Vernisha slashed at Abella’s stomach and didn’t bother holding back. Abella was a hero, so there was no way Vernisha could actually hurt her.

  But the blade didn’t even touch Abella’s fabric. She stepped back just in time, dodging the edge of the beautifully compacted axe.

  Vernisha had never been into axes, but swinging one felt amazing.

  When Abella jumped back, her purple veins pulsed harder than before, like they were trying to burst out of her skin.

  She bit her lower lip. Before Vernisha charged again, Vernisha asked, “Are you sure you don’t want someone else to do this for you?”

  “I can handle the pain.”

  It didn’t look like she could.

  Vernisha pulled out the black knife and bit down on it, then the other knife, getting a total of 12 + 6 + 7 strength bonus. A 25 percent boost overall.

  Then she twisted the axe’s handle and watched it extend to her height.

  She asked, “Mind giving me a crash course on monster fighting before I tag you?”

  “You wouldn’t be able to follow it. But I’ve already been teaching you.”

  Abella opened her [Personal Space] and pulled out a blue lance. Blue, except for the end of the handle, which was white with snowflake-like patterns.

  She slashed in Vernisha’s direction. “Why don’t you have a monster out?”

  Vernisha blinked, confused. How was that lance supposed to reach her? Also, this wasn’t part of the deal. She did the chasing, not the other way around.

  From the lance’s tip, an explosion of cold white air surged forward.

  The green grass between them froze instantly, solidifying mid-bend, trapped before it could finish swaying.

  Vernisha’s instinct was to summon Crusbull. Then she remembered something she had just learned.

  She threw her helmet behind her and stuck her hand into it, partially summoning Crusbull’s head.

  Before it could push the helmet off, she called for [Earth Armor].

  The rocks began forming around her leg.

  Too late.

  The white air touched her skin, and the agony was indescribable. Not just cold. Torture.

  Her skin turned completely pale. Then nothing. The frost didn’t spread further.

  The cold air faded like fog in sunlight.

  The armor finished molding around her body as she stared at Abella, bewildered.

  Abella said, “Sealed Weapons.”

  She spun the lance around her with elegance. “They’re built to channel the powers of Sealed Tokens. Compacted advanced tech that store monster skills.”

  So Abella had just been giving her a taste. A warning shot.

  Vernisha asked, “Like the Blinding Axe?”

  “No, those are just weapons with combat features. Like coating a sword’s tip in blu-dust, so when it touches blood, it sets it on fire. I like those better.”

  Abella opened her [Personal Space] again and pulled out a red metallic ball. “This one’s filled with concentrated Jile leaf oil. If it explodes, you’d be high out of your mind, barely functional.”

  Then she took out a weird spongy plant. “This is soaked in Mal’quisha. Alcohol from Emermyne. Too strong for humans. Releases fumes that kill from alcohol poisoning. Good for stealth kills.”

  It was insane what the human mind could weaponize.

  Still, Vernisha charged again. She slashed upward at Abella, the axe slicing past her chin. “You wouldn’t actually get hurt, right? I kinda don’t want to sleep on the road.”

  “Just thinking about dodging hurts me more than you could. I mean that sincerely. I don’t believe in belittling others.”

  That somehow felt more insulting, but it was true, so whatever.

  Vernisha slid to a stop, grass tearing beneath her feet. Then she stepped forward and hurled the axe at Abella.

  Abella watched it spin, then flicked a finger in front of her, slitting space itself in two.

  The axe hit the watery tear and vanished into it.

  Vernisha just stood there, stunned. That wasn’t fair. That was cheating. If she had thought to use [Personal Space] like that, she would have taken it.

  Abella then tore the air near the ground, letting the axe fly out with all its original momentum.

  The blade flashed in the daylight before slamming into the earth.

  “Don’t be jealous. Life buffs are all balanced in their own ways,” Abella said.

  Vernisha asked, “Can you force them on people?”

  “Not unless they’re unconscious. If they’re awake, their will will resist it.”

  “Fuck,” Vernisha muttered under her breath. Stupid, stupid her.

  No. She was making an investment. She remembered what she had told Ferzan. If she had multiple monsters out, then a lethal blow wouldn’t kill her.

  Actually, she adjusted the thought. A lethal blow still would. That was how she killed that Temple Defender.

  A lethal blow to her monster wouldn’t kill her.

  “Language, child.”

  Vernisha raised an eyebrow. How the hell did Abella hear her?

  “Super senses...?”

  “No. I can read lips.”

  Abella could be lying, but whatever.

  Then Tarnisha said, “She’s lying. She has the Super Senses Life buff too.”

  That was a thing?

  Abella barely reacted. “You shouldn’t let others know your life buffs, your monsters, their powers, or what your weapons can do.”

  Solid advice.

  Then Vernisha asked, “What’s your level?”

  “Around 193. I’ve killed a lot of strong people.”

  “193...” Vernisha blinked. “How rare is that?”

  “Very. The strongest adventurers in Terrafall usually range from level 100 to 120. Level 100 is considered the peak of reason. Beyond that? Foolish. Waste of life.”

  “Didn’t stop you.”

  “No. But I never cared about levels. I did want level 200 though, for the teleportation Life Buff.”

  Abella looked at Vernisha’s stone-covered hand. “Why haven’t you summoned a monster yet?”

  Because you’ve got super senses and you’re literally training me, miss. When her mother was around, she didn’t give a damn about what was going on, or the details, at least.

  Vernisha pointed to the axe near Abella’s foot. “I want to train with this and my monsters at the same time.”

  Abella kicked the axe at her. It flew fast, but Vernisha caught it, nearly stumbling from the force behind it.

  Sick woman, my ass.

  Vernisha grabbed the handle with her other hand and took a firm step back to balance herself.

  Abella sighed. “In a real fight, never do that. That was an easy diversion, and I could have partially summoned a monster and killed you.”

  “Why partial summon?” Vernisha held the axe by the head, ready to remove the sheath.

  “People tend to look for a bright flash of white when fighting us. I’ll make sure there wouldn’t be one. Thus, partial release.”

  “Oh... Hm.” Vernisha tilted her head slightly. “That ever worked on you?”

  POV: Vernisha

  “Hm. In a real fight? No. Most of my opponents weren’t other vlandos. They were... Oh.”

  Vernisha shut her eyes as she unsheathed the axe, releasing a bright white light.

  Then she summoned Forwing and her new monster, the metallic scorpion.

  Forwing flew up into the sky and began hurling sharp winds with [Wind Blade], all while Vernisha examined the scorpion’s powers.

  Tunneling

  Iron Will

  Gigantic Pincher. That sounded cool as hell.

  Sharp Tail

  Metal Venom

  Shedding

  Abella pulled something from her inventory, a giant shield, red with yellow in the center.

  Vernisha could immediately tell it was made for Starlights, with its kite-like shape resembling a twinkling star.

  The blades of wind cut down at Abella, and the shield didn’t break the attacks. Instead, the wind blades were absorbed into the yellow center.

  Overpowered.

  Abella looked at Vernisha’s monster, about to say something, when Vernisha suddenly made it rush forward.

  Its pinchers grew majestic and massive, almost as big as Abella.

  If Vernisha commanded it to use more ether, she could probably make them bigger.

  Abella swiped her finger in its direction, and the shield split into two, blocking the assault. “Two at the same time. You know, that isn’t a rare skill.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “The rare skill is controlling two monsters near your level, since their mentality would be stronger. Do I have to explain the rest?”

  Vernisha was already doing that.

  “Hm... I get it. Don’t be too cocky and think only I can do this.” She hesitated, thinking hard. “If I do, my opponent could fool me into thinking I’m only facing one monster. Weak monsters are still threats to us.”

  But she bet that was still difficult to pull off.

  “Yes, yes. Very well done.”

  Abella disappeared and was suddenly behind her, and Vernisha felt a rush of air. “What do you think is the lesson here, now?”

  Vernisha grunted. “If I can manage multiple monsters, keep one close to me for defense or on the lookout? No. Both.”

  Abella silently judged her.

  Then she said, “You’re doing very well.”

  “Yeah? Why the long face then?”

  “I was merely impressed. But right, defense. Monster Fighters must work in squads if they’re to face a challenging opponent. One handles defense, offense, scouting, travel, and the last one is special. Special in case you need a person to have skills only useful in unique situations.”

  Vernisha asked, “What about a healer? And why a traveler?”

  “So everyone’s mind can be well rested before facing the enemy. And for healers, that’s optional. Healing monsters, efficient healing monsters, are quite rare. The Defender should have skills that include some healing.”

  Vernisha paused before asking, “I could be a one-man squad?”

  “Yes.”

  “Wait, wait. This feels complicated. To be the best in a role, doesn’t that mean their life buffs, weapons, armor, and time spent collecting and leveling monsters must be extremely precise? Like, before they even start leveling, they have to plan for this?”

  “Yes. Despite what you typically see, there are many who take pride in what they are and are taught and raised at an early age for this.”

  “In Star families?” That was the only way it made sense to her.

  “It’s very common and expected in every nation that cares about national defense. Some are just secretive about it.”

  “Terrafall?”

  “It exists here. Even for personal affairs, it exists, just on a much smaller scale. Most noble and Corporator families can’t be public about it.”

  “Oh... Noble and Corporator vlandos. I never really thought about that.”

  Abella had mentioned it a couple days ago. For some reason, Vernisha hadn’t processed what it actually meant.

  “Haha... Almost all of them hide it. But they all love it.” Abella smiled cruelly. “Like druggies that hide their addiction from the world.”

  That made sense. If they raised their vlandos family members well, they could shape their business or political affairs on a grander scale.

  Getting rid of opponents or suppressing dangerous individuals would be so much easier.

  Some reporter going to expose your money laundering? Not anymore. Because they literally forgot they ever talked to you.

  Damn it. Vernisha could feel Tarnisha wanting to say, I told you so.

  Then a thought dawned on her. “Has there ever been a case where a noble family was exposed?”

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  “Oh yes. Cechul Yebul. He tried to kill Venie, who had almost won the governor elections at Shinetown about twenty years ago. His son was supposed to use a Mind Monster to trap him in a dream, leaving him in a coma. An almost flawless plan, since Venie had already been in a coma twice as a young boy.”

  Abella kept going on, and then Vernisha suddenly tapped her ankle.

  Abella’s mouth was open when that happened, and it stayed open for a while.

  Then she frowned and shrugged. “Very anticlimactic.”

  “You’re level 193, miss. I don’t know what you expected.”

  “Is that so...”

  Vernisha looked away from her and stared at the axe in her hand.

  Her axe.

  A killing device.

  Killing.

  A good weapon should be able to determine what was evil and what needed… She looked at her left hand. What needed healing.

  Abella asked, “What is it? Is it about being a weapon again?”

  Vernisha looked at her in shock, and Abella responded, “You tensed your left hand when we were discussing being a weapon.”

  Vernisha groaned and looked away. “I know what you’re going to say.”

  “Maybe not. Being a weapon isn’t a bad thing. A knife can kill babies, yet it can also protect someone.”

  “And what if that knife kills everything it’s pointed at?”

  “Where did that worry come from?”

  “Just answer. What if existing merely brings harm to others? If a part of ourselves did that. If that was the case, who would want to be a weapon? I’m just trying to make you understand.”

  “Then I would be careful with that part of me. Careful to make it only point at those who deserve to die.”

  As a person, Vernisha knew that.

  But when she thought about her healing aura, she didn’t want that. She wanted it to be a good thing. To help others. Not kill them.

  Abella sat down and said, “Let’s forget this for a while and focus more on training. Educating you, I suppose.”

  “First... Monsters in their first form are noticeably foolish. This changes as they...”

  Her words faded away.

  And Vernisha thought about the horror park. The time she spent with Katie.

  She had been so against being a weapon. She thought of it as an agency issue.

  Was it truly just that? Today, Abella said she had tensed her left hand during the conversation about being a weapon.

  Vernisha had not even been thinking about her healing powers then. So she had done it subconsciously.

  Ah... this power of hers.

  Would she ever be able to accept its true nature?

  She doubted it.

  An hour and a half later, Vernisha watched Abella leave, the woman claiming she needed to rest.

  Before going, Abella had handed over a leather holster for the axe. It fit snugly against Vernisha’s back, the strap running under one arm and over the other.

  Vernisha thought when her chest eventually came in—when she finally grew some massive knockers—it was absolutely going to be a burden.

  And yes. She knew exactly how that sounded. Childish. Stupid. Immature.

  She didn’t give a fuuuuck.

  This life was her chance to have what she couldn’t have in the last one. What she had envied. If she ended up hating it, she’d call herself a dumbass and fix it somehow. But if she didn’t…

  Well. She’d be living her best life.

  Still. Maybe not uncomfortably massive.

  The mental image of her adult body shifted.

  Ew. Yeah. No. Too much.

  Maybe not massive.

  She tweaked it again, then mentally waved the whole thing off. Ah, fuck it. Future Vernisha’s problem.

  Hair texture, though… yeah, she was definitely going curly. Crazy curly. And fangs.

  A quiet, wicked grin pulled at her mouth. A mouth full of fangs. And red eyes. Blood-red eyes.

  Yeah. That was cool. Very cool.

  Vernisha lay back on the ground and stared up at the sky, noting the faint green tint that had been getting stronger lately.

  Four days until Uquel, the sixth month.

  Vernisha pushed herself up and headed to the library on the third level of the left wing.

  Inside, she quickly spotted the Zec’op guy near the window.

  His sandals rested neatly against the wall, and he was absorbed in a thick book whose title she couldn’t make out from this distance.

  “Hello.”

  She still didn’t get why he sat there. The daylight pouring over his back had to be uncomfortable.

  At least he looked kinda cool. She filed the image away for later—something to maybe try once she had her adult body.

  Privately. Obviously. Being seen would be instant death by embarrassment.

  “Greetings. Verni…sha?”

  His accent stretched the vowels hard, especially the Es. Most punchios she’d heard sounded vaguely French—guttural Rs, missing Hs, nasal tones. His was… different.

  “Hi.” She moved toward the history section, third sheath of the first row. “How are you today?”

  “Excellent. You?”

  “Living.”

  “Living?”

  “I mean—decent. Cool. Nice.”

  He laughed. “I understand what decent mean.” He cleared his throat. “Is this your first time being here?”

  “Nope. Last time I was reading about your country. And Terrafall. A monster eclipse sounds amazing—from a military point of view.”

  “Oh. Hm. Weapons aside and other issues, it’s a beautiful nation.”

  “Richest too.”

  He went quiet for a second. “You ever been to it?”

  “No way. A bit too fascist for me.” Terrafall had problems, sure—but nothing like Emermyne.

  He chuckled. “Isn’t that so… Isn’t that so. Terrafall is interesting.”

  He closed the thick book. “I was surprised the news wasn’t controlled by the government.”

  “That’s probably what they want you to think.” Vernisha pulled free a brown leather volume depicting a heavily scarred brown woman—one that looked exactly like Katie’s drawing of the Lucky Queen. Holy shit, Katie was good.

  “Not very nationalistic, I see,” he said.

  “Not really. But there’s probably a tiny bit buried deep in there somewhere.” She shot him a sideways look. “You don’t seem the type either, considering you’re here in Terrafall.”

  “Got that right.” He flicked his fingernails. “Got that right…”

  Vernisha dragged a stool from the wall and cracked open the book. “So what kind of books do you like?”

  “The Pre-Monster Era. It’s interesting.”

  “Seems boring.”

  She started reading.

  The Lucky Queen. A title given to mock her. She took it with pride.

  The passage went on about the Holvioins—a Merkin offshoot tribe, now extinct—and the systematic genocide that followed Terrafall’s naval defeat in the First War with Holvious. The Queendom’s island geography had forced it to build a dominant navy and defenses hyper-focused on repelling attacks across the Pyro Ocean.

  Vernisha read at incredible speeds. It even shocked her.

  After a moment, Zec’op spoke. “You know of it? Most young human girls prefer Fairystalk Empire.”

  “Yeah? That whole empire reads like complete bullshit.” She didn’t look up. “Feels like some historian swallowed a maniac’s fantasy story and called it fact.”

  He chuckled. “I used to think so too. But I visited Kmel-hul once. The place is naturally magical. If that exists, living plant colonies aren’t so hard to believe.”

  “The plant people part? Sure. Fine.” Vernisha finally looked at him, eyebrow cocked. “What’s fake is the culture. Powerful rich men constantly falling for peasant girls because the girls always have something special?” She snorted. “Please. You know what’s actually interesting? The Jond fascist nation. So obsessed with their bloodlines and ego that they inbred themselves straight into extinction.”

  His eyes widened slightly.

  Vernisha said, “Well, cool is the wrong word. Ironic or interesting is better. I mean, I only read a couple of pages on them. I was skimming. But their warrior code was cool, and I find their belief in equality among citizens super interesting.”

  He said:

  “A Jond is a Jond. Not man, not woman.

  Not rich, not broken. Not clever, not dull. Not whole, not wounded.

  We are not parts—we are one.”

  Vernisha continued it,

  “How can you have wealth, but your neighbor goes hungry? How can you be clean, but your sister lies in filth?

  How can you be healthy, while your aunt rots with fever?

  Why should your mother bleed to bear children, and you be fruitless, proud, and untouched?”

  He responded,

  “Why should your father bury under the bodies of invaders to be called a man, and you sit alive, yet wear the same title?

  How can a home be warm, if even one Jond is cold? How can your feet be safe, if your brother’s are bare?

  How can you dream, when another chokes on smoke to keep your oil running?”

  Vernisha found this somewhat fun, so she put down the book and continued.

  “A king who feasts while one Jond gnaws on bone is no king. It is better he hang by the tongue that speaks of peace than live in peace while others burn.”

  He smiled, drumming his fingers against the wall.

  “There is no mine. There is only ours. Your joy is my joy. Your blood is my burden. Your failings, my shame.”

  “The world builds walls. Jond tears them down. The world says earn. Jond says share. The world says you. Jond says us.”

  “Jond Jond Jond. If I suffer, all should. If I thrive, all must. Because we’re one.”

  Vernisha clapped, impressed by her ability to remember the Jond's national pledge. “That’s probably one of the only four things I can remember about them.”

  “You got good memory.”

  She smiled brightly at that, not because she cared about the compliment (it was nice of him)—but because of what she was about to say. “I have been improving my mind.”

  She spent a couple of hours reading. After she got bored, she sat up and stretched her limbs.

  The Silo was still up in the sky, so she wondered what to do with the time.

  Read more? She was exhausted from all the reading.

  She stared at the clouds... then got an idea. She needed a space to practice using monsters in peace.

  The training with Abella had been eye-opening. Who knew what other tactics and techniques she could learn by spending time practicing with peace of mind?

  But Ferzan.

  She could find an area, then tell him to give her a damn break—because what the fuck was this? A prison?

  On a serious note, she could say a good person would respect the privacy of others. Especially a growing child.

  Yes yes...

  Vernisha made her way out of the mansion and left the estate.

  Instead of following the road that led to Sundawn, she decided to go up the hill on the left side.

  The estate and the roads were mostly the only flat pieces of land.

  She weaved around the many trees, careful not to step into an ant nest.

  Then... she looked up and groaned. The incline was much steeper than expected.

  She took out her compact axe from its holster and pretended to practice her swings.

  After doing that a couple of times, she unsheathed her axe and released a blinding light.

  Then she summoned Crusbull. If there really wasn’t anyone watching, please kill her.

  She got on Crusbull and rode up that damn hill.

  It climbed for about twenty minutes until they reached the top. The air was much crisper, and the view—

  Vernisha spun around, taking in the trees and plants, hills and mountains.

  This wasn't secure enough. She tried to activate Blinding Light again.

  It only emitted a faint flicker. She guessed it needed more time to absorb light.

  Damn it. But Forwing was small. So she ran her hand through the grass and released Forwing.

  Fly high.

  And so it did—soaring into the sky, darting up and down.

  All she saw through its eyes were trees, blue deer, birds, grass... and—

  Wait.

  It stopped. At the edge of its vision was a crack in the hill, just before a faraway slope. Running through that crack was a narrow waterfall.

  Vernisha got back on Crusbull and rushed over. By the time she was halfway there, the mental strain had grown too intense.

  So she called Forwing back and absorbed it. Using her memory, they followed the path. About twenty minutes passed again. But eventually, she heard running water.

  Clear streams splashed over rocks. The water had a narrow path that stretched for several dozen meters before descending down the hill.

  She looked at the cave. Inside it was nothing but rock walls and a fairly roomy interior.

  Not very roomy, of course—it could fit about five vans side by side. Height-wise, though, it was decent.

  She stayed on Crusbull as she commanded it to enter the cave.

  As they passed under the waterfall, cold water soaked her. It felt... refreshing.

  Then they entered the cave—grey and bluish-grey rock.

  From the ground to the walls, that was all there was. It reminded her of a riverbank, which made her think this place had been flooded recently.

  She dismounted and walked farther in. Was the monster clown going to leap out of the shadows and slit her throat?

  Vernisha smiled to herself, knowing that with Crusbull, the darkness was her ally.

  Still, it was strange—no animals at all.

  Not even bats? Maybe the waterfall was a barrier?

  Or maybe the flooding was frequent? It didn’t look wet, so hopefully not.

  But then again, weekly floods were common. Wouldn’t there be a fishy smell or something, though?

  She considered it and thought, [Earth Armor]

  Rocks covered her from head to toe. Then, for the first time, she used [Sight Adjustment].

  She had no idea what the skill did, but the name sounded self-explanatory.

  Crusbull’s eyes turned white and then... nothing.

  Huh.

  It was suddenly blind. She was blind.

  Turn it off.

  She could see the cave clearly again.

  Use Sight Adjustment again.

  Once more, everything turned white. She must’ve been using it the wrong way.

  Adjust your eyes to... blue light?

  Suddenly, the only color she could see was blue.

  Hm.

  She touched Crusbull and absorbed it into her seal. Then she summoned Aquren.

  Although it couldn’t smell as well as Mon, it was still a snake-like monster.

  Why monsters resembled animals, she had no idea. But she had seen humanoid monsters before, so maybe it depended on the Monster Zone. That made sense to her.

  Anyway, instead of using its eyes, she wanted to see if it could detect heat.

  ...

  It couldn’t. Sigh. That was probably a locked skill.

  Smell.

  And so it did. It picked up something faint. The sweat of a human male.

  And that scent was suddenly near. God damn it. If she had Mon, she could’ve caught the smell earlier.

  Maybe the water weakened the scent. The waterfall parted as a massive man walked in, a glass lamp in hand.

  Blue fire burned inside. He stared at her, not showing much surprise.

  Vernisha waved at him. "So... I'll take my leave."

  She actually wanted to take the cave for herself, but she always hated thieves. She didn’t want to become that kind of person.

  He scratched at his scruffy brown beard, then raked his fingers through long, unkempt hair. "What's your level?"

  Vernisha blinked, momentarily confused.

  

  Level 24

  Vernisha responded, faking anxiety. "Only 10. I'm trying to reach level 12... by the end of the week."

  Then she asked, "How did you know I was a Vlandos?"

  He scoffed, like she was some clueless kid. Yes sir, clearly she wasn’t aware she looked like a golem and had a water snake next to her.

  He set his leather side bag down. "And monsters? How many?"

  And why would he want to know?

  "Only... two. My friend says having multiple monsters is super dangerous."

  She thought about saying four, to bait him even more. But two was perfect. A solid lie that would make him underestimate her.

  Also, the [Earth Armor] was giving her away.

  She only knew two things about him. Homeless. Level 24. And no Inspect skill. He’d taken +10% defense.

  His lips curled into a slow grin. "Is that so?"

  Le dumbass.

  She asked, "Yeah? I'll go."

  He shook his head and looked at her like she’d said something absurd. "Go? Haha... You ain't going anywhere. The Stars brought you to me for a reason. Yes yes..."

  On his knuckle was a white “M” with a faint glow. A glow that was getting brighter. Talk about being trigger-eager.

  "Stay here? Sure. But... Can you first collect my doll for me?"

  Suddenly, the glow faded. "What doll?"

  She pointed upward. "I was testing my new strength."

  And the fool actually looked up. His eyes narrowed, trying to spot something that didn’t exist. "What doll are you—"

  He never finished the sentence. How could he? There was a gaping hole in his chest.

  Aquaren’s mouth dripped with water, traces of the [Water Pulse] still present.

  The man lost control of his body and collapsed.

  Personal Level: 21

  Aquaren: Level 19

  That was purely self-defense. An opportunity she gladly took, of course, but self-defense nonetheless.

  Yet she wasn’t particularly happy. As she watched the blood gush from his body, all she could think about was how easy it would be for her to die.

  To be tricked like that and one-shotted.

  She reached for her armor and realized she’d actually covered it with [Earth Armor].

  Haha... muscle memory. What a thing.

  Her gaze dropped to her monster.

  Vlandos were made to fight these things. To protect super-sentients.

  Yet... they were so much stronger than them.

  It was like a bad joke. Whatever. She had a cave now, and a corpse.

  She frowned. She didn’t like how little killing affected her. It was weird. Too weird. Too... inhuman.

  But what could she do about it? Nothing.

  She went over to him, picked up the leather bag, and threw it away from him.

  "Use [Snakes Of Water] to sink the corpse."

  The snake monster dashed to the body and whipped its tail near it, turning the ground beneath it into water.

  What came next was a group of water snakes coiling around the corpse. They brought it below the surface.

  She sat on the ground. This place was perfect.

  But to think she only gained a single level from killing someone that much stronger than her. Not to mention the number of monsters he surely had sealed.

  Wait!

  System. What level is Crusbull?

  20

  She wondered what its new skill was.

  Muscle Massceleration

  She jumped up with a grin. It was definitely a strength-boosting skill.

  It seemed monsters typically had a balance of offensive, evasive or/and defensive, support/status effects, or racial-type skills.

  Before summoning Crusbull, she wanted to check on her other monsters.

  Forwing's level, and the other monster's?

  Forwing: Level 20

  Melorpion: Level 18

  Forwing leveling up caught her off guard.

  What's its new skill?

  Sonic Screech.

  "Ouuuuuuuuuuu." She couldn't help herself. What was this? Was she finally starting to enjoy gaining new monster skills?

  Maybe it was because she got them so easily—without any real hardship or pain.

  She absorbed Aquaren and summoned Crusbull.

  When she commanded it to cast [Earth Armor] on her while the old one was still active, the overlapping effect destabilized the structure and caused it to collapse.

  Back when the armor had been infected by the metal skill she didn’t bother using Crusbull since it lacked the ether for it.

  Anyway. "Use [Muscle Massceleration] on both of us."

  It stomped with its front legs, and suddenly, its body began to glow red. Her too. Red like a tomato.

  Then its shells began to open, giving its rapidly expanding muscles space to grow.

  And it grew... by about 50%. Her body felt strange too, and when she looked at herself, she was shocked.

  It looked like she’d been fed nothing but steroids since birth, and she was so red!

  In simpler terms, she looked heinous. Not that it mattered—it was just a skill.

  It seemed contradictory to her body-image-obsessed ass. But her image mattered little when survival was on the line.

  She had eaten raw monster organs to survive. The disgusting, rotting smell, the gross texture were still clear as day to her.

  Looking like this was nothing.

  Vernisha took a step forward, feeling slightly slower. Then she punched the air, and the power behind it was far greater than ever before.

  Okay. She liked this.

  It felt like her strength had doubled. She swung at the rock wall. When her fist landed, there was a loud thud, followed by a crack splitting through the stone.

  [Earth Armor].

  Crusbull tried… but only a small stone formed around her feet before crumbling apart.

  So this muscle skill consumed around 49% ether. And after fifteen more seconds, their muscles deflated.

  Her skin also returned to its usual tan-white shade.

  Her head felt slightly strained. Vernisha absorbed Crusbull and carried out one last experiment for the day.

  Forwing shot out of her hand. She covered her ears and ordered, Sonic Screech.

  That day, she learned something. This must’ve been what Jer-kal felt when her fairy used a sonic attack.

  The air trembled, and her hands were useless against the sound.

  The pitch was so high it felt like microphone feedback—but ten times worse. Then came a pop, and everything went silent.

  She’d made herself deaf. Amazing.

  Vernisha coated her hands with a red healing aura, which… flickered out.

  She stared at her hands, reminding herself she had to force it to obey. In the short time she hadn’t used her healing power, she’d forgotten just how much effort it took for that flickering to nearly disappear.

  She healed her ears—and damn, it drained a lot of energy.

  Still, she requested another [Sonic Screech], this time with 50% ether.

  She covered her ears again. When the screech ended, she wasn’t deaf.

  But her vocal cords were in pain. Damage shared with Forwing.

  Maybe if she tweaked it to 65%, she could get most of its power without rendering herself deaf.

  Vernisha tapped her chin, deep in thought. Forwing floated back to her hand and was about to heal its throat.

  Then an idea hit her, and she almost laughed. Instead of touching it, she directed her healing energy toward her own throat.

  When she finished, her monster’s throat was healed too.

  Long-range healing, achieved.

  See, Lu’jol? She was way too slow to be considered smart.

  [Sonic Screech] with 65% Ether. She blocked her ears.

  Of course, she doubted monsters could precisely calculate their ether. But they likely had rough estimates.

  The screech was… painful. Vernisha groaned and endured it until the ten seconds were over.

  She pulled her hands away and looked at her palms.

  Wet with blood—but she wasn’t deaf.

  60% it was.

  She healed her ears.

  Time to experiment again.