“You’re right, I brought you another crystal,” I took out the Efilioll’s crystal from my spatial pocket and laid it on a pedestal. After a couple of seconds, it disappeared in a bright flash of light.
400 points of experience gained!
“This time there was more energy in the crystal,” the goddess said with satisfaction. “This is good. Although my energy is now lower than it used to be, I haven’t been this happy in a long time. What do you want, warrior?
“Can you now give me more time and answer my questions?” I decided to ask, hoping it wouldn’t turn out like the last time when, after the two-legged gave me my ability, she could no longer speak.
“Yes, this time I’ll have more energy for a longer talk,” answered the goddess. “Ask and I will answer any questions you might have.”
“Can you tell me about the “Accumulation” effect in detail and how to use the accumulated energy?” I decided to ask first.
“This is one of the simplest effects that allows you to collect energy from the surrounding area and use it for your own personal goals,” answered the two-legged. “I will give you an example.
You can soak up water, which is evenly distributed throughout your body, and then use it when you need it most. You can do the same with flame energy. Also, this ability, if developed, will allow you to collect several different types of energy. The stronger the ability, the greater the number of available energies in reserve.”
“How do I use it?”
“Just concentrate on what you have absorbed,” answered the goddess. “I see that you are now full of lightning energy. Look at that stone fragment and mentally extend a cord to it. Try it and do not hurry.”
It was hard enough, and it was only on the third attempt that the imaginary cord reached the stone. As soon as it did, a powerful electric discharge went from me to it, stunning me with a loud bang and smashing the target to smithereens. Lightning was noticeably weaker than those they tried to kill me with, but it was still impressive.
"Wow!" I was delighted because if this blow smashed a stone, the spiker should be in a lot of trouble.
“Develop this ability and you can do much more interesting things,” said the goddess.
“Do you know anything about the centipedes that inhabit the southwest area beyond the airless space?”
“Hmm... I don’t know about the airless space, but the centipedes... Their energy is strong and they were on friendly terms with Sel Nurs. Unfortunately, this is all that I remembered now,” the two-legged responded mournfully. “Maybe later I can tell you more because the energy from the crystals that you bring allows restores my memory.”
“What is your name?”
“I... I don’t remember,” the goddess whispered. “But I remember that I have sisters.”
Obviously. This means that the goddess can answer questions about effects, abilities, and the like, but she does not have much information about the past. What happened here? I was torn by curiosity.
“Well, why cannot I hold the claw of the two-legged?”
“Daggers, swords, and other people’s weapons require a certain class,” the statue replied.
“How can I get it?”
“First you have to reach level 25, and then we can discuss this question. Now you need to grow stronger,” the goddess answered, and I did not agree with her, because the class could have made me stronger much earlier, but you can’t argue with this.
"Goddess, sometimes when I think too much, for some reason I die. How can I get to avoid it?" I asked one of the most important questions.
“Goddess... you are right, I am a goddess,” her voice was filled with joy. She must have remembered something. “Perhaps you have a mind so powerful that it is difficult for your present body to take in the all the information that it is trying to use, and this is what kills you. Develop, improve your brain, your nervous system, and other components. As time passes, you will grow stronger, and it will disappear.”
“I fought with various energy creatures and found this,” I showed the statue what I got from the spirits. “How do I use it?”
“Using these items, you can master the magic of Cold and Ice, or rather, Winter abilities, but I don’t know how to do this yet,” said the goddess. “So what is the reward that you want from me?”
“Could you teach me the language of the two-legged?” - I asked.
“A very unusual request, but I can grand it,” the statue replied, and a shining ball appeared and flew from her to touch my forehead, and then disappeared.
Learned ability “The language of the inhabitants of Reynea”!
Description: This ability allows you to use the language of the inhabitants of Reynea, which will help you communicate with the reasonable creatures of any race. Communicate more and develop this ability to succeed in different ways. Remember, communication can be much more effective than many fights.
Level 1
“Now leave me, Sel Nur,” the two-legged asked. “I need to think over lots of things.”
“I am grateful to the goddess,” I thanked the statue and began thinking.
This ability will allow me to talk to the rippers now. There remains only one small matter - will they listen to me?
Chapter 32
Among the mercenaries. The training. Tirliora.
Skal
Sel Er suddenly died and his body disappeared after some time. He began to panic but soon collected himself. Thanks to a more developed brain than before, the gravedigger was able to think about this situation and decided that his friend would not worry about him.
“Does your friend keep dying because of his weirdness?”
“He’s just that way,” Skal nodded. “He thinks too much.”
“Good,” said Derergon. “I take it you had a plan in case you got separated, right?”
“Sort of,” Skal answered, without explaining anything.
“What do you plan to do next?” asked the Garadarok warrior, squinting.
“I’ll wander around here,” said the gravedigger. “The place is quite interesting, and I have not seen anything like it before.”
“Then I can offer you something else,” said Derergon. “As long as your friend is busy doing his things and searching for gold, you can grow stronger.” I have an acquaintance, a gravedigger who can teach you a couple of very interesting abilities. But he is coming back in a few days. So, first you will practice with us, or rather, we will train you. And then I will introduce you to Moore.”
“Good,” Skal agreed.
“Then let’s not waste any more time and let’s go straight to the gym,” said the Garadarok and led the gravedigger away.
They had to walk a lot again. Maneuvering through the tunnels and the city of beetles, where one could see a lot of unusual species that the gravedigger had never met before, they finally reached their destination.
It was a spacious cave, much larger than the one which they left. There was a lot of warriors training, conquering various obstacle courses, practicing strikes on statues they made themselves. It was an interesting sight.
“Such training allows you to get additional knowledge and skills, as well as experience, but in small increments,” explained the warrior. “You still have experience points, right? Then use them to improve your front legs.
The gravediggers can develop them into regular hands, almost like those the two-legged have. Do not worry, it will only be a source of envy, such hands will allow you to grab rippers’ weapons.”
“But why me?” asked the beetle. “I don’t even know how to fight.”
“We can change this, and the weapon can strengthen you considerably. If you grow stronger, it will be harder to kill you. If you are hard to kill, then you will die less often. And if you die less often, you will live longer, and you can get even stronger. Does that make sense?”
“Yes,” Skal replied, although he did not quite agree.
“Fine, then develop the hands, and I’ll wait.�
��
Using a small number of points that remained after previous events, Skal finally got his hands. They were still only at the first stage of their development, but nevertheless, they allowed him to hold objects.
“Excellent,” Derergon nodded. “And now practice throwing stones for a while. This skill can help you in a number of situations, and at the same time, you’ll learn how to use your hands. You will find rocks on the ground, after a couple of hours I’ll come back, and we’ll continue the workout.”
Without a word, Skal gathered the stones and moved closer to the statue indicated by the mercenary, which was roughly shaped like a ripper in a metal shell.
The first shots were unsuccessful, and the pebbles did not even reach the target, but Skal wanted to grow stronger. And not because of the reasons Derergon gave, but because he wanted to save his kinsmen, who were now trapped somewhere in the spikers den.
So, after a few hours, when the Garadarok arrived, the pebbles were already quite confidently flying towards the target, although the gravedigger’s hands were clearly not strong enough.
“And you don’t give up,” Derergon grinned. “Now try to pass the obstacles. I think it will take you at least a couple more hours.”
It did. There was a bunch of various obstacles. Big stones that were hard to climb. Deep pits, not always possible to get out of quickly. A small reservoir was full of ice-cold water.
Then there were some minor problems, but Skal sorted them out, remembering the recent troubles with Sel Er when he had to look for transparents. Then there came short jumps, but the gravedigger’s claws barely managed to complete this task, as they were not sufficiently developed.
And when a series of severe falls which resulted in solid health losses still did not stop the beetle, he passed the test.
“Your dedication is commendable,” said Derergon. “Now you can relax for a bit, and then we shall proceed to the most interesting part of the training.
He recuperated during the break and now he only had to wait. In the meantime, Skal began to watch the other beetles. What fascinated him most were the fights between warriors.
The most entertaining fights were those between different species. A longtime acquaintance, whose name was Garadan Daragak, fought with a weird looking beetle with a thin body and long thin legs.
And despite Garadan’s tremendous power, he could crush stones with his claws, he lost. His shell was powerful, he had strong hands and a solid jaw, but he simply could not keep up with this elegant-looking warrior.
“That’s it, I give up,” said Garadan after a while, puffing, and his opponent stopped.
Skal looked closely at the other warrior and could not understand what the matter was. After all, he was at the same level as Garadan, but this strong-looking beetle easily lost. Could it be that speed and quick, accurate attacks at vulnerable spots were much more effective than brute force and heavy armor?
“I see you are looking at our warrior,” Derergon grinned. “Do you want to meet our most dexterous fighter? You don’t have to answer. Tirliora,” he turned to the winner. “Come here.”
“Coming,” the warrior replied.
Skal looked at this... warrior and was baffled by what he felt deep inside his soul. Maybe it was some kind of debuff.
Two large eyes, sparkling with all shades of green, stared straight at him, making the gravedigger shiver. These small jaws could not cause serious damage and they were intended only to hold small pieces of food.
Its entire head was covered with long shoots, almost the same as that of the ripper, whom Sel Er was trying to help, but they were green. Two small antennae stretched from the forehead, gently bending toward the back of the head. A thin neck, thin legs, hands… this whole body seemed so fragile that it was completely incomprehensible how she decided to fight such a husky warrior.
The female-warrior vaguely resembled Derergon, but her body still needed some development, so what stood out was the part that resembled a ripper. Thin legs allowed her to walk virtually silently, which helped her attack the two-legged from behind.
“This is our new friend. His name is Skal,” one of the Garadaroks introduced the gravedigger, and then introduced her to Skal. “Our warrior is called Tirliora, and she is also a Garadarok, like Gard and me.”
Tirliora, Garadarok Female Warrior, Level 56
Chapter 33
The Talk. The fight. Gravediggers’ abilities
Skal
“Nice to meet you,” the girl said dryly. “Der, when are we going into battle?”
“Tomorrow we are moving forward,” the warrior answered her. “The scouts report that among this group of the two-legged there is no one above level 5. So, we can warm up.”
“Are you sure they will come to the cave tomorrow?” The female warrior asked.
“I am,” the warrior nodded. “They come to us every other day, looking for mushrooms, moss, and other ingredients for their potions.”
“Okay, I’m ready.”
“By the way, our new friends, one of whom is right here, recently managed to escape from a squad of very strong rippers who went to the Supreme. And I’m afraid they will kill Kroark.
“Hm...” the warrior looked at the gravedigger with interest and asked, “And what was the squad leader’s level?”
“Level 318,” Derergon grinned, seeing the girl’s widened eyes.
“But how?”
“How should I know?” the Garadarok shrugged. “Let’s ask Skal. What do you think?”
“I don’t understand what you are talking about," the gravedigger frowned since he could not recall any rippers of this level.
“They had a strange sign on their coats,” said the warrior and drew it on the surface of the stone.
“Ah, this is the sign of the Cascade of Stars. Sel Er took the coat,” Skal said, and the Garadaroks looked at him in disbelief. It immediately became unpleasant, so the beetle decided to use one more thing as evidence. “We also found this claw among the corpses,” Skal pulled out the weapon from his spatial pocket.
“It’s a dagger,” said Tirliora. “And a beautiful one at that.”
“Hmm... an unusual weapon,” Derergon turned the dagger in his hands. “But quite expensive. It is strange that Tes Sel Er did not offer this dagger as payment for our services. Why is that?”
“I don’t know,” Skal shook his head and took the dagger from the warrior’s hands. “Perhaps Sel Er wanted to pay you in gold, as you requested.”
“Does he have that much gold?” asked the mercenary showing interest.
“It is quite possible,” the gravedigger scratched his shell. “Sel Er is very smart, so I would not be surprised.”
“You guys are interesting,” the warrior slightly squinted her large and beautiful eyes. “We’ll need to talk to Sel Er.”
“I think we will meet him soon,” said Derergon. “Well, we are talking too much. Skal, now try your hand at fighting with one of our students. Unfortunately, our youngest warrior is level 23, so you have the right to refuse to fight with an enemy twice your level.”
“I will try,” said Skal calmly, because he was interested to find out how strong he now was. “If I die, I will meet Sel Er and help him, so I’ll see you later.”
The gravedigger headed for a small platform, where a rather strong-looking beetle was already waiting for him. Again, it was a Garadarok. They seemed to be the predominant species in this city, although they differed widely among themselves. The apprentice was expecting his opponent, and his superiority could be read in his eyes. Skal also considered this situation rather phlegmatically, although he was interested to see what would happen.
“He’s not aware that the fight is not fatal, is he?” asked Tirliora.
“He isn’t.”
“Then why is he so calm? The number of rebirths is limited, and he understands that he cannot win,” the warrior was surprised.
“I don’t know,” Derergon shrugged. “These guys both have a str
ange attitude to death. Sel Er died, and Skal did not even blink an eye and did not show he was sorry for his friend, and as far as I can tell, the other guy is just the same.”
“Strange, very strange.”
“Mulf had been watching them since they came through the tunnel leading to Kroark. He saw them surrounded by the corpses of two-legged and the Supreme was speaking to them. After that, they decided to explore the tunnels some more, but they stumbled upon Fisher and were able to escape from his control.”
“How come?”
“I don’t know,” answered the Garadarok warrior. “Mulf uses some kind of crystals for protection, but they had nothing. And after they returned, a detachment of very powerful rippers entered the tunnel. Most likely, these were the senior comrades of the dead. They did not even notice these two, and I do not even know how this happened. Mulf also has questions. This couple of low-level but unusual beetles have a lot of secrets and I like these guys. They can do a lot.”
“That’s interesting, we should keep an eye on them.”
“And now let’s see how Skal does.”
The gravedigger stood in front of the student and soon the mercenary ordered the fight to start. The young Garadarok immediately made a sharp attack with his claw, but the gravedigger simply rolled to the side and, jumping forward, grabbed the student with his jaws and immediately activated his ability.
The Garadarok squealed and began to indiscriminately strike Skal’s shell. The gravedigger’s health swiftly dropped and soon blinked red, but he didn’t release his bite and was able to activate his ability for a second time. The student was hit badly, and he could not push away his low-level adversary, who was weaker in many ways but had greater willpower.
“Stop the fight,” said Derergon, and Skal unclenched his jaws, which now began to hurt a lot. Everything was aching, but he was glad. His opponent was no match for him in the ring. Too bad Sel Er did not leave him the rubitus.
“Here, eat up,” Garadan handed him the rubitus.
“Thank you,” the gravedigger nodded and ate the mushroom, after which he immediately felt better.
Monster Page 13