Chapter 18: The First Steps
Five days passed.
Life in the forest fell into a new rhythm. The slime village was no longer just a bunch of slimes. Gray wolves were taking care of patrol duty near the cave entrance.
Their perception was significantly better than what the slimes could manage. The moment something was detected, the Alpha would give a low growl.
The slimes would then prepare for battle. It was surprisingly effective.
Tanaka watched the display with satisfaction.
Various abilities...
That’s how it was done.
The wolves would do their part, scouting and hunting. The slimes would do theirs, defending the camp and exploring the dungeon. No one complained about the system.
Tanaka had another matter to deal with.
Communication with the wolves.
He looked directly at the Alpha.
The beast looked back.
Tanaka focused.
"Can you hear me?"
Nothing happened.
The wolf tilted his head.
Tanaka gave a soft squish in reply.
The Alpha looked even more puzzled.
The little slime bounced over to him.
Boing?
Tanaka sighed.
This was much harder than fighting.
Every afternoon, he practiced.
Again and again.
Focusing on projecting his consciousness beyond his body.
It didn’t work.
Not at all.
His frustration didn’t last long.
The dungeon required his attention.
The training for today involved sharing skills.
Tanaka called together the veteran hunting slimes.
They gathered in a circle while the Alpha and his pack watched with interest.
Tanaka opened Devourer.
Within the endless void of the Skill Storage, he found the analyzed copies of a few combat skills.
Leap.
Earth Impact.
Sharp Claws.
Tanaka focused on the first one, Leap.
He guided the skill to the surface, a tiny thread of mana connecting it to one of the hunting slimes.
The transfer had begun.
The selected slime began to glow.
After a few seconds, it stopped.
Tanaka frowned.
Did it not work?
He tried again with another slime.
Same result.
Tanaka tried a third time.
This time, it worked!
The hunting slime suddenly bounced nearly three meters into the air.
It landed just as surprised as the rest of the slimes.
Tanaka checked its record.
[ Skill Acquired
Leap Lv.1 ]
"It worked!" He announced internally.
Outside, the slime just looked at itself in surprise before attempting the skill again.
This time, it was able to land properly.
The little slime immediately bounced in front of Tanaka.
Boing!
Your turn?
The little slime nodded so enthusiastically it nearly knocked itself over.
Tanaka smiled.
"Alright."
He transferred the skill once more.
The mana thread connected.
The little slime glowed.
After a few seconds, the light faded.
Then...
BOING!
The little slime shot up nearly as high as the first one.
It nearly hit the cave ceiling.
It flailed helplessly before landing right on top of Tanaka.
Tanaka laughed internally.
The little slime bounced off of him proudly.
By the end of the day, only four slimes had been able to acquire the skill.
The rest were unable to.
Tanaka checked their records.
A pattern seemed to emerge.
The slimes that had successfully learned the skill had slightly stronger Magic Cores.
The others were unable to accept the skill transfer.
The failed attempts had not reflected on their records at all.
Tanaka found it was not the skill that mattered.
Only the stronger ones could inherit new abilities.
It was only natural if weaker ones were unable to learn.
If everything could be acquired so easily...
The world would have been much different.
The wolves came over to check on the results.
The Alpha seemed to want to attempt skill learning as well.
Tanaka knew what it meant.
You want to try?
The Alpha gave a small nod.
Tanaka hesitated.
Then, he connected the mana thread.
It failed almost immediately, the thread snapping.
The Alpha gave a surprised look.
Tanaka blinked.
"Different races."
It was that simple.
Devourer was capable of storing and transferring skills. But it appeared there were limitations to it.
Later that evening...
The little slime continued to practice.
Leap, again and again.
Every time, the movement became a little neater.
The slime that had inherited the skill had also grown stronger.
The other slimes weren’t disappointed.
As a matter of fact, they were able to learn through observation.
Tanaka liked that.
Skills weren’t the only things that could make one powerful.
The night had fallen, and most of the village had retired to sleep.
Only the wolves remained awake.
The Alpha laid outside the cave, watching the woods.
Tanaka sat beside him.
They said nothing.
After a few minutes of silence...
Tanaka attempted once more.
Not through force.
But gently.
He imagined his thoughts drifting away.
"Can you hear me?"
A pulse of mana exited his core.
It was small, barely worth mentioning.
The Alpha suddenly looked towards him.
Its ears perked up.
Its eyes widened.
Then...
A thought passed through Tanaka’s mind.
It wasn’t words, but rather emotions.
Recognition.
Curiosity.
It lasted for only a moment before fading away completely.
Tanaka was frozen.
His heart pounded in his chest.
It worked...
For a moment...
His Soul Record quietly updated.
[ Skill Acquired
Thought Communication Lv.1
The ability to transmit simple thoughts through mana. ]
Tanaka’s body tingled with excitement.
He hadn’t been able to speak yet. But he had taken the first step.
One day, he would be able to communicate with every monster he encountered.
Maybe one day, he would even be able to talk with other humans.
The Alpha looked at him for a moment.
Then it gave a small nod.
It had felt something as well.
Tanaka smiled.
The path from an unnamed slime to something greater had become a little less lonely.