(This place is peaceful.) I breathed, enjoying the calm air as I sat on the edge of town.
It had been a few hours since my interaction with the four dwarves, and a few things had happened. Mainly, Rigurd was no longer planning to throw a party in my honor. This was largely because Kaijin had helped me explain how even the idea of such a thing made me incredibly uncomfortable. As a result, Rigurd had actually apologised; in fact, I felt kind of guilty at how ashamed he seemed about it. In the end I agreed to meet everyone at a later date to cheer him up. Of course, I made sure it would be all at once.
Right now I was sitting on the ground with my back against a tree, enjoying the silence. I wasn't alone, in fact Ranga was lying right next to me. The big wolf had instead chosen to stay by my side until Rimuru woke up. It was a little weird having a giant wolf act as my own personal guard dog, but after a bit I got used to it. Additionally, since he looked like a big animal, it didn't set off my social anxiety as much.
(This weird day...) I sighed inwardly, watching the sky darken as time ticked by.
A small part of me still didn't believe any of this was real, but I had mostly accepted the reality of my new situation. (I really got reborn into a fantasy world, huh.) I thought as I closed my eyes slightly.
"Are you tired, Lady Suu?" Ranga suddenly asked, looking at me curiously as his ears twitched. "If so, I can go fetch Rigurd. It shouldn't be hard to find a place for you to sleep more comfortably."
"N-no, I'm fine... thank you, though," I muttered, causing him to wag his tail and bark back in response.
"It is my honor to serve, my lady."
(I really wish they'd drop the 'lady' part.) I thought inwardly. Over the past few hours, the number of people calling me either "Lady Suu" or "my lady" had greatly increased.
(Anyway, it really is hard to believe I'm in a world with magic and monsters of all things.) I mused, returning to my thoughts as I shifted my position slightly.
(That actually gets me wondering: how many skills do I even have?)
It had definitely been something I was curious about. I wanted to learn more about my skills. I knew for certain that I at least had two skills, but I could have more for all I knew. The unfortunate thing, though, was that I had little to no idea how I was going to find out what they all even were, or what they all do for that matter.
(First, there's that weird ability my eyes have, and then there's that strange ability to sense my surroundings.) I hummed to myself as I contemplated. (I feel like there's so much more to them that I just don't understand.)
"It would be so much easier if everything were just listed for me..." I breathed as I looked down at my hands.
When I said that, I didn't expect anything to come of it, so what happened next was completely unexpected. "Huh?"
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
{• Name:
Suu Tempest.}
{• Race:
Abyssal Storm Phoenix.}
{• Titles:
A Lost Soul. The Forgotten One. First Born Of The Abyss. Ruler Of The Abyss.}
{• Class:
None.}
{• Blessing:
Storm Crest.}
{• Disaster Rank, Human Form:
A Rank.}
{• Disaster Rank, Phoenix Form:
Special A Rank.}
{• ■■■■■■ Rank:
■■.}
{• Followers:
None.}
{• Species Skills:
Abyss Gate. Abyssal Flame. Flame Eater. Flame Control. Transformation. Darkness Nanipulation. Ultimate Regeneration. Heat Immunity. Cold Resistance. Flame body. Undying soul. New, Wind manipulation. New, Storms Vestage. New, Crimson Lightning. New, Wind Speaker. New, Lightning Resistance.}
{• Skills: Bonded. Minds Echo. New, Shadow Movement. New, Magic Sense. New, Multilayer Barrier. New, Thought Communication. New, Abnormal Condition Resistance. Hunger Resistance. Isolation Resistance.}
{• Unique Skills:
Everlasting Hunger. Eyes Of The Abyss.}
{• Ultimate Skills: None.}
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
In front of me now hovered a slightly transparent screen; it was black with glowing white writing spread out across its surface. Its colour actually matched my eyes, something I noticed almost immediately. Despite this, neither its colour nor the words written on it were what really stunned me. No, what truly made me pause was the fact that looking at it was like looking at myself, a reflection of my very being, my soul.
(What... what is this...?) I breathed as i thought. (And why is a part of it censored?)
"Is something wrong?" Ranga asked, noticing that my body had suddenly stiffened.
For a moment I didn't know how to respond, so eventually I just asked without thinking, "Can you not see it?"
"See what? There's nothing there. I can't smell anything either." He responded, confusion clear on his face as he glanced around.
(I guess only I can see it.) I thought to myself, reaching out, only for my hand to pass right through the panel.
"I think... I think I just activated an ability I didn't know I had before," I mumbled, my eyes drifting back to the panel, almost as if something was pulling me to read through it.
"Really? Good job, Lady Suu." Ranga barked happily, causing a rush of red to spread across my cheeks.
"Thanks..." I said sheepishly; I wasn't used to being praised, after all.
(These are my skills... there are so many...) It wasn't hard for me to come to that conclusion; after all, it said it right there. (I can guess what some of them do, but at least the others are a complete mystery... I wonder if I could...) I trailed off, my thoughts going blank for a second as I focused on the first skill listed.
{Name: Abyss Gate
Description: Allows the opening of a rift in space that leads to the Abyss, a separate dimension that doesn't follow the laws of this world. The energies within the Abyss are corruptive and have extreme negative effects on normal beings; however, abyssal creatures are significantly strengthened while within it.}
(It worked! I hadn't expected it to but it did.) To my surprise, a new panel appeared in front of the first, displaying the skill's effects.
"My lady?"
"Oh, sorry." I coughed awkwardly before adding, "Can you give me a second? I'm just testing something."
"I understand. Please, if you need my help, do not hesitate to ask," Ranga said, nodding his head respectfully as he settled back down.
(Alright, let's see what we have here.) I thought as I began trying to pull up the information I needed.
{• Name: Abyssal Flame
Description: A fire so dark it looks like a starless night sky. The flames created by this skill cannot be extinguished by normal means and will continue to burn indefinitely. They feed on magicules, literally drawing it out of anything they come into contact with, and so long as there is magic to burn, the flames will never go out unless instructed to by the user.}
{• Name: Flame Eater
Description: This skill enables the user to devour both magical and non‑magical fire. This process allows the user to restore their stamina and strength through the consumption of said flames.}
{• Name: Flame Control
Description: Grants the ability to take command of any magical or non‑magical flames within the vicinity of the user.}
{• Name: Transformation
Description: Allows the user to take on a more human form, although they are weaker in this form compared to their true body. This skill also allows the user to sprout and retract wings from their back while in human form.}
(So... this isn't my true form?) I mused. I hadn't expected it, but it made sense. (Thoughts for later, I guess...) With that, my attention turned to the last part of the panel.
(I can retract my wings?) I paused, glancing back at the wings currently connected to my back.
Honestly, I was a little reluctant to try. I liked them; they were a little awkward at times, but I didn't really mind. (I'll... I'll test that out later. For now, let's keep going.) I mused internally as I continued to read.
{• Name: Darkness Manipulation
Description: Allows the user to control the any source of darkness them, such as shadows, letting them manipulate or even create constructs out of the darkness in question.}
{• Name: Ultimate Regeneration
Description: The user is able to regenerate from extreme amounts of damage, able to regrow limbs and organs in seconds.}
{• Name: Heat Immunity
Description: The user is completely immune to high temperatures as well as heat‑based attacks.}
{• Name: Cold Resistance
Description: The user is resistant to cold temperatures as well as cold‑based attacks.}
{• Name: Flame Body
Description: Allows the user to turn their body into flames, temporarily becoming intangible at will. Note: the user doesn't have to turn their whole body into flames; they can transform only selected parts of their body if they wish.}
{• Name: Undying Soul
Description: The user's soul is like an eternal star, ever burning and unable to be extinguished. If the user is killed, this skill will activate and resurrect them from death. Any attempt to destroy the soul directly will fail, as the user's soul is indestructible.}
Now that made me freeze. The idea that I was now practically immortal made me go completely still, my mind going blank. Instead of having an existential crisis, however, I decided to just move on. For one, there was no point in having a panic attack over it since I couldn't do anything about it; also, I didn't have the mental capability to process that information, so I decided to pretend that skill didn't exist for now.
{• Name: Wind Manipulation
Description: Grants the user immense control over the air and wind around them, in extreme cases even allowing them to control the weather by summoning storms or even hurricanes if need be.}
{• Name: Storm's Vestage
Description: The user gains the capability to coat their body in lightning and storm clouds. This not only increases their defense and speed but also adds the lightning attribute to any offensive skills used while it is active. Note: the lightning attribute is not added if the offensive skill used is already lightning or electric‑based.}
{• Name: Crimson Lightning
Description: Crimson Lightning is an evolution of the Black Lightning skill. It grants the user the ability to summon and control dark‑scarlet electricity that acts more like a living creature than a natural phenomenon. The lightning created by this skill will snake through the air once released, hunting down targets before piercing through their forms and vaporizing them in an instant.}
{• Name: Wind Speaker
Description: The wind will be the user's guide, allowing them to locate objects, individuals, or locations they are searching for by following the direction of the wind around them.}
{• Name: Lightning Resistance
Description: Increases the user's overall resistance to lightning and electrical bases attacks.}
(That's the last of the species skills; time for the normal ones, I guess.) I thought, while also making a note to ask Rimuru when he woke up about the difference between all the skill types.
{• Name: Bonded
Description: This skill forms a link between the user and selected individuals. This bond can only be activated through the formation of a genuine emotional connection or through the use of the naming ceremony. Once the bond is complete, the user becomes stronger whenever these individuals are in immediate peril.}
{• Name: Mind's Echo
Description: This skill allows for the creation of sub-minds that can carry out a variety of tasks such as activating skills, performing mental calculations, triggering biological reactions, and so on. Sub-minds can only be programmed to carry out very simple, singular tasks; however, sub-minds can be chained together into scripts to accomplish more complex tasks. Unfortunately, if the user is not careful, the sub-minds can be more of a hindrance than an asset.
For example, if Sub-mind 1 is given the task of activating a skill and the user leaves it at that, Sub-mind 1 will continuously activate the skill over and over until the user is completely drained of magicules. If the user instead chains Sub-mind 1 with Sub-mind 2, whose task is to tell Sub-mind 1 to activate the skill only when there's an enemy nearby, and Sub-mind 3, whose task is to tell Sub-mind 1 to stop when the enemy is dead, then things will go far better. Of course, this is just a very simple script and it can get far more complicated if the user is creative about it.}
{• Name: Shadow Movement
Description: Allows entry into and traversal of the Shadow Space, a special realm that connects all shadows together. This Shadow Space shortens the distance between areas, allowing for quick and stealthy travel from one point to another.}
{• Name: Magic Sense
Description: Lets the user detect the magicules used in the environment, allowing them to sense and perceive their surroundings in a far more complex way than normal eyesight.}
{• Name: Multilayer Barrier
Description: This skill creates a thin, invisible magical coating around the user's body made up of several different layers. Each layer is a barrier stacked on top of the others like a full‑body protective shield; every individual layer has a different resistance against a specific type of potential attack.}
{• Name: Thought Communication
Description: A skill that allows for telepathic communication as well as the sharing of complex ideas and memories with multiple individuals over large distances.}
{• Name: Abnormal Condition Resistance
Description: A skill that increases the user's resilience to negative status conditions, such as disease, poison, and paralysis.}
{• Name: Hunger Resistance
Description: Increases the user's resistance to hunger and starvation, allowing them to go long periods of time without eating.}
{• Name: Isolation Resistance
Description: Increases the user's mental fortitude, allowing them to endure long periods of complete solitude. This skill also grants some resistance against abilities and magic that attempt to affect or manipulate the user's mind.}
Having reached the end of the "normal" skills, I turned my attention to the next group. (And finally we have the last two; honestly, these are the ones I was most interested in.)
{• Name: Everlasting Hunger
Sub-skills:
Name: Deconstruction
Description: This skill's primary use is the absorption of living and non‑living matter through the use of pitch‑black energy produced by the user's body that can devour and compress matter. The skill can also be used offensively: the energy can be formed into shapes or tendrils, and anything that comes into contact with them will begin to be compressed and broken apart.
Name: Integration
Description: The user can not only steal the skills and abilities of any creature they absorb but can also incorporate physical traits not considered skills. For example, integrating a plant would allow for the acquisition of the ability to photosynthesize.
Name: Matter Expulsion
Description: All non‑integrated materials will be stored and compressed within a subspace inside the user's body and can be ejected. Note: all material released this way will be in a hypercompressed state, and once outside the user's subspace the compressed material will rapidly expand into a violent eruption of matter.}
{• Name: Eyes of the Abyss
Sub-skills:
Name: Death's Sight
Description: Death's Sight is a skill that can only be fully activated through eye contact. Once this condition is met, the target will feel the suffocating grip of death; their mind will be overcome with dread. Additionally, if this skill is applied continuously over a long period, a target may lose sensation and become hollow and unresponsive. This effect may be temporary but can still be debilitating in some cases.
Name: Inspection
Description: Allows the viewing of information carved into a soul, basically letting the user see the status of any living thing they desire, including themselves.
Name: Truth Seeker
Description: Grants the user the ability to see the truth hidden behind deceit, to see through lies and discern the true intentions of those around them.}
"And that's all of them..." I said out loud. I still hadn't fully processed everything, but I had a rough layout of the information. "Now I just have to learn how to use them all."
(It looks like I'll have a lot of work ahead of me...)