Fifty tons of metal.

I bought fifty tons a little while ago. That's roughly seventy cows worth of metal.

My Prometheus ate a third of that in one sitting. He's smaller than my head and managed to eat a third of fifty tons of metal. Thirty-three thousand fucking pounds of material now no longer exist. Where does it go? What? Why?

In the beginning, I needed Duchess' help to melt down the metal since I didn't have a forge on the premises. But after the first few thousand, Prometheus managed on his own, melting the metal with his body and spittle.

His entire body is basically a mouth and stomach. But since he leaves behind little metal nuggets, it might be more than that. There are thirty-three nuggets. The number doesn't evade me.

A thousand pounds and that is left is a small dense nugget of metal. There were many different metals Prometheus consumed, but the remnants were uniform and 'pure.' I pick one up, and I reckon it's ten pounds. A conversion rate of one hundred? For what?

[Purified Aluminum]

I found Prometheus at the bottom of a forge used by a god. Slimes are scavengers, so It wouldn't be farfetched for me to assume the same for oozes. Something that can clean up metal scraps, slag, failed creations, ores, and all manner of metal to produce a purified nugget.

[Evolution Complete!]

No [Unique Servitude] level up? Makes sense, I guess. The next level would rank up the skill to rank-A. Thinking a beast ranking from F to E would trigger the advancement is optimistic.

[Gain the Skills: [Superior Heat Resistance] and [Heat Metal].]

[The Traits: [Malleable Body] and [Flame Body] have ranked up.]

Name / Nickname

Prometheus / Endling

Species

Ancient Magma Ooze E (Unique)

Level

10 (0/100)

Evolution Requirements

Not Met

~

Health Points

85/85

Mana Points

60/60

Armor Points

0

Might

17 (1 > 14 + 20%)

Agility

12 (1 > 10 + 20%)

Vigor

17 (1 > 14 + 20%)

Mind

12 (1 > 10 + 20%)

Spirit

12 (5 > 10 + 20%)

Trait

Glutton

The User’s appetite will never be truly satisfied

Malleable Body (E) ↑

The User’s body can bend and shift to the user’s will.

Flame Body (E) ↑

The User’s body is hot. Heat radiates to a distance of five feet. ↑

~

~

~

Skills

Superior Heat Resistance (D)*

The user gains an increase in resistance to all heat sources.

Hardening (E)

The User can Harden parts of their body.

Heat Metal (E)*

The user can heat nonmagical metal to a point before melting.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Range: 10 feet

Spit Fire (E)

The User can spit a superheated mucus substance.

Damage: 50% of Vigor.

Prometheus barely grew in size, but he is ten times heavier than before. There wasn't any fancy cocoon or explosion of flame. If the notification didn't pop up, I might have missed it.

Maybe his size will change once he gets a few years on his belt.

His body got hotter and more inconvenient for me. Loose paper within five feet of Prometheus will burst into flame, and people will have singed hair if not burned outright. His body can stretch and form different shapes better, which is neat. I guess.

Pity that I can't see the bonus the heat resistance is giving him. It's most likely different from my fire resistance. Heat metal also seems cool but unnecessary. Perhaps Prometheus can cook people wearing armor alive or soften metals for his meals.

The skill doesn't specify limitations, but I don't think a rank E ability can heat all of the metal on Iona at once, regardless of size or quantity. Testing will be needed. Also need to test the limits of "nonmagical metals."

Simple metal is a rank-F material, and superior alloys made with those types of metal are typically rank-E. Metal with mana infused (magical metal) usually starts around rank D and grows from there. Exceptions are always there. Technology today can get simple metals into alloys that can rival some magical metals.

Prometheus is no longer an adolescent since he got all the stats he would've from growing up. He should be getting stats like everyone else from now on... Wait a second.

I have a question. Us humans can gain experience points passively by doing actions related to our class. Healers don't need to participate in genocides. They can get by with just healing. That brings up another question of why death grants strength, but that isn't the focus right now.

Shouldn't beasts gain experience points in the process of reaching maturity? Creatures that don't have the system that the "races" don't get classes. They can evolve into higher life forms, similar to how I can get a better job. Luck, dedication, and resources. But if the "races" get experience by playing their class, would the other creatures passively get experience from just existing?

I don't think there is an easier job than just existing. A bear can't fuck up being a bear as long as it's a bear. Duchess, I know you are eavesdropping. What do you think?

[When thisss one was just a puny [Feathered Boa], thisss one noticed that thisss one gained more experience after consuming thisss one's prey. Thisss one believed that thisss one was the smartest 'beast' in the jungle thisss one was captured in. Thisss one would argue that thisss one has more sentience, nay, sapience than some of the ones the gods considered the "races."]

Maybe it has to do with the ability to evolve instead then. I don't even know if humans have the same system as the other races. The books I have on that topic skim over the actual logistics. That's off-topic. Consuming is necessary to live. Maybe it's rewarding you for not keeling over.

I can get into philosophy with the meaning of life, but I rather not. The power the system gives me is apparently mine already. It's just being regulated and directed. But for you, it would be different.

Without the system, evolving would be a pain since you would have to be in specific conditions for something to even be attempted. Maybe instincts would play a part.

[The more intelligent and rational thisss one becomes, the more thisss one's instincts dull. Thisss one has been conditioning thisss one to keep thisss one's instincts honed.]

'Intelligent and rational, but you talk about yourself in the third person with a hiss.

[Tis a sign of royalty.]

Sure, sure. I wonder if Rob will do that since he's a lord now. Does that make me king? I'm already designated as one by a skill, but I have no title or trait reinforcing that idea. Let's start grinding until master Giles returns from his trip, or else I'll think myself to death.

[Master, you should write a book filled with questions and answer them one by one. Become a real thinker.]

If I shove them into my [Lexicon], I'll ironically forget about them. Since these thoughts are always in the back of my mind, putting them back in the back rarely changes things. More questions will arrive and drown out the previous ones.

[Use a book, not a library.]

If I have time.

~

Steps I can take to get stronger while waiting for master Giles. Not in any particular order.

Get my beasts to grind levels on my behalf and catch up later.

Train skills. Everyone but Prometheus has skills that can be leveled up. And I've been slacking in that department.

I'll need to gain two more [Path of the Broken Body] martial arts skills before my skill can rank up. At least, I think that's the case. Master Wang said ten is the limit of the human body before mastering the art, and the balance of passive and active skills is crucial. I need one more of each.

I should shoot for twelve or even more since my body is vastly different from other humans. Maybe that's not a good take. The creator of the art knows of my durability and still warned me. Reaching the capstone ability [Traumatism] will require two more passives. If I keep the balance, I'll need to master the art beforehand.

[Heal Anything] hasn't leveled after it became a unique skill. I don't know what to do about it, but looking into that would be nice.

My journeyman skills can use some work. Asking master Wang should help with that since he's basically my personal trainer at this point.

I can't leave out my resistance.

Now I need to make this efficient. Have my beasts train their skills on me to increase my resistance as well. I'll spam my skills, trying to use them tactically in this mock battle. At the same time, I'll train for my newest passive skill from the [Path of the Broken Body]. That hits half of the marks, but that should be alright.

Experience can come from massacres. Proficiency requires effort.

Even if my leveless skills don't rank up, getting familiar with how to use them efficiently would be worth it. This is the time for stress testing. A little sparring.

~

We are doing this in Rob's graveyard. Not only will he get used to his domain, but he can also repair the terrain effortlessly. I'm standing shirtless with a blunt sword made from bone, courtesy of Rob.

People won't stand there as test dummies in fights, and neither will they stop hurting me when I get low. I don't need to pull my punches against Rob and Khan, but I can heal any wounds in the worst-case scenario.

Prometheus is obviously sitting this out, but I'm not foolish to believe I could survive an onslaught against four of my beasts at once. The first one was Rob. He'd prefer to polish his collection than train his skills or magic, so I want to see if he's been doing his "homework."

I kick off the dirt as he plants his shovel in the earth. I'm in his graveyard. The land churns and splits, and the ground underneath my feet give away. I punch the air and whistle. Against his will, Rob appears in the way of my fist.

One-third of his health is gone in a single strike as my fist breaks into his collarbone. Rob seemed hurt from that attack, emotionally speaking.

Bones clatter back into place as my mark disappears in mere moments. I try to jump out of the hole Rob placed us in, but he grabs my ankle. I kick his head with my other foot without losing momentum.

I shatter his glass jaw and rip my leg clean from his grasp. He's faster but not stronger than me. He jumps after me without even waiting for his jaw to reassemble.

He swings to hit me before hitting the ground. His shovel clanks off my body. He managed to hit me two more times in succession before I could bring my blade up. I block the next attack, dragging my sword against the bone shaft.

I smash my head into Rob's newly reassembled jaw, shattering it again. A bone garden trowel is conjured in his gloved hand. It glistens as it's hardened by a spell. Rob knows I've survived worse, so he jabs the makeshift knife into my neck, trying to break skin.

Again, nothing.

I try to sweep his legs out from under him, but his digitigrade artic wolf legs jump over my attack. Rob backs off, making distance away from me, and attempts to barrage me with bone shots. Every snap and crackle of a finger bone announced the arrival of a pellet that bounced off my skin.

I block the ones that would've otherwise hit my eyes. No need to go blind thanks to a training session. I keep advancing on Rob. There is only so much graveyard.

I rip a nearby tombstone out of the ground and hurl it at Rob. It soars through the air before harmlessly turning to dust with a snap of Rob's fingers. He's showing off now.

More tombstones sprout out of the ground around me like mushrooms. Rob must've got an idea from my feeble attempt at an attack. The slabs of stone shoot out of the earth like a missile and slam against me. It's not enough to hurt, but the impact and frequency slow me down.

I resorted to punching and kicking the slabs out of the air to stop them from impeding my movement. It's slightly faster that way. The stone crumbles under my attacks.

Utilizing [Battered Bones] to break one of my legs to propel myself 50% faster to reach Rob wasn't necessary, but I did so anyways. Using [Cross Counter] and [Donkey Punch] also wouldn't matter, but I did so anyways.

No matter what, this fight will be an undamageable target versus one that can't die. However, I don't want this to devolve into a slugfest with both sides taking blows without recourse. That wouldn't be contributive training.

My fist breaks Rob's ribcage. Spare ribs fly everywhere as he uses the momentum to make even more distance. Stalling and tiring me out would be an appropriate strategy in a fight like this.

Dirt gets flung up in front of Rob, thanks to one of his shovels. I passed through like nothing but the air was there, but the momentary blindspot gave Rob enough time to blend into a shadow. My perception isn't high enough to instantly spot him, but there are only so many shadows nearby.

Plus, it's not like he's intangible.

He could have used this opportunity to escape for real, but he could have left me in the dust at any point. Even being aware of an incoming attack, I still failed to dodge or block the "blade" of Rob's shovel.

It connects against my neck. If this was any other level one hundred human, their neck would've been broken if their head wasn't decapitated outright.

Alas, my blunt resistance is 877. Even with Rob's higher augmented critical hit damage and extra damage with "tools," he can't reach a higher damage number. Good thing this is a sparring session.

After hours of running, fighting, breaking, and brawling, I can't hit Rob anymore. He maintains his speed to let me be within range, but no attacks will reach him.