Reborn As An Evolving Monster

'Agh...'

Even though a couple of hours had passed since he had lost consciousness, Mark's head still hurt.

He opened his eyes suddenly and quickly sat up.

His breathing was unstable.

Heavy.

Mark checked his surroundings.

'Still here. Yeah, where else would I wake up...'

He was inside the Second Floor's Boss Room.

But something had changed.

'Did they bring these for me?' Mark asked himself, as he was surrounded by dozens of corpses.

Dead Monsters from the Second Floor.

Without even thinking about it any further, he started munching on the closest unmoving body.

It was that of a Lower Demon Warrior.

Only when he had swallowed the whole Monster, did Mark remember the scene from earlier.

'Titles... Those were... My Titles?' Mark asked himself as he started feeding on another dead Monster.

Levi entered the Boss Room.

With him, the corpses of multiple Monsters from the Second Floor.

He approached his Master.

But seeing no reaction, he left quietly.

'Titles... Titles... What are Titles anyway?' Mark thought as he tore a dead Monster's limb with his fangs.

He wanted to check the list of Titles he had obtained along the way.

But at the same time, he was scared that calling it out would produce some kind of reaction.

'That feeling... As if my head was about to split. I've never felt anything like that...'

Mark's leg shook slightly.

He tightened his grip on the corpse he was devouring.

The unmoving Inferior Lava Drake's head was crushed right away.

'Show it to me. My list of Titles.' Mark demanded.

[Titles:

[System Holder]

[Evolving Monster]

[Devourer]

[Heart Devourer]

[Blood Thirsty Devourer]

[Bone Devourer]

[Ore Devourer]

[Possible Demon King Candidate]

]

Mark's heart beat faster as the list appeared in front of him.

Thankfully, nothing unexpected happened.

'Devourer and Evolving Monster. The Titles that I was given at first... Without those two, I wouldn't have survived this long. What happened earlier?'

Mark waited for the System's answer, but none came.

'Those Titles together allow me to get stronger and Evolve. Together...? Wait... How does each one work separately? They work so well together that I started thinking of them as one and the same-'

[Your Title "Devourer" is shaking.]

[Your Title "Evolving Monster" is shaking.]

Freeze-

Apart from these messages in front of Mark, nothing happened.

'Did... Did they... Why are they... Are my Titles... Reacting? Or something?'

Nothing.

'Did they react to me saying that I thought of them as the same? That makes no sense. Titles...'

Mark stood up.

Instead of eating the Monsters like he had been doing, he used his "Consume[A]" Skill to turn the dead into energy for him to absorb.

'Titles... are more than what I think, right?'

[Correct.]

'What are they exactly?'

Silence-

'Tsk. At least, this made it clear. Inside of this monstrous body...'

Mark absorbed most of the corpses around him at once.

'There's a part I'm not familiar with.'

He looked around the room.

'All of you, come.' Mark ordered his Underlings.

They were not inside the Guardian's Room, but they could hear their Master's commands.

Without waiting for his Underlings, Mark started walking towards the doors that separated him from the Dungeon's Final Floor.

The Final Floor, that separated him from the outside world.

He stared at the doors for a bit.

'There's no denying that I do not understand these two Titles I was given. The others, like "Heart Devourer" have simpler effects. But those two... The Titles I was given the moment I was thrown into this Dungeon... This damned Dungeon...'

A message surprised Mark.

It made him smile weakly.

[You were once asked whether you wanted to live anew.]

[Do you regret your choice?]

'You only answer when you feel like it, huh? Do I regret being thrown in here...?'

Mark pushed open the doors in front of him.

What he found, on the other side of the door, was a pitch-black room.

Despite his "Night Vision", he couldn't tell how large it was.

Mark raised his gaze towards the ceiling.

He couldn't see the room's ceiling, but a faint ray of light shone in the darkness, a good distance above from where he stood.

'Earth, Water, Fire and now... It must be Wind, right? Am I supposed to fly to get there?'

Mark's dark wings spread immediately.

A strong wind blast was left behind him as he took off.

'Titles... Titles... They might not be things as simple as belongings, maybe. Those two... At that time... It was like they had a will of their own... A mind of their own. Still, there's no denying that those are MY Titles. Even the System refers to them as mine. Then... Yeah. The problem, earlier, was that they changed, didn't they? They turned into... What was it? I couldn't quite catch it...'

Mark chuckled weakly as he flew higher and higher.

'Yeah. It was like they had evolved into something else. Into something... That wasn't mine. Yeah... That seems... To make sense.'

Due to another one of his Titles, Mark felt slightly anxious.

'The one that is still silent worries me though. The others have shown their effects, but the "Possible Demon King Candidate" one...? When I first received it, I didn't think about it much. That must be why I was brought here, right? To be a Demon King's Successor? To become a Demon King? Haha, seems like I'm still a way off. Since I'm only a POSSIBLE CANDIDATE for now-'

Something clicked.

At the same time, Mark arrived.

A hole in the ceiling from which rays of light passed.

'My Titles... Aren't my belongings, are they? They're more than that... I didn't get it before but... It's like that Undead Guardian said. I am the Possible Demon King Candidate. By that same logic, I am the Evolving Monster and I am...'

Mark was bathed in gentle sunlight as he passed through that hole.

'The Devourer.'

Mark arrived at the Dungeon's Last Floor.

Above him, a clear blue sky.

'This is... This isn't the outside world, right?'

[Correct.]

Around Mark, was a grassy plain.

Far away was a huge forest that encircled the grassy plain he stood on.

The trees seemed abnormally tall.

'It resembles the Ninth Floor, but... it feels totally different. Setting aside the fact that I'm at the Floor's center right away...'

Mark was welcomed by birds chirping, a gentle sun, a pleasant breeze, and beautiful scenery.

'There's something... Different...'

Mark walked on the grass that covered the ground.

He lowered his body and lay his hand on the vibrant grass.

'Mmmm... It must be because of my "Mana Manipulation[A]" Skill that I can sense it...'

Mark raised his body and looked around him.

'Feels like... There's Mana everywhere on this Floor. Even in the grass. It feels different. Oh. The air is different too.'

Mark took a deep breath in.

He showed his fangs right away.

'The air is heavier. No... Thicker? But... It fills me with strength.'

Mark felt light-headed, but the feeling was faint enough that it was almost pleasant.

He raised and lowered his arms many times.

'Mm. The air is heavier. Breathing feels better. My Endurance and Mana would probably replenish faster here, but moving my body is a bit harder.'

The fact that the air was filled with Mana made cutting through the air to move around more difficult than on the other Floors.

'It's not a huge difference but... I won't be able to reach my top speed here. Wait, I've felt this before-'

Only then, did Mark remember.

He laughed out loud, before taking deep breaths

'That's how the air is outside. Outside of this Dungeon. Yeah... That's why I couldn't breathe back then. It wasn't just the cold. No... The air outside of the Dungeon is denser in Mana than here. Much denser. That, I'm sure of.'

Mark realized that his aim on the Last Floor was different from the previous ones.

It came before fighting the Guardian Monster.

Before beating and devouring strong Monsters.

The first objective, was to get used to everything being filled with Mana, especially the air that his lungs desperately needed.

'It's circular. And I'm in the middle of it. Is there even a Guardian on this Floor? Or can I leave after crossing the forest? I won't leave straight away though. I would probably just end up passing out as soon as I exit the Dungeon if I did so....'

[There is a Guardian at this Floor's end.]

Somehow, Mark felt good about that fact.

Maybe it was simply the familiar aspect of that fact that reassured him.

Or maybe, he was glad to hear that there was yet another strong opponent waiting for him.

'Alright then. Unlike the earlier cramped Floor, this one is huge. I'll spend some time exploring it-'

Mark's thoughts were interrupted, as he heard sounds coming from behind him.

CLANK-

Mark's worry dissipated right away, as he could guess what was approaching.

CLANK-

"My... My Lord..."

An exhausted Levi appeared from the dark hole in the ground.

'Oh. Did you climb all the way up? Using your hands and feet like ice axes? Good one. I completely forgot that you couldn't fly.'

"It is... Nothing... My Lord..." Levi struggled to complete his sentence. He lay on the ground.

The next second, Fiery followed.

As Fiery was an Insect-Type Monster, climbing was no challenge at all.

'Good. Now-'

"My Lord, the air is... Different here... Isn't it?"

'Right. The two of you stay here. Get used to it, I guess. I'll go bring the latecomer.'

Mark immediately stepped into the dark hole and started free-falling.

'I bet Krista is still sitting in the Boss Room, all proud. Pouting and-'

[You have bestowed the name "Krista" upon your Underling.]

Surprise caught Mark, as he spread his wings to stop himself from gaining any more speed.

'Oh. I guess I did. It was time, huh?'

[Your Underling is judging whether it should take the Name bestowed.]

'Mmmm...'

After Mark descended some more, he could see the Moonlit Feline.

Surprise-

'Oh.'

Instead of patiently and proudly waiting for its Master, the Underling was jumping from a platform made of ice.

The Moonlit Feline ran up the wall for as long as it could, before creating another platform using Ice Magic.

The newly named Krista was slowly, but surely, making her way up.

But the Underling's movements were rushed.

Tense.

As if filled with anxiety.

Krista ran up and up, without noticing Mark who was still a good distance above.

Maybe it was because his Senses were sharper than hers, that she hadn't noticed him.

Maybe it was the anxiety from being left behind.

Mark started descending a bit faster.

As soon as the Moonlit Feline noticed him, its blue eyes widened.

The white-furred cat immediately created a bridge of ice on which it ran, without caring about saving up Mana.

Krista leaped into the air, towards Mark, whose arms were opened wide, welcoming the Underling.

But the instant the Moonlit Feline was about to land on Mark's body, a blinding light forced Mark's eyes shut.

'Huh-'

The next second, a heavy mass fell on his body.

'What are you-'

Mark's back hit the wall.

'UGH-'

And the two started falling.

They quickly hit the ground, as Krista hadn't climbed much.

'What the hell was that?' Mark asked, his body buried under that of a Lioness.

Akin to a hyena, the Moonlit Feline couldn't stop giggling.

In front of the Lioness' uncontrollable laughter, Mark couldn't help but do the same.

Despite the grazes on his back.