My name is Ydos, and I was a mortal once, an adventurer, a rogue, a thrill-seeker, a man with not much to do in life aside slaying creatures in this wretched world. I have consumed many crystals that randomly drop from dungeon monsters, and have gained tremendous experience points from them. Seeing how powerful I became, I hungered for more. The more creatures I slew, the more my mind was filled with ecstasy. The fresh smell of blood, the stench of mutilated corpses, and the groaning sound of your companions for taking away their trophies. Yes, it was a wonderful life of an adventurer.

And yet, it was not enough.

For twenty-five years I searched for a challenge; traveling between continents in pursuit of the new creature that would further develop my abilities, one that would get me closer to the strength required to qualify as a god. I achieved it. In the desert of Almesh, I was given a chance to fight a great monster, one that would have brought a devastating cataclysm into our world. I had ten party members that followed me for the thrill of the adventure, obtaining riches, and making names for themselves.

As a conclusion of the ferocious battle, one in which six of my ten group members met their death, we emerged as victors. Of course, as a leader, I reserved the right to distribute loot. Everyone was content with me keeping the crystals for they received everything from swords to shields and other types of epic gear.

Few years passed, and yet, there was no new quest available for me, no further requirements to attain the class or ascend into the realm of gods - nothing. I was disappointed, confused, and angry. “Pathetic deities!” I screamed to myself. “You are paying no attention to the man that has done so much for your pathetic world! When will you grant me more strength?” These thoughts were genuine. I honestly hated the gods then.

More time passed. I was fifty years old then and still retained my full strength. I never ceased to hunt creatures. It was my obsession, after all. The more enemies I slew, the more I became paranoid. At some point in time, I lost track of passing years. I kept recruiting new party members, used them to slay tougher monsters that I alone could not fight, and then when these men and women would get tired and excited as a result of protracted battle, I slew them too.

Am I a bastard? Am I a monster? Of course, I am. But you know what? I am okay with it. You know that nagging feeling that you get once in your life telling you that you are unique, you are the chosen one, the right person in the right time but nobody ever listens to you? I was enlightened. I had to become stronger than anyone in the world, force my way into godhood, find rest of the deities and teach them proper order. I am a messiah, I thought. Perhaps that is the reason why one day, after finishing up my business at one of the dungeons, a man presented himself in front of me. He wore expensive robes, and a wooden mask covered his face.

"Who are you?” I ask him, directing my blade - that has fresh blood dripping from it - to his neck.

“Greetings, adventurer. I am a member of Zar’Hakal. My name is irrelevant. I am here to deliver a message.”

I think for a moment and shake my head. Whoever this person is, I do not care. He has seen me kill my fellow party members. This man needs to die. Without further delay, I cast [Blessing of Fire] onto my sword and hit him once, immediately following up with [Scissor Stab].

You deal 1200 + 7800 damage from the basic attack. Your ability deals 1200 + 18,665 damage. The apostle of Zar'Hakal dies.

As the man drops dead, I see a message pop-up inside my mind. I have not seen it for a long time.

You have reached level 70. Congratulations! Your stats, skill, and lust for power leave you with only one adequate class to choose. It is considered a Legendary tier and can be upgraded further upon devouring more creatures.

Class name: Fateweaver

Class specific abilities:

Analyze: You will be able to analyze any creatures (human or non-human), and find a critical Actor that is a most suitable target for your hunt.

Opportunist: You will be able to calculate the future events that have a high potential of occurring within 24 hours in a small vicinity based on the analysis that you conduct, giving you an opportunity to strike at your opponent during the peak of their weakness. This ability is only usable once a week.

Fateweaving: Activates automatically upon using Opportunist. If the opportunity to devour the target does not present itself in the scenario, then the skill will force a script. Requirements: The prey needs to be a Key Actor.

Warning, you have accumulated over 150,000 points in negative Karma. Having slain over five-hundred adventurers due to paranoia and lust, you will no longer be able to retain your current body. If you accept to take this class, you will be transformed into a new monster and will be hunted by the non-monster races. The user will not be considered as part of the dungeon system or any other naturally respawning inhabitants. Note that other monsters also fight for power and some are more complex than others. The race selected for you is known as the Golem. Upon transforming into such a creature, you will be moved to the adequate beginner area. Would you like to pursue this career?

Yes.

No.

I fall into thought as I read the message.

"What is there to lose? The class offers excellent benefits, and the power it provides sounds reasonable. I have been waiting for this for quite some time now and, as such, I do not think I can refuse. It appears to be my only option," I say out loud. "And yet, becoming a monster? What the hell is up with that? Did I commit homicide in that quantity?"

I become baffled, and a sensation of guilt floods my mind. A sudden chill runs down my spine and forces my body to tremble. However, for some reason, it soon dies out. I decide to gamble. Life is already boring for me otherwise.

"Pft. It is irrelevant. In the end, I chose to be like this. I gave up my humanity for eternal power. It is my obsession, my lust, and my payment in exchange for growth," I chuckled. Do I feel remorse? To a degree, yes. However, I quickly make up my mind and agree to the terms. A moment afterward, my consciousness fades into darkness.

After waking up, I am greeted with an odd sensation. My body feels more cumbersome than the usual, and a tremendous amount of power seems to be pulsating through it. A new message pops up in my head that displays my status bar:

Name:

Ydos

Race:

Golem

Title:

A man who gave up his humanity

Class:

Seeker of Power

Class Proficiency:

100/100

Health:

80,733 (+7 per second)

Mana:

1,178 (+0.3 per second)

Level:

70

Current EXP:

2,144,679

Next Level EXP:

83,472

Vitality:

56 (40 +16)

Resistance:

42 (22 +20)

Strength:

70 (50 +20)

Dexterity:

20 (19 +1)

Agility:

12 (10 + 2)

Intelligence:

33 (24 +9)

Wisdom:

10 (8 +2)

Active Effects:

The Body of a Golem

Strength +50; Vitality +40. Your [Shockwave] will scale off STRT and INT

The Core of a Golem

Resistance +22; Intelligence +24. Your health is increased by 75,033

No more Loot

No crystals or other loot will drop for you. To make up for it, you can devour the creatures and obtain extra EXP from them. Stats will work differently and will be explained after your first meal.

I look around and find myself inside of a forest. It is dark, but I can see the environment vividly. Despite me not having a face anymore, I grin. I move my body around to get a feel for it. Soon I discover that I have a mouth, but it is an odd concept. I look around a little and do not find any lifeforms. No humanoids or beasts.

"This is odd," I think to myself. As I move around, I hear a chatter between two people. My heart races as I become excited.

“Are we perhaps lost?” Asks the man.

“It is possible, for I have come from a different direction and have never walked in or out of the forest before," replies a female. Judging from the pitch, I can tell that the girl is very young.

Well then. My first prey, I think to myself as I hit the ground and send [Shockwave] - a new ability that I acquired as part of transformation - towards the two people. I attempted utilizing [Analyze], but for some reason, it did not work.

I fight the man for six full hours. It is exciting, but I do not understand why he does not run out of mana. The girl is avidly observing and cheering for him. Is she dumb? Does she not understand what situation she is in? I am about to devour both of them; however, I soon get trapped inside a water bubble, and a message pops up in my mind:

An unknown spell has dealt you 9,387,199 damage. A strange phenomenon is not allowing you to die, three seconds before restoring health back to normal.

"What?!" I exclaim in my thought, but before I can come to my senses, my mind fades into nothingness.

An odd sensation jolts through my body. It is a mixture of pain and unknown burning sensation, and a desire to feed. A noisy sound is also heard within my mind. I open my eyes and find myself in an odd area. It is a wasteland of sorts that appears to have no skies but is well lit regardless. I look around and see various weapons piled up; corrosion is actively spreading through them.

*Tock, Tock, Tock, Tock, Tock, Tock, Tock*

“Where am I?” I ask myself. Furthermore, why is there such a loud sound of the clock?

I try to use my [Analyze] over and over again. However, no results. I attempt using [Fortunetelling] and yet, nothing.

“Shit!” I yell, but nobody is here to hear me. “What is going on? Hello? Where am I?”

No answer, only the sound of a clock. I try to move around this place. One hour, two hours… fifteen hours. I covered who knows what distance. There is no end to this place. Did I die? I wonder. Moving my hand, I strike the ground and yet nothing happens. There is no damage, not even a dent in the soil. Suddenly a message pops up in my head:

report: Every non-currency item has been deleted.

What the hell was that? I look towards the objects that were shining a moment ago, but I do not see it anymore. What happened? Deciding to stay alert and be prepared to face enemies, I keep walking... walking.... how long have I been walking?

Ten hours, one week, two weeks, a year, ten years, just how much time has passed? What is going on? Not even a single humanoid, monster, or a deity has shown itself. Where am I? Why do I not get exhausted? Well, to be honest, I do know that I am no longer a human. However, the fact that my health does not deteriorate or that my mana does not go down is alarming.

As I sit down to rest for a little and analyze my situation, a sudden realization comes to my mind. My body can not reflect it, but my sanity is starting to dip into the depths of the abyss. My heart races erratically, my soul is chilled to its very existence as fear takes over me. I desperately try to gasp for air, despite not having lungs or needing to breathe, as I realize how isolated I am inside of this space where nothing exists.

Is this a bad dream, one that I can not wake up from? I wonder. I try to utilize my [Analyze] again but nothing happens, or so I thought. A sudden stream of energy enters my body.

“This! Oh, my!” I exclaim in ecstasy as beautiful lust for power awakens within me. I slowly begin to understand what is going on. Memories flood my head as I create a vague image of a girl with crimson-colored hair.

I see. So that is what happened, I laugh sadistically. Perfect. If this being is as powerful as its energy describes, then I will be more than glad to abuse the physical body’s weakness to plan my escape! Perfect. I will wait for the opportune time and strike her when she is at her limit. Afterward, I will take my revenge and toy with her, break her mind, and only then will I devour her body and take this limitless power. With that, I can finally become… No. This word is out of context here. Not become, but exceed. I will surpass the gods!

Two days pass by. There appears to be no gap whatsoever. The clock is slowly tick-tocking in its usual rhythm. “It is all right,” I tell myself. “I need to be patient.” And yet, my gut tells me that something is awry. I get a nagging feeling from deep within my mind screaming at me that I am being observed and evaluated.

“I am not going to drop my guard down,” I silently tell myself as I attempt to use my [Analyze] ability. Eventually, after several days, pleasant news floods my mind:

[Analyze] is complete. The focus actor - Alviona - has been discovered. She is at her uttermost weak when dealing with high temperatures. Side noise: Cornelia, Mimi, Janine, and Solomon. Situation analysis: It is very likely that due to the overly curious nature of the primary target, things will go awry. However, no such scenario was found. Would you like to use [Opportunist] now? Yes, no?

I get excited. Finally, my abilities started to work. And yet, I am somewhat frightened. Why was there no scenario at all if the girl is so fragile?

I shake my head and focus on her stats again. Without even slightest hesitation or delay, I select the [Yes] option.

Opportunist has been activated. The actor's fate has been weaved. Surrendering will signify the weakened state and ability to devour. Send a [Shockwave] into the soil to break the and begin the end...

Excellent! I tell myself, with a grin. This is, indeed, good news.

*Tock, Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock*

Time passes by. The longer I wait, the more anxious my mind becomes. A message pops up in my head, stating that less than half-an-hour remains until the due time. My heart skips a beat. If I had a human body, I would be profusely sweating. Excitement, fear, and impatience are the words that currently describe my condition. Eventually, I hear a man’s sound stating that he is Surrendering, followed by a female’s voice reciting the same words.

Now!

I send fifteen [Shockwave(s)] into the soil, forcing the earth to tremble. As I do, a small gap is formed that sucks me in, and the next moment, I find myself on an arena of sorts. Quickly looking around, I understand where this place is, but more importantly, I switch my focus towards my target.

“Piece of trash!” I yell at her, catching the girl off-guard, and rushing towards her with the elemental stones swirling around my right arm, attaching and transform it into a mouth of a monster. As I collide with the girl, I hear a crunching sound of bones, and my mind goes into ecstasy. She is not quite dead yet.

“W-what?” gasps the girl, her eyes expressing shock as my left-hand holds her in the air, ceasing her desperate attempt to escape.

“You pathetic, frail, and foolish little creature. How long were you going to hide from me? Or did you think that I would not find a way to escape? Such a beautiful body,” I say as my tongue licks her face. What a delicious taste. If I were human and had met this person many years ago, there is no doubt in the world that I would thoroughly enjoy her body. Without further delay, I swallow the girl and a sensation of fulfillment jolts throughout my body. A golem? Heh, that is irrelevant now. With this limitless power pumping through my body, I can become whatever I want! Ha, ha, ha!

“Alviona, no!” Yells a woman that sat alongside other students and was observing the duel.

“Is that what her name was? Ah, regrettable. Don’t worry there madame, you can join her if you want,” I say with a smile, jumping towards her and crushing her skull with my mouth. Yes, for god knows how many years I was imprisoned inside an endless box, and now I can finally see, smell, and taste it again – the fresh blood.

The dwarf and a demon that stood beside the girl are in a panic, unable to move from the shock that they received. Worry not, I will feast on you too. I will devour all of you! I scream in my mind, as my teeth grind through the flesh and bones of the two girls. Delicious!

The man who was dueling with Actor earlier charges at me in a futile attempt to stop me.

Why bother, why resist? What do you change? You were unable to defeat the girl whom I ate, so how do you plan to face me?

I dodge his incoming ability and send [Shockwave] towards him, knocking him down, and eating off his legs. The man’s screams and agony is music to my ears.

“Do not worry, I will not kill you. I will let you bleed,” I say in amusement as I watch the idiot die from bleeding.

Various messages flood my mind, but I ignore them. My current objective is to finish eating the remaining students and leave. Staying here any further is somewhat dangerous.

“Hm, I see. So that is what the library was talking about in the report. Well, it is all okie. Now then, ahem, mister. Do you not think you nommed on enough people? How much can your belly fit?” Asks a voice that catches me off-guard. This sweet sound is all too familiar.

“What? How? I ate you! Where are you?” I yell, frustrated by not understanding what is going on. “Are you inside of my mind?”

“I do not know what you are talking about. I am not inside your mind, rather, you are inside of my world. Welcome, Mr. Golem. I am glad to be graced by your presence,” said the voice. It did not appear to be distant, and yet, no matter where I searched, I was unable to locate the source.

“Really? Then how about you show yourself instead of cowering?”

“I do not know what that word means. However, you are correct that I should come out and say hi. After all, talking to someone and not doing a handshake is rude,” says the voice with a giggle, and materializes out of thin air in front of me.

The girl extends her hand that I instinctively tear off.

“Hm, I understand that you are hungry, but can you avoid salivating my delicate limb? It is tickling, yes. But, I do not like it. Give it back, you!” Says the girl, puffing her cheeks and furrowing eyebrows.

I stop for a moment and observe her. The girl does not look to be too disgruntled from losing her limb. On the contrary, she appears to be calm but slightly irritated. It amuses me. Her deep emerald-colored eyes, beautiful facial complexion, and long, green hair that is pushed back from the breeze. Yes, at this moment, I wish I was human again.

“Well? Are you not going to return my arm? I am waiting,” said the girl severely, causing me to burst out into laughter.

“You really are amusing,” I said, spitting out the remains of her limb. To my surprise, the girl kneeled and actually picked it up! What? Why? That is useless. You can not… What? She actually re-attached it?! Wait a moment, why is she not dead from bleeding? What is going on?

“Thank you very much,” said the girl, folding her arms and smiling. “I have to admit, it is sticky, and I do not like it, but at least you showed some manners.”

“Tell me, little miss. Are you not scared of me?” I ask her mockingly.

“Scared? Why, is there a reason for me to fear you? Or, are you telling me that you lack intelligence? Did I overestimate your thought process?” Asks the girl nonchalantly.

“What do you mean?” I ask her, not satisfied with her tone. “When those that are powerful and pose a threat stand in front of you, should you not be more respectful and perhaps kneel down and start begging for mercy?”

“Mercy? What is that?”

“What an idiot, mocking me at such a time. Well then, take this!” I yell, as my tongue becomes as hardened as a blade, penetrating the girl’s chest, driving it to her head, and laughing while having the moment of my life.

As I look at what I sculpted, my mind is filled with joy. Ah, now I want to mutilate her head and eat it.

“Well. Now, I am dissatisfied. This is utterly disgusting, and you are to be blamed for it,” says the headless figure that fixes itself.

“Impossible!” I yell as I move my mouth to wholly devour her body.

“Quite possible. Hey, who told you to move when permission was not granted,” says the girl and immediately after it, my limb is frozen midway.

“W-what?” I ask with fear, as realization floods my mind: I can not move my body.

“Cease talking,” ordered the girl with a smile. “Now then. What should I do to you? Initially, I planned to talk to you. However, Mr. Tock and Library adamantly insisted that I conduct an experiment. I have no records of this world, and everything for me is a mystery. As a security measure, I created this beautiful world for you. I even allowed you to use your abilities to probe the outside and come back with the results. The library was quite pleased with the new records that she received. I know what you are thinking,” the girl stopped and pouted. “Are you trying to say something? Ah, sorry. You may speak, but please, be brief. I need to leave soon.”

“What are you?! I clearly ate you! And I realize it now. When or how did you change your hair color, and why are you so young when almost a century has passed since I last saw you?”

“Ah. Well, I do not know how to explain. A lot has happened, and I think it would be a useless detail for me to tell you about it. My hair color, oh. You noticed. T-thank you very much, but I will not answer that question. As for the time. Well, how do I say it? Uhm, my time flows differently here because you are inside of the core, and not in the real world.”

“Real world? So are you telling me this is not real? Those people whom I ate, none of it is a thing? Your name is not Alviona?”

“It is my name. Oh, I see. You have not figured it out. Well, it is all irrelevant now,” said the girl with a bright smile. Despite it being adorable, I catch a hint of evil in it.

“You are planning to do something. Stop with that innocent smile! What is going to happen to me?”

“Hm? I do not think that I can do anything to you. I merely wanted to talk, but you assaulted and ate the core. She is disappointed, which is why I am here instead.”

“What is core? What are you? You are going in circles and are not answering my question!”

“Oh, I apologize. Here is a simple overview. You are an unknown thingie that caused disturbance inside of my a few weeks ago. I got curious, and after I gained access to my library, I decided to investigate everything. There is not much else to it except for the fact that when you used your ability, I allowed you to probe the real world. As I analyzed what you were doing, I created the world according to your Fateweaving and allowed it to manipulate me. However, we are in my world. Therefore, I retain full control over it. So, to summarize it, I think I lied to you. Wait, does that mean I am a meanie?!”

“But I ate your core! Should that not mean that it belongs to me? Is power not flowing through my body?”

“Power, flowing, body. I do not understand. Are you referring to me giving you false data? Who knows. Regardless, I came to a conclusion. I agree with myself on this. Since you ate the Core, I am disheartened and cannot call you a friend. You are a true meanie. As such, I give myself a permission to eat you. I said that it would be a bad idea to nom on corpses; however, you are no such thing. Therefore, it is okie to eat you. Now then, come here, food. Let me bite you!” Said the girl as she joyfully approached me. A moment later, I began losing my memories and soon after, I died.

***

Upon eating the atoms of her adversary, Alviona #399 stepped back, and her hair changed to crimson.

“Do you understand what I meant now?” Asked the library that gently patted her on her shoulders.

“I do. But still, tell me, why did that ability force me to get hot when nearby Janine?” Asked Alviona, her face expressing confusion and frustration from the events that unfolded so far.

“Mistress, as you told yourself earlier, I think you will find an answer at a later time. For now, let me know what you would like me to do with the golem’s remains?”

“Well, if what this person weaved is correct, and I believe it to be accurate with deviations from the truth here and there, for he could not find any opportunities to strike at me, then I can say that his body should be further analyzed. I did not know when Solomon fought him, that he was not the same thing that Anita created,” replied Alviona with a smile.

“I understand. In that case, I will move the body back to your . I have completed writing down all the records. The man did give us some good insight on some subjects that you can take, so that was interesting. By the way, mistress, is it not time to wake up?”

“Oh my! You are correct, me. I am excited. I will get to see that girl who has similar features to me and will become her friend. On top of that, I will get to spend time with Janine and Mimi. I also need to talk to my grandma about several things. She is wise and will be able to help me out. Ah, bliss! Life is fascinating,” said Alviona as she waved goodbye to the Library and went back to her resting chamber.

*Tock, Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock*

“Hm? I did not think you would be up this early, Alviona,” said Mimi who was reading a book and sipping on her tea. The aroma caught Alviona’s attention.

“Mimi, may I join you? Please?”

“Why of course. Would you like some cake too? I saved it for you.”

“Mimi, you are truly an interesting person. I really admire you. Say, do you have any questions for me?”

“Hm, not that I can think of. Well, have you by chance received your uniform?”

“No, but there should be a girl coming here any time now who will help me with that,” said Alviona as she looked towards the door.

“Good morning, Alviona,” said Janine who was first to enter the room, followed by Solomon and Cornelia. “This girl here is…”

“Cornelia?”

“Yes. Wait, what? Have you two already met?” Asked Janine who was caught off-guard.

“You could say so,” replied Alviona chirpily. Janine gave her an odd glance, and the guest also appeared to be confused.

“This is my first time seeing her. How could I have met her? I received the assignment from the headmaster as early as two hours ago and went to your chambers first. Since the girls in the hallways kept talking about a tall man standing beside your room, I got curious. I was surprised to hear that you were not Alviona,” said Cornelia to Janine.

“Well, trust me, perhaps it is for the best. One Alviona for the world, is already one too many,” replied Janine who glanced at the girl in question and began hysterically laughing for no apparent reason.

“Are you all right?” Asked Cornelia.

“Quite. Forgive me, I just had a weird thought cross my head. Well, since there is no need for introductions, let us not waste time. We need to get a lot done today.”

The day passed by usually. Just like the man had fate weaved, Alviona took the same classes; however, she never got as hot near Janine as she was forced during the experiment. This eased her mind.

“Say, Cornelia. Can we please visit the arena? I want to check one last thing,” said the child with pleading eyes.

“Ah. Interested in duels are you?”

“No. No such thing. I want to see the concept though.”

“I see. Well, I do not see any harm in that. Let’s go.”

Cornelia led the way. Alviona kept observing every movement that was made by everyone present inside the arena. After watching Bastion win, she grinned from the satisfaction of concluding her experiment.

Interesting. So the fate weaving passive really did create a truthful to the world scenario. This world is indeed a mystery. I should watch out for the enemies in the future. The golem being inside of my world was unacceptable. I should have been less reckless in the first place.

With that, the party went to the bookstores and purchased necessary documents. Alviona was also introduced to the library of the Dalei Academy located in southeast part of the institution.

The nighttime was approaching as Cornelia finished her tour. After waving goodbye and letting everyone go back to their resting quarters, Alviona and Mimi decided to return to their rooms and rest for the day.

Unfortunately, Alviona was unable to properly fall asleep. She was too excited from the events that unfolded throughout the day. The child was also rejoiced by being around Janine, and from the fact that nobody was hurt or eaten. Unable to settle down, she opened the window and stared into the dark landscape illuminated by the moonlight.

With a grin, Alviona extended her majestic wings that blended in with the night. Without further delay, she set out for a quick flight and one more tour of the Academy. It did the trick. Upon her return, the girl steadily fell asleep.