Empusa are one of the two races born between Vida and Zanalpadna. Their existence has been forgotten outside the Boundary Mountain Range for a long time, but they are certainly a fully-fledged, Vida-created race. They have lifespans of four hundred years, and in Zanalpadna, they co-exist with the Arachne and live in the same marital groups. It seems that when they marry into other nations, they adopt the marital customs of those nations. Empusa have a base Rank of 4. But they are a race with a meager talent for magic, so few of them use elemental magic.
Appearance
They have appearances that look as if praying mantises and women have been combined, and they have a pair of sickle arms in addition to a pair of arms that look like those of a human. But like praying mantises, it seems that they have a limited ability to fly and they are unable to fly freely over long distances. Their wings are mostly used to glide. Many Empusa individuals are tall compared to human women, and some have heights of over two meters.
Their exoskeletons are about as strong as those of small-build Arachne, about the same as leather armor. But the sickles of even Empusa children are far stronger and sharper than cheaply-made weapons. The sickles of those who have increased their Rank multiple times are apparently not inferior even when compared to magic swords made of Mythril or Adamantite.
Temperament
There are even less Empusa living as civilians than Arachne; it is safe to say that they are non-existent. As their bodies resemble those of humans more closely, it is likely that they can work as adventurers in a greater variety of environments. About half of Empusa choose to be scouts while the other half become frontline warriors, and there is no small number of offense-oriented shield-bearers who use their sickle-arms to attack and their other two hands to hold shields.
Like the Arachne, many Empusa individuals yearn to become Ninja and Bushi. Like the Arachne, they can acquire the Samurai and Kunoichi Jobs, but with Zanalpadna’s divine protection, they can acquire the Mantis Tamer Job, a special Tamer-type Job that allows them to tame praying mantises rather than spiders.
Reproduction
The Empusa’s view on love is so strange that one cannot help but to question whether they are really women. When appealing to members of the opposite gender, they put a heavy emphasis on showing how strong, attractive and rich they are. It would seem that the gender roles are reversed, but if one thinks about it rationally, the Empusa are a race specialized for hunting and combat as their sickles would suggest, and this might be only natural if one considers that they live within the Boundary Mountain Range, an environment surrounded by Devil’s Nests.
Empusa have the same culture of giving necklaces of deep affection as the Arachne; they symbolize friendship if given to members of the same gender and love if given to members of the opposite gender. They use the husks from their molts to create the necklaces like the Arachne, but as Empusa cannot produce threads, they request Arachne individuals with whom they have close relationships to provide threads in order to assist in the creation of the necklaces. For the Arachne being requested to do this, this holds the same meaning as being given a necklace of deep affection.
They produce children at the same pace of once every ten years or so like the Arachne, laying clutches of multiple eggs twice or three times over their lifetimes.
Transformation Rituals
The ritual to turn a member of a non-Vida-created race into an Empusa requires the same methods as the Arachne ritual. The difference is that a praying mantis is used instead of a spider, and they are wrapped in foamy mucus instead of threads.
Monster Explanation
The below information is a summary of the descriptions in the Literature Manuscript of the Ancient Times, which was restored by the mages of the Mages’ Guild in the Amid Empire.
They are a female-only race of monsters with the characteristics of praying mantises, and their typical Rank is 4. They are highly intelligent but also ferocious, and because they act in groups unlike regular praying mantises, they are highly dangerous.
In addition to regular arms, they also have a pair of arms that have sharp sickles from the wrist onwards, and they manipulate these skillfully with the Unarmed Fighting Technique skill.
They have wings growing from their backs, but like praying mantises, their ability to fly is limited. They are mostly used for gliding.
Also, some of them are capable of using Camouflage, allowing them to blend into their surroundings like praying mantises.
As they are a unisexual race, they require males of other races for mating, but Empusa only desires human males and males of Vida’s races. For this reason, they are considered to be more dangerous than Orcs.
After mating, abducted men are eaten to provide the nutrition necessary to lay eggs. Following this, Empusa lay one or multiple eggs, which 'hatch after approximately a year. Children molt repeatedly, becoming adults after approximately ten years.
They are long-lived for monsters some individuals have lived for over two hundred years.
Occasionally, children of the male parent’s race are born from the eggs=. It is thought that if these children are girls, they are immediately eaten while males are raised until they are old enough to breed.
The existence of higher-Rank races such as Empusa Berserkers, Empusa Slayers, and Empusa Assassins has been confirmed; they are extremely dangerous monsters.
However, it seems that they are inadept in the use of magic; it is fortunate that there are almost no Empusa Mages.
Their sickles can be used as weapons just as they are, and their tough carapaces and bones can become materials for armor, while their wings can be used as an ingredient for Alchemy if turned into a fine powder.
Also, the Magic Stones that can be harvested from their hearts are well-suited for creating wind-attribute Magic Items.
However, Empusa have not been seen in the Bahn Gaia continent for several centuries. It is thought that Empusa have been successfully eradicated in this continent.
It is truly fortunate that the eradication of a race of such evil monsters has been successful. For some reason, Empusa are not monsters that appear in Dungeons, so the Bahn Gaia continent will never see Empusa again unless some foolish tamer brings them from another continent in the future.
However, the possibility of Empusa having survived in the southern region of the continent beyond the Boundary Mountain Range, where monsters run rampant, cannot be ruled out.
