Reincarnated as a random race, of course I got goblin.

Chapter 121 - Shadows in the Distance

Shocked gasps and frightened cries sound out as Ammit and I appear in the corral I was introduced to Valena and her group in.

There's a few new inhabitants here, I recognize most of the monsters as originally dwelling near forests.

Seems the disturbance my brother has been causing made them flee the Illomen, and now they're here... I catch myself wondering how out of whack the ecosystem of the plains between Illomen and my current location is currently.

The monsters who ended up involuntarily sharing their corral with us cower near the fences, overwhelmed by the feeling of danger that surrounds not only me, but Ammit also. Instincts tell them that if either of us desired it, they lives would be forfeit. 

"Please, be calm. I'm the Monarch. With me, I have a very important monster in need of your help." I broadcast to the humanoids present. With the mention of a monster in need, most people calm down as their instincts as professionals kick in. Some run off though, hopefully to bring Mina here. 

A Beastfolk woman enters the enclosure as she fetches a looking-glass from the inner pocket of her coat. She cautiously approaches us, with slow, deliberate movements in an effort to not scare us or the other monsters here. 

Bringing the lens up to her eye once she's close enough, she almost drops it with a gasp. "I- ah, you weren't kidding when you said they were a special monster..." She stammers as she secures her grip on the lens to get a better look. 

"Millibelle! Oh please tell me beforehand if you're going to do things like this..." Mina appears, her breath heavy; she's been running to get here. "Everyone, please, she means no harm. Please relax." She gets busy placating the scared monsters, leaving the Beastfolk woman to finish her examination of Ammit.

"I'm sorry, it's just that I have little time and Ammit here does poorly in the cold. Otherwise I'd approached from a distance." I apologize, casting a glance at Ammit who is shivering yet oddly enamored by the plumes of mist escaping from her maw with every breath. 

"Boss, you're not going to believe this. This is actually an Ammit!" The Beastfolk woman excitedly waves her looking glass about as she continues: "The last reported sighting of one was several hundred years ago!" She spins to face me, an almost childlike eagerness in her eyes.

"How? Where did you find her?" The Beastfolk woman starts to interrogate me. Before I can answer, Mina places a firm hand on her colleague's shoulder, seemingly snapping her out of her fervor. 

"We can figure that out once we're inside." She gives a vexxed smile as she escorts all three of us towards a large barn-like building. 

Once safely inside, Mina heaves a heavy sigh, rubbing her temples as she does so. "This is just what we needed... Another mystery monster to add to our problems."

"Another?" I ask as I shift into my humanoid form. 

"There's something harassing the village of Reigeil to the south-west of us. An unidentified monster appears on cloudy nights, attacking the guards." The Beastfolk woman explains.

"Fig here is a 'Cryptomonstrologist', someone who specializes in identifying mystery monsters." Mina introduces the Beastfolk woman. No wonder then her excitement over Ammit. "I'll fill in the Monarch, you see to the Ammit." Mina instructs Fig before continuing to explain.

"The first time it was spotted, it appeared from the direction of the Illomen Forest, on a bright night. Due to the situation in the forest being unknown at the moment, all monsters exiting were to be culled on sight." Mina chews on her lip for a moment.

"It was shot down, and the distance it fell would mean certain death, but all that was found at the impact site was an amorphous mass of Malice that quickly decayed to nothing." 

"I don't understand, it sounds as if you've successfully defeated the monster?" I ask, an icy pit of dread beginning to form in my stomach at the mention of Malice. 

"That's just the thing: It returned. This time it got much closer by concealing its presence against the clouds, and when spotted, it immediately knew to drop its altitude when it heard the sound of the projectile. It was eventually impaled upon the spear of one of the guards, and it immediately turned into a pile of Malice." Mina seems frustrated.

"Did they get a good look at it when it was alive?" 

"That's the worst part. It looks like the upper torso of a woman, but with large wings sprouting from her back and a long, whipping tongue. I've never heard of such a monster before." 

Any hints on your end, World Knowledge?

*Description matches no currently existing monster species.*

The way you're phrasing that makes it sound like there is more to it.

*By scanning the Users own memories and relict System Data left over from other Otherworlders, one match is found; Manananggal. A vampire-like creature that will masquerade as a normal, albeit shy, human during the day; and at night it will separate its upper torso from its legs in order to fly about in search of prey.*

*Although there have been opportunities to bring the monster into being in this World, it was deemed inappropriate to do so, even in a heavily modified state.*

So, somehow the Malice has gotten access to this monster, either by access to the World System-

*Highly unlikely.*

Or... Through my memories?

The memory of me and Sakaya being 'saved' by my brother in Sakayas dream flashes before me. 

"Have you figured it out?" Mina asks, no doubt worried about my lengthy pause. 

"Possibly. The mention of it leaving behind Malice confirms my theory. It's somehow a discarded monster brought to life." I try to ignore the sinking feeling in my chest as the pieces fit together.

Connected through the Malice, my brother has been able to see my memories, or at least fragments of it. And excavated from those are monsters never seen in this World.

"Discarded?" Fig peeks her head out from behind a partition.

"It's... complicated, but basically some monsters are borrowed from other Worlds through the memories of Otherworlders. But sometimes those monsters are deemed to not fit. Somehow the Malice has been able to access these discarded monsters, and the mystery monster is one of them." I explain in simple strokes, attempting to omit my own role in this.

"But for the Malice to be able to remodel a monster into something else entirely... One of the main theories about why Hateful monsters become so deformed is because there's still some vestige of rationale still fighting the transformation..." Mina puts a thumb to her mouth, gently tracing the edge of one of her canines. I notice both her thumbs are coated in nicks and cuts from this behaviour. 

"I suspect that it wasn't originally a monster." Fig says somberly as she exits the booth she and Ammit was in. "There's been rumours among the nobles, a large convoy of people are moving towards Illomen from Feyloche. Something about a cult, and... well..." Fig trails off, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. 

I can tell even without my Telepathy that Fig has a complicated relation with cults. However, the mention of nobles being in the know piques my interest.

"I thought there were no real relations between Parshura and Feyloche?" I ask, hoping to confirm my suspicions.

"Well, none that are 'official' per se. The Hand of Aurellium is actually based out of Feyloche, or so the rumours say. They facilitate all kinds of trade between the two nations, mostly high end goods sold and bought by nobles. It's a sort of smuggling but it's the only way to really get goods from one to the other..." Mina shrugs. 

"Now, we need a detailed description of how to fight this monster. I fear that the next time it attacks it will finally kill someone." Fig urges, her violet eyes glimmering with excitement.