Becoming a Monster

Chapter 446: Chapter 446: Progress Measured in Inches

Noah’s first step of training had ended with good results. From just one small session, he could see that they were on the right track.

The improvements weren’t dramatic, but they were there. And that alone was enough progress for him to be satisfied.

Still, he could tell that his situation was special compared to the others. The way he processed mana, the way he adjusted after simply observing the drake’s demonstration, none of them could replicate it the same way.

It wasn’t that they lacked intelligence. It wasn’t that they lacked discipline. It was something simpler, yet deeper.

Spirit.

Noah’s spirit was unusually dense. When he decided on something, his mind, body, and soul aligned behind that intent with barely any friction. There was no hesitation between thought and execution. No internal resistance when he forced a correction.

His mind conceived the picture; his spirit painted it, and his body followed, despite the existence of an original painting.

For others, improvement required repetition until their bodies understood what their minds already knew.

Or, for those like Fenrir, their bodies needed to be forced into extreme situations so their bodies and minds would seek the best possible outcome for self-preservation.

Out of all his companions, only Ailetta was able to show improvements without physical exertion.

Her training was created entirely on her own. Apparently, for quite some time, she wanted to give her abyssals form rather than their predetermined spherical blobs.

From words alone, the idea of using visualization and intent wasn’t enough. However, with the connection to Noah’s soul, her own soul was boosted enough to do a portion of what Noah’s being could do.

But the problem wasn’t due to the lack of her spirit. Each one of her slimes bears a small sentience of its own.

Even if she were to visualize what she wanted them to transform into, their lack of intelligence made it difficult for them to perform her command.

Failure didn’t agitate her. She was fueled to understand more of what she was lacking.

If Noah was capable of creating golems in forms he could envision by using the genes from her own body, then she should also be capable of doing what he did.

Through her experiments, she was partially successful after some time. What she did was create a figure with her slime alone, a figure devoid of her abyssals, a literal puppet. Then she would have an abyssal merge with that puppet.

Although she was successful, the result was still inferior to what Noah could produce.

The abyssal could move, it could throw a punch, and it still shared its connection with her. But in the end, the puppet, once disconnected from Ailetta, needed another source of energy to manipulate it.

The result left her needing to input more mana into the abyssal than necessary.

Ailetta didn’t frown when it failed. She simply absorbed the slime back into herself and tried again. If anything, the failure only sharpened her gaze.

Noah watched her, leaving her to her own thoughts. He may not be able to give her advice, but he’ll be there for her when she needs him.

Instead, he looked towards his other creatures. All of them were wary from their training. And although their results were minuscule, Noah could clearly see their improvements.

Arachne developed the habit of submitting to the strong, believing that strength triumphed over skill. And today she showed that as long as she has the will, then she can make victory possible.

She was still inconsistent. Still prone to overthinking under pressure. But the hesitation was thinning. And that alone was enough for Noah.

Fenrir had finally shown caution in his fighting. Without enough mana to reinforce his muscles and his regeneration, every strike felt heavier, and every injury impacted him in ways he never realized.

He couldn’t blindly rely on his barbaric fighting ways, trading blow for blow. He had to avoid injuries while also controlling his strength so he could continue.

His claws tore into the earth more than once when he overcommitted. His breathing grew ragged faster than he liked.

And yet he didn’t stop. Even now, when he could barely stand upright, his eyes still burned with the urge to continue.

The others’ progress was different, but it was still progress.

Kratos and Pandora were partnered to train together. Their training was essentially tag.

Pandora had to capture Kratos, while Kratos had to dodge, charging his blast for as long as he could before he lost focus or was grabbed. The training was more for Pandora than Kratos.

The exercise forced Pandora to think beyond direct pursuit.

Her first instinct was always to overwhelm, roots bursting forward in a single aggressive wave. But against Kratos’ erratic movements, that approach failed repeatedly.

With repeated failures, she was forced to adapt. She used her illusions more and managed to capture Kratos off guard.

The repeated small successes paved the way for Pandora, who slowly began to focus more on illusions than on her normal direct approach. Sometimes forgetting that her illusions weren’t capable of interacting with Kratos.

Kratos, meanwhile, learned patience. Charging his blast while under pressure tested his composure. Several times, he lost focus the moment a root grazed him.

Instead of charging his blast in one steady build-up, he began pulsing it in controlled intervals. He would gather energy, stabilize it, then hold it dormant rather than constantly feeding it. Over time, he lasted longer.

As for Eve, her training required less exertion than the others, but it was still as meaningful.

Noah understood that her ability to fuse with her two vassals was uniquely similar to his own. And it was also her strongest trait.

Until she was more capable of protecting herself while not fused, she would have to rely on the ability more than before.

So, just as he had done with his ability, he wanted to see if she could shorten the time it took to fuse. And if possible, see if there’s a limit to how many times she can fuse.

Noah had her repeat the process. Fuse, separate. Fuse again.

At first, Eve treated it like a game. She would pout when the fusion didn’t improve after the first initial times, looking with grieving eyes towards Diablo and Ava. Silently placing the blame on them, but unwilling to voice it.

After some time, her complexion grew paler than usual, and the procedure became even harder to perform, worsening her frustration. And it was through her anger that she finally found success.

Her will exploded, giving intent through her mana. This time, she didn’t seek out Diablo’s confirmation; she initiated the process on her own, making the fusion faster than all her previous attempts.

The success instantly rushed to her head, and she wanted to use the same process with Ava.

However, the instant she tried to force Ava to comply, she received a lashback almost as equal to the number of times she had fused before, combined.

Noah quickly nipped the problem before Eve could possibly become averse to merging with Ava again.

"Although it worked with Diablo, your bond with him is much better than it is with Ava. Diablo will do anything for you, despite how you treat him, but that doesn’t mean you should neglect his feelings.

How would you feel if the two were to start suddenly forcing you to fuse with them without your consent?"

Eve’s expression stiffened. She didn’t answer right away. Her lips pressed into a thin line. "...I wouldn’t like it," she muttered.

Noah nodded. He didn’t have her try to fuse anymore during that time. Instead, she needed to actually try to communicate with her two vassals.

He set a goal for her to accomplish by the same time the next day, to be able to tell him two things she learned about Diablo and Ava that she didn’t know before.

Out of the other companions of his, only Ophis was left to actually train. Not because Arachne’s spiders didn’t have to train, but because he had another job for them.

The three spiders were to make a net of webs, hanging above the entire rooted wall to prevent creatures from climbing over it.

He wasn’t of the belief that the three could accomplish it within the night, or even if they had an entire day.

They would start with one portion and continue with another the next day, but he wanted each portion of the wall to have a net as tall as the wall itself.

That left Ophis to train on her own. Noah wasn’t confident she could find a method that would help her.

Her methods were too straightforward. Not to mention, her species was something that Noah couldn’t fully say he knew how their bodies worked.

So what he had her do was to perform laps around the edge of the forest where it starts outside their home. The goal was to complete an entire lap without being seen or making noise, as fast as possible.

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From the forest’s outskirts, the dogs and cats watched with uneasy expressions. The dogs felt restless. They, too, wanted to join but lacked the courage.

The cats, on the otherhand were surrounding Alexandria. Their earlier goal was to prove their usefulness, but now, after comparing their strength to just any one of Noah’s companions, they weren’t sure what they could provide.