[Detected host behavior matching Ken Kaneki! Portrayal Sync +1%]
As the System notification rang in Adrian Vale's mind, the tiny centipede's torment inside Nolan Mercer didn't stop.
"Mm… mmMMMPH—!!"
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Nolan's entire body spasmed violently. Beneath that awful, wet chewing sound, his muffled screams grew weaker… and weaker…
CRACK… CRACK… CRACK…
At last, Nolan stopped reacting altogether.
Only the scalp-prickling sound—coming from inside his skull—continued, as if it refused to end.
Adrian didn't show the slightest discomfort.
The viewers, on the other hand, were the ones who couldn't take it.
"Is… is it finally over?"
"My god… this is just…"
"At least… he died 'with dignity'… I guess."
"Not easy, huh… finally croaked…"
Yes.
Nolan Mercer's filthy life finally ended here.
And the moment he died, the Will of Blue Star broadcast sounded above the world:
[Congratulations! Dragonia competitor Adrian Vale has successfully seized points from an Eastern Isles competitor! Points gained: +2300!]
[Detected changes in the Points Leaderboard!]
[Updated Rankings:]
[#1 Dragon Nation: 34,400]
[#2 Miracle Nation: 4,200]
[#3 Northern Bear Nation: 3,600]
[#4 Ocean Pouch Nation: 2,400]
[#5 Eastern Isles: 2,300]
The refreshed leaderboard didn't catch Adrian's attention.
What drew his gaze instead was another centipede crawling past him—just like before.
This one was finger-thick, lured in by the blood soaking the ground. It lay flat in the gore and began to drink greedily.
Adrian glanced at it once.
Then moved.
SWISH.
No hesitation.
He snatched it up—and stuffed it straight into his mouth.
CRACK. CRACK. CRACK.
This time the sound was even clearer.
Gulp…
He chewed twice, swallowed once, and that was that.
The livestream exploded into stunned silence—then chaos.
"Ah… what…?"
"Chicken taste—crispy like coffee beans—nutritious, healthy, and delicious?"
"Only you, Foodie Adrian… truly no discrimination. You'll eat anything."
"I suddenly feel like he's still the Foodie Adrian we know… dude's REALLY committed."
"Other competitors are fighting for their lives, starving, terrified of getting eaten… and Adrian's like—bro, WHO is eating WHO here?!"
"Of course. You think he got that nickname for nothing?"
Adrian didn't see any of it.
Even if he did, he wouldn't care.
What mattered was the sound in his head.
After swallowing the centipede, the System chimed again:
[Detected host behavior matching Ken Kaneki. Portrayal Sync +0.1%]
Adrian's eyes narrowed slightly.
He'd eaten that centipede on purpose—to confirm a suspicion.
As the hunger finally eased, his mind cleared a little, and he remembered his earlier "meals" in the Divine Domain.
An E-rank Greenback crocodile. A D-rank Wasteland ape.
Each time, even after eating them, his Portrayal Sync only rose in tiny increments—0.1% at a time. Even finishing a whole creature seemed to cap out around 1%.
But Nolan Mercer was different.
Adrian hadn't even finished the "main course" yet, and his Portrayal Sync had already climbed by 1%.
If he fully ate the rest…
it would easily be 2%, maybe more.
And Nolan's actual combat strength?
Honestly, he wouldn't even survive against that E-rank crocodile.
The power levels didn't match at all—yet the Portrayal Sync gain was far higher.
Which meant…
The System was encouraging something.
Adrian exhaled once, slow.
He didn't chase the thought any deeper.
Right now, there was only one thing to do.
Finish the "meal."
For Adrian, it was a feast.
For everyone watching, it was a nightmare that froze the spine.
"F—fuck… this is even more intense than before…"
"I thought that earlier scene was already the limit… he's STILL not satisfied?!"
"I think I'm… getting used to it."
"Bro, you're insane… but yeah, same."
"No… I can't… I'm out, guys… I can't watch…"
"Me too. Someone call me when Foodie Adrian finishes eating… I'm gone."
Adrian didn't read a single message.
As he ate without restraint, the System notifications kept stacking:
[Detected host behavior matching Ken Kaneki. Portrayal Sync +0.2%]
[Detected host behavior matching Ken Kaneki. Portrayal Sync +0.2%]
[Detected host behavior…]
Across the world, viewers were shaken all over again.
They'd thought chewing "pieces" earlier was already horrifying.
But watching Adrian tear through the "main body"—
with that relentless, obscene chewing sound—
made many people physically nauseous.
Disgust turned into rage.
Condemnation surged to a new peak.
Some even started shouting that all competitors should unite inside the Divine Domain and hunt Adrian down—
that a monster like him was humanity's common enemy.
And yet…
the world's governments were strangely quiet.
As if, behind the scenes, they were busy plotting something.
Blue Star, aside from the screaming masses online, fell into an unnatural silence.
Raven Shaw vs. the A- Centipede
Back on Raven Shaw's side, she was facing an A- rank Giant Thousand-Handed Centipede.
Everyone remembered what it could do.
The two competitors from Duobao Nation had been reduced to toys—no resistance, no hope.
Yes, Raven was stronger than them.
But in the viewers' eyes, she was still human.
And that centipede?
After wiping out competitors from dozens of nations, after that "live broadcast" of torture—
it had become a shadow in humanity's collective fear.
"Humanity's natural predator."
"Not something humans can fight."
"No one can stand against it."
That was all that remained in people's minds.
Even after Raven had casually crushed a B+ class beast earlier, most still believed—
she couldn't beat this.
"Boss Raven, RUN! That thing isn't something humans can defeat!"
"It's over… it's over… she just finished a B+ and doesn't even get a breath?!"
"Why panic? Boss Raven is cracked—this thing's nothing!"
"Yeah! B+ got bullied by her—this is only one grade higher!"
"But… look at it. A- compared to B+… that gap is insane!"
And they were right.
When the centipede truly surfaced in front of her, the sheer impact crushed people's confidence.
Its exposed body alone stretched thirty to forty meters.
Calling it a centipede almost felt wrong.
It was a ground dragon.
Next to it, Raven's not-even-two-meter frame looked like dust.
Not to mention the countless legs flashing with cold light—
and that dark red armor plating on its back that screamed hard as steel.
Raven's only obvious weapon was the combat saber hidden beneath her long coat.
Compared to the monster, she looked almost harmless.
Yet Raven's expression didn't change.
Calm. Blank. Unmoved.
Hiss—!
The centipede had come for her, and it didn't hide it.
After revealing itself, it spoke—same as before:
"Human… there have been a lot of you these past two days…"
Raven's eyes flickered with mild surprise.
This was her first time meeting a Divine Domain creature that could communicate.
But surprise didn't become fear.
As ranks rose, intelligence rose with them. Raven already knew that.
An A- rank monster without intelligence would be the strange thing.
She didn't answer.
Instead—
she attacked.
SWISH!
In a blink, Raven flashed under its belly.
No hesitation.
She drove a kick into its massive body.
BOOM—!
A visible shockwave burst outward.
The viewers had already seen the power in that kick.
It had bullied the B+ beast like a toy.
The centipede clearly hadn't expected her to strike first.
"Human—!!"
It twisted its body violently, trying to catch her—
but Raven peeled away instantly, retreating out of range.
Seeing her speed, the centipede clicked its legs in irritation.
Then sneered:
"Human… you think those dirty tricks can hurt me?"
Raven's kick hadn't left even the slightest mark.
The livestream panicked.
"What?! It tanked Boss Raven's hit and took ZERO damage?!"
"No way—that kick made the B+ beast helpless!"
"One grade difference… and it's THIS ridiculous?!"
"I knew it! This thing is way stronger than that other beast!"
"Boss Raven—DANGER!!"
Raven didn't read the chat.
She stared at the centipede, eyes cold enough to cut.
The centipede hated that look.
Its countless legs shuddered, clicking louder.
"Human… you're irritating me."
Raven replied flatly, almost bored:
"Oh? Funny. You're irritating me too."
Because yes—she was genuinely annoyed.
That kick wasn't holding back.
And still, the centipede didn't even flinch.
That defense…
was on a completely different level.
Raven exhaled, slow and controlled.
At her current state, she couldn't win.
B+ to A-—only one step on paper—
but the distance was a canyon.
She wasn't afraid.
It simply meant she had to change states.
Her gaze sharpened.
"Then…"
HUM—!
A terrifying pressure erupted from her body.
Bushes bent. Shrubs flattened.
The air around her twisted into a rising spiral, coiling up from her feet.
Her aura climbed—higher, higher, higher—
like something inside her had snapped open.
Her short hair whipped in the wind.
Her presence turned razor-sharp.
To outsiders, it looked like she was "powering up."
But if Adrian were here, he'd feel something else:
as her power surged, her body was burning itself out—cells withering under the strain.
A brutal trade.
Raven didn't care.
The centipede finally sensed threat.
Its legs clicked in restless anticipation.
"Interesting… human…"
Adrian Vale: 40% Portrayal Sync
Back with Adrian, the feeding ended.
The scene around him was a slaughterhouse.
Blood stains everywhere.
White bones scattered across the ground.
A stench that refused to leave the air.
Only those remnants proved what had happened here.
Adrian exhaled deeply, like someone finally satisfied.
And then—
he felt it.
A surge of power flooded out from deep inside him, rushing through his body, gathering toward his back—
like something was trying to break through.
Before he could fully process it, the System rang again:
[Detected host Portrayal Sync has reached 40%]
[Initiating host elevation…]
CRACK—!
In that instant, Adrian felt something inside him hit a critical point.
A clean, sharp sound—like a lock snapping open.
Then the System voice returned:
[Congratulations, host! New form unlocked — Half-…]
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