The Loobins were an odd creature in general, being the only creature that Ambrose had seen that was specifically powered by mana or whatever other source, instead of having the normal setup of organs. Ambrose did of course consider that he had only managed to kill a single other type of creature so far, but the Dungeonese Sheep had had a digestive system according to the Assess description as well as a brain that Ambrose had witnessed first hand proving that the creature was at least somewhat natural, even if the creature's thin legs had to be improved by magic to haul it's bulk around, the Dungeonese Wolfspider similarly seemed to have a proper system in place judging by its voracious appetite.
Perhaps that was the meaning of the Dungeonese prefix, maybe they were normal creatures that the dungeon had gained access to at some point and modified to work within its ecosystem, and the creatures that the dungeon created from scratch didn’t hold the title.
The unnatural existence that was a Loobin was not what Ambrose was currently confused about, instead it was the actions of the group he was currently observing. Ambrose had seen the initial group of Loobins had had tools, his initial crappy knife had come from them after all, but he hadn’t considered why they had a knife until now. The camp in front of him had a total of fifteen of the creatures, and Ambrose had seen several different basic tools but hadn’t seen any of them actually being used.
The Loobins that carried a tool, usually had them tied to their side with hide straps, but would use their claws or tongues for tasks that would normally make use of a blade, such as cutting the hide they seemed to use for everything.
The camp itself was a small collection of hide tents and furs scattered around a central point that contained their food pile, having no need for fires within the ever temperate dungeon. The food pile was collections of the small hide pouches filled with meats, fruits, and bones, though they seemed to bring in an occasional rock or piece of metal that were then placed within a tent.
The Loobins would separate into small groups of three to six every now and then and go off to wander the plains in seemingly random directions, which forced Ambrose to move his position to avoid being spotted, this was just a precaution though, as even these higher level Loobins appeared to be completely oblivious, clearly not having the Perception Skill. This gave Ambrose a hint towards the Skill not relying on a physical trait as he had initially believed, making Strength of Mind the new most likely candidate, otherwise their was simply no way that he would have remained hidden.
After a little over an hour, Ambrose hadn’t learned all that much, the number of total Loobins in the camp had risen to somewhere around twenty-five with a couple groups roaming around nearby at any one time. The other interesting tidbit was that the Loobins that carried tools seemed to act as leaders, with only one tool wielder going out per group, if one went at all, this could potentially just be a coincidence but seemed to like up with what he had seen so far.
Observation having run its course for now, Ambrose took the opportunity to follow one of the groups that left the camp when he noticed that it was heading in the direction of the sheep he had passed on the way down.
The group was amongst the largest he had seen numbering six in total, with a knife wielder being in the lead. They were heading on a direct line to the sheep and walking with purpose, taking four strong members, as well as two that showed up as lesser in level to Ambrose. He could only smile as he saw this and gained a Skill notification for the conclusion he had made yesterday, this was a hunting party, the Loobins killed for experience too.
The party stormed towards the sheep, dropping into stealth when it came into view. The sheep was oblivious to their presence, picking at its flowers just as the one Ambrose had eventually killed would. Meanwhile, Ambrose had remained in stealth and was keeping the hunting party in sight, they were oblivious to his presence, focused solely on their prey.
Ambrose obviously wasn’t prepared to take on the entire camp, but this hunting party was going to be his target for the day, provided nothing else came and claimed his kills while he was hauling corpses, this one group would cover what the Enrick’s, the last name of Jobe, Luce, and Mariella, which Ambrose had learned this morning, said they could handle for this shipment.
While Ambrose could certainly go for a slightly smaller group, or even multiple different groups, Ambrose wanted to see what the higher level Loobins would do in combat. Not only would it mean less surprises when fighting them himself, but it may give hints towards being able to defeat the sheep in the dungeon using less horrific methods.
The lead Loobin skulked forward, prey locked within its sights. This was its first hunt in charge, and wanted to ensure that they took no losses. Instructing the group member to split up and slowly surround the beast of bounty. The weak ones were separated, one going on to either side of their prey, the strongest one other than the leader was to keep the beast's attention by attacking its face when it was downed.
This left the leader behind the sheep, a pair to either side, and one preparing to move to the front when the others struck.
The head Loobin nodded to its companions, they were meant to attack the creatures legs all at once and this was their signal to begin the attack. They dashed forward and three struck as one, with one of the weak ones not experienced in the timing, attempting to strike only moments after. The large creature had already collapsed to the ground as the weak Loobin’s tongue failed to strike the sheep in the leg, instead hitting it in its well padded and protected flesh.
Growling at the weakling's mistake, the leader moved forward and began piercing the side that the failure was on, using his higher strength to try and make up for it, and hopefully distracting the creature from trying to crush its more valuable allies.
The sheep dropped onto its right side, both knees were pierced through by Loobin tongues, but the tongues were now pinned beneath the sheep as a consequence of the missed timing. Ambrose wasn’t sure if he should be happy or disappointed that he and the Loobins used the same strategy. He watched on as the group continued to fight the sheep, as it rolled over slamming into the group of two on its right.
The Loobins were injured by the impact as the sheep desperately bit out towards flowers as it rolled over the creatures, creating some distance. The Loobin in the front kept trying to slam into its face, seemingly hoping to pierce into its head, but having to only making small impact based hits as the creature rolled over and over.
As the effects of the flowers began to flood through the sheep, it used its one remaining good leg to right itself, and turn towards the group. As the anaesthetic effects grew, the sheep pushed itself upwards on unsure steps. Unable to properly charge the assailants, the sheep moved forward slowly.
The Loobins tongues could only stretch around five feet away from their bodies, meaning they too had to remain close if they wanted to be able to pierce through the thick wool and fat.
The group pushed forwards and around, slowly draining the large sheep of its blood, avoiding the more mobile head. The sheep did manage to get some blows in, concussing the weak Loobin who had failed its strike by bodily ramming it as the creature's senses were dulled by consuming the tainted blood.
The lead Loobin screeched in rage but did nothing to stop the fate of its fellow hunter, only watching as the sheep stomped down on its skull, shattering the boneless form and sending the flesh and blood shooting outwards.
As the sheep began to slow down due to blood loss and the drugs effects beginning to fade, Ambrose had seen enough, it was time to third party these Loobins and take what experience points he could from the sheep.
Stealth was unnecessary, the Loobins were oblivious at the best of times, but now they were facing away from him and drugged to high heavens. Ambrose simply walked up to the leading Loobin and took him out with a singular strike to the core.
Taking the knife from soon dead Loobin as it fell to the ground, Ambrose moved on to the next two, now having two weapons, he was able to kill two in a double strike, though his new knife felt far weaker than the steel dagger, requiring far more effort to pierce deep enough.
With the strongest of the Loobins dead and their numbers more than halved, the group of dungeon creatures stood no chance, but Ambrose held back. Not wanting to waste a bunch of time trying to finish off the sheep by himself, he positioned himself to the side of one of the remaining Loobins who was striking at the creature's throat, causing small lacerations each time.
When the Loobin next went for a small strike, Ambrose stepped up, grabbed the small creature by the back of the head and small of the back, and shoved forward. The Loobin's strike was originally just meant to be a small pierce so that the tongue wouldn’t risk getting stuck if the sheep flailed or tried to pull it closer. Instead, the tongue was forced straight through both sides of the neck.
The sheep gurgled in pain and quickly threw its neck and body back, reeling in the Loobin and biting down on its neck, as the second to last of the Loobins died. The final Loobin had only now recognised that it was under attack from two sides and attempted a strike at Ambrose.
More than ready for the slowed opponent, Ambrose simply stepped to the side and decided it was a perfect time to learn knife throwing. Taking his steel dagger, Ambrose lined up the shot and started to throw. Despite his Small Blades levels giving him a basic understanding of how to do it, it was the difference between theory and action that took a few attempts to nail.
It took several tries for the dagger to land in the Loobin, and several more before he managed to pop the poor creature, fortunately it was far more drugged than the sheep and didn’t react to the damage it took in as Ambrose practiced. Each time he had to recover the dagger, not wanting to throw both daggers at once just in case. The process wasn’t exactly dangerous though, as Ambrose just needed to stand out of range, as the creature, high off its rocker, wouldn’t notice this important fact and still try to strike him, allowing Ambrose to simply step forward and grab the tongue, pulling the Loobin off balance and away from the dagger where he could run over and grab it before repeating the process.
Throwing practice out of the way for now, Ambrose walked around the sheep, checking to see if it was alive. The Loobin was dead and still stuck in the sheep's throat making it difficult to tell visually what the state of the sheep was. Instead, Ambrose took an additional step back before closing his eyes and listening. He could still hear the creature struggling to breathe.
Ambrose decided the best option was to remove the obstacle in his way which stopped him from reaching the sheep's neck. Grabbing the Loobin corpse by the feet, he hauled back, yanking the tongue out of the throat causing blood to pour out of the wound with renewed vigour.
This sheep hadn’t gotten to consume as many flowers as its predecessor had, meaning the drug had worn off quicker. The sheep looked up at Ambrose, delirious and in immense pain. Ambrose looked at the sheep and was able to quickly put it out of its misery.
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He wanted to gather materials from the sheep so he had plenty to practice with down the road, but that would have to come after getting the Loobins back to the tavern, seeing as there was no way to know when the ship could arrive, not to mention he didn’t have his bag to carry the thick wool back with him.
Before he got to work, Ambrose took a brief moment to investigate his loot, both the knife from the Loobin, and the drug flowers.
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Basic Skinning Knife of Neterin (Dungeon)
‘The Gaol of Neterin’ once created a series of upgradable tools for Residents of the dungeon to assist in its crafting challenge. Since then the dungeon has degraded and this fragile imitation is all that remains.
Durability: Fragile.
Special Properties: Dungeon creation (Item cannot function outside the dungeon that created it). Skinning Specialist (This item is designed to be used exclusively as a skinning tool rather than a weapon, significant increase to Skinning related Skills and durability while using this knife to perform Leatherworking related Abilities, significant decrease to damage and durability when used for anything else.)
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Somniferum Zinnia
A colourful and quick growing flower that creates a potent narcotic effect which dulls the sense of pain while increasing strength, the effect is short lasting in an unprocessed state. Due to the addicting effect the flower is quickly consumed, often going extinct in areas filled with creatures.
Durability: Fragile.
Properties: Narcotic (Consuming parts of the plant will grant temporary pain resistance and increases Strength of Body, but comes with reduced Strength of Mind and addicting properties.) Fertilised (This plant has been provided nutrients above and beyond what was necessary, its growth and Narcotic effect have been increased as a result)
Special Properties: Dungeon Born (This plant was grown inside a dungeon and may suffer adverse effects if transplanted elsewhere)
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The process of moving the Loobins back to town was one long endurance test. He had started by simply taking each of them into the tunnel that marked the edge of the dungeon, so that nothing decided to snack on his kills while he was away. Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible to do so with the sheep, so once again he had had to leave it behind to its fate. After that, he brought the bodies, covered in a sheet, around the back of the tavern before heading back for the next.
As he walked back and forth, Ambrose took the journey slow, focusing on the noise he was creating and acting to reduce it and the other signs of his passing. Also focusing on the noises of the jungle around him, Ambrose would try to identify the creatures he heard and try to work out the distance between himself and them, detouring to seek out the creatures if they sounded close enough, turning the boring task of hauling corpses into a training exercise helped with the boredom, it also meant he got to see some cool looking birds, and even managed to find a small lizard that he had initially heard scurry into the brush as he passed near its hiding spot.
Five corpses and many hours later, Ambrose had butchered the Loobins under Jobe's specifications and instruction and was forced to introduce Pan to the tavern owners, when the cat slunk around the corner as soon as Ambrose began work on the first Loobin. The mystical cat was then stolen away by Mariella to be pampered with fresh fish and immediately welcomed as a new member of the family.
Once the remains of the Loobins had been gathered together and returned to the dungeon, Ambrose now had the remaining few hours of the afternoon to do whatever he wanted. He contemplated going back to see if the sheep was still there, and potentially trying to learn the Sewing Skill, but after all of the hauling he wanted a break. In the end he decided to hold off, the sheep was likely absorbed by the dungeon after having been left for so long, and he didn’t really want to spend all the time trekking over to the hotel to access his tools, especially as he would be stabbing in the dark as for what to do.
Instead Ambrose would wait to learn Sewing until he could afford the Skill book from Whesker’s general store, and instead returned to his room in the tavern and laid in bed to relax while he planned his next steps, after his late lunch of course.
What Ambrose really wanted was to reach level ten. One of the things he had been taught about during this morning’s breakfast, was what defining oneself actually meant. Turns out at every level breakthrough, which is every ten levels, you are able to select Skills from your list that best defines your character and where you want to head. The result of this was your Character, which was the name for this world’s class equivalent, granting you various different bonuses from additional experience gain to special Abilities.
As for what Abilities of effects the Enrick’s had gained from their Character's, they wouldn’t specify, Jobe and Mariella each said that they had a Character relating to running the tavern, while Luce was still underage by a couple years and didn’t have a Character yet. The conversation on the topic had ended and moved on elsewhere soon after, but not before Jobe had offered another of his warnings. “You should never ask someone their Character, or show them yours unless absolutely necessary.”
Mariella then giggled and added to the warning. “Jobe is right, in most places to do so indicates you are looking to court or marry someone.” She had then winked at Ambrose, laughing once more as he went bright red at the realisation of the cultural faux pas he had made.
Snapping back to the present, Ambrose sat down and began sorting through the numerous thoughts that spread through his head. He only had two and a bit more levels before he would need to define himself for the first time, after which he would be stuck with it for a long time, each breakthrough heavily increased the amount of experience a creature needed to level, but came with a large boost in power to compensate. Ambrose also had to keep in mind that he was currently receiving boosted experience thanks to being an Outworlder, but that would stop once he had a defined Character.
The Enrick’s unfortunately weren’t able to provide much information on the rules of defining yourself either, saying that it was extremely personal and that generally, you had to pick at least three Skills for the first couple of breakthroughs but neither were sure of a maximum. The main advice was to be true to yourself and pick the Skills that you were planning on using the most as the basis, then he could potentially pick similar Skills to further fill out his picks if he felt that was right.
Ambrose opened his glass to check his gains for the day so that he could see his quickly bloating list of Skills.
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CONGRATULATIONS OUTWORLDER, YOU HAVE MANIFESTED A SKILL
You have gained the skill Hauling at Level 2 (Uncommon): The art of moving things from one place to another through one's own strength.
* Improved understanding of weight distribution when using Hauling Abilities.
* Decreased stamina consumption when using hauling Abilities.
By gaining Hauling you have gained the following Abilities.
* Haul: Lift with the knees.
* Pack: Too much loot for too little bag? This is the solution!
Your new Skill has also affected the following Ability in some way.
* Travel (Hiking, Running, Hauling)
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CONGRATULATIONS OUTWORLDER, YOU HAVE NURTURED YOUR SKILLS
* Your Assessing Skill has increased in level: 6 -> 8
* Your Butchering Skill has increased in level: 3 -> 8
* Your Identifying Skill has increased in level: 8 -> 9
* Your Inspecting Skill has increased in level: 11 -> 12
* Your Jumping Skill has increased in level: 3 -> 10
* Your Observation Skill has increased in level: 1 -> 5
* Your Patience Skill has increased in level: 3 -> 4
* Your Perception Skill has increased in level: 3 -> 13
* Your Running Skill has increased in level: 12 -> 15
* Your Searching Skill has increased in level: 1 -> 2
* Your Skinning Skill has increased in level: 3 -> 4
* Your Small Blades Skill has increased in level: 8 -> 11
* Your Stealth Skill has increased in level: 10 -> 12
* Your Tumbling Skill has increased in level: 5 -> 10
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He still had several hours of daylight remaining but his gains today were incredible, especially his Perception. Gaining ten whole levels felt ridiculous after the Skill doing next to nothing over the last couple days, even if he had been actively focusing on increasing the Skill all day. It just went to prove how important it was to use Skills and Abilities actively, Ambrose also suspected at this point that his increase to Skill gains only applied to unlocking Skills and the ones he used actively, though that was impossible to know for sure. He could of course just ask his god, but dealing with that murderous asshole was out of the question.
Increases out of the way, Ambrose's clipped character sheet appeared in front of him.
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Ambrose Edward Rogers Level 7 Human Nothing
Skills:
* Assessing Level 8 (Common)
* Butchering Level 8 (Uncommon)
* Cooking Level 1 (Common)
* Cruelty Level 1 (Rare)
* Dodging Level 4 (Common)
* First Aid Level 2 (Common)
* Grappling Level 2 (Uncommon)
* Hauling Level 2 (Uncommon)
* Hiking Level 1 (Uncommon)
* Identifying Level 9 (Common)
* Improvised Crafting Level 1 (Uncommon)
* Inspecting Level 6 (Common)
* Item As Weapons Level 3 (Uncommon)
* Jumping Level 10 (Common)
* Observation Level 5 (Uncommon)
* Pain Resistance Level 1 (Uncommon)
* Patience Level 4 (Uncommon)
* Perception Level 13 (Common)
* Persuasion Level 4 (Common)
* Rebel Level 1 (Uncommon)
* Running Level 15 (Common)
* Searching Level 2 (Common)
* Skinning Level 4 (Uncommon)
* Small Blades Level 11 (Common)
* Speech Level 1 (Common)
* Stealth Level 12 (Common)
* Swimming Level 1 (Common)
* Tumbling Level 10 (Common)
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Despite how long the list was, Ambrose found his Skills rather lacking. He only had a single type of weapon proficiency, unless he counted items, which wouldn’t have even been his first pick of weapon, and was instead the only choice he had had, even now he wasn’t able to get another weapon without the gold to request it. Perhaps he could get a bow, but that would involve talking to Renna, something he would rather just not do, suspecting the woman had it out for him.
As far as traditional gaming classes went, the only real option in front of Ambrose was a dexterity or even assassin build, but the latter in particular did not appeal to him.
Without really knowing what he wanted from this life, Ambrose decided to simply shove the Skills he used to survive into his Character and hope for the best, planning to have the Skills he would need to make a real choice by the time he reached the second breakthrough.
Now somewhat prepared to make his choice, all that was left was to actually reach level ten.