The only important information I got from the guards was the city name, an inn where I could rent a room for my stay, and the guild where I could find merchants and jobs. I strolled down the sunlit streets of Ares City, adhering to the directions provided by the guards to reach the guild. Life pulsated through the bustling streets, with merchants peddling everyday items and children merrily racing, their laughter echoing through the vibrant air.

Kobold's bones held good value due to their versatility. Awakened individuals with the [Farmer] class often used them as fertilizers, while some [Artisans] utilized them for decorations. However, the primary demand for kobold bones came from [Alchemists], who considered them essential ingredients for certain potions and elixirs.

Carrying three kobold bones from my domain, I arrived at the guild's tavern. Upon entering, the heavy wooden doors creaked, drawing attention to my presence. The interior hummed with activity—some patrons savored breakfast at tables, while others occupied the right-side bar, and engaged in drinks and conversations with the bartender. A few individuals stood by a board on the left, covered in papers.

The management desk stood behind the tables, directly facing the tavern door, adorned with a banner hanging down from the ceiling. Stairs positioned behind the desk hinted at access to a second floor. To the left of the bar, an area was designated for patrons to use for relieving themselves.

I assumed the papers carried requests from customers or quests that guild members or mercenaries could claim and fulfill in return for a reward given by the guild or the requester. I didn't know any of the people around me, nor did I want to, as my business would be done with the attendant directly. I continued marching forward until I reached the desk, and then I smacked it with kobold bones, attracting the attention of the female attendant present in front of me.

"Hey, do you have any need for these bones or any idea where I could sell them?" I asked the young girl, who responded as if she was used to this happening frequently. She started staring at me, "Hello, sir, sorry, but the minimum we buy is five kilos, and these bones would weigh a kilo at most." The moment our eyes made contact, I saw her body shivering for a little time before it returned to normal quickly. I could smell the fear emanating from her, and it was pleasant.

I responded with a grin by asking if there was something I could use to carry the bones, and she gave me a bag that could fit at least 10 to 15 kilos. I went to the dung-relieving area and entered through the main door, made my way to an available door unoccupied by anyone, then went inside and closed it behind me, ensuring my privacy.

The moment I locked the door, I called my domain and headed toward the pile of bones, stuffing the bag. It didn't take long, and a large amount of the bones I had were packed inside. I left my domain with a large bag behind my back, holding it with one arm. I unlocked the door and went on my way outside to the attendant.

I caught more attention as I landed the stuffed bag on the desk; it became the center of attention. The girl lifted the bag quite easily, took it, and went inside a door on the right side of the wall. About two minutes passed waiting and minding my own business until she came out with a response.

"These bones are about 7 kilos. We offer you 32 gold or 3200 silver coins in return if you sell them. But first, please sign this, as the guild staff would like to know how you managed to get such an amount of bones," she said, placing a form on the table with a small pen next to it. I made an offer on my own, asking for some basic information in return for lowering the amount of gold I receive out of this trade to twenty-five. The offer was accepted right away, as it was advantageous to the guild.

"Sure, I was stuck in a forest which forced me to hunt for food, and kobolds were on the menu. This is what remained of what I ate," I answered casually as I leaned, resting my frame on the desk, and she looked at me with a frown that faded quickly. After all, humans never ate kobolds. I held the pen ready to sign the paper, which was a trade agreement containing information about our deal. It consisted of a couple of fields which I started filling.

The first field I filled was the signature of party A agreeing to the trade, at the bottom of the paper. I signed my name 'Atreus Eastel' as instructed. Then she told me to fill in the next field, which was the address. Before I could fill it, a moron interrupted me, placing his hand on my shoulder and making his voice clear in an attempt to talk to the attendant, "Hey brat, move out of the way, I'm in a hurry.".

I turned my head around, locking eyes with him, and delivered a forceful elbow to his stomach, "This is as far as my mercy goes, so don't push your luck around. Consider it your first and last warning," I responded, giving him a fair warning. I returned my attention to the form I was filling after witnessing him fall on his knees, holding his stomach in pain, having sent him flying a couple of meters back, crushing the table he came into contact with.

I continued filling out the form as I wrote 'Eastel House, Arcadia City, Avalon Continent.' I was interrupted again by the same guy shouting at me, making a scene and attracting more attention than before. "I WILL KILL YOU!" I placed the feather pen down on the table, asking the attendant to give me a little time to deal with this situation. One warning was enough; a second time meant outright death. I didn't have the habit of dealing with clowns, and the more chances you gave a clown, the more clowns would come out of nowhere.

I walked deliberately, closing in on his position as he drew his sword from his back. Initiating a charge, he swung the sword with force, aiming for my right shoulder. Unfazed, I disregarded the impending strike, permitting the blade to make contact and inflict a minor injury. Thanks to my regeneration ability, the wound healed instantly.

I caught the sword quickly, holding it with my hand as I spoke, my voice loud enough for everyone inside to hear, "I wish nobody gets involved in this, and let this be a lesson for everyone else to know what I truly am and not to mess with me." Then I applied high pressure with my fingers, causing cracks to spread through the sword, which made it crumble and fall to the floor as I continued, "If anyone wants to interfere, feel free to do so, but remember it comes at the cost of your life. The farther away, the safer you are." I said, letting my killing intent envelope the entire tavern.

I placed my other hand on one of the guy's shoulders, preventing him from making moves, then placed my other hand on his second shoulder as I pressed him back on his knees, and then I took on my phantom form as I wanted to leave an impression on everyone present so nobody messes with me further.

"I do not like clowns. You knew what I was the moment I kicked you, sending you flying. Yet you continued to piss me off."

I plunged my claw into his chest, tearing it apart and extracting a sizable chunk of meat the instant my transformation finalized. Commencing to chew, I left him to crumple to the floor, his agonized screams resonating through the tavern. Crawling on the ground, he left a gruesome trail of blood while desperately pleading for help. However, the people at a nearby table, overcome with terror, collectively averted their gazes, completely ignoring his pleas.

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I savored the final bite of my snack, relishing the taste as an illusionary figure came into existence beside me.

'Oh, not again...' I sighed, bracing for the inevitable.

'Please, no. We might be monsters, but let's not resort to cannibalism.'

'I understand how you feel. We can discuss it after I finish my meal. Just try to keep it down a bit for now, okay?'

I replied with a smirk, casually strolling up behind my meal and making a crude remark, "Seems like crawling suits you. Why not give it another go?" Gripping his left leg, I sank my claws into it, ripping it away from the rest of his body. He crumpled to the ground, the searing pain rendering him helpless.

I sank my teeth into his meaty leg, relishing the taste as I crunched down slowly. The delicious flavors danced on my palate. When I had thoroughly enjoyed every morsel, I transformed back to my base form, the message unmistakably delivered. Shifting into my cobra form, I continued my meal. Gripping his body with my fangs, I tossed it into the air, opening my mouth wide to let it fall directly into my stomach.

(You've killed a level 14 adult human [Warrior] and gained 28 Exp)

As I let my eyes wander around, I could see some people shivering from the disturbing scene as they diverted their view away. Everyone held their hands trembling as they were drowning in an air filled with dread. I let out a final hissing sound as I gazed at my victim's companions, sending a shiver down their backs as my body started to shrink down, morphing into a human once again.

'I hope this image will be carved right into your souls,' I voiced my thoughts as I shifted my stance and moved toward the desk to complete my deal. Then I let out a breath covered in a bloody scent as the mountain pressuring everyone's shoulders started to disappear, setting them free.

'Care to explain now what gives you the courage to consume your kind?' I kinda almost forgot my younger self for a moment as I heard it voicing my conscience as a human.

'Because we will do worse for our goal.'

'You will eventually have to eat humans to know their memories.'

'Or do you plan to ask them nicely?'

'But there are other ways! why don't we just torture them for information?'

'Do you think they will answer? What if we get nothing but lies?'

'Why would we go the harder way when we are capable of exacting our revenge easier?'

'If you understand now, then just get over it. I promise you will get used to it overtime'

I made my way back to the desk ignoring the illusion, I stared at the trembling girl as I lifted the pen and made a knocking sound, snapping her back to reality as I questioned her, "Can we continue now?". She stuttered hard, trying to respond to my question for a little bit, and then she finally answered meekly, "Y-y-y-y...Yes, Sir!".

"Then, let us proceed. Is there anything else I need to fill or sign?" I resumed as I took a seat in front of the desk, placing my elbow on it as I supported my jaw with my hand, letting out a sigh. Surprisingly, the response was quick this time, "Yes...No, I mean no sir," as she picked up the contract, holding it in her hands, continuing her response, "Please wait a little bit; I will submit the contract and come back with the gold coins." I gave her a nod, showing my agreement.

I took a look at my status, waiting for my gold coins to arrive. I added 3 points to my [Darkness] stat, making it 35, and added the remaining 4 [Attribute Points] to [Heal], making it 66 in preparation for the Depths as I planned to dive in for some hunting to level up and grow stronger.

Time passed, and in a blink, I observed the girl as she came out of the door with a small pouch held in her right hand, along with another paper in her left hand. "This is your gold coins, sir," she voiced as she placed the pouch on the desk, "Please let me know what information you want, and if I know, I will answer. If not, I will note them and get a response from the higher-ups." I gave her a nod, acknowledging her, and then I started asking my questions, "First, is this kingdom or whatever we are right now located in Avalon Continent, and what is it called?"

"Yes, sir, this is the Norak kingdom located far on the western side of the continent." I gave her a nod as I massaged my little beard, trying to imagine how far I was from my home, but it was so vivid, that I ended up unable to do so as I had never heard of such a kingdom.

"Alright then, so how far is this kingdom from Requies kingdom, and in which direction is it?" I continued as a thought came to my mind, making me ask another question before she was able to respond, "Ah...Did any of the depth entrances there flood? or did any catastrophe happen in general?" I finished my questions, giving her the chance to respond.

"It is too far, sir, as Requies is across the other side of the continent, and it is to the west," then she resumed, "Depths? I don't have any knowledge or information about the second question, but I suppose some higher-ups can get it from our guild branches," she stated as she picked up the pen and started noting. I gave her some time, waiting until she finished, and then I proceeded with my final questions, "Depths, as in the abyss, nether, or whatever you call it, where is the nearest entrance?"

"Ah, if you mean the abyss, then the nearest entrance is close to the city from its eastern gate, although it is more of a passage than a diving spot and is managed by the military." I hummed, as I already knew the existence of such things. Passages had military posts or fortresses all around them to prevent monsters or demons from crossing over to this world.

"Ah, thank you, but one more question. Where can I find a good [Barber] to trim and fix my hair?" I gave my last question and received a response right away, "Ah, no sir, I don't, sadly. I could note it too if it's important." I waved my hands, refusing, "No, I will look for one myself," as I pushed the chair, freeing myself a bit to stand up then turned around, taking my steps toward the wooden door, leaving the tavern with my pouch in my left hand and massaging my stomach with the other one as everyone was staring at me.

Once I was outside, the first thing that came to mind was getting my hair fixed. I looked older for someone who was eighteen, and then I needed to get a spatial ring as well. Spatial rings were items created by a [Mage] specialized in space magic. I had my domain, but I preferred to separate what I wanted to keep for myself from what I wanted to benefit from.

I went down the road, passing by a couple of merchants, looking for what I wanted, and soon I got it for 12 gold coins, and it was the cheapest. The ring was just spacious enough to carry about 25 KG of supplies. I soon found a good [Barber] who trimmed the hair on my face and fixed the rest of it, making it look better. I kept my long hair, as I liked it.

I left the [Barber] shop and headed toward the eastern side of the city. I passed from one street to another, taking detours to find the way. Then the thought of assuming my crow form came to my mind, and I just did it as it was convenient for me. I took off, flying above the city, looking for the eastern gate. A little time passed as I went farther east, and I finally found the gate. I flew above the gate on my way to the fortress that I spotted nearby.

I continued gliding through the air until I was right above the fortress, which was surrounded by a large wall from all sides, allowing only one entrance—the gate. It was heavily guarded, but I bypassed it, and as I went inside, I found what looked like a descending pathway dug into the floor. I started flying down, shifting into my human form. I soon landed on the floor, causing a large dust cloud that spread and attracted the attention of the nearby military personnel.

I got up from my knees, stretching my body as I marched forward toward the guards defending the path leading downhill. Once the dusty cloud disappeared, I saw everyone pull out their weapons, taking a defensive stance as I came closer to them. I wasn't here to play with them, so I took my cobra form and charged at them.

While I could fight and consume them, most of these were probably weak and would yield little [Dark Matter], [Attribute Points], and not worth the [Exp]. Finally, I knocked the ones in my way as I passed them, heading down the path leading to the abyss.