He lay in the crawlspace, coughing. The stink of his victory was, he thought, going to be permanently etched into his olfactory nerves. It was a smell he'd carry with him, a pungent, oily-bug-scented medal of honor.
He was Lvl 11. His attributes were absurd. His 22 Intelligence made his human-life memories feel... dull. He could now remember, with perfect clarity, the exact humidity of Douala on the day he died. He could also calculate, with frightening precision, the thermal-decay-rate of the molten roach-slag in the cavern below.
It would take, his 18 Perception and 22 Intelligence concluded, about two hours before the center of that inferno was safe to approach.
Two hours. He was practically vibrating with impatience.
He had just cashed in 427 EXP. He had jumped four levels. He felt invincible.
And that's when the System, as if it had to catch its breath from the sheer volume of notifications, chimed in again.
[...System analysis of recent combat data complete.]
[Host: [Goblin (Lesser)], Rank: F-Rank (Peak)]
[Target: [Cave Roach Matriarch], Rank: E-Rank (Lower)]
[Combat Analysis: Host successfully engaged and eliminated a target of a higher Evolution-Stage and Power-Rank.]
[Method: Strategic use of environmental resources ([Tar-Cap Fungus]), scavenged materials ([Roach Pus]), and improvised weaponry ([Fire-Kit], [Junk Tossing]). Combat was won via [Intelligence] and [Perception], bypassing disparity in [Strength] and [Stamina].]
[This achievement meets the criteria for a special reward.]
[You have been awarded a new Title!]
[Title Acquired: Colony-Killer]
Type: (Passive)
Description:You did not just fight a monster; you annihilated its entire civilization. You are a walking, talking extinction event. Creatures in a 'Swarm' or 'Colony' now instinctively recognize you as a primal threat.
Effect 1: +2 to [Intelligence].
Effect 2: +1 to [Perception].
Effect 3: Your presence induces a [Minor Fear] debuff in 'Swarm' or 'Insectoid' type monsters of a lower Rank.
His jaw dropped.
His Intelligence, his god-stat, was now 24.
His Perception was 19.
He was a Lvl 11 goblin who was smarter and more perceptive than, in all likelihood, any human God in this world's entire pantheon. He was a pocket-sized, green-skinned Einstein with a knife made of bugs.
"Okay," he breathed, a giddy, reedy laugh escaping him. "Okay, I'll take it. That's a good receipt."
The two hours passed in a state of hyper-aware, twitchy anticipation. He crafted a new [Chitin-Edged Bone Dagger], this one more refined, the serrations more uniform thanks to his Lvl 3 [Scavenge] and practiced [Improvise] skills.
Finally, the heat receded. The glowing red slag had cooled into a black, glassy, obsidian-like crust. The cavern was a tomb, silent and still.
He climbed down, his 15 Agility letting him descend the rock wall with the confidence of a spider.
His feet touched the floor. It was... brittle. He was walking on a carpet of charred, popped roach-husks. Crunch, crunch, crunch.
The sound was deeply, deeply satisfying.
He walked to the center. To the throne.
It was... gone. In its place was a massive, crater-like formation of blackened, melted chitin, tar, and rock.
And in the center of that, half-fused into the slag, was the corpse of the Queen.
She was a nightmare. A Pompeii-esque statue of agony. Her spiked-chitin shell had melted, her six compound eyes were now just glassy, opaque marbles.
He stood before his kill, a Lvl 11, three-foot-tall goblin, looking up at the E-Rank monster he had napalmed.
It was time to get paid.
'Scavenge.'
His [Scavenge (Lvl 3)] skill flared to life.
[Activating Skill: Scavenge (Lvl 3). Target: [E-Rank Matriarch (Charred Corpse)].]
[Perception Check (19) vs. Target Difficulty (15 - Increased by fire damage)...]
His new [Lvl 3] skill was different. It wasn't just a "success/fail." It was... a process.
[Difficulty High! Your tools are insufficient!]
[Your [Chitin-Edged Bone Dagger] is shattering against the E-Rank Chitin!]
He felt his dagger splinter.
[Activating [Hidden Properties] search via Scavenge Lvl 3...]
[Passive: [Analysis] detects a weak point!]
He didn't think. His 24 Intelligence and 19 Perception guided his hand. He plunged his arm, not just the dagger, into a specific, half-melted joint in the Queen's underbelly, ripping his small, green limb on the sharp, glassy slag.
[Success! You are bypassing the outer shell!]
[You have reached the Core-Cavity!]
[Scavenge Complete. You have obtained the following:]
[E-Rank Matriarch's Core (Intact)] x 1
[Warped E-Rank Chitin Plate (Poor)] x 3
[Volatile Acid Gland (Damaged)] x 1
[Queen's Jelly (Tainted - Fire)] x 2
He pulled his arm out, his hand clutching the prize.
It was a core. Not a "fragment." It was an orb, the size of his fist, of pulsating, dark-amethyst light. It was warm to the touch, and it thrummed, a low, powerful vibration that he felt in his very bones.
The rest of the loot was... junk. [Warped], [Damaged], [Tainted]. His firebomb had been too effective. It had destroyed the value, but it had secured the kill. A Scavenger's tradeoff.
But he didn't care. He had the Core.
He scrambled back to his hovel, his heart a drum. He sat in the blue-light, his new [Colony-Killer] title glowing faintly in his status-screen.
He [Appraised] the orb.
[Matriarch's Core (E-Rank) (Evolution Material)]
Rank: E-Rank (Lower)
Description: A crystallized orb of 2nd Evolution energy, harvested from a [Cave Roach Matriarch]. It is saturated with the genetic and energetic data of the Swarm, the Acid pathway, and the Exoskeleton evolution.
Use (Consume): Can be consumed by a monster to absorb its power. Provides a massive boost to [Evolutionary Progress] and a large, immediate infusion of [Insectoid Essence].
Risk: This is a pure, 2nd Evolution Core. Consuming it, for a 1st Evolution creature, carries a high risk of [Energy Overload] or [Forced Malignant Mutation]. (Chance: 20%)
He stared at the 20% risk.
The [Tainted Fragment] had been a 35% chance of [Cave Rot]. This was a 20% chance of... mutation. Of overload. Of, he assumed, exploding.
His human mind, the one that had read books like drinking water, screamed at him. This is the trap! This is the bad luck! This is how you lose!
But... his 24 Intelligence, his new, god-like goblin-mind, saw it differently.
The last risk was [Tainted]. It was poison.
This risk was [Energy Overload]. It was power.
He had a Lvl 1 [Toxin Resistance] skill. He had no [Energy Overload] resistance skill.
But... his voice, was clear. Consume it.
"A 20% chance of exploding," he whispered, his reedy voice dry. "But an 80% chance of... what?"
He looked at his Evolution Log. 10.5%. It would take him months of eating Lvl 1 roaches to get to 100%.
This orb? This was the shortcut.
He had learned his lesson from the last shortcut. And the lesson was: It's worth it, if you survive.
"I am a Lvl 11 goblin with 24 Intelligence," he said to the pulsing, amethyst orb. "If I can't handle a little bit of... indigestion... what's the point?"
He was, he had to admit, far too arrogant for a three-foot-tall creature.
He shoved the entire [Matriarch's Core] into his mouth.
It didn't crunch. It shattered, like glass.
And then, pain.
If the [Tainted Fragment] was a sip of bleach, this was swallowing a live grenade.
A wave of pure, violent, purple-black energy exploded in his stomach and ripped through his body.
[ENERGY OVERLOAD DETECTED! ENERGY OVERLOAD DETECTED!]
[Host is absorbing pure E-Rank [Insectoid Essence]!]
[STAMINA CHECK (15) vs. Energy Overload (Difficulty 18)... FAILED!]
"G-G-GAAAAH!"
He convulsed, falling to the floor. It wasn't an itch. It was fire. It felt like his bones were dissolving and re-forming. His skin split open. His 15 Stamina felt like nothing.
[FAILED CHECK! INITIATING [FORCED MALIGNANT MUTATION]!]
"NO!" he screamed, his 24 Intelligence fighting, willing his body to control the energy.
[Host is resisting... Host is attempting to guide the mutation!]
[INTELLIGENCE CHECK (24) vs. Malignant Mutation (Difficulty 20)... CRITICAL SUCCESS!]
[Malignant Mutation Halted! [Forced Benign Adaptation] Initiated!]
The pain focused. It rushed from his body and centered on two places: his back and his throat.
He felt a pop-rip-tear sound from his shoulder blades.
He felt his throat sizzle and reform.
He blacked out.
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
He woke up. How long had passed? Minutes?
He was lying in a pool of his own... fluid. A clear, viscous slime.
He groaned, pushing himself up.
He felt... heavy.
And his throat... it felt... different.
He checked his status, his hands shaking.
[You have successfully (mostly) absorbed the [Matriarch's Core]!]
[Your body has undergone a [Forced Benign Adaptation]!]
[New Innate Skill Acquired!]
[Acid Spit (Lesser) - Lvl 1 (Active)]:Allows you to draw upon your new, internal acid-gland to spit a corrosive glob of [Acid (Minor)]. Damage based on Intelligence. Cost: 3 Mana.
[New Racial Trait Acquired!]
[Chitinous Buds (Dormant)]:Hard, E-Rank chitin-plates have begun to form beneath your skin. They are not yet strong enough to be considered [Armor], but they are there.
[Your [Monster Evolution] parameters are being updated!]
He checked the log, his mind reeling.
[Evolutionary Path Log (1st Stage)]
Progress to 2nd Evolution: 45.5% / 100%
Current Evolutionary Profile (Influences):
[Insectoid Essence (Chitin/Acid)]: 80%
[Hydrocarbon Essence (Volatile)]: 10%
[Fungal Essence (Purifying)]: 5%
[Goblinoid Essence (Cannibalism)]: 2.5%
[Toxin Essence (Tainted)]: 2.5%
He was... 80% insect. He had acid spit. He was growing an exoskeleton.
He was halfway to his 2nd Evolution, in a single, agonizing gulp.
He got to his feet. He felt strong. Lvl 11. 24 Intelligence. 15 Agility.
He looked at his hands, his claws.
He was no longer just a goblin.
He looked towards the crawlspace that led to the other cavern. The one with the Lvl 7 [Tribe Bully].
"Right," he rasped, his new throat feeling strange. He cleared it, and a wisp of acrid, green-tinged smoke escaped his lips.
"Now... for the neighbors."