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Status
Name: Leon (B-741)
Type: Bacterium
Specks: 4
Mind: One, split across all
Food Level: 0% (just split)
Next Split: 24 hours
Traits:Eat Faster: 20% quicker eating Cluster Mode: Sticks together, moves as one
Next Upgrade: At 8 specks
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Leon—or B-741, whatever the hell the system called him—stuck to the plant fiber, four little specks chewing through it. The jungle was a noisy mess up there, all bugs and dripping water, but down here, he didn't hear squat. Just him, four of him, eating like it was a job. His head was still his own, stretched across all four specks, ticking away.
"Twenty-four hours," he thought, scratching at it. "Four to eight. Keeps going, I guess." The plant fiber was tough, like gnawing on string, but it kept him fed. Better than that bug shell he started with.
[Food Level: 10%. Next Split: 23 hours.]
"Alright, moving," he muttered in his head. That Eat Faster thing was pulling its weight, cutting time off. Cluster Mode kept his specks bunched up, like a tight little gang. He gave 'em a nudge—slow as hell, but they stuck together. "Not great, but it's something," he thought.
The system didn't say much, just let him grind. Time crawled, jungle doing its thing—something buzzed overhead, ground shook a bit. He didn't care. Kept eating, waiting for the next beep.
[Food Level: 25%. Next Split: 20 hours.]
"Quarter done," he said to himself. The plant fiber was thinning out, like it was about to run dry. "Gotta find more soon," he thought. "Not sitting here starving."
Then the system hit him with something out of nowhere.
[Shop Unlocked. Nutrient Points available: 10.]
"Shop?" Leon's brain jerked. "What the hell's that? I get a store now?"
[Shop System: Earn Nutrient Points (NP) from splitting. Spend NP on upgrades, tools, or boosts. Current NP: 10.]
"Ten points," he muttered in his stretched-out head. "Alright, system, what's the deal? Show me the goods."
The system flickered, like it was waiting for him to ask.
[Shop Menu:
- Speed Boost: Move 15% faster (Cost: 5 NP)
- Extra Mouth: Eat 10% quicker (Cost: 8 NP)
- DNA Evolution: Unlock basic genetic tweaks (Cost: 10 NP)
More options at 16 specks.]
"DNA Evolution?" Leon's mind did a little hop. Speed Boost sounded decent—crawling like a slug was getting old. Extra Mouth? Tempting, but he was already eating faster than most. Then there was that DNA thing, sitting there all shiny and mysterious.
"Ten points on the nose," he thought. "System's baiting me. Alright, tell me about this DNA."
[DNA Evolution: Unlocks basic genetic customization. Modify traits, adapt to environment, or boost survival. First unlock comes with one free tweak. Next tweak at 16 specks. Cost: 10 NP.]
"Free tweak, huh?" Leon chewed on that, literally and figuratively. The plant fiber was almost gone now, just a few stringy bits left. "So I pop this, and I can mess with what I am? Like, turn into some freak-ass bacterium?"
[Affirmative. Initial tweak options:
Acid Spit: Damage food sources for easier eating
Hard Shell: 10% damage resistance
Light Sense: Detect nearby food or threats]
"Acid Spit's badass," he thought, picturing his specks hocking little globs. "Hard Shell's smart, though—jungle's a damn warzone. Light Sense? Eh, maybe if I was blind." He rolled it around, all four specks humming as one. "Gotta pick something. DNA's the move—long game."
[Food Level: 50%. Next Split: 16 hours.]
"Halfway there," he said, nudging his crew toward the last scraps. "Alright, system, let's roll the dice. Buy DNA Evolution."
[Purchase confirmed. Nutrient Points: 0. DNA Evolution unlocked. Select initial tweak.]
"Acid Spit," he decided quick. "Break food down faster, eat faster, split faster. That's the vibe."
[DNA Evolution applied. Trait added: Acid Spit. Specks now secrete weak acid to soften food sources. Effect: +15% eating speed.]
Leon felt it kick in—a little tingle across his specks, like they were juiced up. He aimed at the plant fiber's leftovers, and his crew let loose. Tiny sizzles popped off, the fiber melting into mush. "Hell yeah," he thought, digging in. "That's something good."
[Food Level: 60%. Next Split: 15 hours.]
"Fifteen percent boost on top of Eat Faster?" He grinned internally.
"Good," he thought, continuing to devour everything in his path.
Many Hours later
[Food Level: 98%. Next Split: 1.2 hours.]
"Hmm... System?"
[Yes.]
"Where am I?" he asked.
[Current location: Unknown Forest on this planet. Planet Name: Unknown.]
"..."
"Wow, now I definitely know exactly where I am," he muttered with heavy sarcasm, focusing back on his meal.
"By the way... is this world normal? Or like, a magical kind of world?" he asked, still unsure what kind of place he'd ended up in.
After all, transmigration was real. And so was the fact that he became a bacterium. If that could happen, then magic should totally be on the table too—right?
[Analyzing...]
There was a short pause before the system responded.
[Energy fluctuations detected: Mana signatures present. Classification: High-magic world.]
His chewing slowed for a second.
"...Mana? So it is real?" he whispered, eyes wide.
[Affirmative.]
He blinked.
"Holy crap..."
"..."
"But why does it even matter? I'm just a tiny bacterium—it's not like I'm some dragon or a slime..." he thought, sighing internally.
Still, he focused back on eating. Right now, evolving was the only path forward. Only through evolution could he hope to gain the ability to interact with the world, maybe even communicate with other life forms someday... or something.