Chapter 15 – Friend
I took my time to slowly dissolve the Queen. I didn't want my rashness to affect the skill I get with Assimilate. But I was excited. I wanted to get one of her buffing skills. This fight had taught me that buffs are a great help. I would not have been able to win this fight without my Body Enhancement and Mind Enhancement buffs.
[Skill Spawn acquired through Assimilation.]
"…"
Silence.
"… This is a buff skill right? It's just the skill system coming up with bad skill names again right? No way I would get a skill that lets me shoot out offspring like rockets from my *ahem* right?"
I spoke as if trying to convince myself. Information of the skill started to flow into my head from the Queen. I was relieved because it really wasn't such a skill like I thought it was. Spawn allows me to use mana to release a part of myself, or my mud body rather. I found out before that the mud could not be separated from the core, my ruby. Whenever it lost connection to it, the mud started to evaporate like the dead monsters. But this Spawn skill basically allows me to control the mud remotely.
To test out the skill, I made a mud spear from my left arm and threw it towards the Defender I trapped. It hit the Defender and shallowly pierced its shell. I controlled the mud spear along with the mud spike to encase the Defender and dissolve it. I didn't get a skill.
"I finally have a proper ranged attack now. This skill opens up so many possibilities for me."
I could use Spawn and throw a spear at the enemy and then detonate it. I can also remotely dissolve stuff while I fought so I could always have full MP. I started thinking up various ways to use the skill while finishing up the Queen. I was dead tired, my right shoulder had a hole in it, and my HP was low. Despite all these, I was excited and happy. I was happy that I was able to fight an intense battle, beat all the opponents and survive. I was excited about the new skill and how I could use it to fight against stronger enemies and get their skills too.
'I need to get stronger. Who knows what I might face in this foreign world? There will definitely be enemies stronger than the cockroach army outside of this cave. My main story quest goal will be to find a way back home. I need power to accomplish this. Optional goals are to find out why I was brought to this world and to maybe find a way to teleport back and forth between the two worlds. That way I can bring my Dad here and we can go on an adventure together. My current side quests are to find any signs of my classmates and to find Fran and get some revenge.'
I tried to display these quests with my Analysis skill but it only allows for changes related to stats and skills.
I started to think of this as a game. I had a game like status and skills after all. I might just be trying to use it as a means to cope with the situation I've been thrown in. Me, a normal high school girl, transported to another world where I had a near death experience full of pain and horror and lost three out of four limbs. Merging with some sort of mud monster, I had no other choice but to kill and massacre in order to survive. How could I not have any psychological traumas after this? So far I've only been killing bugs which has less impact to my psyche. But that might change in the future. I need to be mentally prepared for when that time comes.
When I finished dissolving the Queen and Defender, I started to pick up the crystals and green orbs. I also used this time to practice the Spawn skill by remotely controlling mud to pick up items. I tried remotely dissolving a crystal to recover MP but nothing happened. Only when my separated mud reunited with me did I get the MP. At least it recovered MP instantly instead of slowly like when I dissolve stuff on my own. I also couldn't share senses with my separated mud. This means that I couldn't use the skill to make a scout. The Spawn skill must be different from the skill the Cockroach Queen had used during the fight.
Only when I finished collecting my loot and analyzing my new skill did I sit down to take a break. I closed up my wound with mud which was probably very unsanitary. But I couldn't care less about it anymore because more than half of me was already practically mud.
"*Sigh* I hope I can eventually return to normal. Gonna add finding a way to return to normal to my side quests. If I meet any other humans I'll keep my half mud body a secret. They might consider me a monster and try to kill me. Not sure how well I could fight while keeping it a secret."
Even though the mud made me stronger, I can't function as a normal high school girl with it.
"… Hello? …"
I suddenly started to hear a voice while I was resting.
"Is someone out there? Can you please help me?"
Feeling a bit of déjà vu, I raised my guard and looked for the source of the voice. It came from the wall that the cockroaches were initially gathered at. I got up and walked towards it.
'My MP is full and I have a good stock of crystals again. My low HP is a bit worrying so I gotta play it safe.' I thought to myself as I approached the wall. When I got close enough, I saw an indent in the wall. It was quite small, barely big enough for a human to fit through. I didn't immediately enter or let my presence be known to whoever was inside. I became more cautious and distrustful towards voices calling for help after that incident with Fran.
"Anybody? Please, my classmate is dying. *Sob* My phone is dead and I can't see anything. *Hick* I… I'm so scared…"
Hearing the voice and recognizing who it was, I entered the indent. A bit further in was a rock blocking the way.
"Hey! I'm here to help! There are no more bugs nearby."
I said to comfort the girl that was behind this rock. Although I can move it aside by myself, I didn't do so in order to not alert her. After a moment the rock was pushed aside.
"Tha… Thank you for coming. My classmate is bleeding out somewhere here. Please save him. It's dark so I can't see."
I saw her wipe her tears away and put on a tough act. It was just like her to hide her weak side despite the current circumstances she's in.
"Don't worry, Danae. I can see just fine."
"?! Do… Do I know you? How do you know my name?"
"Ouch. I'm slightly offended by that. Do you not recognize my voice after all we've been through together? I thought we were friends."
"… Ruby?"
"Ding ding. Correct. You don't get a prize though."
"Ruby!"
Danae leapt towards me and hugged me. How she did so in complete darkness, I don't know. Girl's instinct?
"Rubyyyy… Waaaaah… J-Jeff he… uuuuuuu… and Jaimar he… Waaaaaah."
"Urrg... There there. Let it out. You can tell me all about it. I'll listen to every word. But do it quickly there's a dude dying over there."
I patted her back as she cried on my shoulder. Which kind of hurt because of my injury.
"*Hick* Jeff got hurt while saving me… And Jaimar… is probably dead…"
CHAPTER END.
Name: Ruby Sen
Age: 17
Race: Half-Human?
HP: 10 [24%]
MP: 15 [100%]
STR: 10
DEF: 10 (+20)
INT: 17
WILL: 15
SPD: 8
<
Assimilate
Mana Manipulation
Physical Resistance
Weaponized Limbs
Foresight
<
Dissolve
Morph
Body Enhancement
Mind Enhancement
Mana Release
Sensing
Analysis
Camouflage
Sculpting
Detonate
Harden
Spawn
<
Tongue Enhancement