Out from the Darkness.

As Carous regained consciousness at the edge of the forest he had been trapped in, the first thing he noticed wasn't where he had woken up or the path he needed to take to leave this realm. Instead, it was the unbearable stench clinging to his body.

Urine, feces, dirt, sweat, rotten leaves, and spoiled fruit covered him from head to toe, the filth caked into his skin and clothes. Without thinking, he sniffed his shoulder.

Sniff. Sniff.

He paused. A second later, his stomach churned, and he doubled over, vomiting onto the ground.

"Ugh! Bwaaah! Gross! Why did I do that?!" he groaned, gagging between breaths.

After what felt like minutes of retching, he clutched the amber necklace hanging around his neck and raised it above his head. A faint glow pulsed from within the stone as water trickled out, cascading over his body. Though it washed away some of the grime, he quickly stopped the flow, knowing he couldn't afford to waste too much.

Taking a deep breath, he turned to face the forest. It looked just as it had from the inside—pure, impenetrable darkness. No sign of light, no hint of life beyond the countless unseen eyes that had watched his every move. A shiver crawled up his spine as an ominous sensation crept over him. His fingers tightened around his cape, gripping the handbag at his hip. Then, without a second thought, he ran.

As he sprinted away from the oppressive shadows, his surroundings finally came into focus. Unlike the forest, which had been nothing but endless blackness, an open plain stretched before him. Rolling fields of grass swayed in the wind, stretching as far as his eyes could see.

Slowing his steps, Carous tilted his head back to look at the sky. A brilliant, cloudless blue stretched endlessly above him. It was nothing like the suffocating darkness he had grown used to, where he had been forced to keep his gaze low, avoiding the horrors lurking within the trees.

For the first time in what felt like forever, he allowed himself to breathe—free from anything that threatened him.

As he continued running, his breath came in heavy gasps. He pushed himself forward until his legs could carry him no more. Then, in the distance, he spotted something: a small stream, its water running clear and inviting.

Without a second thought, Carous sprinted toward it and leaped in, crashing into the cool water. The impact stung as he hit the surface stomach-first.

"Owwww! That hurt a bit!" he groaned, rubbing his sore belly. But then, as the water washed over him, a wide grin spread across his face.

"But it feels so good!" he shouted, laughing.

It had been so long since he had felt this free. The last time he could truly relax was when Mr. Frog had been taking care of him. Though it was only a single day when the frog was taking care of him.

Carous dunked his head beneath the water, blowing air through his nose and watching as tiny bubbles popped against his face.

After a few moments of playing in the water, he stripped off his filthy clothes, leaving only his underpants on. Carefully, he took his handbag and placed it near the edge of the stream before emptying its contents onto the grass. As he inspected his belongings, his eyes widened in frustration.

"Shit!" he cursed, holding up a cracked jar. A large fissure ran across its surface, rendering it useless.

"When did this happen?" he muttered, racking his brain for an answer.

His mind rewound to earlier events.

"I filled one jar with water when I first discovered the necklace's ability… but I left another hanging outside my bag while keeping the rest inside, along with the berries."

His frown deepened. "Did it crack when I jumped into the water? No… maybe when I was running through the forest after spotting the light."

With a deep sigh, he placed the broken jar aside, making sure it was away from him to ensure that he would not step on it by accident.

"Damn it. Now I only have two jars left. To think I started with six."

After taking a moment to accept his loss, he continued checking his belongings, laying them neatly on the ground.

"Let's see… a spare set of clothes, my pan, a bowl, a spoon… and my four pairs of underpants. That's it, huh?"

He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. "Man… I'm so broke."

---

After cleaning himself up completely and gaining a little confidence, he decided to follow the water stream and found a tiny pond about the size of 2x4 meters. He saw multiple fish in it and decided to catch one for himself to eat. As he ran back to the area he had been in before, he suddenly saw his cape's abilities activating on their own, making him scream.

"Ohhhhhh!"

He screamed louder than he ever had, seeing as the cape he wore started to clean itself of the filth it had accumulated.

"Thank God," he whispered. "I thought its abilities were completely gone for good."

Since it was full of filth, even though one of its abilities was self-cleaning, he had assumed it had lost its function. He thought to himself while a fish was in his hand, dying from being out of the water.

"Now then, should I cook you now?" he asked the dead fish in his hand. "But how?"

Right now, he had nothing on him—no spices, oil, sticks, or even a knife to cut it open. This left him wondering what to do with the fish he had caught.

"Still… this fish looks so weird for some reason," he muttered, questioning its appearance.

The fish was silver-colored with scales that looked like a honeycomb, each one as hard as a rock. Due to this, he couldn't kill it on his own. Even when he smashed it with a rock, the rock shattered first before leaving a scratch on its scales.

Since he could not even kill the fish, Carous summoned the fruit to his palm while sitting in the water. He took a glance at it, doubting its usefulness, since when he was in the forest, it had never refilled his hunger. After clearing his head, he took a bite, then felt a surge of energy just like when he first ate one—back when the frog spat one out to him after he could barely move a few steps.

Seeing the fruit's ability return, he couldn't help but think, "I really need to learn this thing's name or give it one. It's so weird that I'm only calling it a fruit after all this time."

"Also… how long was I inside that forest?" He frowned. "I was covered in filth that no normal person would be in."

But no one answered his question—

[ You have regained Stamina +1 ]

"Right... You're also here," he spoke as he stared at the notification in front of him.

"Is there any way for me to stop this annoying notification of yours?" he asked the system.

[ Would you like to turn off the system notifications? ]

"No, no, no! I just need you to stop reminding me when my stamina changes. Can you do that?" he asked.

[ Affirmative. ]

[ The system will now stop sending notifications when the host's stamina stats have changed. ]

[ The system will only send this kind of notification when the host is in dire danger. ]

"Good," Carous answered the system while giving it a thumbs-up. "Then I shouldn't be surprised anymore when my stamina stats change… right?"