CHIMERA

Kojo opened his eyes. Light from an unknown source was shining in his face.

"You're finally awake," he heard Saleem's voice.

He sat up and looked around. They were under a tree in the middle of a large meadow. Kojo was a little dazed but quickly got to his feet, realizing that they were in the domain of the orcs.

"You shouldn't be moving around like that. You wanna wound yourself again? Calm down. They're not gonna attack us. Not that they could. I put a disintegration field around us, so we'll be safe for now," Saleem said.

Kojo squinted in the distance and noticed a barrier around them. He sighed and sat back down.

"Thank goodness. It'd have been weird if I'd escaped death only to be violated by rabid orcs. Now that's what I'd call a tragedy. But if you were that strong, why'd you run? You probably have no experience with men and panicked when you saw them approaching you," Kojo said.

(Bold accusations coming from a kissless virgin.)

Kojo touched his regenerated left arm.

"I was gonna call you a darling, but I take it back."

(You'd be long dead without me. Praise me more.)

"Yeah, yeah," Kojo smiled.

Saleem threw a fruit that hit him in the head.

"Hey, what was that for?" Kojo said, rubbing his head.

"If you have a mouth, it means you'll be able to survive a couple more of these flying at the speed of sound," Saleem said, blushing, raising another fruit to throw.

"Hey, hey, hey, let's not be rash, let's chill," Kojo said, raising his hands.

"Anyway, you saved me from being disintegrated by whatever disintegration skill that was. Thanks," Kojo said with a smile.

Saleem's face reddened even more, and she turned her back to him.

"I didn't do anything," she said.

"Oh, c'mon, you don't have to be so modest," Kojo crawled up and said in her ear. She elbowed him, causing him to drop to his knees. He looked up into the trees and saw something looking back down. He tilted his head, and the weird animal did the same. It jumped off the branch with surprising speed and slammed into him with such force that it sent him backward. Kojo sat up and held it in front of him. It was the size of a cat. Its white fur was fluffy, and it had a bushy tail like a fox's. It had intricate golden designs on its paws and sides. It had rabbit ears and a spiral golden horn on its head and curious red eyes. The ring on Kojo's finger vibrated.

"You owe him your life, so treat him with respect," Saleem said.

"It's a he?" Kojo asked, looking under it.

"But I don't see anything."

"What are you doing?" Saleem asked in surprise.

"That's a Forbidden Beast; treat him with respect."

"Still, what is this though?"

(It's a Chimera rabbit. Not much information can be given about its existence except the fact that it was the companion of the Hero Estelle Leicester. It is the rarest of the Forbidden Beasts.)

"This thing's so high-profile, even Oracle won't give me info about it." He looked at it, and it tilted its head and purred.

"It's kinda cute though," Kojo said, starting to smirk. He hadn't finished expanding the muscles required to perform the action when the beast bit his recently regenerated arm. Kojo yelled and got to his feet, trying to shake it off. There was the sound of burning flesh. Kojo shook his arm more frantically.

(All your skills have been transferred to the new host.)

"What the hell?"

(Soul link has being established between the Host and Atari Kojo.

Processing Contract.....

Successful.

Soul link established.

The souls between the Contractor Tye and the Client Atari have been linked.

You have gained a better understanding of the Babel Archive.

You have gained clearance to access the Libra Systems Oracle.

Your skills have been enhanced.

You have gained additional skills.

Would you like to view them?)

"Not now," Kojo said, trying to pry Tye off his hand. It let go and sat there looking at him. Kojo expected his hand to be eaten away at that point, but his hand was unhurt. All that remained was a golden sigil of a half-moon on the back of his hand. Thinking back, the entire thing didn't even hurt and lasted less than a minute.

(Crybaby, you always overdramatize everything.)

Kojo looked at Tye. He picked him up and stroked him.

"I'm not sure what to make of this, but guess you and I are friends now," Kojo said. Tye chirped happily and licked his face.

"Wait, what is a Forbidden Beast anyway?" Kojo wondered.

(A Forbidden Beast is a powerful, ancient creature that has been sealed away or forbidden from existence due to its immense strength, destructive potential, or ability to defy the natural order. These beings are often the result of dark magic, corruption, or experimentation of the higher existences known as gods. They are shrouded in mystery and feared throughout the land, with many believing them to be mere myths or legends. However, those who have witnessed their power and survived long enough to tell the tale know that they are all too real, and that their existence would bring about catastrophe if they are disturbed.

Some key characteristics of a Forbidden Beast could include their immense strength and power, ability to defy the natural order or break the laws of physics, and it's not uncommon to find corruption or taint that affects the land and its inhabitants as a result of the unholy experimentation by the gods.

Some have been sealed away or imprisoned in other dimensions as a means to preserve the NexusCosmia or the central world that's the main continuity of existence.)

"This sounds like something straight out of an anime."

(You watched too much anime way back on Earth. Now you think there's some Cosmic Chronicler designing everything?)

"Sit there and play."

"Hey, I don't know if you've noticed, but there's a barrier preventing us from leaving. Good news is, it's teleported all the adventurers outside. The only way out is to face Eiden," Saleem said, leaning back on the tree and closing her eyes.

"Can't you use that form and fight him again?"

"I can't. I shouldn't be able to move right now after I used up more energy than my allocated limit. The only reason why I'm talking right now is because I drained some of your arcana."

"Okay. Wait, what?!"

"As much as I hate to admit it, but we need to work together if we wanna get out of here."

Kojo was trying to think of a witty remark when he remembered his fight with Eiden and that ability he used.

"Hey, Saleem. What was that power that Eiden used? It felt like we were in a different dimension," Kojo asked.

"World Manifest."

"Pardon?"

"World Manifestation is a rare ability that allows the user to manifest a localized, self-sustaining reality. This reality, known as a 'World,' is a miniature dimension that exists parallel to the main world.

World manifestation is made possible by the user's ability to tap into the fundamental resonance of the universe. By harmonizing their own energy with this resonance, they create a localized distortion in the fabric of reality. This distortion gives rise to a realm that is both connected to and separate from the main world.

Within the World, the user can manipulate Reality and Space-Time, create structures, and even summon entities from other dimensions. The World operates under its own unique laws, allowing the user to defy certain physical constraints and push the boundaries of what is thought possible.

However, maintaining the realm comes at a significant cost. The user must continuously channel their energy to sustain the distortion, leaving them vulnerable to exhaustion and magical backlash."

(Mekna and Keo used similar abilities during the tournament, but theirs was in an incomplete state due to their inability to separate them from the main reality, among other flaws.)

"Can I do it?"

"Oh, please. You're surprisingly good when it comes to the utilization of your arcana, but Sekai Kengen is high-level magic. Mages can devote their entire lives to trying to achieve them and don't even come remotely close. None of the mortal races have been able to manifest one in the last two thousand years," Saleem said.

"What about you?"

"I can't right now," Saleem said, looking away.

Kojo sighed.

(Since they're the manifestations and are dependent on energy, the one with the highest output wins.)

"Yeah, but Saleem's not exactly at full HP, and now that Eiden's chosen violence, I doubt he's gonna let us deploy one even if we could," Kojo said. The list of skills he'd just acquired or evolved began to engrave themselves in his psyche, Sysia calling them by name.

(The abilities you gained have been compiled into single skills, some with sub-skills. I've put them into a more understandable perspective. For a nerd, calling wind manipulation 'cloud' isn't cool.)

"Oh, just shut up and tell me my abilities already," Kojo said with a hint of embarrassment.

(Total abilities gained so far:

7th Sense (Danger sense) Passive

Extrasensory Perception. Passive

Scan (Analytical Appraisal). Neutral

Aegis Sphere (Barrier Creation) Active

Defense Bypass Passive

Leach (Energy drain). Passive/Suppressed

Mimic. Passive

Quicksilver. Neutral

Sealing Active

Info-Data (Data manipulation) Neutral

Attack Homing Passive

Spatial Compression Active

Resonance Amplification: (affects the resonance of the universe by shifting through alternate frequencies and setting the most successful one as mainstream)

Neutral

Universal Negation: [1. Negates all forms of physical, mental, or spiritual attacks. 2. Cancels out all phenomena the user perceives as unnatural]. Passive

Infinite Regeneration. Passive

Fear (You used the sub-skill called "Devourer Manifest" to give physical form to the Terror of Gaston and his men and have it consume them). Passive/Suppressed

Elemental Affinity Passive

Poison King. Active

Summoning Active

Reality Warping {As a result of possession of Caliburn}. Active

Power Modification. Neutral

Explosion Creation Active

Reactive Evolution Passive

Teleportation. Active

Aura Flow Passive

Magic Cancel (Anti Magic). Neutral

Gravitation. Active

Arcane Threads. Active

Predator (Claws and Fangs). Active

Crystalization Active

Accelerant/Foresight Neutral/Off

Hyper thought

Split Psyche (Parallel Thought). Neutral

Nullify Pain. Passive

Dimensional Pocket. Active

Mindscape Neutral

Arcana Circulation Passive

Cursed Chains Active

Power Share. Active

Solar Extinction (Modified Holy Magic - Babel Archive codex 25.). Active

Indigo (Nuclear Fusion beam.). Active

See more...>)

He saw something else that caught his attention.

(Deciphering: Babel Archive

52.2%)

He wanted to ask Sysia about it but decided to save it for after he'd cleared the tower. His abilities seemed to be extremely powerful, but he didn't have any clue as to how to use most of them. Sysia said the abilities were compiled through Power Modification, meaning he got the ability of Poison Manipulation from him copying the toxins, venoms, and poisons from all those beasts in the forest. There was also Elemental manipulation, which was from his smaller abilities such as wind blade, cloud ice spikes, flame explosion, and others. He also knew he copied Spatial Domination and, when he fought Sasha, got Anti Magic and Barrier magic from Giovanni and that random NPC who infiltrated his house.

(His name was Cyranius.)

He's dead, so it doesn't matter.

As to how he got skills like Resonance Amplification and Summoning was beyond him. Probably had to do with the Babel Archive. He remembered that there were still people stronger than himself. Sasha and the others could potentially beat him if they wanted to. Then there was that monster of an Archsaint Yukio and maybe even others.

"Yo, Saleem," he said, making up his mind.

"Hmm?" She looked at him, taking a bit out of a peach-like fruit.

"I have an idea."

(That's reckless and has a higher chance of getting you killed.)

"Which is exactly why it's so perfect against someone like Eiden," he said with a grin.