“What’s happening?”
“I can’t see anything!”
I was surrounded by complete darkness.
I couldn’t remember what had happened.
I had simply awakened, as if emerging from a dream.
And yet, I still thought this was a nightmare from which I could not wake up.
I couldn’t feel my body.
I couldn’t even hear my own breathing.
I don’t know how much time passed before I began to recover some of my senses.
First came sound: strange whispers drifting all around me.
Then came touch…
something surrounded me.
It was sticky, yet warm at the same time.
Strangely comforting.
As time passed, I began to feel more.
I was growing.
An absurd thought crossed my mind: perhaps I had returned to the very origin of life…
And, in a way, I had.
Time felt meaningless.
I had no idea how many hours, days, or weeks I remained like that.
But one day, I began moving away from that warm place where I had stayed for so long.
The whispers grew louder.
The darkness remained, but it was no longer as absolute as before.
Then I felt it.
An embrace.
It was a different kind of warmth…
gentler, more affectionate.
I couldn’t have described it with words.
I simply understood it.
There were many people around me.
I could hear them speaking in a language I had never heard in my previous world.
Not that I remembered much of that world…
But somehow, I knew.
Unable to see, I relied entirely on sound.
And on emotions.
I don’t know if it was merely my imagination, but I could feel them: joy, happiness, anxiety, uncertainty…
A whirlwind of emotions that left me overwhelmed for a moment.
Whatever it was, sleep soon claimed me once more.
Maybe I’d figure it out later.
I don’t know how much time passed afterward, but my stomach suddenly growled.
Hunger.
I tried to open my eyes.
I was tired of living in darkness.
However, it was far more difficult than I had imagined.
My eyelids refused to obey the commands of my brain.
It felt like sleeping on your arm and waking up unable to feel it…
As though it wasn’t part of your body.
At some point, I felt myself being lifted.
Someone was watching me.
Arms wrapped around me and pulled me against a warm chest.
I heard the steady beating of a heart and, with it, an overwhelming feeling of maternal love.
Instinctively, I leaned forward and began feeding on the nourishment I needed to survive.
I couldn’t complain.
After all…
I was nothing more than a helpless and hungry baby now.
Two days passed before I could finally see.
And the very first thing I thought was:
This place is strange.
The walls were covered in symbols that resembled something from a tribal age, yet at the same time, there were structures far too refined to belong to anything truly primitive.
I could barely move my head, but it was enough for fear to run down my spine.
“…Shit!”
Lying calmly beside the bed…
Was a wolf.
And not just any wolf.
It was enormous.
Far larger than any wolf on Earth.
In fact, if I had to compare it to something, I would say it was the size of a lion.
I swallowed nervously.
God…
please…
I hope I’ve been reincarnated into a better life…
And not to become wolf droppings.
Apparently, the creature sensed my fear.
The wolf slowly turned its head, and its eyes locked onto mine.
Blue as the sky…
Yet carrying the coldness of a frozen abyss.
My body tensed.
And yet…
I felt no hostility.
What emanated from it was…
Curiosity.
That alone calmed me a little.
At that moment, I heard footsteps approaching from outside.
They weren’t fast, but neither were they slow.
Even so, they carried a clear sense of urgency.
And then I saw her.
A woman entered the room.
She was beautiful.
Long black hair.
Skin as white as snow.
Her face radiated courage and pride.
She wore what appeared to be leather armor tailored perfectly to her figure, as though it had been crafted specifically for her.
But what struck me the most…
Were her blue eyes.
They looked at me with a mixture of love…
And fear.
I didn’t understand the reason for her fear.
But her affection was far stronger.
The wolf stood up and stepped aside, yielding the way to her.
The woman—my mother, I assumed—carefully picked me up and observed me for a long moment.
Soon afterward, more women arrived, both young and old.
They touched me, examined me, and inspected me as though they feared I might be suffering from some illness.
An elderly woman spoke to my mother in a worried tone.
Even so…
My mother never stopped looking at me with that maternal love.
Just as they had arrived, they all left.
And I remained alone…
With the great wolf.
The days began to pass.
I ate three times a day, and those were the only moments I got to see my mother.
The rest of my time was spent with the great wolf or with a young woman who changed me whenever I cried.
With nothing better to do, I began experimenting with that strange sensation that allowed me to perceive people’s emotions.
During the first week, I made no progress.
But I know it.
I can feel it.
Very soon…
Something is going to change.
And at last, I will discover the world to which I have reincarnated.