Reborn As An Evolving Monster

Chapter 361 Breaking Plates

"Every day I would be brought my meals. Every day I would eat. Three times a day...? Maybe four sometimes. Anyways! The food would come on plates, you see. I wasn't always as barbaric as I am now. That reminds me, I should probably Devour the bear before it gets cold... Meh. Probably wouldn't taste that good anyway. Died in one hit after all. Oh... Was that Aura that I used to kill him? Or was it Dark Magic? I can't really tell... We'll circle back to it later."

'Crazy... Twisted... Fuck!'

"Food time was always important inside the hospital. For the old people especially. I get it. It was kind of a highlight of the day. A highlight that would happen... Three or four times a day. Stupid, isn't it? But that's how it is when you're desperate and have nothing to cling to. Anyways, I never was into food time much. At one point I used to skip the meals. Well, I used to only eat vegetables and fruits. Cause I could pick those myself, you know? Hunting though... With that body of mine, I couldn't have done it. So I felt bad about eating stuff like meat. But then at one point... I thought fuck this. The food is here. Why do I need the ability to theoretically be able to hunt it? Ugh... It's a whole thing. Let's just leave it."

'What the fuck is he talking about?? Why... Why am I still here??'

"I remember reading something about endurance. Hunting horses but outrunning them. They can run much faster see, but they lack the endurance of Humans. Endurance. Running. That's what put Humans at the top of the food chain. Well, intelligence mostly, I suppose. Oh, I used to be Human by the way. But then I got Reborn as a Monster. But not any Monster see, I was..."

'Used to be Human? Reborn? What is he on about??'

"Reborn as an Evolving Monster."

'My internal organs... I still can't move...'

"That's pretty funny when you think about it. I didn't choose to become a Monster. But maybe I was fucked to begin with. I imagine only a fucked up soul could end up being inside a Monster's body. Makes me curious... The other Candidates... Mmm..."

Crack-

"My thoughts used to be all jumbled up. Like a bunch of insects fighting and twisting themselves to fit in. But now I can think clearly. Problem is... There are too many things I want to think about! It's nice having someone to talk to though. Really helps. Obliges me to organize my thoughts. Mmm... Oh, the plates! You really make me think of those plates."

The white-scaled Monster's gaze sent shivers down the Ex-General's spine.

"The food would be brought in on two or three plates. Funny... You should remind me of the food, not the plates. But you weren't even strong enough to get me hungry at all. That red lightning thing was pretty cool though. You couldn't use it much but... What can you do, right? Should still be a good appetizer or something. So, the plates! Mina would bring me the food, she would make me pray for a bit, whatever. Then she would leave and I would finally dig in. And I remember this feeling... More like a sensation maybe? Every time after I finished eating, I would stare at those plates. I'm not sure when it started but... Every time, I would stare at them for a while. And I would feel this urge. This urge to smash them against the ground or against the wall. Every. Single. Time. Three times a day for who knows how long. I always felt like breaking those plates. At one point it even became... Like a nagging thing. It would start annoying me. I would get pissed at the fact that I didn't break those plates. So, imagine it. I'm pissed, right? Food comes. Hello Mina. Prayer. Whatever. Eat food. Time to break the plates. And then I would think..."

Crack-

"ARGHH!!!" 

"Why break them? Why should I listen to that urge? Breaking them doesn't solve anything. It doesn't help. It doesn't change a thing. There's no real reason to break those plates. So suck it up. Don't take it out on the plates. Years passed. I grew older. That urge didn't disappear. I died. I was Reborn and... I don't think that urge has disappeared now either. I should have smashed those damn plates when I felt like it, you know? Why didn't I? Did I think that showing restraint meant that I was a better person for it? I just let things bubble up instead. If anything, I lashed out at Mom, Dad, and Mina more BECAUSE I didn't break those plates. I should've smashed them. At least once, you know? Just see how it feels. But no. Never. Don't take it out on the plates, you're a better person for it. Don't be immature, deal with the issue at hand. Ha! Just... Great. In that hospital room, letting it bubble up."

Crack-

"Next is your wrist, I guess. After that, your forearm bone. I imagine I can break it multiple times since it's a longer bone."

"..."

"Couldn't hear you."

"..."

"Speak up."

"Just... Kill me."

"Huh? Already?"

The white-scaled Monster's hand moved forward, making the Ex-General wince.

With its index finger couped around its thumb, the white-scaled Monster raised the Ex-General's chin slightly.

"Don't you want to live?"

"Live...?"

"Yeah. You can't move, but you're still alive. That's good, isn't it? Especially when you were counting on killing me right away. Just because you can't stand up or move around, doesn't mean that you should hate life, you know?"

"I... I... It hurts..."

"Yeah. I know. How much does it hurt?"

"So... Much. Too much-"

The Ex-General's head suddenly started shaking. His gaze slowly moved towards his hand.

"ARGHHHH!!!" He screamed. A dark dagger had pierced his hand.

"Come on, don't scream." The white-scaled Monster lay a hand on the old man's head, gently stroking it. "It hurts, but you're stronger for it."

The dark dagger was forcefully spun around its axis, and the old man's scream grew louder.

"Pain is weakness leaving the body. Remember that."

"KILL ME! WHY ARE YOU... WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS-"

The white-scaled Monster blocked the old man's mouth with a palm.

"It hurts that much? You want to die? Already?"

Tears were about to start going down the Ex-General's face when,

"It can't hurt that much..." The white-scaled Monster pulled the dark dagger out of the old man's hand.

The Ex-General's eyes widened, as the white-scaled Monster pierced its own hand with that very same weapon.

Mark remained silent for a bit before,

"Mm. Hurts a bit, I guess. Not that much though." The dark dagger was pulled out and,

"ARGHHH!! PLEASE JUST KILL ME!!" The old man begged as the weapon pierced his other hand.

"You're stronger for it. Don't scream. Bear it. Pain is weakness leaving the body." The white-scaled brought its bleeding hand to the old man's face. "Do you feel less weak? Do you feel stronger?"

"NO! NO, I DON'T! I JUST-"

"Yeah..."

Crack-

"Neither do I."