After hours of flying, I seem to have left the area populated by those [Citrosian Nymphs] behind. I started seeing some new monsters, which [Identify] told me were [Hydra Wolf]. It seems that these wolves are in a territorial squabble with the centipedes, as the area that delineated their territories were also marked by corpses of [Hydra Wolf] and [Citrosian]. It seems that a dead body is much easier to identify than a living one, and it gave me much more information than trying to identify a living specimen.
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[Fierce Fighter (D)] [Subject of the Overlord (E)]
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[Poisoner (D)] [Subject of the Queen (E)]
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Hmm...it seems that this skill [Subject of the Queen (E)] was what allowed the queen to find me, huh? I guess I shouldn't be killing too many monsters with these titles then...also, regardless, based on the sense that these corpses give me, I wouldn't stand any chance against these monsters if they were alive, would I...
Suddenly, an idea popped into my head, and I dragged both corpses into a nearby alcove that provided some shelter from the main corridors of the labyrinth. In my past life, one of the few things I enjoyed was cooking. Since I had been reincarnated, it had been at least four or five hours, and I had no clothes, no food, and no physical weapons. How could I just give up such a freely provided banquet of resources? The answer: no way. Designating a thin area on the base of the [Citrosian] corpse, I activated [Spatial Magic], focusing in my mind the idea of a spatial slash passing through the area.
-Conditions have been met. {Subskill: Spatial Severance} has been acquired. {Subskill: Spatial Severance} has been incorporated into
The clanging sound of the blade-like tail reverberated through the alcove.
Naisuu! Weapon, get!
Now it was time for the next part of my plan. Although the [Hydra Wolf] corpse was mangled, it was mostly the stomach area that had been ripped apart, indicating that the monster had died from being disemboweled by the [Citrosian]. On the other hand, the burns on the carapace of the [Citrosian] corpse indicated that it had died from a barrage of magical attacks, probably fire or lightning. I picked up my new sword and activated [Identify] on it.
[PWR: 15]
[DUR: 63]
[Slash Lv.1] [Hack Lv.1]
Seeming like a relatively useful weapon, I nodded with satisfaction and began to carefully skin the wolf carcass. While this was not something I had done before, I had some confidence. After all, I was someone who could butcher a chicken Galantine-Ballottine style! (A/N: check out Jacques Pepin to understand what this is)
After about an hour, I had a relatively whole [Hydra Wolf] skin laid out in front of me. I had also acquired [Skinning Lv.1]. I scraped off any extra flesh that had come off together with the skin, and laid it fur down on a rock to dry. I had no idea how to make leather, so my only option was to simply let it dry and discard it if it started to rot.
Now, it was time to finally, finally, get some food. I first cut away the crushed and slashed organs, being careful not to let them stain too much of the meat. I then started removing the meat of the wolf, gaining [Butchery Lv.1], and discarded the parts that had been stained by the offal. After about another hour, I had a small mountain of meat, a discarded pile of organs and trimmings, and a messy stack of bones.
Ehhh...I'm not going to have to eat this raw, am I??
From the [World Handbook], I knew that there was such a thing as [Life Magic], but I had no idea how to obtain it. There were a few different kinds - [Drinking Water], [Firestarter], [Cooking Heat], and [Clean]. At the moment, it seemed as though this isekai staple was out of my reach. However, I did not just spend all my time without thinking about how the skill attainment system of this world worked. It seemed that if certain actions were performed, the corresponding skill could be gained. It was why I was willing to spend so much time to skin and butcher the wolf carcass as cleanly and completely as I could. I wanted to test if doing it properly would award me corresponding skills, which it did. However, it seemed as though my actual skill level was still higher than the skill that I had gained, which probably meant that gaining the skill depended on the action, not the innate ability. When I tried activating [Butchery Lv.1] earlier, it definitely made it easier on me mentally and physically, but the cuts were much less clean.
Therefore! It means that if I manage to intuit how to use my mana to create the effects of [Life Magic], I can learn it!
Firstly, I really wanted to learn [Clean]. My hands and blade were greasy and sticky from my butchery, and cleaning the skin that I had just got would go a long way to preserving it better. Channeling mana into my hands, I pictured a scouring image that scraped the grease off my hands, leaving them clean. After about five minutes of channeling more mana and picturing a clearer and clearer image, the familiar mechanical voice rang out.
-Conditions have been met. [Life Magic: Clean] has been acquired.-
I gave myself a silent fistbump. Now that I knew the principles for acquiring [Life Magic] skills, I could probably make this go faster. With the
Oof, cleaning my body with this skill feels so uncomfortable. It's like something is scraping against my skin. I hope that doesn't make it rough. Well, whatever. I have other things to worry about for now.
I then quickly turned my attention to learning [Drinking Water], and after a bit of trial and error, I managed to pour water into my mouth from my empty palm, finally recharging my dehydrated body. The only problem was...
Now that I've had some water, my empty stomach is really yelling at me...
I pulled over a stone, and cast both [Clean] and [Drinking Water] on it to make sure it was somewhat clean, then placed a pre-cut slab of meat onto the stone. Touching both sides of the stone, I channelled mana into it, and pictured the stone heating up. After around twenty minutes of this, the mechanical voice rang out in my head, and the sound of sizzling entered my ears. I then focused on starting sparks between my fingers, and then...
-Conditions have been met. [Life Magic: Firestarter] has been acquired.-
-Conditions have been met. [Life Magic: Drinking Water], [Life Magic: Cooking Heat], [Life Magic: Firestarter], and [Life Magic: Clean] will be incorporated into [Life Magic]-
Whew, I really managed it. Damn, am I some kind of genius? (A/N: Little does our MC know, children at the age of 10 can learn [Life Magic] simply by watching someone else do it. [Life Magic] is one of the easiest skills to acquire.)
After cooking the thinly cut piece of meat fully through to avoid parasites and bacteria, I bit into it, and instantly my mood fell.
What is this... it's so gamey and stringy. Ugh, it tastes so mediocre. I want to get out of this labyrinth as soon as possible and have tender meat and sweet treats...
Thinking about that, I put another piece of meat on the hot stone, then laid out a small ring of hot stones, placing the skin in the centre to dry out.
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NEW
{Skill Description: Assists user in skinning carcasses.
Skill Prerequisites: None
Skill Effect: Reduces mental load and automatically moves the body to skin carcasses.}
{Skill Description: Assists user in butchering carcasses.
Skill Prerequisites: None
Skill Effect: Reduces mental load and automatically moves the body to butcher carcasses.}
{Subskill: Spatial Severance
Skill Description: Severs the designated space, causing damage to bodies in the designation. Damage output scales with [MAG], inversely with destination [RES].
Skill Prerequisites:
Skill Stats: Base Damage 45, Damage Scaling 0.2[MAG] - 0.4[RES]; MP Consumption 30/cast; Base Damage increases with [Spatial Magic] level.}
{Skill Description: Unleashes a powerful slash with a bladed weapon.
Skill Prerequisites: [Bladed Weapon]
Skill Stats: Base Damage [PWR], Damage Scaling 0.5[PWR] - 0.8[DEF]; [DUR] Consumption 0.5/cast.}
{Skill Description: Unleashes a powerful hack with a bladed weapon.
Skill Prerequisites: [Bladed Weapon]
Skill Stats: Base Damage 1.5[PWR], Damage Scaling 0.4[PWR] - 0.5[DEF]; [DUR] Consumption 2/cast.}