My heart started pounding again. I just went out, and I am facing them again? This is so unfair. But I cannot react like before. I've changed now. I'm not the same man I was before. Wait. Nysera stopped me earlier. She knew, but how? How did she even know?
"Nysera," I whispered, keeping my voice low, "why did you tell me to transform… and do you know those creatures?"
She didn't look at me immediately. Her gaze remained fixed ahead. "Abyssal Trackers," she said at last, her voice calm but heavy.
" They are a special type of tier 3 class, they excel in tracking."
My brows furrowed.
"They can follow anything," she continued. "Traces. Disturbances. Irregularities."
A brief pause.
"The higher variants…" Her eyes narrowed slightly. " can even track Genesis species."
My breath hitched.
"Great Clans use them," she went on. "To hunt for anything that can strengthen their bloodlines."
I swallowed hard.
"Although these abyssal trackers seem to be rogue drifters"
A pause.
"If they were under a House…" Her eyes flicked briefly across the battlefield. " They would bear a sigil." She paused "Either of the House… or the species they serve."
Silence settled between us.
Damn it! What is she saying? Why am I only hearing these words?
[ Because you were just a hatchling before now. ]
I ignored vex and turned to Nysera.
"Nysera… as ignorant as I am, can you explain something to me?"
I hesitated, a bit embarrassed.
"Terms like drifters… the difference between clans and Houses… and what a sigil is."
Nysera didn't mock me. Instead, she answered calmly.
"Drifters are those who don't belong anywhere."
"They don't stay in one place, and they don't serve a single group. They move from region to region, taking on whatever work they find—hunting, tracking, escorting, gathering… sometimes even fighting."
She paused briefly.
"They live by their own terms. Some are reliable, especially those under contract. Others aren't." A faint glance. "But if you see one, it usually means they're either working… or looking for trouble."
She continued without slowing her pace. "Clans and Houses are not the same."
"Clans are groups. Creatures that gathered to survive or grow stronger. They don't always share blood…or species. Some join, some leave. Strength is what holds them together."
She looked at me briefly. "Houses… are different.
"They are bloodlines. Passed down through generations. Their name, their power, their authority, it all comes from lineage."
Her voice lowered slightly. "You can join a clan." A pause. "But you are born into a House."
She continued walking. "Clans can become strong. But Houses…"
"…have always been strong."
I frowned slightly.
"Then how can a clan become a House?"
Nysera didn't answer immediately.
"…It's not easy," she said. "A clan can grow strong. Gather power. Gain influence. But that alone isn't enough."
She slowed slightly, as if choosing her words. "To become a House… a clan must become something that lasts."
I frowned. "What do you mean?"
"A House isn't just strength," she replied. "It's continuity. Not borrowed strength. Not temporary gains."
"It must be something that belongs to them… and their descendants."
I stayed quiet.
"They must also hold something," she continued. "A territory. A resource. A place others cannot easily take."
"Then comes recognition."
"Other Houses must acknowledge them."
I blinked. "…So they need approval?" "Not given freely," she said.
"Earned." Her voice turned colder.
"Most clans that tried… were erased before they even succeeded."
Silence settled between us.
"And if they succeed?" I asked.
Nysera's gaze didn't waver. "Then they stop being a clan."
"They become something others think twice before challenging."
"A House." A pause. "Through survival."
I swallowed. "…And the sigil?"
Nysera raised her hand slightly. For a moment, a faint glow appeared along her skin, soft, shifting, like light moving through water.
"A sigil is a mark," she said. "It shows who you belong to."
The glow faded. "Some wear it openly. Some hide it." Her gaze moved forward again. "But if you know what to look for…You can tell who stands behind someone."
I swallowed.
" Then why do they hunt genesis species?"
" Because they need a stable bloodline. One that can pass down power without losing it." She paused, then added quietly, "That is why they search."
My brows furrowed. "Search… for what?"
"Genesis hatchlings." The words settled heavily. "Power gained through battle fades," she continued. "Borrowed strength disappears, but a Genesis gene…"
Her eyes shifted slightly. "…can become part of a lineage."
My chest tightened.
"They capture them. Study them. Extract what they can," she said, her voice calm but colder now. "If they succeed… that power is no longer temporary."
"It becomes inheritance."
I stayed silent.
"So a clan that acquires something like that…" I muttered.
Nysera nodded once.
"They take a step closer to becoming a House."
Her gaze moved forward again. "And that is why creatures like those…"A brief pause. "…are sent to search."
I hesitated. But there is something that has been bothering me for a while now.
" Then why can I see you, Nysera?"
She rolled her eyes again.
" It's a function of this satchel." She said, " Your consciousness can enter it if someone from the inside communicates with you…or if you will it. "
She paused
" Now focus and look at their status. What do you see? "
I turned towards the spider-like creature.
[ Status ]
[ Name: Abyssal Tracker - Watcher Type ]
[ Species: Abyssal Bead Arachnid ]
[ Classification: Tier 3 - Rogue Class ]
[ Status: Active ]
[ Evaluation: A Rank ]
[ Nature: Surveillance Instinct ]
[ Skill: Multi-Eye Perception ]
[ Skill: Pressure Sensitivity ]
Then to the star like one.
[ Status ]
[ Name: Abyssal Tracker - Grasper Type ]
[ Species: Abyssal Tendril Star ]
[ Classification: Tier 3 - Rogue Class ]
[ Status: Active ]
[ Evaluation: A Rank ]
[ Nature: Capture Instinct ]
[ Skill: Tendril Constriction ]
[ Skill: Area Sweep ]
And finally… the last one.
[ Status ]
[ Name: Abyssal Tracker - Devourer Type ]
[ Species: Abyssal Maw Crawler ]
[ Classification: Tier 3 - Rogue Class ]
[ Status: Active ]
[ Evaluation: A Rank ]
[ Nature: Consumption Instinct ]
[ Skill: Maw Rend ]
[ Skill: Reinforced Carapace ]
" What do you see? " Nysera asked.
"I can see everything… down to their nature and skills," I said, still a bit stunned.
"I see," she murmured, resting a hand on her chin as she thought.
I hesitated. "Wait, Nysera… why did you tell me to transform into my human form and hide?"
"Wouldn't it be easier to hide as a snail?"
She looked at me. "In this world, humanoid form is safer," she said calmly. "It conceals your true form and your origin status. They may know that you're of fish or clam descent but they won't know your exact species."
" Some species are weaker in their origin form. That's why they prefer their humanoid form. "
I frowned.
" But don't they have the ability to see the status window?"
She scoffed. " "Not everyone can. Only specific bloodlines or those who reached higher tiers. "
" Even then there are still multiple ways to hide or fake ones displayed status. "
I nodded slowly.
" I see…so I have this ability because…"
"Yes. Because of the Queen Mother." She harrumphed lightly.
She's annoyed again? What did I do this time?
[ You annoyed her with your presence. ]
"That's not even helpful." I clicked my tongue.
"But Nysera… I seem to be the only one in human form here. Even those behemoths—" She cut me off.
"Abyssal Trackers don't need to hide. Their origin form alone is enough." She said seriously. "No one dares to provoke them."
I opened my mouth again. "What about the—" Before I could finish she transformed. In an instant, her body returned into her clam form… and shut herself inside.
I stared…Seriously? Then I chuckled. "This woman is really something."