Kai's mind went into shock as the powerful message flooded into him, slamming into his consciousness. Intense pain washed over his entire body. Agony, like he had never felt before, ran wild within him as if a thousand burning daggers were piercing through his flesh, cutting him to pieces.
'Why does the pain feel so real?' he winced, struggling to keep his eyes open. 'Isn't this supposed to be a video game? What is that voice even saying…something about an Evolution System?'
Kai tried his best to remember the words that had made his entire being tremble. He remembered one word in particular: Devour. It was strange, but it was the word that he connected with the most. He didn't know what he needed to Devour, but he had a strong belief that he would find out soon enough.
While his mind was filled with thoughts, Kai opened his eyes, looking at his surroundings a little more.
He was in the middle of a small crater on the ground. Dirt and rocks were scattered all around it, with the eggshell in the middle. Kai focused on moving out of the crater, slowly getting used to walking on all fours. It had been a very long time since he had walked, so moving on all fours was definitely a challenge at the beginning. Nevertheless, he got the hang of it soon enough as he climbed out the side of a dirt wall.
When he managed to leave the crater, he looked around once again, trying to make sense of where he had ended up. He was in the middle of an unknown forest; the trees around him were so huge that he couldn't see the very top of them. The grass reached his thighs, and he even managed to see small insects crawling next to him, trying their best to be subtle. However, the small river in front of him was what caught his attention the most. He could see huge fish jumping up and going back down into the water.
"This is beautiful…" he mindlessly muttered out loud.
Squeaky noises came out of his mouth, and it seemed the game interpreted his language as that of a monster. However, he didn't mind it as the view was worth it.
For years, he had wished to see something like this again, to live like this again, and this game would finally make his wish possible, with the only difference being that he was a monster in this game.
After admiring the view, Kai quickly remembered that he might not be in the best of spots as he was in the middle of a forest with a bunch of unknown monsters all around him. He needed to move.
After all, Realms of Monsters was different from most games. Death meant that you wouldn't be able to play anymore. You also wouldn't be able to make another account to join the game, so Kai needed to make sure that he could survive as long as possible. Kai wasn't sure why the company was doing something like this since it would make things more complicated for the game to last for a long time.
As Kai wondered what to do, the same voice as earlier spoke up. However, this time, the voice didn't contain the same might. It felt a lot more robotic as if programmed.
[Targets to Devour have been detected. With the help of the Mythical Evolution System, the Host can devour one of the said targets and evolve.]
'Hmm, Mythical Evolution System… Devour and Evolve,' Kai thought as memories from a few minutes ago flooded his mind. He suddenly remembered the message left by the powerful and mighty voice.
He had access to a system that would make it possible for him to evolve. However, the voice in his mind still hadn't explained how it worked. Kai didn't have a lot of hope for it, but he tried to ask the voice in his mind a mental question.
'How would I evolve if I were to devour one of those fish?'
Suddenly, a burst of light swarmed Kai's vision, blinding him completely.
When he opened his eyes again, he saw a small little fairy flying in front of him. Actually, he wasn't too sure. Because of her tiny size, the only thing Kai had been able to spot from a first glance were the two wings stuck on her back.
"Hello, I am Isla, your guide for the Mythical Evolution System. Since you are the one who earned the system, the Great God of Monsters has sent me to help guide you on the right path."
The fairy's voice was warm and soothing. Kai didn't find it shocking for something like that to happen since he was the only one in the entire game who had spawned as a monster. In fact, he was quite happy that he would be able to get some answers to his questions.
"Hm… then, can you tell me why I was the one chosen by the system?"
The fairy flew closer to Kai before answering, making it possible for Kai to get a better look at her appearance.
She had two wings on her back that resembled those of a butterfly, her hair was golden, and her eyes were bright blue. Kai was pretty sure she was a fairy, just like he had deduced.
As she stared into Kai's reptilian eyes, she rubbed her chin. "Uh… that. I'm not sure. There might have been a mist-" She shook her head. "His Highness doesn't make mistakes. He must have seen potential in you. However, this inferior being cannot comprehend his intentions."
Kai frowned at those words as it seemed the developers might have made a mistake based on how the fairy spoke. He wasn't sure how or why or if this was part of the game script. But he didn't care. He was now free from the shackles that had been holding him down. He could move, smell, and see… that was all he cared about. Still, this question would stay in the back of his mind.
"Then, can you tell me how the system works? How would I evolve if I were to devour one of the monsters in front of me?" He had been told a general definition of how the system worked, but he wanted to know more.
"Let's start with how 'Devour' works. Every time you kill a monster, you will absorb, or if you prefer, devour some of their abilities or bloodlines and then evolve, transforming your current monster form into a new or different being. You will not always evolve when you devour a monster, but your strength and capabilities will always grow. This ability was designed by the God of Monsters, Varkul, to create a being capable of rivaling humanoid beings."
'Hm… this game is more complex than I thought,' Kai pondered. He wanted to ask again why he had been the one chosen to act as a monster in the game, but the fairy was just as much in the dark as he was.
"But, what makes me different from other monsters? Can't they all do those things?"
The fairy shook her head instantly. "All beings, no matter how big or small, across all of the nine realms of this world have within them a Core, whether it be a Humanoid Core or a Monster Core. It is through this Core that they grow stronger and are able to learn new abilities. However, your Core is different. Your Core has been developed by His Highness; it is able to evolve into all types of creatures and even change into something completely unheard of."
"Monsters can only evolve within the stages of their own evolution. They can't change their fundamental race. For example, a Goblin Core will always be a Goblin Core. It was only after millions of years of research that the God of Monsteres was able to create a core such as yours. His best creation, if I may add."
"Mhm…" Kai understood most of it. Still, he kept thinking about why he had been the one chosen out of everyone. Was there something about him? Maybe he had just been lucky. There was no other possible explanation for the time being.
As he thought about Isla's words again, his eyes widened with clear hope inside them.
"You said I could change into something completely unheard of and evolve in ways no one has ever seen before. Then, could I potentially evolve into a humanoid form in the future?"
Isla sighed. "Possibly, but that would take so much time that I wouldn't even bother thinking about it."
Kai smiled as his mind was filled with even more thoughts than before. However, he was rudely interrupted.
A large salamander appeared at the edge of Kai's vision, bursting into the river in front of him and attacking a fish. The lizard was large, clearly much more evolved than Kai's current form. It had long, sharp teeth, and inside its mouth was one of the fish that kept jumping upwards.
As soon as it grabbed its meal, the salamander leaped out of the water, sliding to a halt in the grassy area. It started to devour its meal before it paused, looking at Kai curiously.
"Target to Devour has been detected."