Crafting Gear From Monster Genes

Crack.

The shackles crashed to the ground as Kreyn rubbed his wrists.

These weren’t ordinary handcuffs, and removing them required not a key but something else.

"Alright, now you’re ready," Leora remarked, hanging a bulging sphere from her belt. It absorbed the light from the runes of the Okkla’s Shackles. At that moment, the shackles opened on their own.

’I see.’

Kreyn nodded inwardly.

’So without energy, they can’t even function as simple handcuffs?’

The situation Kreyn and Groza found themselves in was complicated. Neither of them was prepared for the fact that, after a successful mission, they would end up as captives, but for some reason, Kreyn adapted to it better.

"What does all this mean?" Groza frowned, pointing at Kreyn. "Are you just going to take him to work in the mines? As a slave?"

Leora placed her hand on Kreyn’s shoulder.

"No, as a blacksmith, or are you hard of hearing? If you want your shackles removed as well, you’ll have to prove your worth."

Before Groza could say anything, Arstar’s voice rang out:

"Don’t be so quick to refuse, that’ll only cause you more trouble. Technically, you did win, of course, but you clearly didn’t want to fight."

Groza narrowed her eyes. "I wasn’t going to kill another person, is that so bad?"

Strangely enough, Arstar spread his arms wide.

"Of course not. So... Given your Badge, you must have a wide range of combat experience. You know how to fight, don’t you?"

"Even if that’s true, so what?" Groza grew wary.

At that very moment, Arstar turned to Hargod.

"I’m taking her with me. We’re short on instructors. Let her teach our guys how to fight."

Hargod shrugged. "Do as you see fit."

Step.

Arstar stood up from behind the table, stopping right in front of Groza. His blue eyes stared intently at her, making her flinch.

"What...? What are you up to? Don’t think I’m going to follow all your orders!"

"Don’t worry, I’m not interested in your body."

Arstar’s sudden statement made Groza gasp. Still, for some reason, she remained offended.

"You see." He leaned in, taking her by the chin. "I’m only interested in women stronger than me, and that’s clearly not your case."

In an instant, Groza’s face turned as red as a tomato. She was no longer sure that this was the answer she’d been hoping for.

Clap.

Leora clapped her hands.

"Alright, let’s not waste any more time. We’ve all made up our minds." She looked at Kreyn. "You, follow me. I have a job for you."

She stepped forward confidently, only to realize that Kreyn wasn’t in a hurry to join her.

"Hey! I’m talking to you!"

Still, he ignored her as he turned to Hargod.

"Why try to make us one of you? What if we decide to kill you?"

His question brought silence to the hall. Even Arstar hadn’t expected that, as his eyebrow rose.

In response, Hargod leaned forward with a broad smile.

"You can try, young man. Maybe you’ll even succeed, who knows? Also..." Hargod pointed to his eyepatch. "You and I are quite similar, aren’t we?"

"No."

Kreyn said nothing more as he turned and followed Leora.

’Do they think I lost my eye in battle just like he did? Well, I think they’ll be disappointed when they realize that’s not quite the case.’

Now that the Okkla’s Shackles no longer bound Kreyn, he had full access to his system’s capabilities again.

[Eye of the Hungry Scar

[Type: Mutation

[Tier: I

[Cells: None

[Sockets: Beast Gaze (Mutated).]

[Description: This eye is meant to grant the power of a hungry beast that always seeks out and finds its prey, and has ways to find weak spots even in the most dangerous targets. For now, the power of this eye is unavailable.]

Kreyn blinked, continuing to follow Leora. All the information flashed right before his eye, so no one saw it.

’Mutated Socket? Tsk. This is all definitely somehow connected to the hidden feature of the Crystal Crusher Gene. Alright, let’s take a look.’

[Beast Gaze (Mutated)

[Ability unavailable. To unlock, you must either Remove or Reveal the mutation.]

[1) Remove Mutation.]

[2) Unleash Mutation.]

’What’s the difference?’

[Removing the Mutation - this method requires no resources. Like the Forge Flame, progress will be gradual, drawn from your life resources. You can speed up the removal process by dedicating some energy source to it.]

’Those are the Genes and... the Soul Fragments, aren’t they?’

[Yes.]

[Current progress on removing the Beast Gaze mutation:

[Progress: 0.03% | Time remaining: ~36 days.]

Kreyn nodded to himself.

’So if I just wait, the mutation will disappear on its own, and I’ll be able to use both the ability and this mutation?’

[Correct. It will be the same as with the Arms of the Red Banner.]

Sure, Kreyn could significantly speed up this process by killing a few monsters or... humans, but he was interested in another option from the very beginning.

’Mutations - whether they’re abilities or gear... They’re bound to be better than regular options. I know it.’

His gaze grew more intense.

’What do I need to Unleash the mutation?’

[Unleashing a mutation is a more complex process and consists of two stages.

[1) Saturation - similar to the first method. You need energy to saturate the socket. However, only energy from monster genes is suitable. Your own energy or energy from Soul Fragments cannot be used.]

’Got it. I can’t just sit around and gain power. I’ll have to hunt monsters. What’s the second stage?’

[2) Monster Nature - you must fulfill a specific condition that depends on the monster whose gene was used to create this mutation. The condition will be revealed after the Saturation process is complete.]

Kreyn’s eyes widened for a moment as he touched his temples.

Some things were getting pretty complicated. But he wasn’t going to stop there.

’My arms have saved me plenty of times. I doubt that monster that escaped from the research center is on par with the Crystal Crusher. I must obtain this gene no matter what.’

Then, his attention returned to the system.

’What’s the difference between the results of the two methods for unlocking the ability?’

[With Method 1, the ability will revert to its original form, and you’ll be able to use it just like any other. Restoring the Socket Mutation will be impossible in this case.]

[With Method 2, the ability will retain the effects of its mutation. The effects can be positive, neutral, negative, or situational.]

Kreyn nodded and closed the system window.

As always, it all depended partly on luck, but he realized that if he wanted to get the most out of the Eye of the Hungry Scar, he had to go with the second option.

By this point, they had returned to the first level and continued descending, moving toward the western stone wall.

Leora was silent, walking confidently forward as only the click of her heels could be heard.

"I have one question."

"Go on." Leora didn’t stop.

"I hope the biggest danger in the mines isn’t rocks falling on us by accident?"

Now, she decided to turn around.

"Why? Why did you phrase it that way?"

Kreyn decided to tell a half-truth.

"I’ll be working for you, I have no other choice, but I’m still a Hunter, a newbie. I want to get stronger, and for that I need genes. So, are there any monsters in the mines?"

"Sure."

Leora turned around and continued marching forward.

"But, as a blacksmith, you’re especially valuable. You’ll only go hunting with my permission."

"Fair enough."

Kreyn shrugged as he continued to follow her.

His gaze lingered on her, for he long ago had made up his mind about his situation.

’I don’t know when I’ll leave this place, but by that time, neither you nor your boss will be walking the earth anymore. I won’t settle for anything less.’

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