Re:Monster - Re:Vival

Day Nine

From what I could tell, it had been a few hours since the group of humans left the dungeon and we haven't had to deal with anyone coming to get us so one of two things happened. Either they did what I politely asked of them like good little idiots, or they tried to tell people and no one believed them. Wait, no, I suppose there was a third option. They told people, they were believed and they were taken so seriously that they're trying to come up with a proper plan of action against us and gathering their forces.

The thought had me a little excited, to be honest. Especially since I'd been summoning since they left. I'd managed to summon 24 more skeletons since they left, upping my forces to an even 50.

The summoned forces included 12 Swordsmen, 5 Archers, 3 Spearmen, 2 Shaman, 1 Axeman and 1 Mage. Mara was immediately excited about the appearance of another mage however it's intelligence was nothing like hers which disappointed both of us. He'd still be useful though since he could use [Earth Magic]. Although honestly, I thought about killing him and taking his essence. I thought better of it since I still don't know how to use the magic skills I've already got.

I figured that at 50, I should call it there. Any more would be ridiculous. For now, at least. That said, I hadn't come across any monsters on the 11th floor yet so it was possible that I would lose a few here and have to summon some replacements.

That thought got me curious so I decided to do a little exploring. I took Axeman and a Swordsman with me and left Mara in charge with orders to attack when attacked and send someone to inform me if those four returned while I was gone.

I later gave the Swordsman my dagger, wondering if I could teach it how to be stealthy and things like that. I spent around three hours doing that and during that time, I came across a few of this floor's denizens. They'd certainly stepped up their game to say the least.

The first one we came across was a skeleton slightly larger than the normal Greater Skeletons. It had no armour, however its bones appeared to be twice as thick as others and its most glaring difference, it had four arms. The regular pair and another pair underneath.

I had my entourage take it on first but when it became evident that they were outmatched, I had to step in. Thankfully, the skeletons of this floor hadn't rid themselves of their vulnerability to fire so [Pyrokinesis] took care of it quickly.

{Skills Gained: [Thick Bones] [Double Strike] [Reinforced Bones] [Bone Fusion]}

I gained a few skills from that one. All useful; Especially [Bone Fusion]. From what I understood, it literally allowed me to fuse bones, whether they were my own or others. That meant I finally had a way to heal both myself and others. Even better, if I happened to lose a limb, it might be possible to replace it with someone else's arm. Whether or not that would retain their strength or mine is another matter that would be better left until the moment came.

Another thought that came to mind is that it might be possible to create some form of undead chimera. The thought intrigued me but I'd have to find a time to test it out later.

The next few enemies were taken down differently. First, I'd weaken them to a satisfactory degree. Then I'd have Axeman or Assassin take it out, hopefully gaining a few levels since it was pretty obvious that the enemies were of a higher level.

Speaking of level, I was surprised to find that my own level hadn't really increased that much. By the eleventh floor, my level had only grown to [47]. Eleven levels if my memory was correct. A little coincidental but more disappointing than anything. I guessed that it was because I've either been sharing the kills or letting my summons take care of it. Thinking about it like that, I decided it was fine. I have [Essence Extraction] and the skills I gain because of it to balance things out but they have nothing of the sort and honestly, I'd rather not have to keep replacing them so this was an acceptable arrangement.

As for the skills I gained, there were surprisingly few. Three, to be exact. [Taunt] which was exactly as it sounds. It would have been a great skill for Axeman or one of the Armoured Skeletons. Unfortunately, [Essence Extraction] is unable to grant the skills to others. Maybe one day.

The second skill I gained was [Catch]. It was a simple skill that improved my catching abilities. I wondered if I could find a loophole in the ability to make it useful in a fight, like 'catching' a punch, for example.

The final skill I gained was [Sweep]. I was a little worried at first that it was going to be a skill for chore work but I was delightfully surprised that no, it was a skill for sweeping the leg, so to speak.

We kept going like that for a while but eventually I decided to head back to the others. I was admittedly concerned whether the enemies on this floor could or would choose to ignore such a large group. My concerns were both confirmed and unnecessary as Mara and a few others had taken up the role of leader and defenders.

It was pure carnage. Broken bones strewn down each corridor. When Mara noticed me, she came over, practically running. In her hand was a dark blue bone. A femur by the look of it. I knew immediately why she had brought it to me and thanked her with a head pat. She seemed to appreciate it quite a bit.

{Skills Gained: [Swim] [Water-Breathing] [Water Breath]}

{Blessing Gained: [Demigod of Clear Water]

Although Mara appeared to enjoy the basic reward of simple acknowledgement, for something like this she deserved more. That's when I saw the remaining pieces of the blue skeleton and got a bright idea.

I moved to the pile of bones and started picking through the mess for the perfect puzzle pieces. Then, with [Bone Fusion], I got to work. When I was almost done, I asked her to hand me her staff. I could feel some kind of energy flowing through it which I assumed was mana but I was hoping for a stone like the boy I killed had.

I decided to change my idea a little and instead of making a completely new staff, I combined the two. In the end, it looked like a staff fit for an undead druid. The bones wrapped around the wood and replaced it entirely in others, like the head of the staff, which had now been replaced by the actual head, or skull I suppose, of the blue skeleton.

I handed the stuff back to her and she immediately went about testing it. Her [Water Magic] spells had shown a visible increase in power and casting time while her [Lightning Magic] spells had become faster, hitting the target at almost twice the speed as they did before while the casting time had increased the same amount as the [Water Magic]. I could feel the satisfaction, appreciation, renewed loyalty and another unfamiliar yet warm feeling emanating from the mage.

For the rest of the day, she refused to leave my side. I was glad to have such a loyal subordinate. Especially one as intelligent as her with the potential for greater growth than any of my other summons. I did get some odd feelings from the Axeman and Assassin I took with me today though. Nothing concerning; it was weird more than anything. Like a strange contentment, almost like the sight of the two of us had some sort of 'healing effect' on them. My subordinates were a bunch of weirdos. Not that I could say much.