The place he had arrived at was a castle that had fallen long ago, now reduced to a complete ruin. Before its demise, the fortress must have been sturdy and imposing—truly worthy of a proud lion. However, seeing flas flickering throughout the halls and boiling lava flowing through the fountains instead of lted snow, he felt a pang of regret that the castle had lost its forr splendor.
"Just as people grow old and fall ill, buildings are bound to crumble with the passage of ti."
As he explored the interior, he realized that he was completely naked.
The Observer had ntioned that by consuming mana and magicules, he could manifest clothing from his mories. Following this, he wrapped his body in his own energy, and a garnt made of solidified magicules materialized.
The result was... a white coat, the kind doctors commonly wore. Since he had never spent much ti choosing his attire, he had simply recreated the garnt he had worn most often.
"Confird. You have acquired the Unique Skill [Maker]."
*What? I got a skill just from that? What on earth is the criteria for obtaining skills...? Anyway, what does this skill actually do?*
In response to his question, the Voice of the World detailed the abilities granted by the skill.
[Appraisal]: Allows the user to determine the current state of a target simply by looking at it.
[Creation]: The ability to create objects, living beings, abilities, or magic based on materials, magicules, or thought information.
[Extraction]: The ability to pull information from objects, living beings, or magic. The extraction of mories and souls is also possible.
[Storage]: The ability to create a sub-dinsional space to store materials and information. While its capacity is only about 40% of the [Stomach] possessed by a sli, unlike [Stomach], multiple storage spaces can be maintained.
Hearing this, the abilities seed far more useful than he had expected. [Storage] would allow him to easily keep a vast amount of items and information for use whenever needed. Furthermore, the potential for dismantling targets to extract information, as well as the power of creation and imitation, offered imnse versatility depending on how he applied them.
He imdiately picked up a nearby stone and tested the extraction process. The result was as follows:
[Judging from the stonework, it is presud to have been part of a statue.]
He began to systematically examine the castle. Usable tools were placed in [First Storage], while gathered information was filed away in [Second Storage].
"Terrain detection."
Now that he was accustod to controlling his magicules, he spread his power outward like ripples on a pond, grasping the entire layout of the castle.
His current location seed to have once been a banquet hall, though it was now torn and ragged. He spotted a door next to a sign marking the kitchen and stepped inside.
The interior was choked with mold, cobwebs, and thick dust. As he walked, he stepped on sothing sticky. Bringing it close to his nose, he sniffed it and realized it was alcohol. There were various bottles in the display case, but upon inspection, the contents had all long since spoiled.
The pungent sll stung his nostrils, but having witnessed far worse in his ti, he possessed a strong stomach.
Leaving the kitchen, he headed toward a room that appeared to be the audience chamber. Historically, retainers recorded a king's every move; among the records of the king's closest confidants, he hoped to find the cause of the castle's ruin.
However, most of the critical docunts had already been destroyed. All that remained were mundane papers regarding the national budget and policy proposals addressed to the king.
"I wonder... what exactly caused this kingdom to fall?"
Based on the location and terrain, the castle had been built atop a sheer cliff, making it an impregnable fortress. In its pri, it must have resembled a proud wolf that refused to submit to any foe.
While searching, he discovered a docunt that seed highly important, but the ink had sared so badly that it was nearly illegible.
What he could discern was that the kingdom had originally been quite poor. Geographically, the land was unsuitable for farming, and they were perpetually short on soldiers, leaving them without the capital or manpower to secure alliances with other nations.
Despite their hardships, the people possessed warm hearts. Then, one day, a trivial dispute broke out between neighboring countries. That small spark gradually grew, eventually erupting into a massive war.
When news of the conflict reached this kingdom, the people reacted with indifference. They believed that because their land was so poor, there was no reason for anyone to attack them.
Indeed, no nation had any incentive to invade a country struggling to survive on a barren patch of land with no wealth or food. Thus, they remained complacent even as war raged around them.
Eventually, another kingdom requested their cooperation. They refused, stating that they could not spare a single soldier from their own struggling lands.
Infuriated by this rejection, the requesting kingdom launched an attack. While the terrain was advantageous for defense, the soldiers eventually grew exhausted, and their food supplies ran dry.
As anxiety gripped the populace and the army reached its breaking point, the king was forced to make a choice. Destruction was inevitable; they could not win against such overwhelming military odds. The enemy would not stop until they had his head.
Finally, the king gave his orders to the knights.
"I will buy you ti. Take the people and flee."
He chose to sacrifice himself to save his people. Though his retainers and soldiers fought desperately to dissuade him, the king's resolve was absolute.
Following his command, the soldiers led the citizens out of the kingdom through a secret passage. Among the refugees was the queen. She was pregnant at the ti, and the king wanted to ensure her safety above all else.
Shortly after, as the enemy forces smashed through the gates and poured in like a flood, the king shouted a final challenge:
"You want my head?! Then co and take it!!"
Nothing further was recorded. However, based on the evidence, he could infer that every corpse remaining in the castle belonged to the enemy army.
He stood up and walked toward the center of the audience chamber.
There lay the skeletal remains of the king. He must have breathed his last in this very spot imdiately after the battle ended.
"Rest in peace."
Placing a hand on the skull, he used Extraction to retrieve the mories the king had held in life, then buried the bones in a patch of sunlit soil.
"By the way, what exactly is a soul?"
"Answer. It is a term referring to the essence of a living being's existence. For example, those of the draconic lineage are spiritual life-forms. When a dragon dies, another individual eventually appears. While mories may be inherited, the personality differs."
"...So that ans if the soul is preserved, a being can be revived as they were in life."
"Answer. That is correct."
With that knowledge, he began extracting the souls of the enemy soldiers that still lingered in the mortal world, diligently gathering the information they contained.
Sub-dinsional Storage: [Human Souls: 10,000].
He had managed to collect such a vast number because so many spirits had been unable to pass on after the war, remaining trapped in the living world. Even after clearing the area, ten thousand souls remained in his possession.
"Confird. Acquisition of Extra Skill [Soul Harvest]... Successful."
This Extra Skill was born from the act of consuming a multitude of souls. As the na suggests, [Soul Harvest] is the ability to reap souls that have not yet been extinguished. It possessed other capabilities as well, but that is a story for another ti.
Afterward, he wandered the world without a specific destination until he arrived at the ruins of another fallen nation. Unlike the Lion King's castle, which still held traces of its past, this place had been erased with terrifying precision. It was as if a colossal bomb had detonated; not a single trace of the civilization remained.
"...Where is this?"
"Answer. This was once the great magical kingdom of the elves. This nation was destroyed after they touched the reverse scale of the dragon princess."
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