Grik returned with a cloth bundle and a leather waterskin. He set them on the bench next to Haku along with what looked like a hand-drawn map on rough parchment.
"Food for three days. Water. Map show safe paths through forest and nearby towns." Grik pointed at a spot on the map. "We are here. Human town called Rask is two days east. They not always friendly to monsters, but they trade sometimes."
Haku studied the map. The drawings were simple but clear enough. Rivers, forests, a few settlements marked with symbols he could mostly figure out.
"Actually," Haku said, looking up. "Would it be alright if I stayed one more day? I could help around the village, hunt if you need it. I just need some time to get my bearings."
Grik crossed his arms and thought about it. "You want to stay longer?"
"Just one day. Then I'll be gone."
The chief was quiet for a moment, then nodded slowly. "One day. You help with work, we give you place to sleep. But you cause trouble, you leave immediately."
"Fair enough."
"Good. Come, I show you where you stay."
Grik led him to a small hut on the edge of the village. It was basic, just four walls and a roof with some straw bedding on the floor, but it was shelter.
"Rest now. Tomorrow you work." Grik turned to leave, then paused. "And human? Keep that mask on. Some in village still nervous about you."
"I told you, it doesn't come off anyway."
Grik grunted and walked away, leaving Haku alone in the small hut.
He set down the supplies and sat on the straw bedding. The sun was starting to set outside, casting orange light through the gaps in the walls. His body ached from the fight earlier and from dragging those wolves halfway across the forest.
But his mind was racing.
"Recommended action: rest and recovery. Your physical condition is suboptimal."
"I know, Logos, but I need to understand what I'm working with here." Haku leaned back against the wall. "You said the Archive can replicate skills from anything I know about, right?"
"Correct. Sufficient conceptual knowledge allows synthesis of improved iterations."
"So what else do I know enough about to replicate?"
There was a brief pause, like Logos was thinking.
"Analyzing user knowledge database. Multiple candidates detected. However, attempting too many syntheses without understanding fundamental principles may be inefficient."
"What do you mean?"
"The Akashic Archive functions optimally when building upon established foundations. You successfully synthesized me because you had clear understanding of Raphael's purpose and mechanisms. For other skills, comprehension varies."
Haku thought about that. It made sense. He knew Raphael inside and out from watching the anime multiple times and reading the light novels. He understood how it worked, what it did, why it was powerful.
But other skills? Some he only knew surface-level details about.
"Alright, so what about something simple? Like magic sense. That's one of the first skills Rimuru gets, and it's pretty straightforward. It lets you sense your surroundings using magicules."
"Magic Sense: sufficient data available. Synthesis possible. Proceed?"
"Yeah, let's try it."
The Akashic Archive stirred in his mind. Books moved and pages turned, pulling together everything he knew about magic sense. How it extended a user's awareness beyond normal senses. How it could detect magicules, life forms, and environmental details. How Rimuru used it constantly for navigation and threat detection.
The library compiled it all and started building.
[Skill replication initiated]
[Target: Magic Sense]
[Synthesizing improved version...]
This time Haku was ready for the sensation. The library worked faster than before, like it was getting more efficient with practice. Within seconds, the text appeared.
[Synthesis complete: Omniscient Perception]
Something clicked in Haku's mind, and suddenly the world expanded.
He could feel everything around him. Not see it exactly, but sense it. The goblins moving through the village, their magicules like small flames in his awareness. The trees beyond the walls. Small animals in the underbrush. Even the insects crawling through the grass.
It was overwhelming at first, too much information flooding in at once. But Logos adjusted something and the sensation filtered down to manageable levels.
"Omniscient Perception active. This iteration provides enhanced sensory range and detail processing beyond standard Magic Sense. Current radius: approximately fifty meters. Can be expanded with practice."
"Fifty meters?" Haku focused and felt the edge of his perception. Sure enough, he could sense clearly everything within that range. "That's insane. Rimuru's magic sense started way smaller than that."
"Correct. The Archive's synthesis process incorporates optimization improvements. Additionally, your strong magicule capacity provides greater fuel for skill operation."
Haku sat there testing his new sense. He could feel Grik in another building, talking with two other goblins. Could sense children playing near the cooking fires. Could even detect the faint magicule signatures of the cooked direwolf meat being prepared.
"This is useful. Really useful." He grinned behind his mask. "What else can we do?"
"Caution advised. Excessive skill synthesis without proper integration may strain mental capacity and magicule reserves."
"So I shouldn't go crazy and try to replicate twenty skills at once."
"Affirmative. Gradual progression recommended."
That made sense. Even with a cheat ability, there had to be limits. Haku didn't know his exact magicule count or how much each skill cost to maintain.
"Alright, so let me think about this strategically." He closed his eyes and focused on what he knew. "In Tensura, skills are divided into types. Intrinsic skills, unique skills, ultimate skills. And there are resistances, combat arts, magic spells..."
"Your knowledge is most comprehensive regarding unique and ultimate skills from the series. However, basic combat abilities and elemental magic are also well-documented in your memory."
"So I could theoretically replicate something like Predator? Or Gluttony?"
"Predator: partial data available. Core concept understood but specific mechanisms incomplete. Synthesis would result in limited functionality. Recommend acquiring more detailed information before attempting."
Haku nodded. That tracked. He knew what Predator did generally, but the exact mechanics of how it broke down and stored things? That got complicated.
"What about something simpler? Like water blade or wind manipulation?"
"Elemental magic: sufficient data available from multiple anime sources, not limited to Tensura. However, baseline magicule manipulation proficiency required. You currently lack practical experience."
"So I need to learn the basics before jumping to the fancy stuff."
"Correct."
Haku opened his eyes and looked at his hands. He could feel the magicules inside him now thanks to Omniscient Perception. They flowed through his body like a second bloodstream, warm and alive.
"Can you teach me? Like, guide me through manipulating magicules?"
"Affirmative. Beginning instruction protocol."
Logos walked him through it step by step. First was just feeling the magicules, which he could already do now. Then came moving them consciously, directing the flow from his core outward to his hands.
It was harder than he expected. The magicules wanted to flow naturally through set patterns, and forcing them to move differently took concentration. But slowly, with Logos providing corrections and suggestions, he started to get the hang of it.
A faint blue glow appeared around his fingers.
"Holy crap, it's actually working."
"Magicule manipulation: basic level achieved. This forms foundation for all active skill usage and spell casting."
Haku practiced for another hour, making the glow brighter and dimmer, moving it from hand to hand, trying to shape it into different forms. It was exhausting work and his head started to hurt after a while.
"Mental fatigue detected. Cease practice and rest. Continued strain may result in magicule exhaustion."
"Yeah, I can feel it." Haku let the glow fade and slumped back against the wall. "But this is progress. Real progress."
He had Logos for analysis and calculation. Omniscient Perception for sensing his surroundings. And now he was starting to learn actual magicule manipulation.
The Akashic Archive was proving to be exactly as broken as he'd hoped.
"Progress assessment: satisfactory. Current skill roster provides strong foundation for survival and growth. Recommend rest period before further development."
"Agreed." Haku stretched out on the straw bedding. His body was tired and his mind felt fuzzy from all the mental work.
Outside he could hear the goblins settling in for the night. Conversations in their language, the crackling of fires dying down, children being called inside.
It was peaceful in a way he hadn't expected.
Tomorrow he'd help around the village like he promised. Maybe hunt some more if they needed it. And he'd keep practicing with his magicules, keep learning what the Archive could really do.
But for now, he just needed to sleep.
Haku closed his eyes, and with Omniscient Perception keeping a passive watch on his surroundings, he drifted off.