Apparently, equipment and skills are more important than your level in this game. There isn’t even a stat screen, and the HP bar doesn’t have any numerical values on it. While leveling up your race does raise your overall abilities, the stat bonuses from equipment and skills are simply superior, and it is possible to unlock new skills through special actions.
If you want to raise your strength, your best bet is to work on a skill that requires raw physical power. According to the official announcement, it’s also possible to raise it through weight training, but raising stats through repetition was like trying to turn a mountain into dust: so inefficient it might as well be impossible.
As I continue my barrage, the zombie’s health bar changes from green to yellow, then yellow to red, until finally it’s gone entirely. Then the creature dissipates into wisps of light. It turns out you can defeat a zombie without taking a point of damage, as long as you get on top of them.
Your Race Level has increased!
For the time being, I know how to defeat a zombie, so let’s pick up a skill. Hmm, right, I believe I saw it on the initial skill list. I open the menu, go to skills, and skim over the ones I can learn. It looks like this window displays every single skill I’m eligible for. Inhumans can pick up monster skills here as well, though they’re on a separate tab.
Monster skills for your species unlock as you increase your racial level. If you attack a monster of another race that has a skill, there’s apparently a low chance of unlocking their skill as well. But…you still have to pay for them. Monster skills from your own race cost less, and the worse the affinity, the more points it will take to learn the skill.
Not that it matters to me.
I open the initial skill tab and naturally pick up the Fist skill. I’m not going to find a weapon in my current state, am I? Rather, judging by the sensation of swinging my arms, I get the feeling I won’t be able to wield one anyway. Let’s pray I can fix my build later.
Now, on with the search. Did I get any drops?
[INGREDIENT] ROTTEN MEAT
Rarity: NO Quality: F
A chunk of fetid, rotten meat.
…Yes.
Yes I did.
Even if it’s rotten, meat is still meat, so let’s just gloss over the fact that it’s treated as an edible ingredient.
I swiftly forget about the rotten meat and begin lurching down every corner of the catacombs to fill in the map. My fears are soon realized—there is a horrible lack of anything noteworthy. Now and then, I accidentally trip and fall into a zombie, but I can defeat them and level up, so that’s fine.
Just as I calculate how long it might take to fill in the first floor, a call comes in from my sister.
“Hey, Sis, where you at?”
“Your elder sister is in the catacombs.”
“Cata-whats? Huh? Don’t tell me…”
“Let’s meet after I get rid of Decaying Body, okay?”
“You chose zombie of all things?! I thought you’d at least go for a skeleton or something. And you’re at the racial starting point too. That’s probably the right place for a zombie to be though…”
“Well, I thought there’d already be a few people playing the bony ones.”
“There are, but there are hardly any inhuman players in general. Well, there aren’t many players yet in FLFO in the first place.”
“I like playing quietly alone, so I decided to try out the most unpopular option.”
“I heard it’s hellish. Are you all right?”
“I’m already level 4. It’s easier than I thought!”
“Huh? Isn’t that too fast? I know inhumans are supposed to grow fast, but this is…”
“It’s because everyone around me is at least level 6. And they’re zombies, so they’re pretty easy to take down.”
“Yeah, but the looks, the feeling, the stench…! Ugh, with everything put together, I wouldn’t call it a nice place to level up in.”
“Admittedly, it’s kind of hard to walk. I can’t see properly either. I don’t think I can handle a weapon—rather, I haven’t gotten one yet. I’m whacking them with my bare hands, but it feels like slapping hamburger meat. This conversation is getting through fine, but my hearing is also faint. It’s like I’ve become an old woman.”
“Wah— Oh wait! What about your tits, Sis?”
“They rotted off.”
“N-no…! Th-that can’t be…!!!”
Even though I can’t see her, I can generally tell what sort of face she’s making—a grimace, most likely. But even if I had breasts, the very fact that I’m a zombie would mean she can’t glomp me like she usually does…
“Well, let’s just pray that my magnificent mountains come back after I evolve and get rid of Decomposing Body.”
“Urgh, call me if you hit a wall. I’ll help out. Heck, I’ll grind like crazy for you, Sis!”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll tell you all about my situation when we meet IRL.”
“That’s a promise!”
“If it felt impossible, I planned on deleting the character and starting over, but it still seems doable for now.”
“For the time being, it looks like you’re a higher level than me. I’ll get hunting!”
“Good luck!”
“Let’s do this!”
The conversation’s over, so now I can concentrate on walking again—if I don’t I’ll have another collision. Still, this place really is wonderfully empty. Truly, splendidly empty. It’s just a shame that defeating zombies only ever gets me rotten meat.
I log out, eat dinner, and log right back in. A while later, I’ve just about finished my map of the first floor—but the clock says it’s nearly midnight. It’s far past my bedtime. As is, I’m slow, and it’s painful to walk, so mapping the catacombs is taking a lot longer than expected.
I know where the stairs down are, so I’ll try heading to the second floor tomorrow. I’m also curious about the level of the enemies there. I crawl into the same wall cavity I was born in and log out. While I’m at it, I set an alarm to remind me of bedtime next time I’m logged in.
I clean up the VR setup, go to the bathroom, stretch, and lie down on the bed again. How refreshing it is to use my own body again.
Good night.