I found out something interesting about accelerating the growth of my skin. It made me shed like a snake. Skin flaked off like I'd suddenly been sunburned. Two weeks of peeling skin and it wasn't pleasant. It itched! The only good thing about it all was that each new layer of skin was stronger than the last. The skin wouldn't break from impacts but bladed weapons could still cut me. In combat, I had to favor my right side as it was much tougher than my left. My enemies made it a point to aim for my left and I knew I'd be thankful once the month was up and all of my skin was as strong as stone. Still, it was kind of gross and annoying.

I'd been too busy training during this time so I wasn't entirely sure, but I believed that something was happening with the Kobolds. They'd become far more vigilant to outsiders in a short amount of time. Attempting to find out what exactly was going on was difficult. The most I could gather was that they were gearing up for a fight. I figured it was another Goblin purge, those things apparently reproduced quickly and the amount that came into Olympus wasn't something to turn my nose at.

It was strange, normally the weaker Goblins kept away from our territory, but they'd gotten quite brave, moving in small groups. Vivian and Adarna were enough to handle them, but it still worried me.

While I waited for whatever was building up, I attempted to learn the Aura attack the Monster had used against me. Despite trying often, I couldn't quite get what it entailed. Imbuing my Ki with the will to do harm didn't seem to do much, it rushed out of my body and struck what I was trying to hurt, but it didn't do any damage. More often than not, I began to believe that it might've been a racial ability, maybe something about it's body was different than mine. Similar to the Kobolds, I couldn't attack with a tail that didn't exist.

I glanced at my right hand, feeling the soft fur with my other hand. It wasn't entirely impossible I supposed, but I had no idea how to even reproduce the assimilation that had happened before. Even if it could, a new limb was not like just getting a replacement. It required so much more than just a quick acclimatization.

Besides, I didn't really want a lizard tail. If I had to pick a tail, I'd pick one with more maneuverability. Like a monkey tail or something. I shook my head, I was getting into weird territory again. I was already increasing the strength of my body, I didn't need to think about adding new limbs to that...well not right now anyway.

I felt I was missing something in the pursuit of using Aura. It was something I'd have to put at the back of my mind for later study.

There was a firm knock at the door and I looked up, cocking my head as I saw through the Mana to the Ki beyond the door. The lines and energy informed me that it was one of the Kobold scouts. I moved over to the door and opened it. He handed me a piece of tanned hide with various pictures on it before giving me a bow of respect and heading off.

I looked at the hide, curious about the pictures on it. I'd been learning a bit of the Kobold language, but nothing workable yet. I didn't have the right facial structure to pronounce some of their words, a long tongue and less use of the lips to create words. It gave them a lisping, hissing structure.

It was the same for them when trying to speak in my language, so it was just better for the both of us to just use pictures and body language to communicate. Despite their warrior like attitude, they were surprisingly gifted artists. They used images to represent their history instead of using word to mouth storytelling.

The images on the Hide were bothersome. From what I understood, the Hobgoblins were gearing up for an all out assault on the Kobolds. That explained their enhanced guard. They'd been getting ready for the fight. As I was an acquaintance, they hadn't wanted to involve me in their war, but the numbers of the Goblins had proven to be greater than they anticipated. They wouldn't force me to participate, but they did request my aid.

I sighed as I ran a hand through my hair before calling to my two companions, informing them to prepare for battle. It wasn't something I was particularly excited about, but the Kobold people had treated me well since they'd arrived, even helping me out in battle. I couldn't in good conscience simply let them fight it out alone. It was also an attempt to participate in an actual War. I was acquainted with a Goddess, it wasn't that hard to believe she'd ask me to help out in her world at some point. She seemed to already have a Hero of her own, but even a Hero needed help sometimes and I wasn't so naive to believe I wouldn't get dragged into another world's war.

Unless I had the power of a God myself, I wouldn't be able to just refuse. Artemis hadn't thrown more than I could handle at me yet, aside from the Monster, so I regarded her a bit better than the only other Deity I'd had contact with. The one that had blinded me certainly didn't have problems snatching people out of their lives.

Artemis probably wouldn't force me, but that didn't mean other Deities wouldn't.

War was a good forge. If I didn't use it to temper myself, I'd break in the future.

So the three of us entered into the Kobold/Hobgoblin war. It only lasted a week, but in the time I fought, it felt like a lifetime. I rushed into combat with my companions, along side Kobolds and I used my abilities to the fullest.

I'd killed a lot of creatures in my own defense, and this war was quite similar. The Hobgoblins wanted to destroy the Kobolds. It made sense, I'd gotten the feeling that the two races weren't on good terms on their home territory either. Goblins weren't the nicest of creatures either, I'd seen them eat their own kind. I didn't need to feel bad for killing them, not after this long.

But it was still there with every blade of wind that cut them down, with the very sizzle of their flesh as I used fire to roast them. It nagged at me. Humans had warred like this in the past, with cold steel. We still warred, but less with weapons and more with politics. People liked to say that war didn't change, and for the most part it didn't, but what changed about war was the way it was waged.

We abandon our perceptions of our enemies, seeing them as bodies to destroy.

As I fought, that feeling ate away at me. Anger at myself for joining, anger at the Hobgoblins for starting this, and anger at the Kobolds for dragging me into this. So I slaughtered more, drowned myself in battle, soaked myself in the blood and flesh of my enemies.

The dying Ki before me was called by my own, to sustain my rampage, to speed the conclusion of this war forwards. I burned my stamina until there was nothing but the thought of blood.

With a wave of my hand, my Ki tore out of me and into my enemies. Aura burned into their bodies, ripping their blood into the sky, absorbed by my Ki. Feed me...

'Blood. Blood. Blood.'

When I tried to stop, my Ki urged me forwards, drowning out all unnecessary thoughts. Just more...

'Blood. Blood. Blood.'

I didn't stop for that entire week. I didn't end the war single handily, just thrived in it. It was over when the Kobold leader held the head of the Hobgoblin leader.

I had no taste for celebration, without battle my Ki raged inside of me urging me to turn on the Kobolds, on Vivian, on Adarna, on the Ents and Wolves, and on the Monster.

But I forced it down, clamping on it with my will as hard as I could and went home, Vivian and Adarna in tow. When we got there, the two of them fell into an exhausted slumber. I wanted to sleep too, but first I took a good look at my Ki and what I saw filled me with Sorrow and Fear, as if my very soul felt anguish at what it was.

"Blood" my Ki was laced with it. A blood red energy that struggled to rip its way out of my control. It raged and twisted. It was easily the same size of my Ki, explaining why I'd had so much trouble controlling it.

The battle, every kill seemed to have fed it, growing it. Even now it whispered into my ears, promising strength for blood. Any blood, the stronger the better. It devoured Ki and thrived on blood.

Now I knew what that Monster was. It was someone or something that had given into this desire, this Blood Ki. I also found out something else, it rejected Mana, wouldn't even interact with it. That was why the Mana around the throne room had been so pressurized. The energy the Monster gave off rejected Mana...

But that meant that it couldn't grow stronger like other living beings, it couldn't turn mana into new Ki...so it killed and devoured their blood and Ki, converting it into its own energy.

Why hadn't it killed me then? Why hadn't it devoured my blood...unless. Just as every action depletes normal Ki by a small amount, it does the same with Blood Ki, but because it can't regenerate, the creature has to carefully decide when to fight. If it expends more energy than it can get back, it would eventually die. As long as it's body didn't move, it didn't lose energy.

'Blood!'

For a moment I lost control of my Ki as the Blood Ki surged against it but I quickly contained it once more. I was too weak so it could only use it's Aura to scare me off. Fighting me would only deplete its strength even further.

Aura...it wasn't an ability. It was the very act of wanting to slaughter, to devour the opponent. Perhaps only those with Blood Ki could use it. Only after immersing myself in battle and blood could I use it.

But I couldn't keep it. I couldn't control it, it didn't obey will like normal Ki, all it wanted was constant blood. It promised power if I just let it devour my own Ki, to let it become my sole source of power. I could feel that my Ki was close to something. Once it was big enough, something would change.

However, I didn't give in. I didn't like what it had done to me, what it'd made me do. I'd enjoyed slaughtering those Goblins and Hobgoblins and when they'd all been killed, I was ready to turn on my allies.

A soft clink appeared next to me and I turned, seeing a swirling golden bottle. It was imbued with Deity Ki. I blinked before smiling. I pulled the stopper from the bottle and began to force the Blood Ki out of my body. It didn't want to leave and I could only get it to travel up my throat. Lurching forwards, I began to puke the glowing red energy into the bottle, making sure not to miss. I wasn't entirely sure it'd just vanish, it could possibly infect another living being.

Once I'd emptied my body of the Blood Ki, I quickly slapped the stopper onto the bottle, sealing the red Ki into the bottle. It struggled but couldn't even move the bottle.

"...Thanks Artemis" I said softly.

"Don't thank me" the Goddess said from behind me "I would have immediately destroyed you had you given in. You were lucky that it was so weak. If it'd been like that beast in the throne room, even I wouldn't have been able to help you.

"Is it as strong as a Deity?" I asked. It had felt great power from it, but not that much power.

"No. I found that bastard on the fringes of my world" I could hear her grind her teeth slightly "I was going to destroy it but I then remembered that you hadn't met them yet. Hadn't experienced them. It won't move until someone strong enough appears. That should give you time to increase your strength and defeat it." she sighed softly "If not, it will devour you, then I'll destroy it"

"Well thanks for that" I shook my head and looked at her.

She shook her head, her face looking sad "Life is full of danger and you won't always have the aid of a Deity on your side. You need to know the danger of these things before you leave this place. Should they appear on Earth, your world would be doomed. I'd hate to see that happen." she smiled a little at me.

I slowly stood up "I always liked the Moon, it was soft and beautiful" I chuckled lightly "Who knew that she could be so relentless" I sighed and nodded at her "I get the point. Strength and more strength right?"

She nodded "Always someone stronger, if you want to step into this world, you have to be ready for all of its dangers. Some deities give their Hero's a sense of superiority, I break them down and build them up again."

"I'm not a Hero though. I'm just his brother" I grinned as I touched felt my body before making a face "I need to get clean"

"Let me help" she said and pointed towards the end of the hall. I watched as the ground easily formed into a half dome shape and began to fill with water. I rolled my eyes. I'd need several hours to do the exact same thing. It looked like she'd even heated it.

I walked towards the water before looking back to her "Going to watch me bathe?" I asked grinning.

It was time for her to roll her eyes as she knelt down to pick up the bottle "As much as I am sure that you'd enjoy that, I have to go study this. It isn't everyday that a Deity gets such a weak specimen" and with that, she was gone.

With a final chuckle, I stripped out of my blood soaked pants and climbed into the water. I let out a deep sigh as the hot water soaked into my muscles. Without the constant energizing effect of my deeply exhausted Ki, my entire body was in pain, aches, cuts, bruises, piercings, gashes. I had a numerous amount of wounds, barely healed enough to stop me from bleeding out.

Blood Ki. It was certainly a slaughterer's Ki. Even while I'd been constantly wounded, it had kept me just enough alive to keep fighting. I washed enough blood from my body to tint the water red, but after about an hour, I was finally clean.

However, my last remaining clothing was ruined. Not that I was in much shape to care, I barely reached my sleeping area before I passed out.

Fortunately, when I awoke, I was lucky enough to find that the Kobold's had given me a few gifts. According to Vivian, I'd been asleep for days, but I'd fought well so I deserved a reward. The first was what I immediately needed, a Kobold loin cloth, altered to fit my size. It was easy to move in and quite breezy as well. Fortunately, they hadn't added a tail hole, that would have been embarrassing to deal with.

The next gift I found was my staff. It looked like it had been painstakingly engraved in various symbols and shapes. I'd seen other Kobolds with similar designs and only barely understood that they were a sort of honor for distinguished warriors. Unlike human warriors who could tattoo their skin, their hard scales wouldn't work that way. So they decorated their most used weapons.

The final gift was a book of pictures.The images on the book had been engraved with Ki, an impressive feat and also beneficial since that meant I could see them. The book was something I'd wanted from the Kobold people for a while now. It was their Magic. I'd only seen their Mages use magic from a distance so this was a great boon. The pictures were detailed enough for me to get an understanding on how they understood magic. There were words in the Kobold language which I assumed were the magic chants or words. Given my understanding, I didn't really need the words, just the right image.

I clapped my hands in glee. This was awesome. In addition to attack magic, the Kobolds also used various Blessing Magic to temporarily boost their warriors strength and agility. If I could understand the basics behind the magic, I might be able to do the same with my own body. I could double my abilities in an instant.

Of course, first I needed to meditate and regain all the lost Ki I'd lost during the war. An entire week of constant fighting had drained me to a little more than a grape sized Ki wisp, and that was after sleeping for a couple of days.

After constant battling, I decided to take a little rest and relaxation time. I spent the next week simply studying the Kobold magic and strengthening my body. My head was the hardest, my nose kept getting stuffed with skin and my hair was filled with flakes. I just kept my eyes closed, I didn't need them anyway. Eventually though, my entire body's skin was as hard as stone.

I was about to begin figureing out how to strengthen my muscles next when I felt a change in the air. The mana twisted slightly and surged forwards, towards the North. Stepping out of the hall, I could see in the distance, a beam of purple magic. That was new...

Vivian however seemed to know what this was "Adventurers" she growled into my mind.

"Adventurers?" I wondered before snapping my fingers. I'd remembered that Artemis had tied Olympus to another world, that was why it had such a diverse grouping of creatures, they'd come from that other world and populated this area. It was obvious that a world with monsters would also have people who fought them on a regular basis.

I stood up and stretched, calling my staff to me "Lets go greet them then" I was a little excited. People from another world, how fun. Maybe there would be an Elf? Or a Dwarf? Ah...I also had to make sure that they didn't start up any trouble. With the Goblins currently gone, I only had allies around. Given that the Kobolds had been here way earlier, it was safe to assume that they were treated as common enemies in their world.

Well, I wouldn't let these adventurers harm my allies. Yet I kept a stern watch on my own emotions. I'd formed Blood Ki once before, it was possible that I could lose control and form it again.

Still. Adventurers! "Maybe I could learn a bit about their world." I was still excited at the prospect of meeting them.

'Or not...' I thought when I reached where the Adventurers had appeared and their archer immediately fired an arrow in our direction.

Oh...right. It was safe to assume they thought I was a monster too. I was here after all.

Bummer. Gonna have to kick their asses first.