Babel (4): The Tower's Fall
Riiip. Riiiip.
His clothes tore apart as his body swelled in size. They were pretty high-quality leather garments for this era, but they ripped so easily. Hmm... The man's height soon surpassed three meters. He looked less like a human and more like a beast or a monster. And then, pitch-black fur began sprouting all over his body. Was he turning into something like a gorilla? Hmm.
"Huff. Huuuff... This power. This mana. And I haven't even fully digested it all yet—it's already this much. Heh. I get why monsters are so strong now. With power like this inside them, how could they not be...!"
The man began shedding his humanity bit by bit. Horns and a tail sprouted, his teeth grew enormous. When the transformation finally ended, he had been reborn as something no longer human.
"Gr, grrr. GRRROOOOAAARRR!!!"
He let out a beastly roar. The sound alone cracked the walls and shattered the crates full of mana stones.
"Gr. Grrrh. Good. So good. If I can make this fully mine, I could become a god! Yes! Babel! Babel will be my name! I'll build a tower reaching to the heavens, seize power like the gods, and become the god of magic! Then I'll rain divine punishment on those humans who cast us magicians out!"
Halfway to abandoning his humanity, had he lost his intellect too? Spouting such nonsense. Pathetic. He was already done for.
"Huff. Huuuff... If I become a god, I'll take you as my consort then. You'll become a new goddess too. I'll grant you the glory of becoming the queen of gods, surpassing that Life Goddess who just watches arrogantly from on high without helping!"
Hmm. Hmmm... Guess that means I have no choice but to kill him.
"You'll become a new goddess too! You and I! New gods ruling this world!"
"Can't listen to any more of that bullshit."
I just furrowed my brow.
"Why?! This is the power to become a new god! Instead of accepting this glory, how can you deny it?!"
"Because you're a fool who can't even grasp what stands before your eyes, yet you think you can become a god."
"Wha...?"
I flashed a grin and said,
"Open those beady eyes of yours and look properly. See what stands before you."
"What?"
I began releasing the power I'd been holding back, bit by bit. The power within this body. The mana. The presence. Even the faith gathered as the Life Goddess. Just unleashing it shattered the tower's pinnacle, sending shards of mana stones flying everywhere.
"Gr, graaaaaah!!"
"What's wrong? You're staggering."
I took a step forward.
"The god you wanted to become is right in front of you. Now, open your eyes wide and look closely. This is the god you wanted to be."
"Grrrh... Graaaah!!"
The man-thing couldn't withstand it and was crushed into the floor, merging with it. He thought he could become a god, yet he couldn't even endure this? Foolish. So foolish.
Boom!
The floor cracked and began collapsing. Huh. Did they build this tower sloppily? Falling apart from just this. Well, I was planning to demolish it anyway.
Still, the humans still in the tower were innocent.
"Humans in Babel's Tower, depart from this place at once."
I infused my low voice with power and broadcast it. It reached everyone in the tower—and all of Babel, for that matter. Ah, the Hero would hear it too. Hmm... Whatever. The Hero might need to face what he's up against directly anyway.
"The fool at this tower's peak sought to become a god, to reach the gods."
"He coveted and stole what belongs to the divine to sate his desires."
"Thus, only utter destruction awaits."
I felt the magicians in the tower fleeing in panic. Scattering like ants. Poor humans. Blissfully unaware of what they'd been doing. Pathetic, really. It was starting to get tiresome.
"Graaaah! Gyaaaaah!!!"
As the floor collapsed beneath him, the man's body changed again. Something protruded from his wing bones. Arms? No, not arms—though they had front claws. They were vast wings, like a bat's.
"Gr. Grrrh! You'll see! You'll regret this!!! Cursed be you! O god!!! Be cursed!!! O god!!!!"
Foolish. So foolish, over and over. Who was cursing whom? Had the darkness blinded him completely?
That's why I couldn't let him go any further. I casually clenched my fist and swung it downward.
And at that moment—
KABOOOOM!
A massive beam of light physically smashed into the man as he tried to spread his wings and flee. Not enough—it pierced the tower, crumbling it downward. Crushed by overwhelming power, the lofty tower collapsed.
The vain dream of godhood collapsed too.
Everything would turn to rubble.
And this event would be known as the wrath of the gods.
Thus, Babel's Tower fell.
"What... what in the world happened here?"
The Hero arrived at the rubble of the now-empty tower.
"Ah, there you are."
"'There you are'? What do you mean? How does a tower that tall end up smashed like this?!"
"Eh, just some foolish human chasing vain dreams and coveting divine power, I guess."
The Hero's face twisted in confusion at my words.
"Then what's that? That... monster? But it looks humanoid?"
"Didn't I say? A foolish human chased vain dreams and coveted divine power."
Understanding dawned a bit; the Hero's expression chilled.
"A human...? That?"
"Yeah. A human."
Well, former human, technically.
"How can a human turn into something like a monster?!"
"Beats me."
I'd never seen a human transform like that before. Most monsters weren't humanoid. The reason was probably... humans' wills and egos resisting the fragments of darkness. But to intentionally absorb those fragments and make them his own...
Wait. If this guy could do it...
Could it happen elsewhere? Elves, dwarves... Lizardmen? Nah, they don't have enough mana to handle it anyway.
Still... no guarantee it won't happen again.
Hmm. Better keep an eye out.
"Grrooo..."
"And it's still alive."
"Yeah. Hit it with the intent to kill, too."
Even after smashing enough rubble to bury it, the man was still kicking. Probably those absorbed darkness fragments keeping him alive.
"So, wanna stab it with your sword?"
"Pardon? That?"
"Yeah. It's packed full of darkness fragments—gotta cash in on the gains."
I'd planned to collect and deliver the fragments, but hey, he bundled them up nicely for us.
"Gyaaaaah!!!"
"Oh, he's up."
"'He's up'?! How are you so casual about this?!"
"Well, with our Hero here, what do I have to worry about?"
I grinned. The Hero looked exasperated.
"You're just dumping this on me out of nowhere?!"
The battered black man rose and charged at me. But his rush was deflected by the Hero's sword.
"Just a casual swing, and it tanks that?!"
"Gyaaaa!!!"
"Looks like his intellect's completely gone. Getting consumed by that much darkness turns you into that."
"This isn't the time for commentary!!"
The Hero wailed. Sheesh. After all that experience, why the whining?
"It's no different from a monster. Just humanoid-shaped."
"But it was human! Originally!"
"So what? He chose foolishly to abandon his humanity. Hmm... Since he's no longer human, we need a new name for it."
"A new name...?"
I thought for a moment, then said,
"We should call that thing a demonkin from now on."
"Demonkin...?"
"It once had intellect but was corrupted by darkness. Perfect fit for 'demonkin.'"
"Gyaaaaah!!!"
Shut up. I snapped my fingers lightly, and mana shaped like swords pierced his limbs and wings, pinning him to the ground like a mounted insect.
The black man, fixed immobile to the earth. Hmm. First case like this. Better investigate thoroughly.