Chapter 3: Siphon
"What?!" Sol exclaimed as he looked at the notification screen.
Immediately opening the status page, Sol saw what he had striven for the last 4 years.
Name: Sol
Race: Human
Talents: [Siphoner]
Level: 25
Exp: 10,060/35,000
HP: 200
MP: 100
Str: 25
Vit: 20
Agi:30
Int: 10
Wis:10
Available Stats: 25
Talent Skills:
[Siphon] Lv 1, [Analysis] Lv 1
Passive Skills:
[Basic Swordsmanship] Lv 2, [Basic Trapmaking] Lv 1
Active Skills:
"Haha… Hahaha!" Sol started laughing, and tears flowed out as he felt the weight that had been holding him down for the past 4 years disappear.
After a few minutes, he calmed himself down and looked back at his status screen but this time confused.
"I have never heard of this talent and the skill that shares its name, though I have heard of analysis. It's a common skill usually given to talents in production or inspections. Is my talent related to production?"
Sol then opened the description of his talent to gain a better understanding.
[Siphoner]: The body has a high affinity for adapting and learning from others. Able to take the skills of recently slain beings and adapt their abilities to your body. Unlocks [Siphon] and [Analysis] skills.
[Siphon] Lv 1: Siphon 1 skill from a recently dead being.
[Analysis] Lv 1: Allows one to view the status of items and others.
"So I can essentially learn every skill?! No wonder this took so long to unlock."
Eager to try out his new skill, he looked back at the Thunder Wolf King and used [Analysis] on it.
Name: N/A
Race: Thunder Wolf King
Talents: [Natural Leader], [Lightning Affinity]
Level: 50
Talent Skill:
[Group Enrage] Lv 5, [Thunder Blast] Lv 8
Passive Skills:
Active Skills:
[Leap] Lv 4, [Body Slam] Lv 4, [Claw Attack] Lv 7
"So the attack that one-shotted Jayce was [Thunder Blast]... The way the Thunder Wolf King used it to attack and move quickly is incredible. I have to grab that skill."
Sol then used [Siphon] on the Thunder Wolf King and selected [Thunder Blast]. He then got a system prompt.
Siphon failed, unable to obtain talent skill without related talent.
"What? Does that mean I can only go for general skills?"
Sol then contemplated a bit and decided to go with [Claw Attack] as he didn't have any active attack skills.
Siphoned [Claw Attack], adapting technique to body…
Suddenly Sol's mind was flooded by the technique. He saw himself holding a sword as he gathered mana on the edge of his blade and slashed downwards. The effects were plain to see; it was much faster and stronger. It then showed himself using [Slash] in a myriad of directions.
This went on for what felt like months until suddenly the Sol in his mind sheathed his sword.
Learned [Slash] Lv 2!
Sol then opened his eyes and looked around himself but saw that nothing had changed at all; it all happened in an instant.
"I see… I can learn general skills, and [Siphon] will ingrain them into my mind and body. It also seems like it adapted the [Claw Attack] into something I could actually do, since I don't have claws to perform it." Sol said as he then went to check his new skill.
[Slash] Lv 2: Gathers mana in the blade to increase the power of an attack. 20% increased damage. Mana cost: 10
While Sol was glad to finally have a real skill, he then gazed at the dead direwolves nearby and got an idea.
"[Siphon]!"
Siphoned [Claw Attack], adapting technique to body…
…
After siphoning the skills of 60 dire wolves, Sol maxed out [Slash] and got a prompt.
[Slash] reached max level, evolve skill?
Sol immediately nodded his head and said, "Of Course!"
[Slash] evolved into [Cross Slash]!
[Cross Slash] Lv 1: Gathers mana to the blade to increase the power and speed of an attack, slashing twice. 150% increased damage. Mana cost: 25
Every level of [Slash] increased the power of the attack by 10%, but when it evolved, it directly jumped by 50%!
"It needed way more dire wolves than I thought it would take." Sol contemplated as he realized that the reason it took more and more for each level up is not just the experience required but also that lower-level skills have diminishing returns on increasing a higher-leveled skill.
"For the rest of the wolves, I'm going to focus on siphoning a [Leap] rather than [Body Slam], as all of them also have it and only a few have body slam."
"I also can't imagine myself slamming my body into my opponents…"
After another round of [Siphon], he managed to gain and level [Leap] to level 6.
[Leap] Lv 6: Launches the user in a burst of Speed. Distance: 11 feet. Cooldown: 5 minutes.
"This can be used for approaching or escaping enemies quickly."
There was also another gain from his repeated siphoning.
[Siphon] leveled up! (1 -> 2)
[Siphon] Lv 2: Siphon 2 skills from a recently dead being. Increased efficiency in retaining levels.
Once done with all the wolves, Sol then looked towards the dead party members. After contemplating for a minute, he then gathered his resolve and walked towards the closest person, the huntress.
"I am sorry, but I hope you understand. I will still try to give you a proper burial." Sol said as he used [Analysis] on the nearest body.
Name: Juliana
Race: Human
Talents: [Hunter], [Wind Archer]
Level: 42
Talent Skill:
[Tracker Vision] Lv 6, [Wind Shot] Lv 2
Passive Skills:
[Intermediate Bowmanship] Lv 2, [Basic Trapmaking] Lv 4, [Silent Steps] Lv 4, [Tracking] Lv 6
Active Skills:
[Power Shot] Lv 6, [Rapid Fire] Lv 6, [Basic Wind Magic] Lv 1
The huntress, Juliana, had way more skills than the Thunder Wolf King that it made it difficult to decide which two to take. Eventually, Sol decided on [Basic Wind Magic] and [Silent Steps], as he doesn't have a bow to use half the skills available and would rather not steal from a corpse.
That was a line he wasn't willing to cross.
Learned [Silent Steps] Lv 2!
[Silent Steps] Lv 2: Reduces noise made by 20%.
Learned [Basic Wind Magic] Lv 1!
[Basic Wind Magic] Lv 1: Can cast basic wind spells, mana cost varies.
After that Sol repeated the process with the two Swordsmen choosing the same skills they both had, [Intermediate Swordsmanship] and [Parry].
Learned [Intermediate Swordsmanship] Lv 3!
[Intermediate Swordsmanship] Lv 3: Increases sword damage by 130%.
Learned [Parry] Lv 4!
[Parry] Lv 4: 20% to parry attacks with a weapon.
After that Sol made his way to the wizard's body and used [Analysis] on it as well.
"Huh, I thought the wizard would have loads of different skills but he has fewer than the huntress."
Name: Nathan Trevant
Race: Human
Talents: [Fire Affinity], [Fast Comprehension]
Level: 46
Talent Skill:
[Combustion] Lv 7, [Accelerate Mind] Lv 5
Passive Skills:
[Quick Cast] Lv 6, [Increased Mana Regeneration] Lv 5, [Intelligence Up] Lv 2
Active Skills:
[Intermediate Fire Magic] Lv 6
"I guess that's why he essentially only casted explosions during the fight."
The wizard seemed to have focused on a few skills and leveled them higher than spending his energy on multiple skills like the huntress and swordsmen did.
With not many options Sol quickly decided on [Intermediate Fire Magic] and [Quick Cast].
Learned [Intermediate Fire Magic] Lv 4!
[Intermediate Fire Magic] Lv 4: Can cast intermediate fire spells, mana cost varies.
Learned [Quick Cast] Lv 4!
[Quick Cast] Lv 4: Increases spell cast speed by 40%.
Finishing up with the wizard, he finally made his way to Jayce that was launched far away from the fight with a somber look.
'I know he treated me like worthless trash, but he never crossed the line or committed any heinous acts. And whenever there was trouble in the town he was the first to step up. As much as I didn't like him, he doesn't deserve death for it.'
Sol then sighed as he used [Analysis] on his corpse.
Name: Jayce
Race: Human
Talents: [Iron Wall], [Robust]
Level: ???
HP: 25/???
MP: ???
Str: ???
Vit: ???
Agi:???
Int: ???
Wis:???
Talent Skill:
[???] Lv ?, [Grit] Lv ?
Passive Skills:
[Intermediate Shield Mastery] Lv 6, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?
Active Skills:
[???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?
Showing a completely different status from all the previous bodies, Sol was at first confused. But as he stared at Jayce and saw the very slow rising and falling of his chest, the truth dawned upon him.
"He's alive?!"