Thanks to my passive skills, the amount of growth that I’d gained from leveling up was remarkable. As my build was going to need a ton of MP, this made me extremely happy. I had even received a hundred skill points.
::Please check the Skills tab in your UI. The points you received can be used to acquire new skills.::
“Are things like this UI general knowledge here? The image appeared all by itself when I leveled up, too.”
::Yes, it is general knowledge. One merely has to call for ‘Status’ inside one’s mind to bring it up. From this UI, it is possible to confirm one’s own stats, acquire skills, and manage party functions. However, it is not possible to read someone else’s Status without their express permission.::
Ah, so that’s where Analyze Eye comes in, then. I guess this is a world where game-like elements are considered commonplace. I suppose no one thinks twice about it, seeing this sort of thing their whole lives.
“Right, let’s see what options we’ve got here.”
I maneuvered to the Skills tab, which turned out to be a list of the names, effects, and costs of an incredible number of abilities. How many skills are there?
::Just so we’re clear, this list does not contain all of the skills that exist. There are some that cannot be acquired until certain conditions have been met.::
“Why is Summoning so rare then? Didn’t I just choose it normally from this list?”
::No, you were a special case. The list that you chose from before your transmigration was what you might call a bonus list.::
“So that means the bonus list probably isn’t available from within this world? Well, never mind then.”
With Clotho keeping a watchful eye on our surroundings, I started scanning through the list of available skills.
“Um...isn’t the cost for acquiring new skills kinda low? These Rank F ones only cost ten points.”
::There are two kinds of skill points: Talent Points, a certain amount of which one is born with, and Growth Points, which one receives upon leveling up. Although it varies from person to person, on average, people are born with fifty Talent Points and earn five Growth Points with each level-up.::
“Hey, but I earned 100 SP from my level-up just now. Even considering the amount I get is doubled, it’s off by an order of magnitude.”
::The points that you used up before your transmigration were your Talent Points. Again, there is some variation depending on the skill, but in general, the cost of skills at Rank F is 10 SP, Rank E is 20, Rank D is 40, Rank C is 80, Rank B is 160, Rank A is 320, and Rank S is 640. The only way to acquire higher rank skills is to work your way up from the bottom, which means that it costs a total of 1,270 SP to acquire a Rank S skill.::
“Which means...a normal person who manages to reach Level 100 would still only have enough points to get a Rank B skill.”
::Em...yes, that’s what the math works out to.::
“Uhh...I’m Level 1 right now, and I already possess two Rank S skills.”
::Well...you did give up your memories as payment.::
So basically, my current status is a compounding of cheats. All right, I’ll just tell myself that all otherworlders here are absurdly OP characters like me. Not that I know if there even are other otherworlders out there.
::Of course, all of the above only applies to the average person. There are incredible talents and frightening beings out there too, like the Demon Lord.::
Let’s just not think about this anymore. The growth of my stats seems almost paltry in comparison to the growth of my skills, so as long as I don’t do anything stupid, I should be able to avoid drawing unwanted attention to myself. For now, let’s get back to Parth before taking a more thorough look at the skills list.
And with that thought, Clotho and I finished up our subjugation quest.
✦ ✦ ✦
Having completed the quest without issue, I returned to Parth with Clotho Unsummoned. Heading straight to the guild, I received my quest completion reward, then focused on finding an inn.
When I turned onto what I thought was the right road, a horse-drawn carriage waiting by the curb came into view. It had a cage in the back that was large enough to hold people inside. Within the cage were the figures of several young girls who were likely slaves, with their heads bowed. All of them were wearing only a single sheet of cloth.
Guess those are slaves? I still have empty Summoning slots, so maybe it would be a good idea to purchase one or two to party up with, to have more fighting strength at my disposal. After all, I don’t have a single adventurer acquaintance in this world.
Amid my musings, the voices of two men, who were likely slave traders, reached my ears.
“I’ll have you know, I got my hands on some incredible merchandise the other day! Look at this! She’s an elf!”
“Damn, man! Aren’t they really hard to come by, with how rarely they leave their villages?! This one looks a bit thin and gaunt, but I’ve heard it said that all elves are breathtaking beauties. I’m sure she’ll shine if you give her just a little polishing!”
“Unfortunately, she’s actually a half-elf with mixed blood, but I managed to procure her at this price...”
“You serious?! Isn’t that too good of a bargain to be true?!”
“Bwahaha! I suppose it means my talent as a merchant has started to shine!”
Although the conversation between the men was rather inappropriate for roadside banter, the term “elf” had caught my attention. After all, I had yet to see a single elf since coming to this world. My eyes followed the direction that the two slavers were looking in, and sure enough, there was a young girl with long ears. Her hair was a dull yellow, but it was clearly very dirty, which led me to suspect that its original color was probably blond. For some reason, she was the only one under heavy lock and key. Is it because she’s an elf?
“Ah...”
All of a sudden, she looked up and our eyes just happened to meet. Was it only for a few seconds? I found myself completely taken in by her beautiful emerald green eyes, unable to avert my gaze. The half-elf girl, however, quickly lowered her head again.
✦ ✦ ✦
✦ ✦ ✦
::What’s the matter, honey?::
“Nah, it’s nothing.” This is hardly the time for that. I barely have enough money for myself right now, let alone spare cash to buy a slave with. Let’s think about it again after I have some more leeway with my finances. “Well then, which road should we take?”
After a brief walk, we reached our destination. “Is this the inn that Ange-san described?”
I had asked Ange-san to recommend an inn to me, and this was the one she had told me about. It turned out to be a three-story brick building, with a sign depicting the silhouette of a small dancing fairy. The chimney rising from the roof was puffing out billows of smoke, likely due to the kitchen staff preparing dinner.
::‘Ange’s top recommended inn for starting adventurers that’s easy on the pursestrings!’, was it?::
“The Fairy’s Song, this has gotta be it. Let’s head inside.”
When I opened the door, a stocky, matronly woman came over from behind the counter to greet me. Let me guess, this is the inn’s proprietress?
“A new customer, eh? Welcome to the Fairy’s Song!”
From the look of things, the establishment was a combination of eatery and inn. The first floor was filled with wooden tables, many of which were occupied by youngsters in the middle of eating.
“Yes, I am. I would like a room for the night, please.”
“We hope you like it enough to continue staying with us. My name’s Clare. Pleasure to have you.”
“I’m Kelvin. I’ve heard that the food here is delicious. I’m already looking forward to it.”
“Hahaha, then I guess we’ve got to make it even more delicious tonight!”
After I paid the lodging fee, Clare-san showed me to my room while providing general information about the inn, meal times, washing, and so on.
Phew, I can finally take a breather. Only...
“I’d expected this, but to think they really don’t have a bath...”
::Only the royal castle and mansions belonging to nobles have baths. Commoners generally either take a dip in the river or wipe themselves down with a wet towel.::
“Living without a bath is really tough on a Japanese person. I definitely plan to live in a house with a bath someday!”
Excited about adding this to my growing list of goals, I reopened the Skills tab in my UI. I had narrowed down my choices earlier and now made a beeline for a particular skill.
“There it is!”