Hell's Glitch (initial draft)

2:27 Second Floor

"I see through this lie," Sam whispered to the wall in front of him. It vanished just as Tsurugi told him it would. He found himself in the same elevator room as before and past the doorway across from him was the dungeons.

He crept out into the hall then over to the cell holding the Soul Beacon. He opened his container and held it up to the flames in the center of the snake totem. Once it filled, he snuck back into the hallway and stealth killed the golem patrol near the cell.

"Melbern." The servant came out of the ground in front of him looking fully restored. "You feel up for a fight?"

"Yes, Master."

"Before we start, can you explain your skills to me? Bismuth didn't exactly tell me everything about your abilities."

To his great disappointment before, Sam had discovered that he couldn't directly increase the stats of his servants. They automatically increased depending on the servant and how they were used in a fight. Melbern had previously explained that Sam's commands even had an effect on the way his abilities grew, but didn't know in what exact way.

"Certainly. I currently have six traits and one skill."

"First, what's the difference between traits and skills?"

"A trait is a natural ability that we servants have. They can't be learned and the only way to gain new ones is through some form of evolution. Many of our traits can be strengthened through leveling, similar to a skill. Skills are simply techniques that we pick up along our journey. Some can be taught to us while others we naturally pick up."

"Alright. What are the traits and skills that you have? Wait—before you answer that, let me try something."

Sam used his description vision on Melbern and saw his traits and skills clear as day.

Melbern

Earth Spirit/Servant

Lvl 20

HP 200

STR 30

DEF 14

INT 5

SPD 8

PATK 30 +22

PDEF 14 +26

MATK 5

MDEF 5 +5

Traits:

Rock Armor Lvl 13

Stone Fists Lvl 6

Raw Strength Lvl 10

Increased Resistances Lvl 10

Dust Shield Lvl MAX

Earth Compartment Lvl 5

Skills:

Multilingual Lvl Max

"I see your skills and traits but have no idea what any of this means. Explain what each trait does starting from your Rock Armor."

"Very well, Master. Rock Armor increases my defense by adding extra layers of stone to my body. Each time my Stone Fists are strengthened I gain more attacking power. Whenever my overall Strength increases so too does my attack power and I am able to lift heavier and heavier objects. I can also gain Increased Resistances to all manner of illnesses and status changing effects. I am immune to the Dust contagion thanks to my Dust Shield and the larger I grow the more Earth Compartments are added inside my body allowing me to carry more objects for you."