Chapter 2 – Knowledge is Power

「Knowledge is power.」

It's one of the few things that stuck with me from grade school. I remember the exact moment. My teacher, Ms. Nagima—damn, she was hot. Way too hot for a teacher...

I slapped my cheeks sharply, pulling myself out of the memory. "Focus!" I muttered, the sharp sting bringing me back to reality as I trudged through the dark, crumbling stone hallway. The damp, moldy air clung to my skin like a shroud, and the flickering shadows cast by the cracks in the ceiling gave everything a haunted glow.

"Anyway!" I cleared my throat, still talking to myself. "The point is, the more you know, the more you grow. That's what the quote's supposed to mean, right?" I stared at the stones beneath my feet as they creaked with each step. "And I'm sure there's some hidden knowledge in this creepy-ass building somewhere. Maybe some forgotten blood magic? Like that weird stuff I saw back in the ritual room? Or maybe... something even better."

I let my mind wander as I moved forward, deeper into the ancient, decaying structure.

Eventually, I found myself in a massive chamber. The room had a strange layout—almost like a mix of ancient luxury and eerie ruin. In the center was what looked like an old, weathered bath, the stone edges cracked and worn with time. A hallway stretched out in front of me, leading deeper into the ruins. And to my left...

A balcony—or more like a cliff at this point, considering how degraded it was—overlooked something that made my heart skip a beat. Beyond the balcony was a vast temperate rainforest, stretching out as far as the eye could see, blanketed in hues of green and gold. The sight would've been peaceful, maybe even beautiful, if it weren't for the sharp drop below and the gnawing sense of danger everywhere.

I rubbed my eyes, disbelief washing over me as I stepped closer to the edge. The sky above was painted in shades of pink and orange, the sun dipping below the horizon, leaving the forest bathed in a haunting twilight glow.

「Wait, so… I'm on top of a mountain, in a decaying structure that apparently has monsters in it... and it's almost midnight?!」

I blinked, my eyes widening in realization. "I'M OUT OF HERE!"

I bolted.

Sprinting down the hallway, my footsteps echoed off the ancient walls as I raced back toward the only place I knew was safe. Back to that damn altar where I woke up. As I skidded into the room, panting, I spotted the familiar rat creature. The same one I had accidentally aged up through my little experiment earlier. It was lazily licking fresh blood that was still dripping from the altar—the same blood from when I had been lying there earlier, knife still lodged in me.

I stopped, glancing down at my chest, my hand instinctively going to the spot where the knife should've been.

"Wait... earlier? I never took it out..." I muttered. Sure enough, the ancient, rusted, black rock knife was still lodged in my chest, like a grotesque accessory.

"I almost completely forgot about this thing," I said flatly, staring at it with a blank expression. With a sudden, sharp yank, I pulled the knife out of my chest. The feeling wasn't as intense as I expected. The pain was there, but duller. Almost... numb compared to what it should have been. Even the bite from the rat earlier had hurt more.

As the golden light filtering through the cracked stone walls faded, replaced by the cold, silvery glow of moonlight, I decided it was best to stay put. This room, with the bloodline that seemed to keep the monsters at bay, was as safe as I was going to get. I curled up on the altar, knife in hand, feeling more pathetic than I ever had in my life.

"This is so embarrassing," I muttered, face pressed into my knees. "Everything about this situation is embarrassing. But hey, anything to live, right me?"

I let out a hollow laugh, my voice tinged with self-loathing. "I'm so pathetic..."

But strangely, despite the shame, the fear, and the overwhelming sense of hopelessness... I fell asleep. And it wasn't like my usual restless nights, tossing and turning for hours. No, this felt like I was being pulled into sleep, like I had suddenly teleported into the future. And honestly? I didn't mind. If it meant skipping the horrors of the night and waking up safely, then I'd take it.

I was awoken not by the blaring of an alarm clock but by the sounds of chaos. My eyes fluttered open to the sight of a pack of the horned rats, engaged in some kind of battle with oversized spiders in the corner of the room. The rats dodged and weaved through the webs that the spiders shot at them, while the spiders—each larger than my hand—attempted to skewer them with their razor-sharp legs.

"A gang war in my room? That's new," I muttered, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. I stretched, yawning as I watched the chaos unfold.

"Wait... those rats..." My eyes narrowed. "They don't look like the ones from before."

They weren't. I had familiarized myself with all the creatures in my room during my procrastination, and these rats? They were newcomers.

I sat up from the altar, my muscles feeling unusually... fresh. Like I'd just woken from the best sleep of my life. No soreness, no stiffness. Just... refreshed.

"Man," I said aloud, "That was probably the best sleep I've ever had. Eight full hours and no morning aches? I feel unstoppable!"

I stood up, feeling oddly energized. But then, something caught my eye.

There, leaning against the cracked stone wall, was a collapsed bookshelf.

"Wait... this is my room, right? How did I not notice that before?" I stared at the bookshelf for a moment, dumbfounded. But more importantly—"Books!"

My face lit up with uncharacteristic joy as I bounded over to the shelf, grinning like a kid in a candy store. I crouched down, bouncing slightly on my heels as I looked over the scattered books. But then, just as quickly, my excitement fizzled out.

"What am I doing?" I said to myself, suddenly serious. "Why am I even doing this at all?"

I stared at my hands. These small, unfamiliar hands. "I'm a grown 34-year-old man..."

But the words felt wrong, alien. It felt strange to say, like the past was slipping away from me. The more time I spent in this body, the more... disconnected I felt from my old life. Who was I even kidding anymore?

After a minute of silence, I shook the thought away and reached for one of the books on the shelf. I dusted it off and cracked it open, only to be greeted with... symbols.

"Why did I expect to actually read this?" I sighed aloud, feeling an overwhelming sense of disappointment. Still, I couldn't just leave them there. I grabbed the ones that seemed important—books with symbols of elements, nature, and anything else that might be useful. The rest? I left to rot.

With my newfound collection, I made my way down the hallway again, heading toward what I had dubbed the "mid-way point"—the area with the old bath and the cliff overlooking the forest.

It had been a month since then. A month of slow learning, deciphering the symbols in the books I had taken. Surprisingly, it wasn't that hard to pick up. Maybe it was the fresh brain of this child's body, mixed with my adult mentality. Or maybe it was just that the language itself was easy. Mostly symbols, after all.

I sat near the cliff now, flipping through one of the books, the worn pages made of something that looked like... leather. In my old life, I'd burn something like this. Creepy as hell, I thought, shaking my head. But now? It's my best friend.

After reading countless fairy tales and fables in this language, I had finally stumbled across something useful—my first real book.

I paused on a page that was surprisingly intact. It showed a detailed diagram of a body... a body disturbingly similar to my own. The fangs. The emphasis on the pupils. And parts of the diagram were circled with red ink, more recent than the book's creation. I stared at the words, sounding them out slowly, my tongue clumsy with pronunciation.

I was a ghoul.

The lowest form of undead.

"Injuries that would be deadly to humans..." I muttered, staring at the text. "I'd die slower. Wow, so special. I don't need to eat or drink, but I have to consume human flesh or I'll die instantly. I'm also weaker in sunlight..." I slapped the book shut, frustration bubbling inside me. "Come on!"

But still... it was something. A starting point. And maybe, just maybe...

I looked up at the sky, the silver light of the moon reflecting in my eyes.

"Maybe this is my start. My start to proving that bonehead wrong. To show that I can be special."

A smirk tugged at my lips as the weight of my new reality settled in. I knew what my goal was now. And I wasn't going to let this world—or that skull—decide my fate for me.