Ed walked back to his base. The return trip wasn't much longer than before. The weight of the items he packed up only added an extra minute of travel time.
'I wonder how I can increase my strength attribute'
He entered the large room full of all types of furniture. He went to the shelf section of the room to place the books.
'The other Skeletons looked at me weird but look who ended up using their bookshelf!'
The loneliness in the dungeon was finally getting to poor Ed.
'I want to be recalled'
Ed sat on his bed of creaky chairs while waiting for the System to reply.
[Recalling Champion's Soul]
His consciousness wavered and in the blink of an eye he was met by endless darkness.
'You never change, Abyss'
That was a complaint.
[Champion has met the conditions to level up, initiate level up? Y/N]
'Yes please'
The level up made him reply courteously as his mood had improved.
[Champion will be put to rest]
'That message again? Try to make it sound a little friendlier nex-'
That was Ed's last thought as his consciousness muddled and he fell asleep.
An unknown amount of time had passed since then, Ed's consciousness was brought back and once more met by the silent darkness.
'I didn't get summoned this time'
He once more noticed the envelope with an exclamation mark in the corner of his vision.
'Open messages?'
He was still unsure if that was the right command, but the system seemed to understand as two messages appeared.
[Two trespassers have entered your floor]
[Champion has leveled up]
[<Deduction lvl. 1> acquired]
Ed carefully read each message.
'Not much changed'
He was a bit disappointed that he only received one skill. The first message was concerning but he did not plan to fight the previous group in the first place, adding two more only solidified that thought.
'I guess the <Mental Fortitude lvl. 1> was not a result of leveling up'
He shifted his attention to his new skill, Deduction.
'Status!'
[Name: Ed$#&!]
Type: Level 2 Consciousness.
Health: 300/300
Bodies: Skeleton
~Skills~
[Basic Transmission lvl. 1] -Show info-
[Mental Fortitude lvl. 1] -Show info-
[Deduction lvl. 1]
Instantly deduce information based on current knowledge. Information will appear in the form of a screen.
Ed carefully analyzed the status screen that he hadn't seen in a while. He was surprised to find actual skills listed in the status window.
'My health has tripled'
He didn't know how useful health was on a consciousness but it couldn't be a bad thing.
'Is deduction some type of analytical skill?'
Protagonists in some stories usually had a similar skill, Ed couldn't quite remember what it was called though.
'But if it is based on what I know it is a bit useless, no?'
Most of his memories have disappeared so the things he knows are little. Not to mention he was brought to a world he knows nothing about, how useful can the skill be?
[Summoning Dungeon Champion]
'Huh?'
Ed thought that this time would be different, that the system would wait for him to make a decision just like when he met the conditions to level up, clearly not.
The vacuum sucked up the tiny light that was Ed. Ed's consciousness was being taken to the dungeon once again.
The odd sensation of hitting something and entering at the same time came over him again.
He moved his arms groggily and confirmed everything was still in order. he afterward took a quick look around to confirm his surroundings. He was indeed where he left off, he just couldn't be sure about how much time had passed.
'I better try out the skill'
All of his skills thus far were passive ones so he wasn't entirely sure where to start.
'Deduct?'
He wasn't looking at anything in particular and all sorts of messages started flooding his vision.
[Old Wooden shelf]
[Crumbling wall]
[Rusted shield]
[Cobweb]
[Air]
[Scary looking smudge]
And many other pointless deductions repeated endlessly.
'The f*ck!?!'
Being all of a sudden bombarded by an onslaught of messages Ed involuntarily fell back tripping on the chairs behind him.
The fall got his mind off of the deduction skill and all the floating messages immediately disappeared.
He blanked while laying on his bed before realizing his mistake.
'I need to focus on what I want to deduct'
He tried to get up accidentally breaking one of the chairs in the process.
[You've been dealt damage. -0 hp]
Ed ignored the seemingly pointless message and looked down at his new robe.
'Deduct
[Stylish black robe]
A black robe with a golden color outlining its ends. Comfortable and airy.
The description of the robe was seemingly accurate. He couldn't be sure if the robe hid any secrets.
'Let's try something I definitely don't know'
He brought out a random potion vial from inside the robe.
'Deduct'
[???]
A black potion of unknown effects.
Indeed, the skill was a scam.
'I get it is a level 2 skill but can it be any more useless!'
[Deduction has leveled up]
Seemingly protesting Ed's declaration, the skill leveled up.
'Let's try again'
[???]
A black potion of unknown effects. Likely poisonous.
The description was a little different the second time around. It could also be considered useful.
'I can see why it is called deduction'
The second sentence was definitely something he could deduce without the help of a skill.
'But it does it instantly'
He would have to level it up quite a bit before he decides to use it regularly.
His thoughts weren't allowed to proceed as he heard the sound of light footsteps heading towards his immediate direction.
'More scouts?'
He couldn't be sure of the number this time but he knew it meant trouble. His previous scuffle was one won by sheer luck. If he hadn't worn the robe or tripped the outcome could have been vastly different.
'I should just leave'
He didn't want to fight a group of people with his poor attributes and skills.
'It's a shame but I'll have to abandon the base'
The adventurers will surely be startled upon finding his neat mess.
'The true loss is the other items in the hallway'
If they managed to find his room they likely went past the corridor where the fight took place.
At this moment Ed made a decision to grab anything useful and run. The trespassers will probably see him escape but he couldn't be sure if they will follow him.
He grabbed the empty bag along with the bow and ran towards his bookshelf. The intruders were at the entrance and saw him reaching out for some books.
Ed looked back at the group of three and closed the bag. He bolted towards another exit. He only managed to grab 3 of the books.
The scouts didn't want to chase, their job was to gather information not fight battles, they hired somebody else for that job. The loss of two other scouts made them even more unwilling to fight.
[Failure to eliminate trespassers will result in a penalty]
'I will go back to eliminate them later! I am not dying again!'
The dungeon didn't approve of his cowardice. But it could not force him to attack either, as a matter of fact it seemed to be learning from his actions.
[Acknowledged.]
[Allowing the trespassers to exit the dungeon will result in a penalty]
The dungeon surprisingly enough compromised making Ed feel relieved. He wasn't sure if the condition was possible though. If more people keep entering he definitely won't be able to stop them from exiting.
A minute had passed since Ed ran from the room but he saw nobody chasing after him. He was sure he didn't lose them as the sound of his running was rather noisy.
'The scouts probably didn't give chase'
Ed had already memorized the area near his base so he managed to avoid any dead ends while running.
'I will go deeper into the floor'
He was choosing paths that went away from the safe room, he only had to run in one direction.