Chapter 131 – Ugly Monsters.

“Like this?”

“ ( •᷄ ᴗ •́ ) “

“No? How about this then?”

Little arcs of light energy escaped from Rusty’s fingertips. They started to slowly take form before him, but just before the spell could finish forming, the light burst and all of the energy faded.

“ (ᵕ– ᴗ –) “

Gleam shook her head, her antennae brushing against Rusty’s head as she tried to cheer him up.

“Tch, pathetic. I’ve seen goblins cast better spells than that. Are you sure you have part of my soul in you?”

Aburdon’s voice echoed in Rusty’s mind, his amusement barely concealed.

“Don’t listen to him, Rusty. You just need more time, that’s all.”

Alexander interjected, trying to encourage him, though even he seemed uncertain. Rusty’s eyes shone with the light of his guides, making it look as if he were squinting. He could feel the energy swirling within him, but every time he tried to shape it into something usable, it simply fizzled out.

“Why is this so difficult? I can do it with that other spell… did I imagine the circle wrong?”

After invading the kobold settlement, Rusty and Gleam had ventured deeper into the dungeon. Instead of battling more monsters, he was focused on creating new spells. While he was limited to only two elements, there were still spells that shouldn’t require any elemental affinity, like the mana bolt spell Gleam used or the silencing spell. He wanted to learn the latter so he wouldn’t need Gleam to stick so close to him, allowing them to explore different combat strategies.

“Why is this happening?”

He muttered, clenching his fist as he tried to recall the feeling of energy coursing through him when he had used his first spell. It wasn’t as if he lacked the ability—his body practically thrived on magical energy, and he had already wielded powerful skills that generated far grander effects.

“ ( ╹ -╹)? “

“You don’t know either?”

Gleam shook her head, uncertain why Rusty was struggling to replicate spells. She had no trouble doing so, and if a spell was performed in front of her, she could easily recreate it.

“Fine, let me explain…”

Before he could even ask, Aburdon sighed, his voice emanating from Rusty’s eye socket. His tone was as mocking as ever as if implying they were fools for not knowing the answer.

“Monsters usually gain a separate organ for spellcasting. Our cute lady Gleam has one too.”

“She does?”

“Indeed.”

Rusty looked at Gleam, and when he focused his mana sense, he noticed her mana was concentrated in her abdomen more than anywhere else. The magic seemed to travel from there to her antennae and head before she cast her spells, but it clearly originated from that spot.

“But I don’t have organs…”

“That you don’t, but… you have your core, which is normally responsible for handling such tasks.”

“But I have a core, so… shouldn’t it work?”

“Let me finish… Now, where was I? Ah, yes…”

Aburdon did something akin to clearing his throat, which made little sense given his current form as a wisp of light.

“The way you gained the skill required for spellcasting was unnatural, so I assume your core hasn’t undergone the proper changes to accommodate it.”

“Is that so?”

Rusty nodded as he listened, considering the explanation. It seemed plausible.

“You might eventually be able to cast simple spells, but unless your core changes, you’re not going to be much of a spellcaster.”

“The core has to change? … Then I just need to!”

Before he could finish the sentence, Aburdon interrupted him with praise.

“Bravo, I see you understand.”

Rusty nodded again. The solution was simple. If his core needed to change, then there was only one path forward—evolution. Once he had gained enough levels and returned to the soul forge, he would be able to obtain a new body, one designed for spellcasting.

“Let’s go, Gleam!”

“ (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶) “

After realizing that he just needed to evolve once more to gain control over his magic, Rusty felt invigorated. The dungeon he was in was the perfect place for him to reach D rank, and he could already feel the power at his fingertips.

Once back at the soul forge, he was eager to see what new shells awaited him. Perhaps he could even add a fourth form to his armors. He already had the Ogre and Wraith types. Maybe the third could be specialized for casting, or he could integrate everything into his existing variants instead. He was not sure yet, but the thought of experimenting in the soul forge again was enough to send a thrill through him.

Without hesitation, he delved back into the mist-covered dungeon to find his true opponents. The mine grew colder and more humid. Eventually, he stopped and saw a strange creature before him, something he had never encountered before. Without waiting he activated his skill that would show him its classification and started reading.

‘Now that’s a long description…’

Rusty took a moment to go through the description before closing the window. It was an aquatic species of monster, one he had never seen before. His Identify skill revealed one key detail: the creature was best suited for underwater combat. However, they were nowhere near a lake or deep water, and the monster carried only a crude iron spear. It didn’t seem to be a match for him.

“You haven’t seen half of it, Rusty. Once your identification skill evolves further, it will even reveal the monster’s weaknesses and suggest strategies to defeat them.”