Chapter 5: Plague Of Hunger

Millen stayed in the village that night, keeping his sword beside him as he laid his body on a straw pile. The remaining goblins held a short funeral before the sun fell, retreating to the remaining huts soon afterwards. The feeling of helping out some innocent monsters did not really affect Millen, because of his stone heart Extra skill. Many things became black and white for him, as his morals became a little faded in the exchange of a clear and calculating mind.

The feelings he managed to keep were only a few, including humour, boredom and impatience. The protagonist contemplated these things as he laid on the straw pile, tempering his mind as he continued to think throughout the night.

Lately Millen had been feeling rather strange, his armour felt like it was tempering itself continuously, but couldn't truely breakthrough. Perhaps this was a side effect of 'arch tempering'.

"AAAAAGH!"

A scream came from the hut next to him, sounding like someone had just been attacked. Millen instantly rose from his resting position to check out the disturbance. As he walked to the other tent, he saw the light flickering from the inside as the sound of chewing echoed through the small hut. He protagonist drew his sword and silently opened the tent to find a disturbing scene.

CHOMP

One of the goblins seemed to be consuming another's flesh, ravaging the others body as the former tore off the latter's limbs to consume them.

"What is going on..."

Millen stepped forward into the hut and drop kicked the goblin knocking him out without making any further noise. On the next morning, the g9blin woke up to find the armoured figure sitting in front of him as the former's legs and arms were tied together.

"So why were you cannibalising you friend?" Millen asked straight away.

"I was hungry." The goblin spoke.

"Surely you would just eat your friend because you were a little peckish. Your body doesn't even look too skinny." Millen spoke.

"I hunger, I need food. I need meat!"

"Velmorta, this is strange. This is the second case of people eating each other since I arrived here." Millen spoke.

"Hmmmm.... strange indeed. I sense this might be the work of a unique skill." Velmorta suggested.

"And What May That be?"

"Something that influences an entity's carnal desires...it must be that."

"I believe that we are dealing with Pack Mentality." Velmorta explained.

"I see. So this skill causes people to become crazed predators."

"Hey! Let me go, I am hungry!" The goblin shouted.

Millen turned back towards the cannibal Goblin, pointing his sword at him.

"No, you are dangerous."

CHOP

Millen executed the cannibal without a second thought, continuing his conversation with Velmorta.

"Does this skill require a proximity radius to work?" Millen asked.

"Last time I witnessed this, there was a 50% chance that an entity within 50 metres of the skill wielded would turn into a hungry carnivorous creature." Velmorta explained.

"So you are saying that the ability wielded is possibly nearby?"

"Most definitely."

Millen prepared his sword as he exited the hut, finding that the village was now empty, with only blood remaining all over the huts and ground surrounding them. The protagonist sensed a malicious presence nearby, but could not adequately ascertain where it was.

"Little Millen, I recommend that you flee from this place." Velmorta spoke.

"No. If this creature is here, it must have followed me from the cave. It must have infected those slavers from earlier."

"Then why did they not eat each other like these goblins?" Velmorta pointed out.

"..."

"Fine, I will help you deal with this monster as a favour." Velmorta announced.

Suddenly a large bolt of black lightning fell from the night sky, directly hitting a hut nearby. As the hut disintegrated, a large figure jumped out of the blast.

"I see."

Millen moved towards the monster, pointing his blade towards the injured creature.

"Zombie?!"

The creature was of humanoid structure with all of its skin peeling and its flesh in shambles.

"AAARARGHHH!"

The creature lunged at Millen, scraping the latter's armour with its sharp claws.

"It's power is so devastating, yet it's actual strength is so negligible."

"Little Millen, That creature was definitely from my cave. I sense my magicules on it."

Millen grabbed the creatures head with his gauntlet, crushing it in an instant.

"It seems to be a defective monster, with all of those magicules, it could have become a demon lord. Alas, it had barely any combat senses or intelligence." Velmorta commented.

Millen proceeded to temper himself with the corpses in the village, feeling much stronger afterwards.

"Are you sure that was the ONLY one?" Millen asked.

"I am not sure... now that I think about it, you just killed a monster known as a thrall. Most likely it gained some skills from its master; an arch demon."

"What is going on here?" Millen asked.

"I do not know, Little Millen."

Millen left the village without looking back, returning to Velmorta's cave.

"Velmorta, lately I have been feeling rather peculiar... I do not believe it is the armour."

The dragon looked towards his friend, scratching his forehead as he inspected the armour further.

"I guess I am not mistaken."

"You have enough magicules to become a demon lord. Well it's not like you just become one anyway, you need 10000 souls." Velmorta announced.

*sigh*

"Your armour also seems to be undergoing an evolution from the tempering you have done."

"This process seems to dangerous for you to undertake alone, however. I have never seen a possessed armour above the second tier." Velmorta spoke.

"Then what can I do to avoid the danger?"

"Hmmmm....I have an idea, but I don't think you will like it."

"How long will it take?"

"A century."