Chapter 2

An hour has passed, and according to the notification, my concussion has healed.

[Analyzing surroundings and trails. Stand by...]

My entire vision turned green as it scanned the surroundings. There, I saw possible footprints buried underneath the piling snow.

I did this to evade going the same way as those elves that beat me up. Since I decided to go solo, I wouldn't want to follow their tracks and end up meeting them. 

Now that I know where they went, I'll take the opposite path. But before doing so, I decide to check one more thing, and probably the most important thing of all.

"Right, help me acquire knowledge about magic in this world in his memories. Just memories about magic and fighting, nothing else."

The reason I did not integrate all of the original elf's memories with mine is that I'm afraid I'll lose my personality in doing so. Even if the AI said it's not going to happen, I still won't do it. 

So I'll only take in the important memories he has and nothing else. It's not like his childhood memory will help me in any way.

[Recalling magic and fighting-related memories. Initiating memory retrieval protocol.]

Immediately, a slew of information flooded my mind once again. This time, though, instead of scene playback, I felt a familiar yet unfamiliar feeling coursing through my body. 

I instinctively knew what exactly that feeling was—it was mana coursing in my body. On top of that, I got to know what abilities an ice elf has.

"Yeah, okay. This is amazing. Add those abilities to my status panel as skills."

Since I already have my parameters shown in an RPG-like style, I'm not going to be acting all shy and not display my skills in such a manner. In doing so, my skills will be easier to track.

[Skills: Ice Magic, Cold Aura, Stealth]

There are only three skills, but it made me involuntarily smile as I stared at it. How could I not? I am finally wielding supernatural abilities. It might not be that flashy, but still!

'It's fucking magic!'

I stared at my palms expectantly. I wanted to test it out so badly that an intricate-looking snowflake began materializing on top of it. 

I feel like I'm Elsa right now, to be honest. All that's missing is me singing "Let It Go."

"Oh, oh..."

Before I got too excited over my ability, I closed my palm and took a long deep breath. This isn't the time to play around. I still don't know about the world I got sent to. 

I need to gather information ASAP; the elf's memory isn't enough as all it has was him in the elf village. So I need to do some manual gathering myself.

With that done, I proceeded down the path where the opposite side of the group of elves took.

...

Hiding behind a tree and, with my body hidden by Stealth, I gaze ahead to see the enormous being resting on the snow.

'Madre mía! That's one hell of a giant bear.'

Just looking at it made me shiver, imagining it clawing me to death. Even with my ability to control ice, for some reason, I don't think I can fight that guy.

I muttered in a hushed tone, "Scan that guy for me. Also, calculate the probability of me winning if I were to confront it."

[Name: Ice Bear] 

[Strength: 54, Agility: 24, Dexterity: 25, Magic: 10.] 

— Probability of winning assessed at 12%. Recommended course of action: Avoid confrontation and seek alternative solutions.

Well, even if the probability is at 50%, I wouldn't fight it. Like, come on, I just got isekai-ed. Why would I enter a 50/50 fight when it's not even needed for me to do it?

Ignoring and not picking a fight with that beast for now is not called cowardice; it's called common-fucking-sense.

With the help of my stealth and ice magic controlling how my footsteps won't make any unnecessary sound when walking, I left the bear alone and proceeded forward.

My goal for now is to find temporary shelter or at least a suitable place where I could build mine. Although I never learned any survival lessons, AI will help me build a mansion with twigs and frozen leaves.

After a while of walking, traversing nothing but snow and snow-covered trees, I came across the perfect spot for my abode. As I was hoping, I came across a cave.

But I stayed far, not moving a single step. Not because I was admiring it but because of the AI's notification.

[Two entities detected within the cave. Exercise caution and consider strategic observation before engaging.] 

[Scan complete. Identified entities as wolves within the cave. Proceeding with detailed analysis...] 

[Name: Ice Wolf] 

[Strength: 9, Agility: 15, Dexterity: 5, Magic: 2.]

Before I could even ask, the oh-so-reliable AI gave me the probabilities of me winning against the wolves. 

— Probability of winning against the wolf entities estimated at 75%. Exercise vigilance and strategic planning for a favorable outcome.

"Woah, would you look at those numbers? It's above 50."

Stats are not the only criteria for how well I'll do in fights. Everything is included: the terrain, their status, my skills—everything you could think of.

Looking at the spot where the wolves are resting, I really am tempted to take their home for myself. Not to sound overconfident, but I think I can take them down. 

Unlike that bear earlier who can just brute force anything I throw at him, these wolves, stat-wise, are more or less on par with mine. The only thing they're lacking that tips the battle to my side is magic.

Even if they do have skills, I doubt it's that game-changing to turn the odds against me.

'I really want that cozy-looking cave. I can do this.'

I hype myself up as my surroundings turned even colder than nature itself. My eyes shone bright. Denser cold breath smoke escaped my mouth.

And my hands, which were initially empty, were now holding a pair of kunai-looking ice sculptures. 

[Skill: Cold Aura is active.]