My Skills Are Amazing!

I opened the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Gate of Rest. The door slid open without a sound. Through the portal, I saw the back of a goblin rummaging through the counter.

I drove my spear straight into its spine.

Crunch.

"Kieeeeek!!!"

The spear sank in smoothly, the resistance of bone giving way far more easily than when I'd ambushed the first goblin. It felt almost effortless.

Huh? It went in that easily?

The confusion only lasted a second before I understood why.

My strength stat must have gone up with the level. I'm actually stronger now.

The goblin thrashed on the end of my spear before going limp. The scream drew the rest of them. I closed the Gate of Rest and waited, watching.

The goblins clustered around their dead comrade, chittering in panic. A few scanned the room for the attacker, but they had no chance of spotting me. I studied the pack gathered in front of the invisible door and decided to test an idea that had just occurred to me.

The closed Gate of Rest couldn't be seen by enemies. But what if I opened it? What would happen then?

It wasn't a dangerous experiment. At the first sign of trouble, I could simply shut it again. I gently slid the door open. Once more, it moved in perfect silence.

The goblins still hadn't noticed me.

Ready to slam it shut at any moment, I shouted at the top of my lungs.

"Waaaah!"

The roar echoed through the PC cafe, yet the goblins didn't even flinch. They kept poking at their dead friend. My confidence skyrocketed.

This Gate of Rest was only visible to me. Open or closed, the door existed for my eyes alone.

Smiling, I thrust the spear forward again.

"Keeek!"

The goblin screamed as the spear punched through its chest. The others scattered in blind panic. To them, it must have looked like a spear had materialized from thin air and impaled their companion.

I yanked the weapon back. The goblin collapsed in a heap.

The survivors huddled together, whispering frantically, then began creeping forward again. They approached the door with daggers raised, eyes wide with suspicion.

Hmm. If they're this alert, my attacks might get blocked.

I glanced around the room. Nothing useful. Nothing except Ji-su standing there like a statue.

"Hey. Take off your shoes."

Ji-su obeyed instantly, kicking off her sneakers. Simple orders really did work like a charm.

I grabbed one shoe and hurled it through the open door.

The goblins flinched violently and slashed at the empty air. The shoe hit the floor in two clean pieces.

Seeing the harmless object, their tension broke for a split second. I didn't waste it. I drove the spear through the gap.

Thud.

"Ke, kerrrk..."

Another goblin went down, chest pierced by a weapon that had appeared from nowhere. The rest decided they'd had enough. They shrieked and bolted.

As the impaled monster twitched its last, a warm light suddenly poured out of its body. A refreshing wave washed over me. I'd felt this before, so I simply closed my eyes and savored it.

When the light faded, a message floated in front of me.

"...Phew."

I stepped back and looked toward the PC cafe entrance. No more goblins seemed to be coming up the stairs. Good.

I sat on the floor and opened my status window.

"Status window."

"Whoa..."

A small sound of admiration escaped me as I studied the window. My stats had risen a bit more than last time.

The stat gains on level-up really do seem random. And what's this possessed gold? Can I open a shop or something? Seven gold... I've killed five goblins so far, right? Or does Ji-su's kill count as mine too? That would make six. So maybe it's a guaranteed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one gold per kill with a chance for two? Makes sense.

My eyes moved to the skill points.

Two whole skill points! It isn't just one per level!

Feeling pumped, I looked back and forth between the points and the skill list.

Both Rise and Gate of Rest are insanely useful. Siphon Hand is probably the same. Since I have two points anyway, let's activate Siphon Hand first.

I tapped the skill with my finger. The entry changed from Lv.0 to Lv.1, and detailed information appeared.

Wow... I can use this on my thralls too!

Still surprised, I closed the window and walked over to Ji-su. Her body was in rough shape. The poison needle that had killed her was still embedded near her left breast, and a large gash from a goblin dagger split her left shoulder open. Instead of blood, faint black smoke rose from the wounds.

I muttered as I examined her.

"Since she's already dead, she doesn't bleed. That black smoke... it looks like the same energy that entered her when I first raised her. Maybe it replaced her blood?"

I placed my hand on her shoulder.

"Siphon Hand."

Black energy gathered in my palm and flowed into her wound. The gash visibly closed. At the same time, I felt strength draining from my own body.

I moved my hand to the wound on her left chest and used the skill again. Finally, I touched the puncture mark on her neck and tried once more.

...Nothing happened.

What? Why isn't it working? Why won't that wound heal?

Just in case, I reopened my status window.

My HP dropped from full to 42. That makes sense if I'm sharing my life force to heal her. And MP at 11 means I used the skill twice. Each cast costs 7 mana. So I should still have one more use, but why isn't it working on her neck?

I closed the window and tried Siphon Hand again. Nothing. After thinking for a moment, an idea struck me. I felt a little guilty, but it had to be tested.

"Sorry, Ji-su."

I stabbed her arm with my spear, creating a small wound that leaked black smoke. Then I placed my hand on it and activated the skill. It worked. The status window showed I'd lost 7 MP and a bit of HP, and the wound on her arm had healed perfectly.

So only the neck wound won't heal. That's the injury that actually killed her. Which means...

The experiment had given me a clear answer. Ji-su had died with that wound on her neck, then I raised her as my thrall. That fatal injury was now part of her base state. Siphon Hand couldn't heal it because, technically, she wasn't "injured" there. It was simply how she was.

So if I raise a badly decayed corpse, it'll stay decayed? It won't recover with Siphon Hand... Ah. That's why Rise has a derived skill called Shape Restoration.

Once I obtained that skill, I'd probably be able to erase the mark on her neck too.

Guess I can't do anything about it until then. It's not that noticeable anyway.

I debated where to spend my remaining skill point and eventually invested it in Rise.

Oh, leveling a skill adds extra effects. Telepathy, huh...

I looked at Ji-su and thought the command.

Sit.

Ji-su immediately dropped to the floor.

Nice. This is pretty useful.

I had her stand again, then glanced at the door behind her. The Gate to the Underworld that had said it couldn't be opened because conditions weren't met. I was starting to realize how much I still didn't know.

I'm going to need to experiment more to use these skills effectively. Let's take it step by step. But first, the things that need doing right now...

I took Ji-su and stepped out of the Cradle of Rest. Even after both of us had left, the door remained in place.

It doesn't disappear even after I come out?

I set the question aside for now and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠started gathering the food scattered around the PC cafe. The goblins had done all the hard work collecting it; I just had to pick it up.

Together with Ji-su, I pushed every last bit of food through the Gate of Rest, then closed it. The door vanished the moment it shut.

So it only disappears after I exit and close it.

I moved deeper into the cafe and tried to use Gate of Rest again.

"Shit!"

I nearly jumped out of my skin. All the testing with Siphon Hand had drained my mana. I was in trouble.

Stupid mistake. I should've checked my remaining mana before experimenting...

If the goblins came back up now, I'd be screwed. I quickly called Ji-su over and hid in a corner of the cafe.

My status window showed I had 5 MP left. It had been 4 right after the last Siphon Hand, so it had recovered 1 point.

How much mana does Gate of Rest need? Recover faster, damn it...

I crouched there with Ji-su, heart pounding in case the monsters returned. Those few minutes felt like an eternity. Finally, my mana reached 6. I activated the skill immediately.

The familiar black door appeared.

"Yes!"

I yanked the door open, grabbed Ji-su's hand, and pulled her inside. The space surrounded by transparent walls was filled with the food I'd stored earlier. The moment we stepped in, I finally let myself relax.