Continue? Chapter 3.4 : Underground Facility

'The Arm is still out of commission. I should head over there.'

Moving the Earth Wall, Quin makes his way to the Side of the Bear with the Severed Arm.

'And, we're here. Now, to see if I can cut through that thick neck.'

He takes another swing...

It cut...

But not entirely.

'Uh oh.'

The Bear roared in agony.

'Can't... move?'

[Would you like to acquire the Skill {Stun Immunity}?]

'A Stun Skill? That's a problem. If you would.'

[Acquiring...]

'Alright, I can move again. Is it still ali-'

[Acquiring Exp...]

[Calculating...]

"...Did it bleed out?"

"You done?"

Jumping at the noise, he turns to Trayfi.

The others were done with their side of the fight.

"Just about. What about you guys? Anybody hurt?"

"No injuries here. Although, it did take a quick second to recoup after that Roar."

[Complete]

[Choose a Skill]

{Overeating}

{Fulfilling}

{Tank III}

{Claw IV}

{Sharp V}

{Strong Smell V}

{Terrorizing Roar II}

{Steel Body}

{Tough Skin III}

{Strength III}

{Muscle II}

{Aura II}

{Guts III}

{Stomaching IV}

{Night Vision III}

{Sixth Sense II}

{Poison Resistance III} [X]

'Calm Down! That's too many Skills!'

"Give me a moment. I need to check my Status."

"While you do that, I'll start getting some of the Meat and Materials from the Bears."

Resting against a Tree, Quin revised and appraised the Skills.

'Overeating just gives me a bigger stomach. Fulfilling makes Food more, well, Fulfilling. Sixth Sense and Aura sound interesting, but I don't know... Muscle and Strength are both the same, and Steel Body just sounds like a pain... I really don't know what to go with...'

"Brother!"

"Oh, Sayu. How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay, but... I want to ask you something."

"Fire away. What's the question?"

"How did you beat that Bear? I saw your attack bounce off."

"How? I upgraded some Skills using my Points. Why?"

"Points? What points?"

"...Skill Points?"

"Skill... I don't know what those are."

"You... you don't? I thought it was..."

"Master!"

Remi appears from atop the Bear Corpse.

"Remi?"

"I found something you might want to see!"

Getting up, he noticed it.

A Wave of Mana.

'What is that?'

Leaping on the Bear, he saw the problem.

A Large Crystal with Cracked Markings on the inside.

"Is that a Mana Crystal? It's huge."

"It's also leaking an absurd amount of Mana."

Trayfi walked from the Bear's Head towards the Crystal.

"Is that dangerous?"

"Most likely, it'll just deprive itself of Mana. No harm will be done to us, but the Mana may cause a creature to Evolve."

"Creatures? Not just Monsters?"

"A simple Boar can become a large Bull of sorts, or an Eel into a Sea Serpant."

"Okay, now it sounds bad. What should we do about it?"

"Get rid of it in the only way we can. Mel, if you would."

Mel moves up to the crystal.

'??'

Mel engulfs the Crystal with Roots and Vines.

'What is she doing?'

A moment goes by in silence.

Finally, she removes them.

"...The Crystal went dark."

"Master, I feel sleepy..."

"Thank you Mel. You can take a rest. Let's camp here for a while. It's still really early, but we need to take a break after this."

"Nighty night~"

"...So, what did she do exactly?" He turns to Trayfi.

"Do you not remember her {Drain} Ability? It not only steals Life Energy, but also Mana, as well as Spiritual Energy."

"I do remember something like that. And, Spiritual Energy?"

"Similar to Mana, it is used for Spirit Magic, which can be used after making a Contract with a Spirit."

"Spirits... Interesting. So she drained the Mana from the Crystal?"

"She did. Although, I didn't expect her to Rank Up this quickly."

"There's Ranks?"

"Ranks are a little more complicated to explain. In simple terms, Mel is growing stronger due to the Mana she consumed."

'Stronger in what way? ...I guess we'll find out soon.'

"On another not, want some help dismantling the Bears?"

"Oh! I forgot about them! It would be convenient for us if you used {Dismantle}, but if we rely on you for every task, then we won't gain any experience for future occasions."

"Makes sense. Then I'll go back to checking my Status."

"Alright. Sayu, can you go with Remi to fetch some Firewood?" Trayfi asked.

"Yes Ma'am! Remi! Let's explore!"

"Master?" Remi looks at Quin, as if waiting for permission.

"Keep eachother safe."

She lights up, and heads into the Forest with Sayu.

'...I guess I should choose a Skill now. {Steel Body}.'

[Acquiring...]

'I thought about it, and now I know. This World is dangerous. Instead of overall firepower, I should prioritize my ability to defend both myself and others. And...'

{Steel Body}

'I'm surprised. I can make any part of my body as hard as Steel, and I don't necessarily need to literally turn them into Steel. It's more configurable than I thought, and surprisingly doesn't affect my movement. I wonder what else it can do... I do wanna try doing something.'

Taking a nearby Rock the size of his palm, he closes his hand...

Crushing it.

'...That is probably one of the most coolest things i've done so far. Let's check my Stats.'

[Stats] [Points : 50]

{Strength : 40}

{Defence : 40}

{Agility : 40}

{Stamina : 40}

{Magic : 40}

'10 Points into each. Nice.'

[Stats] [Points : 50 -> 0]

{Strength : 40 -> 50}

{Defence : 40 -> 50}

{Agility : 40 -> 50}

{Stamina : 40 -> 50}

{Magic : 40 -> 50}

'It doesn't feel as strange as the first time I did this.'

[Stat Requirements Met]

'...Huh?'

[Acquiring Skills...]

{Rage}

{Fortress}

{Accelerate}

{Iron Lungs}

{Mana Magic}

'...What? Skills? ...Why? Because I raised my Stats a bit? ...Wait, what are the Average Stats of a Human Being? Or Living Things in general? ...I'll ask Trayfi later. For now, my Brain is tired. I'll take a nap for now.'

. . .

. . .

. . .

The Castle

"You've done well. It has only been a few days, and yet you have already managed to acquire so many Skills."

The King sat on his Throne.

Kneeling a few feet in front of him was a Woman with Blonde Hair clad in Armor.

"Who knew that all we needed was a Slave Collar? It just sat in the Treasury for eons. Might as well have put it to use! She's so obedient!"

". . ."

"...It's no fun when they can't speak. You may speak, Hero."

"...I did what you asked. I fought day and night in the Forest, taking Skill after Skill. What more could you want from me? I just want to go home..."

"Home? Ah, I almost forgot that you were an Other Worlder. Forget about it. Unless you acquire the Demon King's Core."

"I can get Stronger! If I get the Core-!"

"Who said it was for you?"

"...Huh?"

"For generations, my Family, the Royal Family of Alchemy and Magic, have been studying for so long the secret to longevity, or better yet, Immortality!"

"...And you think the Demon King's Core is going to help you achieve that?"

"Oh, it will! My Grandfather almost achieved it! He made one, small, itsy bitsy mistake, and BOOM! Off comes the Top if his Roof!"

"Then isn't it too dangerous?"

"Dangerous, yes. Impossible? No! I think you have already noticed my appearance. I was not born with the strongest body, and I was never able to gain any Levels because of it! So, I'm just a Weak, Frail King. However..."

A Heat Wave fills the air.

"Of my entire Family Tree, I was told that my Magic is beyond that of a Top Class Magician!"

"...Fire Magic?"

"Correct! Not only that! I can use Wind Magic just as well! So trapping my Enemies in a Whirlpool of Flames is an Easy Task!"

"...I recall you said there was a Hero before me?"

He stopped.

"...Oh. 'Him'. That rude Other Worlder was no Hero. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have had to resort to using the Collar from the Treasury."

"...Where is he now?"

"Gone. After rudely addressing me in a crude manner, I had him executed and incinerated."

For a moment, Fear filled her eyes, but she quickly hid behind a poker face.

"And... What did you ask of him?"

"All I did was ask him to Slay the Demon King, as well as the Demon Lords that reside within their dungeons! For a Hero, that shouldn't be a difficult task at all!"

'Like hell it isn't!' She thought.

"Do you know what his Ability is?"

"It doesn't matter. He's gone now."

"And if he isn't?"

"...What are you implying?"

"If I can take and gain the Skills of others, who's to say he can't cheat Death?"

"...You..."

'Did I piss him off?'

"...You are much smarter than you look. Guards! Who here remembers the Face of the Previous Hero!?"

2 of the 8 Guards raised their hands.

"Go! Make and Place Wanted Posters all around the City! Hire an Artist if you must! A Bounty of 10,000 Gold Polis!"

The Guards swiftly left the room.

"That is some great thinking you have. I'll reward you a little something."

With a Snap of his fingers, the Collar around her neck began to glow, then dim out.

"There. I retracted some of your Restrictions. There is an old Building near the Castle. I have no use for it. It is yours now."

"...Thank you, King..."

"King Ortzle Gamble IV. I am he 4th in my Family to have this name."

"Thank you, King Ortzle."

"We'll have the Posters up for a Year. If he's alive, he'll come back eventually."

"And if he's not?"

"Then good riddance."

. . .

. . .

. . .