6 Civilization

I spent a couple hours organizing the loot. Thankfully, all I had to do was place them in my inventory and Ed would automatically appraise and categorize them.

First of all, I got another 500 kg of Tiger meat, as well as another two leathers.

Thanks to my increased mana capacity, I could transform all of their bones immediately. I kept about half of them as flammable bones, in case of emergencies. The other half went to upgrading the structures I had brought over from my last base.

The spit roast was now upgraded so that I could roast two at the same time, and the squat rack and bench press were now larger. The seat on the bench press and the handles of the bars were wrapped in tiger fur for comfort.

Other than that, I secured a new source of water. My Utility Magic levelled up, and I acquired a spell that produces water, called 'Watering'.

I also levelled up thanks to killing the two tigers. My status was as follows.

[Status:

Name: Daniel

Age: 14

Class: None

Level: 10 -> 18

HP: 120/120 -> 144/144

MP: 300/300 -> 390/390

STR: 30 -> 38

VIT: 30 -> 34

AGI: 28 -> 32

DEX: 31 -> 36

INT: 12 -> 21

Skills: Bone Manipulation LV5, Utility Magic LV3, Swordsmanship LV8, Dismantling LV2, Tanning LV2, Mana Regeneration LV7, Tailoring LV3, Dagger Arts LV2

Inventory: 5 x Health Potions (Rare), Blue-mane Lion Leather (Uncommon), 2 x Tri-horned Tiger Leather (Uncommon), Flammable Bones (Uncommon), Bench Press (Uncommon), Squat Rack (Uncommon), 500 kg Tri-horned Tiger Meat (Uncommon)

Equipment: Mithril Longsword (Unique), Orichalcum Dagger (Rare), Purple Death Cuirass (Rare+), Purple Death Leggings (Rare+), Purple Death Boots (Rare+), Purple Death Gauntlets (Rare+), Purple Death Pauldrons (Rare+), Purple Death Helmet (Rare+), Tri-Horned Tiger Cape (Uncommon)]

Truly, life and death battles bring out the most potential in humans. I had been stuck at the peak of Swordsmanship LV7 for about a week, and just one battle had allowed me to level up.

But right now, I had a more pressing question.

'Ed, how long will it be before we reach civilization, you reckon?' (Daniel)

'I have no idea, Daniel. Like I said, I can't access my mapping function yet.' (Ed)

'Fat load of good you are! We might have to wander here for years before we find anyone. Although that's not a bad thing, I'd rather get in a hot bath and sleep on a proper mattress.' (Daniel)

'Hmm.' (Ed)

'By the way, why did my INT increase so much in this battle?' (Daniel)

'Finally, an easy question to answer. Increases in attributes when levelling up depend on how much you used them prior to the level up. In this case, you exhausted your mana multiple times by using Bone Manipulation, and thus your INT increased the most.' (Ed)

'Does that mean if I just practice like crazy for a year without levelling up, the next time I do it'll be an insane boost?' (Daniel)

'Most likely not. In this world, a being's potential is limited by their level. For example, a level 20 would not be able to increase his attributes the same amount as a level 100 even if their training was exactly the same.' (Ed)

'Sooo… I still need to level up in the end?' (Daniel)

'Correct. Don't worry, Daniel. With my help, you will reach the apex in no time!' (Ed)

'That's probably the best thing you've said since we met.' (Daniel)

After my little 'heart-to-heart' conversation with Ed, I continued on with my daily routine.

Until one day, Ed detected foreign mana signatures that belonged to humans.

Since the start of this life, the only person I've been in contact with is Ed. And he's not even considered a person.

Therefore, I had no idea what these people would be like. Are they religious? Do they even speak the same language? Or do they use guttural sounds? Maybe hand signs? Do they get offended easily?

These uncertainties lead to me taking a defensive stance against these newcomers.

Since they were able to reach here, they obviously weren't newbies. Although I didn't know their goals, I knew that they were my express ticket out of here.

As such, I needed to play it cool; show off my prowess and charm them with my charisma. Unless they were all males – in which case I'd just beat their asses until they submit.

As I was speculating what to do, they finally approached the oasis. I was hiding in a small hole I dug underground.

"Phew. That was exhausting. Remind me again why we're out here, Arkan?" (???)

The guy who spoke seemed to be a tank of some sort. He was dressed in heavy armor, and he had a massive shield on his back. His entire build screamed 'giant'; everything from his height to his muscles clearly outstripped anyone else in his party.

"Stop complaining, Bork. You know full well why we're here. Don't make me say it again, alright? Or you won't know what hit you." (Arkan)

Arkan, who seemed to be the leader of the party, was dressed in light leather armor and had two swords on his hips. He's probably a dual swordsman. From my past lives, I know that these dual swordsmen think they are superior in every way. But what's so good about swinging two swords together when I can kill you in one strike?

"Hehehe, rough as always, huh? Whatever then. Let's just get this over and done with so I can go home already." (Bork)

"Arin, what did you find?" (Arkan)

"Nothing much, Captain. I expected there to at least be some tigers here, but it's bare. There's not a single soul around." (Arin)

'Arin' was a lithe female, who was dressed in ranger attire – a leather corset-like armor, and a hood. She was wearing tight pants that were easy to move around in. It was quite a nice view.

"Good! Here, help me unload this stuff. The sooner we finish the sooner we go home." (Arkan)

"Yes, Captain!" (Arin)

Seems like they are here to execute a scheme! Sigh… I hate getting involved in things like these. I guess I'll just stay here and wait until they leave, before I trail them back to their town…

'Daniel! Quick! Get out of the hole now!' (Ed)

Ed's tone seemed very urgent. Without hesitating, I popped out of the hole as fast as I could.

When I turned back around, I saw a massive scorpion. It was a Purple Death Scorpion!

Now, I was sandwiched between two fronts. To my back, I had the scorpion. In front of me, the party of three were looking at me incredulously.

I've really been caught in a pickle this time.