21. The Devourer ─ A Warrior's Will Passes to the Warrior
Suddenly, a strange voice echoed.
'...What the hell?'
No, it wasn't exactly "heard"—it was more like it reverberated directly in his mind.
The red mass that had engulfed him stretched like taffy, swallowing him whole. His entire body.
...What is this shit!
Panicking, he flailed around, but suddenly his skin stung sharply. He immediately activated Basilion Shell.
Basilion Shell
─Crackkk.
In an instant, his entire skin turned into hard gray stone. He felt a brief moment of relief and reached for his rapier, but the red mass was persistent. It finally pierced through the petrified skin and burrowed inside.
Crackkk.
At first, it stung like a fire ant bite. But the sharp pain spread like ink in water, sweeping through his entire body.
─Scorching agony.
It felt like his body was being roasted alive. The pain was so intense he couldn't even scream.
"......"
He resisted the torment, thrashing wildly. He gnashed his teeth, chewing the thing, chewing and chewing again. Then his breath ran out. He gasped for air, but it was futile. He blacked out just like that.
Was it a dream? Suddenly, words floated up.
I devour life. The weight of what I swallow guides my existence. The final words of the dead are reborn in my flesh.
Unfamiliar phrases echoed in his mind.
I have eaten. Memories, roars, screams. I will wield them again. With this flesh.
What the hell is this...?
Thus, oh self. Raise this mass of flesh. Seek what to shatter, grow heavy. Power of the devoured, become my shell. This body craves space to grow larger. I am the Devourer.
─Mad Words. Flesh─Expansion─.
When he came to, the pain had subsided. It felt like a massive tsunami of agony had swept through his body and passed.
He'd felt his whole body tearing apart after the scorching pain, too.
"......"
As soon as reality sank in, he grabbed the rapier lying at his feet and assumed a combat stance.
"...It's gone."
The red mass had vanished. Where did it go?
Late to the realization, something popped into his mind.
...No way.
He hastily stripped off his worn, tattered armor. As soon as he removed his chestplate, a tattoo appeared on his forearm.
"W-what the fuck is this!"
A red tattoo similar to the ones etched on Orkan's body.
...No way, this is...
He tore off his shirt and the rest of his clothes. After fully baring his upper body, he examined himself.
"......!"
He wasn't seeing things. The red mass had embroidered itself onto his body as a tattoo. Just like on Orkan.
'Did I absorb its ability? Or...'
He belatedly recalled the dream from when he'd passed out.
What was that? It was too vivid for a dream. Normal dreams fade upon waking...
But those phrases lingered crystal clear in his mind. Unnaturally so.
He slowly recalled the phrases.
'...I devour life. The weight of what I swallow guides my existence. The final words of the dead are reborn in my flesh.'
They were phrases he'd never seen before, yet etched into his brain.
'...I have eaten. Memories, roars, screams. I will wield them again. With this flesh.'
Why were these stuck in his head?
Thus, oh self. Raise this mass of flesh. Seek what to shatter, grow heavy. Power of the devoured, become my shell. This body craves space to grow larger. I am the Devourer. ─Mad Words.
Without thinking, he muttered:
"Flesh─Expansion─."
Grinddd.
Suddenly, his body grew enormous.
"...Hah, hah."
Concentrating his will, he barely managed to shrink back to normal.
"Haa..."
He was already exhausted, and now even more so. Thanks to auto-regeneration, his body had wasted away.
"Whew."
He regulated his breathing while eyeing the shattered metal scraps and leather bits around him.
"......"
The aftereffects of gigantification had completely wrecked his leg armor. His upper body gear had survived since he'd taken it off, but... it wasn't in great shape.
'Might as well get new stuff this time...'
Come to think of it, Orkan's armor had stayed intact even when enlarged.
'Or not? Oh, right, no.'
Checking the corpse, it was a misconception. The bastard had been nearly naked from the start, just in underwear, so it wasn't obvious.
"So, this is some kind of gigantification ability."
He'd grasped the ability's nature. But its limits and drawbacks were still unknown.
Better to check precisely.
He pulled a Rune Crystal from his extradimensional pouch. He'd bought a bundle of three for 500 gold last time, used one, and had two left.
He tore the Rune Crystal against his body.
─Szzzt.
Streams of light text burst forth, displaying information.
· Pattern: Mad Words: Gigantification
· Imprint: Submersion Mark
Besides the gigantification, there was another ability. An imprint.
"What's this... Submersion Mark?"
He focused on the light text. But no information emerged.
Not just the Submersion Mark—the Mad Words was the same. He could only see the name; unlike other abilities, no details appeared.
'What the hell.'
What? Why?
Only then did he remember the Gallery. Enlarging the minimized window in the corner, it was chaos.
Ah, the proof pic. He'd belatedly snapped a photo with Orkan and posted it.
Just the photo, no text. Right after, starving, he'd pulled out some healthy-tasting bread from his pouch and scarfed it down. It was so damn good, tears welled up.
'Is this heavenly?'
After two loaves, as he bit into the third, he checked comments. The reaction was way more explosive than expected.
Too many comments flooding in at once, making his eyes spin. He scrolled down.
The comments had exploded. Too many to read easily. First shock, then awe, then denial.
He took more photos of Orkan from different angles, including part of his own body, and posted again to quash fakes, edits, controversy.
Denial vanished, replaced by waves of gratitude.
Even the guy who'd sold him the golem was there.
Too long-winded; he stopped reading. Go-nicks weren't easy to change once set—some condition probably. Suddenly setting it to OrkanStoleMyMom...
He didn't dare ask why that name. Could turn into padrip.
Gifts and sponsorships poured in again. Thanks for revenge, hopes for his survival. Not huge amounts, but heartwarming. Not one to refuse, he accepted all.
Naturally, questions arose.
Reveal true combat power? Nah. To keep getting sponsorships, real Gallery help, better play weak.
He explained the fight to make it believable. Heavy on embellishments.
As expected, they didn't buy it easily. No choice. He added more flavor.
He hoped they'd flesh out his bait. But they were slapping on weird meat instead.
He hurriedly added:
Hiding strength rumors gone, it seemed.
"Phew."
Catching his breath, a floater popped up.
He seized the topic shift.
About to refuse, he realized this was one of the big sponsors who'd spammed gifts.
Chose to stall.
He ranted about the 78th Floor barbarian. With curses.
People living gathered on 78th?
Even farming, raising livestock apparently.
More Q&A followed. Praise, thanks, gifts...
No one doubted his power or actions now.
Time for the main point.
Scavenger quick on uptake.
Ah. Normal Rune Crystal, advanced kind existed.
Makes sense.
After, he checked the basilisk corpse in the boss room. Luckily, Orkan hadn't taken the orbs. Mid-grade orbs intact—8 of them. Even a white one.
He swallowed them all, savoring the strengthening rush.
Combat Index: 8,219 → 8,417
Mid-grade orbs still no tolerance.
"Whew."
Short rest, checked Gallery again.
Another floater baiting his identity.