Well, we came to that bridge and I have no idea what to do. I thought maybe we'd be able to dig through the rocks together but they're more like boulders. Quite large and well compacted. Or at the very least at this point the other members of her party would've come back with some help but no matter how much we shouted nobody responded on the other end.

Marie was on her hands and knees nearly exhausted while I did the best I could to come up with a solution. Really, this undead body was quite nice. Even after all that strenuous work which would've been far harsher on my old body I feel completely at ease. Though, I do feel bad for Marie. She's really weezing down there...

Eventually Marie musters the strength to bring herself up using her staff. "I-I really am useless..." Her staff wobbles about as she... wait a minute. Her staff used magic, right?

"Say... What exactly is that staff capable of?" She was able to use that [Holy Light] magic with her staff so she must be able to use other magic right? She might have something up her sleeve that could prove to be useful.

"My staff? It's only been imbued with [Holy Light] and a second tier [Heal]. My father is the local alchemist. He’s able to use Alchemic Arts. He made this staff for me when I turned seventeen. H-He didn't approve of my desire to be an adventurer but he always supported me... I really should have listened.... I'm useless..."

Damn, she's sulking again. She's also throwing around words like I understand them. Alchemic Arts? Like Alchemy? I thought Alchemy was more along the lines of turning one thing into another. Equivalent exchange. The Philosopher's Stone. Like that anime I watched ages ago.

"Alchemic Arts? What is that?"

"It's one of the magical arts. One of the three humans are capable of learning."

"What exactly are these magical arts?"

"Well, there's Martial Arts, Alchemic Arts, and Sorcerous Arts. A few adventurers who have stayed in our village have mentioned a fourth one but I haven't found any books mentioning such a thing. Magical arts can be boiled down to the simple act of manipulating magical energy, or mana. What separates these three arts is how you manipulate the mana. Martial Arts is the manipulation of the mana within oneself. Alchemical Arts is the manipulation of the mana within objects. And Sorcerous Arts is the manipulation of mana around oneself. You see because humans lack the mana that most other races..."

Hmm, it seems she's rather knowledgeable and quite eager to inform others. Maybe too eager. I wave my hand in hopes to stop her from giving me an entire history lesson inside a cave. I certainly would like at some point but I couldn't help but feel that now was not the time. "I understand, I understand. Are you able to use any of those magical arts?"

A shadow of gloom cast over her excited face as she lowered her head once again. "No... The best I can do is push my mana into my staff to activate one of the two spells it has."

"Damn..."

Maybe, just maybe, this was a poorly planned endeavor. Just then Marie's head slightly perked up with an unsure confidence. "Well... my brother did teach me about Martial Arts but unfortunately I wasn't very good at it... I'm so useless..."

Her face started to morph into her normal sulking before she slapped herself and looked straight at me. "I may be useless, but you... You."

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"Me?"

"You're undead. You're not human. Like I said earlier undead are corpses puppeteered by magical energy. In a sense, you're a purely magical being. It's why advanced magic like Sorcerous Arts are so difficult for humans to learn. But for you... it may come second nature."

Hold on... isn't she saying I'm amazing. Is being undead my cheat skill? In this moment I've never felt happier to be a skeleton. Still, I have my reservations about her teaching me. If she can't do it can she really help me?

"Can you really teach me?"

"I understand how you must feel." She lowered her head again for a moment. "I've always been a bit of a know-it-all. Yet I can't do anything on my own..." She clenched her fist and raised her head with a fiery look in her eyes. "But if my theory holds true, all I'll need to do is explain my brother's technique and soon you'll be able to blast away that rubble with a Martial Art!"

There was a gleam in her eyes which lightened my spirits. Hey now, with a cheat skill comes a harem... Is she the first one? She is quite beautiful with a fun quirky personality to boot. However, there was one issue.

I'm a skeleton. There's no blood nor veins to pump in through my body. No flesh. Nothing down there. Oi, isn't having this body and a harem more of a punishment. Am... Am I really in hell?

I shook my head (skull?) in frustration. This wasn't the time to dwell on what ifs. It was better to focus on our present situation. Plus Marie seemed quite eager to teach.

"So, what is your brother's technique?"

I was right. She's barely able to contain her excitement. "First things first. Identify the mana within your body. The energy that flows through your being."

"And how do you do that?"

"Well, it usually takes months of meditation but since we don't have that time I'd say just close your eyes and try to imagine what that energy is."

That's rather... vague. I'm beginning to question her teaching skills. Still, she is correct. We don't have much time. It'd be rather unreasonable to stay in this spot meditating for months. I would imagine as an undead I don't need food or water but this woman certainly would.

I close my eyes and do the best I can to visualize what that "energy" may be like.

...

Oi. This is... this is way easier than I thought it'd be. I can see it. The energy flowing through and all around. A kind of dark purple colored energy.

"Ehhhhh? That was quick!"

"Y-You said it would be second nature!"

Her shock caught me off guard and I lost my concentration but even then once I opened my eyes I noticed the purple aura covering my skeletal body. "What now?"

Still stunned at my quick turnaround she stuttered a reply, "W-Well, now you focus that energy into a fist. The basics of Martial Arts is manipulating your mana into key parts of your body to strengthen them. For instance, focusing your mana into your fist should-"

"Break down the rubble with a punch?"

"In theory... It's still your first time so it may prove to be... di...fi...cult....."

Before she could even finish her sentence I had already used my mana infused fist to smash the rubble to bits. Even as an emotionless undead I couldn't help but feel gleeful at the carnage I wrought.

For the first time in my life I felt, powerful. If I had skin I'm sure I'd have goosebumps right now. Maybe even shed a tear from my tear ducts (if I had any). I was on my way to living out my power fantasy! I turned to Marie expecting to see a teacher in awe of her student but instead her face was frozen in fear.

Was it me, or...? I turned around to see that the dust had settled and found something quite tall and looking down on me with pure hatred in its eyes. A crude wooden club was in its hand. If I didn't know any better it was a...

"Cave troll!"