"I thought you were a smart one, but it turns out you're all muscle and no brain! Can't you tell that I'm different from that other puppet of yours?!"
The Komodoensis started ridiculing Derrick, making him even more apprehensive towards it.
The huge shadow also looked at Io in disdain, making the Bat flap its wings in anger. It had almost been killed earlier, so its resentment was more than justified.
After a few seconds of silence and seeing that Derrick had still not budged from his defensive stance, the beast sighed and finally explained itself.
"As the strongest being of this region, my soul retained its memories. My name is Drako and as your summon, I'm obviously not able to harm you, you dimwit! So stop this useless posturing already!"
After the brief explanation, Derrick stopped being uneasy and realized it was right.
However, he could see that his new companion had no respect for him at all, which made him scoff.
"You talk big for someone that just got butchered like a pig!"
He then puffed his chest, proud of his remark.
In contrast, Drako's mood instantly soured, with him shooting back a cold gaze.
[Warning]
[The skill
And just like that, Io vanished from thin air.
"Kekeke how unfortunate... The little bird was taken out before me"
Derrick had to say he had completely forgotten about the skill's limit. He prayed this final kill would make the skill evolve, which meant it was time to get to work.
"Anyway, I don't think you'll like what I'm about to do next"
Since time was of the essence, Derrick walked in the direction of the corpse before preparing to salvage every single part of it. His excitement was honestly through the roof.
"I don't mind. Even though you're a bit stupid, I respect your strength. Still, you better not turn my corpse into trash!"
Drako was not disgusted and was, in fact, curious as to how Derrick would proceed. He had resided in this cave since birth and had only seen humans twice. They had of course stumbled here by chance and were immediately killed.
Seeing the expectant look, Derrick didn't want to disappoint and decided to proceed at lightning speeds.
The first thing he took care of was skinning the corpse. His technique was polished, and his movements, swift and precise. One could say it was a masterclass.
He then started cutting the muscles in portions that could be eaten. The cadaver was huge, and he quickly realized that he couldn't transport all of it.
He wasn't going to let it rot, of course, so he'd have to eat a lot in the coming days.
Next were the tendons. These were absolutely gorgeous pieces for craftsmen. Their elasticity, their toughness and their durability made them essentials and not a single one would be left behind.
The bones were of the highest quality as well. This really was like a treasure trove that kept on giving.
When he saw the happiness on Derrick's face, Drako was a bit speechless.
"What a scary Human..."
Derrick was numb to these things, as he had been doing this regularly throughout the previous months.
His thirst for power had fundamentally changed him, with his enemies becoming a means to an end. He would never back away from an opportunity.
After completely stripping everything useful, Derrick sat cross-legged and took a piece of raw meat from the freshly cut pile.
He had to get rid of the poison building up in his body, and the fastest way to do so was to get stronger.
"Do you want some? You'd get stronger really fast, but it's your body..."
Derrick felt awkward trying to convince Drako to eat himself. Still, he really wanted him to eat it, as he'd grow by leaps and bounds.
Seeing his hopeful look, the shadow humphed and cursed him before reluctantly agreeing.
Derrick threw him a smaller piece, understanding that it wasn't an easy situation. He then took one himself and closed his eyes.
A burst of energy suddenly surged in his body, and he was quite surprised by its strength, as the size of the piece he ate had been reasonable.
He had experienced with various quantities during his hunts, finally arriving at a rough estimate on what he could handle.
However, it took him all he had to presently remain conscious. He started profusely sweating, to the point where his clothes became soaked.
[Hosts' body is refining energy! Stats are being recalculated...]
[Poison has been nullified! Continuing refinement...]
[Energy has been refined! Would you like to see your stats?]
It had already been a few hours, and he had somehow held on.
After opening his eyes, he started observing the changes his body experienced. The difference was substantial, and he was excitedly giggling before saying yes to the system. His stats window popped up.
[Derrick Tarlin, 16 years old (Body) & 37 years old (Mind) — Human]
[Class : Necromancer]
[Strength : 10.2]
[Agility : 8.5]
[Endurance : 10.8]
[Vitality : 7.2]
[Magic Power : 15.5]
[Traits : Enhanced Body, Enhanced Vision, Death's Valet, Gluttony]
[Skills : Superior Appraisal, Contract (2/3), Summoning (1/2), Master Craftsman, Submission]
[Your skill
[New skill! By releasing your aura,
[Your skill
Derrick was shocked by his gains. From a single piece of meat, every category had received an extra 0.5 points.
The new skill and two upgrades were also huge. It was simply pure bliss.
He immediately re-summoned Io and fed him a piece of meat.
After waiting for a bit, he used
[Io (King Nightmare Bat)]
[Strength : 9.7]
[Agility : 8.2]
[Endurance : 9.9]
[Vitality : 4.2]
[Magic Power : 3.8]
[Trait : Advanced Echolocation]
[Skills : Sonic Wave]
[The trait
[New skill!
Derrick was quite pleased with what he saw. Io had evolved with him during their fights, and this was the culmination of all their efforts.
He was only able to use Io as bait at first, but he was now part of every offensive plan Derrick had in mind. The evolution of his trait was also massive, but it saddened him that it couldn't evolve anymore.
[Drako (Viper Varanus Komodoensis)]
[Strength : 20.2]
[Agility : 17.4]
[Endurance : 15.3]
[Vitality : 14.2]
[Magic Power : 14.1]
[Trait : Cold Blood, Vibration Sensor, Poisonous Tongue]
[Skills : Charge]
[New skill!
Derrick was once again flabbergasted. These numbers were sky-high, and this new skill was basically a cheat!
After calming down, he realized he still had plenty of things to do, which meant that he could not leave this place right away.
He first had to consume all the meat and then craft new equipment.
But these were the final steps, making him grin from ear to ear.
After a week of hard labor, it was finally time to leave this place.