I'm starving. I'm starving. I'm starving. I don't even care where I am. The first thing I do with my new freedom is look for something to eat. Anything. But there's nothing. No plants, just a barren wasteland with numerous other sacs like the one I was in. Sacs. SACS. That gives me an idea! I start to grin and laugh maniacally. I've found it! Food!
I crawl to the nearest egg and start to pound on it. As I slam my fists against the brittle shell, I hear the fake shrieks of the thing inside. I don't care. I don't have the capacity to consider what I'm doing. I don't care what it is. I WILL eat it.
As I break through the shell I see it. My first meal in this hellhole. It's an animal the size of a monkey. If I was in the right state of mind I would've realized something odd about this animal. But my hunger-driven mind can only see it as a source of nourishment. I open my mouth wide…and crunch into it.
The bones snap in my mouth as it weakly gives off its last cries. Blood pours out of my mouth, as I chew and chew the tough skin of the beast. Then it hits. A sharp pain courses through my body. "AHHHHHHH" I can't help but scream. It feels like my body is clawing out of itself. My skin stretches and stretches and blood is seeping out of my eyes, ears, and mouth. I'm twitching and writhing as I hold myself. It hurts. It hurts so bad. The last thing I can think of, before I lose consciousness, is a plea to God to make it stop.
My eyes open. Huh. That's strange. I can tell it's dark, but why am I able to see so clearly? I groan as I remember what happened before I passed out. I feel stronger now too. Interesting. I look around and slowly take it all in. A barren, gloomy land stretches as far as my eyes can see. Apart from myself and the various eggs, there are no other living things. I frown then look at my body. My eyes widen as I see a tail under my legs.
I try to think back to what happened to me then I realize I ate one of those egg monsters. Did I really just chomp on that beast? Oddly enough, I don't feel bad. Something tells me I should but I can't wrap my finger around it. After examining the rest of my body, I conclude I'm no longer a human. My ears have elongated and become pointier. My tongue is forked and my teeth have drastically sharpened. I have a sharp tail covered in various spikes. My feet are webbed and I can feel small fins jutting out from my back and arms.
I shiver then rub my stomach. It's started growling again and I am feeling that deep unsatiated hunger within me once more. I greedily look towards the egg sacs and grin. Itdakimasu! I'm a lot stronger and I can break open these egg sacs in one hit. I open my jaws and bite down on another monster. Mmmm. Tastes like rubber. Getting another look, these monsters are quite ugly. They have fur covering their bodies and a wrinkled face with four eyes and gaping mouth. I shudder and try not to think about it.
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I move on from egg sac to egg sac. I lost track after a dozen kills and I keep feeding until the hunger stops. Behind me, a trail of bloody bursted egg sacs can be seen and I sit on the rough ground contemplating my next actions. Then without warning, a fanfare plays in my head and a blue screen pops up.
[ Hihi! Congratulations on unlocking Pandora's Box after completing the Hidden Requirement of consuming the souls of a hundred monsters! ]
I stare in shock. What is this? Pandora's box? Without giving me time to think, the screen morphs into a video.
A shadowy figure appears. It distorts and covers it mough.
"*cough cough* Is this working? Yaho! If you're watching this then that means you've died! You've been pulled from your universe into this one! I'm your friendly supreme goddess Edie-tan! Because of your hard efforts, you have been granted the reward of the Pandora's Box system made by yours truly! After watching this video just say "sha-la-la Edie-tan desu!"
I sneer at the video and think again, trying to remember who I am. I frown as I struggle to remember. Reiko Nakamara. Right. That was my name. From what I can remember, I lived in a place called Japan. I push these thoughts away and decide to open my system. No way in hell am I gonna be saying sha-la whatever and so I just say 'Status' in my head.
A ding plays in my head and I realize I've unlocked the system. 'That bitch goddess really thought I was a dumbass huh. I can't believe she thought she could trick me into saying that.' While I ruminate about flicking the goddess in the head, my screen flickers and words start appearing.
??? (née Reiko Nakamara)
Age: 0
Race: Monster-human hybrid
Level: 18
Titles: [Reincarnator] [???]
Debuffs:
Memory Sealage: Grade SSS+
A sealing of the person's memories. With small details like age and name omitted from the affected memories, any world-threatening memories will be locked. Seal can only be broken by a greater god, race change, or interdimensionary travel.
Permanent Poisoning: Grade C
The result of consuming the soul of a hellroach. Hellroaches have built-in poisons to prevent consumption. After the host's feeding frenzy, the host has had the majority of its bloodflow contaminated with the roach poison
Skills (Innate):
Gluttony: Divine
The host will have an insatiable thirst for souls. As the host gets stronger, the easier it will be to consume the souls of stronger beings.
Transformation: D [Lesser Sea Monster]
The host can transform into their monster form at any given moment. Monster forms usually are faster and stronger than a host's ordinary form.
Lifesteal: S
The host can consume the life experience of another being. This includes skills, monster attributes, and general experience points. However, memories are not consumed.