Reborn As An Evolving Monster

'I'll trample over them... Devour their beloved strength... And make it mine.'

[You have used one Skill Point.]

[Your Skill "Sonic Tail Flick" is evolving...]

[Your Skill "Sonic Tail Flick[C+]" has evolved into the Skill "Earth-Shattering Tail Flick[B+]".]

[You have used one Skill Point.]

[Your Skill "Advanced Kinetic Vision[C+]" is evolving...]

[Your Skill "Advanced Kinetic Vision[C+]" has evolved into the Skill "Superior Kinetic Vision[B]".]

The Corrupted Dark Elf Berserker fell to the ground.

Punch-

The Berserker's tongue waggled, as more and more punches landed on the half-burnt face it dangled from.

'Tsk. I'm hitting him with all my strength, and yet...'

Like a whip, the Corrupted Dark Elf Berserker's arm hit Mark's side.

He was immediately pushed off the enemy's body.

'I'm barely doing any damage.'

Mark jumped back, a nervous smile on his face.

"Uwaaaa..." The Berserker uttered as it stood up.

The next second, it started walking in circles once more.

'I wish he would take this more seriously...' Mark thought to himself.

He stared at the Berserker for a bit.

'I should have some Skill Points left, right?'

[Correct.]

[You currently have 4 Skill Points.]

'I'll use two of them on my healing skill.'

[You have used one Skill Point.]

[Your Skill "Advanced Self-Healing[C]" is Evolving...]

[Your Passive Skill "Advanced Self-Healing[C]" has evolved into "Regeneration[B]".]

[You have used one Skill Point.]

[Your Skill "Regeneration[B]" is Evolving...]

An unexpected message both surprised and infuriated Mark.

[Your Title "Evolving Monster" interferes with the Skill's Evolution.]

But before he could react to it, the Berserker suddenly moved.

The unsuspecting Mark could barely raise his right arm in time before a heavy, yet quick, hit sent him rolling.

BAM-

Mark's body hit the ground again and again.

His momentum only died once it was buried under rubble.

'Fuck...'

Rubble, that the Fire Spirit's attacks had turned the many wooden houses and the shack of bricks into.

'Maybe I'm the one not taking this seriously...'

A chuckle escaped Mark's mouth.

'Physical... Strength contest...' Mark started thinking, as he pushed a burnt log off his body. 'I have no way of raising my Strength during a fight. Mm. This is simply a contest of Strength Stats. And he's obviously above. What should I-'

"My Lord..." A weak voice resonated to Mark's left.

'Huh? You were here? What happened-'

Once his eyes lay on his Underling, Mark's pupils widened.

Levi's body had been burnt to a tragic degree.

Both of his arms had been severely broken.

The injuries were easily noticeable, due to the unnatural angles Levi's elbows and shoulders made.

His skull, too, had been practically shattered by the Berserker's fists.

'He messed you up pretty badly, huh? It's good you remained here.'

"My Lord... If you need me... To become your blood-"

'Stop it. Get two demons out.'

Immediately, two "Elite Lower Demon Warriors" left Mark's "Underling Necklace".

With a touch, they turned into orbs of red energy.

Mark cautiously fed one of them to his Underling, Levi.

He devoured the second one himself.

'It'll take a while for me to get back to top form. Mm...'

Instantly, the two started healing.

'For now, get inside the necklace.'

Levi's body disappeared.

'Good. Now...'

Mark slowly stood back up.

'Still can't use my left arm-'

The next second,

[Your Title "Evolving Monster" accelerates your Skill's growth.]

[Your Passive Skill "Regeneration[B]" is rapidly evolving!]

'What does that-'

[Your Passive Skill "Regeneration[B]" has evolved into the Magic Skill "Advanced Body Reconstruction[S]".]

'Magic Skill? Then...'

Mark lowered his gaze to his left arm.

A second later, that arm started tingling.

'What's...?'

Mark's broken arm started twitching

A great amount of energy seemed to leave Mark's body.

But it wasn't truly leaving that body.

Into the cells that constituted his broken bones and muscles, the Mana entered.

Immediately, it made those cells work faster.

The Mana invigorated those cells.

No.

It, forcefully, made them heal.

Inside Mark's body, a battle had started.

A battle between his different cells.

A battle, during which, the stronger cells devoured the weaker ones and started duplicating themselves.

Seconds later, Mark raised his left arm.

'What... The hell?'

It had only taken 25 seconds for his broken arm to heal completely.

Of course, such an effect couldn't take place had the Magic Skill's Mana Consumption been low.

A smile crept up on his face.

Mark bent his knees.

'Let's get back to it then.'

The Berserker mindlessly and randomly walked around.

The next instant, the world around it became blurry.

"Uwa?"

Having lost its balance, it fell to the ground.

Mark's claws slashed the Berserker's stomach as he stood over its body.

'Shallow. Too shallow... '

He jumped back hurriedly.

'Now that I don't need them for healing...'

Mark called out five Underlings.

Apart from Light, Fiery, Levi, and Gray, he had decided to exclusively keep "Elite Lower Demon Warriors" as Underlings.

He found that, as they had a humanoid appearance, they were best suited for healing his body.

Three Underlings were turned into energy.

'I'll use them all...'

Devouring Architecture, one of Mark's few [S] Ranked Skills, was used.

'To strengthen my claws.' Mark thought, as he swallowed the orbs of energy.

Instantly, his body heat increased.

Burning flames appeared.

For a few seconds, wild flames engulfed his fingers.

"Baah!"

The Berserker struggled to get back on its feet.

It wasn't the first time it had been hit by Mark's tail.

Yet, the effect was different this time.

One of the Skill Points Mark had used, made his "Sonic Tail Flick[B+]" Passive Skill evolve.

The Skill born from that Evolution sacrificed speed for power.

Mark's tail had been formed using the body parts of Monsters that mainly attacked using their tail and fangs.

Lower Wyverns.

It was, therefore, no wonder that the tail born from that, would be powerful.

Passive Skills omitted, Mark's tail could produce more power than his arms or legs.

And that powerful body part had been slammed on the Berserker's neck.

With a Passive Skill that increased the damage inflicted by tail attacks by a whopping 200%.

An effect that Mark was, certainly, pleased with.

'Not bad...'

Just as the Berserker had managed to stand back up, its feet were swept off the ground once more

"Earth-Shattering Tail Flick[B+]".

'Can't let you stand up just yet.'

Slash-

Five deep cuts were drawn on the Berserker's chest.

'That's more like it.'

"AAAGHH" The Berserker cried loudly.

As if the pain had dulled its dizziness, the Berserker immediately stood up.

'Let's go... '

And Mark let it do so.

'Let's do this.'

The Berserker smiled once more.

"Well, well." The Fire Spirit whispered as it watched over the scene." A brawl, huh? Perfect for the simpletons..."

Punch for punch, Mark and the Berserker fought.

Punch for punch, they fought.

Of course, this could only be done by heavily relying on dodging and the "Advanced Body Reconstruction[S]" Magic Skill.

'That guy really is having fun. After all, yeah. I really like him.' The Fire Spirit nodded to its own thoughts.

Its eyes, glued on the Berserker, whose smile was getting wider and wider.

'Fighting using its own strength. Its body exclusively. Relying on brute strength and nothing else. Yep. In a way, it's beautiful really...'

Mark dodged a punch by a hair's breadth before retaliating with one of his own.

'It pains me to admit but...'

But once again, hitting the Berserker's body felt the same as hitting an unmovable rock.

'He's just like me. I rely exclusively on my flames, and he, on his body.' The Spirit thought.

Mark jumped back.

His breathing had become unstable.

"Uwaaa!"

On the other hand, the Berserker seemed to only be getting more fired up.

'But it's different for you.' The Fire Spirit thought, as its gaze turned to Mark.

An expression that couldn't be easily described on its face.

Disgust?

Maybe.

But, it also could've been...

'The two of you are smiling as you fight...'

Mark could feel his Endurance Points getting lower in lower.

But that only seemed to make his fighting spirit burn more fiercely.

'But it's different. Fundamentally different.'

The Aura around Mark shone brightly.

'Even if a couple of good punches could kill you...'

The Berserker roared, and its muscles ballooned up.

'You're not taking this seriously.'

Purple Aura covered the Berserker's powerful arms.

'Mm. He looked at us as if we were mere toys. It annoyed me. It infuriated me, really. But at the same time, I found it amusing. It was acceptable. Because its strength allowed it to do so...'

The two fighters, once more, ran towards one another.

'But it's different for you. Just like you did against me, you're limiting yourself.'

The Berserker threw a front kick that grazed Mark's body.

'Why is that?'

The latter punched.

'When I know you could freeze this whole area... When I know you could use those red flames I longed for... When I know you could fly into the air and defeat him from a safe distance...'

A heavy punch hit Mark's side, immediately crushing two of his ribs.

'Why are you doing this?'

He quickly jumped back.

'Is there something you're hoping to achieve?'

"Advanced Body Reconstruction[S]".

At the approaching Berserker, Mark flicked his tail.

The pursuer's chin was hit.

'Something you're hoping to learn? Or are you simply...'

Even though the Berserker seemed to have lost balance, it continued its approach and roared.

'Limiting yourself to have fun?' The Fire Spirit wondered, as he stared at Mark's wide smile.

Mark increased his Mana output, and his ribs healed almost instantly.

'Just like you did against me?'

But his Mana Points were depleting faster than previously anticipated.

'That guy is giving everything he has. And yet...'

The Berserker stumbled.

'You're holding back.'

An opportunity had presented itself.

'See? Even now, you're...'

Pierce-

'The only one left smiling.'

The Corrupted Dark Elf Berserker coughed up blood.

Its smile had indeed disappeared.

"Waaa?"

A confused expression had taken that smile's place.

Mark swiftly, maybe even cruelly, pulled his arm out of the Berserker's chest.

Leaving a large hole, from which massive amounts of blood spurted.

Experiencing levels of pain it had never before, the Berserker truly felt disoriented.

"Uwo...?"