There seem to be several Skills that could pair well with my Apothecary Skills.
I take another look at my Skill Tree.
~~~~~
Poison Hand Skill Tree [Master Level]
Available SP: 207,910
– Master of Poison: Drastically increases the amount of poison you can use. SP: 100,000
– Black Blood: Adds “poison” properties to your blood. SP: 20,000
– Poison Swamp Control: Allows manipulation of the form of created poison swamps. SP: 10,000
– Poison Herb Planter: Poison herbs you cultivate no longer spread their toxins. SP: 10,000
– Poison Hand Switch: Enables the use of Poison Hand Skills with a single arm. SP: 50,000
– Speak with Poison Snakes: Allows conversation with venomous snakes. SP: 20,000
– Neutralizing Poison: Enables the creation of poison that weakens the effects of medicine and healing magic. SP: 40,000
– Vaporized Poison: Turns poison into a gaseous state. SP: 10,000
– Diluted Poison: Allows weakening the effects of poison. SP: 10,000
– Poison Weapon: Grants the ability to coat weapons with poison. SP: 60,000
– Poison Clone: Creates a semi-autonomous clone made of poison. SP: 90,000
~~~~~
…For now, I should pick Skills that seem useful in combat for self-defense.
“Master of Poison”—this is a must. A Skill that can’t go wrong no matter how you use it is a godsend.
“Vaporized Poison” also seems like it could be deadly against stronger opponents or in surprise attacks if I practice handling it. Approved.
And then… there’s a Skill that appeals to the chuunibyou in me…
Alright, I’ve decided.
For now, I’ll go with these three Skills.
I want to avoid the classic gaming pitfall of hoarding too many Skills and ending up with unused ones.
“Consume Skill Points to add ‘Master of Poison,’ ‘Vaporized Poison,’ and—’Poison Clone.’“
~~~~~
Request received.
Total SP consumed: 200,000.
“Master of Poison,” “Vaporized Poison,” and “Poison Clone” have been added to your Skill Tree.
~~~~~
zozozozozo
My body burns.
It feels like my blood is trembling, and my organs are dancing inside me.
But it’s not unpleasant—if anything, it’s kind of… nice.
[You’re growing splendidly as a Skill Holder! Other players could learn a thing or two from you! Now then, continue enjoying your wonderful Isekai life!]
The Tutorial voice fades away.
That guy really has no intention of explaining the Skills, huh…
“Guess I’ll just have to figure things out myself…”
After that, I decided to test out my new Skills.
From a quick try, they seem pretty useful.
“Master of Poison” does exactly what the name and description say—it simply increases the amount of poison I can handle.
When I activate the Poison Hand Skill, green venom oozes from my hand.
This would freak people out in a party, but since I’m solo, it’s no problem.
And the other two Skills… These might be unexpectedly strong.
“Vaporized Poison.”
A very obvious green mist appears in front of me.
While using this Skill, I can somewhat manipulate the poison fog.
It’s not much of a threat in an open area, but in an enclosed space? Absolute nightmare fuel.
And—
~~~~~
Due to “Master of Poison,” the amount of poison you can handle with “Vaporized Poison” has greatly increased.
Thanks to the Paralysis Poison Skill, you can now add paralysis effects to Vaporized Poison.
~~~~~
Thanks to synergy with Skills I already had, Vaporized Poison has been enhanced.
It seems that the skills are compatible with each other.
Thinking about that, the three Poison Hand combat techniques Elma taught me in my dreams—”Armament,” “Concentration,” “Transformation”—probably have combo potential too.
And then, the third Skill.
Poison Clone.
~~~~~
Due to the effects of “Master of Poison” and “Vaporized Poison,” you can now make your clone explode.
~~~~~
I decide to test Poison Clone once.
A perfect copy of myself appears in front of me.
…Wow, the accuracy is insane.
I expected something more like a slimy, poison-themed blob, but…
The texture of the clothes, the details—from a distance, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.
“Uh, Poison Clone, move about 10 meters away from me and Tabo.”
“……”
The clone nods silently and moves as instructed.
Then, another message appears in my vision.
~~~~~
Due to the effects of “Master of Poison” and “Vaporized Poison,” you can now make your clone explode.
~~~~~
Explode… huh?
Feels like if I focus and will it, I can make it detonate.
Skills are weird.
It’s like my body already knows how to use them.
“Alright, here goes—hatt!!”
It happens in an instant.
The clone swells rapidly before erupting in a blast of poison mist and shockwaves.
I brace myself against the toxic wind, barely managing to stay on my feet.
“tabotabo! wafu!!”
Tabo runs around excitedly, clearly thrilled.
Thanks to Poison Eater, the poisonous fumes don’t affect me at all.
But…
“Whoa… This is…”
The blast site is a crater, with a poison swamp forming where the clone exploded.
…Uh, isn’t this a little too lethal?
Shockwaves, poison blasts, terrain contamination…
This is a full-on solo-player ultimate move.
A Skill only usable because we can nullify poison…
“If I didn’t have Poison Eater, that would’ve been bad.”
“tabotabo, wafu!”
Skills… are way deeper than I thought.
Depending on how you use them, they can be a double-edged sword.
But this is my fang.
Against enemies like the Skull Knight or Giant Centipede—
Or battles that might break out while obtaining things like the Taste Potion Recipe—
If you can’t fight, you’re done for in this world.
“wafu! wanwan!”
“uo! Ahahaha, what is it, Tabo?”
Tabo playfully nuzzles against me.
Yeah, I might not have companions, but I’ve got a cute poison-attribute dog.
And though I’d rather not count them, there’s also that suspicious self-proclaimed “family” member in a dubious position.
I’ll manage.
Like this, Tabo and I continue our life in the Isekai forest.
Training my Poison Hand Skills, searching for herbs with Apothecary Skills, steadily crafting Recovery Potions…
Mornings for Skill training, afternoons for gathering ingredients and herbs + stockpiling Recovery Potions.
Nights spent sleeping with Tabo on a bed of dried leaves and soft grass.
While asleep, I sometimes keep Elma company in the Botanical Garden, sipping tea.
Or practicing the basics of Poison Hand combat—”Armament.”
A week passed in this routine.
Then, one day—
Yes, on the tenth day since arriving in this Isekai—
Something happened.
I hadn’t realized.
I’d been too focused on myself.
Let me cut to the conclusion.
It was my fault.
Because of me, many of the transferred people—including the 1,000 VTubers—were in mortal danger.
First, a wounded dragon fell from the sky.