The water boils in the pot.
Maru’s skeletal hand was being boiled along with it.
And my mind was boiling too.
“…….”
I was momentarily speechless at the absurd sight.
Maru’s remark that it tasted better this way was even more shocking.
“No….”
I couldn’t continue.
What on earth should I say?
My thoughts became complicated.
Was the secret to the deep, savory flavor Maru’s hand?
Did he wash his hands before putting them in?
More importantly, since when did he start doing this?
No, if the broth was made by boiling Maru’s hand… let’s not think about that…
There were things I was curious about, and things I didn’t want to know.
But the sight of him boiling his own hand to make broth was not it.
What’s more, Maru’s race was Skeleton Dark Knight.
Black bones, just like his name suggested.
Ha.
I decided to ask questions one by one.
“Maru.”
I called out to Maru, whose hand was still boiling.
Maru nodded at my question.
“Maru, where did you learn to do this? Boiling bones.”
Maru couldn’t always cook ramen well.
There were times when he’d put too much water or too little, resulting in only salty broth, even after I taught him.
The fluctuation in taste was that severe.
He even burned the pot while making ramen, so you can imagine.
Through such trial and error, Maru’s ramen taste gradually improved.
Now he made ramen that was on a completely different level and ate it often…
And that was Maru’s hand taste.
Literally, hand taste.
The problem was where he learned to cook it like this.
Maru’s answer to my question was simple.
“Click clack.”
He said he saw it on his smartphone while I was sleeping.
“Click.”
He said he pressed various buttons and watched related videos.
“Hu…”
Okay, I’ll let that slide.
But how did he use the smartphone?
Naturally, Maru was a skeleton, his entire body made of bones.
No matter how much he tapped the phone screen, it wouldn’t register touch.
Maru’s answer to my doubt was simple.
“Click.”
He said he used the pen built into the phone.
At this point, I became afraid.
A skeleton proficient with electronic devices.
‘Just how far will Maru’s growth go?’
Furthermore, Maru wasn’t a monster from Earth.
He was a Skeleton Soldier drawn from the El Dorado Continent through a gacha.
Yet, Maru, who couldn’t even cook ramen properly at first…
Now he was making ramen, creating his own broth.
And not only that, he was freely using a smartphone.
A monster from the continent had perfectly adapted to Earth.
What should I do about this?
Even now, Maru was looking at me while his hand was boiling.
He looked at me with a deep gaze.
“Hmm…”
He must be doing it with good intentions.
I understood Maru’s intentions well.
Still, I had to say something.
“Maru, from now on, don’t do this. Just boil it normally, without going through all this trouble.”
I tried to reason with him as gently as possible.
“Click!”
He said it was fine to go through trouble.
“……”
I underestimated Maru’s loyalty.
Come to think of it, that was the phrase Maru used most often.
Honored one.
Great one.
Master.
I didn’t know where he learned such words, but Maru’s loyalty was immense.
‘Ha, what should I say to this?’
How could I explain it so that Maru’s feelings were considered, and also prevent him from boiling his own hand for broth?
I pondered for a moment.
And then, the answer came.
Yes, that’s it.
It was simple.
“Maru, actually, I can’t eat bone broth like this very well. So, you don’t need to go to such lengths.”
Surely, he’d understand by now.
As expected.
“Click clack!”
Maru replied, as if he’d understood something.
Simultaneously with Maru’s reply, a smartphone alarm rang.
Ding-
Ding-
Ding-
Since the only alarms I had set were for games, I immediately touched the screen.
– Maru gained enlightenment during his battle with Death Knight.
– Maru gained enlightenment during his battle with Arch Lich.
– Maru gained enlightenment after learning his Master’s broth preferences.
The alarm didn’t stop there.
– Maru’s [Dungeon Monster Strengthening System] has been unlocked.
“?”
What was happening?
Just a moment ago, Maru was boiling water for ramen.
Why did the strengthening system unlock?
I couldn’t keep up with the current situation.
There was one thing I could guess.
“Enlightenment?”
Looking at the alarm, it said Maru had gained enlightenment.
The strengthening system unlocked after gaining this enlightenment.
But the source of the enlightenment was said to be battles with Death Knight and Arch Lich?
‘Did he fight them?’
The only encounters Maru had with them were during monster waves.
Apart from that, he never met them-
“Ah.”
I remembered something.
Come to think of it, they did have something like a battle.
It was just that when Maru swung his sword, Death Knight and Arch Lich played their part by falling.
‘Can that even be considered a battle?’
Moreover, Death Knight and Arch Lich were perfectly fine, with no injuries.
Yet Maru gained enlightenment here?
Just what kind of enlightenment did he gain?
It was incomprehensible.
“No way.”
Was that the reason Maru had been spacing out after the monster wave?
His posture, sitting cross-legged or looking as if he was meditating, was truly the posture of seeking enlightenment.
“I really don’t know. Where did he learn how to meditate?”
“Click!”
He said he saw it on his smartphone.
Now, I’m truly scared, Maru.
And what do you mean by realizing my broth preferences?
He’s realizing all sorts of things.
* * *
After waking up.
Many things happened in a short period.
The Dungeon Strengthening System was unlocked, and through it, I was able to acquire traits and skills.
That’s not all.
I learned the truth about the ramen Maru was cooking.
I also understood why Maru had been spacing out frequently recently, and additionally, I felt like I had figured out how the monster strengthening system was applied.
All of this happened in less than an hour.
“My head is starting to hurt…”
Too much information entered my head in a short period.
My brain needed time to filter, but new information kept being delivered.
Still, I resolved things one by one.
First, I decided that Maru would not add his ‘hand taste’ when making ramen from now on.
Furthermore, since Maru’s strengthening system was unlocked, I decided to utilize this.
‘If you think about it, Maru’s power is my power.’
Of course, the dungeons and monsters on the screen were also my power.
But Maru was a monster that lived with me.
The closer we are, the more convenient it becomes for me if Maru gets stronger.
If Maru gets stronger, the number of strategies I can use also increases.
The traits and skills I acquired earlier were all in the Mage position.
However, Mages are often considered weak in close combat.
But if I had Maru?
That weakness could be perfectly complemented.
Therefore, the more I strengthen Maru, the more beneficial it is for me.
I immediately clicked on the Dungeon Strengthening System.
[Dungeon Monster Strengthening System]
– Dungeon Master ‘Kanghyeon Lee’ (Unlocked)
– Maru (★★★★) (Unlocked)
– Skoll (★★★) (Unlocked)
Maru’s name was newly added to the strengthening system list, which had only my and Skoll’s names.
First, I touched Maru’s name.
Then, Maru’s status window popped up.
– Rank: ★★★★
– Race: Skeleton
[Traits]
– None
[Basic Information]
HP: B-
Attack Power: B+ (1-level boost due to Demonic Sword)
Defense: C
Magic Power: C
[Skills]
– Loyalty as a Knight(S): Kanghyeon Lee (Active)
“Still, I guess it’s because he’s a skeleton.”
His defense and magic power were too low.
At least his attack power was boosted by 1 level due to the Demonic Sword’s effect.
I looked at the acquired ability list and pondered.
“What would suit Maru best?”
For now, I decided to choose something simple as an experiment.
Among them, one trait caught my eye.
– Nimble Body Movement(F+): Trait. Makes the body flexible.
“Should I try this first?”
– Do you want to enhance Maru (★★★★) with the trait Nimble Body Movement(F+)?
– Once an ability is enhanced, it cannot be reverted.
I immediately pressed enhance.
Then, after a moment.
– Maru (★★★★) enhancement successful.
His appearance didn’t change significantly.
“Maru, move.”
However, there was one change due to the trait’s effect.
‘Ah, the sound has decreased.’
Maru is a skeleton.
It was inevitable that his body would make the characteristic clattering sound of bones when he moved.
But after applying the ‘Nimble Body Movement’ trait, the bone sound slightly decreased.
If it were a trait of a higher rank?
Perhaps the bone sound could be eliminated entirely.
“This is truly amazing.”
The change brought by simply acquiring a trait was immediately visible.
‘Since it’s like this, should I enhance Skoll as well?’
Ultimately, I had to strengthen everyone.
And Skoll was the first to unlock the system, so he deserved a suitable reward.
I immediately bestowed abilities upon Skoll.
– Do you want to enhance Skoll (★★★) with the trait Berserk(A)?
– Once an ability is enhanced, it cannot be reverted.
– Do you want to enhance Skoll (★★★) with the trait Minor Recovery Regeneration(D)?
– Once an ability is enhanced, it cannot be reverted.
I bestowed Berserk and Minor Recovery Regeneration upon Skoll.
– Berserk(A): As HP decreases, attack power increases. If HP drops critically low, the risk of going berserk increases.
– Minor Recovery Regeneration(D): Slightly increases the efficiency of HP recovery and wound regeneration.
Skoll is an Orc and a Warrior.
Looking at just these, the two traits seemed to suit him well.
– Skoll (★★★) enhancement successful.
– Skoll (★★★) enhancement successful.
“This should be enough for Skoll.”
Next, I planned to continue strengthening Maru.
I had an ability in mind for the next enhancement.
It was Holy Power.
I had also absorbed Holy Power through a sacrifice in the past.
The result was the appearance of a Holy Power stat in my status window.
What I was curious about here was whether it would work on Maru as well.
“Undead races are fundamentally antagonistic…”
I worried that something might go wrong, but looking at the alarm, it didn’t seem like there would be any major issues.
– Do you want to enhance Maru (★★★★) with the stat Holy Power?
– Once an ability is enhanced, it cannot be reverted.
“Since there’s no restriction, it should be okay, right?”
If it wasn’t possible, wouldn’t a warning have appeared?
“Let’s try enhancing it first.”
I immediately touched enhance, and soon, a change began.
– Maru (★★★★) enhancement successful.
“Oh.”
At least, the enhancement was successful.
Moreover, Maru looked fine.
And a change appeared in his status window.
– Rank: ★★★★
– Race: Skeleton
[Traits]
– Nimble Body Movement(F+)
[Basic Information]
HP: B-
Attack Power: B+ (1-level boost due to Demonic Sword)
Defense: C
Magic Power: C
Holy Power: F
[Skills]
– Loyalty as a Knight(S): Kanghyeon Lee (Active)
Holy Power was added to the existing information.
Of course, since only one was enhanced, it was F-Rank, but it was a meaningful change.
‘If I enhance all of them, how high will it go?’
On the spot, I poured all the Holy Power into Maru.
– Do you want to enhance Maru (★★★★) with the stat Holy Power?
I additionally enhanced 12 Holy Power points.
– Maru (★★★★) enhancement successful.
The F-Rank Holy Power written in the status window changed to E-Rank.
Simultaneously.
“Huh?”
Maru’s appearance changed slightly.
Maru’s race was Skeleton Dark Knight.
His appearance was black, fittingly.
However, as the Holy Power rank increased, its color changed slightly.
“Your color got a bit lighter?”
