“Keh… kekeke…. Kaw-haha-haw!”

I began to laugh. If I had tear ducts, I would have cried.

The entire 1 of the Wisdom possessed by the Fae Squirrel Champion had become mine. The benefits I had earned was… at least not nothing, and I could appreciate the effects Wisdom provided to me. Now I would gain free Stats per Lvl. But when I considered what I could have earned from this-

No, the body is gone. Regrets are poison to a pure soul like mine. Instead… just focus on the positives. My long-term potential can increase from using this Skill… and that possibility increases both with Skill Level and Mana. So now, if I can increase my Mana Pool… this shit result-

Haaah…

I staggered sideways, intending to collapse next to the fire and just sleep a bit to clear my mind, but I stepped on something strange and slipped. I collapsed onto a pile of mud and torn squirrel flesh. I scrambled up to my feet and glared down at the offending item, intending to crush it with my blunt feet— yet when I looked at it, curiosity won me over.

I had stepped on some sort of blue gem. When I leaned closer, a description popped up.

Isolated Essence of Azure Flame Mana: Mixed with Blessed Oils, the Mana has been crystalized into an isolated form. It seems possible to extract the Mana from within with the associated Skill.

Please Note: Your Hybrid Mana Core reacts with the isolated Mana. Would you like to absorb the Isolated Essence of Azure Flame Mana?

Oh? Interest flashed in my eye, before I grimaced; reality was harsh. No, I’ve been fooled too many times by you System. You dangle hope just to swipe it away. Such an item… will not magically transform my Mana into a useful Azure Flame Mana. No, if we are going by shonen tropes-

“Nightshade,” I said, turned to my brother. I offered him the gleaming blue crystal. “Can you absorb this?”

“Hum?” Nightshade heaved himself to his feet, his massive squirrel head pole making him list slightly to the left as he moved. He slithered over and considered the small crystal. When he read its description, his eyes widened. “This…”

His central head leaned forward and closed with such gentleness on the crystal it didn’t even make a noise. His body went rigid for a moment, for a languid wave of relaxation spread out through his flesh. When he straightened…

…all of that sophistication had been tossed out the window. He chewed on the crystal for a bit. I could hear it crunching.

In the end, he spit the crystal out and shrugged. “Ah, it appears not. Thank you for the offer, brother.”

My tentacles trembling, I reached down and picked up the crystal. A large crack had formed through the core of the crystal, from when Nightshade had gnawed on it. My trembling intensified as I saw the new description.

Isolated and Damaged Essence of Azure Flame Mana: Mixed with Blessed Oils, the Mana has been crystalized into an isolated form. Since the isolation, the container has been damaged. Some of its potency has been lost. It seems possible to extract the Mana from within with the associated Skill. All potency will drain from the item within the next 1 hour, 59 minutes.

Please Note: Your Hybrid Mana Core reacts with the isolated Mana. Would you like to absorb the Isolated and Damaged Essence of Azure Flame Mana?

My eye was empty as it observed the crystal. Was this my chance? Did handing the crystal to that brute Nightshade squander it…?

I assented to the prompt. The crystal burst and released its energy. Then I felt a suction from my Hybrid Monster Core. A small portion dissipated, but much of the energy contained within the strange byproduct flowed into me.

Your Skill (Earned) Mana Sensitivity has grown to Level 15.

Your Hybrid Mana Core is reacting! Hybrid Mana Core -> Hybrid Mana Core with an Azure Aspect. Mana +5 -> Mana +15 and Wisdom +2.

“Well fuck me.” I spat out the words. I forced myself not to think about what might have been. Right now… the strange benefit of +10 Mana and +2 Wisdom was enough.

And also, that byproduct was produced when I used the Blessing in battle. Could I… really have underestimated its usefulness?

No Monster’s Wisdom Skill Level increase appeared. I sneered. Heh, that’s right System. Did you think I wouldn’t learn to use this pettiness against you? You would jump at the chance to rub my nose in the failure. And since you did not… hehe.

Well, this much is good enough. Isolating Mana is possible… something to consider…

The unexpected boost had come at the perfect time to reignite my spirits. Before I went to bed, I traveled around to the surrounding squirrels and considered body parts. First, I integrated a couple of Fae Squirrel paws just to get the number of Integrated Body Parts up and completing my Mundane Quest.

You have completed a Mundane Quest! Integrate twenty-five body parts 25/25.

A Mundane Achievement: +2 Skill Level to Integrate Body Part.

I was surprised you could receive Skill Levels as a reward for Achievements, but realized how little I really understood about the System. Still, I would have preferred more Mana. The next Quest in the Mundane chain was to Integrate 75 Body Parts, which was far out of my current reach.

Before bed, I scouted out a few likely bodies and set them aside; in the morning, I wanted to Integrate those to try and actually obtain useful benefits. Then I moved the reed bed and fell asleep, content to allow the spiderlings to watch over us during the night.

Shapeless clouds drifted above, the world’s half-formed thoughts. I dozed, the cool wind brushing my skin. I didn’t even stir when Anima flowed out of my core to sustain the various body parts across me. My consciousness felt warm and fuzzy as dawn finally nudged me awake.

Ah, the sweet smell of the river, the chirpings of birds… truly, no setbacks loom so menacingly in the morning, I hopped up and stretched. Idly, I reached down and scratched where my ass would be on a human body, with my new sharp clawed squirrel paw. Rather annoyingly, I lost a point of Health as I ripped through the lavender flesh.

Your Skill (Species) Interstitial Body Structure has grown to Level 8.

The flesh rippled and began to crawl back together to cover the wound. I sighed and shook my head. Yes, I am a freak. But! It’s a warm morning. The simple pleasures of a monster’s life are mine to savor.

My good mood well established, I scanned the surrounding area. There were no convenient flies to just gobble down for Anima, but just a little bit of searching found two Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrels Lvl 9 sipping from a sluggish river tributary.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

I fell upon both at the same time, fueled by the furious activation of Inferior Adrenaline Rush. For the left, I raised a massive turtle leg and stomped upon its neck. I don’t think I inflicted any sort of serious damage, but I shoved its head underwater and pressed its skull into the soft mud of the river shallows. The other I stabbed with my surprisingly sharp squirrel paw.

Messy. My serrated foreleg would have- no, I cannot dwell…

I sucked the stabbed squirrel dry of Anima while the other struggled underwater. Just as it seemed close to dying with its face stuffed in the mud, I saved it from drowning… by devouring its Anima. After my small attack, my Anima climbed to 196. Plenty to try and improve upon the random squirrel paw I had ended the night with.

Before I tried to integrate any body parts, I raised my body and looked at my reflection. The water moved slowly enough I had a pretty clear picture of what I looked like. For thirty long seconds, I just looked at my unfamiliar features. All of the faux-cheeriness and mental exaggerations I used to help process the complete upheaval of my existence fell away.

I felt exhausted. I missed the comfort of my old life. It felt strange that it didn’t feel strange to eat in the morning by killing squirrels and sucking away their blood. Obviously, I still missed Mimi.

“Sometimes… life feels like nothing but work…” I muttered. Across the slow-moving body of water, I saw a head break the surface and look at me. It was an otter. I straightened, the possible threat pushing my worries to the side. In addition, my next thought was about Nightshade-- where he was, whether he was safe.

After a few seconds of mutual staring, the otter sunk back beneath the surface and swam away. I slowly backed away from the shore and returned to the campsite. My emotions still felt messy, but I felt a strange sense of levity. “Sure, it’s labor. But that just proves I’m making an impact.”

I recalled the end of my last life. And weirdly, I felt some empathy for past me, burying my emotions while arguing with internet commenters, when I should have been addressing my grief. Because what I HAD invested in, at that time, was my story. Even if I was too messed up for the outcome to be praiseworthy, I had worked at it.

What you care about, where your labors are aimed, almost becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. I felt a tingle in my jello. Almost instinctively, you will turn back in their direction when things fall to pieces.

Ah… definitely, let’s ease up on the anti-crustacean rhetoric.

“What I do now is probably what I will do in the future,” I nodded to myself. “That’s just human- living being’s nature. So… especially while settling into a new life, let’s be purposeful. Set myself up… for the leisurely lifestyle of my dreams.”

I considered, then stomped back to the squirrel corpses I had laid out. While I waited for Nightshade to reveal himself, I would experiment with the System. Very few curiosities brought me as much raw satisfaction as discovering the underlying rules of the world. And unlike the confusing morass of conflicting data of my first life, this one came with notifications.

Although, I can no longer deny my proclivities are a bit… satanic feels unfair, but at least ‘easily misunderstood’...

Yet I stood above the squirrel and cut without hesitation.

I used my messy squirrel paw to perform surgery on the animal before me. My goal was to sever the paw perfectly, sculpting a superior limb that could rival my lost serrated foreleg.

Your Skill (Earned) Body Manipulation has grown to Level 13.

Aiyah, I wiped a little blood from my skin. If I keep this up, perhaps someday I’ll earn a Butchery Skill… Is it weird that I’m anticipating such a bloody development…?

Then again… I’ll need some sort of career when I’m blacklisted as a land developer for failing to complete this temple on time. Umu, okay, maybe this is a silly train of thought. After all, there isn’t really a demand in this marsh for carving up corpses. I bet most just eat the bodies raw-

Your Skill (Earned) Monster’s Wisdom has grown to Level 15.

You have learned the Skill (Earned) Apprentice Butchery.

No wait, listen to the rest of my thoughts: without customers— I don’t want to spend the entirety of my time beheading monsters for Nightshade or serving up steaming tail to Sagacity-

Your Skill (Earned) Apprentice Butchery has grown to Level 2.

In the end, I was helpless before the whims of the System (which definitely doled out Skills and levels with a vindictiveness that required gulping breaths to withstand). But I still felt a bit gleeful being correct, so after splashing myself with some marsh water to cool my temper, I hunted a few more Fae Squirrels and butchered them up. I honed my new Skill to Level 5 before selecting the most intimidating claw and activating Integrate Body Part.

Would you like to integrate sculpted right paw of Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrel Lvl 9?

Integration requires 26 Anima. Continue?

You have integrated Sculpted Right Paw of the Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrel Lvl 9! Sculpted Right Paw of the Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrel provides Strength +2, Attack +3, and Agility +2.

Oh? Actually these benefits are quite nice. My eye brightened as I lifted my new paw and observed the muscles and tendons moving beneath the surface. I turned it this way and that, thoroughly pleased with my work. As always, my horrid brain wouldn’t let this moment of contentment pass without curdling it. But… haven’t I already proved that its possible to make a set of limbs and Integrate them together? The Stat gains might be even higher…

A reasonable voice nudged me. You are slipping right back into those habits of min-maxing.

A greedier voice cleared its throat. Well, Nightshade is still MIA. Isn’t it enough for me to not worry about possible hordes of squirrels and instead enjoy this beautiful day?

…you are carving up squirrels like a serial killer on a murder spree. Have we even looked up and noticed the beautiful weather since waking up-

Trivial and over-reactionary thoughts were the seeds of obsessive thinking, so I set them aside and just went with my gut. I lurked in the tall grass for a bit until I stumbled across a trio of Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrels; an acceptable amount to attack in my current state.

My heavy tortoise legs still allowed me to gallop out and catch them by surprise. My shiny new claw shredded through one’s neck before it could twist away. Its companions both reared up on their hind legs and charged a squirrel bolt, but I had enough Health to happily tank both. I stabbed my claw into the chest of the second squirrel and ripped out its heart. The third made the mistake of taking up my challenge of a melee battle.

Its claws inflicted a few small wounds on my Interstitial Flesh, but we Chimera Cores really were an unfair existence. I snapped the squirrel’s neck after I bowled it over and threw my weight onto its torso. After drinking down some Anima to replenish my Health a bit, I began the careful process of selecting two opposing paws and carving them off the bodies into a match.

Your Skill (Earned) Apprentice Butchery has grown to Level 6.

Because I selected paws from separate bodies, I hesitated a bit and then added some whimsical, whorling patterns to the paws, to try and cement their existence as a pair. They didn’t quite match exactly, but I had never been a particularly talented artist.

Your Skill (Earned) Apprentice Butchery has grown to Level 7.

Now… finally, let’s witness the value of my masterwork!

Would you like to integrate unusually mystical paw set of Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrel Lvl 9?

Integration requires 49 Anima. Continue?

Mystical? Well, that’s a nice adjective. Ah, System, as always, I regret doubting you. With the extra Agility and Strength Stats… or even Attack… I’ll probably get from this…

Your Skill (Species) Integrate Body Part has grown to Level 24.

Your Skill (Species) Integrate Body Part has grown to Level 25.

Eh? Why so many Skill Levels-

Your Skill (Species) Integrate Body Part has grown to Level 26.

You have integrated Unusually Mystical Paw Set of the Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrel Lvl 9! Unusually Mystical Paw Set of the Bloodthirsty Fae Squirrel provides Strength +3, Attack +5, and Agility +3.

Oh! Plenty of extra Stats, while also taking up a single body part slot! Yes, this is exactly-

Your Unusually Mystical Paw Set is reacting with your Hybrid Monster Core with an Azure Aspect! Resonance achieved with Basic Array Knowledge. The intriguing patterns on the Paw Set are beginning to shift!

Your Unusually Mystical Paw Set has transformed into the Holy Paw Set of the Pious Squirrel Lvl ???. Previous Stat gains have changed. Holy Paw Set of the Pious Squirrel provides Mana +10, Wisdom +2, and Faith +2. The efficiency of all Blessings is slightly increased.

I felt numbed. I just sat and watched as the claws vanished; a pious squirrel apparently filed down their nails so their hands looked surprisingly human. For several long seconds, I just looked blankly down at these hands.

“Hah…” I raised the hands up and put them around where a throat would be on a humanoid body. I began to squeeze. “Totally… nailing… my second, more relaxed life…! When frustrated, take deep breaths… deep breaths… grhk…!”