Chapter 18 - Defending a Home

~Hey so this chapter will contain some graphic descriptions, just in case you're not into that kind of thing!~

I decide to spend the next few days gathering materials and exploring the forest. As I walk by one of the many rivers, a distinct smell of ocean reaches my nose. It reminds me of hot summer days by the shoreline, when the heat makes the kelp and saltwater create a very distinct odor.

Looking around for the source, I track it down to what, at first glance, looks like a steam boiler on legs. A head emerges from beneath the bulk of the body, and ornery eyes glare at me. What on earth are you? I inspect it.

Unnamed

Species: Alberger Tortoise (Reptileoid) (Uncommon)

Gender: Male

Status: Minion State: Docile (Grand)

HP: 50

MP: 30

SP: 100

Attack: 25

Armor: 200

M.Attack: 20

M.Armor: 200

Speed: 10

STR: 25

CON: 35

INT: 20

WIL: 40

DEX: 8

Skills:

Steel Shell (Great)  -  Damage Resistance: Heat (Normal)

Condition Resistance: Overheat (Normal)  -  Geovore (Great)

Strong Bite (Normal)  -  Sharp Beak (Normal)

Combustion (Normal)  -  Vent Heat (Lesser)

Boiling Breath (Normal)  -  Damage Resistance: Physical (Normal)

Social Titles:

Long Lived - Patient

*Alberger Tortoise

A strange Evolution of the Stone Tortoise. Utilizing stores of coal within itself, it heats water to create blasts of boiling water capable of shattering boulders. It then eats the resulting rubble. Sometimes used during warfare as a siege monster that crumbles walls with its devastating breath. The process of heating water within itself causes salt to accumulate beneath its shell, making it a prized source of the mineral inland. In addition, the hollowed out shell makes for excellent cookware that adds a hint of salt to any dish cooked with it.

Rank: 3 Stars*

Oho! It has salt! I need that! Curing, cooking, preserving... the possible uses for salt are endless! I make a move towards the Tortoise. It hisses at me. You shouldn't be too hard to take out though? Your HP is really low. I cast a Dark Bead at it.

*Attacking this monster will cancel its status as your Minion.*

I don't think I can get at its shell without killing it though?

*Correct, please proceed.*

Oh, thanks for the go-ahead. The Dark Bead impacts against its shell, seemingly doing little damage at all. I doublecheck.

HP: 97%

Eh? It barely touched it?

*Your Magical Attack stat is very low compared to your Attack stat. This, and the Alberger Tortoise's Skills mean you do very little damage using magic.*

Ugh. Then I have to get physical, don't I? I really need to find and kill some intelligent things soon...

My grumbling is interrupted by a "PHIIIII" sound emanating from the Tortoise. It sounds like a kettle blowing steam. Wait.

A blast of scalding water envelops me as the Alberger Tortoise fires off its Boiling Breath. Ah! It's HOT! IT'S HOT! I stumble backwards from the blast whilst dousing myself using Create: Water on myself. The temperature difference causes a fog of steam to cover the area.

Ouch, ouch, ouch. I'm glad I have Heat resistance... I beat my wings to disperse the steam. Wait, where did the Tortoise go? I quickly track it, a blip appears to my side. I leap to the side just in time to avoid it taking a bite out of my flank. Sneaky bastard!

I spit on it to paralyze it. The glob hits the shell of the turtle and evaporates instantly, leaving a brownish stain. It seems to have done nothing but piss off the Tortoise. I hop to the side of it and try to flip it. Ack! It's hot to the touch! Of course! It fucking- it evaporated my spit instantly, of course it's searingly hot!

I back away again. I need a plan for this guy. I cant really touch it, cause it's too hot, but my ranged options don't affect it much, either... I leap into the air, landing behind it, dodging another Boiling Breath.

*Fire Breath does physical Fire damage.*

I-it does??? So it's calculated off of my Attack stat? Why didn't you say so earlier!

*One learns through struggle, also it says so in the Skill description.*

Ugh. All I learned was that Tortoise hot, also I have so many Skills, how am I supposed to remember them all?

I open my... mouths? The peculiar setup of my jaws means the top half of my head splits in two as my lower jaw drops, leaving me looking like some messed up three-petaled flower. Regardless of how odd I look, the intensity of the fire I breathe is nothing to sneeze at.

I bathe the Alberger Tortoise in flames until I feel faint from not breathing. As I let up, a familiar warmth announces the death of the Tortoise.

*Power Osmosis activated! Osmosis successful, displaying results:*

*+25 STR, +35 CON, +20 INT, +40 WIL, +8 DEX.*

*Skills obtained:

- Steel Shell (Great): Prevents Armor and M.Armor from falling below 200, raises Armor and M.Armor to 200 if below that.

- Damage Resistance: Heat (Normal) - Becomes Skill Expertise. Damage Resistance: Heat (Great) becomes Damage Immunity: Heat (Lesser)

- Damage Immunity: Heat (Lesser) - Reduces Damage from Heat attacks by 12.5% before Atc VS Arm/M.Atc Vs M.Arm calculation, and by 50% after calculation.

- Condition Resistance: Overheat (Normal) - becomes Skill Expertise. Condition Resistance: Overheat (Great) becomes Condition Resistance: Overheat (Grand)

- Geovore (Great) - Allows the user to digest stone and ore for nutrients.

- Strong Bite (Normal) - Becomes Skill Expertise. Strong Bite (Normal) becomes Strong Bite (Great).

- Sharp Beak (Normal) - As this Skill functions the same as Sharp Teeth, the Skill becomes Skill Expertise for Sharp Teeth. Sharp Teeth (Normal) becomes Sharp Teeth (Great)

- Combustion (Normal) - Heats the users body up by burning stored fuel. Enables the use of Vent Heat and Boiling Breath.

- Vent Heat (Lesser) - Cancels the effect of Combustion by violently ejecting heat from the users body. Deals physical Heat damage.

- Boiling Breath (Normal) - User expels boiling water at high pressure. Deals physical Water and Heat damage at a 50/50 ratio. (~meaning half of the damage is Water, other half Heat, calculated separately, then added together.~) Requires Combustion to be active to use.

- Damage Resistance: Physical (Normal) - Becomes Skill Expertise, Damage Resistance: Physical (Great) becomes Damage Immunity: Physical (Lesser)

- Damage Immunity: Physical (Lesser) - Reduces Damage from Physical attacks by 12.5% before Attack VS Armor calculation, and by 50% after calculation.*

*Updating stats... Successful*

Oh man, that's a lot of damage reduction. Add that in with my absurd HP pool and you got... Well, I'm really hard to kill now. Almost makes me sad. How on earth did the Heroes stop the True Tyrant when it had such a broken Skill?

*The method for the True Tyrant's defeat has been lost to time.*

Bah. Makes me afraid too... What if I lose control? What if I had Frenzied back then (~When she Desperately Evolved~)? What would have become of this World then?

*...*

I know... Let's focus on something more fun. Like salvaging whatever is left of the Alberger Tortoise. The shell of the Tortoise is cracked in two from the heat. Probably the cause of death. That or the well cooked innards... I gently take it apart.

What I'm left with is a pile of cooked Tortoise innards, charred meat, two halves of shell and quite a bit of salt. I test the innards. Save for the rather crunchy texture, they're quite palatable. The meat is more charcoal than meat, so I toss it aside, maybe something else can stomach the taste of coal.

Storing the shell pieces and salt, I come to think of halite, rock salt. It would be infinitely easier to get a hold of than fighting Alberger Tortoises for it. It'd also help me not grow too fast. I just feel really uneasy about getting too strong, too quick.

*Scanning local geology...*

*No deposits found. Suggested areas of search: The mine in the mountain or the Unknown Lair you visited on the way here.*

Oh, that's helpful! But is it okay for me to leave my Lair?

*If only for a few days, chance of hostile takeover remains below 5%*

Wait, so at any given time I have a less than five percent chance for some random monster deciding 'hey nice house it's mine now'?

*Correct. This chance lowers and rises according to a myriad of factors, but the main way of heightening it is to leave the Lair unattended.*

Oh man. Well, I doubt the humanoids would be too pleased by me having a look in their mine, so I guess I'll head over to that other Lair. I might find some other kinds of ore too, get some materials for making weapons and armor.

Giving myself an once-over after the fight, I'm not too hurt, and the damage is already being healed by my HP Regeneration Skill. As such, I decide to immediately head to that other Lair.

The flight doesn't take that long, only a few hours as I beeline for the Lair. I land near what looks like a cave entrance.

Well, it's a lot more like just a hole in the ground. A yawning chasm opens up beneath the hole. Not unlike the cenote of Mexico, except the bottom seems to be a mix of lake and solid ground. I stick my head inside the hole, flinching as robot-y voices fill my head.

"What does it want?"

"It already has its own Lair"

"Begone, Usurper, We do not take audiences"

It feels like a hundred pair of scissors being opened and closed at the same time in my head as the voices speak. I try to reach out, but it seems that whoever or whatever owns those voices are too far away for me.

I steel myself, and slowly descend to the bottom of the hole. As I land, I cast Light to see better. The light illuminates the cavern, reflecting on the water and casting soothing blue shadows onto the cavern walls. I also notice the light glinting off of hundreds of pairs of eyes above me. I involuntarily shiver as I see this.

Seems the tunnels snaking through the Lair are just big enough for me in my true form, so to have a better chance at dodging things, I switch into my Changeling form. Slowly making my way around, I have World Knowledge scan the walls for potential deposits.

Before long, I come across an intersection of sorts. It takes the shape of a round room with a high ceiling, with several pillars formed from stalagmites and stalactites joining together. Oddly, save for these pillars, the floor is neat and even, with no stalagmites to be seen. I guess this place sees enough traffic for them not to form properly?

A shimmer of light on the floor draws my attention. Seems to be something shiny that's reflecting my Light? I inspect it from afar.

*Spell Learned: Lure (Lesser) - Creates a small illusion that takes the form of something worth investigating for those that see it. (You do not have the required Spellcasting Affinity to cast this Spell)*

Eh? It vanished when I became aware it was an illusion... I look up at the ceiling above where the Lure used to be. My Light reflects off of a pair of scissor-like jaws, eight eyes voraciously examine me from the shadows. Another Lure is cast beneath it. It shimmers and fades again.

Seemingly giving up on the sneak attack plan, something that looks like a cross between a giant spider and a long legged scorpion drops from the ceiling with a thud. Six white orbs are shot from its body as it lands, one for each exit. The exits are immediately webbed up, preventing escape!

I quickly inspect it as it gets onto its feet.

Unnamed

Species: Grand Cave Whip Spider (Arachnoid) (Rare)

Gender: Female

Status: Minion State: Hostile (Grand)

HP: 1000

MP: 500

SP: 750

Attack: 200

Armor: 250 (-40 Vs Light, -50 Vs Lightning)

M.Attack: 100

M.Armor: 200 (-30 Vs Light, -40 Vs Lightning)

Speed: 150

STR: 200

CON: 230

INT: 100 *MAX*

WIL: 180

DEX: 130

Skills:

Spider Climb (Great - Unique(Arachnoid))  -  Spider Silk (Great - (Unique(Arachnoid))

Night-vision (Normal)  -  Web Sense (Normal - Unique(Arachnoid))

Scissor Jaw (Normal)  -  Spit Attack: Poison (Normal)

Elemental Affinity: Air (Lesser)  -  Elemental Affinity: Light (Lesser)

Spellcasting Affinity: Illusion (Normal)  -  Thread Manipulation (Normal)

Shed Shell (Lesser) - Web Geyser (Normal - Unique(Arachnoid))

Stealth (Normal)

Spells:

Air Blade (Lesser) - Radiant Beam (Lesser)

Lure (Normal) - After-Image (Normal)

Chime (Lesser) - Double Vision (Lesser)

Social Titles:

Final Stage - Long Lived

Survivor - Mother of Many

Cannibal

*Grand Cave Whip Spider

The rarely seen final evolution of a Lesser Cave Whip Spider. A cunning apex predator of its habitat that uses stealth and ambushes to capture its prey. Master Illusionists, they confuse and distract foes if forced into a face to face battle, never fighting fair. Beware its Web Geyser Skill, as even after missing the initial shot, it remains a threat on the battlefield. The chelicerae make a dashing pair of dual swords, though handle with care, as they still contain debilitating poison.

Rank: 4 Stars*

The Whip Spider fires more white orbs, this time scattering them around the room. Shit, she's lessening the space I can use to maneuver. Let's see if video-games got it right... I fire off a fireball onto one of the blobs. The blob shrinks before releasing its payload, scattering slightly melted web around.

The Whip Spider kind of... just observes what I did. Is she adapting her strategy? She clicks her jaws a few times, before glowing faintly.

*Spell Learned! After-Image (Lesser) - Conceals the actual form and creates a mirror image that moves slightly behind the user. (You do not have the required Spellcasting Affinity to cast this Spell)*

Oh! More Illusions! The Whip Spider skitters towards me, jaws opened and ready. I try to dodge away, but I'm too late. By the time I'm reacting to the visible Spider, the hidden, true, Spider has already grabbed me by the waist.

The air is knocked out of me as she squeezes me between her jaws. Only thing keeping me from being cut open like an over-ripe melon is my damage resistances.

*Status failed, resistances too high*

Oh good. Her poison skill is too low. I spit her in the face, landing the glob onto one of her eyes. A shiver goes through the Whip Spider as her jaws relax just enough for me to wiggle free. I cast a few Great Heals onto myself as I retreat from her twitching form. Now that she's-

A creaking sound comes from the spider. The outer shell cracks and splits apart as fresh, newly formed exoskeleton becomes visible underneath. I quickly check her status.

Status: Soft-shelled (Normal) - Minion State: Hostile (Grand)

She... Shed the status effect?! The Cave Whip Spider gets up, shaking off the last pieces of old shell before glowing, once again using After-Image. Fine, time to get serious. I switch into my true form, issuing a roar of challenge. Seems this spooked her slightly, as she hops backwards and onto the ceiling.

She carefully observes me from up there, but I don't intend to let her get a good look. I quickly maneuver behind a pillar. An annoyed "Chkchkchk" follows as she moves to get a better view of me. As she peeks around the corner, I fire a Radiant Beam right in her face.

"Squareeeee!" The Cave Whip Spider screams as she drops onto the floor, her long legs thrashing about looking for purchase. I follow up with another paralyzing spit. The thrashing slows down as the spider comes under the influence of paralysis. Observing her face, I've shot out two of her eyes and taken out a small chunk of the right side of her "face".

Her eyes stare at me with malevolent hate as her exoskeleton once again dulls in color and starts to crack. How many times can she do that? Having a quick look at her status, the Soft-Shelled status is now Grand tier. She gets to her feet, but they're bowing under her weight. Seems her body is too soft for her to move properly.

An array of Radiant beams issue from her eyes. I try to dodge and weave between them, but my bigger form sees me get hit a few times. I cast Blind on her to hinder her aiming. That didn't really help much. Seems her Night-vision skill lets her somewhat ignore the effects. I dodge another beam and get behind her.

She flails her longest pair of legs at me without turning around. The softness of them renders them whip-like. They lash against my body, leaving stinging marks. But she also shudders a bit when they hit my scales. Is this the effect of Jagged Scales?

*The Jagged Scales Skill reflects 25% of the attackers damage back at them.*

Oh so I got damage reflect? That's rather handy but also very broken. I sever the legs with a few Wind Blades. The Cave Spider seems to be beside herself with anger. I guess she's thinking something along the lines of 'just die already!'. I guess I should stop messing around. I leap onto her back, pinning her down with my weight.

Digging my claws into her soft exoskeleton, I rip and tear. She cries and flails, but she can't get a good hit in on me. Finally, I crush her head. A final spasm goes through her body as I do so.

*Power Osmosis Activated!*

*Osmosis Successful, displaying results.*

*+200 STR, +230 CON, +100 INT, 180 WIL, +130 DEX

Skills Obtained:

- Spider Climb (Great - Unique(Arachnoid)) - Replaces Climbing (Lesser), replaced Skill Converted into Skill Expertise. Allows the user to climb nearly any surface, even upside down, with ease.

- Spider Silk (Great - (Unique(Arachnoid)) - User gains the ability to produce sturdy silk in different grades of thickness and stickyness at the cost of SP.

- Night-vision (Normal) - User can see moderately well in darkness, with slight color-vision.

- Web Sense (Normal - Unique(Arachnoid)) - User gains the ability to sense movement through threads produced via the Spider Silk Skill when in contact with said threads.

- Scissor Jaw (Normal) - As Skill functions the same as Strong Jaw, Scissor Jaw is converted into Skill Expertise for Strong Jaw (Great). Strong Jaw and Sharp Teeth compound to become Megalodon Jaw (Lesser)

- Megalodon Jaw (Lesser) - Increases Attack power of bite attacks by 25% before Atc. Vs Arm calculation, and by 12.5% after Atc. Vs Arm calculation.

- Spit Attack: Poison (Normal) - User spits a fluid that causes Poison (Normal).

- Elemental Affinity: Air (Lesser) - Converted to Skill Expertise for Elemental Affinity: All (Great)

- Elemental Affinity: Light (Lesser) - Converted to Skill Expertise for Elemental Affinity: All (Great)

- Spellcasting Affinity: Illusion (Normal) - User gains the ability to cast Illusion type spells that combine Light and Air.

- Thread Manipulation (Normal) - For a SP cost, user can move threads with great freedom whilst still attached to the spinnerets. Also allows for remote activation of web based Skills.

- Shed Shell (Lesser) - User gains the Soft Shelled status in return for clearing any non-Lair Status Effects put upon them. Soft Shelled reduces armor and M.Armor by 10% per Tier.

- Web Geyser (Normal - Unique(Arachnoid)) - User spits a glob of web put under tension, when activated, the web sprays in an area around the glob, capturing anything near it within.

- Stealth (Normal) - Replaces Hiding (Normal), replaced Skill converted into Skill Expertise. User moves silently and is hard to spot when not in direct line of sight.

Spells:

- Air Blade (Lesser) - Converted into Spell Expertise.

- Radiant Beam (Lesser) - Converted into Spell Expertise.

- Lure (Normal) - Replaces Lure (Lesser), replaced Spell converted into Expertise.

- After-Image (Normal) - Replaces After-Image (Lesser), replaced Spell converted into Expertise.

- Chime (Lesser) - Sounds a curious sound at a targeted spot. Nearby entities with low WIL stat will turn to see where the sound originated from.

- Double Vision (Lesser) - Scrambles the targets visual center, causing them to see double for 60 seconds. Repeated exposure to this spell can lead to permanent damage.*

*Updating stats... Successful.*

"It felled one of our strongest"

"Does it desire more power?"

"Halt your advance, Usurper, or We will punish your hubris"

Once again the voices call out. This time I'm able to get a general idea of where they originate from. Let's not head that way. World Knowledge picks up some traces of ore in the opposite direction, so let's head that way.

I store the Grand Cave Whip Spider in my Skill. Maybe it tastes good! I then head for one of the tunnels. Oh right, they're still webbed up. I breathe some fire on them to melt them out of the way. Changing into my Changeling form again, I make my way through the winding maze of tunnels.

Once again, the tunnel gives way to a chamber. The walls glint with seams of ore. Jackpot! Now, how to get to it? As long as it is part of the wall, I can't just pick it up with the Hidden Space Skill. Should I try blasting it out with Boiling Breath?

*The cave structure might experience compromise if you're too heavy handed.*

Ugh, don't want to cause a cave-in... But couldn't I try using heat and water to loosen up the rock? I attempt to heat the rock, then soak it in water to cool it down rapidly. It's exhausting work, and I barely get anything done.

After a few hours of trying, I give up. I simply don't have the necessary tools to work properly. I'd need Cold magic or even better, proper mining equipment. And I guess that's only available in the mountain mine, at least that I know of... Screw it, let's head home and then go to the mountain mine later.

Making my way back to the opening, I praise the stars that I picked up the Spider Climb ability. The hole is too narrow for me to hit it properly when flying, but climbing along the ceiling makes getting out a cakewalk.

"It leaves"

"Will it return?"

"We will be ready, Usurper. We do not take kindly to intrusions."

I mentally poke my tongue out to the voices. If I'm lucky, I'll never have to return to this terrible place. By the time I'm home in my own cave, the sun is rising to a new day. I decide to keep awake, as not to mess up my sleep schedule.

I did manage to get a tiny amount of ore out of the wall, but not enough to do anything with. Dismantling the Spider carcass, I decide to try out the Alberger Tortoise shell on it. I set up a campfire outside, a ring of rocks keeping the fire contained and doubling as support for the shell. It cracked along the length of it, meaning one shell has no holes, the other has holes for the legs, neck and tail.

Using some water and the shell, I boil cut up pieces of the Spider's legs. They turn an odd shade of orange from the heat, and the texture becomes not unlike that of crab legs. Whilst that boils, I fit the jaws with handles of wood. Using Weapon Twisting to fuse them together and refining the shape of the handles, I've made a pair of dual swords.

*Weapon Twisted: Paired Chelicerae (Uncommon - Twisted) (+100 Atc. +0 M.Atc. Inflicts Poison (Normal) on hit.)*

Nice. Wrapping my hands in my own web, I take out a glob of Waxleaf and Foolsbane mush. Adding that onto the weapon should make it even better!

*Weapon Twisted: Paired Fell Chelicerae (Rare - Twisted) (+125 Atc. +0 M.Atc. Inflicts Toxic (Normal) on hit.)*

Huh? didn't it use to be Toxic (Lesser) those berries caused?

*Maybe the combination of Waxleaf and Foolsbane increased the potency?*

I guess not much research has been done about it since Foolsbane is so illegal... I put away the blades to save the Spider leg pieces from boiling asunder. The taste is... hm... In my old life, I adored the taste of crab, and this is reminiscent of that taste, but there's this distinct hint of bitter to these legs.

Food is food though, and I finish my meal. After relaxing a bit, I get to work making some armor. Or well, the first layer of it. It ends up taking most of the day of fiddling with Thread Manipulation and Armor Warping, the armor equivalent to Weapon Twisting. I make quite a few prototypes, that look more like white blouses and dress pants, some that look like a pair of pajamas and my first attempt which is only vaguely identifiable as a wad of spiders silk.

By the time the sun sets again, I'm well and truly tired of weaving. I'm hungry, I'm almost out of MP, I'm tired. I cook up another batch of spider leg. Good thing she was around the same size as my true form, I've got plenty of food! After the meal I go to sleep for the night.

In the middle of the night, I get an alert for humanoids in the forest. Checking it out, a group of six humanoids are making their way through the forest. From what I can tell, they all seem well equipped. Are they hostile? The way they're moving... Seems to me that they're trying to sneak around.

Keeping an eye on their progress, I start moving towards them. Although I'm still tired, it feels to me that I'd regret waiting around. I switch to my Changeling form for stealth as I approach around where they were last seen.

"Well, We'd have no trouble getting through here. Seems the Owner of this Lair is the benevolent type." I flinch and scramble to hide as I hear voices coming towards me. Now that I consider it, these people came from the east, didn't they? Opposite of the village...

I carefully peek out from under the bush I'm hiding under. They're all wearing black armor, with what looks like wing membranes obfuscating their silhouette. Their weapons look sinister too, with jagged edges, barbs and stingers covering them. Are these guys with the stealth teams that hunt Imps?

"Still, if the rumors are to be believed, we'd have to take care of it anyways, too dangerous to leave around." Are they talking about me? "Hush, I think there's something near..." One of them holds up a hand. The others stop in their tracks and turn to face them. Looking around, they soon point to the bush I'm under!

Shit, shit, shit, what do I do??? I back up against the wood of the bush, causing it to shake slightly. Unbeknownst to me, one of them raises their arbalest, taking aim. I almost scream in terror as a bolt whistles past me, through the bush and impacting into the ground behind it. I scramble on my hands and knees out of the bush, away from where the bolt went. I feel hands grab me and I'm lifted into the air by the scruff of my clothes.

"It's just a kid!" One of them exclaims. "Look closer you dolt, that's a Changeling!" Another chides. The person holding me takes a closer look at my face. "What's a Changeling doing out in the forest at this time of night?" He wonders. I merely hang limp, letting them examine me as they please.

"Bet it's mom couldn't bear the look of 'em anymore, left them out here." One suggests. As I dangle there, I take the time to get some info on them. All of them have decent stats, further helped by their armor and weapons. Also, they all have really nasty Social Titles. "What do we do with it?" The one holding me asks.

"Kill it, little bastard being out here alone means no-one's gonna miss it." No-nonono please I don't want to have to fight you! I start wiggling in his grasp. "Feisty! Maybe we'll keep you, sell you to someone that likes them young?" Okay that's it, you're tripping far too many bad guy flags.

I store my clothes, causing me to fall down to the forest floor. Before they can react with anything more than a "How-?" I get some distance on them. With proper distance to any obstructions obtained, I return to my true form. "What?! It- It's!" I take some delight in their utterly flabbergasted voices. I can't really tell their expressions due to the armor they're wearing, but it's probably a mix of surprise and horror.

"Tha-that's it! The Owner!" One of them points and shouts. "What do we do?!" Another cries. "Get it together, you fools! Fight it! It's clearly just toying with us!" A third yells. Really, your response to seeing me is 'I can fight that'? Let's see how strong your resolve really is.

I activate Frightening Presence and roar in challenge. "I-its useless! It's too strong!" One of them breaks down in tears, cradling his head as he slumps to the ground. D-did I break him with just that? "Get it together!" The third one yells again, raising his arbalest to his chin to aim. "It's either it or us!" He yells as he releases the bolt.

It flies graciously through the air with a distinct whistle.

*Let's test their power, shall we?*

I feel a shiver go through me. Is... is this blood-lust? No-one will miss you, and I can always say you started it... The bolt hits me in the shoulder before splintering apart. Useless! I smirk, my facial anatomy turning it into a grimace of glee. Now! My turn!

I beat my wings, whipping up a fierce gust of wind. Leaves and small rocks are blown towards them. Using this opening, I activate my Combustion Skill. Warmth surges through me as my stomach contents light afire. Once they recover from the gust, they get into positions, save for the one gripped by despair.

"I-is it me or did it get hotter?" One of them asks. "Just the adrenaline! Focus!" The arbalest-wielder yells. One of them is wielding a staff, a caster. Let's get you out of the way first. I ready my Boiling Breath. A distinct sound of whistling steam builds from within me. "It's gonna breathe something! Get ready to dodge!" The arbalest man, who I assume by now is their leader, warns.

I hop into the air, held afloat by my wings and Draconic Flight. By forming my jaws into a tight opening, I force the Boiling Breath into a jet of scalding water, rather than a simple spray of it. The sorcerer gets out of the way of it, but not untouched. "AAAAAH OH MY GODS, MY LEG, MY LEG!" He cries out as I sweep the jet downwards and catches his leg as he leaps to the side.

I land again, and they move to surround me. Having a look at the sorcerer, his leg is more a lump of boiled meat at this point. The skin is sloughing off above and below where I carved the flesh off his bone with my breath. Even if he's still alive, he isn't going to contribute much more to this fight.

Or so I had hoped. He raises his trembling hand and a flurry of gravel flies towards my head. I have no resistances against Earth, so just to be on the safe side, I cast Barrier on myself as I use my wings to shield my face. "Now! Strike at its joints!" Their leader issues commands from the sidelines. As he is perfectly aware, his attacks do little against me.

Using Tail Action, I try to swat away the three humanoids around me. I catch one of them across the chest, sending him soaring through the air, impacting against a nearby tree. These people sure are resilient, even with possible rib fractures and potentially severe internal damage, he still shakily reaches for his weapon.

"Come on! Snap out of it! We won't be able to do this without you!" As I turn my attention back to the fight, the leader is trying to rouse the despaired one. Judging by his Skills and Spells, he's the cleric of the group. I try to move to interrupt them, but another volley of gravel forces me to shield myself again.

I mean, I could tank it, but I don't want to risk it. Being cocky only gets you in trouble. The Sorcerer is heaving for air, his arm barely lifted anymore. Seems that he's going on pure spite at this point. I swipe at one of the two still trying to get through my defenses, but with Barrier up, they're just barely taking HP off of me.

He dodges to the side before getting right back in there. Their weapons have dulled and cracked from repeatedly striking my scales and their movements have slowed as they tire out. I decide to end their struggle for them. Intense heat is expelled from my body as I activate Vent Heat. The two humanoids that are near me stagger and seize before dropping to the ground.

My chest fills with the warmth of Osmosis, telling me they're dead. The distinct smell of charred meat wafts off of them. "O-oh gods, they died, just like that?! You just let them tire themselves out before finishing them off like that?!" The leader abandons his cowering comrade and flees into the night. I ignore him, instead turning to the one I sent against the tree. He's on his knees, supporting himself on his weapon.

Looking at his HP, he's at deaths door. "P-p... ease..." He wheezes, I can hear the sputter of liquid in his breath. I cast Earth Spike, aiming it at his neck to destroy his brain-stem. The impact of the Spike rattles his body before it goes limp. I turn my attention to the sorcerer and the cleric. "G-go on then, filthy beast! Kill me! I'm not afraid!" The sorcerer yells at me.

I move to kill him, but something makes me stop. Inspecting him, I see a new status.

Status: Crippled (Grand) - Blood-loss (Normal) - Memento Mori (Grand)

I see. He's trying to take me with him? (~At this point she assumes it's just going to reflect damage onto her like the Memento Mori Great-shield that Germund has~) Too bad. I turn to face the cleric, who by now is in a fetal position on the ground. "N-no! Kill me! He hasn't even lifted his weapon against you! Don't kill him!" The sorcerer cries from where he lies. Are... are they a thing, or is he just real desperate to make me kill him?

I wrap the cleric in silk to restrain him. I cast Great Heal on the sorcerer to stem the blood-flow before wrapping him up too. I change into my Human form to better carry them. My strength carries over between forms, so I can lift and carry both of them with ease.

"H-hey! Put me down!" I do as he asks, simply because I forgot something important. I store the corpses of the three men I killed, before picking him back up again. "What are you doing?! What did you do to them?!" I'm getting real tired of his bellyaching, so I take off his helmet, revealing a scarred human face. I cover his mouth with some silk to gag him before continuing towards my cave.

I track the last one. He's still moving, but at a slow pace. Letting him go seems like a bad idea though. Not that I can do much at the moment. I go as fast as I can with two passengers, back to home. I drop them off at the far end of the cave before attaching them to the floor with silk. I then rush back out to try to catch the last one.

Once I'm close to him, I call out to him in my human form. "Hey!" he flinches before spinning around with his arbalest at the ready. "W-who's there!?" He calls out as I walk towards him. I decide to try out my Soothing Presence Skill. He visibly relaxes when he sees me. "Oh sweet Mother, I thought you were... never mind that, what are you doing in this forest?!" He lowers his arbalest.

I keep approaching him. Even though he is under the effect of the Soothing Presence, he seems to be concerned. "H-hey, answer me, why are you out here in the middle of the night? It's not safe!" I get close enough to him. I immobilize him with my webs before he can react properly. "W- YOU! You bastard! How dare you!" He hisses and spits. I hoist him onto my shoulder and carry him home.

By the time I get there, the sky is starting to just slightly lighten as dawn arrives. I put him down by the two others, who've both fallen asleep from fright and fatigue. I put a layer of web across the leader to secure him to the floor as well, before moving to disarming him. He quieted down once he saw the other two alive.

It's still a bit early to come knocking at the villages door, so I take the time to go over what I gained from the three humanoids that I killed.

*Displaying Osmosis Results:*

*+92 STR (57+15+20), +84 CON (44+22+18), +69 INT (34+19+16), +70 WIL(38+16+16), +98 DEX (52+17+29)*

Skills:

- Life's Blessing (Normal - Unique(Human)) - Increases the efficacy of Life elemental Spells and Skills, also confers a boost to users HP.

- Language Comprehension: Common (Great) - Replaces Language Comprehension: Common (Lesser), replaced Skill converted to Skill Expertise.

- Weapon Affinity: Sword (Normal) - Increases the Attack bonuses of Sword and Paired Sword type weapons by 25%.

- Weapon Affinity: Shield (Normal) - Increases the Armor bonuses of Shield type weapons by 25%

- Aimed Strikes (Normal) - User reduces their attacking rate in return for an 5% attack increase after Atc. Vs Arm. calculation.

- Language Comprehension: Harmekian (Great) - User can speak and understand spoken Harmekian, as well as read and write the script.

In addition, the following Spells were learnt via observation:

Gravel Cannon (Lesser) - Fires a conical blast of pebbles at the target. Higher tiers increase density and spread of the gravel.

Memento Mori (Lesser) - A taboo spell carried by assassins. User gains the Status Memento Mori, and any hit that would reduce their HP to 0 or less instead reduces the attackers HP to 0. Memento Mori does not trigger from condition damage such as that caused by Burn or Poison, neither does it trigger if the attacker is the User themselves.*

T-that's all?

*The Skill, Power Osmosis, only converts with 100% efficiency the first time you kill a member of a species. Since all the humanoids you killed were human, only the first one gave his full core stat and skill values, the other two gave 50% of theirs. In addition, Humanoids gain most of their Skills through the equipment they wear, which you are unable to gain unless you were to wear the equipment yourself.*

So... I hate to say this, but I'd be better off killing one of each race and then just... leaving humanoids alone... I mean... Now that I think about it, I'm not entirely sure why I decided to kill them... I could easily just have restrained them...

*Possibly, it is because of your Tyrant side.*

Yeah, that makes sense. I have to be careful... I stretch and bend before getting ready for carrying three people on my back. Wait, actually, can't I just make a form that makes that easier? A little fiddling with my human form, and then... I take the form of a Drider. Basically a centaur but with spider instead of horse.

I added a really handy swivel joint to where the human torso connects with the spiders head, so I can lift things onto my back on my own. I wake my captives. "Oh divines, this is just one nightmare after the other!" the leader whimpers. "Oh calm down, it's still the same monster that's harassing you." I respond. I can finally talk!

I want to cry tears of happiness, I can finally talk without Telepathy! "Oh Mother, it talks!" the cleric whispers, in a mix of overwhelmed horror and awe. "Where are you taking us?!" The leader demands to know as I hoist him onto my back, securing his cocoon with sticky silk. "To the village. They'll know what to do with you." I respond.

"I honestly wish you'd kill me instead." He responds. "So you lot were spies! Shoulda let you go so you could tell your bosses that you'd better stay away from this place." I mumble as I put the sorcerer with the leader. I check his leg, it seems to be, well, in bad shape. I should probably do something about that.

Lastly, I load up the cleric before making my way towards the village. I announce my arrival via Telepathy. "Please, It is the Master of the Lair! I come carrying lost wanderers!" I broadcast the moment I'm within range. The guards atop the walls call to within the village. Before long, the old woman and her escorts meet me outside.

"My, what a catch you've made... Harmekian Spies!" She looks at my form. "Quite the solution you decided on, dear Emperor. I have to say, I'd wished you killed the lot of them, but I guess they could be of use..." Wait, she knows I killed people? "Haha, my Eyes of Knowing tells me much, my lord, among other things, that you've recently killed three people."

I pause for a moment in my unloading of the prisoners. "I wish I'd restrained myself and brought all six of them in..." I tell her. She waves me off. "Nonsense, even though you're the benevolent Ruler of Monsters, you're still a monster, and monsters defend themselves when attacked." I guess...

"Ah, the three I killed... Will you take care of the bodies, or-?" I ask her. She looks me over. "I don't see any bodies, save for the live ones you brought here." I retrieve the bodies. "Oh... Hm... Well, there's not much in rites we'd be able to offer them, but I suppose we could prepare them for burial." She covers her mouth and nose with a hand, clearly perturbed by the smell wafting off of the two I flash-fried.

With my delivery made, I decide to head home and get some sleep, even though the sun had just risen.