I Became an Ancient All-Host Lifeform - Chapter 6

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

006 The Art of Survival

Crackle?

While my mind churned with complications, Gyusik tilted his head to one side in bafflement.
Just wait. I’m doing all this for your sake.
Even if I’m only testing it out, I need to choose carefully. I’ve only got one Point to work with.

Our primary objective is simple: survival, at any cost.
Neither Gyusik nor I could be called particularly strong.
To put it bluntly, we’re barely worth a sandbag’s consideration.
Hadn’t we nearly gotten torn to shreds by that massive roach living in the Ventilation Duct just moments ago?
No matter how powerful an offensive skill I learn, one death renders it all meaningless.
That’s why even the most promising damage-dealing skill is nothing but a pipe dream for us right now.
So I need to prioritize utility skills and survival abilities first.
That narrowed my candidates down to three: Tenacious Vitality, Carapace, and Instant Acceleration—all directly useful for staying alive.

‘Come to think of it, when that Gore-roach bit my rear end, it really did hurt like hell.’

Since I shared a nervous connection with my host, I’d felt the tearing pain in my hindquarters as vividly as he did.
I absolutely despised pain.
But what good would Tenacious Vitality do? I’d just not die, but get pummeled like a sandbag all the same—and it would still hurt like agony.
In that case, wrapping myself in Carapace and maximizing defense was the clear answer.

Of course, I coveted Instant Acceleration too, but Gyusik already had Survival Instinct, so investing in both felt redundant.
I chose Carapace without hesitation and hit [Apply].
Then a message appeared in the Status Window.

[Cannot apply Carapace to host. Species Limit has not yet been surpassed. (Current Points: 1pt)]

Damn it. This skill couldn’t be applied?
Then take it off the list! Or mark it inactive! Who’s the UX designer for this Status Window anyway?
At least my existing Points hadn’t been deducted.
If they had been wasted just like that, I’d have added whoever designed this terrible UX system right to my execution list alongside that employment fraud swindler who threw me into this world.
Though I still couldn’t tell if the one who sent me here was an ‘Organization,’ an individual, or a nation.

‘Well, there’s no helping it now. I’ll have to go with my second choice: Instant Acceleration.’

But thinking it over, that choice wasn’t bad either.
Instant Acceleration could be useful not just for dodging but for attacking as well.
Speed never disappointed you, no matter what situation you found yourself in.

[Installing skill Instant Acceleration into host Gyusik.]

Tsk. Honestly, I’d wanted to raise Gyusik as a plated-armor knight rat who’d carve through the battlefield.
But since things had come to this, I’d have to make him an agility-focused assassin rat instead.
Well, lurking in the shadows and slitting an enemy’s throat in a flash—that had its own romantic appeal and style.

Squeak… Grrrrr….

The moment Gyusik suddenly began breathing hard and ragged.
It was likely the backlash of new genetics being forcibly carved into his body.
Eventually his small frame grew scorching hot, like a roiling blast furnace, and convulsions seized him violently.

‘What? Gyusik, what’s wrong? What—what—’

And an enormous shockwave rippled through me as well, since we shared the neural connection.
It wasn’t mere physical pain.
It was a vicious exhaustion that scraped my willpower down to nothing, and the weight of drowning sleep.

‘Insane… grafting genes… without anesthesia… straight into the host….’

I couldn’t fight off the crushing wave of drowsiness and lost consciousness.

* * *

The next morning, in the First Research Laboratory.
Hans, the junior researcher, had arrived first as always, leisurely brewing his morning coffee without a care in the world.
As he prepared for the day’s work, he tried to soothe his lingering anxiety from yesterday.

‘There won’t be any problems. I definitely threw out the rotten dragon egg in the waste container yesterday, and I perfectly set up the fake organic matter inside the incubator. No one will notice a thing.’

If anything went wrong later, he could always claim the senior researcher made him do it—no way around it.
Recalling the shallow office politics his senior had so graciously demonstrated yesterday, Hans settled comfortably into his chair with his morning coffee in hand.
That was when it happened.

Bang!
“Emergency! Everyone stop what you’re doing and pay attention!”

The First Research Team Leader burst through the door to the restricted area with a stern expression.

“The Tower Master just contacted us. An inspection team from the Sacred Inspection Bureau will be dispatched soon, and he’s decided to personally verify the condition of the ancient dragon egg. He’s on his way down here now.”

Hans’s chest sank in an instant.

“What?! The Tower Master is coming down here personally right now?!”

Not even twenty-four hours had passed since covering up the incident, and suddenly the Magic Tower’s highest authority was paying a surprise inspection?
The Team Leader approached Hans directly.

“Listen here, rookie! The dragon egg is fine, right? I just reported to the Tower Master that it’s in excellent condition, so get it set up for a briefing right now!”

Hans’s face drained of all color at the Team Leader’s barking order.
A lowly new hire like him giving a briefing?
And in front of the Tower Master, the Magic Tower’s supreme authority?
Hans’s voice trembled like aspen leaves as he pleaded with the Team Leader.

“S-sir, Team Leader! What about the senior researcher? Surely someone with real experience should be the one to give the briefing in a situation like this—!”

But the Team Leader’s response was uncompromising.

“That bastard suddenly came down with acute gastroenteritis early this morning and took sick leave! Won’t even answer his calls. So for today, since you’re the one in charge of the dragon egg, you’re going to brief the Tower Master directly. Got it?!”

Hans couldn’t believe his ears.

“…What? S-sick leave?”

That was it.
The damn senior researcher had planned from the start to dump all responsibility onto Hans.
As Hans’s mind went blank, the senior’s parting words echoed in his ears like a curse.

‘Well, that’s the juniors’ problem then. We just have to disappear somewhere else before that.’

He’d made his choice without hesitation: run.
So the senior who’d taken sick leave would likely never come back.

‘That bastard! He abandoned me and ran immediately?’

Of course, he couldn’t have predicted the Tower Master would inspect things the very next day, but his choice had turned out to be a masterstroke.

‘Oh no. The Tower Master is coming in person, and I’m supposed to handle this alone? Ugh… What do I do?’

Hans’s shoulders sagged helplessly.
Watching him crumble, the Team Leader pressed harder.

“The Tower Master said he’d be here in about ten minutes. What are you doing? Aren’t you going to prepare?”
“….”

Cold sweat began beading across Hans’s forehead.

* * *

‘Ugh… My head.’

How long had I been unconscious?
The horrible vertigo and throbbing headache that had crashed over me as a backlash from the genetic transplant were slowly fading.
Once my senses cleared, the first thing I checked was Gyusik’s condition.

Hiss… Hissss….

Fortunately, he too was breathing heavily and slowly opening his eyes.
On the surface, not much seemed different, but his leg muscles appeared somehow more defined than before.
The scrawny legs that had been utterly pathetic now showed actual muscle definition.
It seemed that when you acquire a skill, your body adapts accordingly, so his stats should have risen as well.
Let me check his specs to see if the tuning took properly.
I opened Gyusik’s Status Window, my heart racing with anticipation.

【Gyusik (Host) Lv 3】
【Traits】
「Swill Resistance MAX」, 「Survival Instinct Lv 1」
【Skills】
「Plague Fangs Lv 1」, 「Instant Acceleration Lv 1」(New!)

Excellent. It applied perfectly.
Although I couldn’t pursue the ‘Knight Rat’ build due to hitting the Species Limit and being stuck with heavy armor, I’d instead taken the first step down the ‘Assassin Rat’ tech tree, betting everything on speed.
The thought of Gyusik one day moving in a blur—*whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!*—slaughtering enemies made my chest swell with pride.

Good. Now that the tuning’s complete, let’s properly scout the outside.
Finally free from that miserable Ventilation Duct, we carefully made our way outward.
The surroundings were filled with various mechanical equipment connected to an enormous Waste Container, and countless dirt-like things flowed along the production line.

Hmm, this place must be a factory that processes waste into animal feed.
So they’d be storing the feed produced here somewhere, wouldn’t they?
I don’t know exactly what the feed is used for, but at least it has to taste infinitely better than that cursed swill.

Shortly after, I found a massive warehouse just as I’d expected, stacked with enormous sacks piled like mountains.
A pungent, savory smell that pricked the nostrils.
The contents were clearly animal feed. The entire cavernous warehouse was packed with it.
I mean, why would Gyusik keep eating that filthy swill when he has mountains of tasty feed right here? The creature’s ridiculous.

Squeak….
In that moment, Gyusik trembled nervously.

‘What? Why are you shaking? Have you spotted something?’

Alert to his anxious reaction, I scanned the surroundings.
But there was no sign of any threat.

‘What’s this? You didn’t get spooked by the smell of perfectly good feed, did you? You actually prefer the toxic swill?’
Squeak….
‘Good grief. I’ve seen every crazy thing, but this pest stealing from the waste container? That’s not how eating works, you fool. Come here!’

I backpedaled while forcibly seizing control of the creature’s mind away from its resistance, drawing closer to the sacks of feed.
Then I gnawed a hole through the nearest feed sack with my front teeth.

Whoosh—!

Brown feed poured out through the hole in a cascade.
It was nearly identical to what dogs ate back on Earth.
All right. Let me give this a taste first.

Crunch-crunch.

Huh? It’s crispy and subtly sweet—the texture is actually quite pleasant. It tastes like savory grain cereal.
I ate mindlessly, tearing through the feed.

Crunch-crunch.

By far superior to that deadly slop from the waste container. If only there were milk, it’d be perfect.
… There was a nagging moment of existential doubt as I found myself scavenging dog food without thinking—questioning whether I still counted as a civilized being.
But the taste itself was exceptional, so I let it slide.

Ahem. My reason for testing this feed wasn’t simple hunger.
This wasn’t ordinary feed—it was made from the byproducts of monsters discarded in waste containers, wasn’t it?
If that’s the case, the processed feed likely contains traces of other monsters’ genetics mixed within.
Which meant I could gather genetic material from other monsters without risking my life hunting.
In other words, by hiding in this warehouse and just munching on feed, I could complete an infinite genetic acquisition ‘scrap route’!
With such grand dreams in my mind, I kept chewing while waiting for the Status Window to ping with notifications.

Crunch-crunch….

But no matter how much feed I consumed, the Status Window remained silent.
Damn. Did they subject it to some chemical process that destroyed the genetics?
Whatever industrial treatment humans applied during feed production had rendered the monster genetics completely inert.

A shame. I’d envisioned such a grand scheme—hiding here, quietly scavenging feed, growing infinitely.
I smacked my mouth sourly.

‘No help for it. Let’s go, Gyusik! Follow me!’
Chirp?

Relying on scrappy tricks like scavenging was a mistake from the start.
True growth comes only through blood and sweat!
The fundamentals of leveling up are hunting, after all.
With no regrets, I left the feed sacks behind and dragged the still-trembling Gyusik out into the open.
Now begins the hour of ‘blood-soaked hunting’!

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————