Running as fast as he could Larry was navigating back to the body of the colossal monster. Even going as far as using his power to phase through the trees that would have slowed him down.
'Why does that old man need the core of some stupid monster anyway,' Larry thought as he neared the location of the corpse.
As soon as the body of the colossal monster was in sight he slowed his running down and pulled out a special dagger made from the bone of one of the toughest monsters in existence, a wyvern.
Using his wyvern bone dagger Larry expertly split the creature down the middle and dug around a little exposing it's dark black core deep in its chest cavity.
Placing his dagger back in it's hidden sheath he plunged his hand into the gaping hole he had sliced into its flesh and grabbed the core and he then proceeded to sprint back to the camp.
--- Back at the camp ---
"It'll be okay Melvin just hold on a little longer, this will pass and then you'll be okay, that is of course if that blonde boy makes it back with the core." Grimm said, crouching down next to Melvin.
A few moments later Grimm heard the deep panting of someone who had just ran more in this one moment than he had ran in his entire life.
"He's back Larry's back and he's got the core." Oscar shouted, letting Grimm know that Larry had made it back to the camp.
However Oscar didn't know about Grimm's amazing hearing and only stated something the latter had already deduced.
"Good work, now please hand the core over to me and afterwards I'll explain everything that's happening like I said before." Grimm said, reaching towards the core.
However Larry pulled his arm back moving the core just out of Grimm's reach.
"There's been a slight change of plans old man. You give us the information now or I might just keep this." Larry said, chucking the core into the air and catching it as he talked.
"If that's how you want to play it then I guess I have no choice but to get serious with you." Grimm said, slowly crouching down into a fighting stance.
A chill ran down the spines of the trio warning them that they were in a very dangerous situation. Larry instantly tensed up and reappraised the old man.
He could now see the tension in the muscles of the very athletic physique of the old man. Larry began to chuckle at his own naivety. Handing the core over to Grimm he began to say.
"Sorry for that, I just needed to see if you really were doing this to help him or just to get the core without killing the monster yourself."
With the tension in the air gone Grimm stood back up and proceeded to take the core from Larry's hand.
"My nephew should be returning to normal very soon I'll need you three to watch over him while I craft this core into a fitting focus for him." Grimm said, looking at Melvin then walking into his own tent.
Looking at Melvin the other three couldn't believe what they were hearing. He would just recover, even though his skin resembled that of a scaly black colored statue.
However much to their suprise just like the old man had said Melvin had started to return to normal and his breathing evened back out.
A short while after Grimm exited his tent with two black bracelets that he proceeded to place on Melvin's wrists.
"Are those made out of the core?!" Oscar shouted, astounded that there were craftsman who could make items out of monster cores.
"Yes, as I said before I needed the core to make a focus for my nephew. You see he just recently received his powers unlike all of you." Grimm said, setting down around the fire with the trio.
"Back up did you say 'powers' as in more than one?" Larry said, picking up on the fact that the old man hadn't said power.
"Yes that's right, my nephew is special although it's rare sometimes mutations happen and children recieve the powers of both of their parents." Grimm said.
"So you're saying both of his parent's had powers?" Larry asked, intrigued by the sudden revelation.
"Well not exactly, but we will wait until Melvin wakes up for me to tell you the whole story." Grimm said. Putting his tea kettle on the hook above the fire again.
------
Melvin woke up to the screeching of a kettle.
"Grimm what happened?" Melvin questioned, sitting up and rubbing his forehead.
He noticed the black bands on his arms and asked while pointing to them, "What are these?"
"Those, like your pendant, are a focus for the new ability you acquired from killing that colossal black monster. Now hurry up and get over here your friend here is getting a bit impatient." Grimm said, pouring himself some tea.
"Who are you calling impatient old man, and I'm not his friend I just happen to know who he is from someone else." Larry said, averting his gaze from everyone else.
Oscar and Jane snickered at Larry's reactions, while patiently waiting for Melvin to make his way over to the group.
"Now I will continue my story." Grimm said, taking a long sip of his tea.
"Long ago, back from where our family are from my sister, Melvin's mother fell in love with a man from another family." Grimm said, stopping to take another sip of his tea.
"Hang on I aren't you supposed to meet someone outside of your family." Larry said.
"Yes you are, but I'm not talking about blood family I'm talking about kingdom family." Grimm said.
--- Many years ago ---
Grimm was doing paperwork in the middle of the afternoon when his sister Bethany had burst through his chamber door. Bethany was a beautiful woman with long curly brown hair that reached the center of her back.
"Brother I met a wonderful man today, he was kind and strong, and he has such a charming personality." Bethany swooned, flopping onto her brother's mattress.
"Please refrain from using my mattress as a plaything, and why are you talking to me about this shouldn't you be asking father to arrange a marriage?" Grimm stated, setting at his desk signing documents and looking over important project licenses.
"Brother in this case it wouldn't be wise for me to get father involved." Bethany said, getting off of Grimm's bed and straightening her clothes.
"Why not? This man isn't a criminal is he?" Grimm pried, setting down his fountain pen.
"No, that's not quiet why I can't get father involved. This man he is from another family." Bethany said sheepishly.
"Another family?! Bethany you know we are not allowed to see anyone outside of our own kingdoms, it's forbidden." Grimm said, standing up from his chair and grabbed his sister by hee shoulders.
"I knew you would react this way, but you know noone will ever find out I wasn't born with the family gift." Bethany said, pouting with teary eyes.
"Yes, but you know the risks of leaving with a person from another family, the council will send someone to dispense with the two of you sooner or later." Grimm said, tearing up at the thought of losing his sister.
"That's the thing, he is a member of the council and he doesn't know I'm from the Seventh family." Bethany said, looking her beloved brother in the eyes and smiling.
"This is dangerous, but if you really want to be with this man I'll support you in any way I can, I'll get stronger and take a seat at the council if I have to." Grimm said, hugging his sister.
--- Years later---
Grimm had received a letter from his sister about her new life with the now excounciler.
It read, "Brother we have settled in a new land that is mostly inhabited by humans it's a little hard to keep our 'condition' a secret from the others but it is a wonderful place, Rex has gained a political position in this land and become a founding member, I have told him about me being from the Seventh family, he didn't care, he said he married me for who I am not who my family is, we have decided to help these people from the shadows as long as we can." signed Bethany.
Grimm couldn't believe it his sister and her husband were living a peaceful life among the humans who the others had long since abandoned, not only that but they had decided to aid them as well.
She had also decided to share a secret she had been keeping since they had started their relationship, which was a giant leap of faith and he had accepted her words without hesitation. Grimm was flabbergasted by this revelation.
Years later he had received another letter, this time it's contents were much more disturbing than the last.
"The council had sent another 'cleaner' to 'fix' their slip up, we have had a child he is a very peculiar child he has started to exhibit traits of a sun walker and winged one so we have decided to perform the sealing ritual to keep him from using any of these gifts making him appear human, he has no idea of his real potential please look after him if anything happens to us, in other news the settlement we founded is thriving it is now a metropolis of wealth and technology." Signed Bethany.
--- Present day ---
Ommiting certain details from his retelling of the past Grimm had told them the story of his and Melvin's family.
"So your saying even if you don't inherit the power directly it can still be passed to later generations?" Larry asked, trying to make heads or tails of what he had heard.
"That is correct, and Melvin has enherited a combination of his parent's 'gifts' as they were originally labeled." Grimm said, taking another sip of his tea.
Melvin sat there in silence reminiscing in his thoughts after hearing that he really was the nephew of the vampire infront of him.
"So then, Uncle, please tell me what my mothers side of my families gift was." Melvin said, standing up from his spot and bowing at the waist a perfect nintey degrees.
"Well since you have experienced it first hand I will explain it, we gain different attributes that enhance us when we kill monsters, however you are still to young to handle this 'gift' yet so we have to make focuses for you to channel that power through." Grimm said, gesturing to his Pendant and bracelets.
"Now let's head back to the city. It's about time to get you three home." Grimm said, standing up.
"Wait, I think there's something you two should know. Someone or something wrecked your house." Larry said, looking at Melvin.
"How would you know that?" Melvin asked, looking at him with fierce eyes.
"Because... we broke in and searched your house after it was gone, and here is the proof." Larry said, motioning the other two to get behind him if things went side ways while pulling the claw from his pocket.
"No that's not possible." Grimm said, staring at the claw.