1: Snailbug Blues


It had been nearly three weeks since the last time the Argneria Gastruch, a monster species that might be seen as the in-between of a snail and a bug, had moved. Unlike the rest of its kind, huddled in a group, this one instead laid near the top of the nearby palm tree. Sleeping in such a stationary manner one might think it was dead, the sight was quite normal to anyone familiar with the shore of the island.

Proficiency has reached the required level. Skill [Rest lvl 4] has become [Rest lvl 5]

With the ringing of the ownerless voice as loud as always, the "snailbug" looked up and around in a tired manner. Odd as it was, it even felt like sighing...

Can't even sleep without being told I accomplished something...When did I even get level 2? Why couldn't my old life have been like this?

Worried about things very strange for a snailbug, to say the least, it began munching on the tree's bark without much of a care in the world.

It's not bad tasting, it just has no taste at all...Which is arguably worse than tasting bad.

Such things would not be strange, however, were one to know of his former life as a Japanese highschool student. But that didn't matter now that his appearance wasn't anything resembling human anymore. A black-shelled, forearm-sized body, his thoughts and actions were quite mismatched.

His name was Lotte Wongsawat, or at least that's what the "screen" he could see through a particular kind of focus showed.

Nothing has changed… But it isn't so bad. Most monsters won't even look at me normally. Well... can't blame them after what happened the last time something tried to eat me.

Thinking to himself, Lotte slowly inched down the tree, passing by his fellow Gastruchs. Rubbing up to him when he got close, they showed a display of affection that would hardly be expected of such lowly-looking invertebrates.

Not that Lotte himself appreciated it much, as such attempts at kinship led him to fall down.

Whaa!?

Luckily, he managed to stick to the tree by biting into it with his mandibles, long enough to stick his body to it again.

Even if it were onto sand I've seen other snailbugs die from a small fall...If only I could have built a resistance to impacting the ground. Well, that wou-

Number of Skill points currently in possession: 1,800.

No, that's not what I mea-

Number of skill points required to acquire skill [Impact Resistance lvl 1]: 400. Acquire skill?

...Know what? Yeah, sure. I'll buy it.

[Impact Resistance: lvl 1] Acquired. Remaining skill points: 1,400

So…?

Lotte left the question hanging in the air as he waited for a response. But ultimately, he remembered how this would end.

No response.

At this point, Lotte wasn't disappointed with the voice which he had named "Echo". He was more upset with himself for expecting a response.

Well, I have 1400 points left...Maybe I shouldn't have spent it on Appraisal when Echo first mentioned it… At least I know what I am and...What the island is called…

Once more, Lotte let out a noise surprisingly akin to a sigh as he looked up the tree.

Maybe if I just stay here...Live my life as one of these snailbugs...I mean it'd be more meaningful than anything I had previously…It wasn't like I was popular and...and…

….

Lotte didn't finish his thought before letting out a shout... Well, more of a high pitched screech that startled the Gastruchs he shared the tree with. They all turned to him in confusion.

I'm not going to keep living like this! I'm sick of stuff ending up like this! Know, what!? This is like a game, right!? With all the levels and stuff then that means I can evolve, maybe even get some freaking hands for once! … God, I miss hands so much. My dreams seem to just mock me now! I'd be a bottom-tier worker in a mine or a farm even! I wouldn't mind just to have hands! That settles it Echo! I'm not only going to get hands again but also get off this miserable island!

Despite such a 'speech' filled with emotion and Lotte's repressed feelings...The Gastruchs on the tree remained confused.

However, in another surprising display, a few went near him as if to comfort him, mistaking his shout for loneliness.


It was already night time when Lotte set off on his journey to the sand below the palm tree.

Alright, now I just need to think about what I need...From what I've seen my species is weak to say the least...I only have one attack that's usually too slow moving to actually hit something. I could always spit on them until they die...It'd be so funny if it weren't so sad.

Since it seems to work like a video game...Let's start with this! Double Jump, Brick Break, Limit Break, Telekinesis, Noble Ph-

Number of Skill points currently in possession: 1,400. Number of skill points required to acquire skill [Telekinesis lvl 1]: 300. Acquire skill?

. Really? Out of all that stuff I mentioned, it was Telekinesis that is an option? Not even Double-Jump!? ...Well, it would be helpful to have a skill that could help me move things around. I don't really have any hands...This might also be the closest thing to hands that I get for a while.

I could also wait for another skill, to be fair. It's not like that Level 1 Appraisal I got is doing so hot either. But still...

Lotte had long since stopped as he became lost in thought. It probably shouldn't have to be said, but even though he had points to spare for this acquisition… This was a very delicate decision he had to take. He wasn't sure if wasting them currently, even in his current peaceful present, could still come back later on to bite him in the...Well, the closest thing he had to an ass at the moment.

Yet even such a long period of deep thought was not endless.

Know what? I'll manage. Being able to handle things is a vital resource. it will surely help me in the long run! I'll just have to work hard to level it up if it's not that strong.

I'll purchase that skill, Echo!

[Telekinesis lvl 1] Acquired. Remaining skill points: 1,100

Not wasting a single moment, Lotte stared at one of the palm trees, making sure it didn't have any of his fellow Gastruchs on it.

One second, two seconds…

Two minutes… and the tree didn't budge an inch, and neither did the rocks once he attempted a different target.

. Maybe it's limited by weight or size?

Moving onto the sand, Lotte focused on moving just a handful of it, an amount that could be easily lifted on one's hand. Despite his reduced expectations, a visible result was finally shown.

Jackpot!

The clump of sand floated for one second, almost two seconds, before plummeting down as if a thread on it was cut. However, Lotte had achieved what some would call a "proof of concept" he could work with. Completely undeterred, he repeated the process time and time again with varying amounts of sand for what seemed like almost an hour, before he finally felt like he had gotten enough of a hang on it to draw some conclusions.

A weight limitation, much like what would happen with a normal, physical-based lift... The strain is more on my concentration than anything, but I truly can't move anything that is my weight or higher... That is, when it comes to solids.

Liquids are somehow easier even in amounts that have roughly the same mass? And I can also manipulate smaller sections within what I already grabbed… I'll have to use it a bit more to get the hang of it, what with that four second limit, but this is not bad at all for now.

Let's try again! I've learned a surprising amount of usable things through games, so if I think things through maybe I'll get something cool! But I need to be more careful with my spending from now on… The point prices are pretty high for most of these skills. If there was a stat menu to look at, then maybe...

[Concentration lvl 2] acquired.

That's not useful, Echo! Anyways… I wonder if you can buy magic!

Number of Skill points currently in possession: 1,100. Number of skill points required to acquire skill [Fire Magic lvl 1]: 600. Acquire skill?

That's kind of expensive. How about Earth Magic?

And so, this kind of development repeated itself no less than four times. Yet it seemed that persistence, at least for today, was Lotte's lucky trait.

-quire skill [Heretic Magic lvl 1]: 100. Acquire skill?

Th-That's so cheap! It's cheaper than what Appraisal cost me before! Yes, of course I"ll buy it, Echo!

[Heretic Magic: lvl 1] Acquired. Remaining skill points: 1,000.

To say Lotte was happy at finding such a cheap skill would be putting it mildly. He was ecstatic.

After all, the word "Heretic"... that just brought all kinds of childishly happy memories from the things he enjoyed in his past life.

Now then, here we go… Heretic magic blast!

….

….

….

It was certainly more than a bit embarrassing after a few minutes of nothing had passed.

W-Well, I can figure out how that works later…

Despite the lackluster ending, Lotte's progress of the day had been quite satisfactory, he believed.

Moving away from the palm tree he called home for now, he also turned back from the coast and into the nearby jungle. He wasn't too worried about being attacked or such, since most creatures would fortunately ignore those of his kind, even in such a vulnerable situation as sleeping on the palm tree.

With what his kind contained inside them, it was not too surprising... But still, he was not callous enough to not be careful of being stepped on or getting in the way of one of the monsters who simply hadn't eaten enough.

...I'm definitely going to level up so I can move faster. Even if I'm faster than the other Gastruchs, I'm still slower than most other things. What if I used Telekinesis on a leaf…? Maybe I can stand? Sit? Lay down? … Well I'll also have to work on my stamina, though it isn't exactly like I can do calisthenics in this body...

As Lotte ranted to himself, he stopped in front of the thick clearing of trees that separated the beach from the jungle. Studying it closely, he moved closer and started to dig. Despite lacking hands he used his tail to move dirt away in a manner similar to how he would if he did.

Just like a snail in a documentary!

Proud of his creativity, he made a hole big enough for him to burrow into. Once that was done, he started digging out more of the area under the ground.

This is gonna take a while, but at least no other creature I have seen goes underground…

With his words hanging in the air, Lotte hurried his digging a bit more.


The sun had already begun to set by the time Lotte pulled himself out of the soil. Looking inside the recently made hole, his eyes now used to the darkness, he became aware once more of the black liquid covering the bottom part of it.

Now comes the hard part… I'm going to hate myself after this, but at least some of...my sweat? Is that what it is? Anyway, at least it makes my workload less than what it'd be.

Lotte thought to himself with a chittering sound as if to show off annoyance, all the while leaking more blackish liquid into the hole.

If I find the one responsible for me becoming a snailbug, if there's anyone who made that decision... I"ll beat them up!

With another odd screeching sound that was Lotte's attempt at a shout for motivation, he kept filling the hole with viscosity, this process taking almost as long as digging the hole itself.

By the end of the ordeal, the sun had long disappeared and only a starry night sky remained. The results of the arduous task... a pit of black liquid, deep enough that it could easily drown a beast the size of a dog.

Hmm… Maybe?

A bit curious about the liquid he had created, he used Appraisal on it to see if he could learn anything from it.

Argnerian Gastruch Secretions.

I already know that, Echo! I'm the one who was doing the secreting!

With a clicking sound of his mandibles, Lotte figured it was not very productive to fight with an unresponsive, seemingly ownerless voice.

Mostly satisfied with his work, he covered the small hole he made with some stray leaves through his recently-acquired telekinesis. By now he had gotten quite good at judging his limits, and could even swear the time he could lift smaller things had increased, even if such a little amount it could be barely noticed.

Essentially finished up on the work he had planned out, he proceeded to head back home.

Things were not as convenient for him on the way back, however. The bird, or what looked mostly like a bird… Was unmistakably looking at him.

With a body trunk that was probably the size of a large dog, feathers like rusted metal and a beak like a half-melted nail… It was not something anyone would enjoy being stared at by.

Lotte stared at the creature for a few moments, more than slightly panicked. It was indeed true that other creatures wouldn't attack him, mostly due to the secretions he worked with earlier having some really nasty effects if touched. However, he noticed the creature's eyes looked frantic and feral. Its ribcage was even visible through its hard plumage.

In short… It's starving and I'm an easy prey.

His nerves were shaking as the creature slowly circled him. Without waiting a moment more, he used Appraisal on it.

Cokrel.

Without a single moment more to waste, its head twitched as it raised its rather long neck up.

An attack.

Getting all the information he could afford to gather, Lotte dug his tail into the ground and began to burrow quickly to try and escape.

The Cokrel, however, read this accurately and drove its beak into the area Lotte had been in, forcing him to push his body back with his tail.

Sand flew everywhere from the impact, but he was safe for now.

Quick!

Any resource was something he should make the most of. Using telekinesis, Lotte drove some of that same stray sand into the Cokrel's eyes. A high-pitched screech was emitted by the bird as it began to claw and peck around blindly, almost hitting Lotte a few times.

Where do I even go!? If I go back to the tree it'll just eat the other snails… Wait, I got it!

Almost as if a lightbulb had lit up in his mind, Lotte dashed as quickly as he could towards the jungle with new motivation.

The Cokrel had not given up, however, and moved toward Lotte at a greater speed despite the sand blinding it.

H-How is it doing that!? Can it hear me moving!? Or is it some sort of third eye sense!? W-Well it doesn't matter!

Desperate, Lotte tried to slow down the bird by using telekinesis on pebbles and shells across their path, taking advantage of them being lifted by the Cokrel's own steps. A few times they connected with its head or neck, but not much progress was made.

Even worse, the combination of running away and using Telekinesis constantly was certainly beginning to wear him down.

[Throw: lvl 1] Acquired, [Hit: lvl 1] Acquired

That's not helpful right no-whaa!

Narrowly avoiding the talons of the Cokrel as it got constantly closer, Lotte attempted to crawl even faster despite the very familiar ache in his unfamiliar body.

Knowing he could not just depend on his current tactics alone, he stored as much saliva as he could in his mouth and turned his head sideways, shooting a stream of black liquid at the Cokrel.

He was unable to aim properly in such a situation, so the liquid only partly hit one of the Cokrel's talons. Despite this, it had quickly blackened and continued to eat away at the rest of its toe by the second.

However, in a display of determination and presence of mind, the bird pecked its toe right off, preventing the rot from spreading and leaving it to consume the severed appendage until nothing was left. Lotte was shocked, to say the least.

Especially since with that last ditch spit attack… he had become even more exhausted, being forced to stop his run. The Cokrel, with its eyes seemingly clean now, also stopped in response. Lotte thought to notice tear-like fluid around its eyes, similar to what turtles did to clean out salt from the seawater.

I-It seems I'm at the end of my rope…

Turning slightly around, he looked sideways at the bird. While he stood on a patch of soil, it let out a squawk and raised its beak again to attack in the same way as before.

Lotte felt horrible pain shoot through his body as the beak connected with his side.

However, the weight from the Cokrel's blow caused the nearby area to immediately crumble. Due to the earlier loss of one of the Cokrel's toes, the bird didn't have the proper balance to try and move away, so not only Lotte, but also itself fell into the large pit of Gastruch secretions.

The Cokrel let out a bloodcurdling scream as the black viscosity ran across much of its body, shaving away at it with a terrifying pace.

Gah! Bleh! Th-This is so disgusting!

Lotte felt close to gagging as he surfaced from the pool of his own secretions. Having dug that small hole in the wet dirt earlier as a way to get a better footing, for a lack of better words, he had managed to avoid drowning.

I guess you can't understand what's going on, but this is what I call Soil Collapse, it's the pro-

However, the primal screeching of the Cokrel as its beak and face rotted away was too much for Lotte's internal monologue.

N-Never mind…

Lotte felt a bit sick as he watched the Cokrel finally dissolve into little else but scraps, briefly leaving a deafening silence that was quickly filled by the buzzing of other monsters. He even felt some strange guilt for a few moments before shaking his head.

Noticing the few remains of the Cokrel, he used Telekinesis to lift them out of the hole and off to the side of the pit. Right after, he burrowed outside of the pit himself and stared at the shards of bones and feathers that belied the large creature they once belonged to

Would it be lame to bury this? You did try to kill me and all, but I think I should at least honor my first kill.

Lotte nodded to himself. Yes, this was the right thing to do.

Using telekinesis to drag the remains onto the beach, he placed them on a few small rocks he moved similarly.

Proficiency has reached the required level. Skill [Telekinesis lvl 1] has become [Telekinesis lvl 2]

Way to kill the mood, Echo… Well, this certainly was an eventful evening. I also know that my traps work, so if I can manage to make more around the island I can probably level up much quicker...But I'll wait for tomorrow. I'm beyond beat.

With the unexpected ordeal finally settled, Lotte made his way back towards the palm tree. For the first time… he thought of it as a real "home" to go back to.


Sunlight broke through the curtains of the small shack that was called home by a family of seven. The sleep of the middle child, a rather tall and pale boy with blonde hair that reached towards the middle of his back, was finally disturbed enough to get him active. He had to move some of his hair out of his gray eyes as he got up.

"Ahhhh~! That was...Weird?" He muttered as he opened the curtains, now waking up the owner of the bed furthest from the window.

"F-Five more minutes!" The voice of a little girl called out. Despite her fiery red-hair and rounder, rosier complexion, she was the boy's beloved youngest sister.

"Come on, you know we have to wake up early so we can sleep early."

"Don't wanna!" the younger girl protested as she pulled the covers over herself, trying to block out any more sunlight from reaching her.

The boy smiled as he sat on the side of her bed and lifted the covers up, playing a little game of tug-o-war to see who would win the covers.

It was unfortunately obvious and merciless that the younger one lost, forcing her to face the dreaded sun. Rubbing her eyes to deal with the light as much as to get the stray strands of hair out, her annoyance was only increased.

"Meanie!" She shouted and began to pout in quite a spoiled display. Such a scene only brought a smile to the older sibling's lips as he hugged her.

He was certainly not the one to go to for enforcing necessary discipline.

"Nicondus! Rhea! Hurry up! Y'alls breakfast is ready!" An older woman's voice shouted from the kitchen, as was routine already.

"So loud… Come on Rhea, breakfast is ready!"

"H-Hmph!"

"Don't pout... if you finish early I'll walk you into town. Maybe we can get you something sweet~!" The boy tried his best at convincing as he rubbed his little sister's head.

"... Really?" Trying a pitiful best to hide her excitement, her eyes still shone brightly at the offer of a prize.

"Yep, I promise!"

"My big bro's the best!" As if her earlier pouting had been nothing but an illusion, Rhea hugged Nicondus with all her strength before grabbing his hand and pulling him along. The offer of sweets had put her into high gear.

Upon reaching the kitchen, a woman already carrying on a few years greeted them. Despite the muscles from a life of good labor and ponytailed brown hair with a few grays, the remains of who had once been quite a notable beauty still remained. Nicondus' looks seemed to take after hers quite noticeably.

"Your siblins are already out in the fields. You both better hurry up and eat breakfast!"

"Yes, ma'am~!" the siblings said in unison as they sat on the table, causing their mother's glare to fade and for her to sigh and finally smile.

"So how did y'all sleep?"

"I slept great! I don't remember dreams… but it felt awesome!" Rhea responded as she stuffed her mouth with omelette, now turned into more of a plate of scrambled eggs from her rough work with utensils.

"What bout you? Ya have a nightmare or somethin?" The woman asked of Nicondus, crossing her arms as she looked at him.

The boy lightly shook his head, looking up for a moment to think before finally responding.

"I had a dream about a strange little snail..."