Hacking the Game Didn't Go as Intended

VOLUME V: SMOLDERING DAWN | CHAPTER 147: A Debt Carried Forward

“Aghhh,” Daisuke groaned, his eyes flickering open as awareness dawned within him. Instinctively, he reached up to touch the spot where his head met the rock, frowning at the tender bump that dwelled there.

As the fog in his mind cleared, a flurry of memories came gushing forward, particularly the one where the chimera’s fangs narrowly missed closing around his face. Jarred awake by the harrowing visual, he attempted to push to his feet, but a sharp pain had him freezing in place with a snarl. Belatedly, he noticed that his ankle was sprained, rendering him easy prey for opportunistic predators.

“That’s just great,” he murmured drearily.

Crawling on his stomach, he slowly made his way over to a nearby tree. With his back against its solid trunk, he awkwardly positioned himself upright, gazing out into the unforgiving forest. he muttered, his inner voice laced with resignation.

The world seemed to contort into shades of bleak gray, as if all color had been drained away, leaving only a hollow, lifeless void. Minutes stretched into hours, days, and then two excruciating days, each passing moment worsening his hunger. Daisuke wasn’t sure about the game’s mechanics, but in the real world, a human could survive at least two weeks without food, but only three days without water. He contemplated crawling around in

The girl giggled softly, but there was a sadness behind her eyes. “It looks like you’re mostly healed up now,” she said, reaching down to caress the pup’s head. “With proper food and rest, you’ll be back at full strength in no time.”

When her hand paused atop his head, the canine glanced up to find tears spilling down his friend’s cheeks. Heartbroken by the sight, he leapt into her arms and licked her cheek with a whimper, her salty tears adding to the weight of his grief.

“After everything he’s done for us,” she sobbed quietly, “we can’t just leave him here to die… all alone.”

“Rawrwu.”

“Take good care of him, Rai,” she whispered softly, her voice breaking. “When he’s able to stand on his own, come back to me, okay? I’m going to miss you more than you know.”

“Kyuu~”