"I didn't join this festival out of my initiative, to be honest. But now that I have, I might as well benefit from it."
Kaal said and cast his spell. It was supposed to be a body-altering spell that temporarily increased his stats by enhancing his muscles. But he had cast it so many times that it ended up becoming his ability.
A distinct mana signature was released from Kaal's body as his stature started increasing. He had started looking more and more like a regular ogre now that he was using his ability. However, he no longer looked like an average ogre in terms of size and muscle definition.
Kaal was as tall as Varhan before his transformation. But he increased his height to 10 feet at first. Then the next stage of transformation took place and it increased his stature from 10 to 12.
"Raaaaaaaargh!"
The Ogre Lord looked at the sky and roared in a beast-like voice as he entered the final phase of his transformation. His eyes dilated and his iris changed color. The gray shade in his eyes had been replaced with white.
The length of his hair increased and its color changed. It turned white and orange-red. The muscles on his body pumped and then pumped up some more. They swelled so much that it started to look like they would soon tear his skin apart.
"What the… has Kaalmaahen received a blessing already?"
A young Ogre Soldier asked another in disbelief. He had only heard that it was difficult for Echidnae to enter the berserk state after receiving clarity. The Echidnae would only be able to access it once they reached a high enough evolutionary stage.
The Ogre Lord near them also had serious expressions as he watched Kaal transform into a very ferocious existence. He looked completely different from his normal appearance. There were no relaxed or welcoming signs on his face anymore. Instead, they were replaced by those of anger and hatred.
The spectator Ogre Lord kept his gaze locked on Kaal while addressing the question the Ogre Soldier had raised beside him.
"No… it's not the effect of a blessing. This is something Kaalmaahen achieved with his natural talent.
Technically, almost all of the children of Echidna are capable of activating their berserk form right from their very first evolutionary stage. But it is difficult for us now that we are here in this confined subspace away from our ancestral world."
The Ogre Soldiers listened and exchanged a few words between themselves. The person who had asked the previous question seemed very curious. He looked at the Ogre Lord before asking him another question.
'Warrior Gol, why is it difficult for the Echidnae who live in this confinement to undergo this transformation?' Is it because of this world's restrictions?"
The Ogre Lord had a light smile on his face as he listened to his junior's question. He looked at the young ogre and studied him a bit before answering.
"No. It has nothing to do with Anfang. It's kind of our fault. We all receive our clarity from Echidna's Authority at a very young age. This clarity grants us various bits and pieces of memories that are passed down to us through our blood."
Kaal had somehow gained his sanity while still maintaining his transformation after a few moments. There was a slight grayish tinge to his white eyes, but only barely. He started swinging his broadsword violently, causing wild gusts to appear around him with deadly wind pressure.
Varhan had maintained his distance from Kaal all this while. He looked composed and calm. But one could tell that he was a bit intimidated by Kaal's transformation.
The Ogre Lord kept track of the ongoing progress with utmost interest. Only when he was sure that the stalemate would continue for a while did he add further.
"Gaining clarity too early and gaining it in a way that is not supposed to be gained isn't always beneficial for the Echidnae. At least not in the long run.
Of course, clarity aids us in our progress. It lets us be more than just mindless beasts. But it has also made us stay away from our base nature. All children of Echidnae are THAT when it comes to their roots– wild and unfettered by restrictions. Restrictions that clarity enforces on us.
So it is only natural that the Echidnae living inside the confinement will lose the way to tap into their true potential and transform.
To gain clarity or to gain the ability to turn into an Echi? Choose one and the other will be found far away from you. It's like trying to walk in opposite directions at the same time."
The Ogre Soldiers listened intently to the Ogre Lord's explanation. By this point, even other Ogre Soldiers had started paying attention to him.
"But then..."
Another Ogre Soldier who was not involved in the conversation pointed at Kaal before asking the question. Turned out he didn't have to explicitly say it as the Ogre Lord anticipated it just fine.
"How can Kaalmaahen enter the state while still being an Ogre Lord? This is what you want to ask, right?
There are many ways to achieve clarity and then seek the state of Echi. The first is to keep on using a body-altering spell that the young children of Echidna don't pay close attention to because it doesn't give them any feasible advantage.
Obtain enough mastery over the spell and it links with your dormant power– enabling you to tap into the state of Echi. The second is to experience potion-induced madness under the supervision of your senior. There are other ways as well. But they would be less effective than these two.
Don't forget who Kaalmaahen's father is. Ror had all the knowledge and means to guide his son in the right direction. I'm sure he must have used all the means at his disposal to give his son a potent advantage over others."
The Ogre Lord smirked as he spoke. He narrowed his eyes on Varhan and looked at him with a sense of pity in his eyes before concluding.
"Kaalmaahen didn't need to use the state of Echi because all his opponents were easy for him to deal with. Varhan's impressive display of power, however, provoked him to use his trump card.
I guess Varhan should celebrate that he managed to make Kaalmaahen go all out. Nothing less could be expected from someone who is going to be a final sacrifice."
AN: Don't confuse the word Echi with Ecchi. :p
