Capítulo 117: Lesser salamander (1)
<Guy, wake the flipping hell up or I will come in there and make you!>
Ungh, I feel groggy as my sight returns. The dim view of the cave returns and I can feel something slippery moving up and down my cheek. Looking down I see an overly large lizard with slight red dots all over his dark scales licking me.
I sit up and shove the lizard away from me. Is it even a lizard now after the evolution?
<It's not a dungeon lizard anymore. You made it directly skip at least one usual step of evolution and become a lesser salamander.>
Salamander? As in dragon?
<Not quite. Lesser salamanders need to first evolve into salamanders, then drakes, and only then will they be able to become dragons. Still, for a dungeon lizard to directly become a lesser salamander is outrageous!>
So I made it skip an entire step of evolution, huh. Does that mean it's really strong now?
<While an evolution grants some bonus stats the lesser salamander's stats are still similar to its normal evolution. The main benefit of skipping evolutionary steps is that the monsters can attain more powerful skills early. The lesser salamander's flame breath makes it an extraordinarily difficult opponent for anyone on its level.>
Flame breath... I always wondered how that worked. Is it considered magic?
<Not really. This skill uses stamina instead of mp so it's more of an energy attack if anything.>
Then its danger probably stems from the ability to continuously fire it, right? Without some way to block the fire the AOE damage from it could kill entire teams.
And at this level, no adventurers have area defensive spells or skills yet. They'd have to rely on their constitution and eventual resistances to charge through the fire and slay the lesser salamander before it could burn them alive.
<Don't forget about the instructor that's usually accompanying a group of newer adventurers. Someone like that could easily charge through the fire and kill your little creation.>
Not if I'm there to stop it. I pull up the dungeon map and look at the higher floors. There's more than one group in this dungeon. The one I just finished was the only one on the first floor.
<They were the weakest group. Don't expect the other groups to make as many mistakes if you do go after them. We can also transport you to another dungeon so you can take down more of the weakest groups first.>
Thanks but I think I'll stay here. Having a lesser salamander as backup is a great advantage.
Looking into the creature's eyes I still see the violence from before but it's now joined by cruelty and superior intellect. I don't think it can speak but it definitely understands me well enough to grasp advanced meanings. Having an ally like that will no doubt benefit me greatly.
Come to think of it, did I level up since the small slaughter I just committed?
Status Guy Lv.23 Goblin instructor
Mp 10+42+0
Strength 5+42+11
Constitution 5+42+13
Speed 5+42+8
Magic ability 0+42+0
Skills:
universal humanoid language, universal monster language, dungeon map
throwing lv. 4; enhanced stamina lv. 3; breathing technique lv. 3; stealth lv.2; soul vision lv.1; enhanced stomach capacity lv.1;
instructing lv.2; instructor's assessment lv.1;
dagger use lv. 4; backstab lv.1; energy dagger lv.1;
trap making lv. 5; camp construction lv.2; make-shift crafting lv.1;
dismantling lv. 5; cleaning lv. 1;
Earth magic lv.1;
Nice! My level rose by three!
But why do my mp and magic ability bonus stats suddenly say zero? I could have sworn that they were higher than that.
<Remember that draining feeling you had when you decided to influence the dungeon lizard's evolution? That was your mp and magic ability bonus stats flowing out of you. You helped fuel the lesser salamander's evolution by making up for the deficits with your own bonus stats.>
And here I thought I had discovered a cheat ability!
<You have discovered a cheat ability! Do you know how much skipping an evolution means?>
You'll always be weaker than those of the same species and it ruins my bonus stats?
<Forget that. You may be weaker than those of the same species but your potential will be higher. You might evolve into something the others can't. You might get a set of skills that make you godlike!>
That does sound good and all but won't I be the loser in all this?
<You dunce! Every kill this lesser salamander makes will give you some experience. Furthermore, you even get paid for its creation!>
Navi proceeds to tell me how much I have just earned and I nearly get a heart attack. If I just keep creating these little buggers I'll have my mortgage for the house paid off in no time.
<You put way too much focus on money. Also, I doubt you can influence evolutions at will. This one worked on a whim and we have very little understanding of the conditions for it to happen. You weren't in a normal state of mind after all.>
Right, I killed all those adventurers despite having planned to let them run. Why did I do that?
<Likely you suffer from a common application to all humans turned monsters. We have a sense of pride that overwrites our common sense if we feel like a human is looking down on us in battle.>
So that old pugilist's words were what drove me to do this?
<Most likely. We believe it also contributed to you influencing the lizard's evolution.>
Sigh, so much to think about.
<Stop that undeserved self-pity. This is all just context and additional information. You had already decided what you would do before knowing all this. Why change your mind now?>
That's a good idea. I'll just kill all the adventurers above like I... planned?
You did this on purpose, didn't you Navi?!!
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