Author’s note: While Zenhald was having his fun in the other world, absolute chaos broke out in the realm of the living. The Demons of Fear, who had spent centuries terrorizing the living, were now trembling in terror themselves. They were ready to sign any contract, agree to any predatory terms—anything just to get as far away as possible from this "Zenhald." They fled from their world of fears into the world of humans. That is why the other world was empty.

  I was wandering through the forest. I saw some little bug under my feet, a caterpillar or some other crawling piece of junk. I picked it up and tossed it into my mouth.

  "Ugh... Gross."

  I sat under a tree, trying to pull my thoughts together. A little bird landed on a branch.

  POP.

  I simply moved right to it, snatched it in my fist, and ate it. I sat back down on the ground. The hunger wouldn't go away.

  Where even am I? I thought lazily. That one dude—or not-dude—said my name is Zenhald. And why the hell did he explode at the end? Must have been defective.

  Regardless, reflections on the meaning of life were losing out to reflections on food. I kept walking until I saw the flicker of a fire ahead.

  POP.

  I materialized right by the campfire. Meat was sizzling over the coals. The smell was... mmm. I just thrust my hand into the flames, snatched a massive chunk, and started tearing at it with my teeth.

  "AHHHH! Where did he come from?!" someone screamed nearby.

  I looked up from my food. Ten dudes in armor were sitting around the fire. Warriors, probably. They jumped up, eyes bulging.

  "What the hell?! Hey, wake up!"

  "Who even is this?"

  "Look at him! He’s putting his hands right in the fire! He’s eating boiling meat and doesn't even flinch!"

  I turned to them, continuing to gnaw on the succulent flesh. I probably didn't look very presentable.

  "HE’S POSSESSED!" one of the dudes screamed, reaching for his sword.

  "Look at his eyes! There’s nothing human in them!"

  What? I thought. Eyes are just eyes.

  A couple of the dudes decided to play hero and lunged at me.

  POP.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  Their heads simply flew off their shoulders before they could take a second step. I didn't even stand up.

  "Freaks..." I muttered, wiping my mouth. "I'm just eating meat. Oh, wait. Looks like this was their meat. Whatever. Tastes good, though."

  I finished eating, licked my fingers, and started looking through their junk. A scroll was sticking out of a bag belonging to one of the dead dudes. I unfurled it, hoping to find a map or the address of the nearest tavern.

  

  "The Kingdom of United Nations requests peace... Ready to cede lands along the river... We ask you to lay down your arms and stop this bloodbath..."

  "What a load of trash," I grimaced. "Nothing important."

  I tossed the scroll into the fire. The flames merrily licked the parchment with its state seals. I crouched by the body of one of the dudes.

  "Seriously, what didn't they like about my eyes?"

  I grabbed his head by the hair, examining his face closely.

  "Eyes look like eyes to me," I told his frozen stare.

  I got annoyed.

  "You're the one who's weird!" I snapped at the corpse, plucked out his eye with my fingers, and tossed it into my mouth.

  I swallowed.

  "Oh well. At least it's food."

  I sat there for another two hours, methodically finishing the remains of those warriors. The meat was a bit tough, but when there’s a black hole in your stomach, you don't complain about quality. Finally, I got up and wandered on. The forest soon ended, giving way to an endless field. I just collapsed into the grass, looked at the clouds—they were all so lazy—and fell asleep.

  I woke up because someone nearby was mumbling.

  "Razvil, what are we supposed to do with him?"

  "Let’s just kill him and be done with it," another voice responded. "Look at him, he’s covered in blood."

  "I smell it, it’s human blood..." a third added.

  I opened my eyes and sat up abruptly. Five creatures—whether humans or some other dudes, you couldn't tell in this mess—instantly jumped back. I looked them over lazily.

  "He’s not human, look at his eyes!" one shouted.

  They already started reaching for their blades, but then one of them ordered:

  "Hold it!"

  A man, sturdier than the rest, approached me and crouched down.

  "Kid, who are you?"

  "I think I’m Zenhald," I answered, wiping my face with my sleeve.

  "Zenhald, huh? And why do you have human blood on you?"

  "Well, some guys attacked me back there..." I started, but he cut me off.

  "And why is there blood even in your mouth? And smeared on your face?"

  I honestly shrugged.

  "I got hungry, so I ate them."

  Someone in the group behind the man gasped.

  "He’s a cannibal!"

  The man stood up, looked me over, and sighed.

  "You should at least get dressed, kid. You're out here showing off the family jewels. You want people to take you for a wild beast? Give him some pants," he barked to his men.

  They threw a piece of cloth at me. It turned out to be someone’s spare pants. I pulled them on, but they were wildly huge on me. I had to tie them up with some rope.

  "Hey, who are you guys, anyway?" I asked. "And where are we?"

  The man looked at me with suspicion.

  "You know, kid... I was surprised when you mentioned those warriors. We saw them in the forest. Their heads were cleanly cut off, but the bodies... gnawed on. We thought at first people killed them, and then wolves finished them off. Но you..."

  He sharply grabbed the hilt of his sword.

  POP.

  I just waved my hand without even getting off the ground. His head flew off his shoulders faster than he could pull the steel from its scabbard.

  "HE KILLED RAZVIL!" the others screamed.

  I lazily waved my hand again. One dude just dropped dead, and I threw a couple of air spears into another. He turned into a sieve instantly.

  "Why do you all reach for your swords immediately?" I grumbled, pushing myself up to my feet.

  "You guys are boring."

  I doused myself with water I created out of the air to wash off the foreign blood and stepped out merrily across the field. The pants were slipping down, and my stomach was starting to show signs of life again, but at least I was clean now. Relatively.

  "Zenhald," I repeated, tasting the name.