Chapter 108: The Anomaly’s Evolution

Reiji quietly pulled the Long Bone Sword back and immediately retreated several steps.

The wound remained.

Dark crimson blood slowly dripped from the creature’s shoulder onto the ancient stone floor.

It wasn’t healing.

Reiji’s calm eyes observed it in silence.

’So it doesn’t regenerate.’

His gaze lingered on the wound for another heartbeat.

The surrounding mana wasn’t gathering around the injury the way it normally would.

When monsters regenerated, mana naturally converged toward the damaged area before reconstructing flesh and bone.

This creature was different.

The mana wasn’t gathering.

It was circulating.

Like countless invisible streams weaving through its body before disappearing somewhere deeper inside.

’It’s redirecting it...?’

Reiji silently stored the observation away.

Every anomaly followed its own set of rules.

He simply hadn’t discovered this one’s yet.

That alone ruled out one possibility.

As long as enough damage was dealt, it could be killed.

The Derat Thorn slowly looked down at the wound.

Then...

It smiled.

A cold chill ran down Aoi’s spine.

’Why is it smiling...?’

The creature raised one claw and slowly touched the wound.

Instead of healing...

Its entire body began to ripple.

Like a reflection on disturbed water.

The surrounding mana suddenly became chaotic.

Reiji frowned.

’What’s it doing?’

The ripples spread across its entire body.

Its outline gradually blurred.

The space around it distorted.

Then...

Another claw emerged.

Followed by another head.

Another body.

A second Derat Thorn slowly stepped out from the first.

It landed silently beside the original.

"...A clone?"

The second Derat Thorn slowly turned toward him.

Then...

It smiled as well.

Before Reiji could think further, the original rippled once again.

The distorted space twisted.

A third figure stepped out.

Silence filled the chamber.

Three identical Derat Thorns stood before him.

Each possessed the same crimson eyes.

The same monstrous body.

The same terrifying pressure.

Aoi’s face instantly turned pale.

"T-Three...?"

Reiji tightened his grip around the Long Bone Sword.

His breathing remained steady.

His heartbeat never changed.

His Mana Manipulation spread throughout the chamber.

’Interesting.’

He observed each of them carefully.

’An illusion...?’

No.

Every fluctuation of mana was real.

Detect Presence locked onto all three simultaneously.

Reiji’s Detect Presence swept across all three figures again.

Nothing.

No delay.

No fluctuation.

Every heartbeat echoed with the same rhythm.

Every pulse of mana flowed with identical intensity.

Even their breathing synchronized perfectly.

His Mana Manipulation spread even farther, threading through the chamber like invisible strands searching for the slightest inconsistency.

Walls.

Floor.

Ceiling.

The empty air between them.

Still nothing.

’Perfect copies...’

Or perhaps...

’Only one is real, and the others somehow inherited its presence.’

Neither answer satisfied him.

’They’re all real... or at least they have physical bodies.’

There wasn’t enough time to think.

The three Derat Thorns lunged at the same time.

BOOM!!

The chamber shook.

Three crimson blurs rushed toward him from different directions.

Reiji didn’t retreat.

His Long Bone Sword flashed.

SHING!!

The instant the first clone lunged, Reiji shifted his footing.

A single step.

His body rotated just enough for the rushing claws to skim past his shoulder.

The Long Bone Sword moved in one smooth arc.

No wasted motion.

No unnecessary strength.

Only precision.

The blade carved cleanly through the creature’s torso before continuing toward the second without slowing.

His movements flowed together as though he had already rehearsed the exchange countless times inside his head.

The blade sliced through the first Derat Thorn.

Its body instantly burst apart into crimson mist.

Without pausing, Reiji twisted his body.

SHING!!

The second one’s head flew through the air before its body also dissolved into countless crimson particles.

The third had already reached him.

CLAAANG!!

Its claws collided with the Long Bone Sword.

For a brief moment, Reiji frowned.

’This one...’

The creature’s body suddenly distorted.

Then it exploded into the same crimson mist.

Silence filled the chamber.

The drifting crimson particles slowly faded into nothingness.

Aoi blinked several times.

"...They disappeared?"

Reiji slowly lowered the Bone Sword.

"So they were only illusions."

His voice remained calm, but he didn’t lower his guard.

The timing was too convenient.

The Derat Thorn was intelligent.

There was no way it would reveal an ability that easily.

Almost as if answering his thoughts—

RRAAAARRR!!

A crimson sphere of flames suddenly shot through the fading mist.

Reiji sensed it instantly.

’Behind!’

He twisted aside at the last possible moment.

The blazing sphere brushed past him before crashing into the distant wall.

BOOOOM!!

The chamber trembled violently.

Molten stone splashed across the floor as scorching heat swept through the hall.

The Derat Thorn didn’t give him a single moment to breathe.

Its massive wings beat once.

BOOM!

The creature disappeared.

Reiji didn’t even bother turning around.

His Mana Manipulation had already sensed the disturbance in the surrounding mana.

The Long Bone Sword moved almost on instinct.

CLAAANG!!

Sparks erupted.

The Anomaly’s claws slammed against the blade with enough force to split the floor beneath Reiji’s feet.

The stone around him shattered into countless fragments.

Aoi’s heart nearly stopped.

’He... blocked it...?’

She hadn’t even seen the creature move.

Yet Reiji had already responded.

The Derat Thorn’s crimson eyes narrowed.

Its free claw swept toward Reiji’s neck.

Reiji leaned back just enough for the claws to pass inches from his throat.

Without hesitation, he thrust the Bone Sword forward.

SHING!!

The blade pierced through the creature’s shoulder.

For a brief second, the Anomaly simply looked down at the wound.

Then it smiled.

A cold chill ran down Aoi’s spine.

’Why is it smiling...?’

Reiji quietly pulled the sword back and immediately retreated several steps.

His calm mind noticed something his eyes had almost missed.

The wound wasn’t healing.

It was changing.

Dark crimson flesh began writhing around the cut like countless tiny worms.

The torn muscles twisted unnaturally before folding over one another.

The injured shoulder suddenly became noticeably thicker than before.

The claws on that arm slowly lengthened.

The mana radiating from it also increased.

Reiji’s eyes narrowed.

’It didn’t regenerate.

It evolved.’

The creature flexed its transformed arm once.

CRACK!

The air itself seemed to burst beneath the pressure.

The Derat Thorn lowered its body again.

This time its smile widened even further.

A strange excitement appeared within its crimson eyes.

As though it had finally found an opponent worth adapting to.

Aoi unconsciously took a step backward inside the vine barrier.

Her face slowly lost all color.

"...No way."

She had witnessed monsters regenerate before.

She had witnessed monsters mutate before.

But this...

This was completely different.

The creature wasn’t recovering from damage.

It was becoming stronger because of it.

Reiji slowly tightened his grip around the Long Bone Sword.

His breathing remained steady.

His heartbeat never changed.

His Mana Manipulation continued observing every tiny fluctuation within the chamber.

’So that’s why...

You’re called an Anomaly.’

The Derat Thorn suddenly bent its knees.

The stone beneath its feet exploded.

BOOOOM!!

Its massive body shot forward like a crimson meteor.

Reiji didn’t retreat.

His eyes quietly followed the flow of mana surrounding the creature.

’Faster.’

The transformed arm reached him first.

CLAAANG!!

The Long Bone Sword intercepted the claw, but the impact was completely different from before.

A violent force exploded through Reiji’s arms.

CRACK!

The stone beneath his feet caved in as his body slid backward several meters.

"...Stronger."

His voice remained calm.

The creature hadn’t simply gained more mana.

Its physical strength had increased as well.

Almost as though every injury it suffered became nourishment instead of a weakness.

’Interesting.’

The corner of Reiji’s lips lifted ever so slightly.

’So attacking it carelessly only makes things worse.’

The Derat Thorn didn’t wait.

It vanished again.

This time it appeared above him.

Its enormous wings folded inward as both claws came crashing down.

BOOOOM!!

The chamber shook.

Stone exploded in every direction.

Dust swallowed everything.

Aoi’s breathing stopped.

"...Reiji?"

No answer.

The cloud of dust slowly drifted through the chamber.

Then...

Tap.

Tap.

Footsteps echoed from within.

Reiji calmly walked out of the dust with the Long Bone Sword resting on his shoulder.

Fresh cuts covered his hoodie.

More blood stained his clothes.

Yet his expression hadn’t changed in the slightest.

His eyes were still.

Almost peaceful.

The Derat Thorn tilted its head.

It seemed confused.

Its attacks were landing.

The human was bleeding.

Yet the fear it expected to see never appeared.

Instead, the human kept looking at it as though he were trying to solve a puzzle.

’It attacks with instinct...

It evolves through damage...

It becomes stronger after consuming mana-rich targets...’

Reiji quietly pieced everything together.

’Then... Where’s the limit?’

Reiji replayed the battle inside his mind.

Every exchange.

Every movement.

Every reaction.

The clones disappeared after taking damage.

The real body adapted instead of regenerating.

Its attacks had grown stronger after being injured.

Its mana had become denser.

Nothing it did was random.

Every action followed a pattern.

Every adaptation required a trigger.

’Then it has a limit.’

Everything did.

He simply needed to find it before the creature adapted beyond what he could handle.

That single thought made his grip tighten around the Bone Sword.

For the first time since the battle began, he wasn’t just trying to survive anymore.

He was trying to understand it.

The Derat Thorn let out a low growl.

Its crimson eyes narrowed.

Then its body began to change again.