned with every futile attempt to breathe, and I could feel my body growing weaker by the second.

I was slipping.

Then, through the haze...I heard shouting.

It was faint at first, little more than a distant sound, but it quickly grew louder until I could make out a human voice.

The ogre heard it too.

It flinched, its attention wavering for the briefest instant, and the hand crushing my throat loosened just enough for me to suck in a ragged, wheezing breath.

Blessed oxygen flooded my lungs, but before I could even process the relief, my world suddenly went weightless.

The monster hurled me away like a sack of garbage.

I hit the ground with a sickening crack, pain exploding through my entire body as I bounced across the earth and rolled several times before finally coming to a stop like a discarded ragdoll.

The brutal impact snapped me fully back to reality, every nerve screaming in agony as the full extent of my injuries crashed down on me.

I wheezed, struggling to pull air back into my lungs, but forced my eyes open to see what was happening.

A group of humans stood at the tree line with their weapons drawn and ready, and it didn’t take long to realize why the ogre had thrown me aside.

Its attention had shifted entirely to them. I was no longer its priority.

Thank the gods.

One of the humans—a swordsman—held a gleaming blade, the edge catching what little light filtered through the canopy.

Beside him, an archer nocked an arrow with practiced precision, his gaze locked onto the beast.

The third, a shield-bearer, planted his stance, gripping his massive shield like an immovable wall.

For a brief moment, the ogre simply stood there, huffing as its tiny, rage-clouded mind struggled to make sense of the sudden intrusion before reaching the only conclusion it was capable of: more enemies, more things to smash.

Its lips peeled back into a vicious snarl that rumbled through the air like distant thunder, then it threw back its head and unleashed a deafening roar that sent birds exploding from the treetops and made the very marrow in my bones tremble.

Without another moment’s hesitation, it lowered its massive shoulders and charged.

The swordsman moved first, lunging forward with startling speed as his blade flashed through the air before carving a deep gash across the ogre’s knee.

The beast staggered, its enormous body lurching to one side, but it refused to fall.

Instead, it answered with a furious swing of its club, only for the swordsman to roll clear just before the weapon crashed into the ground.

The archer released his shot at the same moment.

A sharp twang echoed through the forest, followed by a sickening thud as the arrow buried itself deep into the ogre’s shoulder.

The monster threw back its head and let out a guttural, rage-filled howl that rattled my skull.

Rather than slowing it down, the pain only seemed to drive it deeper into a frenzy.

Its massive club tore through the air in a wild, sweeping arc, splintering branches and ripping up the earth wherever it passed.

I didn’t wait to see what—or who—it hit next.

Pain or no pain, this was my chance to escape.

Sticking around meant one of two things: either I’d end up as an ogre pancake, or I’d become the humans’ next target.

Neither sounded particularly fun, so I forced my battered body upright despite my legs wobbling beneath me.

My lungs burned, my ribs screamed in protest, but survival overruled pain.

I ran.

At first, it was less of a run and more of a drunken stagger, like a goblin stumbling home after a bad night, but instinct quickly took over, and before long I was sprinting through the trees.

The deeper I pushed into the forest, the darker it became, with thick branches clawing at my body and gnarled roots reaching out as though eager to send me face-first into the dirt.

It felt alive, constantly shifting around me like a living thing, turning every direction into another dead end in a maze with no obvious escape.

My vision gradually blurred, my limbs grew heavier with every step until they felt like they were made of lead, and each breath burned more than the last.

And worst of all...

The hunger.

A deep, gnawing emptiness coiled in my gut, growing stronger with each passing second.

Regeneration had burned through my energy reserves, and now my body was demanding fuel—fuel I didn’t have.

My stomach growled, the sound deep and feral, less a simple complaint and more a threat from my own body.

I had no idea how long I’d been running.

Minutes? Hours? Time had long since lost all meaning when my body was half-dead and surviving on nothing but instinct.

All I knew was that I needed food, and I needed it now.

Almost as though the universe had decided to mock my desperation, the grass ahead suddenly rustled.

I froze.

Every instinct I possessed roared to life as my heart hammered against my ribs.

My gaze swept across the undergrowth while my ears strained to catch even the faintest sound.

Then I saw it.

A snake.

It lay coiled low before gliding silently through the underbrush, its sleek, scaled body weaving between the grass, completely unaware that I was watching.

The system screen flashed.

[Venomous Snake Level 2] ~

"One bite, and you’ll have no time to regret your life choices."

I swallowed hard, ignoring the warning beneath it as a single thought escaped my lips.

"Meat."

It wasn’t much, but right now, it was everything.

The snake wasn’t massive, though it stretched at least six feet from head to tail, a coil of muscle and pure instinct.

Its dark green scales shimmered faintly, blending almost perfectly with the underbrush, while its head slowly lifted and its tongue flicked through the air, tasting my scent.

I swallowed hard again.

And then, despite everything, I salivated.

This wasn’t my first choice for a meal, but right now, food was food.

I took a cautious step forward, and the snake answered with a sharp hiss, its body tensing as if to warn me that another inch closer would earn me a bite.

I intended to bite as well.

Slowly, I extended my hand toward its neck, inch by inch, careful not to make any sudden movements. If I could just grab it before it lunged—

HISS!

The snake exploded forward in a blur of green and flashing fangs.

A sharp stab of pain shot through my forearm as two needlelike fangs buried themselves deep into my flesh.