She laughed at my boldness, but it was better than getting slapped.” You are honest. I like that.” She offered a bright smile in response.

  “Hey, I appreciate you not stabbing me in the back. I might have found it depressing to make this far and then get taken out.” I gave her a playful wink as I held out my hand. “Lucky.”

  “Yes, you are.”

  It was my turn to laugh, “ No... Well, yes, but my name is Lucky.”

  “I am Selene. Nice to meet you, Lucky.” She took my hand, and I thought for sure she was about to crush it. I must be luckier than I thought, for she was definitely much more powerful than I was. “ You look like a Midnight Elf, but you don't carry yourself as one. What are you? It's why I've been following you. I don't like mysteries. Especially when it is of one of the more dangerous and rare races in the multiverse.”

  I thought for a moment. I could lie, but really, would I get anything out of it aside from distrust? This was one of those situations where lying would not work in my favour.

  “ A few hours ago, I was still Human. “

  She was quiet for a moment “ That makes sense. You don't quite move like a Midnight Elf, not yet, at least. It doesn't quite smell like one either. Your System seems to favour you, though, with your option of race. “

  I guess Ari was right, perhaps not all demons wanted to kill me right away. Then again, maybe she enjoyed playing with her food first. Maybe I would get lucky. Hehe, and I get to at least die with a smile on my face. It would be one hell of a way to go.

  “Don't worry, Lucky, I have no desire to kill you. I am more intrigued to see if you survive. Each hour that passes, things will get harder for everything and everyone in this shard. “

  She spoke with such confidence. In that moment, I felt like she was way out of my league.

  “I do appreciate that. Right now i may not stand a chance against you, but I can do my best to keep you intrigued.” Giving a light laugh, she nodded to my statement. For some reason, her nodding gave me an uneasy feeling.

  “You must really have luck on your side. “ Her eyes danced around, checking out the streaming drones. “On a fresh shard, and you already have a contract with the number one streaming service in the multiverse. That is truly impressive.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  A tidbit of info I didn't know. “ Yeah, guess they wanted a jump on the first human in the shard, “ shrugging as a carefree gesture, as I did not really understand it all, but I'm sure it made good business.

  “As much as I would love to stand here and converse with you, I have a rival to hunt. I do hope to see you survive. You are cute. “ She flashed a flirty smile at me before she headed into the forest. I guess her curiosity had been sated. Personally, I am glad I wasn't on the ground choking on my own blood. Not ready for that one yet.

  Something told me this would not be the last time I got to watch that tight ass clad in leather sway as she walked away. With a smile, I returned my attention to the open grassy meadow. I really didn't feel like wasting time on the long way around.

  “Fuck it”

  I passed through the corpse of trees and brush, trying to keep as low a profile as possible. I made my way towards the river at a slow, careful pace. There was taking chances, then being fucking stupid.

  I was still amazed by how well my body moved. Every muscle had a purpose, and the feeling of such total control. Selene was probably right. I had a lot of work to do to get used to this body. I didn't feel like I was anywhere close to tapping its potential, and I felt so fucking clumsy at times.

  Yet when I concentrated, I truly felt like a hunter. This body was gliding through the tall grass, and I don't think I even broke one blade of grass. The only thing I heard was the soft sounds of my tensed breathing. My eyes are constantly looking for the slightest movement. My pointed ears are picking up the sounds of bugs, small critters, and the sound of the wind moving around me. It was freaky and unsettling to a mind not used to such a high level of detail,

  Then I caught it. It wasn't loud, but loud enough. I felt a sense of dread. The sound was a low, deep growl off to the left. I froze.

  Trying to figure out what was out there, I saw the grass move. It wasn't from a breeze. Another low growl sounded again as a section of the grass moved. Whatever was out there was heading right towards me. How? I wasn't making a sound.

  Wait. I realized I was looking at it wrong. It was my scent. The wind was blowing towards the sounds of the growls. I didn't even think of that. Fuck my life. I had so much to fucking learn. Perhaps this was a time when learning on the job was best.

  Quietly, I pulled the Colt from its holster and activated [Have a Bad Day]. Growling in my book was not a good sign of things to come, and my gut told me whatever was making that sound wasn't one of those panthers.

  Carefully, I pulled the hammer back. Slow, quiet steps backwards, feeling extremely exposed at this moment. I did not like this feeling. Sighting the first creature [Demonic Puppy Hound] Rank 2.

  “That is not a fucking puppy.” I watched as it came into view. It stood on all fours, close to four feet high. It had this black oily skin with powerful muscles rippling under it as it slowly walked into view. A large head, its ears perked on alert as it showed me its rows of dagger-like teeth.

  “Nope, you are not a fucking puppy.” Its paws alone had to be bigger than the size of my own hands. If nightmares had a face, this thing definitely was a contender. I watched the drool drip from its maw and sizzled when it hit the grass.

  “Fuck not good. Not fucking good.” Yeah, I would rather face twenty of those panthers than one of these things. Then two more broke out behind it, one going to the left, the other to the right.

  “Ohh, goodie fucking pack mentality. I am about to be the fucking rabbit.” Not a good position to be in.

  “Lady Luck. I hope you got my back; otherwise, it has been great working with you.”