Lost All Humanity

Axel barely registered the system's notification as instinct consumed him. His movements turned wild, each strike more erratic yet devastatingly precise. Shockwaves rippled outward with every blow he traded with the boss monster, carving jagged scars into the ground.

"He's lost it!" Rael muttered under his breath, watching the savage spectacle unfold.

Axel wasn't just fighting, he was losing himself. From the start, Rael had sensed the internal battle Axel waged, struggling to keep his monstrous instincts in check. Abilities that transformed people into monsters weren't unheard of; Rael had seen others with similar powers before. But Axel's case was different.

The system had outright identified him as a monster! Rael's mind churned over the implications.

'How could the system make a mistake?'

He knew what he saw. Undoubtedly, Axel was human, but the fact remained: the system, infallible and absolute, had declared otherwise. This was at the moment when Axel was about to claw his eyes out.

'Is it his Ability?' Rael wondered. 'What kind of power could deceive even the system?'

His musings were interrupted by the escalating ferocity of the battle. Axel and the boss monster were locked in a brutal dance, neither yielding an inch. Rael couldn't just stand by any longer. His gaze flicked to the side, landing on the crumpled figure of the false ranker sprawled against the ground.

The man's hood had slipped back, revealing his face—pale, sweat-slicked, and marked by exhaustion. The boss monster's draining abilities had clearly taken their toll. Despite his state, the false ranker struggled weakly, as if fighting to regain himself.

Rael acted swiftly. He cast a chain spell, watching as shimmering bindings shot forward and coiled around the false ranker. The man's struggles grew frantic, but the chains tightened, dragging him across the floor toward Rael like dead weight. He landed at Rael's feet with a thud, glaring up with venomous hatred.

Rael wasted no time. "Seal."

The binding spell surged through the chains, locking the false ranker in place. His limbs went rigid, his body stiff like stone. Yet his hateful glare remained, burning with defiance.

"What's your motive for all this?" Rael demanded, his voice cold and sharp.

The false ranker scoffed, a sinister laugh bubbling from his throat. "Go fuck yourself," he spat, his words dripping with a mocking edge.

Rael's smile was sharper than any blade, a twisted expression of barely contained fury. "Oh, I will," he replied coolly. "But not before I return the favor—to you, and of course, that boss monster."

Without warning, Rael's fist snapped forward, colliding with the false ranker's face in a sickening crunch. The man groaned, blood trickling from his nose, but the punch wasn't just born of anger. It was catharsis.

Rael's body trembled as he stood over the false ranker. Memories of the massacre flashed through his mind. He had been forced to play dead while this man butchered the other participants, mutilating their bodies with chilling precision. The nightmare of that moment lingered, it was a trauma that he might never be able to fully erase.

As Rael's fist collided with the false ranker's face once more, he felt an unsettling sense of satisfaction, a visceral pleasure that almost begged for more. His knuckles cracked against bone, the sharp sound echoed by the false ranker's agonized yelps. Blood spattered with each blow, broken teeth flying as the man's face turned into a grotesque, misshapen mess. Rael didn't stop until his breathing grew heavy, his fist aching from the relentless pounding.

"Didn't you hear me?" Rael growled, grabbing the false ranker by what remained of his collar. "I said, what is your motive?"

Through the blood and swelling, the false ranker's expression twisted into something unhinged. A laugh, guttural and deranged, bubbled from his throat, his broken face contorting into a nightmarish grin.

Rael clicked his tongue in frustration. 'This bastard won't talk easily.'

He released his grip, letting the man slump to the ground. Interrogation could wait, there were bigger threats to handle. Straightening, Rael turned his attention back to the battlefield.

Axel and the boss monster were still locked in combat, the clash between them growing fiercer by the second. In the short time Rael had been distracted, their fight had escalated into a whirlwind of violence.

Axel's monstrous instincts had all but consumed him. His movements were wild and erratic, driven more by primal rage than strategy. The Mutated Twin-Horned Alpha, a D-rank boss monster in name only, was far from ordinary. Its raw strength, terrifying speed, and monstrous abilities were enough to rival even Axel's enhanced stat.

The beast had landed several devastating blows, leaving Axel battered and bleeding, but Axel had returned the favor with equal brutality. The floor was littered with deep gouges from claws and horns, the air thick with the scent of blood.

Rael's eyes narrowed. He's losing control. Axel's actions weren't entirely his own anymore. His body moved with a savage autonomy, as though the feral instincts within him were fighting to take over completely.

The boss monster let out a deafening roar, its crimson claws slashing toward Axel with terrifying precision. The strikes connected, leaving glowing, jagged wounds across Axel's torso. Blood spilled freely, and Axel staggered for a brief moment before lunging back into the fray with relentless fury.

Then came the system notification, cold and clinical in its delivery:

[You have been inflicted with Reaper's Mark! Vitality draining. Stamina and magic resistance weakening.]

Reaper's Mark. That explained everything. The false ranker had been a C-rank, someone who should've stood a chance against the beast, and yet he'd been utterly overwhelmed.

The boss monster's ability was truly sinister. Axel didn't just feel his strength draining, each passing moment made the alpha's attacks even stronger, feeding off his weakening vitality. The realization sent a chill through Rael as he watched from the distance.

Gritting his teeth, Rael raised his staff and unleashed a torrent of flames mixed with gravity magic. The blazing inferno engulfed the boss monster, the heat scorching its white fur and filling the air with the acrid stench of burning flesh. Yet the beast's vitality remained undiminished.

With a furious roar, the monster surged forward, breaking free from the gravity spell in a burst of raw strength. Its crimson claws gleamed as it charged at Rael, intent on delivering a killing blow.

But Axel was faster. He intercepted the beast mid-charge, his claws locking with the alpha's in a brutal grapple. The ground beneath them cracked and buckled as their monstrous strength clashed.

Axel's crimson eyes burned with primal fury, his feral grin widening despite the toll the beast's ability was taking on him. Step by step, he pushed the monster back, his dominance clear even as his humanity slipped further away.

[Humanity Threshold: 5%]

[Warning: Monster Instincts Intensifying.]

"Hey, you're losing yourself!" Rael shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos. But Axel didn't respond. His thoughts were consumed by one thing: destroy.

The boss monster snarled and lunged again, its claws swiping at Axel's throat. With inhuman speed, Axel dodged and countered, his dark claws tearing into the monster's shoulder. Blood sprayed across the battlefield, painting the cracked floor red.

"Enough of this!" Rael roared. He slammed his staff into the ground, and chains of light erupted around the monster, wrapping tightly around its limbs. The beast howled in rage, thrashing against the restraints, but the chains managed to hold firm for a moment.

"Finish it!" Rael yelled.

Axel let out a guttural roar, his claws pulsing with a thick red aura. With blinding speed, he lunged at the immobilized boss monster, delivering a brutal slash to its neck. The alpha whimpered, its voice high-pitched and weak as blood poured from the deep gash. It trembled, struggling to stay upright, but Axel didn't stop there.

[Humanity Threshold: 0%]

[Monster Instincts Have Fully Taken Over.]

As the system notification echoed in Axel's mind, his movements became completely unrestrained, driven by primal rage. His teeth elongated into sharp fangs, and the aura surrounding him thickened to an oppressive, blood-red haze.

Axel let out a deafening bellow and moved with terrifying speed. His leg slammed into the alpha's head, driving it into the ground with a thunderous crash. The force caved the earth beneath them, dust and debris flying in all directions.

Before the beast could recover, Axel lunged again, baring his fangs and sinking them deep into the monster's neck. Blood poured in thick streams, pooling beneath the struggling creature as its movements slowed.

The system's voice chimed once more.

[You have met the requirement for evolution.]