That Time I Reincarnated as a Stone

Chapter 20: Demon Flesh

I opened my eyes once more, and I didn’t recognize where I was. Wherever I looked, there was only darkness—absolute, hollow void.

“Wasn’t I in a cave?” My voice came out small, without echo, as if the emptiness swallowed every word.

I looked at my hands. They were human. That meant I was somewhere else. I walked aimlessly, feeling beneath my feet the chill of… ground?

“Wake up,” a faint whisper murmured. “Wake up, Frido… Wake up, wake up, move, you’re going to die, wake up, wake up, wake up…”

The voices multiplied, overlapping until they became a deafening hum. My vision splintered into dark fragments; reality dissolved like black smoke slipping through my fingers—until, suddenly, silence devoured everything.

I regained consciousness. I was back in that cave.

“Again… Here. Why haven’t I died?” I whispered, trying to sit up. Bitterly, I recalled my fight against that monster. I lifted a hand to touch my face—and collided with reality. My left eye was pulp, swollen like a rotting fruit on the verge of bursting.

I have to get out of this place, I thought as I struggled to stand, my skin feeling as though shards of glass were embedded in it. The corpse of the monster I had killed lay beside me, the bone still buried in its abdomen where I had left it. I yanked it free in a sharp pull and used it to steady myself. I couldn’t even take two steps before my knees gave out, sending me crashing back onto the freezing ground.

“This is horrible… I want to… die.”

I lay there, and my stomach began to growl—I was starving. Where was I supposed to find food? I glanced around, and my eyes locked onto the creature’s corpse.

The thought came to me: eat it. But… wouldn’t that be strange? Then again, that bastard had been chasing me to devour me. I suppose it deserves it. In the end, it’s protein… right?

I dragged myself toward it with all my strength. Maybe I had gone mad for even considering this—but I saw no other choice. The stench was unbearable, a mixture of sulfur and rotting flesh. Without thinking, I sank my claws into an open wound and tore free a strip of dark muscle. When I brought it to my mouth, the first contact exploded into bitterness, numbing my tongue. It tasted of filth, bile, and ash.

[The user is breaking a law] [Consumption of demon flesh is prohibited] [Warning: unauthorized ingestion of demonic tissue] [User is advised to desist]

“I don’t give a damn anymore—go to hell!” I roared, my mouth full, black demon ichor dripping down my chin.

I kept chewing with blind fury. The meat was tough as leather, but as I swallowed, I felt my body fill with energy.

[If continued, the user will undergo mutation] [Probability of death: 90%]

I didn’t stop. My jaw moved on instinct; my teeth tore through tendons with a strength that wasn’t mine. I ate until I was full. I don’t even want to imagine what my breath smells like now.

“I think I’m going to die,” I said with a smile, as my chest began to heave and a burning stab ignited in my stomach. “I guess this is what it meant by mutation.”

The pain escalated. The only thing I could do was scream to keep from breaking.

“AAAAAAH! GAAAAAA!”

Deafening groans, kicks, and cries tore out of me. It felt like thirty knives stabbing my abdomen at once.

“DAMN IT! DAMN IT! MAKE IT STOP!”

My bones cracked like dry branches snapping. I felt my blood boil, and the taste of rotten flesh rose back into my mouth. When I looked at my forearm, it was bent at an impossible angle. Suddenly, my chest split open with a wet tear, and a black liquid began to pour from the wound.

All I could do was watch as my body turned into an aberration—until the pain overcame me and I fell unconscious.

“What… happened… to you… dear? Are you… alright?” Voices seeped into my darkness. “He’s an idiot. It was a bad idea to bring him into this world.”

I woke with a gasp, inhaling a lungful of air that burned. My chest rose and fell—but the torment was gone. I felt light, almost ethereal, and my vision was sharper than ever.

“What the hell happened to me?” I whispered, lowering my gaze to my arms. I moved them with an agility I didn’t recognize. My Liva hands were different now—larger, with claws extending like obsidian blades.

I stood up. My height seemed the same, but my legs thrummed with contained power. In the distance, a faint glow filtered through cracks in the ceiling. I ran toward the light, and the ground seemed to vanish beneath my feet from the sheer speed. When I reached the glow, I noticed my fur had changed—it was now a deep purple so dark it seemed to swallow the light.

[The user has mutated into a Demonic Liva]

[Enhanced vision] [Enhanced smell] [Enhanced speed] [Enhanced strength] [Enhanced jumping ability]

[Skill acquired: Coup de Grâce — delivers a critical strike when finishing an enemy]

“So… I actually mutated. Looks like all the luck I’ve had in my life went into this moment. Fine by me—it’ll make it easier to complete the mission of killing the leviathan. Now… how do I get out of here? I also need to find out what happened to my Liva parents. Maybe I’ll find answers here.”

With that, I set out to explore this cursed place—something akin to hell itself. With my new abilities, it should be a piece of cake.

At least… I hope so…

… "