The Merchant Gamer

Chapters

Prologue: In Media Res
Chapter 1: The Hunger
Chapter 2: Training from Hell
Chapter 3: Suicidal Gains
Chapter 4: Bitter Rewards
Chapter 5: Missed Opportunities
Chapter 6: Inner Conflict
Chapter 7: A New Purpose

Prologue: In Media Res

In the future

I woke up to the notification screen in front of me.

You have rested in a bed for 8 hours! All negative status effects have been nullified! HP, MP, and stamina, has been replenished!

"When was the last time I ever slept?" I looked at my surroundings to find myself chained to a bed in the dungeon - a special privilege that even I found shocking. The artificial sphere of magical light illuminated the stone room, yet it all looked like it was carved out of a single piece of stone, but I knew better.

"...they took my stuff," I groaned. Well, the trinkets and weapons I had on me; my inventory was always stocked with emergency equipment and utility items. I tried to move, the chains rattled, and I didn't make any progress. I used [Observe] on my binding.

Prisoner Chains
Metal chains created centuries ago to restrain those who are too powerful for mundane suppression. These chains are infused with powerful magic that has only gotten stronger since its creation.

"I guess I can't force my way out; at least my mask is still on." It was nothing more than a bone-white mask with two eyeholes to look out of... with a wide smile of teeth that I harvested from an abandoned waif.

I felt the pillow underneath my head. It was rough, itchy, and quite hard. It was easy to feel since I shaved all the hair off my scalp. But my mask made sure that my head would always be set on fire, and since I couldn't smell my flesh being roasted means something neutralized the curse it had.

I would be lying if that didn't worry me. I crafted that mask from ingredients that have a very dark origin, and a powerful and sadistic curse was born from it. It doesn't just go away like that; if it was that easy I would have done so from the very beginning.

I had to know what else they took off of me, I could have just looked down but the chains were numerous and thick. It was more akin to a thick, wool blanket. They don't want me to escape. "Show current equipment."

Current Equipment:
(Head): Mask of Wrath.
-(Left Eye): Eye of Envy.
(Neck): Pendant of Lust.
(Body): Cloak of Pride.
-(Back): Slothful Shield.
(Left Arm): Gluttonous Hand.
-(Middle Finger): Ring of Greed.

Of course, the only things they couldn't remove are the items that are bound to me. I'll give these horses credit, they're a lot smarter than my previous jailers. "Enable [Mage Sight]," I commanded as I felt a pressure behind my eyes. Now I remember why I don't sleep: it turns off some of my passive skills, and when the number of passive skills stack up, it becomes tedious to turn them all on. "Oh, that's not good."

To say the room was magically fortified would be an understatement to my situation, and an insult to those who made it possible.

Dozens upon dozens of layers of the magic matrix, along with symbolic runes were combined and repurposed in an ever-shifting flood that crawled over the walls. Forming and unmaking, birthing new runic concepts I've struggled and dreamed to achieve, and they died out within moments.

That was just the surface of it all.

"They're not taking any chances with me," I realized that they learned from past mistakes from the other civilizations I've been imprisoned in. I honestly expected to be nailed to a wall or to wake up at the time of being executed. I would expect no less of the atrocities I have committed against the world, some events in the past I have set in motion myself, others I have nudged in the wrong direction purely for personal gain.

I did it all without a shred of remorse.

Then I saw it. I saw the patterns and mystical magical sequences take shape of a door, solidifying in the most perfect, upright rectangle before retracting into the ground.

She entered the room. The sheer magical force passively radiating off her form was blinding and painful to look, yet it was so mesmerizing that if I dared to look deeper, I would see the complex signature of her soul. It reminded me of a roaring sun.

I used [Observe].

===
Celestia
Level: ???
Species: Alicorn

Title(s): Princess of Equestria, Embodiment of the Sun, Solar Matriarch, (+112 additional Titles that cannot be seen)

I should have known that even with the power I have accumulated, there was no chance of me coming close to hers; not even my ocular information-gathering skills couldn't get much out of her, and only proved how superior she is. Only now, after all this time, her species was revealed, but I already knew that after doing some minor reading in a library. It's like giving a label to a bladed weapon; doesn't matter if it's called a dagger or a machete, it can still kill you.

I turned off [Mage Sight], and without seeing her magic, I could properly see her. Celestia is how I remember her.

Tall with light magenta eyes. A long length of hair separated into four colors - cerulean, turquoise, cobalt blue, and heliotrope - waving and swaying to a nonexistent breeze. A pair of angelic wings that are grand as she is. A golden crown fitting for royalty, but humble enough to match her motherly personality, sat on her head. The only other piece of jewelry was a necklace, and even that was over the white, gold-trimmed dress she wore. The image of the sun was designed at the very center.

"Sweet Tooth," Celestia gave me a curt nod, although it wasn't out of respect or care - it was just to acknowledge my horrifying existence. Her voice was gentle, for now, and it carried the weight of authority. "We finally capture you."

"Who is this 'we'?" I asked her, remembering the one-sided beatdown I received form her. "You were the only one capable of taking me down."

"There were those who helped to provide the opportunity," She defended as she glared down at me. "I made sure their efforts were not in vain."

"You call what they did 'effort'?" I laughed, rattling the chains. "What I did to them, is what you did to me. The fighting was one-sided!"

She firmly pressed her hand on top of my stomach, the chains combined with the force of her action caused any air I had to rush out of my lungs. To her, a mere pat. To me, it felt like I was punched in the stomach again. "And just like you, I haven't killed my opponent," She pressed harder on my gut. "But the difference between you and I is that I show mercy and restraint, while you would have brutalized everypony if you weren't stopped."

"Then why not sooner?" I rasped as my accusation caught her off-guard, enough to lighten the pressure on my chest. I took in a deep breath. "Wouldn't it have been easier to go after me yourself? Instead, you sent guards, Twilight and her friends - eventually your sister, and then Discord. All of them failed."

Although I did suspect that Celestia hadn't taken me seriously enough to settle the matter herself, or maybe she had too much faith in those she was close to; confident in their task to fight an opponent they have underestimated.

Pride. It's always been my favorite sin.

"...There is a reason why you are here," Celestia stood back, her glare still never let me out of its sight. Composed and calm, but I know it is nothing more than a restraint, a subtle display of power to let me know that she will not lose control; how she is above that, and that I am not worth it. Yet she hadn't answered my question. "You have a lot to answer for."

"Let me guess," I let out a bored sigh. "You want a face to give to the monster, and show it to the world. To show the true Sweet Tooth and not another crook imitating me to take advantage of my reputation, because you need me to help fix the political problems that are plaguing your kingdom."

"Infamy would be accurate." Celestia countered, her voice taking on a hard edge, but didn't deny my accusation. There was a hint of curiosity about how I knew what she wanted, but just like her, I have my ways of finding out. "All the damage you've done... those who suffered, and will suffer because of what you did! Your days of hiding behind a mask and cloak ends now."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not responsible for every bad thing that happens in the world-"

"I know you were involved!" She raised her voice at me, not enough to be uncontrolled yells but just enough to reinforce her control over the conversation. "Every major event that happened in and outside of Equestria, you were somehow responsible!"

"Oh really? How am I, a simple merchant, responsible for the world being on the brink of collapse?"

"I've heard the stories," Celestia said. "I have my ways of gathering information, and among the flood of reports I read, the only common variable among them is you: a cloaked figure wearing an unsettling mask selling supernatural artifacts. The items we confiscated off of you have the same brand of craftsmanship on the items we found. I have testimonies that you were the one who sold them!"

"If those flood of reports shows anything, it's that most of them are exaggerated and made-up; surely you've noticed the contradictions?" I mused, and I studied her surprised face. "Oh Celestia," I chuckled. "You must be desperate if you seek out a common variable among contradiction. As for my products, is it so strange that what I wear for myself, I would sell to others?"

"So you admit you were the cause?"

"I acknowledge that I was involved," I clarified. "But again, what others do with my products is not my fault. There was a demand, and I supplied it. Everything else is insignificant."

"Insignificant? Are you so short-sighted that you didn't realize the consequences?" She asked me. "You aided enemies of Equestria, tempted and tricked those who were desperate, and have tormented the innocent! How could you say that you are not responsible?"

"First of all, I'm not short-sighted," I scoffed at the term. "Second, I didn't seek anyone out, they came to me, and I made a sale. Third, I would warn them of the consequences - I would be a bad merchant if I didn't warn others of the danger - but they didn't listen; they never do."

"If you knew the potential harm of what you made could bring, then why sell them?"

"I'm a merchant," I reminded. "You've dealt with them in your courts long enough to know that profit always comes before morality."

"You still sold them cursed objects!"

"Yet they paid me handsomely for them." I retorted, but it all feels repetitive. She says it is my fault, I will say it is the consequences of others not taking my warning seriously, or misusing what I created. "We can keep this conversation in loops, so let's get down to the real reason why I'm not being publicly revealed as a monster: you can't take off my mask."

"We suspect that it's bound to you," Celestia said. "There have been some... unfortunate results when we tried to remove it by force, especially with your cloak." The hesitation in her voice told me what I already knew: some poor fool tried to steal from me. I wonder what soul-tormenting nightmare the individual is experiencing when they touched my cloak?

"So you want me to willingly take off my mask?" I shifted my arms as much as I could, the chains reminding her of my condition. "I can't do that without my hands."

"I'm not falling for that trick," Celestia said firmly. "I've heard what happened in the Griffon Empire; your mask can move on its own, it just needs the command from you."

"Those stories from there are usually exaggerated; nonetheless, I'm not taking off my mask."

"We could always do it forcefully..." Celestia warned. "...I will if I have to. I will not allow you to hide behind your identity while being on trial."

"If you did, we wouldn't be having this conversation," I rolled my eyes. "Look, just chop off my head and show the other nations that I'm dead; it'll honestly be faster if you expedite the process."

"That's not how this works," Celestia said sternly, although she looked appalled at the suggestion. I called her bluff: she doesn't have it in her to do it. "There are steps to do; an ethical code to make sure order is maintained, even to those who do not deserve it." There was more to it. She's a public figure who built an image of herself, and the reputation of her land, to be that of order and peace. If Celestia were to go executing criminals without trial, doubt, or mercy - no matter how minor or extreme the crime - then it would only paint her as a monster. She has to better than that, or she will never earn the trust of the other nations or the love and respect of her people.

That is assuming she has a darker nature like her younger sister and has the same capacity to do something awful born out of emotion, unaware of the consequences. Yet here she is, conscious and aware of what judgment the public and history will say about her.

"But what of those too powerful and unstable that won't be shoved into the bureaucratic process?" There are just some beings too powerful to be contained in a cell. Tartarus proved that. "What about Luna, or Discord? You turned one into a statue, and banished the other into a moon for centuries."

"Those were extreme circumstances," Celestia countered, easily anticipating my retort. "Despite that, redemption and atonement were not out of reach."

"Is that why we're talking? To offer me a chance of redeeming myself?"

"That will be up to you." There's that motherly tone I'm all too familiar with. "You can help to fix what you broke; to make amends to those you have hurt. What could be better than that?"

A lot of things.

I am content with who I am and haven't lost any sleep - that is if I ever choose to sleep - with the actions I have committed, but I was not going to take credit for atrocities that were not mine. For her, all I would have to do is reveal my identity and claim responsibility to crimes that I have 'supposedly' caused. But considering most of them were not my fault, and the rest were either exaggerated or made up, I refused to be blamed for actions outside of my control.

I couldn't help but laugh: it was all too amusing. "So instead of fixing things yourself, you want me to do it for you? If you want somepony with influence to do the job, then have Discord do it. He can literally influence reality to do what he wants."

"I would have considered that... if he wasn't still a coma."

"He is?" I was honestly surprised at that. "I thought he would have woken up when you knocked me out."

"You are the reason why he is in a coma!"

"A result of his hubris; too confident in his chaotic nature," I sneered at the memory. "Claiming that his chaotic mind would erode any sense of order my mind has. It honestly makes me happy knowing his threats were all talk... oh, what a shame that I am trapped here - his body would have a wonderful ingredient!"

"You will not touch him," Celestia said with conviction. "I've personally hidden away Discord's body, and the only way it is leaving is when he wakes up and walks out of there himself; with or without you, I will get him to wake up."

"...Are you aware of what I can do when making a deal?" I asked her to test the waters, to see how much she knows about me. "Do you know about my contracts?"

"I'm well aware of it," Celestia said, not entirely sure of the sudden change in subject, maybe she decided to humor me since it's keeping me talking. "I know you have different versions of your contracts. Either way, a lot of suffering was caused because of them."

"Then you should know that even I am not immune to the consequences. You've heard the rumors of what I did in Tartarus?"

"I am. Several of the Minotaur clans are about to break away from the alliance with the others, threatening to plunge their land into a civil war after what you did."

"Then you should know how powerful they are," I said, at least some details weren't lost. "I had to use one in my encounter with Discord, they're powerful enough to keep a reality-warping entity like him in check. The rules, conditions, and terms, are absolute. Discord's property - his mind, body, and soul - is now mine. Not even you can break the deal he agreed to."

"I will find a way," She said with fierce determination. "I will free Discord, and those you have enslaved!"

"I don't have slaves!" I groaned, just like I did with so many others who thought the same. "Even if I do, it's to pay off a debt they have when I provide my services."

"I've heard the stories-"

"Let me tell you a story; a list of facts." I interrupted her. We were getting off track, and I didn't want this conversation to loop again. "When you first fought discord, you needed the Elements of Harmony, with the aid of your sister, to defeat him." I reminded her. "That's why you had your student and her friends to defeat him when he returned: you no longer control the Elements of Harmony, otherwise you would have taken care of him yourself. So let me ask you: If Discord couldn't break my contracts, and the Elements were put back in the Tree of Harmony, what makes you think that you - without the Elements - could? This overconfidence I see in you, and those associated with you is like an old joke. It stops being funny, and becomes irritating at best, and frustrating at worse!"

"...Why bring this up?"

"To show you that there are things beyond you - I am a living example, but I play fair," I said. "You want me to take off my mask? To claim that I am responsible for what had happened to Equestria? To help you? I want something in exchange."

"You are not getting a pardon for your crimes-!"

"I don't want a pardon," I interrupted her, and I am honest when I say it too, and how I said it caused her eyes to go wide at my declaration. "But don't misinterpret that as me declaring I am responsible for it all. I'm not a saint, but I'm not at fault for people's vices and sins; especially their stupidity."

For once in my life, I saw Celestia's eyes mixed with hesitation and confusion. "Then what do you want?"

"I want to form a contract. Not my [Ruthless Bargain] contract - you would never agree to that after what you've heard what happened to the Minotaurs. So I will be using my [Fair Trade] one instead."

[Fair Trade] has been activated!

===
Fair Trade (Active) Level: MAX

A skill that supernaturally reinforces the willing exchange of goods and services between two or more parties. The terms and penalties defined in the agreement must be accepted from those involved.

Celestia took a step back and aimed her hand at me as blue mist coiled off of me. "Relax," I said as the mist condensed and solidified above me. It parted away like a pair of curtains to reveal a stone tablet emerged from within. "Unlike the other one, this is a safe contract."

"How do I know the terms will be fair? What if this is just another one of your schemes?"

"Unlike my Ruthless Bargain contract, this will only work if all of those involved agree." As soon as I said that, words started to carve above on the stone slab by an invisible force. "It will only allow the agreement to happen if we offer what is in our power. This contract is a mutual benefit for those involved. We exchange what we have to offer, and gain what we want. Nothing more."

I thought of the contract, the words I would put, and instantly the stone slab started to have its surface being chiseled to what I desired. It was completed within a minute. "Does this seem fair?" I willed it to float over to Celestia, who seemed surprised how neat the carved writing is, and how big the slab was. It does no good if the letters are too small to read. The skill wouldn't allow that.

Party 'A': Sweet Tooth
Party 'B': Celestia

PROPOSAL:
* 'B' must hear to 'A' talk about the events of his past.
* 'B' is allowed to bring others to witness the hearing.
* 'B' can provide items upon request of 'A', but they must be approved by 'B'.
* 'B' must ensure that 'A' is not physically or psychologically harmed.

UPON COMPLETION:
* 'A' will claim responsibility to events 'B' deems to be held accountable for.
* 'A' will be required to remove his mask and reveal his identity.
* 'A' will be placed under Equestria's jurisdiction and submit to its laws.
* 'A' must accept any punishment 'B' declares.

PENALTIES:
* If 'A' fails to uphold the terms of the contract, his fire-based skills will be inflicted upon himself.
* If 'B' fails to uphold the terms of the contract, 'B' will provide magic to 'A' to fuel 1 spell.

"Well?" I ask. "Is it to your liking?"

"This makes it seem favorable towards me." She gave the contract a skeptical look. "I've been dealing in politics long enough to know something is amiss."

"All you have to do is listen to me talk until I am done. You can call upon others to be with you - perhaps to have another witness, or to add extra security - you just have to make sure they only do that, and not try to probe my mind or try to kill me. Even if I ask for a cup of water, you have every right to deny me it. After I'm done, then I will submit to you as the contract says."

"Why go through all this effort?" She moved the floating stone tablet away from her to look at me. "For somepony who claims to be a merchant, making a deal that benefits others else seems out of character."

"Because I make a personal rule not to lie, but you wouldn't know that, as you and I have done nothing but argue." Considering the arguments are based on nothing more than rumors and misinterpretations, she would never believe me. "This contract assures my cooperation."

"But why are you?" Celestia asked me, glancing back at the contract. "Why go through such an extreme method to confess what you've done?"

"You say it's my fault for the ways things are," I recalled as she nodded in agreement. "I just want to tell my side of the story."

"You wish to prove your innocence?"

"If you still think I am guilty, then so be it, and I will still do what you say; the contract will guarantee it, and I won't do anything to forcibly convince you otherwise. Tell me, Celestia, what do you have to lose from this? Watching me being burned alive if I go back on my word? Losing some of your infinite, godly magic to power one spell if you can't keep me safe as I talk?"

"If I am going to agree to this, then I want to add something," Celestia tapped the PENALTIES section. "The spell you choose must not be harmful... and no teleportation either. I will not risk using my magic to help you escape."

"Fine." It's not like I was going to do any of that anyways. I don't think I could with all the runes in the room. A small detail was added to the contract before I willed it to float to her. "There, happy?"

PENALTIES:
* If 'A' fails to uphold the terms of the contract, his fire-based skills will be inflicted upon himself.
* If 'B' fails to uphold the terms of the contract, she will provide magic to 'A' to fuel 1 spell; the spell must not be destructive, capable of teleportation, or be used to aid 'A' in escaping.
*Once a penalty occurs, this contract afterward becomes nullified and destroyed.

"Is that better, Princess? Now you can be at ease that even if you violate the terms of the contract, then I still will not be able to escape."

"But the contract will become useless if one of us breaks the agreement..."

"So what? Just think of it as mutual destruction: I lose my life, and you lose your bargaining chip with the other nations. Neither of us will get what we want." There was no point in keeping a contract active if compromises break down into disagreements and decide to change their mind later on, and I can't exactly do anything she wants if I'm burned into a pile of ash. "All I want is to tell my tale, and when I'm done, you'll get what you want. Don't you want to fix the world I supposedly broke?"

I was trying to tempt her. Truthfully, I added that last condition onto the contract for a reason: I didn't want to take the chance that Celestia would put me out, heal me, and then be forced to do what she said. If that last condition to void the contract wasn't there and I, for some reason, didn't hold up my end of the deal, being set aflame would be temporary because she would just extinguish me.

And I would still be bound to the contract to hold up my end of the deal. Thus giving me an ultimatum: cooperate and later submit, or be tortured with flames.

I will not be fooled through the exploitation of my own making again; past experiences can make a great teacher, and I had to make sure that Celestia knew that I could not be fooled.

Celestia silently reread the contract, trying to find something off about it. Anything to argue, but I just want to tell my side of the story. I've said that enough times. "...How do I sign?" I could tell she was hesitant, reluctant even when she said that. I like to think that it was because it was on my terms, not hers, and how the progress in this negotiation was made. Yet I knew it was a fantasy: she wouldn't be that petty.

"You've already given your consent when you asked to sign; the next part might sting a bit."

The acceptance of this contract has been acknowledged! Those involved will now be bound to it!

The stone slab erupted into blue flames. Two tendrils of magic shot out from the magical inferno, one for each of us, before piercing our hearts. It was painless, quick, and if it wasn't for her centuries of experience in the arcane, Celestia wouldn't have noticed it. "What was that?!" Her hand moving to her chest where the tendril struck. I guess being invaded by foreign magic was an unusual sensation. It took a minute for her to calm down before asking, "What did you do?"

"It's just the binding process," I explained. "Nothing more than a supernatural confirmation of what we agreed to. Now, can I start? Although I hope you don't mind if I skip ahead of my life; no need to bore you about my miserable origins. It wouldn't be satisfying to tell you who I am before I finish."

"Then I want to know how things got this far," The stone floor rippled and liquefy near Celestia before rising and taking the shape of a chair. To my amazement, the stone peeled off in flakes to reveal a cushioned chair made out of polished wood and silk. She sat in it as if it were the real thing; it looks far more comfortable than the bed I'm chained too. "If you are not responsible for it all, as you say, then how are you involved? You keep saying it's through the misuse of your 'products', but you don't elaborate any more than that."

"You wouldn't hear me out until now. If you want to understand it all, then you will need to hear the whole story... which will take a while." I thought of a good place to start my tale. "Let's see... it all started when I woke up in a corpse pit..."

Author's Note

I've discovered and read some Gamer stories here on this site; it's a shame most of them die off before they can get far. I was going to do a Gamer fic for Equestria Girls, but I changed my mind since I have mixed feelings about it.

I did read several Gamer stories take place in Equestria Girls or an alternate universe where the ponies are humans, but they were abandoned, and some were deleted. Such a shame. I was about to make this an alternate universe where the characters are humans, with pony terms mixed in, but I wasn't okay with that. It's called My Little Pony, not My Little Human-with-pony-terms-but-not-really-it's-slightly different. It's not that I hate all-human au's, I still like to read them, it's just I'm not ready to write one yet.

And I have mixed feelings about Equestria Girls too.

Chapter 1: The Hunger

In the past

It was cold. The smell of decay only made it worse. There wasn't any light, nor could I produce my own. All I could feel was the maggot crawling around me; hearing the insects buzz and crawl over everything but me. I thought they would get me next if I fell asleep. Staying still, breathing so slow that I would be mistaken for the deceased to be feasted upon from the inside out.

What little hair I have on my scalp is all that remains from scratching it off due to lice. I imagined a far worse fate in the darkness: lo have insect scavengers violate me and reuse my still-living husk to procreate and feast, feeling them surfacing in and out; watching them do so until they reach my eyes. To be blind as I am eaten alive.

Somehow I managed to stay awake - or maybe I am passing out in graceful moments to replenish enough stamina to swat the scavengers away.

I remember the screams down here - both young and old. I remember how those screams didn't belong to me, a few of them did, I admit it, but I gave up a long time ago. Their voices died out like the heartbeat of an abandoned newborn. But sometimes when its really quiet, I can still hear them down here, even though they're dead.

My mind is falling apart, and I am aware of it too.

I was in a hole so deep into the ground that when the sun shined down it looked like a dot. At least in the darkness, I could pretend I was in a trash pile, or a sewer - they were honestly better than where I am now. But when the sunlight reaches its peak, shining light directly down, and in that brief moment of cursed illumination, reminded me where I am.

The corpse pit.

Hundreds of individuals rotting into a fine pile of decay, all of them with their mouths frozen in terror - their dead eyes still carrying the fear and shock they had when they were alive and screaming; crying out in the darkness, realizing that this is what your life leads to; all your hopes, dreams, achievements - everything and anything you ever desired for - made meaningless by a deep hole in the ground!

But that only applies to those who survived the drop, being cushioned by the bodies of their dead predecessors.

Slaves. Waifs. Neglected. The homeless. Those who have no friends or family. Those who will not be noticed if they went missing. I was overqualified for the position.

I saw movement on the top of the hole, more griffons dragging another body. I wondered what species it would be this time?

Zebra? Those were very, very rare.

Diamond Dog? They were at the very bottom of the pit, the first ones to be thrown down here.

Dragon? There was one that got thrown down here after her scales and horns were harvested. I never saw anymore after that.

Minotaur? I've yet to see one.

Pony? They were common enough that if I guessed it, it would most likely come true. I had to change it up so that I would guess the type of pony.

Whoever they are, would they die from the impact, or would the decay soften their landing?

It was a cruel game, but I was desperate for a distraction. For when the light shined down, it revealed my previous game; one that I was too terrified to continue playing.

I used to scrape my finger horizontally across the solid walls of the pit, the line directly above the surface of corpses. But over time, when the next day came as the light shined down, I would see the line I carved once more.

It was much higher on the wall than it was before. I had to crane my neck to look at it. It was then I realized something: the pile of bodies is lowering. Fast enough for me to notice it, but efficiently smooth for it to go unnoticed.

Something is down here with me, and it has a deep hunger for flesh.

In the future

To say that Celestia was appalled by my tale would be an understatement. "W-When was this?" She looked queasy as she barely got her question out. I don't even think that is what she wanted to ask first. But how could she focus when her mind is overwhelmed by a description so carnivorous; what else would I expect from a herbivore?

Still, I found it odd that would be the first question she asked, maybe she isn't focused enough... or maybe I am just expecting too much. "This was back when Candace and Twilight were still young," I said. "But if you want a more accurate date? I was thrown down into that pit after you left the Griffon Empire; you originally came there to help them stop the Leviathan Cult as they abducted your subjects as well."

"H...How did you know I was in the Griffon Empire?" Celestia asked me, looking uneasy before shaking her head, trying to organize her thoughts. "No... I'm overthinking this. You probably heard about me going there... it wasn't exactly a secret... and I did bring others with me..." She said that more to herself than to me.

"No, I was personally there when you came to the Griffon Empire," I explained. "I remember how you had a look of wonder in your eyes as things were completely different over the centuries while you took your time making your way to the Emperor - you even sampled some of their sweets, eating two whole slices of their spice cake. After that, you offered the baker to come to Canterlot to work as your cake maker, and he still works in the kitchen to this day."

Celestia just stared at me with wide eyes, mouth open but struggling to form words.

I rolled my eyes. "Are you going to do that every time? There's a lot more that I know."

"B-But how do you know that?" Celestia asked in a raised voice. "I kept that offer to Heaven-feather a secret-!"

"Out of fear for his life, as you pitied him; thinking his talents were wasted there. I know." I already knew the details of her actions. "You kept it hidden because the Emperor thinks that if you were to visit, you would be spreading propaganda among his subjects to defect. With a ruler that paranoid, do you ever wonder why negotiating with him is so difficult? He's keeping a lot of secrets - all of them are harmful, like the pit I was thrown in after you left."

Celestia remember that argument, and it only made diplomacy much more difficult afterward. At least she tried to get the conversation on track again. "I saw that pit when I was there but-" She stopped herself, doubt creeping in. "He said it was a mass grave."

"You weren't down there like I was," I shook my head. "Of course it wasn't a mass grave, it was a feeding bowl - he lied to you. You're not the first he lied too about that pit either. It's simple as that."

"But that's what he told me!" Celestia protested, willing to give her ally the benefit of the doubt. "He said that his kingdom was too poor to give each griffon an individual funeral."

"Which is how he got that trade deal from you; they weaponized pity and sympathy to exploit kind-hearted individuals like you. It's why the zebras are always arguing with them every time you all gather for a diplomatic meeting: they're the only ones who can see right through them. Surely, this isn't the first time you've heard of this?"

"I thought they were rumors," Celestia admitted. "But you were there; you got out. Surely others escaped too?" There was desperation in her voice. Perhaps it was delayed disbelief that of all of those who were thrown down in the pit to die, I - the freak of this world, the one who doesn't fit - was the one to come out.

I could tell that in her eyes, she wished somepony - or any other species - was the one to survive, and instead, the world got me... or I could just be projecting; Celestia is a gentle being, so motherly and calm, and only breaking the trend when necessary.

"No one escapes that pit," I told her, much to her dismay. "It was so deep that the Emperor didn't worry about survivors. Even if they did survive the fall, the thing down there with me would eat them eventually. You couldn't even climb the walls, they were too smooth to grip. With the bugs and the smell from the decay, it would be impossible for a unicorn to channel magic. If by some chance that the wings of a pegasus wasn't amputated, and still had the strength to fly out to the top, they wouldn't be able to get past the guards. It's not like there was food or water down there either."

"Then how did you escape?"

"I ate one of the children down there."

In the past

The bodies kept coming down. I had to climb on them to stay on top. I could feel the vibrations from bellow, at the very bottom of the pit. I kept telling myself that it was something else, that it was my stomach growling from being denied food for so long.

I should have died from dehydration too, but here I am, still alive. I had conflicting feelings about that fact, originating from a cowardly aspect that wanted me to end it all, combined with the faint hope that Celestia would find me and get me out; that she would notice that I am missing.

('No, I'm not going to tell you why I hoped for your attention... because we agreed to keep my childhood out of it, that's why.... then stop interrupting me and let me continue.')
The body finally dropped down. It was another pony. I thought it was a wingless pegasus considering the wounds on her back, but after I saw the broken stub of a horn on her head - I realized she was a mutilated unicorn.

She was younger than me, but we were both children thrown in here to die. Except I fell here with only minor injuries, landing on the softest part of the pile. But her? I heard something snap like a twig, and then she started screaming.

And screamed she did, even as it went dark. I couldn't see her down here, but I know she is struggling in the blackness. She only stopped when a bug flew into her mouth, and after a fit of coughing, she started to cry. The realization that this is how she is going to die.

Sad.

Sick.

Forgotten.

Alone.

Well, maybe not alone. I'll be here. I could have reached out to comfort her, but what could I say to her? I don't lie. So, I did what I could. I reached out to her in the dark and grabbed her hand. When she tensed and let out a frightened whimper, I just whispered, as best as I could after being deprived of water for so long, "It's okay, I'm here."

There was nothing else I could say to stop her from crying, but I was able to lessen it. My whole life, from the moment of being born, I had done nothing worthy of it. I wasted it trying to get attention, ensnared by the promise of love and acknowledgment like a fish caught on a hook. After spending so long down here, I realized, just like the filly I am comforting, just like the hundreds who died before me, the world simply doesn't care... so maybe I should stop caring too.

It was frightening thought that I feverously countered with denial... but I later found it to be true when I realized that I just didn't care about the dying filly before me. To me, she wasn't a child with hopes and dreams, with a future denied by those she will never meet, for a reason she will never understand; I saw her as a quivering mess that would not shut up! Her screams and cries echoing around was like a nail being hammered into my skull over and over again, mixing and combining with the horrendous buzzing of insects that just irritated the thing at the very bottom of this pit!

It was made clear when the pile started reducing faster, quicker than the previous day: it was eating its way towards the filly, to devour the annoyance disturbing what was supposed to be a peaceful and rotted meal. It only got worse when her voice finally went dry and scratchy, and full of pain.

Instead of a sobbing voice, it was now an annoying ambiance that was akin to sandpaper being used to scrape the flesh off of a dying puppy; whimpering and chocking on nothing but disgusting air, but trying to vomit as much as possible in the slowest manner there is. Repeatedly over and over again - I don't think she knew how to stop, her mind broken beyond repair. Even as I carried her on my back to move us as more bodies were being dropped, trying to keep us on top and away from the thing below as days went by - her dying, aggravating voice was in my ear!

Then I had clarity. Those brief illuminations from the sun above showed me that I had sunk farther and deeper than before. The marks I made on the walls could no longer be seen. The sunlight itself seemed to struggle to reach down here. But when it did, I bore witness to the waxy, flesh protrusions of the beast below; the sunlight revealing the disoriented and ever-shifting dark colors that danced upon its skin. I backed away to the wall as the center of the pile shifted and churned like sour milk. Bubbling and evaporating as a single eye emerged to the surface, spraying rotted gore and chunks to splatter onto the walls. The iris was an unfathomable shape, bloodshot and furious, splitting and reforming to adjust to the sunlight before glaring at me. Specifically, at the filly, I carried on my back.

All my work, to care for a dying life, had been for nothing. "Ah damn it..." I collapsed on my knees onto the thick and vile mucus that surfaced. I didn't care as it slowly ate into my flesh; I was so tired of caring. "So this is what my life amounted to..." I am no different than the others in this pit; my life made meaningless because of a hole in the ground. I tried - I really did despite my negative attitude. In the end, it wasn't enough: everything I did never was.

I put the filly down in front of me. If I'm going to die, then I don't want her scratchy, drying croaks to be the last thing I hear. On my knees, the acidic sludge slowly eating my flesh, I just let my head hang down as my arms were slack; I didn't have the strength to care about myself, the bugs, or the thing before me advancing closer than ever.

The odor it had was beyond words - piercing through my senses like a sewing needle being hammered into my nose. The delayed acknowledgment of it lasted for a moment before it exploded and dug into my body like tree roots. Tears of pain dripped down my face, my world was starting to tilt and blur before it was covered in a curtain of foggy nothingness.

"YOU WERE DOWN HERE WITH ME..."

A powerful voice boomed in my head. I let out a cry of agony as the pressure in my head reached its peak. I couldn't lift my arms to cover my ears; I don't think it would have done any good - it was beyond language, yet I understood it when I shouldn't.

"AND YOU DID NOT PERISH..."

I looked at the thing before me, its unnatural eye focusing intently at me. I could feel it violating my soul as my heart raced so hard it caused my body to tremble. It didn't have a mouth to speak; a wordless will forcefully making me embrace it.

"I CAN SENSE YOUR HIDDEN POTENTIAL..."

I was looking at something that should not be; my own body screamed at me to run away. I was too tired, and there was no means of escape. I dare not to meet the horrifying gaze before me, but I was unable to look away.

"IN THE HORROR OF YOUR SPECIES..."

I felt something stab into my brain, a method beyond physical force. It was like my sanity was being peeled ruthlessly as if it were a vegetable. I saw frozen faces of flesh surfacing in the air, where spires of parasitic blight floated without mercy or love; I saw it all, and they saw me!

"KILL HER..."

One of the flesh protrusions uncoiled before me - a knife made out of ebony bones, coated in symbols representing something foul; a language of the damnation of a being that should not be witnessed! Just looking at it caused my eyes to bleed!

"AND RECEIVE MY BLESSING..."

Then there was darkness, and it wasn't because of the sun's absence of light. It was as if reality itself wanted this to be a special, private occasion.

It was just me. The knife. The dying filly.

She cried.

My stomach growled.

I hungered.

Author's Note

There's a trope where a girl is saved and becomes the main character's loyal companion. When I read this in gamer fics, no matter what fandom, I would just be confused on why she is even in the story. Because the main character who has the Gamer power can easily do things on their own, while the girl just exists. Or she because a love-interest who fawns, or just does nothing. It's like seeing her training, her power growth, and never seeing it in action.

I honestly was considering a female companion, but I was afraid I would follow that trope and the dangers of writing it; I would rather put that effort somewhere else than possibly write about a side-character that contributes little-to-nothing for the story, other than her improved abilities and skills.

So yeah, eating children - this story is rate M for a reason, and its only going to get darker. You have been warned.

Chapter 2: Training from Hell

In the future

"-I stripped the meat right off her," I finished up. "I even ate the fur, the hair, the eyes; I did it all with such frenzy that by the time I knew it, she was nothing but bones."

If Celestia was appalled by the start of my story before, she is outright disgusted as I near the end of my beginnings. The shock in her eyes. Her still body. The tremble in her hands. Her mouth opening to something, only to close it as no words would come out.

What could be said in response to my life?

I was expecting her to be angry; furious that I would do something so horrible to survive. I had a whole counter-argument prepared too, pointing out that I wasn't in her jurisdiction, and I am an omnivore, and philosophical debate of what is considered 'food' and how hypocritical it is to try and live in harmony with all species when they too eat meat. To judge and condemn them for biological needs out of their control. It's not like a griffon or a minotaur can go on a strict vegetable-only diet. For the latter species, it's one of the reasons why Celestia has failed in making progress in restoring peace in their lands that are about to be plunged into a civil war.

I killed a filly and ate her until there was nothing but bones, and the only reason I stopped eating was that there wasn't any more flesh. I was far from being satiated. If there were more meat on her dying body, I would have continued to consume every fibrous tissue and muscle without hesitation.

I won't lie, even if I wasn't in an extreme situation like I was before, and had an easy target: I would gladly do it again if I had to.

Sure, there were other bodies in the corpse pit, but that filly was fresh meat. The flavor of blood was an acquired taste, and for as long as I can remember growing up in this world, I've always had to eat plants and vegetables. It was refreshing to have something different.

Yet mixed in with the disgust and fury, I saw her eyes becoming moist with sadness and pity - how I, and those down in the pit, were forced into a nightmare scenario that was beyond our control. Celestia wanted to say something - she kept trying to - but in the end, she closed her mouth once more, closed her eyes, and stayed silent.

The tears that gently streaming down her face reminded me of the filly.

Then cravings started to return; my mouth was salivating at the thought of biting into her throat, tearing it out with my teeth before rolling it around in my mouth to cherish the flavor while I-!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

The urge was gone. I took in a deep breath. "Anyways," I called out, causing Celestia to look at me; I could see the tear streaks on her face. "After my meal-" I could tell from the way she flinched, and her glare, that Celestia didn't like how I referred the sentient being I consumed as a mere 'meal'. "-I found myself in a new hell."

In the past

My teeth ached from my ravenous hunger. I picked the hairs and bits of flesh out of my blood-tainted mouth. Oh, there was so much blood... my hands were covered in so much of it I thought the red stains on my hands and mouth were permanent.

I was so indulged in my feast that I didn't notice the darkness peeling away. To show that I was in the center of a grand, cubical chamber; vast and silver. Yet it was stained, covered in solid lumps of filth that have aged so much that they've become part of it all. Hooked and rusted chains rattled above me, and while the room was somehow illuminated without a light source, the iron door at the far end of the room seemed to absorb any light that touches it. As if the darkness beyond is so terrible that it is leaking in from the other side.

My mouth was hydrated with blood, but I was afraid of what was beyond the door.

Then, something odd happened.

The bargain has been struck; your suppressed power has been given that final nudge to awakening! Congratulations! However, your awakening was due to an outside force, rather than a reward of your determination and effort - therefore, some starting bonuses have been disabled. The system will undergo a small update to assist you in continuing.

"I must be going crazy..." I muttered to myself. "This is how my sanity finally breaks..." This couldn't be real, the thing in the corpse pit I saw couldn't have been real - none of this was! I had to be hallucinating, my mind was bending under its trauma and psychological scars.

It just didn't make sense! How I survived without food or water for so long in that pit, and now the one time I eat, I get teleported to a room with notification screens in my face?!

The knife, the one I got from the monster, along with the bones of the consumed filly, was still with me! I could see it, I could read the horrible language carved in its blade - my eyes no longer bleeding, my thoughts no longer being bombarded! So why am I not being affected now? What changed?!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

As fast as the notification came with my emotional surge, it was gone when my mind went empty. I felt calm. Relaxed. I took in a deep breath, and although the foul smell was strong, the lack of decay in the air made it a hundred times better than what I had before.

It was that notification screen. It just showed up out of nowhere, curing me of my emotional ramblings and instability. I felt so much better; calm and collected despite what I've been through. My mind felt more solid. Secure. I should be screaming like a lunatic, raving and crying, while clawing at my face until I bite my tongue off... yet I wasn't. I pondered on what it said. "...What's [Gamer's Mind]?"

I received an answer.

Gamer's Mind Level MAX

Allows the user to calmly think things through.

Allows a peaceful state of mind.

Immunity to negative psychological status effects.

I just stared at the screen. "I just asked and it responded?" This was too good to be true, nothing in my life ever was. "Is there anything else? Any other skills?"

Another screen popped up.

Gamer's Body Level MAX

Allows the user to live life as a game.

Pain sensations are negated after a few seconds.

Dentramental physiological effects are negated.

Physical damage reduces HP instead.

"Live life as a game?" I said my thoughts out loud, my voice bouncing off the stained silver walls; I was all alone, and I am grateful for that. The second and third effects of the skill caught my attention. "It would explain why I'm not feeling the hunger pains... or any hunger at all." I honestly thought that the meal was so effective that I replenished by biological needs. I wasn't hungry, thirsty, or needed to sleep. If I didn't have this skill, I would still be starving, and exhausted from not being able to let my guard down, and eventually have my mind drift into blissful unconsciousness. I bet [Gamer's Mind] is preventing my paranoia of bugs crawling on me even though I'm in an insect-free zone; being surrounded by bugs for that long should have left an impact on my psyche. Or maybe it did, and now [Gamer's Mind] made it go away.

Due to your rational thinking, your WIS stat has increased by 1!

"WIS stat? I have stats?"

(Name: FILE CORRUPTED)
Level: 1
Species: Human
Class: None
Sub-Class(es): None
==========
XP: 0/1,000
==========
HP: 10/10
MP: 100/100
==========
STR: 1
DEX: 1
AGI: 1
CON: 1
INT: 5
WIS: 5
LUK: 20
==========
Perks: Forbidden Knowledge, Language of the Old Gods.
==========
Stat Points: 0

Before I could even question my stats, just looking at the FILE CORRUPTED part, where my name should be, was just painful! Even when [Gamer's Mind] suppressed the worst of the effects, it felt like a part of my mind was empty and full at the same time; countering each other in an inevitable stalemate that left my head hurt and confused. I know my name, yet at the same time, my head was screaming at me that it wasn't.

Corrupted file has been deleted: please enter a new name!

I didn't want to. I wanted my old name back... or did I? I remembered my childhood and the mare who raised me in this foreign world. I had nothing but bad memories of broken promises and neglect. It was how I ended up forgotten in the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire.

Maybe it was time I made a new start for myself.

In the future

"-and that's how I got my infamous name," I turned to look at Celestia. The tears were gone, and she was giving me her full attention now. Although the shock of my actions hadn't left her eyes. "I did it on a whim - it just felt right to me."

"You chose the name Sweet Tooth that easily?" She asked me. I could tell our earlier talk about remorse would go nowhere, and now she is focusing on other matters. But it's a topic she will want to discuss again. "I thought it was more poetic than that?"

"No, that's just rumors," I explained, there were so many exaggerations of my name. "What version did you hear? No, better yet, tell me who you heard it from."

"I first heard of your name from Twilight's letter," Celestia said; it narrowed down which rumor she heard about me. "She told me about you after what she learned what happened to Pinkie Pie-"

"Oh, well that explains it!" I let out a fit of laughter but none of it was pure. My reasons for laughing was born out of being amused by cruelty maximized to its ironic extreme. After my fit of giggle died down, Celestia gave me a harsh look. I just rolled my eyes, "I don't feel bad for her - she stole from me and she paid the price for it; I even warned her about it and she still went through with it."

That caused genuine surprise from her. "She stole from you? You expect me to believe the former bearer of the Element of Laughter is a thief?"

"I'll eventually get to that part," I said. She was told something different. "But it's going to be a while. So any more questions, preferably about the current part of the story?" It wouldn't make sense if I was jumping back and forth between points in time of my life.

"...What about your old name?"

"That doesn't count."

"You are telling me the part where you discarded your old name and chose a new one. I think it's a reasonable question."

"...What about my old name? It wasn't mine in the first place." I dismissed with a scoff. "I got rid of it as the first step in starting over. I was done with my old life."

"But who were you before you were Sweet Tooth? You mentioned somepony raising you-"

"Who cares!" I raised my voice. What was she getting at by asking these questions? "I had let you know about my name, but we agreed to keep my childhood out of it."

"I just want to know about your mother-"

"Fine. Short version? I was an abandoned child, lost in this world," I look directly into her eyes and gave her a quick rundown. "I was adopted eventually by a powerful mare and given a name to show I had a place in my new family. But even my adopted-mother failed to remember me. There, happy?!"

She wasn't. The look she gave me told me she wasn't satisfied with my reply and was appalled by my rudeness. What was she expecting from me? "...I think your mother would be very disappointed in how you turned out."

I glared at her. "Then maybe she should have done a better job at raising me." She couldn't even remember my name. I turned my attention back to the ceiling of my imprisonment. "Nonetheless, I am a little disappointed that you are asking me these questions, Celestia, I thought you would have recognized me, even before I was well-known."

"I don't think we have," Celestia disagreed before narrowing her eyes at me. "I would have remembered such a terrible creature like you."

"No..." I shook my head as I felt an old passion of rage return; [Gamer's Mind] was having a hard time calming me down. "You wouldn't."

In the past

I continued to investigate my ability as I sat in an empty and filthy room.

Due to a lack of effort in trying to awaken your ability, the majority of the functions were disabled, and only [Gamer's Body] had been partially activated! You were unable to die due to lack of hunger and thirst, but you still felt their effects. This glitch has been resolved due to outside intervention!

I had mixed feeling about that, or rather I should have. I merely embraced the explanation of how I can survive much easier in harsher conditions; surviving the pit for so long without eating or drinking is proof enough.

It could be argued that eating a filly out of desperation for food was for nothing. How I devoured the future of an innocent soul.

But the innocent are merely stepping stones for the corrupt, and I refuse to be under the weight anyone else. I merely concluded that her corpse would have just rotted and become devoured by the thing at the bottom of the pit while more bodies were dropped down. Going without food for so long will make anyone break, and I was no exception to the rule.

This wasn't [Gamer's Mind] negating my trauma, this was my resolve in discovering that caring for other's, wondering if others would care about me, is just a waste of time.

Regardless, I've been transferred from one prison to another, and looks can be deceiving; the corpse pit, from the outside looker, is nothing more than a properly-made mass grave constructed under the orders of an empathetic leader, with a large monolith nearby to add the names of fabricated citizens of the Griffon Empire to fool any powerful visitors and simultaneously exploit their kind nature.

Still, one question remained, "What am I supposed to do here?"

Outside intervention has allowed your power to awaken. However, bargaining with these beings has a steep price. The system has worked out a compromise to benefit those involved!

QUEST: Escape the Punishment Zone!
You have been transported here after committing a great sin of gluttony, a huge and deadly labyrinth of sin, and will not be able to leave unless you escape this nightmare!
-The monsters here are always 30 levels above yours!
-The exit to the Punishment Zone will only open after the boss is killed!
-The boss monster is always double your level in the Punishment Zone!
-If you die, you will respawn at the beginning of the Punishment Zone!
-Every time you are revived, the layout of the labyrinth will change!

REWARD:
-Leaving the Punishment Zone and back into Equestria!
-Class: (Merchant)!
-Sub-Class: (Gambler)!
-Sub-Class: (Abyssal Craftsmen)!

FAILURE:
-Eternity in the Punishment Zone!

I was simply overwhelmed. My lungs refused to breathe as my heart pounded with the force of a hammer at the pace of a hummingbird's wing. [Gamer's Mind] had to calm me down repeatedly as it took me forever just to come to terms with what I was reading.

As I learned, levels represented the overall danger and power the individual has. The monsters down here will have +30 levels to mine, and if I were to encounter one, it would be level 31 - with the skills, powers, and brutality to match. If by some miracle I managed to make it the boss, and somehow defeat it, I would still have to find the exit.

The exit is not in the same place as the boss is - it was clarified when I asked, and it was confirmed due to the wording of the quest. I would then have to explore the area once more, after I've built up the courage to find it, with fragile hope of finding an exit without a clue to what it looks like! That is assuming there is nothing but monsters out there - traps would be abundant as well. So when I die, because I will, the whole layout of the labyrinth would change; memorizing any paths or noticeable marks would be pointless. I would just have to rush in, hoping luck would be on my side.

I didn't know if this was worse than the corpse pit.

But what do I get from this? My freedom to an empty life where I was forgotten. Where the griffons are abducting those who will not be missed, and I am overqualified for that requirement. There was one thing that could make a difference if I ever do get out of here: my Class.

A Class is a set of skills and abilities aligning towards certain conditions and effects. A Sub-Class is a variant focusing on one aspect of the main Class. You can have a lot of Sub-Classes, but you can only have one main Class!

"But what's the point in getting a Class now?" The only way I was going to get one was is if I complete this nightmare of a quest, and even if I did, being a merchant wouldn't help me survive if I have to encounter something dangerous. Money can't solve all problems in the world. I can understand the Sub-Classes now, how Gambler focusing on the money-gaining aspects of being a merchant, while Abyssal Craftsmen focused on producing the goods to sell. But why those? "Couldn't I get a more combat-focused Class instead?" It would at least allow me to defend myself from any more griffons: I refused to be dumped back into that pit.

Class changes have been disabled due to errors, lack of effort to awaken this power, and having this power manifested forcefully from an outside entity instead of natural growth. Being a merchant for a Class was the only available option left. Originally, your Class was a Spell Sword with Sub-Classes being Archmage and Swordsmen, but due to the previous reasons listed, this has been disabled. To compensate this, additional awards have been added to suit your condition and recently-acquired boons, but even this was a changed result as your original reward included magical tomes and weapons of your choice.

[Gamer's Mind] kicked in again to stop the bottomless despair I felt. Then I just felt empty, no longer have any fear, but not having motivation either. But I wanted to get out, and if this power could help me improve as I level up, then I would fight for my security and peace in the hostile world.

It said I had recently acquired boons. It was plural. Multiple. Two of them were the perks I received, and there was the freaky-looking knife I received from the thing in the pit. It was a serrated knife made out of black bone and metal with the color of flesh - it's supernatural edge was lined with sharp teeth; each tooth had a letter for a language that should not be spoken. Just holding it in my hand unsettled me, as touching it was somehow wrong as its existence.

Due to a specific action, the skill [Observe] has been created!

Observe Level: 1
It allows you to gain information when closely examining items, creatures, or individuals.

"So I can create skills..." I used the skill on the knife, only to receive another message.

Perk: Forbidden Knowledge, has been activated! You know able to see all information when examining eldritch artifacts!

Knife of the Hunter [Mythical]
A serrated knife made out of black bones and flesh-colored metal. Its supernatural edge is lined with teeth from unspeakable carnivores, not from this world. On each tooth, has a letter from a language that drove most insane when trying to translate it, and caused a frightening revelation to happen when they succeeded in doing so.

This blade offered to those who are strong enough to cross the threshold and thrive, as most are physically incapable of looking at eldritch artifacts. Be warned for this is not a praise of one's strength or potential, as this offering is not done out of compassion or pity, but as a profitable investment - one that is expected to be paid back with interest.

ABILITIES:

Causes the status effect, {Hemorrhaging}, on hit.

Heals the wielder for 5% of the damage inflicted.

This weapon is indestructible and cannot be destroyed by normal means.

Can evolve into more terrifying forms when it has been used to kill enough times.

This weapon is bound to the wielder and cannot be separated; this bond grows stronger the more this weapon feeds.

I read the language on the teeth on one side of the blade. "I never bite the hand that feeds me -" I dropped the knife when I felt something unbearable in my hand. Gravity proved my fears true as releasing the blade has pulled out the hair-thin tendrils of unspeakable colors from my skin. The damn thing tried to eat me - it's more than alive: it's hungry!

[Gamer's Body] and [Gamer's Mind] went into overdrive to reduce the sensations; both physical and psychological. I was still shaken up. Dropping the knife caused it to clatter on the floor, landing on its other side, revealing another message on the teeth. "Who wields me is my provider..." That's what it roughly said, and even though the perk, Language of the Old Gods, helped in deciphering the complicatedly simple language, I was all too happy that there were just some words just cannot be grasped or pronounced.

I didn't want to know what else it says, but it made it damn clear that if I don't feed this thing I will become its next meal.

Due to translating something that would drive most into insanity, your INT has increased by 5!

I felt the boost to my INT stat, but even so, I was conflicted about the method of increasing it, for I would have never discovered the other details of the weapon if it wasn't for my perks. I didn't dare to use [Observe] on it again, but it did get me thinking. "If doing certain actions creates skills then what else could I make? It would be a good idea to make more, especially if I am going to be stuck down here."

Due to a rational goal, your WIS has increased by 1!

It happened once more, and it confirmed my thoughts. "So my stats can increase too... I just have to train them-"

Like thousands of inert, misshapen things forming a complete puzzle, I had a mind-blasting revelation. It was as if everything in my head became nothing, for a mere moment of respect, to grant me a hazy clarity of how to exploit my situation. I double-checked the quest detailing my requirements to escape the punishment zone, and for the first time in forever I had true hope; even though it wasn't a complete plan, but it was something worth pursuing.

I could exploit this.

QUEST: Embracing Gluttony, has been created!

I read the rewards for the quest. "So it is possible... but it'll be bitter work." I walked across the filthy, silver room. I left the Knife of the Hunter on the ground, making sure to walk around it. The bones of the filly I consumed were scattered. I used [Observe] on the rusted chains above. What little cloth I had on me, I removed them onto the floor. I would simply respawn here when I die, and I don't want what little possessions I have to be lost in an ever-shifting maze of damnation with a hungry theme. What reflective properties the metal floor had was enough to show my neglected body, a sight that would cause others to feel pity and remorse.

Then I saw my face.

A disgusting, revolting face that would be the appearance of being unrecognizable if my reflection was clearer. Celestia would never recognize me now... and I was fine with it. It felt as if a weight had been lifted off my soul, being able to drift what makes me whole.

Nonetheless, I turned to look away from the ghastly sight, but I even that proved to be difficult. Not because I was enchanted with disturbing revelation and sights like I was when seeing the thing in the corpse pit, nor is it due to being a slave to vanity: it's because I could see my reflection EVERYWHERE that allowed it. My saving grace was when I moved to open the iron door that swallowed any light that touches it - I flinched away when I did. I felt it vibrate; growling at me as if it were a starving beast.

With a steady hand, I opened the hungry door.

(Yes, there was a theme to the whole place Celes - who the hell are you? ...Cadance? Really? ...No, I don't recognize you, you look terrible...You can't just barge in here and start demanding answers... because I'm not at that point in the story yet...No, I'm not going to skip ahead it wouldn't make sense... Then either listen in or wait until I'm done telling my story to your aunt; either way, you are not getting what you want.)

What was revealed? A dirty hallway made out of splintered wood from a butcher's chopping block, with doors seemingly placed at random. Those doors varied too, somewhere made out of bone, others were made from frozen blood, and they all shared the macabre theme as I walked.

The floor was soft and moist like the fat of an animal. I left imprints on it as I walked. The sound it made was horrid and sticky. I picked the door made out of frozen blood - the one made out of bone reminded me too much of the filly - yet before I made it to open one of the doors, I felt that same pressure I felt when looking at the thing. It was paralyzing.

Due to a specific action, the skill [Detect Bloodlust] has been created!

I was thankful that the door opened inward when I pushed into it. When I turned around on my heels to shut it behind me, I saw a glance of a beast without shape or form - something made of hoof, snouts, and bones that all had the common factors of animal origin and a form with the consistency of jelly. It's mouths made to lunge at me, surging forward with a primal carnivorous urge. Acidic mucus spraying unintentionally from the folding orifices, and the blighted eyes that ringed them were focused on me.

It only made me close the blood door faster. I didn't have time to use [Observe] on it, and I didn't want to. The thumping sounds it made against my crimson protection was heavy and carried great weight.

Due to fast movement and reaction time, your AGI and DEX has increased by 1!

I was out of breath; my body wasn't fit for panic-induced hiding, and it was mocking me with that fact. My lungs burned and my limbs were sore. Then [Gamer's Body] negated the pain - I could still feel the lack of stamina, and I wouldn't be able to run away again.

Because I was in a dead-end.

There was no door, no secret exits, hidden by conventional means that had to be revealed through clever puzzle-solving. I was just in a room with the texture of bone marrow. A monolith of skin was erect and thin as paper and stood tall and imposing like a tower. The terrifying language was the same as my dagger.

"The thing has no name for all mortal languages fail to describe it... those who see its frightening appearance go into shock as the mind physically cannot handle it... and even then, that is not its true form, only taking the shape of what an insane mind can barely process."

I was paralyzed with the revelation that the monster I saw, that caused my heart to nearly exploded from over-use, peeled away from my psyche, and imposed a terrifying voice that violated my soul - all from merely looking at it - wasn't even its true form. Those fleshy protrusions the thing had been similar to the monsters hunting me down.

They were too similar.

I didn't want to think about it, but my fear prevented me from doing so. The beast that I saw in the pit, just how much flesh did it have to eat to get to that size? Just how big is its true size? What if its just a literal mountain of offal and mouths that will devour everything that has been melted into sludge by its saliva?

What if, by some horrible chance, that I am actually in its stomach; to be digested for eternity. These flesh beasts that roam its insides are nothing more than a primal biological measure to keep infestations like me out; recycling my blood and flesh, over and over again as my bones are pounded into dust - Is this the price I must pay for receiving an eldrich tool-?!

Due to reading disturbing information of your patron, your INT has increased by 5!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

It didn't matter. This power has opened opportunities for me and I would be a fool not to take them. I would be a parasite leeching off of this moment to build my foundation when I get out until there is nothing left but me and an ever-growing desire for exploitation!

"Not bad for the first run," I let out a content sigh as the door of frozen blood behind me shattered; the familiar skittering growls of the flesh monster I encountered was advancing towards me. "I just hope my future attempts are just as bountiful."

I turned around in time to see the creature rip my head off.

Author's Note

As for exposition chapters of how the Gamer power works, I'm aware of it not being thorough, but I think we're all smart enough to know what certain stats do, and we have read Gamer fics, and the actual webcomic itself, to know what they do. Yes, some stats were added, but it's not worth devoting entire paragraphs of writing to explain them. And I just find it very boring to read something like that. (So for those who are wondering, Agility is speed, Dexterity is muscle coordination.)

The thing is with horror, the pacing is important so the full terror can fully be gasped. If it is rushed, your reader is overwhelmed and cannot understand. If it is slow, you lose the attention of the reader. So I did what I could in those natural tutorial-exposition chapters that every Gamer fic seems to have. Because if I were to do my normal style, then this chapter would be stupidly long as the main character tries to figure out what his power does while integrating horror elements.

As for the INT boosts, I was going to make a single number like 1 - but I had to think it over. Did I really want to make all knowledge the same? If studying mundane books, or reading terrifying cosmic secrets, got you 1 INT then it really downplays the power OF those cosmic secrets.

Like, hypothetically, learning that every time you fall asleep you die, and then someone else will wake up in your body thinking they are you.

If you discover that terrifying secret, you deserve a huge boost to your mental stats. It will allow you to grasp the horror of what you've discovered.

Also, can someone clarify how to spell Cadance's name? Is it Cadance, Cadence, or Candace? I google it, but I get different answers!

Chapter 3: Suicidal Gains

In the future

"...and that was the first time I experienced death. On my darkest days in the corpse pit, I would pray for it to come... but I was too much of a coward to end it myself." I told Cadence, who looked more and more disturbed as I continued. Celestia left to raise the sun and attend her court - for even I am not important enough to stop the passage of the solar cycle, or delay the process of a matriarchy leader putting in effort for her recovering kingdom to bolster against the oncoming destruction from foreign lands - and has left her niece to hear everything in my steed.

I told Celestia that I was willing to wait, mostly because I couldn't stand her niece, but after a heated reply on how time is of the essence and how she has the task of negotiating tensions that have been broken and reformed, Celestia settled on Cadence relaying information to her. Luck would grace the Solar Matriarch, for the Princess of Love barged in here when she heard of my capture.

===
Princess Mi Amore Cadenza
Level: 350
Species: Alicorn
Title(s): Embodiment of True Love
===

HP: 1,000,000/2,500,000
MP: 450,000/10,000,000

===

Status Effects:

Ascension: Her physical stats are multiplied by 5, magic is 10 times more powerful, and age is no longer a concern.

Anthropophobia: She is afraid of others.

Nyctophobia; Afraid of the dark.

Cibophobia; Terrified of eating food.

Starved: Stamina and HP regeneration are reduced by 50%.

Magic Core Severed: MP regeneration is severely reduced.

Psychologically Scarred: Certain triggers can cause a psychotic episode.

Bruised Fertility: It is now harder to have a child.

===

Weaknesses:

The darkness: it will trigger her trauma when she was imprisoned under the castle.

Those she cares for: she will hesitate if the lives of her loved ones are on the line.

Emotionally vulnerable: what negative emotions others feel, Cadence feels 10 times more. (Highly Recommended)

Shining Armor: he is her true love, and she will go through great lengths to make sure he is okay. (Extremely Recommended)

===
Description:
Cadence was an orphaned pegasus who would later be raised by earth ponies, filling their lives with much love and compassion, and would play the crucial role in reversing a love-stealing spell from the envious sorceress Prismia by using the sorceress' own magic against her and causing the sorceress to change her ways for the better. Later on, Celestia recognizes the traits of being a true princess within Cadence and her affinity for emotions. Celestia then transformed her into an alicorn and later adopted Cadence as her niece.

Time would be blissful for Cadence, as she would foal-sit young Twilight in her youth, and as she grew older she fell in love with Shining Armor; her true love. Over time, Cadence would eventually be loved and appreciated by her subjects, as she would always listen to their needs while being empathetic combined with her wonderful personality made her easy to approach. Yet after encountering the infamous Sweet Tooth, and the horrifying events she witnessed at her wedding, she is now an emotional wreck.
===

Time had not been kind to the Princess of Love.

Ever since her traumatic wedding, being stuck in the crystal caverns under the castle had made her sickly thin, and it only made it harder to restore lost nutrients as even the blandest meals would make her sick. She would always unconsciously look over her shoulder, as if another changeling would be there, in disguise, ready to abduct and torment her - Cadence never trusted any of the castle staff and would mostly spend her time barricaded in her room, only allowing her husband and Twilight to see her, but only on rare occasions as she would only respond to them instead. Celestia had to use her magic on Cadence's bedroom, blessing it with defensive wards and with dim artificial light so Cadence would have a peace of mind and get some sleep; the bags under her paranoid eyes had told a different story altogether. Just being outside her fortified room put her on edge, her bandaged hands would tremble, but she put it all aside just to see me.

Well, seeing might be difficult for her, considering she tried to gouge out her own eyes multiple times. The scars she inflicted on her face could have easily been mistaken for a wild beast; an appropriate analogy for when desperation and emotions are violently mixed under dire circumstances. From the perspective of an artist who has a macabre passion, I find it to be an improvement. I only wished it was my own hands that sculpted her into what she is, and not her sadistic trauma that haunts her.

But from the perspective of a storyteller? I find her constant interruptions and questions to be rude. Celestia knows when to stay quiet, and asked the appropriate questions. Cadence, on the other hand, would somehow lead conversations off-topic that would end in an emotional argument. I was foolish enough to engage, and yet every time I would be too angry to stop.

"When I respawned, I was back in the starting room again," I said. "The room itself hadn't changed, all the bones and the knife were still where I left them, but the rooms and paths outside did. The next time I had stepped out, the floor was made out of bones, and the monsters were the same shade of white, so they were able to hide before they leaped out-"

"You would be revived and start over?" She interrupted me again, asking questions that have already been answered, and yet I could tell she was trying to confirm something. A part of me will always despise how she is more aligned to emotions, rather than investigative prowess. At least Celestia knew I was a common factor with the events that lead to the current state of the world. "That sounds like Tartarus. So you did find immortality when you went there-"

"I was not in Tartarus." I corrected firmly, I didn't like being reminded of that place. "Compared to that place, the Punishment Zone was a minor inconvenience. You all think it's just flames and damnation, but there are layers to the torment it can bring. There was an entire area where it was just darkness; no light, sound, or smell. I thought I was dead if it wasn't for my heart beating in my chest. That was the only sound I heard, and it was the same noise that attracted the things that lurk in the darkness."

The disturbance on her face was a welcomed sight, and it slowly turned into an expression of denial. It's her fault after all; she is the one who brought it up. I had hoped that she would stop pestering me about that place, but even then my philosophy of never having expectations for those who will disappoint me gets reinforced every time. "But you said you kept coming back to life when you were killed!" She protested, as if what I said was a lie. Why is Cadence so interested in immortality when she has already acquired it? "There are tales of you plundering Tartarus!"

"Those stories just get mixed up, and the rest is twisted or exaggerated. Did I explore Tartarus? Yes, but it was an unwilling exploration." I stressed out the word. "Did I benefit from it? Of course, I did; some of the items I am wearing and the ones you confiscated are proof enough. But did I find the methods to obtain immortality when I was plundering it? No, that happened much earlier."

"But how did you pull off what you did in the Zebra Lands?" She persisted, there was a hint of desperation in her voice too. "How did you make Zecora immortal?"

"It's complicated, and yet at the same time, very simple - can I please get back to telling my story?"

"But-!"

"Or I could tell you about what I did to Zecora, but then you'll just end up disappointing your aunt," I said, which caught her off guard. "Remember why Celestia tasked you with listening to me: it's not to answer your out-of-nowhere demands, it's to understand why the world is on the brink of collapse, why leaders of certain nations are about to kill each other while one of them is about to engage in a bloody civil war. If your questions for immortality is far more important than the innocent lives of the world - who have family, loved ones, children - then all you have to do is say it!"

"W-What?"

"Just say that immortality is more important than innocent lives!" I said with a giggle. "Do that, and I'll tell you how I made Zecora immortal, but that story is very long, which will require me to skip crucial details of past events, and it will only cost your aunt the time she could have used to help fix everything! So go on... say it."

Her mouth opened, her hands started trembling. "I-I...please, just-"

"SAY THE EXACT WORDS!" I screamed, the chains that bound me to the bed rattled, causing the traumatized princess to flinch with a yelp. I waited a good minute for a response. Nothing. "No? Then stop interrupting me, and stop asking me about immortality. If you don't, I promise, I will do something extreme..." I honestly didn't know what I was going to do, but it will be unforgettable; destruction condensed and focused onto a single alicorn. "And if you are dumb enough like my previous captors, thinking that somehow I can't hurt you when being bound, then you are in for a very, very painful surprise."

In the past

I was back in the cubical room.

There was never a shortage of carnage inflicted on my body. The beats that stalk the ever-changing halls were feral and hungry for my destruction and pair, nonetheless, and I was left to run and hide. The stealthy abominations of white chitin were not my executioners this time, for they had attempted to disembowel me; my fate was met when stumbling upon a pressure plate of organic nerve endings.

The texture of such a macabre device had set me on edge. How the area around me lurched and shifted, easily pictured in the mind which caused alertness that forced my heart to quickly beat, my brain to stimulate, my blood to pump. Sadly, however, the same could not be said for my body; still as stone with shock and realization.

It all came to fruition when a rain of sharp teeth greeted me from above. Even with my Constitution low, and with my pain-sensitivity high, I had felt no ounce of despair for my short-lived attempt for freedom. Truth be told, I was hoping to perish.

The multiple notifications rewarded me so.

Due to exerting physical effort, your CON and AGI has increased by 1!

Due to being in a hostile environment, the skill [Sense Danger] has been acquired!

Sense Danger Level: 1

Survival Instinct is biologically integrated; this ability allows the user to sense when bad things are about to occur, or when being watched by those with ill intent.

With higher skill levels and WIS, the sooner you can sense incoming danger.

Due to being hunted by carnivorous abominations, the skill [Detect Bloodlust] has been acquired!

Detect Bloodlust Level: 1
There is a reason why prey can exist; this ability allows the user to feel bloodlust and its origin within range.

Range is determined by skill level and INT.

Accuracy is determined by skill level and WIS.

Due to experiencing physical trauma, the skill [Physical Resistance] has been acquired!

Physical Resistance Level: 1

The body is capable of adapting when exposed to extreme trauma; this skill allows the user’s body to develop a defense against physical sources.

Reduces all incoming physical damage by 0.5%.

It wasn't enough.

I rushed to the iron door. I ignored how it growled like a hungry beast. In a way, it was like me.

I opened it and stepped outside. "Again."

As I ran away from the gelatinous cube of acid, [Sense Danger] flared as I leaped forward into the next room, avoiding the trap as spikes made out of bones erupted from the ground.

And pierced the gelatinous cube. It screamed with unrelenting agony before becoming a softening silent thing of sludge.

"I hope it's not dead," It would ruin my plans for this place. "[Observe]."

[Digestive Slime] Level 31

A complicated organism that lives a simple life in the belly of an unspeakable beast. These creatures exist to break down large objects or creatures for easy digestion for their host.

So I am in a stomach, which means I am food. Screaming, thrashing, and forever digested in the belly of the beast. "At least it isn't dead." I tried to find some way to cheer myself as my plan can continue - it was the only thing keeping me going - but I was in another dead end with a monolith of star-spawned terror carved on its slimy surface. "I wonder..."

I used [Observe] on the monolith.

A crumb of cosmic truth; dark knowledge in mundane form; the foul intent of ghastly humor by primal forces who are the gate and the key for revelation and madness. These monoliths contain fragments of greater knowledge, but even in a written form, the information causes great suffering for those who foolishly gaze upon it. When enough of these horrible truths are learned, the reader will cross a mental boundary that cannot be undone.

[Observe] has leveled up!

Language of the Old Gods activated once more. Just a mere glance at the words caused me to be enchanted to continue, but it was not due to magic influencing my mind, but sinful curiosity. "The Grey Binding: a ritual liquid of death and agony poured onto a prepared corpse; within the hour of constant chants, the body starts to stir and creates a feral undead that cannot be controlled. If the body isn't prepared beforehand, it shall decay into incapacity." I was reminded of the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire. "No... no, I'm just overthinking things... am I?"

[Detect Bloodlust] caused me to move as the Digestive Slime crashed into the monolith, eating away the dark secrets as it gathered itself before splitting apart in a lightning-fast burst that scattered itself everywhere. I managed to dodge a few before I was caught.

I watched as my flesh melted into a fine sludge before bubbling away into a puddle. The agonizing sensation flooded my senses as the rest of the Digestive Slimes leaped on top of me, my blood oozing out of my liquidated flesh, staining these creatures a frightening crimson.

Then I was back in the starting room.

[Observe], [Sense Danger], and [Detect Bloodlust] has leveled up by 2!

For reading disturbing knowledge, your INT has increased by 5!

You have discovered a dark fragment of ritual knowledge! Unlike normal spells, rituals take a long time to prepare and cast, but have a short duration and can easily backfire on the caster!

QUEST: Glutton for Knowledge(1)!
As disturbing as it is, the mental strain of these horrifying secrets does not affect you due to [Gamer's Mind]! With this protection, you can learn these horrifying rituals of evil!
-Find the other fragments of knowledge to complete this ritual!
-Search for information called the Grey Binding! (COMPLETED)
-Search for information called the Graveyard Kiss!
-Search for the information called Create Zombi!
REWARD:
-Ritual:

Magic was something I was envious of others; I once studied Celestia's history and Star Swirl the Bearded's notes on her developing magic in a naive effort to impress the Solar Matriarch. But her attention was always somewhere else, no matter how hard I tried. In the end, another alicorn took up all of her attention and I was left with nothing but the wasted effort that amounted to broken hopes. The only time Celestia ever paid attention to me during that time, was when she scolded me for attempting to recreate the war magic that was utilized when Equestria wasn't united, and wouldn't hesitate to unleash their malice in arcane form. She looked so disappointed, and I felt it.

Now I feel cheated.

It was petty and outright illogical for feeling so, but I could have done more than learning a few offensive magics of the unicorns. Granted, there was no way I would know ahead of time that I would end up where I am now, and I wouldn't even think about using magic since I wasn't able to do so before I awakened my power... but a feral, irrational part of me screams within about the folly of seeking Celestia's approval, how it had stopped me, and now it fuels my motivation to prove her wrong!

For I have an MP bar now; Magic Points that have only increased when my INT grew for discovering horrifying knowledge.

I gathered my hands together and recalled upon my short-lived studies in the castle, how I have engrossed in the tales of violence and war; the creativity of it all, and how it could be improved. I repressed my dark imagination out of fear for disapproval, and now I embrace it with reckless and spite!

I saw it. I finally saw the mote of magic that I envied, and what should have been a moment of joy was easily eradicated; substituted for ambition as I poured more and more MP into it. I condensed it until it was unstable and bright, and forced it to spin, before elongating the damn thing before my reserves ran out. My childish imagination and ambition were halted when the magic exploded in my hands, sending me flying upward, and gravity proved to be my executioner.

I was entangled with the rusty chains that ate into my flesh as I descended, and I only stopped when one of the hooks on their ends pierced through my neck and curved out through my mouth. The metal binds went taut with a shudder, echoing throughout the room and I screamed and thrashed, shaking the rusty chains.

Spell creation failed! You don't have enough MP to create the desired effects!

Due to experiencing magical damage, you have gained the skill [Magic Resistance]!

Due to hazardous materials entering your body, you have gained the skill [Poison Resistance]!

Your CON has increased by 2!

[Physical Resistance] has increased by 1!

'Again...!' I thought before closed my eyes and let my newly-discovered {Poisoned} status drain my HP down to zero.

For reading many monoliths containing dark truths, you have gained the perk: Degrading Mind over Flesh! Your total HP is reduced by 25%!

For raising your INT to 50, you have gained the perk: Small Magic Affinity! The potency of magic attacks and defenses are increased by 15%! MP regeneration is increased by 15%!

So much time had passed down here. I don't have a mechanical device of tracking time, nor does my power have a function to show me the passing days of my life, but I grew older. I felt older. What little hair I had scratched off my scalp had started to grow back and down to my shoulders. That was my only indication that time has passed.

Finding monoliths wasn't the hard part; getting pass the abominations that stalk the flesh-ridden halls, traps, and navigating the pathways was the biggest challenge as I would brutally die before reaching one. I've been lucky in the past, but it had run out. Even after reading more disturbing facts that should have never been written down, I was able to meet the requirements for . But in searching for the missing knowledge, I had not found the specific monoliths I was seeking, which caused me to gain more quests to discover even more rituals.

QUEST: Glutton for Knowledge(2)!
As disturbing as it is, the mental strain of these horrifying secrets does not affect you due to [Gamer's Mind]! With this protection, you can learn these horrifying rituals of evil!
-Find the other fragments of knowledge to complete this ritual!
-Search for information called the Seven Cuts!
-Search for the information called Spirit's Bane! (COMPLETED)
REWARD:
-Ritual:

QUEST: Glutton for Knowledge(3)!
As disturbing as it is, the mental strain of these horrifying secrets does not affect you due to [Gamer's Mind]! With this protection, you can learn these horrifying rituals of evil!
-Find the other fragments of knowledge to complete this ritual!
-Search for information called the Cerebral Acuity!
-Search for the information called Erudite Addition! (COMPLETED)
-Search for the information called Scholar's Chorus!
REWARD:
-Ritual:

I should have stopped. Degrading Mind over Flesh showed me that even knowledge contained in mental capacity can have physical consequences... but I wasn't satisfied. I hungered for more knowledge, the disturbing effects they can do, and the increase of my INT. All the skills I have were at least above level 40, all because of self-inflicted harm and repeated use. Leveling [Observe] was easy when I had to face a new layout of the outside horrors every time I step outside. [Sense Danger] and [Detect Bloodlust] was constantly being stimulated with constant exposure to macabre traps and terrifying monsters.

[Physical Resitance] was a challenge as I had to sharpen one of the bones of the filly I devoured into a shiv - I would never touch the eldritch knife I received, as it would somehow appear next to me whenever I look away - and repeatedly stab myself over and over again.

All of it contributed to increasing my other stats too, from the self-abuse to the suicidal attempts outside, it would all pay off in the long run.

I held out my hand again to channel the magic from a time of war, modified from my childish imagination of innocent intent for improved carnage.

It manifested.

I packed it with magic.

I spun it.

I elongated it.

Even as it fell apart, unstable and relentless, I made sure it held together with nothing more than determination and spite; no matter how much time had passed I wanted to prove Celestia wrong!

Due to a specific action, the skill [Spiral Magic Bomb] has been created!

Spiral Magic Bomb Level: 1
An extreme variant of the Magic Missle spell created by the unicorns when the three pony tribes were at war with each other; a spell that allowed for great counter-measures against any pegasus for it could track the target while increasing in velocity. However, this spell proved ineffective against earth ponies, as their tough exterior was too strong, and the creation of the spell focused more on tracking the target rather than brute force. Even an alert pegasus was able to out-maneuver this spell with sheer speed and acrobatics. However, this skill had been improved; the projectile spins which allows it to penetrate defenses, being condensed with enough magic to explode on impact, and is elongated to reduce air resistance for increased speed.

Fires a magic projectile that loosely follows its target.

Defense penetration, projectile speed, blast radius, and damage, increases with INT and skill level.

Number of projectiles per cast: 1

MP cost per cast: 500

Now I can continue, but not with exploration beyond the cubical room.

"AGAIN!" I shouted with ambition, and without hesitation, I bit into the projectile of magic with the chomping power akin to a wolf.

I was blind from the blast as my head exploded.

[Magic Resistance] has leveled up!

In the future

"...then I did it over and over again," I concluded. "Harming myself, casting the spell, improving them both as I recklessly destroyed my body over and over again; it wasn't painless either, but if you have regenerative immortality, you don't waste it. Especially if you can profit from it."

"Does that mean you're a unicorn?" She inspected my face, my mask, trying to find some protrusion coming out of my skull. "Or did your cut it off and use an artifact to channel your magic instead?"

"Yes and no," I said. "I did use an item to amplify my magic abilities, but it wasn't an artifact, it was something I crafted for myself with what I had. But no, I don't have a horn. I'm not a unicorn."

"I thought you didn't lie," Cadence said, giving me a questioning look. "How could you cast magic if you're not a unicorn?"

"How do items have magical properties despite not being an organic being?" I countered. "It just does, Cadence. Why do I have magic? I just do because of my power."

"Like how those ''stats' of yours also increase your overall performance," At least she had been paying attention, although Celestia wouldn't have bothered with the minor details unless I drew great importance for it. Even though Cadence had gotten it right, she framed her statement as if it were a question, leaving room for uncertainty due to skepticism. "Which means your 'Intelligence' stat made you smarter."

"It's a powerful boon," I agreed. It was easier to talk when she isn't pestering me with questions of Zecora or immortality. "New ideas and strategies, concepts to solutions I never would have thought before, but it also made me grasp the horror of the knowledge I discovered." I like to think that [Gamer's Mind] kept me sane, and blinded me to the ever-growing consequences of the learning forbidden knowledge... but a more cynical aspect of my personality disagreed; I simply did not care, for I had wanted the power that was only a monolith away.

"Like your modified Magic Missle spell," Cadence said as she glared at me. "Unicorns made that to defend themselves, but you twisted that into something sinister."

"Which is one of the points I'm making here," I said. "My imagination was my greatest strength, and Celestia punished me for it-"

"Aunty wouldn't discourage imagination!" Cadence protested. "She isn't that type of mare!"

"The harsh words I received from her when I was in the castle says otherwise," I let out a huff. "You know, I've been stabbed before, but her words had somehow hurt more. Even after all this time they still upset me."

"I'm sure Aunty had her reasons," Cadence defended. "But you couldn't have lived in the castle - somepony would have remembered you!"

"It's because nopony cared enough to remember me," I explained. "And frankly, after starting over with a new identity, I was fine with that. My new life began after I escaped the Punishment Zone, and I made sure to leave my old life behind."

"Then why tell me about your time in the Punishment Zone?"

"Can you not understand it?" I asked. "It's to make you realize that at a young age, I was already in possession of terrifying secrets, a powerful mind, and a very sadistic imagination. That should help you make sure which rumors are true, and what events were actually caused by me."

"There are tales of you being a prodigy in magic manipulation when you were a child," Cadence said, looking disturbed, and hesitant to ask, "...Was that story of you making zombie foals true?"

"Of course," I nodded. "But it was to see if I could do it, not some cliche desire to not be alone anymore and a warped desire for companionship." On those days in my past, I wished I was alone, but life had taken a sharp turn into something undesirable. It always had, and I was constantly reminded of it.

"...Is the rumor about using those foals to murder their terrified parents also true?"

"Oh definitely!" I let out a bark of laugher. It was nice to be reminded of more positive memories. "I wanted to see if emotions will get in the way of saving your own life; even when I gave the poor souls custom weapons and armor, they couldn't muster the courage to defend themselves!" I let out a content sigh. "I will always cherish those days in my youth-"

"You... you monster!" She stood up to scream at me, righteous fury in her voice, and water in her damaged eyes. For a moment, the traumatized princess had been replaced with the living example of empathy. "H-How could you do something so cruel - why would you even do something like that?!"

"I was curious." I shrugged - as best as I could when bound with magical chains - as I wasn't even phased by her outburst. I've faced worse. "I was confused about something I heard and thought it was stupid, and made a bet to be proven right - which I won, and I celebrated by eating the remains of the parents whose faces were frozen into frightening agony."

"...!" She sputtered something, but no words could manifest and communicate the shock and fury she radiates. Her fists were clenched. Her horn channeled what little magic she could muster. She stepped forward-!

"If you hit me, Celestia loses her chance to bring peace to the world," I reminded her, freezing her in her tracks. "You are aware of the power of my contracts, and Celestia told you of the one she and I made before leaving. Are you going to risk it all for petty satisfaction? I mean, you could, but there will be consequences. If not for you, then the whole world - but if you do hit me, make sure Celestia is in the room: I want to see her face before I die-"

"I'm not going to hit you!" She sat back down in her chair, her magic dissipated, her fists began to loosen. "But I will forever despise you for what you did!"

"Good, I prefer it that way," I said. "Back then I was a glutton - for knowledge, flesh, and power - I wasn't satisfied no matter what, and it only made me crave more. Even the smallest bits of curiosity was enough to make me pursue it. Developing a bad habit like that was, if I'm being honest, one of the good things that had happened to me."

"Obsession with power is never good; those who do so will only bring harm to themselves or others!"

"Cadence, in the Punishment Zone I eventually developed pseudo-precognition!" And I am certainly not going to feel bad or apologize for doing so; I despise her righteous attitude, the black-and-white morals in her tone. "I learned how to reanimate corpses for crying out loud! Even my stats grew sharply due to reading monoliths and the brutality of the creatures killing me over and over again! I will not be a fool and waste the opportunity, no matter what the sacrifice. I was devoted to continuing my progress; I fantasized about becoming the personification of a natural disaster!"

"Progress isn't only about sacrifices! There's also commitment, compromise, and co-"

"Communication and co-operation." I finished, much to her surprise. "I know about the 'Four C's' Celestia has taught you. I remember how you bit your tongue on the third 'C' and had to break your habit of pronouncing 'co-operation' as 'cooperation'. It was honestly amusing when you started crying after biting the inside of your cheeks when you rushed to recite the 'Four C's' in front of Celestia, to make her proud of you!"

Now that caused a noteworthy reaction; her damaged eyes widening. "Y-You know about that...?"

"I do." I nodded. "I too was like you: a fool in blindly devoted to impressing a mare with power. I learned after dying over and over again, more brutal than the last - and as much as I hate to admit it - is that without sacrifices there wouldn't be any progress. Just like how I sacrificed my time to impress Celestia with my magic studies, I also sacrificed my health to gain more power. My growth in magic potential has proven that philosophy time and time again."

"So your power grows over time? Are you like a unicorn developing their magical potential, or a pegasus learning the complicated aerodynamics of flight...?" She then began to glance at my head, looking for a nonexistent horn, before remembering our earlier discussion. "Who am I kidding, you're neither of those, you're just an earth pony."

"No, I am not," She wouldn't be the first to assume that I was a pony, it might be because I heavily and fully cover myself. "While I was taken in and poorly raised by my adopted mother, I am not a pony. However, I can use magic, and I can fly."

"B-But those rumors must be fake! Only alicorns can do both! You have no wings, and you don't have a horn either!"

"You don't need to have a horn to use magic - if you still don't believe me, just go the Zebra Lands." If she wanted a philosophical debate of what is considered 'magic' then she should go visit one of the minotaur clans. "But don't worry, you're not the first one to incorrectly guess my species; not a single soul was able to guess it, and if they did, they would have more questions than answers."

"Then why not correct them? There wouldn't be so many imitators of you! The world wouldn't be in this mess-!"

"Compared to the other factors that made the world as it is today, a case of stolen identity is not even a concern," I said. "I am not responsible for those out there who are so pathetic they have to leech off of my reputation like a parasite. You think I obscure my appearance to blend in with those fakes out there, but I cover my body and my face for personal reasons; I don't like my face, and for living in the darkness for so long, I just found it uncomfortable to be touched by the sun. If this is your attempt to make me feel guilty or something, just give up; I stopped caring a long time ago."

My warning fell on deaf ears; she had always been a determined mare. "Aren't you worried about them tarnishing your name? You're a merchant, doesn't that mean anything to you? If you have all this power as you claim, why don't you use it to help us?"

"Because I don't do anything without getting something out of it, Cadence. Besides, I am never worried about imitators or copy-cats," I said, my mind drifted back to something Celestia told me when I was a child. "Those who are perfect in their craft and trade does not need to demand recognition or flaunt their identity."

"Nopony is perfect," Cadence argued. "Some clarification won't hurt; at that point, it'll just be a matter of pride. That somehow you're entitled to be recognized, no matter who steals your identity, or where you are."

"If others can recognize you despite impersonators, identity thieves, fakes, and the difference in culture, then you have every right to have pride for accomplishing that."

"Nopony noticed that I was abducted..."

"Then you've done a terrible job," I meant every word. "Heck, only Twilight knew something was wrong, but her conclusion was incorrect; she thought you had turned evil. I mean, you used to foal-sit her, and Twilight was able to think that you've becomes a sociopath who mind-rapes her brother for personal gain."

"I would never hurt Shining Armor!" She shouted, but my earlier comment about Twilight hadn't been denied; I struck a chord in her emotions. I could see the tears building up again.

"...Tell me," My tone was mocking. "Does it hurt? Knowing that those you've been close to, those you've had placed your hopes in, had cared so little about you and your wellbeing that they didn't even notice you were suffering literally under their feet? Even the only pony who tried to investigate did it for different reasons: she started to see you as this ruthless monster, she even attacked you when she found you - the very filly you played and sang with such joy and love when you were young - and was probably going to end your pathetic life-"

"I don't have to take this," She stood up, made her way to leave, a door manifesting on the wall. I watched her shaking body march for the door - not even made as proper and neat as Celestia did - I could see her tears dripping onto the ground. "I'm not going to entertain you!"

"Oh, you will, Cadence!" I reminded which caused her to stop. "Time is of the essence, and the world isn't going to stop out of pity for you. So you're are going to be the faithful niece Celestia trusted, and sit back down, and listen to what I have to say, or I will just stay silent until Celestia comes back. Who knows how long that will take..."

There was always a loop. I'd say something, Cadence gets mad, she tries to do something emotional, and then I say something to cause her to stop. It's a pity she carried those predictable habits she had when she was a filly.

Cadence, after a few, brief moments returned to her seat. She wiped the tears in her eyes, but the glare she gave me was more intense than it was before. "...I hate you."

"I prefer it that way," I said. "I've worn different masks, had different clothing, ever-changing weapons, a growing hoard of trinkets, and produced a huge variety of merchandise and goods - yet my personality and methods inform the populace to know who to fear and hate. I never associated myself with an official place of business or revealed my face; those who try and imitate my brand are easily ignored and dismissed as mere charlatans. I'm just that good at my job - it's how your aunt knows that I am the real thing - even you had inquired about my services in the past."

"I wish I never did!" She said with conviction and scorn. "If I knew what would happen, I would have never bought that magic item from you!"

Hearing her despair is like the sounds of a puppy having their legs sawed off before being bludgeoned to death. Sad and heartbreaking, sure, but I see it as a unique noise that makes others mundane in comparison. A sound I love to hear when the opportunity arrives, but I never recreate artificially, for anything is purer when it happens naturally.

Which makes my smile much more disturbing than the one I have on my mask. "Oh, Cadence...you haven't paid the real price yet!"

Author's Note

(Minor spoilers for the Gamer if you haven't read that far)

What always bothered me about the Gamer webcomic is how the MC can easily absorb dark knowledge without the repercussions of doing so, gaining a skill that would have a sanity cost, but is negated by Gamer's Mind. The MC of the webtoon gets a skill from the H.P. Lovecraft genre, even referring to it, but he doesn't suffer any of the backlashes from it. Where's the conflict?

(Spoilers end)

At least I have Call of Cthulu and Bloodborne for ideas for consequences, and I plan to up the risks and dangers for it because you can't just use cosmic knowledge willy-nilly!

I've also decided to use 'Cadence' to spell the princess' name. I've googled it, and I've read the comment, and a few private messages, and came to a decision. I know the tag spells otherwise, but there are too many variations of her name, and it's just frustrating to figure out who is correct in spelling her name.

Also, rants aside, I wanted to thank you all: for the likes, views, comments, and the story being added to whatever reading list you have. Honestly, I haven't responded to the comments because I couldn't figure it out at the time, and I feel that the time to respond has passed.

So once again, thank you!

Chapter 4: Bitter Rewards

In the past

I've felt my heart stop in panic.

I've had my body disintegrated from a carnivorous, transparent cyst of monstrous proportions. Vile veins pulsating foul liquid into its single eye before unleashing it in a brutal acidic force that evaporated my body as if I was nothing more than steam.

I should have woken up in the cubical room. I should have opened my eyes to a dirty silver chamber with scattered bones and rusty chains - scorch marks covering the floor as a testament to my sick ambition.

Yet here I am, trapped in the dark. First came the confusion, then the familiarity, and finally the realization.

It felt like I was drowning in blackness until my feet found solidity to stand as the darkness peeled away like a stage curtain to show my inner nightmare. The horrified, disturbing area my twisted imagination conjured in my childish sleep and had only gotten worse as I grew older.

I've had dreams of this traumatizing place, and I barely remember them, but it left a horrifying impression on my little mind - scared and crying with no one to comfort me. That's what made it worse, having no one to confide in, and paradoxically it just felt better that way. They happened less frequently after I was adopted, but no amount of therapy, dream magic, or sweets, could coax me to open up and talk about it.

I used to be able to lie about it, pretend that it never happened, never acknowledging it; concluding that if I ignored it, I would eventually forget it ever happened. Yet if I told others about it, showing how it deeply affected me, then they will be able to remind me of how it is real, that the nightmares did happen, and no amount of self-denial could make it go away.

The darkness receded, and air stank of rust and blood.

I found myself standing on an absurdly wide and gigantic staircase coiling around a grand metallic pillar of inconceivable hight. I looked up to see there was no sky, for instead there is a ceiling of erratic brain-matter greeting me instead. Twitching and pulsing, convulsing with metal veins that twisted smoothly without fault, surging down before retracting.

I kept to the edge of the staircase, leaning forward to look down to see an ocean of blood. So still and perfect, rich with vitality as its horrible stench carried its way up. It explained the blood.

Then I found the reason for the rust.

I never paid attention to the details of this nightmare when I was young, and I thought this impossibly huge pillar was made out of cubical cuts of iron haphazardly layered over one another. But now that I am older, with a sharper mind and a bad habit to satiate curiosity, I craned my neck upwards to see all the erratic grooves and rusted dents of the pillar had, unfortunately, revealed an abstract, macabre portrait so complicated that a metallic canvas of this size only made it possible to be.

For that twisted image created from the depths of my mind showed a severed, feminine head. Indescribably brutal in her execution. Eyes full of power and unfocused. A soft mouth barely closed and unhinged. Her overall expression is so gentle, relaxed, and even motherly.

Then she started to move.

She looked down.

Her eyes started to bleed puss that hummed a cursed tune no instrument can recreate. A maddening song of damnation. A silent choir of malice that promised the unspeakable in its lyrics.

She smiled.

Bloated mechanical horrors that were her teeth crawled out of her mouth towards me. Limbs like needles. Bodies soft like bread dough. Faces small and featureless resembling an infant.

She whispered.

I felt the flesh on my left hand rend into a bloody mess, every twitching muscle, every pulsing drop of blood, uncoil around my bones before stitching back together.

I woke up with a scream.

My throat felt as if I was being strangled, my body was covered in sweat, my heart was pounding so hard in my chest it felt as if it was trying to break my ribs. My hands were clenched into fists so hard I thought they would have bled. Instantly my eyes darted all across the room, to seek if the remnants of the cognitive horror-!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

I relaxed enough to breathe, but at the rapid rate I'm inhaling would be close enough to call it hyperventilating. When I tried to stand, my legs wouldn't stop shaking. My mouth tasted like rust and blood. I wiped away the tears in my eyes and took an unsteady step forward.

My foot bumped into the skull of the filly... I never left her in that spot!

Her bones, even the ones I sharpened and turned into shivs were arranged in an erratic pattern; pointing at me even though I left them all in a pile in the corner of the room!

You have been asleep for 20 hours experiencing an unpleasant dream! All status ailments will no longer be cured! HP, MP, and stamina will only be partially refilled!

There were times that I had fallen asleep, the stress of being down here for so long made me desire for a way - if temporarily - to forget about it all. To my disappointment, my dreams were dreamless, empty, and nothing; for me it was instant, yet a maximum of 8 hours would have passed while I was rejuvenated as detrimental status effects would be cured.

Now those benefits were gone.

"I was sleeping for 20 hours?" I whispered as I looked at the bones in disbelief. "I didn't fall asleep, I died to an eldritch cyst that disintegrated me! Why was I asleep?!"

QUEST: Glutton for Knowledge(10)!
As disturbing as it is, the mental strain of these horrifying secrets does not affect you due to [Gamer's Mind]! With this protection, you can learn these horrifying rituals of evil!
-Find the other fragments of knowledge to complete this ritual!
-Search for the information called Mark of Fiery Pain! (COMPLETED)
REWARD:
-Ritual:

You have studied too many monoliths despite receiving a negative perk and continued to hoard terrifying knowledge that would erode anyone's psyche. The overload was too intense; [Gamer's Mind] was able to minimize the damage, but it will not get rid of your new perks!

"Perks?" I noticed it was plural.

For reading more forbidden knowledge, Degraded Mind over Flesh has been replaced with Tortured Mind over Matter! Your total HP is reduced by 50%!

You have gained the new perk, Primal Nightmare! A tormented mind creates tormented dreams! Every time you sleep you will experience a horrifying nightmare of your own making! The nightmares you had when you were younger has been selected and reused as the designated landscape for psychological torture!

For reaching 100 INT, the perk Small Magic Affinity has been replaced with Medium Magic Affinity! The potency of magic attacks and defenses are increased by 30%! Magic regeneration is increased by 30%! All spells are 20% more powerful!

"To hell with the magic! What about the bones that moved when I was knocked out?! Why does my heart feel like it was going to explode despite [Gamer's Body]-?!" I stopped my rants when damnable clarity touched my mind; I vaguely remember the nightmare, and a gigantic river of blood, and now my mouth taste like it. Metallic beasts had approached me, and now there was a skull and a decent amount of bones placed in a circle around me in my sleep. "...Do the nightmares in my head have consequences in real life?"

There was silence. All the previous notifications had disappeared and I was left alone to stand in the quiet space of the Punishment Zone. But when I moved to pick up the bones...

Look at the palm of your left hand.

I hesitantly glanced at my hand, palm facing the dirty floor. When my eyes were unfocused it appeared to be normal, but now that [Gamer's Mind] offered me clarity, I can now see the faded perpendicular patterns of faded scars. I turned my hand over.

YOU WILL RETURN

I quickly picked up one of the tattered clothes - nothing more than mere rags - that I dropped onto the ground, finding a long enough piece before desperately tearing out a strip to wrap around my left hand. I didn't want a constant reminder of what I experienced on my flesh, but at least I could cover it up.

That is until it started to bleed through the material, a new message was formed and said,

YOU CAN'T FORGET ABOUT ME

"Damn it!" I tore off the wrapping with a snarl. I threw it onto the ground in frustration and rage, but it was such a pathetic throw that I almost considered it was mocking me. I ran my dirty fingers through my overgrown hair. "It's fine... It's fine!" I have to remember my strengths; [Gamer's Body] eliminates biological necessities. "I don't need to sleep anymore... I can't have the nightmares if I don't fall asleep."

You don't have to willingly fall asleep: you just need to be knocked unconscious.

"Then I won't get knocked out; I just need to protect my head."

Then again, would it matter? Everything here can kill me in one hit. The only reason I was unconscious in the first place was because of a knowledge overload of my own doing. Yet there is an irrational part of me that thinks if I do die again, Primal Nightmare will consider it to be an acceptable condition, and I will be stuck in that dark world inside my head.

So once again - assuming that my paranoia is justified - would it matter to protect my head when I can instantly die and experience the nightmares anyways?

I don't think it does matter.

However, that doesn't mean it makes me feel at ease.

"I won't need to just protect my head; specifically, I need something to protect it." There was no reason for me to even make a helmet: I've already rationalized the futility of the protective headgear. But as my worries grew, I found myself pacing around, eyes darting across the filthy silver room.

With my ugly reflection staring back at me every time. I think that's what set me over the edge at that moment; the constant reminder of something so twisted and lost - alien to the world and foreign to myself.

At first, I told myself that I didn't care.

I was convinced that I was fine with my face.

I persuaded my confidence to ignore the ugly truth.

Now it's all I can think about.

Then came the excuses. "If I covered up my head, I would also hide my disgusting face... but with what?" I just making a compromise for myself; I needed something durable or at that point, it wouldn't be a matter of protection, but a reason for vanity.

My foot bumped into the filly's skull again.

I looked down. "Yeah... that could work."

I sat down on the floor as I gripped the skull in one hand, and the eldritch knife in the other. Mentally, I detached myself from what I'm doing, how I'm not cutting open a child I devoured out of desperation with a tool from maddening origins. I'm just doing a simple crafting project.

It wasn't a lie, yet it wasn't completely true.

I couldn't feel the weapon dig into my flesh, and I could care less as I used it as a saw open the skull.

It was too small to fit on my head, and I couldn't physically put it on like a hat either. I had to cut off the occipital lobe, then I had to remove the jaw. I painstakingly cut off the remains of her broken horn before using even more effort to vertically saw her skull in half.

Due to physical effort, your STR has increased by 1!

I wiped the sweat from my brow. I punctured holes along every place that needed it before I used the eldritch knife to cut off my hair. I need it for binding, but the individual hairs weren't long or tough enough. So I spent the next few hours tying them into longer pieces before braiding them together into a tougher string. I used that to sew up the skull segments with careful precision that I failed time and time again; make it too tight then it wouldn't be able to fit, but if it's too lax then it could fall apart.

Due to physical effort, your DEX has increased by 1!

My final work was uneven and crude. A patchwork of bones loosely resembling a skull rests in my hands. I had to use a few of her ribs and a femur to increase the overall size, and the eldritch knife I had made it easy to carve them into shapes I desired and to puncture holes to allow me to sew them together.

And when I put my newly-acquired helmet on? I let out a shuddering breath. That feeling of having something covering my head felt so comforting. I just let myself go. My legs and arms went slack, I sat against the wall, unable to move as my reflections had been replaced with macabre grin made out of patchwork bones. It felt like I was wearing earplugs to block out the bombardment of life hammering down on me, and for once I was left with blissful silence. For a moment I could forget my ambition, my spite, and what I plan to do.

This moment of guilty peace exists for me; I let out a breath that felt so smooth and fluid that I didn't feel the need to inhale. I just here on the floor, with lungs empty, a body exhausted, and a mind at peace.

Yet deep down there was a hint of pride of what I had done. Desecrating the remains of the dead into equipment; the great lengths of my savagery, and the extreme means I willingly go through if it could benefit me in some way - no matter how big or small - to not only survive but to thrive, overcoming any obstacle with brutality, and wouldn't hesitate to do so no matter who they are, or how young they may be.

('No, I don't regret eating the filly... because I was stuck in a hole with no food for who-knows-how-long and wasn't able to die because of a suppressed power I didn't know I had... my power didn't influence me to eat a sentient being; desperation and hunger did... I don't care that life is precious, Candace, you're a herbivore: your opinion is biased as far as I'm concerned...')

But those thoughts of hubris were muddled and washed away like sand being thrown into a raging river; blending in with the destruction to be a part of it, and indistinguishable that no one could ever think it was there in the first place.

I felt so calm.

So peaceful.

My heavy eyes shot open as I raced to stand on my feet, my heart going into overdrive in a panic as I realized I almost fell asleep. I didn't even know my eyes were closed!

I wrenched the stupid thing off my head before throwing it on the ground. Rage can cloud judgment for throwing something fragile onto the hard ground, yet a small part of me felt relieved that it was intact; evidence of my crafting ability.

"I can relax when I get out of here," I fired [Spiral Magic Bomb] at the hooked chains above me. Multiple projectiles of magic pierced through several of them before detonating at the ceiling. Chucks of dirty silver and rusted chains rained down from above me. What I was doing before wasn't enough.

I could do better.

In the future

"Then I spent so long wearing heavy rusted chains while carrying even heavier silver that I blasted out of the ceiling," I told Cadence, silent and held that fuming anger in her eyes for my easy dismissal and uncaring attitude of what I did to the filly's bones. "I just ran around the room, adding more weight when it got easier- which was hard in its own right; rusty chains are not good bindings for keeping uneven chunks of metal on bare skin from falling off, it was when I discovered that silver itself was poisonous after long-term exposure - when my physical training needed to be more intense, I would wear my weighted attire outside when I ran out of the room. With my skills so high, I was able to detect any ambushes and traps, and then I ran back to the room... which gave me an idea."

"A sadistic idea?" She accused, nausea she felt from me describing my nightmares had long been replaced with justified anger. "A new torture technique to use on foals? A new inspiration for an abomination to unleash upon the world?!"

"This was before my early years before I came to Ponyvile." I rolled my eyes with a scoff. So emotional. "Back then, I was focusing on surviving and securing my safety in the world. I had a fascination with pushing the limits with my crafts: I would make toys beyond what is normal."

"And dangerous," Cadence said. "I know the rumors of your so-called 'toys'! Everything innocent - even toys that bring joy to foals - you somehow ruin that and ponies get hurt!"

"I too was innocent before I became Sweet Tooth; I wasn't born evil. " I reminded her, which caught her off-guard. "Remember Cadence, back then I wasn't a merchant who plotted for the future and made deals with dark forces: I was just an abandoned boy in a world that didn't want me. I cared more about improving my chances of survival than profit and finding pleasure in the suffering of others. It's why I even became a toymaker in the first place, I wanted to bring joy into the world."

Especially after what I experienced after escaping the Punishment Zone.

"Then why is there is much suffering in the world... why does it seem like you are the one who caused it?" She demanded. "If you truly don't lie, if you did put in the effort to be good, why are you the way you are now?"

"Because as I stated before, caring for others - just caring in general - is too exhausting," I said with a huff, and being reminded of it made me feel older. The Princess of Love was appalled by my answer. "I just stopped caring... and when I tried to stop, when I tried to care again, it was just too much work that amounted to nothing. The moment I embrace my callousness, I realized I could do anything; being numb to violate life and its beauty. For nothing was holding me back - and my power helped me do so."

However, what I was too proud to admit, was that I would relapse back again; a terrible, toxic cycle of change and regression, habits being broken and later returning when the situation demanded it due to emotions. Yet the real game-changer was discovering my sick sense of humor. It just made it easier.

"Like making brutal merchandise," Cadence pointed out. "Or traumatizing little fillies! Wiping entire towns off the face of Equestria! Why is that anything you can only bring pain and suffering?!"

"Well for one, it's profitable," I explained. "Joy is like poison; it's a matter of perspective. For what is harmful to one, is pleasurable to another. Chocolate is poisonous to dogs, but it's also a pleasant treat to be eaten separately or to be added in sweets. A sword that's enchanted to cause limbs to rot off with a mere cut won't have popular demand in a peaceful land like Equestria, but those in the Griffon Empire would gladly try to outbid each other to acquire it."

"Is that why you can't make anything harmless? Are you just dedicated to violence?!"

"Cadence, I’m not dedicating my life to violence, I just acknowledge it!" I countered. "You can be the most humble, non-violent individual who would never wish harm on others, but that will not stop others from seeking to hurt you. May it be out of envy, or seeking an advantage." The latter is something she was unfortunate to experience, and from how her body flinched and started to tremble as the bad memories started to surface, my words - once again - had a personal impact. "If that wasn’t true - if that chain of personal philosophy I have been following is somehow wrong - then the events of your wedding would have never happened, and you wouldn't be the pathetic mess you are today."

"... I guess it's no surprise that your dreams are nothing but nightmares," She spat. "Only a twisted mind like yours can make something so horrible!"

"Don't do that," I scoffed and rolled my eyes. "Don't do the whole 'Dream Interpretation' bit - that's Luna's job. Honestly, I thought she would be here when I got to this part of the story."

"If you don't want me commentating on your dreams, then why bring it up?"

"It's to make you - and when you tell Celestia - understand what lies inside my head: the fresh hell that Discord's mind is forever trapped in."

In the past

I sprinted down a pulsing, flesh-covered corridor - lumps of dirty silver bounded by rusty chains shook with each step - making a sharp turn around the corner to avoid a javelin of bone being thrown at my head from a freakish, bipedal abomination made out of crystalized stomach acid that prefers ranged attacks, as every horrible flesh-thing down here had decided to use projectiles to kill me every time I stepped outside the starting room.

And I saw the door leading into it. [Detect Bloodlust] and [Sense Danger] warned me of the transparent sludge beasts preparing to pelt me as I neared the door to my safety. I twisted around one, ducked under another, and tackled the door open before slamming it shut behind me.

The monsters didn't try to break in. I've slowly figured out why this place is a sanctuary against the outside, and to why the monsters are keeping their distance away from me, resorting to ranged attacks instead of their brutal melee prowess. I would have to plan, gambling on coincidence and hoping it is fact.

Yet I managed to take three steps before throwing up on the floor and collapsing onto it.

My limbs aching while my blood pumps through my abused limbs with the force of a hammer. My lungs were strained as each inhale felt I was being punished for merely existing. My skin was painfully sensitive and soaked with terror-induced sweat. My nose burned with disgust from breathing in the grotesque environment.

[Gamer's Body] has been activated!

Then there was numbness. I moved to my feet, I dropped the rusty chains and dirty silver chunks I had attached to my body onto the ground.

Due to extreme physical extortion, all physical-related stats have increased by 4!

[Poison Resistance] has leveled up by 2!

[Detect Bloodlust has leveled up by 4!

[Sense Danger] has leveled up by 4!

I moved my way over the opposite wall. "That should be enough," I grabbed one of the discarded, rusted hooks near the silver wall before examining the scratches I placed on it.

A layout of the current labyrinth.

Every hallway I've sprinted for my life, all traps that I've activated marked with a circle, sites of ambushes from monsters represented with a triangle, but most importantly every door that led me to a dead end.

I had to fight the urges to read another monolith. It was tempting, so very tempting; especially after what I've learned, but I needed to get out of here. I feared my bottomless appetite for knowledge would be my prison and not the Punishment Zone. But there is an enraged part of my curious mind, demanding I go back to read the monoliths, to gain more knowledge regardless of the consequences.

However, it's those consequences that motivate me to leave: I don't want any more negative perks. My HP is reduced by 50%, sleeping is no longer beneficial, and I have a good reason to avoid being unconscious unless I want to forcibly experience the nightmare again. I've become so paranoid that I've resorted to wearing a helmet made out of bones.

This is why I've painstakingly charted down this map, showing all routes that I've taken every time I step out to explore, and sprint back here barely escaping danger. With my INT at a hundred to boost my memorization skills, and [Gamer's Mind] to keep me calm as I'm running for my life, I was able to see the routes I've taken.

All except one.

"I would be cutting it close," I memorized the path I need to take before picking up my helmet made out of filly bones. It was snug on my head. "If I die, then all of this would be for nothing." Especially since I've put so much effort into making the map.

But as I reached the door, my foot grazed the eldritch knife on the floor. I didn't leave it there. But I lost the reason to be frightened when it happened so many damn times.

I've only properly held it once, and that was used to craft my helmet, and while it didn't try to burrow into my hand like before, I was still unsure of using it. It was powerful - there is no denying that - but like all the rituals I've learned from the monoliths, I knew there would be a price.

And if my plan work, I won't need to use it.

I still wrapped it in what little cloth I had left and cut the remains of my hair that grew back after making my helmet, to fasten it to my left forearm. It felt appropriate, considering my left hand had been mauled by horror-soaked dreams that physically affect me; adding in a knife with disturbing origins seemed fair, for as far as themes go.

Once I made sure it was secure, along with my helmet, I picked up a chunk of silver in each hand before leaving. Small enough to leave, and big enough to have a chemical impact.

It was time to earn my freedom.

Without the additional, burdensome weight of the chains, and holding much less silver than before, running through the twists and turns of the labyrinth was a minor challenge. The monsters are keeping their distance, resorting to using ranged attacks instead, and with [Sense Danger] and [Detect Bloodlust] helping me avoid danger, it wasn't too hard to reach the only path I haven't taken in the current iteration of this place.

I was in unknown territory. I ducked from being melted from projectile-vomit from a hollowed, boar-like flesh thing that screamed like a horrendous buzzing of flies. I leaped over a crumbling floor of coiled muscle that would have sent me into a pit of boiling blood. I saw tumors lining the ceiling, with transparent and purple veins bubbling and expanding before bursting flesh-eating gas when I ran under them.

Then I saw it.

A crystal door more refined and carried an aura of elitism. Polished bones framed it, chiseled to the perfected decoration of macabre sadism with patters of frozen blood in its geometric horror. It fitted the theme of this place, and at the same time, didn't belong here at all. Not because it was more organized and elegant than the other messy doors I've encountered, but because it was too brutal in appearance. Like an apex predator in a world full of prey.

It would explain why the monsters ran away when I neared this door, but past experiences reminded me of failure, and so I didn't hesitate to rush towards it; tackling it open before shutting it behind me.

You have found the boss' room! Defeat your opponent to open the exit!

"I found it..." The surprise and realization had stunned me; I had found it after monotonous and brutal deaths, combined with the hellish repetition of using the same skills over and over again to painstakingly grind them to a higher level. I know they were actions of my own doing, yet every time I ran out into the labyrinth I would never come close to finding this place. And if my plan worked, if my theory about why the monsters were keeping their distance is correct, then I will be closer to earning my freedom.

I only had to kill the disfigured, albino fish-thing in the center of this clean stone room... and the monster is sitting on a mountain of layered, blubbery fish meat where the intestines were on the bottom on the support, and everything above was flabby, chunky and uneven skin. There were even metal protrusions at the top, arranged like a throne.

I used [Observe].

===
Antibody
Level: 2
Species: Kin
Title(s): Giver of the Mark, Boss of the Punishment Zone
===
Description:
A minor thing called from beyond through blood sacrifice; its name and physical appearance is merely a result of its vessel to stay anchored in reality, but it requires a minor amount of sustenance. It lives in a symbiotic relationship with other creatures: it marks prey with a curse making it easier to hunt, and in return gets part of the meat.
===

"It would explain all the rotting fish meat," I've encountered abominations that seem to exist outside the realm of fantasy; so even though I've never seen one, the existence of an aquatic creature wouldn't be too far-fetched. The smell was a grotesque mixture of decay, vomit, and sweat, combined thoroughly with saltwater sludge. If the description held, then it wasn't an aquatic creature; it's just wearing it as if it were clothing. It certainly had no problem tearing a chunk of meat off its throne to devour it whole in one gulp. So while it may not be considered cannibalism, it is certainly carnivorous.

The Antibody sniffed the air, before focusing on me and let out a feral squeal, revealing a tunnel of teeth that did not belong to a fish.

It raised a banner made out of a patchwork of skin, fixed onto a pole made of bones. Dark fog coiled around, and a blood-red eye with a green sclera that bleeds a deep scarlet of evil that flared and lashed. The Antibody raised the banner higher, before motioning it towards me as the banner's eyes widened to an impossible degree, preparing a wave of malice to wash over my body.

Which is why I didn't hesitate to blow it up.

I dropped the chunks of silver before aiming with my hand before shouting, "[Spiral Magic Bomb]!"

Spiral Magic Bomb Level: 45
An extreme variant of the Magic Missle spell created by the unicorns when the three pony tribes were at war with each other; a spell that allowed for great counter-measures against any pegasus for it could track the target while increasing in velocity. However, this spell proved ineffective against earth ponies, as their tough exterior was too strong, and the creation of the spell focused more on tracking the target rather than brute force. Even an alert pegasus was able to out-maneuver this spell with sheer speed and acrobatics. However, this skill had been improved; the projectile spins which allows it to penetrate defenses, being condensed with enough magic to explode on impact, and is elongated to reduce air resistance for increased speed.

Fires a magic projectile that loosely follows its target.

Defense penetration, projectile speed, blast radius, and damage, increases with INT and skill level.

Number of projectiles per cast: 9

MP cost per cast: 275

The resounding blast was loud. When the explosive lights died down, and the thick smoke was starting to clear, I could help but smile. The rush I felt when my crazy plan came into fruition: keeping myself at level 1, not using my powerful eldritch knife to kill other monsters to level up while training my stats and skills, so when I do encounter the boss - who receives a special buff of being twice my level - will be heavily outmatched.

My euphoria distracted me when [Detect Bloodlust] activated again; I didn't react fast enough when a beam of green light pierced my chest.

You have been {Marked} with the curse of the Dark King!

All damage received is doubled!

Enemies are more likely to attack you!

Your movement speed is decreased by 30%!

"What?!"

Then came the laughter; mocking, condescending, as if I were a lesser being not deserving of life. The noise sounded like fish bones being coughed up and it infuriated me when I heard it.

I looked to see that stupid banner and its eye flaring with pride, completely intact, the Antibody held it - not a single scratch on the item or on the creature... as it stood on top of the gargantuan hand protruding out of the pile of blueberry, pale fish meat that seemed to grow and rise like bread dough!

It took the form of a terrible, feral mountain of decay; a semi-sentient mass of offal where I made terrible assumptions in gazing upon its disgusting form while it grew to a monstrous size. Flaps of skin received and tightened, giving the disturbing melted appearance of an upper-body with arms too long, with hands with croaked and ill-proportioned fingers, and the mocking physical mass of what could be considered the 'head' of the beast with eyes emptier than a child's neglected stomach, and were darker than the shadows cast by the sun!

Those metal protrusions impaled at the top wasn't a makeshift throne on a pile of rotted food... it was a damn crown for a mountainous, murderous beast filled with nothing but rage and compassion; an unorthodox relationship with the Antibody - as it didn't seem to mind when the Antibody migrated along its uneven arm to the top of its head before planting the banner deeply into its skull!

Of course, the boss was only double my level... that didn't apply for possible minions it summons or the one currently in its service. I knew there would be times when I would silently curse my higher INT, allowing me to grasp the difficulty and horror of what I've learned and seen.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me!" I watched the absurdity in terror, unconsciously taking a step back as the banner channeled its dark aura into the beast; causing it to grow a massive blade made out of black, jagged crystal. "[Observe]."

===
Voracious Symbiote
Level: 31
Species: Elder Kin
Title(s):Symbiotic Glutton, Unparralled Destruction, The Protective Butcher
===
Description:
A great thing called from Outer Realms by the ambition of a unicorn's dark magic through mere chance when using blood sacrifice; its name and physical appearance is merely a result of its vessel to stay anchored in reality. However, the summoner quickly realized that while its extremely docile - easily loyal to carry out orders - it lacks elegance; using brute force as a universal solution to everything while being dim-witted and slow, with the addition of it requiring a steady and heavy supply of flesh to keep itself sustained. After being abandoned by the summoner to be locked away with the other failures, it formed a relationship with the Antibody to protect it in exchange for food - sometimes allowing parts itself to be eaten - while consuming so much that its intestines burst out, as its legs degraded from lack of use and eventually collapsed under its colossal weight.
===

I immediately fired another [Spiral Magic Bomb], the Voracious Symbiote raised a hand to block the bombardment - but only to protect the Antibody residing on its head as the rest of the projectiles hit its body; they barely pierced its flesh before detonating, splitting chunks of its rotted flesh everywhere.

Holes of rending flesh started leaking out foul vapors that sent me into a coughing fit; the air became stale and dry while sending horrible sensations on my tongue as I gasped for air.

You have been {Poisoned}!

When I was able to breathe, I watched how despite the Voracious Symbiote having no legs, the beast had no problem slowly slinking forward - dragging itself forward with its free hand; leaving a fat trail of odd-colored and foul body fluids in its wake that burned my eyes - and carried rested its weapon on its shoulders. The Voracious Symbiote sniffed the air, smelling the metal near my fee and snarling when it did, and raised its mighty weapon of dark crystal to slice me with murderous intent.

I quickly picked up the silvers I dropped on the ground before leaping out of the way as a mighty impact formed a crater; unleashing a shockwave so powerful it threw my body to tumble onto the floor. [Sense Danger] caused me to roll and scramble to my feet to avoid the Antibody throwing the metal protrusions to impale me as it ripped them out of its companion's head. Laughing and jumping with glee as it did. I wasn't even a challenge in its eyes - I was merely entertainment; its painful-to-hear giggles felt as if they were shouted in my ears! I just wanted to rip that bastard's tongue out, but for now, it was merely an ill-timed dream as I sprinted away from the Voracious Symbiote slamming its weapon where I stood.

That's how the next minute went, but with how intense and how I was nearly killed every second, those 60 seconds felt like hours. To stay alive with no rest, consciously aware that one mistake would send me back to start over again, as the Voracious Symbiot got angrier when I tried to attack his companion with my magic, while my HP slowly trickled down from being poisoned. Even the opportunity to retaliate with magic was rare, as the Antibody would attack after each swing its companion made with its weapon. It was now or never to prove my theory about the silver I carried all the way here from the starting room.

If the creatures here avoided the silver, then how badly would their bodies react when coming into contact with it... and what would happen if they were to ingest it?

"This better work...!" I leaped onto the floor as the massive crystal weapon sailed over my head in an attempt to bisect me. I immediately sprung to my feet, pulling my arm back to throw, a lump of silver staining my hand due to terror-induced sweat washing off the grime, and hoped I wouldn't mess up as I threw it at the Voracious Symbiote's sagged mouth.

Its freehand predictably came up to block it - [Observe] didn't lie when it described it to be stupid, as it stopped attacking me when defending itself or the Antibody - and wrapped its disgustingly massive hand to catch the metal.

It howled with agony a moment later, opening its hand to reveal the metal painfully sinking into its hand, slowly eating its flesh to melt and boil like hot water - going as far to drop its massive weapon, causing the floor to shake, to dig the metal out with its other hand. Which made the situation worse as its fingers had terrible blisters from the failed attempt.

Due to a specific action, you have gained the skill [Throwing Proficiency]!

I threw the other chunk of silver into its screaming maw.

Its empty eyes widened in pain and started to bleed a black, mucus-like puss out of its sockets. The Voracious Symbiote clawed at its own body, digging into its already-exposed intestines, ripping itself apart. Sending chunks of itself everywhere with reckless abandon, as the impact of its flesh on the ground was enough to cause tremors. I had to run to avoid being crushed, and the ever-growing pool of muck pooling under its mass spreading across the floor.

Then I saw the Antibody, snarling at me from on top of its dying companion. Yet those smug, fish eyes were smug and cruel as it ripped the banner out of the Voracious Symbiote's head and aimed it at me.

I ripped the Knife of the Hunter from its bindings on my arm; I worked too hard to get this far, and victory was close. I wasn't going to let it all be for nothing because of an arrogant fish-thing! "I'm not going to die here!"

I threw my knife at the Antibody.

[Throwing Proficiency] has leveled up!

It was so damn satisfying when it pierced the monster's chest, the attack healing me for 5% of the damage inflicted. I didn't have to worry as its thrashing companion underneath caused unstable footing, and my attack made it lose its balance before falling off.

Landing in front of me.

When it tried to get up, I tackled it to the ground before ripping my weapon out its chest. I could tell those smug, warped eyes were now full of fear. Its shrieks of sadistic amusement were now replaced with pleading. Moving its limbs to not attack, but to escape its fate.

"Not so confident now, are you?!" I ignored its scream, the dying wails of its protector, and the gore I made when I repeatedly stabbed its body over and over again. All my frustration moved my weapon to brutalize the creature; my rage was fueled with my contempt for my pathetic life and I took it out on the only thing within stabbing distance.

Being told I'm loved and then forgotten. Being thrown into corpse pit with hundreds before me. How I was pushed over the moral edge because of desperation and hunger. Crossing a threshold of knowledge where ignorance no longer provides me bliss!

All because of the griffons.

All because of Celestia!

I tossed my knife away before ripping the bleeding creature apart with my bare hands, tearing off whatever I could grasp, giving in to the primal depravity of feral destruction. I had the urge to strangle everything young and defenseless. To cut everything that moved and breathe. I wanted to rip the organs out of anything that has a pulse, and strangle them with it!

If life were a mere child, I would gouge out her eyes, shove them down her throat, before stomping her to death! Petty retribution in the form of primal carnage-!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

Then I felt empty.

A forest fire instantly extinguished.

A train engine with no fuel.

Murderous intent replaced with calming restraint.

I was frozen and relaxed. I felt my fist gripping freshly-torn flesh and felt my other prepared to do the same to the pathetic corpse under me. The motivation was gone, and I didn't resist when I collapsed onto my side, my helmet protecting my head from the impact as I landed with a thud.

I laid there with blinded eyes, eventually rolling onto my back, feeling the gore under me as I lay still as a rock in this silent room: everything in here was dead but me. I took my helmet off, tossing it aside and hearing it make a splash before wiping away the gore out of my eyes to finally let me see. My {Poisoned} status long gone, as with everything in this room, and I saw the notifications to greet me.

You have slain the boss of the Punishment Zone! Loot and XP will be rewarded! The exit is now open!

You have slain the Voracious Symbiote! Additional loot and XP will be rewarded!

XP has been rewarded! You are now level 10! You have 50 stat points to allocate at will!

[Sense Danger] has leveled up! This skill has reached the max level and will now evolve into [Premonition]!

Premonition Level: 1
Star Swirl the Bearded had hypothesized that if muscle memory can be a physical condition to a response, then could the same application be used for magic? By exposing himself to all types of dangers – physical, magical, chemical, and inorganic – Star Swirl was able to record and distinguish the immediate sources of harm through the use of magic; being able to notice it ahead of time before they struck. This, however, created an unintended effect that would start his ambition for creating time-manipulation spells.

If the user has been exposed to the source of danger before, and has been exposed to it enough times to distinguish it from other hostile sources, then this skill will alter their senses to make things relatively slower and allowing to react to the incoming danger.

Reaction time, speed, and effectiveness are increased with skill level, DEX, and WIS.

The temptations came back again: to power-level my skills and evolve them too. To earn unique loot that each creature as I turned them into XP. Forever having a challenge and a powerful foe to defeat each time, having a steady growth in power!

...Yet I was so tired of it all. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life fighting off abominations. I didn't want the only other living things besides me are the ones who want to rip me apart and eat me. I wanted to breathe the fresh air. I wanted to feel something other than hard metal or bones, flesh, or any body-related material.

"I just want to get out of here..." I dismissed the screens and got back to my feet. The body fluids of the beast pooling onto the floor have hardened into a thick paste. I went to pick up my helmet, covered in gore and the stench of death, before placing it on my head. It would always soothe me when I did.

I went to pick up my knife, only to find it changed.

Cleaver of the Butcher [Mythical]
Made out of black bones and flesh-colored metal, its increased blade size - while having a supernatural edge - is embedded with even more teeth from incomprehensible flesh-eaters from this world, written in a language that drove most insane when trying to translate it, and caused a frightening revelation to happen when they succeeded in doing so. The comfortable grip is made out of spine segments adorned with fish scales belonging to no ordinary aquatic creature.

This blade has evolved after feasting upon a minor entity that is not from this world; a delicacy unmatched when feasting upon mortal flesh in this reality, gaining additional powers and boons to help the wielder pay back an investment of cosmic proportions.

ABILITIES:

Causes the status effect, {Hemorrhaging}, on hit.

Causes the status effect, {Poisoned}, on hit.

Heals the wielder for 10% of the damage inflicted.

This weapon is indestructible and cannot be destroyed by normal means.

Can evolve into more terrifying forms when it has been used to kill enough times.

This weapon is bound to the wielder and cannot be separated; this bond grows stronger the more this weapon feeds.

It certainly got stronger, and the weight didn't seem to change even when I held the cleaver in one hand. Yet the fact it grew after a single kill had me realize the exchange rate of sentient life. For a single entity called upon through blood rituals and sacrifices was worth much more than mortal naturally born; this thing has a preference for its meals.

As for the loot from the monsters? The banner of the Antibody no longer worked when I tried to pick it up. Even [Observe] confirmed that it was now useless without the proper magic. The Voracious Symbiote's massive greatsword that was too big and heavy to move. I could harvest it with my cleaver, but why? I had no use for it, and there was no way for me to even carry it! I don't have any more cloth, and I cut off the rest of my hair too.

Even the medium pile of gold and jewels that also appeared near the corpses were worthless here. I had no reason to take them with me, and if money does drop from killing enemies, then I can easily make more.

I could have used the flesh from the corpses to make something - possibly a bag with muscle fibers as a binding, and sharpening bones to be used as crude needles for sewing - I certainly could have tried. But the only corpse that was somewhat intact was the Voracious Symbiote, the Antibody nothing but a splattered mess, yet when I touched the decaying, mountainous flesh I was {Poisoned} again! Even with [Poison Resistance] mitigating the damage, I didn't want the debuff to be constantly reapplied.

Then there were the books. Two of them. One from each abomination. If money could appear, then why not other things too? After witnessing and learning so much, I've stopped being surprised at such a sight. I picked them up.

Do you wish to learn [Curse Creation]?
[YES/NO]

Do you wish to learn [Obliterate Target]?
[YES/NO]

I was hesitant. Knowledge is powerful, but there are just some things too unsettling to memorize. Would I gain another detrimental perk? Would something worse happen? Sometimes its good to be paranoid. I opened the books, flipping through their pages; they were akin to research notes than terrible truths from beyond the threshold of reality.

I hit 'YES' for both of them.

I dropped them when they started glowing a bright gold color. I backed away as they started to disintegrate while the ashes flooded toward me; dissolving into smaller specks and moving at a speed that couldn't be perceived by normal eyesight.

The knowledge flooded in my mind as if I spent weeks immersed in a comfortable study session fueled by educational passion. It felt good, and - more importantly - harmless. Would all books work the same?

I checked the new skills.

Obliterate Target Level: 1
A simple skill created by a complicated, primal force trapped in a decaying mountain of flesh. For when brute force is applied over and over again, mastering the art happens at a quickening pace. But recreating the movements is foolish, as no mortal could ever have several metric tons of raw muscle to do so; magic would be the pathetic substitute.

Increases accuracy against a single target by 40%.

Increases the next physical attack by 50%.

Chance to land a critical strike is increased by 10%.

Damage increases with STR and INT.

Cost: 1000 MP.

Curse Creation Level: 1
A powerful magic formula discovered by a unicorn who once perceived his dark fate when looking into a magical artifact made out of crystal. After years of researching for answers to the madness he saw, his ambitions went down a dark path and discovered to create the most frightening curses that could even warp space and time.

Create curses with the use of dark magic.

Effects are limitless as they only need the intent and cruel imagination of the user.

MP cost is determined by curse effects and potency.

Powerful curses can only be made at a higher skill level.

I dismissed the screens. "I can think about it later when I leave..." They are powerful skills, but my priorities now lie elsewhere. But nothing could stop the dark possibilities my imagination pondered for [Curse Creation], and the corners of my mouth tugged into a small grin before I forced myself to focus. This is not the time, nor the place; what issues I have, I'll deal with them later.

But I had to make sure that nothing will tempt me to stay here any longer than I wanted to. "Finish Quest: Embracing Gluttony."

All the requirements of this quest have not been completed! Do you wish to prematurely finish this optional quest?

"Yes." I wanted my freedom, and I let my voracious vice become an excuse to get stronger, but I don't want it to be something holding me back.

Quest completed!

QUEST: Embracing Gluttony
You have indulged in the sin of gluttony, consuming an unnecessary excess, but now it is time to push it to the limits; may they be knowledge, stats, or skills! Exploit your temporary immortality in the Punishment Zone before confronting the boss! This quest is optional, and so the rewards you will receive are based on what you've accomplished!
-Level up a skill high enough to naturally evolve. (COMPLETED)
-Increase all stats to a minimum of 20 without using stat points. (COMPLETED)
-Level 5 skills above level 30. (COMPLETED)
-Read a minimum of 10 monoliths. (COMPLETED)
-Learn at least 10 rituals. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 50 times. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 100 times. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 200 times. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 400 times. (FAILED)
-Evolve 10 skills. (FAILED)
-Increase all stats to be a minimum of 50. (FAILED)
-Read 30 monoliths (FAILED)
-Gain 2 perk related to each stat. (FAILED)

REWARDS:
-Skill: Solar Matrix.
-Perk: Magic Vampirism.
-Item: Chalice of the Cosmos.
-Item: Human knowledge fragment(x4).

Do you wish to receive the rewards now?
[YES/NO]

I hit 'NO'. I could always accept it later after I've escaped... I just had to find the exit now. I went back the way I came, prepared to confront the beasts and traps as I no longer had any silver with me to keep them at bay.

I opened the door and stepped outside.

Only to be bombarded with the sight of sunlight and the smell of flowers.

After my eyes adjusted, getting over the shock of breathing something pleasant after so long, I turned around to find nothing. No door. Just me standing alone in a flower patch in a dense forest.

"That was the exit...?" I didn't want to believe it: it looked too good to be true. I thought this is how I finally break, how dark knowledge tainted my senses to make me hallucinate once more. Providing me hope so the crushing despair would be tenfold! This is absurd! This had to be fake - it has to be! Nothing good ever happened in my life, and for good fortune to appear out of nowhere had justified my skepticism.

I even asked about the exit! The response I got was that it wouldn't be in the same place as the boss...!

[Gamer's Mind has been activated]!

I thought things more rationally. I had asked if the exit would appear after I defeated the boss, and I was told that it wouldn't be there. It would be somewhere else, just not in the same spot where the creature resided. It said nothing about the door to its residence.

I used [Observe] on the grass and saw that's what it is: grass.

Soft... gentle... grass.

"Maybe I am outside..." Then there was a pregnant pause, and I felt the world go silent with me. Eyes widening in realization a smile breaking out under my helmet! "I'm free... I'm finally free!" Nothing could stop me from my cries of joy, and I sobbed like an idiot, arms raised into the air as jumped in celebration while the sun shined down from above.

[Premonition] activated in time for me to turn around so see that I am surrounded; crossbows and swords wielded by stealthy, ruthless brigands wearing ghoulish attire with occult origins.

One of them didn't hesitate to shoot me in between the eyes.

Author's Note

I once got into a discussion with a friend of mine if you could stop and resume time at will. What would you do now that you have all the time the world? Theoretically, you could learn everything, and still, have enough time to goof off. Even in the Gamer webcomics, the MC does power-level his skills by repeating them over and over with the aid of his earth elemental while walking in a time-dilated dungeon.

Originally, I was going to make the Small/Medium Magic Capacity perks into skills like the webcomic, but considering they passively level up, and I would have to keep track of and how they would affect the stats, and it just seemed too much.

As for the silver thing, I've learned that the only reason character's in Lovecraft's stories get a fighting chance is because there are rituals, materials, and symbols that can be used against the cosmic horrors in the story, or they barely escape with their lives and are traumatized with things that cannot be explained. The problem is that mortals are not aware of this knowledge, and have to go through disturbing things to learn about them.

Chapter 5: Missed Opportunities

In the future

"...I nearly died for real that time; no respawning or resurrection, just death." I confessed to Cadence. "If they had used metal-tipped bolts instead of poorly crafted wooden projectiles, then my helmet wouldn't have protected me from the impact."

"So who were they?" Cadence asked. "Their clothing sounds familiar..."

"They were called Daoloth's Acolytes," I explained. She just gave me a confused look. "They were a nomadic group of fanatical cutthroats, touched by the madness of otherworldly knowledge, which allowed them to destroy and loot every town or settlement they came across; able to have a personal transport of labor slaves. They're also one of the branches of the Leviathan Cult."

"T-That's not possible!" She protested. "Aunty got rid of them when she went to the Griffon Empire years ago!"

"Just because they're not in the area anymore, that doesn't mean they disbanded." I countered. "While the majority of them were in the Griffon Empire, they just scattered, regrouped, and split off again to do their own thing. If they were gone, then the Emperor would have been removed from power a long time ago-" Of course, Celestia would have just detained him; she doesn't have it in her to take a life. "It's a shame your aunt's compassion made her oblivious to the dark truth; of how the Emperor was actually supporting them."

"What?!" Cadence shouted. "That's absurd! The Leviathan Cult terrorized his kingdom: why would he help them?"

"Did you not figure it out?" I bet Celestia had already solved that when I told her about the true nature of the corpse pit, the hungry thing that eats down there, and how it seemed like the cult would somehow stay active for so long. Such a shame I have to deal with her adopted niece instead. "When I look back on those days when I discovered the full truth of his involvement, I realized I should have solved it much, much sooner."

"But why did the Emperor ask her for help?" The poor mare was confused. "If he was helping the Leviathan Cult, wouldn't he have just covered up their existence? Why bring attention to them in his kingdom if they were stationed there?"

"The cult attracted the public's attention: they did a lot more than abduction and torture, and the demand for their Emperor to take action was growing," I started. "He deliberately half-assed the efforts to launch investigations and raids on their hideouts, but not before giving the members a warning to leave. That way, he satisfies the public, and his fellow cult members stay safe... until they saw the Leviathan Cult was still active, and public unrest was skyrocketing."

"Which got Aunty's attention when he asked for help..." Her damaged eyes started to widen; putting the clues together. "Letting her think she drove the Leviathan Cult out of the Griffon Empire, tricking and satisfying the public into thinking they were gone!"

"After he gave her a planned tour of his kingdom," I added. "Lying to her about how poor his kingdom is, whilst at the same time taking advantage of her generous nature, so he could make a trade deal with her."

"But that's...that's manipulation!"

"That's politics," I corrected. "Something you had the pleasure of never doing, and a burden you will never master."

The full realization that one of Equestria's political allies was assisting the most brutal, wicked individuals in the world hit her hard. If she's going to be a princess, wielding power and authority to interact diplomatically with other nations, then she better get used to it. "I can't believe the Emperor lied to us... Aunty had so much trust in him!" I bet Cadence had a false good impression of him too. For her to be tricked, for someone so attuned with emotions like her, betrayal can hurt more than any weapon could inflict.

I let out an amused chuckle. "Do you now understand why I don't lie?" I asked; she gave me a confused look. "It's so when I give information, I don't have to waste time arguing, providing physical evidence, or have other testimonies to back up my claim. It's why I can tell you what I know, and you wouldn't waste your time debating with me -" Well, most of the time as there will be others who either forget I always the truth... or are in full-blown denial when I say it. I like to think Cadence falls in the latter group. "-I can just spill a secret and they take my word for it, and charge them so much more, as a bonus."

"I can't see how that's useful now, considering there are those pretending to be you."

"True, my services for providing information have suffered," I admitted, but I did not yield. "Lying is the one thing I will never do, and if you do a good enough job in your craft, well, then it doesn't matter if there are imposters."

"Then tell me," She begged. "What happened to the Leviathan Cult after Aunty came to the Griffon Empire?"

"I just told you: they scattered and regrouped," I repeated. "They got into respected groups, devoted to worship their respective entities, before roaming around the world. I was just unlucky enough to be caught by those who worship Daoloth."

"It would explain the name," She said. "At least we finally know what they're called now... but who's Daoloth?"

"That doesn't matter, frankly even if I do explain it you wouldn't be able to grasp her existence," I said before rolling my eyes at her expression. "Oh don't be so sensitive, I'm not calling you an idiot! You know, I've always wondered where Twilight got that mentality - to be warned about the dangers of knowing too much and interprets it to be rude - and now I know!"

"What does Twilight have to do with any of this? She and her friends were nice to you: they tried to be your friend!"

"I don't befriend those who nearly bring the end of the world... multiple times!" I shouted while flailing on the bed I'm chained to. "Oh let me guess, they still somehow think its all my fault, isn't it?"

Cadence's damaged eyes widen in shock. "The end of the world...?" She started to shake her head. "No, no! That can't be true! How would something like that even happen?!"

"I would get to that if you would stop shifting the conversation!" I let out an annoyed huff. "Why do you want specific details on the Daoloth's Acolytes?"

"It's one of the most controversial topics that come up every time there's a diplomatic meeting. When he was still alive, the Emperor thinks the Daoloth's Acolytes started in Equestria and moved into griffon territory. Aunty theorizes they were the leftover, low-ranking members of the Leviathan Cult who regrouped and moved into her lands."

"Well, the Emperor was a liar since he secretly supports the Leviathan Cult," Or used to after I was done with him and murdering every member, but that's a story for later. "And your Aunt thinks too small. But I will give her credit, she is closer to the truth; even the other nations have their ideas and theories where they came from after Celestia supposedly drove them out - which they criticize her for not doing a good job: just another political game of assigning the blame."

"But you could clear that up!" There was a hopeful realization in her eyes, and for the first time since her disastrous and traumatizing wedding, I saw Cadence smile. "You know what happened, and with your knowledge, you could erase the political tension that's been building for years!" She stood up with excitement. "Aunty is in a meeting right now with the representative with the Griffon Empire! The other diplomates are coming too! You can help her and-!"

"Why would I bother helping the civilization of a griffon who ordered his cult members to abduct me, threw me in a pit to be eaten by a cosmic horror, which resorted me to a sick filly to survive?" I scoffed at her before turning to stare straight up at the ceiling. "Why should I care?"

"I know you had a bad experience, but can't you stop thinking yourself as the only victim-!" She closed her mouth when I sharply turned my head to look at her, glaring at her, causing her to flinch; silently challenging her to finish her sentence - to somehow justify that my suffering wasn't the griffon's fault, but is somehow actually mine while undermining the severity of that traumatic experience. I silently dared her to continue; I know she was going to do something like that - she just caught herself before she could finish that mistake - I can see it in her eyes, in the expression of her face, in the tone of her argument. Just like those before her who heard about my life, and I would make sure Cadence would experience the same fate.

Being on the receiving end of my unbridled, feral wrath.

Yet she knew that as with her having a high affinity for emotions, sensing bloodlust would be natural; if only she was good at detecting deceit, then the events of her wedding wouldn't have happened. "...I admit you were wronged, and I'm sorry for what happened to you - no soul should ever have to experience that!" I could tell she was being sincere, even as she started to plead. "... but please, innocent lives are at stake! The griffon's civilization is on the brink of collapse! They think a war-powered economy is the only way to stabilize everything! You murdered the Emperor, the least you could do is minimize the fallout!"

"...You remind me of Applejack from Ponyvile."

She wasn't prepared for that. "Why bring her up now?" Her tone became accusatory. "You just said you wanted to stop shifting the topic of the conversation! Are you trying to gloat about what you did to her?"

"Technically Cadence, you changed the subject when you fantasized about me helping you by playing diplomate. As for what I did to Applejack will be clarified - and, ultimately, not be the work of exaggerated rumors from a hyperactive pink earth pony - in due time," I said. Yet reminding her of Pinkie Pie's current state made Cadence silently resent me even more, but kept it to herself as fear took hold; the fact I would let something so awful happen to a pony so happy and active without a shred of remorse. But why should I feel bad for a thief? "As for Applejack, you and she have a common trait: you're both terrible at using words to get what you want."

"What is that supposed the mean?" Cadence demanded. "I'm just asking for your help!"

"Cadence, you can't say 'sorry', then appeal to my sympathy, only to twist the conversation around to make it all seem like everything is my fault!"

"You killing the Emperor and collapsing the griffon's government is your fault!"

"Again, that's just rumors." What I did was something much, much worse than death. "Be glad he is gone; that fool would have unleashed something much worse. That's how you can tell they're part of the Leviathan Cult; they stupidly try to play puppeteer with forces beyond comprehension." I glared at her. "And now you want me to go and willingly confront those incomprehensible forces? Tell me, are you somehow related to Applejack? Because she tried and failed to do the same thing you just did: fixing a lethal mistake caused by an outside force and ignorance that wasn't my fault."

"Please, just listen-!"

"No, you are going to listen," I stated. "Since detecting subtly isn't your strong suit, let me state it loud and clear: I. Don't. Care! I've been bound by a contract, Cadence. I'm just supposed to stay here, tell my story, and Celestia passes judgment. That's it. I'm not obligated to play peace-maker; that's for your aunt to decide."

"You're guilty of plenty of things; including murdering the Emperor! Aunty could punish you for that!"

"I can't be charged for a crime that happened outside of her jurisdiction," If those guidelines aren't in place, and with the animal-protection laws Equestria has, every carnivore in the world would be guilty... back then in ancient times, carnivores were declared guilty and should be punished until the ponies experienced the consequences of provoking a meat-eater. Magic can only do so much. "What punishment to be decided would be from those with authority in the Griffon Empire. It's why the current laws are universally agreed by the other nations: they wouldn't stop invading each other to capture wanted individuals. In the end, even if I'm found guilty for murdering a high-ranking political official in the Griffon Empire and should be punished, the most Celestia can do is detain me before sending me back to the Griffon Empire for punishment."

"Which would be dangerous since you murdered their leader," She argued. I couldn't tell if she was trying to appeal to me with compassion or threaten me with a painful fate. With a mare so young compared to Celestia, politics - and keeping leveled emotions - is not Cadence's specialty. "If you help us, then Aunty will be lenient with you - she could protect you from being deported there-!"

"Don't make promises you cannot fulfill," I warned her, and that got her to stop, causing her to flinch. Among the rumors about me, the ones about having promises made to me being broken are frightening, and only a few were actual tales of fiction. "Besides, the griffons know what their Emperor tried to do, and they're not going to lose any sleep after his death, just like how Heaven-feather could finally let his guard down after he moved to the castle to work for Celestia. Even if for some dumb reason they are angry, I'll just remind them of how I helped the Minotaur Clans, except I'll give them a 70% discount on all war-related services... which would be very helpful, and high in demand, considering they're planning for global conflict."

"Y-You would help them in their war preparation?" Cadence said, my threat made clear. "They're going to fight the whole world - despite the current destruction going on! Too many lives are being taken from the dark forces that are running amok, if the griffons participate in the slaughter then potential millions could die!"

"Like I said in our previous conversation: violence is profitable." I reminded her without an ounce of care, much to her shock and horror. "You should have seen the fortune I made with the Minotaur Clans. In the end, blood is the ultimate lubricant to grease the wheels of an economy... I learned that at a young age."

"You... you would sacrifice the potential deaths of millions for money?!"

"I'm a merchant; profit always comes before morality, and I always find a way to make it so," I repeated. "It may sound horrible, but that doesn't make it untrue. If it was nothing more than lies conjured by those infected with madness, then the world wouldn't be so terrible."

"It feels like you're trying to make the world horrible on purpose! What about that talk earlier about trying to be good, trying to care?"

"I didn't have that ambition yet," I reminded her. "I was a boy. I was scared and paranoid, a prisoner who briefly had a momentary celebration of freedom before it was taken away. I didn't just turn 'good' on the spot - instantly regretting everything I did to survive, and forget the horrors I experienced and saw in the Punishment Zone - as easily as flipping a damn coin! You can't just shrug off a traumatizing experience and move on like yesterday's breakfast. It lingers, and it can appear when certain triggers are present. When one of the cultists shot me in the head, my helmet protected me, but I was knocked unconscious again. After experiencing another nightmare, when I woke up - groggy and confused - I saw them dragging me into a mass grave filled with their latest victims."

"...What did you do?" Cadence was briefed on what I told Celestia; the corpse pit back in the Griffon Empire - and the mass grave I mentioned - seemed similar enough. Especially for me back then.

"I freaked out and went crazy." I clarified. "I thought I was back in the Griffon Empire, being thrown into that pit again, with the thing eating down there. By the time my mind had cleared up, the cultists had restrained me, but not after I had killed a few of their own."

"So you became their prisoner," She said before looking uncomfortable. "...I've heard tales where you ruled over a small gang when you were young, providing them with powerful weapons and magic as they destroyed everything in their path."

I scoffed. "Oh please, they only kept me alive because they were too scared of going near me, especially after I butchered one of them with my bare hands, and ate him in feral rage when he took off my helmet and tried to smash it."

"You... ate him..." She nauseous said as if she were restating a fact, rather than asking for clarification. I don't think her stomach is going to last. "D-Did you intimate them to follow you? Is..." She swallowed the bile rising in her throat. "Is that how you joined them?"

"Cadence, remember, those are just rumors: I clung onto what little moral lines I hadn't crossed." Although I wish I didn't, it just made my life so much harder than it needed to be. "I wouldn't instantly join a cult of rapists and murderers who pillaged and destroyed villages."

In the past

I was naked and covered in blood, but none of it was mine.

My cleaver was kicked away before they threw me in a small cage made out of dark crystal, dragging it - with me in it - up to a high hill overlooking a small town.

Then they just left me here. It wasn't until when I was completely alone I was reunited with my weapon, appearing on my lap before I moved to hide it under me as I sit down. Back in the Punishment Zone, I would always complain and be startled on how it would appear next to me, now I am grateful. I need to escape from this cage, away from these fanatics.

But these aren't like the feral beasts in the Punishment Zone; despite their unstable mentality, my opponents are capable of thinking, plotting, and scheming for the desired outcome. I'm outnumbered, only level 10, and I only have my bone helmet as an article of clothing.

"I'd finally get my freedom, only to be locked in a cage." I let out a sigh at the irony. "And if I try to escape, I'll be hunted down and killed." The other cultists were farther away, at the base of the hill they left me on, easy for them to keep an eye on me. Nonetheless, I've picked up random bits of fanatical conversation, of how the town in the distance is called Sire's Hollow, and how 'Big Boss will show them the way'. I knew who he is.

The leader of my captors, the sadistic enforcer of these cultists, is a griffon who went by the name of Big Boss; a title he earned from killing his predecessor. He told me as his underlings restrained me, "This will be the introduction to the first day of your new life." It only unnerved me that he had a big grin when he said that, bending down just enough to show the scars on his beak.

===
???
Level: 65
Species:Griffon
Title(s):Big Boss, Daoloth's Prophet
===
Description:
A griffon who was recruited into the Leviathan cult at a young age. One day he had a vision of the future and an insight of knowledge that set him down a path of giving up his identity and name in exchange for cosmic power. After much research in discovering the cosmic being known as Daoloth, his devotion was rewarded when the leader of the Leviathan Cult created a separate branch for the diety. When he wasn't made leader of the Daoloth's Acolytes, he easily plotted to overthrow his predecessor with the aid of insight Daoloth herself provided him. But this too had a price, one that is soon to be paid back.
===

It would be another hour before I'd seen him again, carrying various things before placing them down in my cage, gently slipping them in between the bars. I felt the rage return. He is so close. I wanted to tug on his extended limb and cause his head to slam into the bars. Repeating the process until his head cracked open like an egg.

But survival is a priority. I'm outmatched and underpowered and I don't have a lot of room to swing in this cage. I'm easy prey to these fanatics, and yet I'm being treated more like an exotic pet than a prisoner.

"...Why am I still alive?" I asked in disbelief that I was still alive. Not even harmed. I was even given a thick, wool robe for warmth after they gave me some food. I didn't touch it, but not because of pragmatic reasons: even though I no longer require sustenance, I still would enjoy the flavors of food I fantasized feasting on after escaping the Punishment Zone. Yet when I used [Observe] on the meat in the bowl of stew, I discovered that it was harvested from a young, unicorn filly. The coincidence frightened me, and I did not want to be reminded of what I did.

"Killing you would such a pitty... such a waste!" Big Boss laughed as he sat down next to my cage, and I was able to see multiple symbols and patches of beautiful - and frighteningly disturbing - ornate metal sewed onto his cloak; showing supreme status among the fanatics. I still couldn't see his head; he was simply that tall, and the cage was so cramped. "Daoloth had granted me a vision about you, the potential you have as you've already crossed the threshold of insanity, and still able to retain your mind."

I don't know who Daoloth is, and I doubt we are thinking of the same entity, but somehow Big Boss knew what I did in the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire; the unnamable thing in the pit, what I did to get into the Punishment Zone, and the monoliths granting me maddening insight into awful truths of the world. I didn't want to acknowledge it. Not yet. "...You know I killed five of your crew, right?" He reminded me of the griffons that threw me in the corpse pit, a confident facade that was a simple, transparent layer for hiding expert cruelty. "Hospitality isn't a proper response to homicide."

"What kind of host would I be if I didn't properly treat an honored guest. Besides, you only killed the initiates," Big Boss told me as he wrote down in a piece of paper, so fluidly and efficient, all the while not looking down at it, facing Sire's Hollow while keeping his eyes close. They were always close. "Time is such a limited privilege, and you've saved me the effort of killing them myself; the idiots thought I wouldn't notice when they would attempt to steal from me."

I didn't like how he phrased that sentence. "Would attempt?" I repeated in confusion. "How could you know something that didn't happen yet?"

"You're not the only one who has done something unspeakable to gain knowledge," He chuckled before he stopped writing, folding the paper into a compact form before flicking it in my cage.

It landed on my lap. Yet the moment I grasped it in my fingers, Big Boss said, "Don't open it until I say so." Something in his tone made me do so.

"It's just a piece of paper," I argued. An idiotic part of me wanted to tear it to shreds just to spite him, rage justifying my actions for denying me my freedom after working so hard to obtain it. But I knew it was nothing more than a fantasy: I had to survive first. It didn't stop me from being angry.

"It's proof to consider my offer." The griffon explained. "In exchange for your services."

"What services?" I had no idea what he was talking about, and trying to ask for clarification of what he says just makes me more confused.

"The bloody kind," His laugher was malicious. "Just look down onto the crystal floor of your cage."

So I did. Not because I wanted to be co-operative with him - I have every right to be suspicious - but my attention was drawn to the floor of this dark crystal substance, as it became a smooth black before it dissipated to reveal a zoomed-in perspective of Sire's Hollow.

And the small army of Big Boss' underlings slowly approaching the town. These weren't the same cloak-wearing initiates I've killed earlier, these individuals visibly have full-body armor of dark crystal, custom made for their species as if the armor was grown on them, wielding quality weapons with confidence and comfort as this wouldn't be the first time they were to go into battle.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Big Boss said with smug satisfaction. "Scrying magic is so versatile and has so many uses, despite it having one main function: remote viewing. But Daoloth has provided me with crystals that have unique properties... try not to resist it when you fall." He warned before tapping my cage. The floor of it starting to ripple as if it were a liquid, and my fears only grew when it started evaporating. "It's easier that way."

I didn't have time to react when I was engulfed in darkness.

An isolated settlement with a fertile population.

Blistering heat from daylight to make the residents reluctant in leaving their homes.

Dark clouds as a cruel accomplice to hide the Daoloth's Acolytes approaching the town.

All of it being reaped by a legion of cut-throat brigands and occultist fanatics, who channeled homicidal rage into their cruelty, and uttered incantations of the foulest origin to rend the peaceful land asunder. The earth turned into ash. The after transmuted into toxic sludge. Foul things from beyond the void were conjured to capture any trying to flee; disgusting abominations that are without form, a horrible concept of invisibility as normal eyesight cannot grasp their existence. The only noble quality these cultists have is their controlled destructive motivations to spare as many lives as they could.

Another reminder of how they are vastly superior to the initiates I've killed.

All of it is due to Big Boss' barbaric first-come-first-serve policy unleashed a flood of greed his underlings released onto the ruins of the once-peaceful town; a desire for material goods that rivaled any dragon. Creating a fierce rivalry that would turn comrades into accomplices, allies into enemies, as betrayal for a bigger cut of loot was common. It is for this reason why Big Boss is passionate about recruiting

The griffon himself declared that nothing was off-limits when it came to plundering, and these cultists would horde and loot with freakish conviction and mark them as the individual's property; may it be food saved from the burned and salted farmland, valuables taken from destroyed residents that once housed a loving family, or the even mundane materials used to salvage for later use.

The first-come-first-serve rule applied to everything.

Especially to the underaged fillies being separated from their families.

No pony was spared his organized cruelty. His cloaked, armored underlings dragged and separated the terrified folks of this once-lovely residence into two groups. The adults and elderly were to go to the right, shoved into a pit before it was set aflame; any who tried to climb out was joyfully kicked back down by the fanatics. The crackling flames, the roars of dying life, and the smell of roasting flesh and ash.

All of it is witnessed by the children who before forced to go away to a secluded area away from the town.

Only to be stripped naked and subjected to a fate worse than death.

There was nothing more wicked and feral than the sounds of a filly being violated to its maximum extreme: at an age where they should be learning of the world with joyful innocence instead of being, relishing the loving embrace of a parent. Instead, their parents are forcibly being separated from them, as the children are nothing more than pleasure

Even with my helmet on, nothing could stop the echoes of their screams and agony hammering into my skull! Over and over again I would hear the feminine youth being penetrated, forced to endure it repeatedly for hours at a time from multiple strangers who saw them as pleasure objects to be used, abused, and discarded, before being replaced by another poor soul whose lower orifices would be stretched and splattered white! Even as I cover my eyes with trembling hands, my broken imagination can still picture it! Every detail! Every smell! The grunts, the moans, and screams! All the factors and damnable machinations of organized defilement on children-!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

I took in a deep breath; the events happening being nothing more than dismissable background noise. I am felt calm and empty. Detached as if I'm watching a film, rather than witnessing reality; unable to be immersed in the horror as it all felt fake. In the end, even as the events I am impressively witnessing - after the pillagers' lust is satisfied and all the underaged children died from overused - I can only describe my detachment and lack of caring in one word.

Boredom.

My eyes snapped before I found myself in the cage again, laying on my back, watching with ease while my prison dissolves into powder. As I stood up, nothing had changed outside my cage: the sun was still rising, not a cloud in the sky, and Sire's Hollow perfectly fine and intact in the far distance. "The town..." I said in disbelief. "The town is fine...?"

"Wow..." Big Boss said in wonder, his back turned to me, facing in another direction. Not at the town anymore, but at the campsite where his goons and underlings have finished setting up. "I'm impressed. Most who gaze into Daoloth's crystals go mad, but you... you were just bored in the end!"

Then it all came back, what I witnessed, and how my mind remembered it akin to being collided with a large boulder; heavy and painful to experience. "What did you do?" I demanded, raising my voice. Picking up my cleaver from the ground, taking a step back from the griffon.

"It's something that I might do, or will do, soon," He replied smoothly. "It's scary knowing your future, isn't it?"

"That... that was the future?" I asked, and it seemed too crazy to be true. "You can use time-manipulation magic?"

"I'm not a unicorn, nor am I a zebra!" Big Boss laughed before standing up. "I used time in its purest form: in beautiful crystals. That cage of yours was made of it, and I simply activated to show you what could be - oh don't look so upset, it's just a minor inconvenience!"

"You mean the town getting slaughtered and the children being raped?" I shouted at him. "That's not a minor inconvenience, it's downright cruel!"

"I meant when the cruelty begins!" He clarified, still not facing me, but laughing all the same. "My crew is anxious to plunder - such a shame we have to wait - but don't worry you'll get to participate in the fun-"

He sidestepped my attack before tripping me. When my balance shifted forward, ready to hit the dirt, Big Boss' talon grabbed my head before slamming it into the ground.

[Physical Resistance] has leveled up!

"Not bad," He praised me as if me attempting to take his life wasn't a big deal, all the while he pressed my head deeper into the earth. My helmet started to crack. "Most idiots would wait until their opponent is done talking before striking. But your attack was sloppy and some work, and you need to pick your target carefully. I've had attempts on my life before, so naturally, I'm going to be prepared to react. And don't forget, Daoloth has blessed me with a fraction of her power; I know what you're going to do before you do it!"

He lifted my head before slamming into the ground again. But much, much harder than last time.

[Physical Resistance] has leveled up!

"You almost lost this," Big Boss dropped the tightly folded paper he gave me earlier, landing in front of me. "Look, what I showed you was some mere insight into a possible future; a consequence of me ordering my men to pillage Sire's Hollow."

"Then why are you?" I demanded, even with my head being pressed into the ground I turned my head as far as I could to shout at him. "What could you possibly gain from this?!"

"Daoloth showed me the truth," He replied cryptically. "She showed the best possible future I could have, and I need Sire's Hollow to get it, but I can't do that without you."

"Oh, I get it..." I couldn't keep the disgust out my voice. "Is that why you used your time-infused crystals to make my cage? To make me insane and convert to your cause? No wonder you're underlings are so crazy!"

"Only if there are those alive to call us crazy," The implications in his tone reminded me of what I saw; sadistic and relentless. "Besides, I can only show an individual's possible future: they have to be present in that timeline to experience it so immensely as you did."

"So what? I witness your pillaging as a prisoner?" I didn't like the idea that he was going to make me watch.

"One of your possible futures, yet that can always change, but the constant variable is that you are there! Because Daoloth showed me something even better: the reason why we can pull off the raid on Sire's Hollow so smoothly is that you help us!"

"I would never to that!" I've done enough in the corpse pit back in the Griffon Empire.

"But you could, and that's all that matters!" He elaborated. "We all have choices to make, you just have to make the one that benefits you the most... and lucky for you, I can see the future."

"I don't care what you see!" I shouted at him, even with his weight pressing down on me. "I'm not like you!"

"That's what I said to my predecessor, I was just like you," Big Boss lectured in a fatherly tone, recalling his assassination with loving care and nostalgia. He released his hold on me before walking away. "But don't worry, I've seen your future, and you will become something terrifying! We just have to properly train you for it... did you know I have a daughter? That's her chained in the cage with the other labor slaves." He pointed at the base of the hill, a malnourished griffon among the diverse group of labor slaves. There were ponies of all kinds, a few zebras, and even a minotaur and donkey was among them. Despite being biologically different, they were all equal: they were treated as property.

I stood up and yelled, "How could you plot to pillage Sire's Hollow when you have a child yourself?!"

"Because it gets easier the more I do it!" He laughed, and it only fueled my disgust for him. "That's a life lesson you are going to learn very soon! Besides, Sire's Hollow isn't the first place I looted and razed to the ground. And with your help? It certainly won't be the last."

Author's Note

Call of Cthulhu is a good, quick source if you want to know of cosmic deities and what they do, what they provide, and the extremes their cultists would do for them. Anyways, I'm sorry for the late upload, I've written so much, but I felt some of it was out of place. Then there was some in-real-life stuff I've had to deal with too.

I've also joined a few writing groups, asking for opinions and prompts on concepts, ideas, and overall things I wanted to incorporate into this fic; it's good to receive another person's perspective on such things.

Anyways, I'm finally getting to the really fucked up parts I wanted to write for so long. So I'm giving you all a warning: the story is rated 'Mature' for a reason.

Chapter 6: Inner Conflict

In the future

Cadence rushed out of her seat and barely made took two steps before vomiting onto the ground in my cell. What little food she has consumed was easily expunged from her stomach.

I had finally pushed her over the edge, unsettling and disturbing her to a point where biological repulsion had stimulated her to be sick - to have her innards convulse, her throat burning with stomach acid as it comes out of her mouth, her lungs aching for the chance to breathe, the smell making her eyes cry - and all the while I am the one who is chained down.

While I could have done something to ease the shock and revelation of what I've been through, I find that evil should be revealed and presented without bias - as close as I can telling it from my perspective. Cadence is simply sensitive to the horrors of life, and her wedding is a real taste of evil she ever had. A while I was involved in the matter, I was not responsible, and the fact that Cadence still blames me for it instead of the obvious culprit made it all the more satisfying when she continued to vomit.

I learned at a young age in Big Boss' camp that my actions have consequences, and I am smart enough to know how those consequences will play out. The pink alicorn struggling to steady herself is living proof, as her connection to the magical-machinations of this hyper-enchanted, rune-covered room is becoming unstable.

Enough for the chains holding me down, on the now-slightly-shrunk bed, to loosen just enough for me to move my hands; more than enough for me to reach into my inventory. I just need a good opportunity to show Celestia what happens when she doesn't take me seriously, and I plan to use Cadence as a medium for my brutality.

"I just... I just need a minute..." She said in between irregular breathing, but even that was interrupted by more dry-heaving.

"You're going to be saying that a lot," I said dryly as she slowly made her way back to her seat, only for it to collapse due to erosion caused by the lack of magic maintaining its durability; Cadence was sent sprawling onto the ground, and I mocked her for it. "Tell me, did you survive your underground imprisonment by living off of all the fat on you?" Just imagining her malnourished and scared still made me laugh. "I think you need to lose more weight if your fatass is collapsing magically-created furniture!"

I continued to laugh, shaking the bed I am chained to, as Cadence continued to try and get herself under control. She didn't even acknowledge my insult, and considering how much we bicker, it is proof of how vulnerable she is. It took a while for my laugher to die down, and it took even longer for the alicorn to compose herself.

"Can..." She swallowed, her legs shaking as she got to her feet while she struggled to mentally command the room to create another chair. "Can you just skip this part?"

"The events I experienced in Big Boss' camp lead to the events of the future," I said as I rejected her request. "I don't want to keep backtracking just because you're so pathetic that you can't handle it." It's always a little slice of joy when I witnessed others freaking out - the terror and uncertainty, the fear and panic in their eyes. It was breath-taking, and I loved every second of it. I couldn't help but mockingly tease, "Unless of course, you want to fail Celestia, and possibly doom the world~?"

I could see her trying to argue, only for another wave of nausea to set in. "It's just-" She took in a sharp breath, forcing herself to calm down. "It's too much!"

"Then you better hope your stomach can handle it," I laughed. "Because things had only gotten worse later on!"

In the past

Beneath the terror I've felt, the mere idea of freedom has always been a suppressed desire. As I wasted away in the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire, and monotonously indulging in forbidden knowledge in the Punishment Zone, it never has occurred to me that I would get what I deeply desired for so long.

This is why it had felt so good when I got it, but it also made it hurt so much when it got taken away.

The sun had set, ignorant of the suffering it illuminates. As if it couldn't be any crueler, it took away the source of warmth in the camp. The cultists were heavily armored in enchanted wares, the initiates tolerated the crisp and frosty air as part of their training, but I - along with the other labor slaves - was left alone in the dark cold. Close enough to the camp to watch us, but far away to express their apathy for our well-being.

Yet I knew I would be treated differently; Big Boss just placed me here with the labor slaves because he and his goons were preparing... something. It's always something with the griffon and it never made me at ease. I had to cut my line of thought when pondering the griffon because of the concept of being able to see the future I crave for answers.

And I craved it like a starving wolf.

First came the desire for knowledge, then came the impulse to figure it out, until finally I was left with nothing but an urge to consume. To devour information, digest secrets, and repeat the process until I was satisfied.

But I am never satisfied, and acknowledging my gluttonous desire for more just made the craving stronger, and with it came repulsion as my vice was the sole reason why I entered the Punishment Zone and why I prematurely left it without completing the bonus objectives. I always thought that I had gained enough in that horrible place, knowing dark truths and even fouler knowledge, to survive whatever obstacle I would face - and yet here I am, too weak to do anything for myself.

It only made the hunger more intense, and now I realize the truth; I was a coward. Leaving the Punishment Zone wasn't a moment of clarity defined by exhaustion and despair, it was because I was too weak to endure it - for maybe if I did, I would have been strong enough to obtain my freedom but also to protect it from those who would gladly take it from me.

Due to your reexamining of your past mistakes, your WIS has increased by 1!

I refuse to make the same mistake again. I don't know when, or how, but I will gain my freedom; I worked too damn hard to get this far. Yet a lingering question remained: would I be willing to sacrifice others for my benefit?

I looked at the labor slaves.

I was moved to be with them, but they wouldn't go near me; glancing at me in curious fear when they think I don't notice them looking. They have an aura of hopelessness and sorrow, the knowledge that what dreams and aspirations for a better future will never be fulfilled.

So I sat alone, hugging my knees, my head down while I was too afraid to close my eyes. I didn't want to have another nightmare and I wouldn't hesitate to stab myself if it means preventing me from drifting off into dreamland. I still wore the wool cloak I received earlier, and as much as I hated wearing it, I needed to keep myself warm. It just felt too good after being kept in the cold dark for so long. Yet that pleasant feeling was crushed under the humiliation I feel from being under the oppressive authority of Big Boss.

It made me want to lash out and scream.

My suppressed irritation only grew as the labor slaves talked among themselves - gossiping about me. They think I can't hear them, even as I actively try to tune them out, and now it is like the screaming filly in the corpse pit; they just wouldn't shut up! I pressed my hands against the side of my helmet, against my ears, and all I can hear is the annoyance of their voices in the quiet night!

I wanted to cut their voices out of the throats and-!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

I felt my irritation go away and reminded myself that the other slaves are prisoners too. So I eased onto my back, looking up at the dark sky and the moon, . "I will get out of here..." I yearned for my freedom, and now that I am calm enough to think rationally, a new question lingered in my mind. "Should I even try to stop the raid on Sire's Hollow?"

It was nothing more than an act of curiosity, but it later turned into an internal struggle.

Morally, I should stop the raid on Sire's Hollow. What Big Boss showed in that vision of the future was beyond revolting, and it only fueled my growing hatred for the griffon and his cruelty, and I will use any advantages I have to win: I have an indestructible weapon tucked away in my cloak, there are rewards from the previous quests in the Punishment Zone that I still haven't claimed, and I have an arsenal of dark rituals and the creative capacity to create new spells and curses for my purposes. I even have my Class now, along with the two Sub-Classes; a Merchant, Gambler, and an Abyssal Craftsmen - I just have to work hard and prepare to confront the griffon. I could earn favor and companionship with the fellow captives, somehow using my abilities to make them strong; powerful enough to overthrow the Big Boss and his goons.

Then what is stopping me from using my power to aid him and his cause instead?

If I take morals out of the argument, then I can earn the favorability of Big Boss, and it would be a wasted opportunity if I didn't; he commands dozens upon dozens of devoted cultists, leading the initiates who are slowly being converted to his side, and he effortlessly keeps slaves for cheap labor. Even if I befriend the other slaves, and the fantasy of convincing the initiates to change sides had no purpose. Besides, the labor slaves are malnourished, terrified, and filled with despair - how am I supposed to convince them to stand up to their oppressors when I can't even do it? What could they offer me that Big Boss couldn't?

Then I am reminded of the sounds of children being violated to a point where death is a mercy. Hearing cries made it feel like a thousand insects were crawling on my skin, and made me still; paralyzed from the shock that such a sound is possible through atrocities beyond words.

So if I do help Big Boss, then Sire's Hollow - every family, their loved ones, and children - are doomed to be nothing more than pleasure objects for him and his goons, and I know this town wouldn't be last of Big Boss' depravity, and he wouldn't have trouble with other towns either. Would I be fine with that, knowing the horrible and damnable consequences of my actions? Shouldn't I take the opportunity to stop him?

Just like my time within the Punishment Zone, I would do anything to survive and thrive - yet now it's more extreme, as my actions have direct and obvious consequences to bystanders who didn't deserve it. Despite my reasoning for it all, thinking about the benefits of helping Big Boss causes this growing, twisted knot in my stomach that gets worse the more I ponder it.

System: [Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

Then the guilt was gone, leaving me alone to think.

"...I could try and take him out when I have the chance when I earn his trust..." I whispered to myself before shaking my head at the absurd idea; I'm just foolishly trying to convince myself that the ends will justify the means. "Big Boss can see into the future, catching him off-guard and ambushing him is impossible! ...Maybe I could just leave when the chaos unfolds... but Big Boss would know that too! How am I supposed to beat an opponent who knows my every move?"

I am stuck here. It's just like the corpse put back in the Griffon Empire: a terrible fate I must accept, and now an immoral choice is before me once more. Would I be willing to do another unspeakable act to earn power and freedom?

I waited in silence for an answer, in my mind or through my voice, but there was nothing. No rebuttal. No refusal. Denial was non-existent and I simply felt numb to it all. Yet I would be lying to myself if I didn't feel a tiny amount of doubt. Then again, silence itself is an answer.

But I know one thing: if I do get strong enough, before or after the raid on Sire's Hollow, then I'm going to kill Big Boss.

I heard the steps, and I sat up to see the zebra among the labor slaves approached me. "...They gave us some kindling for a makeshift fire," Her voice was firm, yet it flowed like water. The accent is obvious yet it was cautious. "Although with such items, I do not think they will care of our warmth being so dire."

Her speaking habits already caught me by surprise, she spoke it like flowing water, never stopping as if was effortless to do so. "...Why are you telling me this?" I stood up on my feet, and she took a step back. From her perspective, it must have been unsettling to see me. "It's obvious you're not blind; I'm still wearing the cloak, so warmth isn't an issue." She still gave me a cautionary look, and I immediately thought of what happened earlier. "So why approach me?"

"The softer hearts and innocent minds among us have our concerns," She agreed, and I saw the faintest light of a pathetic fire behind her. It deepened the shadows on her form, so malnourished yet strong, barely covered with tattered cloth. "But we're all prisoners, so there is no point in being mean and firm."

"So you're just being nice?" That would be the last thing I would expect to find in a place like this. I used [Observe] on her.

===
Zecora
Level: 45
Species: Zebra
Title(s): Unconfirmed Leader of the Discarded, Adept Shaman, Expert Apothecary, Favored by the High Priestess, Prodigy of Nature
===
Description:
Zecora once trained under the High Priestess in the Zebra Lands, showing and proving to be a prodigy in the shaman and medicinal arts. She saw the High Priestess as a mother-figure, and it made it more painful when Zecora had to leave her homeland to finish her training. But after being held captive by the Daoloth's Acolytes, her studies have severely stunted over the years, as she is only allowed to make what is permitted; her usefulness is the only reason she is alive, but her refusal to co-operate is why she is nothing more than a source of cheap labor. Yet her caring personality for the other labor slaves makes them loyal to her when they're not terrified of being targeted by Big Boss.
===

So she's someone the other slaves look up to? I never would have thought I would meet an individual who shows compassion in an awful place like this. "You're the first zebra I have directly met," I only heard about them when I lived with my adopted family, and the only ones I saw in person were in the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire. "Especially one so far from home... so why are you talking to me, Zecora?" It never hurts for some clarification.

"I only wanted to invite you to the warmth of the flame," She looks uncomfortable, but not afraid. "But how is it you know my name?"

"I'm different - but special," I added, but I found it odd my voice seemed much louder - why was it so quiet? What happened to all the idle chatter? - I just ignored it, at least the night is silent except for the crackling of fire behind Zecora, and yet I am still pondering the extremes I am willing to do to get out of this camp. Should I treat her as an individual or a means to an end that will only benefit me? "As you know, earlier I was mistakenly being thrown into the corpse pit nearby, but I woke up and fought them off - yet now that I think of it, I saw some of the bodies were wearing tattered clothing too... were they also labor slaves?"

"They were all disposed of for resisting and making a loud fuss," Zecora nodded before letting out a sad sigh. "But some were taken to a special tent, and are no longer among us-"

The pathetic fire was extinguished when Big Boss had stomped it out.

I realized why it was so quiet.

Big Boss had struck her down with a single blow to the side of her head, and I backed away when she fell forward onto the ground. His talons tearing open a large wound at the side of her head, her eyes clouded with pain and confusion. She let out a cry when Big Boss stomped on her back, and the sickening cracks echoed throughout the camp.

"Zecora, you know the rules - there is no talking after midnight... do you know why?" The griffon bent down, his eyes still closed, facing the downed zebra who is in too much pain to say anything. Still having that smile on his scarred face. Several of his underlings, completely covered in magic-infused armor, had gathered to watch. "It's disrespectful to interrupt us when we're praying to the Mistress of Veils; how is Daoloth supposed to hear our gratitude-" He pressed Zecora's head into the ground, muffling her sobs. The smile was gone, replaced by feral disgust. "-when it's being deafened by your rhyming?!"

Two of the cultists walked up to the duo taking Zecora's arms, holding them down and out on the ground. She didn't thrash and scream - she refused to give them satisfaction - but I could tell she was preparing for the worse.

It did nothing to lessen the pain of Big Boss breaking her fingers.

There was a unique sound to hearing bones break. Zecora tried not to scream while her fingers were mangled, one after the other in quick succession, but she quickly gave in and started screaming. I would wince and flinch from the sound - it was as if it came out of nowhere, and it unsettled me.

But there was a strange fondness when I heard it.

"Well now," Big Boss stepped off of the whimpering zebra, casually strolling towards me as if Zecora's agony is nonexistent. "I guess I don't need to introduce the nighttime rules to you now."

I reached for my cleaver in my cloak and took a step back. He easily towered over me. "Are you here to punish me too?" I wasn't going to willingly take another beating - and who knows, maybe I will get to kill him.

"Maybe I will, but not now. For some reason, you don't bleed and your bones don't break," I've always wondered how accurate he can see into the future. I think the griffon didn't know about [Gamer's Body], but now I'm sure he is aware of it. "I'm guessing its that power you have, yet it means that I could hit you again as I did before, but it wouldn't do much like earlier; normally when I thrash someone into the ground, I at least break several ribs, and there is some lingering pain afterward. It's how I keep the slaves in line... so now that I know pain is something you're used to, and it's something you barely feel, physically punishing you won't have any purpose."

"...So what are you going to do?"

"Now? Nothing," He shrugged. "But believe me, I do have something planned if you break the rules in the future. And speaking of the future..." Big Boss then turned to face the other labor slaves who were too frightened to do anything. "Let's see... you!" He pointed to a blue unicorn among the labor slaves. "You'll do for now!"

Without hesitation, the other cultists grabbed the whimpering unicorn, barely in her teen years. "What's your name?"

"T-Trixie..." She stuttered out, clearly afraid of the griffon. Her pale-blue mane is in tatters, the poorly-patched cuts on her azure fur, and her malnourished frame only reminded me where I am, and how lucky that I am not her. "I-Is there something you need of Trixie?"

"...Remember that name, Sweet Tooth," Big Boss said in a dangerous voice, ignoring her. "Because after today's lesson, you are going to learn something."

"...What am I going to learn?" My hand still gripped the weapon in my cloak, ready to pull out and strike. Yet the opportunity to learn knowledge made the hunger come back. I used [Observe] on the unicorn with the odd speaking habits. I wondered if all of the labor slaves have odd verbal habits.

===
Trixie Lulamoon
Level: 15
Species: Unicorn
Title(s):Adequate Entertainer, The Boastful Showmare
===
Description:
Trixie has learned magic to combine with her passion for performing, wooing crowds, and fueling her ego in showing off her talents. She normally has a boastful personality; referring to herself in a grand tone by talking unusually. But after being captured by the Daoloth's Acolytes and being exposed to their cruelty, she now keeps to herself to avoid their leader's wrath, yet that doesn't stop her from trying to find some way to benefit herself.
===

"You will learn how to get what you want," Big Boss turned to walk away, one of his goons grabbed Trixie by the arm - she stuttered something, I couldn't make it out as her desperation grew - but the cultist merely lifted the unicorn by her limb, off her feet, before punching her in the stomach with enough impact to force air and blood out of her mouth. After that she was dragged on the ground, whimpering and coughing along the way. "And learn the right way to do it."

"And what is this 'right way'?" I asked while I looked at Zecora's broken hands. It felt like suffering was a thick, wool blanket; smothering me with warmth restraint. I feel compelled to look, unblinking, and I knew I should leave, but the only place to go is to follow the griffon who broke her fingers in the first place. I pointed at Trixie. "And what does it have to do with her?"

"You can't learn how to torture a unicorn if you don't have one," Big Boss said over his shoulder. Trixie's eyes widen in panic, weakly trying to resist. Although her frightened voice was barely audible, and her malnourished body made her slow, Trixie's protest was met with zero tolerance as she was punched and kicked into unconsciousness by the other cultists. "Specifically, how to exploit medicine and anatomy to maximize the results... isn't this what you want? To learn something new?"

"I..." I know he is tempting me, but the lure was too great. Earlier, I was unsure of what to do; to place morality as equal footing with surviving and escaping to maintain my integrity, and not cross any barriers deemed immoral and irredeemable. But I cannot lie to myself: I want to learn everything about Daoloth, I want to indulge myself in playing the role of the carnivorous butcher, learning under Big Boss as the upcoming raid on Sire's Hollow is the perfect opportunity I have been craving... yet at the same time, I desire to stop Big Boss and his raid, to save Sire's Hollow, and free the other labor slaves. I didn't want to be cursed with any more forbidden knowledge, but there was that sense of pride knowing I have the mental fortitude to resist the insanity such information brings, and the inner hate I have for myself for not taking the opportunity to learn more because of it. I can summarize this inner conflict in one word.

Turmoil.

QUEST: The Uncertain Paths
There are multiple ways to earn your freedom, but it will be up to you on how to get it. However, doing nothing will not help you in achieving your goal, yet what you do will affect the outcome. In these horrible circumstances forced upon you, there is no right or wrong, only consequences. Just note that these options are not strict directions but are merely general guidelines to show the cause-and-effect of your actions, as some rewards from different paths can be gained at the same time by doing certain things, while additional rewards that are not listed can be earned by doing hidden actions.

(OPTION #1: Selfish)
Big Boss is powerful, but he acknowledges he has limitations and requires your help and the terrifying potential you possess. You know you have a better chance of surviving by helping him and gaining the goodwill of the cult, and you also know that [Gamer's Mind] will negate any feelings of guilt and regret, allowing you to go all-out.
-Improve and strengthen the cult.
-Complete tasks are given to you by Big Boss.
-Complete quests are given by Daoloth.
REWARD:
-Allowed participation in the upcoming raid on Sire's Hollow.
-Reputation and membership in the Daoloth's Acolytes that grants you the privilege of operating on your own, and able to branch away from the main group to explore and expand elsewhere.
-Able to loot and plunder any village with the support of the cult.
-Skills, XP, and money, in proportion to the degree of completing the tasks.

(OPTION #2: Moral)
Big Boss's tyranny has earned him scorn among the labor slaves and even those he initiates into the cult have their doubts. Even you are disgusted by the possible future he showed you, and desire to make sure it never happens. While his cosmic power is potent, you are not powerless; your cunning intellect allows you to turn any obstacle into an opportunity.
-Help the labor slaves by using your knowledge, intellect, and crafting skills to make them powerful than their oppressors.
-Convince the initiates of the cult to join you.
-Help increase the levels of those who follow you to at least level 60.
-Arm your companions by crafting weapons and armor with a minimum quality of rare or higher.
-Kill the Daoloth Acolytes before they raid Sire's Hollow.
REWARD:
-Gain a following of loyal companions.
-Ending the Daoloth Acolytes and their horrible plundering activities.
-The horrifying knowledge of Daoloth is forgotten.
-Preventing the destruction of Sire's Hollow.
-Gain 1 level for every cultist of the Daoloth's Acolytes killed.
-Increase all stats by 50 when killing Big Boss.

(OPTION #3: Indulgence)
The fact you are alive despite everything you have been through means it wasn't due to sheer luck, but because you are willing to discard everything, and do anything, to achieve what you want despite the detrimental results it had on your body and mind. This isn't done through self-improvement, it is acted through self-destruction; over-feeding your vices to gain power at a cost. That cost can either be of your health or your morals.
-Torture, kill, and consume every labor slave of the Daoloth's Acolytes.
-Steal and learn every scrap of forbidden knowledge from Big Boss before killing and eating him.
-Lead the raid on Sire's Hollow.
-Sacrifice the surviving cultists to Daoloth to bargain for power.
REWARD:
- Complete forbidden knowledge of Daoloth and any perks and skills related.
- Level up any skills related to the forbidden knowledge of Daoloth by 30% for every cultist sacrificed.
- Increase all stats by 1 when killing a foal in a raid.
- Increase all stats by 2 when killing a stallion or mare in a raid.
- Increase all stats by 3 if the stallion is married when killed in a raid.
- Increase all stats by 4 if the mare is pregnant when killed in a raid.
- Gain +100 HP for every 200 pounds of pony flesh consumed.
- Gain 10,000 bits for every building set on fire during the raid.
- Capturing scholars, merchants, and craftsmen will give you skills and XP when torturing the prisoners for their knowledge.
- Gain infamy in Equestria if you let any survivors escape.
- The escaped survivors will devote their lives to destroying you.
- The disturbing facts will worsen your body.

"Well, Sweet Tooth?" Big Boss turned to me, his eyes still closed, as he noticed I was standing still. Zecora's whimpering can easily be heard in the night. "Are you willing to do something for yourself once more?"

"...Yes," I stepped around Zecora and followed Big Boss as his goons carried of a beaten and bleeding Trixie. "Yes, I am...maybe I should focus on taking care of myself first before I start caring about others..." I whispered that last part to myself. I now have an opportunity to grow stronger once more, and unlike my cowardice in the Punishment Zone, I will do whatever I can to gain the most out of this event. I just feel so tired in pondering my future, thinking and plotting, imagining and empathizing, for a life that is crashing down on me.

And I am perfectly fine with that.

The optional paths of the quests were laid out before me in the quest; structured and organized from my deep uncertainty, and presented with the additional knowledge of hidden rewards with the possibility to claim rewards from the other optional pathways. I don't know how I'll do it, but in the end, it will come down to a me-versus-whoever-gets-in-my-way.

Whether it will be Big Boss and his cultists, Zecora and the rest of the labor slaves, or even the residents of Sire's Hollow. Maybe it could be all three. No matter what, when I do get out of here, far away from this damned campsite, I will be stronger than I was before. So I will go along with whoever benefits me the most, help them in their selfish goals, and then get rid of them when I have the chance. I refuse to relinquish my freedom, and I will work hard to get it; the Punishment Zone has taught me patience. That is why I don't mind waiting,

After all, I can always kill them later.

In the future

"You...you agreed to help Big Boss?" Cadence voice her disbelief. "I thought you said you weren't born evil!"

"I also said I used to care more about increasing my chances of survival than money and sadistic glee," I emphasized that word to make my point. "I've been through so much, and frankly, I just didn't have it in my anymore to care. I just stopped giving a damn, and all my inner conflicts and guilt just became silent."

"But you had an internal conflict on what to do!" Cadence argued, trying so hard to understand. "Weighing the options and morals as a result of your actions, and you just act like it never happened! Why did you stop caring?"

"Because for once I felt calm, and it wasn't forced on me by one of my skills; I was in a moment relief and peace!" I elaborated and I felt passionate when I said it. "I knew what I wanted, and I could focus on how to get it; I didn't have to be restrained by morals, or lengthy internal debates, being hesitant and always pondering my moves. It felt so liberating and I wanted more of it."

"But you were conflicted on what to do!"

"And it exhausted me," I reminded. "Just constantly thinking, pondering what-ifs, becoming so mentally unbalanced that [Gamer's Mind] had to calm me down; it had taken too much out of me. That was the first lesson I learned in Big Boss' camp: sometimes it's fine to stop caring. So when I did, I was in a calm mental state because [Gamer's Mind] didn't kick into balance and correct my unstable psyche."

"Which is why you did nothing to help Zecora, and you willingly participated in torturing Trixie," Cadence said that as if she were repeating facts, rather than asking for clarification. I don't need to tell her that I went along with whatever Big Boss put me through to gain those rewards the quest offered me. "How could you do that to your friends?!"

"If it helps, there were moments when I did hesitate my actions and the tasks Big Boss gave me-" But that's all it was: hesitation. "-as for Zecora and Trixie, they weren't my friends at the time; I just met them." And I never considered Trixie a friend after that stunt she pulled on me in Big Boss' camp, and all the trouble she gave me later on. As for Cadence, I know now it's going to be very satisfying when I get to cut her, always confusing my present reputation and rumors to my past self. "And what was I supposed to do against a griffon who has advanced precognition? Or his heavily armed and armored followers?"

"You could have done something; it feels like you gave up too early," Cadence protested. "Why did you just... give in?" She struggled for a bit to find the right words.

"I've been fighting for so long, Cadence, longer than any child should have to," I said. "I wasn't even a child anymore at that time - time flows differently in the Punishment Zone, and I was so sick of having internal struggles and criticizing everything I did and what I could, would, and should do."

"You could have at least tried to stop Big Boss!"

I wanted to remind her that I did try to stop him after he showed a vision of the future raid on Sire's Hollow, and how I got my back stomped on and my head slammed onto the ground. I wanted to tell her that. But Cadence just made me mad. "Easy for you to say; you're immortal!" I snapped back, reminding her of her ascendance. "A literal god in the flesh for crying out loud! If you were captured by the Daoloth's Acolytes, even as an alicorn mare exiting her filly years, you could have easily used your alicorn magic to slaughter them; heck, you could have used your emotion-influencing magic to make them pacifists!"

"I am not a killer!" She looked appalled at the suggestion. "And I...I can't use my magic to brainwash others!"

"No, you won't use your magic to brainwash others," I corrected. "Because when you were younger, you used your love magic to make two ponies stop fighting each other, by forcing them to fall in love against their will."

"Y-You know about that?"

"I think Twilight was there too, and now that I think about it, I can easily see why she uses magic to try and solve everything when it shouldn't be used." It made much more sense, but it doesn't excuse the lavender unicorn, and I certainly don't regret what I did to her. "I remember how Celestia scolded you for that, and you cried because that was the first time your aunt firmly yelled at you for taking away the two ponies' free will and forced to make them fall in love with each other when they clearly wanted nothing to do with each other. I remember how she made you study for hours without rest to reverse what you have done to them."

Cadence did not like being reminded of that, yet instead of anger, she showed regret instead. "I was just trying to help them..."

"That doesn't mean you should brainwash them with love-inducing magic." Out of the four alicorns, only one of them uses her power responsibly, and she is doing her royal duties instead of listening to my story. Yet I find it a little sad, and very humorous, that despite Celestia's experience throughout the years she has failed to notice the soon-to-be devastation of her own making. However, with Cadence, a thought came to me. "Remember earlier how I said that the only reason Twilight suspects your fake impersonating you at your wedding, as she thought you were a monster mind-raping her brother? Does Shining Armor actually love you, or did you just force him to love you?"

"I would never do that to him!" She shouted, so easily defensive for her husband. It's good to know how much she cares, and seeing it with my own eyes helps to confirm it. "Our love is true because of our genuine effort and devotion to each other, and no magic can ever take that away!"

"Magic did take that away; Chrysalis used magic to brainwash your husband into a thrall who could barely think for himself after so much exposure to it!" I laughed at her expression, and I knew my words hit deep because of what she witnessed in the crystal caverns underneath the castle. Yet that traumatized expression turned into a fierce glare directed at me.

"I'm not going to let your taunts affect me," She said firmly, glaring at me, trying so hard not to let my words affect her. "You can laugh at me all you want, but Aunty was smart enough to keep you specially contained so your magic cannot be used."

"Only smart as she thinks she is," I corrected, and I'm going to make a point of it very soon. "Celestia may have centuries of experience, but those lifetimes rarely had times of great strife, and even she makes mistakes from time to time. Just like she thought the Daoloth's Acolytes were only a small group, when in fact their numbers were over a hundred - and that's just the cultists, I'm excluding the initiates and labor slaves too." I might as well get the conversation back on track, which could go a lot smoother if Cadence's moral compass would stop getting in the way.

"That... that doesn't make any sense," She said, trying to grasp what I revealed. At least she is focusing now, I just wish she would do that more often. "If the group was that big, wouldn't the ponies of Sire's Hollow see them?"

"It's because Big Boss isn't an idiot; whatever knowledge Daoloth cursed him with, the griffon made sure to exploit it whenever he could. Besides, Daoloth provided him with insight into the future, allowing him to take big risks without worrying about the consequences. By the time Sire's Hollow noticed the army of cultists, Big Boss - with my aid - was able to make his move."

"Aunty thought they were a small group using ambushing tactics..." She began to realize the horror of past mistakes.

"Which is why every squad of trackers, agents of the crown, or soldiers, she sent after the Daoloth's Acolytes went missing... well, one of them did come back," I said, and Cadence looked confused. "Unofficially she is known as Bon Bon, officially on paper she is known as Agent Sweetie Drops. She was the only prisoner in Big Boss' camp who was also an agent of the crown; he found her useful and kept her alive, but the others... well, they helped fill the nearby corpse pit."

"Why even keep her alive?" She asked, yet she was uncomfortable imagining what Sweetie Drops went through, and I can tell Cadence suspects I have something to do with it. "I'm relieved she survived that whole ordeal, but why does Big Boss keep some as slaves and kills the others?'

"Potential," I answered. "Focusing on quality over quantity, a rather noble trait in the Leviathan Cult. Most of his cultists were minotaurs and griffons, strong enough in fierce combat, and healthy enough to survive worshiping something that should never be looked at in broad daylight. Big Boss had Zecora for her shaman and potion-making knowledge. For Sweetie Drops? He wanted to see if he could recruit her, thus having an inside spy in Canterlot."

"Then why do we lack information on the Daoloth's Acolytes?" She asked. "If she was there and came back to Canterlot, how come we're only getting information on this now instead of earlier?"

"Because she directly worked for Celestia," I answered. "Poor Sweetie Drops was so damaged, so traumatized that Celestia granted her early retirement, and never pressured Sweetie - now calling herself 'Bon Bon' - to reveal the horrible things she went through in Big Boss' camp. Poor Bon Bon would have a mental breakdown every time she was reminded of what she went through, and with Celestia feeling pity and sadness for the earth pony, she never brought it up."

"She must be brave..." Cadence remarked. "Being strong enough to survive that whole mess, and living a normal life."

"That's being generous," I countered. "As I said before: trauma lingers. It can surface when certain triggers are met, and it showed when I bumped into her when I set up my toy shop in Ponyvile."

"But you know what she went through...what did Big Boss do?"

"He was educating me on how to be cruel."

In the past

"Today will be a special lesson," Said Big Boss, his eyes still closed, as he leads me to a large tent. I almost mistook it for a small house; [Observe] told me it was made out of quality materials, enchanted to be durable and flameproof. "The materials for today will be provided for you."

When we entered the big tent, I was greeted with the furnishings inside. A blacksmith's forge and alchemical stations set to the right. To the left is a table completed with restraints built-in, and a small desk with a padded chair was set a bit away from it. Yet there was only one thing that surprised me, other than the spotless interior of this tent: the wooden basin nearly filled with blood in the middle of the room.

I walked over to it, disbelief in my steps as I leaned over it, and saw my skull-wearing reflection staring back at me - until a wet and faint thump hit my helmet. I reached the spot and pulled my hand back to see fresh blood had dripped down on top of me. I glanced up and saw the bodies hanging upside down from above, their throats slit; eyes bloodshot, and mouths open in quiet agony and terror. I felt that I should have flinched, or even gagged at the sight and smell... but I have been through far worse, and I have seen things more terrifying than this.

"Quite a sight, ain't it?" Big Boss said, in an all-too-proud tone. "You see, if you hang them upside down and slit their throat, all you need is gravity and their beating heart to drain out the blood."

I immediately recognized the tattered clothing on them and knew these bodies are the ones Zecora talked about earlier before Big Boss had silenced her. "Am I going to be doing this to Trixie?" Is this what he wants me to do, removing anyone who makes noise, priming them for disposal?

"And waste a good source of labor?" Big Boss chuckled. "Sorry, but Trixie is needed for today's lesson, and I can't have you eating labor slaves who still have some value."

"Eating?"

"Of course," He walked to one of the chairs near the desk, his cultists silently following him before strapping an unconscious and bruised Trixie down onto the table nearby. He pointed to the bodies hanging above us. "You can use them however you wish because after you're done with today's lesson, you are going to be here for a while. Experiment with the bodies, or eat them later if you wish. Just don't kill Trixie in our lesson, and don't kill her after our lesson is done and when I leave... does that bother you?"

"A little," I said, and while I knew I have the capacity to go through extreme lengths to survive, I wondered if I was capable of torture. "It... it goes against how I was raised."

"Well, your adopted mother isn't here to scold you," He reminded, and I felt my mood worse for being reminded of her. "Remember, if a parent isn't there when you need them, you have no obligation to worry about how they view you - and you, Sweet Tooth should never feel bad for what you've done; it was because of circumstances. So don't worry. No one here will judge you for whatever you do. Think of it as a little vacation to indulge in any activity you want!"

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" His words honestly made it feel that way.

"And why shouldn't it? Just imagine it being that way for the rest of your life!"

I knew he was trying to sway me, and I found myself fantasizing about indulging every bad habit I learned since my time in the Griffon Empire. But then I am reminded of the filly tossed down with me, and her cries, and the cries of the children being violated and mutilated in the vision of the future he showed me.

Just hearing their screams made me want to silence them by any means necessary - by preventing that future, or by killing them before they become pleasure objects to the cult - and I found myself at peace at whichever came first.

(Of course I still cared about the children... Enough so that I wanted to put them out of their misery... Does it matter if I have something to gain from it? ...I never claimed what I did was selfless... Now that's hypocritical of you to say that since you bought that item from me... What you did was not out of love for Shining Armor, it was purely selfish... Not my fault you gouged out your eyes, I warned you of what could be seen...)

The other cultists leave the room, leaving us alone. Big Boss pulled out a rolled bundle of cloth before setting it on the desk near the table Trixie is strapped down to. He unrolled the thick cloth across it, revealing a large assortment of sterilized tools of fine craftsmanship strapped within. Chisels and hammers. Pliers and scalpels. All types of crafting tools, and I knew I would be doing more with them than their intended use.

He motioned for me to pick one up, and when I reached for the hammer, I was shocked at the polish. The quality was simply amazing, and [Observe] confirmed it for me. "I never thought I would see something so clean in a place so dirty. Where did you get these tools?"

"From the previous town, I razed to the ground," He chuckled. "If you are going to do high-quality work, you are going to need high-quality tools."

"...How long have you known?" I asked, noticing the weight and balance of the hammer. "That I would appear in that spot where the initiates found me?"

"Enough time to prepare everything that you will need," He then tapped the desk. "Now would be a good time to bring out your cup."

"Cup?" I set down the hammer on the desk and glanced at the griffon whose eyes are always closed. "I don't have or need one; dehydration doesn't affect me."

"This isn't any ordinary cup," He elaborated. "It has a cosmic nature; grand and old. It's more of a chalice, actually, and I know you have one. You make it appear on the desk."

I immediately wanted to remind him that the only things I had on me were my helmet and cleaver, but then he said that word: cosmic. He said it was something I have, and it's a chalice. I mentally pulled up the quest I completed but never claimed in the Punishment Zone.

QUEST: Embracing Gluttony
You have indulged in the sin of gluttony, consuming an unnecessary excess, but now it is time to push it to the limits; may they be knowledge, stats, or skills! Exploit your temporary immortality in the Punishment Zone before confronting the boss! This quest is optional, and so the rewards you will receive are based on what you've accomplished!
-Level up a skill high enough to naturally evolve. (COMPLETED)
-Increase all stats to a minimum of 20 without using stat points. (COMPLETED)
-Level 5 skills above level 30. (COMPLETED)
-Read a minimum of 10 monoliths. (COMPLETED)
-Learn at least 10 rituals. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 50 times. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 100 times. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 200 times. (COMPLETED)
-Die at least 400 times. (FAILED)
-Evolve 10 skills. (FAILED)
-Increase all stats to be a minimum of 50. (FAILED)
-Read 30 monoliths (FAILED)
-Gain 2 perks related to each stat. (FAILED)

REWARDS:
-Skill: Solar Matrix.
-Perk: Magic Vampirism.
-Item: Chalice of the Cosmos.
-Item: Human knowledge fragment(x4).

Do you wish to receive the rewards now?
[YES/NO]

I tapped YES.

There was a brief flash of light before it died down to reveal two notifications about my newly-acquired perk and skill. I briefly ignored them - surprised I could push them to the side without dismissing it - and focused on the four white shards and an otherworldly chalice that appeared on the desk near the crafting tools. Yet it made me uncomfortable just being near the thing.

Chalice of the Cosmos [Mythical]
A large, blighted green goblet that seems to have the unsettling texture of bones rather than pristine metal. Dark, purple fog rises out from the endless blood contained within; bloating and deflating, taking on the horrifying shapes of leering skulls.

This chalice has existed before the first primal evils roamed the world. This item was granted to those who are beloved by the Moon Presence in a form of inverted worship, for She worships the mortals below, instead of the lesser creatures praying to Her above. The fog that pours out and forms the leering skulls represents the addictive pleasure, and doom, this chalice brings.

ABILITIES:

The chalice will never run out of blood.

Heals any physical wounds and illnesses proportionate to the amount of blood consumed.

This item is bound to Sweet Tooth.

Can be used to enter the Labyrinth.

Causes {Blood Addiction}; a status effect to match the withdrawal symptoms due to the blood causing extreme euphoria, thus making it highly addictive.

Consuming too much will attract the Amygdala.

Can cause mutations similar to the Beast if the blood isn't properly purified.

I didn't know what I was expecting, but the fact that I had a disturbing-looking chalice containing an infinite amount of super-healing blood wasn't it. While it stunned me that I have a powerful healing tool in my possession, everything - from the chalice's appearance, the dark purple fog of leering skulls, or the neverending supply of blood - made me hesitant to even use it.

It even mentions something called the 'Beast' and the 'Amygdala'. I don't know anything about the former, but I definitely know of the latter; the monoliths in the Punishment Zone taught me more than I wanted to know, and even then my knowledge of the Amygdala is fragmented and incomplete. Only [Gamer's Mind] prevented me from freaking out, yet those less fortunate would prefer suicide rather than going outside with the indescribably minuscule possibility of confronting a terrifying and imperceptible creature.

"...I'm going to be using this chalice on Trixie, aren't I?"

"How else are you going to learn from your mistakes?" Big Boss chuckled. "The hard part when teaching torture is that sculpting flesh and breaking bones causes damage that simply cannot be healed. Sure, they can be patched up to a certain degree, but you can only make so many mistakes before you have to get another body to practice on. Now it can be like painting; if you make a mistake, just paint the whole thing white and start over. Now grab the tools, we're going to begin."

And so I did. Given how big the table is, and how small Trixie is, there was plenty of room to place the tools down along with the chalice. "So what now?"

"When interrogating the individual, you must establish control - to prove that you are the one in charge and have all the power," Big Boss explained before tapping the unconscious unicorn in the horn. "For a unicorn, their horn is the usual preference since it's directly growing out of their head - and it's extremely sensitive - but once you shatter it, you lose your only opportunity to cause any direct, extreme pain. Maintaining the horn's durability while causing maximum pain requires a delicate grip on tools. So for now, you are going to do what I said before: establishing control and proving you have all the power as you wake her up."

"And how do I do that?" I asked. "By shaking her awake?"

Big Boss pointed to the pliers. "By rippling one of her teeth out."

Author's Note

Sorry for the late upload, I've been busy in real life, and I was also reading other fics on this site. Once I started getting into one genre, I sought out more. I've also been joining groups, posting on forums, asking questions, and feedback; it's nice getting another person's perspective.

In between reading fics, and figuring out certain functions in this site, I've been planning out how I want this story to go. I've been getting back into the whole Equestria Girls thing, and I even have a fic planned for it - gamer themed of course - but that's all it is: an idea, with barely fleshed out concepts and scenes.

And let me say thank you for all the support on this fic, even though I hadn't updated it in a while. :twilightsmile: (I figured out how to make an emoji)

Chapter 7: A New Purpose

In the past

Time, as it was in the Punishment Zone, had passed without me realizing it. Trixie's body was bruised. Her mouth leaked blood from the several teeth I removed and placed into a jar on my desk. Her hands were covered in numerous cuts and slashes.

"No...!" Trixie begged as I slowly bent one of her bleeding fingers in a way it's not supposed to. Little by little. The strain building. Her body trembling. The fear in her eyes of what's to come. "No, please!"

I saw desperation and tears before me, the unicorn strapped down onto the table made me feel pity for the first in a long time, and I hesitated and was about to let her fingers go.

Big Boss slapped that feeling out of me by striking the back of my head.

[Physical Resistance] has leveled up!

"Remember, Sweet Tooth," Big Boss said by my side, grabbing and straightening me before I fell. "Take control."

This is how my lesson went. I would follow the griffon's instructions as best as I could. His praise was that of a proud father watching his young continuing his legacy. It didn't stop him from using physical force as a means to correct me; hesitation or thoughts of mercy were relentlessly beaten out of me. While my physical body didn't show signs of trauma, my HP would be frighteningly low. He knew how much to hit me so it wouldn't kill me, but enough so that I wouldn't risk my health.

He wanted any softness, any mercy or hesitation when completing a task, gone. He was content to beat it out of me if that's what it took. He may be aware of my power, but he doesn't know the specifics - perhaps he thinks that [Gamer's Body] just numbs and reinforces my body. I didn't want to risk dying because he misunderstood my abilities - with my HP is low as it is - and I certainly wasn't going to give him any personal information either.

I had to make sure he didn't do anything extreme against me. Obedience was demanded in these sadistic lessons, but he didn't try too hard to motivate me though.

It was because of my old urges.

All he had to do was tempt me of the opportunity to gain more knowledge. When I accepted, I discovered that when someone with greater knowledge of a subject is teaching me, I get an {Apprenticeship} buff that increases the progression of any skills related to what I learn from my teacher. In this case, it was the [Torture] skill I had received since the beginning of this sadistic lesson.

However, now I am aware of my skills being able to evolve to greater forms after maxing them out. Providing a powerful form of it, the skill description gave extra lore in its origins, and it only made the hunger pangs surge to greater extremes. I wanted to know what my [Torture] skill will evolve into.

It only made me eager to work harder under Big Boss.

I looked directly into Trixie's eyes, her breath quick and panicked. "If you blink," I repositioned my grip on her hand. "I'm going to repeat it."

"Re-" Trixie swallowed, fear mixed with confusion. "Repeat what...?"

I grabbed one of her fingers. "This."

I jerked my hand forward, making Trixie's finger bend back with a sickening crack. She thrashed on the table, wailing and sobbing in pain that made her previous cries quiet by comparison.

I would watch as her sobs died down, and in a sick and twisted way, I couldn't help but compare her to the filly in the corpse pit - how she was suffering so much that even when her voice gave out, she wouldn't stop screaming.

Until she became silent by my blade.

Perhaps Trixie will too.

Big Boss nodded with approval. "She blinked," His grin wide as his sadism. "If you don't keep your promises, it will undermine your frightening image; they won't take you seriously."

I started to break Trixie's bleeding fingers on her hands. One by one, in a sloppy and inexperienced fashion, her cries were full of life and agony - spiking in volume with each finger I break. But it was nowhere near as horrifying compared to what I've experienced, and the dying screams of a filly I ate were far more soul-chilling than Trixie's.

Disturbingly, it made me happy knowing I've been through worse, and it makes lesser evils like this much easier to do. I only stopped because I ran out of fingers to break; Trixie wasn't strong enough to endure it, unlike Zecora who lasted a while before succumbing to the pain.

"Good," Big Boss inspected my work, his sharp talons brushing against the many cuts I made on Trixie's left hand, adding a few more shallow wounds while aggravating the others. Trixie thrashed from the agony, but she bleeds all the same. "Now do you understand the methods?"

"To cause as much pain as possible in the shortest amount of time," I answered, and received a nod in return. "I made the cuts all across her hands, so when I grab them to break her fingers, I stimulate them to cause more pain..." Then the words died out as Trixie's cries became loud - sobbing and whimpering as if she was right next to my ear. It reminded me of the filly I ate, and how I wanted her to be quiet. "...I think I could have done more."

"What else could you have done before you broke her fingers?" The griffon asked me, snapping me out of my musings. "And do be creative, you aren't being penalized, this is merely hypothetical."

There is a part of me that hesitated to answer. I am fully aware that with my bad habits of craving knowledge, I would ponder and think and elaborate before I am satisfied; I would be trapping myself in this, engulfed in this sadistic topic, and won't stop thinking about it until I know it all. I am well aware.

But it didn't stop me from answering when I saw the slightest hint of Big Boss preparing to hit me again. "I could have burned her hand so severe that a mere breath on Trixie's skin would have been agonizing," I quickly answered. "It would have made the cuts I inflicted on her a dozen times worse before breaking her fingers."

Big Boss gave me a smile of approval. "If you also coated your palms in an irritating substance and then broke her fingers, it would rub and seep into her cuts, and making it so much worse!" He laughed before turning to look down at Trixie, his eyes still closed, his face mere inches away from her own; her eyes were closed, growing in tears and unbearable pain. "Can you imagine that, Trixie? Having salt rubbed into your cuts as your flesh is gripped in a vice, messaging the pain into our hand - the mere friction making everything worse before a devastating climax of broken fingers?"

All Trixie could do is whimper and cry, she tried to say something, but neither of us heard what she said, and the possible scenario he proposed only made it worse.

The smell of urine on the table became noticeable.

"You see?" He turned looked at me. "Using their fears against them can get results, even better than the actual physical methods. It works best when they're vulnerable, otherwise, they'll think you're bluffing and won't take you seriously."

He focused on the unicorn again. "So Trixie... now that I have your undivided attention, you need to tell me something," The griffon's voice was hard as metal, smiling while his eyes are closed. "I know Zecora is up to something, and it involves the other labor slaves. I also know that you are aware of what she is doing-" His tone became imposing and charismatic. "So you tell me what the zebra is doing, and I will stop hurting you."

"R-Really?" She stuttered, she opened her eyes; puffy and red from her crying. "Y-You will stop h-hurting Trixie-?"

She tensed when he gripped her head. "It's a yes-or-no question," He reminded firmly, squeezing her enough that his sharp talons caused blood to trickle out, making the unicorn whimper. "If that's too hard for your dumb mind to grasp, then I guess I could do this the hard way by gouging out one of your eyes-!"

"No!" She cried out, nodding desperately - best as she could with her bleeding head in a lethal grip. "Trixie will talk! Please! Don't hurt her!" It still weirded me out how she would always refer to herself like that. Of all the short time I've known her, she has never used the word 'I' in any sentence. "Trixie knows what Zecora is doing!"

Big Boss tightens his grip on her head, making her grimace. "Then what is Zecora planning to do?"

"She..." Trixie began, and the air was still as she tried to speak clearly through the pain. "She has been practicing her shaman arts; to make potions and totems!"

"Is that why the herbal supplies I've been building up for the past months have been dwindling?"

"Trixie had nothing to do with it! It was all Zecora's fault!" She cried out desperately, doing anything to turn Big Boss' hostility away from her - or rather, direct it to anyone but her. "Trixie never used anything Zecora offered, unlike the others!"

There was something in that sentence that felt wrong, but I couldn't focus on it as Big Boss continued his interrogation.

"...Others?" His voice was curious and very dangerous. I think Trixie sensed it too, and easily - and all too willing - told the griffon everything; listing off everyone who received medical aid from Zecora, who risked her safety to help the other labor slaves from recovering from the cult's cruelty.

"Well," He straightened up, releasing his grip on the unicorn. "That explains why my herbal supplies have been decreasing, and why the other labor slaves have been more resilient as of late." He turned to me. "Always interrogate the selfish ones, Sweet Tooth - they'll do anything to save themselves, even if it means damning others in their place."

"Is that why you picked Trixie?" I asked. "To give a living example of the lesson?"

"Of course," He said. "This is how you do a proper interrogation; if you promise to hurt them, you follow through - and if you make a deal with them in exchange, you better fulfill your end of the deal. That way, your reputation will have a solid foundation - of course, this only applies if you're planning on sparing the individual you were interrogating."

"So you're not going to kill Trixie?" I'd thought he would snap her neck.

"She has her uses, just like you." He said, but there was a lingering threat in his tone. "As long as someone has value to the Daoloth's Acoytles, I see no reason why I should dispose of them... but even my generosity has limits, and after hearing what Zecora has done, she is cutting it close as of late."

"So you weren't aware of what Zecora was doing?" I couldn't keep the surprise out of my voice. "If you can see into the future, and know everything was going to happen the way it is, then you should have already knew about Zecora stealing from you."

"What Daoloth blesses me with is a mere fraction of the true gift she bestows," He said, once more giving praise to his god. "Even so, despite the power of the accurate ability to see into the past and future, is limited; for only in rare instances can the feeble minds of mortals can endure such tiny fragments of revelation."

"So there is a limit..." It honestly gave me hope that he has a weakness, something I could exploit if needed. "There is only so much of the future you can see at a single time."

"I do need some sort of bais or direction to see into someone's future," He admitted, but the way he said it was full of confidence, rather than a reluctant confession. "But to switch between priorities of what to do and what I can see only lasts for a mere moment; once I get what I need, and plan, I can focus on more pressing matters - like Zecora using my herbs to brew medicine for the other labor slaves, and undermining my recruitment process."

I admit, there was a hint of worry within me for Zecora, but I had my focus on something else. "Why expose a vulnerability that might end up killing you?"

"Oh you could kill me," He corrected, much to my surprise. "But the odds of you succeeding will be very slim, and you won't win without being gravely injured - I've been raised in the Griffon Empire after all - and it will make it so easy for the others waiting outside to come in here and snap your neck."

"...So I even if I succeed, I wouldn't survive in the end..." I said, and there was bitterness in my tone before I just accepted it and moved on. Still, I pondered something and asked, "You took over the cult after killing your predecessor, and I'm going to take an educated guess that someone else will do that too if you were to die?"

"Of course," He nodded. "A single death will not halt progress, Sweet Tooth, only fools think that way: you have to think of the long-term as well."

"The only 'long-term' I see is that my success ends up being so detrimental that I would lose in the end."

"It's called a pyrrhic victory," Big Boss elaborated, effortlessly playing the role of a teacher. "Sure, I would be killed, but the Daoloth's Acolytes will survive, Sire's Hollow will still be raided, and you would be dead. Tell me, does that seem worth it?"

My silence was a good enough answer for him. "I'll be back later to check up on your work - make sure you don't kill Trixie, she still has her uses... like snitching on her fellow slaves."

"...Zecra probably had a reason." Given how kind and open Zecora is, and from what I learned using [Observe] on her, I know she wouldn't be using that hidden stash for herself. "I mean, isn't it good that she's taking care of them-?"

I doubled over when Big Boss punched me in the stomach.

[Physical Resistance] has leveled up!

"Don't do that," Big Boss interrupted, disapproval in his tone. He crouched down to speak directly to me. "See, this is what happens when you are raised by Equestrians - making excuses for acts of kindness where it only makes things worse for yourself in the end."

He hauled me up to my feet, making me face Trixie as he stood behind me. "I used to treat Trixie well, you know," He revealed, and my body twitched from the surprise. There was information [Observe] didn't show me. "As long as she did what I told her, she would be given special treatment - just like you. Do you know why she's on the table, and not you? She forgot an important rule."

Big Boss spun me around and made me face him directly as he - with his eyes still closed - looked down at me. "To know your place." He said with firm conviction. "We all have a part to play. I, like you, was lucky enough to have our lives influenced by Daoloth. So are you going to throw away the advantages you have here, a blessing by the Render of Veils, simply because a zebra introduced herself to you?"

It felt like I was being scolded by a parent, and the humiliation made it worse; reminding me of my life before I was thrown into the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire, how I was raised on the notion of kindness and compassion being its reward and strength to forge a bond. Yet here I am, in a camp of cultists where cruelty is common, and I willingly just defended Zecora's actions. And for what? A punch in the stomach because now Big Boss is being skeptical about my priorities and loyalty.

Am I going to give up my advantageous position - a sheltered tent with personal crafting stations, with opportunities to learn and create - all because one zebra invited me to a pathetic fire that ended up getting her fingers broken? Why did I open my mouth earlier to defend Zecora's actions, when she would clearly be aware of the consequences for stealing from these fanatics?

"What I said was stupid," I said with conviction. I was done balancing my thoughts, juggling my decisions, and constantly pondering the outcomes. I felt humiliation for being alive after all that I went through to get back to Equestria, and I felt a burning hatred for those who stood as an obstacle to my freedom. Zecora is now one of them. "I don't have the luxury to worry about others; my life has always come first, and I am not going to let a zebra I just met get in the way of that. If something good can come from this that benefits me, then I don't care about what happens to anyone else."

There was a tense silence before he nodded in approval. "...It's a good thing you don't lie. So remember this, Sweet Tooth," He then made his way to the tent's exit. "Compassion will only hurt you."

"...So what do I do with Trixie?"

"Whatever she needs to be, as long as you don't kill her," He reminded. "Remember, just ask for any materials you need, and we will provide what we can. I'll stop by occasionally, so unless I give you a specific task to accomplish, and if it helps the Daoloth's Acolytes, you can make whatever you want. Just remember to use those shards you have on the table, and then we can eventually move on to the next lesson... after I deal with Zecora and those she helped; I saved those supplies for your lessons."

Big Boss left the tent, and a new notification greeted me.

Your teacher has ended the lesson! {Apprenticeship} buff is no longer active! Bonus XP to certain skills have been calculated!

[Torture] has reached max level! This skill cannot evolve until you have the Sub-Class: Corporate Espionage!

The irony was not lost on me when I read that; how eager I was to see what the skill would evolve into, only to be denied afterward. I should be feeling something in response - perhaps a self-reflecting on the dangers of my vices - but I only felt the dissatisfaction of being denied. The hunger got worse.

But I had another source to satiate me.

I went to sit down at my desk. Four white shards laid upon it, near the Chalice of the Cosmos where I left it. I picked up one of the shards before using [Observe] on it.

Human Knowledge Fragment [???]
A white shard of physical knowledge.

This shard carries a tiny legacy of the human race, a mockingly small amount compared to what they have discovered and accomplished.

ABILITIES:

A one-time use item that is absorbed into the user.

Grants a random boon of knowledge when used.

Do you wish to use it?
[YES/NO]

The hunger returned. A twisted, gluttonous knot in my being grew monstrous as I thought about the implications of what I held in my hand. From that short description, I am holding information in physical form that originated from an unheard species, and this shard is merely a crumb compared to the vast collection. It's times like this that I wished I had the resolve to finish what I had started in the Punishment Zone.

I tapped YES.

You have gained the perk: Gunsmithing!

In the future

"Gunsmithing?" Cadence wasn't familiar with the word, but she only asked after a few minutes; trying to hold back her nausea of what I had done to Trixie. She recovered quickly, and I thought she was building up a tolerance; now I realize she was trying to focus on something else. "That's the name of your new perk?"

"It just represents that I know about making a gun," I answered, but I know she didn't know what that is. "Just like when I used the rest of the shards to receive other the perks; Metallurgy, Chemistry, and Machinery. It didn't provide me with any specific bonuses - those were separate skills I had gotten when I received my Class and Sub-Classes. I just didn't have time to read or use them. Whatever the human race was, their knowledge was beyond what the world uses now." Although the Minotaur Clans were still ahead of everyone else on a technological level.

"But you are a human, right?"

"Yes, Cadence, I am a human," I reminded. "Although until I unlocked my power and saw my profile, I didn't know what I was called." My adopted mother thought I was deformed - a freakish thing that should be pitied. "And until I used those Knowledge Fragments, I had no context to what a human is capable of."

"That certainly would narrow down the rumors about you," Cadence said. I doubt it since I always cover my body when I can. "So do all humans have the same power as you, or...?"

"I didn't have time to ponder my existence, I was too busy being exploited by a cult," I said. That's a story for another time. "Big Boss didn't leave me to figure the basics of crafting on my own though, he left some blueprints and instructions in the desk's drawers for various weapons and armors. They're more of a base template that I could modify for my creative use."

"Like using Trixie for your ends! How could you do that to her?"

"The same reason Trixie used Zecora for her own ends: we didn't want to die," I said. "In the end, Big Boss had taught me so much. Lessons that I value to this day."

"He was constantly hitting you! How could you praise him for that?"

"I'm not claiming him to be good, he was crazy," I would never forgive him for what he put me through. "But he did have a point. Why should I purposely put myself in danger to help someone I barely know?"

"There's nothing wrong with being compassionate!"

"Not if it earns you the ire of someone who can kill you," I argued. "Just because you have good intentions, that doesn't mean your actions will be good as well - you know, like how you brainwashed two ponies who were arguing with each other to fall in love against their will?"

And with that, any ferocity Cadence had to argue against me died out. Replaced with shame, her confidence shaking - collapsing harder than a demolished building.

"You see, this is why I wanted to talk to Celestia," I scoffed. "You judge and condemn me for doing what I do to survive in impossible circumstances - yet you easily forget that I didn't want to be there. I didn't want to be in the Punishment Zone, dying brutally hundreds of times and unable to die. I didn't want to be with the Daoloth's Acolytes and be used to make the cult stronger. I just wanted to be away from the conflict, yet I was always dragged into it."

"...You purposely let yourself die in the Punishment Zone," Cadence tried to argue, trying so hard to find some solid ground to verbally stand against me. "And you willingly helped Big Boss!"

"So I could survive," I reminded, although I knew it wouldn't stop her from trying to debate against me; I refuse to let her have any kind of victory over me. "If I didn't learn how to benefit from every problem crashing into my life, I wouldn't have lived long enough to enjoy my freedom."

"There is more to living than just surviving."

"Yet to live, you need to survive," I easily countered, but it brought me no satisfaction. This isn't the first time I had to deal with naive ideas and beliefs. "That's a truth every prisoner in that cult had to learn - Trixie just learned it earlier than everyone else. Yet she taught me what to do if I ever met someone who was just as desperate as me to survive no matter the cost."

"To work together and thrive?" She is so foolishly optimistic.

"Who to kill on the spot."

In the past

(Sweet Tooth)
Level: 10
Species: Human
Class: Merchant.
Sub-Class(es): Gambler, Abyssal Craftsmen.
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XP: 8,450/10,000
==========
HP: 200/200 (-50%) = 100/100
MP: 1000/1000
==========
STR: 21
DEX: 24
AGI: 27
CON: 20
INT: 100
WIS: 26
LUK: 20
==========
Perks: Forbidden Knowledge, Language of the Old Gods, Tortured Mind over Matter, Primal Nightmare, Medium Magic Affinity, Magic Vampirism, Gunsmithing, Chemistry, Metallurgy, Machinery.
==========
Stat Points: 50

I looked away from my profile when the last crate was set down near the forge. Like Big Boss promised, anything I requested was brought to me, and I just explored and looked at the list of skills I had received when I waited for them to finish. As the last cultist left the tent, piling crates where there was space, I tapped on one of my Sub-Classes.

Abyssal Craftsmen
The lines between insanity and creativity become blurred as unorthodox methods to harvest abnormal ingredients are used to create wonders and nightmares; normal crafting processes and techniques are more convenient to allow more dedication to the item.

Would you like to begin the crafting session?
[YES/NO]

I tapped YES as I opened a crate and pulled out a bar of iron. I wanted to see how convienent my new set of skills I had acquired is.

Crafting session is now taking place! [Crafting Assistance] is now activated!

Crafting Assistance Level 1:
Every step is crucial when forging an item; messing up on any step - even in the slightest mishap - can ruin the item, especially if it's complicated and made with exotic materials.

Combat abilities are disabled.

Physical prowess when crafting is increased by 10%.

XP will be rewarded in proportion to the quality and quantity of items created.

Information is received to aid you when crafting.

Information depends on the material being used.

More information is revealed with skill level and WIS.

"[Smelt]," I said, watching as the ingot in my hand glowed and soften.

Smelt Level 1:
Have the ability of a mobile furnace! Use magic to heat the metal to the desired temperature while protecting yourself from its heat.

MP cost is proportional to skill level and the material.

You will not receive any damage from any material heated with this skill.

You can only use this skill on metallic materials.

I couldn't use it in combat, nor as a survival skill since it wouldn't work on wood. It would have been too easy to have touch-based fire skills to help me escape if I had to fight my way out, but I've learned to accept the disappointment created from my hope.

I placed the heated metal on the anvil before I started hammering at it. I didn't need to wear special leather gloves or tongs, and I didn't have to use coal to heat the forge. I knew how hot the ingot is, where to strike with my hammer, and how to get the desired shape.

Sparks flew as I struck the metal, [Crafting Assistance] letting me know when to reuse [Smelt] to maintain the temperature, and when to stop before I heated it as hot as I could before using my eldritch cleaver to chop the heated material into multiple separate lumps. Heating it too hot into a liquid state would only ruin the process, and I wanted the divided proportions to be as accurate as possible.

But that didn't stop me from using [Smelt] to soften one of the lumps I molded in my bare hands. It felt like I was playing with wet clay. Pinching and pulling in my hands until I got the desired triangular shape with small hooks coming out from its sides. Normally, I would have had to cool it a bit before using a chisel to bend out and hammer out the serrated edge.

I placed the heated shape on the anvil again, before hammering it to properly temper and flatten it, only to heat it again when I wanted to fix something; getting the curling protrusions to a desired curve and thinness was a challenge on its own. When [Crafting Assistance] told me when to stop, I gently picked it up, holding it in the palm of my left hand before walking over to Trixie.

The unicorn instantly panicked when she saw the hot piece of craftsmanship in my hand, repeatedly screaming over and over again. Thrashing on the table despite her broken fingers, sobbing uncontrollably while her mind feared what I am going to do.

She wasn't wrong. "I need a refill." Using all those skills drained my MP. I reached out with my right hand and placed it on her horn.

Perk, Magic Vampirism, is now active!

This is my reward for doing what I did in the Punishment Zone. The theme of gluttony carried over to this perk, allowing me to absorb magic with physical contact - but it would be accurate to say I'm actually digesting it. But even as it refilled my MP, it was slow.

It only made the taste more addictive.

I wanted more - even as I desired it, the flow remained the same. The texture of magic entering my body was so smooth and alive as if I had a new sense of taste that was exposed to something so euphoric. I only craved it more, and my irritation grew as I couldn't receive it faster. I was tempted to crack open Trixie's skull like an egg, licking the magical yolk that would ooze out-!

[Gamer's Mind] is now activated!

However, Big Boss wouldn't like that - with how ravenous I can be, I don't think Trixie would survive. I let go of her horn and watched as she gasped for air, shuddering as her now-bloodshot stopped trying to roll into the back of her head. I didn't even notice she was suffering to fill my cravings.

Still holding the hot piece of metal in my left hand, I used [Quench] to cool it down in my hands, and at the desired pace that wouldn't ruin it. I now held an arrowhead with sharp hooks at the sides, bending away from the tip of the arrow.

"You..." Trixie stuttered, her body trembling in pain. "You can't keep doing this to Trixie! Big Boss said to you would stop hurting Trixie if she told him everything!"

"That's not what he said," I turned to look at her, desperation in her eyes. "Big Boss said that he would stop hurting you, while I on the other hand still can as long as I don't kill you. So you are going to stay on this table, shut up, and let me work in peace until I am done with you, Trixie."

There was that look she gave me - one of disbelief, shock, and horror; equally mixed like nothing I've ever seen before.

It stirred something in me, as I felt the corners of my mouth twitch upward into the remnants of a smile.

Recalling Big Boss' lessons of unicorn anatomy, and how they will have a passive flow of magic flowing through the protrusion, I quickly gripped her horn as my perk activated again when she opened her mouth again, but the only thing coming out of her mouth was choked spasms and spit. I focused on the arrowhead in my other hand. "[Sharpen]."

Grind Level 1:
A sharp weapon is only goods for its ability to cut, slash, and pierce. This skill allows you to focus your MP on filing out any uneven areas of material to improve balance, appearance, and sharpness.

Lowers the weapon's durability in minuscule amounts to smooth and sharpen certain areas that cannot be reached with a grindstone, or are too complicated and delicate for a whetstone.

Speed and MP cost of this skill are determined by skill level, INT, and DEX.

I watched with child-like amusement looking at the metal shaving that fell off, bits and lengths of metal gathering in my palm before I stopped using the skill. I knew it would only go faster as my skills leveled up, but I would be limited by MP regeneration - and I don't plan on using my stat points either.

Especially when I have a source of magic strapped to a table.

Trixie's strangled gasps snapped me out of my amusement. "Don't worry," I let go of her horn, walking over to a different, larger crate, containing the most important part of this crafting process. "I'm not going to let you die."

"W-Why..." Trixie wheezed out. "Why are you doing this to Trixie?"

"To prove a point - which you will understand very soon." The awful stench immediately flooded the tent when I opened the crate.

Revealing it to be full of rotting severed heads.

Author's Note

There's one thing I hate in HIE stories, is that the human protagonist can be very stupid sometimes - doing something that has obvious consequences, for the sake of someone who was simply nice to them. I'm not going to list any specific stories, but after posting my questions on various forums, I found that I'm not the only one who has this issue.

It's another reason I like this site; the writing community is amazingly helpful. It's actually why this chapter took so long, I was having conflicted feelings on certain parts I planned for my story and I had asked for advice. The feedback was amazing, and I had to make improvements and omissions.

Let me know what you think in the reviews.