Adding to this, I felt confined, unable to move my body as I wished. Where in the heavens am I? I couldn't see, and the extremely tight space restricted my movement.
Am I under the bed or something?
The st thing I remember was falling asleep while pying the game.
Did I move in my sleep and somehow end up under the bed?! No… that's never happened before; I'm not that kind of person.
Sniff… sniff…
What's this smell?
...It's like the scent of damp rocks.
Wait… I hear the sound of flowing water; it sounds like a waterfall.
For now, I should move slightly towards the source of the sound; this will likely help me find a way out.
I move forward a little, finding myself on all fours.
Four limbs?!
I don't feel like I'm moving naturally; something strange is happening to me. I can't even look at my hands; the darkness obscures my vision.
I have no choice but to get out of here first.
I continue my journey on all fours, relying on the sound of the flowing water leading out of the dark passage.
I finally reached the end of the passage. There… within my sight, I saw light and quickly ran towards it. Upon approaching the exit, I leaped— "Freedom!"
I fell into a waterway as soon as I emerged.
As I fully expected, the sound of water I heard in the passage was indeed a waterfall. But there's no greenery; just damp rocks surrounding the waterfall.
I managed to catch a glimpse as I was pulled down into the depths. Or rather, I was being pulled down involuntarily.
Discus fish with terally compressed bodies, clownfish, rainbow parrotfish, mandarin fish, and lionfish.
There are other species I've never seen before in my life—so many fish, algae, and brilliantly glowing coral.
What pce in the heavens is this? It's more like an ocean than a waterfall.
No time for contemption here; I must get to the surface or I'll drown.
I look down where I'm being pulled; there's darkness in the depths, and I can't see the end of the path. I can guess that this waterfall is bottomless.
No matter how deep I go, all I see below is darkness.
Damn it, I'm going to die like this.
No… I won't allow that, but I can't swim; I've never swum once in my life. In any case, I must try; I have no other choice but to do it. I will fight to the very end.
I had already prepared myself for the possibility of death, but what surprised me was that, somehow, I was able to swim with ease.
Those small limbs and tail did all the work, or rather… my body moved on its own. Is this a survival instinct or what?!
In any case, I reached the surface safely.
"Ah, I survived!"
Now, floating on the surface of the water, I look at my hands in utter astonishment.
So, what's going on here?!
My hands are extremely small, and my fingertips are round; I have four fingers?!
I also have a tail, and my skin has turned bck? What exactly is happening to me?!
Many strange things are happening to me; my mind is utterly confused.
Okay, no need to panic; calm down a bit and assess the situation. To analyze the situation, I decided to look at my reflection in the water, and well… time to panic.
"I'm…a lizard?!" I said in shock.
No, no, no; this can't be happening… right?
I mean, I was asleep just a little while ago in my room. Why have I become some kind of bck lizard?!
"How did I get here, in the heavens' name?!" I said aloud.
Whew… whew…
Calm down, me; don't panic. This must be a strange dream.
Yes… that's right; it's definitely a dream. I'm sure I'll wake up soon.
Clinging to that hope, I closed my eyes and waited…
…at any moment……very soon…
"Aaah, no use, I'm too nervous; what's happening, in the heavens' name?" I lost my composure, shouting aloud.
After considering numerous possibilities, one seemed most likely.
"Could it be…that I've been reincarnated in another world?" My eyes gleamed with excitement.
Maybe this is true; somehow, I've been reborn as a kind of lizard?!
Wait a minute, does this mean I'm…dead?
"Man, this is scary. How did I die, anyway?"
"Ah," I realized something.
I hadn't had enough rest in a long time. Don't tell me… my death was due to physical exhaustion from gaming addiction.
"Are you kidding me?! I didn't die from overworking, or from illness... I died from gaming exhaustion! What a ridiculous death!"
Ah... although I would have preferred to die protecting someone, or at least be hit by a truck on the road, but... dying from physical exhaustion due to gaming addiction seems more comical… Man, I wanted my final moments to be dramatic.
But now... one of my dreams has been shattered. What a pity.
And also, if I had to be reincarnated, it would have been better to be reborn as a human or a demon king. Of all the creatures in a fantasy world, I've been reborn as a strangely shaped lizard?!
What incredibly bad luck. This is very frustrating, man.
I grumbled for a while, alone, and aloud.
"Haah… there's nothing I can do, I suppose."
Okay, let's think positively; what's done is done. There's no point in thinking about this too much.
At least I was reborn in another world; that's better than dying forever, isn't it? If I'm going to live as a lizard, all I have to do is adapt to my new body, I suppose.
"Wait a minute, does this mean I'll live an isekai life in this world!" My eyes gleamed with excitement.
Yosha! This is my lucky day. One of my best wishes is coming true before me. Let's live my isekai routine.
I must now train and increase my strength to become the strongest creature in the world, right? But how will I do that...
First of all, what kind of creature am I, anyway?
My body resembles a lizard but is bck, with yellow spots scattered all over.
At that moment, I heard a voice. I looked around carefully.
The pce is full of rocks; it looks like a cave of some kind—a dipidated rock wall, that small opening in the wall connected to the waterfall where I emerged moments ago.
Pointed rocks hanging from the ceiling. A monstrous pce, radiating danger.
But, I couldn't find the source of the sound anywhere. Is it hiding its presence or what?
"Who are you? Show yourself."
...
My previous statement had no effect; the voice didn't respond, and no one appeared.
"Anyway, man, where am I, really?"
With that passing question, I heard the voice again. And at the same time, a screen appeared before me.
Did it answer my question?!
"Could it be that it's speaking inside my head?"
Seriously, this is amazing.
Are you hearing me, unknown voice?!
I tried speaking in my mind to see if what I said was true.
It worked…
So, who are you, unknown voice?
The answers appear on a bck screen surrounded by a golden frame.
"You're kidding!"
Is this possible?! Leveling up like in games?
Okay, let's try it.
"Hey, Companion, what are my stats?"
Those who are reincarnated in other worlds usually possess insane power and quickly become the strongest people in the world at a rapid pace. If that's the case, then I'm definitely very strong.
With a glimmer of hope, I eagerly looked towards the screen.
"Here it is, my insanely powerful stats—huh?!"
What happened next made me open my eyes bnkly.
"Are you making fun of me? What are these incredibly disastrous stats?" I said aloud.
I expected something more powerful, like: flight, lightning speed, immense strength to smash rocks.
Sigh~~
My hopes were somewhat dashed.
So, in short, I died of exhaustion from pying games nonstop, and I moved to another world in a non-human form. On top of that, my strength is weak like a tiny rat.
Hooray, my second life is the best, what a joke. Is it possible for things to get worse?
But the positive thing is that I can level up and unlock new skills, and also, the [Fireball] skill seems somewhat decent.
"Okay, I've decided. I'll level up, grow stronger, and get that skill." I stood up, excited.
"But how will I do that?"
The Companion is talking?!
"Of course, please expin."
Phew; I've understood the basics. It seems very confusing, but… I think I understand how the system works. My gamer skills have finally paid off; thanks to them, I was able to understand how the system works.
In short, defeat monsters, earn reward points, and then new skills will open. I can store skills in the vault or fuse them using fusion.
"Yes, I understand... Now I can start leveling up."
With clear enthusiasm, I made my decision. I must defeat monsters and become the strongest.