∼ Born A King ∼

Chapter - 100

Glowing red runes lit the large hollow of the cave. Forming a portal to the infernal beyond, large clawed hands pulled a short-statured demon out. Fisty. Although there was little to no light, the thrasher as a demon shared a similar affinity for peering through the dark like Nyx. So when the small demon whirled on her master, she froze in place.

Admittedly, as petty it was, Nyx had been prepared - expecting even - to be showered in awe and reverence from his minion at the grandeur of his new form. However, Fisty's reaction wasn't exactly what he had been imagining... She just stood there, head tilted, her long arms hanging from her sides limb on the ground, mouth agape, and... was that drool slowly coming down the side of her lips?

Genuinely worried that his familiar might've somehow suffered some brain damage from the last fight with the human mercenaries, Nyx waved hand in front of her intense stare. That seemed to do the trick as she suddenly came back to herself. Her weird peculiar self that is. And in greater force, than Nyx had ever seen before.

She literally lept at ham, latching on to his chest with both her legs and arms like some harness, beginning to lick his face all over while he stood little to no chance to defend himself. "Argh! No! G-Get off!" He yelped, stumbling back. But she of course wasn't listening. It was Fisty after all, and the intensity of her peculiar nature for whatever reason was more strange than usual.

Using his newfound strength, however, he quickly found it surprisingly easy to overpower the little she-demon. Though he still struggled a little to properly pry her off as he just barely managed to grab her by the tail, holding her out in front of him upside down. Even so, her long arms and meaty hands were grabbing for him, a manic look still in her eyes. One Nyx couldn't recognize. Insanity? No, he had seen that before. This wasn't it. This was more... frightening... Worse still, his display of strength to overpower her appeared to only spur the demon on.

It took a little while to make Fisty calm down, but she never lost that look in her eyes. It sent shivers down his spine. She just sat there on the ground, looking up at him, feeling a little more than uncomfortable under the scrutiny of her burning gaze. Nyx pulled up the window he had gotten a while ago. Eager to see what his minion would choose.

Congratulations! Your Familiar - Thrasher "Fisty" has accrued enough experience to gain five levels!

LVL: 20 → 25

∼Evolution Available∼

Do you wish to accept your soulbound familiar's evolution?

[Y/N]

Before saying yes, he retrieved her status, going over the strides in both attributes and skills that she had made.

Soulbound Familiar Information

Attributes Name Fisty Health 100/100 STR 32 ⇒ 42 END 7 ⇒ 8 Race Thrasher Stamina 36/36 DEX 9 ⇒ 10 INT 4 Level 25 - (0%) Mana 0/0 VIT 7 ⇒ 10 CHR 1 Traits Demonic Rage - (Racial), Fire Resistance - (Racial), Mark of Wrath - (Demonism) Titles None Skills Dash - [Peak], Rampage - [Moderate], Thrash - [Superior], Pursuit - [Superior]

Nodding in pride at his minion's respectable growth, Nyx accepted her evolution.

∼[Yes]∼

Suddenly enveloped in a white glow that didn't actually shine, producing no light to dispel the darkness, it formed a bubble of sorts around the demon. Curious, Nyx poked at the thing, finding it surprisingly pliant to the touch yet unscratchable no matter how hard he tried. System-y things yet again, he reasoned.

It was less than a handful of minutes later when the glowing lightless bubble dissipated, revealing a new figure within.

Squat yet menacingly barbaric, what stood before Nyx was surprisingly enough the very same Fisty he remembered. But different. Strong. She retained her freakishly large hands, though they were now even longer, thicker, and stronger - ending in hands that might as well have been giants' sledgehammers.

She was still short, but a lot bigger than before. Whereas she had been slightly taller than Nyx in his imp days, she was now standing to his chest, like a very short human woman. She was just now an even more odd mix of proportions.

Long squatting legs with tree trunks for thighs set on wide hips leading to a slim waist and short torso, she exhibited a powerful build made for intense, sudden movements. And now, it wasn't just her arms that were dispositionally large. Other than all that, she still very much reminded Nyx of her brutish self. With a face that was distinctly female yet savage, twin tusks extending from her mouth, her visage framed underneath a mop of black hair, and long ears - she was easily recognizable.

Lastly, her tail was no longer thin and wiry, but long and thick. Raw muscle. Nyx could only imagine the poor sods who'd have their chests caved in by a lash from that monstrous thing in an attempt to block it.

Your Familiar, Lesser Demon - Thrasher (Rare) has evolved into Greater Demon - Savager (Epic)

Soulbound Familiar Information

Attributes Name Fisty Health 300/300 STR 42 END 8 Race Savager Stamina 104/104 DEX 10 INT 4 Level 25 - (0%) Mana 0/0 VIT 10 CHR 1 Traits Demonic Rage - (Racial), Fire Resistance - (Racial), Mark of Wrath - (Demonism), Living Terror - (Racial) Titles None Skills Dash - [Peak], Rampage - [Moderate], Thrash - [Superior], Pursuit - [Superior], Savage Roar - [Inferior]

All-in-all, Nyx was damn proud. His minion was all grown up. Now much stronger by the looks of it. Nyx managed to only briefly glance over her status before something happened, however. Fisty hadn't exactly been paying attention as was looking down at her own now sizable chest, squeezing it with great interest and amusement. Though only 'sizable' in comparison to her previously flat assets.

But even while Nyx looked at her askance, yet once more confused at his minion's peculiar eccentricities, Fisty's form began slowly dissolving into motes of demonic mana. The she-demon was also surprised to find herself unexpectedly disappearing moments before she was entirely gone, turned into but a few floating motes of energy.

He wanted to react, but then Nyx's world swam, darkness taking him moments before his face had an impromptu meeting with the cold stone floor of the cave.

...

Waking an indeterminable time later, Nyx clutched his head in pain. Confusion and a throbbing headache vied for control of his mind, and it took him a little while to remember where he even was. Swaying on wobbly legs as he got up, Nyx slowly began to remember bits and pieces before he had passed out.

His mana... it was nearly drained and his channels were damaged. Mana exhaustion, he realized.

Checking notifications, Nyx gulped.

[Mana Cost exceeds Mana Reserves - Soulbound Familiar has returned to the beyond] [You have taken 78 points of damage, critical hit!] [Warning - Mana Reserves Critically Low]

Nyx had completely forgotten about the fact that; as Fisty grew more powerful, so would the mana needed to sustain her on this plane grow. She had already nearly taken up his entire mana pool at level twenty-five with a cost of fifteen points. Now that she was a greater demon? It had more than doubled. Thirty-two points of mana. Twelve more than his current mana pool. Nyx went bug-eyed at the ridiculous price. It only emphasized how little time Nyx has had to expand his mana pools with his inordinately explosive growth. He was simply too far ahead in certain aspects of himself compared to the rest - most of which usually took a lot of time to develop.

It was a shame that he now wouldn't be able to summon Fisty for a bit. There were still a few things he wanted to try out with the little monster. But it would have to wait.

While his body had suffered no great physical damage, his mana veins, core, and mind needed to recover. During his slumber, he had managed to restore just about twenty-two points by the looks of it, meaning he had been out for a while. These wounds weren't so easily recoverable. At least not without specific means and focus. So in the teachings of his mentor - one red-haired elf-girl - Nyx went into meditation, slowly restoring the damage he had done to himself.

Time lost its meaning as the newborn Vainlord cooped up inside the darkness. A day or two - he wasn't sure how long. But it took a while despite Nyx having become that much more adept at controlling his mana. Not to mention the linkage of his mana pools. Still, compared to what others in his situation would have to do to fix this kind of damage, most being bedridden for weeks, Nyx had it easy.

Opening eyes that once more burned with the luster of mana, golden orbs peering through the dark, he got up. A notification greeted his recovery. However, Nyx could help but feel that this was the System's way of mocking him.

[+1 mana]

Trying his best to ignore the irritation he felt from being reminded of his blunder, Nyx, in all his glorious new form, began to find his way out of the crooked cave for the first time in a while. He stumbled a couple of times, nearly hitting his head on the rocky ceiling more times than he'd like to admit. He was still getting used to his new size and compared to his previously diminutive stature, it was like he had suddenly been put on stilts. Although the instincts of his new evolution were already ingrained in his muscles, his mind still needed to adapt.

But when Nyx finally came out into the morning air, the chilling bite of the mountain winds doing little to disparage him as the sun's rays spilled over the mountains with a bright midday glow on a white backdrop, he truly felt born anew.

Untapped power was at the tips of his fingers, waiting for his call. A skill rearing its head, wishing to be unleashed for the first time. [Monstrous Subjugation] activated, a surge of billowing presence bursting from Nyx as it blanketed the mountainside with a suffocation air.

As if responding to an approaching calamity, every single animal, beast, and monster cried out in a cacophony of bestial sounds. Stampedes ran down the foot of the mountain, and flocks of ravenous birds fled to the sky. Nyx simply stood there, shocked as he soon was the only living creature on this side of the mountain. None dared intrude on his territory. Regardless of intellect or sapience. Every single creature on this mountain today learned that; a king had been born.