I uncorked a bottle of Red Lotus wine and lit an Abe Jayala cigar using my bare hand as a lighter. Taking a deep puff, I immediately felt my mind settle into calmness. Looking at the blunt, I coughed hard.
"That's some good shit," I muttered before gulping down the wine, savoring its rich flavor. Moving to an empty space, I sat cross-legged and willed my Origin Core to spin.
Suddenly, my body erupted with an oppressive aura so intense it triggered the lab's alarms.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
I ignored the shrill warnings as my Origin steadily drained.
-1 Origin
-1 Origin
-1 Origin
"Compress!" I commanded.
The energy covering my body concentrated into my right arm, turning it crimson with tiny stars floating beneath the skin.
\[Origin Body: 5%]
\[Origin Orb: Can be blessed with properties under world laws. Lv1]
Interesting. But how much would this cost me? I needed to restore my Origin reserves first. Emptying my storage, I piled up 150 spider corpses and 2 goblins, dividing them into two groups.
"Synthesis."
The corpses wrapped themselves in pulsating cocoons that thrashed violently before settling at the center. With a poof, the cocoons disintegrated, revealing two short creatures with slender limbs and black carapace armor resembling spiders. I dragged the corpses closer for inspection.
Slowly, I plunged my hand into one's chest and extracted its still-warm heart. Pouring another glass of wine, I took a bite. The blood tasted rich with iron, though the spider DNA gave it a distinct crab-like flavor. I devoured the first corpse methodically, roasting the remains until oils dripped from its flesh.
Surprisingly, it was tasty.
\[Quick Hands learned]
\[Spider Carapace learned]
+10 Dexterity
+4 Intelligence
+3 Strength
+10 Origin
Black armor began spreading across my body. Just before it covered my face, I willed it to stop. The exoskeleton formed three spiked protrusions on my torso like spider legs. My senses heightened to their limits— I could see everything around me in perfect 360-degree vision.
So the exoskeleton grants spider-like properties. Time to test my new web production skill.
Webs shot from my fingers as I activated the ability. Web control proved more challenging—**every attempt to simultaneously produce and manipulate them ended in chaotic failure.** I kept practicing until dawn.
---
—◉—
"ORIGIN!!!"
An ancient shadow screamed into the void. "Why does this abomination exist in this world?" It twisted through the sky, savoring some invisible scent. "Ahhhh... I smell weakness."
"He is weak. Hahahaha!" The shadow danced madly. "Death to all life! Death to all life! Hahaha hahaha, I'll kill Origin and take its power for myself!"
Far below, a flicker of green light blinked between two cliffs.
"What is that?" The Weapon Thief narrowed her eyes.
"You want to know who I am?" the shadow whispered behind her.
A coldness unlike anything she had known crawled into her spine. Her knees buckled slightly— instinct screamed for her to run, but she remained rooted. Frozen.
"I greet this elder," she stammered, forcing her head down, her voice tight with panic she tried to suppress. "I am Diana, a teacher from the Astral Magic Academy."
"Ah, one of Merlin's brats." The shadow studied her with hollow eyes, a predator playing with its food. "I could ki—"
It paused, then grinned. "How did you know I would kill you?"
A tendril of black mist whipped across her cheek. His eyes locked onto her as she escaped in the distance.
"You can't escape me."
Diana's throat tightened. He has seen me is this how I die she travelled at an impossible speed.
"Unless you call Merlin, you won't survive this." The shadow stepped back, its tone deceptively sweet. "Little girl, I'll give you a three-day head start. Please don't die before I get to you."
---
—◉—
2 days later.
I stood motionless in the isolation chamber, gripping Cil tightly as a silver sphere bombarded me with metal projectiles.
"First Form: KILLING CUT!"
Cil hummed violently, vibrating at an intense frequency that released waves of sharp energy with each swing. The range expanded until I cleaved four metal orbs simultaneously.
40 cuts.
"That's my limit for now," I muttered, sheathing Cil in a temporary cover—though no ordinary sheath could contain her for long.
"Origin Eyes."
My gaze locked onto Cil, and a tight frown crossed my face.
"So this is the problem." A deep gash marred her core. The damage was worse than I'd expected.
"Wonderful," I muttered dryly.
The repair materials would be insane to acquire—a star core and celestial dust from a dead planet. I sighed, shaking my head.
"You injured yourself this badly just to follow me?"
My tone remained flat, but somewhere in me... a my heart ached. She didn't have to.
Checking my reserves: 72 points remained.
Slowly I stretched my right hand over Cil, I let Origin energy flow into her.
-1 Origin
-1 Origin
-1 Origin
Cil began floating as the energy enveloped her, the glow intensifying as her core slowly repaired.
-10 Origin
-10 Origin
-10 Origin
-10 Origin
"Cil, you're too much," I exhaled, cutting the energy flow. Full restoration would require more than I could give now.
Slowly, Cil transformed into a scythe, her handle adorned with exquisite runes accented by black metal that formed a protective hilt around her body. She pulsed in my grip—steady, loyal.
An idea struck me—what if I reinforced the hilt with powerful beast remains? I let the thought simmer.
Shaking myself from the trance, I smiled.
"Finally, Cil. You can enter your first form."