**POV: Vernisha**

I walked alongside Ferzan to the wall gate. The guards didn’t question him when he said I was going out with him.

The massive metal gates swung open, and the guards bowed as we left.

_'Are you a prince or something?'_ I asked telepathically.

_'Ha. No. You really, really have no clue who I am? Not even a little?'_

_'Should I?'_

_'I’m the grandson of Eren Starworth.'_

I stopped in my tracks, staring at him, baffled. A scoff escaped me, followed by a short laugh. _'Isn’t that hearsay or something? Can’t that get you executed?'_

_'If I’m lying, yeah.'_

_'I found that hard to believe.'_

_'Why? You know he had children, right?'_

_'Obviously. But their wives never survived pregnancies.'_

_'My mother is Abella Starworth. She’s... different from other women.'_

_'Okay, now I know you’re fucking with me. You want me to believe your mother is Abella and your father is the son of a Mortal God?'_

_'Is that really so hard to believe?'_

_'Yes?!'_

_'I’ll show you my mother one day, and my father when he comes back.'_

_'You sure you’re not just a prince?'_

_'I prefer demigod.'_

_'Demi-demi god if you’re not lying.'_

He chuckled. _'Well, whatever. Doesn’t matter.'_

He stretched out his arm, and from his thumb, a mass of light burst forth. It twisted and morphed into the shape of a giant white bird—one with no eyes.

Then it opened its beak.

A massive black eye stared at me from inside its throat.

What the flying fucking hell.

"Why are monsters always so creepy?" I complained.

"You expect monsters not to be… monstrous?"

"God, I hate that you have a point. But they could at least look moderately ugly instead of nightmare fuel."

He shrugged. "My sister used to say the same thing."

"Half-sister?"

"Why would you think that?"

"I… I don’t know. Just thinking, what are the chances of your mother surviving two pregnancies from a demigod?"

He exhaled. "She’s sick because of it. So, no, she didn’t really ‘get away’ with it."

"Oh. Sorry to hear that. I wasn’t trying to say she was supposed to die or anything. It just... came out that way. I apologize."

"It’s fine. I know you’re in disbelief, not being cruel."

"Yeah… I’m still not convinced, but I’ll drop it."

He smiled and gestured at his monster with a tilt of his chin.

The creature’s feathers were razor-sharp, curling unnaturally, as if they had a mind of their own.

He asked, "Think you can jump on its back?"

"Yeah."

He leaped onto the bird with ease.

The bird lowered its back.

...Okay, I might have overestimated myself.

I jumped, but nearly overshot, heading straight for the ground headfirst. He caught me by the ankle.

"Nice jump," he said, oozing sarcasm.

I clutched the feathers and used them to pull myself up behind him.

The bird flapped its wings, and as I glanced down, I spotted something horrifying—massive, jagged teeth protruding from its feathers.

What the fuck.

With a powerful beat of its wings, the creature took off, soaring straight toward the forest.

The wind made it impossible to talk, so I switched to telepathy. _'What’s your rank?'_

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_'Adventurer rankings?'_

_'Yeah.'_

_'I’m not an adventurer. What made you think I was one?'_

_'Uh… because you’re a Vlandos and have a monster.'_

_'Oh. I just kinda do what I want. It’s not causing trouble for anyone, so no one really makes a big deal out of it.'_

_'That’s insane.'_

_'Really? When you have a big name, you can get away with a lot.'_

_'I’ll remember that so I can smuggle all kinds of drugs into Terrafall and become a kingpin.'_

He chuckled. _'Okay, maybe not that.'_

_'How’d you know?'_

_'Just a feeling.'_

_'Time to change that feeling.'_

_'You know, you could be one of the top comedians.'_

_'Wow, wow! Are you acknowledging my skills?! Maybe you should sponsor me.'_

_'Don’t say that as a joke. I might actually do it.'_

_'Just so you know, I respect you.'_

_'So me being willing to help you level up—breaking the law and all—that wasn’t enough for you to respect me?'_

_'Hmmmm.'_

He laughed, and we traveled in silence for a while.

Then he asked, _'Why do those people want to kill you if they find out you’re a Vlandos?'_

Of course, he’d be curious about that.

_'I don’t know. I think they’re my mother’s family. Human supremacists. I guess they’d be offended that I exist, like my presence alone dirties their name or ruins their reputation.'_

_'Damn. I’ve never met one of those.'_

_'No damn way.'_

_'I’ve heard of them, but never met one. You ever met Vlandos supremacists?'_

_'I think I’d be besties with them.'_

Silence.

Fuck.

I quickly added, _'I’m joking. Joking! My family were humans, and so were most of my old friends. No human hatred in my bones.'_

_'Humans really treated Vlandos that bad in this modern age? I always thought it was exaggerated.'_

_'Spend some time in villages far from the cities. You’ll see what happens when laws aren’t enforced. They govern themselves however they want.'_

_'Like the Wild West?'_

_'No, nowhere near that bad.'_

Wait. How did he know that term?

I asked, _'What does the Wild West mean?'_

_'Basically, whatever goes. Lawless land, that kind of thing.'_

_'Really? Is that a common phrase in this city?'_

_'I don’t have a clue. I rarely came here.'_

_'Oh. So where did you hear it? I just really like learning new things and their origins.'_

He shrugged. _'That’s a good question. I am not sure.'_

Damn. I didn’t get it.

He asked me, _'You want to get taller?'_

_'That’s such an out-of-nowhere question, but yes. Make me tall, magic man.'_

_'Then just desire it. Your mod points will be spent on it.'_

_'Can I also make my eyes super strong with it?'_

_'Huh?'_

_'I’m wondering if they modify everything about me.'_

_'Oh. You can’t alter your body beyond what’s humanly possible.'_

_'Damn, so I can’t grow three hands.'_

_'Haha. No. But you can change your pupil shape and color.'_

_'I can make my teeth extra sharp?'_

_'You would need to pull out your current teeth for the new row to replace them.'_

_'I think I understand how it works now. So how long will it take for me to become 6’9?'_

_'You will have to find out yourself.'_

_‘Hm. You mentioned before that the height of the vlandos was complicated. What’s the complication?’_

_‘As you grow, you would expect to keep growing. That expectation and desire will consume the mod points, making you taller. So it’s between passive and active.’_

_‘Oh. So if a vlandos never gained levels while growing up, they would turn out the same height as a regular person?’_

_‘Probably? I never cared to ask too many questions about how it worked.’_

_‘I see…’_

I didn’t think I actually wanted to be crazy tall. I had been around 6’1 back on Earth, and I had hated it.

But eh, I had only hated it because of how much harder it had made dating—talk about playing on extra hard difficulty. Well, that and how insecure it had made me, envious of average-height girls, those who could freely wear high heels.

Fuck me. I had hated being tall and the thoughts I had because of it.

‘If I had been shorter.’

‘I wish I had been her height.’

But whatever. The blowbacks of being a tall woman on Earth had mainly had to do with dating. And lucky me, that had been the least of my concerns now.

I guessed it was the old but strong feelings about being tall that had me conflicted about becoming a thin she-hu^k.

---

Ferzan stood up and raised his voice. “We have finally reached the zone!”

I looked down and saw the front of a semi-spherical white-blue barrier covering what seemed to be the entire forest ahead.

The giant bird descended, and we dismounted, landing on the dry dirt track instead of the grassy sides.

I asked, “The monster zone is that thing?”

“Pretty much.”

“How big is it? It seems huge.”

“About one hundred and twenty-two square miles.”

I couldn’t visualize that size for the life of me, but I was sure it was pretty big.

We walked toward the massive dome.

My heart beat faster.

Ferzan moved in front of me and said, “Send your monster out, and don’t drop your guard for a second.”

I put my hand behind my back and released the monster so the black flash wouldn’t be easily seen.

My monster took form behind me.

He asked, “What was that?”

“The monster seal flash…?”

“Hm. Okay.”

The fauna inside the barrier looked much wilder and larger. It was like everything outside but on super steroids and comic book radiation.

A group of yellow mushrooms growing on a rotting log outside the barrier were maybe the height of my hand. But the mushrooms on the same log inside the barrier were half my height, with additional mushrooms growing on top of them in spiraling clusters of green, blue, and black, some even glowing.

I pointed at them. “The zones have that effect on everything?”

“Anything that’s living.”

“That means us too…?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry, nothing will happen to us.”

“I hope so.”

His bird monster flew ahead, and we stepped into the monster zone together. The moment my foot crossed the barrier, I felt sudden pricks against my skin.

Ferzan didn’t react, so I assumed it was no big deal and stepped in fully. Now my entire body felt the sensation, but it didn’t hurt.

Weird. I suddenly felt better. Not health-wise, but as if my energy was being restored—the same kind of energy that had been draining when I had used my healing skill.

I coughed up black liquid, filling my hand with it.

My chest burned intensely.

I flung the liquid away and wiped my palm on the grass.

Ferzan noticed and asked, “Why are you coughing up black… blood?”

“I ate monster flesh. It’s difficult to explain.”

“Things were that bad for you?”

“Yes…” I honestly felt bad for lying so much to him, especially when he had been nothing but generous and helpful.

He stepped closer. “How long have you been infected with Malertaria?”

“A day.”

He stood in front of me and brushed the air, shaping it into a liquid-like form, an eclipse of shifting water.

He plunged his hand into it, making his arm vanish, and pulled out a vial of white liquid.

Removing the cap, he filled it and handed it to me. “This should help, but it’ll hurt a lot at first.”

I took the cap but hesitated. “What is it?”

“Medicine. It kills dangerous viruses but also normal cells—just not as many as the viruses.”

I threw the liquid back and swallowed. My throat burned, and the taste of bitter, spoiled rice dirtied my tongue.

I coughed. “That tastes disgusting. What the hell is in it?”

“I have no idea, but it’s sold in drug stores, so it’s safe to take.” He turned forward.

I stayed close as we walked. “Where are the monsters?”

Suddenly, something zipped toward my face.

I panicked, raising my arm to shield my neck.

Something struck me—sharp, like multiple knives.

My arm barely blocked the attack, but I paid the price in pain and blood.

I seized the weird black spider—its body covered in feathers, bird-like wings flaring—and wrenched it off my flesh.