“This is the last release huh .”
The world has changed. Books won’t be published anymore. Arriving at this conclusion, I feel slightly depressed.
After retrieving all the books, I wander around the stores again, collecting miscellaneous objects such as tableware and furniture. Luckily, I am not confronted with any mimics or concealed monsters. When I finish looking around, I notice that the sky has already turned dark.
“I should call it a day ”
Having finished scavenging, I breathe out deeply. Just then, “Enemy Detection” catches something. It is a monster.
“It doesn’t appear to be inside the mall, so it should be outside.”
“Crisis Sensing” isn’t ringing. Is it a goblin or zombie? When I approach the area where “Enemy Detection” indicates, I see a monster that I haven’t seen before.
“Bones .”
It is a monster which is commonly known as a “skeleton”. Its appearance is like that of a skeleton sample, and it has a rusted sword hanging on its waist. At the center of its rib, I can see a red magic stone where the heart should be present. It’s dark, but I can clearly see the monster’s appearance with “Night Vision”.
There are five of them? They don’t seem particularly powerful. According to the reaction of “Crisis Sensing”, they should only be as powerful as goblins and zombies. Most of my HP has recovered. I’ll try out my new skills on these guys
“Momo, Aka, we’re hunting them.”
We sneak up to the skeletons without alerting them. First, I use “Shadow Manipulation”. “Shadow Manipulation” is a skill that allows me to control shadows like Momo. In my head, I draw an image of the shadow transforming into nets and ropes that immobilize the monsters. The shadow moves as I imagined it and approaches the skeletons.
The skeletons seem stunned because of the shadow’s sudden act of binding them. To be honest, they aren’t showing any expression, but they should be surprised. They desperately try to resist the shadow, but they fail to escape from it.
“It’s amazing ”
Previously, I’ve seen Momo use it in her battles, but this skill is more convenient than I imagined. Not only is it easy to use, it is versatile as well. It’s compatible with other skills as well. Right now, I have the options of killing these skeletons by crushing them or by using “Ninjutsu”. However, let’s ask Momo to do it.
“Momo, can you do it?”
Momo roars as she moves one step forward. Then, she stretches her shadow into the shape of a hammer. With the hammer, Momo crushes the skeletons very swiftly. True to their appearance, the skeletons seem to have a low endurance.
Red magic stones fall to the ground.
“You have gained experience.”
Following our battle with the high-orc, Momo’s ability to manipulate shadows appears to have improved. There is another skill that Momo recently gained, but we won’t be using it this time around. That skill is powerful, but it is simultaneously eye-catching. Other monsters might also appear, so let’s avoid its usage.
With the battle finished, Momo returns.
“There, there, you performed well, Momo.”
“Kuun”
I pet her head and praise her. As time goes on, Momo becomes more and more dependable. Since we defeated the skeletons, we return to the shopping mall. Now, I should get some rest. I want to meet up with Ichinose-san tomorrow.
“Aka, if you could.”
Having found a suitable location, Momo and I coat ourselves with a layer of shadow. On top of that, Aka shifts to a form that blends in with our surrounding, camouflaging our appearance. If something happens, Aka will immediately notice. Also, even if we are ambushed, Aka can act as a defense as long as our opponent is not at the level of the high-orc Lufen.
It is now safe to sleep.
“Momo, Aka, good night.”
I fall asleep quickly. I must have been exhausted. Thus, the third night passes, and the sun rises again.
The fourth day begins.
CH 59
I wake up. It was a good sleep. Just in case, I check whether there is any monster around us. “Enemy Detection” is not responding, so it should be safe.
“Aka, please cancel your mimicry”
After having Aka cancel its mimicry, I stretch my body.
“Momo, Aka, good morning!”
Of course, Momo seems to have woken up earlier than I did. As for Aka do slimes even fall asleep? When I ask Aka the question, it shudders, indicating that it isn’t sure either. Then oh well. It doesn’t really matter as long as Aka’s fine.
Now then, today is the day that Ichinose-san formerly becomes our companion. Umu as expected, I’m getting nervous. Because of some turn of events, she will be our first human companion. Furthermore, she’s female, which makes me uneasy. Is my hair alright? Have I drooled during my sleep?
“Oh, before that, I should check up on when and where we’re going to meet.” I send a mail to Ichinose-san, and a reply comes back immediately. 1 hour later at a nearby apartment.
“There is still some time until then.” Since that’s the case, I should first get breakfast out of the way. I take out some food from the “Item Box” and have my first meal of the day. Bread, fruits, salad, and milk. Dog food for Momo. When I finish eating, I give Aka the rubbish for absorption TN: Like the wrappers I’m assuming . Not only is it eco-friendly, Aka enjoys it as well.
Afterwards, I wash my face, shave, and check for any signs that might show bad sleeping habits. Well, it’s that. I’m just fixing my appearance. When I look into the mirror, I can see the dull face that I see every day.
Damn it.
It isn’t time yet, so should I explore a bit more? Anyways, the location where we promised to meet is only a few minutes’ walk from here. Even if I look around the shopping mall, I should be able to arrive in time. Now that the orcs are gone “Now that I think about it, did the skeletons from yesterday get attracted here because of the orcs’ absence? Otherwise, I can’t think of an explanation for their timely arrival.” “And it seems like there are conflicts between different monsters too ” The orcs that I encountered before were being chased by a pack of Shadow Wolves. In other words, relationships between monsters are deadly as well. Well, this doesn’t change the fact that I will be hunting them. After all, it’s kill or be killed.
With that in mind, I recommence our search of the mall. We mainly go around places that we weren’t able to visit yesterday. While doing so, I take anything that I find useful. I repeat this process by walking back and forth in the parking lot. There are a lot of cars that were abandoned. Of course, they are all absorbed into the “Item Box”. Parts of destroyed pillars are taken in as well. After all, they can serve as weapons too.
“There aren’t many corpses ”
I didn’t see any dead bodies on the second floor and in the parking lot. As I thought, does the ‘mountain’ of corpse include everyone that was killed in this shopping the mall? But then again, what is the purpose of gathering all of them in one place? Now that I think about it, the monsters’ physical bodies disappear after defeating them, leaving behind only experience and magic stones. On the other hand, when humans are killed, their bodies remain. What is with this difference?
“The more I think about it, the more I realize how enigmatic this world’s system is.
Abruptly, monsters started appearing in massive numbers, and a game-like system was implemented. In the first place, why did the monsters appear? What exactly are magic stones? There are too many things that I can’t comprehend. There are too many contradictions that I can’t just accept answers like “it just IS”. For example, physical laws and stuff aren’t being kept “Hmm?” While pondering, “Enemy Detection” picks up a response. It’s a human. Is it possibly a survivor? No, that isn’t plausible. Considering the orcs’ superior sense of smell, it is impossible to hide from them. Without skills like “Odorless” or “Attention Cutoff” that I possess, a person will eventually be found.