Shai spent a few moments to calm herself and followed the way the skill directed her to channel the energy. It was much smoother and safer now, as she was able to shoot the translucent and semi-corporeal dart out of her mouth at will. She aimed her head at one of the towering trees around her and shot the [Qi Dart], jerking her head.

Delight spread within her as she peered into the hole in the bark of the tree. It was merely a couple of fingers deep, but that didn't stop Shai from wiggling her head in glee.

Even the mastery of the skill raised to 5% just with these simple usages.

Other than [Qi Dart], Shai had [Basic Meditation (F)] and [Bestial Instinct (E)] as her skills. Honestly, none of the two seemed as magical as [Qi Dart] to her. What about the Aspects, though?

Poison Affinity was pretty much self-explanatory—she simply needed her to bite to use it. But then there was Golden Eyes (Dormant). Shai experimented by moving a little of her energy into her eyes, but to no avail. Getting nowhere with Aspects, she moved to Boon. Inventory and Lingual Comprehension.

Shai was eager to explore more of her abilities when a sudden chill spread across her scaly skin. Her instincts cried as she spun around to inspect her surroundings. It felt like something just moved around her.

She looked around suspiciously, but after searching for a couple of minutes, found nothing in the vicinity. Still, she gathered a small amount of energy inside her mouth, building it up into a [Qi Dart], just in case.

Shai decided to withdraw from the area. After all, she was a powerless little snake with average attributes. It wouldn't be wise to remain in the open.

Even though her new body had its instincts, her mind made it difficult to navigate without limbs. She was still registering herself as a human. Sighing inwardly, Shai resigned herself to following her instincts.

I wonder what Elle will say if she sees me like this, she thought. Her elder sister had been the only family she was close to in recent times.

She crept through the forest, shuffling through dry leaves and lush grass. Undoubtedly, she was unaccustomed to crawling, but after practising for a few minutes, she became surprisingly adept at it. All she had to do was rely on her instincts, and it seemed natural for her to be a snake.

Dad probably won't even know of my death...

As Shai lamented, a shadow of a figure lunged at her abruptly. The movement was swift, but Shai quickly twisted her head, releasing a flare of condensed energy from her mouth.

Qi Dart!

It struck the shadow before it could come within a metre radius of her.

The creature recoiled, and Shai promptly shot another Qi Dart to ensure her safety.

[You have slain a Hamster Lvl 3.]

A hamster? She was cautious of a mere hamster all this time? Even if they looked unnaturally big to her small form, they were still just hamsters, no?

I'm really growing foolish in this snake form!

Sadly, she didn't have time to dwell on that thought as two more hamsters lurched at her simultaneously, as if seeking revenge for their fallen companion. Or simply acting out of their inherent stupidity. Probably the latter. These creatures lacked any sense of camaraderie; all they cared about was filling their stomachs. Ironically, Shai could relate to that sentiment to some extent now. She hadn't eaten anything for eternities.

Her snake form swiftly dodged the attack from the front, while she gathered another [Qi Dart] in her mouth. A deranged part of her wanted nothing but to succumb to the base instinct and bite this disgusting creature to death. But Shai resisted the crazy impulse.

There was no need to rely on poison when a [Qi Dart] would suffice. But Shai didn’t know when she would get the chance to use the poison.

The thought was unsettling, but she was a snake. She couldn’t live in denial.

Shai released the dart, slinging the hamster away. Only one of them remained now. The giant hamster squeaked as it continued to chase after the little snake.

Shai twisted and turned, skilfully manoeuvring through the dry leaves and lush grass. She was faster than she had initially assumed in this form. Intending to finish it off as quickly as she could, she began forming another [Qi Dart], only to find all of her energy reserves had plummeted to nothing.

Shit! Shai braced herself and coiled swiftly, preparing for a sudden lunge towards the hamster. I guess it's a good opportunity to test her poison.

Shai's tiny snake head rammed against the creature, her fangs biting into the neck without holding back even the slightest bit. The fangs pierced through the hamster's neck effortlessly, resulting in dark scarlet blood spraying into her mouth.

Shai regretted her decision immediately. These notifications appeared conveniently in her peripheral vision when she was unoccupied.

[You have killed Hamster Lvl 2.]

[You have killed Hamster Lvl 4.]

[You have achieved a small breakthrough. Your path has grown to Favoured Hatchling Lvl 2. +1 to all Primary Attributes, +1 Unallocated Point.]

A surge of power enveloped her entire being instantly. Her body heated up, as the power coursed through her, flooding every part of her being, empowering her. Then, everything returned to normal.

The process lasted only a dozen or so seconds, but she couldn’t help but feel a sense of improvement once it concluded.

Well, she thought, that was easy. And disgusting.

Shai couldn't deny that she had severely underestimated her new form. Perhaps her attributes weren't as low as she thought. Of course, the +5 to all attributes boosted the strength of her infant form to a greater degree. So much so that these hamsters were mere prey to her.

Wait a second, hamsters are supposed to be the prey of snakes, Shai thought. Did magic make them so ravenous and savage that they would even chase after a snake?

I need to be extra careful. Although she had magical capabilities now, it was only to a degree she could overwhelm hampsters.

Shai was repulsed by the filth staining her body. She got rid herself of the disgusting blood, frantically jerking her body.

[You have gained a quest.]

[Quest: Eat until you’re full.

You found yourself in an unfamiliar, mysterious land, after hatching. As a newborn snake, your first duty is to secure food. Since you retained most of your memory, you should have some ability to collect your own food.

Clearance Conditions: Consume food until you are fully satiated. Bonus: Gather food for the upcoming days.

Time Limit: 12 hours.

Rewards: A sense of contentment.

Penalty: None.]

There it is, she sighed inwardly. Grandpa, can't you just rest it for a while?

Then again, Shai was feeling quite strained in her stomach after her violent spree against the hamsters. She had no problem finding contentment as the reward for her mission, though this quest felt unsettling. Letting out a sigh, which sounded no better than a hiss, she turned her snake head towards the lifeless hamster corpse.

Her stomach growled.

Just the thought of devouring raw disgusting meat made Shai's stomach churn, though that could just be her hunger. To make matters worse, it was the flesh of these filthy hamsters. While she was sure she would have no trouble digesting raw meat, the idea of consuming it in its uncooked, contaminated state was hard to bear. Unfortunately, the hunger was something she couldn't endure for long.

Let's cut the crap and get it over with! Shai cursed and approached one of the hamsters.

Here goes nothing, she muttered to herself, and jerked her head forward to bite into the flesh. Surprisingly, she didn't feel any repulsion from consuming the raw meat, other than her initial disgust.

I truly am a reptile now. The realisation twisted her stomach.

She didn't have to chew, so it hardly took a while to devour the corpse as a whole. Well, it certainly felt like an immaculate task, with how the enormous bulge moved through her form. Yet within a few minutes, the bulge compressed... and Shai was hungry again.

Shai grimaced, or rather, did the mental equivalent of it. With a mental sigh, Shai approached the remaining two corpses to feast upon them.

After devouring another hamster, Shai felt her hunger satiated, though it was only the beginning of her ravenous appetite. For the last one remaining, Shai hassled with the System for several seconds to finally open her inventory. It turned out that simply willing it to happen wasn't enough. She needed to supply magical energy to open the obnoxious-looking magical hole.

After the dark hole materialised, Shai simply pushed the corpse into it and departed from there, unaware of how she would eject her food from the Inventory. It would probably take some tests and fail as well.

Now that her hunger was satiated, it was time for her to think hard about everything she experienced. Perhaps I should dig a hole and hide.