With the Magic Stone Absorption of the Bloody Dile finished, Rei decided to postpone testing his newly acquired Pain Burst until they encountered a non-undead opponent—specifically one capable of feeling pain. With that settled, they moved on to the next magic stone.
"First up is the Desert Lizardman."
Since Seto had already absorbed a Desert Lizardman magic stone to level up his Wind Arrow, it was only natural that this spare stone would go to the Death Scythe.
"Guruuu!"
Seto trilled, nudging Rei as if to say he was fine since he had already gained a skill. Encouraged by his partner, Rei tossed the magic stone into the air and slashed it with his Death Scythe.
However, the magic stone simply vanished like morning mist. No announcement message echoed in his mind.
"Tch."
"You knew there was a chance you wouldn't learn anything, Rei. Besides, you already got a skill from the Bloody Dile, so there is no need to look so down."
Having likely anticipated this outcome, Elena placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke encouragingly. Rei calmed himself at her words, and his irritated scowl softened into a wry smile.
"I did get a skill from the Bloody Dile, but the actual effects of Pain Burst are still a mystery. For that matter, I have no idea why a Bloody Dile would grant a skill like that anyway."
"Well, Beast Magic generally grants skills that inherit the characteristics of the monster, correct? If so, the Bloody Dile must have been that sort of creature."
Rei and Elena had obtained that particular magic stone from an individual that an Earth Crab had nearly killed. Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—when the two monsters had been fighting underwater, a few specimens had been thrown onto the land. Rei and Elena had merely delivered the final blow to one that was still clinging to life.
In other words, since they hadn't actually fought one, they only had hearsay to go on regarding the Bloody Dile's combat style. Rei wondered if it was similar to the crocodiles he had known back in Japan.
"Well, whatever. Next one. We have the Earth Crab and the Spiral Rabbit stones left. What do you think, Seto?"
"Guruuu."
In response to Rei’s question, Seto chose the Earth Crab magic stone without a moment's hesitation. After a brief pause, Rei nodded and tossed the stone to his partner.
"Gurululuuu!"
Seto caught it in his beak and swallowed it whole.
[Seto has learned the skill: Bubble Breath Lv.1]
The announcement message flowed through Rei's mind. Unlike Pain Burst, he understood the nature of this skill immediately. After all, they had seen the Earth Crab use it during their battle.
The breath took the form of countless soap-like bubbles. When these bubbles popped, they transformed into a highly viscous liquid that hindered an enemy's movement. It was certainly flashier than Fire Breath, and Rei felt a bit of hesitation about using it in public for various reasons, but its utility was undeniable. It would be an incredibly effective tool for crowd control.
When Rei explained the skill to Elena, she eventually recalled the Earth Crab's attack. Looking satisfied, she reached out to stroke Seto’s head.
"Kyu-kyu!"
Iero likely didn't understand the specifics of the skill, but seeing Elena and the others happy, the little dragon fluttered its wings and chirped joyfully.
"Seto, for now... right, try using Bubble Breath on that wall."
"Guruuu... Gurululuuu!"
Seto gave a small nod, opened his beak wide, and activated the skill.
Countless tiny bubbles, each barely a centimeter in diameter, sprayed out of his mouth and pelted the wall. Upon impact, they burst like popped balloons, leaving a sticky residue plastered against the stone.
The bubbles were significantly smaller than the ones the Earth Crab had produced. Furthermore, the adhesive strength seemed to be lower, perhaps proportional to the size of the bubbles themselves.
(Given the nature of Beast Magic, I suppose that’s to be expected. I’ll just have to keep absorbing stones from monsters with similar attacks. Even so, Bubble Breath is plenty useful as it is.)
"I see. It is exactly the same as the Earth Crab's attack, though it falls short in terms of range, size, and stickiness," Elena murmured, stroking Seto's head in praise.
A few minutes passed before Elena turned her gaze back to Rei—or more accurately, to the very last magic stone in his hand.
"The final one, then. Let’s see what happens."
Rei murmured as he ran his fingers over the Spiral Rabbit magic stone. He looked at Seto, who trilled and gave a small nod, and then at Elena, who followed suit. Iero remained perched on Elena's left shoulder, wagging its tail and chirping.
"Alright, here goes."
Rei tossed the stone into the air and slashed it with his Death Scythe. The magic stone shattered into mist and vanished.
[Death Scythe has learned the skill: Penetrate Lv.1]
The words echoed in his mind.
"Another ambiguous name..."
Rei clicked his tongue. Much like Pain Burst, the name 'Penetrate' didn't immediately explain its function.
"From your face, I take it you learned something?"
"Yeah. A skill called Penetrate. I might as well give it a try."
Rei walked a short distance away from Elena, Seto, and Iero, leveled his Death Scythe, and spoke.
"Penetrate!"
The moment he activated the skill, he felt a faint, swirling wind begin to coil around the weapon. Confident that the skill was working, he swung the blade of the Death Scythe through the empty air.
However...
"Nothing happened?"
The strike was sharp enough to look as though it were cleaving space itself, but that was a feat Rei could achieve with a normal swing. There was no sign of any additional skill effect.
"What's wrong?"
The sensation of wind coiling around the Death Scythe was still there, so the skill was definitely active. Rei tilted his head in confusion and swung the massive blade again. Once, twice, three times. After the third swing produced no results, the wind eventually dissipated.
"...Is it a skill that just wraps the blade in wind?"
If so, it was a completely useless skill. Elena, who had been watching the display intently, spoke up.
"Rei, Beast Magic absorbs a monster's characteristic attack methods, does it not?"
"Hmm? Yeah, exactly... oh, I get it now."
At her words, Rei recalled how a Spiral Rabbit attacked. It used its long, drill-like horn to unleash a single, devastating thrust capable of piercing straight through a tree trunk. With that in mind, the effect of Penetrate became obvious.
Rei shifted his grip on the Death Scythe, holding it so that the butt end—the spike at the base of the handle—was pointed forward like a spear.
"Penetrate!"
As he thrust the butt end forward, the coiling wind returned. The spike pierced the air with a distinct, focused force. He couldn't tell exactly how much the power had increased, but he could definitely feel the skill augmenting the thrust.
"It only works with the butt end, huh? I won't know the true power until I hit an actual enemy."
"Guruuu, Gurululuuu."
Seto trilled and rubbed his head against Rei to congratulate him on the success. Seeing the Gryphon look as happy as if it were his own success warmed the heart—though the setting was still a dungeon filled with the stench of the undead.
"Come now, Rei, Seto. Let's move on. Now that the absorptions are finished, I want to clear this floor as quickly as possible. This small room is convenient, but it is not somewhere I care to linger."
Agreeing with Elena's sentiment, the group immediately resumed their exploration. They returned to the previous fork and took the right path toward the stairs leading underground. Proceeding straight ahead, they arrived at the three-way junction where they had previously encountered the Anomaly Species. The area opened up like a small hall.
"This is where Tibia and her group came running from when we fought that Anomaly Species Skeleton," Rei murmured, looking down the right-hand corridor.
"Indeed. By the way, you mentioned they helped with the material stripping yesterday. How were they?"
"They were quite helpful. They kept the other adventurers organized; it felt like they were used to being in charge."
"I see. That is—"
"Gurululuuu."
Seto cut Elena off with a low, wary growl. They fell silent and looked toward the right-hand passage. Soon, they heard the light, rhythmic clack-clack-clack of bone on stone.
"You've got to be kidding. Not another Anomaly Species, I hope?"
Rei leveled his Death Scythe with a grimace. Elena and Seto readied themselves as well, while Iero took to the air to stay out of the way.
As the footsteps drew closer, three Skeletons emerged from the shadows. Rei let out a sigh of relief when he saw they were standard specimens.
"Whew, just regular Skeletons. They gave me a scare. Well, I suppose they’ll make decent practice targets. Seto!"
"Gurululululuuu!"
Understanding what Rei wanted, Seto opened his beak and unleashed Bubble Breath. Countless bubbles that looked like soap suds flew through the air and pelted the three approaching Skeletons. Upon impact, they burst into a sticky liquid that glued the monsters to the floor and fused their bones together, rendering them immobile.
Rei and Elena were momentarily impressed by the effect, but their amazement was short-lived. As the Skeletons struggled, the adhesive began to lose its potency.
"Guruuu..."
Seto trilled disappointedly, but Rei reached out to pat his head.
"Don't worry. It's only Level 1. As the level goes up, the stickiness will increase. It’s going to be a very useful skill."
"Gurululu!"
Seto gave a sharp cry, as if promising to do his best. Rei gave him one last pat before turning his attention back to the Skeletons. The monsters were slowly regaining their mobility as they fought against the liquid.
(I told him not to worry, but if it can't even hold a Skeleton for a full minute, its utility is limited to a brief delay for now. Still, even that is more than enough!)
Rei twirled the Death Scythe in his hands. Instead of the massive blade, he aimed the sharp, pointed butt end at the ensnared monsters.
"Alright, after the Bubble Breath, let's see how you handle my new skill!"
He closed the distance in an instant, leveling the butt end of his scythe.
"Penetrate!"
He felt the wind coil around the weapon as he drove the spike forward in a straight line. The moment it struck the first Skeleton's ribs, the wind released its stored energy. The butt end punched straight through the bone and shattered the magic stone inside in a single blow.
As the wind dissipated, Rei used the momentum to sweep the shattered remains aside with the handle. Then, with a fluid twirl, he used the blade to cleave through the remaining two Skeletons and their magic stones.
"The thrusting power definitely went up, but they were just Skeletons. I’d like to test this on something a bit more substantial," Rei murmured, letting out a small, dissatisfied sigh.
[Seto] Skills: Water Ball Lv.3, Fire Breath Lv.3, Wind Arrow Lv.2, King's Intimidation Lv.1, Poison Claw Lv.4, Size Change Lv.1, Tornado Lv.1, Ice Arrow Lv.1, Optical Camouflage Lv.2, Magic Eye of Shock Lv.1, Power Crush Lv.1, Sense of Smell Enhancement Lv.1, Bubble Breath Lv.1 (New)
[Death Scythe] Skills: Corrosion Lv.3, Flying Slash Lv.3, Magic Shield Lv.1, Power Slash Lv.2, Wind Hand Lv.3, Terrain Manipulation Lv.1, Pain Burst Lv.1, Penetrate Lv.1 (New)
Bubble Breath: Spits out countless bubbles (1–3 cm in diameter) that burst on contact into a sticky liquid, immobilizing the target.
Penetrate: Cloaks the Death Scythe in wind to increase the power of a thrust. The effect only applies when attacking with the butt end.