Genzo frowned deeply, with deep wrinkles on his forehead.
"As you know, the number of danger beasts attacking our tribe is constantly increasing. If Kato wasn't here... sigh.
I didn't think we could defend the village for more than 10-15 years. I had lost all hope... but!..
This baby has more potential than Kato. When he grows up, he will be a better warrior.
The child's name will be 'Hope'! I hereby conclude the naming ceremony..."
According to the village's rules, the name of every newborn child was given by the village chief, Genzo, but it was extremely rare for him to use that authority and give a name.
As the naming ceremony finished, Hope was sleeping peacefully on the log. Just as his mother was about to reach and pick him up… whole black log started to tremble.
The black log began to radiate a terrifying presence, spreading an oppressive aura in every direction. The villagers standing closest to it could feel the malice, rage, and fury seeping out of it with unsettling clarity…
From the log, thin black-green tendrils began to emerge, writhing as they grew. One of them, carrying a large black stone at its tip, suddenly pierced through the air and entered Hope's body.
Ding!
[System has detected an abnormal condition in host's body.]
[WARNING!]
[Host's body is merging with an unknown object!]
The invading soul, which had fallen into a dormant sleep after seizing its new vessel, suddenly felt a surge of anger and a thirst for revenge directed at its very own spirit—and was jolted awake. Its mind was thrown into chaos.
Impossible…! That plant-type danger beast… I already killed it! It should've already turned into nothing more than a usable item!
In shock, it frantically looked around—only to see the seed-like core carried by the tendril slowly beginning to shrink.
The tendril pierced his stomach, and the surrounding area started to turn white.
At the same time, within Hope's mind, three forces clashed violently: a frightened, fading soul struggling to resist, a powerful soul asserting its presence, and a hatred-driven desire that sought to consume everything in its path.
NO! IMPOSSIBLE! HOW! HOW THE FUCK CAN THIS HAPPEN!??
The efforts of the fading soul were utterly insufficient... Barely even noticeable, easily dismissed.
But that hatred… that relentless, consuming will… was slowly erasing the massive soul itself.
[WARNING!]
[The Host's soul has sustained severe damage.]
No… no, this can't go on… THIS CANNOT CONTINUE!
I REFUSE! I WON'T ACCEPT THIS!
After that, the impaled stone started to rise.
A shapeless thing, looked like 't'.
It was a 2-meter-long two-handed sword, the blade was around 50cm-wide, the thickness of the blade was around 3-finger-wide changed at certain points. Its sharpness also varied.
The sword's hilt was around 35-40cm and the blade was around 1.8 meters. It looked very very heavy.
The Sword started to move forward Hope and...
Thud!
The sword pierced Hope's back and entered his body but stopped there. Considering The Sword's width and thickness, it was still a deadly wound.
The crowd was in shock!
Daigo's eyes widened and his body started trembling.
Daigo's wife screamed "AaaaAAAAHHH!" and pass out.
The stone sword struck the core-like structure and shattered it. Even as the broken fragments were still being absorbed by the body, the danger beast unleashed its final and strongest spiritual attack... only to fade away completely as its entire will was erased.
Meanwhile, the tendril started to divide and spread. Slowly, it coiled around his stomach, wrapping around his spine, then spreading to his ribs and organs, gently encasing them. As the tendrils spread, the whiteness on Hope's skin also started to expand.
The invading soul had nearly reached the point of disappearing, and control of the body slowly began to return to Hope.
The stone sword also slipped back into the black log, as if it had never moved at all.
As the tendrils continued to spread across his skeletal system, part of it entered his flesh, wrapping around his tendons and muscles. Once the elastic and durable tendrils finished spreading, the sword wound on his back and the wound on his stomach had healed.
His body frame had broadened, his muscles had become tighter, his waist become slimmer.
And lastly, a seed formed at the core of Hope's body. All the tendrils were began connecting to the seed.
Ding!
Two sprouts emerged side by side from the back left center of Hope's head. Two black leaves formed, looking opposite directions. For a newborn with very short black hair, it was unusually eye-catching...
"Waaaaahhh!!" Hope was crying.
The process took about 20-25 minutes, and during that time, Hope's mom had already woken up. She rushed over, picked up her baby, and checked if there were any wounds. As a mother, she didn't care whether her child was a freak... He was alive, and he looked healthy, and that was enough.
After a heated conversation about what had just happened, the crowd eventually left, and She and Daigo took their child and headed home.
Inside the house
Daigo was playing with the baby with a huge smile on his face. The twin leaves on his head and the changes in his skin hadn't escaped from the family's vision. They continued to examine Hope for a while. They touched the leaf on his head, tugged it, and noticed that Hope could feel the leaves.
Hope's Mom, with a concerned expression, said, "Do you think our child will grow up healthy?"
Daigo replied, "He looks healthy to me, just look at that body!"
She punched Daigo's shoulder firmly and gave him a stern look.
"HAHAHAHAHAH!" holding Hope with one hand, wrapped his other arm around his wife.
"Everyone saw what happened, what if someone... hurts our son..."
"No one will touch my son!" Daigo declared. "If I have to, I'll take on the whole world for my family!"
She played with the leaves on her child's head and then hugged her husband.
"Waaaaahhh!!"
She smiled, "Are you hungry, baby? Mommy will feed you now."