After being forced to eat what remained of the Orc we began to move again. The taste of it was something you can imagine… burnt meat...at least the middle, where it wasn't as burned, was actually kinda tasteful. I do feel bad for killing him and then eating him like that, but Amity and Zenshin told me that I needed to learn this or else I wouldn't survive in this world.

"I'm not saying for you to kill entire nations or innocents like they're cattle. I'm saying you need to learn how to kill your enemies before they kill you" Amity said.

As you know, death isn't the end. The people you kill will be sent to the realm of the dead and then be reborn as the cycle continues. Zenshin explained.

Yeah, I guess they're right. Knowing that death is not the end of their being lessens the impact killing someone has. On Earth with the lack of knowledge of what lies beyond death made life the most important thing on a human as all humanity thought that if you killed someone you might as well be destroying his very being, their souls.

Eventually we passed by a lake with crystal waters that looked so fresh I wanted to take a sip.

"Is it okay if I drink some of the water?" I asked. 

"Hm? Oh, go ahead" Amity said.

I approached the water, seeing my own reflection on the lake, and put my snout on the water to drink it. To my dismay, the water began to evaporate the moment I touched it, like molten iron being put on the water to cool down. I tried to suck the water in but I think I managed to drink a glass of water when I tried to drink a kitchen sink full of water.

You might have more success if you transform into a rabbit, or even an Orc, seeing as they don't have bodies that make the water boil on contact and you'll also train that skill which is always good. Zenshin told me.

I opened my status screen and kept looking at the skill.

[Unique] True Mimic Lv. 2

I knew that I needed to train it and I also knew the higher the level it is, the less pain I'll feel when transforming at least is what I hope it does when in a higher level considering the pain is considerably less than when it was level 1.

I then looked over the registry of what forms I could take.

True Mimic Registry –

- Horned Rabbit

- White Dragon

- Forest Orc

I gained the option to transform to an Orc after I ate the Orc meat from the one I had killed before. Zenshin spoke something about "residual spiritual energy on the tissues of the Orc" or something along those lines, I didn't understand properly.

After building up courage I activated my skill and immediately a cold sensation ran through my spine and spread to my whole body, followed by immense pain as I felt my bones get crushed and my muscles got torn apart and reshaped. My vision turned blurry before it went down in height and I could see all the new colors I could see after my evolution fade away into nothingness and get replaced by the familiar colors I could see already as a human plus some pale white colors I suspect is just outside the spectrum I can see, but inside enough I could barely see them.

Everything felt different, somehow the skill changed my body and now I didn't feel disconnected from it like I was before, it now felt like my own body instead of a suit I was forced to wear.

"....this is a horrible experience…. And it seems like I can still talk" I said, relieved. My voice did change a little, as a Solar Dragon my voice was the same as it was before I died, and after the transformation it was more higher pitched, I don't remember how my voice was when I was 5 but I wouldn't put it too far from it.

I turned around and began to drink the water. It was still warm after I put my face on it but it's drinkable.

"Heeeey! Are you alright!?" I heard someone shout towards us.

I turned after having drunk a good quantity of water to see a group of three people walking rapidly towards us. The group had two women and a man. One of the women was using some leather armor with straps of metal on specific spots, a metal helmet that covered her hair and partially her face, she had a sword that looked like something mass fabricated on her waist. The other had a wooden staff with an aquamarine gem lodged inside the tip of the staff, she was also wearing leather armor, but hers didn't have the metal spots and her face was fully visible by the lack of a helmet, her black hair was long enough to touch the middle of her back. The man was using a blue robe and a big backpack that looked like it was half full, on his waist there was a book that was held in place by a string attached to the man's robe.

"Yeeeees, we're fineeee. Why the question!?" Amity shouted back

The trio quickly approached us and stopped right in front of Amity. The woman with the sword, who seems to be the leader, spoke.

"We heard what looks like a wyvern roar and an Orc roar around here and we've come to investigate, do you happen to know anything?" She asked.

"Oh, yes, I heard them too, but I don't think they'll be a problem anymore" Amity answered.

The leader glanced confused.

"Why do you thi-..." She began.

"Oh. My Gods" the man interrupted after noticing me a few steps behind Amity.

"Is that a White Dragon?" He asked.

"Yes, he is a White Dragon for sure" Amity said before muttering. "At least for now" the three of them seemed to hear her muttering, but they probably interpreted incorrectly as they didn't ask about it any further.

"May I pick it up?" He asked Amity.

"If he lets you pick him up, go ahead" Amity smiled at the guy.

The man calmly approached me.

"Hey there, little guy. How are you?" He spoke like he was talking with a child. I just looked at him with dead eyes not amused in the slightest.

The man wrapped his hand around me and lifted me up.

"Oof, it is a little heavy, isn't it?" He asked Amity.

Is this guy calling me fat? Really? I'll bite your fingers off if you call me fat again.

"Soo, would you mind calling him by his name?" Amity said, a little annoyed.

"Oh, sorry, sorry, what is his name?" The man said looking at Amity, a little ashamed of not asking if I had a name.

"Well, I think it's better if the person whose name was asked should answer, no? hihihi" She laughed.

Everyone stood there confused for two seconds before I opened my mouth.

"Hi, my name is Denaru Theriz" I innocently said.

"WHAAAT?" The three of them shouted as they turned to me.

***

“What do you want? I thought I already gave you enough resources for you to pull that plan of yours” A pale white woman with long black hair said, annoyed, to the other figure in the cave.

The woman was 1.8 meters tall with golden iris and light blue sclera. She was using a long white dress that if you looked close enough you could see some patterns that changed each second all over it. She was accompanied by two humanoid creatures.

The creatures were the same height as her and covered in fur in almost all of their bodies, the only places that weren’t covered in fur was in their face, which was a black screen with metal parts around it, their chest, that was covered by a metal piece with lights that blinked at what looked like random intervals, and their joints, which were covered by the same piece of metal that their chest was and were actually detached of their torso by a few millimeters. Both of them were carrying an advanced rifle looking gun and were in standby position.

“Yes, but you see, dealing with Gods, especially the Greater Gods isn't as easy as I make it sound like. My job could be done a lot easier if I, let’s say, had access to one of your little hunters?” The figure said as it was circling the woman and the two hunters she had with her.

The figure was totally black with four horns coming out of its head. It had three eyes and red markings over its face, its teeth were pointed and golden. It was shorter than the woman by a few centimeters and was wearing a white suit that looked like it was crafted by the most experienced artisan, but still it doesn’t compare to the delicacy of the dress the woman was wearing.

“Absolutely not. Have you already forgotten about our deal? I give you enough resources for you to execute your plan, you give me a piece of the System and in return I name you. Nothing more, nothing less, is that clear, Demon?” The woman said angrily.

“I know, I know. But you see, if i had one of your hunters i could do things more rapidly. instead of waiting for years for the right conditions to appear, i could make them appear… And I think you’d like to have that fragment sooner rather than later. After all, how long can one overtax his soul before it finally gives up and crumbles into dust?” The Demon said smiling.

The woman glanced at the Demon, her eyes filled with rage. The hunters immediately pulled their weapons and aimed at the Demon’s heart.

“What do you know?” She said with rage almost tangible in her words.

“Well, first of all, I know you are almost desperate trying to find some form to ascend into godhood or else how would you accept to hire me for a plan that can have less than one millionth of a percent? I also know that you have been in your position for more than a few millennia, and I know how souls can’t take that much pressure before giving up. How long do you have left? a thousand years, one hundred years, a decade?” The Demon explained.

“It’s none of your business” The woman spoke back.

“It doesn’t matter, what does matter is that your time is limited and I can give you what you need to ascend. but to do it in a small time frame I need one of your precious little hunters” It said.

The woman thought for a few moments before the hunters lowered their weapons.

“You may have one, and just one. if you try to do anything to it, it will self-destruct, taking itself, you and everything inside a two hundred kilometers radius, understood?” She said.

“Perfectly” The Demon answered.

The woman suddenly disappeared and one of her hunters approached the Demon while the other turned to a wall, picked up a gun-looking object and shot the wall.

The wall suddenly turned into a portal leading to somewhere the Demon couldn’t see. The hunter entered the portal and it closed, leaving the Demon and one hunter in the cave