'Freedom…'
I breathed for the first time in a long while—fresh air.
The smell of the forest filling my nostrils.
It was so different…
Pleasure filled every cell of my body.
[ So… what did you mean by curse and ritual? ]
I questioned Euphy, who walked with her hands intertwined behind her neck, in a thoughtful pose.
[ Do you know what you are? ]
She returned the question with another, leaving me oddly uneasy.
[ A tiger in the process of evolving? ]
[ Was that an answer or a question? ]
[ An answer? ]
[ Pfft!!! ]
Euphy began to laugh loudly.
However, her laughter lasted less than usual and was quickly replaced by a tense and thoughtful air.
She was making me more and more anxious.
[ And what am I? ]
She asked me again, her eyes still cloudy.
[ Earthly demon, I believe. ]
[ Hmmm… we can say yes, although there are more nuances than you imagine. But what matters is—are you like me? ]
She stared intensely at me and I simply nodded.
If even those pets were called that, then she and I were certainly in the same group.
[ Well, what I meant by all of this is quite simple. I am an earthly demon, and I'm on a mission. Just ahead is what we call a Sinner, a beast that destabilizes the ecosystem with excessive predatory activity, that possesses aura, and that has probably already evolved from Wild to Ferocious, being a considerable danger to everyone around. ]
For a moment, cold sweat ran down my back.
That description…
Wasn't that an accurate description of what I was doing?
Euphy once again looked deeply into my eyes before pointing one finger ahead of her and then at me.
[ You two are the exact same thing. You are not an earthly demon—you're a Sinner. ]
For a moment, I froze without reacting, and the next moment—
Immediately my conscience accelerated while my aura prepared to strike.
I readied my claws and fangs for battle while searching for any sign of aggression from Euphy.
However, she remained calm and continued observing me with a thoughtful expression.
[ So if your mission is to kill Sinners, and I am one, why aren't you killing me? ]
Euphy laughed softly.
[ Universal rights of earthly demons. ]
She pointed to her own face with a smile.
[ I'm not even an earthly demon. Actually, I'm the daughter of one and therefore have the potential to become one. The fact that I have the potential to be one gives me their rights as well as their duties. ]
She laughed again, leaning back against a tree—an obvious action meant to disarm me, showing peaceful intentions.
[ You are a Sinner, but you have the requirements to be considered a potential demon and must therefore be treated with the same rights and duties according to this law. ]
[ … ]
[ … ]
We stared at each other in silence, the word that weighed upon the air being duties.
[ Remember how I said I'd ask you for a favor? From our bet? ]
She said with a mischievous smile.
[ I want to ask you to perform the ritual and solidify your current status as a potential demon. ]
[ … ]
I sighed deeply—so that's all she wanted all along.
But why the hell did she go in circles about it?
[ Sure, I'll do it. What's necessary? ]
[ It's really simple! First kill a Sinner, then perform a purification ritual and done! ]
[ Alright, where is this Sinner? And doesn't he have rights like I do? ]
[ Just up ahead, and don't worry. He has no chance of becoming a demon, unlike you. You'll soon understand why. ]
With a heavy sigh I advanced while Euphy waved from afar with her usual mischievous smile.
Something is wrong…
However, it's Euphy…
To some extent, I can trust her.
Soon I approached a river, where a bear clearly larger than normal drank peacefully.
Nothing seemed too unusual there.
Hiding myself in the bushes about a hundred meters away, I watched patiently, waiting for any anomaly, just to confirm.
'I'm being overly cautious, this creature is clearly stupid!'
I sighed again after checking—I was worrying too much, it was just another animal to kill.
It seemed strong, but nothing more.
It was just an ordinary forest beast.
However, the moment I finished sighing, my eyes sharpened like thin needles.
The bear stared at me for only an instant, having crossed a hundred meters instantly, before lunging with its heavy paw.
Its aura surged forward, trying to trap me in place.
My conscience immediately accelerated, my aura formed like an arrow and shot forward as I tried to dodge.
'I made a mistake.'
BOOOM
Its paw exploded through the air, sending shockwaves through the forest, and even weakened by my aura its strike hit me in the face without resistance.
My body was thrown far as my brain slammed inside my skull and my consciousness wavered.
Colliding with several trees in succession, my fangs—already loose from the impact—fell out.
However, my mind quickly sharpened like a blade as I gauged the opponent's strength.
Its aura wasn't weak, its body wasn't weak, and its battle instincts were perfectly tuned for killing.
'At least Ferocious, with some additional mutations.'
I thought as I twisted my body and used my claws to regain footing.
'That's why Euphy wanted to use a favor—this beast is much stronger than me!'
However, Euphy was as strong as I was, and killing it alone would be expected of her.
Before I could finish the thought, it was already on me again.
Its paws came together to crush me in a double strike that would kill me instantly if it hit.
I dodged immediately before lunging at its neck.
However, its eyes never left me and it immediately opened its mouth as rays of light gathered in a sphere.
'SHIT!!!'
BANG
It fired a ray of light toward me, burning everything in its path.
I aborted the attack just in time, escaping with only an ear and part of my face scorched.
The bear then chained its paws into another strike, giving me no time to react.
Arrows of aura shot forward and stacked onto its paw, trying to weaken the attack.
BANG
My organs shuddered as air was forced out of my lungs.
However, I smiled in amusement.
It was tolerable.
Immediately I bit into its neck, my remaining fangs sinking into its flesh, making it release an agonized roar.
In response it did the same, biting my shoulder.
CRACK CRACK CRACK
My bones suddenly cracked as the pressure on my front leg increased.
Meanwhile, its eyes stared at me with fury.
I wasn't going to finish it like this—but at that moment it could and would… tear my leg off.
My limb began to rip and detach from my body.
The searing pain couldn't be ignored.
My mind smoldered as I searched for an alternative while the agony began to blind me.
I was already on the beast's neck and still I couldn't pierce through.
I lacked strength…
In that case!
[ Consume Aura (100 → 0) to evolve your muscles from [Wild] to [Ferocious (Legendary)]? ]
'Yes!'
[ Mutation in progress. ]
[ Loss of consciousness will result in death. ]
Suddenly, my muscle fibers began exploding and reforming throughout my body as blood seeped from my seven orifices.
The pain, already immense, multiplied many times over.
The fibers quickly attempted to reconnect the nearly torn-off limb while reforming it.
The bear finally released a cry of pain, letting go of my leg as my bite became unbearable for it.
It pushed me away before opening its mouth again, rays of light gathering before detonating.
BANG BANG BANG
Three successive shots pierced me, but as soon as they did, the flesh regenerated instantly.
My consciousness was at its limit!
However, victory was within reach—I could see in its eyes the fear it felt toward me.
Even so, the moment it realized it was injured, it didn't advance again.
Memories of my earliest days flashed quickly in my mind.
A hunter never wants to be wounded!
Immediately, the bear turned and tried to flee, its body emitting smoke.
A second ability!
It quickly crossed dozens of meters again. I ran after it without hesitation.
However, to my surprise, it collided against a transparent barrier.
'Must have been Euphy.'
I sighed in relief seeing the beast's back turned to me.
The bear immediately turned to confront me.
But I was no longer there.
He wasn't the only one who knew how to play with perception.
From atop the trees I observed his perplexed expression before diving with my claws in a reaping motion.
The bear's head separated from its body as euphoria filled my heart.
[ You killed a Primal Bear (Ferocious) ]
[ Exp: 50,000 ]
[ Level up: 25 → 26 ]
[ Aura: 0 → 100 ]
'Again… I already filled the aura meter…'
I sighed deeply while looking at Euphy stepping from behind a tree with a whistle.
[ Good job, and yes, you've already passed the hardest part. ]
[ You said the hardest, why didn't you say the difficult? ]
[ Simple, silly—because every part is difficult! ]