Nice. This is nice. Murai cheered without stopping. This is what I am talking about when I say a nice life! Rare one, but one that starts. He continued being satisfied and ate regardless if he felt full or not.
2 days later, he was yet to touch the addition of the new bones that the fox stored here. Murai was still eating the old batch and noticed a slow, yet significant approaching change in his life as a duck.
He was growing up faster than he anticipated. Perhaps it was normal, but when he considered his hatching and amount of days he spent here...well, he wasn't sure how long it had been. His concept of time was kind of wrong because he slept and ate. That was it. This cave almost felt like a prison, though he looked for a way out some days ago; it was a wide and upward-going path to the surface.
Becoming stronger and bigger wasn't caused by the attributes, he figured. It was because he was eating and training, so what were those attributes then? They felt like...some reward and valuable good. And he grew out of them too, somewhat. How? He was yet to be sure. He decided he would research it further under every voice he would hear.
His beak was his primary tool, with small, yet hard and sharp teeth around the inner edge of each piece of his beak. Or was it like some beaky jaw? Spear?
Murai wasn't questioning the physical differences, nor he was curious about them. In the simplest terms, he grew teeth, which was enough for him. They were sharp and hard enough to crunch the smaller parts of the bones into smaller pieces that he could then swallow.
Initially, Murai thought the teeth would be kind of useless, since why would a duck need sharp teeth? Still, what was true or not didn't matter, and the fact was that his teeth were dense, sharp, and probably meant for the consumption of tougher substances. What sort? Bones? Murai figured bones were fine as a meal for now, but he couldn't eat it forever.
His stomach took it all anyway, while his beak or his teeth seemed to work against all sorts of things. He tested it; there weren't just bones in this cave.
He didn't know what kind of food regular ducks consumed or if his Anatiade species was completely different from the norm. In truth, he should no longer care about considering the life of a normal duck. He wasn't that.
“Right? I am not a normal soul, let alone a body, or nobody. God figures! You assholes.” Murai laughed, munching the bones all the same.
Growing a few centimeters over the last few days put him in a good mood. The consumption of the food was the cause, so he was about 20 centimeters tall. It was his rough idea, that went according to the swords lying around. It wasn't much, but a small change nonetheless.
His beak was the strangest out of his body, and he experimented with it a lot. It wasn't enough to destroy the swords, but some chips and rolling were enough when he swung his neck and beak at a right angle and speed.
The tip was sharp like a tough sword, with curved sides to add some sharp swiping motions that could cause some damage. It looked somewhat like a flat sword, with sections that were sharp at the tip, and smooth and a bit thick at the start of Murai's head. And since the beak was his mouth, he could open it and make the edges apparent.
He figured the closed beak was an ideal weapon, while an open one might be worth something too. Some lines got sharper. Or were his teeth worth something too? Gnawing at something with his teeth was a possibility. Could he kill that fox by munching it? Hardly.
For eating, his teeth worked the best. Destroying things was up to his closed beak.
His attacks were able to crush these bones with a couple of hits, even if some were fresh. However, he still struggled against the egg, which caused some surprises and questions about how the empty half of his egg was so tough. He long discovered that the insides weren't that tough, since he came from there, but the outside?
The egg was solid like metal, yet he made holes in it from the insides. Murai was able to chip away some layer from outside with big efforts, but it was so little, he almost laughed instead. The outer layer of this egg was more than 100 times sturdier than the bones, and even then, the effectiveness of his strikes wasn't perfect. Bones shattered with a few strikes, revealing the bone marrow within for him to eat or slurp.
Apart from the beak, Murai learned one significant improvement. That was movement and greater precision, and not being upset by the strange movements of ducks. They had small legs, with flat feet made for swimming. Each foot had 3 fingers with tiny little talons at the end, or what Murai assumed to be that.
His wings weren't meant to fly so far, but he figured out how to spread them. That was about it. It was a useless skill that he could only use to stabilize himself when walking. Other than the wings, there was his tail—appearing like protruding tougher feathers at the end of his back—which was a good stabilization point to walk more steadily. Overall, he grew more familiar with his body, but this led to other questions.
What about the evolution? It's been days upon days and there is still nothing. Am I meant to do things differently? Is eating wrong in the form of nature, or does the Battleworld make the selection of the progression different from normal and common sense? Can't I do it all, or are my actions enough to form those.. numbers, or the voice is the reason for everything? Is it the Law? How does it work?
Questions and worries arose in Murai's mind, making things difficult to focus on. Nevertheless, he ate and continued planning how to deal with that fox.
The only thing he never considered was his appearance as a duck; he didn't really think of things that weren't practical for the time being.
His feathers weren't usual, yet Murai thought little of them. They already grew dense across his whole body, with distinct darker colors of red and brown, with many softer colorful feathers at his belly. Each feather was nearly unique, as they changed as he grew. He was rather muddy looking, but the feathers were an excellent protection against many elements, the heat and humidity of this cave included.
Because of his fluffy—yet resilient feathers in nature—no filth, blood, or dust remained on his body in all these days of eating. It was a good and rather spectacular appearance for a fresh duckling, but Murai did not appreciate it. His mind was full of other things, or may it be connected to his stomach? That might be the case since he forgot himself in the food, planning out an assassination plan, and figuring his time.
Sooner or later, the last bone of the old batch was gone, and Murai soon entered the frenzy for the newest batch of bones. Just like that, Murai spent his time with an unbothered expression and a satisfying meal.
There was not even a speck of fear in this life. Even if there was, what could he even do? Be afraid of the End, or the fangs of that fox? Hell, he didn't even fear the End all that much, considering he experienced it many times already.
It was true that some Ends were pleasant, yet some others weren't. Murai still remembered the times when he died by natural causes, but more often than not, he died by outer influence, or his stupidity of living his lives to the fullest. This time might be no different, but upon eating his fill for so long, he no longer thought of dying or thinking about it.
He was curious about the possibilities of what kind of species he was, and what evolution could do. It sounded like a significant thing; regardless of the ducks. He was still upset by that fact, regardless of the hundreds of days that passed since his soul awakened.
In the motion of his Cursed Living and many lives, he wasn't the least bit satisfied with the way duck felt. Walking was clumsy, his head was kind of heavy with that beak, and even though his neck got stronger through his "training", he felt weak and small. His weight was laughable, his speed lower than a squirrel, and who knew what else.
Considering how small he was against that fox, he figured he needed more time to consider how to kill it.
In a couple more days of his relaxed time, the fox returned. This time, Murai was waiting for it, figuring out his plans, and hoping to achieve victory and kill his first enemy.
Once again, this demonic fox was dragging some fresh bones into the cave, but they appeared different. They were smaller. Still, something didn't change; its body had wounds and many scars, indicating the fight for these bones was a neverending struggle.
Alas, it was no longer oblivious to this cave. The demonic fox finally noticed many bones were missing. The older batch of the bones was nowhere to be sniffed, and it couldn't help but growl in anger, dropping the bones to the ground. Sniffing the air, there was indeed a smell of an intruder and something else.
It was an intriguing question why it didn't smell Murai before.
The reason was rather simple, actually. In the past, he was hiding in his egg, which made things harder for this fox to notice anything. The egg was in the middle of the bones, and his smell wasn't anything that this fox noticed.
This time was different; Murai was hiding around the stalagmites, hoping to find the right opportunity. The fox kept growling, turning its snout left and right. Its eyes glowed in anger, covering the round in red light. It hoped to uncover what was going on in its treasured place. A few moments into this, the fox stepped forward and then leaped in the direction of Murai's hiding spot.
It charged, sniffing and growling. It turned to the left corner, and as unfortunate as it was, it was the wrong side, or perhaps not so much? What was behind the stalagmites of this corner wasn't Murai, but some bloodied cloth emitting the smell the fox piqued, and some feathers. Sniffing it closer, the fox hesitated about what it was, but it was too late.
Murai charged from behind the other stalagmites, pouncing towards its side, piercing the fox's neck with his clutched beak, and painting the ground with the flow of its blood. He penetrated it! He hadn't expected that a day before.
Upon initiating this strike with a desire to kill, Murai's soul was rejuvenated with another Will of the Battleworld. A call for a battle was due.
[A Battle ensues, dear Citizen of the Battleworld. The Battle against the Devil Fox to the death shall be the first one to your glory!]
[Bonus reward of the first time battle: Additional Body Attributes. A brand new ability according to the Will of the Battleworld!]
“What a fucking annoyance!” Murai tried to shut this voice, feeling it was leading him through the pain and hesitation. It was distracting. His beak was still within Devil Fox's neck, so he twisted it inside to hope to reach further. Leave my mind some peace, you bloody Battlevoice! He complained in his head, but he could only watch his beak drenched in blood in the fox's neck. It flowed to his head and eyes.
He was doing his very best to finish this in one swoop. From the start, it was a successful ambush, caused by his careful plan and ability to strike according to his plan.
The Devil Fox struggled on its four legs, visibly shocked by a sudden attack it couldn't sense. Growling weakened, but then it shifted its steps, pushing its sides and shoving Murai away. That caused the beak to go out of its neck, leaving blood dripping and patches of blood forming.
Still, the beak went rather deep into its flesh, and the bloody hole let out a lot of blood.
Murai landed without grace, tumbling for a few moments before catching his momentum. His foe stabilizing as well, though bleeding and visibly shuddering. The Devil Fox stood still; a deadly stare within its eyes was not one bit weaker. Murai felt the gaze to be somewhat strange, as its glow of redness held some aura and death.
Then, a surge of redness and piercing light came out of those eyes. A piercing pain entered his mind, eyes, and body. It shut his awareness for a single moment before an ability of his own defeated the sudden force.
[An aspect of Death and Oppression attacked your mind. The effects of the Soul-Essence can obliterate the will of others]
[The foe's penetrative Will can't stand a chance against you! It has been challenged, but in return for the impudent attack, your soul goes through the initial strength and change]
[A new attribute is unlocked]
[Will - An intimidated shall fear, yet the Will is an aspect of souls and those who shall put fear against the odds! It is a power of persistence, soul, and perception. To be unshaken, the Will is like a Law]
[The heart is strong, Will is stronger, and so is the mind. They are close to being one of the same, yet it makes sense that each has its uses. The Will shall not be shaken, making room for a Will to go against the heavens]
[Initializing...]
Buzzing echoed, creating endless discomfort for Murai's soul. It felt disheartening as if something was irritating him like many flies. He wasn't sure what it was. Then, the noises turned even more mechanical and seemed chaotic without purpose. A couple of words echoed at the end.
[Will +2]
[Current Will: 2]
Murai heard the Will of the Battleworld with appraising bother. Within his soul, he figured the Will was familiar. He tried his hardest to take it without any change in reality, but his body still shook. It took him 2 seconds to calm down. 2 seconds that should have been fatal, but his foe hadn't made its move. He didn't have much time, but because the Devil Fox's Intimidation failed, he lived.
And it didn't take it that well, since the fox knew its powers well. It was bleeding; the damage to its neck was far too much to disregard it. The glow in its red eyes didn't lower. It didn't hesitate to seek a possible survival.
It wasn't the first time this Devil Fox was fighting a battle in the Battleworld. Attacked with more vigor than one would guess from the wounded foe, it charged.
Leaping at the small duckling, fangs and both claws scrapped aside Murai's attempt to dodge aside. He shuddered as the fox's left paw hit the side of his body, causing him to stagger against the distant wall.
This attack almost felt like he was hit by a boulder, and a powerful push went against his feeble duckling body. Feeling breathless for a moment, Murai got on his feet and saw the approaching foe once more. It was relentless, bloody, and savage. This was a beast that was hungry for survival. Like a Law of a Jungle, this was a natural response.
It growled, pouncing once again, and this time, the fangs were to take Murai's neck. Possibly his life. Murai would digress. Will was firm, and even with the 2 additions to none, there was something within his mind that was way beyond some little attributes. The power of his soul was far higher than some numbers could bear, and he was unwavering in his Living. It was something strange, yet familiar.
Well, this is unexpected. A Soul-Essence, is it additive to the Will, or is my emotions or battle what gives this warmth and intensity? Not bad. Murai thought, figuring that he wasn't afraid against a much stronger foe. With firm eyes, he readied his beak. Shutting it down, it was like a spear ready to pierce the opponent. While doing so, he lowered his posture, making his back and neck as tensed and coordinated with the rest of his body as possible.
He knew his biggest flaw was his legs, but there was nothing he could do about them.
With the jaw closing, the fox thought little of such a little duckling, but it sure held some hidden fear caused by that bloody ambush. It almost died right and there. Nevertheless, the Devil Fox wasn't known to be too stupid, or too clever. It was one of the clever monsters in this forest. That meant it wasn't overly aggressive, since preserving life and approaching its foes as a hunter was more appropriate than being an utter monstrosity.
And something... felt wrong. A depth of its instincts shook.
It feared this duckling. This small thing the weight of its skull.
This single pounce was the result of fear and hope of killing its little foe as fast as possible. There was no time for regrets in the vision of Battles to the death. And it sure wasn't a time for that, even though the fox wished for something else.
It gnawed at the beak, hoping to push beyond and squeeze the duck's head. Its attack hit the beak first, yet it felt like it clutched a pillar of metal. Murai remained in place, his beak firm like a spear, penetrating the jaw that wanted his life. Thanks to Fox's momentum, his beak stayed in place, gliding with ease aside its jaw, making a gushing wound around its jaw, mouth, skin, and teeth. The beak glid further to the neck and left part of the head, creating a gnarly wound that was far from the brain.
But it sure looked deadly.
Momentum did the rest, even when the Fox kept going onward with blood and half-formed attack.
At last, Fox came with its jaw at its target, bloody and deformed, yet it failed to penetrate the feathers, let alone the neck.