Monster Evolution System: I became a Rat-Chapter 68: Changes

The Leviathan Mariner pulled away from the shore as the anchors were raised. The mist in the harbor slowly dispersed, pierced by beams of light that cut through it like blades.

With the pressure of the chains released, the ship surged forward with a thunderous sound, living up to its name.

Lanterns across the deck flared to life. Within them burned fierce white flames that tore apart the darkest corners of the vessel.

Rosacer stood at the starboard rail, his gaze fixed on the endless ocean beyond.

Mist curled over the water, and from within it, the reflections of unseen eyes followed the ship’s silhouette.

’I would be lying if I said I am not afraid,’ he admitted inwardly.

The sea was calm now, but he knew better. Soon it would remind them why these waters were feared.

With his posture bent, Rosacer turned back toward the harbor.

Mist City was already fading, swallowed slowly by the fog.

Inside the captain’s cabin, the commander of the ship held the parchment before his eyes, unable to look away.

The bone-colored ink shimmered beneath the lantern light.

"We... we will escape this wretched place," he murmured. "I am finally going to be free."

He rolled up his sleeve and stared at his right arm.

A symbol was etched into his flesh. A gruesome mark. A triangle split by a bolt of thunder, surrounded by jagged arcs of lightning.

"I have waited for so long..."

In the lower deck, near the cramped kitchen area, Katrina was busy preparing food for the crewmen. The steady rhythm of her knife against the cutting board was the only sound, until a sudden crash echoed from the corridor outside.

She paused and turned. "What happened?"

Fea straightened slowly, gripping the handle of the mop as if it were the only thing keeping her upright. A bucket lay overturned near her feet, water spreading across the wooden floor.

"Nothing," she said after a brief hesitation. "I just fell."

Katrina studied her for a moment. Fea’s voice was calm, but her hands trembled as she set the mop back in place. There was a faint bruise forming along her wrist, and her gaze refused to meet Katrina’s.

"If you are hurt, say it," Katrina replied, wiping her hands on her apron.

Fea forced a small smile. "It is nothing serious. Just clumsy, that is all."

But as Katrina returned to the stove, the uneasy silence that followed felt heavier than the noise that had broken it.

Deep inside, Fea was still drowning in the loss of her hound, Flesh Wretch.

If only she had not let him leap at Opelia so recklessly, he would still be alive. He would have boarded the ship with her. He would be lying somewhere nearby now, breathing softly, watching over her as he always did. One mistake. One moment of blind desperation. That was all it took.

Katrina turned her gaze back to her friend once more and let out a soft sigh. A compassionate smile touched her lips as she set her work aside and stepped closer to Fea.

"Do not worry. Everything is going to be alright."

She gently pulled Fea into her arms, resting the girl’s head against her chest, her hand moving slowly as she brushed Fea’s tangled hair back over her shoulder.

For a moment, Fea resisted. Then the strength she had been forcing into herself finally gave way.

Inside Katrina’s embrace, the dam broke.

The grief she had buried deep within her began to spill out in silent tremors, then in quiet sobs that shook her small frame. Tears soaked into Katrina’s clothes, but she did not pull away. She only held Fea tighter, letting her cry without words, without shame.

For the first time since Flesh Wretch was gone, Fea allowed herself to feel the loss.

Katrina did not leave Fea’s side.

She kept one arm around her, holding her close, but her eyes slowly drifted toward the small window of the kitchen. Outside, pale mist curled along the side of the ship, thin and gentle, yet heavy enough to stir something deep within her.

For a moment, she forgot where she was.

The mist outside the window became thicker in her mind. Denser. Colder.

And just like that, her thoughts returned to the Mist City.

In the mist city, the fog was far heavier, mixed with drifting spores of yellow fungus that clung to the air like sickness. Inside an old building hidden deep within the city, a man with a broad beard and a tall hat sat before a statue of a winged figure, its black wings spread wide in silent judgment.

Grotesque paintings surrounded him; flowers mixed with distorted human anatomy lining the walls like something forbidden.

Without turning to look at those pictures, he spoke.

"So, he is immortal now?"

Before him stood a man with sharp features, dressed in a black suit and white gloves, looking more like a magician than a scholar.

"Yes," the man replied. "And for some reason, I cannot track him anymore."

His expression soured as he spoke.

Maysee stepped forward. "Opelia is dead now. Is that related?"

Josan answered at once. "No."

Maysee continued, "And Gordon escaped his prison as well. That is not too much of a coincidence, is it?"

Josan’s eyes widened. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Before he could flick his wrist and disappear into purple flames, his body gave out. He crumpled to the floor, his breath escaping in ragged gasps.

Maysee walked forward until he stood right before him.

"You will speak everything, Friend."

Josan vision came in, darkness swallowed him.

Maysee circled around Josan’s fallen body, then seized him by the collar and dragged him across the floor. Slowly, deliberately, he carried him toward one of the paintings.

A man frozen in agony, a pale flower blooming grotesquely from his navel, its petals stained as if fed by blood instead of soil.

Maysee stopped before it.

His lips curled upward. The smile that spread across his face was wide and unsettling, stretching too far, it was the most wicked smile a man can make. From his throat escaped a low, dangerous laugh, thick with anticipation.

"This," he murmured, glancing down at Josan, "is going to be beautiful."