Chapter 3: Military life

Just as Vlad was starting to regain control over his body and the pain was fading, a new wave assaulted his brain. It was painful, but not like the previous one, and this time, memories began to appear in his mind.

Vlad's eyes widened as he clenched his teeth, the memories taking place on Earth and belonging to none other than himself. These were his personal memories from his past life.

Even though they were years of personal memories involving terabytes of sensorial data, Vlad assimilated everything extremely fast.

In his past life, Vlad had also been an orphan, but unlike in Terra, on Earth, he was adopted by a military general. The man raised Vlad like an ordinary boy. After he turned 18, his adoptive father became extremely strict.

When he turned 18, his father told him that he was no longer a boy but a man and had to take responsibility. Therefore, he was conscripted into the army. He was taught all sorts of tactical knowledge and how to fight with firearms and melee weapons.

The severe training pushed Vlad to the limit, but he excelled due to his fervent desire to prove himself in his father's eyes. He went through every course and did great in all of them until, finally, it was time to enter battle.

Vlad went into a warzone, ready to prove his might. He performed well and undertook several missions, rescuing many and killing even more. Unfortunately, war was unpredictable, and no amount of training could prepare you for the unpredictability. He was blown to pieces when entering a house that harbored a terrorist six months into his deployment.

Of course, in Vlad's previous life, there were many other important events, but that was the essence of it.

Vlad's mind became clear once again, and this time, a sharp light appeared in his eyes as he turned around, put his back against the wall, and surveyed the surroundings. While his previous life memories did not significantly impact his personality, all his military training changed his way of seeing things.

"¡BOOM!"

Suddenly, an explosion echoed outside, and Vlad slowly moved to the window, glancing at the street from the corner, positioning his body behind the wall in case any more explosions could unleash debris.

Vlad's room was on the third floor, so he could get a clear view. The origin of the blast was a vehicle that had crashed into a tree, but it was just the start, as more and more vehicles were losing control and crashing.

Vlad's eyes narrowed as he observed this. Many people could lose control during the earthquake and crash, but this time, it was different. It was as if all the vehicles were suddenly not working correctly.

Soon, Vlad stopped caring about the vehicles and turned his eyes to the ground. The building was located around a vast park near the highway.

He saw a strange fog rising from the broken earth, soon rising higher and higher into the sky to the point that it covered the entire building where he resided. There were still many people in the park, so Vlad could see that the dark fog was not poisonous, calming him.

However, a few seconds after the dark fog seemingly covered the earth and sky, truly shocking and horrifying things happened.

Figures began to emerge from the cracks along with the dark fog. Vlad's eyes widened as he saw what seemed to be a rat the size of a Great Dane.

The monster looked around for a few seconds, and its eyes soon focused on a young woman lying on the ground. Without warning, the creature lunged toward the woman and, in front of the eyes of all those present, bit her neck with so much strength that it ripped her head off in a few seconds!

"¡AHHHHH!"

Soon, screams of terror and pain echoed as more and more monsters emerged from the cracks and lunged toward people, killing them. Such a scene would have shocked the previous Vlad, but thanks to his military training, he remained calm, and his eyes turned toward one of the guards who took out a weapon and attempted to fire at the monster, yet no bullet came out.

Vlad no longer focused on the poor guard being ripped to pieces; instead, he turned his eyes toward the entrance of the building as many monsters began to enter. Immediately, his mind went to the wooden door, knowing it would not withstand such monsters.

"¡AHHHHH!"

Screaming emerged from the lower floor, but just as a wave of panic was about to assault him, Vlad took a deep breath and used some of the army's meditative techniques, allowing him to calm his racing heart and think. The next second, he opened his eyes and went to the small and rebellious yellow cat that had been silent from the start of the commotion.

"Don't worry, Jormungandr. We will be fine."

"Meow."

Vlad smiled kindly at the small cat before placing it under the bed and surrounding him with pillows so broken glass or other things could not harm him. After ensuring Jormungandr's safety, Vlad went to one of the drawers and took out a black knife with a serrated blade.

He had bought this knife nearly two months ago as there had been news of thieves in the area. Although he never intended to use it, and it was just a placebo to make him feel safer, now it was his only weapon against those creatures.

"¡AHHHHHH!"

A new scream appeared, this time coming from the room next to Vlad. He marched forward, taking the large wardrobe and pushing it to the ground, using it to barricade the door. It would not stop the creatures, but it would slow them down, and that was what he needed.