Chapter 10: Skills Lost

Sila’s eyes were still closed. He was circulating Recovering Qi to fully heal his wounds. Meanwhile, the Goddess of Purified Water went downstairs to pay the restaurant’s owner for damage compensation.

Finally, Sila’s body was fully recovered. His external wounds and pain were all gone. He opened his system window to check his current status while waiting for the Goddess of Purified Water to return.

[Player Status: Sila]

[Level: 56]

[Race: Pink Slime]

[Rank: Squire]

[Health Points: 325,045 / 400,000]

[Magic Points: 250,000 / 250,000]

[Passive Skills]

Bare Hands Mastery – Level 100 (maximum)

Qi Circulation – Level 75

Basic Qi – Level 100 (maximum)

Recovering Qi – Level 57

Bone Restructuring Qi – Level 33

Qi of Little Fish – Level 24

Qi of Little Tiger – Level 28

[Active Skill]

Unseal – Level 15

(Unseal skill is a general skill and available to all races, so it isn’t counted as the skill of the human race)

[Racial Skill]

Special skill: Heart of Slime

[Skills of Right Arm of the Sealed One]

Special skill: Electromagnetic Field (Lightning)

Special skill: Vacuum Ball (Wind)

Special skill: Unseen Flame (Fire)

Special skill: Magnet Gravity (Earth)

Special skill: Frozen Hydrogen (Ice)

Special skills weren’t skills that could be measured by level. Their abilities were often high from the start and could be used in more versatile ways if the user mastered them.

‘I can’t use magic and skills of the human race, so how can I defend myself against magic attacks from now on?’

Firstly, Sila had thought he could use his right arm to block spells. However, after thinking about it carefully, that would only work against low-tier spells. If his opponent used higher tier spells which had a wide area-of-effect or a unique characteristic, it would be hard for him to defend them with only his right arm.

“Have you finished recovering?” The soft voice got Sila out of his thought.

“Yes.” Sila nodded. “Thank you for paying for me.”

She nodded in response, and said, “No problem, but when did I ever say that I would pay for you?”

“Huh?”

“What’re you ‘huh’ing for? The damage compensation is 300,000 silver. Don’t forget to pay me later.”

Sila was somehow shocked. “These damages cost us 300,000 silver each? Isn’t that too much?”

“Who told you it’s 300,000 silver for us each? That’s the total amount, which you have to pay alone.”

“What? Why? They came to get you, aren’t you the one who should pay?”

“Is that so? Then, please tell me, is there anything that I damaged in this restaurant?” She replied with a smile.

Sila turned to look around. There were burnt marks on the floor, debris of table and chairs scattered here and there. There was also a hole in the wall. All of them had been caused by him, or the thieves who had fought with him.

He sighed. “Okay, I understand now. In any case, I don’t have the money right now. I will pay you later when I can.”

“That’s fine. For now, please just come with me.”

“Huh? Go with you? Where to?” asked Sila, feeling puzzled.

She smiled faintly and said, “A hotel.”

“WHAT!!?”

“You still remember your promise about obeying my three requests, right?” said the woman before dragging Sila out of the restaurant without his consent.

***

A while after leaving the restaurant, Sila started to be unable to bear this girl’s action of dragging him around, so he stopped walking.

She saw that and asked, “What happened?”

“Why do we have to go to a hotel?”

“To log out, of course,” answered the woman, “My dad has been waiting for you outside.”

Sila finally understood the reason why she was trying to take him to a hotel, well, it would be better if she clearly stated her intention from the start. Sila felt a bit embarrassed since he had misunderstood. He glanced at her face, figuring whether she had intended to tease him or not. Unfortunately, her expression was hard for him to tell her real thought, so he frowned as he felt unsure.

‘Does she really not intend to speak vaguely?’

“Then… why should I log out?” asked Sila.

“It’s because you’re always in the game. My father was worried about you so much that he has always been staying by your side without going back home. He even ordered me to drag you out as his last resort, remember?”

“Well, if that’s the case, can you log out and tell him not to worry about me? I will log out sooner or later.”

“I thought you would say something like this. So, this is my first request: Until you leave a hospital, please tell me or my dad about what time you will be logged in and logged out.”

“Huh? Just like this? That’s your first request?”

“Yes.”

Sila was surprised, based on her habit that he had seen, he thought her requests would be something more bothersome than this.

“Why?” Sila was curious.

“Because there’s a certain someone who only thinks about himself. My dad paid for your medical expenses, you know? Just how long do you plan to let him keep paying? It’s true that he’s not saying anything, but you should at least reflect on your behavior.”

Well, actually, Rashane was considered a wealthy businessman. For him, Sila’s medical fees were trivial. Nevertheless, she brought this up to make Sila feel guilty and try his best to get out of the hospital.

And it proved quite effective. Sila didn’t know Rashane much; he only knew that Rashane was his teacher’s close friend since Rashane had been coming to their dojo from time to time. The fact that he hadn’t met Rashane’s daughter even once was a proof by itself how less he acquainted he was with Rashane. Thus, he couldn’t possibly know Rashane’s financial status.

Sila couldn’t argue this girl at all. He reflected his own misbehaviour and went ahead of her towards a hotel in the Town of Beginnings. The woman felt glad that her speech worked and followed him without saying anything.

However, during their trip, Sila spotted a weapon shop.

“Ermm... you.” Sila started the conversation.

“I have a name, you know?”

“Oh, then... the Goddess of Purify Water,” said Sila while complaining in his mind, ‘Why did she have to name her avatar this long?’

“Actually, my name is Varee, or you can also call me by my nickname, Nam,” explained the woman, “The Goddess of Purify Water is merely my title.”

T/N: Both her real name ‘Varee’ and her nickname ‘Nam’ literally means ‘Water’ in Thai.

“Okay. Miss Varee. Do you mind if I visit this weapon store first?”

“Hmm? Do you want to buy a weapon? Can’t you buy it when you log in next time?” commented Varee.

“No, no, I just want to ask the owner something.”

She pondered for a moment. “Well, okay, but please make it quick.”

Sila nodded before walking into the weapon shop, followed by Varee.

***

In the shop, there were many weapons on display. There were many varieties of weapons including a sword, a bow, a halberd, a spear, a knife, and even a spiked mace. They were all put on shelves made of bamboo. Behind the shop’s counter, there was a sturdy man wearing jean pants with his upper body exposed.

“Welcome. What do you want to buy?” greeted the shop owner.

“I would like to ask about my weapon,” replied Sila.

“I see. Feel free to ask me anything.”

“It’s about this Right Arm of the Sealed One.”

“Right Arm of the Sealed One?/Right Arm of the Sealed One?” asked the shopkeeper and Varee in unison.

“Yes.” Sila rolled up his right sleeve to clearly show his arm. “Here, this is the Right Arm of the Sealed One.”

Only when Varee took a good look at it, she could realize that this thing wasn’t a weird arm guard as she had thought. It was actually Sila’s arm that looked like an arm of a Golem.

The shop owner was silent for a moment before he began to speak.

“Congratulations, Mister Customer, you just got a hidden quest.”

“Hidden quest?”

“Yes.”

The shopkeeper touched Sila’s arm. Then, the system notification could be heard.

[You have gotten a hidden quest: Search for the Sealed One. The time duration is unlimited.]

“Search for the Sealed One?” Sila still didn’t fully understand.

“Just as the quest’s name suggests, the quest will be completed when you find the Sealed One, who is staying somewhere in the world of Monster Soul.”

“Where is he, then?” blatantly asked Sila.

The shop owner smiled. “Well, I don’t know either. I do have a clue though. Do you want to listen?”

“Of course.”

“Legend has it that, in ancient times, there was one man who possessed tremendous power. He alone could decide the life and death of all creatures in the world of Monster Soul. There’s a saying that his eyes could see through everything, whether it was in the past, present, or future. His torso was so strong that nothing could inflict even a small scratch. His left arm was the embodiment of all ancient spells. His right arm was the defensive innovation from futurity. His left leg fused with all natures in the world. His right leg was forged by every powerful weapon. And lastly, his heart was the source of limitless power.”

Sila and Varee listened to a story told by the shopkeeper quietly. It was a story of a man who they thought shouldn’t be categorized as human anymore. Nevertheless, the shop owner continued the story.

“The man was even stronger than God and the Demon Lord, so people began to worship him instead of God, and fear him instead of the Demon Lord. His existence stirred up a chaos in the Abode of the Gods and the Demon’s Realm. It was the first time that both sides combined their great forces to get rid of this man.”

“Oh, I see. So, he was ambushed by both God and the Demon Lord; and then was sealed as his title said, wasn’t he?”

The shop owner shook his head and denied. “You’re wrong. Even when he was beset by both God and the Demon Lord’s sides, he still couldn’t be defeated. It was instead God and the Demon Lord’s sides that suffered a lot of casualties. Finally, their troops fled. After that, God and the Demon Lord had consulted together on a way to eliminate him, and unfortunately for that man, they really found it.”

“Backbiting?” guessed Sila.

“No, it’s through love.”

Sila was surprised by the answer.

“God and the Demon Lord thought that if that man really had no weakness, they just need to give him one themselves. The two of them joined forces to create one woman. They led this woman to him and waited for love to bloom between both humans. After that, they held her as a hostage and gave him a choice to trade his life for her safety, to which the man accepted their condition and shattered his own life for his lover. However, the parts of his body were far too powerful and indestructible. Therefore, they were sealed by God and the Demon Lord later.”

Listening to this ending, a drop of tear could be seen lingering below Varee’s eyes. She quickly wiped her eyes without being seen by everyone though.

For Sila, he still didn’t quite understand, ‘Love, huh?’

“I don’t understand why that man chose to give up his life. There’s no guarantee that other party will release the woman even if he did so.”

“Huhu. You may understand it once you’re really in love, then,” replied the shop owner.

“Well, what happened next?” asked Sila.

“It is said that the man somehow survived and is still alive as a normal human being and continues to search for his lover in spite of being powerless in the world of Monster Soul. Some also said that he is now living quietly with her in a place that no one could reach. There was also a rumor about him having permanently died from this world.”

“And my quest is for me to find that man?” All Sila had listened to was merely a tale, he didn’t get a single clue.

“Yes, it is,” answered the shop owner.

“I don’t understand how that tale is a hint for me,” said Sila.

“Well, it’s a basic backstory to let you understand the Sealed One a little bit more.”

“Hmm, then, what’s his name?”

“After the fight, both sides of God and the Demon Lord were trying to erase his identity from the world. They decisively forbade all creatures to talk and record about him. So, even his name has faded with time.”

Sila thought in his mind that this statement was extremely contradictory. If there was really no record about this man, then how could the shop owner know about this? Well, it’s just an in-game story setting, so he didn’t bother much.

“In any case, back to the main topic, what do you know about this arm?”

“Since it’s the right arm, I think it has the defense and future-related powers. Maybe it needs more energy to improve its functions. What type of elemental energies had it absorbed?”

“There were fire, lightning, ice, earth, and wind.”

“So, it now lacks water, light, and dark energies. If you collect them all, something might happen.”

“If you just need to take a hit from elemental attacks, I can help.” It was Varee’s voice that said this. “Players usually have all elemental low-tier spells anyway. If you don’t mind, we can try it now.”

“Then, go ahead,” Sila told Varee.

Varee didn’t waste her time. She shot a black ball toward Sila, followed by a very bright light coming out of her palm.

Sila raised his hand to block the black ball, and then closed his eyes before the bright light’s effect could be fully shown. However, prior to his eyes completely shutting, Sila could vaguely see Varee reach her hand toward her sword.

The sword was quickly drawn, glowing in blue aura.

At that moment, Sila lifted his right arm to guard his neck. Then, the sound of metal clashing could be heard, together with the force that Sila needed to step backward to decrease the impact.

The system sound alarmed.

[Right Arm of the Sealed One has received dark-element energy, the special skill: Black Hole is unlocked.]

[Right Arm of the Sealed One has received light-element energy, the special skill: Laser Beam is unlocked.]

[Right Arm of the Sealed One has received water-element energy, the special skill: River Blade is unlocked.]

When Sila regained his stance again, he shouted at Varee unpleasantly, “Are you trying to kill me!?”

“Well, I just want to see whether you could defend against it or not.” Varee smiled. “You are quite good, though. This is actually my signature move; using chantless light-element skill to blind the opponent’s eyes before striking quickly at a vital point.”

Sila was about to say that he wasn’t a move tester, but a shocking system notification interrupted him.

[Right Arm of the Sealed One has received all elemental energies. It will enter into the sealed state again. All skills obtained from Right Arm of the Sealed One are deleted. It can be unsealed again after seven days from now.]

Suddenly, his right arm’s shape changed back into his normal arm, but it was petrified and couldn’t be moved at all, similar to the first time he had obtained it from the sealed box.