Becoming a Monster

Chapter 265: Chapter 265: Soulforge, The Next Step

Just as Noah thought the entity posed the greatest danger, his worries deepened when he noticed something even more alarming, the barrier he had assumed was protecting him had begun to change. It shifted unnaturally, and millions of runic letters descended from it, falling onto his soul.

Without any knowledge of how to interact with the runes or even properly manipulate his own soul, Noah could do nothing but watch as it unfolded.

Each rune that touched his soul etched itself onto its surface. Before long, his entire soul was covered in glowing inscriptions. Then, the runes began to shine even brighter, their light stretching into tangible lines that interconnected.

It wasn’t until the final rune locked into place that Noah finally understood what was happening.

”It’s the gods mana!” His eyes snapped to the sudden entry of energy that managed to enter his soul realm.

Seeing the energy, energy that should be inside of the core on the outside, made Noah have to see for himself what was happening. Outside, he was able to notice it instantly. An almost transparent funnel was coming from the center of his eye, a funnel that was able to pick out the divine energy out of the other varieties of mana.

Everything about the situation was a whirlwind of confusion. Noah couldn’t grasp what was happening. How was ”mana” being absorbed into his soul realm? He had previously dismissed the origins of the runic inscriptions, assuming they were nothing more than a tool, an ability he had yet to fully understand. But now, that explanation no longer made sense. What the eye and the runes were showing him suggested something far more unsettling, it either had a sentience of its own, or worse, someone else was manipulating it.

Without the strength to control the runes or the power to oppose the entity without their support, Noah could do nothing but watch as two opposing forces acted freely within his soul.

His thoughts began to grow dangerous. He was left with only two options. To allow the runes to continue their actions, hoping that the runes were still ”his” power, a sentient power, but still his. Or, he could potentially attempt to aid the entity to break down the barrier; at least when it came to the entity, Noah at least was aware of its goal.

The decision had to be made quickly. But before Noah could act, the runes moved faster.

In the end, the choice was made for him.

Noah felt something within his soul shift. The change didn’t make him feel stronger in the traditional sense, but it brought a newfound clarity, a purpose that settled deep within him. A concept began to take root, overriding the original essence of his soul. If he had known the true nature of the divine power’s influence, he might have believed his soul was being rewritten.

But what he came to understand was this: he was meant to guide others toward their own ascension. And with that realization, he grasped what he had truly gained from the runes’ intervention.

From the moment this revelation took hold, the runes tethered to his soul dimmed, their glow vanishing, yet they remained firmly in place. Their presence no longer radiated power but served as an unseen force reinforcing his very being.

The entity, now free to move unhindered through Noah’s soul realm, continued its assault. Yet when it tried to latch onto his soul, something had changed. Its attacks still carried the same devastating force, but the impact was different. The barrier that once barely held back its aggression now seemed to absorb and diminish the blows.

It was as if Noah’s soul realm itself was getting stronger, lessening the impact of its rampage.

Understanding what was actually happening should’ve put Noah at ease. From what he learned, the ruins were still a power that was his own, but it was a power he didn’t have any control over.

His vision was glued to the entity while he thought about everything. Seeing the entity’s rage becoming that of a child’s tantrum, he came to not mind the runes’ unknown origins.

”But that doesn’t mean I’ll continue to let it do as it pleases.” He promised himself, his thoughts shifting to the benefit the ruins gave him from absorbing the divine energy.

Because the runes were directly connected to his soul, everything he gained was immediately known to him, no need for the system to interpret it. And what he had gained was an upgrade to his Soulforge ability.

From first inspection, it merely appeared as if the skill had merely risen just a level, but Noah could feel the indescribable change in the skill. The single concept of evolution was deeply tied within it. The ability now enabled him to trigger a transcending mutation within the soul he placed within his Nexus Eye that could be used to create his Fallen. It was an ability that didn’t create a mutation out of thin air, but it was a force that refined the soul, allowing it to unlock its latent potential.

Outside of his soul, Noah’s fingers twitched as he processed the information.

Ailetta, who had been aware of every change and every thought narrowed her eyes as she kept her thoughts to herself. While she was within his soul realm, the golden energy merging within Noah made her think about a topic she had discussed with Noah about before. A discussion about becoming a God.

She may not know with certainty whether the two unknown powers within Noah were truly a boon or a curse for him, but what she did know was that as long as he was able to survive, he would rise to heights that they had once believed to be merely legends.

Her body trembled, what was this she was feeling? Ecstasy? She couldn’t contain herself anymore. Yet her excitement suddenly vanished. She remembered that the source of the divine energy was inside of the zombie that attacked them. And each day the danger around them was always growing just as much as they were. If they could never find peace, then wouldn’t that also mean Noah would always be dedicating himself to getting stronger instead of spending more time with her?

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”Arachne, I’m proud of you, I told you before that I’ll always believe in you, and you didn’t let me down.” Noah ignored the brewing storm of emotions across from as he acknowledged Arachne who worriedly stood by his side.

When she should have asked about his safety, his sudden praise left her stunned. The proud spider felt her body heat up. Her legs trembled slightly, unbeknownst to her, she felt something wet at the corner of her eyes. Her hands moved swiftly to intercept the weird phenomenon that she had yet to experience before.

When her confusion only grew as she suspected the liquid on her fingers, Noah placed his hand on her face to wipe away her tears.

”Those are tears silly...No need to worry about them, it’s okay to feel this way.”

Arachne blinked in surprise, the warmth of Noah’s hand on her face grounding her in a way that nothing else had before. The unexpected tenderness in his voice made something inside of her snap. Without knowing why, she wanted to embrace him, to give in to her hidden desires. But then the ground began to stir, the hairs on her body uplifted as she sensed something coming.

The air stirring strongly, and the deep grunted breaths, her rare tender smile grew to that of one of annoyance.

”Master! What about me?!”

Noah could sense Arachne’s body tense, feeling the shift in her emotions immediately. Helplessly he sighed, even now he could foresee that the two will bicker like siblings until the day they die.

”Master, Master, I protected them all!” the voice called out again, louder this time, almost demanding attention.

Noah finally turned towards Fenrir who quickly made his way to his side. The scars and ripped flesh and tendons were still bleeding from his reckless self-sacrifice. His appearance made it impossible to share the same feelings towards him as Arachne did.

Noah stepped towards him, his hand pressing against Fenrir’s nuzzle that glowed with an intense green that quickly took shape around Fenrir’s entire body.

Fenrir’s scarred flesh began to knit itself together beneath the healing glow. Despite Fenrir’s terrifying exterior, the loyal beast’s eyes revealed deep satisfaction and a desire to be able to rest while being bathed under Noah’s power.

”I’m proud of all of you,” Noah’s gaze wandered behind Fenrir as Eve was trying her best to traverse the destroyed terrain.

Noah’s heart swelled with pride as he thought about how strong his family was becoming, and that pride turned into determination as he realized that his new ability could guarantee that they become even stronger.

But as his gaze looked around towards his family, he spotted it for the first time. The chest in all its glory. The chest was almost an exact replica of the very one he had obtained from his battle with the Queen Ant, the same obsidian chest that he obtained the dungeon core from.