Chapter 14: The Body Switch and the Beast Within
Drake, along with Pidgeotto and Staravia, finally managed to pull Monferno out of the wall, still chuckling to themselves.
He gave Monferno a pat on the head. "You did an amazing job. Let's get to the stairs."
All four of them moved to the staircase and sat down. Drake withdrew three small piles of crystals for himself and the two birds, and a large pile for Monferno—his appetite had grown along with his body.
While everyone was snacking, Drake opened his system interface to check his gains and Monferno's new stats.
"System, show me my missed notifications and Monferno's level."
UNDERSTOOD.
CONGRATULATIONS USER: EMERGENCY QUEST COMPLETE.REWARD: SKILL – BODY SWITCH.
BODY SWITCH: Allows the user to change their monster race.Note: Only races within the user's current level category are allowed.AVAILABLE RACES: IMP (CURRENT) / ORC / BAD BAT.
CONGRATULATIONS USER: NEEDLE RABBIT VARIANT DEFEATED.REWARD: 2.5M EXP.
CHIMCHAR REACHED LEVEL 20 – EVOLUTION COMMENCED.CHIMCHAR → MONFERNO
NEW MOVES LEARNED: BRICK BREAK, FLARE BLITZ.
Drake skipped over the first part, initially focusing on Monferno. "So, both Starly and Pidgey evolved at Level 15… but Chimchar needed Level 20?"
Then his eyes widened as he re-read the first notification.
"Wait… I can switch bodies now?!"
His mouth dropped open and a loud, husky shout burst out: "Hell yeah! I won't have to stay in this old goblin baby body anymore! Thank you, system!"
All three Pokémon froze mid-bite, staring wide-eyed at Drake.
"What? Why are you guys staring at me?!"
He paused, then slowly moved his mouth. "Wait... I just spoke. I actually spoke! Guys, I can talk now!"
All three Pokémon nodded furiously and burst into dance, celebrating.
Drake laughed. "Finally! It feels so good to talk again! How's my voice?"
Three happy nods.
"Alright, get ready for something even cooler. BODY SWITCH: ORC!"
A shadow enveloped Drake. His form grew, expanding past all his Pokémon. When the darkness faded, standing before them was a massive orc with thick brown skin and the face of a pig.
As Drake examined his new body, Pidgeotto and Staravia flew up and perched on each of his shoulders. Monferno agilely leaped onto his head.
"You guys serious?" Drake sighed. "Well, I guess lunch break is over."
He took a heavy step forward and winced. "Ugh. I feel so slow… but powerful. I better change back. BODY SWITCH: IMP."
USER UNABLE TO ACTIVATE SKILL. COOLDOWN REMAINING: 23:58:03
"What?! Are you kidding me, system?! You didn't say anything about a cooldown!"
He groaned. "Fine. Guess I'm stuck like this. Let's get used to it."
Drake lumbered forward, eventually arriving at the 9th floor.
"This one looks like the rest—just more maze-like."
As he turned a corner, a chillingly familiar sound echoed ahead. When he peeked around the bend, he saw seven green figures and four dog-like beasts.
[MUTATED GOBLIN – LVL 31][MUTATED KOBOLD – LVL 33]
Seeing his former kind enraged him. He pulled a massive broadsword from his inventory.
"Alright, leave this to me."
The monsters charged. Drake swung sideways, cleaving three goblins in half. A kobold lunged for his arm but couldn't pierce his orcish skin. Drake grabbed the creature, raised it high, and slammed it into the ground.
He sliced downward, bisecting two more goblins. One tried to jump at his face, but barely reached. Drake calmly set his sword down, grabbed the goblin, rolled it into a ball, and hurled it into the remaining monsters, reducing them to dust.
"This body may be slow, but damn, the power... I think I'll stick with it for a while."
They pressed onward. Drake noted the increasing number of enemies. "We've taken out dozens, but they keep coming in waves…"
While he was thinking, his Pokémon cleared another group.
Staravia dove like a missile, using Brave Bird to reduce two goblins to paste. Pidgeotto flapped his massive wings, slamming kobolds into the walls.
But the most terrifying display came from Monferno. He trapped five goblins inside a fiery ring with Flame Wheel, then smashed into them using Flare Blitz, leaving behind charred statues that crumbled to ash.
Meanwhile, Drake casually held a goblin in each hand and smashed them together until only two crystals remained.
"Good job, team!" he called out.
The trio returned to their now-usual spots—birds on the shoulders, Monferno on the head.
"You all seem too comfortable," Drake chuckled, the expression oddly hilarious on his orcish face.
As they exited the room, a small figure emerged from a hidden corner.
The creature looked like a goblin but with more humanoid features. Eyes wide, it whispered to itself, "A talking orc? And those creatures were… obeying it? I need to report this."
It scurried to a hidden switch in the wall. A secret tunnel opened, and the creature vanished inside.
Back with Drake's group, they entered a massive room with a stairway on the other side.
"Well, guys, let's see what surprises the dungeon has for us this time."
Before they reached the middle, loud rumbling shook the room. Two giant creatures emerged from both sides.
Drake sighed. "Really? These guys again? Getting predictable, dungeon."
[MUTATED HOBGOBLIN – LVL 42][MUTATED FENRIR – LVL 39]
The hobgoblin was massive—blood-red skin, bulging muscles, and tusks like daggers. The Fenrir had glistening silver fur and claws that looked like they could slice steel.
"You three handle the mutt. That oversized musclehead is mine."
The birds flew in fast, dodging Fenrir's slashes, while Monferno launched a Flamethrower straight at its face.
Drake and the hobgoblin stared each other down—then charged.
Their fists collided with a boom, sending both reeling back. On the next clash, Drake, still adjusting to his size, took a punch to the face and slammed into the wall.
Blood trickled from his snout, but he stood, smiling.
"Oh, you're going to regret that."
He started taunting, and the hobgoblin's eyes glowed red with rage. It lunged forward, swinging wildly. Drake sidestepped, grabbed its arm, and slammed it into the ground.
Then again. And again.
"HULK SMASH!" he shouted gleefully.
Finally, the hobgoblin turned to dust in his grip.
He turned toward the others… and froze.
The Fenrir was in the center of a raging fire tornado, howling in pain—its paws burned away—while Monferno slowly poured more flames into the cyclone.
As the massive wolf turned to ash, Monferno, Pidgeotto, and Staravia turned to Drake with smug grins.
Drake sighed. "Great job, guys. But maybe don't torture them next time, huh? End it quick."
LEVEL UP – CURRENT LEVEL: 22
As he considered where to assign his points, the group descended to the next floor.
What they saw stunned them all.
WELCOME TO THE 10TH FLOOR: MIST FOREST
A/N WELL I LIKED THIS CHAPTER ENJOY GUYS 😁😁😁