Groan.

  Sebastian woke face-first in wet mud. His back throbbed. His nose was full of dirt. His brain was foggy and screaming.

  And in front of him… a rabbit.

  No. Not just a rabbit.

  A massive, fluffy, horned rabbit.

  Its ears twitched. It arched its back.

  And then it hissed. Like a cat.

  Sebastian blinked. "What the actual anime..."

  The rabbit bolted, disappearing into the undergrowth like a furry bullet.

  Sebastian sat up, wincing. His body ached. The air smelled wrong—earthy, humid, full of unfamiliar flora.

  "Okay. Not VR. Not a prank. This is... this is an isekai, isn't it?"

  He took a breath. Focused.

  "Status. Menu. Skill Tree. System Access. Activate Cheats."

  He swiped his hand through the air like every anime protagonist ever.

  Nothing.

  "Okay. So not that kind of isekai... yet."

  Crack.

  He froze.

  Heavy steps. Crunching branches. Something breathing.

  Sebastian slowly turned his head.

  A bear.

  A huge one. Bck fur. Muscles like a raid boss.

  Sebastian dropped into a crouch, heart pounding like a war drum.

  Okayokayokay. Bears have bad eyesight, right?... Or was that T-rexes? Damn it.

  He scanned his surroundings: no stick, no weapon. Just ft, open ground.

  "If I had magic, now would be a good time for a stealth spell... or a teleport..."

  Still nothing.

  Desperately, he grabbed a handful of mud and smeared it lightly on his arms and face.

  Camoufge. Anime logic. Maybe it'll help.

  He spotted a tree with low branches. Climbable. A nearby rock, just big enough to duck behind.

  Slowly, he began to edge back.

  Do. Not. Run. Running = noise = aggro.

  He whispered to himself, barely breathing.

  "No HUD. No tutorial. No cheat menu. Yet. I must be in Episode One. Episode One protagonists don't die. They almost die. Then BAM—power unlock. Or rescue. Or berserk mode."

  He clenched his fists.

  "Any second now..."

  "Now."

  "Come on, system. Give me something!"

  He looked up, fully expecting a glowing blue screen to appear midair.

  Nothing.

  Just the bear, now sniffing the air—closing in.

  Sebastian's eyes widened. His breath caught.

  Episode One might be his st—unless the plot showed up right now.

  Author's thoughts ->No sword. No skill. No save point.Sebastian is prey—But maybe something wants him to survive.“Fate doesn’t always pick heroes… sometimes, it just picks survivors.”