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Volume 1: Secret Departure. Guided Encounters.
Vol 1: Chapter 1
There are skills in this world, and you can acquire them through skill orbs. Depending on the rarity of the skill, it requires a certain amount of slots. And each person in the world has only 8 skill slots, which is what I learned from old man Hinga.
I, however, have 16 slots. The reason seems to be because I have a “previous life” in which I was a Japanese high school student. And probably because of the existence of a previous life, I possessed knowledge beyond what a kid my age should. Though, I didn’t know the words to express them and I also had few opportunities to demonstrate my knowledge.
「Everything in this world revolves around skills… Oh, this tastes good!」
A fist-sized fruit – which looked like a green apple – I bit into was juicy and sour. This fruit was hanging at the end of a long branch which looked like a fishing rod with bait attached to the hook. I got a feeling that it was “harmless” from 【World Ruler】, so I plucked the fruit from the branch. And interestingly, the branch bounced upwards.
I plucked a few of these mysterious green fruits, as much as I could carry with both hands, and I strolled through the forest while eating them.
I was not walking aimlessly. When I was saying goodbye to old man Hinga, I saw smoke rising from beyond the forest, which seemed like smoke produced from cooking, so I was walking towards it. I was thinking if that’s the neighbouring town to the mine, but I wasn’t too sure. The road that connects the mine and the town was crowded with many soldiers, so I tried to keep as far away as possible.
Although the conditions were poor – forest floor covered in leaf mould, undulated surface, thickets everywhere – I was able to walk through without much problem.
「I want to get to a town by nightfall…」
I learned that there were no dangerous animals in the surrounding area, thanks to 【World Ruler】. However, I don’t know what will happen when visibility drops at night, because I can only learn of the information “within my perception”. Even in the mountains in Japan, deers and wild boars only come down at night. I’m sure there would be wolves in this world, and even a wild dog would be a sufficient threat to me now.
―Perhaps 【World Ruler】 is not as omnipotent as I thought?
“Appraisal” skills that appear in anime and novels that I know of, provides information such as the name and origin of plants, their rarity, and how much they are traded for. However, 【World Ruler】 only gives me a vague impression. And it doesn’t tell me unless I consciously want to know.
Not being able to get information on something unless it’s within my perception is almost like looking at the world through a distorted lens.
「…Oh, that’s pretty.」
I found a brook. I followed downstream, out of the forest, and onto a vast grassland. On the other side, there were stone houses surrounded by a simple defensive mudwall.
Three slaves, and soldiers numbering more than ten, were fighting about 100 meters away. I quickly hid behind a tree.
…Come to think of it, I didn’t see any slaves until I came here. I wonder where they all went.
「Ah!」
The outnumbered slaves were defeated and lay sprawled on the ground. Then, one soldier hurriedly raised his hand. And a fat man wearing fluffy clothes slowly walked over.
…What are they doing?
When the fat man held his hand over one of the slaves, the slave glowed slightly, and a skill orb came out of him like a bubble.
「…Is that the 【Orb Detachment】 skill?!」
One of the soldiers looked in my direction.
「………」
I hurriedly pulled back my head and held my breath.
…Shit! Don’t come here!
I stood there motionless for a few minutes. I was afraid, but nothing happened. When I slowly peeked at them again, most of the soldiers and the fat man were leaving. The remaining soldiers carried the corpses of the slaves and tossed it into the grasslands.
Perhaps they thought wild dogs would come and eat it at night so there was no need to dispose of it themselves. Or perhaps something more in line with a fantasy world than a wild dog.
「Phew… I was almost found out. Gotta be more careful.」
Even though it was my second life, I only had the experience of being a Japanese high school student without war or fighting for survival. I am literally just a “kid” in this world where violent fights are prevalent in everyday life. Having 【World Ruler】 gives me an edge, but I shouldn’t assume that I can survive by relying on it for everything.
「…But aren’t you too underpowered for a 10-star skill, World Ruler-san?」I complained, as I took a bite out of the mysterious green fruit, while leaning on the trunk of the tree.
「That 【Orb Detachment】 from before is more amazing I think. It can easily convert a skill back into a skill orb without any unnecessary questions. Can’t you work as simple as that? Where I just hold out my hand and– !!」
A black and rainbow-coloured skill orb emerged from my chest.
「……EH?」
In my hand, I was holding 【World Ruler★★★★★★★★★★】.
I was surprised. Extremely so. Moreover, my body was completely exhausted and I couldn’t move for a while. Curling my body like a beetle’s larvae was the most I could do. I couldn’t even wipe the drool from my mouth. My mind was the only thing that was working, so I started thinking.
…There is no sign that 【World Ruler】 is in my body anymore. In other words, I took out the skill orb on my own. Can everyone do it? No, that’s not possible. If so, people would be dealing with skill orbs more carefreely, and I’ve never seen nor heard the slaves talking about that.
Which means, I automatically learned the 【Orb Detachment】 skill I saw from a distance.
Do I have such a natural talent?! …Nah, that’s impossible.
Meaning… this is the true ability of 【World Ruler】.
「Fuuu…」
I finally recovered from the fatigue and woke up. I picked up the mysterious green fruit which fell on the ground, wiped off the dirt, and bit into it again.
「When that man pulled out the skill orb, he still looked composed… at the very least he didn’t look tired.」
Which means, I will be able to use the skills of others, but I will not be able to use them as freely as the original.
When I absorbed 【World Ruler】 into my body again, the fog that hung over my mind cleared up, and I was once again surrounded by a feeling of omnipotence.
…I hope this doesn’t become a habit. Although I’m not gonna pull it out again… My body becomes dull enough to die.
「Wait a minute…」
I suddenly recalled that I saw the slaves using their skills. Especially the magic which the cafeteria auntie used.
…Can I use that too?
「If I remember correctly… she held her hand like this and shot wind.」
I held forward my right hand and planted my feet on the ground.
「………」
However, I couldn’t even produce a gentle breeze.
「Hmm? It’s not working… What about fire?」
When I thought about it while looking at my right hand, a small fire flared up.
「I did it! I did– !!」
At that moment, I was suddenly assaulted by dizziness and fell sideways. And I just fell asleep right there.