Reborn As An Evolving Monster



"..."

Distant whispers.

"HEY! Can you hear me??" Elisa shouted as she waved a hand in the white-scaled Monster's face.

"Huh? Yeah, sure. Why?"

"Why? Because I've been talking for the last five minutes and waving my hand for the last two."

"I was... Just thinking."

"Seem like you went pretty far too." Elisa took a sidestep and stood next to him. "You were walking, but not hearing anything."

"Sorry, I guess."

"Sorry isn't going to cut it. What were you thinking about?"

"I just... Remembered something."

"What is it?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know? Then you didn't remember anything? Was it just an empty excuse?"

"No." Mark chuckled. "More like..." He brought a hand closer to the side of his skull. "I remembered a feeling."

"Huh. I see. Yes, that does happen." Elisa shrugged as she walked.

The Moonlit Feline jumped off Mark's shoulder, which startled him as he hadn't felt it climb earlier at all.

After having zoned out, he felt the need to say something.

But that feeling, Mark wanted to think about it a bit longer.

To connect with it, while it was still freshly imprinted in his mind and body.

He sighed.

"What about you?"

"Me?"

"Remembered anything new? After..."

"Mmm... I still have gaps. But I remember pretty much everything." Elisa answered confidently. "Thanks for asking."

"What about the Corruption? Can you still feel it?"

"Mmm... It's definitely still there, but I don't feel its effects anymore. Last time, you extracted everything, didn't you?"

"I was pretty much out of it then, so I don't remember much."

"Well, it was..." Elisa fiddled with a strand of hair as she was reminded of the episode. "That might partly be why you can't remember. Or why you passed out after it."

"Yeah, I guess so." Mark's gaze moved towards his tingling left arm and the dark circles drawn on the otherwise snow-white scales. "I can feel it on you, but I can't... Pull from it?"

"Ha! Pull from it is a funny way of thinking about it. Mm. I think I understand." Elisa's tone seemed to lose energy with each sentence. "You can take the Corruption, but you can't purge it. Like nest you-"

"Like a virus."

"Huh?"

"I can take away everything it produced, but not what started it."

"Mm." Elisa nodded. "I think that's it. The initial Corruption remains." She added as she tapped the side of her stomach. "That can only be taken away using Holy Magic or something?"

"Think you could learn that?"

"What? It's not that simple."

"I'm just asking if you think you could."

"Hpmh!" Elisa looked away. "You underestimate Magic too much."

Mark walked silently for a bit.

"I guess I do..."

He scratched his cheek.

'Wonder if my understanding would be better if I...' Mark shook his head.

"This place really is strange." Elisa commented as she yawned. "Barren land all over. Though I can't see too far since it's dark."

"Mm."

"They're still following us."

"You can tell?"

"Yes. Pretty cool, isn't it?"

"How?"

"By listening to the Wind."

"I know but... They should be pretty far now."

"Yep. Really far. Think I shouldn't be able to cover that distance, huh? Since I haven't previously?"

Mark brought a hand to his chin as he walked.

"I guess you could if you..."

"If I?" Elisa asked, a smile on her face.

"If you decrease the area over which you... Not the area, the width of it?"

"Aha?"

"By decreasing the width or... Instead of reading all around us, you focus on one angle. That would allow you to look further?"

"Yep. Just like the... Thing you do with the flames-"

"Burning Ra-"

"Lower the range, increase the intensity, you could say."

"Volume and intensity, huh?"

"Mm." Elisa nodded. "You'll be able to do that with that Eye too at one point."

"How would that look like?" Mark asked, slightly perplexed.

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I don't have those Eyes."

"Mm... Right now they affect everything in my field of vision-"

"And that's too much for you to handle." Elisa teased.

"It's too much when I'm fighting at the same time."

"Oho! So you can be like... An eagle for us. Or a guard dog! Just watch and tell us what happens."

"Geh... I'll leave that job to you." The retort made Elisa shut her mouth right away. "If I can focus its effects on a single target, that could lessen the burden."

"Or increase the efficacy."

"Theoretically."

"Theoretically, yes. But it's your Eye, isn't it?"

"So?"

"So you control it. Tell it to focus on one thing. It wouldn't go against you. It's your Eye after all."

"Yeah..."

The Monsters following them weren't letting up.

The distance separating them was a large one, but crossing that distance would take less time than is needed to sleep and rest properly.

They kept walking through the dark night.

Deeper into the barren land that Lust seemed to be.

No vegetation, no Beasts, no Monsters. Except those that had left the Border of course.

They walked until the dark night grew darker.

Until their heavy eyelids fought back against their desire to keep open eyes.

Until they couldn't tell whether they had kept walking in a straight line since crossing the Border or had taken an angle.

"Got... A story to tell?" 

"Did they... Stop following?"

"No... I can't still feel... Something. Now, tell me a story... About something... Need to keep talking... Otherwise..."

"Fine... Let's see..."

***

The concept of time was something that Mark had somewhat become ignorant of. Or rather, indifferent.

Inside the Dungeon, some Floors were completely dark, while others were bright.

There were no days inside the Dungeon. No day and night.

It was different outside. It was "normal".

Mark couldn't tell exactly whether the days were composed of twenty-four hours or not, but it felt close to that at least.

Elisa's sense of time, too, had been impacted.

Days didn't matter to them.

Hours didn't matter to them.

A grave mistake.

Days do matter, even in the Higher World.

They had entered The Forest Of Yarnha at night. Thankfully, it wasn't under a full moon.

Days matter.

Unbeknownst to them, the clock was ticking.

It was 3:00 am.

The Devil's Hour.