The sun finally rose, painting the horizon with a soft golden hue. I stepped out of the cave, ready to start a new day. It was strange not to feel tired or sleepy after staying up all night. My body didn’t need rest, but my mind? Well, it still seemed to function somewhat like before. Maybe that’s why I felt something akin to boredom. Meditating and trying to conjure magic for hours had been frustrating I needed to do something different.

  "Alright, time to do something new before you go insane."

  As soon as I left the cave, I realized something obvious that I should have thought of earlier I had nothing to defend myself with, no weapon at all. Mentally slapping myself, I glanced around. Finding something useful in the battlefield ruins shouldn’t be too difficult, right?

  I spent some time rummaging through the wreckage. It looked like a war had taken place here long ago remnants of armor, broken swords, rusted spears, and scattered bones everywhere. Most of the weapons were ruined, but with enough time and patience, I managed to gather a few things that still seemed functional.

  I equipped myself with a boiled leather armor, two daggers strapped to my belt, a small sword in a makeshift sheath, and a spear as my primary weapon. I also found a simple backpack, throwing everything that could be useful inside. I even tried to see if I had the famous inventory system from games, but of course, nothing happened. Maybe it was something I needed to unlock later, like a spell or a special item.

  As I explored, I marked parts of the terrain to remember my way back to the cave. That’s when I realized just how vast this battlefield was. Compared to my memories of Earth, it was immense almost absurd. Of course, this was a fantasy world, but it still caught me off guard.

  "I really hope undead aren’t treated as monsters here. If they are, my life well, my existence is about to get much harder."

  My train of thought was interrupted by a strange noise. Something was moving near a pile of corpses. Instantly alert, I tightened my grip on the spear. Peering from a distance, I saw what looked like a rat a massive rat, about the size of a dog.

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  "Way too big to be normal… disgusting."

  The creature seemed to be sniffing around, possibly searching for food among the bodies. But when it turned towards me, I realized how wrong I had been. Parts of its body were missing rotting flesh exposed its bones and muscles beneath.

  "Great. A zombie rat. Just what I needed to start my day."

  Before I could react, it saw me and charged without hesitation.

  I held my spear with both hands, positioning it the way I had seen in games and movies back on Earth. When the rat lunged at me, I instinctively thrust the spear forward. The tip grazed its side, tearing off a chunk of rotten flesh, but it wasn’t enough to stop it.

  The rat turned quickly and lunged again. I tried to dodge, but it was faster than I expected. Its sharp claws raked across my left side, ripping through the leather armor and striking my ribs. The impact sent me tumbling to the ground, and a loud creaking noise echoed through my bones.

  "Argh, damn it! That hurts… wait, I can still feel pain?"

  I clumsily got back on my feet, gripping my spear tightly. The pain was strange not like when I was human. It was more of a sharp discomfort than something truly crippling. The rat wasted no time and charged again.

  This time, I waited until the last moment before dodging and swung the spear in a wide arc. The strike landed squarely on the rat’s side, making it stumble. Seizing the opening, I lunged forward, driving the spear deep into its body.

  The rat thrashed, trying to break free, but I pushed the spear in even further, using my full weight to pin it down. When it collapsed, I twisted the weapon hard, tearing through its insides. After a few spasms, the creature finally stopped moving.

  I panted or at least I thought I did. I kept forgetting I didn’t breathe anymore. Looking at the dead rat, I felt a mix of disgust and relief.

  "Well, congratulations, David. Your first battle… and you almost lost to an undead rat."

  I glanced at my side where it had hit me. A visible crack ran along one of my ribs. No blood, of course, but the pain was still real. I needed to remember that even as a skeleton, I wasn’t invincible.

  That’s when a notification appeared before me:

  [New Skill Acquired: Basic Spear Combat]

  I stared at the message for a few seconds, feeling genuinely happy about it.

  "Okay, almost dying to a rat was nearly worth it for this reward."

  After retrieving my spear and adjusting my gear, I focused on my surroundings again. Now, more than ever, it was clear that I needed to learn more about this world. After all, if a zombie rat almost took me out, what else could be lurking out there?

  Gripping my spear tighter, I resolved to prepare myself better for what lay ahead. This new life wouldn’t be easy, but maybe… just maybe, it was exactly what I needed.