《Blazing Crimson [Progression Through Conquest]》


 Chapter 1 - Unwanted Visitor

    The smell of hot coffee and the opening theme of my favorite series, _¡°Mutant Samurai: Dishonored by Blood,¡±_ woke me up. Since my self-made retirement, most of my days began like this.


    Most of my friends were either nuts or some other kind of crazy¡ªlike coming back from the war as heroes and marrying their sweethearts.


    All I wanted was my salary secured at the end of each month, which I mostly invested in fixed-income assets with the best risk-reward trade-off. I¡¯d tried stocks and other nonsense, but living with daily anxiety, even while working during the war, wasn¡¯t great.


    Not that I had a glamorous job anyway¡ªjust an IT guy. My work mostly involved ¡°maintenance¡± on systems, which usually meant minor fixes or dumb tasks like restarting things. If the problem was too complex, I¡¯d use AI, though I¡¯d learned to distinguish its useful answers from the bullshit.


    After brushing my teeth, I grabbed my coffee and stepped out of my cabin in the woods¡ªmy home.


    Pulling out my phone, I tried to check the news. I¡¯d gotten out of WW3, but that didn¡¯t mean I was entirely safe. Most of what I consumed came from a village at the base of the northern mountain.


    Weirdly, there was no signal¡ªa rare occurrence, especially since I hadn¡¯t been notified about any outages.


    Looking around, the climate also seemed different. I couldn¡¯t put my finger on it, but the normally blue sky had an odd orange tint, even though it was already 10 a.m.


    With nothing better to do, I started reading the news.


    As always, some websites and social media were full of doom and gloom, while others spewed random drama. Nothing new. But it seemed that since 9 p.m., the news had stopped coming.


    If there was ever a time for the network to go down, this was it.


    ¡°Whatever, I¡¯ll play something.¡±


    Not that I had much to do here. I¡¯d amassed a hoard of games, mostly offline ones, though some had pesky DRMs. Luckily, most of the ones I cared about didn¡¯t. The rest were money sinks, bloated with random DLCs, often made with AI.


    But, whatever. I had decades of games to keep me busy.


    Booting up my favorite dragon RPG¡ªCD2, in my humble opinion, the best part of the saga¡ªI lost myself in nostalgia. A few hours in, a strange ticking sound started. It sounded like a bird pecking at the window.


    Nothing unusual, but as the pecking continued, I started worrying about my glass.


    When I reached the window, I expected to see a bird. Instead, it was a weird, horned creature, its body oozing some strange substance. One thing was certain: this thing wasn¡¯t normal.


    I scrambled to find a weapon¡ªa broom or something. The creature looked at me and shattered the glass.


    I swung the broom at it, sending it flying into the left wall, breaking my stand and a vase. At least it wasn¡¯t my monitor or PC.


    The freaky thing got up. Despite being the size of a steroid-pumped rat, it didn¡¯t die from my attack.


    It seemed this asshole wouldn¡¯t go down easy, and I didn¡¯t have time to run to the kitchen.


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    Reluctantly, I glanced at my _Mutant Samurai_ katana stand. It wasn¡¯t meant for this, but I didn¡¯t want to get some freaky rabies and die alone in the middle of nowhere. I wanted to die alone in my sleep, not from some mutant rat bite.


    I grabbed the blade, removed it from its case, and sliced at the creature. It was less like a samurai¡¯s strike and more like a kid swinging a stick. But if it worked on cockroaches, it might work on this freaky rat.


    The hellish rodent oozed away, dodging my blade, which got stuck in the wooden floor.


    Fear took over, and I yanked the blade free, dashing to the side. The katana broke, part of it still stuck in the floor, the other half exploding into shards.


    Now my katana was more like a jagged dagger. Like any responsible adult in this situation¡ªafter years of IT work and a few months as a wannabe soldier¡ªI tried to spear the oozing thing with it.


    I was sure I¡¯d miss, but the creature was dumber than I thought. It jumped at me.


    It was do or die¡ªor at least get Rabies 2.0. I surged with adrenaline from my mutated adrenal glands and, like some fruit-meat ninja, I stabbed the thing, pinning it to the floor with the jagged blade.


    The creature twitched, still showing signs of life.


    Like a responsible adult, I tried alternatives. First, bug spray. It didn¡¯t work¡ªthe thing just got angrier.


    As a last resort, I grabbed some alcohol and set the little monster on fire.


    Of course, I had a fire extinguisher ready. I almost missed my chance as the burning ooze from the creature ignited and threatened to burn everything down.


    Staring at the charred husk of the creature, I tried to focus on my options. I could call the police about this weird creature. If they couldn¡¯t help, they might at least point me to someone who could.


    I pulled out my phone. My worst fear was confirmed: no signal, not even for a call. No way to contact my parents, though they lived in a safer area. No way to let the elderly live here. Honestly, living here was a gamble with my health. The local healthcare was only a step above a morgue. Saving money had its costs.


    The second option was to stay put and wait for help, but that didn¡¯t seem like a solid plan. Lastly, I could try to find someone nearby who knew what the hell was going on.


    I probably had more choices, but after having my home partially destroyed by one of these little freaks, staying didn¡¯t seem like a good idea.


    Who knows? Maybe they¡¯d smell their dead sibling and come looking for revenge.


    I could just toss the carcass outside. Honestly, it was all a mess.


    ¡°What the hell am I supposed to do now?¡±


    ¡°Go out or stay here? Maybe I¡¯m overreacting, and it¡¯s just a weird creature. Pollution or radiation could¡¯ve made this thing, or maybe it¡¯s from a pharmaceutical lab.¡±


    Maybe I¡¯d just wait it out. Better safe than sorry.


    I went to my bedroom and searched under the wardrobe, where a dusty leather box was hidden.


    Pulling it out, I couldn¡¯t help but read the message printed in golden letters on the box. My old infantry buddy Carlos had left it for me:


    ¡°Here¡¯s my girlfriend I told you about. Have fun.¡±


    Opening it, I was relieved to find no sex doll¡ªjust a sleek double-barreled shotgun. On the handle, in golden letters, it read: ¡°Marlene.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t a good idea to go out armed, but neither was dying from an oozing rat.


    After loading Marlene, I stuffed the rest of the ammo into a shoulder bag, along with a water bottle.


    Just a nice stroll through the mountains¡ªwhat could possibly go wrong?


    As I left my house, I realized a lot could go wrong. First, it seemed a jungle had spawned out of nowhere¡ªbigger and more alien than before, with weird pink reeds that gave off a sickly vibe.


    I¡¯d never been on mushrooms, but from what my old war buddies described, this looked like the real deal.


    At least the direction of the village seemed normal, the mountain still in place. That made up my mind, and I grabbed one of my backup hard drives and some valuables¡ªexpensive food, my micro PC, accessories, and a spare phone.


    Now, instead of just a shoulder bag, I was carrying my camping backpack. Not that I ever camped in a tent, but I knew where I lived.


    Everything pointed to someone creating some kind of biological weapon. Why they¡¯d do that in my country, which had been a bystander in WW3, was a mystery.


    Maybe they didn¡¯t nuke here because of the resources, including biological ones. But if they cared about that, why turn it into some sickly hellscape?


    I must¡¯ve been in shock, because what the hell was happening?? Normally, I¡¯d freak out and hide in my bathroom. No use overthinking it.


    Let¡¯s see if my village neighbors knew what was going on. Or at least, we could be lost together.


    On the way, I didn¡¯t find any other weird animals¡ªjust the usual wildcats, snakes, monkeys, and such.


    It seemed I was the lucky one to get a freakish skin forest outside my house. Not great for property value, unless that flabby stuff could be used in beauty care.

 Chapter 2 - The Village

    Entering the village, I found a bunch of people yelling at each other. Some I recognized, like the lying lady from the grocery store and the guy from the restaurant who liked to collect cards. Most were holding makeshift weapons, except for one.


    There was also the gossiping old couple. Normally, I avoided them because the last time I talked to them, I heard rumors that someone from the army was sent to spy on us¡ªlike I didn¡¯t have enough to deal with!


    As soon as they saw me with the shotgun at my side, some people stepped back. The policeman touched his revolver, not drawing it but making it clear he wouldn¡¯t let me get the first shot if things escalated.


    I put the safety back on Marlene and raised a hand, signaling I came in peace but wasn¡¯t handing over my gun.


    ¡°Hey, army guy, do you know what this horror show is?¡± the policeman asked, gesturing for everyone else to be quiet.


    Weird. Had they seen the oozing rodents too? From here, the skin forest looked more like an unnatural white forest¡ªnothing too creepy. What a difference an hour¡¯s walk made.


    ¡°Besides the pink-white forest and a weird mutated oozing rat, not much. Doesn¡¯t look like there¡¯s any of that here.¡±


    The gossiping lady cut in: ¡°Nah, some freaks in black vests took some of our people!¡±


    ¡°Calm down, Maria. Let me handle this,¡± the policeman said, then continued: ¡°I shot at them, but they didn¡¯t seem fazed. Some weird black blood came out, but that¡¯s it. They were completely hidden in their stupid black vests.¡±


    Interesting. But what were they planning to do?


    ¡°Anything else?¡± I asked, trying to figure out the best course of action. Now we had black-robed beings abducting people.


    ¡°Besides them being really strong, not much. I¡¯ve been trying to keep these people safe.¡±


    He seemed to be doing a decent job, for sure.


    ¡°...there¡¯s something wrong with all the networks. Even my old radio isn¡¯t working¡±, the police officer added, it seems it''s not only me.


    The policeman looked around, as if noticing something for the first time: ¡°They only took the young people!¡±


    Hmm. ¡°That sounds like human trafficking. What are you guys going to do about it?¡±


    The policeman frowned, as if it were obvious: ¡°Could you help us find them? As you can see, I¡¯ve got my hands full.¡±


    "That is what happens when you don''t have a partner", I thought they worked in pairs.


    "Talk about it, Rodrigo got a promotion six months ago. The RH is still searching for someone who wants to work here, but it seems the only way in is by taking another government exam for new entrants."


    Right, so a bunch of old people want me to be their hero and investigate what these black-robed guys are up to. Really nice...


    Honestly, through all this bullshit, at least these black-robed assholes must know something about what''s happening here. And what if new mutated animals show up?


    These guys might be dead, but maybe not. What can I do to save them anyway?


    The group seemed a little scared¡ªmaybe not because of the rat, but the possibility of more abnormal things appearing. The policeman nodded and looked me in the eye.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t follow them for long, but they were heading toward an old gray building covered in black vines. Your guess is as good as mine about where that temple came from. Be careful".


    I nodded and waved goodbye to the group, gripping my shotgun. Glancing back as I headed in the direction the policeman had pointed.


    I needed to be careful. People in stressful situations might try to take Marlene from me. In all this chaos, I didn¡¯t want to be taken out by some crazy old man.


    That guy hadn¡¯t told the whole truth, or maybe he didn¡¯t want to scare the group further. But the thing was, it wasn¡¯t just the temple. The area around it was covered in a freaky skin forest. And, for God¡¯s sake, the guy must¡¯ve been colorblind because the temple was blood red, with dark red veins running through it. At least from this distance.


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    As I walked toward the temple, further down the mountain...


    I¡¯d never seen this temple before, and it felt wrong. But the weirdest thing was that the village was at the base of the mountain, and from there, the land was flat for miles. There had never been a decline like this.


    A temple appearing out of nowhere? Okay, I could accept that. But the fact that it had displaced who-knows-how-many tons of earth and spawned weird skin forests? That was too much.


    I wanted to say that was the worst of it, but as I walked toward the temple, I saw something even more disturbing.


    The place was littered with corpses. Some looked like the oozing rats, but others were dogs as big as bulls. Some had skin that glittered like metal, resembling some kind of feline.


    The most numerous, aside from the rats, were humanoid monkeys with skeletal faces and no noses, their fur looking like feathers.


    Here and there, weird insects and critters were eating the corpses. Some were normal insects, but most looked too strange to be from here¡ªlike a spider with a painted face on its back.


    Weirder still, each corpse seemed drained of blood, reduced to a husk.


    I was starting to regret my decision to come here. But if these beasts were as strong as they looked, we were all screwed.


    Following the trail of corpses that led to the temple, I realized the path had been cleared of bushes and vegetation. The area looked ancient, with trash and debris scattered everywhere.


    It was like walking through a forgotten town. Nothing seemed useful... except for... what was this?


    Amid the rubble, something sparkled with a bluish light. It was small, about the size of a bead, crystalline like a gem. Getting rich was the least of my worries, but this could be useful¡ªmaybe for bartering or distracting the black-robed figures.


    As I pocketed it, the light vanished. I expected the bright glow to still shine through the fabric, but it didn¡¯t. Strange.


    Approaching the temple, two things stood out: the color scheme, which looked like an edgy vampire lord had designed it, and the sheer size of the place. It looked more like a king¡¯s palace than a temple.


    How and why would anyone bring this here? It made no sense. For the first time, I regretted living in the middle of nowhere.


    As I approached the palace, the smell of blood grew stronger, like a slaughterhouse.


    And like some hellish fragrance, the scent seemed to be coming from deep within the temple gates.


    I didn¡¯t want to go in there. A deep, primal part of me screamed that entering would be my end.


    As I wrestled with my inner conflict, a bright light flashed in my eyes, nearly blinding me. Looking around, I found the source: one of the hundreds of windows, where a light shone and then disappeared, like a signal.


    When it seemed to have my attention, the light moved through the shadows of the structure, guiding me. From there, I saw some ladders.


    ¡°Follow the light or enter the morgue?¡± I whispered to no one, shaking my head. It seemed I was going mad.


    But being mad was better than being dead. Still, I didn¡¯t feel lucky. With all the surrounding bodies, I¡¯d probably join them soon.


    I tried to be as sneaky as possible. There were no corpses around the palace, just in the surrounding forest.


    Speaking of the forest, it looked alien, but its structure still resembled normal vegetation¡ªjust with a weird appearance. I¡¯m no botanist, so maybe there was more to it.


    Quietly, I started climbing the ladders. The light from the window guided my way. Unlike the shiny stone I¡¯d found, this light resembled the glow of a star at night.


    Was I in a poetic mood? Whatever. Time to climb these ladders.


    Slowly, but surely, I climbed higher and higher. It reminded me of when I was a kid, but with much higher stakes. I tried not to look down; if I fell, I¡¯d become floor jelly.


    Maybe if the situation weren¡¯t so insane, I¡¯d be terrified. But damn, this was like a nightmare come to life. Compared to all this chaos, climbing seemed like the safest bet.


    It still felt like a trap.


    From what I could tell, the window the light was guiding me to was in the middle of the palace. It took longer than I expected to reach it.


    That¡¯s when it hit me as I got closer: the light faded. The room was pitch black, not welcoming in the least.


    I hadn¡¯t climbed all this way just to be afraid of the dark. Acting more on impulse than instinct, I jumped into the room.


    That was a mistake. The window was higher than I thought.


    To put it in perspective, this was the lower window, so the room¡¯s ceiling must¡¯ve been incredibly high.


    I landed on my arms, feeling them sprain and ache. They weren¡¯t broken, but they were definitely injured.


    ¡°Fuck, now I¡¯m hurt. Is anyone else here?¡±


    An eerie voice echoed from somewhere: ¡°...is anyone else here?¡±


    ¡°Very funny. Some echo bullshit going on?¡±


    ¡°...dost mine voice echo? That is enough, I thank thee,¡± the voice replied, sounding more alive but still unsettling.


    Now I could pinpoint where it was coming from¡ªa corner of the room. As I focused on it, a figure emerged. Numerous candles lit up with blue flames, revealing the being in the room.


    What I saw was not a person but a creature over four meters tall. It had light blue hair cascading down to its legs, two fluffy antennae protruding from its head, and a human-like face with no eyes¡ªjust smooth skin where they should¡¯ve been. It wore a red dress, its long arms crossed in front of its chest. Not only that, but it had six pairs of arms, all insect-like except for the top pair.


    Though somewhat humanoid, the creature¡¯s alien features didn¡¯t ease my instincts. I grabbed my shotgun, relieved to find it intact after the fall.


    The eerie creature spoke again: ¡°Thou hast no need for such weaponry; I come with a proposal for mutual gain. Thou hast need of a guide upon thy journey; I am in want of one to branch the path.¡±


    For the first time, I realized the creature wasn¡¯t speaking aloud¡ªit was communicating directly into my mind. Its mouth didn¡¯t move.


    It seemed I was about to become insect food. Or just brainwashed.

 Chapter 3 - Choice of the Desperate

    ¡°Education goes a long way,¡± I said, though it came out more as a groan.


    Not that I wanted to help this creature¡ªit might decide to take a bite out of me.


    ¡°You talk... differently. Can you be more clear? What the fuck is happening?¡±


    The creature tilted its head unnaturally, like a person trying to break their own neck.


    ¡°Methinks this a folly, the act of communion amongst beings for carnal desire would not aid us in our desires. Thou are in need of guide upon this perilous path; I am in want of one who might broaden mine own.¡±


    I admit the first sentence weirded me out, and I tried not to focus on it. Past all the gibberish, it seemed the creature could explain what was going on.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s happening? One moment I was living my life, and the next, the world went crazier than it already was.¡±


    The creature stared, two of its insect-like hands brushing its antennae. It took a few minutes before it answered, during which I felt exposed, as if the being was peering into my very soul.


    ¡°Ah, a lost human. If thou speaks truth, thy world shall soon synchronize with all that do exist, as the new beginning shall soon commence. Thou art one of the first of thy kind to do so of thine own accord, deemed by reality to be one of the last planets to partake.¡±


    It¡¯s not like books, movies, games, and all that nonsense would help in this situation. But all the fantastical media I¡¯d consumed helped me understand one thing:


    I¡¯m screwed. This kind of chaos is always dangerous. Maybe this wasn¡¯t some weird experiment. But that¡¯s what this creature was saying¡ªit could be lying.


    As if sensing my inner conflict, the creature released its antennae.


    ¡°Fear not for thy health; thou art one of the first of thy origin to synchronize with the beginning at the end. Thy path shall be freer than most of thy brethren. Empowered by both the power and duty of one such as thee, the ancients are still limitless. Yet thou, in thy insignificance upon such a stage, hast a chance to achieve supremacy. Microscopic as it may be, it is a chance nonetheless.¡±


    ¡°What??? This doesn¡¯t make sense. Okay, it makes some sense, but still, what the hell is going on?¡±


    The creature slowly walked toward me, as if I were a scared little animal.


    "Alright, what is this ritual all about?", I''m here to save people, save myself, if some black magic is needed so me be it.


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    The creature moved faster, stopping near me, close enough for one of its insect arms to reach out.


    ¡°We shall commence with mingling thy being with essence, as little by little this boundless space do acclimate thy existence. First, I must prepare the ceremony, for such a splendid act demand its glory to be fulfilled in full measure.¡±


    Faster than anyone I¡¯d ever seen, the creature gathered items from all over the room. It seemed there were hidden compartments everywhere¡ªcabinets, wardrobes. The creature even handed me robes.


    They were too big for me, but I wasn¡¯t foolish enough to anger the creature.


    I set my bags down, my back screaming in protest. Maybe carrying my portable PC and accessories wasn¡¯t the best idea, but whatever¡ªbetter not to die of boredom.


    Stripping down to my underwear, I put on the robes, my bare feet meeting the cold ground. At least it was clean¡ªcleaner than my house.


    Sitting on the floor, using the robe¡¯s hem as a makeshift mat, I waited as the creature prepared the ceremony.


    That time was enough for exhaustion to set in, along with doubts about my sanity.


    Am I here to save people, save myself, or just trying to survive this madness?


    The initial thrill of something new and unexpected had long faded.


    Maybe some of the amazement remained as I watched the creature put the finishing touches on the ceremony. The setup was in the center of the room.


    I don¡¯t know how, but the place now looked like an altar with an enormous basin filled to the brim with a liquid that resembled water.


    All around it, candles and strange symbols created a ritualistic pattern. The color scheme matched the temple¡ªblood red with dark red accents.


    The eerie voice sounded again in my mind: ¡°The preparations art nigh complete. Thou art awaited in the cup, drenched in body and mind. The synchronization shall soon commence, and thou shalt be made whole.¡±


    I looked at the creature where its eyes should have been, raising an eyebrow. Should I thank it or not? If I died from this nonsense, it would be stupid to thank my own murderer.


    ¡°Thank you, uh... What¡¯s your name?¡±


    The creature blasted my mind with a flood of information, but amidst the chaos, I grasped something: Houonas.


    Which was kind of nonsense anyway.


    ¡°Got it. Thanks, Houonas.¡±


    A pair of the creature¡¯s insect-like hands clasped together. I didn¡¯t know if it was a gesture of acceptance, gratitude, or something else.


    No use delaying it. This seemed incredibly dangerous, but if Houonas was to be believed, I might get answers.


    And if I had one flaw, it was seeing things through to the end¡ªat least when they caught my attention.


    Be it stupid as they may.


    Slowly, I stepped onto the platform above the floor, my feet feeling its warmth. Trying to convince myself this wasn¡¯t some royal cooking pot, I dipped one foot into the liquid.


    It was slightly more viscous than water, like it had been mixed with salts. The temperature was warm. I turned to see the creature approaching the platform.


    Sitting in the basin, I felt like I was in a medieval bathtub. Watching all those sword-and-sorcery series must¡¯ve been good for something.


    This place really did look like a royal palace¡ªprobably the largest structure I¡¯d ever seen. Sadly, I¡¯d never seen a real one, so this might¡¯ve been abnormally huge even then.


    It was about the size of an entire district!


    The series I watched had castles the size of small cities, though.


    As I mused, the creature spoke to me again, directly into my mind.


    ¡°So it begins! Thou shalt soon be more than thou art. Thy candidacy shall be writ in blood and flesh, a testament to thy becoming.¡±


    What?! Candidacy?!


    Before I could respond, an ethereal symbol appeared in the air. The creature¡¯s arms moved in a dance-like motion, and a red light reflected in the liquid, engulfing my vision in crimson.

 Chapter 4 - The Space Never Looked So Beautiful

    They say that images are better than words. What could be better than images, then?


    Wisdom, directly to the brain!


    Soon, concepts invaded my mind. Oblivion, Genesis, a war of supremacy to create rulers for the new beginning.


    From the wretches to the most magnanimous king, anyone had a chance to reach it.


    Their "words." Not mine.


    Anyone who accepted the chance, though, was sentenced to death by the competition.


    It seemed that now I was one of them. Not entirely by my own volition. But Houonas didn¡¯t lie. The process, at least by the knowledge crammed into my mind, synchronized me with this reality, though I doubted it was the only way.


    It seemed I needed to see what the creature wanted out of me.


    New concepts began forming in my mind, concepts that found sustenance in the information already stored in my brain.


    Magic, technology, biology, and divinity.


    If I remember correctly, a greater grouping than constellations is called clusters. What will it be useful for? Who knows? That¡¯s probably my small knowledge of sci-fi talking. Whatever.


    Soon, everything changed. My vision narrowed to only one thing: a magnificent starry sky, unlike anything I had ever seen, even in the occasional astronomy documentaries.


    Now, the concepts hold real meaning.


    Each cluster of power sustained existence itself. A tapestry of them spawning endlessly.


    Concepts ingrained in me resonated like a starred sky within the tapestry, and soon the thought invaded my mind¡ªit soon became true.


    Concepts like the mutation in my adrenal glands resonated with biology¡¯s cluster: a gigantic amalgam of life¡ªtrees, animals, prey, predators, fungi, and bacteria.


    Technology, an inherent aspect of my way of life, resonated in a cluster of war machines, sprawling cities, pyramids, and planet-sized futuristic dreams that surpassed even the cyberpunk realm.


    Why not witness divinity in its glory and its maze-like creation? Looking at the cluster, it sprawled across everything I¡¯d ever known: the old sagas of the Vikings, the pantheons of Greece and Rome, even the belief in one true God with His army of angels.


    This cluster demanded only one thing: devotion to its sprawling infinity, ever-changing, ever-doubted, and ever-believed.


    Even the stubborn part of my beliefs lay there.


    I gazed at the remaining cluster.  Magic, unbridled and wild: flames, tornadoes, titans born from magic, the genesis of planets from stardust, and their destruction by a purple gravitational force that compressed a colossal orb into a dense, mega-compressed sphere.


    So much magic unfolded before me, like imagination itself¡ªchimeras born from will and magic. I stopped looking as a snake-like bird spawned, its corpse made of glass.


    Each of these pillars resonated with me, but which would define my new being?


    Wait. Define my new¡­ what?


    I tried to look at my body, but there was nothing¡ªjust the void of space, not even a trace of it.


    That wasn¡¯t entirely true. Not just the void. I was above a derelict throne, its color scheme matching the red palace.


    Soon, the throne began emitting a red light, launching a beam at the four sections of space¡ªthe four clusters.


    Almost all the infinite stars dimmed, fading away.


    The four remaining ones began approaching my view. Like an astrology documentary, my vision was sucked in, racing toward them at light speed.


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    The only strange thing was that it seemed the opposite¡ªit wasn¡¯t me approaching them, but them approaching me.


    Soon, I realized they weren¡¯t single stars. Each looked like a constellation.


    As I gazed at them, lifelike projections appeared, much like the ones in the magic constellation.


    First, sprawling veins of fire, like molten lava, shifted into a body engulfed in flames, ending with arms where blood flowed like lava, flames erupting from cuts as if the blood itself were fire.


    Each constellation followed suit, solidifying into a single image.


    It was as if they were trying to create a concept I could understand¡ªits origin, its purpose, why it existed.


    I felt their core concepts forced into my mind. _Blood._ The liquid essence of life. The carrier of a being¡¯s DNA.


    I didn¡¯t know if this insight was meant for anyone in my situation or crafted solely for me. I¡¯d have to ask Houonas about it.


    If the blood-fire constellation symbolized magic, the others spun their own variations.


    Divinity showed an arm in the same position, blood endlessly flowing from its palm. Some of the blood pooled, almost taking on new forms, as if hinting at something greater.


    In technology, the arm changed. No blood flowed freely; instead, with each pump, the arm mutated in a controlled manner, growing stronger¡ªlike someone transforming into a steroid-fueled powerhouse in an instant. If anything, it promised controlled improvement.


    Lastly, but not least, as they say, there was biology. Here, blood erupted from the hand like a bud blossoming into a flower. The hand transformed¡ªsometimes into a bright red reptile claw, other times into a gorilla-like arm.


    Some changes were even more absurd: flowers blossoming with a pinkish-white hue, eerily similar to those outside my house and around the palace.


    They looked fragile, but I sensed something vile and pestilential lurking within. Deep down, I knew this wasn¡¯t a coincidence.


    Each pillar resonated with me, each offering a different promise of power. But each demanded something in return:


    Faith for divinity. Energy for magic. Vitality for biology. Mind for technology.


    Suddenly, something halted the constellations and made itself known.


    New stars appeared, the cluster taking my form. Each star resonated with one of the pillars, promising improvement: strength, dexterity, speed, regeneration¡ªthe enhancement of my very existence.


    Its concepts flooded my mind like a torrent of knowledge.


    This was the path each synchronized being would follow¡ªnormally.


    From the first constellation choice, other pillars would connect. In my case, the maximum was a constellation binding me to technology and biology.


    Maybe I wasn¡¯t religious enough, and sadly, the cut-finger trick didn¡¯t count as magic.


    This demanded introspection. Let¡¯s assess my situation: I¡¯m in a temple, part of some mumbo-jumbo ritual led by a human-insect hybrid. Villagers were captured by supernatural black-robed figures, and revolver shots did nothing for the creeps.


    And let¡¯s not forget the oozing rat that nearly gave me Rabies 2.0, or the swarm of weird creatures outside the temple.


    I didn¡¯t see the appeal of becoming a ¡°better me¡± right now. Sure, I had the adrenal gland mutation, but even that wasn¡¯t enough to put me on the frontline.


    Maybe some of my war buddies would thrive here. Carlos, for example, had three mutations: enhanced vision (God knows how)¡ªwhich he used to cheat while playing cards¡ªcarbon-like skin that required special needles to pierce, and a brain that could process information faster for a few seconds.


    Like everyone else, he didn¡¯t like sharing the details of what made him a mutant. We all took the shot for a new life¡ªa richer one, in my case¡ªthough it didn¡¯t work out so well.


    Simply put, it didn¡¯t interest me. Especially since it felt so restrictive. Enough about me.


    I could feel the chance to select any part of the clusters as my starting point, rather than being forced to expand from what already composed me.


    I wouldn¡¯t become a better version of myself, as some villagers might.


    Hmm. Is it possible to choose more than one starting point?


    As I focused on the magic constellation, a new connection formed between us. The four pillars¡¯ myriad of constellations shone again, obscuring the ones that defined my current existence.


    After a moment, more than three-quarters of the stars blinked out of existence. Still, a quarter of near-infinity was a significant sum.


    Each connection to a different cluster diminished the number of stars until I could almost count them in each pillar¡­ almost infinity, still impossible.


    It seemed the more clusters I chose, the more limited my path within each became.

 Chapter 5 - Power of Choice

    Not that it would make me weaker; probably not. However, I''m not even sure what the best constellations are. Did I have only this one chance to choose? Would they vanish forever? I didn''t know how much time I still had in this ritual, and there was no way for me to see each constellation to understand which ones to select.


    Nevertheless, maybe choosing a concept of life essence as guided by the throne could be my best bet at least to survive. A restricted path, but perhaps an optimal one¡ªa perfect choice for someone lost as hell like me. Sometimes linear beats an open path filled with randomness.


    So be it. I choose four constellations. Better to live with a mistake than die with another good choice.


    As my being connected to the chosen stars, I was surprised: It wasn''t each constellation entirely but only one star in two cases¡ªsmaller almost-blinked-out stars got connected instead of entire constellations. Two other stars shone like they had something special about them.


    In a constellation near the magic pillar, there was a star that projected an image¡ªa droplet of blood on fire. Anyone with at least one brain cell would understand what it meant, and as soon as I realized its significance, my connection to the star deepened.


    I knew how to fucking use this!


    The situation is worse than some grimdark fantasies I''ve read about; at least I''m not suffering in a hole somewhere.


    Fuck, why did I need to think about that shit?! Focus on the freaky magic¡ªlet''s get freaky. Yes, Henrique, let''s get freaky. One more cool star to go.


    As I focused on another big star, "big" didn''t seem fitting anymore; it needed a better name. Magic star? Too childish, like some weird European children¡¯s show. Soon the outline of magic... magic spell... Starspell? Spellstar? Let''s get practical: Spellstar it is.


    My brain settled on that name because all my attention was now focused on the Spellstar. It projected such a simple image¡ªa drop of blood intersected by a line, soon forming half droplets becoming whole in just seconds. The process repeated itself in an endless loop.


    It didn¡¯t take more than a moment as the connection deepened; I understood how to do it. The weaker stars'' connections were solid and final even if not quite as strong as Spellstar''s.


    The constellation of all connected stars looked like a blur in space, confusing my brain whenever I tried to count them. Only the concept remained clear.


    Soon, reality came back into focus.


    ---


    I felt another bound making itself known¡ªthin but firm¡ªand then fading into the background. Weirdly enough, my eyes were already open and gazing at a strange figure resembling Houonas. If anything could be summed up in one word for this change, it would be "human." Don''t get me wrong; the creature still had three pairs of arms. However, they now seemed straighter and more human-like¡ªnormal-sized if not slightly longer. Their body was even more humanoid-looking: stockier with light red skin and vermilion hair, but still tall as hell.


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    The greatest change, however, was Houonas face. The creature now had a pair of eyes! They were weirdly round and beady, entirely white without pupils.


    Houonas sat deep in thought on a chair, holding a book in one hand while fluffing its antennae with another. After a few seconds, the figure turned to me like an apparition. Their mouth opened into what seemed more of a smile than the feral grin I had expected.


    "Thee has awoken," the creature said and got up to make an unnerving curtsy that would have earned him 10/10 in any etiquette class. "Do not be distraught by mine appearance. Thus, thine synchronization affected me as well. Mine paltry illusion became sublime reality!"


    Their weird way of speaking was starting to feel less strange¡ªlike when you play a medieval game and their speech starts feeling natural.


    "So your previous form was an illusion? Why?" The whole insect vibe had given me some clues, but I figured small talk before diving into the meatier topics seemed like a good idea. "It is customary in the Ecclesiastical Order. Shared by many different faiths throughout known domains, our appearance showed time pastime to generate fear and even disgust among your kind."


    "Humanoid? Did you see any other people?" Maybe some of the villagers had arrived too.


    "People? Nay, mine speech doth not pertain to thee within this sanctified domain. My utterances be aimed at those abominations - the lycanthropic simians, the verminous rat-men, and the revered Erythocetes himself," Weremonkeys... maybe they were some of those dead guys outside. Better to make sure. So I asked Houonas, finally noticing something: the creature was now using his mouth more like a feminine one than before.


    "Weremonkeys are known for their resourcefulness¡ªless so compared to the venerable Erythocetes but far greater than that of wererats. Their domain lies in the forests around the palace and beyond; rarely do they venture into our hallowed halls."


    "Less akin to sentient beings than beasts, the wererats dwell deep beneath the earth, abhorring the harsh rays of sunlight. Hence, owing to their mutual aversion to light, Erythocetes did employ these creatures to labor within the palace''s catacombs and mines." Taking a breath that seemed forced and unnatural, Houonas continued.


    "The venerable Erythocetes are not the sole kind known for their vital synergy with blessed blood. Thy visage doth bear a striking resemblance to theirs, yet with notable disparities: mouths full of fangs, encircled by tiny suction cups upon teeth as pure and white as porcelain; hollows at the end of each fang and cup."


    "Endowed with minds beyond the norm, they communicate through mind-speech, as does my own kin. Our shared eloquence hath forged a smooth path for their acceptance of not only my kin but also others from the Ecclesiastical Order¡ªthose versed in mindspeak¡ªswiftly establishing many appointments within this blessed palace. So deeply are we connected to all that exists!"


    This was too much information.


    "Houonas, you don''t look like any of these beings... and I''m thankful for your help. But what''s your deal with me? Why do you care?"


    Soon the creature started fluffing its antennae again. "Mine desires are but to act in accordance with the faith I have learned during this existence. Thus, by mine belief in thee and thine promise of burgeoning power, mine strength shall ascend like a booming thunder following light for all eternity! Alas, my actions stem from fear derived from a fleeting time as the last vestiges of reality merge into oblivion, that new genesis may be created."


    "... What? New Genesis?"


    "Genesis simply is. Mine words be spoken by faith, guided by facts. As how doctors analyze sickness to find cures, or blacksmiths gaze upon their creations; ''tis anathema! Genesis remains genesis, oblivion remains oblivion¡ªour blood is our own!"


    Great, so Houonas was either a zealot or some sort of fraudulent priest. Nothing new here.


    It''s not like I can believe anyone without proof in this world. But if you want to live smartly, get practical clues about the reality around you. Like how to act when coming home and avoid being robbed, which places have better discounts¡ªthings like that.


    Priorities are key here. So let¡¯s talk magic first. Practical things come later.

 Chapter 6 - A Taste of Magic

    So soon, I explained the whole shenanigans of space magic and supernatural existence, this nirvana-like experience I had.


    At first, I feared that Houonas didn''t understand anything I said. But then it started clasping its palms and moving them like some sort of cartoon villain planning a new evil plot. I pray my gut is right, and they got what I was talking about.


    "Thine concept of existence is most wondrous," Houonas began, "to view the connection to existence as stars in the night sky. Just beautiful!"


    However, it seemed that Houonas could tone down their enthusiasm a bit. "Mine concepts diverge from thee. As most of mine kind, my connection to existence itself is one of faith¡ªour singing mind chorus, each verse a fragment of existence, a way to understanding and power if one so desires."


    Houonas whispered this last part more to themselves than to me: "A shard..."


    Slowly, the creature pulled out a gemlike crystal from its vest. It looked exactly like the one I had received before¡ªbluish light emanating from it. But now, I felt something different coming from it.


    "Plead thy mercy," Houonas said softly, "but I could not control the urge to appraise such a shard. To learn its story if it desired so."


    "Such tiny things engrave their existence in something so raw. They can be used for more than just being consumed by ones like thee to increase connection to existence and search for power. Used as raw materials, their existential energy creates something more¡ªreleased to their proper form, whether an item reborn or a mimicry of themselves."


    Houonas handed the shard back to me gingerly, its palm grasping mine as it released it.


    "This one is just in its simplest form," Houonas continued. "Its existential energy can help thee connect better with technology and science¡ªor any other purpose thou wishest for so long as they be aligned with existence."


    Hm, interesting. Does this work like some of those pills in movies that unlock beyond the 10% brain processing? Later I learned it was fake science, but who knows¡ªmaybe it will work.


    "So, what do I do with it?"


    Houonas tilted its head to one side, and its unnerving eyes focused on me. "It saddens me," Houonas said softly. "The last of mine shards had been used in our process of synchrony. The process is not hard by itself but helps if thee already learned how to resonate the choir with reality, thus creating the supernatural itself ."


    A bunch of fluffy words, but that kind of remember me something.


    "Do you mean the spell from the Spellstar?"


    As soon as I finished speaking, Houonas started fluffing its antennae. Sometimes that thing grows numb with all this touching.


    An image is better than a thousand words, and action is better than a thousand videos¡ªthe phrase didn''t work on my social media but works for me. Time to get out of the basin anyway.


    I''m not looking forward to cutting myself or boiling alive, so I''ll start with the Divine spell.


    The process was simple as long as you knew how to do it. It felt like learning to feel something entirely numb in your entire life¡ªbe that because it didn''t exist before, or because you never got a feeling for it.


    Like some sort of gaseous or liquid substance percolating through my being¡ªif I let myself feel, I could sense it.


    Instead of letting my body work on this automatically like breathing, I took control and did it manually. For me, that''s what it felt like¡ªso I did just that.


    With the knowledge from my connection with the Spellstar, I used the spell. It felt raw, expensive, slow, inefficient¡ªlike using a C4 to break a nut.


    Nevertheless, I think it will work.


    Pocketing my shard, I focused on the spell. From the middle of my right palm, a drop of blood appeared. I cleaned it with my other hand; there was no wound or scratch.


    I showed my left hand to Houonas and did the spell again. Soon, the drop pooled together under gravity''s pull and flowed downwards onto the floor.


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    It felt like the dumbest magic ever seen¡ªlike some stigmata bullshit.


    Ha! But it doesn''t stop here.


    Houonas took some distance, much like I did, seeming to anticipate what I was about to do. However, they moved farther back than I had. So I obliged and did the same¡ªwhether they were a religious fanatic or a charlatan, they at least knew more about these existential shenanigans than I did.


    Taking hold of the connection I had with the blood pooling on the floor, I channeled my energy and willed it to burst into flames.


    Soon, crimson flames erupted from the floor like a flaming bomb, the size of a watermelon. The air shifted, unbalancing me, and the heat stung my face and body¡ªnot enough to singe, but enough to bring tears to my eyes.


    It felt hotter than the gasoline-fueled bonfires I¡¯d made with the guys.


    Taking a few steps back from the blood, I lost some of my energy¡ªif my reservoir is my body, I lost my hand and wrist of energy.


    Sadly¡ªor happily¡ªthe flames stopped after a few seconds. They had run out of fuel. For a moment, I thought the spell was simple in imagination until I saw the scorched floor¡ªsome sort of woody brown stone that became blackened by the fire''s heat.


    Yes, little Henrique¡ªwe have a shot at becoming a fucking magician. Let someone try to reveal it as just a trick.


    Back on topic: my crimson flames made me lose more energy¡ªan arm or shoulder length worth. A cool crimson flame for an arm of energy? Worth it¡ªI didn''t even need to hurt myself.


    Houonas finally stopped and looked at the now-extinguished flames, "Intriguing," Houonas said with a smile. "To be pleased with a synergy of choirs in just thy first act! Thou showest promise."


    Makes sense¡ªthe energy part.


    I took out the shard again and focused on it. If I lost some energy, maybe taking some from the shard would give it back.


    It soon started; the energy rose in my hands but vanished as soon as I thought it would recharge me. Soon, star clusters appeared like a daydream.


    The energy wanted to flow¡ªbut no¡ªit was more than just energy; its essence needed guidance.


    I guided it toward the constellation I chose from the technology cluster. A new connection formed¡ªa new star¡ªand the energy flowed in an instant.


    No signal of the star¡ªthough I felt the connection, and it worked.


    Soon as it finished, I returned to normal. The weight of the shard vanished with its essence itself.


    Cool¡ªI didn''t feel like in a trance or endorphins pumping through me; just breathing naturally, doing what I was meant to do. Yes¡ªthat felt right.


    Houonas made another creepy smile and said nothing more.


    So now I''m a magician with a shotgun¡ªtime for some heroic shenanigans.


    "I don¡¯t want to be that guy," I''m trying that is, "but... Houonas, do you have any shards to lend me? I need them to save people from the weirdos in black robes¡ªthe kidnappers."


    Houonas finally made another face; its mouth curved downwards like a sad clown.


    "Just said mine last shard has been used for our synchronization," it replied while touching its antennae. "Such an incident that happened to thy kind must be due to invaders¡ªnewcomers to this domain. It saddens me their work bears fruit already."


    "Nevertheless, the stalemate is broken¡ªthe nine heirs shall soon commence the final battle against these invaders¡ªa mist ever obscuring them."


    "This is thy chance for supremacy! Seize the Palace!" Houonas shook its hands like a motivational coach with extra humph from all those arms.


    Fanatical clerk coach¡ªha!


    Still, I need all the help I can get. Time to beg again: "Do you have anything that could be of help? Like some food, water, or a map?"


    Houonas suddenly stopped still and went to search cabinets and storages around the place. While waiting for them to find something useful, I tried not to feel anxious.


    Soon, Houonas showed up with a weird granite tile¡ªsome writing in an unknown tongue was etched on it.


    "I present thee one relic of this palace," Houonas said softly. "Use thy energy, so its blueprint appears before thee. Do not be afraid of consuming it¡ªit is no shard."


    I took the granite tile, and as Houonas had said, using my energy made the thing work¡ªthough magical by nature, it looked like a tablet with shades of black, gray, and white but still useful.


    As soon as I used it, the language changed to mine: Portuguese, English¡ªeven Mandarin. Not that I knew much of the latter.


    I only had one word for this place: enormous.


    The Palace itself was vast¡ªrooms upon rooms, saloons, gardens¡ªa gigantic cooking complex, armory and stores, training grounds, a library, throne room, sewers¡ªand even cave mines!


    Each area had its own weird symbol of skulls with long fangs instead of teeth.


    As I glanced at Houonas again, they spoke: "Thou must have noticed the heir emblem¡ªeach an heir candidate bound to this palace. Thine is one of many rooms hidden from all but thee¡ªa sanctuary for three days."


    Houonas touched its antennae and continued softly: "Thus rarely shall they waste their time in such enterprise to look at you, when so many heirs draw breath. Nevertheless, such occasion will arise¡ªwhen limited by physical means, the palace sends you here where your inheritance is contested."


    "Till only an heir remains¡ªthe succession continues. Do not believe or trust anyone who does not swear fealty to thee and synchronize with thy existence; seek ones that be of help¡ªand they shall aid as do I."


    Houonas lowered its head, voice husky: "Nevertheless¡ªdo not lose hope. I am the last of my colleagues to reach these venerated grounds¡ªall others are servicing an heir. With intruders'' success, none will survive¡ªtheir vile desire to rule and dethrone the blood''s will. Even if my fellows accept losing what they gained and synchronize with thee¡ªbe cautious.''


    "Do you have anything more? Where is the best place to get supplies?"


    "As one summoned not long ago, to keep the natural order against the ones that desire to subvert. I did not dare leave the premises of this place as I shall do my duty thus. A duty to thee."


    "Alright, thanks," it seems that is useful as Houonas will get.


    For someone so big, I hoped they would volunteer to fight at my side. Whatever.


    Now it''s time to act.


    Changing into my old clothes and taking Marlene for a stroll, I psyched myself up. Time to put the army training into practice¡ªremembering almost nothing about it except basic stuff. But now¡ªI''m a magician. Time to get freaky.

 Chapter 7 - There Will be Rats

    Leaving the room, I felt my palm sweating, and my grip on the shotgun tightened. A part of me wanted to go back to my house and take some supplies, especially water. My tongue felt like sandpaper.


    According to the tile relic, I was in a section of the palace where bedrooms and various other rooms were located. Part of me hoped that some creature would show up, looking for a spray of bullets on their head. But as I passed through each room, it seemed deserted. No luck with water either; the faucets in the bathrooms had been drained.


    I didn¡¯t take this personally, but I couldn¡¯t help feeling a little frustrated. Dammit!


    The place looked looted¡ªlike a bunch of robbers or crack addicts had taken over and turned it into their playground. Torn clothes, destroyed furniture, broken glass¡ªnothing had escaped their wrath. Everything pointed to druggies, except for the absence of feces. So yes, no fighting the addicts.


    It took hours just to check each room; my sense of size was completely off. This place felt bigger than a district, with red and dark red dominating the color scheme¡ªthe only exception being the wooden, stony maroon floor. The palace had an endless series of stairs going up and down, like some medieval hotel building complete with chandeliers and all that jazz. All fit for more than Houonas sized people, big as hell.


    No wonder no one cleaned this mess¡ªit was too vast for anyone to handle. In hindsight, it made sense that no one would be here. By what Houonas said, the heir to this place should be me, and I needed to remain incognito for now. So there wasn¡¯t much point in searching these rooms again¡ªthe scavengers had already looted all they could, until I showed up to the others heir tiles.


    If the intruders¡ªthose black-robed guys¡ªhad caused all this chaos, they probably had already done a thorough check-up or started here. The nearest places from my current location were the cooking complex, library, and saloons¡ªall located on the top floors like where I was now.


    Soon enough, I reached the exit of my area. As expected, there was an enormous wall made of the same material as the floor¡ªstrange design choices indeed. Where did they get so much material? It looked to be from a single tree, with no signs of boards or composite materials used in construction.


    I had no idea how expensive it would be to buy this place. Not that I intended to sell it after becoming its owner¡ªI needed not to die first for that to happen. Houonas hadn''t said anything about selling the palace, but I wasn¡¯t foolish enough to think I could do so without consequences.


    Talking about money, I still hadn¡¯t found any of those precious shards. One way to get them would be from someone''s corpse¡ªHouonas implied this much. Easier said than done; while I might have a chance against some rats, taking on the intruders seemed more daunting.


    There were even these leeches called Erythocetes, probably the strongest creatures here.


    Now for the big question: which place to go next?


    For my sanity and thirst, the choice was clear¡ªthe kitchen!


    My body felt like lead; after all that walking up and down, my legs ached. Carrying a shotgun didn¡¯t help either. At least I had left my camping bag in my room, only carrying the shoulder-bag with ammo.


    The ritual refresh my body, even though I felt fatigued after all this seach. Still worth it, especially since these past hours seemed to have topped up my energy through natural regeneration¡ªa beautiful thing indeed.


    Walking across the intersection of this great wooden wall, I tried to keep noise levels down. Here, there was no hope of not encountering anyone. According to the map, it seemed to be the main way of crossing between areas.


    From what I could see, the illumination came from things resembling light bulbs far away enough that it wasn¡¯t clear how they worked but provided adequate lighting nonetheless.


    Still, if everything blacked out I still have my phone flashlight.


    Suddenly, as I approached the end, a group of abominations appeared¡ªlike some kind of targeted missile running in my direction with uncanny precision. Their rat-like noses were bigger than half my face¡ªa mix from hell between a gray sewer rat and something ugly beyond belief. Crooked teeth like someone had mashed their heads with a hammer.


    Of average height and build, they wore clothes that looked like potato sacks sewn into makeshift miner garb¡ªexcept for the one in the back, who wore a strange brown skinsuit. Not only was it a skinsuit, but the material also looked like leathery skin.


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    Two of them held pickaxes; another carried a shovel. The last one wasn¡¯t even wearing any clothes but was wrapped in dirt instead.


    Freezing up and letting them make the first move wouldn''t work, so I lifted my shotgun as the nearest creature approached within range and pulled one of the triggers.


    The shot sprayed into the bastard¡¯s body¡ªhis skin didn¡¯t seem resistant to lead pellets that penetrated his flesh. The creature fell to the ground, the blood flowing like a fountain, the cretin spasming from blood loss.


    His companions continued their charge without hesitation; I didn''t wait and targeted another one right in the head. His face exploded like a broken watermelon of red, white, and gray.


    No time for fooling around as I walked back while sliding my forearm to eject the spent shells. But the shovel rat wasn¡¯t done yet¡ªhe jumped forward with his metal shovel aimed at my head.


    Adrenaline surged through me; legs followed commands as I leaped aside. The air moved past my arm hairs, showing how close he had come to hitting me.


    Crouching down, a soccer ball-like object shot from the side¡ªpanic set in and I blocked it with the shotgun.


    The impact hurt like hell¡ªthe brown ball exploded into a cone of dirt that hit my left arm, causing it to bleed profusely. You give me blood; I get ideas.


    Flaming ones.


    Using the divine spell again, I doubled down on this gamble¡ªthe wound giving me double the bloody prize. Karate-chopping the air generated momentum as the blood pooled in my skin flew forward toward the rat shovel enthusiast.


    The critter twitched its nose, smelling blood on his fur¡ªnow for the final aroma. Without delay, crimson flames erupted around him; the creature screeched like mad.


    Both spells consumed an arm¡¯s worth of energy each. Strangely enough, the flames kept growing bigger with every passing second as the rat fell to the ground in agony and convulsions.


    The spell continued consuming more of my energy while a dirty rat watched his fellow being burn alive¡ªlike some kind of trance.


    My adrenaline kept pumping; I didn¡¯t want to waste this opportunity. Running toward the shotgun, one eye on Marlene and another on the burning rat, I noticed that screeching stopped as almost half of my body¡¯s worth of energy was consumed, the crimson flames snuffed out like they had run empty.


    The dirty rat broke his trance, running at me with a ball forming in his hand¡ªconsuming earthy material and dirt around him.


    Son of a bitch¡ªI changed direction and did almost a drift with my shoes while lifting an arm to cast another divine spell, pumping more blood into the mix. The rat used its pea brain and jumped at me, betting that he would hit me first.


    I threw a looping punch as I leaped to my right, trying to give him less surface area for his attack. Smart move¡ªhis ball whizzed past my shirt. I too missed my punch entirely due to instinctive head movement on the rat¡¯s part.


    That''s alright.


    "Some-blood-in-your-eyes," left my lips in synchrony with an open-handed spray of blood onto the creature''s face. The bastard only had a second before flames erupted, enveloping his entire head as he scratched at it desperately trying to peel off skin and flames.


    There was no use waiting; I dashed toward him while spraying more blood on his burning body until he became nothing but ash in the ground. My energy fumes were nearly depleted¡ªcutting the spell short seemed like a wise choice now.


    Taking a deep breath, I smelled the acrid aroma of burned meat mixed with pungent rat stench. In that moment, something moved at what remained of the dirty rat¡ªa postmortem reaction as his body contracted in itself and emitted light enveloping it.


    What was left behind was a crystal emitting red hues¡ªno doubt another shard. The smooth sensation of this crystalline wonder fell into place; another light erupted from one of the rats I had shot earlier, convulsing throughout our battle.


    Concentrating all essence in yet another shard, this time there wasn¡¯t any distinct hue but weaker refraction around its transparent crystal.


    With both shards snuggly in hand, it was time to consume them.


    Maybe Houonas¡¯s words were true; the shards held more than just energy within their cores.


    But did I have a chance of getting back to ask? More importantly, could I explore here without being followed by hordes of rats?


    I didn¡¯t think so.

 Chapter 8 - A Vampire and Wererats Unlikely Farming Partnership

    As I consumed the shard of the dirty rat, the essence was pulled from the magical star cluster. I didn¡¯t see why I shouldn¡¯t let it go.


    Soon, the same effect I had experienced with the technology shard before happened again. A new connection formed¡ªnot enough to show me a star, but enough to feel it taut, similar to the one in the technology cluster.


    The shard soon vanished from my hand. One gone, one more to go.


    The pickaxe rat''s shard felt strange. It had no stronger pull on any of my constellations.


    Rubbing my two brain cells together sparked a flash of insight. I supposed this was the other cluster I had skipped, the one tied to my existence.


    This type of shard needed a name. I could call it neutral, base, plain, dull, or even "me shard." It¡¯s not like I have time to waste on these things right now, so let¡¯s call it basic.


    The basic shard didn¡¯t have any particular pull to my constellations. However, right now, I need power¡ªa team of rats has already beaten me up.


    So, the shortest path to getting one star, hopefully a spellstar, is through the magic or technology shards.


    I already got a magic spellstar. There¡¯s a chance I could get another one, or maybe I only get one in each constellation. Houonas really isn¡¯t much of a teacher.


    But I¡¯m not even sure if the technology tree would give me any spell in the next star.


    Nah. The magical spell was really useful; it¡¯s worth a try to pump it up.


    Consuming it takes but an instant. As the last traces of the shard vanished, I feared it wouldn¡¯t be enough.


    The stellar shine banished such thoughts. Sadly, the star didn¡¯t show any sort of spell image.


    However, my body felt different¡ªnot exactly my body, but my energy.


    It became more concentrated, like someone adding extra lemons to a lemonade. The feeling was substantial. I didn¡¯t know the exact numbers, but it felt like two arms¡¯ worth of energy.


    Taking my body into consideration, maybe it¡¯s around twenty percent?


    Anyway, now it¡¯s just me with a bleeding arm and a bunch of dead rats.


    It seemed to already be coagulating, though.


    Even after they roughed me up, I couldn¡¯t stop wondering how these critters found me.


    Rats are known to have good noses, so maybe they¡¯re like trained dogs. A human like me running around didn¡¯t take a genius to find strange.


    I didn¡¯t like the way my brain was working. Taking a look at the filthy rags the wererats called clothes didn¡¯t help either.


    Not many options, and if I wanted to stick to my plan of going to the cooking complex, I needed to go right now.


    Taking out my ammo bag, I used my shirt as a makeshift bandage for my left arm. It looked quite stupid, but I didn¡¯t want these filthy rags touching my wound.


    Between the two unburned rags, I chose the one from the headshot rat. The blood still pooled in the top part, but it had less blood overall.


    The other rag, I tried a quick experiment, but it didn¡¯t work. Rat¡¯s blood sadly didn¡¯t make any crimson flames.


    It seems my blood is essential. I¡¯ll try another species, though, if the opportunity arises.


    Last but not least, I rescued my damsel in distress, ready for action.


    Marlene is a little roughed up, scratched like a cutting board, but still in working order. I topped it up with some ammo and slung it over my good arm.


    Taking a quick look with the tile relic, I checked the way to the cooking complex and bolted from the rat corpses.


    I didn¡¯t know how much time I had, but I¡¯m sure it¡¯s short.


    ---


    I knew this place was huge, but damn, did it have to be this big?


    To reach the cooking complex, I¡¯m crossing intertwining paths, like some sort of in-between place between the sectors. Resembling a highway tunnel, the material is the same maroon wood, again without any sign of fractures or boards. It felt like I was inside a tree.


    It didn¡¯t have any normal decoration.


    Ah, unless you counted the bodies as such.


    The place looked like a war zone, bodies strewn across like garbage, some bloodstains painting the walls without any corpses underneath. Most of them had rags below.


    My guess is that these either got removed or became shards.


    Aside from the offal, blood, organs, and bones sometimes strewn about, the corpses that remained somewhat intact were mostly wererats.


    The buggers are almost all gray, but among them, I could see some brown ones, and in even lower numbers, two blacks and one white.


    After that, there are some sort of obese doglike beasts, the size of a bull. Most of them seemed to be husks without any blood. The same goes for some metallic-furred felines.


    That¡¯s when it hit me. They¡¯re the same species as the one I found near the castle. Less deteriorated, in a way¡ªmore fresh.


    Looking at the place, I can¡¯t shake the impression that something is missing from the scene.


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    These shards must make the life of crime scene investigators a living hell, or body snatchers, maybe both.


    I don¡¯t know why someone would take out bodies, though. Nothing here seemed edible. Maybe the dog and feline ones, obviously only in an emergency.


    The bodies didn¡¯t give me any comfort, but I have a plan, and I will finish it.


    Obviously, I also took the time to find something useful, especially shards.


    Distantly, I could hear a cacophony of sounds, growing louder bit by bit. I hadn¡¯t heard it in many situations. I was never a frontline guy myself, but it¡¯s not every time a situation is under control.


    In these situations, I acted more like a civilian, and in battle, the most a civilian does is see and hear, slowly increasing their own fear.


    I¡¯m no different, but nothing that adrenaline can¡¯t help with.


    It¡¯s not something I want to rely on all day. As they say, health is about balance. If they don¡¯t say it, they should¡ªit¡¯s a great phrase.


    I didn¡¯t want my heart exploding and all that.


    With my blood pumping, I moved fast and stealthily. No reason not to take a look before a fight.


    I¡¯d prefer it, actually¡ªjust look and no fighting.


    Taking an intersection, the sound escalated quickly. The sound of metal and crushed flesh.


    Screeches, barking, screams¡ªmaking the battle sound more like a frenzy in a barn than a battle itself.


    No sooner had I seen a silver swish cutting the air and rat both, one screech ceasing, erupting in a bleeding, profound scar on its neck. A second later, the wound increased in size, erupting even larger, almost cleaving the wererat¡¯s head.


    As soon as the silver flesh returned to its wielder, I got a better look at it.


    The thing looked like a metallic vine. No, not a vine¡ªa whip. Something I could only remember seeing in some games. No sane person would use this in a fight.


    That¡¯s the thing¡ªthe being wasn¡¯t a person. Although the creature is humanoid, wearing silklike clothes like a noble from medieval times, it disregarded the use of armor.


    Resembling a man, its face had a critically inhumane aspect. More than the pale pallor, the creature¡¯s mouth is bigger than half its head.


    Fangs protruded from it, like a lamprey¡¯s. Unlike the animal, the fangs were long. How the hell did they fit inside?!


    This creature looked elegant, towering over the wererats. Dashing, even with its monstrous appearance, its hair tied in a man bun with red lacing.


    Complementing its vest with multiple shades of red, that guy is really an enchanting prince from hell¡ªat least he thinks he is.


    A monstrous pale guy that looks like a bloodsucker? Yeah, that¡¯s probably one of the Erythocetes.


    Houonas should have described them as vampires, although they¡¯re way uglier and more monstrous.


    At its side, what could only be described as oversized fat dogs, their red collars twinkling with fresh blood as they feasted on one of their furred enemies.


    The other army consisted of a horde of wererats, with no sign of the oozing mice, though.


    I kind of had a hypothesis that they were friends or some kind of pets.


    Instead of the oozing mice, their company had metallic felines, their green eyes sometimes glimpsing at me but always returning to their nearest enemies.


    The wererats came in various colors, most of them gray, with fewer brown, black, and white-furred ones.


    Strangely, an orange-furred one seemed out of place with its brethren, its color attention-seeking. It didn¡¯t take long to identify it as their leader.


    Wielding a hammer with a crimson crystal for its head, the thing was oversized for the wererat, being almost half its size.


    The being didn¡¯t care, moving it with effort. Each swing met the floor with a thunderous boom or, when lucky, hit the oversized fat dogs, while the vampire moved gracefully out of the way.


    When unlucky, its buddies took the brunt of the hit, with wererats crushed into raw meat.


    The rats didn¡¯t stop coming to their leader¡¯s aid, though, working like some macabre armor of bodies, absorbing the damage from all the vampire¡¯s attacks.


    Soon, I noticed where these guys were coming from. Just ahead, there was another intersection, with new wererats flooding in like a plague.


    If these paths weren¡¯t so large, I¡¯d be swimming in rat¡¯s blood.


    Neither of the two leaders seemed to notice or care about me, too entertained by their deadly dance.


    Not only that, but the bastards also had something shiny on their fingers from time to time. In the wererat¡¯s case, its buddies dropped it into its mouth, its hands preoccupied with wielding the hammer.


    The vampire used its agility to the fullest, grasping the shiny things from the floor, sometimes even using its whip to help.


    Shards were raining like candy.


    Obviously, the feast was all sponsored by the dead creatures dropping like morbid leaves in fall.


    I almost felt pity for the poor suckers¡ªalmost.


    Because just near me, I found that the rain wasn¡¯t only raining prizes on them. Between the corpses just ahead, still far from the mayhem, lights were shining.


    Time to make some company for these lonely shards.

 Chapter 9 - Battlefield Scavenger

    First, I did a double-check on myself.


    Marlene? Charged.


    Energy? Half-tank and rising.


    Water? Yes, please¡ªwith a slice of lemon.


    Am I forgetting to save the poor villagers?


    Almost. But if I¡¯m dead, I can¡¯t save anyone. It¡¯s like self-esteem¡ªfirst, love yourself so you can love others. Survive long enough to actually do it and be a hero for some people.


    Alright, I¡¯m psyched up. No more self-talk. Time to get freaky.


    Because, my God, these bastards are getting stronger¡ªfaster than gym rats on roids. No side effects, and full of supernatural juice.


    Each new swing from the vampire becomes less about increasing the wounds of the bleeding targets and more like a full-blown second attack in itself.


    A scratch transforms into a full-blown open fracture in a second. A deep cut becomes an explosion of blood a moment later.


    The orange bastard didn¡¯t look any less dashing, his swings becoming faster and faster. Less like a toddler with a foam hammer and more like a child with a plastic one. I honestly wouldn¡¯t want to be the target of that crystal.


    At least until I topped up with some of these shards.


    Looking like a carrion crown, I slowly started increasing my shiny hoard.


    It was almost like a rainbow¡ªif that rainbow were made of only shades of red and green, and obviously a pile of translucent light.


    Getting nineteen shards, I felt like a little cheater.


    That feeling passed as soon as I glanced at the mayhem happening just a little way ahead.


    I need this. Otherwise, I don¡¯t stand a chance of surviving.


    Yeah, I could run, but that could also mean the end of me. These freaks are getting stronger every moment, though strangely, the chaos seems to be slowing down.


    Whatever.


    I almost increased my haul, but the metallic felines¡ªlet¡¯s call them tigers, though their ears were almost double the size of a normal tiger¡¯s, but their muzzles looked similar¡ªkept staring at me as I went for more shards.


    When I reached a certain distance from the fight, they started moving in my direction. As I stepped back, they returned to the mayhem.


    They acted like bouncers at this match¡ªonly enter if you want to play.


    On the bright side: five red shards, three green ones, and eleven translucent.


    Already a good distance from the clash, I started consuming the magic and biological shards¡ªlet¡¯s call them bio shards. The basic ones I¡¯d use depending on the result.


    Using two magic shards, I expected to gain a star outright, since I¡¯d only needed two shards to increase my magic constellation before. The third one worried me more, but the fourth one did it.


    A new star formed, connecting to my constellation. Sadly, just a normal star again. At least I got an increase in my energy. And I won¡¯t bet my life on it, but the energy seemed a little more¡ªlike not just a 20% increase on the base I had, but 20% on the total I had. Like some sort of magical compound interest.


    Good for the conflict I¡¯m already planning to participate in.


    Bad because I wanted a fucking new spell.


    I consumed the last magical shard, and a strained connection to a new star in the constellation soon formed.


    A little pissed, I consumed the bio shards.


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    One shard, and I already felt the connection taut. I didn¡¯t know if consuming more than necessary would waste the essence of the shard or something like that, so I topped it up with a basic shard.


    And¡­


    Another normal fucking star. It got worse because I didn¡¯t know what the fuck it did.


    I felt like some old man scratching off lottery tickets.


    On the bright side, there were a bunch more shards to go.


    Two bio shards¡­ and¡­ not enough. Added four basic shards into the mix.


    And¡ªfucking yes!


    Woo-hoo! Fuck! Oh, my beautiful Spellstar, come to papa!


    The star projected an image of something slowly being enveloped by blood, showing a metallic sheen.


    In essence, it looked like some sort of iron fist thing. Honestly, being a mage throwing fire is way cooler, and with the bonus of not needing to be in melee range¡ªtake these poor bastards ahead of me as an example. Still, I need to test the range of my burning blood spell.


    And to be fair, a fire mage with shining metallic skin seems metal as hell. Unless I get frozen like a statue.


    Alright, six more basic shards to go.


    Where to spend them?


    I could try using them for the magic constellation, but I¡¯m not even sure if it¡¯s enough. And I need to figure out how the fuck these shards work. Based on my brief experience:


    - A basic shard is half of one tuned to a pillar cluster.


    - Each subsequent star requires double the amount.


    The problem is, I didn¡¯t need two whole shards to get a second star. I needed one tuned shard and one basic shard.


    I need to check with Houonas. Maybe there¡¯s some kind of rule for certain stars. Maybe it¡¯s that simple.


    Let¡¯s balance things. Yes, I don¡¯t know what the fuck I¡¯ll get from the tech constellation. However, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll get two Spellstars in a row with the divine one. Hmm, I can actually get one star in each¡ªlike two basic shards to make one tuned and another basic one to tune it up.


    Let¡¯s see if I get lucky with the divine constellation¡­ another normal star. Alright, I don¡¯t feel any different.


    Consuming my last shards and feeling the connection to a new tech star forming, I didn¡¯t hold high hopes of getting a Spellstar.


    But hopes be damned¡ªthat¡¯s what I got. The projection seemed a little weird; it looked like an anatomical video. Not that it didn¡¯t have the awe of the others, but this one seemed different.


    It showed an entire body, its blood vessels working throughout. Soon, a green and vile substance entered the arm¡ªa poison. The projection focused on where the poison entered.


    Weirdly, the poison didn¡¯t move. Some part of the blood blocked it physically, slowly drifting it out of the body through an incision¡ªprobably the same one that delivered the poison.


    Soon, the poison was out, along with some of the blood. However, some of the blood didn¡¯t move anymore, becoming something like a stopper¡ªnot coagulating, but not letting the blood flow out either.


    It¡¯s a really weird spell, but I got the gist of it: physical control of my blood inside my body.


    Hmm, this seems useful for my use of blood, but I don¡¯t know if it¡¯ll be better than the iron skin thing.


    Anyway, I¡¯ll call the bio spell _Blood Skin_ because Iron Skin isn¡¯t totally accurate. And the tech spell will be Blood Control, though I don¡¯t see why that¡¯s technological to begin with.


    Alright, the shards are gone. Let¡¯s test _Blood Skin_.


    Using the spell with the concept I got after binding myself to the star, I first created a small droplet of blood with the divine spell¡ªwhich I need to think of a better name for later.


    Soon, I used the _Blood Skin_ spell. The droplet of blood flattened at the tip of my index finger, taking on a dark red color with a metallic sheen. It looked kinda cool.


    I didn¡¯t have anything sharp nearby, so I bit it. The blood film held up incredibly well, resisting my bite. Still, I¡¯m not sure I¡¯d want it instead of a bulletproof vest¡ªwhich I don¡¯t have anyway. So, better _Blood Skin_ than nothing.


    Speaking of vests, I found a silk shirt near a blood puddle. There were also pants and some coins. The coins had a human face on one side¡ªkind of beautiful, like a supermodel, her features sharp and angular. On the other side, the model showed their lamprey-like ugly mouth.


    That shit seemed useless. Would I try to negotiate with money with these freaks? No, and I won¡¯t be carrying useless weight around. I could try to use it for some stupid trap, like leaving free money in the street, but fuck¡ªeven a poor sod like me has magic.


    No water, no food on him either. So, just the shirt.


    I put the silk shirt on under the wererat rags, keeping an eye on the mayhem. I won¡¯t die putting on a stolen shirt if I can help it.


    Looking at my bloodied shirt haphazardly bound to the wounds on my left arm, I almost threw it out¡ªalmost. But there¡¯s my blood on it. Maybe it¡¯ll be useful. So, I stuffed it into my shoulder bag.


    Now I felt fresh. The shirt was a little bloodied but clean and had a really fragrant aroma. Not enough to dispel the horrendous wererat musk, but whatever.


    I have better things to think about.


    Like how the fuck I¡¯m going to fight these freaks.

 Chapter 10 - Between Wererats, Metallic Tigers, and a Vampire

    The fight had really changed while I was theory-crafting about how the shards and star clusters worked.


    Someone might say it changed for the better¡ªthe fight was cleaner, more focused. But that was the problem. These fuckers weren¡¯t fighting anymore; they were sparring with each other.


    Why would they? Obviously, because these assholes were farming shards!


    I didn¡¯t see why the orange wererat would do that, especially since he was bearing the brunt of the losses with his horde.


    The fat dogs were also present in large numbers, though fewer than the rats. The difference was that the dogs didn¡¯t need to be used as meat shields. Their greater threat was the felines.


    I would¡¯ve loved for the armies to fight to the death. The problem was that the leaders would only grow more powerful as the rabble died.


    As I pieced together everything I¡¯d observed during their clash, I noticed something¡ªmaybe it was just hot air, but if it wasn¡¯t?


    The rats never looked at me. They also didn¡¯t seem to fare any better against the metallic whip. However, they could fight the dogs without much trouble. Not that they actually killed many of them. Weirdly, they didn¡¯t use any magic or even weapons during the fighting.


    Nevertheless, my gut told me something was off. How had these fuckers found me so easily in the passage earlier? And now, even as these beady-eyed creatures looked in my direction, they didn¡¯t express any reaction.


    The metallic tigers, though¡ªthey reacted.


    So my conclusion was: the rats were blind, or at least had poor vision.


    As long as I smelled like them, I had a chance.


    I¡¯m not proud of myself, especially as I rubbed the blood of one of the nearby rats on my head and face. The stench almost made me tear up.


    My pants and shoulder bag were next, dripping with blood.


    A seed of a plan began to form.


    Step one: Try to reach the wererats stealthily.


    Step two: Figure out what these fucking felines wanted. They could¡¯ve attacked me, but they didn¡¯t. Could they stay out of my way? Did I have a way to kill them without the leaders noticing? Good questions, but I¡¯d deal with them when the time came.


    Step three: If I dealt with the tigers without the leaders noticing, I¡¯d act like a wererat and try to mess with the vampire. That would probably be enough to make the bastard fight for real. Like their farming alliance was off.


    Step four: Wait for one leader to die and finish off the other. I didn¡¯t know which would be better, but I¡¯d figure it out as the plan unfolded. Running was the last resort¡ªone I didn¡¯t want to use right now.


    Slowly, I approached the brawl, creating blood skins around the palm and back of my hands. I tested it on one knuckle first; it was flexible enough to use like some sort of metal knuckle glove. I didn¡¯t extend it to my fingers for three reasons:


    1. The material, though somewhat flexible, would be too rigid for me to use my shotgun. Even the smallest finger movements would be a hassle.


    2. I didn¡¯t know if I could use my divine blood spell over it.


    3. Would I not try to steal some shards? Fucking no.


    The first and nearest feline slowly approached me. The other felines, not engaged in the brawl, glanced between me and it but didn¡¯t move.


    They were really lazy.


    As I neared within two meters of the creature, I gripped my shotgun but didn¡¯t point it at the metallic tiger.


    We stared at each other for a while. Then, the tiger moved its head¡ªstill keeping a trained eye on me¡ªand gestured up and down.


    I feared dying by a tiger prank, but I also feared dying any other way. So, I looked where its head was pointing.


    The two leaders.


    I turned my attention back to the metallic tiger and nodded. I didn¡¯t know if it understood what the fuck that meant, but the tiger seemed to get the gist of it. It bit the air like a predator snapping at prey.


    Soon, it purred menacingly and repeated the motion. I got it¡ªthe creature wasn¡¯t happy with the leaders.


    They didn¡¯t seem to be pets of the wererats. Maybe allies.


    Would I ally myself with the tigers? Temporarily, yes.


    Did I feel like becoming a tiger¡¯s hitman? Absolutely. If they didn¡¯t cross me, I wouldn¡¯t cross them. We¡¯d see how they acted. Maybe I¡¯d breathe after this fight without wading through their furred corpses.


    I nodded at it; the beast mirrored me with a long nod. Soon, the felines watching us returned their attention to the fight, the one nearest me getting back into the thick of it.


    It seemed they understood me.


    As I approached the battle, I kept my focus on the tigers. A little caution never killed anyone, and I needed some after dealing with tigers.


    Yes, I¡¯m becoming mad, it seems.


    My theory slowly proved accurate as I reached the back of the horde. The wererats gave me space to enter. Curious, I repeated the process¡ªstepping back and approaching again a few times.


    Each time I stepped away, they closed the space. Each time I approached, they opened it, like some sort of automatic door.


    These fuckers weren¡¯t right in the head. The rats I¡¯d fought before seemed a lot less stupid.


    I filed that information away and approached the clash of the leaders.


    The musk of these rats was unbearable. My bile rose, but I gulped it down and breathed through my mouth.


    Stopping before the last two rows of the rat horde nearest to the leaders, I felt like I was at a show. At least, that¡¯s the feeling I got, even though I¡¯d never been to one.


    Each time one of the meat shields died, another took its place. I never left my spot, letting one of the poor suckers take my place as the next sacrificial lamb.


    The floor was littered with corpses, but most had already turned to mush from the horde trampling over them.


    Obviously, there was a limit. The leaders shifted the battle a little further ahead, the horde following. The vampire and his dogs let the rats push deeper into their territory.


    Alright, enough sightseeing. I needed to mess with this. I wasn¡¯t sure my blood had a chance of reaching the vampire from here. Even if the drops would be enough.


    My energy, after using _Blood Skin_, was only a little more than half now.


    A shotgun wouldn¡¯t be a superb choice. These rats didn¡¯t have any weapons, and I didn¡¯t think a gun would be normal for them.


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    Wait¡ªI didn¡¯t actually need to drop _only_ my blood.


    Opening my shoulder bag, I pulled out my bloodied shirt. The problem was, as soon as I did, the surrounding rats started sniffing in my direction. I let my adrenaline pump, thinking fast as I dropped the shirt and let it soak in the bloody offal on the floor.


    Soon, the rats stopped sniffing my way, acting brain-dead again.


    The problem was whether the shirt would work now.


    I tried to create a little ember on the shirt, focusing on my blood.


    Most of it seemed to have only a weak connection to the spell. Only a little was still strong enough to be fully usable.


    No use. I searched for a clear spot to soak some blood, doing it while keeping an eye on the rats nearby to see if they¡¯d sniff my way.


    Soon, with less than half my energy left, I finished. Not wasting any time, I balled up the clothing, like I sometimes did when trying to make a basket shot into my laundry bin.


    Adrenaline still pumping, I waited for the right moment to throw the ball at the vampire.


    I had a perfect line for it: _Taste it, bloodsucker._ Honestly, it wasn¡¯t that great, but vampires drink blood, and I was going to throw it at him, so he could taste it.


    Whatever. It wasn¡¯t time to get freaky; it was time to get tactical.


    Silent and deadly was the name of the game. Being a nuisance was even better.


    A couple of minutes later, the opportunity came.


    Fueled by adrenaline, focus, and some space to throw, I launched the laundry ball.


    It was the best shot I had.


    I aimed for the bastard¡¯s head as he evaded an upper swing of the crystal hammer. Sadly, he lifted his head just as I threw, and the ball only grazed his shoulder.


    That should¡¯ve been the end, as I didn¡¯t feel a connection with the blood.


    Surprisingly, the creature looked surprised. He grabbed the laundry ball and examined it.


    The fucker hissed loudly, frowning as if someone had shot his mother.


    I honestly would¡¯ve loved to see what he¡¯d do next. Fuck it. Burst into flames.


    Soon, crimson flames engulfed the bastard¡¯s arm as I pumped energy into the burning blood spell.


    The fucker wasn¡¯t stupid, but it was too late. Even as he hurled the ball at the orange rat, who screeched as it hit his feet, part of the flames remained on his right hand.


    Getting the rat leader hit was a bonus, but I needed to play the part of the rat gang, so I stopped pumping energy into the bloody shirt.


    Instead, I focused on the burning hand for a few seconds and then stopped. Now I was running on my last leg of energy¡ªprobably 15%, maybe a little more.


    Looking more lamprey than man, the creature hissed, waving its right hand, now a burned husk. A rough voice entered my head:


    "Such a filthy rodent dares to use BLOOD TO DIRTY ME?! I AM ITS MASTER! I AM ONE OF YOUR OWNERS! TOIL IN THE MINES, SLAVES! ENOUGH OF YOUR SHARDS! ENOUGH OF YOUR CHILDISH REVOLT! ENOUGH OF YOU!"


    The metallic whip slashed at the rat leader, a meat shield quickly taking the brunt of the hit. It wasn¡¯t enough¡ªthe tip of the whip grazed the orange rat¡¯s pinky, and a second later, the finger blew off his hand.


    Screeching like prey caught by a predator, the wererat swung the crystal hammer, taking a step back.


    And another step back.


    Yes, I knew what this furred fucker wanted to do.


    Not wanting to be caught in this mess, I walked back, letting the rats take my place.


    The battle had finally started for real.


    For a moment, I thought the vampire asshole was talking to me¡ªmind-talking¡ªbut the poor rat was the victim of this misunderstanding.


    I¡¯ll never forget you, my pal.


    Soon, the battle¡¯s tempo changed. The vampire and his fat dogs went on the offensive, taking complete initiative.


    The orange rat spun in circles, letting the wererats be batted away like flies. The horde at the intersection rushed even faster into the melee, now looking more like a torrent of sewage.


    Showing their smarts, the tigers had retreated to the back, trying to fend off only the fat dogs in a pincer attack. Fend off my ass¡ªthey were just getting away from the eye of the storm.


    I couldn¡¯t blame them, though. I was doing the same.


    Although, I kind of wanted to dive into it¡ªfor different reasons, alright.


    So engrossed were they in their melee that they didn¡¯t give a damn about the shards.


    Until the orange wererat stopped making appearances and ran like a coward, the hammer transforming into a shard in its tiny hand. There was something wrong with it, though.


    It shone a shade of green, stronger than any shard I¡¯d ever seen. The orange wererat consumed it, and the rats all around it in a mad rush searched for any shards and dropped them into its mouth.


    The vampire also found this strange, frowning and then rushing even more after the rat.


    In a moment, I felt something different¡ªsomething weird.


    Not a moment later, all the rats except their leader became deranged and even more feral¡ªfaster, stronger. They wounded each other but rushed at the vampire like a flood of bodies.


    Their leader screeched, an irritating noise. The rats lost all reason, attacking to eviscerate anything but themselves and their leader.


    The tigers didn¡¯t wait and bolted as the rats started killing the fat dogs in great numbers.


    I didn¡¯t run but walked back, making myself small against the wall, watching the chaos unfold.


    God, I¡¯m glad I¡¯m not the vampire.


    After making quick work of the last fat dogs, the rats circled the vampire. Now, the roles were reversed¡ªthe bloodsucker had become the prey.


    "FILTHY! FILTHY! FILTHY! FILTHY! FILTHYYYYYY! OUT OF ME, SLAVES!"


    Again, the vampire¡¯s rough voice resounded in my head.


    Something changed. The vampire¡¯s body grew thinner, smaller¡ªlike someone had drained him.


    His skin turned red like a demon¡¯s, his fangs protruding even more from his lamprey-like mouth.


    In a dash, he moved like the wind, the whip slashing through the rats like a scythe through wheat. Their wounds exploded moments later, like bloody fireworks.


    Wave after wave, the rats¡¯ bodies fell like they were being fed into a blender.


    A minute passed, then two, three, ten, fifteen.


    After who knows how long. The vampire¡¯s movements slowed¡ªeven slower than before his transformation, weaker.


    The rat torrent had been reduced to a trickle.


    Now, he tried to collect the shards, but the rats stopped him, using their attacks to worsen the bleeding scratches on his body.


    So little blood dripped from him; the vampire really looked like he was out of blood. His mouth moved toward the rats¡¯ bodies, toward the bloody offal on the floor, but he refused at the last instant, as if disgusted.


    I bet the guy was hungry.


    Not a moment later, he lost control and bit one of the rats attacking him. His fangs penetrated the beast¡¯s neck like a dozen knives through an oversized kiwi. He drained the creature in seconds, then dashed back, holding the husk.


    A few moments later, the vampire vomited blood. His eyes and ears dripped blood, and the creature looked worse for wear than before.


    Looking at the intersection, no new wererats showed up.


    I think it¡¯s time to prepare for the showdown. Slowly, I walked toward the clash, gripping my shotgun.


    The rat bastards kept attacking the vampire, the wounds increasing in severity. His right hand was now entirely gone, only a stump remaining.


    As I glanced at the orange rat, the bastard wasn¡¯t faring any better. Strangely, the creature kept panting, sitting on the floor, curled into a ball. Blood dripped from its body.


    The vampire, abandoning caution, went on a mad dash, attacking the surrounding rats.


    His arms bent strangely as the effort took its toll. With a new whip swing, a rat died, but his right arm twisted unnaturally.


    Not stopping his dash, the vampire made one last slash toward the orange rat¡¯s sitting body¡ªnot enough to reach.


    The rat flinched but didn¡¯t move, probably thinking it was impossible for the whip to reach.


    Until the vampire released the whip, the metallic tip slashing through half of the beast¡¯s head.


    Finally, for him, only four rats remained.


    One bit his leg, another his side, and a third bit his remaining hand.


    Their movements were slow, lacking the ferocity from before. They froze in a loop, their mouths biting again and again but making no other movements.


    I approached the group slowly, just a short distance away. Ignoring the orange body convulsing on the floor¡ªthe promise of a new shard¡ªI focused on the vampire.


    The vampire collapsed onto his back. The only movement he made was with his right arm, trying to pull his hand out of the brain-dead rat¡¯s mouth. With some success, he removed it¡ªonly the middle and index fingers and half of his thumb survived the bite.


    With steady steps, I let some of my energy create a couple of drops of blood with the divine spell on my off-hand fingers.


    Soon, my fingers were drenched as I stepped closer to the vampire. The beast turned its head toward me¡ªwhether because he heard me, saw me, or smelled my blood, it didn¡¯t matter.


    With practiced ease, I aimed the muzzle at his head. Pressing both triggers, a burst rocked the creature¡¯s head back.


    I swiped the blood from my off-hand, the burning blood spell creating crimson flames that engulfed the vampire¡¯s head. The stench of burning meat assaulted my nostrils.


    My hands trembled, my brain finally registering the vampire as something akin to a human.


    Fear gripped my stomach, blanking my mind.


    Ejecting the shell, I reloaded and fired again into the flaming head. And again.


    I stopped as the body contorted.


    My finger itched to pull the triggers. The recoil of the two shots still made my arm a little numb.


    My ears ringing.


    I pushed all the issues exploding in my mind down. No need to question my humanity¡ªnot right now!


    Time to work. I walked toward the spot where the orange rat¡¯s body once lay, now replaced by a brilliant green shard.


    There was no time to waste.


    I¡¯m the last rat.

 Chapter 11 - Theory of Power

    I would love to say that I¡¯m cold-blooded, all professional-like.


    The butterflies in my stomach beg to disagree. Right now, I feel like a kid whose parents told him he could buy anything from the toy store.


    The difference is that I don¡¯t need to buy anything. The fucking shop is mine.


    Not a second to waste, I grab the green shard that the filthy orange rat transformed into.


    There¡¯s just one wonderful problem: the rat didn¡¯t transform into one shard¡ªit became three!


    One green, one blue, and another green, all of them shining brighter than the few shards I¡¯d seen before.


    I expected a translucent one in the mix; they seemed the most common, after all. No complaints.


    There¡¯s a chance that any shard could contain a weapon or maybe even what Houonas said¡ªmimic, mummy, mimicry?


    Whatever. I want power. I want it right now. No need for a giant hammer; I don¡¯t need a mime either.


    What the fuck would I do with a mime, anyway?!


    So, I did the best thing I could do right now. The deceased great leader, the orange rat¡ªfurred political savant¡ªconsumed the hammer shard and lived to tell the tale¡­ almost for an hour. Not the shard¡¯s fault, though! I think¡­


    In better news, soon consuming the brilliant green shard proved that shards aren¡¯t only different in appearance. The essence contained within the shard seemed concentrated.


    My fourth star connection soon formed¡ªwith only a single shard!


    Sadly, it¡¯s just a normal star. Still, I don¡¯t feel any different. Whatever.


    Nevertheless, the shard still had some oomph, and soon I formed a weaker connection to what would be my fifth star. Not enough to unlock it, but enough to feel the connection. I need more fuel for it.


    So, I topped it off with the other brilliant green shard.


    And that¡¯s where my mathematical fears became reality.


    The brilliant shard wasn¡¯t enough anymore, even with some essence from the one I¡¯d used before.


    At least the connection seemed more than halfway through.


    In this situation¡ªsomewhat dire, with rats possibly showing up while I¡¯m low on energy and need to count my ammo¡ªit¡¯s obviously time to sweep this place.


    No time to check if the vampire or the wererats had any resources or items. Now is shard time.


    I¡¯m pretty proud of myself. In less than four minutes, my shoulder bag is exploding with loot.


    Maybe it¡¯s a safety concern having these shards near my ammo.


    But I¡¯ve got bigger problems: time and danger.


    Summing it up, I have one remaining brilliant blue shard from the orange rat. The greatest haul, however, comes from the vampire: five large magic shards, three large bio shards, one large tech shard, and three large basic shards.


    Yes, calling them ¡°big¡± because of the quantity of essence makes some sense, though I need a better naming scheme.


    An interesting fact: the vampire didn¡¯t only have big shards but also some small ones.


    Nine magic, seven biological, five translucent, and one tech shard.


    I thought the vampire would be the only one to drop big shards, but here and there, I found two big bio shards.


    I don¡¯t know if some creatures were stronger or if someone was stealing from their bosses.


    The rats seemed like really loyal soldiers.


    Probably the work of the tigers or the fat dogs.


    A pet is the greatest friend, my ass!


    Now, without delay, it¡¯s time to analyze my math problems.


    First, my shard theory. Without it, I can¡¯t prove my first law of star progression.


    To prove it, I¡¯ll use my tech cluster.


    First, a summary of my spoils:


    Big Shards:


    - Five Magic


    - Five Bio


    - Two Tech


    - One Basic


    Sadly, no divine shards. They seem pretty rare. I¡¯ll probably have to use the translucent ones to top off that cluster.


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    Normal Shards


    - 17 Magic


    - 29 Bio


    - 5 Tech


    - 33 Basic


    - 2 Divine


    I couldn¡¯t, for the life of me, figure out where the divine shards came from. Good for me, whatever the source.


    Now, for my shard theory:


    The third star of the tech constellation will take four tech shards to unlock.


    A new normal star¡ªno spell, no change in me. But proof is born.


    Since I don¡¯t have more tech shards, I¡¯ll use some basic ones to prove another theory I have.


    Let¡¯s call it the Basic Shard Law.


    With the remaining tech shard and fourteen basic shards, I¡¯ll get another star.


    Again, a new connection, a new star, a new proof.


    Basic Shard Theory: Its value shall always be half of a colored cluster shard.


    This will be my truth until proven otherwise.


    And with it, my first shard law¡ªno, constellation law.


    First Constellation Law: Each star will cost double the shards of the star before, provided the shards are of the same type as their cluster.


    With one caveat: a thing that disproves the theory. My second stars didn¡¯t need more than a shard, and the third one needed four shards.


    Still, my would-be fifth star will prove it again and help me quantify the value of the big shard.


    Which will require one big tech shard and twelve basic shards¡ªequivalent to sixteen tech shards.


    The essence flows, connecting me to the new cosmic body, another part of the constellation.


    And¡­


    Another normal star. A mathematical victory, but a power loss.


    I really want a new spell right now!


    As a plus for my depression, my future looks pretty grim. Doubling the quantity of shards for each star, with most stars being useless aside from the magic ones¡ªhow the fuck will I get strong?


    This past clash was more about me playing with the rival tribes like some colonizer than actually fighting myself.


    I won¡¯t use all my shards right now on my magic cluster. Both the vampire and the orange rat, at least judging by their shards¡ªwhich is probably the right thing to do, equilibrium and all that¡ªseem to have balanced their shards.


    However, if after all these shards I don¡¯t get a new spell or learn what these fucking normal stars (that aren¡¯t magic) do, I¡¯ll splurge all my new shards on the magic cluster.


    And probably go back to Houonas and try to pry some useful information out of that religious fanatic¡¯s brain.


    Alright. I spent the big tech shard¡ªnot enough for a new star, but enough for a frail new connection.


    Time to spend all the magic and bio shards.


    What seemed like a fortune of shards pales before the menace of calculations.


    So many shards, for barely a little more than the unlocked stars from before.


    Managing this many shards almost made me remember my childhood playing with marbles. Who would¡¯ve guessed that these small, beautiful things would hold so much power?


    Starting with magic:


    I already have a weak connection to my fourth star, from a single shard I consumed during the encounter with the team of wererats.


    So, seven more shards.


    Soon, the connection grew taut, and another star formed¡ªanother increase in my energy density. In my body, I could feel it, especially since I¡¯m drier than any desert.


    Soon, an even greater quantity of energy flowed through my body.


    Now, sixteen shards¡ªone big and six normal shards. Another star, more energy, but this time¡­


    I feel weird.


    Like a balloon with too much air. More energy is always welcome, though.


    Especially since this increase is even greater than before.


    It¡¯s insane. Now, this is good. Finally, math is being my savior.


    This beautiful energy is increasing exponentially, the same way the shard cost doubles for each new star.


    Although, with this flux of energy, it¡¯s probably way less than double.


    Still, exponential growth is beautiful. Compound interest is what made my dream life in the countryside happen.


    It made my money work instead of me.


    Still, I need someone to help me quantify the energy or something that could teach me. Maybe I¡¯ll create my own way of measuring it so I can understand how many spells I can use.


    I don¡¯t have time for that right now, so I¡¯d better focus on gaining power.


    Three big shards, two normal magic shards.


    Another normal star, but this time, something changed.


    The stars, which before were only beautiful in the void of my¡ªlet¡¯s say¡ªexistential space, now began to change.


    Starting from my first star (in this case, my Spellstar), a bright line shot up, soon meeting my second star, which beamed a line to my third, and so on, until it reached my sixth star.


    It looked like a weird figure¡ªmaybe a rune, maybe a drawing, maybe it¡¯s just random.


    What mattered most was the change happening in my body.


    The energy surged, my body feeling like a pressure cooker. With one problem: no way to vent it out.


    My energy didn¡¯t respond to me; I can¡¯t use any spells.


    And worse of all, my energy is recharging at an alarming rate¡ªlike fueling a bottle by submerging it straight into a river.


    It isn¡¯t painful, but it feels like I¡¯m overstuffing.


    I focused on my breathing, trying to calm my nerves, and turned my attention to the area nearby.


    Nothing beats trying to forget an immediate danger, like thinking about a possible new one.


    Slowly, I felt better, and the energy inside me changed. It felt concentrated¡ªfrom a sparse fog to water vapor.


    Not that it looked like it, but that¡¯s how it felt.


    As I tested it by creating a drop of blood with my divine spell, the sensation remained the same. The spell worked as normal.


    The difference is that my body now contains way more energy.


    That must be why the vampire and the wererat leader could use their powers so much.


    Although I¡¯m not sure if they used spells. The vampire seemed to, but the orange rat didn¡¯t look like he did.


    I¡¯ll keep that in mind.


    Still, is the energy increase limited only to the magic cluster? If so, they¡¯re really fucked without a connection to a constellation in the magic cluster.


    Food for thought, though not a priority.


    I finished absorbing the last magic shards¡ªone big and two normal, so twelve in value. A weak connection soon formed to what would be my seventh star.


    Now, it¡¯s bio cluster time.

 Chapter 12 - Speaking with Myself Is Not Madness, but Learning!

    Summing it up, I have one remaining brilliant blue shard from the orange rat. The greatest haul, however, comes from the vampire: five large magic shards, three large bio shards, one large tech shard, and three large basic shards.


    ¡°Pet is the greatest friend,¡± my ass!


    Sadly, I don¡¯t have enough shards to see if there¡¯s something different about the seventh star of the biological cluster or if it would be more of the same.


    Hmm, I have enough for the sixth star, though, so let¡¯s see if it does anything like the magic one.


    Consuming the bio shards like candy, I unlocked my sixth star.


    Wonderful!


    The same thing is happening! Fuck yeah!


    As the beaming lines finished linking each star, a different symbol¡ªlet¡¯s call it a rune¡ªappeared.


    Can¡¯t get distracted by it. Like I had a choice. Slowly, I felt a change in my body, but not a normal one.


    My focus was forced inward, with a concept ingrained in my mind. The stars, the connections, showed me something, guiding me toward something I couldn¡¯t possibly understand.


    I saw my hurt left arm¡ªstill injured, but with a little less blood. It was like watching a hyper-realistic 3D video of anatomy in action.


    Soon, the area of the wound came into focus, especially my blood vessels. My attention was drawn to one wounded vessel, as if it were an example.


    It showed the vessel clearing itself of some sort of debris. The vessel dried up, and the image lingered for a few seconds before something changed¡ªmore blood replenished it.


    Ah, I got it.


    Finally, the concept connected with my mind as an insight, not my own, struck me.


    My blood is regenerating faster, which is great for someone like me who uses blood for spells.


    There¡¯s a caveat, though, as the alien insight revealed: it still consumes resources from my body.


    So, I¡¯d better eat all my vegetables¡ªor red meat, in this case.


    Message received, my overprotective bio-existential constellation.


    I still need to consult my AI chatbot to see if faster blood regeneration is useful beyond making me a better juice machine for my spells.


    Still not looking forward to cutting myself to cast spells, though. Wasting less energy on pain doesn¡¯t seem all that budget-friendly.


    Oh, well, at least I learned that these normal stars have some use. The magic normal stars are still the best.


    In a blink, I consumed the remaining magic shards¡ª47 shard value in total. According to my calculations, I need 17 more shards to get another star. And look at that, there¡¯s just enough... nah, fuck, I forgot I¡¯d need double the basic shards.


    I should get a notebook to keep track of my current number of shards in each constellation.


    Another thing to do when I return.


    Fuck, this still isn¡¯t enough power to be a menace against people like the guys from before.


    Should I go to the kitchen or not? I¡¯m fucking parched, and I didn¡¯t even grab any food from my home.


    Alright, time to top up shards in my divinity and see if these corpses have anything useful.


    ---


    Getting powerful, what a fucking joke! Another two divine shards and four basic ones. Just another normal star.


    Now, should I spend the basic shards on divinity in the hope that my sixth star gives something useful, save them, or invest in magic, which seems like the best constellation overall?


    ...


    ...


    ...Magic.


    I know divine shards are really hard to get, but I need power. Still, would I really get a spell at the seventh star?


    No, that¡¯s the thing. Investing in magic, even in the worst-case scenario, gives me more energy for spells, which is always great. The compounding effect makes it the best choice.


    Thirteen basic shards¡ªworth 6.5 for magic. Next time I get a basic shard, I¡¯ll invest it in magic to make the total an integer.


    Enough about shards. Time to loot the corpses.


    Weirdly, after all this time, no one has shown up. Which only makes this fight even stranger. Why were they fighting? Aren¡¯t the wererats supposed to obey the vampires?


    Rummaging through their remains didn¡¯t help much.


    My blood skin started to flake off. Likely, it¡¯s not permanent¡ªwhich is both good and bad.


    On the bright side, I won¡¯t have metallic red hands for life. On the downside, I¡¯ll have to waste energy and blood for each new blood skin spell.


    Stolen story; please report.


    The detached remnants also aren¡¯t responding as material for spells, like burning blood.


    Alright, as for the loot: the orange rat didn¡¯t have anything useful¡ªjust some vegetable-like plants, rocks, and metallic tools I don¡¯t see a use for.


    As for the vampire¡¯s possessions, he had some coins (like the ones I got from the other remains), miscellaneous items like a hairbrush, a box of powder that smells like perfume, and a bunch of other useless things.


    Except for one vial. Uncorking it revealed a red substance that smells like blood.


    It¡¯s still useless¡ªunless you¡¯re a vampire, obviously.


    For me, it would be useless if I didn¡¯t have blood spells. But if I mix some of my blood in it, maybe I could make a sort of bomb.


    The other possession that interested me is the metal whip. The problem is, the thing is too hard to handle.


    I don¡¯t know how to wield a whip, either. Channeling some energy into it to see if it did anything didn¡¯t help. The thing seems to be just that¡ªa whip.


    I was hoping for another shard weapon like the orange wererat¡¯s hammer. In a sense, that hammer didn¡¯t seem very useful unless it had something special about it.


    Overall, it¡¯s just weird that an average-height being like the wererat could move that thing with such ease. For an overgrown rat, it¡¯s impressive.


    Is there a chance the whip is a shard weapon? Maybe, but carrying its weight around isn¡¯t justified¡ªespecially since I¡¯m not into BDSM or cowboy shenanigans.


    Letting the whip fall to the ground, I take a look at the road ahead. The tigers vanished after the fight, but they could show up again.


    After this clash, the best thing would be to meet Houonas again to clarify some of my doubts.


    Nah, this is just me wanting to run away. I need to use my time wisely before my presence becomes known.


    Houonas could be full of hot air. Maybe they already know about me. Maybe they¡¯re hunting for me right now!


    ...Just keep calm.


    Taking the tile relic, I do a quick check. A change has occurred in the markings.


    ¡°The heir with the territory of the saloon has fallen. Who could have done that?¡±


    The saloon is the farthest from where I am right now, on the top floors.


    If it¡¯s the heir of the cooking complex or the library, they could have been weakened¡ªor gotten stronger.


    Son of a bitch! What am I supposed to do?


    Food and water. Food and water. I need to survive, find out what happened to the people, and figure out how powerful the heirs are.


    I¡¯ll just get out of here. Problem solved. The oozing rats would be a piece of cake to deal with, although if one showed up while I¡¯m sleeping?


    Would I sleep near Houonas? So many arms strangling me in my sleep...


    ...Before I could come to a decision, my legs moved on their own.


    Not on their own¡ªI need resources, and I will fucking get them.


    The idea of going home isn¡¯t so bad, though. If going to the cooking complex doesn¡¯t work out, going home is my second option.


    Walking as stealthily as I can, the tile relic sits in my shoulder bag, ready to be checked when needed.


    The intertwining paths, sized like a highway tunnel, have an architecture that makes it easy to follow directions, even with their massive size.


    I¡¯d only get lost if I wanted to.


    The lighting made it easier to see where I was going, but not enough to ease my fears.


    Enough to comfort my greed.


    My right hand gripped the shotgun, my palm sweating. Soon, a bright azure light could be seen at the end of the tunnel.


    The familiar light of a big shard¡ªa tech shard, judging by its blue tone.


    So bright, it could only be more than one shard, or maybe an even better version of it.


    It would be a beautiful sight if not for the multiple wererat bodies, all with arrows protruding from them.


    There¡¯s even a metallic tiger among the corpses, meeting the same fate.


    This isn¡¯t the only way to reach the cooking complex, but it¡¯s the most direct.


    The trap would be perfect if it didn¡¯t have so many victims screaming to anyone not stupid to not come.


    Hmm, weirdly, there are some arrows thrown on the floor, a little dirty, I bet it''s blood. And why aren¡¯t there any shards besides the trap?


    Ah yes, seems I found a camper. It seems these assholes are using a bunch of ways to farm shards.


    Now, I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯ll go this way. The problem is, what if the tigers thought the same? Maybe they¡¯re still eager to ally.


    It could work, I need all the help I can get.


    Before I could delude myself in my chances of riding a tiger and throwing spells all around, I feel small tremors, the vibrations not enough to make me fall but enough to make walking a little harder.


    ¡°Now what?¡± Enough with delaying. Time to move.

 Chapter 13 - The Library

    Going back wasted more than half an hour. The tremors grew stronger until they stopped outright halfway through.


    I headed to the other intersection, one where the corridor also connects to the library. Probably, I¡¯ll have to waste another two hours going this way.


    After all this hassle, it¡¯s not just my mouth that¡¯s parched¡ªmy body is exhausted, and my growling stomach isn¡¯t helping either.


    Just a quick look, some water and food, and then I¡¯ll get back.


    Some ways into the corridor, that plan was thrown out the window.


    The wooden wall of the library is torn apart, as if a beast had taken a bite out of it. The serrated edges look like the marks of many fangs, and the sheer number of bites suggests an insatiable hunger.


    Whatever did that isn¡¯t something I want to meet.


    I couldn¡¯t help but peer into the library through one of its torn-open wounds. Before I knew it, the light from the chandeliers illuminated a scene of utter mayhem.


    Books were strewn across the floor, some wet with blood, others coated in a viscous substance.


    Enormous wooden bookshelves had toppled over, some crashing into each other, while others stood untouched, looking pristine.


    A moving staircase was nearby, along with others scattered throughout the place¡ªlikely used to reach books on the upper shelves.


    A necessity, considering some bookshelves were the size of small buildings.


    After a couple of minutes, I was presented with a grand view of the library, far greater than I could have imagined.


    I picked up one of the books from a nearby shelf. Its pages were filled with squiggly lines, possibly some sort of foreign language.


    I put it back. No time for this.


    ¡°Hello, my friend of learning. Could I help you?¡±


    The voice was soothing and high-pitched, but there was no doubt it was speaking directly into my mind.


    ¡°Shy, are you? There¡¯s no need to be sheepish. You¡¯ve caught me at a less-than-ideal moment.¡±


    Enemy or friend? Probably an enemy. Still, if it hasn¡¯t attacked me outright, it¡¯s planning something. Better to find out what.


    Slowly, I tried to look around the library. The problem is, the place is massive, especially in the center.


    Damn it, what happened there? It looks like someone dropped a meteor. A crater made of wood, paper, and whatever else you¡¯d find in a library, just at the center of it.


    Wait¡ªjust outside its epicenter, a sudden movement caught my attention.


    ¡°I¡¯m too weak to greet you properly. I don¡¯t know how much longer I have in this world. Going to try to move a little. It¡¯s no problem, really, if we can communicate within the boundaries of our minds, would it?¡±


    To trust the strange voice or not? A little of both. Especially if it¡¯s a trap¡ªI¡¯ve already seen one with the shards and arrows.


    Taking a glance at the periphery of the crater, I detected no movement. The long, moving staircases and bookshelves stood still, frozen in time.


    If this voice is responsible for all this destruction, killing me would be easy.


    Using the intact floor as best I could, I approached with caution and a growing fear for my sanity. It took longer than I wanted to reach the crater.


    The crater itself had wet patches¡ªsome unmistakable blood, others covered in ice, hinting at their source.


    Going down into the crater would be dangerous, risking a fatal fall. Ha, talk about a death trap.


    The voice remained silent the entire time, likely plotting something. With Marlene at my side, it was the perfect time for an experiment.


    I opened the blood vial and used my divine spell. Blood dripped from my fingers into the vial, and within seconds, it was almost overflowing. I stopped the spell and forced the stopper back in, the pressure requiring a bit more effort to seal it.


    I slipped it into the pocket of my battered pants and gripped my shotgun. Time for some talk.


    ¡°Hey, stranger. This place has seen better times, hasn¡¯t it? Let¡¯s skip the small talk¡ªwhat do you want?¡±


    The soothing voice replied almost immediately. ¡°This place has indeed seen better times¡ªyesterday, in fact. What I want and the state of this place are bound by something in common.¡±


    The voice lost some of its soothing quality, the pitch rising higher, like a dying animal.


    ¡°One of the offspring of the great ruler, a sage who denied the sustenance of blood, became a creature consumed only by its hunger!¡±


    ¡°The great ruler died of causes never disclosed to me, which is more concerning. A lie would be easy to spread, but they only would do when knowing the truth.¡±


    ¡°The death of the great ruler, the army, and the bureaucrats had to deal with the frontiers as the assimilation of the new landmass began in less than a day! Just a sample of the changes to come.¡±


    ¡°What assimilation?¡± That doesn¡¯t sound good.


    Almost whispering, the voice continued, ignoring me. ¡°Worst of times to start a succession. My lord desired none of it, sending his personnel and guards away with the librarians to a place far away from his palace¡±


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    ¡°In his old age, there was nothing my master desired less than to compete for the rule of his deceased younger brother. He didn¡¯t blame him for being selected, though¡ªhis brother¡¯s gaze had always been reserved for his deceased wife. His bloodline was cut a little shorter than needed for his offspring to be the sole heirs.¡±


    The voice fell silent for a couple of seconds¡ªwhether from exhaustion or emotion, I couldn¡¯t tell.


    This old geezer didn¡¯t answer my question about assimilation. Probably going senile. Hmm, it¡¯s likely related to what Houonas said about my world synchronizing. A day, then.


    The information is useful. It seems I¡¯ve gotten tangled in this succession mess as a placeholder. But there¡¯s something else taking priority in my mind.


    ¡°Cool story, but what the hell do you want with me?¡±


    Silence answered me for a few seconds before the voice returned, weaker now.


    ¡°A little crass, aren¡¯t you? Understandable. My desire is simple: to slay the hungering beast that took my master¡¯s life. Murdered his uncle¡ªdevoured him whole! Such a beast cannot become an heir. The threat of the invaders is negligible. I don¡¯t know what aspect he now follows. Safe to say, it¡¯s not of blood.¡± His words trailed off. ¡°I hope it¡¯s not pure hunger¡ªa slave to desire.¡±


    The gall of this guy!


    ¡°So you want me to kill an heir who wrecked this place and killed its owner? No fucking way!¡±


    ¡°No, I wish for you to tell your master to do so! It¡¯s their obligation as offspring of the past ruler. His successor cannot be that beast!¡±


    Master?! Pfft, medieval bullshit.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a master. So it seems I can¡¯t help you, good¡ª¡±


    Before I could finish, the voice boomed in my head.


    ¡°AN HEIR?! You smell as if covered in decaying entrails... I must say, it¡¯s a good way to fool the furred beasts. Although you¡¯ll need to change it, or they¡¯ll grow even more feral with an undead walking among them.¡±


    Good to know.


    The voice in my head grew softer, like the finest silk, though the high pitch ruined the effect.


    ¡°Say, wouldn¡¯t you accept me into your employ? I¡¯m not the best, but I¡¯m a renowned wardmaker in this domain. Part of my power will be lost, as I doubt you¡¯ll be as powerful as my past master. But I¡¯ll do my best until my dying breath to put down that beast!¡±


    Interesting proposal. This guy at least seems to know more about this place than Houonas. I don¡¯t know what a wardmaker is, but if it has something to do with magic, that would be really useful.


    ¡°Alright, say I accept. What do I need to do?¡±


    The voice boomed again, full of enthusiasm. ¡°Come near me. I shall use one of my shards to seal our agreement!¡±


    Ha, no way.


    ¡°Nice try, but I¡¯m not going down there. It¡¯s the stupidest trap I¡¯ve ever seen. Kind of an insult that you¡¯d expect me to fall for it.¡±


    ¡°What trap?! You! How could I be a danger to you??¡± The voice fell silent for a moment. ¡°I can still synchronize us, but I¡¯d lose one of my nexus shards. The shard would be better used empowering you!¡±


    Hmm, appealing to my greed. Not the first to try this scam on me. No, thanks.


    ¡°No deal. Do it right where we are.¡± Maybe I could be a little more gentle.


    Especially since the mysterious voice didn¡¯t answer for a couple of minutes.


    ¡°Fine... such foolishness. If I weren¡¯t on my last legs, I¡¯d discipline you!¡±


    After some movement in the crater, a bright verdant light resonated, far brighter than any shard I¡¯ve seen.


    For a moment, I pointed my shotgun at it, fear of it being a spell getting the better of me.


    Before I could pull the trigger, the energy shot out. A new symbol appeared, similar to the one Houonas made, but different and equally elusive to my understanding.


    My vision shifted to a familiar space¡ªthe star clusters shining briefly. My stars, the ones I¡¯d bonded with, glowed brighter than anything in the void.


    Soon, I felt a new connection¡ªnot a new star, but something fragile, its vast dimension fading as if splintered, like a rope breaking apart until only a single strand remained.


    The vision faded, and I was back in the library, focusing on the crater.


    In a sudden burst of motion, something darted from the debris¡ªswift and pale as a ghost. From here, it appeared as nothing more than a fleeting point of white.


    ¡°YOU AREN¡¯T AN ESTRANGED OF THE SANGECARIOS LINE, NOR ONE OF THE LORD COMMANDER¡¯S MEN! NOT EVEN AN ERYTHOCETES¡ªA HUMAN!... Who are you?¡±


    I guess being mind-deaf isn¡¯t a thing after all. Because if it were, I¡¯d be. Weirdly, I heard a small sound echoing around the place¡ªprobably the mysterious being yelling too.


    At least I felt the frail connection between us, giving me some clues.


    ¡°What the fuck would I know?! Someone named Houonas made me an heir after I climbed through the window of one of the roo¡ª¡±


    ¡°No time for explanations! This place isn¡¯t as safe as it was before. Someone might get curious about the fall of my master.¡±


    ¡°It was you who asked, you¡ª¡±


    ¡°No time to waste, either. Get out of here! It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve felt this weak. It¡¯s invigorating in a crazy way¡ªreminds me of my childhood.¡±


    The white point began floating upward, defying gravity.


    ¡°I still have some things to improve our odds of destroying that monstrous beast. Go away. I¡¯m decrepit, but not dead! I¡¯ll find you at the entrance of the quarters.¡±


    The creature wasn¡¯t finished. ¡°Don¡¯t leave by the corridors. This place is trapped¡ªcourtesy of yours truly¡ªand I¡¯d be quite displeased if you stumbled into one of my wards!¡±


    With that, the white point floated away in the opposite direction.


    ¡°How the fuck do you know the territory I¡¯m in? Wouldn¡¯t you get lost?¡±


    ...


    ¡°The silent treatment, is it?¡±


    It seems the mysterious white being either doesn¡¯t want to speak with me or is already too far away for its mind-speak to work.


    Or maybe it¡¯s some other magic nonsense.


    Crazy. Another bond, another pain in the ass.

 Chapter 14 - The Old Geezer鈥檚 Lecture

    Looking at everything going on right now, my plans have taken a turn for the worse.


    The librarian heir is dead, and according to my tile relic¡ªbetter to call it a map¡ªhe¡¯s the second heir to fall. No other heirs have followed him yet.


    Whether the heir of the cooking complex is the perpetrator or just another victim of the beast that destroyed this place, I can¡¯t say.


    Going to the cooking complex doesn¡¯t seem like a good idea anymore. I don¡¯t like my options, but the new crazy guy I just met might be the boon I need.


    Either way, the new plan is to head back to my place and grab my supplies. It¡¯ll probably be a hassle to carry everything to the room, but enough for a few days should work.


    Walking as fast and attentively as I could back to the room with Houonas was easier than I thought.


    No enemies in sight¡ªwhich could be a good thing or a bad thing.


    No chance to die, but no chance to get shards either.


    A couple of hours later, my legs burning like hell, I finally reached the entrance of the quarters, only to find a white¡­shortie staring at me.


    ¡°So young and so slow!¡±


    At first, I thought it was a kid cosplaying as a wise mage. That thought was crushed as I noticed the long beard cascading down to its belly and the hair flowing like a mantle.


    The visible skin was white as snow, like the vampire¡¯s.


    The beady eyes were a piercing blue, the pupils a shade darker.


    ¡°It¡¯s already bad having a human for an heir, but it¡¯s worse if he¡¯s slow and weak!¡±


    The gall of this shortie.


    ¡°Nevertheless, let us go! Guide me to the dumber one who made you heir.¡±


    Poor Houonas, but the shortie is kind of right. I¡¯d be better off as an heir to a chain of supermarkets, not some crazy palace.


    The old man moved faster than me¡ªnot on his short legs, but floating like a balloon. Cheater.


    Still, I ignored the old man. I didn¡¯t spend much time with Houonas, but at least they didn¡¯t react like that when bonding with me¡ªlike I¡¯m some animal.


    It didn¡¯t take long to reach my room.


    ¡°So slow!¡± the shortie yelled again.


    ¡°Stop fucking yelling all the time! You¡¯re short, but that doesn¡¯t make you any quieter!¡±


    Faster than I could believe for an old man, he flicked something at me. His speed and the strangeness of the situation spelled my doom.


    Soon, I felt an ache on my forehead as the object fell to the ground¡ªa piece of chalk.


    ¡°Respect your elders, young boy. No master of mine would have such poor manners!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a man, you fu¡ªforget it.¡± What would winning an argument with a geezer even get me?


    Right, he¡¯s old. I¡¯ll try to picture him like my late grandpa. The guy won¡¯t change.


    Reaching the room, everything seemed intact, with only one problem.


    ¡°Why are you messing with my computer???¡±


    Houonas looked like a child caught doing mischief. ¡°I-I-I was looking after thy belongings. I beg for thy pardon. Mine curiosity took precedence over all else in the silence of these hallowed halls.¡±


    The old geezer laughed warmly and cheerfully, like it was all a prank.


    I walked over and checked the computer. The connections between the accessories and the PC were correct¡ªUSB cables and even the display port were properly set up. The monitor flickered on the login screen.


    ¡°I beg thy pardon. It seems the machine is broken.¡±


    Hmm, something smells fishy.


    ¡°If you thought it was broken, why did you try to log in so many times? See here¡ªit¡¯ll restart if you get it wrong one more time.¡±


    ¡°No, no, no! That was not mine intent. I wish not to destroy thine machine.¡±


    ¡°It won¡¯t destroy anything. Damn, why am I wasting time with this? I¡¯ll create a new user for you. You can access my data from the external drives and the other partitions¡­¡±


    After wasting a couple of minutes, Houonas was good to go. They could try as much as they wanted, but they couldn¡¯t edit anything on my SSDs.


    At least Houonas is smart. Just a few pointers were all they needed to learn the basic functions of the machine. I doubt the old geezer would be as easy¡ªnot just because he¡¯s old, but because he¡¯s an ass.


    ¡°Interesting machine, boy. Of no use in a domain such as ours, but not without its merits.¡±


    ¡°Tell that to the fucked-up library. I doubt the destroyed books would agree.¡±


    Snorting, the geezer took on a conspiratorial expression, visible even through all that hair. ¡°Oh, boy, you don¡¯t know a grain of mold about librarianship.¡±


    Now he¡¯s really trying to pull my leg.


    ¡°Alright, alright. Let me tell you what I learned¡­¡±


    It didn¡¯t take long for me to explain the gist of events. The way I dealt with the vampire and the orange rat earned some applause, though the geezer got kinda angry when I called them vampires instead of Erythocetes.


    So, it was time for the old man to spill what he knew. Especially when I stopped talking and focused on him, Houonas doing the same.


    ¡°What are you children looking at?¡±


    ¡°Just tell us what you know about all this! Don¡¯t you want to kill that eater guy?¡±


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    ¡°Who¡¯s yelling now?! Alright, I¡¯ll tell you, brat!¡±


    ¡°Thanks. I really need a cup of water.¡±


    Lifting his hand, the old man continued, ¡°Let¡¯s focus on the current situation, not your pesky needs! The ruler died¡ªno one knows how, including how the Dominion¡¯s Digit died. For your information, Dominion¡¯s Digits are what me and Houonas will become if you become an heir.¡±


    I raised a finger to interrupt the old geezer. ¡°Yes?¡±, replied said old geezer.


    ¡°Why the weird name? Couldn¡¯t you just use something like Dominion¡¯s Finger?¡±


    ¡°A good question. Actually, that was the plan of the humanoid rulers, though the bestial kinds and other species disagreed with the name. So, it became Dominion¡¯s Digit. The mechanical ones liked that too, but for odd reasons.¡±


    ¡°So, yes, the rulers also like to convene for politics and waste their time when they¡¯re not at each other¡¯s throats. Anything else catch your attention?¡±


    ¡°No, thanks. You can go ahead.¡±


    ¡°As I was saying, nobody knows how, but it happened. At the same time, a new synchronization is occurring¡ªnew worlds, stars, and cosmic bodies.¡±


    That doesn¡¯t make sense. ¡°What stars?! Wouldn¡¯t that annihilate everyone?¡±


    ¡°Actually, no. Dangerous celestial bodies are only annexed to domains where no one lives or where the inhabitants can survive and adapt to the changes. Most stars serve as part of a domain¡¯s space periphery. The how, who, and why elude most of us, though there are theories¡­¡±


    At his expectant glance, I dismissed it. Let¡¯s focus on surviving this first. Though these domains sound like some science shit show, alright.


    ¡°...There¡¯s some unrest in the governing systems of this planet, including some in the space periphery¡ªmore mining colonies. Nevertheless, no doubt new blood and old wolves will take the chance to seize more power.¡±


    Damn it, my curiosity might be the death of me one day. ¡°But wouldn¡¯t the ruler still lord over them? Why would they just fuck up their top brass for nothing? Imagine a crazy or stupid king at the helm.¡±


    Houonas answered this time. ¡°That is far from certain. A ruler could lose their destined throne to their most influential and powerful subject.¡±


    The old geezer interrupted with a nod. ¡°Quite right. Although you forget that it can only be done if the ruler dies without heirs. A domain synchronization will start soon after¡ªnot one guided by the will of the Monad. Any stronger domain can synchronize and obliterate ours.¡±


    That seems stupid. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be easy to just put someone like me as a puppet ruler? And what¡¯s the Monad?¡±


    The old geezer applauded. ¡°For the first time, you¡¯ve said something smart, young one. You won¡¯t make the powerful job any easier controlling you, ha!¡± This old fucker. ¡°The succession requires more than half the heirs to be blood relatives of the ruler. The other heirs can be selected by us Dominion¡¯s Digit candidates¡ªonly a few of us can become servants of a ruler.¡±


    He gestured to Houonas. ¡°She was summoned so the succession could begin. She could select a chosen or have it automatically selected after three days.¡±


    He touched his chest¡ªor beard. ¡°As for me, I was chosen to serve the illustrious Garvant Sangecarious since he was a baby. My past master chose to forfeit the succession with his siblings, successfully ensuring there were no more heirs than the necessary nine. Sadly, he was forced to participate in this one.¡±


    ¡°So, no. There need to be true heirs, or the domain¡¯s security can vanish as soon as the ruler dies. As for your other question, the Monad is what I call the rules of this reality we live in¡ªthe governing force of existence. Some call it Tao, others call it whatever gods or faith they believe in. Some try to use science to explain it, without success. Monad is easier¡ªno religious connotation, but not pure science either.¡±


    Interesting. So Houonas is a she, and the whole God thing¡ªTao sounds familiar. Weird.


    The Dominion¡¯s Digit thing is more interesting for my predicament, though.


    ¡°Why would you guys become Dominion¡¯s Digits, though?¡±


    Again, the old geezer applauded. ¡°Another good question. It seems you deserve a reward as an attentive student. My name is Darefei. I¡¯d remind you that common courtesy dictates you tell me yours. But first, knowledge!¡±


    ¡°First, our power isn¡¯t restricted by the shards we consume. As your power grows, so does ours. New connections will open up to our existence¡ªwhat you call constellations. The primal reason is that it speeds up our domain¡¯s next synchronization.¡±


    Weird. ¡°Name¡¯s Henrique. Why would you want to speed up the synchronization? Wouldn¡¯t more potential enemies show up? Like, I don¡¯t know, beasts, vampires, wererats, and whatever?¡±


    The old geezer, Darefei, didn¡¯t seem angry at me for calling the Erythocetes vampires. The shortie was grinning.


    ¡°For what more?! Power and resources! By what you said, your planet is one of the last to be synchronized in this domain, but who said it would be the last? Sooner or later, the domains will be reduced in number enough that the Monad won¡¯t protect you from synchronizing with a domain far stronger than yours!¡±


    That just keeps getting better and better. A fucking universal war. I pity the poor vampires that synchronized with my world. These guys are in for a surprise.


    The old geezer grunted. ¡°I enjoy my lectures, but time is of the essence. The invaders are probably hired mercenaries for some of the powers in this domain¡ªthough I can¡¯t decide which snake is behind it. Whatever the case, we need to kill Fion Sangecarious, and we need to get you powerful enough for that in the short time we have!¡±


    That¡¯s a yell I agree with, you fucking geezer. Finish all this shit, find my parents, and maybe become a ruler. Not in this particular order it seems.


    Though becoming a ruler sounds like a hassle¡ªat least from what I know about history books and my junk food entertainment.


    Few things are worse than being a puppet king, having your life micromanaged like a fucking pet.


    Maybe it¡¯s different here, but I¡¯m not holding my breath. That¡¯s a problem for later.


    Also, find the villagers! I¡¯m not forgetting that¡ªit¡¯s just that my plan has steps, and that¡¯s a little further ahead.


    What else could I do in the future? Sleeping like a bear would be a good start.

 Chapter 15 - Darefei Gifts

    Straightening up and gaining at least one millimeter of height, Darefei, the old geezer, yelled loud enough to degrade the health of my ears.


    ¡°Starting. You are weak¡ªnot powerful enough for an heir, not in the least. If you could perform a miracle and defeat each heir in solo combat, maybe you could become powerful enough to be a weaker ruler.¡±


    The old geezer shook his head, his cascading hair and beard making the motion comically cute. It was hair care ad-worthy, but I¡¯d still block it.


    ¡°We don¡¯t work on miracles. Furthermore, the heirs won¡¯t line up for you to beat them one by one. They¡¯ll all be warring among themselves as well. Some with troops, others alone, like Fion.¡±


    ¡°Among the siblings, the only one known for renowned combat prowess is Aurore. The thought of losing her spot as the favored firstborn and the upcoming succession made her obsessed with power, rising through the military ranks faster than a comet.¡±


    The old geezer grinned. ¡°That also becomes her weakness. Her power is known¡ªencased in armor made of her own blood, she controls the metallic crimson as if it were her personal arsenal, shaping it into weapons on a whim.¡±


    ¡°The price of that is energy. Every transformation takes a toll. Slowly but surely, she¡¯ll be forced to rely solely on her strength and her weapon¡ªthough that¡¯s still powerful enough to bat you away like a pebble. And she¡¯s famous for increasing her power on a whim. No one knows the spell that fuels it, and no one has ever seen her true Erythocetes form.¡±


    ¡°The other siblings never showed combat prowess like her. But as Fion demonstrated, that doesn¡¯t mean they haven¡¯t grown more powerful in the meantime. I saw them as adults only briefly when they visited Gervant Sangecarious. What they were as kids, when I watched my past master teach and care for them like his own children, isn¡¯t enough to know what they are now.¡±


    ¡°According to the information I gathered while scouting the top floors, Margonne was the first to fall. Her spells supported the strength of her Dominion¡¯s Digit candidates, as well as her guards and supporters. But it wasn¡¯t enough to give my past master and me time to help her. We could only steal some shards from her.¡±


    Darefei¡¯s voice grew even more high-pitched. ¡°Not that the monster didn¡¯t get that and more by eating his own uncle whole! He didn¡¯t even wait for the sharding process to finish!¡±


    After a few minutes of frowning, the old geezer continued. ¡°Dwelling on the past won¡¯t help us. I got some shards from Margonne, and my past master left some to me too, afraid he¡¯d lose them. I had to hide like a child and shield myself with wards so the monsters wouldn¡¯t find me. Even in his death, Gervant Sangecarious let me live, hoping one of his siblings would find me¡ªto give them an edge, however small, and a warning about their monstrous brother!¡±


    He whisper in the wind: ¡°...to not feel a bit of pity for their sibling, putting him down like the disease he is¡­¡±


    That last bit felt emotional. It seems even this old shortie has a soft side. Maybe I should see them more as people and less as creatures.


    Just a little bit.


    So, I won¡¯t ask about these shards for now. Obviously, I want them, but my common sense is against it... for now.


    Better get back on topic. ¡°So, what can I do? From what you¡¯ve told me, these shards aren¡¯t enough. Do I need to hunt wererats and vampires?¡±


    Frowning, Darefei continued, ¡°You should speak their names correctly. It¡¯s not just because of our bond that I can understand your concepts and language that I should accept you using derogatory terms. Through mind-speak, concepts are translated to the recipient based on what they understand. I doubt you even understand mindspeak, but anyone who speaks can hear you as well! If you find someone who does, remember what I told you!¡±


    Suddenly, something crashed into my head. Touching the wound, I smelled chalk. Fucking geezer.


    ¡°You should think better with your head instead of spouting stupidity! I¡¯m already speaking your stupid language!¡±


    Houonas intervened. ¡°He is thy master. Thou should respect him as such.¡±


    ¡°He isn¡¯t my master until he acts like one! There¡¯s nothing left of me for our bond to change. I¡¯m already at the end of my life! So, if he wants my respect, help, and to be worthy of what my past master left, he needs to change his demeanor!¡±


    Who¡¯s the one with a demeanor problem, old fart?! Wait¡ª ¡°Does mind-speak actually read minds?! Are you reading my thoughts right now?¡±


    The old fart gave a short laugh. ¡°No, it¡¯s separate. It¡¯s something someone needs to do willingly! Only those who learn spells related to mind invasion can do it. Though I¡¯ve heard rumors of more... invasive methods.¡±


    What kind of invasive? Damn, Darefei, better not to even ask. And fuck you, asshole. We¡¯ll find a pet shop to groom you. Adding some pink laces to your beard would give you at least a few months of your youth back.


    ¡°Alright, so after scolding me, you still haven¡¯t explained what I should do.¡±


    That got him good. I could even see his long hairs vibrating with suppressed rage¡ªor maybe it¡¯s just the wind. Really luscious hair, though. Could make a bunch of white wigs.


    ¡°...Right. So, you only have one choice! We only have one! After consuming the shards, you should hunt in the Pallid Glade, the palace gardens.¡±


    ¡°Why? Wouldn¡¯t any other heir have already done that?¡± That wouldn¡¯t be the first thing to do, right? There were plenty of corpses at the palace¡¯s entrance.


    ¡°Use your head, you little¡ª! Do you think the heirs would waste their time hunting little critters in the wilds while their siblings are fighting for the succession?! No, you¡¯ll go out there and try to feed on the leftovers. Try to find something to eat, too¡ªyou look like dung!¡± This fucking geezer.


    ¡°Like you look any better! Wait¡ªno chalk! That was also my plan, and I¡¯m just thirsty.¡± Maybe I should take a look at myself. ¡°Don¡¯t know why someone would put beasts in their garden, though.¡±


    Darefei shrugged. ¡°Not a danger for most of us. Protection. And rulers will be rulers¡ªa little extravagance goes a long way. Also, some are the past ruler¡¯s bloodstock.¡±


    ¡°Darefei, thou did not tell us about the contents of such possessions in thy hands,¡± Houonas interjected. Way to go, Houonas. I gave her a thumbs-up, though her only reply was an unblinking stare. Creepy.


    ¡°And you should stop talking like that. Using the classic version or whatever you¡¯re doing won¡¯t make you look any older, kid. Just two dumb children wanting their shiny toys! Ha!¡± He pulled a box out of his body¡ªor rather, from beneath all that hair. The old man really needs a trim.


    Opening it, the box shone like gemstones¡ªbut way more valuable. Even the big shards didn¡¯t shine like that.


    ¡°Is this the nexus shard?¡± If a shard should be special, it must be this one.


    ¡°One of them. To the untrained eye, they all look the same when grouped. But the ones that aren''t¡ªyou shouldn¡¯t consume them, you hear me?! They¡¯re too useful to be consumed for mere essence!¡±


    Essence. Seems I got that name right. I¡¯m probably a genius in disguise.


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    ¡°The lowest of them is called a seedling. The concept of shards is ingrained in us, but the names of their types aren¡¯t. The bickering rulers reached a consensus, though some domains have their own names.¡±


    ¡°After a seedling, also known as a seed, comes a spark¡ªten times the power of a seed.¡± Darefei pulled a large green shard¡ªor should I say, a spark¡ªfrom the chest.


    The old geezer flung the spark at me¡ªat least not at my head.


    ¡°After that is a core¡ªa hundred times the power of a seed. A nexus? A thousand times!¡± He didn¡¯t flick another shard at me this time. Miser.


    ¡°Then comes a relic¡ªten thousand times. And yes, naming it ¡®relic¡¯ was a mistake. Too much confusion between a relic being a shard and a shard being a relic.¡±


    Hmm. ¡°What are relics?¡±


    ¡°Such a dumb question! I¡¯m not wasting more chalk on you! A relic is an object with history, cultural relevance. Didn¡¯t you go to school, a training center, or whatever they have in your world?!¡± The old geezer was furious. I almost pity the heirs who had to endure a childhood with him. ¡°¡®What-are-relics,¡¯ he says. Ha, I''m joking!¡±, this fucking geezer.


    ¡°Now, now, for relics, things start changing from common shards. They can be both remembrances of their past existences or actual artifacts with spells can be obtained from shards.¡± He pulled a light red shard that didn¡¯t emit as bright a light as the others, but it was almost sacred, grabbing your attention with its subtle, enchanting glow. It reminded me of a sunset.


    ¡°Such items are restricted to the powerful and their families in this domain. The past ruler used them as jewelry.¡± He handed the relic shard to Houonas.


    ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate their power. They¡¯re like beings in a sense¡ªnone are equal. The one I gave to your prime digit¡±¡ªweird title¡ª¡°is one such relic. It was a failed artifact from a core shard, but it caught the eye of my past master. He had one of the most renowned artificers enhance it to a relic. It was incredibly expensive and time-consuming. I still had a head full of red hair when it was commissioned¡ªprobably three centuries ago.¡±


    ¡°Also, it¡¯s at the relic level that the shard¡¯s aspect matters. As you can see, this relic shard isn¡¯t just magic-tuned but also technology-tuned!¡± Yes, I obviously anyone could see that. This geezer.


    ¡°Some spelltrees¡ªor as you call them, constellations¡ª¡±


    ¡°Choir verses,¡± Houonas interjected, her tone harsh for the first time.


    ¡°Who cares! The formal concept is spelltree. If your domain changes it, that¡¯s your problem! This topic is problematic. Some people see it as music, others as a growing forest, a sea, or space¡ªbasically anything that makes sense to them and connects them to existence!¡±


    He continued, regaining some of his fervor. ¡°The rulers want a standardized way to make the process easier to teach and replicate. I know some have a problem with that, but it¡¯s no use wasting our time on discussions that won¡¯t change it! Do you want him to survive or not?!¡±, the last part he said looking at Houonas.


    As for her she just glared at the old geezer, fuming.


    This time, I have to side with Darefei. I don¡¯t see much of a problem here, having a standard is good. Must be something cultural.


    For me, they¡¯re still constellations, though.


    ¡°So, as I was saying, some... constellations require specific essence or attunement to improve. Shards also start having this attunement at the relic level. You can still consume them for most constellations, though.¡±


    The old geezer looked at Houonas. ¡°Feel and remember the difference in the essence and how it directs energy. As Dominion¡¯s Digit candidates, we can reach into the shard¡¯s existence to determine if it¡¯s an artifact or a remembrance, as well as its true aspect.¡± No yelling this time. Nice.


    ¡°They are ten thousand times a seed. After that is a beacon¡ªa hundred thousand times a seed. I¡¯m not privy to too much information about them, only that the ruler of the domain I''m from possess at least one. Whether the past ruler of this domain had one, I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that kind of a secret in your domain?¡±


    I could see the grin on his face even beneath all that hair. ¡°My domain isn¡¯t some... pardon my past master, but the Erythocetes are daisy-frolickers compared to my kind. We seek warmth deep in the earth because our mother star no longer shines! The last thing we fear is people driven by greed¡ªthey¡¯re always full of loot!¡± He touched his belly and gave a hearty laugh. Scary.


    ¡°Oh, most wondrous! A water being that endured the deep cold sea, only to lose its life in the presence of the sun.¡± Houonas touched my hand and, with it, gave me the shard¡ªtotally throwing the conversation into another topic.


    The pulse of energy she flowed into my hand felt melodic. Soon, I saw a glimpse of the shard¡¯s existence¡ªa thousand years of cold darkness, briefly interrupted by the warmth of the sun.


    The shard vanished, its essence and energy manifesting as a circle of water¡ªa puddle¡ªthat floated in the air, its surface facing me like a mirror.


    In it, I saw my haggard face, my black hair darkened red by the blood of the wererats. My face, which I¡¯d always questioned whether it was light brown or a dark shade of white, was now pure red from the rats¡¯ blood.


    I really need a glass of water and a shower.


    ¡°I know how you youngsters are always hasty, but you do know it¡¯ll only become a shard again if destroyed or if the energy is drained, right?¡± Darefei pointed at the water mirror.


    ¡°Anyway, having a Dominion¡¯s Digit is useful for that. Without one, you¡¯d need to waste time and energy figuring it out until you found the correct way!¡± He turned his index finger to me.


    ¡°You should remember when to activate an artifact, because it¡¯ll remain active until destroyed or drained. Both can be a hassle. Sometimes it¡¯s better to have one working at all times; other times, only in moments of need.¡±


    The old geezer moved, gazing at the water mirror. ¡°My past master used it as a shield. The spell of this one is...¡± He touched the water mirror and tried to push his finger through. Tried, because as soon as he did, the water froze.


    ¡°...Ouch, freezing! Not only that, but the water replenishes itself with energy! The uses for him were multiple, as he was an ice mage. For you, it can serve as a shield¡ªnot much else. Nevertheless, depending on the impact, the shield can be destroyed in one shot, becoming a shard again, or endure enough to repair itself with its energy!¡±


    The old geezer moved toward me, handing me the chest.


    ¡°One spark, two cores, and one nexus for biology essence. It would¡¯ve been two if you weren¡¯t so stupid!¡±


    ¡°No regrets here,¡± I said, and I meant it.


    ¡°You¡¯ll regret it soon enough! You can count it yourself!¡±


    That I can. The nexus shard is blindingly bright, though strangely, it doesn¡¯t hurt the eyes.


    Now, for the contents of the chest:


    - Biology: Two sparks, two cores, one nexus. 1,220 shards total.


    - Magic: Four cores, one nexus. 1,400 shards total.


    - Technology: One core. 100 shards total.


    - Divinity: One nexus. 1,000 shards total.


    All this haul just for enduring this hairball. Almost worth it.


    Yes, that divinity nexus shard is a real surprise. I wonder how they got it. Wait, speaking of getting it¡ª


    I pointed at the water mirror. ¡°Hey, Darefei, how did this...¡±


    ¡°Its name is Sunkissed Mirror,¡± Houonas added.


    ¡°Alright, the Sunkissed Mirror. How did it get essence? Does the vision cut some of its life hunting for shards?¡±


    Darefei clapped. ¡°Nice one! No, only conscious beings can use shards. It naturally absorbed essence from its environment, as some conscious beings can as well. That¡¯s why essence aspect is important to a planet¡ªa change in it can be catastrophic!¡±


    He raised his index finger. ¡°Another point: such beings can create shards when they cease to exist. Thus, a beast can grow stronger by eating another beast¡¯s flesh. We can use their corpses to make items like weapons, accessories, and the like. Materials like metals are also known to absorb essence.¡±


    ¡°So, animals can¡¯t consume shards? What do they do with them?¡± Such a weird thing.


    ¡°Oh! That means...¡± Houonas began.


    The old geezer pointed to both of us. ¡°YES! They don¡¯t consume them. Some use shards to attract prey, like us, or they just let them slowly degrade for their future generations. They can still take a nibble from us before the sharding process. However, the shards are up for grabs. And that¡¯s what you¡¯ll do¡ªhunt for shards, both from your hunts and from others.¡±


    He grew pensive. ¡°I just wish the palace¡¯s workers hadn¡¯t collected them all this time. Either way, you¡¯ll find some.¡±


    Now I¡¯m in. Time to get freaky.


    ¡°Nice! No time to lose. Can I consume all of these shards?¡±


    ¡°Go ahead, young boy! Normally, you¡¯d want one of your Dominion¡¯s Digits to check them, but not for these. I¡¯ve already done that.¡±


    My favorite part of the day, consuming shards.

 Chapter 16 - Lore and Shards with Chances of Spellstars

    Such a treasure trove in my hands. How many wererats would I need to kill to match this?


    How many beings were killed to make these shards? I know, as Darefei said, some aren¡¯t from a cycle of killing but from natural growth through the absorption of essence.


    Could I be like them?


    ¡°Darefei, could I get essence through the ambient?¡±


    The old geezer grinned. ¡°That train has departed since you took the first shard! Your existence is dictated by it. I¡¯ve heard of the opposite¡ªbeasts that gained consciousness and started consuming shards. Most of what I¡¯ve heard wasn¡¯t good and involved exploding into gruesome abominations. And, young boy, I¡¯ve already seen my share of abominations. What I¡¯ve seen from the pictures and stories is worse!¡±


    He scratched his white head. ¡°Most domains get essence naturally. The process of improving oneself only with shards is wasteful¡ªtoo much essence is lost to the ambient when creating a shard. Now, go on. After we finish this succession, I¡¯ll waste all day teaching your ruler ass¡ªmaybe even give you one of my blends of beer!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m holding you to that,¡± I say, already planning to gather enough info to train my own chatbot version of Darefei¡ªwith improvements, like less yelling and more trimming.


    Alright, full focus on this.


    Let¡¯s start with bio. The sparks were consumed in a blink, enough for the 7th star. Sadly, not a spellstar.


    A smidgen of essence went to the next star. Using the core, it felt fuller.


    Not even one core shard is enough now for a new star now. If this keeps going, the number will become exorbitant.


    Another normal star for the 8th. Time for the nexus shard.


    Soon, a river of essence flowed from the shard, unbridled.


    And yes¡ªanother fucking spellstar! Oh, my fucking yes!


    The projection started, different from last time. It didn¡¯t take a solid form, shifting like a mix of nebulous haze and oil paint in water.


    The image it formed changed, mimicking the projection of its own constellation. Slowly, I saw a sort of bloodskin forming on my hand, waiting for something more from me¡ªlike a decision, a path to take.


    With all the options¡ªbestial claws, plants ranging from sharp to deadly¡ªwhat I really wanted was mobility.


    Something like an underlayer, mobile enough to use guns and a way to send my blood for spells.


    Soon, a claw resembling a beast¡¯s¡ªstrangely similar to a human hand¡ªappeared. Leathery, with skin a lighter tone than the bloodskin but still red as blood.


    The concept merged with my bloodskin, expanding it. The skin took on a metallic glint, now covering my entire forearm instead of just my hands.


    The new spellstar emitted a bright line, connecting to the normal star weakly as it passed from one to the other, eventually forming a thick connection with the previous spellstar.


    The process finished, the constellation forming a weird rune-like figure. No use trying to understand it for now.


    The essence is calling.


    I decided to name this spell **Bloodclaw**. The remaining essence pumped up one more normal star.


    Strangely, as the connection to the 11th star began forming, it didn¡¯t fail short of reaching a full bond as I expected. Something was wrong.


    I already wanted to test the spell before increasing my energy anyway with the magic shards. Time to see what this divergence was all about.


    ¡°Hey, Darefei¡ª¡±


    ¡°Just shut up and finish those shards!¡± the old geezer interrupted me again.


    ¡°My doubt is because of that. My 11th star isn¡¯t needing double the essence. It feels the same as the 10th¡ªlike 1,000 shards¡¯ worth.¡±


    ¡°What?! 1,000 essence for your 10th node? How many spelltrees did you choose?¡±


    ¡°Four.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s above average, but it doesn¡¯t justify this much essence! How many realms do you have? Clusters, as you call them,¡± the old geezer waved dismissively.


    ¡°Also four.¡±


    The shortie frowned, and it was almost like I could see him turning red. ¡°We¡¯re doomed! Who do you think you are?! Some pampered ruler¡¯s kid?? How are we going to get enough shards now? And don¡¯t you dare waste my time with questions!¡±


    He took a few seconds to continue, almost as if fighting his anger. ¡°The number of spelltrees you choose increases the essence needed! And that increases even more if you take each spelltree from a different realm as your starting point!¡±


    ¡°Fuck, I even said I have the divine spell from the divine cluster! How didn¡¯t you know that? A constellation with four clusters?!¡±


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    ¡°For my bearded mother, I thought you were kidding! Who names a spell divine spell?? It¡¯s like naming a dog ¡®Dog¡¯!¡±


    This guy! ¡°You gave me all these shards from different clusters!¡±


    Darefei stomped the ground. ¡°Because those were the ones I freaking had! You can use these damned shards in a different cluster, but there¡¯ll be a loss!¡±


    Houonas interrupted, ¡°Such wrath will bring us no closer to our destiny.¡±


    The old geezer pointed at the being four times his size. ¡°You¡¯re damn right. And so you won¡¯t ask¡ªafter the 10th node, all nodes will require the same amount of essence as the 10th, in your case it''s a thousand. The normal quantity is an average of 500 for only two different realms, even if it¡¯s the realm of being!¡±


    ¡°Alright, alright! Let me just test the new spell.¡± Before the old geezer could say anything, I started casting my divine spell and then bloodclaw.


    The concept was more complicated than bloodskin, but that didn¡¯t give me pause. What was strangest of all was its effect.


    It didn¡¯t create another layer over my skin¡ªit changed mine. My hand increased in size by a few centimeters, my skin turning red with a weak metallic sheen. Even my nails turned a little red.


    ¡°...Looks like just a transformed claw from any common Erythocetes,¡± the old geezer mumbled.


    Like I cared for his opinion.


    What I did care about were the shards I got from him.


    I felt the glassy surface of the magic core shards vanish from my hand as the essence poured into me. Normal stars formed in the 7th and 8th positions¡ªnothing new aside from the increase in energy from them, but still nice.


    Nevertheless, as soon as I consumed the nexus shard and completed the connection to the 9th star, the same amazing thing happened.


    A new projection appeared, similar to the one in the biology cluster, but now it showed me its flaw¡ªor maybe it wasn¡¯t a flaw. It kept changing forms, demonstrating repeating patterns like some sort of puzzle.


    In it, I saw the spell¡ªonly two modifications, but they changed the spell tremendously.


    Finally, after focusing on it, the projection revealed itself, showing in slow motion how a couple of drops of blood transformed into a compressed flame, launching forward like a bullet but slower¡ªlike a cannonball from pirate movies.


    At the trail¡¯s end, I felt something more¡ªa smidgen of blood as the compressed flame vanished.


    I already had part of my mind set on naming it Blood Ray, but I¡¯d wait to see how it really worked before.


    Sadly, I couldn¡¯t use the essence of the nexus to upgrade my star and replenish my energy later. Maybe the energy cost wouldn¡¯t be too high.


    Soon, the essence is consumed, forming a partial bond to the 10th star. Still not enough.


    Now, let¡¯s finish with the tech shards. Not enough for the 9th star or to get a spell, but enough for the 6th star to see if something changes like with the others.


    Consuming the core essence, the bond formed in the 6th star. The phenomenon from the other clusters happened again¡ªthe star connected by a single light, creating a random rune-like figure.


    Soon, I felt an increased sense of awareness all over my body¡ªmy blood flow, my heartbeat, its intensity, its heat.


    The sensation diminished, but I found I could slow my heartbeat, albeit only a little at a time. The same could be done to increase it.


    The remaining essence made a frail connection to the 7th star.


    Now, for the strangest cluster¡ªhow could divinity change someone¡¯s power? With a nexus shard and activating the 6th star, maybe I could find out.


    As the yellow shine, second only to the sun, fragmented and poured its essence into me, I bonded with one star after another.


    No change as each star bonded with me. I was starting to feel a pattern.


    The 6th star connected, and a weird sensation shocked my body as a new rune appeared. I felt something more¡ªsomething beyond my physical body.


    Really strange. How would that help me?


    Let¡¯s wrap it up for later. Time to see if there¡¯s a new spell on the menu.


    The essence flowed like a river, connecting each new star to me. My target was the 9th star.


    As expected, a new spellstar. The projection tried to blend into a mist like the others, but soon it broke, revealing itself completely.


    Weird. Maybe I should ask Darefei why the 9th stars are spellstars. The problem is, my patience is at its limit with the fucking geezer.


    The projection showed a single drop of blood floating up from a hand, each new drop joining until they formed a small ball, the loop repeating.


    Easy to understand¡ªsome kind of blood telekinesis. I saw some promise in it, flaming promises.


    The remaining essence of the nexus shard was enough to create a partial bond to my 10th star.


    Well, that¡¯s it. I have to say, though, this didn¡¯t give me the same feeling of accomplishment as before. I know I¡¯m doing this to survive, but killing beings¡ªeven as dumb as wererats¡ªdoesn¡¯t feel sane, treating them like pi?atas or video-game chests.


    What a fucking time to grow a moral compass, though. It would be so easy to frame this as good versus evil.


    Maybe it has something to do with dopamine¡ªtriggering some brain reward system for surviving and gaining something from it. But just getting this power from Darefei feels hollow.


    No use reflecting on it right now. I¡¯m in a death match for a succession I wasn¡¯t even part of to begin with.


    I¡¯ll have all the time in the world later to beat myself up after all this shit is done.

 Chapter 17 - Blazing Ray Spell Test

    Enough with the distractions. Time to use the ray.


    ¡°Finished?¡± the old geezer asked, always in a bad mood, isn¡¯t he?


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°About time!¡± What a grump.


    No time for words. First, I create some blood with my divine spell on my index finger, then use the concepts I learned from the spellstar.


    The damn thing burned my fucking finger!


    I direct the ray at the floor a meter to my right¡ªno chance of hurting anyone.


    Soon, a crimson ray shot out, crashing into the soil after less than a second.


    A cloud of dust rose, and a small crater formed, smaller than a golf ball.


    There, I felt a smidgen of blood. Why not? I used burning blood, and soon a small flame erupted before fading, as if there was no fuel left.


    Yes, I know what fuel you want¡ªblood and my fucking finger.


    Still, it seems useful. At least now I don¡¯t have to splash my blood around like a kid playing with water.


    Not that I wouldn¡¯t do that if it worked, though.


    ¡°That¡¯s it?!¡± the old geezer asked, though I got the impression he knew it wasn¡¯t.


    The best way to answer is by showing, as they say. So, this time, I created double the amount of blood with my divine spell and used the spell to manipulate it. Yes, that¡¯s a good name¡ª**Blood Manipulation**


    For the ray, **Blazing Ray** should work.


    Back on topic, the droplets floated in a sphere, half an arm¡¯s length away from my body. Another try with Blazing Ray, and the same thing happened¡ªthough stronger this time, as I used more blood.


    All in all, I got a sense of how much energy the spell used.


    Floating a droplet of blood felt like less than the energy of creating one.


    Using blazing ray cost 9 to 11 times more energy than simply using burning blood.


    I really need a way to measure how much energy I have and how much I gain from bonding with a star.


    After this little show, I felt like I¡¯d wasted a chunk of energy¡ªmuch more than before. Mostly thanks to blazing ray.


    It feels like a lot because I¡¯m overflowing with energy now, way more than before. I can¡¯t even imagine how much energy the bleeding ray would¡¯ve used the first time I got a magic spell¡ªmaybe a third of my total energy?


    I really need a better way to monitor my energy.


    But that¡¯s not my only question. Thinking about the shards¡ªhow the hell am I supposed to find them?


    The old geezer shook his head. ¡°Hmm, your spellset doesn¡¯t seem focused. Spellset, in this case, is your set of spells¡ªpretty self-explanatory, dare I say. Take Aurore as an example. She focuses her entire spellset on her metallic magic, tuned from blood. Obviously, she has some hidden spells, but it¡¯s all about improving her efficiency through pinpoint precision.¡±


    After a cough, he continued, ¡°That isn¡¯t solely the fruit of her work¡ªin a way, it¡¯s the lesser part. It¡¯s her heritage. Any powerful family has theirs. As the family of a ruler, they have more than most, all fueled by their past rulers and potential heirs.¡±


    Houonas added, ¡°A domain¡¯s shard stores all succession information and their collective knowledge¡ªtheir ¡®spellset,¡¯ as Darefei calls it. This is one of the most significant benefits of being a ruler.¡±


    The old geezer shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s what a newcomer would say. There are also ways for powerful families to create relic shards¡ªor even more powerful shards¡ªfor that purpose. Nevertheless, it has its flaws. For example, the person in question must willingly imprint their heritage onto it. Yes, they sometimes resort to torture for their more obstinate family members.¡±


    Darefei continued, ¡°Still, it has many failures. My family prefers the old ways¡ªteaching until our young heads turn to mush!¡± He finished with a hearty laugh.


    It seems the shortie likes to talk about his home¡ªin his own weird way.


    I¡¯m curious about what his planet is like, though I have better questions to ask.


    ¡°They still have teachers, manuals, materials¡ªall to ensure the family¡¯s power and prestige. The domain¡¯s shard just ensures all the heritages are safe and keeps some unique or flawed ones hidden from the world¡±, the old geezer downplayed.


    Makes some sense, anyway.


    ¡°Darefei, before I go, how can I find these shards in the gardens? Just look for something shining? And do you know of something that can monitor energy?¡±


    As I asked, the old geezer stroked his long beard.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good point. Here, take this. It¡¯s the one I used as a little lad!¡± He pulled out a weird, curved bronze stick.


    ¡°Grip the longer part. The smaller end, with the slightly wider tip, will point to the nearest shard. Be careful not to fall into any beast traps. As for measuring energy, most people do it by gut feeling. That¡¯s how I do it. If you want something more precise, you¡¯ll have to find it in the capital.¡± The old geezer gazed into the distance¡ªif that¡¯s where the capital is, only he knows.


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°The way you say it makes it sound like I won¡¯t have you or Houonas to look after me.¡±


    ¡°Ha! Obviously, we won¡¯t be! I¡¯ll be warding the hell out of these quarters. I¡¯ve never been weaker, but warding¡ªlike most crafting spells¡ªis one of the things that loses the least power during a bond. We lose most of the spells, but the knowledge we¡¯ve gained isn¡¯t useless without them!¡± He grabbed Houonas¡¯s lower left hand.


    ¡°You, girl, should learn it too!¡± the old shortie demanded.


    ¡°Such a curriculum is standard for each of our kind, covering only the bare essentials. Warding is a concept I have considered¡ªone that would complement my martial style. The choice lay between warding, alchemy, or a more focused crafting technique like bladesmithing. But that would require the highest approval from my master, the heir¡± Houonas said, unblinking and unmoving, except for her top hands brushing her antennae.


    Darefei let go of her hand and stroked his beard. ¡°Hmm, each is a good choice. However, I think this lost cause would be better supplied with warding¡ªespecially since warding ties into runecrafting. That¡¯s why my kind always focuses on warding as a required spelltree. Which one to specialize in is a personal choice. Mine is time! I started with obfuscation, but time has far more appeal to me!¡±


    Houonas didn¡¯t stop rubbing her antennae. ¡°Some of our kind are also known to use concepts of their warding in ritualistic blessings and other applications. I will gladly oblige.¡± She finally stopped.


    ¡°Splendid! There¡¯s no better way to learn than from a professional! I dare say I can teach you more than any spell directly through your mush brain!¡± The old geezer clapped for emphasis. Great.


    Really fucking great. Now it¡¯s me against the world again.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be alone in a garden with all sorts of perils threatening my life for three days.¡±


    ¡°Two days and seven hours, by thou measure of time,¡± Houonas added.


    ¡°What? The three days were in your time?¡± She should¡¯ve said that earlier. Why confuse me?


    ¡°Actually, it¡¯s one day and...five hours. It¡¯s because your pea brain didn¡¯t remember that the three days started from the ritual of bonding! Time has passed! And you¡¯ll need to be back here one day before you lose the protection the succession is giving to your territory! We need to strike while the iron is hot, even if the hammer is flimsy and weak!¡± The old geezer was getting agitated. ¡°The wards can¡¯t hold off a bunch of lackeys for more than a few hours. Against Fion or Aurore, they¡¯ll last only seconds!¡±


    ¡°Ah, right.¡± He has a point. It¡¯s better to go with Houonas and Darefei while I¡¯m still incognito. It would all be for nothing if I¡¯m trying to finish off the heirs while my territory is exposed.


    The weakness of the wards isn¡¯t a surprise¡ªDarefei¡¯s power is now tied to me, it seems.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take five of these hours to sleep, though.¡± I¡¯m also going to take a bath.


    ¡°...Fine! Sleep for six, then¡ªjust so you don¡¯t use fatigue as an excuse! You¡¯ll come back in one day and six hours. We¡¯ll save one hour for discussion, and then we¡¯ll go finish this succession!¡± The old geezer was more hyper than me.


    ¡°Agreed,¡± Houonas said.


    ¡°I have to take care of this shield, though. Having a flag marking my location won¡¯t be good right now.¡± I started letting a few drops of blood from my divine spell float up, preparing another Blazing Ray.


    ¡°The energy you two put into it is a pittance. Alright, try your ray on it.¡±


    I added a few more drops of blood¡ªand even some more¡ªbefore Darefei could complain. I activated the Blazing Ray, the ray flashing out faster and stronger this time, reaching the mirror¡¯s surface directed at me and...destroying the mirror, turning it into essence, which returned to my hand.


    Interesting. But I smelled my burned beard, the stench of burned hair, and the ashes of my dignity.


    ¡°Let that be a lesson. You need to fuel the amount of energy necessary for what you want to do, whether it¡¯s an artifact or a spell. Just a pinch of energy in the artifact made this a flimsy shield! Remember not to disrupt the essence in this state, or the shard can be broken. Also, it¡¯ll take a few hours before you can use it again,¡± the old geezer said, a little too late.


    ¡°Could¡¯ve told me sooner. One less thing to protect my life.¡± Isn¡¯t that technically their job?


    ¡°Crybaby. This lesson will be burned into your head from now on. Another thing¡ªyou two, take these.¡± The old geezer handed us two rectangular metallic things that looked like oversized adhesive bandage.


    ¡°Stick them to the side of your head, above the ear. Use some energy to glue them in place, like this, and think about the person. The device will understand the concept.¡± The old geezer stuck one to his head.


    It wasn¡¯t too difficult, though a little weird¡ªlike a mix of a clip and an adhesive.


    Let¡¯s see. Think about the old geezer and push some energy through my head.


    ¡°Hey, young boy, that¡¯s it.¡± Hearing the old geezer¡¯s voice doubled was like a nightmare.


    ¡°Incredible. The voice sounds so real,¡± I said. Even some of our cheaper long-distance gadgets had interference. Let¡¯s see if this is the same soon.


    ¡°The wonders of runecraft! It¡¯ll work within the proximity of the castle¡ªmaybe half that distance farther. Beyond that, energy, shard, and essence interference will disrupt it. Only with bigger equipment can we circumvent that! Also, don¡¯t use it outside of emergencies! It¡¯s easy to track!¡± The old geezer seemed proud.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m going down these fucking stairs. It seems I¡¯ll only have five hours of sleep after all.¡± A slight exaggeration, but every second of sleep counts. The drop from the window seemed bigger from up here.


    ¡°No more! Time is working against us!¡± the old man yelled as I reached the top of the window.


    ¡°Have fun, Houonas. Drain this old geezer of all the wisdom his dusty brain has left!¡±


    ¡°It will be done, master,¡± Houonas replied with a curtsy.


    ¡°You brat!¡± If the old geezer said anything else, I didn¡¯t hear it.


    I¡¯m not sure how I feel about being called ¡°master,¡± but I do feel pretty good about annoying the old geezer.


    Time to focus on getting down these stairs as fast as I can. The moonlight is fine, but I¡¯ll use my cellphone¡¯s flashlight for extra light.

 Chapter 18 - Back to the Village

    If walking through the night with only the moonlight and the occasional flashlight of my phone, surrounded by flies and the growls of unseen animals, isn¡¯t scary and annoying enough, seeing a deserted village sure is.


    I expected some sort of light in the brick houses. I know they sleep early, but some liked to keep a light on at night. It¡¯s not my first time coming here in such hours.


    Sometimes it was because something broke, or a loud noise happened. Especially during the war¡ªeven the most remote places could be hit by a stray missile.


    It¡¯s not like the wars decades, even a century ago. The weakest and cheapest of missiles today can reduce an entire home to powder and debris.


    That¡¯s a fear I¡¯m accustomed to. But in this new reality, I feel a fear that most of the human race hasn¡¯t felt in a long time¡ªthe fear of the unknown.


    As if answering this primal fear, a door creaked open as I entered the center of the village. The door of a house veiled in darkness.


    I¡¯m not stupid enough to walk into that. Maybe stupid enough not to count my remaining ammo after all this time, but not stupid enough to die in the dark to some noisy monster.


    As I lifted Marlene, the shotgun feeling cold in my hands, I saw the face of the being illuminated by a ray of moonlight.


    My arm instinctively lowered. The familiar face of one villager showing up. But then I noticed something strange.


    When did they get so scrawny?


    Most of the guys here eat pretty well. Some are lean, but I¡¯ve never seen anyone like this.


    The man¡¯s face looked like one from the impoverished countries ravaged by famine.


    No, this isn¡¯t right.


    ¡°Who are you? Keep back!¡± Why did I even say that? Obviously, the guy won¡¯t obey.


    Soon, the creak of wood turned into a cacophony as doors across the village opened.


    New faces appeared¡ªall haggard and dried, skin and bones. It felt like I was in a plague-stricken village.


    Their clothes were torn, bloodied. And one looked familiar¡ªa police uniform.


    Fuck.


    ¡°You! Remember me? I¡¯m the army guy from before!¡± Why didn¡¯t I ask this guy¡¯s name? I know I¡¯m bad with names and would¡¯ve probably forgotten it if it wasn¡¯t weird enough. But damn.


    ¡°Talk to me! Why isn¡¯t anyone talking to me right now? Can¡¯t you fucking see how weird it is for a bunch of people to approach you in the middle of a village in the dark?!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m warning you, assholes! Don¡¯t come fucking near me! I¡¯m armed!¡±


    I¡¯m in hell, right? Is this some sort of purgatory?


    I don¡¯t want to become a killer. These are people, they lived with me in this forgotten place.


    But they¡¯re moving faster and faster toward me, what I can fucking do?!


    My breathing became quick and erratic. Damn, I¡¯m losing it.


    No, I won¡¯t fucking die here.


    Would dying be better than becoming a killer? Yes.


    No. Fuck.


    Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck-fuck-fuck-fuck-fuck-fuckfuckfukfukfkfk...


    ¡°What did Carlos say to me? Ah, yes. ¡®You want to survive a fucking war, Henrique? Let the adrenaline flow. It¡¯ll make it easier. Don¡¯t look them in the eyes¡ªthey¡¯ll haunt you.¡¯ What did he say at the end? Ah, that asshole. ¡®You already lost it the moment you shot the first bullet. The difference is whether you want to be a dying loser or a living one.¡¯¡±


    I¡¯m finally losing it, aren¡¯t I?


    ¡°I¡¯m not fucking dying here,¡± I whispered, my voice trembling. But I know. I¡¯m not the same Henrique as before. I have fucking magic now. Not only that, but I also know I won¡¯t be the same after this.


    I let my mutated adrenal glands pump me full of adrenaline. Also, they also pumped me full of noradrenaline¡ªlike the doctors said. It¡¯s in the name. No need for explanations.


    What¡¯s its other name? Ah, yes¡ªnorepinephrine.


    The nearest villager rushed at me. All my attempts to clear my mind failed. I looked into her eyes, her disheveled hair. Was it blonde, or just a trick of the light?


    It would¡¯ve been ghostly if not for the wetness in her eyes. They shone. Yes, she was alive. I couldn¡¯t convince myself she was an undead or whatever monster I could come with.


    My adrenaline surged. My shotgun pointed at her chest, my arm trembling.


    I shot.


    The buckshot hit her left torso, taking part of her arm with it. The proximity increased the damage.


    What a wonderful sound, the ringing in my ears sounded like the most angelic music. It helped clear my mind, drowning out any last pleas or cries from her.


    A group of three came next. I could see they were feral, like rabid animals. It didn¡¯t help against the wetness dripping from my eyes.


    A few droplets of my divine blood floated up, my fingertips feeling wet.


    My blazing ray shot forward, hitting one of them in the neck.


    I swung my hand, the droplets reaching the others who kept coming even as their fellow fell to the ground, blood splattering on their bodies.


    I didn¡¯t wait. Crimson flames engulfed the two of them, growing stronger each second as they used their blood as fuel.


    The one on the right kept coming, like a living bonfire. I pulled my shotgun and fired, the pellets hitting him squarely in the head, exploding it.


    I didn¡¯t focus on their eyes. I didn¡¯t focus on anything.


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    Just use your spells when you can, the shotgun when you can¡¯t.


    The two on the right¡ªburning blood was enough.


    The three at my back¡ªa blazing ray and some burning blood. Ah, this one was made of sterner stuff. My shotgun hit him in the shoulder, enough to make him lose his footing, but not killing it. My Burning Blood finished him before he hit the ground.


    My nostrils were filled with the smell of burning meat, my ears with the ringing of the shotgun. My mouth tasted like smoke, carbon, and dried saliva.


    My eyes¡ªthey just feel wet.


    Soon, it was just me, the policeman, and a bunch of corpses.


    ¡°Who did this to you?¡± I did, I know. I just wanted to know who forced me to do it¡ªsomeone I could blame, someone to take the place of my own fears.


    The man didn¡¯t answer. My body felt fatigued, my arms hurt. But could I live with myself without hearing anything from them? Without knowing why I just massacred a village?


    I tried to shoulder-check the guy to the ground. The policeman was stronger than me, even as a husk, and scratched my right earlobe and cheek. I used Burning Blood, setting his hand on fire.


    A morbid plan formed in my head.


    The man lunged at me, arms outstretched, even the one in flames.


    I took some of the blood flowing from my cheek and smeared it on his unburned arm. As soon as it connected, I used Burning Blood again, engulfing it in flames.


    Then I dropped some of my divine blood on his feet and set them ablaze.


    I stopped the flames on his arms, now just burned husks.


    The policeman¡¯s body fell forward, face-first, his legs too weak to hold him.


    I stopped the flames and kicked him onto his back.


    He tried to lunge at me, even as his body refused to obey. His limbs flailed wildly. But it wasn¡¯t just his limbs moving¡ªhis lips moved in an endless loop.


    As I tried to get closer, he tried to bite me. No way to hear what he was saying like this.


    I took out my phone and recorded him for a few seconds.


    Turning up the volume all the way, I could hear through the sounds of wildlife around us.


    ¡°Welcome-the-empty-welcome-the-empty-welcome-the-empty...¡± The sound was eerie, alien¡ªnothing like the man I¡¯d heard less than a day ago.


    I stopped the recording and killed the policeman with a single shot. Maybe a waste of a bullet, but I¡¯d already put the man through too much pain.


    Now I had someone¡ªsomething¡ªto direct all my rage, all my hate. To myself, to this situation. And now, to them.


    ---


    The silence was an insidious killer. My head was the only place I could be right now. What I wouldn¡¯t give for a monster to show up so I could vent all my rage.


    The monster I needed to defeat in the future wasn¡¯t enough to make me forget what I¡¯d done. Maybe it never would be.


    The corpses stayed frozen¡ªall husks, some burned black, others just lifeless.


    No shards showed up. And I wouldn¡¯t dare take them even if they did.


    Fighting the urge to bury them was hard. Burning them to dust felt just as wrong.


    The thought of the local¡ªand now alien¡ªwildlife desecrating their corpses felt like another sin I didn¡¯t want to carry.


    Everything goes so fast when you try to lose yourself in action.


    My home was just ahead. The ¡°me¡± from before felt stronger, even without magic. He had certainty, a clear conscience, even as war tried to take it from him.


    My buddies were the ones who carried that sin, not me. Now I know it.


    The weight of killing someone¡ªmaybe it¡¯s worse for me because I killed people I lived with, even at a distance.


    How much I wanted to call my buddies. But were they even alive? As soon as I left, I tried to reach them¡ªa message here, a call there.


    It didn¡¯t last. I felt like a traitor. Here I was, living off my fixed income. Not a luxurious life, but a comfortable one.


    I know the rich live with so much more, wasting on banalities. And worst of all, they don¡¯t know or care about the price paid in blood and spirit.


    My sin is having a conscience. But what can I do? Cut it out? How?


    The place I called home felt the same¡ªa broken window, the only difference being the burned husk inside, nibbled at by insects.


    Probably more charcoal than meat. That¡¯s why so few of them are here.


    Our clash had left a scar in the center of the normalcy I once had.


    I drank water like mad straight from the faucet, my parched lips feeling bliss, only tainted by the filth I felt within myself.


    Opening the fridge, I saw milk, cheese, ham, fruits, yogurt, a half-eaten cake, the remains of my dinner, and more.


    My stomach gurgled, but I felt nauseous. I knew where it came from¡ªthe people I bought it from.


    They didn¡¯t make it, but I bought from them. I wasn¡¯t hungry enough to endure that.


    Another stop¡ªthe bathroom.


    Maybe some of the filth would wash away. How many times had I felt like trash, only to feel like a monk reaching nirvana after a shower?


    I took off my dirty clothes and threw them in the trash. They couldn¡¯t be cleaned.


    The water fell on my body, the sound relaxing, the dirt washing away. The wererat blood was gone¡ªnothing a sponge couldn¡¯t handle.


    But I still felt like scum.


    Slowly, I turned off the shower.


    Looking in the mirror, I saw the same me. The beard hadn¡¯t even grown enough to need a shave.


    Even after all the shampoo and soap, I still smelled like smoke.


    I took my shaver, and in a few minutes, a younger version of me stared back.


    The beard was nice, but it aged me. Still, I only saw a worse version of myself.


    My black hair, my brown eyes, my skin¡ªI still didn¡¯t know if it was light brown, white, or whatever.


    I know all that jazz about ethnicity. It never meant much to me. I¡¯m me. I don¡¯t feel like either.


    With all the bigger problems of war, people still acted like animals¡ªdiscrimination, pillaging, extortion, scamming, robbing, raping, murder...


    We¡¯re so much worse than animals. Would one of those rich bastards care that their countrymen bled?


    Would I?


    Did all this philosophical rambling do anything for my guilty conscience?


    No.


    Leaving the bathroom, I went to my room. I was glad I¡¯d closed it. I activated my plug-in repellent, just to make sure nothing would make my night worse.


    Closing the door, I put on some light clothes and fell onto my bed.


    My hands finally returned to normal.


    If there¡¯s one good thing about being exhausted, it¡¯s that sleep welcomes you with open arms¡ªeven the most vile trash.


    Doing my damnedest, I set an alarm for five hours. Be damned if I wasted time getting shards.


    The heaviness in my head lightened as my body was forced to sleep, no matter how sick I felt.

 Chapter 19 - Deadly Surprises

    The alarm rings. I wake up, only to realize I¡¯ve snoozed it three times.


    More time lost. Less than twenty-two hours until I meet with Houonas and the old geezer.


    I still feel like trash. But trash with a mission.


    Answering nature¡¯s call, I head to the bathroom¡ªhandle the essentials, brush my teeth, and wash my face.


    A quick stop in the kitchen. I make breakfast, finishing anything that might spoil soon. Leftover dinner, now with extra cheese, and yogurt to round it off.


    This place feels... alien. Different. Broken. Fake. Has it changed, or have I? Best not to dwell on it.


    I pull on my most rugged clothes¡ªflexible jeans and a hoodie.


    My gaze falls to my left arm. Bare. Exposed. The wounds are already fading, something that should''ve taken days. Something is happening to me. The bio-normal stars, I bet.


    The wounds weren¡¯t that deep, but still... incredible. I let myself admire it for a moment before finishing up.


    My hoodie, old as hell, has its black color faded, but the zipper still works like butter.


    Its familiar comfort is exactly what I need.


    I leave my bedroom with a camping bag and a suitcase. Stuffing my socks into my pocket, I walk to the kitchen.


    Some things will have to stay, but I pack anything that can last¡ªbread, ham, juice boxes, and whatever else I can find.


    Some go into my camping gear, some into the suitcase.


    I also take some bottles and plastic food containers. It¡¯s macabre, but the idea of blood flasks as makeshift Molotovs could work.


    Even though I hadn¡¯t used them... in _that_ situation.


    Not like they weigh much anyway.


    I could take my computer, but damn¡ªwhat the hell would I do with it in this fucking succession?


    God, I hate this, but I¡¯ll have to come back. Better to skip the village, though¡ªthe forest is where I need to find shards. Maybe there are already some in the normal forest.


    I put on my socks and running shoes from the shoe rack near the door.


    Time to go.


    Leaving my home, I take one last long look. Maybe it¡¯s the last time. Maybe not. Either way, I know I won¡¯t live here anymore.


    I take my tile relic from my shoulder bag.


    Damn, I must look like a fool walking around with so many bags.


    Whatever.


    To my surprise, while checking the tile relic, two more heirs have fallen. One in the sewers¡ªthat place must¡¯ve been hell itself. Imagine the smell of a sewer in a vampire castle!


    The other in the training grounds. If power or some aspect of the heir had something to do with it, the sibling from that place must¡¯ve been a hell of a fighter. I just hope it wasn¡¯t that Fion guy.


    Although, maybe there are worse heirs. I¡¯m just going by the info Darefei gave me.


    Would he or any of the siblings be working with the guys who husked the villagers?


    Worse yet, should I lose hope of rescuing even one of the kidnapped?


    What would it matter if I found only crazed husks of people?


    If I¡¯m strong enough, maybe I could bind them and try to find a cure.


    A way to save them.


    Time to focus on getting stronger.


    My way back to the palace would¡¯ve been better if I didn¡¯t have the emotional weight to carry with me.


    Also, pulling a suitcase down a hill, like at the airport, isn¡¯t a good idea.


    Each crash is a new chance for the suitcase to break.


    But I¡¯m already loaded with bags. This way, I could easily let it fall and fight if needed.


    I could also drop it if I carried it, though.


    Alright.


    Carrying it wasn¡¯t that burdensome, and the noise diminished.


    Reaching the palace, I see the remains of the dead beasts, the light of the sun... and another sun. What a weird thing.


    It doesn¡¯t feel that hot, though.


    Maybe it¡¯s because it¡¯s so small¡ªit must be far away but near enough for the main sun not to outshine it. Ah, yes, they also aren¡¯t _my_ sun, if Darefei is to be believed. I don¡¯t see why he¡¯d lie.


    I don¡¯t know much about space to begin with.


    Although my spelltrees, as they say, are constellations, the entire thing looking like space. I just know some tidbits from documentaries, random curiosity, and God knows where.


    I should watch the sky more often. Not that I¡¯d expect a new, smaller sun to show up.


    My mood and conscience dampen the surprise, but I try to focus my mind on the task at hand.


    I for sure wouldn¡¯t carry this suitcase into the forest.


    Climbing one ladder was already hell, but I make it. I drop the suitcase there. If someone finds it, what can I do?


    If only I knew about wards, but that¡¯s for the two above. Having two Dominion¡¯s Digits who know wards is enough.


    Now, to the skin forest. Maybe I can finally find some shards. The common forest didn¡¯t have anything.


    I didn¡¯t use the stick, though. Dammit, I forgot about that.


    Before climbing down, I take three bottles with me¡ªthey look like condiment containers for ketchup but with screw caps on top.


    They¡¯d still work in their morbid way with some blood.


    First, though, time for some shards.


    Maybe the hunt will take my mind off things, at least for a while.


    Walking toward the skin forest makes all my instincts scream at me.


    Like a bull walking into a slaughterhouse.


    In a way, my body could be right.


    No choice, though. Dying now or dying later. My plan is not to die at all, so risk is part of the game.


    I can¡¯t help but touch the bark of the weird trees. They feel soft, like suede¡ªfuzzy. The color is a little darker than the leaves.


    Taking a leaf from the ground, it has the same texture but is flexible, cartilaginous.


    Why would anyone want plants like this in a garden?


    It¡¯s not the only thing, though. As I go deeper, the curved stick finally starts moving, and new life shows up.


    Grasses, a shade of purple, sway as the wind blows, trying to take any place the skin trees don¡¯t claim.


    It¡¯s not the only one. Weeds in shades of violet and red.


    Flowers leaning more toward blue than violet.


    And each of these plants houses life.


    Some have little ant-like creatures I¡¯ve never seen before. Their colors are beautiful¡ªsome have more legs, others fewer, different sizes, different antennae. Some even have wings.


    Larvae move, eating the leaves.


    Flowers bloom even on the skin trees, vines penetrating their trunks.


    Various animals I saw in the corpses during my first trip to the palace appear. This seems to be their natural habitat.


    Little critters show up¡ªsome eating insects, others eating plants or strange fruits from the weeds.


    It feels like an imaginary world made real¡ªalien. If it¡¯s a dream or a nightmare, I¡¯ll make sure to survive either way.


    Finally, the stick starts moving more. Following it like a compass, I reach the spot. The compass spins in my hand like a spinner. I put it in my pocket, where it presses against my leg, wanting to turn.


    Ignoring it, I start digging, keeping a vigilant eye around me. The overworking in my mind helps lighten my guilt.


    Soon, a shining shard appears, but I get a surprise¡ªa seed gripping the shard tightly with its roots.


    It feels weirdly beautiful. The shard is a vibrant green, shining brightly¡ªno doubt it¡¯s a spark.


    I don¡¯t have gloves for this. But I have something better.


    I activate my bloodclaw. My skin turns a reddish tone with a metallic sheen, my hand growing slightly larger¡ªnot enough to be called a mutant, but enough to draw attention.


    My nails sharpen, their natural pink almost turning red.


    If they work as before, it¡¯ll take an hour for them to return to normal.


    The energy they consume is minimal¡ªefficient.


    Using my nails to cut the roots is harder than I expect. Either my nails aren¡¯t sharp enough, or the roots are just that strong.


    I consider consuming the shard with the roots still attached, but I¡¯ve had enough surprises.


    A dozen seconds later, I have the green shard in hand. Without a moment to contemplate, I consume the spark. Ten more bio shards to the count.


    It feels like a treasure hunt. If I were in a better mood, I might¡¯ve even found it fun.


    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Sometimes the shard is intact; other times, a critter or insect seemed to be trying to move it.


    There was even a small, scaly creature with six legs that ran around with a shard on its flat head.


    In that case, I thought it''s better to let the critter be.


    The deeper I went into the forest, the more wildlife appeared.


    Weirdly, most were carcasses¡ªsome still fresh.


    Some predators, too. Finally, I see one of the metallic felines with their young. They look at me from a distance.


    Every time one of the pups tries to approach me, the tiger would gently bite it and bring it back.


    I couldn¡¯t remember if they were survivors from the past clash. It seems so long ago, but it hadn¡¯t even been a full day.


    A better, worse time.


    They didn¡¯t keep me company for long, running away after a few minutes.


    All in all, I got three more bio sparks, five sparks, three simple basic shards, and one magic spark.


    I used all the basic shards on the divinity cluster, enough for another star¡ªstill no change in me or the constellation.


    Then, something strange happens¡ªa tremor, strong as an earthquake.


    A thunderous boom following.


    My stick points in the direction it came from.


    Walking toward it, the number of carcasses increases, as if a plague had swept through the wildlife.


    Soon, I saw the truth¡ªan archer leaping through the trees as if flying.


    It took me longer than I care to admit to make out the blurring archer. Red clothes, white hair, the face a total blur.


    Each move sent an arrow piercing a gargantuan turtle. Its black body is covered in red crystals, eerily similar to the hammer the orange wererat once wielded.


    Nearby, a group of tigers guards the turtle and the surrounding shards.


    Every second, a vine tried to grasp one of the shards¡ªall of them cores and above.


    The archer ignores the weaker ones.


    It is like a dance. Finally, as the archer nears me, I see her figure¡ªa woman in red leather armor clinging to her lithe body, pale skin, and fair white hair in a ponytail. Even her closed mouth couldn¡¯t hide the fangs protruding like a predator¡¯s.


    I hid behind a tree. I need no more information¡ªshe was an Erythocetes, whether an heir or a supporter.


    Worse yet, she is probably here stealing the shards I came for. Why the shining things are all near the turtle eludes me.


    That is a problem, though. Who should I help¡ªthe creatures or the vampire?


    The fight seems heavily one-sided in the archer¡¯s favor, only because the giant turtle and the tigers had no way of reaching her.


    Stretching its neck, the turtle cuts a trunk in half with its mouth. The thick wood fell to the ground, causing another tremor.


    I held onto a nearby tree for dear life as the archer flipped through the branches like they were steps on a staircase, unaffected by the tremors.


    The battle resumed. Suddenly, a shining arrow flies with a sonic wheeze, piercing the turtle¡¯s neck and sinking deep. That¡¯s when I notice it wasn¡¯t the first one.


    There are so many arrows in the turtle that it looks like the turtle has always had red feathers sticking out of its exposed head.


    How the turtle is still alive is a wonder.


    Should I wait until one of them is half-dead?


    The choice presented itself when one of the tigers appears, its body bleeding, covered in slashes and cuts. One leg was pierced bone-deep by an arrow¡ªthe same kind the turtle had been hit with.


    It looks ludicrous on the tiger, like a broomstick stuck in its leg.


    Again, the tiger made the same gestures as before, the message clear as it points at the archer before slashing its paw across its own neck.


    Would I work with the tigers again?


    Like I have a choice. Still, they ran away from the battle before. I can¡¯t count on them.


    The plan is simple¡ªtry to kill both of them.


    First, I need more info to work with, though.


    As a potential enemy heir, the better thing is to watch the woman fight. Her death dance went on and on with eerie grace.


    It remindes me of the elves in fantasy¡ªagile and one with the forest.


    The fact that she is a vampire only makes it more surreal.


    Slowly, I begin to see that the vampire wasn¡¯t just an acrobat. The winds changes direction at her will.


    Arrows gain speed and strength after leaving the bow.


    And how the hell did she have so many arrows?!


    If that wasn¡¯t enough, vines sprout around the turtle, thick, oversized. The thorns sometimes even drew blood from the turtle¡¯s legs.


    What else could she have in her arsenal?!


    The turtle¡¯s wounds, aside from the bone-deep arrows, regenerates in seconds, as if they¡¯d never been there.


    I¡¯m totally not prepared for this.


    Especially with all the mental baggage I¡¯m carrying.


    Fuck, no. Focus on the battle. One more vampire to kill. Don¡¯t see them as humans¡ªthey aren¡¯t. They¡¯re my enemies.


    Just focus on surviving.


    My mutated adrenal glands starts pumping hormones into my bloodstream, adrenaline spiking.


    I have one shot. The archer hadn¡¯t noticed me¡ªwhich made sense. This damn tiger only found me after trying to run away, as they like to do. Smart creatures. Better to flee than die, indeed.


    I pump some energy into my bloodclaw spell. I feel no difference in my already changed arm, only a sense of reinvigoration on its form.


    Now, how the hell will I reach this vampire? I¡¯m not even sure... yeah, maybe the Blazing Ray. Not in the small quantity I tested, but with almost all the energy I had.


    It seems like a stupid plan, but this archer isn¡¯t a genius either, dancing in circles just because the dumb turtle can¡¯t anticipate her moves.


    A bloody waltz that, by grace and technique, will end with the turtle dead and me as her new dance partner.


    I¡¯d analyzed these two enough. I can do it!


    Waiting for the cycle to restart, I found the perfect spot to hide for this one shot.


    An outcropping of stones near the base of a tree¡ªit looked man-made but long forgotten, weeds covering most of it.


    It wasn¡¯t the only outcropping¡ª others were nearby. Maybe part of an old structure? Dammit, focus.


    My blood floated upward, just at the edge of the bush. If the archer can see it, I have no idea. I pump more and more energy into it, two arms¡¯ worth of concentrated energy already lost to form a coconut-sized orb of blood.


    I keep pumping more and more.


    Using my tech spell on my heart, I slow my blood flow a little more, my focus entirely on the next shot.


    Soon, the vampire appears. I activate my blazing ray. The surrounding air ignites, the bush erupting in flames. My legs instinctively jumps me away from it, but my mind and eyes stays locked on the vampire.


    The damn vampire changes direction midair. Even with the increased speed of the ray, fueled by most of my energy, it will only graze her leg.


    I held my breath as the shot neared until a weird... silvery vine? Grabs her leg, pushing her directly into the blast.


    Did she just commit suicide?


    Her body starts to fall. The turtle bits her whole, not even giving me time to use my burning blood spell.


    Slowly, the turtle returns to the pile of shards, seemingly to sleep.


    Weird.


    It didn¡¯t go as planned, but whatever. Time to get some shards from the turtle.


    Walking as silently as I could, I approach the turtle and focus on grabbing as many magic shards as possible.


    What I want right now is energy!


    I lost track of the quantity, pumping shard after shard¡ªcores and the rarer nexus.


    Until I felt my 12th magic star. A change happens in my body¡ªthe energy concentrates further, the gaseous substance becoming more substantial, more humid.


    I don¡¯t want to waste the essence of the core shard in my hands, better make another star connection.


    Before I could start a new one, I see a shadow. I try to roll out of the way, only to have my left hand cut as I defended myself. Something slices through my shotgun¡¯s sling, and Marlene fall to the rocks.


    My connection with the shard is cut, the object disintegrating, its essence dissipating into the air.


    My eyes didn¡¯t deceive me. A fucking tiger had attacked me while the turtle is sleeping contentedly.


    Fucking tiger assholes. They start circling me like I am prey, ignoring the turtle nearby.


    Did they fight to near-death for these shards? Probably. But I was the one who took the shot that killed the damn vampire.


    These assholes would¡¯ve been dead without my help. And they¡¯re fucking wrong if they think I¡¯m out of fuel.


    My body is drenched in energy, my magic constellation confirming I¡¯d reached another milestone. The rune-like connections of the normal stars felt even more complete.


    These fuckers are smart, though. They approach me slowly, leaving no space for me to escape, watching my every move.


    Fuck, I can¡¯t use my shield artifact like this. These assholes will slash me in a blink.


    Better do the next best thing. I pump divine blood into my right hand, the wet feeling of blood slipping through my fingers.


    My own blood on my left arm would have to do.


    The tigers didn¡¯t wait. Five of them jumps at me. If they got me, fine¡ªwe¡¯d all burn together.


    Would I explode if I used burning blood on my body? Damn, that made me think of the bombers in the war. Sickos.


    As I feel their breath nearing me, the flash of death approaching, I see it again¡ªthe weird vines. Now I could see them clearly. They are slightly translucent, silvery.


    In less than a second, a bunch of silvery, translucent vines and amorphous bodies appear, wrapping the wounded tigers like stuffed animals.


    They are taller than a kid¡ªprobably just over a meter¡ªbut more than three times as wide.


    Soon, I heard bones creaking as their feline bodies are slowly crushed, the tentacles pushing it in, finishing the job soon after.


    What the actual fuck? These creatures are fucking slimes!

 Chapter 20 - Bargaining With Slimes

    A creaking sound came from behind me. I glanced back quickly, afraid one of the slimes might decide I was next on their menu.


    The only thing I saw on the big, sleepy animal was the arrows protruding further from the turtle. The giant creature must be healing itself or expelling the pole-sized projectiles somehow. Incredible.


    My wonder faded to the back of my mind as the silver slimes moved slowly toward me, stopping at a respectful distance¡ªfar enough that I couldn¡¯t hit them, but close enough for me to get a good look.


    I could try grabbing my shotgun, but could I kill them before they killed me?


    Out of nowhere, a cacophony of voices flooded my mind.


    "...greetings..."


    "...strange scented..."


    "...erythocetes!..."


    "...we..."


    "...have come..."


    "...with a..."


    "...wonderful..."


    "...deal..."


    "...amazing deal..."


    "...bond with..."


    "...the marvelous..."


    "...us!"


    Now I¡¯ve seen everything.


    "Who are you, and who do you think I am?" These blobs aren¡¯t just a threat¡ªthey¡¯ve located me here and know what I am: an heir. If they know, others must too.


    "...you survive..."


    "...strange scented..."


    "...while your..."


    "...kin..."


    "...has not..."


    "...they smell..."


    "...rotten..."


    "...you wonderful!..."


    "...you are..."


    "...special then!"


    "...they have..."


    "...bad smell..."


    "...yes..."


    "...yes..."


    "...sure!..."


    My smell?! These slimes are lunatics! And good talkers¡ªthey didn¡¯t answer anything I asked!


    "So my scent gave me away? You still didn¡¯t answer who you are."


    "...different scent..."


    "...special..."


    "...special means..."


    "...wannabe ruler!..."


    "...maybe powerful..."


    "...surviving means being strong!..."


    "...a little risk..."


    "...strange scented..."


    "...not special..."


    "...eat!..."


    "...not eat!..."


    "...maybe sniff?..."


    "...sniff!..."


    So they¡¯re not even sure I¡¯m an heir¡ªor they¡¯re lying. I don¡¯t doubt at least one of them wants to eat me. How am I supposed to know who¡¯s who?


    They¡¯re all silvery, their gelatinous forms slightly translucent, though the things inside or shown through their bodies are opaque.


    I could see the tiger being digested, its form less opaque than the objects deep within the slimes¡¯ bodies.


    The creaking sound of the arrows snapped me out of my thoughts.


    I need to get the shards before this damn turtle wakes up.


    "Do you mind if I grab some of these shards while we talk?"


    "...shards bad!..."


    "...bad tastes..."


    "...yes..."


    "...meat better..."


    "...delicious meat..."


    "...delicious..."


    "...juice better!..."


    "...Din weird..."


    "...really weird..."


    "...Din strange..."


    "...not weird!..."


    "...weird weird!..."


    These slimes are all weird. They don¡¯t seem hostile now, but that¡¯s no reason to lower my guard. I¡¯ll just pocket the core shards and nexus ones. A mind-blowing conversation and loot to grab¡ªbetter than I thought my day would go.


    Not like that this poor turtle.


    My corpse full of arrows in this alien forest? No, thanks.


    This turtle is a real shard hoarder, though. Why didn¡¯t the creature consume them if it had all that? Does the turtle want to do something with them?


    "Alright, alright. I¡¯ll accept this scent thing for now. But you still didn¡¯t tell me who you guys are. I can¡¯t bond with nobodies."


    I could actually bond with nobodies if they improved my chances of surviving this bloodbath¡ªnot that the slimes needed to know.


    "...no nobodies..."


    "...we marvelous..."


    "...platinum ooze!..."


    "...majestic platinum..."


    "...we nobles..."


    "...yes nobles..."


    "...queen offspring..."


    "...one queen..."


    "...to rule..."


    "...them all!..."


    "...we can''t..."


    "...rule ourselves..."


    "...maybe future..."


    "So you¡¯re noble slimes¡ªor oozes¡ªand you want to bond with me?" The weirdest part is that I can¡¯t hear their voices in my mind¡ªit¡¯s like the concepts just appear directly in my head. No doubt I¡¯ll have a headache after all this. Trying to comprehend them is no easy feat.


    "...no slime..."


    "...we ooze..."


    "...concept similar..."


    "...yes similar..."


    "...maybe slime?..."


    "...Din fool..."


    "...fool..."


    "...we ooze..."


    "...queen said..."


    "...yes said..."


    "...said ooze..."


    "...no slime..."


    "...no fool!..."


    "...fool fool..."


    "...slime tasty?..."


    "Alright, so I bond with the five of you¡ª" Before I could finish, they interrupted me, flooding my mind with an avalanche of concepts.


    "...no five..."


    "...no..."


    "...eight..."


    "...yes eight..."


    "...three cousins..."


    "...slime duchess!..."


    "...wrong!"


    "...grand duchess!..."


    "...yes..."


    "...yes!..."


    "...sorry mistake..."


    "...grand-duchess offspring..."


    "...three word!"


    "...hurt jelly..."


    "...rest Lin..."


    "...yes rest..."


    "...rest jelly..."


    "...platinum jelly!..."


    "Yes, rest..." Damn, these slimes are a handful. It seems they¡¯re limiting their words in mind-speak¡ªmaybe a side effect of not having a bond? Houonas didn¡¯t have that issue, though.


    "So, who are these three cousins of yours? Where are they?" That¡¯s what I needed¡ªthree ninja slimes.


    "...they shy..."


    "...not majestic..."


    "...still noble..."


    "...yes noble..."


    "...palladinum ooze..."


    "...palladium ooze!..."


    "...palladinum cooler..."


    "...yes cooler..."


    "...palladinum wrong!..."


    "...Din boring..."


    "...boring boring..."


    "...maybe boring?..."


    "...certainly right!..."


    "...certainly boring..."


    "...ha ha..."


    "...ha ha..."


    "...ha ha..."


    "...ha ha..."


    "...no funny!..."


    "...come cousins..."


    "...no shy..."


    "...no fear..."


    "...welcome-by us..."


    "...Lin hurt?..."


    "...three word!..."


    "...a little..."


    From the trees, I saw three slimes¡ªor oozes¡ªapproaching. They were slightly different¡ªwhiter than the platinum slimes, more translucent, though the same size and shape.


    One of them had a piece of burned meat inside its body. Peculiar.


    Soon, unfamiliar words entered my mind, still just concepts, but with a different tone¡ªstrange.


    "...welcome-heir..."


    "...welcome-welcome..."


    "...nice-meet..."


    "...Geen-shy..."


    "...not-speak..."


    "...us-sorry..."


    Like I could tell who was or wasn¡¯t talking to me among these slimes. As for the shinier things, I¡¯m glad I¡¯m only putting core and nexus shards in my shoulder bag¡ªit¡¯s already almost a third full. Maybe I can toss some things from my camping bag to make more space.


    "Alright, so you guys want to bond with me too? What can you do?"


    From my peripheral vision, I saw movement. By the time I turn, the figure was gone. Not fast enough, though¡ªI¡¯m sure it was a tiger.


    Looking for round two, are they? I still need to figure out what to do with these slimes before the turtle wakes up.


    The tigers are the least of my worries compared to these gelatinous death machines.


    "...Xeen-medic..."


    "...Mia-weapon..."


    "...Geen-bag..."


    As soon as they finished, the cacophony of voices from the platinum slimes returned.


    "...Lin chest..."


    "...Runi arm..."


    "...Din arm..."


    "...Doom leg..."


    "...Vex leg..."


    "...Grim dead..."


    "...Poor Grim..."


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    "...red lance..."


    "...big strong..."


    "...fast fast..."


    "...straight through..."


    "...past master..."


    "...as well..."


    "...died too..."


    "...killer Erythocetes-too..."


    "...strong..."


    "...strong strong..."


    "...full of..."


    "...bonds..."


    "...we run..."


    That¡¯s pretty grim indeed¡ªno pun intended, slime Grim. So someone showed up and killed their master with one hit.


    Fuck.


    I kind of did the same, didn¡¯t I? Although the turtle finished the job.


    No, better not to get overconfident.


    "So, to confirm, what would your platinum oozes do for me? The palladinums are pretty self-explanatory." To kill both their sibling and their master in one hit¡ªwould they even be useful? Their master didn¡¯t have much success with them.


    The platinum slimes must be something like a shield or armor.


    I still can¡¯t believe the palladinum slimes¡ªa slime medic?!


    "...we armor..." they told me in unison. Pretty impressive¡ªand I got that right. Armor makes more sense than a shield.


    "Alright, but with one of you dead, there¡¯s still a spot left to protect¡ªmy head. And I don¡¯t feel safe with guys who just ran away and left their master." I¡¯d run too, though.


    "...no run..."


    "...only if..."


    "...dead..."


    "...dead master..."


    "...maybe eat?..."


    "...no eat!..."


    "...sniffle..."


    "...yes sniffle..."


    "Okay, first, I need proof. Don¡¯t take it the wrong way. I¡¯ve never seen your noble kind before." Like I¡¯d just believe random slimes showing up. Lunacy!


    "...test!..."


    "...test us..."


    "I think it¡¯d be easier to test the medic¡ªXeen, right? Can you fix my arm?" A good way to test if what they say is true and to get rid of an infection at the same time.


    "...ah..." the platinum slimes said in unison. I felt a little bad for them, but how am I supposed to test armor? Using blazing ray my own arm? If it fails, I¡¯m screwed.


    One of the whiter slimes slowly moved forward. As it approached the platinum slimes, it sped up¡ªfast as a dog.


    Pretty good for a slime, I¡¯d say.


    "...heal-arm..." A tendril slowly extended, gelatinous like a vine. Interesting.


    My adrenaline still pumping, I focused on the slime and its kind. Xeen slowly wrapped its tendril around a wound on my hand.


    I felt a warming sensation. I¡¯d even say they were corroding my hand, but the translucent tendril let me see the wound slowly healing.


    Not instant, but enough to prove it worked.


    My attention snapped back as I heard another creaking sound. Ah, yes¡ªwith all these strange slimes, I almost forgot about the giant turtle.


    "Alright, it worked. But you guys are, what, eight? That¡¯s too many bonds. Why would someone bond with you, aside from what you do? And how did the palladinum oozes lose their master?" Did Darefei or Houonas tell me how many bonds I can have? No, they didn¡¯t... or I forgot.


    "...Palladinum-master..."


    "...sister-killed..."


    "...glorious-battle..."


    "...glorious-battle..."


    "...red-knight..."


    "...powerful-shining..."


    "...enemy..."


    "...murder-friends..."


    "...not-ooze..."


    "...master-friends..."


    "...lost-some..."


    "...not-all..."


    "...friends-betray..."


    "...DEATH-BETRAYERS!..."


    "...Geen-right..."


    "...master-died..."


    "...we run..."


    "...old-friends..."


    "...new-enemies..."


    "...think-ooze..."


    "...weak..."


    "...soon-revenge..."


    "...REVENGE!..."


    "...new-master..."


    "...master-help..."


    So their master was killed by a red knight, and these guys survived because the enemy thought they were weak. Hmm, that doesn¡¯t bode well for our partnership.


    I didn¡¯t quite get the "sister killed" thing. And asking me to take revenge for that... well, I¡¯d have to kill them eventually, wouldn¡¯t I?


    From the way they told it, it probably wasn¡¯t the same person, but better to be sure. Not that it would make much difference.


    Asking the slimes about it would take forever¡ªthese guys are a little slow.


    Forget it. I need to be careful with any heir, anyway.


    And these pesky slimes still haven¡¯t answered why I should bond with them.


    "You didn¡¯t answer why I should bond with you. I need more than just what you do¡ªsomething special, something that would make me choose you over anyone else." Maybe they¡¯ll understand what I mean.


    I have to say, I¡¯m starting to like them¡ªand I¡¯m beginning to believe they¡¯re not hostile. Enough to not resist consuming the nexus shards as we speak. Sometimes you have to give the benefit of the doubt, even if the recipients are tiger-killing slimes.


    Binding another magic star¡ªmy 12th in the magic constellation¡ªtook two nexus shards. Before I could consume more, the slimes started mind-speaking again.


    "...more bounds...powerful-weapons..."


    "...bounds-bounds...big-space..."


    The two groups of slimes started talking at the same time. I can¡¯t call this anything but mental harassment. How am I supposed to understand what they¡¯re saying?


    "No, no, no¡ªone group at a time! I can¡¯t understand both of you at once!" Their speech is easy to follow, but not so easy to understand. Two conversations at the same time while I¡¯m trying to interpret their meaning? No way.


    "...royal ooze..."


    "...rule-royal first..."


    "...nobles-concur..."


    "...bond royal..."


    "...six for-four..."


    "...four bounds..."


    "...four four!..."


    "Wait, six bonds? You¡¯re five." Another three nexus shards, another normal star bond¡ªmy 13th. Instead of four, an increase of a thousand seed shards in value, not two thousand. I need to see how the next bond will be.


    "...scented correct..."


    "...now five..."


    "...poor Grim..."


    "...bind noble?..."


    "...royal and-noble!..."


    "...Lin smart..."


    "...one noble..."


    "...five royal..."


    "...two cousins..."


    "...two left..."


    "...leave Din..."


    "...one more-cousin?..."


    "...keep Din!..."


    "...leave Din..."


    "...abandon Din..."


    "...Din boring..."


    "...Keep Din-sibling!..."


    "...okay..."


    "...right..."


    "...still boring..."


    Some of these slimes really hate Din. What could make a slime boring? Maybe it¡¯s a good thing. Anyway, it seems I can bond with six for the price of four. That seems like a good deal. Heirs have bonded with these slimes before, so they must be worth something. The medic one seemed especially useful.


    Although the heir-killers thought they were weak enough to let live.


    I don¡¯t have a line of Dominion¡¯s Digit candidates waiting to bond with me, though. Let¡¯s hear the deal from the palladinum slimes.


    "So, what do you have to offer, palladinum oozes?" Four nexus shards and a new influx of energy later, I confirmed a theory¡ªthe cost is increasing by one thousand each star bond. Great! Because an exponential cost would¡¯ve been the death of me. How would that even work, anyway? Food for thought for later. The palladinum slimes are trying to sell me on their deal.


    "...become-head?..."


    "...head-armor..."


    "...head-slime?..."


    "...Xeen-go..."


    "...Xeen-go..."


    "...Xeen-medic!..."


    "...medic-head..."


    "...bag-head?..."


    "...no-bag..."


    "...bag-storage..."


    "...medic-head..."


    "...weapon-head..."


    "...weapon-dangerous..."


    "...alright-medic..."


    It seems they¡¯ve reached a conclusion. For slimes, their thinking is surprisingly coherent. Imagine a weapon as a helmet or a cap¡ªwhatever these slimes could do, I bet it wouldn¡¯t work with them protecting my head. Before I could ask about the other two, they continued.


    "...two-siblings!..."


    "...goodbye..."


    "...goodbye-Xeen..."


    "...no-goodbye!..."


    "...Mia-deadly!..."


    "...Geen-vast!..."


    "...I-filled..."


    "...master-treasure?..."


    "...yes-treasure..."


    "...new-master..."


    "...want-treasure?..."


    "...want-Geen!..."


    What the actual fuck. Are slimes trying to appeal to the universal human language¡ªgreed? I¡¯m pretty controlled when it comes to greed, but who wouldn¡¯t want some treasure? Probably the treasure from their past heir. Maybe the slimes are lying. Would I sleep peacefully after being scammed by slimes?


    My conscience is already taking a hit. What¡¯s one more regret on the list?


    If my mind wasn¡¯t already made up, the turtle¡¯s eyes flickering and its blood seeping from its wounds sealed the deal.


    I bet I won¡¯t like what this giant turtle does next. The blood flowing on the ground will make it harder to grab the shards, too. The slimes could give some help.


    "Alright, alright, you oozes got me. Let¡¯s do this! I accept you as my Dominion¡¯s Digit candidates. Bond away!" The faster we go, the faster I get these shards.


    The slimes moved faster. Three of the platinum slimes fused together, while the other two merged with a palladinum slime. The group made of only platinum slimes stayed the same color as before, but the mixed group, though the same size, became slightly brighter and glossier.


    The other two palladinum slimes stayed in place.


    They didn¡¯t say anything or perform any weird ritual like Houonas¡ªas if staying in place was enough. The only thing they did was take four nearby shards¡ªtwo cores for each of the mixed slime groups and two sparks for the single ones.


    As each shard entered their jelly bodies, a rune flickered to life. My mind went blank as the starry void appeared again, bonds forming and connecting to me. Two were wider, stronger, but one was barely holding together, its strands constantly being forced back into place.


    In a blink, they reached me. The connections grew taut, the frail one firming up. The wider bonds, each with double ends, bound to me.


    Six bonds in total, for eight slimes. Maybe I¡¯m the victim of a scam. But the bonds seemed the most genuine I¡¯ve ever seen.


    I¡¯d like to take a moment to get to know my new jelly friends, but the turtle¡¯s bloodshot eyes opening ruined that plan.


    Seems like the battle isn¡¯t over after all. Sadly, there¡¯s no way to stealthily steal those shards now.


    Let¡¯s see what these slimes can do.

 Chapter 21 - After Getting Armor Made of Slimes, Things Can Only Get Crazier

    As soon as my vision returns, all I can hear is a painful wail. The turtle is slowly rousing from sleep.


    I¡¯m no fool¡ªI wouldn¡¯t dare get near the giant beast if the heir survived. She¡¯s pelting the beast with arrows, but only because of her agility. Agility that I lack.


    The earth trembles beneath my feet, making me lose my balance with each step.


    A flash of silver flies over me. What looks like some kind of attack turns out to be the slimes rushing toward me. Instinctively, I know it isn¡¯t an attack.


    Splitting from the group, six slimes envelop my body, covering me in their goo. The weirdest one is the palladinum slime on my head. For a moment, the air leaves me, suffocating, as my vision blurs under its translucent body.


    It changes in a few seconds. My breath and vision return, and I slowly perceive the armor now encasing my body.


    I expect it to look like some sort of jelly armor, but instead, it resembles a medieval suit¡ªthough way cooler.


    It isn¡¯t bulky. As I take each step away from the awakening turtle, I can¡¯t tear my gaze away from it. The armor doesn¡¯t hurt me or impede my movement.


    It hugs my form as if it was made for me, the way high-fashion custom clothes are said to fit. Each plate interlocking seamlessly, offering no restriction. It¡¯s as flexible as if I¡¯m naked.


    Even my vision isn¡¯t compromised. My eyes can see clearly, as though there¡¯s no helmet protecting¡ªor obstructing¡ªmy view.


    With segmented pieces along the armor¡ªlegs, torso, and head¡ªfitted pauldrons curve smoothly over my shoulders, making it look more like a high-ranking military officer¡¯s power armor than an ancient knight¡¯s gear.


    I can¡¯t see any openings. It¡¯s as if I¡¯ve been encased in metal.


    A flowing white cape covers my back, making me look like some kind of knight in shining armor. Another detail catches my attention: a small metallic dagger on my left side, more symbolic than practical, its sheath bearing the image of the woman from the coins.


    The armor¡¯s color is, as expected, a silvery white, but strange red reliefs adorn it. One prominent design shows the woman from the coins on my chest¡ªone side human, the other with an open mouth full of lamprey-like fangs.


    I¡¯ll have to check with the slimes about the design later.


    What matters most right now is the giant turtle now glaring at the sky.


    Getting back into position behind the skinned tree I¡¯d used earlier, I watch as vines erupt from the turtle¡¯s open mouth, slick with blood.


    The soil grows wet from the dark red liquid flowing from the giant turtle¡¯s mouth, as though someone is spilling barrels of paint across the forest floor.


    I can¡¯t shake the nausea rising in my stomach¡ªor the awful premonition creeping over me. Yes, what would give the turtle a stomachache? A spoiled vampire.


    "Fucking asshole can¡¯t die!" I mutter. I feel sorry for the turtle, but there¡¯s no way I¡¯d wait for the vampire to leave its body.


    Before I can act, new voices flood my mind¡ªthis time more cohesive and synchronized.


    "...I feel recovered. It¡¯s not the end of us! Din should have been left behind. Din, happy to be here! Funny turtle, funny turtle. Turtle dying smells like death, will die soon..."


    No doubt it¡¯s the slimes, now a little easier to understand, thanks to the bond, I bet.


    "The problem isn¡¯t the turtle; it¡¯s the vampire inside her. That¡¯s the only thing that could be killing her," I say. I don¡¯t see how I can kill her, but maybe the slimes can offer something. "You¡¯re more communicative now. Tell me what you can do aside from being armor."


    "...Can move master or make master strong. Past master used tendrils to move. Stick jelly, stick jelly. Din is dumb; his tendrils can¡¯t catch things! Din not dumb!..."


    Alright, that seems somewhat useful.


    I make a mental command, asking the slimes to make me stronger... but I don¡¯t feel any different. Seems they don¡¯t work that way.


    Let¡¯s see how it works in battle.


    I command the slimes to retrieve my shotgun, and they do as promised. A tendril shoots forward, grabbing my shotgun from nearby. Another command, and they clasp it to my back, beneath the flowing cape.


    Grabbing it, the shotgun comes off easily, as if held by some kind of magnetic clasp. The viscous substance left behind is definitely ooze. When I put it back, the shotgun clasps into place again. These slimes really know how to be armor.


    "And what about you two¡ªMia and Geen, right?" One is a weapon, the other a bag. Incredibly weird, but maybe incredibly powerful. Soon, their mindspeak reaches me as the turtle continues vomiting blood like a macabre fountain.


    "...Mia deadly weapon. Past master proud..."


    "...Geen keep treasure safe. No treasure? Geen eat!..."


    Right. Even with the bond, they¡¯re still slimes. How should I speak to them? Like kids, chatbots, or pets? Hmm, maybe like how people speak to orcs in fantasy¡ªtheir speech patterns are eerily similar now.


    "Alright, what did your past master make you two do?" Better to ask; it would probably work.


    "...Mia took master¡¯s dog for a walk..."


    "...Geen helped staff clean stables..."


    It couldn¡¯t be this hard, right? Fuck.


    "No, no, no. What did he make you two do in battle?" Last try. That turtle seems to have one paw in the grave. Time is running out.


    "...Mia change to complex weapons! Past master said weapon difficulty to make. No problem! Mia can!"


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    "...Geen keep blood supply, jewelry, coins, and vase collection safe. Geen also kept weapons and shards safe, but past master used to fight red knight."


    What could I use a vase collection for?! Blood¡ªmaybe I could make use of that. The coins must be those weird ones with the female vampire on them. Probably a better idea to sort through Geen¡¯s stash later.


    As for Mia...


    "How many weapons, Mia?" Variety could indeed be deadly.


    "...One!..."


    You¡¯ve got to be kidding me.


    "Why just one weapon?" I really should have been pumping these shards. These slimes really scammed me.


    "...Past master always said, only improve weapons you know how to use by heart!..."


    This is the dumbest thing I¡¯ve ever heard, especially if you only know one.


    "What weapon can you become, then?" I wish their past master had been some sort of gun aficionado.


    "Sword! Jelly Blade!"


    Right. The most generic weapon imaginable¡ªmade of jelly! I¡¯d be better off fighting with a popsicle.


    Wait, no. They wouldn¡¯t make something useless just to die. He must have prepared for the succession! Unless the guy was mad¡ªwhy keep a vase collection?!


    "Transform into it for me and tell me what it does," I say. I don¡¯t like to command people, but they¡¯re slime. I don¡¯t know how the communication and social hierarchy work between us.


    The slime obeys, and the dagger at my side begins to change its form like a living organism until it transforms into a thin, short blade¡ªslightly smaller than my forearm. I wouldn¡¯t call this a sword.


    As I try to draw it from the scabbard, the sheath itself is absorbed into the short sword. The gleaming blade reveals itself, its luminescent form transitioning from orange at the tip to red where it meets the pommel. In a way, it¡¯s beautiful. Strangest of all, the pommel is dark gold¡ªperhaps one of the deceased heir¡¯s wishes. Good taste.


    "...Jelly Blade! Mia attacks, Mia defends, Mia traps. Master needs all but command!! Mia made this herself!..." That¡¯s... great.


    I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s my mind trying to distract me from the mayhem ahead or just me being stupid. Whatever. I do what I want, especially in how I¡¯m called.


    "You all can call me Henrique between us. For others, just call me..." Being called "master" or "heir" would probably be a death sentence here. "Master" gives off creepy vibes. Would the armor design do the same? "For others, just call me... whatever you guys think would be a good name. It doesn¡¯t matter."


    The slimes become quiet, not saying anything. Before I can talk with the slimes and ask about the armor designs, the turtle¡¯s situation finally changes. Its body convulses, eyes rolling back into its head, as if the beast is having a seizure.


    It seems I haven¡¯t been totally scammed. The tremors rock through my body, but the armor absorbs most of the impact, leaving only a small vibration. I don¡¯t lose my footing¡ªthe armor works like some kind of suspension system.


    Slowly, a grotesque creature begins emerging from the turtle¡¯s mouth. That thing really looks like a lamprey¡ªits body slim, its mouth taking up almost its entire head, its beady black eyes locking onto me.


    Without delay, I activate my divine blood, pumping. Wait¡ªthe slime¡ª


    Before I can explain about the blood to the slimes, droplets of blood appear on my gauntlet, as if sprouting from nowhere. I won¡¯t waste my time asking the slimes how they knew what to do, using my time for the blood manipulation to move a blood sphere upwards.


    If one shot doesn¡¯t work, let¡¯s try two.


    Soon, a feminine voice invades my mind.


    "Elysia?! Shouldn¡¯t you be dead, dear sister?! Impossible!"


    The voice talks again, taking on a mocking edge. "It doesn¡¯t matter. I¡¯m going to finish the job our siblings couldn¡¯t. When I become ruler, I¡¯ll fix this failure in the succession system."


    Its beady eyes trail over my body. "Your fondness for these abhorrent slimes is laughable. When Father brought you one, it was just his way of saying you¡¯re a failure. Hahaha! Only that mad Anwen found any use for his." Its eyes move to the blade in my right hand. "Wait, isn¡¯t that¡ª"


    Like I¡¯d wait for her to finish. Maybe this would¡¯ve worked on the armor¡¯s past owner, but for me, it¡¯s just useless.


    The orb of blood, now the size of my head, glows as I activate my Blazing Ray, focusing on the turtle¡¯s giant mouth. My energy drops to half. Finally, something that feels like true magic¡ªmaybe not on par with my world¡¯s armaments, but enough to land me a nice job in the military. Good. If I want to keep this up, though, this degree of power, I¡¯ll need even more energy, more shards.


    The Blazing Ray scorches the air, hitting my target dead center. The vampire has time to pull most of its body out of the way, going deeper inside the turtle¡ªbut not enough.


    The giant turtle regains consciousness, its dead eyes locking onto me. Fuck.


    "...Hot, hot! No burn! Henrique dumb! Should do it far away from poor us! Din¡¯s fault!" The slimes assault my mind with their protests, though the palladinum slimes stay silent. They seem to be made of sterner stuff.


    My legs start moving, carrying me behind the turtle. Good luck trying to bite me now.


    The burning blood spurts into action, even as I can¡¯t see the flames, I bet it¡¯s hurting both.


    My legs start moving, carrying me behind the turtle. Good luck trying to bite me now.


    The beast coughs up blood, black spots soon appearing on its body. In a sudden movement, the giant turtle charges after me like a mad beast.


    No problem, my body feels like I¡¯m running on clouds, fast as an Olympic runner¡ªbut without any exhaustion. It feels like I¡¯m jogging, not overworking myself to the bone. The flowing cape makes me look cool as hell.


    The bad news? My energy is depleting. Only one way to fix that.


    Time to hit two targets with one shard.

 Chapter 22 - If Only My Problems Would Burn Themselves

    "Mia, do your thing. Defend me. You, ooze armor, can you move me around so I don¡¯t become turtle food?" Sprouting tendrils could help me, like some sort of hooking weapon. If it doesn¡¯t work, better to call it a day¡ªalthough I bet the vampire would hunt me down. These assholes don¡¯t seem the humble type.


    "...Move move. Remember, master trained us for it! Din will make us trip! Din won¡¯t! Focus ooze as one..."


    Damn, where¡¯s my bag?


    "Where¡¯s my shoulder bag? Do you know where it is?" If I lost it, I¡¯m screwed.


    "...Geen keep it safe, Geen best storage!..." Alright, that¡¯s good.


    "Thanks¡ªgive it back." Fuck, this turtle is getting closer!


    "...Geen ate it. Treasures safe!" My fucking best shoulder bag! Keep calm. There¡¯s a turtle hunting me down with a vampire parasite from hell wanting to kill me.


    "Fine. Give me the magic nexus shard, the bigger red one." As soon as I command, a tendril from the flowing cape shoots forward, a magic nexus shard in its grasp. I open my hand, and Geen places it right on my palm. I really like these slimes. Well, when they don¡¯t eat what they aren¡¯t supposed to.


    Right, what¡¯s the name of my right-hand slime? Yes, Din or Runi. "Din or Runi, could you¡ª" Before I can finish, the shard is absorbed, merging with my palm.


    "...Din knows! Past master, oops past Henrique, did the same! Din dumb right arm! Din not dumb!" Hmm, so Runi dislikes Din. No time to dwell on it right now.


    As soon as I consume the nexus shard, my mind flashes back. I see the turtle doing a slow jump at me. My mind freezes, but my body does not. My legs jump to my right, a tendril shooting forward to the skinned tree nearby, pushing me up.


    Amazing, the slimes can even move my body! A little scary, but still cool.


    "Incredible. Could you guys keep doing that? Geen, give me magic nexus shards nonstop." Hahaha, these two will become barbecue soon enough. My fuel is running empty, though.


    Soon, the slimes and I use an improvised version of the vampire¡¯s tactics¡ªmore like hopping insects and less like birds of prey. My legs move on their own, my body keeping balance. I feel like I¡¯m moving inside my own robot. My mind, though, is focused on only one thing: consuming shards and burning my two enemies.


    Connection after connection. Bite after bite. The turtle desperately tries to put me down, the vampire burning inside it, not dying. Why won¡¯t she just fucking die?!


    As soon as I form my connection with the 16th magic star, something strange happens. The next star shows up faint, and just after it, something I can only call a mega star¡ªits size enormous, dwarfing the other stars, like a soccer ball next to a golf ball.


    My comparisons don¡¯t do it justice. The star is just... magnificent.


    Soon, my 17th star bond finishes, and my energy undergoes another change in concentration, trying to wrestle control over my burning blood spell.


    Like I¡¯d let it. My focus intensifies on the burning blood, but my body feels pain, like trying to move just after surgery. Uncontrollable and sudden movement as the pain assaults me makes me move awkwardly while the slimes have control.


    My head hits the skinned tree, the helmet absorbing most of the impact.


    "...Henrique wants control back? Hit head, hit head. Xeen is fine..." No, that¡¯s the last thing I want.


    "No¡ªI¡¯m just in pain. Do your thing and don¡¯t stop until I say so!" I grit my teeth as my body fights for control against the energy change.


    With the magic nexus shard¡¯s sleek surface touching my hand, I control my desire to consume it. I can¡¯t risk absorbing it in this state, even though I really want that mega star.


    The turtle doesn¡¯t stop rampaging against me, the trail of blood in its wake painting the grass red and black. Its skin grows paler, its eyes becoming even more bloodshot.


    I don¡¯t want it to end this way, but I have to survive. Yes, I have to survive, whatever the cost.


    Costs that I can bear.


    The forest looks like a tornado has destroyed it. The slimes move around the place, far from the shards. No can do.


    "We can¡¯t get far from the shards!" I command the slimes. After so many bruises, my body feels like I just sparred with a gorilla. My energy, though, finally stabilizes. Although my energy reserves have increased, I can¡¯t keep this burning blood forever.


    Slowly but surely, we guide the turtle¡¯s back near its trove of shards. The turtle now spews crimson flames from its own mouth, crawling toward me until it finally collapses to the ground, the tremor rocking the terrain.


    Its eye looks at me unblinking, its giant body slowly vibrating. The sharding process begins.


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    Just then, a black figure in crimson flames shoots forward from its mouth.


    A creature straight from a nightmare¡ªskin made of scabs that burn to a crisp only to heal again, like a cycle of eternal agony from purgatory.


    "EAT¡ªTORTURE¡ªFINGER BY¡ªLIMB BY LIMB¡ª" The voice, once feminine and educated, now sounds more like a witch¡¯s.


    A thundering wind assaults my back, pushing me forward toward the creature. It doesn¡¯t take a genius to figure out who did this. Without any time to spare, I swing the Jelly Blade¡ªa total half-assed move. The vampire dashes out of the way. But before I finish the attack, my body moves on its own¡ªno, the slimes do.


    Changing my attack, transforming it into a feint, the Jelly Blade goes for its neck.


    The sword meets its flesh, slicing. The vampire tries to retreat, but before my eyes, the blade elongates, decapitating the woman.


    As they say, go for the head. I dismiss the burning blood in its body and focus on its head.


    Before the headless corpse can fall to the ground, its missing top transforms into an orb of crimson flames.


    That soon goes out¡ªnot because I want it to, but because I run out of energy.


    A few seconds later, the black rock that was its head and the headless corpse convulse, starting the sharding process as well.


    Strangely, in both their sharding processes, essence flows all around them, visible to the naked eye, dissipating into the air.


    Maybe because they¡¯re stronger than anyone I¡¯ve fought. Really, a waste of essence.


    The turtle yields one relic, two nexus shards, five core bio shards, two divinity nexus shards, one nexus and three core tech shards, one magic nexus shard, and two basic nexus shards.


    With a command, Geen transforms part of the cloak into white-silver tendrils, each collecting the shards. Soon, any trace of them vanishes, aside from the marks left in the pooling blood of the dead beast.


    Why didn¡¯t the vampire have its Dominion¡¯s Digit with it? This seems quite stupid. Unless it had a reason to. Also, there¡¯s no doubt that it was an heir. It knew the past owner of the armor¡ªanother reason to change its design.


    In a fair fight, I probably would¡¯ve been dead, especially without my new friends. I have to say, it wasn¡¯t that impressive.


    Yes, I did a surprise shot on it. Still, it should¡¯ve been prepared for that. Maybe it¡¯s its fighting style¡ªpure glass cannon, all speed and power.


    Maybe that regeneration was to balance it out. Even after all that time cooking, it didn¡¯t fucking die.


    Its body yields two relic shards¡ªone tech and one magic. The tech one actually drops from its body before the sharding process. Aside from that, nine nexus and three core magic shards, four nexus and five tech shards, three bio nexus shards, and five basic cores.


    Before I can take a better look at the shards, the slimes start mindspeaking.


    "...Stinky smell. Stink but tasted good. Fur fur..." Yes, I¡¯m having a bad premonition. The vampire didn¡¯t have any left¡ªthe burning blood did a number on it.


    Just ahead, someone wants to do a number on me. Specifically, on my pocket.


    It didn¡¯t go over my head that the tigers were nearby during my clash, but they didn¡¯t act. I thought they¡¯d taken a page from my book and were just waiting for the kill.


    How wrong I was.


    Nearing the location the slimes guide me to¡ªthe same hoard the turtle left behind¡ªI see a scene that makes my skin crawl.


    The furred bastards are stealing my shards. They¡¯ve even dug to get shards I didn¡¯t even know were there.


    In their number are more than twenty tigers. Two are older than the rest, their metallic skin paler, their size even bigger¡ªlike tigers on steroids.


    As soon as I walk nearby, they look at me, some with shards in their mouths¡ªmostly nexus, some cores. The bastards didn¡¯t go for the cheaper ones.


    "You bastards didn¡¯t just betray me. You steal from me, too. I bet you guys won¡¯t just leave me, right?" I¡¯m actually pissed at these fuckers, but I¡¯m also beaten up with no energy to spare. The last thing I want is a death match with a group of tigers.


    My slimy allies could probably take care of it. These two pale tigers, though, they smell fishy.


    The felines look between themselves, as if they actually understand what I said. It doesn¡¯t take long for the ones with the nexus shards to vanish.


    Only the two bigger tigers and five normal ones remain.


    Until the fuckers starts roaring. From nowhere, I don¡¯t know how many tigers show up in the trees, but it''s a lot. Their numbers only increase.


    I didn¡¯t use my ice shield in the past fight, but do I need it for this one?


    How can I use it, anyway? I don¡¯t have any energy. Wait, I don¡¯t, but the slimes...


    "Can you use one relic shard for me? My energy is empty." Maybe it works.


    "...Eating shards is for dumb dumb. No eating shards, using it. Henrique told to use, not to eat. Din dumb. Din didn¡¯t say to eat shard! Yes, we can!..." Hahaha, great. Only stupid assholes can say that slimes are worthless.


    Commanding Geen to give me the relic shard that was in my now-eaten shoulder bag was a good call.


    The tendril places the relic shard on my left gauntlet¡ªI¡¯m holding the sword in my right. Its solemn light emanates. The greedy eyes of the tigers glint.


    It doesn¡¯t take long for the first tigers to start coming closer. "Runi, put as much energy as you can into it."


    "...Runi needs energy to be armor. Runi can give only a little..." Soon, energy flows into the shard. In a moment, the shard disintegrates into sparkling essence, soon transforming into the Water¡¯s Reflection relic.


    The tigers look maddened by the appearance of my ice shield, as if I¡¯ve stolen from them.


    The audacity.

 Chapter 23 - The One I Bonk Tigers for All the Loot

    Not waiting for them to take the initiative, I dashed forward, Jelly Blade in hand, the ice shield following me¡ªor in this case, Rani¡ªlike a shadow.


    The first tiger lunged at me, its metallic skin glinting in the sunlight. I crouched low, attempting to spear it forward. The slimes corrected my posture, and the Jelly Blade extended, piercing the beast¡¯s neck.


    Two more tigers attacked next. Still crouched, the one on the left was stopped by the ice shield, its head slamming into the barrier and leaving it dazed. The one in the center slipped beneath the speared tiger.


    The ice shield held firm, unmoving, as if nothing had happened. Fuck.


    Like I¡¯d let this asshole have its fun. I raised my left hand and tried to punch the beast in the head.


    The slimes adjusted my movement, and my fist landed a haymaker on the tiger¡¯s skull. My right hand withdrew the Jelly Blade and finished off the punched tiger.


    Suddenly, my body was enveloped in shadow. Looking up, I saw one of the larger tigers¡ªits metallic form looming¡ªfalling toward me.


    I rolled out of the way and attempted to slash at the falling beast, but my movements looked more like a drunk dancer¡¯s. The slimes corrected my slip, and the blade extended just enough to graze the beast¡¯s flesh, drawing blood.


    Yes, with this many enemies, what I need is movement. The moment I stop, they gain the advantage.


    Not wasting time, I went after the tiger¡¯s back, but it vanished a moment later. A tendril from the slimes grabbed a rock, pushing my body forward.


    Behind me, I heard a crash. Turning my head, I saw the pale tiger engulfed in a cloud of dust. That fucking asshole dashed like a race car!


    A second later, I was rolling on the ground again¡ªanother crash. Another fucking pale tiger.


    The other tigers circled around us, trying to cut off any chance of escape.


    Like I¡¯d let them keep my shards. They wish.


    The problem is, I¡¯m not dexterous enough to fight these two beasts. I need someone better.


    "Can you oozes deal with the tigers? I know you¡¯re fixing my slips, but to kill these tigers, I need you fully focused on taking them down." After this robbery is over, I¡¯ll take my time learning everything these jellies can teach me. If they can teach.


    "...Yes, Henrique! Kill stink fur. Eat them, eat them! Din stinks more. Din clean, going to stop beasts from cheating moves!" They seem pumped for a quick lunch.


    Like on autopilot, my body started moving. The two tigers leaped at the same time, but the armor dashed downward, slashing at their bellies as the blade extended its reach.


    Before it could connect, the tigers dashed away, dust flooding the air. Silver tendrils shot forward, latching onto a skinned tree and propelling the armor forward. With a double kick, the body launched ahead, the impact driving it toward the tigers.


    One tiger looked up¡ªtoo late¡ªas the extending blade slowly penetrated its neck. The tiger dashed a few meters back, letting out a wailing cry, blood gushing from the wound like a river. Slowly, it collapsed to the ground.


    The remaining pale tiger roared, and the other tigers closed in. In a blink, the tiger dashed at top speed, this time aiming for my right side. The armor countered with a swing, the blade extending faster than the beast could approach. Using its haunches, the tiger skidded to a stop.


    Two more tigers tried to seize the opportunity for a quick hit. The armor slashed again, this time cutting both tigers in half, their blood pooling on the ground.


    The pale tiger leaped once more, only to dart away as the armor dashed toward it. In a blink, the tiger reappeared to my left.


    A mistake.


    The Water¡¯s Reflection slammed down on the tiger, its lower tip freezing and punching into the beast¡¯s neck, drawing blood. The tiger wailed, pawing at the ice shield embedded in its flesh.


    From here, I could see the blood freezing. The ooze armor didn¡¯t wait. It jumped and sliced the tiger¡¯s head, the blade penetrating more than halfway through. A red line of blood spewed from its face.


    The tiger collapsed to the ground, but the ooze armor wasn¡¯t satisfied. It charged forward, beginning its tiger massacre.


    With strength in numbers driving their instincts, six tigers leaped at us simultaneously. With a rotating slash, the blade extended as long as a lance, the attack like a whirlwind. The tigers¡¯ blood flowed as the blade cut through them¡ªbeautiful and harrowing.


    I could feel bad for the tigers, but these guys tried to fool me twice. I can¡¯t let them do it a third time.


    In the end, none of the attackers survived more than a few seconds. The slimes fought like true warriors, and the tigers that survived were the few that fled with their tails between their legs.


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    These tigers weren¡¯t that smart, aside from the pale ones. The smart thing to do would¡¯ve been to run from the start.


    Let the heroes feast on their enemies¡¯ flesh. The tiger heist didn¡¯t go as planned.


    ---


    After a quick check on the tile relic, I confirmed it: one heir had died¡ªthe one from the gardens. I get that I¡¯m actually in the palace gardens, but wouldn¡¯t the heirs be inside? The map shows that, at least. Maybe he didn¡¯t want to wait in his territory like me.


    Also, seventeen hours and forty minutes until my meeting with Houonas and the old geezer. Less than nineteen hours before all surviving heirs notice that I exist. Another player in the death match for the succession.


    Dreaming that they don¡¯t check their tile relics as often as I do.


    I¡¯ve got worse problems, though. When I let the slimes take their well-deserved feast...


    "Why am I fucking nude? What did you do with my clothes?!" That¡¯s the last thing I needed right now. The only thing hiding my... _ahem_... is the shotgun, which kind of makes everything worse. I admit I¡¯m afraid of bugs or worse finding their way into places they shouldn¡¯t. Look at this place!


    "...Din ate it. Din didn¡¯t eat it alone! Everyone took a bite. Bite funny clothes, bite..." These assholes.


    "Why?!" Why?!


    "...We make better clothes. Ultimate clothes. Clothes for royalty! Ooze quality, ooze quality..." I¡¯m going to put these pests to so much work. Oh, I will!


    "And why my underpants? I¡¯m fucking nude here. I can tolerate you eating my clothes, but why my fucking underpants?" They ate my favorite hoodie and my underpants! Now I¡¯m seeing the downside of, the bond for sure.


    "Din ate it! Din ate it! Liars, Din didn¡¯t eat it¡ªDoom and Vex did! Underpants real tasty. Doom did, not Vex!... Vex won¡¯t let that happen again, royal promise!" The leg slimes. Makes sense.


    "Do not do it again. I don¡¯t have time to get another pair at home. Maybe it was a bad idea not taking extras. Although I¡¯m only carrying survival gear. Like you fucking slimes would understand!" I already know the punishment I¡¯ll dish out.


    "No slimes, ooze!" You are fucking slimes.


    "Whatever. Doom, now you¡¯ll become my underpants¡ªor pants, or whatever. No more tiger meat for you!" It seems only some of the tigers are sharding, like only one of the pale beasts.


    "Noooo! Tiger meat tasty!" I won¡¯t be butt-naked in this hellscape.


    "You¡¯re to blame for this! Come here. NOW!" It would be weird to fight my Dominion¡¯s Digit over my underpants, but I will if I have to.


    "Awhhhhh..." Slowly, one of the slimes approached, its viscous body shifting into armored pants¡ªthe same ones from my slime armor.


    "Doom only knows right leg." Like I care.


    "Alright, I can walk for now. Geen, give me my tile relic¡ªthe one that looks like a tile. Alright, that sounded dumb. It¡¯s a square, thin thing." Time to check how the succession is going.


    As soon as I pumped energy into the relic, the screen froze, displaying only part of the map.


    As the seconds passed, I noticed something else had changed. The sky shifted from orange to a swirl of colors¡ªthe hues of essence, vibrant and varied.


    Suddenly, it stopped. The sky returned to its strange orange color, but with a noticeable difference: a smaller, yet still prominent, sun.


    "Fuck... isn¡¯t this breaking every law of physics?! I really want to use my AI right now. Oh well, I have more important things to do. It¡¯s not like another sun will change the death match."


    From my communicator, the old geezer¡¯s annoying voice yelled directly into my mind. I wish the slimes had eaten it.


    "IT¡¯S DONE! THE SYNCHRONIZATION OF YOUR WORLD AND OTHERS IS COMPLETE!" Interesting, but right now, I have more mundane priorities than yelling at the geezer.


    Checking my tile relic, my theory was confirmed. An heir had died¡ªthe one who controlled the gardens. Yes, I fucking defeated one heir. I played dirty, but as they say, the winner writes the story. I¡¯m not going to share this through the communicator, though. Sensitive information and all that.


    Wait, I already did that! These fucking slimes¡ªand now this old geezer¡ªare going to drive me insane!


    Keep calm. Focus.


    Now I can brace for an earth-shaking change.


    "Goddamn, good luck to you guys. You¡¯ll need it. My planet is a minefield of catastrophes waiting to happen. You just need to piss off the wrong people." Maybe the nations will finally go into world-ending mode. If I could find my parents... I don¡¯t have enough power for that yet. Maybe my siblings will be useful for all their babbling.


    Right now, they can do what I can¡¯t.


    "... Assimilation, assimilation! Can Doom eat tasty meat now? Please, please!" This slimy rascal.


    "No, you¡¯ll stay where you are." Bless mindspeak¡ªI¡¯m not in the mood to explain everything to Darefei. Also, I need a way to learn it myself. I don¡¯t think everyone knows mindspeak. I could use Houonas or the old geezer as translators, though. Not only that, but I doubt these slimes will work out.


    Likewise, I could also give the other person a communicator, but they might refuse, thinking it¡¯s dangerous. And how can I use the communicator and talk to the slimes using mindspeak at the same time? Strange.


    "The entire planet is in chaos with these changes, and you don¡¯t have questions? I¡¯ll tell you anyway. The terraforming¡ªmerging the mass of your planet with how many others¡ªwill transform this world. Not all changes will be pleasant: earthquakes, tsunamis, country-sized landslides. The powerful already have safety measures in place, but the remote villages will suffer." Magical changes, and the same old story of the world: the rich thrive, the poor suffer. I don¡¯t have much to ask about this. I¡¯ll probably see it with my own eyes while searching for my parents.


    "Why are you quiet, young boy? What are you doing?!" This old geezer.


    "Relax, thanks for the info. I¡¯m finishing things here. If there¡¯s an emergency, I¡¯ll call you later." Speaking of finishing things, why not collect all these beautiful shards? Maybe these tiger assholes will show up again¡ªbetter be fast.


    "Later!" The geezer¡¯s voice cut off, and silence returned. Time to collect my damn shards.

 Chapter 24 - Mega Star

    Who would¡¯ve thought that having eight slimes would make work so easy? The oozes worked their jelly asses off, getting it done in way less time than I could with a dozen versions of myself. Their silver tendrils spawned from them, snatching shards as quickly as frogs catch flies.


    Not only that, they even found shards buried in the earth, all while babbling about a "numb smell." How can something smell numb, anyway? The important thing is that they made my job fast. Obviously, I helped the slimes¡ªGeen practically became the shard bin.


    Not that the self-proclaimed bag complained. How could someone fit so much inside themselves without showing it? Magic, pure and simple.


    These heirs probably have ways of storing things; otherwise, everyone would have a slime bag. The ooze even doubles as a cool cape.


    And, thankfully, it didn¡¯t eat my underpants. Speaking of the slime troublemaker, even as my temporary pants, Doom helped me collect the shards too. It also complained about not getting to eat the tiger meat, but with the way things are going, it¡¯ll find some soon enough.


    Soon, the area was clear of shards. Two hours tops, and no sign of tigers. Speaking of them, only some dropped shards. I¡¯m so loaded with shards now that I didn¡¯t even notice. The pale tiger dropped a magic nexus and a divine core¡ªa weird mix of shards.


    It saddens me, though, that the tigers obviously stole a bunch of sparks. Furred assholes.


    Work finished, time for a bathroom break. Far enough from the slimes but close enough for them to kill any tiger that shows up. Doom was glad to leave, the rascal thinking it would find some meat. Are slimes even male or female? They probably don¡¯t care. Although, would more slimes just spawn out of nowhere? I don¡¯t think I have enough bonds for that.


    Problem for later.


    Returning to them, my jelly arms reformed into my armor, the cape flowing and Jelly Blade back in its sheath.


    "All that work really made me thirsty. Geen, could you give me my water bottle?" The slime got it right on the first try, but the bottle wasn¡¯t enough to satisfy my thirst.


    "I really need to find more water. Although I¡¯m not looking forward to going home." Or back to the village.


    "...Geen has more water bottles!.." Which isn¡¯t wrong.


    "Yes, but it¡¯s not like I won¡¯t get thirsty later with all this fighting. Also, I need to think about the future too. If I remember right, there¡¯s a small river nearby." Just on the other side of the forest from my home¡ªthe normal forest, not this alien hellscape.


    "...Henrique wrong, river big! River full of water. Cold water, cold water. Dangerous water..." What nonsense¡ªare they afraid of water? Wait.


    Taking a quick look at my tile relic, I confirmed it. There¡¯s a river on the left side of the palace. The thing isn¡¯t actually blue, so I thought it might be something else, but zooming in, there are drawings of the river, even some fish.


    Also, the river¡¯s name: Blue Fool. Probably the worst name for a river. There must be a story behind it. Oh well, I have some time to spare, and I need to consume all these shards. Why not?


    "Alright, smart asses, do you know where this river is?" Because I bet my GPS won¡¯t work.


    "...Ooze smart, ooze smart! Easy, river and sewers close. One tunnel to the river. Dangerous river..." Relying on them for directions doesn¡¯t sound that smart. If it doesn¡¯t work out, I¡¯ll use the tile map and try to find a landmark.


    What I really, really want right now is to get freaky with the shards.


    "Alright, you oozes take the helm. Walk us to the river." My own autopilot.


    "...Lin knows best, Lin guide. Din doesn¡¯t know directions; Din lost his smarts. Din is smart! Dumb dumb..." As long as we reach the river.


    As for the shards...


    "Hey Geen, let¡¯s talk about shards. There are various types of shards. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen some. The small ones are called seeds¡ªyes, the ones we caught the most, only shining..."


    ---


    Sadly, Geen doesn¡¯t know math. It would be so much easier if it did. Maybe I¡¯m finally hitting the limits of my sanity. Slimes fighting as professional swordsmen, each one part of the body, working in unnatural synergy? Sure. Knowing basic math? Impossible!


    After this succession thing is over, I¡¯ll teach them the basics. Or maybe put the AI or Houonas on it. That¡¯s a plan for later.


    Also, fourteen hours and twenty-five minutes until I need to meet with the team.


    What matters more is that I¡¯ve figured out the perfect way to fully focus on consuming the shards. The semi-autonomous slime machine¡ªbasically letting Geen feed me the shards with the lowest essence first, like a steam train fed charcoal.


    In this case, I¡¯m the steam train. And yes, I did watch a couple of ancient movies. Better than the AI slop, anyway. Practical effects are the game.


    It¡¯ll be a long while to finish the connection. Especially for a couple of reasons:


    1. One thousand seeds equal one nexus shard. So even at two per second, it¡¯ll take eight minutes and twenty seconds, more or less, just for one nexus shard.


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    2. I¡¯ve become a magic addict, so I¡¯ll obviously focus on it first. The problem is the mega star didn¡¯t even create a visible connection after more than 100 shards.


    3. Trying not to lose count is hell.


    4. I really should be focusing on this instead of thinking. But what can I do? Counting and staring at nothing isn¡¯t that interesting.


    Wait¡ªslowly, as I pumped in two hundred and three shards, a line began to appear. Frail, thin as a hair. Nevertheless, now I¡¯ve got something to look at while I work.


    So it¡¯s full focus on getting strong as fuck time. Also, fighting the boredom.


    The results of consuming each seed shard seemed negligible by themselves, but as the numbers grew, the connection to the mega star increased.


    At one thousand one hundred thirty-one, a frail red bond, like a thread, became visible. At three thousand five hundred ninety-two, the connection wasn¡¯t even half the thickness of a normal star bond. My assumption that it would follow the normal progression seems to be wrong.


    At nine thousand six hundred fifty-two, the connection was almost half the thickness of a normal spellstar bond. Still, I can¡¯t tell exactly how many shards it¡¯ll need. Soon, I¡¯ll need to start using the cores. The fortune of shards I¡¯ve got seems like it¡¯ll save me, but I need to figure out the exact cost for the bond. Geen said it had a "slime¡¯s worth" of them. How much is that? How the fuck would I know?


    The slimes found enemies¡ªnot Erythocetes, but more beasts. They¡¯ll need to deal with it. I¡¯m fully focused on this.


    At ten thousand shards, I stopped using seeds. Time to use the sparks. Doom wanted to eat the dead beasts¡¯ corpses. I just said, "Okay." Full focus on this.


    At eleven thousand three hundred forty, the magic sparks shards were gone. Time to use the cores. For the first time in this process, I¡¯m afraid I might not have enough.


    At thirteen thousand one hundred forty, it was time to use the nexus shards. The problem is, I¡¯ve already consumed a bunch of them. Geen only said it had a "bite" of them. Not useful, but let¡¯s do this.


    At eighteen thousand one hundred forty, I felt the connection growing more intense. The size of it matched the other stars¡¯ finished bonds, but it still wasn¡¯t enough. It felt like I was only halfway there.


    No more nexus shards. I didn¡¯t see an option but to use the relic magic shard from the vampire heir.


    Holding it in my grip as my slimy friends sliced through a poor creature resembling a furless bear, I slowly pumped energy into it. I didn¡¯t feel the resistance I did with Water¡¯s Reflection¡ªit felt empty.


    No choice anyway. What I regret more is that some essence got wasted. All this fucking counting for nothing?!


    Math for the oozes!


    Consuming a relic shard¡¯s essence is like drinking water after being thirsty for hours. The sensation is amazing.


    The quantity of essence felt like a wide river. The bond grew thicker as well, and soon all the vast essence flowed into the connection between me and the mega star.


    The connection felt almost bursting¡ªbut still not enough. Time to use the magic seed shards.


    And in a blink, they were gone. Not actually a blink¡ªnow I¡¯m twenty-eight thousand eight hundred twelve shards in.


    I¡¯m already too deep to stop now. Time to use the basic seed shards. It¡¯ll be hell not to lose my mind counting two for each shard, but oh well. A little more time and concentration won¡¯t kill me.


    I¡¯m feeling a headache, though.


    A little slower, I kept consuming the basic seed shards, slowly reaching twenty-nine thousand. At twenty-nine thousand and thirty-nine shards, they became the magic number.


    I expected a round number, maybe thirty thousand. But no¡ª29,039.


    Soon, my connection with the star grew taut, the tension strong as if I were roped to a battleship.


    Like a sun rising, the mega star began to shine, and it didn¡¯t stop there. Each connection to the other stars grew wider, matching the one with the mega star.


    The constellation shone bright and beautiful, and it was like a haze had finally lifted from my head.


    Before, I could only see weird lines, like runes. And right now, I still see the same thing. Nevertheless, it¡¯s like my mind interprets it differently¡ªlike a kid seeing shapes in clouds, but even more insane. Like people seeing a bear in the stars.


    For the first time, I understood¡ªor maybe I¡¯ve gone mad, like the guys who came up with the names for constellations in ancient times.


    Because right there, before my eyes, I see a glob of molten lava, dark red, and within it, something even greater: a calm fire. Welcoming, homely, like a bonfire.


    Soon, my attention turned to the projection of the mega star, which revealed itself as another spellstar.


    There, the first ethereal projection I saw appeared again: an arm with veins on fire. Now I knew for certain¡ªits blood pumped like lava, the cut on its finger unleashing crimson flames. The blood in it felt stronger, more powerful.


    And as I looked at my other spellstars, I saw the same change in them. More oppressive. More powerful.


    Would my veins one day turn into real lava? Now I¡¯m fucking curious.


    Soon, I absorbed all the concepts of this mega star. If I could describe what changed in me or my spells, it¡¯s simple: an attunement to fire. Let¡¯s call it Ember.


    This attunement feels like a sprouting seed. Something in me has finally opened. How can I increase it even more?


    I don¡¯t know how, but I know where.


    Again, a sprawling, uncountable number of stars calls to me¡ªand even more ignore me¡ªin the magic star cluster.


    This magic constellation is finished. My first one. I name you Bonfire. Both as a reference to one of my favorite games and for the warmth and safety you¡¯ve given me.


    Yes, this sounds a little embarrassing. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ll tell anyone about it, anyway. Maybe I should add some mention of blood in it, like Bloody Bonfire. Whatever. It¡¯s Bonfire.


    Looking around, the slime armor kept walking instead of me. I feel like I¡¯m inside another me, which sounds weird as hell. Nevertheless, I could get used to that¡ªjust floating around.


    No sign of the river, and no sign of vampires or any other fuckers.


    So it¡¯s time to see if I can finish any other constellations.

 Chapter 25 - Jelly Choices

    Looking at my cellphone, an hour and forty-one minutes have passed since we started walking.


    How far is this river, to begin with?


    "Hey, how far are we from the river?" These guys say they¡¯re good with directions. I just hope we aren¡¯t lost.


    "...Reach river when you finish playing with shards again. Half river way. Din slow, Din slow! Din fast, less than half!..." Sometimes... these slimes should stop bickering, before I lose my mind!


    So, more or less halfway there. One constellation I¡¯m sure I have enough shards for is the bio constellation¡ªunless the number of stars needed changes.


    Another thing: can I use my bio spells with the slimes?


    "Hey oozes, I¡¯m going to use my biological spells. See if you can use them for something." I alerted them, so let¡¯s just see how this goes.


    I activated Blood Skin on my left hand, just the top part. On my right, I used Bloodclaw. Soon, I could see both of my hands as small platinum tendrils touched them like they were filthy.


    "...Stinky metal, stinky metal. Metal stinky and strange. Can¡¯t be a right hand anymore!..." The last thing I expected was for Runi and Din to dislike it¡ªand for Runi not to insult Din.


    "Alright, you disliked it. But can you use it for... I don¡¯t know, something like strengthening you or making you more durable? Can¡¯t you adapt to it?" Maybe I could use it as some sort of second layer of defense.


    "...No, no! Past Henrique better, red jelly power! Din right, Din right!..." And what the fuck is "red jelly power"?


    "...Did this do anything? This red jelly power." Knowledge is always good.


    "...Red jelly power amazing. Past Henrique like ooze. Symbiotic ooze, symbiotic ooze!..." Does Runi even know what "symbiotic" means?


    "Alright, any of you have something to say about this red jelly power?" The others suddenly went quiet.


    "...Red jelly power easy to learn past Henrique moves. Past Henrique wanted to move, we moved!..." Hmm, must be Lin and Doom. Vex is usually quiet.


    Neither of the other three slimes said anything. Speaking of which, they¡¯re more serious. The most talkative one is Geen. Maybe they¡¯ll open up eventually. Everyone has their time.


    Now, about this red jelly power. It seems quite interesting. From what the slimes said, it¡¯s something that deepened their connection with their past heir.


    Let¡¯s see how the biology constellation will go.


    There¡¯s only one problem.


    "Do you two really need to treat my hand like it¡¯s sick?!" Seems like it¡¯s going to be a problem.


    "Din will protect hand, just not touch metal skin! Skin stinky, skin stinky!" They¡¯re starting to sound like the old geezer¡ªa little less insufferable and more cute.


    Hmm. "Geen, why don¡¯t you have a problem with carrying my shotgun?" It¡¯s pretty weird that the slime isn¡¯t affected by it. It¡¯s made of metal.


    "...Geen like treasures. Past Henrique liked metal things. Geen started liking, too. Treasures beautiful and fun..." Alright, that makes some sense.


    Maybe this metal skin could become a problem later. Time to get stronger, though.


    "Alright, Geen, keep the shards coming¡ªthe ones I told you about, the bio shards..." Soon, the ooze started my little shard-consuming technique.


    Geen kept giving me the seed shards as I counted them. I can¡¯t help but think this is a hassle. Will I have to start counting all over again? While my hands are only partially secure?


    The answer is yes. Damn you, math!


    So, my consumption of bio seed shards continued its arduous process.


    The difference is that I didn¡¯t have any of the stars unlocked until the 17th star, so it¡¯s going to be a longer process. Using the seed shards and not wasting my time counting, I unlocked each one.


    Like before, the change occurred at my 17th star. The feeling of my blood regenerating even more, though only a minuscule wound on my skin remained. Xeen did a silent and excellent job over the past couple of hours.


    It was only a graze, but healing like that is still fantastic. Obviously, with enough money, you could ask for an expensive hospital to cure you in a blink¡ªtheir machines are wondrous. But the price? Oh, the price. Better not to even think about it.


    The mega star looked at me, and I looked at it. Yes, it¡¯s time.


    Pumping seed after seed, the process monotonous as ever.


    I stopped at a round number in the thousands¡ªthis time, at twelve thousand seed shards. I could¡¯ve kept going, but bio shards are the ones I found the most in the turtle¡¯s haul. Better to use the ones with more value and waste less time.


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    It seems that basic shards aren¡¯t the easiest to get. Maybe none of them are, depending on where you are and who you¡¯re fighting.


    Which makes some sense.


    As for the shards, using sparks, I stopped at fourteen thousand three hundred twenty. Soon, cores were next, stopping at sixteen thousand seven hundred twenty.


    Now, for nexus shards¡ªI didn¡¯t get as many as I did with magic. I only focused on getting them at the start. And the fucking asshole tigers robbed me of who knows how many nexus shards. With the ones I got from the vampire and the giant turtle, I had five¡ªfive more found in the turtle¡¯s haul.


    I¡¯d love to just pump the nexus shards and finish this counting. And I can, but let¡¯s check this turtle relic bio shard.


    ...Fuck. I feel resistance from the bio relic shard. This sucks, but it¡¯s also great. Later, I¡¯ll see with Houonas what this relic bio shard is about. Sadly, for now, more counting.


    More counting because my ten nexus shards only put me at twenty-six thousand seven hundred twenty shards.


    Soon, after consuming all my bio seed shards, I reached twenty-eight thousand eight hundred thirty-one shards.


    The slimes said we were halfway to the river. Strangely, they didn¡¯t say anything about reaching it, so better focus on my mega star.


    Using basic seed shards, my connection finished at 29,039.


    This time, though, what caught my attention in the mega star was the constellation, still inert. Projecting from it was a fully armored arm, filled with blades to cut and bleed my enemies. But what demanded my focus was the droplet of blood above the hand, its metallic sheen impressive.


    However, it flickered, changing, showing minuscule projections of what it could have been: a gorilla arm, an arm with deadly flowers blooming, scaly arms reminding me of a lizard¡¯s.


    In this ever-changing image, I found it¡ªa viscous red substance submerging an arm, looking like someone played with red hair gel, a dozen jars of it.


    Who would make such a stupid choice?


    The past heir of the slimes.


    Also, the current one.


    Maybe it¡¯s stupidity, but if I think it¡¯s true¡ªif the slimes aren¡¯t pulling my leg or just talking nonsense¡ªit could improve my chances of surviving, both in this succession and in this crazy world.


    An army of one man and a bunch of slimes.


    Soon, I focused on the red slime jelly. The projection resisted, not wanting to concede to its nature of constant change.


    Different from my magic constellation, which always showed this nature¡ªthat my choice influenced its direction¡ªnow I was demanding it. Before, I let the constellation give me what it wanted.


    Slowly, the mega star conceded, its nature taking priority.


    In a blink, the small droplet of metallic blood changed to a viscous red, looking more like gel than blood. Slowly, the armored arm full of blades transformed into the laughable red slime jelly arm.


    The constellation now began its final step. Each bond between stars thickened, the spellstars changing to accommodate the new jelly attunement¡ªor should I say, slime attunement.


    Different from the magic constellation, this one didn¡¯t give me certainty. Nevertheless, I changed it to what I really wanted, so that¡¯s a victory in itself. Though maybe the lizard arm could¡¯ve been cool to have, the slimes¡¯ prejudice seems to be only against metal.


    I can¡¯t think of a better name than "Red Slime" for this constellation. Especially as the constellation shows it in my mind as I look at it: a droplet of jelly blood on an arm covered in red slime.


    Another strange name. I probably should hire someone to name my spells. At least the slimes already named my mega star for me: Red Jelly Power.


    I think that¡¯s it. Now, which of my constellations should I go for next? I probably don¡¯t have enough to finish another constellation, but nevertheless¡ª


    As soon as my vision returns, I doubt for a moment what I¡¯m actually seeing.


    Just ahead, there¡¯s a river, which is fine. I¡¯m looking forward to it¡ªGeen could hold my watery treasure.


    The problem is the bunch of monkeys the size of people, which I can only call weremonkeys, like Houonas told me. Their bodies seem more human than monkey-like¡ªbacks not curved like a typical monkey, long legs, shorter arms. Their faces look skeletal, with no nose, kind of familiar. The weremonkeys entire bodies are jet black with a hue of navy blue.


    Stranger yet, there are two vampires with them.


    What could make it even crazier, I ask? The myriad of blue tentacles grabbing them from the river, the weremonkeys fighting like mad to get away.


    And look at that¡ªjust ahead of me, one of the weremonkeys is jumping up and down, waving its arms wildly to grab my attention. Anyone would recognize it as a signal for help.


    The question is, will I help these creatures?


    For one, I¡¯m certain these two vampires can¡¯t be heirs. No heir would be almost strangled to death by tentacles¡ªnot without some cool spell fireworks.


    They must be Dominion¡¯s Fingers candidates at worst, or some sort of hired help¡ªmaybe servants.


    That grabbed my attention, making me want to help a little.


    Hmm. The thing is, I already have a pretty good reason to help.


    Time to test how powerful I am with two constellations completed and about thirty percent of my energy tank full.


    Try as they might, if this is an ingenious trap, they¡¯ll regret catching the wrong prey.


    Time to get freaky.

 Chapter 26 - Reaching The River

    Before taking any action, it¡¯s always good to check with my security.


    "Why didn¡¯t you call me?! Look at that weremonkey¡ªif they were a threat, we¡¯d be in danger!" They really could¡¯ve alerted me.


    "...No threats, we ooze strong! Funny smell weak. Past Henrique killed a bunch with us. Din wanted to call, siblings said no. River ahead, river ahead!..." At least Din had the right idea.


    "Next time, call me. Din was the only one who thought of what¡¯s right in this situation." Time to use their rivalry for my benefit.


    "...Understood. We ooze will call when funny smell shows up. Funny smell weak! Not that¡ªHenrique wants to know when we reach destiny! Din wrong, Din wrong!..." I should¡¯ve expected that.


    "No, that¡¯s not it! Alright, forget about it. Din, next time something like this happens, call me." At least someone got it.


    "...Din will, Henrique! Din dumb, Din dumb! Din not dumb¡ªpraised by Henrique!..." They¡¯re really full of energy.


    Like that weremonkey, it¡¯s best to see what he wants.


    First, though, time to use the slime spell. My right hand¡¯s skin slowly gets covered by the now blood-slime skin. The sensation of my hand changing, the gauntlet made by Din feeling like my own arm. I don¡¯t feel temperature, pain, or anything like that. It¡¯s like every movement I make is translated to the gauntlet.


    How would it feel to have this all over my body? Soon, with a surge of my divine spell and blood-slime skin spell, my entire body felt the same experience.


    Even my head. Touching my face, I finally felt the resistance of something. As I suspected, Xeen, the medic, really became a helmet. Strangely, it doesn¡¯t seem to have any openings. How can I see everything around me? Let¡¯s just accept it as it is.


    Maybe later, I should talk with the slimes to see if they have spells like me.


    "...Red jelly power!" Their mindspeak yelled in unison, radiating a feeling of happiness.


    "Yes, I changed that stinky metal for red slime." A choice I hope I won¡¯t regret.


    "...Red slime? Maybe another red jelly power name. Metal stinky, red jelly power better! Red slime cool name! Din bad taste, bad taste!..." It seems they¡¯re all happy overall.


    Each of my steps felt like my own choice, even though each one is micromanaged by the slimes, like some sort of muscle memory. The uneven floor of the riverbed proved no obstacle to me.


    I can¡¯t wait to see how this performs in battle, even though I¡¯ve wasted two-thirds of my energy. Better to fight smart.


    Now, it¡¯s time to see if I can help them¡ªand if they¡¯re not foolish enough to betray me.


    The weremonkey seems smart, not making any sudden movements toward me. Would I be afraid of him, though? No, but I¡¯ll be careful enough to survive.


    Which means having a plan to run away. Not that I¡¯ve used it much lately.


    Alright, I¡¯m feeling a little arrogant right now. When I get my ass handed to me, I¡¯ll tone it down.


    For now, I¡¯ll enjoy it.


    Nearing the weremonkey, the only thing I could hear were grunts and wails. These guys are real monkeys. Would mindspeak work?


    At least he knows how to call for help when his friends are being cooked.


    "Hey oozes, could you try speaking to this screaming weremonkey? Say that I¡¯ll help, but if any of them approach behind my back or show any hostility, they¡¯re slime food." Maybe this will encourage the slimes too.


    "...No slimes! Oozes!..." Not even my prot¨¦g¨¦, Din, is trying to defend me. Oh well.


    After watching the weremonkey suddenly stop, bend down, and wail, I knew he got it. Honestly, I felt a little bad for him. Imagine having your friends or family dying to wild tentacles.


    However, I need to look out for myself, especially when my energy is so low. Showing strength is half the battle.


    "...Funny smell understand. Promise reward for help. Funny smell crybaby. Din crybaby, Din crybaby. Not Din¡ªmonkey is crybaby..." I¡¯m most surprised that it worked. Nevertheless, rewards are always good.


    I bet the monkey said something more useful. Depending on slimes isn¡¯t the way. I need to learn mindspeak myself.


    Nodding at the furred humanoid, I strolled toward the mayhem.


    As I approached, there was no way not to have second thoughts. The tentacles are massive, like pythons from cheap movies, strangling their victims in a blink.


    Nevertheless, I want to see how my blood-slime skin is useful. Otherwise, I¡¯ll regret losing my metallic blood skin.


    My adrenaline pumped, my mutated glands doing their thing.


    Slowly, I felt my skin prickling. A tentacle slashed at me, trying to catch another victim.


    It would¡¯ve worked if it were just me, but the slimes took control, executing a mortal forward. I couldn¡¯t help but think, why can¡¯t they use a tendril to increase their range of movement even more?


    Like a man living in a cave, I finally saw the light. My will made the command, and a tendril shot forward, striking the soil. Sadly, after a weak push, the tendril lost purchase and slowly retracted back into the armor.


    No problem¡ªI¡¯ll get the hang of it.


    Another tentacle tries to grab me from below. Jumping high, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking of a combo I remember seeing in a game. It was with chains, but slime tendrils could surely work.


    I willed it, and the slimes obeys, grabbing the tentacle. The tentacle pushes me forward, amplifying the power of gravity, making me fall like a boulder. Wielding it like a great sword, as I¡¯d seen in games, the slimes took hold, transforming my pathetic attempt into one that would yield results.


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    Hands in the right places, firm but malleable, using the weapon¡¯s own weight to leverage our strength.


    Expanding its size, the slime blade cut down like a guillotine. It wasn¡¯t enough. The blade met meat and blood but didn¡¯t bisect the tentacle.


    If it were up to me, I¡¯d have fallen like a tomato. Nevertheless, the slimes took hold, our bond deepening, my thoughts flowing through them.


    Four platinum tendrils shot down, reducing the impact of my fall and making it easier for me to regain my balance.


    Looking up to see my work, I realize how screwed I am. The tentacle regenerates in real time. Yes, this time, I¡¯ve bitten off more than I can chew.


    Run time.


    The river froths, the sound drawing my attention. I expected the beast would show itself.


    I got my expectations more or less right.


    The river calmed, becoming tranquil as if nothing has happened.


    I wish I could say the same about the riverbed. A wave of tentacles surges forward, all aiming for their target. Me.


    Fuck the monkeys, fuck the vampires¡ªthat¡¯s their problem.


    There¡¯s no way I¡¯d run and give them my back. I learned my lesson with a bullet in the butt. Never give your back to your enemy, especially when they¡¯re this close.


    Jumping backward, the first tentacle tries to grab my legs. The slimes, working in sync with me and my will, shot thick silver tendrils at the tentacle, pushing me back as it extended further, like two viscous arms doing push-ups.


    I love these slimes. We¡¯ve only just met, but they already know my dumb ideas.


    Why run when I can propel myself around?


    The blue tentacles shot forward, but so did mine.


    Thick tendrils to propel, slim ones to find purchase. For the first time in this hell, I felt unbridled fun.


    What could be more fun than becoming a slime ball yourself?


    Not seeing the use in fighting anymore, the slime blade shrank back into a dagger and glued itself to my waist.


    The slimes radiated contentment¡ªno words needed. I felt it through our connection via the blood-slime skin.


    Vaulting away from the tentacles as they tried to grab my torso. Pushing down when they tried to snake around my head.


    The number of tentacles only grew, but so did my sync with the slimes. I¡¯m the command center; they¡¯re my soldiers.


    Obviously, I moved my body clumsily, but the slimes fixes it. Someday, I¡¯ll do it myself. Today is not that day.


    Rolling to the ground as tentacles speared at me, a tendril shot back, and another to the side¡ªnot at my command.


    Just as I was propelled back, I saw why. Another tentacle tried to spear me. As it rose, I finally notice the pointed end¡ªblack, gray, and sharper than it had any right to be.


    It didn¡¯t stop me or the slimes from jumping back, using the thick tendrils to propel the jump even further, making me feel like a cannonball.


    I¡¯d be afraid of the fall if not for the oozes.


    A bunch of silver tendrils slows my descent, taking the brunt of the impact.


    The tentacles try to reach me. They wish. Too far to reach. I¡¯d burn them down if I had the energy.


    I didn¡¯t, and the slimes felt a little tired.


    Anyway, I survived, and the poor sods died¡ª


    "Oh, great Elysia, I thank you for your swift rescue of me and my bride. Even though my past master, Margonnes¡ªrest her soul¡ªand I were your enemies for a short time, your humble soul drew the attention of this filthy kraken so we could escape. I thank you from the bottom of my heart." The what?! Looking back, I saw the two vampires approaching, the weremonkeys carrying some of their deceased.


    So they survived. Alright, I¡¯m a hero.


    I totally didn¡¯t run away.


    A different feminine voice sounded in my head. The taller vampire gave a haunting smile, her fangs looking like a lamprey¡¯s mouth.


    "We were afraid you had died as well, a victim of Aurore¡¯s plot! Even as strong as she was, even as she undermined Margonne, you, and the other siblings to get her hands on shards. She even used spies to kill our dear Margonne!" Her hatred is palpable. It seems she really admired this Margonne. Which sibling could she be? She didn¡¯t react to my dagger or my cape. Maybe they¡¯re common? Though I think she¡¯s the one who owned the saloons as her territory.


    The smaller vampire hugged the taller one.


    "We are blessed by our beloved Margonne. Even as the spies among our ranks of Dominion¡¯s Digits massacred our own, she found it in her heart to let us escape, blessing our way out with her power. Even as she died in their clutches, we saw her use one of her bombing artifacts, taking those detestable cretins with her to their deaths."


    Fuck. Dominion¡¯s Digit spies?! Weren¡¯t they supposed to be loyal to you? Then why give them power?


    Would the slimes betray me? They ran away from the scene as their past master died, which seems quite fishy. If these guys wanted me dead, they could¡¯ve done it, though.


    I can¡¯t just think of everyone as a spy. And who would hire slimes as spies? Trying to speak to them is already a chore.


    The female vampire continues where the other left off. "You are wise to have bonded with slimes. They are simple but loyal, even if it seems a little demeaning." See? I¡¯m right¡ªthough she¡¯s probably not talking about me.


    Slowly, she gazes at my slime dagger, at Mia. "You are in possession of the slime weapon of Anwen! I knew you two were close, especially as he trained you since you were practically a baby! Is he... dead?" Hmm, that makes sense. So the group of slimes already knew each other.


    "Elysia?" They stared at me for a couple of seconds, as if finally noticing something. Am I fucked?


    "Why don¡¯t you speak to us?" the female asked. "I know it¡¯s a heavy topic, but you haven¡¯t spared us a single word. Please don¡¯t take this the wrong way¡ªyou don¡¯t owe us anything, as royalty." The male added.


    Now, what the fuck do I do? Kill them? Just run away? Or come clean about who they¡¯re speaking to?


    Too many choices, too little energy to waste using them.

 Chapter 26 - Just Talking by the River

    Thinking about it, it''s not like I can''t use more than one. First, let''s go out in the open. If it doesn''t work, I will kill them or just run away¡ªdepends on how much they want to fight me.


    How can I say it? Let''s try calm and certainty.


    "Don''t be scared, and don''t try any sudden movements." They didn''t obey me in either, trying to move back, their stances changing. "I''m not a friend, spy, or whatever of Aurore. And I don''t see why I''d kill any of you." But I could try if you start.


    The male vampire got a little closer, as if he realized something. "Are you the Heir of Sacrifice? The siblings didn''t have enough heirs in their numbers, and I don''t see why any of them would choose to bond with oozes. Their kind doesn''t accept anything but becoming a Dominion''s finger." The other also comes a little closer, taking the hand of the male vampire.


    Heir of Sacrifice, my ass. That came out wrong...


    "Say we believe you, since you rescued us." Yes, I''m the hero here. "What do you want from us?" That''s a good question.


    And I only have two of them on my mind. I have enough on my plate as is¡ªno time to waste.


    Waste more than I already did, that is.


    "What''s your deal with the weremonkeys? And most importantly, do you have anything that could give me the upper hand against Aurore? Revenge and all that." Yes, think about the betrayal and give me the goodies.


    The female one looks at the furred humanoids. "We worked a deal with them¡ª" Before she finishes, the weremonkeys make some noises, and both vampires look behind me.


    The oldest trick in the world!


    I did turn a little, though¡ªone eye on the fish, the other in¡ª What the actual fuck!


    The tentacles are already close to the river. It seems the monster didn''t want to waste any more time since we got away.


    Like from a horror movie, two fins the size of a boat cut the river''s surface like blades. Soon, the river erupts as a giant mouth full of needle-like teeth appears. Even though these teeth are probably the size of harpoons.


    The beast bites down on the tentacles with ferocity, the river turning red with blood. The river froths for a moment as the surviving tentacles swiftly retreat deeper.


    The two fins take a turn in the giant river before submerging again.


    That¡¯s a battle I wanted to watch. From far away, that is.


    Looking at the female, she changes her surprised, stricken face to a more neutral one. "What was I saying? Yes, we made a deal with the weremonkeys. They said they had a hidden boat and would help us cross the river. However, their kin vanished. Trying to look for the boat near the river seemed like a bad choice." Obviously.


    "I told you, it was stupid! I can see from here, and I see no boat!" the other vampire says, a little angry.


    "It''s a hidden boat¡ªit could be anywhere!" She turns from her fianc¨¦ and looks at me. "Anyway, it seems we¡¯ll need to take the long way there, which is worse. The weremonkeys already told us that area got even further away¡ªa vast land was assimilated there just a while ago. One of their kin, far away, specialized in communication and told this group''s leader." That¡¯s fascinating. It could be my country¡ªit''s near here, more or less, right?!


    "Where is this place that was assimilated?" As soon as I ask, the two look at each other, a knowing look in their eyes.


    "I suppose you have a particular interest in the new habitants? No matter, it''s northwest. We could even invite you to come with us¡ªwe need the strength. I doubt you¡¯ll accept or can, with the whole succession happening." The vampire points at the location where supposedly this place is.


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    I look at the weremonkeys, who only smile at me. Some of them point in the same direction.


    Going to keep that in mind. A direction is good as any¡ªif I don¡¯t find a map.


    There¡¯s just one thing¡ªI don¡¯t have a compass. Even if that shit worked here, anyway.


    Through mindspeak, I ask my slime friends:


    "You oozes are good with directions? Like, can you memorize that place? I need to go the direction these guys are pointing. I don¡¯t have a compass for that." Do they even know what a compass is?


    "...Ooze better than compass. Knows slime place in the world. Compass is weird, how it works? Ugly compass, ugly compass! Compass concept really weird..." So they¡¯re also walking maps?


    "So, where are we, and what¡¯s over there where they¡¯re pointing?"


    "...We are here, there is there. Simple. Here. Here. Really simple..." No, they aren¡¯t walking maps.


    Like trying to assuage my doubts, Lin points a tendril at the location. I move forward and back¡ªthe tendril keeps pointing in the same direction. At least they''re a half-assed compass. Maybe it will work. Not that I''d say it to them¡ªthey didn''t seem that fond of compasses, or the concept of them.


    The couple starts again, mindspeaking to me as if they noticed I was talking with someone.


    "Now, for something that could be useful to defeat that villainess. You could go to the sewers. If Elysia didn¡¯t find it, there¡¯s a mutated wererat as small as my foot. He¡¯s known to steal things¡ªincluding one of the relic artifacts owned by the ruler. I don¡¯t actually know which one." The male vampire doesn¡¯t give me a certainty vibe.


    The other vampire continues where he left off.


    "Maybe our blessed Margonne would know. Some weremonkeys could guide you there¡ªthey wanted to look for their fallen brethren near the palace, as they said there¡¯s a sewer entrance nearby its entrance." It couldn¡¯t be, could it?


    "Alright, thanks for the info. It seems both of us are on time. So, goodbye." No use wasting my time here anymore.


    "Thank you again for saving our lives. I wish you luck in the succession. Neither of the surviving siblings are as good as our Margonne." Looking at the slime, he continues, "Not as great as Elysia and Anwen either. It seems the best ones are the first to go, doesn¡¯t it?" Yes, don¡¯t know if the villagers were that good, but they were the first to go as well.


    Probably it¡¯s only me left. Still, maybe they¡¯re in the palace¡ªmaybe not in the sewers¡ªbut that place is as good as any.


    I bid my goodbyes to the couple and weremonkeys. The first vampires that weren¡¯t assholes. They got a black sheet from somewhere¡ªin a blink, each one envelops themselves in it. Still, I can see them through it.


    Maybe it¡¯s for the sun. If I remember right, Houonas said they disliked it. Not mortally, though¡ªthey didn¡¯t turn to ashes like the fictional vampires I knew.


    Ten and a half hours. I wish it''s enough time to find this wererat. With three weremonkeys following me, I start calling Houonas¡ªit''s time to change the plans. Using the communicator is easier than I thought¡ªjust push energy, and the sensation of the thing activating goes directly to my brain. A little invasive, but it works.


    *"Hey Houonas, how are things going? I¡¯ve got a better plan¡ªI¡¯m going to the sewers to find a wererat thief that apparently has one of the ruler¡¯s relics with them. Does Darefei know anything about it?"* The story seems pretty fishy.


    After a couple of minutes, Houonas replies, *"Blessed is to hear thine voice. I beg thee pardon as I talked with Darefei. The dwarf got angry but nevertheless quickly changed its mind. He heard about this local tidbit and says there is credence to it. He asks which way thou wilt go to the sewers."*


    Maybe it¡¯s not an elaborate prank. "I¡¯m following some weremonkeys¡ªit seems there¡¯s a sewer near the palace¡¯s entrance." Which I suspect is where it is.


    After a couple of seconds, I get my reply. *"Darefei knows the way. We will soon finish our wards here. I will bring thee items with me."*


    *"Thanks. Oh, get one of my bags on the way down¡ªI kind of left it there because it was heavy. If it¡¯s too heavy for you or if someone got it, just leave it." That was a pretty dumb idea.*


    Like going to the river¡ªI didn¡¯t even get my water!


    *"I will, master. Fare thee well. Weremonkeys, in most of their kin, are not criminals¡ªbut even they have their bad apples."* Like I¡¯d let the weremonkeys kill me that way, ha.


    *"Thanks, and you can call me Henrique, by the way. This ¡®master¡¯ thing sounds weird to me."* Especially if someone hears my call and discovers I¡¯m an heir. Not that I didn¡¯t already have a full slime armor yelling it.


    I wait a little without an answer.


    Silence. Then, finally:


    _"Good luck."_


    ¡­Weird.


    I¡¯ve got a thing to focus on, though¡ªtime to find these sewers. At least I have armor protecting me from all the smells and shit. Literally.


    That fucking old geezer would be a little more brown, though.


    But for all that is holy, I walked all this fucking way for water, almost died, and I''ll still leave here fucking thirsty¡ªnot that I''ll go near that river. Better to ration what I have.


    For sure, I''ll have way better luck in the sewers¡ªnot in finding drinking water, I mean, but getting a cool trinket to survive this succession.


    Why do I need to clarify things to myself, anyway? Well, it seems I''m going insane. More than normal.

 Chapter 27 - A Forest Stroll With Weremonkeys

    I obviously wouldn''t waste my time on the way. Talking with the slimes, I got them to protect the weremonkeys during travel. Obviously they said I was their priority¡ªin their own weird way.


    So yes, time to clean my shard stock. No time-wasting counting, especially because I told the slimes to increase the pace. The furred guys will sweat a little.


    From my scavenging, weirdly, the second most abundant were divinity shards¡ªonly after digging like mad with the slimes'' help on the giant turtle''s haul.


    All inside a broken chest, like some kind of treasure chest. Thousands of shards, their mingling light forming a pale gold.


    The thing looked antique, with some roots around it. I bet there were more shards there, but these pesky roots got them first.


    Now it''s time to consume them and hope for another completed constellation.


    The divine shard seeds are the first to go, their thousands forming new star connections. Now that I wasn''t counting each shard, I could focus only on the bonds.


    Minutes passed as each new connection formed¡ª10th star, 11th, 12th, 13th¡ªeach taking more time than the last. Until I started using the divinity nexus shards.


    Each new connection demanded more, and this time there wasn''t a relic shard to speed it up and ensure I could finish the constellation.


    Soon my 17th star connected with me, the essence bridging it. The change, as always, is strange¡ªlike I felt a little more blessed, which didn''t seem that useful to begin with.


    One thing I noticed is that I at least gained more control over my blood manipulation. If it had any benefit to my divine spell, I didn''t see it. Maybe it demanded less energy to make more blood¡ªthat''s the feeling I got, but I didn''t measure it, so maybe it''s all in my head.


    Time to continue. Seeing the mega star just ahead got me pumped.


    After getting three-quarters through, my divinity shards were gone. And soon after using all my remaining basic shards, I could almost taste the 18th mega star.


    Only one solution left: using the tech shards.


    After a couple of tech core shards and some tech shard seeds, finally, my connection grew taut. The mega star''s projection showed me a simple image¡ªa palm flowing blood endlessly from its center, like some sort of wound, except there wasn''t any cut.


    Then, like d¨¦j¨¤ vu, each connection between the stars deepened. I saw it again¡ªthe same position, blood endlessly flowing from its palm, now showing the entire arm. As the blood pooled below, each splash took new forms¡ªnot just ripples from droplets, but tiny needles, shapes, even a being?


    The concept it gave was attunement to blood¡ªand something greater, something beyond. Which I don''t get. My imagination is already running on fumes here, so¡ªmega star is bleeding palm, and the constellation is the Divine Blood Constellation. Because fuck Darefei, I''ll name it what I want!


    I''d try my power right now, though there are still some tech shards to go.


    Consuming the blue shards, the transformed essence bound me to my stars. As expected, the 9th star granted another spell. In the projection, one arm showed its blood vessels constricting, the blood powering through, some covering the vessels, the flow intensifying.


    Even without fully understanding it, the spell''s concept was clear in my mind. It would improve my overall strength and speed¡ªnot groundbreaking by itself, but I saw synergy with my blood regeneration, my biological constellation stars (the red slime).


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    After using more shards, I only reached the 14th star. Enough for a noticeable increase in blood circulation control, but not enough to match my adrenal gland mutation''s enhanced adrenaline.


    At least the new spell¡ªBlood Surge¡ªseemed useful.


    Testing it, the tech spell showed promise. Using it, I could run faster¡ªnot Olympic-level, but enough to go from half-sedentary to veteran runner. Without the technique or finesse, if you know what I mean.


    I didn''t feel any energy drain - honestly just a little light-headed, but that could be from oxygen deprivation or exertion. Though the slimes are handling all the physical work here... did it even matter?


    Well, for one thing, the oozes made a world of difference.


    If not for the slimes, I''d have face-planted from tripping on roots and weeds.


    After scaring the weremonkeys for a solid minute by running like a madman¡ªand, I should add, the humanoids followed me effortlessly¡ªI tested my divinity spells.


    Now, I definitely felt a difference. My divine spell''s blood creation was less energy-demanding¡ªa hand-sized ball of the red liquid now used maybe five percent of my energy.


    With blood manipulation, I could play with the same amount for thirty seconds, like a street magician.


    Of course, I had Geen store the blood in one of his past-master vials. Weirdly, those vials held more blood than they appeared to.


    On the way to the sewer entrance, I encountered some beasts¡ªa weird, furless bear-like creature, a boar that seemed normal except for two snail-like eyes on its face.


    Typical finds in a skin forest.


    There were smaller critters too, even more alien-looking¡ªlike a snake with two tiny arms.


    What would that snake even use those arms for? A little clap?


    At least the beasts gave me a chance to train with the slimes. The critters just scared the hell out of me.


    No doubt the changes from my biological constellation''s slime attunement improved our sync. Now I felt like some kind of symbiont¡ªwith the bonus of an extending sword.


    With my little squadron attached, the division of focus worked wonders. I handled tactics and movement while the slimes refined and adjusted everything into a knightly performance.


    Still, fighting from afar remained my preferred method. Why make the effort of being easier to kill? Not like you get to choose in every fight.


    Then again, evasion works both ways.


    ---


    Some time later, we finally reached a spot near the palace entrance. And as I''d guessed, the dead monkey corpses were weremonkeys.


    Their living kin couldn''t restrain themselves, rushing to the rotting corpses as insects and critters scattered from the half-eaten bodies.


    My mind and conscience wrestled for control, the image of the corpses I''d left behind leaving an acrid taste in my mouth.


    Did I have a choice? No. I just didn¡¯t have time to bury them. But would it have mattered?


    No one would visit them. The world is probably in chaos.


    Would even God care about what''s happening here? I''m already too old for this shit. This self-hate. Even with all the logic, my conscience still makes me feel worse for my choices.


    The creatures'' lament at least distracted me from my own struggles.


    Which is kind of sad. They didn¡¯t speak¡ªjust wailed and grunted like animals. Yet, I could see the sadness, the tears in their eyes.


    Their kind had been murdered.


    I know that feeling. Maybe they loved their fallen more than I liked the villagers. Still, I feel responsible for their deaths¡ªmaybe they do too, even if it wasn¡¯t their fault.


    Through my red slime link, I felt the slimes'' comfort, like a pet¡¯s.


    Not that I¡¯d call them pets¡ªthey still have their own weird desires.


    So, half-pets.


    No way around it. I admit the slimes lifted some of the weight of my conscience. Or maybe I just accepted my powerlessness.


    That''ll probably be temporary¡ªlike always. The guilt keeps coming back, wave after wave. Only after I''ve gotten numb to it will that shit finally fade. And then? Then I''ll just find some new reason to beat myself up over.


    Still, I won¡¯t forget what happened. I could run from the war, but the war would find me.


    Even if it had to come from another world.


    The weremonkeys didn''t notice the battle in my head, the creatures looked reluctant to leave their brethren¡¯s corpses, but they showed me the way to the sewers¡ªjust a few kilometers to the right.


    It didn¡¯t take long to reach the place, my mind now steadier. I have things to do. I can berate myself after this is over.


    Before spotting the sewers, what I see first is a towering woman who looks more like a red pine tree¡ªreddish skin, vermilion hair, arms resembling branches, not in appearance but in number: three pairs.


    Just below her stood the white-haired dwarf, looking at me like he was God''s personal gift to the world¡ªand especially to me. I''d make sure he got good and dirty.


    "Hey Houonas. Old geezer. What about a hunt?"

 Chapter 28 - Hunt in the Sewers

    "You are stupid, young boy! Do whatever you want! I¡¯ve heard about that wererat. I doubt you¡¯ll be the one to get it¡ªso many better than you have failed!" They didn¡¯t have a slime army with them.


    Obviously, I had other ideas for getting stronger: hunting for shards again or taking my chances with the monsters in the river.


    There¡¯s only one problem. Energy.


    I know wasting 10% of it to test spells wasn¡¯t wise to begin with, but at least I¡¯ve finally gotten the hang of tracking how much energy I lose. Of course, it¡¯s still just an estimate¡ªbut one I can work with.


    My energy is a bit above 30%. Nothing beats a stroll in the forest to check my regeneration rate. It seems to tick up by about 10% per hour.


    A pretty good rate.


    "Thee need not fear for thy belongings¡ªI carry them with mine. The same can be said of thine territory. Wards protect even the room¡¯s windows, all from the inside, so as not to give them away." Makes sense.


    "Thank you, Houonas. So where are the sewers?" I don¡¯t even smell them, though I barely smell anything with Xeen as my helmet. Like a spacesuit.


    "You¡¯re above it!" Without waiting a second, the old geezer dropped to all fours. With all his hair, it looked almost funny¡ªlike some rich lady¡¯s pampered dog. For the first time, I got a better look at his clothes.


    Just a red robe. Who would¡¯ve guessed? Red¡¯s really in fashion here.


    I barely understood what he was doing as he placed a hand on a metallic surface. From here, I watched the thing light up.


    Like some sort of trap, it split open down the middle¡ªthat asshole old geezer just floating above it.


    Luckily, the slimes shot out their silver tendrils, pushing me up before I could plummet into the sludge. Looking down, I couldn¡¯t even imagine how vile it must smell.


    Not sure why Houonas had to carry my baggage, I asked Geen to take over. She seemed reluctant to give my backup PC back.


    While we sorted out the bags, the weremonkey grunted something and left. Probably had better things to do.


    "They wished thee good luck on thy hunt. Pardon their hasty departure¡ªthey must tend to their dead." I wish I¡¯d had something to say to them. Oh well.


    I nodded at Houonas. "Time to go, then." Would the slime know anything about it? Worth asking.


    As I jumped down, the slimes broke my fall onto the sludge. I felt a little sorry for them, having to wade through this shit.


    "Do you ooze know anything about this wererat? Your past heir claimed it as territory." Might as well try.


    "...Yes. The little rat thief. Saw it once! Runi liar, Runi liar! Din disagrees¡ªRuni never saw it. Only past Henrique did. She said thief very fast, likes shiny things..." Damn, what a time to be out of shards.


    "I used all of mine. Maybe we can hunt an animal down here for one." The slimes agreed, though I do have a few shards left¡ªI¡¯d just hate to part with them. Speaking of which...


    "Let¡¯s go, young boy! I know the path this wererat favors!" Like some sewer tour guide, the white-haired geezer floated ahead.


    I fought the urge to fling sewer water at him. His pristine white silhouette was practically begging for it.


    Soon, we were wading through the muck. Time to ask Houonas.


    "Houonas, I¡¯ve got some relic shards that might contain artifacts. Could you take a look?" Geen, my loyal storage, handed me the two shards: one tech (dropped by the vampire heir, not from her) and one bio (from the giant turtle corpse, along with the other ones that I got from the creature).


    In total silence, Houonas took both shards in her upper pair of hands. For minutes, she walked with her eyes closed, utterly focused¡ªlike a sleepwalker.


    "Take mine hand." I¡¯d ask which one, but she pressed the glowing bio relic shard into my palm. As her hand clasped mine, I felt her energy surge into me.


    "The guardian protected and increased the treasure of her once-dear friend. The friend forgot her. The guardian never could." I channeled energy into the shard, mimicking Houonas. Slowly, it transformed into a black necklace with a small shell and a red jewel at its center.


    "It is named Little Shelly. Its spell is a boon to thy regeneration." Now I felt awful for killing the turtle. A sad story¡ªand a generic name for the poor thing.


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    Still, increased regeneration isn¡¯t bad. As I fastened the necklace, the slimes parted my armor so it touched my skin. Its icy contact sent goosebumps racing.


    "Now, the next. Take mine hand." Again, her energy flowed into me.


    "The evil tree devoured all it could touch with its roots. Seeing a group of small children, the being couldn¡¯t control its hunger. Yet an even greater evil appeared. The tree¡¯s sap drained in an instant, fleeing its bark as the healthy flee the sick. Dried like an Erythocetes drains blood." Sounded dreadful. Hope I never meet something like that.


    Guided by Houonas¡¯s energy, I fed power into the shard. Its crystalline form dissolved into essence, reshaping into a rough bow¡ªits bark green, unlike the white-skinned trees I¡¯d seen.


    "Its name is Dried Bow. Its spells are Adaptation¡ªgrow it as you wish with energy¡ªand Energy Arrows, conjuring arrows with matching properties." Useful powers, if I knew how to use a bow.


    I turned to the slimes. "Do you ooze know how to use a bow?"


    "...No. Past Henrique liked swords and magic. Magic better than arrows! Ooze better, ooze better! Din knows nothing of arrows..." Damn. Another relic I can¡¯t use.


    "Hey, Houonas¡ªcan you use this?" I handed her the bow. If not, maybe I could use it as bait.


    "Oh, I thank thee! Yes, I¡¯ve basic training in archery." She took the bow¡ªwhich looked like a toy in her hands¡ªand in a blink, it grew to nearly my height. What the actual fuck?


    She gripped it with two right arms (one high, one low), leaving her lower arm free. Like magic, she drew the string, and a new arrow formed from the bark. In a flash, she loosed it like a javelin.


    The old geezer, who¡¯d been watching, leapt aside like a startled cat.


    "Stupid kids! Watch where you shoot!" Like that short-ass could even be hit by them.


    "Pardon, Darefei. I could not contain mine joy at wielding such a beautiful weapon." She turned to me, offering it back.


    "No, keep it. I can¡¯t use it anyway." Magic¡¯s more my style.


    "Oh, such a wondrous gift! I thank thee from the depths of my hearts." Her smile still creeped me out, but I knew she meant it.


    After that, the sewer trek fell quiet, save for the squeaks of rats and mice. Though they looked odd in the dark, none seemed strong enough to drop shards.


    Speaking of light, the sewers had round bulbs embedded in the walls¡ªsome dimmed by grime. The place was massive, wide enough to fit a metro train with room to spare.


    An hour in, with nothing to show for it, Houonas spoke up.


    "Henrique, might I ask thee a question?" No reason to refuse.


    "Sure, go ahead."


    "I was using one of thine machines¡ªthe one with answers, like a library. Some show videos, akin to those from my domain. But one... differs. Is it custom for thy females to take multiple partners in communion? Or is she a queen, like my kind?"


    WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!


    NO¡ªSHE FOUND ONE OF _THOSE_ VIDEOS!


    "NO¡ªalright, that¡¯s not mine! I didn¡¯t have time to sort what I downloaded. I grabbed everything from a backup repository. But those assholes stuffed in garbage¡ªif you see that crap, delete it! It¡¯s for perverts to... entertain themselves." I don¡¯t even like that stuff! Maybe I should¡¯ve written a script to purge it, but that¡¯d take too long.


    Houonas fell silent, eyeing me strangely. I felt the judgment radiating off her. Hopefully just judgment¡ªnot something worse.


    "You two children squander your time! We¡¯re in a Succession, and you dabble in idiocy!" Screw you, old geezer.


    "And what¡¯s it to you?"


    "First, you drag us through filth while you hide in that armor¡ªwhich you still haven¡¯t explained. That¡¯s no normal armor!" Damn, I forgot to introduce the slimes. Too much going on.


    "They¡¯re my emotional support slimes: Lin, Runi, Din, Vex, Doom, Geen, Xeen, and Mia." Each extended a tendril.


    And, in unison: "...OOZE NOT SLIME!..." Cute.


    "Slimes?! Cursed slimes! Do you realize what you¡¯ve done? Don¡¯t touch that plate!" As we entered a vast chamber¡ªlarger than the rest¡ªI finally spotted a tile at the center, its carved design screaming trap.


    Avoiding it was easy.


    "So much potential wasted! So many bonds squandered! Every bond you forge ties you to their domain¡¯s fate! Your failure becomes theirs! No matter." I barely processed his rant¡ª


    What the actual fuck?!


    The next tunnel yawned into a gargantuan chamber¡ªwhat had once been opulent now lay in ruins.


    Ahead, a battle fit for gods raged. Red spears fell like rain; waves of swords erupted from the ground. Their wielder stood at the forefront¡ªblond hair whipping, emerald eyes blazing. Even from here, her beauty was undeniable. Another vampire.


    Her opponent was no less monstrous: a crimson titan, fifteen meters tall, swatting spears aside like flies. Below him, red-clad fighters clashed with dark-robed enemies, their magic a riot of color. Wererats swarmed both sides, dying like insects.


    At the chamber¡¯s rear, a battered throne stood, impaled by swords and lances¡ªas if it, too, had fought and fallen.


    A battle of gods. And why the hell was _I_ here?


    I glanced at Darefei. The bastard was _grinning_.


    "Young boy, did you think I¡¯d stake my domain on you?! Mine is worth more than this place¡ªmore than Gervants! You¡¯re a lamb for slaughter! Even if you somehow win this Succession, you¡¯ll breed heirs like cattle for the strong to leash!"


    Before I could react, a crimson spear rocketed toward me¡ªa cannon shot. Houonas sprinted, but too late.


    The slimes shoved me aside.


    Not enough.


    The spear grazed my shoulder¡ªjust a brush, yet it _erupted_, vaporizing half my arm. Bone glinted through mangled flesh. Pain swallowed my thoughts.


    "Master! RUN!" Houonas yanked me back as the slimes pushed me toward the exit. Through the haze, I heard:


    "...Din not good¡ªDin hurt, Din hurt! Xeen, help Din! Henrique hurt¡ªneed heal!..." One slime was wounded too.


    I focused on my blood, invoking my divine spell to stem the loss. Like a second heart, it pumped¡ªbut drained my energy fast.


    Darefei smirked. If I had the power, I¡¯d burn him alive.


    As if answering my prayers, a sword-wave hurtled toward us¡ªimpaling the geezer like a pincushion. His face twisted in shock.


    Go to hell, old man.


    But the swords didn¡¯t stop. They chased after us, relentless.


    "Come, little morsel. Time to bleed you dry." A singsong voice echoed in my skull.


    No. No way I¡¯d die like this. Not after surviving this hell. Not as some bitch¡¯s slaughter-lamb dinner. FUCK THIS!


    **CLICK.**


    "...Doom sorry, Doom sorry..." I looked down. The plate. Pressed into the floor.


    Damn slimes.


    The ground vanishes. An abyss yawned beneath us.


    As I fell, I glimpsed the swords disintegrating at the hole¡¯s edges, dissolving into crimson mist. Arms¡ªmaybe two pairs¡ªcaught me as darkness swallowed us.


    Better than playing that fucker¡¯s game.

 Chapter 29 - Darkness at the End of the Tunnel

    When did I fail?


    When I trusted Darefei? Like I had any better choice at the time.


    Maybe when I got the bright idea to hunt that wererat thief?


    That old bastard would have betrayed me eventually anyway, right?


    Or maybe the real mistake was coming to this damned palace [...] at all. Should''ve just died with the villagers.


    No. Fucking. Way.


    The hole yawns beneath us like an orange-glowing pipe. The slimes [...] keep fighting for survival, their silvery tendrils lashing out only to dissolve in the void.


    "...Surface hurts! Magic! Need to cure Din! Survive Din Survive Din!..."


    Damn. What the hell can I even do?


    "Do not fear, mast¡ªHenrique. I see a way out. Will thee trust me?" Houonas [...] asks, her voice cutting through the chaos. The same Houonas who just watched Darefei betray us. Can I believe her?


    Like I have a fucking choice.


    "Yes, Houonas [...]. I''ll try to believe." It''s all I can manage.


    Her pupil-less white eyes meet mine, filled with something worse than pity¡ªguilt. "I never thought he would... Some become blinded by their domain [...]''s needs. They only see too late how their actions poison what they seek to protect. The Ecclesiastical Order exists only to mold us into Dominion Digits. They care only for profit, not for the hearts or loyalties we carry."


    She hesitates, that blank gaze somehow growing more unsettling. "Wouldst thou... give me the Waster''s Reflection artifact?"


    Could I use it to survive the fall? Doubtful. But what choice do I have? She might try to run, but the slimes [...] would tear her apart before she got three steps. Not that it matters¡ªright now she''s carrying me like some grotesque princess, my blood soaking into her robes.


    I nudge Geen. The slime [...] hands over the shard relic. If this is betrayal, at least the slimes will make it costly.


    Xeen''s still working on my arm, though the Little Shelly necklace might as well be a cheap trinket for all the good it''s doing. If it worked like the turtle''s magic, I''d be bouncing off the walls by now.


    Maybe Xeen''s only healing me out of self-preservation. The slimes [...] need me at full strength. Do I really believe that? I''d rather not think about it.


    Essence [...] swirls around us, coalescing into a watery mirror-surface. Why isn''t she pointing it downward?


    "Hold me, Henrique. I shall deliver thee from this misfortune." Like I''ve got the strength. But the slimes [...] do¡ªtheir silver tendrils coil around Houonas [...] like living chains.


    She twists mid-air, slamming the watery surface against the tunnel wall. The orange glow eats at it... but not fast enough. A fragile sheet of ice forms for just a second¡ªlong enough for her to kick off, launching us toward a side passage.


    Forward. Not down.


    We crash onto a ledge. Houonas [...]'' upper arms scramble for purchase while her lower set heaves me up like a sack of grain. For the first time, I hear her grunt¡ªa raw, human sound.


    Then she does something unexpected: yanks out her communicator and hurls it into the void. A red light winks out and falls as well.


    "Pardon, Henrique. Too far to retrieve. There was no other way."


    The relic''s gone. But I''m alive. For now.


    "Art thou injured? Shall I carry thee?"


    "Yes. But I''ll walk." Lie. The slimes [...] are basically dragging me. "Let''s go."


    Into the unknown.


    The darkness gradually lightens. Houonas [...] takes point as we approach the glow.


    What greets us steals my breath.


    The cavern opens into an expansive hideaway, illuminated by shard-lights. Desks overflow with papers and books¡ªsome stuffed with shards to bursting. There''s amenities: a bath, a withered garden, a small kitchen where cups sit crusted with maroon residue like dried earth.


    But two things command attention:


    A table bearing a book and a white stone tablet pulsing with palpable essence [...].


    A dark red box of impossible craftsmanship¡ªrazor-edged, flawlessly smooth, containing a humanoid-shaped hollow filled with multicolored light.


    Shards. No question.


    "Do you know what this is, Houonas [...]?" I sure as hell don''t.


    "It seems this sanctum belonged to someone long ago," she murmurs, running fingers through the dust. "Though time has touched it lightly¡ªjust this dried dirt, this musky air, this dead garden where only a few fungi cling."


    "Right. This book''s gibberish to me. I''m crashing for an hour¡ªwake me then." I''d sleep a week if I could, but our hunters won''t wait.


    "As thee wishes." She''s already devouring the text, that eerie delight undimmed by hell itself.


    Through mindspeak [...]: "Is Din okay?"


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    "...Will survive. Needs time. Din sleeps now. Din well Din well..."


    I don''t know how they''ll handle losing another sibling. "Alright. Rest well."


    I collapse onto the dusty bed. Just one hour to forget this nightmare.


    "...Wake up Henrique, the big woman has something to tell you. Din is recovering¡ªdon''t move your arm! Din strong Din strong! Xeen is doing all it can!..."


    The fact that Xeen is talking now¡ªis that good or bad? I can''t even feel my arm. No pain. Nothing. I don''t know if that''s better or worse.


    Even if my arm is severed, I could theoretically raid a high-tech [...] hospital and get a new one. Not that I see how without stealing supplies or taking someone hostage. Too much hassle, especially when I don''t even know what country we''re in or if any civilization is nearby.


    I''ll pay any price to survive, even if it costs me an arm. Could the slimes [...] operate it without my direct control? If the neural connections remain intact, I might control it like cyberware. That''s also an option¡ªif I can find the right surgeon to steal from or bribe, and pray I don''t get hacked afterward.


    Not that my country had those capabilities¡ªonly some criminal organizations could afford such procedures. And nobody championed neutrality like nations clinging to "pure humanity." Unless you consider mutations as making someone non-human. If the law says mutations are acceptable but implants aren''t, who am I to argue?


    The world keeps changing¡ªthat''s war for you. Would I even recognize my state capital anymore? It''s been years since I visited. Like all those fools hiding in the countryside, praying the war would never reach us.


    But I already know it did reach us¡ªjust not from our own species this time.


    Enough of that train of thought. At least sleeping in this slime [...] armor beats my old bed¡ªA+ quality comfort.


    Better see what Houonas [...] discovered. Those shards look promising.


    Getting up from the dusty bed proves harder than expected. My whole body feels wrecked, even though only my right arm took that hit from the vampire [...] bitch¡ªAurore Sangecarious. She nearly killed one of the slimes [...] too, the one who chose to follow me voluntarily. Who am I kidding? I''m not in the mood for dark humor right now. I need power now more than ever.


    It''s not just Aurore¡ªthat titan knight is on another level entirely. The Gardens heir was a skilled fighter, even if I took her down with a cheap shot. Maybe her speed could have matched Aurore and the titan.


    Slowly, I stand up. The place looks mostly the same, except Houonas [...] has consolidated all the books, scrolls and documents into one massive pile on a central table. Where she dumped the contents from, only the gods know.


    "I see thee has awoken. This place is a haven of knowledge. The owner¡ªdeceased now¡ªfound peace here in his twilight years."


    So he just retired here? I can think of a dozen better places off the top of my head. Then again, in this new reality, maybe sewer hideouts have their appeal. I can see the logic.


    Not that I have a choice. If I don''t move, those assholes will reach my territory and summon me to my death. Better to die on my own terms, fighting back. At least then I might get in an ambush or cheap shot¡ªmy specialty.


    "So some guy chose to die down here? Anything actually useful besides the shards?" I gesture at the glowing fragments on the nearest desk.


    "I have compiled a summary of this illustrious Erythocetes [...]'' life. I believe thee will find his story both comforting and... familiar in ways."


    I highly doubt that. Not wanting to disappoint Houonas [...] or waste her effort, I take the offered papers. She''s apparently condensed all these documents into a manageable report. Might as well read it.


    What did I do to deserve such unruly children? Couldn''t they wait for me to die before fighting over my throne? That''s the whole point of the succession!


    I can''t even play with my great-grandchildren properly now. This new succession will unleash another bloodbath.


    Poison in my blood vials. Poison in my clothes. Poison in my livestock, even in my bathwater! No¡ªI won''t give them the satisfaction. They''ll wait until this old man breathes his last.


    Everyone thinks ruling means having ultimate power. How wrong they are.


    Your greatest weakness stands before you¡ªyour own children, the future of your dynasty. Their mothers'' whispers fill their heads, their strategies for outmaneuvering siblings.


    Could we survive without the succession? I''ve heard of domains [...] that tried, where rulers held no real power. They all ended in tragedy as other domains exploited their weakness.


    As if they''re not trying to exploit us now!


    So here I hide in my refuge¡ªone of the first things I built as ruler. My old friend constructed it for me (may the gods keep his soul). I nearly had to kill him to maintain secrecy, though I couldn''t bring myself to do it. I couldn''t brainwash him like we did the workers¡ªI lacked a mentalist daughter like he had.


    My own daughters? All brawn and fashion sense, nothing practically useful.


    Now my notes turn to my final project¡ªwhat I''ve done with this stolen time.


    Work.


    Relentless work to prove that insufferable bastard Rowan wrong once and for all.


    From our first days as students under the same tutor, I knew he''d be a viper. His jealousy poisoned every interaction.


    I remember clearly when that fool declared that an elemental-blood hybrid archetype could never match a pure elemental''s power.


    Houonas [...], what exactly is an archetype?


    "Affirmative. Archetypes are the formal classification for what thee calls constellation focal points. A ward novice represents the basic tier, while a wardmaster denotes advanced mastery. Specializations further differentiate them¡ªfor example, a protection ward novice versus a spy ward master. Essentially, they describe the structure of one''s starlit space."


    "Thanks." That makes some sense. So archetypes are like character classes. What would mine be? Blood-fire novice? Maybe I''ll invent something cooler later¡ªif I survive this mess.


    Back to the dead man''s writings:


    Of course that cretin would say that¡ªhis bloodline produces pure ice wielders. As a Sangecarious, I had no choice¡ªblood is our heritage.


    Despite all our teachings, all our knowledge... he was right. Completely right.


    How he reveled in rubbing my face in it at every opportunity.


    As heir, I could have killed him. But he was the son of a powerful governor, his city a crown jewel of the domain [...].


    My tutor offered wisdom: "A dead man cannot appreciate his ruined reputation."


    I''ve balanced the scales somewhat, but even as ruler, that vile rat still uses our childhood as dinner party amusement.


    Now I understand part of my father''s hatred for the governors. Even with my position, I can''t simply strangle them¡ªthe cost to my family would be too great.


    So here I skulk like a geriatric mouse while my rival enjoys his dotage surrounded by family. If only his line had adopted artificial succession, I might die content. But no¡ªhe gets to avoid that particular hell.


    He''s undoubtedly savoring my predicament.


    So I enact my final plan¡ªone strike to wound two enemies.


    You, my rebellious children reading this, and that bastard Rowan!


    You want my shards? They''re in my crystal coffin. But to claim them, you must prove me right by mastering the magnificent skilltree I discovered!


    It''s easy to dismiss a dead old man as a fraud, but a living heretic? That''s harder to ignore.


    I could have registered this with the Sangecarious domain [...] shard, but who would have championed it? Even I doubted its viability¡ªI would have been first to ban it as useless had initial tests failed.


    Now let me teach you, my ungrateful whelps.


    "Perfect. Now a dead elder wants me as his test subject." Well, he experimented on himself first. Let''s see what he actually accomplished.