"He doesn't seem to plan on killing me…"
Seeing the monster use gasoline and fire to completely eradicate the Tomies born from her blood, Kawakami Tomie realized he knew her weakness yet left her aside. Her tense, fearful emotions calmed slightly.
But as she looked at the wounds on her body, where a strange power stirred, her pupils shrank, and she let out a shrill scream. "Aaaahhh!! It's happening again! This filthy, ugly bitch!"
"Quick! Kill her! Kill them!"
Seeing another Tomie duplicate forming, her composure lasted less than a minute before she erupted into frantic curses. Muxiao Xiao ignored her, focusing on his system to check his evolution points.
[Evolution Points: 3218/500]
[Evolution Path Unlocked—]
Tch, tch. "Thinking back to those zombie tentacles I cleared out, scraping together points bit by bit—even elite mini-bosses only gave 50. So much effort," Muxiao mused. How can they compare to this treasure girl? Tomie's unique physiology made her highly valuable, yet she had only human-level strength.
For those unaware of her nature, her infinite replication ability would be a nightmare to deal with.
"This world's getting weirder by the minute."
Kawakami Tomie, quintuplet brides, those bizarre tentacle monsters…
Whatever. Time to check the evolution paths.
[Evolution Path: Tentacle Monster Type III]: A balanced growth path with unknown, mysterious potential.
[Evolution Path 2: Ocean Octopus]: A sea-survival path, likely leading to becoming a Lord of the Sea.
[Evolution Path: Demon Eye]: A mutation-and-death path, with a chance to evolve into an Abyss Demon Eye.
[Evolution Path: Withered Wood Guardian]: A plant-life path, with potential to become a Lord of the Forest.
[Evolution Path: Incubator]: A corruption-and-breeding path, with a chance to gain the Sin of Lust.
"Why's the Incubator option back?" Muxiao muttered, puzzled. "Sin of Lust? Sounds pretty badass."
But he'd already rejected it once. Choosing it now would mean admitting he'd been foolish before. Besides, the subtle nudge from his [Intuition] made him scan the five options carefully.
No skill options appeared, so he had to rely on observation and instinct.
His gaze settled on the Type III path. "Unknown, mysterious potential, plus the hint from my Intuition—there's no doubt."
With a thought, he selected it.
Buzz—
A radiant light erupted from the tentacle monster, dazzling in the darkness, outshining even the moonlight. Tomie, watching in stunned silence, was awestruck by the supernatural spectacle.
At that moment, Natsumi Sakura, who'd rushed upstairs searching for Muxiao, saw the light. Following it to the rooftop, she found Muxiao enveloped in the glowing, radiant evolution aura.
And beside him, the beautiful yet terrifying Tomie.
"Muxiao!!"
Natsumi's anxious heart calmed under the warm glow. "He… should be fine, right?"
Glancing at Tomie's horrifying form, Natsumi wasn't too shaken. Having survived the hellish school invasion, Tomie's monstrous appearance was, at worst, disgusting—not enough to rattle her.
Tomie noticed Natsumi, her scarred, ghastly face twisting into a sinister grin, giving off horror-movie vibes in the dead of night.
Buzz—
The evolution light faded. The tentacle monster before Natsumi hadn't changed much, but closer inspection revealed differences from his previous jellyfish-like form. His head was larger…
No, more accurately, he was now just a round, bulbous head. If he resembled a jellyfish before, now he was more like a slime.
Swish—
A pair of cartoonish, oversized eyes appeared on the slime-tentacle monster's head, scanning the surroundings before locking onto Natsumi. "Hm? Natsumi?"
"Muxiao~~"
Natsumi lunged forward, wrapping her arms around his soft, squishy body, eyes wide with shock. "Wait! Muxiao, you—you can talk now?!"
Right, I can actually speak now?
Wow!
"Muxiao," Natsumi said, melting at his voice. They'd always communicated through text, and hearing him for the first time made her heart flutter. She clung to him, rubbing against his squishy form. "Your voice is so nice."
His youthful, pure, clear tone stirred something in her.
"You pervert, can you not act like a lovesick fangirl?" Muxiao teased, extending a tentacle.
Natsumi bit her lip, letting out a soft moan, her breath warm and fragrant.
"Hmph, you call me a pervert, but aren't you…" She gasped again. Though shy, she didn't resist, swaying her lithe waist. Just as she was about to lose control and take things further, the tentacle pulled back.
"???"
"Now's not the time for this, you little perv."
"Ah!" Natsumi shrank back, blushing and stomping her foot, radiating allure. "I'm not a perv, you dummy Muxiao…"
"Aaaaahhh!!!"
"Filthy bitch! Die, die!"
"I'm the real Tomie! You fake, ugly hags!!"
Right, Tomie's wounds were spawning new duplicates again. Muxiao turned to the screaming, bickering Tomies, watching her twist into a grotesque monster. He shielded Natsumi behind him.
"Natsumi, go home. I've got some things to handle."
"But, Muxiao…"
"Be good, go back," he said, seeing her reluctance to let go of his tentacle. With a flick, he gave her a light whip—not hard, but enough to send a tingly sensation through her, making her blush deeply.
"I'm worried you won't come back…" she mumbled, clutching herself.
"No way, I'll be back after I deal with this," Muxiao said, gently nudging her. "I could never leave you, Natsumi."
"Ugh… Okay, I'll go. I'll wait for you at home, Muxiao. Come back soon."
Emmm, Natsumi's getting more and more like a devoted wife.
Once she left, Muxiao turned to Tomie, watching the eerie spectacle of new duplicates forming. Instead of alarm, he grinned widely.
"Another wave of evolution points."
Boom—