Time was a mysterious concept. One moment can last an eternity and weeks can feel like hours. Stranger still, both can be felt at the same time without contradiction.

The appearance of the calamity creature had put Charlie on edge, causing every waking moment to feel like it might be his last. The titanic being could crash through the ceiling, or erupt from the floor like a raging volcano, without anyone or anything being able to stop it. The humans had proved that they were at least capable of deterring it somewhat, but Charlie couldn't place his hopes on the status-quo remaining the same.

Each moment Charlie had spent meticulously calculating his moves, planning out his strategies and enacting them with brutal efficiency - all in the name of distracting himself from the fear that had taken root in the center of his being.

Charlie was surrounded.

There were thousands upon thousands of creatures in all directions, all fighting with the entirety of themselves, throwing themselves into danger, desperately trying to survive and descend lower - towards the mysterious pull of Mana.

Though what lay ahead of those strong enough to survive was nothing more than certain death. The humans had the cave under their control, and from what Charlie had been able to see up until now, they ruled over them like they were nothing more than cattle. The humans were what kept Charlie from descending, and the calamitous creature kept Charlie from returning to the surface.

So Charlie threw himself into his grisly work, and tried to push away the anxiety, the fear and pessimism that gnawed at his mind.

Each moment was lived, each moment was carved into his memory, and yet Charlie found himself getting lost in the tide of work. Seconds blurred into hours, and hours into days, and before Charlie knew it, an entire week had passed.

His understanding of not only his surroundings, but of himself has increased dramatically. Learning to live with [Mana Sense] always active had been a challenging task at the beginning, but one that had only continued to pay off. With each additional Level, Charlie was able to handle the strain on his mind with greater ease and eventually it had become nothing more than a subconscious endeavour.

Charlies blending of sight, hearing, smell and [Mana Sense] had culminated into a powerful combination, allowing him to perceive so much more than when he was still a human. Though his sight still needed plenty of improvement, and while it was nice to be able to see the world in other ways, there was something to say about the simplicity of just seeing something with your own eyes.

For one, he would have loved to see what Charlie truly looked like right now.

The last week had been a tumultuous experience, filled with head-banging challenges and some unpleasant encounters. Yet, it was not all bad. [Devour] had reared it's head many times, and Charlie had continued to steal the sacred essences of the creatures he had killed.

Charlie had [Devoured] many creatures, mostly the unlucky three - The Voules, The Horen and the pitiful Lizards, but there were others. He had, of course, [Devoured] the other creatures, but he had received nothing from the masses of roaming beasts. Instead, it was only those three that had provided anything, or rather, it was Charlie that stole everything from them.

Though Charlie still wasn't able to fully grasp exactly what it was he was stealing, he was able to feel and somewhat perceive the changes that happened. Though the Horen didn't look like much, Charlie was able to receive some of their Strength, which was reflected in his attributes when he returned back into the ashy world of his Soul.

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Charlie had also gained something else from them, and it looked like it was some sort of hybridization of their beak and his maw. The front of his protruding face had taken on a downward curving angle, had hardened tremendously. At first, Charlie didn't even know that there was an additional change, and it was only when he bit into the soft body of a Voule did he feel his chin catching on the torn flesh.

After inspecting it further, Charlie realised that the bottom of his chin had a bone-like extension that the top of his mouth slotted into perfectly - exactly like the Horens beak.

Whilst it was interesting, Charlie hoped that he would stop stealing physical aspects of those he killed, or otherwise he might become overloaded with parts that proved to be useless.

Though, the rest of what was stolen was far from being useless.

Charlie only stole one thing from the Lizards, their camouflage - at least it's physical side. Charlie couldn't turn himself invisible, nor could he erase his existence like the Lizards - it was probably one of their {Epitaphs}, or some sort of Magic they used to achieve that level of camouflage. It wasn't much, but it allowed Charlie to at least somewhat mimic the colours of his surroundings.

It took great effort to even change his colour, let alone figure out how to change himself to any specific colour in his surroundings, but after a few days of non-stop effort, Charlie was able to use the new change to an acceptable degree.

Yet, this was not the greatest gift that Charlie had taken possession of, no, the Voules proved to be bountiful enemies.

Charlie stole their Strength, he took their enhanced hearing and he robbed them of their greatest gift - [Sunder Earth].

Charlie had already grown accustomed to the Voules and their habits. He had learned their hunting, eating and shitting habits to the same level as if they were his own. Stalked them in the lightless tunnels they had carved, mirrored their movements above ground and even understood the range of their detection.

Their secrets lay bare before Charlie, turning him into their natural predator.

On the seventh day of the hunt, Charlie had come across an unaware Voule stalking its own prey. Like always, Charlie ascertained the distance and even the relative power of the unseen creature using his [Mana Sense], and began his own approach.

The Voules had incredible senses, and were able to pick up minute vibrations from an incredible distance. Outside of Magic, the only other explanation to their unnatural senses was their nose. The soft and bulbous pink nose was covered in fine and nearly invisible hairs that extended outwards and would touch the walls everywhere the Voule would go.

Charlie couldn't prove it, but he had suspected that the fine hairs had some purpose, and it didn't necessarily mean Magic had to be involved.

The secret to breaching their detection radius lay in the timing, or rather the impatience of the Voule itself.

Once suitable prey had been identified, the Voule would rapidly close the distance. The closer it got, the more impatient it would become and swiftly disregard its surroundings. Charlie had found that when they were only a few meters apart, was when the Voule would lose all other focus - making it the perfect time for Charlie to get closer himself.

Like a paid actor in a boring play, the Voule followed the script perfectly, and Charlie closed the distance in a flash. The increase in his Strength and Dexterity had allowed him to move at speeds and in ways that were previously reserved for when he fled with everything he had. Now, if Charlie wanted to get away, there weren't many creatures left this high up in the cave that could keep up.

The story changes quite quickly if he were to descend deeper into the cave, though.

Charlie put the Voule out of its misery, and [Devoured] the core as he always did. Having used [Devour] hundreds of times now, Charlie had come to truly understand that there was a very low chance to actually stealing something other than Experience from a slain creature, but every time that it happened, it felt completely different.

Yet, this time, it was on a whole different level.

It was like both his mind and soul were on fire, changing, growing and becoming more. The Systems whispers were unable to reach Charlie, yet he still absorbed its information as muffled sensations.

Thankfully he had been underground and within the tunnel the Voule had dug out, as he was completely taken out and sent into a spasm the moment [Devour] had been cast.

After an agonising few seconds, Charlie felt the burning subside.

His mind returned, sharp and clear, but there was something different now, something had changed. Charlie turned his attention to the closest wall, and stared into the darkness.

Then, he took control of his Mana residing in his core, and sent the brimming energy into the spikes and bones that stuck out of his body.

The earth and stone crumbled upon touch of his macabre mane made of bone.