Chapter 20: Memories

Shapeshifter

[Devour Complete]

You absorbed 80% of the human's memories due to familiarity with the target.

You acquired the following skills:

[Buff of the Berserker (C)]

You and the target shared similar skills:

[Dark Bolt (C)] has fused with [Magic Missile (D)] to form [Corruption Missile (B)]

"He sure tasted better than those piles of bones," Xen mused as he stared down at the bundle of clothes, which was all that remained of Gerald. Memories from the consumed human flooded his consciousness and merged into a messy soup with the experiences and knowledge of everyone else. It was beginning to get more complicated to differentiate who he learned what from, but Geralds's memories were the freshest, so they sat on the surface of the soup like froth.

"So that's what a cat looks like," Xen muttered as he stood there staring off into space as he shifted through Gerald's memories, "They are inferior wolves, but apparently they have nine lives? Is that an S-tier skill? Also, they don't take fall damage and will always land on their feet?"

How could a foolish human-like Gerald tame such a godly creature? It didn't make any sense.

Other than memories of Charlie, Xen now had a better layout of the outside world and had a deeper appreciation for the credit cards Gerald had gifted him. With it, he could pay for this thing called 'rent' and go to the pet shop to buy snacks. How convenient.

As many memories settled into his mind, Xen had to admit he felt pretty sorry for Gerald. No, wait. Why do I feel pathetic, as if I was the one who died? How does that even make sense? Xen grunted as he desperately pushed Gerald's memories as deep into his consciousness as he could. He appreciated the knowledge consuming others gave him, but he was his own person.

"I'll become schizophrenic or develop a dissociative identity disorder at this rate... wait, how do I know these words. Ah!" Xen scared himself as words he didn't think he knew flowed freely from his mouth. "I don't like this feeling at all. It's as if someone else is speaking through me."

Xen went into his mind and put a lid on the memory soup, sealing it away. He would go digging if he needed something specific, but having so many memories that weren't his swirling around was messing with him.

"I need to focus on something else," Xen grumbled as he scratched his bony skull. "Let's check on the new spells I got."

[Corruption Missile (B)]

For the steep price of lifeforce (omitted if the caster is of the undead type) and mana, conjure a dozen missiles of condensed death attribute mana and mentally select a target. The missiles will attempt to trace the selected target, and if a living target is hit, there is a chance of inflicting the corruption debuff that rots flesh.

[Buff of the Berserker (C)]

Select a target to grant the berserker status effect. Target will not feel pain and have boosted strength for a duration proportional to the mana spent.

"See that, Gerald? I got your unique skill," Xen said as he patted his empty rib cage. "You may be dead, but your memories and skills live on through me... oh, and your responsibilities. Darn cat."

As for the skill, a specific use of it came to mind. "That undead mage's wall of Skeleton Warriors was quite formidable, but they lacked offensive capabilities. What if I cast Buff of the Berserker on a Skeleton Warrior wielding a hammer? That would actually hurt."

If only he had also gotten the Reinforce Undead skill, he could create an unstoppable army of the dead by combining these two buff skills.

"Meanwhile, [Corruption Missile (B)] sounds rather deadly. Dark bolts that follow a target in a swarm? Terrifying stuff." Xen dismissed the windows and glanced down either side of the tunnel. It was quieter than a graveyard and looked like one, too. There weren't any signs of monsters in the area, and he still had [Blood Scent (F)] equipped in a free slot, which would hopefully alert him to any nearby battles.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Better feast while I can... blah, tasteless bones," Xen grumbled as he carefully walked across the tunnel, picking up and devouring bones as he went. It took a while, but after he consumed the final bone, he could walk in a straight line without falling over.

[Devour Complete]

You gained 587 biomass.

Each bone gave little, but there were so many that it added to a sizable amount.

With that done, Xen had to make some decisions. Gerald was gone, giving him more freedom to advance through the dungeon as he pleased. The first step was to decide on what form he planned to use, as he had plenty of biomass to take any form he pleased.

[Name: Xen]

[Level: 9 (E)]

[Race: Mind Slime (Rare Variant)]

[Current Form: Undead Mage (Level 3)]

[Biomass: 921]

[Class: Shapeshifter (Unique)]

[Strength: 9 (+6)]

[Vitality: 9 (+3)]

[Agility: 9 (+6)]

[Resistance: 9 (+6)]

[Magic: 9 (+36)]

Mind Slime: Level 9 (E)

+1 Strength, +1 Vitality, +1 Agility, +1 Resistance, +1 Magic per level

Human: Level 4 (F)

+5 Strength, +2 Vitality, +3 Agility, +2 Resistance, +6 Magic per level

>

Elf: Level: 1 (F)

+4 Strength, +2 Vitality, +5 Agility, +1 Resistance, +10 Magic per level

Wolf: Level: 6 (E)

+5 Strength, +3 Vitality, +7 Agility, +2 Resistance, +1 Magic per level

Undead Mage: Level: 3 (F)

+2 Strength, +1 Vitality, +2 Agility, +2 Resistance, +12 Magic per level

"My strongest form is definitely my wolf form despite it being a few levels behind Mind Slime. All I can hope for is that my Mind Slime form will get a little stronger when I evolve at the next level." Xen mused as he scrolled through his status menu. "My Mind Slime form will level up no matter what other form I take, so its evolution is only a matter of time. Should I take the wolf form to get it to its first evolution, too?"

Xen tilted his bony head and realized he didn't exactly know what happened upon reaching an evolution level. "Also, didn't the system mention killing variants would enhance my evolution? The only variant I have seen so far was the Undead Mage. Following that logic, I should hold off on leveling my wolf form any further until I slaughter some variants on the lower floors."

There was also a good reason to stay in his Undead Mage form. His now most powerful spell [Corruption Missile (B)] was best used as an undead to avoid the life force cost.

"I should be able to spend biomass to replenish life force if I were to use this spell as a Human or Elf, but I also want to level this form up to the evolution."

It also helped that he felt the most at home in this undead body as having to keep the heart pumping and dealing with all the sensations of a living body was quite overwhelming for Xen, who was used to feeling almost nothing as a slime.

"Undead form it is!" Xen cheered as he wandered back to the pile of clothes that had belonged to Gerald. The human had taught him the importance of wearing clothes, and since other groups of Hunters may be wandering these floors, he didn't want them to shoot him on sight with magic. "If I wear his clothes, they might mistake me for a human for a moment, giving me time to unload a round of Corruption Missile into their face."

After struggling for a while, he eventually figured out which way the pants should go and how to wear a t-shirt. Thankfully, there was a belt, which he had at the max tightness setting as his fleshless body had slimmer proportions than Gerald's.

"What did Gerald call me? A cult leader?" Xen grinned as he finished the outfit with the black holy magic resistant cloak he'd looted from the Undead Mage. Once he put up the hood, it did an excellent job hiding his figure, and his black bones blended into the dungeon's darkness.

Only the two flickering purple flames in his eye sockets would give him away at first glance, so he kept his eyes on the floor and used [Mystic Perception (C)] to keep track of his surroundings.

If I want to explore the outside world, I will eventually need to level my human form. But that can come later. For now, I should head to the lower floors to level up and hunt variants.

Xen's feet no longer scraped as he walked, and he felt more stable after inheriting Geralds's shoes. The journey to the staircase to the lower floor was uneventful except for the occasional howl and the scent of blood.

The humans from the outside must have arrived and started fighting with the packs of wolves that scared off the Iron Legion. Xen thought as he turned the corner. Ah, here's the staircase.

It was obvious from a glance that it was not a normal staircase. It was slightly distorted as if it were descending into another plane of existence that was moving at a different speed. The air shimmered as if alive and glowed with a faint blue hue.

Xen took a careful step down, balancing himself on the wall as he had yet to take a flight of stairs in his life.

Everything was going well until three humans seemingly materialized out of thin air as they casually strode up the staircase, talking to one another.

"That floor was absolutely infested with undead, Eric. What a waste of time. They don't even drop anything we can sell—"All three paused and glanced at Xen, who was frozen in place while gripping the wall.