Divyaaditi Pashupati^# looked down her nose at the monster gasping on the floor and her eyes narrowed.

‘This...’ Something about the scene bothered her. But no matter how much she thought, she couldn’t pinpoint the reason for her unease. Thus, with a furrow of her brows, she sent a thought to her bonded monster, the Fire Maned Lion. ‘Something about this monster bothers me Singh Raj*.’

The Lion let out a growl and the monster gasping on the ground trembled. Its limbs shook, its torse twitched and its wings quivered. The green-clad woman’s eyes narrowed as she studied the reaction. The more she observed, the more difference she found in this reaction of the monster and its previous one. This trembling of the monster had been uncontrolled and unrestrained. ‘Ah.’

Understanding dawned on her and her brows relaxed before a smile formed on her lips. ‘A sapient monster.’ The woman stepped forward and, without so much as a moment’s hesitation, stepped on the Malfae’s tiny legs.

The monster shrieked and its shrill voice stung her ears but she cared not and instead increased the pressure on its delicate limbs to crush them beyond repair. ‘A sapient monster would be an ideal choice.’ She stepped back and her cold eyes regarded the creature for a moment. ‘However, it is crafty. This one.’

The [Monster Tamer] frowned but let the Malfae live. Instead, she moved onto the next monster in line. After all, she still had to inspect the rest of the captured monsters.

This creature inspection had turned into almost a routine, at this point, as what she had been looking for was quite difficult to find in the wild. However, it seemed, her search had finally ended.

Finishing her inspection, she found not a single monster more that had what she was looking for. Even finding a single sapient creature in the wild was a fortune. How could she be greedy enough to dream for two? Thus, she fed the useless creatures to her Fire Maned Lion. Food should not be wasted after all.

With none of the monsters left except the hideous blue thing, she turned to the sole living monster left from the line-up.

‘Bring it to me.’ She ordered the Lion and the massive monster stalked forward. Its towering legs fell on the floor and the sound of its footsteps was akin to the beating of the loud drums to the Malfae. The fire covered lion reached the shrieking Malfae and lowered its head to observe the shivering [Survivor].

The massive yellow eyes of the lion stared down at the [Hive Monarch] while the heat of its fiery mane singed the hair on the Malfae’s head and dried its wide pupil-less eyes. The lion did not seem to like what it found on the [Reincarnated]’s face and its humongous lips pulled back to reveal fangs that spanned multiple times the Malfae’s own height. And then the Fire maned Lion growled.

The sound of the growl travelled through the air before it hit the Malfae as if it were a sonic attack and [Hive Monarch]’s tiny body vibrated as the vibration passed through its body. At that moment, the Malfae quivered and lost control of both its body and bowels, as it wet itself. Meanwhile, the tiny monster’s trembling eyes remained fixated on the fangs that were multiple times the size of its body.

However, the lion had no patience for the tiny monster and it carelessly picked the Malfae up by one of its teeth before bringing the tiny monster to the woman’s eye level by. The tooth in question was large enough that it spanned more than 5 times the Malfae’s own length. Needless to say, the Malfae lost control of its bowels and shat itself. Thankfully, its excreta touched not the lion.

The woman’s eyes searched the terrified immortal's eyes and the unadulterated terror she found satisfied her to some degree. “[Impart] Language.”

The Skill activated instantly and the green-clad woman felt her mana plummet by almost a fourth. Meanwhile, the [Monster Tamer] focused on her language skills and felt the second ability of her Skill rummage through her mind.

All the while, the tiny monster screeched and clutched its head but the Lion did not let it fall.

“[Impart] [Projection].” The woman’s voice resounded again.

0.0

Ting.

Ting.

Ting.

Ting.

Ting.

 

The trembling Malfae didn’t even try to dismiss the notifications blocking its vision. As terrified as it was, it didn’t even want to breathe lest it made a sound that upset the monster holding it.

“My speech, do you comprehend it?” Its captor's voice resounded, and its eyes widened. It stared at the women in disbelief.

“Answer.” The woman frowned and it nodded its head vigorously. “Good.” Her eyes bored into it and the Malfae gulped. “You have been granted a Skill that will allow you to convey your thoughts. You have also been granted the understanding of our tongue. Rejoice.”

The [Hive Monarch] dared not to even blink and stared at the woman with terrified eyes. The woman eyebrows furrowed minutely. “You won’t?”

Its heart raced and its crushed legs burned in agony, yet its trembling lips parted in a horrifying rendition of a smile. In answer, the woman smiled. “You can indeed learn.”

The [Survivor]'s racing heart calmed down a bit. Despite the agony it was in, the [Reincarnated] let out a sigh of relief as it was just glad that it hadn’t lost its lifespan.

“You must already know by now that you live by my will.” The woman stated. She did not ask and did not confirm her assumption. She merely stated. “Do you wish for my goodwill to continue?”

‘Ye-yes!’ The creature nodded vigorously.

“As long as you carry out my will, you shall continue to persist.” The woman tucked a few strands of her disobedient hair. Though, the simple movement of her fingers was somehow so elegant, so graceful, that it could steal a man’s heart in a moment. Yet it was all wasted on an immortal like the Malfae. “Defiance of my Will will only earn you a prolonged death.”

The Malfae’s head shook again and the woman smiled. “You are to be my son’s tamed monster. However, it will still be some time before you receive such honour. The child is barely Level 2 and lacks the Skill, [Pact].”

The Malfae did not know what the Skill mentioned by the terrifying woman was and neither did it dare to ask. It did, however, understand the Level mentioned by the woman and its entire body paused, as if in contemplation. This was, of course, the wrong course of action as the woman’s hands moved and took hold of the creature.

She brought the creature to her eye level and with an unchanging face, the woman ripped the Malfae’s wings apart.

The Malfae screamed. Its back burned.

It screeched. Agony erupted like a volcano.

It roared. Pain etched into its skin.

It all mattered not to the woman as by her command, the Lion growled. Instantly, its pain became secondary as the Lion’s might came down on the Malfae’s mind with full force.

“Do you have any thoughts regarding my child?” The woman’s eyes narrowed. “Were you ever given a choice? Did I not make it clear that you live by my will?”

The Malfae fought the pain and the Lion’s might. It fought through both of them and if it had been mortal, it would have broken under the assault of emotions. But the creature was an immortal, it lacked the emotions that would break its mind. Thus, it suffered and maintained its sanity. ‘N-no!’

“Yet you dare to hesitate?” The woman’s voice was flat. “This is an honour upon you, monster. Rejoice.”

The creature trembled and despite the pain, the agony and the domination, its lips curved into the mockery of a smile. If the Malfae had been mortal, the humiliation would have burned its sanity. The shame would have urged it to fight. And pride would have caused it to defy the woman’s will.

But the creature was not a mortal, it was an immortal. It knew not what humiliation was. It knew not the existence of shame. And now, it bothered not with pride. It only knew survival.

‘It is an honour! An honour! An honour INDEED!’ The creature shrieked in pain and agony as the only thing in its mind was survival.

“Perhaps you may still live.” The woman eyed the creature. “Take it to Amoor Maharaj^$ and get it healed.”

0.0

The Malfae's body twitched beyond its control in pure agony.

Now that the terror induced by the woman and the domination imposed by the Lion had subsided, the agony made itself known. Its crushed legs had grown numb as the nerves had died down while the [Hive Monarch]'s back pulsed with nearly unbearable pain.

It jerked as its body was touched and it flinched in the expectation of even more pain.

“Making me heal an unbound monster, has that child lost her mind?” An ancient voice grumbled in a slow drawl. Yet, those that had brought the creature to the [Healer], made not even a single sound.

‘Can this creature even heal? It looks half dead itself!’ Withering in pain as the creature was, the Malfae did not mince its thoughts. With the absence of the terror from the woman and the domination from the Lion, the [Survivor] vented. ‘It’s pathetically weak! Maybe if I kill it, I would finally Level up.’

Though, this outburst was not entirely the fault of its circumstances. Its nature as an immortal was also to blame. At this moment, the Malfae was surrounded by creatures all around and its Immortal nature had been triggered. After all, immortals are creatures that considered 1 as complete, 2 as burden and 3 as death.

Thus, in much the same way it had caused the death of its first batch of drones until only a single one had remained, the [Reincarnated] was subconsciously being difficult. As for why its immortal nature had emerged just now and not before? It was because it had previously been under utter dominance of the lion and terror of the woman.

The ancient man blinked and then he blinked again. A moment passed and the man’s nearly hairless eyebrows furrowed.

“It is sapient? And that girl gave it [Projection]?” The man’s slow speech echoed across the room. “Hmm. It should be little Surya’s first monster then.”

‘Hey! I am right he-’

“Noisy.” The old man cut off the monster’s rant with a frown. “[Sever].”

The Malfae blacked out.

0.0

The Malfae woke up groggy but, surprising, not in pain. It hastily touched its legs and its wings, finding them where they should be. It sighed in relief before its body shuddered as the memory resurfaced. However, the memory did not leave the Malfae shivering and in cold sweats as it would have done to a mortal. It was an immortal after all, emotions for it were weak and passing.

Thus, the experience that would have left a mortal mentally scarred for the rest of their life, were nothing more than nightmares that fade with time.

“Fly to the desk.” A feminine voice echoed and the creature trembled. It slowly turned its head to look at the source. Its eyes fell on the woman in green and the creature gulped. It did not dare to deny her order though and took to air to arrive before her. It landed on the desk next to her.

“Is this my monster?” As the high-pitched voice echoed out, the Malfae hesitantly dared to divert its eyes away from the woman and to the speaker. Its gaze landed on a child that was clearly the woman’s son. The boy had the woman’s features, down to his tilted head and a gaze that looked down upon the world. Though, given the height of the boy, the gesture was more adorable than haughty.

“Hmm. It is.” The woman answered as she activated the ward etched into the desk and the Malfae felt the air become heavy with mana. It gulped as the woman in green addressed it once again. “This is a truth-ward, little monster. Dare not say falsehood, will you? It would be a shame to end you now.”

The creature nodded vigorously but because of its trembling limbs, it stumbled and fell.

“Do you have a name?”

‘No.’

“Oh, can I name it? Can I mother? Can I?” The child jumped excitedly as it intervened but the woman gave him a look and the boy settled down with a pout.

“What is your [Species]?”

‘[Insect].’

The woman frowned while the boy made a face at the information. “And your [Vessel]?”

‘[Malfae].’

“You are a Tier 2 monster, yes?”

‘Eh?’

“Ugly little idiot!” The child giggled. “You don’t even know this?”

The Malfae glanced at the child but did not react much.

This reaction of the Malfae was, of course, not because of maturity or even terror. Instead, it was because of its immortal nature which did not recognise humiliations and insults. As an immortal, things that would spike a mortal’s emotions were meaningless to it.

The woman, being a Tier 3 [Monster Tamer], knew this and simply continued. “A monster’s Tier is the number of times it has evolved. You have evolved twice, yes?”

‘Yes.’

“What were your other [Vessels]?”

‘I was born a caterpillar. I evolved into a moth and then into a Malfae.’

“What were the Skills you received from each [Vessel]?”

It hesitated for a moment but in that moment of hesitation, the woman’s face began to twist and she raised her hand.

The [Survivor] panicked and answered breathlessly. ‘I got [Crawl], [Moulting], [Pain Resistance], [Poison Resistance] and [Venom Creation] as a caterpillar! I also had the Title, [Hungry], but that went away when I evolved! Please don’t kill me!’

The woman’s hands paused and after a moment of contemplation, her face relaxed. “Continue.”

It sighed in relief and patted its chest. ‘After I became a moth, I got [Flight], [Night Vision] and [Sense]. I also gained the Title [Survivor] and it gave me the Skill [Survive].’

The woman’s eyes widened slightly at that while the boy’s mouth fell open. “So many Skills! I just have 1 Skill!” The high-pitched voice of the child grew higher in astonishment. “Why does it have so many Skills Mother?”

“Now do you understand your mother’s words? What I mean when I say that monsters have countless Skills?” The woman smiled and patted her son’s head. “This is why we tame them. Because we can use their Skills. So you must become a good [Monster Tamer], yes?”

“Yes!”

The woman then turned to the Malfae and her face lacked all the warmth that had been there just a moment before. “And your last [Vessel].”

‘From this [Vessel], I got [Drone Eggs] and [Malfae Shield].’ The Malfae paused for a moment before it continued. ‘I also received the Title, [Hive Monarch], which gave me the Skill [Hive Mind].’

Its heart pounded as its gamble was cast. It had been utterly honest with her. It had told her things that she hadn’t even asked. It had been open about all its Skills and Titles in hope that it could hide a few. Its honesty was its gamble to hide its Skill [Domination Resistance], [Mana Manipulation] and [Sense Essence]. But above all, it wanted to hide its Title [Reincarnated].

The Malfae’s fingers twitched and it waited silently for the woman’s next question.

“You were granted an egg creation Skill at Tier 2.” The woman’s brows furrowed. “Is this your final evolution?”

‘Yes.’

“How much lifespan do you have remaining?”

The Malfae summoned its Status but as its eyes fell on its Lifespan, its palms began to sweat and its chest ached as he stared at his Status. ‘…four months.’

“Four Months?” The woman scowled.

‘…yes.’

The woman backhanded the Malfae and the creature flew into the wall. “Useless trash.”

Its back hurt once again and its vision swam. It slid to the ground as gravity did its work and creature laid there. It did not even dare to move.

“Lock it up alongside the chambermaids.” The woman ordered her guards outside her chamber. “And tell Anubhav to search for monsters once again.”

0.0

The Malfae slammed into the wall once again as the guards threw it into a cell and left.

Ting.

Ting.

The cell was obviously not meant to hold such a tiny monster as it was big enough to house mortals; quite akin to the cells next to its which housed the chambermaids one after the another.

The Malfae slowly picked itself. It sighed as it checked its body and found nothing missing. Yet, its body was bruised and battered and more than one of its limbs felt like they needed care. ‘Should I use [Moulting] to heal these wounds? But that will take me out for hours and if that lunatic creature summons me for some reason, she will go crazy again. No, it’s better to not use the Skill.’

‘Aish! That lunatic creature! Throwing me around like a pebble! Tearing my limbs off! Just you wait, you brain dead mortal, I will kill you! If not you, then that idiot progeny of yours!’

It fumed but its emotions were weak and it sighed.

‘But I have to evolve first to do that. And to evolve I need to reach Level 100. And then I need to acquire another [Species]. But how am I going to do that if that mindless creature keeps me trapped here?’

‘Aish! That lunatic mortal!’

Its eyes fell on the bars of the cell which were wide enough for three Malfaes to move through them, side by side. ‘They can’t be this stupid, can they?’

It gingerly flew up to the bars and poked the space with its unbruised finger. It met resistance where there should be none and sighed. ‘Magic. Of course.’

The [Hive Monarch] flew back to the floor and laid down.

‘What should I do? I obviously can’t hibernate here. I can’t even Level here. Not that I was Levelling outside but I could have if I wanted to! Here I can’t even do that. Should I just focus on searching for my Ego form?’

‘I should just do that. [Mana Manipulation] levelled up a lot before I went to sleep and [Sense Essence] is already at Level 15. I should-’

“That was quite entertaining.” A female voice fell into Malfae’s ears and the creature’s blood ran cold.

-X-

Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.

-X-