I slowly opened my eyes as the rays of light teased me.
Stretching, I gradually came back to myself.
'It's already morning… I really was exhausted.'
I sighed internally.
My night's sleep hadn't been great; nightmares attacked me from every direction, forcing me to wake up again and again.
Each time, I simply took a deep breath before going back to sleep.
It was unpleasant, but I could deal with it.
If I had to define another goal in this life, it would be to unlink this resentful spirit from myself and abandon my position as a legacy beast.
Even though I was sure it would still be useful to me, there were many bad things about it.
'But now—what about this?' I looked to the side, where a girl was trying to hug me in her deep sleep.
Agnes certainly looked like a delicate and beautiful princess at this moment, despite her hair being stuck to her rosy lips.
Her arms had been wrapped around me just moments ago, and now they were searching for me again amid sleepy grumbles.
'Damn humans, using me like a stuffed toy.'
Immediately, I moved closer to her face and thought for a moment before making my decision.
I smacked her with my paw. A weak slap, without any real force.
A comedic slap.
But completely irritating.
Her eyes twitched just before I attacked again, her body writhing as she tried to cover her face with a pillow.
I simply circled around and kept going.
Amid a series of grumbles and curses, Agnes finally opened her eyes and glared at me, annoyed.
However, as soon as her gaze met mine, her irritation turned into fear, and then into pure terror as she threw herself toward the other side of the bed, trying to put distance between us—only to roll off and fall head-first onto the floor in a manner not at all befitting a princess.
"Ouch!"
As she massaged her aching head through clenched teeth, I approached the edge of the bed and looked down at her.
[ Hi, good morning! ]
"G-good morning… I guess…" she mumbled, still waking up.
I laughed in amusement before jumping down and observing the surroundings—rows upon rows of food arranged in preparation for my evolution.
[ You did a good job. At this rate, I might consider leaving you for last. Or at least making it quick and painless. ]
Her body suddenly trembled as she swallowed hard, unsure whether to feel grateful or terrified.
She simply coughed awkwardly in the end.
Standing up with a sigh, Agnes went to her wardrobe to put on something more appropriate than her royal nightgown, which revealed far more than it should have.
At that moment, another human aspect of mine awoke… I didn't know whether I should ignore the sight or simply accept it gratefully as a blessing from the heavens.
Agnes, obviously, treated me like an animal with no interest in humans whatsoever and continued without discomfort… though that wasn't entirely true.
At least, not on a psychological level. Physically, I was still a cub—just one who knew how to appreciate the beautiful things in life when he saw them.
A short while later, following her planned routine, the maids entered with carts full of trays and teapots.
Agnes sat at a table on the balcony, enjoying coffee befitting her royal status.
I watched in silence for a while; the maids had also served me—just a bowl and a piece of raw meat.
I like meat…
But there's something better right in front of me…
"What are you—?"
Much to Agnes's surprise, I jumped onto the table and stole her slice of cake.
My chubby cheeks rose and fell as the sweet taste touched my refined palate.
[ I don't have hands to serve myself—don't judge me. Just bring me more. Oh, and a cup of coffee too, with one spoon of sugar. ]
Agnes stared at me for a moment, then glanced at all the meat around me, but ultimately sighed and did as requested.
"Isn't this going to hurt your stomach?" she asked as she watched me calmly eating various sweets and savory foods.
[ I evolved my stomach. Since then, it's strong enough to eat rocks and glass… ]
"How can you be so sure?" she asked with furrowed brows.
[ If you'll allow me, I'd prefer to preserve my dignity. But know that your father didn't leave me a choice. ]
Her eyebrows knitted together as she remembered what I had recently been through.
Agnes' eyes suddenly lit up, and a complicated expression crossed her face as she scratched the back of her neck.
"Sorry about that… my father can be a little impulsive sometimes."
[ 'Impulsive' is the wrong word. He threw me to the wolves with nothing to eat. I'm pretty sure he wants to kill both of us. ]
I simply stayed quiet after that while continuing to enjoy a good cup of coffee.
In my past life, coffee had often been the only thing allowing me to meet goals—whether academic or professional.
Taking a sip of coffee felt almost like a ritual for luck and success.
And now, I needed luck.
A lot of luck.
[ It's time… ]
I said suddenly, leaping toward the piles of meat. Agnes followed me with curious eyes.
"I've never seen a beast evolve," she said, making me frown. "What's it like?"
[ Violent, painful, unnatural—like I'm selfishly subverting nature and being punished for it at the same time. ]
Agnes listened attentively to each of my words. I had the feeling she wanted to write everything down but lacked paper and pen.
[ In a way, I think it's a deserved punishment… I gain aura by doing things I shouldn't do. In a sense, it's a betrayal of nature itself. ]
I momentarily remembered all the animals I had hunted—not one because I needed to.
I killed them to become stronger, and I killed many, far more than necessary.
If everyone acted like me, the natural balance would collapse in days.
To nature, I was a cub meant to play and grow, and only after reaching adulthood should I hunt just enough to keep the balance.
Yet I had already broken nature's balance as a cub.
I was nothing I was supposed to be.
I was a deviant.
It wouldn't be wrong to call me a demon.
[ Watch closely. I'm going to start. ]
There were four options: Skin, Muscles, Claws, Fangs.
Skin would directly increase concealment and resilience.
Muscles would increase raw physical strength.
Claws and Fangs were specialized enhancements for combat power.
So the two real options were obvious—but the final choice wasn't.
For a while now, I had felt that my strength exceeded what my body could handle.
I clearly felt a barrier preventing me from using my full power, and that barrier existed because my body couldn't withstand my own strength without hurting itself.
Improving my muscles would only increase my potential strength, not my usable strength.
Therefore, the correct choice was skin.
[ Please choose your mutation. ]
'Skin'
[ Consume Aura (100 → 0) to evolve your Skin from [Wild] to [Ferocious (Legendary)]? ]
'Yes'
[ Mutation in progress. ]
[ Loss of consciousness will result in death. ]
I took a deep breath as I once again felt my aura spreading through my body, out of my control…
Or rather, now that I understood it more deeply, I could tell I myself was guiding it so instinctively that it felt uncontrollable.
The aura gently touched my skin, flesh, and bones.
And then the first impulse came.
My bones expanded without warning.
My body convulsed as it enlarged, the air suddenly leaving my lungs.
But I soon inhaled sharply again.
Then the second impulse came, my body growing once more, splitting the skin in small cracks.
I clenched my teeth, feeling blood seep from each one of them.
Then came the third, fourth, and fifth impulses.
My body felt like it was about to explode as my skin tore further and further.
The pain was hellish—but somehow still bearable as long as I gritted my teeth and breathed deeply.
Blood covered my entire form as the skin peeled away from my flesh, exposing my muscles.
I screamed, even normal air burning as it touched my raw flesh.
The ground beneath me felt like steel thorns while the sun burned like hellfire.
My body fell and continued to convulse as a new layer of skin slowly formed.
A short while later—
I lay there gasping on the floor, resembling a newborn fresh out of the womb.
[ Mutation complete! ]
[ Pain Tolerance 2 → 3 ]
[ Fainting Tolerance 2 → 3 ]
When I came back to myself, I looked at Agnes—her eyes wide, terror covering her entire face.
[ I'm the one who almost dies, yet you're the one who's scared? ]