Percy was a little bummed out by his latest venture. This was his first clone outside Remior in months, though luck hadn’t been on his side. He’d spent the entire trip looking for a suitable host, but all he’d found were crumbling souls that wouldn’t last a minute once he took over. In the end, he went with the least damaged option, though their grade left much to be desired. It was somewhere between a Red and an insect – which was a first for him.

‘Better than nothing, I guess…’

At least, the actual possession went smoothly. For some reason, his host appeared completely absent this time. It was nothing like the lizard or the furball, which had remained passive yet still present in the background. No. This body’s owner was gonzo. Encountering zero resistance, Percy slid between the gaps, patching the broken soul with unprecedented ease. A few memories flashed through his mind in the process, though they were too disorganized to piece together.

‘What the hell?! Did this guy get hit in the head or something?’

Tapping into the body’s senses, Percy finally pried his eyes open, only to be greeted by endless darkness. After a moment, some vague shapes started coming to focus, but he didn’t have the chance to worry about them, as he discovered he couldn’t even breathe. Something was squeezing his neck tightly.

Trying to move his hands, he soon realized his left was bound too, leaving him only his right to pummel the object with. Whatever it was felt slimy, its surface smooth and damp. It slowly slithered around his throat, a small spike tracing a shallow cut along his skin as it did so.

‘The fuck?! Some kind of thorny snake?!’

Not getting anywhere barehanded, Percy summoned a sliver of his stored mana, forming a weapon in his hand. Soon, a teal flash sliced a line through the darkness, severing the tendril off him.

Percy filled his lungs with air a couple of times as he practically felt the colour return to his face. But he was still trapped. Hacking again with his sickle, he cut another three “snakes” a second later, freeing the rest of his limbs. Jumping to his feet, he activated Mana Sense, hoping to scan his surroundings better. Or he tried to, at least. For some reason, his current body couldn’t even use Mana Sense!

‘That’s a new one…’

Accepting that his impaired eyesight was all he could rely on, he examined the ground around him, attempting to decipher what had happened to his host. Faintly illuminated by his mana construct, he spotted five severed vines – all of them black like tar, covered in spikes of various sizes. The dead ones weren’t moving right now, but the living ones were – wriggling ominously as they waited for another opportunity to pounce.

Making a note to keep an eye on the strangely animated plants, Percy’s attention was drawn to a couple of manmade objects glinting nearby. Picking the first one up, he noticed it was a slender sword, sporting a single, curved edge. A quick test revealed its sharpness wasn’t a joke, as it cut a couple inches into another vine with minimal effort.

‘Wow. Is this really a mundane weapon?’

There sure weren’t any runes visible on its surface, nor the typical glow he would expect from a mana-rich alloy. Finding a scabbard matching the sword strapped to his waist, he sheathed it, before picking the second object off the ground. This one was a machete, crafted from the same material, though its edge had dulled a little from overuse. Still, it was better than any steel tool he’d seen on Remior.

‘I suppose I can rely on these for the time being.’

Allowing his construct to crumble, he collected as many of the teal shreds as he could, storing them back inside his soul. Some strange force was pulling on them, trying to pry them from his control, but Percy would be damned if he let his limited supply get snatched so easily. Exerting all the willpower he could muster, he forcibly dragged most of the substance into his body, ultimately recovering about three quarters of the amount he’d used.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

‘Man, this fused mana is a gamechanger!’ Percy couldn’t help but nod in appreciation.

The young man had naturally been thrilled upon discovering he could supply his clones with the teal mana as long as it was stored in its ethereal form. Not only did this let him essentially “cheat” some pure mana into his clones, it was highly recyclable too, allowing him to get a lot more value from it before it ran out.

‘In any case, better get a move on.’

There was a lot to think about, but this wasn’t the time or the place. Looking around, Percy realized he recognized the scenery somewhat. Despite the poor lighting, his host seemed to be extremely familiar with the area. In fact, he could even tell which way “home” was.

Heading towards the village he scarcely remembered, he soon noticed his body was rather weak. Exhausted and injured all over, yes – but that wasn’t it. It reminded Percy of his youth, from before he advanced to Orange.

‘Come to think of it, there’s no mana in the air whatsoever...’

No wonder he couldn’t even use Mana Sense. Had his host not even awakened his core?!

Suddenly, a vine lashed at him from his right, though he was prepared for it. With a semi-awkward swing of his machete, he cut it to pieces, though he didn’t relax just yet, knowing more could attack at any moment. Ignoring the soreness and pain, he picked up the pace, practically running towards his host’s village, hacking at whatever obstacle stood in his path.

‘Is this jungle the reason there isn’t any mana here?’

If the black vines sucked all the ambient mana in this world, it would explain why his host had never managed to awaken his core. For all Percy knew, the poor sap might have been born with a Yellow one, but he’d lived and died without ever enjoying its benefits.

And as if that wasn’t enough, the hateful plants weren’t satisfied with all the mana they stole, seemingly thirsting for blood too. In fact, this situation felt a little familiar to Percy, as he couldn’t help but recall something he’d read about on Remior.

‘Could this be an infestation?!’

The gods of the Divine Order weren’t that open about their operations, but a few morsels of information did trickle down to the mortals like him. From what he knew, foreign races weren’t the only threat the deities had to deal with. Other than the fierce competition over resources and territories, gods across the universe had another major enemy – this one in common.

Demonic infestations.

Supposedly formed from the accumulation of negative thoughts, they sprouted randomly like cancers, dooming whatever unfortunate world spawned them. Infestations came in many shapes and sizes – from imps and gremlins as weak as the weakest mortals, to great devils as powerful as the strongest gods, to mindless entities spanning entire worlds, bringing calamity upon their residents.

Evidently, this jungle belonged in the latter category. Percy’s confidence in his guess grew as he scanned the living vines around him. This didn’t seem like a natural phenomenon. Unlike the brown fog he had encountered before, this disaster was alive, dripping with malice and cruelty, its only mission to drive all life to extinction.

It was only once he finally reached the edge of the dense thicket that he exhaled in relief, leaving the demonic jungle behind him, as he stepped into the pale moonlight. The small village standing before him looked both alien and familiar, as his host’s memories bled into his own.

‘Now what do I do?’

Part of him was curious about the infestation. He knew it was close to some turning point, and it was his first time experiencing one with any of his clones. Not that there was anything to be gained from it, but he was sure he’d run into more in his future travels, so it wouldn’t hurt to get a taste.

On the other hand, his current clone might be a good candidate to return to the Vault with. Stumbling upon a host that was both sentient and brain-dead was a rare stroke of luck. He had free reign over the body, and he wouldn’t even have to feel guilty over dragging someone else into his mess.

That said, he didn’t know if he’d be able to practice magiscript without a functioning core. Perhaps, he could awaken it inside the Vault, but his body wasn’t in great shape, so it might not last long enough.

‘Let’s figure out the situation here first…’

At the very least, Percy wanted to learn more about the crafting technique of the locals here. The strength and sharpness of his steel tools almost rivalled that of his pure constructs, which was quite impressive for a pair of mana-less weapons. Maybe he could learn to make similar tools back home.

‘But before all that, let’s see what I’m dealing with.’

Summoning his Status, Percy read his host’s details at last.

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Takeo Muramasa (Percival's clone)

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