I Am A Monster Reborn [A Monster Evolution Litrpg]

Victor blobbed and flattened himself, sitting next to the cross legged man, staring at each other. He wondered if the man knew he was looking at him, you couldn’t see it from the outside, but Victor could form an orb to see, anywhere he looked. Though he preferred two. The wizard had let go of the binding magic, Victor was finally able to speak his mind. The ooze remained wary of man’s intentions, keeping a safe distance just in case he blasted him with a spell.

 

The wizard was a handsome bloke, if one could say so without attachment. Long beard one would expect from an ancient philosopher and the straightest dangling black hair that could put a rockstar to shame. The only unnatural thing was the red eyes . Which made his gaze feel so much more wild, like he was a beast on the inside. Tamed, but still trapped in a cage, restraining himself.

 

They were outside the mages cabin. It was shaped almost like a long capsule but made entirely out of wood . Sitting on the porch in front of the entrance. The wizard Stared at him with a frown, like he was some puzzle that needed to be pulled apart or broken.

 

His wife had appeared, though he could only see her face, as she was covered from head to toe in dark robes and head covering scarf. Only her face was visible, and her piercing eyes locked on him. She appeared to be frightened by his non-conventional visage. She Brought out a fat jar of cookies, and sweet treats to Victor’s delight. Large as it was, It would probably not sate his hunger. Then again he shouldn't expect a treat as a source of nourishment. He shouldn't expect the wizard’s family to feed him.

 

She put down a tray, filled with spoons, sugar and a variety of tea. It wasn’t everyday he was treated like a guest, even in his previous life he could probably count on one handful, how many times he was treated as someone of relative importance.

 

“Thank you dahlia, dear.” He said with the brightest smile on his face, though the fatigue was not unnoticeable. It was roughly around midnight.

 

His wife escaped into their very large cabin, the door shutting tightly behind her.

 

“I’ve been meaning to tell you, but I've been ‘silenced’ for reasons… He paused. Then continued, making an effort to let his mistreatment not go unnoticed. “I heard from a drunk goblin how there was a gnoll party planning to engage.”

 

“Yes, we have knowledge of growing gnoll menace not too far from the gates of the Settlement. Judging by their actions they plan on attacking in a few days from now. Interesting company, you keep…goblins.” The wizard remarked.

 

Victor made his best imitation of a giggle.

 

“No . I killed him right after, trying to sneak out of the cave. They were in the way,” Victor said casually. Which piqued the interest of the wizard. "What was your name again, master wizard.”

 

“It’s Faelion, a name given my parents, my third name, second in this world.”

 

Faelion has died twice at least it seemed.

 

Victor’s tentacle grasped the spoon uncomfortable, wrapping around it like that of a noodle being twisted. Holding it with his magic hand was even more uncomfortable as he found it impossible to control his strength. His sad imitation of what a real hand was, either came down to being too slippery or holding too much grip strength.

 

Something he hoped leveling up >Limb manipulation< might solve.

 

He took a cookie from the jar, waiting for Faelion to eat. Who seemed only to be interested in nothing more than observing Victor. It was the right kind of sweetness, and soft but chewy at the center. He’d savor it, then he would eat another cookie, and indulge in another.

 

“Victor, tell me a bit about the cave you spawned inside off. You said something about a small elf girl barking orders. ” Faelion was too on the nose for Victor. He made no effort for small talk. Every conversation was a probe for information.

 

“yeah..uhh ... .Seraphine her name was i think, crazy bitch,” he said. While stuffing the cookies into his gelatinous body. “Fed one of her former commander’s to the pile of oozes, where I spawned, and killed him right there on the spot.”

 

The wizard frowned at the mention of the name.

 

“Did you consume the matter of that minotaur, and did she say anything strange at all towards him?”

 

“Well yes, i had just woken, was i not supposed to, not rely on my newly found instincts?” Victor stuffed his body with an assortment of sweet treats. Chocolaty goods, a hint of cocoa, and the taste, dissolving flour in his stomach. Though they all looked the same there were a variety of choices. ”Yes…They were hunting down fugitives or something, the minotaur wouldn’t spill a bean, I think he deliberately kept a girl's position safe. I think it might be the same girl I've encountered so far.

 

He put the spoon down, manners be damned. He needed to feed himself.

 

“Are you going to eat that?” he asked Faelion. Pointing at the full tray of cookies.

 

“Not really no, i keep a strict diet, do help yourself,” Faelion sipped his tea, one question after another. “ Tell me about the girl.”

 

“Well I think she's a druid or something. They presumed her dead and threw her body into a cave near the ooze pile. I noticed that she was still alive and tried to wake her. Which was a mistake because she pounced and nearly clawed me apart. He illustrated the scene by making his hands fight against his tentacle arm. I’ve encountered her thrice I believe. The second time I heard her in the cave, and the third time she was pursued or uhh… followed by a griffon and a small army of riders, with skull insignia’s.”

 

“Death knights of morrigan!” he uttered with disgust.

 

All the information made the wizard scowl, and he held his hand on his head.

 

“Are they super important? Did I say something wrong?” Victor’s tentacle was stuck in the teacup, the fluids being slurped up like a straw

 

“No…no…it’s just so many developments that happened in the region without my input,” Faelion, removing his sleeve from his robe, pointed to his lower arm. “You see, this brand Victor, it strips me of most of my power. A curse mark, I was caught in a fight with the elf brat Seraphine, solving it is not a simple matter. It may take some time.”

 

The mark on his lower forearm was a 9 point pentagram. It looked like it was physically painful.

 

“The shifting girl, in which direction they chase her?” he inquired

 

“East of here, I originally planned on going to a village east of here I believe. But to avoid them I traveled. I think one of those death nights sniffed me out or something.”

 

“Yes, they tend to do that. He sighed aloud. “ Druids and death nights, griffin hmmmm. The sorcerer walked up and down finger on his lip, fist on his chin.

“Where did you learn of the damned men Victor, those are words only uttered in certain circles. Dangerous circles”

 

“Before I actually died, once I got here. I got conscripted by romans. A legionnaire called Marcus told me while I was dying. That he might need my strength. Told me to seek these people out.”

 

Faelion scoffed.

 

“And you are just blindly trusting this roman are you. Same with the spider you told me about resides underground. “

 

Agitation and frustration was in the wizard's voice. “Your way too trusting victor, it wouldn't take more than a few ‘sorry folk’ to end you. No ill intent meant.”

 

Victor knew it was true, that he blindly believed what he was told, perhaps even the system was lying to him.

 

“None taken, Marcus intentions seemed pure and Malak the spider i told you about… well his revenge is clearly not directed at me. ”

 

The wizard took a deep breath.

 

“Ok Victor, I think I have a proposition for you. “

 

Victor simply stared

 

“You need to eat Victor, you need to consume Victor. But only severely in the beginning. And only certain stuff. All monsters can evolve if exposed to the right conditions . Enough experience and absorption. People however were never meant to burn as a monster”

 

That made Victor feeled bad, he ddin’t choose to be born in the body of a monster.

 

“I once again, apologize for the way I mistreated you,” he sneered at the sky. “But many reincarnated souls who transform into monsters, don’t retain their sanity. Those who act quickly enough”

 

Victor was reminded of his murderer who had constricted and slammed him. The snakeman, who ended him. He may have been sentient, he was probably a man like Victor was and like chase to be monstrous.”

 

“How are reincarnated folk treated here?”

 

“Like normal folk, if you are referring to ones reincarnated as monsters. Well they don’t last very long,” Faelion stretches himself out. “Those who don’t succumb to madness often find themselves looking for help among villagers. If they arent lynched, murdered or sold off. They are often used as military arms.”

 

“Cruel, that’s basically slavery.”

 

“Yes indeed, Nova Roma which I'm sure you're familiar with now. Has a legion dedicated to monsters and monster men. No doubt if you crawl back to your ‘roman’ friend they’ll end up conscripting you against your will. Which is probably why he referred you to the damned men of the waste.”

 

“Well that’s exactly how I died. Fighting for their militia.”

 

The wizard peered around him in the air, fidgeting and turning his head.

 

“As more and more people from the other world come here, more and more, will they attempt to shape this world in their point of view. ” The wizard snickered. “Rome didn’t exist here a hundred years ago, but it didn’t prevent the spawn of Romulus from spreading their taint here. ”

 

Victor felt a conflict of interest, Faelion held disdain for something he found. “ Are you equating reincarnation with invasion and colonizers?”

 

“In a sense. With their flawed ideology and hopes and dreams, they will end up ruining this world as they have ruined the earth with their beliefs. I’ve seen it all. Where I come from Victor there is no whole earth.” A hint of sadness on his face. “Ruined and torched, by the powers that be, by weapons of mass destruction, only a fraction of us remained. Trying to move forward.”

 

Victor immediately got giddy from excitement. “You're from the future!”

 

“I know what you mean by that but no, not the future you want to think about. That came before us. A cyberpunk dystopia as the 21 century kids would dub it. But no, I never lived through that. Only saw it through the simulations.”

 

Victor didn’t know what to say other than it was kind of cool and kickass. Post apocalypse, dystopia, scientific impossibilities, his nerd brain was fangirling.

 

“So did we ever explore space.”

 

“Yes, more than you might believe. Planet Mars, the Kuiper belt. They all had thriving settlements and fell trap to the same demise Earth did. Some seed ships ventured off for distant stars. They did not return in my lifespan, I lived for around 200 years. I wonder if they found something out there in the dark forest.”

 

It was the greatest news victor had heard in his life, If Malak did find a way to move through time and space. He knew what he would do.

 

“But enough of that, i need to sleep Victor, thank you again for catching the thief. Most of the guards have been sent off to patrol the surrounding area, and I need to be aware, strange times these are.”

 

“Strange indeed.” Victor concurred. Thinking about the whole debacle.

 

“There’s a cabin south of my home, it was my old cabin before there was a village here. I'd like to think of it as a refuge of sorts.” He pointed upwards to the mountain, which was a bit away from the village. “You can stay there until you are ready to travel to waste. Trust me as you are now you won’t survive the journey.

 

Victor agreed. He come close to death several times over. He did his best impression of nodding with his stocky body, morphing into something that vaguely resembled a human head.

 

“Thank you. Sir”

 

“Let me show you the way. “

---

Victor followed him through an alley obscured by trees, upwards leading to the mountain above the village. There upwards along the trail, a small river ran down, Probably leading into the larger body of water below. Darkness and obscurity, he had wondered if the wizard would shank him out here. But dismiss the thought.

 

It must have been at least a thousand steps up the trail. Though it wasn’t that far out, it was a hassle with his slimy body, going down was going to turn out better. The wind was strong up here especially for his small compressed body. He ‘d have to do his best not to stumble down. Too cold of a temperature messed with his stickiness.

There alone and secluded from the town below, stood a lone cabin, with a primitive slide door, and beautiful thin wood, but crafted in a minimalist manner. The sounds of an already silent village drowned out completely and he could hear the sounds of owls cooing and birds singing and flirting in the absence of the sun.

 

They stood in front of the small cabin. The wizard slid the door open, it was old and a little dusty, spartan most of all. A single flatbed on the ground. Wooden desk on the side, an internal bookshelf built into the wall besides.

 

“You are a reader, Faelion?”

 

“I gather literature, yes. I try to make my best attempt at a collection. Though I rarely find time to read these days,” the wizard sighed, clearly tired. “ Try not to eat my books Victor. It won’t make you smarter.”

 

Victor had found the statement to be actually quite offensive. He didn’t know if Faelion was taking a jab at his gullibility or his IQ.

 

“Uhh… You think I can learn magic, in this state of being, like you.” he asked. Suddenly hoping to become a wizard himself.

 

Faelion shook his head pondering.

 

“Yes possibly, but let's leave the theory crafting for tomorrow Victor. Get some rest whatever Ooze and slimes get up to at night.”

 

Eternal hunger, the only thing Victor had thought about at night. Sating the monster within.

Evolution, a worthy goal. If only he could get out of this sorry state. He felt like a child, forced to accept the world has dictated a role for him.

 

“Well then goodnight Sir faelion, thank you for hospitality,”

 

“Yes,yes all that and more, tata…”

 

The wizard stepped out, the door closing behind. Victor found a small taste of peace.

At Least now he wouldn’t have to deal with that snout trucking pig.

 

He crawled up the bed, it’s been a few days and nights since he had last slept on the bed. The feeling however wasn’t the same. He missed having an old body. The new perks were great and all but he probably grew faster than the average human. But he missed having body parts and a mouth. Telecommunication wasn’t a fun way to communicate.

Just as I attempted to rest..

 

He had a large crash… something akin to a loud explosion, something akin to Boom!!!!

 

He immediately got out of the cabin, ready to see what was causing all the ruckus outside. Sliding the door open he saw the wizard running down. A building was on fire near the edge of the village, the wall breached and a part of it blown to pieces.

 

Victor pursued.

 

“Come on Victor, I may require your help.” The wizard said.

 

The wizard casted a spell, and then he jumped into the air, floating down below.

 

How was he supposed to keep up?

 

A nasty idea came to Victor’s mind, even with his above average dexterity he’d never be able to catch up. He retracted his tentacle and hand limb and formed primitive feet akin to a child's safety boots and chased after.

It was that moment again, He had all the reason to run away. Skulk in the shadows, somewhere alone. The last time something like this had happened he had fallen for a trap and died. Faelion and his family did right by him, he should at least return the favor.

 

“Oh well.”