'Where… am I?''
The last thing he remembered was the cold sensation in his forehead before going blank.
'What is this place?'
His thoughts rang clear, but his voice never left his lips. He couldn't even feel lips. Couldn't feel a body the way he once had.
All around him was a thick warmth, a liquid that cushioned him yet bound him in place. He pushed against it, and a solid shell resisted his movement.
Smooth. Curved. Endless.
Like an egg.
Panic should have seized him. But instead, a strange calm settled over him. The liquid pulsed through his veins, rejuvenating his body.
[Host confirmed: Zian Castle]
[Error detected: Host's soul corrupted with extreme hatred.]
[Evaluating host's karma…]
Murders committed:809 confirmed.
Notable victims: high-ranking officials, senators, judges, police officers, mafia bosses, drug lords, human traffickers, trained mercenaries, businessmen....
Mental Alignment: 75% IQ| 5% EQ | 20% Unstable
Soul alignment: 95% Wrath | 5% Justice | 0% Mercy.
Result: System modified in accordance to karma.
[Slaughter System Activated.]
He did not react and simply let things play out.
[Main Mission: Evolve to Category 10]
[Reward: Revival Stone ×2 — Resurrect anyone that share your blood.]
Zian's composure cracked.
For the first time since waking up, his pulse thundered like a drum. His daughters' names flashed in his mind—Sarah, Emma—their laughter, their tiny hands clutching his own.
"Revival stone…"
Outrageous. Impossible. Too good to be true.
And yet…
If there was even a chance—
His head bumped against the inside of the shell. He could feel it splintering under his strength, liquid spilling through cracks.
'If this isn't a lie… If this isn't some sick joke…" His thoughts were all messed up.
The egg groaned, cracks spreading wider, until it finally shattered—drenching him in a flood of slimy liquid that dragged him down.
Light stabbed his vision like needles before his eyes slowly adjusted.
'A sewer?'
Broken eggshells littered the ground around him, their fragments gleaming wet in the dim light filtering through grates above.
Hundreds of them. Maybe a thousand.
But the shells weren't what made him worried.
Things moved in the darkness. Pink, glistening shapes that writhed and twisted across the floor.
Worms. Giant worms with little legs that scratched against the ground as they crawled.
One turned toward him, and he saw tiny black eyes. A mouth that opened and closed like a fish gasping for air.
"No..."
The word came out wrong. Squeaky. High-pitched.
Zian looked down at himself and his world tilted sideways.
Pink skin stretched over a soft, cylindrical body. No arms. Just tiny legs that barely lifted him off the ground. When he tried to speak again, only that same pathetic squeak emerged.
'Calm down. So I've turned into a worm… I just need to accept it.'
A madman like him could never be shaken by such a discovery.
Survival came first. Everything else was secondary.
One of the worm-creatures crawled closer, its black eyes fixed on him.
'Tsk. There's no way it's coming over to be friends.'
Zian tried to back away, but his stubby legs offered no speed.
The creature's mouth opened wider, revealing rows of tiny sharp teeth.
[Species: Sewer Larvae — Category 0]
[Current Status: Weakest evolutionary stage]
[Mission: Devour your own kind and evolve into Category One within 48 hours.]
[Reward: Evolution Path]
[Penalty: Death.]
He didn't waste time on shock or self-pity. The system's message was clear enough—eat or die.
Crawling slowly, he put distance between himself and the swarm.
The other creature watched him go but didn't follow.
Good. Fighting at his current size would be suicide. Better to pick off the weak ones first.
The unhatched eggs scattered across the sewer floor like abandoned pearls.
Zian approached the nearest one, studying its surface. A few taps with his head, and cracks appeared.
Perfect.
He pressed his mouth against the crack and bit down.
The shell gave way with a wet crunch, spilling warm liquid across his face. Inside, a half-formed larvae twitched—barely alive.
Zian devoured it piece by piece, indifferent to the taste.
[Sewer Larvae consumed: 1/1000]
"One thousand..."
The number made him twitch. At this rate, he would be crawling around this sewer for days.
'No… I felt it. I did grow stronger after eating one. If I can grow bigger, I'll be able to consume faster.'
One down. Nine hundred ninety-nine to go.
Hours passed as he methodically cracked eggs and consumed their contents.
Crack, bite, swallow.
Crack, bite, swallow.
The routine became automatic, meditative even.
[Sewer Larvae consumed: 67/1000]
His body stretched longer with each meal.
What started as a stubby pink worm gradually became something more substantial—thicker, with legs that actually supported his weight.
The sixty-eighth egg cracked more easily than the others.
When he looked back at the shells he left behind, they formed a small mountain of debris.
A few of the wandering larvae had noticed his feeding ground. They approached cautiously, black eyes fixed on the remaining eggs.
Coiling slightly, his newly grown body tensed. Competition, just as he anticipated.
But size mattered down here, and he already claimed the advantage.
When one larvae got too close to his chosen egg, Zian's head shot forward like a snake. His teeth sank into its soft flesh.
[Sewer Larvae consumed: 69/1000]
Fresh meat tasted different from the half-formed creatures in the eggs. Richer. More satisfying.
The other larvae scattered, squeaking in their high-pitched voices.
"That's right… run while you still can. This is my territory."