Chapter 2: Trait Enhancement
[Insect Shell×4]
[Insect Shell×2]
[Insect Shell×3]
[Tenacious Vitality×1]
Time passed. I ceaselessly hunted and devoured cockroaches.
* * *
Thud thud thud.
Something knocked against the wall.
Shhhhlick.
The baited prey approached. A cockroach revealed itself through a tiny crack, antennae twitching disgustingly.
A mass of crimson flesh pounced on the cockroach. The flesh rotated once, unscrewing the insect's head like a bolt.
The headless body collapsed. I dragged the corpse toward me.
My fist-sized space became packed with cockroach carcasses.
I reshaped my body, filling every crevice flawlessly thanks to my inherent traits. My slime-like form could move with complete flexibility.
After fully swallowing the cockroach, I re-equipped my traits. My body's characteristics changed - becoming soft like toy slime. Though not as hard as teeth, it sufficed for chewing cockroaches.
I moved rhythmically, chewing the cockroach like a human masticating food.
[Insect Shell×1]
[Insect Shell×1]
[Insect Shell×1]
Breaking them into pieces accelerated digestion.
[Devour Level has increased.]
[Devour LV2][0%]
[Conditions have been met.]
[Acquired Trait Enhancement ability.]
My labor finally bore fruit. My Devour Level finally rose, and I'd gained another skill - small progress, but progress nonetheless.
I checked the skill:
[Trait Enhancement(LV1): Consume identical traits to obtain superior traits.]
'In short, I got an enhancement ability.'
This could be my path to regaining strength.
"Then...shall I try enhancing?"
I unequipped all traits and opened my inventory:
Owned Traits: [Ordinary Insect Carapace×365], [Tenacious Vitality×9]
My accumulated achievements. The 300+ count gave me unwarranted pride.
"Now begins enhancement!"
[Insert traits for enhancement into Core.][0/10]
I fed traits into my core, watching the counter climb.
[Enhancement commencing.]
At 10 traits, my core heated up.
[Acquired Sturdy Insect Shell.]
The core ejected the enhanced trait. Equipping it gave stats equivalent to 10 ordinary shells.
"Great! Keep going!"
I relentlessly fed more traits.
[Owned Traits]: [Sturdy Insect Shell×36], [Insect Shell×5], [Tenacious Vitality×9]
36 sturdy shells acquired. I equipped them immediately.
[Equipping Sturdy Insect Shell. Stats changing.]
[Equipped Traits]: [Sturdy Insect Shell]×3
[Strength: 0.0031]
[Mana: 0.0031]
[Stamina: 0.0031]
[Same as previously acquired traits.]
I swung my fist.
Whoosh.
Slicing air felt effortless - natural, since I'd become 31 times stronger.
Enhancing further would amplify this. Each sturdy shell required 10 ordinary shells. Enhancing those would yield traits equivalent to 100 shells. Three enhanced traits would mean 300-shell power - a 301x multiplier!
"Alright! Again!"
With 36 shells remaining, I could make three superior traits.
"Here we go!"
[Insert enhancement materials.][0/10]
The core heated until I feared cooking myself, then ejected:
[Rainbow Shell]
The name meant nothing. I equipped it immediately.
[Equipping Rainbow Shell. Acquiring stats and trait.]
[Acquired Magic Resistance.]
[Magic Resistance: Grants resistance to magic.]
Magic resistance... An ambiguous ability. I'd wanted offensive traits.
"Better than nothing."
Still a 301x multiplier. Better than empty slots.
[Acquired Rainbow Shell.]
[Acquired Rainbow Shell.]
Two rainbow shells. Equipping all three triggered:
[Trait Hardness has disappeared.]
My solid body melted into goo.
"What the fuck!"
Panicking, I quickly re-equipped a sturdy shell.
Hardness trait restored.
"Ah...right."
[Warning! Traits are bound to specific materials. Removing equipped materials removes associated traits.]
Rainbow shells lacked hardness. I reserved one slot for sturdy shells.
"Annoying. My stats dropped nearly 90x."
From 301x to 211x. A deflating feeling, but necessary - hardness was my only weapon without combat skills.
Fortunately, I could still shapeshift despite the hardness trait.
"Time to descend the mountain."
Preparations complete. Time to leave this claustrophobic space.
I extended part of myself outside, sending my core to the tip as an improvised eye.
The surroundings revealed a cave - surrounding rocks, stalactites hanging above.
No threatening monsters in sight. Carefully, I emerged.
Squirm squirm.
Moving diligently to find edible insects, but my fist-sized body barely progressed.
'Fuck... Why won't I grow...?'
No matter how many cockroaches I ate, my size remained. Nutrients only replenished lost mass.
My level stayed at 1 since birth, though the display suggested growth was possible.
"Keeek. Keeek."
I froze. Goblin cries echoed nearby.
As the dungeon's weakest, even a rat could kill me. I urgently sought cover.
'There!'
Under a boulder. I hid swiftly, only exposing my core - smaller than a grain of rice, nearly undetectable.
The tight space beneath the immovable rock was perfect - even goblins couldn't shift it.
"Keeeeek!"
Two goblins approached - one Big Goblin, one Small Goblin. They sat near my hiding spot.
The Small Goblin fidgeted, starting some task I couldn't discern in the darkness, though its progress was evident.
"Keeeeek!"
The Big Goblin smacked its companion's head - clearly berating its performance. I hadn't realized goblins bullied rather than ate subordinates.
"Kreek..."
The Small Goblin cowered but continued working. After several attempts, it finished.
"Keeeeek!"
The Big Goblin moved to the next location, the Small Goblin scrambling after without rest.
Once their cries faded, I emerged cautiously.
'What's that?'
At their work site sat a square box - a mousetrap designed to shut when entered. Inside lay a cockroach as bait.
'Wait... This could let me catch mice!'
The mesh was wide enough for me to slip through. If a mouse got trapped, I could attack from outside.
An incredible opportunity for someone who could barely handle cockroaches.
'Worth a day's investment.'
I returned to my rock hideout and spent the day mapping goblin patrol routes.
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