Application of Loran's Ring

Instead of channeling his mana directly into the hobgoblin's horn as usual, Kyoma channeled his mana through Loran's ring first before entering the hobgoblin's horn as he cast summon undead. This allowed Kyoma to use 30% less mana. As Kyoma cast the spell, the hobgoblin's horn seemed to sprout roots made of red matter. The matter then condensed to form bones, muscles, blood, and skin before merging into a new mutated hobgoblin.

Name: Hobgoblin (Mutated, Pet)

Race: Monster

Level: 10

HP: 1500/1500

MP: 150/150

Strength: 85

Agility: 15

Intelligence: 3

Passive Skill: Sledgehammer mastery (Level 2), Intimidate (Level 2), Lesser Strength Boost (Level 2)

Active Skills: Berserk (Level 2), Smash (Level 1)

Description: This is a mutated form of a hobgoblin. Strengthened by a curse that was absorbed before death, the hobgoblin possessed tremendous strength. It specialised in heavy blunt weapons. It is rumoured that when it reaches critical health, it will lose all rationality and gain a bunch of power. It is fiercely loyal to its master.

Kyoma noted, "Interesting, it appears that the curse remains on the hobgoblin," as he felt exhausted. Summoning a creature that was 5 levels above him seemed to have bottomed out his mana, and he felt all his painstakingly recovered strength being sapped away immediately. "If it's not for the assistance provided by Loran's ring, I doubt that I could even summon the hobgoblin even at full MP," he added. "However, the mutated hobgoblin I summoned appears to be slightly weaker than the hobgoblin I fought," Kyoma noticed. Monsters that were native to a dungeon could draw strength from the dungeon. Similarly, when monsters were killed in the dungeon, the strength provided by the dungeon would be returned to it. This explained why only monsters in the dungeon disintegrated upon death, whereas monsters in the outside world, such as the fieldrabbits, became corpses upon death.

"Perhaps the reason why the hobgoblin is weaker is because it lost its 'Master of Dungeon' title," Kyoma hypothesised, which turned out to be correct. "Since I was able to use curse energy to enhance the hobgoblin, I wonder if I can do the same for my wind cutter rabbit and dark goblins," Kyoma wondered as he glanced at the three innocent undead. Sensing a threatening gaze, the three undeads shuddered and gave a pleading smile to their master. Kyoma commanded his three fellow undeads to come closer for a thorough examination. Using his purer form of mana, Kyoma inspected the three undeads' bodies and found that they were currently using his old, impure mana, which was as murky as mud. Consequently, Kyoma infused a fresh stream of mana into each of their bodies through the Loran's ring. His purer mana acted like clean water flushing out dirt clogging a pipe, driving out the impure mana and penetrating deeper and narrower recesses of their bodies. This granted them a qualitative improvement similar to Kyoma's, but without the cries of agony that he had experienced.

"Squeak squeak squeak!!" The windcutter rabbit emitted a series of excited squeaks upon feeling the significant improvement in the mana coursing through its body. It looked up at Kyoma with a look of reverence and adoration. The two dark goblins also experienced a surge of joy from the infusion of pure mana and they clasped hands and began to jump in circles, engaging in the simple and carefree behaviour that goblins typically exhibit when they are pleased.

After Kyoma cast appraisal on his undead creatures, he noticed that even though their stats remained the same, their movements became more agile and the force of their attacks increased. Despite this improvement, there was no visible change in their stats. Kyoma found this strange and decided to ask his windcutter rabbit a question that had been on his mind since the boss fight. "Rabbit, why are you able to move faster than the two dark goblins despite having a lower agility score?" he asked. Although Kyoma thought the question was unimportant, it still bothered him. The windcutter rabbit's agility score was 25, while the melee goblin's score was 49.

As if answering Kyoma's question, the windcutter rabbit inflated its chest and stood on its hind legs to emphasize its superior speed compared to the dark goblins. It seemed that stats were not the absolute measure of an entity's abilities. Stats only provided a rough measurement of a living creature's potential. Techniques could allow one to utilize their stats to the fullest, using their power as efficiently as possible. For example, take two hypothetical adult males with similar stats. One person runs with their arms tied to their body, while the other swings their arms for an extra burst of momentum and stability. The person with their arms tied will undoubtedly run slower than the one with free arm movement. Similarly, the windcutter rabbit's physique, with its spring-like hind legs and streamlined body, allowed it to dash faster than a goblin with fragile legs and a heavy mace that hindered its movement, like tying one's arms to its body.

Afterwards, Kyoma attempted to strengthen his mutated hobgoblin using the regular lesser goblin horns he had accumulated through "Assimilation." However, there was no response when he cast the spell. The energy emitted from the hobgoblin outright rejected the regular goblin horns, rendering them incompatible. Despite both being goblins, it appeared that they were different species. In the case of the two dark goblins, after evolving into dark goblins, they were no longer able to absorb the horns of regular lesser goblins. Evolution is considered a qualitative change in terms of life rating, and therefore affects the species.

After an hour of rest, Kyoma's MP had fully regenerated and the game of tag between the four undead creatures had come to an end. However, it was less of a game and more of a merciless bullying of the hobgoblin, who was unable to keep up with the speedy windcutter rabbit and the nimble dark goblins. The rabbit had been "it" and had swiftly tagged the melee dark goblin, who then tagged the archer, and finally the hobgoblin. The chunky hobgoblin struggled to keep pace with the smaller creatures, while the rabbit taunted it with mischievous jumps. Feeling dejected, the hobgoblin tried to tag Kyoma, but his fierce "DO NOT DISTURB ME" expression stemming from his lack of sleep caused the hobgoblin to back down. The agile undeads continued to have their fun, enjoying their advantage over the slower hobgoblin.

"Time to head back" Kyoma instructed his four undead companions that it was time to leave. They exited through the newly opened stone door that led to a dimly lit spiral staircase, which eventually led to the outside world. The wooden door at the end of the spiral staircase turned out to be a part of a large tree. As they stepped outside, Kyoma took a deep breath of the cool, refreshing breeze of nature. Unlike the air inside the dungeon which was stale and filled with the odour of unsanitary goblins, the air provided by nature is the best! His undead companions attempted to mimic Kyoma's action by taking a deep breath as well, but Kyoma chuckled at them, reminding them that they didn't need to breathe. The undeads slouched their backs in disappointment, wishing they could enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Kyoma found their reaction amusing and imagined that the undeads were probably thinking, "What's the point of living if we can't even enjoy the smallest thing in life? Oh wait, we are already dead ... KEKEKEKE ...?"

"Squeak squeak squeak!!!" Excited squeaks filled the air as the adorable windcutter rabbit perched on Kyoma's shoulder expressed its enthusiasm, having experienced its first dungeon raid with its seemingly all-knowing master. Kyoma shared the rabbit's excitement, pondering what lay ahead in his life as a reincarnated adventurer. Wasting no time, Kyoma set off for Greenridge town to turn in his quest and sell the excess goblin horns he had collected.

...

While heading back to Greenridge town, Kyoma had a theory he wanted to test. If it was successful, he would gain a power even greater than the cheats possessed by other reincarnated beings in other fantasy novels. He ordered his three most agile undeads to bring back 10 regular rabbit corpses, which they did in no time. It was like a veteran player who returned to the beginner's levelling area, killing the monsters effortlessly. After Kyoma gathered the ten corpses, he promptly cast "Summon Undead". Although he could only summon four undeads at once, he wasn't strictly limited to four. With the help of a 30% mana reduction from the Loran's ring, he was able to strain himself to summon a fifth undead, but doing so felt like carrying an imaginary weight too heavy to sustain in the long run. However, since the undead rabbits were low-levelled, temporarily controlling five was not an issue. Kyoma then used "Assimilate" nine times in a row to evolve the regular rabbits into windcutter rabbits. But the newly evolved windcutter rabbit appeared weak, lacking sustainable energy to survive. To merge both windcutter rabbits together, Kyoma used "Assimilate" on his original windcutter rabbit. But he felt the same overwhelming imaginary weight, halting the process before assimilation could even take place.

Kyoma's experiment had failed, and he felt the weight of disappointment and exhaustion settle onto his shoulders. The new windcutter rabbit lay lifeless on the ground, its mana supply cut off by Kyoma's failed attempt at assimilation. He realised that his current level and mana control were not yet sufficient for such a task, but he remained determined to continue his training until he could master it. Gently, he picked up the lifeless body of the windcutter rabbit and placed it into his sack alongside the lesser goblin horns, his eyes filled with a mixture of regret and determination. With that, he continued on his journey back to Greenridge town, ready to turn in his quest and continue on his path as a reincarnated adventurer.

As Kyoma made his way back to Greenridge town, he noticed something strange happening along the road. A group of rough-looking men had surrounded a helpless group of people who were beside a carriage loaded with goods. Kyoma tried to get a closer look, but the men were armed and dangerous. He couldn't see what was happening, but he could hear the sounds of struggle and fear. As he moved closer, one of the men noticed him and turned his gaze towards Kyoma. The man's eyes were filled with malice and hunger, as if he were a predator stalking his prey. Kyoma could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he realised that he was in danger. He tried to back away slowly, but the men were advancing towards him. Kyoma drew his dagger, ready to fight for his life. The air was thick with tension as Kyoma prepared for the worst.