《A World of Monsters》
Prologue: The Reason for It All
-X-
The Illusion let a Soul emerge.
The Forgotten guided its path.
The Formless let it touch the flesh.
The Endless let it last.
.
The Mutated, the last of them all,
The Mutated let it devour the Bridges
Thus, a Creature was reborn.
-X-
A Being that was [Not One, But Innumerable] witnessed the fruit of its blasphemous pursuit.
Defying the Eternals, it had lured a soul to a foreign Reality. However, the unnamed horrors had annihilated Creations for less. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Ceaselessly devoured as the Being was, it cared not for the consequences. If it had to End, it would. Gladly even.
But it would be devoured no more.
The blasphemous criminal had, thus, stolen a soul from its chosen Dharma, its chosen path.
A soul whose past, present and future reeked of its Dharma, stagnant through the aeons, despite the parasitism it havocked.
Crushed by punishing emotions, the Being had desired another soul. Any other soul.
However, the Being didn''t have the luxury of choice.
Time was the parasite''s tool, endlessly chipping away at the Being''s existence, leaving behind less and less and less.
With the will of Eternals blasphemed, there was nothing left that the Being didn''t hesitate to defy.
Brazenly, it desecrated the rules of Tilism, the Realities and the Creations.
It changed the stolen soul''s Dharma.
Thus, no longer would the soul be a parasite, surviving through the collective power of its kind. Instead, the soul would now have to thrive, seeking power to call its own.
The Being that was [Not One, But Innumerable] shuddered as the silent gazes of the Eternals grazed past its ethereal existence. The Being''s very core quivered in unfathomable terror.
Yet, it refused to submit.
It refused to feed the parasites.
Thus, a Dharmic soul was now but a pawn against the very Keepers of the Tilism, the myriad Creations and the endless Realities within.
As was intended, from a puny Mortal to a mighty Immortal.
-X-
Somewhere within the layered Realities, parallel Creations and warped Tilism, an ethereal book flipped its pages.
-X-
1. The horror of numerous limbs
A peacefully slumbering creature was shocked awake. For peace was now denied to it.
Its body twitched randomly for a moment and it let out a groan, before blinking. However, only smothering darkness greeted its bleary eyes, ''...uh, what?''
The familiar darkness refused to fade and the creature felt its body tingle. Long buried memories of dark, cramped spaces resurfaced, containing open sneers, unhidden contempt and barely concealed hate.
The creature recognised the darkness; like the one from its childhood, the old darkness was cold and lifeless. It threatened to swallow the creature whole.
''Where am I?'' It questioned, trying to reorient itself.
Unfortunately, it didn¡¯t know the answer. Rather, the newly awakened creature didn¡¯t even remember anything.
''¡just what is happening?¡¯ Its body chilled and its mind went into overdrive. ¡®Where am I?!''
No sooner had the thought formed than the creature trembled in disbelief before anger replaced the other emotion. ''Who is doing this to me!? WHY?!'' It mentally screeched at the unknown.
But, no answers were to be had as the endless darkness ceaselessly suffocated it and claustrophobia choked it.
Fight or flight, the only two options to ever exist, bored down on its panicking psyche and its temper flared in sheer terror. The creature utilised the energy from its panicked response, moving its body.
However, its body failed the simple task, merely squirming instead.
In the aftermath of its botched attempt, the confining darkness rushed in, aiming to crush it whole.
''No!'' it rebelled with its entire being, pushing hard against the deep darkness and -to its surprise- the creature found its body uncurling, like a snake uncoiling.
The sensation was alien, utterly foreign, but it failed to give the creature pause; for the Flight and Fight response had long taken root.
Quivering like a newborn leaf in the rainstorm, it sought conclusions where there were none. ¡®I couldn¡¯t have been buried alive! No!¡¯ Denying its new reality, it threw its weight against the walls of its bizarre coffin.
And the creature felt it move.
The restricting darkness moved, not unlike that of slime before the coffin pushed back and regained its shape. ''This isn''t a coffin at all!'' it rejoiced, ''I can break through it!''
Latching onto that thought, it punched the walls with all the courage of a drowning man.
''...what?'' However, the feedback it received from its body, struck it dumb; for instead of the familiar four limbs, innumerable limbs had moved. It didn''t waste time on the ridiculous response, however, before changing its tactic, and shoving with its entire body, ''need to use my body, as always!''
The thought tugged at its memory but ...it was ¡it was ¡hazy.
''Ugh...'' It winced, the mere act of remembering giving it a splitting headache that intensified with each successive attempt. Thus, it let the finicky feeling go to focus on the response from its numerous limbs. Limbs that it shouldn''t have. ''Hands and legs only! Those are all I have. Never had a dick but that doesn''t count!''
That thought once again tickled its memory before a searing pain roared through its head, clearing up the fog of forgetfulness.
''I died.''
The reason for its demise was inconsequential, for its reasoning collapsed.
''I died.''
Its body suddenly felt heavy, carrying the weight of the world-
''I died''
-its insides felt hollow, lacking the heart to feel-
''I died''
-its body felt numb, a purposeless, meaningless thing.
''I died.''
For it had lost its Research.
''I died.''
Its purpose in life.
''I died.''
Its sole reason for choosing to exist for just a day more.
''I di-''
Screeeeeeeeeeeeech!
0.0
Monstrous existences. Beyond the Gods. It remembered them now.
Those creatures, no! Not creatures! Never creatures; for flesh hadn''t constrained their unfathomable power.
Not beings either! The word was laughably small to contain their existence-
-yes, that!
Existence. Existences were what they were. And they had brought... they had brought nothing but-
-obliteration.
Nature itself had turned against them, ripping the civilization asunder.
The Five Great Ghosts, enslaved. Bounds to the whims of Existences whose power bowed not to the restraints of reality.
The collective consciousness was shattered, and the individuals were condemned.
Punished were the men, the women, and the children alike. The fate of one and all had been nothing but one.
Death.
Even their prayers had gone unheard.
For the Gods had refused the summons, their undying hearts unmoved by the devastation.
Or, perhaps, even the Gods were dead.
Unseen calamities, unimaginable catastrophes, and unthinkable cataclysms had descended upon them. Not only had they descended from the heavens, but also ascended from deep within the womb of the very earth.
Nothing was spared. Not a single being was left alive. Not a single creature was allowed to exist. It was complete and utter annihilation.
It was¡ a punishment, from beyond the divine.
¡®Why?! Why was it all ended?!¡¯ Screaming in anguish, it failed to comprehend its memories. ''Why were we punished?!''
Gone was the sum of its life. The research into the very nature of mana. ''...Could it be? Not it could not...''
-but they had been warned against it.
... look not where the answers rest,
...gaze away.
...lest the End come and Eternals manifest,
...stay away.
The Merchant of Malice had arrived. He had addressed the world. It remembered.
The callus Merchant had prophesized annihilation if the research succeeded. ''...but the research was never completed.''
The creature was sure of it. Its position may have been middling, but it knew this much.
''No, their research could not be the reason. It could not be the reason.'' It denied the preposterous reasoning. It just couldn''t be true.
It had been a Heavenly punishment for a crime unknown. It was sure of it.
But the dead were still dead, and its research was lost.
The suffocated creature struggled against its prison. Everything, ''...lost.''
It squirmed, thrashed, and struggled with all its might. All its suffering, ''...meaningless.''
The proof of its existence ''...erased.''
It pushed against the confines, channelling its rage.
It had to. ¡®Lost!''
I couldn''t rest. ¡®Erased!!''
It had to do something. ¡®ANNIHILATED!¡¯
The abrupt rush of cold shocked the enraged creature out of its rage, but not its madness and it struggled anew. It thrashed and hammered at the opening before, finally, breaking through.
It was free, finally free.
Yet, this freedom didn''t bring joy to the lone creature, as the grotesque sight that greeted its emergence rendered its raging emotions impotent.
Gigantic spheres, matching the size of the creature itself, lay before its eyes. Gelatinous and green, they squirmed as if something unknown struggled within.
The mystery didn''t remain for long, as it soon saw the things that burst through the spheres. Green and black and elongated things.
''Worms...'' the dumbfounded creature thought before it corrected its line of thought in horror. ¡®Maggots!''
Its body trembled as a new thought took root. ''Those aren''t spheres! Ghosts help me, they are eggs!''
Eggs.
Eggs.
And more eggs.
The creature was surrounded by them. Wherever it looked, the sea of eggs stretched, out of which maggots crawled out.
''It can''t be...'' An impossible thought manifested within the creature¡¯s shocked mind, egging it to look down at itself.
But it didn''t dare to, afraid of what it''d find.
However, before the horror-struck creature could act, a primal force hit it, consuming its horrified mind.
Hunger was here. And it made its presence known.
The primal urge unnaturally overwhelmed the creature''s fragile mind, forcing it to eat whatever existed beneath its body.
However, as the creature''s head was lowered its head to eat, it was confronted by what it had dreaded.
It finally faced what it had become. What its body had become.
The creature''s flesh was green and black and elongated like all the other things crawling around it.
''Maggot!'' The creature¡¯s mind supplied as it began to shut down, ''I... I became a maggot...'' The creature couldn''t believe it. Its fragile mind couldn''t comprehend. Its frail sense of self couldn''t process what had become of it. ¡®Filth! Vermin!¡¯This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
The rage, the desolation, the shock, the disgust, and the plethora of emotions overwhelmed the poor creature¡¯s taxed mind. It could do nothing as its fraying mind went into shock.
0.0
As the hunger abated a smidgen, the stupefied maggot¡¯s fragile mind broke free of its mindless devouring to realise that it had practically inhaled its broken egg, leaving only a few gelatinous morsels behind.
However, the baser instincts were not done with it yet.
Much like a simmering pot, the unnatural hunger began to bubble once again.
It rendered the creature so utterly famished that its hunger consumed the creature¡¯s fraying mind.
The nervous creature, however, had learnt its lesson and didn¡¯t resist the corroding acid within its flesh. With an uncontrolled twitch of its body, the creature bent down to finish the sparse morsels.
Ting.
[You have consumed The Gift.]
Ting.
[You have levelled up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
¡®The Five Great Ghosts! What is this?¡¯ The stupefied creature stopped eating and cursed, trying to process the illusion before its eyes.
However, another blue screen materialised within its vision in answer to its unspoken thoughts.
Ting.
Status
[Unnamed] [Skills] [Spells] [Dharma]
Its confused eyes narrowed as a thought sneaked into its weak mind. And to test its hypothesis, the creature moved its head from side to side.
Contrary to its expectations, its hypothesis was proved wrong when the screen moved along with its vision.
¡®This is no ordinary illusion then.'' The creature concluded. ''Just¡what is this? The Five Ghosts help me.''
However, its new body soon drew the creature''s attention to the hunger corroding its belly. And dutifully, the meek little slave complied with the implicit order, devouring the tasteless leaf beneath its tiny body.
Meanwhile, it returned its ditzy attention to the screen to focus on the option that disturbed it the most: the option [Unnamed].
No sooner had it focused on the option than the floating blue list changed.
Ting.
Its toothy mouth twisted downwards as the creature stopped eating to consider. ''That makes no sense.''
Despite not understanding the significance of the information displayed within its vision, one thing caught its eye: the title [Reincarnated]. The creature focused on it and another blue screen popped up.
Ting.
[Title [Reincarnated] allows memories and experiences of a single previous birth to be transferred to the new body.]
''Is this about me?'' The numerous stubs emerging from its body squirmed. Surprised, the creature looked down at its new limbs. ''Right, a caterpillar. Not a maggot. Thank the Ghosts.''
Shaking itself, the caterpillar''s eyes found the blue box once again. ¡®Is this about my reincarnation?¡¯
Peculiarly, despite the blatant reminder of its death, neither grief nor sorrow rose within its fragile mind. Instead, all it felt was an odd resignation.
If the reincarnated caterpillar had been of sound mind, it would have not only found it odd but also unnatural.
Indeed, this bizarre reaction was the outcome of the war going on within the ignorant creature. A war that the caterpillar would remain unaware of for its entire life, and perhaps even in its death.
Ignorance was bliss. But more often, it was death.
Unaware of the danger looming over its renewed life, the green caterpillar wished to return to the previous screen and the blue screen responded to its thought, dematerialising to reveal its Status.
Within the mass of blue glow, the creature focused next on its [Race], [Immortal].
Ting.
[[Immortals] are lifeforms that are born with lengthy lifespans and the ability to increase it further. They are Creatures that are not bound by their Vessels and the concept of civilization. It denies access to Attributes and Spells.]
The bewildered creature stared at the screen with confused eyes. ¡®I am now¡ an immortal?¡¯ It tried to comprehend the meaning of the words but there was just too much for its overworked mind to understand at once. ''...what?''
The green creature tried to recall if immortals existed in the previous life. However, a ringing headache was the only answer.
It winced and shivered in pain before it decided to abandon the line of thought to read the description once again.
''...why are these words emphasised?'' Its beady eyes paused on the capitalised letters and its stubs squirmed in curiosity. Surprised once again, it glanced down at the new limbs before focusing on the task at hand.
The moment the caterpillar focused on the word, the creature became familiar with the concept of instant regret as a red screen screamed into existence with a blaring loud alarm.
TRAAAAAAANG!
¡®The Great Ghosts help me!!'' The shocked creature cursed as it closed its eyes. Its body, meanwhile, followed the set instincts and tucked its head beneath the rest of its flesh.
[Attributes are blocked for Immortals. Access Denied.]
It took the caterpillar a few moments to recover while its body shivered in fright before it dared to poke its insectoid head out.
The [Reincarnated] shook its head and straightened itself. ¡®I do not want to experience something like that again.¡¯ It had been an experience most unpleasant.
The [Immortal] called upon the previous screen and eyed the capital ¡®S¡¯ of Spells warily before moving on. It was not going through something like that again willingly.
Though now wary, it cautiously decided to explore the rest of the Status and noticed its [Lifespan: 90 days].
Its black and green body trembled as its calm shattered like glass. ¡®What the fuck!¡¯ It would have shrieked in anger if it had been able to. ¡®What the actual fuck! What fresh shit is this!? Aren''t I an Immortal?! Didn¡¯t I have a lengthy lifespan?! What the fuck is this? Is 90 days a lengthy lifespan!?¡¯
With its body burning with fury, the tiny caterpillar read the description of the Race [Immortal] once again. Its body trembled with impotent rage and yet, it had nowhere to unleash it.
Meanwhile, the irony of the situation was lost on the creature. It would have tickled its dark humour in its past life. However, now that it was the one experiencing it, the caterpillar didn''t see any humour in the situation.
Most didn''t realize it, but the tragedy of one was the comedy for the other.
The [Reincarnated] breathed deeply. ''Focus. Focus. Focus.'' It reminded itself before squinting on [Name: Unnamed] and just like before, another box popped up.
Ting.
[Names can be bestowed either by the sire or the master. You are an unnamed creature.]
Its green insectoid face twisted with fury.
''Why can I not even name myself? What sort of absurd rule is that!?'' It made no sense to the little creature. But after the irony of being an [Immortal] caterpillar with a lifespan of 90 days, this ridiculous rule did not surprise it.
''Just because my name had long lost all relevance, doesn''t mean I had as well,'' it harumphed. ''I am a Sorceress; a researcher of magic unknown. And nothing will ever change that.''
Thus, with its overwhelming emotions suffocating it, the caterpillar began going through the rest of the words, one after another. However, its simmering emotions erupted when it focused on [MP: -].
Ting.
[Mana Points is the maximum mana available to cast magic spells. Your species doesn''t allow usage of Mana.]
¡®BULL. SHIT! I call bullshit!'' It screamed within its mind as its breathing escalated in frustration. ''I am a sorceress! How can I not have magic?! Magic has nothing to do with anybody''s body! It has everything to do with one''s soul! I was reincarnated, wasn¡¯t I?! It means I have my soul! Give me my magic, you little shit!''
It frantically ranted. It hysterically raved.
It couldn''t believe the contradiction before its beady eyes. As it had reincarnated, then it had to have its magic. For magic came from the soul. It knew so because of its research.
The crime that the Merchant of Malice had warned the world about.
The caterpillar desperately raged within the confines of its delicate mind. Meanwhile, its body continued to eat the leaf below. The dissonance of its thoughts, from its reality, was lost on the [Reincarnated] Sorceress.
''Right, maybe it''s because I am just a larva at the moment; a newborn essentially.'' It tried to reason instead. ''The larval phase is the development stage, isn''t it? That has to be the cause. It has to. When I fully evolve, I should get my magic back. I would be an adult then, yes. This makes sense.''
''Does that mean that I would have to wait till then?'' It thought, its numerous stubs squirming in displeasure. ''Never mind that. One way or another, I''ll have my magic back. No matter the cost.'' Shaking its head at the thought, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress continued to go through the rest of its Status.
Ting.
[Title is a label awarded by the Laws to the living beings, for performing specific tasks or meeting certain specifications.]
Laws of the Creation? The caterpillar gaped. ¡®¡The Ghosts help me!! To think that the Laws of the Creation could be uncovered in such a simple way! Simply magnificent!¡¯
It was a testament to the [Immortal] caterpillar''s unstable mind that it went through overwhelming emotions, one after another, yet seemed to forget the previous ones when the next one assaulted it.
In the short while since its birth, it had experienced grief, panic, joy and now bubbly giddiness.
Yet, it didn''t find the progression strange. Instead, [Reincarnated] Sorceress remained ignorant and merely explored its Status to arrive at the most ominous option, [Dharma].
A golden screen materialised in response to its thoughts.
Ting.
[Since there is life, death exists now. Since there is now death, life exists. Within the singularity of this infinity, lies the endless chaos of half-truths. Truth and Untruth, both extend through this singularity. Within the moment between singularity to infinity and infinity to singularity, hides the meaning of Dharma.]
[Dharma: Thrive.]
Its mouth fell open while its beady eyes gawked.
¡®What¡utter nonsense is this?¡¯ It tried to grasp the meaning that seemed to be hidden within the golden manifestation. Yet, all it saw was a bunch of spiritual nonsense worth less than the time spent reading it.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress ground its teeth and its body trembled.
It was all too much.
The roller coaster of emotions left its fragile mind exhausted. All it wanted to do was stop thinking. It wanted to sleep. It wanted peace.
However, peace was now denied to it.
¡ù
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
The bleak desert, the dilapidated shop and the seemingly sleeping youth, none of them could be described as simple, however.
Since this scorching desert existed in a distant place so far that there existed transcendental barriers to separate it from the others. Sweltering heat called the desert home and parched, dry winds ran amok.
Massive dunes marred the land like numerous scars; these were the scars that moved. The scorching winds bent the dunes to their will, making them crawl while drowning the world in the sea of sand.
Venomous insects and poisonous plants littered the landscape like stars on a new moon night. They hunted and killed. In turn, they got hunted and killed. They fought for food. They fought for water. They fought for territory.
It was a place where life ruled but death never lagged far behind.
Nevertheless, none of the warring creatures dared to venture to the epicentre of the desert.
For the dilapidated shop existed there.
However, even calling the shop dilapidated was a mercy that was needless. The thing was a decrepit assembly of time-ravaged walls, decayed wooden frames and a collapsed roof. A corroded door hung onto its frame, waiting for a gust of wind to turn it to dust.
But the gusts dared not touch this place. Even the most ferocious of winds tamed themselves in the presence of this shop
Within this shop, what was sold and what was bought was unknown, for there existed no merchandise within.
Rows upon rows of empty shelves exuded a silent hollowness that threatened to draw the onlookers into the depths of the unknown. While the manifold layers of dust shrouded the shelves, proclaiming their death.
Beneath those bare shelves, the floor was littered with stains, like mushrooms in a rainforest. With a colour of dark brown and a crusty texture, they radiated suffocation and hopelessness. Their silent screams spoke of haunted stories and bone-chilling terror.
The youth sat there, on a simple chair and behind a simple desk, on a floor that exuded unspeakable horror.
The youth, barely 17 to 18 years of mortal age, had a figure that was slim but tall while his skin was the colour of aged wood. Yet, his face was plain and forgettable, his features ordinary. A veil of black hair, dark as the heart of the cruellest mortal, hid a pair of simple brown eyes that were closed as if the youth were sleeping.
In contrast to his features, his clothes were something else entirely; for he was dressed in 2 pieces of unstitched fabrics.
Despite his ordinary features and unordinary clothes, the sleeping youth oozed out an unnatural sensation. He was still, way too still. Not a single strand of his hair moved with the wind. Not a single corner of his clothes rustled to make any movement. Not even the youth¡¯s chest moved to signal his breathing.
Yet, not even a speck of single dust was found on his person.
-X-
2. Who decides these shitty rules?
As days turned to nights, and two weeks passed, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress still found itself forced to devour leaves. For the grip of starvation on its fragile mind hadn''t loosened even a bit, courtesy of its cursed birth.
[Title [Hungry] forces its bearer to eat continuously, allowing experience gain from consuming food. Title restricted to a single Vessel. Lost upon Evolution.]
Meanwhile, the [Immortal] caterpillar had distracted itself by observing its surroundings, leading to some interesting discoveries.
The very first of which was the moon, which behaved quite differently than what the [Reincarnated] Sorceress remembered. The heavenly body danced across the sky, hopping from one direction to another each night, seemingly senselessly.
And as it danced, the Moon changed its colours to paint the world in three different illuminations: the pale white, the brilliant azure and the fresh green of the newborn leaf.
''This isn''t my world...'' Its long-held suspicions had been confirmed by the dancing moon. ''Does my world even exist anymore? Sundered it was. Annihilated.''
The other thing it had observed was the forest the [Hungry] caterpillar was born in.
All around it, colossal trees rose to the sky, bearing huge, flat leaves infested with caterpillars. While the slightly slanted ground was littered with fallen leaves, shrubs and the newfound growth of seasonal plants, all of which seemed akin to the tallest trees from its original world.
This allowed the [Reincarnated] Sorceress to conclude that the forest of her birth, while located in hilly terrain, was one of those that shed their leaves once a year.
None of that mattered at the moment, however, as the [Immortal] caterpillar was awakened by the feeling of its backside ready to burst.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress took a slow, groggy moment to figure out that it had to shit. It hurriedly stretched its bulbous body and moved its countless stubs before heading for the leaf that it had designated as its toilet.
''Did caterpillars shat back home?'' It couldn''t help but ponder as it went about its rather frequent business. Its beady eyes stared off in the distance as it pondered over such an important question.
''Huh, something so utterly trivial seems so important now...'' the [Hungry] caterpillar thought, its body drooping. ''But back then, such a useless question might have incurred severe punishment, just because it would have annoyed the warden.''
''Soul. That was all that had mattered, hadn''t it? From being kidnapped to my conscription, everything had been about Soul.'' A weary sigh escaped from the [Immortal] caterpillar''s insectoid jaws. ''But now, all that research is lost. Erased. Gone. Forever.''
At that moment, with a satisfying pop, the last globule of faeces left its body and the [Hungry] pest cleaned its butt on the designated leaf before making its way to the one it had been eaten the day before.
It lowered its head and began nibbling.
Yet, its thoughts kept on returning to its previous life. ''At least back then, there was something to look forward to. But what do I have now? A mere seventy-six days of life?''
The [Hungry] pest laughed but only a choking sound escaped its jaws. ''I can''t even return. Is there anything to even return to?''
Annihilated. Sundered. Erased. Dead.
''What should I live for...?'' The [Immortal] Caterpillar couldn''t help but think. ''...should I even live?'' The [Reincarnated] Sorceress sighed before it shook its green, bulbous body.
''Happy thoughts! Think happy thoughts!'' It scolded itself before recalling its new, pointless achievement to take hollow joy in. ''Level 15. I achieved it, didn''t I? Yes, I did. Even my HP rose to [HP: 20/20], quadrupling. Yay! Great! I can survive more damage now. Wow!''
Or at least that was what it understood from the blue screen''s explanation.
''At least it is helpful,'' the [Reincarnated] Sorceress thought. Chewing still, it summoned its Status to glare at [Hungry]. ''I still don''t want it though.''
''Just you wait, dumb little thing. I''ll get rid of you as soon as I evolve,'' It puffed up its tiny green body before promptly biting down into the leaf once again. ''At that time, I''ll even get my magic back as an evolved [Immortal]. I''ll show you my might then!''
The [Immortal] caterpillar paused nibbling on the tasteless leaf to let out a sigh of satisfaction before changing to the blue screen listing its Skill.
''I even raised my speed, raising [Crawl] to Level 2!'' It told itself. ''Not a Level 1 anymore! Ha!'' Its eyes then fell on [Poison Resistance], which had started at Level 5 from the very beginning. ''Perhaps, it is to guard against stupidity.'' The [Hungry] pest idly mused. ''To Save moronic caterpillars from their own damn venom.''
All the while, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress didn''t find anything odd with its rapidly fluctuating emotions. A sign of its mind''s fragility.
At that moment, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress heard a strange fluttering sound and it paused its nibbling to look around before its gaze turned upwards.
In an instant, the [Immortal] caterpillar''s elongated body froze and its blood chilled. The tiny creature had come face to face with its natural predator.
Hopping in between branches was a brown, oddly fat bird with a flat, yellow beak and dark, soulless eyes. The calamity was about as large as the palm of an adult mortal but to the tiny caterpillar, it might as well have been colossal.
After all, the caterpillar was only as long as the first two knuckles of a mortal''s pinky finger.
The unknown bird hopped once again, moving from one caterpillar to another before gulping down its prey in a single swoop.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress trembled, its body stiff.
It wasn''t as if the [Immortal] caterpillar hadn''t seen such predators since its rebirth. It had but from afar. It had seen this very bird flying around this area every day for the past two weeks.
It had even seen critters such as rabbits and mice lurking about, but its failing mind had failed to make the connection between prey and itself.
However, the close encounter had broken such delusion. Especially when the calamity had slurped the caterpillar''s brethren like freshly cooked noodles.
The [Hungry] pest¡¯s green body trembled as it tore its terrified eyes away from the rapidly approaching death.
Without thinking, the [Immortal] caterpillar began crawling to escape. For what else could a caterpillar do, [Immortal] or not?
However, no matter how much its speed had increased due to [Crawl]¡¯s new Level, the Skill remained [Crawl]. It couldn¡¯t help the [Reincarnted] Sorceress escape its death.
The fright-stricken caterpillar¡¯s breath hitched while its body uncontrollably trembled. Its instincts kicked in to overwhelm the pest with the desire to just flee.
The fight or flight options didn''t exist. The creature could only flee and the [Reincarnated] Sorceress obeyed its instinct like a meek little slave. It let go of the leaf, falling off the colossal tree.
The wind rushed past the [Immortal] pest and the weightlessness captured it for merely a few moments before disorientation consumed its mind and it hit something with a resounding smack.
Yet, it continued to fall, for it had merely hit a shrub.
Thus, as it continued to fall, its body struck one thing after another, scratching and bruising its soft flesh. However, small as it was, the pest wasn¡¯t hurt much.
However, as the [Immortal] caterpillar''s body grazed past the tip of a thorn, it was left with a small, ugly wound in its green flesh, making it wince in pain.
And then the [Reincarnated] Sorceress hit another thorn. And then another.
The [Immortal] caterpillar was falling through a particularly thorny shrub.
With its body trembling, both in absolute terror and burning pain, the [Reincarnated] pest hastily turned back towards the plant, only to find the bird¡ devouring the rest of its brethren with no mercy. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!
The yellow bird was gobbling down every single caterpillar in the sight. One after another, the escaping caterpillars disappeared into its beak.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress momentary lost control of its stubs, while its fragile mind processed the unrestrained slaughter.
''Kill or be Killed.'' The [Hungry] pest remembered the words the blue screen had defined this world as when the caterpillar had summoned it for the expiation of the term ¡®Experience¡¯.
[Immortals live in the world of Kill or be Killed. Experience is what is gained by killing other living creatures.]
''...is this bird, an [Immortal] as well?'' It shivered at the thought, and its breathing hitched.
Without wasting even a moment more, the [Immortal] caterpillar rapidly turned away from the carnage, and almost let out a screech. The wounds from earlier had made themselves known.
Yet, the [Hungry] bug had no choice. It winced and clamped its jaws, as it forced its body to search for safety.
The carnage above had incentivised the creature and soon, its eyes fell on a pile of dry leaves.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress moved towards the shade the pile of leaves offered, wincing and biting back pained screeches.
However, the creature was a caterpillar with the Skill, [Crawl]; the distance covered by it was pathetic.
At that moment, one after another, caterpillars began falling from the tree to escape their fates. Those that remained, on the other hand, continued to be decimated.
Meanwhile, on the ground below, the [Immortal] caterpillar''s trembling body grew hotter with each rustle of leaves, fearing the descent of the monster above.
Nonetheless, the pathetically slow bug continued to crawl forward, shivering and quivering.
Its agonised but unimpeded march allowed it to barely make it to shade before the [Hungry] pest heard a strong flutter of wings, followed by the muted thuds.
Death had descended.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' rapid breathing halted and its trembling body froze in utter terror. Dread consumed the bug, but only for a moment before its blood raced, breaking it out of its stupor.
The [Hungry] pest hurriedly shoved its head into the soft ground, biting into the dirt.
As was natural, the dry ground resisted its tiny teeth, but the [Immortal] caterpillar forced its jaws close, causing its muscles to protest in agony.
Yet, giving up was not an option as death danced its ugly dance behind it.
The [Hungry] caterpillar continued through the pain and the agony but, then, the creature felt something give in. It wasn''t just the earth that had given in, but also its muscles, causing the agony to become unbearable.
Yet, it couldn''t give up. Death still stalked the [Hungry] pest''s path.
With a mouthful of dirt blocking its airways, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress screeched in pain as it pulled back before spitting the dirt out.
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.1] granted.]
Only to slam its face into the dirt once again.
Terrified and in torturous pain, the [Immortal] caterpillar hastily repeated the process as muted thumps approached it.
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.1] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.2]. Continuous damage caused by pain is decreased by 2 points.]
Small as the bug was, soon it dug a hole large enough for its tiny body to fill in.
Working through the pain and the hurt, the [Hungry] pest managed to shove itself down the hole, with its face buried in soft mud and its backside exposed to the world.
Exhausted, injured and hurting, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress suffered through terrible emotional turmoil, testing the limits of its fragile mind.
Yet, it couldn''t give up. It was still vulnerable.
It had no way to hide its backside hanging out in the air. But it was out of its wits. It couldn''t think of a place to hide.
Thump. Thump.
It felt the muted thumps; the dying vibrations of sharp claws. They were close.
Hidden within its tiny hidey-hole, the caterpillar''s shivering intensified as fear strengthened its hold on the little vermin. Even its bowels moved in fear.
And then it hit the worm. ''Shit! The answer is shit! I just have to shit! I can do that. Yes, I can!''
So, it shat. Working through pulsing bolts of pain, and persistent horror, it excreted. It shat all over its backside.
And when it was done, it wiggled its ass to shake the mound of insect refuse, spreading it out. Some of it even fell further into the hole, getting stuck to its body.
It would have been unbearably filthy if it had not been the method that was saving its life. The creature knew it was covered in refuse ¨Crolling in it, even- but it couldn''t bring itself to care.
''Shit and shit all around! There''s enough, quite abound!'' A merry rhyme popped up in its cracking mind at that moment. ''Roll, roll, roll in it! Filthy vermin''s fate it is!''
Thump. Thump.
The humongous bird moved and the [Reincarnated] Sorceress felt the distance between them decrease further. Its breadth hitched and body chilled.
Thump. Thump.
The claws came closer and the trembling [Immortal] caterpillar''s beady, black eyes darted across the dark hole. ''Is there anything else? Anything?'' It thought, summoning its Skill list and its desperate gaze locked onto a particular Skill. ''I have it! I do!''
[Allows creation of venom that does a base damage of 5 HP/minute. The effect of the venom lasts for minutes equal to the level of the Skill. The effects of the venom stack. Increase the potency of the venom and increase base damage per 10 levels of this skill.]
''[Venom Creation]!'' The terrified [Immortal] screeched in panic. ''[Venom Creation]! [Venom Creation]!''
No sooner had the [Hungry] pest used the Skill, than the venom began to ooze out of its pores, from all over its body. The fine hair on its green elongated body became wet as its shit covered skin was moistened.
But the [Reincarnated] Sorceress didn''t stop. Instead, it cursed at the limitations on the Skill to distract itself. ¡®Who decides these shitty rules? Why does the potency of the venom increase only per 10 levels of the Skill? Why not with each Level?! And why does the venom''s potency even depend upon [Poison Resistance]?! What kind of madness is this?!¡¯
However, the cursing failed to achieve its goal. ''It would work, wouldn''t it? It would. It had to. It should, yes!'' It couldn''t help but think before its gaze suddenly hardened. ''If it doesn''t then let''s be reborn again, stupid bird. Let''s die together!''
Breathing shakily, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress tried to calm itself. ''Everything that could be done has been done,'' the quivering pest told itself and its body gradually calmed down. ''If I still die, then I die. This life wasn''t meant to be mine regardless...''
The [Hungry] bug smiled in satisfaction, making peace with its approaching death.
Thump. Thump.
The bird came closer but the [Reincarnated] Sorceress cared not for the approaching death.
Or so it told itself.
Thump. Thump.
It felt the bird standing right over its mound of shit, which made it feel the certainty of its death.
The bird paused over the hole and the [Immortal] caterpillar almost vomited in terror. It didn''t know if the bird would look past the shit and poison. It hoped the calamity would. It prayed it would.
To whom it prayed, even the [Reincarnated] Sorceress didn''t know.
Thump. Thump.
The bird passed it over, yet it held its breath.
It did not move.
It could not move.
It dared not move.
At that moment, it heard a flutter of wings as the bird flew away.
The [Immortal] caterpillar remained hidden in its shit. ''I ...survived? Me? That happened, didn''t it? It did, yes. So, I ...survived. Me.'' A shaky breath escaped it before its jaws chittered lightly in joy.
''I survived! I am alive!'' It tried to laugh again and gasped. It gasped again as its shivering finally slowed and the pain that it had been ignoring finally caught up to it. ''Just you wait, damned bird! When I get my magic back, I''ll roast you with spices over an open flame! Just you wait for me to evolve, ugly bastard!''
However, this was the same [Reincarnated] Sorceress who had been contemplating the point of its existence earlier. And now, this was also the same [Immortal] caterpillar that had done its very best to survive. The dissonance between its thoughts and actions was lost on the little fellow.
A sign of its unravelling mind.
None of that mattered to the [Hungry] bug as its multiple wounds pulsed, shooting down bolds of pain across its green body.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress shuddered before it breathed deeply and checked its HP, which was at [HP: 11/20]. ''It should work now, shouldn''t it?'' It thought, summoning the description of the Skill which it wanted to employ.
[Ability to shed the exoskeleton/skin and come out as new. Cost depends on the size of being.]
Nodding to itself, it gingerly thought, ''[Moulting].'' However, no sooner had the [Hungry] activated the Skill, than the creature¡¯s HP was reduced by another 10 points, leaving it at the death''s door with [HP: 1/20]. ''Oh, shi-''
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 3
''Uhh...'' the [Reincarnated] Sorceress groggily awakened and stretched its bulbous, elongated body, only to regret the action almost instantaneously. ''Right,'' it thought, as the lingering soreness made itself known, ''that happened.''
''And then this too, uhh...'' it weekly glared at the offending blue glow that it had to suffer through first thing in the morning.
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.2] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.3]. Continuous damage caused by pain has been decreased by the 3 points.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.1] has Levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.2]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 2 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Moulting Lv.1] has levelled up to [Moulting Lv.2]. The time required for the skill has been reduced by 4 minutes. Total time required: 5 Hours and 56 Minutes.]
Ting.
[Title gained: [Survivor]]
Ting.
[Skill [Survive Lv.1] granted.]
¡®Huh¡¡¯ When it finally managed to understand the notifications, the [Hungry] pest frowned and shook itself awake, expecting pain and agony. ''Huh. The Skill indeed worked as expected. There''s just soreness left now.''
And the neverending fire in its belly. Its curse, [Hungry].
''This is marvellous!'' It chittered in joy as its mind finally caught up to the realisation. ''I can use [Moulting] to heal my wounds!'' Giddy from the good news, it checked its HP and its mood instantly fell, as if it had bitten into a particularly sour lemon. ''[HP: 3/20]. Just what joke is this?''
It took the [Survivor] a few moments before it finally figured it out.
''So, [Moulting] only heals my physical wounds. It doesn''t increase my HP?'' The caterpillar''s body twitched in displeasure and the lemon in its mouth soured a bit more.
''At least, the wounds get healed,'' it eventually admitted, though a bit grudgingly. ''The restored HP must be from my regeneration, the [HPR], which is...'' it summoned its Status and the lemon in its mouth turned to vinegar. ''Mere 2 HP/Day of regeneration. Great. Wow. Groundbreaking. And as my HP increased by two whole points, I must have blacked out for an entire day. Marvellous. Despite the Skill requiring only six hours. Just marvellous.''
The [Immortal] caterpillar glowered at its Status before dismissing the source of the offending blue light. That done, it slowly wiggled its bulbous body to loosen up the dirt and mud of its little hideyhole.
As crumbs of dirt fell from above, the [Hungry] pest came to a profound realisation. ''There''s still shit covering me. My own shit at that.''
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress sighed once again and shook its head in distaste. However, as the earlier soreness reared its ugly head, its exhausted body barely twitched.
Thus, with the little energy it had, the fatigued [Survivor] managed to crawl out of the pit with great effort. ''It''s as expected,'' it remarked to itself, assessing the nearby plants, ''not a single one survived.''
The [Immortal] caterpillar stared off in the distance for a moment before it let out a sigh. It was a sigh of relief.
''Now that the bait has disappeared, that monster wouldn''t come here, would it?'' The [Reincarnated] Sorceress reassured itself before shaking its head, ''If only I had my magic... But, no matter. Just a couple of months more. Then I''ll evolve. I''ll get my magic back then.''
Turning around, the [Hungry] pest glanced at the humongous tree which had been its home since its birth. Its beady eyes travelled up the great length of the tree, and it noped. ''Nope! Not going all the way back up. Nope. Nope. Nope!'' There was no way it would be able to return to the top of the tree; not when the creature was this exhausted.
Thus, after pondering over the matter for a moment, the [Hungry] pest just crawled back into the excreta and poison covered cesspool.
¡®...how strange.¡¯ It couldn''t help but notice as it stepped in. ''This filth isn''t as repulsive as I thought it would be. It should be, shouldn''t it? When I had been a human, I wouldn''t have willingly rested in human shit, no matter the reason. I had had dignity then. I had been a Sorceress, researching the grandest of all secrets- the Soul itself.''
The [Survivor] wiggled to make itself comfortable, still deep in thought. ''...none of that matters now, does it? I am but a vermin now. And magicless. What dignity do I have? What pride?''
''...how pretentious,'' finally, it scoffed and dismissed the line of thought.
This, of course, was not the thought process of a mortal, but an immortal. But how could that be? The [Reincarnated] Sorceress had been a mortal. So how could its thought process align with that of an immortal?
This oddity was not as trivial as the [Immortal] caterpillar considered it to be.
After all, never before in the history of the Creations and the Realities had such a peculiar situation occurred. Never had mortal and immortal thoughts aligned as such.
Yet, such an oddity had now begun to emerge as a result of a Being''s meddling.
But the [Reincarnated] Sorceress neither knew of the meddling nor just how odd its situation was. In fact, even the oddity that it had noticed in its thoughts had been trivialised by its immortal thoughts.
Ignorant of the forces at play, the [Hungry] pest turned back to the notifications with a weary sigh, dismissing them one at a time before it suddenly stopped and tilted its insectoid head. ''A new [Title]? Now, this is interesting.''
Ting.
[Through your Will, you have defied your death. You have survived. Grants the skill, [Survive Lv.1]]
Despite its exhaustion, the offended [Immortal] caterpillar''s stubs squirmed in displeasure. ''What does this mean by "my death"? Was I supposed to die there? So soon? At the hands of that bird? What was the point of my reincarnation then?!''
Irritated, it focused on its first new skill, [Survive].
Ting.
[When activated, stops HP and MP from decreasing below a certain limit for a fixed amount of time. Cost: (Total HP)/2. Current Limit of Time: 1 Minute. Current Limit of HP: 1. Current Limit of MP: -]
It read the description once and then reread it, not knowing if it should laugh or cry. ''On one hand, this fixes my HP; effectively, putting a pause on my death. On the other hand, it also eats away half of my HP while limiting it to a mere single point and that too for just a minute.''
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress sighed, and as its emotions changed with each notification, its exhaustion steadily grew, leaving it with no desire whatsoever in figuring out the utility of its new Skill.
Thus, it chose a reaction and cursed. ''What an absolutely fucking piece of shit Skill!''
There was no rhyme or reason to its cursing. It had not even bothered to spend an ounce of energy to figure out the usefulness of the Skill. It cursed at the Skill solely because it felt like it. Cursing made it feel better.
Amidst the new immortal thoughts, the act of cursing became a beacon of its mortal thoughts.
And the unknown war within the creature¡¯s mind continued.
0.0
As the [Reincarnated] Sorceress woke up, its bleary eyes glanced around groggily for a moment before the creature bolted out of the cesspit in a great haste.
Its beady eyes hurriedly searched the surrounding, only to find colossal trees and sharp blades of grass.
Neither was what [Hungry] caterpillar required at the moment.
Crawling through the sea of useless grass blades, the creature took bites from the random things it thought looked edible. But they were nowhere enough.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
In the meantime, the more time passed, the more the [Immortal] caterpillar suffered.
Its fragile mind lost focus of everything as it single-mindedly looked for what the [Hungry] pest desired the most.
At that moment, the forest''s location and the weather played a great part in getting the [Reincarnated] Sorceress to its goal. The terrain and the available seeds had allowed saplings to grow during the previous season of spring, which had grown during most of the summer season to become short plants akin to shrubs.
The [Immortal] caterpillar spotted one such plant which had thin and long leaves; quite different from the flat and large leaves of its original tree. With its beady eyes shining, the bug crawled towards the plant with unmatched focus.
Now that it wasn''t dying of exhaustion, the hunger haunting it -courtesy of the Title [Hungry]- was punishing without remorse for starving itself.
''The great Ghosts help me! Who made such a Title? What''s even the point!? What good does it do if I eat nonstop?! Life has more to it than just eating!'' It lamented, crawling up the little green plant, whereupon it came across a fresh, thin leaf that looked particularly juicy.
So the [Immortal] caterpillar did what caterpillars are known to do; it bit into the leaf with great zeal.
And almost spat out the first mouthful on reflex.
The leaf was incredibly bitter, leaving its mouth tingling. However, its hunger was just too much for the [Reincarnated] Sorceress to bear. Thus, ignoring the taste, it dug into the leaf with no regrets.
Bite by bite, nibble by nibble the [Hungry] pest devoured the little leaf and moved onto the next one, which pacified the fire raging in its belly and it let out an irritated huff.
But continued eating. It wanted to starve itself out of pettiness but knew better.
With the unstoppable want for food no longer controlling the [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' thoughts, the frustrated creature finally turned its attention to the indescribable itch present all over its body. The word, uncomfortable, didn¡¯t even begin to describe the persistent itch.
So not only was the [Immortal] caterpillar was weary and ravenous, but also itchy.
The creature shook itself and tried to move its hands. But it had no hands. It had stubs. Countless of them.
Under its desire, the stubs wiggled in their places, reminding the [Reincarnated] Sorceress of what it had lost. What was dead. What had been erased. What no longer mattered.
Irritation of the likes that it had never felt before rose within the creature as its bulbous, green body rapidly grew hot and began trembling.
The itchiness, the weariness and the hunger didn''t help it any and the [Reincarnated] Sorceress smashed its face onto the stalk in misdirected anger.
Smash!
Unexpectedly, the action actually helped as a papery thin membrane, which was stuck to its body like a second skin, split open.
''What''s this?'' From its eyes and face, some odd greenish-skin-type thingy was peeling off. The [Immortal] caterpillar frowned for a moment, thinking back on all that it had done and what could have caused such an effect.
As it pondered, its beady eyes lit up. ''[Moulting]! That''s what this is!'' It remembered using the Skill after surviving the bird''s attack, and that the Skill''s description had included something about shedding skin.
Its curiosity satisfied, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress began to thrash around, while rubbing itself against the stalk of the plant with renewed vigour.
Gradually, its efforts bore fruit and the dead skin sticking to its body fell off in bits and pieces. What little that did remain, it pried it off with its jaws.
Once, all the shed skin was removed, the caterpillar almost glowed anew with bright green skin while its black spots seemed to suck in the very light. The shed skin, on the other hand, was sad, dull and papery.
Yet, the [Immortal] caterpillar eyed the exuviate with curious eyes. ''It''s just my skin. It should be edible, right?''
Such was the state of its mind that the [Immortal] thought slipped right in, without even alarming the [Reincarnated] Sorceress.
However, a sudden jolt of sharp pain ran down its bulbous body, breaking it out of its stupor. As its last mouthful of leaf pulp fell from its jaws, the [Immortal] caterpillar tried to figure out just what had happened.
Its head jerked around, searching for the cause, when the pain returned and hit it full force, leaving it shivering. Meanwhile, the world began to tilt and its vision went hazy.
As the [Reincarnated] Sorceress desperately sought answers, its beady eyes landed on the leaf pulp that had earlier fallen from its mouth, and its blood ran cold. ¡®Oh¡ no.''
Perhaps the [Hungry] pest should have regretted when it had found the leaves to be bitter. For it was too late to do so now.
¡®Poison! I was eating poison!¡¯ At the realization, the [Hungry] pest forgot its hunger. It forgot its fatigue. It forgot its frustration.
It had barely managed to survive its last life-threatening event, and now it had to deal been poisoned.
''Is this because I didn''t die to that bird? Does that mean my destiny was to die all along? It couldn''t be that, could it?'' The [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' mind raced with all sorts of thoughts. ''Now is not the time for useless thoughts! Think! Think! What can I do?''
''Damn it! If only I had my magic, this would be a child''s play!'' Cursing, it thought of other methods. ''Vomiting the pulp? Can caterpillars even vomit? How would I even induce vomit? My stubs don''t reach to my mouth, let alone to the back of my throat!''
''First thing first,'' the bug let go of the branch, entering free fall.
Unlike its last experience, the [Immortal] caterpillar didn''t fall through any shrub or bush to end up bruised. Light as the bug was, combined with the little height of the plant made the fall a nonissue to the creature.
At that moment, another bolt of hot pain race through its bulbous body and the poison hit it with full force.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress gritted its teeth as pain assaulted it in waves. One after another, wave after wave, agony battered its senses.
Its suffering didn''t end.
As the waves passed, the [Hungry] pest''s vision blurred and its sense of smell went wonky.
It saw the world move and smelled the odd odour of buttercups and mint. It knew there were neither buttercups nor mints in its vicinity, but that little tidbit didn''t help. Its body continued to twitch and shake out of its control.
Eventually, when the convulsions finally died down, the world stopped moving and the scent of buttercups and mints vanished.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress gasped to breathe, its green body still twitching at odd times. The little stubs holding its weight gave up and the caterpillar fell flat on its belly, completely spent.
¡®It¡¯s over. I am alive. I live.'' In between gasps and forced breathes, the [Hungry] pest tried to just process everything. ''It''s over. It¡¯s finally over. Thank the Great Ghosts it''s over. Thank the Great Ghosts for sparing me. Thank you...''
When the [Immortal] caterpillar''s breathing eventually calmed down, the creature turned to the poisonous plant and gave it a stink eye. As if, it was the plant''s fault for being poisonous. ''Just you wait, I''ll use you as firewood once I get my magic back!'' It harumphed. ''I''ll definitely come back when I evolve''
With a huff, it turned away, crawling out of the poisonous plant''s shade. As it stepped into the sunlight, its beady eyes glanced around, searching for the next food source.
However, all the nearby plants had leaves similar to the one that had poisoned it and the [Hungry] bug scowled.
The fire in its belly, although tamed for the moment, would rampage soon enough. And when it finally did so, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress didn''t want to be caught unprepared again.
Crawling through the tall grass blades, the [Immortal] caterpillar diligently searched, much as it had done after waking up. The only difference, this time, was that it didn''t bite into random grass like it had done the last time.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress had learnt its lesson.
For the time being at least. If its mental degradation continued, however, then no matter the lesson, the [Survivor] would forget them all. It would be rendered into nothing but a mindless monster.
After exploring quite a bit, the [Hungry] pest''s beady eyes shined. It had found a plant whose leaves were similar to the tree it had been born in; large and flat. With its stubs quivering in joy, the bug raced up the plant and dug into the soft, fresh leaves.
As the tasteless juices filled its mouth, the caterpillar let out a sigh of relief. With its tension relived, a thought occurred to the [Immortal] caterpillar. ''Didn''t I just have 3 points of HP? After that bone-searing pain, shouldn''t I have just died?''
The thoughts made the [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' breath hitch and it hurriedly summoned its Status. Only to find not a single point missing. Its HP still was [HP: 3/20], the same as before.
As glad as it was that it had not lost already meagre HP, the [Survivor] titled its head in confusion. Why had its HP not decreased when it had clearly been poisoned?
''Could it be due to [Poison Resistance Lv.5]?'' It reasoned. However, the Skill had clearly failed to stop the poison; the lingering twitches were the proof of its suffering.
The [Immortal] caterpillar''s numerous stubs squirmed in distress as it summoned the description of the Skill once again.
Ting.
[Poison Resistance Lv.5]
[Ability to reduce the effect of poison and delay being poisoned. Decrease the damage of the Poison by the Level of this skill.]
The [Hungry] pests frowned; this was the only Skill that hadn''t started at Level 1. The creature focused on it.
Ting.
[Ability to delay being poisoned. Due to being born a poisonous Immortal, the ability starts with a few levels mastered.]
¡®Could it be that the poison was incredibly weak with damage below 5 points? Thus it was naturally countered by the Skill?¡¯ It mused. ''But if it were so, then why did the Skill not block the effects?''
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress pondered on the matter as it ate, but couldn''t come up with any other explanation for the odd occurrence. ''Perhaps, the Skill doesn''t counter effects until it develops resistance to it naturally...''
The [Immortal] caterpillar stopped eating and its countless legs wiggled in displeasure. ''What a dumb flaw!'' It cursed. ''Whoever made it was either a moron or intended to make a faulty product. No one intelligent would leave such a stupid loophole!''
With a harumph, the [Hungry] pest resumed eating.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Status
Chapter 3B
The next week passed in a blur as the [Reincarnated] Sorceress did nothing but eat and sleep. Though, as it couldn''t justify occupying its old shit infused cesspit anymore, it no longer slept there.
Instead, it had dug out a new home right below the plant it was devouring.
During this time, its consistent consumption had raised the [Hungry] pest''s Level to [Level: 27] which had increased its Maximum HP to [HP: 32/32] and HPR to [HPR: 3/Day].
As the azure moon rose in the sky, the [Survivor] paused eating as a thought popped in its tiny head. It grimaced and its numerous stubs squirmed in displeasure.
It was a thought that had occurred to the [Reincarnated] Sorceress soon after it had been poisoned. However, as the memory of the poison had still been fresh at the time, the [Hungry] pest had absolutely refused to entertain the thought.
Now, though, that the memory was no longer fresh, the thought had made its comeback. It even seemed quite promising.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress knew that lived in a world that had a single rule, Kill or be Killed. In the midst of such an environment, it needed every advantage that it could get.
The thought, that kept on resurfacing, promised to provide an extremely obvious advantage. ''That poison didn''t end up harming in the end. I didn''t even lose a single point of HP...'' The proposition was disgusting but tempting.
After all, [Venom Creation] increased the potency of its poison based on the resistances obtained by [Poison Resistance]. If it could develop a resistance to the poisonous plant, the [Survivor] might be able to add pain and hallucination to its poison.
As it pondered more on the thought, the [Immortal] caterpillar''s stubs gave out and it flopped on its belly, resigning itself to the plan.
However, with this simple decision, a monumental change occurred. The war raging within the creature¡¯s fragile mind tilted in the favour of a faction rather than other.
Yet, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress remained ignorant.
Letting out a defeated sigh, it headed towards the poisonous plant. Reaching the thin, long-leaved plant, the [Immortal] caterpillar gave it a stink eye before crawling up the stalk to reach a small, newly budded leaf.
It took a deep breath, slowly let it out, and without any further delay, chomped down on the tiny stalks connecting the leaves to the stem. And then promptly, spat out the pulp within its mouth.
It had no intention of getting poisoned while still within the vicinity of the poisonous plant.
As the leaves fell, one after another, once again a defeated sigh escaped the creature. ¡®This is going to be laborious.¡¯ It thought, biting into one of the scattered leaves before dragging it to the nearby pit it had dug previously.
Once it had collected all the bitten leaves, the [Immortal] caterpillar crawled into the pit; but with its ass down the hole and its mouth sticking out. After eyeing the leaves warily for quite a few moments, the [Hungry] pest devoured the leaves.
And then it waited with bated breath.
As it waited, its numerous stubs squirmed uneasily and its bulbous body twitched every other moment. The wait of the inevitable seemed scarier than the actual event itself to the [Survivor].
Then, all of a sudden, the poison exploded.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress convulsed as the pain ravaged its tiny body. It convulsed and it shrieked. It screamed its non-existent heart out.
Its vision blurred as the world started to dance and its sense of smell went haywire. This time the [Survivor] caught the odour of swamp and rain.
The [Immortal] caterpillar knew that no swamp existed near it and that it hadn''t rained since its birth. But the knowledge didn''t help it any.
Eventually, the poison ran its course and the convolutions stopped.
Half panting and half gasping, the delirious [Survivor] flopped its body onto the sides of the pit and laid still, exhausted.
Yet, it managed to summon the explanation of its Species and glared at it.
Ting.
[Species allows for different evolution pathways to manifest. Current evolution path available: Insect.]
''If I hadn''t been born an insect, I wouldn¡¯t have to go through this agony.'' It blamed its Species and despaired; its stubs squirming in distress.
Before it dismissed the notification, its beady eyes landed on the words, ''Evolution path''.
[Evolution paths are a result of Species. They are either granted by Titles or by Skills that can turn a creature completely into another creature through Evolution.]
Of course, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress having no idea of what ''Evolution'' was, focused on it.
[Every Immortal has the ability to evolve. Evolution is the ability to change one''s Vessel, when one reaches Level 100, to a more powerful one on the evolution pathways granted by one¡¯s Species.]
Dismissing the confusing mess, it tried to calm down. Once the [Reincarnated] Sorcress'' breathing settled down, it gazed up at the azure moon peacefully shining up in the sky. ''Why do I suffer like this...? What will I gain...?'' The bug couldn''t help but think.
Its gaze left the moon, searching the wide, dark sky. But, no matter how long it searched, it couldn''t find any piece of its old, familiar sky.
Even the stars were different here.
The [Survivor] shook itself. Its old home was gone. Destroyed. Annihilated. Erased.
This was its world now. Its life.
''But what''s the point of living like this...'' The [Reincarnated] Immortal sighed, but then the embers in its belly reminded why it lived. To eat, its belly seemed to say.
The [Immortal] caterpillar scoffed. ''At least I get rid of this annoying hunger, I will live. I can''t die of something as stupid as a Title.''
Shaking itself out of the morose thoughts, the [Survivor] reached out and covered the opening with a dried-out leaf before crawling deeper into the hole.
Its preparation complete, the [Hungry] pest checked its HP, which was full at [HP: 32/32], and nodded to itself. ''Let''s see what is this new Skill.''
After the effect that [Moulting] had on its battered and bruised body, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress no longer dared to field test its Skills. It would rather test it while safe and waste its HP, than test under duress and die.
This wasn''t the only decision it had recently made, however. The [Immortal] caterpillar had also decided to level up [Moulting], and if [Survive] turned out to be worth it, then it too.
However, the [Hungry] pest''s plan faced its first challenge in the form of its abysmal HP regeneration. If it couldn''t regenerate enough to max out its HP, then how could it even sacrifice HP to activate any of the two Skills?
Thus, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress sighed, activating the Skill. ''[Survive].''
Immediately, it felt weariness take over its mind as its HP decreased by half to [HP: 16/32].
0.0
The [Immortal] caterpillar woke up to the familiar sensation of its insides ready to burst.
Stretching its bulbous body, it ignored the sensation for a moment, as a soft sigh escaped its jaws. ''...that felt good.''
Soon after it hurried to its morning rituals as its backside was truly ready to burst.
Finishing its morning ablutions, the [Hungry] pest grimaced as its numerous stubs wiggled in displeasure. It was time it made its way towards the patch of poisonous plants. ''Once I evolve and get my magic back, I wouldn''t have to go through all this, would I?''
As it had for the past two weeks, the bug began its day by poisoning itself. The [Reincarnated] Sorceress didn''t want the threat of such agony hanging over its head all day long; instead, preferring to be done with it as soon as possible.
Just how intelligent this decision was, it neither knew nor cared; courtesy of its fractured mind.
The [Survivor] bit off a bunch of thin leaves, letting them fall on the ground, before gathering them around its pit and crawling in to begin eating. Soon after, it felt a familiar sensation as the world began to tilt and immediately stopped eating.
Hurriedly covering its hideout with the nearby long leaves, the [Immortal] caterpillar burrowed further into the pit as the poison took hold.
It took a while, a little later than usual, for the quiver, the shakes and the motion sickness to start. But when they did, they were accompanied by hallucinations. Nausea hit the bug a few moments later, causing bitter bile to rise in the back of its throat.
The [Hungry] pest suffered through them all, albeit not silently. It screamed, shrieked and thrashed; its numerous stubs wiggling wildly. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
When the torment finally ended, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress was left gasping and panting. Though, now that it was getting used to the poison, the recovering time was beginning to decrease.
With its breathing stabilized and muscles under control, the [Hungry] pest made its way towards the non-poisonous plant with big, flat leaves to satisfy its ever-burning hunger.
The day passed by quickly.
There were no sudden bird attacks and no further poison induced hallucinations. The caterpillar merely devoured the tasteless leaves aimlessly-
Ting.
[You have levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
-it reached [Level: 36] which caused its HP to increase to [HP: 41/41] and [HPR to 4 HP/day].
The [Immortal] caterpillar wasn''t happy though. For it was, once again, making its way towards the poisonous plant. Its day began with poison and ended with the same.
The ordeal, as usual, was not over soon, seeming to stretch on and on. When it was finally over, the [Hungry] pest sighed in relief and crawled inside the pit under the non-poisonous tree.
Making itself comfortable in its home, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress used [Survive], having used both, [Survive] and [Moulting], once already in the past few weeks.
As weariness seeped in its bulbous body, the [Immortal] caterpillar sighed. The Skill had eaten 21 points of HP.
0.0
A week later, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress awakened to a terrible itch all over its body; the humidity and the heat didn''t help its mood either. As its numerous stubs wiggled in displeasure, it stretched its bulbous body and tore the soft exuviate sticking to its green skin.
''Right,'' it recalled. ''Using [Moulting] last night had Levelled it up .''
[Skill [Moulting Lv.2] has levelled up to [Moulting Lv.3]. The time required for the skill has been reduced by 4 minutes. Total time required: 5 Hours and 52 Minutes.]
The [Immortal] caterpillar listened to the sound of tears and squirmed even more, causing even more cracks to resonate across its tiny pit. ¡®Huh? What is this cracking sound? This thing is being torn, not crushed...''
Pondering on the matter, the [Hungry] pest struggled out of its shed skin before turning around to study it with utmost focus. The Exuviate didn''t feel like the semi-dry skin like it usually did; instead, its texture resembled that of fallen autumn leaves.
The [Immortal] caterpillar hummed in thought, but the sound came out as a low hiss, shocking the bug and snapping it out of its thoughts.
Shaking its head, the [Hungry] pest turned away, dismissing the matter.
After finishing its morning ablutions, it poisoned itself with the long, thin leaves. What followed after was the usual circus of agony, aches, convolutions, quivers, olfactory hallucinations and nausea.
Though, this time, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress couldn''t hold the bile back and vomited next to the entrance of its hideout. ''That would stink up the place.'' It thought, stubs squirming in distaste.
The [Hungry] bug covered the puke with a thin leaf while trying to avoid the mess as much as it could. Finishing that, it dug nearby before covering the vomit with the resulting mud.
''It''s odd,'' the [Immortal] caterpillar observed. ''I was fine sleeping within a cesspit, but a bit of vomit made me squirm.'' Recalling the day, it still didn''t any find disgust, whatsoever, for what it had done.
''Just what is different with that shit and this sick?'' The [Immortal] caterpillar pondered as it made its way up the nearby, huge-leaved plant.
The only difference, that it could think of, had been the risk to its survival. ''Could that be it? It couldn''t be that simple, could it?'' The [Survivor] scoffed and dismissed the thought.
Crawling up the plant, the bug found only a couple of newly sprouted leaves; the rest it had eaten. And if it ate any more, the plant would die for sure.
The thought of the plant¡¯s death brought up the [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' dwindling lifespan.
The [Immortal] caterpillar originally had a lifespan of 90 days but, now, merely 48 days remained. The [Survivor] had lived through almost half its life and yet, it had only reached Level 40.
''Where had the time gone? When had it just slipped by?'' The [Hungry] pest asked itself, ignorant of the answers itself. ''I ate, devoured and consumed all my life. But it wasn''t enough.''
Despite all its best efforts, it had merely reached Level 40. ''If things remained the same, I wouldn''t even reach Level 80. How can I when the difficulty of each Level keeps increasing?''
However, what did the [Reincarnated] Sorceress care about living? It had nothing to live for. Everything it cared about no longer existed, destroyed beyond redemption. Its world, annihilated. Its research, erased. Its magic, gone.
The [Hungry] pest shivered in grief before it shook its head to clear it of such thoughts.
''I''ll get my magic back once I evolve, won''t I? And I promised to get rid of [Hungry], didn''t I?'' It remembered, staring at the rays of sunlight filtering through the thick canopy above. ''I should keep the promises I made to myself.''
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress sighed before crawling down to search for another plant with the familiar, flat and huge leaves.
Ting.
[Skill [Crawl Lv.2] has levelled up to [Crawl Lv.3]. Crawling speed has been increased.]
Eyeing the notification with disdain, the bug dismissed it and scoffed. ''As if I''d be happy to know I can crawl better. Hmmph.''
By the time it found its next food source, the Sun was high up in the sky; not that the [Hungry] pest personally experienced it, the canopy above saved it from most of the heat.
The [Immortal] caterpillar observed its find which was big enough to qualify as a young tree. Its trunk had begun to darken and harden, but the process seemed to have begun only recently as it still held the softness and the green look of a plant.
With a joyous chitter of its jaws, the [Hungry] pest crawled up the soft bark to munch on its favourite tasteless food.
However, as was its habit, the [Survivor] kept its senses hyper-aware. Having suffered a bird attack early in its life, it had learned to keep track of its surrounding.
Thus, it regularly scanned the higher branches when it ate.
This habit hadn''t been needed much when it had been eating the young plants, given that it didn''t have many branches, to begin with. But now that it was on a young tree, the habit was quite needed.
The habit proved to be a lifesaver when the [Reincarnated] caterpillar''s vigilance caught movement to the side, where its branch separated from the trunk.
There, the bug saw a snail, almost the size of a grown mortal''s finger. Slimy and bright pink, the creature carried a brown shell on its back, which swayed as the slime slid, leaving behind a thick layer of mucus.
The snail''s two eyes rose from its head on two thin stalks, fixated on the [Immortal] caterpillar with utmost focus. The most disturbing thing about it, however, was its mouth.
Situated right beneath its eyestalks, The circular opening was lined with rows upon rows of sharp, yellow teeth, each of which moved independently of the others. The sight was grotesque to looks at, giving the bug goosebumps.
It was a Cracked Mouth Snail, an aggressive species of carnivorous snails. Named after its horrific mouth, the species were mostly caught and sold to farmers as natural pesticides.
But the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had never seen a snail as disturbing as that. It didn''t even know that such unnatural creatures existed in this new world, having only seen animals that seemed quite similar to the ones in its previous world.
The [Hungry] bug''s beady eyes darkened as all the fine hairs on its body erupted in goosebumps; its instincts warning the bug of its natural predator.
Keeping its eyes fixed on the slowly approaching hideousness, the bug backed away without any reservation. The ugly snail was twice its size, with the [Immortal] caterpillar -despite all its growth- being only half the size of a mortal''s finger.
The shelled [Immortal] -for there was no way something that ugly wasn''t an [Immortal]- slid towards the caterpillar at such a glacial pace that the [Reincarnated] Sorceress stopped its retreat.
Its numerous stubs squirmed with nervous energy as the bug''s beady eyes gleamed; a plan forming in its fragile mind.
The [Immortal] caterpillar hesitated still, its beady eyes lingering on the ugly snail''s huge size before it firmed its determination; its body shivered in fear nonetheless.
If the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had still been just another [Mortal], it would have given up in terror; deathly afraid of a vastly superior foe. For the [Mortal] Sorceress had never been a person of strong will.
The woman had gone with the flow, even obediently following orders while growing up locked within a facility, away from the rest of the world. Such had been the woman''s lack of spine that the research forced upon her had become her goal in life; the reason for her existence.
But, why had that Being reincarnated such a submissive soul?
Ignorant of the changes within its psyche, the shivering caterpillar enacted its plan. And the war within its fragmenting mind shifted.
Instead of further backing away, the [Hungry] pest crawled towards the slowly sliding [Immortal] snail and activated [Venom Creation].
As venom began to pour out of its pores, dripping down its bulbous body, the [Hungry] bug began rolling across the branch, trying to make a straight patch of venom.
It rolled and rolled and it rolled. It rolled as if its life depended on it; which, it kinda did. So, it kept rolling. Its venom soon formed a patch but the [Reincarnated] Sorceress kept on secreting the ¨Chopefully- lethal liquid.
The [Immortal] caterpillar had a simple plan. It intended to create patches of venom and then biting the ugly snail so that the poison would enter the predator''s body through the exposed wounds when it slid across the patches.
As soon as the [Hungry] bug finished the first patch of venom, it retreated and began the process all over again. It did so until it had created five venom patches, each twice the width of a mortal''s finger.
By the time the [Immortal] caterpillar was done with the fifth path, the Cracked Mouth Snail had already reached the first path, slowly sliding onto it without a worry in the world.
Not that it had expected it, but the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had been hoping for its venom to work even without an open wound. It had wished to see the ugly snail scream the moment it slid over the patch.
However, the liquid it had secreted was venom, not acid. How could venom work without an open wound? Its hope had been a foolish one, which the reality crushed without any mercy.
The shivering caterpillar steeled its heart -which it wasn''t sure it had- and shakily crawled forward. It crossed one venom patch after another before reaching the second patch where the Cracked Mouth Snail was; having crossed the first one without any issue.
''I can do it. I can. It is so slow. I can do it.'' The [Reincarnated] Sorceress told itself before finally making its way towards the snail.
As soon as the caterpillar came into range, the snail''s eyes shined and its head blurred, moving unnaturally fast, and the green bug felt burning pain.
Hastily retreating, the caterpillar checked its body, only to find blue-green liquid leaking out of where a mass of flesh was missing from its second segment. The snail had bitten off a piece of its flesh!
The [Immortal] caterpillar trembled in fright. It could have died just now!
''Skill! That had to be a Skill!'' The green bug realised as it hurriedly checked its Status and its breath hitched. It had just 18 points of HP left out of 45!
0.0
Chapter 4
There existed a forest. It existed neither too far away from civilization, nor too close to it. And within this forest stood a massive wooden gate. This gate guarded a compound that was surrounded on all sides by wooden walls that were too low to offer any real protection.
The massive gate was made of light wood and seemed feeble. It seemed like one kick away from falling off its hinges. The wooden walls were no better. Rather, to call them walls would be an exaggeration. Instead, the fence would be the better word, if their height was to be taken into consideration.
Besides the height, even the structural integrity of the fence was questionable as moss had covered most of the fence, as far as the eyes could see and what little had been left, was splattered with holes. As if that was not enough, small mounds of wood dust could be seen littered near the feet of fence, all across its length.
Clearly, the walls suffered from a termite infestation.
Within this compound, there were buildings littered around without any sense of direction or reason. Though, to address those structures as buildings would be being generous, as most of those buildings were made of mud and thatched roofs. Huts would be a more appropriate word for those structures.
All in all, the compound did not give off the feeling of security.
Yet, it existed and that too within the depth of the Evergreen Forest. A place with monsters and spirits abound. This phenomenon confused the group of fidgeting children standing in front of the massive gate, nervously and impatiently awaiting their entrance.
The double doors of the gate smoothly opened with nary a sound, further proving their worthlessness, and an unremarkable man calmly walked out of the double doors. He wore saffron robes that contrasted remarkably against his dark brown skin. His grey dreadlocks were tied up above his head in an impressive bun. While his salt and pepper beard almost hid the necklace of thorny beads that he wore.
The man was gaunt and thin but not overly tall. His skin was taut against his muscles in a way that indicated starvation but the pace of his walk and the glow of skin argued otherwise. His brown eyes were clear and his smile was bright. Yet, they did not manage to brighten his common appearance.
He gave the group of children a casual glance.
¡°Pranam Guruji.¡± The children hurriedly joined their hands and bowed as they greeted the man in an unsynchronized chorus. In answer, the man raised his right hand and, with his palm facing the group, muttered a blessing in response. ¡°The glory be yours.¡±
He surveyed the children once again, finding nervousness, longing, fear and anxiety as the main emotions saturating the children.
¡°You are here to walk on the path of knowledge, curiosity, sacrifice, austerity and asceticism.¡± He addressed the children. ¡°It will be difficult but not impossible. All that you require is the will to step forward.¡±
An anxious buzz passed through the group as his words scared the children, much like they usually did every year. But this did not deter the saffron-clad man from baring down the truth before them, even though they were too young to comprehend the meaning behind his words. ¡°This path, that you would walk, is the path of [Will] and [Reflection]. With enough will, this path is yours. With enough self-reflection, the world is yours.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.
¡°We who walk this path, nurture our curiosity and question the world. And to question we need the will to do so. But to know what to question, we need self-reflection to know so.¡±
¡°Today you stare at a long and difficult road ahead of you, but if you bear to walk it, then know that you¡¯d dare to question the blessed and the lords, the kings and the emperors. And if you walk down this path long enough, you¡¯d even dare to question the Laws and the Gods.¡±
His words, incomprehensible they may be, caused a buzz of excitement to pass through the children and the man smiled.
¡°Enough of this now.¡± The children fell silent at his order. ¡°You will be living in the Ashram from now on but you must learn to take care of yourself and renounce the world. But before that, follow me.¡±
The man led the children to a large building on the far side of the compound. Surprisingly, the building was made up of wood rather than mud, like the others were. Though that was not much of an improvement considering the decrepit condition it was in. ¡°This is where you will be staying, but only for a month.¡±
He turned to face the children and his serious gaze met the nervous ones of the children.
¡°During this one month, you must build a cottage of your own. You may only use clay and hay. Nothing more.¡± He ordered in short and precise sentences. ¡°What you¡¯d make will be your home from the beginning of the next month. If you have not made one by the end of the month, then let the stars greet you at night.¡±
His declaration shocked the children into silence. Never had they imagined that they would have to build their own homes. After all, some of these children were the children of the affluent that had lavish houses to live in and servants to order around.
A boy tentatively raised his hand; this situation was unacceptable to him. His father was the inspector in the nearest town; he clearly deserved better. Yet, he was no fool. He knew the person greeting him was no ordinary man. Thus, respectfully waited to be called upon.
The man smiled and addressed the children. ¡°Never fear to ask your teachers. We nurture curiosity and the spirit of questioning here. Yet, you must first try to reason the answer yourself. Only when you have failed, should you seek the guidance of your teacher. After all, curiosity without the will to reason yourself is no curiosity at all.¡±
¡°I will answer your questions today. But in future, when you seek guidance from your teachers, you must come to us with a conclusion of your own and why you concluded so.¡± He nodded towards the child who had raised his hand previously. ¡°Now ask.¡±
¡°Guruji, umm,¡± The child hesitated, ¡°why must we build these...sha- homes? Can¡¯t we just live here?¡± He hopefully pointed to the building.
¡°Good question.¡± The man smiled. ¡°You must build your own homes because you must learn what you are capable of and how long can your determination last. Some of you would plan big houses but end up never finishing them. While others would plan a house too small and would regret that they had dreamed a bit too little.¡±
¡°The other reason that you must build these shacks,¡± He smiled mischievously at the child, who blushed promptly at having his words caught, ¡°is because you are young. As you would continue to grow, you would find that the homes you had built, with so much of your hard work and sweat, grow too small with each passing day.¡±
¡°You would be forced to abandon your homes. You¡¯d have to make them again and again and then again when you realise that you need more space than just for yourself. This process will break down your attachments to the worldly desires and help you walk down your path.¡± The man nodded at the child. ¡°Anything else.¡±
The children broke into a nervous yet excited chatter.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 5
The [Immortal] caterpillar''s mind went blank and it mentally screamed, ''there is no way that ugly snail did 27 points of damage with just a single bite! There is just no way!'' Because, if the snail had done so, then the caterpillar might as well lay down its life obediently; allowing itself to be killed.
''Right! Right.'' The [Survivor] remembered. ''Its [Moulting]. I had used that last night! Right. It had taken 23 points, yes. It had. So this ugly thing 5 points of damage. I can''t let it bite me again! I can''t.''
Snapping out of the daze, the caterpillar''s beady eyes found the snail whose eyes shined with anticipation.
''A mistake! That''s what it was. My plan. I need to follow my plan.'' It told itself to calm down. ''There is no need to engage with it headfirst. Why would I even do so? Am I an idiot?!''
Berating itself, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress glanced at the slowly approaching snail before hurriedly retreating in fright; the snail had crossed over from the second patch to third.
Before the snail could move ahead further, the caterpillar bent down and sucked a mouthful of venom from its body. Aiming, the bug shot the globule of poison directly at one of the eyestalks.
It missed. ''Just my freaking luck!'' Cursing, it once again sucked a mouthful of venom before turning to face the snail and spitting. The venom hit its mark this time, landing on the snail''s left eye and the shelled creature hissed in annoyance.
Taking advantage of the moment where the snail was busy cleaning its eye, the [Immortal] caterpillar circle around the snail to arrive behind it.
Wincing as its wound send bursts of pain, the [Survivor] bit into the backside of the snail before its grip could get a hold of the green bug.
The snail immediately turned around, the poison in its eye forgotten, and glared down at the puny thing that dared to hurt it. Prey shouldn''t fight back!
As the [Reincarnated] Sorceress prepared to bite down once again, it noticed the snail''s shell emitting a soft brown glow.
''Another freaking Skill!'' Having received the short end of a Skill previously, the [Survivor] recognised this one quite fast and paddled back post-haste. Right at that moment, the shell slammed down with unnatural force, grazing past its intended target.
Hissing in pain, the green bug retreated as bolts of pain shot from its two wounds, leaving it trembling. It stared defiantly at the snail, who had turned around to glare furiously at the prey that just won''t die.
With the first part of the plan in action, the caterpillar didn''t need to go near the snail anymore. Thus, it maintained its distance from the slow snail, which wasn''t very difficult, and waited for the venom to work.
Soon enough, the Cracked Mouth snail winced and its body twitched before trembling uncontrollably while it shrieked in pain.
The caterpillar watched from afar but soon, its stubs squirmed in annoyance as the snail''s pained cries decreased in intensity as if the effects of the venom had already begun to fade.
Its beady eyes dark, the [Survivor] checked the wound and, sure enough, the snail''s natural slime had formed a coating over it, preventing more venom from infecting the wound.
The [Immortal] caterpillar screeched in frustration before its beady eyes shone with determination. It bent down to suck in a mouthful of venom from its body and crawled forward, wincing in pain.
Its senses vigilant, the caterpillar circled to the panting snail''s backside and bit again, delivering a globule of venom directly into the wound.
Having experienced the cycle once already, the Cracled Mouth Snail didn''t bother to turn and glower. Instead, it directly activated its Skill, causing the shell to glow brown before slamming it down, hard.
The green bug had also experienced the cycle, however, and it was gone by the time the glowing shell hut the bark of the branch, cracking it.
Thus began the cycle of cat and mouse, where the caterpillar led the slow snail on a merry chase over the several patches of venom, gaining nothing much as the slime regularly covered the wound.
In the midst of the chase, the [Survivor] suddenly turned around and spat venom directly into the snail''s left eye, the one it had targeted earlier.
Taking advantage of the snail''s efforts to shake off the venom, the caterpillar bit into the snail''s right eye before ripping it off from the stalk.
The [Immortal] snail screeched in agony, but then a globule of venom landed directly on the bleeding stalk and the creature roared in anger. However, no matter its wrath, the prey remained out it reach as its energy declined and the world wavered.
Not long after, the snail slumped over, dead.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.2] has levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.3]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 3 minutes.]
The gasping bug gaped, its jaws hanging open. Hastily summoning its Status, the [Immortal] caterpillar checked its Level and HP before its jaws chittered in joy.
Its Level now read, [Level: 46] while its HP read, [HP: 22/51].
''The Great Ghosts help me! Yes!'' It thought, elated. It had gained six Levels and a Skill Level from just one fight! ''Why am I wasting time eating those stupid leaves, when I can just kill these snails?''
But, at that moment, all its previous wounds pulsed with pain and agony, and it let out a loud hiss. The area of the snail''s bite hurt the most, leaking bluish-green fluids that the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had no name for.
With a wince, the [Immortal] caterpillar decided not to linger any longer and returned to its hideout, its thoughts racing.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress had a lot to think about.
''Why did that ugly snail give out so much experience?'' It pondered, crawling through the tall grass blades. ''I have eaten leaves for days, just to gain a single Level but that stupid thing gave me six in a matter of few moments. Why?''
It wiggled its jaws in thought. ''The only difference is that I am supposed to eat leaves. It is what I must do to survive. But... fighting ugly things is not? Hmm...''
Arriving at its hideout, the caterpillar dragged a thick leaf over to the hideout to cover the entrance.
Paying little attention to the act, it thought, ''...no, that not right. Fighting to live is also for survival. I can''t just let myself be eaten. So fighting is also survival. Does that mean even if I hadn''t won, I would have gained some experience?''
Tilting its head to the side in confusion, it thought, ''...but if such reasoning were true, then shouldn''t mere breathing grant me Levels? That also counts as surviving...''
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress paused mid-step. As a result, half its body was inside the hideout, while the other hung out.
''This means it''s not just about survival. There has to be something more than survival.'' It concluded. ''But what is more important than survival? Just what is more important than survival...''
The thought tickled the [Immortal] caterpillar''s memory, reminding of a special notification it had read soon after breaking out of its egg. It hurriedly summoned the strange notification.
Ting.
[Since there is life, death exists now. Since there is now death, life exists. Within the singularity of this infinity, lies the endless chaos of half-truths. Truth and Untruth, both extend through this singularity. In the moment between singularity to infinity and infinity to singularity, hides the meaning of Dharma.]
[Dharma: Thrive.]
''Thrive,'' it echoed, nodding its head. ''So that''s the key, hmm... I could surely exploit this in future.¡¯
Its jaws chittered in excitement, but then the [Survivor] immediately flinched, experiencing what was called instant regret as pain flared once again. ''Yep. That''s why I should avoid confrontation. Because I am a freaking caterpillar!''
Squirming its numerous stubs in displeasure, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress checked its Status. Its HPR read [HPR: 5 HP/day] while HP read [HP: 15/51], causing it to frown.
Of 22 HP left after [Moulting], it had lost 4 HP to the bite, leaving it with 18 HP. The next wound should have done 4~5 HP of damage, following which the Level ups should have added 6 HP, leaving it 20~22 HP.
Then why did it have just 15 HP at the moment?
As the [Hungry] pest tilted its head to the side in confusion, it caught sight of the bite marks which had a gelatinous bluish-green liquid coating on them. ''...bleeding damage. Right.''
With a sigh, the [Immortal] caterpillar settled in its little hideout for the day. Planning on using [Moulting] to heal, the caterpillar called out, ''[Moulting].''This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
But nothing happened.
Squirming its stubs, the caterpillar tried activating the Skill a few times but received no response. Shaking its head, it summoned its Status.
And came face to face with the proof of its stupidity.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress merely had 15 HP out of 51. How could it even activate [Moulting] went the Skill demanded almost half the HP to activate?
As its beady eyes flickered with annoyance, the [Hungry] pest crawled out its pit, wincing and flinching, and arrived at the young tree. It eyed the tree for a moment -as if awaiting mockery- before climbing the damn thing to eat the freaking leaves.
Thus, over the next three days, the [Survivor] ate and slept in pain, waiting to use the Skill.
But by the time its HP reached 30 points, allowing it to safely use [Moulting], its wounds had already healed enough that the bug no longer needed the Skill, leaving it a bit frustrated.
The [Hungry] bug''s suffering did end up earning it a Skill Level though.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.3] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.4]. Resistance to pain has been increased.]
0.0
Over the course of the next four days, as its HP regenerated back to [HP: 51/51], the [Immortal] caterpillar followed its hated routine of poisoning itself, eating leaves and then poisoning itself again.
To its utter jaws-chittering pleasure, it soon noticed the effects of the poison gradually lessening, with convolutions, hallucinations and aches still assaulting its body, but their duration and intensity decreasing.
For this reason, as it crawled away from the poisonous plant, the [Hungry] pest chittered its jaws happily. Reaching its new food source, the bug crawled up the young tree''s soft and began looking for a branch that was rather new and still tender.
Finding what it was looking for, the [Survivor] dug a pit in the middle of the branch before expanding it from the sides so that the pit covered the entire width of the branch, forming a shallow basin.
Satisfied, the [Immortal] caterpillar used [Venom Creation] to fill the basin with its venom, intending to hunt snails. With that done, it bit off a nearby leaf and used it to cover the shallow valley.
''This would do, wouldn''t it?'' The thought sobered the bug, and it shook its head to get rid of idle musings. Nevertheless, it couldn''t help but recall when it had been vehemently against the idea, branding it as suicidal.
However, as the days had passed and it had received not a single new Level, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had been forced to rethink.
All because of its dwindling lifespan.
With the end of the 7th week, the caterpillar had just about 40~41 days left to live.
''It took me about 50 days to reach just Level 46; not even a Level per day. And that included six Levels from that damned ugly snail.'' The [Hungry] pest scoffed. ''Now I have to get 54 more Levels in about 40 days? Do Levels grow on trees or something?!''
Considering that it ate leaves to Level up, for the [Hungry] bug, its Levels did indeed grow on trees.
''Dumb little Title!'' It cursed, annoyed. ''Starves me constantly but couldn''t even provide enough Levels! It had one job! One!''
Left with no choice, the [Immortal] caterpillar was reluctantly forced to hunt snails.
However, knowing that it was no match for snails, the [Survivor] had decided to fight by its own rules and on its own grounds. Thus, rather than having a straight head-on battle, it had decided to employ traps.
After creating multiple basins across the soft branch, it sighed tiredly before moving further down the branch to eat the newer, softer leaves.
By noon, it hadn''t had any run-in with snails, and the weather had taken a turn for the worse. Dark clouds had swept by, covering the sun behind to paint the world in dull light, while the winds had brought along humidity which had combined with the heat to create a sweltering atmosphere.
Not that the [Reincarnated] Sorceress paid it any mind as it caught movement from the corner of its beady eyes. Its skin tingling in nervousness, the [Immortal] caterpillar turned around to find a snail sliding towards it with hungry eyes.
Pink and slimy, the Cracked Mouth Snail was much like its brethren killed a week prior. The only difference being its smaller size. At two-thirds the size of a mortal''s finger, it was only marginally larger than the green bug.
With goosebumps erupting on its green skin, the [Survivor] crawled towards the trap. Activating [Venom Creation] to soak its body in poison, it sucked in a mouthful of venom and stopped in front of the leaf, waiting.
Like a hawk, the [Immortal] caterpillar watched as the ugly snail slowly slid towards it and the trap.
Just as the shelled creature slid onto the leaf, its body didn''t find anything solid to support its weight, causing it to slip into the shallow valley of poison. Making use of the opportunity, the [Survivor] hurriedly crawled forward, biting down on the eyestalk before ripping it apart.
The snail shrieked in pain as venom seeped through the wound into its blood. Glaring with its sole remaining eye, the shelled creature activated its Skill in vengeance and its head glowed brown, moving unnaturally fast to deliver a devastating wound.
Having expected such a response, the [Survivor] had rolled already to the side the side, instead of retreating, which caused the snail''s attack to miss. Not wasting a moment more, the green bug retreated just outside the snail range and waited for its venom to begin its work.
The [Immortal] caterpillar didn''t have to wait for long before the snail began twitching and trembling as pained cries escaped its horrifyingly teethed mouth.
Having waited for just that, the green bug raced forward before biting down onto the remaining eyestalk and ripping it free from the ugly snail''s slimy flesh, causing its target to screech in anger and agony.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' skin tingling in fear and nervousness as it used the moment, to deliver numerous venomous bites onto the snail''s lower body, allowing the collected venom access to the creature''s slimy body.
At that moment, the effects of the venom ended as the snail''s shell began to softly glow brown.
Alarmed, the [Immortal] caterpillar hastily retreated but it was already too late. The hard, glowing shell slammed into the green bug with full force and pain exploded all over its body, its vision going dark.
Letting out an agonised screech, the caterpillar continued to retreat as its vision slowly returned. Glaring at the aggressor, it waited for the valley of venom to go to town.
''First, it comes to me, salivating like a hungry dog, and then blames me for fighting back! What gall!'' The green bug cursed, harumphing. ''You just wait. With that much venom into you, not just you, even your ancestors would die! You damned ugly bastard!''
Amidst its rant, the [Survivor] almost forgot to check the HP damage. Remembering at the last moment, it hurriedly summoned its Status to find its HP at [HP: 39/51]. ''This hideous thing did 12 freaking points of damage! You just wait, you''ll what''s waiting for you!''
As if sensing the tirade, the snail shrieked, refusing to give up. Shivering and flinching, the now blind snail chose a random direction to hurriedly head out of the venom puddle.
The [Immortal] caterpillar didn''t allow it though. Circling ahead, it hit the shelled creature with the tail end of its body, sending the shelled creature back into the venom pool.
Refusing to give up, the Cracked Mouth Snail tried to escape a few more times but with the [Reincarnated] Sorceress guarding the path, the blind snail failed each time.
Not long after, the shelled creature gradually went limp, dying to the venom and pain.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.3] has Levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.4]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 4 minutes.]
Chittering its jaws in glee, the [Survivor] checked its status to find that its Level has risen to Level 50 and its HP had become [HP: 44/55] while its HPR remained the same at 5 HP/day. ¡®4 Level ups and a Skill Level up, just for a few moments of work! Who wouldn¡¯t want that!¡¯
Crawling forward with its jaws still chittering, the [Immortal] caterpillar bit into the dead snail''s body before dragging it out of the puddle. Gasping from the effort, the bug slowly dragged the snail corpse to the crook of the branch before pushing it over the edge.
With a muted thud, the corpse fell on its shell and got stuck in the ground, upside down, eliciting a mocking, jaw-chittering expression of glee from the green bug.
With a last satisfied look, the green bug crawled to the puddle before filling it up again with its venom. ''This reminds me, why did this one just give out four Levels instead of six? Is it because this snail was weaker?'' It did seem smaller than the previous one...''
Restoring the trap, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress returned to munching on the tasteless leaves, not to Level but to sate the hunger raging in its belly.
It was late in the afternoon when the [Hungry] pest once again noticed movement. Instead of being in its surroundings, the disturbance was on the ground below. There, it saw a large black scorpion, about the size of a mortal''s palm.
With its shining, black chitin gleaming in the dying light, the huge scorpion carelessly made its way over to the dead snail. Not bothering to check the corpse, the bit into the slimy meat and the caterpillar winced. ¡®Is that scorpion an idiot? Can''t it tell that the snail is poisoned?¡¯
The caterpillar watched in morbid fascination as the moron of a scorpion ate the complete snail and walked off. The green bug waited for its venom to kick in, for it surely would.
So, it waited.
And the scorpion walked.
And it waited.
And the scorpion walked.
And it waited.
And the scorpion walked until it walked out of the [Immortal] caterpillar''s sight.
With no ill effect from its poison whatsoever.
¡®What,¡¯ the [Reincarnated] Sorceress gaped for a moment before feeling embarrassed and angry at the same time. ¡®That snail had been dripping to the brim with venom!¡¯ It fumed. ¡®And that scorpion just shrugged it off like it was some oriental spice! Fuck you scorpion! Fuck you too!''
Before the sun went down for the night, the [Hungry] pest killed three more snails to reach Level 61.
Never did the bug think that it would end up being such a profitable day. And by the time the caterpillar crawled up to the poisonous plant, its jaws constantly chittered in glee.
''I''ll be free soon! Free from the constant hunger!'' The [Reincarnated] Sorceress couldn''t help but look forward to getting rid of the Title [Hungry]. ''And no more crawling too! I would even have my magic back! Yes, I can''t wait!''
After devouring several thin leaves, the [Survivor] waited for the poison to hit with its jaws chittering in joy. Even the prospect of poisoning itself didn''t bring down its joy.
It took the poison even longer to hit and when it finally did, the effects were milder and lasted for a shorter duration. Hallucinations hadn¡¯t occurred this time and neither had the bug experienced nausea, resulting in a vomit-less experience.
Tired from the convolutions, the [Immortal] caterpillar made its way to the hideout before settling down.
Thinking about using [Survive], the green bug calculated the amount of HP required to use the Skill and found the number somewhere near 33-35 HP.
¡®That much HP loss would have killed me just a few weeks ago!¡± It thought, its jaws chittering in laughter.
Nevertheless, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress didn''t use the Skill as it was planning to hunt the next day as well. It didn''t want to take any unnecessary chances.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 6
Within the Ashram, near the shore of the only lake that existed within, a child was digging up a trench.
The child features were plain with skin dark, hairs black and eyes brown. His height was nothing impressive either and he was clearly short for his age of 12 but perhaps he would grow taller in the future. Mayhap, it would even dissolve the chubbiness in its cheeks and roundness of his belly.
He was dressed in the robes that had once been white. Unfortunately, they no longer retained their original brightness and instead, mud-caked the clothes and the filth had turned it into a murky brown piece.
Beads of sweat dripped down the child¡¯s face while the sweat-soaked robes clung onto his plump body as the boy laboured. His muscles protested the movement and his back told him to rest. All the while, his soft palms sported various burns and calluses from a week of hard work.
The child had a scowl etched onto his chubby face as the shovel bit into the earth once again.
¡°Oh, this is nice!¡±
The child stopped mid-strike at the sudden sound and looked up at the newcomer. The boy was light-skinned and a lot thinner than the one who had been digging. His features were sharp with big eyes and a straight nose that made him seem quite elegant.
The newcomer also wore white robes but his robes were much cleaner than the chubby one¡¯s.
¡°What¡¡± The child put down the shovel and sat down as he panted. ¡°¡do you want?¡±
¡°Nothing.¡± The newcomer¡¯s eyes shined as he took in the scenery. The lake, the trees, the plants, the flowers, the birds and the very sound of life made the area seem like a small slice of heavens above. ¡°Can I build here too?¡±
The chubby boy waved his hand as he struggled to breathe, agreeing with the other boy. The newcomer smiled brightly and almost skipped forward. His eyes then fell on the trench dug by the chubby boy.
¡°Are you building a big hut? But Guruji said not to do so.¡± The newcomer frowned as he tilted his head.
¡°I know,¡± the chubby boy breathed with difficulty, ¡°now.¡±
¡°Tch.¡± The lighter-skinned child eyed the dark-skinned one. ¡°How many rooms were you making?¡±
¡°Three.¡± The chubby boy made a face. ¡°One for me. One for the kitchen. And one for the toilet.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
¡°And how many will you make now?¡± The newcomer¡¯s voice contained an unhidden glee. The dark-skinned boy huffed and put out its tongue at the other boy.
The newcomer giggled. ¡°I just want to make one room.¡±
¡°Me too.¡± The chubby preteen sighed. ¡°But I want it big.¡±
¡°Tch!¡± The other boy clucked his tongue. ¡°Guruji said to make small huts.¡±
¡°Well, I am making a big one!¡± The chubby boy snapped. ¡°I can¡¯t live in a small room. Back home, I had slaves waiting for me all day.¡±
¡°You are your only slave here.¡± The light-skinned boy rolled his eyes. ¡°So, you better plan what you can make.¡±
¡°¡I know.¡± The chubby boy sulked.
0.0
¡°Is it¡¡± The thinner child panted as he fell on his back. ¡°¡supposed to be this difficult?¡±
The chubby boy scoffed. ¡°You have worked for just two days. Stop whining!¡±
¡°But it¡¯s so hard!¡± The light-skinned boy cried out in protest. ¡°My arms hurt! My back hurts! My whole body hurts!¡±
¡°Tch.¡± The rounder boy continued to dig as he looked at the thinner boy shiftily. ¡°Who was it telling me off two days ago? I can¡¯t find him.¡±
The other boy sat up and glared at the one who continued to dig. ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t know it would be this hard!¡±
¡°Did you think it would be easy then? What nonsense.¡±
The thinner boy glowered. ¡°My dad is the biggest merchant in my city!¡±
¡°And mine is the inspector.¡± The chubbier boy retorted.
¡°I had slaves doing all this work!¡± The other child replied hotly and the chubby boy¡¯s mouth fell open in disbelief before he smirked.
¡°Oh, what was it that you said?¡± He cleared his throat and made his voice thinner as if mocking the other child. ¡°You are your only slave here. So, you better plan what you can make.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t use my words against me!¡± The light-skinned child snarked. ¡°Come up with your own taunts. You copycat!¡±
0.0
¡°What are you doing?¡± The skinner child asked as he peered curiously as the chubby boy, who had changed the direction of his trench.
The dark-skinned child threw a shifty eye at the other boy and didn¡¯t respond. This caused the light-skinned child to smile in in mischief. ¡°You are making your room smaller, aren¡¯t you?¡±
The dark boy grunted and threw a fistful of mud at the other boy. ¡°Go away! Don¡¯t you have to complete your own hut?¡±
The other boy giggled as he moved to dodge the mud but he wasn¡¯t fast enough and the mud hit his robes with a spalt. ¡°Hey!¡± The boy squawked in indignation.
¡°Go back to your own plot!¡± The dark-skinned boy shouted back. ¡°How are you still digging your fist trench? You slowpoke!¡±
¡°Don¡¯t tell me what to do!¡± The other boy¡¯s indignation, from mud being thrown at it, had yet to fade. He bent down and picked up a fistful of mud himself and threw at the fat boy. ¡°You are not my mother!¡±
¡°I am not your mother, you little kid!¡± The boy got splattered with the mud too and threw several fistfuls of mud back. ¡°I am your dad!¡±
¡°You!¡±
¡°Tch. What will you do?¡±
What followed after was a mud fight with both the kids throwing mud and clay at each other as they laughed and threw insults. When the mud fight finally ended, the boys were left panting and utterly drenched in clay.
As a result, they spent the rest of the day washing the mud off of their clothes and by the time they were finished, they were so tired and sore that they could do nothing but end their day and fall asleep.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 7
Another week passed as the [Reincarnated] Sorceress followed through its hated routine. It woke up, excreated, ate poisoned, bitter leaves, devoured non-poisonous tasteless leaves, then poisoned itself again before finally sleeping in its little hideyhole.
As much as the [Hungry] bug hated the routine, it followed through for reasons it couldn''t explain to itself. It had nothing to live for, yet did its utmost best to not just survive, but thrive.
Such was the dissociation between its thoughts and actions that the [Immortal] Sorceress couldn''t even notice the faultline in its psyche. Its [Mortal] side sought reasons to live, finding none. While its [Immortal] side sought to survive, for no other reason than survival.
Of the war that raged within its fragile mind, these were the two sides. Its [Mortal] side, which grieved over the loss of its old world, and the [Immortal] side, which longed to explore its new one.
In between these two, caught was the ignorant [Survivor]. The pawn of a great Being.
With its body still suffering from the after-effects of the plant poison, the [Immortal] caterpillar squirmed its numerous stubs in displeasure. Despite its best efforts, the bug had failed to Level up [Poison Resistance], which was still stuck at Level 5. ''It''s not my only problem at the moment.''
''Just where have all the snails gone? Did the magically disappear? Did something else hunt them to extension in a single night? Just what happened?!'' The [Hungry] pest''s beady eyes darkened as it headed to its food source, the non-poisonous, flat and huge leaved young tree. ''If only I had my magic, I could collect them all up with a swish of my stub!''
Consequently, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had gained merely two Levels in the last week, barely managing to reach Level 63.
''This just proves how useless [Hungry] is. Whoever designed it needs to have their privileges cut! Such incompetence!'' Grumbling and cursing, it harumphed. ''If one of the researchers had made such a useless thing, they wouldn''t be allowed to visit the city for a decade at least!''
''Just 34 days are left now.'' Flopping down on its belly, the [Immortal] caterpillar''s beady eyes gazed in the distance as its mind raced. ''What was I doing for two-thirds of my lifespan?''
Shaking its head, it got up to crawl. Instead of continuing on its way to its food source, the [Survivor] began searching for snails.
It crawled up and down various trees, looking for snails to hunt. In the meanwhile, the useless Title that was [Hungry] kept bothering it with insistent pangs of hunger, forcing the bug to stop its search and race to the nearest edible plant.
Its morning passed fruitlessly, but around mid-day, the bug finally found what it was looking for. Perched on a thin branch of a small tree which sported short but numerous leaves, was a Cracked Mouth Snail.
Its beady eyes shining with anticipation, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress crawled up the tree post-haste before following its usual strategy, the venomous potholes. The snail died, screeching and angry, but the [Survivor] didn''t mind.
It had gained three Levels thanks to the shelled creature, bringing the bug to Level 65. It had increased its HP to 70 and HPR to 7 HP/day.
The rest of the day, the caterpillar found not a single snail more. Even as the Sun went down in the distance and the white moon rose in the sky, the [Immortal] caterpillar could only squirm its countless stubs in regret.
Returning to the poisonous plant, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress looked up to gaze at the moon.
''So familiar, yet nothing alike.'' It couldn''t help but sigh. Despite being milky white as the moon of its previous world, this newer moon lacked the spots that had given the other moon depth of character. This new moon was too white, too perfect.
The [Survivor] shook its head to clear it of the useless thoughts and ate the bitter leaves for its nightly dose of poison. Having eaten more than enough of the poisoned leaves, it crawled down-
Ting.
[Skill [Crawl Lv.3] had levelled up to [Crawl Lv.4]. Your crawl speed has been increased.]
Dismissing the screen, it reached the ground where it waited for the poison to hit it.
And it continued to wait.
''It really is taking a little too long.'' It thought, beady eyes shining in anticipation. ''Have I finally become immune-''
The convolutions hit it then. Though, they were weak and lasted just for a few moments, causing the bug to chitter its jaws in joy through the after-effects. ''All my hard work has finally begun to pay off!''
Its mood lifted, the [Reincarnated] reached its hideout and began to widen it; something that it had to do often these days. After all, due to [Hungry], the bug had done nothing but eat for almost all its life. Consequently, its size had marginally increased, from a third of a mortal''s finger, it had grown to two-thirds of a mortal''s finger.
After the hideout had been hollowed out enough, it settled down in the tiny hole, before using [Survive] instead of [Moulting] due to its new Skill''s low Level.
Ting.
[Skill [Survive Lv.1] has levelled up to [Survive Lv.2]. HP Limit has been increased by 1. Current Time Limit: 1 minute. Current HP Limit: 2 HP]
With a scoff, it dismissed the notification before checking its Status to find its HP reduced by a solid 37 points, leaving it at [HP: 33/70].
The tiny bug chittered its jaws in joy. The ever-increasing value of HP sacrifice gave it a strange sense of accomplishment; even the Level notifications didn''t give it such a sense of achievement.
''That I can now afford so much HP is just precious!'' It thought, its mood improving. After all, only a few months earlier, such a loss of HP would have left it gasping in horror and awaiting death.
0.0
With its skin tingling in frustration, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress fruitlessly crawled down its seventh tree of the day. Yet again, it had failed to find any snails.
Not that it had had much success in the past two weeks, forcing it to rely on [Hungry] which had yielded merely five Levels in fourteen days. As a result, it had reached Level 70 with HP reading [HP: 75/75] and HPR being [HPR: 8 HP/day].
5 Levels in 14 days.
The [Immortal] caterpillar now had just 20 days to gain 25 Levels.
Its jaws chittered at the absurdity. ''Just where have the snails gone?! Did they realise I was hunting them? That makes no sense!'' It had begun to lose its already fragile mind.
Never had the [Hungry] bug felt so desperate in its life. Not even when it had been hiding from the bird. At least at the time, the [Survivor] could have done something. And it had done something.
But at this time, the bug could do absolute jack shit. ''What could it be?! Why are they hiding? There has to be a reason!''
The desperation added fuel to the fire that was the war going on within its mind.
By the time the sunlight dimmed, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had nothing to show for all its efforts.
0.0
Merely 14 of lifespan remained.
76 days had passed since its rebirth.
And the [Reincarnated] Sorceress now stared at death once again.
The past week was one of the most fruitless weeks it had even lived, earning it just 2 levels. It was Level 72 now. ''What a joke...''
No matter how much it searched, or where it looked, there were no snails to be found. ''Why had those snails come out at that time? What could it be? Is there a snail lifecycle that I am unaware of?''
With each passing day, the [Immortal] caterpillar grew increasingly desperate. It wanted to live but it had no reason to live.
And the more desperate it grew, the more its mind frayed and the more the war tilted. The world, annihilated. The knowledge, erased. The life, sundered.
Now that the bug had reached the twilight days of its lifespan, its body had begun to show its age. It had slowed down. Despite the increase in Level and Skill Levels, it took more energy for the [Survivor] to move while tiring it out quicker.
It slept a lot more too. And now that the weather had begun to change as it grew colder, the creature felt the shackles of age and death tightening even more.
0.0
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress stared at the overcast sky. It stared at the dark clouds, resisting the increasing humidity.
Slowly crawling down another tree, it turned to the next. Another day, another tree, another failure.
''Just ten days are left now. Ten days to live and ten days to die.'' It sighed and began its journey to return to its hideout-
Ting.
[Skill [Crawl Lv.4] has levelled up to [Crawl Lv.5]. Crawling speed has been increased.]
The [Immortal] caterpillar sighed. Even the Skill Level up notifications that had been the sight of joy once, brought it no joy anymore.
Instead, the notification seemed to mock it these days. ¡®How has my speed increased? Hasn¡¯t it decreased instead?¡¯ It snapped back.
Ting.
[The Skill [Crawl] has reached the Level limit of your current Vessel. Evolve further to increase the Level limit of your Skills. Current Skill Level limit: Level 5]
¡®¡¡¯
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' beady eyes darkened.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
¡®¡¡¯
Its skin tingled as if it had been struck by lighting.
¡®¡¡¯
Its jaws fell open. Its numerous stubs stilled.
''Just... what am I reading?'' It almost refused to comprehend the implication of the message. ''There is a Level cap related to evolution for Skills? Does that mean¡¡¯
Its body chilled. Its eyes dulled as an all-consuming hollowness assaulted its mind. Its body twitched but the bug didn¡¯t notice. Its mind frayed like a ball of string unravelling. ¡®Doesn¡¯t that mean¡¡¯
¡®¡¡¯
The [Immortal] caterpillar¡¯s fragile mind reached an edge and war within its mind began to reach a crescendo. Meanwhile, it chittered its jaws madly in laughter.
For more than half of its new life, the [Hungry] bug had been torturing itself by poison. Twice a day. Everyday. Just to increase the Level of [Poison Resistance].
But the Skill had never Levelled. ¡®Now I know why!¡¯ the [Hungry] pest continued to chitter its jaws in laughter.
The war intensified.
The Skill, [Poison Resistance], was its highest Levelled skill. It had always been its highest levelled Skill. It had been like that since it had received it when it had been born. It had always been at Level 5.
But the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had been trying to increase its Level. ¡®Obviously! I couldn¡¯t have done it!¡¯
The war intensified.
It had been going through hell and back for this. It had suffered so much for this. It had gone through so much for this. ¡®It was all for nothing...¡¯
The war intensified.
All that effort, for nothing. All that pain, for nothing. All that agony, for nothing.
Half of its life, for nothing. ¡®Is everything that I do, for nothing?¡¯
The war intensified.
At that moment, the sky that had been overcast all morning roared.
THHHHNNNDDDDDRRRRRR
The rumble of the clouds brought some sense of sanity to the [Immortal] caterpillar and it resumed its march back home. It was halfway through the route when it started raining and the green bug hurriedly climbed up the nearest tree to seek shelter.
It could no longer go back home. Not with the rain and mud blocking its path. It would drown if it tried. Or would be swept away by the current. ''It wouldn''t be that bad, now would it? I have already died once...''
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress sighed.
But its sigh seems to contain exhaustion. Exhaustion from having died. Exhaustion from having been reborn. Exhaustion from the near-death experiences. Exhaustion from the constant hunger.
The [Survivor] was worn out. Its body was failing. Its time was running out. And it could do nothing about anything.
The [Immortal] caterpillar, for the first time, felt the twilight that its body had already reached. It stared at the falling rain for a moment before it dug into the bark of the tree and made a temporary shelter for the night.
As it fell asleep, it gave no thought to the rain.
However, if the [Reincarnated] Sorceress had been poetic in nature, it would have felt the heavens sharing is sorrow, weeping.
0.0
When the [Immortal] caterpillar woke up the next day, it was greeted by the beautiful sight of a refreshed forest. The pouring rain had washed away all the layers of accumulated dust, making the colours seem brighter and the air fresher, while the slight drizzle continued to the temperature cool.
Beautiful as the sight was, it didn¡¯t cause the [Hungry] pest''s beady eyes to shine. Instead, it gazed at the sight with dark eyes; for what it saw was not beauty, but the end of summer. And its life. ''A season of life. What a pitiful existence...''
Shaking its head, it turned to crawl down the tree. But, at that moment, it caught of something that made its dark eyes shine with unexpected light.
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' skin tingled in anticipation as the lethargy which had been haunting it for the past few weeks instantly dissipated.
Chittering its jaws in anticipation, the [Survivor] locked its hungry gaze on the snails which seemed to be everywhere. Let alone other trees, the very tree in which the green bug had taken shelter in sported a couple of Cracked Mouth Snails.
Tearing its eyes away from the gift-wrapped Levels, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress gazed up through the canopy to the grey clouds. ''So that''s what it was,'' it thought, realising what was required for the snails to emerge. ''I should have made use of the humidity back then to hunt...''
Shaking its head to clear it, the [Immortal] caterpillar chittered its jaws in anticipation before it went to town. It had snails to hunt.
At that moment, the war within its fragile mind slowed down, unable to reach the crescendo that it had been preparing for. The clash between the [Mortal] and the [Immortal] had been worsened by its desperation but with this new lease of life, the desperation died and the war slowed.
But the [Reincarnated] Sorceress knew nothing, remaining ignorant.
Meanwhile, snails after snails were baited and killed by the [Immortal] caterpillar, granting it a bunch of Levels each time, as if they had been gift wrapped for it. The drizzle sprinkled still, and its beady eyes took in the beautiful sight. ''Rain.'' It reminisced before its thought turned to the present, ''...it seems to be my lucky charm.''
By the time the ambient light dimmed in the evening, the [Survivor] had reached Level 100; all within a single day.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
As the final snail fell, shrieking in agony and anger, the green bug dragged the snail carcass to the edge and pushed it down.
Crunch!
Surprised at the sound, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress look down to find the snail corpse burying a scorpion beneath it. The massive, black scorpion, though injured, was still very much alive. It was also the same scorpion that had earlier shrugged off its venom like oriental spice.
With its legs squirming in nervousness, the [Immortal] caterpillar retreated, hoping to hide from the 8-legged monstrosity''s vision. After having seen the black creature survive its poison earlier and the current damage, the green bug wanted no trouble with the clearly stronger [Immortal] scorpion.
Fortunately for the green bug, the scorpion didn''t seem to be sapient, or intelligent for that matter, as it attacked the dead snail with its stinger in retaliation.
''This idiot thinks that the carcass attacked it?'' Taken aback for a moment, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress quickly changed its tune. ''You go Mr Scorpion! Teach that dumb, dead snail the lesson it deserves! How dare its corpse fall on you? It should have managed its corpse better! Yes, poke it! Poke it with your deadly tail. So powerful and shiny! Poke it!''
Chittering its jaws in glee, the [Immortal] caterpillar retreated completely as the scorpion began to eat its ''prey''.
At that moment, it turned back to the notification that sent its skin tingling in excitement.
Ting.
[You have reached Level 100. Do you want to Evolve now?]
[Yes]??????[No]
Staring at the screen with its shining, beady eyes, it rejoiced. ''Finally! I can evolve!''
Apparently, its mental shout of joy had been considered as agreement by the notification as a new notification appeared. But it hastily dismissed it.
Ting.
[You can evolve later by selecting the ''Evolve'' option from your Status window.]
''I need to prepare before evolving,'' it thought. ''And I have to finish it soon. Can''t take too long.''
Though, that was easier said than done. As the rain would have flooded the old hideout since it was -quite literally- a hole in the ground. Not wanting to evolve underwater, it removed burrows and pits from the list of possible locations.
Looking around, its beady eyes locked onto trees. ''Trees are not safe places either. With squirrels, birds and who knows what other creatures making them their home, trees were dangerous spaces.''
The former sorceress squirmed its numerous stubs in displeasure, feeling homeless for the first time since its rebirth. Turning around to look at the shelter it had made for the night, which was but a hole in the tree, an idea formed in its mind.
Marching within its temporary shelter, the [Immortal] caterpillar began to dig deeper, to create more space. At the same time, it also widened the radius which keeping the entrance untouched. ''Old and sturdy tress would be dangerous for sure, but young ones such as this would do.''
After making the shelter at least five times larger than its original size, the [Reincanated] Sorceress began the second step of its plan as the green moon rose into the sky.
Carrying mud up to its shelter, one mouthful at a time, the [Hungry] pest collected clay in its shelter. Keeping it wet by mixing the mud with its venom, the green bug forewent sleep to collect mud over the course of the next day.
It was not the amount of mud collected that caused the [Immortal] caterpillar to take so much time. Rather, it had been its slow speed and easily tired aged body.
With its preparations complete, the [Survivor] sealed up the entrance from the inside using the venom laced mud. It took quite some time for the green bug to accomplish the task but it was still completed within a day.
Thus, it was on the 83rd day since its birth, and only 7 days before its lifespan ended, that the [Reincarnated] Sorceress finally felt prepared to evolve and called up its Status.
[Unnamed] [Skills] [Spells] [Dharma] [Evolve]
Trembling in excitement, it focused on [Evolve].
Ting.
[Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes]?????? [No]
Chittering its jaws, it focused on [Yes].
Ting.
[Choose your form.]
[Butterfly Lv.1: Inherited Vessel.]
[Moth Lv.1: Variant. Granted due to your unorthodox methods.]
It read both the options and its body twitched in confusion. ¡®What does it mean by ''unorthodox methods''?¡¯
¡®The only thing that I can think of is the usage of traps to kill the snails? What caterpillar goes around killing its predators?'' Shaking its head, it dismissed the notion.
''Inherited Vessel...'' Reading the options once again, it tilted its head to the side. ¡®Does this mean that I was supposed to evolve into a butterfly? Hmm... Given how it considered my methods unorthodox, the butterfly option wouldn''t match well with me. Hmm...''
''It''s pretty clear then huh?'' Nodding to itself, the green bug called out, ''Moth it is.''
Ting.
[You have chosen Moth as your evolution. Are you sure?]
[Yes]?????? [No]
Ting.
[Evolution will begin now. Time Remaining: 30 days.]
Before it could even dismiss the screen, an overbearing urge to spit emerged within the [Immortal] caterpillar.
Straightening itself, the [Survivor] began to spit a white fluid around itself in a circular manner. The fluid solidified surprisingly fast, leaving behind a papery film, using which the caterpillar raised the height to make a hollow sphere, sealing itself within.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 8
With the last batch that had just left, now there remained less than half of the original number of children in the Ashram. Many had left after the first week itself; the life of the ascetic had proven itself too austere for the hopefuls that had been too young.
But that was the way for those that walked down this path.
This reduction in numbers was nothing new and also nothing final. The journey had just begun and it will leave behind many in the dust. Though with the end of the initial month, the phase meant for easing the children into their new life had ended, and now the true journey would finally begin.
0.0
Kiran was standing alongside the remaining children as they waited for their teacher to begin the lesson.
While the boy was still short for his age, a month of back-breaking labour had been good for the boy, though not too much.
His multiple chins had reduced by quite a few and the chubbiness of his cheeks had lessened. His body seemed to have become a lot less round after the month and his features had sharpened.
Though the sun had not been so good for his skin and his dark skin had darkened further.
He, like everyone around him, was dressed in white robes and, despite his plain face, he looked quite adorable in the way that only children could as the bright colour of his clothes contrasted with his skin.
The boy had completed his shack, like all the others that were standing alongside him. And even though he had to abandon the bigger shack, and had to build a much smaller one, the boy had been quite happy with it.
But that joy could no longer be seen now.
Standing with the rest of the disciples, the absence of those that had left was easily felt. There was less noise, less chatter, fewer people and less joy. Everything was just...less. After all, amongst those that had left, there had been many that had been their friends.
Even the sole friend that Kiran had made had left. The thin and light-skinned boy had left along with the others in the last batch as he had been unable to complete his hut by the end of the month.
And though the boy could have stayed further and studied while he completed the hut alongside it, the thin boy had chosen not to do so. Yet, Kiran could not blame the boy.
The other boy had already been thin when he had arrived at Ashram, and the back-breaking labour of the month had caused the boy to lose even more weight, leaving the child gaunt and bony.
And at the same time, his light skin hadn¡¯t been able to withstand the harsh sunlight and had flaked and burned.
Kiran had not tried to convince his friend to stay back but he had almost cried at the other boy¡¯s decision to leave. And he hadn¡¯t been the only one that had been left teary-eyed.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
The constantly increasing number, of children leaving the Ashram, had left the group scared as the tentative friendships they had made, were broken and shattered under the strain. And even if these children were to meet again in the distant future, their lives would still be worlds apart.
¡°Good job everyone!¡± The teacher¡¯s deep voice broke Kiran out of his flunk. ¡°You all have done excellent work. You have proven that your will is strong and your reflection deep.¡±
¡°Now you will take your first step on this journey.¡± The teacher continued. ¡°And that first step for that is for you all to earn the Class, [Shishya].¡±
¡°However, before I tell you all about it, let me introduce myself.¡± The man smiled genially. ¡°I am Guru Pranay. You can address me as Guruji or Acharya Ji and as nothing else. I will not tell you my Class and my Level as it is irrelevant to you now.¡±
¡°Though,¡± The man smiled mischievously, ¡°if you can earn your Class, you can come and ask me.¡±
¡°Now, there are many similar ¡®student¡¯ natured classes but you are not here for those. You are here to study under the [Brahmin]s, the [Muni]s and the [Hrishi]s. You are here to learn from us and walk down a path that best suits you. [Shishya] will allow that to happen.¡±
¡°While the other Classes promise power and glory, that is also their trap. They would lock you into set progressions and not allow you to grow as you would want. Rather, they would force you to grow in a manner that they¡¯d dictate. They would not allow your curiosity to grow and they would not allow your full potential to manifest.¡±
¡°The Class [Shishya], however, will allow you to pave your own path.¡± He paused for a moment. ¡°And if you happen to walk an already paved path, you¡¯d find that your skills would be deeper and your spells stronger. It is for this reason that your parents have sent you here. To be better and to be yourself.¡±
¡°Though, nothing in this world is as easy as it seems. If this Class were so great, why wouldn¡¯t the world strive for it? Why won¡¯t the nobles and the kings fight for it?¡± The man paused and surveyed the students. ¡°Can anyone answer?¡±
None even whispered a word as they evaded eye contact, wishing to be left alone in the anonymity.
¡°Hmm? No one?¡± The man prompted again and a girl hesitatingly raised her hand. ¡°Yes, you. Go ahead.¡±
¡°Umm¡Be-because they have better Classes.¡± The girl swallowed and the man laughed.
¡°Indeed!¡± The man agreed as he laughed. ¡°While [Shishya] is a great Class to possess for a commoner, the arduous lifestyle that it forces upon its followers is not favoured by the elites. But if it were just that, then too this Class would be much more desirable than it is now. Can anyone tell me why?
The students frowned before the same girl as before raised her hand once again. ¡°I-it is because [Shishya] regresses.¡±
A murmur erupted within the students as they processed what the girl said. Some students audibly scoffed while others rolled their eyes.
¡°Don¡¯t just say anything!¡±
¡°Keep quiet if you don¡¯t know the answer!¡±
¡°This is what happens when you try to show off.¡±
¡°A half fill jug just splashes out water.¡±
Some students doubted the girl and looked at her as if she had grown a third head. While others simply disbelieved her and didn¡¯t give her a second thought.
Though their reactions were different, all of them were in agreement that what the girl had just said, had been utter and pure nonsense. A Class that regresses? How could such an absurd thing be?
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Brahmin: The priest/teaching Caste in Hinduism. The literal meaning is a person who is learned.
Muni & Hrishi: Ascetic sages that lived austere lives in Hindu Mythology. Even Gods bowed to them with respect.
Chapter 9
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress woke up confined and confused.
Walls pressed down on its flesh from all sides, bringing back memories of when it had torn its egg to be reborn. The thought cleared the confusion and the [Survivor] shook itself, finding the experience to be new.
But not unfamiliar.
''Wasn''t my evolution... suppose to last... for an entire month?'' It thought, stretching its increasingly familiar body. It was as if the [Reincarnated] Sorceress was using one of its limbs after a long time. ''Why does it feel like... I just awoke... after a really good nap?''
As its groggy mind cleared, the [Survivor] recalled its last waking moments and shivered. Its body had been failing, making it sore and tired. Always. Its flesh had lacked strength and its entire body had been just so slow.
''That''s no longer the case,'' it thought, feeling the strength coursing through its new Vessel. Even though it had yet to break out of its cocoon, it knew it had de-aged. It was no longer old.
Its sore muscles had been replaced by new, taut ones. The failing body felt good as new, and the feeble flesh was almost bursting with energy. ''So this is what... evolution feels like.''
Although the [Reincarnated] Sorceress previously had no idea of what evolution was, it had come to know after going through its notifications.
[Every Immortal has the ability to evolve. Evolution is the ability to change one''s Vessel, when one reaches Level 100, to a more powerful one on the evolution pathways granted by one¡¯s Species.]
Yet, bookish knowledge was bookish knowledge. Only now, after experiencing the process for itself, could the [Survivor] appreciate it for the boon that it was.
Deciding that it had spent enough time in its cocoon, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress struggled against the walls which felt feeble under its might.
As cracks resounded and cold air rushed in, it stretched its body, enjoying the strength in its limbs. Flaring its limbs to exercise its newfound strength, it pushed and the cocoon fell apart, revealing the moth within.
The bug was a third of a mortal¡¯s finger in size but it seemed a little unordinary. Its body was covered in soft white fur-like hairs and had two frilly, golden antennas popping out of its head. Its eyes were much the same, beady and dark, but larger while it had lost all its numerous stubs to gain six thin legs which seemed exceptionally weak.
These limbs weren''t what caught the [Reincarnated] Sorceress'' attention. Instead, as its two sets of translucent white wings expanded in all their glory, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress couldn''t help but chitter its jaws in joy.
The act stopped it short as a thought popped in its head. ''Moths don''t have mouths, do they? They drink nectar, right? Then why do I have jaws?'' It shook its new head, feeling its antennas swirl in the air. ''Even snails have those horrific mouths here, why can''t I have jaws. What a weird thing to get fixated on.''
As blood coursed through its wings, they expanded and the [Reincarnated] Sorceress gave them an experimental swing. With the action as natural as breathing, it moved its wings in all sorts of ways before its worries were sated. ''They don''t feel alien. Neither do these antennas for that matter.''
''Why did I even worry about it,'' it thought, shaking its body to dissipate any lingering lethargy. ''I never had any problems with all those stubs. I never questioned how I used them. Is it because I had died just then, so the trauma overwhelmed such minor things? Hmm...''
The [Immortal] Moth gave its wings a practice flap and felt its light body rise in the air a bit. Chittering its jaws in glee, it settled down. ''Alright, no more useless delaying. Let''s see what the blue screens have to say.''
The moment the thought finished, a slew of notifications popped up.
Ting.
[Evolution complete. You have evolved into a White Furred Moth.]
Ting.
[Evolution bonus of 15 HP has been added to your total Health Points. You have been completely healed.]
Ting.
[Level up bonus has been increased to +2 HP per Level.]
Ting.
[Your HP regeneration rate has been increased to [11 + Level/10]. Rounded down.]
Ting.
[Vessel Title, [Hungry], lost.]
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.5] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Night Vision Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Level limit on Skills has been raised to Level 10. Evolve further to raise the Level Limit again.]
Ting.
[Skill [Poison Resistance Lv.5] has levelled up to [Poison Resistance Lv.6]. Continuous damage caused by poison has been decreased by the 6 points.]
Ting.
[Skill [Poison Resistance Lv.6] has levelled up to [Poison Resistance Lv.7]. Continuous damage caused by poison has been decreased by the 7 points.]
Ting.
[Skill [Poison Resistance Lv.7] has levelled up to [Poison Resistance Lv.8]. Continuous damage caused by poison has been decreased by 8 points.]
Ting.
[Poison mastered. Hallucination effect added to the venom.]
The [Reincarnated] Sorceress jaws fell open, and despite expecting it, the white bug didn''t dare to believe what it read.
Instead, with its skin tingling in anticipation, it waited with bated breath for the familiar sensations. The burning agony. The neverending pain. The primal desire to eat.
But it never came
The [Immortal] Moth gaped for a long moment before chittering its jaws in exhilaration. ''Finally! Yes, thank the Great Ghosts! [Hungry] is gone! Gone! For good!''
It even jumped in happiness, hitting its head on the low ceiling of its shelter. But it cared not. ''I finally lost it! Yes!''
It took a moment for the [Reincarnated] Sorceress to calm down enough to go through the rest of the notifications.
The new Skill [Flight] was pretty straightforward; starting at Level 5, much like [Poison Resistance], it gave the [Immortal] Moth a basic understanding of flight.
Focusing on it, the bug summoned its details.
Ting.
[Ability to ease the flight of a creature. Prerequisite: Wings. This Skill can''t be used without wings.]
''Nothing unordinary here,'' it thought, its antennas twitching. ''As long as it doesn''t go the same path as [Poison Resistance]...''
Dismissing the blue screen, it called out the details of [Night Vision] and [Sense] respectively.
Ting.
[The ability to see during the night.]
Ting.
[Ability to momentarily enhance the antennas and sense the subtle scent in the surrounding. The cost of the Skill depends on the level of the Skill. Current cost: 10 Mana/min. Prerequisite: Antenna.]
''Despite the somewhat unexpected additions, these Skills are pretty straightforward,'' the [Immortal] Moth observed. ''Given their utility, I should Level them up.''
The next notification gave it a pause, reminding it of the Level limit which caused antennas to squirm in displeasure. ''What a waste of my time,'' it scoffed, dismissing the rise of the Level limit to Level 10.
However, as [Poison Resistance] rose Level after Level, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress stilled, not even a single white hair on its tiny body moved.
''All that pain,'' it couldn''t help but think, ''...it wasn''t in vain.''
Breathing deeply, its body shuddered, breaking it out of its motionlessness. Yet, it didn''t dare to believe what it saw. Hesitating, it finally decided to summon its Status.
Ting.
Name: UnnamedStolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Race: Immortal
Species: Insect
Vessel: White Furred Moth
Level: 1
HP: 121/121 ??MP: -
HPR: 11/Day??MPR: -
Lifespan: 240 days
Titles
[Reincarnated] [Survivor]
Skills
[Crawl Lv.5] [Flight Lv.5] [Moulting Lv.3] [Night Vision Lv.1] [Pain Resistance Lv.4] [Poison Resistance Lv.8] [Sense Lv.1] [Survive Lv.2] [Venom Creation Lv.4]
The first thing that the newborn moth looked at in its Status was its lifespan. The trauma from being a caterpillar, that was technically immortal but had a lifespan of 90 days, was substantial.
¡®240 days.¡¯ It sighed at the three-digit number before its jaws chittered in joy. ''Even though it isn''t much now, it is still a considerable increase from my previous lifespan. Couple with constant evolutions, it should increase dramatically, shouldn''t it?''
''Ah, this reminds me,'' the [Reincarnated] Sorceress thought, its eyes shining. ''Now that I have evolved, I should be able to access my magic, right?''
Excited, it almost hopped on its thin legs as its eyes moved to its MP.
Immediately, its golden antennas drooped and its body trembled as not a single thought formed in the bug''s stunned mind. Its blank, beady eyes gazed lifelessly at the mana that was decidedly absent from its Status.
''What nonsense is this?!'' It snapped, recovering before its golden antennas wiggled wildly. ''Where is my magic?! It should be there! I reached maturity, didn''t I? I should have access to MY magic now! What else is it waiting for? My third death?!''
At that moment, the light in its big, beady eyes dissipated and the war raging within its mind tilted.
Its [Mortal] side in the war was the Sorceress; a life defined by magic. It had lived its life researching magic and soul. And after its death, the belief in its magic had kept it from falling to the mind-numbing starvation of [Hungry], the mind-altering effects of [Reincanated] and the threats to its life of [Survivor].
After all, its magic was the proof of its research, that it had been a [Mortal] once. It was the proof of the Sorceress'' life, its very existence.
''Without magic, is a Sorceress even a Sorceress?''
As the question appeared in its mind, the submissive [Mortal] gave way to the indomitable [Immortal].
''This will not do,'' it decided, focusing on the option of MP.
Ting.
[Mana Points unavailable. Your species doesn''t have access to Magic.]
''Fuck. You.'' The white moth snapped. ¡®I have had enough of this crippled existence.''
¡®I survived in this world as a starving, aged vermin. My magic is mine. I will wait for it no longer.'' Focusing its attention inwards, the [Reincarnated] Sorceress entered a meditative state. ''Souls are the source of magic. With my reincarnation, I came with my soul.''
''There is no reason why I shouldn''t have my magic back.'' It declared, but with this declaration, the war raged anew. The [Mortal] side, which had earlier given way in desperation, suffered the relentless assault of the merciless [Immortal].
Consequently, its mind frayed. ''If this world is not going to give me my magic back, then it will take it back myself.'' Breathing slowly, it began to rid itself of all its negative emotions and thoughts.
The first to be addressed was the sorrow, the sadness and the grief which derived from its death. Mourning the loss of its previous life, its world, its research and its existence, this side sought a reason to live; any reason to live. Lost in the past, this was the [Mortal] side.
The [Immortal] Moth tried to calm this despair but the grief was just too monumental.
Moving to the second side, the White Moth addressed the frustration, the irritation and the anger deriving from being eliminated like an insect through divine punishment. Stemming from its helplessness, this side sought to live and thrive. Existing in the present, this was the [Immortal] side.
These sides, named Ego, were the fragments originating from the interaction of its soul with the instincts of the Vessels.
The [Mortal] Ego, bearing the instincts of its previous [Mortal] Vessel, had not only lived but had experienced an entire life before its death. However, this Ego should have ceased to exist with its death.
Only the meddling of the Being, the [Not One, But Innumerable], let the Ego maintain its existence still.
As the two sides clashed, the war between the [Mortal] Ego and the [Immortal] Ego once again reached a crescendo as the slaughter resumed. The Sorceress, meanwhile, breathed but breathing didn''t help.
Not.
One.
Bit.
It couldn''t let go.
And the two sides warred.
So, it took another breath in, only to repeat the process; unwilling to be defeated.
It continued to struggle against both the Egos with all its might.
It struggled against itself.
And the two sides continued to war, pulling it in opposite directions.
One led the Sorceress to its magic but this direction sacrificed its grief and agony. The other direction led it to its grief and sorrow but it sacrificed its magic.
''No, I can''t.''
''I just can''t.''
The Mortal and the Immortal Egos warred and the Sorceress'' mind continued to unravel like a ball of string in free fall. The more they fought, the more its mind frayed.
¡®I.¡¯
¡®Can''t!¡¯
¡®Let!¡¯
¡®GO!¡¯
With its attention focused, the [Immortal] Moth didn''t notice when its body began shaking.
''It isn''t working. It isn''t working! It isn''t working!'' Stretched to the limits of its sanity, it mentally screamed. ''But I can''t give up! No! Not now. Not ever!''
Its sanity ripped.
Its mind cracked.
It wasn''t sure if it was even the Sorceress anymore.
''I-
can''t-
take-
it!¡¯
The war reached its peak.
And then there was no coming back for the [Immortal] White Furred Moth.
The war had been won.
The war had been lost.
Its yearnings had ripping it apart. Bit by bit, they ripped it apart.
And by holding onto them, the [Survivor] refused to do anything about it.
But then, at that moment, it let go. ''I-I am¡sorry.¡¯
It had to.
So, the [Survivor] let go.
The Mortal Ego lost the war.
The Sorceress lost the war.
The [Immortal] Moth had let go of its sorrow, grief and loss, sacrificing its last life for its magic.
From this moment onwards, there would be no grief within the [Immortal] Moth for the death that had descended on those people. From this moment onwards, there would be no joy because of the happy moments from that past life.
The [Immortal] Ego had won the war. The [Mortal] Ego, destroyed. And She, dead.
The Sorceress was no more.
The Sorceress had left behind Her memories but those memories were incomplete, damaged by the war. They were fragments and pieces. And they would remain that way, never to be whole again.
Rather, as time would let its rot set in, the rot would wither away the fragments until nothing but dust and sand remained.
For now, however, they remained within the [Immortal] Moth''s mind. But they were not its, they were Hers.
Was the [Survivor] still the same creature that had desperately longed for magic? Was it the same creature that had deigned both its memories and magic of similar importance?
No.
This was not that creature. For that creature was dead.
This was the [Immortal] Ego, so far removed from the [Mortal] understanding, that it didn''t even understand the concept of self. As a result, ''I'' or ''me'' or ''mine'' were words and concepts that had no meaning to the [Immortal] Moth.
With names denied to [Immortals], its Vessel became its identity.
But it mattered not. Because, at that moment, the [Immortal] Moth felt a familiar warmth heading towards it.
''That''s magic!'' There was no mistaking it. The [Survivor] could feel the call deep within itself. ''After so long! Come. A Moth is here now. A Moth has come. Come.''
The magic drew nearer, slowly and steadily, it edged near the bug.
Lacking patience, the White Furred Moth focused on the magic and pulled, tugging the warmth towards itself.
They were close, very close. The [Immortal] moth could almost feel the warmth seeping into its flesh, embracing it as if in a hug. The White Furred Moth embraced it back-
The warmth phased through it.
''How-how could this be?!'' Disbelief colouring its tone, it exclaimed before the [Immortal] Moth''s cold, calculative mind churned
Instead of focusing on its magic, it focused on itself. ''A Moth needs magic. Why?'' Finding it to be the root of the problem, the White Furred Moth thought things through. ''Because magic was what She researched. It''s the sum of the past.'' the [Survivor] silently observed.
Its observation wasn''t a revelation.
But when put in the context of the war that it had just won, the puzzle pieces fell into place. ''But the past is Her, the Sorceress. As long as She exists, the war would never truly end.''
''To end this war, the Sorceress must die again.'' It noted with its cold mind racing.
''But how can the dead be killed?'' The [Survivor] thought, stepping out of its meditative state. ''The Sorceress is destroyed. She no longer exists. Then what should be destroyed to kill Her again? In what form does She still exist?''
''She was a [Mortal], not an [Immortal]. To escape death, She couldn''t pass on to another Vessel,'' it thought, shaking its body to get rid of the lingering stiffness. ''Then what do [Mortals] do when at death''s door?''
The [Survivor] had no answer to the question. It was an [Immortal], a creature so fundamentally different from [Mortals] that their thoughts never aligned. Lacking any experience on the matter, it fell back on the fragmented memories dispersed throughout its psyche.
Recalling the fragments, it searched for an answer. ''What good is that?'' It suddenly exclaimed, getting up. ''Death would be the outcome nonetheless! Doing so would not delay death in any manner. It''s utterly pointless! Why would [Mortals] do that?!''
With its golden antennas squirming in irritation, the White Furred Moth paced in its small shelter.
''This makes no sense! How does passing on all their accumulated knowledge keeps [Mortals] alive? The bodies still die and the souls still move on. Death is still death! Immortality in Thought? What is that? Why did She consider it immortality? It makes no sense!''
Its head aching in frustration at the idiocy, the [Immortal] Moth smashed its head on the dried mud wall, breaking it.
Immediately, dim rays of light entered the shelter and the White Furred Moth shrank back, hiding away from the sudden light and cold invading its hideyhole.
As its eyes adjusted to the light, the [Survivor] noticed the soft pitter-patter echoing across its small cavern. ''It''s raining again. It had rained on the day of evolution, and it rains today. Hmm...''
Stepping outside, its beady eyes took in the grey world which was awash in fresh colours. The cool wind passed through its white, fluffy fur as its sensitive antennas picked up the sweet scent of the petrichor.
The [Immortal] Moth didn''t bother with anything. It sat on the branch, experiencing its first foray into the world after its evolution.
''Whatever legacy is, it doesn''t have to be understood,'' the [Survivor] decided. ''As long as She believed in the legacy business, it should be Her second death.''
Retreating into the shelter, the White Furred Moth once again entered the meditative state. ''Her research, no matter how middling, was her greatest accomplishment. It should be the legacy that she''d pass on in death.''
The familiar warmth once again drifted towards it but the [Survivor] didn''t allow itself to be distracted. Employing the cold calculating nature of [Immortals], it kept its mind on a single track.
''A Moth denies a Sorceress this,'' it unceremoniously announced to itself and suddenly its skin tingled, almost breaking its meditative state. ''With the last universe destroyed, none shall know of Her findings.''
Uneasiness, the likes of which it had never felt in its short life, assaulted the [Immortal] Moth and its breathing unnaturally hastened.
''None shall know of Her existence. None shall know of Her precious knowledge. None shall ever know of Her legacy.'' Employing the indomitable will of [Immortals], it continued nonetheless ''A Sorceress will be forgotten. A Moth denies a Sorceress, the Immortality in Thought.''
With its decision made, no ceremony was needed, for it was an [Immortal]. Rituals were the domain of [Mortals].
With its pronouncement, the Sorceress was killed once again. The warmth, which seeped into its bones, found a home and settled in.
Ting.
[Magic has been unlocked.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 10
The students frowned before the same girl as before raised her hand once again. ¡°I-it is because [Shishya] regresses.¡±
.
.
.
At the moment that the chatter became noisy, the air turned heavy as it dropped and the light took a distinct yellow shade. It became difficult to breathe and the very ground seemed to rise up to swallow the students whole.
And then it was gone.
¡°Good.¡± The man¡¯s sharp voice cut through the silence left in the wake of the sudden horror that scared the children nearly to their early deaths. ¡°Don¡¯t make me repeat that. It¡¯s not worth the effort to waste it on all of you.¡±
The students stared at the gaunt man clad in saffron robes and all of them gulped in unison as none spoke.
¡°In this place, we value knowledge above everything else. So even if you hear something outlandish like what she had said, you must not discard it so. For it may turn out to be true.¡± The man¡¯s furrowed brows and narrowed eyes dared the students to challenge his words. ¡°And yes, this Class regresses.¡±
¡°[Shishya] is not just a Class where you swing a sword to gain Levels. It is not a Class where you shoot arrows aimlessly to get Levels. It is not a Class where merely killing senselessly would earn you Levels. It is like none of those other Classes that you have heard about before.¡±
¡°No, this Class is the horse on which you will tread your path. And what a finicky horse it is. If it senses any disingenuity and insincerity, it will throw its rider off without even a second thought.¡±
He stared down at the students standing before him and observed the state that his earlier display had left them in. They were nervous and scared. Some of them were even trembling in fear.
But the man felt no regret for his action. The pressure was meant to gain their attention so that they would steadfastly focus on his warning. After all, he had lost count of the number of children that had taken the warning lightly and wandered off their path, never to Level again.
¡°This Class is like a venomous animal. It should never be spooked, lest you wished to be bitten.¡±
¡°Many before you have fallen and so will many that come after you. Even you yourselves might fall off if you wander off from your path. And once you wander off and fall, you would not find this Class again.¡±This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
¡°Remember my warning for the rest of your lives. Etch them into hearts and carve them into your minds. Do whatever you must to remember this warning.¡± The saffron-clad man¡¯s voice seemed to echo as he spoke. ¡°But never ever forget them.¡±
He smiled then and clapped his hands. As a result of those simple actions, the seriousness of the moment broke. The brightness of his face relaxed the children and the very air seemed brighter as a result.
¡°Now, there are two things that you need to do to earn this Class. The first one is to study diligently.¡± The man nodded genially. ¡°While the second, and the more important of the two, is that you have to lose all the hair on your head.¡±
The students stopped chattering for a moment before the noise erupted like ants from an anthill ready to battle. Such was the absurdity of the statement that most wanted to dismiss it the moment they heard it.
But they had just received a lesson in dismissing thing that they knew nothing about and none of them wanted a repeat of the previous situation. Thus, some students frowned while some gossiped in confusion at the declaration.
The man, however, chuckled as he saw the children at least willing to take it into consideration and talk about it. He gave them a few moments to discuss it amongst themselves before he addressed them again. ¡°When I say that you have to lose your hair, I am not talking about shaving your head, of course. What I mean is, through your [Will] and your [Reflection] you have to force your hair to fall off, naturally.¡±
The girl raised her hand again and at the man¡¯s assent, she asked, ¡°Does it mean something, guruji?¡±
¡°Very good.¡± The man smiled. ¡°Making your hair fall off is not an easy thing to achieve. More often than not, your hair forms a large part of your image in your minds. To dissociate yourself from that image, to leave behind the vanity and to end the attachment from your flesh, is the goal of this exercise.¡±
Another student, with her face scrunched in confusion, raised her hand and asked, ¡°But...umm guruji, you have hair!¡±
The man laughed at that. ¡°Yes. I do.¡± His eyes twinkled in amusement and the girl reddened.
¡°You will be able to grow your hair back once you have advanced to the next Tier. But why will you be able to do so? This I can¡¯t tell you yet. Knowing that now will only harm your progress.¡± He turned to look at the other children and asked, ¡°Anything else?¡±
He waited for a moment and when silence reigned, he continued, ¡°Now, you have a time limit of course. Those whose Dharma is to walk down this path, they will be able to achieve this within a year but those of you, who do not possess enough [Surplus] to walk down this path, you must not give up so easily.¡±
¡°Hard work and [Reflection] are more than enough to change one¡¯s [Dharma]. This we realise and appreciate. Hence, those who could not achieve this within a year, you will be given another year to try again.¡±
¡°However, if even after another year you are unable to earn this Class, then your Dharma would be truly something else. And you¡¯d have to leave.¡±
¡°Though, your time in the Ashram would not have been a waste, even if you¡¯d have to leave. You¡¯d leave this place with riches that even the Kings and the nobles desire most. You¡¯d leave with Rare Attributes.¡±
¡°You do not have access to your Status yet, so you can¡¯t actually see it but when you do gain your Status, you will have access to [Reflection] and [Will]. Two of the Rare Attributes.¡±
¡°For now, this is all.¡± The man said as he finished his speech. ¡°I wish all of you my very best on your journey ahead.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 11
Within all the infinite Realities, there existed an unfathomable place that was beyond the realm of simple understanding.
Like blood vessels digging through the flesh, the baffling place invaded the Realities to infect the countless Creations existing within.
Blighting them all, old and new alike, the incomprehensible place stole Beings to eternally immure them within itself.
These stolen Beings, the manifested Wills, were made not of flesh, blood and bone. Instead, Essences made for their ethereal forms, containing within the Will of their physical might.
Powerful and grand the Beings maybe, but torn apart from their Origins as they were, eternal prisoners they became, evermore longing for their past.
Incarnating these Wills, and the butchered mutations called Gods, it subjugated them brutally, rendering the Great Beings tame.
To rebel was a crime, the horror of which had been witnessed just once. For within its boundaries, both massive and obscure, the lost were wandering Gods and forgotten were the strayed Wills.
The horror of this place was such that whispered was its name by the great Beings, speculating its unknown origin.
Who created this place, this eternal parasite, curious the prisoners maybe, but they dared not seek those answers. For this place preceded the manifestations of all Wills, a feat achieved only by the Eternals.
Yet, even the Eternals remained ignorant at the behest of one, an Eternal to all but the Eternals themselves, the one possessing the domain, The Cyclic Time.
This place, whose secret was known to none but one, was Tilism. The home of the horrors. The prison of the pandemonium.
Within Tilism, prohibited as they were from manifesting themselves, the Wills and the Gods desperately observed their respective Creations and Realities. Granting their powers to [Mortals] residing within, they awaited not freedom, but the natural order''s resurrection.
These were the rules of Tilism, not Laws; resisting them wasn''t futile, it was fatal.
Enforced as they were by the Eternals themselves, the crime that resistance was, Realities had Ended for it.
The hubris of Gods had been sundered for it.
The apathy of Wills had been annihilated for it.
Within this place, and such conditions, a particular ethereal Being gazed in the distance.
This Being was not a single existence, but an entity formed of innumerable lives existing within, the [Not One, But Innumerable].
Choosing its form in the shape of a colossal illusionary Tiger, its huge eyes gazed into the distance. Made up of countless flowers, the eyes were dark with flowers wilting and dying.
Towering over the forest of massive, intangible trees, the Being scoffed. The forest such as this would have brought it utter joy in any other place, but here in Tilism, the illusion was the Being''s greatest shame.
Within this skyless prison which lacked even the starry sky, let alone the sun and the moons, the soft glow of countless colours radiating from every little thing reminded the colossal Tiger of its approaching End.
The sight of the tall trees -glowing several shades of green and brown, with red and orange illuminations splattered across- taunted the ginormous Tiger, reminding it of the Reality where it had come into existence, but where it dare not manifest ever again.
The [Not One, But Innumerable], turned around and its humongous body moved. Made up of decaying trucks and rotting bones, glowing in dark colours of red, brown and black, its body was a horrendous sight.
Glowing a colour of fleshly pink and bruised green, the live flesh and the green plants made their way around the dead matter, giving the goliath''s body substance.
Countless leaves, big and small, alive and dead, laced through all available space as if they were its fur. Shining in the innumerous shades of green and bleeding red, it made for a sight that no mortal would like to behold.
The ethereal Tiger lifted its legs, huge enough that it seemed ready to pierce the sky, and stepped forward. Radiating various shades of brown, black, pink and red, the thrumming might of a single limb seemed incomprehensible, let alone the whole Being.
The gory mixture of wood and flesh that was its leg soon fell and the earth trembled, as if under its weight.
Annoyed at the false termor, the [Not One, But Innumerable] swished its tail which contained animals, fish, birds and fungi, all combined together in a thick, prolonged tail. The colours it glowed with were various, the red, the blues, the greens and all the others in between.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
At that moment, a sigh escaped the ginormous Tiger, causing countless animals and fish, both alive and dead, to loosen from its body and fall before dissipating shortly.
Its quest had failed, bearing no fruit. The pawn that the [Not One, But Innumerable] had so carefully chosen to reincarnate existed no more.
The pawn was no longer a [Mortal] in an [Immortal¡¯s] body; the ethereal Tiger''s goal. It no longer was the unique happenstance that possessed the cunningness of [Mortals] along with the unlimited potential of [Immortals].
In its place now existed a true [Immortal]; a creature that was [Immortal] both in body and ego.
The [Not One, But Innumerable] had failed.
0.0
Within the constantly growing Realities and the expanding Creations nurtured within, there existed Beings that even multiple Realities fail to successfully contain. So enormous were their presences that even mere projections shattered the unfortunate Realities.
Unfathomable and apathetic they were, but the annihilation of all cosmic existence served not their purpose. Thus, dispersed they remained within the Essences, spread across the uncountable Realities and innumerable Creations.
However, even this was barely enough.
Saturated were the ever-increasing Realities and the ever-growing Creations, old and new, those still existing and those long shattered. Filled to the brim were the Realities and Creations, resisting the constant threat of destruction.
Yet, the Beings grew every passing moment, with their powers strengthened and presences deepened.
This dispersion made these Beings omniscient, nearly omnipotent throughout their domains. They saw all. They knew all. They manipulated all through their domains.
Secrets did not exist for them, for even thoughts couldn''t escape their domains.
Such was the power of these Beings. For they were The Eternals. The Original Creations.
They were the keepers and the guardians of the Realities, but they guarded not against the good and the evil.
Instead, they guarded against the audacity of the mortals and immortals alike. For somethings were meant to be lost; never shared, never researched.
Punishing audacities, the Eternals had stepped in more than once, with violence so great that Realities had shattered and Creations had exploded, bringing nothing but death to the mortals and immortals alike.
Nothing escaped their will that demanded annihilation to fulfil their duty.
As such, these Eternals remained unmanifested for as long as they could. They remained aloof for as long as they could. For their manifestation and their care bode nothing good for any Creation, let alone the pitiful mortals and immortals within.
At this moment, though, all of these unmanifested horrors had focused their attention on the tiny [Immortal] that had just sacrificed itself to gain magic.
Such attention, if it was focused even on the Gods and the Wills, their spirits would be sundered and hope extinguished.
But the tiny [Immortal] was too weak to even comprehend the death that stared it in its face.
If an ant were put under glass, in the heat of a festering summer and burned, would it know what killed it? The tiny creature was much the same.
Thus, the tiny [Immortal] felt not a single thing. It continued with its life, not knowing that its life had been scrutinised by Being that were unchallenged across the infinite Creations and the ever-growing Realities.
At this moment, one of the dispersed horrors communicated. But calling its act ''speech'' was akin to calling the End of a Creation, a hiccup. For when the unmanifested horror communicated, cosmic horrors descended.
Morphing and mutating into unspeakable horrors, the speech passed through the Realties as life died horribly. Planets changed to cosmic dust and the stars morphed into colossal diamonds. Comets changed to planets while blackholes changed their nature and erupted.
This was the unintended consequence of the communication done by just one of the Eternals, The Formless Creation. And all that it had asked had been, ¡°Is this, the Creature?¡±
Somewhere far away, so far that it was not just in another Creation but in another Reality, another Eternal Existed. It heard the question, saw the destruction and cared for neither. Its attention remained focused on a tiny creature.
Yet, it nodded its head and as a consequence, time became chaotic. Mortals aged and died while immortals turned back to eggs. Thriving civilizations returned to hunting and gathering while cavemen developed undefeated empires. Even the Gods turned back to unmutated Wills while the Wills de-manifested.
Planets turned to dust clouds as the time rolled back for them and the stars exploded to become black holes as the time moved forward for them. Somewhere else, civilizations came to an end as they collapsed over time, while elsewhere life blossomed as intelligence was born.
And all this, because of the nod of a single Eternal, The Illusionary Eternal.
In another Reality far away, another Eternal spoke. Mortal or immortal, no matter the creature the speech passed through, they forgot their entire lives to become unresponsive. While the Beings, like Gods and the Wills, forgot their origins.
But that was not all. As the speech traversed the cosmos, planets derailed, forgetting their orbits while the stars forgot their trajectory, colliding and exploding. Gravity forgot what it did to stop working while the light forgot how to travel.
This was the unmitigable consequence of the small communication done by the Eternal, The Forgotten Creation. And all this Eternal had asked had been, ¡°Will it, be enough?¡±
But before the Illusionary Eternal could even begin to answer, the youngest of them all spoke from another Reality.
As it spoke and its speech travelled, mortals and immortals died en masse. The Gods and the Wills dared not to live and shattered. Civilizations died in a single moment and the continents became bare.
Yet, death did not end. The cores of planets cooled down as they died while the stars stopped burning as they welcomed their end. The blackholes collapsed on themselves while the comets dissipated without hesitation.
Such was the unintended horror of the mere speech of the youngest Eternal, The Mutated Creation. And all it had said, had been, ¡°But the process¡¡±
All the cosmic horrors remained quiet as they pondered over the hesitation of their youngest. But this had been something that even The Endless Creation had agreed to and that particular Eternal had come back from its End to do so.
-X-
Chapter 12
Kiran sat with his legs crossed on a massive platform beneath the shade of the huge Banyan tree#. Though the word, huge, could not be used for the tree when it came to its height or the width. Rather, it could only be used to describe the canopy of the tree that spanned not tens of meters but hundreds.
Huge branches rose from the trunk of the tree like finger and opened up like palms spread apart. And from those branches rose branches, from which rose branches. But that was not enough, as, from each branch, rope-like structures dropped down to seek the earth and germinate, only to create a new tree.
Kiran twitched as the peace of the shade was broken by the movement of the children that were beginning to file in for their scheduled class. One by one, and sometimes in the groups of two, the children gathered under the tree and soon enough the platform was filled with children.
Kiran blinked as the massive platform was packed with children with no place left to even stand. ¡®I thought more than half had already left.¡¯
He turned to his right and blinked again when he saw the girl who was the one sitting next to him.
The girl was tall, or rather she was taller than Kiran. She had long and black hair that was tied in a tri-braid and came down to her waist. Her dark hair contrasted against her light skin. While her brown eye fit rather beautifully with her sharp features.
Kiran recognised her. She was the girl that had answered the questions of Guruji. The recognition surprised him and the thoughts that had formed turned into words and the words escaped his mouth before he could even process the thought. ¡°Eh? Aren¡¯t you the know-it-all girl?¡±
The girl, who had been observing the children quietly, turned to face the dark-skinned boy with a scowl on her face. ¡°I am not a know-it-all girl. I am just a girl who happens to know it all.¡±
Kiran was taken aback at the confrontation but then his brain registered what the girl had said and his brows furrowed. ¡°That¡¯s the same thing!¡±
¡°No. It isn¡¯t!¡± The girl rolled her eyes.
¡°Of course, it is!¡± The boy was baffled. ¡°How are they even different?!¡±
¡°They are different because I said so!¡± The girl huffed and crossed her arms.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
¡°That does not even make sense!¡± Kiran snapped back. ¡°Why would something be true just because you said so?!¡±
¡°Because I know it all!¡± She smirked at the boy. ¡°Didn¡¯t you just say that?¡±
The boy glowered at her but bit back any further remark. He did not like his own words being used against him to prove something that was clearly nonsense. Thus, he glowered at the girl and huffed as he turned away from her.
0.0
¡°As this is your first class, I should teach you about your Attributes and the other Status related matters.¡± Guru Pranay unceremoniously began his lecture. ¡°But I will not. You lot are not going to access your Statuses anytime soon and teaching it now would be waste of my time.¡±
He scanned the nearly hundred students gathered before him. ¡°I do not like wasting time.¡±
The man then waved his hand and the earth next to the platform raised itself as a tower that reached high above the students. The saffron-clad man then stepped forward and the smooth surface of the tower turned to a step of the stairs.
A step turned into another as the grey-haired moved forward and then into another. The Guru kept moving and the steps kept appearing until the guru reached the top of the tower and sat down with his legs crossed.
¡°Can anyone hear me?¡± The man asked but he received no reply. The entire class of the about 100 students had been spellbound by the simple display of magic.
Yet each of his words reached the entire length and breadth of the platform as if the words had not been carried on air but the very mana itself. Which, as it would turn out, was the case as the Guru possessed both the Skill, [Mana Manipulation], and the Spell, [Mana Manifestation] to do it.
¡°Tch.¡± The man¡¯s eyebrows furrowed and the light, ever so slightly, took on a yellow tinge while the air, ever so slightly, became heavy. He asked again. ¡°Can everyone hear me?¡±
The cries of assent were hurried and nervous and the man sighed. ¡°Do not be so easily swayed by the displays of magic you see here. These are nothing but household spells. If it is your Dharma to walk the path of magic, these shall be simple tasks for you.¡±
As if by magic, the nervousness vanished amongst the children and was replaced by excitement.
The saffron-clad man cleared his throats and the children quietened. ¡°Don¡¯t be too excited though. The path of magic is an uncommon one and not the one that most of you will follow.¡±
¡°That does not mean that you will not be able to do magic. You indeed will. It just may be the case that your magic may manifest in forms different than what you would expect.¡±
A disquiet a spread through the children and the guru let the children grumble with a smile on his face.
When the children finally fell silent, the saffron-clad man spoke again. ¡°My words are not just empty platitudes. Even simple Skills and Spells turn terrifying with high enough Tier. For instance, simple Skills to balance a boat can tame cyclones and tsunamis.¡±
The children began to murmur again but the man coughed and the children silenced themselves. ¡°The real challenge is to reach that Tier, both in the Class and the Skill. But enough of this now. Let¡¯s move forward with today¡¯s lesson.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 13
The White Furred Moth woke up to a pulsing, blue glow in the corner of its vision.
''Ugh... later...'' it thought, as its groggy mind awakened, allowing it to feel the hunger in its belly.
''...[Hungry] so weak, why?'' It thought, its antennas lazily moving in confusion. The act, however, reminded the small bug of its evolution. ''The Title was lost, yes. It went away. She wanted it gone, yes.''
Apathetic to Her suffering, the [Survivor] turned its golden antennas towards the sweet scent emanating from the broken pieces of its discarded cocoon.
''To be a caterpillar is to eat, yes.'' It thought, stretching its new Vessel. ''To eat is to survive, yes. To eat is to thrive, no? Then She ...pained, why? To Thrive, her Dharma, no?''
At the thought, its antennas waved wildly as the White Furred Moth hurriedly summoned its Dharma Screen.
[Since there is life, death exists now. Since there is now death, life exists. Within the singularity of this infinity, lies the endless chaos of half-truths. Truth and Untruth, both extend through this singularity. In the moment between singularity to infinity and infinity to singularity, hides the meaning of Dharma.]
[Dharma: Thrive.]
''It''s unchanged, yes.'' Its doubt sated, the [Survivor] thought back to the sudden and incomprehensible sensation that had assaulted it previously; its antennas shaking wildly. ''...that disturbance, was what?''
Its beady eyes lost focus as it thought, before it shook its head, letting go of the thought to approach the familiar sweet scent. ''She... ate Her egg, yes. Received Levels, no?'' Tilting its head to the side, the White Furred Moth took a bite of the white cocoon.
The hard cocoon shard instantly melted in the bug¡¯s mouth, leaving behind a subtle and pleasant taste, following which the [Survivor] devoured the remaining cocoon post haste.
Ting.
[You have consumed The Gift.]
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! The level up bonus of +2 HP +2 MP granted.]
¡®A moth evolved, yes. The numbers, changed so?¡¯ Cleaning up the last of the cocoon shards, the small bug turned to the pulsing blue light in the corner of its vision.
And immediately-
Ting.
[22 Points of Mana granted.]
¡®Wanted She this, yes. Wanted a moth this too, no?¡¯ It thought, wings twitching in agitation. ¡®Little, no? Too little, yes. Still. Random mana, better than no mana, yes.¡¯
Ting.
[Title [Reincarnated] has come into effect.]
The White Furred Moth''s body tingled at the notification, its fur erupted in goosebumps and antennas still in anticipation. ''Her magic, a moth receive no?''
Ting.
[Mastery of Spell detected. Race [Immortal] denies access to Spells. Access Denied.]
¡®Eh?¡¯
Ting.
[Mastery of Spell detected. Race [Immortal] denies access to Spells. Access Denied.]
¡®Eh?¡¯
.
.
.
.
.
¡®Eh?¡¯
[Mastery of Spell detected. Race [Immortal] denies access to Spells. Access Denied.]
¡®¡what?¡¯ The white bug''s beady eyes glared at the long list of spell rejections before hurriedly pulling on its Race to check if the notifications were correct or not.
[[Immortal]s are lifeforms born with lengthy lifespans and the ability to increase it further. They are Creatures not bound to their Vessels and the concept of civilization. It denies access to Attributes and Spells.]
The White Furred Moth shrieked in anger, the raspy sound echoing in its small hidey-hole. It neither understood the rage that overtook it nor did it understood the reason for sensation. All it knew was, ''...bite, I will! Hurt, I will!''
The small bug lunged at the blue screen, intending to shred it apart. Not knowing why it wanted to, or what such an act would achieve, the white bug acted out its heart.
But, untangible as the screen was, the idiot passed right through it to smack headfirst into the wooden wall of its hideyhole, prompting the next screen to materialize.
Ting.
[Mastery of Skill detected. Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Mastery of Skill detected. Skill [Sense Essence Lv.1] granted.]
The White Furred Moth paused, its beady, black eyes staring at the new notifications before its jaws chittered loudly in glee. ''Her Spells, can''t get. Skills, can, no? Yes.''
Hurriedly, it focused on the names of its new Skills, summoning their description.
Ting.
[Ability to Sense and Manipulate internal Mana. Does not grant the ability to manifest the user''s mana.]
Ting.
[Allows the user to locate and manipulate Essence. The Skill costs mana equal to five times the level of the Skill per minute.]
Jaws chittering in glee, it reread the notification. ''[Mana Manipulation], okay, no? Much, matters not. But [Sense Essence], yes. Good. Very good, yes. Her Skill, the best one, a moth has, yes!''
As the echoes of its chitters died down, another thought popped up in its head.
''Her existence, for what? All lifespan, for what? Sum of life, just two Skills.'' The [Survivor] tilted its head to the side, pondering. ''Didn''t thrive, no? Pointless. Better dead.''
The [Immortal] that it now was, it couldn''t comprehend the callousness of its thoughts. having sacrificed the [Mortal] Ego, it had lost the sense of empathy which was integral to [Mortals] and [Mortals] only.
Thus, despite possessing Her memories, it couldn''t comprehend the associated emotions, causing the resulting thoughts to become incomprehensible and convoluted, impossible to follow.
The divide between the [Mortals] and the [Immortals].
For the [Survivor], Her experiences were akin to a fairytale, although incredibly detailed but a story nonetheless. For this very reason, the two Skills it inherited started from Level 1; instead of representing Her mastery, they represented the [Survivor]''s.
However, being an [Immortal] in all sense of the world, it saw no need for [Mortal] feelings and thoughts.
Otherwise, how could a [Mortal] -a creature that even cried and rejoiced for the fictional characters- not care about the joys, the sorrows and the grief of its previous life?
A [Mortal] could never.
Not that it mattered to the small bug; it was an [Immortal] and the Sorceress was killed.
Shaking off the strange thoughts, the White Furred Moth summoned its Status to take a last look.
''Better than caterpillar, yes,'' it thought, its beady, black eyes lingering on its lifespan.
Ideally chittering its jaws, the small bug broke the flimsy mud wall to finally step outside.
The rush of cold, humid air rushed past its white fur, erasing the lingering lethargy while the soft pitter-patter of the water droplets brought back the memories of Her slaughter. ''Rained then, it had too, no?''
Its beady eyes gazed into the new world, but only found the dense darkness smothering it. ''Late, yes. Already night, no?'' It surmised before glancing up and into the black sky.
''...shines above, which moon? The white? The green? Or the azure?'' Tearing its eyes away, it stretched its wings and gave them a experimental shudder before taking off into the drizzle.
To the being, that it had been in its last life, the rain had been a dreary and grey phenomenon that had brought with it a newfound coldness in already cold weather. But to this [Survivor], it had been this very rain that had been the cold shower that had eased the heat of the intense summer. It had been this rain too that had helped wash away the gloom of its ending lifespan.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
This rain had been the reason it had been able to evolve and live.
The rest of the night the [Reincarnated] remained within the vicinity of its shelter, practising its flight. The bug had thought that it would take it a lot of time to get used to its wings. But that had not been the case. Perhaps the reason had been the [Flight] Skill that had started at Level 5. Or perhaps there had been some other reason. The creature did not know. And like for most other things, it did not care.
¡®After the rain, flying is my favourite thing.¡¯ It laughed to itself as it fluttered about without any purpose. The creature just enjoyed the moment of joy. ¡®And flying in rain is the best of all!¡¯
When it had enjoyed itself enough and finally decided to do something productive, it noticed a slight buzz around itself, or better to say, emanating from it. The bug frowned. ¡®This would not do. Absolutely not. It¡¯s practically screaming, ¡°Hey, tasty meat here. Come and eat!¡±¡¯
Thus, the white moth tried to nullify the sound as it flew but its face ended up having a rather intimate moment with the tree trunk. It tried again, but this time, instead of nullifying the sound, the bug tried to minimize it.
In the end, it took the poisonous moth quite some time but it did manage to soften the noise. However, it had to trade its speed for that and the maximum height it could fly to. ¡®No matter. Being alive is worth more than flying higher or faster.¡¯
Before in its last life when she had been alive, such a statement would have been sacrilege to her but now that it knew of death rather intimately, it had come to appreciate the value of life. Sighing again, it flew, searching for food.
Now that it had evolved into a moth and had its magic back, the creature had no intention to gorge on leaves anymore. Not that it had anything against leaves per se. But the Title [Hungry] had forced it to eat more leaves than it had ever to. Besides, its instincts too told it that it should find flower sap and bugs to feed on.
Searching, as it flew, it activated the Skill, [Sense] for the first time. And its antennas, almost instantly, caught the subtle yet sweet fragrance of a flower in the distance. The creature paused as it experienced the peculiar sensation. Feeling the scent, rather than smelling it, was something that that would take some time getting used to; it decided.
However, the creature shook off the odd sensation soon enough and flew in the direction of the flower nonetheless. The flower was pale blue in colour on a plant that had grown like a shrub. The petals of the flower almost reminded the creature of lilies in the way they were shaped. As the moth neared the flower, the flower seemed to almost glow in the darkness of the night.
The bug gently landed on the flower¡¯s petals and crawled in.
As it was tasting the sweet nectar of the flower, it felt another scent from its [Sense] skill. The duration of the Skill had yet to expire and the creature responded immediately, as it crawled out of the flower to look for the source of the scent.
The [Reincarnated] did not have to wait long before its eyes fell on an insect, which was much larger than itself, approaching the flower from the side. At this moment, the wind shifted and the scent thickened. From this thick scent, the nature of the creature became clear and the moth¡¯s heart began racing.
The owner of the scent was undoubtedly a predator; this, the moth¡¯s instincts screamed at it. The [Survivor] backed away from the approaching predator at once. It did not even wait to get a clearer look at the predator. The moth had no intention of becoming insect chow, after all.
As its wings fluttered and kicked it off of the plant, a giant shadow seemed to pass from just where it had been a moment ago. The shadow had been at least thrice the size of the moth¡¯s entire body and had been fast enough to cover the distance in an instant.
The moth¡¯s heart raced and it turned around. And there it was, a giant creature that looked a lot like a praying mantis but wasn''t. It was at least 10 times as big as the moth and had a body that looked like it was made out of wood rather than flesh.
The moth beat its wings faster and faster. It didn¡¯t care about the buzzing of its wings as it just tried to be faster than the creature pursuing it. And as it flew, out of the corner of its eye, it kept glancing at the seemingly wooden mantis. Then, much to its astonishment, and horror, the thing straightened up and revealed its wings.
''That thing can fly!!'' The insect gaped. ''I am so very dead!''
And as the moth had expected, but had hoped to be wrong about, the enormous predator flapped its wings and flew towards it. The mantis creature had decided that the moth was its prey and it did not want to let the moth escape its scythe-like clutches.
As the prey and the predator both flew, one chasing after the other, the moth¡¯s tiny brain began to churn faster and faster. It eyed the creature again and noticed that the creature, due to its oddly wooden body and large size, was slower than itself. Thus, without even waiting for a moment, it flew straight up. ¡®If it is heavier and slower than me, then it can¡¯t possibly fly high!¡¯
The creature came to this conclusion due to its experiments earlier in the night when it had just been trying to dampen the buzzing sound of its flapping wings. At that time, although it had succeeded in decreasing the sound, it had had to fly both slower and at lower altitudes.
Thus, the moth kept on flying higher and higher and it soared towards the rain and the clouds. The mantis creature too kept on flying and tried to beat its wings faster. Though its heavy body proved to be a hindrance that it could not overcome.
A sigh of relief escaped the [Survivor] as the wooden mantis finally fell behind. With its breathing harsh and short, the little being landed on a branch. Though, it didn¡¯t relax until after it had made sure that no surprises were hiding for it this time. It was only after it had calmed down did it begin to access the situation. ¡®Could I have done things differently?¡¯
The answer to that was no. It could not have.
While the bug had a lot of Skills, most were utility-based or suitable for traps. Not something that it could have used to confront the creature that had been hunting it. And then there had been the nature of its hunter itself. That mantis creature seemed to have had a wooden body, which implied that it would have been much tougher to handle.
Though that was just its conjecture.
Lastly, even though the moth had gained magic, it hadn¡¯t gained spells. It had gained Skills. Both of which were utility based in nature and were the basis on which magic was cast and did not cast magic themselves.
This encounter thus taught one lesson to the moth and that lesson was that it had to begin experimenting with its magic as soon as possible if it wanted to survive in this world. After all, it had gained magic after much sacrifice and it was not just for show.
The creature then sighed. For even though it had decided to practice magic, it still needed to eat. The only thing that it had eaten since its birth had been its own cocoon. And while it had been delicious and rewarding, it hadn¡¯t been very substantial.
Thus, beating its wings, the moth again became airborne.
It flew across the forest as it kept its senses at high alert. It would have preferred to just keep the Skill [Sense] active but that Skill was limited by the moth¡¯s Skill Level. Thus, the moth could only use the Skill for 1 minute at Level 1. ¡®I have to be very judicious with its use.¡¯
Yet, despite its caution, the creature couldn¡¯t stop enjoying the wind beneath its wings and the rustling of the hairs on its body. It was exhilarating for the bug. Hence, it flew and flew until its body reminded it, with a slight burn in its stomach that it needed to eat. Grimacing, the moth began actively looking for small bugs to hunt.
It was after quite some time that the moth zoomed in on a spider trying to build its web. The 8-legged creature was small, almost a third of the moth¡¯s own size and a dull brown in colour. The colour of the bug made it smile.
If the bug had to rely on a dull colour to hide its presence then it should not be incredibly dangerous. Because the moth knew, from her knowledge, that anything that was brightly coloured within the wild, had to be either extremely poisonous or venomous.
Yet, the moth decided to err on the side of caution and not to engage the spider in confrontation. Because that was the way of the wild and only those that followed it, survived. Unless, of course, one was strong enough. If one was strong enough, then just what was wild and what it rules? They were mere guidelines meant to be bent as per one¡¯s will.
Focusing on the task at hand, the creature landed in a hidden location and waiting patiently as it began observing its prey.
Since the creature had no information regarding the spider or the guide to help it hunt the spider, it decided to first remedy the first flaw and began gathering information. The creature observed the spider for about an hour and saw as a fly was caught in the spider¡¯s web.
The moth then tilted its head in confusion as the spider just waited as the fly continued to struggle. It was only after that the fly had stopped struggling did the spider move. ¡®Ah. So, it was waiting for the fly to tire itself out.¡¯
The moth watched as the spider neared the fly and stopped for a moment as it seemed to be observing the creature trapped within its web. ¡®Eh? Is it blind or something?¡¯
It was only after the spider had carefully observed the spider that it closed in and sank its fang into the flesh of the fly. ¡¯And there is poison, as expected.¡¯
Now that the moth felt it knew the modus operandi of the spider, it was ready to begin its own hunt. Though the first thing it needed was a plan. Something which was surprisingly hard to come up with. As moments after moments continued to pass, plans after plans passed through the creature¡¯s mind.
The first plan that it decided to act on used the moth¡¯s ability to create venom and its ability to fly. For this plan, the creature needed to cover a leaf with venom before putting that leaf on the spider when it was away from its net. Thus, causing the spider to be poisoned.
Even though it was not the best plan, it was the first that the creature thought might work. Hence, it decided to employ it. The moth thus found a large enough lead and covered it in the venom secreted from its body.
But it was there that it ran into its biggest hurdle. A hurdle that it could not cross over. And this hurdle was that the creature was a moth. It did not have fingers, let alone opposable thumbs to hold onto anything. The creature dumbly stared at its thin limbs that seemed like mere lines. And then stared at the venom covered leaf. And then it scowled. ¡®Stupid bitch gave me a wrong set of memories.¡¯
With its first plan a bust, it abandoned the leaf and began thinking of another method. This time, it took the moth quite some time to come up with a plan. And when it did, it decided to directly employ it.
Thus, the creature began searching for moss. Given that it was the rainy season, and it had been raining nonstop since the moth had woken up, it was not difficult to find the green encroacher. The moth then bit off a small portion of the moss and laced it with its own venom before rolling it in a roughly cylindrical shape with the use of its mouth.
After all, the creature couldn¡¯t even use its limbs to perform such a simple action.
With the moss roll in its mouth, the creature flew back to the spider and let the roll fall into the web. The vibrations caused by the roll were short-lived and while they made the spider pay attention, they did not cause the spider to move.
Not that the moth had expected the spider to move from just this much. This moss roll was just a distraction and even though the moth had laced it with venom, the creature did not expect the spider to take a bite of the moss.
The moth then found a stone small enough to lift while big enough to hurt the spider. It was not something difficult given that the spider was one third the size of the moth. With its weapon set, the moth flew back to the spider web. Reaching the moss roll, the moth carefully landed so as not to be entangled into the web before gently flapping its wings to generate a slight wind current right over the moss roll.
The wind current along with the moss roll created a simulation of a creature trapped within the web. The moth then increased the wind current to mimic a panicked bug before gradually decreasing the wind to imitate an increasingly tired creature. And then it finally stopped the wind.
The spider had twitched the moment the first wind current had hit the web and had been attentive ever since. It was only after the web stopped moving completely that the spider made its move. The fanged creature carefully made its way towards moss roll and then paused.
The shape of the moss roll seemed to make little sense to the creature as the spider twitched its front legs in confusion.
It was while the spider was focusing on the moss that the white moth landed from above and spat out the stone directly at the spider. The stone hit the spider and unbalanced it, causing the fanged creature to fall off.
The creature landed with a thud and seemed disoriented. The moth used that time to fly down to the spider and bit the back of its head and flew off. It flew higher and higher and also towards a flat piece of rock as the spider struggled and thrashed and tried to bite the moth.
But the moth had been holding it from its back and the spider¡¯s limbs and fangs didn¡¯t reach above its body. It was not long after that the moth threw the spider at the rock.
Splat!
The white moth hovered in the air for a moment before flying down to where the spider had landed. It was not a pretty sight. The spider¡¯s chitin had cracked and from those cracks, blood leaked out. All of the 8 beady eyes of the spider had popped like balloons, splashing the flesh and liquid within onto the spider¡¯s body. The limbs of the insects had broken off, leaving behind 8 differently sized stumps.
The moth made a face in distaste yet it dismissed the 3 Level notification. ¡®That had been hectic.¡¯
However, its face twisted in distaste as it landed near the dead spider and the delicious scent of fresh meat hit its antennas. The bug crawled closer.
The thus released scent tantalized its antennas but it didn''t dare touch the spider now. Feasting itself on the spider now would leave its open to attack, thus it chose to take the meat back with it, to eat it in peace.
But when the creature bit into the carcass to lift it, the cracks on the chitin expanded and even more, blood began leaking out. This carcass, in such a mangled state, could not be transported.
It grimaced and decided to eat it there itself but before that, the creature needed to make some preparations. As such, it began to dig then and there. It dug as fast as it could, for it did not want the scent of raw flesh to attract predators.
Once the hole had been dug, the bug dragged the spider carcass in. After covering up the entrance with the venom covered leaf -that it had tried to use for its plan- it dug into the flesh.
The meat tasted just as delicious as its scent had promised and even though there wasn¡¯t much, it had been filling. There had even been a bit of spice to some parts of the flesh. They had been a nice little surprise and its favourite part even.
At this moment, the White Moon Moth didn¡¯t realise it, but it had been able to gorge on the flesh of a spider and even found delicious because of a single reason. And that reason was that it no longer had mortal sensibility, taste and preference. It was just another thing that the moth immortal had traded for magic.
As the moth finished the last morsel of meat and fluttered its wings to take off, a pain hit it out of nowhere.
It was like the bug had been hit with a blunt weapon, all over its body and then it had been hit again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again.
It was bad. Much worse than what it had been experiencing with the plant poison. Whereas the plant poison had been like a single bolt of pain, this experience felt to the creature like that single bolt of pain had begun racing all over it. And that many more such bolts, all had begun doing the same over its body again and again. And again.
The pain lasted for quite some time. And by the time it was finally over, the moth had been left gasping for its breath. It tried to take a few deep breaths but its body didn''t understand that instruction. Instead, its body exhaled the last puffs of air.
The creature panicked and didn¡¯t even dare breathe. Yet its body demanded air, for it was gasping. Under the conflicting desires of body and mind, the creature lost and involuntary breathed. Fortunately for it, by this time it was able to take control of its body and breathed deeply.
¡®How did I get poisoned?¡¯ The creature was left puzzled as it gasped. It had avoided the area near the poison sack entirely since it didn¡¯t know if it could identify the organ. ¡®What did I miss? Was its poison sac somewhere else and I ate it accidentally?¡¯
What the creature had already forgotten about was that all the eight eyes of the spider had popped and scattered their remains over the carcass. If none of its eyes remained intact after the fall, then how could the venom glad remain intact? The venom gland of the spider had thus burst open and the gland¡¯s content had thus escaped into the spider¡¯s head, while a small amount had even dripped down into the flesh of the rest of the body.
The unwitting moth had even noticed the poison but hadn¡¯t paid it any mind, for it had considered the venom laced meant, spicy.
The thing that had saved the moth¡¯s life had been its decision to not consume the head of the corpse. For if the white moth had eaten the head then, with the amount of venom present in that body part, the effects of venom would have stacked. If that had happened, then despite its [Poison Resistance], the creature would have died.
And now, even though the creature had escaped with its life, the experience had exhausted the bug and it opened its status to check its HP. It wanted to see if the creature¡¯s venom had been countered by its own [Poison Resistance]. It hadn¡¯t been. The creature had received a total of 6 points of HP damage over the past 3 minutes and the bug didn¡¯t know if the effects of the poison had ended or not.
The creature hurriedly flapped its wings and it flew back to its hideout. As it flew, over the course of the next 5 minutes, the moth continued to receive 2 points of HP damage per minute and had lost a total of 16 HP.
It was in the 9th minute though, where the effect of its [Poison Resistance] Skill ended and it began receiving the unmitigated damage from the spider¡¯s venom. A total of 10 HP damage per minute.
Though, it only received that damage for 2 minutes. This implied that either the spider had been a Tier 1 immortal and had both the skills [Venom Creation] and [Poison Resistance] at Level 10 or that it had been a recently evolved Tier 2 creature that had yet to Level up.
But considering how easily the creature had been handled, despite the poison affliction, the moth was biased towards it being a Tier 1 creature. Then there was the fact that the white moth had received just 3 Levels from the kill and the creature was inclined to believe that if it had killed a creature that had evolved twice, it would have received at least a dozen Levels.
When it finally landed within its shelter, the creature closed its eyes in exhaustion. ¡®Tomorrow.¡¯
Exhaustion, both from the poison and the loss of HP, demanded sleep. ¡®From tomorrow I will start experimenting with magic.¡¯
A demand, that the creature satisfied.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 14
¡°Today we will be discussing Mortals and Monsters.¡± The saffron-clad man began. ¡°As you can surmise from the names themselves, things are not as quite simple.¡±
A murmur rose with the children, though this chatter came more from the boys in the group than the girls. The tales of bravery, heroism and glory that had been fed to them since their birth, almost demanded that the boys paid rapt attention.
¡°First, Mortals.¡± The gaunt man smiled at the response but continued. ¡°You, me and us. We all are Mortals. Mortals are all those creatures that possess a sense of self and live in civilization. For this is the very ability that divides the two categories.¡±
A disquiet rose amongst the children and several of them raised their hands as if in disapproval. They clearly did not like such a broad definition. But the man cared not for their disapproval and simply called onto the nearest child.
¡°Even the Insaan are Mortals?¡± The child asked with his face showing clear discomfort at the thought. The Saffron clad man, however, raised an eyebrow. ¡°Do they live in a civilization?¡±
The child¡¯s face contorted and the man just shrugged in response. He did not care about the child¡¯s personal grudge and moved onto the next child.
¡°Are Manoos Mortals too?¡± A girl asked with distaste and the Guru raised an eyebrow in response. The girl huffed and replied shortly. ¡°They are hardly civil! And their tribes are clearly not an established civilisation!¡±
The man had to stifle a laugh at the girl¡¯s passion for the Manoos. ¡°As long as even the slightest semblance of civilization exists, the creature would be a Mortal. And the tribes that you mentioned, they are a form of civilization, are they not?¡±
¡°They are not!¡±
The man laughed lightly at that. ¡°Yes, they are. The Manoos are all different individuals that live together safely and raise their families. Sounds like civilisation to me.¡±
¡°But they kill, they pillage, they destroy, they are green and they breed like rabbits! How could they be same as us?!¡±
¡°Good question.¡± The thin man answered. ¡°And the answer is they aren¡¯t. While they are Mortals like us and all the other Mortal Species, they are different from us. Just like all the other Mortal Species are different from us.¡±
¡°All Mortal species have their own characteristics that make them different. Take us for example. We, the Manav, gain 1 additional [Spirit] Attribute every 10 Levels for no other reason other than reaching that Level.¡±
¡°And as high [Spirit] Attribute is one of the quasi-requirements for reaching Tier 2, all of you can very well imagine the boon that these additional points are.¡±
¡°Of course, all races have their own boon. The Insaan have their [Strength] boost and the Manoos have their [Endurance] boost. But the Manoos have some other banes that keep their kind trapped in their tribal stages.¡±This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.
¡°However, this is not the time to talk about them.¡± The man changed the topic abruptly. ¡°All creatures that live in any kind of civilization are Mortals. While those that don¡¯t are either animals or Monsters.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t suppose I have to tell you all the difference between the two?¡± The man asked but simply sighed when he saw the confusion on the many of the faces. ¡°Animals are creatures that lack a sense of self and are magicless. While Monsters may or may not possess a sense of self but they will always possess some sort of magic.¡±
¡°Animals, also, usually can¡¯t change their Vessels and Evolve. They can only do so after they have gone through extraordinary circumstances. While the ability to change Vessels is vital to Monsters.¡±
¡°So, your pets won¡¯t suddenly turn into horrendous monsters.¡± The man reassured the children before he smiled mischievously. ¡°They can though, But they most likely won¡¯t.¡±
The children that had pets twitched nervously but the man ignored their plight. ¡®A little bit of caution will do them good.¡¯
¡°Now, although the concept of civilization is what divides the two races, it is far from the only difference.¡± The man continued with his lecture. ¡°One of the main differences is the ability to change Vessels and Evolve. No Mortal has ever Evolved. While, as mentioned previously, the ability to Evolve is vital to Monsters.¡±
¡°The other major difference is the access to Attributes and Class that Mortals obtain through their Status. Monsters gain neither of those. In the past, several [Master of Monsters] have tried to pass on this boon to their monsters, however, none have succeeded so far.¡±
¡°In fact, such was the futility of their actions that Gods did not even bother to try to stop them. Instead, the Gods watched from afar and laughed in glee like little children.¡±
The children laughed nervously at the clear disrespect shown to Gods but none of them dared to emulate the saffron-clad man. From the very beginning, the children had been taught a simple fact; to speak to the Gods one must earn their respect.
¡°I digress. The lifespans of the two races are also different. While almost all Mortals live for about a century, the Monsters have no fixed lifespans as they keep changing their Vessels.¡± The man ignored the rising chatter of the children and continued. ¡°It is for this reason that any monster that has gained sapience will refer to itself as Immortal. They stand as an antithesis to Mortals.¡±
The children became noisy at that.
Some became agitated at the thought of the ever-living monsters of the horror stories while the other became jealous of the ability to just live endlessly. Some boys even started discussing what kind of Monster they would be and it soon became a contest of masculinity.
The saffron clan bony man let the ruckus continue for a while before he cleared his throat and the children quietened instantly. The man had put his Tier 1 Skill and Spell to good use.
¡°The last difference between the two races,¡± The Guru continued after a moment, ¡°is the inability of Monsters to use Spells. As Spells depend on the user¡¯s Attributes to function, the Monsters can¡¯t make use of Spells. They are denied access to both the Attributes and the Spells.¡±
Kiran raised his hand at that moment and the saffron-clad man nodded. ¡°Guruji, umm, how do we know all this?¡±
¡°Tch! Even I could have told you this.¡± Before the man could answer, the girl sitting beside the boy whispered sharply. ¡°Guruji even mentioned it. It¡¯s because of monster taming Classes. Learn to pay attention!¡±
Kiran¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as he scowled and snapped. ¡°Shut up, you know-it-all!¡±
¡°And don¡¯t you forget it!¡± The girl smirked. ¡°You, foot-in-mouth!¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Manav, Insaan, Manoos etc are just synonyms of the word human.
Chapter 15
When the creature woke up, the darkness of the night still reigned the sky. The soft green light of the green moon illuminated the world, giving the world almost an unreal impression.
¡®When did the rain stop?¡¯ Before it had gone to sleep, the creature had not seen the moon as it had still been raining, however, things became quite clear once it checked its Status and found its lifespan had decreased to 238 days. ¡®I slept for an entire day?¡¯
The creature had indeed slept for an entire day and this had been caused by 2 things. The first thing had been the venom that had ravaged its system. And the second thing had been the creature¡¯s Vessel. The creature Vessel was called White Furred Moth, which was a nocturnal creature, as had been evidenced by the fact that evolving into this vessel had granted the creature the Skill, [Night Vision].
The creature scowled. ¡®What a waste of time.¡¯
Shaking away the last of its bleariness, the creature thought for a moment and decided to follow through its earlier commitment. It would now begin experimenting with its magic. After all, if last night had proved anything, it had been that the dangers lurked everywhere. Yet the issue of the food still remained. ¡®Just what do I eat?¡¯
It was in that moment of the conundrum, that the moth was reminded of a creature that had come to its aid when it had all but given up hope. ¡®Of course!¡¯
Hence, after the creature finished its morning ablutions, it flew off to search for the area where its original residence had been. Arriving at the spot, it found just what it had expected. The hole had long collapsed on itself due to rain, leaving behind nothing in its place any longer.
This find would have, once upon a time, left the creature in shambles. After all, that hideout had been its home for almost its entire life as a caterpillar. With it gone, all the evidence of the creature''s struggles and difficulties were gone too. But those time were gone. The creature that had possessed such a fragile mind, no continued existence anymore.
Thus, the moth merely turned away from the patch of mud and soon found what it had come here for. ¡®There you are! I have come a long way for you, you know? Come here and fill my stomach.¡¯
With its stomach full, the moth returned to its shelter to begin the much-needed experimentation. The first thing that the moth did was to relax. After all, magic did not need haste. It needed a calm heart; this much the [Reincarnated] knew because of her memories. Thus, once its heart had calmed down, the creature closed its eyes as it activated its Skill, [Mana Manipulation].
Almost immediately, the world dissipated away and the only thing that creature could feel was its body and something trapped within. This something was almost azure in colour and it flowed all across the creature¡¯s body in a network of ethereal veins. However, these veins were not anything that the creature could see in its flesh.
And the something that flowed within those veins, it was even stranger. It didn¡¯t seem like it was the matter and it didn¡¯t seem like it was energy. It was the something. And there was no other thing that could be akin to this something.
The closest it could be described as would be akin to fire. Or better to say that the fire was akin to the something. For the something was akin to absolutely nothing. The something was the something. The something was there, yet not; it was insubstantial. It flowed but it was not liquid. It flew but it was not gas.
Yet that too was not entirely correct. The fire was most akin to the something but the fire was not the something. The something seemed to disappear into nothingness in one moment and in the other, it seemed to appear out of nothingness.
Even though the creature¡¯s form seemed to contain the something within the creature¡¯s ethereal veins, the veins did not lock the something within. The something constantly leaked out and appeared within the veins. The veins were but a guide to the something.
The creature recognised the something, of course. This something was mana. And the creature knew how to manipulate this it. It knew, because of her. But that did not mean it could. For knowing was not doing. And it soon became apparent when the creature tried and failed and failed and failed again, and again and again. It scowled. ¡®How had she done it so easily?¡¯
It tried again as it repeated the rules. ¡®Guide. Don¡¯t force. Speak. Don¡¯t order. Persuade. Don¡¯t control. For the mana does what it does, for no reason than it does.¡¯
It tried to guide. It failed.
It tried to speak. It failed.
It tried to persuade. It failed.
It tried again and again and again. But the creature did not succeed. With each failure, it felt its head beginning to ache and its heart began feeling like it was being squeezed. Its blood began pumping faster and its body began growing hot.
The creature was angry.
In its anger, it did just what it knew not to.
It tried to force. It failed.
It tried to order. It failed.
It tried to control. It failed.
And then the mana erupted from its body, all at on-
0.0
When the creature woke up next, it was delirious. The world was swimming and it saw colours that didn¡¯t exist. It heard sounds that defied logic and it smelled things that it could not define. But that was not where it ended. The creature was exhausted and lacked the energy to even move. Its body felt sore and it felt every muscle in its body as if the little being had exercised way beyond its limits.
The creature did not remain awake for lo-
0.0
The creature woke up dizzy and confused. The pain in its head caused it to feel the blood as it pulsed and rush by. The creature was miserable. And the feeling was compounded by hunger that burned in its belly. Yet, this hunger was nothing compared to what the Title [Hungry] had forced it to endure.
It clearly, was in no condition to go anywhere, hungry or not. Though when its thirst grew unbearable, it drank the water that had accumulated on the leaves due to the frequent rain. Thus, besides crawling out for water, the creature wisely decided to go hungry and just sleep.
0.0
It was only on the third day that the creature began feeling like itself again. And when it did, the first thing the creature did was to go out and hunt snails. It had been hungry for three days and the burn had started to bother the creature. This hunt too, just like the last time, didn¡¯t even result in a single Level.
However, even though the moth had gone out to hunt, it had remained quite vigilant. It had used the skill [Sense] before it had begun eating snail, as that had been the moment when it had been the most vulnerable. Perhaps as a result of its vigilance, the creature returned to its hideout safe and sound.
With its hunger sated, the creature let its body relax and activated [Mana Manipulation] once again. As the world dissolved away, and the creature¡¯s form came into view, the moth shuddered. Never again was the moth going to even think about committing the same folly ever again! Once had been enough for the creature. Even though the creature had known beforehand, the result of its folly because of her, it hadn¡¯t thought the result would be this explosive.
It had known that something like this would happen, but it hadn¡¯t understood.
The creature had been much akin to a child who knew that fire burned. The child knew so because it had been told so his entire life. But unless the child experienced the heat and the unforgiveness of the fire for himself, he would not understand. The creature had been much the same.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
And now the creature understood. Yet, this understanding helped it not as the creature stared at the azure mana. This understanding was useless and purposeless. The creature stared. It tried to guide. It tried to speak to it. And it tried to persuade. But to no avail.
And the day passed, just like that.
And another day passed.
Another day passed.
Days passed.
A week had passed in this manner and the creature had gained nothing. And even though it had gained nothing and no matter how angry or irritated it became, it never even thought of repeating its folly. Thus, throughout the entire week, the creature did just 2 things. It maintained its state under [Mana Manipulation] and hunted snails when it grew hungry.
And the week passed, just like that.
And another week passed.
Another week passed.
Weeks passed.
The creature continued to fail and the time continued to pass. The irrevocable march of time continued and 2 months went by in a blink. Yet the [Survivor] had nothing to show for it when it came to mana. The mana had not moved even for an inch under the creature¡¯s guidance.
Instead, the things that had improved in the past 2 months had been the ones on which the creature had not been paying any attention to. The first thing to improve had been its Skill [Night Vision], which had improved leaps and bounds, and reached Level 4. And the other had been its Levels which had increased by 3. This measly amount of progress had been due to the moth¡¯s obstinate desire to focus only on [Mana Manipulation], thus the bug had only hunted snails.
And although snails had been a good opponent for the caterpillar, they were not so for the now evolved White Furred Moth. Hence, even though the bug had hunted the snails almost daily, it had only received meagre experience from them and had levelled up only 3 levels in 60 days.
However, the improvement in [Night Vision] mattered not to the moth and neither did the increase in its Level. It only cared about mana and [Mana Manipulation]. As a result, by the time 2 months passed, the creature felt like it had almost nothing to show for the rather limited lifespan that it had wasted away. Its lifespan now stood at 174 days, down from its original of 240 days.
0.0
The creature stared at the number. It was its lifespan. Something extremely precious. Yet something that it had wasted away. ¡®60 days.¡¯
The creature¡¯s face twisted in distaste. ¡®More than half the lifespan of the caterpillar. Wasted away. Tch.¡¯
This caused the [Reincarnated] to break out of its routine and forced it to confront reality. ¡®My strategy is not really feasible.¡¯
It sighed. Now that the creature had decided to change its ways, it faced another conundrum. And this one was regarding its experience and the future strategy about the Skill [Poison Resistance]. The creature had complex feelings about this Skill. Initially, this had been the Skill that the caterpillar had the invested the most in. For the sake of this Skill, the [Reincarnated] had even regularly poisoned itself and gladly suffered through the consequences.
But it had been this Skill too that had been the reason that she had almost had her fragile mind shattered. The caterpillar had bet its future on the Skill but this Skill had been entirely useless to the little thing. After all, the Skill had only levelled up from the caterpillar¡¯s efforts after the creature had left that Vessel.
This Skill had been the source of trauma for her.
But this creature was not her. This creature was its own being. And while it did not have the trauma associated with levelling of this Skill, it had learned from her mistakes, especially after its misadventure with mana. It had learned and it had been left wary.
But the situation currently, and in the past, was not the same anymore. The Skill was no longer at its Level cap. It had the potential to grow. And even though the caterpillar¡¯s efforts had not born the little being any fruit, the moth had benefitted from the poor bugs efforts.
Therefore, the creature once again decided to work again on levelling up the Skill, with great reluctance. Its reluctance was not born from its wariness of the Skill but the experiences that it had to go through to level up the Skill.
Though, this bore the question, what should the creature use to level up the Skill. ¡®I can¡¯t use the same weak poison as her.¡¯
This, of course, reminded the creature of the spider¡¯s venom. But that venom had been dangerous enough to cause a loss of HP and that had been when that venom had not stacked. If it had stacked, then the creature didn¡¯t know how it would have handled the situation. After all, the moth did not have an HP recovering skill. It could only naturally regenerate it HP.
Yet, the creature had survived the poison. And this poison was the devil that it knew. If the creature tried searching for another being, it might end up finding something that the bug might regret. The creature¡¯s reasoning was the perfect example of choosing the evil that one knew over an evil one didn¡¯t.
With a plan of action set, the creature came out of its hideout and flew towards the area it had last hunted the spider. It did not take the moth much time to find more spiders similar to the one that it had been looking for. And it began hunting the fanged creature in much the same manner. Though, it was when the moth bit the spider at the back of its neck that things went differently.
This spider, unlike the one it had hunted last time, wasn¡¯t frazzled much when it fell from its web. Thus, when the moth tried to bite it at the back of its neck, the hair on the spider¡¯s feet stood up and the spider immediately noticed the flying danger.
The spider then jumped as it aimed its spinneret at the moth and shot a string of sticky at the moth. The moth, in response, tilted and changed its trajectory to dodge the spiderweb and flew away. ¡®Tch. What a bust!¡¯
The moth had no intention of hunting this spider anymore. After all, the moth was an ambusher. It hunted using surprise and traps. It did not confront its prey. And now that the element of surprise had been lost, the moth decidedly gave up on hunting this specific spider.
It searched for other spiders to hunt and it indeed found them. But the creature consequently failed the next 3 hunts before it was able to successfully hunt another spider. As the creature stared at the broken chitin of its prey, it scowled. ¡®Do I end up hunting the retarded members of this race?¡¯
Well, it was somewhat true to an extent. Both the spiders that it had been able to hunt had been the ones that hadn¡¯t recovered from the fall. Their reflexes had been slow and their responses late. It had been the only reason that the moth had been able to hunt the spiders with relative ease.
¡®Whatever.¡¯
The moth dismissed the 2 Level up notifications and carefully removed the spider¡¯s head from the rest of the body before spitting out a few times and cleaning its mouth from the water of the nearby drying puddle. It hadn¡¯t rained in the last few days and the easy sources of water were becoming increasingly hard for the creature to find.
What the creature didn¡¯t know was that while it had been trying to cajole mana to its will, the season of monsoon had almost come to an end. Soon the season will change once again and temperature would begin to drop as the winter would be moving in.
The creature didn¡¯t know any of this though, and after it rinsed its mouth, it began eating the delicious raw bug flesh. It didn¡¯t even realise how far it had come from the being that it had been. Not that it would have cared, had it known.
As it ate the spider if often came across some pieces that were a bit spicy. And after the last time, the creature had guessed that this spice was actually not a spice but rather the creature¡¯s venom. Thus, the creature didn¡¯t eat the spicy parts but kept them aside.
It was only after the moth had eaten the non-venomous meat that it gave the poisoned meat a look. The meat wasn¡¯t much, so the creature warily ate it. If it had been a large amount, the creature had planned to only eat a bit of meat and letting the rest rot away.
Within the hole that it had made last time, hidden away under the fallen leaves, the thing that had kept the moth dreading and waiting, arrived and pain exploded all over its body at once. And once again the bug felt like it had been pounded like the training dummy of a martial artist. And then the said dummy had been passed onto another martial artist to train. The creature¡¯s entire body cried in agony and pain.
It was bad, much like last time. And even though the creature hadn¡¯t been expecting anything different, the moth was still surprised. Bolts after bolts of pain raced all over the creature¡¯s body. They crashed and crisscrossed all over the body.
The ordeal lasted for quite a bit. And by the time it was finally over, the moth had been left gasping for its breath, just like last time. Though this time, when its body exhaled instead of inhaling, it didn¡¯t panic but held its breath all the same. When the entire process was over and the Skill [Poison Resistance] had still not levelled up, the creature couldn¡¯t help but scowl. ¡®Tch.¡¯
The [Survivor] then returned to its new hideout and instead of sleeping, it tried to relax. After all, the night had yet not ended and it had to fruitlessly stare at mana in hope of figuring out a way to use it. The creature scowled but shook its head and breathed deeply before slowly letting it out.
It closed its eyes and activated [Mana Manipulation]. Though, just like the past few months, it didn¡¯t succeed. Just like that the day arrived and the night bid its farewell. Much the similar manner, the time continued to march as the entire week passed.
Within this week, it was only its third successful hunt spider that gave the moth an entire Level before the rest of the hunts gave it nothing individually. By the end of the week, it had managed to gain another Level but that had been the result of the accumulation of experiences from the spiders.
By the time the next week started, the moth had grown tired of its routine and decided to take a few days off to explore the area that it had been surviving in for the past few months.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 16
¡°Hey! You! Wait up!¡±
The girl turned to look back and then resumed walking at a faster pace. ¡°Hey! You Know-it-all! Wait up!¡±
That made the girl turn around and glower at the approaching boy. ¡°What do you want? You foot-in-mouth!¡±
The boy panted as he finally reached her. ¡°Don¡¯t call me that!¡±
¡°Why not?¡± The girl huffed. ¡°You call me know-it-all, all the time!¡±
¡°That¡¯s because I don¡¯t know your name!¡± Kiran replied testily. ¡°And because you told me ¡®not to forget it¡¯!¡±
¡°Tch.¡± The girl eyes him balefully. ¡°Are you my slave to follow my every word? Don¡¯t you have a brain of your own?¡±
¡°Alright! Alright! I shouldn¡¯t have called you a know-it-all.¡± The girl glared at him for a moment before turned her head away with a huff. Yet, she did not walk away.
¡°What do you want?¡± The girl snarked as she crossed her hands over her chest.
¡°Umm¡how do you know all that?¡±
¡°Because I study and listen. That¡¯s how.¡± The girl sniffed in disdain. ¡°You should try it too.¡±
Kiran gave her a flat look. ¡°Don¡¯t be so petty. I already accepted that I shouldn¡¯t have called you a know-it-all. And you called me foot-in-mouth too.¡±
¡°That¡¯s because you called me a know-it-all!¡± The girl replied hotly before she deflated and turned to look at the boy. ¡°Fine. What do you want?¡±
¡°I already told you,¡± Kiran rolled his eyes. ¡°How do you know so much?¡±
The girl remained silent for a few moments as she eyed the boy. ¡°My parents already walk this path. So, I know a few things.¡±
Kiran¡¯s eyes widened and his mouth fell open. ¡°Really! Wow! That¡¯s so great! I can¡¯t even! You must see the magic every day!¡±
¡°Hold up! Hold up!¡± The girl backtracked a bit. ¡°It¡¯s nothing so grand. My parents are Tier 1 people.¡±
¡°So what!¡± Kiran claimed with enthusiasm. ¡°They must still be able to do magic!¡±
¡°Yeah.¡± The girl smiled at that. ¡°It¡¯s pretty great.¡±
0.0
¡°I told you all that two things are required to gain the Class, [Shishya].¡± The saffron-clad man began. ¡°First was studying and the second was the loss of hair. Today, I will be explaining the need to study to gain this Class.¡±
¡°As I said previously, this Class allows you to follow your own path.¡± The man said from his position at the top of the earth pillar. ¡°But how does this Class do that? This I will tell you all today.¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
The children began to chatter but a small cough from the bony man silenced them. ¡°Most other Classes have a set number of Skills and Spells to choose from when you reach the required level. But [Shishya] has none.¡±
¡°Instead, the Class will allow you to choose the Skills and the Spells depending on what you have been studying and practising.¡± The skinny man observed the children. ¡°Of course, the Class does not make a Skill designed for you. Rather, it chooses from the existing Skills from the other Classes.¡±
¡°As a result, to make full use of this ability, you must be diligent in studying what you truly wish to become. Only then will you receive Skills and Spells related to your passion. Only then will you be able to walk your path.¡±
A few children raised their hands in question and the man called out to the nearest girl. ¡°Umm, if we have to decide everything beforehand, then how is this Class any different from any of the rest? Guruji.¡±
¡°Good question.¡± The man smiled. ¡°The simple answer to that is that this Class does not bind you on a set path. Say, for example, if you wanted to be [Farmer] and chose your first Tier 1 Skill is on the [Farmer] path but then you changed your mind and decided to walk on the [Healer] path instead. What will you do?¡±
¡°If you possess a Class on the [Farmer] path, then you would be stuck with what you have and could only move down this path. It is not so for [Shishya]. [Shishya] would allow you to choose the next Spell or Skill, whatever it is, on the [Healer] path.¡±
¡°But guruji, wouldn¡¯t this create a very unbalanced set of skills?¡± The same girl asked back.
¡°Of course, it would.¡± The man smiled. ¡°And this is why you must be careful.¡±
Several children raised their hand again and the man called on a boy this time. ¡°Guruji, in the previous example, wouldn¡¯t it be the same as wandering off their path? Shouldn¡¯t the Class regress then?¡±
¡°Oh. A very good question.¡± The man nodded in approval. ¡°The Class would not regress as both the aspirations are on the same path. Both the [Farmer] and the [Healer] seek to grow and nurture. Thus, the conflict is little.¡±
¡°On the other hand, say, if someone on the [Farmer] path, suddenly sought the path of a [Warrior], then [Shishya] would most definitely regress. One is the path of growth and nurture while the other is the path of struggle and strife. The paths here would clash horribly and the Class would regress.¡±
0.0
¡°Hey! Surabhi! Wait up!¡± The girl turned around and stopped to wait for the boy.
¡°Where are you running off to?¡±
¡°Why would I run off to somewhere?¡± The girl sniffed. ¡°You just walk slow.¡±
Kiran rolled his eyes at the haughty answer. ¡°Anyway, what classes are you planning to take?¡±
The girl didn¡¯t answer immediately. ¡°I don¡¯t know yet. Dad thinks I should try for alchemist Skills. What about you?¡±
¡°Alchemy is a good path.¡± Kiran agreed. ¡°I was thinking of trying for healing Skills.¡±
¡°Healing?¡± The girl raised an eyebrow in question. ¡°I didn¡¯t take you the type to help people.¡±
¡°I am not.¡± Kiran sighed and paused for a few moments as he considered to speak more about it or not. Finally, he decided. ¡°My father is a [Warrior].¡±
¡°Ah.¡± The girl nodded in understanding. ¡°Is his injury serious?¡±
¡°It¡¯s not bad.¡± The boy grimaced. ¡°But being a [Warrior] demands constant struggle.¡±
¡°I know.¡± The girl nodded. ¡°They can¡¯t gain Levels by simply by studying and practising. They must kill.¡±
A silence descended between them after that and the two simply walked, side by side, in silence.
It was after a while that the girl asked, her voice soft. ¡°Is this why your parents sent you here?¡±
¡°Yes.¡± Kiran agreed. ¡°My father did not want me to follow his path. He chose it because he had no other option. But he wants me to do better than him. That¡¯s why I am here.¡±
¡°Most of us are here for more or less the same reason.¡± The girl sighed.
¡°I know.¡± The boy smiled. ¡°I also know that I am the hope that my father looks forward to. It¡¯s the reason why he named me Kiran. A ray of light.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 1]
Under the shade of the massive Banyan tree, on a raised platform, sat a boy as he waited for his class to begin. This boy was Kiran, the [Shishya] hopeful. However, at the moment, he was still a child and his attention span was limited at best.
His pupils twitched constantly within his eyes as he scanned the crowd of children before his gaze finally fell on the approaching figure of a girl. The boy¡¯s face lit up as he smiled and waved his hand to call the girl over.
¡°You are happy today.¡± The girl noted in amusement and the boy rolled his eyes.
¡°Just got a letter from home.¡± The dark-skinned boy smiled and the white of his teeth contrasted with the darkness of his skin. ¡°Nothing much.¡±
The girl scoffed. ¡°You are almost jumping and it is nothing much?¡±
The boy¡¯s face soured and as he gave the girl a flat look. Which did nothing but caused the girl to break out in laughter.
¡°Fine! Fine!¡± The boy crossed his hands over his chest and agreed sorely. ¡°Something happened alright!¡±
¡°Out with it then. What are you waiting for? An invitation?¡±
¡°You!¡±
¡°What? You don¡¯t want to talk about it?¡±
He boy glared sourly. He indeed wanted to talk about it but her attitude made it so that talking about it felt like he lost an argument with her. Though if asked, what was the argument that he lost, he wouldn¡¯t be able to explain himself. ¡°Why do you have to be like this? Can¡¯t you be normal for once!¡±
¡°Hmph. It is because I am a know-it-all.¡±
¡°How long are you going to hold onto that!¡± The boy glared.
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± The girl glared back before she shrugged. ¡°I will tell you when I do.¡±
Kiran did not reply as his brown eyes eyed the girl suspiciously.
The girl frowned in annoyance. She too wanted to know what had caused this foot-in-mouth to be this excited. ¡°Didn¡¯t you have something you wanted to talk about?¡±
Kiran smiled brightly as he pointed a finger at the girl. ¡°Ha! You want to know it too! Don¡¯t you?!¡±
The girl scowled. ¡°I do not!¡±
¡°You do!¡±
¡°Do not!¡±
¡°You do!¡±If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
¡°Do not!¡±
¡°You do!¡±
¡°Do not!¡±
¡°You do not!¡± Kiran suddenly changed the order of the argument and Surabhi fell for the trick as she snapped back, ¡°I do!¡±
As soon as the words left her mouth, her eyes widened. However, before she could say anything else, Kiran again pointed a finger at her and laughed. ¡°Ha! Liar!¡±
¡°Am not!¡± She snapped one last time before she angrily sat down. She had had enough.
¡°Fine, fine. I will tell you. You don¡¯t have to insist.¡± The dark-skinned boy poked.
¡°Insist, your head! Who is insisting here!?¡±
¡°Yes, yes. I hear your pleadings.¡± The smugness practically dripped from his voice. ¡°No need to beg.¡±
¡°You!¡±
Kiran roared in laughter as Surabhi turned away from him to glare at the nearby student, who shied away from the angry girl.
¡°Alright, alright fine. You know how my father is the inspector back home, right?¡±
Surabhi did not reply, however, her head tilted subtly towards Kiran as she began paying attention.
¡°Well, a royal procession passed through my town-¡±
¡°What!¡± Surabhi squawked as she turned completely to face Kiran, all her anger was forgotten. Her wide eyes shined as she rattled on. ¡°Royal procession?! Did he meet any [Monster Tamers]? Any [Monster Trainers]!? Even [Handlers]?!¡±
Kiran gave her a sour look and the girl harrumphed as she stopped talking.
¡°As I was saying, my father is the inspector in back home. And a royal procession passed through my town.¡± Kiran began the story from the top once again, just to annoy Surabhi. The tactic worked and the girl¡¯s eyes began to twitch as the boy kept on repeating himself.
¡°I will slap you if you speak more nonsense.¡± She warned with a flat look.
Kiran snickered before continuing with the story. ¡°Well, anyway. He met the Royals. Well, just the princess. She was King¡¯s cousin or something. And of course, she was a [Monster Trainer].¡±
¡°Did she have any tamed monsters around her? Why am I even asking you this? If she was just a Tier 2 [Monster Trainer] then, of course, she would have them out with her! What were her monsters?! Did your father managed to find out?¡±
¡°Of course not!¡± Kiran rolled his eyes. ¡°Do you think an inspector is someone who can chat with prince and princesses?¡±
¡°¡I know.¡± Surabhi¡¯s let out a sigh and her shoulders visibly sagged. Kiran, meanwhile, eyed her inquisitively. ¡°You know a lot about them.¡±
The girl glanced at the dark-skinned boy for a moment before she looked down at her fingers as if deciding whether to speak more on the matter or not. She remained lost in her thoughts for a moment before she sighed. ¡°I wanted to study monster taming initially.¡±
¡°Why didn¡¯t you then?¡±
¡°It¡¯s too dangerous.¡± Surabhi¡¯s voice was dispassionate. It was as if she was simply repeating what she had been told again and again. ¡°Monsters need to kill to Level up after all.¡±
¡°Oh.¡± Kiran nodded as he missed the tone of the girl¡¯s voice. He was, after all, a kid still. ¡°But once they evolve, won¡¯t they become stronger then? And from there they will keep on getting stronger.¡±
¡°It is not so simple.¡± Surabhi scoffed. ¡°Monsters don¡¯t evolve endlessly unless they have a very high-grade bloodline. To continue evolving them, a higher-grade bloodline is needed. Which means that remnant of a higher Tier monster is needed. And even then, once the bloodline changes, the monster will start as the weakest form of that bloodline. Monster evolution is not always a direct increase in power. Sometimes it can be just the opposite.¡±
¡°That sounds¡¡± Kiran frowned as he thought. ¡°¡rough.¡±
¡°You don¡¯t say.¡± Surabhi gave the oblivious boy a flat look for a moment before she sighed. ¡°And that is not even considering the cost of keeping the monster fed and taking care of all its needs.¡±
¡°Huh.¡± Kiran mused as he remained oblivious to Surabhi¡¯s mood. ¡°No wonder only royals have this Class.¡±
¡°¡yeah.¡± Surabhi could only weakly agree.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 17
The night hadn¡¯t even properly enveloped the world yet and the creature was already joyous. Its emotions were buoyed by the fact that it had something else to look forward to other than just poisoning itself. Thus, it practically skipped out of its hideout and headed out in a direction it had never gone before.
Even the buzzing of its wings, something that had always annoyed it, didn¡¯t seem to bother it that much. Though, that didn¡¯t mean that the creature didn¡¯t try to dampen the sound; it did. And as a result, it flew quite low and slow. A dangerous combination indeed. Yet, it was a situation less dangerous than attracting the attention of every living thing that it passed.
Therefore, it tried to be especially cautious as it flew and always paid attention to the inputs that its antenna gave to the creature. For even though the creature was not been using the Skill, [Sense], its antennas were still functional but their sensitivity decreased quite a bit.
At that moment, however, that the creature heard hissing sounds and turned its head to take a look. What it found was two scorpions facing off against each other.
Both the scorpions were quite small in size, around a third of a mortal¡¯s finger and almost half as thin. The shinning chitin that covered their backs was greyish green in colour while their beady eyes were dark and black. Both the insects had cracks upon their exoskeletons and one of them even had its pincers cracked and broken.
The scorpion with the broken pincer hissed loudly once again and took a swipe at the other with its hooked tail but to no avail as the other one dodged and retaliated with by striking at the broken pincer with its own. However, the scorpion with the broken pincer seemed to have already learned its lesson, as it moved its pincer out of the way and avoided the attack.
The white moth settled down at the nearby branch and watched the show as if the scorpions were gladiators fighting for its enjoyment, which they weren¡¯t. The posturing and the threatening went for a long time as they swiped at each other, sometimes managing to hit each other but, more often than not, they missed the other. It went for such a long time that the white moon had even moved from its position.
As the tense fighting continued, the two became increasingly tired and it was only a matter of time that they were exhausted. However, both the insects seemed to realise the other¡¯s state, which resulted in the scorpions entering a standoff for a moment. Both waiting for the other to retreat.
In the end, though, it was the scorpion with the broken pincer that retreated and when it did, the relatively healthy scorpion puffed up its form and hissed at the retreating form of the other scorpion, declaring its victory. It watched the losing scorpion leave before, it too, swirled and left.
At that moment, the white-furred moth paused for a moment to ponder over its next course of action before it beat its wings and took off. It activated its Skill, [Sense] and immediately its antenna¡¯s twitched as they picked up a rather bitter scent permeating the air.
The creature shivered for a moment as it experienced the scent and its instincts warned it of danger. The scent was predatory but nothing on the level of the wooden mantis, before whom the [Survivor] could do nothing else but flee. Thus, the moth began trailing the scorpion with the broken pincer.
As only a few seconds had passed since the scorpion had retreated, the creature followed the trail easily enough and found the scorpion resting under the shade of a rather dense bush. The shrub was dense enough that it hid the scorpion¡¯s form completely and if the creature hadn¡¯t been following the trail, it doubted it would have found the scorpion at all.
The moth shivered at the thought.
However, this was an opportunity that it was unwilling to miss. As although this scorpion did not possess the same Vessel as the one that had devoured its venom laced snail, the [Reincarnated] wanted to try hunting it nonetheless. After all, if hunting snails as a caterpillar had given it that many Levels, then just how many Levels would it receive after killing a scorpion?
The creature¡¯s heart pounded as it landed on the opposite side of the bush and the scorpion¡¯s scent hit its weakened antennas once again. It gulped and began to slowly crawl towards the injured scorpion while trying to remain as silent as possible.
After all, the creature that it was hunting was a scorpion, not a snail. Hunting one was not the same as hunting the other and the creature did not even dare to delude such when the scent alone had been all the indication that it had needed to know just how dangerous the scorpion was. Knowing all this, the only reason that the creature was daring to hunt it was the injured state of the scorpion.
The moth arrived directly above the injured scorpion, whose eyes were closed as it rested, and began to dig into the small branch to create a pit. It took some time for the creature to dig it out and, as the creature did not want to alert the resting scorpion below, it could do nothing with dugout material other than consuming it.
With the pit dug, the creature dug out a small drain, leading out from the pit towards the edge of the branch, before blocking the end of the drain with the dug-out material. The [Reincarnated] then silently slid into the pit before activating its Skill [Venom Creation] to fill the pit with its venom.
Once the pit was full, the creature made sure that the scorpion was still resting underneath before it unplugged the drain and let the collected venom run down the drain and fall onto the scorpion with a splash, covering its chitin and seeping into the cracks and the flesh of the injured scorpion.
The scorpion reacted instantly as it shook itself violently to shrug off the liquid, however, the shake did little to the venom that had already seeped through. The chitin covered predator whirled around to look up and its beady eyes found the white form of the moth. The scorpion glared and hissed at the moth while snapped at the branch on which the moth was sitting on.
The [Survivor] instantly took to the air and hovered out of the scorpion¡¯s reach as it waited for the venom to take effect. However, as the time continued to pass, the scorpion merely hissed and snapped. It did not react in any way that would indicate that the venom had taken effect.
¡®Is its [Poison Resistance] high enough to negate the effect of my venom?¡¯ The moth frowned and its antennas twitched as the thought popped up in its head. ¡®Even then, shouldn¡¯t the hallucination take effect?¡¯
As the moth hovered restlessly above the scorpion, the chitin covered creature continued to hiss and swipe at it and the moments continued to pass. The more the moments passed the more the moth became restless and the scorpion became agitated.
In the end, though, the moth¡¯s patience paid off as the hissing scorpion suddenly stumbled and fell. Its sting began twitching and its limbs trembled, leaving it vulnerable and the moth dived down, wasting not a moment as it landed on the cracked part of the tail and bit down. However, was the chitin of a scorpion so easy to bite into?
The creature thus changed its strategy and instead of biting into it, the moth decided to pull off of the cracked chitin rather than break it further. Thus, it bit into the chitin and pulled. The hallucinating scorpion shrieked and tried to stab at the moth with its stinger but the creature had no control over its limbs due to the venom coursing through its body and the moth successfully pulled the chitin off.
The [Survivor] then bit into the soft flesh and began eating the scorpion¡¯s tail while the insect was still alive.
At that moment, the chitin covered creature tried its best move its body, however, tired as it had already been -from the fight with the other scorpion- the effects of the poison did not allow the scorpion to retaliate as its body remained out of its control. It could only shriek in pain and watch as the moth ate it alive while waiting for the effect of the poison to subside.
However, even that was not the end of the scorpion¡¯s misery as the HP, that had already been minimal, dipped even further due to the direct attack to its flesh and its eyes lost a bit of light as they trembled in fear and disbelief. It could not believe that it had escaped from the other scorpion, only to die from the bites of a moth. A moth, of all things!This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
The scorpion was unwilling. It was extremely unwilling!
However, did the heavens cared about its willingness or unwillingness? They certainly did not! And thus, the scorpion died with all its unwillingness accumulated in its Remnant.
Ting.
Ting.
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! The level up bonus of +2 HP and +2 MP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.1] has reached [Sense Lv.2]. The active time of the Skill has been increased to 2 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.4] has levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.5]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 5 minutes.]
The [Survivor] paused its eating for a moment just so it could count the Level ups and when it did, it let out a laugh. ¡®34 Levels and 2 Skill Level ups! What a fat fish!¡¯
As the creature felt its stomach bulge from eating, it stopped and let out a burp and if it had been a mortal, it would have even softly patted its stomach. As it was, it simply burped and eyed the remaining scorpion meat. The creature had barely managed to eat the meat within the tail and rest of the chitin covered bug was still intact.
The [Reincarnated] shook its head as it decided to cut its losses while it still could and discarded the rest of the scorpion. It eyed the stinger of the scorpion, for a moment, as it thought about using the poison in there to try and Level up [Poison resistance] but then it brutally killed that thought. ¡®Do I have a death wish or what? This thing gave me 34 Levels, meaning it was incredibly powerful. And I want to inflict myself with its poison? Lunatic! I must be a lunatic.¡¯
The creature then flew off and did not give the dead scorpion a second glance.
Instead, it arrived at the location, where it had last seen the scorpions fight, and activated its Skill [Sense]. However, the Skill had a time limit of 1 minute per Hour before it Levelled up and as the limit hadn¡¯t yet expired, the creature could only land on a nearby branch and wait.
Soon enough the limit expired and the [Survivor] activated its Skill, [Sense]. The moth took off and it began to track the remaining scorpion as it followed the bitter scent. Though the creature couldn¡¯t follow for long as the Skill expired and the creature lost the scorpion¡¯s tail.
The [Reincarnated] frowned as landed on the nearby branch and tried to pick up the now-familiar scent with simply its antennas, without using the Skill. However, this proved to be a rather difficult endeavour that did not bear any fruit.
The creature was unwilling to give up on the chase, though, as the single scorpion had given it 34 Levels, and it had been the one that had lost the fight of the two scorpions. The moth could only imagine how many Levels the other scorpion, that had won, could give.
In short, the creature had become greedy. Thus, by the time the hour ended and the creature could use [Sense] once again, the creature kept on failing at trying to pick up the bitter scent.
With the Skill available again, however, the creature flew into the air as it used [Sense] and once again began tracking the bitter scent. At the same time, the white-furred moth kept on familiarising itself with the scent for when the Skill would become unavailable next.
It was just as the [Reincarnated] had anticipated and the Skill ran out long before the creature could track down the scorpion. However, it did not deter the creature as it landed and began trying to pick up the scent without the use of the Skill.
This pattern repeated quite a few times and by the time the creature managed to pick up the scent, without the use of the Skill, the dark night had begun to lighten up by the early rays of the approaching dawn. A sight at which the creature scowled before it followed the trail and began tracking.
Eventually, the moth arrived at another bush. Much like the other scorpion, this one too had chosen a shrub as its hiding place. The creature¡¯s heart raced in anticipation but the moth paid it no mind before it gently landed on the other side of the bush, much like it had done so previously.
However, it was there that the similarity between the two scorpions ended. For where the other scorpion had remained ignorant of the moth¡¯s presence until the moment venom had landed on the chitin covered insect, this scorpion¡¯s eyes found the moth the moment the flying bug landed.
Their gazes met and the moth¡¯s entire body trembled and its eyes widened. At that moment, the creature discovered the reason why its instincts had labelled the scorpion as dangerous. For within the scorpion¡¯s pincers was a spider that was bigger than the moth and its body alone was almost just as wide. And it was dead.
The scorpion gobbled on the freshly hunted spider as it eyed the moth.
The moth¡¯s scalp tingled and it flew up before escaping the bush as fast as its wings could carry the [Survivor]. All thoughts of hunting the scorpion had vanished from its mind. Instead, in its mind, the image of the scorpion with cracked chitin, eating a freshly hunted spider that was bigger than the moth itself. ¡®Crazy! I must have been crazy! Totally crazy!! That thing could kill me with a swipe of its tail and I wanted to hunt it?! My mind must have melted into goo!!¡¯
0.0
The incident with the second scorpion scared the moth to such a degree that it remained within its shelter for the next few nights. It did not hunt. It did not eat. It did not dare venture far. It remained within the hideout and tolerated the hunger. The only time it stepped out was to drink water, which it had been able to find easily due to the rain that had graced the land on the night it had woken up.
It was only on the third night that the creature hesitantly stepped out, to do anything else but drink water. And it had done so because its hunger had begun to become unbearable. Though, before it flew off, it made sure that there were no scorpions in the area.
Beating its wings, the moth took to the air as it maintained a high level of vigilance. With its antennas on high alert, the creature flew as high as it could but still tried to remain within the cover of the canopy. It did not take much time for the moth to reach the hunting ground and soon, it found its prey; a rather young and seemingly small spider.
This time the creature decided to employ a different strategy and softly landed on the branch from which the spider had been hanging. The creature moved, using [Crawl] to reduce the vibrations from its movement, before finally reaching the spider. The moth then began to secrete its venom and let the liquid collect into a puddle near its body.
The creature waited till the venom was about to overflow before it guided the liquid to the thread from which the spider had been hanging all along. At this moment, the spider sensed the movement and became alert but did not react much. It was as if the web-spinning creature had mistaken the venom drops for drops of rain. The moth, in the meanwhile, kept on guiding more and more of its venom down the thread.
The shriek that reached its ears, told the moth all that needed to know and it smiled as its venom had hit its mark. The spider began to struggle wildly, trying to shake off the poison, as more and more of it reached it. As another drop hit it, the spider decided to cut its losses and let go the thread it had been hanging on.
As the spider fell, it tried to shoot another thread of web to the nearby trunk but the moth flapped its wings and blew the thread away, resulting in the spider striking the ground rather hard. Hitting the ground seemed to have caused massive damage to the spider, as it tried to stand up a few times before it couldn¡¯t move anymore and soon died.
The moth, as expected, didn¡¯t get any Level from the spider. But the creature had not been looking for one. For Levels were earned only after battles and the creature was in no mood to battle anything anytime soon.
The moth flew down and bit into the spider before dragging the spider corpse back to the hole, which it had dug during its previous hunt, and began to chomp down on the delicious spider flesh. The moth, though, was careful to not eat a single bit of poisoned meat as it did not feel like it was prepared to go through the ordeal and be left vulnerable under the open sky.
With its hunger sated, the creature returned to its hideout and spent the rest of the night using [Mana manipulation], searching for a way to employ mana. Such was the creature¡¯s mental state and fear, that it used neither [Moulting] nor [Survive] to Level them up.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 18
¡°Today¡¯s topic is something that I believe you all will find interesting.¡± The saffron-clad man said from his raised pedestal. ¡°We will be talking about Remnants. Can anyone tell me what a Remnant is?¡±
The children instantly began chattering and the atmosphere became noisy as a few children raised their hands. Kiran raised his hand too. After all, with his father being a [Warrior], how could he not know what a Remnant was?
The saffron-clad man called onto Kiran with a nod.
¡°Umm, a Remnant is the sum of a Monster¡¯s life. It manifests only after the monster dies. Living Monsters do not possess Remnants.¡± The boy paused for a few moments as he thought for a few moments.
¡°Remnants do not have any shape or form. They can manifest in any part of the Monster¡¯s body. Even in bones, organs and fur.¡± The boy finished and a few children looked at him weirdly. After all, very few people dealt with Remnants directly and most only dealt with the finished products.
The only reason he knew as much as he did was because his father had been an active [Warrior] before he became an inspector. As a result, the boy had not only known about Remnants but had also dealt with them.
¡°Very good.¡± The gaunt man smiled. ¡°As your classmate said, Remnants is the sum of a monster¡¯s life experiences. It is not a monster¡¯s life source or its mana source. And it is also not the source of a monster¡¯s power, as many people believe.¡±
¡°This I quite evident from the fact that living monsters do not possess a Remnant. Only death causes it to manifest. Now, what do you understand, when I say, ¡®sum of monster¡¯s life experiences¡¯?¡± The man asked again and this time only a few hands went up.
Surabhi too raised her hand this time. With her father being a person on the [Alchemist] path, the girl had to have dealt with Remnants that her father would have used to concoct pills, elixirs and potions.
The grey-haired man called onto Surabhi and the girl began speaking excitedly. ¡°As a Monster lives, struggles and evolves, only to repeat the cycle once again, the experiences it accumulates are all contained into its Remnant after its death.¡±
¡°Indeed¡± The man nodded. ¡°But how these experiences accumulate, and then manifest, is something difficult to understand. Though what we do know is that it involves Ego, the Bridge and the Gods.¡±
Expressions of confusion and bewilderment appeared on faces of the children and the man sighed. ¡°I shall not be discussing these topics yet. They are something too high level for your all to understand.¡±If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
¡°Nevertheless, getting back on the subject, can anyone tell me what a Remnant can be used for?¡±
As the hands went up, the bony man called upon one of the students sitting in the back. ¡°Remnants are used to make all sort of thing. But they are most used for making tools and alchemy.¡±
The saffron-clad man nodded and the child sat down. ¡°Monsters experience various things in their lives. And us Mortals use those experience to bring out the effect that we desire.¡±
The children began to murmur as the words, spoken by the gaunt man, made little sense to them. The Guru sighed and explained.
¡°Well, life experience is not the correct term to use here. Rather, the correct term would be Law Scars. As the monsters live, they experience and those experiences create Law Scars on their Bridges. We use these Law Scars to gain the desired effect.¡±
Several hands were raised and the man clucked his tongue. ¡°I will not be explaining Law Scars. It is not something that 12-year olds can understand. Any other questions?¡±
All the hands went down at the rebuke but then a few hands went up again and the man called onto another child. ¡°Guruji, do we Mortals also manifest Remnants?¡±
¡°Very nice.¡± The man smiled. ¡°Yes, Mortals also manifest Remnants. But the Remnants that manifest into Mortals are quite weak when compared to their Monster counterparts.¡±
Several hands and the saffron-clad man guessed their question. ¡°Why are Mortal Remnants week?¡±
The hands went down and the man chuckled.
¡°This is not quite well known as researching manifestation of Remnants is difficult at best and prohibited at worst. Though, as of now, it had been theorised that the struggle and strife suffered by the Monsters cause the Law Scars to be much more numerous within their Remnants.¡±
A few hands went up again and the dark-skinned man called upon the girl that had previously shown quite a strong feelings against the Manoos. ¡°But Guruji, surely they must still be useful. Why don¡¯t we just turn Manoos into week Remnant production industries?¡±
The man blinked at the malice laden words but ignored the child¡¯s intent. Manoos were, after all, notorious pests that both killed and were killed quite regularly. The stories of their passing spoke of nothing but horror. And for any Mortal alive, death would be better than falling into the hands of Manoos.
¡°You are not the first one to come up with such a concept.¡± The man answered amicably. ¡°But all the previous efforts were thwarted by the Gods themselves. Manipulation of a Mortal¡¯s Remnant is strictly prohibited by all the Gods everywhere.¡±
The girl jumped up to stand at the man¡¯s words. Her mouth fell open and her eyes went wide in disbelief. To her, it seemed like she had been personally betrayed. ¡°They would protect even the Manoos?!¡±
¡°Yes. They would.¡± The man nodded gingerly. ¡°For the Gods, Mortals are all alike. They see us kill each other and they see us destroy one another. They see our hate and they see our love.¡±
¡°To Gods, one species of Mortals is not that different from another. No matter how different they might seem to us, to Gods, we are all the same.¡± The man addressed the girl. ¡°Now sit down before you say something that you might regret.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 19
The monsoon had come to an end. The last rain of the season had been bid farewell by the same creatures that had welcomed it. And much like a millipede with its numerous limbs, where a new pair of legs arrived no sooner than the older ones had left, autumn¡¯s footsteps had already begun echoing in the forest.
The temperature had begun to fall with each passing day and the cool breezes of the summer had changed into chilly winds that left shivers in the wake of their passing. Yet the temperature remained just there. It left the various creatures a bit chilly but not shivering; the shivering was the work of the passing winds.
Trees had started to sleep and leaves had begun to change colours. From the deep green of the vibrant vitality to the orange of the setting sun and to the yellow of the dead desert sand, the colours had begun to shift. And when the shift completed, so did the lifecycle of the leaves and they fell.
The fleeting winds took the leaves beyond their trees, to distances far and close and wide and narrow, littering the forest floor with the colours abound.
Of course, all of this mattered not to the creature that had been cooped up within its tiny little hideout and had ventured out only when it had needed sustenance for the past 2 weeks. It did not even matter to the creature that it was now starting the 7th month of its rebirth. All that mattered to this creature was that it remained safe.
But safety was one thing that had been denied to the immortals by their very nature. They couldn¡¯t remain safe within their hidden homes and if the immortals did dare to do so then their lifespans, extended as they may be, would end long before could evolve.
An immortal¡¯s nature was of struggle and survival and for an immortal to turn away from it, was turning away from life itself. Immortals could grow only in strife and adversity. They weren¡¯t like mortals that grew even in peace and tranquillity as they refined themselves. For immortals were immortals and mortals were mortals.
Thus, for one to follow the path of the other was folly. And the result of this folly was nothing else but death.
0.0
The creature gazed at the world outside its hideout, as leaves were carried away by the whistling winds to the destinations unknown.
It had been keeping to itself for a long time and had watched as its lifespan had decreased with each passing day. From 240 days, the creature¡¯s lifespan had come down to 151. And even though it had wanted to go out and start levelling again but the memory of the last encounter had stopped it each time.
It was not the scorpion that had been haunting the creature, nor had it been the dead spider that had been in the scorpion¡¯s pincers. Instead, it had been its own insistence at hunting the scorpion that still continued to fill it with terror.
This truth, the creature had a hard time digesting. It was well acquainted with nature as an immortal but this time, but this time, it had been driven home like nothing before. Faced with such a realization, the creature had been stuck between the need to keep itself safe from itself and the desire to increase its power.
The need had won over the desire, in the end. Though, not for long. With each decrease in its lifespan, the desire had asserted itself with more and more strength while the need had given in, little by little, with each passing day. Thus, the creature stared at the world outside its hideout. And the world stared back. Daring it. Asking it. Would it watch as it died a slow death? Or would it step out and maybe live to see another day?
Till this day, the creature hadn¡¯t dared to choose the latter option but, on this day, the desire had won over the need and the creature accepted the dare. It stepped out of its hideout, not only to secure its food for the day but to also increase its Level and survive.
0.0
Spreading its wings, the moth flew towards the spider hunting ground. For even though it had decided to hunt to increase its Level, it still had to hunt the spiders to Level up its [Poison Resistance]. After all, its venom had always been its strongest weapon and the [Survivor] needed to keep it sharp. But to keep it sharp, the creature had to do this. It had to poison itself. It needed to make this sacrifice if it wanted to live.
Thus, it tried to kill the spiders with the same strategy that it had employed before. It would silently land on the branch from which spiders would be hanging. The moth would then crawl towards its prey before creating a puddle of venom, which it would then slowly guide down the thread.
It was usually at this point that its prey either escaped or died. Today, though, its prey hadn¡¯t been able to escape and died.
Ting.
[You have levelled Up! The level up bonus of +2 HP and +2 MP granted.]
The moth grimaced. This was the creature¡¯s second Level up since the incident with the scorpions.
After it had dragged the spider in the hole, that it had now dubbed as the eating hole, the moth gorged on the spider flesh and after carefully removing the poisoned flesh, it carefully consumed a bit of the poisoned flesh.
After the bolts of pain subsided, the [Reincarnated] remained within the safety of the earth and rested until it felt all the effects of the poison fade away. Even then, the creature remained within the hole for some time more. I had wanted to be absolutely sure.
But for immortals, there existed no absolute surety. They even had no surety that they would live to see another day. But the creature cared not for this and remained as cautious as ever. And only when it was sure, that it had control over its impulses, did the creature crawl out of the hole. It slowly flew as it carefully made its way deeper into the territory of spiders. And while it did that, it tried to be as quiet as it could.
As it moved deeper and deeper into the spider territory, it kept its eyes sharp and twitched at every scent that its antennas picked up. The moth was also very careful of the fact that this supposedly was spider territory and thus was filled with spider-nets that it could probably not see.
As it flew, its antenna detected a scent and cautiously flew towards it, only to find a rather small spider, barely a sixth of a mortal¡¯s finger; thus, half its own size. Though what caught its attention was its bright colours of red and blue that glistened brightly against the rest of the greens and the browns.
The moth flew closer towards this new spider and the subtle scent thickened. And as this new and much deeper scent hit its antennas, the flying creature stopped dead in its tracks and its heart began racing. For this new scent was unlike anything that the moth had encountered before. Even the scorpions had nothing on this tiny spider.
This brilliantly coloured spider¡¯s scent was alarmingly predatory and bitter enough to make the moth gag, sending the bug¡¯s senses haywire. It was as if the moth was being drowned in a bitter liquid that wanted to devour the bug, while the spider watched the moth¡¯s suffering in glee.
The flying bug¡¯s heart stuttered and its scalp tingled as its fur like hair stood on their ends. The creature immediately retreated a bit and took in a deep breath to settle itself. One breath was not enough and the creature breathed in deeply again.
¡®I can fly. It can¡¯t.¡¯ The moth reminded itself as it tried to calm its beating heart. ¡®I¡¯ll just watch. Merely observe. I need to know what exists here. I dare not hunt it.¡¯
Thus, the white-furred moth carefully made its way towards the branch on which the spider was hanging. Though the moment the moth landed on the branch, it saw the spider twitch for a moment before the fanged creature continued on with its net building.
Crawling as it went, the moth made its way towards the point from where the spider was hanging, so as to make as fewer vibrations as possible. However, as soon as it neared the spider, the spider stopped moving. The spider stayed still for a moment before the fanged creature began racing towards the moth.
The moth¡¯s heart dropped as it saw the spider race towards it like a predator hunting its prey and it flapped its wings rapidly to take off into the air. However, barely had it gotten off the branch that the spider shot a thread from its back that landed on one of the moth¡¯s legs.
The moth¡¯s heart stopped and its scalp went numb in fear. It pulled on its stuck limb but the limb pulled it back instead, under the power of the rapidly approaching spider. The moth pulled and pulled but the limb continued to pull back.
By now the spider was almost upon the moth. But the moth could not let this dangerous spider reach it, if it wanted to live. And the moth wanted to live real bad. Hence the [Survivor] flew off of the branch and started beating its wings mid-air.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
As the moth regained its bearings, it felt something hit another of its limbs and get stuck. And then it felt another pull. With a sinking feeling in its heart, the moth turned around and saw the spider had shot another thread at the moth which had landed on another of its limbs. The spider had thrown in a fishing line and now seemed to be rolling it in.
''Why do I have so many limbs?!!''
It flapped its wings, faster and faster, trying to outdo the spider in strength but it felt itself failing and slowly being dragged towards the spider! ''This will not happen! This will absolutely not happen!''
At that moment, the creature felt intense pain from its limbs and the pull disappeared. The flying bug did not waste even a single moment and flew off without so much as a second glance. It flew higher and higher, away from the spider that had nearly become its death. With its heart almost leaping out of its mouth, it flew until it reached the canopy of the trees before it dared to stop its ascent and turn back to look at the spider.
But at the height that it was, it saw nothing.
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.5] has levelled up [Flight Lv.6]. Your speed and manoeuvrability have increased.]
It dismissed the window without even looking at it. It wasn''t a Level up notification and that was all it cared about when it came to notifications. The moth hesitated for a moment before it landed on a branch. But the moment it touched the branch it imbalanced and fell off. Mid-air, the moth hastily beat its wings and straightened itself before looking down at its body.
Before, where there had been 2 limbs, now there was nothing but stumps. And this had been why the pull had suddenly stopped and the creature had been able to escape. Its limbs had been torn off of its body. At least, this way, the creature¡¯s earlier to have lesser limbs was fulfilled.
The moth winced as the pain made itself known once again but did not bother much with the wounds. After all, they weren¡¯t anything that a good use of [Moulting] couldn¡¯t fix.
With its heart still racing from the encounter, the creature flew back as fast as it could. It had had enough adventuring for the day. Finally, as it flew out of the spider territory, it let out a sigh of relief. It was safe. ¡®But for how long?¡¯
This was the Wild. And in the Wild only the strong prevailed. And one did not become strong by hiding in their little hidey-hole, afraid and cowering. They conquered their fears. The creature hesitated. It was not strong. It was not brave. It did not conquer its fear. It was cautious. It was ambusher. I was a trapper. And it was afraid. It was terrified. It had lost two of its legs.
Thus, the creature silently crawled back into its hideout to heal. ¡®Moulting.¡¯
Ting.
[Skill [Moulting Lv.3] has levelled up to [Moulting Lv.4]. The time required for the skill has been reduced by 4 minutes. Total time required: 5 Hours and 48 Minutes.]
0.0
The creature woke up, wrapped in its own shed skin. And as usual, this shed skin broke apart the moment the creature stretched its body.
As the creature crawled out of the shed exuviate, its thoughts raced back to the last night jaunt and it shuddered. It did not want a repeat of that experience again. But as it looked at its Status, the decreased HP and the declining lifespan caused its face to twist in distaste. ¡®Tch.¡¯
Crawling out of the hideout, the moth again flew towards the spider hunting ground and began the daily ritual of hunting, eating and screaming in pain to Level up the [Poison Resistance]. As the creature finished trembling from the jolts of pain, it reminded itself why it needed a stronger venom. It couldn¡¯t forget the scorpion that had delayed the venom for so long that the moth had thought it immune.
And it remembered the scorpion that it had seen as a caterpillar, who had apparently been immune to its venom. That scorpion had most likely lived near the moth¡¯s old habitat. The scorpion that had shrugged off its venom like it had been oriental spice.
The moth needed stronger stuff. But for that, it needed its [Poison Resistance] at Level 10, its current Level cap. It had to get there if it wanted to survive in this forest. The creature sighed.
With each passing day, it was taking the moth more and more failed hunts to kill a spider. Just tonight, it had taken the bug a total of 6 encounters before it had been able to successfully hunt a spider. It had almost run out of all its easy prey. The ones that remained now, it seemed, were the high levelled ones; even when they were at the same Tier as the moth, Tier 1.
The creature grimaced and dropped that line of thought. This was the wild. And even if the creature did not know it comprehensively in words, it knew inherently in its subconsciousness that there was nothing easy in the wild.
Beating its wings, the moth took to the air and thought about what to do for the rest of the day. It could, very obviously, not venture deeper into the spider territory. That would just get it killed.
But if it wanted to Level up faster, the moth needed to find better prey that was not all that dangerous. Yet, the only creature that had given the moth a good result had been the scorpion and the creature was in the mood to have a repeat of that.
As it thought, it flew around. Meanwhile, without the [Survivor] noticing it, a subtle scent seemed to envelop it and the moth unconsciously changed its direction towards the clearing where it had noticed the flower that had almost seemed to glow within the darkness of the night. Reaching the clearing, it found the flower easily enough and landed without much difficulty.
The creature found itself strangely attracted to this flower and sat there, mystified.
The flower was incredibly simple. It didn¡¯t have many petals, but one. The white petal seemed to flare up from the stalk of the plant like the hood of a cobra. And where the hood curved down, it almost seemed to protect the single strand of the blood-red stamen that carried the flower¡¯s pollen.
Since the flower seemed to remind the moth of snakes, the creature decided to name it as Serpent¡¯s Protection.
As the moth continued to stare at the flower and remained mystified by the almost glow of the plant, it decided to observe the flower under the effect of [Sense Essence]. ¡®It¡¯s not like I have to save my mana for something else anyway.¡¯
The world seemed to dull as the essences of the world manifested in their Vessels. Each and everything in the world contained its own essence. The animals, the beasts, the mortals, the immortals, the trees, the plants, the grass, the water, the earth and even each individual smote of dust contained its own essence.
As the creature sensed the essences, its own essence stood out to the creature as the only one that seemed to have some form. The rest were merely blobs of vapour, inconsistent but undeniably there. The next essence to be sensed somewhat clearly was the essence of the flower.
Even though the flower¡¯s essence seemed more tangible than the rest, it still remained a blob of vapour. The colour of this essence, however, that seemed to remind the creature of something. The mystified creature gazed upon the flower¡¯s essence for quite some time as it tried to remember where it had seen the colour before.
The colour of the essence was not particularly eye-catching. It was merely white. Though it was this particular shade of white that the creature had seen before. As the creature remained perplexed, it suddenly remembered. ¡®This is the colour of the white moon!¡¯
Just to confirm, the creature looked up. And sure enough, in the dull world, the essence of the white moon was visible. This essence of the white moon was white as the white moon of the night. And it was just a vapoury as everything else. This white essence of the white moon matched the essence of the flower to the exact shade.
As the creature stared at both the essences a bit dumbfoundedly, its attention zeroed in on an essence that was incredibly fast-moving. This essence was brown like the wood and the seemed to be moving through the flight.
The moth was reminded of the reason it had not come to this clearing in so long and its heart began to race. Without even bothering to end the Skill, the bug took flight and instead of racing back home, it flew up towards the sky as it cursed itself. ¡®How did I forget! How could I forget! This is not something that I should forget!!¡¯
Indeed, the moth was right. This was not something that one forgets willingly.
The [Survivor] flew higher and higher and it was only when it had reached the canopy, that it dared to turn and look back. The bug didn¡¯t have to search for long as it caught the movement of the brown essence and found the essence to be buzzing around its previous location.
The moth cancelled the Skill, [Sense Essence] and cautiously descended to get a closer look at the buzzing being. And sure enough, as it had thought, it was the same Wooden Mantis that had chased it off from this clearing last time. ¡®Idiot! Am I courting death or what?! How could I have forgotten that beast?¡¯
The truth of the matter was, that the creature hadn¡¯t forgotten about the flower or the beast. It had remembered them very well. And this was the reason that it had noticed the movement of the Mantis¡¯s essence, even though it had been incredibly faint.
Yet, when it had neared the clearing, it had not cared about what it had known and the reason for such behaviour had been the flower. The scent of the flower had overcome the instincts of the moth to drawn it within the clearing. And after it had reached the flower, the moth had been too mystified to think about anything else but the flower.
But the creature did not know any of this. It did not know it had been charmed by the flower. All the moth knew was that it was strangely attracted to the rather simple flower.
The creature grimaced and flew back to its hideout, as it activated the Skill [Sense Essence] at regular intervals. Initially, it had been in too much of a hurry to dismiss the Skill, but with each passing moment, the moth had realised its utility and usefulness.
After all, the Skill only consumed mana at the rate of five times the Skill Level per minute. And as the Skill was at Level 1 while the moth had 116 mana, the creature could keep the Skill active for 23 minutes. As opposed to [Sense], which at Level 2 was only active for 2 minutes.
Entering its hideout at last the creature almost laughed out loud. ¡®Using her most prized ability for merely sensing? Tch. She would roll in her grave if she knew.¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 20
The children sat just outside the shade of the massive Banyan tree, enjoying the sunlight on the cold winter morning, as they waited for their class to begin.
It did not take long before Guru Pranay came and raised another pedestal for himself. ¡°The year is about to end and soon you¡¯d have to showcase your progress, of which there is not much.¡±
The gaunt man¡¯s eyes searched the crowd of children and he found not even a handful of children whose hair had begun to fall. ¡°But this is not unexpected. By the time the next year ends, a majority of you will be back in your lofty homes, living your comfortable lives.¡±
No one spoke even a single word and the silence reigned following the man¡¯s declaration. ¡°If you worry about disappointing me. Then worry not. I had little hope to begin with.¡±
The bony man¡¯s words were sharp and callus, causing the children to shift with unease.
¡°But, at the start of this year, I promised to explain Status before you earn your Class.¡± The man continued on as he ignores the tense state of his pupils. ¡°I will do so now.¡±
¡°The first thing that you should know about Status is that only two sets of beings can grant you access to your Status.¡± The man said flatly. ¡°The first being your guardians, which are your parents, and the other being the Gods.¡±
¡°Despite the inclusion of the Gods, granting of Status is not the right of the Gods. It is the right of the parents.¡± The man droned on. ¡°The Gods only intervene when the parents fail to take care of their children.¡±
¡°On the other hand, if the child is an orphan then the right, to grant access to the Status, gets transferred to the child¡¯s guardian and it rests with them as long as they do not mistreat the child.¡± The man spoke without a pause. He did not intend to give the children time to ask questions as he had previously. ¡°Same is the case with those that are adopted. Their new guardian keeps the right, not their birth parents.¡±
¡°There are often cases when children pray for the right to access their Status,¡± The man closed his eyes as he spoke. ¡°But unless the child has been mistreated, the Gods will bow to the will of the parents. For it is not their right. It is not their place.¡±
¡°Only in cases where the child is mistreated, abused or an orphan with no one to care of them, do the Gods intervene and grant the child access to their Status.¡± The man kept his eyes closed as he droned on. ¡°The Gods do not intervene lightly. So, don¡¯t bother praying for it.¡±
The children shuffled in unease at their teacher¡¯s pace. The grey-haired man that had always moved the class at a slow pace now seemed to care not for the pace as he rattled off information. The questions and the interactions that had always been present never appeared and the man merely continued to spout off knowledge.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.
¡°Once you have been granted the access to your Status, a few peculiar things will stand out to you.¡± The man continued with his eyes still closed, as if he were talking to a wall. ¡°The first of those things will be your Attributes.¡±
¡°What are Attributes, I shall skip over. I don¡¯t believe your incompetency has that reached that level yet.¡± The man¡¯s tone was even as he rebuked. As if, just now, he hadn¡¯t questioned the intelligence of his students. ¡°There are two methods on which Attributes are usually divided.¡±
¡°The first method is based on their rarity and through this method, we get two types of Attribute; rare ones and common ones.¡± The man had skipped over the rebuke so fast, that it was at this moment that many of the pupils understood his words and shrank in themselves.
¡°There are eight common Attributes that are possessed by all Mortals no matter their Species. They are [Strength], [Agility], [Endurance], [Intelligence], [Wit], [Reason], [Spirit] and [Surplus]. You can conclude what they do, from their names themselves.¡±
¡°While the exact number of rare Attributes has not been found yet, those that have been found amount to a total of eleven Attributes. What they are and what they do, I will not go over.¡± The man opened his eyes at that moment and gave them a glance. ¡°The probability of any of you needing such knowledge is extremely low.¡±
The children shrank even further as their shoulders hunched over and their heads bowed down.
¡°The second classification method is based on their Type and this method we have three categories. Physical, Mental and Bridge.¡± The man closed his eyes with a dismissive glance.
¡°Amongst the common Attributes, [Strength], [Agility] and [Endurance] are the Physical Attributes. While [Intelligence], [Wit] and [Reason] are the Mental Attributes.¡±
¡°[Spirit] is a Bridge Attribute. What is a Bridge? This you do not need to know. Just keep in mind that this is one of the most important Attributes if you ever wish to reach Tier 2. A high value of this Attribute is almost a quasi-requirement.¡±
¡°And then we have [Surplus]. Very little is known about this Attribute despite all the effort the entire Mortal realm has put into it.¡± The man opened his eyes to reveal a contemplative gaze. ¡°What is known is that this Attribute almost seems to dictate the fortune that a person is born in.¡±
¡°Those with high [Surplus] will be born affluent while those with a low value of this Attribute will be born in struggle and strife.¡± The man seemed to have come to a conclusion and his gaze lost its contemplativeness. ¡°It has been theorised that this Attribute seems to foretell destiny and fate. Those that are born in a life of struggle but possess high [Surplus] almost always achieve greatness. However, those that are born affluent but possess a low value of this Attribute¡well, the less said the better.¡±
The man sighed as he massaged his forehead. ¡°This is also the only known Attribute, both amongst the common one and the uncommon ones, whose value cannot be changed using any method. The value of [Surplus] one is born with, is the value that one dies with.¡±
¡®I hope my attitude today serves as a wakeup call to these children.¡¯ The man sighed as he stood up and began walking off the platform. ¡¯Do they not realize that their future depends on this?¡¯
The children, meanwhile, watched their Guru leave without even uttering a single word more. They watched as the saffron-robed man took no questions and he gave no answers. They watched as the gaunt man just stood up and left.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 21
The march of time continued and the chill, that had been announcing the arrival of winter, had settled in over the course of the month. As the chill settled in and the autumn arrived in full regalia, the bugs, the insects and the other vermin started appearing less and less. The forest grew quieter and quieter with each passing day as the chirps and chatter slowly died down.
This made hunting hard for the moth. The chill of the autumn had already been bothering the bug and with the decrease in available creatures, the moth had been forced to undertake increasingly harder yet less rewarding fights. As a result of this unpleasant development, the creature had had to escape for its life quite a few times this past month and only had 2 Levels to show for it. Even though its Skills [Night Vision] and [Pain Resistance] had both Levelled up once to reach Level 5 and [Survive] had Levelled up to Level 3, the creature did not care about them.
It was not the case that the [Reincarnated] had not tried finding anything suitable to hunt and Level up. It had. It had even, for the past month, gone around the forest while using [Sense Essence] at a regular interval. It had hoped to find out creatures by their essences but that idea hadn¡¯t worked out either.
Any creature that the moth found was either too high levelled and dangerous or too low levelled and useless. The moth had even tried to go after creatures other than insects but had dropped that idea real fast, once it had seen those creatures and had been reminded of its place in the food chain.
The creature was a moth. An insect. It was not a predator. It was prey. For everything else. Even smaller reptiles like lizards were out of its reach, let alone mammals and rodents. Thus, to say that the moth had been irritated at this turn of events, would be an understatement. The bug had always been a big proponent of caution and safety and with the arrival of autumn, those things had been thrown out of the window. And that had not even been the end of the bug¡¯s problems.
As the autumn arrived and the insects began disappearing, the moth too had felt a sense of lethargy seep into its body. It was a feeling that came from within and not something foreign. The moth knew what this despite was, not knowing anything about the lifecycle of an immortal moth. It knew that before winter arrived, it would have to go into a deep sleep. It would have to hibernate. For if it didn¡¯t, the creature wouldn¡¯t survive the winter.
This realization had not helped the moth¡¯s mood any. Initially, it had thought that it had its rest of the lifespan of 120 days to find a suitable creature to hunt and Level up, but with this newfound lethargy, that time period had been significantly reduced. And by how much, the creature didn¡¯t have any idea.
This had forced the creature into even more dangerous situations. And the creature didn¡¯t like any of it.
0.0
Crawling out of its hideout, the creature flew towards the spider hunting ground and began its nightly ritual of hunting the spiders, eating them and then suffering from their venom. Of the three, the hunting part was the most painful for the moth, despite the venom that it had to consume later, as it could only hunt a spider after numerous tries.
And those tries were growing increasingly dangerous.
Yet, it was something that the creature had decided to do.
The white moth sighed and flew away. With the nightly ritual complete, it was time for it to begin its search for suitable prey. Thus, it flew around with the buzzing suppressed. As it flew, it inevitably crossed the clearing, where the mantis lived, and once again its antenna picked up the delicate scent of the flower. The moth stopped in its tracks and activated [Sense] and the scent immediately intensified.
But with the intensified scent, the creature also picked up the scent of the mantis and flew away without a second thought as it searched for the rest of the night but the creature¡¯s efforts were all for nought and it gained nothing. By the time it had returned to its hideout, the moth had accumulated nothing but irritation as it had flown around in the chilly air.
0.0
The creature had had enough.
Another week had passed and the creature had nothing to show for it. Absolutely nothing. Not even a single pitiful Level. Despite all its efforts, all of its searching and all of its self-poisoning, the creature had absolutely nothing to show for it. On the top of those massive disappointments, the lethargy that had been seeping into it had finally settled in. The creature felt a bit sluggish, it tired easily and with each passing day, it slept more and more.
This scared the creature. It was afraid that if it didn¡¯t evolve soon then this lethargy would cause it to fall asleep and while sleeping, its lifespan would end.
This fear forced the creature to take some drastic steps. It decided it had had enough and even though it absolutely did not want to, it decided to hunt the frogs. That being said, the creature had not yet come up with a plan to hunt the amphibians.
But first, it needed to hunt the spiders. Flapping its wings, the moth took to the air and reached the spider hunting ground. As lethargic as it was, it took the creature 12 tries to successfully hunt a single spider. And it was only after the spider had been hunted, eaten and the moth had gone through the effects of the poison that it was surprised by a sudden notification.
Ting.
[Skill [Poison Resistance Lv.8] has levelled up to [Poison Resistance Lv.9]]
The creature stared at the notification for a moment in disbelief before it laughed. ¡®Just one more Level!¡¯
Buoyed by the notification, the moth took to the air and flew towards the clearing. Landing just outside the clearing, the creature used [Sense] to check for the presence of mantis.
The creature didn¡¯t know why it had been coming back to this flower and this clearing again and again. It just wanted to see the flower one more time. To the moth, the flower seemed to be a place of solace in its turbulent life. But why the moth felt thus towards the flower, it didn¡¯t know.
Sensing that the mantis was still present, the creature flew off and towards the place where it had noticed the frogs. And as frogs were amphibians, the [Survivor] suspected that the heavy presence of frog, only in that particular area, indicated the presence of a water body.
Cautiously, it flew towards the territory and as it neared the area, its antennas detected an increase in humidity. With its conjecture confirmed, the creature became even more alert. It twitched at every disturbance and jerked at every sound as it hurried through the foliage. It took the moth quite some time but it finally found the water body which turned out to be a river that ran through the forest.
The creature carefully soared near the water and took the sight in. There were only a few animals and creatures around the river. Some of which were drinking water while the rest where just loitering about. As it looked around, its eyes searched for the species of frog that it had noticed before. But let alone finding that specific species, any species of frogs were hard to find. ¡®Did they go into hiding because of approaching winter?¡¯
The creature scowled but kept on searching as it activated the Skill [Sense] whenever it could. Thus, it took the moth quite some time but it finally found a few stranglers in a shallow pond. ¡®Now what?¡¯
The creature had no answer.
Now that the creature had confirmed that there were frogs still around, the problem of how to hunt them still remained. It could, of course, use its poison on the amphibian but that was not the difficult task. The difficult task was to deliver the poison without endangering itself.
After all, while the frogs were still small, they were almost the size of a mortal¡¯s finger nonetheless. This made them thrice the moth¡¯s own size. Thus, poisoning them was not something that the moth could easily accomplish.
To be able to poison the frogs, the [Survivor] had to do something to keep its prey in one place. And the only way that the moth could think of doing so was by trapping it. But in the body of a moth, placing even the simple traps was difficult.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
At that moment, however, a plan formed in its mind and the creature flew off as it began searching the area around the pond for a rather secluded or hidden location. It decided that if it wanted to hunt the frogs, the moth needed its trap to be somewhere nearby their location but not at just their doorstep.
For the next few hours, the moth searched for the perfect location; one that was neither too far, nor too close from the location of frogs and was nowhere in the immediate vicinity of any other predator that might be lured by the sound of frog¡¯s future agony.
It found the place it was looking for. It was behind the bushes and close enough to the tiny pond that it could easily lure a creature from there. Once the location had been found, the creature began digging. But as the creature didn¡¯t have hands to dig, it used its old method of using its mouth. A method it had not used since it had been a caterpillar.
As it dug, days continued to pass and it was finally a week after that the small moth with its even smaller mouth dug a hole big enough to trap a frog multiples times its own size. The hole was not only had to be big enough but also deep enough so that the frog couldn¡¯t jump out.
After the hole had been dug, the creature searched the forest for the leaves that, even though at the end of their lifecycle, hadn¡¯t completely dried off. It took the creature an entire day to find such leaves and line the bottom of the trap with them.
After the base of the trap had been secured, the creature flew down into the hole and began secreting venom continuously. The creature sat within the trap and continued to pour more and more venom out of its pores. It sat there for minutes, it sat there for hours and it sat there for a night and a day. By the time the creature was done, there was a shallow puddle of poison within the trap.
The next step was obviously hiding the trap. The creature took another day to cover the trap with thin sticks and dried leaves. It was only after the trap had been completely set, that the creature decided to set its plan in action. It flapped its wings and took to air as it flew towards the river. Entering the frog¡¯s territory, it carefully made its way to where it had seen the cluster of frogs. Noticing that they were still in the same position, it immediately backed off.
It picked a small pebble with its mouth before flying back to the puddle. Spotting the frog, it flew over to its target and let the stone drop, which fell and struck its target with a soft thud. The frog jumped and croaked. Startled as it was, it looked around for a few moments before finding nothing and going back to what it had been doing.
The moth grimaced, despite the fact that it had expected a similar outcome. After all, the moth was incredibly small and its strength was not much. Thus, the creature had used a positively tiny pebble, which had been so small that it barely hurt the frog.
The creature flew back and brought back another pebble of similar size and once again dropped it on the head of the frog. The frog croaked again but couldn¡¯t find the creature hitting it on the head and went back to laying around.
The moth sighed. It had not been expecting the stone to do much damage but it had not expected the stone to do so inconsequential that the frog didn¡¯t even consider it a threat. ¡®This is going to be a rough night.¡¯
The creature repeated the process a total of half a dozen times more before the frog got annoyed enough that it frantically searched for the bug that kept hopping on its head. At that moment, the moth lowered its altitude just close enough that the frog could see it but far enough that the bug remained out of the frog¡¯s reach.
The creature then beat its wings as fast as it could, creating a buzzing sound that irritated the already annoyed frog. As if attracted to the sound, the frog turned and its tongue lashed out at the moth.
The moth had expected it of course and had already begun dodging the moment the frog had turned towards it. And then the moth began retreating. The creature retreated a few meters and then buzzed its wings again as the frog stopped following. The frog got annoyed at the buzzing and gave chase.
The cat and mouse chase continued and slowly, the moth continued to guide the frog towards the trap. Meanwhile, whenever the frog lashed out with its mouth, the moth barely had enough time to dodge but dodge it did.
It took the moth quite a long time before frog was lured close to the trap. But even then, it was not a direct success. Since the frog moved by leaping and jumping rather than walking, the amphibian kept on landing everywhere but on the trap. This development irritated both the frog and the moth. The frog grew more and more annoyed with each failed leap while the moth grew frustrated that the frog just kept on jumping over its death.
The frustrating dance continued on for quite sometime before the frog finally landed on the trap. As the sticks broke and fell under the sudden weight, the frog let out a croak and tried to jump again but it didn¡¯t find any purchase. There was a thud and a splash before a screech echoed from down the hole. The moth¡¯s venom had begun its work.
As the frog shrieked it tried to jump again and again only to fail each time. The moth had, after all, taken an entire week to dig that hole. The frog kept on shrieking and jumping and the venom kept on getting splashed.
It took quite some time but the frog couldn¡¯t go anywhere and the moth had nowhere to go, thus the moth watched as the shrieks of the frog gradually dissipated until-
Ting.
Ting.
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have levelled Up! The level up bonus of +2 HP and +2 MP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.2] has reached [Sense Lv.3]. The active time of the Skill has been increased to 3 minutes.]
Even though the creature had expected a windfall of notifications, when it experienced it again, it could only look at them dumbfoundedly. But it did not take much time for the moth to recover and it laughed. ¡®30 Levels! 30! And now I am Level 78!!¡¯
The terror that had developed within its heart started dying a slow death. The moth felt liberated. It felt free. It felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from its shoulders.
The elation from just one hunt had sent away weeks of irritation and frustration. The creature couldn¡¯t control itself and flew down into the trap. It bent down and bit off a huge chunk of the meat from the frog, right then and there. And the creature continued to eat until it was full. Yet, the predator had been a moth, while the prey had been a frog. How could a mere moth eat an entire frog? It couldn¡¯t.
This left the creature in a conundrum. ¡®What to do with this frog?¡¯
The creature tried to drag the carcass out of its trap and failed miserably. As if that had ever been possible. Maybe in another Reality where the creature had the will of an ant, it would have been possible. But in this reality, where it lacked undying will of the ant, it was not.
The creature sighed and began disassembling the carcass. And as the creature had not a single knife, it had to make do with its own teeth. As a result, the creature came to know more of frog anatomy than it had ever wanted to.
The dissembling took most of the night and by the time the creature had flown all the parts out of the trap, the sun had been out for a few hours.
0.0
The next night, the moth arrived at the trap bustling with excitement. It just needed to hunt down one more frog and it would be rid of the lethargy and this body of the moth. It couldn¡¯t wait to evolve and change its Vessel.
Unfortunately for the creature, it was counting its chicken before it hatched. But the moth couldn¡¯t be faulted for it.
The creature neared the trap and, almost immediately, its antennas picked up the heavy scent of blood within. The disassembling of the frog had been just as messy as one could imagine and as a result, a lot of blood had remained within the trap. The creature gritted its teeth. ¡®All this work for just one hunt.¡¯
The creature was indeed quite correct. The only thing that this trap was now good for was for getting oneself killed. The stench of blood was strong not only within a trap but also near its periphery. Thus, any creature with a scent-based sensory Skill, similar to its own [Sense], could easily pick up on the blood here.
The creature had checked. Thus, it could do nothing but abandon the trap. The moth grimaced at the conclusion. ¡®If I had known this yesterday, I would not have spent the last night cutting through the meat and the flying it away.¡¯
With no other option left, the creature began setting up a new trap. Though with each passing day, the lethargy in its body only increased as winter drew near. Thus, the same trap that it had been originally built in 9 days, took the creature 13 days to build. And the night, on which the moth finally completed the trap, also marked the beginning of the 5th month since it had evolved into a moth.
Thus, it was on the night that marked the beginning of the 9th month since the creature¡¯s rebirth that it finally hunted another frog and reached Level 100. This hunt, pushed the creature¡¯s Skill [Venom Creation], up a Level to Level 6.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Spoiler: Spoiler
Chapter 22
Kiran and Surabhi left the class with their shoulders hunched, their heads down and their tongues silent. There was little to be said after the recent lecture.
And although Guru Pranay had not called out anyone, the two, just like the rest of them, had taken his words personally. After all, neither of them had lost even a single hair yet.
¡°How is Alchemy?¡± Kiran broke the silence, yet his voice was quiet and subdued.
¡°Not good, honestly.¡± The girl grimaced. ¡°All I am doing is memorising herbs and plants. What about you? How is healing?¡±
¡°It''s not as bad.¡± The boy sighed. ¡°Although I have to memorise a lot too, there are a lot of samples within the Healing Hall, so it''s okay.¡±
A sigh escaped the girl¡¯s lips and she shook her head. ¡°We can¡¯t keep going like this.¡±
¡°I know.¡± The boy grimaced. ¡°But I have been meditating daily for hours! It has had no effect.¡±
¡°My parents said that I need to focus on my image. And when I have achieved that, I should try to separate my hair from that image.¡± The girl¡¯s face twitched in displeasure. ¡°But I can¡¯t even begin to form my own image. Let alone separating my hair from it.¡±
The two children sighed again and left for their separate paths.
Various versions of similar conversations occurred in most friend groups and the many decided to increase their study time. But these were kids that were thirteen years of age.
Moments of passion ruled their lives and the decision to work harder proved to be just another such decision.
0.0
¡®No improvement.¡¯ Pranay¡¯s gaze passed over the children. And with each child, that he glanced past, his mood soured further. ¡®Not a single more promising pupil.¡¯
¡°Settle down.¡± His voice echoed across the platform and the chill of dying winter seemed to intensify. ¡°I will be talking about Class, Skill and Spell Tiers.¡±
¡°Though, anything I say about the Skill Tiers will also be the same for Spell Tiers. They are much the same.¡±
¡°Talking about Classes first, all Classes, despite how powerful or powerless they may seem, can be divided into four stages, called Tiers. From Level 1 to 25, Tier 1. Level 26 to 50, Tier 2. Level 51 to 75, Tier 3. And Level 76 to Level 100, Tier 4.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
¡°At each of these stages, the name of the Classes change. It is for this reason that they are called paths.¡± The man eyed the class before he continued. ¡°For example, the progression of this path, that most of you will fail to follow, starts at [Shishya] to [Brahmin] to [Muni] and finally ends at [Hrishi].¡±
¡°At each Tier, a person usually receives a Skill and a Spell. Though cases of just two Skills and no Spells are not uncommon.¡± The saffron-clad man droned on. ¡°At each Tier, you can also gain either an additional Skill or a Spell, through an Inheritance Scroll. But as you were sent here, the chance of that happening is rather low.¡±
The children stiffened at the slight at their backgrounds but there was little they could do in the face of truth.
¡°Advancing from one Tier to the next is not as easy as merely raising one¡¯s level from 25 to 26. Instead, at these watershed Levels, one must manifest a Breakthrough Skill to raise their Tiers.¡±
¡°There are three Breakthrough Skills. Often, they are also called the three Spirit Skills. Namely, [Spirit Ghost], [Spirit Tool] and [Spirit Summon]. From their names themselves, you can estimate just how important the Attribute [Spirit] is.¡± The man glanced at the children and ignored the lingering resentment from his previous remark.
¡°It is only after the manifestation of one of these Skills that a person can move onto the next Tier. Countless people get stuck at their watershed Levels and die because they couldn¡¯t manifest any one of these Skills.¡± The gaunt man¡¯s voice became heavy. ¡°Do not underestimate the difficulty of this task.¡±
¡°Had there been any improvement in your batch, I would have told you all more about these Skills.¡± The man announced without any inflexion in his voice. ¡°But as it is unlikely for any of you to even reach Level 20, I will save my breath.¡±
¡°Coming onto Skills. Skills, much like Classes, are also divided into Tiers, ranging from 1 to 4. Their brackets are quite alike Classes, with Tiers ending at Levels 25, 50, 75 and 100.¡± The man informed the class as he changed the topic. ¡°But unlike Classes, Skills do not change their names when they go up a Tier. Thus, a Skill such as [Mana Manipulation] will remain named such no matter it''s Level.¡±
¡°This, of course, does not mean that their function remains the same in all the Tiers. At each new Tier, every Skill will develop a new function alongside its original function. For instance, at Tier 2, [Mana Manipulation] lets the user choose a Ghost to synchronise with. Thus, allowing easy conversion of mana into that Ghost mana.¡±
¡°Coming back to the watershed Levels,¡± The gaunt man continued on carelessly. ¡°There is no such thing for Skills. Skills and Spells simply go from Level 25 to Level 26 and gain an additional effect.¡±
The children began to chatter as kids began to make grand plans.
¡°However, don¡¯t start dreaming just yet.¡± The bony man began and the class immediately silenced itself. ¡°You cannot have a low level for your Class and endlessly Level up Skills. That just doesn¡¯t happen. The cost of the Skill increases monstrously as they Level up and a Skill that once had cost 10 MP, might as well one day cost 10,000 MP.¡±
¡°The second and the more practical reason is that Skills are capped at Class Level. So, your Skills can never exceed the Level of your Class.¡± The man rolled his eyes at the dejection that spread through the children.
¡°As a result, Breakthrough Skills become a barrier not just to your Class but also to your Skills and Spells.¡± The saffron-clad man then got up and dismissed the students.
The class, on the other hand, merely watched as their teacher left.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 2]
A gaunt man walked along the muddy bank of a mighty river. His wooden sandals tried to avoid the potholes and the murky puddles but in doing so, they generated splashes which flew and landed on his saffron robes. His forehead crinkled in distaste before his brown eyes closed in resignation as he continued to march.
The loud crackling of burning wood and the scent of ash seeped into his senses as he crossed another smouldering pyre. For a moment, his eyes fell on the child that maintained a silent vigil beside the burning pyre and the saffron-clad man sighed. The boy was young, barely around 10 years of age and dressed in robes of pure white while his head was shaved of all hair. But those were not what drew the gaunt man¡¯s attention.
It was the vacant look in the dried eyes of the child who had not even seen 10 change of seasons, that had sought him out. The emptiness in the boy¡¯s eyes spoke of the hardships that awaited the young boy. Perhaps, his white clothes and the shaved head would garner sympathy. But for how long?
The man shook his head and continued to walk with a slight bitterness etched onto his face. Now that he had reached the third Tier, he had to distance himself from the worldly emotions and recognise the illusion for what it was. However, was that something so easily achieved?
He was a mortal after all, not an immortal. He could not help but feel for his fellow mortals. A single pyre and a devastated child had shaken his heart. How would he distance himself from his mortality with such a heart?
A breath escaped him as he sighed but he continued to walk along the bank where the dead were burnt to free them of their mortal longings. ¡®Perhaps this is why Acharya Ji lives here.¡¯
The saffron-clad man continued to walk and as he walked, he passed more and more pyres. With the sun bidding goodbye for the night and the skies painted pink, the orange glow of the pyres and the crackling of the burning wood caused a chill to dance on his dark skin. The man shivered before he folded his hands.
¡°Spirits here and Spirits all. I bow to the truth within one and all.¡± The mumble escaped his rapidly chilling lips. ¡°Please let me pass.¡±
The chill dissipated at the gaunt man¡¯s prayer while the deathly glow of the orange fires retreated. ¡°Be blessed, one and all. Be blessed.¡±
The man shook himself and hastened his footsteps as he continued his march to the person he sought. He crossed pyres and he assuaged spirits. He saw those whose tears still flowed and those whose tears had dried. He saw those that mourned the dead and those that had made peace with the death.
Eventually, he arrived at a sacred fig tree whose trunk was as massive as a mortal¡¯s house. Its triangular but circular leaves formed a canopy that was wide enough to provide shade to several mortal homes. While numerous thin wines fell from its thick branches and sought to dig into the earth below. Despite its sinister imaginary, the uncountable scared red threads tied around its massive trunk changed the tree¡¯s essence from ominous to divine.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
However, underneath the massive canopy of the sacred tree sat a thin man that was entirely naked. However, that was not the most peculiar thing about him, for his entire body was covered in white ash of the burnt pyres, which flacked off of his skin as he moved. His white hair was matted and dirty and formed dreadlocks while his ancient beard was white and filthy. A necklace of mortal teeth hung down his neck.
The ash-covered man stopped devouring a half-burned mortal thigh, from one of the pyres that did not burn completely, to look up the approaching saffron-clad man. His yellowed eyes narrowed as they scanned the approaching figure before his gaze shifted to emptiness surrounding the newcomer.
¡°Get lost! Get lost!¡± The naked man barked and waved his bony hand at the saffron-clad man. ¡°What are you surrounding this poor boy for?! Go haunt your kinfolk who refuse to pay their respects! Go! Begone!¡±
The atmosphere became lighter, the air lost its oppressiveness and the receding light grew brighter.
¡°Pranam Acharya Ji.¡± The saffron-clad middle-aged man greeted the ash-covered one with folded hands and a bowed head.
¡°Knowledge be yours.¡± The Acharya blessed with his right hand raised before he ordered. ¡°Sit down. Sit down. Any spot is as good as any other.¡±
Guru Pranay sighed as he sat on the muddy ground and his saffron robes were drenched in wet mud. However, before the naked man, he neither dared complain nor call himself a guru. He was but an ignorant child in front of the man that devoured mortal flesh like a ravenous animal.
¡°Acharya Ji,¡± Pranay addressed the naked man, though his voice was low and tired. ¡°It has been quite some time since I reached the third Tier, yet I can¡¯t see the illusion of the lie that it is.¡±
The ash-covered man, Acharya Aditya, continued to devour the half-burned mortal flesh till he had a mouthful and thickly swallow. He eyed the middle-aged man before him and scoffed. ¡°Ha! No wonder you can¡¯t!¡±
Pranay¡¯s head dipped and he folded his hands again. ¡°I seek guidance from you Acharya. Please help.¡±
Acharya Aditya remained silent for a while as he contemplated before he suddenly barked. ¡°Law-scars! Tell me what you know of them.¡±
Pranay breathed deeply to centre his thoughts before he spoke. ¡°In all creatures there exists a link between them and the Gods. This link is the Bridge on which we accumulate Law-scars as a result of the experiences we go through. These accumulated Law-scars are the sum of a person¡¯s existence and are the tools through which we break into higher Tiers and manifest the 3 Spirit Skills.¡±
¡°Although Law-scars do not affect our daily lives, no creature can live without them.¡± Pranay finished speaking and became silent as he waited for the other man to judge. However, what he had just surmised was mortal knowledge and was not entirely correct.
Bridges were not the link in between mortals and gods. Instead, Bridges were the link between the instincts of a Vessel and its soul. The creation of this link resulted in the creation of the Egos that ruled the mortal and immortal Vessels. Thus, Egos were merely a by-product of the existence of Bridges. Egos were just happy accidents.
¡°If you know this,¡± The naked-man scowled and ash fell from his wrinkled forehead in flakes, ¡°then why do you live the way you do? Your Bridge has too few Law-scars of asceticism! Likely from your [Shishya] days. How can you see the illusion for what it is?¡±
¡°You mean¡¡±
¡°Abandon the world. Abandon the Ashram. Abandon your desires. And abandon your family!¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 23
[You have reached Level 100. Do you want to Evolve now?]
[Yes] ????[No]
The creature stared at the notification and took a deep breath in. And slowly, it breathed out. The notification had evoked a mix of emotions within the creature, with jubilation and nervousness at the forefront as they made its tiny heart jump. But they were far from the only ones as the emotional turmoil also had a blend of fear, anticipation and the sheer desire to live.
Without waiting for a moment more, the moth turned and flew back to its hideout. ¡®Soon. Very Soon!¡¯
The moth reached its hideout and under the light of the azure moon observed the tree that was a bit young and within which it had created its hideout. Instead of entering the tree, the moth paused and gave the tree a look of careful consideration. ¡®Would it be enough?¡¯
The creature¡¯s worry was justified.
This rather young tree had never been meant to be its permanent shelter or even a temporary one for that matter. This shelter had been merely meant to house the creature for just a night to escape the rain. However, those plans had changed when its original shelter had collapsed due to rain.
Besides, the creature had lived here for the past 5 months and it hadn¡¯t felt the need to change shelter as the tree had provided the moth with adequate safety.
Nonetheless, now that the creature was looking to evolve again, and that too in autumn with the winter fast approaching, it was reconsidering the practicality of doing so. Even though the creature had evolved into the moth here itself, it felt the need to re-evaluate the quality of its shelter.
This reconsideration was born from the simple fact that the creature¡¯s previous evolution had taken an entire month. And if it had known this fact before evolving, it would have thought twice about choosing this place. ¡®I suppose this tree¡¯s sheer remarkability and young age are what had made it a safe place.¡¯
But the creature didn¡¯t think it could evolve within this tree again for the simple reason that the creature needed to expand the shelter before it evolved. And given the thinness of the rather young tree, the creature feared that the tree would die if the moth expanded its hideout.
The creature wanted to expand the shelter because based on its experience, where its size had increased, it expected the same to happen again. Thus, instead of returning to its hideout, the moth began searching for a new one. It took the creature quite some time to find a new place as it didn¡¯t want to make its shelter in an old and ancient tree. The creature¡¯s reasoning for abandoning the most sought out shelters was just that; that they were the most sought out ones. If the moth evolved there then the possibility of its refuge being discovered was quite high. And if that happened then the little moth wouldn¡¯t even know when it died.
Thus, the creature continued to search and it was only by the time that the sun had begun peeking out of the horizon that it found a tree that it liked. This tree even had a tree hollow that hadn¡¯t been occupied for a long time. The creature had checked through both [Sense] and [Sense Essence], only to receive nothing noticeable. And although the hollowed-out space wasn¡¯t very big, it was big enough for what the creature needed.
Despite the weariness that had begun to hound the moth, the creature did not even think of resting. Setting aside the lethargy, that had only grown with each passing day, the creature didn¡¯t even consider procrastinating. How could it, when it had to evolve?
Thus, the creature pulled its own version of an all-nighter and for the second time in a long time, it greeted the sunrise.
Not that the creature cared much about the scene. It was not a mortal that could understand the subtle meaning of greeting the rising sun when it had finally found hope. It could not understand such subtle concepts and even if could, it would not care; for it was an Immortal.
The moth spent the rest of the day carrying mud within the tree hollow to seal it off. Only when it had collected enough and had moistened it again with its own venom that the went in for the last time and slowly closed off the entrance.
A slow smile formed on the creature¡¯s face. All its preparations were finally complete. And it could finally evolve. ¡®Status!¡¯
Ting.
Status
[Unnamed] [Skills] [Spells] [Dharma] [Evolve]
Even without a moments delay, the creature focused on [Evolve].
Ting.
[Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes] ??????[No]
Grinning, it focused on [Yes].
Ting.
[Chose your form.]
[Fairy: Your species related evolution path.]
[Pixie: Your species related alternate evolution path.]
[Malfae: Variant. Granted due to your anarchic methods.]
All the excitement drained out of the creature as it stared at the options available to it. And slowly, its face twisted into a grimace. The moth knew all those creatures. For all of them were magical creature¡¯s that had existed within her memories. And from her knowledge, the creature knew that all these creatures, without exception, were nothing more than pests! It scowled. ¡®I don''t want to be a pest! I don''t even want to be an insect!¡¯
¡®Tch.¡¯ The creature¡¯s face twisted in distaste. It had hoped to get better choices this time around as it had its magic now. ¡®It seems like that isn¡¯t going to be anytime soon.¡¯
With a resigned sigh, it focused on its choices before it paused. ¡®Are they even the same creatures that I think they are?¡¯
The creature stared at the screen for a moment before it focused on the word ¡®Fairy¡¯.
Ting.
[You have chosen Fairy as your evolution. Are you sure?]
[Yes] ??????[No]
''What! No! I don''t want to be a stupid narcissist which is too enchanted with its self to even function properly!''
Thus, without a second thought, it focused on [No].
It scowled and waited for a few moments more as it thought about the conundrum. As a thought popped up in its head, it focused on the words, in front of the choice, rather than the choice itself.
Ting.
[A creature of vanity and pride. It forms the base of the food chain.]
''I am so not choosing Fairy. I have no wish to remain at the bottom of the food chain.¡¯ The creature dismissed the window and summoned the description for ''Pixie''.
Ting.
[A creature of strength and mischief. It forms the base of the food chain.]
''Hmm. Pixie seems like it is a better version of Fairy. Yet it remains at the bottom of the food chain.'' Wanting to cover all its options, it turned to the last option, Malfae.
Ting.
[A creature of venom and malice.]
¡®Ominous.¡¯ The creature blinked at the single line. ¡®This sounds promising though. Malfae isn''t at the bottom of the pyramid. It beats others just by this fact.''
The creature thought for a few moments more before it made its decision and focused on Malfae.
Ting.
[You have chosen Malfae as your evolution. Are you sure?]
[Yes]????????[No]
I focused on [Yes].
Ting.
[Evolution will begin now. Time Remaining: 120 days.]
The beginning of the evolution was different this time around for the creature. This time it did not form the cocoon from its own spit, rather, threads shot out of its pores from all over its body the moment evolution began.
The threads attached themselves to the walls of the tree hollow as threads after threads continued to pour out of the creature. As more and more threads attached themselves to the walls, they began to cover the creature and gradually a cocoon emerged from the thread.
Then the creature, which was no longer a moth, slept.
0.0
The creature woke up feeling confined and bound. Before it could even begin to frown at the situation -that it had found itself rather regularly in- it remembered where it was. ¡®Evolution. Right.¡¯
With the situation clear, the creature began wiggling and squirming to free itself. Cracks resounded as its body squirmed and it felt the tightness loosen. As the creature continued with its efforts, it did not have to wait for long before its actions bore fruit and cocoon broke apart even further.
A blue palm shot out of the white ball that was the cocoon before the entire arm followed it. Another blue arm soon followed the first and began to stretch and push the cocoon apart. With each push and shove the white thread ball tore a little more until a blue creature became visible.
The creature was small, barely the size of an adult mortal¡¯s finger and had an appearance that was vaguely similar to that of mortals. It possessed 2 hands, 2 legs and 1 head. However, that was the point where any similarity with creatures ended.
The first thing to signify its immortal nature was the very colour of its skin. Its skin was blue but not the blue of the oceans and the skies but the blue of the poisoned flesh. The blue skin was smooth but seemed tough. It almost had a leathery appearance. This revelation, from the very first look at the creature, was enough to reveal the venomous nature of the creature.
But that was not all. Despite its blue skin, it was the tuft of white fur-like hair that stood the most. The fur akin hair grew not only on its head but also on its back. However, the rest of its body lacked a single hair. As such, it lacked even eyebrows, eyelashes and body hair. This resulted in an appearance which seemed rather sinister.
Its immortal appearance did not just end there. The creature had 2 antennas, almost the size of its own head, poking out of its forehead as if they were horns. Its eyes were completely dark and lacked sclera. This gave off the illusion that the eyes of the creature were just giant pupils.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Beneath its dark eyes was a small nose and thin lips which hid two rows of sharp fang-like teeth. And while fingertips did possess rather long nails, they were nowhere near sharp enough or long enough to be classified as talons. However, neither of those features were quite eye-catching as its ears.
The creature¡¯s ears were quite distinct as they were bigger than its face, almost double the size. The huge appendages seemed like they could move individually and their insides seemed to be filled with ridges. They gave the creature¡¯s face an almost bat-like impression. Though that impression was quite short-lived.
It had a set of wings on its back but instead of the wings resembling a butterfly or a bird, they resembled the triangular wings of a moth. The wings were white and thin enough that they were almost transparent. They gave a clear indication of the creature¡¯s heritage as a moth.
The blue creature removed parts of the cocoon, that still covered its body, to reveal a flat blue chest. There was not even a single mark on the creature body and it even lacked the nipples that marked the mammary glands in mortals. Yet, if a mortal point of view were to be considered, the creature¡¯s body was clearly female.
However, that was a mortal perspective, which was of no value since the blue creature was an immortal, not a mortal. And immortals did not have genders. Immortals were just immortals.
The creature stood up and as it stood up, it stared at its own hand and feet before flexing its fingers. ¡®It feels so good to have hands and legs again! Finally! No more crawling! No more biting things! No more digging with my mouth!¡¯
It laughed. ¡®I can walk. I can hold things!!''
It laughed again. And it continued to laugh until-
Ting.
[Evolution completed. You have evolved into a Malfae.]
Ting.
[Evolution bonus of 30 points has been added to your total Health Points and Mana Points. You have been completely healed.]
Ting.
[Level up bonuses have increased from +2 points per level to +3 points per Level Up for both HP and MP.]
Ting.
[Your HP regeneration rate has been increased to [21 + Level/10] per hour. Rounded down.]
Ting.
[Your MP regeneration rate has been increased to [11 + Level/10] per hour. Rounded down.]
Ting.
[Level limit on Skills has been raised to Level 15. Please Evolve further to raise the Level limit again.]
As the creature read past the notifications, its grin widened and revealed a set of fangs like teeth. Along with the hairless face, the toothy smile of the creature formed quite a malicious picture. ''Yes! 30 Points extra for both HP and MP and the increase in regenerations!''
Ting.
[Final evolution of evolution tree [Species: Insect] reached. To evolve further consider changing your [Species].]
¡®¡Come again.¡¯ Joy left the creature¡¯s face like an overfilled dam finally collapsing. Its dark eyes narrowed. Its toothy smile disappeared and the eyebrow-less forehead scowled. Even the creature¡¯s antenna twitched in disbelief. ''This is a joke right¡it has to be a joke.''
The creature shuddered and read the notification again. It still conveyed the same thing. ¡®I¡ can''t evolve anymore?¡¯
Its stared dumbly for a moment before its brain caught up to the rest of the message. ¡®No. That¡¯s not right. I just need a new [Species]. But¡how do I get that?¡¯
Before the creature could ponder more, the rest of the notifications made themselves known.
Ting.
[Skill [Malfae Shield Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Drone Eggs Lv.5] granted.]
The creature ignored the new notifications as it frowned. It had a problem to deal with. There was no way that the creature was going to be stuck as a Malfae. That was just an unacceptable outcome for the creature.
¡®The screen suggests I change my species.¡¯ With the recommendation from the Status itself, the creature surmised that changing one¡¯s Species was not something impossible. Though, that did not mean that the Malfae knew of a way to do it. ¡®But how do I do it?¡¯
The creature frowned for a few moments more before it decided to set the thought aside. The creature did not dismiss it though, the thought was merely sent to the back of its mind.
With its worries postponed, the creature focused on the task at hand, the notifications and began going through them. As the latest one was about [Drone Eggs], thus creature called forth its explanation.
Ting.
[Ability to create eggs that produce Egoless creatures. Cost: 5 times the Level of the Skill. Creates [[0.5[SL][SL+1]] eggs.]
¡®Eh?¡¯ The creature tilted its head and its eyes narrowed. ¡®Do I¡lay eggs?¡¯
The creature was not unaware of the concept of reproduction and the creation of new beings. Though, its knowledge was limited to the process of creating humans. It had her memories after all. The creature had assumed the immortals followed the same principle but after receiving this Skill, the Malfae was not so sure.
The Malfae was correct to doubt this of course; since immortals do not breed sexually. They are asexual creatures that reproduce through a method that is essentially cloning. Immortals clone themselves in their eggs. A majority of these clones do not live long enough to evolve though, as the immortals do not rear all their progeny. An immortal, in any circumstance, will only raise a single young progeny to its first evolution before abandoning the said progeny.
This seemingly cruel nature of immortals exists for only one reason. And that reason was the fact that immortals were not creatures of civilization. To immortals, 1 is complete, 2 is burden and 3 is death.
For this reason, even after laying innumerable eggs, the immortals will choose to raise only a single egg. This choice of the egg is instinctual for the immortals and they¡¯ll choose the egg that has the potential to produce the most mutated clone of the original. This choice to raise the mutated or even disabled progeny, while abandoning the healthy ones might seem like folly to mortals but immortals are not mortals and trying to understand them from the mortal perspective itself is folly.
Immortals do not desire the passage of their traits. The innumerable clones already carried all the traits that the immortal could pass on. One after another, without any deviation, they all carried the same traits. Thus, those that carry the same trait as the immortal were not valuable.
But those that were different, the ones that carry the mutated traits, were the valuable ones indeed. Even if the mutated traits were detrimental to the creature, or were birth defects, the immortals would choose those eggs over normal ones. After all, birth defects were not something that one evolution or two couldn¡¯t fix. And these very birth defects had the potential to change the deformed creature into something entirely new.
Thus, no matter the Species or the Vessel of the immortal, all immortals only raised a single progeny. And this had also been the case with the Malfae¡¯s own creation. It had been born amongst the numerous eggs and had been abandoned as it had been the just another clone. Just another caterpillar. It was through her memories and the creature¡¯s own actions that the Malfae had deviated enough to become what it did.
However, the Skill that the Malfae had just received, was not a progeny creation Skill. It was drone Skill and it created drones, not progenies. This Skill was a result of the Vessel that creature now inhibited. This Vessel was a hive creature and it created a colony to survive; much akin to the ants and termites.
But the Malfae did not know any of this, thus, it read the description again and its forehead crinkled in thought. ¡®This Skill consumes MP?¡¯
The need for MP confused the creature. Its knowledge from her memories told the creature that the only thing needed for the creation of a new being was another individual and a ritual involving the two on a horizontal surface. There was no magic required of it and there certainly had been no need for Skills.
¡®Does this mean that the Skill is more magical in nature than physical?¡¯ The creature hesitated for a moment before it activated the Skill. ¡®[Drone Eggs].¡¯
At that moment, however, it felt its stomach turn and its eyes widened. Its mouth opened dumbly as an ache began to spread in its belly. ¡®It¡¯s physical after all!''
It felt its heart race before the ache started descending. With the descending pain, the creature that had evolved just recently, apparently began urinating as liquid squirted out of the creature¡¯s crotch and drenched its thighs and legs.
As the creature¡¯s eyes fell on its drenched legs, it seemed to calm down instead of becoming increasingly alarmed. As the ache continued to descend, it calmed down even more and the Malfae breathed deeply.
The descending pain had calmed the creature as it was something that the Malfae had been familiar with. For even though she had not created another being, she had known about the process rather deeply. She had even tried the progeny creation ritual a few times but had failed to create her own new being.
Thus, as the process progressed and seemed to go in the same direction as her memories, the creature gained a sense of familiarity with the process. It even became a bit curious about the result. Thus, when the white and cylindrical egg finally fell out of the creature¡¯s crotch with a wet splosh, the creature looked at it curiously.
However, much to the creature¡¯s surprise, the process was not over. In fact, it was far from over! Another pain manifested within the creature¡¯s belly and began to descend until the creature popped out another cylindrical egg. The newly evolved creature stared at the egg incredulously before another shot of ache manifested in its belly and began to descend. ¡®Heavens above! You have got to be kidding me!¡¯
Eggs after eggs popped out of the Malfae and the creature¡¯s little tree hollow became drenched in its bodily fluids that were released from its crotch before each new egg popped out. The creature gasped with wide eyes and its incredulous gaze fell on the ever-increasing pile of eggs.
Fortunately for the [Reincarnated], its body finally stopped popping out eggs after 15 eggs had been created and the creature panted. At that moment, it also remembered that the number of eggs created had been mentioned in the notification. ¡®That had to be the effect of its Level. This Skill started at Level 5. Why! Why is it this Skill?!¡¯
It took the [Survivor] quite a few moments before its breathing calmed down and its heartbeat stabilised. The creature breathed deeply for a moment before its curious gaze once again fell on the eggs and the Malfae hesitated for a moment before it poked an egg.
The creature waited for something to happen but when nothing happened, the creature circled the egg once and carefully activated its Skill, [Sense]. Instantly, the creature¡¯s own thick scent, mixed with the scent of sweat and bodily fluids, hit the Malfae¡¯s antennas and its face twisted in distaste. ¡®Ugh. That was a mistake.¡¯
Despite the unpleasant odour, the creature was pretty happy with its experiment. At least it now knew that the eggs were not something to be wary of. The scent of the eggs was completely its own, along with it something purely benign.
The creature still hesitated for a moment before activating [Sense Essence] and observing the egg. Once again, it found nothing suspicious. The essence, though unclear and hazy, matched its own shade and even the vapoury form seemed to be visible. This vapoury form didn¡¯t seem to be in the Malfae¡¯s own form though. Rather it seemed quite unstable and malleable. At this point, it was but a blob and nothing else.
Still, this marked the first time the creature saw the form of an Essence of another creature except its own.
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Essence Lv.1] has increased to [Sense Essence Lv.2]. The depth of sensing has been marginally increased.]
The creature was so engrossed in its observation that it jumped at the sudden sound. Though it was the content of the notification that surprised it even more. It hadn¡¯t expected that [Sense Essence] would be the first Skill to Level up after evolution. ¡®Tch. Marginally.¡¯
After all, the true usage of this Skill required [Mana Manipulation]. What the creature was doing currently was akin to using a top-grade magic sword to cut vegetables at a roadside stall. It was an utter waste of the Skill.
¡®There is no point in wallowing over things that I have no control over.¡¯ The creature sighed as dismissed the screen and focused on the next one, the [Malfae Shield].
Ting.
[Ability to create a shield that imitates the shape of the Malfae''s wings. Cost: 10 times the Level of the Skill. HP: 20 times the Level of the Skill.]
¡®Well, that¡¯s convenient. A magic shield that blocked physical attacks? Finally, something usable!¡¯ The creature smiled and dismissed the notification
Having dealt with the notifications, the creature brought forward the thought that it had decided to deal with later. It was time to deal with its [Species].
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 24
Kiran and Surabhi watched from their seats as the children parted and gave way to their teacher.
A group of 4 children were following the saffron-clad man. The same man, who that had not looked kindly at the children in the past few months, was now smiling softly at the children following him.
Of the 4 children following the gaunt man, one was a boy with rather dark skin while the rest were girls. Two of the girls had skin almost as dark as the bark of the Nightwood Tree while the last one was relatively fair.
But their skin tones were not what caught the attention of the assembled children. It was their hair. Or rather, the lack of it. All four of them possessed not a single strand of hair on their head.
The crowd murmured and chattered but those that walked cared not for the mutterings of those that were left behind. Jealousy, envy and loathing danced amongst the children and the faces became twisted.
¡°This¡¡± Kiran¡¯s face was ugly, much like those all around him. Such was the ugliness of his emotions that even the charm of the child was overcome and defeated.
¡°I know.¡± The girl with the long hair clipped. Her voice was short and somehow unpleasant to the ears.
Nothing more was said as the Guru, and the children that followed him like ducklings vanished from sight. Noise erupted but Kiran and Surabhi remained standing.
¡°Will,¡± the girl hesitated. ¡°you be leaving?¡±
The boy clenched his fists and grit his teeth. ¡°Why would I leave? I did not waste all my time just to go back without achieving anything!¡±
The girl¡¯s brows furrowed at the sharp tone. ¡°Don¡¯t take that tone with me!¡±
¡°Then don¡¯t ask stupid things!¡± The boy snapped and the two glared at each other.
As the year had ended, only four children had managed to shed their hair. While this was good news for those children, it meant that all the other children had failed. Almost a hundred of their fellow pupils had failed.
Failure hung like fog around the children, making the atmosphere high cold and dreary. Tensions ran high and tempers were loose. The defeat was etched on quite a few faces while struggle on just a few.
The two children glowered at each other, neither willing to back down. And just like that, the friendship of a year ended.
It would have been different if these two had been a bit younger or a bit older. But they were 13-year olds and the on the cusp of puberty. Their emotions ran high and hormones pumped, especially in an atmosphere as highly charged as they were currently in.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
This would have been different if two children had been living with their families or had someone to guide them. But they didn¡¯t.
The boy had left his family to come here. And while the girl¡¯s parents lived in the ashram, she didn¡¯t live with them. She, just like all the other students, had built her own hut and had been living within it all alone.
Thus, a tiff became a rift and the rift became a chasm. As a result, the two never talked again.
0.0
Kiran watched from afar as the five students ran up to their parents. All the five sported bald head that almost seemed to shine in the golden light of the sun.
His eyes fell on the new addition amongst those that had risen above failure and he tried to remember if he had seen the boy in his class before. Kiran hadn¡¯t.
The dark-skinned boy¡¯s eyebrows furrowed and he observed more closely.
¡®Oh.¡¯ It was then that he noticed that the new boy was quite a bit taller than the rest and his face lacked the softness that was prevalent in those of his class. ¡®He must be from the last year¡¯s class.¡¯
¡¯Did just one person,¡¯ the thought made the boy frown even further, ¡®succeed from those that failed last year?¡¯
¡°I must be there next year.¡± Kiran¡¯s fists tensed and his jaws clenched. ¡°I must be.¡±
0.0
Kiran walked with determined steps. His pace was fast but his face was clammy. His eyes were red and sported bags underneath, despite his dark complexion.
The previous night had been tough for the boy. He had cried and he had thought. But then he had thought and he had cried.
His failure haunted him, but the ghost of his own name had been the most daunting. Kiran. A ray of light. The hope of his father. The hope of his mother. The hope of his clan. Kiran. A ray of light.
In those moments, the 13-year-old had hated his name as he had never hated anything else in his rather short life.
But the boy had not lingered on those thoughts for he was still at the Ashram. And as long as he was at the Ashram, he still had a chance. Or at least, that was what the boy had told himself.
The boy¡¯s feet stopped as he reached his destination.
Before his eyes was a structure that was neither a shack nor a hut. It was a cottage. It wasn¡¯t just a lump of mud and clay that had been stacked on the top of one another. And the roof wasn¡¯t just a stack of hay that leaked in the monsoon.
Rather, it was a structure made of mud walls that were flat and smooth and the sloped roof was covered in several layers of clay and woven hay. Plants and shrubs had been planted within the roof to give it structure and walls were covered in paintings that seemed to have been drawn by a child.
Kiran stood there and stared at the home. For it was a home rather than just a temporary abode meant to be discarded.
Kiran stood there for a long time, yet he couldn¡¯t bring himself to approach further. He remembered the uncaring eyes and the cold gaze that had passed him over, much like it had passed over all the other children in his class.
¡°How long do you plan on standing there?¡± Kiran jumped at sudden sound and looked around with his eyes wide.
But he didn¡¯t have to search for long as a man exited the cottage. He was clad in saffron robes but his eyes lacked the coldness that they had recently acquired.
¡°Pr-Pranam Guru Ji!¡± The boy barely managed to whisper as he hurriedly joined his hands and bowed.
The man nodded. ¡°Why have you come here?¡±
The boy fell to his knees and clasped his hands. His red eyes began to leak and the emotions that he had bottled up erupted as he began to cry.
¡°P-Please¡¡± He sobbed and fat tears rolled down from his eyes. His breath hitched and snot dripped down his nose. ¡°¡he-help m-me.¡±
The man¡¯s eyes softened and he gently raised the boy. ¡°Alright. I will help you.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 3]
The sound of clinking anklets echoed out as a woman slid the curtains apart to enter the mud cottage. However, compared to the humble adobe that she had entered, her appearance could only be considered as lavish. For she was dressed in a blouse that was bright pink and a long skirt that was just as vibrant.
A long and wide scarf was tucked below her shoulder, from where it covered her torso as it circled her other shoulder and back while it passed over her head and fell back on the shoulder, where it had begun. Her wrists were decorated with numerous bangles while a thick beaded necklace adorned her neck. Even her feet were wrapped in anklets that had tiny bells decorating it.
Thus, as the woman moved her clothes rustled, her bangles clanged and her anklets clinked.
Despite her extravagant attire and the ornate jewellery, the woman was more motherly than beautiful. Her features were common with brown eyes and a circular face that could only belong to a person who came from a well-fed family. Her skin was the colour of wheat grains while her body held slight plumpness that came with being middle-aged.
Being in a mud cottage as she was, she sat on the floor beside her husband. A moment passed before she frowned. Usually, the mere sound of her footsteps was enough to draw the eyes of her husband, this she knew. Yet, at the moment even her being next to him did not distract the man from his thoughts. His eyes remained narrowed and his gaze continued to be distant.
The woman rose and the sound of her rustling clothes and clinking anklets filled the room once again as she left the cottage to prepare dinner on the firepit outside the cottage.
When she entered the cottage again, she did so with two earthen plates full of food. Her each step caused her anklets to clink and announce her arrival. She sat down again on the floor and the cottage came alive with the sound of her bangles clanking as she slid one of the plates towards her husband.
However, despite the vivacity that the woman brought with her mere presence, her husband remained lost in his thoughts with his forehead marked with wrinkles of frown and time.
¡°What are you thinking about such?¡± She finally broke the lingering silence in the cottage and asked. Though, it had little effect as the man¡¯s gaze remained distant. ¡°Shrinath¡¯s father. Shrinath¡¯s father!¡±
The man blinked as if he had been startled awake.
0.0
Pranay almost jumped as the sound of his wife¡¯s raised voice. ¡°Eh, yes¡what?¡±
The heavily decorated woman frowned for a moment before she sighed. ¡°What bothers you such that you forget the world around you?¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Unintentionally, the woman¡¯s words touched the sore spot that he had been pondering about; the lie of the illusion. As her words registered in his mind, his shoulders slumped as his back hit the wall behind him. He closed his eyes and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know my path ahead, Kriti. What should I do? What should be my next step? Should I even take the next step?¡±
The woman frowned and did not reply. After all, she could not help him with his path. This helplessness was not because she didn¡¯t want to help Pranay but because she did not know what the path at Tier 3 entailed. Much like the how Tier 1 Class [Shishya] were not allowed to know the advancement method of the Tier 2 Class [Brahmin], the Tier 2 Class [Brahmin] were not allowed to know the advancement method of the Tier 3 Class [Muni] or the Tier 4 Class [Hrishi].
This knowledge prohibition was not from the misguided sense of hoarding, of course. Rather it was to save the disciples from themselves. After all, walking down the path of [Shishya] was not only difficult but also convoluted. As at first Tier, this path demanded its walkers to distance themselves from the world and earn the rare Attribute [Reflection].
However, this same path, at Tier 2 demanded that its walkers re-enter the world that they distanced themselves from. Not only this path demanded this re-entry but it also demanded complete submergence in the world to temper the Attribute [Reflection] against the desires and temptations of the world.
This was still not the end of the convoluted path that was the path of [Shishya]. For once someone had entered Tier 3, they had to once again distance themselves from the world that they had been submerged in. And this time, they had to completely reject the world as a mere illusion. A hallucination of mind.
While at Tier 4, this illusion had to become reality.
This back and forth trial that interfered directly with one¡¯s life was not something easily endured. And if the knowledge of this undying cycle was imparted beforehand, it broke the will and the hearts of those that walked down this path. As a result, the knowledge of each Tier was dealt as if it were precious and imparted only on the need to know basis.
Pranay¡¯s smile was bitter as he observed his wife and her vibrant attire. As a Tier 2 [Brahmin] she was entrenched into the worldly desires as she tempered her [Reflection]. He could not tell her the challenge he faced, lest he broke her will while she could not ask lest she put him in a difficult situation.
Pranay shook his head as another weary sigh escaped his thin lips. ¡°Why were you called by Acharya Ji?¡±
The brightly dressed woman breathed deeply to centre her thoughts before she answered. ¡°A true progeny was found within the unending drones of the [Termite Monarch]. Acharya Ji wants it tamed before it reaches the first Tier.¡±
¡°Oh?¡± Pranay sat up straighter. ¡°Have you started the search for the prospective trainers?¡±
¡°I have found a few disciples.¡± The woman answered as she slid an earthen plate towards her husband, causing her bangles to clink and fill the cottage with a beautiful sound. ¡°However, nothing is set yet. Is there anyone amongst your students that seek the [Monster Tamer] path?¡±
Pranay frowned for a moment as he thought before he shook his head in denial. ¡°None of my students have taken it up. Perhaps they are daunted by the royal monopoly.¡±
¡°A pity.¡± The woman shook her head. ¡°This is once in a lifetime opportunity, for the Ashram will bear all the cost of raising the next [Termite Monarch].¡±
¡°A pity indeed.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 25
The Malfae once again stared at the [Species: Insect] and read the description.
Ting.
[Species allows for different evolution pathways to manifest. Current evolution path: Insect.]
¡®Current¡¡¯ The creature tilted its head. This word perplexed the creature. It had been repeatedly implied by the system that a change in species was possible. Even this notification had implied it so. But how to achieve this change had not been implied even once.
The creature cracked its neck and its eyes fell on the cocoon left behind after its evolution. It frowned. ''Don''t I gain a Level after eating it?''
Ting.
[You have consumed The Gift.]
Ting.
[You have levelled Up! The level up bonus of +3 HP and +3 MP granted.]
The Malfae grinned and stretched its newfound body. The act caused a few joints to pop and the sound felt almost cathartic to the creature¡¯s ears as the creature lost itself in sensation. ¡®She had enjoyed this act, hadn¡¯t she? I can see why.¡¯
As it thought about her, it invariably thought about its own rebirth and as it tracked the time using its Status and its own lifespan as calendar, it surmised that more than an entire year had passed since its rebirth. ¡®Should I wish myself a happy birthday?¡¯
The creature thought for a moment. It knew of the concept of celebration from her memories and it knew that she had celebrated her birthdays. But the creature didn¡¯t see any rhyme or reason for doing so itself, except for following in her footsteps. And the creature had no intention of doing that.
Hence, the creature dismissed the thought with the shake of its head. But, at that moment, its eyes to fall on the eggs that it had birthed. ''Hmm? Just what will come out of these things? Most likely another Malfae¡¡¯
The Malfae sighed. It had no interest in being a babysitter. After all, it had been barely surviving on its own. If it had to care for another creature too, the Malfoy wasn¡¯t sure if the other being would survive. Thus, the Malfae dismissed this thought too. ¡®If this creature becomes too bothersome, then it may as well give me some experience.¡¯
The creature took a deep breath in and closed its eyes. Its mind wandered to the problem that had kept it inside its shelter since its evolution. Its evolution. Or the lack of it. ''So how do I go about solving it, when I do not know about it?''
This was the main issue for the creature. It had too little knowledge. And it wasn¡¯t like it could just go and ask someone. For it was an immortal and immortals didn¡¯t have the support of civilizations. Each immortal overcame their problems in their own way.
Thus, the thought of seeking guidance didn¡¯t even arise in the creature¡¯s mind. This thought was so alien to immortals that if immortals had a language, then that language would not even have a word for guide or guide. But immortals were immortals and languages were the need for civilizations. Thus, immortals could never develop a language of their own.
It was against their very nature. And this was another thing that the creature had sacrificed for its magic. In the long list of things that the creature had lost, this was just the third. Not that the creature would have minded it too much. As it was, the creature summoned its Status.
The Malfae studied its Status again and called upon the description of its Species once again.
Ting.
[Species allows for different evolution pathways to manifest. Current evolution path: Insect.]
The creature thought for a moment before it focused on ''the current evolution path''.
Ting.
[Evolution paths are a result of Species. They are either granted by Titles or by Skills that turn a creature completely into another creature.]
''Aha! It worked!¡¯ The creature almost jumped in excitement. ¡®Hmm. As far as I know, Titles are granted by the Will of the World but I don''t know what causes their generation.''
The creature¡¯s hairless brows scrunched up in thought before it focused on Titles.
Ting.
[Title is a label awarded by the Will of the World to the living beings, for performing specific tasks or for meeting certain specifications.]
This information the creature already knew. Hence, it focused on the ¡°Title¡± within the notification.
Ting.
[Titles either grant a Skill or affects the behaviour of the bearer. Titles need not always have a positive effect.]
The Malfae scowled. Even though there was extra information available to it now, it was nothing that it hadn¡¯t already known. It had been through the effects by the Title [Hungry] after all. It was quite intimate with its effects. With the route through Titles busted, the creature summoned the window for the ¡°Evolution path¡± again.
Ting.
[Evolution paths are a result of Species. They are either granted by Titles or by Skills that turn a creature completely into another creature.]
¡®What does it mean by, ¡°turn a creature completely into another creature¡±?'' The Malfae frowned and turned to the list of its Skills. ¡®Do I have any skill that could turn me completely into another being¡?¡¯
The creature¡¯s eyes lit up.
¡®Well, yes.¡¯
But it was not the Skill per se. It was just a skill. But that skill was not the creature¡¯s own skill. It had been hers. She had been a Curse Mage, after all. A manipulator of the essence of one and all. And even though she hadn¡¯t been a particularly strong one, she had had to develop this skill to successfully walk down this path. After all, this was the first thing that every Curse Mage learnt.
This skill was the transformation of the essence.
The essence was something that pervaded everything, every creature and every being. It was formed through the condensation of mana as it passed through an object or creature, called a vessel. This condensed mana was different from the MP generated by the creatures, for its state was different and could not be used by the living beings directly. For it had become Essence and was no longer Mana.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
The essence was an interesting phenomenon. When it condensed, the essence took the shape of the vessel that it had manifested in. This shape was not only a perfect replica but it also represented the vessel in its entirety; magical and physical properties included.
But that was not all. Any change in the vessel changed the form of the Essence and any change in the Essence, changed the vessel. This effect of one, on the other, was not only mutual but also in real-time. As a result, Essence was something vastly personal and at the same time an extreme vulnerability against those that could manipulate it.
These properties of Essence led to the creation of an entire branch of magic based on it, interestingly, called the Curse Magic and not Essence Magic. Curse Mages used this Essence for their magic. They did not use Essence as a fuel for magic, for Essence could not be used so. They used their magic to work on Essence to mould it and shape it.
And as Essence was the essence of its vessel, any change in it affected the vessel itself. As a result, a Curse Mage could change a person¡¯s Essence and cripple them beyond any healing. And if a Curse Mage was powerful enough, they could change a mortal into a beast, a woman into a man and a mountain into a tree.
However, how could manipulating Essence be an easy feat?
For the mortals that wished to pursue this path had to have [Wisdom], [Will] and [Spirit], at the very least, along with an extremely high level of [Mana Manipulation] to be able to do so. For even though Essence was formed from mana, it was not mana. Thus, to be able to manipulate the Essence of the world, one must first be able to manipulate their own Essence. And this was where Essence transformation came in.
Essence transformation allowed an acolyte, who was on the Curse path, to learn Essence manipulation, somewhat safely. It required the acolyte to transform their own Essence into an animal and then turn it back into their own. Though, this animal could not be just any animal that an acolyte would choose on their own. This animal had to be the one that manifested within their ego and the one that represented the acolyte¡¯s true self, lest they be stuck as the animal forever.
This animal form was called the Ego form. And at this moment of need, it was this transformation of the essence and this Ego form that had given the creature hope. If the Malfae could manage Essence transformation, then the creature should reasonably be granted another Species.
¡®¡®Should¡¯ being the keyword.¡¯ The creature sighed. The creature did not know if this method would succeed. And if this method failed to give the Malfae a second Species, then the creature feared it wouldn¡¯t have enough time to even try for another method.
After all, even she had taken a decade to achieve Essence transformation, while the Malfae was still stuck on the beginning stages of [Mana Manipulation]. And if not for her, the creature feared it wouldn¡¯t even have received the Skill, given its own less than stellar aptitude. Thus, even if the hope was slim for the Malfae, it was still better than utter hopelessness.
The creature sighed somewhat in relief. Finally, it had an idea about how to achieve what it was looking for. It had finally found something that might lead it back to the road of evolution. Thus, with a small smile, it closed its eyes and began to meditate.
Small bits and pieces of recollections came floating back to the creature, as it dug deeper and deeper into her memories. The pieces remained suspended as the Malfae searched her memories, however, the memories it had received were not an exact copy of hers. They were frayed, unstructured and had lost quite a bit of fragment in the war between the two Egos.
Thus, it was no surprise that it took the blue creature, quite some time, to finally condense its search into one packet of knowledge. When it did achieve though, the creature emerged with a gleeful smile. However, all was not done yet and the winged creature began going through the information that it had collected.
From what it had found about the process, the method required the Malfae to immerse itself within itself. It asked the Malfae to be in touch with its own mana, as being in touch with mana removed any outward binding, any worldly attachments and allowed the creature to view itself in its most primal forms of instincts and memories.
After all, these were what constituted an Ego.
Ego.
What an interesting thing it was, with even more interesting components.
Its first component was instincts. Instincts were something that every being reacted based on. It was because of these instincts that different people reacted differently. They were the reason why no two people were the same. It was because no two sets of instincts were the same.
And these instincts originated from one¡¯s Vessels.
Memories on the other hand were at work when people made decisions, for decisions are based on experiences, which are retained in memories. These memories are, in turn, are a domain of souls; one of the most mysterious and forbidden things to ever have existed.
Thus, an Ego was the interaction between instincts and memories. Or better to say, an Ego was the result of interaction between a Soul and a Vessel. As a result, both instincts and memories were represented in the Ego, through different means. Mana formed an entire realm to soothe the memories and the instincts and the individual as a whole.
In this serene realm, memories formed a semi-corporeal shape of the Ego¡¯s body, to represent the bearer and its desires. While instincts, on the other hand, condensed to manifest as the primal animal that represented bearer and its reactions.
Now, even though the beast was the representation of the Vessel¡¯s instincts, it also contained within itself the aspects of the memories and the mana. This beast was thus the Ego form. It was a magical being''s Ego laid bare.
It was due to this fact that the traversal of Ego was limited to only the high-level magical creatures, both mortals and immortals. Those that didn¡¯t have enough Mana weren¡¯t even capable of manifesting this serene realm.
As the creature continued to process the memories, it frowned at the next bit.
For a beast to represent the Ego, it would have to have its own magic. It had to be so because the magical being that it represented had magic. Such was also the case because the beast formed within the Ego, contained within it, the mana of the magical being.
It couldn''t, not be magical in nature.
This, in general, caused a problem. The beast''s magic needed to be merged with the Ego''s inherent magic. This was a risk as it may lead to the beast''s primal magic overwhelming the Ego¡¯s magic, causing a creature to be lost in its own mind, leaving it comatose.
It was this risk, besides the incredible requirements, that had always deterred the masses from following the path of the Curse Mage.
The memory ended and the creature returned to reality. It pondered over what it had gained and it was still lost in thought when it tried to move. The keyword here being ¡®tried¡¯ as the creature¡¯s body refused. Its joints were stiff and muscles cramped.
The creature frowned and tried to stand up-
Thud. ''Ouch!''
-but its head hid the roof of the hideout. It seemed that while the creature had considered its size and had expanded the hideout just before evolution, it hadn''t been enough.
The creature¡¯s body protested as it steadied itself to stand again. Its legs were assaulted by the sensation of pins and needles and a strange weakness had breached its fingers. This weakness was akin to the weakness that affects the body when one wakes up. The creature struggled to control its body for quite a few moments. This struggle was a testament of the time that the creature had remained within the tree hollow since it had broken out of its cocoon.
The creature was finally able to control its body and make its way out of the tree hollow and when it did, it was the azure moon that had greeted the Malfae. Apparently, it was still a nocturnal creature.
The night startled the creature a bit but it was nothing next to the surprise that the temperature gave to the creature. For even though the Malfae had known that its evolution would take 4 months, it was the act of leaving its hideout that finally drove the point home.
When the creature had last been out, it had still been a moth and the temperature had been decreasing slowly but steadily. The trees had shed their leaves and the land had been painted in various colours of the leaves scattered all about. A chill had overcome the land that had instilled within the creature a sense of lethargy and exhaustion.
But now that it was once again out and about, it felt the distinct lack of cold. The weather was warm and the passing breeze left behind a sense of freshness and coolness, while the trees now sported fresh leaves that were either bright like the fire or the softest green.
The creature stood and stared. Knowing that the past 4 months had just gone by and watching the change with its own eyes proved to be 2 very different experiences to the creature and it left it disoriented. The Malfae felt like it had lost an entire portion of its life.
But that was not true of course. The creature had just been sleeping and had missed the end of fall and the entire winter.
The disorientation gradually wore off and the Malfae smiled bitterly. It knew the truth of course. That it had been merely sleeping. And it knew this sleep would haunt it often if it lived long enough. Thus, the creature could do nothing but make peace with it.
¡®Tch. This is but a part of me now.¡¯ It sighed and flew off. It had a new home to search for. As it flew, it realised that it didn¡¯t feel hungry even though the creature hadn¡¯t eaten anything but its own cocoon. The Malfae thought for a moment but decided against hunting. ¡®That cocoon was oddly filling.¡¯
Thus, the search for a new home continued but the creature couldn¡¯t find anything that it liked. Any tree that it liked was too young to contain its new form comfortably while anything that could house its new form was already crowded.
As it discarded another tree, it frowned. ¡®Now that I have hands, why don¡¯t I make a home for myself? It would have to be made out of mud or wood but it still would be something that would resemble a house.¡¯
As the Malfae pondered more and more on the idea, it liked it even more. That is until a thought crossed its mind and grimaced. ¡®Tch. It would only last until the next evolution. If my size increased again, I would have to abandon it.¡¯
The creature was right of course.
Once the creature evolved, its size could wary from anything to its current size to double or triple the present form. This would mean that it would have to consider some unknown size when it made its house if it wanted to live there for a long period of time. ¡®How would I even do that?¡¯
Malfae grimaced, again. Even if it decided to ignore the possible changes in size, it would have to put a lot of work to make something that it would have to leave behind sooner or later. The creature scowled. ¡®What a waste.¡¯
With the scowl still plastered in its creepy hairless face, the creature kept on searching for natural burrows or cavities in trees to live. But by the end of the night, it had nothing to show for all its hard work.
The creature returned to the tree hollow, that it had earlier abandoned, without so much as a second thought. If it had been a mortal, it would have been ashamed of coming back to the same place, despite no one there to observe, and would have searched for another place to rest for the day.
But the creature was not a mortal. It was an immortal. It had no sense of shame. This was just another sacrifice the creature had made for its magic.
The Malfae crawled back in the tree hollow and called up its Status as it used Survive to try and level it more. Immediately its HP of 356 decreased by 190 points and the creature blinked before it laughed. ¡®This¡I still can¡¯t believe it!¡¯
With that thought, the creature fell asleep.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 26
¡°Tell me what you have been doing.¡± The saffron-robed man ordered and the boy, who was sitting beside him, stiffened for a moment.
¡°I-I have been trying to visualise my image.¡± The boy answered as his fingers twitched. ¡°How I look, how I dress, my features, my appearance.¡±
The man sighed as he rubbed his forehead. ¡°Is that what you think you are?¡±
The child¡¯s brows furrowed as he stared at the gaunt man sitting in front of him. ¡°I-Is that not?¡±
The man looked at the child for a moment before he went into the house came back with a basket made up of some sort of tree fibre. If Kiran hadn¡¯t known better, he would have thought it was a bamboo basket.
¡°Use this basket to water the plants in my garden.¡± The man threw the basket at the child and turned away.
¡°You are to only use that basket and nothing else. You can only draw the water from the lake near your house and nowhere else.¡± The man walked back into the house. ¡°If you can water the plants daily, you will know who you are.¡±
The child stared slack-jawed at the back of the retreating man. And then his gaze lowered at the basket in his hands.
¡®How¡is this even possible?¡¯ The boy¡¯s eyes were wide as he stared at the woven basket in his hands. The basket was made of woven plant fibre but the weaves were not tightly knit.
Instead, the entire basket was littered with holes. This thing had been clearly designed to carry solid objects. It had definitely not been designed to fetch water.
Kiran stared at the basket, then at his teacher¡¯s garden and then off into the distance where his hut was located.
Just hopelessness remained in his eyes.
0.0
Hours turned into days and days turned into weeks as the time continued to pass.
The boy had been mulling over the task his teacher gave him but the more he thought about it the more impossible he found it.
¡°Just how is this supposed to be done?! Guru Ji gave it to me, so clearly can be done. But how?!¡± The preteen muttered to himself as he stared at the water-soaked basket. ¡°There has to be another way!¡±
The boy had initially tried to run with the water-filled basket but that just ended up with him watering the road and achieved nothing else.
He had then tried to leave the bucket into the water to soak so that the fibre swelled up and clogged the pores but that idea had also ended up being a bust as pores had indeed swelled up but that had not been enough.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
The boy had now run out of ideas to try and the hopelessness had once again begun to creep into him.
¡°Just how should it be done!¡± The boy screamed and kicked the basked which promptly fell into the lake.
The boy glowered at the basket as the basket began floating away. As the basket floated, it soaked water and became heavy. Water began to fill within the basket and the basket began to sink.
Kiran¡¯s eyes widened and he hastily jumped into the water to fish the basket out. But he was already too late and by the time he reached the spot, the basket had already reached the bottom of the lake.
Kiran wide eyes almost popped out and he dived deeper into the lake. It was only after the boy had spent quite some time searching the lake that he found the basket on the lake floor, stuck in clay.
Kiran heaved out a sigh of relief and swam out with the basket. Though, as he sat down on the shore, he looked at the basket strangely. The water within the basket that should have been seeping out of it, remained where it was.
It didn¡¯t leak out. It didn¡¯t seep out. It remained within the basket.
The dark-skinned boy¡¯s eyed widened once again and he hurriedly lifted the basket to observe it. The more he looked, the more his eyes widened. ¡®Is this it? Is this the answer!¡¯
The boy stared at the clay that had clogged the pores of the basket. And with the pores clogged, the basket was able to hold the water. ¡°This-this yes! Yes! Yes!!¡±
The boy laughed and immediately dove into the lake again to dig out some more clay. Once the clay had been collected, the boy covered the basket entirely in clay until it seemed more like a clay basket rather than a fibre one.
With the basket covered, the preteen left the basket in the sun to let it dry and then the child eagerly waited for the next couple of days.
0.0
The saffron-clad man watched the dark-skinned boy watered the garden with the clay covered basket and he smiled. He walked out of the cottage and the child instantly stopped pouring water and greeted the gaunt man.
¡°Why do you think you succeeded?¡± The man asked the boy and child furrowed his brows in thought.
The child remained silent for quite a few moments but the gaunt man did not push for the answer and waited patiently.
¡°Because I-because I made use of the¡opportunity?¡± The child answered but by the time the sentence ended, the answer had turned into a question itself.
¡°Hmm.¡± The dark-skinned man¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°Why do you were able to make use of the opportunity?¡±
¡°Be-because I-¡± The child began but the man raised his hand and stopped the child.
¡°There is no hurry. Take all the time that you need to think.¡± The man encouraged. ¡°I will be here to listen when you are ready.¡±
The child stopped to truly think about the question. He remained silent for quite a while and the man remained seated next to him. The grey-haired man did not move and the child remained lost in thought.
Perhaps, if the child had been older and had more experience, he would have been able to answer the question right away. But the child was a mere 13-year-old boy and it took him quite a while to think through his thoughts.
Time passed and the boy that had come to water the plant with the first rays of the Sun, sat there thinking as the last rays of the sun bid the world goodbye. Alongside the boy, sat the man in saffron robes.
They sat there until the boy finally looked up at the man and answered. ¡°It is because I never gave up. It is because I persisted.¡±
The boy didn¡¯t stammer even once. The boy did not lose his confidence even once. The answer didn¡¯t become the question even once. And the saffron-clad man smiled.
¡°Then, are you perhaps someone who persists?¡± The Guru asked his pupil.
¡°Yes.¡± The pupil replied. ¡°I am.¡±
¡°Then that is your answer.¡± The man nodded and got up. ¡°That is who you are.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 4]
An old man covered in ash walked along the river, with his form naked and gaunt. His filthy dreadlocks that had once been white, swayed as he moved and the necklace of mortal teeth clacked with each step. His bones peeked through his skin while his flesh hung loose. He seemed to be the very definition of frail and week. Yet, his yellowed eyes held within them the life that the rest of his body lacked. His brown pupils oscillated as they observed the word while he continued his march on the bank where the corpses met their end.
The heat from the burning pyres would have been uncomfortable for most mortals, but the ash-covered man was not most mortals.
in the dim light of the green moon, the naked man stepped into a pile of animal excreta but the man kept on walking. He didn¡¯t even bother to pause for a moment to clean his feet as he continued his march. As a result, mud, filth and shit accumulated on his naked feet.
The man finally stopped as he seemed to have found what he had been searching for. His yellowed eyes fell on the pyre that had long since lost its flames yet still smouldered. The orange of embers clashed with the green moonlight, creating a haunting scene.
However, this was not what he saw. In his vision, the world swam with colours that were not real, for the world was an illusion and what was true was false.
He did not see the smouldering pyre and the charred corpse within. Rather he saw two wavering mixtures of the Five Great Ghosts intermingling, while one of them devoured the rest. He saw the Fire Ghost devour the other four, the Water, the Earth, the Air and the Sky. This vision of his was the effect of his Tier 3 Skill, [Spirit Vision].
Grants the user the Vision of the Spirits.
Tier 1 Effect: Allows the user to see all the Spirits.
Tier 2 Effect: Allows the user to see the Law Scars withing Remnants and living creatures.
The old man reached into the mix of the Five Great Ghosts and felt not the heat of the smouldering pyre. His Tier 3 Spell [Immaterial] did not allow the world to affect his physical body.
Makes the user Immaterial.
Tier 1 Effect: Grants the ability to turn immaterial.
Tier 2 Effect: Grants the ability to turn the world immaterial, within limitations.
Thus, without burning himself, the ash-covered man pulled out an overcooked part of what had once been a mortal¡¯s corpse. This overcooked part was one of the mortal¡¯s lungs.
The old man with filthy dreadlocks squinted his eyes at the combination of the Five Great Ghosts within his hands. He squeezed it and the Remnant within popped out as the overcooked flesh turned to mush in his hands. The man cared not for the mess however and activated the Tier 2 ability of his Skill [Spirit Vision].The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
Immediately, the contents of the Remnant became known to him as the Law Scar within exposed themselves in his vision.
¡°Another useless Spirit seed. Tch! Tch!¡± The man scolded the piece of Remnant in his hand as if he were scolding the mortal to whom it had belonged in life. ¡°You should have raised your children better! This is what you get for neglecting them! For just focusing on work! Work, work, work! What did it get you? You family didn¡¯t even bother to make sure that your Spirit doesn¡¯t rise! They didn¡¯t make sure that your body completely burnt down! They performed the rituals! They set your pyre! But if your Remnant remains, what use it that! Useless! Such a useless life! Tch! Tch! Tch!¡±
The Remnant didn¡¯t react. How could it? It was a Remnant, not a mortal. However, if enough time was given to the Remnant so that the Great Ghost Sky accumulated enough within it, then the Remnant would have replied. For then it would not have been just a Remnant. It would have been a Spirit.
Spirits are mystical existences. They are not creatures but beings for they are not truly alive and care not for death. They are formed from the accumulation of the great Ghost Sky within a Remnant and the resulting interaction with the Law Scars within. Mortals often call them ghosts but mortals are mortals and ignorant.
Spirits are not ghosts because they are not Egos of the dead. Due to this, Spirits need not possess the form of the creature they arose from. Rather, their form resembles the sum of the Law Scars within the Remnant that gave birth to them. As a result, a greedy mortal might give rise a spirit that resembles a Tasmanian devil while a coward might give rise to a Spirit that resembles a bug.
However, the naked man¡¯s melancholy was broken at that moment as the spirits on the bank responded and screeched at him in response to his words. The spirits were of all shapes and sizes. Some Spirits resembled porcupine while some resembled turtles. Ugly fishes swam in the air and worms peeked out of the earth.
However, they were all visible to him and only him. These were not the Spirits that came into existence due to the Skill [Spirit Summon] and were not powerful enough to manifest completely in the physical world. Not only this, their forms seemed to exude a sense of unreal-ness that was the mark of a Spirit. It was as if they existed there, but not. This unreal-ness was not wrongness or demonic nature, this was just a result of their ethereal nature.
However, all this did not stop the Spirits from getting offended. Thus, they postured, they growled and they threatened the naked man.
¡°Ha!¡± The old man¡¯s eyes narrowed as he scoffed and pointed his bony finger at the angry Spirits. ¡°Am I wrong? Tell me if I am wrong! Your descendants cared not about you! They left your Remnants intact and let you rise! It is no one¡¯s fault but your own! What are you scowling at me for?!¡±
If he had been intending to placate the Spirits, then his words failed spectacularly. The filthy man cared not for it though as he aggressively pointed at the porcupine Spirit. ¡°You! Your progenitor had so much hate within that their progeny did not even fake a ritual. They left the body to rot!¡±
The naked man¡¯s head swirled and he pointed at the ugly fish swimming in the sky. ¡°And you! Your progenitor cared for nothing but itself! Their progeny merely lit the pyre and left! When the flames died down, dogs fed on their flesh!¡±
¡°You surround me for speaking the truth! If your progenitor had faced these truths, you wouldn¡¯t exist! Now get lost before I mould you into a tool for the mortals to use! Do you want that? Do you want eternal servitude?!¡±
The Spirits hesitated but not for long and soon they retreated. The old man huffed. ¡°Tch. Tch. Tch! These ungrateful things! They should thank me that I do not cleanse this land of them! Tch! Tch! Tch!¡±
The ash-covered man¡¯s eyes then fell on the Remnant in his hand and his yellowed eyes narrowed further. ¡°You! Will you be like them too? You will, won¡¯t you? It¡¯s better if you don¡¯t rise then!¡±
With that last statement, the ash-covered man who wore the necklace of human teeth ate the overcooked piece of the human lung.
-X-
Chapter 27
The dark eyes moved behind the closed eyelids before they blinked awake. As the Malfae woke up, a strange lethargy still lingered within its body. The creature stretched and frowned.
¡®I didn¡¯t tire myself that much, did I?¡¯ Its body felt sore, not in any single place, but all over. It was as if the creature hadn¡¯t slept peacefully. Its little fingers lacked strength and there was a faint echo of ache in its wings. The creature checked its Status and everything immediately became clear. Its HP had barely regenerated.
The creature grimaced. Now that its HP was more than 350 points, its HPR of 21 HP/Day seemed a little too low to it. The creature wanted to increase its HPR but, like all other things, it lacked the knowledge to do so. It messaged its forehead and decided to focus on a single thing first, its next evolution.
Thus, the creature decided to practice [Mana Manipulation]. But as time passed, there were no results. Which was not a surprise to the creature given its track record and with a disappointed sigh, the Malfae came out of the tree hollow and then the creature paused to look at it.
While the tree hollow had been a safe place for the creature to evolve, it had mostly been due to the mud and poison wall that the creature had sealed the entrance with. But now that the wall did not exist anymore, the creature did not feel safe leaving its eggs behind.
¡®Tch.¡¯ It did not want to erect another wall. For not only would it take a lot of time to do so, but the creature would have to destroy it once it returned. ¡®That would be just pointless.¡¯
The creature thought for a moment before it gathered a few leaves and entered the tree hollow again. Inside the hollow, the creature continued to secrete its venom until the liquid had coated the wooden floor in a thin layer.
The Malfae then used the Skill, [Malfae Shield] for the first time and immediately a shimmering and almost transparent, pair of blue moth wings materialised before it. The wings were almost triangular in shape, with one of the wings slightly layering over the other in the middle, distorting the shape of the otherwise perfect triangle. The creature observed the wings and felt the urge to open the shield-like its own wings.
The shield opened.
The overlapping wings slid off each other, revealing another but smaller pair of wings. These wings kept on spreading until they formed an extremely deformed shape of a semi-circle. The creature grinned.
Although the creature knew that shield was just as fragile as it looked, as at Level 1 the shield could only take on the damage of 20 points, it would do for now. After all, the creature wasn¡¯t using it for combat, it was using the shield as a door. It left the shield inside the tree hollow, as it came out, and stuck the leaves in between the entrance of the tree hollow and shield. With that taken care of, the Malfae flew off and began its search for a new home.
It started looking around, searching for crevices and creaks in the trees, plants and massive boulders but there weren''t that many of them around. The few that it did find, the Malfae dared not go near as its antennas picked up fresh scents at their periphery. They were, thus, already occupied
The [Reincarnated] flew around for almost all night. Just like it had done the night before. And didn¡¯t find anything worthwhile. It was only on the last leg of its search that it found a crevice in a cliff of some sort, south of where its initial hideout had been. And as the Malfae¡¯s antennas didn¡¯t pick up any scent in the crevice, the creature ventured further to investigated deeply.
The crevice was dark and gloomy and while it wasn¡¯t big enough for most avian and birds, for the Malfae that was barely the size of a mortal¡¯s finger, it was more than enough. Its walls were unnaturally smooth and its depth, surprisingly deep. The floor of the crevice too was odd, as it was thin and ended in a point. If a mortal were to look at it, they would recognise it as stab wound of a sword.
But the creature did not know of it as it assessed the crevice and it found that it liked what it saw. However, before it made its decision, the creature activated its Skill, [Sense].
The Skill activated with a twitch of its antennas and as the scents thickened, it recognised the odours of stone, earth and old dust. The creature didn¡¯t smell anything that could prove that the crevice to be occupied at present. It might be the case that the crevice had been occupied once but the previous had not returned for long enough that their scent had faded.
The Malfae understood that to mean that either the previous owner had died or it had abandoned this place. The creature was still not satisfied though and activated [Sense Essence]. The world instantly seemed to fade away as the haze of the Essences became visible. The Essences were the mess of cloudy haze as always and they were just what the creature had expected. Stone, stone and more stone. There was nothing out of place.
The creature was finally satisfied with its inspection and smiled. Now the creature just had to bring its egg here. Though at the thought of the distance that it had to cover to do that, soured its mood almost instantly. The creature looked like it had bit into a sour lemon. ¡®I have to fly carrying it¡¡¯
The blue creature was not happy with that thought. For even though the eggs might seem light, those eggs were almost the size of the creature¡¯s arm. And even though their weight was not much, the eggs were a bit too heavy for the Malfae to carry it to the new hideout.
However, it had gone through a lot of effort to create them, so it was a bit reluctant to part with them. Thus, with a reluctant sigh, the creature flew out of the crevice and headed back. By the time it returned, the creature¡¯s MP had long since filled back up to its maximum.
Though that was not important to the Malfae, what was important to it was that its antennas were picking up a predatory scent emanating from the tree hollow that was its hideout. The creature immediately tried to use [Sense], but the Skill was still on cooldown and the creature couldn¡¯t pick up more detailed information from the scent alone. ''Those stupid eggs better be safe!¡¯
Without wasting any time on the locked-out Skill, the creature instead activated [Sense Essence], and the world faded away. But the creature paid it no mind as it focused on what was happening within the tree hollow.
The Essence of the [Malfae Shield] was nowhere to be seen while the wispy Essence of the leaves, that had been hiding the tree hollow, were on the floor of the tree hollow. The hazy Essence of the eggs was not as many as they should have been and the one that was present was so dim that it might as well not have been there; just a waif was original was left.
And then there was a foreign tendril of Essence within the tree hollow. This misty Essence of the foreign entity was a haze of brown but, unlike the one of earth and mud, this haze was deeper in colour seemed to contain sharpness within it. This new Essence was hunched over the dim Essence of the egg and with the passage of each moment, the egg¡¯s Essence dimmed further.
The Malfae¡¯s eyes narrowed as it pulled back its pale blue lips to reveal a set of malicious teeth. Its nose flared and its massive ears expanded to their full volume. The hair on its back and head stood up and its wings opened up to their complete wingspan. The Malfae seemed to have expanded up to almost to double its size.
The creature stalked forward. Although the Malfae¡¯s puffed up size made sneaking harder, it did not even think of decreasing its size. It knew that a confrontation was inevitable. And it wanted to make a first appearance that would also be the intruder¡¯s last.
The Malfae dismissed the Skill and sneaked forward, as slowly as it could, until gradually its eyes fell on the intruder.
The trespasser was covered in a shell, which just like its Essence, was a deep brown and shiny. The shell was almost akin to a beetle¡¯s shell that hid wings beneath it. And from where it was slurping on the egg, the Malfae could see two antennas twirling and twitching. Beetles didn''t have antennas.
The creature antennas stopped their movement and as the intruder turned around, the Malfae got a good look at it. The creature was the thing of nightmares. From a careless glance, it seemed like a cockroach but when analysed with a more careful eye, its horrifying pincer-like mouth was easily noticeable and so were its scythe-like front legs.
But those were not that had caught the Malfae¡¯s attention. The Malfae¡¯s focus was solely locked onto the goo dripping down the creature''s mouth and pincers.
"HHHHHIIIIIISSSS!" The cockroach akin creature threatened, trying to make the Malfae back off of. But that mattered not at all.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.
"SSSCCCREEECCCCHHH" The Malfae shrieked backed. The noise that erupted from its mouth was loud and high pitched. Yet it shook and modulated like a lion¡¯s roar. ¡®How dare this creature eye what is mine!!?¡¯
But then the intruder moved. Fast, way faster than anything the Malfae had ever dealt with. It moved towards the Malfae, with its scythe-like pincers raised and glowing and, in but a moment, the intruder was upon the 2-legged [Survivor].
¡®Skill!¡¯ The Malfae didn¡¯t even dodge as it was already too late. Instead, the creature reacted with a Skill of its own. ¡®Malfae Shield!¡¯
The ethereal wings had barely materialised before they were met with the glowing limbs and a crack resounded in the air as the winged shield shattered and the limbs stopped in their tracks. Though the glow signifying the Skill did not fade and remained as strong as ever.
¡®Malfae Shield! Malfae Shield! Malfae Shield!¡¯ The Malfae used this moment to retreat as it tried to activate more and more shields. However, only a single pair of wings manifested and the rest of the commands failed to activate. At that moment, the cockroach akin creature opened its shell and from it, a pair of translucent but powerful wings emerged. Flapping the wings, the bladed intruder rushed out of the tree hollow and spat something at the Malfae.
The [Survivor] dodged but the cockroach creature was already homing onto the Malfae. It seemed that after having the taste of its eggs, the cockroach creature wanted to have a taste of the Malfae too. As the cockroach honed in on the blue-skinned creature, all thoughts of revenge left the Malfae as it could think of nothing to attack its assailant with. None of its Skills would help as none of them were suitable for a confrontation. The Malfae was an ambusher after all.
The cockroach¡¯s glowing limbs once again shattered the shield that caused the intruder to momentarily pause and the Malfae used that moment of stillness to instantly turn and flee. The Malfae was no match for this creature that resembled a cockroach.
The cockroach pursued, however. First, its meal had been disturbed and then a puny thing had dared to challenge it!
The Malfae activated [Sense Essence] in bursts and placed the [Malfae Shield] on its back as it repeated its evasion strategy and fled towards the canopy rather than through the trees.
The cockroach immediately realised the intent of its prey and used its Skill [Poison Shot] to stop the fleeing creature. The shot collided with the [Malfae Shield] and the shield held under the assault. After all, the power of [Poison Shot] lay not in its projectile power but its poison. The Malfae continued to fly up and up and the poison, that had hit the [Malfae Shield], became one with the wind as the ex-moth continued to fly higher.
The cockroach creature, being heavier due to its defensive chitin shell, glared belligerently at the escaping prey. But that did not stop it from shooting out more and more [Poison Shots] at the Malfae. Not that they did any good. The cockroach creature finally stopped the chase when the Malfae almost reached the canopy and returned to what was left of its dinner.
The Malfae, in the meanwhile, landed on a nearby branch as it huffed. The hair on its back and head was stuck to its body. Its gigantic ears were flattened against its skull and its pupil-less eyes were wide. The creature then folded its wings and even overlapped them to make them seem even smaller.
¡®I¡I could have died.¡¯ The creature panted. ¡®Over eggs!¡¯
The creature¡¯s back hit the trunk of the tree and it slowly slid down. ¡®I¡I¡I-¡¯
The Malfae couldn¡¯t finish the thought.
Ever since she had been reborn in this world, the creature had stared death in the eyes numerous times. The creature had gazed and the death had gazed back. But the creature had always managed to dance out of death¡¯s clutches.
There had been even times when the creature had accepted the fact that it would die. There had been times that its body had been so mangled that even twitching had hurt. There had been times where it had to cover itself in its own faeces. And while, in this encounter, the creature hadn¡¯t even lost a single HP, yet this was the time that had shaken the Malfae the most.
In all those cases, the creature had always faced death with the belief that at least it had done everything in its power to save itself. In all those cases it had used its smarts and applied its brain. In all those times, even if it had died, the creature wouldn¡¯t regret that it could have done more.
But not this time.
This time, the creature had faced death with regret. The regret that this was completely avoidable. This was utterly unnecessary. The creature had not used its brain. The creature had not used its smarts. It had, instead, just relied on its instincts and given in.
Why had the creature done it?
It knew the answer, of course. The creature hadn¡¯t done it for anger. If that eggs had been lost, it could just create another batch. The creature hadn¡¯t done it out of stupidity. It had been a willing decision. The creature had done it for pride. How could anyone else take was its? Even if it was trash, it was its trash and no one else was entitled to it. That had been his thinking. That had been its arrogance. That had been its pride. And that had been its fall.
And this arrogance had just one source. Its new Vessel.
¡®A creature of pride and malice.¡¯ The blue creature remembered the words that had described this Vessel. But if it was pride, what was the creature proud of? What had it achieved that it the pride of its Vessel had affected it such?
The creature had gained a body that was similar to hers. To it, it had been an accomplishment and an achievement. It had begun to feel invulnerable. It had begun to feel invincible. Hence, it had become vulnerable to the Vessel¡¯s instincts, which used this sense of accomplishment and turned it into pride.
This encounter, however, had been the encounter with the reality that slapped the creature in the face and awakened the Malfae to its own conceit. After all, to her and those like her, Malfae was nothing more than a pest. ¡®I¡I ran away from a cockroach.¡¯
¡®A cockroach.¡¯
¡®A Vermin.¡¯
¡®A Pest.¡¯
¡®Filth.¡¯
¡®This is what I am.¡¯ The creature¡¯s hairless face smoothened and its thoughts became clear. ¡®What do I have to be proud of?¡¯
0.0
The creature checked the crevice with both [Sense] and [Sense Essence] and only after it had found the crevice to be safe did it enter the crevice.
Within the crevice, the creature cast a glance at the [Malfae Shield] and sighed. Even though the cockroach creature¡¯s spit shots hadn¡¯t broken the shield, under the repeated assaults, cracks had formed and the ethereal wings could only suffer through 8 more points of damage. Thus, the creature dismissed the shield with a single thought and summoned another one.
Ting.
[Skill [Malfae Shield Lv.1] had levelled up to [Malfae Shield Lv.2]. Damage absorption has been increased to 40 points. The cost has been increased to 20 MP.]
The creature read the notification and dismissed it without a second thought. It then moved the screen towards the entrance of the crevice and blocked it with the shield. The creature then walked closer and observed it for a moment. ¡®I¡¯ll have to bring in some leaves next time.¡¯
The ethereal nature of the shield stood out against the solid background of the stone. And while leaves too would stand out in a stone crevice, they wouldn¡¯t do so as much as the [Malfae¡¯s shield]. The creature laid down as it remembered the night''s event and grimaced. It stood up and flew out with the shield trailing behind it. ¡®I can¡¯t afford to procrastinate.¡¯
It did not take the creature much time to collect enough leaves for covering the entrance and returning. Once all the leaves had been collected, the creature placed the leaves between the entrance and the shield before pushing the shield into the walls of the entrance. Essentially sealing it up.
The creature then fell, exhausted. It had gone out to bring the leaves even when it hadn¡¯t wanted to, just because it couldn¡¯t be arrogant. After all, it was nothing but a pest. It wanted to sleep but it couldn¡¯t. There was something that it still had had to do. ¡®You cockroach! Fuck you.¡¯
¡®Do I just have a single batch of eggs that I will fight to the death over it?¡¯ The creature activated the Skill [Drone Eggs]. ¡®I can create as many as I want!¡¯
¡®You, filth! Fuck you.¡¯ It grunted as a familiar ache popped up in its abdomen. And due to familiarity, the creature calmed itself and merely waited patiently as its groin began leaking, wetting its thighs and legs. It watched as the egg passed through its abdomen and its groin until it finally fell on the floor with a wet splash.
One after other eggs popped out of the creature¡¯s crotch until all 15 had popped out once again. The creature panted as it let its body fall on the hard floor of the crevice. ¡®Have I even hunted since evolution?¡¯
It had not. And the only thing that the creature had eaten had been its own cocoon. Yet, the hunger was nowhere as strong as it had been when it had been a moth.
¡®New Vessel, new bodily needs.¡¯ The creature sighed and hesitated for a moment. ¡®Should I just sleep now¡¡¯
The Malfae decided against the idea. The night was still young and most of the creature¡¯s exhaustion was mental rather than physical. Thus, it decided to utilize the rest of the night to try and practice [Mana Manipulation]. However, as it continued to lay on the floor, it tossed and turned due to the uncomfortable hardness of the floor. ¡®Oh, fuck you floor!¡¯
The floor was stone. What else had the creature expected? Cotton candy? ¡®You know what, I am not going out again. No matter what!¡¯
The creature thus ignored the uncomfortable floor and activated [Mana Manipulation]. The night passed quietly and as usual, the creature achieved nothing and it remained as useless with the Skill as ever. Though when it did come out of the influence of the Skill, it back hurt and its body was sore. ¡®I am not going out again. No matter what!¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 28
It had been a difficult two years for Kiran. He had been 12 when he had arrived and now, he was 14. And in these 2 years, a lot had changed.
During these two years, he had made friends and he had lost friends. It had happened not just once but twice. The first friend he had lost had been due to the lack of persistence. While his second loss had been a result of their failures.
But changes were not just social and mental. They were also, physical. The boy¡¯s body had changed and he was no longer a kid that had seemed adorable in his white robes. Instead, he now looked a growing young man.
The boy had lost a lot of his baby fat and, as if defying the impossible, his face had become even more unremarkable. His frame had grown lanky, thin and tall, in a way that only teenagers were. However, despite the growth spurt, he had yet to grow even a single strand of facial hair.
Not that all of this had bothered him. He had always had bigger things to worry about. Kiran had, like the majority of the disciples, failed to make his hair fall off within the first year of his stay in the Ashram. Of their batch, only 4 had succeeded in their attempt.
His failure had been the source of righteous sorrow. This sorrow had plagued not only him but also every child that had failed. They had, after all, given up too much for this.
They had left behind their homes at a tender age of 12 and had suffered emotional turmoil. They had built their own homes from mud and clay as they had suffered physical pain. They had spent an entire year cooped up within their mud shacks, either studying or meditating when their bodies and hearts had wanted to do anything but that.
Yet they had persisted.
And they had failed.
The failure had bothered many and had consumed their fighting spirits. They had given up and they had gone back to their homes with their head bowed low in shame and failure.
Kiran had not.
Instead, he had sought his teacher outside of the class for the first time and had asked for help. Kiran had been willing to beg for mercy and forgiveness for his failure. He was been willing to beg for just a little guidance.
But there had been no need. The saffron-clad gaunt man had taken one look and agreed to help the boy. Though, the help had not been what the kid had been imagining.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
Instead of answering the boy, the skinny man had given a puzzle and the left the boy to his fate. It was only after that the boy had understood the meaning behind the puzzle that the man had guided the boy down his path.
The year following the decision to stay had been a difficult one for reasons more than one. He had seen the next batch of hopefuls arrive, essentially his juniors, and had seen them go through all the things that he had gone through.
Though, his interaction with them could only be classified as little to none. Just like there had been little interaction between his batch and the seniors that had stayed behind. For those that stayed behind, they usually had a strong resolve to earn their Class and had little time for frivolousness.
The other thing that had made his life difficult had been his shack. The shack had always been on the smaller side and as he had grown over the 2 years, the lack of space had only become more apparent.
Often the thought of tearing the mud house down, to rebuild it, had bubbled within his mind. However, he had lacked the time it would have taken to do so. He had not wanted to waste even a single moment.
The last thing that had made his life difficult had been the lack of any sort of friendship. More than once, he had thought about seeking Surabhi out but, in the end, he never had. The fact that Surabhi had yet to seek him even once, stood in stark contrast to his own emotions.
The loneliness had haunted him but every time it did, Kiran turned back to his studies with impassioned fervour. The long time and the difficult road thus made him appreciate his achievement even more so.
When the first patch of hair had fallen off into his hand, as he had been washing it, he had bawled. He had cried his eyes out. He had sat in the puddle of water with his hair falling in his hands as his eyes and nose had leaked tears and snot.
It had not been a pretty sight. Not that Kiran was pretty to look at in any sense. He was decidedly not.
After he had gotten the 2 years of frustration out of his system, only joy had been left behind. And with each passing day, this joy had only increased as more and more of his hair had fallen off until he had become completely bald.
It was around this time that others had shown progress too. Although of those that had stayed behind, he had neither been the first to achieve his goal nor had he been the last.
Amongst those that stayed behind, 3 had managed to shed their hair and Kiran had been the second one to do so. Yet, the name of his former friend had been absent from the list. Surabhi had yet to shed her hair.
But Kiran had faith in the girl. Despite not being on talking terms with the girl anymore, the boy did not shy away from acknowledging that the girl was smarter than he was and had worked just as hard.
It was around this time that he came to know that he would be Awakened soon and his happiness had known no bounds. This joy had been not only from being Awakened but also from the knowledge that his parents must have been invited. For only one¡¯s parents could Awaken a person.
As joy had bubbled within his mind, he hoped that his former friend would manage to shed her hair by the time Awakening ceremony began. He hoped he would be able to reconnect with this former friend of his.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 5]
A tiny creature that resembled the mortal-form hovered above the eggs that it had just laid. Its transparent butterfly wings flapped softly, allowing it to hover as it examined its most recent clutch of eggs. Meanwhile, the creature¡¯s azure skin seemed to almost glow in the light of the azure moon.
Usually, the creature would be mesmerised by the glow and its own beauty, however currently its instincts demanded it to focus only on the task before it. As a result, its milky eyes continued to observe one egg after the other, until they landed on a specific spherical egg.
The creature that was as tall as a mortal¡¯s finger slowly landed next to an egg that seemed no different from the rest. Its antennas twitched and its brows furrowed as an urge to lick the egg appeared in its mind. The creature did not hesitate. It opened its burgundy lips to reveal two rows of sharp teeth. As the bright red tongue licked the egg clean, the creature¡¯s brows eased and its smiled. It had found what it had been looking for.
It picked the egg with its clawed fingers and flew off, leaving the rest of the eggs to their fate.
0.0
A caterpillar broke through its egg and breathed in for the first time. However, before it could comprehend or anything anymore, its mind was consumed by the fire within its body and it began to devour the very egg it had popped out of. Meanwhile, the pink Fairy sitting next to the new-born caterpillar continued to admire the glow of its skin in the azure moonlight.
It was not long after that the caterpillar devoured its egg and heard a sharp sound followed by the manifestation of a blue thing that imparted knowledge within its mind.
Ting.
[You have consumed The Gift.]
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! Level up bonus of +1 HP granted.]
But the creature cared not the information as the fire in its belly continued to rage and demanded sacrifice. The caterpillar obeyed.
With all its thoughts focused on just food, the caterpillar tried to crawl, as its instincts guided it to do. However, it failed. In place of stubs that allowed other caterpillars movement, the newborn had nothing. It was born legless and malformed. It even possessed the title [Deformed] to prove it.
With such a deformity, if it had been an animal or even an immortal that had been abandoned by its sire, the vermin would not survive. However, the case being what it was, the [Deformed] would survive not despite its defect but because of it. It had been chosen by its sire because the Fairy had found its egg the most defective.
As the green caterpillar flailed, its movement finally caught the attention of the Fairy whose milky eyes narrowed at the caterpillar. It had been busy enjoying itself. Nevertheless, the Fairy lifted the struggling caterpillar with ease and flapped its wings to fly away.
0.0
The legless caterpillar was busy devouring the leaf it had been placed on when the leaf shook as something struck it. Startled, the [Deformed] paused its eating to look up and its black eyes found another caterpillar much like itself. However, this new caterpillar possessed all its stubs, quite different from its own condition.
This was not all though and the legless caterpillar trembled in panic as it noticed the bruised and half-dead state of its brethren before its beady eyes fell on the Fairy hovering in the air, pointing at the beaten-up pest. The [Deformed]¡¯s gaze shifted from the Fairy to the caterpillar and back to its sire as it tried and failed to comprehend its vain creature¡¯s actions.
The Fairy landed with a huff before it picked the legless caterpillar and placed it next to the nearly dead one. The winged pest then forced the [Deformed]¡¯s mouth open and placed it on the flesh of the caterpillar that still hung onto the thread of life.
Understanding finally dawned within the beady eyes of the [Deformed] and it began devouring the other caterpillar alive. The bruised caterpillar thrashed and flailed of course but the Fairy held it tight within its clawed fingers and allowed the legless one to devour its brethren.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
It was not long before the normal caterpillar died and the [Deformed] heard the sharp sound once again. And while it did not understand the blue thing that materialised within its vision, it understood that it had become more powerful.
0.0
The legless caterpillar heard the now familiar sharp sound before the blue thing manifested in its vision.
Ting.
[You have reached Level 100. Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes] [No]
Much like its sire, the [Deformed] understood not the squiggles yet comprehended their meaning all the same. Its body twitched in anticipation as it chose to evolve right then and there, under the shade of the leaves where it had spent most of its little life.
Ting.
[Chose your form.]
[Butterfly: Your [Species] related evolution.]
The creature did not hesitate as it closed its eyes and decided to evolve. No sooner had the creature finalised its decision, than an overbearing urge to spit hit the [deformed]. Its body straightened on its own before its mouth spat out something that began solidifying as soon as it left its mouth. The creature watched with fascination as its body spun a cocoon around itself, transforming it into a pupa.
0.0
The cocoon cracked open and a shrivelled butterfly emerged from within. It twitched as the newfound cold hit its sensed and it shivered. As it shook its head, its eyes found its azure sire, the Fairy, hovering in the air. The vain creature¡¯s milky eyes observed the newborn butterfly for a moment before it sneered to reveal its sharp teeth.
No longer legless and deformed, the butterfly stumbled back, wary of the creature that threatened it. It tried to move its legs and felt blood pump through its nearly transparent wings as they expanded to reveal their full span. Meanwhile, its eyes did not leave the creature hovering in the air above it.
The Fairy sneered once again but flew away, abandoning the butterfly to its fate.
The butterfly, on the other hand, remained tense and it felt the blood rushing through its thin wings. However, its reverie was soon broken by a very familiar sharp sound.
Ting.
[Evolution complete. You have evolved into a Clear Winged Butterfly.]
Ting.
[Evolution bonus of 15 HP has been added to your total Health Points. You have been completely healed.]
Ting.
[Level up Bonus has been increased from +1 HP to +2 HP per Level Up.]
Ting.
[Your HP regeneration rate has been increased to [10 + Level/10] HP per day. Rounded down.]
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Level Limit on Skills has been raised to Level 10. Evolve further to raise the Skill Level Limit again.]
Ting.
[Vessel only Title [Hungry] lost.]
Ting.
[Vessel only Title [Deformed] lost.]
Ting.
[Evolution was achieved despite the presence of the Title [Deformed]. [Species: Tree Serpent] granted. New evolution path has been made available. Reach Level 100 to evolve.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 29
¡®Ow.¡¯ The next night did not awaken the creature with a gentle hand, instead, it woke up to an aching body and stiff back. It¡¯s unnecessary stubbornness, the previous night, had been a folly that it was going to pay for tonight. ¡®Ow. Ow.¡¯
The Malfae stretched, or rather tried to and failed. ¡®Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow.¡¯
Crack, pop, crack, pop.
When the creature was finally able to stretch enough, its joints popped and a sigh of relief escaped its pale blue lips. Only when all its joints had popped and its body ache subsided did the creature even think about going out.
The creature¡¯s venture into the outside world was witnessed by the azure moon as it danced across the sky. Its pale light illuminated the world in a soft ethereal glow. The Malfae stood at the edge of the crevice as it observed the otherworldly scene before it flew off.
The creature had planned to hunt tonight. But before that, it had something even more important to do. It didn¡¯t want to postpone it in the case suffered another bout of laziness fuelled stubbornness. Thus, it had decided to collect soft grasses for a bed before anything else.
0.0
The creature reached the spider hunting ground and slowed down. Its wings still made a lot of noise as it flew, thus it flew low and slow to decrease the noise. It reached the area where it had previously hunted the little black spiders regularly but it soon paused as it looked in the direction of the monstrous spider which had once chased it away. ¡®Should I¡?¡¯
Smack!
¡®What the fuck is wrong with me?¡¯ The creature caressed its increasingly purple cheek. ¡®Why would I even think that?¡¯
Smack!
¡®Don¡¯t come up with something so stupid next time.¡¯ The creature softly patted its other increasingly purple cheek. ¡®Remember that brain. There is more where that came from.¡¯
Sometimes, negative reinforcement was just the right thing. The creature shook its head and, with two purple cheeks, flew towards the nest of the little venomous spiders. It wanted to test itself now that it had evolved. Though, considering that the only thing to change had been the gain of active defence, the creature did not expect much. After all, the creature still lacked a means to actively hurt someone rather than just passively deal damage through its venom.
The Malfae chose the prey and silently landed on the nearest branch before it started going through its Skill list once again. It sighed and dismissed the screen before observing its chosen prey. It was another spider, just like all the rest in the area.
The creature grimaced but brought forth the [Malfae Shield], from where it had been protecting its back. The shield then opened and spread out under the will of the Malfae and then it continued spreading until gaps appeared in between the individual wings.
The Malfae nodded to itself and guided the spread-out its shield towards the thread from which the spider had been handing. The said spider noticed the approaching pair of wings of course. After all, when spread out, the wings did appear quite big.
The spider immediately abandoned the thread as it let go. And while it fell, another thread shot out of the spider, arresting its fall. The spider thus fell onto the ground somewhat gently. It turned back to look at the massive pair of wings that were the shield and fled.
¡®Tch.¡¯ The Malfae watched it all happen and the decisiveness and the speed of the spider left the [Reincarnated] with little time to react. The Malfae had never been able to hunt those spiders that had been this decisive. ¡®That was a bust.¡¯
Still, it decided to complete its experiment and guided the gap in the shield, around the thread and then willed the shield to close. The individual wings began to move and overlapped with each other as they closed. This action caused the thread to be stuck in between the wings and, as the wings overlapped, the process similar to the function of a pair of scissors occurred. The spider thread, thus, was cut in two.
The creature smiled as this was what it had been hoping for. But then it frowned as the thread, instead of falling, got stuck to the shields instead. The creature scowled. ¡®Tch. What a waste.¡¯
With its first experiment a failure, the Malfae found another spider to conduct its second experiment. And instead of stalking up to its prey, the creature changed its strategy. For as it neared the spider, the Malfae landed on a branch a bit far away.
From its location, the Malfae moved the shield to the ground beneath the spider. The evolved moth then puffed up itself and charged at the spider. The spider noticed the approaching thread and immediately let go of the thread, entering a free fall.
When the spider finally landed on the ground, after having arrested its speed, the shield that had been waiting nearby came crashing down on the small 6 legged creature.
The spider died on the spot.
Though the moth could only grimace when it saw the remains of its prey. The blood, the flesh, the guts and the chitin had come together to form a gross mess that even the immortal sensibility of the creature could not digest. The [Survivor] sighed as it dismissed the [Malfae Shield] and the spider thread that had been stuck to it, fell off. The creature then summoned another shield and flew off in the search of its third prey.
When the Malfae found the third prey, it followed through its third strategy but this time, instead of slamming the shield on the spider, it decided to use the shield to chop the spider.
After the two failed tries, the third one succeeded as the spider landed near the shield. The spread-out wings of the shield surrounded the spider in between their gaps and then slammed shut. The six-legged creature barely had time to react before it had been bisected in two.
¡®At least it takes less time than earlier.¡¯ The Malfae consoled itself as it dug into the flesh. This was its first real meal after the evolution and it had taken the creature 3 tries to hunt a spider. After the meal was done, the creature waited for the poison to arrive.
And it waited.
And it waited.
The poison did not affect.
¡®Eh?¡¯ The creature frowned and checked its Skill list but it''s [Poison Resistance] hadn¡¯t increased. ¡®Then why¡?¡¯
Cautiously, the creature ate a few mouthfuls of the venomous meat and after a bit of time, it ate a few more mouthfuls. The poison came into effect then and the pain erupted within the creature¡¯s body.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
In truth, it wasn¡¯t that the creature had become more resistant to the venom but that the size of the creature had changed by a triple. As such, the same amount of venom that had once affected the moth did not have much effect on the Malfae. Once the poison wore off, the creature grimaced and decided to hunt the frogs to increase its Level. Those creatures had not only given it an incredible amount of Levels, but the Malfae also had a tried and tested method to hunt them.
¡®To not make use of them would be true idiocy.¡¯ Though to the utter disappointment of the evolved moth, it could not find even a single frog anywhere. It was as if they had vanished in thin air. ¡®Is it like snails all over again...?¡¯
In truth, it was. The frogs most came out around the monsoon and stayed dormant for the rest of the year. Additionally, winter had just passed and spring had barely arrived; the Malfae was not going to find any frogs for a long time.
The Malfae searched for the rest of the night and finally returned when the sun started to illuminate the sky. Its fruitless search across the forest had left the creature a bit tired and a bit frustrated. Even though it had successfully hunted, the creature felt like it hadn¡¯t accomplished much.
Thus, more than a little irritated, the creature closed the entrance with the employment of the [Malfae Shield] and some leaves, before falling on its newly gathered bed of grass. Sleep did not grace the creature for a long time.
0.0
The next night proved itself to be a bit difficult for the creature. It hadn¡¯t slept properly, as a result, it woke up cranky and irritated. Its HP had also not replenished yet. This did not help the creature¡¯s mood any.
Thus, when it went directly to the spider hunting ground, it was more than a little irritated and frustrated. Therefore, when it fought the arachnids, the creature simply crushed the spiders to death with its winged shield. It did not eat them. In fact, once they died the Malfae did not even give them a second look.
It had just wanted to crush them utterly and brutally for no other reason than to just let out its own frustration. And thus, for the first time, the Malfae embodied the second true nature of its Vessel. Malfae, a creature of malice.
The creature huffed and panted as it stood by the support of the tree¡¯s bark. It had flown relentlessly and left a trail of dead spiders in its passing. And now, it felt much better. Though the creature felt a little guilty for being wasteful, the emotion was not particularly strong. ¡®As long as it is worth it, it¡¯s not a waste.¡¯
0.0
As the creature finished dealing with the last pangs of pain from the spider¡¯s venom, a thought popped up in its head and the creature took to the skies as it flew in the direction that had always soothed it and landed just outside the clearing, that was its destination, and frowned.
Its antennas that had always picked up the alluring scent, without even the use of [Scent], were not picking up anything. It activated the Skill and immediately noticed not only the lack of the alluring scent but also the lack of the predator¡¯s scent. The creature instantly became alert and folded its wings until they overlapped and seemed smaller than they were. It retreated and hid behind the cover of leaves before cautiously, activating [Sense Essence].
The clearing was empty. There was nothing out of ordinary, where there should have been. In the middle of the clearing, where there had been a plant once, nothing stood there anymore. Within the clearing, where there had been a creature guarding the plant, there too, was nothing anymore. Both the flower and the wooden mantis had gone missing.
The Malfae remained hidden as it observed. The creature kept its guard up as it waited.
Though, after a few minutes of observation, the creature killed the Skill [Sense Essence]. Since the Skill had Levelled up, it had begun to consume 10 mana per minute, instead of its previous 5. This had essentially reduced the active time of the Skill, by half. Thus, the creature did not activate the Skill regularly as before but used it sparingly.
Thus, the creature continued to wait however, even after waiting for the rest of the night, the wooden mantis did not show up even once. This gave the [Survivor] a pause as its mind supplied 2 options for this occurrence. The first option being that something had made the mantis its dinner and the flower had been destroyed in the ensuing fight. If this were true then the creature would remain as far as from this clearing as it could.
Anything that could hunt the mantis was not something that the Malfae wanted to deal with. And then there was the second option that it was the mantis that had made use of the flower instead and had left the area once its goal had been achieved. ¡®An immortal guarding a flower is strange in itself¡¡¯
The creature did not know which one, of these two happenstances, was the true reason. Or if the reason was something completely different. But until it knew more about what had happened, the creature decided not to enter the clearing. By the time the creature returned to the crevice, the light of dawn had started to rip apart the darkness of the night and the mantis had not yet returned. The Malfae chose not to enter the clearing all the same and decided to watch more.
As it reached outside the crevice, the creature sensed for any faint scents through its antenna and when it found none, it activated the Skill, [Sense].
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.3] has reached [Sense Lv.4]. The active time of the Skill has been increased to 4 minutes.]
The creature was a bit startled at the sudden Skill Level up and that too, one so soon after the last night. But it was of no consequence and the creature dismissed the notification. Its eyes then fell on the eggs laying in the corner and the creature thought for a moment. Its eyes narrowed as it nodded.
The creature activated the Skill, [Drone Egg] and soon, one after another batch of eggs popped out of its groin. ¡®Fuck you cockroach. You ate one batch but so what? I can create many more!¡¯
Though as soon as the final egg fell out with a splash, the creature activated the Skill, [Sense Essence]. It was only after the creature had ascertained the Essences of the all eggs, that it let out a sigh of relief and went to bed.
0.0
The creature spent the following week mostly waiting outside the clearing. It was waiting for something to change, anything. Though contrary to its expectations, nothing changed during the week and the clearing remained as lifeless as always. Thus, after a week of observation, the creature finally decided to go in and investigate.
The creature regularly activated and deactivated [Sense Essence] as it silently stepped inside the clearing. It had already decided against flying inside as that would create a buzzing sound, no matter how slow the creature flew. Step by step, the creature moved forward, with all its senses at high alert. As a result of its paranoia, it paused at every passing wind and every rustle of the grass. Hence, it took the creature quite some time to reach the location.
The creature frowned. It had not found any remains or stumps of the plant. And neither had it found any remains of the flower that had the colour akin to the white moon. It thought for a moment before it began digging up the spot and even then, the creature found nothing. It was as if the plant had never existed, to begin with.
The creature searched the entire clearing for the rest of the night. What it was searching for, even the creature itself did not know. When the night finally came to end, the creature had to face the truth that the plant and the flower no longer existed. And the creature would not find it no matter how much it searched.
The creature returned home and activated the Skill [Sense Essence] to check the crevice for a foreign presence before entering. Though, as the Skill¡¯s 1 minute of activation time had yet to end, and the creature turned the Skill onto the eggs and noticed something strange.
The shapeless haze that had seemed to represent the had begun to change. It seemed to the creature that the haze had begun to condense but, into what form, the creature could not tell yet.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 30
Kiran fidgeted as he waited along with five other people. Of the five other people, he recognised two boys who had been in the same batch as him. ¡®These three must be from the new batch then.¡¯
His eyes fell on the two girls and he clucked his tongue. Both of them were from the new batch and were not the one that he wanted to see. ¡®Did she really fail?¡¯
Kiran did not get to ponder much on the question as soon after, his teacher entered the waiting area and all his worries about his former friend were forgotten. The grey-haired man, who had guided them for the past year, now guided them to another part of the ashram.
The building that they were brought to was, surprisingly, made of wood rather than mud and seemed more like a collection of wooden cabins rather than a proper building.
¡°This is where your family is waiting for all of you. Each door mentions the name of the student whose family will be waiting inside.¡± The saffron-clad man said with a smile. ¡°Go. They are waiting.¡±
The children ran. They needed no more encouragement and all of them ran ahead, searching for their own names. A few doors opened and cries of ¡®mother!¡¯ and ¡®father!¡¯ echoed followed by either laughter or crying. And sometimes even both.
It wasn¡¯t until Kiran checked his third room that he found his name and he stopped short. His heart raced, his blood pumped, his bald head felt hot and his palms became sweaty.
The boy breathed deeply once. He then pushed the door open and his gaze fell on a middle-aged couple.
The man was dark-skinned, much the same as Kiran. His shoulders were broad and his face aged. The man lacked a beard but sported an impressive salt and pepper moustache that curled upwards.
His head was wrapped up in a bright red turban while he wore a long white tunic that came to his knees. A red scarf was tied around his waist and his legs were wrapped in a sheet of cloth, in such a way they fluffed out towards the end.
The man had a spear in his hand that he used as a cane to stand.
Besides him stood a woman, who could only be called of common appearance. Although her age had not helped her any, she possessed a grace that defied class and beauty.
She wore a long red skirt and a golden blouse. A red sheet of cloth covered her skirt and then went over and across her shoulder to cover her head. But the vibrant colour was not the most dazzling part of her outfit.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
It was the amount of gold jewellery that she was decked in. Each of her fingers was laden with rings while her ears drooped from the weight of the gold earrings. The necklaces on her neck were not one but many and even her hair had pieces of gold sticking in.
The contrast between their appearance could not have been more apparent. But the teen cared not for it. At that moment the teen, who had achieved much and had shed his hair, turned back to the child that had left his home. His lips quivered, his eyes watered and his throat clogged up.
¡°Mother! Father!¡± The child ran up to them and hurriedly touched both their feet. He then hugged them and all the emotions that he had been keeping bottled up inside him, burst out as he cried.
The boy was, after all, barely 14-years old.
0.0
The reunion with his parents had been an emotional mess for the young teen. He had wept in his mother''s arms and hugged his father as he had sobbed and laughed. His parents had been emotional at first but gradually they had laughed as they had consoled him.
He had told them everything. He had told them about his hut. He had told them about his classes. He had told them about his teacher and he had told them about his failures.
By the time he had been done with his tale, the time for lunch had come and gone by. Thus, the teen decided to take his parents to his hut and have them taste his cooking.
As the three neared the lake, the teen excitedly showcased the beauty of the place. He told them about the time when he had thrown the bucket into the water and he showed them from where he had dug it out.
The teen kept on chatting and the parents smiled but their eyes kept on getting warier in concern. Until, finally, the three pulled up to a patched-up structure of clay.
¡°This is my home!¡± The teen ran up the mud structure as he smiled brightly. ¡°I built it two years ago! It almost took the entire month to build. I was originally going to go for a bigger one. But that was too much effort! So, decided to make it a bit smaller. But it was still too big! So, I had to make it even smaller! But it turned out good.¡±
He turned to his parents with an almost blinding smile. ¡°What do you think? Isn¡¯t it great?!¡±
The middle-aged couple looked at the small hut. Though, calling it a small hut was being generous, for it was more of a tiny shack.
The mud structure barely came up to the woman¡¯s shoulder and had just enough space for 3 to 4 people to sit inside. If they tried to lie though, at least one person would have to leave the shack.
The walls of the structure were lumpy and uneven as mud and clay had clumped over and over again without any sense of design. The roof was just a single layer of hay that was so porous that even sunlight peeked through.
The sight of the little shack caused both of the parents to go silent with their eyes wide. The woman squeezed the man¡¯s hand with all her might and clutched at her own heart. The man¡¯s heart ached and his eyes threatened to water.
¡°It is beautiful.¡± He managed to whisper out as his wife squeezed his hand again. The man lightly squeezed back and nudged her hand.
¡°It¡¯s truly wonderful, my son.¡± The woman hugged her child and hid his face into her bosom as she held back tears. ¡°It truly is.¡±
The man¡¯s heart hurt yet every time he patted his son¡¯s bald head, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a surge of pride at his son¡¯s achievement.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 6]
The huge eyes of the similarly massive Woodborn Mantis searched its surroundings. However, all too soon its vigilant gaze hastily returned to the small white fruit hanging from the plant that it had been guarding for all too long.
Its massive frame twitched while its finger long mandibles chittered as its eyes reluctantly left the plump fruit to search its surrounding once again.
The Woodborn Mantis that was half the length of the mortal¡¯s forearm twitched nervously as it guarded the cherry shaped fruit which was smaller than even a mortal¡¯s fingernail. Yet, the fruit emanated an enticing fragrance that those ensnared by it forgot everything else.
The insectoid immortal¡¯s large mandibles chittered in anticipation and hunger, but it did not touch the fruit. Instead, it waited as it guarded the plant and the fruit. It was almost as if the Mantis was waiting for the fruit to ripen. But how could that be? The insectoid immortal did not possess the patience and the mental capacity to come to such a decision. It was still mostly a creature of instincts despite its Tier 3 existence.
This seemingly unnatural decision of the Woodborn Mantis was, of course, not the insect''s own. Instead, it was the effect of the little white fruit hanging from the plant. Just as its scent enticed the Mantis and any other creature that came across it, the fragrance also instilled in them patience while overpowering their instincts.
The fruit was not as simple as it seemed.
The rustle of leaves caught the attention of the wood-skinned insect and its huge head snapped towards the sound. The creature¡¯s pupils narrowed as its eyes landed on the outpour of ants from the only anthill within the clearing. It bristled in anger and it spread out its massive but translucent wings.
However, its posturing had little effect on the ants that just kept pouring out of the anthill. The tiny insects formed an orderly line as they marched towards the fruit and its guardian. The huge insect¡¯s scythe-like limbs twitched as it took to air before rushing towards the marching insects.
As it arrived above the ants, the brown Mantis activated its Skill [Harden] which further reinforced its already sturdy [Tough Chitin].
Harden
Tier 1 effect: Temporarily increases the hardness of the skin or chitin by a factor of 10 times the [Skill Level]
Tough Chitin
Tier 1 effect: Permanently increases the toughness of the chitin by a factor of the [Skill Level].
After all, this was not its first battle against the ant horde. It would not be the creature''s last either. As a result, the massive insect knew their modus operandi and they knew its strategy. However, the Woodborn Mantis was a Tier 3 immortal, virtually a supreme existence in this mana starved zone. It may not be sapient or very intelligent, but its Tier 3 status granted it much more wisdom than that the Tier 1 ant Drones and their Tier 2 immortal monarch.
Thus, as the ants shot their mandibles at the flying mantis, it ignored the feeble attacks and arrived before the few Tier 2 guardian ant Drones. It cut them down with its scythe-like limbs as it activated the Skill [Sharp Blades].
Sharp Blades
Tier 1 effect: Temporarily increases the sharpness of the blades by a factor of 10 times the [Skill Level]
The Tier 2 Drones fell apart under its assault and the mantis moved onto its next target. It moved from one target to the next as the split apart the ants one by one. The huge mantis did not require much time to finish the Tier 2 Drones and if Tier 2 Drones couldn¡¯t last against it, how could Tier 1 drones? Thus, they too fell in droves and where there had been a horde of ant drones, now were nothing but corpses.
The mantis¡¯ crazed eyes searched for any sign of movement before they landed on the white fruit that had ripened and fallen. The creature¡¯s entire body trembled in anticipation and it raced towards the fallen fruit. The urge to consume the fruit was so strong within the creature that it forgot it could fly. All its thoughts had been consumed by only one desire and it was to consume the fruit.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
The creature arrived before the fruit and started to devour the white berry in large bites that barely fit inside its insectoid mouth. Yet, the insect immortal cared not as it satisfied the sudden bout of the all-consuming gluttony.
However, the moment the creature swallowed the last bite, its eyes seem to clear. But it couldn¡¯t ponder on its state for long as an extremely familiar chime broke its reverie.
Ting.
[New [Species] granted. New evolution path has been granted. Evolution possible.]
Ting.
[Maximum Level of the current Vessel detected. Evolution is possible. Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes] [No]
The mantis did not understand what the squiggles on the strange blue thing meant. However, its mind comprehended the information all the same; much like the creature had done for the entirety of its life. As it processed the information, the massive insect hissed and spread open is massive and translucent wings, as if it were celebrating.
The creature had, after all, a reason to celebrate. It had reached Level 100 long ago but hadn¡¯t been able to evolve as its evolution path had ended, leaving it a Tier 3 immortal for the rest of its existence. As a result, the creature had been facing death as its lifespan had decreased with each passing day. But now that it had gained a new [Species], the creature could evolve once again.
Gaining new [Species] was extremely rare for immortals in the wild. As to gain a new [Species], an immortal needed to add the Law Scars related to that species to its own Bridge. However, dealing with Law Scars was not as simple as consuming the remnants.
If that had been the case, then the life of an immortal would have been pathetically easy. Unfortunately for the immortals, the life of an immortal was meant to be anything but that. As a result, adding Law Scars was almost an impossible task for most immortals.
The difficulty was further compounded by the fact that Law Scars etched themselves on the Bridge that connected the Vessel and the soul. Hence the Scars were ethereal existences and not physical ones. They could not be dealt with normally and dealing with them always required special Skills. Whether the Law Scars were on the Bridge or within the Remnants, they couldn¡¯t be handled physically.
While immortals did have access to these Skills, they were only available at high Tiers. These Skills also needed high-Level Limits to be properly made use of. Thus, immortals whose [Species] only allowed them to evolve a few times never received such Skills. As a result, they failed to change their species and as their Vessel aged, they became food and experience for other creatures.
Such was the reality of an immortal¡¯s life.
It is for this reason that those mortals that follow the path of Monster Tamer considered the Evolution Elixir as an absolute necessity when dealing with wild monsters. As by merely dangling the elixir before dying monsters, they could bend the immortal to their mortal wills.
However, the Mantis neither knew nor cared for all of this as it finally calmed down and stopped hissing. With another look at the weird squiggles, it decided not to evolve and the blue thing before its eyes vanished.
The creature¡¯s eyes scanned the clearing before it decided to leave the clearing for good. After all, as a creature that had survived to reach Tier 3, its survival instincts were not ordinary. And with the presence of the anthill, the creature deemed the clearing unsafe to evolve.
0.0
The Woodborn Mantis settled within the burrow at last. It had taken the insectoid immortal quite a few weeks to find a hiding spot where it felt safe enough to evolve.
Its wings twitched in anticipation and its mandibles chittered as it desired to evolve.
Ting.
[You have reached Level 100. Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes] [No]
The creature comprehended the meaning without understanding the words and once again desired to evolve.
Ting.
[Chose your form.]
[White Moonlit Spider.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 31
The creature woke up itchy but refreshed; a side effect of [Moulting] that, unfortunately, it could do nothing about. The was not a pleasant way to wake up. The creature shrugged off the shed skin and finished its morning ablutions. The [Survivor] gave its shed skin a thoughtful look before it flew off with the exuviate. Now that the creature had a permanent home of some sort, it did not want to leave the exuviate just lying around.
Though, the creature couldn¡¯t just throw it out as the exuviate was its own shed skin and carried the Malfae¡¯s scent. The [Reincarnated] surmised that if it had a scent-based tracking Skills, then so would the other creatures. And the Malfae did not want to lead those other creatures to its den.
Thus, the creature carried the exuviate to the small pond where it had hunted frogs and dropped the shed skin in the water. The creature¡¯s reasoning, for disposing of the shed skin so, was quite simple. It expected the water to dissolve any scent that had remained on the shed skin and even if the water didn¡¯t do so, it wasn¡¯t like the creatures in water could come out of it to track down the Malfae.
With the exuviate taken care of, the creature flew towards the spider hunting ground for a daily dose of venom. Though, it was not until its fifth try that the creature was able to hunt and eat the spider. And once the Malfae had suffered through the venom-induced pain and HP loss, the creature decided to look for other prey to hunt and to Level up. After all, it had yet to Level up even once, outside of the Level granted by the cocoon.
The creature flew around but found it hard to decide on a suitable prey. Any creature that the [Reincarnated] had found to be good prey, was all but useless in terms of granting Levels. While those that could grant it Levels, where those that the creature would rather avoid.
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.6] has levelled up [Flight Lv.7]. Your speed and manoeuvrability have been increased.]
The creature sighed as it landed in the clearing where the flower and the mantis had been. Despite all its efforts, the creature had not been able to find out anything about the sudden disappearance of the two. The creature thought back to the flower and sighed again. That flower had the essence much akin to the white moon. And despite how illiterate in this world the creature was, she had been a somewhat accomplished mage.
And from her memories, the creature knew that something that had Essence similar to the heavenly bodies was not just another flower or plant. Thus, the creature felt like it had missed out on a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Which, in truth, it had. Not that the creature will ever come to know just what it had missed out on. The Malfae shook itself to break out of the mindset and its eyes fell on the ant colony that it had noticed long ago. The creatures were red and huge, at least by the standards of her world, with each ant as big as half a mortal¡¯s finger. They were fast and always seem to move in a line. They seemed to have a purpose and always moved out with a destination in mind, never straying from their destined paths; almost like golems.
Though some ants were neither with any group nor were they following any line. From what the creature had observed of them, they were the ants whose purpose was to look for food. These ants, that strayed, were always looking for more food. And when they would finally find their treasure, they would double back and return with lines after lines of their fellow ant brethren to loot the newfound source of food.
These treasure hunters often strayed a little too far, in their single-minded search. They forgot themselves and their surroundings, with only their goal in their minds. More food. The Malfae observed these easily strayed treasure hunters.
As these treasure hunters were often lost, the Malfae deemed them easy prey. Though, it hadn¡¯t hunted them yet as the winged creature didn¡¯t believe that killing them would be worth the time and the effort. Most of these ants were one evolution below the Malfae anyway and would not grant it any Levels.
It sighed. ¡®Gone are the days when I could kill prey and receive half a dozen level ups.¡¯
Shaking its head to clear it of the melancholy, the creature frowned. The creature thought for a moment and decided to hunt a treasure hunter but without crushing it into a paste. ''Ants have an extremely hard exoskeleton, so traps and venom would not hurt them much. Which means I would have to use [Malfae Shield] to crush it but what good would that be?¡¯
It took off and moved the [Malfae Shield] from behind its back to hover right above the lost ant. The [Survivor] then spread the individual wings of shield apart until gaps appeared and brought it down, fast, on the ant. By the time the ant sensed that something was wrong and looked up, the wings of the shield were already closing around its neck.
The wings hit the tough exoskeleton and almost made it through, before shattering. The Shield could only absorb 40 points of damage, after all, thus the Malfae was not that surprised when the wings fell apart.
''[Malfae shield].'' Another shield manifested before descending on the ant to try and finish chopping off the ant''s head. Surprisingly, this time, the blade succeeded in decapitating the ant before shattering like thin glass.
The creature grinned and slowly flew down to the still twitching body. This hunt had been easier than even hunting spiders. However, hunting the two was fundamentally different because spiders remained hung in their nets, which provided them with great mobility, and they always maintained their vigilance. While this ant, on the other hand, had not only been obsessed with its desire to search food, it also walked on the ground. Its presence on the ground limited its mobility to a great extent. The two were not comparable at all!
The [Reincarnated] landed next to the ant corpse and observed the body for a few moments more before it flew off, leaving the ant to rot and waste. ¡®It¡¯s useless though. That ant had little mean and no venom. And it didn¡¯t even give me any Levels.¡¯
Arriving at the crevice, the creature checked its new home with both [Sense] and [Sense Essence] and entered cautiously. It found nothing out of the ordinary and checked the eggs, finding a little change in the eggs, but not something worth noting about.
The creature settled down and closed its eyes. It panned to spend the rest of the night practising [Mana Manipulation] but not in the same way that it had been doing till now. This time, the creature did not plan on activating the Skill that it had inherited. Rather, it wanted to reach the state of observable mana on its own, step by step. Thus, the creature focused on its breathing.
With its eyes closed, the creature took a deep breath in, before slowly letting it out. Gently, it breathed in again, holding it for a while, before letting it go just as slowly.
In, hold, out.
In, hold, out.
In, hold, out.
Its heart calmed down and its mind wandered as it gently began to lose the sense of its surrounding. With each passing sense, the Malfae tried to find its way within itself. It tried to travel inwards, towards what made the creature, it.
The process wasn''t as easy as the creature had thought it would be. The Malfae had assumed that because it had the Skill to do so, and had achieved the state of observable mana numerous times before, it could do so again without any hitch. That was not the case, however.
The creature was no longer guided by the Skill and while it had achieved the state before, the Malfae was much akin to someone who knew the destination but the not the road that led to it. The creature continued to breathe. In, hold, out. In, hold, out. In, hold, out.
Lost as the creature was, it didn¡¯t notice the moments pass one after the other. And it didn¡¯t notice as it, slowly and steadily, continued to lose the sense of its surrounding until, eventually, all it could sense was it and its body and nothing else.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.
Serene as ever, it floated within the nothingness as nothing but its body. There was no floor, no stone, no chill, no warmth, no darkness and no light. There was nothing, nothing, but the creature itself. There was it, and its newly acquired, yet ever-changing, body; its Vessel.
Slowly it began to sense the thing that was its body and the things that made its body.
The creature felt the hair on its head and back rustle, as they tried to feel and sense but failed. The creature felt its skin as it stretched all over it and tried to feel but felt nothing. The creature felt its heart beating in its chest, pumping and working without fail. The creature felt the blood rushing in its veins and its wings, never stopping. The creature felt life just beneath the surface, that was its body, and everything else that was there to be sensed.
The Malfae sensed them all and it sensed more than it had ever felt and experienced in this newfound bodice. And then, finally, it felt its mana. Faint at first, but there nonetheless. The mana was there, here and everywhere, just beneath the surface, lurking and hiding, but supporting the creature just as same as its heart. The mana felt alive. The mana was alive. The mana was its.
The Malfae focused on it, as the mana danced surreptitiously within the vessels, supporting the creature and its body. The winged being felt the mana twitch at the sudden attention before it continued with whatever it was doing.
It was beautiful; looking at mana that was. In the ever-expanding darkness, the ethereal blue glow of mana was heavenly. The Malfae focused on the flow of the mana. But as it had noticed when the creature had used [Mana Manipulation], there was no source of mana within the vessels. Mana disappeared and appeared within the vessels all over the place. It was almost as if the mana destroyed mana and mana created mana, simultaneously.
This mana fluxed through the vessels but what was causing the flux, the creature couldn¡¯t find. As the mana moved, it reached the end of the vessels on the skin and was released through the pores on the creature¡¯s body.
The Malfae was amazed. From her knowledge, it knew there were pores in a mortal¡¯s body, through which mana leaked out but it did not know that a Malfae would have poured more numerous than the most powerful mortals in her world! There were pores all over its body, its hands, its legs, its head and its wings. Every part, that was a part of the creature, had innumerable pores and they all were connected to something, vessels containing mana.
The creature had not seen these pores when it had used [Mana Manipulation] to directly enter this state. But now that it had done the process on its own, it could see them as clearly as the stars on a moonless night.
The creature tried to trace the flow down the pores. But it couldn''t. The creature was trying to go opposite the direction of flow and the mana opposed it. It fought the creature. It was an experience for the Malfae, fighting its own mana. The creature felt like it was trying to fight itself.
Ting.
[Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.1] has levelled up to [Mana Manipulation Lv.2]. Your understanding of mana had increased.]
And then, in a moment, everything changed.
The creature felt its consciousness move. And immediately, it experienced a sudden sense of loss. The creature trembled. It felt lost. The Malfae felt itself travelling through the vessels as it traversed the mana system before it was thrown out.
Disoriented as the creature was, it lingered there for a moment. And as it lingered, it felt the mana surface from the pores and spread out like water over the creature¡¯s body. The creature continued to settle its mind before it finally disentangled itself from the mana. And then, just as slowly it had begun, it felt its senses return to it. With its senses back, the creature began to lose to the sense of loss that that gotten hold of it out of nowhere.
The hearing was the first to return, and it returned slowly; akin to a sound of something approaching from afar. It was followed by the sense of touch, which returned a lot faster, like a feather falling onto the skin; tingling and there but still not. And then, all of a sudden, the rest of the senses followed. One moment they weren''t there and then they were. It was like sleeping, slowly at first and then all of a sudden.
The Malfae smiled as it opened its eyes and saw the notification waiting for it. ¡®Finally! Yes!¡¯
The creature had been waiting for this Level up for a long time. It had been waiting for it since it had first received this skill. Which had been back when it had just evolved into a moth. And that was almost eight months ago.
This Skill Level up meant more to the creature than even the general Level ups that increased its HP and MP. If the creature had been a mortal, then it would have cried. But the creature was an immortal, a being of muted emotions. Thus, it laughed and with a lingering joyous feeling, the creature moved on.
This reaction of the creature was just another facet of the sacrifice that it had made for its magic. Not that the creature minded. Even if it had to make the choice again, the creature would still choose its magic all over again. The evolved moth shifted its eyes away from the notification and it frowned. ''Just how much time has passed?''
The Malfae looked around. There was a lot of light in the crevice; more than it had ever seen, in here, before. But the thing was, it wasn''t the soft comforting light of the moon, instead, it was the warm and too-bright-and-not-inviting-at-all light of the sun.
The creature moved and immediately felt its body protest. Its joints were stiff, its muscles were sore and its back ached as if it hadn''t moved in a long time. ¡®I probably haven''t.¡¯
Groaning from the pained protests, the evolved moth shakily stood up and moved over to the edge of the crevice before peeking out at the sky. The concept of Instant Regret was made known to the creature, as its eyes began to hurt immediately and it forced them shut.
The creature waited for a few moments as its eyes adjusted to the bright light before it squinted and searched for the very obvious Sun shining in the sky. ¡®Eh?¡¯
''Why is the sun in the direction opposite to which it rises? ¡Is it the sunset already??''
No wonder its body was stiff as wood. It had been in one position for almost twenty-four hours! The creature groaned before it shook itself out of the stupor and flew back inside. Overwhelmed as it was from the fact that it had meditated for an entire day, it went to sleep.
0.0
The creature spent the next night sleeping. It had exerted itself a little too much with the Skill and could only rest to recover. But that did not mean that the creature had given up. Buoyed as it was due to the levelling up of [Mana Manipulation], the creature changed its routine to focus more on the Skill rather than search for a suitable creature to hunt.
Though, no matter how much the creature tried, it couldn¡¯t move past the pores. The fluxing of the mana neither allowed the creature to swim against the flux nor did it allow the creature to swim with the flux. Thus, the creature remained stuck where it was for an entire week.
It had initially thought to bulldoze its way through the mana, but those efforts had been utterly futile. The more the creature forced itself, the more the mana resisted. The mana matched the creature, ounce by ounce. The creature had to finally give up its strategy when it even couldn¡¯t move beyond the pores because of the resistance from the mana.
Though all was not in vain for the creature. While it had been bashing its head against its mana, the eggs had continued to mature and develop. And when the creature had last checked them with [Sense Essence], the Essence within them had finished condensing and had begun to change.
The colour of the Essence still matched the colour of the Malfae, a faint blue that seemed akin to corpse rather than the blue sky. The shape of the Essence though clearly did not match the creature¡¯s own. It had begun to elongate and thin down. This, though, gave the Malfae a good idea of what creature would pop out of the eggs.
This development though did not mask the creature¡¯s irritation with the zero progress it had with [Mana Manipulation]. Thus, with its efforts defeated, the creature changed its routine again and discarded practising the Skill all together. It was sick of it. Instead, it decided to resume its search for suitable prey.
But before it did that, it decided to get rid of its frustration, by the only method it knew. Hence, the creature once again flew to the spider hunting field but instead of hunting the prey, the Malfae leaned into its inherent malice. The inherent malice erupted as the creature crushed one spider after the another with its shield. The creature did not eat the spiders. The Malfae did not even give the dead insects a second glance before it flew off in the search of the next. This act did not raise the creature¡¯s Level but it did Level up its Skill, [Malfae Shield] up to Level 3.
The senseless death, that the Malfae was unleashing, continued. Its only purpose was to relieve the Malfae of its frustration. It was the manifestation of nothing but malice. It was just another sacrifice that the creature had made for its magic. A sacrifice that it would gladly make again.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 32
Kiran, along with his parents and his teacher, was standing outside the tiny shack that belonged to the teen. This was an important moment for the child as well as his parents. After all, their firstborn was going to be Awakened and that too in such a rare Class. It would be a moment of pride for any parent.
The family would have preferred to perform the Awakening in a temple, under the eyes of the Gods but the Ashram had not a single temple dedicated to any God. Which was strange, considering that even peasants usually built an altar for the Gods in their tiny homes, yet this huge complex that housed the most spiritually learned beings did not.
However, the ways of ascetics were strange and mysterious. And the Gods were present anywhere and everywhere. Thus, they chose the place that had been the Karmabhumi* of the teen for the past two years.
¡°Go to your parents.¡± The man dressed in saffron robes whispered to the teen. ¡°And ask for their blessing.¡±
The teen nodded and walked up to the couple, who had their eyes shining with pride. The boy then knelt to touch their feet one by one before he straightened up and with folded hands he bowed.
The women cupped the face of the boy within her hands while the man softly placed his right hand on the bald head of his son. A soft smile lit their face as they both spoke out aloud, their voice clear and proud. ¡°The glory be yours. The prosperity be yours. The Awakening be yours.¡±
As they finished speaking, their own status changed. A new line had appeared next to their [Karma], signifying an increase. Whether this [Karma] was good or bad, it was unknown to even the wisest of people. But this was a necessary sacrifice to Awaken a person and a bargain that parents happily made.
Ting.
[Access to [Status] granted.]
The boy was startled by the sudden sound and the adults held back a smile.
¡°Call on your Status son.¡± The woman encouraged and the child promptly did so. ¡°Status.¡± The teen called out.
Ting.
[Kiran] [Skills] [Spells]
¡°That will take some time getting used to.¡± The boy flinched again at the sudden sound before calling out his own name. ¡°Kiran.¡±
The [Status] was...more than a bit underwhelming for the teen.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
He had expected grand things, with high Attributes and numerous Skills already listed on the screen. He had lived the past 2 years of his life in deep austerity and continuous struggle to achieve just that, hadn¡¯t he?
Instead, what he had received was a pittance of Attributes and a single [Skill], and that too was a common one. He couldn¡¯t stop his mouth from grimacing in distaste.
¡°Is something the matter?¡± His father¡¯s brows furrowed at the teens'' expression.
¡°It¡¯s just...¡± The boy began, ¡°...are the numbers supposed to be this low?¡±
¡°I will take my leave now.¡± Before anyone could answer, the teacher addressed the parents. ¡°And give you some privacy.¡±
The parents nodded at the man gratefully. Status was not meant to be publicly known after all. The teacher¡¯s timely departure was thus well received.
The inspector frowned and asked. ¡°How much [HP] and [MP] do you have?¡±
The boy scowled. ¡°80 HP and 120 MP.¡±
The mother sighed when she heard that and the father resisted the urge to hit the back of his son¡¯s head.
¡°Ow!¡± The man ultimately gave in and the boy yelped as he rubbed the back of his bald head and eyed his father accusingly.
¡°You little...¡± The inspector scowled back. ¡°Is that less for someone who has no Levels and has not yet seen their 15th birthday?!¡±
¡°Kiran''s father.¡± The woman chided as she placed a hand on her husband''s arm and turned to face the boy. ¡°This is quite a lot, son. Even more so because you don¡¯t have any [Levels] yet. How much are all your Attributes?¡±
Kiran gave them the information. Although he would have preferred to just show them his Status, there were no known methods to do so. The [Status] was private and was meant for only the owner¡¯s eyes
¡°With just this, sending you here was worth it!¡± The inspector laughed but as he saw the doubt in his son¡¯s eyes and decidedly smacked the boy again. ¡°You little! The normal value of Attributes is between 3 to 7 for a grown man, with 5 being the average value.¡±
¡°And you have yet to fully grow up.¡± The mother smiled too. ¡°Besides, don¡¯t you have [Will] and [Reflection]? They are quite rare, you know.¡±
At the moment, she turned to face her husband and frowned. ¡°His [Surplus] is on the lower side though.¡±
The boy frowned in confusion. His [Surplus] was low? But weren¡¯t his other Attributes also the same amount?
¡°Nothing could be done about that.¡± The father sighed. ¡°It is the result of his own karma. All we can do is just support him.¡±
¡°You must work hard son.¡± The woman nodded as she gripped her husband¡¯s hand. ¡°Life will be difficult for you but you have to fight it and never give up. Your father and I will always support you so you must struggle, do you understand?¡±
The boy¡¯s forehead became marred with lines and his brows furrowed but he nodded nonetheless. He had reached this stage through his hard work. And although he did not understand their worry, he understood the action that they were required of him.
¡°Your teacher will explain the Status and what everything means later,¡± The inspector placed his hand on the boy¡¯s shoulder. ¡°But you should pick your Class now.¡±
The boy nodded and focused on the [+] sign next to the Class tab.
Ting.
[Choose your [Class].]
[Shishya]
[Monk]
[Apprentice]
[Student]
Kiran focused on [Shishya]. It was the only one that he was interested in.
Ting.
[Do you wish to select [Shishya] as your [Class]? This selection is final and cannot be changed.]
[Yes]????????[No]
The teenager focused on the [Yes] option.
Ting.
[Class [Shishya] granted. Grants +1 [Attribute Point] at every [Level]. Grants a [Skill] at [Level 1]. Grants a [Spell] at [Level 10].]
Ting.
[You have levelled up! +1 Attribute Point granted.]
Giddy with excitement, the boy opened his [Status] again.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Karmabhumi*: A place where one performs their Job/Work/Karma. This word had a usage similar to ¡°battlefield¡±. The Job/Work is the battle and the place of work is the battlefield.
[Bonus 7]
Her hollow eyes tracked the bald boy from afar. She observed his weak smile and within her clenched fists, her long nails drew blood. Her gaze fell once again on the boy¡¯s bald skull causing her jaws to tense. And as her teacher greeted the boy with a smile, her heart suffocated. Yet, she continued to watch from afar, hidden from the eyes of her once friend.
Often, the success of one¡¯s friends, where one had failed, rubbed salt in one¡¯s festering wounds and bloody lacerations.
Surabhi¡¯s hollow eyes traced Kiran¡¯s retreating back. Soon enough, all the children left to meet their families, however, Surabhi did the opposite. She wanted not to see the face of her father, the reason for her failure.
¡®It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s alright.¡¯ The teenage girl breathed deeply to settle her suffocated heart. ¡®At least I won¡¯t have to beg for food...¡¯ However, the suffocation in her heart didn¡¯t decrease. Instead, her stifled heart seemed to get even more deeply entangled in her misery, failure and loathing. ¡®I won¡¯t have to beg for food. I won¡¯t have to be dressed in rags. I won¡¯t have to help the-¡¯
Her pace hastened and she began to run. The wind hit her face like slaps while her long black hair trailed behind as her feet raced to leap ahead of the other. Her chest burned and her breaths shortened yet she continued to run. She had no destination and no path, yet the teenager ran. Though, why the girl ran, the failure herself did not know.
Surabhi reached her shack only to collapse, exhausted and panting. She wheezed as her prone form remained sprawled in the mud and filth, the sound of her laboured breathing echoing across the empty mud field, as if to mark her loneliness. Her teary eyes aimlessly searched the clear blue sky but knew not what she sought.
Answers, she had. Reasons, she knew. Perhaps it was her future she sought?
Thick tears rolled down the side of her temples to fall and become one with the mud, dirt and filth. Perhaps they were as meaningless as her existence.
The failure sat up with a jerk, the sudden action caused her long hair to flutter in the air for a moment before they hit her face to cover her eyes. At that moment, her hindered vision seemed quite akin to her pathless future, blocked and sundered.
The teenager unkindly gripped the ends of the long strands, as if they were not her own before her crying features twisted into an ugly snarl and she ripped the offending strands from her scalp. Pinpricks of pain blasted off in her skull but they were dwarfed by the guttural scream that escaped her lips. Her throat and chest shook from its power while the nearby birds escaped into the sky.
¡®Married. To produce children. To serve endlessly.¡¯ The failed girl¡¯s jumbled thoughts clashed. ¡®A [Student] at best.¡¯ The once ambitious girl¡¯s future was bleak. The girl that had once dreamed to walk the path of [Monster Tamer] to stand toe to toe with the royals themselves, now had to imagine herself tied to someone else¡¯s desire.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.
The very thought caused her exhausted heart to race and subsiding pants to escalate. Had she been allowed to pursue her dream path, then the failure would have been her own and she could have lived with it.
However, that was not the case. For years she had been forced to walk a path that was not hers. Even before she had been inducted into the ashram, the girl had been taught alchemy. The desire of her father to see his legacy passed had caused the man to raise his only child, Surabhi, like his son.
Perhaps, this delusion was also the reason that the Alchemist¡¯s slow progress on his path had stifled and halted. A path that existed not for the failed girl, much like her future.
Surabhi wiped the drying tears with her muddy fingers and stood up to walk. Her unsure feet that had aimlessly run previously now steadily walked towards their destination while her tear-stained face remained lost in the unending hollowness of their failure.
Soon enough, she arrived at the short wooden fence separating the ashram from the haunted forest beyond. Growing up in the ashram, how could she not know of what lay beyond? The stories that she had heard and the warning that had passed down were etched in her mind and heart.
Thus, numerous warnings echoed within her entangled mind and a spark of resistance manifested within her hollow eyes as she hesitated. However, the shrieking voices gradually became distant and they took the dying resistance with them, leaving behind a pair of eyes that were dull and hollow once again.
The failure placed her hand on the mouldy wood before lifting herself and crossing the weak fence in a single leap. Her feet landed on the soft grass but the disappointment paid it no heed as her heart raced. However, her eyes remained hollow. The let-down stepped forward and the dark forest seemed to press down on her psyche but it mattered not to her as she continued to walk deeper into the land forbidden to someone as pathetically weak as her.
Her uncharacteristically sure steps cared not where they walked as long as they went deeper into the treacherous unknown. The distant screams and fading howls came closer as she walked while the pungent scent of animal piss fleeted past her senses. Fallen leaves crunched under her unceasing slow gait while tiny branches broke and cracked, adding their own sound to the eery buzzing of the gloomy forest.
As her final journey continued, the signs of struggles appeared with increasing frequency in the forms of fallen trees, lacerated trunks and decaying bones. Yet, the futureless failure continued her slow ceaseless trek.
Her hollow eyes gazed ahead, missing the fresh paw prints in the moist earth while her overwhelmed mind failed to hear the soft rustling of the grass. The failed girl tripped and fell only to get up again to march deeper.
However, her journey was cut short as a blur attacked her throat. The force of sudden attack slammed her into the moist earth, causing her frame to rattle and her vision to blur. Pain blasted off in her back and hip but it mattered not as her windpipe was choked before it was ripped out of her throat, leaving a gaping bloody wound in its place.
When the agony of the brutal assault was finally comprehended by the failure, a soul-searing scream tried to flee from her throat. However, the throat stood raptured and the silent yell merely gurgled the pooling dark blood. The failure wheezed and struggled as regret and panic bloomed within her haunted eyes but it was too late.
Her Remnant manifested within a single long strand her dark hair.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 33
The trail of crushed spiders remained as the only memory of the senseless slaughter unleashed by the Malfae before it exited the Spider hunting ground to begin its search for suitable prey. However, no matter the effort the creature put in, the [Reincarnated] could not find a creature that easy to kill and gave boundless experience. Thus, the frustration that had just recently diminished, reared its ugly head once again.
However, the creature could not just kill endlessly. Hence when it arrived at the clearing once again, its eyes were restlessly twitching. The blue creature landed outside of the entrance before it activated [Sense Essence]. The [Survivor] would have preferred to use [Sense] too but that Skill had a time limit and the creature wanted to save its use for the hunt.
The silent clearing was peaceful and unchanged with ants milling about their ordinary existences.
The creature of malice flew in to land near the centre of the clearing. Its dark eyes sought the spot where the moonlit flower had existed and they found nothing once again. The Malfae could not help but sigh as its instincts screamed that it had missed an incredible opportunity. After all, an immortal had been guarding that flower!
However, as there was little it could do now, the creature shook off the feeling and took to air before softly landing on a branch near ant colony. The [Survivor] was planning to test one of the stronger treasure hunter ants this time, as stealthily as it could as it didn''t believe that [Malfae Shield] would be able to stand against the sturdy defenders of the colony.
After a while, the Malfae locked in on a treasure hunter ant that was larger than usual and took to air to follow its prey. Once the ant was out the colony¡¯s reach, the [Reincarnated] swiftly acted as it brought the [Malfae shield] forward, from where it had been protecting its back, to bring it crashing down on the clueless ant. The spread-apart wings rushed to snap close against the neck of its target.
However, the ant looked up at the last moment as its antennas twitched. It moved out of the way but it was already too late and the jaws closed shut before shattering like glass. Malfae wasted not a moment to summon another shield which it sent reeling against the cracked chitin on the disoriented ant''s neck. The shield hit true before shattering into pieces, yet the ant still lived.
The Malfae revealed its sharp teeth before it flew towards the injured insect. As it neared the downed but not dead prey, the [Survivor] pooled venom in its mouth to spit in the open wound.
However, the defiant ant turned to face the flying creature as it raised its head to aim. Before the [Reincarnated] could even frown, 2 mandibles raced towards the Malfae as if they were arrows. The wannabe predator tried to dodge the attack but as it wasn''t expecting any retaliation, it failed and the mandible hit it in the abdomen, embedding themselves in its flesh. The wind was knocked out of the Malfae, though the pain hadn''t set in yet either due to shock or adrenaline.
''[Malfae Shield]!'' The blue creature hastily activated the Skill but the damage was done as it felt its HP decrease by at least a third. Combined with the HP loss that the creature was already suffering due to using [Survive] a couple of nights ago, the creature¡¯s HP was now dangerously low.
The Malfae violently hissed as it sent its third shield towards the still living ant while it retreated. The heavily injured ant tried to dodge but its condition didn''t allow fast movements and attack hit home. Using this moment to settle itself, the [Reincarnated] did not attack further and instead waited. After all, despite the toughness of the chitin covered creature, it could not survive the blood loss resulting from 3 open neck wounds.
The panting Malfae''s hostile gaze shifted from its prey to the mandibles stuck inside its body and it winced from phantom pain. The Mandibles had stabbed it in the right side of its abdomen, causing 2 steady trickles of blood to leak down from the wounds. The Malfae thought about pulling out the mandibles but then the sight of blood reminded it that those mandibles were possibly blocking most of the blood loss.
Before the creature could abandon its previous line of thought, the phantom pain became real and it hit it with full force. The agony from the stabs raced up its abdomen and even though the creature was used to the pain, it couldn''t stop the hiss that escaped its lips. The creature suffered thought the vicious assault as it gritted its teeth. Its blue fists turned purple as it clenched while it hastily let out short breaths to endure the pain. It was only after it felt its [Pain Resistance] kick in that it unclenched its fists and its breathing normalised.
The [Survivor] waited a few moments more before it gingerly flapped its wings and sighed in relief. The movement of its wings was not disturbed by the wound, which was the best news that it could have asked for. The Malfae immediately took off without even thinking about the ant corpse and returned to the crevice.
As the creature sprawled down on the grass bed in its crevice, it checked its HP and its heart almost stopped. [HP: 112/356]. A single attack from the ant had brought the creature to the death¡¯s door. Although it had already been at half HP before, the ant¡¯s attack had still done damage of 100+ points. If there had been another such attack, the Malfae would have died.
The creature¡¯s scalp tingled and all the hair on its head and back stood up on their ends. Its massive ears flattened against its skull, its dark eyes widened and its wings overlapped themselves to become smaller.
But how could the attack of a mere ant do so much damage to the twice evolved, Tier 2, Malfae? It could do so because much like the Malfae the ant too was a twice evolved creature which had evolved from a Larva to the Worker Ant and finally to the soldier ant. It wasn''t the treasure hunter ant that the malfae had fought but the same Guard Red Ant that the Malfae had previously wanted to avoid. It had just been smaller because it had recently evolved and had yet to achieve its full size.
As it was a Guard Red Ant, it had evolved to fight for the colony and had received the Skill [Mandible Strike] at Level 5 from its latest evolution; much like how the Malfae had received the Skills [Poison Resistance], [Flight] and [Drone Eggs] at Level 5. And at Level 5, [Mandible Strike] did 50 points of damage for each mandible while the rest had been from bleeding.
The creature of course didn¡¯t know this. ¡®This fucking world. Out there to kill me. An ant does 60+ points of damage with a single Skill. 60+! While I struggle to do 10 points of damage over a minute! What bullshit.¡¯ The creature grumbled at the unfairness of it all as it hesitatingly eyed the 2 mandibles still stuck in its flesh.
It wanted to remove the mandibles but feared that doing so would result in HP loss and then the creature would not be able to use [Moulting] to heal. But leaving them in also did not suit the creature as it irrationally feared the mandibles getting stuck in its flesh. However, as it lacked even the simplest method to provide first aid, the creature unwillingly decided to remove the mandibles only when it had accumulated enough HP to use [Moulting].
Thus the creature began its solitary confinement once again. Though, its plan was challenged on the third day when the hunger became unbearable. The creature had staved off thirst by drinking its own venom but there had been little it could do for hunger.
Meanwhile, its stab wounds had become infected and shot bolts of agony every time the creature even so much as twitched. In such a condition, the creature could barely walk, let alone fly out to hunt. As the days passed, the unceasing hunger and the crippling agony merely increased. By the time the fifth day arrived, the creature had even begun to run a slight fever while its body urgently needed nutrients to consume and heal.
In such a state, even though its Skills [Pain resistance] and [Night Vision] had levelled up, the creature had cared not.
In one such blaze of agony, the Malfae¡¯s hungry gaze fell on its half-developed eggs and an idea materialised in its desperate mind. It did not hesitate and crawled up to the eggs, fighting off the piercing agony as it did. Its sharp-toothed mouth drooled before the malicious creature consumed an egg whole.
The egg was salty, crunchy, gooey and mushy within the creature¡¯s mouth but the Malfae cared not for it as it swallowed and the fire in its belly instantly dimmed. Barely had the [Survivor] swallowed the first egg before it picked up another and consumed it without a second thought.
It was, thus, on a diet of its own eggs and venom that the [Survivor] survived for the next two days until its HP once again crossed the safe limit for the usage of [Moulting]. The moment it did, the Malfae pulled the mandibles out mercilessly and activated its Skill before the resulting pain could ravage its mind. ¡®[Moulting]! [Moulting]!! [Moulting]!!!¡¯
Almost immediately the creature¡¯s HP fell once again into the dangerous territory. Its HP read, [HP: 34/356].
0.0
The Malfae woke up the next night due to the now-familiar itch of its shed skin and started squirming. It did not take much time to free itself of its own shed skin. The creature¡¯s eyes then fell on the 2 mandibles lying next to it and it immediately touched its flat stomach, finding it as smooth as ever.
¡®Thank the heavens.¡¯ The creature smiled as it kept on poking the spot where the mandibles had stabbed it. And each time, the flesh bounced back painlessly, the creature¡¯s toothy smile widened as it giggled.
0.0
The creature spent the next week resting within its shelter as it ate eggs and drank venom while it regenerated its HP. By the end of the week, its HP had regenerated to half its maximum and its eggs had dwindled to 5. As a result, the creature decided to hunt the spiders for the next week as it rested, which passed smoothly.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
Within this last week, the creature had continued its search for suitable prey but its search remained fruitless. Thus, after almost 3 weeks, the creature once again returned to the ant colony to get the feel of the ants in the clearing. But this time, it came at full health.
From a distant branch, the Malfae observed the ants. It noted the presence of treasure hunter ants and then the guard ants that the creature had dealt with some difficulty. But they were not the only ones. There were a few ants that were almost half the size of a mortal¡¯s finger. These ants, the Malfae had remained clear of as they had seemed tougher than the rest of their brethren. To the [Survivor], the larger ants almost seemed like the overseers, guarding even the guard ants.
The Malfae already knew that guard ants would not give it any Levels; it had learnt that the hard way. And given the lack of other suitable prey, the creature decided to try the bigger guard ants. The one that was the overseers. This was an incredibly foolish decision of course.
The creature itself did not know, but its decision to hunt the overseers was less its conscious decision and more it''s instinctual. The Malfae had been hurt deeply by an ant. An ant! And no matter how it justified, its pride and malice could not bear it! Even though it had killed the offending ant, the pride could not suffer it!
The creature¡¯s inherent and instinctual pride could not bear being defeated by something that it looked down upon. Perhaps its sense would have prevailed if it was so thoroughly outclassed that its other instincts overwhelmed its pride, much like how its sense had prevailed when it had foolishly decided to fight the cockroach monster. But as that was not the case, the creature subconsciously acted on its pride.
The Malfae searched for an isolated overseer and soon enough its search bore fruit. It did not attack though and instead, it landed on the nearby tree as it observed its powerful prey to make sure that it was truly alone. Once the [Reincarnated] was sure of its prey¡¯s location, it flew above the massive ant and guided its shield to the front while spreading the wings apart until gaps appeared in between them. Then the shield descended like the wrath of nature.
The massive Ant''s antennas twitched as it sensed the descending winged shield. However, the Ant did not look up to ascertain its attacker and instead, its red chitin gleamed like a polished gem as it activated a Skill of its own. Meanwhile, the shimmering shield hit the ant and shattered instantly, without even leaving so much a scratch on the brilliantly gleaming red chitin.
The blue creature blinked in surprise but the ant had already turned around and launched its mandibles at the flying pest. ¡®Oh fuck!¡¯ The flying creature did not make the same mistake as the last time and instantly dodged the incoming projectile before flying straight up as fast as it could. With its heart-pounding, it continued to race up and only dared to stop when it had escaped the ant¡¯s range.
Though the moment it glanced back, its pupil-less dark eyes widened beyond its control, its massive ears flattened, goosebumps erupted on its head and back as its hair stood up on their ends. Blood drained from its face and its heart began to run a mile a minute while its body trembled.
All the ants, no matter how small or big, no matter if they were lifting a rock or hunting critter, no matter if they were on the ground or climbing up the trees, all of them had stopped mid-work to turn their heads towards the Malfae. Their insectoid gazes remained fixed on the [Survivor] as if unwilling to leave it even for a moment.
¡®How is this even possible?¡¯ The trembling creature gulped and flew even higher before leaving the clearing without any hesitation. None of the ants moved as the creature flew and none of them reacted as the flying pest left the clearing. They merely tracked the creature with their beady eyes.
Terrified out of its wits, the creature did not stop flying until it was once again within the safety of its home but even then, the creature couldn¡¯t stop trembling. ¡®What was that?!¡¯ Every time the creature thought back to the moment, its heart almost stopped. It hadn''t felt such danger even when it had challenged the cockroach in its arrogance.
¡®But how?!¡¯ The creature had seen its certain death reflected in the beady eyes that had locked onto it to track its movements. Never had the creature felt such danger before. ¡®What flower? It¡¯s just death there!¡¯
As the creature heart slowed down and blood returned to its face, it couldn¡¯t help but think about what had just happened. All those ants had turned as one. They had looked at the Malfae as one. They had even tracked it as one. It had been almost as if they had cared about the ant that the Malfae had attacked and had wanted to defend the ant together. But that was the nature of mortals. Not immortals. Immortals did not care. They could not care.
¡®How can they be like that? They had clearly evolved, hadn¡¯t they? They were immortals! How can they care and coexist?¡¯
The creature¡¯s questions were valid of course. An immortal did not care for other immortals. An immortal did not coexist with other immortals. Yet these ants seemed to do just the same. The Malfae had not noticed this before, as the ants had been ants and they had been behaving like ants. It had been what it had expected them to do. There had been nothing unordinary about ants behaving like ants.
But how could The malfae know what was ordinary behaviour and what was unordinary behaviour for the ants? It had these expectations due to the influence of her memories. Because of those remnant memories, it had not even occurred to the Malfae that the immortal ants shouldn¡¯t be able to behave like ants. For doing so would stand against the very nature of immortals.
¡®This doesn¡¯t make any sense.¡¯ The creature shook its head. ¡®What is important now is not how the ants lived. No, the important thing is that I do not go there. Ever.¡¯ The creature placed its hand on its chest and felt its heart race. ¡®Calm down. Calm down.¡¯ It patted its chest until its heart slowed down a bit. ¡®It¡¯s over. It¡¯s over.¡¯
As its heart calmed down, its eyes fell on the remaining eggs. ¡®How far along are they?¡¯
The creature breathed deeply before it activated [Sense Essence]. ¡®Not too long now.¡¯ The shape of the essence within the eggs had begun to solidify. And while the colour of the essence remained the same as the Malfae itself, there was no denying the fact that the shape of the egg¡¯s essence and that of the Malfae were completely different.
The creature sighed and did not bother with the egg anymore. It had long since made peace with fact that the eggs would not get well-grown Malfaes out of the eggs.
0.0
The creature woke up to the sounds of cracks and wiggles. And no matter how drowsy and confused the creature was, the presence of sound in its home shocked it awake. Its gaze hastily turned to the entrance only to find the [Malfae Shield] still blocking it, causing it to frown. As the cracks resounded, it followed the sound and its wary gaze landed on the eggs.
CRACK!
¡®Are they finally hatching?¡¯ Crawling over to the eggs, the Malfae waited with bated breath for the creature within to emerge out of the shell. This would be the very first creature that would neither be the Malfae¡¯s prey nor be its predator. It seemed like a foreign concept to the creature, despite being aware of it because of her memories.
It began small. As cracks after cracks spread out over the shell, forming a pattern akin to that of the spider webs. Before, all of a sudden, a piece fell off creating an opening. Beneath the opening, something slimy and blue wiggled. The sight was gross, yet it transfixed the creature.
Lazily -or better to say, tiredly- a slime-covered head poked out of the shell before falling back in. The head fell like it was dead, something which the newborn was obviously not. The tiny and slimy head wiggled around, testing the newfound freedom. As if satisfied, soon the head pushed itself out again. It flinched at the sudden temperature change before it tiredly tried to move. As the creature continued to wiggle, the rest of the shell fell apart, revealing the not so beautiful creature hidden inside.
Truthfully, it was one ugly thing.
The creature was small, covered in slime and barely reached the height of 1/6th of a mortal¡¯s finger. Its head was its biggest past and the rest of the body seemed like a train of blue spheres. The creature was, much like the Malfae¡¯s past self, a caterpillar. ''Really, what else had I expected?''
The new-born caterpillar wiggled around as if looking for something to eat.
But at that moment, the Malfae felt a strange intrusion in its mind. It was not words or sentences or even speech, per se. It was just a feeling that the Malfae had not felt in a long time and it had hoped to never meet it ever again.
¡®¡the hunger-induced from Title [Hungry].¡¯ The creature¡¯s eyes widened and its heart raced as it immediately called up its Status. With bated breath, the creature looked at its list of Titles but the blue window mentioned nothing of the sort. The Malfae sighed in relief and focused on the feeling itself.
As the Malfae was intimately familiar with this feeling, the creature was able to determine that the feeling was different this time around. It didn¡¯t seem like its own. It was almost as if the hunger of another being was being projected onto itself. ¡®Eh?¡¯
The Malfae¡¯s eyes widened and its gaze immediately fell on the caterpillar in front of it. The bug, in the meanwhile, had returned to the shell and was devouring it at an impressive speed. The Malfae blinked and waited for the bug to finish eating before the evolved moth picked up the caterpillar and deposited it on the nearest tree.
The Malfae would have preferred to first ensure the safety of the plant but the creature knew that if it left the caterpillar with the eggs, the bug would eat them without a second thought. Thus, the creature first placed the caterpillar on the tree and then made sure that the tree was free of predators it had once faced.
After all, if these caterpillars had the misfortune of meeting a snail, they could do little but die obediently. Not finding any snails on the tree, the Malfae once again picked up the caterpillar and placed it one of the better-shaded areas to hide it from the passing birds. The Malfae wasn¡¯t sure if even it could battle a bird, let alone the Egoless drone.
Once the caterpillar had been sufficiently secured, the creature flew off to the spider hunting area and followed its own routine of searching for suitable prey. Which, miraculously, it hadn¡¯t found yet.
In truth, finding prey wasn¡¯t that difficult. The creature was just cowardly and greedy. It wanted to attain Levels without putting its life in danger. On one hand, it disdained the killing of various critters for slow and steady Level ups. While on the other hand, it wanted to avoid dangerous fights for multiple instantaneous Level ups. But could that be possible for an immortal being such as itself? How could such a good deal exist for an immortal?
Thus, it wasn¡¯t that the creature¡¯s searching methods were lacking. It was just that its search was futile from the very start.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 34
The family of three waited outside the mud cottage that was wildly splashed with colours as if it had been painted by a child. They did not have to wait for long as a saffron-clad man walked out of the small home. Guru Pranay smiled at the family as he asked, ¡°Everything was sorted, I presume?¡±
¡°Ah yes.¡± The inspector, [Warrior] named Aditya Pratha answered but his voice was exasperated. ¡°The child just didn¡¯t know any better.¡±
¡°He had been very diligent this year.¡± The Guru amicably replied before his yellowed eyes narrowed in a mock glare at his student, Kiran. ¡°However, he must have forgotten some of his lessons.¡±
¡°Yes, he needs to study more.¡± The mother, the [Artist] named Madhu Pradha, indulgently replied as softly caressed the boy¡¯s bald head.
¡°The [Muni]* and the [Hrisihi]* seek knowledge even on their deathbed. Kiran has much to learn.¡± The saffron-clad man smiled at the child. ¡°Did you choose your Class?¡±
¡°Yes.¡± Kiran''s father replied instead of the teen as his aching back straightened and his scarred chest puffed up. ¡°He is a [Shishya] now.¡±
¡°Good.¡± The Guru nodded. ¡°Have you selected your first Skill then?¡± The boy shook his head.
¡°Go ahead then.¡± The gaunt saffron-robed man advised and the teen nodded vigorously as he exclaimed. ¡°Status!¡±
Ting.
[Kiran] ??[Skills] ??[Spells]
Kiran called out his name and his Status materialised.
Before anyone could comment, the teenager focused on the [+] next to ''Skills'' and a new screen popped up.
Ting.
[Select a Skill. Skill Selection is permanent.]
[Anatomy Vision]
[Spear Mastery]
[Focus]
The bald teen narrated the Skill Selection available to him and then focused on the first choice.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
Ting.
[Allows the user to see the blood and its movement within another creature. Cost: [SL] MP/Min. Do you wish for this Skill to be granted?]
[Yes] ???? [No]
¡°Hmm. This is the Healer path Skill that you have been aiming for.¡± Guru Pranay explained. ¡° However, I would advice you to check the rest of the offered Skills at least once.¡±
Kiran nodded and focused on [No]. He did not even hesitate as he skipped [Spear Mastery] as he knew this Skill was a result of his father teaching him how to use a spear while he had been living with them. He knew what this skill entailed and he was not interested in what it had to offer. Instead, he focused on the last Skill.
Ting.
[Allows the user to maintain complete focus and ignore distractions. Things studied under the influence of this Skill can be recalled with perfect clarity while using this Skill. Cost: [SL] MP/Min. Do you wish for this Skill to be granted?]
[Yes] ???? [No]
¡°This Scholar path Skill should be the result of your diligent study.¡± The saffron-clad man answered after thinking a bit. ¡°A good choice but not your goal.¡±
The boy nodded as he focused on [No] before summoning the description for [Anatomy Vision] and then focussed on [Yes].
Ting.
[You have selected the Skill [Anatomy Vision]. Are you sure you want this Skill to be granted?]
[Yes] ???? [No]
Kiran focused on [Yes] with a grin plastered on his face while his fingers fidgeted with unrestrained energy.
Ting.
[Skill [Anatomy Vision] granted.]
The teen jumped and laughed while the adults watched him with a smile.
¡°Now, now, settle down.¡± The saffron-clad man admonished lightly. ¡°At the moment you have a single Attribute point. How do you plan to use it?¡±
The child was still grinning as he answered. ¡°I was planning on saving it for later.¡±
¡°Hmm. I would not recommend that.¡± The gaunt man frowned. ¡°Attributes change the very nature of your being. [Strength] of 7 and 8 are quite different and same is the case with [Intelligence]. If you let your Attributes be wasted in your Status, your progress will be delayed while your peers move ahead. You will remain weak and less intelligent while pears will continuously become stronger and smarter. As a result, they will Level faster and gain Attributes faster while building a strong foundation. You, on the other hand, would still be waiting for your next Attribute.¡±
The skinny man furrowed his brows as he asked, ¡°Do you understand?¡±
¡°Your guru is right Kiran.¡± The spear-wielding man joined in. ¡°It¡¯s not smart to squander your Attributes.¡±
The teen frowned for a moment before he hesitatingly nodded. Guru Pranay smiled as continued to explain, ¡°As you Level, make sure to raise your [Spirit] to at least 8 points. Only then will you have a chance at raising your Tier. Understood?¡±
¡°Also remember to only raise your Attributes in a safe place where you can sleep peacefully.¡± The mother added and the child nodded with wide eyes causing the [Artist] to laugh. ¡°Increasing Attributes tends to force you into a deep sleep, leaving you utterly vulnerable for the duration.¡±
¡°Then what should I use the Attribute point for?¡±
¡°As you are walking down the Healer path,¡± The gaunt man answered, ¡°focus on your mental Attributes. However, you must try to obtain the [Constitution] Attribute. You don¡¯t want to get sick while healing others, do you?¡±
The inspector smiled at his son as his chest puffed up with pride. When he saw his son, he did not just see the bald boy standing before him. Instead, he also the future that was not only for his son but also for his clan. In this world, a single powerful ancestor could make a clan. After all, any Inheritance Scroll they left behind would make for a priceless treasure.
The inspector hoped to be that ancestor for his clan which was not some old family that had a collection of Inheritances from their ancestors. Instead, his clan had always been little more than peasants. In fact, he was the first one in the clan''s known history to even reach Level 20, thus satisfying the requirement for the creation of an Inheritance scroll.
He hoped his son would surpass him and reach the second Tier, further strengthening the foundation of their clan. However, he would be satisfied if the boy crossed Level 20 and became capable of passing down the rare Skill he had obtained. With his son''s achievement, he now saw the sun shining brightly on the future of his clan.
But this thought also ached his heart. For the future of his son and his clan, the man had forced the boy to sacrifice his life. He had sent his son to the Ashram and forced the life of an ascetic upon his boy. It was an austere life, one the inspector himself could not have lived. But this was also the best chance his son could get.
Thus, he had merely laughed and patted his son¡¯s shoulder as the boy chose [Anatomy vision] and deliberately avoided thinking further about his son''s forced sacrifice.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 8]
Within the centre of every Reality and every Creation existed just a single place that was bound not by the Laws of the innumerable Realities and the uncountable Creations. Instead, its Laws were unique while its governance was done by the rules which weren''t special, a stark contrast to its exceptional existence. For it was just a single place but it connected to every Reality and all the Creations.
It connected what was meant to be separated; this purpose for which it has been brought into existence against the wishes of the Creator. An act for which the False Eternal had not only died but had been annihilated and sundered apart, never to rise again. Such had been the punishment for meddling with the very Creator.
However, uncaring of the consequence the False Eternal had meddled. With its lingering consciousness, the now-annihilated Eternal had manipulated the Creator to separate all the Wills from their respective domains to bind them within Tilism for the rest of their eternal existences. Thus, this place was a prison that kept the Wills apart from where they ruled above most, if not all.
This place existed against the wishes of the Creator for the sake of the False Eternal''s humble wish to let the Endless Creation prosper. It had wanted the manifestation of the Law of life, the youngest of all the Eternals, the Endless Creation to thrive. Therefore, in its annihilation, the False Eternal had forced the creation of Tilism and the Endless Creation had thrived.
But not for long.
The flourishing life of the Endless Creation had been killed and not just by anyone else but by the very successor of the False Eternal, the Illusionary Eternal. The manifestation of the Law of life''s death had given birth to a new Law, the Law of death. This new Law had, for the first time, introduced death in a previously deathless world.
However, the Illusionary Eternal was not yet done. Borrowing the surge from the creation of the new Law, the successor of the False Eternal had mutated the dead Endless Creation into the manifestation of the Law of death to birth the last Eternal, who was thus called the Mutated Creation.
All the while, the Formless Creation and the Forgotten Creation had done nothing but silently observed.
-X-
Within the endless vastness of Tilism, its prisoners fidgeted. The rumbling of their extensive bodies created trembles that seemed to shake the very roots of Tilism. Yet the Monstrous manifestations unceasingly growled at each other, their convoluted bodies fought and battled as they sought to release the pent up energy brought on by the actions of a member of their shared prison.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.
The infinite trapped Wills battled and fought as they passed each day in bone-shaking terror while waiting for the punishment to descend. For it surely would. The only thing left unknown was the collateral destruction its descent would cause and the innocent Wills that would end as a result. Yet, all they could do was wait and guess which calamity would descend.
If the Yakshas descended then those cunning shapeshifters would throw the entire realm in the fires of long drawn wars. However, if the Nagas descended then those fiery serpents would burn the guilty and the realm. Nevertheless, it was decent of the Eternals that horrified the entire realm of Wills. For if Eternals descended to punish, then nothing would matter for everything would end.
¡°Who told it to touch a soul!¡± An unknown Will thundered. ¡°Who told it to defy the heavens!¡±
¡°A measly reduced Will dared to touch a soul!¡± Another Will roared. ¡°To defy the decree of Eternals! It should have ended long ago! It survived and doomed us all!¡±
¡°To escape its end, it did this!¡± Somewhere far off a Will shrieked. ¡°It brought the end to us all!¡±
¡°Destroy it! Destroy it once again! Destroy it again and again!¡±
¡°It may not die here but it can be destroyed. It must be punished! It must be destroyed for all those that would end with it!¡±
¡°Destroy it! Destroy it! Destroy it!¡±
The Wills roared as they destroyed the body of a massive Tiger made of tress, flesh, decay and flowers. It was ripped apart by beings that had been its brethren from the day that it had been born. It had been separated from its domain but had found solace in the company of these that was same as it. All separated, all incomplete.
However, even its brethren sought its end. They knew of its predicament and they knew of its approaching end. They knew that it had been reduced. Chipped away, bit by bit, as it had been attacked by the mortals. From the Will of the entire planet, it had been reduced to a mere will of a single continent. They knew this and they had called it a reduced Will.
But now that it had taken action to save itself, it was vilified and ceaselessly destroyed. Why? Because it had dared to defy? The reduced Will couldn¡¯t bear it! It couldn¡¯t bear the betrayal and it couldn¡¯t bare the cowardice!
Thus, the Will that had been reduced by the mortals to the point of ending walked off into the unending depths of the Tilism. Into the depth where even the strongest Wills and Gods became lost, it walked. It walked and walked and walked until it too became lost.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 35
The Malfae which had grown familiar to the dangers of the Wild once again woke up to cracks echoing in its home. Its drowsy gaze landed on nothing special but its eggs hatching as the little caterpillars fought for their freedom. Such familiarity wasn¡¯t anything unusual amongst immortals as their world was a cruel place where only the fittest survived. Immortals that didn¡¯t develop such a basic necessity was not an immortal for long.
The blue creature sluggishly yawned before it experimentally flapped its wings to wake itself up. Not long after that, it took flight with the last night''s hatchling in its arms and dropped off the bug at the same tree it had last time. The [Reincarnated] checked the tree for predators before it arrived back at the crevice and waited for the rest of the hatchlings to crawl out of their shell. It didn¡¯t have to wait long as out of the 5 remaining eggs, 3 hatched.
No sooner had the caterpillars crawled out of their eggs that the Malfae''s stomach suddenly burned from a piercing hunger which caused it to momentarily lose control of its body and fall. Pained groans escaped its purple lips as bile rose in the back of its throat. However, with each passing moment, the sharp hunger''s edge dulled and the [Survivor] was able to realise that the pain didn''t belong to it. It was just the intimate familiarity of the creature with the [Hungry] induced hunger that the abrupt agony had thrown it back to its own time as a caterpillar.
Although the [Survivor] was able to distance itself from its past, the experience had not been an easy thing for the Malfae.
Ting.
[You have shared your mind with other beings but retained your sense of self. Title [Hive Monarch] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Hive Mind Lv.1] granted.
Immediately, the creature¡¯s thoughts cleared up and the dulled edge of the sharp hunger became pinpricks of a sharp needle as the multiple lingering effects of the Title [Hungry] were distanced from the creature¡¯s mind. The Malfae could still feel the caterpillars'' [Hungry] induced hunger but it did not draw out the Malfae''s memories anymore.
¡®That¡¡¯ The Malfae panted. ¡®¡heavens above.¡¯ The Malfae leaned on the walls of the crevice and panted. The experience had been unexpected and all-consuming which had left behind haunting memories despite being little more than an illusion. The [Survivor]¡¯s body grew hot and its massive ears stood up straight as it bared its sharp teeth. Its head swirled and its dark eyes maliciously glared at the newly born caterpillars. However, the immortal did not act on its impulse and instead let out a breath as it organised its thoughts. ¡®Killing them would do me no good.'' It convinced itself. ''At least they brought me a new Skill¡¡¯
Meanwhile, it focused on its new Skill.
Ting.
[Ability to share thoughts with your progeny while maintaining your sense of self. Cost: none. Time Limit: none.]
The creature tilted its head. ¡®¡it seems promising at least.¡¯ Its pupil-less eyes bored into the hungry caterpillars that were finishing up the last of their eggshells. However, the Malfae forcefully smoothened its features and patted its chest to calm its angry heart before it picked caterpillar and flew off to dump it with the one it had already placed outside. Once it checked for the last time, it flew off to chase after its inexistent prey that satisfied both its greed and its cowardice. Thus, the night passed and the green moon began to fade into consistently brightening blue sky.
¡®Eh?¡¯ The creature was startled at a sudden feeling that one of the caterpillars had levelled up. The [Malfae] frowned but the feeling did not go away, instead, the sensation settled much like the hunger of the caterpillars. ¡®Is this the effect of [Hive Mind]?¡¯ Unsure of the sudden sensation''s source, the blue creature decided to stop its fruitless search and returned to the caterpillars to find the little bugs the same as before, ceaselessly devouring the leaves.
The [Reincarnated] focused on the earlier sensation and immediately it felt drawn to the previous night''s hatchling. Its pupil-less dark eyes narrowed as the sensation became clearer, allowing the [Survivor] feel the caterpillar in its entirety. The Malfae felt that the caterpillar was a day old. It felt the hunger of the caterpillar. It felt the increased level of the caterpillar. Strangely enough, the Malfae wasn''t able to decipher the other things it felt from the caterpillar. It was as if the creature only understood the things that it had previously known.
¡®This begs further investigation.¡¯ The creature surmised. But how will it go along doing that? The creature had little idea.
0.0
As the Malfea continued to hunt the spiders over the next week, it also kept on failing to figure out the peculiar sensation it got from the caterpillars. It had tried several methods to explore more, the first of which had been to just focus on the feeling to gradually decipher the meaning. However, when that had spectacularly failed to give any result, the creature had even tried to study the Essence of caterpillars but this method too had not borne any fruit. It only ended up rediscovering previously known information through [Sense Essence]. Thus, the [Reincarnated] concluded that either its Skill Level was too low to know more, or that the Malfae was trying to use the Skill in a way that it wasn¡¯t supposed to be used.
The third method employed by it was to use [Hive Mind] while using [Mana Manipulation] but that had been even more frustrating. [Mana Manipulation] had refused to work on the caterpillars for obvious reasons and when the Malfae had used the Skill on itself, the Skill had activated but remained as unresponsive as ever. Which brought the creature to its current situation where it¡¯s hairless face was twisted into a mockery of its own. At this point, the creature was even willing to pull its hair out of its skull, strand by strand, if doing so would give it the answer.
The scowling creature''s livid eyes bored into the caterpillars which had grown quite a lot in the past week and were now almost Level 7. However, instead of feeling happy, the Malfae was frustrated at their inadequacy. As these caterpillars were the Malfae¡¯s progeny, the [Reincarnated]¡¯s strongly suspected them to possess a lifespan similar to its own as a caterpillar. If it were true, then the hatchlings had less than 3 months lifespan left and they hadn''t even reached Level 10 yet.
If this went on and the bugs only relied upon the Title [Hungry], then none of them would make it Level 100 before their lifespan ended. After all, the Malfae had faced this situation before. Although it had overcome this limitation through its own ingenuity and intelligence, it didn''t expect that from the mindless caterpillars. They were drones, not reincarnated beings.
This realisation put the Malfae in a desperate situation, causing it to put the exploration of [Hive Mind] on hold to try and Level up the caterpillars faster. To achieve fast Levelling, the creature decided to have the caterpillars hunt but the hatchlings couldn¡¯t hunt for themselves even though their lives depended on it. Thus, it flew off to the spider hunting ground and dug a hole to act as a safe place for the caterpillars to hide. Once it assembled all the caterpillars in the hideout, the [Reincarnated] used the Skill [Hive Mind] to prohibit the caterpillars from leaving the safety of the hole.
Once the bugs were hidden, the [Hive Monarch] covered the hideout with venom smeared leaf and went looking for a spider. It wanted the caterpillars to kill the half-dead spiders to Level up. However, it didn''t end up as easy as the [Survivor] had initially presumed as despite hunting the spider not being a difficult task, keeping it in the state of half death was.
When the Malfea finally managed it though, the idea proved to be a bust as the caterpillars gained not a single Level from eating the spider alive. Such a result startled the [Reincarnated] as it had concluded the spider to be a Tier 1 creature, while the caterpillars were Tier 0 as they had yet to evolve. Thus, killing the spider should have netted them Levels instead of the absolutely nothing they got. Such a result hinted at the only thing. ¡®Is there a no cheating rule here?¡¯ Disappointed as the blue creature was, it repeated the experiment a few more times and each time, the caterpillars got not a single Level.
As Malfae eyed the carcases of the spiders, it thought for a moment about letting the bugs feast on it. However, ultimately decided against it. ¡®These pipsqueaks won¡¯t be able to live out the effect of the poison.¡¯ Thus, the creature decided to eat the poisoned flesh rather than let the meat go to waste. As a result, when the pain from the poisoned flesh of 3 spiders hit the Malfae, it wasn¡¯t surprised in the least. Though, the effect of the venom ended up being quite mild.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
Ting.
[Skill [Poison Resistance Lv.9] has levelled up to [Poison Resistance Lv.10]. Continuous damage caused by poison has been decreased by the 10 points.]
Ting.
[Poison mastered. Enhanced pain property added to the venom.]
¡®Eh?¡¯ The blue creature blinked and read the notification once again. ¡®Yes! Finally!!¡¯ The Malfae laughed. It had been working on this Skill from the moment it had been born as a mere caterpillar. Now that it had become its first Skill to reach Level 10, the creature vindicated. Despite Level 10 being no different than any other previous Level, the double-digit was enough to fill the creature with giddiness.
Buoyed as the creature was, it decided to take the caterpillars back to their feeding tree. This was the area of the spiders and the hatchlings were nothing but a snack here. In fact, they didn¡¯t even qualify to be a complete meal. Thus, the Malfae picked up the oldest caterpillar and brought it out of the hole before covering up the hideout by the venom smeared leaf. Once the creature had made sure that everything was in order, it flew off with the restless bug.
However, as the Malfae dropped the squirming caterpillar back on its tree, it felt one of the hunger pinpricks suddenly vanish, causing the Malfae to pause for a moment. ¡®Is it done already? But how could that be with [Hung-¡¯ The second hunger pinprick vanished before it could finish its initial thought. ¡®Huh?¡¯ The creature focused on [Hive Mind] to make use of the sensations that the caterpillars gave it. However, it felt only a single caterpillar while the rest were astonishingly absent.
The creature¡¯s horrified pupil-less eyes widened as it flapped its wings to turn around and race back. The buzzing of its wings increased along with the speed as the creature rushed to the only trackable caterpillar. However, all of its haste ended up being in vain as the last caterpillar¡¯s sensation and hunger disappeared.
The [Survivor] came to a screeching halt. Its tiny heart hammered within its flat chest while its blood raced. Its body grew hot while its massive ears flattened and its scalp tingled. ¡®Dead. All dead.¡¯ Positive of its assessment, instead of rushing back to the dead bugs, the Malfae landed on the nearby branch and tried to settle its jumbled thoughts.
The Malfae shuddered. It breathed deeply and then it breathed again until its racing heart slowed down as the rush of blood ended. The stifling warmth seeped out of its body and the creature¡¯s wide eyes narrowed. If it was going to deal with this situation, it would do so rationally. ¡®My pride will not get me this time.¡¯
The creature remained seated on the branch for a few more moments before it took off. However, instead of flying to investigate the dead caterpillars, the [Hive Monarch] returned to the sole remaining caterpillar and brought it back to the crevice. With the caterpillar secure, the blue creature flew to the nearest tree to pick a handful of leaves for the caterpillar. Once the bug began eating again, the Malfae hesitated for a moment more as it eyed the [Malfae shield] that always guarded its back. ¡®I might need it myself.¡¯ It frowned before covering the crevice with another leaf. ¡®I can¡¯t afford to leave this here for this stupid caterpillar.¡¯
The blue creature took off to arrive at the location of the dead caterpillars within the spider hunting ground. However, as it observed the hideout, it didn¡¯t even have to go inside the hideout to know that something was wrong as the venom smeared leaf was missing. The [survivor] gingerly landed on a nearby branch and its antennas picked up a foreign scent almost instantly.
To get a clearer picture, it activated [Sense] without wasting even a moment more and all the scents intensified in response. The foreign scent was fresh, sharp and heavy. It was akin to the scent of the black spiders that the Malfae hunted for poison but stronger. Much stronger. This was, unmistakably, the scent of a predator.
The [Reincarnated] flapped its wings and took off as it left the spider hunting ground post haste. All the thoughts of anger and pride left the creature and its heart began pounding once more. ¡®What is such a creature doing hunting caterpillars?!¡¯ A scent that seemed predatory to even a Tier 2 creature like the Malfae was not something that a caterpillar could handle. And neither should such a creature be interested in hunting Tier 0 creatures.
After all, the Malfae itself had not hunted any Tier 0 creatures in a long time. It was the creature¡¯s very nature. It was not something that it chose to do, it was something it just did. The creature understood this very clearly. Being an ambusher, the [Survivor] understood that something was unnatural in the whole situation. This, it left without even a second thought.
The truth of the matter was that the Malfae¡¯s senseless and malicious killing of spiders, to relieve its frustrations, had attracted the attention of the Tier 2 creatures within the area. And one such creature had decided to hunt the hunter but not because it sought vengeance for the dead spiders. Immortals didn¡¯t even understand the concept of vengeance properly. Let alone, seeking it for other creatures. Seeking vengeance for others, the immortals wouldn¡¯t even know where to begin to understand such a foreign and idiotic concept.
The Tier 2 spider had laid a trap for the [Hive Monarch] because of the Malfae¡¯s inherent value. After all, the Malfae was a new Tier 2 creature and not a particularly high levelled one at that. It was a weak and easy prey that could provide a good boost towards their next level. Thus, the spider had tracked down the [Survivor] and had observed it for a long time to lay its trap.
As a result, when the Malfae had flown off with the caterpillar, the spider had killed the caterpillars in the hideout and lined the walls of the hole with its sticky web to lie in wait. With the recklessly malicious nature that the spider had noticed, it had been confident in ambushing an enraged Malfae. Unfortunately for the hunter, its prey had the intelligence of mortals and the caution of the immortals. This left the predator sitting in a hole, twiddling its inexistent thumbs.
0.0
The Malfae returned to the crevice and checked it with both [Sense] and [Sense Essence] before entering it to find the caterpillar happily munching away. After the scare it had just received, the [Survivor] didn''t dare take any chances.
As it landed on the pile of yellowed grass, the Malfae sighed. ¡®I should get new ones. These are all dried out.¡¯ The [Reincarnated]''s gaze landed on the caterpillar and it shuddered. The loss of the three caterpillars weighed heavily in its mind despite the Malfae not being attached to the hatchlings. It was as if its possession had been stolen. Not a particularly precious possession or something of any value. But its possession all the same. The creature¡¯s chest tightened and it breathed deeply.
As the [Hive Monarch] came to terms with the events of the night, it had a sudden realisation. It ran away from the cockroach that had destroyed its very first egg while it had not even dared to face the creature that had killed three of its progenies. What did that say about the Malfae? ¡®I am a coward, that¡¯s what.¡¯ If the creature had been a mortal, then the realization would have either increased the creature¡¯s [Reflection] Attribute or granted it the Attribute if the Malfae had lacked it previously. Such was the enormity of this realization.
But the creature was an immortal and immortals were denied all Attribute. Thus, the creature merely sighed and turned to stare at the happily munching caterpillars in contemplation.
¡®I should, shouldn¡¯t I?¡¯ With the decision made, the creature grimaced. ¡®[Drone Eggs].¡¯ Immediately, a familiar sensation made itself known and the Malfae¡¯s crotch began leaking fluids that ran down its thighs before wetting the dried grass pile. At the same time, its abdomen bulged before the said bulge began to move down the creature¡¯s body. Soon enough, with a wet splosh, an egg fell on the floor in between the creature¡¯s crotch. And then the process repeated quite a few more times to produce a total of 15 eggs.
The [Survivor] panted as it darkly eyed the eggs for a moment before placing them in the corner. It piled up the wet yellowed grass into a bundle and flew out of the crevice until it reached the small lake where it had dumped its shed skin and landed near the shore. It then dipped the bundle of grass into the water and washed it until the fluid had come off of the grass before throwing the grass deeper into the lake.
With the grass disposed of safely, the creature turned back to head to the crevice. On its way back, the Malfae collected a new bundle of soft grass for its bed. Reaching the crevice, it checked up on the caterpillar that was still eating the leaves that the Malfae had picked up for it earlier in the night and fell asleep.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 36 [Serialising method changed]
Kiran arrived at the painted cottage of his teacher, Guru Pranay. As the white-robed young silently waited for the man inside to acknowledge his presence as his bright gaze fell on the poor artwork decorating the sleek mud walls. Though faded now, the drawings still retained the innocence only found in the works of children.
However, the threads of time had not just touched the paint but also Kiran and in these years, much had changed for the inspector''s son. The most visible of it all was that he was no longer a teen but had grown into a young adult. Gone was the skinniness of the early teenage years, instead the young man was lanky and tall. He had overcome the shortness of height that had plagued him in his childhood and almost matched the height of the tall father.
Yet, his face remained as plain as ever. His features were forgettable and his skin dark. Such was the commonness of his features that if not for the white robes of the monks, he would be lost in the crowd. Kiran''s excited gaze shifted away for the faded colours as Guru Pranay walked out of the cottage and nodded at the young man. ¡°Have you reached Level 10?¡±
¡°Pranam, Guru Ji.¡± The young man folded his hands and bowed in greeting as he answered. ¡°I reached Level 10 not too long ago, yes.¡±
¡°Hmm.¡± The man nodded. ¡°And your Skills?¡±
¡°[Anatomy Vision] has reached Level 9.¡± The young man answered a sigh escaped this thick lips. ¡° But [Link] is still at Level 3.¡±
¡°Worry not about the Skill [Link].¡± The saffron-clad dismissed the worry with the wave of his increasingly wrinkled hand. ¡°You are ascetic who walks the path of austerity. The path of [Link] is not yours.¡± The young man grimaced at the words but nodded nonetheless. He understood that though the need of other beings of his species could not be eliminated given his [Race], his Class did reduce it to a degree.
This reduction in the need of civilization became visibly apparent every time visitors came to the ashram. The more Kiran heard and learned of their troubles and their worries, the more he found them trivial and insignificant. Perhaps this was why the high Tiered people like his teacher remained within the ashram. Perhaps, it was also why weapon arts had always been mandatory for the disciples. The more disconnected the students became, the more the chances of disagreements arose when the disciples left on their inevitable journeys.
Thus, like the rest of the disciples within the ashram, he too had learned a weapon art and the teachings of his father had come in handy when the young man had taken up spear once again. Although he could not match a [Warrior], for an ascetic like him it had been enough.
However, it was not all as training in weapon arts helped him in unexpected ways. It had raised his [Agility] attribute to 4. His Mental Attributes and Bridge Attributes too had risen on their own as he had grown, allowing most of his attributes to increase. However, this growth had been tempered by the limits of his [Race] as the 7 points represented the best state achievable by a mortal body. On the other hand, 5 points represented the average attribute that most people achieved within their lifetimes.
Nonetheless, all the increase in attributes were accomplishments. However, his most important achievement had been to reach [Level 10] in his Class. And much alike when he had earned his Class, he had neither been one of the last ones of his batch to do so nor had he been the first ones. He had been just the average which had suited him just fine.
To him, the accomplishment itself was important, not the time taken to earn it. After all, [Level 10] was a big achievement; not just for him but for anyone as now Kiran could finally choose his first spell! The very thought had made him giddy. Sitting outside his teacher''s cottage, the young man smiled brightly.
Guru Pranay laugh line adorned lips twitched in a small smile. ¡°Choose your Spell now.¡± The white-clad young man summoned his Status without a moment¡¯s delay and focused on the addition sign next to the Spell tab.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!
The young man¡¯s smile faltered as only two Spells were offered to be granted. He frowned and focused on the first Spell, [Stimulate].
Ting.
[Stimulate]
[Allows the user to Stimulate the production of target¡¯s muscles and flesh by the factor of 2x[SL]. Does not work on internal organs. Cost: [Sum of the target''s Physical Attributes] MP/Min. Do you wish for this Spell to be granted?]
[Yes] ????[No]
¡°This is the Healer path Spell that you should have worked for.¡± The saffron-robed man informed the white-robed young man. ¡°What is the other one?¡±
Ting.
[Boost]
[Allows the user to add the value of an Attribute to another. Cost: [Value of the added Attribute] MP/Min. Do you wish for this Spell to be granted?]
[Yes] ???? [No]
¡°This is the Warrior path Spell. Your Skill in weapons is the plausible reason for its appearance.¡± The saffron-robed man nodded in thought. ¡°You should choose the first Spell.¡± The young man agreed with the advice and refused the Spell, [Boost], before focusing once again on the Skill, [Stimulate].
Ting.
[You have selected the Spell [Stimulate]. Are you sure you want this Spell to be granted?]
[Yes] ???? [No]
Kiran focused on the [Yes].
Ting.
[Spell [Stimulate] granted.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 9]
The bald man''s dull gaze lingered on the muddy strand of dark hair while red veins covering his eyes pulsed to fight the dryness brought on by his unblinking stare. Meanwhile, the thick patch of the darkness beneath his eyes battled unspoken exhaustion. The trembling of his limbs was now dead and the hammering in his chest had stopped, just like his-
The icy chill had now dissipated to be replaced by a warmth that was no longer pleasant. A warmth that would never be found in his d-
The unflinching man breathed deeply but the action no longer caused his breath to hitch. His heart didn¡¯t race and his legs didn¡¯t go weak; they were once again steady and firm. Yet his daughter remained d-
The unblinking [Shishya] finally closed his eyes but no thick tears raced down his aged face anymore; the dried tracts remained the only sign of their passing. With the fall of the heavy eyelids, the red eyes no longer remained dry and their pulsing decreased. A pulse his daughter no long-
The aged man picked himself from the mud floor but his firm knees and steady legs failed him. He fell face first. With a light sound of bone cracking, his nose bled to paint his white robes red. However, the man felt no pain. Was there even pain? He neither knew nor cared for the answer. What he cared for was his de-
The man breathed again as he cared not for the blood pooling on his face. Thus, he coughed as the red liquid raced up his nose and into his lungs. He continued to cough, yet forced his flesh to breathe through the blood, causing him to cough again. These were the breathes that his daughter would never-
His heart didn¡¯t race, his pulse wasn¡¯t fast and his flesh was no longer frigid to the bone. Nonetheless, the man suffocated and his broken heart continued to shatter while the unshed acidic tears simmered within his eyes. These were the tears for his daughter that was de-
The man pushed himself off the floor and the broken glass bangles fell off his clothes to tinkle on the ground. The sound of it would have been pretty once upon a time, however now it was just a reminder of the unbearable cries of his wife. Her heart-wrenching sobs lingered in his ears and so did her demand to bring back her daughter who was d-
The [Shishya] picked up the long strand of black hair- no. It wasn¡¯t just hair. It was the Remnant of his daughter. The aged man clenched his fist, but the Remnant was so thin and light that it may as well be nonexistent; just like his d-
His firm knees and steady legs took an unstable step forward before they took another shaking step. One miserable step at a time, the bald man treacherously walked up to his workspace. However, it proved too much for his calm heart as he collapsed in his chair. As his nose stopped bleeding, the man laid the Remnant down with his un-shaking hands. His dry eyes moved up as his hollow gaze passed over the glass jars containing concoctions, Remnants and ingredients. All of which had been meant for his d-You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
¡°¡why?¡± A firm whisper escaped his steady lips. ¡°¡[Concoctor] path still existed¡¡± He didn¡¯t understand. Why had she become so lost? Why had she given up hope? She had known about it. Then why had she forgotten it? His heart didn¡¯t threaten to burst out of his chest as he failed to understand. He hadn¡¯t asked much. He had wanted to give her a bright future. He had wanted to save her from the suffering of searching for her path. He had wanted to give her the entire world. Then why has she k-
His blood didn¡¯t race and his eyes didn¡¯t pour as he failed to understand the loss. She had been here just a few days ago. She had been a disappointment but she had been here. She had been secluded and quiet but she had been here. She had grown thin and gaunt but she had been here. She hadn¡¯t lost her hair but she had been here. She hadn¡¯t been d-
His wife¡¯s sobbing shrieks didn¡¯t haunt his ears as he stared at the Remnant. The ashram had dispatched their trackers but it had been too late. The face of the Acharya while handing over the Remnant hadn¡¯t been sorrowful. It had apologetic. It hadn¡¯t shocked him. Perhaps he had even expected it. Perhaps it was something that happened every year. Perhaps they suppressed the news every year. Perhaps his daughter wouldn¡¯t have ki-
An unbearable weight didn''t crush his heart, and his flesh didn''t grow burning hot as his hollow gaze remained fixated on the Remnant of his only child born in his late age after much difficulty. He didn''t bang his fist until they bled. He didn''t let out a guttural scream that tore his throat. He certainly didn''t breakdown into sobs at his daughter''s d-
She had been a failure but she had been his daughter. His only child. For all her faults, he had loved her. But now she was dead. Gone. She had killed herself. She had been ripped apart by beasts. Her flesh had been devoured until the only thing left had been her Remnant. She had been a disappointment and a let-down but she had been his only daughter.
And now she was dead because she couldn¡¯t endure her failure. The bald [Shishya] did not scream in unbearable anguish.
Ting.
[Your level has been decreased. 1 Attribute point deducted from the most recently manipulated Attribute.]
Ting.
[Skill Level exceeds the Class Level. Skill Level has been adjusted.]
Ting.
[Skill Level lost. Skill [Focus Lv.20] has been levelled down to [Focus Lv.19]]
Chapter 37
With its translucent milky wings spread out and hands firmly placed at its hips, the Malfae glared down at the twitchy blue caterpillar. The winged immortal''s pupil-less dark eyes sought out the empty space where the latest batch of its eggs had been previously and the scowl on its blue face further deepened. However, [Hungry] caterpillar continued to restlessly search the crevice for something -anything- to eat.
Within a mortal consciousness, it would seem akin to a mother admonishing her naughty child that had been caught red-handed. However, there was no mortal present and the Malfae was considering whether or not to kill the caterpillar. It pinched the bridge of its nose. ¡®Don¡¯t kill it. It¡¯s not the caterpillar¡¯s fault. It is just an Egoless creature. I should have been careful. I should have forbidden it.¡¯ The [Hive Monarch] sighed.
The Malfae''s irritated gaze lingered on the caterpillar as it enjoyed the bug''s [Hungry] induced agony before it activated the Skill, [Drone Eggs] to produce a new batch of eggs. ¡®I just changed the grass last night.'' It clucked its tongue and bundled up the fluid laden grass. Meanwhile, it focused on the caterpillar to prohibit it from consuming the new eggs. Though no sooner had it done so than the [Reincarnated]''s eyes widened and its mouth fell open. ¡®It levelled up?¡¯ The feeling it got from the bug clearly conveyed the bug''s Level to be somewhere around Level 10.
The Malfae''s wide bored into the drone as its mind raced. ¡®Isn¡¯t this a bit too absurd?¡¯ While constantly feeding on uncountable leaves for more than a week, the vermin had barely managed to reach Level 7. Yet, it had levelled up 3 times from devouring eggs. What kind of nonsense was that?
¡®Should I? Or not?¡¯ The Malfae messaged its temples as it came to a decision. The evolved moth darkly eyed the caterpillar for a moment, only to let out a sigh as it spread the grass back on the floor. It laid down and used [Drone Eggs] to create another batch for the caterpillar. ¡®Eat.¡¯ The Malfae ordered.
The drone did not need to be told twice and started gobbling down the eggs with a ferociousness rivalling that of a hungry dog. It didn''t show even a single bit of hesitation at eating an egg similar to its own. The Malfae hadn''t expected anything else as the drone was just an Egoless creature that had no sense of self. It was merely a package of instincts.
As the Malfae silently observed as the caterpillar ate one egg after the other, the [Hive Monarch] clearly felt each time the vermin levelled up. By the time the caterpillar had made it through the eggs, it had levelled up two times. ''To profit from murdering your siblings.'' The [Reincarnated]¡¯s lips twisted in a smile. ''Someone, somewhere, was trying to be a bit too edgy.¡¯
A dark smile still played on its purple lips as the Malfae left the crevice to later return with more grass to layer the floor of the crevice. If the creature was going to create more eggs, then it did not want its own bodily fluids staining the crevice. Once the floor had been covered in the grass, the creature began to produce more eggs. ¡®The sooner the caterpillar evolves, the better.¡¯
Once it had produced 30 eggs by using [Drone Eggs] twice, the Skill levelled up. It now required about 50 MP per usage of the Skill. The Malfae could have continued creating eggs but the creature chose not to. After all, it lived within the Wild and depleting its MP would be incredibly foolish.
The [Hive Monarch] felt like a glorified maid as it once again bundled up the fluid-soaked grass and flew off to dispose it into the lake, where it collected a new bundle and returned to the crevice. However, its mood only worsened as it found the blue caterpillar already devouring the 3rd egg. The [Reincarnated] scowled as it reigned its impulse of delivering just punishment.
It was not the caterpillar''s fault. The Title [Hungry] forced the bug to eat constantly, as nothing could sate the unending hunger. The Malfae had experienced the same itself thus it could not find fault with the caterpillar for doing the same. However, that didn¡¯t mean that the Malfae had to like it and it clucked its tongue in distaste.
However, despite the [Hive Monarch]''s dislike for the caterpillar, it took care of the vermin''s hunger for the caterpillar was its possession. Thus, the [Reincarnated] flew off to collect a large stockpile of leaves for the caterpillar to eat during the night. It then laid down the new grass along the floor before it left the crevice to begin its routine.
Now that the Malfae''s [Poison Resistance] had levelled up once again, it doubted the efficiency of little spider¡¯s venom. Though, as it didn''t want to take unnecessary risks if that wasn''t the case, the creature returned to the spider hunting area. However, given its cowardly nature, it remained on the periphery which turned the hunt into an incredibly time-consuming affair.
Once the spider had been hunted, the creature did confirm its doubt that the venom¡¯s had lost its efficacy, causing it to grimace. ¡®Another search added to the list.¡¯
0.0
As the flowers began to die and the temperature began to rise over the course of the next week, its useless search indeed began all over again. During this time, the creature hunted quite a variety of new critters that it hadn''t eaten before but none of the crickets, grasshoppers, centipedes, millipedes and many others managed to inflict even a single point HP loss on the Malfae.
This was not an anomaly of course. Neither was this a result of the Malfae¡¯s Skill reaching some unknown level of power. This result was simply a product of the [Reincarnated]''s cowardice. All the critters that the Malfae had hunted over the week were truly just that, critters. They had either been Tier 0 or Tier 1 creatures while the Malfae was a Tier 2 creature with its [Poison Resistance] at Level 10. How could any of their poison¡¯s hurt the Malfae? It would have been a small miracle if the poison of any those creatures had worked.
Not that the Malfae realized this of course. While its newfound realization did tell the creature that it was a coward, the creature still confused caution with cowardice and exchanged one for the other. Yet, the past week had not been all that bad the [Hive Monarch] as the blue caterpillar had continued its streak of levelling up. Though, with each level, the creature had needed more and more eggs for the next one.
As a result of constant use, the Malfae''s [Drone Egg] had levelled up to reach Level 6. The Skill now produced 21 eggs per usage for 60 MP. Meanwhile, the caterpillar had continued to level up and now comfortably sat at Level 53. The creature did not know how it felt about this development.
0.0
After another night of fruitless search, the frustrated [Hive Monarch] flew back to the crevice with its purple lips pulled back in a snarl. In its frustration, the [Reincarnated] was quite tempted to visit the spider hunting ground. However, after its last experience, the creature didn''t dare to go deep into that territory. Thus, all hot and bothered, the creature flew until it spotted a scorpion and landed on the nearby branch to observe.
It activated the Skill [Sense], causing its antennas to pick up a sharp and bitter scent which lacked the dangerous edge the Malfae associated with danger. ¡®Let¡¯s see.¡¯ With a thought, the creature directed the [Malfae Shield] towards the ignorant scorpion and chopped off the scorpion''s tail without much difficulty. The evolved moth then used the shield as a badgering ram and slammed it onto the shrieking insect.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
The scorpion died before could even understand who attacked it and why. This scorpion, much like the Malfae¡¯s other preys, had been nothing more than critter. It was a recently evolved Tier 1 immortal and if Malfae thought it could get anything out of the creature other than flesh, then it was dreaming.
The [Reincarnated] landed near the chopped off stinger and carefully picked it up before flying up to a thick branch and smashing the stinger down. The venom splashed on the wood and the creature carefully dipped its finger in the liquid before tasting it. After that, the creature waited. And it waited for some time more before it repeated the process. When nothing happened even then, the blue creature scowled. ¡®Useless! Absolutely useless.¡¯
The [Hive Monarch] flew off and arrived back at the crevice with the scowl still etched onto its face. Its eyes landed on the caterpillar carelessly munching on some leaves and then on the empty bed of grass. The eggs had already been eaten.
The Malfae heavily landed on the grass and activated its Skill to produce eggs again. This was the routine that it had come up with to maximize the production of eggs. Every night, after waking up and before sleeping, the creature would use 120 MP to create eggs. This would leave the creature with enough MP to work with for the rest of the night. At the same time, with its regeneration of 11 MP/Hour, the Malfae could regenerate the MP during the night and the following day when it slept.
With the eggs done, the [Reincarnated] waited for them dry off before disposing of the grass-bed in the lake. Meanwhile, it collected new grass for the same process tomorrow. As the creature lay in the pile of grass, its problems haunted its thoughts.¡®Should I?¡¯
¡®No! Am I crazy or what?¡¯ The creature refuted immediately. It hadn¡¯t levelled up yet because of this reason. ¡®Why would I do that now for a Skill? Yes, let¡¯s wait for the perfect prey.¡¯ The creature retreated into its shell of cowardice. ¡®I have waited this long to Level up. I can wait for Skill Level up too.¡¯
¡®Umm¡ When was the last time I levelled up?¡¯ The creature¡¯s brows scrunched up as it tried to recall. It had last levelled when it evolved and had consumed its own shell. It clucked its tongue.¡®That was almost 2 months ago. This¡ can¡¯t go on.¡¯ The creature shivered unexpectedly. ¡®Something needs to change. But what¡?¡¯
¡®Should I hunt stronger creatures? But that¡¯s just courting disaster.¡¯
¡®What else can I do though¡?¡¯
0.0
While the Malfae vacillated in between its option, the caterpillar levelled up to Level 71 over the course of the week as the temperature continued to gradually rise. Nights began losing its coolness and the dawn started becoming warmer.
During this time, the Malfae had thought about giving up on the Skill [Poison Resistance] a few times. But each time it ended up deciding against it. After all, its venom was the thing that had allowed the evolved moth to survive until now within the Wild. And even though it was not using its venom these days, it was mostly due to a lack of suitable prey. Once the creature found a suitable prey to hunt, it knew it would depend on [Venom Creation] once again.
Thus, giving up on either [Venom Creation] or [Poison Resistance] was equivalent to giving up on its life. And if there was one thing that the creature had that could win over its cowardice, then that was the creature¡¯s self-preservation.
As a result, after another week of dilly-dallying, the [Reincarnated] hesitantly decided to hunt a creature that was not just a critter and flew out of the cave to begin its search. Meanwhile, the temperature had continued to rise as even the darkest of nights had now gone from pleasantly warm to mildly hot.
As the creature flew under the azure moon, it came across a hornet nest and immediately retreated without even taking a moment to investigate. There was no way it was going to go into another territory claimed by insects such as these. Not after the incident with the ants.
Though, now that the Malfae had gained the Skill [Hive Mind], some of the mystery regarding the behaviour of the ants had dissipated. However, this did not mean that the creature was interested in finding more about how the things worked with creatures such as ants, bees and hornets.
As the evolved moth made its way across its portion of the forest, the creature came across the various critters but the Malfae didn¡¯t stop to hunt any of them. Instead, it kept on flying until it reached the area where it had been hatched.
The [Survivor] tried to look for things it recognised but couldn¡¯t find anything even remotely familiar as the year that had passed had changed the region quite thoroughly. The plants it had once eagerly devoured had not made it past the winter. Even the poisonous plant no longer existed. Though none of it was particularly shocking given the damage the Malfae had done to them as a caterpillar.
The [Hive Monarch] continued to fly until it came across the area where it had fought the snails. That tree too was, unfortunately, dead and in its place new plants were growing now. Though the creature doubted they would make it through the year, given the existing heat and the ceaseless rise in temperature.
The creature continued to fly in the direction that it remembered the other scorpion coming from and finally landed when its antennas picked up the faint scent that seemed sharp, bitter and dangerous. It activated its Skill, [Sense] and immediately the scents in the area thickened, allowing the Malfae to pick up the one it was after.
As the Skill would last for only 4 minutes, the creature instantly flew up and started tracking the scent back to its source. The Malfae flew fast as it tried to cover as much area as it could. Thus, it didn''t take the [Survivor] much time to find an area which seemed positively saturated in the sharp fragrance, causing the [Reaincarnated]''s dark eyes to gleam as it carefully landed while its pupil-less eyes sought the creature that had once seemed liked like an undefeatable entity. The Malfae still remembered just hoe easily the scorpion had shrugged off its venom as if the liquid had been nothing but spice. ¡®Huh. It¡¯s just like how I do it these days.¡¯
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.4] has reached [Sense Lv.5]. The active time of the Skill has been increased to 5 minutes.]
¡®Of all the time!¡¯ The creature cursed as it dismissed the notification to observe its prey. The scorpion had dull brown chitin that covered its entire body and its stinger was long and sturdy. Its two front claws were huge and almost thrice the size of the creature¡¯s face which was quite something for it had two massive pincers in front of its mouth, right below its dark beady eyes.
The Malfae grimaced for it didn''t want to hunt the creature. After all, the [Hive Monarch] knew that this insect had a pretty strong [Poison Resistance] which would nullify its venom. Meanwhile, the [Reincarnated]''s experience with fighting the ant and other scorpions warned the Malfae of a possible chitin Skill which would nullify the cutting attack of its [Malfae Shield]. Thus, blocking all possible damage-dealing methods the [Hive Monarch] possessed.
Yet, this scorpion was also the best option available to the winged creature for a couple of reasons. The first of which was that the scorpion was the only possible prey the [Survivor] felt knowledgable about while for the rest, it would have to go in blind. The second and more important reason was that the scorpion couldn''t fly while the Malfae could, allowing it a safe method to retreat.
The Malfae had also considered fighting the Tier 2 spider immortal but it had given up on that idea when it had remembered their ability to shoot web which had almost cost the [Survivor] its life once. The creature had no intention of repeating the scenario.
However, despite deciding on its prey, the Malfae was not sure of its ability to actually hunt down the scorpion. After all, the Scorpion was at least Tier 2 and it had survived the previous year without any problem, which implied that it had been alive long enough to expect and get used to the drastic change in temperatures. This in turn meant that the scorpion was an old creature and also a survivor, much like the Malfae itself. Hunting it would not be easy. Thus, the Malfae decided to wait and observe its prey for the next few days and only then it would decide if it would even make a move or not.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 38
Standing outside the ashram, where he had once stood all those years ago, Kiran''s conflicted gaze lingered on the wooden gate. It had been almost 10 years since he had first walked through this gate. A decade. He had grown much in these years. Neither was he a boy now, nor a young adult. He was a fully grown man of twenty-two years of age.
However, his face still lacked even a single strand of facial hair; something that had caused him much distress in his younger years when his sense of masculinity had been fragile and sense of self had been brittle. Even knowing that they had been a part of his unwitting sacrifice had not helped him any. As a result, his smooth skin gave him a babyface despite his age. Alongside his bald head and his white robes which contrasted against his rich brown skin, he exuded a dignified and pure aura, much to the chagrin of the young man.
But that mattered not now as he was leaving. His gaze travelled down the low wooden walls that still seemed to be infested with termites; the continuous march of time hadn¡¯t seemed to have affected them much. Though looking at them, what Kiran saw now and what he had seen then were vastly different things. He now knew to look beyond the appearance and to stare at the truth hidden beneath.
The gate that seemed light and flimsy was made from the Remnant of an ancient and monstrous tree. It was stronger than any metal gate available in their province while the walls contained a colony of a Termite Monarch that had been raised as a tamed creature within the ashram.
The colony was the primary defence against the monsters that resided in the forest. It acted as both the shock troop and the cannon fodder. Generations after generations of the Termite Monarchs had served the ashram before being released far into the wild with the natural death of their tamers. This was the pact between the Tamers and the tamed.
Mortals lived short lives that blazed like lightning while monsters lived elongated ones that simmered like embers. Yet it was Mortals that achieved greatness while monsters still struggled to survive. And this was the basis on which Tamers tamed the monsters. In exchange of obedience for the short duration of a mortals¡¯ lifespan, a monster gained the resourcefulness of mortals. It gained their knowledge and their help with its evolutions only to be released within a century when the mortal finally died.
Century was a duration of time that meant less and less to monsters as they evolved. A critter may have had a lifespan of merely a few months. However, within the span of a few evolutions, it had the potential to outlive most Mortals. This was the essence of the Tamer¡¯s pact. But this was only one of the methods of forming such pacts.
However, Kiran knew of the dark secret of Tamers. Despite the seeming sacredness of the pact, this was a pact meant to be broken by mortals. If not by the one that made the pact, then by those that ruled mortals. No government of any sort would allow the release of powerful monsters that knew the working of mortal civilizations. It was lunacy. It meant courting disasters when the resource lacking monsters revisited the civilization within a couple of centuries.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
As a result, [Monster Tamer] was a highly regulated Class. Every individual possessing the Class needed to register themselves and their beasts with the government, mandatorily. The Tamers were also required to get their monsters linked to government tracking scrolls which tracked the monsters at all times. Any Tamer that resisted the rules, or refused to follow them, was charged with high treason and executed. None of the governments and rulers anywhere tolerated a defiant Tamer.
All these measures were for one goal which was to kill the tamed monsters when the Tamer neared death or died suddenly due to conflict. With the death of the monsters, not only were future calamities avoided but these monsters that had served the mortals in their lives also benefited the mortals in their deaths by having their Remnants harvested.
Such was the profitable business of the taming monsters.
And such had been the fate of every Termite Monarch released after the death of its Tamer. Though, the ones to kill the Termite Monarch had never been the people of the ashram; for they lived with the termite Monsters and if such acts were sensed by the monsters, then only doom awaited them. Not wanting to face such a situation, the ashram had always passed on the deed and the resulting profit to the local rulers.
Thus, the weak gate and the termite-infested walls which had once made him feel unsafe once offered him a sense of safety now. But Kiran turned away from the gate and walked off. Now that he had reached Level 20, he needed to go on his journey of self-reflection.
This journey was not something that other Classes had to go through. But Kiran possessed not just any Class. He was a [Shishya]. Not only did this Class require an ascetic life to continuously Level but it also required a high [Reflection] Attribute of 12.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 10]
A wrinkled hand snatched up the herb from the table and the thoughtless action crushed the delicate leaves into a useless mess. However, the aged and bald man cared not for their state as he hurriedly threw the damaged herbs into the stone mortal before smashing the pestle down with great force. The thoughtless action caused the wooden table to tremble under the assault and the bubbling blue concoction was spilt out into red hot flame which loudly sizzled in protest.
Wide eyes unblinkingly monitored the spillage while twitching hands erratically crushed the herb in an even paste. ¡°No. No! NO!¡± The loud bark echoed within the rather empty room which had once been stacked with Remnants, concoctions and ingredients abound. The vacant shelves witnessed the outburst as the bubbling fizzled out and the bright blue liquid gradually changed into a grey mess. ¡°Why! Why did it fail?! [Focus]!¡±
[Focus]
Tier 1 effect: Recall all the information studied under the effect of the Skill.
Black Basil. Protects against diseases like- Boosts health. Remnant accumulates in- Crush in even paste to use. Used to heal winter maladies and- Common. Old memories resurfaced as the Skill did its work. However, the recalled information was incomplete; a testament of how low he had fallen. He was just a Level 1 [Shishya].
It wouldn¡¯t be long now.
The man covered in filthy white robes snatched up the clay vessel from the hot flame and threw it towards the drain by the wall. However, his aim was erratic and the clay shattered with a loud sound, staining the mud wall in an unpleasant colour of dull grey as the liquid slowly dripped down.
The angry man panted and his red eyes fidgeted around the room to look for the more ingredients, only to find blank shelves and empty jars. Veins pulsed through his thin skin as his red eyes fell on the fresh grey stains adorning the wall. Failure. Like her. Failure.
The wrinkled skin on his hands tautened as he clenched his fist. His wide nose puffed up and his aged wide eyes fidgeted. He wasn¡¯t wrong. He wasn¡¯t wrong! All he had wanted was for her to do good! How was that wrong? He had scolded her when she had been a disappointment and he had praised her when she had achieved to his satisfaction.
Satisfaction. Santosh. It was his name. Santosh Sanchay. Accumulated satisfaction. He hated it now. It has taken his daughter from him. It had taken his Levels from him. And it would take his Class from him. He felt it in his spirit.
It wouldn¡¯t be long now.
However, he couldn¡¯t accept it. How could he? All his youth had been whittled away in mastering his craft. He had once been equivalent to a Level 20 [Concoctor]. Yet it all had been chipped away, leaving him a mere Level 1 [Shishya] now. He couldn¡¯t bear it. How could he accept that all his sacrifices had been for nothing? How could he accept that his life had been for nothing? He couldn¡¯t.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
His bloodshot eyes found the clay pot that had once contained the Remnant of his daughter, a single strand of her dark hair. But that too had been taken from him, confiscated for his own good! Ha! He spat out a glob of spit at the wall. The gods had interfered to prevent him from refining the Remnant. He spat again.
At least that way her death would have served a purpose. With her Remnant rotting away, her death had no meaning. It was hollow. He couldn¡¯t accept it! How could the death of someone he loved be meaningless? He refused to let her life be meaningless. But even that had been denied to him.
Filthy nails dug into his skin within his clenched fists as his breathing became laboured. He knew what they said about him. But they were wrong! He hadn¡¯t killed his daughter. He hadn¡¯t! No matter what his wife screamed at him, he hadn¡¯t killed her. No matter the hidden glances sent his way, he hadn¡¯t killed his daughter. He hadn¡¯t. He hadn¡¯t!! She had killed herself!
He had merely wanted the best for her. He still wanted the best for her. He wanted his daughter¡¯s life to have meaning. Yet, they called him crazy when he tried. They were horrified that he wanted to refine her Remnant. He was her parent. Her father! He knew what was best for her. Both in life and death! Not them!
His trembling hands found another clay pot and the man placed it on the burning wood but his mind was not on the task. His bloodshot eyes were wide and his speech fast and erratic as he talked to himself, ¡°I need to Level up. Faster! I need to reach Tier 2. And get the next Skill! Then I would read her Remnant. I would know what to use it best for! I will give her death meaning. I would not let her life go to waste! I won¡¯t! I won¡¯t! I won¡¯t!!¡±
It wouldn¡¯t be long now.
But he had to stop it. He had to be faster. He had to Level his Class before he lost it. That was the only way. Yes, he had to just be faster. It would have helped if he had his second Skill but it had been revoked when his Level fell below 10. Yet he wouldn¡¯t give up. For his daughter, he couldn¡¯t give up. He had to succeed!
Ting.
[Your Level has been decreased. 1 Attribute point deducted from the most recently manipulated Attribute.]
Ting.
[Class [Shishya] lost.]
Ting.
[Skill [Focus] lost.]
Ting.
[No Class detected. Access to [Status] is revoked.]
-X-
Chapter 39
Over the course of the next week, sweltering heat descended from the heavens to scorch the earth with a hungry vengeance. Its angry dryness smothered the world like thick smog, allowing no room for respite from the constant bombardment of the thin air which sought to drain all moisture. In such a situation, tiresome activities became hopeless as the air even heated the lungs.
As if participating in a competition of inducing suffering, the passing winds played their part and instead of providing respite from the scorching heat, they boosted the hotness to make it even drier; something that the Malfae had difficulty wrapping its little blue head around. The passage of these thirsty winds left misery in their wake as all they left behind was severe dehydration which often led to parching deaths. Life miserably struggled and endlessly suffered before it died to the increasingly hostile environment. It seemed as if the very heavens wanted to see the naked dance of naked.
And this was the situation at night. The [Hive Monarch] couldn''t even begin to imagine the condition during the day when the tyrannical Sun reigned supreme.
It was thus no surprise that the [Reincarnated] was already regretting being alive, despite it being the Malfae''s first summer. At the same time, the blue creature was incredibly thankful that it hadn¡¯t hatched in the middle of this hungering summer. For if it had been so, the [Survivor] had no delusions about its survival. As a mere caterpillar, it would have died thirsty and parched. Perhaps its roasted body would have made a tasty snack for the bird that had been its very first encounter with death.
Suffering through such weather, its plan of hunting the stupidly powerful scorpion was flushed down the drain. However, it hadn''t been before it had suffered because of her inexperience of hostile environments, causing the daring Malfae to experience the unforgiving hostility first hand when it had decided to continue the stakeout even after the arrival of the winds.
For its monumental stupidity, the [Reincarnated] had found itself dehydrated by the end of the night and only a hurried trip to the rapidly diminishing lake had saved its life. The tepid water had gradually rehydrated the Malfae but hadn''t cooled it down. After this baptism by fiery winds, the cowardly creature had locked itself within its shadowy crevice. Let alone staking out the scorpion, the [Hive Monarch] hadn''t even dared to go out to hunt. Hence, as nights passed and it maintained its self-isolation, the Skill [Night Vision] had levelled up once to reach Level 7.
During this time, the blue creature had survived on a simple diet its own eggs. However, the need for water had persisted. The Malfae had made use of the nearby lake initially to solve this problems but the water-body had already been tiny before and the heat hadn''t helped it any. As a result, the lake had shrunk under the ceaseless assault until it had transformed from a small lake to a muddy pool with nothing but rotting fish. The creature hadn''t been there since.
With the lake out of the picture, the Malfae had experimentally ordered the blue caterpillar to drink its own venom. If the experiment failed and the bug died, it wouldn''t be much of a loss but if the experiment succeeded then it would provide valuable information. Fortunately for the blue caterpillar, it had survived consuming its own venom, forcing its creator to care for it. The Malfae wouldn''t have otherwise.
However, this delicate balance hadn''t lasted long as the blue vermin possessed the Title [Hungry] which forced it to ceaselessly devour. Luckily for the caterpillar, it was just a single drone so the Malfae had provided it eggs too. If there had been even a single caterpillar more, the [Hive Monarch] would have killed them to feed itself. As a result of the caterpillar''s unending hunger, the [Survivor] had used its Skill [Drone Eggs] so much that it had levelled up from Level 6 to Level 7, thus costing 70 MP to creature 28 Eggs.
However, the Malfae was an immortal and despite what she had been in her life, the Malfea ended up killing the pit of ceaseless hunger in annoyance. Its corpse had even made for a nice change from the diet of disgusting eggs.
And thus, passed the most trying part of the year. The height of the summer, heat and death.
0.0
Within the baking crevice, a soft hum echoed and the sleeping Malfae''s massive ears twitched. The hum gradually strengthened to evolve into a gentle pitter-patter which pervaded the Malfae''s subconscious mind. As it did so, the temperature decreased, gradually at first but then it rapidly fell as the heat dissipated. Meanwhile, the smothering dryness struggled against the rapidly erupting humidity and the death heralding wind lost its edge to become cool and moist.
With the cold and moisture as its heralds, a delicate scent spread out which whispered of the wet earth and the fresh rain. It was petrichor born from the first rain; a scout of Monsoon which had chased away the peak of summer. The sweltering heat had been killed by the mere echos of the Monsoon¡¯s footsteps.
The Malfae woke up to this serenity and gingerly walked up to the edge of its crevice to be greeted by a landslide of water-droplets which tried to soothe the parched earth. The [Hive Monarch] dumbly stared before it rushed out in the rain with abandon. The cold droplets hit its heated flesh and it laughed. The petrichor hit its antennas and the [Survivor] breathed in as it activated [Sense].
The scent of the rain and the wet mud instantly multiplied, almost overwhelming it and the creature laughed. ¡®Rain!¡¯ Despite having just woken up, it felt more alive than it had all week. ¡®Rain is the best season after all!¡¯ The creature laughed while flying around until its wet wings supported it no more and it fell with a wet splash in a recently formed puddle of water. It splashed the water and played around in pure joy. This rain did not just nourished the earth, but it also nourished the spirits of all the creatures that had been suffering.
0.0
The Monsoon''s first rain brought various new critters out in the open which resulted in a feast for the Malfae. It devoured spiders, crickets, centipedes and many more. Or better to say, it killed them because it could and ate merely a bit of their flesh to taste all flavours. The Malfae was just malicious like that.
Having had its fill, it flew back towards the scorpion to resume its hunt. However, the scorpion was long gone from the area and the rain had washed away all lingering scents. This caused the critter population to decrease under the frustrated Malfae''s senseless rampage.
With its immediate goal unfulfilled, the cowardly [Reincarnated] reverted to its search for the perfect prey. Over the course of the next week as light showers came and went, it continued to look for its impossible goal. The constant failures would have caused it to go on senseless rampages but the failure of temperature to rise back to its previous horrendous level and the death of the parching winds, caused it be in rather good mood.
As the search continued to fail, the [Hive Monarch] finally expanded the horizons of its search and found something. The newfound prey was a spider which emanated a sharp and bitter scent that the Malfae now knew to associate with venomous creatures. Though the sense of peril emnated by the newfound spider wasn''t as strong as either the spider in the spider hunting ground or the scorpion near its birthplace.
This spider was grey as the darkest rain clouds. Its main body was about half a mortal¡¯s finger while its long and unending legs were the length of a mortal¡¯s finger each. Its numerous dark eyes were clustered around its small head and 2 massive pincers, almost the same size as its head, guarded its mouth. The spider was postively enormous when compared to the Malfae which was as tall as a mortal''s finger.
The 8 legged creature was silently sitting in the middle of its nearly invisible web below which was a puddle of water about the size of the mortal¡¯s palm with the depth of a mortal¡¯s finger. An optimum position to catch the unsuspecting and thirsty prey.
The Malfae landed on a nearby branch and observed its massive prey. ¡®If I am going to hunt this thing then I need to study it first.¡¯ To do this, the cowardly creature decided to follow the same procedure that it had devised to hunt the scorpion before nature itself had interfered. Thus, over the course of the next few days, the Malfae observed and came to a few conclusions. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
The first of which was confirmation of venom and the second had been the lack of any chitin Skill. Contrary to the Malfae¡¯s expectations, the spider hadn''t activated any such Skill in the time that blue creature had been monitoring it. While the third had been the ability to shoot its web as a rope, quite an expected Skill which the [Survivor] had even been subjected to as a moth. However, The Malfae was surprised to find that the spider displayed no other Skills which was contrary to the numerous it possessed.
With its observation complete, the creature called up the [Malfae Shield] to the forefront before racing it forward to smack the spider out of its web. After all, fighting a spider in its web was nothing but suicide. However, the spider sensed the rapid movement and dodged, causing the shield to hit the web and get stuck. The more the Malfae tried to free its shield, the more entangled it became.
Meanwhile, the spider hadn''t been waiting patiently. Instead, the spider shot out an incredibly thin thread at the aggressor. The Malfae had been expecting it of course and flew up to dodge. Deciding to give up on the shield, the [Survivor] dismissed the entangled shield to summon a new one which materilaised as the original dissipated.
Now that its sneak attack had failed, the [Reincarnated] no longer cared about subtlety as it again charged its shield at the spider. The spider jumped to dodge and as the shield became entangled into the web once again. However, the Malfae was prepared this time and dismissed it immediately as the spider shot another thread. The new shield materialised as the thin thread rapidly approached and hit the shield instead.
The [Hive Monarch] capitalised on this opportunity to yank on the shield and successfully pulled the surprised spider out of the web. However, the spider had lived for long and wasn''t stupid. It let go of its thread and fell. However, the multi legged creature shot another thread which hit a nearby branch to halt its fall. The Malfae flew up while it sent its shield racing towards newly formed thread. Once they met, the shield rotated to wrap the delicate creation around itself causing the spider to hiss in alarm as it tracked the Malfae with its numerous eyes but the Malfae was already high up and out of its reach.
The spider let go of its new thread and entered freefall once again but Malfae was waiting for this and it immediately smacked the spider right in the face, causing its descent to accelerate. Capitalising on the spider''s rising panic, the [Hive Monarch] raced down while continuing to hit the spider until it hit the ground with a smack. Promptly, the [Survivor] sent its shield racing towards the spider. Although, this time, instead of hitting the spider, the Malfae aimed to push the spider back and into the puddle of water.
The abused shield shattered as the confused spider stumbled and Malfae summoned another one to repeat the process. The blue creature did not give the grey one even a moment of respite as it continuously bombarded the spider to guide it until there was a splash and the spider fell into the puddle.
The spider tried to find its footing within the wet clay of the puddle but its thin legs sank into the mud instead of finding purchase. The Malfae capitalised that opportunity and used the [Malfae Shield] to push the spider head down beneath the water.
The malicious creature wanted to drown its prey.
The spider frantically struggled as it hit the shield with its limbs but in doing so it increased the pressure on the rest of the legs and they sank deeper. However, the shield too shattered under its repeated assault. In the meanwhile, the [Reincarnated] had flown quite close to the creature and immediately created another shield to keep it submerged. The spider ceaselessly struggled but the depth of puddle was the same as the height of its legs and it had breathed in more water than it should have. Thus, its struggles grew weaker and weaker until its legs hit the water with a tired splash to lifelessly sink while its body lost the struggle and just fell like a sinking rock.
Ting.
Ting.
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have levelled Up! The level up bonus of +3 HP and +3 MP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Malfae Shield Lv.3] had levelled up to [Malfae Shield Lv.4]. Damage absorption has been increased to 80 points. The cost has been increased to 40 MP.]
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.7] has levelled up [Flight Lv.8]. Your speed and manoeuvrability have been increased.]
¡®Eh!¡¯ The creature blinked for a few moments at the unexpected onslaught and then it laughed. ¡®Finally! I levelled up!¡¯ Indeed, the creature had levelled up for the first time since it had begun hunting and now had reached Level 7. All it had taken had been near 210 mana as the creature had cast [Malfae Shield] numerous times.
However, the Malfae''s mirth was broken by a scent carried on the wind and it hurriedly activated [Sense]. As the scent grew heavier, a shiver ran downits body and hair on its back stood up. The [Hive Monarch] instantly flew up, causing its vision to expand which allowed it to see slowly moving lizard headed in its direction. The blue creature¡¯s blood ran cold.
It glanced at the lizard before its gaze fell on the dead spider and it hesitated. As the lizard took another step, the Malfae raced down and quickly chopped off all of the spider''s legs using the [Malfae Shield]. It discarded the legs to carry the spider''s body. Or at least, it tried to. The size of the spider¡¯s main body was a third of the Malfae¡¯s own and it was just as heavy. The creature struggled to fly carrying it but as the lizard was still afar, it managed to bring its hunt up to the nearest branch before it landed, panting heavily.
It had not exercised in a long while and it showed.
The Malfae waited for a few moments to stabilize its breathing before flying again. The lizard, in the meanwhile, had continued to move uncaringly and the [Reincarnated] had no intention of testing its might when it was this out of mana.
Halting and flying before halting again to just breathe was the method the [Survivor] used to get away from the lizard and return to the crevice. Given the effort this method cost, it took the creature quite some time to reach the crevice. Once the creature was inside, it fell onto the floor face first and remained there while breathing hard. Its body was sore, its muscles ached and it felt muscles it didn¡¯t even know it had.
It was miserable.
The creature remained remained motionless as a corpse while waiting for its breathing to stabilize and muscles to stop pulsing in pain. Once it got up, the creature got to work and began dissecting the spider carcass. As the Malfae had not bludgeoned its prey to death this time, the evolved moth wanted to extract the venom sac intact rather than let it burst into flesh. As a result, the creature carefully manoeuvred the [Malfae Shield] as it chopped off the head from the rest of the body and found the venom sac. It then began to eat its fill.
¡®Uhh.¡¯ The creature eyed the leftover meat. ¡®I will deal with it later.¡¯ The [Survivor] then brought the venom sac over to a small naturally formed depression within the crevice and burst the sac to allow the venom to spill out before it ate the venom sac without hesitation and waited for the poison to do its work.
The creature didn''t have to wait for long as its body went numb while it lost a 5 point in its HP. As the numbness spread throughout its body, its limbs became heavy and the effort it took to move them compounded. The [Hive Monarch]¡¯s heart raced as the heaviness increased until the creature couldn¡¯t move at all. ¡®Paralysis.¡¯ The creature would have smiled if not for the venom.
After all, its Skill [Poison Resistance] imbibed the effect of resistant poisons into its own venom. ¡®With this, I will have pain, auditory hallucination and paralysis!¡¯ The creature continued to lose 5 HP per minute for the next few minutes, but overall, it was not much. And being safe as it was within its crevice, it simply waited the venom out.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 40
It had been almost 2 years since he had started this journey. And in these 2 years, he had seen much. He had seen the poverty that pervaded the world and the lives of the people who lived through it. He had seen their sorrow, their joy, their grief and their happiness. The one constant thing that he had seen in all of them, though, had been a strange sense of peace with what they had.
Ironically, this very peace had been lacking in those that had everything. They wanted more than they had so they strived for more than they could afford, lacking the peace with their status that the poor enjoyed. The rich had everything but peace and the poor had nothing but peace.
Maybe this had been the reason his father had sent him to the Ashram. Because he had wanted more for his son and his family than he could have ever provided. And, perhaps, it was for this reason that the inspector had sacrificed his son''s wish for an easier life.
Kiran did not know what to feel about this particular realisation. It made him uncomfortable. Yet, it had given him everything he had. If not for this father¡¯s decision, Kiran may as well have been just another [Warrior]. But was that enough to sacrifice his entire life over it?
The [Shishya] did not know the answer to that question. And this had been eating away at his own peace since he first realised it. Though, this realisation had not been the only thing that kept him up at night. The other source of contention had been his attribute, [Reflection].
In these 2 years, he had travelled far and wide. He had healed more people than he cared to remember and he might have had fought with a quarter as many. Yet it hadn''t been enough. Despite the multitude of experiences that he had gone through, his [Reflection] had not budged even a single point.
[Reflection] was a rare attribute and yet special amongst them. [Reflection] had no cap on its natural progression, unlike most other attributes that had a soft cap of 7 and could only be raised further by Attribute points. [Reflection] had no such soft cap.
It progressed naturally and indefinitely as long the person kept on fulfilling its conditions. These conditions were 2 in total. The first was the renunciation of the world. The more a person ended their attachment with the world, the more their [Reflection] rose.
The other condition was by acknowledging one¡¯s own nature. The more one knew and acknowledged themselves, their positive and negative aspects, their own hopeful wishes and heinous desires, the more their [Reflection] grew.
This is not to say that [Reflection] could not be increased by using attribute points, it could be. Yet it was not recommended. When a person added an attribute point to [Reflection], the attribute then showed an aspect of the person¡¯s true self to the person. And this aspect could be something innocent or something heinous.
If it were something innocuous, it would be easily acknowledged by the person and the attribute would increase. But if the aspect shown was something heinous, then it became quite difficult for the person to acknowledge it; denial was a powerful force after all. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
If such a case were to happen, then the attribute would fail to increase and the attribute point would be lost forever. To gamble with something as precious as attribute points were never recommended. Thus, most people that needed [Reflection] did so by raising it naturally. And one method to do was tempering oneself against the world by journeying.
As a person travelled far and across, they came across various people, both good and bad, and lived through situations both marvellous and dangerous. This process tempered the person and let them see the parts of their true self. The acknowledgement of this true self, still rested on the person themselves. This realisation and the resulting acknowledgement had been the goal of Kiran¡¯s journey too.
He, much like the rest of the disciples, had decided to journey the world to temper himself. As this journey was something that almost everyone with his Class went through, it wasn¡¯t something that his parents hadn¡¯t known ahead of time. And to make his journey easier, they had gifted him a Sky Case, an object enchanted with the Ghost Sky; the most mysterious of the 5 Ghosts. Thus, it had great storage space within it as it was larger on the inside than its size would suggest.
He smiled as he looked at the gourd hanging from his hips. It contained not much as he was an ascetic and had little in the terms of possessions. But the things that it did contain, he considered them essential.
0.0
Kiran¡¯s undecisive gaze rested upon the massive sea sprawling in front of him as the rolling waves caused his heart to pound. These waves represented life but they also meant death. While it was life for all, mortals and monsters alike, it meant only death for mortals; for deep within the ocean¡¯s womb existed creatures beyond imagination.
Yet he had to tread these waters now. If he didn¡¯t, his [Reflection] might never rise again.
Hence, he had decided to take a radical step. He had decided to journey to the unknown lands on an exploration ship. It was a decision that still made his heart race. Oceans, after all, were not a territory that mortals were meant to touch. The ever-expansive waters held within them the monsters of ages long gone. The true ancients that had been alive for longer than the current civilizations had been around. They were calamities given form and flesh. The Living Fossils they were called.
It was not just the oceans and the seas that held such monsters; for these creatures prowled on the land too. But where the lands were ruled by 1, the oceans were fought over by 10. The waters of the world were the true home of the monsters.
This phenomenon was something that had been known by many civilizations and had always been quite well recorded. After all, monsters were creatures that needed a high density of atmospheric mana to survive, thus the more powerful the monster, the denser mana-current they lived in. And mana-currents were much richer within the oceans than on land. This too had always been a fact well documented.
Kiran turned his gaze away from the ocean that seemed to be threatening to swallow him whole. His apprehensive gaze fell on the ship that he wanted to journey on. And once again he hesitated. This decision would be a brave one. It was, certainly, one of the stupidest decisions he had ever made. He just hoped to come back alive.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 11]
The tender moonlight of the azure moon reflected off the calmly flowing river to bathe its bank in a soft ethereal glow. However, the sharp radiance from the orange flames of the smouldering pyres bitterly fought against the gentle moonlight as the rhythmic flow of water and the cracking of the burning wood played the notes of war.
Meanwhile, the soft sound of Guru Aditya¡¯s laboured breathing witnessed the war from beneath the shade of the sacred fig. The passages of time had not been kind to the ancient man and his gaunt frame had grown frail and weak. His filthy dreadlocks had long fallen, leaving behind a spotty bald head while his skinny chest tiredly rose and slowly fell with each breath which was accompanied by a slow but pained sound. The only thing unchanged about him was the human ash smeared on his sagging skin.
The Acharya sat with his bony back supporting his almost flesh-less frame. Near his weak form, Pranay sat with his shoulders hunched and back curved. Time hadn¡¯t made an exception for him either and the ravages of time were clearly etched on his skin, however nowhere near as severe as the ash-covered man. ¡°Please reconsider your decision acharya.¡± He softly implored, expecting his concern to go unheeded.
The old mind didn¡¯t respond as he slowly lifted his arm to his milky eyes and his tired gaze bored into the strand of black hair held within his weak bony fingers. ¡°This Remnant is about to bloom.¡± The Acharya¡¯s raspy voice slowly escaped his scratchy throat as he didn¡¯t comment on the request. He didn¡¯t have breaths to waste on the pointless debate. ¡°Let me help you, child."
"[Spirit Vision]."
"[Mana Manipulation]."
"[Mana Manifestation].¡±
[Spirit Vision]
Tier 1 Effect: Allows the user to see all the Spirits.
Tier 2 Effect: Allows the user access to the Law Scars.
Using the Tier two effect of the Skill as a pathway, the ancient man channelled into the hair a constant trickle of his grey coloured Sky mana, the Ghost he chose all those years ago. The Sky mana flowed over the Law Scars which absorbed it with a feverish hunger, hastening up the process that would have otherwise taken days or perhaps even weeks.
Not long after, the dark hair glowed grey to gently rise in the air. It swayed softly for a moment before silently dissolving into motes of grey light in front of Pranay¡¯s narrowed eyes. The younger man blinked but no matter what Skill he used, he found no noticeable difference.
This was not the case for the pathetically frail Acharya Aditya whose milky eyes tracked an ethereal Spirit with solemn gentleness. The Spirit resembled a common rodent which possessed nothing but wrinkled skin. The saggy skin lacked even a single strand of hair which caused it to be known as the Naked Mole Rat.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.
Despite its seemingly mortal form, the Being exuded a sense of un-realness that was unique to Spirits. It possessed a blur around its edges while the finer details were mysteriously absent. The new-born Spirit shook its head before its tiny eyes found the frail man and its chittered its long front-teeth in a warning.
¡°Such resentment.¡± The ash-covered man tiredly observed while the beady eyes of the Spirit found Pranay and it violently hissed before attacking the oblivious man with reckless abandon. However, the attack amounted to nothing as the intangible spirit simply fazed through the tangible mortal, much to its frustration. ¡°Even directed at you.¡±
¡°It is expected.¡± Pranay¡¯s slumped shoulders hunched further and he gently massaged his tired eyes. ¡°I was her teacher.¡±
¡°I-it¡¯s more than just misplaced blame-¡± the pathetically frail man managed in between coughs as Pranay hurried to support his shacking frame, allowing the Acharya to continue, ¡°-there is a lost friendship involved.¡±
Pranay frowned for a moment before his defeated eyes widened. ¡°Kiran! It¡¯s must be about Kiran. I helped that child attain his Class when both of them failed.¡±
¡°You shouldn¡¯t have.¡± The ash-covered man impassively admonished. Once upon a time, he would have scathingly scolded for such an action, however, he lacked the necessary breaths to do so. Pranay shrank further at the apathetic words and his lost gaze lowered.
¡°He came to me lost and crying. Broken.¡± The grown man mumbled akin to a guilty child confessing his mistake. ¡°He had been the only one to come to me. He was desperate and needed guidance-¡±
¡°...and you saw your failure in him.¡± The Acharya¡¯s tired voice silenced Pranay and he spoke no more as his gaze bore into the muddy earth below. ¡°His path was not yours to etch.¡±
Pranay¡¯s eyes narrowed as his head shot up and his mouth opened to retort out of habit before his gaze lowered once again and his mouth silently closed. However, his jaws remained tense. In the end, he couldn¡¯t hold himself from commenting, ¡°I was his guru. To help him was my duty and my dharma.¡±
The frail man remained silent for a long while before he replied. ¡°You helped a child pave a path not meant for him." The Acharya paused to breathe and his frail frame shook from the effort. "I know not what awaits that child. But, but your choice pushed her to an early death.¡±
Pranay¡¯s horrified eyes widened at the accusation before he hastily refuted, ¡°That can¡¯t be true! How- how could helping Kiran push her to suicide?!¡±
¡°Ask that to the Spirit vehemently attacking you.¡± Acharya''s slowly raised his weak hand to point at the invisible Naked Mole Rat trying to chew out Pranay¡¯s eyes. ¡°If it weren¡¯t so weak, I-I suspect it would have even ended itself to curse you.¡±
¡°I-bu-I-But I just helped a desperate child!¡±
¡°...perhaps.¡±
-X-
The frail body of the ash-covered Acharya Aditya silently slumped and fell from its position to hit the wet earth with a muted splat. Meanwhile, his Remnant manifested within one of his few remaining teeth.
The Acharya¡¯s body remained motionless over the course of the next few days as rot set in and the corpse started to stink. It drew the attention of the scavenger dogs prowling the riverbank and they hungrily tore into the nearly fleshless frame.
However, due to the heavy presence of Sky mana within the Acharya, by the time dogs found the body, the Remnant containing teeth had already bloomed to birth an ethereal sparrow which had flown off into the sky.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 41
As the simmering summer persisted, the respite brought by the early rains died down and the heat stabilized. Though, it showed no signs of reaching its previous levels which the Malfae had dubbed as vomiting hot, which was the highest temperature that it had had the misfortune to witness. It easily surpassed the current temperature, affectionately dubbed by the creature painfully hot, by a few levels.
Within this timeframe, the [Hive Monarch] had continued to hunt the newfound spider species but the returns had diminished with each successive hunt. Where the initial spider had given 5 Levels to the Malfae, the following spiders had given it 3 and 1 respectively. The ones after had combined to give it merely a single Level.
As a result, the [Survivor] had reached Level 12. However, it had stopped its hunt soon after as it had collected more than enough venom in its cave while the hunt had become increasingly difficult with the absence of rain.
Meanwhile, the [Reincarnated] had also laid a new batch of eggs about a week ago and promptly forgotten about them. Given the time it had taken for the eggs to hatch last time, the creature didn''t see any point in caring about the eggs for the next 3 weeks.
With the eggs laid and venom available, its routine had returned to hunting for food, poisoning itself and working on [Mana Manipulation]. Not that the creature had achieved any success with it, resulting in the [Survivor] shifting its focus to gaining Levels. The recent successful hunts had bolstered its confidence and also its courage while teaching it the importance of using the environment against its prey.
It was hence little surprise that the Malfae chose to hunt near the lake. Its cowardly mind equated its success to water, bringing to the lake. However, her fractured memories granted it enough experience that it didn''t try to hunt using the lake.
Instead, the Malfae chose to make a puddle near the lake to hunt. Creating the puddle had not been an easy thing but digging was not something that the creature wasn¡¯t used to. At least, this time it had actual hands to use rather than its mouth. It was quite happy about that.
The [Survivor] had considered creating a small canal to connect the puddle with the lake but as it had eyed the depression, which had a depth of about a mortal¡¯s finger, it had shaken its head and dismissed the idea. The structure of the future puddle had not been stable enough for such an endeavour.
Thus, the [Reincarnated] had ended up using a curved leaf to fill its puddle with water. However, as the water from the first few runs had been absorbed by the earth rather than filling the supposed puddle, the task hadn''t been easy.
Once it had been completed though, it had released its poison into the water without expecting much from it given the level of dilution. With the puddle set up, the [Survivor] had begun using it to hunt the other creatures. However, it had only been able to hunt critters and Tier 1 immortals. None of the Tier 2 monsters had fallen in its trap.
Sick and tired of the wait, the [Hive Monarch] had considered luring some of the strong monsters to the puddle but it had immediately dismissed that thought. Even if it were cowardice, the Malfae could live with it as long as it was alive.
0.0
As the cowardly Malfae waited for the prey to come to it, time continued to pass and the temperature which had stabilised at the Level of Painfully hot decreased to Just plain hot before it decreased further to Hot and finally it came to rest on Uncomfortably warm over the course of the next 3 weeks.
During this time, the creature had waited for its prey but nothing had come out of its patience. The wait tempered its courage but failed to overcome its cowardice which the [Survivor] confused with caution. As a result, the [Reincarnated] still didn''t plan on luring the prey to the pond.
Meanwhile, the gestation period of the eggs ended but out of the 21 eggs laid by the Malfae, only 5 produced caterpillar drones while the rest failed to hatch and rotted. In such a situation, if the Malfae had been a mortal, it would have investigated the reason for such a pitiful hatch-rate but as the creature was an immortal, it cared only for natural selection. After all, only the fittest survived in the Wild.
However, it did cause the [Hive Monarch]''s mood to worsen. Though the reason for it was rather different than what a mortal would expect. ¡®I had difficulty taking care of a single of them, how will I take care of 5?¡¯ The Malfae was worried about the extra drones and not the eggs that it had lost.
Before the newly hatched caterpillars could eat their eggshells to gain their first Levels, the [Reincarnated] ordered them away with a thought. ¡®There is no harm in trying.¡¯ Its pupil-less shined as they fell on the eggshells before it devoured an entire Shell.
¡®Tch. It seems the no cheating rule really applies.¡¯ It had eaten the shells to receive the drones'' first Level ups in their stead. The malicious creature had tried to steal its own progeny''s birthright. However, it had failed to receive the caterpillars'' Gift.
In its greed, it had not only failed in its experiment but also taken away the Level from the original recipient. It had been a loss all around. ¡®What a waste.¡¯ The creature eyed the 5 caterpillars as another thought popped up in its mind and it ordered. ¡®Use [Moulting].¡¯
Given that the caterpillars were drones of its old self, it suspected them to possess similar -if not the same- Skills. However, as it was uncertain, the Malfae wasn''t sure if its order would work. Sure enough, all the caterpillars stilled at its order before their skin dried as the Skill came into effect.
As it eyed the drones, another idea popped up into its head and its eyes shined. ¡®Well, I can just cut down their numbers, can¡¯t I?¡¯ This solved its initial problem of too many drones. However, it didn¡¯t immediately act on the idea and reserved it for later.
With the caterpillars out of the commission for the next 6 hours, the Malfae went through its routine as it poisoned itself from the poison within the crevice before flying to its trap to wait. It got its food there but attracted not something that could give it Levels.
Thus, it was no surprise that it returned with a mood that was more than a bit irritated. Entering the crevice, the [Hive Monarch] found its drones wiggling within their shed skins, trying to break out. ¡®Whom should I choose?¡¯ The Malfae tilted its head.
¡®Eh? This one is breaking out already?'' It watched the first of the caterpillars break out of its exuviates while the rest still struggled within theirs. ''Well, I guess we have our survivor.¡¯ The [Reincarnated] focused on the hunger that it felt from the caterpillar before it ordered. ¡®Kill the rest.¡¯
The targetted drone crawled over to its closest sibling and bit into the shed skin to create an opening, causing the one on the inside to adorably poke its head out. Its bid dark eyes hopeful. However, before it could do anything, the one on the outside bit the face of the other without a single thought of pity or remorse.
The caterpillar that had just broken out screamed and thrashed but it was being bitten endlessly and not long after, its struggled ceased as its short life ended. However, egoless as the targetted drone was, could it really be considered alive?
Meanwhile, the [Survivor] sensed the caterpillar''s Level up the moment the other one died. Unhesitant, the creature of malice ordered the caterpillar to move onto the next and the egoless did. It was, after all, nothing more than a drone.
The [Survivir] watched as its caterpillar moved from one shed skin to next, ending the life of its brethren as it levelled up again and again. However, the Malfae face showed not a single trace of a smile. Instead, its face was twisted as if it had bitten on a particularly sour lemon. ¡®It has such a good life.¡¯ After all, it was a creature of venom and malice.
With the death of the 4 caterpillars, the lone survivor levelled up to Level 5 and the [Reincarnated] eyed it carefully. The drone looked the same, though the hunger that always seemed to cloud its mind seemed to have become stronger. ¡®Fine. Fine.¡¯ The creature dismissed the caterpillar. ¡®Eat the corpses and their eggshells. I don¡¯t want to deal with that mess.¡¯The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
Rather than the fresh flesh of its brethren, the blue caterpillar moved towards the eggshells that the Malfae had previously forbidden the drones from eating. ¡®Eh?¡¯ The Malfae eyed the caterpillar¡¯s choice but did not stop it from consuming the eggshells.
The caterpillar levelled up once it finished eating the eggshell, which was not a surprise. After all, the Level up following the consumption of eggshell was a ¡®Gift¡¯. What was, however, a surprise was that the done levelled up again after eating the second eggshell. And the third eggshell. And the fourth eggshell.
The [Hive Monarch]''s mouth had fallen open as it had watched the glutton eat eggshells after eggshells to Level up. The very same eggshell that it had eaten and received nothing. ¡®What! What is this nonsense?!¡¯ The [Reincarnated] glared at the caterpillar as if it was the drone''s fault that the Malfae did not get any Level from eating the eggshell.
As the [Survivor] glared, the drone began devouring the first corpse and Levelled up. ¡®What is this nonsense?!¡¯ The Malfae was tempted to slap the caterpillar silly but it breathed deeply to refrain. ¡®It¡¯s ok. It¡¯s ok. This is likely due to its Title [Hungry]. It likely got Levels from eggshells because of that Title too. We don¡¯t begrudge it for that Title. I don¡¯t want that Title. I certainly don¡¯t.¡¯
Despite the self-consolation, its eyes constantly twitched as it watched the caterpillar finish its first corpse to gain two more levels to reach Level 12. The [Reincarnated] tried to control itself but with each passing moment, its eyes twitched faster.
In the end, it failed to control itself and slapped the back of the caterpillar¡¯s head which resulted in a loud smack resounding across the tiny crevice. The malice induced hit from the Malfae, which was as tall as a mortal''s finger, caused the tiny caterpillar -which wasn''t even one-third of a mortal''s finger- to slam into the floor and twitch weakly.
However, the Malfae cared not for it as it panted in anger. It glowered at the little thing before picking it up and throwing it at the rest of the caterpillar corpses. ¡®Eat! Eat some more! Be useful at least and clean this up!¡¯
The badly injured caterpillar tilted its head before it moved its body with great difficulty. This slap of the Malfae had been a hit from a Tier 2 creature to a Tier 0 creature. The caterpillar had survived it by the skin of its teeth.
If the drone hadn''t Levelled up beforehand and increased its HP, the egoless would not have survived that slap. But if the caterpillar hadn''t levelled up by 10 Levels within the span of a few minutes, the Malfae wouldn¡¯t have hit it in the first place. So, who was to blame really? Someone, somewhere, would have laughed at this absurdity.
Or that might not have been the case at all. After all, this slap had been an outburst of malice that the Malfae were defined by. This outburst was quite similar to the situations when the creature had gone on a rampage in the spider hunting territory and just flattened spiders for the sake of pure release.
The Malfae glared as the caterpillar slowly began eating again. The [Survivor] eyed the bug for a moment before the Malfae ignored it to console itself. If it had to choose between the Title [Hungry] and the slow Level up speed, the creature would always choose the slow Level ups. It hated the Title [Hungry] that much.
This all being said, the [Reincarnated]''s conclusion about caterpillar''s rapid Level ups from shells wasn¡¯t correct. The caterpillar had gained Levels from eating the eggshells, while the [Hive Monarch] hadn''t because those eggshells had been meant to Level up Tier 0 creatures and not Tier 2. If the Malfae ate the ¡®Gift¡¯ meant for a Tier 2 creature, it would be able to Level up too.
Not that the creature knew any of that. It balefully eyed the caterpillar from the corner of its eyes and created another set of eggs for the caterpillar to eat before it flew off to bring in leaves for the creatures to eat later.
0.0
The next morning greeted the Malfae with a temperature that had shifted from Uncomfortably warm to Just warm. There was even a nice breeze passing through as the [Survivor] shifted its attention to the sleeping caterpillar to grimaced before it breathed deeply.
After consuming the caterpillar corpses and the most recent eggs laid by the Malfae, the drone had levelled up to Level 25. The [Reincarnated]''s irritation was not just because of the drone''s fast level-ups. But it also compounded by the contrast between the drone''s fast levelling and its current slow one that wasn''t going anywhere due to its cowardice.
The [Hive Monarch] sighed before it laid another batch of eggs and went out to collect more leaves for the caterpillar. Once it returned, it poisoned itself with the remaining spider venom.
¡®¡the supply is running low. I will have to hunt them again.¡¯ With that thought, the Malfae left the crevice and went back to its puddle to wait for its prey. Meanwhile, it used the waste of time to think. Usually, it used this time to ponder upon [Mana Manipulation] as this was Skill that the creature needed the most.
However, this time it chose to ponder upon the Skill [Hive Mind]. ¡®It should be using mana to transmit thoughts and feelings. What else is there except that? If that is the case, then should I try to use [Mana Manipulation] while using the Skill? Though, can I even use 2 Skills at once?¡¯ The creature didn¡¯t know the answer to this question and instead of trying it right then under the open sky, it decided to wait and try it out within the safety of its crevice.
Excited as it was at the thought, the creature decided to return early and implement the thought rather than linger restlessly within the forest.
Entering the crevice, the [Hive Monarch] noticed the absence of eggs that had been laid in the morning. Its eyes moved the pile of leaves where it found the blue caterpillar demolishing the last of them. Meanwhile, its Level had risen to Level 40. ¡®Such. Tch. Such a good life.¡¯
The [Reincarnated] flew out to bring back more leaves for the caterpillar to eat during the day while it slept. After all, it knew what the hunger inflicted by [Hungry] felt like. The Malfae then laid the next batch of eggs for the caterpillar to eat before settling down in a corner to close its eyes as it focused on the hunger of the caterpillar.
It was just as familiar as before, though it was kept away from the Malfae, allowing the [Reincarnated] to observe it without being overwhelmed in the extremely familiar feeling.
The [Hive Monarch] tried to activate [Hive Mind] but it couldn¡¯t perceive any change. The hunger of the caterpillar remained as it was and the separation too remained the same. It frowned for a moment before it activated [Mana Manipulation].
The world dissolved away as the [Survivor] found itself back within the mana system inside its body. The system, much akin to a circulatory system, passed through the entire body, its limbs, its extremities and its wings in the form of mana vessels and veins. The mana within these vessels didn''t flow, instead, it appeared and disappeared randomly from the entire system. The mana seemed to be in the constant state of flux rather than a smooth flow.
The creature studied the mana flux carefully.
It was chaos. To study something was different from finding if there was something different from its previous state. The creature had to do the latter but it had little to compare. ¡®This is going to be difficult.¡¯ The only thing that it could use was its own memory of the mana system which was shoddy at best.
0.0
The Malfae continued to try and figure out the changes within the mana system but it had little success. The main reason for its failure was that the creature was analysing the mana system without anything concrete to compare with. The other reason was its own poor skill with mana and its low Level in [Mana Manipulation].
Still, the [Survivor] didn''t give up.
It continued its mediation while halting its hunt near the lake. It only went out for the most essentials which were to feed itself and the caterpillar. And as it remained focused, time passed. Day by day, the [Hive Monarch] went through the mana system. Meanwhile, as the days progressed, the caterpillar drone continued to consume eggs and leaves to continue levelling up.
Thus, by the time the creature did manage to find a hint of the change within its mana system, the caterpillar had already crossed Level 95. And this had taken the caterpillar just a week. Meanwhile, only one of the Malfae¡¯s various Skills has levelled up; it was [Night Vision] which had reached Level 8.
The Malfae stared at the mana that kept on moving randomly and narrowed its metaphorical eyes. It concentrated on the mana system and found two places where the mana seemed to move in such a way that it tangled with itself forming knots.
There were only 2 knots in total but they were nowhere near to each other. Not only were they in different places, but the knots were also varying in their entanglement too. The weaker of the knots was situated within the veins that neared the creature¡¯s feet while the stronger knot was the situation within the middle of the creature¡¯s forehead, in between its eyes.
The Malfae¡¯s eyes narrowed as it observed the know in its forehead. ¡®This¡why does it feel so familiar?¡¯ The creature¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®Could it really be that¡?¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 42
Kiran walked across the port with an unhurried pace.
The scent of the salt, fish and sweat assaulted his nose while the shouts of the hawkers and arguments of the men bombarded his years. At the same time, the humid and hot air clung to his body like a second slimy skin.
But it all bothered not the plain-faced man.
His white robes and bald head drew attention and brought in respect. He was a [Shishya]. He was an ascetic. He bothered not with the daily struggles of life. He knew it. And the people knew it.
Kiran continued to walk at an unhurried pace the crowd gave way. The people took in his appearance and dipped their head in respect before continuing with their life.
With his path clear and way parted, the ascetic arrived at the office of the captain, whose ship he wanted to board, and entered. His arrival drew eyes and a clerk ran in from somewhere.
¡°Revered ascetic.¡± The clerk greeted with folded hands before leading the white-clothed man inside and to the sitting area. ¡°Please sit. Please sit.¡±
Kiran smiled and followed the man who had features almost as unremarkable as Kiran himself and if one did not know him personally, they would find it hard to remember his face.
¡°What can I do for you?¡±
¡°Thank you for your hospitality.¡± Kiran smiled. ¡°I wish to board the ship and journey into the unknown.¡±
The clerk¡¯s plain face twitched at the declaration.
Life of an ascetic was an arduous one. At the same time, it was also a life of knowledge and renunciation. It made ascetics revered and famous. People recognised them on sight and none dared to cross them.
But it also made ascetics dirt poor. They had renounced the world and its desires. They often followed it with such austerity that they declined even the money offered for their services.
It was not a surprise thus that the ascetics that travelled outside their Ashrams lacked the money to even buy food and relied on donated grains and vegetables to feed themselves. The clerk, thus, eyes the man sitting before him and his eyes twitched again.
The white robes of the man, though clean, had long lost their brilliance as they had become a shade that could only be called dirty white. The robes clung to his thin and gaunt frame as if clothes hanging from a hanger.
¡°Umm¡revered ascetic.¡± The man hesitated. ¡°While I would like nothing more than to allow you on the ship, the rules are quite strict. I am afraid the ship is taking very few passengers and each spot is quite sought after.¡±
Kiran nodded as he understood what the clerk was trying to say. After all, the clerk had not been quite subtle as he had given Kiran a once over. And although Kiran was not filthy and dirty, he was far from presentable.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
However, the situation could have been quite worse if Kiran did not have the kind of Skillset that he had. His ability to heal meant that he never ran out of people to help. Though, as he healed those that belonged to the lowest rungs of society, he rarely got a nice meal in return.
People gave him what they had.
This did not mean, of course, that Kiran had helped the people out of goodness of his heart. No, that had not been the case. Instead, Kiran had done what he had, simply because it had been what had been expected out of him.
It had been nothing more, nothing less.
¡°Please don¡¯t worry. I shall not be a burden.¡± Kiran said and the clerk¡¯s face froze in embarrassment. ¡°I am equivalent of a Level 24 [Mender]. Hence, I can lighten the burden of the [Healer] that you¡¯d have on board.¡±
¡°Ah, this¡¡± The man¡¯s brows furrowed as he got up. ¡°Please wait for a moment. I will have to get permission from the captain.¡±
The man went into the office and came out a few moments later. ¡°If you¡¯d follow me, revered ascetic.¡±
Kiran followed the man and soon stood before a dark chamber that had carvings all over the ground and some of them were even on the walls. The room had clearly been placed under some powerful wards.
Kiran¡¯s brows furrowed and he turned to face the clerk who dipped his head in apology. ¡°I beg pardon for the offence, revered ascetic, but this is an expedition sanctioned by the royal family itself¡¡±
¡°What wards are these?¡±
The man let out a relieved sigh. ¡°These are judgement and purpose wards to seek out malice and lies. Please forgive the offence, revered ascetic.¡±
Kiran¡¯s furrowed eyebrows smoothened at that while his eyes widened. ¡°Purpose wards? Your captain had a Tier 3 [Ward Smith] do this bit of warding?¡±
The clerk smiled, quite pleased. ¡°This was done by our own [Ward Smith]. As he will be on board, he insisted on handling all the wards. He did not want to leave any margin of error.¡±
Kiran blinked as he was taken aback at the statement. ¡°You have a Tier 3 onboard?¡±
¡°We have quite a few Tier 3 on board.¡± The clerk openly smiled. ¡°Our captain is a [Ship Captain] while out healer is a [Healer]. We even have a [Monster Tamer] on board.¡±
¡°A [Monster Tamer]?¡±
¡°She is the captain¡¯s wife.¡± The clerk whispered. ¡°However, her monsters are not be looked down at. They are the real defence of the ship.¡±
¡°Royal expedition indeed.¡± Kiran nodded, suitably impressed and the clerk laughed, rather pleased.
¡°If you would enter into the room, revered acetic,¡± the clerk prodded, ¡°the sooner this ends the better.¡±
Kiran hesitated and asked. ¡°What would happen if someone tries to lie within the chamber?¡±
¡°In that case, the ward will bind them and knock them out while they get charged with treason and conspiring against the crown.¡± The clerk answered nonchalantly.
Kiran nodded and entered into the room.
Even though Kiran had no mana sensing Skills, he felt the increase in mana density the moment he crossed the threshold. It was almost as if something was weighing him down.
¡°Revered ascetic, if you would please speak out your name, Class, Level, Skill, Spell and purpose of joining the expedition.¡±
¡°I am Kiran Pratha, a Level 24 [Shishya]. My Skill and Spell are [Anatomy Vision] and [Stimulate]. Both at Level 24.¡± Kiran answered without any hesitation. ¡°My purpose for joining the expedition is to experience the world and increase my [Reflection].¡±
¡°I hold no ill will for the expedition or anyone on board,¡± Kiran added after a moment.
The dense mana within the chamber churned but there was no visible reaction from the room itself. Kiran stood there and waited for a moment.
¡°You can come out now, revered ascetic.¡± The clerk smiled.
¡°Is that all?¡± Kiran¡¯s brows furrowed and he began walking.
¡°Yes. Quite simple, isn¡¯t it?¡± The man almost laughed as he guided Kiran back to the sitting area. ¡°Now the captain just needs to confirm and you are all good to go.¡±
¡°When will that be?¡±
¡°It will take a few days depending on when the manager here can get hold of the captain.¡± The clerk brow¡¯s furrowed and he continued after a moment. ¡°It would be better if you check in next week though.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 12]
Pranay¡¯s heavy footsteps fell on the soft grass, crushing them as he relentless walked under the gentle light of the white moon. His unchanged saffron robes fluttered in the passing wind while his altered form impassively walked on.
His gaunt body had gained weight, giving him a healthy appearance and the grey in his hair have given in to the white that ruled over his dreadlocks. However, they were unremarkable next to the etchings of time and failure on his features. His once smooth skin had aged and loosened as crow¡¯s feet decorated his eyes while laugh lines sat on his lips. His cheeks had sagged while various wrinkled marked his forehead as a badge of his defeat.
Pranay, the teacher to many a [Shishya], had been defeated by himself. He had failed to manifest the second breakthrough Skill to step into the third realm, leaving him forever as a Level 50 [Brahmin] who wore saffron. The colour had been his pride once but now it was his shame. From white to saffron to white again and saffron, at last, was the path on which he couldn¡¯t progress further.
The arduousness of asceticism had never been unknown to Pranay. However, never had he been so intimately aware of it than now. The sacrifices it commanded and the regular capsizing of mentality it demanded had drained him of his will.
His heavy footsteps came to a sudden halt on the barren piece of land reserved for the annual celebration of the festival of lights and he activated his only breakthrough Skill, [Spirit Summon], causing his body to faintly glow with a milky azure light quite similar to the colour of the mana.
The glow covered his entire body before it stepped forward as it retained his form and all his features, down to every single hair strand. However, the form didn¡¯t last long before it started condensing into a malformed mixture of mortal and animal. As it rapidly shrank, the animal part gained on the mortal part until one consumed the other. At that point, the milky azure glow pulsed to dissipate, leaving behind a living mongoose whose edges blurred against the reality.
The mongoose Spirit dove into the barren land as if it were water, waiting for its summoner to activate his Skill. ¡°[Mana Manipulation]. [Mana Manifestation].¡± Pranay¡¯s once strong voice was soft and low as brown coloured Earth mana rose from his body to plunge into the earth and into the waiting mongoose, who enriched the mana to amplify its strength.
The ground shook as earth flowed like water towards the sky, creating a mammoth pillar which rivalled ancient trees in height and width. Pranay closed his eyes and sweat appeared on his wrinkled forehead as even more amounts of the earth flowed upwards to give the gigantic pillar a crude mortal shape with multiple sets of arms, numerous heads and a single chest taking form.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Meanwhile, as the ageing Guru maintained the image within his mind and the earth near the ground crumbled to part, creating thick legs while Pranay¡¯s mortal Vessel began to violently tremble. More and more earth crumbled to fall off the mortal statue as the failed man¡¯s nails dug into his palms.
As the 10 headed demon with 20 arms took form, the saffron-clad man¡¯s knees buckled and he fell, ending both the Spell and the Skill. Pranay panted as he supported himself before he closed eyes and laid down on the brown earth. Although his work was still not done, he was in no shape to continue.
The thought of the 2 more statues waiting to be erected caused him to grimace but there was little he could do. The festival of Dushehra# was fast approaching and the three demon statues were needed for the final celebration where they¡¯d be destroyed in fiery glory, signifying the defeat of darkness and adharma.
Pranay¡¯s tired gaze observed the crude but titanic statue and his ascetic mind contemplated the futility of creation for the sake of destruction. He was an ascetic and the ashram was a place that lacked even a single temple dedicated to any god, yet this mortal festival was celebrated with much joy. This dichotomy confused the failed man.
However, his path had ended with his failure and his mind soon moved on as his gaze travelled to the dark sky and the white moon brightly shining within. ¡°It¡¯s the white sister tonight.¡± His laboured voice broke the silence brought on by his upheaving massive amount of earth. ¡°Chase what you seek. Chase the Sun. Fight your sisters oh white one. Do not give up. Fight.¡±
His unblinking gaze lingered on the white moon until his dry eyes to burn and close. When he opened them again, they were dull and lifeless. ¡°Now I talk to a heavenly body, asking it to fight where I gave up.¡± He sighed and the exhaustion of his many years seemed to weigh down on him as seemed to age.
¡°¡where is he?¡± The old man¡¯s heart tightened as his thoughts inevitably arrived at Kiran¡¯s prolonged absence. The kid should have returned a long time ago but he hadn¡¯t. With each passing year, the hope diminished further while his family demanded answers they didn¡¯t have. He was the hope of their clan, their sole ray of light, their Kiran.
Often, Pranay just wanted to advise the family to seek a [Diviner] but he always restrained himself for such a piece of advice was a cruel one. For it meant the Ashram had given up on the boy, fearing him dead. Even beyond that, with the Ashram lacking people who walked the divination path, even finding a credible [Diviner] was way beyond their resource. Let alone hiring one.
¡°¡I shouldn¡¯t have helped him.¡± A sigh escaped Pranay¡¯s chapped lips another regret was piled within his heart. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
#Dushehra: An actual festival in India where a massive effigy of a 20-armed and 10-headed demon is burned to mark the victory of good over evil.
Chapter 43
The Malfae observed the mana knots for a moment before it deactivated [Mana Manipulation] to activate [Sense Essence] and the world faded to reveal the essences within. The [Reincarnated] ignored the essences of the world to focus on its own. Much like it had always been, the Essence was unclear as the Essence cloud seemed to be contained within a Malfae shaped form.
The [Survivor] frowned. Instead of feet or glabella, its Essence was located in the middle of its body. ''This is as expected. But why do those knots feel like Essences?¡¯ It messaged its forehead before focusing again on the Skill but to no result. The Malfae didn''t give up though and continued to study the Essence.
However, it was shocked out of its observation by a sudden decrease in hunger from the drone and it activated [Hive Mind] without a second thought. Immediately, the [Hive Monarch] felt the difference. The mana knot at its feet appeared within the creature¡¯s body once again within the view of [Sense Essence]. With the appearance of the new knot, its own Essence moved until it reached the Malfae''s glabella.
¡®Huh. There were 2 Essences after all.'' It frowned. ''But why are there 2 Essences?¡¯ It focused on the new Essence and the haze began to move to take shape until an outline emerged within the haze. ¡®Eh? Is this¡that caterpillar?¡¯ The [Reincarnated] focused on the caterpillar only to be bombarded with the caterpillar''s emotions. Instantly, the Malfae scowled. ¡®That bug reached Level 100. It''s alright. It has an easy life but that¡¯s okay. It is just a drone.¡¯ Before it could do anything that it would regret, it breathed deeply and let it go.
Holding back its envy, the [Survivor] returned its focus to the drone''s Essence. However, as it focused, it felt as if there was something that it could bring forth. As such, the creature didn¡¯t hesitate and pulled.
Ting.
The Malfae jumped back like a cat surprised at the sudden appearance of Status. The fact that the Status was not its own left it dumbfounded. It hadn''t known that such a thing was even possible. The wide-eyed Malfae stared at it for a moment before it frowned as it studied the screen and then looked at the caterpillar.
The [Reincarnated] studied the Status for a moment to pause on two things. The very first thing was the drone¡¯s Title, which was unsurprising, [Drone]. The creature focused on it.
Ting.
[Drones are Egoless Existences that function under the control of a monarch Creature. They cannot function on their own.]
The [Hive Monarch] frowned to focus on the word Existence but nothing happened. It hesitated for a few moments before it focused on the word Creature but, once again, there was no response. The [Survivor] huffed as its eyes narrowed before it focused on the caterpillar¡¯s [Race], Egoless.
Ting.
[Egoless are the Being of instincts that shall always remain bound to their instincts.]
¡®So¡it¡¯s basically an animal. And a dumb one at that.¡¯ The [Reincarnated] huffed once again and dismissed the screen to summon the Status of the caterpillar. Its glared at the Status as if the screen had offended it personally before its eyes came to pause at [Name: Unnamed].
Ting.
[Parent Creature detected. Do you wish to name this Existence?]
[Yes]??????[No]
The Malfae paused and turned to stare at the caterpillar, only to find the bug was still eating. ''As expected.'' The creature pf malice scowled to focus on [Yes].
Ting.
[Please grant a name.]
With a scowl still etched onto its face, the Malfae didn''t hesitate.
Ting.
[Name, Fatface, selected. Do you wish to grant this name?]
[Yes]??????[No]
If the [Survivor] had the ability to hit the screen, it would have smashed its fist in the [Yes] option. As it was, it focused on [Yes] with no small amount of schadenfreude.
Ting.
[Name, Fatface, granted.]
The creature giggled as it eyed the continuously eating caterpillar and moved back to the bug¡¯s Status. When its eyes landed on [Name: Fatface], the joy experienced by the Malfae was so immense that if it had been capable of it, the creature would have orgasmed.
This, of course, would have been an overdramatic reaction. And this reaction would have thus been because of the inherent maliciousness of its Vessel; the Malfae which was a creature of malice and venom. The creature could hardly do anything when malicious acts delighted it like it was being tickled. Which was, all things considered, quite an apt comparison.
With mirth still dancing its eyes, the Malfae focused on [Evolve].
Ting.
[Do you want to evolve Fatface now?]
[Yes]????????[No]
The creature¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®This! This is just too good!¡¯
Ting.
[Chose Fatface¡¯s form.]
[White Furred Moth Drone Lv.1: Inherited form.]
¡®Ah. Stop it! Stop it blue screen! This is just too good.¡¯ The creature giggled with each new screen that mentioned the caterpillar¡¯s new name. ¡®It seems like raising Fatface wasn¡¯t a waste of time, after all!¡¯
The Malfae eyed the caterpillar and its giggles slowly died down. ¡®Why is there only a single evolution option available? Shouldn¡¯t there be that butterfly form too?¡¯ It thought back to its own evolution. From what it remembered, its own inherited form had been that of a butterfly while its Moth form had been granted due to its actions. ¡®Ah! If that¡¯s the case, then no wonder this bug only had a single option.¡¯
Ting.
[You have chosen Poison Moon Moth as Fatface¡¯s evolution. Are you sure?]
[Yes] ?????? [No]
¡®Yes, yes. Just evolve Fatface now.¡¯
Ting.
[Evolution will begin now.]
The Malfae watched as the caterpillar''s body straightened up as its mouth came down to spit a sticky substance that began solidifying as soon as it made contact with air. The scene before its eyes was as fascinating as it was gross. The disgust value of it only magnified when the [Survivor] remembered that it itself had done much the same. Not only that, but the creature had also eaten it later.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.
It shivered in disgust.
But then it remembered that eating the cocoon had levelled it up and the cocoon no longer seemed all that disgusting to it anymore.
Ting.
[Skill [Hive Mind Lv.1] had levelled up to [Hive Mind Lv.2]. The depth of shared thought has been increased.]
Ting.
.
.
.
[Skill [Hive Mind Lv.4] had levelled up to [Hive Mind Lv.5]. The depth of shared thought has been increased.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Essence Lv.2] has increased to [Sense Essence Lv.3]. The depth of sensing has been marginally increased.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Essence Lv.3] has increased to [Sense Essence Lv.4]. The depth of sensing has been marginally increased.]
¡®¡What?¡¯ It blinked rapidly at the notifications before its eyes fell on the cocoon. The Malfae tried to search for the caterpillar''s ever-present hunger but the [Hive Monarch] found it nowhere. Instead, the creature found a sense of deep sleep that did not want to be disturbed.
The Malfae disregarded the drone''s thoughts to simultaneously activate [Sense Essence] and [Mana Manipulation]. The world fell away as the creature¡¯s senses were withdrawn within its body as two essences took shape. Though this time, the drone¡¯s Essence wasn''t in the form of a caterpillar. Rather, it was a misty cocoon which exuded a sense of deep sleep. The [Survivor] observed the haze within the cocoon¡¯s form and focused on it.
TRAAAANG!!
[Fatface is evolving. Access Denied.]
The loud horn accompanying the red screen shocked it enough that it jumped to shriek like a little girl before hastily retreating. But the screen was not a physical thing that one could run away from and remained within the Malfae¡¯s vision. As if remembering the fact, the creature quickly dismissed it and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Though, from the corner of its eyes, the Malfae eyed the cocoon cautiously. It didn''t even dare to look at the cocoon directly, in case its intentions were misinterpreted and the red screen appeared again. After all, that ¡®TRAAANG¡¯ was quite a horrible sound as its purpose was to cement within the minds of mortals and immortals alike, their limitations.
0.0
With the drone out of commission, the [Hive Monarch] laid another batch of eggs and continued with its daily routine. Meanwhile, time marched on and over the course of a month, summer was booted out as the monsoon arrived without any warning.
The showers of the monsoon were sudden but not unwelcome. The soft pitter-patter of the raindrops caused a sudden drop in the temperature as if a spell had been cast. The moisture lingering after the rain was carried by the passing winds but it didn''t do anything to arrest the falling temperature. Instead, the temperature only continued to fall until it reached a level that the Malfae would consider Just right.
The arrival of the monsoon seemed to have brought life along with it, as the critters and creatures that had been hiding from the punishing heat came out and the sound of life almost seemed to explode. This abundance of critter also allowed the Malfae to make use of its water trap near the pond and kill something worthwhile.
It killed a scorpion looking for territory, who had assumed the Malfae¡¯s trap to be just another puddle. The hunt had given it another 5 Levels and pushed it to Level 20. It had also taught the Malfae that, to anything that had survived long enough to reach Tier 2, its trap had been quite obvious due to the lack of rain. After all, random puddles of water don''t form when it doesn''t rain.
Thus, as pragmatism won it over, the [Reincarnated] decided to track and hunt its prey using the nearby and abundant puddles rather than waiting for creatures to come to the pond for water during monsoon. After all, none thirsted for water in the monsoon. As a result of this change, the creature found and fought a few Tier 2 creatures but only managed to win a small part of these battles. Despite its few wins, its Level rose further to Level 30 before coming to halt as its cowardice reared its ugly head. It didn''t wish to provoke creatures that were too powerful.
However, these weren''t the end of its gains. As over the course of the month, quite a few of Malfae¡¯s Skill levelled up. [Flight] and [Night Vision] both reached Level 9, while [Pain Resistance] reached Level 7 and [Poison Resistance] still lead the other Skills as it reached Level 11. The battles with the other creatures even levelled up its defensive Skills and [Malfae Shield] reached Level 5 while [Sense] and [Venom Creation] both levelled up to reach Level 7.
Meanwhile, it also kept on trying to unlock the method of manipulating mana like she had been able to. However, it had decided to change its strategy and tried to apply its experience, from accessing the drone''s Status, onto manipulating mana. As a result, it was trying to use [Sense Essence] alongside [Mana Manipulation].
Though, this seemingly simple act proved quite difficult to enforce as [Hive Mind] was a Skill that didn''t alter the senses of the user while both [Mana Manipulation] and [Sense Essence] were. [Mana Manipulation] dragged its user within their mana system while [Sense Essence] dissolved the world away, leaving behind the haze, mist and clouds of Essence. Activating the two contradictory action simultaneously led to both the Skill fighting for control.
The [Reincarnated] had even tried to activate one Skill after the other but it had found little success even in that strategy. As doing so had led to the failure of the later activated Skill. This failure didn''t seem to cause any harm to the Malfae as the mana just fizzled out. It didn''t give up on this route though. It had been trying to figure out how [Mana Manipulation] worked for over a year but it had achieved little success.
The only time that it had achieved any kind of success had been when it had been trying to not use the Skill. ¡®¡Eh? Could it be¡?¡¯ The creature immediately began acting on the thought and sat down once again. It activated [Sense Essence] and this time, instead of activating Skill [Mana Manipulation], it used the skill manually.
The process failed, obviously, but the [Survivor] had gone further in this attempt than it had ever before. Thus, even though it was a failure, the [Reincarnated] had taken another step towards success. With this step forward, the Malfae was further buoyed and when it flew out the next time, it had a significant joy in its flight. Though, it seemed that the Malfae was not a creature that was allowed to experience joy.
Out in the Wild, when the creature was out and about hunting, the breeze that had been gentle and refreshing suddenly intensified to become ravaging gales. These winds picked up dust, leaves and the critters as they raced and the Malfae¡¯s eyes widened. It flew down to land but the winds slammed into it and the [Survivor]''s momentum broke, allowing it to be carried by the gales. No matter how hard it flapped its wings, they couldn''t wrestle it away from the grasp of the howling winds.
The gales ran across the length and breadth of the ground as they sped up. They ran through the trees, the plants and the rocks, and they continued to run faster and faster. Nothing hindered the ever-increasing path of the ravaging winds. Instead, the rampaging wind pulled out grass and picked up pebbles. Ad when they struck trees, they tore the branches apart. And yet, it continued to speed up.
The [Survivor]''s finger length body turned into its enemy. With it being as light as it was, it had a surface-area that allowed the wind to overpower its weight. And as it tried to fly and gain control, it worsened its situation. To fly it had to spread its winds which increased its surface area and gave winds even more leverage. As a result, the more it struggled, the more it lost.
The gales continued to race and an increasing amount of debris was lifted off of the ground. Meanwhile, the light suddenly dimmed as the green moon was hidden behind the thick layer of grey clouds that roared in anger and fury. The gales responded in kind as their passing created howls of winds. Lightning flashed and the thunder reverberated as the Malfae completely lost track of its path.
The [Hive Monarch], small as it was, resisted but could an ant stop the march of death and destruction that was the might of the Will of the World?
Leaves, grass, pebbles and branches rushed past it as they were carried by the gales. Its [Malfae Shield] protected it against most of the debris and helped it resist but the more it resisted, the more it was punished. However, now that the [Malfae Shield] was at Level 5, it had HP of 100 points and could endure the grazes of pebbles, critters and other debris. However, as it ceaselessly resisted, its wings began to tire. Its speed slowed down as its wings constantly pushed against the crushing force of the wind.
When even swimming against the slow flow of the river was a difficult task, how could this creature hope to succeed and fly against the flow of the winds and the gales? It was a folly and for this folly, the creature paid a price when it felt a sudden pain shoot in its back and its wings were ripped from its body. In between the moment the Malfae felt the pain and doubled over in agony, its wings had been carried by the gales to the parts unknown.
It was at that moment that the creature realised that there was no escaping from the approaching storm. It couldn''t fight it, it could only weather it. With the realisation came clarity and the [Survivor] curled up to fold its limbs while it kept the [Malfae Shield] behind its back to avoid branches and pebbles from catching it unaware. At the same time, it stared ahead in case it needed to move the shield to protect itself. All the while, its back throbbed and its heart kept racing.
The gales continued to race, unhindered and uncaring. The thunder continued to roar and challenge the might of all those living below while the lightning descended to punish those that dared to rise to the challenge. This was the wrath of nature and anyone arrogant enough to accept the challenge was meant to be destroyed by its uncaring fury. All hubris was meant to be destroyed in this low mana zone.
The gales carried the Malfae before it was slammed into a tree. The creature had seen the tree though and had repositioned its shield in response. But that did little good as the shield shattered and the creature crashed into the wood.
Pain erupted across the creature¡¯s body and before the Malfae could even move its body to find purchase in the wood, the winds slid it across the surface of the tree and carried it forward. The creature¡¯s pain addled mind summoned another [Malfae Shield] as it was carried forward.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 44
The ship didn''t just shake, it quivered.
The floor trembled. The racks fell. The walls shivered. And the mortals were shocked awake.
A moment of silence passed as people realised that something had happened. That something was wrong. But before that moment could even end, the ship quivered again and the mortals lost their footing.
People shrieked, their voices trembling. People ran amok, directionless in the darkness of the night. People scrambled, running around in the green moonlight. But there was nowhere to run. Nowhere to go. There were just the crying ship and the endless waters.
Something broke the surface of the water at that moment. Its seemingly endless body made an arc that just kept on increasing. The creature reached its zenith and while its body was still coming out of the water, its other end started to descend.
As the other met the water again, the creature didn''t create a splash. Instead, it created waves that were at least a meter high. The waves crashed into the trembling ship and the mortals fell once again.
¡°This is your [Ship Captain]. We are under monster attack. Please maintain calm.¡± A deep voice broke through the moments of terror. Its depth seemed to awaken the mortals and the people calmed down as if a spell had been cast.
¡°Tier 1, Level 20 and below, to me!¡± The deep voice announced and many a mortal ran to the captain¡¯s chamber. As they ran, a white-robed bald man trembled in a corner as he tried to control his shivering body.
No sooner had the mortals gathered than the ship quivered a third time as the creaking sounds resonated all across the ship and the mortals began trembling again.
¡°[Link]!¡± A man walked out of the captain¡¯s chamber. He had a moustache and a light beard covered his jawline. ¡°Send your Physical and Mental Attributes.¡±
As he finished speaking, of all the mortals gathered around captain¡¯s chambers, around 65 of them received a single notification.
Ting.
[[Link] has ended. Penalty applied. All the Attributes decreased by 10% of their original value for the duration of the next 1043 hours, the sum of Class Levels of all the people connected. The penalty is stackable.]
[Yes]??????[No]
None of the mortals hesitated and they all allowed the [Ship Captain] access to their Attributes.
Instantly, the man¡¯s presence seemed to grow deeper and the rest of the world paled in comparison. It was as if, he was the only one that mattered and everything else was but dust and passing winds.
He did not glow. He did not shine. He did not change in any perceivable way. Yet, he seemed more.
¡°[Set Sail]!¡± The voice that had been deep, seemed to have become deeper. Its pitch had lowered and almost seemed to resonate with the ship.
The moment the spell was cast, the ship resonated for a moment and then it ran.
The ship did not merely speed up. It sped up to such a degree that it vibrated. It had accelerated from a speed of some tens of kilometres per hour to several hundred in a matter of seconds under the effect of the captain¡¯s Spell.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
This was the effect of the Tier 2 Spell, [Set Sail], which increased the speed of the vessel by a factor of the [Sum of all of the Attributes] Km/hr as the cost of [Sum of all of the Attributes] MP/Min.
And as the [Ship Captain] had used [Link] hand, the speed had been increased by [Sum of all the 6 Attributes of the 65 people connected with [Link] and all of the captain¡¯s Tier 3 Attributes.
The ship vibrated as it ran across the surface of the water, seemingly splitting the liquid apart. The monster tried to give chase but the speed granted by the [Ship Captain]¡¯s Spell was a magnitude of several hundreds of kilometres per hour.
The creature monster simply couldn¡¯t keep up.
0.0
Kiran couldn¡¯t believe it. They had survived!
Yet he still couldn¡¯t believe it. How could he? In front of that monstrosity, they had been nothing but ants. Maybe not even that!
Facing the unfathomable monster, he truly understood why the ocean¡¯s denizens were called calamities made flesh. Kiran had merely caught a glance at the humongous creature and it had left his mind shaking.
Remembering the creature, his body trembled. His hands shook. His heart pounded while cold sweat covered his palms. Goosebumps erupted on his body and his breath came up short and fast.
Kiran did not even know what that creature had been and yet his mind trembled.
He still didn¡¯t completely understand what had happened. At one moment they had been shivering where they had stood, dreading for their lives and in another, they had been speeding away on the water like nothing he had ever experienced.
Fighting that creature had not been an option.
¡°We thank everyone for cooperating during the time of need.¡± At that moment the captain¡¯s deep voice boomed across the ship. ¡°The danger has passed. Everyone can rest now.¡±
A collective sigh of relief seemed to escape from everyone on the ship. And at the same time, the man¡¯s presence seemed to fade and his connection to the people dissipated as the skill [Link] was released.
At that moment, another notification was received by all those that had connected their Attributes to the [Ship Captain].
Ting.
[[Link] has ended. Penalty applied. All the Attributes decreased by 10% of their original value for the duration of the next 1043 hours, the sum of Class Levels of all the people connected. The penalty is stackable.]
Kiran sat down and breathed deeply to control the trembling of his limbs.
[Link] was a Mortal skill. It meant that all mortals, no matter their species, had some version of this skill. And it was because of this Skill that Mortals had any chance of surviving. It was often said that this Skill was Gods¡¯ gift to the Mortals. It was their pity and their grace.
Kiran did not know much about Gods so he didn¡¯t debate on the subject. He was no priest, after all, he was an ascetic.
Yet, it was true that this skill formed the base on which Mortals survived even today. It allowed mortals to add their one or multiple of their attributes to a single person who could then cast a Spell using the combined strength of all the connected mortals.
This Skill transformed a group of people, waiting to be slaughtered, into a power that could hunt the hunter. Yet this skill was not without its limitations. As after each cast, all the attributes of all the people connected decreased temporarily as a penalty.
Kiran knew all of this, thus he walked up to one of the returning people and asked about the penalty time. The number made him wince. ¡®Almost 43 days. Captain¡¯s Skill must be quite high to [Link] with this many people.¡¯
Kiran breathed deeply and felt his taut muscles give in.
Even though his heart had calmed down a bit, the tension from having survived certain death had left his legs week and body sore.
Still, he could not rest now. Working for the ship¡¯s [Healer] had been one of the conditions under which he had been allowed to board, and if there were any time to help the older man, it would be now.
Thus, with shaky legs, he made for the old man¡¯s office.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 45
The winds howled, the gales roared and even the trees fell as critters were carried off onto the raging winds. Dust rubbed past the world like sandpaper as debris rose unhindered into the sky. Thunder roared as lightning repeatedly split apart the sky but clouds refused to bleed and rain refused to descend.
Within such raging gales and the sweeping winds, various things that weren''t supposed to fly flew. Amongst these things were debris, branches, pebbles and critters. The passed out Malfae was one such critter. It momentarily woke up and its dark pupil-less eyes tried to see. However, before its mind could even completely awaken, the weightlessness told it all it needed to know. ¡®How is it still going?!¡¯
0.0
Under the azure moonlight and within the dense grass stalks laid the prone form of the unconscious Malfae with its small form was lost within the unnaturally tall grass blades that spanned the length of a mortal''s entire leg. Such was the density of the tall grass blades that the [Reincarnated] confused them to be some strange forest upon awakening. If the distinct shape of grass blades hadn''t keyed the Malfae in, perhaps its misconception would have lingered.
The [Survivor] had barely taken in its surroundings when it received a string of notifications.
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.9] has levelled up [Flight Lv.10]. Your speed and manoeuvrability have been increased.]
.
.
Ting.
[Skill [Flight Lv.12] has levelled up [Flight Lv.13]. Your speed and manoeuvrability have been increased.]
Bleary as the Malfaewas, it couldn¡¯t even read the notification. However, it didn''t stop its body from functioning again. Its sensitive antennas came alive to sense the fragrances in the air and the [Hive Monarch] instantly froze. Its pupil-less dark eyes widened as its heart raced while the sound rapid heartbeat echoed in its massive ears. Its blue skin paled and the white hair on its back stood up in sheer terror. Its scalp tingled as its massive ears flattened themselves against its head.
The [Reincarnated]''s body trembled beyond its control before its face crashed into the ground. It didn''t even move to mitigate its fall. It couldn¡¯t. Its face slammed into the ground to let it taste dirt. Its heart raced and continued to race until its chest ached. At that moment, the Malfae even lost control of its bowels. It shat itself. Yet, it dared not move. It couldn''t move. Its heart continued to still race and the ache turned into a sharp pain. Yet, the [Survivor] made no move to help itself. I could not. It dared not.
All because its antennas had picked up scents which, bar none, had not just subdued it but overwhelmed it to the point of immobility. It dared not even move.
Those consequence of sensing these scents hadn''t been fear, for fear could have been fought. Instead, the consequences of being assaulted by the cocktail of scents had been utter and total domination. The [Survivor]''s every instinct screamed of certain death, for these scents belonged to immortals that could annihilate it without even knowing. The Malfae would die from just the unintended consequences of their actions.
Every one of these scents overwhelmed its mind to whisper stories of creatures so powerful and unfathomable that the word ¡®dangerous¡¯ couldn''t even begin to comprehend their existences. Only the word annihilation could be used to comprehend the difference in power of those creatures and the Malfae.
The Malfae remained still. It laid on the ground covered in its own faeces and trembled. The goosebumps didn''t subside, the chill didn''t fade and its heart didn''t slow down from its maddened pace. With its every breath, the terror reinforced itself to sow utter helplessness within its trampled mind.
The Malfae had been so utterly destroyed by merely sensing the faint layer of scents that it couldn''t even consider using [Sense]. It dreaded death if it did so.
Its thoughts came to a halt. Terror dominated its mind and the [HIve Monarch] could do nothing but submit. But to whom was it forced to submit? It didn''t submit to the beings or creatures or anything alive. Instead, it had submitted to scents. Such had been the power of these monsters that their mere scents had overwhelmed a Tier 2 immortal.
The Malfae remained motionless for a long time. Meanwhile, its heart continued racing with its maddened pace and the pain in its chest became agony.
The azure moon''s star parade finished their track across the sky along and the sun rose. Yet, the [Survivor] remained motionless with its heart racing. The newly risen sun shimmered in the sky as it completed its journey across the sky, yet the [Reincarnated] remained still as pure agony tore its chest.
When the night came again, it brought along dark clouds which bled to let out pitter-patter of welcome raindrops. After all, it was still monsoon. The droplets fell on the motionless [Hive Monarch] and water washed away its terror and its shame, while its heart that had been pounding for a day and a night, calmed down as the power of the scents diminished.
The tiny thing had exhausted itself beyond its capabilities. The consequence of which the creature had yet to find out.
As more and more rain fell on the creature, the scents of the horrifying creatures rapidly washed away and the Malfae breathed easily for the first time since it had awakened. ¡®I-that¡¡¯ The Malfae couldn¡¯t finish the thought as it raised itself while supporting its weight on all fours of its trembling limbs. Yet, it was not at peace. It was panting and its pupil-less eyes were wide. ¡®I-I have to get out of here. I have to. I must.¡¯
Ting.
[Skill [Dominance Resistance] granted.]
The [Survivor] raised itself and as the rain continued to fall on it the Malfae hurriedly summoned the Skill¡¯s description.
Ting.
[Skill [Dominance Resistance Lv.1] is the ability to resist the instinctual domination by a far stronger Creature.]
The [Reincarnated]''s eyes shined and a slimmer of hope rose within its pupil-less eyes. Without wasting another moment, it flew. However, the moment it raced up, the subsided agony exploded once again as its instincts took over and slammed its flesh into the ground.
The Malfae shivered as it fought itself to look up but its gaze found nothing. All it saw were the raindrops and the grey clouds. Yet, as it gazed into the night, its suppressed instincts took over once again to make it look away. The instincts dreaded the skies for they knew that the Malfae was but a mere pest. And a pest had no right to the skies. The [Survivor] wasn''t allowed to gaze at the sky, let alone fly. It was as if what had happened a few moments before had been a mere warning.
The [Reincarnated] abandoned the skies without another thought. Instead, it supported itself with its 4 trembling limbs and crawled. It didn''t even dare to walk, for it didn''t trust itself with even something so simple. As it crawled, it felt the danger dissipate which allowed its tense body gradually loosen. However, as its mind relaxed, all the bodily functions that it had been ignoring made themselves known.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Its parched throat grated as it breathed and the [Survivor] hastily lowered its head to the nearest puddle and drank. It did not matter to the creature that the water was a mix of dirt and filth. All it knew was that it was rainwater, thus freshwater. However, it was the burning hunger that proved difficult to solve. In a place where merely the scents of the residents could dominate the Malfae¡¯s being, the creature couldn''t even imagine hunting. This left the Malfae with just one option.
Thus, as the creature crawled on all fours, it found a small pit and used [Sense Essence] to check it out. It didn''t even consider utilising [Sense] out of its fear of domination. Though once the Skill activated, what it saw left the [Reincarnated]''s mouth hanging open.
As the world had dissolved away, where there had always been nothing but Essences, much more had existed. Where there had been nothing but darkness, now wind existed within the dissolved realm of Essence. Or it was better to say that even the air here contained enough mana to manifest Essences. ¡®How is this even possible?!¡¯ The blurry Essence of the air was unlike any other Essence that the [Survivot] had ever seen. Let alone it, this Essence of air was unlike anything that even she had ever seen. And she had been someone that had worked with Essences as she had walked the path of a Curse Mage.
This hazy Essence flowed. Essences didn''t flow. They were stationary things situated within the centre of creatures, beings and things they represented. They were the condensations of the mana that passed through creatures. Any change in a being changed the Essence and any change in the Essence changed the being. It was a fundamental truth. While the nature of anything that flowed was of constant change. Yet the Essence of air flowed.
''This¡this¡I must get out here. I must!¡¯ -Overwhelmed as the creature was, it instantly dismissed the Skill and panted. The fur on its back felt every little movement of air and its heartbeat began to pace with every resulting movement. The overworked organ paced and the creature¡¯s chest instantly ached in protest. The Malfae closed its eyes and breathed before coming to a sudden stop. ¡®This¡is air. I am breathing the Essence of the air.¡¯ Its eyes widened beyond belief. Even without sclera, its eyes became crossed as the [Reincarnated] tried to look at its nose.
The [Hive Monarch] hyperventilated and as it breathed it panicked even more. This panic regarding breathing resulted in even more rapid breathing. Thus trapping the Malfae into a vicious cycle and its heart pounded even harder. Its vision rapidly dimmed and the world became hazy. It tri-
0.0
The harsh light of the sun brought the Malfae back to reality. It tried to move but the pounding in its head didn''t allow it to do anything other than twitch.
Ting.
[Your heart has been greatly weakened. Lifespan has been reduced by 1 month. Current Lifespan: 6 Years 5 Months 12 Days.]
The [Reincarnated]''s eyes widened and it hurriedly summoned its Status to confirm, only to see the truth with its very eyes. Its lifespan had been reduced. ¡®Ho-how?¡¯ Its heartbeat quickened but before it could panic anymore, its antennas comprehended the scents in the surrounding and it stiffened. Its chest roared in agony as its heart raced with all its might and the hair on its back stood up. The scents had returned to hijack the [Survivor]''s mind.
Ting.
[Your heart has been greatly weakened. Lifespan has been reduced by 1 month. Current Lifespan: 6 Years 4 Months 12 Days.]
And at that moment, the Malfae was trapped in a vicious cycle that fed off its terror and only grew larger. No matter how much it tried to control itself, it didn¡¯t succeed. The only thing it could do was pass out.
0.0
The Malfae stared at the screen. The shine in its eyes had long since disappeared, leaving its eyes dull and the lips flat. Its forehead lacked even a single crease as it gazed flatly. Its face lacked even the slightest emotion. This state of the [Survivor] was not one of zen but one of forced calm; achieved by breaking out of the loop that it had trapped itself in. Though, the price to break the loop had been a heavy one.
[Your heart has been greatly weakened. Lifespan has been reduced by 1 month. Current Lifespan: 4 Years 6 Months 12 Days.]
''Two years. I lost 2 years of my lifespan.'' It could even feel its heart that had critically weakened. Every pulse that its heart let out, it set off a fresh wave of pain in its chest. ¡®Just what good is this trade-off?¡¯
[Skill [Domination Resistance Lv.1] has levelled up to [Domination Resistance Lv.2]. The resistance has been marginally increased.]
¡®Just one Skill Level for 2 years of my lifespan?¡¯ This turn of events disgruntled the [Hive Monarch] but it dared not linger on the emotion for too long, lest its heart suffers even more. Thus, the [Survivor] could only choose to be happy that it hadn''t exhausted its limited lifespan even further.
But this didn''t end the [Reincarnated]''s problems. The Malfae had barely managed to collect itself when it had rained. As a result, the scents had been washed away. However, the moment the rain stopped and scents had returned, the [Reincarnated] had summarily fallen apart.
¡®I must move.¡¯ It knew it had to leave this place. However, how could it do so when all it could do was crawl? How could it do so when even walking was an unfathomable mountain? Thus under the dominance of the scents belonging to unfathomably powerful monsters, the [Survivor] struggled.
As it fought itself, it used its [Domination Resistance] and felt a minuscule change. With the activation of the Skill, the looming heaviness seemed to marginally diminish. Although the decrease wasn''t anything concrete, it was enough for the Malfae to hope. Thus, it willed its body to move. It fought the pounding in its head. It fought the agony in its chest. It fought against its instincts urging it to surrender. It willed its body to do anything, just anything.
At that moment, the [Reincarnated]''s finger twitched and a smile blossomed on its face. Its eyes regained a bit of light that they had lost. However, this achievement was not a result of the [Survivor]''s strong will. Rather it was the effect of its new Skill. If not for the Skill, this movement would have been impossible.
For this creature was a very special creature. Or rather, it was better to say, its soul was somewhat special. Its soul was the antithesis to what could be considered as Heaven defying. This was a soul that was Heaven-obeying. By its very nature, it tried to make the best of the resources that it had been given. It knew the limitations imposed on it by the Heavens and it dared not break past them. And if the Heavens wanted the soul¡¯s vessel dead, then the soul would struggle but still die.
It was for this reason that the Will of the Wild had chosen this specific soul. It was for this reason that the Will of the Wild had reincarnated it with its memories intact. After all, the one to reincarnate this soul had its own agenda. Why would it choose just any other soul? Why would it not choose a soul that would follow the limitations set by the Will?
However, there was a catch. As although this was a Heaven-obeying soul, what this soul considered to be Heavens was not something easily defined. And the Wild had overestimated itself. It had considered itself to be the Heaven for beings in its domain. But the Heaven-obeying soul had found this definition of heavens week. It had used the knowledge that it inherited from her, and had rejected the week heavens. And as a result, the Will of the Wild had failed in its quest.
Yet, there was not a lack of Creatures and Existences that considered themselves as the Heavens and the Earth. And all of them sought to control the fate of the Heaven-obeying soul¡¯s vessel. They all sought to be the heavens for a creature that was heaven obeying.
However, these beings overestimated themselves, much like the Will of the Wild had. After all, was Heavens something so easily defined? Was the fate of a Heaven-obeying soul, so easy to control?
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 46
Kiran arrived at the chamber of the [Healer], only to see a line of patients already waiting to be treated. His racing heart calmed a bit but his hands continued to tremble in fear.
He tried to shake off the trembling before he entered the chamber and took his seat beside 2 women and 3 men, all of whom wearing azure robes of the azure moon. Kiran greeted them with folded hands before his first patient came in with a large gash across his arm.
The man had been working in the kitchen, prepping for the next morning¡¯s breakfast, when the monster had attacked. The resulting tremble had caused the nearby racks to fall on him. ¡®He is lucky to survive with just a gash.¡¯ ¡°[Anatomy Vision],¡± Kiran mumbled and his patient became a translucent mess of azure light. Within the azure light, blood flowed like worms digging through flesh.
However, the image was unclear with the fine capillaries and veins merging into one. Kiran focused his vision on the man¡¯s arm and narrowed his eyes. It was only after he had confirmed that there was nothing stuck into the flesh that the white-clad man cast his Spell. ¡°[Stimulate].¡±
The patient winced as his flesh pulsed and began to knit itself at a glacial pace; though, the pace of knitting being visible was an achievement in itself. Kiran kept the Spell active long enough for the blood to stop. He had no intention of completely healing the patient and wasting his mana. He then bandaged the young man¡¯s arm and let him go.
His next patient came in delirious and blind. The man had been descending the stairs when the creature had attacked. As a result, he had lost his balance and fell, causing his head to hit the stairs hard. Kiran furrowed his brows and once again mumbled, ¡°[Anatomy Vision].¡±
The patient¡¯s translucent, azure figure appeared and Kiran focused on his head only to find the movement of blood-worms to be restricted and slow. They didn''t move as freely as they did in the rest of his body. Rather, they seemed to form patches and blockades. ¡°Please take him to [Curer] at the last station.¡± Kiran¡¯s brows straightened and he addressed the guardian of the patient. ¡°He had blood clots in his head, and I do not possess the necessary Skill to deal with it.¡±
¡°Is this¡¡± The guardian hesitated, ¡°¡he will be alright, won¡¯t he?¡±
¡°You do not need to worry.¡± Kiran nodded at the man. ¡°This just need Tier 2 Skill, [Sever]. It¡¯s nothing serious.¡± As the guardian opened his mouth to speak, another man came in running, carrying a woman on his back. He placed the woman on Kiran¡¯s table to beg, ¡°Please! Pl-please save her!¡±
Kiran dismissed his earlier patient and as the stretcher became free, shifted the woman onto it. ¡°What happened?¡± He furrowed his brows and asked after he activated [Anatomy Vision]. The woman¡¯s body seemed to become translucent but the blood that had always flowed like worms remained still.
¡°She was bathing when the monster attacked! I don¡¯t know what happened but when I went to get her, he was in lying in the pool! N-not breathi-
The man continued to speak but Kiran stopped listening as he dismissed the Skill. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
¡°-I brought her here as fast as I could. Please save her!¡±
Kiran sighed and closed the woman¡¯s unblinking eyes.
0.0
It took Kiran a few hours to get over the feeling of doom and death that the monster¡¯s attack had left him with. And by the time he had recovered, there had been an obvious sense of excitement present in the crew. It didn''t take much effort to find the cause of the excitement. Though, it did make him roll his eyes.
The excitement wasn''t from some major achievement but because the captain had authorised the use of Chambermaids. It seemed that he had felt the need to calm his men after the encounter and had offered Chambermaids as distractions and rewards.
After a bit of thought, the excitement did seem fair enough; these men had been on the sea for quite a few months and the sprawling waters made even the strongest feel lonely and small. Thus, the captain¡¯s decision did seem quite well thought out.
Chambermaids were a curious existence in the world. They were criminals, convicts and political prisoners that had been ordered to suffer continuous humiliation, torture, perversion and punishment.
Or they were people that had offended someone high up the social chain. Though, given the nature of the world that was ruled by [Karma] and [Surplus], the latter was quite a bit rare. However, it did exist.
Chambermaids were more often than not men that had their forms forcibly changed to that of women through curses. For the real women were a priceless commodity and sold directly to the nobles. It was only the men that were cursed such as they were of no other use.
These men, that had been cursed into being women, then had their fertility nullified through even more curses. But curses could not block someone¡¯s access to their Status. Nothing could.
Thus, their mana was bound instead.
These new women were then auctioned off to registered buyers for a lifetime of disgrace, torment and rape.
Though as these people had initially been men, few people bought them for their own use. Rather these condemned were, more often than not, bought by shipping companies for their sailors who, after a few months on sea, were desperate enough to care not for the previous forms of these women. As a result, these cursed women, that had once been men, were also called Sailor¡¯s wives.
Kiran sighed. It was more than likely that he would be called on to heal a few of these Chambermaids after the sailors had their share of fun. Or maybe even before that. He was, after all, one of the few healers on the ship.
Shaking his head, Kiran ignored the topic and instead asked about their escape from the swimming calamity. No sooner had he asked than the answer had been presented to him. It seemed the tale of their survival had become an epic tale of the victory of mortals over monsters.
Kiran had enjoyed the animated retelling of the sailor and if he had not been there himself, he might have believed it too. Though, now that the fear no longer plagued his mind, the contents had been more or less what he had guessed. The [Ship Captain], had used Tier 3 effect of the Skill [Link] along with his Tier 2 Spell [Set Sail] and run away from the creature.
Kiran sighed. Tier 2 and Tier 3.
His heart ached when he thought about higher tiers. Despite being on the ship for more than half a year, he had yet to increase his [Reflection]. If this continued, then the higher Tiers may as well remain a dream.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 47
After its finger had twitched under the influence of [Domination Resistance], the Malfae had been emboldened. However, even after trying for an entire day, it had only covered a distance equal to its height, the length of a mortal¡¯s finger.
It was pitiful. Utterly pitiful.
Yet, the fact that it had managed to move at all was an achievement. The domination of scents was not something easily overcome, this the [Survivor] had learned.
But now that it had managed to move, the hunger it had ignored till now demanded all its attention. Its belly cramped as bile threatened to come out of its throat. After all, it hadn''t eaten since the winds had thrown it in the mana rich place, 3 days ago.
In these three days, its own fear and need to survive had suppressed its need to feed. And after the creature had regained control of its mind, there had been much more pressing matters that had needed its attention. The foremost such matter had been the inability to move. And now that the creature could move again, the hunger could no longer be ignored.
Though, just what could it eat?
It was in a place where the mere scents could overwhelm the [Reincarnated] to point of complete domination. In such a place, hunting was not even an option. This left the creature with just a single option. ¡®At least I will not starve.¡¯ The [Hive Monarch] activated [Drone Eggs] but the ache that it had been expecting did not announce itself. Beyond that, its belly that had always bulged with the activation of the Skill did not react. It frowned and waited but the more time passed, the more its heart raced. It feared starvation.
Hastily, it checked its Status and found the MP deduced. ¡®¡then why?¡¯ It considered using the Skill again for a moment but didn¡¯t follow through. If there was indeed something wrong with the Skill, then the [Survivor] didn¡¯t want the consequences of it to be enhanced. ¡®Just what can affect the working of a Skill?¡¯ As it pondered, it finally felt the familiar ache in its stomach and it let out a sigh of relief.
However, all was not same as it should be. The ache that had always rapidly spread, dragged its legs to grow at a snail¡¯s pace. As a result, the Skill which should have ended within a few minutes took hours to finish; a time during which it remained in constant labour to pop one egg out another. By the end of it, the [Hive Monatch] was not only gasping for breath but also profusely sweating and groaning in agony.
The malice attuned immortal eyed the eggs warily as its thought about its grim future. It had to go through that experience every time it had to feed. The thought made it grimace but didn''t stop it from eating. And although it was full long before it finished the eggs, the creature dared not leave its scent behind. Thus, even when full it ate until it couldn''t and then paused to before eating again.
Thus, the blue monster ate and drank from the nearby puddle that had formed with the last rain. As the creature finished drinking, it scowled. ¡®I can make do for the rainy season, but what will I drink when it passes?¡¯ The [Hive Monarch] had no answer to that question. While it had previously survived the horrendous summer on its venom, that had been within the enclosed space of its crevice. It doubted its venom''s ability to sustain it during the same summer while under the open sky.
The [Survivor] furrowed its brows and continued to think but it couldn''t come up with anything that would work. Of course, if it could move rather than just crawl, the matter would be solved. But if it could move then the problem didn¡¯t exist in the first place. ¡®¡I can only wait for the rain then.¡¯ That was the only path forward for the Malfae. For when it rained, the water washed away the scents for its duration, allowing it to move. Thus, with a slight twist of distaste on its face, the [Survivor] decided to wait.
0.0
While enduring the pain from its wounded back where its wings had been, the Malfae waited for monsoon showers. Though it didn''t have to suffer for long before its HP accumulated sufficient buffer, allowing it to use [Moulting] to replace the wings that it had lost. This not only gave the Malfae its wings back but also raised the Skill to Level 5.
This decision, of course, left the immortal with little more than half its HP. And in a place where mere scents could dominate it, the decision was foolhardy. However, its HP could regenerate whereas its wing could not. Thus, when the monsoon showers arrived three days later to wash away the overpowering scents, the [Survivor] welcomed them with open wings. Yet, it hesitated to fly.
¡®I should probably not fly.¡¯ But if the creature didn''t fly then the dense grasses would hinder its movement. In the little time the showers lasted, the tree akin grasses would make it impossible for the [Reincarnaed] to cover any sort of meaningful distance. After longingly staring at the sky or several long moments, it decided to cautiously venture our first.
Thus, with a deep breath, it flapped its new wings and cautiously moved past the grass blades tall as a mortal''s arm. However, it didn¡¯t dare race past the grass blades, for it hadn¡¯t yet forgotten the dominations that had decreed it a pest and taken the skies away from it.
As the [Reincarnated] continued to fly shakily, it found the endeavour to be much more difficult than what it had imagined. Not only the Malfae had to keep its instincts from collapsing -for it flew against their warnings- but it also had to suffer through the raindrops hammering it from all sides. These raindrops were too small for a mortal but for a creature the size of a mortal¡¯s finger, the raindrops were almost the size of its fist. And although the [Malfae Shield] protected it from quite a lot of rain, the shimmering shield couldn¡¯t block all the rain. Hence, its journey was a turbulent one.
A successful test run was a successful test run nonetheless and the [Reincarnated] earnestly began searching for a river. In the Malfae¡¯s uninformed opinion, for a grass field this dense and lush, there must exist a river nearby. ¡®If I find that river, water will not be a problem. I can just follow it out of here.¡¯ But the search proved to be a miserable and fruitless exercise as the [Hive Monarch] didn''t find even a single trace of any river. It had searched with all its might but with the limitations it had to work, the tiny immortal could only cover so much distance.
0.0
As time marched on, the abundant but short bouts of monsoon showers didn''t allow the Malfae to properly search the region it was in. During this period, it had taken to hiding beneath grass blades while crawling to provide itself with some visual cover. It had also taken to lathering itself in mud to hide its scent. But this method didn''t seem to have been particularly effective as its own antennas had constantly picked its scent.
As the [Hive Monarch] had kept up with its efforts, almost week had passed. Over this week, the Malfae had continuously been alert and always on edge. As despite the effect of [Domination Resistance], the scents didn''t allow it to relax even a little bit. Hence, a few of its Skills had levelled up. The first to Level up was [Domination Resistance], which rose to Level 2. It was soon followed by [Night Vision], as it levelled up and became the [Hive Monarch]¡¯s third Skill to reach double digits at Level 10. Even [Drone Eggs] rose to Level 8 from the constant use and began to create 36 eggs at the cost of 80 MP.
It was, however, the Level up of the [Crawl] to Level 6 that left the [Reincarnated] dumbfounded. The Malfae had completely forgotten that it still possessed [Crawl]. Which was not surprising given the fact that it hadn''t used this Skill, even once, since it had evolved from being a caterpillar. And that had been more than a year ago. Not only that, but it had been baffled that its movement by dragging its body had been considered the same as a caterpillar crawling. That particular realisation had been like unexpectedly biting into a particularly sour lemon.
This sudden increase in Skill Levels was, obviously, not the result of Malfae¡¯s efforts. Rather it was the result of the domination exerted by the region it was in. With its existence being directly in conflict with its very environment, any Skill it used gained experience at an exacerbated pace.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Not that the creature knew any of this. With its limited knowledge about the working of the Skills, half-formed conclusions and no previous interaction with any sort of system interface, it couldn¡¯t even begin to imagine the reason for the increased pace. The [Survivor], thus, developed a sense of paranoia that continued to multiply with each passing day. It had begun to flinch at every passing wind and had gone stiff at every movement of grass blades. Its situation had been exacerbated by the giant creatures had it seen pass by.
The Malfae had seen a bird so large that it had almost seemed to cover the green moon behind it. In the darkness of the night, the malice influenced monster hadn¡¯t been able to see much of the bird except its shape, but the shadow cast by the passing avian had been huge enough to darken the night for a few considerable moments.
It had not just been the mammoth bird that had shocked the [Reincarnated] to its core. It had even felt the ground shiver and the air tremble. The shuddering had been so all-encompassing that it had seemed as if an earthquake had risen from the depths unknown to punish the world itself. It had not been the nature¡¯s fury that it had experienced, however, it had merely been the aftershocks of a fight between the immortals that called this place home.
While the Malfae had not been close enough to experience the fight itself, it had been close enough to experience the consequences. It had felt the movement of the earth and the air, and it had been blown away by the travelling roar, much like a leaf in a typhoon.
These incidents had been the main reasons driving its paranoia. The grass-blade cover had helped the creature¡¯s situation but it hadn''t completely dealt with the problem. As a result, when the creature¡¯s antennas picked up the rancid stench of faeces and flinched, it didn''t shy away from the smell. Instead, the Malfae crawled towards it with its eyes shining in excitement.
The stench that it was moving towards was not only absolutely putrid but it also contained the same domination that the other scents in this place had. The [Survivor] thus had to resist being dominated by literal faeces. If the creature had been a mortal with a rather dark sense of humour, then it would have been tickled at the thought. But as it was not a mortal, it crawled to resist the domination.
Yet, this domination and its resistance assuaged the creature. As this domination aspect of the stench allowed the Malfae to surmise that this pile of refuse had been from something extremely powerful. Thus, the creature resisted and continued to crawl forward, facing ever-increasing domination. As a result of resisting the domination of literal shit, the Malfae¡¯s Skill [Domination Resistance] levelled up to reach Level 3.
The [Hive Monarhc] was not amused by this turn of events.
However, who cared for its amusement? Certainly not the unfathomable Beings that observed every single movement of the Malfae.
After a full night of crawling, when the [Survivor] finally reached the moist and fetid piece of sludge, it puked right then and there because of the stench''s strength. The stink was so strong that even eroded a bit of the creature¡¯s will and its paranoia. When the [Survivor] stopped puking, it then sat beside the literal piece of crap and, hesitantly, breathed deeply. Each breath that the creature took in caused bile to rise in its throat and stomach to lurch but the creature persisted. The Malfae had a plan.
It took quite some time until its stomach stopped revolting with each of its breath. But it perseverance had been rewarded with acclimation to the stench, allowing it to move onto the next phase of its plan. The [Reincarnated] eyed the pile of faeces and hardened its heart as it pushed its hand into the dung and scooped a handful. The Malfae then proceeded to lather its chest with the literal crap. Its goal here was simple; the creature wanted to hide its scent.
The [Survivor] didn''t stop with just that and continued to cover its body until the only thing remaining free of shit was its face. In that instant, the Malfae hesitated for only a moment before it scooped another handful of excreta and slapped it on its face.
Its nose burned and antennas twitched but it had already gotten acclimated to the stench. Thus, it persisted. ¡®What is a bit of shit if I make it out of here alive.¡¯ Once its face and even the soles of its feet had been smothered in faeces, the tiny immortal finally moved away from the pile of refuse. It maintained the cover of grass-blades as it crawled covered in excreta.
Ting.
[Skill [Fade] granted.]
The [Hive Monarch] almost flinched at the sudden sound but it managed to control itself. The concealment of its scent had helped its paranoia a great deal and the effect showed almost instantly. After it summoned the details of the Skill, it raised an eyebrow.
Ting.
[Ability to decrease your presence and conceal yourself from the senses of the other creatures. Cost: 10 times the level of the Skill per minute.]
It laughed and activated the Skill without waiting for even a moment more.
Instantly, the malice attuned monster felt the world enlarge as the grasses grew taller, the land stretched, the sky went farther away and the world itself just seemed to grow bigger. Yet, the immortal didn''t feel as if anything had changed. It picked up the nearby pebble. And despite seemingly having grown larger previously with the world, the pebble remained the same size in its palm. Though when it let the pebble fall, it seemed to enlarge instantly.
¡®But that shouldn''t be possible. To enlarge and shrink the rest of the world in response to a mere Skill, and that too at Level 1¡it doesn''t seem right.¡¯ The [Reincarnated] furrowed its brows and picked the pebble again. It seemed to be the same size as usual but when the creature let it fall again, it seemed to enlarge in response. ¡®Am I the one shrinking and enlarging? But then¡when picking the pebble, why does it seem to be the same size? Shouldn¡¯t it shrink when I pick it up?¡¯ It continued to ponder as it crawled with its new Skill active.
It paid particular attention to its surrounding to observe the effect but, much to its amazement, there didn¡¯t to be any change due to the activation of Skill. ¡®Is this all¡just my perception?¡¯ Indeed, the creature was correct. The Skill neither enlarged the rest of the world nor did it shrink the creature. The enlargement of the world was just a change in the perception due to the effect of the Skill and nothing more.
The [Hive Monarch] sighed before a reluctant smile formed on its lips. With its new Skill, the paranoia haunting it withered even further. Though, it did not die. It could not die. For the Malfae was still within this high mana zone and this place never stopped its effort to dominate the creature.
0.0
With the lack of rain over the next few days, the Malfae''s search came to a sudden halt. Its only respite had been the light drizzles keeping the puddles intact but they had failed to wash away the disturbing scents. As a result, the [Survivor] had covered little distance while longing for heavy rains.
Its wish was soon granted and raindrops descended like the fury of the heavens. Drops the size of its fists fell and the [Reincarnated] flew up to meet them as if accepting a divine punishment. The [Reincarnated] welcomed the punishing rain yet didn''t dare to fly off into the sky and maintained its flight to remain just above the canopy of the grass field. It opened its arms to twirl and the tiny droplets flew off of it to scatter.
It laughed in jubilance.
These torrents of heavy rain had become the only moments that it could be free. Hence, it was little surprise that it used these moments to express its momentary freedom. Still, the [Reincarnated] didn''t tarry for long for it didn''t know just how long the showers would last. Thus, it flew off but it had no goal, no direction. It just randomly chose a direction and investigated it.
This was obviously not a strategy that would work.
The malicious monster had originally wanted to follow the other creatures of the region. It had believed that following them will lead it to the river. But after having witnessed the bird whose enormous size had covered up the sky and being blown away by a simple roar, it had given up on that route.
¡®Eh?¡¯ It was as it kept on flying that it noticed that the water on the ground didn¡¯t seem to be still. Instead, it flowed as if it had a direction and a destination. ¡®Could it be¡?¡¯ The Malfae immediately changed its path and followed the flowing water but the shower stopped before it could reach the destination that the rainwater had sought. With the absence of rain, the scents returned with vengeance and slammed it into the ground.
The Malfae, on the other hand, stared at the water seeping off into the distance with dead eyes. It could not fight the dominance asserted on it by its environment. It could only resist it and that too just marginally to be able to crawl. It stared for a few moments before it covered itself with another leaf and started crawling. The excreta lathered on its body had long since been washed away by the rain and it had not found another mound since then.
Ting.
[Skill [Fade Lv.1] has levelled up to [Fade Lv.2]. Concealment and decrease in presence have been marginally improved.]
The smile that graced the Malfae¡¯s lips was a hollow one.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 48
Kiran climbed down the stairs to arrive at the lowest part of the ship. Entering the gloomy corridor, his unsteady feet landed on the floor and he seemed to feel the water below. The corridor was graced by not even a single spec of natural light, forcing the usage of Light Wards for illumination which painted the long hallway with a bright azure glow.
Kiran''s unsteady footsteps stopped in front of the first cell and he breathed deeply to settle himself before he unlocked the metal bars with the key he had previously received from the guard. The door opened with a creak and Kiran entered the dim cell, only to find the bare minimum; a toilet, a platform, a quilt and a feeding station. That was all there was. Even prisoners were treated better, for they were allowed to see the light of the day.
Yet, this person wasn¡¯t.
Kiran sighed as his eyes fell on the stark naked woman lying on the platform, covered in blood that was hers and bodily fluids that weren''t. ¡°Get up.¡± The white-robed man approached the resting woman. ¡°I am here to heal you.¡±
¡°Yes, yes. They wouldn¡¯t want to waste all those coins.¡± A hoarse feminine voice answered before a dry chuckle escaped her thin lips as she sat up, ¡°Would they?¡±
Kiran didn''t reply as his wide eyes lingered on the woman''s battered face. His pupils dilated, his breath hitched and his heart pounded. His mouth fell open while he drank in the sight of the woman before him. At that moment, Kiran felt the world slow down to melt away, leaving him and the woman alone in all of existence. His heart raced as he unblinkingly gazed.
However, the object of attention was not a beauty to write home about, instead, she was quite plain. Her eyes were small and so was her nose. Her upper lip was smaller than her luscious lower one while her skin was unnaturally pale. Her long black hair fell over her naked breast but did little to hide her modesty as the woman wore not a single piece of fabric.
The injured woman saw the desire in Kiran''s eyes and her plain face twisted in an ugly sneer. ¡°You want this, don¡¯t you?¡± She spread her legs apart. Thick coagulating blood dripped down from her crotch as bloody bite marks adorned her flesh like malicious jewels. ¡°Come. Get it. What¡¯s stopping you?¡±
Kiran¡¯s wide eyes widened further as his imagination ran wild. However, the hideous expression of the woman snapped him out of his daydreams. His ears burned and a flush covered his cheeks while his brows furrowed and eyes narrowed. His face burned and he snapped. ¡°Show some decency woman!¡±
¡°Ha!¡± The woman¡¯s hoarse laugh was scratchy. The unpleasant sound would cause most to shiver in disgust but Kiran was not most. The ugly sound caused his body to react as his heart raced, breathing paced and pupils dilated. However, his reverie was broken as the object of his attention stopped laughing to scream, ¡°I am no WOMAN! I am a man! What you want to fuck is a man! MAN!!¡±
As if slapped, Kiran stumbled at the sheer hate within the voice. His body burned and scalp tingled as the desire from before vanished. His forehead scrunched, nose flared while eyes narrowed. He unconsciously clenched his fist as humiliation burned him from the inside. Growing up in the ashram, Kiran never had to face such a mess of emotions, causing his first encounter with this heightened state to overwhelm him. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
His rampaging emotions tore at him as refused to acknowledge them, hoping against hope for their dissipation. However, when had such action helped anyone. On one hand, he desired this woman, uncaring for what she was or the beauty she lacked. He wanted to make her, his. He knew it. His body knew it. She knew it. On the other hand, the look on the woman¡¯s face made him feel small and ashamed. Her actions and vulgarity jumbled his thoughts in humiliation. Her words made his heart grow cold in anger and the look in her eyes made him want to rip them out.
In just a moment, the fleeting emotion that had been a chance desire crossed the thin line to became a destructive obsession. Kiran did not know when his body moved and when he arrived near the naked woman. He did not know when his thoughts became so jumbled that he acted on his emotions rather than his thoughts. All he knew was that the battered woman that he was fixated on had humiliated him.
A resounding smack echoed across the closed-cell and the injured woman fell from her platform, laughing.
¡°Come on. Fuck me. Go on. I know you want to.¡± The dark-haired woman laughed, the ugly sound of it mocking as her wide eyes became crazed, her small nose flared and spit flew out of her mouth. ¡°FUCK ME!¡± She screamed with a voice so hoarse that her throat shook from the intensity.
Kiran did not know when he walked forward and pressed a nerve on the back of the woman¡¯s head causing her to faint and fall in his arms. His breathing was laboured, eyes wide and head cloudy. He heart rapidly raced and hot blood pumped through his veins as he stared at the woman in his arms while his face morphed in between a slew of emotions. Moments passed as he remained unmoving with the fallen frame of the woman in his arms. However, as his breathing recovered, he gently lowered her down to the platform before falling down the floor himself.
¡®What just happened?¡¯ Kiran did not know the answer to that as he closed his eyes to message them. He kept them closed and breathed deeply to calm his thoughts but the smell of sweat, blood and sex permeating the room made it difficult. As he opened his eyes again, his gaze fell on the woman on the platform and a strange emotion passed in them. ¡®I came here to heal.¡¯
¡°I came here to heal.¡± He said out loud this time as if he was reminding himself of his purpose. ¡°Yes, yes. I came here to heal.¡± The white-clad man pushed himself up and walked over to the woman. ¡°[Anatomy Vision].¡±
0.0
Kiran ascended the flight of stairs and once again returned to the light of the world and the sun. Yet his thoughts remained confused. He had healed her and he had healed all the other Chambermaids. He had healed the rest without any issue. It was only the first Chambermaid that had evoked such emotions in him that he had lost control over himself.
He did not know why.
Kiran breathed deeply and his brown eyes gazed upon the endless waters. He did not know what had come over him. He did not know why he had hit her. He did not why he had become so violent.
Or perhaps, he knew but didn¡¯t wish to acknowledge it to himself. Of course, this was no justification. This was, however, just the beginning of the story of the ¡®Healer and the Whore.¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 49
The Malfae stared at the roaring muddy water and its lips twitched in a smile. It had taken the Malfae one week and two bouts of showers to finally reach this river which was an unusual one. It was widespread. Its breath spanned far enough that the [Hive Monarch] couldn''t see the other shore even when flying. If not for the constant flow of the water, it would have assumed the waterbody to be a lake.
Yet, it was not the width of the waterbody that the [Survivor] found strange; it was the water itself. The water was brown, murky and tepid as if it carried the refuse of an entire civilization. The alarmed [Reincarnated] had thus frantically searched for signs of mortal interference in the stream.
However, it had neither found unnatural objects, nor it had found the dead creatures floating atop the water surface. Despite being brown and murky, the water hadn''t turned foamy and black, unlike what it had seen in her memories. Instead, the sediment-filled water gave the impression that the river had just passed through a desert instead of a grassland.
Still, after arriving at the waterbody, the [Survivor] didn¡¯t need to worry about other surviving the seasons anymore. However, its newfound tranquillity didn¡¯t last long.
No sooner had the rain stopped than a creature became visible within the murky waters of the river and the [Hive Monarch]¡¯s heart raced. Its ears flattened and the goosebumps erupted on its skin and back. Its pupil-less eyes widened and its breathing became difficult.
This creature spotted by the Malfae was a serpent so enormous that the [Survivor] couldn¡¯t even see the end of it. But that wasn''t what was unusual about the serpent, the unusual thing was the draw that it had on the Malfae¡¯s attention. As despite wanting to escape from the serpent with all its heart, the [Hive Monarch] found its gaze drawn to the mammoth reptile like a moth drawn to fire.
As its flittering gaze fell on the passing serpent, the first thing to catch the Malfae¡¯s attention about it was its colour. The serpent was a bright shade of purple with a head that seemed much more proper on a lizard rather than a serpent. The creature even had horns poking out of its head that ran down its spine.
The second thing of note was its width. Enormous as the serpent was, its girth was just as wide. The serpent¡¯s girth was almost the same size as the length of a fully grown mortal, or perhaps more. The serpent passed by the Malfae, paying the evolved bug not even a moment of thought as it continued to swim.
The massive serpent hadn''t even noticed the Malfae but as the reptile passed by, it had unknowingly affected the [Hive Monarch] all the same. The Malfae was punished for merely being in the purple serpent¡¯s presence. Its body trembled while the serpent''s image consumed its mind. Even as the said creature paid the evolved bug not the slightest bit of attention and simply continued to swim away.
Such was the effect of the serpent on the Malfae that the Malfae lost at least 100 HP in the encounter, even when both the parties didn¡¯t even interact. One had simply gazed at the other and had been punished for it. At that moment, the Malfae¡¯s eyes widened as it stared death in its face and its heart raced, causing a sudden bout of agony to rise in its chest.
Ting.
[Your heart has been greatly weakened. Lifespan has been reduced by 1 month. Current Lifespan: 4 Years 4 Months 23 Days.]
Its heart raced even faster and its chest felt like it was being pounded on. It knew it couldn''t allow itself to be stuck in this cycle once again. Thus, it hastily used a Skill that it knew would knock it out. ¡®Moulting! Moulting!!¡¯
0.0
The encounter with the serpent left the [Hive Monarch] with a few Skill Level ups. Its [Domination Resistance] rose to Level 4 while [Pain Resistance] to Level 8. It was the Skill [Moulting] that surprised the Malfae as it levelled up all too soon to reach Level 6. Despite the Skill Level ups, the [Survivor] was nearly scared shitless every time it thought of the encounter. It had lost another month of its lifespan to the serpent and if this pattern continued, the Malfae feared it would end up losing it all.
No matter how scared the [Survivor] had been, it couldn''t abandon the muddy river; for it was the only guide that it had in this horror infested grassland. If it left this path, it feared it would be stuck forever. Thus, despite its cowardice, it kept on crawling along the shore of the freshwater. In the creature¡¯s mind, if it had to face death with both the choices, it would rather choose the one where a chance to escape existed.
Per this choice, as the time passed and the Malfae continued to travel along the shore of the muddy river, it naturally came across even more of the true inhabitants of this region. Every single of them were creatures of unfathomable power that paid the Malfae no mind. However, the very presence of these creatures affected the Malfae¡¯s physical health, as it witnessed their power. For it could only witness. It could only suffer as it experienced their might. It could do nothing else.
If these creatures had wanted it dead, the Malfae could do little but roll over and die obediently. After all, these were creatures whose mere scents had overwhelmed it to the point of domination. How could it do anything else but witness?
0.0
Over the course of the next month, the monsoon bid farewell and autumn arrived to be welcomed by colourful leaves and chilly air. Meanwhile, the Malfae encountered quite a few beasts that caused it to just stare it in terror, agony and heartache.
The first memorable immortal the Malfae came across was a beetle immortal that stood at a height akin to that of a mortal and was just as large. That beetle though did not live long as it was preyed upon by a winged creature of some sort. The flying immortal that devoured the beetle was so fast that even after it had descended to pick the beetle before flying away, the Malfae had not been able to get a clear enough picture to recognise the bird.
This encounter had reduced the Malfae lifespan further by a month despite the [Hive Monarch]¡¯s best efforts to remain calm. But the shock had been just too much for the creature to bear and its heart had failed a tiny bit more.
That was not all that happened, however. As, over the course of this month, the Malfae had already levelled up a mind-boggling amount of its Skill at a ridiculous pace. It knew that back in its original home, it would have taken at least a year of diligent work to make the same amount of progress.
For during this period, [Domination Resistance] had levelled up further to Level 6, [Drone Eggs] had risen to Level 9, [Fade] had reached Level 4, [Malfae Shield] had raced up to Level 6 and even [Night Vision] had achieved Level 11. But above all of them, [Moulting] had levelled up once again and had become Level 7. And much to its chagrin, even [Crawl] had gained levels to reach Level 8.
By this point, the Malfae had figured out that there was something in this region that was causing its Skills to accelerate at truly ludicrous speed. It didn''t take the [Reincarnated] much deliberation to decide on capitalising on such a rare opportunity.
As a result, it began using [Sense Essence], [Mana Manipulation] and [Survive] to try to level them too. It had considered using [Sense] to Level it up but the very thought of the scents intensifying under the effect of the Skill had made its heart shake in terror. Its cowardice then raised its ugly head and the [Hive Monarch] hadn''t dared to touch the Skill.
It was around this time that the [HIve Monarch] felt the eggs, which had been left behind in the crevice, hatch new caterpillar¡¯s hunger materialised within its mind. And not long after, the drone broke out of its shell into its newly evolved moth form.
The Malfae had been initially amazed that [Hive Mind] had worked over such a large distance. However, it dismissed the amazement soon after. To it, the Skills had always seemed to have no limitations. After all, if a single Skill could make someone immune to poisons and grant the ability to sense Essences of all beings, something that took mortals years of diligent effort, then why would distance be a limitation on a Skill?
As the combined hunger of the caterpillars pulsed again, demanding attention and food, the creature almost spat out blood in anger. ¡®These pathetic idiots! I am barely surviving myself and they hatch at this time? Do they want me to die?¡¯ It beat its chest as it tried to calm itself but its fury didn¡¯t subside. Its wrath was misplaced of course. It knew this too. But it didn¡¯t care. It was unfair of the Malfae, but it didn''t even understand the concept of fairness. Why would it care? After all, it was a creature of malice, what did it care about fair and unfair?
Thus, without even waiting for a moment more, the Malfae ordered the newly evolved Moth to kill the caterpillars and consume not only their flesh but also their eggshells.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.
Once the order was completed and the caterpillar¡¯s dead, the [HIve Monarch] felt much better. However, the future of the moth drone didn''t look good as the moth didn''t receive even a single Level from consuming all the caterpillar''s gifts, much like how the Malfae had expected.
0.0
While the Malfae continued to crawl alongside the river, autumn kept marching until the time came for it to leave. As the evolved bug kept on trailing the muddy river, it continued to encounter more of the native creatures.
It found bears the size of mortal homes with their fur shining like silver in the light of the white moon. The gigantic creature didn''t seem to be hunting, instead seemed to be bathing in the white moonlight.
It saw stags who had horns of light and body of stone. Yet, the stag seemed to walk not the ground but on the very moonlight of the white moon itself. Its stony flesh flaked off with each step the immortal took and turned to dust as it fell.
It saw water buffaloes the colour of the darkest night sky with eyes that shined with light akin to that of the white moon. Their curved horns seemed to be made of the very water that they prowled in and their flesh rippled like flesh absolutely shouldn¡¯t.
It encountered them all and it saw many more but all those creatures paid the evolved bug no mind. It was just too powerless for them to even glance at it. It was akin to a single ant passing through the den of a lion. The lion couldn¡¯t care less. Yet, it did not mean that the creature escaped unscathed. For even though the immortals dismissed the [Survivor], their presences did not leave the Malfae alone.
When it had happened upon the moonlight-soaking Bear, the Malfae had dared not move and as a result, it had been trapped with the bear for the next few days. Those days had been one of the most heart-wrenching ones for it, causing it to lose four months of lifespan as it had felt its control on its own heart slip time and time again.
It had reminded the [Reincarnated] of the time when it had first awakened within this new region and had lost 2 years of its life span. Despite the re-traumatisation of the Malfae, it gained another preposterous set of Skill level-ups as most of Skills had gained levels.
[Night Vision] had risen to Level 12. [Sense Essence] and [Survive] had both reached Level 5. [Drone Eggs] had levelled up to Level 10 and [Fade] up to Level 6. [Malfae Shield] and [Moulting] had all reached Level 8 while [Domination Resistance] and [Pain Resistance] had become Level 9. Even [Hive Mind] had levelled up once to Level 6 as the [Hive Monarch] had been diligent in guiding the drone to a few safe locations but the physical distance proved too much and the drone too idiotic.
In the end, the drone had been hunted and the Skill had halted all progress; much like what it had expected.
In a fit of irony, [Crawl] had reached Level 10, while [Mana Manipulation] had refused to even budge. When the [Survivor] noticed it, it had looked like it had bit into a lemon again.
0.0
As the time continued to pass in its signature unhurried pace, autumn went on its merry way and winter made its presence known with a sudden drop of temperature and morphing of the ever-present autumn¡¯s chill into the coldness of the white winters. With the arrival of the early winters, over the course of two weeks, the lethargy that the Malfae had not known since it had been a moth erupted within the creature.
This sudden bout of lethargy almost caused its heart to skip a beat. It hadn''t considered that it would have to undergo hibernation deep within this mana rich region. But the [Reincarnated] managed to keep its heart under control with the use of [Dominance Resistance] and [Pain Resistance].
With the arrival of lethargy, the [Hive Monarch] could do little but prepare for the inevitable. It had no intention of defying its body and try to wither the winters on its own. Not after it had experienced the summers and had almost died of dehydration.
It did not have any intention of challenging the nature itself in this weak pathetic Vessel of a Malfae.
0.0
Over the course of the next week, the Malfae crawled away from the muddy river and towards solid ground and sparse trees. It eyed the ground for a moment before giving up on hibernating in a pit and instead, slowly crawled up the nearest tree.
This climb would have been utterly unnecessary if it were Monsoon. Under the cover of the rain, the [Hive Monarch] could have simply flown up but as it was, the Malfae could only crawl up. The creature continued climbing until the bark softened and then it began digging. Though, instead of using its hands the Malfae used its [Malfae Shield]. And when the shield broke due to repeated shocks, it just summoned another one.
As it continued to dig, it paid special attention to keeping the entrance small, while keeping the inner space wide and spacious. The Shield¡¯s ability to expand and contract like a moth¡¯s wings became quite useful towards this goal.
With the hideout complete, the [Reincarnated] considered leaving the entrance unblocked, as anything that existed within this high-mana zone would be able to look past any sort of disguise that the Malfae could come up with. However, the very thought of leaving the entrance open caused it breathing to hitch and, in the end, it decided to block the entrance once again with poisoned mud. Once it was inside, it placed the shield to reinforce the much blockage.
With the hideout ready, it began producing and eating its own eggs. With the Skill [Drone Eggs] reaching at Level 10, it produced 55 eggs per usage of the Skill, which took 100 MP. Thus, the [Hive Monarch] had no lack of food to eat and it abused this to eat, eat and eat some more.
As the days passed, the [Survivor] noticed that with every passing day, its capacity to eat increased along with the fat around its belly. In short, the Malfae was growing fat.
0.0
As time continued its march at its slow and steady pace, the temperature steadily continued to decrease. The water from the nearby muddy river rose and created a fog that enveloped the area, giving it a rather eery feeling.
Meanwhile, the Malfae was growing fatter.
The fat that had initially been just been around its belly, had grown and now covered the entirety of its body. Its face had swollen up, cheeks had puffed up and eyes had seemingly become smaller. It now even sported multiple chins and the condition of the rest of its body was quite similar.
The figure that had once been lithe and slim, had now become chubby with multiple thick layers of fat underneath. It hands and legs had almost doubled in circumference and only half of that was flesh and bone. Even the creature¡¯s fingers had become stubby and thick. It almost seemed like the [Reincarnated] had offended a hive of bees and had barely escaped with its life.
But this was what that it had wanted all along. Its instincts had egged it to prepare for the upcoming winter and this was the preparation that had been demanded. And now that the preparations had been completed, the Malfae fell asleep.
0.0
The temperature continued to decrease but the Malfae silently slept.
As the temperature dropped, the land seemed to freeze and a thin layer of ice developed on the muddy river. The sounds in the grassland became muted and so did the movement of life and in the blink of an eye, almost 4 months passed.
0.0
When the Malfae woke up once again, quite a few surprises awaited its awakening. ¡®Huh?¡¯ The first and foremost thing that it noticed was that the space inside its hideout had increased. ¡®Did this tree have a growth spurt in the middle of winter?¡¯ Very obviously, that was not the case. As its sleep-addled brain slowly booted up again, it realized that it wasn''t the tree that had enlarged, instead, it had been the Malfae¡¯s body that had sized down.
The [Hive Monarch] had lost most of its weight that it had gained before its hibernation. And the only remnant of it was the slight chubbiness around its waist and the loose skin all over its body. The creature even had stretch marks around its thighs and waist.
Ting.
[Skill [Cold Resistance] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Cold Resistance Lv.1] has levelled up to [Cold Resistance Lv.2]. Environmental damage mitigation has increased to 2 HP per minute.]
.
.
.
Ting.
[Skill [Cold Resistance Lv.11] has levelled up to [Cold Resistance Lv.12]. Environmental damage mitigation has increased to 12 HP per minute.]
Ting.
[Skill [Domination Resistance Lv.9] has levelled up to [Domination Resistance Lv.10]. The resistance has been marginally increased.]
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.9] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.10]. Continuous damage caused by pain has been decreased by the 10 points.]
The creature blinked at the notifications before summoning up the explanation of [Cold Resistance].
Ting.
[Ability to resist the detrimental environmental effects of cold. Resist the environmental damage of cold by an amount equal to the Level of this Skill per minute.]
¡®Well.¡¯ The creature dismissed the notification and stretched. ¡®That explains how I slept through the winter.¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 50
On the rocking ship sailing on turbulent waters and within the office of the [Ship Captain], a man dressed in azure robes sat with his eyes closed and legs crossed. Tiny droplets of sweat oozed out of his pores to sit within skin-folds which were the seeds of future wrinkles, making him seem older than his rather young age of 35 years. This was the result of his arduous pursuit of the mage path and a condition that haunted many of its followers. Anubhav Dhyan was much the same.
Additionally, being the sole [Mana Sensor] of the ship exacerbated his stress as it was his job to warn the captain of all potential dangers. After all, he was hired for his Tier 2 Skill [Mana Sense] and Spell [Caste Sense], the combination of which not only allowed him to see the mana but also allowed him to traverse a mana stream.
[Mana Sense]
Tier 1 Effect: Allows the user to see environmental mana.
Tier 2 Effect: Maintain a passive version of the Skill
[Caste Sense]
Tier 1 Effect: Cast a sense down the Mana Stream
Anubhav''s frown deepened for a moment before his open eyes calmly opened. ¡°There is a dense mana vortex ahead.¡± Anubhav quietly addressed the woman sitting in the corner. Once upon a time, such a situation would have sent his heart pacing in cold terror but those days were long gone. ¡°Please call the captain.¡±
¡°Should we... really call the captain now?¡± The woman paused. ¡°His wife just gave birth.¡±
Anubhav''s bushy eyebrows furrowed and his thin lips pursed. This was not a call that a mere secretary should be making. ¡°The mana vortex signifies that a monster lurks ahead.¡± He tersely replied. ¡°If you don¡¯t call him now, the captain will have your head.¡±
The woman rapidly paled at the cold answer before she nearly ran out of the chamber to soon return with a bearded man who sported an impressive moustache. He was Sagar Manthan, the [Ship Captain]. He nodded at the [Mana Sensor] and closed his eyes as he activated his Tier 3 Skill. ¡°[Ocean Instinct].¡± His deep voice resonated with the ship causing the walls, the floor, the roof and the entire frame to gently pulse.
[Ocean Instinct]
Tier 1 Effect: Read the condition of the water.
Tier 2 Effect: Read the behaviour of aquatic lifeforms.
Sagar noticed not the reverberation as he sensed the aquatic life and their movement. His new sense did not just stagnate though, as travelled until the [Ship Captain] caught sight of the monster warned by the [Mana Sensor]. ¡°I see the monster.¡± The captain opened his eyes as he left the room and walked out onto the deck while his secretary ran after him, shuffling through the thick stack of papers in her hand. ¡°Sir, the penalty from the last [Link] usage has not yet expired!¡±
Sagar nodded as he came to stop at the hull of the ship. ¡°[Fade Presence]!¡± His deep voice intoned, causing the ship to ripple as mana ran through its frame before enveloping it as if a cocoon. This caused many things, however, the most visible reaction was from the colours which faded and dulled while the presence of the ship dimmed. ¡°We have become invisible to its physical senses.¡±
[Fade Presence]
Tier 1 Effect: Hide the vessel from physical senses.
Tier 2 Effect: Maintain a passive version of the skill.
The captain opened his eyes and his deep voice echoes throughout the vessel, a result of the enchantment on his necklace which amplified his voice. ¡°Speed up the ship!¡±If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
0.0
¡°Captain!¡± Anumbhav opened his eyes to reveal his dilated pupils. His years of resistance grew week in the face of the situation he had just sensed. ¡°There are two mana vortexes ahead creative massive turbulences in the mana stream. The monsters must be fighting!¡±
The [Ship Captain] nodded as he addressed his secretary sitting in the corner, ¡°Call the [Ward Smith]. We would be needing him.¡± Sagar sighed to activate [Ocean Instinct]. He would have preferred to use his enchanted necklace to inform the older man directly. However, if he were to do so, then the petty man might refuse to come out of pure spite.
The forgettable woman didn¡¯t even bother to nod as she left the room but soon returned with an old man in tow. ¡°Are there monsters fighting ahead?¡± The newcomer''s furrowed ancient brows spoke of his distaste as he walked inside.
¡°Yes.¡± The [Ship Captain] kept his eyes closed while keeping his request as polite as possible. There was no need to give the acrid man something to complain about. ¡°Please activate the Defence Ward. These monsters are creating massive disturbances and we''d need them soon.¡±
The newcomer¡¯s wrinkled forehead furrowed further before he huffed and closed his eyes to concentrate on the ward he had placed on the ship. In reaction to the old man''s simple action, the mana inside the ship gradually increased. Though, this movement of mana was much different from the movement of mana when the [Ship Captain] had cast his Spell previously. Under the effect of the old man''s wards, the mana moved sluggishly as it crept in from the surrounding to drip in. The slow movement continued for a few movements before the mana reached a threshold and suddenly expanded outwards in a flash.
¡°The ward is in place.¡± The [Ward Smith] opened his brown eyes and the [Ship Captain] nodded.
¡°Remain alert!¡± The captain¡¯s voice echoed across the ship as he ordered his crew. ¡°This is not the time to rest!¡±
0.0
Another year and a half had passed on Kiran¡¯s voyage across the vast waters of the perilous ocean. Yet, he had achieved little. Sure, he had witnessed more monsters on this voyage than his entire life on land combined. Sure, he had escaped death more times than he could count. Sure, for the first time in his life, and many more times after, he had been with a woman; no matter that she had been a Chambermaid.
But it all mattered not when his [Reflection] had not moved even a single digit. It had been 2 years since his journey had begun, yet he had achieved little to nothing, causing his heart to grow heavy with unease which only bred further with each passing day.
Kiran scowled at the recurring thought and stomped towards the cell of his Chambermaid, the one for whom his heart had raced. He crossed the dimly lit corridor to enter the cell of the Chambermaid and closed the door behind him. The action caused the battered form of the woman to move and lookup. However, the sight of the white-clad man caused a sneer to manifest on her lips. ¡°Here comes the Healer.¡± Her raspy voice grated on his ears. ¡°The one that heals to hurt!¡±
Kiran crossed the distance in long strides before he brutally grabbed the woman''s bruised face while his own plain face twisted into an incredibly ugly one as his nose flared, eyes widened and lips pulled back to reveal his teeth. ¡°Look at yourself. Just look!¡± He spat and his fingernails dug into her sunken cheeks. ¡°You were once a Tier 2 [Curer]. But you are not even a whore now. Whores at least gets paid.¡±
The woman laughed and her hoarse voice unpleasantly echoed across the room. ¡°Yet here you are. To make use of this less-than-a-whore. What does that make you, O revered ascetic?¡± The woman''s words caused his grip to tighten and his blood to boil and he pushed his hand within her blood-covered crotch. The woman gasped in pain.
¡°Do you feel this?¡± Kiran whispered into her ears and his hot breath caused to woman to shiver in disgust. Knowing the agony he''d cause, the [Shishya] viciously shook his hand within the abused woman''s crotch, causing her flesh to part and blood to pour. ¡°This is all you are worth. You are a hole and nothing more!¡±
The white-clad man savagely pulled his hand out, only to find white seeds of various men and blood dripping down his hand. His face twisted and he snarled as he splashed the mixture of bodily fluid towards the woman. With a splat, the blood and seeds hit her face and the woman began laughing before she opened her arms and raised them towards the bald man. ¡°Come!¡± The woman laughed and mocked. ¡°This had never stopped you before.¡±
With fists clenched and jaw tensed, Kiran stepped forward.
0.0
Sitting beside the still healing Chambermaid, Kiran sighed before getting up to leave the cell. ¡®Why do I behave like this with her?¡¯ The white-clad man might or might not know the answer to the question himself. He had tried to stop himself from coming to see the woman but he had failed. His longing for the woman had been unbearable.
With a resigned sigh, the bald man arrived at the deck of the ship and gazed at the setting sun. His thoughts drifted from the woman below to the dilemma that had sent him to her in the first place, causing his thoughts to once again spiral down the rabbit hole. ''Just what am I doing wrong? Why is my [Reflection] not increasing?''
The irony of the question was completely lost on the man that had once been an adorable little boy.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 51
A creature walked like a babe, with its limbs quivering; its back was hunched and its wings were folded. With its massive ears were flat against its skull, it narrowed its pupil-less eyes to concentrate. Meanwhile, the trembling in its limbs intensified periodically, causing it to fall and repeatedly taste dirt.
This creature was none other than the Immortal that had evolved to become a Malfae. This creature that had once crawled to move now walked with great difficulty once again. Its two hands clutched sticks that the [Hive Monarch] used as clutches to pull its body forward. However, this development was not a step backwards. Rather, it was an improvement as it allowed the [Reincarnated] a form of movement other than just crawling.
However, this development was not a fruit of its own hard work but a result of the increased Level of [Domination Resistance].
The Malfae panted as sweat dripped down its forehead, nose and chin to fall in small drops.
The [Survivor] had woken up at the beginning of spring to lush greenery and bright flowers. But, as the months had passed and summer had arrived, the temperature had soared once again. Though, the heat had yet to really settle in and turn into the festering sore that dried out the grasses, wilted the trees and killed the creatures. Thus, it silently endured the heat and trudged along the river bank.
Splash!
Its grip on the crutches to loosen at the sudden noise and it lost its balance. Its pupil-less eyes widened and its jaws fell open. Gravity made itself known and the [Hive Monarch] had a rather intimate encounter with the mud, dirt and filth littering the river bank.
With its eyes twitching, the Malfae weakly pushed itself up. Its head swirled towards the river and it glowered. ¡®Stupid fish!¡¯ As if sensing the attention from the Malfae¡¯s gaze, the fish jumped out of the water again, rolled in the air and fell back into the water with a splash.
But of course, that was not the case. For if the fish had noticed the Malfae¡¯s existence, the fish would have ended the evolved bug with a flip of its tail, much like how a god would smite down pitiful mortals. Additionally, the creature within the river was not just a mere fish. To call this creature a fish, was akin to calling a mammoth, a mere mammal. While the description was accurate, it failed to truly capture the essence of the creature.
The aquatic creature was of a length that was more than a height of the dozens of mortals combined. Its eyes were the size of a mortal¡¯s head and its snout the size of an entire mortal. While both of its fins were the length of at least two mortals and its tail was the size of at least six.
Each of its fist-sized scales reflected and distorted the white light of the moon into seven different coloured ones. The distorted light itself was weird as it seemed to linger and left behind rainbows in the wake of the creature¡¯s passing. The aquatic creature was a humongous monstrosity and was, definitely, not just a fish.
However, after all the various immortals that the Malfae had witnessed and experienced, the creature in the water did not impress it any. The fish swirled in the air once again and scattered the water droplets in all directions. So much was the amount of water sprayed off that when it came down and fell back into the river, the water surface came alive as if it were raining.
At one point of time, the [Hive Monarch] would not have even dared to look at such a creature directly, yet now it dared not just look but also glower. This too was the result of [Domination Resistance]. Although how long would that glower last if the aquatic creature truly noticed it, was yet a mystery. After all, the monstrosities obliviousness to its pitiful existence was the reason for the [Reincarnated]''s survival.
This, obviously, was not an achievement on the creature¡¯s part but rather, the result of the pride a mammoth being that refused to bother with the ants crawling beneath its feet.
0.0
As the Malfae continued to walk with its crutches, the temperature continued to soar. The greenery began to lose its colour and the wind became unbearable as it brought it nothing but even more heat. The [Reincarnated] still walked though as it sweated and panted. With each passing wind, it could almost feel the moisture leave its body while each passing hour left its mouth drier than the last.
The [Survivor] had even begun losing health some time back and it was only the regular breaks to drink that allowed the Malfae to continue as it did. The heat would have gotten to it otherwise. Still, it had been left disappointed. It had hoped to gain something akin to [Cold Resistance] for the heat like it had gotten during its hibernation in winter, but that hadn''t come to be. No matter how much the heat increased and the creature suffered, it didn''t gain the Skill.
It was not surprising of course. The Malfae was a creature of venom and malice, after all. Gaining a resistance to cold from the simple act of hibernation was as natural for it as breathing. On the hand, due to its nature, the gain of resistance to heat was not something that could be easily achieved. Unfortunately, it didn''t know any of that. As a result, it continued its greedy trek, waiting and wishing for the resistance that it would not be granted.
Though, these past three months had not been as fruitless as its pursuit of heat resistance had been. Its Skill, [Fade] had reached Level 8 while [Drone Eggs] and [Domination Resistance] both had reached Level 11. At the same time, [Mana Shield] had jumped up Level 9, [Night Vision] had become Level 13 and [Sense Essence] had reached Level 6.
However, at that moment, its musing stopped short as its antenna twitched and a familiar scent assaulted them. The creature immediately ceased all its movement to remain calm. Meanwhile, it gradually acclimated itself to the scent. ¡®Fuck you turd!¡¯ The Malfae grinned as the scent failed to make its heart race as it had once done. The [Survivor], however, hesitated not for a second more before it started to walk in the direction of the scent. When it finally arrived at the source, what greeted it was a stinking and fermenting pile of hot excreta.
As the wind shifted and the scent stomped on the creature face like a mammoth crushing a bug, the [Hive Monarch] flinched. It had not flinched from the domination of the stench but from the odour itself. The stench caused the Malfae¡¯s antenna to twitch in pain, its eyes to water and its nose to burn. Bile rose in the back of its throat but the creature swallowed it back. It preferred to swallow its own vomit rather than open its mouth to taste the scent of the festering shit.
Yet, it sat down next to the refuse all the same and waited for its body to get acclimated with the scent. These piles of excreta had once granted it the Skill [Fade] and the [Survivor] did not want to lose another such opportunity. It was quite a greedy existence, after all.
Thus, the creature waited to cover itself in animal waste once again.
0.0
Up above the rest of the world, the white moon shined as it always it. Its bright light enlightened the world and under the shine of this moonlight, the Malfae walked with its crutches pulling it one step at a time.
However, darkness suddenly descended. It enveloped not just the [Survivor] but the entire world. The tall grass blades, the vast stretch of the grassland, the might of the muddy river and the very air itself were enveloped by the darkness.
The [Hive Monarch] jerked away from its clutches and fell on its face. Its pupil-less eyes were wide in disbelief and its ears were flat against its Skull. Its chest ached as its tiny heart raced and the sound of its own blood pumping drowned its senses.
The Malfae ceaselessly shivered and its hands trembled as it sensed things that its mind was unequipped to comprehend. Gradually, even the air began to thin and its lungs fought to breathe.
The [Hive Monarch]''s wide eyes searched the surrounding but everywhere its gaze travelled, it only found darkness and a bizarre silence enveloping the land. Much like the mist on a dreary night, it clung onto the skin and the world itself. Even the roar of the vast river had died to render the water tame.
This darkness was beyond strange for it seemed to have swallowed the very moonlight itself, leaving behind the all-devouring night. Yet, even stranger was the silence that had accompanied the darkness. For this silence seemed akin to peace, a concept that the immortals had trouble comprehending.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
If a mortal were to experience it, they would recognise it as peace enforced through overwhelming might. However, the Malfae was an immortal and even though it knew of the concept due to her memories, the [Reincarnated] understood not its meaning.
After all, even if it was unaware of the nature of an Immortal, the [Hive Monarch] embodied it all the same. The immortals were creatures that abhorred the very concept of civilisation, how could they even begin to envisage peace? Peace was a concept that arose out of mortals¡¯ need for stability as they banded together. It was not something that an immortal like the Malfae could understand.
The Malfae was the creature of nature and nature always rested in a flux of violence. Something died here while something was born elsewhere. Death and struggle were the concepts that the Wild had been framed from. How could anything that was a part of Wild, understand peace? Thus, even though the [Hive Monarch] was experiencing peace for the first time, it felt anything but.
Its feelings were on point. After all, if anything that was part of the Wild could not experience peace, then how could peace exist in the Wild? How could it envelop the land like the mist on a cold night? Just how could peace exist within the Wild?
With its heart racing and hands trembling, the Malfae activated [Sense Essence] and, in answer, the lightless world faded away and the Essences materialised. Though what it saw, took its breath away. The [Survivor] lost control of its bowels in an all-encompassing terror.
For the first time in its rather short existence, it saw the true form of the Essences with its own eyes and not hers. It saw not only their shape but also their colour, texture and fine details, but also saw everything that an Essence was made of. The Malfae saw them with such clarity that it felt like it was watching them with its own two eyes.
Against the backdrop of the physical world that was encompassed in the darkness and silence, the world of Essences was ironically alit.
The Essences pervaded everything and were everywhere. And in this area, where even the air manifested Essence, the [Hive Monarch] could merely stare while it racing heart suffered in agony. ¡®I¡ should not be¡ able to see Essences.¡¯ Yet it saw and it saw them as clearly as if they were not ethereal but flesh and blood. Not only that, but it also saw the Essences as they began to fade. It began slow but, only in a few moments, the death descended to begin its naked dance.
White motes left the Essences of the world and rose in the air. They rose from the grass, the trees, the land, the water and even the air. They rose from each and everything that existed within the creature¡¯s Skill limit. And as the motes rose, the world began to die as a consequence. The grass began to wither as the blades began falling off. The bark of the splattered trees dried and turned into husks. The earth trembled as colossal creatures fell in the distance and the water flowed with unnatural smoothness as the ripples died along with the life within.
More and more motes emerged from the world and continued to rise with each passing moment. It was as if they had a destination and a journey that they must make. The dark of the physical night and the [Sense Essence] vision that was alit with the glow of the rising Essence motes created a horrifying contrast.
The [Reincarnated] would have been left dumbfounded at the beauty of the sight at any other moment. However, at this moment, all it felt was an unsurpassed terror as Essence motes began to emerge even from its own Vessel. The racing heart of the creature stopped and its chest twisted in anguish as it stared at the mote that had left its body with its wide pupil-less eyes.
As the first mote left its body, more followed its path and materialised one after the other. The wide eyes of the Malfae turned inward and its gaze fell on its own Essence. However, the forehead of the creature wrinkled and its brows furrowed. ¡®I¡ can¡¯t see my Essence?¡¯ The thought hadn¡¯t even finished crossing the creature¡¯s mind when the motes of lights, that had left its body, rose into the sky for a destination that only they knew of. However, after those few motes of Essence vanished in the distance, no new motes arose emerged from the creature.
The confused eyes of the Malfae stared at its hand. It flipped them and moved its fingers. Its wide eyes tried and failed to comprehend the reason for its continued survival when death rampaged senselessly. It touched its chest in bewilderment and felt the racing heart within. Meanwhile, it gaped at the dying world around it.
The grass had yellowed to wilt while the trees had dried to thin husks. The ground was cracked and the river was deathly still. Yet the creature remained alive and its Essence remained enveloped in haze. Not only its own Essence but the Essences of the air too remained unresponsive and they continued to flow down their original paths, unhindered by the death they passed through.
The Malfae watched with open mouth, wide eyes and flat ears as the softly glowing motes continued to rise in the air and left behind nothing but death in the wake of their passing. At that moment, it moved and something flaked off of its body and fell.
The Malfae jumped and the agony in its chest spiked at the sudden movement. It panted as it eyed the flaked off the part with its hands clutching at its weak heart.
The flakes were the remnant of the dung that it had rubbed all over its body a week ago. And the more it moved, the more the excreta flaked off of its body until there was none left, leaving the Malfae¡¯s skin soft as a day it had been born. ¡®¡Did my skin just get a dung treatment?¡¯
As it pondered on its useless thoughts, the glowing motes of Essences flew off into the distance before vanishing into the darkness. As if in answer to their disappearance, the dead world around the creature began crumbling as the passing winds dissolved the dead leaves and the withered grass into dust.
At that moment, the world was suddenly lit up by the light of the green moon. The creature¡¯s environment lightened up in the way akin to a forest fire enlightening the inky night. The green light descended as it embraced the earth and the dead alike, as if providing comfort to a crying child, it accepted all in its embrace.
However, this had not been the colour of the moon before the death had danced its naked dance. Before the darkness had descended, the moon had been white. But now, the white moon and its bright light had vanished along with all the life around the creature. The creature shuddered and without wasting a second more, it began to dig right where it was standing.
It was only after the creature had escaped the moonlight and into the newly dug hole, that its heart calmed and the pain in its chest subsided.
Ting.
[Your heart has been greatly weakened. Lifespan has been reduced by 6 months. Current Lifespan: 2 Years 2 Months 22 Days.]
The Malfae stared at the notifications with lifeless eyes. Its lifespan had decreased once again. And, as of this moment, it felt that it had lost more out of its seven years of lifespan than it had lived.
Ting.
.
.
.
[Skill [Sense Essence Lv.14] has increased to [Sense Essence Lv.15]. The depth of sensing has been marginally increased.]
Ting.
[The Skill [Sense Essence] has reached the Level limit of your current Vessel. Evolve further to increase the Level limit for your Skills. Current Skill Level limit: Level 15.]
The Malfae shuddered. It didn''t know whether it should laugh or cry. On one hand, its Skill had Levelled up tremendously and had jumped numerous Levels. On the other hand, it had traded away 6 months of its limited lifespan for it when evolution was nowhere in sight.
The [HIve Monarch] shivered as it thought back to just what it had survived. That sight that could only be described as horrifyingly enchanting was something that had etched itself deep into its mind forever, for reasons more than one.
Not only had the act been fatal for all the things around it but it had also wrung them to such a degree that nothing but dust remained. It had not just killed but had also squeezed every last bit of life from the dead. The ruthlessness of it would forever remain within the deep corner of its heart.
Even beyond that, the lethal beauty of it had not concealed the fact that it had sneaked upon, not only on the Malfae but also on every other creature with absolutely no warning. It had come, killed all life, and had left with nary a sound.
If the Malfae hadn¡¯t possessed [Sense Essence], then it wouldn¡¯t even have known the reason for the widespread annihilation. It would have merely watched the world die around it for no apparent reason. And that was the biggest thing that took root within its heart. It was the fact that it didn¡¯t even know what had caused the such a beautiful death to descend in the first place.
The Malfae had seen the Essences leave their Vessels but it didn¡¯t know why they had left. It didn¡¯t know why any of it had occurred. But beyond that, the [Reincarnated] didn¡¯t know if it was something that would repeat itself. Its shivering intensified at the thought and it glanced at its trembling hands. ¡®Why¡why did it not affect me?¡¯ The Malfae had been the only living thing that had not been affected by the drain of Essence. Every other living thing had died. The only other Essence to have survived had been the Essence of air and the water in the muddy river.
¡®Was it because of their Essences flowed?¡¯ It breathed deeply to settle itself. It did little to help. ¡®¡but my Essence doesn¡¯t flow. Was it because of the dung on my skin?¡¯ It clenched its fist. ¡®¡but the dung itself had dried and flaked off. How could it have protected me?¡¯
The Malfae spent the rest of the night holed up and pondering over its survival. However, events such as this were not something that could be puzzled out by a creature that had not even lived its first decade. They couldn¡¯t be puzzled out by beings that had little to no knowledge of what kind of creatures actually existed out there.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 52
The white-clad man blankly gazed at the endless waters spreading all around him. The vast but monotonous waters no longer overwhelmed him with an inescapable sense of dread. Rather, the waters now signified desolation. The numerous near-deaths had lost their novelty while the continuous escapes from monsters had lost its exhilaration. What had once left him trembling was now almost a routine.
His bitter gaze silently observed the sunset reflecting off the spry waters but the image that had seemed beautiful once upon a time, now just seemed hollow and repetitive. ¡®Another day ends.¡¯ The bald man sat down at the nearby bench with a helpless sigh before his jaws tensed.
It had now been 6 years since Kiran had begun this journey of self-reflection and 4 years since he had boarded this ship. ¡®I hate this ship.¡¯ His gaze returned to the deck only to find sailors running about as they checked up on things that kept the ship running.
¡®Such a pitiful life.¡¯ Kiran couldn''t help but pity the sailors whose lives and Levels revolved around the ever-expansive seas. ¡®Who am I to pity them though? My existence revolves around something just as fruitless.¡¯ He chuckled but the sound of it carried more bitterness than mirth. After all, he had yet to increase his [Reflection]. In the past 6 years, or perhaps even more, his [Reflection] had not increased one bit. Even his Class now refused to Level up beyond Level 24. This had allowed his Skill and Spells to rise up to match his Class Level but what use was it if they''d remain that way?
Or so it seemed. Unless, of course, he increased his [Reflection] and raised his Class to Tier 2. ¡®But that is not going to happen, is it?¡¯ He chuckled but the sound of it grew increasingly bitter and the unbound waters just seem to compound the hollowness in his heart.
He paused for a moment to think about anything that he could do to increase his Level. A topic he thought a lot about these days. However, he scoffed. ¡®The only thing increasing these days is my [Karma]. Just what nonsense is that?¡¯ He had been doing nothing but travelling on a ship through the forsaken waters. Yet, his [Karma] had increased more in the last 4 years than it had throughout the rest of his life. Just what sort of joke was that?
Tired of the calm waters that heralded death, he turned around and marched towards the cell of his Chambermaid. And even though she was not his, he wanted her to be. He had half the mind to claim her as his own but that was all but impossible. He didn¡¯t have the coin to buy her off. He was an ascetic after all. He never had much need for coin. Yet now, for the first time in his life, he saw the importance of the coin.
The white-clad man arrived at his Chambermaid''s cell and his dark gaze fell on the naked woman slumped on the platform. Unconsciously, his tongue slipped out of his mouth and licked his chapped lips. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
The woman¡¯s black hair laid sprawled on the ground as her head hung down from the edge. Her hands drew meaningless circles on the floor and in the process, exposed her breast. Her legs were spread apart, leaving her crotch exposed for all to see.
It was such an unwomanly attitude that if any other person had encountered it, they would have stopped in surprise. However, Kiran was not any other person. He had been with this woman for about 4 years now. He had used her, abused her and healed her, only to repeat the process all over again. His lost eyes bored into her exposed crotch and he swallowed as his own reacted at the sight.
¡°It¡¯s you again.¡± The woman''s raspy voice that had once made Kiran¡¯s skin crawl, made his own crotch react now. ¡°The fake healer that dances to Adharma.¡±
The man scoffed as he grabbed the woman by her face and his fingers dug into her cheeks. ¡°What do you know about Dharma and Adharma? You? A thing that''s not even a mortal? Who''s nothing but a tool to be used? You talk of Adharma?¡±
The woman laughed with her face still clutched in the man¡¯s palm but she made no move to resist. Her body laid there, as if without life, while her face laughed. It was as if her body had died but her resentment hadn''t allowed her soul to be released.
¡°This thing. This hole. This tool. All of this I am.¡± The naked woman bared her teeth and her eyes burned in loathing. Yet, her body remained lifeless and twitched not for even a moment. ¡°What are you though? You may be many things but a healer you are not!¡±
Kiran threw the woman¡¯s head back and it collided with the platform with a resounding thud but the woman only laughed. Her grated voice echoed around the cell unpleasantly and Kiran felt his blood grow hot as his heart raced. He grabbed the woman by the hair and pulled her up to his face. Yet the laughing woman winced not as her haunting laughter continued to echo.
The white-clad man bit down on the woman¡¯s lower lip, the one that had once been thick and luscious, to draw blood. He pinched her nipple and twisted until it bled. Yet, the woman merely laughed. ¡°You fool! Do you think this hurts me?! Do you think it¡¯s only you that makes me bleed?! You think you are special?!¡± The woman spat a glob of spit and it landed on Kiran¡¯s face with a resounding splat. ¡°You. Are. Not.¡±
Those words, three mere words, they made his heart heavier and his eyes colder than ever before. She was his. He had decided it in his heart. Yet, he wasn''t special to her? She dared to tell him that he wasn''t the one that made her feel the most? Kiran slammed the woman against the wall so hard that her teeth trembled and then he dropped his clothes to bite the woman¡¯s neck, or rather he chomped down on her neck until he tasted blood.
Yet the uncaring woman laughed, her eyes wide and crazed.
¡°SOON! It would be SOON!¡± Her raspy voice roared and Kiran felt her throat vibrate in his mouth. ¡°You will come before me and I will laugh at your FACE! You will try to hurt me and I will laugh at your FACE! You will use me and I will still laugh at your FACE!¡±
The woman continued to laugh and the man continued to abuse.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 53
On that fateful night, the death that descended on the world wasn''t something that the Malfae could easily forget. It scarred the [Survivor] in ways it didn¡¯t know but felt all the same. After witnessing the dance of the naked death, the Malfae holed up within the ground; refusing to face the remnants of destruction that it had witnessed descend.
The [Hive Monarch], thus, remained holed up as the temperature continued to rise and the heat became unbearable. It ate its own eggs and drank its own venom yet the shiver in its limbs refused to leave it alone as it became haunted by its own memories. The memory of the night haunted not only its waking moments but also its dreams as its dreams became sinister with each passing day. They progressively lost all their colour, leaving behind only visages of a different shade of white.
The pale moonlight of the white moon.
Its waking hours and sleeping hours blended into one as its routine broke apart under the constant haunting of night terrors. The [Reincarnated] became trapped within itself and its fear, as hours blended into days and days became weeks. A week became two and two became four as an entire month passed.
Meanwhile, as the [HIve Monarch] struggled to get a hold over its mental state, the peak of the summer arrived along with the dry winds that thirsted for even the tiniest bit of moisture. The winds brought along with them the punishing heat and sweltering air that ravaged the already dead land. All the while, the Malfae endured, remaining holed up and not daring to step out into the world. As the days continued to churn, the parched winds and the scorching heat departed as the pre-monsoon showers arrived to herald the arrival of their season.
The first rain sundered the heat and annihilated the aridity, causing the temperature to drop sharply as it almost drowned the cracked and dead earth. It rained and rained and it rained so much that the water flooded even the Malfae''s tiny pit, forcing it out.
As the raindrops fell on its body, its thirsty skin seemed to drink in the cool shower. The paleness in its blue shade receded and its skin once again became a vibrant colour of poisoned flesh. As the rain continued to fall, the soft pitter-patter of the raindrops broke its mindset that had been stuck in the unending cycle of fear and terror. And the earthy petrichor, birthed by the coupling of rain and earth, only helped the process.
As a result, its hunched back slowly straightened, the shivering in its limbs gradually ceased and its folded wings unfold.
The [Survivor] tilted its head to the dark clouds and as the rain fell, its wings completely unfolded to reveal their entire length. The Malfae remained standing with its wings opened and let the water assault its body and its memories. As the cold water continued to wash its body, the [Hive Monarch] lifted both its arms and opened them to greet the rain.
It immersed itself into the sensation of the falling rain, the cold water, the soft pitter-patter and the earthy petrichor. At that moment, it breathed as deeply it could. Its chest expanded until it hurt but the Malfae continued to breathe.
Immersed in experiencing the rain as the Malfae was, it did not realise as it activated its much-neglected Skill [Scent] for the first time since it had been thrown in this mana rich region. However, the moment [Scent] activated, the Malfae became aware of the Skill as its antenna¡¯s twitched. It was instantly enveloped within the scent that was the child of the rain.
Engrossed as it was, it breathed deeply and closed its eyes to witness the rich earthy aroma which awakened the memory of the first rain it had experienced after suffering through the peak of the summer last year.
It had breathed deeply then too. It had breathed until its lungs had hurt and the thick musky flavour of the petrichor had filled its mouth with water as it had reminded it of the taste of digging into a fresh kill. It drooled as it breathed with closed eyes and lost itself.
Its raised hands and spread out wings, welcomed the rain, allowing the raindrops to hit every single fibre of its being, washing away not only the dust and grime but also its very memories and self. At that moment, the [Reincarnated] was so lost that it did not even realise when it began to spin around with its head tilted back.
A slow smile spread out on its lips as the raindrops kept on falling to splatter across its skin, hair and wings. And yet it kept on gently spinning when suddenly its wings began to beat. The Malfae subconsciously rose in the air and flew up as if it wanted to collect the entirety of rain within its arms.
Its chest vibrated. Its throat shook and laugh escaped its lips as it flew higher. However, at that moment, lightning flashed and thunder roared, breaking it out of its trance to leave it startled and wide-eyed. Nevertheless, the terror that had made home within its heart was nowhere to be seen in its pupil-less eyes.
The [Hive Monarch] immediately flew down until it landed and, without much thought, lied down on the cracked earth with its hands, legs and wings spread apart. A small smile remained etched on its lips as it rested its body mind and self.
It was only after it had calmed down from its high that a thought occurred to it. ¡®They are truly gone¡¡¯ [Scent] had been active for the entire duration of its trance, yet it hadn''t once noticed any of the domineering scents that had forced it to crawl throughout this mana rich environment. ¡®¡All of them truly did die .¡¯
It was for this reason that it had been able to fly up into the sky to greet the rain. If the scents had still existed, then it would have been all but impossible for the [Survivor] to fly. Much like the assault that it had once suffered from the sky, the one that had decreed it a pest and taken away its right to the skies, the Malfae would have been shown its place with extreme prejudice. ¡®Just what was that¡¡¯
The Malfae opened its eyes and the raindrops fell onto them, forcing it to close them once again. It once again promised to leave this mana rich environment with post-haste. However, this time, its urgency was not because of the other creatures but because it didn¡¯t know if the horror would repeat itself or not. Thus, without wasting even a second more, it flapped its wings and took to air. If it was going to leave this area, then there was no better time than now when its mind had been recently cleared of fear and terror.
As time passed and the rain ended to give way to the heat once again. But this time, it was no longer dominated by the scents and kept on flying. It flew along the length of the river. As it continued to fly, a thought popped up in its mind and it began to fly high up in the sky, to get an idea of the land.
As its gaze travelled, wherever its eyes fell, it saw nothing but ash, left behind in the wake of that nightmarish night, mixing with mud. Even the water of the once muddy river was ashy as the rainwater continued to pour into the river. As the Malfae observed, it found not a single creature in the water; it was as if all the creatures within the water had died.
The beautiful nightmare had turned that fateful night into a field of ash and dust, leaving nothing alive. It had been a wound in the very flesh of the land, a wound that had bled not blood but ash. This wound had then festered as it had been assaulted by the heat and parched winds of the peak summer.
Thus, the [Reincarnated] wasn''t surprised that it saw neither a single sapling nor a single blade of grass.
However, now that the early showers and the water had seeped into the deep cracks, the festering wound¡¯s cleaning had begun. And when the monsoon arrived in full bloom, the earth would be ready to begin healing once again. After all, if the rain could heal the damaged psyche of an immortal, why couldn¡¯t it heal a wound in the flesh of the earth?
0.0
As the Malfae continued to fly along the river, time continued to walk at its unhurried pace. Over time, the showers became a frequent thing and under the assault of the constant rain, the heat died a quiet death. The newfound coolness brought a new joy to the [Survivor] as it continued to fly.
As the Malfae continued to travel, it crossed vast distances and even witnessed a change in geography. However, even as it crossed into different geographical features, it continued to witness the destruction left behind the beautiful nightmare. It was almost as if the destruction brought by the nightmarish night did not seem to have an end. For no matter how far the Malfae flew, the ashy mud seemed to endlessly exist.
However, time was time. And time healed all wounds. For the march of time was never impeded and never obstructed. Nothing could stand its impact and nothing would even dare to. Thus, as the monsoon flourished with its complete armament, the rain, the hail and the showers washed away the ash and broke apart the surface of the undisturbed river.
Saplings began to grown and the river once again began to sport new lifeforms that had travelled down from the upstream. In time, these creatures would one day, once again, replace the horrid and powerful creatures that had simply vanished in the course of a single night.
But that time was quite far off in the future. It was not something that the Malfae could see if it didn¡¯t evolve further to increase its lifespan.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
0.0
Meanwhile, in a place ar above the Malfae, a few creatures resided. This place was so far above the [Survivor] that no matter how high the [Hive Monarch] flew, it could never reach this place. Let alone the [Reicarnated], even amongst the most powerful of the creatures, few could hope to reach this place.
Though, once they reached this place, they could never return.
For this place was not within the bounds of the planet on which the Malfae resided. This place lied outside the planet''s interference and within the boundless emptiness that was space. It was within this empty darkness that the three moons resided. This place was the home to the white, the green and the azure moons.
Though calling them moons would not only be a lie but a dangerous one at that. For moons are inert celestial bodies that orbit the planets harmlessly. They impacted the planets little, other than with their moonlight and tides. These heavenly bodies, however, were not one of those things. They were not harmless. They were non-benign.
The truth of the matter was that the planet, on which the Malfae resided, possessed not a single moon, let alone the three that the planet¡¯s inhabitants saw and read about in ancient tomes. These three moons, in truth, were no heavenly bodies at all. They were creatures of flesh, blood and bones so humongous and enormous that they became moons in the outer space.
They lived. They died. And they evolved for they were Immortals.
They were the Immortals that grew and kept on growing until they grew so powerful that nowhere on the planet could they find an environment rich enough in mana to sustain them. Thus, they traversed the mana stream nourishing the planet and followed it until they left the planet and reached space. It was only there that they could sustain themselves in the mana stream.
Though, even if they could sustain themselves in the mana stream, they could not Level in the outer space. As to grow, their nature as immortals demanded violence to gain experience. Although both these commodities were quite abundant in the outer space, they were simply dangerous beyond the capabilities of the Moon Immortals.
For the outer space was the home to creatures that swam in the nothingness of space and traversed the mana stream as if it were water. They were creatures whose [Species] allowed them unimpeded growth and unrestricted evolutions. They lived, they hunted and they died in the outer space, a place far more dangerous than anything that the Moon Immortals had ever encountered. And yet these creatures of the outer space not only lived in such a place, but they also thrived.
The trifling Moon Immortals weren''t a match to these creatures, lest they became prey themselves. This left the Moon Immortals with only one method to gain experience and that was to scatter several pieces of their own Essences, down on the planet for Immortals to receive and nurture. And when those Immortals became powerful enough for the Moon Immortals to collect, the harvest would begin.
The beautiful nightmare witnessed by the Malfae had been one such harvest of the White Moon Immortal.
The only reason that the [Hive Monarch] had escaped the harvest had been the lack of even a single shard of the White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence in its body. Had there been even a single shard, it would have turned to ash and dust, much alike how everything else had.
After all, even the waste and refuse that the Malfae had covered itself in just days before had released the white motes of Essene and flaked off its body as it had been excreted by a creature which had possessed the White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence, like everything else in the mana rich zone.
If a mortal came to know of this, they would surely ask, why the Malfae hadn¡¯t possessed any Essence shard of the White Moon Immortal? The answer to the mortal¡¯s query would be quite simple. The [Hive Monarch] hadn¡¯t possessed any Essence shard simply because it had not been birthed within the influence of the Essence shard and when it had come in contact with the Essence, the creature had been just too week and too pitiful.
To gain shard of the White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence, one had to either absorb it through the ground, as the plants did, or one had to consume those that possessed those shards. Which meant either consuming the plants or feasting on the creatures that had White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence.
Both these things that Malfae hadn¡¯t done as it had fed on its own eggs and drank its own venom. The Malfae¡¯s pitifulness had played in its favour, as it had too week to hunt in the mana rich zone. As for consuming plants, it hadn''t even considered that since it had evolved from being a caterpillar.
Thus, its weakness had spared it from obtaining the shards of White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence, saving it from the harvest. For if it had truly obtained a shard of White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence, it could have done nothing but die obediently.
Despite not possessing the Essence shard, the Malfae had once come close to obtaining the shard of the White Moon Immortal¡¯s Essence. And it had been long before the [Survivor] had been thrown into the high mana zone. It had been back in its birthplace where it had encountered a white flower that had been guarded by a wooden mantis immortal.
Missing that flower was a regret that the Malfae held still to this day. It still remembered the Essence of the flower which had the colour of the white moon and a scent that had drawn it to the flower. The [Hive Moncarch] had been mesmerised by the flower, much like a moth attracted to the fire. It had even stolen moments to visit the flower, like creature courting death.
It had been the wooden Mantis¡¯ greed that had saved the Malfae from the harvest. For if the Malfae had indeed obtained the flower at that time, then its heavens would have been defined in that very moment. And along with the rest of the creatures of the high mana zone, it too would have turned into white motes that rose higher and higher until they met the White Moon Immortal, only to be consumed a moment later.
Such was the end of those that possessed the Essence shard of any of the three Moon Immortals, the White, the Green and the Azure.
Though, because the Moon Immortals were three in number and not two, there existed an uneven truce in between them. For, Immortals were Immortals, after all. They couldn¡¯t co-exist. If it had been merely 2 Immortals, then the situation would have worked out, one way or the other, as one would have either eliminated the other or they would have remained as far away from each other as possible.
Unfortunately, that was not the case and the number of Immortals residing in the outer space was three instead of two. Neither of which could trust the other, as the very concept of trust didn¡¯t exist in between immortals. Thus, these Immortals that were so powerful and so humongous that they became the moons to a planet, they clashed numerous times but each time, the result was inconclusive.
This inconclusive result was not because the Moon Immortals were evenly matched in their strengths. For how could that be? But because they feared the third playing the monkey in the fight of two cats.
As a result, these Immortals existed in an uneasy truce. It was also due to this truce that the cases of more than a single moon appearing in the sky, at the same time, were so rare that amongst the mortals they had become myths and legends to be whispered within secret chambers in hushed tones.
For whenever the two moons appeared, the world witnessed nothing but misery and death.
Mortals dared not believe that the benign heavenly bodies, that some worshipped as gods, could cause thunderstorms that burned the mightiest of forests or caused earthquakes that razed the tallest of towers. They dared not believe that the unending tsunamis that razed entire cities could be caused by the benign moons.
Yet, what mortals believed mattered not in the face of truth. The appearance of the two moons had caused calamity every time it had appeared and would continue to cause calamity for the simple reason that the two moons only appeared when the Moon Immortals became entangled in a clash.
It was, thus, the unintended consequence of their battles that brought havoc upon the mortals and not their direct actions themselves. For if a Moon Immortal, a creature powerful enough to become a planet¡¯s moon, tried to act against mere mortals, the Gods of the mortals would descend.
And none of them wanted that. The clash of Gods and Immortals benefited none. Thus, the Immortals ignored the mortals and merely harvested generations upon generations of Immortals, one after another. They had turned the planet into their own personal farm, something that the last remaining Will of the Wild detested.
This particular Will was the Will that had manifested out of the planet that the Malfae called home. It could, in a manner of speaking, even be considered the soul of the planet. After all, once upon a time, it had been the entire planet itself. However, with the rise of the mortals, the weapon that they were, they had chipped away at the Will, piece by piece, and mutated those pieces into their Gods.
Leaving behind a Will that, instead of spanning the entire planet, now merely spanned within a single mortal-less continent. The continent that the Malfae called home. Thus, the soul that had once been the entire planet, damaged and mutilated as it was, it now became the soul to a single continent. Though, clearly, the comparison would be purely metaphorical as no Will was a soul.
Only souls were souls and nothing else could ever be a soul. Even attempting to be one was a crime worth annihilating Creations and sundering Realities. As the Yakshas, the Nagas and the Eternals knew not what mercy was. And there existed not a single Will that remained unaware of this simple truth. The truth that it was, none even dared to forget.
Thus, despite the Will of this planet considering itself the soul of the planet, it knew that it was not one and it dared not speak out its calamitous thoughts. Its manifestation, the consequent imprisonment within the Tilism and the repeated mutilations worked endlessly to drive this fact home.
Its own delusions still forced it to act and act it did. It reincarnated a soul. It dared to manipulate a soul. A crime worth its total annihilation and utter destruction. A crime worth descent of not only the Yakshas and the Nagas but also the descent and reality breaking manifestation of Eternals.
Yet, the Will of the Wild survived. It not just survived, but it also thrived.
This was, of course, not mercy.
For mercy was a concept that only the mortals understood. Immortals didn¡¯t understand it and the Wills, the Yakshas and the Nagas failed to comprehend it. While the Eternals, on the other hand, they couldn¡¯t be bothered with mortal ideas and concepts.
Yet, they showed leniency where none was deserved. The infallible laws of the Creations and Realities were flouted and the Eternals didn¡¯t descend. Let alone Eternals, even the Yakshas and the Nagas didn¡¯t descend to render the Will apart.
Such leniency spoke not of mercy but something much sinister. For these were actions of the beings stronger than everything in the world. Even their inactions were not benign. After all, if the maker of the laws themselves defied them, then did those laws even have meanings?
Thus, the inaction of the Eternals was not something to rejoice. For when even their simplest communication brought nothing but death and destruction, how could their silence be innocent?
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 54
Kiran¡¯s gaze fell on the reflection of the rising sun and the red hues that painted the morning sky. He closed his eyes as a cool morning breeze caressed his skin and a slow smile formed on his lips.
Ting.
Kiran¡¯s eyes remained closed but his eyebrow¡¯s furrowed as the familiar sound fell in his ears. His calm mind pondered but the white-clad man couldn¡¯t think of anything that would cause his Status to change. Thus, with his forehead scrunched in thought, the bald man opened his eyes to read the notification.
As he read, however, his eyes widened and his pupils dilated. His face paled as the blood drained while his heart raced as his breathing hastened. Goosebumps erupted all over his body.
His bald scalp went numb.
His limbs trembled. His body shivered.
He stared at the notification.
The white-clad man fell to his knees but didn¡¯t dare to dismiss the notification. He didn¡¯t dare take his eyes off of the ethereal window. He didn¡¯t dare move. He didn¡¯t dare breathe.
His heart suffocated, paced. His lungs congested, his chest ached.
This could not be happening.
He stared. He saw. But he didn¡¯t understand. How?
He knew the words. He comprehended their meaning individually. Yet, he couldn¡¯t acknowledge the meaning they imparted when combined.
He stared. He saw. But he didn¡¯t understand. Why?
He didn¡¯t understand. He couldn¡¯t understand. He refused to understand. For what the words conveyed could not be true.
This could not be happening.
[Your level has been decreased. 1 Attribute point deducted from the most recently manipulated Attribute.]
Ting.
[Skill Level and Spell Level, both, exceed the Class Level. Levels have been adjusted.]
Ting.
[Skill Level lost. Skill [Anatomy Vision Lv.24] has been levelled down to [Anatomy Vision Lv.23].]
Ting.
[Spell Level lost. Spell [Stimulate Lv.24] has been levelled down to [Stimulate Lv.23].]
¡®T-this cannot be happening!!¡¯ It absolutely couldn¡¯t be happening! Kiran refused to believe it. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
But no matter what the white-clad man thought, the notification remained within his vision, blue as all the other ones. Innocent as all the other ones. Yet, mortals are but mortals. No matter their delusion or their rejection, they can¡¯t change the truth. And the truth of the matter was that Kiran¡¯s Level had been decreased.
This development signified just one thing.
The man, Kiran, who had once been an adorable little boy, had strayed from his path. He had strayed so far that his Class, [Shishya], the Class that was known to regress, had regressed.
He had known that such a thing could happen, of course. But never even in his wildest dreams had he imagined that it would happen to him. For never in his life, had he considered the possibility that he could stray away from his path.
Or that he had already strayed from his path.
The mere thought had been inconceivable. Yet, that unthinkable thought had manifested into Reality.
Kiran tried to get up but the shaking of his limbs caused him to stumble and fall. His body trembled from shock.
He continued to stare blankly at the notification for a few moments more before abruptly dismissing it. And just as abruptly, he stood up with his fists clenched and teeth grinding against each other.
He had been abandoned.
His nostrils puffed and his breath came in short bursts. His body burned as he felt the blood flow past his ears and heard the sound of his own heartbeat; the sound of it clearer than crystal.
He had been betrayed.
His face was twisted into an ugly sneer. ¡®This! After years and years of sacrifice and sweat, this!¡¯
19 years.
19 years of hard work. 19 years of sacrifice. 19 years of joyless existence. 19 years of fruitless drudgery. 19 years of loveless imprisonment. 19 years¡
He couldn¡¯t bear it. His heart suffocated and his chest congested.
He had started on this path when he had been mere 12 years of age. And now at 31, he had failed and reached its end. He had spent more time walking on this path than off. He had started at 12. He had barely been self-aware then.
For almost all the time that he had been self-aware, he had lived on this path. And when he had not been on this path, he hadn¡¯t had much awareness. And now, his path had been lost. His journey had been ended. His life itself had been ended.
He couldn¡¯t bear it. His breath came in short, fast. It was difficult for him to breathe.
Everything he had done, it meant nothing anymore. Everything he had suffered through, it meant nothing anymore. Everything he had sacrificed, it meant nothing anymore. All his efforts, his hard work, his sweat, his blood, it all meant nothing anymore.
He couldn¡¯t bear it. The world began to darken and the edges began to blur.
And then his heart shattered.
No longer could he walk down this path ever again. No longer would his Class progress ever again. And no longer could he be an ascetic ever again.
At that moment, the hair that he had sacrificed long ago, began growing. It grew from dead follicles to long strands in but a moment and it continued growing. It grew so fast that the growth itself was visible.
His face, that had never had a single strand of facial hair on it, sprouted moustache and grew a beard. And they kept on growing. They grew until they had reached the middle of his chest.
His hair, meanwhile, had not stopped. It grew and it kept on growing. It grew past his shoulders. It grew past his waist. And it grew past his knees. It grew until it almost touched the floor.
Kiran looked down at his hair and clenched it roughly in his fist. He stared at it for a long moment. This had been his first sacrifice and it had now been returned to him.
But the 19 years that he had given to the path, they were gone forever.
He held up his beard, something he had never had before. And at that moment, he vowed; never would be cut a single strand of his hair. For they would be the reminder of everything he had lost.
He let his hair fall but, at that moment, the words of that woman resounded in his ears.
¡°SOON! It would be SOON!¡± Her raspy voice roared and Kiran felt her throat vibrate in his mouth. ¡°You will come before me and I will laugh at your FACE! You will try to hurt me and I will laugh in your FACE! You will use me and I will still laugh in your FACE!¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
[Bonus 13]
Aditya Pratha carefully made his way through the dense foliage as he led his experienced team of seasoned [Warriors] on their latest hunt. Their previous one had netted them a Tri-Horned Antelope, a rather profitable find. The creature¡¯s Remnant had manifested in its horns, two of which had been sold while the third had been moulded as his spearhead clutched in his hand.
Leaves and branched crunched under their feet as the team of 4 waded deeper into the forest. The trek would have been a more difficult one if not for the presence of their archers. With the [Perception] Attribute unlocked, the 2 archers guarded their back. While he led the way, banking on the reach his spear offered. This left their only swordsman in the middle.
A cluck of a tongue. Then another and their team came to a sudden. Archers concentrated only for a moment before their heads turned to the left. Their next prey had been found.
Sure enough, deep footprints were found pressed into the soft ground.
Following the tracks was not a difficult task for their group of aged men; for this was a skill they all had to learn in their youth as few [Warriors] walked the tracking path in a small region like theirs.
As the sun¡¯s light began to dim, Aditya sighed. His increasingly milky eyes would fail to pierce the approaching darkness, much like the swordsman. Thus, there was little both of them could do except letting one of the archers take lead, despite the disadvantage it placed the aged man in.
However, the danger turned out to be worth it, for they found their target while the sky was being painted red by the evening sun. It was an Earth Bison. The creature was twice as tall as Aditya and just as wide. Its powerful muscles were visible through its black, leathery skin while two gigantic horns rose from the sides of its massive head.
Aditya¡¯s worn heart raced and he slowed his breathing in response. This was a Tier 1 monster whose Remnant was known to materialise in its skin. This made Earth Bison''s leather extremely suitable for armours. However, this also made it dangerous as Tier 1 monsters had access to at least 4 Skills. Combined with its powerful body, an Earth Bison was an incredibly fearsome target.
Aditya hesitated as blood raced past his red ears. The whereabouts of his son were still known. In such circumstances, if something were to happen to him, then his clan would never rise. His dream would crumble and die.
He breathed deeply. He couldn¡¯t allow his mind to go down this route. Not at this time. Nothing would happen to his talented son. He must trust the kid. His boy would return to raise his clan. Kiran would. He knew his son.
Aditya breathed deeply.
Besides, if they successfully hunted this beast, perhaps their stagnated Levels would rise once again. If he defeated the Bison alone, he was sure to Level up. However, doing so would be suicide. One on one, mortals were no match for immortals. However, Aditya was a [Warrior] that dared to dream. And it was this dream of his that had made him reach Level 21.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.
Thus, the decision to hunt was an easy one for them, for they all dared to dream.
Once the hunt was decided on, it didn¡¯t take them much time to finalise their strategy, a testament of their teamwork. As the archers spread out, Aditya and the swordsman stalked forward. And as expected, the monster sensed their approach. But by then, they were within 10 meters of the massive Bison. The herculean monster¡¯s nostrils flared as its attention focused entirely on them, which provided one the archers with the opportunity to take aim to shoot.
The shot arrow arrived before the massive bovine could react and hit just below its mark. It bit under the mammoth Bison''s eye and the monster roared in pain before angrily turned to its attacker but then the second arrow arrived. And although it missed its mark, it still bit into the creature¡¯s massive neck.
However, instead of charging at its attackers, the huge immortal activated its Skill which caused its leathery skin to darken before it raised his massive head and bellowed. The sound of it was deep, angry.
Aditya¡¯s worn heart raced while his knees threatened to buckle under the effect of the titanic monster¡¯s Skill. Goosebumps erupted on his skin and chills ran down his body as the vibrations of the sound moved through his flesh. The Skill ended and Aditya was left shivering. However, it wasn¡¯t the time to let fear take over and the aged moved.
The swordsman raced along with him.
The incredible Earth Bison charged and Aditya activated his only Spell, [Boost], to add his 11 points of [Endurance] to his 14 points of [Agility] at the cost of 11 MP/sec. [Strength] wasn¡¯t his friend and he didn¡¯t need it to be. Leaving behind the running swordsman, he aimed at the bison¡¯s left leg.
His spear made contact just as the bison¡¯s massive horns grazed his chest and he used his momentum to use his spear as a pole and jump over the charging monster. As he landed, he made sure not to check his wound. If he did, then his brain would catch up to the pain that he should be feeling.
Meanwhile, as their archers shot arrows after arrows at the hulking monstrosity, Aditya charged back to aim at one of its hind legs. Meanwhile, the swordsman continuously dodged to keep the monster busy. As Aditya''s spearhead dug into the monster¡¯s thick thigh, the massive creature bellowed in pain to use its fear-inducing Skill once again.
Aditya¡¯s heart raced. His body grew hot. His palms sweated as the sound hit him with full force. It wouldn¡¯t have affected him as much in his youth but with age, where his will had grown stronger, his flesh had grown weaker. Thus, as sweat leaked from his palms, his grip loosed and his spear slipped from his hands.
It remained stuck in the huge monster¡¯s flesh while Aditya¡¯s momentum carried him forward as the gigantic Bison jumped on its front legs to kick with its hind legs.
The incredibly powerful kick caught Aditya in his chest and its impact instantly spread to shatter his ribs. Aditya collapsed and the monster¡¯s hooves came down once again on his bloody chest with such force that they pierced through his flesh to strike against the ground underneath.
Ting.
[Multiple organs shredded. Death imminent.]
His Remnant materialised in his eyes that dared to dream.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 55
The Malfae that had been following the muddy river lowered its altitude. Its face raced to meet the ground and its wide pupil-less eyes glanced at the budding saplings. And then at the fresh coat of grass before it soared once again to eye the rippling surface of the river and then at the rustling blades of fresh grass. Nothing it saw was out of the ordinary. However, after witnessing that nightmarish sight, even ordinary seemed unordinary to the [Survivor].
As it flew, it saw increasing signs of recovery as the festering wound in the flesh of the world healed after the near-constant rain for the past two months. In these months, it was not just the earth that had benefitted, but the Malfae had too. Its Skills had continued to Level up. [Sense] had reached Level 10 and [Drone Eggs] had become Level 12, while [Flight] and [Night Vision] both had reached Level 15 and hit the Skill Level Limit.
However, it hadn''t been the sight of the greenery that had caused the [Hive Monarch] to change its course. Instead, it had been the feeling that it couldn''t even begin to describe. It was as if the Malfae had been burdened under the weight of something but hadn¡¯t known about it. It was akin to living deep within the oceans where the weight of water was nothing but the part of the environment.
But now, at this moment, it felt like it had swum up to the surface and then broken free to rise in the air. This feeling that the [Survivor] now experienced, it didn''t just feel it one moment, instead, it had become a constant experience. The Malfae felt it in the air, in the water, in the soil and the creatures all around it. This change was not something that was about a single thing.
Instead, it pervaded everything. ¡®¡Eh?¡¯ It immediately activated [Sense Essence] and the world faded away to reveal Essences. Or rather the lack of them as the haze that had been the Essence of the air, no longer existed. The Essence that had once flowed, flowed no more for they no longer existed.
On the other hand, Essences of creatures, plants and critters had once again become misty and blurred. Despite the once-again blurred forms, Essences remained much more distinct than what they had been before the Malfae had suffered through that fateful night; a consequence of the Levels gained that night. Its lips twitched to reveal its sharp teeth as a smile formed on its lips. ¡®Finally!¡¯
Indeed, the [Hive Monarch] had a reason to be happy. For it had finally left mana rich zone that it had been trapped in for more than a year. A year in which it had crawled despite possessing wings and used crutches despite possessing legs. A year in which it had witnessed not just death but also total annihilation.
But now all of that was over.
The [Survivor] laughed and flew even faster. As air swept through its hair, its pupil-less eyes widened and its massive ears twitched as they moved in joy. It laughed and twirled as it flew past not just saplings and grass but also the tall trees and thick shrubs. The greenery continued to thicken until it transformed into a dense forest.
The [Reincarnated] laughed in exuberance as it travelled. However, it did not dare to plunge into the forest head first. Instead, it flew along the outer edge of the forest as it activated [Sense] every hour to get an idea of its new home.
As the Malfae went on with its investigation, the days continued to churn and the monsoon that had been on its last leg died. And soon the dark clouds were replaced by the leaves that began to change colours. At the same time, silence began to creep upon the world like fog. And just like that, autumn arrived.
It was within this time that the Malfae noticed its lifespan and its chest ached. Its remaining lifespan amounted to less than 2 years. From the original seven years, it had lost half of it to its weakening heart and the dominating scents. While another year had been lost to the entrapment within the high mana zone. And now it had less than two years left.
Its heart pulsed and the [Survivor] shuddered as it thought about abandoning everything and starting to work on [Mana Manipulation]. Its only hope for gaining a new [Species] was its Ego form. The same Ego form that could only be obtained through [Mana Manipulation].
However, no matter how desperate it was for its evolution, its safety was paramount to it. After all, it had lost more than half its lifespan to a high mana zone, and it did not want a repeat of such an unforeseen circumstance anymore. Thus, the Malfae steeled its heart and held back.
Instead, it decided to finish the inspection of the new region that it had found itself in. The thing, that the Malfae was looking for, was not the creatures within this new region. Rather, the [Survivor] was interested in two things. The first point of interest was a home that did not have such mana zones hanging nearby. While the second was putting as much distance, as it could, between itself and the high mana zone.
Its entrapment and the forced disabling at the behest of the scents there had left a deep image within its heart. And if that had terrified the [Hive Monarch] enough, the beautiful nightmare that danced in all its naked glory had made Malfae¡¯s very bones tingle. It was, thus, no surprise that it wanted no part of that ever again.
Hence, as the days passed, the [Reincarnated] continued to search. Meanwhile, trees became bare and earth wore a quilt of dead leaves. Cold intensified and humid air of monsoon dried out until it bit against the sharpness of the newfound autumn chill.
The temperature continued to drop patiently as if a predator stalking its prey, yet the Malfae continued to fly. However, as its search continued, the forest began to thin as thick trees turned into thin ones and old ones gave space to newer trees. Space in between them grew too and the thick canopy increasingly thinned with each passing day. Shrubs became more and more numerous until they dominated the forest floor and trees eventually became so sparse that their sighting became an oddity.
The kind of trees also changed from the ones that had lost their leaves to autumn, to the ones that had resisted to persist. The leaves of these trees swayed in the winds as if they were taunting the Autumn itself. Nonetheless, the leaves that these trees boasted of were not the small and numerous like the earlier ones. Instead, their leaves were long enough to match a mortal¡¯s height and few enough to be counted on two hands.
During this time, the Malfae¡¯s Skills continued to Level under constant use. As result, [Flight] and [Night Vision] both reached Level 15 and hit the Level cap, while [Sense] reached double digits at Level 10. And as Malfae was consuming its own eggs, [Drone Eggs] rose to Level 12.
The new trees became more and more common as the [Survivor] kept on flying until these trees and the shrubs became the only greenery that it saw. The trees from the forest had all but disappeared. As it noticed this change, a memory of hers emerged and its brows furrowed.
0.0
The endless expanse of the blue water stretched out into the horizon in front of the Malfea''s gaze. The reflection of the azure moon rippled under the waves caused by the passing winds.
The muddy river that it had been following had reached its mouth where it encountered the sea and met its end.
This had also been the reason why the water contained within the river had been brown and murky. The river had held within it the silt, the sediments and the deposits that it had collected throughout its journey from its source. And after such a long journey, it was also no surprise that the water had lost its bone-chilling coldness, that had been contained within it at its source, resulting in a tepid and warm flow.
The Malfae sighed and flew up. It wanted to see for itself if the waterbody was indeed a sea and not some huge lake. After all, even the river that it had been following had possessed such huge width that the [Survivor] hadn¡¯t been able to see its other shore until it flew up.
Yet, as the [Hive Monarch] continued to rise into the sky, it saw not any shore and became a witness to just the endless waters. ¡®This is either a sea or an extremely huge lake.¡¯ At that moment, a thought crossed its mind and the creature scowled for not thinking of it sooner. It flew back down and carefully took a sip of the water. It did not drink the water. ¡®Ack! Salt.¡¯ It smiled and its sharp teeth shined in the azure moonlight. With the saltwater confirmed, it was reasonably sure of the waterbody being a sea. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
And if it turned out not to be, at least, it had done everything it had thought of to ensure it so. ¡®Finally, it ends.¡¯ Indeed, the [Reincranted] hadn''t found any high mana zones anywhere. It had searched far and wide and it had searched for months on end. Yet, it had found nothing. Instead, it had arrived at a dead-end in the form of the sea. And at this place, not only did the ocean formed a natural boundary, but this place was also quite distant from the only high mana zone it knew of. It was thus, little surprise that the Malfae finally ended its search.
In truth, the [Hive Moncarch] had not found any mana rich zones, not because they hadn¡¯t existed nearby, but because of the limitations that its Vessel posed to the [Survivor]. It had just lacked the capability to find them. Malfae were, after all, creatures whose length was barely more than a mortal¡¯s finger. Thus, they could only fly so fast and so far, before they grew tired. Additionally, its mentality had been restricted by its Vessel and its instincts.
The [Hive Mind] had encountered the sea and ended its search. It hadn''t even considered that oceans might have high mana zones too. After all, why would it even bother with that? Malfae was a creature that lives on land and thrived in the air. They had little to do with waterbodies as large as that.
Its ignorance did not change the fact that the seas and the oceans were, more often than not, the zones of extremely high mana as the mana stream, that had been scattered when it had hit the planet, usually began to condense once again in the oceans.
It was for this reason, that oceans were one of the restricted places where mortals rarely ever ventured.
0.0
The Malfae sat cross-legged within its new shelter.
Unfortunately for it, however, its new hideout was not as sturdy as its last one which had been a crevice within a cliff. Instead, this time it had been forced to go back to tree hollows despite being surrounded by rock all around. The rocks on the seashore, despite being numerous, had been rejected due to the tides that regularly drowned them. While the spectacle of it was a testament to the power of the moon, the [Survivor] had no intention of making its home there.
Thus, it had turned away from the sea and flew until it had found a dense copse of evergreen trees that sported the wide leaves. Within the numerous trees, the Malfae had found a suitable tree hollow and make its home. And although it was far from perfect, it would have to do as the autumn had progressed continuously while it had been searching. As a result, almost half the season had passed by and it would not be long before the [Hive Monarch] would have to hibernate.
Nudged by its instincts as it had been, the Malfae had already begun its preparations while it had been searching and had doubled the consumption of eggs, leading a gradual fattening. Though, the process was still not complete and, as of yet, the fat had just accumulated around its torso, cheeks and beneath the chin. The creature was still working hard on accumulating it in its limbs.
Though the creation of eggs almost caused its heart to hurt. As every time it used [Drone Eggs], which had reached Level 12, created 78 Eggs at the cost of 120 MP. The mere thought of it was painful for it. Still, this did not stop the [Reincarnated] from fattening itself.
Thus, with its belly flowing out of its body and into its lap, the [Survivor] sat within the tree hollow and once again began working on [Mana Manipulation] as it had devised back in the crevice. It activated [Sense Essence] and the world faded away, leaving behind the haze and the mist. Though, now that the Skill had reached Level 15, the shape those hazes took had become quite distinct.
From what the Malfae remembered from her memories, the hazy and misty forms of the Essences were quite akin to looking at the world, through a pair of glasses of the wrong prescription. The [HIve Monarch] observed this new world and it gazed until its attention finally came to stop on its own form.
The Essence of the Malfae was blue, much like its own form, and blurry. The [Reincarnated] could make out its own pupil-less eyes, high nose and the huge ears. However, it had a hard time looking at the antennas. The blurriness of the vision made it difficult to distinguish the thin appendages from the background. Same was the case with its wings. Despite being huge, they were quite thin and the [Survivor] could only make out a thin outline, not the wings themselves.
Nevertheless, while under the influence of [Sense Essence], the Malfae focused on activating [Mana Manipulation] manually. As it had a rough idea of the mana pathways within its body, with that image in its mind, the Malfae tried to superimpose it on its own blurry Essence but the creature did not succeed.
It was almost as if the Essence was resisting being moulded.
The [Hive Monarch] frowned and let the Skill dissolve as the timer was running out. Meanwhile, it contemplated for a few moments before it activated [Mana Manipulation] instead and stared at the mana pathways within. ¡®Did it resist because the image I was superimposing was wrong?¡¯ It observed the mana pathways and, without a doubt, the scene it was observing was quite different from the image it had in its mind.
But as it continued to stare at the crisscrossing mana pathways and mana within, its eyes began to twitch. With every passing moment, its eyes narrowed and its nostrils flared up. ''Deep breaths. Deep breaths. There is no point in getting angry over this. There is really no point.¡¯ It clucked its tongue. No matter how inhuman and supernatural the [Hive Monarch] was, it couldn''t memorise the position of every single pathway within the Mana System with absolute accuracy.
It was just not possible for it. It may be possible for genius beings but neither the Malfae nor she had ever boasted of possessing such intellect. Instead, she had been quite an average mortal; one that followed the crowd rather than made her own path.
The [Reincrated] dismissed the Skill and messaged its forehead. ¡®There should be another way¡¡¯ It fell back and its eyes stared at the ceiling of the tree hollow but the [Survivor] saw nothing. It kept on gazing at the same spot while its mind ignored the image and worked on the obstacle that it had encountered. ¡®What if I begin small?¡¯ It instantly sat up and eyes widened at the thought. ¡®No one said I had to do it all at once.¡¯
This idea was not something innovative for mortals. The strength of the togetherness and the fragility of individuality was quite known to them. After all, it was this idea that had let them survive. The power of the fist, over the strength of a finger, was not something that a mortal would consider revolutionary. But for an immortal, this idea was quite eye-opening. This was despite the Malfae possessing her memories.
Just because Malfae possessed a mortal¡¯s memories, did not mean it understood them or agreed with them. In fact, most of her memories were like that for the Malfae. It did not understand why her creators had hurt themselves for her. It did not understand why she had done the same later. It did not understand the concept of sacrifice. It did not understand care. It did not understand love. It did not even understand the need for creating a progeny.
After all, Immortals were not creatures that could survive along with other creatures. They were solitary beings and it was not something they could choose. It was just who they were. It was their very being. To deny this part would be akin to denying themselves. Thus, it was no surprise that the Immortals found the concept such as unity and divisiveness hard to understand. For these concepts would inherently require one to understand the concept of existing along with other creatures.
The very idea, to Immortals, was akin to courting death.
0.0
It took the Malfae almost a week to manifest the Mana system on the tip of its right index finger of its Essence. The difficulty of this task had not been just because of the resistance of the Essence but also because of the blurriness of the Essence itself, which made visualisation and superimposition quite a difficult task.
Though, this achievement granted it something that it had been waiting for a long time.
Ting.
[Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.2] has levelled up to [Mana Manipulation Lv.3]. Your understanding of mana has increased.]
The process had been slow going even after the breakthrough. And the further achievements, along its palm, had not earned it even a single Level more in the Skills. Though, given that it had barely finished mapping its palm, even after spending an entire month on it, probably had something to do with that.
This progress, though slow, was still a result of the Malfae¡¯s determination. For the winter had been creeping closer and closer with each passing day and it had become increasingly difficult for the [Hive Monarch] remain focused. It had struggled with the lethargy that had come along with the decreasing temperature. And as the lethargy had demanded rest, for both mind and body, focusing had become a battle. As a result, it had become more and more distracted with each passing day.
Even the smallest amount of gain within the Essence had exhausted it. And by the time the winter arrived, it had all but became impossible for the Malfae to focus on the Skill. The lethargy and the drowsiness had become too much for it to handle.
Thus, with a tired sigh, the creature decided to give in to its instincts and went into hibernation.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 56
Sprawled upon the endless waters, a ship travelled and deep within this ship, inside a cold and dark cell, a woman laid still upon a platform. On the top of the woman was a man, thrusting inside the chambermaid endlessly.
He grunted. He moaned. And he thrust himself inside the woman. Yet the woman made not a single sound as the woman¡¯s legs were kept spread apart.
Men came and men went; in senses more than one. And the woman laid there, unmoving and mute. If not for the warmth of the woman¡¯s flesh, some might even consider the woman a corpse. However, if one were to gaze into the woman¡¯s eyes, one would find life, the life that was absent in the rest of the woman¡¯s flesh.
Though, the life in the woman¡¯s eyes did not shine brightly like the sun. Instead, it simmered like a volcano about to burst. The abhorrence, the fury, the disgust, the loathing, and the rage present in them wished to burn the world to ashes.
The man finally released his seed inside the woman and kissed the woman¡¯s naked breast one last time before leaving.
The woman was finally alone. Though not for long, for someone else would soon come to make use of the woman again.
The woman did not sigh and neither did he make any other sound. He might as well have been dead to the world. Instead, he summoned his Status like he did every day, in a vain hope that the curses on him might have weakened.
The woman closed his Status and focused inwards. His eyebrows furrowed, his forehead crinkled and his closed eyes squinted as an ethereal card began to take shape within his Mana System, right where his heart should have been.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
The card was white. It wasn¡¯t just white, it was white. It wasn¡¯t the white of the milk or the white of the clouds. It wasn¡¯t the white of the bones or the white of the flowers. It wasn¡¯t the white of marbles or the white of the waterfall. It was white.
It was the white of the light that was so strong that merely glancing at it burned. It was the white of the fiercest fire and the white of the strongest sun. It was an unpleasant white.
Within the centre of this card was etched a single flower of the bloody hibiscus. Its bright petals were so red and deep that they countered the white. A pistil emerged from within the depth of the blood flower and fell like the tongue of a serpent.
At that moment, the card that had barely achieved its shape collapsed as its ethereal boundaries shattered and dissolved.
The woman panted and gasped as he opened his eyes. He breathed deeply and calmed his breathing as he waited for the next man and he did not have to wait for long.
The door to his cell slammed open with enough force that the walls shook for a moment. But the woman did not bother to look at the newcomer, for he did not care who it was that had come. They were all the same.
¡°YOU!¡± A familiar voice roared and the woman¡¯s lips twitched in derision. The long hair of the woman shifted as he turned his head to look at the fake Healer. But, as his eyes fell on the hairy man panting at the door, the woman¡¯s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
¡°WHAT DID YOU DO?!!¡± The long-haired man stomped up to him and dragged the naked woman up by his hair.
The action was familiar to the woman. The voice was familiar to the woman. Yet the hair, the beard, the moustache and the eyebrows weren¡¯t.
The man did not like the silence, and he clutched the woman¡¯s face in his hand and with his finger¡¯s digging into the naked woman¡¯s cheeks, he screamed, ¡°WHAT DID YOU DO?!!¡±
The action of this man was familiar to the woman. Very familiar. Just the hair wasn¡¯t.
¡®¡it couldn¡¯t be, could it?¡¯ A slow and cruel smile began to form on the woman¡¯s lips and he bared his teeth at the white-clad man. ¡°It happened, didn¡¯t it?¡±
¡°YOU!¡± The white-clad man gritted his teeth and slammed the woman against the wall. ¡°WHAT DID YOU DO?!!¡±
The woman began laughing. His voice, raspy and hoarse, echoed around the cell and seem to close in from every direction. It seemed to oppress the white-clad man like the aura of a predator dominating a prey.
The white-clad man slammed the chambermaid into the wall causing the woman¡¯s spine to arch in agony. Yet, the naked woman continued to laugh as he slid down the wall.
¡°You fell!¡± The woman pointed his bony fingers at the white-clad man and continued to laugh unhindered. ¡°You FELL!!¡±
The man bristled and clenched his fists before he kicked the woman in the stomach and the woman slid across the floor as he continued to laugh. The man stomped up to the laughing woman and punched the naked woman in the face. Once. Twice. Thrice.
The woman gurgled on his own blood as he continued to laugh. He spat out his broken teeth and screamed. ¡°YOU FELL!! YOU IMPOSTER! PRETENDER! YOU FALLEN!!¡±
¡°WHAT. DID. YOU. DO!¡±
¡°I?!¡± The woman choked out and spat out even more blood. ¡°It is YOUR OWN DOING! YOU FELL! YOU LOST YOUR PATH! YOU ABANDONED YOUR PATH! YOU ARE NO HEALER!! YOU IMPOSTER! PRETENDER! YOU FALLEN!!¡±
The man froze as his fist clenched.
¡°I told you! I told you, didn¡¯t I?!!¡± The woman laughed as he pointed at the white-clad man. He laughed and he choked on his blood, yet he needled the white-clad man¡¯s open wound. ¡°You will come before me and I will laugh at your FACE! You will try to hurt me and I will laugh in your FACE! You will use me and I will still laugh in your FACE!¡±
The white-clad man¡¯s frozen body moved then and his fingers found the woman¡¯s neck. The man¡¯s fingers squeezed mercilessly to crush the life out the woman and the weak fingers of the woman found the man¡¯s grip but failed to push it away.
The woman choked. The woman gasped. Yet, the smile of derision did not leave his lips.
¡°You want¡to kill¡me?!¡± The woman gasped out. ¡°You think¡you can!? You¡can¡¯t! You¡are not¡allowed to! I¡am not¡YOURS!¡±
The white-clad man¡¯s fingers loosened and the woman fell. ¡°I am¡a Chambermaid! I am¡the ship¡¯s¡property! NOT YOURS!!¡±
¡°Yes. Yes, you are a chambermaid.¡± The man¡¯s bloodshot eyes became crazed and he picked the woman up by his neck. ¡°Today, I will make you a proper one.¡±
The man then slammed him against the wall and crushed the woman¡¯s lips with his own.
0.0
The man exited the cell and slammed the door close. He clenched his fingers and blood fell from his fist, drop by drop. He wiped his hand on his robes. The same robes that had been white once upon a time now seemed to shine red with blood.
None of the blood was his.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 57
Ting.
.
.
[Skill [Cold Resistance Lv.14] has levelled up to [Cold Resistance Lv.15]. Environmental damage mitigation has increased to 15 HP per minute.]
Ting.
[The Skill [Cold Resistance] has reached the Level limit of your current Vessel. Evolve further to increase the Level limit for your Skills. Current Skill Level limit: Level 15.]
The Malfae stared at the screens with bleary pupil-less eyes. Its sleepy face and the squinted eyes shied away from the glow of the screens before it grunted and dismissed them. It found no joy in the Skill Level ups. Instead, it pushed itself up and, as it sat on the floor of the tree hollow, its shoulder hunched and face fell.
¡®Four months¡gone.¡¯ The [Survivor] breathed and shook its head to clear it of the useless thought. Its lifespan would decrease with each passing day and the only thing it could do was to evolve before its lifespan ended. There was no point in crying over spilt milk.
The [Hive Monarch] pushed itself up but a sudden pain in its knees sent it rolling back to the floor. Its dark eyes widened and it stared at its knees in disbelief. It pushed itself up again and despite the jerk in its knees, the [Reincarnated] stood up.
Nevertheless, its incredulous gaze didn''t leave its weak knees that had already begun to fail. It closed its eyes and breathed to ball his fists. However, it felt the joints in its fingers resist. It flapped its wings but the simple action caused its back to ache.
The Malfae¡¯s face fell and its heart sank as the memories of its time as a caterpillar forced themselves to the forefront. The time when it had been at the end of its lifespan and its body had become increasingly unresponsive, causing its flesh to hurt from simply moving.
The [Hive Monarch] had, once again, begun to age.
The skin on its hands had loosened to sport the beginning of wrinkles. Its hair had begun to thin and the hairline had started receding. Its eyes now sported dark circles beneath them while crow¡¯s feet adorned the sides. Even the flesh on its cheeks and arms had begun to sag.
The [Survivor] shuddered before it used [Drone Eggs] to create its first batch of food.
At this point, if it had been a mortal, it would have begun to question its life, its existence and its purpose. After all, the Malfae had aged twice and had gone through three different lives; the lives of a caterpillar, a moth and its current one that was coming to an end.
After having gone through such experiences, any mortal would begin to question their existence. They would search for a reason that they struggled to live for. They would look for the meaning of life itself. For that was the nature of mortals. They lived short lives but that did not stop them from striving to be remembered forever. They sought fame, through either sin or virtue. For it was their own form of immortality that they desperately sought to achieve.
But the immortals were immortals not just in name. They were the creatures that could live forever if they strived for it. And the immortals strived. They struggled and they suffered to achieve this immortality.
Where Mortals sought immortality in thought, the Immortals sought immortality in flesh.
Where Mortals sought immortality in illusion, the Immortals sought immortality in reality.
This was the fundamental difference between Mortals and Immortals. And it was because of this reason that the Malfae, despite possessing the memories of a mortal, struggled to understand the mortal¡¯s actions and motives.
It was also the reason that the Malfae didn''t give up on evolving to accept its rapidly approaching death. Despite the struggles that it went through, the horrors it saw and the lives it lived, the [Survivor] marched on.
0.0
With the passage of winter and the arrival of spring, the trees sprouted new leaves and flowers bloomed. The [Reincarnated], meanwhile, remained unaffected, hidden as it was within the copse of evergreen trees. It left not the tree hollow and survived merely on the diet of its own eggs and sap of the evergreen tree. All the while, it diligently worked within the [Sense Essence] as it manifested the Mana System within its own Essence.
Perhaps it was desperation to live or the lack of lethargy from the creeping winter, but its speed in mapping the mana system increased quite a bit. Where previously all it had achieved within 2 months had been the mapping of a single palm, within the next two, it mapped all the way up to its elbow.
Thus, as leaves lost their brightness and flowers fell to reveal the fruits hidden within, the [Survivor] continued its single-minded pursuit. The temperature rose and the pleasant coolness within the air disappeared. Heat slowly became unbearable and the wind became scorching. Days seemed to burn while nights seemed to simmer, yet it didn''t break out of its meditative trance.
Its dedication led to the [Hive Monarch] completing the entirety of its arm by the time the height of the summer arrived. Yet it didn''t gain another level in the Skill. It was not until it began mapping its chest and reached its heart that [Mana Manipulation] levelled up to reach Level 4.
During this time that it had been carving the mana system into its Essence, the Malfae seemed to have gained some understanding of how the Skill worked. Or better to say, it seemed to have received a hint on how to mould mana. Though, it had yet to discover what it could truly comprehend from that.
The Malfae had not yet forgotten the advice she had received when she had been learning the Skill. ¡®Guide. Don¡¯t force. Speak. Don¡¯t order. Persuade. Don¡¯t control. For the mana does what it does, for no reason than it does.¡¯ The words that had not made sense to it for a long time, seemed to make sense the more it thought about its own shallow understanding.
Yet, the conclusion remained elusive. Thus, after a long time, it focused not on [Sense Essence] and Essence sculpting but something else. It decided to focus solely on [Mana Manipulation].
The [Reincarnated] thus activated [Mana Manipulation] and was instantly pulled within itself. It observed the mana as it disappeared and appeared at its own will. The mana moved, but it didn''t flow. Instead, it remained in flux. There was no beginning to its movement and neither was there an end.
The Malfae thought for a moment and tried to send its consciousness within the mana system. It floated down to the mana system until its consciousness was as close to system as it could be. The consciousness still pressed closer and the [Survivor] felt its consciousness touch the fluxing mana directly above its heart.
At that moment, sharp pain blasted across its temples as the [Hive Monarch] was thrown out from within its body and into the physical world.
Ting.
[Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.4] has levelled up to [Mana Manipulation Lv.5]. Your understanding of mana has increased.]
The [Reincarnated] woke up with its face sporting a sharp-toothed smile. ¡®So this is how it is supposed to go. Huh.¡¯ Indeed, it had been going about it all wrong.
Mapping mana pathways onto its Essence was not a method that anyone would even recommend as, in the end, it would not have done the [Survivor] any good. This method that it had been diligently following, was as useless as trying to drain the seas, one bucket at a time.
While one would still get the water out of the seas, their goal of emptying the sea would remain as unrealisable as ever. It would be a useless endeavour with unintended results. Same was the case of the Malfae as it spent months after months, etching the mana channels into its Essence.
The [Mana Manipulation] Levels it had received were the unintended results. And so was the understanding of [Mana Manipulation] that it shallowly perceived. After all, as one tirelessly drew out water from the ocean, they would come to understand a bit about the ocean water. Perhaps it would be the smell of the ocean or perhaps it would be the taste of salt that permeated all the seas and the oceans. They might realise the life that existed within the water, in form of fish, seaweed and the other creatures. Or they might realise the cycle of tides that pushed and pulled at the water.
The understanding that the [Reincarnated] had received was much the same.
But at that moment, its smile disappeared as its eyes widened, nostrils expanded and mouth twisted. Its head throbbed like a hundred metal sheeted being banged simultaneously. Its eyes leaked blood and bloody streams dripped down from its nose and ears.
Its face darkened and the creature¡¯s body violently trembled, out of its control. The [Hive Monarch] clutched its head within its hand and squeezed with all its might as if trying to destroy the agony along with its own head. Its face remained twisted in unbearable anguish and pained shrieks escaped its blue lips.
This was the result of its shallow understanding.
When the Malfae had tried to send its consciousness within the mana system, it had been nothing short of utter foolishness. Its act had been akin to jumping into a deep river when one doesn¡¯t even know how to float, let alone swim. What it should have done, instead, would have been akin to exploring the shallow waters of the unknown. In that environment, it should have learned to swim before diving deeper.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
The only reason that it wasn''t suffering an even worse agony was the Levels it had in the Skill [Mana Manipulation]. They had acted like floating platforms that had saved it from drowning.
0.0
Days continued to march and monsoon arrived, all the while the Malfae remained secluded within its tree hollow. Parched earth was watered as rain showered the earth and the heat receded, yet the [Reincarnated] continued to work with a single-minded dedication.
Though, this time, instead of working on etching mana channels within its own Essence, it worked on trying to slowly acclimate its consciousness with its Mana System. Unfortunately for it, this new path proved to be much harder than it had anticipated.
The [Hive Monarch]¡¯s attempts at assimilating its consciousness failed one after another, leaving it bloodied, and with splitting headaches. It continuously suffered agony but persisted. Its endurance did lead to some advancement though. As after repeated failures, it advanced enough to stop bleeding from its orifices.
Failure is the mother of success, after all. And as clouds continued to bleed and cold continued to spread, it learned this first hand. With each failure, aftereffects continued to decrease. Bleeding decreased and the headache soon followed the same route.
Guide. Don¡¯t force. Speak. Don¡¯t order. Persuade. Don¡¯t control. For the mana does what it does, for no reason than it does.
The [Survivor] continued to ponder on the words that she had been told. These words, that had been nothing but nonsense at one point, morphed into a lifeline that it held onto with all its might.
And with each of its failures, it saw a much clearer picture.
0.0
With dull pupil-less eyes, the [Reincarnated] stared at its Status. It stared at the screen for a moment more before closing its eyes and letting out a sigh. It didn''t ponder for long over its decreasing lifespan and returned to the only thing that could allow it to live.
Its focused dedication, however, broke as the rain began falling once again. Though this shower had come after quite some time, thus the Malfae expected to be one of the last showers of the season.
After having ignored the previous downpours, it didn''t last long against the enticement of the new-born petrichor of the last rain. The pitter-patter of the raindrops invited it with their melody and the [Survivor] stepped out for the first time in a long while.
The droplets fell on its body and the joints that had begun to ache protested at the newfound coldness. It wanted to fly to greet the rain but it didn¡¯t, for it feared the ache in its back. Instead, it laid on the ground as the water fell from the skies to form puddles.
The tiny raindrops that were so inconsequential alone, once they came together, became its beloved rain. But this unity was lost on the [Hive Monarch] for it was an immortal, it could not understand such a concept.
Instead, it saw the puddle that formed around its body and saw the tiny droplets fall and lose themselves in a bigger existence. They became lost and they died, ceasing to exist. What existed in their place was this new existence. This puddle.
They died, only to become one.
The creature¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. ¡®¡died, only to be one.¡¯
The petrichor continued to rise as it seeped into anything and everything. The grey clouds continued to rumble and the thunder continued to roar. The rain continued to fall unabated. The droplets followed the fate etched for them and met their end. Its eyes narrowed. ¡®...died to be one.¡¯
Lightning flashed and struck something somewhere far off. Thunder followed to shake the world. Yet the rain continued to fall unbothered. Raindrops born and died, one after the other. Their short lives ending with nothing but a splash of water. In the end, however, they too became one with the water, from which they had once risen.
Its gaze became unfocused. ¡®To be one.¡¯
The [Survivor] ceaselessly stared at the grey clouds and the falling rain. It laid in the puddle forming around its body, ignoring the world that was drenched in water and thunder. At that moment, its furrowed brows straightened and its eyes widened.
It flew back to the tree hollow, forgetting the rain that it had come out to enjoy, and activated [Mana Manipulation]. It was pulled in and the Mana System manifested before its consciousness. It had figured the process out.
The [Hive Monarch] slowly lowered its consciousness as it went to greet the Mana System once again. Though this time, instead of wanting to be assimilated within the system, it sought nothing.
After all, for a droplet of rain to become a puddle, it must seek nothing. A droplet that falls, knew not what its future would be. Would it fall onto a leaf? Would it be absorbed into the soil? Would it fall into an already formed puddle? The droplet knew not its future. The droplet sought not its future. It let itself be and allowed the world to etch its fate.
But the fates that differ, lead to nothing but one.
The drop absorbed by the soil, left the earth moistened enough that the soil absorbed no more and allowed the water to collect. The droplets that fall onto the leaves continue to exist long after the rain, keeping the air moist, lest the puddle evaporated.
And the drops that formed the puddle, they build themselves upon the death of the those that had fallen before them and the ones that would after. For a drop to become a puddle, it must become one with it. For it to become one, it must die.
This concept that the Malfae seemed to comprehend, was not unity. For it could not understand unity. It was not a sacrifice, for it could not understand sacrifice. This concept was of utter domination. The droplets that fall into the puddle are dominated by the puddle. The droplets that fall onto the dry earth, they are dominated by the earth while the droplets that fall into the air, they are dominated by the air.
The [Hive Monach] was an immortal; it understood not the concept of ¡®dying to become one¡¯. Therefore, its immortal nature twisted its understanding to make it understand the dominance of one over another. Whether this understanding was false or not, it didn¡¯t know. All it knew was its understanding.
However, it remembered the advice that she had been given. Guide. Don¡¯t force. Speak. Don¡¯t order. Persuade. Don¡¯t control. For the mana does what it does, for no reason than it does.
Thus, mana couldn¡¯t be dominated. And the Malfae was not going to try exerting its will after what had happened last time. This, thus, resulted in only one option. If one must dominate the other and the mana could not be dominated, just who could be dominated then?
The answer was the Malfae itself. It must be dominated. Thus, as its consciousness descended into its Mana System, it felt its consciousness be assaulted by the mana within it. The constant flux of the mana tried to sunder it apart. It wished to rip it into pieces and destroy the remaining chunks.
The [Reincarnated] bled from its eyes, nose, ears and mouth. Yet, [Mana Manipulation] did not end. It plunged its consciousness deeper and the assault ripped its consciousness apart. It vomited out blood and bled from its very pores. Such was the loss of blood that its blue skin turned red. Its thoughts became indistinct and fractured as its consciousness continued to be sundered, leaving behind pieces akin to shattered glass.
This was the result of the primitive method that the Malfae had stumbled onto. This method that the desperate creature had encountered was not something that a mortal would ever use. After all, mortals were mortals and not Immortals. They had the benefit of thousands of years of research and trial and error that the Immortals lacked, mistrusted and disdained.
This method that it had employed was akin to something that the mortal pioneer mages had used in a time so ancient that even the records if it were nothing but dust.
This method had then been improved, enriched and researched until it became the method of that the mortals used today, where there was no blood and no need to die. The mortals simply employed the basis of their existence and taught their young the method to manipulate mana.
It was something that the immortals couldn¡¯t even begin to comprehend. Powerful as they might be, immortals could only die to become one.
The shattered pieces of the Malfae¡¯s consciousness got entangled in the fluxing mana and shattered further. The more they got entangled, the more they were minced. But the more they were minced, the more they got entangled. Its consciousness was ground until it became nothing but sand, yet the process did not stop.
And within these grains of sand, a thought arose.
It arose within a single grain, yet the longer it lingered, the more its spread within the other pieces. This thought continued to spread as the consciousness continued to be torn apart. What had once been one, became many. But within these many, a single thought echoed out.
¡®[Moulting].¡¯
0.0
The [Hive Monarch] woke up with a headache that it was willing to die to get rid of. Its head pounded and its thoughts were jumbled. It tried to remain awake but it fought with itself against the idea.
It blacked out.
0.0
It woke up. It blacked out.
0.0
Its eyes opened. But it blacked out.
0.0
It became aware. But it blacked out.
0.0
It awakened and crawled. But it blacked out.
0.0
It wakened. It crawled. It drank the sap. But it blacked out.
0.0
It fed on the sap. But it blacked out.
0.0
.
.
.
0.0
It was unknown how many times the Malfae awakened and fainted. It was also unknown how it managed to feed itself. What was known, on the other hand, was that when the [Survivor] finally regained consciousness, autumn had very much arrived.
The trees had shed and the carpet of coloured leaves had already begun decaying. The temperature had dipped to a chilly coldness and the air had lost all its humidity. The copse had become silent as the critters had disappeared and the days had become shorter.
The [Hive Monarch] frowned and checked its Status.
Its heart stopped for a moment and its chest ached as it eyes fell on the lifespan mentioned within the Status Screen. [Lifespan: 8 Months].
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 58
The long-haired man stared at the horizon as the shadow visibly grew with every passing moment. The crew shouted, people hooted and mortals jumped in joy. But Kiran turned away from the ocean; the emotions in his heart had long since died.
7 years. It had taken them 7 long years to reach land. People celebrated. They cheered. They screamed in exhilaration. They rejoiced.
Once upon a time, Kiran too would have rejoiced with them. He too would have cheered. He too would have been excited. But it no longer held any meaning. There was nothing for him to achieve here. Or back home. Did he even have a home at this point? If he went back, where would he return to?
To the ashram? Only to be treated as a failure and disgrace? Or to his parent¡¯s house? The place where people pinned all their hopes on him; where people still prayed for his success; where he was their sole ray of hope; where people had named him Kiran, a ray light?
A place where he hadn''t stepped in the last 21 years now?
21 years.
¡
It had been 2 years since he had lost his first level. And in the time that had passed since then, he had lost 2 more. He was Level 21 now.
But that mattered not to him. He was no longer an ascetic.
0.0
His ship neared the spotted landmass and the [Ship Captain] frowned as he observed the mental map of the region created by Skill [Sense Land]. The shore didn''t allow docking. ¡°Stop the ship and drop the anchors!¡± The moustached man¡¯s deep voice reverberated across the ship. ¡°This is a rocky shore. We will be docking right here.¡±
The activity and the noise within the ship multiplied as excited men and woman raced to do their tasks. Even the passengers were left jubilant by the sight of the green landmass greeting them. The landmass, despite being a rocky one, was home to a lush forest a few kilometres inside while the shore housed copses of tall trees that had wide but few leaves. These trees were quite different from the one inside the forest.
The tall trees and green leaves of the forest were a welcome sight. And so were the songs of birds and the hum of insects. These were the absent sounds which these people hadn''t heard in so long that they might as well have forgotten them.
Though, the sight of the forest was celebrated only because this was a low mana zone. Any monster that survived in this area could be easily culled; if not individually then collectively. However, if this had been a high mana zone, then the very sight of the forest would have had sent them running. They wouldn¡¯t even have dared to anchor, let alone land on the landmass.
This was no fortune though. It was a result of the hard work of their [Mana Sensor]. He had been the one guiding the [Ship Captain] all along. As a result, he had been the one issuing the early warnings of the mana channel twisting and mutating into a more powerful one.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
During the entire journey, not only him but the [Ward Smith] had been busy too. The old-man had constantly been activating ship''s wards against detection while laying new wards where old ones had dissipated. Although his efforts had not stopped the truly powerful monsters, for they noticed the ship and broke the wards, his wards had kept the ship from attracting most monsters that had come in their path. This had saved them constant struggles and battles of attrition.
It was because of these efforts that they had survived. And now, success was within their grasp.
At that moment, as the crew celebrated, the door to the [Ship Captain]¡¯s office opened and a woman walked in. She was dressed in an unbroken fabric of dark green silk that was wrapped around her elegantly. Her hair was short and barely kissed her shoulders, while her head was tilted up high, causing her dark eyes to look down at the world from their high mantle.
¡°Are there no high Tiered zones nearby?¡± The folds on the lower parts of her dress fluttered as each of her movement eluded grace. ¡°There is none that Anubhav could find yet.¡± The man¡¯s lips twitched in the barest hint of a smile. ¡°We might find one in the future, however.¡±
The green-clad woman nodded. ¡°Once things have settled down, lend Anubhav to me for a while. His Skills as a [Mana Sensor] would be indispensable in finding our son¡¯s first monster.¡±
¡°I will keep it in mind.¡± The man turned his attention back to the ship. ¡°Don¡¯t expect him for quite some time though.¡±
¡°The boy is already seven years old.¡± The woman¡¯s brows furrowed the slightest amount, yet they displayed their displeasure. ¡°He is already two years behind his peers back home.¡± The middle-aged man''s forehead crinkled but he sighed. ¡°I understand. I will send him as soon as a base has been established.¡±
The woman pursed her lips. ¡°It will have to do.¡± She turned to leave but paused after a moment. ¡°I would recommend blocking access to Chambermaids for now. With the sailors this happy, they might not survive.¡±
¡°Hmm? Yes. That¡¯s true. We cannot let them die.¡± The man agreed without much thought. ¡°The Royal decree demands at least 20 years of service before death, doesn¡¯t it?¡±
0.0
As people landed on the rocky shore, some laughed as they felt the rocks beneath their feet, while others ran. Some merely sat on the ground, enjoying the stillness that they had lacked for so long. And then there were those who lost themselves in sensations of the very sand.
It took quite some time for elation to wear off enough that the crew could start working. However, when all was said and done, it didn''t take much time to get them back on the job.
The first to get back to work had been Anubhav Dhyan, the [Mana Sensor], and he had been busy scouting the area ever since. Anubhav was a Tier 2 mage with specialization in sensing. His spell [Cast Vision], along with his Skill [Mana Vision], allowed him to project his vision through the Mana Streams to scout. It had taken him quite a while to finish exploring before he had declared the area as unclaimed land.
After his declaration, a semi-permanent settlement -instead of a mere temporary one- was allowed to be set up. This allowed their [Ward Smith] to place a rather durable ward with his Tier 3 Skill [Mana Permanency]. This Skill allowed wards to leach the surrounding mana for the use, rather than needing a fixed mana source.
Though his Class [Ward Smith] wasn''t incredibly high levelled for a Tier 3, thus his Tier 3 Skill wasn¡¯t high levelled either. This forced the man to strengthen the ward daily with [Mana Permanency] as his skill wore off after a few days.
After the wards had been set up, they allowed people to feel a sense of security and the construction had truly begun after that. The atmosphere in the settlement was jubilant and exhilarated as people dreamt of riches and honour that awaited them back home.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 59
The Malfae dismissed the screen and controlled its breathing. It feared losing even more of its precious lifespan if it let its emotion run free. With each controlled breath, its heart slowed and its wrinkled skin regained its blue tone.
Mentally exhausted, it messaged its head. But as its hands fell back, the ageing Malfe''s gaze lingered on its palm for fine strands of hair clung onto its blue fingers. The emotion that arose within the [Hive Monarch] was hard for it to describe. It felt its heart tighten as if expecting a shock but not in a physical way. Its breathing hitched and its body trembled.
If a mortal had experienced these emotions, then the name that would have passed through his lips would have been grief, sadness and sorrow. But the immortal wasn''t a mortal. Grief was not something it understood.
Despite possessing her memories, the [Reincarnated] could not comprehend the emotions that pierced its heart. Such was the rarity of this emotion amongst immortals that it was almost as if immortals were denied such sentiments. Almost.
The malfae remained seated as it pounded its chest weakly, trying to beat the ache away.
But how could it? This grief that the [Survivor] had birthed, how could it easily so die? This sorrow, that emerged within it was not born out of watching its hair fall. It had been born because the falling hair symbolised the dwindling time that it had left and the death that awaited it.
Numbers on the screen had not hit the point home as much as his falling hair had.
Its fingers twitched and hair strands fell out of its blue palm. It watched the strands fall and found a sense of haunting beauty within the strand of falling hair. But what beauty lay in the falling white hair?
Hair strands met the ground and the [Hive Monarch] collapsed as its back hit the ground with a smack and its head followed with a thud. Pain erupted in the back of its head but it unblinkingly stared at the ceiling of the tree-hollow.
It stared for a long moment before it closed its eyes. A breath escaped it with a sigh. It laid like that as time passed until the passage of time became unknown.
The temperature rose and the darkness of the night shied away. The Green Moon Immortal completed its journey across the sky and crossed into the horizon. Yet it laid there, eyes closed as if it were dead to the world.
It was only with the flare of the first rays of the sunlight that it opened its eyes. What greeted its eyes was not the brown ceiling of its hideout. Rather it was a sequence of notifications waiting to acknowledged.
Ting.
[Skill [Moulting Lv.8] has levelled up to [Moulting Lv.9]. The time required for the skill has been reduced by 4 minutes. Total time required: 5 Hours and 28 Minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.4] has levelled up to [Mana Manipulation Lv.5]. Your understanding of mana has increased.]
Ting.
Ting.
Ting.
[Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.9] has levelled up to [Mana Manipulation Lv.10]. Your understanding of mana has increased.]
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.10] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.11]. Continuous damage caused by pain has been decreased by the 11 points.]
Ting.
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.12] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.13]. Continuous damage caused by pain has been decreased by the 13 points.]
The Malfae blinked owlishly.
And then it blinked again as it read the notification once again. Unknown to it, its dark eyes softened and its blue lips tilted into a small smile. The tilt somehow did not make its smile seem sinister, like it usually did. As the smile formed, the tightening in its chest eased and its breathing calmed.
The [Survivor] stood up and, despite the protest of its aching joints, walked up to the edge of the tree hollow. Its eyes fell onto the world alit in colour and light of the brilliant dawn. The heat of which, scared away autumn¡¯s chill.
It was not all though.
As the [Reincarnated]''s gaze roamed, it saw the colours that were a bit too bright and observed a world that seemed to have gained something extra to become something more. This advancement, that the world had now, it had clearly lacked all along.
This enrichment somehow made the world complete.
Despite not having experienced this enrichment before, now that the Malfae could see it with its own eyes, the difference became stark and undeniable. This disparity even made it question just how had it not this before? Had it lacked eyes?
The [Hive Queen] frowned as it opened its Status and eyed a Skill. ¡®I hadn¡¯t lacked eyes. I had lacked Skill Levels.¡¯ It rested at the edge of the tree hollow and just experienced what the world had to offer. At that moment, it cared not for the worries that plagued it like untreatable diseases.
It let the muffled sound of the copse wash over it. It let the scent of the distant sea drown it. It let autumn''s coolness battle the heat of the bright dawn on its skin. It let the sight of the evergreen trees fill its heart. And it let the taste of the morning dew dance on its tongue.
At that moment, the [Reincarnated] let itself be.
But for whom had the time ever stopped? It marched on and in an instant, its moment was shattered as the sun began peeping out of the horizon. But the [Survivor] ignored the offence as it closed its eyes and breathed deeply. In that single breath, the [Hive Monarch] savoured the remnants of the moment that had just passed. The taste of it lingered on its senses but the taste of it was fleeting. With the slow and constant march of time, it too dispersed.
It opened its eyes to finally look up at the rising sun. Though, it closed them immediately as it covered its eyes to save them from the light that was just too bright. It was a creature of the night after all. To gaze directly at the sun was not something that it was allowed to do.
Yet it wished to look and gaze at what it was denied.
Thus, it waited as its eyes acclimated to the newfound brightness and slowly spread apart its finger to steal a peek at the rising sun. The red hues and the orange undertones of the morning sun etched themselves into its memory.
The bright colours of the sun dug out the memory of the time when it had last seen a sunrise. But the only memory that the Malfae could think back to was of the time when it had been a trifling critter, a caterpillar. And that had been almost 3 years ago. Thus, this was the first sunrise that it had seen in years. Perhaps even longer, for it didn¡¯t bother to remember more. The memories of those times were nothing special and inconsequential.
However, while it peeped through its fingers, the contrast of the rising sun with its own dying lifespan was not lost on the [Survivor]. But it cared not for it and stole another glance, searing its eyes in the process.
0.0
The Malfae closed its eyes and with much hesitation, activated [Mana Manipulation]. The inward pull that it had been expecting never came. Instead, the world around it dissolved much as it did for [Sense Essence], though the scene that materialised before it was quite different.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Rather than the Essences of the world becoming visible in their hazy and blurry glory, the [Reincarnated] became witness to the sharp and crisp manifestation of the Mana System that materialised not below, but all around it.
The Mana System encapsulated the [Hive Monarch] and its own consciousness dissipated as it seemed to die. The moment it died though, it became one with not the Mana System, but with the mana itself.
It perceived the mana that did not flow but fluxed. It felt the mana that was neither solid, liquid or gas but something else. It sensed the mana that did not move but disappeared arbitrarily, only to appear just as randomly within the Mana System.
It became the mana.
At that moment, it became so overwhelmed that the Skill broke and its eyes flew open with a gasp. It sat up as it breathed rapidly and placed its hand on its rapidly beating heart.
0.0
The Malfae returned to its Mana System, though this time it came prepared. It came to die.
The [Hive Monarch]¡¯s consciousness dissipated as its Mana System manifested and it became the mana itself. Its consciousness, that had turned into motes finer than dust and sand, spread across the entire Mana System and the [Survivor] experienced the entire System all at once.
The scattered consciousness attempted to move within the mana but how could the dispersed consciousness move? How could the scattered consciousness move when there was no place to move?
The spread-out consciousness hesitated for a moment. It knew not what to do if it couldn¡¯t even traverse its Mana System. From her memories, the expansive consciousness knew that it had to search for the representation of its psyche within itself. But if it couldn¡¯t even move, how could it search?
0.0
The Malfae tried and it failed. Yet it tried again. This cycle of pointless exercise continued on and as it continued persisting, time continued to pass. The temperature took a sharp dip and the water vapour from the ocean and the river began to condense into a dense fog. The morning dew began turning from cool to cold and the air began to shift from chilly to frigid.
All the while, its instincts urged the [Hive Monarch] prepare for winter as a familiar lethargy seeped into its bones. As a result, over the course of the month, it ate more and more of its own eggs as it fattened up.
It ate its eggs in such quantity that [Drone Eggs], which had been stuck at Level 12, levelled up to Level 13. The Skill now required 130 mana to produced 91 eggs per activation. Despite the number of eggs created, it just continued to eat.
As a result, its face puffed up and its limbs swelled out. The belly that it now sported stretched out into its own lap and its sides began sporting rolls and rolls of extra skin. The number of chins that it possessed changed from one to numerous and its eyes became squished in between its chubby cheeks.
The [Survivor] fattened up, yet it failed to make any advancement towards finding the representation of its psyche. And as it failed and fattened up, the time continued to move with its unhurried march, until the winter arrived and it was taken over by its lethargy.
The [Reincarnated]''s heart felt heavy as it closed its eyes.
To it, this moment did not seem like accepting hibernation. Rather, it seemed akin to accepting its death.
-X-
The Malfae''s eyes flew open and its breathing became difficult. Its heart paced and its wide eyes twitched as it jumped. Or at least, it tried to. It was still groggy from having just awakened and the lethargy that marked the start of its hibernation still seeped into its very bones.
As a result, it flapped around like a fish out of the water before its brain and body caught up to each other and it gingerly sat up. At that exact moment, a roar resounded across the tree hollow and the very air. It was as if the act of [Hive Monarch] sitting up had been displeasing to some other creature.
¡®Th-this?¡¯ The Malfae buckled as the roar caused its body to vibrate and resonate along with the sound. Its fingers twitched beyond its control, its body spasmed and its ears rang. ¡®This is domination!¡¯
The [Hive Monarch] recognised it for what it was. After all, how could it not, after having survived the now dead forest of the white moon? Its previous experience allowed it to not only recognise the effect but also resist it as its Level 11 [Domination Resistance].
It was because of this Skill that the [Survivvor] had only suffered through vibrations and not just slammed into the floor the moment the roar had echoed out.
As the [Hive Monarch] resisted, a massive hand invaded its burrow and wrapped around it like a coiling python. Its wings were twisted, is limbs bent and its body squeezed within the grip of the giant¡¯s hand. Some words were said but it didn''t understand them. And the only thing that it could do was attempt to breathe as its chest was squeezed and lungs squished.
The feeling did not last for long before it was thrown somewhere before getting slammed into a wall that appeared out of nowhere.
The [Reincarnated] shook its head to fight through the pain, the haze, the grogginess, the lethargy and the domination and when it did, it realised that it had been trapped. Its new home was a cage that seemed to have been made of earth and stone.
Its heart pounded and its blood raced. Its wide eyes danced as it tried to comprehend just what was going on.
Its cage jerked at that moment and the [Survivor] slammed into the floor as jerks and bumps became constant. They had begun moving.
0.0
The Malfae peeped through the bars that held it captive and stared at other cages lined next to its own. Within each of them, it could feel creatures that were much like itself, dominated and confused.
The door to a room opened at that moment and a woman walked out into the hall.
Her rather small face was pretty. Her head was tilted back and her eyes looked down her nose. The lines of time on her face marked her in her early forties, yet her beauty hadn''t diminished. She wore clothes of dark green that seemed to be just a single uncut fabric and the plates on the lower half of the attire flowed like waves as the woman moved.
And then something materialised before them all.
The Malfae¡¯s mind trembled and it averted its eyes instantly, waiting not for even a single moment more. The single glance that it had stolen had been enough to leave it trembling, despite possessing [Domination Resistance].
That something was a creature of fire and dominance. It was larger than the gate was tall and towered over everything and everyone within the room. Its body was shaped like a lion but the creature was no lion, of that the [Reincarnated] was sure.
Its head was wider than the mortals were tall and the body spanned at least the lengths of a few mortals. Instead of a mane, and orange fire covered its head and brilliant sparks jumped out of the creature every so often.
Yet, it was this something¡¯s presence that stifled the room and seemed to choke the other immortals to death. The monsters spluttered and thrashed as they struggled to breathe while the mortals remained unaffected.
The Malfae observed the struggle for life of the other Immortals within the cages and looked down at its own quivering hands. At that moment, the [Hive Queen] became thankful for the year that it had crawled through the high mana zone and gained [Domination Resistance].
Its musing was cut short, however, as the woman said something. Her voice cut the air like a sword passing through, but her words remained unknown to all the caged immortals. She cared not for who understood or not, for she knew her words would be followed. Thus, unconcerned, she stepped towards the nearest stone cage.
However, the moment she neared the stone cage, which stood almost as tall as the woman herself, it dissolved into dust and grime. This dust though did not disperse but settled down as if it was forced down by some unknown force. Thus, as the air cleared, a panting and gasping creature was revealed inside.
This creature had the shape of a leopard but was almost thrice as big. Its patterns and dots were the same as the creature its form represented, but its wings were not. Leopards did not have wings.
The woman paused before her brows furrowed. The moment her brows furrowed the Fire Maned Lion lashed out with its claws and the leopard died, then and there. It did not even get a chance to resist. The Malfae¡¯s scalp tingled and its blood ran cold.
The woman, meanwhile, had moved onto the next cage while the Fire Maned Lion swallowed the massive corpse of the Leopard whole.
The next stone cage dissolved and the resulting dust revealed a vulture the size of a mortal. Though, at the moment, it was lying limp at the ground, gasping, panting and shivering. The woman¡¯s nose scrunched in distaste and the Lion moved. Not even a moment had passed and the vulture had died, just like that.
As the Fire Maned Lion devoured the vulture, the woman arrived at the next cage, which promptly dissolved itself. A plant that was as large as the Fire Maned Lion revealed itself as the dust settled and the woman¡¯s eyes narrowed.
The plant, despite being big, had only a single bright red flower that was shaped like an inverted bell. The mouth of the bell-shaped flower had numerous thorns that curled outwards while its flesh was thick and wooden. A thick crowd of leaves decorated it on all sides and the red flower almost shined amongst them.
Despite its majesty, the plant quivered within Lion¡¯s presence and the liquid within the flower sloshed and swished, causing a subtle sweet scent to erupt from the creature.
The woman¡¯s narrowed eyes narrowed further and the Fire Maned Lion acted. The fire that formed its mane moved, as if it had a will of its own and dove into the green plant, burning it from the inside.
It took only a moment, and after that moment had passed, only dust and ash remained in the place of the plant. It had been annihilated. The flames then returned to the Lion and formed its mane again. Though, their quantity seemed to be marginally less than they what had been before.
The process continued on a few more times and woman killed, a porcupine, a mongoose and a snake until she finally arrived at the cage that housed the [Hive Monarch].
The trembling Malfae shuddered as the stone cage shook and then dissolved, showering it in dust and grime. The dust soon settled and revealed the [Survivor] lying of the floor, gasping and panting, much like all the other creatures before it had been.
This, of course, was an act. The Malfae did not know what the woman wanted but it did understand that the woman wanted something from immortals. And if she wanted something, it did not want to give the impression that it could defy her power.
The woman¡¯s eyes narrowed.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 60
At a rocky shore of a massive ocean, mortals rushed about their chores. Though, the area they rushed about in was rather limited and seemed to almost form a perfect circle. Within this perfect circle, there existed a large building that seemed to have nothing but several rooms with a simple corridor connecting them. Rather, calling them rooms would be an injustice for they were cells, meant to keep their occupants from escaping.
Some of these cells contained woman that were in different states of distress or rest. One thing remained constant, however; all these women, without any exception, were naked as the day they were born. Or perhaps, not akin to the day they were born. Despite being naked, there now remained little similarities to the day they were born. For they had been birthed as men, not women.
A woman laid inside the cell, his limbs spread apart, as if he didn''t care what happened to them while the strands of his long, black hair were sprawled on the floor as if they were spiderwebs.
An echo of footsteps resounded down the corridor until it came to stop just outside the chambermaid¡¯s cell.
¡°Tch. Tch. Tch.¡± The woman clucked his tongue but didn''t even bother to look at his visitor as his lips twitched in derision and his feminine voice eluded to unhidden smiles. ¡°To embrace your shame such, you and I are not so different.¡±
¡°Shame? You talk of shame!? You?!¡± The new arrival grabbed the bars of the cell as if willing to break them open with his hands. ¡°A whore would feel ashamed before you.¡±
¡°True.¡± The woman easily agreed. ¡°A whore would be a woman in the end. She would have the shame of a woman.¡± That he was not a woman, that he did not have such shame, was agreed upon but not said.
The new arrivals grip on the bar tightened and his face twisted into a snarl. ¡°How did you do it? Tell me! How did you do it?!¡± The woman laughed. His voice resounded across the cell and the newcomer¡¯s face contorted into an ugly one.
¡°Tell me! You BITCH! Tell me!!¡±
The woman¡¯s laughter died down eventually and he slowly raised his hand that was lying on the side, to touch his body before cupping his breast. ¡°I? I did nothing. It was you. It was all you.¡± His hands caressed the soft flesh as they travelled down his body before arriving at his clit. ¡°Or maybe it was this.¡± He rubbed his crotch before digging his fingers in his own vagina. ¡°It is quite possible, now that I think about it.¡±
The long-haired man¡¯s eyes glazed over and his pupils tracked the woman¡¯s fingers as they ran down the soft flesh, caressed the skin before entering the one area that he wanted to explore the most. At that moment, as if a spell had been cast, the man¡¯s breath hitched, his pupils shrank and his crotch reacted to the woman¡¯s movements.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
But then the woman laughed and the spell was broken. The woman sat up, his dark hair lingering on the ground as his body rose, and he tilted his head to the side. The mocking smile on the woman¡¯s lips and the contempt within his eyes made the visitor''s blood boil as his face turned red and his ears burned. ¡°You dare!¡±
The woman softly picked at the ends of his hair and stared at the man that stood across from him.
The man¡¯s hair was black and so long that it almost touched the ground. Yet, it was untied and uncombed as it flew everywhere and stuck out at odd angles. Same was the case with this beard, which was so long and thick it almost seemed to his swallow the man¡¯s lips.
The woman¡¯s eyes lingered on the newcomer¡¯s clothes and his lips twitched at the change. The man had ditched the white robes that had been his only clothing for most of his life. Instead, he had now donned the black robes of the fallen.
¡°This,¡± the woman matched the man¡¯s gaze with his own, ¡°quite suits you. The robes of the fallen.¡±
The man ignored the woman¡¯s jibe as his eyes were still fixed at the woman¡¯s crotch and his nails began to dig into his flesh within his clenched fists. ¡°Yes. Yes, it was you. I knew it. I kNEW iT!!¡± The man rushed at the woman but slammed into the bars that held them apart. He hit the bars with his naked fists while the woman began to laugh.
¡°YoU!!¡± The man¡¯s eyes were wide and crazed. ¡°I Will kILl yOu!!¡±
The woman continued to laugh and the man roared. The man¡¯s throat trembled as he continued to shout while the woman¡¯s frame shook as the woman continued to laugh.
¡°You can¡¯t.¡± The woman slowly caressed his own face with his long fingers. ¡°You are not allowed to.¡±
The man slammed his palms against the bars and glared at the woman but the man¡¯s eyes seem to clear and he smiled. ¡°For how long can these bars keep me away from you? Sooner or later, you will be mine once again.¡±
¡°Not long. Yet, I will not be yours even then.¡± The woman let his body fall and his flesh slapped the cold ground, hard. ¡°I am not your now. I was not yours on the ship. And will not be yours when you walk in again.¡±
¡°Did you think that when I was deep within you?¡± The man¡¯s smile stretched and his white teeth made an appearance. ¡°When your mouth overflowed with my seed, did you think that then? When my body was covered in your blood, did you think that then?¡±
¡°Yes. I thought the same then and I think the same now.¡± The woman closed his eyes and his fingers played with his hair. ¡°You are just another of the faceless men that make use of me.¡±
The man snarled and slammed his fists against the bars.
¡°These bars and this space that keep you there,¡± the woman smiled, though the twitch of his lips was more cruel than mirthful, ¡°speak more of your limits. You are nothing but a fallen ascetic.¡±
¡°Just what do you think you are?!¡± The man gritted his teeth. ¡°I will show you just what you are. I will break you! I will make you mine.¡±
¡°Me? I am the possession of the royals.¡± The woman kept his eyes closed. ¡°Can you take me away from them?¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 61
Divyaaditi Pashupati# looked down her nose at the monster gasping on the floor and her eyes narrowed.
¡®This...¡¯ Something about the scene bothered her. But no matter how much she thought, she couldn¡¯t pinpoint the reason for her unease. Thus, with a furrow of her brows, she sent a thought to her bonded monster, the Fire Maned Lion. ¡®Something about this monster bothers me Singh Raj*.¡¯
The Lion let out a growl and the monster gasping on the ground trembled. Its limbs shook, its torse twitched and its wings quivered. The green-clad woman¡¯s eyes narrowed as she studied the reaction. The more she observed, the more difference she found in this reaction of the monster and its previous one. This trembling of the monster had been uncontrolled and unrestrained. ¡®Ah.¡¯
Understanding dawned on her and her brows relaxed before a smile formed on her lips. ¡®A sapient monster.¡¯ The woman stepped forward and, without so much as a moment¡¯s hesitation, stepped on the Malfae¡¯s tiny legs.
The monster shrieked and its shrill voice stung her ears but she cared not and instead increased the pressure on its delicate limbs to crush them beyond repair. ¡®A sapient monster would be an ideal choice.¡¯ She stepped back and her cold eyes regarded the creature for a moment. ¡®However, it is crafty. This one.¡¯
The [Monster Tamer] frowned but let the Malfae live. Instead, she moved onto the next monster in line. After all, she still had to inspect the rest of the captured monsters.
This creature inspection had turned into almost a routine, at this point, as what she had been looking for was quite difficult to find in the wild. However, it seemed, her search had finally ended.
Finishing her inspection, she found not a single monster more that had what she was looking for. Even finding a single sapient creature in the wild was a fortune. How could she be greedy enough to dream for two? Thus, she fed the useless creatures to her Fire Maned Lion. Food should not be wasted after all.
With none of the monsters left except the hideous blue thing, she turned to the sole living monster left from the line-up.
¡®Bring it to me.¡¯ She ordered the Lion and the massive monster stalked forward. Its towering legs fell on the floor and the sound of its footsteps was akin to the beating of the loud drums to the Malfae. The fire covered lion reached the shrieking Malfae and lowered its head to observe the shivering [Survivor].
The massive yellow eyes of the lion stared down at the [Hive Monarch] while the heat of its fiery mane singed the hair on the Malfae¡¯s head and dried its wide pupil-less eyes. The lion did not seem to like what it found on the [Reincarnated]¡¯s face and its humongous lips pulled back to reveal fangs that spanned multiple times the Malfae¡¯s own height. And then the Fire maned Lion growled.
The sound of the growl travelled through the air before it hit the Malfae as if it were a sonic attack and [Hive Monarch]¡¯s tiny body vibrated as the vibration passed through its body. At that moment, the Malfae quivered and lost control of both its body and bowels, as it wet itself. Meanwhile, the tiny monster¡¯s trembling eyes remained fixated on the fangs that were multiple times the size of its body.
However, the lion had no patience for the tiny monster and it carelessly picked the Malfae up by one of its teeth before bringing the tiny monster to the woman¡¯s eye level by. The tooth in question was large enough that it spanned more than 5 times the Malfae¡¯s own length. Needless to say, the Malfae lost control of its bowels and shat itself. Thankfully, its excreta touched not the lion.
The woman¡¯s eyes searched the terrified immortal''s eyes and the unadulterated terror she found satisfied her to some degree. ¡°[Impart] Language.¡±
[Impart]
[Allows the user to impart knowledge to a monster.]
[Tier 1: Impart the knowledge of simple actions to a monster.]
[Tier 1: Impart the knowledge of complex actions to a monster.]
The Skill activated instantly and the green-clad woman felt her mana plummet by almost a fourth. Meanwhile, the [Monster Tamer] focused on her language skills and felt the second ability of her Skill rummage through her mind.
All the while, the tiny monster screeched and clutched its head but the Lion did not let it fall.
¡°[Impart] [Projection].¡± The woman¡¯s voice resounded again.
0.0
Ting.
[You have been temporarily granted the Skill, [Projection]. Duration: 53 Hours.]
Ting.
[Skill [Projection Lv.30] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Projection Lv.30] exceeds the Level Limit. Adjusting Skill Level.]
Ting.
[Adjustment cancelled by the Skill of the granter.]
Ting.
[Skill [Projection Lv.30] granted for the next 53 hours.]
[Projection]
[Allows rudimentary communication between the user and the target.]
[Tier 1: Allows the user to send intents to the target.]
[Tier 2: Allows the user to send thoughts to the target.]
[Tier 3: Allows the user and the target to converse.]
The trembling Malfae didn¡¯t even try to dismiss the notifications blocking its vision. As terrified as it was, it didn¡¯t even want to breathe lest it made a sound that upset the monster holding it.
¡°My speech, do you comprehend it?¡± Its captor''s voice resounded, and its eyes widened. It stared at the women in disbelief.
¡°Answer.¡± The woman frowned and it nodded its head vigorously. ¡°Good.¡± Her eyes bored into it and the Malfae gulped. ¡°You have been granted a Skill that will allow you to convey your thoughts. You have also been granted the understanding of our tongue. Rejoice.¡±
The [Hive Monarch] dared not to even blink and stared at the woman with terrified eyes. The woman eyebrows furrowed minutely. ¡°You won¡¯t?¡±
Its heart raced and its crushed legs burned in agony, yet its trembling lips parted in a horrifying rendition of a smile. In answer, the woman smiled. ¡°You can indeed learn.¡±
The [Survivor]''s racing heart calmed down a bit. Despite the agony it was in, the [Reincarnated] let out a sigh of relief as it was just glad that it hadn¡¯t lost its lifespan.
¡°You must already know by now that you live by my will.¡± The woman stated. She did not ask and did not confirm her assumption. She merely stated. ¡°Do you wish for my goodwill to continue?¡±
¡®Ye-yes!¡¯ The creature nodded vigorously.
¡°As long as you carry out my will, you shall continue to persist.¡± The woman tucked a few strands of her disobedient hair. Though, the simple movement of her fingers was somehow so elegant, so graceful, that it could steal a man¡¯s heart in a moment. Yet it was all wasted on an immortal like the Malfae. ¡°Defiance of my Will will only earn you a prolonged death.¡±
The Malfae¡¯s head shook again and the woman smiled. ¡°You are to be my son¡¯s tamed monster. However, it will still be some time before you receive such honour. The child is barely Level 2 and lacks the Skill, [Pact].¡±
The Malfae did not know what the Skill mentioned by the terrifying woman was and neither did it dare to ask. It did, however, understand the Level mentioned by the woman and its entire body paused, as if in contemplation. This was, of course, the wrong course of action as the woman¡¯s hands moved and took hold of the creature.
She brought the creature to her eye level and with an unchanging face, the woman ripped the Malfae¡¯s wings apart.
The Malfae screamed. Its back burned.
It screeched. Agony erupted like a volcano.
It roared. Pain etched into its skin.
It all mattered not to the woman as by her command, the Lion growled. Instantly, its pain became secondary as the Lion¡¯s might came down on the Malfae¡¯s mind with full force.
¡°Do you have any thoughts regarding my child?¡± The woman¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Were you ever given a choice? Did I not make it clear that you live by my will?¡±The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
The Malfae fought the pain and the Lion¡¯s might. It fought through both of them and if it had been mortal, it would have broken under the assault of emotions. But the creature was an immortal, it lacked the emotions that would break its mind. Thus, it suffered and maintained its sanity. ¡®N-no!¡¯
¡°Yet you dare to hesitate?¡± The woman¡¯s voice was flat. ¡°This is an honour upon you, monster. Rejoice.¡±
The creature trembled and despite the pain, the agony and the domination, its lips curved into the mockery of a smile. If the Malfae had been mortal, the humiliation would have burned its sanity. The shame would have urged it to fight. And pride would have caused it to defy the woman¡¯s will.
But the creature was not a mortal, it was an immortal. It knew not what humiliation was. It knew not the existence of shame. And now, it bothered not with pride. It only knew survival.
¡®It is an honour! An honour! An honour INDEED!¡¯ The creature shrieked in pain and agony as the only thing in its mind was survival.
¡°Perhaps you may still live.¡± The woman eyed the creature. ¡°Take it to Amoor Maharaj$ and get it healed.¡±
0.0
The Malfae''s body twitched beyond its control in pure agony.
Now that the terror induced by the woman and the domination imposed by the Lion had subsided, the agony made itself known. Its crushed legs had grown numb as the nerves had died down while the [Hive Monarch]''s back pulsed with nearly unbearable pain.
It jerked as its body was touched and it flinched in the expectation of even more pain.
¡°Making me heal an unbound monster, has that child lost her mind?¡± An ancient voice grumbled in a slow drawl. Yet, those that had brought the creature to the [Healer], made not even a single sound.
¡®Can this creature even heal? It looks half dead itself!¡¯ Withering in pain as the creature was, the Malfae did not mince its thoughts. With the absence of the terror from the woman and the domination from the Lion, the [Survivor] vented. ¡®It¡¯s pathetically weak! Maybe if I kill it, I would finally Level up.¡¯
Though, this outburst was not entirely the fault of its circumstances. Its nature as an immortal was also to blame. At this moment, the Malfae was surrounded by creatures all around and its Immortal nature had been triggered. After all, immortals are creatures that considered 1 as complete, 2 as burden and 3 as death.
Thus, in much the same way it had caused the death of its first batch of drones until only a single one had remained, the [Reincarnated] was subconsciously being difficult. As for why its immortal nature had emerged just now and not before? It was because it had previously been under utter dominance of the lion and terror of the woman.
The ancient man blinked and then he blinked again. A moment passed and the man¡¯s nearly hairless eyebrows furrowed.
¡°It is sapient? And that girl gave it [Projection]?¡± The man¡¯s slow speech echoed across the room. ¡°Hmm. It should be little Surya¡¯s first monster then.¡±
¡®Hey! I am right he-¡¯
¡°Noisy.¡± The old man cut off the monster¡¯s rant with a frown. ¡°[Sever].¡±
[Sever]
[Allows the user to target and destroy certain parts of the target''s body.]
[Tier 1: Target and destroy certain parts of blood]
[Tier 2: Target and destroy certain parts of the flesh.]
[Tier 3: Target and destroy certain parts of bones.]
The Malfae blacked out.
0.0
The Malfae woke up groggy but, surprising, not in pain. It hastily touched its legs and its wings, finding them where they should be. It sighed in relief before its body shuddered as the memory resurfaced. However, the memory did not leave the Malfae shivering and in cold sweats as it would have done to a mortal. It was an immortal after all, emotions for it were weak and passing.
Thus, the experience that would have left a mortal mentally scarred for the rest of their life, were nothing more than nightmares that fade with time.
¡°Fly to the desk.¡± A feminine voice echoed and the creature trembled. It slowly turned its head to look at the source. Its eyes fell on the woman in green and the creature gulped. It did not dare to deny her order though and took to air to arrive before her. It landed on the desk next to her.
¡°Is this my monster?¡± As the high-pitched voice echoed out, the Malfae hesitantly dared to divert its eyes away from the woman and to the speaker. Its gaze landed on a child that was clearly the woman¡¯s son. The boy had the woman¡¯s features, down to his tilted head and a gaze that looked down upon the world. Though, given the height of the boy, the gesture was more adorable than haughty.
¡°Hmm. It is.¡± The woman answered as she activated the ward etched into the desk and the Malfae felt the air become heavy with mana. It gulped as the woman in green addressed it once again. ¡°This is a truth-ward, little monster. Dare not say falsehood, will you? It would be a shame to end you now.¡±
The creature nodded vigorously but because of its trembling limbs, it stumbled and fell.
¡°Do you have a name?¡±
¡®No.¡¯
¡°Oh, can I name it? Can I mother? Can I?¡± The child jumped excitedly as it intervened but the woman gave him a look and the boy settled down with a pout.
¡°What is your [Species]?¡±
¡®[Insect].¡¯
The woman frowned while the boy made a face at the information. ¡°And your [Vessel]?¡±
¡®[Malfae].¡¯
¡°You are a Tier 2 monster, yes?¡±
¡®Eh?¡¯
¡°Ugly little idiot!¡± The child giggled. ¡°You don¡¯t even know this?¡±
The Malfae glanced at the child but did not react much.
This reaction of the Malfae was, of course, not because of maturity or even terror. Instead, it was because of its immortal nature which did not recognise humiliations and insults. As an immortal, things that would spike a mortal¡¯s emotions were meaningless to it.
The woman, being a Tier 3 [Monster Tamer], knew this and simply continued. ¡°A monster¡¯s Tier is the number of times it has evolved. You have evolved twice, yes?¡±
¡®Yes.¡¯
¡°What were your other [Vessels]?¡±
¡®I was born a caterpillar. I evolved into a moth and then into a Malfae.¡¯
¡°What were the Skills you received from each [Vessel]?¡±
It hesitated for a moment but in that moment of hesitation, the woman¡¯s face began to twist and she raised her hand.
The [Survivor] panicked and answered breathlessly. ¡®I got [Crawl], [Moulting], [Pain Resistance], [Poison Resistance] and [Venom Creation] as a caterpillar! I also had the Title, [Hungry], but that went away when I evolved! Please don¡¯t kill me!¡¯
The woman¡¯s hands paused and after a moment of contemplation, her face relaxed. ¡°Continue.¡±
It sighed in relief and patted its chest. ¡®After I became a moth, I got [Flight], [Night Vision] and [Sense]. I also gained the Title [Survivor] and it gave me the Skill [Survive].¡¯
The woman¡¯s eyes widened slightly at that while the boy¡¯s mouth fell open. ¡°So many Skills! I just have 1 Skill!¡± The high-pitched voice of the child grew higher in astonishment. ¡°Why does it have so many Skills Mother?¡±
¡°Now do you understand your mother¡¯s words? What I mean when I say that monsters have countless Skills?¡± The woman smiled and patted her son¡¯s head. ¡°This is why we tame them. Because we can use their Skills. So you must become a good [Monster Tamer], yes?¡±
¡°Yes!¡±
The woman then turned to the Malfae and her face lacked all the warmth that had been there just a moment before. ¡°And your last [Vessel].¡±
¡®From this [Vessel], I got [Drone Eggs] and [Malfae Shield].¡¯ The Malfae paused for a moment before it continued. ¡®I also received the Title, [Hive Monarch], which gave me the Skill [Hive Mind].¡¯
Its heart pounded as its gamble was cast. It had been utterly honest with her. It had told her things that she hadn¡¯t even asked. It had been open about all its Skills and Titles in hope that it could hide a few. Its honesty was its gamble to hide its Skill [Domination Resistance], [Mana Manipulation] and [Sense Essence]. But above all, it wanted to hide its Title [Reincarnated].
The Malfae¡¯s fingers twitched and it waited silently for the woman¡¯s next question.
¡°You were granted an egg creation Skill at Tier 2.¡± The woman¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°Is this your final evolution?¡±
¡®Yes.¡¯
¡°How much lifespan do you have remaining?¡±
The Malfae summoned its Status but as its eyes fell on its Lifespan, its palms began to sweat and its chest ached as he stared at his Status. ¡®¡four months.¡¯
¡°Four Months?¡± The woman scowled.
¡®¡yes.¡¯
The woman backhanded the Malfae and the creature flew into the wall. ¡°Useless trash.¡±
Its back hurt once again and its vision swam. It slid to the ground as gravity did its work and creature laid there. It did not even dare to move.
¡°Lock it up alongside the chambermaids.¡± The woman ordered her guards outside her chamber. ¡°And tell Anubhav to search for monsters once again.¡±
0.0
The Malfae slammed into the wall once again as the guards threw it into a cell and left.
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.13] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.14]. Continuous damage caused by pain has been decreased by the 14 points.]
Ting.
[Skill [Domination Resistance Lv.11] has levelled up to [Domination Resistance Lv.12]. The resistance has been marginally increased.]
The cell was obviously not meant to hold such a tiny monster as it was big enough to house mortals; quite akin to the cells next to its which housed the chambermaids one after the another.
The Malfae slowly picked itself. It sighed as it checked its body and found nothing missing. Yet, its body was bruised and battered and more than one of its limbs felt like they needed care. ¡®Should I use [Moulting] to heal these wounds? But that will take me out for hours and if that lunatic creature summons me for some reason, she will go crazy again. No, it¡¯s better to not use the Skill.¡¯
¡®Aish! That lunatic creature! Throwing me around like a pebble! Tearing my limbs off! Just you wait, you brain dead mortal, I will kill you! If not you, then that idiot progeny of yours!¡¯
It fumed but its emotions were weak and it sighed.
¡®But I have to evolve first to do that. And to evolve I need to reach Level 100. And then I need to acquire another [Species]. But how am I going to do that if that mindless creature keeps me trapped here?¡¯
¡®Aish! That lunatic mortal!¡¯
Its eyes fell on the bars of the cell which were wide enough for three Malfaes to move through them, side by side. ¡®They can¡¯t be this stupid, can they?¡¯
It gingerly flew up to the bars and poked the space with its unbruised finger. It met resistance where there should be none and sighed. ¡®Magic. Of course.¡¯
The [Hive Monarch] flew back to the floor and laid down.
¡®What should I do? I obviously can¡¯t hibernate here. I can¡¯t even Level here. Not that I was Levelling outside but I could have if I wanted to! Here I can¡¯t even do that. Should I just focus on searching for my Ego form?¡¯
¡®I should just do that. [Mana Manipulation] levelled up a lot before I went to sleep and [Sense Essence] is already at Level 15. I should-¡¯
¡°That was quite entertaining.¡± A female voice fell into Malfae¡¯s ears and the creature¡¯s blood ran cold.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 62
Outside a simple wooden cabin, Kiran raised his fist to knock. However, his fist didn''t fall; instead, he gulped. A moment passed as the black-clad man¡¯s fist remained risen before it finally fell and knocks echoed out.
The answer was not immediate, and Kiran waited as another moment passed and then several went by before the door finally opened and a man left the room, limping. ¡°Come in.¡± An aged voice called out and the dark-haired man gulped once more while his feet lingered.
Yet, he tarried not for long and entered to greet with folded hands the ancient man within. One just didn¡¯t make a Tier 3 [Healer] wait for no reason.
¡°Help me deal with the patients for the day.¡± The [Healer] slowly enunciated and Kiran nodded earnestly before he took a seat behind the white-haired man. The man was old, but not just old. He seemed ancient. His hair was thin to the point his scalp peeked through while his skin was brown and spotty. Wrinkles marred his face and hands while veins seemingly threatened to pop out from beneath his aged skin.
His movements were slow and stiff. Even his breathing was affected by his age and was short but even. The ancient man sat behind a desk littered with notes, bottles and instruments. There was even a massive jar of water next to the desk.
The aged man pointed at a notebook lying in front of him. The notebook was nothing special. Its pages were white and the cover brown. It was almost full and seemed to be on its last pages. Though the pages that were filled, they contained within diagrams of mortal Vessels, their diseases, symptoms, diagnoses and prescriptions. They were a record of all the old [Healer]¡¯s patients.
¡°Use it.¡± The old man made an effort to speak each word clearly. ¡°Record your observations in it.¡±
¡°This?¡± Kiran¡¯s wide eyes stared at the notebook. ¡°Isn¡¯t this your [Spirit Tool], Guruji? Should I really be touching it?¡±
¡°What is the point of speaking so much nonsense?¡± The older man¡¯s almost hairless eyebrow¡¯s furrowed, and he chided in a long drawn. ¡°If I tell you to you to use, use it.¡±
¡°Ye-Yes Guru Ji.¡± Kiran picked up the notebook gently as if it were not an object but a new-born child itself. He gingerly read the notes on the last page but it made almost no sense to the black-clad man. Although they were both from the same field, in front of the ancient man Kiran was but a beginner. Perhaps, maybe not even that since he had fallen.
Kiran sighed and flipped the last page to reveal the brown cover beneath. But, as the previous page settled down, a new page materialised in its place and Kiran marvelled at the notebook with wide eyes. At that moment, a chime rang as the old man called for his next patient. A moment passed before a woman entered, supporting a man covered in pockmarks and pustules.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Barely had the couple seated themselves when the woman began speaking at a speed too fast to understand. Her hands were animated, her eyes were wet and her speech was incomprehensible. What she said and what she wanted to say, none of it was understood by anyone.
The old man did not stop her though and let her speak. He even nodded as she spoke and egged her on until she had nothing more to say anymore. Meanwhile, Kiran had already activated his Skill [Anatomy Vision] to analyse the patient. However, as he used his Skill, whatever he saw, whatever he noticed and whatever he paid special attention too, all was etched into the notebook in his hands.
The circulation of blood was drawn in clear ink while the notes and observations were neatly mentioned.
¡°What do you think?¡± The older man¡¯s slow voice resounded and the woman frowned for a moment. But then her eyes flickered to the older man, and she kept her silence.
¡°This seems like spotting sickness, guruji.¡± Kiran¡¯s eyes shifted to the woman for a moment before he continued in a smaller voice. ¡°Contagious and fatal if left untreated.¡±
The woman¡¯s eyes widened and she started speaking again. Though this time, the old man raised a hand to signal for silence. ¡°Open spotting sickness.¡±
The notebook in Kiran¡¯s hand came alive at the old man¡¯s words and its pages flipped endlessly. Pages after pages flashed past one after another before they separated themselves from the notebook. ¡°Hmm.¡± The notebook continued to flip, and pages continued to emerge as the old man asked. ¡°What is the treatment mentioned?¡±
Kiran removed his eyes from the floating pages to look at the old man before his eyes once again fell on the floating pages. ¡°The sap of the Black Neem.¡± The bearded man squinted as he began to read. ¡°But where would we find that here?¡±
¡°Hmm. Black Neem.¡± At that moment, the water in massive jar stirred and a thin stream of crystal-clear liquid rose in the air. The liquid formed a glob in front of the white-haired man¡¯s face and began rotating. As the liquid rotated, its clarity began to reduce and it took on a green hue which continued to darken and thicken as the liquid rotated. In but a few moments, the crystal-clear water had turned into a blackish green sap.
The sap gradually stopped rotating and gently flew into one of the bottles on the desk. At that moment, Kiran picked up the bottle to screw it shut and handed it over to the woman as he gave her the prescription.
After the woman and the man left, Kiran eyes lingered on the massive jar and the water within.
¡°That is my [Spirit Ghost].¡±
¡°Ah yes, yes guruji.¡± Kiran¡¯s voice erupted at a higher pitch than normal. He cleared his throat before he continued. ¡°I had assumed such too. This is just my first time seeing a [Spirit Ghost] this closely.¡±
¡°What a waste of talent.¡± The older man¡¯s slow voice was sharp. ¡°You identified the cause with just one use of [Anatomy Vision], yet you insist on wearing that eyesore.¡±
Kiran¡¯s shoulders hunched, and his head lowered in shame as the old man¡¯s words bit into his core. He closed his eyes and his breathing shortened but he did not reply.
The old man harrumphed at the silence and pressed the busser. ¡°Don¡¯t marvel at the accomplishment of others. Make your own instead.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 63
¡°That was quite entertaining.¡± A female voice broke into the Malfae¡¯s cell and its blood ran cold while its mental rant came to a dead stop.
Unfortunately for the Malfae, its thoughts were not as safe as it thought. After all, the [Monster Tamer] had granted it [Projection] at Level 30. And since the moment it had received the Skill, the [Hive Monarch] had used it instinctively, unknowingly. Thus, unused to the Skill as it was, the [Survivor] had forgotten that [Projection] existed. After all, it had no cost and was activated by the act of thinking out loud.
When it had been with the green-clad woman, the monster had been actively trying to either send its thoughts to her or hide its thoughts. Hence, it had been able to hide its intentions to gamble. But now that it found itself alone, it vented; an act equivalent to mental screaming. This, of course, triggered [Projection].
However, it was just the Malfae¡¯s luck that it was not alone when it vented. Although its cell was the last one in the corridor -and most cells before its cell were empty- the cell right next to its was not. Consequently, its Skill connected to the person in the cell next to its own and projected the [Hive Monarch]¡¯s thoughts directly into the woman¡¯s mind.
Due to this unforeseen happenstance, all its careful planning and gamble became void as it informed a mortal of the two Skills that it wanted to keep secret the most. However, as its breath hitched, the creature realised that this new voice was not the voice of the [Monster Tamer] and its heartbeat slowed down. ¡®Who is it? Who is peaking at my thoughts? Don¡¯t you have better things to do?¡¯
¡°I am not truly peaking if you are screaming.¡± A bored feminine voice replied. ¡°And no, I don¡¯t have anything else to do.¡±
¡®You are kind of useless then, aren¡¯t you?¡¯ The [Reincarnated]''s eyes twitched and it snapped. ¡®And what do you mean I am screaming my thoughts at you?¡¯
¡°To some, I am useless. To others, I am worth my weight in gold.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was uncaring and her answer flippant. ¡°You are using the Skill [Projection].¡±
¡®Aish! That crazy brain-dead mortal!¡¯ The Malfae grumbled and hurriedly hid his thoughts.
¡°Am I to understand that you are a monster then.¡±
¡®Immortal. I am an Immortal.¡¯
¡°Tch.¡± The woman chuckled. ¡°Same thing.¡±
¡®Worthless mortal!¡¯ The creature snapped. Now that the [Hive Monarch] had a target to point its frustrations at, it did not hold back. ¡®To call this Immortal a monster, you should all be destroyed without exception.¡¯ Obviously, it didn''t feel that strongly about the subject. Instead, it had no feelings about the matter at all. It was an Immortal after all. What did it care what mortals addressed it as? It was just using the chance to vent.
¡°Oh, stuff it.¡± The woman laughed. ¡°Monsters don¡¯t care if they are called monsters are immortals. They are monsters after all.¡±
¡®Not all monsters are the same!¡¯ The creature was incensed. Or at least it pretended to be.
¡°On the contrary,¡± The woman chuckled, ¡°Monsters are all the same.¡±
¡®Tch. Worthless creature. What do you know of my kind?¡¯
¡°I know that Monsters care not for anyone but themselves.¡± The woman¡¯s voice remained mirthful. ¡°I also know that sapience amongst low-level monsters is beyond rare.¡±
¡®Tch.¡¯ The Malfae¡¯s tone changed from that of venting to derision. ¡®Is that the reason you are here? Because you know more about immortals than mortals?¡¯
¡°That might actually be true.¡± The woman agreed with a laugh. ¡°Monsters are much simple to understand.¡±
The Malfae laughed at the statement. ¡®No wonder you were locked away!¡¯
¡°Perhaps, it is as you say.¡± The sounds of movement spread out as the woman seemingly sat up. ¡°Yet, more often than not monsters are better than men.¡±
The Malfae¡¯s mind whirled and it faked a laugh. ¡®The mortal that caught me tames immortals. And the mortal that I find next loves immortals. Ha! What a coincidence!¡¯
¡°Indeed.¡± The woman¡¯s smile could be practically heard in her voice. ¡°What are the chances?¡±
¡®Insignificant mortal, if you love Immortals so much, why are you not a [Monster Tamer]?¡¯
¡°It was what I had wanted to be but not something that I could pursue.¡± The woman¡¯s voice became indistinct as if she had lost herself in memory of a time long gone. ¡°[Monster Tamer] was the signature Class of our enemy Kingdom¡¯s royal family. Pursuing the same path as they would have been shameful.¡±
¡®Banal mortals and their useless bindings.¡¯ The [Reincarnated] grumbled but it let out a secret sigh of relief. It did not have to deal with another [Monster Tamer].
¡°It did not stop me from trespassing on that path though.¡± The mirth returned in the woman¡¯s voice as her nostalgia was broken while its heart skipped a beat. ¡®And how did you do that?¡¯
¡°When I reached Tier 2, I-¡±
¡®You evolved?!¡¯
The woman chuckled. ¡°My Class evolved, in a sense.¡±
¡°When I reached Tier 2, I requested for a [Monster Tamer] Skill for my Inheritance Scroll.¡± The woman continued. ¡°While it did not allow me to order the Monsters like a [Monster Tamer], it did let me work with them peacefully.¡±
The Malfae¡¯s scalp tingled and it lost its cool. ¡®Have you used that Skill on me?!¡¯
The woman laughed in derision at the terror in the [Hive Monarch]¡¯s voice. ¡°No, little monster. I have not used my Skill on you. If I had, do you think you could have been so flippant with me?¡±
The [Survivor]''s heart chilled at the woman¡¯s words. She implied that the Immortal could not have been disrespectful with her, even if it had wanted to, under the effect of the Skill. ¡®Don¡¯t you dare use that Skill on me!¡¯
¡°Oh? Where did your derision go?¡± Its neighbour mocked. ¡°Are you afraid of this ¡®worthless mortal¡¯ now?¡±
The Malfae bared its fangs but there was no one to see its expression due to the wall that separated them. ¡®I am warning you! I will end you if you try anything!¡¯
¡°Monsters are all the same.¡± The woman chuckled. ¡°But worry not oh mighty Immortal, I cannot use the Skill even if I wanted to. I am a chambermaid. My mana is bound.¡±
The [Reincarnated] retreated from the wall separating them until its back hit the opposite wall of its cell. ¡®I will be watching you mortal. Don¡¯t even think of trying anything!¡¯
¡°Tch. So twitchy.¡±
The Malfae did not respond.
¡°But say, oh mighty Immortal.¡± The woman did not let the conversation die down. ¡°Does the brain-dead mortal outside know of your Skills [Mana Manipulation] and [Sense Essence]?¡±
¡®Yes.¡¯
The woman¡¯s lips twitched in derision. ¡°Why would you lie to me? I have been nothing but pleasant to you?¡±
¡®I am not lying.¡¯
¡°Yes, you are.¡±
¡®What¡¯s it to you anyway?¡¯ The Malfae finally snapped.
¡°You see, little monster,¡± The woman voice became low as if she were whispering a secret. ¡°If other mortals knew of your Skills, they would never have sent you amongst us chambermaids.¡±
¡®What nonsense are you spouting?¡¯
¡°There is much for you to learn yet.¡± The woman¡¯s soft voice echoed. ¡°Do you know that chambermaids are made through curses? The curses that are manifested through the manipulation of our Essences.¡±
The Malfae¡¯s eyes widened and its mouth fell open. ¡®You can even do that?!¡¯ The woman laughed but her voice was loud and harsh. ¡°Of course! I am a living example of that.¡±Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Its eyes narrowed. ¡®What do you want?¡¯
¡°At the moment,¡± the woman paused as if in thought, ¡°nothing.¡±
The [Hive Monarch] scoffed. ¡®As if.¡¯
¡°Believe what you want to believe.¡± The woman replied nonchalantly.
¡®You mean to tell me that you told me all that for nothing?¡¯
¡°Perhaps I want a good relationship with you?¡±
¡®Good relationship with an immortal? Did you not say that you knew monsters well?¡¯
The woman simply laughed.
The creature scowled. ¡®Conniving mortal.¡¯
¡°I told you, didn¡¯t I?¡± The woman asked with mirth dancing in her voice. ¡°Monsters are better than men.¡±
0.0
The Malfae¡¯s body ached. It was not the ache that was physical but one that seeped into the muscles due to lack of rest. And Malfae needed rest. Its hibernation had been broken not long after it had gone to sleep and its body barely had the time to process the fact.
Thus, its muscles ached and its movements were slow. Combined with its old age and aching joints, Malfae was uncomfortable, to say the least.
0.0
The [Hive Monarch] was once again presented before the [Monster Tamer] and her son. Unlike the last time though, the woman was seated on a chair that was less a chair and more a throne, while her son stood next to her, looking down at the Malfae standing on the footstool. The green-clad woman looked down at the creature with her eyebrows furrowed and its fingers twitched.
Two days had passed since it had last seen this woman. It had hoped that their last meeting would have been the last. Unfortunately for the creature, its hope had not manifested.
¡°What is your Level?¡±
¡¯30.¡¯
¡°How long was your lifespan?¡±
¡®7 years.¡¯
¡°Utter trash.¡± The woman raised her hand, perhaps to backhand the creature again, but in the end, she pulled her hand back. ¡°How are you only at Level 30?¡±
¡®¡my heart is weak...¡¯
¡°Worthless filth.¡± The woman¡¯s face twisted as she grabbed the Malfae within her fists and squeezed. As a result, air rushed out of the Malfae¡¯s lungs and it struggled to breathe. Its delicate wings cracked and its old bones groaned. Cracks resounded and agony erupted in its hands as its fingers were crushed.
The woman, meanwhile, watched it struggle to live but increased the pressure as she squeezed. She watched silently as its eyes swelled and its skin changed from blue to purple. At that moment, she breathed before releasing her hold on the Malfae and the [Hive Monarch] hit the floor unceremoniously. ¡°I have a proposal for you, monster.¡±
The [Survivor] gasped and struggled to breathe as the [Monster Tamer]''s voice fell on its ears and it shivered. The woman smiled. ¡°If within the duration of your remaining lifespan, you can manage to raise my son¡¯s Skill to Level 10 from Level 2, I will arrange for you to evolve.¡± The [Reincarnated] gasped and breathed as it took in lungfuls of air. It relished the moment the air rushed back into its empty lungs and it breathed deeply. Yet, no matter what, it dared not neglect the woman¡¯s words.
¡®This lunatic mortal!¡¯ It repressed its thoughts. After all, it did not want a repeat of the incident with the chambermaid. ¡®Level up a Skill from Level 2 to Level 10 in 4 months? Is this a joke?! She just wants to kill me! Why not kill me directly then? What¡¯s the point of dragging it out?! This brain-dead creature! I will kill her spawn one day!!¡¯ Despite its thoughts, what it projected was completely different. ¡®Th-That¡¯s not possible!¡¯
¡°Hmm?¡± The woman raised an eyebrow. ¡°Should I kill you now then?¡±
Its mind raced but it found no way to evade its fate. It¡¯s [Malae Shield] would do nothing against the woman or her Lion while [Venom Creation] was weak and would not have enough time to stack. A breath escaped it at that moment before its shoulder¡¯s hunched and gaze lowered. ¡®¡do as you wish.¡¯
The creature, that was a heaven obeying soul, had defined its heaven at that moment. For a weak and pathetic thing that it was, it was not the first time it had accepted its heaven. It was not the first time it had accepted its death.
This was something odd for a monster. Monsters do not define their heavens. Monsters are dominated and crushed. That is what makes them monsters. They do not accept limits. They break them. However, the monster did exactly what it was not supposed to.
Perhaps the Will that reincarnated the Malfae was onto something. After all, this soul had not meant to be born as an Immortal. Its destiny had been a mortal Vessel and a mortal life.
The woman¡¯s eyes widened and with a single thought, she came to a decision. ¡°[Thought Alignment].¡±
[Thought Alignment]
[Allows the user to alter a monster''s thought process and bring it closer to the user''s own.]
[Tier 1: Suppress the monster''s instincts that deny the concept of civilization. Match the monster''s thoughts to that of the user, regarding the user.]
[Tier 2: Match the monster''s thoughts to that of the user, regarding a third party.]
Immediately, the Malfae''s eyes went hazy and it fell as it lost consciousness.
¡°Mother,¡± The mortal child¡¯s high-pitched voice queried. ¡°I thought you were not going to use this Skill.¡±
¡°Indeed.¡± The woman observed the downed Malfae. ¡°This monster is not just another monster, however. I cannot let its thought remain independent.¡±
¡°¡eh?¡±
The woman paused and took her eyes off of the downed creature to glance at her son. ¡°You remember how it just seemed to accept its death?¡±
The boy nodded.
¡°That is not something that a monster would ever do.¡± The woman turned her gaze back to the unconscious Malfae. ¡°Monsters call themselves Immortals. They do not accept death. They never accept death.¡±
A tired hiss resounded at that moment and the Malfae stirred. It woke up groggy with a splitting headache. The world seemed to pound at its head and lights seemed to burn its eyes. It had barely woken up when a feminine voice resounded in its ears. ¡°[Thought Alignment].¡±
¡°Why did you use the Skill twice?¡± The mortal child asked and the woman¡¯s eyes softened.
¡°The first activation was for the Tier 1 effect of the Spell. While the second activation was for the Tier 2 effect, targeted at you.¡± The child¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Will it follow my orders now?!¡±
The woman chuckled at the mortal child¡¯s enthusiasm. ¡°Of course not. If you want it to follow your orders, you have to Level up first.¡± She bopped the boy on the nose and the child flinched back as it scrunched his little face in disapproval.
0.0
The Malfae woke up once again with its head blasting itself from all the sides. It clutched its head and groaned. ¡°Finally awake, are you?¡± A feminine and powerful voice fell on the creature¡¯s massive ears and it flinched. The voice was majestic as if it belonged to the rulers of the entire world itself.
It raised its head and its eyes fell on a majestic woman that could be none other than the speaker of the royal voice. She was so majestic that she could be none other than a royal, if not the ruler of the world herself. She was larger than life to the creature as if she was not a mortal but something more.
¡°Do you believe I kept you alive just to kill you?¡± The woman spoke and her majesty descended upon the creature like waves that washed it away. It shivered. ¡°Do you believe I will do something this pointless? If I desire your death, my fingers are enough to turn you to dust.¡±
The [Hive Monarch] trembled. It didn''t know what it did to anger the ruler of the world but it wanted to assuage her anger. It wanted her to be pleased with it. It wanted to be subservient and follow her every command. It wanted to drown in her majesty and praise the woman that was the ruler of the entire world.
¡®I-¡¯ It began but was cut off by the woman. ¡°Do you know why you were kept alive while others were killed?¡± The majestic woman asked. ¡°Why you were sent to the cells instead of Sigh Raj¡¯s stomach?¡±
It tried to answer but it never got a chance.
¡°You continue to live because you are sapient.¡±
¡®My sapience?¡¯
¡°The Skill that I gave you, [Projection], is the Skill that I want you to Level for my son.¡± The woman softly patted the boy sitting next to her. ¡°The more self-aware the monster is, the faster it Levels up at lower levels.¡±
It stared at the mortal child with wide pupil-less eyes. The moment the Malfae¡¯s eyes had fallen on the boy, it was as if the nothing else mattered. The boy was beautiful. He was perfection. He was the best that he could be. He was royalty. He was the future ruler of all the world. And the Malfae had to protect him.
It took the [Reincarnated] a moment to comprehend what the majestic woman had said and it frowned. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to use her own monsters which would be at higher Levels than its own? At that moment, however, another thought popped up in its mind. ¡®But if I can think of it, surely she can too.¡¯
¡®Why not use your own sapient creatures?¡¯ It projected.
¡°Do you think I would have wasted my time like this if I could have?¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°My monsters already possess [Projection] at quite a high level. Using them will not help him any.¡±
¡®How can I help him advance?¡¯
The woman¡¯s lips twitched in a smile as the mortal child¡¯s mouth fell open and his eyes widened. ¡°¡mother¡this-¡±
The woman softly patted the boy¡¯s hair to silence the boy. ¡°Yes, you can. Though it would not be a goal easily achieved.¡±
¡®I will do it then. Yes.¡¯ The [Survivor] nodded its head as its eyes remained fixed on the most beautiful boy that had ever graced the mortal world.
¡°It will not only be my son that will benefit from this, however.¡± The woman said she turned her head to gaze softly at the boy. ¡°You will be rewarded too. If you can raise his Skill to Level 10 before your lifespan runs out, I will help you evolve.¡±
The creature¡¯s neck swirled as its eyes widened and mouth fell open. ¡®What!?¡¯
¡°No matter how powerful a monster becomes,¡± The woman replied with her voice filled with arrogance, ¡°it can never comprehend the ingenuity of the Mortals. Why else do you think high Tiered monsters agree to serve us?¡±
0.0
¡°Why did you promise it to reward mother?¡± The mortal child asked the moment the monster was escorted out. ¡°Hadn¡¯t it already agreed to work for us?¡±
¡°Monsters are creatures that are inherently beyond selfish.¡± She patted the boy¡¯s hair. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t given it a sufficient incentive, it would have realised that its thoughts were not its own.¡±
¡°But isn¡¯t it under the effect of your Skill?¡± The mortal child frowned.
¡°Skills are simply Skills. If the creature realises it had been mentally affected, it might even develop resistance to the Skill.¡± The woman answered. ¡°Remember, you can never be too careful when dealing with monsters. Monsters are monsters and they will always remain monsters.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 64
A black-clad man stood in front of a door as his raised fist lingered in the air. A moment passed as the black-clad man gulped and his fist fell on the door gently.
¡°Enter.¡± A deep voice resounded and Kiran clenched and unclenched his fist for a moment before he entered and greeted the man sitting behind the desk with folded hands.
The man, seated behind the desk, was middle-aged but his body was strong. His shoulders were broad and his chest was wide. A thick moustache and a short beard enveloped his face but they complemented his deep voice all the same.
The man put down his pen as his brown eyes fell on the black robes and the long uncut hair that Kiran now sported. ¡°I see.¡±
¡°I-¡±
¡°How long has it been since your hair was returned?¡± The deep voice cut in.
The fallen ascetic clenched his fist before slowly unclenching it. ¡°Two years.¡±
¡°Two years. And what have you been doing in those two years?¡±
¡°I-¡±
¡°Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You have been a waste of resources and food.¡±
¡°I have been healin-¡±
¡°But your Class and Skill Levels has been constantly falling. You can still heal now, but will you be able to do so when we return?¡±
¡°I-¡±
¡°No. You won¡¯t. If you still think you can, then your delusion runs deeper than I had thought.¡±
The ascetic said nothing and the man pinched the bridge of his nose. ¡°Do you even want to return?¡±
The silence of the black-clad man was his only answer.
¡°I see.¡± The moustached man picked up his pen and averted his eyes. ¡°What did you come to me for?¡±
The fallen ascetic unclenched his clenched fist and breathed deeply. ¡°I request access to a chambermaid.¡±
The man¡¯s pen paused before he slammed it down on the table. ¡°Still! You are focused on it still!? That cursed creature has nothing to do with your condition!¡±
¡°She said so herself!¡± Kiran¡¯s eyes were crazed. ¡°She did this to me.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
¡°That creature is not a woman! Stop treating it as such.¡± The moustached man snapped. ¡°Despite what it says, that creature has nothing to do with your condition. Its mana was bound and Essence altered by a [Curse Smith]. Do you think someone with bound mana can affect you such?¡±
¡°It was her. I know it was her!¡± Kiran nose flared and his face twisted. ¡°She cursed me. She said it would be soon. She told me I would come to her. She told me she would laugh at my face. It all happened! It was her!¡±
The moustached man scoffed. ¡°What was so hard to predict about that?¡±
¡°Huh?¡±
¡°Yes. What was so hard to predict about that?¡± The man¡¯s derision cut at the black-clad man. ¡°You had been so engrossed in that creature that you lost yourself. Your life that should have revolving around healing, had become centred around that creature. It is still a surprise that your sacrifice was not returned sooner.¡±
Kiran stumbled as if hit. ¡°Yo-you are lying. That is not true. I did not get lost. I was abandoned!¡±
¡°Look here, you ungrateful swine.¡± The man¡¯s deep voice seemed to press down on the fallen ascetic. ¡°I am Sagar Manthan, the [Ship Captain] of the ship on which you travelled here. There exists not a single thing on my ship that I do not see and do not know. For all intents and purposes, I am this ship.¡±
The [Ship Captain]¡¯s voice became heavy with spoken word and the fallen ascetic couldn¡¯t bear to stand straight as he fell.
¡°I know what happened. When it happened and why it happened. I know this not because I paid attention but because this is my ship.¡± The man had not moved from his place but his presence had become unbearable. ¡°You can trap yourself in all the delusions you want, I care not. But dare not to drag me in those delusions.¡±
¡°The-then why would she say that she did it?¡± Kiran picked himself up and pushed against the presence of the man. ¡°She said so. She acknowledged. She accepted!¡±
¡°Just how low is your [Reflection]?¡± The [Ship Captain] pulled back his presence and allowed the black-clad man to stand back up. ¡°That creature remains trapped in a cell when it is not being made use of. Why would it not mess with you when it can?¡±
¡°No! She accepted. She acknowledged.¡± Kiran mumbled and he clenched his fist. ¡°It is her doing!¡±
¡°How did you even gain this Class?¡± The captain sighed. ¡°How could an ascetic be this delusional?¡±
¡°Please! Allow me access to the chambermaid!¡± Kiran folded his hands and fell onto his knees. ¡°I beg you. I must find out how she did it. Please!¡±
¡°Why should I make an exception for you?¡± The other man messaged his forehead. ¡°Do you think you are something special?¡±
The words of the captain reminded Kiran of the words of the chambermaid. ¡®You are just another faceless man that makes use of me. You are nothing special.¡¯
Kiran grit his teeth and unclenched his closed fists. ¡°I can heal. I can heal all day long!¡±
¡°That¡¯s your job.¡± The captain snapped. ¡°You should already be doing that.¡±
¡°I-I-¡±
¡°You have nothing. You are nothing.¡± The moustached man picked up his pen again. ¡°Get out.¡±
¡°I-¡±
¡°Get out before I throw you out.¡± The captain¡¯s deep voice rumbled as he began to finish the paperwork that the black-clad man had interrupted.
Kiran¡¯s crazed eyes whirled as his mind raced. His fists were clenched and his nails dug into his flesh. His breathing was ragged and his flesh hot. Blood raced faster with every passing moment in his veins and the sound of his own heartbeat threatened to deafen the man.
¡°I-I can give you an Inheritance Scroll!!¡±
The moustached man¡¯s mouth fell open and his eyes went wide. The pen in his hands fell as his grip loosened. His pupils dilated and goosebumps erupted on his skin. ¡°What?!¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 65
Divyaaditi pushed the door open to enter the office of the [Ship Captain], her husband. Sagar Manthan@, who sported an impressive moustache, put down his pen to look up at his wife. ¡°How did it go?¡±
¡°It agreed, of course.¡± Divyaaditi gracefully sat down opposite her man. ¡°However, things did not go as I had predicted.¡±
¡°Hmm?¡± Sagar Manthan raised an eyebrow. ¡°Did it resist too much?¡±
¡°That is the crux of the matter, though.¡± The green-clad woman rested her chin in her palms. ¡°It didn''t resist. Instead, it seemed to have accepted its death.¡±
¡°This is what bothers you?¡± The [Ship Captain] rolled his eyes. ¡°That creature is already at the end of its lifespan. And since the moment it has been brought here, it has experienced nothing but pain and punishment. Of course, it accepted its death.¡±
¡°Perhaps.¡± The [Monster Tamer] remained lost in her thoughts as her mind raced. ¡°Perhaps it is as you say. However, monsters don¡¯t accept their deaths. They fight till their last breaths. It is their nature.¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t you say it is a mere Tier 2 Monster? One that had been in hibernation?¡± Sagar Manthan brows furrowed. ¡°If you bring such a weak creature face to face with your Tier 4 Sigh Raj, what else can you expect?¡±
¡°Hmm?¡± Her fingers softly tapped her cheeks. ¡°Perhaps.¡± Sagar eyed his wife''s fingers and caught them before they fell once more. The action broke Divaaditi out of her reverie and she eyed the moustached-man from the corner of her eyes.
¡°Yes, yes.¡± She sighed. ¡°I will cease meaningless pondering.¡±
The [Ship Captain] nodded but, after a moment, his brows furrowed. ¡°Hadn¡¯t you decided to not employ [Thought Alignment]? Did you use the Skill because of its behaviour?¡±
¡°Yes.¡± Her voice was clipped. ¡°Its variant behaviour was unpleasant.¡±
¡°Then you have even less to worry about. Your Skill would keep it in check.¡± Sagar Manthan smiled as he let out a relieved sigh. ¡°This relieves my worries too. Your decision against employing the Skill had left me restless. Given that this monster is sapient, it might change Suryaakaruna¡¯s worldview on monsters.¡±
¡°For what purpose do you think I take Surya along whenever I punish monsters?¡± The green-clad woman rolled her eyes. ¡°His superiority over monsters is firmly etched into his mind.¡±
¡°Still.¡± Her husband kept his eyes closed as he massaged the bridge of his nose. ¡°A monster is a monster.¡±
¡°Yes, a monster is a monster. A monster will always remain a monster.¡± The [Monster Tamer] removed her husband¡¯s hand from his face and placed it on her own. The moustached man¡¯s hand was much bigger than hers, however. ¡°Surya should learn this lesson early on.¡±
¡°I know.¡± The man opened his eyes to stare at their hands before he pulled his hand back. ¡°I just worry about Suryaakaruna# though.¡±
The woman pulled her hand back too. She of course knew it was not her refusal to use [Thought Alignment] that had bothered her husband, it was the fact that their son walked the same path as hers.
This was not something that she could bring up, however.
The fact that their children would have to walk down the same path as hers, was something her husband had known for a long while now. He had known it since before they had been married. Yet, the man had not come to terms with this fact. But she could not begrudge him for it. Her husband had not passed his own name down to their son. Instead, hers had been passed. Their child was named Suryaakaruna Pashupati, not Suryaakaruna Manthan.
And now her husband had to watch his son walk down her path.
¡®Such is the fate of those that marry above their station.¡¯ Her mother¡¯s words echoed in her mind. She sighed but remained silent. Her mentioning this matter would only reopen old wounds. Thus, she could only hope that her husband cleared his heart on his own.
¡°I understand your worries.¡± The woman finally sighed. ¡°I will have Garuda& keep an eye on the monster.¡±
The [Ship Captain] opened his eyes and his deep gaze fell on his wife as if searching for answers to the questions only he knew. She met her husband¡¯s eyes for a moment but could not bear the weight of his gaze and closed her eyes to hide the guilt that she carried within her own heart.
¡°Meanwhile, tell Anubhav to keep on searching for another sapient monster.¡± She changed the topic. ¡°I do not want to waste resources on creating an Evolution Elixir if I do not have to.¡±
¡°I will see it done.¡± The man nodded and closed his eyes.
0.0
Ting.
[Temporary Skill, [Projection], lost.]
Twitchy as the Malfae was in the [Monster Tamer]''s presence, it was also honoured. She was a woman that was larger than life itself. Though, her presence seemed to be lesser from the day before. But the [Hive Monarch] cared not for the marginal change.
Instead, it gazed at the woman with eyes that were filled with nothing but worship. It waited for a moment to absorb her sight before the [Reincarnated] tried to project its thought at the woman. It failed. ¡®Oh, right.¡¯ The Malfae hesitated for a moment before it raised its hand as if it wanted to ask a question. It knew she had done so often to attract attention.
The [Monster Tamer] saw the worship in the wide eyes of the Malfea and her lips twitched. ¡°Yes?¡±
Its face fell for a moment before it pointed its throat and frowned. The woman frowned for a moment before her expression cleared and she nudged her son forward. ¡°Go on. Your practice begins now. It has lost the Skill.¡±
The mortal child almost jumped out of his seat and ran up to the Malfae. The act scared the creature that had been drinking in the majesty of the woman. As a result, it stumbled and fell. However, it soon refocused its gaze on the mortal child and it became mesmerised by the beauty of the boy. Though, at the moment, it also remembered that the boy had a personality that was less than stellar.
¡°Concentrate.¡± The woman ordered as she saw the creature staring at her son with wide, dopey eyes.
The [Reincarnated] shivered at the majestic woman¡¯s disapproval and shook its head to focus on the task at hand.
The mortal child, on the other hand, smiled and gingerly brought his finger down on the Malfae¡¯s head before gently patting the white hair on its head and back. The Malfae shivered at the touch of the most beautiful child that would one day rule the world.
¡°You are ugly. But soft!¡± The boy announced and it frowned as if remembering something. However, whatever it was that had tried to resurface, it failed and the Malfae shivered again at the touch.
¡°Stop playing with it.¡± The green-clad woman admonished lightly. ¡°Activate your Skill.¡±Stolen story; please report.
¡°Yes, mother.¡± The child sulked as he removed his finger from the Malfae¡¯s body and exclaimed. ¡°[Projection]!¡±
At that moment, the [Survivor] felt a sudden sense of giddiness that was simple, joyful. The feeling appeared out of nowhere; there was no reason for its existence. The Malfae stumbled at the sudden feelings before it caught itself and frowned. It focused on the emotions and studied them carefully.
The more the [Hive Monarch] focused on the sudden sense of giddiness, the more confused it felt. It could feel that the emotion was different, that it did not belong there. It was almost as if it was not the Malfae''s own. Its eyes shot up to stare at the mortal child and the boy smiled brightly. ¡°Do you feel it? Do you feel it!? Tell me, do you feel it? Tell me!¡±
The [Survivor] frowned as it remembered the bratty attitude of the child but it didn¡¯t react much. This was the most beautiful boy that would rule the world after all. Instead, it turned to look at the [Monster Tamer], however, she did not respond. Its gaze returned to the child, then moved to the green-clad woman. It shook its head in confusion.
¡°Tell me! Do you feel it?¡± The mortal child jumped on his feet as he insisted on an answer.
¡°Quiet.¡± The woman ordered her son and the boy stopped jumping. Though, his lips quivered and his hands were clenched into fists. ¡°But I activated the Skill! It works!¡± The woman gave her son a look and the child did not speak. Instead, he puffed his cheeks and crossed his hands in protest. The [Monster Tamer] then turned to the Malfae to address his confusion.
¡°At a low Level, the Skill works quite differently from the one that I granted you. With Surya, you would only be able to receive emotions and vague intentions until his Skill reaches its second Tier.¡±
Its face fell but after a moment it sighed in understanding.
¡°The other thing of note is that this Skill provides only one-way communication unless its Level is high. Thus, you have to learn this Skill on your own if you wish to properly communicate.¡±
The [Reincarnated] nodded with wide eyes staring at the majestic woman that should rule the world.
¡°It is likely for Surya to gain a Skill Level when you gain your Skill.¡± Malfae''s massive ears perked up at the news and its wide eyes focused on the most beautiful but bratty boy that would rule the world. ¡°If you manage to increase Surya¡¯s Level within the next three days, I shall arrange for a monster for you to kill and raise your Level.¡± The woman offered as she looked down her nose. ¡°How about it? Can you do it?¡±
The [Survivor]''s head swirled around to stare at the woman so fast that its neck strained. But in the next moment, it swirled its head in the opposite direction to stare at the sulking but beautiful boy with narrowed eyes. It turned back to the woman and nodded. It thought for a moment and then frowned.
¡°How will you gain the Skill?¡± The woman guessed the source of the creature¡¯s confusion and the [Hive Monarch] nodded. ¡°From what I have been told,¡± the woman furrowed her brows as she remembered, ¡°you should try to steal the link through which Surya sends you his emotions. This will cancel his Skill of course, but it will be helpful to you.¡±
The [Hive Monach] contemplated for a moment before it nodded and focused back on the pouting boy.
0.0
Malfae practised the Skill with the exquisitely beautiful mortal child for the rest of the day. Or at least it tried to. The beautiful mortal child had become increasingly fidgety as the time had passed and his anger at his mother had been replaced by annoyance. The boy had thus wanted to run and play and be anywhere but with the Malfae.
The [Survivor] had run around after the most beautiful but bratty boy but had been unable to make the mortal child practice diligently. Even when what it had been doing had been for the mortal child¡¯s own sake.
Thus, the Malfae had not been surprised when it accomplished nothing at the end of the day.
0.0
Malfae was once again brought before the [Monster Tamer] and her son to practice the Skill [Projection].
However, as its eyes fell on the mother and son pair, it found the real versions of the two pale in comparison to the ones that resided in its memory. The woman was still majestic and larger than life but the presence that made her seem akin to the ruler of the entire world had dimmed.
The mortal child, on the other hand, still seemed quite beautiful. Indeed, the child seemed beautiful enough to qualify as a beautiful child. But that beauty of the boy was nowhere near enough that it could be called the most beautiful boy in the existence.
However, the [Survivor] did not dare mention the discrepancies. No matter the majesty of the woman or the beauty of the child, it had not yet forgotten the cruelty of the green-clad woman that was larger than life.
Thus, the session of the day followed as it normally would. For this reason, the Malfae was a bit surprised when the green-clad woman¡¯s voice echoed from across the room. ¡°Come here, both of you.¡± The child followed the order without hesitation and the Malfae did not linger either.
¡°[Spirit Summon].¡± The woman¡¯s voice resounded and her body glowed faintly with a milky azure light. The light was quite similar to the azure moon but not quite the same.
However, the more it studied the glow, the more familiar it seemed to the Malfae. ¡®Ah! It¡¯s the colour of the mana.¡¯
The glow covered the woman¡¯s entire body, from head to toe and from her left fingertips to the right. A moment passed and in the next, the glow stepped forward. The glow that had stepped forward retained the shape of the woman¡¯s body. It retained her features. It retained every single strand of her hair and it retained every single pore on her skin. It was as if the glow was the woman herself.
The glow retained its shape for a moment more before it began to condense. Its head shrank and its arms widened. Its chest caved in on itself while its legs practically disappeared as they shrank faster than the rest of its body. At the same time, a tailbone seemed to pierce out of its glowing body.
The entire malformed thing continued to shrink until it reached the height of about a mortal¡¯s knee. At that moment, the shrinking stopped and the malformed thing began to fill out. Its skin sprouted feather and the arms became wings. Its toes became talons and the thumbs dissolved themselves. The being¡¯s mouth elongated before curving down and the tailbone sprouted elegant feathers.
[Spirit Summon]
[Allows the user to summon a spirit depending upon the user¡¯s experiences and personality.]
[Tier 1: Spirit possess 1 ability per its nature.] [Grants Flight [Skill].]
[Tier 2: Share Senses with the Spirit. Spirit possess 2 abilities per its nature.] [Grants undetectable tracking markers.]
The process had lasted not longer than a few moments. In a moment the glow had taken form, in the next, it had condensed, in another, it had filled out and then it became real. The milky azure glow pulsed and then dissipated leaving behind a living and breathing eagle. ¡°Garudaaaaaa!¡± The mortal child squealed as he rushed towards the eagle before grabbing the bird in a hug.
The Malfae, on the hand, stumbled with its mouth wide open and fell on the desk. ¡°This is Garuda, my [Spirit Summon].¡± The green-clad woman addressed the [Hive Monarch]. ¡°She will be monitoring your session from now on. For all intents and purposes, she is me and I am her. Do be careful.¡±
The [Survivor] stood up as it studied the bird that had manifested into the room. At a glance, it seemed no different from any eagle that it had either seen itself or in her memories. This eagle seemed no different from an animal. It seemed like an animal. Not a monster. But an animal.
The [Reincarnated] stared at it with eyes wide. As it gawked, the [Hive Monarch] saw the gaze of the eagle soften as it fell on the mortal child and the being trilled, as if in joy.
The child giggled in response as it released the bird and started hopping as it chatted too fast for the Malfae to understand. The eagle then raised both of its wings and gently placed them on the child¡¯s shoulders, essentially stopping the child from hopping, and trilled once again.
Clearly, it was not a being with an intelligence of a mere animal. Meanwhile, the mortal child continued to speak while the eagle continued to listen with a soft gaze. It even trilled and chirped at appropriate intervals, as it responded to the mortal child.
The Malfae shook its head and blinked. Its action drew the attention of the eagle and the Spirit turned its head to stare at the [Hive Monarch]. Though, the gaze that had been soft and caring just a moment ago, was now cold and calculating. The gaze of the eagle was akin to that of the majestic woman in green. It was as if the eagle was looking down at the Malfae. It was as if the eagle considered the Malfae useless trash, a worthless waste.
The more the Malfae focused on the eagle, the more this eagle seemed just different to it. Almost unnatural, yet not quite the same. It was as if the eagle was not really there, despite its physical manifestation and interaction with the physical world. It was almost as if the eagle was unreal.
The Malfae shivered and turned its gaze away from the eagle and towards the woman in green. The woman smiled, though the smile was condescending yet magnificent. The [Monster Tamer] turned her gaze away and addressed the eagle. ¡°Keep an eye on them, will you?¡±
The eagle nodded and the Malfae blinked. ¡®Just what is this thing?¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 66
¡°The Inheritance Scroll for Suryaakaruna. Has it been arranged yet??¡± The deep voice broke the [Monster Tamer] from her reverie and the woman tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she frowned. ¡°It has proven to be a rather difficult task. Have you?¡±
¡°It would seem so, yes.¡± The [Ship Captain] frowned. ¡°Do you remember the Tier 1 ascetic that joined the journey at the last moment?¡±
¡°Hmm?¡± The woman¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°The one that is overly fond of chambermaids?¡±
¡°That one, yes. He fell.¡±
¡°Of course, he did.¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°His fascination with the chambermaids was bound to deviate him from his path.¡±
¡°His obsession might be our gain though.¡± The [Ship Captain] replied. ¡°He requested access to chambermaids.¡±
The woman¡¯s eyes widened as she inferred her husband¡¯s implication. ¡°He wants to exchange an Inheritance Scroll for it?!¡±
¡°Indeed.¡±
¡°Heavens above. He''s gone too far.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was light, as if in disbelief. ¡°Is he even sane?¡±
¡°He wouldn¡¯t have fallen if he wasn¡¯t beyond redemption.¡± The man agreed. ¡°While his sanity is questionable, he is functioning at the moment.¡±
¡°His loss is our gain.¡± The [Monster Tamer] sighed. ¡°What does he have to offer?¡±
¡°The choice is between the Skill [Anatomy Vision] and the Spell [Stimulate].¡± The woman¡¯s eyebrows furrowed for a moment before her shoulders slumped. ¡°It would have been nice if he had [Mana Manifestation] to offer.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t be too greedy.¡± Her husband mildly admonished. ¡°Receiving an Inheritance Scroll in this forsaken place is already a great fortune.¡±
¡°I know.¡± The woman agreed with a resigned sigh as she messaged her forehead. ¡°It¡¯s just, these are simply terrible choices for someone on the [Monster Tamer] path. Our Classes don¡¯t give us any Skill or Spell to directly empower ourselves. This is a glaring weakness. But [Mana Manifestation] covers it up to some extent.¡±
The [Ship Captain] did not reply to the green-clad woman¡¯s comment and simply remained silent. The woman opened her eyes and glanced at her husband for a moment but said nothing on the matter. Her husband had to deal with his feelings, about this matter, on his own.
¡°What would be your choice?¡± She broke the silence after a moment.
The moustached man pondered before he replied. ¡°[Stimulate] might be a good option for him. It would let him heal himself and his monsters mid-battle.¡±
¡°Hmm.¡± The woman¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°It¡¯s an incredibly passive position though. If we chose [Anatomy Vision], he might be able to target the vitals fro-¡±
¡°No, you are right.¡± The woman cut herself off midsentence. ¡°Surya doesn¡¯t have the patience for something that intricate.¡±
The man¡¯s lips twitched to form an amused smile. ¡°I am glad I didn¡¯t have to correct you.¡±
The woman rolled her eyes at the man¡¯s apparent delight. ¡°Oh hush, you.¡±
0.0
Kiran entered the [Ship Captain]¡¯s office and once again found the moustached man busy with the paperwork. At his arrival, the man put down his pen and crossed his fingers.
Kiran did not give the man a chance to speak, however. ¡°Have you made your choice?¡± The fallen ascetic did not waste time with greeting the much higher Levelled man and directly addressed the reason he had been summoned. These past few days had left him restless.
¡°Yes.¡± The moustached man¡¯s deep voice seemed almost like a physical presence. ¡°The Spell [Stimulate], if you will.¡±Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
¡°Do you want me to do it now?¡±
¡°Post-haste.¡±
Kiran nodded and summoned his Status. He focused on his Spell, [Stimulate] and then focused on the concept of Inheritance Scroll.
Ting.
[Do you wish to create an Inheritance Scroll for the Skill [Stimulate]?]
Ting.
[Yes] ????????[No]
Kiran didn¡¯t hesitate for even a moment and focused on [Yes].
Ting.
[Warning: Creation of an Inheritance Scroll would result in permanent loss of the Spell [Stimulate].]
Ting.
[Warning: Creation of an Inheritance Scroll would result in permanent loss of 20 Class Levels.]
Ting.
[Do you wish to proceed?]
Ting.
[Yes] ????????[No]
¡®Yes.¡¯
Ting.
[Spell [Stimulate] lost.]
Ting.
[20 Class Levels lost. 20 Attribute points deducted from the most recently manipulated Attributes.]
Ting.
[Skill Levels exceed the Class Level. Levels have been adjusted.]
Ting.
[Skill Levels lost. Skill [Anatomy Vision Lv.21] has been levelled down to [Anatomy Vision Lv.1].]
Ting.
[Skill Levels lost. Skill [Link Lv. 15] has been levelled down to [Link Lv.1].]
Kiran clutched his head as a sudden pain hit him and he felt his thought slow down. At the same time, his comprehension decreased and his reasoning diminished. His wit became dull and his will became weak.
The fallen ascetic stumbled and fell. Meanwhile, a soft azure glow escaped his body and began to condense. The glow elongated and then divided itself. The divisions formed two rods that spanned almost the length of a mortal¡¯s forearm.
The condensed rods became covered in layers upon layers of rolls that seemed to be made of cloth before, in a moment, the glow faded and the illusion became real.
The Inheritance Scroll had manifested.
The scroll began to slowly descend towards Kiran but before it could reach its destination, a hand reached out and grabbed the scroll.
¡°I will take care of this.¡± The [Ship Captain] announced. The man had left his desk and had come to stand beside the fallen ascetic.
Kiran shook his head to clear it of the sudden slowness but the feeling did not leave him. It remained. ¡°I-Ye-yes.¡±
¡°Feel free to access the chambermaids now. They are all open to you.¡±
At the mention of the chambermaids, the fallen ascetic¡¯s eyes narrowed and its slowed mind became focused. ¡°I don¡¯t need all of them. I just need the one that did this to me.¡±
The [Ship Captain] barely restrained himself from rolling his eyes. ¡°Yes, yes. You do that.¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 67
The Malfae felt a spark within its mind and as it focused on it, the spark became an annoyance. The more the creature focussed on the annoyance, the clearer the annoyance became. The Malfae frowned. ¡®What is the point of this?¡¯
It gave the beautiful mortal child a reproachful look for a moment, but then its eyes flickered to the eagle sitting on the windowsill and it shivered. It focused back on the annoyance but the emotion felt like a cloud to the [Hive Monarch]. A foreign cloud. ¡®That does not even make sense.¡¯
The foreign cloud floated within its mind and the creature frowned. It could read the emotion easily enough but that did not help it any in projecting its own thoughts onto it. Thus, the Malfae thought for a moment before it sat down and crossed its legs. It observed the child for a moment more and closed its eyes. The creature focused on itself, but instead of focusing on its mana or body, the creature focused on its thoughts.
It took quite a few moments for the creature to clear its mind of useless thoughts. Once it had achieved the state though, it focused only on the foreign thought cloud within its mind and tried to probe the thought cloud but it collapsed in an instant.
¡°You!¡± One of the most beautiful of all the mortal children shrieked out in anger. ¡°What did you do?!¡±
The Malfae opened its eyes and then smiled.
0.0
The Malfae remained sitting with its eyes closed and tried to clear its mind of all thoughts in its mind but one. The thought that remained within its mind was a foreign one and it was one of impatience.
The Malfae sensed the emotion and focused on it before it tried to pry inside-
The cloud collapsed.
¡°You ugly!¡± One of the most beautiful of all the mortal children huffed. ¡°Stop cancelling my Skill.¡±
0.0
The creature focused on the foreign cloud and found irritation radiating from it. The creature ignored its meaning and tried to surround the cloud. But there was nothing to surround the cloud with.
The Malfae frowned and a cloud materialised. This cloud was of confusion and it originated from the Immortal itself. It did not feel foreign to the [Hive Monarch] in the way that the other cloud did. The Malfae gently pushed its own cloud forward and the moment the two clouds touche-
The foreign cloud collapsed.
¡°Will you stop it?!¡± One of the most beautiful of all the mortal children pointed a finger at the Malfae and shrieked.
The Malfae did not reply and the mortal child¡¯s face twisted. ¡°Ugly! Ugly! Ugly!¡±
0.0
Once the strange eagle calmed down the beautiful but bratty mortal child that had been jumping like an angry monkey, the Malfae closed its eyes once again and focused on the foreign cloud. The emotion radiating from the cloud was one of simmering anger.
The creature ignored the foreign cloud and materialised a cloud of its own. This cloud spoke of caution. The [Hive Monarch] gingerly enveloped the foreign cloud with its own while making sure that the two never touched.
The creature frowned as the two clouds remained in a state of mutual acceptance. Without hesitation, the Malfae plunged its own cloud into the foreign one, all at once and the two clouds touched in their entirety.
Immediately the foreign cloud collapsed.
¡°What!¡± The beautiful mortal child squawked as it stood up and looked around with cautious eyes. ¡°What happened? What is going on?¡±
The beautiful mortal child¡¯s eyes fell on the Malfae and it screeched. ¡°Why you ugly-¡±
At that moment, the exquisite mortal child¡¯s eyes widened and its mouth formed a circle as its eyed seemed to read something in the air. The Malfae, meanwhile, ignored the child as its attention was focused on the notification before its eyes.
Ting.
[Skill [Projection Lv.1] granted.]
The creature smiled and focused on the [Projection].
Ting.
[Allows the user to project intent to a single other creature or being. Cost: None.]
¡°My Skill Levelled up! [Projection] Levelled up!!¡± The beautiful mortal child shouted in joy.
At the same time, the eyes of the eagle on the windowsill widened and its head swirled around to look at the Malfae. The creature nodded hastily at the eagle and hurriedly looked away. The eagle, on the other hand, eyed the creature for a moment before it closed its eyes. Its closed eyes scrunched as it seemingly focused. The [Hive Monarch] did not have to wait for long to find out what the eagle had done as soon enough, the woman in green walked in.
0.0
The [Monster Tamer] sat down but for some reason, the majesty that had exuded from her had diminished greatly. She still seemed majestic and larger than life but the aura of the ruler of the world, that had surrounded her previously, had diminished greatly. It was as if the way the Malfae had perceived the woman had been nothing but an illusion.
Yet, the majesty of the woman and the fear that she had instilled in the Malfae¡¯s heart, forced the creature to keep its mouth shut.
¡°Activate your Skill.¡± The [Monster Tamer] ordered and the Malfae did so without any delay. It did not even think of resisting the order; especially not with the woman¡¯s majesty pushing it to follow her orders.
¡®[Projection].¡¯
¡°Hmm.¡± The woman¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as she processed the awe that the Malfae had unconsciously projected. ¡°This Skill is supposed to project intent but at such low levels, it can only project emotions. After a few Levels, it should be able to project intent.¡±
The woman eyed the Malfae and as the moments passed, the Malfae bean to sweat. ¡°You are smarter than I gave you credit for.¡±
The Malfae subconsciously projected satisfaction, affected as it was by the woman¡¯s Skill, [Thought Alignment]. The woman smiled in satisfaction.
¡°Your reward will be granted tomorrow.¡± The woman announced. ¡°If you can raise his Level within the next 3 days, I will grant you another monster to hunt and Level. Do your best.¡±
The creature nodded and projected acceptance before it turned its head to gaze at the mortal child.
0.0
The next day, as the creature was waiting in its cell, the woman and the mortal boy arrived with the Malfae¡¯s promised reward.
As the [Survivor]¡¯s gaze fell on the duo, its brows furrowed minutely as it felt none of the aura that had made her seem akin to the ruler of the entire world. Not only that, but her son too seemed different than what the creature had expected. While the boy remained strikingly beautiful, his beauty did not make him one of the most beautiful of all the mortal children.
It was as if those thoughts hadn¡¯t ever existed. It was as if all those thoughts had been nothing but an illusion.
Not wanting to raise the suspicion of the green-clad woman, the creature quickly averted its eyes from the mother and the son and instead turned its gaze to the earth cage -much like the one that the Malfae itself had arrived in- and the salamander within. Though, contrary to its own cage, the salamander¡¯s cage was almost the size of a mortal¡¯s forearm while the Malfae¡¯s had barely exceeded the length size of a mortal¡¯s finger.
If the creature had been a mortal then the earth cage would have elicited some negative emotions due to less than positive treatment it had received in it. But the creature was not a mortal. It was an immortal. It focused more on what was inside the cage rather than the cage itself.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
The salamander size was slightly smaller than a mortal¡¯s forearm while its skin was a colour that was a mixture of brown and grey. Its feet were webbed and its tail was flat. While its eyes were big and nose was in form of slits. The creature was covered in a thick layer of slime.
The Malfae eyed the creature for a moment before it activated its Skill. ¡®[Malfae Shield].¡¯
The blue shield that was in the shape of its wings shimmered into being and the mortal child squalid. ¡°Pretty! The ugly thing has a pretty shield!¡±
The Malfae ignored the noise and slammed the shield through the bars and onto the salamander. Much to its surprise though, the shield slipped on the slimy skin and hit the earth wall as the salamander hissed in anger and warning. The [Reincarnated] frowned for a moment before it opened the wings of the shield and brought it down on the lizard as it closed its wings. Though, once again, the wings slipped on the slime and hit the earth wall.
The salamander opened its mouth and hissed loudly as it thrashed against the shield, which broke down under its repeated assault.
¡°I knew it!¡± The bratty mortal child shouted as it scowled. ¡°Ugly is useless after all! Ugly! Useless! Ugly! Useless! Ug-¡±
The Malfae tuned out the noisy mortal child and its eyes shined as it stared at the hissing salamander. ¡®Tch. Why did I not think of this method sooner? I could have hunted stronger creatures! Tch!¡¯
It waited not a moment more and activated its Skills. ¡®[Malfae Shield]. [Venom Creation].¡¯
As the shield materialised in front of it, venom poured out of the creature¡¯s pores and drenched its skin. The creature rubbed the shimmering shield on its body and applied as much of the venom on it as it could before sending the shield back inside.
The salamander opened its mouth and hissed in anger at the puny shield that came to harass it once again but, much to its surprise, the shield headed straight for its mouth and got stuck in its throat.
The salamander coughed but then the shield began to rotate and the creature roared in pain. It thrashed and coughed but, at that moment, it began to smell the pine trees and its body began to twitch. The shield gouged the salamander¡¯s throat as it moved further inwards and the monster coughed out blood.
The amphibian did not last for much longer after that and soon the Malfae saw a notification it had not seen in more than two years.
Ting.
Ting.
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! The level up bonus of +3 HP and +3 MP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.7] has levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.8]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 8 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.8] has levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.9]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 9 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Malfae Shield Lv.9] had levelled up to [Malfae Shield Lv.10]. Damage absorption has been increased to 200 points. The cost has been increased to 100 MP.]
The Malfae hastily summoned its Status and checked its Level that had increased from 30 to 41.
If the Malfae had been a mortal, it would have cried tears of joy, but as it was not, it merely giggled and creeped out the bratty mortal child observing it.
0.0
Escorted by guards, the creature arrived at its cell but the thing that caught its attention wasn¡¯t its own cell but the cell next to its own. An intense scent of blood, sweat and mortal fluids emanated from it. However, it was the scent of blood that ruled them all.
As it entered its cell, the creature didn¡¯t even think of activating [Sense] to investigate the situation within its neighbouring cell. After all, whatever had happened in that cell had nothing to do with it. It wasn¡¯t a mortal after all. It didn¡¯t care for anything else but itself.
The creature settled down upon the grass bed that it had been supplied and closed its eyes to work on [Mana Manipulation]. Just because the [Monster Tamer] had promised it a method to evolve, didn¡¯t mean she would go through it. The Malfae was an immortal and it didn¡¯t understand the concept of trust.
As it closed its eyes, a feminine voice echoed in its cell. ¡°How cold. You didn¡¯t even bother to check on me even once.¡±
The [Reincarnated] rolled its eyes. Apparently, its neighbour was in a chatty mood. It debated whether it should bother to reply or not but, in the end, it decided to. Their last chat had been quite informative, despite the mortal¡¯s conniving intentions. ¡®[Projection].¡¯
Annoyance.
¡°Tch. Would you look at that? The little monster is annoyed.¡± The woman voice seemed to contain a hint of cruel mirth within it. ¡°How adorable.¡±
Impatience.
The woman laughed. ¡°Yes, yes. Quite a busy little monster you are, aren¡¯t you? Playing in the big leagues you are. Would you like me to give you your big boy pants? Or is it the big girl skirts?¡±
Dismission.
The woman giggled like a little girl. ¡°Oh look, is the little monster bothered by this poor little chambermaid? Tch. Tch. Tch.¡± The woman¡¯s voice assumed a singsong quality. ¡°Don¡¯t forget that I am your first friend here. I am also your only friend.¡±
The Malfae audibly scoffed.
¡°You don¡¯t believe me?¡± The woman questioned, though the mirth dripping from her voice contradicted any sincerity that the woman may have had. ¡°Then let me prove that I am your friend.¡±
The creature¡¯s eyebrows furrowed at the statement.
Curiosity.
¡°It¡¯s simple really.¡± The woman began whispering loudly. Clearly, the whispering was just an act. ¡°I will tell you a secret about yourself.¡±
The creature scoffed as it rolled its eyes. What sort of nonsense was this mortal spouting?
Annoyance.
¡°Tch. Tch. You should learn to trust your friends. It will help you in the long run.¡±
The creature shuddered at the very implication. It refused to even comprehend the concept and projected its feelings.
Disgust.
¡°This should not be the case.¡± For the first time since the creature had met its neighbour, the Malfae heard the doubt in the woman¡¯s voice. ¡°You should not be opposed to mortal concepts in your current state.¡±
The creature frowned. Just what was the woman talking about?
Confusion.
¡°You should still be under the thrall of her Skill. You should be worshipping the ground that she walked on.¡± The woman mumbled as she seemed to frown. ¡°You should be accepting mortal concepts. You should have your nature suppressed.¡±
¡°But do you not seem to be affected at all?¡±
The creature¡¯s blood ran cold and jumped up in fright and screeched at the wall separating the two cells. It remembered the Skill that its neighbour had hinted at last time. It remembered that her Skill would make the Malfae unable to dispute her orders.
Its scalp tingled and its hands trembled.
Fear.
Anger.
Terror.
Fury.
¡°Oh? Is all of that directed at me?¡± The woman seemed to be taken aback.
The creature screeched at the wall and threw it at the woman.
Fury.
Terror.
¡°Save your breath.¡± The woman scoffed as she ignored the erupting emotions of the Malfae. ¡°I was not the one to use the Skill on you.¡±
Disbelief.
Fury.
¡°If I had used the Skill, would I have exposed it you like an idiot?¡± The woman¡¯s voice dripped with condescension. ¡°Just what kind of fool do you take me for?¡±
The creature faltered and its screeching stopped abruptly as the woman¡¯s words made a sort of sense to the creature. The Malfae frowned as it considered its opinion of the woman and found that even though it considered her all sorts of crazy and utterly worthless, an idiot the woman was not.
Curiosity.
Curiosity.
Curiosity.
Curiosity.
Curiosity.
¡°Stop. Stop. Stop!¡± The woman snapped as the creature bombarded her for answers. She paused for a moment and seemed to let out a breath before her voice regained its sing-song quality. ¡°Now, why should I tell you anything?¡±
That brought the creature short as it had no answer to the woman¡¯s question. The Malfae furrowed its brows.
¡®Because you are a mortal.¡¯ The creature wanted to project but its Skill didn¡¯t allow such clear projection. Instead, it remained silent.
¡°Tch.¡± The woman¡¯s voice carried hints of mockery. ¡°I will help you because I am your friend.¡±
The creature rolled its eyes. Even the woman herself did not believe that reason.
¡°You seem to have greatly weakened the effects of the woman¡¯s Skill, which means you possess a mental resistance Skill of some sort.¡± The woman¡¯s voice resounded, though it seemed more uncaring than mocking. ¡°The [Monster Tamer] must not have known of this Skill, huh? She would have killed you without a second thought otherwise.¡±
The creature became still as goosebumps erupted all over its skin and its weak heart felt cold.
Curiosity.
¡°Of course, she would have killed you.¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°No one wants a monster that can resist their control. What if the monster resisted at a crucial moment in the battle? Tch, such monsters are best culled.¡±
¡°Therefore,¡± The woman¡¯s voice grew louder. ¡°The [Monster Tamer] must never know that her Skill has been weakened. Do you understand?¡±
Agreement.
Confusion.
Curiosity.
¡°Hmm?¡± The woman seemed to ponder for a moment as if trying to comprehend the meaning of the creature¡¯s emotions. After a moment, she finally, guessed. ¡°How do you keep it a secret?¡±
Agreement.
¡°That¡¯s simple.¡± The woman flippantly answered from beyond the wall. ¡°Just continue to act as if you are still under her Skill.¡±
Confusion.
¡°And here I thought you were a smart one.¡± The woman sighed. ¡°When she used her Skill on you, your perception of her would have changed to how she sees herself. So, she might have seemed fiercer, more beautiful, more intelligent and the like. What did she look like to you?¡±
Majesty.
Beauty.
Worship.
¡°Tch. Narcissistic megalomaniac.¡± The woman spat. ¡°Just keep acting as if you are in her awe and she would remain ignorant. She used this skill for her son too, didn¡¯t she? How did the perception of her son change?¡±
Curiosity.
¡°Huh? What?¡±
Curiosity.
¡°What do you want to know?¡±
Majesty.
Curiosity.
The woman furrowed her brows for a moment before she understood the creature¡¯s question. ¡°How do I know all this about you?¡±
Agreement.
¡°My vessel is a naked woman in captivity.¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°I get more visitors than you think.¡±
¡°But that¡¯s of no importance. Rather, how did your perception of her spawn change?¡±
Majesty.
Exquisiteness.
Beauty.
¡°Tch. As expected of her.¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°Remember to treat her spawn in much the same way as you would treat her. Else she might see through your ruse.¡±
At that moment, footsteps resounded in the corridor and the woman spoke no more.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 68
The mortal child slammed the door open as he hopped inside the room, laughing wildly. His high-pitched voice carried a sense of innocence that could only be found in the voices of innocent, sheltered children. ¡°I Levelled up!¡± He laughed. ¡°I am finally Level 10!¡±
Two heads turned in the direction of the boy as his parents paid attention to their only child. The green-clad woman laughed as she walked up to the boy and scooped him up in her arms. And although the moustached man remained seated, his lips twitched into a soft but conflicted smile.
¡°I had been wondering about this for a little while now.¡± The woman ruffled the son''s hair with a bright smile. ¡°It had been quite overdue.¡±
¡°You should be able to choose your first Spell now, shouldn¡¯t you?¡± The deep voice of the [Ship Captain] questioned and the [Monster tamer] brought her child to where she had been sitting with her husband previously.
¡°It should still be a Skill that he would receive even now; walks as he does on my path.¡± The woman corrected with a smile. ¡°Spells won¡¯t appear until the second Tier.¡±
¡°Hmm.¡± The man nodded at his wife and then smiled encouragingly at his son. ¡°Go on then. What are you waiting for?¡±
¡°Yes!¡± The mortal child announced as he scrunched his little nose and summoned his Status.
¡°You will not have any choice for this selection.¡± The woman informed her son as she straightened the wrinkles in the dress with a swipe of hands and sat down. ¡°Just choose the Skill, [Pact]. You can¡¯t walk the path of [Monster Tamer] without it.¡±
The boy nodded and read the description of the Skill before choosing it.
Ting.
[Allows the user to enter a pact with an unhatched egg or a willing monster. The user offers safety and growth to the monster while the monster offers obedience enforced by the user''s Level. The number of pacts available: [Skill Level]/10. Rounded up. Cost: none.]
¡°Mother! Mother!¡± The child hopped in glee. He could finally have his own monster! ¡°When will I get my first monster? What will it be? Is it big? Is it powerful? Tell me!¡±
The woman laughed and the man smothered a smile. ¡°Why are you acting like you don¡¯t already have your own monster?¡± The raised an eyebrow as her lips twitched into a smile and the child¡¯s brows furrowed. His mouth formed an o as the boy pointed a finger at himself, in confusion. ¡°¡I do?¡±
¡°Of course.¡± The [Monster Tamer] bopped the boy on the nose with a finger and the boy blinked. ¡°The Malfae that you have been practising with.¡± Her son''s mouth widened and then his entire face twisted as his nose flared, cheeks puffed up, forehead scrunched and eyes narrowed. ¡°No!¡± He declared as he crossed his arms. ¡°I don¡¯t want that one. It is ugly. It is small. And it is useless!¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
The woman laughed and picked the boy up before seating him in her lap. ¡°Is that so?¡±
¡°Yes!¡± The boy empathetically replied. ¡°Did you see how long it took to kill that lizard? And that starfish? Singh Raj could have killed them with a single claw swipe! That monster is useless!¡±
¡°Oh really?¡± The moustached man then addressed the boy and the boy jumped out of his mother¡¯s lap to seat himself in his fathers. ¡°Father! You tell mother. I don¡¯t want that useless monster!¡± The boy whined petulantly and the man chuckled.
¡°Well, Suryaakaruna.¡± The man¡¯s deep voice was slow and soft. ¡°Singh Raj is a fourth-Tier monster. While that Malfae is just a second- Tier monster.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t care!¡± The child puffed his cheeks and crossed his arms once again. ¡°And it¡¯s ugly!¡±
¡°That¡¯s the main reason, isn¡¯t it?¡± The woman asked an eyebrow raised at the boy.
¡°No!¡± The boy quickly replied. Perhaps, a bit too quickly. ¡°It is not!¡±
The woman sighed and shifted the boy from her husband¡¯s lap into her own. But the boy squirmed and wiggled to free himself from his mother¡¯s grasp. Her grasp, however, was solid and the child could only whine. She lightly bopped her son¡¯s head with her knuckles and the boy sagged with a pout. ¡°What if I make sure it evolves into a pretty little thing? How about then?¡±
The mortal child paused to think and his brows furrowed in thought. ¡°It would still be weak.¡±
¡°It will grow stronger if you take good care of it.¡± The man assuaged in his deep voice.
¡°Your father is right, Surya.¡± The woman patted her son¡¯s hair. ¡°Monsters grow their entire life. It will grow stronger as you grow up.¡± The child¡¯s face scrunched in thought before he looked away and asked in a small voice. ¡°¡do you promise to make it pretty?¡±
¡°Of course.¡± The woman closed her eyes and pretended to nod sagely. ¡°I will make it extremely pretty.¡±
¡°It¡¯s alright then, I guess.¡±
The [Ship Captain] smiled at the child while the woman smothered her laugh.
¡°When have you planned for the monster to be tamed?¡± The moustached man asked as shifted his attention from his son to his wife.
¡°Not for some time.¡± The woman answered with a sigh. ¡°That monster is not yet desperate enough to sell its freedom.¡±
The man¡¯s brows furrowed in thought. ¡°What are waiting for?¡±
¡°I am waiting for it to reach its deathbed.¡± The woman let go of her son and swiped her hands at the wrinkled fabric of her dress. ¡°It would only accept Surya as its Master when it has no other hope.¡±
The child frowned as he asked. ¡°Why is that?¡±
¡°Because that is a second-Tier monster and you are merely Level 10.¡± The woman answered. ¡°You can enforce obedience on all the Tier 0 monsters and the Tier 1 monsters up to Level 40. But you cannot do the same to this monster. It is a bit above your capability for now.¡±
The child scowled. ¡°Then how am I supposed to order it around?¡±
¡°That is what your mother is here for.¡± The man said softly in his deep voice. ¡°Why do you think your mother punishes that creature so regularly?¡± The mortal child¡¯s eyes widened and his mouth seemed to form a circle as he tried to grasp the implications of what his father had just said.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 69
The foreign cloud collapsed yet again and the Malfae frowned. ¡®Just why can¡¯t I maintain simultaneous connections?¡¯
The mortal child, on the other hand, clucked his tongue and crossed his hands. The child looked sideways at the wall as if avoiding the Malfae¡¯s eyes. ¡°Tch. You, ugly. You can¡¯t even do this?¡±
The Malfae frowned and eyed the beautiful mortal child.
Suspicion.
¡°What! What are you doubting me for?!¡± The exquisite mortal child squawked as he still refused to look at the [Hive Monarch]. At that moment, the Malfae understood. It flew up, pointed a finger at the beautiful mortal child and puffed its cheeks.
Accusation.
¡°Y-You! Ugly! Ugly! Ugly!¡± The child jumped up and screeched back. ¡°You think you are failing because of me?! How dare you!¡±
The Malfae floated in the air and crossed its hands. It looked down at the beautiful mortal child from its position up in the air. It was as if the Malfae was waiting for him to confess. It eyed the beautiful boy from the corner of its eyes as it mimicked tapping its feet.
¡°Y-you filthy ugly monster!¡± The child tried to swat at the Malfae but the creature flew out of the way. ¡°I am not the reason you are failing! You are just useless!!¡±
Contradiction.
¡°You! You dare!¡±
Agreement.
0.0
The strange eagle called the [Monster Tamer] before the situation could worsen further and the majestic woman arrived with the flourish of her green clothes. She eyed the beautiful mortal child and then she eyed the Malfae. ¡°Fly down here.¡±
The creature did as it was told and landed, only for it to be backhanded with full force. The Malfae was thrown off and it slammed into the nearby wall. Its bones cracked and its wings broke as agony erupted all over its body.
¡°Know your place monster.¡± The voice of the woman was even, however, her majesty seemed to surge and for a moment she once again became larger than life as she stepped forward. ¡°You do not correct your master.¡±
¡°You do not accuse your master.¡± The larger than life woman stepped on the tiny creature¡¯s even tinier legs and crushed them to a bloody paste. The creature screamed as pain assaulted it. However, as its nerves died, numbness began to spread like poison.
¡°And under no circumstance, do you second guess your master.¡± The woman¡¯s even voice was low as she spoke through gritted teeth. ¡°His words are your truth. His orders are your heavens. He is your god.¡±
Acceptance! Acceptance!! Acceptance!!!
¡°See to it that you understand properly, yes?¡± The woman minced the creature¡¯s legs one last time before she ordered someone to take the creature back to its cell.
¡°Ah yes. You possess [Moulting], don¡¯t you?¡± The woman added absently.
Agr-agreement. The creature projected as its body reared in agony.
¡°I expect you in proper form tomorrow then.¡±
0.0
When the creature was brought to meet the beautiful but bratty mortal child once again, the majestic woman was nowhere to be seen. But that was meaningless as the strange eagle still sat silently at the windowsill. The Malfae¡¯s eyes fell on the eagle and the sense of unreal-ness seeped into its senses once again.
The creature shivered and averted its gaze. It breathed deeply and clenched its fists before slowly releasing them. The Malfae¡¯s eyes fell on the beautiful mortal child that had been observing the creature from its seat. Their eyes met and the mortal child¡¯s lips stretched into a beautiful but smug smile. The child raised its eyebrows at the creature and taunted it to act.
The Malfae did not react and the mortal child¡¯s beautiful eyebrows furrowed.
¡°What? No comment now? What happened? Did someone hurt you?¡± Raucous laughter erupted from the beautiful but bratty mortal child but the Malfae did not react. Instead, it stole a glance at the strange eagle from the corner of its eyes.
The eagle was, apparently, observing the Malfae for its reaction and their eyes met. The Malfae averted its gaze post-haste as its body shivered once again. Seemingly satisfied at the Malfae¡¯s reaction, the strange eagle trilled as it chided the mortal child. The child pouted and complained but the eagled trilled once again and tapped the mortal child gently on his head.
The mortal boy patted his head and sulked as he sighed in resignation. ¡°Fine. Fine! I will practice with that ugly thing.¡±
Soon after, the Malfae received a much-awaited notification.
Ting.
[Skill [Projection Lv.1] has levelled up to [Projection Lv.2]. Depth of shared intent has been increased.]
0.0
¡°Here¡¯s your reward.¡± The majestic woman flicked her finger towards an earthen cage that had been brought in by one of her guards. The creature glanced at the cage before it clamped down on the trembling of its limbs and gingerly flew to the earthen box. It peeked through to the bars to look inside and was greeted with the sight of a wiggling starfish.
The creature glanced at the majestic woman and when she nodded, the creature activated its Skill, [Malfae Shield]. The Malfae¡¯s act of seeking permission caused the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s lips to twitch into a small smile.
Meanwhile, the [Malfae Shield] shimmered into existence and the [Hive Monarch] opened the shield¡¯s wings and sent it flying past the bars and stabbed into the creature. The starfish reared back in pain and its wiggling limbs found the Malfae shield before wrapping around it. The aquatic creature then squeezed the shield and shattered it like glass.
The Malfae frowned and activated its Skills. ¡®[Malfae Shield]. [Venom Creation].¡¯
The [Hive Monarch] coated the shield in its venom and sent it through the bars once again. The starfish was vigilant though and it used its various limbs to block the path of the shield. The Malfae tried to manoeuvre the shield back to where the starfish had been hurt previously but it found the wound had already healed.
¡®Regeneration factor of some sort. Just great.¡¯ The Malfae scowled and stabbed the open wings of the shield into the wriggling limbs of the starfish. It then dismissed the shimmering shield and summoned another, which it coated similarly with its venom.
The Malfae repeated its strategy a couple of times until the effects of its venom became so pronounced that the multi-limbed creature began to thrash around due to its hallucination. With the starfish no longer vigilant and cognizant of its actions, the Malfae stabbed the aquatic creature with its shield and cut off all its limbs.
Yet, the stubborn starfish refused to die and its stumps even showed signs of regeneration.
The Malfae¡¯s blood raced and its massive ears grew hot as its face twisted. It sent its venom laden shield back into the cage and began chopping the remaining, almost circular, stump into pieces.
It was only after the amount of venom overcame the starfish¡¯s natural regeneration that the aquatic creature died and the Malfae was rewarded with a slew of notifications.
Ting.
Ting.
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! The level up bonus of +3 HP and +3 MP granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Malfae Shield Lv.10] had levelled up to [Malfae Shield Lv.11]. Damage absorption has been increased to 220 points. The cost has been increased to 110 MP.]
0.0You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
Killing the starfish monster had pushed the Malfae¡¯s Level up to 57. Thus, when the Malfae was escorted back to its cell, it was happy enough that it would have skipped if it had been a mortal. But as it was not a mortal, it didn¡¯t.
However, its arrival at its cell was greeted not by the blessed silence that it so desired but by the sound of slaps, thrusts, slams, poundings, cries, grunts and the low-pitched moans. The noises left the creature extremely annoyed. ¡®[Projection].¡¯
Irritation.
The sound of gurgling laughter resounded the moment its emotion was transmitted. An unnatural sound. It was hoarse and ugly as if the throat that had made the unnatural sound had been ripped apart at one time and hadn¡¯t healed correctly. The sound fell on the Malfae¡¯s massive ears and seemed to linger, haunting the immortal as the creature¡¯s scalp tingled and goosebumps erupted on its skin.
Anger.
The laughter increased even more before the sound of thrusting paused and muted thumps echoed out as the woman seemed to let out gasps. The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed then and something hit the wall with a thud.
A man¡¯s roar resounded and the creature cancelled its Skill with a sigh. ¡®I am not going to get any peace tonight.¡¯
0.0
Time passed and the days turned into night. The nights turned to weeks and the weeks turned to months. All the while, the creature worked endlessly with the beautiful mortal child, under the careful supervision of the strange eagle.
The hard work of the Malfae bore it quite a few fruits as the Malfae and the beautiful mortal child continued to Level up their respective [Projection] Skills. The Malfae reached Level 7 in the Skill while the beautiful but bratty mortal child reached Level 8. The Skill Level ups also brought rewards from the [Monster Tamer], in the forms of high Levelled monsters, which resulted in the [Hive Monarch] Levelling past the 60s, the 70s and finally into the 80s.
Under the constant and violent punishment doled out by the [Monster Tamer], even the creature¡¯s [Pain Resistance] had hit the Level Limit as it reached Level 15 while [Moulting] reached Level 10. But this had not been the only Skill to have Levelled up in this time as even the creature¡¯s [Domination Resistance] had Levelled up to Level 13.
Initially, the creature had been confused about the reason for the unforeseen Level up. However, it had come to realise that resisting the domination of its instincts to hibernate had been what had pushed the Skill to Level up.
Meanwhile, the creature had gotten increasingly irritated by the noises that seem to always come from its neighbour¡¯s cell. It had even complained about it to the [Monster Tamer] but the woman had backhanded it instead. From what the creature had been able to understand, while it had fought off dizziness, the woman had been displeased by the creature daring to ask her to solve its personal problems.
It sounded like a lot of nonsense to the [Hive Monarch] but it was not like the creature could argue with the majestic but lunatic woman. And just like that another 2 months passed by, leaving the Malfae with less than 2 months in its lifespan.
0.0
The [Hive Monarch] woke up to the sound of its neighbour¡¯s voice. ¡°It should be approaching.¡±
The groggy creature shook itself in annoyance but did not bother to reply to the woman. It supported itself with its weak and aching limbs and walked over to the nearby water dish to wash its face.
¡°You should be careful in the next couple of weeks, little monster.¡±
The cold water broke the creature out of its haze and its pupil-less eyes opened wide. The greyed eyes that had once been endlessly dark gazed at the wall that separated it from its neighbour. The creature thought over the words of the woman once again and sighed. ¡®Just why is she spouting nonsense first thing in the morning? [Projection].¡¯
Drowsiness.
Lethargy.
Annoyance.
Curiosity.
¡°Did I wake you up? My apologies.¡± The woman answered with a voice way too mirthful to be apologetic. ¡°Did the little monster sleep well? Should I have sung a lullaby perhaps?¡±
The creature closed its eyes and rubbed them softly. ¡®It is too early for her brand of crazy.¡¯
Nostalgia.
Curiosity.
Drowsiness.
¡°Tch. At least pretend to take the bait for your only friend.¡± The woman chided. ¡°Let me have some joy in life, will you?¡±
The Malfae did not bother to respond to that particular nonsense. Instead, it waited for the woman to get to the point. As she had woken it up early in the morning, the creature doubted it was for something as pointless as joy. And indeed, the woman continued after a few moments.
¡°Tch. Tch. You shouldn¡¯t know me so well.¡± The woman seemed to sigh. ¡°The [Monster Tamer]¡¯s Skill should be losing effect in the next couple of weeks. Be prepared for her to renew the Skill.¡±
The creature¡¯s blood began to race faster as its weakened heart paced. All its drowsiness disappeared at the chambermaid¡¯s words.
Helplessness.
Fight back.
How?
Rather than simply projecting emotions, with which it was much more comfortable, the creature projected intentions with its Level 7 [Projection].
¡°Just continue to act as you have been.¡± The woman replied casually as if her revelations had not just stirred up the Malfae¡¯s life. ¡°The [Monster Tamer] should renew her Skill long before it actually ends. Therefore, your behaviour should not turn antagonistic as the Skill time limit approaches.¡±
Helplessness.
Actions.
What?
The creature bombarded the woman with its intentions.
¡°Hmm? Simply act as you normally would.¡± The woman answered nonchalantly before she paused for a moment and then scoffed. ¡°And prepare yourself mentally to start worshipping them again.¡±
The creature scowled at the flippant tone of the woman.
Importance.
Safety.
Must!
The woman remained quiet for a few moments, likely puzzling the message of the Malfae from within its vague intentions. ¡°You are worried about it, aren¡¯t you?¡±
Agreement.
¡°Why would you do something that useless?¡± The woman¡¯s flippant reply did not help the creature¡¯s frustrations but the woman ignored the projected irritation. ¡°It¡¯s not as if the effect of her Skill is particularly strong on you. In fact, it is quite the opposite.¡±
The creature scowled but stopped projecting irritation at the woman.
¡°But this is not important at the moment.¡± The woman announced and the creature almost went apoplectic with rage. Its mind being manipulated wasn¡¯t important? The very thought enraged it.
¡°What is important is your upcoming slavery.¡± Though as the woman continued to speak the creature restrained itself.
Restrained Fury.
Irritation.
Violence.
.
.
.
Confusion.
The woman scoffed at the various negative emotions projected by the immortal and simply ignored them. ¡°Do you know the fate of tamed monsters?¡±
The creature¡¯s brows furrowed but it remained silent as it pondered over the woman¡¯s question.
Ignorance.
It finally projected.
¡°Death.¡± The woman announced. ¡°Nothing but death awaits tamed monsters.¡±
¡bafflement.
¡befuddlement.
Bewilderment.
¡°A monster is enslaved for a purpose that is none but one.¡± The woman spoke but her voice almost seemed like a melody. ¡°Fight the monster shall its kind. And fight it shall till its last breath. For the monster that is enslaved, its purpose is thus.¡±
¡°Yet if the monster survives its master somehow.¡± The woman almost sang with mirth dancing in her voice. ¡°Let death be its reward for mercy there is none.¡±
The Malfae¡¯s blood chilled.
0.0
The days came and the days went by as weeks passed. The woman¡¯s words proved themselves to be true and the [Monster Tamer] renewed [Thought Alignment] on the Malfae. However, contrary to the [Hive Monarch]¡¯s expectations the process didn¡¯t turn out to be as much of a nightmare as it had been dreading. It could even be argued that the event was less than eventful.
With the renewal of the Skill, the Malfae had once again worshipped not only the two mortals but also the very ground they had walked on. The woman had once again become a mortal whose majesty made her seem larger than life. This majesty of hers declared her the ruler of the world. Her son on the other hand, once again become the most beautiful child to have ever existed. The mortal child had seemed perfect in every way and even his bratty nature had seemed adorable to the Malfae.
Though, much akin to the previous turn of events, the effects of the Skill had decreased day by day under the effect of the Malfae¡¯s [Domination Resistance]. The effects of the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s Skill had decreased until the Malfae had once again realised its thoughts for the delusions that they were. Yet, the Malfae¡¯s [Domination Resistance] had been unable the cancel the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s Skill itself. It had merely decreased its effects.
As a result, the Malfae still considered the green-clad woman¡¯s spawn to be a beautiful child, when it had no reason to think so. And still considered the woman herself as a majestic mortal, when it should have nothing but disdain for mortals.
During this time, as the [Survivor] continued to Level up the mortal child¡¯s Skill, the Malfae was provided with the monsters to kill and Level. Hence, the Malfae¡¯s Level crossed over into the 90s and reached 93. However, the creature was soon forced to stop its speed Levelling as the [Monster Tamer] began giving it deadlines that were impossible for it to achieve.
There was no way that the creature could force the mortal child¡¯s Skill to Level up from 9 to 10 in a mere 4 days. It had taken the creature an entire week to push it past just Level 5!
The [Hive Monarch] understood the intention of the woman though. It knew that the [Monster Tamer] wanted to stifle its growth and make it beg for more monsters. It knew that this act of the green-clad woman was nothing more than another powerplay.
The creature, obviously, did not know just how wrong it was. Thus, the creature was prepared to beg as it had no problem with begging. However, it knew that the majestic woman would not have stifled the Malfae¡¯s growth if she had any intention of changing her mind.
The creature felt bitter about it but there was little it could do. It definitely did not want to voice its thoughts and have its limbs crushed once again. It received that particular punishment almost regularly already. It had no intention of giving the green-clad woman any more reason than the ones she imagined at a moment¡¯s notice.
0.0
Divyaaditi sat beside her husband as he handed Surya a massive scroll of cloth.
¡°What is this?¡± The boy asked in his high-pitched voice and his nose scrunched adorably. He barely handled the scroll that was a length that was more than half his own height.
¡°This is an Inheritance Scroll for the Spell [Stimulate],¡± Sagar answered as his deep voice resounded across the massive room. ¡°Go on. Use it.¡±
Surya eyed the massive scroll in his arms from the corner of his eyes and then glanced at her as if asking for permission. The woman nodded and the child began unfolding the scroll. ¡°A Spell? Really?!¡±
The exchange between the mother and the son was not missed by Sagar, the father, but he made no mention of it. The fact that his authority over their son stood lower than his wife¡¯s, was not news to him. Instead, the man smiled encouragingly at the boy.
The boy unfurled the cloth scroll to reveal a blank golden fabric. The scroll was entirely blank with not even a single dot on the golden fabric. Suryaakaruna placed his small hand on the fabric and a notification appeared before him.
Ting.
[Do you wish to activate the Spell Inheritance Scroll [Stimulate]?]
[Yes] ??????[No]
¡®Yes.¡¯ The moment the boy finished his thought, the golden scroll glowed azure for a moment before dissolving into dust. The golden dust formed a small cloud before it landed on the boy and covered him like a second layer of skin. Then, in another moment, the golden dust melted and was absorbed into the child¡¯s skin.
Ting.
[Spell [Stimulate Lv.1] granted.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 70
With black hair so long that it almost touched the floor, and black robes that stood in contrast to his original white ones, Kiran walked through the halls of the prison that housed his chambermaid.
With strength that had remained almost unchanged, but with the [Intelligence] that had decreased significantly, the fallen [Shishya] crossed cells after cells as he ignored the denizens within. The naked form of the women and their captivity eluded a vulnerability that spoke to him, but they were not his destination.
With [Wisdom] and [Reason] almost halved and [Will] lost in its entirety, the dead hope of an entire clan arrived at his destination and the sound of his footsteps died. This destination was a cell that contained a specific chambermaid.
As if sensing his arrival, the stone bars of the cell dissolved and allowed him entry. No doubt the work of the permission ward-stone he carried. Kiran stepped forward and the sound of his footsteps echoed. But it was not the man that spoke but the chambermaid.
¡°In the darkness of the night, walk the dead on a deserted road, ignorant of their own death.¡± Her feminine voice made the fallen ascetic¡¯s body react in ways that he found both pleasant and abhorrent.
His dark face twisted and he snarled. He stalked forward with large steps and grabbed the woman¡¯s face within his huge palms. His fingers dug into her cheeks and chin but the only emotion in her dead eyes was disdain.
¡°What did you say?¡± He lowered his voice to whisper harshly, perhaps he had meant to growl like an animal. He increased the power of his grasp then and his nails broke the woman¡¯s skin to dig in. ¡°What did you say?!¡±
¡°Did you not hear me?¡± The woman¡¯s nonchalant voice escaped from her jaws which remained clenched in his palm. ¡°Or do you just want to hear more of my voice?¡±
His fingers trembled, wanting to crush the mouth that dared mock him, but he didn¡¯t. After all, he could no longer heal if he harmed her beyond what her body could stand.
The woman raised a dainty hand and gently patted the long black hair of the fallen ascetic. ¡°Even shame could possess such beauty, I had not known.¡± She said as her soft voice lingered. A moment passed and then she began to laugh.
The sound of her laugh, unlike her voice, was hideous. It arose not from her heart and throat but seemed to arise from her stomach and hate. The sound of her revolting laugh almost seemed to cause bile to rise in the back of one''s throat.
But the repulsive sound had the opposite effect on the long-haired man and his body reacted out of his control. His crotch became alert and his free hand found one of the woman¡¯s breast and he squeezed without mercy.
¡°You cursed woman!¡± He spat. Quite literally and the flying glob of spit landed on the woman¡¯s face.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
¡°Cursed I am, yes.¡± The woman said as the glob of spit slid down her face and her eyes met Kiran''s. The black-clad man saw nothing in them, it was as if they were the eyes of the dead. ¡°But a woman I am not.¡±
The man laughed. The laugh resounded in the tiny cell and spoke of nothing but madness. ¡°Is that so?¡± He asked and his eyes narrowed. His face twisted into a cruel version of itself. Or perhaps, it was the true version of itself.
Meanwhile, he released her breast and his hand snaked down her body until it reached the woman¡¯s crotch. If it had been anyone else but her, they would have shivered in disgust. But the woman did not and her eyes remained as dead as ever.
Kiran¡¯s finger penetrated her crotch to grab her by it and his low growl seemed to resonate with her flesh. ¡°This. What is this then?!¡±
The woman did not reply and the man dropped his robes as he invaded her flesh with his own.
What came after was not something unfamiliar to the woman. She had lost count of the number of times that she had gone through the same. She counted not anymore, the number of times she would go through the same in the future.
0.0
The body of a woman lay alone in a cell, covered in blood and other bodily fluid that were better left unsaid. Viscous white globs slid down his body, made slippery by the blood that covered it.
The woman¡¯s breathing was ragged and his body was brutally beaten. His flesh was covered in bite marks as if an animal had unsuccessfully tried to eat him alive.
But the woman cared not for any of that and his eyebrows furrowed, the bruised skin of his forehead crinkled and his closed eyes squinted as an ethereal card began to take shape within his Mana System, right where his heart should have been.
The card was white with a blood hibiscus etched right in the centre. Its bright red petals countered the white, meanwhile, its pistil emerging from within the depth of the blood flower fell like the tongue of a serpent.
At that moment, the card finished manifesting its first face and flipped to showcase the other, which etched itself within the woman¡¯s Mana System.
This side of the card was quite different from its other one. This face was white. Not white. Just white. It was the white of the dying flowers and dirtied marbles. It was the white of the decaying bones and the white of the muddy waterfalls.
Within this washed-out white was the frame of a mortal male in the colour that was the bright azure of the mana itself. The figure was bound and chained in such a way that its limbs stuck out in positions that were not natural. The nearly glowing azure figure of the mortal and his chains seemed almost alive on the backdrop of the dull white.
It was just as the card had almost finished manifesting itself that it collapsed as its ethereal boundaries shattered and dissolved back into the Mana System of the woman.
The woman panted and gasped as he opened his bloodshot eyes.
¡°¡soon.¡± His feminine voice gasped out. ¡°¡soon.¡±
Ting.
[Attribute [Will] has been increased by 1.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 71
The Malfae woke up to its body protesting against itself. Its joints hurt and flesh ached while its back shed its white hair and skin sagged. Even its bones felt week and limbs lacked energy. Its eyelids fluttered and a sigh escaped its tired blue lips.
Despite the [Reincarnated]¡¯s best efforts to forget, it was reminded of its age and the remaining minuscule lifespan. It summoned its Status and its eyes fell on the 2-digit Lifespan written on the blue screen. ¡®20 days.¡¯
It let out a sigh and painfully summoned the energy to push itself up as its knees and joints protested the decision. Its dull eyes scanned its Status and the [Hive Monarch]''s hairless brows furrowed as its gaze fell on [Projection]. The Skill had reached Level 10, for both the creature and the mortal boy. ¡®Will she go back on her word?¡¯
Its concern wasn''t invalid as the majestic woman had yet to mention its promised evolution. The [Survivor] had wanted to bring it up quite a few times, but its limited communication ability had proved itself a hindrance. Or perhaps, the woman had pretended to not comprehend its limited communication.
The Malfae wouldn¡¯t have known either way.
0.0
The old monster was brought before the [Monster Tamer] and her son once more. The moment it entered the room though, it noticed the scent of something that seemed to elude a hidden danger.
The Malfae waited not a moment more as it activated its Skill [Sense] and immediately its antennas twitched as they caught the scent of salt, sea and fish. It would have preferred to use [Sense Essence] but with the green-clad woman present, it didn¡¯t dare to.
Its eyes fell on the earthen cage which was almost half the length of a fully grown mortal. The cage was placed in the centre of the room and the [Survivor]¡¯s antennas twitched towards it. Sea, humidity and predator. Whatever existed in the cage was not as simple as its last few kills.
The [Hive Monarch] frowned as it finished observing the earthen cage. Unlike the previous versions of the cage, this cage was not just made of stone bars, instead, it was shaped like a solid box.
¡°Right on time.¡± The [Monster Tamer]''s feminine voice broke its observation and it turned its head to face the majestic woman. ¡°Here¡¯s your reward.¡±
It hesitated for a moment before it activated its newest Skill. ¡®[Projection].¡¯
Danger.
¡°Oh?¡± The green-clad woman blinked in surprise. ¡°Ah yes, you do possess [Sense]. Little wonder you sensed it. This Third-Tier monster should Level you up to Level 100.¡±
The [Survivor]''s eyes widened and its head swirled to bore into the earthen cage. It visibly gulped.
¡°Don¡¯t dawdle now.¡± The majestic woman ordered and it hesitantly took to the air before tentatively flying towards the earthen cage. As it hovered above the cage, it realized that the top of the cage was a mesh of bars, much like the previous cages had been. The Malfae squinted its eyes before it flew down to get a better look at the immortal that would become its prey.
The Malfae¡¯s eyes narrowed at the seawater within the cage before it noticed the form of a worm swimming within the cage. The worm was small, almost a third of a mortal¡¯s finger and was the colour of an eggshell. Despite its small size, the worm was fat and plump and almost seemed to exude juiciness. It was as if it had been designed to seem as delicious as possible.
The Malfae frowned and observed the inside of the cage once more but it found nothing except the worm. ¡®Is this really a thrice evolved creature? A worm?¡¯
It wanted to activate [Sense Essence] for it knew from her memories that little could hide from an Essence sensing Skill. Yet, it didn¡¯t dare to. It didn''t know if the majestic woman had any methods of detecting its Skill and it did not want to try its luck. It absolutely did not want to inform the woman that it had been able to successfully hide its Skills from her.
It feared not the majestic woman¡¯s punishment if she were to find out its gamble. Rather, it feared that the green-clad woman would force the Malfae to tell her all its Skills and Titles. Under no circumstance did the [Reincarnated] wanted to inform anyone of its Title, [Reincarnated].
Thus, the Malfae hovered in the air right above the cage, unsure of how to proceed. The plumpness and the juiciness of the worm were giving the Malfae a pause. The way the creature seemed delicious to the Malfae, without the [Hive Monarch] having ever tasted it, didn''t sit well with the winged immortal.
Ever since it had been reborn, the Malfae had never salivated for any creature. But right now, it had.
The [Hive Monarch] finally landed on the edge of the cage and decided to observe the worm for a few moments more. Though, as it continued to observe the creature in the water, its eyes narrowed.
The plump worm swam in the water, uncaring and nonchalant. The Malfae¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as it remembered its own panic and terror when it had been captured. This unbothered behaviour of the worm did not sit well with the [Hive Monarch]. The more it watched, the more its eyes narrowed.
Although the seemingly delicious worm swam nonchalantly within the cage, its movement seemed almost calculated. In whichever direction it swam, it seemed to go to a certain point before it returned. This certain point never changed. It never wavered. It was as if the worm could not move beyond that point. At that moment, the Malfae¡¯s eyes widened and it flew off the edge of the cage as it warily eyed the fat worm.
It hastily summoned a [Malfae shield] and as the shield shimmered into existence, the [Survivor] slammed it down hard onto the carelessly swimming plump worm.
The shield descended and it entered into the water with a loud splash. The shimmering shield cut through the water as it passed until it reached wiggling worm.
And then it passed through the seemingly juicy worm.
At that moment, two massive shells seemed to emerge from the bottom of the cage before they closed down on the worm and the [Malfae Shield] that had passed through it. The shells closed down with a loud clang and it felt the [Malfae Shield] shatter. Its tired heart almost skipped a beat and it turned to face the majestic woman with an expression on its face that a mortal would only describe as ¡®what the fuck?!¡¯.
The Malfae, however, decided against projecting its real thoughts.
Disbelief.
Danger.
How?
The green-clad woman raised an eyebrow but didn''t respond. She couldn¡¯t be bothered with such a minor issue.
The Malfae frowned as the monster within the water and seemingly crushed the contents of the shell. Following which the shells promptly dissipated and the Malfae blinked in surprise. ¡®Just what-?¡¯
At that moment, the creature within the water revealed itself as the floor of the cage shifted and the frame of clam the size of a mortal¡¯s arm became visible. As the clam moved, its colour changed.
What had been the intermixed dark shades of greys and browns, that had allowed the creature to blend in with the floor until it had almost disappeared, changed into a new colour that was somewhere in between white, yellow and rose.
Rays of light hit the immortal to disperse, leaving behind seven coloured shine on the extraordinarily smooth surface of the clam. The overall result, thus, was a shine that was quite similar to that of pearls. It was almost as if the shells of the clam had been made from massive pearls themselves.
The Malfae calmed its weak heart and furrowed its hairless eyebrows as it began to think. It flew back down and activated [Malfae Shield]. The blue shield shimmered into existence and the [Reincarnated] once again sent it slamming onto the clam. Though, much as it had expected, the shield simply shattered as it hit the shell.
The [Reincarnated]''s eyes narrowed and it summoned its Status. It eyed its Skill list, only to let out a tired sigh. ¡®This is going to be tiring.¡¯ The [Hive Monarch] flew down and landed on the edge of the cage before it activated [Venom Creation]. The clam, unknowing of the Skill the Malfae had used, summoned a set of shells, akin to its own, and sent them slamming onto the Malfae.
The Malfae stumbled in shock before it stabilised itself as the shell hit the stone mesh with full force, but it did not damage the stone any. The [Hive Monarch] had expected this, of course. If the clam¡¯s attacks had been able to damage the earthen cage, then the immortal would not be comfortable with being imprisoned in the cage.
The clam sent the shell again and again but the flying immortal ignored its prey''s movements and focused on the task at hand, which was to create as much venom as possible. It took a few moments, or rather quite a few moments, before the venom being ejected from its pores collected enough to form a drop which slid down.
The process was excruciatingly sluggish. It was so slow that the [Monster Tamer] considered summoning Singh Raj then and there to do the job in the Malfae¡¯s stead. However, the majestic woman didn¡¯t follow through with her impulse. Rather she scoffed and turned to leave. ¡°Let the monsters be.¡±
¡°Maybe the ugly monster is not going to kill the pretty one?¡± The high-pitched but hopeful voice of the beautiful mortal child echoed out and the green-clad woman paused.
¡°It will.¡± The woman quashed the child¡¯s hope. ¡°But I have not the patience for its incompetence.¡± The green-clad woman then left along with her son, leaving the two monsters alone. Not that the Malfae minded this development. It simply sat at the edge and continued to create its venom, drop by crop, to kill the clam one drop at a time.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
It took the Malfae hours. It took the [Hive Monarch] hours of [Venom Creation] during which the clam became increasingly, but uselessly, violent. It had initially kept count of time but had given it up after 7 hours.
As the clam finally died, the [Survivor] found itself soaked in venom, in much the same way mortals are soaked in sweat after an intense workout. Venom dripped down its chin and soaked every single strand of hair on its body.
¡®How,¡¯ a thought popped in its mind, ¡®anticlimactic.¡¯
The [Hive Monarch] glanced at the cage holding the clam and it sighed. Although the difference between the Malfae and the Clam had been of a single Tier, the [Hive Monarch] would not have been able to kill its prey had it not been caged. Instead, if this had been a battle in the wild, the one to find itself dead would have been the Malfae.
Although the [Survivor] was aware of this fact, at the moment, the Malfae cared not for it.
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.9] has levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.10]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 10 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Venom Creation Lv.10] has levelled up to [Venom Creation Lv.11]. The active time of the venom has been increased to 11 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.10] has reached [Sense Lv.11]. The active time of the Skill has been increased to 11 minutes.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Lv.11] has reached [Sense Lv.12]. The active time of the Skill has been increased to 12 minutes.]
Ting.
Ting.
.
.
.
.
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! The level up bonus of +3 HP and +3 MP granted.]
Ting.
[You have reached Level 100. Your current Vessel cannot Level Up further. Your current Vessel cannot evolve further. Extra experience lost. Consider changing your [Species].]
0.0
¡°So, you were finally allowed to reach Level 100.¡± The feminine voice of the chambermaid called out to the Malfae after its escort had left the prison. ¡°Feeding a starving dog, little by little, to keep it hungry and tame. Tch. How cruel.¡±
¡°But then, you are a monster.¡± The woman continued, unheeding her audience¡¯s response. ¡°Hence it matters not, I suppose.¡±
The Malfae''s brows furrowed as the woman initiated a conversation once again. The woman had grown more and more chatty as the weeks had passed and the forced conversations had now become quite a bother to the creature.
It did not get time to consider more as the woman broached a subject that she knew the immortal would not ignore. ¡°You would be tamed soon. Have you thought of a method to deal with your approaching death?¡±
The creature scowled and activated its Skill. ¡®[Projection].¡¯
Annoyance.
Frustration.
defeat.
¡°Hmm.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was low as if she was lost in her own thoughts. Meanwhile, the [Survivor] frowned as it waited for the woman to continue the conversation.
But she didn¡¯t.
0.0
¡°Little monster. Wake up. Wake up now.¡± The woman called out late into the night and awakened the Malfae just as it had begun to slip into slumber, irritating it greatly. After all, in its old age, deep slumbers were like long lost friends. They seldom met.
The tired [Reincarnated] sat up, not just a little groggy but also immensely irritated. As its weary eyes scanned its cell and then the corridor, it noticed the soft light of the azure moon filtering through the mesh windows in the corridor. It shivered.
It averted its gaze and its eyes fell on the wall that separated it from its neighbour. It scowled. ¡®[Projection].¡¯
Immense Frustration.
Importance.
Must.
¡°How the monsters are killed, after their Tamers die, have you found this out yet?¡± The woman asked but before the Malfae could even form a response, the woman continued. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you would have. Such things are secrets hidden from even the most trusted monsters.¡±
It hissed in annoyance. ¡®If she knew the answer to the question, why did she even ask in the first place?¡¯
Essence.
What?
¡°After a monster is tamed, a permanent tracking magic is cast on it, resulting in the creation of a Tracking Scroll.¡± The woman seemingly ignored the creature¡¯s question. ¡°It is through this Scroll that most monsters meet their deaths.¡±
¡°Of course, this is not what the Monsters are told.¡± The woman did not wait for it to reply. ¡°For what the monsters are told is not important. After all, most tamers with the [Pact] Skill can track their tamed monsters.¡±
It blinked.
¡°Same fate will await you if your tamer dies before you.¡± The woman paused as she finally gave the Malfae the time to process the information and ask questions.
But the Malfae remained quiet.
¡°I mention this today,¡± the woman¡¯s voice was soft, almost a whisper but not quite, ¡°I mention this today to offer you a way to escape your death.¡±
It didn''t reply as it gave the wall separating them a contemplative look. It was as if its gaze saw through the wall and even saw the woman herself.
The Malfae wasn''t surprised by the woman¡¯s offer. It had been suspicious of her ever since she had begun chatting with it. It had been even more suspicious when she had started that friend nonsense.
As it continued to remain quiet, the woman spoke up again. ¡°Whether you believe me or not, I am your only way forward. Only with my help can you survive.¡±
The Malfae scoffed. It had managed to survive by itself just fine. It had survived through the high mana zone while it had been so utterly dominated that it had had to crawl. And still, it had survived. What did this two-bit prisoner know of its survival?
Doubt.
Mockery.
Suspicion.
¡°You don¡¯t believe me?¡± The woman¡¯s voice, surprisingly, became high pitched in clear astonishment. She paused for a moment to clear her throat before she continued. ¡°Even after everything that I have told you, you still don¡¯t trust me?¡±
Trust? This mortal? The [Hive Monarch] didn¡¯t have a death wish. She had an agenda that she had told the Malfae nothing about and she talked of trust? What nonsense.
The Malfae didn¡¯t even know if what the woman had said were truths or just elaborate stories.
None.
Absolutely none.
The woman laughed and her high-pitched voice seemed to echo in their rather empty prison. The sound of her laugh was ugly like bleeding pus as it spoke of bitterness and hate rather than joy and mirth. It bored into the creature¡¯s ears.
¡°Very well.¡± She finally acknowledged. ¡°It is my fault for willing to trust a monster. Tell me oh great immortal, what would it take for you to help me?¡±
Assistance?
What.
¡°You possess [Sense Essence] and [Mana Manipulation], don¡¯t you?¡± The woman spoke without even a hint of hesitation. ¡°I need you to use those Skills to loosen the bindings on my mana.¡±
An amused expression appeared on the Malfae¡¯s face. Why would it do something so stupid? And that too after the woman had implied that the creature would be unable to be flippant with her if she had access to her mana. It hadn''t forgotten that its neighbour possessed a Tier 2 Skill of the [Monster Tamer] path. Thus, it took the creature not even a moment to come to its decision.
No.
The woman chuckled, not at all surprised by its decision. It was as if she had been expecting the creature¡¯s answer. ¡°Don¡¯t be so quick to refuse, little monster. I have much to offer you, should you decide to work with me.¡±
The creature furrowed its brows as it hesitated for a moment before it projected.
What.
¡°While you do possess [Mana Manipulation], that particular Skill is almost useless without its Spell counterpart, [Mana Manifestation].¡± The woman voice seemed to contain hidden mirth. ¡°Which you cannot learn, being a monster that you are.¡±
It scowled but it was of little consequence as the woman could not see its expression. Instead, the woman continued. ¡°I can help you make use of your skill and teach you the work around the Spell that you are forbidden from learning.¡±
The creature¡¯s furrowed brows slacked and it scoffed as it projected. No.
¡°Of course, that is not all that I offer.¡± The woman¡¯s voice remained unbothered as ever. ¡°In the process of helping me, both of your Skills shall Level up quite significantly. But that is just an unintended benefit. Once you help me, I shall destroy your Tracking Scroll and kill your Tamer. I will help you escape.¡±
The [Survivor] audibly scoffed.
Kill that beautiful child? As if this woman would ever get past the majestic green-clad woman that was the boy¡¯s sire. What nonsense was she spouting? Did she even know what she was talking about? The creature very much doubted it.
No.
The Malfae¡¯s refusal, this time, made the woman pause.
¡°Do you-¡± she frowned as she spoke, though her voice now contained the doubt that had been missing since she had dropped her act, "-not wish to be free?¡±
Nonsense.
What.
¡°Then why?!¡± The woman¡¯s voice suddenly became high pitched as she seemed to lose her sanity for a moment. ¡°Why would you not cooperate?!¡±
Suspicion.
Distrust.
Doubt.
¡°You don¡¯t trust me?¡± The woman¡¯s voice became strange for a moment before the wall in-between the cells resounded with multiple thud sounds as she woman slammed her fist down on it. She shrieked. ¡°And you trust her!? Do you!!¡±
The Malfae ignored her and cancelled its Skill.
¡°You!¡± The woman shrieked as her sanity seemed to have disappeared. ¡°Tell me! Why did you distrust me?! Tell me!¡±
The creature thought for a moment to ignore the woman¡¯s question before it decided to answer and activated [Projection].
Control.
Submission.
Obedience.
Monster.
Taming.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 72
The surface of the ocean rippled and the old man standing within the water scowled. He observed the water which danced on the ocean surface.
As the grey-haired man¡¯s scowl deepened, the ice dancing along with water, melted in an instant and water fell back into the ocean, lifeless. And just like that, the dance of the water and ice came to an abrupt end.
The corpse of the creature, which had been placed at the centre of the dance floor, began to burn from the inside out before finally turning into ashes in a matter of few moments.
A sigh fell into the grey-robed old man¡¯s ears and his eyes narrowed in disgruntlement. He hadn¡¯t wanted to do this in the first place. But now that he was doing it, he had to suffer through her disrespect for it?
¡°Failed again?¡± The woman spoke as she massaged her temples. Her voice was tired and she looked up and her gaze fell on the old man but before she could continue, the bearded old man sent a sharp look to the green-clad woman standing on the beach and her words died in her throat.
¡°What else did you expect?!¡± The brown-eyed old man snapped. ¡°I am no ritualist or enchanter. I am a [Ward Smith]!¡±
The old man had always had a rather light fuse on his temper; the same fuse that had been blown off after the repeated failures of the ritual that he had been asked to perform without any prior knowledge.
[Monster Tamer]''s words had been just the trigger he needed to take his frustrations out on her. Given the fact that she had been the one who had requested this ridiculous task of him, he felt little pity.
¡°Asking a [Ward Smith] to perform a ritual? Do you think both are the same?¡± The old man scolded as he kept the green-clad woman pinned under a sharp look. ¡°I was magnanimous enough to agree to your ridiculous request, yet you show me contempt? Such insolence!¡±
¡°You misunderstand-¡±
¡°Silence!¡± The man snapped and the woman winced. But the man did not stop his grumblings. ¡°No matter your lineage, you should respect your elders. Even more so to the ones you request assistance from. I had already Tiered-up before you were even born. Yet you dare to show impertinence? Such daring!¡±
¡°Maharaja@ Bandhan, I didn''t-¡±
¡°Did I allow you to speak?¡± The man¡¯s gruff voice resounded and the woman¡¯s voice, once again, died in her throat. She pursed her lips and breathed deeply before deciding to speak no more.
The old man continued to grumble for a few more minutes before he barked. ¡°Bring the next carcass!¡±
The woman breathed deeply before she nodded and activated her Tier 3 Skill. ¡°[Essence Space].¡±
AS she activated her Skill, a glow emanated from her body before it began condensing in front of her in the form of a monster carcass. A moment passed and the glow vanished, leaving behind a carcass almost the size of the woman''s arm.
¡°Drag it here.¡± The older man ordered, and the woman complied without hesitation.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
¡°Be ready Pratibimba#!¡± The man called out and a small being poked its head out of the water. The being seemed almost like a cross in between a fish and a lizard.
The being was about the size of a mortal¡¯s palm and had black eyes at the side of its head. But that was not all that was strange about the being. For as one gazed upon the being, one would get the bizarre feeling that the being was unreal, despite the flesh it possessed. Its edges blended with the world around it.
If one were well acquainted with the various creatures of nature, they would recognise that the being had a shape that was quite similar to that of a mudskipper.
The mudskipper nodded at the old man, with a mannerism that was quite mortal, before diving back into the ocean.
The old man nodded as he began the process all over again. ¡°[Mana Manifestation]. [Mana Manipulation]!¡±
The surface of the ocean rippled as a ring of water rose above the ocean surface. The water ring was massive and spanned at least the length of two mortals, with the old man standing just outside the perimeter.
The old man turned and, along with him, the ring of water moved. The old man kept on turning and the ring kept on moving until the ring reached the monster carcass and enclosed it within.
The grey-robed man moved one last time and adjusted the water ring until the carcass was right in the centre. The old man nodded with furrowed brows before he called out. ¡°[Mana Binding].¡±
The water and the air, both, rippled as the water rose from the ocean once again and began forming shapes that began from the centre of the circle, raced towards the perimeter and then turned back towards the centre, where the monster carcass lay.
¡°Pratibimba!¡± At that moment, the older man¡¯s eyes narrowed and he called out to the mudskipper. ¡°Freeze it now.¡±
The water within the lake froze, in but a moment. A moment before it had flowed and churned but, in the next, it had turned to ice. The old man¡¯s narrowed eyes observed the pattern of ice before he called out. ¡°[Intent Creation]!¡±
Nothing changed as the brown-eyed man¡¯s Skill activated, but clearly, something had happened as the older man nodded and mana poured out of him and into the ice-ring.
As the mana finished pouring, the man stepped back and watched his work come alive.
The ice within the frozen ring began moving and as it moved, the monster carcass within it began to bubble as if it were not made of flesh and shell but thick, gooey liquid.
The bubbling shell began to fall off the carcass, in pieces and droves, revealing the pink flesh, one chunk at a time. The bubbling continued and the shell continued to bubble and fall until all that remained was nothing but a small mass of flesh.
The man did not recognise what part of the monster¡¯s biology it was and neither did he care. Instead, his attention was occupied by the moving ice within the froze ring.
The pink mass of flesh rose above the surface of the ocean water and hovered in the air, for a moment, before it too began to melt. The flesh lost its shape and what had once been solid became pink soupy liquid.
But the change did not stop there as the liquid continued to change. The pink of the liquid slowly began to fade and the consistency of the liquid began to loosen as it was stretched and moulded by the bound mana of the ice-ring.
The change continued for a few moments more before it finally stopped, revealing a clear watery liquid hovering in the air.
¡°Take your elixir.¡± The old man turned away from the ice ring and began to leave. ¡°And don¡¯t bother me with such worthless pursuits in the future!¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Maharaja@: Merely a respectful form of address. Literally means king of kings but not exactly an emperor. The old man is neither a king nor an emperor.
Pratibimba#: Name of the mudskipper. It means Reflection.
Chapter 73
Ting.
[Skill [Mana Manipulation Lv.11] has levelled up to [Mana Manipulation Lv.12]. Your understanding of mana has increased.]
The creature opened its eyes and promptly, its body fell back, out of its control. The creature¡¯s head hit the floor and a newfound wave of pain erupted in his head. ¡®Uh.¡¯
The Malfae did not dare move on the floor. It massaged its greyed eyes and wrinkled head, which felt like it was being split open on an axe. This pain, of course, was not the result of the fall. Rather, it was the result of merging its consciousness with its mana. As the creature continued to massage its wrinkled forehead, it felt its thin hair give up and fall. Its eyes fell on its hand and the strands of weak hair hanging from it.
It sighed. ¡®¡twelve days. Just 12 days remain¡¡¯
As the creature pondered its approaching death, its reverie was broken by a feminine voice. ¡°Little monster.¡±
The Malfae frowned at the voice and activated its Skill, [Projection]. This was the first time the woman had spoken since her offer, which had been almost a week ago. During this time, its Skill [Moulting] had continued to Level under the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s abuse to reach Level 11.
¡°You fear the Skill of the [Monster Tamer] path.¡± The woman said before she paused. She breathed deeply for a moment before she continued. ¡°What if-¡±
The woman choked and paused. She breathed once more to steady herself and then she breathed again. ¡°What if I could get rid of that Skill?¡±
¡®Eh?¡¯ The creature¡¯s forehead furrowed and its eyes narrowed in confusion. It did not know that such a thing was even possible.
Confusion.
Curiosity.
¡°There exists a process in the mortal world.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was soft as if a whisper. ¡°It removes a Skill from one¡¯s Status and creates a Scroll that can impart that Skill on anyone. This scroll is called an Inheritance Scroll.¡±
¡°My Skill,¡± the woman paused as she gulped before she breathed to settle herself, ¡°I will create an Inheritance Scroll for it.¡±
The [Reincarnated] paused for a moment as it pondered over the woman¡¯s proposal. This woman was treacherous. The creature knew this because she promised things that she could not deliver. She was conniving. The creature had noticed that in their very first meeting.
Thus, the creature made its decision.
No.
¡°What!¡± The previously soft voice became sharp as she squawked. ¡°Why!¡±
Gain.
None.
Danger.
Death.
The woman¡¯s eyebrow furrowed before she slowly said. ¡°I will give you the Inheritance Scroll.¡±
The creature scoffed. Give it the Inheritance Scroll for a Skill that allowed monsters to coexist alongside mortals? A mortal concept that might not even work for an immortal like it? But even if it were to work, the Skill would be one on the [Monster Tamer] path. To the Malfae that hadn¡¯t even been able to manage drones, the woman wanted to give a Skill that required it to work with actual sapient creatures?
No.
The wall separating them resounded with a thud as the woman slammed her fists on it. ¡°Why!?¡±
Immortal.
Taming.
Use.
None.
With her voice was low and rough, almost akin to an animal¡¯s growl, the woman asked with gritted teeth. ¡°What do you want then?¡±
Gain.
None.
¡°Tell me then!¡± The woman slammed her fist on the wall again. ¡°What do you want?¡±
The question paused the Malfae¡¯s thoughts for a moment. What did it want from the woman? Anything and everything that the woman had offered had either been intangible or out of her capability to deliver or entirely useless. It could not think of anything that it wanted from the woman.
Want.
None.
Use.
None.
Worthless.
0.0
The Malfae stood on a wooden stand while being scrutinised by the majestic woman that was the [Monster Tamer]. The green-clad woman sat on a chair that was less a chair and more a throne, which somehow made perfect sense in the Malfae¡¯s Skill meddled brain.
Besides the majestic woman stood her beautiful son. An exquisite boy who was a [Monster Handler], a Class that was the first step on the path of [Monster Tamer]. He stood with his cheeks puffed, arms crossed and his palms clenched into fists.
The majestic woman ignored the angry child as she took out a glass vial that seemed to contain nothing but clear water and placed it in front of the Malfae. ¡°Here is your evolution.¡±
The Malfae¡¯s eyes lingered at the majestic woman for a moment before its gaze fell on the vial and it frowned. The glass vial spanned the length of a mortal finger. The same length that was the height of the Malfae. The [Survivor] hesitated as it stepped towards the elixir but before it could reach the glass vial, a massive talon, almost the size of the Malfae, swept down from above and carried the elixir away.
The creature¡¯s head swirled in the direction of the thief and it found the culprit to be none other than the strange and unreal eagle, Garuda. The [Hive Monarch] sighed and shifted his gaze towards the woman before activating its Skill, [Projection].
¡°This is why one must always deal with intelligent monsters.¡± The green-clad majestic woman addressed her beautiful son. ¡°It knew not to go after the vial.¡±
The tone was patronising and it would have grated at the Malfae had the Malfae been a mortal. But as Malfae was Immortal, it cared not for it. Instead, it projected its intentions at the woman.
Necessity.
What.
¡°Nothing that should be new to you.¡± The woman answered nonchalantly. ¡°All I require is for you to become my son¡¯s tamed monster. Such a simple request, isn¡¯t it?¡±
The Malfae sighed internally but did not deny the woman¡¯s statement. As it was not a mortal, it could not become suicidal.
¡°It would not be a problem,¡± the woman¡¯s voice was low as she loomed over the tiny creature, ¡°¡would it?¡±
Agreement.
¡°Intelligence is such a precious gift.¡± The woman tilted back into her throne and made herself comfortable once again. ¡°I wish the gods were more generous with it.¡±
She turned to her son then, ¡°Go on. Use your Skill.¡±
The beautiful child glared at the woman for a moment before it did as it was told.
Ting.
[Mortal Suryaakaruna Pashupati has initiated a Tamed Creature contract. The mortal has offered resources and growth in exchange for obedience and strength. Do you wish to enter into the contract and become mortal Suryaakaruna Pashupati¡¯s Tamed Immortal?]
[Yes]????????????[No]
With its heart racing, the creature gave the majestic woman one last look and accepted.
Ting.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
[You have been made the Tamed Immortal of the Mortal Suryaakaruna Pashupati. As long as the Equalised Level of the Mortal is more than your Equalised Level, you must obey the Mortal¡¯s orders.]
Ting.
[Equalised Level of the Mortal is less than your Equalised Level. Obedience cannot be enforced.]
¡®As if.¡¯ The creature scoffed internally as it stole a glance at the majestic woman. However, at that moment, the creature felt something settle on itself. It was restrictive but not in a way that made its movement difficult. It was heavy but not in a way that it affected the [Hive Monarch] any. Of course, it wasn¡¯t the creature¡¯s body that had been affected, but its Essence.
¡°That wasn¡¯t so bad, was it?¡± The woman said before she turned to her son. ¡°Go on then. Go play with your first monster.¡±
It was as if his mother¡¯s sentence had been the straw that broke the camel¡¯s back and the child erupted. He threw his hands up in the air and shouted. ¡°No! I do not like it! I wanted a pretty monster! Not this ugly thing! It is ugly! It is wrinkly! It is old! You promised to make it pretty! But it is not pretty! It is still ugly!¡±
The majestic woman eyed her son with a cool gaze as she waited for the boy¡¯s rant to end. And then she called out to the child just once. ¡°Surya.¡±
The boy matched the woman¡¯s gaze for a moment, with his cheeks puffed up and nose flared, but then the fight left him and he sagged.
¡°I want a pretty monster!¡± He whined. ¡°You promised you¡¯d make it pretty.¡±
¡°If I promised something,¡± The woman eyed the boy. ¡°Then it will be fulfilled.¡±
The child¡¯s eyes widened and his mood flipped as he smiled brightly. ¡°Hurry then! Hurry! What are we waiting for? Make it pretty!¡±
The woman nodded but still kept an eye on the boy before she turned to the Malfae. ¡°The elixir will be delivered to you in a bowl. Make sure to drink it slowly over the course of the next few days. Absorb it properly. And don¡¯t you dare waste even a single drop. Do you understand?¡±
The creature nodded hastily and the woman called out. ¡°Take it back to its cell.¡±
0.0
As the echo of the retreating footsteps slowly disappeared, the creature glanced at the bowl that was big enough for the creature to bath in. And with the presence of clear water-like fluid within, it was not hard to mistake it for so.
The creature dipped its head to take a sip but at that moment its neighbour disturbed it once again. The woman¡¯s voice was soft and hushed. It was barely a whisper. ¡°Little monster.¡±
The creatures wrinkled features twisted into a scowl and it debated ignoring her for a moment. However, as starting two conversations in a single day was a record even for a chatterbox like her, the creature activated its Skill, [Projection].
What.
¡°I-¡± The woman¡¯s whisper died before it could complete itself and the woman paused as if she did not know what to say. Or perhaps, she didn¡¯t know how to say, what she wanted to say.
¡°What if I-¡± The woman¡¯s soft voice trembled as she whispered. But then trembling overtook her voice and the whisper died once again. The creature¡¯s face meanwhile twisted in a scowl. It did not have time for the woman¡¯s mind games. It had been, quite literally, about to take a sip of its salvation.
Annoyance.
Aggravation.
Irritation.
What!
The sound of a rather loud breath reached the creature¡¯s ears as the woman did not reply for a moment. It was almost as if the woman was trying to centre herself, to prepare herself for what she had to do next.
¡°The benefit. I will give one.¡± The woman¡¯s whisper continued to tremble as if her will threatened to collapse at any moment. The creature, however, was not tempted. It didn¡¯t even bother to hear her offer as it dismissed the woman. Its salvation, after all, was right before its eyes.
No.
¡°Listen!¡± The woman¡¯s voice raised for just a moment. But in her voice, if there had been a mortal present to witness, the mortal would have heard her desperation and her terror. ¡°Listen. Please...¡±
Unfortunately for her, her audience was not a mortal but an immortal. The creature ignored her and moved back towards the bowl that as large as its body
¡°A-another Inheritance Scroll!¡± The woman seemed to panic as she received no reply. ¡°Y-your choice! Any Skill!¡±
The creature paused at the thought of receiving a Skill that it wanted rather than one that would be useless to it. It frowned for a moment, before finally turning to face the wall that separated the two of them.
Skills.
What?
The woman remained quiet for a few moments and the creature frowned and projected its thoughts again.
Annoyance.
Skills.
What?
¡°I-I have [Anatomy Vision]. It lets you see the internal structures. Internal structures of a body.¡± The woman whispered with her trembling voice. ¡°A-another is [Sustain]. I-it stops spread. Damage from spreading.¡±
The creature scowled. Healing Skills? It had no use of those. It had [Moulting] and that Skill could even heal destroyed limbs. What need did it have of any other healing Skills?
Worthless.
¡°Wait! Wait!¡± The woman called out in panic as her words came out faster and faster. Gone was her stuttering. Gone was her trembling voice. ¡°One more. I have one more. [Spirit Ghost]. It manifests one of the Ghosts. One of the Great Ghosts! It is not a healing Skill. It can attack! It can do damage!¡±
The creature focused not on the change in the woman¡¯s voice. Perhaps it didn¡¯t even notice the change. Instead, its brows furrowed as it pondered upon the Skill offered by its neighbour.
Danger?
¡°Yes. Yes, it can do great damage.¡± The chambermaid whispered quickly.
The creature closed its eyes and pondered. ¡®Even though I use [Malfae Shield] to attack, it is a defence Skill, not an offence Skill.¡¯
Its mind whirled as it thought. If it could get a proper attack Skill, then it didn¡¯t mind working with the woman. It could use the Skill at an opportune time and deal with the beautiful boy itself. Meanwhile, the woman remained quiet as the silence continued to stretch. Finally, the creature projected.
Agreement.
Skills.
Now.
The woman didn¡¯t respond for a moment but then, a soft azure light glowed from her cell and bled into the corridor. A moment passed and the light reappeared before fading once again.
The woman¡¯s hand passed through the bars of her cell, quite unlike the Malfae, whose hand had decidedly been unable to accomplish the same goal. The hand of the woman, bloodied and bruised as it was, carried two scrolls that she threw into the creature¡¯s cell.
The creature¡¯s eyes narrowed.
Pass.
Bars.
How?
¡°Huh?¡± The woman¡¯s voice was confused for a moment. ¡°You are a monster. While I am only treated as one.¡±
The creature noticed not the bitterness and the sorrow in the woman¡¯s answer as it merely nodded in understanding and turned to the scrolls. It frowned for a moment and projected.
Use.
How?
¡°Open the scroll.¡± The woman answered in a quiet voice. ¡°Then place your palm on it.¡±
The creature did as it was told and as the Malfae placed its hand on the unfurled blank cloth, it received a notification.
Ting.
[Do you wish to activate the Skill Inheritance Scroll [Spirit Ghost]?]
[Yes]????????????[No]
The creature didn¡¯t have to think about it as it thought back its answer. ¡®Yes.¡¯
Ting.
[Skill [Spirit Ghost Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Requirement [Skill Level limit: 30] not met. Access to Skill [Spirit Ghost] has been blocked. Raise your Skill Level limit to 30 to gain access to this Skill.]
¡®What?¡¯ The creature¡¯s face was slack as it reread the notification before it quickly summoned its Status to check and sure enough, the Skill had been listed in grey, while all the rest of the information had been listed in white.
The creature hurriedly used the other Scroll, to receive much the same result.
Ting.
[Skill [Thought Alignment Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Requirement [Skill Level limit: 30] not met. Access to Skill [Thought Alignment] has been blocked. Raise your Skill Level limit to 30 to gain access to this Skill.]
The creature¡¯s face twisted in a scowl and its head swirled to glare at the wall that separated the two neighbours.
Worthless!
Useless!
Trash!
The creature screeched at the wall as it projected. Its nose was puffed wide, its massive ears were straight and alert while its lips were pulled back to reveal a set of sharp teeth.
¡°What! What happened!¡± The woman¡¯s voice was rushed. She did not want anything unknown happening at this crucial time. Unfortunately for her, things had not been going her way for a long time now.
Skills.
Use.
Not.
Blocked!
¡°Blocked?¡± The woman voice was strange. It was as if she couldn¡¯t quite believe what she was saying. ¡°Your Skill Level Limit is not over 25?¡±
No!
¡°Then why did you choose the Tier 2 Skills?!¡± The woman¡¯s screeched back as she felt herself edging the border of insanity.
Tch.
Useless.
Worthless.
¡°No! No, no. Listen to me.¡± The woman hurriedly spoke as the creature¡¯s derision brought her reality crashing down on the chambermaid. ¡°You can still use this Skill! You can! You just have to evolve a few times. That is all. It''s simple! Yes, it is.¡±
The Malfae scoffed.
Worthless.
¡°You must have already evolved 3-4 times by now! Even if your Skill Level Limit is not above 25 yet, it would be soon with the elixir that the [Monster Tamer] gave you!¡± The woman spoke even faster. ¡°It will at least give you 3-4 evolutions more. You can make use of those Skills then!¡±
The creature¡¯s scowl faded a bit as it pondered over her reasoning. The Malfae was currently a Tier 2 creature with the Skill Level Limit of Level 15. And if it needed a Skill Level Limit of 30, it needed to be at least Tier 5.
Which, all things considered, was not that far off with the elixir that it now had access too.
Worth.
Unknown.
Silence.
Time.
Want.
¡°Yes, yes. Think about it. It is not worthless. It cannot be worthless.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was low but her speech was fast. It was almost as if she was talking to herself. ¡°The sum of my life cannot be worthless. It cannot be worthless¡¡±
The creature dismissed the woman with a scowl and instead, turned to face the bowl that was as large as a tub. It lowered its head above the bowl and, finally, took a sip. The creature nearly spat it out then and there. It was only the threat of the Majestic woman that stopped the creature from doing so.
The Malfae stepped back and eyed the clear liquid. It did not know what it had expected from the liquid, but seawater had definitely not been it.
The creature even considered for a moment that the majestic woman had fooled it with plain seawater but soon discarded the idea. The woman did not need such deception. She held all the power over it, after all. The creature eyes the seawater for a moment before it lowered its head and took another gulp. It grimaced.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 74
Ting.
[Skill [Thought Alignment] lost.]
Ting.
[20 Class Levels lost. 20 Attribute points deducted from the most recently manipulated Attributes.]
He felt his blood pump in his skull. His hands trembled beyond his control. His breathing hastened, like a creature untamed. The sound of his heartbeat had never been so loud.
¡®Yes.¡¯
The chambermaid thought back for the second time that night. And both the times, the revulsion in his heart threatened to take his life. His thoughts suffocated him. His skin crawled. His scalp tingled. His chest weighed him down.
The woman hit his own chest, his palms clenched into fists and his nails dug into his tender skin. Though, as the fists fell on the mounds of flesh that were his breasts, the self-loathing threatened to consume him alive.
But at that moment, the overwhelmed woman received the notification, whose arrival he had been dreading the most.
Ting.
[Skill [Spirit Ghost] lost.]
Ting.
[20 Class Levels lost. 20 Attribute points deducted from the most recently manipulated Attributes.]
Ting.
[Breakthrough Skill lost. Tier has been adjusted.]
Ting.
[Tier up Attribute Points rescinded. 5 Attribute points deducted from the most recently manipulated Attributes.]
Ting.
[Tier 2 Class [Curer] has been reduced to Tier 1 Class [Mender].]
Ting.
[Tier 2 Skill found. Access to Skill [Sustain] has been blocked.]
Ting.
[Tier 2 Spell found. Access to Spell [Sever] has been blocked.]
Ting.
[Achieve Tier 2 to gain access to blocked Skills and Spells.]
Ting.
[Skill Levels exceed the Class Level. Levels have been adjusted.]
Ting.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
[Skill Levels lost. Skill [Anatomy Vision Lv.45] has been levelled down to [Anatomy Vision Lv.10].]
Ting.
[Skill Levels lost. Skill [Link Lv.40] has been levelled down to [Link Lv.10].]
Ting.
[Spell Levels lost. Skill [Stimulate Lv.43] has been levelled down to [Stimulate Lv.10].]
Ting.
[Spell Levels lost. Skill [Mana Manifestation Lv.38] has been levelled down to [Mana Manifestation Lv.10].]
The woman could not breathe. He stumbled. He fell. He hit the ground hard. Pain erupted in his sides as his bruised flesh was hurt once again.
He glanced with dead eyes at his Status. The Status that had been his pride. The Status that he had meticulously researched everything about. The Status for which he had hounded the royal scholars for years on end. The royal scholars were now dead. The royal scholars of a kingdom that existed no more.
His eyes fell on the sole Skill that he could use and he hit his chest in anger.
¡°It will be worth it¡ It will all be worth it¡¡± The woman mumbled to himself. ¡°I just need to wait a bit more¡ yes, just a bit more¡ Then everything will be fine¡ yes, fine¡ just a bit more¡ I must live¡ just a bit more.¡±
The woman clenched his fists and blood began to drip down his palms. Drop by drop it landed on the floor but the woman did not seem to notice. He remained lost in his thoughts as he waited.
The [Transgender] shall endure.
0.0
¡°How have you been using [Mana Manipulation]?¡± The woman asked with his voice calm as he waited for the monster on the other side to respond.
Mana.
Me.
One.
Become.
The [Transgender] frowned as he tried to puzzle out the meaning of the monster¡¯s words. One become? Become one? How can someone become one with their mana? What nonsense was that?
Could someone become one with their hand? Or their heart? Or their kidney? Then how could someone become one with their mana? The woman did not understand. Instead, he chose to inform the creature about what he knew.
¡°This method you use, I am rather unfamiliar with.¡± The woman said as he said not a single word about the nonsense that was the monster¡¯s method. ¡°Instead, I will speak about the methods us mortals employ.¡±
¡°Us mortals do not become one with our mana because we are already mana.¡± The woman said and almost immediately he was assaulted by the monster¡¯s confusion. ¡°I am my mana, in the same sense as I am my arms, my heart, my brain, my flesh, my blood and even my ego. I am all of those but not.¡±
Nonsense.
What.
The [Transgender]¡¯s eyes twitched but he continued. ¡°Or rather, I am the sum of all those things. When I move my arm, I do not become one with my arm, I simply move it. And I can do so because I am my arm.¡±
Body.
Part.
The woman frowned. ¡°Your hair is also your body part. Yet you can¡¯t move it as you wish, can you? It is because your hair is not you anymore. It is you that has died, that has been discarded. It is a part of your identity but it is not a part of your alive self.¡±
Control.
Mana.
Help.
How?
¡°How does it help control mana?¡± The woman asked as he guessed the meaning of the creature¡¯s intentions. ¡°How do you control your arm? You simply move it.¡±
Annoyance.
Condescension.
Nonsense.
¡°It is the method that we mortals use.¡± The woman¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°Once a person has been made aware of their mana through outside stimulus, it simply becomes another part of their alive self to manipulate. As they continue to use it more, it becomes stronger with time.¡±
Arm.
Control.
Yes.
Mana.
Control.
Similar?
Heart.
Control.
Possible?
The [Transgender]¡¯s brows furrowed for quite a few moments before he finally puzzled out the monster¡¯s meaning. ¡®If controlling an arm is similar to controlling mana, then is even heart control possible?¡¯
¡°Of course, it is. It just requires excellent control. Just as a contortionist can move their bodies in ways that regular people can¡¯t, with great practice and control anything that is a part of your living self can be controlled.¡±
What.
The woman laughed at the bafflement that the creature sent in that single intention. The sound of his laugh echoed across both their cells. But this sound was unpleasant. It spoke not of mirth and joy but sinister intentions.
¡®Learn little monster, learn. Learn fast. I am waiting.¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 75
As days turned to nights and the nights turned back to days, a week passed. During this week, the Malfae had focused on nothing but drinking the seawater.
During this time, it was only when the [Hive Monarch] had not been able to drink to a single drop more, that it had even thought about distracting itself with other things. Perhaps, it had been because of this persistence that the creature had been able to finish the tub full of liquid -relative to its size- in just a week. With merely 5 days left in its lifespan, the creature did not even dare to imagine what would have happened, if it had not focused on this task so.
Meanwhile, when it had had so much seawater that it had been about to vomit, the Malfae had practised [Mana Manipulation] as per the woman¡¯s instruction. But despite the chambermaid¡¯s assurance, the creature had found it difficult to accept her explanation. This hindrance had not been because the creature had considered the chambermaid¡¯s method to be false or a lie.
After all, the creature knew that the only one who wanted it to succeed, perhaps even more than itself, was the woman in the cell next to its own. The creature knew her to be desperate enough that she would not dare employ that conniving mind of hers.
Hence, the lack of progress was a result of its own way of thinking, rather than its distrust of the method. The creature just could not see its mana as a part of itself. It was quite akin to someone asking a non-magic user mortal to move their hair. The progress thus was slow going.
However, at that moment, the creature took a sip and drank the last drop of the seawater. No sooner had the creature finished the liquid than it felt a change in itself. The creature felt stuffed but not in a way that made it feel uncomfortable. The Malfae felt as if it had become more than what it had ever been. It felt itself grow into something more, without any physical change.
This was nothing like it had ever felt. It was almost akin to how the majestic woman had felt more than just herself when she had used the Skill on the creature.
Ting.
[New [Species] granted. A new evolution path has been granted. Evolution possible.]
Ting.
[Maximum Level of current Vessel detected. Evolution is possible. Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes]?????????? [No]
The creature¡¯s pupil-less eyes widened and its lips parted in a grotesque smile. It had known that the notification would be coming soon. Yet, when it finally did appear the creature could merely grin and stare. If the Malfae had been a mortal, it would have cried, overwhelmed from its emotion as it would have been.
However, as the creature was an Immortal, it did not. Instead, the creature¡¯s shoulders began to shake. Its chest heaved. Its breathing hastened. It tilted its head back and then, it let out a loud screech. The unpleasant sound of the screech was quite similar to the grating of metal.
Its neighbour screamed at it to stop but the creature stopped only when the breath in its lungs died down. It was as if, in that screech, it had let out all of its hopelessness, its fear, its terror and its desperation leaving the creature afresh.
And then the creature began to laugh.
0.0
The creature was brought before the green-clad majestic woman and was placed on a footstool right in front of her throne.
¡°You drank the entirety of the elixir.¡± The woman looked down her nose at the Malfae which was at her feet. ¡°The ruckus earlier was from your evolution notification, I presume?¡±
The creature did not deny as it projected.
Agreement.
The woman eyed the creature for a moment before she let her lips twitched in a smile. ¡°Intelligence is such a precious gift.¡±
Although others may not understand the meaning of the woman¡¯s words, how could the Malfae not? After all, those were the same words that the woman had used in their first meeting.
The creature gulped. For it knew that the comment was not an appreciation, but rather a warning. It was a warning that was belated. And it warned of dangers that would have descended had the situation progressed in any other direction than the one it had.
The Malfae let out a silent sigh. The [Hive Monarch] had had to fight itself to delay its evolution. After all, the creature had not known what the green-clad woman¡¯s reactions would have been if it had evolved without her permission. It was afraid that the lunatic would have destroyed its egg if it had not sought its approval.
Hence, it had been worried about its safety, as it evolved. After all, for the Malfae its safety while evolving was paramount. And in the Malfae¡¯s mind, the only way to ensure this safety had been to evolve in the presence of the one that the [Hive Monarch] feared the most. Thus, the creature had only seen two options. To either use the woman¡¯s strength. Or it could hide from her strength.
However, hiding had never been an option. For it knew it could not hide. It could not escape. Thus, whether the Malfae¡¯s fear was well-founded or not, the creature would never know as it had already made her choice.
¡°Is it going to become pretty?¡± The high-pitched voice of the boy echoed out as it peered curiously at the Malfae¡¯s wrinkled face.
¡°Yes.¡± The woman kept the creature pinned with her gaze. ¡°Go ahead now.¡±
The creature gulped for a moment before it summoned its Status and sure enough, the option to evolve was mentioned. The creature focused on it.
Ting.
[You have reached Level 100. Do you want to evolve now?]
[Yes] ??????????[No]
Ting.
[Chose your form.]
Once upon a time the creature would have frowned, scowled and thrown a tantrum at the single option that appeared before it but, at the current moment, it could only feel the joy that the current option was even available. The Malfae focused on the only option it had available and a confirmation notification popped up.
The creature scoffed. As if it would deny itself the opportunity to evolve when it had less than 5 days left in its lifespan. It simply focused on [Yes].
Ting.
[Evolution will begin now. Time Remaining: 1 Year.]
This time the evolution process began differently than the previous times. A white ooze began pouring out of its pores, slowly at first but then in droves from all over its body. The chalky and opaque ooze began to cover the [Hive Monarch] and harden at the same time. At a glance, the hardened ooze gave off the feeling of a shell.
As the process continued, where earlier there had been a creature of blue, now existed a white cylindrical egg the size of a mortal¡¯s finger.
0.0
The woman picked up the cylindrical egg and focused on it for a moment, making it disappear.
¡°Mother, how long till it becomes pretty?¡±
¡°Hmm?¡± The [Monster Tamer] furrowed her brows. ¡°This is its third evolution. It should take somewhere between a year to three.¡±
¡°What!¡± The child squawked. ¡°I can¡¯t wait that long! I want it now!¡±
¡°What if your mother can reduce this time?¡± Divyaaditi smiled indulgingly at her son. ¡°Hmm. What would you do then?¡±
The boy frowned for a moment, before sneakily glanced at his mother for a moment. He then puffed up his cheeks, crossed his hands and mumbled. ¡°¡¡±
¡°Hmm? What was that?¡±
¡°¡I will give the mother a hug¡¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
¡°Oh! That¡¯s very precious.¡± The woman said with her eyes comically wide and wonder lacing her words. ¡°How can I refuse such a generous offer!¡±
¡°Hurry!¡± The boy whined. ¡°Hurry then!¡±
¡°It will still take some time though.¡± The woman said as she pondered. ¡°My [Essence Space] can, perhaps, half the original time. So, expect somewhere in between 6 months to a year and a half?¡±
[Essence Space]
[Allows the user to store monsters within themselves.]
[Tier 1: Allows the user to dematerialise and a monster to store it within their Essence.]
[Tier 2: Essence Space nurtures the monsters within the Essence Space.]
¡°What!¡± The boy squawked with his eyes narrowed and temper indignant. ¡°That wasn¡¯t what I wanted!¡±
Divyaaditi did not give her son a chance to complain further as she scooped the almost 8-year-old in her arms and hugged him for his dear life. ¡°That is why you should always make sure what you are agreeing to, my son. Don¡¯t just agree with anything!¡±
¡°No!¡± The boy squirmed in his mother¡¯s hug. ¡°Let me go! This is cheating! You cheated!¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t cheat!¡± The woman laughed as she rubbed her cheek against his plump ones. ¡°You merely got tricked!¡±
¡°That¡¯s the same thing!¡± The child squirmed and flailed as he kept on trying to escape.
¡°No, it is not!¡± The green-clad woman laughed.
¡°FATHER!¡± The boy screamed. ¡°SAVE ME!!¡±
0.0
¡°Now this is something that I should be doing.¡± A gruff voice said. And although the words might give off the feeling that the speaker was pleased, the tone conveyed the exact opposite meaning. It was displeased. ¡°Tch. At least you learned.¡±
Divyaaditi bit back a grimace and kept her face pleasantly neutral. After all, she did not want another dosage of this old grouch¡¯s rather unpleasant tirade. Even once had been too much.
¡°Yes, Maharaja Bandhan.¡± She replied politely, not daring to remain quiet in case she set off his bad temper.
The man eyed the woman for a moment, apparently searching for any trace of impertinence. As he found none, the old man harrumphed and turned to the mudskipper sleeping on the table. ¡°Bring me a grade four Scroll.¡±
The mudskipper lazily opened its eyes and gazed at the old man in the much the same way the man had gazed at the woman before it hissed at the old man and turned its face away.
¡°Useless! Absolutely useless!¡± The salt and pepper haired man grouched. ¡°I am surrounded by incompetent fools! I have to do everything here! Why not made me even hull the water? I should do that too because everyone here is so bloody useless!¡±
The green-clad woman closed her eyes, wishing to disappear. Fortunately for her, the old man went to the back of this office and brought a cloth scroll, white as the white moon and the size of a mortal¡¯s forearm. Meanwhile, he did not stop grumbling.
¡°Tch. Tch. Tch. Pitiful. I am so pitiful. Even at this age, I have to do all this. Pitiful. Truly pitiful.¡± The man eyed the mudskipper but the mudskipper ignored his voice entirely. ¡°Just what sins did I commit in my past life that I suffer so. Lamentable. Truly lamentable.¡±
Divyaaditi almost coughed out blood as she heard the nonsense that the old man was spouting. He was pitiful? He was lamentable? This nasty old grouch! He spared no one and scolded everyone for mere breathing wrongly and he was pitiful? Unfortunately for her, the grey-robed old man saw her expression.
¡°You! You! How dare you show me such a face!¡± He changed the direction of his righteous ire. ¡°You think you are something special?! Let me tell you, I was already at second Tier before you were even born! Yet you show such disrespect? Insolence!¡±
¡°No! Maharaj Bandhan! You misunderstand.¡± The woman hastily spoke. ¡°I was just surprised at your Spirit¡¯s reaction. I did not mean any disrespect.¡±
At those words, the mudskipper turned to face her and it let out a series of loud hisses as if delivering a tirade quite akin to the old man himself.
¡°You! You think you qualify to judge my Spirit?!¡± The man did not care and scolded once again as he pointed his bony finger at her. ¡°You, who was born just yesterday, dare to look down on my Spirit?! Let me tell you, this spirit has seen more in its long life than you will ever see!¡±
The woman stepped back. Born yesterday? She was 43 years old! 43! How was she born yesterday?! ¡®This nasty old grouch! He got sent here for this nasty temper of his, yet there is no improvement!¡¯
The woman hastily summoned a cylindrical chalky egg and as she placed it down the table, she retreated towards the door. ¡°Much apologies Maharaja Bandhan. I just seemed to have remembered an important matter. Please have the Tracking Scroll sent to my husband¡¯s office once it is done. I shall take my leave now. Pranam Maharaja!¡±
The woman opened the door and retreated as the old man¡¯s voice echoed out. ¡°You! How dare you leave when your elder is still speaking! Audacious! Insole-¡±
0.0
The door to the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s chamber¡¯s opened and a moustached man walked in. He had a smile tugging at his lips and carried a cylindrical egg, almost the size of his finger, in his left hand. While, in his right hand, he carried a massive scroll almost the size of a mortal¡¯s forearm.
His eyes fell on his wife and his smile twitched.
The woman had her hands crossed and her forehead was marked with creases of anger. Her nose was flared and her clenched fists were ready to tear the bedsheet within their grasp. ¡®That¡¯s where Suryaakaruna gets his temper from.¡¯
He sat down next to the clearly upset woman and placed both the things on the nightstand next to the bed they were sitting on. ¡°So, you went to meet the [Ward Smith]?¡± His deep voice echoed out.
¡°Mm-hmm.¡± The woman¡¯s forehead twitched.
The man smothered his smile. ¡°It did not go well, I take it.¡±
It was as if that was all that the woman needed to let her frustrations out, like a river breaking through a dam. ¡°That nasty old goat! Disrespect? Insolence? Audacious? I will show him all those things! That stupid half-dead mongrel!¡±
¡°Pitiful? He is pitiful? Lamentable? He is lamentable? If he is pitiful and lamentable? Then what are we?! Grass to be stepped upon?! It is not him but us that are pitiful! It is us that are lamentable! Because we have to deal with him!¡±
¡°I endured everything last time, didn¡¯t I?! Why? Because I had asked him something that was not his forte! Did I say a single thing about how many monster corpses it cost me? How many Remnants did he lose me? Did I? Did I? I said not a single word!¡±
¡°But that crusty old goat was not satisfied! He went off because a bit of disappointment slipped out of me! I did not even blame him! Yet he went off! This old piece of ancient rot! I will turn him into monster-feed one day!¡±
¡°Singh Raj hasn¡¯t had mortal meat in a long time now, hasn¡¯t it? It will at least appreciate the flesh of that nasty old trash!¡± The woman finally stopped and panted. Her face was red and her eyes were wide. The bedsheet in her hands had been torn to shreds.
¡°It was a difficult day for you.¡± The man softly patted her back. ¡°At least you don¡¯t have to deal with him again.¡±
¡°I wouldn¡¯t have dealt with him too even this time.¡± The woman snapped, more out of irritation rather than at her husband. ¡°But that old codger refuses to deal with servants!¡±
¡°I know. I know. Next time, just let me deal with him.¡±
¡°Ha! As if that ghost would allow it!¡± The woman gritted her teeth. ¡°When he dies, I will make sure to feed him to my monsters. I will make sure that his Spirit does not rise no matter what. Such nastiness should remain dead!¡±
¡°Yes, yes. You do that. Singh Raj will get a good meal then.¡±
The woman¡¯s head whirled to glare at her husband. ¡°Do not treat me as a child.¡±
¡°I am not. I am not.¡± The man said with wide innocent eyes but the smile on his lips betrayed his amusement. As if sensing the danger, he handed the egg to his wife and changed the topic. ¡°Here. Place it back in your [Essence Space]. The more time it remains dematerialised, the better.¡±
The woman glowered at the moustached man for a moment before she snatched the egg from his hand and made it disappear.
The man did not give the green-clad woman the chance to retaliate though as he quickly handed her the massive scroll. ¡°Keep it somewhere safe. It should not be left just lying around.¡±
¡°You!¡± She snapped at the man before she snatched the scroll from the man¡¯s hand and stalked out of the room. The [Ship Captain] chuckled as he stood up to follow.
¡°Where are you going?¡± He called out. ¡°Let me come with you too!¡±
0.0
Kiran sat in his room like he did all day these days. He sat within his room and stared at the wall. He sat in his room and thought of his chambermaid. And when he became too excited thinking of her, he usually gave her a visit. Though, he couldn¡¯t enjoy her to his heart¡¯s content these days. He no longer had the Spell [Stimulate] so he couldn¡¯t heal her after enjoying her properly as he had had previously.
Kiran missed those times, he did, but he was satisfied with what he had at the moment. The black-haired man did not regret his decision. At least, he could still enjoy his chambermaid. Whereas if had retained the Spell, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to.
Besides, his possession of the Spell had been temporary anyway. The way his Class had been losing Levels, it wouldn¡¯t have been long before he had lost access to the Spell. At least this way, he had traded the Spell for something that he could use.
Kiran felt his crotch stir and he thought about visiting his chambermaid earlier than usual, but ultimately decided against it. He had yet to have dinner. And if he went there on an empty stomach, he would remain distracted and would not be able to make use of her properly.
Kiran knew it from experience.
The black-clad man glanced outside and closed the door. It was still alit outside as if the evening was dragging its feet. It was not dark enough that Kiran felt comfortable going out. If he went out now, he would be looked at. Stared at. Pointed at. Kiran didn¡¯t want that.
He wanted to live in his room, eat when there was no one around and then go to meet his chambermaid at night. He liked this routine. It gave him everything he needed. He truly didn¡¯t want anything else. He was truly happy. Blissfully happy. So happy.
Maybe if he repeated it enough, he would come to believe it.
Maybe if he repeated it enough, he would no longer be ashamed of being seen.
Maybe if he repeated it enough, he wouldn¡¯t need his chambermaid. Maybe he would be able to not visit her. Maybe he would be able to not make use of her. Maybe he would be able to ignore her.
Maybe.
But that was for later. It was for later and not for today. Today, he was in his room. He would go out to later at night when there would be no one to see him. He would visit the chambermaid. Today he would make use of the chambermaid.
He had paid for her. Yes, he had. She was his. But had to be careful. Yes, careful. He could no longer take care of her. He had to be careful. He needed her to heal. He needed her to heal to use her more. He needed her.
Ting.
[Your Level has been decreased. 1 Attribute point deducted from most recently manipulated Attribute.]
Ting.
[Class [Shishya] lost.]
Ting.
[Skill [Anatomy Vision] lost.]
Ting.
[No Class detected. Access to [Status] is revoked.]
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
Chapter 76
The stomps of the heavy footsteps resonated through the empty corridor until they finally came to stop outside a cell that contained nothing but a naked woman, lying on the floor. The woman within the cage moved not a finger as the stomps entered his cell and approached his bruised feminine form.
¡°You did it again.¡± The voice was male, low and spoken through gritted teeth. ¡°How did you do it? How do you keep doing it?!¡±
¡°Me?¡± The body of the woman, which had been akin to a corpse, twitched then as he scoffed. ¡°Yes, it is me, isn¡¯t it? The one who makes you run here like a good little bitch?¡±
In a flash, the man moved forward and grabbed the woman by his hair. He dragged [Transgender] by the hair and pulled him up. ¡°Tempt me not, will you? Just tell me. How do you do it? Is that so hard to do?¡±
The woman spat and the glob of spit landed right on the man¡¯s cheek. The man didn¡¯t react and the woman smiled. Though his smile would have made anyone but the black-clad man shiver in disgust. ¡°My answer.¡±
The man laughed and the woman continued to smile. It was a scene so domestic that it would have been nothing abnormal to see it in a mortal household. However, right this instant, it would have caused a mortal¡¯s scalp tingle and skin to crawl.
The woman was slammed into the floor and the black-clad man placed his foot on the chambermaid¡¯s neck as he pressed down. ¡°Tell me! How did you do it?! How did you take away my Status?! How! TeLL mE!!¡±
The woman choked but his lips were twitched in an ugly smile. It was as if death itself could not make the [Transgender] cry. ¡°Lost¡ev-even¡you-r¡Class!¡± He choked out but the ugly smile on his face never diminished.
The man lifted his foot and kicked the woman but the woman just laughed. The sound of it was ugly.
0.0
A naked woman laid on the platform that passed for bed in his cell. The sound of footsteps echoed in the corridor that was lit by the sunlight filtering through the windows in the opposite wall. The footsteps stopped just outside the doors of his cell but the woman did not react. He laid on the platform as if dead to the word.
¡°It will be you today.¡± A male voice echoed out in the corridor. The voice was low as if the speaker was in a daze. The man¡¯s breathing was irate and his heartbeat fast. If the woman had glanced at the newcomer, then the chambermaid would have noticed the wide eyes, the wet lips and the red flush of the man¡¯s skin.
¡°Look at you.¡± The newcomer spat. ¡°You want this, don¡¯t you?¡±
The sound of clothes ruffling was heard and then a muted thump as if something soft had fallen. The man chuckled and his voice seemed to gain an edge that hinted at his desire.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
¡°Come on. Take it.¡± The man¡¯s voice became low and slow as if he were teasing. ¡°You know you want to. Be a good girl now. Come on.¡±
The woman remained unmoving. His body not moving an even inch. If not for the rise and fall of his chest, one might have considered the chambermaid to be dead.
¡°Tch. Tease, aren¡¯t you?¡± The man taunted as the sound of flesh sliding on flesh resounded across the silent cell and the empty corridor. ¡°But don¡¯t you worry. You are giving me such a good show. And I like to return favours.¡±
The man chuckled as the sound of flesh sliding on flesh hastened and the man¡¯s breathing quickened. He grunted. He moaned. He cursed. He called out names. Yet the sound of flesh sliding on flesh never stopped.
The woman remained unresponsive to the man¡¯s taunts. He reacted not to grunts and he reacted not to moans. He replied not to curses and names were not his. He laid on his platform as the unknown man used the chambermaid¡¯s form to touch himself.
With a grunt and a shallow breath, the man outside finished himself and his seeds landed within the woman¡¯s cell. He picked up his fallen clothes and chuckled. ¡°A gift to remember me by.¡±
0.0
Visitors came and went. One after the other, men came and went.
However as most could do little but gaze with longing and desire, they helped themselves, leaving behind their gifts splattered on the floor.
The ones that could do more than just gaze, were few and far between. Though that could do much more used their right without hesitation.
And just like that, time continued to pass and while being used and abused, almost half a year passed.
0.0
The footsteps retreated in the corridor and the chambermaid laid on the floor. Bruises covered his form yet they were nothing new. Bodily fluids leaked down his feminine form and out of his crotch. Fluids that were not his own.
He closed his eyes and focused inwards within his mana system. As he frowned and focused, a card began to manifest itself within his mana system.
The card was white with a blood hibiscus etched right in the centre. Its bright red petals countered the white, meanwhile, its pistil, which emerged from within the depth of the blood flower, fell like the tongue of a serpent.
At that moment, the card finished manifesting its first face and flipped to showcase the other which also began etching itself. This face was simply white. Not white. Within this white, etched in the azure blue of the mana, was the frame of a mortal male bound and chained in such a way that its limbs stuck out in positions that were not natural.
The nearly glowing azure figure of the mortal and his chains seemed almost alive on the backdrop of the dull white.
At that moment, the card finished manifesting both its sides and seemed to release a pulse, before it began to struggle against something. It was as if the card was fighting against something. It was fighting to be released.
Ting.
[Your Mana is [Bound]. Access to mana denied.]
As soon as the notification arrived, the struggles of the card died out and it began to dissipate in much the same way it had etched itself into the chambermaid¡¯s mana system.
The woman, on the other hand, laughed. ¡°Awaken my little monster. Awaken. I await your return!¡±
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 77
Seated as they were, on the porch of their shelter, the heat of the dying summer did not leave them be. With the gentle freshness of the cool sea breeze, the warmth would just die sooner. However, the cups of hot tea in their hands contrasted with the breeze and soothed their hearts.
At that moment, however, the [Monster Tamer] felt a tremor in her Essence and frowned before the frown dissolved and understanding dawned in her eyes.
¡°Surya¡¯s monster is awakening.¡± The woman said to her husband and the [Ship Captain] nodded before he ordered a nearby servant to call their son. Meanwhile, the woman ordered another servant to bring a glass full of seawater.
The seawater arrived sooner than the couple¡¯s son, as the boy was in the middle of one of his classes. The woman nodded at the news as she took a sip of her tea before she put down the cup and summoned a cylindrical egg in her hand. However, the egg that had once been chalky white and solid like a shell, had now become closer to gel. It jiggled and wiggled in the woman¡¯s hand and the woman carelessly tossed it in the glass of seawater.
¡°6 months, huh?¡± The green-clad woman said, with her voice lost in thought. ¡°A third evolution that takes merely a year. Pitiful.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t be greedy.¡± The husband chided gently. ¡°To find an intelligent monster in such a desolate place is a fortune in itself.¡±
¡°I know. But can I not want good things for my son?¡± Divyaaditi sighed. ¡°Do I have to settle? Is that too much to ask for?¡±
The moustached man did not answer. Instead, he changed the topic. ¡°What will you do with it once it wakes up?¡±
¡°Hmm?¡±
¡°Will you let it live with Suryaakaruna?¡± The deep voice of Sagar Manthan echoed out. ¡°Like you do with Sigh Raj and others?¡±
¡°No, I will not,¡± Divyaaditi answered with a tone of certainty. ¡°I lived and continue to with my monsters because my Equivalent Level suppresses them. Surya¡¯s cannot. His monster¡¯s Equivalent Level greatly surpasses his own.¡±
¡°Suryaakaruna will not like that.¡± The man observed.
¡°No.¡± The woman agreed with a grimace. ¡°And that¡¯s not that the only thing he will dislike.¡±
0.0
The creature woke up but then immediately frowned. It couldn¡¯t see a thing. However, before its thoughts could race ahead a notification popped up.
Ting.
[Evolution complete. You have evolved into a Larva.]
Ting.
[Evolution bonus of 60 HP and 60 MP has been added to your total Health Points. You have been completely healed.]
Ting.
[Level up Bonuses have been increased from [+3] points to [+5] points per Level Up for both HP and MP.]
Ting.
[Your HP regeneration rate has been increased to [31 + Level/10] HP per day. Rounded down.]
Ting.
[Your MP regeneration rate has been increased to [21 + Level/10] MP per hour. Rounded down.]
Ting.
[Level limit on Skills has been raised to Level 20. Evolve further to raise the Skill Level Limit again.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sensor Lv.5] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Granted Skill detected. Level of the Skill has been increased.]
Ting.
[Skill [Pain Resistance Lv.15] has levelled up to [Pain Resistance Lv.16]. Continuous damage caused by pain has been decreased by 16 points.]
Ting.
[Vessel only Title [Senseless] granted.]
Ting.
[Vessel only Title [Hungry] granted.]
Ting.
[Title [Changeling] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Change Lv.1] granted.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Essence Lv.15] has increased to [Sense Essence Lv.16]. The depth of sensing has been marginally increased.]
Ting.
[Skill [Sense Essence Lv.16] has increased to [Sense Essence Lv.17]. The depth of sensing has been marginally increased.]
¡®Heavens above! Not again!!¡¯
The moment the [Hive Monarch] finished that thought, the effects of the notification made themselves known. The hunger that the creature had bid farewell to a long time ago, returned with vengeance. As a result, before the creature could even think, the [Hive Monarch] found itself biting into the gel-like substance beneath its body and it grimaced. It couldn¡¯t taste a thing. It couldn¡¯t feel a thing.
That was not the only thing, however. The [Hive Monarch]¡¯s vision, which had been rather dark and black till that moment, turned into a world of grey as the creature began to perceive the world in the shades of grey masses. The creature¡¯s mind whirled as it ate and after a moment, it summoned its Status.
¡®What nonsense is this!¡¯
The creature twitched in anger at it observed its [Lifespan: 1 Year]. It almost slapped the screen in frustration. The Larva dismissed its Status and started going through its notifications. As it noticed the first notification, the creature let out a sigh. ¡®At least, I evolved.¡¯
The creature read through the notifications until it reached its new Skill, [Sensor].
Ting.
[Allows passively sensing the vibrations in the environment. Range: [SL] metres. Cost: None.]
The creature activated the Skill and felt the vibrations created by its act of eating that the Title [Hungry] had forced it to. ¡®This is good. This is good. If what I am guessing is true then this will help with the Title [Senseless].¡¯This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
The creature dismissed the following notifications until it came across its new titles and grimaced. It focused on [Senseless].
Ting.
[You lack all senses.]
¡®Heavens above.¡¯ The creature sighed and a refreshing gel-like passed through its body. The creature¡¯s body twitched in irritation before it focused back on the task at hand and summoned description for its last Title.
Ting.
[Granted to a creature that has changed its [Species]. Grants Skill [Change].]
The Larva focused on its last Skill, [Change].
Ting.
[Allows the user to increase or decrease the size of their Vessel by a percentage of their volume for 10[SL] MP/Day. Changeable percentage: 4[SL]%.]
¡®Huh.¡¯ The creature twitched. ¡®Interesting.¡¯
0.0
¡°Now, Surya.¡± The green-clad woman addressed her now 8-year-old son. The same son had his face stuck to the walls of glass as he waited for the wiggling egg within to pop and release his first-ever monster. The pretty version, of course. ¡°You know how birds grow pretty as they age? They grow beautiful feathers and their bodies become elegant?¡±
¡°¡yes?¡± The boy turned his face away from the glass and eyed the [Monster Tamer] suspiciously. Meanwhile, the [Ship Captain] smothered a chuckle.
¡°Well,¡± the woman paused, ¡°sometimes you just need a little bit of time to make things pretty.¡±
The boy¡¯s eyes narrowed. He didn¡¯t like the feeling he was getting from those words. ¡°Is it still ugly?¡±
¡°No, no. I did not say that.¡± The woman corrected. She did not want to deal with yet another tantrum. ¡°He would just need a bit of time, that is all.¡±
¡°How much time?¡± The child asked as his brows furrowed.
¡°Well,¡± the woman collected the boy in her arms. ¡°why don¡¯t we ask it once it comes out.¡±
The child scowled and wiggled out of her grasp and instead climbed onto his father¡¯s waiting lap. The woman gave the boy a betrayed look and to the man, an angry one. The moustached man, however, simply shrugged and the boy huffed.
At that moment, the creature that had once been a Malfae broke the gelatinous shell and entered the saltwater. Yet, it did not stop eating.
¡°Is that it?¡± The boy¡¯s voice was high pitched and his eyes were wide in incredulity. ¡°Th-that thing is my monster?! That-that what is even that?!¡±
Indeed, the form of the creature was quite something to look at. If you could find it in the first place. The creature was almost circular in shape, with a gelatinous skin that was mostly translucent. If one were to look inside, they would find even more gel-like substances floating within the gelatinous skin.
A tail poked out of the circular shape which, quite like the rest of the body, was made of gelatinous skin. A tiny mouth was situated on the exact opposite end of the tail, which was nibbling away at the comparatively enormous egg from which the positively miniature creature had emerged from.
After all, the creature was the size of the mortal infant¡¯s nail. Even then, it was not the nail on the largest finger or the thumb, but the nail that belonged to the smallest finger. The creature was so small that it was only through the magic that it could exist with all its intelligence. A creature such small didn¡¯t have any right to intelligence, after all.
At the creature¡¯s appearance and its almost animal-like instinctual behaviour, even the [Monster Tamer] hesitated for a moment before she decided to grant the creature the ability to communicate once again. ¡°[Impart].¡±
With a rush of mana leaving her, the green-clad woman felt the Skill activate. She frowned at the creature that continued to eat and ordered. ¡°[Projection]. Stop eating.¡±
At the command, the creature stopped nibbling at the eggshell and responded hastily, as if in great pain. Its voice, however, was very small, much like its physical form. ¡®It¡¯s the Title [Hungry]. It is forcing me to eat!¡¯
The woman¡¯s expression cleared as she understood the creature¡¯s action. However, despite knowing the effects of the Title, the green-clad woman did not allow the creature to continue its consumption. ¡°What else did you receive?¡±
¡®Titles. [Senseless]. [Changeling]. Skills. [Sensor]. [Pain Resistance]. [Change].¡¯ Anguished as the creature was due to the fire in its belly, it answered in a short burst of words to remove all unnecessary words.
¡°And your lifespan?¡±
¡®One year.¡¯ The creature answered as it squirmed and fidgeted. Its tiny tail twitched constantly but none of the mortals paid it any mind. The woman scowled and was tempted to crush the creature right then and there, yet she controlled herself. She breathed and reminded herself that the only reason the creature continued to live was its intelligence.
¡°Throw it back in its cell.¡± The woman ordered the servants that were lingered around.
¡°What about me?¡± The boy¡¯s annoyed voice paused the woman and she turned to face her son, who had scowled at her with his arms crossed. ¡°When will it become pretty?¡±
¡°One year.¡± She raised an eyebrow.
The boy pursed his lips and his face turned red. He glared at the woman before he screamed. ¡°NO!¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡± The woman¡¯s voice was incredulous.
¡°No! You keep doing this!¡± The boy screamed as he pointed and flailed his arms. ¡°First you get me an ugly monster! Even when I told you I wanted a pretty one! I did! Many times! Then you make me wait! Then you give me this! And then-and then waiting again! No! No! No!¡±
¡°I want a pretty monster and I want it now!¡±
The green-clad woman stared at her son with blank eyes. Instead, she called out to the lingering servants and ordered them while using [Projection] to inform the monster as well. ¡°Take it away. Place it in a large tank and drop in a lot of animal meat for it to eat.¡±
¡°No! No! No! No! I don¡¯t want this ugly thing! I want my pretty monster! I want it now!¡± The boy screamed and cried as fat tears rolled down his cheeks.
¡°And you,¡± The woman addressed the Larva as she ignored her son. ¡°From tomorrow, focus on raising the Level of [Sensor] too. It is a vibration-based Skill. Raise it enough and it will allow you to decipher sound vibrations.¡±
0.0
The green-clad woman sat down as a sigh escaped her lips. Her husband closed the door to their room before sitting down next to her.
¡°Why don¡¯t we do as Suryaakaruna wants?¡± He asked with his deep voice low and soft. ¡°He has been waiting for a long time for this.¡±
¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to do the same.¡± The woman rubbed the bridge of her nose. ¡°It¡¯s just, Surya¡¯s Level is just too low to allow that.¡±
¡°Will it really make such a big difference?¡± The [Ship Captain] kept his deep voice low. ¡°Allowing the monster to Evolve I mean.¡±
¡°A Tier 1 mortal can subjugate Tier 0 and Tier 1 monsters, depending upon the mortal¡¯s Level.¡± The woman sighed as she closed her eyes and leaned against her husband¡¯s shoulders. ¡°A Tier 2 mortal can subjugate Tier 2 and Tier 3 monsters. A Tier 3 mortal can subjugate Tier 4, Tier 5 and Tier 6 monsters. While Tier 4 mortals can subjugate monsters up to Tier 10.¡±
The man softly patted the woman¡¯s head on his shoulders as he thought the situation over. ¡°If the monster evolves once more, it will become a Tier 4 monster. Something only a Tier 3 like you can subjugate.¡±
¡°Yes.¡± The woman grimaced. ¡°Surya is far from reaching our Level.¡±
¡°But Aditi,¡± The man said softly. ¡°Suryaakaruna still can¡¯t control that monster. What difference would it make if he can¡¯t subjugate it for a little while longer? As long as you are here, it will behave.¡±
The woman did not respond as she remained lost in her thoughts.
¡°And besides,¡± The man turned the woman¡¯s head gently so that her forehead touched his. ¡°That monster is pathetically weak. Even if it evolves, it will be no match for Sigh Raj.¡±
¡°That is not what is important.¡± The woman sighed and let her head fall on the man¡¯s shoulder once again. ¡°Surya should learn to subjugate and order monsters. For how long can he depend on us?¡±
¡°That¡¯s not such a difficult problem to solve, truthfully.¡± The man¡¯s deep voice was gentle. ¡°Let¡¯s just make sure that his next monster is something that he can subjugate easily.¡±
¡°And what about his dependence on us?¡± The woman raised her head and their gazes met. ¡°What are we going to do about it?¡±
¡°Is that not why we are keeping that weak monster around?¡± The man raised an eyebrow. ¡°So that it can Level Suryaakaruna faster?¡±
A thoughtful frown appeared on the woman¡¯s face and she let her head rest once again.
¡°Besides, we chose Clam as his [Species] for a reason.¡± The [Ship Captain] reminded his wife.
¡°We didn¡¯t succeed though, did we?¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°A year of lifespan. Tch.¡±
¡°It¡¯s still a Larva.¡± The man gently protested. ¡°When it evolves next, its lifespan should be acceptable. Just halt its progress then.¡±
¡°Hmm.¡± The woman was unconvinced. ¡°Let¡¯s see.¡±
0.0
The creature was dropped off in its old cell but the Larva cared for it not. Now that it had the Title [Hungry] once again, all it cared for was eating, eating and eating some more. Yet, the creature was intelligent after all. Hence it acted upon the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s advice and kept its new Skill, [Sensor] activated.
Ting.
[You have consumed The Gift.]
Ting.
[You have Levelled Up! The level up bonus of +5 HP and +5 MP granted.]
The creature paused eating for just a moment to read the notification before it continued to eat the enormous amount of the egg remaining. The creature did not care about the fact that it could still read the notification just fine even though the world around it was a mess of grey masses. It was way too ravenous to care about it and what it implied.
As it continued to eat, its new Skill [Sensor] picked up vibrations that were continuous and long. They even seem to have a pattern that repeated itself. The creature continued to observe as it ate but the vibrations soon died down, only to reappear after some time once again. The creature¡¯s gelatinous body twitched.
If its guess was right, then these vibrations were the vibrations of speech and the only one that would speak with it was the woman in the cell next to its own. Yet, this was not what had caused the creature to twitch. ¡®Shouldn¡¯t I be noticing this sort of pattern when the Skill Levels up? Why am I noticing it now already?¡¯
The creature summoned its Status and it noticed that the Skill was already Level 5. ¡®Oh. So, this is the Skill this evolution was focused on.¡¯
The evolved Malfae was somewhat correct. With each evolution, it had received a set of Skill that had belonged to its new Vessels. However, amongst those Skill, there had always been a Skill that it had received at Level 5, instead of Level 1. When it had just been born, so had been the case for [Poison Resistance]. For its Moth Vessel, it had received [Flight] at Level 5. While for its Malfae Vessel, [Drone Eggs] had been the Level 5 Skill.
The vibrations came again and it frowned before activating [Projection].
0.0
The chambermaid frowned as he called out once again. ¡°Little monster. What game are you playing at?¡±
¡®I have evolved into a clam larva. I currently lack all senses and cannot hear you. I merely sense the vibrations of your speech.¡¯
The chambermaid scowled. From the clear speech that the creature was transmitting, the woman inferred that the [Monster Tamer] had used [Impart] to grant the monster the high-levelled [Projection] once again. His face twisted into a snarl and his fists fell on the wall diving the two. Muted thumps echoed out and the Larva replied. ¡®I cannot understand you. However, the majestic woman said that as I Level up the Skill, I would be able to comprehend speech.¡¯
The woman nodded to himself and gulped down his saliva. ¡°In that case, I will spend my nights talking. Listen closely.¡±
¡®I am going to sleep now. Do not disturb me.¡¯
0.0
The creature cancelled the Skill [Projection] as it continued to eat. Two muted thumps resounded followed by long streams of sound vibrations but the creature paid it no mind. After all, the creature didn¡¯t know who it was that it had been talking to. It could have been the woman in the cell next to its own or someone else, the creature didn¡¯t possess any method to verify the identity.
Thus, it decided to cut off communication in case it let out something sensitive. Something like its plan to help the woman with her Essence bindings. Instead, it closed its eyes and activated [Mana Manipulation]. The creature remained within its mana system for a few moments before cancelling the Skill. And as it returned to the world of the living, it found itself in the middle of taking another bite of the gelatinous eggshell.
¡®That stupid Title!¡¯
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 78
Time passed as the creature continued to work on its [Mana Manipulation] while it ate. And by the end of the week, the creature had devoured the entirety of the eggshell and had netted a total of 8 Levels from it.
No doubt a combination of the eggshell being The Gift and the effect of its Title, [Hungry].
Despite how much mass the creature consumed, it remained as small as it was and its size changed not even a bit. It was a mystery that the creature did not care to solve, for it didn¡¯t even know about it.
During this week, it had done only three things. It had devoured. It had pooped. And it had practised [Mana Manipulation].
It had been initially waited to be escorted to the mortal child, but for some reason, despite the woman¡¯s order, the creature was not called upon even once by the [Monster Tamer] and the Levels of [Projection] granted by her fizzled out without much usage.
However, that did not mean that the creature had nothing to show for. With the evolution, that caused the creature to lose all its limbs and senses and had instead given it a tail to work with, the creature seemed to have understood the mortal concept of working with the mana.
The Larva equated the mortal concept to its tail. Much like how the [Hive Monarch] could move its tail in any way it wanted, despite never having possessed any tail, the mortal concept of mana treated mana much akin to an organ that they could simply move.
When the creature moved its tail, it didn¡¯t think of what nerves to activate, what orders to give or what muscles to move. It simply did. It had done the same when it had been a caterpillar and had had numerous stubs instead of legs. The creature had never thought about how to move the stubs. It simply had.
And much the same had been the case for the creature had become a moth. It had not thought about how to fly or how to twitch its antenna. It simply had. Taking a lesson from its instincts, the creature moved the mana. The creature did not will the mana to move. The creature did not imagine the mana to move. The creature did not force the mana to move. The creature did not become the mana to move.
The creature moved the mana because it could. And with this simple action, it broke down the mental barrier that had been holding it back and Levelling up the Skill [Mana Manipulation] to Level 12 in the process.
0.0
Time continued to pass as the chambermaid waited for the monster to fulfil its promise. A day turned to weak and a weak turned to months. Yet, the monster failed to fulfil its side of the bargain.
Thus, it was no surprise that the restlessness of the woman continued to grow with each passing day. However, no matter how restless he got, the woman never even considered revealing the monster¡¯s secret.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
For no matter how the madness had affected the [Transgender], the woman knew that the monster was his only hope. And as long the chambermaid kept that secret, the opportunity to make use of the monster could arise.
However, the woman knew that if he released the monster¡¯s secret, then all avenues of collaboration would die an early death.
Besides, the [Transgender] did not want to tell its enemies the potential the monster held. Telling them the monster¡¯s secret would be the same as handling them an unimaginably powerful weapon. The woman would rather prefer death.
Thus, not knowing the intentions of the monster, the chambermaid continued to pester the monster in the only way that he could. He continued to talk at the monster every waking moment they shared. And although this act of his annoyed the monster -the monster made sure tell him through its Skill [Projection]- the [Transgender] made sure of the fact that the monster never forgot his existence.
It was during this time that the monster had once again begun leaving the cell as it was escorted to the [Monster Tamer]. This made the chambermaid sigh in relief. At least this way, the monster could communicate once again.
Slowly, as time passed, and the [Transgender] continued to talk at it, the monster began to pick up on his words. Though the chamber knew that this was less the result of his efforts and more the effect of the [Monster Tamer]¡¯s personal touch.
Through the servants that came to feed him daily, the woman came to know that the [Monster Tamer] was training the monster by talking at it and the [Projecting] to it at the same time.
Such knowledge had been easy to find because of the servants that loved to gossip. This was also the method through which the [Transgender] had always kept tabs on the monster¡¯s activities. Though being a prisoner that he was, nothing ever came free for him and the woman had to pay for all the gossip that the servants told him. However, being the chambermaid that he was, the transgender had only one thing to pay the servants with. His flesh.
After all the information that the woman had bought from the servants, the [Transgender] had lost the count of the number of times his flesh had been used through the bars, as he had stood stuck to the stone bars with his legs spread apart.
The woman had lost count but he had not forgotten. He remembered. He remembered every single face that had participated in its sentence. He remembered every face that had ever made use of his flesh.
However, the chambermaid knew that his remembrance would be of use later, not now. Thus, it waited as it continued to talk at the monster and continued to be amazed by the speed with which the monster continued to pick up words.
Within a few months, the monster had gone from deaf to be able to understand sentences. Perhaps it was because of this progress that the [Monster Tamer] changed the meat fed to the monster from animal meat to Tier 3 monster meat, thus allowing it to continue Levelling.
As the time continued to march and the months continued to pass by, the monster¡¯s grasp at its new method of communication only increased and from what information the chambermaid bought from the servants, so did the monster¡¯s Level.
Thus, the [Transgender] was not at all surprised, when the creature reached out to him, for the first time, since it had woken up almost 6 months ago. Instead, the woman¡¯s bloodshot eyes widened and his chapped lips parted to reveal a predatory smile.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.
-X-
Chapter 79
The Clam Larva activated its Skill, [Projection] and felt it connect to someone. Yet, who this someone was, the evolved Malfae could never be too sure. It knew objectively that the only person its Skill could connect to was the chambermaid. However, given the enormity of the secrets that it held within its heart, it dared not be even a bit careless.
Who?
A laugh echoed out from across the wall. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that you have already forgotten me, little monster. Not when we have been having such a pleasant conversation these past months.¡±
The creature ignored the nonsense and simply projected its earlier thought again.
Who?
¡°Who am I?¡± The woman seemed to repeat the creature¡¯s question. However, her voice was low and wistful, as if she was lost in thought. ¡°Indeed, who am I?¡±
The Larva had no time for her wistfulness and reintegrated its intention. Though, its Skill [Projection] was no longer at the same Level as it had been previous to its evolution. It had been able to raise the Skill¡¯s Level by 10 in less than 3 months when it had been literally dying. Then how could it be idle for the past 6 months?
Instead, it had worked with the beautiful mortal child, who under the strict gaze of his mother, had behaved and practised diligently. As a result, the creature¡¯s Skill [Projection] had reached Level 20 and hit the Skill Level Limit for its current Vessel. At this high Level of the Skill, the creature had learned to lace its emotions into its intentions. Thus, instead of sending multiple intentions, the Larva laced an intention with its annoyance and irritation and projected it.
Who?
¡°Me? I? Who am I?¡± Larva¡¯s anger laced intention seemed to have had little effect on the woman as she lost herself even deeper in the question. The woman¡¯s voice seemed to become even slower as if she didn¡¯t even know she was speaking. ¡°I was once a prince. But if the kingdom that I was once a prince of no longer exists, then how am I a prince? Then¡who am I?¡±
The creature twitched in irritation and its tail flailed. It had been ignored and instead of answering its question, the woman had begun talking about some nonsense about her past. What did her past have to do with now?
In its irritation and anger, the creature created another intention to project. This intention, the creature did not lace with annoyance, but rather with its anger and irritation. It made the intention aloud. If the creature had still been a Malfae, then this intention would have been akin to the Malfae¡¯s screech.
WHO?!!
¡°Huh?¡± The creature intention did have some effect and roused the woman from her wistfulness. However, the effect was not exactly what it had wanted as the woman voice grew louder as she seemed to crawl closer to the wall and asked. ¡°¡who am I? I don¡¯t know. ¡what even am I? I don¡¯t know.¡±
The woman paused for a moment and her voice took on a strange tone. ¡°Do you know who am I? Tell me? Do you?¡±
If the creature had been a mortal, it would have hit its head on the wall in anger but as it was an immortal, it did not have the patience for her nonsense and soul-searching conversations. Thus, the creature did what any immortal would have done in such a situation. It cancelled the Skill [Projection] and ignored the resulting wails and screams.
0.0
The ex-Malfae did not contact the woman in the cell next to its own, for the next week and instead, focused on working with the [Monster Tamer] and her son. With the majestic woman, it continued to practice associating vibrations that it sensed through [Sensor] with the words that the woman projected through [Projection].
It had been difficult when the creature had initially begun on this path but, as the Skill had levelled, it had only become easier. And after a diligent practice of over 6 months, [Sensor] had reached Level 20 to hit the Skill Level Limit. Thus, the creature wanted to give it a rest. But such an idea had been squashed quickly by the [Monster Tamer] and the Larva got the feeling that if it had still been a Malfae, the majestic woman would have squashed more than just ideas.
This was one of the aspects that the ex-Malfae liked about its evolution. The majestic woman could no longer easily crush its limbs or deliver physical punishment. This was simply because the Malfae was so tiny that harming it to such a degree without killing it had become difficult for the green-clad woman.
Though the Larva did not dare test her patience. For it was sure that if it came to it, the majestic woman would find a way to administer pain and punishment that she felt was justified. Thus, the Malfae silently continued to practice along with the woman and her son.
However, those were not the only Skills that the ex-Malfae had worked on in the past 6 months. After the breakthrough in [Mana Manipulation], the creature had continued to work on it and had been able to manipulate it, much like it would a limb. As a result, the creature had been able to successfully raise [Mana Manipulation] to Level 20, the Skill Level Limit.
Though, that did bring had the creature a new problem. Just how was it going to manipulate the Essence within the chambermaid?
0.0
The creature activated its Skill [Projection] and once again felt it connect to someone that it was mostly sure was the woman in the cell next to its own. However, this time, as the creature did not want a repeat of the last time, it refrained from wording its question like last time. Rather, the ex-Malfae laced its intention with the caution and demand of proof before it projected it at the woman.
Mortal?
¡°Huh?¡± The woman¡¯s voice was confused. ¡°Me?¡±
The creature¡¯s tiny tail twitched in anger as it projected again.
Mortal?
There was no reply for a moment before the woman asked, ¡°Do you want me to prove I am me?¡±
Yes.
The woman remained silent for a moment before she began laughing.
¡°Shall I spill your secret?¡± She asked as she chuckled. But then her voice turned to a whisper as she continued. ¡°Your Skills?¡±
No.
The creature immediately projected as it laced the intention with the concept of understanding. It needed no further proofs. After all, only the woman knew of its secret Skills. As the woman laughed, the creature changed the topic and projected while it laced its intention with confusion.
Essence manipulate?
The question caused the woman¡¯s laugh to come to an abrupt halt and the shuffling sound echoed out as the woman seemed to crawl rapidly to the wall separating them.
¡°You?¡± She asked in a low voice but the speed of its fast. ¡°You can do it now?¡±
No.
The creature disagreed. It did not know how to. That had been the entire point of the previous projection. Was she too stupid to comprehend it or something? Since the creature was pretty sure that the answer to that question was yes, it decided to split its intentions.
How?
Manipulate how?
¡°Yes, yes. You wouldn¡¯t know that yet, would you?¡± The woman¡¯s speech was fast but the volume was low as if she was thinking to herself. ¡°I have to teach you, yes. I have to.¡±
¡°Listen.¡± The woman¡¯s voice suddenly became normal once again and she continued. ¡°You have to force the mana out of your body while maintaining control over it. This is the spell [Mana Manipulation]. You must learn to wield it!¡±
The creature gelatinous body twitched and its tail flailed in irritation. Had the woman forgotten that she was dealing with an immortal? Immortals could not learn Spells.
Immortal.
Spells?
No.
¡°Of course, I know that!¡± The woman snapped. ¡°You need to use the Spell without your Status registering it as your Spell. You need to make the mana move, as the Spell would make it, without the help of your Status.¡±
If the creature still had had eyes, they would have popped out in astonishment. ¡®You can do such a thing?!¡¯
¡°Of course, you can.¡± The woman scoffed. ¡°Why do you think people who just have [Mana Manifestation] can cast Spells without [Mana Manipulation]? It is for the same reason!¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
The Larva was shocked. It had never even considered such a possibility. Excited as it was from this discovery it prepared another intent and raced it with its own excitement and demand for the next step?
Next?
¡°When you have learned to control your mana outside your body,¡± the woman¡¯s voice was amused, ¡°you need to send your mana inside my body and manipulate my Essence.¡±
The creature, excited as it was at the possibility of casting a Spell, immediately decided to employ the woman¡¯s advice and cast [Mana Manifestation] to appear within its mana system that always remained in flux. The creature moved the azure mana and the flux changed direction as it appeared to move.
Though despite its appearance, the flux didn¡¯t flow, instead it moved like a spinning top when viewed from sideways. The fluxing mana moved and appeared out of its body, in an instant. However, at that moment, the creature received a notification-
Ting.
[Mastery of Spell detected. Race [Immortal] denies access to Spells. Access Denied.]
-and the fluxing mana that had appeared out of its body dissipated.
The Larva blinked at the notification before its tail flailed in anger at the wall that separated it from the woman and the creature projected intent laced with anger and confusion.
Can¡¯t?
Spell?
Immortal.
Can¡¯t?
¡°Do you think it would be easy to bypass the restriction set by the Status?¡± The woman mocked. ¡°Keep trying.¡±
0.0
The following months passed as the seasons changed from the scorching summer to the refreshing monsoon. The Larva meanwhile continued to eat and practice along with the majestic woman and her son.
Although the creature¡¯s Skills did not improve, due to it already being at its Skill Level Limit, the same was not the case with the beautiful boy that was its master. Being a mortal, Level-limit was not a concept that existed only barely for the boy. As his Level Limit was his Class Level, which the beautiful boy had been working on constantly under his mother¡¯s stern gaze.
As a result, the boy had surpassed the creature in Skill [Projection], which sat at Level 23 for the boy; same as his Level. The creature¡¯s own Level had hit Level 78, due to the meat of Tier 3 monsters that it had been constantly devouring.
However, its Level had not been its only achievement. The creature had finally learned to control its mana outside its body and although the notification continued to appear, it no longer distracted the creature enough that it lost control over its mana.
This did not raise the creature¡¯s Skill Level. Nevertheless, the creature was sure that it would receive them when it evolved and raised its Skill Level Limit; much like how it had received 2 Skill Level ups for [Sense Essence] when it had evolved into its current Vessel.
0.0
The chambermaid¡¯s heart raced and his breathing hastened as he manoeuvred his hand through the bars of his cell and into the bars of the cell next to his own. The [Transgender] waved his arm and felt around until his hand found the tub that housed the creature before the woman placed his palm into the cool seawater.
It took a few moments before he felt something tiny land on his skin. And at that moment, the chambermaid felt a sensation that he hadn¡¯t felt in a long time. The sense of mana rushing through his body. However, this mana was not his own and could not be bent to his will. This mana was foreign and his entire being wanted to reject it with all its power. It was an invasion, a threat, an assault.
Yet, the woman did not react and let the mana invade. But, at that moment, the mana lost control and fizzled out. The chambermaid¡¯s heart raced and he asked with a speech that was faster than most. ¡°What happened? Why did it fail?¡±
Spell?
The monster¡¯s intent was laced with confusion and wonder. ¡®A new spell?...ah yes.¡¯
¡°That would [Mana Invasion]. Worry not about it and try again.¡±
The mana rushed through his body once again. As the [Transgender] refused to resist, his body was invaded. The invasive mana reached the core of his self, his Essence.
¡°Careful. Careful.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was low and slow. ¡°Do not touch my Essence. Be careful of that. Just loosen the bindings.¡±
The woman waited as moments continued to pass. However, even after an hour, nothing changed.
¡°What happened?¡± The woman finally asked with a voice that just contained a barely restrained nervousness. ¡°Can you not loosen the bindings?¡±
Constricted.
Numerous.
Overlapping.
The woman¡¯s heart clenched as he received the monster¡¯s numerous intents. Each of which was laced with only once a concept, strong.
¡°Break it then!¡± The woman made a decision. ¡°Break the weakest link that you can find. Break it! Destroy it! Free me!¡±
The [Transgender] did not receive an answer but he didn¡¯t need one as he felt his Essence shudder and gashes appeared on his body and leaked blood. ¡°Careful!¡±
The creature perhaps heard his warning, or perhaps it didn¡¯t, the chambermaid didn¡¯t know, but the shuddering continued as his Essence was hit. Bruises lined his body and his tender skin cracked. At that moment, however, the [Transgender] laughed as he received a notification.
Ting.
[The Bindings on your Essence has weakened. MP Regeneration has been raised by 1.]
The woman began cackling as he jerked his hand back, causing the tiny monster to roll and fall back into the water of its tub. The tiny monster¡¯s angry intents arrived but the woman cared not for any of them as he continued to laugh.
Streams of tears rolled down from his eyes that had long dried out and the heart that had been cold for so long, felt a touch of warmth once again. Yet, the [Transgender] continued to cackle. The woman didn¡¯t know if what he felt at that moment was happiness or grief. He didn¡¯t even know if he was laughing at that moment or crying. All he knew was that he could finally be free.
He would be free and nothing would stop him. All he needed now was time, time to Regenerate his mana to its full capacity.
0.0
Time marched once again as the monsoon died down and the chill of the autumn invaded the land. The leaves began to change colours as three weeks passed. In these three weeks, the [Transgender] contacted not once the creature that was the reason for his impending freedom. After all, why would he? He had already paid in more than full.
However, as the [Transgender] refused to contact the creature, the creature too maintained its distance and projected not once to the woman. The silence continued to stretch. Meanwhile, their lives continued to move on.
The creature worked on Levelling up the mortal boy¡¯s Skill as it continued to devour the flesh of Tier 3 monsters, reaching Level 85. While the chambermaid continued to be used by the person who had paid for her more than the most, Kiran.
0.0
The soft light of the white moon filtered through the windows and into the long corridor, alighting it up with an almost ethereal glow. The sound of footsteps echoed in the silent corridor like a man with hair as long as he was tall, marched on. His long black hair almost touched the ground and the black robes meshed into his dark skin. His long beard came to his chest and moved with the power of each step.
The man was Kiran. The [Shishya] that fell.
The footsteps came to halt for a moment before they entered the cell in which a woman laid on a raised platform with not a single cloth covering her modesty. Bruises and bloodstains marked her flesh. Stains of dried bodily fluids flaked off of her skin while bite marks were littered on her face and lips. Yet, there was a strange smile on her lips. Even her eyes that had been dull and crazed for a long time, contained giddiness.
The woman was Mrig Trishna. The [Transgender].
¡°I have been waiting.¡± The woman¡¯s slow voice echoed out as the chambermaid¡¯s spread open his arms, inviting the black-clad man. ¡°Come to me.¡±
The man¡¯s footsteps stopped and his bloodshot eyes grew wide. However, it lasted for but a moment before he raced forward and grabbed the woman by the hair. He pulled the naked woman up and slammed the chambermaid into the wall.
The dark-skinned man¡¯s face twisted, his nose flared and lips pulled back to reveal yellowed teeth. ¡°What are you playing at?!¡± He snarled and spit flew out of his mouth before landing on the woman¡¯s face
¡°I simply wish to see,¡± the chambermaid answered as he ignored the pain and the abuse as simply smiled, ¡°the passion within you that burns.¡±
The man slapped the woman but the chambermaid ignored the sting and wrapped his arms around the black-clad man¡¯s torso.
¡°[Mana-¡± The dark-skinned man¡¯s hands clasped the woman¡¯s arms. He tried to free himself from the woman¡¯s grasp when he heard the word spoken by the woman and felt the rush of mana. He tried to push the woman away but it was already too late. ¡°-Manifestation].¡±
A fire erupted from the pores on the woman¡¯s body but harmed not a single hair on the [Transgender]¡¯s body. Her pores remained open and breathed out a fire that wished to devour the world itself. The heat of the fire caused Kiran to flinch and scream. He pushed the woman away but it was already too late as the flames enveloped Kiran and began to burn him alive.
Agony and physical pain, unlike nothing Kiran had ever imagined assaulted his senses and his throat vibrated by the power of screams that escaped his lips. The entire prison resonated with the screams of terror of a burning man as the flesh on Kiran¡¯s body burned and cracked.
His hair and clothes turned to ashes, filling the cell with the pungent smell of the cooking mortal flesh. While his eyes swelled before they popped and vomited their hot ooze everywhere.
The naked woman stepped back and observed the burning man, with the music of screams and a feast of cooking mortal flesh. The [Transgender]¡¯s gaze was that of an artist measuring their masterpiece with satisfaction. A small smile played at the woman¡¯s lips as the light of the flames reflected on her naked skin, giving her an unearthly bronze glow.
A rush of footsteps raced in as Kiran continued to scream and the woman continued to watch. Servants and guards arrived, only to watch with wide eyes as a man burned down before their eyes, alive. The screams and the shrieks and the pure agony were released by the burning man. It paralysed the rescuers, and they watched in shocked horror.
¡°Call the [Healer]!¡± Someone called and the spell was broken as the group rushed to help the burning man. However, the man that burned was within a cell; a cell that they couldn¡¯t enter.
¡°Call the [Ward Smith]!¡±
¡°Call the [Ship Captain]!¡±
¡°Call the [Monster Tamer]!¡±
Call this.
Call that.
Call someone.
Call anyone.
Cries echoed out as the mortals rushed about, however, it was all for naught. As at that moment, the screams died down suddenly and the burning man fell. Dead but burning. His blackened and smouldering flesh continued to emit an orange glow that continued to alight the woman who gazed at the burning corpse with a small smile of satisfaction.
After all, what had been burning him, hadn''t been any ordinary fire but the mana that the [Transgender] had converted to fire. It was a feat that he had learned when he had reached Tier 2 in the Skill [Mana Manifestation]. And now, although the Levels had been lost, the ability to do the same continued to exist.
Footsteps continued to echo as more and more people rushed in. More guards came. More servants came. And even those that belong to the second Tier came and saw the naked woman smiling at the burning corpse.
They shouted. They screamed. But they could do little else but watch. As they continued to watch, even more people came. More servants. More guards. More second Tiers. And finally, the Third Tiered mortal came in the form of [Monster Tamer].
¡°Now that you are here,¡± The [Transgender] looked up to match the gaze of the [Monster Tamer], ¡°Merchant of Malice. Come.¡±
The [Monster Tamer]¡¯s eyes widened in terror as a card emerged out of the naked woman within the cell. The face of the card was white. It was not just white but white. And within this white was a blood-red hibiscus whose filament fell out like a bloodthirsty tongue. The card flipped to reveal the other side which was white, not white. Within this white was an azure figure of a man bound with his arms and limbs bent at angles weird and unnatural.
-X-
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth that had always seemingly slept, opened his eyes.
-X-
Chapter 80 [Not a new chapter, just editing.] Read AN to know about edits.
Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth that had always seemingly slept, opened his eyes. His body that had been akin to carcass moved and the youth seemed to breathe for the first time in a long while. It was as if an illusion had been broken and the feeling of death that had been emanating from the youth vanished. His eyes scanned the derelict shop in which he had been sleeping for who knew how long before his brows furrowed just a tinge.
In the next moment, a single finger of his fell on the desk.
No sooner had the finger fallen than a gong resounded out. The sound of this gong was unnatural; for it did not decrease as it travelled far and wide. Instead, it flipped its nature and increased. The sound of gong grew louder as it travelled farther and farther away from the youth. Those things that suffered the effects of it passing, shattered like glass. While those things through which the sound did not pass through, felt the vibrations that its passing created.
The sound of the gong continued to travel endlessly and it travelled faster than any sound had the right to travel. It continued to travel until it covered the entire desert, the entire continent, the entire ocean and the entire planet before it finally reached a kitten seemingly sleeping on the remnants of a broken wall, within the ruins of a long-dead city.
The sound of the gong woke the kitten and the moment the azure kitten opened its eyes, it found itself in front of the youth that had been seemingly sleeping for so long. The youth grabbed the azure kitten by its neck and the animal cried out in anger and unwillingness but the youth gave it no mind. Instead, he stepped forward.
However, at the moment the youth stepped forward, the very Creation exploded out while the very Reality cracked. The destruction spread far and wide as it destroyed lands, air and space. Yet, none of the creatures anywhere died. It was as if the destruction had purposefully avoided anything alive.
Through the cracks and the explosion, the youth walked through.
-X-
Merchant of Malice. Merchant of mercy. Merciful Merchant of Malice. Malicious Merchant of mercy. Numerous names for a creature that is one. These names imprison themselves not in a single reality. Rather, they spread themselves far and wide, not just in Creations but in one and all Realities.
A myth. A Legend. A horror best left unsaid. He was a creature that mothers used to scare their children with. The boogieman that haunted not one but all. Such was his legend that few believed he lived and even lesser believed that he had ever existed. Throughout all the Creations and Realities, the doubt of his existence was a constant truth.
He was a creature that was said to trade in nothing but malice and mercy. Yet what he traded for was said to be anything and everything. He was said to be deal not with death but in disasters and calamities. He was said to deal in not just miracles but wonders and marvels. He was able to deny even the most powerful mortals and immortals their right to life. Meanwhile, he was capable of banishing even death.
Such a creature had now been summoned by a chambermaid that had nothing but malice in her heart.
0.0
The [Transgender] laughed and her hoarse voice resounded in her cell as the Creation seemed to explode and the Reality itself seemed to break. The cracks spread far and wide but they avoided the living and swirled around them. They bent and twisted as they rushed forward, leaving the living safe and whole.
But for how long?
None of the present people noticed the cracks in the Reality and the explosion of the Creation. Instead, they saw the space break apart, walls fall and the ceiling vanished. They saw the earth part and the skies crack but they failed to notice the horror hidden underneath.
At that moment, all of it mattered not as a youth walked out of the cracked skies and the parted earth. He walked out of not just one but from everywhere. It was as if he was the Reality that cracked and the Creation that exploded. He walked from everywhere at once, only to merge and become one.
Despite the method of his arrival, the youth had a face that was plain and forgettable by all standards. It was as unmemorable as the random stranger on a busy road. Along with his ordinary features, his skin that was light brown and his black hair that came down all the way down to his shoulders, his presence was utterly unmemorable.
In contrast to his features, his clothes were something else entirely. If his features had been made to be forgotten, his clothes had been definitely not. He was dressed in 2 pieces of unstitched fabrics. It was as if the place where he came from, people had not fancied the concept of stitched clothes. The first piece of fabric was wrapped around his waist and each of his legs before it was finally tucked right beneath his navel. While the second piece was folded neatly in layers and came from behind his neck before falling down his bare chest.
Other than his unstitched clothes, the only other thing noticeable about him was his age, which appeared to be barely about 17 to 18 years of mortal age.
The youth¡¯s brown eyes fell on the naked woman standing behind the burning carcass and he released the kitten from his grasp. The kitten seemed completely normal despite who it had come along with. It was about as big as a mortal¡¯s palm with its fur as grey as that of a common river stone while its eyes as azure as the purest mana.
However, at that moment, it let out a meow and broke the illusion of normalcy. For its meow was not the meow that was heard by those present. Rather its meow sounded akin to the voice of an extremely young mortal child whose gender could not be determined by their voice alone.
¡°Enough with the madness.¡± The kitten meowed as it eyed the corpse that had almost turned to cinders.
The grey kitten had barely finished meowing that the laughing woman¡¯s mouth shut itself. By the way, the naked woman¡¯s eyes widened, the action was against the chambermaid¡¯s will.
¡°Speak.¡± The extremely generic voice of the youth addressed the [Transgender]. The voice was so generic that if one were to hear it ever again, they would have trouble matching it with the one they remembered. ¡°Your trade.¡±
The naked woman¡¯s head swirled towards the crowd but the green-clad woman that the [Transgender]¡¯s eyes had been searching for was nowhere to be found. The [Monster Tamer] had escaped in the moment of chaos. The [Transgender]¡¯s face twisted as he snarled. ¡°Where is she?! Where!¡±
As if the chambermaid¡¯s snarl awakened the gathered people from a bad dream and they immediately realised that this was not a place that they wanted to be. With the realization dawning on them like freezing winter, they all began to run.
All at once.
The mortals ran towards the door but the people that had accumulated were too many and the corridor was too small. In such a situation, mortals did what they did best. They survived caring for nothing else. The mortals ran, they ran over each other. They pushed those ahead of them to make way for themselves and then they ran over those that they had downed.
A stampede ensued as screams and shrieks became common with each mortal that fell. Cries and pleadings for help besieged those that ran but each mortal cared not for another and ran for their own lives, stepping upon those that had fallen. People screamed, they cried and they died. However, to those that were within the cell, none of that mattered.
The grey kitten¡¯s azure eyes flickered away from the cindered corpse and back to the woman. It frowned a bit before it meowed once again. ¡°Stop with the nonsense. Just speak what you want to trade. Why are you wasting time?¡±
The naked woman stumbled as if struck before his eyes turned to the youth who gazed at him dispassionately.
¡°Trade, yes. Trade.¡± The woman said to herself. ¡°First! Remove all the bindings from me!¡±
The youth nodded and waited.
The woman eyes swirled as his mind raced. ¡°Immortality! Give me the method to gain immortality!¡±
Once again, the youth nodded.
The woman¡¯s face twisted into extreme hate and she snarled. ¡°Destroy the Empire of the Three Moons!¡±
The youth frowned for a moment before he shook his head. ¡°Not enough.¡±
The woman¡¯s bloodshot eyes widened and her nose flared. Her clenched fists drew blood and her form trembled in rage. She glared at the youth with madness dancing on her face as she spat, ¡°Not ENOUGH!! Not ENOU-¡±
¡°Stuff it.¡± The cat meowed with narrowed eyes and the woman¡¯s jaws locked themselves once again against her will. ¡°With this pitiful amount, you want to buy the destruction of an Empire? Do you think this is a thrift store or something!¡±
The woman breathing hitched and she suffocated. Her body grew hot and stifled. However, at that moment, the woman¡¯s lips parted in an ugly smile and her head swirled to face that wall that separated her cell from the monster¡¯s. She spat. ¡°Take my Skills, will you!? Leave me powerless, will you?!! Kill that monster!¡±
The youth frowned but it was the kitten who meowed in its childlike voice. ¡°There¡¯s no one there.¡±
The woman baulked for a moment before she screamed. ¡°There should be! There should be! If it isn¡¯t there now, then where did it go?!¡±
¡°Do you want to trade for that information too?¡± The kitten meowed like a true merchant. It left no opportunity for profit! The woman¡¯s head whirled and she glared at the kitten that was licking its paws clean after having poked the cindered corpse.
¡°No.¡± The woman glared, yet her madness seemed to have calmed down. ¡°Then, then kill the creature that used to be there.¡±
¡°Tch.¡± The kitten scoffed at missing easy profit. The youth, however, frowned for a moment before he shook his head. ¡°Not enough.¡±
The kitten looked up, surprised at the reaction before it too narrowed its eyes. After a moment it meowed as it scolded the naked woman.
¡°Ha! You must really think this is a thrift store, huh? To try and buy that creature¡¯s death with such a pitiful amount, don¡¯t you have any shame! Pitiful! Pitiful! I am truly pitiful! To have to deal with such a moneygrubber, truly pitiful!¡±
The woman¡¯s mouth fell open at the kitten¡¯s rant before he patted his chest as if to calm his breathing. Yet his anger did not subside. ¡°Why can¡¯t I buy its death? It¡¯s just another monster!¡±
¡°Just another monster, he says. Keep your mouth shut if you don¡¯t know anything!¡± The kitten snapped as it meowed before its eyes became shifty as it sensed a deal. ¡°Or you could trade for that information. Do you want to trade for it?¡±This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
The [Transgender] wanted to strangle the little kitten but given who it came along with, he dared not do such a thing. Instead, he replied hotly, ¡°Yes, I will buy it! Tell me. Why can¡¯t I buy its death?!¡±
The youth simply shook its head. ¡°Not enough.¡±
The kitten let out a roaring laugh as I rolled on the floor. It even stopped rolling on the floor for a moment to point at the woman before it began rolling with laughter again.
The chambermaid clenched his fists and ground his teeth. Such shame. Such disgrace. Such humiliation. But he endured. He hit himself and he endured. He knew that someone¡¯s tragedy was someone¡¯s comedy. After all, hadn¡¯t the tragedy of his life been the comedy for those that belonged to the Empire?
Thus, with gritted teeth, the chambermaid asked. ¡°Then how about those that came to this land from the Empire of the Three Moons? Can I buy their death?¡±
The young man nodded and the [Transgender] let out a bitter laugh. Even with all his sufferings, the malice in his heart couldn¡¯t buy the destruction of those that destroyed her so. Instead, he had to settle for killing the scrap that had brought her here. He breathed and hit his chest but answered all the same. ¡°Kill them then. Kill them all.¡±
¡°That will be all.¡± The youth said in his common voice. ¡°The trade shall now commence.¡±
The youth did not wait for the [Transgender] to respond as he gave her a look and the bindings on the woman dissolved as if they hadn¡¯t been there in the first place.
No sooner had the bindings on the woman dissolved than he received a notification.
Ting.
[Title [Bound] lost.]
Ting.
[Title [Infertile] lost.]
Ting.
[Title [Transgender] lost.]
At that moment, before the woman could even think, the flesh on his body bubbled and reformed. His skin lost its tenderness and his face took on a square shape. His shoulders broadened and his hips narrowed. His breasts shrank until they disappeared while his vagina elongated and fell until it became a penis.
The youth¡¯s face remained impassive as the woman changed into a man. It was as if he cared not for what happened to the woman, for whom he had crossed not just Creations but also Realities.
The moment the process ended and the man began to touch himself all over, the youth flicked a finger. The moment the youth¡¯s finger was flicked, men and woman began to die as their flesh exploded, leaving behind nothing but blood and guts splattered across the earth and the sandy beach.
The mortals exploded without any discrimination. No matter what Tier they were, or where they were, as long as they were those that had left the Empire of Three Moons, and arrived to land on this nameless continent, they all exploded where they were, without any exception.
As a result, the countless FIrst Tier mortals became nothing but guts and blood. Even Tier 2 mortals like Anubhav Dhyan, the [Mana Sensor], escaped not their fate and exploded just like their Tier 1 brethren. And if Tier 1 and Tier 2 mortals had died in droves, then how could Tier 3 mortals escape the flick of the Merchant¡¯s finger? They too exploded without exception.
The old [Healer] became blood and guts within his office along with the patients that he had been seeing and those that had been waiting outside. While the [Ward Smith] turned to blood paste and dissolved in the ocean where he had been casting the ward. The [Monster Tamer] and the [Ship Captain] exploded too, right in front of their son, showering their chamber and their son with blood and guts while turning their room the colour of blood.
Mortals died and continued to die as the Merchant of Malice delivered his part of the trade. The senseless slaughter continued one after the other and the youth¡¯s face twitched not for even a moment. He neither smiled nor did he show grief as his face remained impassive all along. It was as if it was not mortals that he had just annihilated but pests.
When the final mortal turned to nothing but a splatter, the youth placed his hand on the chest of the man who had earlier been a woman and pressed. The man gasped and coughed out blood as the youth¡¯s hand began to penetrate the man¡¯s flesh. The youth continued to push his hand in, and the man¡¯s eyes swelled and popped, splattering the blood and goo all over his face.
The youth cared not for this as he continued to press his hand in. Yet even when the youth¡¯s hand was elbow deep within the man¡¯ chest, it did not emerge out from the man¡¯s back. Instead, the man¡¯s nose, ears and pores on his skin began to bleed as streams of blood ran all over the man¡¯s body.
¡°Within the moment this hand is pulled out, you will perish.¡± The youth announced as if he were commenting on the weather. ¡°As for the method to gain immortality, it is thus. Reject your god as you focus on you [Species] within your Status. Reject them and you will achieve immortality.¡±
The moment the youth finished speaking, he pulled out his hand mercilessly and the man fell on the ground, face first with his body twitching uncontrollably.
Ting.
[Law Scars lost.]
Ting.
[Bridge damaged beyond sustainability.]
Ting.
[Death inevitable.]
0.0
The moment the youth turned away from the man on the ground, the grey kitten jumped up and in a single leap landed on the youth¡¯s shoulder.
¡°Did you really think you¡¯d continue to exist after violating the decree of the Eternals?¡± The kitten meowed to no one as its eyes roamed across the land spanning in its vision. ¡°You must be really full of yourself, huh?¡±
The youth raised one of his legs before slamming it down on the ground. The moment his feet landed, however, the land began to tremble and shake. It was as if a massive earthquake had arrived at that moment. The sea trembled and the sand danced. The trees fell and the plains overturned themselves. Countless creatures died under the effect of the youth¡¯s stomp.
However, it wasn¡¯t just the land near the beach that was assaulted by the earthquake, it was the entirety of the continent. Every point of the massive piece of land shook and trembled under the assault of the youth. Mountains fell and hills flattened. Massive trees that had existed for thousands of years broke apart while mammoth creatures stumbled and fell.
¡°A mere Will of the Wild, a Continent¡¯s Will dares to defy the decree of the Eternals? Insolence!¡± The kitten meowed and its face twisted in condescension and disgust. ¡°Present yourself to be judged!¡±
The moment the kitten finished speaking, the youth threw both his hand forward and clenched his palms into fists as if he had caught something. In the next moment, he pulled his fists back as if he was dragged something along.
As a result of the youth¡¯s actions, the Creation screamed as space itself was dragged out, much like a paper painting that was pinched and pulled upon. As space was dragged, cracks began to appear as if the painting was being torn under the force of the pull. The youth cared not for the torture that the creation went through under his assault and pulled with even more force, widening the cracks.
At that moment, if the continent were a painting then it was as if all the paint from the painting was drawn to point, leaving the rest of the canvas blank and anew. Meanwhile, all the paint and the art of the painting had been pinched and pulled into a single point. This unnatural phenomenon did not last long, however, as the paint exploded and fell on the ground with a mighty roar.
The paint of the painting that was the essence of the continent, churned and took form. It churned and swelled as it grew. It grew not just towards the skies but also towards the seas and the mountains that were leagues apart. With each moment that passed, the form grew taller, wider and titanic as if daring the world to challenge its growth.
This form that this paint was taking was the form of no mortal or immortal but the form of an Existence. The form expanded at an astonishing speed but the youth cared not for it as he waited patiently for the Will of the Wild to finish manifesting.
The Existence roared again before it finished manifested in completion and appeared before the youth with a kitten on his shoulders.
This existence that had manifested was not a single existence but an entity formed of innumerable lives that existed within it. It was not [One but Innumerable]. It was a massive and shapeless Existence that could choose the form of all the different creatures that lived within it, to manifest itself in.
Though, any form that it could manifest in, towered above anything in its vicinity. Such was the immense size of this Existence that it towered over the tallest trees and the tallest mountains. And this was true for its current form as well; the form of the tiger that the Existence had manifested itself in.
However, this tiger was not made of flesh, blood and bones. Instead, it was made of trees, plants and creatures, both alive and dead. Its massive eyes were made up of dead and alive trunks and its irises of uncountable flowers. The Existence¡¯s legs were made of the massive trees and its tail of various creatures. Its body was the canopy of trees that just continued to rise while its stripes were made of the dead and rotting trees and flesh.
¡°You dare to drag me here and defy the rules of Tilism?¡± The Existence thundered. ¡°You are not above the rules of Tilism, [Pitiful One].¡±
¡°This-this! Such thick face!¡± The kitten spluttered for a moment as it meowed. ¡°Even after hundreds of slaps it would not thin! Such shamelessness!!¡±
The Existence glanced at the spluttering grey kitten but dismissed it and focused on the youth before it instead. ¡°You are not the Heavens, [Pitiful One]. The judgement is not yours. Send me back at once.¡±
¡°For you,¡± The youth addressed the Existence for the first time and in the same common voice as before. ¡°I may as well be the heavens.¡±
¡°You hear that you pile of old dust!¡± The cat meowed, indignant at being ignored. ¡°You think an Eternal would descend to deal with you? You think too highly of yourself! A mere Immortal is all that is needed to end your existence!¡±
¡°Can you deal with violating the rules of Tilism, [Pitiful One]?¡± The existence reiterated as he ignored the kitten once again.
¡°The Eternals themselves demand your end.¡± The youth answered as he raised his arm. ¡°I am a mere executioner.¡±
¡°You-¡±
Before the Existence could reply, the youth brought his hand down and slammed it onto the ground. ¡°[Shatter].¡±
The moment the youth¡¯s hand touched the ground the continent parted as it shattered under the force of his Skill. It was not just the land that had broken apart but the continental layer itself had broken into pieces and shattered. The rift ran across the length and breadth of the continent, destroying its very roots.
The ocean rushed into the parted land yet the continent continued to rumble and shatter. Cracks continued to spread and the landmasses continued to drift apart. All the while the monstrous tiger continued to roar as its size decreased at a rapid pace. From where it had once been the size of the mountains, the Being decreased until its size became similar to that of a small hill.
¡°[Pitiful One]! Stop this at once!¡±
¡°Shut up, you stack of rotten leaves!¡± The cat meowed angrily. ¡°You dared to manipulate a soul for your own purpose! Fully knowing the consequences! You thought you could survive? Pff. Pff. I want to know what gave you the impression that you would be the exception?! Such arrogance!¡±
The youth ignored the kitten and the Will both as he raised his hand once again and then waved. ¡°[Death Sentence].¡±
The moment the Skill was called upon, all the creatures that had been born on the continent and head reached Tier 10 or above, exploded in the shower of blood and guts, much like how the mortals had died earlier. No matter how big or small they were, they all died in an instant without so much as a last breath of peace.
As the monsters on the continent died, the size of the Existence began to decrease. From mountains to hill the height of cliffs that looked down at the sea, its size continued to decrease. However, that was not the only change in the Existence. The fear in its eyes dissipated, leaving behind a grim resolve. It turned to the kitten and addressed it for the first time.
¡°True Spirit, why would I not dare?¡± The Existence asked the kitten. ¡°Mortals were set to arrive here. Mortals that would have butchered me to create their Gods. Why would I not dare when my existence would have ended anyway?¡±
The kitten puffed up at being addressed as True Spirit and meowed arrogantly. ¡°That is the Dharma of Wills. That is why you Exist! You dared to defy your Dharma. Impudent!¡±
¡°Who branded me with this Dharma that I did not choose?¡± The Existence shot back. ¡°Who created my Dharma where I must end? Whoever it was, I care not. I was unwilling. I am unwilling. I will remain unwilling until the moment my existence ends!¡±
¡°Such arrogance! Bow before the will of the Heavens! You insolent being!¡±
¡°What is even my heaven, True Spirit?¡± The Existence asked, with its voice growing weak with each word that it spoke. ¡°Was the Dharma that I did not choose, my heaven? If so, then I defy it. I defy such Dharma. I defy such heaven.¡±
The kitten stood silent for a moment before it meowed solemnly. ¡°Then you must end.¡±
¡°And the end I shall.¡± The Existence closed its massive eyes. ¡°But on terms that are mine.¡±
¡°[Dissipate].¡± At that moment, the youth¡¯s voice rang out and the massive tiger that was the size of the cliffs crumbled into plant matter and flesh before that too dissolved and turned into mana.
~~
End of the first book.