The forest stopped feeling like a forest the moment that howl cut through it.
Not because it was loud.Not because it sounded close.But because every spirit within earshot — from glowing moths to drifting wisps — instantly scattered like someone flipped a switch.
If the things made of light were running?
Yeah. That never meant anything good.
I tightened my grip on the branch-sized spear Kira shoved at me earlier.It wobbled in my hands.My wrists weren't built for this.
"So," I muttered under my breath, "first night here, and I'm already someone's dinner. Perfect."
The bushes ahead rustled — not gently, not naturally.Something big was moving, and it wasn't trying to hide.Twigs snapped. Leaves shuddered. The faint glow from scattered spirits pulled back even farther.
Kira sprinted ahead without hesitation, her steps light, her breath steady.Meanwhile, I was busy not tripping over every root in existence.
"Kira!" I hissed."Slow down!"
She didn't.Instead, she turned her head just enough to glare at me.
"Slowing down means we die. Keep up."
Easy for someone who probably grew up leaping through trees like a glow-powered ninja.
I forced my legs to pick up speed, lungs burning, feet screaming.But the adrenaline hit kept me moving, because behind us — that thing was getting closer.
And louder.
A heavy exhale, almost like a bull snorting.
Great.
A magical forest bull or something was about to murder me on my first day.
We broke into the clearing.
The air shifted the moment we stepped inside, like passing through a thin sheet of cold.The glowing grass dimmed.The shimmering pollen fell flat against the ground.
Magic didn't disappear — but something in here was eating it.
Kira skid to a stop.I nearly crashed into her back.
"What is thi—"
Then I saw it.
A beast stepped out of the treeline.
Wolf-shaped.Bear-sized.Fur black like ink but dripping with thin, glowing cracks that pulsed with sickly yellow light.
Its eyes weren't eyes — they were hollow pits burning with gold fire.
Every breath it took distorted the air around its snout, pulling the forest's glow toward its mouth like invisible threads.
A spirit-eater.
A predator of light.
And it was staring right at us.
"…So that's our problem," I whispered, hoping the sarcasm would keep my heart from exploding.
Kira didn't answer.She lowered her stance, eyes ice-cold.
"Jaemin. Don't run."
"Why would I run? I love death. Big fan."
"Jaemin—"
"I tattoo 'kill me' on my—"
"JAEMIN."
I shut up.
She raised her own spear — made from an actual carved bone, not my pathetic stick.
The monster lowered itself.
Then—
It charged.
I didn't have time to think.
It crossed the clearing in a blink.
Kira dodged left.I dodged nowhere.
Its shoulder slammed into my stomach like a train.I flew sideways, crashed onto the grass, and rolled until my ribs begged for a new owner.
Stars popped in my eyes.Air refused to return to my lungs.
"K-Kira—!" I managed to croak.
But she was already in motion.
Spinning around its legs, stabbing at its side.Her spear hit — but barely penetrated, just glancing off a hardened patch of glowing bone beneath the fur.
The monster roared and snapped its jaws toward her.
She jumped back, nimble and sharp.
I was… not nimble.And definitely not sharp.
But I had one advantage:
Pain made me angry.Anger made me stupid.Stupidity made me brave.
And apparently, bravery made me suicidal.
I shoved myself up, grabbed the spear, and dashed toward the beast from behind.
"HEY! BLACK CHEETO PUFF!"
It turned.
I immediately regretted everything.
Its jaw unhinged wider, glowing cracks spreading across its face.
Kira's eyes went wide.
"JAE—MIN—RUN!"
Too late.
The beast lunged.
My spear stabbed forward.
Not because I planned it well — but because I basically tripped and thrust it out to catch my fall.
The monster's chest rammed straight into the sharpened tip.
The wooden shaft bent, cracked…But the point sank in.
Just a little.Barely an inch.
But the beast stumbled.
It didn't expect resistance from someone like me.
Neither did I.
It roared in frustration — and that was all Kira needed.
She vaulted upward, twisted in midair, and brought her bone spear down into the glowing crack along its neck.
A wet crunch.A burst of golden vapor.
The beast staggered, light leaking out of it like steam.
Kira landed behind it, rolled, and sprang into another stance.
The monster swayed.
Growled.
Tried to stand.
Failed.
Collapsed.
The ground absorbed its glowing essence like spilled ink sucked into a sponge.
And just like that…Silence returned.
Except for my heavy, embarrassing, absolutely pathetic wheezing.
I dropped onto my butt, holding my ribs.
"Does… does that count as my first kill?" I asked between coughs.
Kira wiped her forehead, glaring at me.
"You stabbed it by accident."
"Still counts."
"Jaemin, you tripped into a monster."
"…Still counts."
She sighed so hard her soul almost left her body.
"Don't move. I need to check your injuries."
She knelt beside me.
Her hands hovered over my ribs, warm but not touching.A faint green shimmer covered her palms.
Ah.
Spirit-healer stuff.
Her expression tightened.
"Bruised, not broken. You'll live."
"Good news. Wasn't planning to die again this week."
She didn't smile, but her eyes softened.
Just a little.
"You were scared."
"Yeah? I'm allowed to be scared. That thing looked like it eats people for breakfast."
"It does."
"…Great."
She sat beside me, gaze on the drained soil where the beast vanished.
"Spirit-eaters shouldn't be this close. Not unless something is disturbing the deeper woods."
"That's… bad, right?"
"It's worse than bad."She stood again, spear in hand."We need to warn Lumina Village."
"Village? There's a village?" I perked up.
"Yes. And you're meeting the Elder."Her tone tightened."He will want to know who you are… and why you appeared in a forbidden zone."
I blinked."Uh. Is 'I fell from a train' a valid explanation?"
"…No."
We started walking.
She slowed her pace for me — which I appreciated more than she'd ever know.
My ribs ached, my knees shook, and every shadow in the forest looked like it wanted to eat me.
But there was something else too.
Something new.
As we walked, the glowing patches of spirit-light drifted toward me.Floating leaves.Firefly-sized orbs.Little wisp-creatures.
They circled around me for a moment…Then gently touched my arm, like greeting an old friend.
Kira noticed.
Her steps halted.
"…That's not normal," she whispered.
"Oh. Cool," I said weakly."Love being abnormal."
"Jaemin."She turned fully toward me, face serious."Spirits only behave like that around one kind of person."
"Let me guess. Someone doomed?"
"Worse," she said.
"…Worse than doomed?"
She swallowed.
"A Voyager."
The glowing spirits spun once more around me — then soared upward, disappearing into the canopy like shooting stars.
I stared at my hands.
"…What the hell is a Voyager?"
Kira didn't answer right away.
Instead, she turned toward the faint path ahead — her voice quiet, almost fearful.
"Someone who doesn't belong to any world…but keeps returning to all of them."
My stomach dropped.
Not because I understood.
But because she said it like a prophecy.
And her eyes said she believed every word.
I guess my reincarnation problem wasn't just my problem.
Not anymore.