Chapter 1. Zorka Slavy revived in the body of a child.

The sun's rays hit the face of a 10-year-old kid who slowly opened his eyes, surprised to find himself in the middle of the forest.

Thump.

A burning sensation pierces Zorka's chest as he collapses to the ground.

"Oh God, what's happening? Why am I alive again?" Zorka mutters, groaning in pain.

Memories flood into Zorka's new body, bringing impactful recollections.

The name carried by his body is the same, 10 years old, born to the magical couple Demista and Renata. His parents are powerful wizards.

However, Zorka didn't inherit any magic at all. His small body carries the poison of a fire flower that poisoned his heart, leading to a tragic death.

At the same time, Zorka comes from another world, hit by a truck on his way home. A 25-year-old man, a healer and poison expert, thought his soul was heading to the afterlife.

Instead, he's reborn into the unfortunate kid's body. The last memory of the kid before dying was his abduction by shadow forces, orchestrated by his own father, Desmita. Zorka was poisoned and dumped in the Sorgindua forest.

"What kind of father poisons his own child?" Zorka murmurs.

Getting up, Zorka changes his position from lying down to sitting against a tree.

Unbeknownst to him, a monster lurks behind the tree.A two-headed, eight-legged wolf-like monster is about to attack Zorka. At that moment, Zorka holds his chest, closing his eyes. Suddenly, the wolf-like monster leaps toward Zorka.

The monster growls, one head sniffing the air as if sensing that the kid in front of it is unwell.

Hearing the growl, Zorka is startled. The surprise deepens as a towering five-meter creature stares at him with a deadly aura.

"Damn!" curses Zorka.

"Just born again, and already facing two disasters."

Slowly, Zorka gets up. The monster watches, grinning, its sharp teeth looking menacing.

The monster suddenly pounced on Zorka. Despite his weak body, Zorka managed to dodge its attack.

He ducked and rolled as the wolf's jaws almost snapped at him. With all his strength, Zorka ran.

Running in a bit of a chaotic way, leaping over large tree roots. The wolf-like monster, failing to catch its prey, continued to chase Zorka.

While running, Zorka's eyes spotted wild medicinal plants. Quickly, he plucked them as he continued running.

Dandelions, Milk Thistle, and hawthorn berries – he grabbed them on the go. His eyes kept scanning, hoping Zorka would find a hiding spot.

Zorka saw a large tree with a big gap near its roots. From his perspective, his body seemed to fit into that gap.

He turned towards the tree and entered the gap. Luckily, there was a Wild Garlic plant near the tree's roots.

"Wild Garlic! I'll use it to mask my scent. I'm sure the monster relies on its sense of smell, much like a wolf," Zorka thought to himself.

He picked the wild garlic and quickly slipped into the gap between the tree roots. Swiftly, he rubbed the Ramsons all over his skin.

The smell of garlic filled the air. Zorka paused for a moment, making sure the chasing monster was still close. Indeed, the monster wasn't far from his hiding spot.

Both heads sniffed the air, searching for their prey. The monster heads seemed puzzled, convinced they were following the human in that direction, but the scent seemed to vanish, masked by the lingering Ramsons in the air.

The monster looked around, one head pointing towards the tree with the gap where the wild garlic grew abundantly near its roots.

One head seemed to signal the other. Witnessing this, Zorka, who was observing them from the gap, pulled himself tighter, afraid of being discovered.

The wolf-like monster approached to investigate. However, the increasingly strong smell of garlic made them snort.

"Quick, go! Quick, go!" Zorka muttered to himself.

Discovering his prey had vanished and catching a whiff of the nauseating wild garlic scent, the monster turned and leaped, running off into the dense forest. Only the echoes of its frustration reverberated through the woods.

Hearing the monster's roar, Zorka's hair stood on end. Before long, he stepped out from his hiding spot.

He tidied up the wild herbs he'd picked and searched for tools to grind his antidote ingredients, eventually finding a flat and a round stone.

Without water to clean the ingredients and the stone, Zorka had to grind them without washing.

Once everything mixed, he squeezed out the juice, collecting it in a leaf-shaped funnel. Carefully, Zorka drank the concoction he'd made.

He cautiously went back into the gap between the trees to take a short break. The medicine started working in five minutes, making Zorka feel drowsy. In no time, he fell asleep in that tree crevice.

After waking up, Zorka feels thirsty and hungry. He quickly leaves the tree crevice, scanning the forest around him.

The pain he felt earlier has eased a bit. Seems like the antidote he made only relieved the pain.

"Gotta find the antidote for the fire flower poison. But before that, I need to look for water and food. My stomach really needs filling," mutters Zorka, rubbing his belly.

Zorka checks out the forest, being a poison expert who's used to roaming around in the woods. He spots signs of water, follows them, and listens for the sound of splashing. Soon enough, he finds a spring forming a clear, rocky-bottomed pool.

Using his hand, Zorka scoops up water and drinks it eagerly. After quenching his thirst, he looks around the spring.

"Usually, fruit trees are near water," he notes.

Following his intuition, Zorka discovers wild fruits, picks them, and collects them using big leaves.

With a good amount of fruit, he heads back to the tree crevice – a safe spot for the night. He decides not to leave the forest now, especially with evening approaching. Forests get dicey at night, and wild animals get active.

To avoid getting into trouble, Zorka stays put for the night in the crevice. Plus, he wants to make sure he's in top shape to make a quick exit from the Sorgindua forest.