Reincarnated as a Land Shark???

Chapter 7: Little Shark

So this is where humanity used to reside.

It's doubtless that the presence of the Nanaue drove them out. From the looks of the ruins... I can't tell how long ago they were abandoned, but it's long enough for the wood on the buildings to have rotted. I highly doubt it was like that when people still lived there.

That means this has been going on for some time, but...

That means this civilization predated the Nanaue. Were we introduced to the reefs here like an invasive species sometime before this civilization was eradicated, or were we always here, and did we just undergo a massive population boom?

No, if we underwent a population boom, then why is it still going on? You'd think at this point we'd have run out of things to eat and starved ourselves off, yet that's not the case.

Does that mean there are more creatures here at night?

We may not have any natural predators here.

That could certainly explain the population boom. Perhaps we used to have predators, but those predators disappeared? If so, what killed them off? The humans, or something else?

Either way, we're out of control now. Perhaps they'll run out of food and turn to eating each other soon enough. They'll have to at some point, it's that or starve.

Meaning if I stick around here, the thought occurs to me, I could be next on the menu.

...There's not much I can do about that train of thought right now. But...

My status screen flickers, and I blink in shock. Instead of Normal, it's now...

Dry?

Hold on, if I'm an amphibian... that means I can dry out.

Meaning that water bar...

The water bar is at 10/36 already? That's almost completely out!

Looks like I don't have any more time to explore for today, although that fact is regrettable. I'll have to head back to the ocean for now in order to replenish my water bar and sleep. I might as well try to gain a level or two while I'm down there, considering how much stronger than me that Kirin looked. If everything on the surface is like that, then I'll need to gain some serious levels before I'm ready to go and fight them.

I turn back to the sea and start to run, quickly becoming frustrated by the dramatic wagging my tail does with every step. So annoying!

Acquired the skill Run lv 1.

My movement straightens out almost immediately. So gaining the skill also makes me better at it, just like a baby standing up and trying walking straightens out after they figure out the technique. Good to know.

I keep running to shore, and my status flickers suddenly to say Very Dry. WAAAAAH! Only five left? Does that mean my water bar goes down faster when I run?

Grrr... Even if I slow down now I won't make it before I run out. I might as well run as fast as I can to try and make it!

I manage to put on a burst of speed with all my strength, breaking out of the treeline. Acquired the skill Sprint lv 1.

And just like that, as my water is about to reach one point, I dive into the waves and swim swiftly into the depths. Immediately, my status goes back to normal. Whew, that was close. The water bar doesn't go back up immediately, but it does go up.

Dryness Resistance has risen to lv 3.

Well, that's good to have. That probably means I won't run out of water as fast when I'm up exploring.