Monsters come out at night

Slowly a thud woke Clark, he first thought the deviant had lost her mind and was going to go after him despite the contract penalty, shifting his body to face the exit he saw the deviant drinking the blood of a bat...he approached and understood why the swarm had 3 abandoned, two of whom were injured...another swarm...swarm wars were often bloody...he remembered that a horde of bats was to emerge from this forest to cause the death of the crown prince in a few months, no doubt the winning swarm that swarmed after defeating their rivals...a tiny humanoid figure in the darkness shone brightly, blinding Clark and the swarms in the sky that were fighting...Clark panicked there were only rocky people to do this at the start of the game...humans left for dead by relatives who ate dirt to survive...all could not become stony, you had to have an affinity for the magic of the earth...most could make themselves shine at night like that...but only the old stony could hide to reveal themselves so close to his prey...Clark then yelled in a panicked voice to the deviant using <telepathy> " Quick ! We must flee ! Carry me and flee ! " this one threw her meal still half alive and grabbed Clark with her hind legs before flying away...deviants no longer had the ordinary weaknesses of their original species, Clark then wondered "for the species who feared the light what was it again ? "feeling the deviant slowing down he suddenly remembered " yes what an idiot ! They fear their own reflection ! "

A coldness seized their surroundings, Clark barely had time to see a huge blue bird staring at them...the bird flew away, seemed about to attack them but a black monkey jumped out of nowhere and grabbed the bird with its mouth, biting into the blue bird's right wing...Clark knew that night was going to be difficult but he didn't imagine coming across so many magical species...ordering the deviant once again to flee...Clark felt the hunger returning but he was only at 2/10, nothing too much urgent...losing himself in his thoughts without forgetting to guide the deviant so that she remains discreet and avoids the magical creatures that seemed all out that night...

Their escape lasted at least a few hours, Clark then noticed that the trees were getting smaller and smaller as they moved away from the forest...arriving on top of a small stone path he saw little humans fighting...at least a hundred...with another hundred on the ground already dead or dying...Clark then understood why all the creatures were crazy...the smell of human blood drove magical creatures crazy, with enough blood from a human that had an affinity they could evolve and magical beings are all obsessed with that idea...something about it pushed them to evolve, until the appearance of a king who organized them, for almost each magic species he remembered having heard of multiple kings and even of an emperor for some like the dragons...

Among the little humans Clark was able to distinguish two knights who were fighting, the crests of their armor betraying their identity...a knight from the Krono family and another from the Camper family, the family of a duke who will attempt a rebellion before the death of the crown prince...Clark said to himself "if I remember correctly Duke Camper had even gone so far as to transform his son into a necromancer...maybe two giant green bats won't bother him..." the deviant seemed to have heard him despite himself and replied in a disturbing voice " the magic you are using on me...isn't it possible for you to use it to communicate with the knight of this family ? And what is a knight ? Can you eat it ? " Clark felt stupid, it happened more and more that he was getting lost in his thoughts and forgetting important things, he realized that it was probably because he was unable to speak and form comprehensible signs, confining him more and more, even if it was only since this morning...

stopping his ramblings he replied to the deviant "the humans in shining armor towards the center, they are knights, in a sense yes it can be eaten but for the moment avoid trying...no let's stay hidden, but yes I have to using my mind magic it's our only chance..." using a whole point of spirit he sent the idea to the wounded soldiers that they were going to die and that they had to flee to survive...miraculously or because their mindset was already inclined toward flight it worked well...of the hundred still fighting at least half threw down their weapons and fled aimlessly, disrupting the remaining soldiers, enough so that the deviant and Clark can pass the battlefield without being noticed...

Feeling the hunger approach the level of fury Clark ordered the deviant to look for something to eat, she accelerated and very quickly they could see picturesque wooden houses, barns and fields..." serfs...we getting closer to the capital we should change course..." Clark commented in a troubled voice, he knew it...he and the deviant were going to drink the blood of a human, the deviant landed near a barn without light, Clark was then able to move as best he could towards the wooden house, realizing how much larger he was than an ordinary bat...he and the deviant must have been at least the size of a human torso...the house seemed abandoned, probably because of the wars that will start...the kingdoms for the arrival of the players had to go to war, it was in the tutorial scenario that they all had to learn as students, chosen to join the game...the war would then cause so much chaos that they would all be able to assimilate into the game and develop their magical skill, with magic slowly returning to the world of Small World, first with an army of dwarves then with mad elves convinced of having to exterminate humans, the hybrids of humans and other animal species ended up carrying out ethnic cleansing of their kingdom splitting into several small kingdoms and the only mixed kingdom ended up to be part of the story...shaking his head Clark jumped when two humans fell next to him, the deviant was fast he said to himself...hesitating for a moment he ended up biting the neck of one of the men leaving the other for the deviant... the hot blood filled with dark energy delighted Clark who sucked harder on the blood, feeling the source drying up his throat tightened he loved the sensation of the invigorating hot liquid in his throat...telling to himself " i understand why so many player were crazy about the blood or the flesh of human with magic affinity..." he then looked at his status surprised by the changes on the second

[ Forest beats : no name

HP: 2/2

Physical stamina: 2/2

MP: 3/3

Body: 0.2

Spirit: 0.3

Luck: 1

- Injury: pierced wings, damaged neck

Hunger: 10/10, fury at 0.2

Blood supply: 7 liters ]

It looked like his class had taken a level so he looked mechanically at the class window, remembering that he had managed to forget to do so until now...

[ Class : Swarm Member ( abandoned )

Class level - 2/10, can't level up anymore due to abandonment

Trait: bloodsucker, hunter, one among many (only one use remaining due to abandonment and the contract with a deviant ), swarm (abandoned)

Affinity: mind magic (lesser) shadow magic (minor, temporary unless the user evolves)

Flaw: cannot communicate through ultrasound (can't use ultrasound at all)

Evolution : Possible

- Shadow Bat ( common )

Conditions : at least minor shadow magic affinity, have open mana stat

- Bloody Bat ( common )

Conditions : at least minor blood magic affinity, having killed at least 5 humans

- Parasytic Bat ( rare )

Conditions : have been dropped by at least one swarm, somehow manipulate a bat to satisfy your hunger at least twice, affinity for lower spirit magic

- Desmodus Draculae ( extinct )

Conditions : drink blood without losing your mind, affinity for the magic of the mind (lesser at least), hematophage DNA present in the body or among your ancestors (be careful, the difference between these two can have a huge impact on your evolution ) ]

The extinct species were often very strong but also very bloodthirsty, most of the players who had played them had ended up becoming outcasts by dint of attacking everything that moved... but the precision added, undoubtedly by the ring of Andromeda said Clark to himself, let him know why...having the DNA by drinking the blood of a bloodsucker or because it was in their genetic heritage could probably make the difference, "another risky bet" said Clark to himself...before choosing to evolve into Desmodus Draculae...he had felt the need to check the details on this species that he did not know despite his 10 years of knowledge of the game...

[ Desmodus Draculae, blood-sucking variant of bats, better known as the giant vampire bat, capable of draining a dragon of its blood in minutes the magic variant of this species could awaken an ability that split the variant into several subspecies, fearing the magic of fire and that of light, this species was eradicated by the Church of the Red Goddess, the Church of the Winged Master as well as the Church of the Blue Light. ]

" Great...a species able to unite the three largest churches on the continent against it just by respawning...but being able to drain a dragon of its blood despite being weak to magic fire...Alexander didn't use fire magic, i think...I should take that..." Clark thought to himself as he chose to evolve now, then feeling his bones breaking he barely had time to order the deviant to move him into the barn and keep her that he fainted...