As the impending flood of blood enveloped everything, waves cascaded from every living being, creating a gruesome spectacle. Amidst the chaos, a mysterious figure, known by various titles such as the Demon Lord, Demonic Leader, Ruler of the Demons, and more, stood observing the impending demise.
Despite the ominous titles bestowed upon this enigmatic being, their followers reveled in using amusing names. A humanoid with tiger features, drenched in blood and adorned in armor made of the world's hardest and lightest metal, approached the mysterious entity.
Before the entity, positioned atop a pile of lifeless bodies, the humanoid tiger servant reported, "Master, the cleansing of this kingdom is done." The mysterious figure, surrounded by different creatures from humans to monsters, hovered their hands in the air, conjuring a long lance with a golden cone-shaped point.
With a vicious, eerie aura, the mysterious entity smirked upon noticing its servant and commented, "I see. So they really want to go this way. Don't worry; we can obligate them in a blink. They trusted me anyway." Uttering these words, the mysterious entity began to undergo a transformation.
From obscurity, the figure started taking on a human-like appearance, much to the delight of the humanoid tiger servant. In seconds, the entity's face became vivid, resembling that of a human with distinctive features such as elongated fangs and dark crimson eyes reflecting the moonlight, emanating an evil gaze.
A window, visible only to the mysterious entity, materialized in thin air, asking, [You successfully changed your race into Arch Vampire. Do you want to remain the vampire features?] Reading the prompt, the entity grinned, showcasing white teeth and fangs.
"I'll take my leave. Clean the mess; we can't let those outsiders continue their rampant slaughtering," the entity declared, descending from the pile of corpses.
[Hanzel, you really like to live as a multi-race creature?]
The mysterious entity, addressed as Hanzel, found himself engaged in a conversation with a voice named Tema, which resonated in his ears without any accompanying text.
'Shut up, Tema! Can't you see I'm doing a good job right now?!' Hanzel thought in his mind, his response to the voice being his unique way of handling the situation.
[I apologize, I'm just excited to have my own body.] Tema's words echoed in Hanzel's mind.
'Don't worry, you will have your own body soon. My body is flexible anyway; I can bless you with any race you want. I just have to take that void.' Tema reassured, offering Hanzel the prospect of acquiring a distinct identity.
[I can't help but chuckle. Thank you, Hanzel.] Hanzel's partner expressed gratitude.
'No worries, what does a good partner do? Of course, support each other.' Hanzel responded, acknowledging the essence of mutual support between them.
***
In a vast forest, secluded from human civilization, a lone goblin trod on its solitary path. Driven by an inherent instinct to secure sustenance before falling prey to mightier creatures, the goblin ventured forth armed with a wooden club. Uncertain of the fate that awaited him, venturing away from his group was an act of audacity.
This particular goblin opted for a different route, distinguishing himself as one of the awkward and ineffectual members of his kind. With a clumsy demeanor and a countenance that failed to evoke fear, he appeared useless among monsters. His appearance could easily be mistaken for a cursed human child upon a cursory glance.
Green-skinned, with pointy ears and a sharp nose, the goblin's eyes presented a peculiar hue – pale yellow, lighter than those of his counterparts. His mouth resembled that of a human, along with lips, contributing to his atypical appearance.
The futility of his monstrous existence weighed heavily on him, leading to frustration expressed through the kicking of rocks. Sighing, he contemplated the mockery he would inevitably face upon returning to the group empty-handed.
As the wind gently caressed the leaves of the trees, the goblin continued his solitary journey through the expansive forest. Dried leaves and grasses brushed against his diminutive legs, and the warmth of the sun inspired him to devise a new plan.
"Graw..."
'I'm only going to search for a rabbit. While I'm weak and limp, perhaps I can kill a rabbit. I'm not a human being. I will prove it to myself. I'm not as weak as they are, relying on holy magic.'
Recalling the elder's stories about humans, the goblin immersed himself in the narrative of their perceived weakness. In this tale, humans were depicted as feeble creatures entirely dependent on a higher power. The goblin contrasted their lazy existence with the goblins' struggle for survival, emphasizing the belief that it was better to serve as sustenance for powerful monsters than become tools in the hands of humans seeking societal advancement. However, such considerations were far beyond the comprehension of the unintelligent goblins.
The goblin continued his stroll and spotted a rabbit as he surveyed the surroundings. The nimble creature halted on a patch of grass to indulge in its meal.
A smile of delight graced the goblin's face as he prepared to approach the rabbit, tightly gripping his club. Grateful for the goblins' temporary agility, he contemplated a hunting strategy. Swiftly applying his abilities, he closed in on the rabbit.
Executing a decisive strike, he smacked the creature through the head, ensuring its demise. Convinced of its immobility, he triumphantly raised the rabbit's ears as if claiming a coveted prize. This sight of a goblin engaged in such a gesture appeared peculiar.
With a delighted grin, he picked up the rabbit, carrying it with an air of arrogance. Reveling in his perceived prowess, he couldn't resist making an arrogant expression.
'I'm not weak after all. I'm also a monster.'
Recollections of those who had mocked him fueled his arrogance. Contemplating fleeing, he sprinted away from their cave, chuckling in pleasure. Considering not taking the catch to the cave and consuming it alone, he embraced the stinginess inherent to his race.
However, adversity struck as he stumbled on his own feet within the first ten steps due to his clumsiness. Groaning in pain and agony, he attempted to retrieve the rabbit. Unfortunately, he tripped, releasing his hold on the prey. Despite his best efforts to reach it, the surroundings dimmed as if a shadow had been cast.
Amid the dimness, with the sun refusing to set, a sense of foreboding engulfed him. Anxiety intensified as he became aware of a looming presence. Nervousness seized him, causing tremors.
Peeking cautiously behind him, he almost gasped at the sight of a massive brown bear, its delighted expression accentuated by saliva dripping away. Oblivious to the situation, the bear perceived the goblin as feeble, a creature easily devoured due to its evident weakness. Although unappealing, the nutritional benefits of consuming such creatures fueled the bear's laughter.
"Graw!"
'I'm also a monster. Keep your distance from me, animal! I'm not a meal.'
Despite the goblin's persistent attempts to push and intimidate the bear, it remained unmoved. Unfazed by the grotesque features, the bear continued to smile wickedly, as if relishing in mockery.
'Ah. Whatever I try to intimidate it with, whatever I do, it is all futile. After all, I'm a one-in-a-million failure monster.'
Resigned to his fate, the goblin sighed and accepted the inevitable. Giving up, he embraced the certainty of impending death. Despite being only ten days old, he smiled as if his brief life had already been fulfilling.
The bear, noticing the goblin's acceptance, grinned with obvious pleasure. Approaching the goblin, it seized him. Tears welled up shortly after the first bite, the pain of the bear's teeth digging deep into the goblin's limbs elicited groans and screams. As consciousness faded, the goblin witnessed his body being torn in half from his abdomen.
Content with chewing and swallowing the goblin's flesh, the bear's gluttony urged for more. However, its eyes were perplexed as the goblin's blood, dripping in an unusual red color, defied expectations. Dismissing the anomaly, the bear continued to drip blood, experiencing difficulty breathing.
Leaning against a tree, the bear struggled to catch its breath. Chest tightening, it emitted a suffering whine. Moments later, the stomach started heating up inexplicably. Boiling insides and palpable chest heat followed. In a few seconds, the bear's body exploded.
Gushing blood left only the bear's feet standing, while its head rolled away. Subsequently, a transparent blue quadrilateral shape materialized in the air, taking its place near the goblin's corpse.
On this ethereal screen, texts were verbalized by a mysterious, monotonous, machine-generated female voice. The appearance of the transparent window marked the beginning of strange occurrences within the forest.
[System Restarted Successfully.]
The remains of the goblin slowly gathered together, with its flesh regenerating, and bones reconnecting from joints to limbs.
[Due to the first run interruption, the system will be granted a 5x boost as compensation.]
As the voice spoke, accompanied by text on the transparent window, the goblin's body emitted a glow, growing steadily. Flesh increased, and bones enlarged.
[Dear reincarnator, you have successfully evolved into a Hobgoblin.]
As the light subsided, the goblin had doubled in size, transforming into a hobgoblin. Much larger and more powerful than a goblin, it could be compared to a well-built normal adult man from a human perspective, equivalent to the strength of 10 goblins combined.
[As an effect of evolution, the system will be completely boosted and will commence.]
[Commencing... Successful]
[Dear reincarnator will now be a full-fledged human-monster, with dominant monster features. The emotions and nature of past life experiences will now be merged.]
[Running...]
A hobgoblin emerged from what was once a goblin. Rising, he caught his breath and instinctively touched his chest, searching for the pain experienced before his resurrection. Something felt different, and he stared in awe at his chest, which appeared larger than before. Memories flooded back, reminding him that he had been dead.
Settling down and adjusting his breathing, he crawled into a nearby tree. Curiosity led him to scent a metallic odor. Investigating, he widened his eyes, and his stomach churned as he beheld the gruesome scene. Only the bear's feet remained intact; the rest of its body lay in serious disarray, nearly unrecognizable.
"What the hell?" he muttered unconsciously.
He gasped and covered his mouth in surprise. Confused by what he had just said, he wondered why he could speak normally, and worse, he understood that that was not a monster's word.
"What happened to me?" he asked himself as he observed his bulky physique too.
[Dear reincarnator is now experiencing fatigue due to sudden evolution.]
When he suddenly heard a woman's monotone voice, he flinched and was astounded. At first, he was confused and almost felt it was a result of his own madness. But it appears that he was a high-intelligence monster, as he devised a method to fully comprehend his situation.
He tried to understand every word verbalized by the voice. Reincarnator? That word reminds him of something. As he tried to understand the very deep meaning of the word, his temple suddenly felt a piercing pain.
He was really surprised when he understood the meaning of that word. But he was even more startled when he suddenly remembered something.
Various information came to his mind as he also saw memories of something in a different, strange place; memories when he was supposedly still human. He couldn't quite understand why he had a memory of someone, but when he had patched up the information, he smiled in delight. His consciousness merged with what was in his memories.
"So it was successful? I'm in a different world, one that isn't the dreadful Earth. The heck! I'm also grateful that I was able to escape that goblin lifestyle." He held on to his temple while smiling and sighing.
"System. What happened?" he asked the voice as if he knew what that voice was.
[Upon some interruption in accessing your reincarnated body, the system motherboard compensates you by boosting you 5 times and evolving you by resurrecting you.]
"Ahhh..." The hobgoblin, now known as Lucifarge, already understood what had happened. He nodded while keeping a smirk on his face and stood up. "So what else should I do?" he inquired to the voice.
[Became the Demon Lord, dear reincarnator, Lucifarge.]
However, when Lucifarge heard that statement, an evil grin appeared on his face. "Just hearing that name feels so nostalgic."