The man's body turned around. His head, which was already facing Ashton, didn't move, or twitch, or even shudder an inch, as though it was completely stuck in place. But once his body was in line with his head again, he started to grin.

  His teeth were a dark yellow. That either came from poor dental hygiene, or it was another one of the physical changes that this guy was clearly undergoing this very second.

  "Go-o-r-dyy... Y-es, that is m-e," the man said, smiling happily. Clearly, he had already regained part of his consciousness again, but it was heavily skewed by his new nature. His voice as well, it sounded jittery and off-putting. Incredibly uncanny. It actually gave Ashton uncomfortable flash-backs.

  "You killed someone, right? Just over the past couple days, I mean."

  The man's smile only became wider. He grinned like a an absolute mad man, like he had just remembered his favourite memory.

  "A-hh, tha-a-t was s-o... fu-u-n."

  He brought his hands to his face, almost digging his fingers into his skin right below his eyes, starting to pull his hands down across his face. But then, out of nowhere, his hands dropped down limp to his side. His eyes became unfocused, and he slowly turned around to focus back on the dead queen spider.

  Gordy pushed his hands into the large spider's body, beyond the thick chitin exoskeleton, and started tearing out its innards. From there, they were immediately pushed into his mouth.

  He barely seemed to chew, just stuffing it into himself. And as he did, his body continued to shift and change. The protrusions on his back grew larger, and soon, four spider legs tore through the tattered shirt's fabric. Gordy was also growing small black hairs all over his body, and with lump of flesh that went into his mouth, the more the transformation seemed to go on.

  To be totally honest, Ashton had never seen the progress itself, only the result. The Summoner was already a monstrous creature without a single set form, so even when they became a 'Marked', they didn't really change all that much from Ashton's point of view. Maybe that was why he just waited for a little while longer.

  He had barely spent ten minutes here in the casino, so he still had plenty of time to finish this all up and win the bet. So just a couple of minutes to watch this unfold should be fine.

  [[Observer in the Veil] is showing his displeasure at the sight before him]

  [[Daughter of the Scarlet Heart] points out the unsightly nature of the Marked]

  [[Executor of the End] agrees wholeheartedly, and advises you to dispatch it quickly]

  Ashton snapped his head at the messages, "Shut it, will you? That's a person, not an 'it'. I don't care how unsightly you think they are, either."

  [[Executor of the End] looks at you curiously]

  "What's that supposed to mean? What, you're surprised that I think he's still a person?" Ashton scoffed. These constellations seriously pissed him off. To them, this was all just some kind of entertainment, or a way for them to recruit people for after the quests are done. They had no right at all to call Gordy unsightly, when they were the ones that actively supported what was happening to all these numerous worlds.

  You could argue that constellations like the Guardian of the Innocent was an exception to the rule, considering that they were doing all their best to protect the children of the world that were being invaded to some degree. But at the end of the day, children were still dying.

  The Guardian still worked within the rules set by the council. They didn't give the slightest shit about anyone that wasn't a child, either, and the only reason why they were kind to Ashton before was because he had helped protect those 'precious little innocents'.

  Even the best, even the kindest of the constellations were still here, just watching the end of the world and unimaginable despair and destruction that had never been seen before in this world.

  By the end of the quests, the vast, vast majority would be dead. Rather than the eight billion humans originally on earth, it would be a huge success if even eight million survived.

  So no matter how disgusted he was by people that actively chose to kill other people just because it was the easier choice, the constellations didn't have the right to act disgusted by a Marked. Hell, Ashton didn't, either. He had blood on his hands, too.

  The blood of the innocents that he was commanded to kill for the Summoner. The blood of the people that he chose to kill because they stood in the way of his missions, without even being actively told to. And now, most importantly... all the people that Ashton had just let die in this world.

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  He had walked away from the people in his apartment building, out of a selfish need to grab some power for himself. He had given the dickhead trio some tips before he left, which helped alleviate some of his guilt, but that didn't change that he carried the weight of every death that was caused by the council on his heart. The sensation was piled so high that it was starting to choke him, almost climbing out through this throat.

  Ashton wasn't allowed to blame people that went so far as to kill others to survive. He condemned the choice, and he was disgusted by the act, but he couldn't blame them. Ashton was a lot of things, but he wanted to do his best to not become a hypocrite as well.

  "Just shut up when it comes to the Marked from now on," Ashton grimaced. He actively ignored all the messages that were popping up from the constellations, and instead went and widened the hole that he created in the wall of webs even more. He didn't want to get stuck when the actual fight started.

  Soon, Gordy, stopped. The spider legs were fully grown, twitching slightly as they stretched out for the first time, and the patches of thin black 'fur' stopped spreading out across his skin.

  "You done?" Ashton asked, and Gordy slowly turned around. His hands, face, and chest were covered in that dark blue blood, and he was chewing on what seemed to be a chunk of chitin, "Now, why did you eat it? That's not the normal procedure, is it? I mean, it's not like all 'Marked' have some kind of absorption ability. There were some with those abilities, but you're definitely not that special. Rather... This feels different..."

  Ashton thought for a moment, as Gordy pushed a foot forward.

  "You changed pretty fast... But the transformation is one that happens through magic... The pattern of your mana is forcibly changed bit by bit to make you turn into a half-monster. Is it that you absorbed the magic of the spider queen by eating her? I'm guessing the only way that would be possible is if someone just happened to have the perfect monster nearby..."

  He thought about it intensely, quietly positioning the wisp on the other side of the nest. This place didn't seem to have a basement, so everything here was just exposed foundation. Ashton had the wisp absorb some concrete and let it stay there on the other side for a moment.

  "Hm, I think I get it," Ashton held forward his staff toward Gordy, "You're being sponsored by a constellation, right? One that really likes spiders."

  For the most part, Gordy didn't react, but his eyes did twitch for just a moment. That was enough confirmation for him.

  "Well, sorry about that, then. I'm going to waste your investment right now," Ashton said with a smile, pulling his hand backward. Immediately, the concrete wisp shot through the space, ready to hit Gordy. However, the monstrous man simply dodged.

  His feet barely moved different to before. Gordy was still just taking slow steps forward toward Ashton. But the rest of his body twisted in an unnatural way. It was like he had a flexibility that was incomparable to even the greatest gymnasts in the world.

  That was the worst part about the 'Marked'. The moment that their transformation proceeded properly, they would sync up with their new skills and their power would immediately rise. Their bodies were changed and were no longer those of people either.

  For example, Gordy's power stat must have absolutely skyrocketed. It varied amongst different species of spiders, but there were types that could carry dozens of times their own bodyweight. Of course, that wasn't exactly something that could logically be carried onto these massive Arachnids one to one, but spiders were still extremely powerful. That would be the case for Gordy as well.

  Plus, the skills that he was given through that monster class of his weren't to be taken lightly, either. Honestly, a spider-human being the first transformed he ran into might be pretty damn unlucky.

  Gordy untwisted his body and stopped walking forward. He stood just barely out of the range of Ashton's staff now.

  "M-y Qu-e-en wa-n-ts y-ou." Gordy stretched out his hand toward Ashton with that statement, and a message appeared in the air.

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] reaches out a hand to you]

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] offers you a place in her kingdom]

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] has gifted you 10 Coins]

  A scowl appeared in Ashton's face immediately, "Don't even think about it. I like spiders and all, but no."

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] recommends for you to reconsider]

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] explains that the powers of a Constellation can help you grow far, far stronger]

  Ashton raised a brow. Was this one not able to see the other constellations that were buzzing around Ashton? Why not?

  And then, a vague memory popped into Ashton's head. He himself hadn't ever seen these constellation messages before now, and had only heard about the constellations from rumours or through the incessant complaints of the Summoner.

  However, he vaguely remembered hearing that higher grade constellations could communicate through other 'channels' than lower grade constellations. Basically, they could decide what sort of other constellations could see them. At least to some degree. So this made something very clear.

  "You're a low grade constellation, aren't you? Eight-Legged Queen?" Ashton asked, smirking lightly. The 10 coins that they offered also helped solidify that guess. "Is that why you're sticking with a Marked? Because you can't get anyone that's right in the head to agree to be sponsored by you?"

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] glares at you with fury in their eyes]

  [[Observer in the Veil] clears their throat]

  [[Daughter of the Scarlet Heart] laughs loudly at the lower-grade constellation]

  [[Executor of the End] waves at the Eight-Legged Queen]

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] pulls back in surprise]

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] questions why so many constellations are gathered in this place]

  [[Eight-Legged Queen] glares at the other constellations and tells them to back off]

  Ashton rolled his eyes. This was so annoying. Even the Shadow behind the Throne wasn't this annoying when Ashton told Sam to turn down any sponsorships from them.

  But well, it didn't matter. At this point, there was just one thing that Ashton had to do. He swung his staff straight at Gordy, and the man, practically frozen in place until now, simply took the attack. Ashton had thought that he would dodge, so he aimed a bit more central at his body, but no, Gordy just stood there, his left arm now most likely broken, and stared at Ashton.

  A few moments later, a massive grin appeared on Gordy's face, and as if the 'lock' placed onto him was taken off, he lunged forward.