Kumodesu

I assumed so because I saw fences surrounding the area—not sturdy stone walls, but not flimsy wooden ones either. They were just tall enough to prevent outside intrusions, and there was a massive gate in the center.

This place was no different from the house earlier, full of signs that it had been abandoned for a very long time: collapsed walls covered in moss, and even the central gate had fallen apart, no longer intact.

Just like before, I didn't rush in. I stood outside and scanned around using [Heaven Eye] to make sure everything was safe.

The village architecture was rather basic, with simple houses made of wood and other cheap materials.

I only skimmed over them briefly, then turned my attention deeper inward. The buildings further in were different—they looked like places for nobles, made of stone and featuring more elaborate structures.

I kept looking and finally stopped at a very large square...

Nani?

I wasn't sure if it was really a square or not—there were some very strange things... like a crucifix.

Just like the one I saw in the painting.

And behind the square was a temple, massive and imposing. While the earlier houses were made of common materials, this temple had glittering gemstones embedded into it—ones I'd never seen before.

After scanning the whole village and confirming there were no living beings, I cautiously stepped inside. Even though I hadn't detected anything, who knew what could slip past my detection?

As I approached the gate, I saw a large sign with big letters, but I couldn't read it.

I guessed it was the name of the village.

I had only taken a few steps when the sign suddenly fell right next to me.

Scary!

A bad omen?

Could it be that there were lingering spirits inside who didn't want me to enter?

If I stepped in, would they skewer me?

Ahh!!

There I go again, scaring myself.

I really need to get rid of this habit.

After calming myself with a few words, I looked at the fallen sign beside me.

It looked old and decrepit, but it pierced deep into the ground when it fell, meaning it had some real force. If that had hit me, I probably would've lost a few legs.

Nah.

I have defensive skills, remember?

I cleared my thoughts and began moving forward.

Earlier I had only scanned things briefly, but now that I was walking through it, I could see the devastation was beyond belief. Rotten scraps and fully decomposed potatoes still littered the ground.

I recognized them thanks to [Appraisal].

The collapsed houses no longer even looked like houses.

I found a few household items that weren't completely ruined.

Oh.

Spices.

I opened a jar and tasted a pinch of the spice inside.

Salt.

A bit spoiled, though.

But still edible.

Might as well keep it for later. I'm tired of eating bland, bitter raw meat.

I rummaged a bit more but found nothing else. I continued searching every house and found a few items still usable.

But I needed somewhere to store them. Wrapping them in silk and dragging them around was too inconvenient. I also tried searching for a skill that could help, but didn't find anything storage-related—so I gave up.

I went deeper into the village.

After a fairly long walk, I passed through the wooden-house area and reached the stone buildings.

Looks like I underestimated the size of this village. The houses here... I wasn't even sure they still qualified as houses.

The level of ruin here was even worse than the outer zone.

I found huge claw marks, indicating the place had been attacked by some sort of creature.

Something very large and powerful.

There were dried red stains along the way too—probably blood. Unlike the outside where only objects were broken, this area looked like a literal massacre had taken place...

I glanced around cautiously, afraid that creature might still be around.

No, what am I thinking?

If it were still here, I'd be dead already.

Hmmm...

This place looks fancy but is so poor??

I couldn't find anything usable, like everything had been deliberately destroyed. My eyes stopped on a house that was still somewhat intact.

I decided to go in and check.

I scanned the place again to see if anything could be salvaged, and unexpectedly found a hidden passage inside.

Again?

Nai wa!

I didn't notice it until the second scan, where I spotted a slight gap. But I had some doubts, so I stepped outside to check again.

Nothing!

From the outside, I couldn't see the hidden passage at all, even though I could clearly see inside the house.

Could there be something inside the house that blocks visibility? Since the blind spot only existed inside, I figured it must be some kind of artifact.

I still didn't fully understand artifacts in this world since I hadn't encountered them much.

So I went back into the house and carefully checked everything.

Nothing.

So it must be beneath the hidden passage.

Instead of looking for stairs, I just used [Drill Leg] to make a path downward.

This skill really is convenient, huh?

Once I stepped into the hidden passage, I was hit by the stench of decay.

Oeeeewww.

That's... the smell of a corpse?

Something died down here... and the body hadn't fully decomposed yet.

There were two paths in this passage. Based on what I could scan, one led to a room, and the other...

I couldn't detect it.

Yeah, both [Heaven Eye] and [Sensing] were blocked when probing that direction.

Maybe my skill levels are just too low?

Whatever, let's go with what I can check first.

Thinking that, I headed toward the room.

The closer I got, the worse the stench became, so I guessed the corpse was inside.

The door was still very sturdy, but one tackle from me shattered it.

Why?

Because I don't have hands to open doors.

As expected.

Inside were two white skeletons and one not-yet-fully-decomposed body. Though technically it was just bones, it still reeked horribly.

I approached and used [Appraisal].

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Oh, the appraisal result surprised me, even though just by looking, I could tell this was someone of high status.

Wait a second—since when did [Appraisal] change?

I don't remember it leveling up?

Weird things keep happening to me lately...

Whatever. I quickly turned to the other two skeletons, but [Appraisal] didn't work on them.

Maybe that's normal?

One skeleton was clearly a child's, so I guessed this was a family.

The other, probably the mother? Based on bone size, she was smaller than the man.

How do I know?

Hehe.

I used to have a fascination with anatomy, so I know a little.

After checking the corpses, I examined the room. Nothing special—looked like a shelter, fully stocked with supplies, but now everything was a mess.

Having checked everything, I was left with three questions.

One, there was still food left, so why did they die?

Two, why did the man die after the woman and child?

Three, what were they hiding from?

The man didn't have any visible injuries, so I guessed he died slowly.

I couldn't answer these questions yet, so I left the room.

Now I was debating whether to take the other path, since I didn't know what lay beyond.

What if it was some creature's lair?

What if I accidentally woke it up?

Too risky!

I... I think I'll check the other houses first.

Maybe they have secret passages too.

Right right.

I returned to the surface and started thoroughly examining each house—no half-hearted searches this time.

The result... nearly every house had a hidden passage...

I won't say anything about how useless my skills are anymore.

I checked all the hidden paths, and they were almost all the same: a shelter room and another path I couldn't probe.

So all the hidden paths connect to that mysterious space?

Maybe it's a secret meeting place for nobles?

Oh, and during my exploration, I also found some usable items—most notably, experience stones...

The shelter rooms usually had two or three of them, so I ended up gathering a total of 13.

I figured I should use them before entering that unknown place.

Free stuff really is the best.

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Nice.

Though gaining one level didn't make me that much stronger, it did boost my confidence a bit.

I was ready to enter that place. When I reached the end of the path, I saw a door.

So this was the thing blocking my skills?

Looking at the door, I saw it was almost completely undamaged.

Touching it, I realized it wasn't made of regular wood. Maybe the material itself blocked skills?

I tried using [Drill Leg], but it didn't work on the door.

The moment it touched the surface, all its strength vanished.

This thing nullifies skills?

Before, I thought it just blocked scanning-type skills, but clearly it goes beyond that.

Interesting.

With [Drill Leg] out of the question, I resorted to brute force.

Charge!

I backed up, built momentum, and rammed into it.

Oughh!

A loud crash and I was sent flying, while the door remained unharmed.

So tough.

But not tougher than my stubbornness.

After slamming into it dozens of times, the door finally gave in. Just a door, yet it took so much effort.

Grrr...

Oh, I'm hungry.

Let's check inside first.

Once inside, I found a huge hall with a round table in the center.

Definitely a secret meeting room.

The decor was also very luxurious—just a quick glance made that obvious. And most importantly... this place was completely untouched!

Nai wa.

I froze again.

But thinking about the difference in the door, I started to understand. To confirm, I touched the walls and found them incredibly tough.

So they were made from the same material as the door.

But what was it made of?

Oh wait, I have [Appraisal]!

Why did I forget about my untrustworthy friend?

Feels like ever since I came here, my brain's been a bit fuzzy.

Checking...

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Huh?

I got the function, but "magic resistance" still puzzled me.

I was just using regular skills, not magic. So how did it resist them?

Could it be... all skills are technically magic?

That doesn't sound right.

If true, that would completely overturn everything I thought I knew.

Ahhh, too complicated for a spider like me.

All this thinking made me even hungrier.

I stopped overthinking and began searching for food. Not long after, I found a storage room filled with chests—inside them was meat and other supplies.

So much meat!

Some were familiar, like lizard or boar meat I'd eaten before, and others I hadn't seen before.

I guessed they were brought down here.

I didn't know what kind of chests these were, but they kept the meat fresh and edible.

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More good stuff.

I also found some wood and flint in another chest. Looks like this place was thoroughly stocked. And luckily, I had picked up some spices earlier, so I could finally enjoy a cooked, well-seasoned meal.

Just thinking about it made my mouth water.

I set up a simple campfire, sparked it up, skewered some meat, and began roasting.

I checked my spices to see what was still usable.

Only the salt and MSG jar were still intact.

Oh well, better than nothing. Can't be picky.

Waited a bit for the meat to cook and...

Ting!

The first piece was done.

I bit into it immediately.

Mmm... weird taste.

Not bad, just unfamiliar. I'd been eating raw meat so long that cooked meat with seasoning felt strange. But after a few bites, I started to savor it.

Now this is what I should be eating—not those toxic raw meats.

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Nai wa!

Didn't expect to gain a new skill just from eating.

Though it just boosts taste sensitivity, which isn't that useful... it did make the flavor noticeably better. Even though I'm not a fan of meat, I was totally enchanted.

I enjoyed my meal and found a room to sleep in for the night.

See you all next time.