NOVEL NEXT Chapter 168: Found Reflection.
AN:
I shouldn't have promised to release this chapter earlier! I failed! I'm sorry!!! I wanted to try sometihng experimental in the latest Patreon chapters, which I thought would be wquite short. But the experiment failed! So I actually just had to redo a good chunk of a chapter ahahaha. Anyway, the chapter is here now though, and faster than last time! So just enjoy this!
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[Demon Brain has reached level 41!]
The ritual was over. The name of Devilcalibur was accepted. A heavy weight lifted from my shoulders, but never truly left. The greater magic was ever present, especially for one such a me. I landed with Moonwash in my arms, and then I allowed her to touch down peacefully.
My evil eyes snapped to the equally evil sword in my bloody hands. My fingers were clutched onto it so tight, it was almost magnetic. No one could ever pry these off my intact hands without my permission. Devilcalibur vibrated in an emotion conveyed so clearly to me. Of rage, of destruction, of something more it did not yet know. It had a capacity for growth, same as I did. It had learned from what I had learned, and what Moonwash had interpreted. But there was still so much I myself did not know.
I wanted to find out.
I wanted to go out there and put my new weapon to the test.
Slaughter.
KILL.
I and my blade encouraged each other further. My grip tightened, as did every cord of condensed muscle in my demonic body. I searched the pockmarked walls where rugged blades had been pulled out from, and found not a door in sight. So I simply walked ahead, and sure enough, the wall opened like a maw to grant me passage.
"Where are you going?" Moonwash asked when I stood upon the precipice.
My head snapped back to her. I was glaring. That… that wasn't good. I took a deep breath, and made of my expression something more neutral. Grateful, even. For that was how I should feel. And it was indeed how I felt. "I'm going to train. Put this thing to the test. And… thank you. Truly."
"You're welcome." She walked up to me. "Can I come?"
I thought it over for entire seconds. "I plan to teleport back to Lost Reflections."
"Okay. Let's go then."
"No. It's too dangerous. I still haven't perfected it. I often injure whatever I'm carrying with me."
"I can take it."
"I'd rather not."
"But I want to."
I stared at her. I was annoyed, but also understanding. I definitely wanted to swing Devilcalibur at anything that fucking moved right this moment. And I was sure, as the creator of this ritual and the blade itself, she felt the same way.
"Fine." I looked away, towards the reddening sky. "I can just go somewhere nearby. I'll return to Lost Reflections tommorow."
"Okay," Moonwash agreed and we walked out of the Grand Ritual Hall. Our respective gear were dumped on the floor nearby by Pandemonium, and the both of us swiftly put them on. Our armor was sturdy enough to be tossed around Pandemonium's innards. And with a final clasp, I picked Moonwash up and we soared to the skies.
The wind was great here. The view of the city was… decently pretty, no matter how chaotic and disharmonious it remained down below. It had been a long time since we'd done this. I hadn't realized how much I missed it.
I flew forward. The wind whipped against us, and the scenery rushed by. I picked up more in speed, and I glanced at my girlfriend in my arms who appeared unbothered.
"You okay?" I asked. She wasn't necessarily unbothered, even if she appeared that way. Then again, she would've said something if it were actually a problem.
"Yes."
"Are you sure? Should I keep going? I can still go faster…"
"You should. This is fun." She tightened her grip on me.
I raised a brow and barked out a laugh.
Moonwash was higher level than me. She'd always been. That had never changed.
I ignored whatever resentment that thought produced; it was simply the truth and I was happy for it. I wanted her to be strong, to be safe. I flapped my wings harder, and felt the exhilaration of going nearly as fast as my voice.
Not quite my top speed. I still held back. It would steadily injure my one passenger if I did not.
I eventually came to a stop. It was in some random spot that should be good enough. I descended with Moonwash in my arms towards the brown and green rainforest on the ground. I did not waste any more time and immediately drew Devilcalibur from my back once both of my arms were free. A squirrel up in the trees found itself at the exact wrong place in time as I indulged in the violent desires that had long festered on the way here. The animal exploded into red paste, but my aggression only did the opposite of being sated. Curse mana snaked through the greatsword in my hands, and then back again into my body. It was easy, it was smooth, like veins had been carved right within the metallic body of Devilcalibur, arteries perfectly filled by the rushing curse mana like it was pure silky blood.
Thump.
A pulse.
My brain twitched from the new information flooding it.
To reap a thousand souls.
To wither a hundred forests.
To bring despair to all.
The curse kept flowing in an unending loop. From me to the Devilcalibur, it grew. An exchange of thoughts, emotions, base desires. The essence of all cursed weapons, the reason why they weren't in use despite being the most numerous out of all infused items. I had been exempt from it for so long, but no longer. Oh, I wondered what it would be like for someone else to wield a curse strong enough to affect me!
I charged, leaving everything else behind. I dashed into the thick trees without a care. My hoofshoes activated with nary a thought. I trampled through everything in my way, repeatedly healing my body with every trunk turned to splinters. The plentiful prey ran away upon the thundering boom of my passage, but I was too fast to escape. A gorilla bravely faced me as the rest of its troop fled. Its entire upper half was blown away with one cruel swing, and the rest decayed visibly with every second that passed. I didn't bother to chase after its fleeing family. A jaguar hid in the trees, but it did not hide well enough. Its head was crushed by my blade, and the lustrous fur left behind turned black. An anarchonda tried to pounce on me next. One swing neatly bisected it into two uneven halves. The level 20 creature should've bled out and died in minutes, but it actually lost its life nigh instantly. Only one of its hearts remained in the upper half that actually contained the head, and that crucial organ of pumping blood was taken by the rot. It would probably not have reached the organ, were this before Devilcalibur had reached a new form. Together, there was so much for the both of us to slaughter!
"Hey! Wait for me!" I heard someone's flat shout. I realized in a moment that it was Moonwash, and I had left her behind. I got too excited. That was embarrassing. It was also potentially dangerous. It was only the two of us here. And for as much as I understood and acknowledged that Moonwash was strong, she was never the type to fight alone. That wasn't where her strength lay.
I waited for her, and then we examined what I had killed together.
"That's stronger than before," Moonwash confirmed as she looked at the rot.
"Yeah," I agreed and resumed my search for dreadful battle, but at a slower pace. We were still moving faster than most people could ever dream, but now Moonwash could keep up.
I killed some tarzaniers and stopped long enough for us to harvest their repositories and focuses. I faced overgrown bats who actually had an annoying screech, but died all the same. I cought a hiding lavox(long torso mammal with many legs), because I could just feel how dense its body was compared to the surrounding bush.
I found a swarm of barkbarks, and I rushed ahead before they could flee.
Their dog-like ears perked up upon my steps. Numerous bug eyes stared at me for a moment, before they all began to flee. I reached their position before they could disperse, and a single swing of Devilcalibur reaped dozens of them like a scythe harvesting wheat.
That made the rest run faster. They scattered in all directions. My magic leapt out of my skin… but I let go of my grip on it. I was here to put Devilcalibur to the test. So I raised the black greatsword high, summoned all my rage against the tiny cute rabid things, and then I swung the massive blade in one massive arc.
I didn't hit a singe one.
But, a black shockwave shot out from the impact.
It enveloped dozens upon dozens of them. The white barkbarks barked their last as their bodies were cut apart from within and without. Rot oozed out of their flesh turned inside out. And they weren't the only ones.
The blast had scoured the grass off the land. It continued on for several trees deep, turning once healthy trunks into a very unhealthy twisted grey. The canopies above fell off the splintered canopy, but without the slow and soothing ambience of autumn. It was part of no glorious cycle; it was the final extinction of life.
This was my anatomic mastery. The union of blade and demon through the curse that bound us. And it was so much stronger than before. Easier. Responsive.
Devilcalibur was still vibrating with violence in my hands, and I realized that I was doing the same.
Soon, I found myself face to face with a warsymbol to test just how superior my anatomic mastery had become.
I met its swipe with my blade, and the claws shattered, the face crumpled, and the entire head was blown off. In the torn ugly stump that was left behind, I saw just how twisted and rotten its innards had become, and how deeply it went.
It was gross. Why the fuck did I think sticking my hand in there was a good idea. Why did Moonwash encourage me!?
~~~
"Hey…" I hesitated once we'd landed back at Pandemonium.
Moonwash paused on her way back to the central building and looked back at me. "What is it?"
"Ah, well. Wanna sleep in my bed tonight?"
It had been a long time. Not since I was captured. And even when I finally broke free, I still insisted on sleeping alone. I'd even considered if we should just break up. Why did we even bother calling ourselves a couple when we didn't act or even feel like one? Not anymore…
But now… I believed I'd healed enough to start getting back some more of what I'd lost. I wouldn't let thsee hopeless dead fucks who once occupied the land Pandemonium now stood on, take away anything more from me.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
"Okay," my girlfriend's clear and simple reply so easily cut through the dark turn my thoughts had taken.
We later slid down the twisting slide leading to my bedroom, and then slept right beside each other.
It was nice.
~~~
"OH! That's interesting. Real interesting!" Grandpa said around the breakfast table when I mentioned mere level 40 camelions being able to slightly fool even my spatial senses. It was just him, my parents, and Moonwash with me this morning. "It's something that I've noticed before, and a theory that's been proposed by others as well. I think monsters might just have an easier time getting an anatomic mastery!"
"Eh? But why would monsters be better at us at anatomic mastery? We've got swords and spears and all manner of weapons. Doesn't that give us an edge?"
"What? No, of course not! Do you think having a weapon makes developing an anatomic mastery easier?"
"Uh, yes?"
"Well, it doesn't! It's the opposite, actually. Having a weapon is much more complex than using more fists and claws. But of course, we see anatomic masteries related to weapons more often, because everyone uses a weapon! It's just that much deadlier. A sword would still probably beat someone using only their fists, at least for a lot of sapient species. And it takes significantly less effort than actually developing a fucking anatomic mastery!"
"Huh. But what about the orcs then? They have weapons and they've been the most reliable at mastering anatomy out of anyone or anything."
"Orcs are…" he laughed. "They're special! I think it's the one thing they're built for. But regardless, orcs are definitely not indicative of most species. They are the exception to the rule, if they are an exception at all." Grandpa thought for a moment, his level 80 elderly mind working. "Let me ask you this then. How many people actually have anatomic mastery among us? In society?"
"Well… remarkably few…"
"Exactly. Even among people my level, it's still hard. Monsters must have an easier time of it. Think about it. They're not sapient like us, so their minds must be geared towards something else. They live in the dangerous wilds, unlike our curated cities, constantly in a struggle for survival. It matches what I've seen that they start to really develop this sort of skill once they reach a certain point. You've seen it too, right? I don't think that level 80 monster you fought was guarded against spatial senses specially! The camelions certainly don't have the Mutations to avoid spatial detection, right?"
"None that I've been able to identify," Moonwash responded.
"Exactly! It's just hard to be sure when dealing with claws and fangs and other things. Are they just that strong or sharp, or is an anatomic mastery at play? But with stealth, and an extremely specialized sense, we can be sure that it's got to be an anatomic mastery that's fooling even your spatial sense!"
"It is likely, but we are still not sure," Moonwash said, then turned to me. "You really have to secure that sample."
"That's the plan!" I agreed around several mouthfuls of camelion steak.
~~~
The teleportation went through, and I found myself back in Lost Reflections. I dropped the injured monkey in my arms, and allowed it to scurry off as it bled on the purple grass. The animal was about as big as Moonwash, if not nearly as dense. I was still trying to improve my teleportation skills, and part of that was trying to grab a living creature whenever I teleported.
I observed my surroundings. This should've been near where I had fought the completely invisible enemy of before, but the colorful forest had already regrown good as new, and my distinctive footsteps had been erased without a trace. Not a single char from my hellfire remained. Nature reclaimed its lost territory, especially in the most magical of places.
I ran, like I loved to do. I knew it was useless, but I checked to see if the invisiboy still loitered around. By invisiboy, I meant the invisible fuck of before. The one who foolishly fought me, and managed to escape within an inch of its life. Invisiboy was not its actual species name of course, but there were just no reliable records of the monster no matter where I looked. Even Grandpa didn't know. This could be because the creature was a newly spawned one; It happened occasionally, especially within wonderzones. Or it could have been so deadly that no one had ever lived to tell the tale.
I could see it going either way.
I caught no hint of the monster, no matter how I went.
Already, several monsters had tried to get a bite out of me, so I turned around rapidly to get a bite out of them instead.
I smashed the first camelion I had encountered today with Devilcalibur, and it twitched as it died from the spreading rot. I harvested what I could and was worth it, before I turned around to face the many challenges of the wonderzone again. I shouted from the top of my lungs and made noise, hoping to attract all the top ambushers of this place. Some ran away, but they were worth jack shit anyway. Those who went towards the maws of death that was myself were the ones worthy of respect. They were more adept in general, their claws and fangs and fists and skulls actually able to scratch my armor when they hit. They hid even better, pushing the limits of my detection and reaction speed to the limit. Maybe not individually, but there were so many of them that I had to really struggle to keep up. Even those who could normally be spotted so easily by my spatial senses slipped through the gaps, or blended in with the motion of other attackers. It got easier the more I got used to it, so I started to carry around dead burning meat to entice their noses. The flood of enemies both real and imagined continued evermore.
Thus another long training trance began. The varied ever-present illusions of this place trained my responses to different situations, from natural disasters, to abominations unfit for viewing. I found a thin monstrosity of bone and sinew playing a violin, and I stopped to listen. I knew it was an illusion, but the sounds I perceived were beautiful all the same.
I clapped as the creature simply faded away.
My detection skills and reaction speed continued to grow. I relished the many smaller critters who thought it wise to try and ambush me. They were good target practice for my sword. I was starting to believe Grandpa that the higher level monsters really did start to develop some form of anatomic mastery. I came across another one of those marassa creatures, the monkey who could multiply. Only this one was level 80, and I could not actually tell immediately which one was an illusion or not! The unreal clones struck me, and I actually felt some push from them. Not enough to actually do any damage, but that was just how the stronger illusions worked. They did have some real tactile force to push things around. I swung at them and used my own anatomic mastery, causing the illusions to disperse before reforming and then climbing over each other once more. An actually powerful fist was mixed into the various illusory blows, and my armor dented and cracked while the bone of my right arm broke. It was nothing a quick heal couldn't fix, but the stupid monkey had already pulled back into the swarm of clones before I could counterattack. Several more scenarios like this followed, as I immersed myself in the fight and felt the slight spatial disturbance of every clone, and looked for the real one which must've been among them. It was actually more troublesome than the invisiboy who minimized even its spatial presence. At least then I knew its general location!
THERE!
Amid the monkeys clamoring over each other and pushing me around, a denser fist came for me, and it met Devilcalibur instead. The heavily cursed greatsword broke all knuckles, and spread rot into the greater arm. My enemy immediately and predictably pulled back, but I was already charging by the power of my sacrificed blood. I slammed into the creature, and then delivered one anatomically cursed slash.
A fist hit me in the head at same moment, and I staggered wildly, but I allowed the curse to consume my mind for I must consume and kill and devour my enemy! Its location was revealed among the many fleeing identical monkeys through my spatial perception, and I ripped it apart in an onslaught that sacrificed the entire mass of blood my body could hold at once.
Good thing I had so much more stored away.
[Extradimensional Demon Blood Storage has reached level 41!]
[Demon Arms has reached level 41!]
[Rapid Combat Nervous System has reached level 41!]
~~~
My training continued, but it was not as constant as I used to do. I came home regularly, sometimes several times a day, occasionally for as much as the Mark of The Beast would allow me. I amassed a lot of materials after all, no matter how selective I tried to be, and I had to take those home. My armor needed repairs, and getting to rest and hang out with friends and family wasn't bad either. The opportunity to train my teleportation was also nice to have, and I did need to recharge some of my equipment like the enchanted hoofshoes. I could have brought some spare repositories, but I couldn't actually wield the earth element. Moonwash was working on, among her many projects, some sort of charger enchantment that could do that automatically. I helped her with that, and anything else she had need of me. We had sex for the first time in… shit, literal years. And it was great! I didn't know why I ever stopped. Maybe that would've immediately cured the trauma right out of me.
…No. No, it wouldn't have.
I slept on the bed with her on my arms, for I did still… want and even slightly need to sleep occasionally, no matter how the blood eater could keep my body in peak performance. I didn't want to sleep where I could be vulnerable any longer… and that wasn't illogical? The decision made me… suspicious, but I decided that I could live with all the psychological bullshit of it. If I couldn't sleep elsewhere, then that was fine. It wasn't a problem! I could just return here, or not sleep at all. I could easily do that now!
Therefore, the downsides were negligible. My room here had really gotten cozy with all the colorful pastel rugs and cushions and plushies and artworks and candles I'd put up. It… wasn't my usual aesthetic, but one that I enjoyed, especially since recent times.
I did still have the occassional teddy bear with its guts hanging out though, of course. Moonwash could make anything!
~~~
I made rapid progress, even with the frequent intermissions of my going home. On the level front, my Mutations had nearly all reached Level 41 by now. Some had climbed even higher than that, and my Curse Heart managed to cross over to Level 43! The journey to hero-rank would be even longer, so every step mattered.
More immediately impactful than those, however, were the many skills I wished to develop that were going swimmingly. My tail movements had been mastered, and I could now zigzag through the trees of Lost Reflections without outright crashing into a single one. I practiced my flight, not only to where I could fly well in spite of my tail, but because of it. The demon tail was built for making rapid turns, but it was still one hefty new limb, and it could certainly be used for balance if I tried!
Granuel found some harpies to help me out with that. A lot of these could be trained even in the comfort of Pandemonium or somewhere nearby, so I often continued to train while there. The counsel of Grandpa was certainly appreciated, and so was Moonwash's advice when it came to rituals.
I showed her my rituals drawn by blood and suspended in the air. She came up with new improvements to the design that shouldn't be too hard to form rapidly. I trained in these increments to increase the power further. I leaned on my memory core to help me draw them in the middle of combat. I sought constant progress, forming the necessary ritual for hellfireball faster and better. The end result came out stronger, hotter. It then occurred to me to try and use blood magic itself as offensive magic. I extracted my own blood and made of it a rapid cutting implement. The first result was a beam of sorts that could cut down a tree after many passes. It was enough to kill creatures of level 10, and injure those an evolution above. It wasn't bad, but I could do better. It was laughably insufficient for the challenges I currently faced. I easily got it to a point where it was strong enough to injure a creature of the same level as I with enough practice. The need for ammunition was a problem, especially since I needed my blood for a lot of other things, but there was an easy solution. I just used the blood of my enemies as ammunition instead. My own blood wasn't actually especially dense for my level.
It did carry some very nasty elements though…
I pursued the idea of splashing someone with my blood, to then make of it a mini-ritual that would consume my enemies with three differing elements. It worked, there was no reason it wouldn't, but the power was noticeably lesser than when the blood was spilled by the enemy in question. The blood portion manifested as whirling dirvishes of red liquid that sliced apart anything nearby.
It was still another good tool to add to the arsenal.
I explored new ways to use rituals and blood magic. The latter had so many more offensive uses. I could already light my greatsword on hellfire previously, so this time I tried to envelop it in blood magic. It did not take too long to get results. Blood had a long-standing connection with swords, after all. A well-used blade was often covered in it, and the purpose of the weapon was to spill that very red substance of life. Additionally, my method of weaving mana through the metal and having it act similarly to a circulatory system was a concept that synergized very well with the blood element. The only hurdle was that Devilcalibur was more attuned to curses than anything else, but the process eventually succeeded anyway.
I stabbed a captured horned rabbid lightly, and that small wound immediately began leaking blood. That was the obvious outcome, but the wound soon began disgorging the red liquid in far greater amounts than reasonable. The animal literally shriveled up, before finally breathing its last.
That was an excellent proof of concept.
I tested the phenomenon again against the sturdier camelion next, and it whined as its red blood stained the foliage on its attempts to flee. It didn't get very far, as it rapidly weakened from the loss of blood flowing through its body, for it was instead all flowing out.
This was a common use for the uncommon power of blood magic. I could, simply put, make some rapidly bleed out and lose their life. It worked as projectiles shot into open wounds as well. Weaker creatures, such as the cute bunny in my hand, could even be made to explode from the inside.
POP!
A fun little trick, that. It… was a usecase that was fine in theory, but typically vastly inferior to the curse I already had available. I might want to try and integrate them together in the future, but for now there was another different blood and curse collaboration that consumed my mind.
My anatomic mastery. It now rivaled what I could do with mini-rituals applied to my own body, but I had not abandoned the dream to apply my blood magic as well to my curse-laden move. Every attempt so far had ended up with the anatomic mastery failing to activate. The result was even weaker than my normal attacks. I tried once again to push through with sheer repetition and effort, but still found no progress in that line of inquiry.
So I decided to take it slow. One piece at a time. I used only a hint of blood magic as I swung Devilcalibur down. The anatomic mastery still failed, but I did not give up. I repeated the same move over and over, just like I always did. I minimized my use of blood magic, as much as possible. Start from the smallest possible origin. And then, while battering another poor helpless tree, my body exploded with cursed power and destroyed several lines of trees behind my target.
All while a tiny trickle of blood magic enhanced a small part of my muscles.
It… wasn't a noticeable increase in the power at all. But it was a start. It would only get better from here.