My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 944 - 945: Virgin Birth

From Seras's recollection, it served as a parasite. It behaved much like a human infant developing inside its mother's womb. Yet, upon completing its growth, it would erupt violently from the stomach, compelling its host to endure the complete ordeal of gestation.

The beast that burst forth would inherit the fighting abilities of its host, while the Blood Mary persisted in targeting additional males to multiply its horde.

This explained why it bore the name Blood Mary.

It solely implanted the parasite into males.

For the doomed knight ensnared by it, every moment counted.

Damon had witnessed and learned of countless terrifying events throughout his existence, yet this one ranked among the worst nightmares.

'What do you mean he’s pregnant? He’s a man...' His words emerged halting and sluggish, as if they fought to escape his mouth.

Seras remained rooted in her spot. She simply rested her hand on the hilt of her sword, her thumb gently rubbing the guard.

'He’s been afflicted by the Blood Mary seed. Its ability is known as the virgin birth. It deposits its seed onto you without involving any sort of... you know.'

She left the final words unspoken. There was no need to voice them.

Damon let out a sharp breath.

'I think that was the most reassuring thing I’ve heard today,' he grumbled.

Consider if it hadn't been a virgin birth.

For a fleeting, horrifying instant, he envisioned a man trapped under a monstrous form, subjected to—

'Oh goddess.'

His scalp prickled intensely. He had just embarked on his inaugural sea voyage and already faced such trauma.

'I figured the mother of stillbirths was horrific enough. It looks like some twisted deity’s creativity is at work here. Who even invents such abominations?'

He pulled a hand across his features.

Whoever responsible required urgent aid.

He fleetingly pondered if deities possessed a specialist for mental well-being.

'Ho... how much time does he have left?' Damon inquired, compelling his eyes back to the quivering knight.

Lana interjected from nearby, her fingers swiftly flipping through several volumes.

'For most species, gestation lasts nine months, so I’d estimate he’s got anywhere from nine hours to nine days. It hinges on the parasite’s feeding progress.'

The crew gazed at the contaminated individual with faces twisted in dread. Abruptly, the knight bent over and retched onto the floor already drenched in blood.

Damon squeezed the bridge of his nose.

'Can we extract it surgically?'

Renata shook her head deliberately.

'That would be possible with a healer of Evangeline or Sylvia’s caliber. Evangeline might excel, given her purification to eradicate it. The healers in our expedition mainly focus on combat, handling demon encounters and war injuries.'

Seras gave a nod of agreement.

'If we disturb it, he’ll perish from a stomach rupture.'

Damon’s face grew even grimmer. His eyes wandered to the shadowy waves outside the hull, as though the ocean might be eavesdropping.

'What if we eliminate the Blood Mary?'

Seras rubbed her temple, her features weary.

'Assuming we could locate the Blood Mary. Without that, the idea falls short.'

Lana pressed her lips together, then addressed the captain.

'This vessel features cloaking runes and warding runes.'

The captain inclined his head gradually.

'Indeed. The finest rune masters etched them in. It represents a pinnacle of the empire’s ingenuity.'

Seras’s gaze intensified.

'Then how did it board with warding runes present?'

The captain hesitated.

His eyes expanded in realization.

Of course.

How had they overlooked it?

Was it the Blood Mary’s pheromones muddling their thoughts?

'How did it slip aboard undetected?' the captain murmured. 'The runes ought to have barred it automatically.'

Seras eyed the ship’s first mate.

'Engage the runes immediately. Better cautious than regretful.'

The first mate hurried to obey, shouting commands. Crew members dashed to the rune pillars fixed along the deck, palms activating the etched symbols.

Damon still sensed no security.

He retreated a pace, then blurred out of sight, reappearing atop the mast in one fluid leap. Gale winds buffeted him as he surveyed the whole craft from above.

The ship indeed possessed concealing runes.

Logically, those runes should shield them from detection by sea beasts.

However, they weren’t infallible.

They merely lowered the odds of discovery.

They failed to eliminate them entirely.

A subtle glow started enveloping the ship as the warding runes powered up completely, creating a sheer shield that vibrated softly amid the nocturnal breeze.

Damon descended from the mast, striking the deck next to Seras with a resounding impact that shook the planks.

'The runes appear functional.'

His attention locked on the glowing shield enveloping the ship.

'That ought to prevent intrusions. We’ve inspected already—no other threats aboard, so our safety improves.'

Improved safety.

Not absolute.

He shifted toward the afflicted man, now propped against the wall, pinching his nose against the surrounding odor. Perspiration streamed down his visage. His fingers shook over his belly.

'We’ll monitor you closely for the time being.'

The man struggled to offer a salute.

'Yes... sir...'

Yet Damon noted the despair etched on his countenance.

And under the man’s hand, briefly, a ripple stirred beneath the surface of his belly.

**************

Several hours elapsed, and the fellow doused and tainted by the Blood Mary behaved routinely.

Or as routinely as an expecting mother might.

He rejected any food lacking bitterness. The vessel’s stock of limes and lemons got fully allocated to him. These helped ward off scurvy, and with ample reserves, it posed no issue.

He perched slumped on a crate by the makeshift infirmary area prepared for him, gnawing on lemon wedges with a distant look, dribbles of juice tracing his jaw. Periodically, he gripped his midsection and inhaled steadily via his nostrils.

Damon observed him for some time.

His shadow sense extended over every nook of the ship, seeping into gaps in the wood, winding about the mast, grazing crew and allies as they busied themselves with tasks.

They couldn’t huddle in one spot forever.

The ship required steering.

They needed to evade the enormous skeletal remnants in the waves, the sharp fragments of primordial beings piercing the surface like lances. A single misstep could plunge them into perilous depths, lead to disorientation, or veer them astray.

And so, the sun dipped below the horizon.

Daylight faded, yielding to darkness.

As dusk arrived, Damon ramped up his vigilance.

The majority of beasts prowled actively after dark, favoring nocturnal hunts.

The Blood Mary shared this trait.

Seras assumed control seamlessly. She organized the watch and patrol squads into groups, guaranteeing each included no fewer than three females to safeguard the males.

Although female numbers fell short for full protection.

The evening stayed hushed, broken only by sporadic glimmers of the barrier in obscurity. It remained nearly invisible, detectable mainly when rippling under pressure, but Damon discerned it distinctly.

He positioned himself on the deck near the captain.

The elderly man’s calloused grip held the helm firm as he guided the course, stare fixed ahead, jaw clenched.

High above, a figure occupied the crow’s nest atop the mast, scanning the surroundings.

Guards patrolled in consistent circuits over the deck.

Dawn approached.

No assault.

Damon released a prolonged breath of ease, his posture relaxing a touch.

’Thank goodness. Whatever lurked has departed.’

The idea had scarcely formed when it struck.

A surge of eerie force swept over the deck.

It struck him like a muted blast.

His shadow awareness dispersed in an instant, severed as by an invisible edge.

Damon’s eyes flared open.

He responded without delay.

Right as he prepared to stride and shift below, an eruption surged from the depths.

Directly in his view, it bypassed the engaged barrier utterly and slammed onto the deck with a sodden, weighty thump.

The barrier showed no reaction.

It offered no opposition.

The entity unfurled and unleashed a spray of dense, sticky blood upon the unaware guards before they could respond.

The blood arced ferociously.

It splattered over the men’s visages and chests.

They cried out in agony.

With a slippery plop, the entity plunged back into the inky sea.

Vanished.

Damon shifted in a flash to the ship’s rail, his boots scraping as he halted short of tumbling over. He peered into the murky depths below, his gaze sharpening.

Empty.

Merely infinite darkness.

He clamped his lip and ventured his shadow sense toward the abyssal waters.

He detected only myriad relics of bygone colossal beings settled on the seabed. Enormous ribcages, craniums dwarfing dwellings, each bearing a lingering essence that endured beyond demise.

No signs of life.

No stirrings.

Damn it.

Damon ground his teeth.

'Damn it,' he echoed, his fists tightening at his flanks.

He pivoted.

The watch team knelt on the planks, soaked in gore.

Curiously, the females in the unit remained pristine.

Not one droplet had touched them.

The males were thoroughly wetted.

Damon lifted his hand to his face, attempting to block the intensifying pheromones in the atmosphere.

It would do little good.

The iron tang adhered to all surfaces.