Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another World as a Skeleton

Chapter 291: Treasure Hunting

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Necrotic Realm.

Kaito was currently squatting in front of the cavernous ribcage of a gargantuan

skeleton, cautiously tapping against the bone with his knuckles.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

"Mmh... judging by the resonance, the interior should be hollow."

Kaito stood up, performing a half-circuit around the remains of the beast—a

creature so ancient its primary biological classification was impossible to

determine. He tapped various sections as he walked.

This newly acquired territory lacked many things, but it possessed an infinite

inventory of bones. As a DIY enthusiast with a borderline obsessive love for

fishing, Kaito felt it was statistically necessary to utilize the local

materials to craft a Necrotic-themed fishing kit. This hundred-meter-long

skeleton was his primary candidate for raw material.

He had noticed it purely because he had tripped over one of its protruding ribs

while "reflecting" on the horizon.

Then, the logic of the adventure novels kicked in. He figured a bone of this

magnitude was practically guaranteed to house some manner of unidentified

high-tier relic.

"I bet there's a 'Grand Prize' hidden inside," Kaito muttered, reaching into his

spatial storage to retrieve a small hammer.

He had acquired the tool from Paul the Blacksmith back in the Iron Fortress.

Originally, it was intended for the physical "re-education" of any fish that

grew unruly while in the landing net.

Now, it would serve as an archaeological implement.

Clang! Clink-clank!

Kaito struck the bone rhythmically, listening intently for the acoustic

feedback.

"Mmh... the frequency shifted here..."

He ceased his movement, repositioning himself before striking again.

THUD!

"Oh? This sector sounds significantly more hollow."

His interest piqued, Kaito hoisted the hammer and delivered a focused blow to

the center of the sternum.

BANG! BANG! CRACK!

A hairline fracture spiderwebbed across the surface of the bone. Kaito's

soulfire flared.

"Data confirmed! Structural weakness detected!"

He delivered a final, heavy strike to the center of the fracture.

CRUNCH!

The bone shattered, revealing a dark internal cavity. A wisp of grey, stagnant

mist drifted from the breach. Kaito leaned in, peering into the void of the

beast's chest.

Sitting silently within the cavity was a grey crystal the size of a fist. The

surface rippled with a faint, internal radiance, and something liquid-like

seemed to flow within its facets.

"Oh? Identify item."

Kaito reached in and extracted the crystal. It felt cool to the touch and was

statistically much lighter than its volume suggested. He held it up toward the

ashen sky, performing a visual audit.

"The aesthetic is pleasing..."

"I wonder if it possesses the buoyancy to serve as a fishing float? The density

seems low; it should theoretically stay above the surface tension."

Kaito muttered his assessment, casually tossing the artifact into his spatial

bag. He slapped the dust from his gauntlets and resumed his walk.

He failed to notice that, as soon as he departed, the shattered remains of the

gargantuan skeleton began to dissolve into grey ash, evaporating into the

atmosphere.

At that exact micro-second, a ripple—nearly invisible to the naked eye—shivered

across the entire sky of the Necrotic Realm.

The Construction Site.

Greed stood atop his platform, mid-way through a high-octane motivational

address to the heads of his construction squads.

"...Therefore, the Master's provision of these rods is a direct mandate! He is

informing us that the Hub requires finesse, not just brute Od! We must operate

with the 'Patience of the Angler'!"

"Every pillar must be polished! Every stone-slab must be aligned with surgical

precision! We must adhere to the Sovereign's standards, for he—"

Suddenly, the sky rippled.

Every skeleton on the site froze in a state of synchronized system-lag.

Greed snapped his skull upward, his soulfire narrowing.

"That resonance..."

The ripple! Could it be the Plane Core activation described in the plundered

archives of the Old Kingdoms?

But the Necrotic Realm's Core should already be under the Sovereign's absolute

control, Greed reasoned. Why would it manifest such a violent fluctuation now?

He contemplated the logic for several seconds before a realization struck his

core.

"Could it be...?"

"The Sovereign is currently performing a structural calibration of the Plane

Core itself?!"

The more he processed the theory, the more "Robust" it became. Of course! It is

the only logical conclusion! The Sovereign is present in the realm! Even if we

cannot perceive his physical manifestation, he is observing our labor from the

grey!

That ripple was the Master tuning the very fundamental laws of this world to

prepare the foundation for the Transit Hub!

"I see it now!"

Greed drew a long breath, turning back to the rows of skeletal workers.

"SUBJECTS!"

"You felt that fluctuation, did you not?!"

"That was the Sovereign clearing the path for our success! The Master may be

hidden from your ocular sensors, but his gaze is anchored to this site!"

"Therefore, we must not allow a single logic error to persist! We cannot

disappoint the Divine hand that tunes our world!"

"ALL UNITS: RETURN TO YOUR STATIONS!"

"I WANT AT LEAST TWO PORTAL FRAMES SECURED AND ANCHORED BEFORE THE NEXT

MOONRISE!"

"AS COMMANDED!"

The skeletons erupted into a chorus of rattling cheers, dispersing to their

tasks with a renewed, fanatical vigor. Greed stood on the dais, watching his

highly motivated subordinates with a look of profound satisfaction.

He turned to Thanatos, who was standing like a shadow behind him.

"Adjunct. In your estimation... where is the Master localized currently?"

Thanatos remained silent for a moment, his violet-gold soulfire flickering.

"Unidentified."

"But I can sense his signature. He is present within this coordinate."

Greed nodded. "My sensors detect the same. He is watching us from the silence.

We must ensure our output is peerless."

Thanatos bowed. "Understood."

Greed looked out over the churning industry of the site, his ambition flaring.

"The Evernight Transit Hub shall be the singular heart of the Multiverse. And we

are the ones privileged to build it."

Deep within the wastes of the realm, Kaito was currently crouching before a pile

of jagged rocks, tapping away with his small hammer.

"Peculiar... I was certain I perceived a hollow resonance here moments ago..."

"Why is there zero feedback now?"

He scratched his skull, looking bewildered. "Whatever. I'll search for a new

data point."

Kaito stood up, clapped his hands, and continued his walk.

He was entirely oblivious to the fact that the crystal he had "casually

retrieved" was a vital fragment of the Necrotic Realm's Plane Core. He had no

data indicating that his singular hammer-strike had rewritten the energy-flow of

the entire dimension. Nor did he know that his subordinates were currently

weeping with gratitude for his "Grand Strategic Foresight."

Kaito just figured this world was an interesting place to scavenge. The black

water held zero fish worth catching, but the ground was full of "treasures."

After all, Bochi's habit of picking up junk had to have come from somewhere.

"Mmh... that leg bone over there looks high-tier. Long. Straight. Perfectly

balanced."

"Let's investigate."

Kaito hummed his tuneless little melody, strolling casually toward the next pile

of ancient remains.

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