[You have defeated a Lv2 Treasure Eater. You have achieved a feat of defeating an enemy with a higher level than you. Your Strength and Endurance permanently increase by 2.]

[As a reward for your achievement, the proficiency of your combat-related skills have increased. Beginner Sprint is now Lv4.]

[Quest complete! Please check the treasure that the Treasure Eater left behind.]

[You have gained the minimap. You may access it by closing your eyes.]

[We won...]

[We defeated the monster. I need rest...]

Only two Pauls... or Skeleton Soldiers had survived the battle. It was no small feat considering that Lee Shin-Woo hadn't made any attempt to save them. However, all their bones were cracked, and it was difficult for them to even stand!

"Pauls, I'll never forget the time we spent together."

[Ugh!?]

[What are you doing... keuahk!]

Lee Shin-Woo forcefully embraced the two skeletons who had gone through hardship with him. By doing so, he crushed the last of their health out of them, and they crumbled to pieces. The Treasure Eater’s overwhelming shrieks as well as the sound of bones rattling finally subsided, and silence descended upon the clearing—created in the aftermath of the passageway collapsing and widening significantly. He emerged as the sole champion of the battle.

[Acting is now Lv2.]

"Perfect timing… Phew, I almost died, too."

Although he had come out victorious, Lee Shin-Woo had undergone a lot of physical and mental damage. His joints ached, and he even spotted some cracks in his bones. It hurt so much that he wondered if he would be better off to have died and resurrected. However, Lee Shin-Woo decided against it. It would be a waste to use his Invisible Heart like that, and he already knew of a method to restore his bones...

Now, let's start reinforcing, shall we?

He quickly scanned his surroundings. All around him were piles and piles of bones and spears, left behind by the skeletons that had died in the battle. There were also dozens of black coins, too. Moreover, the Treasure Eater had spawned a piece of bone that was distinctly different from those of the Skeleton Soldiers, as well as something shiny. Lee Shin-Woo's heart fluttered. It’s all worth it!

Although it was mostly the Skeleton Soldiers’ doing, but… that was beside the point.

"I'll put aside the main course for later."

He suppressed his desire to check the loot left by the Treasure Eater and instead picked up one of the nearby skeleton bones first. It was mixed bones, but that was for the better. He had reached the limit of increasing his strength and agility with arm bones and leg bones. It would be much more effective now for him to increase his endurance with mixed bones.

[You have reinforced your tailbone. Endurance has increased by 1. Absorbing a portion of the Skeleton Soldier's memories and experiences.]

[I-I'm pretty sure my tailbone just broke. Seriously, what the heck! - A nameless soldier]

"If these guys knew they could leave behind memories of their life, they wouldn't have picked such useless memories..."

Lee Shin-Woo stroked his tailbone and found the cracks mended somewhat. As he repeated the Reinforcement process, his stats and skill proficiency increased incrementally, and his cracked bones slowly but surely recovered until they were good as new. The scars and cracks disappeared like they had simply been erased.

"Huh?"

Something unexpected caught his eyes. He had picked up a bone that wasn't an arm bone, a leg bone, or mixed.

[Skeleton Soldier's rib bone.]

[A bone left behind by a Skeleton Soldier who had strong bones.]

"Huh, I never saw this before."

Was it a rare drop? Somewhat excited, Lee Shin-Woo sacrificed the bone to reinforce his ribs.

[You have reinforced your ribs. Endurance has increased by 2. Absorbing a portion of the Skeleton Soldier's memories and experience.]

[General Seagald has committed treason...? That's not possible. I'll trust him and follow him to the end. - A nameless soldier.]

"That's not a line a nameless soldier would say, is it!?"

What exactly did General Seagald do? That remained a mystery to Lee Shin-Woo, but in any case, raising 2 points in endurance was awesome. He committed the name General Seagald to heart and absorbed the remaining bones one after another. He looked like a farmer harvesting his crops.

"Now, it's time to upgrade the Bone Spear..."

He looked at the mountain of Bone Spears he had collected while absorbing the bones, a little lost. It had been so hard to upgrade the Lv1 Bone Spear to the next level; he couldn't imagine how many Bone Spears he would have to break in the process of reinforcing his Lv2 Bone Spear.

"Well, there’s no getting around it. I gotta do it."

The quality of his weapon had proven to be important several times during his fight with the Treasure Eater. A single attack from his spear had been more effective than 10 attacks from the other Skeleton Soldiers! He took a short, deep breath and reached out to the mountain of Bone Spears.

[Reinforcement has failed.]

[Reinforcement has failed.]

[Reinforcement has failed.]

[Reinforcement has succeeded!]

"Oh!"

A success in four tries! He had thought it might be impossible to reinforce a Lv2 item with Lv1 items, but the single success gave Lee Shin-Woo a renewed confidence, and he dived into reinforcing his spear with enthusiasm.

[Reinforcement has failed.] x30

"Please stop! Don’t do this to me! No!"

[Reinforcement has failed.]

[Reinforcement has failed.]

[Reinforcement has failed.]

…

[Reinforcement has succeeded!]

[Reinforcement has succeeded!]

[Bone Spear (+3) Lv2]

[Durability: 590/590]

[Attack Power: 33 - 57]

Ugh, I don't know what the success rate is, so I can’t tell if things went well or not.

The final two Reinforcements had succeeded before he ran out of Bone Spears. As a result, the level 2 Bone Spear became Bone Spear +3. Although a part of Lee Shin-Woo felt that it had been a waste to use up all of the Bone Spears so quickly, he decided to be satisfied as his Bone Spear had definitely gotten stronger.

"Now, then..."

It was finally time for the main dish he had been saving. His bone joints rattled in an unpleasant manner as he approached the place where the Treasure Eater had died. The first thing he saw was a heaping pile of Perium. A message appeared when he reached for it.

[You have acquired 1,250 Perium.]

"Whoa."

Where exactly was the currency used? In fact, could it even be used? He had picked them up without questioning it due to his gaming experience, but he couldn't make sense of the currency. He checked the amount of money stored in his pouch; he had gathered 3,340 Perium up to this point.

The money pouch is starting to get heavy. Is there no inventory similar to those in video games in this world?

Perhaps he would gain an inventory by completing a quest the way he had received the minimap. Lee Shin-Woo picked up the Treasure Eater's bone next. As expected, since the Treasure Eater was much larger than those pathetic Skeleton Soldiers, a single piece of its bones was larger than Lee Shin-Woo.

[Would you like to reinforce your bones with the Treasure Eater's lower jaw bone? You can reinforce your lower jaw bone.]

"This really pisses me off..."

This probably wasn't even its entire lower jaw bone, but just a portion of it. The thought of reinforcing his bone with it would’ve made goosebumps pop up all over his body if he had skin. However... he didn't really have any other choice. He shrugged and proceeded with the Reinforcement.

[Bone Reinforcement is now Lv2. The effectiveness of bone absorption increases.]

[You have reinforced your lower jaw bone. Strength has increased by 1, Endurance by 1, and Magic by 5. Absorbing a portion of the Treasure Eater's memories and experiences.]

[Kuwaaaaaaaahk! Kuheeeeeeeeeehk! - Treasure Eater]

"..."

Lee Shin-Woo fell into a momentary silence as the faint memory of the monster seeped into him. He shivered. The Treasure Eater's shriek in the memory felt a teeny-tiny-bit affectionate. If he somehow met another Treasure Eater, he felt as though he'd be able to understand it, albeit only a little.

"In any case, it increased my magic. That’s good enough for me."

He might've gained a skill, but most of the memories and experiences he had gained through Bone Reinforcement didn't immediately manifest as skills. Most of the time, the skill would only awaken at the right time. If he could pick one, though, he'd like to acquire Roar of Healing for sure... Lee Shin-Woo earnestly prayed and reached out to the final loot, which also doubled as the quest reward.

[Feather Bone Boots (+1) Lv2]

[Durability: 256/320]

[Defense: 25 - 35]

[Optional Bonuses/Effects: Agility +5, Sprint skill +1]

"Wow..."

To think an item would grant him both stat bonuses and skills. Although it was a Lv2 item like his Bone Spear, the boots were leagues above the spear in comparison!

Lee Shin-Woo carefully put the bone boots on. There was a slight problem; since both his body and the boots were made of bones, it was difficult to figure out whether the boots were an item, or the bones of someone with stupidly large feet. He did feel lighter with the boots on, though, so the item was definitely effective.

[Lee Shin-Woo]

[Normal Skeleton Blessed by God]

[Lv - 1][Strength - 65 Agility - 55 + 5 Endurance - 48 Magic - 11]

[Passive skills - Invisible Heart Lv2, Beginner Spearmanship Lv4, Acting Lv2]

[Active skills - Bone Reinforcement Lv2, Beginner Sprint Lv4 +1]

"Nice."

Lee Shin-Woo grinned as he looked at his stats; the battle had certainly been fruitful. His Endurance, which had been lacking compared to his other stats, had bridged some of the gap, and his magic had slightly increased as well. Moreover, he had made the fighting experience of the Skeleton Soldiers his own during the battle, at least to a certain degree.

"Not so easy to kill me now..."

The moment he died in a car accident flashed through his mind. Lee Shin-Woo grit his teeth and shook his head, shaking off the memory. He resolved to never die again. Be it a cursed empire or the middle of a galactic war, he would survive no matter what.

[A quest has begun!]

The quest was generated right when he made the vow to himself. It was as though the goddess had been listening and decided to intervene at just the right time.

[Infiltrate the Empire]

[You have achieved the remarkable feat of taking down the Treasure Eater and grown stronger. However, you’re still in one of the external passageways and haven’t reached the Empire. Follow the directions on your minimap, break through the soldiers guarding the Empire's walls, and infiltrate the Underground Empire!]

[Quest rewards: Inventory, access to God's Secret Shop.]

Well, then. The tutorial was coming to an end.