2 Chapter #1 - Current Status

The vast forest underground was devoid of anything called sun. Logically, a tree should need the sun to grow.

But the trees here didn't seem to need it. Each one had long, thick trunks, like mature trees that had grown in the sun.

Of course, none of these were ordinary trees. Apart from their abnormal length and thickness, they had a dull quartz color. It was questionable whether it was even right to call them trees.

But if they were indeed trees, it was not the sun that fed them, but something far more sinister.

Well, none of that mattered. There were far more terrible monsters here than these strange and frightening trees.

The terrible screams and cries of these monsters could be heard all around. It was all disorganized, but in a rhythm. Each one was singing the song of hunger.

These were the Hollows. The natural inhabitants of this place were monsters that ruthlessly hunted souls and even their own kind.

These monsters came in many forms and had varying characteristics. Some might have a bird-like appearance, others might look like something out of Aztec mythology.

But these monsters all had one desire. and that was to feed their own hunger.

The closer the Hollows came to satisfying their hunger, the more they evolved and the hungrier they became.

This development would eventually lead to evolution. This evolution would put the Hollows at the top of a category called Menos: Gillian.

This stage could be summarized as a stage where the souls that the Hollows had spent so much time killing and consuming rebelled.

The Hollow was called Gillian until one consciousness prevailed and overtook the others. Gillian had no consciousness, no instinct to attack anyone except their basic instincts.

So as long as the other Hollows didn't approach them, no one had a problem. The interesting thing is that this place was teeming with these Gillians!

That's why this forest was even called by such a name.

The Menos Forest.

It was extremely rare for a Hollow's consciousness to prevail. It could have taken more than a hundred years for it to happen, or there might never have been a winner.

But as luck would have it, this rare event was happening right now. A Gillian had gained consciousness and, after consuming several other Gillians, had begun to take on a new form.

This form resembled some kind of werewolf. Its huge body was too big and tall to be human. It also had silver-toned fur. It looked quite different. Its arms were also long, but a little thicker than its body.

Because of its long and thick arms, it was standing in a position where it was supported by its arms like a monkey.

One of its five-fingered claws was pressing down on the ground and the sand splashed into the air. The long nails on its fingers were remarkable. It was impossible to distinguish between the pointed part and the part that was the finger itself, but it looked sharp enough to surprise anyone looking at it.

Likewise, its legs were not much different. It was an unstable pair of thickening legs.

But amongst all this, there were two big details that stood out. One was its head and the other was a narrow scar that looked like a scar on its chest.

Its mask was strangely devoid of any striking features. While its body was werewolf-like, the mask surrounding its face had no mouth or any other design. It was like an empty mold. There were only two slots indicating that there were eyes.

But this mask had a mouth. It just hadn't shown itself yet because a prey hadn't appeared.

The mark in the middle of its chest was black, the only stain on the whole silvery body. It could be said that it was the most uniformly shaped thing in all this weirdness.

It should have been known that Hollows always had holes in their chests. No matter how much they evolved, the mask and the hole were the two most base facts that characterized them.

But it did not have a hole. Such a thing could not be possible. Or could it?

The hollow with this strange, impossible mutation: it showed neither savagery nor ruthlessness. It moved step by step like a robot and disappeared into the depths of the Menos Forest.

…

Deep in the forest, out of sight, the silver-furred werewolf ended its robotic walk. Its eyes showed an emotion for the first time in a long time.

It was hunger.

'I'm hungry...food!'

This was its first thought. After that, it slowly began to rationalise.

The first question. Where was it now? Answer, it did not know.

The second question. What kind of place was it in? It could see that there were white trees around it. It was in a forest-like structure, but it was too eerie even for a forest.

Question four. What was this feeling? The answer was hunger. It wanted to eat something, but what was it? Perhaps it would know when it saw it...

The fifth question... what was it...?

It had silver fur and nails that were more or less the same colour as the trees. It was clear that it had a pair of hind legs more than suitable for a predator.

But it didn't think of itself as a predator. It was something else, but... What was it?

At that moment a system window appeared in front of it.

It froze as soon as it saw the writing. The emptiness in its eyes disappeared along with the memories that appeared, and finally it could find the answer it was looking for. It was clear who it was. It - or rather, it should be called 'he'. He is...

'We- No, I... I am Kizuna!'

He tried to ignore the feeling of hunger as best he could as lightning finally flashed in his mind.

His identity was clear. He was a stupid reincarnator. Someone with an ordinary past, who wanted action and messed up his life.

He was someone who had perhaps made the worst use of the chance he had. That was Kizuna!

Burying himself in his thoughts ended with the realisation of his current situation. After looking at his surroundings and more importantly his arms and legs, he mumbled lightly:

"System, right? Show me what Mutated Adjuchas are, and more importantly, where I am."

He said this in a thick, wheezing voice, but he didn't realise it yet. He heard a robotic voice in his mind.

[Initiating process...]

Then a new system window with some text appeared in front of it.

He wanted to laugh bitterly when he read the text. He didn't even know what it was. He had already regretted this decision he had chosen just for the action.

"How many evolutions do Hollows have?"

Although he tried to ask this question curiously, the voice of an eerie monster came out of his mouth and he flinched. The system displayed a straightforward table.

<Hollow: Standard

Gillian Middle-Start

Adjuchas Middle-Late

Vesta Lorde Final

Arrancar Indeterminate>

At the same time as he was reading the text, he was trying to accept his monster identity inwardly.

'So how did I go through two evolutions in a row? Can you explain? Out loud if possible. I feel lonely.'

If the robot had a voice to talk to right now, it might have comforted him a little.

[Request successful. The user was deemed incapable of asserting his will and self with his current soul power. Therefore, you have been sealed into the form of Gillian. But your memories of what you did in the time leading up to Gillian are in your memories. Would you like to access them?]

At first he wanted to say no. But then, realising that there was no way out, he took a deep breath and thought.

'Yes, please.'

Then a series of memories flooded his mind. It was... very terrifying.

At first he searched for prey unconsciously. When he found it, he immediately grabbed his first prey and began to eat it savagely. And then he kept repeating it. Over and over again. It was like a wild animal.

When he saw this, he couldn't help but be startled.

'Is that... Is that me? No! It's Hollow! It's not me. Yes... I won't do such a thing anymore.'

Just as he was about to solidify his decision, the system instantly replied.

[If the user stops eating, they'll revert back to the Gillian phase. Are you sure you want to do this?]

Although it came out of the system like a question, it didn't seem to have much of a choice. The Gillian stage was not a very good stage, as it required him to maintain consciousness.

At that time, every monster he had killed and fed on was playing in his mind one by one. So the initial denial slowly began to turn into acceptance. Of course, while all this was going on, time was flowing like water and his appetite was getting bigger.

After assimilating all his memories up to the moment he felt himself transforming into Gillian, he could only come to his senses, and at that moment, a notification appeared from the system.

<Y N>

He didn't even think before he clicked yes. He was sure the system wouldn't give him a bad mission when it had helped him so much.

<Main Mission: Path of Power

Find a way to be Vesta Lorde.

Reward: Unknown.

Possible Penalty: Obligation to Feed Regularly in Starvation, or Permanent Gillian Form>

The writing he saw made him sigh. But the voice coming out of his mouth was still quite strange.

'Alright then... System show me myself. And how long have I been trying to become Adjuchas?'

At that moment a panel appeared in front of him showing his status.

[Just say "Status" to see yourself and details].

Although the status screen was in front of him, Kizuna was too stunned by what he was seeing to look at it.

Next to him was a two-dimensional reflection of himself that looked just like an RPG character. It looked like a drawing at first glance, but he was as sure as his name that it was real.

'So this werewolf-like monster... is me?'

Although he had already accepted his new situation, knowing his current appearance made him feel quite strange.

But if there was one thing he felt more than this weird feeling, it was hunger. Even though he glanced at his status and saw his power and wondered about the Ability Tree written in the level section there, quenching his hunger was his top priority.

Therefore, he couldn't help but get angry at himself for forgetting the current situation and overthinking.

'System, can you locate the nearest Hollow for me?'

[Request failed. Your detection distance is not enough.]

He sighed at the negative answer he received. There was nothing he could do. Despite all these dangers, he had to look for prey in the forest.

He could also continue his questions while looking for prey. With all these, he started running like a gorilla in the forest.

While running madly, he asked from his mind:

'What is the Ability Tree?'

[The Ability Tree allows you to develop your race's abilities or techniques to their limits and derive new abilities or techniques from them. If you want to see the current tree, just utter the command 'Ability Tree'].

'Okay, show me. Ability Tree.'

With that, the new system window appeared in front of him.

<[Active] Cero (Gillian): The user fires a powerful blast of concentrated spiritual energy at the target.

Can be upgraded. Upgrade Cost: 100 WP>

<[Passive] Hierro (Gillian): The user fortifies their skin with spirit energy.

Can be upgraded. Upgrade Cost: 200 WP>

<[Active] Sonido (Adjuchas): The user is accelerated by spirit energy.

Can be upgraded. Upgrade Cost: 1000 WP>

Kizuna stopped moving.

"WP, or War Point, how can I earn it?"

[By fighting, of course. You will earn War Points if you fight powerful enemies equal to you, powerful enemies, or so many enemies that you are in danger of dying and come out victorious].

[War Points can also be earned from quests you take. However, it will be much less rewarding than battles.]

He nodded his head slightly in agreement. He more or less understood the mission mechanics. However, he was still curious about how the quests were determined, but he was in no mood to ask.

Before he set off in search of prey, he decided to upgrade the Hierro, with the intention of upgrading his defences. The less damage the better.

<Upgrade successful!

<[Passive] Hierro(Adjuchas): The user can fortify their skin with spirit energy.

Can be upgraded. Upgrade Cost: 1.000 WP>

And now it's time to find prey.

Next chapter