"You fucked up, man. 130 years you lived as an alpha male. All that was wasted on your unfounded fear of women."

A direct statement should have been easily absorbed by Hazel. But instead of a nod of understanding, Hazel tilted her head to the brink of breaking her neck. She was indeed a little beaten up at the time, mentioning how she was single for 130 years. But if she tried to deny it with the excuse of her phobia, it would make her feel even worse.

"I mean, it's stupid for you to have a fear towards 'women'? You are literally the strongest creature on that planet! Not to mention that you've become the one you fear the most through."

While the creature continued to babble, Hazel's mind was completely blank. She wasn't listening to what it was saying her brain froze right then and there.

'But really, does this really have anything to do with it? It's more like God is punishing me for... it.'

She's not a religious person, but she's always strict when it comes to morals and norms. Just being a war crime criminal is stressful for her, and that also applies to any other crime she does in the past. She always believes in karma, because that thing always straight up kicked her out in the ass back then.

"What does this have to do with it?!! Is god punishing me for what I did in the past?"

"Hey, don't just jump to conclusions like that buddy. Hmmm, how to explain this to you... ah, how about this."

Hazel watched as the eyeballs created a small sofa out of nothing. He waved his hand, motioning for Hazel to sit near him. Hazel had no choice but to comply, she had no rights or power here.

"So, tell me how much do you know about your mother's race?" He asked directly, deliberately starting with the easiest thing so that Hazel wouldn't feel confused.

"As much as I know? Hmmm... my mom is an alien and she has psychic power. Mom says that she and her family are extraterrestrials who came from another galaxy. Then, all the children born would have a birthmark on their chest. Sorry, that's all I know." She replied moodily, on second thought. Hazel felt very stupid when she realized that she didn't know anything about her own family.

'I don't even know where this power I have come from. I roughly know, it's just that I don't think that's the answer he wants.'

"Well, that's more or less the main point. I'll give you information about your race, so if something happens in the future at least you won't be lost." He explained seriously, even though it only consisted of eyeballs.

"Or, trying to kill yourself." Hazel could feel very strong emotions coming from him. If only he had eyebrows, then they would have formed a 90-degree angle by now.

'What the hell, how can I feel if he's a good person? It's obvious if there's something fishy about him.'

Hazel shook her head as strange thoughts began to take over her head. It was a miracle that her current self could still keep her sanity, considering she was turning into something that had already traumatized her deeply.

Plus, an eyeball that was a celestial being was sitting beside her.

"Uh... excuse me, mister yellow eyes. May I ask what your name is? It's very strange for me to call you that." She asked shyly, feeling very nervous to look at him directly.

"Oh, you finally asked that. Just call me, Cief. People call me that because my real name is very difficult to pronounce." He said warmly, gold dust also leaked out of his eyes as Hazel bowed her head.

"Uh, t-thank you very much, Mr. Cief?"

A warm feeling passed through her heart whenever Cief spoke to her. Hazel didn't mind that, in fact, she was very grateful for it. She assumed that it was just one of Cief's powers, as a celestial being to be able to control one's feelings. She doesn't know what she would have done if Cief hadn't calmed her down earlier, she would have tried to tear her own face off.

But the most important thing was that she could look at him directly without feeling nervous.

'Strange... but so be it.'

"Rex Tremun Dexrubyx, that is your current racial name. Your mother is a Rex Tezerra and your father, is a Rubyx. Their races always coexist wherever they are, you could say that they have a symbiotic relationship of mutualism. In your case, you are a combination of both. You must know the intricacies of your mother and father's power, right?"

"Y-yes, I know some about that. Father said that his race has always assisted mother's race in controlling their powers. Father's race is a rune caster right?"

"More or less, I can say that you are a composite of the most powerful races in this realm. But that was back then, now they are on the verge of extinction."

Hazel felt a little devastated when she heard that. She had some unfortunate flashbacks about her past. She would never forget that incident, as it was the deepest turning point of her lifetime.

"Back to the main explanation, the reason why you turned into a 'female'. You see, have you ever seen another female from your mother's family other than her?"

"Ah."

Like a bolt of lightning in broad daylight, a memory of his childhood flashed before her eyes. Shee never once saw a woman whenever he went to visit his mother's extended family residence. Her mother, too, had never brought it up and had always avoided conversations about such odd matters. Hazel herself was so young back then, she was still an obedient child who obeyed all orders given by her parents.

"The metamorphosis that happened to you is the life cycle of your mother's race. You see all 'Reter', as your mother race is called, are born as males. They are given a few years to find a mate before the same thing happens to them as you. Usually, they will start the metamorphosis process when their energy core is ripe. That tattoo on your chest is the determinant."

Suddenly after hearing that, Hazel immediately checked her chest which was now slightly swollen. The tattoo on her chest before was shaped like a diamond symbol with 13 circles surrounding it. It was the same tattoo that her mother had, except that her mother only had 2 circles on the right and left.

"For each circle, that means it took 10 years before the process started." He said, Hazel, turned to him with an expression of disbelief and despair.

"It's still a mystery, how can your father determine the exact time?" Ask Cief to himself, there is no exaggeration in his tone. It is a simple question, but for him it makes his mind go wild anytime he thinks about it.

Looking at the despairing Hazel, Cief floated and circled around her. The look that pierced deep into her heart, made Hazel tremble in fear of her fate. If there was anything that could give her a severe stroke, she would be already dead just back then. The false sense of security could not help her to feel less stressed and upset.

She felt as if some sort of lever flicked inside her, she couldn't recognize it. It's bothering her, the storm that has been raging inside her head is over.

She felt like she was reborn, released from the chain. Free from the chains of suffering that are a manifestation of an unreasonable sense of responsibility. 

"Do you know what that means?"

"E-eh? It means... what?"

"Have you ever studied basic biology? Now that you are a female, you have the form and features of a fertile Reter female. In other words, you can conceive a child now."

"Huh? But how is that possible?!!!" It was something he had heard before, somewhere he had heard about that phenomenon.

"It's a sin, isn't it? Am I not violating my nature if I do this? Will I be whipped by the angel of death? How is this!!!" Screaming in panic, she felt as if the room around her was beginning to collapse as she thought about what she had done.

"There is one fact you are forgetting right now, you are not human. There is no point in using their common sense now and then from this point on. The only reason why you look like them, for no other reason than to blend in among them." By pointing out the main point of the main reason, Hazel's eyes were slightly opened and enlightened.

'Common sense... it's been a long time since anyone ever mentioned that kind of stuff anymore.'

"Plus, this metamorphosis is an innate trait. There was no interference from any entity, so you never violated your nature. If there's something wrong, then you could say that it's your unwarranted feelings of panic." Shout Cief seriously, he just trying to tell Hazel the bittersweet truth. He touched her forehead with his fingertips and patted it lightly.

"If you still think that this is wrong, then next time you meet a clownfish. Don't forget to lecture them."

But for a denialist like her, sometimes the best solution to accepting reality is to hurt them with it.

"Uh, b-but this is too sudden. All I wanted was to live peacefully in the suburbs. Instead of being kidnapped and turned into this!!!"

'Maybe, a small restaurant will do it.' Imagining her life if she retired from her job, enjoying the rest of the time she had.

"Stop that useless talk! The contract has been signed, there is no turning back. Besides, what would people say if they saw you in this?"

A feeling of relief and guilt arose from within her fragile heart. Although she had a sturdy heart on the outside, the guilt buried inside was slowly eroding it. She had always kept her distance from her main family and only ever hung out with her friends. Hazel once thought that it wouldn't have much impact on her family, other than keeping her enemies away. She wanted her family to be strong and independent, even without her presence.

After the death of her parents, the elders in the extended family began to disappear one by one. Many of them met their deaths in horrific events, others simply vanished into thin air. Now only Hazel and the other youngsters remained. Without the adults, the children had no protector or guide in their lives.

'Forgive me, I was negligent in my duty. I don't have the time to tell them if something worse will happen if they stay single for too long.'

The only thing Hazel could do was to gather them all up and take them away secretly. Now, they all live in a place far away from the city. Forced to battle monsters every day to hone their skills. Hazel would occasionally control the place secretly, never once showing her face to them since that day.

"I hope, what I'm doing is right." She muttered while staring blankly at the skin on her hands that were starting to peel off.

"You guys are very stubborn and annoying creatures if you ask me. You guys have very strong and sturdy willpower and morals. It's a strange thing for you to question me about your actions. You just underestimate them... too much."

Hazel felt as if she was being hit by a planet on her shoulders right now. The thought of how the children would grow up triggered a little worry in her little heart. She didn't want them to grow up with a shadow of fear and anxiety like her. She could only hope for the best for them

For a moment, she felt her face start to heat up suddenly. Then, the pain that was almost the same as the one before, slammed into her consciousness once again. The layers of his exoskeleton were now beginning to melt into red pudgy substance mixed with blood. She screams hysterically, trying to endure cowering pain and agony. Every layer of her flesh and muscle fibers slowly melted and turned into a pool of disgusting mud. It happened slowly but, unlike before, this time Hazel managed to maintain her consciousness.

'Is this another punishment from god? Is-.

At least until the contents of his head melted out of the slits of his eyes. 

Hazel had dark blue blood and flesh with a slight blue gradient in general, but some things could cause it to turn a blood-red color. One of the factors that caused that was excess energy. When Hazel used too much Catastrophic Energy, it would seep into every cell of her body and give them a blood-red or fire-orange color.

Now all that was left of her was a pool of blood and bones scattered everywhere.

"Twice? It's not every day I'll see this. Just finding one of them is rare, seeing them transformed is something else."

Cief floated towards Hazel who was reduced to a pool of blood, circling her several times until the pool finally reacted. For an instant, he was slightly surprised as the energy around him began to decrease drastically. It didn't take long for him to find the main culprit, he just found it interesting and kept a little distance from it.

On the one hand, the pool of blood began to form clumps of flesh rapidly. It also gave off some sizable energy sparks, heating up the room and turning it into an oven. One by one, Hazel's bones were again covered with muscle and connected themselves one by one. The process continued quickly, it only took less than 5 minutes for her to return to her original state.

The way it was supposed to be.

"Ugh, too much Catastrophic Energy. This room is starting to feel claustrophobic now."

Cief made a gesture of fanning his hands to get rid of the unpleasant odor. Fortunately for him, the foreign energy that had previously filled the room dissipated quickly. It was reabsorbed by its own maker, a favorable recycling effort.

Hazel still hadn't woken up from her stupor, her body just lying on the floor without wearing a single piece of cloth. Cief inspected every detail of her body without missing any part, which was easy to do when you were a big eyeball with a pair of big palms.

"She lost her original shape, now only her horns and tail remain. This female stayed too long with humans, her body now only remembers their shape."

There was nothing wrong with the humanoid form, the only problem that had to be dealt with was Hazel's reaction when she woke up. With her acute phobia, it was certain that she would have a panic attack and a troublesome tantrum. Based on his observations while watching her, Hazel's phobia could only be triggered by a human. If it was something that had a humanoid form but was not human. The reaction would not be as severe as that of a human woman. Now that Hazel was back to her 'human' form, there would be a few moments where she would try to hurt herself.

"How did a creature like you live this long?"

That question was pure sarcasm, he knew exactly why. But he was just a little disgusted by it.

Since it still had a few innate features of her race, she shouldn't react too aggressively. Cief sprinkled gold and purple dust over Hazel's soundly sleeping face. He patted her head a few times and then Hazel opened her eyes and immediately screamed hysterically. 

"AAAH!!!"

Spontaneously, Hazel immediately woke up and tried to hug whatever was around her. Since there was only Cief and his big palm, Hazel immediately hugged him while crying out loud. It took a while for Hazel to stop crying and calm herself down, leaving Cief to just surrender and wait.

"What's wrong champ? Was that too painful for you?"

"Uh... of course it hurts a lot you know! Just because I never show it doesn't mean I don't feel it. Either way, society won't care about it. They just like it when you disappear and die in the darkness."

Her emotions quickly turned up and down, she didn't understand what was going on with her.

There was something different about her, that thought put a lot of uneasy feelings in her heart.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. Then, how about we continue with the meal?"

"E-eh, c-certainly?"

Cief smiled kindly at her, or so she could feel. Despite lacking some parts, Cief could easily tell the other person how he felt. Hazel smiled back in reply to Cief's offer, it was the reason why she was here. Next, Cief brought up a green thermos bottle on the table. He picked it up carefully with his finger.

Then, he poured it on top of her head.

"Kid..."

"?"

"Would you like to see your current appearance?"

"No."

"That was a quick response, may I ask why?"

"I don't know, I'm not sure how my mind will react later."

"Well, that's kinda shity isn't it?"

"Yeah…"

"Then, we'll do that later. But for now, I'll give you some advice.".

"Uuuh."

"No matter what you look like now, a Reter will carry their pride to the end of their life. No matter what happens to them, the only thing they will carry to death is their pride."

The pursuit of power was everything to her, it was the reason why she lived as a Hunter. If someone said she was a mindless megalomania, she had no defense against that. At least she had a goal, that was a small reason why she continued to do so even if she had to shed a lot of blood. However, as time passed, one barrier after another began to clog her spirit. It slowly began to take away her obsession with the concept of strength, and now she had come to this stage.

She was exhausted, she felt that she was too old for this.

Or was that it?

"What's the wrong girl? What's with the musings, are you tired?"

Her whole body shivered when Cief called her 'girl'. It was a harsh reminder to her, she had reached the stage of maturity in biological terms. There was no turning back from this madness, the dice had been rolled and now she had to wait her turn. 

"I-I'm... confused."

"Aw, poor you. What was once a tyrant obsessed with the concept of true power? Is now just a dazed female Reter who has lost her way in life, once again."

Anger, confusion, fear, all of it churned inside her heart. Fortunately for her, her instincts could suppress her useless feelings for the time being.

"Remember this, the sole purpose of your life, Rex Tezerra. Is to be the strongest, no matter the cost and danger. Keep that in mind!" Cief exclaimed loudly into Hazel's face, or so it seemed.

"It took me so long to find you, you are my irreplaceable treasure. I don't want my precious possession to die silly just because of a stupid reason! Therefore, please enjoy it while you can."

'I'm not sure, pretty much I am going to die in the most stupid way.'

"Alright then."

Hazel bowed her head in defeat. There was nothing else she could do to refuse him. She didn't care how Cief would treat her, even though she had little clue about it.

"Indeed, please enjoy the appetizer."

A golden plate appeared on the golden table from nothing. Then on top of it appeared a pie with a peanut topping. It wasn't a fancy dish or anything, but for Hazel who lived in a broken world. It was a very special meal to her, she couldn't even remember the last time she had seen it.

"T-this is... pretty."

That was the first word she uttered as she watched what she considered to be a work of art. Her entire body trembled, and the fear and confusion that had previously covered her heart simply disappeared. The light and gold dust only made the tart more tempting.

"Please try it, don't be shy."

Hazel didn't hold back anymore and immediately picked up the piece of pastry with both hands. Carefully bringing it to her mouth, the fragrance of freshly baked pastry dough filled her senses. The scent of roasted peanuts added a nostalgic sensation that she had never experienced before. Saliva now flooded his mouth, it even started to seep out of his ridiculously gaping mouth.

'T-this is... real food, T-art!'

"Bon appetit."

Hazel immediately took a big bite and finished the cake in one go. Her face was beaming, munching on the cake with an almost indescribable feeling of joy and excitement.

"How is it, is it delicious?"

"Delicious! I don't know what kind of cake it is but it tastes very sweet. I don't usually eat sweets, but the savory taste of the fringe dough and peanuts balances it out!" She replied sincerely, her face that had been gloomy now smiling like a child.

"That's good! Then it's time to get ready." The look of excitement shown by Cief made Hazel take a few steps back from him.

"Get ready? For what?"

Cief ignored Hazel's question and flew away from her. He went a few meters away from her, at which point she noticed that the size of this room had changed to a larger one. Cief glared at her seriously, his two giant palms disappearing into dust that hit her face.

"!!!"

Hazel could feel the feelings of panic and fear that had previously gnawed at her heart, returning once more. Despite that, she didn't feel as bad as before.

"Well, that's all I can do for now. Next, it is your job to adjust to your new form. If you ever feel doubt or fear, always remember who you are."

"What does that mean... what are you going to do?"

"It's nothing, we're just going to the next event. I beg you, do your best for yourself, your kind, your family, and me of course."

"Wait a minute! What are you going to do!?"

In her panic, Hazel could feel a huge energy current starting to form behind her. She couldn't detect the presence of subtle energy before, if she could sense it then it was a bad sign.

"Hey, I know this is a bit of a stupid question. But, are you able to accept the fact that you are a female now?" Cief asked one last time, there was a tone of concern behind his monotone voice.

"I've accepted it well now! Therefore, please tell me what you are doing!!?" Screamed her in panic, and didn't even care anymore about her condition.

"Thankfully, as I expected from the strongest race. Then, I'll see you in Eregser!"

Cief raised his palm once more and waved it vigorously. A very loud rumbling sound began to be heard from behind her, and slowly she began to be pulled into it. She tried to resist, but her body was completely paralyzed. Hazel screamed with all her might, but no sound came out of her mouth. Slowly her body began to be covered with a reddish substance that she didn't know what it was. It wrapped her densely, not leaving any gaps. 

It all happened quickly, though she managed to maintain her consciousness until the last moment. The explosion of golden light pulled her into a long sleep.

"Sleep well, my precious asset."