[1-3]: Other Worlds are Dangerous

Translated by Syxphis
Edited by Syxphis

Hello, good morning everyone! I’m a cat.

I’m a cat, no, I’m not crazy.

What, a cat!?  I don’t believe it either but…

I don’t really want to believe it, but I guess I’m a cat now.

…Okay, I’m sorry. I was upset because I couldn’t accept reality…

“Mee…”

I can’t believe how lovely my voice sounds…No, that’s just a cry.

Now let’s stop mourning for ourselves, shall we?

“Myah.”

I get up and stretch my body, walking across the ground unaccustomed to having four legs.

I’m in a different world(?) I think it’s been about two hours since I was thrown out.

I’m currently in a forest.

I’ve walked for a long time, but the scenery remains the same, just trees and moss growing on the ground.

I have no idea where I’m walking to…or rather, I have no clue where I am. If this is really a different world, there’s no way to know where I’m going.

“My feet hurt…”

My legs hurt…and I’m hungry and thirsty…

I’m not sure if it’s because I was a salesman who didn’t get enough exercise before… But I had no idea having a cat’s body could be this exhausting?

Even the grass, which wouldn’t normally bother a human at all, covers my field of vision at eye level which is so annoying…

I’ve only been walking for two hours and I feel so tired that I’m about to collapse…?

Even if you take into account that I’m a kitten and this is a forest with bad footing, am I not still too weak? I’m unsure I can survive like this…! I’ve heard that in the world of cats strength is the only thing that matters, and I’m definitely going to die at some point… I’m sure I’ll die eventually… I mean, I’ve been here for two hours and I’m already dying.

At that moment, a brown streak crosses right in front of me.

It’s a rabbit.

I second guessed whether it was a rabbit at first. No matter how you look at it, that’s definitely a rabbit. 

The long ears, round tail and the action of moving it’s nose around sniffing were the same traits as rabbits from my previous world.

…Is this really another world? I feel like I’m being deceived right now…

Well, whether it is another world or not can be set aside for now…I’m starving.

I’m sure that’s it.

I can only see this rabbit as meat right now

In my old life, it would’ve been weird to see a living, breathing animal as food, but it may be some kind of hunting or survival instinct of a carnivorous animal ignited in me after becoming a cat.

I’m a bit reluctant to take an animal’s life, but…well, if I don’t get food somehow, I will starve to death, so I guess I’ll just follow my instincts and hunt. No, I’m really hungry and feel like I’m about to collapse.

I wonder, “Can I really eat raw meat?”, after I hunt this rabbit, But, I should probably think about that after hunting.

So, be prepared, cute rabbit.

Rabbits are very cautious and quick to escape. Well there is a saying like, “Fast as a rabbit”.

My steps, legs, cat paws…

While being careful not to step on a branch and be noticed, I follow the small rabbit quietly and swiftly like a ninja. …No, I’m probably smaller than the rabbit…

Three meters left…

Two meters…

One meter…!

GO! 

“Miiiiiiii!“

My roar for life turned out to be a cute little cry.

I don’t care about that though.

It’s only natural for the weak to be food for the strong! It doesn’t matter if it’s cute or not!

Before the rabbit could react, I broke into a full run and attacked it at once.

I’m imagining I look like a bloodthirsty wolf! 

The moment I thought I could reach it, the rabbit jumped out of the way to avoid it.

And I, the cat, tumbled head first into the ground in a heap.

“Oof, meow!”

I hit my head! 

I just skidded on my face like I’m in a manga! I hope my face fur didn’t melt a bit! 

I rubbed where I hit my head with my paws, but there are no scratches on it, only a little dirt and moss.

…I’m happy about that…It’s not a laughing matter when a fragile kitten’s body gets hurt.

I’m pissed at the rabbit looking over at me like he’s mocking me from over there! It’s not that he didn’t notice me, he knows that he doesn’t even need to bother running from me! Oi, Rabbit-san! You should be more grateful! I’m going to kill you! 

I kicked the ground with what little energy I had left.

I’ve already been walking for two hours, so I’ve gotten the hang of walking on all fours. I’ve never broken into a full-on dash before, but I think I’ve got this!

In a fit of rage, I chase after the rabbit.

However, the rabbit wasn’t letting me get that close this time, so he immediately turned around and ran away.

I will not let you escape me, rabbit…!!

I’m running while screaming in my mind the words that might be spit out from the final form of the seven heroes. [1]

My cat’s fighting instincts are ignited. I may look like a kitten, but my heart is that of a tiger…! I was feeling like a beast, burning with the will to fight deep in my heart, but I couldn’t catch up with the rabbit…at all. The more we run, the greater the distance between us.

Oh no…! I’m completely losing speed!?

Not only am I losing in physical specs to begin with, and I guess I’m not used to the bad footing of the forest floor…Oh, I can’t do this anymore…I can’t run.

I stopped, gasping for air. I guess cat’s bodies get tired the same way human bodies do…no wonder

No, that didn’t really go well, did it? [2]

Isn’t it bad to be beaten by a little rabbit like that? If the opponent is a beast, a Demon Lord, a battle-seasoned warrior…

But a rabbit!??

It’s just a small animal, though!?? It shouldn’t be dangerous enough to beat me!?? Does that mean my abilities are bad? 

Am I ever going to live a normal life…!?

What do you mean, your wild blood is awakening!! I’m just a newly hired salesman who just graduated! Even if I’m like that, I won’t make a dime!

No, nonono! Shit…No, calm down.

I was thinking I could go out into the wild to hunt and live, but I can’t do that. I can’t even hunt in the first place. No, because, well, I’m just a normal person. If you’re a hunter in the forest, you might be able to use your human brain to set a trap or something, but I’m just an ordinary person, so there isn’t anything I can do about that.

A cat’s body has lower specs than I thought…

I guess it’s different when I grow up, but I don’t have a shred of confidence in my ability to survive until then.

While I was contemplating my bleak future, every hair on my body stood on end.

I felt a chill run up my spine that made every muscle in my body stiffen—.

It’s a feeling that I’ve never felt in my entire life.

I feel like I’m going to vomit not only the contents of my stomach, but my internal organs as well.

I can’t move.

My feet are trembling, rooted to the ground, and won’t move.

Slowly, slowly, slowly, trying my best to move my body as little as possible. I turn my eyes in the direction of this unpleasant feeling. Even the sound of insect wings moving is terrifying.

I feel like something terrible will attack me if I make a single noise…

I look in the direction the rabbit is fleeing and see—it.

I say “it” only because I was too dumbfounded to come up with a name for it.

I don’t know what I’m even looking at right now. I don’t think I’ve ever even heard of something like this.

Within the framework of my common sense, this uncategorizable “thing” is an aberration.

Its body is the size of a large dog and covered with black fur. It has four legs that grip the ground with human hand-like fingers, though.

Beyond that, it has a long neck—like a rokurokubi. [3]

At the end of its long neck is a huge flat mouth like a gamaguchi purse. [4]

No, that doesn’t matter right now! What really matters is that in that thing’s huge mouth was the rabbit that ridiculed me by running away earlier.

Its fangs were pushed through the rabbit. The deformed thing is drinking the rabbit’s blood like tomato juice.

W…what, what is that…?

Then I remember.

This isn’t the world I used to live in.

This is—another world…!

When it comes to other worlds, I guess there would be the usual suspects.

In other words, that deformity there…is a demon!?

I’m scared.

Fear of the strong is absolute. Also, even more than that, the fear of the unknown is worse.

Damn it…I’m going to get killed with this rabbit…! 

Fortunately, I don’t think it has noticed me yet…

Fighting is not even an option in the first place.

If I don’t run…If I don’t hide…If I just stand here like this, my blood is going to be drained from me like that rabbit over there and I’ll die.

Keep your guard up and move your trembling legs.

Don’t make a sound.

Don’t give away your presence.

Don’t be detected.

I desperately try to stop my body’s trembling.

One step…one step…don’t rush. But move swiftly! I have to hide from this bastard as soon as possible.

At around the same time I made it behind a tree, the mouth that had been sucking the rabbit looked in my direction. No, I don’t know where its eyes are, but it has sensed my presence and is looking directly at me.

I prayed desperately deep in my heart while curling up between the thick roots.

Don’t notice me! Please don’t notice me!! Please just leave me be!!

Perhaps the desperate prayer had been answered because the monstrous creature, with a lump of flesh clasped in its mouth, walked away into the depths of the forest with heavy footsteps thumping the whole way.

My body trembles uncontrollably as soon as the threat is gone.

That’s one thing I never had to experience growing up in a country with rule of law—the safest and most peaceful country in the world.

The fear of death.

It’s definitely different than dying from a disease, old age or something like that.

The fear of losing your life by the hand of another

I couldn’t stop shaking, so I couldn’t move from behind the tree for more than ten minutes.