He smiled and nodded in astonishment. "That's pretty cool. I was a bit worried when you went off on your own, but you seem to be extremely good at this."

  "I adapt fast. What can I say?" I twirled my bloodied daggers, mocking a few slashes in the air. "I’m curious—are these weapons made from some kind of material that cuts through monsters easier?"

  "Not sure. I think they’re just forged from incredibly tough metal, but they also have status effect skills sealed into them."

  I glanced down at the daggers, rolling them between my fingers. "I see, I see."

  Ferzan watched me for a moment before asking, "Do you still want to continue? My bird spotted a monster that might interest you. It'd be useful for traveling."

  "Oh, right!" I nearly lit up with excitement before sighing. "But I’ve already captured four monsters. From what I’ve heard, that’s the limit."

  He thought for a second before saying, "Give me the ugly shark one. I’ll store it at my monster farm for you."

  "Holy... but that one's my strongest right now."

  "It’s a common-rarity monster. The one I have my eye on is uncommon—an Earth-body type. You need the bird for full aerial vision, and the snake has great agility with solid racial skills—it just seemed stupid when it fought you. What else did you capture?"

  "Some kind of flower monster. It attacks with petals."

  "Oh! Twirlflower. Sneaky attacker. Yeah, that one’s a keeper. Good for ambushes."

  "Damn. Alright. How do I transfer it to you?"

  He extended a finger. "We make contact. You’ll get a system prompt, we confirm. There are other ways, but this is the best one."

  Damn it.

  I hesitated. "My left hand is disfigured, so close your eyes. And tell your monster not to look."

  "Oh, okay." He turned away and shut his eyes. His monster, still high in the sky, averted its gaze, likely still fixated on the traveling monster he had spotted.

  Taking a breath, I reached for his finger and pressed my palm against it.

  [Ferzan Starwort is requesting your monster, nicknamed [Mon], be transferred to him. Do you accept the request?]

  Yes.

  A flash of black and white surged between us.

  [Transfer successful.]

  I pulled my hand back instantly, shoving it into my pocket.

  Ferzan opened his eyes. "Alright. Let’s go. Oh, wait, I’m curious—what life buff did you go with?"

  "Inspect."

  One minute later.

  "FERZANNN!"

  I tore through the dense forest, weaving between towering trees and grotesque, oversized plants. My feet barely touched the ground as I leaped over fallen branches, boulders, and twisted roots.

  A massive purple cabbage—almost my height—shriveled into tight rolls as I passed. It reeked like a rotting rat. Weird.

  But not as weird as the monster chasing me.

  A beast with a heavily crustacean-armored body, shaped like a bull, barreled through the forest behind me. Its speed was ridiculous, its charge a straight, unrelenting path of destruction. Trees, boulders—nothing slowed it down.

  I didn’t want to die. Not like this. Not this easily.

  It was barely a meter away. I risked a glance over my shoulder and activated Inspect.

  Level 10

  Same level as me.

  The armored bull lunged—only inches from striking. I grunted Now.

  Out of nowhere, my bird monster dove from the sky in a blur of motion.

  [Deep Dive.]

  A sharp cry pierced the air as its talons raked across the bull’s exposed joints—one of the few areas unprotected by its thick shell. The beast’s leg hyperextended, and it stumbled, crashing into the dirt with a thunderous roll.

  I didn’t waste the opening.

  Spinning on my heel, I struck at its joints with my daggers.

  The blades sank into its hide—but stopped at the muscle.

  Ferzan was right. Monsters were, on average, four times stronger than a Vlandos of the same level. But this? This was absurd.

  "I’ll handle it," Ferzan said.

  Before I could respond, his massive bird plummeted from the sky, talons outstretched. In a single, devastating motion, it snatched the monster up and shot skyward, shaking the treetops with its sheer force.

  I shielded my eyes against the sunlight, squinting as I followed its ascent. And then—something fell.

  The bull monster.

  It slammed into the ground with a deafening thud.

  "Nice shot," I said.

  "Thanks."

  I approached the wounded monster, watching as it struggled to stand. "By the way, if you could… I don’t like people watching when I seal a monster. So, uh, yeah. Look away."

  "You did it in front of me before…" He sighed and turned away. "Okay."

  With him and his monster facing elsewhere, I pressed my left hand against the bull’s hide.

  A black flash engulfed it.

  Absorbing it into my seal was… straining. Like trying to lift something far heavier than I could handle.

  Because we were the same level, my control over it would be weak—barely existent.

  "Alright, I’m done."

  Ferzan turned back to face me.

  I couldn’t tell if he was pitying me or judging me. Either way, I damn well wished I didn’t care.

  For a fleeting moment, I considered saying my seal was on my private area. It would’ve been a solid excuse.

  But heaven forbid that rumor ever spread. If people actually believed it…

  I’d either have to tame a monster capable of mass memory wipes—or mass murder.

  “Okay. I want to level up just a bit more,” I told him. “Think I can reach fifteen?”

  “Hm... Just aim for thirteen. I’ll help by injuring the monsters and leaving the final kill to you. It’ll take longer since you’re at level ten, but it’s important that your control over Crusbull doesn’t harm you.”

  “Right. Can I test it out, or would that be a bad idea?”

  “Bad idea.”

  I sighed and turned to Forwing, giving a silent command. The bird took off from a tree branch and landed on my right shoulder, its talons digging into my skin just enough to sting.

  And so, I followed his lead. His massive bird beast unleashed blasts of wind, knocking out monsters, while I moved in for the final strike.

  It was slow progress. After slaying six monsters, all between levels four and six, my experience bar barely budged. It took six more kills before I finally reached level eleven.

  The moment I finally did, my knees buckled, and I had to catch my breath. Level fifteen was out of the question. No shot.

  We pressed on, and after two grueling hours, I reached level thirteen. But I wasn’t happy.

  It felt like I was dying.

  My body… it felt sick. A wave of nausea churned in my gut.

  I dropped to my knees and vomited. The world spun violently, my vision blurring at the edges.

  This can’t be from the parasite-killing medicine he gave me.

  “I’m sick…” I muttered.

  He leaped down from his bird and helped me stand. “How bad is it?”

  “Everything’s spinning. My vision’s blurry, and I feel like I’m going to throw up any second.”

  “Oh...” His expression shifted, brows furrowing in concern.

  “Did you accidentally poison me? Oh my god, it's an overdose. Am I going to die?”

  I would have to secretly heal myself.

  “No. You’re just experiencing level sickness. I made you level up too fast.”

  “What the hell...” My hands curled into fists. Why do I get rewarded, then punished, for killing the scum of this world?

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Do you want to rest here until you feel better?”

  “Please. How long will this last? I already feel like I’m dying.”

  “Maybe… two or three hours.”

  “Ugh… and if I level up again during that time, would it get worse?”

  “What do you think?”

  POV: The Doctor at Sundawn

  I ran my hands under the faucet for the past hour.

  I didn’t understand what they had brought to me.

  It made no sense—the way their cells constantly changed. It would have been manageable if it were just like cancer, something that could be cut away.

  But whatever they had? Every single cell in their body reproduced corrupt copies. How the hell was I supposed to save them?

  I made it clear that I couldn’t cure them, but that didn’t stop my mind from racing.

  I left the sterile white bathroom and wandered back toward the medical room. My hand hesitated on the doorknob when I heard voices inside.

  The man was apologizing in his sleep, over and over.

  Unlike usual, the woman responded.

  “What is wrong with you? Sorry this, sorry that. Who the hell are you even apologizing to? Don’t you think it’s annoying?”

  Of course, he wasn’t conscious, so he didn’t stop.

  I cracked the door open slightly, just enough to see inside.

  She stood at his bedside. His murmurs faded into whispers, then shifted.

  “Sorry for not being...” The rest was lost.

  She froze. Her body stiffened like a statue. Then, without another word, she turned to Ulah.

  He lay on a cold, white metal bed. She sat beside him and took a deep breath.

  The boy muttered something. I couldn’t recognize the language; it didn’t sound real.

  She gently took his hand, and his rambling stopped. His face twisted in pain.

  A choked sound escaped him before he whispered, “Mammy...”

  She leaned in close, whispering something into his ear.

  A sudden coldness filled the room. It was like winter had arrived in an instant.

  What the hell?

  I tried to breathe, but my lungs refused to obey. My chest tightened, air strangled from my throat.

  She fell silent, then abruptly turned, her gaze meeting mine through the narrow gap of the door.

  Shit.

  My instincts screamed at me to close the door, but that would be too obvious.

  I swung it open instead, forcing my trembling hands to remain steady.

  I tried to sound casual. “How are you holding up?”

  She walked toward me. I took an involuntary step back.

  She placed a hand against the side of my face. “You didn’t see anything. Oh, and please perform the surgery immediately.”

  POV: Ulah

  A minute before.

  The strange black cat stood before me once again.

  I didn’t understand why. Why now, when I couldn’t even move my legs?

  It gazed over the scorched field, the sky thick with dark fog.

  “What are you thinking?” the cat asked.

  I didn’t answer.

  “Are you scared?”

  “I just want my mom… and Vernsisha. I want them.”

  I wanted them to take away the hunger. The thirst. The pain.

  A sharp ache lanced through my gut, and I gritted my teeth, clutching my stomach with sheer willpower.

  “Can you hear it?” the cat asked.

  “What...?”

  “That song you love so much.”

  From the sky, a voice cut through the heavens, divine and sorrowful.

  Balash wird fallen. Sie werden schreien,

  Sie werden weinen, aber ich werde ihre Tr?nen genie?en.

  Ich werde ihr Leid genie?en, dafür, wie sie mich verraten haben.

  Mom. She was here.

  She was always at my side.

  Despite the pain, relief flooded through me. I was happy. Happy just to hear her sing.

  I tried to mimic her.

  “Balas… wird fillen...”

  Again, and again, I repeated the words, each time trying to make them sound just right.

  The cat asked me, “Why do you want to learn that song? To sing it better?”

  I looked at the cat. “I want to do it for my mother. I want her to be proud of me, to smile at me—the same way she smiles at Vernisha. A smile that says I am worth the most important thing in the world.”

  POV: Natasha

  I walked through the streets, passing crowds of people.

  'If they were to die, how would you feel?'

  I remembered that question I had asked Vernisha.

  I had expected her reaction, yet it still disappointed me. But I could only blame myself for how I had raised her.

  At the same time, what else could I have done? Every parenting skill I had was learned by observing other mothers, trying to determine what worked and what didn’t.

  I had never been parented myself.

  Mothers and fathers passed by, carrying their babies—some cradled against their shoulders, others strapped securely in sacks on their backs.

  I didn’t want Ulah to die, but as I saw it, my desires didn’t matter.

  That bread... I had been thinking about it for a while, and I doubted it was a coincidence.

  A bread that caused horrible mutations—but had no effect on Vernisha.

  I glanced down, and there it was, resting in my hand. The bread roll, warm yet oddly bitter to the touch.

  I hadn’t wanted to taste it, uncertain of its effects.

  I did it anyway.

  The flavor was unmistakable.

  It tasted like my sister’s ether.

  Tch.

  I didn’t even want to think about her.

  As I walked, I passed a Balash temple and stopped to look. The structure was painted in green and white, standing solemnly amid the bustling street.

  Inside, at the center, stood a statue—a fusion of everything. Stone, animals, people, monsters, sky. It was an amalgamation so chaotic it nearly seemed to represent nothing at all.

  Blue water trickled down its surface, pooling in the concrete basin below.

  Mercy water.

  People sat on benches inside, listening to an educator recounting history and stories of Balash, a deity praised far too generously in my opinion.

  A line had formed near the basin—sick people waiting for their turn. A man in green and white robes dipped a long-handled cup into the water, pouring it carefully into their individual cups, offering healing, relief from pain and suffering.

  Some would not be fully healed.

  I hoped Vernisha’s father and brother’s deaths would serve as motivation.

  She claimed she didn’t care for her father, and I had long debated whether that was true. I still wasn’t sure. But now, as things turned grim, I could only hope. And hope that her love for her brother wasn’t deep.

  I turned around and saw Bahmos. His expression was conflicted, as if he had been struggling with a decision for some time.

  He asked, "Did you come to have your memory erased... too?"

  I held his gaze, feeling the weight of the silence stretch between us.

  I didn’t need him anymore.

  POV: Abella Starlight

  I stood at the top of a long staircase, emeralds and jaspers lining the railings and balusters.

  Tanisha leaned against me. “Why don’t you just call Ferzan and ask where he is?”

  “I don’t think I need to.”

  “My legs are killing me.”

  “Then why haven’t you taken a chair? I told you to an hour ago.”

  “You’re standing, so I’m standing.”

  The double doors swung open, pushed by two Punchio servants. My little brat of a son stepped lightly inside, moving as if he were a spy.

  Tiptoeing, he made his way toward the steps, oblivious to our presence.

  Tanisha announced, “We can see you.”

  He flinched and looked up. “… I kinda had a feeling.”

  “Why are you so late?” I asked.

  “I was busy leveling up.”

  “You disappeared for almost the entire day.”

  “It’s a little complicated,” he admitted. “I went to get caffeine and, well... Granny is coming to the city tonight. I wanted to make her proud of my level.”

  “By yourself? How many times have I told you not to enter those zones alone?”

  “What does it matter? I’m strong.”

  “What matters is that anything could have happened to you!”

  “Nothing ever happens to me.”

  “Go to your room. Spend some time with your sister.”

  "Kay Kay."

  I went to my room and found Katie on the floor, watching a group of blue ants in a glass box.

  “What’s new?” I asked.

  “Nothing. Professor Alox told me to experiment with ice ant acid and venom, so I’m doing that.”

  “What results are you supposed to get?”

  “Beats me.”

  “Hm. What do you plan to wear to the family dinner with Granny?”

  “I don’t even want to go.”

  “Eh. But you must. You know Mom wouldn’t let you stay home.”

  “I know that. I just said I don’t want to, not that I wasn’t going.”

  “You should be excited. It’s your grandma.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “She’d want to see you happy to see her.”

  She examined herself, as if searching for something lost. “I don’t see any monster seal on me, so that can’t be the case. I hate when you act ignorant. It’s like you see the sky is blue but still ask me, ‘Is it red?’”

  I dropped to the ground, legs folded. “Yeah… Sorry.”

  “You shouldn’t apologize. I just wasn’t born lucky. Now, watch these ants with me.”

  POV: Vernisha

  The level sickness still clung to me, but not as fiercely as before. I could move. I could function.

  Ferzan had dropped me off in the city, and since then, I’d been searching for Bahmos. He was supposed to be at the House of Relief on this street.

  But he wasn’t there.

  So I moved to the next one. And the next. And the next.

  I searched and searched, but no matter how many buildings I checked, how many streets I scoured, I couldn’t find him.

  Why had he disappeared?

  Shit. Just shit.

  With no other options, I gave up and made my way back to the doctor’s office. Natasha would have found a solution by now—I just wouldn’t like whatever she had come up with.

  I found Natasha waiting outside the doctor’s room.

  “The payment has already been taken care of,” she said the moment she saw me.

  “You paid it?”

  “How else would it have been handled?”

  “But where did you get the money?”

  “A friend.”

  “What friend?”

  She exhaled sharply. “You should be more concerned about your brother and father.”

  “Don’t just say that—how are they?”

  “We’ll see.”

  Thirty minutes later, the door opened, and the doctor stepped out.

  Sweat beaded on his forehead. His fingers twitched at his sides. “Things have… complicated,” he admitted. “Whenever I cut into their flesh, or even attempt any kind of procedure, their condition worsens. I…”

  Natasha cut in. “Are you saying there’s nothing you can do?”

  “I’ll have to try again, but not now. My monster control is exhausted.”

  “Can we at least see them?”

  “Yes, of course. They’re even awake, and for now, they have control over their minds.”

  We entered the room.

  Caren lay on the bed, barely human. His body was swollen and green, his skin puffed and distorted—except for his face, which remained eerily untouched.

  His jaw moved as he tried to speak. The sounds that came out were incomprehensible, guttural gibberish.

  She turned to me and said, “We don’t know yet—but maybe Vernisha can save you all.”