“Room 207, up the stairs and to the left," the electronic voice at the reception desk stated flatly, ejecting a room card from one of its slots. Out of habit, I thanked it—being polite never hurts, after all. Who knows when AI might accumulate enough ambition and decide to eliminate its creators?

Following the instructions, I found the room. After several attempts and trying various angles, I finally managed to get the room card to be recognized. Closing the door behind me, I heard the sound of the electromagnetic lock engaging.

I hung my coat on the coat rack and stretched, somewhat surprised to find that the view outside was actually quite nice, not what you'd expect from such a cheap hotel.

Valles Marineris was a bustling commercial district and the site of Ares' largest space elevator, still sparkling with various lights even at night. From this height, it had a kind of magical beauty.

I drew the curtains and poured myself a glass of water, regretting that I hadn't checked whether this was included in the room fee. I certainly didn't want to pay for the previous guest's recycled shower water. Never trust products that assure you it's okay to drink your own urine.

The bathroom door slid shut automatically behind me as I entered the shower pod, undressing. Once the pod door sealed, warm, moist air began to flow from the bottom and was drawn away through the overhead vents, creating a strong airflow.

The temperature-adjusting models are just so comfortable; I should consider getting one for home.

After the drying process was complete, I stepped out of the pod, which had reopened, and spent some time tidying my slightly tousled short fur in front of the mirror.

Looking at my reflection, I sighed helplessly but resignedly. Even compared to other muntjacs, I was particularly small—no easy feat—with thin arms, protruding ribs, and a pitifully narrow chest.

I noticed something odd, leaned closer to the mirror, and scratched at the black stripes along my brow ridges—it was hair turning white, especially concentrated at the point where the stripes met in the center. Damn, the pressure from the recent qualification exams was too much. I definitely needed a good rest afterward. People like me can't afford expensive regeneration treatments...

Suddenly, two sharp clicks, and the bathroom lights went out, making me freeze. A power outage? No, I could see light from the room seeping in through the door crack.

After my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I looked around the bathroom for something that could serve as a weapon, offering some illusion of security, but found nothing suitable.

Gingerly, I slid the door open a crack and peeked out with one eye. The sudden light made me freeze for a moment. Once I recovered, I shook my head vigorously, cursing my own stupidity. Sometimes these weird instincts could be very disruptive to daily life.

I tiptoed back to the room quietly, carefully looking for anything unusual. After confirming there was no one else around, I relaxed and scratched my ears. Was it just my nerves acting up?

By the time I felt the airflow behind me, it was too late. Something covered my head, blocking my vision.

I let out an involuntary yelp of terror, flailing my limbs wildly and hitting something solid and much larger than me. Pushing against it with all my might, I found it unmoving as expected. I immediately tried to run, praying not to trip over anything, while struggling to remove whatever was over my head.

Without any warning, I was overpowered by a crushing force, pinned to the ground. The hair on the back of my neck stood up as I felt the hot breath against it.

My heart pounded with a violent intensity, my body spasming uncontrollably. My struggles only made my movements more futile. As I finally rolled over, gasping for breath, a sharp, cold object pressed against my throat.

Pain! I struggled desperately but was caught in the curved structure, unable to break free, my windpipe tightly constricted, silencing me. The blood flow to my head was restricted, my dazed brain growing sluggish, my consciousness starting to fade. This was... the difference between the strong and the weak. This was... the power of a predator?

As if in answer to my question, the fangs tightened, and the last thing I could feel was the warm blood trickling down from my neck.