[Anastasia’s POV]
Smag comes around the next day. I mean, he has to feed me. It’s not like he can forget about me. I decide to be blunt.
“Smag, you are a strange goblin, you know?”
“I’m just smarter.”
“I don’t think so. I think you have been a human once.” His face changes instantly. I got you; I smile. I know he won’t kill me. He won’t risk Axi.
“I don’t understand you, though. Did you lose your memories or something?”
He considers it for a moment.
“Fine. I forgot about some things.” I guessed it. It can’t be only some things, though. He had to have been a powerful warlock to turn himself into a monster. It seems his transformation backfired.
“What about Axi? Were you together?”
“No. Don’t ask me about it. I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Fine. I will keep it a secret.” He frowns and leaves. Damn. Now, he may really kill me after I give birth.
What should I do? I think I know. I knew it for some time; it’s just… I’m not prepared to take that step. I’m afraid. But that title pushed me forward. No more hesitation.
I just need to embrace my new life among monsters. Become a witch. A real one. Maybe I can even become a monster in the future. Smag was able to resurrect Axi. Wait. I don’t know for sure if she will be fine. She could lose all her memories, or at least some of them, like Smag.
Regardless, there’s only one way forward. Smag comes again to feed me.
“I’m bored.”
“Sorry. It’s just two weeks. Actually, only thirteen days now.”
“Sure, but maybe you could entertain me?”
He rolls his eyes. “I’m not your clown.”
“No, I mean..." I spread my legs. I’m still naked. “We could have some fun.”
“I thought you hated it.”
“I hated getting pregnant with goblins. I can’t get more pregnant now. So?”
“You are plotting something. Did you place some poison in your vagina?”
“You are too paranoid, you know.”
“Sure, I’m a coward. It has saved my life many times. I won’t deny it.”
I frown. I don’t think so. Smag is a bastard, his character is bad, and he is too paranoid, but he isn’t a coward. “You are not. You are a cautious person. It's a good thing. I know you are brave when you have to do something. Would a coward risk his life to gain control over a mana type, just to maybe save his lover? Maybe you are a coward by goblin standards, but not by humans.”
He frowns again. “So? Have you suddenly discovered my positive characteristics and decided you want to bed me?"
“No. I’m just bored, and we have already done it before. Come on, I’m sure Axi wouldn't mind. She actually tried to convince me to fuck you, so I'm a proper gobliness.”
“How sweet.” He leaves. Bastard!
The next time he comes to me, I try something else.
“Can I ask about your new skill?”
“You can, but I may not answer.”
“Sure, mister mysterious. Can you resurrect a soul in a different body? Like, resurrect a goblin in a wolf's body?” I ask, hoping to learn more about his research.
“I’m not sure. I know there’s a problem with the mishmash of a soul and body, so probably not. There’s also a possibility that the soul would override the original race, and a wolf would give birth to a goblin. I’m going to test it, though, but not now. I’m still trying to completely figure out my new mana type.”
“Sure. Thank you.” I continue to eat as he feeds me.
"By the way, I think you are a bit too harsh on me because of the dark gods. I think monsters have been made to hate enlightened people."
"Maybe." He shrugs. I'm not going to elaborate on my new title, not now. I don't trust this bastard. After we finish, I try to tempt him again.
“You know, I’m still bored.”
“I’m not an idiot who thinks with his dick. Let’s forget about it for now.” I really thought it would be easier to seduce a goblin. Am I too ugly?
Smag comes again.
“Can I ask you something?” I ask.
“Sure. Just like the last time.”
“Am I ugly?”
“What?”
“Do I have sex appeal?”
“What kind of question is it?”
“Rather simple. You don’t want me. I thought goblins fuck any girl that moves.”
“You already figured out I was a human. You are pretty, ok? You have a lot of sex appeal. I still don’t plan to fuck you. I have my priorities."
“I don’t think I’m going back to humans.” I decide to just come clean. My work on Smag is not going forward, and I may as well gamble.
“Why?”
“I can’t. I got a title.”
“Title? I don’t think you have done anything impressive.”
I shrug. “It’s more of a curse. I got it for having sex with you. So, I’m staying. Would you have me?”
He considers it. Damn. He is too paranoid.
“You had sex with a goblin before.”
“You mean, I have been raped. I got the title for being a willing participant.”
“I see.”
“Please. I have nowhere to go. I don’t want to die in some ditch, hated by everyone.” I just start to cry. It’s true. I have nowhere to go. This is the only place. I don’t want to be thrown out. Could I go back to my family? I doubt it. There were many of us—always too many to feed. I don't think they will take me back.
Smag comes closer. “Fine. You can stay. But I’m still keeping you here for now.”
“You don’t trust me.”
“Sorry.”
“Can you hug me? I need it. Really.”
He does so. Maybe my new life won’t be so bad.
[Smag’s POV]
She knows. She knows I have been a human. How? Were there more transmigrators or reincarnators before? Can I return? Do I even want to? I sigh. I have time. I will figure it all out.
I go and collect Axi’s former body. I need to bury it. I dig the grave and place her body in it. It’s not a funeral; Axi will be back. I take a dagger and make a cut on her chest. Then I dig my hand inside and take out the earth core. Axi will need it back. I bury the body and place the core in a safe place. I cook for Anastasia and go to feed her. This time, she tries to seduce me. Naive! I’m not so easy to trick.
The tribe is in chaos. We lost many goblins, plus there’s no Axi. Anastasia is locked, and I’m the new chief. I just tell them to hunt as usual. Hopefully, they can remember enough and not turn back to wild fighting.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Personally, I need to figure out my new magic. First, I investigate the affinity trait. I know Axi's trait mixed earth mana into her vitality, but how is that working for me? After some investigation, I think it just makes my body more susceptible to regeneration from vitality. Effectively, this means I can heal easier, faster, and with less vitality. It should also be giving me a boost to the HP pool, as it seems a bit too big now.
I go back to feed Anastasia. It’s a bit annoying, but it’s just two weeks. After I give her food, she tries to seduce me again. I wanted to refuse firmly, but then she tells me her story. After that, we end up hugging each other. I think, could I have been mistaken all along? Is she really just a lost girl without a home? Someone who trusted me and got punished for that? I don’t want to be someone like that.
I still keep her bound and return to training. My goal for some time was to get an offensive spell. Vitality is not very offensive, though. Shooting someone with vitality heals them. I know from Anastasia that there are undead in this world, and it seems I should seek them if I want to level quickly.
I start with the Infusion spell. The whole spell is about indirectly influencing vitality to give me a boost to my stats. I no longer need to do so indirectly. I start to experiment. After half a day, I get it.
Your Mana Infusion (Uncommon) skill has evolved to the Vitality Buff (Epic) skill.
You have retained some skill levels.
The upgraded skill is really epic. It more than doubles my Strength, Vitality, and Endurance stats. I can also give myself some boost to Dexterity. I check, and the new skill is level 4. I also lost two Affinity perks, leaving me only with 36 Affinity. It is truly a pitiful number. I need to level up. Such low affinity makes it harder for me to use magic and decreases my mana pool even more.
I go back to Anastasia.
“I have a question.” She is bold.
“Go ahead.”
“Is this your fetish? Binding girls up?”
I roll my eyes. “No. It’s not funny.”
I feed her, and as I’m about to leave, she speaks again.
“I have another question.” I just stare at her, waiting for her to continue.
“Do you want to be my boyfriend?”
Now, I’m flabbergasted. She continues. “You can have two girlfriends, you know. I heard that powerful men often have many lovers. Axi won’t mind.”
“Why would you even want that? I mean, isn’t it better for you to find a human partner?”
“Where? How? I’m a witch now. Also, I want someone to care for me as much as you care for Axi.”
I think about it and reply to an anxious Anastasia.
“You need to ask me this after giving birth, because I’m not going to keep my girlfriend tied up.”
“Fine!” She laughs. “I will wait.”
I go back to my research. How can I damage someone's vitality? It’s like trying to hurt someone with a blood transfusion. Actually, it’s harder. There are different types of blood, and there is only one type of vitality. Maybe… Blood can clot. Can I create solid vitality? I experiment with creating solid constructs with vitality. It’s hit-and-miss, but I’m getting better. A few days of training later, I decide to forcefully upgrade the skill.
I succeed.
Your Mana Orb (Uncommon) skill has evolved into the Vitality Clot (Very Rare) skill.
There are no remaining levels, though. After testing the new skill, I must say it’s brutal, but it's exactly what I wanted. There are three possible outcomes.
After sending vitality clots into the target’s vitality flow, it drifts until it finds a narrower place, which it blocks. The first option is paralysis. It’s also the most common. The clot blocks some vitality flow to a limb, paralyzing it. If I’m lucky, the paralysis is bigger, up to the whole body.
The second option is the clot finding itself at a less important vital point. It causes serious malfunction of an internal organ, but since that organ is not very important, it only causes intense pain and rapid loss of vitality as the body tries to fix itself.
The last option is that the clot finds itself at an important vital point, like the heart, or rather in a place where vitality is attached to the heart. This causes death in several seconds.
The new spell is way more powerful, but only because most monsters around here have no magic defenses. I asked Anastasia to create a small mana shield outside her body and then fired the clot at it. The shield blocked it, only wobbling a bit. It would be even harder if the shield was on her skin, but I am obviously not going to attempt it since I fear actually hurting Anastasia.
My last idea is flesh golems. Something without a soul, but with a vitality I could control. I need some serious work for this to actually happen, so it’s more of a long-term goal.
I go to the forest, leading a small group to test my new power. It’s great. I have no problem killing 1st tier monsters, just by using the Vitality Buff. 2nd tiers are more tricky, but only in physical combat. No monsters around here have any magic defenses, so I can easily paralyze or even kill them with the Vitality Clot. I may even be able to kill 3rd tier monsters around here, but I’m not planning to do so right now. Maybe later, with Axi, and maybe even Anastasia.
For now, I need to increase my stats. With my Buff, my Strenght is around 30. Axi's Strenght was around three times that, without any magical buffs. I also need to increase my Affinity. Currently, my mana pool is my greatest limitation. It dictates how much I can heal myself, and how long I can fight with the buff and attack.
I also should probably change my weapon. I can keep my Spear Fighting levels; perks give me more Strength, which is useful. However, I think I’m capped. I have a problem further upgrading my Spear technique and raising my cap. Moreover, I picked the spear because it offered some protection from range. I don’t really need it anymore. I have strong regeneration due to my magic, and I can make myself some armor as well.
Should I pick up a sword? Maybe an ax like Axi? Hammer? I probably should just try each one of these and then decide.
You have killed 32 1st tier monsters. You have earned 1420 Experience Points.
You have killed 5 2nd tier monsters. You have earned 2000 Experience Points.
You have advanced to level 1!
Your Vitality Mana Control skill has advanced to level 4!
Your Vitality Boost skill has advanced to level 5!
Your Mana Sense skill has advanced to level 7!
Your Mana Manipulation skill has advanced to level 6!
Your Transfer Vitality skill has advanced to level 4!
Your Plotting skill has advanced to level 17!
Your Soul Perception skill has advanced to level 3!
Your Move Soul skill has advanced to level 2!
Your Transplant Soul skill has advanced to level 2!
Your Vitality Mana Affinity trait has advanced to level 2!
Joys of having low skill levels. I return to the tribe with a lot of meat.
I continue to hunt in the following days. I make sure to not overextend, keeping not too far from the tribe and not leaving the group. It’s annoying; I feel I could be more effective on my own, but I don’t want to risk an ambush or human adventurers finding me out alone. It’s just a pointless risk.
You have killed 53 1st tier monsters. You have earned 2360 Experience Points.
You have killed 6 2nd tier monsters. You have earned 2800 Experience Points.
Your Vitality Mana Control skill has advanced to level 5!
Your Vitality Boost skill has advanced to level 7!
Your Mana Sense skill has advanced to level 16!
Your Mana Manipulation skill has advanced to level 14!
Your Transfer Vitality skill has advanced to level 10!
Your Soul Perception skill has advanced to level 5!
Your Move Soul skill has advanced to level 3!
Your Transplant Soul skill has advanced to level 3!
Your Spear Fighting skill has advanced to level 23!
Your Strategy skill has advanced to level 19!
I check Transfer Vitality, and the perks are just old ones. Nothing new. I could try to check higher-level perks, but I feel I’m better off with the new skill, so I drop Transfer Vitality. For Mana Sense, there’s a new perk.
Sense Bonded Mana I
Become better at sensing your bonded mana.
I still believe in Inward Perfection. I like how my old perk helped me with soul sense; additionally, Inward Perfection helps with vitality mana, if only my own.
I don't get any new perks for Mana Manipulation, so I pick Mana Flow I. I no longer need Mana Burst. Actually, I wanted to get rid of it for something better, so it’s totally fine.
After that, I spend a day recreating runes for Vitality Bank.
You have learned Vitality Bank (Very Rare) skill!
I spend another day testing it. The range is impressive; I believe it works from over a kilometer. It also doesn't have any links that obviously give me away. The skill somehow works wirelessly. Runes are very complex, however, and it takes a few hours to create them on a monster, and then a few more hours to create a matching rune on me. At this point, it's no longer a rune but rather a mandala.
The skill kills the marked creature, though, so it seems like a skill for a villainous goblin. I can’t really walk around with a bunch of tied-up monsters, so the skill is only usable practically around the tribe. That is, assuming I’m not vicious enough to use it on my fellow goblins, which is probably the original goal of this skill. The skill also gives me less vitality than I could get from my old Tansfer Vitality skill.
Another test shows that I can’t rip apart someone else's vitality manually unless that creature is way weaker. I tested it quite a lot. I can rip apart the vitality of weak-willed 1st tier monsters after weakening them a bit. This means such a technique is completely unusable in a battle, at least for killing and hurting my foes.
The usable part is that I can take for myself their remaining vitality, replenishing my own vitality. It only works on a dying monster, though. In essence, I can now do what Transfer Vitality does, but without the use of runes. Transfer Vitality takes some of it as the price of a magic spell, leaving me around 70% of the vitality I can gather manually from the same monster. The Vitality Bank is even less efficient, gathering from 40% to 20% of that vitality, depending on the distance.
This leads me to another discovery—something that makes me think I'm an idiot. Vitality and vitality mana are obviously not the same. I treated them as one, though. I have vitality in my body and vitality mana in my core. I can create vitality out of vitality mana, but it seems not to be the other way, or at least not yet. After introspection, it's easy to figure out why I made such a mistake. I don't have a way to detect vitality. I only see vitality mana. Just like any other element, vitality is aligning ambient mana to itself, creating vitality mana in bodies. You can easily find water mana in water, etc. Vitality flows I have been observing are real, but they are ultimatly a shadow of vitality, just a path of vitality mana that exists because of vitality flows there, which therefore creates concentration of vitality mana.
In a way, vitality is physical substance, or at least something like that. Just like there is earth and earth mana. What about conceptual mana types? I suppose those exist as well. There is happiness, so there could be happiness mana as well, for example.
The last problem, or maybe an interesting part of the Vitality Banks, is that I can only have a limited number of banks around. I need to create receiver runes for each bank, and they are to be created around my soul. This means there is limited space unless I can seriously miniaturize the runes. It’s interesting, and I only know about this because of my soul skills. This presents a very interesting opportunity for research.
Time passes, and it’s time. Axi is coming back to me.