Bestial Diet absorbs the genetic data of a goblin.

Progressive Adaptability(corrosive poisons): 1% (!)

I looked up at the floating message and wiped the blood and grime from the corners of my mouth. A smile stretched my dry lips.

After the debuff duration, I didn’t imminently go to see the orc. The countless corpses of goblins gave me an idea.

When I consumed that goblin last time, [Bestial Diet] extracted their genetic data and gave me certain resistance to the poison. Then, wouldn’t the resistance increase if I eat more?

With such thoughts swirling in my head, I feast on the barely alive corpse next to my feet. Sure enough, it worked, and corrosive poison adaptability increased a little. Encouraged by the results, I continued to eat.

I squinted my eyes at the notice. An exclamation mark was shining towards the end of the sentence, looking quite attractive. I hadn’t seen it ever appearing before this.

I reached out with my left hand as my right hand still had bladed claws. Before this, it was impossible to interact with the system physically. I half expected this time to be the same as well.

But, instead of passing through like how it happened until now, my fingers stopped by a smooth surface. It was like touching a glass plate.

Notice:

-Acquired complete immunity to poisons secreted by juvenile goblins.

-Your blood now carries the antidote to goblin poison(upto juvenile).

Excitement flashed in my eyes after I understood the meaning behind this message. It was a surprise for sure, but a welcomed one.

In this place, goblins were everywhere. Poison was their main source of damage aside from ganging up on a target. Gaining an immunity was like disabling the very thing that made them scary. In the future, I could hunt more goblins without worrying about their poisons.

But these were not the only changes that happened. When I called upon the system window, there was a similar blinking exclamation mark next to [Shapeshift] ability. Curious, I touched on it.

Shapeshift Lv 0 [51/100]

-Transfigure into a desired shape at a cellular level.

!New Effect!

Lethal Concentration: Manage the concentration of toxicity in body fluids.

The words were simple and easy to understand. However, the implication was anything but simple. And also confusing. Since it wasn’t easy to understand from words alone, I’d have to test it to know more about the effects. For the time being, I could only push them to the back of my head.

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After dismissing the system, I gave up on feeding and went to look for the orc. I couldn’t hold back my curiosity anymore. But, before I left, I used [Shapeshift] to undo the knife-fingers.

It hurt. The pain was similar to how you’d feel when you stump your toe. Quite painful. I endured it silently. After experiencing death, this level of pain was nothing.

It took up a few points of stamina, but I didn’t mind this consumption. Due to the frenzied feeding from before, my overall stamina had reached [6]. I could afford to lose a few points.

After taking a deep breath, I narrowed my eyes towards the other end of the corpse heap. Sounds of battle had stopped coming for a while. Either the orc died, or it slaughtered all the goblins. Both these outcomes were dangerous for me.

Of course, there was an ideal outcome where both parties killed each other. It’d be even better if they were half dead for me.

Unfortunately, the world doesn’t run according to one’s wishes. It’s better not to have unrealistic dreams.

The goblin corpses on the floor gave me an excellent camouflage. Paired with the dim lighting, I was almost undetectable. I stuck close to the ground like a worm and crawled around the flesh mountain.

Slurp! Crunch!

I turned towards the source of the weird cracking sound.

It was a massive muscular humanoid being with a pig head. Its snout was shorter than an average pig I had seen, almost sticking flat to the face. A pair of teeth sticking out of its lower jaw and pointing upwards. Thick brown mane was brooming out of its head in a mohawk fashion.

Pair of green legs stuck out of its mouth as it chewed on them. I realized the crunching sound was because of this.

Muscles flexed every time it moved its hands. They looked like they could crush me like a nut between them.

Silently, I gulped a mouthful of saliva.

“Cough! Ah! These damn things!” Suddenly, it spoke. A soft gasp left my lips before I managed to cover them. I was so surprised that I forgot to keep myself in check.

The orc looked in my direction as it squinted its beady eyes. Lack of pupils made it hard to know where it was looking. Nonetheless, I made an effort to hide by staying absolutely still. I even stopped breathing.

“Imp?” It exclaimed.

But it was a futile effort. The orc found me.

“Why is there an imp on the first floor?” Its question was directed at me, but I was too busy getting over the shock to answer. Although, I didn’t know the answer myself.

“I don’t know,” I said, sitting up on the spot. Only a fool would get closer. It was a monster, after all.

“Oh? You can also speak?” Its tone carried a hint of surprise. But what stuck to me was the ‘also’ it added. I’ve been here for five days, and there was never another being that could talk.

“Hah- It seems I can’t escape the fate of being eaten after all.” The orc lamented. It leaned against the wall and relaxed its body. “Come, little imp. Hurry up. Before more goblins appear, devour me.”

The corners of my mouth twitched. Who was this orc trying to fool? Does it think I can’t see its right hand tensing up? It was definitely planning to strike me when I had my guard down. Which fool would fall for this?

“I’ve no such intentions,” I said. “On the contrary, I should thank you for taking care of them. They have been a thorn on my side for a while.”

The orc looked at me with a dumbfounded face. I couldn’t help but laugh at it in my heart. Perhaps, it didn’t expect me to not fall for its tricks. Or maybe, it didn’t think I’d thank it for killing goblins. Either way, this massive pig head was caught off guard, and it was wonderfully shown on its face.

“You really don’t want to kill me!” It exclaimed. “Isn’t the voice in your head telling you to kill me and consume me?”

“Huh?” Now it was my turn to look dumbfounded. What was this orc saying? Voice! What voice? I squinted at its face and took note of its body language. Although I was no expert in this field, this orc was kind of easy to read. Every time it lied or tried to trick, it’d curl the fingers into a grip.

Since there were no such actions, I guessed it was telling somewhat the truth.

“What voice? I don’t hear anything.” I said.

“How is—”

Keuk!! Kroooo!!

It stopped talking and stared at the dark corridor from where the goblins came earlier. I, too, did the same. Distinctive croaking unique only to these ugly green monsters was echoing out of the cave. Rapid footsteps accompanied these strange noises, and from how dense they sound, I estimated their numbers to be at least ten.

I cursed inwardly and got ready to hightail out of there.

“Hey, little imp! Do you know a place to hide?” I heard the orc’s voice and turned around. It was desperately trying to get up to its feet. But, with the wounds that had yet to heal, it was a herculean effort. It might’ve realized things had become dangerous.

After a brief deliberation, I decided to help it for the time being.

“Alright, follow me.”