Chapter 36: When I Woke Up

I found myself in a deep red space, suddenly overwhelmed by drowsiness, and fell into a deep sleep. I felt like I had been dreaming something, but unlike just before being synthesized, I couldn’t remember anything at all. As I woke up, I immediately checked my current situation and opened my eyelids.

(Wait, eyelids?! Ughhh!?)           

I realized that my compound eyes shouldn’t have such a function, and right after that, a severe headache struck my head. My field of vision became blurry, and instinctively, I closed my eyelids.

In that moment, the intense pain that had been running through my head subsided. However, something was off. Even though my eyelids were closed, my field of vision didn’t change at all. What was going on?

I cautiously opened my eyelids again. The headache returned, but the intensity was much lighter than before. My field of vision remained stable, so perhaps my consciousness fully merged with my new body.

(My field of vision is excellent. Unlike before, I can see clearly not only in front of me but also below and behind me.)

I calmly checked my current situation with my compound eyes. There were three large compound eyes in the place where Yaro’s original eyeballs used to be, two small compound eyes on each side of the compound eye on the forehead, and three more on the slightly posterior part of the top of my head.

Thanks to them, I could see clearly in all directions. It was almost safe to say that I had no blind spots in my current state. However, it seemed that my rearward vision might be slightly obstructed when my hair grows longer. It could be troublesome, but I might need to trim my hair short regularly.

(Although the overall shape of my body is humanoid, there are still remnants of a scorpion. But it’s surprising that I developed a tail instead of a telson.)

As for my current form, the overall shape of my body closely resembles that of a human. However, my forearms and the lower parts of my legs were covered in an exoskeleton, and a tail grew from the base of my waist instead of a tail segment that previously grew at the tip of my abdomen. Furthermore, unlike the tail segment, which used to be on the tip of the abdomen, this tail had a solid bone running through its interior, making it a proper tail.

My tail had been present since birth, and I could sense its tip as if it had always been a part of my consciousness. I instinctively knew how to move it freely. However, my tail was now tightly restrained, just like my limbs.

(As I had anticipated, I was indeed bound. My limbs were secured with shackles on the chair’s armrests and legs. Destructing them… seems impossible.)

I was seated in a chair, with my wrists and ankles fixed in shackles. I considered forcefully breaking free, but at that moment, the tattoo that had appeared on my body earlier began to glow black, and my strength drained away.

Though it wasn’t painful, it seemed to be a similar art to “soul binding” No, it was even more effective, as it prevented me from moving even a muscle without causing me any harm. While I was unconscious, they must have completed the necessary actions. They had no intention of letting me escape. Oh, how I hated it.

(This room doesn’t have any spiritual circuits carved into it, and it seems to be a different room from where the synthesis process was done. There’s nothing in the room except for me and the chair… It seems to be a dedicated confinement room, so to speak.)

The room was plain, with nothing but me and the chair. There was a door in front of me, but there was no interior or furniture. The only thing hanging from the ceiling of the room was a lantern.

There were no windows on any of the walls, and it seemed that I wouldn’t be able to obtain any information casually. Oh well, I’ll pass the time with my usual control training of fighting spirit and spiritual power. I also want to verify when the tattoo on me reacts.

“Over here, over here! Hurry up, old man!”

“Don’t rush me like that! Good grief, that’s why young people these days…”

As I was engaging in control training to pass the time, I heard the voices of the spiritualist and someone else. The other person seemed to be around the same age as Georg, judging from their voice. They were still quite far away, but my hearing was picking up their voices accurately. My senses were still sharp. Just knowing that was a major relief.

While muttering to himself, he approached and opened the door to enter. One of them was the spiritualist who had synthesized me and Yaro, and the other was a short old man. However, the old man was completely covered in bulging muscles, with long hair and a beard braided into three strands.

The spiritualist who entered the room had a proud look on his face, and the old man who seemed to have come with him squinted his eyes as he looked at me. After carefully examining me as if appraising, he turned his unwavering gaze towards the spiritualist and posed his question.

“Hey, Orvo. What’s this creature?”

“Hehehe! You’re curious, old man! He’s a synthetic beast created by me!”

“That’s not it, you research maniac. I was indeed surprised by a synthetic beast created using a human species, but that’s not where my surprise lies. Decades of experience dealing with warriors have honed my instincts, and I can tell that this is no ordinary creature. It’s a bona fide monster…cleverly concealed though it may be. Tell me, lad, what did you use to create such a formidable being?”

“Well, hmm? I wanted you to be more surprised… Oh well. I’ll explain it to you from the beginning, old man.”

With a disapproving pout on his lips, the spiritualist who should be named Orvo gave me a once-over. Hearing his assessment, the old man let out a deep sigh and asked bluntly, “Are you an idiot?”

“A synthetic beast using the Hades scorpion who killed the ”lightning” Gaius? It must be powerful, but forcing such a monster to obey you is too risky. It will inevitably rebel someday.”

“It’s alright! I’ve tattooed an improved version of ‘Soul Binding’ on him!”

Sure enough, the tattoo engraved from the neck to the chest was ‘Soul Bindiing’. And it was an improved version… which was nothing but problematic for me. I wondered which part had been improved.

“I hope so.”

“Old man, you’re such a worrywart. Anyway, there’s something I want to ask you to do. I want you to make weapons for him.”

“…Are you sane? You might end up getting backstabbed, you know?”

The old man seemed taken aback, as if he hadn’t expected Orvo’s request, and his response was delayed. I was equally surprised, and my three eyelids widened in shock.

For me, Orvo was the one responsible for taking away my freedom. I constantly desired to kill him and break free. It seemed like an imprudent decision to give weapons to such an opponent.

“Are you sane? Excuse my rudeness… but if I were you, I’d restrain him even more tightly than before and make sure he can’t get close to the weapons easily.”

“Well, it’s none of my business. As a weapons craftsman, I’ll fulfill my job.”

The old man, who seemed to have reconsidered that Orvo would be the only one to suffer the consequences, untied the rope he had been carrying on his belt and pressed it against my body, apparently measuring the length of my arms and legs. Then he pressed my arms and legs with his fingers, making a displeased expression as if he didn’t like something.

“What’s more, these muscles… even if they’re the same size, they can generate several times the strength of the Furu race. If he’s going to wield a mediocre  weapon, he might as well punch with his solid fists iinstead.”

“That’s why I’m relying on you, Grandpa! I have the materials, you see? So, please make a nice weapon for me~.”

“Ugh, don’t use that cloying voice! It’s creepy… Well, fine then. I’ll try to craft a weapon that can withstand this guy’s strength.”

Reluctantly, the old man seemed to have agreed to Orvo’s request. A weapon… a tool used for attack. As a scorpion, I have been slashed before, but I have never touched a weapon. There was no way Georg would give me something I couldn’t use.

Human tools were not compatible with my pincers. I have vaguely shaped weapons using spiritual arts, but I can’t really say I’ve used them. Even if I were to get something made for me, I didn’t think I would be able to handle it skillfully.

“Alright! Grandpa! Descendant of the Gods!”

“Hmph, II can’t compare to the Great Patriarch. Show me the materials then.”

“Yes, sir.”

Orvo reached into his hem and took out two items. One was the broken sword that had been thrust into me by that holy knight, so I could understand why it was here. But more importantly, the left pair of pincers! I didn’t know where it had gone after being cut off, but it seemed like it had been retrieved. If that’s the case, then please attach it back to me!

The old man who received the two items first examined the broken sword, not just the broken edge but the whole sword, licking his lips as he admired it with a nod of approval.

“Oh.. This sword is quite a piece of work. It’s coated with silver mixed with powdered dragon scales on top of a spiritual vein steel.”

“Oh, really?”

“However, the craftsmanship of the sword is still lacking, and the coating has some unevenness. I’ll have to fix it while I’m repairing it. But the real issue is with these pincers here.”

The old man, who had inserted the sword into his belt, lightly tossed and played with my pincers in his hand. Hey, don’t play with my claws in front of me like that. Treat them with more care!

“These claws are quite tricky. They feel incredibly hard to the touch, almost as hard as the limbs and tail of that creature. Yet, they are unusually lightweight… However, due to their specialized shape for gripping, they are difficult to process. Hm…”

“But I’m sure you can handle them, old man.”

“Of course I can. Give me a month. I’ll have both of them finished by then. They’ll become the best weapons, making the most of the unique properties of the materials.”

Despite claiming that it would be difficult, the old man confidently declared that he would finish it in a month. He must have had absolute confidence in his own skills, just like Orvo did. There was no doubt about it, especially considering that Orvo trusted him.

The old man inserted my pincers into his belt. With a sword on his left side and claws on his right, the short old man ignited a flame of determination in his eyes. I couldn’t help but be a little curious about what kind of weapon my claws would become. I just hoped they wouldn’t turn into some strange weapon.

“I see. Well then, during that time, I’ll put them to the test in actual combat. There are some folks who would not only not get mad at me for killing a few, but even be pleased about it.”

“Indeed. My creations are also delighted to have a chance to shine in battle.”

Oh, I had a bad feeling about this. Deployed in actual combat? And killing is apparently acceptable to some of the people involved? Are they planning to have me and those folks kill each other?

I was forced into training that involved death from the moment I was born, made to fight and kill around a hundred creatures, and lost my benefactor after a brief moment of freedom. Almost died seeking revenge, only to realize I had been turned into a synthetic beast, and it seemed that all I was destined for was more killing. Oh, I didn’t want to die.

Despite being burdened with the mission of “surviving for a hundred years,” my path was filled with battles and death. Oh, how I longed for a peaceful life someday, where there would be no more fighting…

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(TN: The eyes of our mc are hard to picture, but from what I read and searched, he has currently three big eyes—two like normal humans and one on the forehead that he inherited from Yaro the Reka race, who also had three eyes—these are the main eyes, meaning they’re normal sized; all the others should be much smaller and on the sides and back of his head, meaning he has almost 360 degree vision…Again, i can be mistaken i would hope for an illustration)

(TN: compound eyes are insect eyes; you can search for a better understanding.)