Becoming a Monster

Chapter 642: Chapter 641: When More Power Becomes a Problem

Noah groaned over the name of the skill.

It was one thing that made him call himself a devil. He only accepted the label humans repeatedly gave him.

But now even his own bloodline is insinuating that he’s a devil.

What does that say about himself?

Only after he took the time to think it through did he understand that it wasn’t his personality being reflected in the nature of his ability.

Maybe…

He had originally assumed anything he gained from Ailetta would focus more heavily on her slime qualities once the holy energy disappeared. But after thinking about how Ailetta obtained that power in the first place, the direction his Nexus Eye took wasn’t completely without reason.

Her transformation had originated from the ritual used by actual devils attempting to obtain the powers of angels.

Ailetta might’ve eventually made that holy power an inherent part of herself, but that didn’t change where it had originally come from.

And apparently, Noah’s Nexus Eye had found another way to use it.

From what Noah could understand, Devil’s Descent had easily become one of his strongest transformations.

That strength was also the reason he wasn’t sure when he would ever be able to use it.

The problem wasn’t finding an opponent powerful enough to justify the transformation. Considering the enemies Noah had encountered lately, he doubted that would take very long.

His concern was everyone else who might be around when he activated it.

Just like Ailetta’s eye, Devil’s Descent currently couldn’t distinguish between friend and foe.

Noah’s presence would become dangerous on its own. Anyone around him who wasn’t strong enough to resist would be affected regardless of whether Noah actually considered them an enemy.

There was only one exception he knew of.

His Fallen.

Those who shared that existence with him could resist the effects of Devil’s Descent, but that protection didn’t extend to everyone else under his command.

That alone prevented Noah from treating Devil’s Descent as another ability he could use whenever he needed more power.

Until he learned how to control its effects, he would have to be extremely careful about when and where he activated it.

Still, that problem did very little to take away from how content Noah was with everything he had gained.

He was considerably stronger than before.

Behind Noah stood Baka, whose transformation had resulted in something uniquely similar to the troll Fenrir had killed earlier that day.

The resemblance to Otuk was impossible to ignore, yet Baka’s own distinctions were clear enough that his transformation took on a path unique to himself rather than Otuk.

Then there was Arachne.

Noah’s attention lingered on her longer than it did on Baka.

She had already changed more than anyone else before they entered the cave, but even then, there had still been one final gene Noah intended to give her.

Now she had it.

The last gene Arachne needed to finally complete her.

–

Looking at the spider queen, whatever resentment Arachne had felt from being excluded earlier was nowhere to be found now.

If anything, receiving the final gene seemed to have restored every bit of the pride she had before. There was a renewed sense of satisfaction in the way she carried herself, one that only became more apparent whenever she noticed the attention still being directed toward her.

Her aura held a more regal bearing than before, while her gaze was just as mesmerizing. Strangely enough, despite the difference Noah could feel from her, there weren’t nearly as many physical changes to point towards what had actually changed.

The most noticeable were the fang-like teeth subtly revealed whenever her lips stretched into a smile.

But there was one other addition that was considerably harder to overlook.

Another eye.

Unlike the others, this one didn’t come in a pair. It rested directly in the middle of her forehead, slightly above her main eyes. Despite being smaller, its resemblance to Noah’s Nexus Eye was immediately apparent, with the main difference being the violet energy that made up the eye’s contents.

The placement of the eye, combined with her fangs, was all new changes she received from gaining little Eve’s genes.

Initially, everyone was surprised when Noah suggested it. No one denied she was strong, but…

No one could understand how the vampire bloodline was even remotely compatible with Arachne’s.

Despite the confusion, no one questioned Noah aloud. And Arachne only hesitated for a moment before deciding to trust him. To her, Noah would never lead them astray.

Noah had no issue with their scrutiny; their questioning was well deserved. However, his gut feeling only grew more certain about these things.

And from the smile Arachne currently wore, that feeling proved to be right.

Noah was tempted to go over the results immediately. He wouldve done it while in the cave, but because what was happening no longer concerned Bolas, and no one paid him any attention, the dragon had rushed them all out so he could be alone.

Before Noah could give her his full attention, he noticed Morvyr’s gaze shift from him, looking past him instead.

Noah followed that gaze to see that the elf was focused entirely on Baka.

Unlike the unease Noah had seen from him only moments ago, this time there was something else mixed into his expression. Confusion was probably the easiest way to describe it, although the longer Morvyr stared, the more that confusion appeared to be turning into a somewhat disturbed recognition.

Noah wasn’t surprised.

There was enough of Otuk lingering within Baka’s new form that Morvyr was bound to notice eventually.

It wasn’t as though Baka suddenly looked exactly like the troll Fenrir had killed. The two were still considerably different, but after using Otuk’s soul for Baka’s transformation, some of those similarities would be difficult for him to overlook.

Noah could already see the gears clicking behind Morvyr’s eyes.

He doubted the elf would immediately figure out what had happened, but Noah wasn’t particularly interested in helping him reach the answer either.

His blood was one thing.

Morvyr learning that Noah could take any compatible soul and use it to strengthen one of his creatures was something else.

Once he knew that was possible, it wouldn’t take long before Morvyr started wondering whether his own soul could be used in the same way.

It wasn’t like the possibility of it not happening was certain.

However, Noah had no reason to ever do that as long as Morvyr didn’t betray his trust, but there was also no reason Morvyr needed to know that.

For now, Noah allowed Morvyr to come to whatever conclusion he wanted as he focused more of his own attention on Baka.

He had to admit, the Baka’s transformation had turned out better than he expected.

Even before his awakening, Baka had possessed a much different appearance from Otuk. His skin was bluish gray, with rock-like growths covering much of his body. Those natural protections had always been thicker around his limbs, especially along his forearms, the backs of his hands, and around his shins and calves.

Now those same traits had been pushed considerably further.

Baka had grown larger, his arms had become thicker, his muscles more prominent, and the heavier build only made the beast-like posture he already possessed appear more imposing.

But the greatest change was what had happened to the stones covering him.

Much of it had crystallized.

The rough layers had become darker and considerably denser, whilst taking on a crystalline appearance and still growing naturally from his body. The change was especially prominent around his forearms and lower legs, where thick clusters surrounded his limbs before tapering off toward the rest of his body.

More of it now covered his shoulders and portions of his back, with several larger formations rising behind him while smaller clusters protected the sides of his head and face. Even the fur covering portions of his body had taken on a slightly crystallized quality, giving some of the strands a hardened sheen without making them look any less like fur.

Noah originally believed that his instincts had judged Baka to be compatible with Otuk’s soul because of the troll’s ability to transfer physical damage into the ground.

Baka was at his most vulnerable whenever he went berserk. The increase to his strength was immense, but avoiding attacks became almost an afterthought. If he gained Otuk’s ability to transfer the damage he received into the ground instead, then Baka would’ve become a nightmare to deal with.

However, the merger of the soul took on a surprising change.

The ability itself had mutated.

Instead of transferring physical damage into the ground, Baka could use almost any form of earth around him to replenish the stone and crystals protecting his body. Even if portions were completely destroyed, the surrounding dirt, stone, and minerals could replace what he lost.

Better yet, Baka didn’t always have to consciously draw upon them.

As long as he remained in contact with the ground, his body would continuously pull from the earth beneath him to replenish whatever was damaged; albeit, it would be a slow recovery. Actively using the ability would make the process considerably faster.

After understanding this change, made Noah realized why his instincts felt that Otuk’s soul was perfect for Baka.

Otuk’s ability had appeared nearly perfect when Noah first witnessed it, but that was largely because Fenrir fought him physically.

The damage Otuk could transfer into the ground was physical.

That distinction left other forms of damage as a weakness, especially elemental attacks capable of bypassing the protection that had made him so difficult for Fenrir to injure. Even during that fight, Noah had noticed that it was primarily Fenrir’s flames that allowed him to win that fight.

And now, Baka’s version didn’t have that same problem.

As long as there was enough earth available to replace what was destroyed, the protection covering his body could continue being restored.

In some ways, Noah considered the mutated version even better than the original.

—

Seeing the intensity behind Moryvr’s gaze, Noah had assumed the elf would rush over to ask a million questions.

Yet surprisingly, the elf sat back down. His body language was a mixture between resignation and tiredness.

The scene caused Noah to chuckle to himself. This version of Moryvr was a lot more pleasing to see.

—

When Noah looked back at Arachne, his eyes flickered with genuine interest. Seeing the abilities alone wasn’t enough; he wanted to see the ability in action.

An ability that was like his own and yet completely different at the same time.

Her ability to make her own fallen that she obtained from his blood.

And also the abilities she gained from Eve’s blood.