Chapter 22 – Spoils of the Dead

Evan had indeed decided to search the stratum for a useful Haste skill.

He wanted a monster that could provide the skill reliably. The scout Puffcap on this expedition had been sent to investigate the Gnoll Forest.

Before it encountered any Gnolls, it found something else.

A dead human.

More precisely, a human mage who had only just died. His blood had not yet congealed.

Evan could not view a dead person’s Status Panel, but the standard mage’s clothing made his profession obvious.

The man had suffered terrible injuries and fled from the forest, leaving a long trail of blood behind him. He collapsed from blood loss just after reaching the open ground. By the time Evan discovered him, he was no longer breathing.

Human adventurers usually traveled in parties. Either this man had become separated or every companion had died inside the forest.

Life was difficult for low-level adventurers. They risked their heads simply to earn a living.

According to Elara, resurrection existed in this world.

To Evan, the process sounded more like calling back a soul. First, the body had to be restored perfectly by various means. Then the ritual consumed enough rare resources to impoverish a nation before summoning a hero’s soul into the repaired vessel.

No one organized such a ritual under ordinary circumstances. A resurrection had not occurred in more than a century, and most people probably considered the stories legends. Elara knew more only because her father was a duke.

The explanation alone made one fact clear. Resurrection had nothing to do with ordinary adventurers. It was beyond even most nobles. Only a truly legendary figure might receive such a chance.

Unlike games and stories from Evan’s former world, where death was treated as a temporary inconvenience, dying here meant death.

He searched the unfortunate mage’s satchel.

It contained a small metal plate bearing the mage’s portrait and other information, perhaps an identification card; a notebook full of writing Evan could not read; half a bottle of yellow potion; a few coins; and several gathered plants.

Along with the staff lying beside him, set with a C-grade Mana Crystal, those objects were the mage’s entire estate.

His robe had probably been valuable, but nearly half was burned away. The rest hung in tatters and was useless.

Something rustled inside the forest. Several hunched Gnolls emerged, carrying wooden bows or swords and shields.

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One bloodstained sword and shield had been carefully maintained, a sharp contrast to the Gnoll’s ragged clothing. The equipment had probably been stripped from one of the mage’s dead companions.

So the mage had not truly escaped. The Gnolls had deliberately allowed their wounded prey to run until he exhausted the last of his strength.

They were more intelligent than they looked.

The Gnolls noticed the scout Puffcap beside the corpse. They exchanged glances and laughed with disturbingly human mockery.

The one holding the sword and shield put both away before approaching. It did not intend to kill the Puffcap quickly. It wanted to play.

Grinning, the Gnoll reached out with a bloodstained claw.

The claw vanished before it could touch the Puffcap.

“Graaagh!”

Its scream ended when another Spore Cannon blast pulped its head.

The three Gnolls behind it seized their weapons and stared toward the source of the attack.

Seven strange Puffcaps they had never seen stood there.

When the Puffcaps fired again, the Gnolls took cover behind trees and retaliated with their wooden bows.

Evan had summoned units to carry the mage’s remains as soon as he found them. He had not expected a fight.

That was acceptable. He could test the new model.

Two Puffcaps curled into balls and rolled rapidly into the forest. They soon found the hiding Gnolls.

[Detonation LV3]

The blast threw two maimed Gnolls from the trees.

The last, which had hidden farthest away, dropped its weapon and fled into the forest in terror. Evan could not be bothered to pursue.

The new detonation Puffcaps had performed well.

Even at LV3, Detonation was powerful because it killed the user along with the enemy. Better still, the skill worked with Rolling Charge. The old method required mana to overload a Mana Crystal, which was impossible while charging.

The skill made the operation much simpler.

Both Gnolls caught in the blast were gravely wounded but still alive. They lay on the ground and whimpered toward the Puffcaps.

Were they begging for mercy?

What would survival accomplish in those ruined bodies? Gnolls did not look like a species that cared for its old, weak, or disabled. Returning home would bring them no better fate.

Evan had a tender heart and could not bear such suffering. He ended their lives at once.

The Puffcaps gathered the corpses and possessions and carried everything back toward the Marsh Zone.

* * *

[Sin of Greed triggered.]

[Skill Plundered: Precision LV4 → LV5]

[Skill Plundered: Archery Mastery LV1]

[Skill Plundered: Wind Magic LV1]

[Skill Plundered: Common Tongue LV1]

The first two came from the Gnolls, and the other two from the mage.

Evan had not found Haste, but he had gained something.

Archery Mastery was useless to him. Precision, on the other hand, worked perfectly with Spore Cannon.

Wind Magic also looked promising, but Evan lacked Mana Control, the skill required to shape mana precisely into spells. For now, Wind Magic would have to remain unused.

The greatest surprise was that language could be acquired in the same way.

This was an unexpected delight.

Why had Evan never seen Common Tongue on the Status Panels of other adventurers? Elara’s panel had listed Old Elvish LV2.

Was a native language hidden?

Gnolls were capable of communication too. Why had they not provided a language skill? Had Evan simply failed to plunder it, or was their language too incomplete to qualify?

He could not find an answer.

At least he should be able to read human writing now.

Evan eagerly opened the notebook and experienced true illiteracy.

He recognized only two or three characters in each long string.

Damn it. He still could not read.

Would Common Tongue have to reach LV10 before he understood everything?

His highest skill was only LV7.

There was no point worrying. The skill had been an accidental gain. Perhaps he would finish it by finding corpses throughout the dungeon.

He still had not achieved his actual goal of finding Haste. Tomorrow, he would explore in another direction.