Part 3

Peter stood dead still, his eyes haphazardly darting back and forth over the figure of Drake. Although he was left on the upper floor, at the time, Peter wanted nothing more than to take him with Morgan and Luke as they descended down the stairway. He wanted nothing more than that, but at the threat of a fight, the imp at his side was quite insistent that he be left alone. To see him now, however, after he had given him up for dead…

“How… No, what are you? How are you still alive?” Peter shook his head from to side to side, utterly confused with the situation before him.

The intimidating beast that had descended down from the upper floors had transformed into the man he imagined he’d never see again. The sheer amount of questions he had concerning that situation alone was enough to give him a bit of a shock, let alone his mysterious transformation.

“Well I’m getting some well needed food, for one. This yours?” Drake casually held up a large piece of meat, one which had a large, and dangerous-looking bite taken out of it.

“Y-yeah…” Peter answered haphazardly, only to recognize the piece as Drake took another bite. The rainbow pheasant leg he has roasted the night before…

“Huh. Sorry about that. I thought it was too good to be true, but in a place like this, where you haven’t eaten for a few weeks? I thought it was just a gift,” Drake mumbled contently.

The two men merely looked to each other, one in utter confusion, and the other with a somewhat bemused expression.

“So? I’m guessing you have a few questions. I’m tired of playing games, so just have at it.” Drake waved at him lazily before a greedy expression overtook him and he took another bite into the plump bird leg.

“Yep. Definitely better in this form,” he murmured to himself with glee.

Peter barely gave him a once-over before he shook his head again, the incredulous look on his face only growing more.

“You… you’re some kinda monster? I… you just can’t be just a monster, right?”

“Hm? Oh no, definitely a monster. Hurt like hell when I turned, even blacked out for a bit. From what little I know, you definitely benefitted with that on your side of the equation. Still human mind though, so that’s a plus,” he snickered with a mischievous tone.

He greedily finished off the stray scraps of meat, devouring the whole thing in three to four bites, before moving onto another.

“Wait… so you’re human. You’re like us.”

“Eh… ” Drake shook his head with a sigh, before continuing, “Well, sort of, I guess. It’s a bit complicated, to say the least. Although… you’re taking this better than I thought you might. It seems like I was right about you at least. That makes you the first, so congrats,” he snickered again.

“First? Ugh… anyway, just how-”

“You know this creature?”

The feline chimera poked its furry head up from behind his shoulder, the sudden weight suddenly registering itself on his shoulder.

“The signal that monster was radiating suddenly just dropped off. Couldn’t feel a thing, so I decided to drop back in. Good to see you’re still alive, by the way,” Grimal said in an upbeat manner.

“Uh… yeah,” Peter mumbled.

Between his own utter shock and confusion over Drake’s survival, and the Grimal’s apparent lack of concern over his own survival, he was beginning to think that he had gotten in over his head.

“He’s one of the guys I told you about, the one that we left behind. I… never could have expected this though…”

Thinking back on what had happened, Peter had felt that something was off, but he never expected this. Of course, people would have things to hide. A special skill, or a particularly dangerous ability. He had some assumptions based on how his imp had treated them in comparison to Drake, but to think he was among the monster races, something like that could never be anticipated.

Drake meanwhile, merely smiled as he overheard the one-sided conversation with the cat-like creature on Peter’s shoulder.

“Well, it’s not something I really wanted to share before all this,” Drake admitted frankly. “I’m sure you know of the groups that head out in the wilderness and hunt for cores, right? At least I assume you do.”

“Yes, of course. They’re typically among the upper levels in terms of power, given what they do. Although some tend to be more volatile than others,” Peter answered.

“Heh. Yeah well, how do you think they would react to someone like me?”

Peter grimaced. Typically, those who joined such groups had a grudge of some sort. The transition from a normal, everyday world to the current one was not an easy transition. It resulted in a large amount of deaths, especially among those who were trapped in places with a high ratio of humans. For those who wouldn’t transform, or those who attempted to save them? It was the same as putting them through a living hell, one with which they were put under constant pressure of death.

As for how the individuals that survived treated those who caused them such pain? Well, there was a good reason they were the ones who often chose to be sent out in such squads, rather than those who were transformed quickly and stayed away from large populations.

“Sorry man,” Peter shook his head.

“Meh. Don’t worry about it,” Drake shook his head as he spied one last bite of meat, before popping it into his mouth, and promptly swallowing it whole.

“Ah… that was good,” he said contently.

Waving his hand, he said, “In any case, I was reluctant to reveal myself, for obvious reasons. I haven’t exactly had the most sparkling record regarding other humans, so I tend to just stick with others like me, if they’ll speak to me at least. I’ve been lucky for the most part.”

“Wait. So, there are others like you?” Peter asked.

“If you’re asking if I’ve met any other humans that transformed like me, then no,” Drake laughed as he shook his head. “I meant speaking to just normal monsters. Honestly, even I’m not sure what that led me to staying sane. Even if it happened again, no doubt they’d be a major source of trouble for others.”

Although it was only an assumption on Drake’s own part, his transforming so soon after the announcement was likely the reason for his continued sanity. Whether it was due to how powerful his new body was in comparison to some of the more mundane ‘beast races’, or some other reason, he had no doubt that any others who had survived the same process would be an endless source of trouble, especially given their chances of also being a predecessor.

His own ability to cause destruction was something he knew very well and was something he did his best to avoid. As for how some others might react to their newfound power, however? They could easily cause more trouble than it was worth.

“Then…”

“How did I end up like I did? Or are you wondering about the other monsters?” Drake chuckled to himself as he asked rhetorically. “For me, it was just a matter of being lucky. Although I had to deal with a certain… issue, I kept my human mind perfectly intact.”

“As for other monsters… most are quite nice, as long as you can speak with them. Although they do all have their own quirks.” Drake smiled as he shook his head, thinking back to innocent little Ella. Despite her being a child, her strength was frightening. The fact that Aleria had crushed a man to death with nothing more than a little thought proved just how strong she would become in the future.

As for Peter, he shook his head slowly, soaking in all of what Drake told him. It was hard to believe at first, given what was common sense for those that transformed into monsters went mad, but given Drake’s straightforward explanation, it was impossible to not believe. Still, there was something that confused him.

“Speaking of which… Drake, where’s the little imp?” Peter asked quizzically.

“Yami…”

Drake immediately sunk into a deep silence, as his face twisted up into a considerable grimace, quickly leading Peter to realize he had walked into a rather sensitive topic. Given that the entire time Peter had known him, the little creature had always been by Drake’s side, he had assumed that she was simply off somewhere scouting. A rather obvious use for her sensory abilities, along with the ability of flight in such an enclosed, cavernous area.

“Do you mind me asking what happened?” He asked.

Drake shook his head slightly, with a quick, depreciative laugh. “She’s just busy at the moment. I’ll see her again soon.”

“Ah… R-right.” Peter responded awkwardly, before dropping the topic entirely. “Sorry.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Appreciative, Drake smiled as he looked to Peter, and turned his head in curiosity. “It really is nothing… and thanks,” he responded.

Clapping his hands together suddenly, Drake quickly changed the topic. “Now, mind if I ask a question or two. I’ve been wondering this the entire time, but what is that weird glow you have around you?”

“Glow?”

“Yeah. Kind of like the back-glow you get when you’re in the dark and there’s a flashlight behind them. It’s just been around you since I first saw you. And given the only light you were giving off up the cavern was thanks to Morgan, so I’m guessing it’s new,” Drake joked.

“Wait, what?” Peter shook his head.

A glow. That was the way Drake described it, but Peter had no idea what he could be referring to. He certainly didn’t have a glow around him. Something like that would be a dead-giveaway in the dark, something that he would be more than a little careful about given the ferocity of specific creatures in the darkness.

“You don’t see it, then?” Drake looked confused, before sighing in contemplation.

“He is referring to the latent mana of someone who has received the gift of the mythical tree, Aesir. Although it is somewhat troubling that he managed to perceive it at all,” the Grimal interjected.

“Wait, so is that normal?” Peter responded.

“No. Not at all,” the Grimal grumbled.

Although Drake gave off none of the intense pressure he did before in his human form, it was hard for any species to forget the fierce pressure of a Dragon subspecies. Although it was merely on accident, Drake’s scanning of the cavern had alerted most of the creatures of his presence based on that alone.

Most of all, was that particular racial line’s ability to understand mana. Although it was obviously less pronounced in Drake, that he was able to see the glow around Peter at all made him dangerous.

“Are you sure he’s not a threat? He should be killed if you’re the least unsure,” the Grimal warned.

“Hey, what’s with that attitude? He’s a friend. Along with Luke and Morgan, he was the last one that came here with us,” Peter said.

“Yo, Peter. Since when can you speak to monsters?” Drake called out.

“Oh… Uh..”

It was an obvious question, given the state of things. Drake himself had only become capable of it thanks to a certain quirk of connecting his own monster core with those of other creatures. Peter had no such options regarding that particular method.

“Well… you’re not going to laugh, alright?” Peter look down uncertainly.

“Of course.”

“Well, it’s just a perk of a larger power, to simplify things a bit,” he began.

A perk, that was only received due to him being the last one remaining in the dungeon. With Luke removed, and Morgan trapped and transported to recover in the care of the Myconid, he was gifted the power due to being especially suited to such a thing.

“It’s called an oath. An Oath of the Ancients to be exact, one that was granted by the Dungeon Master. Supposedly, I receive powers based on the Oath, although Grimal has been frighteningly vague on the whole process.”

“Grimal, being the cat?” Drake asked sarcastically.

“Yep,” Peter laughed.

“It’s based around four tenets. Kindle the Light, Shelter the Light, Preserve my own Light, and Become the Light. A perfectly screwy power if you ask me, with an equally vague meaning on what it could all mean.” Peter couldn’t help but laugh dejectedly.

“Although I know that I need to preserve nature, thanks to the Grimal, what the rest means exactly is just too hard. I can only barely feel out what it may mean,” he sighed. “Why can’t it just be something simple like Semper Fortis…”

“I can imagine,” Drake replied stoically. Still, behind Drake’s feigned disinterest, the tenets themselves were undeniably intriguing.

Although it had only the vaguest of meanings to Drake, he could piece together well enough what such a power may mean through Brynhild’s teachings. Essentially, all the rules were was a series of restrictive tenets that Peter needed to obey to grow and use his power. It may seem overly restrictive to a specific kind of person, but if they actually committed to following them? It would a power perfectly suited to them and allow them to grow as much as they needed in the future.

The tenets themselves however, were just as much a product of what Aesir needed, as what the tree spirit imagined the user would require.

Kindle the Light, through acts of mercy and forgiveness, beat back despair to improve the world. Shelter the light, through destroying any who would attempt to snuff out those who would threaten Aesir’s trials and those who would successfully undergo them. Preserve their own light, through maintaining the sort of attitude that would best enable the powers the flourish, and Become the Light, to further the spread of Aesir’s influence through the attitudes of others.

Although such information wasn’t known to either one of them, the mere mention of such a ruleset immediately set Drake on the path to his own powers.

“Interesting…” Drake mumbled. “Interesting…”

Was this the type of restrictions that Brynhild meant when she mentioned them? It may seem to be a bit standard, but given the repeated mentioning of ‘Light’, Peter’s Oath seems to set him on the path to a type of holy warrior. That, along with the fact that it was granted by Aesir, likely grants it some basis with nature mana as well…

Drake looked to Peter with an almost playful expression. Someone who was almost the complete opposite of him in terms of type. He would say it was too good to be true, if the source wasn’t the exact same type he had been having so much trouble with recently.

“So, the gift you got is related to the Dungeon Master. Well, you definitely got off lucky. It’s a mixture of both Natura and Holy mana, if I pegged it right,” Drake said.

“Wait, you know about the Dungeon Master as well?”

“I had the unfortunate pleasure of speaking to him. Yami as well, from what I know. He was the one that saved me, although no doubt it was to put me in here with you,” Drake replied.

Although that was only once Peter had acquired his gift as well. It might be some vague rule, but he needed me out of the way, so he could remove the other two without no issues, and safely gift Peter the ability. Drake thought viciously.

It was a case of simple requirements. It seemed the Dungeon Master was just as much trapped by them as the rest of them it seemed.

“So, this really was all planned out, then.” Peter sighed. “I had a feeling once I saw you alive and well, that it was something of the sort. It was too good to be true.”

“Meh. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. It’ll cause too much trouble, trust me.”

Drake smiled, before a certain mischievous side took over for a bit. With a quick flip of his fingers, a red crystal suddenly appeared, floating in mid-air. The Grimal on Peter’s shoulder visibly shrunk back, while even Peter himself showed some signs of unease. Not that it really mattered, that wasn’t the point of this little experiment.

“Catch,” Drake said as he tossed the small, red crystal over to Peter.

Unlike his expectations however, Peter physically jumped back from the small piece, leaving it to only harmlessly bounce onto the ground with a small plop.

“What the hell did you try to throw to me?” Peter rebutted. He gave a cursory look at the small shard on the ground, before even Drake could see a chill run up his spine.

Perplexed, Drake walked over, before picking up the harmless piece of Pride mana he had manifested.

“It’s not going to hurt you, you know. I made sure of that much,” Drake muttered defensively.

“Uh huh. Sure. Tell me what it is first. I…” Another chill ran up his spine at the sight of the small piece of crystal, “get the most awful feeling from it.”

A negative reaction to demonic mana? He didn’t seem to react negatively to me at all, though. Drake pondered.

Tilting his head to the side ever-so slightly, Drake manifested the crimson gauntlets that he had modified for his human form. He hadn’t changed them in the slightest from when he had shown Peter’s group, aside from an increase in the concentration of the mana itself thanks to his rank up. That manifestation however, resulted in an even more drastic reaction than before, with Peter’s face visibly blanching at the sight of the clawed gauntlets.

“Do you… sense demonic mana now?” Drake questioned.

“And you can summon that stuff at will?! I thought… no, I don’t even know what I thought.” He gave an uneasy sigh, before waving at Drake to put away the gauntlets.

Giving a short shrug, the clawed gauntlets disappeared back into Drake’s body, leaving Peter in a considerably more relaxed demeanor before he began muttering to himself.

“Of course, the gauntlets weren’t some sort of conjuration magic, and you were never really a fighter to begin with… that was just a ruse.” He calmed himself as best he could, as he glanced at the red shard Drake had calmly picked up.

“So, that was horribly unpleasant. Great,” he sighed.

“What’d you want me to do with that thing, anyway?” He said as he gestured to the shard in Drake’s hand.

“Hm? Oh, I just figured it’d be helpful. I’d bet money that your type of mana is the same kind that Aesir uses, and let me just say, I’m fairly intimate with how it reacts to my own type.” Drake sneered.

Aesir’s mana had a rather unique reaction, all things considered. Rather than destroying the crystal itself, it seemed to act as if all the life had simply run out of it, leaving the crystals somewhat dead and lifeless. It was an unsettling reaction for him at least. It was as if all the demonic mana had been drawn out, leaving nothing but a shell.

Or rather, purified it, thinking back to just what specific types were interacting.

“You should be able to purify it, as long as you can use that mana of yours,” Drake chuckled. “Given what kind it is, I would honestly be shocked if you couldn’t.”

“Purify it? Why would you make it if you just want me to destroy it, and that’s assuming I even can.”

“You can,” Drake said decisively.

“I’ve seen it happen almost half a dozen times now, and that was with diluted portions of it in other creatures, let alone pure mana. But…” Drake questioned, “you don’t know how to use mana yet, do you?”

It was understandable that Peter might have a negative reaction to his mana. Given that they were opposing types, it was almost necessary in any other situation, but the way Peter spoke, and reacted, made it seem as if he was almost afraid of what Drake could do.

Even that insignificant crystal, which only had an utterly insignificant amount of power, was enough for him to jump back from. In a way… it almost proved that he couldn’t deal with it, even if he could recognize it for what it was.

Peter grimaced slightly, as his shoulders sagged at the somewhat pointed question. It was true, he couldn’t use it in the slightest apart from the utterly rudimentary Speak with Animals, spell he had learned. Still, that didn’t make it any easier to hear from someone else.

“I… can’t do what you can,” he muttered. “It’s been around two weeks since Morgan disappeared, but I’ve yet to get a hang of it. Grimal appeared soon after, but even he has only cleared up some of the most basic parts.”

He can’t use his own mana? It should be something easy to feel out. Or… is it…

“Just how much did you hear from Morgan on how to use magic, Peter?” Drake asked.

Perplexed, he answered truthfully. “Uh… just a bit. She’d tried teaching me and Luke for close to a week, but it never stuck. Something about feeling the mana gathering, but it just ended up being pointless.”

Drake almost felt like face-palming at the simple explanation. Dammit. This is just the purest form of irony. He’s so focused on the old lessons of his friend, that he’s completely ignoring his own body in the process. Drake shook his head.

“Hmph. For any other person, just imitating Morgan might work, but even that wouldn’t do much in this case. All I can really say is feel it out. Catch.” Drake tossed the small piece of crystal over, which Peter reluctantly caught in his hands.

“Wait, what do you-”

Standing up, Drake stretched as a playful smile crossed his face. “I ate some of your food, so it’s only fair that I catch some in return.”

Feeling his stomach growl, Peter realized that with the sudden arrival of Drake, he had forgotten that he was right about to eat before Drake had practically inhaled the large majority of the food stock he had gathered. He definitely needed some food while he practiced, but…

“You don’t eat monsters like the rest of us, I know that much. It takes a while for the mana to draw out of the meat, and be safe for normal people to eat, so be careful with it while the mana draws out of the corpse. It can be easy to spoil.”

An evil smile crossed Drake’s face as he chuckled at the warning, “Right, thanks for the tip. You might wanna take your own advice though.”

“What?”

“See ya~” Drake snickered.

In a flash of red mist, Drake leaped off from the small encampment in his Draconian form, before crashing into the surrounding wood line and disappearing completely.

However, Drake’s sudden flight only left Peter more confused than ever.

“Take my own advice? Just what the hell does maintaining food have to do with me?”