Chapter 19: Reborn, Thanks for the Monkey Grifts
"Oh~ Shirazawa-chan, we seem to have learned a pretty incredible skill," Shiro muttered, leaning in with a look of awe.
It was common knowledge that in any isekai world, skills related to the Seven Deadly Sins were completely broken. The
Shirazawa nodded, his expression serious. "However, this skill has its drawbacks. Any of the Seven Deadly Sins or Seven Heavenly Virtues skills will affect the user's psyche."
"For instance, with the Pride we have now, over time, you'll start to view all living things as mere experience points. You'll lose normal human emotions."
"Eventually, you'll turn into a cruel, heartless monster that only knows how to kill."
"Then what do we do?" Shiro jumped, startled by Shirazawa's words. She originally thought the skill looked cool, but a side effect like that... it was terrifying.
"It's fine. That kind of corruption takes a long time to build up, and Pride doesn't have much time left," Shirazawa said after a moment of thought.
"Huh?" Shiro was confused.
Shirazawa cleared his throat. "Anyway, don't worry. As long as I'm here, it won't be a problem."
He couldn't exactly tell her that in two years they would become Gods, break free from the system, and become newly minted deities. In a mere two years, the influence of Pride would be negligible—well, there would be *some* impact, but nothing they couldn't handle.
Shiro let out a sigh of relief. "That's good then."
"Mm, let's see what else we have... Oh, right, this one."
[Demon Lord Lv1: Increases level by a value of 100, increases stat levels, and increases all resistances.]
"Oh~ 'Demon Lord'!"
"Are we Demon Lords already?"
Shiro looked excited. "That sounds incredibly powerful!"
"You're dreaming. 'Demon Lord' here is just a skill name. You can only be called a real Demon Lord if you have the Title, and that Title is unique. Currently, it belongs to our... 'Grandmother.' Don't even think about it." Shirazawa shook his head, continuing to browse the skill library.
"Grandmother?"
"Uh, you'll find out later. Don't sweat the details." Shirazawa answered vaguely. Shiro wasn't the type to dig for secrets, so she didn't press him and instead went off to study her new skills.
"This Abyss Magic looks amazing. Hades? What's that..."
Seeing her struggling, Shirazawa stepped in to help. "Without Magic Perception and Magic Control, you can't use it yet. You should go train your other new skills instead."
"Hmph, are you starting to look down on me now?" Shiro grumbled. "Fine, whatever. Back to training." She moved to the side and began tinkering with her abilities.
Shirazawa kept his eyes on the skill bar, not noticing the little spider's pouting.
[Experience points have reached the threshold. Individual: Small Poison Taratect, Lv1→Lv2.]
[Basic stats increased.]
[Proficiency reached.
...
[Experience points have reached the threshold. Individual: Small Poison Taratect, Lv2→Lv3.]
The monkey army was frantically offering up their lives, acting as the bricks and mortar for the duo's road to power. Their experience points surged wildly, and the level-up notifications were endless.
Just then, a new system notification rang in Shirazawa's ear.
[Requirements met. Obtained skills:
[Proficiency reached.
[Proficiency reached. A sea of notifications rang out. Shirazawa was wondering what caused this sudden explosion of skills when a miserable shriek echoed from nearby.
"AH! Ow-ow-ow-ow... I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die!"
[Proficiency reached. "Uh..."
"I mean, why on earth did you use It took a while for her to recover from the pain. "Whew... that was close." She wiped the sweat from her brow. For a moment there, she felt like her soul was being ripped apart.
Shiro looked up, eyes teary and full of grievance. "I thought Shirazawa's lip twitched. *This girl never learns.* He had already told her that "Alright, alright. At least you gained a bunch of skills. This wave wasn't a total loss," Shirazawa comforted her.
Shiro sobbed and hid in Shirazawa's embrace. "Is that how you comfort people?"
"Well... it's the truth. And actually, I think we can turn this into a daily training plan. Mental skills are our weak point anyway." Shirazawa scratched his head; it was a sudden idea, but it seemed viable.
"No way! A few more times and I'll actually kick the bucket." Shiro looked at him resentfully, clearly unwilling to try again.
Shirazawa grinned and dangled a carrot. "If you can use At that, Shiro's eyes lit up. "Deal!"
Watching her suddenly eager expression, Shirazawa shook his head. *She really is a glutton. She'll risk anything for food.*
[Experience points have reached the threshold. Individual: Small Poison Taratect, Lv5→Lv6.]
[Basic stats increased.]
[Proficiency reached. ...
[Experience points have reached the threshold... Lv7→Lv8... Lv8→Lv9.]
...
[Proficiency reached. With the system notifications firing off, their strength grew explosively. By the time the last monkey fell, their level had stopped at Lv9. They were only one step away from the next evolution: Zoa Ele.
At the same time, Shiro ran up excitedly to claim her reward. "Shirazawa! Shirazawa! I found the entrance to the Middle Stratum!" She danced around him in excitement. "Let's go! My stomach is ready! I want to eat that big catfish!"
Shirazawa didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He flicked her forehead. "Glutton."
"Don't be in such a hurry. Wait a few more days. We need to level up our "Ugh..." Shiro agonized for a long time, clearly unwilling to wait, but she knew fire was the natural enemy of spiders. They had to be fully prepared and cautious before heading to the Middle Stratum. "I'll endure it for a bit longer then..."
"Good girl."
The two spent a few more days resting in the Lower Stratum until their skill proficiencies were high enough. Finally, they set off.
"Big catfish, here I come—!"
Catfish: "..."