I sat down on the bed.
It looked rough. Uninviting.
But for this mimic body… no surface was uncomfortable.
System, I asked quietly, how long until I can use MP?
30 minutes.
I stared at the ceiling and let the silence settle in.
Do you know anything about the Mornak's?
The system paused.
The only information I have is that they were once human. Now they are not.
Something in my chest loosened.
So they were telling the truth.
What about information about humans? I asked. For example… what kingdom sent those humans?
Another pause.
This one felt longer.
This region is small and only has one neighbouring human kingdom.
The kingdom is called Valmere. It is not a large kingdom, but much more powerful than the monsters within this region.
My thoughts drifted as my eyes stayed on the ceiling.
If they decide to invade to capture me…
…there's nothing I can do to stop them.
My mind circled back to what Verren said—that I was important to them.
I wondered if the Mornak had enough power to defy a kingdom like Valmere.
I sat up slowly.
But what do they really want?
I didn't believe they'd give me this treatment just because I was a human stuck inside a monster.
I exhaled hard, forcing my thoughts to stop spiraling.
My body softened.
Sleep tried to drag me under.
Then the system chimed.
You better not be falling asleep.
I jolted so hard my body rippled.
My heart—if I even had one—spiked.
Then I realized.
It was the system.
I breathed out and forced calm back into my posture.
Why am I not allowed to sleep?
That fight must've made you forgetful.
I opened my eyes fully—
and saw the corpse.
Veylroot lay in the room, heavy and still.
I sighed in realization.
You're right.
I always am.
I moved toward it, stepped over its dark, root-like limbs, and placed my hand on its body.
I hope this one doesn't hurt.
I closed my eyes.
Focused.
Copy.
Light flared from the body.
At first it was just brightness—
then a sound.
A frequency.
A thin ringing that started soft…
…then ramped up.
It climbed until it felt like it was drilling into my skull.
My vision blurred.
My hearing shifted—loud, then quiet, then loud again—like something was calibrating inside me.
I couldn't move.
My jelly-like flesh began to vibrate, ripples flowing through me in visible waves.
The ringing peaked—
then slowly faded.
My vision steadied.
But dizziness hit like a wave.
Nausea followed.
I couldn't vomit.
I just sat there, swaying faintly, feeling wrong.
Copy Successful.
New Ability: Pulse Tremor.
I steadied myself for a second.
Guess that means I didn't get its root abilities…
…that's a shame.
I opened my ability list.
Pulse Tremor
The user attunes their body to vibrations traveling through solid ground, allowing detection of nearby movement without relying on sight or sound.
Cost:
– 0 MP
Conditions:
– Requires direct contact with solid terrain
– Severely weakened on loose sand, water, or dense root systems
Side Effect:
– Activation requires the user to remain completely still for 1 second
– Any movement during activation cancels the ability
…This is useful.
Then I remembered something else.
Veylroot hadn't had eyes.
That's why it could track me so well.
It could feel me.
But not being able to move while using it made it dangerous mid-battle—
and needing to stay still before activating it was dangerous too.
Still…
Useful.
At least it didn't steal my health away.
A quiet chuckle escaped me.
I dragged Veylroot's corpse into the corner of the room.
Then I returned to the bed and let my body settle.
I rested for the remainder of the night.
Except… time was strange here.
It was always dark.
No sun filtering through leaves.
No dawn creeping in.
Just an endless shadow.
When I woke up again, I checked my body.
The deep slash that had cut into me from the wolf was gone.
I let out a slow breath of relief.
Luckily I heal quickly.
I checked my stats.
Level 20
HP: 58 / 58
MP: 30 / 30
Attack: Lv.8
Defense: Lv.6
Speed: Lv.9
Vitality: Lv.6
Perception: Lv.7
Resolve: Lv.7
I'm getting stronger…
…but it's not enough.
I closed the stat menu.
Stepped off the bed.
And left the room—dragging Veylroot's corpse with me.
The halls were cold.
Lonely.
As I entered the hallway, the two Mornak guards who had shown me to my room appeared.
They stared at me.
Not with that piercing hunger.
More like respect.
Curiosity.
As I moved to pass them, they extended an arm each—long limbs, dark-coated skin—blocking the path.
I stopped, confused.
Verren mentioned that most can't speak…
Their arms lowered slowly.
Then both pointed—toward the hall I'd entered to meet the elites—
but angled toward a more obscure part of it.
"Does Verren want me to go there?" I asked.
The guards paused.
Then nodded.
I hesitated, eyes fixed on the obscure doorway.
"Thank you," I said.
They lowered their arms and shuffled back into position.
As I passed them, they followed—about five meters behind.
Not close enough to touch.
Close enough to watch.
I guess I'm not allowed to wander alone just yet.
I continued until I reached the doorway.
It opened by itself.
I froze—
then stepped inside.
The guards followed only to the doorway and stopped, positioning themselves outside.
They can't follow.
The room beyond was packed.
Books.
Artifacts.
Strange objects that looked half-made of bone and shadow.
It felt like an office.
A library.
A place where secrets were stored.
"You're here," a voice whispered past me.
I went still.
Then I activated Pulse Tremor—just to test it.
I forced myself not to move.
One second.
The world shifted.
Vibrations rose through the ground—
and I felt footsteps.
Above me.
To my right.
"Your perception is sharp," Verren said, voice cutting in.
I deactivated Pulse Tremor and looked toward the spiral staircase that wrapped around the library like a coil.
"A gift from this Veylroot," I replied.
Verren gave a small chuckle.
"How intriguing. Jonah would love to dissect you."
I froze, instinctively shifting into a more protective stance.
"Don't fear," Verren said immediately, as if reading the movement. "He won't touch you."
"That's comforting," I muttered.
Verren descended the spiral staircase at a slow pace.
As he reached the bottom, his gaze drifted toward the corpse I was carrying.
"Is there a reason for not discarding its body yet?"
I hesitated, then gave a small chuckle.
"I thought… since you eat monsters to sustain yourselves, I could give it to you as a gift."
Verren paused.
Then laughed.
"So your gift to me is your unwanted corpse."
I stared for a second.
Then answered evenly.
"I'm sure there can be better gifts in the future."
Verren smiled and walked closer.
"It is a good gift," he said. "It is not often you smell the scent of a human-tamed monster."
He tilted his head, almost amused.
"If you wanted to know… they are much more delicious."
My face pulled into something awkward.
"I wouldn't know."
I paused.
"This body doesn't feel the need to eat or drink."
Verren's expression shifted—genuine surprise.
"I never knew that."
He went completely still, considering.
"Must be because normally mimics die before they even figure it out… so I guess evolution decided it was for the best to remove the needs."
He laughed quietly to himself.
"No offence to your kind, of course."
"None taken," I replied.
For a brief moment—
We shared a small laugh together.
Then Verren's tone settled into something colder.
"I believe we have much to discuss… and it's good to see you have healed."
He gestured.
"Come."
I followed, cautious.
"Take a seat."
A chair slid down from the story above—floating slowly until it settled across from Verren's desk at the center of the room.
I walked to it and sat.
Verren took Veylroot's corpse and laid it on a table in the corner like it belonged there.
Then he turned back to me.
"Now," Verren stated, "where do we start?"
The cold of the Mornak world seeped into the room.
I swallowed—
and pulled my focus tight.