27

The familiar notification of the floor being cleared floated before my blurry vision. Somehow managing to be in full focus despite the fact my vision was failing. That meant the display before me was entirely in my head. That thought gave me little comfort. If anything it actually made me feel worse. 

Knowing that this thing was in my mind, and not just floating before me was an annoyance I didn't have time to think about right now. I refocused my attention on the massive worm through the words floating before me. I needed to choose a reward. Three rewards floated before me. The first didn't interest me much. 

Although my armor was getting worn I didn't see the need for more until this armor was destroyed completely. The second reward was some more free stat points. It was tempting, but not the most attractive reward was the last one. 

Wyrm armor 

+5 free stat points

Spatial ring

That lack of description made me stare at the options a bit harder. The armor was a good option. It really was. With my pained wounds now healed I could feel the air on more patches of skin then I cared to have exposed. I frowned to myself. 

The stat points were another reliable option, but the spatial ring had a certain ring to it. An allure, and a curiosity drew me to that option. I had to make sure my soul fangs were in my hands most of the time or risk losing them. Even if it wasn't very large I could use something to store my materials. Even if it wasn't much. 

Something was better then nothing after all. I chose the spatial ring, and it appeared in the air before me. I reached out my hand, and caught the ring once the light faded, and it began to fall. A description appeared before me unprompted. 

Unbound spatial ring. 

This spatial ring is not currently bound to an owner. A small amount of blood, and mana is all that is needed to bind the ring to an owner. Spatial rings are finicky magic items. Caution should be taken when adding items or they may be forcibly expelled should the ring be too full. 

The system rarely gave me information freely like this. I used one of my soul fangs to prick my finger, and allowed blood to flow into the ring along with my mana. The ring ate it up. Turning liquid as the ring wrapped itself around my finger. A thin presence appearing in my mind. 

It was just a small space in my mind that came to the forefront when I focused it. The image would flick to the back of my mind once dismissed. I focused my attention on the two soul fangs in my grip. Mana enveloped them gently before they both vanished. Appearing a moment later in the new space in my mind. 

That space seemed to be next to my conscious mind, and didn't interfere with my thoughts. I think it would give me a headache otherwise. I laid in the shade of the dead beast. Deciding to put off parting it out until I'd slept. Needing the shade from the sun to sleep comfortably. 

As soon as I laid down my eyes closed, and sleep hit me like a hammer. Knocking me out cold. My sleep was fitful. Laced with the same dream of the blue ice dragon. I was starting to get a read on the creatures emotions with each dream. 

Disdain, anger, and superiority. She looked down on me. I was more, and more certain with each dream that that was the way she felt of me. I was too small for her. Too weak. 

Too human. She was female of that much I was sure, and I was pretty sure that the only reason she was still tolerating my presence was because she needed my work for her to gather the power she needed to hatch. The mana infused blood that my body treated as poison seemed to knock numbers off the kills needed for her to hatch. I planned to drink the blood from the big worm once I woke. It's nasty flavor touched my tongue as I sat on the cold stone in my dreamscape. 

Staring down the ice dragon as she ignored me. I'd never felt cold while dreaming before. At least I didn't feel cold in a dream state, and remain asleep. I'd usually wake up. Was I imagining this cold? 

Was that why I didn't wake up when I dreamed of the dragon anymore? If the cold wasn't real that might be why it was so easy for me to sleep through it. Then again I might be getting dragged into the dragon's mind while I was sleeping. There was a very real possibility we were slowly becoming more connected the closer the egg got to hatching. The stale smell of dried blood woke me the next morning. 

I felt the stiffness in my limbs more then I cared to mention. I stepped closer to the corpse. Touching it gently as I parted it out. Once again thankful for the assistance of the system. My gentle touch was more then enough to activate the temporary skill the system granted me. 

Large piles of beast blood, meat, skin, and bone lay before me. The meat was largely harmless once the blood was removed. Cooking it was the best way to make it completely harmless. I shrugged off the thought as I reached out to store the meat in my new ring. The ring wasn't very big as the meat filled half the space within. 

It was a lot of meat, but it showed me the limits of the spatial ring clearly. It wasn't some infinite storage device I could use freely. Movies, books, and anime had given me a wrong impression. I was disappointed in the small space, but it was something I desperately needed. I picked up the core, and tossed it into the spatial ring as well. 

Now I needed to think. The blood did harm me, but the benefits outweighed the drawbacks. I didn't need to leave this floor until I wanted. The message in the corner of my vision was annoying, but nothing more. I could sit here, and consume the blood before leaving, and starting again at the beginning.