Villain's POV: The Heroines Want Me!

Chapter 58: Chapter 58- Consumed

Chapter 58- Consumed

”Hah... Hah... Hah...” Rize sat down from sheer exhaustion as he stared at the notifications before him. His eyes were wide, and he could still feel the adrenaline and the Essence coursing through his veins, trying to rebuild and fix all the problems in his body. However, what caught his attention the most was the points he gained from that kill.

’At least the system itself didn’t change from the original story. I got my stat points and experience points for that kill.’ He thought to himself. ’Also, the fact that I got these points confirms that this black substance is indeed my Gift and a part of my body.’

Rize had a suspicion that Endless Hunger might be a foreign presence that he didn’t really understand yet. But the reality confirmed that it was his power. Perhaps the weirdest power this world has ever seen.

Rize watched as the black tentacle pulled out of the corpse, dripping with the blood of its kill. Then, he watched as the black substance started covering the blood and absorbing it into its body.

”...” Rize’s eyebrows knitted together. Something didn’t seem right. The tentacle wasn’t retreating or disappearing into his body.

Instead... He received a notification.

[Target detected.]

[Endless Hunger Activated: Absorb Mode.]

Then, the tentacle descended onto the body, touching it gently as it started spreading all across it, covering it from the tips of its feet to its head. In a few seconds, the body disappeared into the black substance as it moved and wiggled.

Rize felt as if he was watching a morbid scene from a horror movie. It didn’t take a genius to understand what Endless Hunger was doing, but the shock from witnessing it for the first time kept him frozen in place.

Not long after, the substance stopped wiggling as it started retreating. What Rize saw underneath all that black goo was... Nothing.

Not a single trace was left of the man. Not even his blood. It was as if there wasn’t a dead corpse there merely a few seconds ago.

[Target consumed successfully.]

[Efficiency: 5%]

[Endless Hunger is learning.]

[Progress: Tier 1 (8%)]

[You have gained +5 Experience Points.]

[You have gained +1 Point in Strength.]

Rize felt another rush of energy into his body as he closed his eyes and exhaled a satisfied breath. The feeling of subtle power being injected into his body was really good, and he was already getting hooked on it. It was as good as it was foreign and odd.

Then, the boy opened his eyes, just to see Endless Hunger return to his body and disappear beneath him as if it was never there.

”What even are you...?” He muttered under his breath, feeling disturbed by what he just witnessed. ”This is such a cursed power. I don’t even know if it’s good or evil.”

So far, even though he was a bit scared of this abomination he received, Rize was grateful that it helped him escape the chains and kill that man. Not only that, but it also consumed the man and gave him extra points in Exp and stats.

That was, all things considered, a very broken ability.

’Most people only receive points from kills. There are some abilities that give you Extra points, and they’re usually of a vampiric nature, but this... It is far different.’ He mused. ’It has several modes for every situation. To make me escape, it used ’Utility Mode’, and to attack, it used ’Assault Mode’, then to eat that man, it used ’Absorb Mode’.’

Each mode seemed to trigger some sort of intelligence within the Gift to make it do things a certain way.

”Almost like... Artificial Intelligence.” He muttered under his breath as he stood up. ’It even says that it’s learning every time it does something, just like AI.’

Many thoughts crossed Rize’s mind about this ability, but the more he thought about it, the more vague and mysterious it felt.

’I need to explore this later. There is a lot to learn about my new powers.’ He clenched his fists and then unclenched them.

”To think today is my birthday of all days. What a great way to celebrate it.” He rolled his eyes as he picked up the gun and checked the magazine. Sadly, since the man shot several bullets, he only had two left in the mag.

’This should do, I guess.’ He thought to himself.

Then he started walking to the door and left the storage room before he closed it quietly. Outside, he noticed that it was dark, with the rays of the moonlight barely illuminating the hall.

It was late into the night, which was in luck for Rize. He looked left and right before he started moving slowly and quietly to the man’s room. Pushing the door open, it made a loud screeching sound that made Rize flinch.

’If they realize I’m here, I’m dead meat.’ He thought to himself as he walked into the room. It was a rather simple room with a bed, a desk, and a drawer. It was clear that the man had stayed in it for a while.

’That means they have been planning this attack for a while. No wonder.’ He thought to himself as he walked around the place. He looked left and right, searching for anything he could use. Surprisingly, Rize found something quite handy.

’A knife?’ Rize’s eyes lit up. ’Yes! A weapon! This will be hugely useful.’ He grabbed the knife and swung it around a few times.

Now, he had a gun with two bullets in it and a knife. It wasn’t ideal considering this place was filled with enemies, but it was better than having nothing to fight with.

’No trace of my phone.’ Rize thought to himself. ’Sigh, I guess they might’ve destroyed it?’

He didn’t know for sure yet, so he decided to go out and see for himself. There were some key places the phone might be in.

Sneaking out of the room, Rize made his way through the hall while keeping an eye on his surroundings. He instinctively used the Essence in his body to scan the area beyond the door. It wasn’t something he learned but rather what his body told him to do.

It was a very odd feeling. Rize couldn’t see beyond the door yet at the same time... He could. It was like he suddenly gained the ability to see things from his knee. Since Essence worked as a sort of new limb or a part of his consciousness, it could send information to his brain directly.

’There aren’t any people behind the door. Tsk, since I just awakened, I can only cover a small area around me. Roughly 10 meters in every direction.’

But that was enough for him to try to open the door. He pushed it very slowly as he peeked inside. It was very dark, blindingly so. However, almost immediately, Rize heard snoring not that far away from him.

He looked to the side and could vaguely see a man, sprawled on the ground, deep asleep with his head resting on an old gear piece.

Then, he heard breathing to his left, some movement up ahead, and the sound of water dripping a few dozen meters away.

Rize instantly realized... The entire room was filled with Zatharis, and they were all deep asleep. Instinctively, he gulped a mouthful of saliva quietly.