“Stop. Stop! I need a moment, I need to be alone!”

Everyone paused. They looked at each other questioningly, until my dad pulled both Mom and Baston away, gesturing for everyone else to follow. They all left the basement, leaving me alone, but not before my mother left some parting words.

“Holler if you need anything, okay? Anything at all.”

I gave a curt nod just to get her away.

Wait, no! I gave a curt nod to reassure her that I was fine.

Which I was. Fine.

I had a… hunch, however. I’d experienced things similar to this before.

I opened my Status back up.

[You have obtained a new Soul Feat: Progenitor!]

[Progenitor: Give you one additional free choice Mutation.]

[You have obtained a new Soul Feat: Imp Progenitor!]

[Imp Progenitor: Gives you one free choice Mutation. This Mutation will become part of the Imp lineage. The Mutation will start at Level 10.]

I blinked, at the notifications greeted me. It wasn’t what I was expecting… but they were very welcome. I’d definitely have to get to that later, maybe with them I’d be able to kill all my friends properly–Fuck, I won’t do that! I brought up my actual Status Screen to find out what the fuck was currently happening to me.

_________________

Name: Haell Zharignan

Species: Imp

—Mutations—

Menace Heart: Level 10

Demon Brain: Level 10

Demon Skin: Level 10

Demon Eyes: Level 10

Demon Flesh / Demon Bones / Demonic Musculature(synced) : (All) Level 10

Demonic Hands: Level 10

Demonic Hooves: Level 10

Hyperdemon Gland: Level 10

Demon Horns: Level 10

—Soul Feats—

Reincarnator

Progenitor

Imp Progenitor

_________________

[Menace Heart: The heart of a menace. It produces menace mana that is then pumped through your blood.]

Well. Shit. I was right. I found the problem.

Mana gave certain sensations to those who touched upon it even when it wasn’t activated. Therefore, to have a heart that somehow created mana inside of myself, without a repository to store and regulate it… no wonder I was experiencing some so-called ‘mind-control’.

In fact, this was the exact same setup the goblins suffered from. A heart producing mana, a body and mind incapable of handling it, their very beings twisted, and their conscience driven insane. We’re even similar in that we both had curse derivative mana!

Oh, I am so fucked.

I turned myself into a fucking goblin.

Holy shit.

This is no laughing matter.

I moved on to my next new Mutation, to avoid dwelling on the subject any further.

[Demon Brain - Incorruptible, for you are already corrupt. A selfish mind that works tirelessly for their own goals, very resistant against any unwanted foreign intrusions.]

Oh thank the devils… which I’m now a part of! Yay!

This recent… complication had certainly put a dampener into my impossibly good mood, but I mustn’t forget! I had become a demon, I had achieved my dreams, and I was fucking amazing for it!

Wooo! Go me! Go Haell!

Especially now that I was building a better picture of my new build, my new set of Mutations. This Demon Brain specifically synergizes with my Demon Heart, tempering the negatives of producing mana like this. Unsurprising, now that I was… more calm. My newly improved brain was the only reason I was even still sane. I’d seen how goblins act, and how I acted under the influence of a cursed object. I would be acting very differently if I had no defenses against the influence of mana and magic. There was no dagger to let go of this time, and I would not have been able to stop attacking those that I loved.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

I shivered at the thought.

[Demon Skin - Skill that is able to smoothly and harmlessly allow mana to pass through. The mana that passes through your skin becomes marked, affording you better control over it.]

I raised a brow and immediately tried it. The menace mana inside of me… listened to my orders more smoothly than I’d ever experience before. Which was strange given that I had not practiced using the element at all, nor was I the type of person that would be compatible with such magic! I was such a good girl!

…Okay. Maybe it made a little bit of sense for me to feel a certain… connection, to the element. But it hardly explained all of it. I pulled the mana out of myself, and then I felt it briefly flare in my perception, before instantly becoming weaker and harder to control once outside.

Ah, I see! Mana within the body becomes so much easier to control! That’s why it was no trouble swirling it inside me. However, prolonged exposure to usable mana inside one’s own body could lead to severe mental and physical effects… Shit, am I even more fucked than I thought? They really should’ve fucking stopped me from doing something so stupid. Who the fuck cares if it’s my dream–

I blinked.

Menace. That was the menace mana talking. I knew that monsters who naturally produced mana inside of themselves were fine, although even their exposure was limited compared to mine given that they had a repository to isolate it when not in use…

No, no, no. I’m spiraling again. Fuck!

I allowed the negative thoughts to dissipate, along with the miasmic mana within my palms.

…Wait. I did… what?

I brought out some more of the menace mana from within my body, observing the form like miasma it took in my imagination, or the light purple reflected in my eyes. I could move the mana around and shape it, perhaps even impart certain effects toward it.

Is it because of my skin? Is the marking allowing me to wield magic…?

No. No, even if that were the case, the control I had was far too much. It was stronger than my typical magic skills prior to my evolution!

[Demon Horns - Allows for powerful control over mana that has been marked by you.]

I brought up the newest addition to my Mutations–for some reason, already at level 10–and found my hunch to be correct. I had indeed an innate focus on my body now, only that instead of being made for a specific element, it worked on any mana that has been marked by myself, likely meant to synergize with my very red and beautiful skin.

I’ve never even heard of marking mana before!

Was my skin a unique new thing, or were there other ways to do it? There’s soo much to consider because of this recent evolution. I should get some sorta-slaves to test things out on later. Maybe from the lesser species, the ones people hate, so no one would complain.

…Fuck.

I won’t do that.

But I did indeed just have that thought.

Wow.

Work better demon brain, goddammit! Don’t lose to the menace!!!

[Demon Eye - Your gaze will intimidate and break the will of your foes.]

I raised an eyebrow at that description. Some kind of fear gaze, a classic sort of ability. It fit the theme of being a demon or an imp as well. Although to be honest, I wasn’t very enthusiastic about it. This was the sort of thing most useful against much weaker foes, and I didn't really need the additional help if faced against them. At best they could serve as a distraction at a critical time.

Not to mention that it was mind-fuckery stuff which I was never a big fan of. However, I never did have a problem with the concept of fear auras and shit, at least when seeing the concept in fiction. It was just another attack, one aimed at the mind. But it did not aim to take away someone’s autonomy any more than slashing at them would. It’s definitely not brainwashing, which I would never do, even if it could be useful sometimes…

Agh, fuck. My mind’s too compromised to be thinking of all this complicated shit right now! I’ll save the moral dilemma for later!

[Demon Flesh - Resistant to heat and the influences of mana]

Yet another synergy with menace heart and internalized mana in general. I wondered how the intricacies of my species was even decided, given that I was apparently the very first imp.

Also the heat resistance. There’s actually no outright connection to my other Mutations… but I’m a demon! Of course I can brave the environs of hell!

[Demon Bones - Hard and resilient bones, capable of surviving great forces, particularly that of movements self-inflicted.]

[Demonic Musculature - Strong muscles capable of great feats of strength, particularly in short and instant bursts.]

Another interesting synergy with these two. Muscles built for striking, particularly with heavier weapons, and the bones necessary to survive my own force. I like it!

[Demon Arms - Strong arms that are exemplary for striking.]

Exactly what I said. Pure striking power, and good for using heavy weapons.

[Demon Hooves - Legs with incredible charging power.]

Charging power. It’s powerful, but also incredibly situational, and would be most effective for the first strike, or for fleeing outright. Though if I was having to flee, then chances were that my enemy was faster, and I’d rather have more maneuverability. Something that an outright charge would interfere with to begin with.

I had to admit… I’d come to love my Flutter Feet, and this… would take some getting used to.

[Hyperdemon Gland - Release the rage within.]

[Notice: This Mutation will not be passed down to future inheritors.]

…What the fuck? I’d had some cryptic bullshit in my Mutations before, but there was always at least a full sentence explaining what a Mutation did. This one did not.

It should be a temporary boost like what my adrenaline gland did, the Mutation definitely evolved from that. But I wasn’t going to test it without proper supervision. And if it turned out to be too much, too strong, then I might get to kill whoever was foolish enough to try and supervise me. I could blame their deaths on this new organ.

…Menace Heart. Whatever. I was getting used to it already. I was hardly a stranger to intrusive thoughts, and that’s all this was.

Pathetic.

No you.

That was a joke. The mana did not talk back… yet.

Hah!

I hope that joke doesn’t age poorly.