Chapter 26: (part 2- The true identity of the creature sealed within the jar. Its sixteenth evolution. Its deal with Bahamut)
The ant lifted its head.
"But why did you let the child go? Do you plan to let that kid die outside?"
Bahamut's eyes dimmed.
"No, ofcourse not" he said quietly. "I feel sorry for him. That's why i gave him something — the Egoistic War Commander's Book, and a few other things to survive."
The creature froze for a moment, then shouted in disbelief,
"Are you insane!? That book is cursed! You already knew it! Why did you still give it to him? Are you trying to kill him!? You already know he's not like the other GUARDIANS. He doesn't wear a skin, he isn't a sheep pretending to look strong to others, and he isn't a wolf disguising itself as a sheep just to deceive. He's a wolf who walks proudly, never trying to hide his intentions or his cunning from others. He doesn't hide behind a false image to appear strong or harmless — that's why he's called an egoistic."
Bahamut's voice grew.
"You're too loud your using telepathic communication. Lower your voice," he said. "It's for his survival. A wolf that loses its pack becomes stronger than before. Loneliness will harden him, make him more dangerous.
The book will test him. To activate it, it must first see fear, desperation and blood. It then creates another personality inside the reader called the *shadowy egoistic friend*. If you do not destroy or remove it, that friend will consume the user and take control of the host. The more powerful the host becomes, the harder the friend stop. It can be only counter when the host shows true dominance, when you make him feel inferior, or by killing the shadow permanently."
The ant lowered its head and stayed silent.
Bahamut continued, "I already predicted it all. I analyzed every path that could happen. This is his fate, and your task is to, PROTECT."
He pointed his head toward the piles of gold and crystals around them.
"Now take those MANA cores. Absorb them. Evolve, you little devil. You have already adapted to my MANA." Bahamut's dense MANA continued to flow, hitting the creature. Bahamut looked into the distance as if remembering something old.
"You'll need six months right? For you to grow and become strong wait, no, it's more like evolution than mere maturing. I always wonder how did this world give birth to you, Errathaios (Error) Monsters, beings capable of killing and devouring gods, cosmic horrors, unknown, angels, and demons. Your potential, you calamities, is that of an error-class existence, that's why the Humanities Secret foundations from inside and outside of the human world like V.E.I.L., B.A.S.E., H.A.L.O., N.O.V.A, E.L.I.T., C.I.D., E.N.D., T.I.D.E., C.O.S.M.O.S., G.A.I.A., S.W.A.R.M., P.E.S.T., O.R.I.G.I.N., F.L.A.M.E., O.B.S.I.D.I.A.N., S.I.L.K., E.C.H.O., T.O.X.I.S., R.E.I.Q.U.E.M., V.E.I.L., C.A.S.T.E.L.L.A, Monitor and observe — for they have witnessed the power of the *6 World's Greatest Masterpiece/ king of monsters/ calamities*, beings whose existence alone threatens humanity with extinction. A strength rivals that of the Supreme Gods, and in some cases, surpasses even them. And If you keep consuming MANA cores and flesh every day for hundreds of thousands of years, you might even surpass us. Some other Monster kings may already be stronger than certain gods, you creatures cannot truly die, you return everything or scape, however, you can still die. You can be slain by one another, or fall to those who strong enough to hunt you. Because nothing is permanent. Even immortality can be stripped away. Time itself no longer work, you can't rewind, fastforward or stop time in this world, and rebirth is impossible."
"Now enough chatting and eat those MANA cores inside that box, it was half burried in the pile of coins near the monoliths "
It moved quickly, its small legs clattering against the gold coins, each step producing a sharp clicking sound that echoed in the place. as it approached the treasure box resting near of the pillars burried halfway on golden. The treasure box was old, its surface covered in scratches and faint burn marks, yet the metal latch still looking firm.
The creature raised one of its front legs. With a single, sudden strike, it slammed the latch. The chest burst open with a loud snap!, the lid swinging wide as if a grown man had forced it open with his full strength. An eerie glow spilled out, washing the creature's shell in pale light.
Inside lay skulls, bones and several medium size smooth mana cores, glasslike spheres glowing faintly in color of violet and deep blue. The glow reflected across its eyes as it leaned closer, examining them in silence for a moment.
Then it spoke, its voice low and steady. "You're really prepared, aren't you? Your analysis, prediction and observation for the future are truly remarkable."
The creature didn't waste any time and took a bite from the mana core — a loud crunch echoed, like glass shattering beneath its fangs. Its mandibles trembled as pure MANA coursed through its veins, and its body twitched in a frenzy of mutation. After consuming, it slowly crawled toward one of the skulls and scattered bones resting inside the treasure box and went still — motionless, as if its life itself had completely turn frozen. For ten long hours, it remained that way, like a dead insect.
Then, its body began to crack. Thin lines spread across its dark shell, and with a brittle shrrkkk, it shed its first exoskeleton. The old shell fell like dry bark, while the creature's new skin glistened with a faint, metallic luster. Using the discarded shell and the thin layers of its old skin, it began to weave — wrapping, twisting, and binding them together. What it formed resembled a cocoon.
Days passed. It devoured more cores, each meal changing its body further beyond recognition. 6 Months flowed like stagnant time. It shed sixteen times in total. Each shedding was larger, harder, louder and more violent, the air trembling with the sound of breaking shells. By the sixteenth, its body was no longer the same — too large, too creepy to resemble the insect it once was.
The final cocoon was vast — a monstrous sphere in the darkness. It was made from fifteen layers of its old shells, hardened like crumpled iron. Around it, the remains in that den like — skeletons, skulls, armor, weapon, jewelry, gold coins — were pulled together, fused into its creepy alien like giant cocoon. Seven towering monoliths surrounded it, each one bound by thick, sinewed cords — strands made from bones, shells, and threads of its own flesh and shell. The cocoon hung at the center of the monoliths.
And then — it began to beat.
Thump... thump... thump...
A slow, deep beat echoed through the den. Dust fell from the monoliths with every thud!. The air itself vibrated.
Inside the cocoon, something was not moving for weeks and still alive.
Bahamut, watching from afar, murmured to himself, his golden eyes narrowing in unease.
"One of the greatest Masterpieces... truly dangerous. It grows faster than I anticipated. This isn't even its true evolution — merely its maturing phase, and already it's a threat. When this ends... it will reach Threat level [V] having the ability to harm and destroy a small town. From a mere insect to an inhuman creature with infinite potential, as long as it feeds. How troublesome..."
The beat grew louder — faster. The monoliths slightly trembled. The threads stretched to their limit.
Then, silence.
Its evolution had finally reached its end. The enormous cocoon slowly teared open, pieces falling away the creature body slipped out and crashed to the pile of gold coins below.
Height: Unknown
Weight: Unknown
Appearance: Unknown
Strength: Unknown
Mana: Unknown
Name: (Bestowed by Bahamut after the Sixteenth Evolution)
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