Mmmm so cozy, I can't remember the last time I slept with this much warmth…… I wonder if mom turned on the heater or maybe Aito, that little demon… Tears flowed down Haruto's face as he reminisced about his family. He squirmed further into the warmth and, finally, since being reincarnated, felt secure. That was until he began to suffocate as going deeper into the warmth had blocked his mouth and nose from getting air. Wtf Wtf, is this how I die in my sleep no, no come on wake up. Wake up, please. So ends the tale of the Great Shogun Haruto…. 

Haruto struggled for a full 2 mins as his brain sluggishly activated the rest of his body. Haruto jumped up, coughed out whatever was clogging his throat and began greedily sucking in fresh air. Thank any god but sadist sama that I was able to wake up before suffocating. That would have been the crappiest way to die. I'd prefer to be electrocuted again. Haruto looked around and found that a slime was lying on top of him like a blanket. Huh, no wonder I was so warm. The slime really insulates heat well, and a less surprise is why I was dying just a minute ago. "You useless slime what would you have done if I actually kicked the bucket there?" 

The slime hurriedly slithered away. 

On second thought, this slime is peculiar. I say well lookie here now this slime is red. On top of that, it had a nice pristine level of 15 Jesus now, that's a slime. Still, it seems smaller than the level 2 anomalies, different evolutions perhaps. As soon as the slime finished moving, Haruto stood up and stretched. Nothing better than a near-death experience to get the blood pumping in the morning. Breathing out, a mixture of grief and CO2 escaped from his lungs. Haruto wiped the tears off his face and suppressed the sad thoughts of home. Wanting to forget his memories, Haruto jokingly asked the slime, "good buddy, where were you yesterday when we were fighting the crocs? Your level is the same as mine, you would have been a great help. I thought I was going to die." Finishing his comment, Haruto looked at his level and saw he broke through to level 25, skipping right over his bench-mark of 20. Hell yeah, brother, now this is grinding. I should go look for more of those degenerates, hell I still need to find out how their meat tastes. Haruto licked his lips in anticipation of the new meal to come. Hm, since I got a level up might as well check my inventory and increase my stats. 

Stats at Level 25:

Strength-31

Dexterity-31

Energy- 106

Mana- 25

Intelligence- 29

Luck- 29

Charisma- 29

Health: 3400

Nice, some new loot, and hey new titles. Unforgiving eh idk about this title, I may teabag in games, but irl I'm a shit-talker, not a fighter. Conqueror of Swamps what's up with the swamp theme, you think this is funny or something, why can't I just be an ordinary conqueror why swamp specific. What if I go to a world with no swamps, I was only in a cave back in that world. Who knows if there are swamps on that planet, and how many there are. Oh well what else, slime general and toad general. What type of bootleg thing is this? Haruto stopped looking at his gains and looked at the red slime. "I guess you are my general, huh? I have high hopes for you. If anime has taught me anything, slimes can be op."

 The slime did a little squirm dance to show its enthusiasm. 

Well, where is the toad then? Haruto yelled, "Toad front and center." Haruto's jaw dropped as a human-sized toad wearing wooden sandals walked in front of him and saluted. "Wtf, why are you so human-like with your little katana and reed sticking out your mouth I bet you think you look cool. Well, this isn't the ninja world, and I doubt you know any ninjutsu." 

The toad looked at Haruto, with confusion, and let out a deep reebit. 

I guess a toad is still a toad at the end of the day. Haruto looked around the swamp and noticed the slimes and toads were gathering around their respective generals. Their populations were frighteningly low. Haruto sighed, thinking about how many rushed towards death for him. Gazing towards the fog, Haruto's heart froze. A horde of super crocs were gathering. Only around 20, I guess the higher levels can't support large populations. But 20 is more than enough. Even with the two generals and my new level, I'm not optimistic about battling these crocs. To his surprise, a blue super-croc came out of the group. Its level was 25. 

Jesus, this really is going to be another fight to the death. 

The super-croc quickly made its way towards Haruto. Surprisingly, it ignored the toads and slimes in its way, as it dashed at lightning speeds. Noticing this occurrence, Haruto quickly pulled out his katana and prepared for its attack. Right before the croc got into his striking range, it stopped and rolled onto its stomach. 

"Oi, Mr. Croc, what are you doing? Do you think you are a cute dog? I know no dog that has teeth that large. Nor one with scales all over its body." Haruto used his sarcasm to hide the underlying fear. The two generals looked at the croc for a second, then nodded at Haruto like this was the most natural thing in the world or something. Well, maybe it is. I don't know the natural workings of this world, but if a toad in sandals sets the curve, this is not too strange. 

Swallowing his fear with the katana in his off-hand, Haruto slowly shuffled towards the croc. The croc froze still as if it was dead, which creeped Haruto out even more, as once it moved, he might just have a heart attack. I always did hate jump-scares. Haruto put his hand on the croc's stomach and rubbed it like a dog. The behemoth was mclovin the rub and started wagging its tail back and fro one-shotting two unlucky slimes, causing them to split. 

Haruto instantly stopped rubbing it. Sweat dripped down his forehead and Haruto swallowed, then smacked it and reprimanded, "bad croc." His hand, after smacking, it was throbbing from pain. Sweet Remsama, I thought my heart was gonna stop. Frick just hitting him hurt. His species must be natural-born tanks.

The croc whimpered, but the whimpering sounded like a demonic creature as it reverberated throughout the entire swamp. Haruto tried to calm his already bad heart as the sound was freaking him out and bringing back some bad memories. Finally, it calmed down, flipped back over, and glided back towards the other crocs. Guess that makes me its owner now or something, therefore I'm the owner of those crocs no way that's over twenty level 20 soldiers, plus him being level 25 plus the two generals. With this kind of power, there is no reason to remain here. 

Haruto cleared his throat and, in his best commanding voice, ordered, "you 28 super crocs remain here and defend the slimes and toads in the swamp. While the slime general, toad general, and uhm Bluey follow me." The crocs quickly dispersed around the perimeter of the swamp, and his three new companions formed up following his lead. Haruto couldn't help but crack a smile. I can finally leave this starting area. I wonder when my first boss fight will come. Before leaving, he finished looking through the new loot, throwing on the new armor, which Haruto felt was very stylish. He pulled out the fancy new katana but left his old one out since this wasn't a video game; it wouldn't be cheating if he dual-wielded. Filling up a canteen of swamp water, he also had the toad general carry some swamp water just in case the next locations lacked it. For now, this gamer juice is my built-in health pots, better make it count.

 Haruto took one final look around the swamp then walked towards the fog. The fog barrier went on for a good eight mins. Haruto had almost lost his cool and contemplated sprinting before stepping out into a vast forest. Haruto took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh air, which was a million times crisper than the swamp air. Exhaling, he praised the new location "Ahhhh, I've never been an outside person, but even I must admit nature is beautiful and calming." 

Exploration Complete- New Location found: The Ancient Forest. Side Quest complete: “Oregon Trail”: Rewards- Water Pouch, Compass, iron cauldron, wooden spoon, walking stick. New Title- Great Explorer- One who boldly goes where no man has gone before. Skill- Lewis And Clark (When searching through nature increased ability to understand the terrain and find key landmarks) OOOO a new title and skill, not bad. 

Unbeknownst to Haruto, his title Shogun of the Swamp activated as he stepped into the new location, sending out a majestic oppressive aura that shouted surrender or die. 

In response to his aura, an ancient roar resounded one that stopped all movement within the forest, one that embodied power. It sent a strong message in ridicule. So what if you have an aura. What does that mean to me when my roar is 100 times more oppressive? You want me to surrender. Why don't you come back when your mother's milk has dried off your lips. 

Haruto was unaware of this roar's meaning but still subconsciously wiped his mouth as if something was on it. His heart was so scared it forgot to beat faster. Instead, it slowed down to a crawl and ensured no noise angered whatever issued that roar. Haruto's brain blanked out.

 Resembling a child who whispered something after getting a beating from their parents, Haruto mumbled, "Mighty beast huh, what of it? Give daddy here a few days once I reach a good enough level, I'll be the one roaring..." He feared that the creature may hear what he was saying and come to find out who the real daddy was in the relationship, so he trailed off without finishing his talk.

 Bluey in a shameful display had already rolled on its stomach as if welcoming its new master to come give it a pet. The two generals shook their heads in disdain at the weak-minded croc. Their simple hearts were stirred by their perceived notion of the shogun's fearlessness. If only they knew that Haruto's response was a knockoff Chinese wuxia reply, his mind prerecorded in case of brain failure. Ah, don't look at me with those eyes of respect. If only you knew that I planned on shoving Bluey to the front. To give myself a chance to retreat to the swampland.