Novice Reincarnator

A furious roar interrupted my skill proficiency grind. The world shook and trees fell left and right as the suspected boss of the dungeon, the Six-tailed Red Fox, moved through the dungeon.

Cold terror sent my heart racing. There was nothing I could do but curl up into a ball and activate my concealment skills at full strength. If I was the victim of the Six-tailed Red Fox’s ire, then there was no choice for me but to die.

The sound of falling trees faded as the boss monster traveled further away from me. Evidently, today was not my final day. I let out the breath I was holding.

I was safe for the moment, but this turn of events cemented the idea that I couldn’t stay in the Six-tailed Red Fox’s territory. All it would take was for another monster to trespass somewhere near me and I would be dead. I held no illusions that my concealment skills would be able to hold up to the boss’ close scrutiny.

“If the boss roared over there, then heading in the opposite direction of the roar should take me out of the boss’ territory.”

I muttered in an attempt to convince myself to move. Both staying and leaving were incredibly risky. The phantom, burning sensation from the scars on my torso eventually convinced me of the necessity of leaving.

I activated [Presence Concealment] at full strength and used [Disguise] to make what little of my presence that remained appear as a tree. Natural predators with keen senses were used to filtering out the presence of plants and trees while they searched for their next meal.

I rose to my feet and hugged my fluffy tail to my chest. It was like I had returned to the time I locked myself in my room as Ash. Ash had reached out to the front door of her apartment several times, but it was taking that first step that was the hardest.

“Cecilia… Byleth…”

I muttered the names of my close ones. Unlike Ash, I had people waiting for my return. I would fight tooth and nail to see them again. My hesitation fell away and I took the first step.

The fox ears on top of my head flicked left and right in search of danger as I carefully traveled through the forest. I was walking on thin ice. At any moment, the ice could crack and plunge me straight into an early grave.

Signs of life gradually returned to the forest as I distanced myself from the Six-tailed Red Fox’s territory. My feet stopped in their tracks the moment I heard the sounds of insects and small critters.

It was unfortunate, but I was on the same level of the food chain as them. If it was safe enough for these little guys, then it was safe enough for me too. In addition, remaining relatively close to the Six-tailed Red Fox’s territory had its own perks.

I could always try my luck and escape into the boss’ territory if I encountered danger. My eyes darted around the area, looking for any place I might take shelter.

According to the explorer’s handbook, existing caves or burrows were most likely occupied. One of the recommended practices was to defeat a monster and claim its home. Monsters in forests tended to be rather territorial, meaning it wasn’t likely for anyone to trespass into another monster’s home.

Unfortunately, I held no illusions about my prowess. Entering a monster’s home was the same as delivering a free meal to that monster. At level 1, I was simply too weak to fight off a monster on my own.

All of the good homes were occupied, meaning I had to find a more unconventional one. Luckily, one of my classes at the academy had covered this. The best way to hide my presence was to mask it with the strong presence of something else.

This forest was full of giant trees that had lived for hundreds or thousands of years. Despite being rather old, these trees were still full of life. I wandered around the area and eventually settled on a massive tree that had a small gap in its huge, exposed roots.

The hole in the network of roots was too small for me to squeeze in, but that could certainly be remedied.

My eyes darted glanced around nervously and my ears searched for any sign of others. I felt naked out here, partially because I was naked and partially because I was utterly defenseless. If I wanted to survive, I needed to temporarily forget my life as a human and embrace my [Instinct] as a fox.

[Ki] gathered in my hands and I fell onto all fours. I abandoned my pride and burrowed into the ground with my hands.

The small hole underneath the massive tree grew bigger and bigger as my claws got to work. Thick roots impeded my digging, but my [Ki] was more than enough to cut through them and continue.

“Aroooo!”

A wolf howled in the distance. I froze like a deer in headlights. To my horror, several more howls followed the initial one. My heart raced in my chest. My eyes fell onto my half completed shelter while my ears listened to the howls that were closing in on my location.

My luck had run out. My digging did not go unnoticed. I was left with only two options, either desperately flee to the Six-tailed Red Fox’s territory and hope to escape them or finish my shelter and hide.

After a moment of hesitation, I furiously clawed at the small hole underneath the tree. There was no guarantee that the pack of wolves would let me go even if I crossed into the Six-tailed Red Fox’s territory.

Dirt flung left and right. I was caked from head to toe in it, but I didn’t care. The howls from the pack of wolves grew closer to me with every passing second. I squeezed into the hole underneath the tree the moment it was big enough for me to fit into it.

It was tight, cramped, and dark. I didn’t have the leisure to care. I immediately covered up the entrance with dirt, leaving only a small opening to allow for me to breathe.

My [Disguise] skill matched my presence to the tree and my [Presence Concealment] skill reduced my presence to an absolute minimum. I finished up not a moment too soon.

My ears picked up a burst of movement and moments later, I could even feel the vibrations of their movements. Tens of monsters had entered the range of my hearing. If I could hear them, then they could certainly hear me too.

I went very, very still. There was nothing I could do but hope they didn’t find me. Still, I was feeling rather optimistic. I had completed the first two objectives outlined in the explorer's handbook. I had concealed my presence and created my own shelter. All that was left was to wait for rescue.