I opened my eyes again and didn't recognize where I was. Wherever I looked, there was only darkness and absolute void.
—Wasn't I in a cave? —My voice sounded small, without an echo, as if the void were swallowing my words.
I looked at my hands and they were human; that means I am somewhere else. I walked aimlessly, feeling the cold of the... floor? on my feet.
—Wake up —I heard a faint whisper—. Wake up Frido... Wake up, wake up, move, you're going to die, wake up, wake up, wake up...
The voices multiplied, overlapping each other until they became a deafening hum. My vision began to splinter into dark fragments; reality was fading like black smoke between my fingers until, suddenly, silence devoured everything.
I regained consciousness; I was back in that cave.
—Again... here. Why haven't I died? —I whispered while trying to sit up. I bitterly remembered my fight against that monster. I moved my hand to touch my face, and that's where I hit reality. My left eye was mashed, swollen like a rotten fruit about to explode.
"I have to get out of this place," I thought as I stood up as best as I could, feeling as if I had glass shards embedded in my skin. The body of the monster I killed was lying beside me with the bone buried in its belly just as I left it. I ripped it out with a sharp tug and used it for support. I couldn't even take two steps because my knees gave way, throwing me back against the frigid floor.
—This is horrible! I want... to die.
I lay down and my stomach began to growl; I was very hungry. Where am I going to get food? I looked around and my eyes locked onto the creature's corpse. It occurred to me to eat it, but wouldn't that be weird? Well, that bastard was chasing me earlier to devour me, so I guess he deserves it. In the end, it's protein, right?
I crawled with all my strength toward him; I must have gone mad for what I was about to do, but I saw no other options. The smell was unbearable, a mixture of sulfur and decomposing meat. Without thinking, I sank my claws into an open wound and tore off a strip of dark muscle. When I brought it to my mouth, the first contact was an explosion of bitterness that numbed my tongue. It tasted like manure, bile, and ash.
[User is breaking a law]
[Cannot eat demon meat]
[Warning: unauthorized consumption of demonic tissue]
[User is advised not to continue]
—I don't care anymore. Go to hell! —I roared with my mouth full, while the demon's black juice dripped down my chin.
I kept chewing with blind fury. The meat was tough as leather, but as I swallowed it, I felt my body filling with energy.
[If you continue, the user will undergo a mutation]
[Probability of dying: 90%]
I didn't stop; my jaw moved by instinct, my teeth tearing through tendons with a strength that wasn't mine. I ate until I was satiated; I don't even want to imagine the smell of my breath right now.
—I think I'm going to die —I said it with a smile on my face. My chest began to heave and at the same time, a sting in my stomach burned—. I guess this is what it meant by mutating.
The pain was escalating; the only thing I could do was let out a scream to calm the anguish.
AAAAAAH! GAAAAAA!
Deafening moans, kicking, and wailing. It felt like thirty stabs in my abdomen at the same time.
—DAMN IT! DAMN IT! MAKE IT STOP!
My bones creaked with the force of dry branches snapping. I felt my blood boil, and the taste of the rotten meat regurgitated in my mouth. Looking at my forearm, I saw it bent at an impossible angle. Suddenly, my chest split open with a wet tear and a black liquid began to pour from the wound. I could do nothing more than witness my body turning into an aberration, until the pain overcame me and I fell unconscious.
—What... happened... to you... sweetheart? Are you... okay? —voices filtered through my blackness—. He's an idiot; it was a bad idea to bring him to this world.
I woke up with a start, inhaling a breath of air that burned my lungs. My chest was heaving, but the torment had vanished. I felt light, almost ethereal, and my vision was sharper than ever.
—What the fuck happened to me? —I whispered, looking down at my arms. I moved them with an agility I didn't recognize; my Liva hands were different: larger, and the claws protruded like obsidian blades.
I stood up. My height seemed the same, but my legs vibrated with a contained strength. In the distance, a faint glow filtered through some cracks in the ceiling. I ran toward the light, and the ground seemed to disappear under my feet because of how fast I was going. When I reached the glow, I noticed that my fur was no longer the same; now it was dyed a purple so dark it seemed to absorb the light.
[User has mutated into a Demonic Liva]
[Improved Vision]
[Improved Sense of Smell]
[Improved Speed]
[Improved Strength]
[Improved Jump]
[Finishing Blow skill acquired: this skill delivers a critical hit when finishing off an enemy]
—So I managed to mutate? All the luck of my life was spent on this event. Seems fine to me; it'll be easier to complete the mission of killing the Leviathan. Now, how do I get out of here? I also have to find out what happened to my Liva parents. Maybe I'll find the answers here.
With that said, I set out to explore this cursed place that looks like hell itself. I think with my new skills, it'll be a piece of cake. At least I hope so.