《Fate Weaver's Legacy [LitRPG with stream chat]》


 #001 – I didn’t know people hatch from eggs

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    Part 1 - Acclimation


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    Awareness came to me slowly and gradually. All I could grasp was that I was immensely tired. My mind was empty, my body heavy like a rock, and I wanted nothing more than to keep sleeping.


    I heard a gentle voice talking to me, but I couldn¡¯t make out what it was saying. All I knew was that it probably wanted me to keep sleeping.


    Well, there was no harm in sleeping longer, right? Not like I had to wake up for school or a job. I streamed exclusively in the evenings, after all.


    Yeah, no need to wake up just yet. Let¡¯s go back to sleep.


    I absent-mindedly nibbled on something sweet right in front of me and fell asleep again.


    ¡­


    When I woke up for the second time, it was with a bit more clarity than last time. I was still groggy and dazed and my eyes refused to open even as I mewled and shifted my body. But I could now tell that there was something odd going on.


    For one, I was in a fetal position. Why? I never slept like that. Usually, I would sprawl my limbs all over the bed.


    But man, it felt really nice. So warm and comforting¡­ Like something soft was hugging me from all sides. And honestly, since it was so soothing, I didn¡¯t mind it at all.


    I dozed off once more.


    ¡­


    When I woke up for the third time, I began to feel like there was something acutely wrong happening. Sure, the warm and soft thing surrounding me was still incredibly nice and comfortable but¡­ What even was it? That wasn¡¯t my blanket, right?


    I slowly opened my eyes and complete pitch-black darkness greeted me.


    Was it still the middle of the night? Damn, I shouldn¡¯t have streamed till three in the morning last night. My sleep schedule was beyond repair at this point, wasn¡¯t it?


    Wait, hold on. It shouldn¡¯t be this dark, even if it was the middle of the night, right?


    I moaned as I tried stretching my limbs. But the dark and soft surroundings didn¡¯t let me. They kept me nicely tucked in and told me to go back to sleep.


    But that only made me even more suspicious. Something was definitely wrong here.


    I began to stretch once more, pushing against the soft walls surrounding me. The walls resisted, but I wasn¡¯t giving up anymore. I kept pushing. Harder and harder¨C


    And then it cracked.


    Wait, what the hell?


    There was a crack in the dark soft space I had been in, letting a trickle of light inside.


    Incredibly confused at this development, I untangled my limbs and decided to try and poke my head out through the crack. In the process, I broke off even more pieces, widening the crack and letting even more light in.


    I blinked as my eyes slowly adjusted and the brain fog started packing its things to leave. I saw all the light streaking in through an oval-shaped passage in the wall.


    Was that my window? Shouldn¡¯t it be rectangular? And hold on¡­ I hadn¡¯t moved the curtains, had I? There shouldn¡¯t be any light getting through!


    I crawled forward, annoyed at the light assailing my eyes. Only for my entire bed to flop forward as it made another cracking sound. I fell out of my bed with a squeak as my comfy bed shattered under my hands.


    ¡°Whuh¡­?!¡± a high-pitched voice squeaked.


    And then I realized that my bed shattering into pieces was probably a bad sign.


    I blinked, utterly bemused as to what was happening, then looked around myself as my eyes finally seemed to have adjusted to the light.


    There were¡­ rough stone walls surrounding me, and the light was coming from an opening in those rocks rather than a window.


    I frowned and made a confused sound as the last remnants of the brain fog finally left.


    What the hell? Who had overlaid my room with rocks and made a giant hole in it?


    And then I finally looked behind me to check out why my bed was breaking down and froze, my jaw going slack.


    That wasn¡¯t my bed.


    I was sticking through a crack out of some smooth cyan ball¡­ no, not a ball. An egg-shaped object.


    Huh¡­


    Slowly, but carefully, I crawled out of the thing completely, while keeping my wide eyes on it.


    It really was egg-shaped. And it looked really cool, what with its white to cyan gradient, and a blue flame-like pattern at the bottom of it.


    And I had just crawled out of it. I¡¯d been inside it.


    ¡°What¡­?¡± the squeaky voice asked again.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Hold on¡­¡±


    That squeaky voice had come out of my mouth, I belatedly realized.


    Then I looked down. And I saw a tiny naked body.


    ¡°What?!¡±


    On reflex, I used my tiny hand to touch my tiny stomach. And then, I, of course, noticed the distinct lack of a certain something that used to be between my legs.


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    ¡°What?!¡± I squeaked.


    That was¡­ great? No, that was amazing! I couldn¡¯t believe¨C


    No, hold on. That wasn¡¯t important right now. What the heck was going on?!


    Let¡¯s think back¡­ What did I remember?


    I had streamed late into the night, trying to beat that one boss on stream, yes¡­ Then what? I¡¯d ended the stream when I beat him, taken a shower, and then gone to sleep, right?


    Yes¡­ What then? Had something happened afterwards? Had I gotten kidnapped by someone? Had I met with a god who told me I would get reincarnated?


    No, I didn¡¯t remember anything like that¡­


    I remembered¡­ heat. It had been much hotter than it should have been in early March and I had trouble falling asleep. So hot, in fact, that I¡¯d tossed my pajamas to the floor and slept naked. But then it had gotten hotter and hotter and¡­


    And then I¡¯d hatched from the egg.


    I eyed the blue flame pattern on it, feeling like that was an important piece of the puzzle.


    And then, of course, I did what any self-respecting adult would do in my situation. I lifted my thumb and index finger to my face, and pinched it.


    ¡°Ow!¡±


    I didn¡¯t wake up.


    I stared for a few more seconds as my thoughts tried to catch up to what I was experiencing.


    Then I took a deep breath.


    ¡°What is this?! Where am I?! Did I get reincarnated?! What the hell?! Why did I hatch from an egg?! What was the heat about?!¡±


    My twenty questions with the egg were interrupted by the echoes of my own voice resounding in the cave that I had apparently hatched in.


    I clamped my mouth shut and looked around in panic, trying to see whether I roused anything that might want to snack on me. Or maybe even the bird that had laid my egg¡­ or you know, maybe a dragon or something.


    But there were no signs of life around besides me. I seemed to be safe for now.


    I did notice something strange off to the side, though. There was a¡­ neatly folded stack of clothes with shoes and an envelope on top of it.


    It looked incredibly suspicious, but also very clearly meant for me. I was naked, after all.


    Slowly and carefully, I crawled closer to the suspicious pile of stuff, my eyes trained on it. Then, once I got close enough, I poked it with a finger.


    Nothing happened.


    Then I poked the envelope.


    Nothing happened.


    I was beginning to feel stupid. But hey, I couldn¡¯t help it, alright?! All those party games with other Vcubers had taught me to never trust anything, even if it looked safe. Who knew if that envelope was secretly another player trying to hide from the hunters?


    Ahem, anyway¡­


    Seeing as the inanimate pile of objects didn¡¯t seem to be keen on growing teeth and biting my hand off, I reluctantly reached out for the envelope and grabbed it. I turned it around and looked at it from all sides, but it was completely white with no text or a stamp on it.


    Without any better ideas, I decided to open the thing, using my tiny fingers to pry open the top.


    It held a single piece of paper and once I pulled it out and took a look at it, I couldn¡¯t help my mixed feelings.


    It featured a single line written in large letters.


    ¡®I¡¯m sorry.¡¯


    ¡°Wha¡­¡±


    I turned it around and my mixed feelings immediately turned to indignant annoyance.


    ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯


    ¡°What the hell?! Good luck?! Who are you?! Where are you?! Why did you reincarnate me?! Good luck with what?! What am I supposed to be doing?! Where are my instructions?!¡± I shouted at the damn smug paper.


    The paper said nothing. Smug jerk.


    And so I tossed it to the side with a growl. After staring daggers at it for a few more seconds just to make sure it got the point, I turned to the rest of the items my mysterious kidnapper had left me.


    The stack of clothes looked kid-sized¡­ but I was also kid-sized at the moment. Those clothes would probably fit me perfectly.


    So, although reluctantly, I poked the stack of clothes again, checking for any traps, before standing up on my tiny wobbly legs and putting the clothes on.


    As soon as I put on the underwear and oddly-familiar skirt/pants hybrid, I had a thought that this stuff could be cursed or something. After all, since I¡¯d hatched from an egg in a cave and whatnot, this was probably some kind of fantasy world, right? That was how it usually went, wasn¡¯t it?


    ¡°Well, crap¡­¡± I muttered.


    After a moment of deliberation, I shrugged and put on the fancy top and the socks and shoes as well.


    Not much I could do about it if it was cursed. And honestly, unless I wanted to run around naked, I didn¡¯t have much of a choice right now.


    To give credit where it was due, the clothes felt super smooth and soft on my skin. Part of me wondered what it was all made from.


    With the clothes on, I gave the piece of paper one more sneer, before looking back at the egg I had hatched from. It really did look dang cool, I had to admit. But what was the deal with that flame pattern? Did it mean anything? Had a dragon or something laid that egg? Was I a dragon?


    A quick double-check of my head and my shoulder blades confirmed that I didn¡¯t have horns or wings or anything of the sort. As far as I could tell, I seemed to be perfectly human, even though I probably wasn¡¯t, considering the whole hatching business.


    So, current theory: A dragon god dude guy had decided to prank me by eating me, and then reincarnating me in another world via hatching from an egg.


    Because of¡­ reasons?


    Also, considering the egg, it was probably a lady girl, not a dude guy.


    Or maybe, I was just a presumptuous mortal and even male dragon gods could lay eggs if they wanted to.


    ¡­I was probably spiraling. My thoughts were turning into utter nonsense.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Okay¡­¡± I nodded to myself, trying to pretend like I had everything under control.


    Hey, fake it till you make it, right? It didn¡¯t matter if I was internally panicking. I just had to pretend that everything was fine.


    ¡°Alright! Let the isekai adventure begin, egg!¡± I announced as I pointed at my ¡®bed¡¯. ¡°What¡¯s our plan then? First step¡­ Get out of this cave and figure out where I am. Yes, great plan, egg. As expected of the egg I hatched from.¡± I nodded.


    I turned around and then hesitated for a moment. After a short bout of deliberation, I walked over to where I¡¯d thrown the smug paper, grabbed both it and the envelope and put it into my skirt pocket.


    Maybe it would come in handy, after all. As a video game item hoarder, there was no way I could leave it behind even if it pissed me off.


    Another thing¡­


    I looked back at the egg, feeling a bit torn.


    I really liked the egg. It was damn cool, for one. But I also kind of felt attached to it in a weird way. I wanted to take it with me, but I also knew that that probably wasn¡¯t possible. It was bigger than me, after all.


    Hmm, but I could take some of the smaller broken shards scattered around, though.


    Eh, sure, why not? I could be like a good luck charm.


    I took the smallest shard I could find and put it into my pocket as well. Then, I gave the rest of the egg a sad smile, said, ¡°I¡¯ll see you around, egg,¡± and turned around, before walking toward the light.


    ¡­


    Wow, it had barely been a few minutes and I was already making friends with inanimate objects. It wasn¡¯t even like I was streaming and had any need to act excessively silly here. I should dial it down.


    I walked through the opening in the cave and took a moment for my eyes to adjust to all the light. Once they did, I took stock of my surroundings. A massive forest sprawled out all around me, inviting me to get lost inside it.


    I slowly scanned the forest and swallowed with some trepidation.


    Surely, my mysterious kidnapper wouldn¡¯t have put me in some end-game forest where giant monsters roamed, right¡­? Being some dragon¡¯s dinner right after being reincarnated would be really unfortunate¡­


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I muttered, clenching and unclenching my tiny fists. ¡°Step two¡­ Don¡¯t get eaten.¡± I nodded to myself.


    Or rather, wasn¡¯t my kidnapper the dragon? Or maybe a phoenix, now that I thought about it? Or, you know, maybe my kidnapper and the one who¡¯d laid my egg weren¡¯t even the same person!


    Maybe I had a momma dragon out there hunting for food or kidnapping princesses. Who knew? Either way, they weren¡¯t necessarily the one who had kidnapped and isekai¡¯d me and left me that dumb message.


    Now¡­ What was my plan, exactly? I had the option of staying in that cave and waiting for whatever had laid that egg to come back. But I also really didn¡¯t want to. I¡¯d watched some bird documentaries in the past, and the idea of swallowing giant worms whole while doing mouth-to-mouth with a dragon was just¡­


    Uh¡­ Yeah¡­ How about no?


    Also, the damn letter said ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯ so it probably expected me to actually do stuff. Not that I wanted to listen to the stupid piece of paper, but still¡­


    ¡°Step three¡­ Find civilization¡­?¡±


    Probably for the best. Hopefully, I would run into some reasonable people. Maybe some random merchant or a group of adventurers. That was how this kind of thing usually went, right?


    Yeah, probably.


    Okay. No more stalling. It was going to be fine!


    With confidence I wasn¡¯t quite sure I felt, I stepped forward into the forest.

 #002 – Hold on, that’s not a fantasy world

    I hadn¡¯t realized it before, but I was actually pretty fit for a small child. Gone was the streamer belly and back pain. Once I got used to having much smaller limbs, I realized that I was much more athletic than before. For someone who had just hatched from an egg, this was quite impressive¡­ Or rather, maybe that was the reason. I probably had some dragon genes or whatever, even if I had no dragon body parts.


    Yeah, that had to be it.


    Also, maybe I shouldn¡¯t be distracting myself with random thoughts while walking through an eerie and quiet forest like this, lest something ambushed me while I wasn¡¯t paying attention. I couldn¡¯t really help it though ¨C it had probably been half an hour at least, and I still hadn¡¯t seen any animals. Not even a single insect, in fact.


    It was freaking me the heck out.


    Why was this forest abandoned? Where was my dragon momma? Was this forest a deathtrap that ate all living things?


    I picked up a stick in lieu of a proper weapon just to ease my paranoia. It didn¡¯t help much, though. Everytime a gust of wind blew by, I jumped at the rustling leaves, thinking a horned wolf or some crap was going to jump me.


    At least it was pretty warm out here. No matter how much the wind blew, I didn¡¯t get cold at all.


    ¡­That was also probably because of my dragon heritage, wasn¡¯t it? Yeah, probably.


    Or¡­ hold on. Maybe my clothes were enchanted with something to keep me warm? I hadn¡¯t really checked them too much with everything else on my mind, but¡­ they did look familiar¡­ Almost like¡­


    ¡°Wait¡­¡± I muttered as I stared at my left sleeve. It was a gradient of cyan and blue, just like most of the outfit. The entire thing fit tightly but was still loose enough that it didn¡¯t hinder movement. And very tellingly, there was that skirt/pants hybrid I was wearing. One that I remembered specifically requesting my momma artist[modern_footnote]Vtubers typically refer to the artist who drew their model as ''Mom'' and the person who rigged it ''Dad''.[/modern_footnote] to add.


    It was my old Vcuber model¡¯s outfit.


    Slowly, carefully, I reached out to my shoulder-length hair, grabbed a few locks, and lifted it in front of my face.


    My hair was bluish cyan.


    Just like my old Vcuber model.


    I groaned.


    ¡°Oh, haha! Very funny, Mr. kidnapper dude guy. You reincarnated me as my old Vcuber model, because why the heck not, right?!¡± I shouted in frustration to the empty forest.


    Maybe I should have been more careful to not make too much noise so that predators wouldn¡¯t come to snack on me¡­ but I just wanted to vent my frustration, because dammit!


    Also, there was nothing in the forest anyway, so whatever.


    ¡°Why my old Vcuber model anyway?! Why not my new one?! I wanna have cool wings and a tail and stuff! Gah!¡± I threw up my hands, channeling my annoyance. ¡°It would have fit better, even! That one is part dragon and I hatched from an obvious dragon egg!¡±


    Really, this so far looked like some kind of prank. If one ignored the whole isekai reincarnation thing, obviously. Had some bored god decided to troll me for some reason? Was this god one of my usual viewers and I¡¯d insulted them at some point and now they were getting revenge?


    ¡°Which one of you was it¡­?¡± I growled under my breath. ¡°Jeoff? No, couldn¡¯t be¡­ Spoon? Nah, she¡¯s too much of a sweetie¡­ It was George frickin'' Doshington, wasn¡¯t it? Oh, you little¡­ I¡¯ll get you for this¡­¡±


    It probably wasn¡¯t GeorgeDoshington, but I needed some target to blame, okay?


    I continued on, still tense, but now also annoyed with everything. God, if only I had my chat here to talk to¡­ or at least my phone or something. Ugh¡­ One didn¡¯t truly appreciate the convenience of modern technology until they were isekai¡¯d, huh?


    I shook away those thoughts and continued trucking along.


    Walk through the bush here, hop onto this rock there. It was actually kinda fun having a young and agile body again. Streaming had done a number on me over the years, huh? Maybe I should have done more 3D streams¡­


    As I continued to ponder about pointless things, I spotted a tall hill and made my way up to get a better vantage point from there. Hopefully, I could spot some kind of settlement, although I kind of doubted it, considering just how barren and lifeless the forest had been so far.


    As I neared the top of the hill, exhaustion finally began to catch up to me. This body might have been more athletic than I used to be, but it was still a child¡¯s body, after all. This much walking would have tired any kid out.


    Regardless, I still did my best to use my last dregs of strength to haul myself to the top. As soon as I did, I froze, my eyes nearly falling out of my skull with how much they widened.


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    ¡°What¡­ the hell¡­?¡± I muttered in astonishment.


    Instead of a settlement, mountains, or heck, just more forest, there was a crater with the wreckage of what looked like a giant friggin¡¯ spaceship. The ground around it was littered in metallic debris and the entire thing must have been at least four storeys high and as long as two football stadiums.


    I continued staring at the incredibly out-of-place thing, taking in its massive size, its shattered windows up top, its rusted coating, its giant thrusters that were surprisingly intact, the pool of dubious liquid next to them¡­


    ¡°...Okay¡­¡± I murmured. ¡°This¡­ is not a fantasy setting, is it¡­?¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but voice my thoughts out loud. A streamer habit, eh¡­


    Once I finally snapped out of the shock, I immediately decided to explore the thing. There was no way I was going to just ignore it, now was there?


    A giant figgin¡¯ spaceship¡­


    Even if there weren¡¯t any survivors, there had to be some kind of clues as to what kind of world this was, or what had happened. Maybe even people inside trying to scavenge what remained of the behemoth?


    Yeah, time to explore a spaceship¡­


    I got up from where I¡¯d fallen on my butt from the shock earlier, remembered that I was exhausted, and sat down.


    ¡­After a bit of rest.


    I always preferred fantasy over sci-fi, but hey, cool spaceships were still cool. Maybe I could find laser guns or something inside? Or heck, maybe I was expected to repair the damn thing and then fly it¡­ Oh god, was that why that stupid paper said ¡®Good luck ;)¡¯?!


    I scowled as my eyes continued scanning the thing, taking in all the details.


    There was no way I could do that! Someone as technologically challenged as me had probably no chance of understanding even how the damn doors in that thing worked, much less being able to repair something this massive! Especially in this body!


    Yeah, no. Not happening. With any luck, I could find something useful inside that wasn¡¯t completely broken.


    ¡°Or maybe a bed¡­¡± I said to myself as I noticed the sun slowly but surely going down. ¡°Don¡¯t wanna sleep in the forest no matter how empty it looks¡­¡±


    Feeling rested enough, I steeled myself, got up, grabbed my trusty stick, and began descending the hill into the crater. It was pretty steep and I had to be careful, but I eventually made it, crossing the threshold where grass stopped growing and turned into dust and ash.


    As soon as I did, though, I felt a chill go down my spine. I gasped and swirled my head around, looking for any danger, but nothing had changed.


    What the heck had that been about?! A premonition? Did I have some kind of danger sense power? Should I leave this be, after all?


    I stopped in place and kept looking around, my entire body tense.


    Nothing happened and after a few minutes, I finally lowered my guard and let out a sigh.


    ¡°Nothing¡­?¡±


    Well, nothing for now, but if I continued to explore, that might change.


    Ugh, but¡­ I couldn¡¯t just leave this, could I? It was a giant spaceship! You couldn¡¯t make a more obvious point of interest if you tried!


    ¡°Ok¡­ Here¡¯s the plan. Keep going, but be careful. As soon as anything even remotely dangerous pops up, leg it.¡± I nodded to my own plan, trying to convince myself that I wasn¡¯t walking straight into my doom.


    And so, against my better judgment, I kept walking into the debris-filled crater.


    There were pieces of metal of various shapes and sizes strewn all around the actual spaceship. Some were small enough to fit into my palm, others were probably over a storey tall. I took my time looking around the outside first, hoping to find something I could maybe use, just in case the spaceship itself proved to be a death trap.


    To my surprise, I actually found something. Hidden under several strategically placed metal beams, there was a little passage between them, just big enough for me to squeeze through, and at the end of the little passage, I could see¡­ a treasure chest.


    ¡°Seriously¡­? That¡¯s gotta be a mimic, right?¡±


    I couldn¡¯t imagine the treasure chest getting flung from the spaceship as it had crashed, catapulting it into such a perfect spot and in the upright position as well. This was way too suspicious. Either someone had put that chest there after the ship had crashed ¨C which¡­ Why would they do that? ¨C or it was a mimic.


    Even if I realized that, I couldn¡¯t help but want to try and interact with the chest somehow. Not opening it manually, obviously. But maybe¡­ throwing a rock at it¡­?


    ¡­This was incredibly stupid. What if the mimic woke up and chased after me the moment the rock hit it?


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Okay, no. Let¡¯s not test my luck.¡±


    I ignored the juicy treasure chest and continued exploring the surroundings. I found another treasure chest, placed on top of a little hill made out of debris, which kind of confirmed that this place was apparently infested with mimics.


    That was probably what the weird feeling was about, wasn¡¯t it?


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Should I try to go inside¡­?¡± I murmured. ¡°I wish I had chat with me¡­ I could straw poll it¡­¡±


    I snorted to myself at the dumb thought. Chat would have probably made me do whatever was the most exciting and therefore dangerous.


    Well¡­ I was curious what was inside. And if the mimics didn¡¯t wake up as long as I didn¡¯t bother them, maybe it would be fine¡­?


    Gah, I should have curbed my gacha addiction when I could. Now I was gambling with my damn life. Well, maybe I could respawn? Or maybe my mysterious kidnapper troll would reincarnate me again?


    Probably shouldn¡¯t bet on that¡­


    ¡°...Just a peek,¡± I finally decided.


    I avoided exploring any more of the debris and headed straight for where I¡¯d spied a hole in the hull, hoping to get inside through there. Unfortunately, it was right next to the pool of dubious liquid. It was probably some kind of futuristic alien fuel or what have you. The dark green color made it seem like a stage hazard in a platformer game, though. Especially with that pile of scrap floating in the middle of it.


    I stopped at a fair distance and peeked in through the hole. I could see some piping and machinery, as well as something that looked like a boiler. Futuristic boiler, at least. Maybe that was the ship¡¯s engine? Seemed kind of small to be powering the entire thing, but hey, not like I knew anything about regular cars, much less spaceships.


    Not seeing anything dangerous jumping out at me yet emboldened me to step closer to the hole.


    That was a mistake.


    As soon as I stepped too close to the pool of liquid, the scrap floating inside it moved.


    I jumped with a gasp and my eyes went wide as the scrap began reassembling itself piece by piece into an uncanny humanoid shape. Its long arms had blades sticking out of it in place of fingers, its legs were like mechanical tentacles, and its face was blank save for two bulbs where its eyes would be.


    My instincts screamed at me and I didn¡¯t wait another second for its transformation to finish before turning around and bolting with a terrified yelp.


    Nope, nope, nope, nooope! Nobody told me there would be killer robots!

 #003 – Chemistry was never my best subject

    I sprinted away at full speed even while the thing behind me continued to produce ominous mechanical creaking.


    I was a complete and utter idiot. Why had I assumed that only the chests would be mimics?! Of course any old pile of metal could have been a killer robot in disguise! And now, once it was done transforming, one of them would probably be coming after me!


    I made it nearly halfway across the debris-filled crater when I heard the creaking sounds behind me stop. For a second, I thought the thing had given up and I was safe, but then, a loud crash reached my ears.


    I couldn¡¯t help it. I turned my head to look what had happened, and nearly tripped when I saw the metallic amalgamation, its two eyes now glowing red, whizzing through the air straight at me, its finger blades ready to gut me.


    I screamed and redoubled my efforts to get the heck away.


    Unfortunately I was in the body of a small child, and even my fastest running speed was pitiful, despite my newfound nimbleness.


    The rhythmic stomps behind me were closing in on me as I zig-zagged between the debris. I jumped over a lump of metal, sprinted around a metal pole, and ran along the length of a beam, somehow without tripping or stumbling. If I wasn¡¯t panicking so hard, I would be marveling at my amazing parkour skills.


    Just as the stomps got loud enough that I felt my insides vibrating, I heard a swishing through the air and without thinking about it twice, I hurled myself to the side mere moments before the slasher movie-esque arm bigger than me impacted the ground where I had been, lifting a cloud of dust and scattering debris.


    I rolled on the ground as a piece of metal landed near me, and for a brief moment thought that I could hide in the cloud of dust. My hopes were immediately dashed as the red glowing eyes locked on to me again and I hurried to get up and continue running.


    But it was pointless. That thing was faster than me. Even if I could dodge a swipe or two, it would eventually hit me and I was done for.


    I needed somewhere to hide.


    From the corner of my eye I saw the metal beams hiding a chest underneath that I¡¯d found earlier, and in a snap decision changed course to head there. The mecha-godzilla was still hot on my heels and it was all I could do to stay out of its swiping range.


    Then I heard swishing in the air again and I used every ounce of my strength to throw my body forward into the little passage where the chest was. Once again, the attack missed me by a hair¡¯s breadth, but this time, I didn¡¯t escape the splash damage unscathed.


    I screamed as something cut into my left leg. But even with the pain, the metallic sounds of the killer robot behind me made me crawl forward, deeper into the little hidey hole where the robot was too big to enter.


    Then a crash.


    The metallic walls around me reverberated, but somehow held strong against the damn thing¡¯s assault. Despite my fears of being mimic¡¯d, I crawled all the way to the chest just to get further away from the entrance. Not that it would have helped if the whole thing collapsed on me.


    Another crash. Then metal scraping against more metal, giving me goosebumps and making a chill go down my spine.


    There was also someone wheezing and coughing.


    Wait, that was me.


    I hadn¡¯t even realized it, but my lungs were burning and my body shaking with how much I¡¯d exerted myself. There also may or may not have been some tears staining my face.


    ¡°Fuck¡­¡± I swore as I pressed my back against the chest and looked at the exit in fear.


    Another crash.


    That thing wasn¡¯t going to leave me alone, was it? What was I supposed to do? Was I really going to die the very first day I¡¯d gotten reincarnated?


    ¡°Ow!¡± I winced as I moved my leg and remembered the pain I¡¯d felt earlier. I looked at it and saw a long cut alongside my calf. It didn¡¯t seem to be very deep, but was bleeding profusely.


    ¡°S-Shit¡­¡±


    I immediately took off my skirt-shorts and hastily tied them around the wound. It didn¡¯t help a whole lot.


    Then I heard a long and loud metallic creak¡­ before everything went silent again.


    I froze in place and continued staring at the little hole that led outside. Part of me thought that maybe the thing had given up. But a smarter part of me noted that I hadn¡¯t heard it stomp away.


    It was probably waiting for me to come out then. That was the worst case scenario.


    I needed a plan. I needed something. But I didn¡¯t have anything!


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    I let out a pathetic whine as I slumped, my head bumping against the chest¨C


    ¡­The chest.


    I slowly turned my head around and looked at the chest I was leaning on.


    I couldn¡¯t see very well since there wasn¡¯t any light, but I could make out its gleaming golden frame and lock and its metallic structure. It was very clearly designed to fit in with its surroundings.


    ¡°...Are you a mimic?¡± I asked. I didn¡¯t get a reply. ¡°You¡¯re not going to eat me if I open you, right?¡±


    Frankly speaking, I didn¡¯t see any other options. If I went outside, the stupid camper robot would kill me instantly. Even if I somehow managed to dodge its ambush attack, there was no way I could ever outrun it, especially with that cut on my leg.


    This chest could contain something that could help me beat that thing or at least get out of here alive. Or it could turn out to be a mimic and I would be done for.


    But if I didn¡¯t open it, I was done for anyway.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± I said as I took a deep breath.


    I gathered myself, wiped the tears off my face, and stood up, wincing slightly as I accidentally put pressure on the wound.


    ¡°Here goes nothing¡­¡±


    I grabbed the latch, fiddled with it, and for a moment I thought it was locked. Luckily, I quickly figured out how it worked, and it snapped open. I took another breath in anticipation and tried lifting the metallic lid up.


    ¡°Ugh¡­¡±


    But it was freaking heavy, and I was a small child, so it wasn¡¯t easy by any margin. It took all my effort to get my fingers under the damn thing and then use my entire body¡¯s weight to finally pop it open.


    In fact, as soon as I managed to lift it just a little bit, some kind of automatic mechanism kicked in and opened the chest all the way.


    I jumped in surprise and backed away immediately, expecting the thing to lunge at me.


    ¡­But it didn¡¯t. It just kept sitting there, wide open, waiting for me to loot it.


    ¡°...Oh, hey. You aren¡¯t a mimic. That¡¯s cool,¡± I said, my voice dry.


    Still feeling a bit cautious but also very excited, I approached the chest and took a look inside.


    There were two items.


    The first was a sheath holding some kind of short sword with a curved blade.


    My eyes glittered for a moment.


    I curiously took it and unsheathed it, revealing a beautiful silvery blade with cyan lines etched into it, reminding me of circuitry. The handle was relatively small and had a handguard. It also fit my hand perfectly, as if it had been tailored just for me.


    ¡°Sweet¡­¡± I gasped in awe.


    Once again, part of me chided me for grabbing the thing without checking whether it was cursed. I quickly squashed that part of me. Not like I had any way of figuring out whether something was cursed or not, in the first place. And anyway, hadn¡¯t I already established this wasn¡¯t a fantasy setting? Why was I so worried about curses in a world with spaceships and killer robots?


    Whatever! I had a weapon now! With this, I could¡­ probably not accomplish a whole lot, actually. I sincerely doubted this little toothpick would do anything to that giant metallic abomination.


    Ugh¡­ Dammit¡­


    Shooing my negative thoughts aside, I put the blade into its sheath again and took a look at the other item in the chest. It was a small vial filled with suspicious-looking green liquid. It looked like a potion, but¡­


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it the same thing as the ship¡¯s leak¡­?¡±


    I shook the vial for a bit, but weirdly enough, the liquid didn¡¯t slosh around like I expected. With a frown, I turned it upside down and watched as the apparently hyper-viscous liquid lazily slid down the sides of the vial in slow motion.


    ¡°Huh¡­¡±


    Well, that was definitely something. Too bad I couldn¡¯t do anything with it because I had no idea what it was supposed to do. Was it emergency spaceship fuel? A healing salve? Glue?


    How was I supposed to know? This thing could grant immortality and it would still be useless because I sure as heck wasn¡¯t going to risk drinking or even touching the nasty stuff.


    And that was that. Now I had a cool sword and a vial of suspicious liquid. That was more than I had before, at least.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡±


    I sat down again, careful not to agitate my wound again and tried to think. Now that I wasn¡¯t in immediate danger, I could afford to formulate an actual plan. My resources were limited, I was injured, and there was an enemy way stronger than me waiting just outside.


    Alright. Still a terrible situation, but I¡¯d beaten bosses and challenge runs harder than this. Sure, those were video games and this was real life, but that didn¡¯t mean I couldn¡¯t use my elite gaming skills to my advantage here.


    What were my options?


    The sword was the obvious tool to use. Smack the big robot with it and hope for the best. Probably also the worst idea.


    Next up, I had the weird liquid. I had no idea what to do with it and I only had a limited amount of it, so if I was going to experiment with it, I had to be smart about it.


    Next¡­ I still had the stupid letter, didn¡¯t I? Where had I¡­ Oh¡­


    I carefully reached down and ruffled the makeshift bandage around my leg just enough to reach into its pockets before pulling out the blood-stained letter still mocking me with its ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯.


    I sneered at it, as was becoming tradition, and placed it on the ground next to me. Next, I carefully uncorked the vial, raised it over the letter and began to carefully shake it.


    Obviously, the first test was to make sure the liquid wasn¡¯t dangerous to touch. If it burned through the letter, I could maybe use it as a one-time throwable weapon, but that was probably it.


    I kept carefully shaking the vial, trying to pour just a drop of it on the letter. Finally, a bit of it dripped down and I immediately turned the vial upright again.


    I did not expect the letter to burst into greenish flames as soon as the drop hit it, but that was exactly what happened.


    I yelped and jumped back, but the pain on my leg made me stumble and fall on my butt.


    But then, with horror, I realized that the fire was spreading and heading straight for me.


    ¡°Wha-?! Why?!¡±


    The blood.


    I noticed too late that apparently, my own blood was like gunpowder to the green fire. I couldn¡¯t even run anywhere in this cramped space and before I could figure out what to do, the fire reached the wound on my left leg.


    I screamed as the burning feeling spread through my entire body and I spasmed on the ground, my hand still gripping the opened vial.


    A moment of eternity later, the green fire vanished and I was left hyperventilating on the ground, somehow still alive.


    I slowly lifted my head, tears staining my face once more.


    ¡°Wha¡­ What the fuck?!¡±


    And then I noticed that there was smoke, no ashes, not even the smell of fire. The letter still lay there, covered in blood, as if nothing had happened. The only difference was that the blood had a bit of a green tint to it and seemed to be glowing.


    ¡°...Huh. I see. I understand.¡±


    I understood nothing.


    Belatedly, I realized that I felt lighter and full of energy. The exhaustion from walking and then sprinting away from the robot was completely gone. Moreover¡­


    ¡°Wait¡­¡±


    I inspected my leg, expecting to see a glowing green wound. But under those few remaining splotches of glowing blood, the wound had completely closed up and it didn¡¯t hurt anymore.


    ¡°...Seriously?¡±


    Apparently, it was a healing salve. Just a really intense one.

 #004 – I reject our new robot overlords!

    ¡°Alright¡­¡± I muttered to myself.


    I was wearing my bottoms again, the letter and the vial in their pockets, the sheathed sword fastened to my hip. They were still covered in blood and it was gross, but I wasn¡¯t about to run around naked. I just had to find a river or something and wash it there before finding civilization. It wouldn¡¯t do for the first people I found in this world to see all the blood and think I was a psychopath or something¡­


    But first, I had to get out of here alive.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡±


    There had been no more ominous sounds from the outside while I¡¯d recovered from the minor heart attack the potion had caused me. That probably meant that the thing was still waiting for me.


    Luckily, I was in a slightly better position than before. I had a weapon, my wound was healed, and I even felt more energized than before. All I¡¯d had to do was pour green fire into my bloodstream, apparently.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡±


    I was also stalling. I didn¡¯t want to go outside and get squished by the killer robot dammit! Couldn¡¯t I just stay in this little hole forever? It was safe and cozy and¡­


    And I was feeling less and less energetic with every passing second. The blood still left on the ground glowed a bit less as well.


    The potion¡¯s blood energizing effect must have been only temporary¡­ which made sense.


    If I was going to get out of here, I needed to act now.


    ¡°Okay, fine¡­!¡±


    I took a breath and then mentally mapped out my escape route. I couldn¡¯t be certain that the route I¡¯d taken to get here would be my best way out of here, but I didn¡¯t have the luxury of trying other routes, so my plan was to simply retrace my steps out of this crater, and then hope to hide somewhere in the forest.


    Not exactly a perfect plan, but I didn¡¯t exactly have many other options. Not unless I wanted to camp in this tiny enclosed space for the rest of my new life.


    Yeah, fine. I better buckle up then.


    Finally, with some determination, I steeled myself and, as quietly as possible, snuck to the entrance. I kept my eyes peeled, trying to spot the robot before it could spot me. But the entrance looked totally safe and robot-free, which only set me more on edge. I¡¯d already gotten burned once by thinking I was safe, after all. I wasn¡¯t going to make the same mistake twice.


    I inched closer and closer, making sure that my steps were light and didn¡¯t make any sound. When I finally reached the entrance and crouched down to fit inside, I peeked around, trying to spot the assassin hiding among debris, but I couldn¡¯t pinpoint it at all.


    Maybe it had left, after all? But I hadn¡¯t heard it leave¡­


    With another slow but deep breath, I finally took a step outside, my heart beating out of my chest and my palms sweaty as I gripped the handle on my sword.


    There was a moment of silence and I thought I was safe. But then, the metallic creaking returned.


    Right from above and behind me.


    My head swirled around and I immediately spotted the creepy robot perched on top of the whole structure I had been in. It was in the process of getting up, its red eyes locked on me.


    My mind screamed at me and I immediately turned back forward and legged it. I felt the metallic spike of an arm piercing the ground behind me and had to grit my teeth to stop myself from screaming in terror.


    The subsequent familiar metallic crash made me jump to the right on instinct, allowing me to narrowly dodge the robot¡¯s leap attack. I quickly recovered, blinked, and saw the robot already turning toward me, its death accessories ready.


    For a brief second, I contemplated taking it head on with my sword. After all, I was still energized from the green potion and seemingly even had improved reflexes¡­


    I dunked that thought into the mental trash bin as soon as it came to me. If this was a game, I probably would have at least tried to fight it, but there was no way in hell I would ever do that in real life!


    I turned and ran again before it could punish my hesitation.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the tin can of death to follow me.


    I kept on running and dodging whenever the thing caught up to me. The robot was relentless though, and I kept only barely dodging its attacks. Weirdly enough, I began to sort of subconsciously learn its patterns. After all, it kept repeating the same simplistic moves over and over. Just striking at me with its spiked arms.


    Well, sure, those ¡®simplistic moves¡¯ were deadly as hell and hard to dodge to boot, but after enough times, I could sort of predict what it was going to do next.


    Another spiked attack swiped my way and I jumped away, but I was getting tired and sloppy. I tripped over a piece of small debris I hadn¡¯t noticed and found myself face planting into the ground.


    When I heard the metallic creaking behind me, in that split second I thought I was dead for sure. But somehow, I still managed to push myself off the ground and throw myself to the side as yet another spike slammed down on the spot where I¡¯d fallen.


    I rolled and managed to stand up again in record time, but to my horror, I¡¯d accidentally pushed myself in the wrong direction. An L-shaped piece of metal too tall to jump over stood in my way, perfectly hemming me in and blocking off my escape.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    Once again, almost as an ingrained reflex at this point, I jumped out of the way as the spiked appendage slammed the ground and turned to face the monster.


    It loomed over me, already digging its arm out of the ground and preparing for another strike.


    With the stupid piece of debris in the way, my only way out of here was through the iron death machine.


    I had no choice but to fight it head on.


    I grit my teeth and hastily pulled out the sword, gripping it with both of my shaky hands.


    I might have played many games where I fought with swords, but that hardly translated to real life skill.


    Another stabbing strike from it found me jumping to the side, but this time, as soon as the thing hit the ground beside me, I yelled out as I smacked my sword¡¯s blade against the spiky appendage.


    It clinked, rattled it, but didn¡¯t do any significant damage. I nearly dropped the sword from the recoil.


    And then the robot did something unexpected. Instead of trying to stab me again, its chest cavity opened up, revealing something that looked like a cannon.


    My eyes went wide in terror as the cannon lit up, and before my panicking brain could figure out how to get out of this situation, a tsunami of flames surged forward and engulfed me.


    I couldn¡¯t help it, I screamed out and clamped my eyes shut while falling to my knees.


    I was getting burned alive! That was way worse than getting impaled! It frikkin¡¯ burned! It hurt like hell! It¡­


    ¡­wasn¡¯t killing me though. Why was I still conscious, even? That big of a wave of fire should have killed me nearly instantly, shouldn¡¯t it? But it merely kinda hurt.


    I snapped my eyes open only to be nearly blinded by the searing fire all around me. I quickly shut my eyes again.


    I had no idea what was happening, but I was swimming in a sea of fire and somehow wasn¡¯t completely dead.


    And that meant I had a chance.


    I drew my sword and charged forward before blindly swinging with all my might.


    I hit nothing.


    I swung again. And again and again.


    And then my wild swing finally connected with something. I nearly let go of my sword as I startled. But a moment later, I gripped the thing even harder and then just kept swinging madly.


    Then the red hue of my vision faded to black and I immediately opened my eyes again. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust during which I jumped back to preemptively dodge any attacks from the robot again.


    But when my eyes recovered, I saw the robot simply sitting there, unmoving.


    What? Was it dead? Had I somehow defeated it? Could I¨C


    No, that wasn¡¯t important! I needed to get the hell out of here while I could!


    And so I ran. I went around it, quickly glanced around to reorient myself, and then booked it straight out of the crater as fast as I could.


    Only about three seconds into my mad dash, I heard the metallic creaking followed by heavy stomps again and my heart sank.


    It hadn¡¯t been dead at all. Just temporarily disabled for whatever reason.


    That didn¡¯t bode well for me whatsoever. I was almost out of the crater, but it would probably catch up to me by the time I got back to the forest.


    Regardless, I kept running even as the metallic stomps got closer and closer to me.


    And then I finally made it out of the crater, my foot touching the grass outside of it. As soon as I did, I felt an odd sense of relief. Like a reverse of the feeling I¡¯d had when first entering the place.


    I had no time to contemplate what that meant, though; the metallic steps still reverberated clearly in my ears, although they were getting quieter and quieter and¡­


    Wait, hold on.


    I chanced a glance over my shoulder and saw something unexpected. The robot was¡­ going back to where it had come from rather than chasing after me. It had given up on the chase, apparently.


    I slowed down my mad dash and stopped, staring at the thing for a moment as it headed back to the dubious pool of liquid near the spaceship.


    It was¡­ over?


    Then I shook my head.


    I was not taking any chances.


    I turned around and ran into the forest in a random direction. I kept running until I physically couldn¡¯t anymore, at which point I collapsed next to a tree and tried to catch my breath.


    ¡­


    I had almost died back there.


    Several times over.


    That wasn¡¯t funny at all. Why did my first encounter in this world have to be a killer robot? Why not¡­ a horned rabbit or some crap?


    Fuck¡­


    With my breathing calming down, I took one last deep breath and let out a tired sigh, finally letting myself relax after that harrowing experience.


    As soon as I did, an immaterial blue window with some text popped right in front of me, making me jump.


    <u>¡®</u><u>First delve¡¯ Main quest complete!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Delve into a dungeon and come out of it alive [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Side objectives:</u>


    Delve into the dungeon on your own with no outside help [ACHIEVED]


    B rank dungeon or higher [ACHIEVED]


    Conquer the dungeon on your first try [FAILED]


    <u>Hidden objectives:


    </u>???Find a hidden reward chest [ACHIEVED]


    Challenge a dungeon monster at least five times stronger than you [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Reward:</u>


    Racial skill


    +5 SP


    ¡°Wha¡­ What is this?!¡± I yelled, my eyes scanning over the text. ¡°Quest?! Dungeon?! That place was a dungeon?! Hold on, skill?! SP?! Am I in a video game?! What is going on?!¡±


    I could feel the window listening to me mentally dismissing it and demanding answers and it disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared.


    ¡°Wait, hold on¨C!¡±


    And then another window appeared.


    <u>Calibrating racial skill, please wait¡­</u>


    ¡°Racial skill¡­? No, what is this?! What¡¯s up with these floating windows?! Do I have some kind of status screen like in RPGs?¡±


    As soon as I said it ¨C no, as soon as I thought it ¨C it appeared in front of me.


    Name: Nana Aoto


    Title: Fire blessed


    Race: Human


    Skill Points: 5


    <u>Racial skill</u>:<u>


    </u>Calibrating¡­


    <u>Other skills(0/3)</u>:


    Phoenix blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Empty (+)


    Empty (+)


    Empty (+)


    I stared at the text in front of me in bewilderment. I did have a status screen. Had this been here all along? Why hadn¡¯t anyone told me about it?!


    A bit miffed, but also somewhat excited, I read the actual text with a frown.


    The name¡­ Was this a joke¡­? No, of course it was a damn joke! The stupid letter said ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯ and my kidnapper had reincarnated me as my old Vcuber model! Naming me after my Vcuber was just continuing that joke!


    I growled under my breath.


    Well, I didn¡¯t mind that much. My real life name was whatever anyway.


    Anywho, skill points, huh? Could I spend them somewhere? Was there a skill tree or somethi¨C?


    Suddenly, two more windows popped into view.


    One of them said¡­


    <u>Racial skill calibrated!</u>


    You received the racial skill: Streamer!


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    The other window was a lot more familiar, though.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> so it was a phoenix


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> where are my staaaaats?!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> cursed gg bois


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Are you okay, Nana?


    Many more messages like these kept popping up, pushing the old ones to the top and out of sight. Some analyzing the status screen, some wondering if I was okay, some just shitposting as usual.


    I couldn¡¯t help but gape at what I was seeing. It was¡­ It was my stream chat. It was right here even if I was in a completely unknown land filled with killer robots in a body that wasn¡¯t mine. My viewers were somehow here with me. I could read their messages! I had never thought I would be this glad to see George fucking Doshington and his asshole comments.


    I tried taking a slow breath but instead, I hiccuped as tears began to streak down my face.


    ¡°Chat! Help! I¡¯ve been isekai¡¯d!¡± I choked out.

 #005 – Not alternate nor a game, just reality

    <u>Irid123:</u> this is pretty meta ngl


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> character development amirite?


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> feels a bit too real¡­


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> don¡¯t cry Nana it¡¯s gonna be okay


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> the robot is gone


    I continued to sob, trying to get it all under control. I just couldn¡¯t help it. I may have acted strong and decisive, but in reality, I had been terrified of my situation.


    ¡°How¡­¡± I sniffed. ¡°How are you guys even seeing this? There¡¯s no camera.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> we live in your eyeballs


    <u>GonguuH:</u> we can see and hear what you can, I think?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> no dont listen to him


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> we live in your eyeballs


    ¡°Oh¡­ That¡¯s just¡­ weird. How does that even work¡­?¡± I poked my eyelids, tried closing one eye, then the other, as if that would do anything.


    ¡°Also, how long have you guys been around? Did you see me almost get nailed by that robot?¡±


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> before you hatched


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> saw you run like a chicken yup


    <u>Irid123:</u> the stream started a few hours before you hatched


    <u>Irid123:</u> it was just black for a while


    ¡°Wait what? Hold on! Doesn¡¯t that mean you saw me naked? Am I gonna get banned?!¡± I yelled, before quickly realizing the absurdity of that thought.


    Who the heck was going to ban an interdimensional stream?


    <u>Irid123:</u> it was censored


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> black screen


    ¡°That¡¯s just weird¡­¡± I murmured and tried willing the status screen into existence again.


    It worked.


    The window looked identical, except instead of ¡®Calibrating¡­¡¯ under racial skill, it now showed ¡®Streamer¡¯.


    ¡°Is there a description or something¡­?¡± I wondered out loud, and as if it heard me, another smaller window popped up.


    <u>Streamer:</u>


    Stream your own sense of sight and hearing to a familiar audience and read their responses, reactions, and other feedback. This cannot be turned off. Output is censored during bathroom breaks or scenes of nudity.


    This skill works retroactively.


    Half of your Tempor reserves are locked for this skill¡¯s use.


    <u>Racial skill</u> - Allows access to tier 1 human skills in the skill shop. Purchase every upgrade to this skill to unlock the next tier of human skills and the first Limit break.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Extra features (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Admin rights (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Stream history (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Faithful cameraman (3SP)


    ¡°Huh¡­ That¡¯s¡­¡± I hummed. ¡°Can¡¯t be turned off. Well, great. I guess you guys are getting sleep ASMR streams every night. The censor is cool, I guess¡­? Works retroactively¡­ That¡¯s why you guys could watch me before I even got the skill. That¡¯s just weird¡­ Hmm, the heck is Tempor?¡±


    Then my eyes slid down.


    ¡°Whoa, wait. Upgrades? What¡¯s all this mean? Admin rights? You mean I don¡¯t have admin rights for my own stream right now?!¡± I yelled in indignation.


    A smaller window appeared to answer my question.


    <u>Admin rights</u> - Allows banning, muting, and timing out viewers, and giving moderator rights to them.


    ¡°...Wow, I really don¡¯t. I need to buy an upgrade first. That¡¯s so stupid!¡± I crossed my arms in annoyance. ¡°Well, okay, I guess. What do these other upgrades do then, Mr. Status screen?¡±


    <u>Extra features</u> - Grants access to direct messaging, polls, subtitles, and group chats with selected viewers.


    <u>Stream history</u> - Allows you to watch the past records of your own stream and chat.


    <u>Faithful cameraman</u> - Allows you to stream from a different point than your own position. You can freely move this point in a ten meter radius around yourself.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> facecam mode!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> get the cameramna


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> cameraman


    I blinked.


    ¡°That¡¯s interesting¡­ Wait, watch past records of my stream? So since this is my own sight and hearing, I can just look back to what I¡¯ve seen and heard? Isn¡¯t that kinda like a perfect recall with extra steps?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you can go and watch how you flailed against that robot lol


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit, that¡¯s true!


    <u>Irid123:</u> the polls would be nice to have


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can analyze your fight and figure out what you did wrong


    I grimaced at the thought of having to fight something like that robot again but still nodded. ¡°You¡¯re right Jeoff. That could be useful¡­¡± Then I stopped and frowned. ¡°...But none of this would actually help me beat that robot. What¡¯s the point of getting upgrades to my stream if I just die?¡±


    I dismissed the little explanation windows and looked at the line I¡¯d skipped over in the streamer skill.


    ¡°Racial skill¡­ Tier one human skills? A skill shop? Limit break¡­? What is all this¡­?¡± I murmured, once again mentally demanding an explanation.


    A big window opened in front of me alongside a smaller one.


    ¡°Whoa!¡±


    My eyes zeroed in on the smaller one first.


    <u>Limit breaks


    </u>Once you hit a block in your growth, you can attempt to initiate a limit break. Doing so will require you to complete a set of trials in a timeless space specifically curated for you, designed to push you to your utmost limits¡­ and then past them.


    Completing a limit break will unlock a new tier of all skills in the skill shop, open two new skill slots, allow you access to incausal rifts and memory temples, and triple your Ether, Intra, and Tempor reserves and regeneration rate, as well as granting some skill points.


    <u>Warning: Performing a limit break may cause long-term trauma.</u>


    Limit break #1 - Trials of courage [LOCKED]


    Fully upgrade your racial skill and gain one or more Tier 3 achievements to unlock.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Limit break #2 - ??? [LOCKED]


    Limit break #3 - ??? [LOCKED]


    The more I read, the more it felt like I was reading a wiki page on some end game content while still trying to figure out the tutorial. And then I read the warning and noped the heck out of there.


    <u>Irid123:</u> foreshadowing!


    <u>GonguuH:</u> interesting¡­


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> the hell are incausal rifts


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit, ascension mechanics


    <u>Irid123:</u> what¡¯s Ether, Intra and Tempor though?


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that warning is ominous¡­


    ¡°Yeah, no. This is for much much later¡­ or never. Yeah, never sounds good,¡± I declared and closed that window.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> noooo, my ascension mechanics! D:


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you¡¯ll be weak forever then


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I bet you¡¯ll go for it eventually¡­


    I made a face but mostly ignored the comments wanting me to do something that literally had a warning about causing trauma. Not like I could do it right now anyway.


    Then, I focused on the other big window that had popped up. It was labeled <u>Skill shop</u> at the very top, and then it was split into two columns. One labeled <u>Human</u> and the other <u>Phoenix</u>. Both then had the sub-title of <u>Tier 1</u> and then a massive list of what I could only assume were skills. All of them had parenthesis with what was probably their skill point cost, but the vast majority of them were labeled as [LOCKED]. Below that, it continued with <u>Tier 2 [LOCKED]</u>, then tier 3, 4, and finally 5.


    It was way too much stuff that I couldn¡¯t even do anything with.


    ¡°Okay, what the heck? Why show all the locked ones too? Could I¡­ Oh, there we go. Thanks, Mr. System.¡±


    Just as I¡¯d asked, all the locked skills disappeared, leaving me with just a few skills still available in both columns.


    In the human one, I had:


    <u>Tier 1:</u>


    Persistence (1SP)


    Soulbound item (2SP)


    Craftsman (2SP)


    Appraisal (2SP)


    Hunter¡¯s eye (3SP)


    Conqueror (5SP)


    And the phoenix one had:


    <u>Tier 1:</u>


    Heat vision (2SP)


    Fire breath (3SP)


    Featherfall (4SP)


    Flameguard (5SP)


    As I looked over the much shorter list, I frowned.


    ¡°Hold on, why do I have phoenix skills¡­?¡± I muttered before my eyes went wide. ¡°Oh shit! The egg! So it was a phoenix!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea obviously


    <u>Irid123:</u> you have that cursed skill


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> cool system so far


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol literal birdbrain


    ¡°Wait, what? Cursed skill?¡±


    I hurriedly thought about looking at my main status screen and immediately noticed the elephant in the room I¡¯d somehow missed before.


    <u>Other skills(0/3)</u>:


    Phoenix blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Empty (+)


    Empty (+)


    Empty (+)


    ¡°Wait, what the hell?! Cursed? Hold on, how is it both a blessing and a curse?! What is this thing?!¡±


    Another explanation window appeared.


    <u>Phoenix blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]:


    </u>Time left: 59d, 18h, 21m, 14s


    You have been granted this skill as a result of equipping the ¡®Fire blessed¡¯ title. It grants the following:


    - Minor fire resistance


    - Minor boost to fire-related skills and spells


    - Resisted fire damage will heal instead of wounding<u>


    </u>- You age 60x faster


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> phoenix powaaah!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oooh nice


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you can start showering with fire lol


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you gotta start stacking fire resist


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait it¡¯s temporary¡­ meh


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao speedrunning ot grandma


    I blinked as realization dawned on me.


    ¡°That was why that robot¡¯s flamethrower didn¡¯t kill me! I have fire resistance from this thing! And I can heal from fire too? Is that why the green fire healed me¡­? Or was it¡­ Wait, what the heck? I age sixty times faster?! Why the¡­ Oh¡­¡±


    I touched my tiny hand on my tiny stomach.


    Because my body was that of a five-year-old, huh? If I did the math, aging sixty times faster for¡­ two months ¨C if that timer was to be believed ¨C would be about ten years worth of growth. So by the time this skill ran out, I would look like I was fifteen? That was super weird¡­


    ¡°Hold on, that still hadn¡¯t answered the cursed thing! Or the other two tag things!¡±


    Three little windows popped right below the skill¡¯s explanation.


    [CURSED] - This skill cannot be replaced or removed by any usual means.


    [FREE] - This skill doesn¡¯t take up a skill slot.


    [TEMPORARY] - This skill will permanently disappear after a set amount of time.


    I blinked.


    Replaced or removed? Right, the status screen did say skill slots, implying that I could normally swap skills in and out. But [CURSED] made it so that I couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°Okay, this is starting to make a bit more sense. Cursed and temporary basically make it so that I have to keep this skill in my skill slots until it runs out. But that¡¯s not really a big deal since it¡¯s also free and doesn¡¯t take up a skill slot. Neat.¡± I nodded to myself.


    Although, that still didn¡¯t explain why I had access to the phoenix skills. Maybe that title thing had something to do with that? I¡¯d skipped over it as well last time¡­ Let¡¯s see¡­


    <u>Titles:


    </u>Certain achievements and feats can unlock equipable titles. Titles have unique passive effects separate from skills and can be changed every 30 days.


    <u>Available titles:


    </u>Fire blessed (EQUIPPED)


    ¡°Right, okay. And what does this title do then?¡±


    <u>Fire blessed:</u>


    You have been reincarnated by a phoenix using the ¡®Molten ash of new life¡¯ skill.


    The title is automatically equipped right after reincarnation. Having this title equipped allows the wielder access to tier 1 (this is fixed) phoenix skills. Equipping it for the first time also grants the ¡®Phoenix blessing¡¯ skill for 60 days with [CURSED], [FREE], and [TEMPORARY] modifiers.


    And there it was. Both the confirmation that a phoenix was responsible for my predicament and also the reason why I had access to phoenix skills.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> yup, the culprit was a phoenix


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> hey guys


    <u>Irid123:</u> neat, I guess we¡¯re looking for a phoenix now


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> what¡¯s Nana doing?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup lawyer


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> ARG


    I stared at the little windows for a good while, not sure how to feel. Where was this phoenix who had reincarnated me? Why did they do it? Why me?


    I pursed my lips, remembering going to sleep last night. Remembering how hot I¡¯d felt.


    ¡°Hold on¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°Did a phoenix break into my house and burn me alive?!¡± I shouted. ¡°Why?! Why would ¨C Wait.¡±


    I finally noticed what was happening in my chat.


    <u>Irid123:</u> she¡¯s doing this meta ARG stream where she pretends to be isekai¡¯d


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea its super high quality


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> cant even tell its a voice changer


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> its cool


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> oh? interesting


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> It feels a bit too real to be ARG¡­


    <u>Irid123:</u> I¡¯m just waiting to see how she excuses stopping the stream


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> she just figured out she has an RPG status screen and we¡¯ve been going through it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol wtf? phoenix bulglar?


    ¡°Wait¡­ No. Chat. This isn¡¯t an ARG!¡± I denied. ¡®This is real! I¡¯m really in another world!¡°


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> even stays in character at all times


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> super cool


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yes, you definitely are in another world, ignore us


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> ok prove it


    I felt my stomach sink as I read the comments. They never believed I had really gotten isekai¡¯d, had they? They had just been ¡®playing along¡¯. After all, they were just watching a stream. Nothing magical or supernatural there. And there was no way I could prove this was real, was there? What could I possibly do to prove it?


    Nothing.


    For some reason, I felt incredibly lonely at that thought. Not like them believing me would somehow make me less alone but¡­


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> Nana are you okay?


    ¡°...Yeah, I¡¯m fine,¡± I lied. ¡°I just need a moment.¡±


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> I believe you Nana. And I believe you can make it back home


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I believe you too!


    Despite myself, I smiled.


    They probably weren¡¯t serious. Probably just played along as well¡­ But it still made me feel just a little better.


    ¡°Thanks Spoon¡­ You too, Ranger.¡± I took a deep breath to calm myself. ¡°Alright chat, I¨C¡±


    I blinked, just now realizing that my surroundings were a lot dimmer than before. I glanced to the side and saw red clouds in the sky, indicating sunset.


    How long had I been sitting here?


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± A chill went down my spine as I realized the predicament I was in. ¡°Crap! It¡¯s getting dark! Chat, what do I do?!¡±

 #006 – Do monsters spawn at night?

    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> dig straight down


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> build a dirt house


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit, interactive event


    ¡°Very funny! No, I¡¯m serious, chat! What do I do?! I¡¯m a streamer, not a wilderness survivalist!¡± I drew my sword and looked around in a hurry, mildly surprised that nothing had snuck up on me while I¡¯d been sitting under the tree.


    Although, to be fair, I still had yet to run into any living creature, if you ignored the killer robot.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> find shelter!


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> you need to find a shelter


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> climb a tree


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe one of the skills will help?


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> a hollow tree or cavern will do but make sure there aren¡¯t any animals inside first


    I whipped up the skill shop I¡¯d subconsciously closed at some point and quickly skimmed through all of the available skills¡¯ descriptions. Unfortunately, most of the skills were for fighting. Some provided a bit of utility, but none of them were immediately useful for finding a safe hiding place in a hurry.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wtfff don¡¯t panic buy skills!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> why panik? there arent even any monsters


    <u>GonguuH:</u> maybe go back to the cave where your egg is?


    ¡°I¡¯m not panic buying skills Jeoff, I¡¯m just skimming through them¡­¡± I murmured, trying to split my attention between reading the skills¡¯ descriptions, reading the chat, and looking around for any monsters that might want to jump me. Luckily, I had a lot of experience with paying attention to multiple things at once, what with being a streamer.


    ¡°And I¡¯m panicking because I don¡¯t know if the night changes anything! What if there wasn¡¯t anything because all the monsters spawn at night¡­? Good idea, Gong, but where was my egg? I don¡¯t remember which way I went!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> so its like a survival video game?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> gimme a sec, gonna rewatch


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> meh shitty ARG if she already knows whats up


    With all the stress and panic I was feeling, I couldn¡¯t help but bristle and yell, ¡°This is not an ARG! Screw you, George!¡±


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> calm down, if there¡¯s monsters, yelling will attract them


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yeah shut up geogre


    I took a deep breath once more.


    Seriously. My emotions were all over the place. Every little thing set me on edge. But considering I¡¯d been reincarnated, nearly killed again by a robot, and then reunited with my chat, It was a wonder that I wasn¡¯t having a total mental breakdown.


    Still, stupid George Doshington. I should get the admin rights upgrade just to ban him. Or rather, I should have banned him ages ago.


    <u>sunnysideways:</u> yeah GE ogre, shut up


    <u>Irid123:</u> GE-ogre? lol


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> who tf you callin ogre


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lol typo


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> Grubbily Evolved ogre


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> shut up ogre


    I frowned at the chat, who was now calling George an ogre for some reason.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> ok Nana, I¡¯ll guide you back to the cave, follow my instructions


    I blinked.


    ¡°O-Okay! I¡¯m counting on you! Don¡¯t you dare prank me!¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> ok, look to your left and find the tree with the low-hanging C-shaped branch that¡¯s near a bush


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuck u guys


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> greatly embarrassed ogre


    <u>GonguuH:</u> what? no I¡¯m watching the stream back


    I shook my head, opting to ignore the ogre discussion, and focused on what Gong was typing.


    ¡°Okay, gotcha. Tree with a C-shaped branch¡­¡± I looked to my left and quickly found what he was talking about.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> now go right from there, between the two smaller trees


    I muttered an affirmation and kept following his instructions. The chat, in the meantime, continued to come up with creative abbreviations for GE ogre.


    I couldn¡¯t help it. I giggled a little despite my situation.


    After my near death experience and all the tension I had been feeling, a bit of light-hearted teasing really helped my mind relax.


    But not too much, obviously. I still didn¡¯t know whether there were any night-time monsters waiting for me to drop my guard.


    Either way, the fact that I wasn¡¯t completely alone here made me feel just a bit lighter. It was like I had a faithful companion helping me, giving me advice, and cheering me up when I needed it. Just that the companion wasn¡¯t an annoying fairy but my chat.


    I¡­ could live with that. It could have been much worse, to be honest.


    After a good while of following directions, I actually made it back to the cave where I¡¯d hatched just as the skies began to darken. I approached it carefully, unsure whether the supposed phoenix who¡¯d reincarnated me had returned.


    But there was nobody. I snuck a peek at the remains of my egg, finding that it seemed to have gone untouched since I¡¯d left it there.


    I breathed out a sigh.


    ¡°Thanks, Gong¡­ Can¡¯t believe you actually tracked this place backwards. Seriously, thanks.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> no prob, it was pretty fun tbh


    I smiled wryly.


    That guy found the weirdest things fun.


    ¡°Also, you guys¡­ You can stop making fun of George now. You¡¯re going a bit overboard,¡± I said as I entered the cave, still wary of anything that could jump out at me.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> yeah get out of my swamp jerks


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao


    I burst into laughter before I could stop myself before quickly covering my mouth to muffle the noise.


    Right. That was the reason why I¡¯d never banned George. Even if he was an ass, he was just too much fun to have around. Like an annoying brother you couldn¡¯t help but like.


    As I tried to get my giggling under control, I glanced out of the cave to quickly check for any predators my outburst might have attracted. There was still absolutely nothing around, though. All I could see were trees and bushes, and all I could hear was the wind and faint rustling of leaves.


    It was honestly creepier that way. How come there was absolutely nothing? At least a little squirrel or something¡­


    I pursed my lips and made my way to the eggshell that still lay inside the cave untouched. There were no signs of anything else in the cave. It seemed to be safe.


    I let out a sigh in relief, finally sheathed my sword, and sat behind the egg, just to be a bit better hidden from the outside.


    ¡­


    What now?


    Frankly speaking, I didn¡¯t really have a plan. I wanted to find civilization, but considering I¡¯d found a crashed spaceship ¨C which was apparently a dungeon? ¨C before any people, my chances weren¡¯t looking great. If there were no people near that spaceship, even though it should, by all means, be a massive point of interest, then I had to be pretty far from civilization.


    I let out another sigh. This one, in mental exhaustion.


    ¡°Okay¡­ I should¡­ What should I do? Chat, what do you think I should do now?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> go punch the robot


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> you could sleep and rest?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> buy fire breath and heat vision


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea use the skill shop


    I blinked.


    Right, the skill shop.


    I opened the interface back up and looked at the available skills again. Listening to Jeoff¡¯s suggestion, I opened up the descriptions for Heat vision and Fire breath and properly took my time reading them rather than skimming over them in panic.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    <u>Heat vision:


    </u>Tune your vision to the infrared spectrum and see how hot things around you are. This can be toggled on and off. Uses a small amount of Intra.


    <u>Upgrade</u>: Zoom (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Cold stare (3SP)


    ¡°Hey, wait! That sounds super useful!¡±


    Now that I was properly processing what the skill did, I realized that this was the perfect skill to help me see monsters trying to ambush me. Well, unless they were cold-hearted killer robots, at least¡­


    As for the other skill¡­


    <u>Fire breath:</u>


    Spew fire from your mouth using a small amount of Ether. Related body parts of yours will temporarily gain enough fire resistance to prevent damage to them.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Flame bullet (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Extreme temperature (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Mega lungs (9SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Phoenix breath (80SP)


    ¡°I can be a friggin¡¯ dragon, guys! Well, a phoenix! Also holy cow, that one upgrade is expensive! Why is it so expensive? What does it even do?¡±


    <u>Phoenix breath</u> - Breathe Phoenix fire instead of normal fire. Phoenix fire can ignite, burn, melt, vaporize, or completely erase selected objects and living beings, while leaving everything else untouched. Uses a large amount of Intra in addition to quadrupling the Ether use. You can switch between different breaths as you please.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> holy shit that¡¯s so strong


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> really expensive tho


    <u>Irid123:</u> is it? we don¡¯t even know how you get skill points


    I blinked.


    I could pick what it burned? That could be incredibly useful in some situations¡­ but the price still seemed way too high for it.


    ¡°Yeah, guess we don¡¯t really know how hard it is to get one skill point¡­¡± I absent-mindedly replied to Irid. ¡°But considering nearly dying was worth five, it¡¯s probably not easy to get eighty¡­ It doesn¡¯t even seem all that good anyway.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no listen, you can DELETE ANYTHING! that¡¯s incredibly op


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wtf why do you get broken shit right away?


    <u>Irid123:</u> oh yeah, I bet you need to use it to break into a secret room somewhere


    Oh¡­ Jeoff was right. It did say ¡®erase¡¯ selected objects and living beings. In other words, as long as I could hit a monster with it, I would win. No matter what kind of monster it was.


    Why was such a powerful upgrade on a tier one skill?


    ¡°Okay, I might try to save up for that¡­ If I go with Fire breath. Anyway, what the heck is Intra and Ether?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> dude no, get appraisal first


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s a classic


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably fancy names for mana?


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> what about flame guard?


    I hummed in agreement.


    ¡°Yeah, probably mana. I guess there¡¯s two types of mana? No, wait. Three. Didn¡¯t something mention another weird word?¡± I murmured. ¡°Let me check the other skills¡­¡±


    Going by the suggestions, I opened the description for Appraisal. I also just realized that I¡¯ve gotten pretty good at mentally controlling the interface already. Neat.


    <u>Appraisal:</u>


    Glean information about a target item. Uses a minor amount of Intra.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Assess (1SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Inspiration (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Psychometry (9SP)


    ¡°Huh¡­ Well, that¡¯s¡­ simple. Wait, psychometry? Isn¡¯t that¡­¡±


    <u>Psychometry</u> - You can now glean the rough history of the appraised object. Uses a moderate to large amount of Intra based on how old the object is.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> archiology time boisss


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that¡¯s cool!


    <u>Irid123:</u> and there¡¯s the lore mcguffin


    ¡°That¡­ is cool, yeah. Probably not immediately useful, though.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Okay, I should stop getting distracted. Can¡¯t even afford these upgrades, I should look at the ones I can actually buy.¡±


    <u>Assess</u> - You can now use appraisal on living beings.


    <u>Inspiration</u> - Appraising an item will now tell you about its possible uses. Uses more Intra.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> inspiration sounds really nice


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> meh you can¡¯t even use it on monsters until you upgrade it¡­<u>


    JamieWasTaken3:</u> inspiration is like a bootleg wiki search lol


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you can use it on the slime bottle and maybe make something useful


    I blinked and then pulled up the bottle of weird liquid that had healed me back when I¡¯d been hiding from the robot. I still wasn¡¯t quite sure whether the fire it had created when touching my blood had healing properties of its own or if my Phoenix blessing was what had caused it to heal me, but maybe I could make something out of it. Either actual healing potions or¡­ molotov cocktails?


    I shook my head and took a look at the skill Spoon had suggested.


    <u>Flameguard:</u>


    Ignite parts of your body, burning anything that gets close to you. Your entire body temporarily gets half the necessary fire resistance to withstand this skill.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Channel fire (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Living torch (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Eternal flames (9SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Self-destruct (11SP)


    I grimaced.


    ¡°Yeah, probably not this one. Only half the resistance I would need¡­ Not even gonna look at the upgrades right now. Can¡¯t afford them.¡± I shook my head, took one more look at the window, noticed the last upgrade¡¯s name, grimaced again, and then closed the window.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no wait, that¡¯s actually good


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> oh I thought it would make a shield or something


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you take half the damage, and heal the other half because of blessing


    <u>GonguuH:</u> more than half, blessing gives some resist too


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yeah true


    I frowned, briefly opening the window again.


    ¡°You¡¯re right¡­ but I would still get burnt by it, wouldn¡¯t I?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea probably<u>


    Jeofffff:</u> it would hurt yeah, but it¡¯s good synergy


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> do it you chicken


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Guys, this is not a game! I am not gonna constantly burn and heal myself like some masochist! That sounds more like a divine punishment than a way to fight killer robots!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe when you get more resist then


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> cmon I wanna see you firehugging poeple


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> persistence could be good too, since you have a kid body


    I opened up the description for persistence again, ignoring George.


    <u>Persistence:</u>


    Doubles your health, stamina, and Ether regeneration.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Wait, isn¡¯t that really good? It¡¯s just one skill point!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no upgrades and takes up a skill slot tho


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you already have health regen with the blessing, don¡¯t have a use for Ether yet, and stamina hasn¡¯t been an issue so far


    I frowned in thought. ¡°That¡¯s true¡­ Huh¡­¡± The more I thought about it, the less amazing the skill seemed. ¡°Is this skill a beginner¡¯s trap¡­?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea its shit tier skill unless Ether regen is secretly super good<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> your cheating with the phoenix stuff lol


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> It was probably meant to be an early game skill for normal humans. It¡¯s worth it if you don¡¯t yet have that many skills.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> much less useful with phoenix blessing


    ¡°I guess so,¡± I said before letting out a big yawn.


    I blinked tears out of my eyes and looked outside, to see the dark sky completely devoid of the sun now.


    ¡°Crap¡­ I got caught up in browsing skills¡­¡± I murmured. ¡°Chat, what should I do? Do you think I¡¯m safe here¡­?¡±


    I felt reasonably safe, but if any bear or wolf decided to wander into my hiding spot while I slept, I would be toast.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> buy fire breath and heat vision


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s the best combo you can get rn


    <u>GonguuH:</u> agreed


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> flameguaaaaaard


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> maybe you can make a door with craftsman?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> heat vision to spot enemies, fire breath to fight if you need to


    <u>Irid123:</u> no time for that


    I thought about my options for a bit, browsing and rereading the skill descriptions some more, before finally deciding to go with Jeoff¡¯s suggestion.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get these then¡­ How does this work? Do I just think about buying the skills?¡±


    <u>Purchase the skill [Heat vision] for 2 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°Oh, there we go.¡± I nodded to myself and sent the mental command to confirm the purchase.


    <u>¡®Heat vision¡¯ skill unlocked!</u>


    And the other one¡­


    <u>Purchase the skill [Fire breath] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°Yes,¡± I murmured even if I didn¡¯t need to.


    <u>¡®Fire breath¡¯ skill unlocked!</u>


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    I opened up my main status window and looked into the skills, but to my confusion, the skills I¡¯d just bought weren¡¯t there, even though skill points were at zero now.


    ¡°The heck? Where are my skills?!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao scammed


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably need to equip them first


    I tried to give a mental command to equip both skills and show me a list of skills I had and it actually worked. The skills both appeared in my ¡®Other skills¡¯ while a new window popped up.


    Name: Nana Aoto


    Title: Fire blessed


    Race: Human


    Skill Points: 0


    <u>Racial skill</u>:<u>


    </u>Streamer


    <u>Other skills(2/3)</u>:


    Phoenix blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Heat vision


    Fire breath


    Empty (+)


    ¡°There we go!¡± I skimmed over my new status screen but frowned when I glanced over to the available skills window.


    <u>Available skills:


    </u><u>Tier 0:


    </u>Phoenix blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY] (EQUIPPED)


    <u>Tier 1:</u>


    Fire breath (EQUIPPED)


    Heat vision (EQUIPPED)


    ¡°Tier zero? The heck? I guess the blessing is a special case¡­?¡± I muttered before letting out another huge yawn.


    Honestly, why was I so tired? As far as I could tell, I¡¯d hatched mid-day, so I should still have plenty of energy¡­


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> tier 0 is probably skills you can¡¯t normally buy


    <u>Irid123:</u> yeah it¡¯s a special case


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> cute lil phoenix yawn lol


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> You are technically a baby, right? You need your sleep.


    I blushed, but luckily, chat couldn¡¯t see that.


    ¡°Yeah, you might be right, Ranger¡­¡± I glanced outside of the cave one more time, still anxious about being eaten by something in my sleep.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> dw well yell at you if we hear something sneaking into the cave


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gotta prepare my airhorns


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Not like I can hear you, chat.¡± I pursed my lips. ¡°It still feels too dangerous to sleep.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you could try setting up traps around the entrance<u>


    SpoOo0oOon:</u> you could camouflage the entrance?<u>


    RetconRanger:</u> I think it¡¯s fine. I mean, nothing attacked your egg while you hatched. The phoenix probably put your egg in a safe spot.


    I considered the suggestions, but I didn¡¯t trust myself to stay awake long enough to fortify the entrance in any way, and dozing off while in the middle of it would be even worse.


    I let out a weary sigh.


    ¡°I hope you¡¯re right, Ranger,¡± I muttered and looked around for a good spot to sleep.


    Obviously, there weren¡¯t any. The hard ground would probably be terrible and I didn¡¯t even have anything to cover myself with.


    Then I glanced at the remains of my egg and had a weird thought.


    I had called it my bed, hadn¡¯t I? And I remembered it being nice and soft inside¡­ Even with the hole, it would probably still be more comfortable than the cold stone of the cavern.


    Hmm¡­


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m just gonna go to sleep¡­ G¡¯night chat¡­¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> good night, Nana!


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> good night! sleep well!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> good n- wait wtf


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao reverse chicken


    I placed the sheathed sword next to the egg and climbed inside it, ignoring the chat¡¯s amused reaction.


    As soon as I found a comfortable position, I closed my eyes and quickly drifted off.

 #007 – This world is weirdly quiet and empty

    When I came to, everything felt both unfamiliar and familiar at the same time.


    I clearly recognized the fact that rather than my bed, I was inside some spherical object. No, not spherical. An egg-shaped.


    My eyes shot open with a start and I began looking around in confusion, but all I¡¯d accomplished was cracking the egg around me even more.


    With a gasp, the egg toppled to the side and I found myself face planting into the hard rock floor of the cave I was in.


    I lay there for a good minute, as my mind quickly woke up, confusion giving way to realization and dread.


    The egg, the spaceship, the robot, chat¡­


    ¡°T¡¯wasn¡¯t a dream¡­¡± I murmured under my breath. ¡°M¡¯still here¡­¡±


    Which meant¡­


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lololol


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> wow what a way to end the asmr


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> wtf


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> told u


    ¡°...Hey, chat. I¡¯m awake¡­¡± I automatically said, without putting much heart into it.


    <u>Uwith3dotz:</u> so it¡¯s an ARG with ASMR at night?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> morning


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea looks like it


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> gmorning


    I groaned and opted to ignore the chat for a bit. It was too early to be getting pointlessly mad at them calling my new life ARG again.


    So I climbed out of my egg, glanced around the empty cave, and stretched while letting out a yawn.


    Fortunately, it looked like nothing had attacked me during the night. But just how long would that last? How many more times did I want to risk sleeping in an open cave completely undefended?


    The answer was zero. I didn¡¯t want to risk it anymore. I needed to get myself a proper shelter. Sure, I would have preferred to find a village or something and sleep in an actual bed, and obviously, I would keep searching for one, but for now, I had to at least get something temporary.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Chat, I¡­¡± And then I stopped and glanced at the little transparent chat window.


    It was probably morning back on Earth as well if I were to guess. But I usually never streamed in the morning.


    ¡°Who¡¯s still around, by the way?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> Im here


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> hello


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> prolly gonna leave in a bit tho


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Good morning, Nana.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> jeoff was mad you didn¡¯t try the skills last night btw lol


    I hummed. ¡°Morning¡­ Hey, Mike! Welcome!¡± It looked like most of my regulars except for George, Jamie, and Ranger weren¡¯t here. But there were also some new people¡­ It was kind of annoying that I didn¡¯t even see how many viewers were watching. ¡°Oh yeah, the skills! I just bought them and then went to sleep last night, huh? Alright then, chat!¡±


    I clapped my hands and got my thoughts in order. ¡°Today on the menu, we have: Testing the skills I¡¯d bought yesterday, continuing to look for civilization, if that fails, at least finding a decent shelter, and if that fails, fortify this cave and make it safer!¡±


    <u>Uwith3dotz:</u> oh it¡¯s a wilderness survival ARG?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> no dont look for people


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> solo nomad is better


    ¡°Although If I¡¯m honest, I¡¯m probably gonna be alone for a while, so don¡¯t worry George¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°If there were any settlements nearby, they would have been all over the spaceship dungeon.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh yeah go back there and punch the robot


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> so what skills do you have?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea thats true


    Ignoring George, I pulled up the status and looked at the two skills I¡¯d bought yesterday again as I picked up my sword again and walked out of the cave. As soon as I did, the morning sun shone down on me, making the red stains on my bottoms very visible.


    ¡­I¡¯d forgotten about the bloodstains and just slept with that on.


    ¡°Okay¡­ First though, I really need to find water¡­ I can¡¯t believe I slept like this, ugh¡­¡± I shook my head in self-disgust and then stepped forward into the forest. ¡°Okay, skills. So the first one is heat vision. It should help me spot monsters¡­ Or that was the plan at least¡­¡±


    I mentally prodded the skill, trying to find the metaphorical light switch. It came to me almost immediately. Before I could stop myself, my vision suddenly shifted into something utterly unrecognizable.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> infrared vision lol


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> oh that¡¯s cool


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> its like a spy movie


    Unlike in the movies, I didn¡¯t suddenly see the world in blue with red warm spots. No, I saw completely different colors that I couldn¡¯t possibly describe to someone who hadn¡¯t experienced them. Most of the trees around me were of a duller calmer color, while everything in the sun¡¯s direction had a more¡­ active color.


    In the meantime, the status and chat windows remained identical, weirdly enough.


    ¡°Holy shhh¡­shopping spree! Are you seeing this, chat?!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea classic infrared vision


    <u>Uwith3dotz:</u> that was abrupt


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> go n infiltrate the spaceship now lol


    I frowned. Classic infrared? This wasn¡¯t classic at all¡­ But then again, this skill probably literally changed how my eyes worked for me to see more colors. For anyone behind a screen watching this, not much would change.


    ¡°Okay¡­ you probably can¡¯t really see what I¡¯m seeing then, chat,¡± I muttered while looking around with my cool new vision. ¡°It¡¯s like¡­ completely different. Brand new colors and everything. But I guess the stream looks like infrared vision in the movies.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> whattt


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> wtf really?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I want cool alien vision too


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> that¡¯s a shame but makes sense


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I thought we live in your eyeballs smh


    I glanced around some more, looking for any suspicious hotspots other than those illuminated by the sun, but didn¡¯t find any. Satisfied that no sabertooth squirrel was going to jump me anytime soon, I blinked and turned the heat vision off.


    ¡°The other skill was¡­ Fire breath,¡± I said while pointedly looking around all the very flammable trees and brushes all around me. ¡°Probably gonna find a better place for testing it first, though.¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> sounds like a plan


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> buuuurn down the forest!


    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.<u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> take your revenge on the squirrels!


    ¡°What squirrels?¡± I said, my tone deadpan. ¡°I have yet to run into a single insect, George.¡± I frowned. ¡°...Which is really weird, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> insectless isekai


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> take revenge on the trees then


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> holy shit thats the dream


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> no mosquitos


    With that in mind, I picked a random direction, different from yesterday, and began walking in a straight line, hoping to find some water to wash myself off. In the meantime I pondered on whether the lack of insects meant anything. There didn¡¯t seem to be any animals either¡­ And obviously, I hadn¡¯t run into people yet. Combined with that crashed spaceship¡­


    Was this a post-apocalyptic world where all life save for trees and dungeons had been wiped out?


    Surely not, right?


    Why would there still be plants around if that was the case? And how would the ecosystem even work without any animals and insects? I wasn¡¯t an expert on that by any means, but didn¡¯t flowers need insects to pollinate or something?


    Maybe not.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> well gtg bb enjoy your antimosquito zone


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> bye James


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> goodbye


    ¡°Oh, bye, Jamie! Have a good rest of your day!¡± I called out, shooing away my previous line of thought. ¡°By the way, how many people are watching right now? I can¡¯t actually see the viewer count from here.¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> about two dozen


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> 25


    ¡°Huh¡­ more than I thought,¡± I admitted. I wasn¡¯t exactly a big streamer, but having a nonstop marathon stream probably helped with the numbers, huh?


    And I would never be able to take a break.


    I let out a sigh.


    Yeah, let¡¯s not think about all of that.


    And then, as if to distract me from the depressing thought, my stomach made a noise, making me acutely aware that I hadn¡¯t eaten anything since I¡¯d found myself here.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Right. Chat, I also kinda need to find food¡­¡± I briefly looked around the trees and bushes for any fruits or berries, but weirdly enough, there wasn¡¯t anything despite it being spring. Or, well, at least it looked like it was spring.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> uh oh


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you could eat insects, worst case scenario<u>


    Uwith3dotz:</u> that¡¯s gross


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mb you can fish if you find water or smth


    ¡°Yeah that would be gross¡­ But even if I wanted to, I can¡¯t even do that, Mike. There aren¡¯t even any insects around, that¡¯s the problem. There¡¯s nothing at all. Just trees and bushes without any fruits.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I could try fishing if I find a river or a lake, yeah¡­ Also, I thought you left, Jamie¡­?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> sorry lol gonna go for real now bye


    ¡°Bye¡­¡± I said absent-mindedly before turning on my heat vision for a brief moment again and glancing around.


    I didn¡¯t spot anything of interest.


    For about half an hour, I kept wandering in the same direction, talking to chat, and turning my heat vision on from time to time to glance around in hopes of spotting something. A couple of new people popped up in chat and I more or less gave up on trying to convince everyone that this wasn¡¯t an ARG. We were in the middle of discussing how creepy the empty forest was when I finally found something.


    I saw a spot of heat in a different direction from where the Sun was shining. South-west, if I had my directions right.


    ¡°Oh, there¡¯s something, chat!¡± I said in excitement and was about to walk off before chat stopped me.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> wait


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> mark a tree with your sword


    I blinked.


    ¡°Oh¡­ Good idea, Mike! Actually, I probably should have done that as I walked, huh¡­?¡±


    Regardless, I looked around where I stood, trying to somewhat memorize the direction I¡¯d come from, and then I pulled my sword, and awkwardly carved an ¡®X¡¯ into one of the trees.


    I considered drawing an arrow, but I also didn¡¯t want to lead anyone who might find it back to my egg cave. I didn¡¯t know whether I would sleep there again, but better safe than sorry.


    Not that there seemed to be any people.


    With that done, I walked off my straight path and toward the heat spot I¡¯d seen. It didn¡¯t take long for me to reach it.


    To my bewilderment, the heat spot was a lake¡­ Or at least something that looked like a lake at first glance.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> looks sus


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> that¡¯s not water¡­


    Instead of water, the lake was filled with green slimy transparent substance. Turning my heat vision on and off confirmed that it was giving off heat for some reason.


    The heck was that? It wasn¡¯t going to suddenly come to life and try to drag me under, right? Ugh, I kind of wished I¡¯d gotten the Appraisal skill¡­


    I carefully drew my sword while staying a good distance from the lake and then slowly approached it, looking for any signs of it suddenly becoming sentient.


    Nothing happened and I made it close enough to poke the fake water with the tip of my sword. As soon as I did, the circuits on the sword briefly lit up, making me startle and jump back.


    I tensed up but my sword dimmed and went dormant again and the lake didn¡¯t do anything either.


    <u>Uwith3dotz:</u> why is your sword glowing?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> its battery slime lol


    ¡°...I think the lake isn¡¯t inherently dangerous,¡± I said after a moment as I relaxed again and looked at my sword. ¡°What¡¯s up with this, though¡­?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> alien technology?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> maybe the slime is hot because it¡¯s charged?


    ¡°Maybe¡­¡±


    I approached the lake again and dipped the sword¡¯s tip into it once more. The circuits lit up with greenish light again and I could feel the sword subtly vibrating.


    ¡°It¡¯s buzzing¡­ Weird.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wait isnt that stuff the same as the potion?


    I blinked and pulled out the vial of green substance from my pocket and studied it. To be fair, it did look a bit similar. But the lake didn¡¯t seem to be anywhere near as viscous.


    ¡°It¡¯s similar, but¡­ I don¡¯t think they are the same.¡± I frowned. ¡°But it does look the same as the spaceship¡¯s leak, now that I think about it¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> maybe the potion is this stuff but refined


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> only one way to find out


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> toss your bloody pants into the lake


    I glared at the sludge lake.


    ¡°How about no, George?¡±


    Instead of stripping and chucking my pants into a lake of unknown substance like a maniac, I instead backed up a little, sat down on the ground, and uncorked the vial. I placed my sword on the ground and carefully shook the vial, trying to get a bit of the viscous liquid out.


    A bit of time and effort later, a drop fell down on the sword and as soon as it touched it, the circuits surged with power, lighting up in neon green.


    ¡°Whoa!¡± I jerked away from it on instinct and lidded my eyes. ¡°Okay¡­ I think the theory of the potion being that stuff refined might have some merit¡­¡±


    The sword seemed to have absorbed the bit of green slime, and kept on glowing even though I didn¡¯t pour any more on it.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lightsaberrrr


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> sweet


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> what does it do though?


    ¡°That¡¯s a good question, Mike¡­ I assume it¡¯s probably stronger now? No idea how exactly, though¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> maybe you can shoot the green fire with it


    I tried to swing the sword to see if it would do anything magical, but it merely swished through the air like normal. I tried to mentally command it to release its stored power or what have you, but nothing happened.


    ¡°Well, if I can, I have no idea how¡­¡± I muttered.


    And then my stomach grumbled again.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Why couldn¡¯t this be a real lake¡­?¡± I whined.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> eat the lake in revenge


    ¡°Yeah, brilliant idea, George,¡± I grumped. ¡°I¡¯ll become a glowstick then.¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> wait maybe it¡¯s not a bad idea


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you should move on and keep looking for food


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> it healed you before, right?


    I frowned.


    ¡°I mean, it did but¡­ I don¡¯t know about eating it. I¡¯m not even sure if it¡¯s safe to touch, much less edible¡­ I don¡¯t think I¡¯m that desperate yet.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> do it you chicken


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> IS IT safe to touch then? try it


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you really shouldn¡¯t¡­


    I pursed my lips as I looked at the lake in trepidation. I didn¡¯t know whether it would electrocute me or something, but a light touch shouldn¡¯t be too bad, right?


    I cautiously approached and kneeled down by the lake.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> wait


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gogogo


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> stick your sword in the ground


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> use it as a lever to get away if you need to


    I blinked at the odd suggestion.


    ¡°Uh¡­ Alright.¡±


    I stabbed the glowing sword into the dirt and tightly gripped it. Then I reached toward the lake with my other hand and touched the slime.


    It was warm.


    And slimy.


    And didn¡¯t electrocute me.


    I let out a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Wow, why am I so paranoid? I¡¯m setting myself on edge for no reason.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> good now eat it


    I briefly considered it¡­ Then I let go of my sword, cupped my hands to scoop up a bit of the fake water ¨C and wow did it feel slimy ¨C before lifting it up in front of myself and sniffing it.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> holy shit shes doing it


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> don¡¯t eat it!


    <u>Uwith3dotz:</u> that¡¯s gross


    It smelled¡­ actually a little sweet, oddly enough. Not that its smell could tell me whether it was edible or not.


    I let out a sigh and poured the substance back into the lake.


    ¡°I wish I¡¯d bought the Appraisal¡­¡±


    Well, no use crying over spilled milk.


    I got up, sheathed my still-glowing sword again and left the lake of suspicious substance behind to look for food before I starved.

 #008 – Okay, I guess I’m supposed to grind now

    I spent another hour or so continuing to walk in a straight line from where I¡¯d left off before I¡¯d gotten distracted by the lake. On my way through the endless forest, I¡¯d run into another pool of green slime, this one pond-sized.


    I honestly felt tempted to try eating the stuff. Stupid George, putting crazy ideas in my head¡­


    Other than that, I also found a rocky hill without much vegetation. I could finally test out the other skill I¡¯d bought.


    Just as with heat vision, I could feel the mental switch and an instinct telling me what to do with my throat muscles to use the skill.


    The description said that it would grant me enough fire resistance that I didn¡¯t need to worry, not to mention the blessing, but I still felt a bit apprehensive about this.


    Well, nothing for it. I¡¯d already bought the skill, so not even trying it would have been a waste.


    So with that said, I breathed in, noting the warmth in my stomach, before gently breathing out like I was doing a breathing exercise or something. As expected, a surge of heat erupted from somewhere in my stomach and rushed through my airways and out of my mouth, forming a cone of flames that covered the rocks in front of me. It felt weird. Like a mix between vomiting and exhaling but not quite. The fire felt pleasantly warm rather than hot and dangerous, but I still couldn¡¯t help but start instinctively choking.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> BUUUUURN FILTHY ROCKS


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> how hot is the fire?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you alright?


    The fire in front of me quickly dissipated once I interrupted the breath, but the small patches of grass between the rocks still caught fire.


    I got the coughing under control, breathed in again, and touched my throat. It was warm. Warmer than normal.


    ¡°...I¡¯m fine, chat. It just felt really weird¡­ No idea how hot the fire is, Foux. Don¡¯t even know how I would test it.¡±


    I sighed, then breathed in, and tried to do it again, this time without choking.


    Just like before, heat flooded my airways and I spewed out flames that dissipated the moment I reached the end of my exhale. I managed not to choke this time. Progress.


    Hold on, were the rocks glowing a bit from the heat¡­? Huh, pretty dang hot fire breath, then.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> how can you even do that? Do you have a new organ that stores and generates heat?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> yoooo what up everyone?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup


    ¡°Now, that¡¯s a mighty good question Foux. I have no clue!¡± I looked down at my stomach and rubbed it. Then I smiled. ¡°Hey! Welcome, Trelipe¡­ Trelide¡­ Tre¡­lipi¡­deli¡­ ¡­ Trelip! Welcome!¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> do you feel colder now?


    ¡°Not really, Foux.¡± I frowned. ¡°It¡¯s like the skill just made fire out of nothing¡­ Although I do feel a bit more tired.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> its using the ether thingy right?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> are you burning down a firest?


    ¡°Oh, yeah. Ether. Not that I know what that is, though.¡± I huffed. ¡°No no, I¡¯m not burning anything down! I¡¯m just testing the fire breath skill.¡± I opened up the skill¡¯s description, just so the newcomer could see. Then I saw that the fire was slowly spreading from the little patches of grass and quickly stomped on it before I turned into a liar.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh cool its a vr game?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> naw its an ARG


    I let out a long-suffering sigh.


    ¡°It¡¯s neither a VR game nor an ARG. This is real life for me now,¡± I grumbled as I left the scene of the crime and continued trekking on. ¡±I¡¯ve gotten isekai¡¯d into this weird empty world and I have no idea what to do. Ugh¡­¡± I scowled. ¡°But you¡¯re gonna call it whatever you want anyway. Not like anyone would ever believe I was actually reincarnated in another world. So¡­ yeah, whatever.¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> well, it IS pretty unbelievable


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> I don¡¯t really believe it but I¡¯m acting like it¡¯s all real


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> but so far it¡¯s been convincing


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> hmmmmm


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> just wait til she gets tired and ends the stream lol


    ¡°Yeah¡­ thanks, guys¡­ Not you, George. You suck.¡±


    My stomach then grumbled once again, making me let out a pathetic whine.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ This isekai adventure is going terribly so far. I can¡¯t even find anything to eat¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> eat the trees


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> you know what


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> I like it


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> its unique


    I eyed the various trees and bushes around me. As always, I couldn¡¯t see any fruits or berries, but maybe I could try eating the leaves themselves¡­?


    ¡°Maybe¡­ I don¡¯t know! I just want an apple or something!¡± I growled. ¡°Thanks, Trelip¡­ I guess?¡±


    Once again, I remembered the sweet-smelling lakes of suspicious green slime. I was honestly beginning to get tempted to go back to one of them and simply try eating the stuff since I didn¡¯t have any alternatives.


    But not yet. I wasn¡¯t that desperate yet. That stuff looked gross anyway.


    For a couple more hours, I continued to walk in a straight line while taking breaks here and there when I got too tired, hoping to find something other than more trees. I still hadn¡¯t even seen a single animal or insect, and it was honestly beginning to feel unsettling. Despite walking through a forest, everything just felt so¡­ dead.


    Paradoxically, the lack of living things only set me on edge. Like at some point, a giant monster would appear to compensate for the hours of dead silence.


    And then suddenly, as if to break things up on purpose, a blue screen popped up in front of me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Baby steps¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    I jumped with a startled scream. ¡°Wha¨C?!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wtf jumpscare


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> it¡¯s a horror game now?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao


    ¡°Stupid system¡­¡± I murmured, my cheeks going red. ¡°What is this? Achievement? There are achievements?! And they give skill points?!¡±


    The system dutifully answered me by opening a huge window comparable to the skills one, this one split into five columns.


    <u>Achievements:</u>


    Complete arbitrary tasks to gain Skill points, unlock titles, and gain access to higher tier limit breaks.


    <u>Tier 1:</u>


    <u>Baby steps</u> - Take a total of 30k steps. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Aerial menace</u> - Defeat 5 flying opponents without using projectiles.


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.<u>Allied force</u> - Conquer any dungeon in a party of three or more people.


    <u>Arm day</u> - Do a total of 500 pushups.


    ¡­And so on it went. The second column had Tier 2 achievements, third column Tier 3, and so on.


    I gaped at the massive wall of text, before once again willing to somehow compress it into something digestible. The screen complied by getting rid of everything save for the one achievement I¡¯d completed, but then immediately brought everything back since I didn¡¯t like that either.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> holy shit those tier 5 lmao


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> that¡¯s a lot of spam


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> damnnnn


    ¡°...Okay, chat. I think I found my main source of skill points,¡± I said absently as my eyes scanned the achievements and their requirements. I briefly glanced at the tier 5 section and my eyes nearly bulged out of my skull at the first one I read.


    <u>Interplanetary</u> - Travel to another planet without the help of any vehicle or transportation device.


    Yeah, okay. What the hell?! Was that something I would eventually be able to do?! Just how powerful could the system make someone?! How would you even do that without a vehicle or a teleporter? Jump really hard?!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> time to grind Nana


    I scoffed. ¡°Time to grind¡­ Uh huh¡­¡± I frowned as I scanned over the tier ones I could feasibly do and found out that most either involved dungeons or just a lot of exercising. Also, even the easiest tier 1s required a lot of effort to achieve ¨C like doing 500 squats. And they all probably gave just a single skill point as a reward.


    ¡°Right¡­ I guess skill points are pretty hard to get,¡± I mumbled.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> hey you could get Appraisal with one more point


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> and use it on the green stuff


    My eyes lit up.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Foux! I have one more skill slot and I just need one more point to buy it¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you gotta get that flameguard!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> what other skills can you get?


    I completely ignored George and opened the skill shop absent-mindedly just to show all my new viewers, while I thought about what to do now that I knew about achievements.


    First step would probably be to complete one tier 1 achievement for that one skill point, so I could buy Appraisal and scan the green stuff like Foux had said. Step two? Well¡­ I still wasn¡¯t completely sure, to be honest.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wait what about quests?


    I blinked, my thoughts stuttering to a halt.


    Right. Quests. I¡¯d completely forgotten, but hadn¡¯t the streamer skill come from completing a quest? It had also given me those five points. Could I get another quest with rewards this juicy?


    ¡°Right! Quests! Why didn¡¯t you remind me sooner, George?!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> forgot lol


    I narrowed my eyes in annoyance, before mentally calling to the system to show me quests.


    Quests:


    Complete quests to gain skill points, unlock specific skills, and gain other benefits. Failing a quest may inflict penalties.


    You can accept up to three side quests but only one main quest. Side quests have a time limit, while main quests do not. Main quests grant much greater rewards than side quests. All quests can be accepted as side quests, but only certain ones can be main quests. You can downgrade a main quest into a side quest after accepting it, which will decrease its rewards, but the penalties will stay the same.


    <u>Current main quest:


    </u>None


    <u>Current side quests:


    </u>None


    <u>Generate new quests</u>


    ¡°Okay, there we go!¡± I cheered.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> so quests are high risk high reward, achievements are no risk low reward


    ¡°Right, yeah, looks like it,¡± I agreed with a nod. I grinned. ¡°Finally! A direction! Let¡¯s see it, system! Gimme your finest quests, system!¡±


    <u>Generating new quests, please wait¡­</u>


    I frowned and let out an annoyed grunt. ¡°Stupid loading screens¡­¡±


    While I waited, I scanned over the achievement window, trying to find a relatively easy tier 1 achievement. They were all either impossible ¨C like not having party members to clear a dungeon with ¨C incredibly difficult in my current state, or just really grindy and annoying.


    I either needed to find more dungeons and begin clearing them, or I needed to start grinding.


    I grumbled under my breath, looking at a pair of achievements.


    <u>Arm day</u> - Do a total of 500 pushups.


    <u>Leg day</u> - Do a total of 500 squats.


    ¡°Chat, the stupid system is trying to get me to exercise!¡± I howled in indignation.


    There was a reason why I hadn¡¯t done that many 3D streams. Well, at least this body was much more agile and had more stamina. It should be easier to do all of that.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> chop chop!


    Very reluctantly, I stretched my arms in front of me and began doing squats while I waited for the loading screen to finish. George very enthusiastically began counting in the chat. The bastard.


    It took five squats before the loading finished and presented me with a new window.


    <u>New quests generated:


    </u><u>Find the culprit (main/side quest)</u><u>


    </u><u>Secrets of the world (main/side quest)


    Rookie dungeoneer (side quest)


    Don¡¯t starve (side quest)</u>


    ¡°Okay! Let¡¯s see it!¡± I exclaimed as I dropped on my butt, opened each quest in a new window, put them all side by side for better clarity and began reading through the details.


    <u>Find the culprit:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 57s )


    You have been inexplicably kidnapped, killed, and reincarnated into what looks like an entirely different world. You suspect the culprit may be a phoenix. Find out who it was for sure and confront them.


    <u>Rewards(Main)</u> - 50SP, Molten ash of new life skill for free


    <u>Rewards(Side)</u> - 20SP


    <u>Penalty for failure(Main)</u> - 100SP debt


    <u>Penalty for failure(Side)</u> - 38SP debt


    <u>Accept as Main quest


    Accept as Side quest (1000 days)


    Decline</u>


    <u>Secrets of the world:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 57s )


    You found yourself in a mysterious new world where things aren¡¯t as they first seem. Figure out what this world really is and what happened to it.


    <u>Rewards(Main)</u> - 10SP, Appraisal with Psychometry for free, Refunded SP if already bought


    <u>Rewards(Side)</u> - 5SP


    <u>Penalty for failure(Main)</u> - 20SP debt


    <u>Penalty for failure(Side)</u> - 7SP debt


    <u>Accept as Main quest


    Accept as Side quest (100 days)


    Decline</u>


    <u>Rookie dungeoneer:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 57s )<u>


    </u>You¡¯ve had your first taste of a dungeon, but you failed. Get your revenge on those pesky dungeons and clear one for real this time!


    <u>Rewards</u> - 2SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 3SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (14 days)


    Decline</u>


    <u>Don¡¯t starve:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 57s )


    Oh no! You¡¯re in the wilderness without any source of food! Find something to eat that won¡¯t kill you! Quick! Before you die!


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - Death by starvation


    <u>Accept as Side quest (3 days)


    Decline</u>


    ¡°Okay¡­ This is a lot to take in. Hmm, I guess I have three hours to accept the quests before they go away again?¡± I speculated, seeing all the quests had the timer.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wtf that first one<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol its the same skill<u>


    FouxMoux:</u> oh nice<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> its spreading like rabies


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> uh that last penalty¡­


    I frowned.


    ¡°What are you talking about, George?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> the skill you get is teh same as the blesing thing


    ¡°The skill¡­?¡± Oh, the ¡®Molten ash of new life¡¯... Yeah, he was right. The blessing said that the phoenix had used that exact skill on me to reincarnate me. ¡°What? You think this is how this skill spreads? Someone with the skill reincarnates random people, and then they get a quest that gives them the same skill? And then I¡¯m gonna have to reincarnate random people to keep spreading it?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> dunno


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> it sounds sus


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> first quest is best as main imo


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> mb it mindcontrols you into using it


    I rolled my eyes.


    George was probably overthinking it. Although the idea of being taken over by a damn skill¡­


    ¡°What does the skill even do, exactly?¡± I asked out loud.


    For the first time since I¡¯d begun messing with the system, I didn¡¯t get a straight answer. Instead, I got this.


    <u>Molten ash of new life:</u>


    [LOCKED]


    I blinked.


    No info at all. The system locked it out completely. I only knew the name.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> access denied


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> im afraid i cant let you do that dave


    ¡°Well then¡­¡± I slowly went back to looking through the quests until I noticed the penalty for failing the last one and I froze. ¡°Uh¡­ crap. Chat. Is this quest saying that I¡¯m gonna starve in three days? Shouldn¡¯t it be possible to survive longer than that? Why is it even a quest? Is finding food really that hard?!¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you should keep moving


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh fuck


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> gogogo


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> ur small so u need more food probably


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> or its isekai bs


    ¡°Yeah, you guys are right,¡± I said with a nod as my eyes rested on the last quest. ¡°Actually¡­ There really isn¡¯t any reason to not accept this one, is there? I¡¯m gonna die anyway if I don¡¯t find food¡­¡±


    I suddenly felt cold.


    Dying to a giant killer robot was one thing, but starving to death somehow made it feel more real. People starved all the time. Who the heck ever got killed by killer robots?


    And that was what made it so scary for me. A simple timer that said ¡®You¡¯re going to die in three days¡¯ was somehow more terrifying than a sudden killer robot inquisition.


    I swallowed.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Don¡¯t starve. Accept as a Side quest.¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Don¡¯t starve¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find something to eat.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Find a source of food that will last you at least a week.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - Death by starvation


    And wasn¡¯t that a weird thought? Not starving being a side quest.


    With that, I continued walking while I decided what to do with the other quests.

 #009 – I don’t actually have any combat experience

    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that¡¯s creepy


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wtf I thought this was fantasy isekai


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Looks like a water park?


    ¡°Chat¡­ This feels very out of place.¡±


    I stared at the large structure sprawling out in front of me. There were two buildings connected by a long archway, inviting me to walk under it. The archway had a plaque on it, but the text was all scratched out. The buildings on each side had numerous holes in them that looked vaguely like ticket-selling windows. The entire thing stretched out into the distance, where I could see some kind of gate held closed with chains and a lock, and behind it were pools of water. Or at least, I hoped it was actual water and not more slime.


    ¡°Water park? Well, maybe a really twisted one. It¡¯s like someone stretched the entrance wide and copypasted it a bunch of times,¡± I grumbled.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> so wtf even is it?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> use heat vision.


    ¡°I dunno, but I guess I should investigate it, huh? It really is creepy though¡­ Oh, good idea, Mike.¡± I carefully approached the structure, while briefly turning on my heat vision, looking for anything that could ambush me. As far as I could see, nothing stood out though, temperature-wise. That didn¡¯t mean much when cold-hearted robots existed, though.


    Then, as soon as I stepped below the archway, I felt a slight chill go down my back in a very familiar way. It wasn¡¯t as intense as it was at the spaceship, but¡­


    I squeaked and jumped back, immediately feeling the vague sense of relief I¡¯d felt when I¡¯d ran away from the spaceship.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> Nana what¡¯s wrong?


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop?!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wtf jumpscares


    I cautiously looked around as I backed up and suspiciously eyed the plaque.


    ¡°...Chat. I had the same bad feeling I¡¯d had at the spaceship¡­ Wait, you weren¡¯t around back then. Uh¡­ Basically, I had a chill go down my spine when I entered and then relief when I left.¡±


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> oh<u>


    Jeofffff:</u> dungeon tiiiiiime


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey whats up


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> still streaming?


    ¡°Hey, Jamie. Yup¡­ I think this is a dungeon¡­ I dunno. It¡¯s weird. Like the spaceship. It¡¯s more like twisted remnants of a civilization than a dungeon¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> guess you can accept that quest now


    ¡°Right, yeah¡­ quest¡­ Well, I have no idea if I can clear the dungeon yet though¡­¡±


    I briefly glanced at the available quests again and frowned when I saw that they all only had seven minutes left before they supposedly expired.


    ¡°I should probably accept all of them¡­¡± I groaned. ¡°I still feel like this is gonna bite me in the butt, but I¡¯ll just go with what I decided¡­¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Rookie dungeoneer¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Clear a dungeon of any rank<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Delve into the dungeon on your own with no outside help


    B rank dungeon or higher


    Conquer the dungeon on your first try


    <u>Rewards</u> - 2SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 3SP debt


    ¡°...Huh. It didn¡¯t show the side objectives before. Wait, they are the same as the first quest I had, aren¡¯t they? What even happens if I clear them too? Do I get more points?¡± I wondered out loud.


    I should probably try to clear them too if I could. Well, the first one was kind of unavoidable¡­ And I had no idea about the rank. The spaceship had been at least B rank, but this place¡­ How could I tell?


    ¡°I¡¯ll try to clear it all on my first try, I guess¡­¡± I mumbled before shaking my head. ¡°What the heck am I even doing? This isn¡¯t a game¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oi don¡¯t you dare back off now


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> be careful Nana


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> gogogo loooot


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> just use fire breath and keep monsters away with your sword


    ¡°Yeah, yeah¡­ I¡¯ll be careful¡­ Mhmm, that¡¯s what I intended, Mike.¡± I nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s accept the other quests too I guess¡­¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Secrets of the world¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Figure out what happened to this world<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Figure out the true nature of this world


    Figure out what civilizations used to live in this world


    <u>Rewards</u> - 5SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 7SP debt


    I frowned.


    ¡°Chat¡­ Why is this quest implying that there aren¡¯t any civilizations anymore? That can¡¯t be true, right¡­? Am I reading this wrong?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> well everything is abandoned sooo


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> no bugs even


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> It might be a post-apocalyptic world with you as the only sentient being left there.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> fallen civilizations doesn¡¯t mean there aren¡¯t ANY civilizations though


    I froze as I read Ranger¡¯s message.


    That¡­ couldn¡¯t be, right? Was the entire world barren like this? Could I really be the only person left alive here?


    I shook my head.


    ¡°No no no, but what about the phoenix? The jerk who reincarnated me? He¡¯s gotta be around here somewhere¡­ right? Or she¡­ Or they. Whatever! The damn bird has to be hiding somewhere in this world! And the dungeon quest has that side objective that implies there are other people around!¡±


    As I said that, I accepted the last quest.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Find the culprit¡¯ Main quest accepted!


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.</u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find out who kidnapped, killed, and reincarnated you and confront them<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Attack them


    Insult them


    Demand reparations


    Report them to the police


    <u>Rewards</u> - 50SP, Molten ash of new life skill for free


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 100SP debt


    I sputtered as I read the side objectives.


    ¡°Wha¡­ What the¡­ Are you¡­ Ok, seriously?! Am I being pranked?! What the heck is this?!¡± I yelled.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmfao


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> sounds reasonable lol


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> rofl what police


    I stared at the last window, unsure how to feel. Then, I had a really strange idea.


    ¡°...Could I report my own murder to the police? Hold on¡­ If a police officer came to my chat, I could, right? This is such a weird idea¡­ Ugh¡­ But it¡¯s not like I can prove I¡¯m me¡­ Especially when I can¡¯t even meet them face to face. Especially when I¡¯m not even in my original body!¡±


    I shook my head.


    ¡°You know what? I¡¯m just going to completely ignore that bit and pretend that the system is just messing with me.¡±


    Unfortunately, that strange idea also brought another thought into my head. My family. Not that I¡¯d ever been particularly close to any of them, but¡­ the fact that I would never be able to talk to them again still hurt¡­


    Except¡­ I could. If this stream connected back to Earth, then couldn¡¯t they come to my chat? I could still talk to them if they did, right?


    The only problem was that I¡¯d never told them I was a Vcuber. Ugh¡­


    I shook my head again. No time to get depressed. I had a dungeon to conquer. And hopefully, I would find some actual food inside. Not starving was a bit more important than talking to my sister, at the moment.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> dungeon time?


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop!


    I nodded, took a deep breath, and steeled myself.


    ¡°Dungeon time.¡±


    I turned on heat vision, unsheathed my still-glowing sword, and stepped forward while bracing myself for the ominous feeling. I let the chill wash over my back as I stepped from the grass onto the concrete ground below the archway and ignored the voice at the back of my head yelling at me to get the heck out before I got jumped by a giant robot.


    I didn¡¯t have much of a choice. I needed food, and besides eating the green sludge or tree leaves, the dungeons were the only places that could maybe give me something to eat.


    Of course, I was still terrified of actually entering the place, but I assured myself that I had actual means of defending myself, unlike with the giant robot. Sword for close range and fire breath for mid range. If things got too dicey, I could set everything on fire and then leg it.


    I walked through the center, warily eyeing the windows, expecting things to come out of them. Heat vision didn¡¯t register anything of note, so I turned it off again just so I could see normally. Then my eye caught something inside one of the windows, and I carefully stepped closer.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> looooot!


    Inside the small room with a desk and a chair there was a chest, just like the ones I¡¯d found near the spaceship. This one looked different, though. It looked to be a wooden chest painted in a white and cyan gradient ¨C similar to my own getup. The trim was translucent and the lock looked like any old door lock I¡¯d seen back on Earth.


    ¡°...You guys think it¡¯s a mimic?¡± I asked, suspiciously eyeing the thing.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> use your fire on it from afar


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> poke it with a sword?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> nah probably not


    I hummed and was about to climb inside the room to check it out when I heard a noise behind me. My head snapped around and my grip on the sword tightened as I saw three things climb out of the opposite windows.


    They looked vaguely human-shaped and wore clothes, but¡­


    ¡°Where is your face?!¡± I shouted, looking at the abominations¡¯ featureless faces as they hobbled forward on all fours.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> fire breath!


    I didn¡¯t think about it twice and used fire breath on the nearest abomination, setting it on fire. I expected it to screech like a banshee or something, but it barely made any sound as it stumbled.


    That somehow made it even creepier.


    The other two lunged at me and I jumped to the side before breathing in and letting out another breath, catching both of the abominations in it.


    But apparently, I should have tested the fire breath more, because before I could finish the breath, I felt the muscles in my throat stiffen and contract and I began coughing uncontrollably.


    I didn¡¯t see the next attack coming with all the tears in my eyes, but something in my mind screamed for me to slash behind me with my sword and so I did. I felt it cut something and heard the subsequent thud of limbs on the ground.


    As I finally got my coughing under control, I jumped back to put all of my enemies in my field of vision, ready to keep fighting. I briefly noted that the one who¡¯d tried to ambush me was lying on the ground motionless, still on fire, and had a large cut in its head¡­ that wasn¡¯t bleeding at all. Incredibly unnerving, but I had no time to ponder on it.


    The other two, still burning, lunged at me at the same time. Once again, instincts screamed at me and I obeyed, jumping back while bringing my sword down in an overhead swing.


    I missed.


    Not expecting that, I let out a gasp and backed out even further¡­ right into a wall. I hadn¡¯t realized I was so close to the building behind me.


    Shit!


    The abominations barely lost any momentum and leapt at me again.


    My mind kept yelling at me, but I was fully panicking at this point and did what came to my mind first ¨C quickly inhaling and hitting them both with another fire breath right in their faceless faces just as they reached me.


    I couldn¡¯t help the coughing fit that followed, but I didn¡¯t expect to suddenly feel nauseous as muscles cramped all over my body, making me drop my sword and fall to my knees.


    I was convinced that I was screwed at that point, what with the burning abominations about to attack me again while I was defenseless.


    But somehow, it never happened.


    By the time I got it under control and shakily looked up with tears in my eyes, the three monsters were nowhere to be seen. They had completely disappeared without a trace. Had I beaten them? Had they despawned¡­?


    Well, either way, there weren¡¯t any more zombies trying to pounce at me, so that was¡­ good. Ugh¡­


    I could barely read the messages that came from chat with all the adrenaline pumping through me.


    I shakily wiped my eyes, grabbed my sword again, and tried to stand up.


    And then, of course, I saw another one of those abominations climb out of a window opposite of me.


    I immediately bolted and sprinted all the way back to the entrance, despite my protesting muscles. The sounds of limbs hitting the concrete ground behind me gripped my heart and only encouraged me to run faster.


    As soon as I crossed the threshold and felt the telltale feeling of relief, I looked behind me, and sure enough, the abomination seemed to completely give up the chase and hobble its way back inside one of the windows.


    I fell to the ground ¨C careful not to cut myself on my sword ¨C and took a minute to hyperventilate while I waited for the jitters to stop.


    That¡­ sucked. What the hell had I been thinking, marching inside a dungeon like that? Who cared that I could breathe fire and had a glowing sword?! I¡¯d never had to fight anything in real life except for the damn robot! And I had only escaped from it thanks to luck! What made me think I could take on unknown monsters?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> or she ran out of Ether idk


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> That could have gone better.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea or that


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> are you okay Nana?!


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> should have tested it more¡­


    I took a deep breath and let it out as I read what chat had to say with half-lidded eyes.


    Mike was right, of course. I should have tested the fire breath more before going inside a dungeon. Whether the coughing fit was because I¡¯d run out of Ether or because of some nebulous cooldown as Jeoff theorized, I had no idea. But either way, I shouldn¡¯t have relied so heavily on a skill I hadn¡¯t properly tested.


    Even worse were my weapon skills. I¡¯d never held a real sword in my hand back on Earth; why had I expected to suddenly be a master swordsman? Sure, I¡¯d somehow managed to hit one of them with a completely blind swing, but¡­


    I let out another deep sigh.


    ¡°Chat¡­ Do any of you know anything about swordsmanship?¡±


    Lesson learned. I needed to do better if I didn¡¯t want to get mauled by dungeon monsters.

 #010 – What’s the brand of this energy drink?

    My arms were jelly as I grit my teeth and forced myself to do one more pushup. With my stamina all exhausted, I fell back down, breathing heavily.


    ¡°How¡­ How many was that¡­?¡± I asked between the breaths.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> 21


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> 21!


    I groaned.


    ¡°There¡¯s no way I can get that stupid skill point before I starve to death¡­¡± I mumbled.


    I was between a rock and a hard place. I could either risk it and try eating the green stuff without appraising it first, or I could try going into the dungeon again in hopes of getting a food drop, knowing that my inexperience might get me killed.


    ¡°This sucks¡­¡± I said as I got up again after catching my breath.


    I glanced at a nearby bush, thought about my options for a minute, and then finally made an executive decision.


    I let out a sigh and very reluctantly walked over to a nearby bush, before reaching out and plucking a leaf out of it.


    I did not expect the small burst of orange smoke that came out of both the leaf and the branch from the point where I separated them.


    I yelped in surprise and dropped the leaf as I jumped back.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> wtf?!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop?!


    I stared as more smoke seeped out and dispersed in the air before the trickle gradually slowed down and stopped, leaving behind a completely innocent leaf and a bush.


    I stared at it.


    ¡°...Chat. Something tells me these are not normal plants either,¡± I said, deadpan. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I wanna eat leaves filled with toxic fumes¡­ No scratch that, I know I don¡¯t wanna do that.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> but what if it¡¯s delicious


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea I dunno


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> eh so green sludge is better?


    I groaned again.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know! Dammit, I wish I¡¯d gotten appraisal instead of heat vision now¡­¡± I let out a pathetic whine as my stomach grumbled again.


    This was getting me nowhere. As much as I wanted to first make sure it was all safe, stressing out about everything didn¡¯t accomplish anything. Everything was risky, but I would be damned if I just didn¡¯t even try anything and let myself starve to death.


    So I plucked another leaf from the bush. Just like before, the orange fumes seeped out of it but I didn¡¯t drop it this time. Instead, I carefully reached out with my other hand to carefully wave my hand through the fumes.


    It didn¡¯t feel like much of anything, but weirdly enough, rather than my hand blocking the smoke, it almost seemed to absorb it.


    I retracted my hand and looked at it. It didn¡¯t look any more orange than before and I didn¡¯t feel any different.


    ¡°...Chat, why does everything about this world have to be so weird?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s pretty unique though


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> do you have tree powers now?<u>


    trelipideliberitation:</u> why not? lol


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> you¡¯re absorbing it?


    I rolled my eyes, but quickly checked my status regardless to confirm that nothing had changed.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think I have tree powers.¡± I sighed as the leaf I was still holding ejected the last bits of the smoke. I eyed it for a few more seconds before shrugging and putting it in my mouth.


    It tasted like¡­ well, a random bush leaf. Bitter, hard to chew, and overall just unpleasant. Really, what else had I expected?


    I swallowed with a grimace and part of me expected to see the quest completed pop-up, but unfortunately, that didn¡¯t happen.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that was very nutritious¡­ ¡± I shook my head. ¡°Well, test number two then¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> wtf dont do it<u>


    trelipideliberitation:</u> you¡¯re not gonna do what I think you are right?


    There was another small pond of the green slime right beside the dungeon, so luckily, I didn¡¯t have to backtrack at all to get to some.


    Once again, I knelt by it and scooped up a handful, ignoring the chat going crazy.


    ¡°Look, chat. It¡¯s either this or go back into the dungeon and fight weird zombies! And I suck at fighting!¡±


    It still smelled awfully sweet.


    ¡°Here goes nothing¡­¡±


    I licked a bit of it.


    It was as sweet as its scent.


    I waited for a few seconds, but I neither felt like I was dying nor was there a quest completed pop-up.


    Of course, it could still have delayed side effects, but I couldn¡¯t afford to wait around an arbitrary amount of time while my death clock ticked down every second.


    So, despite my better judgment, I leaned in and actually slurped some of it.


    It¡­ actually tasted pretty good. Fruity and sweet.


    Still no pop-up or sudden heart attack or what have you, but¡­ I did feel oddly refreshed. Like drinking coffee, but with instant effects. Not only that, but the tiredness from all those pushups vanished as well.


    Well then¡­


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> was it safe?<u>


    JamieWasTaken3:</u> whats it taste like?


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> wow that¡¯s gross


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Tastes a bit like fruit jelly. But more liquid and I have no idea what fruit.¡± I hummed. ¡°Also, I think that theory about the potion being this stuff but refined might be true. I feel more energized now!¡±


    So I slurped up some more slime, sarcastically thinking to myself that my life had really gone off rails if I was happily doing something so gross.


    ¡°Still no pop-up, though! What¡¯s up with that? Does it not count as food? I already feel a bit better!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> fake food


    <u>GonguuH:</u> did the day counter increase?


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.<u>RetconRanger:</u> Maybe it¡¯s like drinking an energy drink to satiate hunger. So¡­ not very effective.


    I hummed as I idly checked the quest to confirm that nothing had changed.


    I sighed.


    ¡°I think Ranger¡¯s right. It temporarily gives me some energy, but it¡¯s not really food¡­¡± I pursed my lips and looked back at the damn dungeon. ¡°I guess I have to go try the dungeon again regardless¡­¡±


    I stared for a bit, trying to find an excuse not to go back there. Besides my cowardice, though, there wasn¡¯t any. I was officially out of options and nothing out here would satiate my hunger. Dungeon loot was my only bet.


    I huffed, stood up, took a deep breath¡­


    ¡°Alright, fine! I¡¯ll try the dungeon again! Because if I have to die on my second day of being isekai¡¯d, I might as well go down in a blaze of glory!¡±


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> but it¡¯s dangerous


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yooo I believe in you!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> yolooooo


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> go kick zombie ass!


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you should get used to using the sword first


    I pulled out my sword ¨C which was still glowing, huh¨C and gave it a few swings through the empty air.


    ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right. I was just being an idiot! I gotta train first!¡±


    Despite all the stress, and pressure, and life or death situations, part of me had still felt like this was some kind of game. And in most video games, when you got a new weapon, you didn¡¯t have to practice using it. That, obviously, didn¡¯t apply to real life. And this was real life, as much as I liked to pretend otherwise.


    But if this was real life, then that meant I would never see my sister and my friends¡­ I would never get to eat pizza or play video games¡­ I would never¨C


    Alright, stop. Let¡¯s just think of this as a highly realistic video game for now.


    I skipped over to a nearby bush and swung at it, cutting a few leaves off, causing it to release the orange smoke again.


    ¡°Do you guys have any tips for actually using a sword¡­? I feel like I¡¯m just waving it around.¡±


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> make every swing count


    <u>GonguuH:</u> focus on dodging first and hitting your enemy second


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it¡¯s not really a win if you get injured too


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> keep your enemies far enough that they can¡¯t hit you but you can hit them


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> sidestep their attacks rather than backing up


    I hummed as I read the various tips and tried to apply them against the poor bush. Obviously, since the bush didn¡¯t counter-attack or even move, it wasn¡¯t the greatest of practice dummies.


    It felt only marginally silly. But hey, I was still a Vcuber, being silly was part of my job.


    ¡°I¡¯m missing some montage music, chat. Can one of the upgrades do that¡­?¡± I quickly checked but unfortunately, I didn¡¯t see an option for background music. Lame.


    But then again, if I had the option, I would probably play something in the background all the time, and then I would probably get distracted by it while in a dungeon and get killed or something.


    I spent a good hour trying to get used to swinging my sword while jumping around and keeping aware of my surroundings. I also tried cutting a trunk of a tree because I naively thought I could cut it in one swing like in video games.


    I couldn¡¯t. I just made a dent in it. More importantly, though, as soon as I pried my sword out of it, the orange smoke began flooding out of it. There was a lot more of it than when I cut the bush.


    ¡°So I guess the plants here are powered by the orange smoke,¡± I concluded.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> FAKE TREES


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wtf even is it


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> EVERYTHING IS FAKE


    Once again, I waved my hand through the smoke gushing out of the tree. Unlike with the bushes, I did actually feel something when my hand absorbed the smoke. A very subtle tingly feeling in my muscles.


    I looked at my hand again and it looked the same as ever. It just felt¡­ stronger? Filled with energy? It was actually very similar to the green sludge, just concentrated in my hand.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Maybe the smoke is similar to the slime¡­?¡± I mused.


    I couldn¡¯t wait to get appraisal and figure it all out. Assuming I could use appraisal on the smoke, at least.


    For now, I stopped my wild sword swinging and moved on to practicing my fire breath in a relatively plant-free area. I did not want a repeat of what had happened earlier in the dungeon. I had been lucky nothing had jumped me while I¡¯d been incapacitated.


    As it turned out, there was some kind of cooldown for the skill. I could sort of feel when it was safe to use it and when I tried to use it sooner, my throat muscles would cramp and I would start choking.


    Luckily, I could use smaller fire breaths in succession instead of one large one before the pseudo-cooldown kicked in.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s like I have a fuel gauge for it that automatically fills up, but when I try to use it with an empty gauge, I choke¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that¡¯s probably what Ether is


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea you ran out of ether thats why you choke


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> so Ether recharges really fast then?


    I nodded. ¡°Hmm, I guess so?¡±


    I continued to experiment, using the fire breath in various ways, and noticed the energy from before slowly fading. Even as I got more and more tired, I kept practicing the skill, trying all the different ways I could shape and aim it.


    But then, as I let out one last fire breath, instead of feeling the familiar ¡®cooldown¡¯ kick in, I suddenly felt like I got hit by a tsunami. My muscles all shuddered, my head spun, my vision got blurry, and I collapsed into a heap.


    My entire body shook and I felt sluggish. It was even worse than back in the dungeon.


    Fuck fuck fuck!


    I couldn¡¯t move. I could barely twitch my fingers.


    Needless to say, I began panicking even as chat began to fuss over me. Somehow, despite my vision being blurry, I could still read chat perfectly.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> Nana!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh fuck you overdid it


    <u>Irid123:</u>  uh that¡¯s not good


    I couldn¡¯t respond, though. I just lay there, my body twitching, my mind going into overdrive trying to figure out how to fix this.


    If I could, I would probably be hyperventilating and flinging my limbs around. As it stood, all I could manage were shallow breaths and small twitches of muscles.


    It was terrifying, this kind of loss of control.


    Luckily, even though nothing I tried to do helped, it eventually stopped on its own. It took a while ¨C it was hard to tell how long exactly ¨C but the sudden paralysis eventually faded and I could somewhat move again.


    ¡°Ffff¨Ciiighterplane¡­¡± I slurred out, my throat muscles still apparently not working properly. ¡°What¡­ even¡­ was ¡®hat¡­¡± I said between shuddering breaths.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I think THAT was you running out of Ether


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I think you have a big Ether battery and a small one


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> too much smoke


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the small one quickly recharges from the big one


    <u>GonguuH:</u> fire breath uses the small one


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh yea that makes sense


    <u>GonguuH:</u> and you just emptied your big battery


    I blinked a few times.


    ¡°That¡­ makes sense, yeah.¡± I sighed as I attempted to get up on my shaky limbs. ¡°So¡­ be careful not to run out completely or¡­ that happens. Got it.¡±


    I was really lucky there were no animals around to chomp on me while I¡¯d lain there. Still, I never wanted to experience that again. I really needed to be careful with how much I used the fire breath¡­ and probably any other future skill that used Ether.


    I briefly glanced around and found out that it was getting dark again. It caught me off guard again, but this time, I didn¡¯t panic. Since no monsters had come to get me last night, there probably wouldn¡¯t be anything this night either.


    Hell, did I even need a shelter? If there was literally nothing except for weird smoke plants and dungeons as far as the eye could see¡­


    I groaned and plopped back down.


    ¡°Welp, might as well just sleep wherever, right? I don¡¯t get cold, and it¡¯s not like I¡¯m gonna find a more comfortable place to sleep.¡±


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> already?


    ¡°Yeah¡­ It¡¯s not like I can do much else, right? I¡¯m just gonna knock myself out if I keep practicing. Screw that.¡± I shook my head. ¡°And I¡¯m definitely not gonna try and take on the dungeon now when I¡¯m all tired.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey maybe try to eat more goop?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that¡¯s true, maybe it recharges Ether


    I blinked¡­ and then slowly got up again.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good idea, actually¡­ Yeah, you know what? That energizing effect is probably my Ether being recharged!¡±


    I dragged myself over to the slime lake despite my protesting muscles, scooped up some of it, and drank it.


    I instantly felt better, the vague void inside me filling with energy again. My instincts were telling me that I was good to go, as far as breathing fire was concerned.


    So just to test it, I looked up, in a direction where no trees were, and breathed a little flare of fire. As expected, I felt the pseudo-cooldown settle in as always, but the emptiness quickly filled in again and I was free to use the skill once more.


    ¡°Okay! Yeah! I got it! This stuff is like¡­ Ether recharge potion!¡± Then I remembered the vial still in my pocket and pulled it out. ¡°And this thing is a refined version!¡± I concluded with a grin.


    It felt good to finally figure out something in all the weirdness of this world.


    Obviously, I still had many questions about everything. Like, why were those sludge lakes even around? Where did they come from? Could I refine it into the viscous potion myself somehow? Could¨C


    My stomach growled.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ It doesn¡¯t help with my hunger, though¡­ Dammit.¡± I glanced back at the dungeon and eyed it for a moment.


    I no longer felt sleepy, I had my energy drink in case of emergency, and I¡¯d practiced using my sword and fire breath a decent amount.


    Sure, it was getting late but¡­


    ¡°Alright chat. Change of plans. It¡¯s dungeon time again! This time for real!¡±

 #011 – Do you guys believe me now?

    I took a deep breath and glared at the dungeon¡¯s entrance.


    It still looked incredibly out of place and not at all what one would imagine when you said ¡®dungeon¡¯. But to be perfectly honest, everything in this world felt weird like that. So with that in mind, I made the executive decision to just roll with it. It was going to be better for my sanity in the long run.


    ¡°Alright, chat. Attempt number two,¡± I declared as I stepped over the threshold and let the uncomfortable feeling settle over me once more. I didn¡¯t flinch or yelp this time.


    No. I was confident now. Or at least, I pretended to be confident and hoped it would be enough. Fake it till you make it, right?


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> I still think you should sleep first¡­


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> now just don¡¯t get swarmed again


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mb make a run for the chest


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no go for stealth


    ¡°I¡¯ll advance slowly and will keep checking both sides with my heat vision. Not getting swarmed again¡­ I¡¯ll go to sleep later, Spoon¡­ I want the chest first, at least.¡±


    I advanced slowly and carefully, sword in my hand, eyes scanning my surroundings while periodically switching between normal and heat vision.


    I hadn¡¯t investigated the rooms on the other side of the windows last time a whole lot, but now that I looked, they didn¡¯t make much sense. Some of them were tiny cubicles, others were massive sprawling rooms. The truly odd thing was that from the looks of things, some of the rooms were large enough that two or more windows would logically have to all connect, but when scanning the next window over, it led to a different room.


    ¡°Chat, we have non-euclidean physics going on¡­¡± I murmured as I finally spotted the room with the chest in it. ¡°Oh, hey. It¡¯s the chest room!¡±


    It was one of the bigger rooms and I couldn¡¯t quite see all of it. But I could see the chest opposite of the window as well as several empty tables with chairs strewn around the place.


    I swiftly looked around myself one more time just to make sure I wouldn¡¯t get ambushed and then gingerly climbed inside the room over the windowsill.


    As soon as I did, I spotted the pair of faceless zombies in the corner milling around. Naturally, they also spotted me and began charging at me the moment my feet hit the floor on the other side.


    I readied my sword, breathed in, and spat fire at one of them, trying to concentrate as much of it on one enemy as possible, as I¡¯d learned to do during my little practice session.


    In the meantime, the other one stumbled all the way around a table and into my weapon¡¯s reach and I brought the blade down on its head. Unlike last time, I didn¡¯t miss and the sword hit its mark, splitting the zombie¡¯s skull and stopping it in its tracks.


    I instinctively shuddered at the sensation of slicing flesh and cracking a skull. Last time, I had been panicking too much and hadn¡¯t had much time to think about it, but now that I was relatively calm, I couldn¡¯t help but feel disturbed.


    By the time the zombie clattered to the floor and stopped moving, the other zombie reached me as well. Its burning body flung itself at me, warped hands aiming at my throat. I side-stepped its lunge while swinging my blade through its trajectory.


    It made a shallow cut along the zombie¡¯s arm and made it stumble and crash into a nearby chair, but otherwise didn¡¯t seem to hinder it a whole lot. I didn¡¯t let it recover and rammed my sword forward, aiming for the head.


    I missed, but still hit its throat.


    It didn¡¯t take long until the thing stopped thrashing and stopped all motion.


    I belatedly realized that my breaths were quick and heavy and my body was shaking as I backed off from the downed zombie. A few seconds later, the zombie and the fire burning it suddenly turned into a fine mist and dispersed into the air, leaving behind nothing but the faint smell of burnt flesh. The other zombie had also disappeared at some point.


    Okay, VR games had not prepared me for this. Just seeing and hearing things was different from having all of my senses confirm what was going on. That sensation of slashing the zombie¡¯s skull open¡­ I felt like I¡¯d murdered someone, even though it had only been a dungeon monster that despawned after I¡¯d killed it. And the smell¡­


    I took a deep shuddering breath and then slowly breathed out.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u>  yo good job!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> loot time!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> blooop! ??(???? )??


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that went well


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> is this even allowed on snitch?


    ¡°Well, that was intense¡­ And also disturbing. God, that felt nasty¡­ I can still smell the burnt flesh, ugh¡­ And I think I understand the real horror of zombie movies now. It¡¯s not the zombies themselves, it¡¯s the act of killing them that¡¯s the most disturbing¡­¡± I shuddered again and shook my head. ¡°At least there was no blood, but still¡­ This was way too different from just VR.¡± I frowned. ¡°Is what allowed on Snitch? The gore? I dunno¡­? Actually, speaking of¡­ Is this really being streamed to Snitch? How does that even work?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> snitch viewcube punch


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> viewcube too


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> There is also an entire separate website dedicated to this stream.


    I briefly checked my surroundings to make sure nothing was trying to creep on me before leaning on a table I stood next to and relaxing.


    ¡°Huh? Really? Wait, but I don¡¯t even have a Punch account! And wait, how does the chat work, then? Am I seeing the chats from all the sites combined?¡±


    I probably should have thought about the implications of streaming back to Earth sooner, because seriously¡­ How was it even possible? Granted, everything in this world was weird as heck, but if it all interacted with the very normal non-weird Earth, then there had to be some kind of method to the madness, right? How did the logistics even work?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait there¡¯s a special site?


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> The website is StreamerSkill.out


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> anyone figure out what game this is yet?


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you are breaking the arg¡­


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> or did she set it up herself?


    And apparently, there was a special website someone had made just for the streamer skill output? Was it the creator of the system? Was it my kidnapper? Either way, it meant the two worlds were connected in some way. And if they were connected, then it had to be possible for me to get back, right?


    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    ¡°Not an ARG,¡± I grunted in annoyance. ¡°And I didn¡¯t set anything up. This is all news to me¡­¡±


    Obviously, I wanted to find a way back home. As cool as an isekai adventure was, I wasn¡¯t a fan of starving and nearly dying to killer robots or faceless zombies. Although, if I somehow found a way back, I would be in the body of a little girl¡­ who could breathe fire. Yeah, I probably wouldn¡¯t be able to live as a normal Vcuber. But still, I wanted to get back home, if possible.


    Actually, why hadn¡¯t the quest generator given me a quest to return home? Was it because I hadn¡¯t thought about it at the time?


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Well, anyway¡­ That¡¯s all really weird and suspicious, but I should probably think about it once I¡¯m not in the middle of a dungeon,¡± I said out loud.


    Once again, I quickly scanned my surroundings and found that luckily, no more zombies had decided to gank me while I pondered about the Streamer skill.


    With that, I turned to the chest and approached it.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no idea


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I don¡¯t think this is a game


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> could be some pre-release?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> there¡¯s too much detail


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop (''-'')?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea idk I think its legit isekai


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> this is either a culmination of years of work or she¡¯s actually in another world streaming to Earth


    I perked up at the discussion.


    ¡°Yeah, this isn¡¯t a game or an ARG! I¡¯m actually in another world! Finally someone who believes me!¡±


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> I¡¯m skeptical


    <u>GonguuH:</u> could be a next gen VR game but I doubt it


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> both options are outrageous


    <u>GonguuH:</u> would have heard about it elsewhere


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> do something that would be impossible in a game


    ¡°Yeah, I know! There¡¯s no way this is just a game¡­! Something impossible? Like what?¡± I leaned on a table again and thought about it for a moment.


    Then I reached into my pockets and pulled out the damn ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯ letter ¨C still stained with blood, ugh ¨C carefully folded it into an airplane, and then gently threw it across the room. Despite being soaked with blood, the airplane actually flew two meters before crashing into the floor.


    I walked up to it and unfolded it again, carefully watching the paper¡¯s folds and how they didn¡¯t disappear like they might have in a video game.


    ¡°How¡¯s that?¡± I asked.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> yeah I don¡¯t think this is just a game


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> a game wouldn¡¯t let you do something so random


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> is that supposed to convince me?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lol what


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> but if it¡¯s not a game then what is it?


    ¡°Look, I don¡¯t know, chat! Maybe it is a super advanced full-dive VR game and someone stuffed me into a headset and I¡¯m not really here¡­ but I don¡¯t think VR headsets can emulate touch and smell. And I doubt that anyone with access to that technology would kidnap a random Vcuber and have them stream the game,¡± I argued. ¡°So the only conclusion left is that some damn phoenix actually isekai¡¯d me and now I can stream everything back to Earth for some reason.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the question is why?


    ¡°I have no idea! If anyone figures it out, please let me know. It would probably help with my quest too,¡± I said, before once again glancing around and confirming that I was still safe. ¡°Anyway. Got distracted again. Let¡¯s open this chest.¡±


    I mentally filtered out the discussion about my predicament and finally approached the chest, but stopped just short of it. Again, it probably wouldn¡¯t be a mimic, but I still wanted to be careful. I held out my sword and poked the thing from several angles and when nothing seemed to happen, I sheathed my weapon and tried to pry the thing open.


    Just like the chest in the spaceship dungeon, it was quite heavy and difficult to open, but still much easier than back then. Whether that was because the chest was lighter, or because I¡¯d gotten stronger¡­ Well, who knew?


    I liked to think that I was stronger than I was before though. After all, I¡¯d done a bunch of pushups¡­ and also, I¡¯d grown up a fair bit because of the blessing, hadn¡¯t I? I¡¯d hardly even noticed. How come my clothes still fit? Were they enchanted with automatic size adjustment or something?


    With these idle thoughts, I managed to pry it open just a smidge, at which point the lid automatically opened itself all the way just like the chest in the spaceship dungeon.


    I expected amazing loot just like in the spaceship, but instead, I got a small pile of coins and¡­ a black pen.


    ¡°What is this¡­?¡± I frowned.


    I picked the pen up, looked at it from all sides, took off its cap, and inspected it, but it looked and worked like a regular old black pen. It even had an ink eraser on its other end. I tried drawing some squiggly lines on the floor and the pen worked with no issue, but¡­


    ¡°Magical pen¡­?¡± I said, wanting to be hopeful.


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s a meta pen!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> its a thrown weapon lol


    <u>Irid123:</u> write your own script and it will happen!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> ah yes a pen is mightier than a sword


    I rolled my eyes, but still walked to a nearby table and wrote ¡®And then suddenly, Nana magically teleported back to Earth.¡¯ I waited a couple of seconds and when nothing happened, I shrugged.


    ¡°Nope. Not a meta pen.¡±


    <u>Irid123: </u>aww


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop¡­ (;_;)


    I put the pen in my pocket and went back to the chest to inspect the coins next.


    There were four of them and they seemed to be made of copper. They all had the same design on them ¨C the number eight on one side and a creepy slitted pupilless eyes on the other.


    ¡°...Demon coins? What kind of denomination is this, though? Eight? That¡¯s just weird.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it could be infinity


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> 32 demon copper acquired


    ¡°It could¡­ So four demonic infinities¡­? Still weird.¡±


    I shook my head and put all the coins in my pocket as well. My pockets were starting to get pretty full¡­


    ¡°Well, this is a little disappointing¡­¡± I sulked. ¡°Nothing useful. No food¡­¡±


    I glanced around the room again, pursed my lips as I thought for a moment, and then nodded to myself.


    ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s keep going for a little bit. Maybe I¡¯ll find another chest!¡±


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> it¡¯s getting really late though¡­


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you¡¯re gonna run out of Ether and get yourself killed


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> what if you get hurt because you were too tired?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> rip you


    ¡°Jeez, thanks for the vote of confidence guys!¡± I grunted in annoyance and dug through my pockets to fish out the potion. ¡°Look, I still have this thing. When I start running out, I can just eat a drop of this¡­ Actually, let me drink a bit right now, just to make sure I¡¯m all topped off.¡±


    I stuck out my tongue, uncorked the thing, and tilted it just above my mouth and carefully tried to let a drop of it land my tongue. The moment it finally dropped, I tilted the thing back up and felt as it landed on my tongue.


    I immediately felt a massive surge of energy through my entire body and gasped in delight¡­ But then it kept going, getting more and more intense and I soon felt like I was drowning in energy. At some point, I must have collapsed and convulsed on the floor because of the intensity.


    When I came to, chat was shouting at me.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you dumbasssss


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that was unwise


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> are you okay?!


    ¡°Ugh¡­ That was¡­ way too much¡­¡±


    Now that I thought about it, it had only been the residue of a single drop ¨C what with the effect spreading through the blood and what not ¨C last time, and it had still felt like all the energy in the world. A full drop was apparently way more than I could handle.


    ¡°Okay chat, I messed up I think. Good thing no zombies ambushed me while I was out¡­¡±


    I stood up and noticed that even though the vial had tipped over, nothing had spilled out thanks to the viscosity, so I put the lid back on it and put it back into my pocket.


    I stopped and thought about quitting right now and just going to sleep like Spoon had suggested. On one hand, it was probably safer, since I apparently couldn¡¯t help but keep knocking myself out with either the lack of Ether or an overflow of it.


    On the other hand, I had way too much energy right now.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just keep going until the gate and see what that¡¯s about. Then I¡¯ll turn back.¡±


    Despite the protests of pretty much everyone in the chat, I continued.

 #012 – It’s raining skill points!

    I climbed out of the window back into the open space below the archway and looked around once more.


    I immediately spotted another zombie clambering over the opposite window and wasted no time in rushing at it with my sword. Before it could even do anything, I caved in its skull with my glowing sword and it vanished into mist a few seconds later.


    It still felt sickening to do that, but I was slowly getting used to it. Although I wasn¡¯t sure whether that was a good thing or not. Would I be a murderous psychopath by the time I made it back to Earth? Was that all part of that damn phoenix¡¯s plan?


    I shook my head and instead refocused on whatever was happening in chat.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mb she can eventually summon us as helpers


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh that would be cool


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> now you¡¯re just fantasizing


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> blooop! (????? )?


    Apparently, the discussion had gone back to how this whole isekai stream was possible and now they were theorizing about the streamer skill upgrades eventually including summoning viewers.


    ¡°You know¡­ That would be pretty cool. Summoning some of you guys here,¡± I mused as I slowly advanced through the empty hall. ¡°As much as having you all in chat is cool, it would be nice to actually have someone here with me for real¡­ But I would feel bad if you were stuck in this world just like me. I would be no better than that damn Phoenix if I just kidnapped you.¡±


    I saw movement to my left and whirled around, ready to fight again. Unfortunately, there were two of them and they were climbing out of two separate windows that were far from each other.


    I spat fire at the one on the left and quickly charged the other one. This time, however, the zombie moved before I could slay it and swiped its hands at me. I instinctively brought up my free arm to guard my face and screamed as pain swelled in my arm.


    Somehow, I managed to not drop my sword and immediately brought it down in a wild swing, slicing straight through its neck as I jumped back.


    ¡°Shit¡­¡± I swore as I held my arm with huge scratch marks on it. The sleeves seemed to have blocked part of the attack at least, but it still left me injured.


    Then my eyes went wide as I noticed the scratch marks began closing fast enough to be visible.


    What the heck? Did I have super regeneration someho¨C


    The stomping of limbs behind me knocked me out of my musing and I turned around to see a flaming zombie running at me like a wild beast as well as two more zombies climbing out of windows again. And unfortunately, they were all between me and the dungeon¡¯s entrance. I had to fight through them.


    I grit my teeth and silently berated myself for charging the zombie further into the dungeon. I could have just used fire on it and charged the one closer to the entrance.


    Regardless, I steeled myself and as the flaming zombie was about to slash at me with its nails, I side-stepped it while slashing with my sword, somehow managing to cut off its hand, making it stumble.


    I pushed away the queasiness I felt and pressed my advantage. I brought down the sword and caved its skull in.


    Just in time for the two other zombies to hurl themselves at me.


    I dodged to the side and watched as the two crashed into each other mid-air and landed in a pile of limbs. My gamer instincts screamed at me to use an AoE attack since they were all bunched up and I used the strongest fire breath I could manage without knocking myself out.


    Even as the fire engulfed them, I began rapidly checking my surroundings to make sure that no more ambushes were going to get me again. Luckily, there weren¡¯t any more zombies and I could refocus on the two burning ones that were inevitably going to come after me again.


    I watched as the two flailed around and saw one of them accidentally scratch the other one¡¯s blank face in its manic movement. The scratched one abruptly stopped moving, letting the first one finally untangle itself. It lunged at me in the same way the others had and I side-stepped it while slashing at it, this time managing to hit its head and ending it.


    A few seconds later, both of them as well as the fire vanished into mist.


    I took one last look around just in case, and when I saw nothing, I slowed down my rapid breaths, took one last shaky breath and slowly let it out as I relaxed. A second later, a system window popped in front of me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Novice fighter¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    ¡°Wha¨C?!¡± I jumped in surprise and the grip on my sword tightened before I realized what had happened. Uh¡­ Oh. Right. The achievement for defeating ten dungeon monsters. Forgot about that¡­ That was exactly ten, wasn¡¯t it?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> holy shit that was intense


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> is your arm okay?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you¡¯re being careless again


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> one died to friendly fire though lol


    I glanced at my left arm and gently touched it with my other one ¨C carefully not to stab myself with the sword ¨C and found that besides the lines of blood, the scratch wound had completely healed up.


    That was great but¡­ I had many questions.


    ¡°Chat, am I gonna turn into a zombie¡­?¡± I tried to say in a joking manner, but couldn¡¯t help but be worried about the very real possibility of it happening. I barely knew anything about how things in this world worked besides the system, after all. ¡°Why did I heal anyway?¡±


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> probably the potion


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> check your race in status


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> blooop?! ¦²(?¿Ú?;)//


    <u>Irid123:</u> uh oh foreshadowing


    ¡°Oh yeah¡­ The potion. I do feel a bit more tired now so that¡¯s probably it¡­ I guess it used up some of that energy to heal me¡­? I hope it¡¯s not an indication that I¡¯m turning at least¡­¡± I shook my head. ¡°Still, why are some things still so video-gamish? Makes no sense¡­¡±


    I quickly opened up my status window and found out that my race still said human and not zombie or human-who-is-slowly-turning-into-a-zombie, so that was good. It didn¡¯t mean I was safe though.


    I sighed and glanced at the chained gate in the distance, thought about it for a moment¡­ and then turned around and began to slowly walk back to the dungeon¡¯s entrance.


    ¡°Okay, you know what? I think I had enough action for today, chat¡­ I know I said I would go all the way to the gate but¡­ I have a bad feeling that there are even stronger monsters waiting for me further in. And if I can¡¯t even deal with the basic zombies, I¡¯ll probably die to whatever is waiting for me.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> probably the smart move


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yo you can get that appraisal now


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Get some sleep. You deserve it. I¡¯m gonna get going too now. Bye.


    ¡°Oh yeah, I can get appraisal now¡­ Ah, bye, Ranger! And thanks!¡±


    Even as I spoke to chat, I made sure to keep glancing around and briefly putting on heat vision¡­ Not that it had helped much before.


    Surprisingly though, no more zombies jumped me on my way back and I safely made it across the threshold where I felt the familiar sense of relief wash over me.


    ¡°Well, look at that, chat! I¡¯m leaving normally instead of being on the verge of collapsing! I¡¯m improving! Yay!¡± I sarcastically cheered.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> gj!


    <u>GonguuH:</u> we¡¯re all very proud of you Nana


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup whatd i miss?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> keep it up and you¡¯ll conquer the whole dungeon


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> so about that appraisal¡­


    ¡°Thanks, Gong¡­ Hey, George. Just in time for me to wrap up for today,¡± I said with a smirk. ¡°Anywho, appraisal! Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    There were actually two other skills I could get with my two skill points ¨C soulbound item and craftsman. And considering how precious every skill point was, I wanted to double check to make sure appraisal was the right choice. So I once again opened up all three skill descriptions and carefully read through them as I sat down on the grass just outside the dungeon. ¡°Actually, let me check the other things too¡­¡±


    <u>Soulbound item:


    </u>Bind an item to your soul. A soulbound item can¡¯t be lost or stolen in any way. You can unbind a soulbound item to free up a soulbound slot, but doing so will destroy it.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Soul pocket (2SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Dual wield (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Blacksmith (5SP)


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> whattttt cmon<u>


    Jeofffff:</u> useless


    <u>GonguuH:</u> this could be useful eventually


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> there isn¡¯t even anyone who could steal your stuff


    I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Yeah, this sounds cool and all, but it doesn¡¯t really do anything¡­ Also, I don¡¯t know how I feel about sticking random junk to my soul.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Let¡¯s look at the upgrades, though. Maybe they are good?¡±


    <u>Soul pocket</u> - Grants access to a small pocket dimension where you can store your soulbound item. Touching it is required for putting it in or bringing it out. A small amount of your Tempor reserves are locked for this sub-skill.


    <u>Dual wield</u> - You can now have up to two soulbound items.


    <u>Blacksmith</u> - You can now use Craftsman¡¯s Fusion sub-skill on soulbound items an infinite amount of times.


    ¡°Oooh! I see. Yeah, okay. The soul pocket would be super convenient¡­ I imagine you are supposed to use it on your weapon, right? And then dual wield for your offhand item¡­ or maybe your armor? Oh, you can totally do a magical girl transformation by grabbing an outfit out of that pocket dimension and putting it on yourself, can¡¯t you?¡± I giggled at the thought. ¡°No idea what the last one means¡­ Let¡¯s look at the craftsman skill then¡­¡±


    <u>Craftsman:


    </u>Infuse Ether into your tools and hands to more easily create products from raw materials.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Empower (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Fusion (6SP)


    I hummed and opened descriptions for the upgrades as well.


    <u>Empower</u> - Infuse Ether into the resulting product, making it sturdier and more powerful.


    Fusion - Combine two items together to fuse their function and quality. Resulting item quality is capped at rare. Fused items cannot be further fused but can be separated again. Uses a varying amount of Ether based on the quality and size of items fused.


    My jaw dropped.


    ¡°O¨Ckaaaay! That¡¯s literally a video game mechanic! I mean, seriously? Fusing two random things together gives you an upgraded version? Chat, what the heck?!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> that sounds super useful though


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey what if you combine random junk to get food?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol crafting system


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­ (£þ¥Ø£þ)


    ¡°What? Like¡­ combining bush leaves with that slime? You think that would give me something edible?¡± I frowned, feeling skeptical. ¡°I mean¡­ Maybe? Depends on how video-gamey it is, I guess¡­¡±


    Then I grimaced.


    ¡°But I doubt I can get six more points for that upgrade before I starve to death, so¡­ Yeah, maybe later.¡±


    <u>Appraisal:</u>


    Glean information about a target item. Uses a minor amount of Intra.


    I hummed and nodded.


    ¡°Appraisal is super simple, but¡­ You know what they say. Knowing is half the battle, right? Yeah, maybe I¡¯ll try the other skills once I have spare skill points, I think it¡¯s still appraisal right now.¡±


    <u>Purchase the skill [Appraisal] for 2 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    I mentally said yes and proceeded to equip the skill into my last empty slot with a nod.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Stocked up¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    I blinked.


    ¡°Huh? Wait, what¡¯s this one¡­?¡±


    <u>Stocked up</u> - Fill all your skill slots [COMPLETE]


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> unavoidable achievements are lame


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> nice


    I stared for a moment before shrugging.


    ¡°Well, free skill points are free skill points. Didn¡¯t even notice that one befoooaaa¨C¡± The end of my sentence turned into a yawn and I clamped a hand over my mouth to stop it.


    ¡°Welp¡­ I guess it¡¯s time to sleep¡­¡±


    I looked around the spooky night-time forest ¨C the Sun had set quite some time ago while I¡¯d been in the dungeon ¨C and felt a little unnerved, but considering I had yet to meet any kind of living creature outside of dungeons, I also felt fairly safe to sleep wherever.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> don¡¯t you dare go to sleep without trying appraisal


    I smirked and rubbed my eyes.


    ¡°Ah, jeez. I¡¯m so tired I can¡¯t even properly see chat anymore. I guess I¡¯m just gonna plop down right here in front of the dungeon and go to sleep.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> youuuuuu


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> good night Nana!


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Good night!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> gn


    I yawned again as I lay down on the grass, which made Jeoff spam more annoyed comments.


    It wasn¡¯t the most comfortable place to sleep by any means, and there was still some of that energy from the potion, but mentally, I was totally exhausted, so it didn¡¯t take long before I fell asleep.

 #013 – Not quite a wiki, but I’ll take it

    When I blinked my eyes awake, I saw the blue sky through some leafy branches of the trees surrounding me.


    There was a brief moment of confusion before I remembered where I was and what I was doing. Once again, I let out a little whine, but promptly got up and looked around myself.


    Nothing had attacked me during the night. That was great and all, but¡­ part of me felt a sinking feeling. The idea that I was completely alone in this world was disturbing and I really hoped that it was just this forest that was empty.


    Shaking these thoughts away, I stretched with a yawn before my stomach grumbled.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ good morning, chat¡­ I really need to find food soon¡­¡± I said in a daze and took a deep breath before grimacing. ¡°Ugh¡­ and a shower¡­¡±


    I was still covered in blood ¨C although it had dried up already ¨C and all the sweat from yesterday¡¯s action didn¡¯t help either.


    And then I finally looked at the chat window and froze.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> morning!


    <u>0ur0br0s:</u> so it¡¯s real?


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> g morning


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> finally


    <u>jifLover67:</u> heya


    <u>mountchestnut:</u> use appraisal


    <u>lovingh8ter:</u> sup


    <u>brocode420:</u> show us fire breath


    I was greeted by a whole slew of messages, some of them saying good morning, some demanding I show them some of my skills, others spamming random nonsense, and all sorts of other things that I couldn¡¯t even parse. The messages were popping up so fast that I could barely keep up with the relevant ones. Most of them were from viewers who I had never interacted with before.


    ¡°Wha¨C Uh, hey everyone! Welcome! Why are there suddenly so many people, though? Did I go viral?¡±


    Once again, messages flooded my chat window and I could only pick out some keywords before they were pushed off-screen by new ones.


    From what I could gather, I was apparently super famous now? Because another popular Vcuber had shouted me out? And also the Snitch admins were mad at me?!


    ¡°What?! Why?! What did I do?! Hacking¡­ What?! They tried to ban me, but couldn¡¯t?!¡± I stared in disbelief. ¡°I didn¡¯t hack anything! I¡¯m the victim here!¡±


    There was a wave of skeptics as usual, but now it was balanced by a different wave of people who fully believed the reality of my situation. It was split pretty evenly now, but it still annoyed me how many people continued to think that my situation was just some game.


    That aside¡­ There seemed to be a Snitch admin in chat, demanding that I take down my stream, saying that their company would sue me for hacking and other cyber crimes. I could barely catch what he was saying with all the other messages, but I caught enough.


    ¡°I can¡¯t turn off the stream!¡± I opened up the description of the Streamer skill again and pointed at it. ¡°See right here? ¡®This cannot be turned off.¡¯ I can¡¯t do anything about this! Whoever set all of this up won¡¯t let me! And no! It wasn¡¯t me! I¡¯m not a hacker!¡±


    I huffed to myself.


    What a thing to wake up to. But this kind of nonsense was something popular streamers had to deal with all the time, wasn¡¯t it? Well, aside from the hacking allegations thing.


    ¡°How many people are watching right now anyway¡­?¡± I idly asked as I stood up and made my way over to the goo lake again in lieu of a proper breakfast.


    My jaw dropped when I got replies. ¡°What?! Five¡­ six thousand?! That¡¯s crazy! That¡¯s a hundred times my normal viewership! Aaaah! What am I supposed to do now?! Why did it take getting isekai¡¯d for me to finally get popular?!¡±


    For a second I was torn on feeling happy at the popularity and overwhelmed by the number of eyes on me now. Then I shook my head and decided to ignore the anxiety and just be happy about it for the time being.


    Meanwhile, the Snitch admin continued to badger me without giving up just yet.


    ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry¡­ Michael¡­ but I can¡¯t do anything about it! I didn¡¯t even know it was all streamed to Snitch until chat told me yesterday! If you find a way to take the stream down, then¡­ go ahead, I guess¡­¡± It pained me to say it, but I also didn¡¯t want any legal trouble.


    Which was probably kind of silly to worry about considering I was in another world and currently slowly starving to death.


    Well, whatever.


    Mr. Michael, the Snitch admin, didn¡¯t take well to my response anyway and promised to sue me up to my eyeballs and send all the cops after me. I just grunted at him in annoyance. Not like I could really do anything about it.


    As I made it to the goo lake, I briefly contemplated bathing in it, but quickly dismissed the idea. I still ate that stuff, I wasn¡¯t going to dirty it.


    Then I remembered what I¡¯d done yesterday just before going to sleep ¨C buying the appraisal skill ¨C and decided to finally test it out.


    Just like with the heat vision, it didn¡¯t take me long to find the subtle mental switch, although this one was a little different. Rather than a literal light switch, it was more like a gun I could fire once I had an appropriate target. The goo in front of me was acceptable, so I fired off my mental appraisal gun at it.


    <u>Life ooze


    </u>A clump of highly concentrated Ether mixed with water.


    I blinked at the floating blue window.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Neat. So this stuff is pure Ether? Or like¡­ distilled Ether, I guess?¡±


    I hummed and nodded to myself, before reaching into my pockets and pulling out the bottle once again.


    I used appraisal on it.


    <u>A bottle of Refined Life ooze


    </u>A glass bottle filled with Refined Life ooze - A clump of highly concentrated Ether mixed with a small amount of water and Intra.


    ¡°We were right, chat! It¡¯s the same stuff¡­ Actually not quite. Apparently it has¡­ Intra mixed in too? That¡¯s the other kind of ¡®mana¡¯ right?¡± I said as chat messages poured in even faster than before.


    It was honestly hard to read any of them at this point. That was¡­ unfortunate, but hey. Popularity came with a cost, I supposed. Dammit, I might need to get the admin rights upgrade soon just so I could appoint some mods.


    I grunted ¨C which sounded a lot cuter with my tiny vocal cords than it would have before ¨C as I placed the bottle on the ground and scooped up some of the goo ¨C Life ooze ¨C from the lake and ate it again, instantly feeling more awake.


    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    ¡°I wonder what the difference is between them? Appraisal uses Intra¡­ heat vision too. And fire breath uses Ether¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°Some of the upgrades mentioned using more Ether and Intra. Hmm¡­¡±


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Well, anyway. Since I have appraisal now, I should use it on everything!¡± I cheered and unsheathed my sword ¨C which was still glowing, albeit much dimmer than yesterday ¨C before appraising it.


    <u>Ether Volt


    </u>A blade with Ether-reactive circuitry etched in it, allowing the user to channel Ether through it, turn it into electricity, and shoot it out in bolts.


    ¡°Ether-reactive! Now it makes sense¡­ Wait, bolts of electricity? I have a lightning sword? The heck? That never happened! It just started to glow! How am I supposed to make it shoot lightning?¡±


    I frowned at the thing before waving it around, trying to get lighting to shoot out without success.


    ¡°Lightning bolt!¡± I shouted as I pointed the sword at a tree.


    Nothing happened. Besides my face flushing in embarrassment, that is.


    ¡°Ahem¡­ How does this work¡­?¡±


    I brought the thing closer to my eyes to inspect it and after a brief moment of deliberation, I decided to carefully touch the glowing blade with my fingers. Luckily, it didn¡¯t zap me or anything, it just felt warm and¡­ I could have sworn I felt some faint buzzing there.


    I scrunched up my expression as I tried to guide that energy or activate it. It said ¡®channel Ether¡¯ so I assumed that since I had Ether in me, I should be able to do that. But I had no idea how.


    I huffed.


    ¡°Where¡¯s a tutorial when you need one¡­?¡± Maybe channeling my Ether was a skill I needed to learn first? Or maybe it required a specific skill first? I had no clue.


    I blinked as I remembered something.


    ¡°Wait, hold on¡­¡±


    I navigated into available skills and opened up one of them just to look at the description again.


    <u>Craftsman:


    </u>Infuse Ether into your tools and hands to more easily create products from raw materials.


    <u>Empower</u> - Infuse Ether into the resulting product, making it sturdier and more powerful.


    ¡°This is it, right¡­? Well, maybe not¡­ It¡¯s meant to be for something else. But maybe it will give me an idea at least¡­?¡± I hummed. ¡°Hmm, I guess that decides what I¡¯m going for next¡­ Unless I¡¯ll want to upgrade the skills I have¡­¡±


    I shook my head and put the sword back in its sheath.


    ¡°Anyway! What else?¡±


    I sat down and began emptying my pockets and using appraisal on everything just because I could.


    First was the pen I¡¯d found in the dungeon.


    <u>Ether-powered pen</u>


    A pen that automatically uses the wielder¡¯s Ether to create and erase its ink.


    ¡°Oh, hey! It is a magical pen! I didn¡¯t even notice it was draining my Ether. I guess it only uses a little bit¡­? Wait, doesn¡¯t that mean that it¡¯s practically an infinite pen since my Ether regenerates?¡± I blinked, then frowned, then shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ cool, I guess. Doesn¡¯t really help with the dungeon or the food problem but hey. Nice to have.¡±


    Next thing I fished out the damn ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯ message and the envelope it had been in.


    <u>Paper</u>


    A high-quality paper with a message on it.


    <u>Envelope</u>


    An envelope made out of high-quality paper.


    I stared at the two little windows deadpan.


    ¡°Thanks, appraisal, I would have never guessed,¡± I said, my voice dry, before grumbling, ¡°I guess it was too much to hope I would get some clues from it.¡±


    Next up was the shard of my egg¡¯s shell.


    <u>Egg shell shard


    </u>A shard from an egg you yourself have hatched from. Due to the personal connection you have with this item, it is usable as an incausal rift key.


    I stopped and blinked at the unexpected bold text.


    ¡°...An incausal rift key? What the heck is that?¡± The term felt somewhat familiar¡­ Where had I seen it before?


    I pondered about it for a minute as I stared at the egg shard before noticing some viewers spamming ¡®Limit break¡¯ in the chat. My mouth made an ¡®o¡¯ shape as I requested the system to open the description of Limit breaks again.


    I quickly skimmed through the text, mumbling the description to myself, until I found the key word.


    ¡°...Completing a limit break will unlock a new tier of all skills¡­ skill slots¡­ Oh here! Allow you access to incausal rifts and memory temples.¡± I hummed.


    ¡°Right¡­ So it¡¯s something to do with after I cause myself long-term trauma. Uh huh. Well, never mind then. Guess the fancy bold text is completely irrelevant then,¡± I announced before a wave of annoyed messages came through the chat.


    I ignored them, of course. I had no plans on ever doing this limit break, after all.


    Lastly, I fished out some of the coins I¡¯d gotten from the dungeon.


    <u>Fate Weaver coin (copper)


    </u>A lowest denomination divine coin made by the Fate Weaver. A hundred copper coins can be fused into a single silver coin with the use of Ether.


    I stopped and blinked before reading it again.


    Fate Weaver? Fate Weaver?!


    Combining this description and the fact that I¡¯d found these coins in a dungeon¡­ It implied that the Fate Weaver was the one to create the dungeons too. And if it had created the dungeons, had it also created the system itself? Was this Fate Weaver the god of this world? Surely not, right?


    Right¡­?


    ¡­It said divine coin, though.


    I shook away these thoughts.


    I was probably overthinking it. And even if this Fate Weaver was the god that created everything then¡­ Well, why not? The title was probably just a coincidence.


    ¡°...Huh. Well, alright then. I guess it¡¯s just this world¡¯s currency,¡± I said out loud, not letting my thoughts show. ¡°Still don¡¯t get why there¡¯s an eight¡­ or infinity on them.¡±


    I briefly stopped, as a very good idea for why an infinity symbol would be relevant popped into my head, but I shook my head and stopped thinking about it.


    ¡°Well, anyway. That¡¯s everything.¡± My stomach grumbled again and I couldn¡¯t help but let out a little whine. ¡°I guess it¡¯s time to get back to the dungeon and hope to get food¡­¡±


    But before I could, some chat messages caught my eye.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> clothes


    I snapped my fingers.


    ¡°Oh. Right. I didn¡¯t appraise my clothes. Let¡¯s see then¡­¡± I closed my left eye, picked up my right sleeve, and ¡®shot¡¯ appraisal at it with my right eye.


    <u>Vcuber garb</u>


    Clothes made out of Blizzard spider silk. Provides minor protection from general damage, and moderate protection from heat and cold, and automatically adjusts its size to the wearer by using the wearer¡¯s Ether.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ No hints of my kidnapper here, either¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°Blizzard spider silk, huh? Fancy name. I hope to never see it, though. I hate spiders.¡± I shuddered. ¡°And I guess this is why I didn¡¯t feel cold sleeping out in the wild¡­ and why it fits me so perfectly even though I have that rapid growing skill¡­¡±


    I was a little torn. On one hand, I was grateful that my kidnapper had left me this so I wouldn¡¯t freeze at night. On the other hand¡­ screw that guy.


    ¡°Anyway! Dungeon time¡­ Again.¡± I glanced at all the stuff littering the ground and moved to put them back into my pockets, but then stopped.


    ¡°Actually, why don¡¯t I just leave most of my stuff out here?¡± I thought out loud. ¡°It¡¯s not like anyone is gonna steal it. And I doubt I¡¯m gonna need all of this random crap in a dungeon anyway.¡±


    It would just weigh me down. Not to mention, if I found another chest, I needed space in my pockets for the loot.


    I hummed and nodded to myself before picking up just the vial of ooze and pocketing it. And then stood up and began walking to the dungeon once more.


    On my way there, the chat kept flooding with more messages that I barely managed to read as they pushed each other up. Then one message stayed at the bottom instead of being pushed up like the others and my eyes went wide.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nanaaaa what¡¯s up?


    ¡°Ebiiiiii! I¡¯m stuck in another world!¡± I shouted back with a grin as a mix of conflicting emotions flooded me.


    I also idly wondered why her message in particular got pinned. Was it because I¡¯d made her a mod? That wasn¡¯t how Snitch chat worked, though¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> whaaa


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> did the trucks get you?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and what¡¯s with your voice?


    ¡°No, I got kidnapped by a phoenix! Look!¡± I opened up the ¡®Find the culprit¡¯ quest description. ¡°The jerk reincarnated me and now I¡¯m a kid!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> the heck


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hold on


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you for real?


    ¡°...Yeah,¡± I replied, my voice taking on a bit more somber tone. ¡°There¡¯s this whole video game system thing, and I have a skill that streams back to Earth, and I almost died like three times, and I¡¯m literally starving to death because there¡¯s nothing to eat here, and the Snitch admins are trying to ban me because apparently the skill hacked their site, and we can¡¯t do that collab on Sunday anymore because I¡¯m stuck here, and and and¡­¡±


    I breath hitched and I belatedly realized that I was crying.


    ¡°Ebi¡­ help¡­¡± whimpered as I leaned on a nearby tree and hugged myself.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> holy shit


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I got you


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s gonna be fine


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> we¡¯ll figure this out


    I nodded my head and let out a pathetic, ¡°Okay¡­¡±


    Ugh¡­ I needed to stop having these random emotional outbursts¡­


    I blamed this prepubescent body for them.

 #014 – I would like to report a murder… of physics

    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> does your family know?


    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know? Probably not,¡± I replied with a shrug as I finished wiping off the last of my tears.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> should I tell them?


    I pursed my lips and thought about it for a moment.


    Honestly, I wasn¡¯t sure. My relationships with my family had always been strained, especially after coming out. My sister was a little better, but I still wasn¡¯t particularly close to her¡­


    ¡°Probably not¡­ It¡¯s fine.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana¡­


    ¡°I mean¡­ it¡¯s not like you have contacts for them. And I can¡¯t give them to you without giving it to the whole chat, right? Cuz I can¡¯t turn off the stream,¡± I reasoned.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I guess that¡¯s true


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> how can I help then?


    ¡°I¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t know?¡±


    I genuinely had no idea what a fellow Vcuber could do to help me in my situation. As colorful as our lore could be, Vcubers didn¡¯t actually have magical powers to traverse dimensions and whatnot.


    ¡°I guess just emotional support is enough¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> if that¡¯s enough for you¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯ll be your friendly fairy Ebiko on your isekai journey!


    I snorted, my mouth finally curving into a smile again.


    ¡°Fairy? I thought you were a shrimp girl.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> shrimp fairy!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯ll do my best!


    I grinned.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Alright! I know I keep getting distracted, but now for real ¨C Dungeon time¡­! Again¡­! Third time¡¯s the charm!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> woohoo!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait dungeon?


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve been trying to beat this weird dungeon, but I keep getting overwhelmed by the zombies. Last time, one even scratched me and I don¡¯t even know if I¡¯m turning into a zombie too¡­¡± I briefly looked at my status and found out that my race still said Human, thankfully.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> then why are you going back?!


    ¡°Because I¡¯m starving! Look, I even have a death clock!¡± I opened up the ¡®Don¡¯t starve¡¯ quest description.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Don¡¯t starve¡¯ Side quest


    </u>Time left: 2d, 5h, 11m, 3s<u>


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find something to eat.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Find a source of food that will last you at least a week.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - Death by starvation


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what the falafel


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s messed up


    ¡°Mhmm, I know,¡± I dryly replied as I finally made it to the dungeon¡¯s entrance again. ¡°But yeah. There¡¯s nothing out here besides the dungeons. I tried eating bush leaves and the goo¡­ but none of them were real food.¡±


    Which reminded me¡­ I needed to use appraisal on the trees too at some point. And the orange smoke inside them as well.


    Not right now, though. I had distracted myself for long enough.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait there¡¯s no animals or fruits or anything?


    ¡°Nope¡­ Nothing. As far as I can tell, there¡¯s only fruitless plants and these weird dungeons in this world. And since the dungeon chests have random stuff in them, I¡¯m hoping to find something edible at some point¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> right


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> still weird


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> where¡¯s this dungeon then?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and what is this place?


    I sighed. ¡°This is the dungeon. I told you. The dungeons are weird,¡± I said as I stepped over the boundary and let the uncomfortable chill go down my spine again.


    I was getting used to that feeling.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> huh


    ¡°Yeah. Anywho, I gotta pay attention now. Don¡¯t wanna get jumped by zombies.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> right


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯ll shut up now


    I hummed and advanced through the hallway, whilst switching my vision again.


    I wasn¡¯t really sure whether the heat vision was at all useful, to be honest. I couldn¡¯t see through the concrete walls with it, and by the time I could spot the zombies with it, they were close enough that I could also hear them or see them normally anyway.


    I was probably going to replace it with Craftsman as soon as I could get another skill point. Although I wasn¡¯t entirely sure how that worked. Would I need to buy it again if I wanted to use it? I sure hoped not. That would have been a massive waste of skill points.


    That aside, the halls were suspiciously empty compared to last time. I got a good way through, and even passed by the room where I¡¯d looted the chest ¨C it was still open and empty ¨C before another zombie appeared.


    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    Just a single one. It was very easy to deal with at this point. All I had to do was dodge its initial lunge and then smack it in the head with my sword. It disappeared in a mist a few seconds later.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wow that¡¯s brutal


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and gross


    ¡°Yeah¡­ It feels even worse than it looks. I¡¯m kind of used to it at this point, though. I¡¯ve already killed ten of these things.¡± I didn¡¯t mention my concerns about becoming a psychopath. She didn¡¯t need to know. Nor did chat.


    Just like that, I kept advancing, much more confidently than yesterday. More zombies came out to mingle, but whether it was experience or growing up overnight, I no longer had any issues dealing with even groups of four of them at once. It still left me a little winded, but a few minutes of rest and I was good to go again.


    ¡°It¡¯s weird that they only started appearing now¡­¡± I mused as I glanced at chat. A few keywords caught my eye and I blinked. ¡°Huh. You think they didn¡¯t respawn from my last delve? Hmm¡­ That would explain it I guess. But does that mean that the dungeons become empty and pointless after one person clears them?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe it all resets once you beat everything


    I hummed. ¡°Maybe.¡±


    With that in mind, I kept going, dealing with about a dozen more zombies on my way to the locked gate. I was getting pretty used to their behavior and none of them got a single scratch on me anymore. After all, I¡¯ve always been good at figuring out monster AI.


    Maybe video game skills did translate into real life situations. At least some of them.


    At last I reached the locked gate. Looking at it up close, it looked incredibly video-gamey. The golden lock was suspended right in the middle of the gate by four golden chains that were attached to each of the gate¡¯s corners. The lock was also as big as my head and the gate itself was made out of simple golden metallic bars connected to the gate¡¯s rim at the top and bottom.


    Beyond the gate, I could see the actual water park. Pools of water, waterslides, fast food vendors to the side ¨C


    ¡°Chat¡­ There¡¯s fast food vendors.¡± I gripped the metal bars with my hands and glared beyond the gate. ¡°I bet there¡¯s gonna be food in there!¡±


    Or there could be zombie vendors waiting to make food out of me.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> blow up the gate!


    I backed off, checked my surroundings for zombies again, and then breathed in and covered the damn gate in as much fire as I could muster without collapsing.


    Once the fire dissipated, I was greeted with the locked golden gate without a hint of damage.


    Dammit.


    I pulled out my sword and swung at the lock as hard as I could¡­ Only to yelp as I was deflected by some kind of forcefield around the thing. I flew back on my butt and even let go of my sword for a second before quickly retrieving it.


    ¡°Ughhh¡­ Of course it has anti-cheat protection¡­ Has anyone seen a massive golden key around here?¡± I grumbled.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s a dungeon<u>


    KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so probably in one of the chests around here


    ¡°Probably, yeah,¡± I agreed as I peeked into some of the windows. Unfortunately, there were no immediately visible chests nearby. Just rooms of various shapes and sizes filled with empty tables and chairs.


    I grumbled to myself but grudgingly climbed into the first window to start exploring.


    Right as I did, a zombie jumped out from behind me somehow and only my reflexes saved me from getting scratched as I threw myself to the side and covered the jerk in fire. I swiftly recovered and drove my sword through its skull as it tried jumping me again.


    My eyes darted around, looking for more potential danger as the zombie vanished.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> NANA?!


    I let out a calming sigh.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine. This happens all the time.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that doesn¡¯t sound like a good thing


    I shrugged. ¡°What can I do? It¡¯s either this or slowly starving to death out there. And if I have to die anyway, I¡¯ll go out in a blaze of glory!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana¡­ ;_;<u>


    KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are we sure that¡¯s not your kidnapper¡¯s plan?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> like¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> he wants you to become this super soldier


    I frowned.


    ¡°You think this is some kind of messed up experiment¡­? Like¡­ I¡¯m being conditioned? Getting used to fighting vaguely human-shaped enemies?¡±


    Something about that thought made me feel cold. Of course, I had been concerned about turning into a psychopath, but what if that was the whole point of this?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah it¡¯s like he¡¯s trying to slowly convert you to the dark side


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you have to fight it!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t lose yourself!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t become the villain!


    I stared for a second before taking a slow breath and sighing.


    ¡°Right¡­ Yeah¡­¡± I shook my head. ¡°Who do you take me for, Ebi?! I¡¯m not gonna lose myself! I am Aoto Nana, the chimera of seven races! Something like this isn¡¯t enough to break me!¡± I confidently proclaimed. ¡°...Although I¡¯m back to being just human now¡­ Whatever! I¡¯m Aoto Nana, the tiny human! Here to mess up all the evil phoenix plans!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> heck yeah!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and I¡¯m Kai Ebiko, your guardian shrimp fairy!


    ¡°Yeah! Now let¡¯s keep going!¡±


    I finally looked around to properly survey the room I was in and then stopped.


    ¡°Hold on¡­ How does this even work?¡±


    I walked back to the window and to the left of it, where the room stretched beyond what should be possible without expanding into the hallway outside. Sure, it explained how a zombie had gotten behind me, but¡­


    ¡°This is nonsense! Stupid non-euclidian rooms!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hey that means there could be secret chests hidden around the corners


    I groaned and rubbed my face.


    ¡°You¡¯re right¡­ I¡¯ll have to search every single room for the key.¡± I sighed. ¡°Well, I guess I have my work cut out for me. I better get started then¡­¡±


    I began by exploring the extended part that defied the fabric of space-time and found out that the room kept going around and behind the wall where the window existed and looped all the way around in a vague donut shape back to the window¡­ or more likely, a different window, since it didn¡¯t keep wrapping around and this was clearly a different room.


    My eye twitched and I cautiously looked out of that window, only to see that I was looking out of a completely different window, far away from the locked gate, on the opposite side from where I¡¯d entered the other window.


    I let out a pained groan and slid a hand down my face.


    ¡°It¡¯s a non-eudlician maze! This is going to be such a pain!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh my god


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay don¡¯t worry


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I gotchu


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m gonna draw a map


    I blinked. ¡°How are you gonna draw a map?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I dunno but I¡¯m gonna try!


    ¡°Okay¡­ thanks, Ebi.¡± I briefly glanced above Ebi¡¯s messages, but it had somehow gotten even worse. It was all flashing by way too quickly for me to read anything.


    ¡°...I gotta get that streamer skill upgrade next. The one with group chats. It feels a bit lame, but I literally can¡¯t read anything but Ebi¡¯s messages right now.¡± I huffed. ¡°Anyway! Let¡¯s keep exploring, I guess.¡±


    I climbed out of the window into the hallway again and briefly glanced around.


    ¡°Actually¡­ If I¡¯m gonna go through every room anyway, I might as well start at the beginning,¡± I said as I made my way to the entrance of the dungeon again without anything attacking me. But this time, rather than leaving, I randomly picked the left wall and began eyeing the room beyond the first window.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m gonna take notes


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> write down where every window leads


    I grinned.


    ¡°Awesome! Thanks, Ebi!¡±


    And with that, the thorough dungeon exploration began.

 #015 – It’s a metaphor for cleaning the dungeon

    ¡°Looooot!¡± I cheered as I spotted the chest in the corner. It looked identical to the other one I¡¯d found yesterday.


    Even then, I approached it carefully and poked it with a sword from afar.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s not how you open chests Nana


    ¡°I¡¯m checking for mimics!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> there are mimics?


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Well, probably.¡± I realized that none of the chests I¡¯d found were mimics, but I still thought that it was prudent to check anyway¡­ Or maybe it was just the lingering paranoia from playing Mimic Nation last week. ¡°The first dungeon I found, there was this random wreckage that turned into a giant killer robot when I got close.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hmm


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> can¡¯t you use appraisal?


    I stopped, blinked, then slapped my face.


    ¡°Oh yeah¡­¡±


    I fired off Appraisal at the chest.


    <u>D-rank dungeon chest


    </u>A loot chest containing random dungeon loot.


    ¡°Oh, good¡­ Wait, D-rank? Huh¡­ alright.¡±


    The spaceship had been B or higher and the zombies here were definitely much easier to deal with than the giant killer robot, so it made sense.


    ¡°Well, I hope this means it¡¯s definitely not a mimic. Although¡­ Can mimics bluff their way through appraisal¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hopefully not


    I shrugged and finally got to opening the thing. It was even easier than the one yesterday. Because of that, combined with the fact that the zombies were much easier to beat, I was confident that I was getting stronger.


    The chest opened and revealed its loot.


    It was¡­ a mop and a metal bucket.


    I stared in disbelief.


    ¡°What,¡± I said, deadpan.


    I immediately fired Appraisal at both of the objects.


    <u>Ether-powered mop


    </u>A mop that automatically uses the wielder¡¯s Ether to create its water and destroy dirt.


    <u>Dimensional bucket


    </u>A bucket connected to its own pocket space that can hold several different types of liquid separately without them mixing.


    ¡°Okaaay¡­ The bucket could be useful, I guess¡­¡± I groaned. ¡°If I can even find any liquids¡­ Actually, does the ooze count? That should totally count, right?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh that¡¯s neat


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what is the mop even for though?


    I grunted in annoyance.


    ¡°I dunno. It¡¯s just random trash loot, I guess. I got a pen that¡¯s similar from the other chest. Doesn¡¯t really help, but¡­ it¡¯s cool, I guess¡­?¡±


    If I ever needed to mop up some place, then I had the perfect tool for it now.


    Awesome.


    I sheathed my sword and grabbed the two objects before frowning.


    ¡°Ugh, I don¡¯t wanna lug all this junk around¡­ I guess I can just dump it at the dungeon¡¯s entrance and come back.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> make a little loot pile at the entrance!


    ¡°Mhmm¡­¡±


    With the loot in hand, I turned around and left the room via the door I¡¯d entered through and then back into the hallway through the window.


    As expected, no zombies appeared to mess with me as I leisurely walked to the dungeon¡¯s entrance, further confirming the fact that the monsters didn¡¯t respawn. Still, I made sure to hold the mop in my right hand, ready to smack someone. Just in case.


    The feeling of relief washed over me and I unceremoniously dumped the bucket and the mop on the grass before turning around and entering the dungeon again.


    I briefly remembered the side objective of the dungeon quest saying that I needed to clear the dungeon in one try and wow. How arrogant had I been, thinking I could do that? I¡¯d left and re-entered this place so many times, it wasn¡¯t even funny.


    Anywho, back to combing through the place one room at a time.


    ¡°Which one was I at again?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sixth window now


    I gave a nod and climbed inside when a random thought occurred to me.


    ¡°By the way Ebi¡­ How long are you gonna stick around? I don¡¯t wanna make you cancel your own streams¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> until you find food


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s fine


    I cringed. ¡°But¡­ That could take days¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t worry about it


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I decided that I¡¯m doing a Nana-helping stream now


    I blinked.


    ¡°Are you re-streaming my own stream?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nah, I¡¯m streaming just myself


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and have you muted on my stream


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> people can open both our streams and watch along


    I stared for a second before shrugging.


    ¡°Right. I mean, sure.¡± I smiled. ¡°Thanks Ebi¡­ For sticking around, I mean.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> no problem!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> magical shrimp fairy girl Kai Ebiko at your service!


    With that, I got back to work.


    It wasn¡¯t until way past noon that I finally found another chest. Once again, I did my usual poking it with my sword after appraising it just to make triple sure before opening it.


    But when I finally got a look inside I froze and my eyes went wide.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> !!!!!


    I refrained from celebrating just yet and fired off appraisal at the thing.


    <u>Miakola fruit


    </u>A juicy fruit from the Miakola tree infused with some Ether.


    It looked like a pink egg-shaped apple and even though I had no idea what a Miakola was, it looked like the most delicious thing in the world at that moment.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    ¡°Foooooooood!¡± I cheered as I picked the thing up and did a little dance. ¡°Finallyyyyy!¡±


    Then I bit into it and it felt like I was in heaven. It was sweet, it was juicy, and it was food! It tasted somewhat like the life ooze, but that was probably because of the Ether.


    It didn¡¯t matter. I scarfed it down, nearly choking on it, and was left with the core in a matter of seconds. A small window saying ¡®Quest updated¡¯ popped up at some point while I was eating and that ultimately flooded me with so much relief that my eyes began to tear up again.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t die to a fruit!!


    I couldn¡¯t help but chuckle once I finished and wiped my tears.


    ¡°Ebi, I¡¯m gonna live! Beat that, starvation!¡± I cheered.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yaaaaaay!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> but srsly don¡¯t stuff it down your throat like that


    ¡°Ahaha¡­ I couldn¡¯t help it.¡± I grinned. ¡°But this is great! This means that I was right! There is food in these chests!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> but it¡¯s just one fruit


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and if the chests don¡¯t respawn then¡­


    I stopped and my cheer decreased a little.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ true¡­ ¡± I pursed my lips. ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll find something like the pen and mop later on? But with food? Ether-powered infinite chocolate bar¡­? Or maybe the boss will drop something bigger¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> how do you know there will even be a boss?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> this dungeon is weird enough already


    ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know? I just assumed¡­¡± I groaned. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll just have to keep going and see¡­ Are you still gonna stick around?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah I¡¯m not leaving you yet


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I just ordered some pizza tho


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m getting hungry


    ¡°Pizza? Man, I¡¯m jealous¡­¡± I totally didn¡¯t whine.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sorry :<


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wish I could share


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine¡­¡± I said and glanced at the rest of the loot in the chest.


    It was just four more of those copper coins. Nothing groundbreaking. I pocketed them anyway, alongside the fruit¡¯s core.


    Hey, I wasn¡¯t one to litter. And anyway, maybe the core would be useful for something as well.


    I continued to explore the place with Ebi¡¯s help, hoping to find more food in the chests. But rather than a chest, I found something entirely different next.


    Standing on my tiptoes ¨C stupid short body ¨C I opened the door squirreled away in the corner of a particularly annoying non-euclidian room and stared at the wide room in front of me.


    It was roughly square-shaped and had different flooring to every other room I¡¯d been in so far. Tiles instead of pure concrete.


    It was also almost completely empty save for the oversized desk that sat at the back of the room right next to a closed door. Oversized even if I wasn¡¯t undersized.


    I blinked as I pushed the door open wider.


    ¡°Well, this is¡­ different.¡± I cautiously glanced around, looking for any hidden threats, without entering just yet. ¡°I have a bad feeling about this¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it looks like a boss room


    I nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Yeah, exactly¡­ I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m ready.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you can always come back later


    ¡°That¡¯s probably a good idea¡­¡±


    Naturally, I noticed the rest of the chat freaking out and telling me to go in anyway. It was a good thing I had my helpful shrimp fairy to be my voice of reason now or I might have listened.


    So I simply noted the location and left to explore the rest of the dungeon.


    Maybe I would find something to help me fight the boss¡­? If there even was a boss in the first place.


    Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t happen.


    I explored the rest of the rooms with Ebi¡¯s help and didn¡¯t find any more chests or suspicious boss-like rooms. The key to the gate had to be somewhere in that room or beyond it. Maybe dropped by the boss, even.


    With no other choice, I decided to enter the room.


    ¡°You know, I think this is even creepier now that there are no zombies,¡± I noted as I made my way back to the supposed boss room through the empty dungeon.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s still weird that nothing respawns


    ¡°I know, right? Well, not like I¡¯m gonna complain. They don¡¯t drop anything anyway.¡±


    Back in front of the door that led to the square room, I sat down and took stock.


    I¡¯d completely forgotten about it in the moment, but the ¡®Don¡¯t starve¡¯ quest was complete¡­ Or rather, upon checking it, I found out that the main objective had been marked as [ACHIEVED] and I could now complete the quest at any time¡­ or I could postpone it and try to complete the side objective as well.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ What do you think, Ebi? Should I complete it right now and then get Craftsman?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hmmm


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what do the side objectives do?


    I shrugged.


    ¡°I have no idea. I¡¯ve never completed a quest besides the first one. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s gonna give me more skill points if I do the side objectives too?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hmmm


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so on one hand it would be a waste to complete it now


    I nodded. ¡°On the other hand, it would be really nice to get a powerup right before a boss¡­¡±


    Obviously, I was still assuming a lot of things. That Craftsman would even be useful, that it really was a boss room, that completing side objectives would do anything at all¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I think you should complete it and get the skill now


    ¡°You think so¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah do it!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> trust the shrimp fairy!


    ¡°Alright¡­¡±


    I sent out a mental confirmation and was greeted with a window.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Don¡¯t starve¡¯ Side quest complete!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find something to eat. [ACHIEVED]<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Find a source of food that will last you at least a week. [FAILED]


    <u>Hidden objectives:


    </u>???Source all food for this quest from a dungeon [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Rewards:


    </u>???1SP


    Tiny Ether expansion ticket


    ¡°Huh? Wait, hold on¡­¡± I blinked in surprise even as a meal ticket shimmered into existence in front of me and I instinctively caught it. I stared at the thing in bafflement. It was literally an orange meal ticket with green text saying ¡®1%!¡¯ on it.


    ¡°...There was a hidden objective? What is this thing¡­?¡±


    Without even using Appraisal, a window appeared in front of me.


    <u>Tiny Ether expansion ticket


    </u>A system consumable that increases your total Ether reserves and regeneration by 1% when consumed.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ cool. It¡¯s not much, but hey.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> permanent buff!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> awesome!


    ¡°Alright!¡± I stopped for a moment. ¡°Hang on. It¡¯s a consumable? Do I¡­ eat it? How do I¨C¡±


    <u>Consume 1x Tiny Ether expansion ticket?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°Oh, there we go! Thank god I don¡¯t have to eat it!¡±


    I mentally accepted and felt¡­ something? It was very subtle, but it was a similar feeling to eating the life ooze.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Okay! Great! Awesome! Thanks, Ebi! Completing the quest right away was the right call I think!¡± I grinned. ¡°Now! Skill points!¡±


    Once again, I had two available.


    I could either upgrade Appraisal with Assess for one point, so I could use it on dungeon monsters, I could get Soulbound item, or I could get Craftsman.


    Assess was a bit tempting. If it could tell me a monster¡¯s weakness, it would make fighting a lot easier. But I somewhat doubted it would give me that much useful information.


    Soulbound item, again, didn¡¯t really do anything immediately useful until I got its upgrades.


    Craftsman seemed like the most useful one of the bunch¡­


    There was also the option of not getting anything and waiting till I had more points to spend, but I rejected that idea as well. I needed something now. Even if it wasn¡¯t a boss room, I doubted the zombies were the strongest monster this dungeon had to offer. I wanted to be prepared.


    So with that said¡­


    <u>Purchase the skill [Craftsman] for 2 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> new skill!


    I confirmed and immediately tried to equip it just like I¡¯d done with the other skills but the system stopped me.


    <u>Skill slots full. Please, replace one of your skills.</u>


    ¡°Right¡­ Well, goodbye heat vision, then! You were a lot less useful than I thought you would be!¡±


    <u>Replace [Heat vision] with [Craftsman]?


    </u>Note: [Heat vision] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s the drawback of swapping out skills.¡± I hummed. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not the worst. It¡¯s not like it was that useful anyway. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be needing it anytime soon. Confirm!¡±


    Just like that, Heat vision disappeared from my status window and Craftsman took its place. I didn¡¯t feel any different, but when I tried to access the mental switch to turn on heat vision, it just¡­ wasn¡¯t there. Like losing a finger. It felt weird. Just as I finally got used to it, it was gone now.


    Well, it wasn¡¯t that big of a deal, because I found a different mental switch. One that I didn¡¯t have before.


    I looked at my hands, gently prodded the switch, and watched as little wisps of orange smoke ran beneath my skin. It tickled a little.


    I smiled before I stopped, looked closer, and my eyes went wide.


    ¡°Waaait! It¡¯s the orange smoke! The same thing that''s in the trees! That¡¯s Ether?!¡± I shouted in surprise.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait trees?


    ¡°Yeah! When I pluck some leaves off bushes and stuff, they release this stuff! Ok, now it makes sense! The plants here run on Ether too!¡±


    Which was still very strange. Especially considering that life ooze, which was supposed to be Ether too, looked completely different. Why would mixing it with water make it green and gooey?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so what IS Ether?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> is it like your lifeforce?


    ¡°I dunno¡­ Maybe?¡± I tapped a finger to my lips. ¡°When I ran out, I just collapsed. And when I recharged it with the ooze, I felt all full of energy¡­ Yeah, I guess it¡¯s probably something like lifeforce.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> neat


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so that ticket just increased your lifeforce


    ¡°Yeah, I guess so!¡± I nodded.


    ¡°Anyway!¡± I clapped my hands in excitement. ¡°This is all great, but there¡¯s a reason why I got the Craftsman skill!¡±


    I pulled my sword out of its sheath again and gave it a huge grin.


    ¡°It¡¯s time to figure out how to shoot lightning!¡±

 #016 – That’s not what a coinflip means

    ¡°Hnng!¡± I hnng¡¯d as I held the sword with both hands and channeled Ether.


    Unfortunately, the orange wisps of Ether refused to leave my hands and transfer into it.


    ¡°C¡¯mon¡­ Surely it counts as a tool, right¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe the handle is insulated?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> try touching the blade


    I hummed and did as Ebiko suggested, gently sliding my index finger over the blade while trying to push Ether into it.


    But it just wouldn¡¯t let me. Like something was blocking me.


    I deflated with a moan.


    ¡°What a waste of skill points¡­¡± I groaned.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t give up yet!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe you just need to practice!


    I pursed my lips.


    ¡°Practice? How am I supposed to practice if I can¡¯t do it at all? This makes no sense¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it says tools


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe try it with a tool


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> the mop!


    I blinked, then quickly got up, sheathed my sword, and ran back to the entrance of the dungeon.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Ebi! That thing is definitely a tool!¡±


    Not to mention, it supposedly passively used my Ether to power itself, and now that I could use Ether manually myself, I should be able to tell, right?


    I skidded to a half as I stepped over the threshold and zeroed in on the mop before grabbing it.


    ¡°Okay, sooo¡­¡±


    I made the wisps of Ether dance under my skin once more and tried pushing it into the thing. And to my delight, it worked! I could feel the mop grabbing my Ether for itself as water began dripping out of it.


    I hummed and tried to focus on that feeling for a minute, trying to commit it to muscle memory. Then I unsheathed my sword again and tried doing the same thing.


    The sword resisted my attempts though.


    I grunted in annoyance, but kept on trying.


    ¡°It¡¯s fighting me¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> there has to be a way


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> why have Ether-conductive sword if it doesn¡¯t work?


    ¡°Yeah, I know, but¡­¡± My eyes narrowed as they caught the circuitry on it.


    I slid my finger over the blade once more and tried to push Ether into different spots. It felt like the spots with the circuits weren¡¯t pushing back as much, but it still wasn¡¯t¡­


    The sword suddenly sucked out my offered Ether and popped with a spark and a small flash of light.


    ¡°Gwah?!¡±


    I dropped the sword in surprise.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> !!!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> success??!


    I stared with wide eyes and carefully picked the sword up again. ¡°...Maybe?¡±


    I tried to find the same spot on the sword again, pushing in much less Ether than before. I found it near the base of the blade, where it took my Ether and lit the circuits up, similarly to when I¡¯d dripped the potion on it the first time.


    ¡°Okay¡­!¡±


    I kept going for a few minutes, touching the thing all over, trying to find how exactly I could make this work without electrocuting myself.


    As it turned out, there were a couple of spots on the blade where the Ether could enter more easily, presumably used for the lightning-shooting I¡¯d been promised. But more importantly, I also found a specific spot on the sword¡¯s hilt, where I could move my little finger, that sucked up my Ether even more efficiently than any of the other spots and lit the circuitry up like a christmas tree.


    I had a massive grin on my face at that point. I¡¯d finally figured out how this damn sword worked!


    I gripped the sword in hand again, pointed it inside the dungeon, slid my little finger to the activator, fed it some Ether, and shouted, ¡°Lightning bolt!¡±


    ¡­Before immediately yelping as the sword let out a bang and nearly blinded me with its brightness.


    I blinked away the white spots while shaking my head. Then I pouted at the stupid sword.


    ¡°Come on!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you okay?!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that was way too bright


    ¡°Ugh, yeah. Sorry. I don¡¯t know how to adjust the output yet.¡± I glowered. ¡°Or how to actually shoot with it! Why did it flashbang me instead?!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe try swinging it while you activate it?


    I huffed but said as she suggested, swinging the sword and feeding it Ether while shouting, ¡°Lightning slash!¡±


    And this time, it actually worked.


    There was a flash and a bang again, but instead of being right in my face, it was on the dungeon¡¯s floor in a straight line, roughly in the direction where I¡¯d swung the sword.


    I gasped in delight and the grin forming on my face was close to splitting my head.


    ¡°It worked! It wooorked!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeaaaaah!


    ¡°Lightning slash! Lightning slash!¡± I shouted like a maniac while swinging the sword some more, trying to get a feel for it. Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t really gauge how strong the lightning was, since it never left any burn marks on the dungeon walls ¨C Fire breath didn¡¯t either ¨C and I didn¡¯t want to burn down the forest, so¡­


    ¡°Lightning stab!¡± I tried stabbing with the sword instead and it worked exactly as expected. A lightning bolt shot out of the tip of the blade and hit the dungeon wall.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°Yes! This is awesome!¡± I yelled as I kept shooting out lightning.


    And then, of course, because I was a complete idiot, all my muscles suddenly shuddered, my head spun, my vision got blurry, and I collapsed into a heap. It was a very familiar feeling and I immediately knew what had happened.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> NANA?!?!


    Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t speak in this condition, so Ebi just continued to panic in the chat as I lay there, regretting everything.


    After a short eternity, when I began to regain control and could twitch my fingers again, I tried to slur out an explanation for her.


    ¡°...Mmm¡¯fine,¡± I lied. ¡°Wen ou¡¯... oh Efur.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana what happened?


    ¡°Ren ou¡¯ oh Ethar.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ran out of Ether?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you okay?


    ¡°Yeah¡­ m¡¯fine¡­¡±


    I gradually stood up on my shaky limbs, glanced at the sword I¡¯d dropped, and shuddered at the thought that I could have impaled myself as I¡¯d fallen.


    That could have been really bad.


    I sheathed the thing again and with a snap decision took the mop and bucket before making my way to the ooze lake again. All my junk was still there just as I¡¯d left it.


    I dropped my new loot next to it and then gobbled up some delicious Life ooze to restore my Ether.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s pretty gross¡­


    I hummed in agreement. It was pretty gross no matter how good it tasted¡­


    When I felt full, I let out a contented moan.


    ¡°I feel alive again!¡± I sighed. ¡°Okay. Note to self: Be careful about your Ether levels¡­ Yes chat, I know I already made this note before. But this time for real, okay?!¡±


    Thinking about it, both Fire breath and the sword¡¯s circuits used Ether, which meant that I had to be doubly careful not to run out when using both in a fight. If I could help it, I shouldn¡¯t use either. Just the sword alone, without any sparkly tricks, was enough for the zombies anyway.


    ¡°Okay! Uhh¡­¡± My eye caught the bucket and I remembered the idea to fill it with the Life Ooze.


    It wasn¡¯t a bad idea. If it worked, I could take it with me and just scarf down some Life ooze from time to time to refresh myself. Sure, I could technically already do that with the potion, but that one was still too strong for me.


    It might be a little awkward to lug around a bucket with me at all times, but¡­


    ¡°Eh, you know what? Let¡¯s try this.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ooooh portable battery!


    I picked the bucket up and dipped it into the ooze. Then I watched in fascination as the ooze flowed into it and disappeared as it reached the bottom. That confirmed that the ooze did indeed count as a liquid.


    ¡°Whoa, okay¡­¡±


    When I pulled the bucket out again, it was empty.


    ¡°So, how do I get it out now¡­?¡±


    Just as I thought that, some ooze appeared at the bottom of the bucket.


    I blinked, then peered into the bucket with a frown.


    I tried to mentally put the ooze away again and it vanished. Then I willed for the ooze to reappear and it did.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s¡­ super convenient. And also a little creepy¡­ How does it even work? Does it read my mind?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> mind-reading bucket?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> spooky


    I hummed.


    ¡°How much can it hold¡­?¡± I mused out loud before dipping the bucket back into the ooze. It gobbled up a good amount before the ooze stopped disappearing and just pooled inside the bucket like normal. It was hard to tell how much exactly it held, but I estimated about a bathtub¡¯s worth.


    ¡°Fuel restocked! Weapons ready! TIme to smash the dungeon!¡± I proclaimed as I emptied the excess ooze back into the lake.


    Seemingly empty bucket in my left hand and my right hand ready to whip out my sword, I headed back into the dungeon straight to the supposed boss room.


    ¡°I hope it¡¯s not as crazy as that killer robot,¡± I murmured. ¡°It¡¯s a D-rank dungeon though, right? Surely I can handle it?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you can!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> and maybe it¡¯s not a boss room at all


    I hummed and stood on my tiptoes to reach the door¡¯s handle, opened the door to the room, and once again carefully looked around. Nothing had changed, of course.


    ¡°Alright then¡­ Here goes nothing.¡±


    I stepped into the room, expecting a wide variety of things. From the door slamming shut behind me, to zombies suddenly flooding the room, to the floor exploding to reveal a cyborg mutant zombie boss.


    I did not expect a pair of oversized coins to roll out from behind the oversized desk at the end of the room. One of the coins was silver and one of them was gold. Both had the same design as the copper coins I¡¯d gotten from the chest in this place.


    ¡°Uhh, money¡­?¡± I dumbly said as the two coins turned and rolled in front of the desk where they both stopped.


    ¡°Well¨C¡±


    And then they suddenly moved.The silver coin began spinning on its axis while the gold coin bounced in place a few times, before turning in my direction, and launching itself into a roll straight at me.


    ¡°Wha¨C?!¡±


    I leapt to the side, letting the gold coin fly out of the room through the still open door behind me.


    ¡°Are these dungeon monsters?!¡± I exclaimed before I felt something scream at me to move.


    I didn¡¯t question it and began running alongside the room¡¯s walls even as I accidentally dropped my bucket. A moment later I heard numerous sounds of metal pinging against concrete and with a brief glance at the still-spinning silver coin, I realized that it was shooting bullets at the spot where I¡¯d stood. Somehow.


    I had no time to ponder how the hell that worked and kept running even as the coin began slowing down its spin. I drew my sword and charged at it, hoping to destroy it before it could start shooting again.


    Unfortunately for me, the other coin finally made its return, rolling back into the room and forcing me to stop my charge and jump back to avoid it. What I didn¡¯t expect was for it to pulse with a golden light before golden spikes suddenly stabbed out of the ground where the coin had rolled through. I just barely managed to avoid getting turned into a pincushion and wasted no time in unleashing Fire breath at the gold coin, while dashing to the side, trying to flank the silver one.


    The silver coin had completely stopped spinning at this point and faced me with its evil eyes¡¯ face, before jumping in place and flipping. As it did, it launched a silvery fist-sized object straight at me.


    I met it with a concentrated Fire breath even as I dashed to the side to dodge it in case the Fire breath didn¡¯t work. The projectile exploded, knocking me back, and I hit the tiled ground with a gasp and a crunch. A white hot pain spiked through my left arm.


    I looked up to see that the silver coin had gotten knocked on its back and the gold one was spinning on its axis to put out the fire.


    I made the snap decision to retreat.


    I sheathed my sword and ran back to the entrance while doing my best to ignore the pain in my left arm. I picked up my bucket on the way there and quickly dashed out of the room even as I heard the telltale sounds of a giant coin spinning on its axis again.


    I got out and kicked the door closed moments before I heard the sound of silver bullets hitting the wooden door.


    I let out a gasp in relief, breathed in again, and shouted, ¡°How is this D-rank?!¡±


    But before I could read chat again and commiserate with Ebi, the door flung itself open again as the golden coin launched itself through.


    I dropped the bucket with a yelp and instinctively drew my sword again even as the thing bulldozed over the chairs in its way. It then hit a wall while flashing, created a bunch of golden spikes on it, bounced a few times because of the impact, turned at me, and launched itself at me again, making a noise similar to freaking tires of a car on asphalt. Somehow.


    I jabbed my sword forward, aiming it toward the ground where it was rolling and unleashed a bolt of lightning.


    It hit the ground right in front of where it was rolling and the coin wobbled before quickly spinning out of control. I screamed and quickly ducked as the golden coin flew right over my head and crashed into the wall behind me before landing on its face.


    It began wobbling like a turtle on its back trying to recover and my mind screamed to finish the thing off right now.


    I gripped my sword, stood up, quickly ran to it, and began slashing at it.


    It was durable, but less than one would expect of a metal coin. My sword actually made dents in it as I whaled on it.


    Then it pulsed in a golden light and I immediately jumped back moments before golden spikes impaled the spot where I¡¯d been just a second ago.


    I eyed it dangerously as I grit my teeth and valiantly continued to ignore the pain in my arm.


    Not wanting to get close again, I used the sword¡¯s lightning. Two slashes, one jab. All landed on the damn coin, carving chunks out of it.


    I was about to continue my assault when the coin suddenly shimmered and turned into mist. Golden this time.


    I let out a sigh of relief before remembering the other enemy and looking to the door once more. I heard the telltale sound of a giant coin rolling on the tiled floor in the big room. Much slower than the golden one, but still.


    I dashed to my trusty bucket, temporarily put my sword down on the ground, and grabbed a handful of the ooze to replenish myself, hoping it would also heal my arm.


    Then I froze and watched in horror as I belatedly realized that the golden mist hadn¡¯t vanished like it normally did. Instead, it wafted through the air, around the door, and into the big room where the silver coin was.


    My gamer instincts made me remember the countless bosses of this type from games. The twin bosses. You either needed to kill them both at the same time to win, or slaying one would massively power up the other.


    This wasn¡¯t over yet.

 #017 – I would say, I paid my respects

    I kicked the door closed, but it was probably too late. The mist had already made it inside.


    With my arm still injured, my Ether probably running low, and the fight either resetting or getting much harder now, I saw no other option than to run.


    My sword back in my sheath and bucket held in my good hand, I ran.


    It didn¡¯t take long for me to hear the door being slammed open again and I cursed the intricate maze that led to the stupid boss room. That was probably the point, though. To prevent people from running away.


    I heard the sound of metal rolling on concrete and hurled myself to the side and instinctively knocked over a nearby table and took cover behind it. The thing rolled by and I heard the sound of metal pinging off of wood ¨C wait, shouldn¡¯t the bullets bury themselves into the wood instead?


    I didn¡¯t waste time pondering that and peeked out of my hiding spot to see that my hunch had been correct. The two coins had merged somehow. Now it was just one coin half silver, half gold, reminding me a little of the yin-yang symbol.


    It skidded to a halt and faced me for a moment before it began spinning on its axis and I could already tell what was going to happen. I immediately crouched back down before the sounds of its movement began to sound like a turbine and a hail of bullets rained down onto the table I was hiding behind.


    What I didn¡¯t expect was for silvery-golden spikes to sprout out of the landing bullets. Luckily, the table still held strong despite supposedly only being made out of wood, but I could clearly see the spikes jutting off to the sides and above.


    Because of course the thing also combined attacks from both the coins. I¡¯d already categorized the golden coin as the melee one and the silver coin as the ranged one, and there were strategies to deal with each, but how the hell was I supposed to beat them when they were combined? My panicked mind only supplied the idea to run.


    As soon as the sound of the bullet barrage subsided, I dashed away from my cover in the direction of the entrance. I briefly turned to the coin, who I noted was in the middle of slowing down its spin, and spat flames in its direction, hoping it would at least slow it down.


    Turn left, go through a short corridor, turn right, and now I could finally see the window leading to the main hall again. I wasted no time dashing for it.


    Naturally, it only took a moment before something crashed into the wall behind me, sending bullets everywhere that pinged off the walls and furniture. And as my rotten luck would have it, one of those bullets hit me in my side.


    I gasped, an empty scream stuck in my throat. I almost fell over, but by some kind of miracle, or maybe sheer power of will, I stood my ground, and threw myself out of the window. A moment later, a chunk of half-silver half-gold metal flew right over my head into the opposite window, landed, and then exploded into a crown of metallic spikes.


    I didn¡¯t stay around to marvel at it and ran down the hallway back to the entrance, hoping the coin wouldn¡¯t be able to get through the window.


    Thankfully, I was right. I made it over the threshold without the coin following me and the moment my feet touched the grass, I crumpled into a heap, the bucket clattering from my good hand as I immediately made to clutch at my bleeding side.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> NANA?!?!?!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re not dying right?!!


    ¡°Give me¡­ a moment¡­¡± I forced myself to say.


    I completely crashed after that. I just lay there, tears running down my face, taking deep shaky breaths.


    It took me a good few minutes in my slight delirium to remember that I had a fiery healing salve that could probably help. Bleeding out sounded like a bad idea.


    I reached into my pocket, found the potion, uncorked it, and tipped it over myself. While the viscous matter took its sweet time to drip down at me, I shakily lifted up the hem of my shirt to look at the wound. Surprisingly, it looked like a mere scrape. The shirt hadn¡¯t gotten torn, either. That was nice.


    I decided to apply the ooze right at the wound, remembering how it had reacted to blood before.


    A drop of the ooze fell, hit the wound, and I felt the familiar spark of fire coursing through my body. The wound rapidly closed and I even felt my left arm fixing itself. It was, once again, overwhelming with how powerful it was, but somehow less than before. I could handle it better now. I didn¡¯t even drop the vial.


    Once the feeling subsided and my mind cleared again, I let out one more calming breath before sitting up and staring back into the dungeon.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana??


    ¡°That¡­ sucked,¡± I announced. ¡°I¡¯m fine now, though.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> thank god


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m so sorry


    ¡°For what¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> shouldn¡¯t have goaded you into going in


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m a terrible shrimp fairy


    ¡°No no, it¡¯s fine¡­¡± I shook my head. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not fine, but I¡¯m alright.¡± I sighed. ¡°Dammit, I keep having these close calls¡­ I should be dead many times over. Ugh, I hate this! What am I supposed to do?! This game is impossible!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe try farming skill points outside the dungeon first?


    I huffed.


    ¡°Most achievements have something to do with dungeons, though¡­ I guess I could start doing squats and pushups, but that would still take several days to complete¡­ And by then, I¡¯ll probably just starve to death,¡± I reasoned before looking down at my bloodied pants and shirt now. ¡°I think I just need some proper armor. This outfit is cool and all, but¡­ yeah.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> can you make armor?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> with craftsman?


    I hummed. ¡°Maybe¡­? I probably could, but I don¡¯t have any materials.¡± I glanced at a nearby tree. ¡°Making wood armor sounds pretty stupid. Not like I even have any tools for it either¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> use your sword?


    Well, that was an idea, but I still felt like it was wasted effort. It would take so much time to carve something I could move in and even then, it probably wouldn¡¯t even provide that much protection.


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Not worth it. I don¡¯t think I can make good enough armor to be worth it right now.¡±


    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you going back inside?


    ¡°Probably¡­ But, ugh. Not sure if I want to right away.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> could you maybe find a different dungeon?


    I stopped and frowned.


    ¡°I could, I guess¡­? But there¡¯s no guarantee it will be easier than this one.¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, actually. Chances are, it will be harder, since this one is apparently D-rank.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hmmm


    ¡°I think I¡¯m just going to try and get past that coin and hope there¡¯s food in there at some point,¡± I said with a grimace.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ok!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> strategy time then!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> how can Nana the pro gamer beat a giant homicidal coin?


    I couldn¡¯t help but smirk at that. But then, the smirk slowly slid off my face as the thought struck me. Figuring out how to beat various enemies in video games was my specialty, so why couldn¡¯t I do that here?


    With that in mind, I stopped thinking of it as a real-life thing that could actually kill me, and began thinking of it as a video game monster.


    ¡°I think it has three¡­ maybe four attacks,¡± I said with a thoughtful frown. ¡°They are all telegraphed pretty well, I think. The silver one could spin to minigun me¡­ and the bullets create spikes now that they fused. Then it could do the little flip to toss a bomb at me. Again, now it makes a bunch of spikes¡­ The gold one just drove around and spawned spikes after glowing a little¡­ and I¡¯m pretty sure the combined one can also drive around, but spawns bullets instead,¡± I summarized as I clutched my healed side, remembering getting hit. ¡°Those bullets don¡¯t spawn spikes, at least.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> damn that¡¯s a lot


    I nodded as I continued to think.


    ¡°I beat the gold coin by messing up its balance while it was driving. Maybe I could do something similar¡­? I just have to be careful about the stray bullets,¡± I mused. ¡°And I could knock the silver one on its butt by blowing up its bomb in its face with my fire¡­ No idea what to do to counter the bullet rain, though. Other than dodge. I could try using fire on it too, but I¡¯m not sure if it will do anything¡­ Actually, the bullets couldn¡¯t even scratch the furniture in the dungeon. Maybe I could use it as cover again¡­¡±


    A plan began to form in my head. A way to counter each one of its attacks so I wouldn¡¯t be flailing around like an idiot. This was one of my favorite parts of playing difficult video games. Figuring out the enemies and how to beat them.


    I couldn¡¯t help it, I was just a little giddy, despite my life being on the line.


    Maybe I¡¯d gone insane.


    Well¡­


    Insane circumstances required insane measures.


    ¡°Alright!¡± I cheered as I stood up again. ¡°I¡¯ve got a plan now, chat! Let¡¯s smash some stupid coins to dust!¡± I huffed. ¡°Ugh, that sounded really lame. Why does my opponent have to be a frikkin¡¯ coin?!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s a metaphor


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> something to do with capitalism


    I snorted.


    ¡°Yeah! Let¡¯s go defeat capitalism once and for all!¡± I yelled as I unsheathed my sword and held it above my hand in a dramatic gesture.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> heck yeah!!


    And with that, I grabbed the bucket in my freshly healed hand and entered the damn dungeon once more.


    Even though I knew that the boss room was connected to just one of the windows, I still kept up my guard, watching for any signs of the stupid coin. There were no signs of it though, even when I reached the window I¡¯d jumped through just a few minutes ago.


    I briefly remembered the spaceship and how the robot had returned to its starting spot the moment I left. Was this something similar? Would the two coins split? I wasn¡¯t sure whether that would make it easier or harder. Probably harder, since having to split my attention could easily get me killed.


    ¡°Alright, chat. It¡¯s time for round two.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good luck!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> please don¡¯t die!


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I got this¡­ Unless there¡¯s another phase.¡± I shook my head. ¡°If there is, I¡¯ll make sure to run again.¡±


    Was I a coward for always running from new enemies? Heck no. It was called a strategic retreat. Being ¡®brave¡¯ would be worthless if I just died. I was probably already braver than most would be in my situation, if I were to guess.


    With that in mind, I carefully inched my way back toward the boss room, leaving behind empty halls of the dungeon. Interestingly enough, even though there were no bullet holes left behind, the gold and silver spikes the coin had spawned were still around. Were they a permanent feature now? If so, how come there weren¡¯t any spikes around before? Was I the first ever person to enter this dungeon?


    Well, considering there weren¡¯t any people around, the answer might be yes¡­


    I made it all the way to the door leading back to the boss room. I heard no sounds of giant coins rolling or spinning so I stopped for a brief moment and went over my strategy in my head.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sending you all my energy!


    I smiled and put my sword back in my sheath.


    ¡°Thanks, Ebi¡­¡± I whispered, unsure whether a coin could hear me without ears. Either way, I didn¡¯t wanna alert it.


    With my free hand I grabbed a nearby table and tried pulling it with me. Surprisingly, I had no problem doing so even though I was still in the body of a tiny kid.


    But then again, I could lug around my sword just fine as well, and that was made out of metal, which should be heavier¡­


    I wasn¡¯t going to question it. I already knew this body was physically beyond what it should be, after all.


    I dragged the table all the way to the door where I stopped, took a deep breath, stood on my tiptoes and then slowly, carefully grabbed the door¡¯s handle and creaked it open. I cautiously eyed the inside and found that it was empty, save for the giant desk again. My eyes narrowed in suspicion. It was probably behind the desk again. Either as two or one combined coin.


    ¡°Here goes nothing¡­¡± I muttered as I opened the door wide.


    I grabbed the table again, fiddled with it for a moment, and then shoved it through the doorway inside the boss room. Once it was fully inside, I followed it and quickly repositioned it so that I could use it as a shield if I needed to, before unsheathing my sword again.


    Just as I expected, my adversary appeared not too long after I entered. It was still just one fused coin, thankfully, so I didn¡¯t have to split my attention. It rolled in front of the desk and did a little hop, exactly like the gold coin had done the first time around, and I immediately had an inkling of what it was about to do.


    Just as expected, it then turned and began rolling, launching itself at me. I didn¡¯t hesitate and immediately jabbed my sword forward, intending to trip it up. Unfortunately, it hit the ground too far to the left and didn¡¯t affect it at all, so I immediately pulled my sword back and slashed instead before crouching down under the table when I saw it emit a silvery glow.


    The pings and pangs of bullets resounded all around me as I heard the coin skidding across the ground vaguely to my right. I dropped the bucket and instead gripped the table¡¯s leg to turn it so that its flat surface remained between me and the coin.


    As soon as I heard it crash into the room¡¯s wall and no bullet sounds followed, I stood up again, ready to pelt it with lightning. But it had already somehow recovered and was jumping in place, beginning to flip.


    I spat fire at it before the bomb could even leave it and it blew up right in its own face. Numerous spikes exploded from it and showered the room, but thankfully, they were nowhere near as fast as the bullets and I easily backed away from the few that nearly hit me.


    As the smoke settled, I saw the coin, its form misshapen and pierced by its own spikes, and I couldn¡¯t help but grin, thinking I¡¯d dealt it a fatal blow. It wasn¡¯t going to be rolling at me anytime soon in that condition.


    Unfortunately, the fight wasn¡¯t over quite yet. As I began running at it again, wanting to finish it off, it began to slowly spin on its axis.


    My mind froze for a split-second, wondering whether I should press the attack before the bullets could come flying or hide behind the table, but seeing its battered form and how sluggishly it tried to spin, I ultimately decided to end it right now.


    I jabbed with my sword forward and this time, the lightning bolt scored a direct hit, causing it to spin out of control in the other direction and ultimately fall flat on its face.


    I reached its struggling form in another second and then didn¡¯t hesitate to completely cover it in so much fire that I began coughing soon after.


    It was probably a stupid move to do something so risky when I could have just played it safe, but hey.


    It worked.


    The moment the coin and all the fire covering it turned to fine mist, my mouth broke into a wide grin and I jumped in place and then did a little dance, while yelling, ¡°Woooooo!¡±.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeaaaaaaaah!!!!!!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you did it!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good job Nana!


    This had gone so much smoother when I knew what attacks it had. Maybe this isekai survival thing wasn¡¯t completely hopeless, after all.


    As the mist dissipated, three things happened in quick succession. I heard a loud click coming from the closed door next to the oversized desk, and then a big chest shimmered into existence where the coin boss had been. The chest looked similar to all the other chests I¡¯d seen in the dungeon, but it was about fifty percent bigger and had a golden skull symbol on the lid.


    Finally, a system window popped up in front of me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>I¡¯m the boss now¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points

 #018 – Sweet, sweet loot!

    I let out a sigh as I plopped down on my butt and blinked at the window and the chest.


    My mimic senses were tingling, wanting me to make sure that giant chest wasn¡¯t one, but part of me doubted that a boss chest would be a mimic, especially since this was supposed to be a D-rank dungeon.


    Still, I took no chances, I kept my eyes on it while I crawled around to retrieve my bucket, hunched down behind the table, and then grabbed some Life ooze from my bucket to munch on it.


    I probably looked like a hobo.


    ¡°What was this achievement¡­?¡± I murmured. ¡°I can guess, but¡­ hold on, three skill points?!¡±


    <u>Tier 2:</u>


    <u>I¡¯m the boss now</u> - Defeat any floor boss solo. [COMPLETE]


    ¡°Oooh! That was a tier two achievement! Whoa! Didn¡¯t expect that at all!¡± I grinned.


    ¡°And floor boss, huh? I guess that door leads to the next floor then?¡± I idly mused. ¡°Still, I had no idea I could complete a tier two achievement¡­¡±


    Truthfully, I hadn¡¯t really checked out many of the tier two achievements since I hadn¡¯t expected to be able to do any of them considering how difficult or time consuming even tier ones could be. Probably should do that now, though.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ooooh more skill points!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what are you gonna get now?


    I hummed.


    I briefly considered getting new skills, but quickly discarded that idea. I already had full skill slots and I would have to juggle them all the time, which wasn¡¯t very practical because of the twenty-four hour cooldown. That was probably why the cooldown existed in the first place, now that I thought about it. It forced me to get upgrades rather than new skills.


    ¡°Probably going to upgrade some skills¡­ Wait, didn¡¯t all the Streamer upgrades cost three? I could get admin rights or group chats!¡±


    I quickly opened the upgrade descriptions for Streamer just so Ebi could see as well.


    <u>Extra features</u> - Grants access to direct messaging, polls, subtitles, and group chats with selected viewers.


    <u>Admin rights</u> - Allows banning, muting, and timing out viewers, and giving moderator rights to them.


    <u>Stream history</u> - Allows you to watch the past records of your own stream and chat.


    <u>Faithful cameraman</u> - Allows you to stream from a different point than your own position. You can freely move this point in a ten meter radius around yourself.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh the cameraman would be cute


    ¡°Yeah, but it doesn¡¯t really help right now¡­ Extra features would at least let me better communicate with chat. I can barely read anything right now¡­¡± I once again glanced above Ebi¡¯s messages and grimaced as I spotted someone spamming walls of emojis and someone else spamming links. ¡°Admin rights could work too¡­ I could get more mods and ban the worst spammers.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s true


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> omg


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> woooooo


    ¡°Hmm? What?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> lawyer just donated twenty subs!


    ¡°Huh?! Really? Thanks Lawyer!¡± I beamed, before I stopped and frowned. ¡°Wait. Why can¡¯t I see that?¡±


    I momentarily tried to give a mental command to show me recent donations but the system ignored me. It was as if such a thing didn¡¯t even exist.


    ¡°...Hold on¡­ I can¡¯t¡­ I can¡¯t even do anything with the donations, can I¡­?¡± I slowly said. ¡°It¡¯s not like I can access my bank account that¡¯s on Earth from here¡­ and even if I could, what could I do with it¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> right


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> damn


    I deflated with a groan.


    ¡°I still appreciate it, Lawyer¡­ Just¡­ yeah. I can¡¯t actually do anything with it¡­¡± I shook my head. ¡°Ah, well¡­ Let¡¯s look at what other things I can upgrade¡­ Oh Empower for Craftsman has an upgrade for three¡­¡±


    <u>Empower</u> - Infuse Ether into the resulting product, making it sturdier and more powerful.


    ¡°That could be useful!¡± I smiled. ¡°But probably not right away. I haven¡¯t even used this skill for its intended purpose yet¡­ What else do we have¡­? Fire breath has an upgrade¡­¡±


    <u>Flame bullet</u> - Reshape your Fire breath into a stable projectile capable of traveling much further. One bullet uses double the Ether than a normal breath would.


    ¡°This could be really good! I don¡¯t really have any long-range options right now¡­ But it costs double the Ether and I already have problems running out with a few breaths¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> fireballs!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sounds useful


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you can snipe enemies from a safe spot


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s true,¡± I admitted. ¡°I just don¡¯t know if that¡¯s gonna be possible. It probably wouldn¡¯t have helped much against the coins¡­¡± I briefly considered a strategy of staying in the hallway and sniping the coin through the window. ¡°...Or maybe it would have. Hmm¡­ Let¡¯s check out the other stuff first. Appraisal has one upgrade for one and another for three skill points¡­¡±


    <u>Assess</u> - You can now use appraisal on living beings.


    <u>Inspiration</u> - Appraising an item will now tell you about its possible uses. Uses more Intra.


    ¡°Waaait, isn¡¯t Inspiration really good with Craftsman? If I knew how to make stuff, I could start crafting my own gear! Or the Life ooze! Maybe I could refine all the pools into more potions!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that would be cool


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana the potion maker


    ¡°But I don¡¯t have that many materials¡­ Hmm¡­ What else do we have¡­? Oh, heat vision had some upgrades too. And they both cost three! Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    <u>Zoom</u> - Focus on a point further away to see it more clearly in exchange for a temporarily lowered field of view. Can be used with or without heat vision. Increases Intra usage.


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.<u>Cold stare</u> - Sap heat from any object you look at to warm yourself up and regenerate a small amount of Ether. You can also use it in reverse, setting things on fire by using your body heat and Ether.


    ¡°Wait, hold on¡­ That actually sounds pretty useful! Cold stare especially! I could refill my Ether mid-fight! Ugh, but I would need to exchange it for another skill¡­ Not to mention it¡¯s still on cooldown¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> zoom would be nice for exploring the world


    I hummed.


    ¡°That¡¯s true¡­ Maybe I¡¯ll swap Heat vision back in and get zoom later then¡­ But yeah, probably not what I need right now.¡± I nodded to myself and then looked over my options again. ¡°Right, so¡­ I think it¡¯s either Extra features or Admin rights¡­ just for convenience, or it¡¯s Flame bullet for combat¡­ Or third option, I can save the skill points to get something more expensive later¡­ like fusion!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> third option is lame


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> just saying


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Lame? Oh, you know nothing, Ebi! Look!¡±


    <u>Fusion</u> - Combine two items together to fuse their function and quality. Resulting item quality is capped at rare. Fused items cannot be further fused but can be separated again. Uses a varying amount of Ether based on the quality and size of items fused.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s a video game crafting mechanic


    I grinned. ¡°Right?! Imagine what I could do with this!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> combine mop with sword and become the ultimate battle maid!


    I blinked, then let out a snort of amusement.


    ¡°Uh, yeah! Sure! I was hoping to get another weapon and combine that with the sword, though.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> but¡­ ultimate battle maid


    I sniggered at the thought.


    ¡°Where would I source the maid outfit? I doubt this dungeon is gonna drop me one.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I bet the chest has one


    I glanced at the giant chest that I¡¯d been completely ignoring and hummed in thought.


    ¡°Speaking of which, I should probably check it out before I decide what to do with my skill points¡­¡±


    I did my usual routine of carefully approaching the thing and poking it with my sword, just in case. Once again, the chest failed to open its lid to reveal sharp teeth and eat me alive.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana really?


    ¡°Look! I¡¯m scarred, okay?! I have PTSD! I should never have played Mimic Nation!¡± I said as my cheeks grew red. Good thing nobody could see me.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I mean


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> just use appraisal


    ¡°...Y-Yeah. I knew that. I was just testing you.¡± I thanked god for the lack of reflective surfaces nearby and quickly fired off appraisal.


    <u>D-rank dungeon floor boss chest


    </u>A loot chest containing floor boss loot.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> uh huh


    ¡°...Okay! Neat! Let¡¯s open this sucker!¡± I cheered, ignoring Ebi¡¯s judgemental comments.


    Unfortunately, the damn thing was bigger than the other chests and it took even more effort to open.


    ¡°Stupid short legs¡­!¡± I said with a grunt as I finally got the lid to move and it slid open just like the other chests.


    I immediately hopped up, leaned over the frame, and peered inside. There were two small objects as well as a pile of the now familiar coins.


    I began firing off appraisal on everything, starting with what looked like a wristband.


    <u>Waterproof Key bracelet


    </u>A bracelet used to navigate Floor 2 of this dungeon. It also has a built-in clock, stopwatch, and an alarm.


    This object is a Key item.


    I blinked.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Key item, interesting,¡± I murmured as I grabbed the thing. ¡°I¡¯m guessing it means I can¡¯t beat the dungeon without this¡­? Or does it mean I can¡¯t lose it¡­? System¡­?¡±


    The system ignored my pleas for an explanation.


    I huffed in annoyance.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> probably both


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe it opens that big gate?


    I pursed my lips.


    ¡°Eh, maybe? You think floor two is beyond that gate? That feels totally wrong, but with how weird everything has been, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised¡­¡±


    I put the thing around my right wrist and fastened it before looking at the display. It read 16:21 in big bright blue numbers.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Is it really that late¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah it¡¯s accurate


    I hummed before frowning.


    ¡°So the time of both of the worlds is synced?¡± Did that mean that the days on this world lasted exactly as long¡­? Going even deeper, was the sun in this world identical to the one on Earth? Was this some kind of parallel dimension Earth where humanity had died out? Was that why this dungeon was a water park? Had an actual water park used to be here? The spaceship too¡­


    I shook my head.


    I was not ready to delve into that can of worms. Maybe later when I wasn¡¯t starving and in the middle of a dungeon.


    ¡°Well, whatever¡­ What do these buttons do¡­?¡± I fiddled with the four buttons in each of the corners of the display and quickly learned how to use the extra functions Appraisal had told me about. ¡°This is super convenient! Look! I have a speedrun timer now! Maybe I can speedrun this dungeon once I clear it once!¡± I joked.


    Truth be told, I was more excited about something that felt sort of normal after all the nonsense I had to face in this world, than the actual utility of the thing.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that would be cool!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you can fix your sleep schedule too


    I scoffed.


    ¡°Ebi, I¡¯m a Vcuber! I don¡¯t even know what a sleep schedule is!¡± I said in a faux proud tone before putting on a more suspicious-sounding one. ¡°Do you know what this mythical sleep schedule is, Ebi?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> no idea


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I just heard you need an alarm clock to obtain one


    I hummed, pretending to be deep in thought, before bursting into giggles.


    Nothing like a little silliness to offset the nonsense that was my situation.


    ¡°Anyway¡­ What is this then¡­?¡±


    I leaned over the frame again and fired Appraisal at the other unknown object inside. It looked vaguely like a wallet.


    <u>Dimensional wallet


    </u>A wallet connected to its own pocket space that can hold any small metallic objects and strips of paper.


    ¡°...Huh. It¡¯s like the bucket. But for money.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> better than a credit card


    I hummed and grabbed the thing before opening it. It had several small pockets for cards, one bigger pocket for coins, and then a big pocket to fit bills. Just like a normal wallet. I wouldn¡¯t even suspect anything if it wasn¡¯t for the unsettling black void in aforementioned pockets.


    I stared at it for a moment.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> stop staring into the void


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what if it stares back


    I scoffed. ¡°Stared at by a wallet. That¡¯s probably also some metaphor for capitalism.¡±


    Wanting to test it out, I reached out to the last pile of items in the chest ¨C thirteen of the Divine copper coins ¨C grabbed one, and then dropped it into the coin pocket. It disappeared into the void without a trace or sound. The lack of sound was actually kind of unnerving.


    I hummed and then proceeded to feed the wallet all the other coins as well. It gobbled them up like an afternoon snack.


    ¡°Now for the real test¡­¡± I murmured.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana no


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t pet the void


    I rolled my eyes but still reached into the void with my tiny fingers. As soon as my fingers entered the void, they hit something solid. It was even in the perfect position for me to grab it, which I did.


    When I pulled out one of the copper coins and inspected it, it looked identical. No traces of being in the dark void of the wallet.


    ¡°Well¡­ I guess I have a wallet now.¡± I shrugged.


    Again, not the most useful of things, especially since I didn¡¯t even have any use for coins, but hey.


    I put the coin back into the wallet, stepped back from the chest, and put the wallet into my pocket. As soon as I did, the now empty giant chest shimmered and poofed into mist.


    ¡°Huh. Convenient.¡±


    Unfortunately, none of the loot from the chest was super useful for fighting and not dying, but I wasn¡¯t going to complain. The bracelet was neat, at least.


    I clapped my hands.


    ¡°Anyway! I think I¡¯m gonna keep the skill points for now and see what the next floor is about first.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I don¡¯t know


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sounds dangerous to go right away


    ¡°Just a peek. I want to see what the next floor looks like at least.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> well alright!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> shrimp fairy Ebiko shall assist you!


    I grinned and walked back to get my bucket before heading for the door next to the oversized desk. I briefly checked whether the desk had anything interesting, but all its drawers were completely stuck. It was like a prop in a video game.


    With nothing else left to check, I walked to the door, stood on my tiptoes again, grabbed the handle, and opened my way to the second floor.

 #019 – My streamer power grows!

    Since it was supposed to be another ¡®floor¡¯, I expected stairs going down beyond the door, but nope. I instead found myself inside a regular old locker room you would typically see in a water park. Except twisted.


    Tiled floor, lockers that were about ten storeys tall, and an occasional bench. The whole place smelled strongly of chlorine.


    I carefully looked around without entering the place yet and I couldn¡¯t help but grimace.


    ¡°...Chat, I think this is another maze.¡±


    The lockers were clearly the walls of said maze. If they were as sturdy as the furniture in the first ¡®floor¡¯, I wouldn¡¯t be getting through them, and climbing up and over them might as well be impossible. My only chance was to go through the irregular gaps in the rows of lockers. Thinking about it, this would probably be a non-euclidian nightmare just like the first floor. I couldn¡¯t help the groan that escaped me.


    ¡°I hate this already. Why can¡¯t I get something more straightforward? C¡¯mon, dungeon¡­¡± I whined.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> well time for mapmaker Ebiko to make her return


    I breathed out, still annoyed, but at least having a smidge of hope now.


    ¡°You are the best, Ebi.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I know


    ¡°So humble too.¡± I raised an eyebrow and couldn¡¯t help the way my mouth curled up.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> right?


    My grin was back at full force at this point. She really was the best.


    ¡°Alright! Time for floor two¡­!¡± I declared before stepping inside. ¡°Even though this doesn¡¯t feel like another floor. Just another area. Are these really called ¡®floors¡¯?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> non-euclidian physics


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> they can call it another floor if they wanna


    ¡°Heh, true I guess.¡±


    I began walking between the walls of lockers, taking the first left turn and continuing from there. Of course, the good old maze rule of hugging the left wall wouldn¡¯t help at all if the spacial physics were as screwed up as the first floor¡¯s, but it couldn¡¯t hurt to try.


    ¡°This place is kinda wet¡­I guess it makes sense. Lockers are usually next to showers,¡± I mused before perking up. ¡°Ooh, maybe the third floor is showers! I hope I can actually use one of them¡­¡±


    I slowly continued for a few minutes, watching my surroundings for more zombies, when I stepped into a slightly wider puddle of water than the others. The moment I did, I knew something was wrong because my foot got stuck and I jerked to a stop.


    ¡°Wha¨C?!¡±


    Before I could do anything, the freaking puddle converged around my foot and began climbing up my leg, making me drop my bucket as a shiver went down my spine.


    I let out a very high-pitched shriek.


    And then subsequently spat out fire right under me on reflex.


    It burned a little without the inherent protection Fire breath gave to my throat, but I managed to keep myself from putting too much power into it and searing my leg off ¨C not that I thought I could do that considering I¡¯d survived the robot¡¯s flamethrower.


    Luckily, my panicked move paid off and I could feel my leg being released. I used the chance to jump back out of the small cloud of steam.


    I stared at the puddle with wide eyes as it shifted and shied away from the remaining wisps of fire covering the floor. When they were gone, the thing seemed to almost stand up before launching itself at me.


    I let out another Fire breath while backing up further and drawing my sword.


    The fire hit it head on and it burst into even more steam with a sizzle, obscuring my view a little. I didn¡¯t let my guard down, and automatically took the brief moment of respite to scan my surroundings for any other sentient puddles wanting to eat my legs.


    Then the puddle was back ¨C though smaller than before ¨C launching itself at me once more.


    I could feel Fire breath¡¯s inherent cooldown creeping up on me, so I instead swung my sword overhead and fed it Ether. The sword passed through it like it was just water ¨C which I suppose it was ¨C but as it did, I could see the lightning course through its watery body, halting its leap and stunning it.


    It fell to the ground with a little splash and I prepared myself for another lightning slash¡­ but then it poofed into mist.


    I stood there for a second before letting out a weary sigh and relaxing.


    Which irritated the mild burns on my legs, making me wince. I briefly wondered why the heck my own Fire breath had hurt me more than that robot¡¯s giant tsunami of flames but I didn¡¯t dwell on it much. I quickly looked around one last time before plopping down on the ground where I stood.


    ¡°...Chat. There are sentient puddles around here!¡± I whined. ¡°What¡¯s up with that?!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana?!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you okay?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> was it corrosive or something?


    I shook my head. ¡°No, I¡¯m fine. I was just startled¡­ Don¡¯t want any tentacles climbing up my legs, you know?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> kinky


    ¡°Don¡¯t even say that, Ebi!¡± I groaned. ¡°No, but seriously. What¡¯s up with this? Sentient puddles? Puddle slimes maybe?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sorry sorry


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> better than zombies though?


    I huffed. ¡°Not so sure about that¡­ I¡¯m pretty sure they are immune to physical attacks. My swing just went through it and probably wouldn¡¯t do much if I didn¡¯t use the circuits¡­ And Fire breath isn¡¯t great either, it just blinds me with steam¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s true


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you still have lightning though


    I hummed. ¡°Yeah that¡¯s probably the way to go¡­ Which sucks because if my only option is zapping, I¡¯m gonna run out of Ether if I keep running into these things.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> or stepping into them


    ¡°Or stepping into them,¡± I repeated, deadpan.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> well you have your bucket


    ¡°...That¡¯s true. My portable battery,¡± I said dryly as I crawled over to said bucket and began stuffing myself with some of that delicious ooze to hopefully heal the slight burns on my legs, just as the refined stuff did.


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s still gross tho


    ¡°That¡¯s because you never tasted it yourself¡­¡± I sniffed. ¡°This stuff is great once you get used to it!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you sound like an addict


    ¡°Shaddap! You know nothing!¡± I said in a mock angry tone. I played it up, but secretly I enjoyed Ebi needling me.


    Honestly¡­ What would I do without my guardian shrimp fairy? Now that the rest of the chat had become impossible to properly communicate with, she was the only thing keeping me sane in this dungeon.


    ¡­Which was probably not ideal. After all, she had been with me all day and would have to at least go to sleep herself at some point, not to mention if she had any other obligations. It wasn¡¯t as if she could be around all day every day. She had her own life. I wouldn¡¯t be a very good friend if I forced her to constantly baby me. Sure, I hadn¡¯t exactly chosen this whole isekai situation myself, but¡­


    ¡°You know what? Since Fire breath isn¡¯t all that great on this floor anyway, I think I¡¯m gonna spend my skill points on that Streamer upgrade,¡± I declared.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you sure?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what if it¡¯s useful for the boss?


    I hesitated for a second, thinking just how wildly different the first floor¡¯s boss was compared to the rest of the dungeon. What could possibly be the boss here? Would the Flame bullet be useful against it?


    I shook my head. I doubted I could safely snipe the boss with it anyway. The coins certainly hadn¡¯t seemed eager to just sit there and take it. So all in all, as much as Flame bullet could definitely be useful¡­


    ¡°Nah. I¡¯ll probably get more points along the way anyway, right? I still didn¡¯t properly check the tier two achievements. There ought to be at least one I can do now!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> alright


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> let¡¯s upgrade this stream then!


    WIth a nod and a brief look around to make sure I wouldn¡¯t get ambushed again, I sent the mental command.


    <u>Purchase the [Streamer] skill upgrade [Extra features] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    I confirmed and immediately began poking around my new capabilities. A little menu popped up in front of me.


    <u>Menu:


    </u><u>Direct message


    Group chat


    Poll


    Subtitles:</u> Off


    I clapped my hands. ¡°Okay! Hmm¡­ I forgot that this included subtitles. Doubt it will be very useful but¡­¡±


    I flipped the mental switch, turning the ¡®Off¡¯ into ¡®English¡¯ and blinked in surprise.


    ¡°English? Not on?¡±


    As I said that, text appeared at the bottom edge of my vision, clearly legible despite its position.


    ¡®English? Not on?¡¯


    ¡°Whoa!¡±


    ¡®Whoa!¡¯


    ¡°Okay, this is weird¡­¡± I mumbled, and the subtitles dutifully displayed that as well.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s neat


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe it will be useful if you find people


    I hummed and frowned. ¡°That would be cool. No need to worry about language barriers¡­ Uh, except even if I understand their language, I still won¡¯t be able to speak it¡­¡±


    The fact that I even had this option now gave me hope that this world wasn¡¯t completely dead and without life. It didn¡¯t necessarily mean anything but¡­


    I shook these thoughts away and looked at the ¡®English¡¯ thing again before mentally prodding it to change to something else. It switched to ¡®Japanese¡¯ and I smirked.


    ¡°Testing, testing¡­¡±


    ¡®¥Æ¥¹¥È¡¢¥Æ¥¹¥È¡£¡£¡£¡¯


    ¡°Whoaaa! Alright! That¡¯s actually really cool!¡±


    ¡®¤¦¤ï¤¢£¡¤è¤·£¡Æत¤¸¤ã¤Ê¤¤¤«£¡¡¯


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so little needed for happiness¡­


    ¡°Shut up, Ebi! I think this is cool!¡± I pouted. ¡°Heck, I could maybe learn languages with this!¡±


    ¡®¤¦¤ë¤µ¤¤¥¨¥Ó£¡¤³¤ì¤Ï¤«¤Ã¤³¤¤¤¤¤è£¡¤³¤ì¤ÇÑÔÕZ¤òѧ¤Ù¤ë¤«¤â¤·¤ì¤Ê¤¤£¡¡¯


    I blinked at the flood of text, shook my head, and mentally prodded the subtitles to switch off again. As cool as it was, I didn¡¯t need subtitles right now, much less Japanese ones.


    ¡°Anyway! That wasn¡¯t why I got this upgrade¡­¡± I eyed the group chat feature, before my eyes slid down again. ¡°Actually, let¡¯s look at polls first.¡±


    A simple window opened, prompting me to fill out the poll subject and its choices.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Why don¡¯t we test it right away?¡±


    I mentally filled it with the first thing that came to my mind and confirmed. Another small window with the results opened up.


    <u>Poll: ¡®Pineapples on pizza?¡¯


    </u><u>Heck yes:</u> 0%(0)


    <u>Heck no:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    The moment I did it, I could have sworn the surge of chat messages sped up even more. But I paid it no mind even as both options rapidly grew in numbers.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> whoa what the heck


    ¡°What¡¯s up, Ebi?¡± I asked as I once again scanned my surroundings just in case. No sentient puddles seemed to be creeping in my direction.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I got a popup directing me to some shady website


    I frowned.


    ¡°Then, close it¡­?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s apparently for your poll though?


    I blinked and remembered the special website people had talked about yesterday.


    ¡°Uh, is it something like streamerskill dot out? That¡¯s apparently the website dedicated to my stream specifically.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wtfff


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> seriously?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> this is so involved


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Really? That¡¯s what strikes you the most? A separate website? Not the whole isekai thing?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> well that too obviously


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m just shocked


    I hummed noncommittally and finally zeroed in on the thing I¡¯d gotten this upgrade for. The group chat.


    Once again, I felt a little guilty, since using this probably meant I would be ignoring the vast majority of the people in chat, but there was no way I could read everything anyway. Not if the number of people kept growing. Which it probably would, considering I couldn¡¯t stop the stream.


    Well, I also had the polls now, so it wasn¡¯t as if they couldn¡¯t interact with me at all, but still¡­


    Yet another small window appeared, prompting me to create, sort, or delete a group chat. I selected create and stopped for a moment to think about its name and who I would even invite.


    In the end, I decided to name it ¡®OGs¡¯ and then began inviting all my regulars from back on Earth before the popularity surge today.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> sup


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> hello!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh I¡¯m here too now


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that was strange


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I liiiiive!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> heya thanks for the invite


    <u>Irid123:</u> this is not an ARG is it?


    <u>DecadentLawyer:</u> hello there


    ¡°Hey, everyone! Nope, not ARG,¡± I confirmed. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you got a popup to join this like for the poll? Oh, yeah! And thanks for donating the subs earlier, Lawyer!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea I feel like I¡¯m being hacked


    I snorted.


    ¡°Well, anywho, it¡¯s nice to have more people around that I can actually talk with. I mean, don¡¯t get me wrong, Ebi! You¡¯re cool and all, but the more the merrier, you know?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hmph


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯ve been replaced


    ¡°I would never!¡± I gasped in an exaggerated manner. ¡°You¡¯re the only one for me, Ebi!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> uh huh sure


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m filing for divorce


    ¡°Noooo!¡± I yelled dramatically in an obviously fake wavering tone.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> divorce stream when


    ¡°Never! I shall conquer this dungeon for my beloved!¡± I said in the most dramatic tone I could muster before devolving into giggles.


    I checked over my legs again. Thankfully, the burns and the pain were both slowly disappearing. Nowhere near as fast as with the refined ooze, of course, but it was good to know that the diluted one could also help me heal.


    If only it would satiate me too.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Oh, how¡¯s our poll doing?¡± I glanced over to the poll and my expression warped in disgust.


    <u>Poll: ¡®Pineapples on pizza?¡¯


    </u><u>Heck yes:</u> 52,3%(1476)


    <u>Heck no:</u> 47,7% (1348)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    ¡°Really, chat? Why is ¡®yes¡¯ winning here? I didn¡¯t take you all for absolute heathens.¡± I scoffed and closed the poll, while idly thinking about the crazy number of people who had participated in that poll. Just how many people were watching me at this point?


    ¡°Whatever. Let¡¯s keep going. At least I know what to watch out for now. These stupid puddles won¡¯t get me again!¡± I said as I heaved myself up.


    As I did that, my eye caught the bracelet still on my wrist.


    ¡°I wonder what exactly this thing is for, though? Wasn¡¯t it supposed to help me navigate this place? What does it do?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s called key bracelet


    <u>Irid123:</u> so maybe it opens something


    <u>GonguuH:</u> find the scanner for it


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> maybe there¡¯s a hidden keyhole


    I hummed and narrowed my eyes to scan my surroundings more carefully as I walked.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> try feeding it ether


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe it spawns a key


    I blinked, mentally shrugged, and did as Ebi suggested.


    The thing resisted my attempts even more than the sword had and no matter where I touched it, I couldn¡¯t find any spot that conducted Ether better.


    ¡°...Nope, I don¡¯t think I can. Ah, well.¡±


    With no clue on how to use the thing, I continued on, reading the group chat and looking out for death puddles as well as anything that might require the key bracelet.


    Obviously, my mimic-paranoid self couldn¡¯t help but poke every puddle I found with my sword. Chat made fun of me for it, but my insanity was eventually rewarded when one of the puddles did react to my prodding and wrapped around my sword.


    I immediately shocked it and splashed back down before vanishing into mist.


    I slowly breathed in and smiled in satisfaction.


    ¡°Who¡¯s crazy now, huh?!¡± I shouted into the empty halls of the dungeon.


    And then I realized that¡­ I was completely alone in this dungeon ¨C possibly the entire world ¨C walking between skyscraper-sized lockers, on the lookout for sentient puddles that wanted to smother me, capable of shooting lightning and breathing fire¡­ arguing that I wasn¡¯t crazy.


    After that sobering thought, I didn¡¯t feel like talking much for the next few minutes.

 #020 – I live here now, got a problem?

    ¡°You think this does something¡­?¡± I murmured.


    There was a tiny screen in front of me at the side of one of the locker walls. It was so unassuming, my brain had registered it as part of the background until Irid in chat had pointed it out to me.


    <u>Irid123:</u> use the bracelet


    I hummed and slowly approached it, raising my hand to touch the screen with the bracelet. The moment the bracelet got close, I knew I¡¯d made a mistake.


    The thing beeped and I tore my hand away, suddenly on alert.


    That would have probably been a ridiculous reaction in an ordinary water park, but this was a freaking dungeon.


    And of course, the screen lit up and instead of a random locker opening as it probably would have in a non-dungeon setting, the number ten appeared on it instead.


    Before I could voice my confusion, the screen let out a short beep and the number changed to nine. A second later, another beep, and it changed to eight.


    A timer?


    Once again, before I got the chance to say anything, there was suddenly an earthquake and the sound of iron scraping against the tiled floor filled my ears. I yelped and quickly looked around as I dropped my bucket and covered my ears with my hands.


    The walls of lockers were moving.


    ¡°What the heck?!¡± I finally yelled, my voice lost in the horrible noise.


    I was panicking, worrying about getting crushed by these skyscraper-sized monstrosities. My eyes darted back and forth and I did my best to stay out of the way as much as possible as this chaos happened.


    I caught a glimpse of the stupid little screen still counting down.


    Four, three, two, one¡­


    The shifting abruptly stopped and the everpresent noise turned to dead silence once more.


    I waited a second, then two, and when it didn¡¯t seem like the walls would go back to trying to crush me like a meat grinder, I slowly lowered my shaking hands from my ears.


    ¡°W-What¡­¡±


    Then I heard the little screen beep again and my head whipped around at it. Instead of the countdown numbers, it now read, ¡®Locker 6579 opened.¡¯


    I stared at it in bewilderment and was about to voice it when I heard a metallic click and a subsequent creaking of a giant metal door.


    I whirled around again to see that one of the giant lockers had actually opened and was about to complain about the physics of such a thing happening without it collapsing when something flew out of said locker. Many somethings, in fact.


    There was a massive flock of¡­ I couldn¡¯t even tell what. All I knew was that they were all in various colors and were flying straight at me.


    I immediately breathed in and unleashed a wave of fire at them as I backed up. Once the surge of fire dissipated, I heard the sound of a pile of cloth hitting the floor as a burning mass of the things fell from the sky.


    Unfortunately, there were still many of those that I hadn¡¯t hit, flying around my Fire breath and trying to flank me.


    I unsheathed my sword and shot a lightning slash to my right in a single motion while jumping forward to dodge those charging at me from the left. I felt the wind swish behind me and heard the sound reminiscent of someone throwing a big ball of laundry on the floor.


    I turned around, ready to continue the fight, when I noticed what these things even were and felt so flabbergasted that I stopped for a second and stared.


    Were those towels? Was I fighting flying towels? What the fu¨C


    My shock seemed to have lasted a second too long as the group of apparently sentient towels recovered and launched themselves at me. I instinctively breathed in to use another Fire breath but before I could shoot it, one of the towels had made it all the way to my face and wrapped around it like a freaking face-hugger, while stuffing my mouth.


    ¡°Mghmp?!¡± My free hand immediately shot up to rip the thing away but it was too persistent and I couldn¡¯t get a good purchase in my panic.


    Moments later, I felt more towels wrapping around my legs, torso, and my arms, making me flail even harder and subsequently fall on my back.


    And then, of course, as if this already wasn¡¯t enough, my thrashing had landed me in another one of the puddles around the place and I could feel it wrapping around my neck and shoulders.


    Despite my panic meter steadily climbing off the charts, I had somehow managed to keep a hold of my sword, and since I couldn¡¯t use Fire breath at the moment, I instinctively poured as much Ether as possible into the sword.


    The subsequent loud bang might have deafened me if I didn¡¯t have sentient towel-shaped earmuffs and I could feel the electricity burning my hand and coursing through my body.


    Luckily, the towels did too with how they all went slack for a moment.


    I ignored the pain, shook off the towel wrapping around my free hand and grabbed the one around my face before finally ripping it off and gasping for breath. As soon as my lungs were filled, I rolled to face the ground, screwed my eyes shut, tensed my entire body in preparation for what I was about to do, and then vomited all the fire I could manage with my current Ether.


    The regret was instant as I felt the searing pain on my face, neck, and then rest of my body. It reminded me of when the robot had flooded me with flames, but somehow, this was way worse despite it being my own attack.


    I began coughing because of exceeding the skill¡¯s limit and my eyes teared up. Said tears promptly evaporated because of the sheer heat of my surroundings though.


    After what was probably a couple of seconds but felt like an eternity, the flames died down and I gasped for more breath between my coughs even as I sat up and frantically looked around to see if there were any more face-huggers or leg-eaters.


    Luckily, all I was left with were burning pieces of cotton and a cloud of steam that all abruptly turned to mist. There weren¡¯t any more flying towels or sentient puddles.


    It took me a good while before I slowed down my breaths, lessened my shaking, and calmed down enough to think straight again.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Ten birds with one stone¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    I slowly blinked and then decided that I was too spent to celebrate having accidentally gotten more skill points. I didn¡¯t even check what that achievement was.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana?!!?


    <u>Irid123:</u> sorry I didn¡¯t know that would happen


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> niiiiice


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> and this is why you get flameguard kids


    I closed my eyes and dropped my head as I continued to breathe. I didn¡¯t even have the energy to snap at George. Ugh, why had I invited him to the group chat again?


    I shook my head¡­ and then winced because that irritated the burns on my neck. ¡°Why does my own Fire breath hurt more than the robot¡¯s flamethrower? God, ugh¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the potion, probably


    ¡°Oh, yeah, right¡­¡± I said between breaths.


    I reached into my pocket with my shaky hand, found my trusty potion and let a drop of it drip onto my tongue again.


    The effect was instant, but this time, I somehow managed to not collapse into a convulsing heap the moment it happened. I merely screwed my eyes shut, grit my teeth, and let out a sound of a cat dying.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    But a big portion of the energy soon dissipated as it used itself up healing all my burns and probably restoring all the Ether I had used with the big flashbang and subsequent Fire breath.


    I let out a relieved sigh.


    ¡°Chat¡­ I¡¯m going back for today. I was going to poll it but¡­ Heck no. I had enough for today. Even after eating that drop of my miracle cure, I feel dead tired.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> nooooo


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah you probably should<u>


    RetconRanger:</u> Sounds like a plan.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> it was finally starting to get inretesting!


    ¡°George, I will find my way back to Earth just so I can punch you in the face,¡± I deadpanned.


    With a huff, I finally stood up, looked around¡­ and then froze.


    ¡°Uh¡­ Ebi? How do I get back?¡± I muttered as I stared at the new layout of the stupid maze.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> umm¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I don¡¯t think my map will help


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> time for a new map


    I groaned and dragged a hand down my face.


    ¡°I can¡¯t even freely leave now¡­ Ugh, I hate this floor!¡± I whined before huffing to myself. ¡°Why did I even come here right away? Stupid past me¡­¡±


    Well, complaining wouldn¡¯t get me any closer to the exit, so it was time to move.


    I sheathed my sword, retrieved my bucket, shot an annoyed glare at the little screen that caused this whole situation to begin with, and then began walking.


    I also idly checked the achievement I¡¯d gotten earlier.


    <u>Ten birds with one stone</u> - Defeat ten or more dungeon monsters within the span of a second. [COMPLETE]


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s about what I expected¡­ Was that really ten of them? Sheesh¡­¡±


    As much as part of me wanted to sit down and decide which skill to get next, I also wanted to get the heck out of here and sleep. I would probably end up going with Flame bullet in the end anyway.


    Whatever.


    Time for some more maze wandering.


    Ugh.


    First, I wanted to check the still-open giant locker that had all those towels flying from it. Obviously, I was hyper cautious and ready to fry some cotton the moment I saw more of them, but I didn''t need to worry. No more puddles or towels ambushed me as I peaked inside the locker and stared.


    Of course, it wasn¡¯t just a regular locker. It was a gateway to a dark room that geometrically didn¡¯t make any sense with how big the lockers supposedly were. I didn¡¯t even bother being surprised by it.


    Still, I wasn¡¯t going to just go and enter the dark room. Especially not now that I wanted out of this dungeon rather than deeper in.


    ¡°Oh, look, chat. What a safe and welcoming new area,¡± I snarked before turning around and walking in another direction.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> go inside!


    <u>Irid123:</u> what if it¡¯s timed?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what if theres loot


    <u>Irid123:</u> it could close after some time


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> stop goading her chat!


    I scowled. ¡°I¡¯m not going inside right now, chat. I want out. Knowing my luck, that¡¯s probably the boss room!¡±


    George and Irid, of course, continued trying to convince me to enter the dark room, but I completely ignored them. I wasn¡¯t doing that. Maybe tomorrow.


    Probably tomorrow.


    Most definitely tomorrow.


    Ugh.


    I was getting real cranky. A good sign that it was sleep time and not dungeoneering time anymore. Too bad I had no idea how to get out of here and get to a safe place.


    I wandered for a good half an hour in frustration as Ebi continued to map my steps once more.


    I didn¡¯t find the entrance or the exit, but I did find something else.


    I furrowed my brows at the chest innocently sitting in one of the dead ends of the maze and fired off appraisal.


    It said exactly the same thing as the chests in the first ¡®floor¡¯. It looked the same too, so I had no reason to think it was a mimic.


    I, of course, still decided to double check and poked it with my sword from a distance, as was the tradition at this point.


    <u>Irid123:</u> you know you can probably stop checking for mimics


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> classic nana


    <u>Irid123:</u> at least with chests


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana seriously¡­


    I scoffed.


    ¡°Never! Chat, I¡¯m telling you, this is how you die to mimics!¡± I declared. ¡°One day you just stop checking for them and the next chest you don¡¯t check eats you alive!¡±


    With my caution sufficiently satisfied, I opened the chest to check the loot.


    I couldn¡¯t help but blink at the objects offered.


    <u>Ether-powered shower head


    </u>A shower head that automatically uses the wielder¡¯s Ether to create and spray water.


    <u>Ether-powered soap


    </u>A bar of soap that automatically uses the wielder¡¯s Ether to create foam and destroy dirt, grime, and other unwanted stains.


    Without saying a word, I reached inside and grabbed the shower head in one hand and the soap in the other. I inspected them, then pointed the shower head away from me, and then pushed the little button on its handle.


    It sprayed out water, just like advertised, and I faintly felt my Ether drain, unlike with the pen or the mop. Since I figured this thing used more Ether than them, I quickly stopped it and glanced over to the soap.


    Bubbles appeared all around it as I fed it some Ether and I couldn¡¯t help but stare at it. Then I looked down at my still-bloodstained pants, knelt down, and rubbed the soap on the stain, before washing it off with the shower head.


    The stain wasn¡¯t gone completely, but the soap had definitely worked.


    ¡°Chat¡­¡± I murmured. ¡°Chat, I¡­ I can finally take a shower!¡±


    I felt unreasonably too happy about that. Or maybe not that unreasonably. After all, I had more or less been living like a homeless person these past few days, and even this little bit of luxury felt like a massive step forward for me.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yaaaaaay!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh no fan service scene


    I glared at empty space.


    ¡°I really hope this censor thing works. For your own good, chat,¡± I muttered with a cold and deadly tone.


    Again, I briefly worried about getting banned. But then I remembered that the Snitch admins were already trying to ban me anyway.


    I shrugged, checked my surroundings once more, made sure nothing would crawl over to get me, and then I climbed into the now-empty chest to use it as a shower cubicle, took off my clothes, and turned on the shower head again to check the temperature with my hand.


    The temperature was absolutely perfect. The damn thing was probably reading my mind just like the bucket.


    Well, I wasn¡¯t going to complain about that.


    I pointed the thing at myself and I suddenly felt alive. God, I hadn¡¯t realized just how much I¡¯d missed a simple shower. All that stress I¡¯d accumulated over the last few days seemed to just dissipate as I let out a sigh of relief. For the first time since hatching from that egg, I could feel myself truly relax.


    As I showered, I took the chance to also wash the blood and sweat out of my clothes and nodded in satisfaction as chat began complaining about black screen and lack of sound.


    I enjoyed a good hour of a relaxing shower even though I kept checking for potential dungeon mobs.


    What the hell had my life come to that I was now gleefully showering in the middle of a monster-infested non-euclidean maze?


    I wasn¡¯t going to think about it too much.


    Once I deigned to stop, I stepped out of the chest, still dripping wet¡­ and then realized my mistake.


    ¡°...Chat. I have no towel. Or a change of clothes.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmfaoooo


    <u>GonguuH:</u> use fire breath


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> dry yourself with fire?


    I scowled at George¡¯s message, then blinked.


    ¡°...Oh yeah. I can do that.¡± I definitely didn¡¯t blush in embarrassment.


    Look, I was tired, okay?


    Just as suggested, I spat some fire in front of myself, which already managed to dry my face for the most part before it dissipated. I only had to do it a few more times to completely dry off both myself and my clothes.


    Once done, I wore the pleasantly warm and dry Vcuber garb again, and couldn¡¯t help but let out a yawn.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ I should have waited with the shower¡­ Now I¡¯m too lazy to keep looking for the exit¡­ I just wanna hit the bed,¡± I grumbled.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you can do it!<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> just sleep right there lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t fall asleep yet!


    ¡°George¡­ I¡¯m not gonna sleep inside a freaking dungeon!¡± I growled. ¡°I don¡¯t wanna wake up suffocating on a towel or a sentient puddle!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> there¡¯s an achievement for it tho


    I opened my mouth, then closed it.


    ¡°...There is?¡±


    I quickly opened the achievement page and scanned through them, and sure enough, it was there.


    <u>Sweet dreams</u> - Sleep inside a dungeon.


    For some reason though, it was only a tier one achievement despite how stupid and crazy it was. Or, actually¡­ maybe not that crazy if you had a party who could keep watch. But since I was alone, this was incredibly suicidal.


    I groaned.


    I really didn¡¯t feel like going through the effort to find my way back, and now not just chat, but even the stupid system was goading me into making the dumb decision instead of going with the smart one.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> do it do it doit


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana don¡¯t listen to the devil


    I pursed my lips and really thought about it.


    Was it worth the risk? Could I survive even if something ambushed me in my sleep?


    ¡°...I have an idea, chat.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh no


    I walked out of the dead end I¡¯d been in, looked around the little crossroad, and proceeded to evaporate every puddle of water I could see with my Fire breath. Then I walked back into the dead end, evaporating all water on the way, as well as all the water inside the chest.


    Then, I tried to move the chest itself to act as a blockade, but unfortunately I found that it was stuck to the ground.


    I scowled.


    ¡°Well¡­ That sucks.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana please stop considering sleeping inside the dungeon filled with things that want you dead


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> shes doing iiiiit


    ¡°But I wanna sleep, Ebi! There¡¯s no guarantee I''ll find the exit before I drop dead from exhaustion! Heck, there¡¯s no guarantee that there even is an exit now that everything moved!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you gotta at least try¡­


    ¡°I did!¡± I snapped out before taking a breath. ¡°Look, I¡¯ll sleep with my sword so if anything tries to smother me in my sleep, I¡¯ll just do the flashbang again,¡± I explained as I unstrapped the sheath and held it to my chest with both arms. ¡°Also, as far as I can tell, all the enemies here are ambush predators¡­ That sounds weird, but you know what I mean. They wait for you to get close instead of hunting you down. So if I stay in one place, I should be safe¡­ right?¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> makes sense but still feels dangerous


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I don¡¯t know about this¡­


    ¡°Worst case scenario, I¡¯ll just cover everything in fire¡­¡± I grouched. ¡°It¡¯s gonna be fine! Don¡¯t worry about it!¡±


    I ignored all the protests and just lay on the tiled floor. I was so exhausted at this point, that the moment I closed my eyes, I was out cold.

 #021 – This new helper fairy sucks, I want a refund

    When my eyes fluttered open, I was greeted by an unfamiliar sight. Ceiling that felt way too far away, and rows of lockers on both sides that looked stretched to crazy lengths.


    I blinked several times, trying to make sense of this odd optical illusion. Before I could though, two blue windows appeared in my field of view.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Sweet dreams¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Hermit¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    It only took a second for me to remember where I was and what I had been doing from there.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± I groaned. ¡°Good morning chat¡­¡±


    Like yesterday, chat flooded with countless messages that I had no chance of ever reading all, but luckily, I also had the group chat right with my regulars next to it now. Although, it seemed like there was just one person around¡­


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> sup


    ¡°Hey, Jamie¡­¡± I said with a lazy yawn.


    I sat up and rubbed my back. It felt pretty sore from sleeping on the hard floor. Sure, the cave and the grass outside weren¡¯t that much better but still¡­


    I carefully looked around the dead end of the maze I was still in and felt relieved that nothing had attacked me in my sleep. I was probably right about the monsters in this dungeon all being ambush predators rather than seeking out the dungeoneers.


    I stretched with a groan just to help with the sore muscles and stood up, taking stock of my situation and trying to figure out my next move.


    Then I glanced at the group chat.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yo nana message from jeoff


    I hummed questioningly.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> do ten squats and pushups every morning


    I blinked and then groaned in disgust.


    ¡°To slowly work toward those achievements, right? Ugh, I mean, that¡¯s the smart thing to do but¡­ I feel like I¡¯m being conned into regularly exercising by the system,¡± I grumbled with a pout.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea thats the point lol


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> isnt it good anyway?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> since u have to fight n stuff?


    ¡°I guess so¡­ Fine, here I go¡­¡±


    With great effort, I dropped to all fours and began doing pushups. While I did that, I checked the two achievements I¡¯d gotten. I knew one of them. It had been the entire reason why I¡¯d slept here, after all. The other one though?


    <u>Sweet dreams</u> - Sleep inside a dungeon.


    <u>Hermit</u> - Sleep inside a Tempor-based dungeon.


    I blinked in surprise. It was exactly the same achievement¡­ except it specified a type of the dungeon?


    What the heck was a Tempor-based dungeon anyway? And why was it called ¡®Hermit¡¯ of all things? Was it trying to imply that I was trying to live here?


    While my thoughts churned, I managed the ten pushups but decided to keep going since I wasn¡¯t tired yet.


    ¡°Chat¡­¡± I gasped between pushups. ¡°What¡­ does¡­ that mean?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> tempor is one of the three manas right?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hold on lemee check the wiki


    ¡°The¡­ wiki? What¡­ wiki?¡±


    Twenty-one¡­ Twenty-two¡­


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> your wiki


    I let myself drop after the twenty-fourth pushup with a gasp as my eyes widened.


    ¡°I have a wiki?! Like¡­ a wiki about me?!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea irid made it yesteday


    I rolled on my back and stared at the faraway ceiling in a slight daze.


    Sure, I¡¯d known that my stream had exploded in the number of viewers the other day, but to have someone create a wiki dedicated to me¡­?


    I guess the reality of my new popularity hadn¡¯t sunk in just yet.


    ¡°Seriously¡­? What kind of stuff is on there?¡± I asked as I stood up and began doing the squats.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> all sorts of stuff


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> like summary of each day your skills the dungeons etc


    ¡°...Huh.¡±


    So it wasn¡¯t exactly a wiki about me. More like a wiki about this whole isekai nonsense I happened to be featuring in.


    That put a little bit of a damper on my excitement, but it still felt really cool to be included.


    ¡°So¡­ Tempor,¡± I said after a moment. ¡°It¡¯s like Ether and¡­ the other thing, right? What was it?¡± I briefly looked at the appraisal description where I knew it was mentioned. ¡°Intra, right. What did you find then? Any insight into what those three are supposed to be?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ok so


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I think jeoff wrote this


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ether is physical stuff


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> intra is mental stuff


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> tempor is spacetime stuff


    I blinked as I transitioned my squat into sitting on the ground instead of another squat as I pondered this.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    ¡°Ether is¡­ yeah that makes sense¡­¡± I mumbled, remembering that Fire breath and the sword¡¯s lightning effect both used Ether. It would also explain why running out of Ether made me feel like a puppet with its strings cut, and why recharging Ether via the ooze energized me so much.


    As much sense as something like this could make, at least. It didn¡¯t follow any conventional physics, after all.


    Then Intra was used by¡­ heat vision and appraisal. It was true that neither one of them really affected the world in a physical way, but instead gave me more information. So ¡®mental stuff¡¯ seemed to fit too. Or perhaps things related to perception?


    Tempor being spacetime stuff¡­ would make sense too. Granted, the only skill I had that used it was Streamer. Although considering it had to transfer information between two different worlds¡­ yeah, I could see it.


    And if this was supposedly a Tempor-based dungeon¡­


    I groaned.


    ¡°Is that why this place is a non-euclidian nightmare? Why the space here is all twisted? What does it even mean that it¡¯s Tempor-based anyway? Did some grand mage dump all their Tempor into this place to create the dungeon?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> idk maybe


    Maybe that was why this dungeon felt so weird. Would Ether-based dungeons feel more normal since Ether was supposedly physical stuff? What would an Intra-based dungeon look like? Did they even exist? Was it just Tempor-based dungeons?


    My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I had bigger things to worry about.


    ¡°Maybe an Ether-based dungeon would have more actual physical food around¡­¡± I mumbled and stood up again.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> imma pull a jeoff and tell you to use ur sp


    ¡°Oh, right¡­ I have five skill points now. Hmm¡­¡±


    I briefly glanced over my options. I had enough to get Flameguard now, but like I¡¯d mentioned, I didn¡¯t want to constantly burn myself even if I could heal it back. Yesterday¡¯s little explosion wasn¡¯t pleasant in the slightest. Not to mention, my skill slots were still full and I wasn¡¯t too keen on swapping out any of my skills at the moment.


    So, upgrades.


    I still had the option to get Flame bullet, but now I also had enough to get Extreme temperature for five, which¨C


    <u>Extreme temperature</u> - Fire breath¡¯s temperature range ceiling is greatly increased. Higher temperature breath uses more Ether.


    ¨Cin video game terms, just looked like it increased damage and Ether cost. Not bad, but it felt like overspecializing. If an enemy could block me from using Fire breath like those stupid towels yesterday, then it would be useless.


    I could also get more Streamer upgrades, but those were all more or less quality of life and I could do without them for now. I needed something to help me fight, or even better, something defensive for once. Something that would help me avoid situations similar to yesterday¡¯s great towel pyre.


    I hummed.


    ¡°You know what, chat? I think I¡¯m gonna save my skill points for now,¡± I announced. ¡°I¡¯m gonna try to get one more and get fusion, I think. Maybe I can somehow make armor with it.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> no poll?


    I stopped for a moment and then shrugged.


    ¡°You know what? Sure. Let¡¯s poll it! No guarantees I¡¯ll go with whatever you guys decide though!¡±


    I quickly set it up, idly thinking how cool it was that I was essentially using telepathy to control the interface.


    <u>Poll: ¡®What should I get next?¡¯


    </u><u>Upgrade Streamer:</u> 0%(0)


    <u>Flame bullet:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Extreme temperature:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Flameguard:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Save up points for Fusion:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    The numbers immediately began to tick up.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> awww whats the point of the poll then


    ¡°I mean¡­ I would agree with you and just go with whatever chat decides if I wasn¡¯t lost in a deadly dungeon that wants me dead,¡± I said, a little snarkily. ¡°It¡¯s kinda slightly important that I spend these skill points wisely so I¡­ you know, don¡¯t die and stuff.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ok jeez I get it


    With the poll running in the background, I began gathering all my stuff to prepare for another day of dungeoneering.


    But then I realized that I couldn¡¯t exactly stuff my pockets with all the loot like always. The shower head was too big to fit and I kept on accidentally giving the soap a tiny bit of Ether when I touched it, making it foam all the time. Putting that in my pockets would just be gross.


    So instead, I put them both inside the bucket. Neither could be pushed into its pocket dimension since they weren¡¯t liquids, but hey, the bucket still worked as a container. Might as well make use of it.


    With everything gathered, I set off from my little dead end back in the direction where I¡¯d come from yesterday. I sort of remembered the way, but not completely. This was a non-euclidian nightmare, after all.


    ¡°So, uh¡­ Do you happen to remember which way I went, Jamie? I wanna try get back to that opened locker.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> uhhhhh


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I think someone made a map


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> sec


    I hummed and checked the poll in the meantime.


    <u>Poll: ¡®What should I get next?¡¯


    </u><u>Upgrade Streamer:</u> 9.0%(1263)


    <u>Flame bullet:</u> 24.6% (3456)


    <u>Extreme temperature:</u> 32.2% (4532)


    <u>Flameguard:</u> 6.1% (855)


    <u>Save up points for Fusion:</u> 28.1% (3956)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    I raised an eyebrow despite knowing nobody would see that.


    ¡°You guys want me to blow all my points on upgrading Fire breath? I mean, I guess having a high damage attack would be nice but it just feels like putting all my eggs in one basket, you know¡­?¡± I reasoned. ¡°I would rather get fusion and experiment with fusing different things. Like, what would happen if I fused the sword with my clothes? Would I get lightning armor?¡±


    Or maybe that would just kill me. I probably shouldn¡¯t try fusing those. The point still stood, though. I could try fusing other things together to see what I got, since the skill also allowed me to separate them again.


    After my short monologue, the last poll option suddenly got more votes and overtook Extreme temperature, cementing itself as the winner of the poll.


    I shrugged and closed the poll. Not like I was going to blindly follow the poll¡¯s results but hey. Good to know that I could manipulate the results.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> okay


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> fuck this is hard


    I smirked.


    ¡°Oh no, my helpful fairy of the day can¡¯t read maps,¡± I teased.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> go left


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> how dare you im great at maps


    I chuckled and followed Jamie¡¯s instructions. As I did, it randomly occurred to me just how insanely useful Streamer was as a skill. I¡¯d never really thought to compare it to any of the other skills, but that was mainly because they were simply incomparable. Chat was the thing keeping me sane in here, I could freely admit that. But even beyond helping with my sanity, the skill indirectly gave me a massive treasure trove of information and useful advice via all the chatters.


    A bit weird to think about it that way, but still.


    Speaking of which, since it was a racial skill, were all humans in this world supposed to get it? No, that couldn¡¯t be right. The system had had to generate the skill when I¡¯d first made it out of the spaceship dungeon, so I had to assume that everyone had a different racial skill. Were the others just as useful as Streamer?


    Not like I had much hope in meeting more humans in this world but still¡­


    With these idle thoughts, I made it back to the open locker. Luckily, it was still open, despite Irid¡¯s worries yesterday and ripe for exploring.


    I stepped closer to it and looked inside the pitch black darkness¡­ before backing up and thinking that it would be better to leave it alone.


    ¡°Ugh, chat¡­ Now I don¡¯t know about this. This looks like the prelude to a horror movie,¡± I whined. ¡°Except I¡¯m the only schmuck in the party so I will definitely be the first one to die!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> do it you pussy


    ¡°Wha¨C¡± I blinked in surprise before narrowing my eyes. ¡°Are you channeling your inner George, Jamie?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea im your whole chat at once


    I snorted. ¡°Right¡­¡± Then I looked back into the darkness and cringed.


    God, I hated pitch-black rooms. Especially if there were facehugging towels waiting to suffocate me inside.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> cmon dude


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> not like you have other options


    ¡°I could just¡­ keep wandering,¡± I argued.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea and get even more lost


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> cmon I thought u were starving


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hurry up


    I groaned and rubbed my forehead.


    ¡°You are the absolute worst helper fairy. I want Ebi to come back,¡± I said before pulling out my sword, pouring just enough Ether to light it up just like back when I¡¯d spilled the refined ooze on it, and then stepped inside the stupid locker.

 #022 – The horror monster never expects the victim to fight back

    The inside of the giant locker was dark, but also spacious. I had no idea how far away the walls were, and I couldn¡¯t see anything but the metallic floor under my feet, even with my sword lighting up the way.


    The clacking of my shoes echoed in this horrible space and I couldn¡¯t help but feel on edge. I barely made it a few steps inside before I had a sudden sense of dread and whirled around to check whether the entrance was still there.


    It was. A column of light in this horrible plane of pure darkness. It was so tempting to just run back to it and leave this cursed place.


    I didn¡¯t. I turned back around and kept going forward, looking for any signs of¡­ well, anything. An exit, a chest, or heck, even a monster to beat up.


    But the damn place remained deathly silent save for my own steps, breathing, and heartbeats. It was good that I had a heartbeat. Part of me always worried that I wasn¡¯t quite human anymore, what with hatching from an egg and all the weirdness like my ability to breathe fire. Who was to say that I still even had a heart? If Ether apparently powered everything physical here, would I even need one? My physiology was already changed just because of the Fire breath, so why would I?


    I was distracting myself. But who could blame me? This place was incredibly unnerving. I couldn¡¯t help but keep glancing back to make sure I had some sort of exit just in case I began panicking. Being shut inside this horrible place would be the absolute worst. I never liked the feeling of being trapped. Or the feeling of not knowing what was around me.


    I was still distracting myself.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> heat vision would be pretty cool here


    I pursed my lips and ground my teeth.


    It would, wouldn¡¯t it? Or at least, it would, assuming the monsters here gave off heat like normal living beings. But one couldn¡¯t be too sure when said monsters were sentient towels and puddles of water.


    Well, not like I could test that. There were still several hours of cooldown on that skill. I should have figured it would bite me in the ass when I¡¯d said that I probably wouldn¡¯t need it anytime soon.


    ¡°Not a word, Jamie¡­¡± I muttered, my own quiet voice sounding like a loud howl in my ears. ¡°Craftsmen helped me beat the boss and I wouldn¡¯t even be here without it¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey i didnt say anything


    I grunted but then went silent again, because the echoes of my own voice made me even more uneasy.


    I felt like I was walking for hours in the darkness despite it probably only being a few minutes at most. I had no idea where I was going or if I even was going anywhere. Everytime I glanced back, the column of light marking the entrance looked exactly the same.


    Was I hallucinating? Was I going crazy? Should I go back? What if¨C


    The rustling sound of clothes instantly grabbed my attention and my head whipped around into the darkness and pointed my sword in that direction.


    I couldn¡¯t see anything there.


    ¡°Hello¡­?¡± I muttered on instinct and instantly regretted it. Did I want to be a horror movie victim? Seriously, mouth¡­


    Nothing happened though. Not for a good minute of tense silence at least.


    Then more rustling resounded behind me.


    I whirled around again.


    Nothing.


    I got both antsy and agitated because I knew this pattern and I didn¡¯t like it one bit.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> LIGHT THEM UP


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> nana use fire breath!


    I blinked and resisted the urge to facepalm.


    Of course.


    Somehow, I had completely forgotten that unlike horror movie victims, I could actually fight back. I didn¡¯t need to wait to be eaten by the monsters in the dark while trembling in my boots.


    I immediately breathed in, poured as much Ether into my lungs as I could, and then breathed out a wave of fire as I spun around, creating a flaming circle around me.


    And as the fire lit up my surroundings, I couldn¡¯t help but widen my eyes at the sight.


    There had to be hundreds of these sentient towels and other articles of clothing all around me. All just outside of my sword¡¯s light.


    And now they were on fire.


    And the fire was quickly spreading even as the damn things began to flop around in panic. Like a switch being flipped, the oppressive silence turned into a rumble of mixed sounds and noises.


    ¡°Are you serious?!¡± I shouted into the sudden pandemonium that broke out.


    Some of the clothes and towels threw themselves at me in a desperate bid to take me down with them and I immediately reacted by dropping the bucket and slashing my sword at the assailants.


    It cut through the burning cloth with ease and with them already being on fire, they proceeded to uselessly drop to the ground and turn into mist soon after.


    But the more I beat, the more decided to go for the suicide charge and I was soon swarmed with burning cloth, silk, and cotton from all sides, draping over me, and scorching my skin.


    My panicked waving of my sword and random discharges of lightning didn¡¯t do much to help. Nor did my small bursts of fire.


    Eventually, one of them jumped on my face just like yesterday, and I couldn¡¯t help the full blown panic that overtook me. I was getting suffocated again!


    I needed to do something.


    Quickly.


    My mind ran through my options, discarding each one just as quickly as they came to mind. When I stopped on one option, I hesitated for just a split second before committing.


    <u>Purchase the skill [Flameguard] for 5 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    Yes!


    <u>Replace [Craftsman] with [Flameguard]?


    </u>Note: [Craftsman] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    Yes!


    I immediately looked for the mental switch and slammed it as soon as I found it. My entire body lit up in burning pain as soon as I did, but it also burned through whatever was wrapped around my face and I could breathe again.


    Granted, the heat and smoke still made me choke up, but it was still better than before.


    I scrambled to look around me with my teary eyes and still could see legions of burning clothes and towels all over the place. I briefly thought that this was the perfect picture of hell.


    More of them leapt at me. I countered by either slashing with my sword or swatting at them with my free hand while briefly setting it on fire as the hit connected. When one got past my guard and wrapped around me, I simply lit up that part of my body to get it off.


    Unfortunately, I wasn¡¯t very good at using the skill yet, and often ended up using too much fire and wasting Ether or too little fire, which didn¡¯t get the job done. It quickly drained me and I could feel running out of Ether soon.


    I had my bucket, but there was no way I could casually chomp on some ooze in the middle of all this. I couldn¡¯t afford to drop my guard even for a second.


    I kept fighting. It felt like an eternity. For every monster I slapped down, two more were already jumping at me. Even with Flameguard, I still felt overwhelmed. Part of me thought that their ranks were thinning out, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel like that was just naive hope.


    Eventually, it happened. I ran out of Ether.


    I felt the moment my limbs stopped responding. My stomach dropped and a chill went down my spine.


    NONONONONO!!!


    I fell down on my face like a ragdoll and immediately got piled by everything. They somehow found a way to wrap around my head once more even as the fire seared my skin. It hurt even more than before because I lacked the inherent fire resistance of Flameguard now.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    I was fully and truly panicking now.


    I had no options left. No Ether to move, much less fight back. No skill points to get more upgrades on the fly. No magical tools that would help me do anything.


    I was going to die die die¨C


    Suddenly, the towel wrapping around my head dispersed into mist and I belatedly realized that all the others who had piled on me must have vanished as well while I¡¯d been internally screaming in panic.


    In fact, the place had gotten much quieter. There were still patches of fire on the ground that let me somewhat see, but I couldn¡¯t hear a whole lot of rustling anymore. The patches of fire were also dispersing into mist one by one.


    My heart clenched in anticipation but at the same time I felt hope.


    Had I done it? Had I somehow defeated all these freaking monsters just as I¡¯d run out of Ether?


    The last patch of fire dispersed, leaving me in total darkness once more.


    I still couldn¡¯t move or even talk. I could read the group chat, however.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> pls dont tell me i got u killd


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> pls


    Jamie is officially the worst helper fairy, I sardonically thought.


    I remained tense for a good minute, expecting more monsters to pop up and finish me off while I was vulnerable. Every second felt like an eternity as the hope that it was over battled with the dread of anticipation. My own heartbeat sounded like a wardrum in the dead silence.


    And then finally, my fingers twitched. Then my hands, my arms, my feet, and gradually, I managed to shakily roll on my back and sit up.


    I still couldn¡¯t see anything and couldn''t be sure whether I was safe, but I at least felt much safer being able to move.


    I lifted up a shaky hand and wiped the tears off my face before taking a deep shaky breath. Then I loudly exhaled. I repeated this a few times until I didn¡¯t feel like screaming in panic.


    The moment I relaxed enough, four status windows shoved their way into my field of view.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Experienced fighter¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>Massacre¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +8 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>Hoarder¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®Immolator¡¯ title unlocked!</u>


    I jumped with a gasp, thinking something was ambushing me, then I groaned in annoyance, and then I was momentarily stunned when I noticed that one of the achievements was worth eight skill points.


    I stared for a few seconds and I just¡­ crashed.


    I flopped back down in the darkness and just stayed there for a minute.


    Just breathing. Not moving or trying to make sense of the achievements.


    I was completely and utterly overwhelmed. Getting more skill points and apparently even a title was awesome news, but at the moment I just¡­ couldn¡¯t deal with all that. Not after the experience I just had.


    ¡°I almost died¡­ again,¡± I whispered into the echoey darkness around me.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ¡­


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> nana?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> u good?


    ¡°No,¡± I said and didn¡¯t elaborate.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> uh


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> right


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you did good tho?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> dot ftw?


    The soft snort I let out surprised even myself.


    She was kind of right. If I hadn¡¯t set everything on fire to begin with, I would have probably died. Damage over time for the win, indeed.


    After another minute of just laying around, watching as chat messages zipped by, I finally sat up again and looked around.


    The column of light was still there. It almost felt mocking in a way. Everything seemed exactly the same as it had been before the pandemonium. Like it had been nothing but a dream.


    I shook my head and groped for my sword I must have dropped when I¡¯d run out of Ether earlier.


    I found the sword, but not its handle.


    ¡°Ow! Ugh¡­¡±


    I felt like I had recovered enough Ether, so I lit up the smallest flame I could manage in my hand for lighting and found the sword¡¯s handle this time.


    I grabbed it and wanted to use it as a flashlight again since it was better than burning myself, but then I remembered what I¡¯d done during the earlier craziness.


    I¡¯d replaced Craftsman with Flameguard. I could no longer channel Ether through my hands.


    ¡°Dammit¡­ No more sword flashlight¡­¡± I murmured.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mb u can learn how to do it without the skill


    I hummed and shrugged.


    ¡°Maybe¡­ I¡¯ll have to try later.¡±


    I sheathed the sword and lit up my palm to better see again. I quickly discovered my bucket, put all my other loot that had spilled from it back into it, and was ready to leave this cursed place when I noticed something else in the darkness. It was even giving off a soft glow and I could have sworn that it hadn¡¯t been here before.


    I cautiously walked closer and found that it was exactly what I thought it was.


    A chest.


    But this one was different. It didn¡¯t even try to resemble the regular chests like the boss chest had. This one was fully golden and had a silver star on its lid.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> super special loot!


    I stared at it for a moment, before slowly unsheathing my sword and poking the thing. Then I remembered I had Appraisal again and just appraised it.


    <u>Secret dungeon chest


    </u>A loot chest containing random loot from the bonus pool.


    You¡¯ve done something really stupid to make this appear.


    ¡°Excuse me?!¡± I blurted out as soon as I read the bolded text.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> its not wrong tho


    I glared at the thing. Part of me wanted to leave without even opening this thing out of pure spite. Fortunately, the smarter part of me won.


    With an annoyed grumble, I walked up to the stupid shiny thing and popped the lid open. As soon as I did, another system window greeted me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Why did you even do that?¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    ¡°Wha¨C?! What do you mean?! What did I do?!¡± I yelled and jumped back, ready to defend myself from mimics and more stupid towels.


    Nothing happened though.


    Not even after a full minute of waiting.


    Not wanting any surprises, I decided to finally check the descriptions of all the achievements I¡¯d gotten.


    One tier 1 achievement.


    <u>Hoarder</u> - Amass 10 or more skill points.


    Two tier 2s.


    <u>Experienced fighter</u> - Defeat a total of 300 dungeon monsters.


    <u>Why did you even do that?</u> - Open a secret chest.


    And one tier 3.


    <u>Massacre</u> - Kill 100 or more living beings or dungeon monsters in the span of ten seconds or less.


    I stared at the sheer number of dungeon monsters the achievements claimed that I¡¯d defeated. Were there really that many?!


    I shook my head, read the last achievement I¡¯d gotten, and scowled. That achievement name probably referred to the ¡®stupid thing¡¯ I¡¯d apparently done as appraisal had informed me.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> pranked


    ¡°Whatever¡­¡± I murmured and stepped closer to the chest again.


    There was a backpack of some sort inside as well as two smaller objects. I couldn¡¯t see very well, so I just shot Appraisal at them, starting with the backpack.


    <u>Backpack of hoarding</u>


    A backpack capable of holding more than it appears, based on its last owner¡¯s maximum Tempor. Nullifies the weight of all items carried inside. This item is recursive and can hold other items with their own dimensional pocket space.


    My eyes widened at that.


    This was super useful! Now I didn¡¯t need to lug around the bucket with all the random junk I found!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> classic


    I couldn¡¯t help but immediately test the thing by unzipping the backpack, pulling my dimensional wallet out of my pocket, and dropping it inside the creepy void in the backpack. When I reached into the void, my hand immediately found the wallet again. It worked exactly like the wallet.


    Perfect.


    I stuffed everything I had on me inside it ¨C including the bucket itself ¨C slung it around my shoulders ¨C once again, it fit me perfectly ¨C and then appraised the next item. It looked like the Ether ticket I¡¯d gotten from the quest.


    <u>Large Power expansion ticket


    </u>A system consumable that increases your total Ether, Intra, or Tempor reserves and regeneration by 10% when consumed. The choice is yours.


    My eyes widened again. This thing was also pretty damn good! I would probably end up choosing Ether, but the fact that I could choose felt significant. Not to mention, this was a whole ten percent! As a gamer, I knew just how much of a difference ten percent could make.


    For the time being, I put it into the backpack to use later and appraised the last item in the chest.


    <u>Fate Weaver coin (gold)


    </u>A second highest denomination divine coin made by the Fate Weaver. A hundred gold coins can be fused into a single platinum coin with the use of Ether. This item can be consumed to gain 1 skill point.


    I nodded at the first part of the description but froze when I read the last line.


    ¡°What¡­? You can¡­ You can just buy skill points?!¡± I shrieked, making it echo in the darkness. ¡°Is that what the coins are for?!¡±


    It made sense in a way, but it also felt pretty strange.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> capitalism going strong even in another world


    I scoffed.


    I didn¡¯t think about it twice, grabbed my wallet out of my backpack, put the coin inside, and then put the wallet back.


    With all the loot taken, the chest dispersed into mist.


    With that done, I once again looked around the darkness and failed to see anything of interest but the entrance.


    With an annoyed grunt, I decided to just go back. I had felt no need to spend any more time in this creepy place than I had to.


    Nothing accosted me on my way back. Not even a hint of rustling this time. Just my own breath, heartbeat, and steps.


    That didn¡¯t really surprise me since I was pretty sure I¡¯d exterminated everything that had been hiding in this place. I doubted Appraisal would have called me stupid if I hadn¡¯t, after all.


    I reached the entrance again in what felt like no time at all. With a sigh of relief, I finally stepped back into the light and had to squint as I stopped at the precipice.


    ¡°Well¡­ That sucked,¡± I murmured. ¡°...You know, I feel like that¡¯s becoming my signature line or something.¡± I sighed. ¡°At least I got a lot of loot and skill points out of this nightmare¡­¡±


    I was about to just walk off and continue my exploration of the locker maze when I had a random thought that made me pause.


    I remembered the first time I found out just what the non-euclidian nature of this place meant on the first floor, where I could go around and behind the window.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Hold on a second¡­¡±


    My face slowly morphed into a suspicious frown, I took a few steps back into the darkness, and I stared at the edges of the entrance. They were pitch black. No walls on either side of the entrance. I could freely go past it just like the window.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me¡­¡±


    So I did. I walked around and past the entrance into the darkness¡­ before looking back. And sure enough, there was another entrance on the other side of this non-euclidian nonsense. Physics and common sense told me that both were located at the exact same spot, just flipped around, but I knew that they both led to different places.


    I peeked through it to confirm, and sure enough, there was more locker maze on the other side, but veritably different from the one I¡¯d come from.


    ¡°...The exit was right here,¡± I deadpanned, trying to keep the agitation out of my voice.


    Now everything started to click together.


    Why Appraisal called me stupid. Why that achievement was called what it was. Why this place actively discouraged exploring deep into it by being creepy and unsettling. Why it felt like the entrance wasn¡¯t getting any further no matter how deep I¡¯d walked. Why, as I belatedly realized, the monsters hadn¡¯t even attacked until I¡¯d set everything on fire first.


    You were never meant to go this deep. You were never meant to fight all these things, much less defeat all of them. In video game terms, this was likely one of those areas where you were supposed to avoid starting a fight because it would be nearly impossible to win.


    But I had done it anyway.


    I put my free hand on my face and slowly dragged it down as I groaned.


    ¡°I hate this place¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup what did i miss


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> LMFAO


    I walked through the exit.

 #023 – Ready to burn the world!

    ¡°¨Cand then I realized the exit might be behind the entrance¡­ which it was,¡± I finished explaining from my perch on one of the random benches all over the place.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you got owned


    I scowled.


    ¡°Why am I even retelling you everything? Can¡¯t you just go and watch the stream history yourself? Hmph¡­¡± I sniffed and lay down on the bench with a sigh.


    Truth be told, I was still shaken about what had happened in there, but retelling it like a campfire story helped to make it feel less severe. I¡¯ve had a few close calls already and I had intellectually known that this wasn¡¯t a game and I could die at any moment¡­ but now it was finally sinking in.


    And the idea of dying was terrifying.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> but im lazy


    I quickly shooed those thoughts away as I rolled my eyes at George.


    ¡°Anyway¡­ In conclusion, I should invite more people to the group chat, so that I¡¯m not stuck with just one person who will tell me to go inside a dark room filled with a horde of monsters.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I didn¡¯t know that would happen


    ¡°I mean, I don¡¯t blame you, but¡­ Yeah, I think a second opinion never hurts,¡± I concluded, a bit morosely. ¡°Anywho, what¡¯s up, you two? I kinda don¡¯t feel like continuing right away¡­¡±


    I stayed in my position for quite some time, occasionally checking around to make sure nothing would ambush me, while chatting with the two trolls in chat about nothing in particular. About how their lives were going, about any noteworthy news from Earth I had missed, or about any new games or updates that had come out in the few days I¡¯d been stuck in this world.


    It really helped to have a bit of normality even if a treacherous part of me felt like it was all irrelevant stuff since I might never make it back to Earth¡­


    ¡°Anyway!¡± I suddenly shouted and slapped my hands on the bench while sitting up. ¡°That nightmare back there wasn¡¯t all for naught! Guess what, chat? I have a whole fifteen skill points now! And I can get one more from the coin, so sixteen in total!¡±


    I grinned and rubbed my hands in anticipation.


    ¡°What should I get? There¡¯s so many options now!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> self-destruct pls


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yo what about that title


    I completely ignored George and hummed questioningly as I remembered the title.


    ¡°Oh yeah! I also got a new title! The first one I got since the reincarnation. Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    <u>Available titles:


    </u>Fire blessed (EQUIPPED)


    Immolator


    ¡°Immolator¡­ Sounds really edgy, but considering what you have to do to get it¡­¡±


    Immolator:


    You killed over 500 living beings or dungeon monsters using fire, and you killed 100 or more living beings or dungeon monsters in the span of ten seconds or less using fire.


    Having this title equipped grants the wielder major fire resistance, and increases the power of all fire-based attacks by 50%.


    [INNATE] skill: Immolate - Use a variable amount of Ether to immolate any target you or your weapon is touching from the inside.


    ¡°Wait, five hundred? I thought it was three hundred. These numbers just keep getting higher¡­¡±


    At this point, I had no idea just how many monsters I had burned back there.


    ¡°Wait, this title seems amazing though! I¡¯m already using fire as my main source of damage anyway so this is just a fifty percent damage boost!¡± I gushed. ¡°And it also gives another fire skill? That¡¯s awesome!¡±


    I idly asked the system to explain the innate thing.


    [INNATE] - This skill is tied to an item or a title. Equipping said item or title temporarily grants the skill without taking up skill slots until unequipped.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s what I expected. Makes sense¡­ Hold on, tied to an item? Doesn¡¯t that break the system? I thought the point of the skill slots was so you were limited, but if you just get all the items with innate skills¡­¡± I mused, my gamer mind kicking in.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> how come the sword doesnt say it has innate skill?


    I frowned and idly patted the sword¡¯s hilt.


    ¡°Good question, actually¡­ I guess the lightning stuff doesn¡¯t count as a skill¡­? It¡¯s kinda unfortunate since I can¡¯t use it without craftsman¡­¡± I shrugged. ¡°Anyway, what were we talking about¡­? Oh, yeah. The title! Are there even any disadvantages to equipping it¡­?¡±


    I looked over the description once more and then glanced at my current title ¡®Fire blessed¡¯ before stopping and narrowing my eyes.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Yes there is. Yes, there is a huge disadvantage to changing titles!¡± I yelled in indignance. ¡°Look at this! ¡®Having this title equipped allows the wielder access to tier 1 phoenix skills¡¯. Both Fire breath and Flameguard are from the phoenix section! I almost completely screwed myself over!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> but if you dont swap youl never find out what that skill does


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mb you keep the skills even if you swap tho


    I grunted in annoyance.


    Great. Instead of one terrible helper fairy, I now had two.


    ¡°Can I get an angel on my shoulder too? Why do I have to have two devils?¡± I said with a dry tone. ¡°Right, I said I would invite more people, didn¡¯t I? You two keep distracting me! Okay, who should I invite¡­?¡±


    I briefly glanced at the normal stream chat and quickly gave up on catching anyone¡¯s name, much less the name of someone who could be reasonable.


    ¡°...Never mind¡­ Actually, how about you guys pick out some reasonable people to have us join here? Wait, no. You¡¯ll just pick more trolls. Ugh¡­¡± I grunted. ¡°Whatever. Skill points! What am I getting?¡±


    After another brief check of my surroundings, I began opening up skill upgrade descriptions that I could afford all around me and began planning.


    ¡°So I wanted Fusion¡­ But I swapped Craftsman out and now it¡¯s on cooldown. Dang it¡­ I wish I swapped out Appraisal instead¡­ Ah well. I can still hold on to six points for when the cooldown is up I guess. What else is there¡­?¡±


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    First, I looked at the upgrades for Appraisal.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Assess (1SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Inspiration (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Psychometry (9SP)


    <u>Assess</u> - You can now use appraisal on living beings.


    <u>Inspiration</u> - Appraising an item will now tell you about its possible uses. Uses more Intra.


    <u>Psychometry</u> - You can now glean the rough history of the appraised object. Uses a moderate to large amount of Intra based on how old the object is.


    ¡°Inspiration would be nice and Psychometry might be cool but probably not that useful¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> isnt it useful for the quest?


    I perked up.


    ¡°Oh yeah, you¡¯re right. Secrets of the world. Figure out what happened to this world¡­ Yeah, actually, Psychometry sounds like the perfect skill for that.¡± Then I stopped and frowned. ¡°Wait, but¡­ The reward for that quest is five points¡­ and psychometry costs nine¡­ What the heck? That¡¯s not even worth it!¡±


    I grumbled.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> scammed lol


    ¡°I mean, unless I do the side objectives and get something extra from it, I guess¡­ Ugh, whatever. I think I¡¯m gonna ignore psychometry for now.¡±


    Next up, I looked at the Fire breath¡¯s upgrades.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Flame bullet (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Extreme temperature (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Mega lungs (9SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Phoenix breath (80SP)


    <u>Flame bullet</u> - Reshape your Fire breath into a stable projectile capable of traveling much further. One bullet uses double the Ether than a normal breath would.


    <u>Extreme temperature</u> - Fire breath¡¯s temperature range ceiling is greatly increased. Higher temperature breath uses more Ether.


    <u>Mega lungs</u> - Triple the amount of fire you breathe per amount breathed. Ether usage scales appropriately.


    I hummed.


    ¡°Right, so¡­ In simple terms, the first one gives me a long-range option, the second one increases damage and Ether cost, and the third one increases the AOE and Ether cost¡­ And then there is Phoenix breath which I¡¯ll never afford. Hmm¡­¡±


    Flame bullet gave me more options, which was always good. The others¡­ While increasing the damage or area of the breath was also useful, I didn¡¯t think I could handle the extra Ether cost. I already ran out of Ether even with the regular Fire breath, after all. I would have to use anything stronger sparingly. And at that point, if I rarely even used it, was it really worth all the skill points?


    Maybe if I got more of those Ether tickets and had more Ether to spare. Maybe then I could get these two upgrades without it feeling like a waste.


    ¡°I¡¯ll think about the Flame bullet, I suppose¡­ The rest doesn¡¯t feel worth it.¡±


    Finally, I looked at the upgrades for my newest skill, Flameguard, for the first time.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Channel fire (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Living torch (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Eternal flames (9SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Self-destruct (11SP)


    <u>Channel fire:</u> Channel the skill through a held item to empower it instead.


    <u>Living torch:</u> Fire resistance is increased to fully withstand this skill for the duration of it.


    <u>Eternal flames:</u> During Flameguard, half of resisted fire damage will heal you instead.


    <u>Self-destruct:</u> Detonate yourself, causing an explosion of fire around you. Note: Fire resistance granted by Flameguard and Living torch doesn¡¯t account for this sub-skill.


    ¡°Heh, I could make my sword fiery instead of zappy¡­¡± My eyes widened. ¡°Oh! Living torch actually makes me fully immune to the fire! I¡¯m totally getting that one! No more burns from my own skill! Actually, because of the blessing, using Flameguard would then keep healing me, wouldn¡¯t it?¡±


    I laughed.


    ¡°Synergy, chat! Things are starting to shape up now! I¡¯m gonna be the melee fire healing tank!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> jeoff would be proud


    I snorted.


    ¡°What else¡­ Wow Eternal flames is just the blessing but worse. Not worth it at all¡­ But I guess there¡¯s a reason why the blessing is only temporary¡­¡±


    I finally looked at the last available upgrade for the skill and scowled.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like that there is literally a suicide button. Like¡­ Yeah, I¡¯m never getting the Self-destruct. I would be too tempted to push the button and it would probably kill me. Or hurt me really bad. Nope. Not happening.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> get iiiiit


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> go out in a blaze of gloooory


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> it sounds funny tho


    I scowled at the evil fairy duo.


    ¡°You two are trying to get me killed, aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked in a dry tone. ¡°Well, too bad! Not getting that last one. Screw you guys.¡±


    With that, I closed the windows with upgrades I knew I definitely wouldn¡¯t be getting and began thinking about the best combination of skills to get.


    If I used the coin, that would give me a total of sixteen skill points. And sixteen would be exactly enough to get Flame bullet and Extreme temperature for Fire breath; and Channel fire and Living torch for Flameguard.


    That sounded great on paper, but it ultimately came down to the same problem ¨C not enough Ether. I needed more Ether if I wanted to effectively use all these upgrades. I might just ignore Extreme temperature for now and get all the others. I could get it once I had more Ether to work with.


    A stray thought had me reaching into my backpack and pulling out the ticket I¡¯d gotten from the secret chest. Now that I wasn¡¯t in complete darkness, I could see that it was red and had black text saying ¡®10%!¡¯ on it, similar to the Ether ticket.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Yeah, I don¡¯t know. I have yet to have any issues with Intra, and only Streamer uses Tempor, so¡­ The choice is obvious!¡±


    <u>Consume 1x Large power expansion ticket?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    I furrowed my brows at the lack of choice but mentally confirmed regardless.


    <u>Choose:


    </u><u>Ether/Intra/Tempor</u>


    ¡°There we go. Ether, please!¡±


    I confirmed once more and watched as the ticket turned into orange mist and seeped into my hands.


    I nearly flinched away at the sudden energy I felt. It was similar to drinking the Refined ooze, just less violent.


    ¡°Okaaay¡­ That was something. Now¡­ Let¡¯s get some upgrades.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nanaaaaa


    ¡°Ebiiiii! My savior!¡± I immediately yelled as soon as I saw her message. ¡°Those two demons are taunting me to the dark side! Please save me!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> whatt


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what did they do


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I did nothing im innocent


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> shhh dont interrupt she wants to come to the dark side


    ¡°Well, long story short¡­ Jamie goaded me into going to the locker. So I went inside, got swarmed by monsters, nearly died again, got achievements and a title for burning hundreds of them, got a secret chest with a pocket dimension backpack, and now I have fifteen skill points to work with.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ??????


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> neraly died again?!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you okay?!


    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ fine. But yeah, it¡¯s been intense. I¡¯m glad you¡¯re here now,¡± I murmured before pushing away the uneasy feelings and grinning. ¡°But now I¡¯m about to get some upgrades! It¡¯s super exciting!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> okay I¡¯ll have to watch the stream back


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what kind of upgrades are we talking?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> selfdesctruuuuct


    ¡°Shush, devil number two,¡± I grunted. ¡°I think I¡¯m getting¡­ Flame bullet and then Channel fire and Living torch for Flameguard. That will cost me eleven points and leave me with four more¡­ or five if I count the coin.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I think I¡¯m missing a lot of context


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> she got flameguard


    ¡°Yeah, I uh¡­ Kind of panic-bought Flameguard and swapped it with Craftsman to save myself back in that dark room. I can¡¯t shoot lightning anymore,¡± I explained and opened the Flameguard upgrades I was planning on getting just for Ebi to see.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> right okay


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> flame bullet makes sense then


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> long range attack


    ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking.¡± I nodded. ¡°Flame bullet for long range, and Flameguard and my sword for short range.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> alright I approve


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> not that you need my approval


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re the pro gamer here


    I chuckled. ¡°Not really, but thanks.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> no poll?


    ¡°I¡¯m not gonna poll this¡­¡± I grumbled and shook my head. ¡°How would I even poll it? Nah, you guys will get to vote in polls later. Right now, I¡¯ll just get what I think I need.¡±


    <u>Purchase the [Fire breath] skill upgrade [Flame bullet] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Flame bullet¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Flameguard] skill upgrade [Channel fire] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Channel fire¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Flameguard] skill upgrade [Living torch] for 5 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Living torch¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    ¡°Alright! Locked and loaded! Time to destroy this stupid dungeon!¡± I said as I unsheathed my sword and dramatically pointed it to the sky.


    Then I prodded the new mental switch I¡¯d gotten with the upgrades and let my hand light on fire ¨C which didn¡¯t burn me at all anymore! ¨C before it spread to the sword and enveloped it.


    My eyes widened when some of the fire apparently seeped into the sword¡¯s circuits and I saw small sparks of electricity crackle between the flames.


    ¡°I can still sort of use the lightning! Heck yes!¡± I cheered.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nice!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lightning fire sword!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sounds edgy lmao


    Ignoring George, I strode forward into the locker-filled halls with renewed confidence.

 #024 – I might have been traumatized a little

    I stared at the blade in front of me in deep concentration, my expression set into a heavy frown.


    Less fire, more lightning. Come on¡­


    The blade burst into flames again as small sparks of electricity fizzled out of it.


    I groaned.


    ¡°This is really hard, chat¡­ Why is it so hard? It used to be so easy¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> thats what she said


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> gotta do a training montage


    ¡°Yeah, probably¡­¡± I said with a sigh.


    It was actually quite disconcerting that something I had been able to easily do just an hour ago felt so difficult, if not impossible, now. It had been the same with Heat vision, but I felt it even more now, since I¡¯d been relying on the lightning so much in fights.


    Obviously, I¡¯d always known that the system had to be messing with reality and my body somehow, but this felt uncomfortably close to the system screwing with my mind.


    It brought up a whole slew of questions. Who made the system? Why? What was its purpose? Was the system merely a help tool and everything I did was possible without it, or was the system what enabled all this crazy nonsense?


    Obviously, my guess for the first question was that the Fate Weaver had made it. But as for the rest of the questions¡­ I had no idea.


    Better not think about it too hard right now. It already felt like I was skirting too close to having an existential crisis. It was already hard enough to keep up my mood.


    ¡°Oh well¡­ ¡± I pouted. ¡°I guess I pivoted from my fire lightning build to a purely fire-based build. That¡¯s probably not great with all the water based enemies around here¡­¡±


    I still felt like it was possible for me to activate the damn sword, I just needed to learn how to do it.


    Later.


    I still needed to find more food.


    I continued walking through the locker maze for about an hour as Ebi continued mapping it out. A few more of my regulars popped into the group chat in that time, so I didn¡¯t feel as pressured by the troll duo.


    I also encountered a couple more sentient puddles on my way and confirmed that yes, they were really annoying to deal with without lightning. Physical attacks didn¡¯t really do anything and while fire did decent damage and made them smaller, the steam made for an unfortunate smoke screen for them.


    Luckily, the small sparks from the sword I could still manage were sometimes enough to beat them.


    I still had to chomp on a ton of life ooze with how much Ether I was using though.


    Finally, after a whole hour of wandering, I found something.


    ¡°Chat¡­ I don¡¯t like this one bit,¡± I said as I eyed the small screen on the side of the lockers.


    I was pretty sure that this wasn¡¯t the same one I¡¯d activated yesterday. I didn¡¯t see any opened lockers around and while my memory for this kind of thing wasn¡¯t the best, the layout around it seemed different.


    But then again, I¡¯d seen the layout change in front of my eyes and I wouldn¡¯t put it past this stupid dungeon to want to try and confuse me.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah I don¡¯t know about this


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you have flameguard now tho


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> round two babyyyyy


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> blooop! ©d(¡££¾£¼)¥·


    I pursed my lips.


    To be fair, I did have better ways of dealing with sentient towels trying to smother me now, but I still didn¡¯t like this.


    Not like I had much of a choice though. It was either activating this thing or continuing to aimlessly wander through the maze. And considering Appraisal outright stated that the bracelet was used to navigate floor two, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if this was the intended route.


    ¡°Right¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°Here goes nothing, chat¡­ God, it¡¯s gonna be super loud again, isn¡¯t it? Ugh¡­¡±


    With great reluctance, I lifted my wrist and let the screen scan it.


    It beeped, a ten appeared on the screen, and I jumped back and cringed in anticipation for what was to come.


    As expected, the entire maze began to shift once more with the horrible creaking and scraping sounds all around me. I grit my teeth, gripped my sword, and did my best not to get crushed while keeping an eye on the little screen, watching it count down.


    Once the movement stopped and the countdown on the screen turned into ¡®Locker 14578 opened.¡¯, I breathed out a sigh of relief. Then I immediately tensed up again and prepared for a fight as I heard a locker popping open behind me.


    I whirled around to see enemies flying out of the locker. But instead of flying towels, they were¡­


    ¡°Hats?!¡±


    Sun hats, bowler hats, top hats, baseball caps¡­ All sorts of hats spinning through the air aiming straight at me.


    I breathed in and shot a Flame bullet before they could get anywhere close. Just as advertised, I could feel the fire bunching up more and moving straight forward rather than spreading out like with normal Fire breath, before a fireball shot into the hats¡¯ midst and took out about a half of them.


    The rest of them converged on my position and I jumped to the side to dodge while channeling fire into my sword and slashing through the space where I predicted they would fly through.


    Several more hats went up in flames, while the rest uselessly bounced off the ground where I¡¯d stood.


    Unfortunately, one of them had come at a weird angle and managed to bounce right into me.


    ¡°Guh!¡± I gasped as it rammed into my stomach, making me hunch over and drop my sword. I immediately slapped it with a burning hand to get it off of me.


    I was about to crouch to retrieve my sword but noticed the rest of the hats already spinning their way at me. With no time to spare, I simply lit up my body and started smacking the hats out of the air as they came.


    In the midst of that, I quickly reached into my backpack, pulled out the shower head, lit it on fire, and began using it instead of my sword.


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    Luckily, enemies made of fabric were much more vulnerable to fire than puddles of water, and the fight didn¡¯t last too much longer after that.


    As the last flaming hat dissipated into mist, I plopped on the ground with a sigh and rubbed my stomach.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you alright?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> bitch slapped


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> damn your getting really good at this


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said wryly. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine¡­ Just a tad winded.¡±


    I retrieved my sword, put it back into its sheath, then gave the shower head a brief look ¨C it didn¡¯t seem damaged at all despite the flames ¨C and put it back into the backpack.


    ¡°I¡¯m smacking sentient flying hats with a flaming shower head. What even is my life, chat?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lol yea


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> spooky locker time


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop (*£þ¨Œ£þ)b


    I grunted as I pulled out the bucket out of my backpack and began recovering.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> well time for a new map


    I winced.


    The stupid maze rearranging itself everytime I found one of those screens really didn¡¯t help, did it? I owed Ebi so much for sticking with me. I would have to pay her back somehow¡­ If I ever found my way back to Earth.


    I shook my head, purging those thoughts.


    No, I would definitely find my way back. No question about that.


    First though, I had to find my way out of this dungeon¡­ And hopefully find more food at some point.


    Feeling refreshed and my stomach no longer hurting from the hat¡¯s charge attack, I got up, put the bucket back into my backpack, and started toward the opened locker.


    ¡°Alright, chat. We learn from our mistakes here. No burning everything inside¡­ Actually, how about no trying to fight with fire at all? If something attacks me inside, I¡¯ll just run.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> but muh free skill points


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good plan


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> the skill points arent worth it ogre


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not risking my life just to get a few more skill points¡­ And there¡¯s no guarantee I¡¯m even going to get anything for doing the same thing again.¡±


    As I got closer to the opened locker, I felt myself tense up and my arms began shaking. I stopped a few steps before I could peek inside the locker and just stared at it for a moment.


    I suddenly really didn¡¯t want to go in. Sure, everything ended well the last time but¡­


    Well.


    Maybe I wasn¡¯t as okay as I thought I was.


    The thought of messing up and getting suffocated by hordes and hordes of enemies again¡­


    A chill went down my back.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gogogo


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> maybe you should rest up first


    ¡°Yeah¡­ You know what? I think you¡¯re right, Mike. I think I¡¯ll just¡­ take a bit of a breather first¡­¡±


    I plopped down on a nearby bench, still eyeing the opened locker door, blocking my view of the inside. As soon as I did, my stomach grumbled and my hand reflexively went up to it.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Except I can¡¯t. I have to keep going or I¡¯ll starve.¡±


    I moaned as I dropped my head into my hands.


    How long could I keep on going? This was already the longest stream I¡¯d ever done and I was nearing my limit. How much longer could I pretend that everything was fine? That I wasn¡¯t stuck in a different body in another world? That I hadn¡¯t nearly died several times in just a couple of days? Could I even ever get back home? What would I even do if I did? What had happened to my original body? Would I discover a corpse? Was I even¡­ me? Or did I just have the memories of that person? Was the phoenix actually my creator rather than a kidnapper? Was the stream chat even real at all? Was I just talking to myself, pretending to chat with people? Was anything real at all? Was it all a dream? What even was the point of keeping on going?


    I belatedly realized that my face was all wet and I was sniffing and shaking.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana please


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> shit we broke her


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s gonna be okay


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­? (???¦ä???)


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> george shut up now


    ¡°I want to go home¡­¡± I whined.


    God, how pathetic was I? To cry and whine on stream like this. Who did that?


    Me, apparently. The biggest loser to have ever been isekai¡¯d. Why was I even whining? Shouldn¡¯t I be excited? Hadn¡¯t I always wanted to go on an epic adventure? To leave the shitty world I lived in behind and go explore new mysterious lands? What was I complaining about now? You couldn¡¯t get more mysterious than this weird dungeon.


    I should just stop being a wuss and get on with it.


    I brought up my shaky arm up to my face and wiped the tears off. A bit of burst of fire from Flameguard and my arm was dry again, albeit probably salty.


    I took a deep breath, exhaled, and repeated this a few times.


    Then I finally stood up and looked at the locker again.


    ¡°Alright, chat¡­ Sorry about that. Let¡¯s keep going.¡±


    They probably weren¡¯t going to let this go, but I sure as heck was going to vehemently ignore what had just happened. Not like talking about it would help anyway. Maybe with a therapist. But I could hardly get a therapist to talk to here.


    Despite some people¡¯s protests ¨C including my own, although I didn¡¯t say that ¨C I walked up to the locker and looked inside.


    I blinked in surprise to see a column of light inside the darkness. Unlike the first time, the exit was immediately obvious.


    ¡°Okay, chat¡­ That looks great, but I don¡¯t trust this. I¡¯m gonna stick to my rules. Only use fire for light.¡±


    With a small nod to myself, I covered my sword¡¯s blade in gentle flames and entered the locker.


    I couldn¡¯t help but tense up as I entered the completely dark and quiet place again. My heartbeat getting faster only made me more nervous¡­ which made my heartbeat get faster. It was a vicious cycle.


    But I trudged on, slowly creeping toward the light while keeping my eyes and ears peeled for any sign of immediate danger.


    It felt like hours, but was probably only a few minutes. Either way, I still didn¡¯t feel like I was making any progress. The exit wasn¡¯t getting any closer. At first, I thought it was my own nerves and wild imagination, but then I remembered the first locker and how it screwed with space.


    I briefly glanced back and saw the entrance. It looked about as far as the exit did. I seemed to be exactly in the middle, which was¡­ a bit of a weird coincidence.


    Feeling anxious about this whole thing now, I began walking back to the entrance. A minute passed, then two, and it wasn¡¯t getting any closer. When I looked to the other side, the exit seemed the same distance as well.


    ¡°Crap¡­¡± I murmured into the dark silence, as I realized what was happening.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> trapped


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh shit


    So far, the space warping nature of this dungeon just made mazes, but now it had led me into a trap I couldn¡¯t escape from. What the hell was I supposed to do now?


    I heard a rustle behind me and whirled around, eyes scanning the darkness.


    Not this shit again!


    My heart began pounding even faster and I couldn¡¯t stop my arms from shaking.


    ¡°Chat, help¡­¡± I whispered, my tone full of urgency.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> LIGHT EM UP<u>


    repeaeaeat:</u> try going in other directions


    I didn¡¯t think about it twice and followed Repeat¡¯s suggestion. It felt counter-intuitive, but instead of going toward either of the lights, I instead fast-walked off to the side.


    More rustling to my left.


    I ignored it and broke into a run. My already tense breaths turned into hyperventilation as more and more rustling resounded all around me.


    I chanced a look to the side when I heard a sound particularly close to me, and to my utter shock, the exit finally looked closer than before now.


    I felt hope bloom inside me and pushed myself to sprint even faster into the darkness while keeping my eyes to the side and seeing the exit get closer and closer.


    I gasped as something brushed against my leg and I instinctively slashed at it with my sword. The blade cut into the floating summer shorts and set them on fire, illuminating my surroundings and revealing hordes of sentient clothing all around me, positioned just out of sight of my fiery sword¡¯s light and none of them between me and either of the exits.


    The shorts tumbled back, bumped into the floating shirt there, setting it on fire as well. That shirt bumped into some socks, the socks into a sunhat¡­


    ¡°NOT AGAIN!¡± I shouted as I used all of my strength to keep running despite seeing all the monsters in front of me. An idea briefly flashed in my mind and I immediately implemented it without thinking about it twice.


    I used Flameguard and spewed out fire from my calves and ankles, boosting me forward even more.


    I flew forward, the exit to my right getting closer and closer, until a certain point, where I felt the space warp around me, the exit freaking swerved from the side and into my path in an incredibly nauseating way, and I flew out of the stupid locker before crashing into the opposite locker row outside.


    I immediately tried to recover and stared inside the locker that was now filled with fire and sentient articles of clothing jumping around in panic, some of them pushing their way toward the entrance after me. I automatically breathed in and covered the entrance in as much fire as I could.


    Once I was reasonably sure nothing would get through without burning to crisp or first flying up high, I ran in a random direction into the maze.

 #025 – Not the weirdest weapon I’ve ever seen, honestly

    I glared at the windows in front of me even as I tried to calm my panting.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Coward¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Poison specialist¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    <u>Coward</u> - Flee from a total of 100 dungeon monsters. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Poison specialist</u> - Defeat a total of 100 dungeon monsters while never engaging in combat with them. [COMPLETE]


    ¡°Poison? That was fire! Get it right, stupid system! And who are you calling a coward?!¡± I shouted.


    I huffed and then more silently grumbled, ¡°Thanks for the points, at least¡­¡±


    The stupid locker had been way too stressful. Not as traumatizing as the first one, luckily, but it still set me on edge.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> assassin nana


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol buggy game


    <u>Irid123:</u> interesting that it thinks you used poison


    I shrugged, trying to relax. ¡°Yeah, I guess the system isn¡¯t perfect. Maybe I¡¯ll even find some exploits in it!¡±


    I giggled, thinking what kind of nonsense I could potentially bring to bear. I would have to look through the higher-tier achievements to see whether I could get one of them way earlier than probably intended.


    My stomach then grumbled, once again reminding me of my dire situation.


    ¡°Ughhh¡­ If I don¡¯t starve to death in the meantime, that is,¡± I growled.


    I had literally only eaten a single fruit since hatching from that egg. Well, that and a copious amount of life ooze, but as much as it energized me, that stuff didn¡¯t satiate at all. Still, it was weird that even though I felt the hunger so intensely now, it didn¡¯t really slow me down at all. I could still jump around and sprint away from hordes of burning dungeon monsters all day without a problem.


    Was that like a video game as well? Would I keep my physical ability until my hunger meter hit zero, I slowly lost all hit points, and then I suddenly dropped dead?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I really hope the next chest has more food


    ¡°You and me both, Ebi¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°Anywho¡­ I have eight skill points again. You guys think I should buy something¡­?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> didn¡¯t you want to get fusion?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> save up for selfdestruct


    ¡°I did want to get Fusion, but Craftsman is on cooldown now¡­ And you shut up, George.¡± I grunted. ¡°Maybe I can upgrade the stream some more¡­?¡±


    Then I heard a swish and whipped my head up to see a towel flying straight toward me. I immediately breathed in and shot a small Flame bullet at it, hitting it straight on and burning a hole through it.


    It fell to the ground and turned into mist a second later.


    I scanned my surroundings for a few seconds before relaxing again.


    ¡°I hope that was the last one¡­¡± I murmured before looking back at chat. ¡°Anyway, what was I saying? Right, upgrades¡­ I could get Extreme temperature now, I guess¡­ Or save up one more point for Mega lungs¡­ or just use the coin and get it immediately.¡±


    I pondered on it for a bit and then had a thought.


    ¡°...Or I could just save up my points and buy an upgrade in a pinch, like I did with Flameguard.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that would be smart


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> like a trump card


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I like it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I was gonna say thats lame


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea you can do a powerup mid battle again lol


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> but you know what i like it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> reveal your ultimate form in a fight


    I raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m flattered that I managed to finally appease you, George. Whatever would I do if you didn¡¯t approve?¡±


    I sighed.


    ¡°Well, anyway¡­ time for more wandering around, I guess¡­¡±


    With that, I set out to wander through the dungeon once more, poking water puddles, and shooting down any stragglers from the locker still trying to get me. Ebi, the dear, once again did her best to map out where I¡¯d gone and everyone else kept me company. I also invited a few more people into the group chat, as per the suggestions of those who were already in.


    I briefly wondered how I would be faring without the stream chat. Would I have gone insane by now? What if the system had generated me a different racial skill?


    Why was it called a racial skill anyway? It implied that streaming was just what humans did. It also implied that there were definitely more humans in this world¡­ and also that some of them were streamers and had this skill just like me. And wasn¡¯t that just weird on so many levels? Where would they be streaming to? I would have thought that if there were more interdimensional streamers, chat would have let me know. Did this world even have an Internet to stream to?


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    I needed to stop getting distracted.


    After a few minutes of more wandering, I ran into another dead end in the maze. Fortunately, this one wasn¡¯t empty.


    <u>D-rank dungeon chest


    </u>A loot chest containing random dungeon loot.


    I nodded to myself with a hum and proceeded to carefully walk closer and poke the chest with my sword for a few minutes before being satisfied.


    At this point, it was less because I was concerned about mimics, and more because it had kind of become a meme in my chat. I couldn¡¯t just ruin the meme now. Gotta poke the chests.


    <u>Irid123:</u> one of these days, it will actually be a mimic


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana¡­¡­


    I gave another satisfied hum as I sheathed my sword.


    ¡°Good news, chat. This chest probably isn¡¯t a mimic,¡± I said in an exaggeratedly relieved tone.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh man what a surprise


    ¡°Well, loot time!¡± I cheered and got to opening the damn thing. ¡°Gimme food, please!¡±


    The chest opened and I scanned the contents. My eyes first landed on the folded piece of fabric and then on the item beside it. My eyes widened and I immediately shot off appraisal.


    <u>Ether bar


    </u>A granola bar made out of ancient oats, dried Miakola fruit, honey, and ancient peanut butter.


    ¡°It¡¯s foooood! Thank you cheeest!¡± I cheered as I grabbed the thing, unwrapped the plastic wrapped reading ¡®Ether bar¡¯ and bit into the thing.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> ask and you shall receive huh


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yay!


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> be careful not to choke again


    <u>Irid123:</u> ancient oats and peanut butter?


    Despite wanting to chow it down like a vacuum cleaner, I made sure to eat slowly and actually savor it this time. It was absolutely delicious. Probably in part because I was so famished.


    I barely even focused on chat as I completely lost myself in the bliss of actually eating food again. I hadn¡¯t had the chance with the fruit yesterday, since I¡¯d devoured it in seconds.


    Once I ate it all, I gave out a contented sigh.


    ¡°Eating food is great, chat. You should all try it sometime. Ten out of ten, would do it again.¡±


    When I looked at chat again, I couldn¡¯t help but scowl.


    <u>Irid123:</u> one food item per floor


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it¡¯s like you¡¯re being conditioned to keep going


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> next food on floor three lol


    ¡°Way to bring down my mood again, chat¡­ Ugh, why is it just a single food item per floor?! If that¡¯s really the case, I¡¯m gonna starve anyway if I don¡¯t hurry up!¡±


    I huffed.


    ¡°Fine! I¡¯m getting to the next floor today, chat! Even if I have to go through more space-bending lockers filled with monsters! I want more food, dammit!¡±


    I didn¡¯t think too much about how I would survive long-term if it really was just a single food item per floor. I just had to hope that chat was wrong about this.


    Was this how people living paycheck to paycheck felt?


    Anywho, I put the empty plastic wrapper into my backpack and then finally looked at the folded piece of fabric again before shooting Appraisal at it.


    <u>Ultradry towel


    </u>A towel that can hold a large amount of liquid before needing to be wrung out.


    ¡°Oh, huh¡­ Okay¡­? Wait, that¡¯s neat. Now I won¡¯t need to dry myself using fire after showering,¡± I mused with an amused grin.


    It almost felt like the dungeon was slowly gearing me up with magical versions of everyday items. A mop, a bucket, a shower head¡­ Actually, they all seemed to have something to do with water. Probably because of the theme of the dungeon. Maybe I could find a restaurant dungeon and get loaded on food there?


    With these idle thoughts, I grabbed the towel and walked to the nearest non-sentient puddle I¡¯d passed on the way to the chest. I dipped the corner of the towel into it and watched in awe as the fabric absorbed the liquid like a sponge. When I lifted it and touched the corner, it was still completely dry.


    I hummed in interest. Obviously, I still thought it was bizarre, but at this point, I had passed the point of being surprised by every little thing.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> what happens if you wring it out?<u>


    Jeofffff:</u> wait can you use it as a weapon against the puddles?


    ¡°Let me try¡­ Oh, that¡¯s actually a good idea, Jeoff. I gotta try that too. It would make things so much easier¡­¡±


    I grabbed the towel in both hands, twisted it, and squeezed it. To my surprise, the water it had absorbed came out with little effort. In fact, I felt like the puddle it then made was the same size as the puddle it had absorbed.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s pretty convenient.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t food, weapon, or armor, but if it worked on the sentient puddles like Jeoff suggested¡­


    ¡°Alright! Let¡¯s see if this works on the puddles!¡±


    I set out once more, leaving the empty chest behind. It didn¡¯t take long for me to run into another sentient puddle. The moment it began moving when I poked it with my sword, I lashed out with the towel and smacked it.


    The puddle stopped moving as soon as it hit. When I lifted the towel, I saw a big dry spot in the middle of it. Kind of like a grievous chest wound¡­ but for a sentient puddle.


    I waited for a second to see whether it would recover, still on guard, but then the remains poofed into mist.


    ¡°...Well, what do you know! It worked!¡± I grinned. ¡°Awesome! It¡¯s the perfect counter for these little buggers!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> the scariest weapon of them all


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> feels like cheating


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> a towel


    <u>Irid123:</u> is it really dead or did you just capture it?


    I shrugged nonchalantly.


    ¡°This game is unfair and wants to kill me, George. I¡¯ll cheat all day long if I have to! Heck, maybe I¡¯ll even get achievements for cheating!¡± I giggled. ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t know Irid. It turned into mist, so it¡¯s probably dead¡­?¡±


    I eyed the towel suspiciously.


    It would have only absorbed the water and not the thing¡¯s¡­ consciousness or whatever, right?


    Regardless, I still thought it would be smart to check right now, rather than forget about it and then get attacked by a sentient puddle later when I wanted to wring this thing out again.


    So I grabbed it once more, twisted it, and got ready to cover myself with fire in the worst case scenario.


    Luckily, only inanimate water came out of the towel. No death puddles.


    ¡°...Nope! It¡¯s fine.¡± I nodded to myself. ¡°I think it¡¯s because the towel can only hold liquids, like the bucket. So even if it did somehow snag the¡­ whatever makes them sentient, it wouldn¡¯t absorb it,¡± I reasoned cheerily.


    This was great! It would make the rest of this floor a breeze. Unless another type of monster appeared, at least¡­ Or until I got to the boss. If the first floor¡¯s boss had been so different from the rest of the floor, I didn¡¯t think the second boss would be something like a giant puddle or such.


    But a girl could hope.


    With my newest unconventional weapon in hand, I set off into the dungeon once more.


    It didn¡¯t take long before I found the third small screen on the side of the lockers.

 #026 – Third time’s the charm

    I groaned.


    ¡°Not this again¡­¡± I grumbled as I stared at the little screen sourly. ¡°Do I have to, chat? Is it even a good idea to activate these? What if I¡¯ve already blocked myself from the boss room because I activated the others?¡± I tried to bargain with myself.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you probably need to activate all of them to find the boss room


    <u>Irid123:</u> the bracelet is supposed to be the key to navigating the place though


    Ugh¡­ Stupid reasonable comments¡­


    ¡°It could be a ruse! You know how much this stupid dungeon has been screwing with me!¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> but it never lied to you


    I sighed.


    ¡°Okay, fine¡­ I¡¯m gonna activate it¡­ Just¡­ Let me sit down for a minute.¡±


    I plopped down on a nearby bench and eyed the stupid little screen, getting my thoughts in order, and trying to figure out what to do to prevent aggroing the entire dark room full of monsters again. The first time had been a nightmare and the second time I¡¯d managed to escape, but ideally, I wouldn¡¯t set the whole damn place on fire in the first place.


    But then again. Both times, I got a lot of skill points from all the achievements. Although¡­ I could only get the same achievement once, so doing the same thing over and over wouldn¡¯t help very much.


    ¡­Wait. Was that on purpose? To prevent people from grinding skill points? To force them to do all sorts of things if they wanted to get stronger? Was that why the monsters didn¡¯t respawn? Could you only clear each dungeon once?


    I frowned.


    No, but¡­ There were the divine coins. You could literally just buy skill points, in theory. Rich people could ignore the achievements and dungeons altogether and just buy coins off others and hoard them.


    Was this entire freaking system pay-to-win? Seriously?


    But I couldn¡¯t even access my bank account here! Stupid pay-to-win game wouldn¡¯t even let me give it money!


    I shook my head.


    Maybe I was jumping to conclusions. There were also the quests, after all. Although, they gave a lot less than the achievements¡­ Whatever. Something to think about later, maybe.


    ¡°...Anyway. The first locker made me go around the entrance and the second locker made me go sideways to reach the exit. What do you think the third one is gonna be about?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> maybe it will just be nrmal lol


    I scowled.


    ¡°Yeah, the best way to screw with me would be to make me assume there was another trick to it, but have it actually just be linear. Ugh¡­ Stupid dungeon¡­ ¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it might not even open another locker at all


    ¡°Also a good point¡­ I guess there¡¯s only one way to find out, huh¡­?¡±


    A brief moment of silent scowling later, I got up again and gingerly approached the little screen. I raised my wrist, let it scan the bracelet, and got ready to endure the infernal noise again.


    The dungeon didn¡¯t disappoint. The countdown started anew and the maze began rearranging itself and I did my best to grit my teeth and endure it while shuffling around to avoid getting crushed.


    Once the countdown was done, I huffed out a short sigh of relief and then drew my sword and got ready to fight off whatever might fly at me this time.


    I heard a pop of a locker opening to the side and whirled around to face the monster wave.


    What flew out of the lockers was something that I felt like I should have already encountered a long time ago considering the theme of this dungeon.


    ¡°Swimsuits?!¡±


    Bikinis, one-piece swimsuits, men¡¯s swimsuits, and so on.


    This felt even weirder than fighting flying towels or hats.


    Nonetheless, I breathed in and began sniping them from afar with Flame bullets. Surprisingly, these freaking swimsuits were more agile and flexible than expected and a lot of them managed to dodge my shots. It definitely had nothing to do with me still getting used to using the sub skill and my aim being off.


    I backed up as the survivors closed in on me, spat out regular Fire Breath in front of me to intercept them and ignited my sword to swipe at those who would get through. Luckily, most got stopped by the wall of fire and only a few made it into slashing range.


    Those that did, fell fairly easily to my flaming sword, and when everything was over and they all turned into mist, I just stood there for a moment with a suspicious frown on my face.


    ¡°...Chat, I¡¯m either getting better at this, or this was much easier than before.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good job Nana!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> noice


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you are definitely getting better


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you move more confidently and naturally


    A small smile tugged on my lips.


    ¡°Aww, thanks, Sun. That means a lot, coming from a real sword master.¡±


    Now, I had no way of checking whether they really were one, but I liked to believe it. It made me feel cooler to be praised by them.


    ¡°Well, time to check out the third locker, then¡­¡±


    I gingerly approached the open locker, already thinking of the ways it could mess with my perception of space like the other two had, while looking around and making sure nothing was trying to sneak up on me.


    That was when I noticed the passageway opposite of the locker and stopped, staring at it.


    At the end of the short hallway, there was a door. A familiar one. It looked exactly like the door I¡¯d used to enter floor two yesterday.


    <u>Irid123:</u> secret exit?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh hey you can leave now lol


    I glanced between the locker and the exit a few times, before deciding to investigate this first. The locker could wait a bit. I wasn¡¯t in a rush to dive back into one of those creepy places anyway.


    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    I approached the suspicious door, poked it with my sword for good measure ¨C to the exasperation of many in the chat ¨C and then reached up and opened it.


    A familiar sight greeted me. A wide room with tiled floor and an oversized desk. It was the boss room of floor one. I¡¯d finally found my way back.


    ¡°...Huh. I guess I can go back now, chat,¡± I mused. ¡°But no, I wanted to get to the end of floor two first! If the dungeon is giving me a free way out, I¡¯ve got to be close, right?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> a shortcut to the boss yeah


    <u>Irid123:</u> don¡¯t leave!


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s a trick


    <u>Irid123:</u> if you leave everything will reset


    I grimaced.


    ¡°I hope not¡­ Well, like I said, I¡¯m not leaving now. Time for the third locker. Let¡¯s see what nonsense it has to offer!¡±


    I turned back and strode toward the open locker, trying to hype myself up and vehemently ignoring the apprehension and residual fear I had of these things.


    I couldn''t see the exit in the darkness like I could in the second one, but now I had a better idea of what to expect, so I felt a bit more confident. I could still hear my heartbeat getting faster as I approached it, though.


    Regardless, I entered the damn locker and found myself in dead silent darkness once more.


    I breathed in and out to try and calm myself. It didn¡¯t help a whole lot.


    ¡°Here we go, chat. Round three.¡±


    I lit my sword on fire to act as my flashlight once more. This time, I kept repeating to myself that I needed to put the fire out before smacking it into anything flammable. I did not want a great locker pyre number three.


    I could learn from my mistakes, okay?


    I walked further inside whilst looking around the darkness, failing to spot anything of interest. I did my best to keep my breathing even despite the inherent creepiness of hearing my own breaths, heartbeat, steps, and literally nothing else.


    A few minutes in, as I kept checking all around me and behind me to make sure the entrance wouldn¡¯t suddenly disappear, and I finally had the thought to look up.


    I blinked and couldn¡¯t help but stop and stare.


    The column of light from the entrance apparently stretched all the way over my head and into the distance behind me, rather than just linearly upwards.


    I stared for a moment and then hummed to myself.


    ¡°The fabric of space is screwed up here. As expected,¡± I muttered, pretending to be super calm. Then I continued walking.


    I kept my eyes up as I walked and saw as the column of light kept stretching over the horizon like something made out of rubber. It looked absolutely fascinating, but also weird as all heck.


    I chanced a look behind me and saw that the entrance was not only very far away now ¨C too far away to clearly see the other lockers outside ¨C but its bottom had also lifted off the ground as it stretched, as if dragged upwards by the stretching.


    I stopped for a moment and stared again¡­ before shrugging and continuing once more while keeping an eye on the whole thing. As I already half-expected, the entire column of light kept rising higher and higher, while the top kept curling above and over me toward where I was walking.


    The whole entrance eventually ¡®landed¡¯ in front of me while the rest of it gradually straightened out and finished its transition from being behind me to being in front of me. From then on, walking forward made me come closer to it as per normal physics.


    The whole thing was so fascinatingly bizarre that I¡¯d forgotten to be all nervous and afraid for a moment. The fact that I¡¯d walked all the way to the thing without being disturbed by any skittering clothes noises whatsoever probably helped.


    I stopped at the mirror entrance; I peeked outside and I saw exactly what I was expecting. The door to floor one at the end of the little hallway opposite of the locker¡¯s entrance, and the rest of the locker maze in exactly the same layout as I¡¯d left it.


    I hummed.


    ¡°So I walked in a straight line, but still somehow went in a circle. Of course, of course. How silly of me to expect otherwise,¡± I said in a very casual way to mask my nervousness that was beginning to creep back.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> this makes no sense


    ¡°Well, yes. Nothing here makes sense. I thought we already established that,¡± I agreed blithely.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no I mean


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> aren¡¯t you technically at the top of the locker now?


    I blinked and took a step back into the darkness before looking at the column of light from the entrance up and down.


    Logically speaking, with the way it had moved, I would have arrived at the top of it and upside down, but instead, I was at the base again.


    ¡°...You¡¯re right. I guess it must have somehow flipped as well when I wasn¡¯t paying attention, huh¡­?¡±


    Now I was curious. Could I go back and try to spot the moment it flipped? Was that the key to finding the exit?


    It was worth a shot.


    But first¡­


    I stepped to the side and tried going behind the entrance like the first locker. Just in case. It wouldn¡¯t do for me to go on another wild goose chase and look like a total fool again.


    Unfortunately, I ran into a wall.


    ¡°Ow!¡±


    I backed up a step and reached out with my hand to feel the metal walls of this thing that I couldn¡¯t even see in the darkness.


    ¡°Well, I guess a good dungeon wouldn¡¯t reuse the same tricks¡­ Props to the designers¡­? Anyway! Let¡¯s try this again and maybe I can spot the moment it shifts.¡±


    And so I began walking once more, keeping a keen eye on the entrance and squashing my nervousness as much as I could. The further away I got, the harder it became to see stuff outside of the locker besides the light streaming in, but I still did my best.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> heat vision with zoom would be great here


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Too bad I don¡¯t have that¡­¡± I said into the silent darkness and my voice echoed around me. It made me shut up once more.


    About halfway into my trip, when the column of light from the entrance stretched right above me, I noticed the tiniest change in the way it looked. I slowed down and narrowed my eyes to try and see it better.


    From one stop to the next, I saw it. It was incredibly hard to see, but the view flickered for a moment and then the entire thing flipped over.


    I let out a tiny gasp of surprise and stopped. Then I took a step back and saw it flicker once more and flip right side up again.


    I tried taking smaller steps, adjusting my exact position, in hopes of seeing what that flicker was about. I tried craning my head and torso back and forth, but nothing changed. It seemed to be dependent on my feet, for some reason.


    It was quite annoying and I had to fiddle with my feet, shuffling them by a few centimeters at some point, but eventually, I managed to stop exactly between where the two mirror entrances changed and in the middle of the ¡®flicker¡¯.


    I narrowed my eyes, trying to see what it was about, but couldn¡¯t see much more than a hazy fog coming from the entrance.


    No. Not the entrance. The exit, probably.


    ¡°I think I found the exit,¡± I murmured. ¡°How do I get all the way up, though¡­?¡±


    Then I heard shuffling of clothes behind me and stiffened.


    I had really hoped there wouldn¡¯t be any more of that¡­


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> jump!


    <u>Irid123:</u> try going to the side again?


    Without a word, I turned to the left and began walking.


    Contrary to what I expected, the column of light changed back to the entrance view and then it began rotating.


    ¡°Uh¡­ No. That just made me lose sight of it,¡± I whispered as something dragged itself over the metallic floor to my right.


    My heart began beating faster again but I vehemently ignored it and went back a few steps to find the foggy view again. A minute of shuffling my legs later and I found it once more.


    I heard cloth hit the ground right in front of me and flinched, but kept on ignoring it.


    ¡°W-What to do, what to do¡­?¡± I asked with a trembling voice, failing to sound calm and unperturbed.


    Something brushed by my arm and I fought not to scream and burn the offender to ashes.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> juuuump!


    Not having any better ideas, I bent my knees ¨C fuck something curled around my ankle! ¨C and jumped in place.


    I had no idea what I expected, but being launched toward the exit at terminal velocity was not it.


    ¡°Whoaaaaaaaaaaaa?!¡± I screamed from the top of my lungs as I hurled through the air, barely managing to keep grip on my sword.


    Wind whipped by me as I brushed past hundreds of articles of clothing, making me shudder every time. The column of light kept getting closer and closer, bigger and bigger in my field of view, until I finally flew out of the thing straight into a foggy, damp, and hot room.


    I had about three seconds to be shocked by this sudden change in scenery before gravity decided to come back from vacation and I began falling right back into the locker again.


    I gasped in horror and looked below myself, seeing a locker toppled on the ground with various articles of clothing skittering in the darkness inside it.


    And now I was falling right back inside.


    It took me a full second of falling to think of my next move.


    I breathed in and spat fire to the side at the ground while spewing more fire from my limbs using Flameguard and hoped the knockback from it all would be enough to steer me away from falling back inside.


    It was.


    Unfortunately, it also meant that I landed on the ground elbow first.


    I gasped while stifling a scream of pain as it made a horrible crack sound and my eyes began to tear up. My sword dropped from my shaky hand and clattered on the floor.


    I let out a few gasped breaths before I jerkily reached into my backpack and began to grab the potion to alleviate the painpainpain.


    That was when the door to this room opened ¨C I hadn¡¯t even registered there was a door behind all the fog ¨C revealing a giant figure about three storeys tall clad in several layers of clothing.


    Then the figure spotted me and started toward me.

 #027 – Why do people even use saunas?

    I yelped and rushed to stand up to avoid the giant¡¯s charge even as my good hand fished out the potion from my backpack.


    I jumped to the side, ignoring the pain in my side from the landing, and used my teeth to pry off the vial¡¯s cork. Then I shoved the vial into my mouth and bit down on the opening to keep it in place.


    I had no time to wait for the stupid thing to drip down again, so I simply extended my tongue inside it and licked the ooze.


    But the stuff was so much like jelly that barely any of it transferred to my tongue. That, surprisingly, was a good thing, since I still immediately felt more energized but now without getting overwhelmed.


    Was this how you were supposed to get small enough doses of it?


    I didn¡¯t have time to dwell on it much, because the titanic monstrosity reached the spot where I¡¯d been just a moment ago and slammed its hand covered in thick gloves at the ground, causing the surroundings to shake.


    I yelped into the vial and my first instinct was to spit fire at the titan, but I obviously couldn¡¯t do that at the moment. I¡¯d also left my sword behind in my rush to dodge.


    This was bad.


    But somehow, even though my mind was racing to figure out a way to deal with this and my elbow hurt like hell, I remained relatively calm as I analyzed the situation.


    I was at a major disadvantage here. I needed to wait for the potion to heal my arm and I needed to retrieve my sword.


    I needed to stall, then.


    The titan turned as it recovered from its ground punch and then charged at me once more.


    I did a very quick scan of my surroundings, idly noting the giant wooden seats, wooden floor, and wooden walls on all sides, and ran out into the open while cradling my bad arm. The monstrosity followed.


    Part of me expected it to start growling or roaring, but just like all the smaller zombies, it made no sounds at all save for its loud stomps.


    I didn¡¯t look behind me as it chased, but the moment its stomping pattern changed, I hurled myself to the side, just in time to avoid being splattered by its open hand like a mosquito.


    By now, the pain in my side had become more or less manageable and I could somewhat move my right arm again without gasping in pain.


    I briefly let go of my bad arm, took out the potion from my mouth, breathed in, and shot a maximum-power Flame Bullet at the thing¡¯s center of mass before jamming the potion back like a damn pacifier.


    The titan, to my surprise, jerked its upper body backwards and completely avoided my attack, but then quickly lost its balance and fell on its behind.


    I barely hesitated and used the opening to run around and back to where I¡¯d left my sword. By the time I reached it, my right arm was good enough to hold the weapon again, although I wasn¡¯t sure whether I should be swinging it around already.


    After re-arming myself, I quickly took stock of the situation, noticing that the titan had recovered in the meantime as well. I belatedly realized that this had to be the boss of floor two. And if that was true, it probably wouldn¡¯t be a pushover despite its appearance. The twin coin bosses from floor one were a serious challenge compared to the rest of floor one, after all.


    As if to prove me correct, the titan did something other than blindly charge at me. It raised its hand and then did a vague tossing motion, making its glove come off and fly at me. The glove began moving on its own in mid-air and opened its fingers into a grabbing position.


    It flew through the air way faster than the titan charged so I had no chance of dodging it. Instead, I ignited my sword on fire and hurriedly made a downward slash. My arm screamed at me for the abuse since it hadn¡¯t fully recovered yet and I nearly dropped it again.


    Worse still, I¡¯d completely whiffed my attack, slashing through empty air a split second before the glove barreled into me, aggravating my arm again and causing me to scream into the vial. I bit down even harder to prevent it from falling from my lips.


    The giant leather glove quickly wrapped around my lower body, preventing me from running. I immediately ignited my whole body with Flameguard to counter it.


    The glove went up in flames along with me, but still hindered my movement enough so that I couldn¡¯t immediately run from the titan that had already restarted its charge.


    Worse still, Fire Breath was still on cooldown so I couldn¡¯t use it to slow the titan down.


    Thinking quickly, I reached into my backpack, found the wallet, reached into that, and pulled out a single copper coin. I poured as much Ether as I could into igniting the coin using Flameguard¡¯s Channel Fire and then hurled it in the titan¡¯s direction while continuing to struggle to free myself.


    The coin nailed it in the shoulder despite its attempt to sidestep it and proceeded to ignite the cloak it wore.


    I felt the pain in my elbow gradually vanish and remembered that¡­ Oh yeah. A healing tank using fire and the blessing was the whole point of my build, wasn¡¯t it?


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    With my right arm functional again, I tore through the glove with my sword and finally freed myself before running around the room to get some distance from my opponent.


    Then I realized that my vision was getting blurry. My eyes were tearing up, I was breathing heavily, and now that I wasn¡¯t using Flameguard, I felt way too hot. The room had already been very hot when I¡¯d first entered it, but my fireball ¨C which had set the wall on fire ¨C and copious usage of Flameguard slowly turned it into a sauna.


    Wait. No. This room was a sauna, wasn¡¯t it?


    I felt stupid for realizing that so late, but I had no time to dwell on that as the titan shed layers of the burning clothing off itself, which proceeded to skitter on the ground toward me like cockroaches.


    I ignited my sword and slashed in an arc while backing up. I hit a few of them, but the rest quickly surrounded me and began jumping on me, forcing me to ignite my whole body once again to avoid getting smothered.


    They all went up in flames and I successfully dodged another one of the titan¡¯s hand smacks. Unfortunately, the moment I turned off Flameguard, the chokingly hot surroundings hit me like a hammer. My vision spun and I felt lightheaded for a brief moment before I instinctively turned Flameguard back on.


    Fuck.


    Who would have thought a purely fire-based build would have such a weakness? This was so unlucky!


    Regardless of my inner protests, I needed to keep Flameguard up at all times unless I fancied getting a stroke. But the longer I kept myself on fire, the worse it would get. Not to mention the constant drain on my Ether because of it.


    I was on a time limit now. I needed to finish this fight as soon as I could.


    The titan unrolled a muffler around its neck, threw it at the ground, and the thing proceeded to slither my way like an anaconda.


    Why was this thing wearing a freaking muffler in a sauna anyway?!


    I easily took care of it with a swing of my sword and a burst of fire.


    The clothes minions weren¡¯t too hard to deal with, but I was yet to deal any significant damage to the boss itself. It was surprisingly agile and the layers of clothing served as protection. I would need to burn through all of that if I wanted to have a chance at dealing any damage to it.


    I only really had a few options. All of them sucked, but I had to do something.


    So, against my better judgment, I slashed at the floating hand warmer, dodged another strike from the boss, and then beelined straight for the toppled locker again.


    How ironic that after trying so hard to not ignite the whole dark room again, I was about to do just that.


    I didn¡¯t hesitate as I jumped straight into the locker into the hordes of skittering clothes inside, and since I still maintained Flameguard over my whole body for the resistance, everything around me went up in flames.


    Then I took the vial out of my lips with my free hand, breathed in, and mentally prepared myself to use Fire Breath to slow down my fall like a rocket trying to land.


    But to my surprise, I barely fell two meters before my feet hit the ground. It was so unexpected that I stumbled and fell on my butt. I immediately scrambled to get on my feet again and glanced up to see the entrance to the boss room far away, just like I¡¯d seen it before jumping into it.


    Weird physics. Right.


    Then the race was on. I shoved the vial into my mouth again to keep refueling my Ether for Flameguard and dashed forward through the burning hordes of clothing, slashing and scorching my way through to the entrance again. A few seconds later, I heard a loud crash behind me and whipped my head around.


    I spotted the titan, slowly rising from a crouch, as the burning monsters all around us illuminated the bottom of its featureless face. It had shed all of its clothing at some point, apparently. I didn¡¯t care to gawk much, but the rest of its body was similarly featureless, save for very distinct black wavy hair.


    A beat later, the damn thing rushed at me, faster than before.


    At this point, I didn¡¯t have a snowball¡¯s chance in hell to both keep dodging the boss while also having to deal with the flaming hordes of monsters all around me for much longer, much less actually beating the boss and surviving this crap.


    I needed to end this. Now.


    I forcefully sucked on the bottle on my lips, making all the ooze fly into my throat. I nearly choked on it, but the stuff quickly dissolved and filled me with a crazy amount of energy. I wasted no time in ripping the bottle out of my mouth, pouring as much of the Ether I¡¯d just gotten into igniting the damn bottle with Channel Fire, and then hurling it at the titan just as it got close enough to try and swipe at me again.


    The freaking bottle exploded as soon as it left my hand, engulfing me, and probably a good portion of the room in white hot flames. Even with Flameguard still on, Phoenix Blessing healing me, and the residual regenerative effects of the ooze, I felt the searing heat cut into me as the blast launched me across the room.


    I bounced with a grunt and rolled on the ground for a moment before stopping motionless. I couldn¡¯t see anything but pure whiteness, couldn¡¯t hear anything but loud ringing, and my entire being hurt. The tiniest twitch of my fingers sent me into a spiral of agony and even though I feared being ganged up on and smothered by the monsters again, I stayed put.


    It took a good few minutes to blink the white out of my eyes and for my ears to stop ringing. Thankfully, gobbling up the entire rest of the potion must have helped. I still didn¡¯t quite understand how it worked, but I could only assume that my body used the excess Ether to heal me up. Truth be told, I probably would have died without the regeneration effect, but¡­ I didn¡¯t want to think about that too much.


    When my vision finally cleared, I saw nothing but darkness. A moment later, my hearing returned as well and I realized that the only sounds I could hear were my own strained panting and heartbeats.


    The boss and all the monsters in the darkness were gone. Either the blast or the residual fire must have killed them all.


    It took me a good while before I could do more than twitch my fingers without hurting all over. I slowly, carefully, turned to lie on my back and then used my shaky arms to help myself sit up.


    I sat there for a little while, staring into the complete darkness and listening to my own shuddering breaths.


    Part of me still felt like something was going to jump out of the darkness and attack me again, but after so long of nothing happening, I finally managed to relax and look over to where chat was completely freaking out once again.


    I wanted to cry, complain about the stupid dungeon countering my fire build, murmur about nearly dying again and the pain of nearly blowing myself up and burning myself alive.


    Instead, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and put on the calmest voice I could manage.


    ¡°...So, anyway, chat. Did you know that Flameguard and Channel Fire don''t have a cap on how much Ether you can put into them like Fire Breath¡­? Now, you would think that¡¯s an advantage¡­ but, you see, Flameguard only protects against itself and not against any explosions caused by overloading objects with Channel Fire.¡±


    The reply to my overly calm post-battle analysis was a single system window popping up in front of me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Oops, sorry. Were you important?¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +8 Skill points

 #028 – There’s a joke about finally touching grass again somewhere in there

    <u>Oops, sorry. Were you important?</u> - Kill a dungeon boss from full health with a single attack. [COMPLETE]


    Cool. I guess the coin toss hadn¡¯t done any damage at all.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> why do you keep nearly dying


    <u>Irid123:</u> and it should have blown up much sooner if it was that hot


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> what did you even throw before?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I think it didn¡¯t explode sooner because it was still in her hands


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the skill kept it from exploding


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re fine, right?


    I took another slow breath before replying.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m fine¡­ Just another brush with death. How many times was this now? Four? Five? I¡¯m losing count,¡± I said nonchalantly, while doing my best to keep the trembling out of my voice. ¡°I threw the bottle, Jeoff¡­ Oh, you mean before that? Just a copper coin¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe you should take a break from the dungeon Nana¡­


    ¡°Hahaaa¡­ That would be great¡­ Unfortunately, I¡¯m still slowly starving to death here,¡± I replied, my tone turning just a wee bit manic at the end. The echoes in the empty dark room made it sound extra creepy.


    Had I already snapped? Had all this violence and near-death experience broken me? How did all those action story protagonists keep their sanity while constantly battling with dangerous monsters?


    I was just a Vcuber! Not a brave warrior of legends or whatever! What was I even doing here? Battling my way through a confusing mess of a dungeon filled with weird monsters just for a chance of getting some food drops? I could have kept searching for something edible outside instead.


    Heck. I could still do that. The exit was right around the corner. I could leave this place and go search for food the normal way instead of risking my life in this place. Sure, I¡¯d already progressed through it a decent amount, but it wasn¡¯t as if the dungeon would reset. It hasn¡¯t so far.


    ¡­But maybe it would. Was there an invisible time limit? Would the dungeon reset if I left for too long? Would it reset if I didn¡¯t leave and just took too long to clear it?


    I stopped, took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled.


    Maybe I should stop spiraling into a panic attack and do something more productive. Like finding out whether the boss had left some loot behind. If it was anything like the two giant coins, there would be a chest somewhere around here¡­


    I dragged myself to my feet, lit my palm on fire, and looked around the place. The first thing I spotted was my trusty sword laying on the ground. I must have dropped it during the explosion.


    With my sword back in the sheath ¨C how had neither gotten damaged in the explosion? ¨C I began wandering around the darkness, trying to find anything of interest. It didn¡¯t take me long to find a big chest with a golden skull on it.


    ¡°Look, chat¡­! Loot¡­!¡± I said with obviously forced excitement in my tone.


    As per usual, I made sure to poke the chest from all sides with my sword. Once I felt like it was enough, I stepped closer, and began fiddling with the stupid lid. It didn¡¯t take me as long to open as the other boss chest.


    Once the lid slid open, revealing a soft glow and three items, I peered inside and began Appraising each object, starting with the sword-sized golden key-looking thing taking up most of the chest¡¯s space.


    <u>Golden gate key


    </u>A key used to unlock the gate leading to Floor 3 of this dungeon.


    [INNATE] skill: Quick Fetch - Use a small amount of Tempor to teleport this item back into your hand from anywhere.


    This object is a Key item.


    Oh. It was a key for that gate back in floor one, wasn¡¯t it? I had expected to get this at some point. But I hadn¡¯t expected it to be an actual useful item as well. It looked more like a sword mixed with a saw than a key. The hilt resembled one from a rapier, and the sharp teeth along its blade were like that of a saw.


    Moreover, it had an innate skill!


    I reached inside the chest and grabbed the ¡®key¡¯. Just like all other equipment I¡¯d gotten in a dungeon, it fit my hand perfectly and as soon as I had a grip on it, I felt a new mental switch worm itself into my mind. That was¡­ kind of uncomfortable. It wasn¡¯t the same as a normal skill. It felt¡­ tacked on, rather than something that was a part of me.


    On a whim, I checked my status.


    Name: Nana Aoto


    Title: Fire blessed


    Race: Human


    Skill Points: 16


    <u>Racial skill</u>:<u>


    </u>Streamer


    <u>Innate skills:</u>


    Quick Fetch (Golden gate key)


    <u>Other skills(3/3)</u>:


    Phoenix Blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Flameguard


    Fire Breath


    Appraisal


    Huh. It was even listed in my status, strangely enough. What would happen if I dropped the thing?


    As a test, I pulled my hand back and tossed the key like a javelin into the distance. It clattered to the floor uselessly, as expected.


    I checked my status again and the skill was still there. Actually, it made sense that it was. The skill itself would be useless if you couldn¡¯t use it without touching the key, after all.


    I prodded the mental switch and suddenly, the space around the key and my hand warped and I was holding it again.


    I blinked in surprise.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    That had felt¡­ weirdly anti-climactic. With other skills like Fire Breath and even Heat Vision, I could physically feel them doing¡­ something. But with this, it just kind of happened. Like pressing a button in a video game and my character casting a spell. I hadn¡¯t even realized how visceral using normal skills had felt. But now that I could compare them to this¡­


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s cool¡­ I guess I can use this as a second weapon?¡± I mused. ¡°Yeah, I can dual wield now, chat!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yoooo awesome


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> or you can use it as a ranged weapon


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> since you can just teleport it back


    Just to try it out, I pulled out my sword with my left hand and made a pose.


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡±


    Then I tried swapping the two, holding the key in my left hand and the Ether Volt in my right hand.


    ¡°Yeah I think this is better.¡± I nodded to myself. ¡°I wonder if I can do this¡­¡±


    I reached back, flipped the key over, and slid it into the open backpack on my back, storing it away inside. Then I held out my hand and prodded the mental switch again and the key appeared in my grip once more.


    ¡°Awesome! This is gonna be so useful!¡± I cheered, finally getting back into a good mood.


    I put the key into my backpack again, looked back into the chest, and appraised the second item, which looked like a sports drink.


    <u>Bottle of Tempor juice


    </u>A bottle of nutritious Miakola juice infused with Tempor.


    ¡°Oh¡­ Oh, wait! It¡¯s¡­ well, not food. But a drink! I didn¡¯t even notice!¡±


    I grinned, my cheer back in full force, opened the bottle, and took a sip. The sweet drink tugged my lips into a smile as I let out a satisfied noise.


    ¡°This is great, chat! Totally worth blowing myself up!¡± I declared, inwardly shuddering at the memory despite my words.


    I continued sipping my new favorite ¨C and only ¨C drink and appraised the final item. A blue glove with white lines running from each finger to the palm, where they all joined into a white circle.


    <u>Bubble glove</u>


    A glove made from Ether-reactive material, allowing the user to channel Ether through it and create Ether-reinforced bubbles.


    ¡°...Bubbles?¡± I idly murmured and grabbed the thing to inspect it.


    ¡°I wonder why the key has an innate skill but this doesn¡¯t if it can do stuff¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> your sword doesn¡¯t either


    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±


    Finally, I decided to put the glove on and test it out. It fit me perfectly like¡­ well, like a glove. I stretched my fingers, waved it around, pointed it at the chest, all while trying to channel Ether into it to make bubbles.


    Just like with my sword, I failed.


    ¡°Ughhh¡­ Come on¡­¡±


    I really needed to swap Craftsman back in¡­ or learn how to channel my Ether without it. Actually, I could do both. Swap it back in, and then try to use it to learn how to channel Ether without it by observing how it worked. Like copying off of someone else¡¯s test sheet.


    ¡°Well, whatever. I¡¯m happy with my loot. The glove will probably be useful once I learn how to actually use it.¡±


    I stepped back and the chest shimmered and disappeared, briefly leaving me in darkness before I lit a finger on fire again.


    ¡°Time to get out of here¡­ finally. God, I feel like I¡¯ve been in this stupid locker maze for ages¡­¡± I muttered with a tired sigh and proceeded to walk in a random direction.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> are there any gold chests?


    ¡°Umm, no? I don¡¯t think so¡­?¡± I double-checked and looked around once more before giving up. The last secret golden chest had given off light and I couldn¡¯t see anything glowing anyway. ¡°I guess I didn¡¯t do anything overly stupid this time¡­ Hah¡­¡±


    Or maybe I needed to do something uniquely stupid to get another secret chest, rather than repeating the same stupidity over and over.


    ¡°Speaking of¡­ I didn¡¯t even check the second locker¡­ Why didn¡¯t you tell me, chat¡­? Eh. Can¡¯t go back there anyway¡­¡±


    With that, I finally left. A few minutes of walking later, the locker¡¯s entrance eventually aligned with where I was going and ¡®landed¡¯ in front of me and I was free from the darkness again..


    I walked straight ahead to the door leading out of floor 2, opened it, and made my way back through the short winding hallways of floor 1 before finding myself back in the main corridor that had the golden gate at the end.


    I glanced at it with a frown, then I glanced in the opposite direction and saw darkness at the end of the corridor. Then I remembered that I had a literal magical wristwatch and checked the bracelet. It read 20:16.


    ¡°It¡¯s actually getting kind of late, isn¡¯t it¡­?¡± I murmured. ¡°Well, not that late by my standards, but I don¡¯t think I should go to the next floor yet. Last time I did that, I got stuck inside and had to sleep there¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah go to sleep Nana


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> mysterious gate can wait


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> spend your skill points


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> awww


    <u>GonguuH:</u> understandable


    ¡°Oh, yeah¡­ I have sixteen skill points again¡­ Hmm¡­ Why do I always get a truckton of skill points after nearly dying? Are these pity points? Sure feels like it,¡± I rambled even as I opened the various skill windows and browsed through what upgrades I could possibly get. As I did that, I calmly walked out of the dungeon.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I could get both Extreme Temperature and Mega Lungs if I wanted to¡­ That would cost me fourteen points and leave me with two¡­ But I think putting more points into fire is a mistake,¡± I mused with a grimace as I remembered the sauna again.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you could max your stream


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> and unlock tier2


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m all for upgrading the stream


    ¡°Tier two¡­? Oh, yeah! That¡¯s right! I totally forgot about that¡­¡± I murmured as I stepped over the boundary and found myself in the forest outside of the dungeon again. ¡°If I get all the upgrades for Streamer, it will unlock the next tier of skills¡­ Huh¡­ But is that really a good idea to do right away? It would cost me¡­ nine points to get the rest of the Streamer upgrades¡­ Then I would have seven left over¡­ That could be enough to buy some tier two skills, right¡­? Maybe¡­? I don¡¯t really know how much they cost, though¡­¡±


    I idly dropped my backpack and sat down on the grass as I mumbled to myself and consulted with chat.


    ¡°Or I could get Inspiration for Appraisal, swap Craftsman back in tomorrow, get Fusion, and then try to make stuff¡­ Ugh, but what would I swap out? I need both Fire Breath and Flameguard¡­¡±


    I was really starting to feel the limits of having only three skill slots and having to wait a full day before swapping a skill in again¡­ And it would probably only get worse. Were there any ways of getting more skill slots?


    Ah, wait¡­ Didn¡¯t the limit break thing say it unlocked two skill slots after completion¡­?


    I frowned and grumbled to myself. Stupid system was baiting me into traumatizing myself.


    ¡­Actually, I¡¯d already had several near-death experiences, hadn¡¯t I? Was this the norm? Was whatever the limit break would do to me just par for the course?


    Then my stomach grumbled, interrupting my thoughts.


    ¡°Argh, but I still need to find more food! I can¡¯t even afford to experiment with fusion!¡± I groaned. ¡°Chat, why is this isekai adventure so stressful? I feel like I¡¯ve barely started! It¡¯s only the first dungeon! Why couldn¡¯t I get a nice and simple tutorial area first?!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe you should sleep Nana¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re getting cranky


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nonono you gotta spend your skillpoints!


    I pouted.


    ¡°Don¡¯t call me cranky, Ebi¡­ Fine, fine. I¡¯ll just flop over here and sleep then¡­¡± Then I smirked and fake yawned. ¡°Dang, I¡¯m sleepier than I thought. I guess the skill point spending spree will have to wait till tomorrow! Good night, Ebi! Good night, chat!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> dammit not again!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good night!


    <u>Irid123:</u> you know she¡¯s doing it on purpose at this point right?


    I lay down on the grass and then yawned for real. Honestly, even though it was still pretty early for bed, at least compared to what I¡¯d been used to back on Earth, I was totally spent.


    Maybe healing from a point-blank explosion strong enough to oneshot a boss tired me out?


    Well, it didn¡¯t matter. Time to sleep.

 #029 – Don’t mind me, just feeling a little melancholic

    I woke up with a startled confusion as something wet hit my cheek.


    ¡°Wha¡­Whuh¡­?¡±


    I blinked my eyes open, waving my hands around to slap away at whoever had decided to prank me by spitting on me.


    Then I immediately remembered that I was still in a seemingly empty world and that if there was someone else around, then that would be a good thing, even if the first contact was them spitting at me.


    But as my vision cleared, I realized that there wasn¡¯t anyone else around. I wasn¡¯t getting pranked by a person, but by the weather.


    Another drop of water hit my face. Then another and another.


    ¡°Oh, come on¡­¡± I groaned and scrambled to get up through the haze of sleep inertia.


    I grabbed my backpack, glanced around for a possible shelter from the rain, and realized that the only viable place was the damn dungeon.


    Just when I finally got out¡­


    I wasted no time in going inside again and climbing into one of the rooms through the window. The chilling feeling of entering the dungeon knocked me out of my daze and made me more alert, albeit there was still plenty of brain fog floating around my head.


    After checking out the room I climbed into just to make sure no zombies had respawned, I relaxed a little, leaned over the window frame and looked back outside as the rain slowly turned from slow pitter-patter to a downpour.


    I let out a quiet groan as I rubbed the tiredness out of my eyes.


    ¡°Well, at least now I know that the weather is pretty normal in this world¡­¡± I mumbled as I glanced at chat again.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> morning!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> good morning


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> I hope you don¡¯t get a cold


    ¡°Morning, chat.¡± I yawned and looked at my bracelet. It showed 3:54. ¡°...Very early morning, chat. Ugh¡­ No wonder I feel like crap. I should just go back to sleep¡­ But I don¡¯t even feel like it anymore¡­¡±


    Getting my mind zapped by entering the dungeon didn¡¯t help at all.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> gonna take a morning shower?


    I slowly blinked.


    ¡°I usually shower in the mornings¡­ Although I kind of forgot yesterday¡­ I must have been really tired, huh¡­?¡±


    After running and fighting so much yesterday, I was quite sweaty and even covered in soot. The final suicide move probably had a hand in that. It was a wonder how I hadn¡¯t even noticed how dirty I was last night.


    ¡°Yeah, why not? I¡¯ll just take one now¡­¡±


    Maybe it was a little vain to be indulging in showers while I was starving in a dungeon in another world¡­ But I needed some normalcy if I wanted to stave off insanity.


    Although, it would feel weird to be showering out in the open in the middle of a random room. I was used to showering in a cubicle¡­ or at least in a bathtub.


    Ugh, maybe this wouldn¡¯t help to stave off insanity, after all.


    I groaned to myself and stayed perched on the window frame for a few minutes, looking out into the rain. Then my eyes narrowed as I noticed something very odd. The rain stopped just outside of the dungeon¡¯s entrance and no water seemed to be flowing inside. Like there was some kind of barrier around the dungeon preventing the rain from coming in. In fact, I could even see the water pooling at the dividing line, just outside the dungeon.


    I stared at the phenomenon for a few seconds without saying anything. Then I just shook my head and walked further inside the room.


    I pulled out my Ether-powered shower head and soap, got undressed, and took a quick shower in the corner of the room, while keeping the rest of my stuff on one of the random tables in the room. Once done, I pulled out my magical towel and dried myself before wringing it out on the floor.


    I let out a satisfied sigh.


    ¡°I feel a bit better now, chat¡­ And also, very much awake. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m going back to sleep anymore¡­¡±


    I proceeded to walk over to the window, leaned on it, and stared outside into the rain once more.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> are you going to open the gate?


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s the plan for today¡­ But no need to rush¡­¡± I said softly.


    I hadn¡¯t really focused on it much these past few days since I had bigger problems, but¡­ my voice sounded really nice now, didn¡¯t it? I didn¡¯t even have to consciously strain myself to sound better like I used to.


    Granted, I still sounded like a kid. But that was because, for all intents and purposes, I was a kid. Although, since the blessing apparently aged me sixty times faster, I would probably soon find myself sounding more mature. But still, even after I finished speedrunning aging, I would still probably have a nicer voice than I¡¯d ever had with my old body.


    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    I frowned and pursed my lips at that thought.


    Since when had I begun to think of it as my old body? Like I¡¯d already accepted my situation? Like this was just my life now?


    Was all this secretly something I liked despite the constant danger and annoying mazes? Did I even want to return back to Earth¡­?


    ¡­


    No way. Of course I would still search for a way to go back¡­ But I didn¡¯t really need my old body for it, did I¡­? Yeah. As strange and inhuman as the skills were making it, I still liked this body more.


    Still. The accelerated aging was such a strange thing. I barely noticed it from moment to moment, but I could sort of tell that I was a tad taller now. This was my¡­ fifth day in this world, wasn¡¯t it? So four days of accelerated growth. That meant somewhere around eight months worth of growth.


    Huh¡­


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I wonder if the rain has ether in it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> chillin stream today?


    I hummed.


    ¡°Maybe¡­ It would explain why plants are made out of the stuff¡­ Eh¡­ I¡¯m just taking a minute, George. I felt like I¡¯ve been in a constant rush since being tossed into this world. It¡¯s been stressing me out, you know? I just wanna relax a bit.¡±


    Of course, that was when my stomach decided to loudly remind me of the looming death clock.


    I closed my eyes, breathed in, and let out a groan mixed with a sigh.


    ¡°No rest for the wicked¡­ Fine, let¡¯s peek into floor three then, chat. But this time, I¡¯m not activating any suspicious devices. Don¡¯t wanna lose my way out again.¡±


    I put on my backpack again, dragged myself out of the window, and slowly walked my way to the end of the hallway where the golden gate lay.


    I briefly peeked through the gate and noticed all the fast food vendors around the edges of the swimming pools.


    ¡°Oh, right! I was hoping there would be more food over there, wasn¡¯t I?¡± I remembered, a small hopeful smile tugging on my lips.


    I really really hoped there would be actual food. After all, the chest drops had been sort of thematic so far. A wallet from coin bosses; a shower head, a soap, and a towel from the locker room floor; a glove from a clothing weirdo¡­


    Well, maybe I shouldn¡¯t get my hopes up. I still didn¡¯t quite know what would be waiting for me.


    I held out my right hand and flicked the mental switch, making the sword-like key appear in my hand.


    ¡°Open¨C¡± I stood on my tiptoes ¨C because the lock was a bit too high up ¨C and carefully slid the key into the giant lock. ¡°¨CSesame!¡± I turned the key in the lock, somehow managing to guess the correct direction on my first try, and watched as the chains detached, the lock shimmered and vanished, and the gate slowly opened with a creak.


    I idly put the key back into my backpack as I stepped into the new area. I shielded my eyes from the sun and looked around the water park. Pools of water, water slides, a jacuzzi over in that direction, some kind of water tunnel for kids to explore, and most importantly, food stalls at the edges of the whole area.


    It made me a little nostalgic. Back when I¡¯d been a little kid, my sister and I used to come to water parks with our parents and would play around on the slides. I would innocently ask why I couldn¡¯t wear the same swimsuit as my sister¡­


    Hah¡­ Parents¡­ So many of these memories were tainted now.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol fake sky


    I blinked myself out of the melancholic thoughts and glanced at chat.


    ¡°Fake sky? What do you¡­¡±


    Wait.


    I narrowed my eyes and stared at the bright blue cloudless sky for a moment. Then I looked at my bracelet and saw that it still showed 4:38. I slowly craned my head backwards to look through the floor one¡¯s corridor outside of the dungeon and saw darkness and rain still beating down on the ground. I looked back forward at the bright and sunny water park in front of me and felt the warmth of the sun on my skin.


    It didn¡¯t feel fake whatsoever.


    ¡°...Right. Fake sky, chat. I¡¯m not even surprised, to be honest,¡± I said with a hum.


    I really wasn¡¯t. It was just par for the course at this point. There was only so many times I could get befuddled by the nonsense this dungeon threw at me.


    ¡°Anyway! Let¡¯s go get food!¡±


    I turned away from what I assumed was the main part of this dungeon ¨C the actual bodies of water ¨C and beelined straight for the nearest little hut that looked to be selling fast food.


    Naturally, as soon as I got close, the side door of the building flew open and three zombies dressed in matching uniforms and wielding kitchen knives rushed out and at me.


    I barely hesitated as I breathed in and fired off three small Flame Bullets, one at each zombie. The first shot landed a clean headshot, the second hit the zombie on the shoulder, and the third burned through the zombie¡¯s stomach, causing it to topple back.


    I quickly dashed forward at the second zombie, summoned forth my key sword and lopped off its head just as it recovered from its shoulder shot.


    All three then vanished into mist.


    It¡¯d taken about ten seconds in total and I hadn¡¯t even broken a sweat. The smell of burnt flesh and the sight of a zombie having its head burned off still made me a little queasy, but overall¡­


    ¡°...I think I¡¯m getting used to this, chat.¡±


    It was a far cry from when I¡¯d first entered this dungeon and nearly got clobbered by a few zombies. In fact, it felt almost unnatural how quickly I¡¯d gotten decent at fighting.


    Granted, I¡¯d been in several life or death situations in the past few days, but¡­ It still felt too quick. It was like I¡¯d been doing this for months rather than a couple of days.


    ¡­


    Hold on.


    I quickly checked my surroundings to make sure I was in the clear and then opened the description for the Phoenix Blessing again.


    The exact wording was ¡®You age 60x faster¡¯.


    ¡°Chat¡­ Is the blessing also somehow making me get better at this sixty times faster? That¡¯s¡­ I don¡¯t know, that feels wrong,¡± I mumbled.


    After all, I still only had a few days worth of experience rather than months.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit plot twist


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> how would that even work?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> it¡¯s possible¡­


    I hummed.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not gonna complain about it, I guess¡­¡±


    It did feel just a little disturbing¡­ But, well, not anymore disturbing than aging faster, I guess.


    Shaking these thoughts aside, I stepped forward and into the little fast food hut through the side door, still on guard. As soon as I was in, I heard a sound behind me to the side and spun around just in time to spew fire all over the zombie who had tried to sneak up on me. It stumbled back and I used the chance to slash at it with my key sword, cutting off his arm.


    I then jumped back, passed the key sword to my left hand and drew my other sword from its sheath to dual wield them.


    In the meantime, the zombie recovered and charged at me once more, albeit only with one arm.


    I blocked its swing of the kitchen knife with the key, and then stabbed it with my other sword as I channeled fire through it.


    The zombie crumpled to the ground and vanished into mist. I quickly checked the surroundings once more and relaxed once I failed to spot more zombies.


    Then I looked forward and hummed to myself.


    As expected, the space inside the hut was warped and it extended back beyond the door just like that one room in floor one or the first locker in floor two.


    Then I looked to the side and glanced out of the window from which they would supposedly sell their fast food and saw the water park from a completely different angle than when I¡¯d been outside¡­ Meaning that the window and the door led to entirely different places.


    ¡°I¡¯m starting to see a pattern here, chat¡­¡±


    These non-euclidean mazes were starting to get old¡­

 #030 – Delicious, delicious fast food!

    Another day, another non-euclidean maze.


    Honestly, I didn¡¯t even expect anything else at this point. The first time was shocking, the second time was annoying, but by now it was an old routine like waking up, brushing my teeth, and having breakfast.


    Speaking of breakfast, this particular maze was going to drive me nuts with its delicious fast food smells but a distinct lack of food anywhere.


    ¡°Chat, this dungeon is doing it on purpose, I swear¡­¡±


    It was still technically way-too-early-o-clock but the fake sun in the sky was enough to trick my brain into switching to daytime action mode. This was really going to screw with my sense of time, even with chat around and my magical wristwatch.


    Other than that, the third floor so far hadn¡¯t been too bad. The enemies were more or less the same as those on floor one, except armed with knives, and a little faster and more skilled, compared to their hobbling-on-all-fours counterparts.


    It probably said a lot about what I¡¯d had to deal with already that knives being pointed at me barely fazed me now. Granted, this was the first time the dungeon had whipped out actual weapons against me, rather than trying to smother me with clothes, but I still didn¡¯t feel all that threatened. Especially since I could easily dispatch the zombies in numerous ways.


    I lit my key sword on fire, held it like a javelin, and tossed it at my opponent with full force.


    It flew through the air a tad awkwardly, but still hit its mark, burying itself in the zombie¡¯s stomach, and causing it to get knocked over and vanish into mist a moment later.


    Then I held out my hand and the key teleported back into it.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> boomerang lol


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> be careful not to run out of tempor


    I hummed as I walked deeper into the maze of fast food buildings.


    ¡°Good point, Mike¡­ Although I can¡¯t even tell how much I have or how much I¡¯m using. It¡¯s not as obvious as Ether is. But yeah, I still don¡¯t want to know what it will do to me if I run out.¡±


    If running out of Ether made me lose control of my body, would running out of the other two do the same? Or would it do something different to me? I wanted to know but I also didn¡¯t want to find out¡­


    I appraised the key again and took note of the innate skill saying that it supposedly used a ¡®minor¡¯ amount of Tempor. That probably meant I wasn¡¯t going to run out very quickly, but still¡­ There were never any concrete numbers, so it was hard to tell how much a ¡®minor¡¯ amount really was. Regardless, I would have to be a bit careful with how much I used Quick Fetch, just in case.


    I readied both my weapons and kicked open the next door, ready to smack down on more zombies.


    To my surprise, there were none. Instead, there was a chest right at the back of this kitchen-esque room.


    My eyes went wide and I perked up in anticipation.


    ¡°Chest! Please tell me it has food. Come on, dungeon! Come on, RNG gods!¡±


    I approached it cautiously as I appraised it and proceeded to poke the thing with both my weapons for a minute.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> c¡¯mon jus topen it


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> we all know it¡¯s not a mimic


    I tsked three times while shaking my head.


    ¡°No, we don¡¯t. Mimics always strike when you least expect them, so the best way to combat them is to always expect them,¡± I said wisely, only half-joking.


    Once I felt like I poked the chest enough, I put away both my weapons, pressed my hands on the lid, and heaved it open.


    I held my breath for a second in anticipation and when I saw the loot, I stopped for a moment before firing off Appraisal just to make sure I wasn¡¯t imagining things.


    <u>Ether burger


    </u>A burger made out of ancient burger buns, ancient lettuce, grilled Sea Serpent meat, Minotaur cheese, and ketchup.


    <u>Time-freezing popsicle


    </u>An ancient strawberry popsicle infused with Tempor to keep it from melting. Restores Tempor when eaten. Excess Tempor is used to accelerate time for the user.


    ¡°It¡¯s fooooood, chaaaat!¡± I cheered with a massive grin.


    Then I noticed the ingredient list for the burger.


    ¡°...It¡¯s really freaking weird food chat, but it¡¯s still food!¡±


    Then I looked closer at the popsicle¡¯s description and was momentarily bewildered by its insane ability to apparently dilate time.


    Well, chat had theorized Tempor to be about spacetime, but still¡­


    I shook away these thoughts and instead looked at the juicy lump of greasy deliciousness. I grabbed the burger covered in paper wrapping, unwrapped it, and bit into it, despite part of me still being a bit alarmed about the whole ¡®minotaur cheese¡¯ thing.


    It tasted absolutely divine. I couldn¡¯t complain. Ten out of ten.


    The meat had the texture of a beef steak, but tasted like salmon. It was quite weird, but the taste was great, so I couldn¡¯t complain much.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> a hearty breakfast


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> eating burgers early in the morning¡­


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> a heartattackey breakfast lol


    ¡°Quiet, you lot. It¡¯s not like I have any other food choices here,¡± I argued between the bites.


    I sat then, my back against the chest and kept my eye on the rest of the room as I enjoyed my probably-not-very-healthy breakfast.


    Actually, the meat was from Sea Serpent and seafood was supposed to be super healthy, right? Maybe this was secretly a healthy version of a burger then.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> yoooo morning


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> you already up so early?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sup


    ¡°Hey, Trelip. Yeah, I got woken up by rain outside and then was too awake to go back to sleep,¡± I grumbled before smiling again and lifting the burger into my vision. ¡°But look! I found food again!¡±


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> what


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wait where even are you?


    ¡°Floor three, past the gate.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh cool


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> what did you spend your skill points on?


    I blinked and stopped chewing for a moment.


    ¡°Right, skill points. I totally forgot I was going to spend them¡­ Why didn¡¯t the rest of you tell me?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> didn¡¯t know you had extra


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> we were testing you


    ¡°...Uh huh. Anyway, might as well do it now then¡­ Hmm, I could still get the other two upgrades for Fire Breath¡­¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> weren¡¯t you going to get fusion?


    I hummed again and checked the cooldown on Craftsman. It still had two hours left before I could swap it back in. Although, if I did swap it in, I would have to sacrifice one of my current skills¡­ Ugh¡­


    ¡°Yeah, but the problem is that I would want Appraisal with it just to check the results. But if I keep Appraisal, I would have to swap out Fire Breath or Flameguard and I kinda need both of those to fight¡­¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> why not take a day off then?


    I stopped for a moment and blinked.


    I¡­ could take a day off, couldn¡¯t I? That way, I could swap in Craftsman, get Fusion, spend a day experimenting with it to upgrade my gear, and the next day, I would swap Craftsman back out while keeping the fused equipment¡­ in theory. I didn¡¯t actually know if the fused items would automatically fall apart as soon as I lacked the skill, but since the description didn¡¯t mention anything about that¡­


    Also, I was going to try and practice channeling Ether on my own while using Craftsman as training wheels, wasn¡¯t I? That would be the perfect opportunity to do so.


    The only reason why I hadn¡¯t really taken a break was because I¡¯d been starving¡­ But the burger right here was much more filling than either the fruit or the bar from the previous floors. And if I was lucky enough to find another chest with food in this area, then I wouldn¡¯t be in immediate danger of starving anymore¡­


    ¡°You know what¡­? I think I could do that. But before I do, I want to find one more chest with hopefully more food in it. Just in case.¡±


    With the plan of action decided, I leisurely finished my burger while talking to chat. Once done, I pulled out my shower head and soap and washed away the grease on my fingers before drying them with the towel.


    Nothing like using magical items for mundane purposes.


    Then I took the other item in the chest and briefly glanced over the silly plastic wrapping. It said ¡®POP! Sicle¡¯, but the ¡®O¡¯ was replaced with a frozen clock, icicles hanging off of it.


    Like the Ether bar from the previous floor, I didn¡¯t know any popsicles of this brand, but I didn¡¯t think it was a real one.


    ¡­Or at least, not from Earth. Since this world had burgers and granola bars and whatnot, then it was safe to assume it also had its own manufacturers and brands, right?


    Not much of a fantasy world. Except then it had also cheerfully informed me that minotaur cheese and Sea Serpent burgers existed.


    All of that painted a picture of a world that was a strange mix of a modern and a fantasy setting¡­ with some sci-fi thrown in, because why not? But when I actually looked outside of the dungeons, there was nothing. No civilization, no animals, not even insects. One would expect a technologically advanced world to be teeming with life. Or at the very least, the dungeons full of loot should have some settlements nearby. Or, you know, other people raiding them.


    But there was nobody.


    It was uncanny.


    The more I thought about it, the more unnerved I felt. There was something inherently wrong about this world.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> dont mind her shes all broody and shit today


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh no the emo phase already?


    I scowled as I refocused on chat again.


    ¡°I¡¯m not broody! Just a bit lost in thought. Hmph!¡± I slid the popsicle into my backpack, idly noting that it didn¡¯t feel cold to touch at all. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s keep going, everyone!¡±


    I left the kitchen and continued exploring passages I hadn¡¯t been in yet, all while fighting both the zombies and chat¡¯s allegations that I¡¯d reached the rebellious age and was an emo kid now.


    Seriously. Chat could be so dumb sometimes.


    About an hour and a half, I found exactly what I¡¯d been looking for ¨C another chest. A few minutes of obligatory poking it with my swords later, I opened it and grinned at the contents inside before firing off Appraisal at the large flat box.


    <u>Paradox pizza</u>


    A box containing a pepperoni pizza. Infusing the box with a moderate amount of Ether and Tempor restores any missing pizza slices and keeps it fresh.


    My jaw dropped at the description and I couldn¡¯t help but stare in shock.


    This was¡­ This was literally¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s infinite pizza, chat!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> holy shit the dreeeeeam


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh no she became too powerful


    ¡°My food problems are solved forever!¡± I cheered and whooped.


    So, of course, someone had to ruin it.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you really are going to get heart attack at this rate


    I pouted.


    ¡°Let me have this moment, Mike! I know eating pizza all the time is gonna kill me, but it¡¯s still better than starving!¡± I grumbled. ¡°And I¡¯ll probably find more food later¡­¡±


    I idly shot Appraisal at the other item inside.


    <u>Ether pop</u>


    A can of Miakola-flavored soda infused with Ether.


    Hmm. Cool, but not that useful. I already had the Tempor water to drink from, and life ooze for restoring Ether, if that was what this did.


    Still, it was loot, so I shoved it into my backpack and then picked up the infinite pizza box.


    ¡°Well, anyway¡­ Now that my food problem is solved, I guess I can finally take a break from dungeoneering!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what no thats lame


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> awwww


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> time to experiment with fusion?


    ¡°Exactly! I¡¯m taking a full day off from these stupid non-euclidean mazes to do some mad science!¡± I cheered as I left the room and began to make my way back through the maze.


    It took me a bit and I got lost for a moment, but it wasn¡¯t as hard without a helpful Ebi mapping my steps as I thought it would be. I just went into rooms that felt vaguely familiar and lacked zombies.


    In another half an hour, I was out of the fast food hut and had to shield my eyes from the fake sun again.


    As far as I could tell, the sun hadn¡¯t moved at all even though it had been a few hours.


    How the heck wasn¡¯t everything half-melted around me if it was constantly bombarded by the sunlight, I would never know. Probably more dungeon nonsense at play again.


    I made my way through the gate and down the corridor. I picked out a room beyond one of the windows that had a table, a chair, and plenty of space to work with, and settled down there. I placed the pizza box and my backpack on the table and began pulling things from it. My trusty bucket, the shower head, the soap, the wallet, and so on.


    Once everything was out on the table, I clapped my hands together.


    ¡°Alright! Now then¡­¡± I opened my skills and prepared to do something that felt very wrong.


    <u>Replace [Fire Breath] with [Craftsman]?


    </u>Note: [Fire Breath] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    Yes.


    <u>Purchase the [Craftsman] skill upgrade [Fusion] for 6 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    Yes.


    <u>¡®Fusion¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    ¡°Heheh! It¡¯s time to craft, chat! Let the tinkering stream begin!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> didn¡¯t you leave some stuff outside?


    I paused.


    ¡°...Oh yeah, I did, didn¡¯t I?¡±


    I huffed to myself, annoyed that my enthusiasm was getting interrupted.


    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll go get it real quick¡­¡± I turned to leave, but then stopped and looked back. ¡°...My stuff isn¡¯t going to despawn if I leave, right¡­?¡±


    I wasn¡¯t quite sure why I was so paranoid, but better safe than sorry.


    With some more grumbling, I packed everything back into the backpack, and left the room.


    Unfortunately, it was still raining outside the dungeon. I would have to get wet to get to my stuff.


    I grumbled again.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> maybe grab some rainwater with the bucket?


    I hummed and shugged.


    ¡°Sure, why not? Having some water can¡¯t hurt, I guess.¡±


    I pulled out the bucket, zipped the backpack so that water wouldn¡¯t get into it, and then ran out of the dungeon with the bucket in my hands straight toward the ooze lake where I¡¯d left my stuff.


    By the time I got there, I was completely drenched, but still didn¡¯t feel all that cold, probably thanks to the cold-resistant clothes I had.


    Regardless, I quickly grabbed all the stuff and began shoving it into the backpack ¨C some rainwater still got inside, ugh ¨C before legging it back into the dungeon.


    I got back inside the room I¡¯d picked earlier, pulled out the towel from the backpack and got myself dry.


    Then I pulled out everything out of the backpack and onto the table again, before flipping the backpack over and letting all the rainwater drip out of it.


    Finally, I stood in the middle of the room, overlooking all my stuff and my mind began to race with possibilities.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Now let the tinkering stream start!¡±

 #031 – Don’t mind me, just blowing bubbles in a water park

    I tried the most obvious thing first ¨C fusing my two weapons into one. As cool as dual wielding was, it wasn¡¯t really my thing. I much preferred to have one strong weapon. Quality over quantity and all that.


    If only I could get my hands on a greataxe or a halberd or something like that¡­


    Anyway, I pulled out both the sword and the key, brought them together, and prodded at the new mental switch, trying to get a feel for it. I immediately found out that the sub skill worked a bit differently from what I¡¯d been expecting. Rather than just straight up fusing the two objects, it wanted me to pick one of them as the base and then fuse the other object into it.


    Which meant that there were even more possibilities for what I could create with it.


    To start with, I attempted to fuse the gate key into the Ether Volt, feeding it Ether as necessary. It drained a lot of Ether though. So much that I could physically feel it. More than shooting a fully powered fireball.


    ¡°Ooh, boy¡­ This is an expensive skill¡­¡± I murmured.


    The Ether all went into the gate key, flowed all through it, and then seemed to consume it from the inside, turning it into glowing orange blob of energy. I then directed the energy into the Ether Volt and the sword absorbed it like a sponge before beginning to glow itself.


    A few seconds later, the glow dimmed and let out and I was left with my finished product.


    It was still the Ether Volt, but it now had jagged saw-like teeth to it.


    I immediately appraised it and stared at the result.


    <u>Ether Volt + Golden gate key (fused)


    </u>A fusion of two objects.


    [INNATE] skill: Quick Fetch - Use a small amount of Tempor to teleport this item back into your hand from anywhere.


    This object is a Key item.


    Interesting¡­ So it didn¡¯t have a unique name or description, but it¡¯d retained the innate skill and its¡­ key-itemness. Hmm¡­


    I lightly tossed it across the room and before it even hit anything, summoned it back into my hand with Quick Fetch. Then I proceeded to use Craftsman to feed it a bit of Ether while slashing at an empty corner of the room, and as expected, lightning shot out and zapped that poor corner of the room.


    I grinned.


    ¡°Nice! It can do both! It¡¯s the ultimate weapon!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> swiss army sword lol


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> noice


    ¡°It took a lot of Ether, though¡­ Ugh, I guess it¡¯s time to stuff myself full of slime again if I want to keep fusing stuff¡­¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> you could get that one skill that boosts Ether regeneration


    ¡°Skill¡­? Oh, you mean Persistence?¡±


    I idly opened the description for it again.


    <u>Persistence:</u>


    Doubles your health, stamina, and Ether regeneration.


    ¡°Eh, I don¡¯t know¡­ It¡¯s not really that good, is it? And it costs a skill point¡­¡± I argued. Despite that, I kind of liked the idea though. As sweet as the ooze tasted, I was getting quite sick of it.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> it¡¯s not like you¡¯re fighting today anyway right?


    ¡°I mean¡­ I guess I could replace Flameguard with it¡­ But it still costs a skill point¡­¡±


    Granted, I¡¯d been getting a ton of skill points lately, but most of them were for crazy, near-suicidal feats. I wasn¡¯t too keen on repeating any of what had happened on floor two.


    ¡­But then again. It was just one measly skill point and if my gaming experience was anything to go by, they would get easier and easier to get. Or at least they should. Otherwise, how else was anyone ever supposed to get eighty skill points for Phoenix Breath?


    ¡°You know what? Fine. I¡¯ll think of it as an investment. And I mean, who knows? Maybe it¡¯s secretly a super overpowered late game option! I mean, doubling your health? Sounds really good if you have a lot of health to double!¡±


    <u>Purchase the skill [Persistence] for 1 skill point?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>Replace [Flameguard] with [Persistence]?


    </u>Note: [Flameguard] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°...And confirm.¡±


    I suddenly felt very vulnerable without either of my fire skills and instinctively looked around the room to make sure nothing was about to sneak up on me.


    There was nothing, of course.


    Just as a test, I tried to light my hand on fire but couldn¡¯t. It felt like I was missing a limb. Similarly, I tried to breathe out some fire and nothing happened.


    This felt much more disconcerting than when I¡¯d swapped Craftsman out. After all, I¡¯d been using Fire Breath all throughout this dungeon. And now I just couldn¡¯t.


    Speaking of Craftsman¡­ I¡¯d been wanting to try and figure out whether I could channel my Ether without the help of the skill, wasn¡¯t I? Maybe I could even take it a step further and see if I could recreate the effects of Flameguard and Fire Breath without having the skills equipped as well? I still wasn¡¯t quite sure whether the system simply helped me do these things, or if it was outright impossible without the right skills.


    No harm in trying though.


    The first step was to keep flicking that mental switch the skill provided while focusing on what exactly it was doing. Then I tried to replicate it without the mental switch and failed miserably. Rinse and repeat, while occasionally nibbling on some ooze just to make sure I wouldn¡¯t run out completely.


    And in the meantime, chat and I discussed what I should try fusing next.


    I had wanted to try all the different combinations of things, but I hadn¡¯t expected the Ether cost to be this high, so it was a bit of a commitment to fuse things.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> how about shower head and lightning sword?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> shower head and popsicle for bullet time showering lol


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Have you tried the glove yet?


    ¡°Oh yeah, the glove. I totally forgot about this¡­¡± I glanced down at the glove still covering my left hand. ¡°Thanks for reminding me, Ranger! Let¡¯s see what this can do, then!¡±


    I sheathed my sword ¨C which was a little awkward because of its newly-gained teeth ¨C assumed a dramatic pose, and pointed my palm forward before using the Craftsman skill to focus my Ether into the glove. The lines on the glove glowed and although it was hard to see from this angle, the Ether seemed to coalesce on the palm, before a bubble began to slowly grow from it.


    ¡°Huh, okay¡­¡± I murmured as the bubble detached from the glove and slowly floated forward through the air. I walked with it, observing it from all angles. ¡°...It looks like a regular bubble, to be honest. But it¡¯s supposed to be reinforced, right?¡±


    I then tried poking it with a finger.


    It felt like a sphere of bubble wrap when I touched it. Instead of popping, it just changed the direction it floated in.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ How strong is it, then¡­?¡± I pulled out my sword, lined it up, and slashed down at the bubble with it. The bubble bounced off the blade instead of popping, and proceeded to bounce around the room for a bit before returning to lazily wobbling through the air.


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Pretty strong. Nice.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> morning Nana


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what are you up to?


    ¡°Oh hey, Ebi! Morning!¡± I smirked. ¡°Although I¡¯ve been up for like four hours already.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait what


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> why did you wake up so early?


    I shrugged as I walked to the bubble and picked it up with my free hand. It was more rubbery than soapy so it wasn¡¯t too hard to get a grip on it. ¡°It started to rain and I woke up. So I went back into the dungeon to hide from the rain.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh damn


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that sucks


    ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ Anyway! I snooped around floor three and found infinite pizza! It¡¯s awesome!¡± I said with a grin as I gestured at the open pizza box with my sword.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> infinite pizza?


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s called paradox pizza. Respawns the pizza slices if I feed it Ether and Tempor.¡± Which, to be fair, although I had Craftsman for Ether, I still wasn¡¯t quite sure how to do that with Tempor. Hopefully, I could figure it out though. I had the innate skill to practice using Tempor, at least.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> seriously?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait wasn¡¯t Tempor the spacetime thing?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you using time travel to restore your pizza?


    I stopped for a second and then lost myself in giggles.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t even thought about that! Yeah, I think I am!¡± I shook my head. ¡°The best use of time travel. Get your pizza back so you can eat it again.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> only you¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so what¡¯s the bubble about?


    I proceeded to fill Ebi in on everything while making a few more bubbles of different sizes and idly playing with them.


    Then I tried using some of my sword¡¯s lightning on the bubbles and was caught completely off guard by the result.


    The bubble freaking exploded with a loud bang and let out a burst of air that knocked me off my feet.


    ¡°Ow! Holy¡­!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> jesus fucking christ


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> holy shit


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> WHOA


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> jumpscare warning pls


    I rubbed my ringing ears with a groan and slowly got to my feet again. Then I eyed the rest of the bubbles suspiciously as I waited for my hearing to come back.


    ¡°...Sorry about that, chat. Apparently, these bubbles are also bombs.¡±


    Which kind of changed how I could use them. I¡¯d thought they would serve as decent shields, but if they were going to blow up in my face if a strong enough attack managed to pop them, then I had to be extra careful if I wanted to use them defensively. And offensively¡­? They were too slow to use in any frontal attack. I would have to use them as detonatable mines if at all.


    In other words, the bubbles were kind of meh in both aspects.


    ¡°That kind of sucks, not gonna lie¡­¡± I mumbled.


    I¡¯d wanted to try and see whether it was possible to create a bubble around me as a protective shield, but now¡­ I probably really shouldn¡¯t try to do that. Not to mention, if I couldn¡¯t break it for some reason, I might just suffocate inside.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> maybe fuse the glove with something?


    ¡°I mean, I could¡­ but what?¡±


    I glanced over the assortment of ingredients with a thoughtful frown. I could think of a few potential combinations, but ultimately, I wouldn''t know what they would produce.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> popsicle for time travelling bubbles


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> maybe combine it with your clothes?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> how about the soap for soap bubble bombs lol?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> shower head so you can launch the bubbles faster?


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Okay. How about a poll? You decide, chat! And this time, I¡¯ll actually go with whatever option wins!¡± I announced before quickly setting up a new poll as chat suggested more and more outlandish combinations.


    <u>Poll: ¡®What should I fuse with the Bubble glove and in what direction?¡¯</u>


    <u>Popsicle into glove:</u> 0% (0)<u>


    </u><u>Glove into clothes:</u> 0%(0)


    <u>Soap into glove:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into soap:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Shower head into glove:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into shower head:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Towel into glove:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into towel:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Mop into glove:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into mop:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Pen into glove:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into pen:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Ether Pop into glove:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into Ether Pop:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Plastic wrapper from the Ether bar into glove(wtf guys):</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Glove into the plastic wrapper(seriously?):</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    I breathed a sigh and leaned on the table as I finished setting up the poll and watched as the votes started to roll in. Of course, chat being chat, the winner seemed to be the very last option at first before the others caught up.


    I glared at the poll, unimpressed.


    ¡°Chat¡­ I will go with the winner, but if it¡¯s literally useless, I¡¯ll still revert it and try something else, you know? A random plastic wrapper with the glove¡¯s powers would just be¡­ the glove, but more inconvenient to use. Seriously.¡±


    I let the poll run its course while I returned to attempting to manipulate my Ether without the skill¡¯s help. I tried it with the sword again, but now I also had the glove to try.


    After what felt like hours, but was only about twenty minutes, I actually managed to do it. The circuits on the glove momentarily lit up before dimming again and I gasped in surprise.


    Was that it? Had I done it? Or had I subconsciously used the skill again?


    I tried again and sure enough, the circuits briefly lit up once more.


    ¡°I did it, chat¡­! Kind of!¡±


    Obviously, this wasn¡¯t enough to activate the glove or the sword, but it meant that it was possible without any skills to help with the process. Definitely a step in the right direction.


    Still, it felt really strange to manipulate my Ether. Like moving an extra limb that I¡­ kind of had, but also not really. I hadn¡¯t ever felt anything like this before.


    Was I becoming less and less human with every passing day¡­?


    ¡­Anyway, it would probably take a bit more time before I could reliably use the sword and bubble glove without Craftsman. But the fact that I could opened up a ton of options. Like the possibility of replicating other skills that used Ether.


    Granted, trying to replicate Fire Breath without the automatic fire resistance it gave would probably end up with me scorching my own throat, but¡­ Well, I wouldn¡¯t rush into trying it very soon anyway.


    ¡°If I can master this, then I can switch back to my fire build and I would still be able to use the sword and bubble glove! Heheh, the rest of this silly dungeon stands no chance!¡± I haughtily proclaimed.


    Then I looked back at the polls and frowned as I went over the numbers. Then I grimaced when I saw what had won the poll.


    ¡°...Seriously? Why did you have to pick one of the dumb options?¡±


    <u>Poll: ¡®What should I fuse with the Bubble glove and in what direction?¡¯</u>


    <u>Popsicle into glove:</u> 9.67% (3052)<u>


    </u><u>Glove into clothes:</u> 10.41%(3286)


    <u>Soap into glove:</u> 11.48% (3622)


    <u>Glove into soap:</u> 2.92% (921)


    <u>Shower head into glove:</u> 10.65% (3362)


    <u>Glove into shower head:</u> 6.73% (2123)


    <u>Towel into glove:</u> 2.62% (828)


    <u>Glove into towel:</u> 0.79% (249)


    <u>Mop into glove:</u> 4.58% (1446)


    <u>Glove into mop:</u> 2.78% (878)


    <u>Pen into glove:</u> 10.94% (3453)


    <u>Glove into pen:</u> 9.54% (3012)


    <u>Ether Pop into glove:</u> 7.55% (2384)


    <u>Glove into Ether Pop:</u> 2.15% (678)


    <u>Plastic wrapper from the Ether bar into glove(wtf guys):</u> 3.13% (989)


    <u>Glove into the plastic wrapper(seriously?):</u> 4.04% (1275)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    ¡°You¡¯re making me sacrifice my only soap to¡­ what? Probably make the bubbles soapier? Why, chat? Just why?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> soap bombs


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> blind your enemies


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> extreme showering sessions


    ¡°Right¡­ Well, let¡¯s do it then¡­¡±


    I was about to close the poll, but then decided to keep it running. If the first winner was useless, I would go to the second most voted option.


    I walked to the table and took off my glove. Then I grabbed the soap, used the Fusion sub skill on them, and watched as the soap went through the same process as the key earlier. Once the glove fully absorbed the blob of orange light that used to be the soap, I picked it up and inspected it.


    It looked nearly identical, save for the white circle on the palm. Instead of being empty, it now had three smaller circles ¨C soap bubbles, probably ¨C drawn inside it.


    I hummed and pulled the glove back over my left hand. Then I assumed my dramatic position once more, pointed the glove forward, and used the Craftsman skill.


    A bubble popped out just as before, except this time, it had a bit of a rainbow hue, just like soap bubbles tended to have.


    I poked it with my right index finger and¡­ yeah, it still felt rubbery, but it was also very slippery and I would probably have had a lot of trouble trying to grab it like before.


    I stepped back and let the bubble float far away from me before I drew my sword and shot a lightning slash at the bubble.


    The bubble exploded once again, but this time, instead of a wave of air, it was a wave of soapy water that burst out and covered the nearby ground and wall.


    I stared at the aftermath for a moment before shrugging.


    ¡°Yeah, well¡­ That¡¯s about what I expected, honestly. I guess this is potentially more useful as some kind of blind bomb, but¡­ It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve met any enemies with eyes in this dungeon, so¡­ Let¡¯s try other combinations! This one didn¡¯t drain as much Ether as the swords for some reason, so I can try a few more¡­¡±


    I walked back to the table I¡¯d designated as my workbench and put the glove on it again. Then I focused the Fusion sub skill on it again, but rather than trying to fuse it with something again ¨C which actually felt impossible, like there was something blocking me ¨C I tried to mentally order it to split in two again.


    I found that I had to sort of mentally grab the soap that had integrated inside the glove and slowly pull it out so as to not damage either of the two items. It was kind of like pulling off a bandaid¡­ if you squinted.


    Once the ball of orangeness was out, it gradually settled back into the shape of the soap and stopped glowing, becoming the soap once more. The glove also lost the picture of three bubbles on its palm.


    ¡°Okaaay¡­ What¡¯s the next most voted option now¡­¡± I glanced back at the poll with narrowed eyes, scanning each entry. ¡°...A pen into the glove? Chat, why? I know I look and sound like a kid right now, but I¡¯m too old to be finger painting¡­¡± I said, my voice dry like my magical towel.


    I sighed and shook my head, but grabbed the pen anyway.


    ¡°Welp, whatever. Maybe it will surprise me. Time to experiment!¡±

 #032 – Am I insane? Is anything even real?

    The orange blob came loose from the glove and turned back into the pen as I admired the amazing piece of art on the table I¡¯d drawn with the glove¡¯s fingers. Anyone who said that my mighty dragon looked terrible was wrong.


    Anyway, this combination had worked exactly how I expected it to. It had retained the bubble ability while gaining the ability to draw with the fingers. It was¡­ well, cool, I suppose. But not exactly useful in any meaningful way. I could just use the pen on its own if I really needed to write or draw something. Which didn¡¯t happen very often either.


    And no, unfortunately, things drawn by the glove didn¡¯t gain the bubble¡¯s toughness or their ability to pop and knock people away. That would have been pretty awesome, but alas.


    ¡°Right, so¡­ The next most voted thing iiis¡­ The shower head into the glove. Hmm¡­ I can sort of see how this might end up being useful, but we¡¯ll have to see¡­¡±


    Once again, I went through the process of fusing the shower head into the glove and was soon left with a glove that had the outline of three raindrops in its palm circle now.


    As always, I struck a pose, extended my hand forward, and fed it some Ether. The glove glowed for a moment, before a bubble formed, and as soon as I cut off the Ether feeding the bubble, it popped off and got launched forward by a stream of water that automatically came from the palm.


    ¡°Whoa¨C¡±


    The bubble flew across the room, bounced off a wall, and slammed into a chair, toppling it over, before continuing to innocently float in the air, now without most of its momentum.


    ¡°Okaaay¡­ huh. That¡¯s actually already pretty nice. I can use this as a cannonball, chat!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit nice


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nice!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> arrrr matey!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> sink those stinkin landlubber chairs!


    I snorted and looked back at the bubble, briefly wondering how it could both fly through the air like a cannonball with seemingly no resistance, but also gently wobble in the air like an actual bubble.


    I probably shouldn¡¯t question it too much.


    I drew my sword once more and slashed through the air, shooting off a lightning bolt at the bubble. As expected, the bubble exploded into water as it hit, drenching half of the room.


    Good thing the room was big enough that it didn¡¯t reach all the way to me.


    ¡°Alright! Yes! I think I¡¯m going to keep this one, chat. Just one last experiment¡­¡±


    Unlike the shower head, the glove didn¡¯t have a convenient button to activate the stream of water, but I was decent enough with Ether manipulation now that I could tell it used Ether in a slightly different way when it had activated the stream of water that had launched the bubble.


    I just needed to replicate it and¨C


    A jet of water suddenly spewed out of the glove¡¯s palm, startling me a little.


    ¡°Whoa! Uh¡­ That was way easier than the bubble or the sword¡­¡± I frowned, feeling a little annoyed. Why were all the combat items difficult to make work, but any utility functions were easy?


    Well, at least I could still take a shower, although it would probably be quite weird to use a glove for that.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> noice


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> its like that flower squirting prank


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> so you¡¯re keeping this?


    ¡°Heh, kind of¡­ Yeah, I think I¡¯m keeping this. I can always take it apart and try different combinations, but I like what this does.¡±


    I nodded to myself in satisfaction and then turned back to the table.


    ¡°Sooo, what else can I make¡­? I feel like there isn¡¯t that much left that could potentially be useful¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    I idly leaned on a nearby chair, opened my infinite pizza box, took a slice, and bit into it as I looked over the items splayed on the table.


    I still had the soap, the pen, the mop, my bucket, the towel, the time-freezing popsicle¡­ And some other junk, but these were probably the most relevant.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> popsicle and pizza for ultimate time travel pizza


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> try popsicle into your wristwatch thing


    ¡°Who eats popsicle and pizza together¡­¡± I murmured before looking at my bracelet and humming in thought. ¡°You know¡­ I kinda forgot I could use this, too¡­ And I do wonder what combining it with the popsicle would do¡­ A thing that keeps track of time and a thing that dilates time¡­? Am I going to get a tiny time machine or something?¡±


    Although¡­ the popsicle was a consumable. It would be gone forever after I ate it. If I fused it with something, would whatever function it added also be temporary? What would happen if I used it all up and then tried to unfuse the two? Would it let me? Or would it be stuck in the fused state forever?


    Hmm¡­


    Well, I didn¡¯t think it would be that big of a deal even if they were stuck together forever. The popsicle was only temporary and the bracelet was just a utility item anyway. I wouldn¡¯t lose all that much, especially since I was done with floor two where it was supposed to be the most useful.


    ¡°...You know what? Let¡¯s try it!¡±


    I took off the bracelet and placed it on the table. Then I grabbed the still-wrapped popsicle ¨C which still felt suspiciously warm to touch ¨C and immediately tried using Fusion on it.


    It turned into a blob of energy as expected¡­ except it was different. Sure, there were a few wisps of orange as usual, but the vast majority of the thing was purple and moving in a very uncanny and kind of headache-inducing manner. It was like someone had taken a million remote controllers, each keyed to a small part of the purple blob, and then kept randomly pressing the pause, fast forward, and rewind buttons.


    I didn¡¯t combine it with the bracelet yet and instead stared at the thing, feeling both awed and disturbed.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> uh


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> seizure warning please


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wtf


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> this is so fucking trippy


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wow that¡¯s so weird


    ¡°Right, uh¡­ Sorry. I didn¡¯t expect this to be so¡­ different. Why is it so different, anyway?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> because it messes with time?


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> if orange is Ether, then this must be Tempor no?


    ¡°Oh¡­ Right, yeah. I think you¡¯re right, Foux. This is¡­ probably pure Tempor, or something.¡±


    We¡¯d been pretty sure before, but this more or less confirmed that Tempor was used for¡­ well, space-time stuff.


    Well then. Now I really wanted to see what this would make.


    I carefully took the shifting blob of energy and continued with the Fusion process, stuffing it inside the bracelet. The thing glowed for a second, then seemed to glitch like a video game object, and then abruptly stopped glowing and snapped to its new form.


    It looked similar to before, but now had a cyan hue and several blunt icicle-like growths jutting from the bottom of it. The little screen still showed the time like normal though.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    ¡°Well, it looks fancy¡­ Does it do anything special, though?¡±


    I shot an Appraisal at it, hoping it would give me some hints.


    <u>Waterproof Key bracelet + Time-freezing popsicle (fused)


    </u>A fusion of two objects.


    [INNATE] [LIMITED] skill: Bullet time - Use a large amount of Tempor to speed up your own passage through time, making it seem like everything but you is slowed down.


    This object is a Key item.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hoollyyy shiiitt


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh damnnn thats so good!


    My eyes went wide.


    ¡°It gained a skill, chat! And a really good one at that!¡± I cheered as I grabbed the bracelet and put it back on my right wrist. ¡°But it has a new key word. And ¡®limited¡¯ sounds like¡­¡±


    [LIMITED] - This skill has a limited number of uses and will disappear after you use the last bit of its charge.


    ¡°...Yeah, I figured as much. But it makes sense and I kinda expected it¡­ Still! This is amazing! It¡¯s like the ultimate trump card! When I get into a tough spot again, I can just use this to slow everything down and run. I am definitely keeping this! Thanks for the suggestion, Foux!¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> heck yeah!


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> no prob!


    I grinned, looking down on my cannonball glove and my bullet time bracelet.


    ¡°Yeah, this Fusion sub skill is by far the best investment of skill points yet. Only six points to make all this stuff? Heck yeah! Sign me up!¡±


    It was the most expensive upgrade I¡¯d gotten so far, but it still seemed a lot stronger than everything else I had. Although, to be fair, it had some obvious disadvantages, like needing to have some items in the first place, and the possibility of losing items I¡¯d made. Although, the latter wasn¡¯t that big of a deal since there wasn¡¯t anyone around who could steal my stuff.


    But then again, all my fire skills were from a completely different race and if I thought about it, they all supported a different¡­ playstyle, for lack of a better word. One where you barrel forward and burn everything in your way while healing from your own flames.


    On the other hand, all the human skills ¨C except for Streamer ¨C seemed to be about analyzing objects, crafting them into something, and conquering dungeons with them.


    That kind of felt¡­ intentional. Like someone purposefully designed all these skills to create different ¡®classes¡¯ with different playstyles, so to speak.


    The Fate Weaver¡­


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Anyway, now that I think about it, I feel like my problem with not enough skill slots is because I have these phoenix skills. Without them, I probably wouldn¡¯t need more slots for a while. It kind of feels like I¡¯m using a cheat code the game wasn¡¯t balanced for¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> stop using it then lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana this isn¡¯t a game


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> cheat if you have to


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> your clearly meant to cheat tho


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess I¡¯m just overthinking this¡­ Anyway, I should probably test this thing¡­ Ugh, but I don¡¯t wanna waste it. What if it only has like a few seconds worth of charge? I don¡¯t wanna blow my trump card like that¡­¡± I looked around the room. ¡°...But then, what if I try to use it in a fight and it doesn¡¯t work the way I think? Ugh¡­¡±


    I mentally looked around and found the innate skill. It felt just like every other skill I had, albeit sort of similar to Quick Fetch.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you should still test it


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> what if it drains you too fast and knocks you out


    I grimaced.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good point, Mike¡­ It does say that it uses a large amount, so I probably can¡¯t use it for long. Especially since Streamer already hogs half of my reserves, apparently.¡± I huffed. ¡°Okay, fine! I¡¯ll try testing this thing. Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    I glanced around the assortment of stuff on the table, reached for the wallet, and pulled out one of the copper coins. I curled my right hand, placed the coin on the thumb, and then flipped the coin into the air.


    As it spun, I activated the mental switch and watched as the coin went from spinning way too fast to see, to lazily turning in the air.


    ¡°Oh, man¡­ This is¡­¡± I stared at the phenomenon and calmly walked around the still spinning coin, listening to the soft sound of air periodically being pushed away.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> slooowmoooo


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> nice it works


    I walked back, grabbed another coin from the wallet, held it up, and then dropped it.


    It began falling at a normal speed, but a split second later, when it stopped touching my fingers, it abruptly slowed down.


    ¡°Interesting¡­¡± I murmured.


    While the first coin was still spinning through the air, about to reach its apex, and the second one was slowly falling, I stepped to the side, drew my sword, poured some Ether into it, and then slashed in front of me.


    The result was fascinating.


    The lightning that shot out of it was still very fast, but now I could actually see it surging through the air toward the corner of the room. The way the lightning expanded out like a spiderweb while maintaining its form was mesmerizing. It hit the wall full two seconds later ¨C from my perspective ¨C and fizzled out against the impenetrable stone.


    And then, abruptly, I heard two coins land on the ground, one after another.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡± I looked down and saw that both the coins had fallen, as if time wasn¡¯t slowed down anymore. ¡°Wait, did I run out already?!¡±


    I frantically searched for the mental switch and found that it was still there, just not activatable because I was missing something. Then I glanced at the bracelet with the intention to use Appraisal on it again, but instead blinked when I saw that it displayed a partially depleted green bar with 93% displayed above it.


    I stared for a moment before deflating.


    ¡°...Oh. I guess that¡¯s the remaining charge. Crap. Just this already used seven percent? I really need to save this as my trump card, don¡¯t I? Hmm¡­¡±


    I frowned.


    ¡°Why did it stop though? I didn¡¯t stop it myself¡­ Did I run out of Tempor? But I didn¡¯t feel anything.¡±


    Just as a test, I tossed my sword onto a random table and then tried to Quick Fetch it and¡­ Yup, nothing happened. I couldn¡¯t use the skill.


    ¡°Huh. I really did. Well, alright. Looks like running out of Tempor is fine, chat.¡± I smiled.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s good


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> hold on


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> no need to worry about overusing it then


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I just realized


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> this doesn¡¯t make sense


    ¡°What doesn¡¯t make sense? Do you want me to get knocked out?¡± I asked slyly.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> the time dilation


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> we watched it with you


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> experienced it


    My smile slowly dropped and my eyebrows creased. I tried to reach out for the simple and obvious explanation¡­ but quickly realized that there wasn¡¯t any.


    ¡°That¡­ Umm¡­ That shouldn¡¯t be possible¡­?¡± I slowly said.


    Since I was streaming back to Earth in real time, I¡¯d assumed that both of the worlds¡¯ timelines passed at the same speed. But if they did, then this couldn¡¯t be possible.


    What was going on? Was the Bullet TIme skill slowing down the entire world rather than speeding me up? Or was it speeding up the entire Earth along with me instead? Or was it the streamer skill that did either of these?


    Or maybe the timelines weren¡¯t even synced at all and I was actually streaming to an entirely different point in time?


    But¡­ That¡­ That was absurd. The skills either dilated time for entire worlds, or Streamer had to constantly perform time travel to function. Both to let everyone watch my stream and to get their chat messages back to me.


    Either one of these options would be an order of magnitude crazier than anything else this entire adventure had thrown at me so far.


    Was it really, though? Tempor was supposed to mess with space-time, wasn¡¯t it? But was it powerful enough to actually do all¡­ or any of that?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit plotwist


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> um¡­


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> ur in a simulation


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe it¡¯s messing with time even more than it lets on?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> what the fuck


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> why does this suddenly feel like cosmic horror


    Or¡­ Maybe¡­


    Another option¡­


    ¡­Could¡­


    Could the Streamer skill be fake? Was it really streaming back to Earth? Or was it just conjuring things out of my own mind? After all¡­ Every skill added a mental switch to my mind. Who was to say they couldn¡¯t read my own mind as well? And then use that data to construct a fully believable faked stream chat as well?


    I felt a chill go down my spine and forced myself to swallow.


    Would the system do something like that? It had never lied to me so far, but¡­


    All the other options felt too absurd. The stream chat being fake made the most sense. Would be the simplest explanation. Occam¡¯s razor.


    How hadn¡¯t I thought of this before? Why had I naively accepted everything at face value? Streaming everything I saw and heard to Earth? Absolute nonsense! Even the stuff with me getting super popular and the Snitch admins trying to ban me sounded like my subconscious trying to rationalize everything.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you okay?


    Was Ebiko a figment of my imagination turned into a parody of the real person by the system? Was I literally talking to voices in my head and calling them my friends?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> existential crisis in process lol


    ¡­Did it even matter?


    Sure, they might all be fake and I might be alone in reality but¡­ Would I rather ignore them and feel alone as well? I had barely even begun to explore this world, but I didn¡¯t think I would find more people anytime soon, considering I had yet to see a single insect, much less a person.


    How long could I last completely on my own with nobody to talk to?


    So what if none of the names in chat were real people? Didn¡¯t people nowadays talk to AI chatbots and whatnot anyway? This was basically the same thing, right?


    Yeah¡­


    It didn¡¯t matter.


    No need to think about this too much.


    I didn¡¯t need to do anything differently even if none of this was real.


    I cleared my throat and breathed in.


    ¡°...Sorry about that, chat. Just got lost in thought a little. You know¡­ It¡¯s all pretty crazy,¡± I said as calmly as possible. ¡°Well, what did I expect? It messes with the fabric of spacetime, after all¡­ Hah, don¡¯t you guys just hate surprise time travel? It¡¯s always a mess and makes no sense. I hate time travel, that¡¯s for sure.¡±


    Slowly but surely, I returned to rambling about every random thing that came to mind, pretending that nothing had changed.


    Subconsciously though, I felt like everything had changed.

 #033 – Call me Nana, the mad scientist!

    I took another sip of the Tempor Juice I¡¯d gotten from the second floor¡¯s boss and let out a satisfied sigh.


    ¡°Still tastes great, chat. But I can¡¯t really tell at all if it did anything¡­ Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    I extended my hand and with a quick flip of the mental switch, my fused sword was in my hand again.


    ¡°Alright! Looks like it did work.¡± I nodded with a smile. ¡°I still can¡¯t tell how much Tempor I have at all, though. It¡¯s so weird¡­ And it¡¯s weird that it¡¯s weird. It¡¯s weird that I¡¯m used to feeling some magical energy in the first place, you know?¡±


    I paused my rambling as I took the last slice of the pizza ¨C I was very hungry, okay? ¨C from my magical pizza box and eyed it with narrowed eyes.


    I chewed and swallowed before continuing. ¡°...Anyway, I guess I should figure out how to refill my pizza. I hope it¡¯s somewhat automatic, cuz I have no idea how to direct Tempor the same way I move Ether.¡±


    I closed the pizza box and rested a hand on top of it with a frown while taking another bite of my last slice.


    I tried focusing on my Ether first, since I knew how to do that, and the box greedily took it when I offered it. In fact, it took quite a lot of it and I still couldn¡¯t tell whether it was taking Tempor as well or not.


    ¡°...This is pretty expensive, chat¡­ Ugh, now I¡¯m gonna have to be even more careful with my Ether.¡± I grimaced, thinking about the bottle of refined ooze I¡¯d been forced to fully use during the last floor.


    ¡°Is it even doing anything, or¡­?¡±


    I opened the box and blinked in surprise when I discovered half of the pizza back inside the box, still hot and smelling delicious.


    I grinned.


    ¡°Heck yeah! Quick life hack for infinite pizza! Delivery boys hate her!¡± I giggled before continuing to chomp on my pizza.


    My eyes glided over the ensuing messages in the group chat and I hummed and giggled to some of them. I even replied to some of them, pretending that they had come from real people.


    Deep inside, I knew that none of it truly mattered in the end¡­


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Anyway! There¡¯s still some stuff I could try merging¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> hold on I have an idea


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the gold coin gives a skill point right


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> so what if you fuse it with pizza


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> can you farm skill points by eating it?


    My eyes went wide and I made an excited noise at the back of my throat.


    ¡°Oh, that would be so broken!¡± I exclaimed, silently thanking my subconscious for coming up with the idea and the Streamer skill presenting it to me via the chat.


    I shook my head again, trying to purge that way of thinking.


    ¡°Or, maybe it just turns the pizza golden. That would kinda suck, but eh¡­ I can always just split them apart again. Let¡¯s try it!¡±


    I grabbed my trusty bucket, chomped on some ooze ¨C god, I was really getting tired of that ¨C and began the experiment. First, I pulled out the gold coin from the wallet and appraised it again just to check the wording to see if I could predict the results of the fusion.


    <u>Fate Weaver coin (gold)


    </u>A second highest denomination divine coin made by the Fate Weaver. A hundred gold coins can be fused into a single platinum coin with the use of Ether. This item can be consumed to gain 1 skill point.


    I hummed and turned to my precious pizza box with a frown.


    ¡°Actually, it¡¯s a consumable¡­ Just like the popsicle. Even if the fusion gives me skill points, it¡¯s probably going to be limited like my bracelet,¡± I rationalized.


    Still, it couldn¡¯t hurt to try. So I shrugged, grabbed both the coin and the pizza box, and prepared to use Fusion on them.


    But for some reason, it wouldn¡¯t let me. I flipped the mental switch over and over, but the coin refused to turn into pure energy like it should.


    ¡°It¡¯s, uh¡­ not working, chat¡­ It¡¯s not letting me use Fusion on this.¡±


    I lifted the coin up and frowned at it from up close. It looked the same as always. Infinity ¨C or eight ¨C symbol on one side, and ominous evil eyes on the other side. There didn¡¯t seem to be anything special about this thing. But clearly, there was. After all, the Fusion sub-skill worked on everything else, including key items that always seemed more important than others.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> damn


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> at least you don¡¯t have to eat gold now


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> no gold pizza sadge


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> its a system item so its not letting you?


    ¡°System item¡­¡± I murmured.


    I¡¯d thought the coins were just the currency of this world, save for the whole skill point business¡­ But for a coin to grant a skill point when used, it had to be somehow integrated into the system, wouldn¡¯t it? Kind of like the tickets. Those were definitely tightly tied to the system.


    I stared out into the room and my eyes caught a random chair in the corner. Then I had a wild thought.


    ¡°Well¡­ Let¡¯s test that theory¡­¡± I murmured.


    As far as I could tell, everything in this dungeon ¨C save for the monsters ¨C was pretty much indestructible. And since dungeons gave out these coins and so many of the system¡¯s achievements were tied to dungeons as well, it was safe to assume dungeons were directly related to the system. Meaning that everything inside would be a system item as well¡­ or something.


    Thinking about it, wouldn¡¯t that mean that the coins were also indestructible? I had never gone back to pick up that one copper coin I¡¯d used against the boss since I¡¯d assumed it had gotten destroyed in the aftermath¡­


    Well, whatever. It was just one coin.


    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    I walked over and grabbed a random chair. Then I walked back and grabbed another random item ¨C the magical mop was the closest ¨C and tried fusing them.


    As expected, the chair resisted the Fusion and refused to turn into a blob of energy. I frowned, and then tried to do the opposite.


    This time, it worked. The mop successfully turned into an orange blob as expected. But then, when I tried to shove it into the chair, it couldn¡¯t be done. The chair wouldn¡¯t let me.


    ¡°...Right. I see. I guess this makes sense¡­ Hmm¡­¡± I narrowed my eyes and scanned the remaining items on the table, the blob of energy still in my hand.


    Then I had a thought and pulled out my already-fused sword.


    The description of the skill said that I couldn¡¯t fuse already fused items, but I haven¡¯t yet tested what would even happen. Would it act the same as the coin and the chair?


    I tried shoving the mop into the sword and it resisted me¡­ but not completely. Unlike the coin and the chair, I felt like if I pushed it harder, it would work. And so I did. I pushed harder and harder, trying to get the damn mop inside, until finally¨C


    The entire thing made a loud pop sound and flashed, and a moment later, something crashed into the table in front of me, causing it to fall over and spill everything on the ground.


    ¡°Wha¨C No! My pizza!¡±


    I went to sheath the newly created sword, but stopped when I realized it had turned into some kind of polearm. I blinked in surprise, but quickly decided to toss it on a nearby table and deal with it later. Then I rushed to the toppled table, trying to save what I could. The pizza luckily stayed in the box, but the bottle of Tempor juice spilled all over and by the time I grabbed it, lost most of its contents.


    ¡°Nooo¡­!¡± I whined. ¡°My juice¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> and thats why you dont leave your drink opened


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol owned


    I finally looked over to the thing that had caused all this mess and found exactly what I should have expected in hindsight.


    The unfused golden gate key was there on the ground, likely ejected out of my sword after I forced the mop into it.


    Speaking of which¡­


    I glanced back at the weapon I¡¯d created, still on the table.


    <u>Ether Volt + Ether-powered mop (fused)


    </u>A fusion of two objects.


    It looked more like a glaive or a naginata now, rather than a sword. Its total length was about twice my height. Which, again in hindsight, made sense. It combined the blade of the sword with the long handle of the mop.


    The only question was whether it could generate both water and electricity and whether it had any cleaning powers like the mop had. I had no idea why or how I would want to clean with this thing, but¡­


    I took a breath and sighed. Then I found the cap for the bottle and this time properly closed it before putting it on the floor. Then I proceeded to lift the table back into standing position and put everything back on it again ¨C including the key sword. I looked at the puddle of juice with a sad frown for one last time before turning around and looking over my new naginata.


    It looked¡­ actually really cool. I had wanted an axe or something, but this was awesome too.


    ¡°Alright so¡­ This thing doesn¡¯t have the innate skill, but maybe it can actually be more useful¡­?¡±


    Granted, I had no idea how to handle a polearm, but it couldn¡¯t be that hard, right? I¡¯d learned how to handle a sword fairly quickly, after all.


    I grabbed the thing in both hands and pointed it forward at my favorite testing corner of the room. The thing felt right in my hands. I could already imagine myself slashing through hordes of zombies and sentient towels.


    I couldn¡¯t help but grin. It might have been accidental, but I had no regrets.


    Still, I needed to test it, so I carefully prodded it with my Ether, trying to figure out how it worked now. To my surprise, the blade began to sparkle and drip with water at the same time.


    I nodded to myself and stabbed it forward while feeding it more Ether, which caused a lightning bolt to shoot out of it and hit the wall.


    Then I stopped and stared as water dripped down from the spot where the lightning had hit.


    That¡­ kind of made sense? Well, only if one ignored conventional physics.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> combo element attack!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> water+lightning=more damage!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> huh that¡¯s just weird


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I like it its cool


    I grinned.


    ¡°Yeah! I like it too! It¡¯s really cool. No idea if the lightning does more damage because of the water though.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Hmm¡­ I wonder if this is really better than the fusion with the key¡­?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nonono


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> this is totally better


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can have key as backup


    ¡°I mean¡­ yeah, true. I can summon the key at any moment if I need to. Like if a monster gets too close to me, I can drop this thing, grab the key and slash them.¡±


    I nodded to myself, already thinking of various strategies I could employ with this combination. Then I pursed my lips and glanced back at my new weapon.


    ¡°The only problem is that this thing is way too bulky and I can¡¯t even put it back into the sheath¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> u can youll just look stupid lol


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> hold on


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> what if you fuse it while the sword is still in the sheath?


    I frowned.


    ¡°Why would I do that¡­ Wait¡­¡± I tilted my head and stared at the sheath still at my hip. ¡°Do you think I could make Fusion count both as the same item? Hmm¡­¡±


    Again, it didn¡¯t hurt to try. All it cost me was having to stomach more of that ooze. But that was fine. This was for science, after all!


    And making myself stronger so I wouldn¡¯t die. That too.


    So with that decided, I split the mop from the sword again, munched on some goo, sheathed the sword, and got ready to fuse the two again. The mop turned into an orange blob and got absorbed into the sword once more. I could see the sword¡¯s form elongating before it settled into the same naginata-esque form it had before.


    Except now, there was a sheath over its blade.


    ¡°Err¡­ Well, that didn¡¯t really do much¡­ Is it supposed to be like this? It looks weird.¡±


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> it is, actually


    ¡°...Really?¡± I asked, skeptically. ¡°How do I carry it then? On my back?¡±


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> naginatas and other polearms are usually carried in hand


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> the sheath is just for safety


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    Well, I couldn¡¯t expect the product of my subconscious to know all the life hacks.


    Still, I probably looked very silly, carrying around a stick that was double my height. Especially since my body was still that of a kid.


    ¡°Well, alright then. I¡¯ll have to first test this against some zombies, but I like it so far.¡± I placed the thing back on a table and turned to all the other stuff still left. ¡°Now¡­ anything else I can make¡­?¡±


    I briefly glanced at the puddle of juice on the floor again with another sad frown before stopping.


    I didn¡¯t wanna drink that anymore but¡­ It could still be useful, couldn¡¯t it?


    ¡°How about I¡­¡± I quickly considered my options and then grabbed the key again, squatted down, and touched the puddle with my other hand. I used Fusion on it and the puddle of liquid transformed into a puddle of shifting purple energy, just as I had expected.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Now¡­ Last time I fused a Tempor item with something, it made me a trump card, so let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    The key absorbed the blob, flashed, glitched, and then abruptly snapped back to its new form¡­ which looked identical to the normal gate key.


    I eyed it suspiciously and shot Appraisal at it.


    <u>Golden gate key + Tempor juice (fused)


    </u>A fusion of two objects.


    [INNATE] skill: Quick Fetch - Use a tiny amount of Tempor to teleport this item back into your hand from anywhere.


    This object is a Key item.


    I stared for a moment and huffed.


    ¡°It¡¯s exactly the same as before, chat. I was hoping for¡­ something. Ah, well¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s different tho


    ¡°How is it different?¡± I raised an eyebrow. Not that anyone could see that.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it used to say small amount of Tempor


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> now it¡¯s tiny


    I opened my mouth, then closed it, and then sighed.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ true. Didn¡¯t even see that¡­ Ugh, I was hoping for something more exciting, though¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> so spoiled lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s better than nothing


    I huffed.


    ¡°I guess! Look, you guys can¡¯t tell me that you weren¡¯t expecting something awesome!¡± I yelled, momentarily forgetting that in a way, they were me. ¡°Whatever! Good enough! Let¡¯s move on!¡±


    Once again, I glanced around the table to see if I could still make something useful.


    ¡°...I don¡¯t think anything I can make will be all that exciting, though. Well, it¡¯s fine. I can still experiment. And then, I better learn how to channel Ether without Craftsman or this thing will feel like a waste.¡± I glanced at my glove and wiggled my fingers.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> training montage incoming

 #034 – I thought this wasn’t a video game

    I woke up with a groan as I blinked away the sleepiness.


    For the first time since I¡¯d found myself in this world, I wasn¡¯t confused about where I was when I woke up.


    Had I finally accepted my situation?


    ¡°Morning, chat,¡± I mumbled and got up from the floor.


    Sleeping on the hard floor of the dungeon probably wasn¡¯t the best for my back, ugh. I needed to find a proper shelter¡­ or at least a pillow or something. Was it too much to hope the dungeon would give me a pillow? Probably. If only the outside wasn¡¯t still wet from the rain¡­


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Good morning, Nana.


    ¡°Mmm¡­ Hey, Ranger. Are you my morning fairy for today?¡± I asked as I idly began to do my morning squats. I had kind of forgotten about those yesterday.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I guess so.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Did you sleep well?


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop! ©d( ??? )? ? *


    ¡°Ugh, well¡­ Could have been better. Oh, hey, Booper! You too! Haven¡¯t seen you in a while.¡± My mouth automatically curled into a smile as I said that silly name out loud. ¡°But nah, I¡¯m fine. I think I had a dream about beating up a bird with a giant egg though. That was weird.¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Sounds silly.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Does it have anything to do with your quest?


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­? (¡Ñ_¡Ñ)


    ¡°Probably¡­ I haven¡¯t been thinking much about it, but yeah. Just wanna punch the damn Phoenix, you know?¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Understandable.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Have you thought about taking on more quests?


    I stopped for a moment before continuing with the squats.


    ¡°I¡­ I think I forgot about quests altogether for a bit.¡±


    I¡¯d completed the non-starvation one a few days ago, but hadn¡¯t even tried to generate more quests to go with it. It had kind of¡­ slipped my mind.


    And nobody in chat had pointed it out until now, either.


    Just more evidence that they were just the product of my subconscious mind¡­ But then again, Ranger had pointed it out now, so maybe¡­?


    ¡­Anyway. Quests.


    They weren¡¯t even that good, to be honest. Achievements gave way more skill points than quests for a lot less effort. Not to mention, failing a quest would give me negative skill points.


    But then again, achievements were limited. Quests seemingly weren¡¯t. Not to mention, completing side and hidden objectives seemed to give extra rewards besides skill points. If I could stack up on those tickets, it would make me exponentially more powerful the more I got. If the bonus stacked multiplicatively, that is. But that was kind of hard to tell¡­


    Either way, if I could breathe fire all day long without worrying about collapsing, that would make fighting much easier. And since I didn¡¯t really know what exactly increased my maximum reserves besides the tickets, I might as well try and get more of those, right?


    ¡°Well, why not? I can have one main quest and three side quests at once, right? So since I¡¯ve completed that one side quest, I can still take one more. Let¡¯s see here¡­¡±


    <u>Generate new quests</u>


    <u>Generating new quests, please wait¡­</u>


    ¡°...Right. I forgot it takes a bit.¡±


    I finished with my squats and began with the push ups while idly talking with the two. By the time I finished those, I had a few status windows waiting for me.


    ¡°Now, let¡¯s see here¡­¡±


    <u>New quests generated:


    </u><u>Good night¡¯s sleep (side quest)</u><u>


    </u><u>First contact (side quest)</u>


    <u>Good night¡¯s sleep:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 32s )


    You¡¯ve been homeless and sleeping wherever for a few days now. Find a proper shelter to settle down in.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 3SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 5SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (30 days)


    Decline</u>


    <u>First contact:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 32s )<u>


    </u>You¡¯ve been wandering in the wilderness for a few days and you have yet to encounter any sentient creatures besides yourself. Try and find someone.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 4SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 6SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (60 days)


    Decline</u>


    ¡°...Right. And I can only accept one of them. Hmm.¡± I narrowed my eyes in suspicion as I went over the quests again. ¡°Why does it feel like I came up with those quests myself¡­? Like¡­ Just a few minutes ago, I thought how nice it would be to have somewhere better to sleep at. And I¡¯ve been wanting to meet other people since the start¡­¡±


    Probably because the system was reading my mind to create these quests, just like the chat.


    I grimaced at that thought.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Possibly because the quests seem to be personalized for what you want/need at the moment?


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what I think too. It¡¯s kinda creepy though¡­ Stupid mind reading system, ugh¡­¡± I grumbled.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop! (?>©n<)


    ¡°Well, whatever! Which one should I pick? Hmm¡­ Why do I feel like the first contact one is a bait? Like¡­ I¡¯m not going to be able to find anyone in this world. But this quest will make me desperately search for someone and then I¡¯ll be depressed when I finally fail the quest,¡± I said a bit sourly.


    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> That¡¯s a bit too pessimistic, no?


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Wasn¡¯t there a phoenix somewhere?


    I grunted as I finally stood up and headed for the table where all my stuff still lay. I¡¯d done a lot of experiments with Fusion yesterday, although I hadn¡¯t gotten a whole lot of exciting stuff after the naginata. I¡¯d just combined the Ether pop with the Tempor juice for a two-in-one drink and that was about it in terms of useful results.


    ¡°Well yeah, maybe¡­ But after yesterday¡­ I don¡¯t know. There could be time nonsense happening, so the phoenix might not even be around¡­ or this could just be a simulation and the phoenix was never real in the first place, or¡­¡± I took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bwoop¡­ ( ¡ä??)?(._.`)


    ¡°Anyway! I think I¡¯m gonna pick the other quest. Finding a shelter shouldn¡¯t be that hard, right?¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Good night¡¯s sleep¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find a shelter to sleep in<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Create that shelter yourself


    Find some bedding and a pillow


    Have a proper door to your shelter


    <u>Rewards</u> - 3SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 5SP debt


    I blinked at the side objectives.


    ¡°...It wants me to build a shelter myself? Yeah, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s happening.¡± I shook my head. ¡°A door could be possible¡­ but bedding and pillow, uh, I would have to find some. I doubt I will, though,¡± I mumbled to myself as I packed all of my stuff into the backpack once more and prepared to set off.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Are you going back to dungeoneering already?


    ¡°Yeah, I mean, I gotta test out my cool new weapon, right?¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Your phoenix skills are still on cooldown though.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Wouldn¡¯t it be dangerous?


    ¡°That¡¯s true¡­¡± I grunted. ¡°I won¡¯t go too deep for now. And I can do other things now! Like the bubble cannonball or the key!¡±


    Speaking of, I¡¯d sort of gotten the hang of channeling my Ether manually without the help of Craftsman. It was far from perfect, and I definitely couldn¡¯t properly do it in the heat of a battle without messing up, but it was a start.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Alright. Just be careful.


    And with that, I shrugged on the backpack, grabbed my awesome new naginata, climbed out of the window, and headed for the gate once more. I also briefly glanced at the entrance and saw that luckily, it wasn¡¯t raining anymore. Maybe I could sleep on the grass today again, rather than the hard floor of the dungeon.


    Then I frowned to myself as a thought struck me.


    ¡°I wonder if this is the final floor, chat¡­ I mean, it feels like I¡¯m following a pattern. The first floor was the front entrance where you pay the fee, then you change in the locker room, and then you go to the pool to swim, right? What could possibly come after this?¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Another locker room?<u>


    bloopbooper:</u> bloop ¨r (. ? ? ?.) ¨q


    I snorted.


    ¡°That would be incredibly lame¡­ But I guess It¡¯s possible, yeah.¡±


    I stepped through the golden gate and was greeted with the pools once more. Now, I could go through the maze of the side buildings again, but I felt like I¡¯d already gone through those thoroughly enough and it was time to move on.


    But then again, I¡¯d gotten some amazing loot from them. Both the infinite pizza and the popsicle were from the chests over there¡­


    Well, there were probably going to be more chests in the other section of this floor as well.


    So finally, after sneaking a peek of them oh so long ago, I approached the pools, hoping that maybe I could even swim in them.


    Naturally, as soon as I got close enough to one to take a good look, I stopped and took a careful step back from the pool.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> That doesn¡¯t look like water¡­


    It had this bluish cyan hue that was typical for pool water, just like I¡¯d observed from afar, but¡­ It wasn¡¯t because it reflected the color of the sky like water would. No, this liquid was completely opaque and didn¡¯t look natural at all. It only looked like water from afar.


    It had tricked me!


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Appraise it?


    I shot Appraisal at it and stared.


    <u>Death water


    </u>Dungeon liquid that drains intruders¡¯ Ether on touch and creates dungeon monsters.


    ¡°Death water?! Seriously? What is this, a platformer game?!¡± I yelled in indignation. ¡°So it¡¯s basically lava? Don¡¯t fall in or you die? Come on, man!¡±


    And apparently, it also created dungeon monsters. So as soon as I walked in between the pools, hordes would probably emerge from it and swarm me.


    Great.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> That¡¯s not good.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­ (¨®©n¨°?)


    I groaned and rubbed my forehead.


    Part of me wanted to just boldly walk in like it was nobody¡¯s business, but I had no idea what kind of monsters would even emerge. More zombies? Sentient swimsuits? Flying hamburgers? Could be anything. I didn¡¯t trust it.


    Worst of all, if I got swarmed, I couldn¡¯t even use my usual strategy of lighting everything on fire since Flameguard was still on cooldown.


    ¡°Okay, fine¡­ I¡¯m gonna go back for a bit and wait till I can swap my fire skills back in just in case¡­¡±


    With some mixed feelings I walked back to the gate and sat down while looking out into the third floor. Unlike the other two floors, I could see most of it from the entrance, although I had no idea where the exit¡­ or the boss room was. It was probably hidden away in a non-euclidean corner like always.


    I sighed.


    ¡°So¡­ Anyway¡­ How are you two doing¡­?¡± I randomly asked, despite part of me feeling like it was pointless to do so. They were me, after all, weren¡¯t they?


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I¡¯m doing okay. Just a little tired.<u>


    bloopbooper:</u> bloop! ????(? ?? ? - ? ) ?


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I¡¯ve been pulling a lot of allnighters lately.


    I cracked a smile.


    ¡°That¡¯s good¡­ Oh, are you still working on your game, Ranger?¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Yeah. Balancing it is tough though.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> And juggling it with everything else.


    I winced in sympathy. I¡¯d had to juggle streaming and work not too long ago so I knew just how much that could take out of someone.


    ¡°Oof, yeah¡­ I feel you.¡± I smiled. ¡°Once it¡¯s done, I can play it on stream!¡± I suggested, pushing away the intrusive thoughts telling me that I would first have to get back to Earth, and that this Ranger wasn¡¯t even the real person, and¨C


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> That would be great! I¡¯ll work hard to make it perfect then!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop! (?¡ä>?<)~*


    ¡°Sure!¡± I grinned.


    What a funny duo this morning. Like a cute little animal and an older cousin working hard on their passions. I could almost forget that they weren¡¯t real.


    I sat there, chatting with the two for a while, before more people began to pop up in the group chat. At some point, I decided to snoop around the buildings once more instead of sitting idly.


    ¡°I still need to get used to using this thing¡­ and test the glove on the zombies¡­ and maybe I¡¯ll find some more treasures,¡± I reasoned.


    Chat seemed to agree that it was a good idea.


    I entered the same building as yesterday and began exploring more of the maze, running into several zombies on my way. Having to fight with a long polearm indoors was¡­ very awkward, to say the least. Even if I tried to keep my distance and just shoot wet lightning at them.


    I ended up putting it into my backpack and using the key and the cannonball bubble glove to fight them, in the end. The glove was excellent for pushing them away, and the key was enough to deal the finishing blows, but¡­


    ¡°That sucks, chat¡­ I really wanted to use my cool new weapon¡­ Maybe it will be more useful out there, though.¡± I glanced out of one of the windows overlooking the pools. ¡°Speaking of¡­ The cooldowns should be almost up. Time to check out the main part of this floor.¡±


    I quickly made my way back, stashed away the key, and pulled out my naginata once more ¨C I just wanted to make it work, okay?


    I briefly thought about swapping in the skills right away, but held on for the moment. I could instantly swap them in at any point, after all. And if I could get through this floor without needing to use the phoenix skills¡­ that would mean that I had gotten better at this. I wanted to test myself. To try to stand on my own feet without ¡®cheating¡¯.


    And also, it felt like giving the damn phoenix the middle finger if I didn¡¯t use the gift they¡¯d given me.


    Take that, you damn bird.

 #035 – Look, it’s not my fault this dungeon is stupidly designed!

    I walked past the pools of death water while carefully scanning my surroundings. My hands gripped my naginata, ready to strike at anything trying to ambush me.


    As soon as I was between two different pools, I heard sloshing to the side and whirled around while pointing my weapon at the threat.


    As expected, something was coming out of the water.


    It looked like all the other zombies I¡¯d encountered so far except¡­ it wore a pair of inflatable sleeves on its arms, a pool ring around its waist, and was dressed in a one-piece female swimsuit.


    Contrasted with its hobbling and general zombie-like movement, it looked both creepy and ridiculous.


    I was only weirded out for a brief second before I stabbed my weapon forward and shot lightning at the thing¡¯s midsection.


    Due to the zombie¡¯s erratic movement, the lightning hit its pool ring instead, and to my surprise, instead of destroying it, it got absorbed by it. The pool ring sparkled and then gained a glow around it. The zombie only stumbled a little, but otherwise remained unaffected.


    ¡°That¡¯s cheating!¡± I yelled in surprise.


    Since when did pool rings act as lightning rods? Stupid dungeon nonsense.


    Before the zombie could completely recover, I let go of the naginata with my left hand, lined up a shot and fired off a bubble at it. Immediately afterwards, I re-grabbed my naginata and shot lightning at the bubble a moment after it smacked the zombie in the chest.


    The thing exploded in a burst of water, as expected, and sent the zombie flying.


    Like, flying.


    The sheer ridiculousness of the zombie dressed in swimming wear ragdolling through the air made me snicker out loud.


    The zombie splashed back into the pool and my surroundings went silent save for my giggling.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> LMAO


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bwoooop ( ¨R?¨Q)


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> careful, it might come back


    ¡°Ha¡­ Yeah, I know. Still¡­ It just looks ridiculous, you know?¡±


    Just as I got my giggles under control, there was another splash behind me. I reacted instantly. My body whipped around as I slashed with my naginata, sending a lightning slash at the two zombies fumbling their way out of the pool.


    One of them got hit in the head and knocked back inside, but the other one blocked it with one of its inflatable sleeves.


    ¡°That¡¯s so annoying¡­¡± I grumbled but was already charging forward.


    Just as the zombie stood up at the edge of the pool, I drove my naginata into its head, splitting it in two, and making it lifelessly crumble to the ground. It dissipated into mist a few seconds later.


    ¡°Feels really easy, though¡­ They take so long climbing out, I have all the time in the world to push them back. Even if they have¡­ er, armor, I guess.¡± I shrugged.


    I wasn¡¯t going to complain. A breather of a floor after the last one would be appreciated. Although something told me that this was only the beginning and I was going to regret calling this easy.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> that¡¯s a death flag¡­


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> ez floor


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gonna be boring


    I side-eyed the comments, but quickly prepared for the other zombie I¡¯d hit with the lightning, not believing that a single lightning attack had been enough to kill it.


    I waited for about ten seconds in the silence before my eyebrows creased into a frown.


    ¡°...Is it dead? Why isn¡¯t it coming out?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> despawned lol


    ¡°I doubt that. Nothing in this dungeon despawns or respawns¡­ It¡¯s probably waiting for when my guard is down, ugh.¡± I grumbled to myself.


    Or it could just be dead. After all, this was lightning from my upgraded weapon, not to mention, the zombies were already covered in what I assumed was a conductive liquid. That ought to have done more damage than usual, right?


    Regardless, I turned around and continued walking while keeping an ear open for any splashing noises.


    Naturally, the moment I relaxed a little, I saw three arms shoot out of the pool to my left and grab the edge of the pool before pulling themselves up.


    I set my feet, lifted my naginata, and as soon as their ugly faceless faces broke the surface and hobbled to the edge, I slashed with my weapon while releasing lightning as usual.


    Two of them blocked it with their sleeves, one got hit in the head and fell back into the water.


    I stepped closer before they could fully make it to the surface and brought my blade down on one of their heads, splitting it in half. I quickly pulled it out, back, and then stabbed forward at the remaining zombie just as it stood up on all fours on the surface.


    I missed.


    The zombie lunged at me, past my naginata.


    My eyes went wide and I gasped, but managed to act quickly. My hands let go of my weapon, I summoned my key sword to my right hand, and swiftly brought it down on the zombie¡¯s head, ending its charge.


    I breathed in and out a few times frantically, staring at the zombie as it vanished into mist.


    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    ¡°O-Okay, chat. A bit of a downside of the naginata¨C¡±


    Then my ears picked up on wet footsteps behind me and I whirled around to intercept my attacker, but I was too late.


    A clawed hand struck me in my left arm, making me scream and stumble. But even through the pain, I quickly found my assailant and swung the key sword at it.


    I did not expect the zombie to lift up its arm and block the sword with its stupid inflatable sleeve, though.


    I had no time to complain about how bullshit that was before the thing pounced on me, its one free clawed hand reaching for my neck.


    My sword had gotten blocked and my left arm was screaming in pain so I couldn¡¯t easily lift it to shoot bubble at my opponent.


    <u>Replace [Appsaisal] with [Flameguard]?


    </u>Note: [Appsaisal] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    [Flameguard] equipped.


    I immediately burst into thick flames strong enough to repel the zombie¡¯s lunge and push it back.


    Both of us stumbled back a step. I quickly recovered, since the fire also partially healed my left arm, lit my key sword on fire and readied myself to swing again.


    But the zombie, who was on fire now, turned around, scrambled to the pool again before plunging back into the water.


    I stared in confusion, fear, shock, and anger while frantically looking around for any more ambushes.


    ¡°...You little bastard,¡± I growled under my breath.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit shes swearing


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> shit is real now


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Are you alright, Nana?


    ¡°...Sorry. I¡¯m alright,¡± I mumbled as I lit my bleeding arm on fire again to heal it.


    So this was the theme of this floor. Ambush from unexpected angles while I fought other enemies.


    I wasn¡¯t sure, but I suspected the last guy had actually been the very first zombie I¡¯d encountered ¨C the one I¡¯d launched with the bubble cannonball. I hadn¡¯t noticed it climbing back up at all since I was too busy dealing with the three in front of me. The splashing sounds and the noise from the lightning had been enough to drown out the sounds the ambusher had made.


    I groaned.


    ¡°This is going to suck even more, chat¡­ Last floor, I could at least take my time sussing out ambushes. But now they come at me while I¡¯m in the middle of fights already¡­¡±


    I wasn¡¯t very good at noticing other things while I was focused on something. If this happened again, I could be in serious trouble next time.


    Sure, I could use this opportunity to train my situational awareness or whatever, but¡­ Ugh¡­


    Suddenly, I had an idea.


    I glanced at the fake water with a critical eye, seeing as that burning jerk hadn¡¯t emerged yet.


    Now, I knew that it wasn¡¯t real water, but maybe it had some properties of water? Like¡­ conducting electricity? If the stupid zombie wasn¡¯t going to come out on its own until it could ambush me again, I could smoke it out.


    ¡°Well, how about I just don¡¯t let them?¡± I said with a smirk before putting away the key sword, grabbing my naginata from the ground, and slowly approaching the pool of ¡®water¡¯.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> wait what are you doing?


    ¡°I¡¯m doing¡­ this!¡±


    I pulled my weapon back, fed it as much Ether as I could, and then stabbed it forward at the pool, causing a giant bolt of lightning to shoot out and connect with the ¡®water¡¯.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> This is a terrible idea!


    Not just the one pool I¡¯d hit, but every single pool on the third floor that I could see lit up and crackled for a brief moment before growing still once more. A moment of silence followed.


    They were all connected. Of course they were.


    ¡°There we go! That ought to teach¨C¡±


    And then it began.


    Dozens¡­ Hundreds of trembling hands suddenly shot out of the pools and grabbed the edge all around their perimeters.


    I froze in my tracks as blood drained from my face.


    Oh.


    Oh FUCK.


    What have I done?!


    One by one, zombies began to slowly pull themselves out of the lake and I forced myself back to reality to do something about this.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I told you this was a terrible idea!


    I pulled my naginata back again, loaded it up with Ether and shot another bolt toward the pool, hoping to catch everything inside as well.


    It worked¡­ sort of. Since they were all still at least partially submerged, every single one of them spasmed and faltered in their advance for a moment.


    What I didn¡¯t expect was for a whole other horde of arms to reach up from the pool and try to drag themselves out again. As if shooting that lightning had automatically triggered a horde, regardless of whether there were any zombies in that pool or not.


    I briefly remembered what Appraisal had told me about the water. It created the monsters. I¡¯d attacked the water itself and now it was attacking me back?!


    ¡°Stupid video game mechanics!¡± I screamed before quickly running for it as quickly as I could, hoping to get out of the dungeon and lose aggro.


    Naturally, I didn¡¯t get very far before my path got blocked off and I was swarmed with zombies.


    I activated Bullet Time and the tumbling limbs of the undead suddenly slowed down to a near halt. I proceed to weave through the bodies, cutting down those who were directly in my way and hurrying the hell up toward the gate.


    The zombies abruptly snapped back into their normal speed and I grit my teeth before lighting myself and my naginata on fire while I continued to barrel through the horde.


    Somehow, I managed to make it all the way to the gate and was stupid enough to briefly look back.


    My eyes went wide as the sea of zombies all hobbled their way toward the gate without stopping. I swore under my breath, turned forward again and kept running through the corridor of floor one.


    Just as I thought I was scot free, a pair of swimmer zombies suddenly emerged from the windows right in front of me, making me yelp and abort my sprint.


    That was unfortunately enough for the rest of the horde to catch up. I felt something tear through my back and screamed while lighting my whole body on fire once again.


    My knuckles went white with how hard I clutched the naginata in my hands and I spun around with it, hoping to knock as many away as possible. I could barely parse what I was seeing in all the fire and avalanche of bodies, but I could clearly feel my weapon snagging on things as I spun.


    I managed to get a moment to catch my breath thanks to my zoning move, but I couldn¡¯t keep doing this for much longer. My Ether was reaching dangerously low levels. I needed to either finish it or get out now.


    Unfortunately, since it was so hard to see because of all the fire and zombies, and because of my spin earlier, I couldn¡¯t tell which way was the gate and which way was the dungeon entrance.


    I took a gamble and picked one at random, praying to the fucking Fate Weaver that I picked the right one.


    A few minutes of slashing through more zombies and stumbling on rapidly vanishing corpses, I found myself¡­ back at the golden gate.


    Motherfucker!


    I frantically glanced back, ready to charge right back in, only to falter as more and more zombies climbed out of the windows. Because apparently, in the few minutes that I¡¯d been running, the hordes decided to settle down on floor one instead.


    I considered charging through anyway, but decided against it in the end. For whatever reason, there were now fewer zombies on floor three than there were on floor one. I had no idea how that had happened, but it was probably safer to stay here for the time being.


    But safer didn¡¯t mean safe. Just a couple of zombies were enough to ruin my day, after all.


    Before too many of the zombies on floor one could get any ideas, I ran toward one of the fast food buildings, tore the door open, and then slammed it shut again before any of them followed me in.


    Then I grabbed one of the surprisingly heavy boxes lying around ¨Cprobably meant to imitate a box of ingredients for the fast food even though there was nothing inside ¨C and dragged it in front of the door to block it.


    Then the banging and scratching on the door began and I cringed away from it while trying to calm my breaths.


    I wondered if the dungeon was going to give me another secret chest for doing something this dumb again.


    <u>¡®</u><u>This is my new pet¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Serial kidnapper¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points

 #036 – Not a leap, a SLIDE of faith

    <u>This is my new pet</u> - Lure a dungeon monster into a floor where it doesn¡¯t belong. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Serial kidnapper</u> - Lure 50 or more dungeon monsters into a floor where they don¡¯t belong. [COMPLETE]


    I held in the groan. There was no need to get upset. This was a good thing, wasn¡¯t it? More skill points meant better skills, which meant better chances of survival.


    If only getting these achievements didn¡¯t feel like someone was pointing out the latest dumb thing I¡¯d done.


    ¡°...Hey, look, chat. I have fifty new pets, apparently. Don¡¯t know why it accuses me of kidnapping though. They kidnapped themselves! I¡¯m totally innocent!¡± I joked just to cut through the tension while checking my bracelet to see how much of its charge I¡¯d wasted in my screwup.


    85% left. Not that bad then.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Are you alright¡­?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> that was well played tho


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol go zap more lakes


    ¡°I¡¯m fiiine, chat! I¡¯m used to this! Happens all the time!¡± I sang with fake cheer, trying to make myself believe the lie.


    They were, of course, skeptical. Probably because I subconsciously knew that I wasn¡¯t alright at all. Regardless, most of them backed off after some reassurances.


    I didn¡¯t drop my guard just yet, though. Even as the banging and scratching on the door gradually lessened and eventually stopped, I still stood with my weapon in hand, ready to strike. After all, I could very well get flanked from a completely different direction because of the nonsensical physics.


    Just like what had happened a minute ago, dammit.


    Ugh, I couldn¡¯t believe I let myself get cornered like that.


    I shook those thoughts away and began to slowly relax as the noises from the outside petered out and left me in silence. I briefly glanced out of the window and noticed all the zombies still on floor three making their way to the nearest pool and dropping themselves into them.


    Huh.


    Well, I hadn¡¯t expected them to actually give up, but no complaints from me.


    I let out a sigh of relief, propped up my naginata against a nearby wall, and then reached into my backpack to bring out my drink. Ether pop fused with the rest of the Tempor juice I had.


    I took a sip of the deliciously sweet liquid ¨C although I wished it wasn¡¯t carbonated ¨C and felt my Ether gradually refill.


    ¡°So, anyway¡­ Didn¡¯t expect the pools to spit out hordes of zombies in response. Imagine if this system had some kind of XP system, though. You could totally farm this place! Too bad it only ends up being annoying.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> except when you get a secret chest


    ¡°Except when I get a secret chest, yeah. I wonder if I got one for this¡­ Kinda doubt it though. I bet I would have to defeat all of them at minimum for one.¡±


    It was only a postulate though. I didn¡¯t actually know how the dungeon decided what was ¡®stupid¡¯ enough to deserve one of those chests.


    ¡°Well, whatever. I¡¯m not gonna try to get another secret chest anyway. I¡¯m not suicidal.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> debatable


    I gave the group chat window a stink eye. Not that anyone could see that.


    ¡°Anywho. I guess I¡¯ll just keep going now. The whole ambush thing is annoying, but I can deal with it.¡±


    Part of me felt a bit miffed that I¡¯d had to rely on the damn bird¡¯s gift again, but oh well. If using the phoenix skills helped me get closer to punching the actual phoenix, I wouldn¡¯t complain too much.


    I finally gathered myself, put away my soda can, grabbed my weapon, pushed the box blocking the door away, and headed out of my hiding spot.


    Sure enough, the entirety of floor three was devoid of zombies once more. Meanwhile, a quick look through the golden gate showed that some were still aimlessly milling around on the first floor instead of coming back like the rest for some reason. It was a tad eyebrow-raising, but I blamed it on buggy AI.


    Not that this was a game or anything¡­ But it sure felt like one in a lot of ways.


    I ignored the zombies past the gate, deciding to deal with them on my way back, and wandered toward the pools once more.


    Now that I knew that the zombies hiding in the pools were likely infinite in number, I didn¡¯t bother making sure I finished off every zombie I fought. As long as I knocked them back into the pool, it was fine.


    Although¡­ It made me wonder whether I could evaporate the pools. What would happen if I completely evaporated all of them? Would the zombies stop coming? Hmm¡­ It actually sounded like something that would grant a secret chest, now that I thought about it.


    Well, not like I had enough Ether for a stunt like that anyway.


    The first zombie emerged from the pools as I walked by and I immediately pushed it back with a lunge of my naginata. The second and third appeared behind me and I dealt with them with a horizontal slash, catching both of them. The fourth tried to ambush me from behind and I shoved it with the blunt end of my weapon before turning around and slashing down at it with the bladed end.


    I was getting used to their tricks now. Sure, it didn¡¯t help my tense nerves at all that I had to be constantly vigilant, but the ambushes were getting more and more predictable. They always seemed to come from directly behind while I was dealing with two or more zombies at the front.


    It felt like I¡¯d learned the monster AI in a video game. They didn¡¯t really have any more tricks. Just avoid hitting their inflatable rings and sleeves, and be careful about ambushes from behind. Simple.


    Now that I thought about it, the monsters from the other floors could also be learned like this. Heck, even the floor one boss. Once I¡¯d known what it could do, I¡¯d won without any problems. They were all one trick ponies without the ability to learn and adapt.


    ¡­


    Maybe this was just a simulation in the end? And if it was, the chat was entirely simulated, like I¡¯d thought. But¡­ was I also simulated? Was the real me still back on Earth, happily streaming to the real chat from the safety of their home?


    I stopped and slowly swallowed, but kept looking around for any ambushes.


    But¡­ Why? Why would anyone want to simulate me? The message said ¡®Good luck! ;)¡¯, so was this some kind of test? What was the goal of it all? Had the real me agreed to this?


    I shook my head.


    I really really needed to stop thinking too hard about this. There was no way I could get any answers right now, so¡­ Might as well leave going insane for later.


    ¡°...You know, besides the whole angry horde thing, this floor is pretty chill so far. It¡¯s not even a stupid maze again,¡± I said out loud, forcing my thoughts to a different topic. ¡°That just makes me feel like I¡¯ll soon run into something that will utterly destroy me¡­¡±


    I kept going.


    Sure enough, I soon realized that something was wrong with this place.


    I scowled at the pools around me, eying the path I¡¯d come from.


    ¡°Come on, dungeon¡­ There aren¡¯t even any walls here, why is this another nonsensical maze?¡±


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    It was hard to notice from moment to moment ¨C especially since I was constantly getting accosted by zombies ¨C but my surroundings shifted like a very subtle funhouse mirror as I walked. I could walk in a straight line and I would find myself right at the beginning.


    I huffed, skipping past all the stages of grief and resigning myself to wandering around right away.


    ¡°What is even my goal? Where¡¯s the exit? Or the boss room?¡± I grumbled as I walked.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe you have to enter the maze from a specific spot


    <u>GonguuH:</u> maybe the waterslide? or the tunnels?


    I hummed at chat¡¯s ideas, eyeing the section where all the waterslides were.


    ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t know about that. Why would I wanna slide into the death water? The tunnels¡­ could be it, but they are also filled with the water, so I don¡¯t know¡­¡±


    Although, maybe specific spots had actual water and I had to swim through them to get to the boss room. That could be the trick here.


    My expression soured.


    How was I going to swim while holding a weapon? I hoped there wouldn¡¯t be any monsters if I had to go through water¡­


    I continued wandering for a bit before leaving the collection of pools and entering them from a different angle, hoping it would lead me somewhere else.


    Even though Ebi wasn¡¯t here to make more maps today ¨C she¡¯d mentioned having an appointment of some sort ¨C I didn¡¯t have much of an issue navigating this time. Part of it because there weren¡¯t any same-looking walls like in the stupid locker maze, part of it because Gong kept tracking my route and telling me the exact steps I needed to take to return where I¡¯d come from.


    Anyway, I went in and out of the collection of pools a few times for several hours, my zombie killcount probably reaching hundreds at this point, before I finally found a way through.


    I¡¯d reached the waterslide section, where three different waterslides sat side by side, all leading down into the death water. I stared up at them for a moment before shrugging and making my way to the little stairway leading up to them.


    But weirdly enough, as I walked, both the stairs and the waterslides gradually shrunk and flattened and by the time I reached them, they were completely gone.


    ¡°What the heck¡­?¡± I murmured as I looked around and froze. ¡°Wait, what the heck?!¡±


    I was back in the middle of the collection of pools and nowhere near the water slides.


    ¡°Oh, come on!¡± I whined. ¡°A teleport trap?!¡±


    As if on cue, seven different zombies began emerging from the pools all around me, making me grip my naginata and growl in frustration.


    I didn¡¯t give them a chance to surround me and moved. I whipped my left hand at a nearby zombie and launched a bubble at him, knocking him back into the lake while dashing forward at another one. I readjusted my grip on the naginata, raised it up high, and brought it down on another zombie¡¯s skull. Then I lit my weapon on fire while simultaneously activating the circuits and slashed horizontally at the pair of zombies trying to flank me from the side.


    The lightning slash covered in flames hit them just above their floaties and then sizzled with steam, creating a seared cut and knocking them over.


    The last three zombies came from the back, but I had enough experience with their tricks and with my weapon that I simply swung the blunt end of my weapon to stagger them, then turned around and finished them one by one.


    A couple of seconds later, the fight was over.


    I took a moment to breathe even as I grumbled and pulled out my trusty bucket to recover some Ether.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> no I¡¯m just saying there might be a trick to it like the lockers


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> and I¡¯m saying she came from the wrong angle


    There was some arguing in the chat about why it had teleported me back. Jeoff kept insisting that I needed to find a different way in, while Gong thought I had to approach the waterslides in a specific way.


    The worst part was that either one was a possibility. From what this stupid dungeon had pulled already, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if I needed to dance my way to the waterslides or something to not have the dungeon teleport me back.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Or maybe this was supposed to happen? Like needing to go through the lockers to reach the boss room on floor two.


    I hummed as I gathered myself again from my short break.


    ¡°That might be it. But really, it could be anything,¡± I admitted as I began walking again.


    Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t know how to get back since I¡¯d gotten teleported, so it took me much longer to find my way out this time. But at least I wasn¡¯t trapped completely.


    Once I was out, I tried following the same route that had led to the waterslides the first time and¡­ the path hadn¡¯t changed at all. So either Ranger was wrong, or I had to go through the same teleport multiple times before something happened.


    It didn¡¯t sound right, to be honest. This dungeon liked to throw curveballs and rarely repeated the same exact challenges. So having to do this several times would just be stupid.


    ¡­Would it give me a secret chest if I were to repeat this a hundred times?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> try to look back at the pools and then walk backwards into it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> just find a different entrance ffs


    I shrugged, checked for zombies, and then turned my back to the waterslides and began walking backwards.


    ¡°If this does nothing, I¡¯ll try finding a different way in,¡± I idly murmured, still wondering whether repeatedly grinding out being teleported would be worth the chance of getting a secret chest.


    Maybe not.


    My back suddenly bumped into something, making me startle, and whip around, naginata at the ready.


    I blinked, realizing that it was the stairway¡¯s railing.


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    The top of the stairway¡¯s railing.


    My head whipped back at the pools and my eyes went wide when I realized that I had somehow found myself at the top of the stairway, next to the tops of the waterslides, looking down at the water park.


    ¡°Whoaaa?!¡± I immediately set my feet and grabbed onto a nearby railing, trying to steady myself¡­ even if I didn¡¯t need it.


    Look, heights were scary, okay?


    I took a few seconds to calm down and then did my best to stop the shaking while taking in the absolute nonsense that had just occurred.


    ¡°...Right. Makes sense,¡± I lied while giving a sage nod.


    Hey. There was no point in getting surprised and baffled by this dungeon¡¯s physics anymore. I was more startled by the sudden danger of falling to my death than anything.


    ¡°So, what do we have here¡­?¡± I murmured as I casually leaned on the railing ¨C while my hands reflexively gripped the railing like my life depended on it ¨C and glanced around.


    It honestly looked like a regular water park from up here. One surrounded by vague outlines of buildings that I couldn¡¯t quite make out despite them being relatively near.


    Probably more warped space nonsense.


    ¡°...I wonder if I could reach any of these? Like¡­ if I could fly, maybe?¡± I mused.


    Flight sounded both exciting and terrifying. Not having to worry about falling to my death was cool, but like¡­ what if it suddenly stopped working or something?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> going out of bounds?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it would probably teleport you back


    ¡°Mmm, yeah. Probably¡­ Or maybe it would lead to another secret chest.¡±


    I had no idea why I kept thinking about different ways I could get more secret chests when getting the last one had nearly killed me.


    Probably the loot. Yeah, the loot had been great.


    I kept getting in life or death situations all the time anyway, so why did I care about danger so much? Not like any of this was real. Not like the real me would die if I died, right? Heck, even if this was real, since I¡¯d been born from a phoenix egg, maybe I was immortal and would just respawn after dying?


    And even if not, there was no way I could survive in this world for very long, was there? With nobody around, and dungeons always trying to kill me, it would only take one tiny slipup before I died and it all ended.


    So might as well go all out before that happened. Go with whatever crazy ideas might pop into my head.


    ¡°...Anywho. I¡¯m guessing these waterslides are the key to everything, then?¡± I summarized, seeing as there were no other ways I could go, other than back down.


    I stopped leaning on the railing and walked to the waterslides, setting my trembling feet one in front of the other, pretending that I was totally cool being this far up.


    Anyway, the water slides. There were three of them. One of them was a long flat slide with a gentle incline, clearly meant for children, one was a spiraling chute, and the last one was a very steep ¨C nearly vertical ¨C drop straight down into the pool.


    I blinked as I looked between the first and the last one ¨C hands gripping the railing once more. The height difference between them was more than clear, yet their landing spots were at the same elevation. Likewise, both their entrances were right by each other.


    I hummed, ignoring the blatant violation of space.


    ¡°Which one, chat?¡± I asked, forcing myself to look at the landing spots, trying to figure out which pools could have real water in them, and which of them were traps.


    Or maybe I would get teleported once I reached the bottom. Who knew?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> poll it?


    I hummed again and quickly set up the poll before sitting down in the middle of the walkway, far away from the railings and waiting for the votes to come in.


    I glanced around once more, suspicious of the fact that no monsters had tried attacking me up here so far. It felt like a calm before the storm and I didn¡¯t like it one bit.


    Well, whatever. Not like any of this was real¨C


    I forcefully shook my head.


    This whole thing was really screwing with my head.


    Was chat real? Was I real? How long could I keep acting like nothing was wrong in this clusterfuck of a¨C


    ¡°Okay! Poll results! What do we have here¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    <u>Poll: ¡®Which way are we slidin¡¯?¡¯</u>


    <u>Flat kiddy slide:</u> 17.59% (6789)<u>


    </u><u>Spiral chute slide:</u> 39.44%(15221)


    <u>Suicide drop slide:</u> 42.96% (16578)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    ¡°...Yeah, I don¡¯t know what I expected, you guys. Of course you would go with the most extreme option.¡±


    I shook my head in disgust, ignoring the crazy number of votes. Then I walked to the hyper steep slide, grit my teeth, and briefly imagined myself sliding down it.


    Why the hell did I poll this?


    ¡°...You know what, maybe I should start with the kiddy one first¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> do it you chicken


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe they lead to different loot


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> kiddy one leads to crap loot


    I huffed in annoyance.


    ¡°I¡¯m having this sense of deja vu, chat. This feels exactly like when Jamie made me go to the first locker. Are you trying to get me killed?¡±


    Even though I said that, I was already sliding my naginata into my backpack ¨C because I didn¡¯t wanna lose it on my way down ¨C and glaring down the slide.


    ¡°...Are we sure that there¡¯s no other path I could take?¡± I grumbled, making a point to look around.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> do iiiiiiiiiit


    ¡°Ugh, fine! If I die, everyone blame George!¡±


    Before I could double-guess myself, I stepped forward, sat down at the edge, grabbed the handrail just above the suicide slide, took a deep breath¡­


    ¡­ and let myself slide down.

 #037 – I mean, I can swim, but this is a little too much

    My butt skidded down the wet plastic surface at terminal velocity and I had to force myself to keep my eyes wide open, while gritting my teeth so that I wouldn¡¯t scream on my way down. The result was a screech reminiscent of a dying kitten.


    All I felt was regret at the moment.


    Why did I listen to chat again?


    Then, at last, I hit the bottom, the nearly vertical drop abruptly shifted into a ramp, transferring my momentum, and I shot into the air. I finally lost the battle and let out a scream full sail.


    I had about two seconds to realize that I was going to land straight in the middle of one of the death water pools and immediately swapped Persistence for Fire Breath before gasping in and letting out a cone of fire below me.


    To my surprise, rather than agitating the pool into throwing more zombies at me, my breath actually burned through the fake water like it was made of paper, revealing a dark hole.


    Unfortunately, the pushback from my breath either wasn¡¯t enough, or the physics were screwed up again, so instead of flying over the pool like I had planned, I fell straight into the dark hole with another scream.


    I instinctively lit myself on fire just in case it would do something to prevent me from going splat whenever I landed.


    Luckily, after a terrifying few seconds of freefall, I splashed into a body of water, causing Flameguard to fill my immediate surroundings with steam.


    I turned it off and flailed my arms around, trying to find the surface even as I accidentally breathed in some of the water and began choking.


    I couldn¡¯t find it.


    I lit my body on fire again, but it did nothing other than sting my eyes and throat with steam, making it even harder to figure out what was happening.


    Not knowing what else to do, I reached into my backpack and mentally searched for something that could stop me from drowning.


    My hand found the towel. I ripped it out of the bag, brought it in front of me, and buried my face in it.


    I had no time to think about the irony of willingly covering my own face in a towel after the last floor.


    Just as I¡¯d wanted, the towel quickly chugged up my surroundings and gave me some literal breathing room to look around and figure out where the heck the surface was.


    To my left. The surface was to my left.


    I scrambled to reach it and despite the added weight of my wet clothes and backpack, I made it there in record time.


    I gasped as my head broke the surface and blinked away the residual water in my eyes. My attention gravitated toward the first piece of dry land I saw, and I immediately swam over there.


    Unfortunately for me, that dry piece of land was vertical. As in, it was a wall. Fortunately, the wall wasn¡¯t completely flat. I managed to get a grip on it with my free hand and found a giant jutting brick for the tip of my feet to stand on.


    The towel kept on absorbing the water around me as I finally got my bearings and looked around.


    I seemed to be underground in some kind of tunnel filled with water. Not like a sewer or a cavern or anything like that, but like something you could see at some water parks. Except scaled way up, similarly to the locker room.


    I coughed away the last bits of water in my lungs and calmed my breaths while holding onto the wall and carefully looking for any monsters looking to ambush me.


    Thankfully, the dungeon was kind enough to give me a moment of respite.


    After finally mentally recovering, I put the still dry towel back into my backpack and sighed.


    ¡°Chat, I¡¯m never listening to you ever again. That was horrible. I should have gone with the kiddy slide instead.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you don¡¯t know what¡¯s here yet tho


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> stop ur chickening


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> could be better loot


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Don¡¯t poll it next time, then.


    I glared at chat before huffing and ignoring them.


    Why did I even bother? Bunch of jerks. Really, what had I expected from literal voices in my head?


    I huffed to myself before refocusing on my present situation.


    The water tunnel looked kind of like what I¡¯d seen outside. Except the water level wasn¡¯t shallow enough for me to casually walk in it. And with my wet clothes and backpack, swimming didn¡¯t sound like a great idea either. I would have to hug the wall if I wanted to get anywhere.


    Well, at least I wasn¡¯t cold thanks to the clothes¡¯ effect.


    I grumbled to myself, picked a random direction, and began climbing the wall sideways.


    I really hoped that whatever monsters resided here wouldn¡¯t be too big of an issue. Otherwise, how the heck was I meant to get through here? Was this area designed for mermaids? Was I supposed to have a magical snorkel by now or something?


    I continued painstakingly climbing alongside the wall while keeping vigilant about my surroundings. I briefly wondered how long I could keep this up. I¡¯d already proven that my body was stronger and had more stamina than it had any right to ¨C way more than my original body ¨C but even that couldn¡¯t be endless, right?


    Still, I was glad that this was apparently real water and not the Ether-draining death water like up there. I would have been so dead otherwise.


    ¡°You know, it¡¯s kinda weird, chat,¡± I mumbled. ¡°This is probably still part of floor three, even though I¡¯m clearly lower now. And floor one and three are at the same elevation. I guess the word floor just means something else in this world, huh?¡±


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    Which led me to another weird thing that I hadn¡¯t thought about at all.


    The system text was all in English. If this was a different world, wouldn¡¯t it have its own different language¡­? Actually, no. If I thought about it, it probably translated everything to English for me. Streamer had subtitles, so I didn¡¯t see a reason why it couldn¡¯t.


    The real kicker here was how did the system know which language I preferred? More mind reading, I supposed.


    I wasn¡¯t sure how I felt about getting used to having my mind read.


    I was broken out of my random musing by a splashing sound behind me. I spun my head around and before I could even identify what the thing flying in my direction was, I shot it out of the air with a burst of flames from my mouth on reflex.


    The sound of fire and sizzling filled my ears before I heard another splash and I tensed, preparing myself for the followup.


    It never came though.


    I clung there at the wall, vigilantly looking around in silence as the air filled with the smell of¡­ a fried fish?


    ¡°...What was that, chat? I didn¡¯t really catch it.¡±


    It had been relatively small, about the size of my head, so not another zombie. It had also flown at me, but I didn¡¯t think it had been another flying piece of clothing again.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> idk me neither


    <u>GonguuH:</u> sec


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I think it was a fish?


    ¡°A¡­ fish?¡± I stared at the spot where the thing had emerged from. ¡°Why are there fish at a waterpark?¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> yeah it¡¯s a fish


    <u>GonguuH:</u> with wings


    I groaned.


    ¡°Right. Fish with wings¡­ great.¡±


    After the last floor, I wasn¡¯t a fan of small flying enemies. If I was going to get accosted by freaking fish and slapped in the face with their fishy fins¡­ Ughh¡­


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it doesn¡¯t look like a real fish though


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I frowned.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it¡¯s a plushie


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fake fish lol


    ¡°What,¡± I said, deadpan.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it¡¯s a bit hard to see in the freezeframe


    I took a deep breath and sighed.


    ¡°Well, alright then. I¡¯m fighting flying fish plushies. Because why not? Not even the weirdest thing in this dungeon, honestly.¡±


    And so I continued.


    Another thing soon splashed out of the water and flew at me. This time, I got a better look and sure enough, it was a freaking fish plushie with wings. I burned it with Fire Breath all the same, letting my nostrils fill with the smell of a grilled fish¨C


    ¡°Wait, hold on,¡± I said incredulously. ¡°If they are plushies then why do they smell like real grilled fish when I burn them?!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fake fake fish


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> triple reverse psychology


    ¡°...Can I eat them?¡± I wondered out loud before shaking my head.


    Since every dungeon monster disappeared into mist when killed, I doubted I would get a chance to do anything before the fish vanished.


    Also, the idea of biting into a plushie sounded weird and gross and probably wouldn¡¯t help me with keeping my sanity, so I opted not to try.


    ¡­But maybe there was an achievement for trying to eat a dungeon monster? I would have to check later.


    Not that I would actually try it, but¡­


    <u>GonguuH:</u> don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea


    I shook my head again.


    ¡°Yeah, never mind.¡±


    I continued deeper into the tunnel along the wall. The tunnel curved and I had the uneasy sense that I was going in circles, but kept going regardless.


    On my way, I got ambushed by a few more flying fish plushies. None of them was any problem at all, though, despite my awkward position. The ones that did manage to close the gap ran into the fire from Flameguard and never even touched me.


    After a while, my efforts were rewarded as the tunnel ended with a set of steps leading to a small dry island with a chest on it.


    ¡°Loot!¡± I cheered as I made my way over to the island and finally dropped from the wall.


    I let out a tired sigh and flapped my hands, realizing that I had actually gotten tired from having to cling to the wall for so long. My stamina wasn¡¯t endless, after all.


    ¡°Alright, let me¡­¡± I blinked and got the similar feeling to reaching out for your cup of coffee and realizing that it wasn¡¯t there. ¡°Oh. Right. I swapped Appraisal out for Fire Breath¡­¡±


    I made a face but didn¡¯t dwell on it too much.


    Instead, I pulled out my naginata and began poking the chest from afar.


    ¡°It¡¯s even more important now, chat, because I don¡¯t have Appraisal,¡± I explained, my tone exaggeratedly serious.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> yeye we get it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> why didn¡¯t you swap out craftsman instead?


    ¡°Because last time I swapped out Craftsman, I regretted it.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s not a big deal. I can Appraise whatever loot I get later.¡±


    With my obligatory chest poking done, I put away the weapon back into the backpack, approached the chest, and heaved the lid open.


    My eyes immediately zeroed in on the big turtle plushie on the left and I gasped in delight.


    ¡°It¡¯s a plushie!¡± I took it out of the chest and hugged the pure softness to my chest as my eyes sparkled. ¡°I shall name you¡­ Mr. Gargles!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao wtf


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> gross name lol


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> Nana was never good at naming things


    ¡°Hey, shut it, you lot! I¡¯m a naming expert, you hear me?¡± I went to pet the plushie. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to them, Mr. Gargles, they have no idea what they are talking about.¡±


    Was I talking to an inanimate object again? Yes. But I¡¯d done that back on Earth with plushies as well, so this was totally a fair game.


    I wasn¡¯t going insane at all. Everything was fine.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> what does it do?


    ¡°It¡¯s cute, what else could you need, Gong?¡± I shrugged before holding the turtle in front of me, looking into its button eyes, and mentally flicking the missing Appraisal switch over and over. Nothing happened, obviously. ¡°Well, it probably does something magical, but I¡¯ll just have to find out later.¡±


    I held my new best friend in one arm and then peered into the chest at the other items.


    It was a set of red inflatable swimming sleeves, just like the zombies up above wore.


    I hummed.


    ¡°You guys think these are lightning resistant too?¡± I asked as I grabbed them and began sliding them on my arms.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe it will help with swimming


    <u>GonguuH:</u> finally some armor?


    Once I finished putting them on, I looked myself over and¡­ then I realized that I probably looked ridiculous with the mismatch of everything I had.


    My original cyan-blue Vcuber outfit, the whitish cyan bracelet, the red swimming sleeves, a blue glove on my left hand, the black backpack on my back, and a green turtle plushie in my hands.


    Not that I cared about fashion that much, but since so many people were watching, maybe I should? What if people started yelling that I look stupid?


    I shook my head.


    Why was I even worried about something like that? They weren¡¯t real. I could do whatever the heck I pleased and it wouldn¡¯t matter. And anyway, I was in the middle of a dungeon! Who cared about how I looked?


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see if they help with swimming, I guess.¡±


    I turned away from the chest, eager to plunge myself in the water and try swimming, but then blinked as the sunlight hit my eyes.


    The tunnel had changed. It no longer looked like where I¡¯d come from. It was smaller and shorter, leading straight outside again somehow.


    ¡°Wait, hold on.¡±


    The water was also shallow enough for me to casually walk through and there didn¡¯t seem to be any fake fish waiting to ambush me.


    I walked forward through the short tunnel and found myself exactly where I had expected to ¨C back in the main part of floor three with the pools of dubious liquid, looking out from the water tunnel I had noticed before, but couldn¡¯t figure out a way to get to.


    I looked back once more at the chest, but the chest was also long gone. The tunnel led to a dead end with nothing there.


    I sighed.


    ¡°I should have figured it would spit me right back out. I¡¯m guessing the other slides lead to similar tunnels that eventually spit me back here, huh? Do I have to go through all three? Like the lockers?¡±


    Knowing this dungeon, probably.


    In other words, I would have had to go through that suicide slide anyway, eventually.


    ¡°Well, whatever.¡± I hugged Mr. Gargles to my chest. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the next slide, I guess.¡±

 #038 – First attacked by laundry, now turned into laundry myself?!

    Getting out of the tunnel back to the golden gate was pretty easy. In fact, I had a sneaking suspicion that the space warped around me to ensure that it was the only way for me to go no matter what direction I picked.


    When I tried going back toward the tunnels though, I couldn¡¯t for the life of me find a way. The space just kept bending away from me. It felt so uncanny to be blocked from it now, even though seemingly nothing had changed.


    I briefly glanced through the gate and saw a number of swimmer zombies still aimlessly milling around the first floor. I would eventually have to deal with them when I wanted to go back, wouldn¡¯t I?


    Not right now, though.


    ¡°Well, time for slide number two, chat,¡± I declared, not having any better ideas.


    Unfortunately, to my displeasure, the space in the third floor had changed. I tried following the same path that had led me to the slides last time, but it only led me in circles to completely different spots around the area.


    It didn¡¯t help that the pools kept spitting out more zombies. Although I¡¯d pretty much gotten used to all their tricks, and even when a dozen or so of them suddenly jumped me, I had no problem taking them out one by one while kiting them.


    They were pretty dumb, after all. Easy to learn how to read. Just like video game mobs. I didn¡¯t even need to worry too much about being snuck up on again once I figured out that if I just kept horizontally slashing with my naginata, it would inevitably smack into any zombies behind me as well, alerting me to any would-be sneak attackers.


    Even still, it took way too long for me to finally find the new path to the slides. When I did, I wasted no time in doing the same trick with turning around and walking back, and to my surprise, it still worked.


    ¡°Huh, guess this isn¡¯t like the lockers,¡± I mused as I crouched on the walkway, trying not to look down. ¡°Thank god.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lame


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> well that¡¯s good


    ¡°Shush, you, George.¡±


    I gripped the railing and looked at my choices. Spiral chute or kiddy slide? Which one?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> go for the steep one again lol


    I glared at the group chat again.


    Why had I invited him into the group chat? Was it really worth it to keep him around when he kept aggravating me and sending me to my doom? I¡¯d kept him around since he tended to lighten up the mood, but¡­


    ¡°...Oh, no! It¡¯s a tragedy! Sorry, George. I think the system glitched or something. It just suddenly kicked you from the group chat!¡± I said in an exaggeratedly distressed tone. ¡°But don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m sure it will eventually fix itself by¡­ let¡¯s say tomorrow.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> get owned George


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> should have done that earlier


    ¡°Anyway, next slide.¡± I briefly glanced at the kiddy slide before shrugging and going for the spiral chute instead. After all, if I had to go through all of them eventually, I might as well keep the mild one for last.


    So with the naginata stuffed into my backpack, I sat down at the spiral chute slide and pushed myself down without any more preamble.


    It started off pretty tame. The twists and turns of the thing made me remember my time at water parks as a kid and I momentarily forgot that I was in a dungeon. I couldn¡¯t help but break out into a grin.


    But each turn gradually got harsher and more extreme and the slide itself kept getting steeper as well. Before I knew it, the slide turned from a fun and exciting experience to a nerve-racking roller-coaster.


    ¡°Whoaaaaa¨C?!¡±


    At some point, I felt like I was tumbling down a freaking laundry chute rather than enjoying a water slide.


    Once again, I regretted everything.


    When the chute finally deigned to release me, it unceremoniously spat me into a body of water. And just like the first time, I automatically breathed in a lungful of water right after hitting the surface.


    I immediately took the towel out of my backpack and pressed it against my face while trying to figure out where the surface was. Unfortunately for me, I was all bruised and disoriented from my tumble earlier and couldn¡¯t figure it out.


    Luckily, I didn¡¯t need to, because the inflatable sleeves actually did their job and swiftly delivered my scrambling mess of limbs to the surface, finally letting me breathe.


    I gasped for breaths and coughed out the water from my lungs into the towel. Once I was fairly certain that I wasn¡¯t drowning anymore, I put the towel away, wiped the water from my eyes with my shaky hands, and took a look at my surroundings.


    As expected, it was another water-filled tunnel. Except this one branched in four directions. I was right in the middle of the crossroad.


    I took a moment to just breathe, just to make sure that there was no water left in my lungs, before clearing my throat and letting out a groan.


    ¡°Why was this one worse than the last one? Ow¡­¡± I mumbled while rubbing the bruise on my arm.


    Then I remembered that I was a fire healing tank and also had a bucket of regeneration sludge, so I lit up parts of my body that hurt on fire, creating a sizzle of steam all around me.


    ¡°Hold on¡­¡± I mumbled, looking through the steam nervously.


    I stopped and made my way to one of the corners of the crossroads first, where I looked for a recess to perch myself on. I didn¡¯t want to be out in the open where anything could suddenly ambush me.


    Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    Once I settled in with a decent view of my surroundings, I lit my bruises on fire again to heal.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hey Nana!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you okay?


    ¡°Ebi!¡± I cheered with a smile. ¡°Eugh¡­ I just slid down the spiral chute slide and it was kinda brutal, but other than that, I¡¯m alright.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oof


    Then I perked up, bent in an awkward way, and reached into my backpack to pull out Mr. Gargles.


    ¡°Oh, and look, Ebi! I found a turtle plushie in a chest! I call him Mr. Gargles!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> omfg!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> adorable!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> finally something to hug for you


    I giggled.


    ¡°Yeah! My sanity is saved!¡±


    The two of us chatted back and forth for a few minutes while my bruises healed. At some point, I put Mr. Gargles back into the backpack, and awkwardly pulled out my bucket to munch on some ooze again to recover all the Ether I was using to heal.


    And then, unfortunately¡­


    ¡°Huh?¡± I mentally prodded the bucket to dispense more ooze but it suddenly stopped listening to me. ¡°Why is it¡­ Oh, hold on. Did I run out of my special juice?!¡±


    That¡­ was actually less surprising in hindsight than I thought at first. Sure, I had picked up a ton of it back at the ooze lake, but I¡¯d also been using it up constantly.


    ¡°...Well, that¡¯s not good,¡± I mumbled while putting the bucket back. ¡°I can¡¯t easily go back right now. Ugh, I hope I don¡¯t get lost in a maze like on floor two.¡±


    I eyed the intersection suspiciously, silently hoping that I hadn¡¯t screwed myself over by being careless. Worst case scenario, I¡¯d find the boss room and accidentally trigger the boss without knowing my way back.


    Well, hopefully, that wouldn¡¯t happen.


    Once I more or less couldn¡¯t feel the bruises anymore, I slowly swam to the middle of the crossroad again and looked around myself.


    ¡°They all look the same, chat. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s even a point in polling this. I¡¯ll just go in a random direction.¡±


    So I did. I swam forward, thankful that I didn¡¯t need to hug the wall again thanks to the swimming sleeves. I still wondered what else they could do, since everything in this dungeon¡¯s chests had some kind of magical function even if it was minor. Maybe something to do with never needing to be inflated manually? Or were they lightning-resistant armor just like the ones the zombies had?


    And what about Mr. Gargles? I already loved him, of course, but what else could he do? Could I inject Ether into him to bring him to life or something? That would be amazing!


    For the time being, though, I opted not to try anything. I was already limited on Ether and I didn¡¯t want to damage anything. The testing could wait till I got out of here and had Appraisal slotted back in.


    My musings were interrupted by two flying fish plushies splashing out of the water in front of me and flying at me at full speed.


    I instinctively shot a small Flame Bullet at one of them, shooting it out of the air, before remembering that I was working with a limited amount of Ether now since my bucket was empty. So for the second one, I summoned forth my key sword and managed to slash it in half as it flew at me.


    I momentarily blinked in surprise at my accuracy despite my awkward position and then grinned in satisfaction.


    From then on, I encountered several more fake fake fish and always tried to use the key blade to take them down, only resorting to using Flameguard or Fire Breath if any of them got too close.


    In the meantime, the tunnel in front of me randomly curved around just like the first one and I also had a sneaking suspicion that it was also slowly turning from perfectly horizontal to going down.


    ¡°Chat, I swear. If this turns into a bigger version of the spiral chute slide¡­¡± I growled under my breath.


    Several fish encounters later, the space around me abruptly shifted. One moment I was swimming down at a slightly inclined angle, and the next, the tunnel was perfectly vertical and I was falling.


    ¡°What the fuuuuu¨C?!¡± I screamed at the change.


    The surroundings subtly and slowly shifting was one thing, but this was ridiculous!


    I flailed my arms in panic as gravity dragged me down the hole. Millions of thoughts ran in my mind and I instinctively breathed in to use Fire Breath¡¯s knockback to avoid crashing into the tunnel¡¯s walls as it curved and bent.


    But then I realized that I was falling much slower than I probably should be.


    ¡°Wha¨C How¨C?!¡± I gasped, completely forgetting to adjust my fall¡¯s trajectory using Fire Breath.


    ¡°Oh shi¨C¡±


    But it didn¡¯t matter, because the space continued to warp around me to have me falling through the middle of the tunnel anyway. I was being railroaded into this exact direction for some reason.


    Before my brain could catch up with all the unexpected surprises and come up with an appropriate quip, the tunnel finally opened up and I fell inside a large room filled with water with a splash.


    ¡°Bwuh!¡±


    Thankfully, I didn¡¯t breathe in any water and it didn¡¯t take me long to find the surface this time to start gasping for breath. The sleeves definitely helped with that as well.


    I glanced around, finding myself inside a large circular room with a single tunnel leading out of it besides the one up above. The currents around the room made the entire thing look like a whirlpool and I immediately felt uncomfortable being in the middle. Was it going to pull me under?


    But before I could say or do anything, my surroundings rumbled and I yelped on instinct.


    ¡°What now?!¡±


    The dungeon¡¯s reply was a pink plush tentacle shooting out of the water behind me and curling around my left wrist before I could react in any way. I had a split second to feel shocked before it jerked my hand down and proceeded to drag the rest of my body underwater again.


    My first response was to summon my key sword and slash at it. Despite the resistance of the water, I managed to cut the damn thing off and swim back to the surface.


    Unfortunately, that was just the beginning.


    The rest of the tentacle rose above the water again and I could visibly see it regenerating the bit I¡¯d cut off. In the meantime, the tentacle remains still wrapped around my wrist suddenly moved, snaked up my arm, and curled around my neck, making me choke.


    I lit my neck on fire full force even as I instinctively dropped my key sword and brought my hands up to my neck to try and rip it off.


    Luckily, it worked, and the burnt piece of plush tentacle ¨C which smelled like fried calamari now ¨C stopped moving and fell off of me.


    Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t help with the root of the problem.


    The main tentacle had fully regenerated by now and was about to whip at me again.


    I quickly breathed in and spat out a cone of fire to hold it back before scrambling to swim to the exit.


    The tentacle was relentless though. It kept swiping at me, trying to grab me and pull me under again. My counter-attacks only pushed it back a little and it quickly regenerated anyway. Worst of all, once I finally made it near the exit, the damn circular currents pulled me to the side and away from the tunnel, making me swear under my breath.


    I activated my time-slowing bracelet, hoping to swim through the slowed down currents while it was active. Unfortunately, the currents around me didn¡¯t let up even if the tentacle was clearly moving in slow motion.


    ¡°Wha¨C Why?!¡± I yelled in outrage.


    I turned the skill off and the moment I did, the water around me seemed to stagger in a weird way, causing the currents to momentarily go haywire, tossing me all over the place.


    The tentacle hadn¡¯t stopped its assault in the meantime and as soon as the currents went back to normal, I was once again being dragged underwater by my ankle.


    I lit my foot on fire, making it burst with steam, which was enough for the tentacle to back off, luckily.


    After quickly swimming back to the surface and gasping for breath, my mind scrambled to think of anything else I could do in my situation, and I latched onto the first idea I had.


    I lifted my legs up, placed my left hand under myself, tried to position myself so that the tunnel was in front of me, and then I did several things in rapid succession. I created a bubble with my glove, placed my feet on it, and before it could automatically fire off, I lit the glove itself on fire, disturbing the bubble¡¯s surface, and making it pop.


    The resulting wave of pressure dazed me a little, but it seemed to have done the task of propelling me forward and into the tunnel.


    I splashed into the water there and scrambled to quickly swim away through the tunnel before the tentacle caught up to me.


    The currents pushing me back into the room really didn¡¯t help, but I did my best.

 #039 – Why would you have teleporting tentacles? Aren’t regular tentacles enough?!

    I belatedly realized that the tentacle was probably the boss of this floor.


    Sure, it wasn¡¯t all big and imposing like the other bosses, but it was damn persistent and really hard to damage in any meaningful way. Not to mention, I¡¯d found it inside a large open room, just like the other two bosses.


    So yes, probably the boss.


    I should have gone with the kiddy slide first, ugh.


    The damn pink plush tentacle emerged right next to me once more, interrupting my inner monologue, and I immediately slashed at it with my key sword, lopping a huge chunk of it off.


    Of course, it didn¡¯t really do anything. The tentacle quickly regenerated and the cut off bit began wiggling in my direction like an eel, making me swear under my breath before incinerating it with Fire Breath.


    At this rate, I would run out of Ether before I managed to get out of here. Should I just risk it and try to kill the thing instead? How would I even kill it, though? Nothing I tried did any lasting damage. Did I need to find the thing¡¯s main body?


    Too many unknowns. Too much risk trying to go all in.


    Instead of trying to fight an enemy I knew next to nothing about, I opted to retreat for now.


    I activated Bullet Time and, while the tentacle slowed down to a crawl, swam as far away as possible. Once I saw the currents further away from me ¨C the water close to me was also sped up, that was why it had caught me off guard back there ¨C return to normal speed, I reached into my backpack, fished out the fused Ether and Tempor drink, took a swig, and immediately reactivated Bullet Time to get even more distance.


    Rinse and repeat until I completely ran out of my drink.


    By then, the water currents had gone still and I was no longer being constantly dragged back into the boss room. It was also shallow enough for my feet to reach the bottom while leaving me submerged up to my waist now.


    I only got about a minute of reprieve before the stupid tentacle came back. It suddenly burst into the tunnel from the direction I was walking in and went straight for a jab in my face.


    I managed to swerve to the side to narrowly avoid it and then went to grab it with both arms to wrestle it down.


    The tentacle reacted by jerking upwards, lifting me with it and making me yelp. I lit my arms and it on fire in response.


    The thing jerked more violently at that, yanking itself out of my grip before slamming itself into the water and putting the fire out with a sizzle.


    I growled in frustration as I recovered from the fall and awkwardly pulled out the naginata from the backpack on my back.


    By the time I had my grip on it, the tentacle was ready for another round.


    Slash, dodge, breathe fire.


    We kept exchanging blows and I had no time to even think about continuing to run. For whatever reason, the tentacle was even more relentless than before I¡¯d ditched it with Bullet Time.


    Then I managed to cut off a bit of the tentacle once more and grit my teeth in preparation for having to deal with those detached tentacles again.


    In the heat of the moment, I also had a really stupid idea and acted on it without hesitation.


    I jabbed my naginata into the exposed fluff inside the plush tentacle revealed by the cut and poured as much Ether as I could into it to create lightning.


    Everything around me lit up and I felt even my own muscles seize as the electricity ran through me.


    Oh, shit! I fucked up!


    I dropped into the water face first, my muscles twitching, and nearly drowned before I regained some semblance of control over my muscles and I could stand again. I coughed out the water that had gotten into my lungs and wiped my eyes with my twitching hand.


    I really hadn¡¯t thought that one through, had I? Who used electric attacks when submerged in water?


    The only saving grace was that my dumb attack had accomplished what I¡¯d set out to do. The charred tentacle was floating on the water¡¯s surface, still twitching.


    Before it could recover, I pushed through the pain and continued running along the tentacle¡¯s length where I¡¯d been running before.


    It didn¡¯t take long for me to reach the spot from where the tentacle was ultimately sticking out of.


    I narrowed my eyes in suspicion.


    The water here was still very shallow and it was easy to see the bottom. It should be easy to see the rest of the tentacle and where it came from.


    Except it wasn¡¯t there. It seemed to just¡­ start existing at the point where it emerged from the water¡¯s surface.


    Was it warping space? Using the water¡¯s surface as some kind of portal to get around? Was the water itself the boss and the tentacle just an extension of it?


    Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    I didn¡¯t let my bewilderment freeze me in my tracks though. I quickly pulled my naginata,  spun it around, stood next to where the tentacle¡¯s base appeared out of the water, lit my weapon on fire, and jammed it down at it, sharp end first, hoping to stab through whatever portal this thing was abusing.


    The thing twitched for the final time before the blade of my weapon ripped through it. To my surprise though, as soon as the blade reached the spot where the tentacle was sticking out of the surface, it kept going and I nearly fell over before the blade hit the bottom of the tunnel.


    ¡°Wah?!¡±


    In the meantime, the tentacle flopped over, as if severed by whatever portal it was sticking out of, splashed into the water, and stopped moving.


    ¡°What the¡­¡±


    I stepped back and carefully watched the thing for a few seconds, expecting it to come to life at any second. It continued to uselessly lay there underwater without moving, though.


    I kept my eye on it, but proceeded to carefully walk around it and continued down the tunnel again.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Okay¡­ That obviously wasn¡¯t it yet. No chest. There¡¯s more. It¡¯s probably coming back,¡± I rambled under my breath as I waded through the water that luckily kept getting increasingly shallower, making me believe that I was going in the right direction.


    But I was still on edge because of the stupid tentacle. After all, the previous two bosses had relentlessly come after me without stopping. There was no way the tentacle wouldn¡¯t come back the moment it regenerated enough to do so.


    Or maybe it hadn¡¯t been the boss at all and I¡¯d completely misunderstood?


    But then why was it significantly more dangerous than any other monster from this floor, just like the other bosses? Was it some kind of¡­ elite monster? A mini-boss or something? What would its purpose be, then?


    With these thoughts, I rounded the corner and finally saw light hitting the side of the tunnel. I couldn¡¯t help but gasp and reflexively relax before rushing forward to my salvation.


    I rounded another corner and saw exactly what I¡¯d expected ¨C the end of the tunnel, leading to the same exact spot the last tunnel had deposited me at.


    I breathed a sigh of relief as I left the tunnel and the fake sun¡¯s rays began to warm up my drenched body again.


    ¡°Alright, now -- Oh, fuck no!¡± I breathed as I spotted the damn pink tentacle emerge from one of the pools on the surface, wiggle in the air, and then head straight for me once again.


    Luckily, since I wasn¡¯t submerged anymore, I easily dodged its jab while slashing at it.


    I missed. The tentacle was too thin and was moving too erratically.


    But it didn¡¯t matter. With no water to hinder my movements, I wouldn¡¯t let it get an upper hand ¨C upper tentacle? ¨C anymore. Even if it moved quickly and constantly tried to flank me, I could easily keep up with a single enemy at this point.


    Speaking of which¡­ why was there just a single tentacle? Whatever octopus or squid-type of monster this was, shouldn¡¯t it have more than just one?


    Well, it didn¡¯t really matter, so I put that thought out of my head and refocused on the fight as I made my way back to the golden gate.


    I cut off a big chunk of the tentacle and immediately incinerated it with Fire Breath before it could snake its way to me again. As I did, my eyes swiped over the pool where the tentacle emerged from and I had a thought.


    I barely hesitated before breathing in and firing off a Flame Bullet at the spot where the tentacle was sticking from.


    But I was too far away and I missed my shot.


    I tried again, but to my surprise, the rest of the tentacle ¨C still not done regenerating yet ¨C bent and purposefully got itself hit by my projectile in order to protect its base.


    My surprise only lasted a split second before my expression turned into a grin.


    ¡°Oh, what¡¯s this?! Did I find your weakness?!¡± I jeered.


    With that in mind, I finally went on the offensive, shooting one Flame Bullet after another. The tentacle kept trying to block the shots, but was getting burned more and more and at some point could barely even move.


    Then one of my shots finally hit the tentacle¡¯s base and the change was instant. The whole thing went limp and proceeded to flop over like a felled tree.


    I grinned even wider at finally knowing how to deal with the tentacle whenever it came back.


    ¡­And it would come back, wouldn¡¯t it?


    My grin turned into a pout.


    ¡°Still no idea where its main body is¡­¡±


    But I could figure that out later. Right now, I was kinda low on Ether, out of ooze in my bucket, and I had completely used up my ¡®mana potion¡¯ to power the bracelet¡¯s Bullet TIme.


    ¡°Time to go back for today,¡± I mumbled before finally looking at chat again after ignoring it during that whole ordeal. I¡¯d been doing that a lot, but to be fair, it was hard to focus on chat while having a deathmatch with monsters.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> all I¡¯m saying that the boss is probably somewhere in that room


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good idea Nana


    <u>GonguuH:</u> agreed


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe it¡¯s invisible


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I¡¯ll try to rewatch and see if I spot anything


    I made a face.


    ¡°Ugh, yeah. The main body probably is somewhere in that room. Dammit, I never even thought to check. I just panicked and tried to run,¡± I grumbled, feeling kind of stupid now.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> no that¡¯s totally understandable Nana


    <u>GonguuH:</u> anyone would panic in that situation


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> how much does your bracelet have left btw?


    I smiled.


    Now that was the kind of emotional support I wanted from chat. Not whatever George was doing.


    I hummed and looked at my bracelet before grimacing.


    It read 29%.


    ¡°Aw, man. That sucks. I almost completely wasted my trump card¡­¡± I whined.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I wouldn¡¯t say wasted


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> just used some of it to gather info on the enemy


    ¡°Gather info? You mean about the tentacle¡¯s weakness? I mean, I guess¡­ Could have figured it out without it, though,¡± I argued as I walked through the golden gate and prepared myself to clean up the zombies I¡¯d ¡®kidnapped¡¯ from floor three to here.


    The first zombie tumbled into my way and I quickly decapitated it with a quick slash of my weapon. A second one tried to flank me by climbing over a window to my right, but a quick twirl and my naginata¡¯s blade found its way into the zombie¡¯s skull.


    I was getting quite good with this thing. It was still a bit impractical in tight spaces, but I liked it.


    ¡°Can¡¯t believe I was afraid of these guys just earlier today¡­¡± I mumbled as I made my way back to the entrance.


    Granted, that had been a massive horde back then, but still.


    In no time at all, I made it out of the dungeon and let the feeling of relief wash over me. I looked behind me one last time, just to check whether the tentacle had regenerated and wanted more revenge, but seeing floor one devoid of anything, I let out a sigh of relief and finally relaxed.


    ¡°Well, the coin bosses waited for me, so the tentacle boss will wait too,¡± I declared and began walking to the life ooze lake to refill my bucket.


    The sun was shining and the grass around me was only mildly damp despite the rain yesterday. The smell of nature and the warm rays of the sun definitely improved my mood.


    Don¡¯t get me wrong, the fake sun felt real enough, but¡­ Well, you couldn¡¯t beat the real one, could you?


    When I finally made it to the ooze lake, I stopped and narrowed my eyes.


    There was a¡­ small sapling right by the lake in the grass.


    That hadn¡¯t been there before.


    What the heck?

 #040 – I’m retiring to live on a farm, guys

    I approached the miniature tree with caution, wondering where it had come from.


    Had someone sneakily planted it here while I¡¯d been in the dungeon? Or was it something I had done? What would¨C


    Oh.


    Wait.


    Hold on.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you left the fruit core in that spot


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it rained too


    Of course. The plants here ran on Ether. And I¡¯d left the fruit core with seeds in it right next to the lake of Ether.


    And then it had rained.


    I¡¯d grabbed the core later, but a seed must have fallen out of it at some point.


    ¡°Chat. Have I¡­ Have I accidentally grown a tree?¡±


    Still though, wasn¡¯t that way too quick? It had only been a couple of days at most! How come it had grown this much already? Was it just the effects of Ether? But if the life ooze had such extreme effects, why wasn¡¯t everything around it a total untraversable jungle?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> this is good tho, more food


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh that¡¯s cool Nana!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> eventually


    ¡°Okaaay¡­ Well, that¡¯s cool! I guess those fruits would be healthier than eating infinite pizza all day, right?¡± I grinned and plopped down next to the sapling to take a closer look at it.


    It was small enough for me to cradle in my hand and I did so.


    ¡°Actually, I still have the core, don¡¯t I?¡± I said as excitement crept into my voice. ¡°I knew the core would be useful for something one day!¡±


    In hindsight, I should have thought about planting the seeds and trying to grow more of the fruit myself. But hey, I wasn¡¯t going to complain about doing it accidentally.


    ¡°I still have the core! I should plant more of these seeds!¡±


    I reached into my backpack and pulled out the fruit core.


    It looked kinda grotesque and was probably starting to slowly rot at this point. Ugh. Did the backpack keep everything inside separated? I didn¡¯t want my pizza getting rotten fruit chunks on it.


    That aside, I snapped the core in half with my hands and picked out the seeds out of it before tossing the rest to the side.


    ¡°Any pro farmers in the chat? What are the optimal planting spots?¡± I idly asked without expecting to get any useful info back.


    After all, they were just part of my subconscious. Everything they knew, I already knew myself..


    Although¡­ Hadn¡¯t there been someone who¡¯d given me tips on how to handle a sword? I hadn¡¯t known how to handle weaponry at all. Had that also somehow been created by my subconscious?


    Or was the chat real, after all?


    <u>Irid123:</u> I have a friend who lives in the countryside


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe save the seeds until you know where you wanna make your base?


    <u>Irid123:</u> she¡¯s in chat rn


    ¡°Oh? Sorry, I still can¡¯t read the normal chat.¡± I briefly glanced at the regular chat and thought I would have a seizure with how fast the messages surged through. ¡°Ugh¡­ Yeah. I guess I can invite her to the group chat?¡±


    I hummed, thinking whether it was unfair to everyone else if I only invited specific people. I never liked people abusing connections to get ahead.


    I shook my head.


    No, what the heck was I thinking about? This person would be helping me with their knowledge. Helping me survive in this damn world. That was the whole point of the Streamer skill, wasn¡¯t it? To have people of various backgrounds and with various skills give me advice and tips.


    Assuming they were real.


    ¡°You know what?¡± I interrupted my own line of thinking. ¡°I have an idea. I¡¯m gonna keep the OGs group chat as is, but I¡¯m gonna create more group chats for other things. Yeah, let¡¯s do that!¡±


    I opened up the good old menu and began creating a few new group chats.


    One of them named ¡®Farming¡¯, another called ¡®Fighting¡¯, and a third one for ¡®Detectives¡¯.


    ¡°Okay! These three are enough for now. Not like I¡¯ll be able to keep up with many more anyway¡­ So! What¡¯s your friend¡¯s name, Irid? I¡¯ll add her to the farming group chat. Oh, and if anyone else knows someone who knows their stuff, tell me!¡±


    I idly poured the seeds from one hand to the other as I started organizing everything, adding people to the chats, and explaining my thought process.


    ¡°The fighting one is obvious. I¡¯ll add¡­ Uh. The person who told me about how to use the sword. What was their name again? SunOfABeach, right? Yeah. Welcome, Sun! You¡¯re my personal combat advisor now!¡± I joked. ¡°Aaand¡­ Jeoff. You probably wanna be there too, right? Just so you can tell me all about minmaxing my build.¡± I jokingly scoffed, but added him regardless.


    Honestly, I probably should have done this a long time ago. I had the functionality. Why not use it? Whether they were real people or not didn¡¯t even matter at the moment.


    ¡°The Detectives group chat is like¡­ For people trying to figure out my situation, you know? This world, the dumb phoenix, other quests that might pop up. Stuff like that.¡±


    I immediately added Irid, our resident ARG enjoyer, as well as Gong into the chat. I would probably end up adding more people later, but for now, it was nice to organize everything like this. I felt a bit like an army commander dividing their armies and assigning tasks to them. Heh.


    Not that I wanted to wage war or anything.


    <u>Blouterest:</u> hello! thanks for having me!


    ¡°Hey, Blout! Welcome to the first official meeting of Nana¡¯s farming committee! Featuring¡­ just you and me for now, hehe.¡± I giggled.


    <u>Blouterest:</u> haha that¡¯s a lot of pressure


    <u>Blouterest:</u> I feel like I¡¯m someone important onw


    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.<u>Blouterest:</u> now


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it! I¡¯ll appreciate any advice you can give. I have no idea how to work with plants.¡± I brought my hand full of the seeds closer to me. ¡°And I don¡¯t wanna waste the seeds.¡±


    <u>Blouterest:</u> okay


    <u>Blouterest:</u> so it varies obviously


    <u>Blouterest:</u> and I don¡¯t know about magical fantasy trees


    ¡°Yeah, fair.¡±


    <u>Blouterest:</u> different trees will want different levels of sunlight, type of soil, and general climate


    ¡°Right¡­ Makes sense.¡± I nodded along, idly wondering whether my subconscious could possibly come up with all of that or whether this was a real person.


    <u>Blouterest:</u> ideally, you would first grow the seed in a nursery


    <u>Blouterest:</u> so that it creates a strong root ball


    <u>Blouterest:</u> but that would be hard to do for you


    ¡°Root ball?¡± I asked with a tilted head. ¡°Oh, I think I know what you mean¡­¡±


    Blout proceeded to explain all the intricacies of planting trees and¡­ yeah, alright. My subconscious mind might be able to come up with some of that, but the level of detail of the information made it all feel genuine. Not only that, the explanations all made a lot of sense.


    You wanted bunched up roots right below the tree so it would be easier to water it and apply fertilizer and pesticides. Made sense.


    Depending on the type of the tree, you could simply throw the seed on the ground and it would become a tree if its roots were strong enough for the soil it was on. Made sense.


    You could also help them along by burying them a little, but not too much since most tree seeds needed some amount of sunlight to start germinating. Made sense.


    We must have spent over an hour going over various tree-growing facts, and by the end of it, I felt like a dang expert.


    There was no way my subconscious mind could have come up with all of that.


    They had to be real. Chat was real. The people in the chat were real.


    I could feel the tight knot in my chest I hadn¡¯t even noticed slowly unravel and I felt incredibly relieved.


    Everything was going to be fine. I would survive in this world, find my way back, and then have a huge fan meet up with everyone who helped me get back.


    Although¡­ I still had no idea what was up with the whole time dilation thing with my bracelet. Why chat, and by extension Earth, experienced it with me.


    There were¡­ a couple of uncomfortable theories that I had. Like me being in a simulation. Which would mean that this entire world was simulated. It could also mean that chat was simulated¡­ that I could be simulated.


    Dammit, why couldn¡¯t I stop giving myself existential crises?


    Okay, not important. I just wasn¡¯t going to think about this right now and was just going to be happy that chat was real¡­ or at least, not simulated from my own subconscious mind.


    ¡°Alright then! I¡¯ll plant two more near the lake. One out in full sunlight and one in a spot that should be shaded most of the time, and I¡¯ll see which one grows the best. I¡¯ll keep the rest of the seeds for now. No need to use them all at once!¡± I declared and began circling the lake to look for good spots for the seeds.


    While I¡¯d learned all about tree farming, Sun and Jeoff had been discussing all sorts of things in the Fighting group chat. Mostly about what I should spend my skill points on, and what build I should work toward, but also what strategies I could employ against the tentacle boss. I tuned into their conversation as soon as I¡¯d planted the two seeds.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> also, could you quickly go through every skill and achievement you can see?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> so we can freezeframe it and add it to the wiki?


    I made a noise of agreement and opened up the skills and achievement windows.


    ¡°Sure¡­ There¡¯s a ton, though. This is gonna take a while. Oh yeah, and there were a ton of locked skills that I filtered out, weren¡¯t there?¡±


    I mentally prodded the skill list window and all the locked skills came back. Unfortunately, it only displayed all the skills¡¯ names and SP cost, so I had to open each individually to look at their descriptions, upgrades, and means to unlock them.


    ¡°Huh. Some of them require specific achievements to unlock¡­ Some of them look impossible to unlock, though,¡± I mused, glancing over a couple of skills that required me to have a specific racial skill, which¡­ I probably couldn¡¯t get anymore.


    Unless I could get multiple racial skills. Was that possible? It felt like the kind of thing that you only got one of, but then again, I was still learning how this system worked so there could be a way.


    While I painstakingly looked through every single skill and achievement I could view ¨C at least I could leave the sorting of it all to chat ¨C Sun and Jeoff explained to me what they thought was the most optimal way to spend my skill points.


    It boiled down to: ¡®Stop spending points on Phoenix skills and try to get Soulbound Item and Blacksmith as soon as possible to create high-level gear to tie to yourself. Then upgrade Streamer to the max to unlock tier two skills.¡¯


    ¡°Hmm. I had similar thoughts. I feel like crafting ultimate gear is a very¡­ well, human playstyle, right? That¡¯s probably what you¡¯re meant to normally do as a human. The phoenix skills just give me an edge.¡±


    I wasn¡¯t going to complain. They had probably saved my life, after all.


    But anyway, the blessing was only temporary. And although I could still use the fire skills even after I¡¯d lost it, I wouldn¡¯t be able to heal nearly as effectively from lighting myself on fire anymore. Even if I bought that one upgrade for Flameguard, it would only be half as effective.


    On the other hand, tying items to my soul still sounded kind of uncomfortable. After all, my body may have completely changed and my mind might constantly be read and have mental switches added to it, but my soul was still untouched.


    Assuming souls existed and it wasn¡¯t just flavor text.


    Well¡­


    Even if it sounded uncomfortable, it was still better than dying, right? What was a bit of sticking things to my soul if it helped me survive?


    ¡°You know, I actually have enough points to buy Soulbound item and all of its upgrades right now. You guys think I should do it? It feels like it¡¯s not that worth it right now¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> are you going back there today?


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± I glanced toward where the dungeon was. ¡°I dunno. I don¡¯t really feel like it anymore¡­ Actually, I don¡¯t even need to go back there, do I? I only plunged in there because I had no food. But now I¡¯ve got my infinite pizza and my tree farm!¡±


    Once again, a wave of relief washed over me at that realization.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> ¡­


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> so you¡¯re never going to any dungeons again?


    ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t say that! But¡­ You know. I don¡¯t need to rush it anymore. Heck, that quest gave me two whole weeks to clear a dungeon. It hasn¡¯t even been a week and I feel like I¡¯m already near the end! Like, I have to be, right? What else could there be at a water park?¡±


    Just as I said that, I realized that I would probably be raising some dangerous flags if I was in a fictional story.


    ¡°And it¡¯s a D-rank dungeon! It can¡¯t get that much harder, right? How insanely difficult would the higher-rank dungeons be?!¡±


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> D rank could mean something different from what you expect


    I grimaced.


    ¡°That¡¯s true¡­ Ugh, but still! Even if I fail that quest, it¡¯s not the end of the world. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m gonna instantly die if I fail or anything!¡±


    Why was I even arguing with them?


    The constant fighting for my life had been exhausting and I just wanted a day off. I was no longer starving to death, so I could afford it.


    And it wasn¡¯t like I had streamed every single day back on Earth either. I would always have breaks even then.


    So I would take a day off. Screw the haters.


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> no sorry you¡¯re right


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> just playing the devil¡¯s advocate


    ¡°All good, Sun! I just want a break, you know? This isekai business gets way too intense sometimes,¡± I joked.


    While that happened, the Detectives group chat was trying to catch my attention. Apparently, they wanted me to invite a couple more smart people and, well, who was I to refuse?


    FouxMoux and repeaeaeat joined the Detectives, and as soon as I added them, the conversation turned to something I had completely forgotten about.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> ok so


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> the dedicated website where this is being streamed to


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> it doesn¡¯t exist


    Oh, right. There was some super special website just for the Streamer skill.


    ¡°What do you mean, it doesn¡¯t exist?¡± I frowned.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> it has no IP address


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> you can¡¯t connect to it in any way, other than typing StreamerSkill.out in the URL


    I tilted my head and frowned even deeper.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ weird, right? That shouldn¡¯t be possible.¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> it works anywhere on any device I tried even if it has no internet access


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> the data just appears out of nowhere


    I blinked.


    ¡°Uh, right. That definitely shouldn¡¯t be possible. What the heck? Is the Streamer skill hacking reality? Actually, yeah, the system is definitely hacking this world¡¯s reality, at least. I just didn¡¯t expect it to be hacking Earth¡¯s reality too¡­¡±


    Well, at least now I knew that, unless everything was a simulation, the two worlds were somehow connected.


    I just wasn¡¯t sure what exactly that meant.

 #041 – Introspection is important, you know?

    I woke up with my face snuggled into something very soft and comfortable.


    For a split second, I thought that the entire isekai situation could have maybe been just a weird dream, but then I quickly realized what was going on.


    ¡°G¡¯morning, chat¡­ G¡¯morning, Mr. Gargles,¡± I mumbled while hugging my awesome turtle plushie closer.


    I continued to lay there, already thinking of how I would have to go into the dungeon and probably figure out how to beat that stupid tentacle. But then I remembered that I¡¯d decided today would be my break day.


    ¡°Too bad for you, chat. I¡¯m not getting up anytime soon. I¡¯m just gonna stay in my grassy bed and laze around all day,¡± I declared and closed my eyes again. ¡°Stream is canceled today. Go home, chat.¡±


    I was very grateful that it hadn¡¯t rained since that one time it had woken me up. I didn¡¯t want to have to choose between sleeping in the rain and sleeping in the dungeon with the tentacle monster on the loose.


    From the corner of my mind, I noticed chat blowing up with messages again, but I firmly ignored it the same way I always did during fights, and just snuggled further into my plushie.


    If I were to guess, it probably took an entire hour for me to finally relent and get up again.


    I stretched with a yawn and blinked away the sleepiness, but continued to lay there while Mr. Gargles rested on my chest.


    I squinted at the trickle of sunlight coming through the trees above me and let out a little sigh. I had absolutely zero willpower to get up and start doing things. I just wanted to lay here the entire day.


    ¡­


    Wow, I had been really stressed out, hadn¡¯t I? I knew I would crash at some point with how much had happened since I¡¯d gotten isekai¡¯d, but I¡¯d never realized just how much I needed a break.


    People were still trying to catch my attention in the group chats.


    ¡°Today is a rest day, chat. I ain¡¯t doing no nothing. I have my pizza, my ooze lake, and my plushie. What else could one need?¡±


    I would have to get up at some point, but that was for future me to deal with. Present me wanted to enjoy the peaceful morning of laying in grass with my plushie in an empty world where no annoying neighbors would be shouting at ungodly-hour AM.


    I guess being stranded alone in another world had its perks.


    Now if only I could turn off the stream¡­


    Ugh. If I found a way home, would it let me finally turn it off? I didn¡¯t see a reason why it would, unless I lost all my skills in the process of getting back. Would the system still work on Earth? I didn¡¯t see a reason why it couldn¡¯t, considering that it clearly had some amount of power over Earth as well.


    But if I returned home with the system intact, would I have to live with having every moment of my life streamed to the world until I died?


    I hadn¡¯t really thought about that.


    Worse still, if I kept all the skills upon returning, I would probably be pestered by all sorts of people because of it. Scientists would want to find out how my superpowers worked. Governments would want to use me as a weapon of war. All sorts of nefarious people would want to steal my magical items.


    I hugged Mr. Gargles to my chest again as anxiety crept inside me.


    Unless of course, this was just a simulation and therefore when I woke up from it back into the real world, I would naturally lose everything.


    Or alternatively, I might never get back to Earth. I might be stuck in this world forever, forced to clear dungeons until my Phoenix kidnapper was satisfied with whatever evil plan they had for me.


    I still had no idea what their deal even was. Who were they? Where were they? Why me? What was the point of this? What was my goal? What even was this world? Why was it empty? What were the dungeons? Was the Phoenix in cahoots with the Fate Weaver who created this world, and now I was here to be the tester? Or maybe the Phoenix was the Fate Weaver?


    I sighed again.


    And there I went spiraling again. There was a reason why I¡¯d relentlessly thrown myself into clearing the dungeon. No time to overthink things.


    I should do something. Leaving myself with just my thoughts always led to a depressive or paranoid echo chamber inside my own mind.


    Hmm¡­ But¡­


    I was never alone now. There were people who could help me with all of this. In fact, I had created a new group chat for this exact purpose just yesterday, hadn¡¯t I?


    I hummed to myself and narrowed my eyes as an idea passed through my mind.


    I considered it for a moment before finally getting up. I put Mr. Gargles back into the backpack, looked over the sapling ¨C which had grown a little since yesterday ¨C and then headed back toward the dungeon.


    But not the entrance. I walked to one of the walls separating the dungeon from the outside.


    Looking at it up close, it actually looked a bit unnerving. It was a tall featureless concrete wall like a prison would have, rather than the fence that surrounded floor three.


    At this point, the chat seemed to notice that I was doing things again despite saying that I wouldn¡¯t be and began pestering me, but I ignored them for the moment. Just pretended that the stream wasn¡¯t on.


    I idly hummed and reached into my backpack before pulling out an item that I¡¯d thought for sure was useless before ¨C the Ether-powered pen.


    I popped off the lid and tried to scribble something on the dungeon wall just to check that it worked and was happy when it did. Although it was actually quite odd. The surface of the wall was very rough and uneven, and yet the pen had no problems writing on it.


    Well, magic. No point in complaining.


    I stepped back and thought about this for a moment.


    It was impossible to keep chat in the dark completely no matter how much I tried. But maybe¡­ Okay, I needed to get all the Streamer upgrades eventually anyway to unlock the next tier of skills, so might as well get this one now. Hopefully it worked the way I thought it did.


    <u>Purchase the [Streamer] skill upgrade [Faithful Cameraman] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Faithful Cameraman¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    Without saying anything, I curiously prodded the new mental switch and once I figured out how it was supposed to work, I used the subskill.


    A new system window popped up, but instead of text, this one was playing a video. A video of a cyan-haired girl in blue and cyan outfit staring at the camera with wide sky-blue eyes.


    My Vcuber.


    Or rather, me.


    ¡°Helloooo¡­ Testing, testing,¡± I murmured and saw the reflection mirror my movements back at me perfectly. I smiled. She smiled too.


    I had known that I looked completely different now, sure. But it still felt¡­ really nice to look at this girl in the video and know that it was me.


    I briefly glanced at chat and immediately noticed people commenting on my appearance. Saying that I had pretty eyes and a cute face and¡­


    I had to turn away from the camera for a moment to hide my embarrassed grin.


    Ahem.


    Anyway, this probably meant that the new system window showed me what chat was seeing, which was very convenient.


    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    Once I got my composure back, I turned to where the cameraman presumably was and narrowed my eyes at the empty space. I mentally tried to move him to the left and he did so. I tried making him turn up and he listened. I tried to command him to spin in circles and was rewarded with a nauseating recording of him doing just that.


    I stopped him and made him float closer to me. Then I reached out and tried to poke the spot where he would be, to see whether his sight would phase inside my finger like in video games.


    To my surprise, the cameraman bounced back off my finger in response, even though I hadn¡¯t felt my finger touch anything.


    In hindsight, it might have been dangerous if he had phased inside my hand¡­ Good thing he hadn¡¯t.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Weird. Well, alright. I¡¯ll call you¡­ John. John, the cameraman.¡± I nodded in satisfaction.


    Was it weird to give my skills names and treat them like people? Maybe. But whatever.


    ¡°Alright, John. Let me set things up first¡­¡±


    I stepped away from the scribbles I made on the dungeon wall to a clean part of the wall and pulled out my pen again.


    Then I wrote ¡®Stream starting in a few minutes¡­¡¯ in big letters and decorated the surroundings with hearts and a few quick drawings that would be significant to any long-time viewer. A dragon, a phoenix, a mermaid, a slime, and a horned demon.


    Then I had John stand in front of the wall and stare at it, while I walked off to the side and began writing more stuff on the wall nearby.


    I could see chat speculating what was going on and being annoyed that they couldn¡¯t see what I was doing. Some of them were amused by my improvised pre-stream screen.


    It didn¡¯t take too long for me to be done with my preparations, but I took an extra few minutes to do my daily push ups and squats that I¡¯d kinda forgotten about, and also munched on a few slices of pizza.


    When everything was done and I was ready to go, I stood just outside of John¡¯s view, stuck my hands into the frame, and then counted down on my fingers from seven.


    Six, five, four, three, two, one¡­


    ¡°Goooood mooorning, my precious little Aquamarines!¡± I said with as much cheer as I could muster while making John turn away from the wall and face me instead. ¡°It¡¯s me! Aoto Nana, your favorite isekai protagonist!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao the og intro


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> woooo


    There was a mix of reactions in the group chat. Some people cheered with me and a couple were amused by me using a modified version of my normal intro.


    ¡°How are you all doing? I¡¯ve been really stressed lately¡­¡± I shook my head with a sigh. ¡°I guess that¡¯s kind of a given when being isekai¡¯d though, right? There¡¯s no way you can keep your cool when jumping from one life or death situation to the next.¡±


    I began slowly walking back and had John follow me.


    ¡°For those who somehow don¡¯t know, I am a Vcuber from Earth who, for some reason, got one day kidnapped and reincarnated into this weird alien world! It was¡­¡± I paused as I mentally tallied the days. ¡°...exactly a week ago, actually! Anyway, this world has been eerily empty and devoid of life! I haven¡¯t seen a single insect, much less a person in here!¡±


    I proceeded to recap everything I knew about this world as well as all my experiences, but to give people some kind of summary, as well as to organize my own thoughts.


    ¡°¨Cescaped the tentacle with my infinite pizza and Mr. Gargles. And since it¡¯s all sunny today, there¡¯s no reason for me to rush straight back into the dungeon. And that¡¯s why we¡¯re doing something different now! No dungeon diving at all today! No. Today, we will be solving a mystery!¡± I made jazz hands and pointed them in the direction of the section  of the wall I¡¯d written on and then had John turn that way.


    On that wall, there were three questions at the top ¨C ¡®What is this world?¡¯, ¡®Who is the Phoenix?¡¯, and ¡®Why was I kidnapped?¡¯ ¨C and below them, I¡¯d drawn a vertical line separating the wall into two columns. One of them was labeled ¡®Evidence¡¯ and the other ¡®Theories¡¯.


    ¡°This here¨C¡± I stuck my head into John¡¯s view and waved my arm at the wall. ¡°¨Cwill be our ultimate mind map while we solve the mysteries that have plagued us since I got isekai¡¯d!¡± I walked to the wall as I explained.


    I then summoned my key sword and pointed it at the first question.


    ¡°The first one is: ¡®What is this world?¡¯ It¡¯s really strange, isn¡¯t it, chat? This world is completely empty! There¡¯s just trees, bushes, and, weirdly enough, dungeons. Dungeons that feel like remnants of civilizations! It¡¯s very strange and could mean a number of things!¡±


    I pointed at the second question.


    ¡°The second one is ¡®Who is the Phoenix?¡¯ I¡¯m, of course, talking about the one who apparently reincarnated me in this world, according to the skill I got from it. Who are they? Where are they? What are their nefarious plans? And most importantly¡­¡±


    I smacked the key at the third question.


    ¡°¡®Why was I kidnapped?¡¯ Why did the evil Phoenix feel the need to kidnap someone? What¡¯s the purpose? And why me? What¡¯s so special about me? Why not someone else? How do I get back?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> obvsly ur in postapocalyptic world


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> you probably have a special mission that you need to complete


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> dungeons are memories of the past or smthing


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I¡¯m thinking you are a tester for this world¡¯s system


    More and more messages poured in as everyone chipped in their two cents. As they did, I scribbled down their theories and ideas on the wall.


    ¡°Okay, but if I¡¯m the tester and this is a freshly created world, then why do the dungeons feel like remnants of past civilizations? And also! I had the quest, didn¡¯t I? It has a side objective of figuring out what civilizations used to live in this world! It pretty much says that there were civilizations in the past.¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> that might not mean anything


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> the quests seem to be based on your own thoughts and feelings


    I hummed.


    ¡°That¡¯s true, I suppose¡­ The whole ¡®past civilizations¡¯ might be a red herring.¡±


    I hoped it wasn¡¯t, though. Being in a post-apocalyptic world was one thing, but being in a world where there had never even been any living beings at all before me was just unsettling.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> maybe its all just simulation


    I pursed my lips.


    ¡°Yeah, that is possible. And it¡¯s what I¡¯m afraid of. But at the same time¡­ There¡¯s too much detail for it to be a simulation. Look¨C¡± I reached into the backpack and pulled out the ¡®Good luck ;)¡¯ letter. It was still stained with dried blood and the folds from being made into an airplane were still visible as well.


    I waved it around to accentuate the point.


    ¡°If this is a simulation, then someone must have programmed every little possible interaction. Like the physics of waving around a piece of paper stained in a bit of blood and with folds in it.¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> not to mention the processing power and storage space needed for all that data


    I nodded to Repeat¡¯s comment.


    ¡°Yeah, exactly. This is either the most detailed simulation ever that someone¡¯s running on a few supercomputers, or it¡¯s all real.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ok fine not simulation


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I think you are in the future of some dead scifi world and your job is to figure out what happened through the dungeons


    I hummed.


    ¡°That does sound plausible. Like¡­ I¡¯m supposed to figure out where all the people have gone. What caused the apocalypse or something.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ok new theory


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ur in the future but have to go back in time to save this world


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> that¡¯s why good luck


    ¡°That¡­ could also be it, yeah. I mean, we already know that it¡¯s possible to mess with time and whatnot.¡± I glanced at my bracelet and frowned in thought. ¡°You think I¡¯m some kind of destined time hero or something?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> wait there was the thing


    ¡°The thing?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> the thing that the limit break unlocked


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> incausal rift


    I narrowed my eyes at that, not liking how the limit break was brought up again.


    ¡°What about it¡­?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> that¡¯s probably time travel, right?


    ¡°Time travel? Why would it¨C¡± I stopped as things clicked in my mind. ¡°...Incausal rift. As in, something that isn¡¯t causal. Something that breaks causality. As in, time travel.¡±


    I groaned.


    ¡°Oh no¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> time to break your limits


    I groaned harder.


    ¡°Stop it! I¡¯m already traumatized enough! I don¡¯t need more long-term trauma! I¡¯m not gonna do the stupid limit break!¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> it might be the key to returning to Earth tho


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea maybe the phoenix will send you back once you save his world or smthin


    I sighed in resignation.


    ¡°Why do you guys gotta be so damn reasonable?!¡±


    The worst part about it was that I didn¡¯t have many other options. I could either roam around beating dungeons, hoping to get some clues; or do the damn limit break, find an incausal rift, and hopefully it would somehow help me.


    There were still a lot of unknowns though. For all I knew, the rifts might kill me instead.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> limit break time?


    I glared at Jamie¡¯s message.


    ¡°You¡¯re not baiting me into throwing myself into danger again, Jamie!¡± I sniffed. ¡°You¡¯re being worse than George. Maybe I should time you out too¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> nonono ill be good


    I rolled my eyes but let her stay for now.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> ranger is sus


    ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s up Trelip?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> retconranger<u>


    trelipideliberitation:</u> he knew about the special website


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> who told him about it?


    I narrowed my eyes.


    ¡°The website¡­? Hmm¡­¡± Thinking about it, where had Ranger heard about the mysterious website? Had they randomly typed that specific string into their browser? Seemed unlikely. Did Ranger know something more? ¡°Ranger¡­? You here¡­?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> found the phoenix!


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> oh crap


    There was a moment of silence, but Ranger didn¡¯t say anything. Probably offline then¡­ Or maybe they went silent because our suspicions were right on point¨C


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> the link is in your snitch bio


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> it says right here


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> StreamerSkill.out


    ¡°...Oh.¡±


    I deflated with a sigh.


    ¡°Since when? Who put that there? I didn¡¯t!¡±


    Because, of course, the system had also somehow edited my Snitch bio on Earth. Why wouldn¡¯t it?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wait what?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> was that always there?


    ¡°Probably,¡± I grumbled. ¡°How else would Ranger know about it?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> maybe he added it now to be less suspicious


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> it was there for a while


    My eye twitched.


    ¡°You¡¯re the one being suspicious, Trelip!¡± I shot back. ¡°Stop making me doubt people in my chat!¡±


    Ugh, but now that I had that seed of doubt in my mind, I couldn¡¯t help but wonder. Was the damn Phoenix secretly one of my chatters?


    If I was an evil mastermind kidnapping innocent Vcubers to post-apocalyptic worlds, I would totally keep an eye on their streams. After all, why wouldn¡¯t my kidnapper pretend to be just another one of my viewers?


    ¡­


    Fuck.

 #042 – Head. Empty.

    ¡°¨Cand that¡¯s it for today¡¯s mystery solving stream! Thanks for coming, everyone! I¡¯ll see you tomorrow, where we hopefully finish off this dungeon!¡±


    I grinned at John, masking my still-present anxiety.


    Hey, I was a Vcuber for a reason. Getting out in front of the camera personally just wasn¡¯t¡­


    Anyway!


    I covered John¡¯s view with my hand while saying, ¡°See you, and don¡¯t be blue!¡± in my usual goodbye.


    I kept my hand on the ¡®camera¡¯ for a few more seconds before I let it drop and unsummoned John.


    ¡°Well, I can¡¯t actually end the stream, but yeah. Don¡¯t expect anything too exciting for the rest of the day, chat,¡± I murmured with a lot less enthusiasm than a second ago.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> that switch tho lol


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> exclusive behind the scenes


    I snorted.


    ¡°Yeah, sure. A special behind the scenes. A day in the life of an isekai protagonist,¡± I said with amusement, while giving Trelip a side-eye, briefly wondering if he was secretly the mastermind behind my kidnapping.


    Then I quickly shook my head.


    Why was I so damn good at coming up with things to stress about?


    With that, I went back to the ooze lake with the intention to laze around all day and do nothing like promised. I briefly checked on the tree seeds I¡¯d planted yesterday and to my surprise, they had actually sprouted already and were in the process of rooting themselves in the ground.


    I plopped down on the ground next to the first sapling, imagining that it was a giant tree casting a shadow over me. Then I took out Mr. Gargles and let him sit on top of me as I narrowed my eyes and let out a satisfied sigh.


    ¡°This is the life, chat. Relaxing here in nature with infinite pizza by my side, not worrying about having to go to work or anything.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> arent dungeons ur job?


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I prefer my office job over risking my life in dungeons


    I scowled.


    ¡°Quiet, you lot! I¡¯m relaxing!¡± I snapped at them before closing my eyes and going back to relaxing and stoutly ignoring all the anxiety creeping around the corners.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> are you gonna appraise your latest loot?


    I hummed.


    ¡°Might as well, I guess,¡± I drawled.


    <u>Replace [Flameguard] with [Appsaisal]?


    </u>Note: [Flameguard] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    [Appraisal] equipped.


    I popped open an eye to look at Mr. Gargles and shot a quick Appraisal at him.


    <u>Ancient turtle plushie</u>


    A plushie resembling the legendary turtle. Can be remote-controlled with a small amount of Ether and Intra. The user can see, hear, and smell through it by using a moderate amount of Intra.


    I slowly blinked, sat up, and stared at Mr. Gargles.


    ¡°...What are you, a drone?¡± I asked before trying to pour some Ether into it, now that I knew it was safe to do so.


    He took my Ether greedily and then jumped off of me onto the grass just like I¡¯d commanded him to do so.


    Also¨C


    ¡°Whoa, what the heck?¡± I blinked several times and looked around but the weird feeling didn¡¯t go away.


    It was like I had an extra limb now. But that limb was detached, turtle-shaped, and sitting on the grass right next to me.


    ¡°Okaaay, chat. I think I can somehow feel Mr. Gargles as if he was part of my body. That is so weird.¡±


    Right, Intra. Mental stuff. Or perception or whatever. Except this was even weirder than Heat Vision. Like sure, Heat Vision let me see impossible things, but this was just¡­


    ¡°Wait, I didn¡¯t even try the other thing. How do I¡­ use more Intra to see through him?¡± I murmured while making Mr. Gargles waddle in place¡­ and doing the same with my real body.


    Gah, this was confusing!


    I tried my best to stop my own body from moving while continuing to move the plushie. It took me several minutes but I eventually succeeded, even if it still felt very strange. My muscles were still all tense and ready to move, but I remained still while my plushie danced.


    And then he stopped too and I couldn¡¯t feel him anymore.


    I blinked at the abrupt change.


    ¡°Oookay, I think he ran out of batteries. Let me recharge you¡­¡± I grabbed him, poured some more Ether, and this time tried paying closer attention to what was happening to see whether I could get a feel for Intra the same way I had for Ether, or whether I wouldn¡¯t feel anything just like with Tempor.


    To my delight, there was a tiny hint of something when I fed the plushie Ether. A trickle of something else left me and entered the turtle. I hadn¡¯t noticed it before, but it made me just a tiny bit more mentally tired in addition to getting physically tired from expending Ether.


    This was it, wasn¡¯t it? Now I just had to figure out how to use it intentionally¡­


    I dropped Mr. Gargles on the ground and once again began walking around with him while keeping myself still. Just as a test, I tried reaching out for any mental switches connected to this, but as expected, there just weren¡¯t any. This wasn¡¯t an innate skill like the key sword, so I needed to use that Intra manually.


    I had no idea how to do that, though.


    I was already using some Intra to feel where he was though, so now I just had to figure out how I was doing that and go from there.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> finally gonna figure out intra?


    ¡°Looks like it? I mean, not like I had a reason to before. Only Appraisal and Heat Vision used Intra and I barely used Heat Vision¡­¡± I murmured as I kept making my turtle plushie dance around on the grass while trying to get a better grasp on this weird mental connection we had.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    How exactly did it work? Was I sending him wireless signals or something? Or was that too technical? Should I think of it more in magical terms?


    Hmm¡­


    If Ether was this orange smokey energy thing, and Tempor was a glitchy purple mass, what would Intra be?


    Also, what the heck even were those three in the first place? Like, fundamentally speaking? Were they a form of matter? Were they some kind of exotic energy? What would I see if I looked at them under a microscope? Were they part of the system or natural occurrences that the system simply took advantage of?


    ¡­I was getting too scientific again, wasn¡¯t I?


    ¡°I feel like Intra is¡­ again, very different from Ether. Just like Tempor. I mean, makes sense. There¡¯s probably a reason why they are labeled as different things by the system,¡± I mused as I sat down and started playing patty cake with Mr. Gargles.


    It was a bit awkward since I was still getting used to controlling him while simultaneously moving my own body. I felt that I was getting better at it, though.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> adorable


    I kept reactivating Mr. Gargles whenever the connection shut down, but kept getting frustrated because I just couldn¡¯t figure out how to activate those shared senses. I figured that I could try hijacking the connection and tweaking something there, but I still didn¡¯t know how to make Intra do what I wanted.


    After what felt like an eternity of making the plushie move around, I finally thought that I had somewhat of a vague feel for it. By then, my head hurt from trying to figure this nonsense out.


    I groaned and massaged my forehead.


    ¡°Okay, chat. I think I¡¯m on the right path,¡± I murmured before the connection cut out for what felt like a millionth time. ¡°...Right?¡±


    I frowned and had to blink to refocus again.


    ¡°Uh, what was I doing again¡­? Right, I was gonna¡­ uhh¡­ I was gonna try to tweak that connection¡­ or something.¡±


    I shook my head to clear away the brain fog and fed Mr. Gargles more Ether and Intra to reactivate him.


    ¡­


    I sat there with my brows furrowed for a few seconds, trying to remember what I was doing.


    ¡°Oh¡­ Yeah¡­ Tweak to connection to¨C¡±


    ¡­


    Blink.


    ¡­


    Blink.


    Turtle¡­


    Green¡­


    Plush¡­


    Blink.


    Girl¡­


    Blue¡­


    Person¡­


    Blink.


    I see turtle¡­


    Turtle saw girl¡­


    I see girl through turtle¡­


    Blink.


    Wind blowing¡­


    Leaves rustling¡­


    Grass was green¡­


    Blink.


    She have blue hair¡­


    Turtle be green¡­


    Saliva running down her mouth¡­


    Blink.


    Hand rub turtle¡­


    Turtle rub hand¡­


    Blink.


    Mr. Gargles¡­


    Chat¡­


    Aoto¡­


    Nana¡­?


    Blink.


    Who?


    Me¡­


    Why¡­?


    Blink.


    Experiment¡­


    Intra¡­?


    Mental energy¡­


    Blink.


    Oh.


    ¡­


    Blink.


    Oh.


    Frown.


    Get up.


    Grass below.


    Blink.


    Turtle walking.


    Girl walking.


    Turtle see girl.


    Me.


    Turtle see me.


    Turtle saw me.


    Blink.


    Where go?


    Where am going?


    Dungeon?


    Why?


    Blink.


    Restore Intra.


    Dungeon item.


    Treasure chest.


    Blink.


    No. Bad.


    Dangerous.


    Walk back.


    Get back!


    Blink.


    Tree.


    Bark.


    Rough texture.


    Blink.


    Intra?


    Intra low.


    Why?


    Blink.


    Turtle see girl.


    Still.


    Turtle use Intra.


    Turn off.


    Blink.


    ¡­


    Blink.


    Sit down.


    Stare at a tree.


    ¡­


    Look like trees from Earth.


    Brown bark, green leaves.


    But inside is orange smoke. Ether.


    ¡­


    So were they really trees?


    How had they survived apocalypse?


    Fake trees?


    Phoenix trees?


    Phoenix was the enemy.


    ¡­


    ¡°Yur an¡¯ impastah,¡± I accused the tree through the overwhelming brain fog.


    I blinked some more, then frowned, trying to remember what I was doing.


    It took a very long time until I could form somewhat coherent thoughts again.


    When I could, I also finally remembered the broad strokes of what had happened and couldn¡¯t help but close my eyes, flop down, and massage my forehead.


    ¡°...Eh, chat. M¡¯back,¡± I slurred. ¡°Think I knoh what happnz when I run out of Intrah now¡­¡±


    Served me right for messing around and experimenting when it was supposed to be my break day.


    ¡°...I jus¡¯ go braindead.¡±


    And I was sure to feel embarrassed once this wore off, but for now, I quite literally didn¡¯t have the mental energy to care about it.


    I tried reading the chat, but my eyes just slid off the text. I couldn¡¯t even read when out of Intra, apparently.


    ¡°C¡¯mon, Gargles, les¡¯ go back,¡± I murmured as I picked up my plushie and stood up again.


    I was a bit wobbly on my legs, but I felt light as a feather. Like I could fly if I tried hard enough.


    I didn¡¯t try, though. It probably wouldn¡¯t work anyway.


    Once I arrived back at the ooze lake, I lay down, hugged Gargles, and closed my eyes to wait out the damn brain fog.


    In the meantime, I counted imaginary sheep.


    That was what you were supposed to do when you closed your eyes, right?


    But it was hard. I kept forgetting what number I was on or miscounting and had to start all over again three times before I just gave up on that as well.


    I opened my eyes in annoyance and tried reading the chat again. This time, I actually caught a few more words in there. Someone was saying to use Appraisal on the swimming sleeves I¡¯d gotten in the chest.


    Which was a good idea. I hadn¡¯t had Appraisal equipped back when I¡¯d gotten them, along with Mr. Gargles.


    So I just had to¨C


    Wait, no.


    Appraisal used Intra.


    I didn¡¯t want to turn back into a drooling zombie again.


    Oh, speaking of which.


    I finally wiped the drool that was all over my neck and chest at this point. Gross.


    ¡°I¡¯ll jus¡­ walk ah¡¯round, I guez¡­¡±


    I put the plushie back into the backpack, and then began walking around the ooze lake. The thing wasn¡¯t all that big so I made the circle around it fairly quickly.


    So I did another one. And then another one, then another¡­


    At the end of lap number twelve, I finally felt decently coherent. It was still hard to focus and my head felt a bit light, but overall, I could actually function now.


    ¡°Alright, chat. That was¨C¡± I frowned. ¡°¨Cactually not that bad in the moment. But thinking back on it is super disturbing.¡±


    I shook my head.


    ¡°That was worse than running out of Ether. Like way worse. Like holy crap, if I ever run out of Intra inside a dungeon, I¡¯m probably as good as dead.¡± I shuddered. ¡°At least when I run out of Ether, I can¡¯t move so I won¡¯t randomly walk into more danger. But with Intra¡­ I was literally about to go back into the dungeon because maybe it had an Intra potion or something. Like what the heck?!¡±


    I sighed.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> welcome back Nana


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that was really disturbing


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> the double sight was pretty trippy


    ¡°Oh, hey Ebi. Haven¡¯t seen you arrive¡­ Double sight? Wait, did you guys see what I saw through Mr. Gargles?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea it like overlapped and was all weird


    ¡°Huh¡­¡± I tried to think back on what it felt like, but my memories of the whole incident were quite hazy. ¡°I don¡¯t actually remember what it looked like for me¡­ and no, Jamie, I¡¯m not gonna try again. Heck no!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey I wasn¡¯t saying anything


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> are you gonna appraise the sleeves tho?


    I frowned at chat.


    ¡°I guess Appraisal doesn¡¯t use that much Intra¡­ I think, at least. Yeah, sure, let¡¯s appraise them.¡±


    Speaking of which, I still had them on. I¡¯d slept with them, actually. Sure, it looked silly, but every gamer knew that if you got a new item for a gear slot where you didn¡¯t have anything yet, you always equipped it and wore it until you found something better.


    I mentally prepared myself to revert to a drooling idiot again, but luckily, it didn¡¯t happen. I did vaguely feel like I¡¯d used something up, but it was miniscule compared to using the plushie.


    Once I was fairly sure that I wasn¡¯t going to wander into dungeons or accuse random trees of being imposters again, I looked at the new window.


    <u>Floaty inflatable sleeves</u>


    Inflatable swimming sleeves. Allow the user to float in any liquid or gas. Reduced effectiveness in gases.


    ¡°Huh¡­ That¡¯s not what I expected. Float? I mean, yeah, that¡¯s what they are normally for¡­ But only in water! Are you telling me I can fly with these?¡±


    I hadn¡¯t felt like that before, but then again, I¡¯d never tried flapping my hands or anything.


    Also, hadn¡¯t my fall slowed down when I¡¯d fallen into the boss room back there? I¡¯d thought that was the dungeon¡¯s shifty nature, but was it actually thanks to these sleeves?


    I narrowed my eyes at a nearby tree that I could maybe climb and test this¡­ But then I very forcefully shook my head.


    ¡°You know what? No. I told myself I would relax today. And I already screwed up with one experiment. I don¡¯t fancy breaking my legs trying to fly right now.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea reasonable


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> it would be really cool if you could tho


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> if you did that I would scream at you


    I snorted and walked back to the first sapling and lay under it once more.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s that. I know I said it before, but now for real! Stream is over! Nothing exciting is gonna happen for the rest of the day!¡±


    Unless a person or even an animal stumbled upon me while I lazed around.


    I didn¡¯t really believe it would happen, but I could still hope.

 #043 – I’m coming for you, calamari!

    I should probably be more disturbed by the fact that the system can axe my brainpower and turn me into a drooling idiot. I mean, what if the system one day just decided to do that without me even doing anything? If the system could give me access to skills, who was to say that it couldn¡¯t also take away my skills? Heck, it had done that already, what with it temporarily removing my ability to read or have coherent thoughts.


    Well¡­ Just another thing on top of the pile of anxiety fuel.


    I really shouldn¡¯t dwell on it too much. I was just going to end up crying in a corner again. There was no point in stressing myself even more.


    Just ignore the existential horror for now.


    I breathed out, finished the last few push ups I could do, and then stood up.


    Despite everything, I had managed to get a somewhat relaxed rest of yesterday. Sure, I hadn¡¯t miraculously run into people or even animals, but I hadn¡¯t really expected it. I¡¯d already accepted that I was probably the only living being in this world, or at least the local area.


    The only things that could vaguely be classified as alive besides me were the dungeon monsters. And even those were kind of like robots powered by the system. They hardly counted as living creatures, much less individuals I could reason with.


    ¡­Not that I had tried that.


    Maybe I should?


    This would be so silly if I could just talk them down¡­


    ¡­And I would feel even worse if they had all been sentient creatures all along enslaved by the system or something¡­


    I slapped my face and shook my head to get off this train of thought.


    I breathed in, stuck out my hands in John¡¯s view again as he stared at the same part of the dungeon wall as yesterday, and counted down from seven.


    ¡°Goooood mooorning, my precious little Aquamarines!¡± I cheered as I finished my countdown and had John turn to face me again. ¡°It¡¯s me! Aoto Nana, your favorite dungeon explorer!¡± I grinned, pushing away all the dark thoughts and anxieties. ¡°How are you all doing? I had a bit of a mishap yesterday. Some of you might have seen it¡­ But I¡¯m fine now! I lazed around all afternoon and now I¡¯m in tip top shape!¡±


    I slowly walked toward the dungeon¡¯s entrance as I talked.


    ¡°Which is perfect, because today, we¡¯ll be taking on the boss of the third floor of this dungeon! And unless it throws us another curveball, we¡¯ll be finally finishing the whole dungeon!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wooooo!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> let¡¯s gooooooo


    ¡°And I say we, not I, because you guys will be helping me! In fact, I already made a special group chat dedicated to coming up with battle strategies and other dungeon-clearing tricks!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> at your service general! o7


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> go get em!


    ¡°Thanks, guys!¡± I flashed them a grin as I arrived at the entrance. ¡°Now then, let¡¯s get going!¡±


    I eyed the corridor for a moment, hoping that the tentacle hadn¡¯t somehow infiltrated the first floor, but there only seemed to be a single zombie from the third floor still around.


    Well, even if the tentacle had come here, I knew well enough how to deal with it.


    I dismissed John, pulled out my favorite naginata out of my backpack, and strolled past the dungeon¡¯s entrance. By now, I¡¯d experienced the uneasy feeling of entering a dungeon enough times that it didn¡¯t faze me anymore.


    When I entered, I narrowed my eyes at the familiar corridor. I had this odd feeling that something was wrong about it. Something was different. But I couldn¡¯t quite put my finger on it.


    ¡°Something feels off, chat¡­¡± I murmured as I crept forward and looked around.


    Nothing happened. I made it all the way to the straggling zombie and swiftly took it down in one smooth move.


    But the odd feeling of unease didn¡¯t go away.


    What was going on? Why did everything feel so¡­ uncanny? As if the dungeon was shifting things again. But subtly enough that I couldn¡¯t tell what exactly had changed.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> you are taller now


    I blinked.


    ¡°Say what?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> rewatched your first time here


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> everything used to look bigger


    I opened my mouth, closed it, then let out a sigh.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°Right¡­ The blessing. Rapid aging.¡± I shook my head. ¡°But why didn¡¯t I notice before? Because I was in this dungeon all day everyday until yesterday?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> probably yeah


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> ur a big girl now lol


    I groaned.


    This was my eighth day in this world. If the blessing aged me sixty times faster, that was already over a year worth of growth. And with me starting out with the body of about a five-year-old, that would definitely be noticeable.


    ¡°Well, alright. Mystery solved, I guess. So it wasn¡¯t the dungeon screwing with me again. Good to know.¡±


    With that out of the way, I swiftly made it to the golden gate and carefully peered past it. I was stunned at the sight.


    There were pink tentacles everywhere.


    Going from one pool to another, poking out of one of the buildings and curling back inside through the window, snaking out of the tunnel and disappearing underwater elsewhere again¡­


    ¡°...Well, that¡¯s not good.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> u let it grow too much lol


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you should cut them off one by one


    ¡°Hmm, yeah¡­ I better get to it then, chat.¡±


    Weirdly enough, I didn¡¯t see any tentacle tips. Only their middle parts. Was this all just a single tentacle portaled all over the place? Well, there was only one way to find out¡­


    I entered the third floor through the gate and as soon as I did, the tentacles all over the place began wiggling in agitation.


    I braced myself and ran for the closest one in the pool and immediately shot a Flame Bullet at the base of the tentacle in the water from where it emerged. At the same time, I shot lightning from my naginata at the upper part of the tentacle to stun it and prevent it from blocking the fireball.


    It worked beautifully. The tentacle spazzed for a moment before the water around its base exploded with steam and then the whole thing went limp and flopped over.


    ¡°Nice!¡± I grinned.


    Yesterday, I¡¯d been thinking about using the lightning directly to attack the tentacle¡¯s portals, but Jeoff had smartly pointed out that that would probably just shock the pool and summon another zombie horde. So we came up with this strategy instead. The only downside was the Ether cost.


    ¡°Next!¡±


    I did the same to another tentacle at a different pool while making my way back to the slides again.


    Everyone in chat had more or less agreed that the boss¡¯ main body was somewhere in that big whirlpool room and I must have missed it somehow. Although not even chat was able to pick out where it had been from watching the stream back, so it must have been really well hidden or just straight up invisible.


    Suddenly, I got ambushed.


    A pink plushy form suddenly swiped at me from the side before I could react. My weapon clattered to the ground as I hit the ground with a pained grunt. Just as I spotted it, the tentacle quickly curled around my ankle and began dragging me into the death water pool, but I lit my leg on fire, causing it to flinch away and sink back into the water.


    I scrambled to recover my weapon and get back to my feet before it could come back.


    It came back from a different pool. One behind me.


    This time though, I was expecting it and reacted immediately to the splashing sound by turning around and releasing a lightning slash at it before it could get me.


    The thing jolted as electricity ran through it and I used its momentary distraction to shoot a fireball at its base to neuter it.


    It hit, the tentacle went limp, and I continued running through the pool maze along the path I thought led to the slides.


    Except unfortunately, it had changed again since last time.


    ¡°C¡¯mooooon! Whyyy?!¡± I whined as the path I¡¯d taken sent me in circles instead of where I wanted to be.


    This dungeon was seriously starting to get on my nerves with its stupid mazes. It certainly didn¡¯t help that zombies and the damn tentacle kept harassing me as I tried to figure out the new layout.


    Thankfully, it didn¡¯t take that long to find my way to the slides again. I quickly put my weapon back into my backpack and threw myself down the spiral chute again, completely ignoring the one slide I hadn¡¯t even tried yet.


    I was more prepared this time, so the twists and turns of the damn thing were more manageable and I hadn¡¯t even nearly drowned when I hit the water inside the tunnel. Knowing that the sleeves had a floating function helped too.


    Unfortunately, the tentacle was already there waiting for me and gave me no time to get my bearings before curling around my midsection and pulling me into the water.


    I immediately burned it with Flameguard to get myself free, found where it emerged from, and spewed fire all over that spot.


    Once the tentacle was no longer a problem, I began swimming through the tunnel.


    Chat and I had agreed that while climbing along the walls might have felt safer, it also exhausted me quicker and made it more difficult to fight enemies. With the floaties, it was better to stay in the water even if I had to deal with plush fish and tentacles.


    Speaking of which, no plush fish tried to attack me on my way for some reason. Likely because I had defeated all the ones here and they hadn¡¯t respawned. Likewise, the tentacle hadn¡¯t reappeared at all and it made me a tad nervous. Like a calm before the storm.


    The gravity in the tunnel then suddenly shifted just like before. Unlike last time though, I was ready for it. Instead of panicking and screaming, I tried to flap my hands in an attempt to use the sleeve¡¯s float function in the air and¡­ it actually worked.


    I probably looked incredibly silly ¨C like a chicken trying to slow down its fall by flapping its wings ¨C but hey, it worked, so who was really silly here?


    ¡°Chat! Tell me if you see the boss anywhere!¡± I yelled as I floated down through the rest of the winding tunnel while keeping an eye out.


    I saw it the moment I fell into the large open circular room.


    Not the pink tentacle below me waiting to drag me under again. A subtle tentacle-shaped white shimmer along the wall and a yellow circle suspended in the air.


    I shot a Flame bullet at the phenomenon without a second thought, and just as I¡¯d expected, the shape moved out of the way, and revealed itself.


    It was¡­ an octopus. A very strange plush octopus.


    It had five different tentacles.The pink one vanishing inside the yellow circle, a white tentacle with moving plushy eyes all over it, yellow tentacle that pulsed with some kind of energy, a black shadowy one that seemed almost transparent, and a bright purple one that left behind afterimages. Its head was a weird mishmash of the same colors and didn¡¯t seem to have any eyes itself.


    As the octopus dodged out of the way of my attack, the pink tentacle below me abruptly pulled away and disappeared under the surface just as the pink tentacle attached to the octopus pulled out of the yellow circle ¨C a portal! ¨C and positioned itself to block the rest of the monster from the splash damage.


    I splashed down into the water and quickly recovered. Then I looked up at the thing still perched on the wall and grinned. The thing looked back at me with the eyes on its white tentacle.


    But before I could think of my next move, the yellow tentacle mimed a circle in the air and another one of those portals appeared, except this one was bigger. The entire octopus jumped through it and disappeared before the portal itself winked out as well.


    My grin turned into an indignant frown.


    ¡°Wha¡ª Get back here!¡± I howled as I spun around, looking for the thing, hoping it was still somewhere in the room.

 #044 – I’m not desperate enough to eat this

    To nobody¡¯s surprise, instead of the entire octopus, only the pink tentacle emerging from the water next to me answered my angry call, making me curse under my breath.


    I immediately spat fire at where it stuck out from before it could drag me under water again, but the whole thing dodged to the side unlike all the previous times. It then lashed out at me in a horizontal swipe and I only barely managed to summon my key sword in time to block it.


    What I didn¡¯t expect was something suddenly smacking me in the head from behind and dazing me for just long enough for the pink tentacle to get around my weapon and curl around my waist.


    I sucked in some air and held my breath just in time before the thing pulled me underwater again ¨C I was getting really tired of that.


    I lit myself on fire, trying to get the damn thing off me, but this time, it kept its grip despite my fire burning through the plush and creating a thick screen of steam around me.


    I grit my teeth to stop myself from inhaling the water and began struggling even harder, desperately trying to shake the damn thing off, but it just couldn¡¯t be done.


    I activated Bullet Time again and everything ¨C including the tentacle gripping me, thankfully ¨C slowed down to a crawl. I used that time to re-summon my key sword that I¡¯d accidentally dropped when I¡¯d gotten dragged under, and finally pried the tentacle off of me.


    I quickly swam to the surface and took a gasp of breath before looking back into the water.


    Just as I¡¯d thought, the tentacle hadn¡¯t come out of a portal like usual; it had come straight out of the water instead. I could see the rest of the tentacle leading deep underwater where it suddenly vanished.


    The jerk was not just invisible, but also hiding underwater! That wasn¡¯t fair at all! How was I supposed to do anything with my fire build? This was a direct counter!


    Still in my Bullet Time, I briefly glanced at chat to see if they had any suggestions and did the first thing I saw Jeoff say.


    I summoned John, my faithful cameraman, and sent him underwater to watch the octopus and hopefully help me figure something out. Then I placed my glove under me, created a bubble, stepped on it with both my feet, and just like last time I¡¯d been here, I ignited my hand, burst the bubble, and sent myself flying into the air with the knockback.


    This time though, I sent myself straight up, and before I even recovered from the whiplash of the pop, I began flapping my hands like a dazed chicken.


    For once, I actually turned off Bullet Time manually as soon as I got launched and then watched the water below me as I slowly floated down.


    By then, John had gotten right next to where the invisible octopus must have been because I noticed the tentacle-shaped white shimmer just like before. From up close though, I also noticed the various bumps on it, just like the eye-filled white tentacle had.


    There had to be a reason why the octopus signaled its position like that despite doing so much to hide itself, right? That white tentacle had to be somehow important. I needed to target it. Or really literally anything else besides the tentacle that endlessly regenerated.


    I noticed another suggestion from chat and quickly reached into my backpack and pulled out the ultra dry towel before tossing it under me. All while continuing to flap with just one hand, which surprisingly still somewhat helped me fall slower.


    True to its function, the towel began to slurp up all the water like a parched man in a desert, causing the whirlpool-like currents at the edges of the room to get even faster and more violent.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the pink tentacle to shoot out of the water and lash out at me again. But since I saw it coming, I immediately spat at it and covered it in fire before it could reach me, causing it to flinch back away from me.


    Then, to my surprise, something else shot out of the water. A purple blur whipped out and before I could even realize what was happening, it slapped me in the chest, pushing out all the air out of my lungs, and made me tumble through the air, which completely disrupted my gliding trick.


    Fortunately, by the time I landed in the water, it was still deep enough that I didn¡¯t have a hard landing, but shallow enough that I wasn¡¯t in danger of drowning anymore.


    I managed to quickly recover, glanced at John¡¯s screen, and saw that the octopus was nowhere to be found. It must have moved from its spot after knocking me out.


    Sneaky bastard. Why did it feel like it was more intelligent than most monsters in this dungeon?


    I scanned the room and sent John to do the same and quickly spotted the telltale hint of white shimmer on the wall on the other side of the room. There was also the yellow portal right next to it and the moment I noticed it, I summoned my key sword, charged it with fire, and slashed behind me with it.


    True to my instincts, my blind slash actually hit the pink tentacle trying to sneak up on me. Breathing in, I shot another Flame Bullet at it, causing it to move and cancel its invisibility again in the process. The pink tentacle likewise dragged itself back through the portal.


    Now I got you, you bastard.


    Before it could teleport out again I shot another Flame Bullet at it while swimming closer. At this point, the water levels were getting low enough that I could reach the bottom with my feet without submerging my face.


    But the monster blocked my fireball with its pink tentacle and before I could shoot it again, it opened another portal and jumped through it.


    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    I grit my teeth in annoyance.


    Before the portal closed though, I made John try and go through the portal on a whim. And to my surprise, it worked. Soon enough, I was looking at myself from above through the little screen in front of me.


    I whirled my head upwards and immediately spotted the octopus hanging around the tunnel leading to this place, waving its shadowy tentacle around and slowly coating itself in darkness. I gave it no time to set up shop and regenerate its scorched tentacle and shot another fireball at it.


    This time, the thing didn¡¯t dodge fast enough. My fireball hit the shadowy tentacle it was waving around and its invisibility abruptly cut out as it staggered and fell from the ceiling.


    I grinned, re-summoned my key sword, channeled fire into it, and prepared to swing at my enemy as it fell down.


    Unfortunately, it just opened another portal in mid-air and fell right into it.


    Fortunately, I knew the perfect counter for that move now and told John to follow it once more.


    I saw my own back on the screen, so I whirled around and slashed with the key sword still in my hands. Before my hit could connect, though, the blurry purple tentacle wrapped around my wrist and began yanking me to the side. I instinctively lit up my wrist on fire, causing it to flinch back.


    The still-charred pink tentacle tried to whip at me, but it was much slower than the purple one and I was already breathing in while holding up my key sword to ward it off even as I steadied my footing from the attempted throw.


    The tentacle snagged on my sword, I let out a Fire breath at the thing point blank, and my vision filled with steam. A moment later, something slammed into my chest and sent me flying.


    I wheezed as it punched the air out of my lungs again, and as I automatically breathed back in, I breathed in some water just as I landed, causing me to choke on it momentarily.


    I scrambled to get back to my feet while coughing out the water in my lungs, and when I did, I was greeted by an unexpected sight.


    The thing¡¯s tentacles were going crazy, blindly flapping all over the place. All of them except for one ¨C the eye-filled white tentacle. That one had an ugly burn on it just like the rest and was cradled close to its head protectively.


    Well, now.


    Its weak spot couldn¡¯t be any more obvious, could it?


    Once I got rid of most of the water in my lungs, I reached into my backpack and pulled out the naginata as the octopus continued to seemingly panic.


    Getting close didn¡¯t seem like a great idea with it thrashing like that, and Fire Breath was still on cooldown after that last shot, so I had to use my other long-range attack.


    I raised my weapon, fed it Ether, and then stabbed forward straight in the white tentacle¡¯s direction. The lightning bolt shot out but missed my target, hitting the octopus¡¯s head instead. All the tentacles momentarily spasmed before continuing to thrash around.


    It was kind of strange how useless it was now despite seeming so intelligent just a moment ago. The white tentacle had to have been really important if a small burn like that crippled it so much.


    Well, if it was going to just sit there, I had no reason to switch up my strategy.


    I fed my weapon more Ether and stabbed it forward again. Then again and again and again.


    A few of my shots hit the head, a few were coincidentally blocked by one of the thrashing tentacles, but a few hit the white tentacle as well. Whenever I managed that, the entire thing shuddered to a halt for a good few seconds before it seemed to force itself to continue its blind thrashing.


    The third time I hit the white tentacle, the thing stopped moving entirely. I eyed it suspiciously, weapon still at the ready, expecting it to get up again.


    But then it turned into mist and disappeared, leaving the now-familiar boss chest behind.


    I let out a sigh of relief as my entire body relaxed. I also idly dismissed John.


    ¡°Finally,¡± I breathed out. ¡°What an annoying boss¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sneaky lol


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> that was well done!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good job!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> that was a cool boss


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no achievements though


    ¡°Thanks guys.¡± I smiled before side-eying Jeoff¡¯s message. ¡°Not cool at all, Jeoff. Just annoying. Ugh¡­ Teleporting, invisibility, and super speed on top of super regeneration.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I wonder what the white tentacle did. If anything¡­ Yeah, too bad I didn¡¯t get any achievements for this.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably just see


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> its why it panicked when you hurt it


    ¡°Yeah. Makes sense,¡± I agreed with a nod before looking at the chest. ¡°Now then¡­ Loot time!¡±


    By which I meant, poking the chest with my naginata time, of course. I ignored the impatience and exasperation chat exuded as I grabbed the towel ¨C which was still sucking up water ¨C on my way to the chest.


    ¡°It¡¯s important, chat! What if this is actually phase two of the boss or something? And it¡¯s like¡­ waiting for me to get close so it can sprout more tentacles?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s not


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> dude cmon


    I ignored him and proceeded to poke the chest for a few minutes like always.


    Nothing happened.


    Nice.


    I put away the weapon back into my backpack and heaved the chest open even as water began to flood back into the room from the tunnels now that the towel wasn¡¯t absorbing it all.


    There was a tentacle inside the chest.


    I immediately recoiled, summoned the key sword to my hand and prepared myself for a fight¡­ And then I suddenly felt very silly because that tentacle was detached and very much not moving on its own. Also, not made out of plush like the boss.


    ¡°Ahem. It¡¯s not a mimic, chat,¡± I announced.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you don¡¯t say


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> uh why is the dungeon giving you tentacles?


    ¡°Eh¡­ Who knows?¡±


    I quickly replaced Craftsman with Appraisal ¨C I¡¯d kept it because I was still struggling to properly channel my Ether without it ¨C and appraised the tentacle.


    <u>Ancient octopus tentacle</u>


    A piece of the legendary octopus¡¯s meat. Infused with Tempor to keep it from going bad.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Wait, it¡¯s meant to be food?!¡± I squeaked and looked at the thing in horror.


    Who would eat that thing?!


    <u>Blouterest:</u> oh I love octopus!


    <u>Blouterest:</u> it¡¯s delicious!


    I looked at my chat in horror.


    ¡°Delicious?! That thing?!¡±


    Was I being pranked? Now I didn¡¯t even wanna get close to that chest anymore.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> isn¡¯t seafood generally healthy n stuff?


    ¡°I¡­I mean, I guess?¡±


    I still didn¡¯t like it. To me, octopus tentacles were¡­ well, tentacles. Gross slimy grabby things¡­ that could teleport, regenerate, and go invisible, apparently.


    But chat insisted that it was probably delicious and likely healthier than my magical pizza.


    Ridiculous. As if I would eat tentacles when I had infinite pizza.


    I spent enough time hesitating that I didn¡¯t even notice the water level rising. When it began to stream inside the chest, I hurried up and ran to the chest again.


    ¡°Okay, fine! I¡¯ll just store it away! It¡¯s not like I¡¯m hurting for space!¡±


    I shrugged off my backpack and with great reluctance and a good deal of disgust, I grabbed the damn tentacle ¨C which was bigger than my freaking arm, augh ¨C and stuffed it inside. Then I quickly glanced at the other items in the chest and my eyes widened.


    ¡°Oh, crap¡­¡±


    The second item looked like a water gun, but the third one was a piece of paper with scribbles on it and it was already getting wet.


    I had no idea what it was for or whether it was fine for it to get wet or not, but I didn¡¯t want to risk anything, so I stuffed both of the items inside the backpack and zipped it up.


    Once the chest disappeared, I put the backpack on again and began swimming out of this place.

 #045 – Time to noscope some kids

    After a few minutes of not being accosted by a stupid tentacle as I swam out of this place, I found myself back outside of the tunnel.


    I still didn¡¯t quite want to drop my guard, so I first made sure to get back to the golden gate before dropping down on my butt with a mighty sigh.


    I sat there for a few seconds with my eyes closed.


    The sunlight felt nice. Even if it was fake.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Let¡¯s figure out what else I got!¡± I cheered and put my backpack on the ground.


    First, I removed the piece of paper from it and placed it on the ground so it could dry out in the sun before pulling out the other item ¨C the water gun.


    Then I used Appraisal at the more interesting object first.


    <u>Ink water gun</u>


    A water gun capable of shooting high-speed projectiles made out of any liquid fed to it by using a moderate amount of Ether. Can also create its own water or ink without supplying them first by using more Ether.


    I blinked.


    Well, I¡¯d kinda subconsciously expected this when I¡¯d first seen this thing, but¡­


    ¡°Chat, I got a gun,¡± I said in a flat tone.


    The impression of this being a fantasy-ish world had been shaky since finding the spaceship, but for some reason, part of me still thought of it that way.


    Well, now that mental image was truly and well shattered.


    Okay, maybe I was exaggerating a bit. It was just a water gun, but still. If water guns existed in this world, there was no reason real guns couldn¡¯t exist too.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuck yeah


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> niceeeee


    Obviously, I needed to test it first to see just how high-speed these projectiles would be.


    I grabbed the thing and scrutinized it for a second. It was small enough that I could hold it in one hand but big enough that I could also use both hands if I wanted to. It had a big bright yellow barrel on top of it, presumably meant for water, and the rest of it was bright orange. It looked like a regular water gun with nothing special about it.


    I shrugged, fiddled with it and found a way to detach the barrel. When I looked into it, I saw a dark void similar to the wallet and my backpack.


    I hummed in understanding.


    Then I had an idea.


    I grabbed the towel from my backpack ¨C which was still completely dry despite absorbing a lake¡¯s worth of water at this point ¨C positioned it above the barrel, and began squeezing.


    A huge stream of water splashed into my lap and I squeaked in surprise.


    ¡°...Okay, I guess it is full of water.¡±


    More carefully this time, I squeezed more water out of it and tried to fill the barrel just to see how much it could hold.


    I sat there for what felt like half an hour as the water streamed out of the towel and the barrel chugged it all up.


    Well.


    ¡°Right, I guess it¡¯s big enough.¡±


    I didn¡¯t think I would have to worry about constantly having to reload mid-fight, at least.


    With that test out of the way, I attached the barrel back into the gun¡¯s mechanism and finally decided to test its main function. I grabbed it in both hands, heaved it, aimed at a random building, and pulled the trigger.


    I did not expect the wet bang and recoil strong enough to make me roll backwards.


    ¡°What the f¨C¡± I shouted as I held my head and tried to recover from bumping my head. ¡°Okay, jeez. I expected a water gun, not a freaking sniper rifle.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> holy shit


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> looooool


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> time to noscope some zombies


    I shook my head and looked back down at the gun incredulously.


    Well, it was a boss drop, so maybe I shouldn¡¯t be that surprised. But still. Wasn¡¯t this a D-rank dungeon? Just what kind of insane loot do more difficult dungeons give out?


    I looked at the building I¡¯d shot and as expected, besides the big splash of water, there was zero damage. Not like I¡¯d expected to actually cause any damage to dungeon objects, but eh. I probably needed to test this thing on something real.


    The recoil was very inconvenient though.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> fuse it with glove for grenade launcher


    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    ¡°...Oh god, you¡¯re right, Jeoff. I can fuse this thing with stuff!¡±


    As if this thing wasn¡¯t crazy enough already.


    I would have to unfuse the glove and shower head later to try this. Or maybe I could even do it the other way around and fuse the gun into the glove to shoot water bullets out of my palms like an esper? Or I could fuse it into one of my weapons to give them a long-range attack? Damn, now I wanted to go and try out all sorts of combos.


    ¡°Well, anyway. This thing is crazy. Confirmed. What about this thing?¡±


    I glanced at the piece of paper, that had seemed to mostly dry in the meantime, and appraised it.


    <u>Keyfinder¡¯s map


    </u>A map that leads to the final boss of this dungeon. May also lead to secret areas within this and other dungeons.


    This object is a Key item.


    ¡°Oh, huh¡­ Wait, it says final boss, chat!¡± I cheered with a grin. ¡°Finally! We¡¯re so close to clearing this dungeon!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hyyyyype


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I hope you don¡¯t plan on going right away Nana


    ¡°Ehh¡­ I¡¯m gonna test the gun some more, recover a bit, and then go. Sounds good?¡±


    There was a general agreement in chat, so I packed everything up again, got up, and left through the golden gate.


    I couldn¡¯t believe that I was finally about to clear this dungeon. It felt like I¡¯ve been here for ages even if it had only been about a week. What would happen after I beat it? Would the entire thing remain dead since nothing respawned? Would the dungeon just disappear? Or would it reset once I cleared it?


    Well, no point in wondering that right now. Rather, it was going to be the final boss. Maybe I should feel concerned. The floor bosses had all given me quite a bit of trouble already and I couldn¡¯t imagine this to be even harder, so¡­ could I even do it? Was it reckless of me to try? What even would be the final boss?


    ¡°Alright chat, place your bets on what the final boss will be.¡± My brows furrowed as I pulled the map out of my backpack at it and stared at it. ¡°Or even where it will be. What even is this a map of?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> laser shark


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> im calling it now


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably the tunnels under the slides


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the third one I¡¯m thinking


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it could be the second floor actually


    I hummed and then remembered something.


    ¡°...Right. I never went on the third slide, did I? I should go there first just to see what¡¯s inside. Maybe there¡¯s a chest.¡± I hummed again and turned the map, trying to figure it out. ¡°You think this is the map of the second floor, Ebi? Hmm¡­ I mean, the second floor made me go back to the first floor, so it wouldn¡¯t be that strange, I guess¡­¡±


    As I talked to and theorized with chat, I made it out of the dungeon again and sat down on the grass to relax for a bit.


    It was still early morning since I¡¯d rushed straight to the octopus, so I had plenty of time to prepare and take out the final boss, whatever it might be.


    A few minutes of lazing around later, I grabbed the water gun again in order to test just how strong it was.


    I spread my legs, dug my heels in, hunched forward, aimed the gun at a nearby tree, and placed my finger on the trigger, feeling it ready to eat my Ether.


    I breathed in, tensed my muscles, and pressed the trigger.


    The squelchy bang rang in my ears again and I nearly fell over despite all my precautions this time, but I managed to keep standing.


    To my complete shock, the water bullet drilled a fist-sized hole straight through the tree¡¯s trunk, leaving it swaying, and making a cloud of orange smoke burst out of it. The tree then toppled to the side completely, releasing even more orange smoke.


    ¡°Hoooly sssh¡­sheep, chat! What the heck?! This isn¡¯t a gun, it¡¯s a freaking cannon!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> jesus fuck


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> aww yiss ur op now


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> holy cow!


    Unfortunately, there were some downsides to the thing though. Namely, I could really feel my Ether dwindling now. And considering I hadn¡¯t used that much Ether against the octopus, this water gun ate a lot.


    Speaking of eating¡­


    I put the gun down for the time being and pulled out my pizza and my trusty bucket to recover a bit.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> try the other setting


    ¡°Other setting?¡± I said between bites of the pizza. ¡°Oh, right. It can create ink to shoot too. Almost forgot about that.¡±


    Probably because the boss had been an octopus right? Even though the octopus had never used ink¡­ Hmm. The boss drops felt like they were only vaguely based on the bosses. Wallet from the coins, an ink gun and a wholeass tentacle from the octopus, a glove and a bottle of juice from the giant weirdo¡­


    Uhh¡­


    I felt like there was some kind of backstory for that one. I hadn¡¯t really thought about it, but if things from the dungeons were based on the civilization that used to be here ¨C which I still didn¡¯t know for sure ¨C then what in the heck was the second floor¡¯s boss based on?


    The coin bosses were weird, but I could accept that they represented having to pay to enter the water park. The octopus was also eyebrow-raising, but I could see it as some kind of mascot for the park and whatnot. But what in god''s name was the sauna guy supposed to be? The water park¡¯s CEO? The resident creep? It felt like it was based on something specific.


    Or maybe I was just overthinking it all. I should probably stop doing that.


    Once I felt like I¡¯d recovered enough Ether with the ooze, I grabbed the gun again, stood in the same stance as last time, aimed at the downed tree trunk, tried to mentally prod the trigger mechanism with my Ether to figure out how to switch settings, and once I found it, I pressed the trigger.


    The moment I did, I felt a ton more Ether drain from me, my knees buckled and my arms went weak, and a split second later, the projectile burst from the gun¡¯s muzzle with a bang, and I was sent flying back.


    ¡°Guh! Gah¡­¡± I groaned as I tried to get back up from where I¡¯d landed. ¡°Shhhovel, chat. Making ammo out of thin air costs a lot more Ether¡­ Who would have thought?¡±


    When I looked up, my eyes went wide and I had to blink a few times to make sure I was seeing right.


    The entire area where I¡¯d been aiming was pitch black. Covered in ink, presumably. I barely noticed the hole in the tree trunk I¡¯d shot. It was hard to see when everything was black.


    ¡°Huh¡­¡± I grabbed the water gun that had fallen off my hands and pulled myself to my feet again. ¡°I guess I have a way to blind my enemies now¡­?¡± I mumbled.


    It was like shooting sand into someone¡¯s eyes at the speed of sound. It would technically blind them, but¡­ well.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what if you feed it the goop


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> that could be useful for big monsters


    ¡°Big monsters¡­?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna shoot things with the healing goop, George¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yeah like kaiju


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the shots won¡¯t kill them but can blind them


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Why do you automatically assume that I¡¯m gonna be fighting building-sized monsters, Jeoff? Are you trying to set up flags on purpose?¡± I grumbled in annoyance.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> just theorizing


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it would be cool if you did tho


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    It would be ¡®cool¡¯. But it would also be freaking terrifying. I didn¡¯t want to fight giant monsters anytime soon. Meeting one giant killer robot was enough for a lifetime, thank you very much.


    ¡­


    That was already a flag in and of itself, wasn¡¯t it?


    ¡­Oh no. What was the final boss going to be?

 #046 – I’m a bit of a completionist

    The map didn¡¯t really make much sense.


    Its only features were vague shapes with a bunch of seemingly random arrows and I didn¡¯t even know where to start.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯ve been replaced


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I would start with the third slide


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe you gotta go back to floor two?


    ¡°I would never replace you, Ebi! This map is terrible anyway! How are you even supposed to read it?¡± I scoffed at the map before putting it back into my backpack. ¡°Well, I wanted to see what was behind slide number three anyway. I mean, I thought I would have to go through all three before I got to the boss, so yeah.¡±


    I passed through the golden gate once more and found myself under the warm fake sun. I shielded my eyes and looked around for any stray zombies, but found none. I briefly wondered whether I could get tan under this fake sun and whether it could cause skin cancer as well. Could it power solar panels? How come the temperatures weren¡¯t absolutely scorching if it was never overcast and the sun never set?


    I shook my head.


    Why was I even trying to find logic inside this dungeon? I should know better by now.


    ¡°Well, slide time! I hope it has cool loot,¡± I said brightly before navigating through the warping space to the slides again. There were only a handful of zombies that tried to accost me on my way there and I dealt with them without an issue.


    It kind of struck me when I cleanly decapitated one of them.


    I¡¯d really gotten used to fighting, hadn¡¯t I? I remembered the first time the basic zombies had jumped me back on floor one and my panic and fumbling around. But now? No problem.


    Being in this world was slowly changing me. Not just the physical changes or even the system messing with my head, but I was changing as a person as well.


    Just when had I become a freaking fighter? Where had the innocent Vcuber averse to exercise gone?


    I huffed and shook my head.


    I didn¡¯t really have a choice, did I? I needed to be a fighter to survive in this world. I still knew barely anything about it, despite already being here for a week, but if all this world had to offer were empty forests and dungeons, I had to be able to fight.


    No time to mourn who I used to be. Not like there was much to mourn anyway. I was¡­ happy with who I was now, despite everything.


    But I couldn¡¯t help but wonder what had happened to my old body back on Earth. Was it still there, lying lifeless in the bed? Or had the entire apartment complex burned down with me in it?


    I could ask people to check¡­ But it still felt wrong to dox myself like that.


    Why the hell was I so apprehensive about it? I was literally in another world. Maybe I should just¨C


    A splash behind me made me whirl around and toss my key sword like a boomerang. The blade pierced the emerging zombie through the skull and the zombie slid back down into the pool while I re-summoned the blade.


    I stared for a moment before heaving a sigh.


    Later.


    I wanted to finish this dungeon first and then I would worry about everything else. Not like it really mattered that much what had happened to my old body anyway.


    Unless there was no old body and this was all a simulation or a dream or¡­


    Okay, no. Not going there again.


    Shaking those thoughts aside, I finally made it to the slides again and shoved these thoughts aside. When I came to the seemingly mild slide, I squatted down and narrowed my eyes in suspicion.


    ¡°Now look, chat. The last slide betrayed me, so I¡¯m not about to trust this one. For all I know, it could suddenly change into something even steeper than that one¨C¡± I pointed at the first slide I¡¯d used. ¡°¨Cand then drop me into a pool of sharks.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> that would be very on brand for this dungeon lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I really hope not¡­


    <u>GonguuH:</u> maybe let a coin or something roll down the slide first?


    I hummed and reached into my backpack and into the wallet to pull out one of the copper coins.


    ¡°Good idea, Gong. Let¡¯s see what happens¡­¡±


    I set the coin on top of the slide and let it get washed down by the trickle of water coming from the top of the slide. I kept my eyes on it the whole time as it slid down at a leisurely pace, flew into the air, and then splashed into the pool of death water below.


    I stared.


    ¡°...Is this slide literally a trap? What the heck?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good thing you didn¡¯t use it then


    <u>GonguuH:</u> hmm I guess the space warping only works on you?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> its a trap!


    <u>GonguuH:</u> maybe try the steep slide too?


    <u>Irid123:</u> you gotta burn the water first like with the other slide, right?


    I frowned at the comments.


    ¡°True. I had to fireball the other pool, I guess this is the same¡­? At least, I hope it is,¡± I mumbled, before an idea struck me. ¡°Hey, you know what, chat? I never tried to use my bucket or my towel on that death water. You think it will work?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I doubt it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s a dungeon object


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s a good idea


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> omg how about you load that water into your gun


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> meh they ar eimmune anyway


    ¡°Oh right! The gun!¡± My eyes went wide. ¡°But yeah, the zombies are kind of immune to that. But maybe it will be useful elsewhere?¡±


    Well, the gun¡¯s barrel seemed to have a massive capacity, so there was no harm in loading it up with some of that death water.


    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s probably not gonna let you carry it out of the dungeon


    I frowned.


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t it¡­?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> didn¡¯t let you steal chairs either


    ¡°...What are you talking about? I never tried stealing chairs.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait really?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I could have sworn


    I eyed Jeoff in chat suspiciously.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nvm then try it


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> having indestructible chairs would be nice for your house quest


    I shrugged.


    ¡°You¡¯re right¡­ Ugh, I wanted to do the final boss and here I am getting distracted by all the side quests¡­ Well, whatever. It can wait.¡± I pulled out the map and scowled at it again. ¡°Not like I even know where to find him yet. This thing¡¯s not very useful.¡± I put the map back in. ¡°Anyway! We¡¯re getting too off track. Let¡¯s see where this slide leads. Hopefully not instant death.¡±


    So far, this dungeon hadn¡¯t had any blatant unfair death traps that I couldn¡¯t get out of. Maybe it was a bit foolish of me to think that it wouldn¡¯t switch things up, but¡­ my gut told me that this dungeon was meant to be cleared. It wouldn¡¯t just randomly kill its explorers without giving them a chance.


    And well, worst case scenario, if the slide was a trap, I could launch myself out of the death pool with my bubble glove like I¡¯d done against the octopus boss.


    It was going to be fine.


    ¡°Here goes nothing!¡±


    I pulled out the towel and held it in my right hand preemptively to prevent repeating another drowning episode, made sure I had enough Ether for a big Fire Breath just in case I needed to burn the pool¡¯s surface again, and nodded to myself before settling down on the slide.


    Then I pushed myself down the slide.


    It started off very mild and slow, but I was already gritting my teeth in preparation for it to get crazy like the spiral one.


    But to my surprise, it never did. I slid down at a leisurely pace and got tossed right into the pool of death water. Seeing as the space had yet to get all wonky, I decided to act before I landed in it.


    I breathed in and prepared to burn through the death water like I¡¯d done with the first slide, but before I could, the space finally began warping, this time around the pool itself. The pool¡¯s surface bent inwards like a sinkhole and created a tunnel right in the middle of the pool where I was falling.


    Then I was suddenly sucked in. It felt like someone had grabbed me out of the air and roughly pulled me down.


    My eyes went wide and I gasped with a startled squeak at the movement, making me abort my Fire Breath.


    I tumbled through the tunnel in the lake at worrying speeds for a few seconds, before my momentum abruptly slowed down again and I found myself in the familiar underground tunnels with water right below me.


    I splashed into it and spent a few moments trying to find the surface again, but luckily, I didn¡¯t breathe in any water this time thanks to the towel I already had on hand.


    When I emerged on the surface again, I took a deep breath and sighed as I put the towel away again.


    ¡°...Right. So, that just happened.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you got yoinked lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> well that was better than the others at least


    <u>Irid123:</u> huh


    <u>Irid123:</u> it warped space to speed you up


    I shrugged. At this point, I didn¡¯t really have any words for this nonsense. Just another day of dungeon exploration.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see what¡¯s in these tunnels then,¡± I murmured.


    Just like the first tunnel, this one didn¡¯t branch at all and my only choice was to go either forward or backward. Since both directions looked identical, not to mention, the dungeon was probably going to do its warping shenanigans as well, I swam in a random direction without thinking about it too much.


    On my way through, I got accosted by more of those flying plush fish, but at this point, I could easily dispatch them without much of an issue. I didn¡¯t even need Fire Breath for it.


    It didn¡¯t take long for me to reach the end of the tunnel. Just like the first slide¡¯s tunnels, it ended with an elevated platform and a chest on top of it.


    ¡°Loot!¡± I cheered. ¡°So this was a side path all along! And the spiral chute was the main path!¡±


    Then, of course, I pulled out my naginata, carefully approached the chest in a crouch with a frown and began poking it.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> makes sense


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the main path was the middle one


    <u>Irid123:</u> I guess that means the dungeon isn¡¯t reacting to you


    I hummed. ¡°What do you mean, Irid?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> like


    <u>Irid123:</u> the dungeon was designed and now you are going through it


    <u>Irid123:</u> but it¡¯s not adapting to what you are doing


    <u>Irid123:</u> otherwise it would lead you here before the boss


    I tilted my head as I stashed my naginata.


    ¡°Well, I dunno. It could still be the case. And maybe this is just some bonus loot?¡± I shrugged. ¡°Whatever. Doesn¡¯t really matter, to be honest. It¡¯s loot time!¡±


    I popped the chest open ¨C it was so easy now compared to a week ago when I¡¯d struggled to open one ¨C and glanced at the contents. My eyes stopped at the pink bikini with white flower patterns on it.


    ¡°...Swimsuit? Really, dungeon?¡±


    I fired Appraisal at it anyway.


    <u>Ancient Lily bikini</u>


    A two piece swimsuit with patterns resembling the legendary Lilies. When worn over the bare body, the user gains a moderate water pressure and cold resistance. Automatically adjusts its size to the wearer by using the wearer¡¯s Ether. Channeling Ether through it allows the user to control the immediate water around them to swim better. Also smells like the ancient Lilies.


    Swim better.


    I groaned and looked at the other object in the chest ¨C a set of diver¡¯s goggles ¨C before appraising them as well.


    <u>Deep sea explorer¡¯s goggles</u>


    Goggles for deep water diving. When worn over the eyes, water will affect the user in the same way air does. Also allows better vision underwater.


    I huffed to myself.


    ¡°Of course I get all the swimming equipment now after I¡¯m done with floor three! God dammit, dungeon!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> good for future runs


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao why does it smel of lilies


    <u>Irid123:</u> what does that even mean?


    <u>Irid123:</u> the goggles


    ¡°What future runs? You think the dungeon will reset once I clear it?¡± I murmured as I leaned into the chest, grabbed the bikini ¨C god, this felt weird ¨C and sniffed it.


    It really did smell like Lilies.


    Why?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> nana the swimsuit sniffer


    I felt my face heat up as I shoved the bikini into my backpack.


    ¡°...Ahem. It really does smell like Lilies. That¡¯s just weird, chat,¡± I murmured, ignoring my embarrassment.


    Good thing they couldn¡¯t see my face.


    Then I grabbed the goggles and put them over my head, but left them on my forehead for the time being.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> not gonna use the swimsuit?


    ¡°No, I¡­ Look, the resistances are nice, but my current clothes are better, right? I remember them having some general damage resistance,¡± I reasoned.


    Of course, I was also a bit conflicted on actually wearing a women¡¯s swimsuit. Especially since I would have to change while chat was watching¡­


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I mean fusion


    I opened my mouth to argue and then closed it again.


    ¡°...Right. Forgot about that. Eh, but I just swapped Craftsman out so I can¡¯t fuse right now,¡± I said, feeling kind of relieved.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh yeah damn


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait, are you going to fight the final boss without it?


    ¡°Well¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°...You¡¯re right, Ebi. I didn¡¯t think this through, did I? Ugh¡­¡±


    Dammit. I wanted to finish this damn dungeon today¡­ but it was probably a better idea to wait for the cooldown to swap Craftsman back in, huh? Ugh, but if I did that the next day, then Appraisal would be on cooldown and then I wouldn¡¯t be able to Appraise whatever the boss dropped.


    This skill slot system was so annoying. How were you supposed to get more skill slots besides the limit break?


    ¡°...Okay, new plan, chat. I¡¯m gonna spend some time practicing using the lightning without Craftsman and if I can do it consistently, I¡¯m gonna do the boss today. If not, I¡¯ll swap Craftsman back tomorrow and find the boss then.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> aw man


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sounds like a plan


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> load up on some death water


    ¡°Mm, yeah I¡¯ll do that. Thanks for the idea, Jamie.¡± I turned around and blinked in momentary surprise. The flooded tunnel was gone and was replaced by one leading to outside. Just like the first slide¡¯s tunnels. ¡°Well, I guess I won¡¯t get to test the goggles much. Whatever. Let¡¯s go.¡±


    I pulled the goggles over my eyes and walked out of the tunnel. Just as advertised, the water at my feet barely slowed me down.


    If the final boss room had any water, this was going to be very useful.

 #047 – Locked and loaded!

    I triple checked to make sure no zombie snuck up on me and pushed me over the edge before squatting down near one of the death water pools.


    ¡°So, how is this going to work¡­?¡± I murmured as I fished out the towel from my backpack and carefully lowered it into the pool.


    The moment it touched the surface, it absorbed the moisture around it, creating some ripples in the water. The spot where the water disappeared also released some dark blue smoke.


    ¡°Huh. What is ¨C Ack!¡± I flinched, nearly dropping the towel altogether the moment the smoke touched my arm and burned my skin.


    ¡°What the heck?!¡± I skittered back away from the pool, gripping the towel in my hand as I watched the smoke dissipate into the air. ¡°What was that? It stung!¡±


    I rubbed my forearm where it had burnt me still feeling the sting. Then I looked at it and saw that it had left eerie dark blue marks on me.


    ¡°Uh¡­¡±


    I nervously stared at it, hoping to god that I wasn¡¯t poisoned or something.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana stop playing with something literally called DEATH WATER!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> appraise it?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh fuck no dont die because of my idea again


    I shot Appraisal at one of the splotches, hoping to figure out what had just happened.


    Name: Nana Aoto


    Title: Fire Blessed


    Race: Human


    Skill Points: 10


    <u>Racial skill</u>:<u>


    </u>Streamer


    <u>Innate skills:</u>


    Bullet time (Waterproof Key bracelet + Time-freezing popsicle (fused)) [LIMITED]


    <u>Other skills(3/3)</u>:


    Phoenix Blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Fire Breath


    Flameguard


    Appraisal


    I blinked.


    ¡°Wait, what? It just opened my status screen¡­? Is it because the system thinks I¡¯m trying to appraise myself? Come on!¡±


    My rant was interrupted by a splash in front of me. My head whipped up just in time to see the zombie emerging from the spot where I¡¯d dipped my towel into.


    There was barely any hesitation as I summoned the key sword into my hand, lunged forward, and split the zombie¡¯s skull, then watched it slide back into the pool with a splash.


    ¡°...Ow.¡±


    The sudden movement had irritated the blue burn wound.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> drink ether to heal


    ¡°Oh yeah. It did say that the death water drains Ether, didn¡¯t it? It¡¯s probably some kind of Anti-Ether mixed with water. Like some kind of reverse life ooze.¡±


    I stopped and frowned.


    ¡°Wait. I think it literally is! It¡¯s called death water, and this¨C¡± I pulled the bucket out of my backpack and grabbed some green sludge out of it. ¡°¨Cis called life ooze. They are opposites!¡±


    Instead of eating it, I decided to smear a bit of ooze directly on the wound. I felt the moment it heated me up, but this time, in a much more pleasant way. The stinging pain gradually went away as I applied more of it and lo and behold, the splotches all disappeared after a few minutes.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s unsanitary Nana


    I rolled my eyes. ¡°And eating the goo isn¡¯t? I¡¯m sure it¡¯s fine. Remember when the potion burnt my blood? It was fine then.¡±


    Just to make sure none of the nastiness seeped into my bloodstream or something, I also ate a mouthful of the life ooze as well. Video game logic dictated that that should cure me of any poison-esque ailment.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> what happens if you throw the goo into the death water?


    ¡°Hmm¡­ They probably cancel each other out? I dunno, I guess I can try it¡­ Maybe I can even fully delete the pools?¡±


    I grabbed a bit of the life ooze out of the bucket, drew my hand back and threw it into the pool.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> wait what if it explodes or something?


    The moment the blob of goo touched the water, there was a bright burst of light and a bang, followed by both the death water and the ooze spraying all over the place.


    I squeaked and jumped back as droplets landed on me and burnt me again.


    ¡°Why?! And how did you know, Gong?!¡± I yelled while eying the puddles of death water now littering the ground around me like caltrops. I carefully backed away and then began grabbing more life ooze to smear on all the burns.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> well, that¡¯s what matter and anti-matter does<u>


    Jeofffff:</u> oh shit


    <u>GonguuH:</u> this wasn¡¯t nearly as violent though


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can make bombs out of that


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana please stop playing with fire¡­


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> more like playing with water lol


    I grunted as I read the chat.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, Ebi! Just a few burns. Nothing I can''t heal. If I could make bombs out of this like Jeoff says, though¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t you already have your bubble glove?


    ¡°I mean, yes. But this stuff can also burn my enemies!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait hold on


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> if the water burns you and goo heals, is the opposite true for dungeon monsters?


    I blinked.


    ¡°Huh. Never thought about that. Maybe I should¨C¡± Another splash from the spot where I¡¯d thrown the goo. ¡°Oh, perfect! A test subject!¡±


    I grabbed another handful of goo and tossed it at the zombie emerging from the water.


    ¡°Eat this!¡±


    The goo hit the zombie square on its empty face and it stumbled for a moment before the goo seemed to get absorbed inside it. When it did, the zombie stopped slowly stumbling and got out of the pool with a burst of speed before lunging at me.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    I dropped the bucket, summoned my key sword and slashed in front of me while backing up.


    But the damn zombie was fast now. It side-stepped my slash and clawed at me, and I only barely backed away enough to avoid having my face rearranged. A moment later, I quickly breathed in and then engulfed the jerk in fire.


    The zombie stumbled back, but didn¡¯t seem to be done just yet as it lunged at me again, still covered in fire. I coated my key sword with fire and slashed horizontally at it, and actually hit this time. The blade cut into its torso and it crumbled to the ground before vanishing into the mist a few moments later.


    I let out a sigh.


    ¡°Well, apparently, Ether just powers them up,¡± I grumbled. ¡°That¡¯s just cheating! Isn¡¯t healing magic supposed to damage the undead? Ugh¡­¡±


    It would have been so nice if it actually burnt them like death water burned me. That way, I could load some life ooze into my gun and then have the ultimate trump card against dungeon monsters.


    But alas.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> awww


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> that sucks


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> this testing is getting out of hand Nana


    ¡°Oh well¡­ Maybe it will work on some other monsters.¡± I shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s fine, Ebi! You worry too much! And anyway, it¡¯s important to test stuff like this! What if I discover some totally broken interaction?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> dammit nana


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> hell yeah this is why we watch nana


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I watch for the mimic paranoia lol


    I snorted.


    ¡°Anywho. I think I¡¯m still gonna try to fill my gun with both the death water and the life ooze. Just in case, you know? I have no idea what the final boss is gonna be, but it can¡¯t hurt to have more ammo options.¡±


    I hummed as I approached a different pool ¨C not one surrounded by puddles of death water ¨C and squatted down with my bucket. I slowly lowered it into the pool and let it absorb some of the liquid before pulling it out again. Since I knew that the liquids inside its little storage didn¡¯t mix, I didn¡¯t need to worry about the bucket suddenly exploding on me, thankfully.


    Then I sat down, brought out my gun, detached the barrel and sat it upright, before positioning the bucket above it and carefully let a bit of the death water trickle inside the barrel. I had to do it very slowly to make sure I didn¡¯t spill any on me.


    ¡°So, any ideas on what else I could put into the gun?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lava


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> your blood


    I glared at chat.


    ¡°I mean things that I can reasonably get without killing myself via blood loss.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> your spit<u>


    GonguuH:</u> depends on what counts as a liquid


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> your pee<u>


    GonguuH:</u> if you could melt something down or grind something into a mush, would it work?


    ¡°Jamie, I¡¯m gonna kick you from the chat,¡± I said, deadpan. ¡°And, I dunno, Gong. I like the idea, though¡­ Maybe I could shoot molten metal or something at my enemies? Although it¡¯s not like I have any metal for that¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> yoooo im back


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> i hear jamie is getting banned?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> im just trying to help!


    I groaned.


    ¡°Hey, George. Jamie is just being gross.¡± I shook my head. ¡°You know the water gun I got? I was asking if anyone has any ideas for alternative ammo. Anything liquid.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what like your pee and stuff?


    I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and then slowly breathed out.


    ¡°Are you and Jamie married yet? You¡¯re perfect for each other.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hell no


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> who would marry GE ogre


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what the fuck how dare you


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you could melt rocks outside with your fire breath and use that as ammo


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fight me 1v1 james


    <u>GonguuH:</u> if it doesn¡¯t cool inside the pocket space


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Look, chat. They are having their first lover¡¯s quarrel,¡± I drawled. ¡°Hmm¡­ That would be neat, Gong. But I¡¯m not sure if my Fire Breath is hot enough for that¡­¡±


    There was that Extreme Temperature upgrade though, wasn¡¯t there¡­? Ugh, but I didn¡¯t want to use any more points on the phoenix skills¡­


    Not like I actually needed stronger ammo for the water gun, did I? The gun was already strong enough with just basic water as its ammo.


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Eh, maybe later. If I feel like I really need my gun to be even stronger, I can get the Extreme Temperature upgrade and get some molten rocks.¡±


    The last bits of the death water dripped into the barrel, and after making sure I hadn¡¯t spilled any of it, I brought out the life ooze out of the bucket and loaded some of it into the gun as well.


    Once done, I got up, briefly looked around just to make sure I wasn¡¯t being snuck up on again, and then finally brought out the map.


    ¡°Okay. Map time. Where the heck do I even start, chat?¡±


    I frowned.


    ¡°Hold on¡­ Did the map change? Chat, am I crazy? Is the map different now?¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it is


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> looks the same to me


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> the map is a mimiiicccc


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hah I¡¯m still the best mapmaker


    I grunted and fully unfolded the map to take a better look.


    If the map changed and warped just like the dungeon, then what was it based on? What caused it to change? If I were to guess, either time or position. So much in this dungeon was about spacetime, after all.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> try moving around and see if it changes?


    I hummed and did as Gong said. I walked around a pool while staring at the map, still wary of my surroundings when I noticed it.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it moved!


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the red dot


    ¡°Yeah, I see it! I guess that¡¯s me then, huh?¡± I glanced up at my surroundings and at the map back and forth a few times, trying to figure out what corresponded to what on the map.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I think the arrows are spawn points actually


    <u>GonguuH:</u> and the shapes are the buildings


    I nodded as I came to the same conclusion.


    ¡°Mmm, you¡¯re right. That¡¯s really dumb, though. You would think the map would depict the pools as a whole rather than just the points where zombies can spawn¡­¡± I narrowed my eyes. ¡°What is my goal, though? Shouldn¡¯t it lead me somewhere?¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I think I see it


    <u>GonguuH:</u> one of those arrows seems to be pointing into the lake


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the green one


    ¡°Huh¡­? Oh yeah, it is. That¡¯s¡­ I don¡¯t like that,¡± I grumbled. ¡°Is it telling me to walk into a pool of death water¡­?¡±


    Now that I looked at it, it seemed very obvious since every other arrow was red. But still¡­ this didn¡¯t bode well.


    I pursed my lips but made my way to that spot on the map anyway. Interestingly enough, the map also accounted for all the space warping, which was incredibly useful. If the map worked on every floor, I wouldn¡¯t get lost ever again!


    ¡°Okay¡­ Here¡¯s the spot on the map,¡± I said as I looked up at the pool in front of me. ¡°It looks exactly the same as any other spot¡­ Ugh, I don¡¯t wanna just dunk myself in! That sounds like a horrible idea, chat!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> send out a scout


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> john or gargles


    My eyes widened.


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s an idea! You¡¯re right Jeoff. I don¡¯t need to go by myself. Let¡¯s see then¡­¡±

 #048 – At least I have a map this time

    First, I summoned John, because I was still wary of using all my Intra on Gargles. My dumb self would probably get herself killed in that state.


    I shuddered, but shook that thought away.


    ¡°Okay, John. Here¡¯s the plan.¡± I nodded at the cameraman that I couldn¡¯t see in front of me. ¡°You take my beloved chat and try to dive into that spot over there and we¡¯ll see if it actually leads anywhere.¡±


    I had John wobble up and down as if he was nodding and I returned his nod.


    ¡°Off you go, then!¡±


    I made John spin around with a hop and then fly off into the pool.


    John made to dive into the pool, but just before he hit the surface, space warped around him and then he was suddenly inside the flooded tunnels again.


    ¡°...Huh. It really worked. Alright then!¡±


    Feeling somewhat confident now, although still a little concerned, I stepped forward after John, put the map into the backpack, and brought out the towel just in case before hopping off the edge into the death water.


    It felt wrong, just plunging into it after avoiding it for so long, and part of me thought the space warping wasn¡¯t going to work for whatever reason and I would be screwed. But luckily, it did, and I soon found myself in the tunnels, splashing right next to John.


    I quickly got my bearings and looked around with both my own eyes as well as John¡¯s. The tunnels were similar to the ones that led to the boss, as in, I was at a crossroad. Although instead of four pathways, there were six now.


    ¡°Alright¡­ What now? Can the magical map tell me? Ugh, wait, is the thing waterproof? It should be, right?¡±


    It would have been very stupid if it wasn¡¯t waterproof, but just in case, I swam to a nearby wall before carefully pulling the map out and holding it out of the water.


    Not that that helped much since my backpack was constantly submerged anyway. Eh, the map looked fairly waterproof at least.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> gogglessss


    ¡°Oh, right! How did I forget about these?¡±


    I pulled the goggles over my eyes and then suddenly I was falling.


    I squeaked in surprise, but my voice was immediately muffled by the water I fell into. In about two seconds, I found myself splayed at the bottom of the flooded tunnel, blinking in surprise.


    I stared at my surprisingly bright surroundings through the goggles for a few seconds before opening my mouth.


    ¡®Uh, right. Water acts like air around me. I see,¡¯ was what I meant to say, but it only came out as wet gurgles.


    ¡®Oh come on!¡¯ I gurgled some more.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> the swamp monster got her lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana??!?!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> holy shit wtf


    ¡®I¡¯m fine, Ebi,¡¯ I tried to say as I stood up, expecting water physics, but failing to get them.


    This was really tripping me up, and I couldn¡¯t help but scowl at my sudden inability to communicate with chat.


    On the bright side, I¡¯d held onto the map and it seemed to be doing just fine underwater. Small mercies.


    I looked up at the surface with a frown and contemplated my situation for a moment.


    I couldn¡¯t exactly swim back up, since the water behaved like air. And I wasn¡¯t entirely sure whether removing the goggles now would instantly drown me or something.


    What to do¡­?


    I could just¡­ continue my journey while submerged, but that would mean I couldn¡¯t speak to chat, ugh¡­


    ¡­I could try using the swimsuit. It supposedly allowed me to control the water around me to swim better, right? So even if it behaved like air right now, if I could still somewhat control it¡­


    Ugh, was I really going to change into a swimsuit right here underwater?


    Hell no.


    Instead of changing clothes, I put the map into my backpack ¨C ugh, that thing was probably full of water by now ¨C put my glove under me and began creating a bubble.


    Once I judged it to be large enough, I grabbed it with both hands, stepped on it, and then briefly ignited my hands around it.


    The thing popped and sent me flying upwards, although with a lot less force than it usually did ¨C the physics were seriously weird with these goggles ¨C but still enough for me to reach the surface.


    I immediately reached up and moved the goggles to my forehead again and then suddenly, I was floating again.


    I opened my mouth to speak and automatically coughed up some water that I¡¯d been apparently breathing down there. Gross.


    I cleared my throat, spat the last bits of water, and then finally spoke.


    ¡°Hey, chat. I¡¯m back. These goggles, uh, work exactly as advertised,¡± I informed everyone. ¡°So unless I learn how to fly or wanna chill at the bottom all the time, it¡¯s probably not the greatest¡­ And I can¡¯t even speak when underwater! It¡¯s a total scam!¡± I sniffed in annoyance.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> use the swimsuit


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait that¡¯s awesome


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you should use them all the time


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait can¡¯t you use chat yourself?


    I hummed.


    ¡°I mean yeah, it will be pretty useful if I ever need to go underwater, but¡­ Heck no, George. Maybe later. Maybe after I fuse it with my normal clothes or something¡­ Huh, I don¡¯t know, Ebi. I don¡¯t think so¡­?¡±


    I frowned and tried to summon a way for me to type my own messages, but the system ignored me.


    ¡°Yeah, probably not. Kind of a shame.¡± I huffed. ¡°Anyway! That was enough distractions. Let¡¯s see now¡­¡± I positioned John ¨C who I¡¯d just realized must have watched me suddenly sink into the water ¨C just behind me and made him look over my shoulder at the map as I studied it. ¡°...Wait, it changed again. I guess whenever I go to a different area, it changes? Hmm, makes sense. Classic dungeon warping nonsense.¡±


    The map featured the red dot ¨C me ¨C and six arrows leading outwards. One of them was green, another one was blue, and the rest were red.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> red is probably the wrong way


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> try red first


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> go blue cuz water is blue


    I hummed and glanced over my shoulder at John with a slight frown.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m assuming red is no good. But then between green and blue¡­ I mean, you would think that green is the correct way, right? But this dungeon keeps throwing unexpected stuff at me, so the blue arrow might be it¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> send John into blue and go green


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s an idea! Wait, but John has limited range. He probably won¡¯t get very far¡­ Well, let¡¯s try it anyway.¡± I looked at John again. ¡°Alright, John. Blue or green? Which one are you picking?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> are WE john?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> poll it!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> any actual Johns in chat?


    ¡°Yes, chat. You are John.¡± I nodded sagely. ¡°Eh, sure. Why not? Let¡¯s put up a poll, I guess¡­¡±


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> jovial observant helpful naggers JOHN


    Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!<u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmao


    I snorted and shook my head. ¡°You got that naggers part right. Not sure about the ¡®helpful¡¯ bit though¡­¡±


    Naturally, other people immediately came up with their own acronyms for JOHN, and I couldn¡¯t help but come up with a few myself while the poll accumulated votes.


    A few minutes later, I glanced at it again to see the results.


    <u>Poll: ¡®Which path should John take?¡¯


    </u><u>Blue:</u> 53.76% (22589)


    <u>Green:</u> 46.24% (19432)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    ¡°Hmm, looks like John will be taking the blue¨C¡± I blinked as the numbers registered. ¡°Wait, hold on. How many votes in just a few minutes?! What the heck?! Just how many people are watching right now?!¡±


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> 113k on snitch


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it says 730k


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wtf no it doesnt


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea its 730k


    ¡°...Why do we have two different numbers? Chat, what is going on?¡±


    Was some space-time nonsense happening again? Or¨C


    <u>GonguuH:</u> 730k on the streamer website, 113k on snitch


    ¡°...Oh. Okay, makes sense, I guess?¡±


    Although it felt weird that more people were watching me through that mysterious website than through Snitch. Maybe it counted everyone watching from all the websites somehow? Actually, yeah. Probably. That would hardly be the craziest thing this skill had done.


    ¡°Okay! Enough getting distracted!¡± I pointed dramatically at John. ¡°You, jealous obnoxious handy noobs, go that way, and I¡¯ll go this way!¡± I said as I pointed at the tunnels corresponding to the blue and green arrows in the map. ¡±Let¡¯s go!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> thefuck did you just call me


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lol


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hey I¡¯m not obnoxious


    ¡°Well, sometimes¡­¡± I drawled.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> D:<


    I smirked, put the map back into my backpack, sent John one way, and swam the other way. Both of the tunnels looked identical at first, and unfortunately, it didn¡¯t take long until I felt John getting too far away from me and couldn¡¯t send him any further even if we both hugged the wall where we were the closest to each other.


    Ten meters wasn¡¯t much, was it?


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Well, that¡¯s that. What was even the point¡­?¡± I grunted and then narrowed my eyes. ¡°Wait, can you guys still hear me? Does the stream record the sound from John¡¯s point of view as well?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea but its all echoey and from far away


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> horror movie pow<u>


    GonguuH:</u> we can hear you but it¡¯s coming from behind the corner


    ¡°...Huh. Neat.¡± I nodded to myself before dismissing John. ¡°So in other words, if I ever wanna get rid of you guys, I just gotta lock John inside a box. Good to know.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> dont you dare


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you could do that to get some privacy sometimes


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> just make sure the box isn¡¯t a mimic


    I snorted.


    ¡°Of course, of course.¡±


    I kept swimming while pulling out the map to look at it every now and then. Unlike up on the surface, the entire map was shifting while I, the red dot, remained stationary. Eventually, I came across another huge intersection and the map reflected it with more arrows.


    Once again, one of the arrows was green and another one ¨C the tunnel where I¡¯d come from, actually ¨C was blue.


    I hummed.


    ¡°Okay, whatever the blue arrow is pointing toward, I¡¯m probably getting further away from it¡­ But that¡¯s assuming there¡¯s no space warping nonsense happening.¡± I glared at the map. ¡°Whatever. Let¡¯s keep following the green arrows for now.¡±


    I swam through the next tunnel for a couple more minutes ¨C belatedly realizing that there didn¡¯t seem to be any of these plush fish anywhere ¨C before reaching a third tunnel.


    Once again, the map showed arrows. Except one of the arrows was also yellow, in addition to the green and blue ones.


    ¡°Yellow arrow¡­ Or gold. And gold means loot, right?¡± I mumbled, eyeing the tunnel where the yellow arrow was pointing suspiciously. ¡°Wasn¡¯t the map supposed to point toward secrets as well?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> but then whats the blue one?<u>


    GonguuH:</u> you should keep following the green arrows for now


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it could be a trap


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I mean so far the green arrows just lead to more intersections


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the blue arrow is the way back I think


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> poll!


    I hummed.


    ¡°...I think I¡¯ll just keep following the green arrows right now and see where they lead me,¡± I declared. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna poll every intersection, Jamie. I wanna finish this dungeon today.¡±


    So with that, I picked the green one again and swam through the tunnel.


    It didn¡¯t take long for everything around me to suddenly shift and for gravity to decide that actually, forward was now down, and I found myself falling down the tunnel just like before the boss room.


    I let out a startled yelp, but luckily, I was getting used to this dungeon¡¯s shenanigans and knew to immediately start flapping my arms like a chicken and let the swimming sleeves save me from plummeting to my death.


    ¡°Dammit, chat! Why did I pick green arrows?!¡± I yelled as I navigated down the snaking tunnel and my heart began beating like a drummer at a concert.


    Soon enough, the tunnel spat me out. But not inside a big circular room this time.


    I gasped as I suddenly found myself very high up in the air, overlooking sets of skyscraper-sized lockers surrounding me from both sides.


    Floor two?!


    I frantically looked around to see whether something was waiting for me while I continued to flap my arms like mad to slow down my fall just a little more.


    Then I noticed that there was a puddle right below me where I was going to land.


    And maybe it was just a tad paranoid of me, but I couldn¡¯t help but breath in and cover the damn thing in as much fire as I could just before I landed.


    My feet finally touched the ground, but it was still a bit too fast and I ended up crumpling into a heap.


    ¡°...Ow.¡± I groaned as I picked myself up and quickly looked around for any ambushes.


    There were none, luckily.


    I took a deep breath and sighed.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you didn¡¯t break anything did you?


    ¡°I¡¯m fine¡­ But seriously, who is this dungeon even designed for? I would have been a pancake if I didn¡¯t have these!¡± I tugged on one of the swimming sleeves.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> birds


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> no wait¡­ PHOENIXES


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> dun dun duuuun


    My eyebrow twitched.


    ¡°Yeah, because phoenixes are known to wear bikinis and gloves,¡± I drawled. ¡°The perfect loot for them.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you were probably meant to get those sleeves before this part


    ¡°I mean, maybe? But what if I didn¡¯t get these sleeves? It was in a chest in a side path!¡± I grumbled to myself. ¡°Well, whatever. I¡¯m alive and well, and I really hope the map works for this place too. Didn¡¯t think it would bring me back here¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe the loot is personalized


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> phoenixes get different loot


    I shrugged and pulled out the map again.


    ¡°Maybe. Who knows? Not like I can ask anyone¡­¡±


    Before I could get depressed and anxious about the whole ¡®stranded in a dead world¡¯ thing again, I studied the map that had once again changed and was now showing several rectangular shapes surrounding a red dot. There were also several arrows.


    One green, one blue, one yellow, and everything else red.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess I¡¯ll just keep following the green arrows,¡± I decided.


    Before setting off, I briefly glanced up at the tunnel that had spit me into this place.


    It was quite far away and seemed to have come from somewhere above one of the lockers in a way that definitely didn¡¯t match how I¡¯d fallen through it. There was also water stuck to one of its sides as if it couldn¡¯t care less about gravity.


    Classic.


    Not wanting to dwell on more physics being mutilated by this dungeon, I moved on and began following my map.


    I came across a few more of these puddles of water, and although it might have seemed overly paranoid to some, I always carefully approached them, brought out my naginata, and zapped them just to check whether they were one of those living puddles.


    They never were. Or at least, none of them began moving after I zapped them.


    It was kind of eerie. Like I was going back through the dungeon, but without any enemies around.


    A few minutes later, the green arrow disappeared and was replaced with a green X. I frowned in confusion but kept going and soon found out what the X meant.


    ¡°Noooo¡­¡± I groaned and dragged a hand down my face as I stared at the dreaded screen thing at the side of one of the lockers. ¡°Not this again!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit its back


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh no


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> loud noise warning


    I let out a heavy sigh and resigned myself to my fate.


    Truth be told, part of me still cringed away from these things just because of the experiences I¡¯d associated with them. After all, each of the lockers on floor two had nearly killed me.


    ¡°Alright, fine. Here goes nothing, chat,¡± I muttered as I got closer to the screen, lifted up my wrist, and let it scan the bracelet.


    A big ten appeared on the screen and I jumped back and grit my teeth in preparation for the noise.


    Except it never came.


    The countdown began ticking down and I was frantically looking around, nervously anticipating something happening. Something unexpected.


    And sure enough, once the timer hit zero, instead of a single locker opening like was the case with all the others on floor two, multiple lockers suddenly opened, startling the crap out of me with how loud it was.


    I immediately began looking into each of the lockers, anticipating flying clothing coming to get me.


    And then I felt like a complete fool because that didn¡¯t happen either.


    I stood there dumbly for a good few minutes before I finally allowed myself to relax when nothing came rushing out at me.


    ¡°...Right. That¡¯s different. I guess this place doesn¡¯t have any enemies, either? I¡¯m guessing I have to enter one of the lockers, right¡­?¡±


    I looked back to my map, and sure enough, there were arrows pointing into where the opened lockers should be now. One of them was green while the rest were red.


    ¡°Simple enough, I guess¡­¡± I mumbled and walked to the locker marked with the green arrow.


    I peeked inside and instantly narrowed my eyes in suspicion.


    As usual, it was completely dark inside and I couldn¡¯t see a thing. What caught my attention, though, was the pillar of light visible straight across from the entrance.


    ¡°This feels like a trap.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuck yeah horror movie night today bois<u>


    GonguuH:</u> actually it feels like there isn¡¯t going to be anything


    I completely ignored George.


    ¡°Seriously? How can you say that, Gong? You can¡¯t tell me that this isn¡¯t suspicious as heck.¡± I gestured inside the locker.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I mean enemies


    ¡°Oh, hmm¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> so far, this path to the final boss has been without any


    ¡°I mean, that¡¯s true, but what about traps? There was that sudden death drop¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> yeah this seems to be about environmental hazards rather than enemies


    ¡°Hmm, you might be onto something¡­ Alright, enough stalling. Let¡¯s get to it.¡±


    I took a deep breath, told myself that it was going to be fine, and then walked inside the locker.

 #049 - This feels like a calm before the storm

    Ah yes, a dark, unnaturally silent locker probably full of monsters waiting just outside of my vision. How nostalgic.


    Everytime I¡¯d entered one of these, it had ended in a horrible experience and I was under no illusions that this time would be any different.


    The eerie silence only broken by my own breaths and my feet carefully tapping on the metal floor, the all-consuming darkness all around me just barely lit up by the small flame in my palm created by Flameguard, the uncertainty of whether this place would decide to trap me inside with its space-warping nonsense¡­


    Why was I doing this to myself? Why hadn¡¯t I just left this dungeon be and tried to maybe find civilization instead?


    Right, because I was a completionist and leaving this dungeon unfinished, especially right before the final boss, would nag at me forever.


    ¡°Okay, chat¡­ So far so good¡­¡± I whispered, my voice echoing in the creepy space like the cry of a ghost.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I don¡¯t trust this<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> BOO!


    <u>Irid123:</u> I wonder what the trick is this time


    I resisted my urge to roll my eyes at George and kept a keen eye on my surroundings, even if I could barely see anything.


    I briefly glanced back to confirm that, yes, the entrance was still there, and it was getting further away from me. The column of light that was supposedly the exit was also still there and was getting closer as I walked toward it.


    I didn¡¯t trust any of this. It seemed way too simple.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> try checking the map


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I feel like this is a trap


    I hummed in agreement and slowly pulled out the map before shining some light on it with my fire.


    I narrowed my eyes on it when I saw that it was nearly completely empty save for three arrows. A blue arrow that seemed to be the entrance behind me, a red arrow that had to be the supposed exit in front of me, and then a green arrow in between those two curling onto itself in an anti-clockwise circle.


    I slowly blinked before lifting my eyes up at the column of light in front of me.


    ¡°...It is a trap, chat.¡± I sniffed. ¡°I knew it.¡±


    Good thing I¡¯d looked at the map. I still didn¡¯t know what the red arrows meant, but better safe than sorry.


    Even though it felt a bit silly, I did as my map commanded and followed the green arrow. That was to say, I began walking in a small circle while continuing to stare at the map.


    Unlike the previous instances, the arrows on the map also began moving around as I walked, while the red dot stayed in the middle, like it was some kind of minimap in a video game. As I walked, the green arrow in the middle slowly uncurled and by the time it straightened out completely, I ran into another column of light ¨C this one much smaller for some reason ¨C that seemed to lead outside.


    ¡°...Huh. That was¡­ easy?¡± I carefully said, still feeling suspicious.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> still feels sus


    ¡°It really does, doesn¡¯t it?¡±


    Despite my trepidation, I happily walked through and out of the dark locker. As soon as my eyes readjusted to the light, I found myself in a room with some tables and chairs as well as several doors in all directions.


    I blinked as I looked back at where I¡¯d come from and spotted a row of completely normal-sized lockers lining the wall behind me. One of them was open and led back into the darkness.


    ¡°...And this is the first floor, isn¡¯t it? It¡¯s like I¡¯m going back through the entire dungeon or something.¡± I shook my head before holding the map up again. ¡°Well, where to now?¡±


    As expected, a blue arrow on the map pointed back into the locker, one of the doors on my left had a green arrow, and the rest were all red arrows.


    I was beginning to get anxious. Things were too simple. This dungeon was never simple. It had to be preparing to screw me over somehow. Were the green arrows really leading to the final boss or was it something else?


    Or maybe it was all reverse psychology and if I deviated from the simple green arrow path now, I would regret it.


    Stupid dungeon had conditioned me to be hyper paranoid about everything, ugh.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s keep going. If the pattern holds, then¡­ this should be the last area before¡­ Before I reach whatever it is that I¡¯m going toward.¡± I pursed my lips.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> final boss time!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> check your ammo and ether levels and stuff


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> just in case


    I hummed.


    ¡°Good idea, Jeoff. I don¡¯t wanna get caught off guard now.¡±


    A few bites of the life ooze, a quick check on the bracelet¡¯s remaining juice ¨C 29% ¨C and with my naginata drawn in my hand, I finally set off again.


    I was ready for whatever the dungeon decided to throw at me now. The only thing I lacked was the Craftsman skill to properly utilize the lightning from my naginata, but I should be fine even without it. I still had my Fire Breath as well as my new gun for long-range options, and electrifying the blade wasn¡¯t as hard as shooting lightning out of it. I could manage.


    I opened the door and was greeted with a curving hallway. I didn¡¯t hesitate before entering it while keeping my guard up.


    I walked through in silence, eyes darting all over the walls in anticipation, but still nothing happened.


    I reached the end of the hallway and was greeted by several windows I could climb through. If I looked at them all individually, they all seemed to lead to the very start of the dungeon. But if I looked at my map, I saw that one of the windows had a green arrow, while the rest had red ones.


    Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    ¡°Through here, I guess¡­¡± I mumbled as I approached the correct window and climbed through it.


    I idly noted that it was much easier now than it had been when I¡¯d first tried to climb through windows like these. I had probably grown a fair bit because of the blessing.


    Once on the other side, I found myself in a corridor filled with windows reminiscent of the dungeon¡¯s entrance. Except this corridor wasn¡¯t straight; it seemed to curve away and I couldn¡¯t see what lay on either end of it.


    I looked at my map.


    My eyes narrowed and I completely disregarded all the red arrows indicating the windows. I was more interested in the green arrow pointing down one of the corridor¡¯s directions, as well as the black arrow pointing down the other direction.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> black?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> that¡¯s ominous


    I lifted my head and glanced in the black arrow¡¯s direction.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana don¡¯t


    ¡°...I¡¯m not going there. Just curious,¡± I mumbled before shaking my head. ¡°Well, it¡¯s probably some kind of death trap anyway.¡±


    With that, I ignored that path and continued following the green arrow down the snaking corridor.


    It only took a few minutes before I reached a door with golden chains and a lock draped over it, similar to the golden gate that led to floor three.


    I took a deep breath and let out a sigh as I stared at it.


    ¡°My gamer senses are tingling, chat. I think that this is it. Whatever the green arrows were leading me toward, it¡¯s behind this door.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> agreed


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> be careful Nana


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> FINAL BOSS TIIIIME BABYYY


    I approached it, eyed it for a moment, then reached into my backpack and pulled out the key sword manually for once ¨C didn¡¯t want to waste Tempor summoning it ¨C before slotting it into the keyhole, and turning it.


    The lock clicked and the chains around it fell apart, giving me access to the door behind it.


    ¡°Here we go, chat.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> good luck!<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> glhf


    I put my hand on the door¡¯s handle and opened it.


    Inside, there was¡­ an indoor pool. Looking perfectly innocent and innocuous. I didn¡¯t trust it for a second but I entered the room anyway.


    As soon as I did, the door slammed shut behind me, prompting me to whirl around in shock. Before I could register what was happening, the door clicked and I felt my stomach drop.


    ¡°Oh, no¡­¡±


    Naturally, I tried grabbing the handle and opening it again, but it wouldn¡¯t budge anymore. I was trapped in this place. I couldn¡¯t help but really feel the ¡®final boss room¡¯ vibes now.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s win or die


    I swallowed and reluctantly turned back to the room at large while trying to calm my drumming heart.


    As mentioned before, there was a large pool in the middle of the room. It looked like water but¡­


    <u>Death water


    </u>Dungeon liquid that drains intruder¡¯s Ether on touch and creates dungeon monsters.


    ¡­Yeah, I figured.


    I would have to hug the edges of the big room to stay safe. Luckily there seemed to be plenty of space and I probably wouldn¡¯t need to worry about falling into the pool.


    That aside¡­


    ¡°...So, where¡¯s the final boss?¡± I asked the empty room as my eyes scanned it.


    Then I heard someone ask the exact same thing from up above.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    I craned my neck up and froze at what I saw.


    There was another pool up on the ceiling. Chilling there like gravity didn¡¯t matter.


    That wasn¡¯t the surprising part though. The thing that had stunned me was the fact that I could see a door by that pool diagonally across from me and a girl standing in front of the door, staring at me.


    The girl had cyan-blue hair, a matching outfit, a naginata in her right hand, a map in her left hand, goggles on her head, bracelet on her wrist¨C


    ¡°What the hell?!¡± I yelled.


    The girl yelled the same thing.


    We both gaped at each other for a good minute.


    ¡°Uh¡­ Hello¡­?¡±


    As expected, my reverse-gravity doppelganger mirrored everything I did and said.


    ¡°Are you¡­ a clone? Or a mirror image?¡± I asked as our eyebrows scrunched up. ¡°Or are you literally me? Like¡­ is the space here warped so much that I¡¯m somehow seeing myself?¡±


    It wouldn¡¯t explain the sound, but¡­ Well, maybe it would. Who knew how the heck this nonsense worked.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> finally found another person


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> double nana


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wow that¡¯s weird


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> summon john


    I hummed and summoned John as Jeoff suggested. The moment I did though, I paused and slowly looked toward a specific spot next to my doppelganger. Just like how I felt John¡¯s position, I could feel¡­ another John¡¯s position.


    ¡°...Chat. There are two Johns.¡±


    I made John float over me and to my other side all while his camera stayed on me.


    I could feel the doppelganger¡¯s John do the exact same thing.


    ¡°This is so, so, weird,¡± I murmured. ¡°The dungeon duplicated me.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> evil clone final boss?!


    ¡°I really hope not, George. I don¡¯t wanna fight a dark version of myself. That sounds really dumb and cliche,¡± I murmured.


    How would I even defeat such a boss without defeating myself as well in the process? If this room was perfectly mirrored, I would take any and all damage she would take. The only possible result would be a stalemate or a draw.


    Regardless, I decided to do a little test.


    I breathed in the tiniest amount and then spat a small Flame Bullet in my doppelganger¡¯s direction.


    She did exactly the same thing in perfect sync with me and I expected the fireballs to collide and cancel each other out, but instead, they somehow passed through each other and now there was a fireball headed straight at me.


    I squeaked and jumped out of the way as it hit the ground. My doppelganger did the same thing.


    Yeah, this wasn¡¯t going to work.


    Ugh, why was the final boss suddenly a puzzle? That didn¡¯t feel like this dungeon at all.


    Well, at least I had all the time in the world to try and figure it out. No random monsters chasing me this time.


    So with that in mind, I put the map back into my backpack, finally left the door behind me, and began walking alongside the pool¡¯s edge while keeping an eye on my reflection up above.


    How would one even go about defeating an enemy who was the perfect mirror of yourself? If this was a video game, there would have to be some kind of loophole or an exploit. Some minor inconsistency in how it mirrored your movement, or even an item that would resurrect you on death, but wouldn¡¯t do the same for the doppelganger.


    Not that I wanted to die to beat the boss, but¨C


    Suddenly, my thoughts were interrupted by the pool¡¯s surface rippling and sending out a large splash as something emerged from it. Two somethings, one from each of the pools, actually.


    I startled and gripped the naginata in both hands as I stared at the things with wide eyes.


    As the water slid off of them ¨C some of it fell down, some of it up ¨C and revealed what the two things were, I couldn¡¯t help but gape.


    It was a pair of giant sharks. With large reptilian wings instead of side fins. And not just that. There also seemed to be some kind of devices strapped to their backs with what looked like a sci-fi cannon. One of them was facing me and the other was facing my doppelganger.


    They opened their massive jaws filled with razor-sharp teeth and let out a ground-shaking roar in concert; I couldn¡¯t help but stiffen at the horrible echoey doublesound.


    Oh.


    I belatedly realized that I¡¯d had it all wrong.


    My doppelganger wasn¡¯t the boss. It was just a consequence of what this place was. The actual boss just didn¡¯t appear until you walked further into the room.


    After the shark facing me closed its mouth again, the cannon thing on its back pointed at me and began glowing while letting out very sci-fi energy charging sounds. Its twin likewise looked at my doppelganger and began charging its own cannon in unison.


    My eyes widened and I moved on instinct as I jumped to the side just as it fired out a massive fucking laser beam that ripped through the space where I¡¯d stood just a moment ago.


    ¡°What the f¨C¡±


    I scrambled to stand up only to find the shark already swooping down at me like an eagle.


    I breathed out and spat out a river of flames in his direction even as I jumped to the side to dodge its body barreling toward me.


    The flaming shark smashed into the ground next to me, its wings nearly clipping me, and immediately took off again.


    I grit my teeth and got ready to tussle.


    But then a wave of fire slammed into me from where I¡¯d shot it and I screamed in surprise before activating Flameguard for fire resistance and let it wash over me for the most part.


    I looked at where the wave of fire had come from and¨C


    Oh.


    My doppelganger was in that direction.


    I¡¯d shot myself with fire.


    That was the gimmick with this boss.


    Now I understood.

 #050 - Wouldn’t one be enough?!

    So far, this dungeon had used its space warping nonsense to create mazes and to confuse and unnerve me.


    This time, it was using it against me directly, by making my own attacks a danger to me if I wasn¡¯t careful enough.


    The shark, still covered in fire, recovered and floated back into the middle of the room and flew in circles with its own doppelganger ¨C also on fire. They were in the prime spot where if I were to shoot more fire at them and they dodged, the fire would fly straight at me.


    That was so rude.


    I gripped my naginata and began planning out all the possible ways I could fight the double boss when they did something I didn¡¯t expect.


    The fire covering them suddenly receded onto their backs, as if being sucked away by something. I noticed a second later that the devices on their backs had tiny hatches in it where the fire disappeared. The hatches then slid shut again once the fire was all gone.


    I blinked in surprise and realized that neither of the sharks wasn¡¯t actually injured in the slightest. Not even the tiniest of burns marred their bodies.


    What the heck? Were they super durable as well? Or had their sci-fi device healed them or something?


    What the hell was I supposed to do, then?! Even ignoring the mirroring gimmick, this already felt way too difficult!


    Okay, calm down. I probably had to target that device. Break it somehow.


    The two sharks then separated and I kept a close eye on the one closer to me as I backed up. A moment later, the cannon on its back began charging once again and I grit my teeth and prepared to dodge.


    But for some reason, the cannon wasn¡¯t aimed at me. In fact, it was aimed at¡­ my doppelganger!


    My head whipped around and I saw the other shark¡¯s cannon aimed at me. Just before it fired, I readjusted my stance and leapt out of the way moments before the laser tore through the air with a roar, leaving behind only the smell of ozone.


    A moment later, the shark who had shot me began charging¡­ at my doppelganger.


    My head whipped around at the shark closer to me and instead of dodging, I jabbed my naginata straight into its mouth as it barreled toward me.


    But to my surprise, my weapon¡¯s blade clinked and got reflected by some kind of barrier covering the shark¡¯s body; I stumbled back with a yelp as my weapon dropped out of my hands.


    My eyes widened as the sharp row of teeth closed in on me, and for a split second, I was sure that I was going to die. The jaws would tear into me and I couldn¡¯t do anything about it. I couldn¡¯t recover in time to successfully dodge¨C


    I activated Bullet Time, spun out of the way, and then let time return to normal as the shark crashed to the spot right next to me.


    Just like last time, it gave me no chance to counterattack as it flapped its reptilian wings and rose into the air once more.


    I gasped as a chill went down my spine at the close call.


    If I hadn¡¯t suddenly remembered about my bracelet¡­


    I mentally slapped myself to refocus and cry about this later.


    While the sharks reconvened in the middle, I scrambled to retrieve my naginata again before facing the two sharks circling each other, preparing for their next laser shot.


    But then, contrary to my expectations, instead of separating to shoot lasers at me, they slowly flew past each other vertically, straight into the pools, and vanished into the death water with a pair of splashes.


    I grit my teeth and nervously backed away from the pools while keeping a wary eye on the one on the ceiling, expecting the sharks to reemerge at any second.


    Then, to my confusion, the surface of the pools began to glow a little. It got brighter and brighter and I noticed that the glow came from a specific spot in the pool¨C


    My eyes widened in realization and I hurled myself to the side moments before lasers shot from the pools, flew past each other, and the one coming from above vaporized the spot where I¡¯d just stood.


    Luckily, I knew better what to expect now and was ready when they reemerged from the pools and charged at me. The drops of death water splashing on my skin burned, but I grit my teeth and expertly sidestepped the shark, before manually feeding my naginata Ether ¨C without Craftsman! ¨C and jabbing it into the device on the shark¡¯s back.


    I made a sizable dent and the shark growled in agitation as it flew back to the center to meet its twin.


    My eyes narrowed at the small sparks their dented devices gave off.


    That was their weakness, wasn¡¯t it? Or rather, I probably needed to destroy that thing first before I could attack the sharks. Those devices had to be what made them immune to my attacks.


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    The sharks split off and the one closer to me began charging its lasers in my direction again. I breathed in and spat a small Flame Bullet at its cannon rather than the shark itself and then quickly sprinted to the side to avoid the incoming shot.


    Unfortunately, the fireball didn¡¯t reach it before the cannon fired and completely erased it out of the air.


    Luckily for me, though, I knew how to dodge the lasers now, and easily side-stepped the searing beam of death. I just had to abruptly stop running and jump back right before it fired.


    The smell of ozone and the heat right in front of me wasn¡¯t exactly calming, though.


    The shark swept down at me once more and I quickly took two steps to the side before executing the plan I¡¯d come up with.


    I activated Bullet Time again. Just long enough to give myself time to electrify and ignite my naginata¡¯s blade, jump on top of its wing mid-flap, and then bring my weapon down on the device strapped to its back with as much force as I could.


    I released Bullet Time the moment I hit the device and immediately fell off its wing; my butt hit the ground as the thing blew up and the shark roared in anger. I scrambled back up as fast as I could.


    It took off toward the middle to meet up with its own doppelganger once more and I couldn¡¯t help but smirk at the pair of smoke trails coming from their backs.


    The smoke trails were also happily wafting past each other, both seemingly following their own sense of gravity. Because why not?


    According to its pattern, now would be the time where it would charge up its laser to fire at me again, but its device had been smashed to pieces, so I fully expected it to do something else.


    It didn¡¯t disappoint.


    The shark duo roared again, making me clench my teeth, and then proceeded to dunk themselves back into the death water.


    I frowned, wondering whether they could still shoot their lasers even if their cannons were half-broken. Maybe I needed to do even more damage to them to disable them completely?


    But no, rather than lasers shooting out of the pools again, something else happened.


    The entire room trembled, as if space itself shook, and then reality rippled.


    I gasped and stumbled back as the dizziness hit me and I only managed to barely hold onto my naginata.


    My eyes widened as I saw the room change like a mirage.


    Two of the walls surrounding the pools disappeared and were replaced by another pair of identical pools.


    There were also two more of my doppelgangers gaping at the spectacle.


    Which meant that¨C


    ¡°Oh, no¡­¡± I mumbled just as four sharks emerged from the pools and began flying around one another in the middle of the room in a mesmerizing pattern.


    I stared at them in horror and couldn¡¯t help but hysterically think ¡®Oh, look, it¡¯s phase two of the boss fight¡¯.


    Then I noticed that their backs weren¡¯t smoking anymore. In fact, there was a completely different device strapped to it. Instead of a single cannon, there was a whole array of them.


    I realized what those likely were and I couldn¡¯t help but pale.


    The quartet of sharks finally separated, each flew to the side, in such a way that if I tried shooting any of them it would carry the danger of hitting one of my clones, and then roared at me.


    I steeled myself, preparing to jump out of the way of the inevitable barrage just as the first set of swoosh sounds resounded and a rocket shot out of one of the holes in the shark¡¯s rocket array.


    I immediately jumped back and the rocket hit the ground and exploded.


    Then it shot another and another, faster and faster, eventually raining hell down on me.


    By the third rocket, I could no longer keep up and decided to instead create a flame screen with Fire Breath in front of myself, hoping to detonate the rockets early. It luckily worked just as I¡¯d intended, and once the first rocket exploded mid-air, it created a chain reaction and caught most of the others as well.


    Just as the barrage stopped, I found myself faced with a much larger projectile ¨C the shark itself ¨C and unfortunately, due to all the smoke from the explosions, he got way too close to me and I wasn¡¯t in a good enough position to properly dodge.


    I activated bullet time once more and jumped over its wing while smacking the rocket array with my flaming naginata.


    Time resumed and I scrambled to pull the bucket out of my backpack to refill some of my Ether, since I really didn¡¯t want to run out right now.


    As I devoured the life ooze, the four sharks met in the middle once more, giving me some time to recover. I also noticed that I¡¯d managed to destroy one of the rocket holes in their arrays.


    I probably needed to destroy all of them again, though. That would be really difficult, since I only had a good chance to deal damage whenever they charged at me. Ranged attacks weren¡¯t very feasible, either, since they carried the danger of hitting myself and the Flame Bullets weren¡¯t fast and precise enough anyway.


    Although¡­


    Okay, this was going to be incredibly risky, but prolonging this fight was potentially even riskier since it meant more chances for the shark to successfully chomp on me, so¡­


    I quickly put the bucket back, dropped my naginata on the ground, and pulled out my water gun from the backpack.


    ¡°It¡¯s shark season, chat,¡± I murmured in a daze, still ignoring chat going nuts. I had no time for distractions.


    The sharks separated and one of them ¨C not the closest one to me ¨C faced me.


    Before it could start firing at me, I picked one of the sharks that wasn¡¯t exactly between me and one of my doppelgangers, stepped to the side a little just to make extra sure I wouldn¡¯t shoot myself, set my feet, took aim, and pressed the trigger.


    The quartet of booms echoed in the room and I ground my feet against the ground to stop the recoil from tossing me backward like a ragdoll again.


    A split second later, there was a pained roar and another explosion as the rocket arrays on all the sharks blew up, knocking the sharks in four different directions as it sprayed metallic debris everywhere.


    Luckily, none of it hit me and other than the Ether drain, I was still no worse for wear.


    My eyes widened at that.


    That had been way easier than trying to melee the thing. Why hadn¡¯t I done this sooner? Just one or two more shots and I could maybe even finish them right now!


    I quickly reached into my backpack, into the bucket, and grabbed a handful of ooze to stuff into my mouth before preparing for the killing shot.


    But before I could, the sharks dunked themselves into the pools once more.


    I growled but kept my position, ready to snipe the sharks out of the air as soon as they reappeared.


    Unfortunately, something else happened.


    The space rippled once more and reality shifted, making me snap my eyes shut and grit my teeth. When I opened my eyes again, the remaining two walls of the room had been turned into copies of the ground floor as well.


    Two more pools and two more doppelgangers. It was like I was inside a cube of mirrors. Except all of the reflections were very real and any one of them getting shot would mean me getting shot as well.


    I stared in horror at the spectacle.


    Keeping up with two was annoying, I¡¯d handle four of them only because I¡¯d ended it in one cycle, but now¨C


    ¡°God. Fucking¨C¡± I began to swear moments before six sharks emerged from the pools and began circling around the middle.


    I immediately took aim, but then hesitated when I saw one of my doppelgangers through the mass of shark fins and wings on the other side.


    Dammit!

 #051 - I am not a fan of breakout

    The sharks had yet another new device strapped to their backs in place of the wrecked rocket array. Just one cannon again, this time with a very wide barrel. Three sharp metallic rods stuck out of the barrel and pointed just in front of the barrel, making them almost look like a claw.


    I could only imagine what kind of crazy sci-fi weaponry this was supposed to be.


    The sharks were happy to answer my question, seeing as they separated and one of them faced me.


    Once again, I considered firing my gun before them, but I spotted one of my doppelgangers right behind the damn shark.


    Argh!


    Then the giant cannon began charging. Unlike the first cannon, a ball of light with sparks of electricity running around it, began growing right in front of the cannon between the claw things.


    I ran to the side, hoping to get a better angle for my shot before it shot first.


    Unfortunately, just as I found an acceptable spot and aimed my gun, the glowing ball of electrified energy shot out with an odd pwoof sound and began to slowly fly in my direction.


    Its slow speed would have made it look pretty harmless if it wasn¡¯t for the shark jerking back in recoil as it fired.


    I didn¡¯t trust it for one second. I didn¡¯t even want to shoot at it now, just in case it exploded or something.


    So I simply lowered my gun for the time being and kept running, waiting for the shark to charge me.


    But that didn¡¯t happen either. Instead, the shark began charging a second shot of the energy ball.


    I frowned, but kept running just as the first energy ball reached the spot where I¡¯d been standing and¡­ bounced off the ground with another one of those weird pwoof sounds.


    After the bounce, it kept flying at the same speed somewhere back into the room and¨C


    Oh fuck no.


    I belatedly noticed one of the mirrored energy balls slowly making its way down to me from above and moved out of the way.


    I looked at the room at large and my face paled in horror. There were six of these energy balls just randomly bouncing around the room now, which meant even more stuff I needed to constantly stay aware of.


    The sharks fired their second shot of bouncing energy balls.


    That was what they were doing. They were trying to fill this room with so much crap that something would inevitably end up hitting me. As if it wasn¡¯t enough that my own gun¡¯s shots could hit me, argh!


    Again, instead of charging at me with its body, the sharks began charging a third energy ball.


    I need to end this now!


    I pulled out my gun, took aim at the energy ball still being charged, and pulled the trigger.


    A loud bang followed by six roars of my enemy reached my ears before I heard the rapidly repeating pwoof sounds of the energy balls and saw several somethings whizzing by in my field of vision.


    My stomach dropped as I realized what had just happened.


    My shot had just sped all those energy balls up. Slow ones were already a nightmare, but this¨C


    I yelped and dodged out of the way just as an energy ball smacked the ground where I¡¯d stood and kept on bouncing. I had no time to recover though as the shark himself had finally decided to charge me just as I was off balance.


    I idly noticed one of the energy balls hitting him and harmlessly bouncing off his scales ¨C stupid cheater!


    I activated Bullet Time, although I felt that I didn¡¯t have much juice left, quickly took a stance, aimed my gun down his open maw, switched the setting to ink, and then fired.


    I found myself flying backwards just as my vision went black with the bang. My gun fell out of my hands and I tumbled on the ground.


    My entire body was in pain from the crash and I didn¡¯t think I could move very well, but the sound of an energy ball bouncing very close to me motivated me enough to scrabble back up onto my limbs, screaming in pain, and wipe away the ink that was covering my face.


    The shark was thrashing in the air, coughing out ink, clearly in pain and very distracted.


    But also not dead yet. And there was still a cluster of energy balls making the entire area into a death zone.


    It wasn¡¯t over yet and I needed to move.


    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    But what could I even do? I was low on Ether, probably low on Tempor, I had no offensive options for Intra, I¡¯d dropped my naginata too far from here, and my gun had fallen from my hands as well.


    The only weapon I had left was¨C


    I summoned the key sword into my hand, fed it as much Ether as I could ¨C without knocking myself out ¨C to ignite it, drew my aching arm back, and then whipped it forward in a throw with as much force as I could straight at the nearest shark.


    Just as the weapon left my hand, I collapsed into a heap, drained of most of my Ether. I still managed to crane my head up enough to look at the shark though. And by some miracle, I saw that I¡¯d hit it.


    There was a key sword buried inside its head, and the shark kept jerking around for another second before it abruptly stopped moving and fell to the ground. All of them did, in fact.


    I tried not to flinch when one of the sharks fell past me and onto the wall behind me.


    The energy balls were still bouncing, though, and I couldn¡¯t help but feel dread.


    Even if I¡¯d managed to kill it, what was I supposed to do now? I couldn¡¯t move right now, and eventually, one of those balls would hit me¨C


    Just as I thought that, every single energy ball in the room suddenly sputtered out and vanished.


    My breath hitched and I froze in anticipation.


    Slowly, one by one, the reflections on the walls and on the ceiling faded away like a mist, eventually leaving only the one pool with normal gravity, me lying in a heap, and a dead shark with the key sword sticking out of its ink-stained head.


    A moment later, the shark also disappeared into the mist, leaving the key sword to clatter on the ground. In its place, a massive chest appeared. One even bigger than the previous boss chests, with a glittering cyan horned skull painted on the lid. The entire thing glowed cyan.


    I stared at the chest in muted silence for a moment before I let myself finally relax.


    It was over.


    I¡¯d finally beaten this stupid dungeon.


    Then, just as I relaxed enough, there was a whole slew of system windows popping up in front of me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Baby adventurer¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Lone wolf¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>Far from home¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>Paradox adventurer¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +8 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>Rookie dungeoneer¡¯ Side quest complete!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Clear a dungeon of any rank [ACHIEVED]<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Delve into the dungeon on your own with no outside help [ACHIEVED]


    B rank dungeon or higher [FAILED]


    Conquer the dungeon on your first try [FAILED]


    <u>Hidden objectives:


    </u>???Conquer a Tempor-based dungeon [ACHIEVED]


    Begin the dungeon with less than 10 total skill points [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Rewards:


    </u>???10SP


    Large Tempor expansion ticket


    I lay there baffled at the sheer amount of skill points I¡¯d just gotten as the aforementioned ticket fell in front of my face into the puddle of ink.


    How many was that? Three plus three plus¡­ twenty-five skill points?!


    Holy shit.


    Hold on, though. Why had it auto-completed the quest? That hadn¡¯t happened with the previous quest. Was it because completing the dungeon automatically either failed or completed all the side objectives?


    My eyes kept scanning all the text, and I idly asked the system to tell me what all those achievements even were.


    <u>Baby adventurer</u> - Conquer a dungeon. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Lone wolf</u> - Conquer a dungeon solo. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Far from home</u> - Conquer a dungeon outside of your birth country. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Paradox adventurer</u> - Conquer a tempor-based dungeon. [COMPLETE]


    ¡­Huh. There really were a ton of achievements tied to conquering dungeons, weren¡¯t there?


    Also wow, outside of my birth country? Try outside of my birth world.


    Or wait. Did my rebirth count? Had that reset my ¡®birth country¡¯, so to speak? Did that mean that I¡¯d crossed some imaginary country border in my wandering?


    ¡­Could you still call them countries if there was no civilization to speak of?


    Maybe I was just overthinking it. Whatever. An achievement was an achievement.


    Although, hold on¡­ Why had completing a tempor-based dungeon given me a whopping eight points? Yes, it had been grueling, but wasn¡¯t this supposed to be a D-rank dungeon? Why was this dungeon treated like it was harder than it should be? Were the letter ranks not what I thought they were, after all?


    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± I groaned as I began to slowly move again.


    I tried to prop myself on my hands, but my hands slipped on all the ink I was still covered in.


    ¡°Bwuh,¡± I let out as my cheek hit the ground.


    I groaned in annoyance.


    It took me a few more tries to properly sit up again.


    Now that I wasn¡¯t desperate to kill a shark and avoid his balls, I felt all the slimy ink covering me and couldn¡¯t help but cringe.


    Why had I used ink for that shot anyway? I¡¯d wanted something stronger than just water and hadn¡¯t wanted to burn myself with death water or buff him with life ooze, but¡­ Ugh.


    The ink option was a total noob trap, wasn¡¯t it? Why would you ever use it except for extremely niche situations?


    I summoned John and had him look at me.


    Yup, I was completely covered in sticky black stuff. I looked like l¡¯d crawled out of the dark abyss or something.


    ¡°...Sup, chat. I¡¯m ready to rob a bank. Got my disguise all ready and everything,¡± I drawled while finally looking over at chat again.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> breaking news swamp monster robs a bank more at 11<u>


    KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ¡­alright I guess you¡¯re good if you¡¯re making jokes


    <u>Irid123:</u> probably should take a shower


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> that giant loot chest looks JUICY


    I groaned and rubbed my face ¨C which only smeared more ink over it, ugh.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll take a shower first, then I¡¯ll open the chest. God, that boss was¡­ crazy.¡± I sighed and picked up the ticket off the ground before shaking my head and finally standing up. ¡°Three phases, chat. The other bosses had none. Or I guess two for the coins? Still! That last phase was just dumb!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it punishes you for stalling


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> gotta go for speed kills


    ¡°Mmm, yeah¡­ Not like I¡¯m gonna be fighting him again though¡­ I hope.¡±


    I idly put the ticket into my backpack, then grabbed my skirt and began to wring it to get rid of the ink.


    It wasn¡¯t very effective.


    I huffed.


    ¡°Okay, give me a minute, chat!¡±


    I made John look away, took out my infinite soap and bucket out of the backpack, got out of my sticky inky clothes, and began showering using the glove, which still had the shower head infused into it.


    Once I felt relatively clean, I moved onto the clothes, hosing them down and wringing them. The stains came out surprisingly easily ¨C probably another secret magical feature of them ¨C and all I had left to do was to dry.


    I chomped on some ooze to restore Ether and then used Flameguard to dry both myself and my clothes.


    About an hour later of showering inside a final boss room ¨C and wasn¡¯t that weird to think about? ¨C I finally felt like a human again and was ready to move on.

 #052 - Isn’t eating shark meat illegal?

    ¡°Okay, chat!¡± I clapped my hands as I let John look back at me. ¡°Loot time! This better be worth it!¡±


    I sauntered over to the massive chest, picking up my dropped gun and naginata on the way, and stopped a couple of meters away from it as I eyed it in suspicion.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> here it comes chat


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wait for it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nana pls


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> your killing me here


    I, very slowly, very deliberately, raised my naginata, held it in front of me, and then slowly poked the chest with the tip.


    The soft thud echoed in the empty pool room.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mimic = checked


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± I hummed with an expression of exaggerated seriousness that I hoped John captured. ¡°It would appear that this isn¡¯t a mimic, chat.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> YOU DONT SAY


    I smirked, put the naginata into the backpack, and then finally walked closer to the chest. I picked up the key sword still on the ground where it had fallen, put it back into my backpack and then opened the massive beast of a chest.


    It was a bit of a struggle, but as soon as I lifted the lid just a little, the whole thing popped open. I leaped over the rim and peered inside.


    There were five different items in total. A giant slab of raw fish meat; a pile of strange-looking gray feathers; a white coupon thing that resembled the bonus tickets; a handheld cannon gun thing with metallic rods sticking out of it in a similar way that the shark¡¯s last phase had; and a shark hoodie.


    ¡°A shark hoodie, chat! Heck yeah! Everything was worth it!¡±


    I grabbed it and lifted it in front of myself. It was dark blue and had fin-like decorations on the sleeves and the back, as well as cloth teeth lining the hood itself. Also, there seemed to be some grayish patterns around the back that reminded me of the shark¡¯s sci-fi weaponry.


    As always, it looked like it would fit me perfectly.


    Well, I¡¯d missed not having Craftsman during the fight, but now I couldn¡¯t complain since I got to appraise everything.


    I started with the hoodie in my hands.


    <u>War shark hoodie</u>


    A hoodie resembling a war shark. Moderately increases the wearer¡¯s general defense, resistance to water attacks, and ability to swim. Also greatly enhances any water-based attacks used by the wearer as well as attacks using metallic weaponry.


    [INNATE] skill: Aquaport - Use a moderate amount of Tempor to teleport a short distance. Both the starting point and the destination have to be submerged in liquid.


    I stared at the thing.


    ¡°...Holy cow, chat. I was half-joking before, but this really was worth it, wasn¡¯t it? Look at all the effects! It even has an innate skill! I can teleport now!¡±


    Well, not now, but once I either wore it or fused it with my clothes. Still.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> daaaammmn what an upgrade


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh wow that¡¯s a lot of buffs


    ¡°What even counts as metallic weaponry? Does the key sword count? Does the water gun? Probably not, cuz it¡¯s plastic, right¡­? Oh wait, but what about this thing?¡±


    I finally put the hoodie down and looked at the second most interesting thing in the chest, the gun thing that resembled the shark¡¯s final phase¡¯s cannon.


    <u>Plasma orb handcannon</u>


    A handheld cannon capable of shooting slow-moving plasma balls that bounce off of surfaces while scorching them when supplied with a large amount of Ether. The plasma balls can be reabsorbed by the handcannon to refund most of the Ether cost.


    ¡°So it is like the shark¡¯s cannon! And I can reabsorb them to refund Ether? That¡¯s interesting¡­¡± I mumbled. ¡°Hmm, but I feel like it would be a bit too slow to be useful if it¡¯s anything like the shark¡¯s weapon. Eh, we¡¯ll see I guess.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it probably does a ton of damage if I were to guess


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> sounds like a wonky weapon


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> where would you even use it?


    I shrugged.


    ¡°No idea. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll find a good use for it. And anyway, it¡¯s always nice to have more options. Don¡¯t wanna get stuck without any weapons again¡­¡±


    I stuffed both the plasma cannon and the hoodie into my backpack and looked at the rest of the items, starting with the slab of meat.


    <u>War shark meat</u>


    A piece of war shark¡¯s belly meat.


    I frowned.


    ¡°...Hold on. Are you telling me that that thing was an actual species and not just another one of this dungeon¡¯s fever dreams?¡±


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    The pile of strange feathers then caught my attention and I narrowed my eyes at it before firing Appraisal at them as well.


    <u>War shark feathers</u>


    Feathers from a war shark.


    I continued to stare.


    ¡°You have to be kidding me,¡± I said, deadpan. ¡°I know it had wings, but I didn¡¯t see any feathers! Is this a joke? Am I being pranked?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe it¡¯s a red herring


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> shark feathers wtf


    <u>Irid123:</u> the boss wasn¡¯t this war shark but an imitation of it


    <u>Irid123:</u> like other dungeon monsters


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, I can actually see that¡­ Still weird, though.¡± I shook my head and shrugged. ¡°Well, whatever. Loot is loot. Even if I have no idea what these can be used for.¡±


    I shrugged my backpack off and proceeded to stuff the slab of meat inside before turning to the feathers, opening my arms and trying to grab them.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> maybe you can make bedding with them


    ¡°Ow!¡±


    I recoiled the moment my bare skin touched them though.


    They were sharp. Not soft and fluffy like feathers ought to be.


    I stared at the small trickle of blood flowing out of the cut on my fingers and then at the feathers.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> never mind


    Still staring at the ¡®feathers¡¯, I pulled out a bit of life ooze and smeared it on my cut fingers to help them slowly heal. Then I carefully reached toward one of the feathers sticking out of the pile, gently grabbed it, and pulled it out of the pile.


    I brought it closer to my face and finally noticed that it looked kind of¡­ metallic. I raised my other hand to tap the blunt side and likewise, it made a soft metallic clinking sound.


    Even though the feather was as light as¡­ well, a feather.


    ¡°Chat, what the heck am I even looking at?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> feather-shaped ninja stars?


    I looked up and back into the room, adjusted my hold on the feather, drew my hand back, and then whipped it forward while releasing the feather.


    It swished through the air like an honest-to-god ninja star as it cut through the room, hit the wall, and then fell on the ground.


    Even from a distance, I could see that the feather had barely gotten deformed by the impact.


    ¡°...Feather-shaped ninja stars. Alright then. I dig it.¡± I shrugged, ignoring my subconscious mind telling me that the physics of the feather made no sense.


    I proceeded to carefully put the feathers into my backpack one by one.


    It took a while, but I wasn¡¯t one to waste loot. Who knew when I would need dozens of shurikens?


    Finally, I looked at the last item in the giant treasure chest.


    A white ticket with eight black¡­ eyes drawn on it. Two big eyes like a normal human¡¯s and then three more eyes around each eye, framing them.


    I froze at the imagery.


    Was this¡­ also a coincidence?


    The coins were one thing, but¡­


    I shook my head, shoved these thoughts deep into my subconscious and appraised the thing.


    <u>Anti-curse ticket


    </u>A system consumable that allows you to unequip a cursed skill once.


    ¡°...Huh. Alright then. That could come in handy, I guess¡­? Not like removing the blessing is going to be particularly useful, since it¡¯s free anyway¡­¡± I mumbled as I shoved it into my backpack.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it looks more like the thing that would curse you


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oooo nice


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can get conqueror now, beat some dungeons, and then unequip it


    ¡°Conqueror¡­? Oh, you mean that one cursed skill¡­¡±


    I idly opened the description for it.


    <u>Conqueror:</u>


    This skill will automatically become [CURSED] when equipped. On your first ever visit to any given dungeon, you receive the following buffs: Triple stamina, health, and Ether regeneration, and 50% more quantity and quality of all loot. Leaving the dungeon disables the buffs for that dungeon forever.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ You know, that might actually be quite good. Getting more and better loot from dungeons? Sounds great. But then again, I would have to stay there until I cleared the dungeon¡­ And also, this thing would take up a skill slot, which would make everything harder.¡±


    I shook my head.


    ¡°I dunno. Maybe if I run into more dungeons, I guess¡­?¡±


    I scowled a little at thinking about trying to clear more dungeons before I was even done looting this one.


    Not that I wanted to keep risking my life in weird and crazy dungeons. I just wanted to go home, dammit!


    ¡°Well, whatever! Loot looted, dungeon cleared, let¡¯s get out of here now!¡± I said with a cheery tone as I wore the backpack again and stood up inside the chest.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> don¡¯t forget the other ticket you got


    ¡°Oh, yeah! Nearly forgot.¡±


    I reached over my shoulder inside the backpack and pulled out the ticket from the quest out of it to examine it.


    This ticket was purple and had yellow text on it that said ¡®10%!¡¯. I appraised it.


    <u>Large Tempor expansion ticket


    </u>A system consumable that increases your total Tempor reserves and regeneration by 10% when consumed.


    ¡°Oh ten percent is quite nice, actually¡­ And I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s tempor because this was a tempor-based dungeon, huh?¡±


    I hummed and shrugged before willing to consume it.


    <u>Consume 1x Large Tempor expansion ticket?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    Unlike increasing my Ether, I felt absolutely nothing when I confirmed it. Just like I¡¯d felt nothing when I¡¯d run out of Tempor.


    I just couldn¡¯t feel Tempor, I guess?


    ¡°Oh, speaking of Tempor¡­¡±


    I looked at my bracelet to try and see how much of its juice I¡¯d used during the fight and scowled when I saw it showing 18% left.


    ¡°Damn. Well, at least I still have a little bit left. But I can¡¯t keep relying on it anymore or I¡¯m gonna run out at the worst moments.¡±


    I huffed.


    Well, it was fine. Not like I was in a rush into more fights difficult enough to force me to use it again.


    With all the loot stored in my backpack, I climbed out of the chest, stretched a little, and then began looking for the exit.


    But before I could spot it, my surroundings suddenly warped and then lurched and I found myself standing out in a forest.


    ¡°What the fff¨Cfrog family?!¡±


    I whipped around, trying to figure out where I was, and immediately spotted the dungeon entrance right behind me.


    Except¡­ the entirety of the dungeon was blurred. Everything past what I remembered was the imaginary line where I would feel uneasy when entering.


    I blinked in confusion before glancing around a bit more and spotting familiar landmarks, such as the fallen inked tree.


    ¡°Oh. It teleported me outside because I was done, I guess¡­?¡±


    Then I looked back at the blurry dungeon and slowly approached it.


    ¡°...Is this what happens when you beat a dungeon? Do they just¡­ turn off or something?¡±


    I reached the spot where the blurriness began and stared at it.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t touch it!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re gonna get deleted!


    ¡°Calm down, I¡¯m not touching it¡­¡± I mumbled before trying to appraise it.


    I definitely didn¡¯t expect the system window that came up in response.


    <u>D-rank Tempor dungeon: Water park Octoslide</u>


    Resetting¡­<u>


    </u>(Time left: 1d, 23h 58m, 51s)

 #053 - New skills galore!

    ¡°The entire dungeon is resetting? Huh¡­ Okay, then.¡± I tilted my head. ¡°I guess that¡¯s why nothing respawned inside. Everything respawns all at once after you clear it.¡±


    I hummed before frowning.


    ¡°Wait, I left some stuff inside, though! One of the feathers and¡­ and that one coin I used against the second boss! Are they lost forever now?¡± I stared at the blurry dungeon, feeling like I¡¯d dodged the bullet. ¡°Well, good thing I picked up my stuff before I went to loot the chest, huh?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> maybe that stuff is still there


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> after it resets


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> this is so lame that you can¡¯t farm the dungeon


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m good. I spent a whole week inside that place. It¡¯s probably time to move on.¡±


    In fact, I¡¯d spent so long in there that it now felt weird that I couldn¡¯t go back there. Like I¡¯d been evicted out of my house or something. This world had really screwed with how I saw things, huh?


    I clapped my hands and turned away from the ticking reset clock.


    ¡°Anyway! Dungeon complete! We did it, chat! I¡¯m a pro dungeoneer now!¡± I glanced at the fallen tree covered in dried ink, then I glanced at the untouched forest on the other side and went silent.


    ¡°...So¡­ what now? I¡¯ve been going super hard to try and finish that dungeon, but¡­ Uh¡­¡± I scratched my head awkwardly. ¡°Now, I¡¯m a bit lost.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wait for the reset and then speedrun it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> go beat the spaceship now!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> look for more dungeons? idk


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you could take another break


    <u>Irid123:</u> explore more of the world


    I hummed with a frown.


    There were some good suggestions. I didn¡¯t know about speedrunning or trying to take on the killer robot in the spaceship dungeon again, but¡­


    ¡°I mean, I have food now, so I don¡¯t need to worry about starving at least. I might just take my time exploring the world some more. Who knows? Maybe there are some people still around,¡± I mused.


    I didn¡¯t really believe it, but a girl could hope.


    ¡°Well, no need to make a decision right this moment. I can take a day or two to chill out again.¡±


    I shrugged, adjusted my backpack, and began walking to my favorite life ooze lake spot.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you could work on your shelter building quest


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wait you can do the limit break now


    ¡°Right, there was that quest¡­¡± I grimaced. ¡°Limit Break, huh? I do have like a trillion skill points, so I could easily max Streamer right now¡­¡±


    I briefly opened up the ¡®Limit Break¡¯ info window to check the requirements again. One tier three achievement ¨C I had three of those now ¨C and a fully upgraded racial skill.


    ¡°...Later. I still don¡¯t like the sound of it.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> cmon do it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you need to become the time hero, right?


    ¡°We still don¡¯t know that!¡± I argued. ¡°Maybe I can get back home without getting traumatized and going back in time! Heck, we don¡¯t even know for sure that that¡¯s what these incausal rifts do¡­¡± I paused and pursed my lips. ¡°Hold on. If these incausal rifts really will bring me back in time, what the heck is going to happen to the stream? Will you all be coming with me?¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> probably


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> the time is all fucked up already anyway


    I grunted. ¡°Or I¡¯ll be streaming to medieval knights instead of you lot. That would be cool,¡± I mused as I finally made it back to the ooze lake.


    The first tree had grown enough to match my height already. The other trees I¡¯d planted had also began to sprout tiny saplings. The plant growth here really was crazy accelerated. It was a wonder that the world wasn¡¯t covered in even more plantlife than it already was.


    I stopped near the first tree and frowned. ¡°So, should I keep exploring¡­? Or build a house¡­? Or¡­¡±


    I honestly wasn¡¯t sure.


    On one hand, exploring more of this world would help me get closer to finding my way back home, but on the other hand, having an actual base of operations with a bed and whatnot would be a godsend. I was tired of sleeping on grass or dungeon floors and I didn¡¯t believe I would find my way back home very quickly.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> poll it?


    I hummed.


    ¡°You know what? Yes. I¡¯m going to make a huge poll and keep it running overnight this time. I¡¯m not in a rush anymore and I wanna see what you guys decide!¡± I declared and began setting up the poll.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh hell yeah


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> im gonna get all my sisters to vote


    I snorted.


    ¡°How many sisters do you have, George?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> 3


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yo and spend your skill points before going to sleep!


    I hummed and then rubbed my eyes tiredly.


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot of sisters¡­ Damn, fighting two bosses back to back was really tiring! It¡¯s not that late yet, but I might just go to sleep right away!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> ¡­


    I smirked.


    ¡°Oh and, chat! Look at all these juicy skill points! Thirty-five now! That¡¯s crazy! Just imagine all the cool skill upgrades I¡¯ll be able to get¡­ tomorrow when I wake up!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> this is cruel and unusual punishment


    ¡°I could fully upgrade Streamer! Or I could finally switch my build to the soulbound item one Jeoff suggested! Or maybe something completely different! So many options¡­ for tomorrow morning!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> stoppp hes alreayd deaaad lmao


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I¡¯m going on a strike


    I giggled and waved my hand in front of myself.


    ¡°Sorry, sorry. Just kidding¡­ Well, not about the being tired part. I am exhausted after that stupid duplicating shark fight, but I still have enough energy to at least take a look at my skills and whatnot.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> omfg thank you


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wtf its a christmas miracle


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see¡­¡± I murmured as I sat down next to the tree.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> upgrade streamerrrr


    I tsked. ¡°You just really want me to unlock the Limit Break so you can pressure me into doing it at any time, huh?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> no its because it unlocks tier 2


    I blinked and then smacked my head.


    ¡°Oh, yeah! I completely forgot about that! I should probably do that before I start spending all my points, huh?¡±


    I sighed at the prospect. I was just kind of concerned about unlocking the Limit Break at all¡­


    Well, a new tier of skills could only be a good thing, right?


    <u>Purchase the [Streamer] skill upgrade [Admin rights] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Admin rights¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Streamer] skill upgrade [Stream history] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Stream history¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Congratulations! You have unlocked the next tier of human skills and upgrades!</u>


    <u>Congratulations! You have unlocked Limit break #1 - Trials of courage!


    Stolen novel; please report.</u>Note: DO NOT attempt this until you are certain that you are ready.


    I stared at the two congratulations windows that popped up the moment I bought the last two upgrades, feeling even more reluctant about the idea of doing the Limit Break.


    ¡°Look at this, chat¡­ The system just keeps warning me.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Yeah, don¡¯t worry, Mr. System. I¡¯m not about to throw myself into it right away.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> damn


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yeah you first gotta get all the new skills and upgrade them


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> and then you do the limit break


    I side-eyed the chat, but didn¡¯t deign to respond.


    ¡°Anyway! Tier two skills! Let¡¯s see what we have! Whoa, that¡¯s a lot of stuff¡­ Aaaand it¡¯s expensive as heck. Dammit. And I thought I had a ton of skill points.¡±


    I still only had tier one phoenix skills available, but the tier two of human skills was unlocked now.


    <u>Tier 1:</u>


    Persistence (OWNED)


    Soulbound item (2SP)


    Craftsman (OWNED)


    Appraisal (EQUIPPED)


    Hunter¡¯s eye (3SP)


    Conqueror (5SP)


    <u>Tier 2:</u>


    Analysis (6SP)


    Mapmaker (7SP)


    Armsmaster (8SP)


    Rend (9SP)


    Soul strike (10SP)


    Raider¡¯s fury (12SP)


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> not even gonna check out your juicy new admin rights?


    ¡°Oh yeah, you¡¯re right!¡± I brightened up. ¡°I can finally ban George! It¡¯s a glorious day today, chat!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hey hol up


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you already banned him before tho


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> i didnt agree to this


    ¡°No, that was just kicking him out of the group chat, Jamie,¡± I corrected. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ Is there some kind of extra menu¡­? Oh, here we go!¡±


    <u>Admin board:


    </u><u>Roles


    Ban viewer


    Mute viewer


    Time out viewer


    Run ads</u>


    ¡°...Huh. I can run ads, apparently.¡± I stopped and frowned. ¡°Why would I even do that? Not like I can use the money in any way¡­ What kind of ads would they even be?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> call now and get this exclusive turtle plushie I found ina dungeon


    I huffed a laugh before gasping in an overly exaggerated manner.


    ¡°How dare you, Jamie! I would never sell Mr. Gargles!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe running ads gives skill points?


    ¡°Eh, you think so? That would be really lame, wouldn¡¯t it? I could just have ads running all day long to farm skill points¡­¡± I scoffed in disgust. ¡°I¡¯m not that kind of streamer!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> hey I¡¯m just sayin


    ¡°Yeah, sure¡­ Anyway, what about the roles? Is there more than just moderator roles?¡±


    I mentally opened up the sub-menu and then stopped as my eyes narrowed once I looked past all the options and focused on who had these roles assigned already.


    The first registered role was ¡®Streamer¡¯ and the only user with that role was ¡®AotoNana¡¯, which was fine, but¡­


    ¡°...Chat, am I seeing this right? Is my own streamer role banning me from posting messages in chat?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lmfao


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> who the heck set this up?


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but it¡¯s pretty suspicious¡­¡± I mumbled before I switched on the chatting rights for that role and then immediately tested it out. I didn¡¯t have a keyboard, but I could still mentally type the message.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> bow down to me mortals


    The message appeared in the main chat, but got anchored at the bottom similar to Ebiko¡¯s messages.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s cool.¡± I hummed. ¡°I guess if I ever get stuck underwater again, I can still talk to you guys with this.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> *bows down*


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> pls no ban


    I sniffed.


    ¡°Fine then, peasant! I shall spare you a ban for now!¡± I declared in the haughtiest tone I could manage.


    Then I looked at the other registered role besides the default one and my eyes narrowed.


    It was called ¡®Moderator¡¯ and just as expected, Ebiko had this role. But what caught my eye was the other person with the role.


    ¡°Who¡¯s¡­ ¡®HellEnna¡¯?¡± I mumbled. ¡°Why are they a mod?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> someone you know?


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­?¡± I frowned. ¡°And speaking of which, why were you a mod by default, Ebi?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> maybe because you made me a mod before?


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Maybe, but I didn¡¯t mod this HellEnna, so¡­¡±


    Something felt suspicious about this whole thing.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> its the phoenix


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gottem


    I grunted.


    ¡°You think the phoenix made themselves a mod? But they had to have realized that I would see it once I got the upgrade.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> he fucked up


    I sighed.


    ¡°I don¡¯t suppose HellEnna is in the chat, right now¡­?¡±


    I waited a few moments, watching the chat for any messages by that username anchored at the bottom, but none appeared.


    ¡°I guess not. Well, not much I can do about it, I guess¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°Whatever! Let¡¯s move on.¡±


    I mentally tapped into the other upgrade I¡¯d just gotten, Stream history. It opened a massive system window with a view of the grass in front of me, a split second before the view was blocked by a massive system window with grass in front of me, which was then immediately blocked off by a massive system window¨C


    I looked to the side for a moment to break the infinite recursion before looking back and quickly finding a pause button.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    There were a lot of your typical video player controls from pausing, to rewinding, to speeding up, and I could also manually drag the marker around the timeline to skip back and forth.


    In addition to that, there were also several other features, such as bookmarks, and the ability to give names to sections of time. Now that would probably come in very handy if I ever needed to go over something I¡¯d learned in the past.


    ¡°This is really cool, chat¡­ But I guess you guys had access to this all along, huh?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> not the bookmarks


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> now you can watch you fail against that robot lol


    My eye twitched, but against my better judgment, I decided to drag the marker all the way back to the beginning and then nudged it forward until it got to the moment where I first saw the spaceship. I lay down on the grass and watched the system window hovering above me playing everything back.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> nana¡­?


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> you don¡¯t need to do this


    ¡°I kinda want to, though. You know, it¡¯s like¡­ looking back and marveling at how far I¡¯ve come and stuff,¡± I mumbled as my eyes narrowed at the killer robot in the distance who hadn¡¯t woken up yet.


    I was completely silent as everything played out just like I¡¯d remembered it. Me running away from it, hiding in the debris, looting the chest, burning myself, and then running out and facing the robot.


    Even now, a mere week later, I could pick out a dozen of mistakes I¡¯d made back then. From the way I ran, to the way I held the sword, to how I reacted in the first place.


    Was I strong enough to take on that robot now? Surely not, right¡­?


    ¡°...Well! That was interesting and traumatizing!¡± I cheerily exclaimed as I closed the system window. ¡°Now let¡¯s look at all the cool new tier two skills I unlocked!¡±


    There were six of them in total, so even if I were to buy them all, I would only be able to equip half of them at a time. I just had to figure out which ones of them would be most worth it.


    I opened up the description of the cheapest one and immediately narrowed my eyes.


    <u>Analysis:</u>


    [MERGED] with Appraisal and Hunter''s eye. Has no other effects.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Assess (1SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Inspiration (3SP)<u>


    Upgrade:</u> Hunter¡¯s eye (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Efficient hunter (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Psychometry (9SP)


    ¡°What the¡­ ¡®Merged¡¯? Wait, hold on! These upgrades are familiar¡­¡±


    I mentally asked the system to explain what the [MERGED] keyword meant.


    [MERGED] - This skill is connected to another skill or skills, removing them from the skill menu, and gaining them and their upgrades as its own upgrades. The skill may also have some brand new upgrades of its own.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ Huh. Okay! So, that¡¯s the solution to the lack of skill slots? You just¡­ mash skills together or upgrade them?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shiiiit this is nice


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh that sounds useful!


    ¡°Yeah, this is nice! I¡¯ve been ignoring Hunter¡¯s eye, since it didn¡¯t seem that good, but if I can merge it with Appraisal¡­ Ugh, but it¡¯s expensive! Analysis alone costs six points! Let¡¯s see the other skills first¡­¡±


    Most of the skills were actually pretty straightforward and reasonable. Mapmaker literally gave me a minimap; Armsmaster was an upgrade to Craftsman that made me better with weapons I made myself; Soul Strike was an upgrade to Soulbound Item that also apparently allowed me to whack people¡¯s souls; and Raider¡¯s Fury merged Conqueror with Persistence and doubled their effects.


    And then there was Rend.


    <u>Rend:</u>


    Use a moderate amount of Intra to momentarily shock the target''s mind.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Brain Fog (4SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Mind Shield (5SP)<u>


    Upgrade:</u> Mindbreaker (8SP)


    <u>Brain fog</u> - Cause sustained disorientation for a longer period of time instead of a momentary shock.


    <u>Mind shield</u> - Use Intra to protect your own mind from basic mental attacks.


    <u>Mind breaker</u> - Use even more Intra to permanently damage someone''s mind.


    ¡°...Chat, why are there psychic attacks in the human skill list? That doesn¡¯t feel right.¡±


    It also felt quite disturbing. Especially the last upgrade. Sure, it would give me a way to use Intra offensively, but¡­ Well, if I ever met actual people in this world, I didn¡¯t want to give them permanent brain damage!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> never heard of internet trolls? lol


    I snorted. ¡°Ah, of course. You¡¯re right George. I do, in fact, get brain damage just by talking to you.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hey wtf im cool<u>


    Jeofffff:</u> thats so good


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> mind shield might save your life one day


    ¡°Uh huh¡­ Hmm, I mean¡­ I suppose you''re right, Jeoff.¡± I grimaced. ¡°Actually, there wasn¡¯t anything with mind attacks in the water park dungeon, but I guess Mind Shield is the kind of thing you don¡¯t need at all until you suddenly really need it¡­¡±


    I hadn¡¯t even thought of the possibility of mental attacks, but now that it had been presented to me¡­ Ugh, should I get it just on the off chance that something was going to attack my mind? Getting permanent brain damage didn¡¯t exactly sound fun.


    Would something in the Limit break use psychic attacks on me? Was that what the warning was about?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> other than that armsmaster and soulbound item is the perfect combo


    I hummed and reopened Armsmaster.


    <u>Armsmaster:</u>


    [MERGED] with Craftsman.


    Instinctively use equipment created by yourself.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Empower (3SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Berserker (4SP)<u>


    Upgrade:</u> Ultimate Fusion (15SP)


    <u>Berserker</u> - Temporarily infuse Ether into your weapons to make them stronger in a fight.


    <u>Ultimate Fusion</u> - Lifts the cap on fused item rarity. You can use a small amount of Intra to give your fused item an official name.


    ¡°You mean Ultimate Fusion combined with¨C¡±


    <u>Blacksmith</u> - You can now use Craftsman¡¯s Fusion sub-skill on soulbound items an infinite amount of times.


    ¡°¨CBlacksmith, right? Yeah, I can see that¡­ I could just keep cramming more and more items into one to make the ultimate set of gear. Yeah¡­ Yeah! I like that, actually! It would also mean that I could make all that gear and then switch to other skills, right?¡±


    The more I thought about it, the more I liked that route. I already had a bunch of miscellaneous items from the dungeon and they would only keep piling up. Sure, sometimes I used several different weapons in a single fight, but a lot of them were bound to just start gathering dust in my backpack.


    ¡°Okay then! Let¡¯s see. If I were to buy just Armsmaster, Ultimate Fusion, Soulbound Item, and Blacksmith, it would cost me¡­¡± I whined in defeat. ¡°Thirty skill points. And I have only twenty-nine left¡­ Come on!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> time to do pushups lol


    I huffed in annoyance.


    ¡°I guess¡­ I mean, yeah. I guess it shouldn¡¯t be that hard to get one more point. I¡¯m pretty close with the squats and push-ups, but still!¡± I grumbled. ¡°Well, whatever. Craftsman is still on cooldown till tomorrow anyway. I¡¯ll just do some pushups and squats till I¡¯m tired today and then try to finish those two stupid achievements in the morning.¡±


    And then, it would be time to pivot and change builds.


    Goodbye, healing fire tank build. You¡¯d served me well.


    Hello, ultimate gear Armsmaster build!

 #054 - Onwards, chat! To new adventures!

    ¡°Nggnhhhhh!¡± I said as I made that last pushup and then collapsed into a heaving pile on the ground as the system window jumped in front of me.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Arm day¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    ¡°Fuh¡­Finally¡­¡± I gasped out.


    <u>Arm day</u> - Do a total of 500 pushups. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Leg day</u> - Do a total of 500 squats. [COMPLETE]


    I¡¯d been working on these since day one ¨C well, day two ¨C so it was nice to finally get these two achievements. Sure, two measly skill points didn¡¯t seem like that much nowadays, but every little bit counted. If I ever actually decided to go ahead with the Limit Break, I would need all the help I could get.


    Once I caught my breath and my arms and legs felt a bit less like jelly, I sat up, and wiped the sweat off by brow.


    I glanced over my skill list once more and double-checked the numbers just to make sure before nodding to myself and fishing out ¨C hah! Get it? ¨C the piece of shark meat I¡¯d left soaking in my bucket filled with water to get the nasty taste out of it.


    Because from what Blouterest had told me last night, sharks urinated through their skin, meaning that it soaked through their entire body. Freaking gross.


    Obviously, I had no idea if shark meat looted from a dungeon would have the same problem, but I didn¡¯t want to take my chances.


    As for why I was about to eat that instead of my infinite pizza, well¡­


    Appraisal said nothing about the meat having some kind of protection from going bad like the tentacle, and I wasn¡¯t one to waste food.


    So shark meat for breakfast it was.


    After I¡¯d woken up, I¡¯d gathered some branches into a pile and fenced them in with some rocks I¡¯d found around ¨C again, Blouterest advised me on how to do this properly ¨C to make a campfire. Then just a bit of Ether to ignite it, a random stick to skewer the shark meat, and I let it roast.


    ¡°Mmm¡­ Not gonna lie, it smells pretty good¡­¡± I mumbled.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I wonder what it tastes like.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> it looks delicious!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloooop! (¤Ã????)


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> you deserve some good food finally


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> this is so relaxing


    ¡°Yeah me too. Thanks, Spoon.¡± I smiled. ¡°Mmm, yeah. It¡¯s nice to just sit around and roast some shark meat after yesterday.¡±


    I was in my ¡®off-stream¡¯ mode at the moment. Sure, I couldn¡¯t help the fact that I was always streaming, but that didn¡¯t mean I had to constantly be in my ¡®entertaining Vcuber¡¯ mode. I would burn out.


    Even just the fact that I couldn¡¯t really escape the camera nowadays had me constantly stressed. So I¡¯d come to the executive decision to mostly ignore chat and do my own thing in the mornings before ¡®starting the stream¡¯.


    As for the shark meat? Well, it tasted like a tender and fishy chicken. Not bad, to be honest. I just wished I had something to go with it. Any kind of sauce, bread, or even some fruit.


    My trees had grown, but hadn¡¯t reached the stage at which they would bear fruit yet, unfortunately.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> so what¡¯s the plan?


    ¡°Not sure yet,¡± I said between bites. ¡°I haven¡¯t looked at the results of the poll yet. I wanna do it when I start the stream.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> when are you starting?


    ¡°In a bit. Just lemme finish my breakfast¡­¡±


    Maybe the piece I¡¯d roasted was a bit too big. I did have the body of a small child, after all¡­ Ugh.


    I had grown since I¡¯d first hatched from the egg though. After over a week of accelerated growth, it was starting to become pretty noticeable, actually.


    Damn.


    It didn¡¯t feel like a week. It felt like I¡¯d been in this world for ages already. Was that also the effect of the accelerated growth? My perception of time? Or was it just because those few days were full of action and adrenaline?


    Still. That was just a week. How long would it take me to get back to Earth¡­? (And I would get back to Earth.) By the time I did, would I forget things? Would I forget how it was like to be me? The previous me? Would I forget the life of a trans Vcuber who¡¯d run from their shitty family, living in a crappy apartment, streaming to a small audience every night?


    Even worse, would something make me forget? If mental attacks existed, who was to say that something couldn¡¯t erase my memories?


    ¡­Would the Limit Break try to do that?


    It was kind of in the name. Breaking.


    And that was really the crux of the issue for me. Why I was so reluctant to go ahead with it. Despite all the crappy things I¡¯d gone through in my life, I didn¡¯t just want to forget everything. It was an essential part of who I was.


    The system had already messed with my mind, and running out of Intra really screwed with my head, but neither left permanent damage.


    Even if it took a skill slot and a fair amount of points, part of me wanted to get Rend and Mind Shield before I took on the Limit break.


    Just to be safe.


    ¡°Alright!¡± I clapped my hands and stood up. I¡¯d finished the big chunk of roasted shark meat, washed my hands, and was ready to start the stream now.


    As always, I summoned John and had him face a random tree. I stuck out my hands into the frame and counted down from seven before I made him turn to me.


    ¡°Goooood mooorning, my precious little Aquamarines! It¡¯s me! Aoto Nana, your favorite dungeon conqueror!¡± I exclaimed with a wide grin. ¡°As you might know, I beat my first dungeon yesterday! If you missed it, you can watch the stream history! The final fight was an ordeal, I tell you!¡±


    I winced, just remembering the damn shark.


    ¡°But anyway! Now, we have a dilemma! You see, the dungeon just kind of shut down and kicked me out after I beat it! Apparently, it¡¯s resetting right now and it¡¯s going to take two whole days to finish! So, what now? Well, I have a handful of options, actually! And in fact, I made a poll last night so that you guys could help me decide! If you haven¡¯t voted yet, make sure to do so, because I¡¯ll be closing the poll in a few minutes!¡±


    With that, I walked over to my backpack and reached into it to pull out the main loot I¡¯d gotten from the shark yesterday ¨C the shark hoodie and the handcannon.


    ¡°Now, while you guys do that, there¡¯s a couple of things on the agenda! First, I wanted to test out my awesome new loot I got from the final boss!¡± I frowned at the hoodie. ¡°Well, mostly the gun. The hoodie is for later.¡±


    I put the hoodie back inside and held the handcannon in both hands.


    It was fairly heavy, actually, but not too big of a deal to aim and fire with it.


    ¡°So this thing apparently eats up a lot of Ether, so I¡¯m gonna have to be careful not to knock myself out and then have it bounce back into my unmoving body or something. That would be a really dumb way to go.¡±


    I mentally poked it to see where and how it wanted me to feed it Ether and once I figured it out, I lifted it up, pointed it at a random tree ¨C away from my growing fruit trees ¨C and slowly pushed down the trigger.


    Just as I¡¯d expected, a glowing ball of electrified plasma began to grow in front of the cannon¡¯s muzzle and I felt my Ether drain away at an alarming rate.


    Before it could drain me completely dry, I released the trigger, the gun made a pwoof sound, and the plasma ball slowly sailed forward through the air in the tree¡¯s direction.


    Even as I fell on my back from the surprisingly strong recoil, I made John slowly turn to keep the ball in his point of view.


    ¡°Oof! Ugh, I forgot just how much the shark recoiled when he fired it,¡± I mumbled as I stood up.


    In the meantime, the ball finally reached the tree trunk.


    The moment the ball hit the bark, the entire freaking tree was suddenly on fire and spewing out orange smoke in all directions.


    My eyes went wide and my jaw dropped at this outrageous destructive power.


    I didn¡¯t have much time to marvel at it, though, because the plasma ball had bounced off the tree and into the grass, where it created even more fire, and then bounced off to head somewhere upwards.


    I quickly scrambled forward to catch it before it flew off into the stratosphere, pressed the trigger on my handcannon once more, but this time, I reversed the flow of the Ether, and just as I captured the plasma ball between the metal rods sticking out of the handcannon, the ball began to get smaller and I felt my own Ether rise.


    Once the plasma ball was completely gone, I put down the handcannon, raised my gloved hand, and began hosing down all the fire before the entire freaking forest burned down.


    ¡°Oh, come on!¡±


    Stolen story; please report.


    It was reasonably effective, but some spots high up in the trees were still impossible to reach.


    So instead, I fired off a bubble into the branches and watched as it popped and flooded the canopy the moment some of the flames licked it.


    A few bubbles later, the fire was all gone and the only traces of it were the black husk of a tree the plasma ball had hit head on.


    I stared at it as the nasty smell of charcoal wafted past my nose. John came closer to look at the carnage and silently stared as well before both of us turned to each other.


    ¡°...So, anyway. This thing is gonna be very useful if I ever run into any plant monsters and such,¡± I confidently declared, ignoring my little accident.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> poor tree, rest in peace o7


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> b-bloop (¡¤¿Ú¡¤)


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> wow that could have ended very badly


    ¡°Best part is that I barely even feel it! Reabsorbing that ball restored most of my Ether! It¡¯s great!¡± I cheerily said, continuing to ignore the fact that I¡¯d almost committed suicide via forest fire.


    There was a moment of silence.


    ¡°Ahem. Anyway, that was one thing. Another thing I wanted to do was to spend my skill points. Of course, we already more or less decided what I¡¯m gonna be spending them on, so let¡¯s go through with it, shall we?¡±


    Truth be told, I was still a bit leery of the whole ¡®merging an object with my soul¡¯ thing, but I figured it couldn¡¯t be too bad if it was a tier one skill that presumably any human could get.


    <u>Purchase the skill [Soulbound Item] for 2 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Soulbound item¡¯ skill unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Soulbound Item] skill upgrade [Blacksmith] for 5 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Blacksmith¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the skill [Armsmaster] for 8 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Armsmaster¡¯ skill unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Armsmaster] skill upgrade [Ultimate Fusion] for 15 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Ultimate Fusion¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    ¡°Aaand there we go. Now¡­ There was something I wanted to test. See, Craftsman should still be on cooldown and I shouldn¡¯t be able to equip it just yet, but Armsmaster had absorbed Craftsman, so can I equip it? Let¡¯s test it!¡±


    <u>Replace [Fire Breath] with [Armsmaster]?


    </u>Note: [Fire Breath] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°I can! Nice! Perfect! That means that we don¡¯t need to wait! We can go right to the final thing on the agenda before we close the poll!¡±


    <u>Replace [Flameguard] with [Soulbound Item]?


    </u>Note: [Flameguard] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    ¡°Alright! Wow, this feels weird to be without any fire skills at all¡­ Anyway! Soulbound item! It¡¯s something I¡¯ve been eyeing for quite some time. The Blacksmith upgrade specifically will let me cram dozens of items into one! The plan is to create the ultimate gear!¡± I explained once more. ¡°But right now, I don¡¯t have enough points to get Dual Wield, so I have to decide which item I want to bind to my soul. And, well. The obvious choice is a weapon, right? But actually, I thought about it and¡­ I think the best choice is actually armor. My clothes, to be specific.¡±


    I walked back to my backpack, couched down, and pulled out the hoodie once again.


    ¡°You see, I realized that while I frequently use several different weapons during fights, there¡¯s one thing that¡¯s always a constant! That¡¯s right, my clothes! You can¡¯t change clothes mid-fight! And more importantly, because now I won¡¯t have the privilege of healing myself using fire, I need another way to defend myself! Thus, ultimate armor comes first!¡±


    I pulled out the swimsuit out as well.


    ¡°But it¡¯s not gonna be just armor! It¡¯s going to have all sorts of functions!¡±


    I placed the clothing on the grass and then pulled out the inflatable swimming sleeves as well.


    ¡°Teleportation, mid-air floating, better swimming¡­ And I bet that if I raid another dungeon, I¡¯ll find a bunch more clothes and armors to merge into it! And if all the defensive bonuses stack, then I won¡¯t even need to heal ever again!¡± I finished explaining my plan with a grin. ¡°I¡¯ll become the ultimate tank!¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> That¡¯s a solid plan.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> I like it!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop!?????( ?^?^? )


    Of course, it probably wouldn¡¯t work out the way I thought it would. After all, these were just common tier two human skills. I very much doubted that an infinite defense exploit existed this early on.


    This also wasn¡¯t a game, even if I liked to think in video game terms.


    ¡°So! My clothes, my Vcuber garb, is gonna be my first Soulbound Item.¡± I narrowed my eyes at John and made a shooing motion. ¡°Turn around, John! I don¡¯t know what will happen when I do it. What if the clothes just disappear for a moment? Don¡¯t wanna have an accident on camera!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> I thought there¡¯s a censor?


    ¡°Well yeah, there should be a censor. But would you trust it?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> eh fair enough


    John turned around and I closed my eyes while placing hands on my torso. A bit of mental poking around and I found the switch like always. This one was a bit different though. It was very¡­ rigid. Very mechanical, unlike the fluid and adjustable skills like Fire Breath and Flameguard.


    <u>Use Soulbind Item on Vcuber garb?


    </u>Warning: This cannot be undone!


    <u>Y/N</u>


    Huh. Alright then.


    Confirm!


    There was a little stutter and then the feeling of something cold touching and merging with my very being.


    My eyes opened wide as the process finished and I stared at the clothes I was wearing.


    I¡­ What.


    It felt like¡­ Like the clothes were now¡­ me? Or a part of me?


    What the hell had I just done?


    John turned back at me while I continued to stare at the¡­ at the part of me that was shaped like clothes.


    Oh god, I was going insane already.


    I quickly shook my head and proceeded to ignore the alien feeling.


    ¡°Alright then! That went without a hitch!¡± I lied. ¡°Now it¡¯s time for the cool part!¡±


    I grabbed the shark hoodie, stoutly ignoring the odd feeling, and held it in front of the camera.


    ¡°For those who don¡¯t know, this was the loot from the final boss along with the handcannon.¡± I briefly glanced at the tree-shaped piece of charcoal still letting out smoke. ¡°So you can imagine that it¡¯s very good! And it is! It has a bunch of defense bonuses, an offensive bonus to water attacks and metallic weapons, and it also lets me teleport when I¡¯m underwater! All in all, great stuff! I can only imagine how much defense I¡¯ll be getting when I merge these two together!¡±


    I gripped the hoodie and concentrated on activating Fusion.


    It took a bit of effort on my part and I also felt a lot of my own Ether drain, but eventually, the hoodie finally turned into a big blob of orange energy with hints of glitchy purple energy, as well as a few wisps of green fluttering about.


    Was the green Intra? Why was there Intra? Was it because of the whole ¡®helping me be better with weapons¡¯?


    Well, it didn¡¯t matter.


    Just as I was used to, I shoved all of that energy inside the clothes I was already wearing and watched as they merged into each other with a flash of light.


    Once it was over, I glanced at John¡¯s screen and couldn¡¯t help but grin.


    My normal clothes gained a hoodie and some decorative fins around the sleeves and back. Surprisingly enough, the shoes now also had some fins around them.


    Oh god, the fins were part of me as well now¨C


    ¡­


    Anyway, I still wasn¡¯t quite sure why the system considered the entire getup a single item, but hey, I wasn¡¯t going to complain.


    It looked cool and cute. The perfect combo. There were zero things wrong with it.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> blooop! (???????)


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> you look adorable!


    I grinned in delight and spun around for the camera.


    ¡°There we go! Awesome, isn¡¯t it? Let¡¯s see how functional it is too!¡±


    I reached into the backpack again to grab my naginata. The moment I brought it out though, I stopped and frowned at it.


    It had been a cool weapon before, for sure, but I was still ultimately a beginner and could only go off of what Sun in chat told me. But now¡­ Now when I looked at it, I suddenly had all sorts of ideas on how to use this thing properly.


    What was¡­


    Oh, right. Armsmaster made me better at weapons I¡¯d made myself. I had no idea this thing would count.


    Well, no complaining from me!


    I grinned, raised the thing up, spun it in the air, and then pointed it at the burnt tree.


    ¡°Guess what, chat! This thing counts as a weapon I made myself for Armsmaster!¡± I said before jumping forward and slashing at the tree.


    The naginata easily sliced through the charred wood and it crumpled to the ground, leaving behind a cloud of dust.


    I backed away to avoid a sneezing fit and went for a different tree instead.


    I wasn¡¯t confident in my ability to slice the trunk itself, so I went for its branches instead. It felt effortless as I chopped off branch after branch as the cut spots leaked the familiar orange smoke all over.


    I couldn¡¯t help but laugh triumphantly.


    If the me from just a week ago saw me now¡­


    ¡°Alright, chat! Warrior Nana is here! And if there are monsters I can¡¯t stab for whatever reason, I still have my mega guns!¡± I stalked back to the backpack with a satisfied smile and grabbed my trusty bucket on the way. I let it store the water the shark meat had been in and instead brought out some life ooze just to restore my Ether.


    Once I felt full again, I picked up the lily bikini.


    ¡°Now then¡­ This was the whole point of getting these skills. Fusing more than just two objects. Let¡¯s see what happens then!¡±


    Once again, I used Fusion on the swimsuit. This time was much easier ¨C perhaps because it was a lower level item than the hoodie? ¨C and then quickly turned into a mass of orange energy. I proceeded to push it against my Soulbound clothing to finish the Fusion, but it resisted.


    I frowned in concern.


    The resistance wasn¡¯t as unyielding as when I¡¯d first tried to merge a third item together, so I kept pushing. It took extra Ether, but eventually, the swimsuit merged with my clothes with a flash and I was left with the odd sensation of being part Lilies now.


    I blinked and then sniffed my sleeves.


    They smelled like lilies. But it also felt like I was sniffing myself.


    God. Fucking¨C


    ¡°Well, it worked!¡± I interrupted myself before I could spiral again. ¡°But the bad news is that it cost extra Ether to do that.¡± I grunted. ¡°And I guess that¡¯s the catch, huh? The more I fuse into it, the more extra Ether it costs? Let¡¯s try it one more time¡­¡±


    I picked up the swimming sleeves and went through the same process of turning them into pure Ether and Fusing them with my outfit.


    It took a lot of Ether to successfully merge them this time. Enough that I was kind of gasping for breath by the end.


    It was tiring enough that I could ignore the feeling of becoming another partial inanimate object.


    ¡°O-Okay¡­ Yeah, this is going to be a problem, chat. I guess I should only merge in high quality items for the best results, because I can¡¯t do this infinitely, no matter what the description says¡­¡±


    It was a bit of a letdown, but it also explained how this wasn¡¯t in fact an infinite stat exploit.


    ¡°Well, that sucks. But it¡¯s fine! I just have to get more Ether to merge more items! And more importantly, once I get a few more points, I can bind another item to my soul¨C¡± Oh, god, should I really do that? ¡°¨Cand then I can get an ultimate weapon as well! Probably one of my melee weapons. Although I¡¯m curious about what would happen if I combined both of my guns¡­ Hmm, food for thought¡­¡±


    Then I took a deep breath, doing my best to keep ignoring the whole soul issue, and let out a sigh.


    ¡°Now. That¡¯s enough stalling. I gave you lot plenty of time to vote, so let¡¯s have a look at those results now!¡±


    <u>Poll: ¡®What should I do now?¡¯</u>


    <u>Run the water park dungeon again:</u> 5.41% (21 512)<u>


    </u><u>Try the spaceship dungeon again:</u> 19.78%(78 687)


    <u>Build a home:</u> 23.00% (91 523)


    <u>Explore the world more:</u> 29.80% (118 577)


    <u>Limit Break:</u> 22.01% (87 561)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    Inwardly, I let out a sigh of relief that the damn Limit Break didn¡¯t win. Then a moment later, my brain registered the sheer numbers.


    How many people had voted for this? How in the¡­ Okay, sure. Maybe I should stop getting surprised because those numbers get higher with every poll. Not to mention, I¡¯d actually let this one run overnight, so¡­


    ¡°The results are in, everyone! Looks like mindless wandering won!¡± I announced to a mix of disappointment and excitement from chat.


    ¡°Now, don¡¯t be sad! This was just the poll for what to do now. Nobody ever said I would never do the options later, you know?¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> So, you are planning on doing the Limit break?


    ¡°...Maybe. Later. Not right now. When I¡¯m ready and out of other options, yeah,¡± I finally admitted.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I¡¯m sure it won¡¯t be that bad.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> It¡¯s just the first one out of three, right?


    I grimaced.


    ¡°I have no idea, but whatever! No Limit Break now! It¡¯s time to finally explore this world. This time without the looming threat of starvation!¡±


    I put away all of my stuff into the backpack, took one last look at my growing fruit trees ¨C I was pretty sure they would be fine even if I left ¨C and then turned around and began walking.


    ¡°Alright, chat! We can go in any direction, but first, I wanna make a quick stop somewhere.¡± I smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the cave where I was reborn!¡±


    <blockquote>


    Part 1 - Acclimation: END


    </blockquote>

 #055 – I didn’t expect this at all

    <blockquote>


    Part 2 - Desolation


    </blockquote>


    I was so glad that past me had left random cut marks on trees to mark my path. It made returning to the egg cave a whole lot easier. It also didn¡¯t feel like it took anywhere as long to get back, probably because I actually had a clear destination in mind this time.


    I¡¯d passed several life ooze lakes on my way, and now that I wasn¡¯t in a rush to find food, I couldn¡¯t help but wonder where these had come from. Had something or someone created them? Were they natural? If so, how had they come to be? I could attest to the fact that the stuff didn¡¯t rain from the sky during rainfall, so¡­ what gives?


    Maybe that was just the result of centuries of still lakes of water mixing with ambient Ether or something? It wouldn¡¯t be the weirdest thing, honestly. Although, just how long had that taken¡­?


    ¡°Oh! We¡¯re here, chat!¡± I exclaimed as I finally came close to the familiar small cave. ¡°Man, it feels like it¡¯s been forever since I¡¯ve been here.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> yeeeeeeee


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Is the egg still there?


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloooop! ?(^?^ )? ¡ä-


    ¡°No idea. Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    I climbed into the cave and sure enough, the half-cracked egg was still there, exactly as I¡¯d left it. Granted, I didn¡¯t quite remember the exact positions of all the smaller egg shards on the ground, but I had stream history now. I could easily check.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> looks like the phoenix hasn¡¯t come back


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> or it covered its tracks


    I opened stream history and rewound all the way to the point where I¡¯d left the egg last time to explore. Sure enough, everything looked more or less identical. I idly put a bookmark there, naming it ¡®Leaving spawn #2¡¯, and closed it again.


    ¡°Yup, I don¡¯t think anyone else has been here. Unless the phoenix is mega sneaky.¡± I frowned at the egg for a moment. Then I shrugged, took off my backpack, opened it as much as I could, and approached the egg with it, intending to stuff the egg inside.


    ¡°Damn, I can¡¯t believe I used to fit inside this¡­ It¡¯s so small now,¡± I murmured, once again realizing just how much I¡¯d physically grown because of the blessing.


    I stopped in front of the empty eggshell and gently placed my hand on it, feeling a strange pang of¡­ nostalgia? Sentimentality?


    It was really weird, considering I¡¯d left it behind pretty much immediately after hatching. I hadn¡¯t been nearly enough to get attached to it¡­ But then again, I had no idea just how long I¡¯d been inside that egg. Well, stream history went all the way to a few hours before hatching, but when I opened it up again to see what was there, I was pretty disappointed. Most of that time was just darkness and some muted rumbling sounds¨C


    ¡°Hold on¡­¡± I stopped in my tracks and frowned as I rewound a few seconds and strained my ears to listen better. ¡°Is that¡­ Is that someone talking¡­?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh shit the phoenix


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop?! ( ?¡ã?¡ã) !!


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Oh, yes. It sounds like it is.


    The voice was somewhat androgynous. Maybe leaning on the female side. It was honestly really hard to tell.


    I kept rewinding the few seconds, but I just couldn¡¯t make anything out, even after maxing out the volume on the thing.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> is the phoenix talking to the egg?


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> like a baby in a stomach?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> maybe just monologing like a villain


    My expression warped at that. There was something so incredibly weird about that. Sure, I looked like a kid and sure, I had hatched from the egg that the phoenix supposedly made, but¡­¡°Yeah, probably just smugly telling me I¡¯m gonna have a bad time or something.¡±


    But then again, even if I couldn¡¯t tell what they were saying, their tone didn¡¯t sound antagonistic.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Give me a moment.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I will try to make sense of it.


    ¡°Okay¡­? Oh, are you gonna use your audio editing software magic?¡± I guessed while I sat down and went back to petting the eggshell.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Yes.


    ¡°Alright! Thanks, Ranger!¡±


    I sat back and while I waited for Ranger to come back with some results, I finally stopped rubbing the egg and awkwardly managed to stuff it into my backpack before picking up the pieces and taking them as well.


    Then I sat back, found a relatively smooth part of the wall where I could lean, and looked out of the cave.


    ¡°I wonder what it¡¯s gonna be¡­¡± I mumbled, as people in chat speculated.


    Thinking about it, this could very well be my first lead to¡­ well, everything. I still had no clue why I was in this world, or why I¡¯d been reincarnated by a phoenix. But if we made out what they were saying, we might be able to glean some answers¡­


    But then again, maybe the phoenix had anticipated that I would look back through stream history and there wouldn¡¯t be anything useful.


    But that was assuming the phoenix had known that I would get the Streamer racial skill. Which would mean that they had to have manipulated the system itself. Or at least predicted which racial skill I would get.


    The system had said ¡®calibrating¡¯ before it had given me that skill, so I had to assume that there was a variety of different racial skills I could have gotten.


    Or all of this theorizing was pointless because the phoenix was the one who had set everything up, including all the red herrings.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Okay. So, it sounds like an adult woman and the tone is somewhat sorrowful. But she¡¯s not speaking in English.


    I groaned and rubbed my forehead.


    ¡°Of course, it¡¯s not in English¡­ Dammit. I guess it¡¯s still something¡­? The phoenix is likely a woman and¡­ was sad to reincarnate me? Probably why ¡®I¡¯m sorry¡¯, I¡¯m guessing¡­¡±


    I deflated with a sigh.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> heya


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.<u>FouxMoux:</u> what¡¯s up?


    ¡°Hey, Foux¡­ We just found out that there was someone talking to me while I was in the egg¡­ But it¡¯s hard to hear and it¡¯s not even English. Can anyone figure out what language it is?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> subtitles


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> turn on subtitles


    I froze.


    ¡°Oh my god! Of course! The subtitles! I¡¯m so dumb!¡±


    As an odd feeling of hope began to well up inside me, I quickly went to my menu, turned the subtitles on again, changed them to English, and rewound the stream history to the very beginning.


    Then I sat back and listened.


    The moment I heard the first signs of a muffled voice, the subtitles appeared in my vision, and I couldn¡¯t help but breathe in in anticipation.


    ¡®Hello, Nana¡­ Ugh¡­ I didn¡¯t think this is how it would all turn out. I really should have expected this, but¡­¡¯


    Oh shit. The phoenix knew my name. Or rather, knew my Vcuber name and decided to call me that? Why¡­?


    There was a long pause but I patiently waited as the supposed Phoenix found her words.


    ¡®It¡¯s strange¡­ It¡¯s been so long, but I can remember it so clearly. Back when¡­ I was in your position.¡¯


    Hold on, what? My position? What was that supposed to mean?


    I stared at the words as several different emotions boiling inside my gut.


    Was this implying that someone had done the exact thing to her? The whole forcibly reincarnated in another world?


    ¡®Sorry, I¡¯m really bad at this, huh¡­? I guess I should give you a talk like the one I got.¡¯


    Oh god. That was exactly what she was implying here. What the hell?!


    ¡®Hello, Nana. I am your mother¡­ of sorts. A different kind of Mother.¡¯


    I clenched my teeth but didn¡¯t dare to tear my attention away from the subtitles in front of me.


    ¡®I¡­ don¡¯t really want to do this, but I think I have to at this point. I¡¯m sending you on a grand adventure. It¡¯s going to be hard. Very hard. So hard that you will want to give up many times along the way. Like at the limit breaks. Especially at the limit breaks. They are the absolute worst! The second one in particular¡­ God, I hope you¡¯ll make it out with your sanity intact.¡¯


    A chill went down my spine.


    I¡¯d subconsciously known that something would force me to do the limit break sooner or later, but if even my kidnapper talked about them like that, I couldn¡¯t help but feel dread.


    And she was implying that I definitely would have to do not just one of them, but all of them?


    My hands tightened into fists.


    ¡®But you can¡¯t give up! I mean¡­ I still don¡¯t really know what the point of all of this is, but she told me it¡¯s necessary. And sure, she could have been lying¡­ She had been tricking me this whole time, after all, but well¡­¡¯


    What the hell? Had the phoenix been coerced into this whole scheme then? Why would it be necessary? Who was ¡®she¡¯?


    ¡®I hate all this. I hate how I still don¡¯t know what I¡¯m supposed to be doing! I hate the Fate Weaver! I hate¨C¡¯ The sentence cut off and there was silence for a while again.


    The Fate Weaver.


    Was ¡®she¡¯ the Fate Weaver? The one who forced the Phoenix to reincarnate me?


    Who was the Fate Weaver anyway? Were they who I thought they were, or was it all a coincidence, after all?


    The silence continued and I was about to speak up, thinking it was over, when the muffled voice came back, and with it, more subtitles.


    ¡®Sorry, I¡¯m just¡­ frustrated.¡¯


    I could tell that much¡­


    ¡®I know that you can hear me, Nana. I mean, you probably won¡¯t understand what I¡¯m saying, at least not right away, but just know that I believe in you. You can do it!¡¯


    Hold on, what? How could she possibly know that I would be able to understand eventually? Had she known about the Streamer skill, after all?


    ¡®I¡¯m sorry¡­ and good luck!¡¯


    There was a muted swooshing sound and then silence.


    I waited a good few minutes after that just to see if the subtitles would pick up anything else, but that seemed to be the end of it.


    I closed my eyes, and took a shuddering breath, before opening them again.


    ¡°...Well! I guess I have another reason to avoid the limit break for now,¡± I said with a forced cheer. My trembling voice probably didn¡¯t convince anyone.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> holy shit


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> so fate weaver is the enemy not the phoenix


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that poor phoenix


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> it sounds like they were coerced


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­(¡Ñ_¡Ñ)


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> I wouldn¡¯t jump to conclusions yet


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> wow that¡¯s a lot to unpack


    I deflated, failing to retain my cheer, and sat there in stunned silence for a moment, thinking about everything I¡¯d just heard.


    ¡°...Chat, I don¡¯t know what to think. I feel like everything just got way more complicated. I got some answers but even more questions now.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> some progress at least?


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> maybe it¡¯s some kind of inheritance thing?


    ¡°Inheritance?¡± I mumbled, still feeling a bit shell shocked.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh yeah like this is not the first time this happened


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> from someone to phoenix to you to someone else again


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> when you are done with your adventure


    I cringed.


    ¡°What. You think that when I¡¯m done with¡­ whatever I¡¯m supposed to be doing, I¡¯ll be coerced to kidnap someone from Earth and reincarnate them here? And then they would go through everything and kidnap someone, and then they would kidnap someone, and so on?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> yeah


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that¡¯s horrible


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> maybe not earth


    ¡°That¡¯s messed up¡­ I don¡¯t even know why I¡¯m doing this. The phoenix didn¡¯t know why she was doing this. Just that ¡®she¡¯, whoever the heck that was, said it was necessary.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> I¡¯m guessing that was the god


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> fate weaver or whatever


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> maybe you¡¯ll figure it out by the end


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what I¡¯m assuming as well¡­ Eh, nice that you believe in me, Mike, but I wouldn¡¯t be so sure¡­¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> okay maybe that IS the point


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> ur supposed to figure it out and then the cycle ends


    ¡°I mean, I guess? But that¡¯s assuming there even is a cycle to begin with.¡± I shook my head with a sigh. ¡°Either way, if there¡¯s one thing that I took away from this, it¡¯s that the Fate Weaver cannot be trusted. She¡¯s said that the Fate Weaver had been tricking her all along, so¡­¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> and that limit breaks are bad


    ¡°...And that Limit Breaks are really bad. Especially the second one, apparently.¡± I shuddered as I thought back on what the Phoenix had said. ¡°I don¡¯t know about you guys, but losing sanity doesn¡¯t sound very appealing to me.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> I still wonder what exactly they are


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> weren¡¯t there three of them?


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> why is the second one worse than the third?


    ¡°Not doing it right now, Trelip. It didn¡¯t win the poll.¡± I huffed. ¡°No idea. And I¡¯m not going to theorize about it. I don¡¯t even know what exactly they are about.¡±


    But obviously, I would have to do it eventually. Everything just beautifully pointed in the direction of doing the Limit Break. So much so that I was suspicious whether it was a plot by the Fate Weaver as well¡­


    Ugh, I was becoming a conspiracy theorist.


    ¡°Okay!¡± I clapped my hands. ¡°So in summary: The Phoenix needs a slap in the face for dragging me into this and then all the hugs for whatever poop she had to go through, and the Fate Weaver ¨C if that¡¯s who ¡®she¡¯ is ¨C needs a good butt kicking and cannot be trusted.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> lol


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> good summary


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> I would be wary of the phoenix still


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> even if she didn¡¯t want to she still did it


    I pursed my lips and frowned.


    ¡°Good point, Mike. She might be¡­ like a conscript. Unwilling, but still an enemy. Or something like that?¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> yeah exactly


    ¡°Right¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°Well, on that cheerful note, I guess it¡¯s time to get going again.¡±


    I took one last look around the cave, remembering the first time I¡¯d woken up in this world, then got up and walked outside.


    ¡°Sooo¡­ Which way should I go? If I remember correctly, the spaceship is that way¨C¡± I pointed in one direction. ¡°¨Cand the water park is that way.¡± I pointed in the opposite direction.


    I looked up and squinted at the sky, trying to remember where the sun set.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> spaceship west waterpark east then


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah. I guess there¡¯s two more directions left to explore then¡­ Let¡¯s poll it! You decide, chat! Do I go north or do I go south?!¡±


    I quickly set up the poll and then sat down. As I waited for people to get their vote in, my mind wandered back to what I¡¯d read the Phoenix say.


    Mother.


    Hah. Apparently, I had crappy parents even for my reincarnation. How ironic. Well, at least the Phoenix was somewhat apologetic, unlike¡­


    ¡°Alright! What do we have? Hmm¡­ Huh, looks like north is winning by quite a bit. Well, north it is then! Let¡¯s go, chat!¡±


    I stood up, turned north, and began walking.

 #056 - That’s not how the adventure was supposed to go

    I groaned as I sat next to the tree to catch my breath.


    ¡°Chat¡­ You reckon I just got super lucky the first two times? Because I''m losing hope that I¡¯ll find anything here¡­¡±


    It had been an entire day. A night spent under the canopy and then all the way until noon the next day, and I still hadn¡¯t found anything of interest. Just trees, bushes, grass, an occasional life ooze lake, and sometimes, if I was really lucky, there had been a somewhat large boulder covered in moss.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> maybe you should have just built a house¡­


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> should have farmed the spaceship smh


    <u>GonguuH:</u> hello


    <u>GonguuH:</u> still walking?


    ¡°Yeah yeah, hindsight is twenty twenty, whatever¡­ Oh, hey, Gong. Yup, still walking. There¡¯s nothing out here, I swear.¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> maybe the map can do something?


    ¡°The map? Oh, this thing¡­?¡± I reached into the backpack and pulled out the magical map I¡¯d gotten in the last dungeon.


    Unfortunately, it was completely blank. Not even the red dot that was supposed to represent me was there.


    ¡°...Nope, nothing. I mean, it said that it only worked in dungeons, didn¡¯t it? Ugh¡­ Maybe I should just return to the water park dungeon and try to see if there are any secrets there.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh yeah that would be good


    <u>Irid123:</u> there¡¯s gotta be more stuff out here though


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> you can still go back?


    I huffed.


    ¡°I mean, probably? I hope there¡¯s something. Another dungeon, ancient ruins, or heck, a freaking desert would do! Just no more of these dumb trees!¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you could try finding a tall tree and scouting from there


    ¡°I already did that yesterday¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°I even sent John up, but I still couldn¡¯t see anything but trees!¡±


    An Internet age girl like me just wasn¡¯t used to this much nature. Even if my body seemed to be handling nonstop walking way better than it should be, my mind was starting to scream in agony.


    The worst part had to be the dead silence and the loneliness. Being in a dungeon had at least distracted me from it, but only having chat around was driving me nuts. I couldn¡¯t imagine my mental state if I didn¡¯t even have chat.


    I sighed and thunked my head on the tree.


    ¡°This is torture¡­ I wish I had ViewCube or Snitch here¡­ or just something. I wanna watch Ebi¡¯s stream, dammit!¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> that was yesterday


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you walked a good distance


    <u>GonguuH:</u> you might see something now if you try again


    <u>GonguuH:</u> scouting with John I mean


    ¡°I guess¡­¡± I grumbled before forcing myself to stand up and looking around for a tall vantage point.


    A decently tall tree caught my attention and I quickly marked the tree I¡¯d been leaning on with my key sword like I¡¯d been doing this whole trek before walking to the tall tree. A few minutes of nimble climbing later I found myself perched on one of its higher branches while holding onto the trunk.


    ¡°You know¡­ I bet you¡¯ve never seen a streamer capable of climbing trees like this,¡± I said with a small smirk, trying to find at least some humor in this. ¡°I must be the best climber streamer on Snitch.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> reject stream return to monke


    I snorted as I summoned John and sent him above me again. ¡°I hope the next dungeon drops some bananas for me, then. How am I supposed to return to monke otherwise?¡±


    Once John was as high up as I could send him, I had him slowly rotate the camera in a circle while peering into his visual feed with narrowed eyes, trying to pick out anything but trees.


    Then I took a deep breath and let out a frustrated groan.


    ¡°Nothing¡­ There¡¯s nothing! Chat, why is there nothing?! Why is this world so stupidly dead and barren?! What am I even supposed to do?!¡± I yelled in frustration.


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe you¡¯re supposed to do something else


    <u>Irid123:</u> not explore


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> go beat the spaceship?


    ¡°Like what?! Keep going between the water park and the spaceship while clearing them until I go mad?! Is that it?!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> maybe there are secrets idk


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe


    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna keep risking my life in freaking dungeons! I want to find civilization! Why is there no civilization?! Why am I the only person around?! Where is that fucking Phoenix?!¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> Nana calm down


    <u>GonguuH:</u> getting angry won¡¯t solve anything


    ¡°Shut up! Stop telling me what to do! It¡¯s your guys¡¯ fault anyway! Why did you tell me to go randomly wandering?! There¡¯s nothing out here!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> hey I didn¡¯t know it¡¯s gonna be all empty


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I voted for the spaceship


    <u>Irid123:</u> have you tried messaging the other mod?


    ¡°I don¡¯t care what you voted for! You set me up! And what¡¯s the point of messaging anyone?! I don¡¯t even know if you guys are real!¡± I screamed, my voice cracking at the end.


    I immediately regretted my outburst and deflated against the tree trunk as the tears flowed.


    I felt so pathetic sobbing there while chat watched. The worst part was that I¡¯d automatically recalled John at some point so chat could now hear and see everything in perfect detail.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> shit


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> uh


    How many times had I broken down on the stream at this point? Three? Four times? Why did that keep happening? Wasn¡¯t I supposed to be an epic isekai protagonist? Why was I so pathetic? Had I not gotten stronger at all? Was I destined to forever be a shitty loser who cried and moaned about every little thing?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what¡¯s going on?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you okay?


    ¡°Ebi¡­¡± I said through my sniffling. ¡°I thought you were doing your own stream today.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Gong told me that you¡¯re crying


    I sniffled again, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel touched that she would immediately pause her own stream and rush over.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> come on Nana, what¡¯s wrong?


    ¡°Ugh¡­ I just¡­ You know¡­ Just a bit of despair at my situation, that¡¯s all,¡± I said as I wiped my face with my glove ¨C I¡¯d figured out on my journey how to make it generate just the minimum amount of water, ideal for washing up and cleaning my face.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s gonna be okay


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you can find your way back!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I believe!


    ¡°Thanks¡­¡±


    I didn¡¯t really believe I could, but I could try and pretend that I did.


    ¡°Maybe I should just do the limit break now,¡± I said.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nonono that¡¯s a terrible idea!


    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.<u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you know what the phoenix said!


    ¡°Yeah¡­ They are the worst¡­ But Ebi, I feel like it¡¯s just the most logical next step. I have all the requirements, I¡¯m fairly strong, and I feel stuck now.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I mean maybe but I still don¡¯t like it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can still go try the spaceship before that


    ¡°I guess¡­ But that would mean a whole day of walking back again¡­¡± I mumbled as I idly opened the Limit Break system window.


    The warning sat in the middle of the screen, like a campfire warding off wild beasts, but at this point, I couldn¡¯t help but be drawn to it like a moth. Just to have something meaningful happen. Anything.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana please don¡¯t do it


    I glanced at the group chat, contemplated it for a second¡­ and then mentally selected the first Limit Break.


    <u>Limit break #1 - Trials of courage


    </u>The Limit Break takes place outside of time and space. No time will pass in the real world in the meantime.


    For the duration of the Limit Break, the cooldown on swapping skills and titles is removed, but rewards from any Achievements and Quests you manage to complete within will only be accessible after failing or succeeding.


    Warning: You have only one attempt. If you fail the Limit Break, you won¡¯t ever be allowed to try again.


    Do you wish to attempt to break your limits?


    <u>Y/N</u>


    My eyes immediately gravitated toward the new warning on the screen that popped up.


    ¡°...Oh. It¡¯s just one attempt.¡± I tensed up and grit my teeth, already mentally preparing myself for the ordeal.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yeah ok don¡¯t do that yet


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oof that¡¯s lame


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you gotta get stronger first


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> if you have to do it then wait until you are at your best


    I watched as more messages trying to dissuade me from clicking yes came in and after a moment, I deflated.


    ¡°...Yeah, you¡¯re right, guys. I really shouldn¡¯t try to do it when I¡¯m feeling like this. Better leave it for when I feel ready for it.¡±


    I sighed and looked out into the forest from my perch on the branch with a bitter frown. Then I looked back at the little window and read through the rest of the text.


    ¡°...Hold on, what? It takes place outside of time and space¡­? Wait, does that mean that you guys won¡¯t be able to see?¡±


    Now I was extra wary of it. Not having chat for this sounded like a nightmare.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> there could be some time shenanigans


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> remember the bracelet thing?


    ¡°Right¡­ I guess it could still work, but I wouldn¡¯t bet on it.¡± I kept reading. ¡°That¡¯s cool, though. Whatever you have to do there, it lets you freely swap skills¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you should try to max everything before doing it


    ¡°I probably should, huh¡­?¡± I mumbled. ¡°...Which means I need to get back to dungeoneering to get more achievements to get more skill points.¡±


    I was really hoping to discover something before I would have to go back to dungeoneering. Sure, clearing dungeons was¡­ pretty fun, actually, but it was also freaking dangerous and stressful. After all, I had nearly died so many times back in the water park dungeon.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> or you could build a house


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> to complete the quest


    I hummed.


    ¡°Right, yeah. The quests. Why do I keep forgetting about those? Actually, I¡¯d completed one of the quests, haven¡¯t I? Meaning that I can take on another quest again¡­¡±


    <u>Generating new quests, please wait¡­</u>


    ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll get something pretty easy to do. I kinda doubt it, though¡­¡±


    While the system generated the quests, I finally got off my butt and climbed down the tree again.


    ¡°So, uh¡­ Thanks for coming, Ebi. I really appreciate it. Sorry for interrupting your own stream,¡± I said awkwardly.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s fine


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I might stay for a bit


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I was getting bored anyway


    My lips curled into a small smile.


    ¡°Alright then. You really are the best, Ebi.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> flattery won¡¯t get you anywhere young lady<u>


    repeaeaeat:</u> hello


    I chuckled. ¡°Oh, hey, Repeat. Welcome! What¡¯s up?¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I was just thinking about the other mod


    ¡°You mean¨C¡± I brought up the admin window and quickly checked the names again. ¡°¨CHellEnna? What about them? They still haven¡¯t said anything in chat, so¡­¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I tried searching for a user with that name on Snitch and ViewCube


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> but they don¡¯t exist


    ¡°...Is that so?¡± I murmured in a low voice. ¡°That seems awfully suspicious, doesn¡¯t it?¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I also tried creating an account with that name on viewcube but it didn¡¯t let me


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> it said that the account already exists


    ¡°Wait, what? Is it hidden or something then? Or¡­ does it both exist and not exist at the same time?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> more time travel shenanigans!


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> I tried DMing them on all the sites but only streamerskill let me do that


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> the others said the account doesn¡¯t exist


    My eyes sharpened at that.


    ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that HellEnna only exists on the streamerskill site? Very very suspicious¡­¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> no reply though


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> you could try DMing them too


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> maybe your account is special somehow since you are the streamer


    <u>Irid123:</u> that¡¯s what I was saying


    <u>Irid123:</u> DM the mystery person


    I frowned.


    ¡°...I guess I haven¡¯t tried that, huh? Sorry, Irid, I guess I didn¡¯t notice your message. Still, do you guys think it will even do anything? If they aren¡¯t watching the stream, are they even gonna get the message?¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> can¡¯t hurt to try


    I hummed and then shrugged.


    ¡°Sure, I guess.¡±


    I hadn¡¯t actually tried sending DMs since getting the upgrade to do so, because I hadn¡¯t had the need. The interface for it was fairly simple, though.


    <u>Direct messages with HellEnna:


    </u><u>AotoNana:</u> Hello, who are you? Are you the phoenix or someone I know?


    ¡°...And send. We¡¯ll see if we get any reply, I guess. In the meantime, let¡¯s see the quests¡­¡±


    <u>New quests generated:


    </u><u>First contact (side quest)


    Variety dungeoneer (side quest)


    Writing home (side quest)</u>


    ¡°Huh, the first one is the quest I didn¡¯t pick last time. Apparently you can get offered the same quests repeatedly,¡± I mused before opening the descriptions of the new quests.


    <u>Variety dungeoneer:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 58m, 41s )<u>


    </u>You¡¯ve managed to conquer one type of dungeon. Now go and conquer the other two types.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 4SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 6SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (60 days)


    Decline</u>


    ¡°Other two types, you say¡­¡± I mumbled with narrowed eyes. ¡°I¡¯m guessing this is referring to the water park being a Tempor-based dungeon?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I guess we were right about there being ether and intra ones too


    ¡°Hmm, yeah. But maybe it¡¯s referring to something else. You never know with this world. Either way, I would have to actually find the other two dungeon types first. And then clear them as well. Not sure if I can actually do this quest, honestly¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the spaceship is probably a different type


    ¡°Probably, yeah,¡± I agreed. ¡°But that would still leave one more I would have to find. I dunno, I¡¯ll hold off on this for now. Let¡¯s see what the other quest is¡­¡±


    <u>Writing home:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 57s )


    It¡¯s been ten days since you suddenly disappeared from your home, there must be people worrying about you. Contact them and assure them that you are fine.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 2SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (3 days)


    Decline</u>


    I froze in my tracks as I read the description.


    The stupid system¡­ Wasn¡¯t it reading my mind? It had to know¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I didn¡¯t want to push you after the first time


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you going to now?


    I glared at the quest window without replying for a moment. That was what I had wanted to avoid. That was why I¡¯d refused to dox myself. But now with this stupid quest shoving everything in my face¡­


    ¡°...No, I¡¯m not. This quest is even dumber than the other one.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana¡­


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> isn¡¯t this easy points?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> just contact literally anyone you know


    I grit my teeth.


    ¡°Nope. I am chronically online. I don¡¯t know anyone in real life,¡± I declared, trying to sound confident.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> what not even family?


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a family,¡± I said in the calmest tone I could force myself to use.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> ¡­


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> there is something in the distance


    I blinked.


    ¡°What? What do you mean Foux?¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> it looks like a building


    ¡°Wait wait, what? Foux, what building?! Where?!¡± I demanded, shoving aside the dark thoughts about family.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I can¡¯t make out any details


    ¡°Foux! Come on!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> he¡¯s probably watching stream with delay


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> can¡¯t hear you


    I pursed my lips¡­ and then opened a direct message to Foux.


    <u>Direct messages with FouxMous:


    </u><u>AotoNana:</u> Foux! Where is the building? What are you talking about?


    I waited for a second before getting a reply.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> oh uh sorry


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I was watching the moment when you scouted with john


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> just a moment ago


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> and there is something


    I quickly opened up stream history and rewound it a bit just enough to take another look at what John had seen. I let it slowly play out while focusing on the video like a hawk.


    ¡°...I don¡¯t see anything.¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> over there


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> no go back a bit


    I did so.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> behind the big tree to the left, there¡¯s something gray


    I rewound the video just a bit more and craned my head forward to take a better look. That, of course, didn¡¯t help, since the screen moved forward with my head.


    ¡°Where is¡­ Oh! Oh, I see it!¡± My eyes went wide.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit yeah


    ¡°What is that? That¡¯s not a rock, right? No, hold on¡­ Is there a way to zoom?¡± I prodded around the stream history menu, and lo and behold, there was a zoom function. I immediately put it to work and focused on the gray bit. Unfortunately, the image got blurrier the more I zoomed in, but it still helped identify what I was looking at.


    ¡°It¡¯s box-shaped¡­ Like a building! Chat, there¡¯s a stone building over there!¡± I yelled with renewed cheer. ¡°We finally found something! Foux, thank you so much!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> hell yeeeesssss


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> finallyyyyyy


    I quickly packed up, identified which direction I should be going in, and then set off, the generated quests forgotten.

 #057 - I never expected to ever talk to you again

    ¡°I¡¯m getting closer, chat!¡± I said, looking at John¡¯s screen as he stared into the distance at the building.


    The closer I got, the better I could make out what it was. And so far, it looked like a typical apartment or office building. I wasn¡¯t too surprised at this point. After a spaceship dungeon and a water park dungeon, I didn¡¯t really expect this world to start throwing fantasy things at me anymore. That being said, that building over there was most likely another dungeon.


    Although I really hoped it wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°...And there¡¯s also a river. Huh. Didn¡¯t see that before,¡± I said before grinning. ¡°Hold on! That means if I follow it down the stream I can get to an ocean! Or mountains if I go the other way, right?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh yeaaaah


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> now we¡¯re cooking


    <u>Irid123:</u> nice


    <u>Irid123:</u> finally some points of interest


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> so are you gonna accept a quest?


    ¡°Yeah! Finally something other than trees! Ehhh, I mean probably not? I don¡¯t think I can reliably do any of these and the penalty doesn¡¯t feel worth it.¡±


    I ignored the existence of the quest.


    ¡°Anyway, that building is further than I thought. I might not even make it there today, ugh¡­ Well, not like I would want to try and sleep inside an unknown dungeon anyway.¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> you can still set up some kind of base nearby


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> make a pseudo bed


    ¡°Maybe. We¡¯ll see what the dungeon is about first¡­ if it even is a dungeon. Who knows? Maybe it¡¯s actually the base of some post-apocalyptic survivors or something.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> kinda doubt it


    ¡°Yeah, me too. Anyway! Let¡¯s get going!¡±


    I crawled my way back down to the ground from the tree, picked up all my stuff I¡¯d laid down, and then got going again.


    I¡¯d been feeling much better than before now that I had a concrete ¨C hah, the building is probably made out of concrete ¨C goal. I didn¡¯t feel as desperate and hopeless and I was very much glad that I¡¯d finally found something.


    Whatever it was going to end up being, it ought to be more interesting than tree number fifty thousand over there.


    Before that though, I reached an obstacle ¨C the river that I¡¯d seen from my earlier scouting session.


    It was bigger than I thought and the currents looked too strong to safely swim across. Even if I equipped my special swimming goggles, the stream would probably feel like strong winds and push me downstream anyway. I didn¡¯t want to risk that.


    I hummed as I marked a nearby tree facing the river and then stepped closer and narrowed my eyes at it.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> bubblejump time?


    ¡°Eeeh¡­ It¡¯s a bit too far, don¡¯t you think? I mean, I could maybe make it, but if I don¡¯t it¡¯s gonna suck.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> you have the goggles


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> ez


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> doesn¡¯t your shark hoodie have a water teleport?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the swimsuit should help


    ¡°I do¡­ Hmm, it does, but the water is still gonna affect me and look at those currents!¡± I gestured at the river. ¡°I don¡¯t even know how good the teleport is or how much Tempor it costs. I never tested it. And the swimsuit¡­ I guess that should help, but again, I never tested it¡­¡±


    Maybe I was being too cautious, but I didn¡¯t want to jump into the water only to find out that all of my water gear wasn¡¯t enough.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it¡¯s probably safer to find a place somewhere upstream where the currents aren¡¯t as strong


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking, Gong.¡± I frowned. ¡°Although that¡¯s gonna take me further from the building, isn¡¯t it¡­? That¡¯s annoying¡­ Oh, well.¡±


    For all the amazing and magical things I had access to now, somehow, I still couldn¡¯t cross a river safely. They were even all from a water-themed dungeon!


    ¡­Was that why it was ¡®only¡¯ D-rank? What kind of crazy loot could I expect from higher ranked dungeons?


    ¡°Ugh, I really need to test everything¡­ Why were there no normal lakes? Why was it all life ooze?¡± I grumbled as I set off again, walking alongside the river upstream.


    It took about half an hour, almost the time for the generated quests to time out, when something unexpected happened.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> hello? what is this?


    I froze in my tracks and blinked in surprise as the direct message window popped up in front of me.


    ¡°Oh crap! Chat! They responded!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit


    ¡°Okay, what do I say¡­? Uhhh¡­ they seem kinda confused? Should I explain my situation?¡± I mused.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Hello, I¡¯m Nana! I don¡¯t know if you heard about me.<u>


    HellEnna:</u> I can hear you


    ¡°Oh. Huh. You can? Wait, of course. You¡¯re watching the stream now, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> who are you?


    <u>HellEnna:</u> yes


    ¡°Well, umm, I¡¯m a Vcuber! I used to be a normal person living on Earth, but then was mysteriously kidnapped and I reincarnated into this empty world with dungeons and uhh, for some reason, I have this skill that makes me stream everything I see and hear back to Earth and¨C¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> are you shawn?


    I froze completely this time as a stone settled in my stomach.


    There was a long moment of silence as I forced myself to take measured breaths even as my fists clenched tighter and tighter.


    ¡°...Who are you? Who is this¡­ ¡®Shawn¡¯ that you are talking about?¡± I said as calmly as I could, although I knew that my voice was shaking.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> shawn is my brother


    <u>HellEnna:</u> they said he¡¯s been missing for over a week


    No.


    This person couldn¡¯t possibly be¡­


    ¡°...Emma?¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> how do you


    <u>HellEnna:</u> are you shawn?


    I breathed in and out.


    ¡°I am not Shawn. I told you that years ago, Emma,¡± I said through clenched teeth.


    It was my sister. Why the hell had the skill automatically made her into a moderator? This was like the fucking quests all over again. The system just couldn¡¯t help but stab me where it hurt the most.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> sorry


    <u>HellEnna:</u> nana then?


    I was about to snap back a biting remark when I registered what she¡¯d written and blinked in bafflement.


    ¡°...Uh, yeah. Nana is fine.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> so it¡¯s really you?


    ¡°It¡¯s me¡­¡± My eyes narrowed. ¡°And is that really you, Emma? The last time we talked, you¨C¡±


    I belatedly remembered that the entire stream chat was exploding with messages as everyone listened in on this incredibly personal conversation.


    ¡°Chat, time out. This is¡­ very personal,¡± I said as I summoned John and sent him as far away as possible. I ignored the messages in chat whining about wanting to listen in.


    Then I took a deep breath and let it out.


    ¡°The last time we talked, you called me a delusional loser and a pervert. And now you¡¯re fine with me being a girl?¡± I said accusingly.


    Then I realized that she probably couldn¡¯t hear me either and typed it in the chat.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I¡¯m really sorry


    <u>HellEnna:</u> genuinely


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I regret saying all of that to you


    <u>HellEnna:</u> it¡¯s a long story


    <u>HellEnna:</u> i had a long time to think about everything


    Some tension bled out of me, but I still couldn¡¯t help but stare in bafflement.


    Was that it? She just¡­ had to think about it? That was all it had taken?


    <u>HellEnna:</u> my husband¡¯s brother is trans too


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I was shocked at first but we talked and he helped me understand it better


    ¡°I see¡­¡± I said neutrally while continuing to transcribe my own words into the chat with her.


    Maybe a little unnecessary to speak out loud, but it made me feel more grounded.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I wanted to contact you and apologize


    <u>HellEnna:</u> but you changed your number


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I murmured. ¡°Father kept hounding me. Even when I blocked his number, he got another phone just to keep pressuring me.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I cut ties with him not too long ago too


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I still talk to mom sometimes though


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    I wasn¡¯t sure what to say. Good for you? I didn¡¯t particularly care about anyone in my ¡®family¡¯. I hadn¡¯t cared in a long time. Moreover, I was still currently talking to someone I¡¯d cut ties with in the past.


    ¡°So why are you contacting me now? You¡¯re not the type of person to watch Vcubers.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> the police contacted me about you being a hacker


    I opened my mouth, closed it, then opened it again.


    ¡°...Seriously? Did Snitch actually report me in the end?¡± I asked in disbelief.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I told them I didn¡¯t know where you lived


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> the next day they said they found your apartment and it was empty


    <u>HellEnna:</u> and there was ash in your bed


    My eyes went wide.


    ¡°Ash? What the hell?!¡±


    I had felt really hot on that day, but I hadn¡¯t expected to have been burned to death in my sleep!


    <u>HellEnna:</u> the ash glows


    <u>HellEnna:</u> it¡¯s weird


    ¡°It¡¯s special ash¡­?¡± I asked, baffled. ¡°No, wait. I was in that bed! Or like, my old body, I guess. That ash is me! Wait, hold on¡­¡±


    I opened the Phoenix Blessing¡¯s description and scanned it to find the supposed skill used to reincarnate me.


    ¡®Molten ash of new life¡¯


    That was¡­ Wait, but how did that even work if the ashes were still back on Earth? It felt like the kind of situation where the ashes would then be used to reincarnate someone, so¡­


    <u>HellEnna:</u> when they showed me, I remembered a friend talking about a streamer being reincarnated by a phoenix


    <u>HellEnna:</u> and the special site


    <u>HellEnna:</u> so I went there


    <u>HellEnna:</u> and there was a message waiting for me


    ¡°I¡­ see¡­ Wait, the message was waiting for you?¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I didn¡¯t even log in


    <u>HellEnna:</u> yeah


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s¡­ actually not even the weirdest thing I¡¯ve seen so far, to be honest. I guess the site just innately knows who¡¯s using it¡­?¡± I mused.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> are you really in another world?


    ¡°Well¡­ Yeah? It definitely looks like it.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I could also be in some kind of advanced virtual reality, but I don¡¯t like thinking about that possibility¡­¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I see


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I¡¯m so sorry


    <u>HellEnna:</u> for treating you the way I did


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I wanted to apologize


    <u>HellEnna:</u> even if I can¡¯t do it in person anymore


    I cringed at the implications that I would never get back home.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ Well, not fine, but¡­ I think I¡¯m mostly over it.¡± I tried not to let my hesitance show in my voice. ¡°I stopped caring what others think, you know?¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> still


    ¡°And anyway! It¡¯s not like I¡¯m stuck here forever! I¡¯m definitely getting back home one day! No matter how many dungeons I have to crawl through!¡± I declared with enough enthusiasm that I almost convinced myself.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I hope you can


    ¡°Mm¡­ So, anyway¡­¡± I hesitantly began. ¡°How are you doing? I heard you have a husband now¡­?¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> yeah


    <u>HellEnna:</u> and two kids


    I blinked.


    ¡°...Huh. Really? Uh, congrats¡­?¡±


    Wow, I felt awkward right now.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> thanks


    <u>HellEnna:</u> is there anything I can do to help you?


    I frowned.


    ¡°Well¡­ Not really? I¡¯m kind of on my own here. I guess you could tell my landlord that I¡¯ll be gone for a while¡­ Ugh, but I¡¯m probably gonna miss my rent payment and get evicted anyway.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I mean to help you right now


    <u>HellEnna:</u> in the other world


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Probably not. Look, I¡­ I can handle this. I¡¯m a much stronger person than I used to be. I already conquered one dungeon! All on my own! And now I have all sorts of magical items, so the next one will be a breeze!¡±


    I didn¡¯t actually believe that, but I wanted to be optimistic.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> alright


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I¡¯ll stay here for a bit


    <u>HellEnna:</u> just ignore me


    <u>HellEnna:</u> treat me like any other viewer


    ¡°Sure, I guess¡­? I¡¯ll add you to the group chat for now.¡±


    After doing so, I then finally glanced at the group chat again and quickly scanned through all the messages before stopping on one.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> she can do that one quest now lol


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> instacomplete


    ¡­That was true, wasn¡¯t it? Just a few minutes ago, that quest seemed like a cruel joke, and now¡­


    ¡°Okay, you can come back now, chat,¡± I said while making John waddle his way back to me before dismissing him altogether. ¡°So¡­ the other mod was Emma, my real life sister. We, uh¡­ had some¡­ disagreements in the past, but¡­ we¡¯re trying to reconnect now,¡± I summarized, using a copious amount of euphemism.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> hello everyone


    ¡°And¡­ You¡¯re right, Trelip. I can probably take that quest now. Although¡­ Will it autocomplete? Eh, probably. Streamer worked retroactively, so I don¡¯t see why not¡­¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Writing home¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Contact some from back home and tell them about your situation.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Have them tell you about the situation back home in return.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 2SP


    ¡°And¨C¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Writing home¡¯ Main quest complete!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Contact some from back home and tell them about your situation. [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Side objectives:</u>


    Have them tell you about the situation back home in return. [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Hidden objectives:


    </u>???Contact someone you haven¡¯t talked to in a long time and reconnect with them. [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Reward:</u>


    +2 SP


    Small Tempor expansion ticket


    <u>¡®</u><u>Budding quester¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Quest speedrunner¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    ¡°It worked! Wait, two achievements as well? Nice!¡± I cheered as one of the tickets appeared in my hand. I quickly scanned it with Appraisal.


    <u>Small Tempor expansion ticket


    </u>A system consumable that increases your total Tempor reserves and regeneration by 2% when consumed.


    ¡°Pretty standard.¡± I nodded to myself. ¡°More Tempor will definitely be nice even if I¡¯m running low on my Bullet Time juice.¡±


    <u>Consume 1x Small Tempor expansion ticket?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    I mentally clicked yes and then went into the achievements to see what exactly those two new ones were.


    <u>Budding quester</u> - Complete three different quests. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Quest speedrunner</u> - Complete a quest the moment you accept it. [COMPLETE]


    ¡°Huh. There was literally an achievement for doing that. I didn¡¯t even realize,¡± I mused. ¡°And it doesn¡¯t even feel like I¡¯ve already done three quests, but hey, I¡¯m not gonna complain.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> so that¡¯s how you get skill points?


    ¡°Yeah. Quests and achievements. Mostly just doing specific things and getting achievements for them, really.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> what can you do with them?


    ¡°Well, so far, it¡¯s just for buying skills and upgrading them. There might be more uses, though.¡± I shrugged and opened the skill list. ¡°See, here? I have tier one phoenix skills because apparently a phoenix reincarnated me, and then I have tier one and two human skills cuz I¡¯m a human. I unlocked the tier two ones pretty recently after maxing my racial skill.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> sounds complicated


    <u>HellEnna:</u> racial skill?


    ¡°Yeah, this thing right here,¡± I gestured in the air and mentally opened the description for Streamer. ¡°Streamer, the skill that lets me talk to everyone in the first place. I bought all the upgrades and¨C¡±


    I stopped and blinked in surprise.


    There were three more upgrades available for Streamer. And the skill itself had been marked as ¡®Tier 2¡¯.


    When had that happened?


    <u>Streamer (Tier 2):</u>


    Stream your own sense of sight and hearing to a familiar audience and read their responses, reactions, and other feedback. This cannot be turned off. Output is censored during bathroom breaks or scenes of nudity.


    This skill works retroactively.


    Half of your Tempor reserves are locked for this skill¡¯s use.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Feature complete (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Action hero cameraman (5SP)


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Stream overseer (5SP)

 #058 - I’m a double criminal now

    <u>Feature complete</u> - Donations given to you by your viewers grant you Donation Points (DP). You can use DP along with a bit of Tempor to activate voice calls and background stream music. You can also run ads to gain DP manually, but doing so temporarily disables all of your skills and titles.


    <u>Action hero cameraman</u> - Increases maximum range of the cameraman to one kilometer away from you and allows instant movement of it. Also allows switching the camera to Intra-sensitive lens to allow viewing of Intra-based attacks, draining a moderate amount of Intra while in use.


    <u>Stream overseer</u> - Reserve half of your Intra to become capable of reading and processing everything happening in the stream¡¯s chat.


    ¡°Hold on, what the heck?! When did this happen?¡± I said out loud. ¡°Wait, this will finally let me use donations! It will let me call people! And this will power up John! And this¨C¡±


    I stopped and stared at the last upgrade.


    ¡°...And the third one will make me into a supercomputer. Umm, I don¡¯t know about this.¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, but seriously! Where did this come from?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yooo the camera sounds awesome


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the ultimate scout


    <u>GonguuH:</u> I guess those are tier two upgrades?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> streamer is still a human skill


    ¡°You think that¡­ getting all upgrades for Streamer unlocked its own tier two upgrades¡­? That¡¯s kinda weird, but I guess it sort of makes sense¡­?¡±


    The skills that combined other skills treated them as just upgrades, so it wasn¡¯t that big of a stretch to say that new skills and skill upgrades were the same thing in essence.


    ¡°Okay! I have¡­ seven skill points right now because of the quest. And one of the upgrades costs five¡­ Hmm, should I get one of them right away?¡± I mumbled.


    I was specifically eyeing Feature Complete, mainly because¡­ well, it had been days since I¡¯d heard another person¡¯s voice. Chat was cool and all, but¡­


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> stream overseer is funny


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> people were complaining about favoritism lol


    I grunted in acknowledgement.


    ¡°I mean¡­ I guess so. I couldn¡¯t help the favoritism since I couldn¡¯t read the entire chat all at once, but¡­ if I get Stream Overseer, then I could.¡± I frowned. ¡°But it sounds disturbing, guys! As cool as it would be, I feel like I¡¯ll become even less human with that.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> does that actually work?


    <u>HellEnna:</u> that sounds insane


    ¡°Probably. So far, everything else worked just like advertised and there were crazier things.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> or you can get other upgrades with those points


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> like dual wield


    ¡°True¡­¡± I mumbled.


    The optimal play would probably be to get Dual Wield and start merging all my weapons together just like what I¡¯d done with my clothes.


    But existing partially as clothes was already really weird and I couldn¡¯t imagine being half-sword as well. Not to mention¡­ I really just wanted to hear someone else¡¯s voice.


    ¡°...But I think I¡¯ll get that later. Let me get Feature Complete now!¡±


    <u>Purchase the [Streamer] skill upgrade [Feature Complete] for 5 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Feature Complete¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    I immediately prodded the shiny new thing with my mind and found what I was looking for.


    <u>Initiate voice call with user: KaiEbikoOfficial?


    </u><u>Y/N</u> (5321 DP available)


    Huh, I already had some donation points. Was this upgrade retroactive as well? Nice!


    <u>Call with KaiEbikoOfficial


    </u>Requesting voice call. Please wait¡­


    There was a very old school-style phone ringing sound for a moment before the ¡®requesting¡¯ text turned into a still audio wave. The audio wave then moved as someone spoke.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Hellooo¡­?¡±


    ¡°Ebiiiii, hellooooo!¡± I cheered. I couldn¡¯t help but tear up. I hadn¡¯t thought what a relief it would be just to hear another person¡¯s voice again. ¡°I can call people now! I can talk to people again!¡±


    ¡°Nana! Oh, that¡¯s great! I was wondering what was happening!¡±


    ¡°What was happening¡­?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not at my computer right now. A floating box just appeared in front of me and asked me if I wanted to accept the call.¡±


    I blinked.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Seriously?¡±


    To be fair, it wasn¡¯t that surprising that the system could do that considering everything else, but still¡­


    ¡°Wait, are you just talking into empty air then?¡±


    ¡°Basically, yeah. I probably look like a crazy person ¨C Actually, I¡¯m just gonna hold up my phone to my ear so people don¡¯t think that, hehe.¡±


    ¡°Stealth master.¡± I nodded sagely before realizing something. ¡°Wait, hold on. Does this mean that you have access to the system now?!¡±


    ¡°Uhhhh, I don¡¯t know? I don¡¯t think so. Err, how do you access it? Do you just¡­¡±


    ¡°You just concentrate on it. Basically will it into existence¡­ There should be some kind of innate mental switch.¡±


    ¡°Mmmm¡­ Nope. Don¡¯t think I can. Sad¡­¡±


    ¡°Aww¡­¡±


    ¡°This is still awesome! We can finally do proper collabs again!¡± She giggled.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± I smiled. ¡°Well, not quite, but¨C¡±


    ¡°But my fairy powers have been upgraded!¡±


    ¡°True! Now you can actually shout at me in real life! Not just over text!¡±


    ¡°Yea¨C Ah, sorry, sorry¡­¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Never mind! I just bumped into someone while getting out of a bus.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re on a bus?¡± I raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°I was on my way to the city when you called me. Gotta take care of some paperwork.¡±


    ¡°Ah, right¡­ I guess that¡¯s one thing I don¡¯t have to worry about anymore.¡± I smiled wryly.


    ¡°Hah! Yeah. But I doubt having to fight for your life is worth the absence of paperwork.¡±


    ¡°Eh, debatable¡­¡±


    Ebi giggled in response.


    ¡°Anyway, sorry Nana, but I need to get going. We can chat later!¡±


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    ¡°Sure! See you later, Ebi!¡±


    I mentally ended the connection and the little screen in front of me disappeared.


    I sat there in silence for a moment grinning from ear to ear. I¡¯d missed this so much. Pure text just didn¡¯t do it justice.


    Then I noticed the conversation going on in the group chat.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yeah but maybe tier3 will let her summon people


    My eyes widened at the idea.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Jeoff¡­ If there¡¯s tier two upgrades, then there¡¯s probably tier three and beyond.¡± Then I cringed. ¡°But for that, I¡¯m gonna need to do the Limit Break¡­¡±


    At this point, I kind of accepted that I would be doing it at some point. Just not anytime soon.


    ¡°Anyway, uh¡­ How many donation points do I have left?¡±


    5794 DP available


    I blinked.


    ¡°Wait, isn¡¯t that more than before? The heck? Why did¨C Did someone donate while I was on the phone?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> yeah I did


    ¡°Ah, okay! Thanks a lot for the donation, Trelip! But why didn¡¯t I see it¡­? Hmm¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> probably because being distracted by donation popups can be deadly


    ¡°Good point¡­ But there has to be a way to view ¨C Oh, there we go!¡±


    Another system window appeared in front of me, listing all the people who had donated, the amount they donated, the time they did, and the amount of DP I¡¯d gotten as a result.


    ¡°Nice! Thank you, everyone who has donated so far! I¡¯ll take the time to thank you all properly in just a second!¡±


    I turned back to the upgrade I¡¯d just gotten to try the other aspects of it.


    ¡°So¡­ background music,¡± I slowly began, before smirking. ¡°Well, since the Snitch admins already hate my guts, apparently, but can¡¯t do anything about it, I guess I¡¯m free to play copyrighted music on my stream.¡±


    I immediately remembered a random anime¡¯s opening and tried to get the system to play it. Just like with the voice call, a system window with an audio wave appeared in front of me, except it was labeled with the song¡¯s name.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> snitch admins seething rn lol


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nana finally reached rebellious age


    <u>HellEnna:</u> is that really wise?


    I shrugged and then started bopping to the song¡¯s beat.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m already an evil hacker in the police¡¯s eyes even though I didn¡¯t do anything. And anyway, I wanna listen to music! It¡¯s not my fault that I¡¯m constantly streaming!¡±


    Although it would be kind of dumb if I finally made it back to Earth only to be thrown into jail for playing copyrighted music on stream. Maybe I should be more careful, after all¡­?


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s enough trolling for now,¡± I said as I turned off the music. ¡°I wanted to try the other thing I unlocked¡­¡± I mentally eyed the option. ¡°You got over a week straight of no ads, chat! It¡¯s about time! I¡¯ll see you after these messages!¡±


    I briefly wondered what kind of ads they would even get before I flipped the mental switch to start the ad break and¨C


    Everything suddenly felt wrong.


    The part of me that was clothes was¡­ not me anymore? No, it still was me, but it felt numb, somehow. Like it had gotten anesthetized, even though I¡¯d never actually had a sense of touch in those parts.


    ¡°What the fuck¡­¡± I murmured to myself, hoping chat couldn¡¯t hear now that ads were supposed to be playing.


    I rubbed my sleeve and it once again felt like touching random fabric rather than my own body part. Which felt wrong now that I¡¯d finally kind of gotten used to the feeling.


    God dammit.


    At least I could sort of tell that it was still soulbound to me. I hadn¡¯t even thought of the possibility of it breaking when my skills got disabled. God, that had been so dumb of me.


    ¡°Wait¡­¡±


    I opened my main status window and took a look at the skills. The entire section was grayed out. That wouldn¡¯t be that big of a deal if it wasn¡¯t for the Phoenix Blessing skill. That thing was time limited, after all. And it was what actually let me physically grow up so that I wouldn¡¯t be stuck as a tiny child forever.


    I opened up the skill itself and looked at the remaining time, worried that the time limit was ticking away while it was disabled. To my relief, a few seconds passed by and the ¡®time left¡¯ section hadn¡¯t changed at all.


    Good. That meant I wouldn¡¯t accidentally relegate myself to being a pipsqueak for years until I properly grew up. Although, to be fair, I probably wouldn¡¯t be using the ad breaks that often.


    How much DP was this even getting me¡­?


    I eyed the number and saw it rapidly ticking up. If I let it run for a few minutes, it would probably double my DP.


    ¡°Is it based on how many people are watching¡­?¡± I mumbled before finally flicking my eyes back to chat.


    Then I blinked as I read the messages.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> I wonder what she¡¯s saying


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s definitely the same spaceship


    <u>Irid123:</u> it can¡¯t just be a coincidence


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably generic advert crap


    <u>HellEnna:</u> why is there even an ad for this?


    What kind of ad was playing¡­?


    I tried opening stream history, rewinding it back a few minutes and watching the ad myself.


    I was stunned to see that it wasn¡¯t a regular ad for this or that product. It was¡­ something completely alien.


    There was a smiling woman on the screen with her arms spread out. She was completely red. Her short curly hair, her skin, her eyes, her¡­ giant wings, even her clothes. Everything was the same shade of red. It actually looked kind of weird. Like someone had put an intense color filter over her entire silhouette.


    She was standing inside what looked to be some kind of control center where humanoids of all kinds scuttled around, pressing buttons and glancing at screens. Also, she was speaking, but I couldn¡¯t understand a word. I had no idea what language it was, either. I didn¡¯t recognize the big splash of symbols on the screen either.


    Luckily, I had a solution for this.


    I quickly went to the menu and enabled subtitles again. Then I suddenly felt things shift again and the part of me that was shaped like clothes no longer felt dulled.


    I tried to quickly recover from the whiplash as I realized what that probably meant.


    ¡°Hey, chat! I, uh¡­ I noticed that you were watching an interesting ad there. But you probably had no idea what it was about, so¡­ Let¡¯s watch it again together with subtitles this time!¡±


    I rewound the ad to its start, found a nearby tree to sit against, and then watched.


    ¡®Welcome on board the Slimeship Enterprise!¡¯ said the red woman. The subtitles helpfully informed me that the big splash of text on screen also meant ¡®Slimeship Enterprise¡¯.


    Which was curious that the translation worked, even though ¡®Slimeship¡¯ wasn¡¯t a real word in English.


    ¡®The Slimeship Enterprise is the first of its kind, fully furnished and fully functional spaceship megahotel! Ever wanted to visit the other side of the planet but didn¡¯t want to leave behind your daily comforts? Well, wait no more!¡¯ she cheerily exclaimed as she began walking through what must have been the spaceship and the camera followed her. ¡®The Slimeship Enterprise contains over two thousand hotel rooms ranging from simple cubicles to luxurious rooms you could only dream of!¡¯


    The screen cut and now the red woman was standing inside a completely overdecorated shining room.


    ¡®The entire hotel was built with a specialized Tempor-powered suspension system, so forget about the ride being too bouncy! Feel free to go about your daily life just like you would on the ground!¡¯


    Another cut and now she was standing in front of a giant gate.


    ¡®Our hotel has many utilities! Anything you could dream of, from swimming pools, to bars, to even our very own artificial dungeon!¡¯ she exclaimed as she gestured at the gate behind her.


    Wait, what? An artificial dungeon?


    The screen cut back to her walking in the control room.


    ¡®Our staff works tirelessly day and night to anticipate any potential problems on our journey and quickly squash them! Our security is top notch as well! We have dozens of third-tier individuals and several fourth-tier individuals among our staff, including the captain! Hmm, what is that? Who¡¯s the captain? Well, that would be me, of course!¡¯ She materialized a red pirate hat out of nowhere in her hand and then plopped it on her head.


    I kept staring, not sure what I was even watching.


    ¡®So, come with me for a ride, my dear passenger!¡¯ she said as she finally reached her destination in her walk through the control room, and sat on the giant elevated sci-fi chair as the camera zoomed in on her face. ¡®Whether it¡¯s the Joroun republic, or the Asthela continent, our Slimeship Enterprise is the perfect vehicle for you to get anywhere your heart desires!¡¯


    With one last charming smile at the camera, she turned in her chair to face the sci-fi-looking button board behind her. The camera then zoomed back out as more text appeared on screen that the subtitles informed me meant ¡®Slimeship Enterprise¡¯.


    Then it all faded to black and I was staring at trees and the river.


    I blinked, closed the stream history, opened my mouth, closed it, and then sighed.


    ¡°Okaaay¡­ That¡¯s a lot to take in, chat¡­¡±


    For starters, the woman herself. Why the heck had she been so red? Who was she? What was she? Was it a racial thing? What did she mean by third- and fourth-tier individuals?


    Actually, that last one probably had something to do with the tier of skills or achievements. Maybe a fourth-tier individual meant someone who could use fourth-tier skills? Or was there something more to it¡­?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> it was an ad for a fucking mobile hotel lmao


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I wonder how you make a dungeon


    ¡°I know, right? That sounds absurd¡­ Eh, I doubt making entire dungeons is easy, Jeoff. Otherwise they would be everywhere! Well, at least unless artificial dungeons disappear after a while or something.¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> do you think that was the spaceship dungeon?


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ You know, it¡¯s possible¡­ She basically said that there¡¯s no way the ship can crash, but¡­ the Titanic also wasn¡¯t supposed to ever sink, right?¡±


    I should try to figure out if that was the case, somehow. Probably by going back to the spaceship dungeon, exploring it, and trying to spot things I could recognize from that ad.


    Well, I would do that later. I didn¡¯t feel like going for another twenty-four hour trek back when there was another point of interest right there on the other side of the river.


    ¡°Well, still! It¡¯s finally something! Finally a hint of what this world used to be like! I have no idea how the heck I caught the frequency or whatever of this ad, or how it could have even survived when everything else apparently died, but this is good! Great, even!¡±


    Then I remembered one of my quests and briefly opened it to look whether something had changed.


    I smiled when I saw that it had.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Secrets of the world¡¯ Side quest


    </u>Time left: 91d,22h,22m<u>


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Figure out what happened to this world<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Figure out the true nature of this world


    Figure out what civilizations used to live in this world [PARTIALLY COMPLETE]


    <u>Rewards</u> - 5SP


    <u>Pentalty for failure</u>- 7SP debt

 #059 - I guess not even another world can escape capitalism

    I continued my journey up the riverside, hoping to find a spot to cross. In the meantime, I wanted to try playing a few more ads just to see if I could get any more information about the world that way.


    Unfortunately, playing an ad had a cooldown though. Eight hours, ugh.


    But I supposed it was fair, since just one ad had given me so much DP to work with.


    As I walked and occasionally had John scout above the trees ¨C I should really get the upgrade for him ¨C the stone building slowly disappeared on the horizon, but in exchange, another point of interest in the opposite direction. Something that looked to be a mountain.


    Chat and I agreed that it had to be the place from where the river was coming from, so it was a good sign that I would eventually find a spot to cross relatively easily.


    With that said, it still took absolutely forever and the sun set before I reached such a spot.


    Falling asleep to the sound of running water was pretty novel. It actually felt like I was out in nature now. The total lack of any animal or insect noises had really thrown me off before.


    The next day, I had my shark meat breakfast with a slice of pizza, washed up in the river, and then played another ad. The sense of temporarily losing my skills and the numb feeling of my clothes wasn¡¯t as bad the second time around, but it was still unnerving.


    Anywho, the ad this time was about some kind of battle tournament specifically for second-tier individuals. The overenthusiastic dark-skinned man with horns holding the microphone said something about inclusivity, but I wasn¡¯t entirely sure what he meant. Had there been discrimination between different tiers of individuals or something? Weird.


    And then it was time to walk again.


    I groaned in annoyance, but I actually felt much better about it than yesterday.


    I actually had a clear goal in mind, which helped. Not only that, but there were also the ads. Chat was still busy theorizing about and piecing together things from both of them and I had fun chipping in my own two cents here and there.


    The conclusion was that this world was¡­ or had been some kind of combination of a fantasy and a sci-fi world. There were all kinds of strange humanoid races and magic, but they also had spaceships and their own version of the Internet.


    It was fascinating and I wondered whether I could somehow access their Internet through the system. Granted, they were all gone now, but if their ads had survived, then why wouldn¡¯t the rest of their Internet?


    Other than that, there wasn¡¯t much to do for me other than keep walking and hope the damn river became crossable at some point.


    To be honest, the fact that my best form of entertainment at the moment was alien ads was¡­ incredibly weird.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Stupid river¡­ Maybe I should just risk it and bubblejump over it,¡± I mumbled as I sat down on a random boulder to rest for a bit.


    My mind randomly jumped to the Phoenix Blessing, and I thought it was kind of funny that I¡¯d had several months¡¯ worth of physical growth since I¡¯d left the water park dungeon.


    Although maybe that was why I felt like I¡¯d been walking for months, ugh.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s scout ahead again, chat,¡± I declared as I jumped back to my feet and found a tall tree again. A minute later ¨C I was getting pretty good at climbing trees ¨C and a few monkey jokes in the chat, I sent out John above me again and scanned the area.


    The mountain was getting closer, but more importantly, I also spotted something else in the same direction. Another clearly man-made structure made out of dark stone.


    ¡°Chat! Another point of interest! All of this walking was worth it!¡±


    Just yesterday, I was getting frustrated with the lack of direction, and now I had several things I wanted to check out. Patience really did pay off, didn¡¯t it?


    It still took a couple of hours until I got reasonably close to this new mysterious structure and in the meantime, the cooldown for the ad was up, as everyone in chat reminded me.


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°You know, chat¡­ This might be the first time where everyone is more eager to watch ads instead of the actual stream,¡± I said with a smirk. ¡°I¡¯m offended, honestly. Is my chill adventuring stream really that boring?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> yes


    <u>Irid123:</u> kinda


    I huffed in mock annoyance.


    ¡°Fine, then! See if I care! Have an ad, chat!¡±


    I mentally braced myself for the uncomfortable feeling again and started the ad. As before, I immediately brought up stream history, turned on subtitles, and watched along.


    This time, it was a green-haired woman with bark-like skin and colorful feathers decorating her forearms singing praises about a potion that apparently made you smarter, stronger, and halted aging. Classic scam ad¡­ although from what I knew about this world, it might have actually been legit. The potion itself wasn¡¯t all that relevant to me, though. The fluff around it was what really caught my attention. She said things like ¡®You could live for centuries like those ancient dragons¡¯ and ¡®It¡¯s a favorite drink of griffins¡¯, meaning that dragons and griffins had existed in this world.


    But that only made me wonder about the races of the people I¡¯d actually seen in these ads. Most people in chat believed that the red woman from the first ad was a slime, since the ship was called Slimeship Enterprise. And the guy from the second ad looked like one of the fantasy renditions of a demon. The third one, I had no clue. It could be a dryad? But she also had those feathers¡­?


    She could also be something entirely different from conventional fantasy races. The others too, honestly. There had been plenty of humanoids in the background of these ads that neither chat nor I could figure out what they could be.


    The ¡®feeling¡¯ returned to my clothes as the ad ended and I perked up.


    ¡°Welcome back, chat! I guess you¡¯re gonna want to watch it with subtitles now¡­¡±


    It was a bit awkward to do that, but I didn¡¯t have a better way of doing it. Luckily, I apparently had some pretty dedicated people in chat and they were already compiling all the words and phrases used in those ads to create a freaking dictionary for my wiki. The more ads I played, the less they would need the subtitles.


    Once done, it was time to keep walking, and for chat to theorize about the world in the meantime.


    Truth be told, I was getting a fairly good idea of what kind of world this was before¡­ whatever had happened had happened.


    It was a fantasy world, yes, but it wasn¡¯t in its middle ages. Not anymore, at least. If I compared it to Earth, it was technologically more advanced in some aspects, but lagging behind in others.


    At least that was assuming that all of these ads came from the same time period, which we still weren¡¯t entirely sure about.


    Half an hour of walking later, I climbed up a tree and sent out John again, only to see that the structure I had been walking toward was practically right in front of me.


    And now that I could see it, I realized that it was¡­ a city. Walls made out of that dark stone, countless buildings inside, and a huge castle in the middle. The castle¡¯s central tower was what I¡¯d seen earlier.


    ¡°A city, chat! Civilization!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shiiiiiit


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> it¡¯s probably a dungeon


    <u>Irid123:</u> either way this is exciting


    <u>Irid123:</u> I¡¯m gonna ping people in dissonance


    ¡°Jamie, shut up. Let me have hope!¡± I huffed. ¡°Oh boy, people incoming. I better make it there quickly, then. Let¡¯s get going, chat! I really hope there¡¯s actual people inside!¡±


    I didn¡¯t believe there were though. I couldn¡¯t see anyone through John. Only the buildings. And they didn¡¯t look to be in a great state either. I wouldn¡¯t call it ruins just yet, but it didn¡¯t make me very optimistic.


    Over the next half an hour, people trickled into chat and I greeted each one of them as I came closer to the city. When I finally reached it, I stopped and stared in wonder.


    As I¡¯d expected, the city itself had been built on the river I¡¯d been following. The black stone walls themselves were about four stories high and seemed to surround the entirety of the city. There was only a hole big enough to let the river through, but not big enough for me to sneak inside through there. At least not in this direction, because of the currents.


    Up on the walls, there were small towers clearly meant for guards to look out for threats outside of the city.


    But all of those towers were empty.


    I wilted just a little, even though I had been expecting this.


    Regardless, I steeled myself and walked alongside the walls while looking into the towers, hoping to spot something or someone.


    ¡°Hello?!¡± I shouted. ¡°Is anyone there?!¡±


    There was no reply.


    ¡°Hello?!¡± I kept trying though.


    But nobody came.


    After a whole ten minutes of walking alongside the wall and yelling out in hopes of someone popping out, I found what seemed to be the main entrance to the city.


    The gates were wide open. It should have felt welcoming, but instead, it felt like there just wasn¡¯t anyone left to care that strangers could freely enter the city now.


    I wilted even more as I sighed.


    ¡°...I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anyone inside, chat.¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> you can still explore it


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> rip


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that¡¯s a shame


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> dungeon time?


    I hummed.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know yet if it¡¯s a dungeon¡­ I guess I¡¯ll see,¡± I mumbled and slowly walked forward while pulling my naginata out of my backpack.


    The inside of the city looked even more dilapidated than what I¡¯d noticed from afar via John. The main street going from the gate was barren and I had the feeling that the only reason why the buildings weren¡¯t more deteriorated was because the buildings were made out of the same black stone. The material had to be pretty resistant to erosion then.


    The moment I stepped through the gates into the limits, I felt the familiar feeling of dread, although this time, it was mixed with something else. Some kind of¡­ pride? Unity? The sense of belonging? It was strange.


    But either way, I already knew what this meant.


    ¡°Chat¡­¡± I sighed and stepped back out. ¡°This place is a dungeon.¡±

 #060 - Now we’re cooking!

    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> told you


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> juicy loot ahead then


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe we can get more hints to the civilization here


    I hummed as I stared into the city from the outside.


    I had really been hoping to find actual civilization rather than more dungeons, but oh well.


    My main problem right now was that I had no idea how difficult this dungeon was. I definitely didn¡¯t want a repeat of the spaceship. Granted, I could maybe measure the difficulty from the feeling I got when entering it, since it had been much milder than the spaceship, just like the water park. But there was also that other feeling I¡¯d gotten, and I had no idea what it meant.


    ¡°So¡­ I guess the most obvious thing to do would be to try and clear this dungeon, huh¡­?¡± I mused. ¡°Or I can ignore it, keep walking alongside the river, eventually cross it, and then go back to the other structure back there.¡± I pointed in the direction the river was flowing.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> but that¡¯s lame


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you gotta at least try going in


    I groaned.


    ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s see what this dungeon has to offer. This better be worth it.¡±


    I braced myself for the upcoming shivers and entered the city once more. It was hard to tell, but I thought that the feeling of dread was just a tiny bit worse than the water park. I couldn¡¯t be too sure though, since the other feeling overwhelmed it so much.


    ¡°I wonder what that means¡­¡± I murmured before straightening up and holding my weapon in front of me. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get going. Not gonna get ambushed by anything this time!¡±


    For the time being, I stuck with the main road while keeping an eye on the various doors and back alleys, expecting things to emerge.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> tense


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> not gonna loot the houses?


    ¡°No¡­ not right away, at least,¡± I whispered into the dead silence. ¡°First, I wanna just explore around and see what the deal is with this dungeon¡­¡±


    After all, I only had real experience with just one other dungeon. I had no idea whether every dungeon would be similar. Or rather, they probably weren¡¯t if they were of a different type. I wondered whether this was a Tempor-based dungeon as well. Probably not, considering the space wasn¡¯t all messed up yet.


    I continued forward in the eerie silence and couldn¡¯t help but get more and more tense. It felt like something was bound to jump at me at any moment. I didn¡¯t like it.


    Eventually I reached what looked to be the town square. It was a wide open area with a fancy fountain in the middle ¨C although it had no water in it ¨C and smaller structures that looked like vendor stalls in a circle around the big space. Other than the way I¡¯d come from, there were three more big paths leading out from here in all four directions.


    ¡°...Still nothing, chat. This is starting to get way too creepy.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea it¡¯s like a horror movie lol


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> BOO!


    <u>Irid123:</u> I wonder what the black stone is


    ¡°Very funny, George¡­¡± I grumbled, but didn¡¯t drop my guard.


    I walked all the way to the fountain in the middle and observed it while keeping an eye on my surroundings. Once I got closer, I noticed some etchings on the central part of the fountain, although I wasn¡¯t entirely sure whether it was supposed to be text from an unknown language or just decoration. From the fact that the etchings were different, probably text.


    Chat would probably figure it out.


    ¡°Here¡¯s some food for you mystery-solvers in chat,¡± I muttered as I slowly walked around the fountain in a circle to capture it all on camera.


    It was about time for chat to start pulling their weight on this isekai adventure. What was the point of having a fairy companion if it couldn¡¯t help you decipher ancient language?


    ¡°Still, this really doesn¡¯t feel like a dungeon¡­ It¡¯s just ruins of a dead town¡­¡± I pursed my lips. ¡°Actually, what¡¯s up with this city anyway? Wasn¡¯t this world supposed to be all sci-fi? Why does this look like a medieval town?¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it¡¯s probably a dungeon from this world¡¯s middle ages


    <u>GonguuH:</u> the civilization didn¡¯t start with spaceships


    ¡°...Uh, right. Good point, Gong,¡± I admitted as my cheeks heated up. ¡°Wait, so this place is way older than that spaceship or even the water park, right? Do dungeons last forever then?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe they die after X clears


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it could vary


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wdym this place looks dead


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Well, for once, I agree with you George¡­¡±


    I left the fountain behind and set off in the castle¡¯s direction through the wide street. It still felt unnerving to be walking through a huge town with nobody else inside it, but I was also starting to feel that this dungeon was either ¡®spent¡¯ as Jeoff had suggested, or I needed to do something specific to trigger enemies and traps to spawn.


    I made it all the way to the river that flowed through the city and separated the castle from the rest of it. There was a bridge attached to the castle, but it was raised all the way up, preventing me from crossing.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think I can get in. The river here is still a bit too much.¡± I glanced around at the buildings surrounding me. ¡°I guess it¡¯s time to explore the houses? I don¡¯t really know what else I could do. But ugh, there are so many of them. This is gonna take forever¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> better get started then


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> chop chop


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> use the map?


    I scoffed in disgust before my face lit up.


    ¡°Oh yeah! Good call, Mike. I totally forgot about the map. Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    I pulled out the map out of my backpack and immediately blinked in confusion. The map featured a giant circle with many many little rectangles inside it. Each rectangle had a tiny green arrow pointing into it. There was also a much bigger shape in the northern part of the map that was separated from the rest of the rectangles by¨C


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s the map of the entire city,¡± I realized. ¡°Wait, hold on. Then why does every house have a green arrow going to it?¡±


    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> wow shitty map


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe they all lead to the same place?


    ¡°Could be¡­ I mean, it wouldn¡¯t surprise me if there¡¯s more nonsensical space warping going on. That would probably mean this is another Tempor-based dungeon, I guess?¡±


    I shrugged, put the map back since it wasn¡¯t all that useful, and walked to the nearest house to try the very medieval-looking ring-shaped door knocker.


    I grabbed it, knocked on the door three times, put it back, and then waited.


    I expected to look like an idiot, but to my surprise, the door actually creaked open toward me a second later.


    ¡°Wha¨C Hello?!¡± I called out and automatically gripped my weapon tighter.


    No voice called back.


    ¡°Can I¡­ come in? Are you gonna attack me? Whoever you are?¡± I yelled, still eyeing the door.


    No answer. Not even the shuffling of feet or rustling of clothes. I couldn¡¯t see anyone past the door either.


    It was as if the door had opened on its own.


    ¡°Alright then¡­ I¡¯ll just¡­ come right in, if you don¡¯t mind,¡± I announced and hesitantly grabbed the door knocker to pull the door open all the way.


    My naginata caught on the upper door frame.


    ¡°Gah! Oh, sorry sorry¡­¡±


    Still no answer. But that didn¡¯t prevent me from feeling like a dumbass.


    I contemplated putting the naginata back just so I wouldn¡¯t look intimidating to whoever was inside, but then I remembered that despite what this might look like, I was still inside a dungeon and there could be dungeon monsters around any corner.


    So instead, I lowered my weapon, pointed the blade forward, and entered.


    I found myself inside what looked to be a dining room. One table surrounded by four chairs, all made out of the same black stone, as well as a wardrobe in the corner and a door to another room to the side.


    ¡°Hellooo¡­?¡± I called out again, not really expecting anyone at this point.


    And that was when the door behind me slammed closed and clicked.


    ¡°Wha¨C?!¡± I jumped and my head whirled back at the door. ¡°Hold on! I didn¡¯t agree to this!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit the house is a mimic


    I immediately tried to kick the door open, but it didn¡¯t budge anymore.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even joke about that! Dammit, the one time I don¡¯t check for mimics!¡± I screeched, feeling the dread at potentially having made a fatal mistake.


    Then I heard another door slamming behind me and quickly turned around again.


    The other door to the room was now wide open and¡­ something was walking through it. A humanoid with dark skin, horns on their head, dark gray hair reading its shoulders, and no face, barged inside the dining room wielding a large knife in one hand and a frying pan in the other. Both seemed to be made out of the same black stone as all the buildings and furniture.


    ¡°He-Hello?!¡± I screamed as I whipped my naginata in their direction and tensed up.


    The person ¨C no, it was like the zombies in the water park ¨C charged at me with their knife raised in response.


    I grit my teeth, fed my weapon Ether, and stabbed forward at the demonic cooking zombie ¨C name pending. To my surprise, the zombie raised its frying pan and blocked my lightning bolt with it before continuing to charge.


    ¡°Oh, come on!¡± I shouted before I pulled my weapon back and quickly attempted to slash horizontally.


    Unfortunately, the blade got caught on the wall I was standing next to, causing it to jerk out of my hands and drop to the ground.


    ¡°Shi¨C¡±


    The monster closed in on me, its big knife raised to cut my face, and I had to scramble to summon my key sword and somehow manage to block the strike, catching the sword between its teeth.


    The monster then slapped my fingers with the pan in its other hand. Black sparks crackled and my fingers spasmed, causing me to drop my key sword as well.


    ¡°Ow! What the hell¨C!¡± I exclaimed moments before the knife stabbed into my forearm I¡¯d automatically raised.


    To my surprise, it didn¡¯t manage to cut through the cloth and merely knocked me to the ground.


    I splayed on the ground, looking at the monster looming above me with a knife and made a quick decision.


    <u>Replace [Armsmaster] with [Flameguard]?


    </u>Note: [Armsmaster] will not be re-equipable for 48 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I quickly re-summoned my key sword, lit it on fire, and slashed at the monster before it could stab me again. The monster dodged back out of my range, giving me enough time to scramble back to my feet.


    It lunged again, but this time, I managed to side-step its knife swipe and while it was off-balance, I slashed at it with my burning key sword, bisecting it in half.


    The monster crumpled into a heap and then poofed into a familiar mist, leaving behind a small chest made out of the same black stone that was everywhere in this place. A moment later, I heard the door leading outside click, as if unlocking again.


    I stepped back and eyed the chest warily as I took a moment to catch my breath. No other monsters popped up, and after a few minutes, I finally relaxed.


    ¡°Stupid ambushes¡­¡± I murmured under my breath and rubbed the spot where I¡¯d gotten stabbed. I didn¡¯t have a single scratch, even though it had been a direct hit from that knife. Well, so far, this new build was working pretty well.


    ¡°Okay, chat! Looks like this place isn¡¯t completely dead. Either that, or I found the last inhabitant of this place.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you killed granny noooo


    <u>Irid123:</u> yeah but the water park zombies didn¡¯t have faces either


    I quickly scanned chat for what I¡¯d missed and saw that people were already theorizing that this dungeon monster ¨C or at least the person it was based on ¨C was the same race as the guy from the second ad promoting the tournament.


    And¡­ yeah, I could see that.


    ¡°Granny? You think that thing was a woman? What, just because it had gray hair and a frying pan? That¡¯s sexist, George.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> that was totally a granny


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> defending her home from invaders


    I raised an eyebrow, but then shrugged.


    It wasn¡¯t that crazy of an idea, to be honest. If the dungeons were based on real places from this world¡¯s history as we had theorized, I could see something like this happening. A city gets invaded and a poor lone woman has to defend herself with just a knife and a pan.


    Did that make me the invader?


    ¡­Now I felt kind of awful.


    ¡°Well, anyway. It dropped a chest. A tiny baby chest. That¡¯s a first. Usually only bosses drop chests¡­¡±


    Of course, I didn¡¯t approach it just yet. Instead, I picked up my naginata from where I¡¯d dropped it and then used it to poke the small chest to check for mimics first.


    A few minutes of stabbing later, I was satisfied enough and came closer to kneel down and check what was inside. The lid easily slid open, revealing a frying pan made out of the black stone, similar to what the zombie had wielded.


    I shot Appraisal at it.


    <u>Demonium Frying pan</u>


    A frying pan made out of Demonium.


    ¡°Demonium,¡± I said, deadpan. ¡°Wow, what a name¡­ Wait, was that translated from whatever language these people used? How does that work?¡±


    It was the same with the Slimeship Enterprise. Words that sounded English, but weren¡¯t actual words. Was English one of the languages of this world, after all?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the system is probably translating stuff


    <u>GonguuH:</u> it might just be something that¡¯s close enough to the original


    ¡°Right¡­ Well, my system is in English, that¡¯s true. But is that because it¡¯s always in English or because it adjusts the languages based on the person?¡± I mused as I picked the pan up and looked at it from all angles. The chest vanished into mist in the meantime. ¡°Or rather, do we know for sure that the system isn¡¯t a new thing? That the civilizations before had the system as well?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> they probably did


    <u>Irid123:</u> what with the third tier individual thing


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess so.¡± I stood up and looked around the room. ¡°Well, I guess I have a pan now¡­? Feels a bit underwhelming, but maybe there¡¯s more to it? Like the black sparkle thing it did? Appraisal doesn¡¯t say anything else about it, though.¡±


    Maybe I¡¯d gotten spoiled by all the crazy stuff I¡¯d gotten from the water park dungeon. A simple frying pan was actually quite useful for me, to be honest, even if it didn¡¯t have any magical dark lightning powers.


    Still, I tried pushing Ether into the thing, which was harder now since I¡¯d swapped out Armsmaster, but it didn¡¯t seem to do much of anything.


    I shrugged and put the pan away into my backpack for the time being. Then I tried to push on the entrance door and it creaked open like expected.


    ¡°I guess I successfully dealt with the trap room?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> keep going


    <u>Irid123:</u> map?


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± I pulled out the map again to see that it had changed. Now there was just one big square with a big red dot in the corner and two empty spots where the doors would be. The door where I¡¯d come from had a blue arrow pointing at it and the other one, where the monster had barged through, had a green arrow.


    ¡°...Well, I guess this is the way to keep going. And I think it¡¯s safe to assume that blue arrow means the way back, huh?¡±


    I put the map back, carefully approached the door, naginata in hand, and then grabbed the handle and creaked it open.


    Instead of a room similar to this one that I¡¯d seen behind the monster when it had entered, I was instead greeted by the sight of a brightly lit classroom with a chalkboard right across from the door and rows of seats facing it.


    Ah, non-euclidian nonsense. We were finally back in familiar territory.

 #061 - It feels weird to use guns against wizards

    ¡°Riiight¡­ That¡¯s not suspicious at all, huh?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the real dungeon begins?


    <u>Irid123:</u> it¡¯s another maze?


    ¡°Who knows¡­?¡± I murmured as I eyed the classroom without entering it yet. ¡°Either way, the green arrow points here, so unless the map is wrong, this is how I can progress.¡±


    I had no idea what awaited me. More of these demonic cooking zombies? I had beaten the last monster without any injury, but I had gotten hit. It had mostly been my own fault for misjudging how much room I had to swing my naginata, but still. If several of those were to swarm me, or if something stronger showed up, it might be a problem.


    ¡°You know, chat¡­ as cool as this thing is, it¡¯s pretty inconvenient to use in small spaces,¡± I concluded as I looked at the naginata.


    I could still split it back into the sword and mop and try different fusions, although¡­


    ¡°Wait, hold on. Armsmaster is on cooldown for two days instead of one?! Why?!¡±


    I hadn¡¯t even noticed that in the heat of the battle, but now that I looked at it, it was quite annoying.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> because tier two skill?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> double tier double cooldown lol


    ¡°That makes sense¡­ but that doesn¡¯t mean I have to like it,¡± I grumbled to myself.


    Armsmaster was quite useful to know how to handle the naginata itself, even if it hadn¡¯t prevented me from screwing up. Although overall, Flameguard was probably still better for direct combat if I wasn¡¯t planning on fusing anything.


    In fact, I would also replace Appraisal with Fire Breath and have both the old build and new build active at the same time. The main downside would be the lack of Appraisal, but¡­


    Well, I could always do that later.


    Now the question was: Should I keep going?


    ¡°Eh, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯m fairly tanky now. The knife barely did anything to me. Let¡¯s keep going.¡±


    I stepped forward, stopped, narrowed my eyes and the enclosed room in front of me, and decided to try something. The naginata went back into my backpack, and out came my fancy new Plasma orb handcannon.


    An enclosed room was the best case scenario for this thing. I just had to keep the gun between me and the orb to reabsorb it if it ever bounced back into me. And if an enemy got too close to me, I could always summon my key sword. No naginata needed.


    I nodded to myself and stepped forward into the classroom.


    ¡°Alright, chat! Let¡¯s do this! Come at me, demonic cooking zombies!¡±


    I glanced around once I was inside and saw a schoolyard outside of the windows. A schoolyard that definitely wouldn¡¯t be there if I went back outside.


    Typical dungeon.


    Four steps in, the door slammed behind me and clicked again and I immediately tensed up and raised my handcannon, ready to shoot the threat.


    The threat turned out to be another faceless demonic zombie jumping from behind a desk on top of it. This one was much shorter ¨C a child? ¨C wore a stylish black and red cloak, and wielded a crystalline shield in one hand and a fancy stick ¨C a wand? ¨C in the other.


    ¡°Hello! Can we talk about this?!¡± I screamed.


    It was, of course, in vain.


    The zombie gestured with its wand in my direction and it released a black fireball at me. I easily side-stepped it and immediately began charging my handcannon.


    Three more black fireballs sailed in my direction and I deftly ducked and weaved through them until I felt like the plasma orb was big enough. I dug my heels in to counteract the recoil and let it go.


    The orb went pwoof and lazily flew at my opponent. I¡¯d made it small enough that I still had enough Ether to fire another one of these if I needed to.


    The zombie swung its wand again, shooting another black fireball at the plasma orb. The fireball hit it, burst into regular orange fire, and quickly disappeared, while the orb continued on its path without a care in the world.


    I couldn¡¯t help but smirk as the zombie pulled up its shield to block the orb and the shield blew up as soon as the orb touched it. It served its purpose, however, because the orb bounced off to the side, even as the zombie staggered.


    I rushed forward, jumped on top of the nearby desk, held out my free hand, and summoned my key sword before coating it in fire and flinging it at the zombie like a boomerang.


    Surprisingly, the zombie managed to recover in time and dodged to the side while shooting another black fireball at me.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    But I was already jumping to another desk toward the orb, just as it bounced off the wall to me, and reabsorbed it with my handcannon.


    More black fireballs flew at me and I did my best to dodge, but one of them managed to clip my leg.


    It¡­ kinda hurt, but not nearly as much as I thought it would have. I could probably survive even if I didn¡¯t even bother dodging those, although it wouldn¡¯t be very pleasant.


    I hadn¡¯t expected the ultimate armor build to already be working this well.


    While I dodged the fireballs, I charged another shot of my handcannon and fired it off just as a fireball I couldn¡¯t dodge flew straight at my center of mass. The orb extinguished it mid-air, doubling as a shield, and kept going toward my enemy. While the zombie scrambled to dodge, I quickly reached into my backpack and pulled out my water gun this time and aimed it at where I thought the zombie would land after its dodge.


    Then I fed it Ether and fired.


    The zombie had no time to react to the blob of water traveling at ridiculous speeds and exploded into pieces as it was hit head on.


    I screamed a little while stumbling back from the recoil as the chunks of¡­ something hit me.


    Luckily, it all quickly turned into mist and the spot I¡¯d shot now had a small black stone chest innocently laying on it.


    The door to the classroom then clicked again to signify the end of this encounter.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Okay. Chat, if I ever actually meet real people in this world, remind me to never use this gun on them, Jesus Christ,¡± I said with a full-body shiver.


    Getting used to killing dungeon monsters was one thing, but getting covered in their viscera before they could despawn was another.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> first granny and now her grandson?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you monster!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ur so lucky you cant get banned for this lmao


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> jesus fuck that was brutal


    ¡°Stop making up the backstory for this place, George! Ugh¡­ Yeah, I know. I didn¡¯t expect it to just explode like that. I gotta be careful with what I shoot with this.¡± I frowned at the water gun before glancing at my other weapon. ¡°And this thing is actually kinda disappointing¡­ It¡¯s too slow and easy to dodge. Even if it''s super strong, that doesn¡¯t really matter, does it?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> why not merge them


    ¡°Well, I wanted to, but¡­ Uh¡­ I think I just forgot, actually,¡± I admitted a bit sheepishly. ¡°But then again, the regular Fusion limits the rarity or something, doesn¡¯t it? I probably need to soulbind one of them to get the most out of this.¡±


    And then I would become part gun.


    Maybe I could just keep them separate. They were still useful on their own, right?


    I shook these thoughts away and put both guns into the backpack before waltzing to the key sword I¡¯d thrown and grabbing it as well.


    Then it was time for everyone¡¯s favorite ¡®check the mimic¡¯ segment as I approached the small chest with a frown and my key sword raised.


    I slashed forward with a battle scream before stopping mid-swing and backing off.


    ¡°Hmm, didn¡¯t fall for that one, huh?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> wtf are you doing


    ¡°Shh, quiet chat. I¡¯m trying to fake it out.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can¡¯t be fucking serious


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmfao


    I walked around the chest, ignoring Jeoff, and did the same ¡®faking out¡¯ at the chest.


    The chest didn¡¯t react.


    ¡°Smart little thing¡­ It knows my tricks¡­¡± I whispered.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> or maybe its just NOT A MIMIC


    I walked in a semicircle around it again and then did the same thing¡­ except this time, I didn¡¯t stop and actually let my weapon hit the chest.


    There was a clink as it did and the chest bounced in place from recoil, but otherwise remained unmoving.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Right, I think this one¡¯s safe, chat. Not a mimic,¡± I declared confidently before putting away my key sword and going forward to open the chest.


    Nobody could see my teasing smirk.


    To be frank, I didn¡¯t actually believe any of the chests would be mimics anymore, but at this point, it had kind of become a running joke. Not to mention, it was funny to annoy Jeoff.


    The chest¡¯s lid popped off, revealing¡­ a paper notebook?


    <u>School notebook</u>


    A notebook made out of Chrystawood paper. Waterproof, fireproof, and erosion proof.


    ¡°...Huh. Cool, I guess? Hey, that actually pairs pretty well with the pen I have! Not very useful, but I¡¯ll take it.¡±


    Into the backpack it went.


    After the chest disappeared into mist, I stood up and took a look around the classroom.


    ¡°Sooo¡­ I guess this dungeon is just a boss rush¡­? Or is there more to it?¡± I wondered out loud.


    <u>Irid123:</u> seems like it so far


    <u>GonguuH:</u> there could be something else in other buildings


    <u>GonguuH:</u> unless it¡¯s all connected


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I bet the final boss is the king living in that castle


    I hummed and brought out my trusty bucket to snack on some life ooze.


    Surprisingly, I didn¡¯t feel as drained as I thought I would after using so much Ether. Had my reserves gotten bigger somehow without me noticing?


    Also, the bucket was smaller than I remembered.


    ¡­Right. I¡¯d had several months¡¯ worth of growth, hadn¡¯t I?


    Wait, was that also the reason why I had more Ether now? If Ether was physical energy, then growing up and getting physically stronger giving me more Ether made sense, didn¡¯t it?


    Hold on, what about the Ether expansion tickets then? Should I save them until I grew up more if I get any more of them to be more efficient? Or would they have the same effect no matter when I used them?


    More food for thought.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s keep going, chat,¡± I said after refreshing my Ether and putting the bucket away. ¡°What does the map say¡­?¡±


    I brought out the map and narrowed my eyes at it. Once again, the map featured a big rectangle with a red dot inside it. Then there was a gap where the door I¡¯d used to enter this place was and¡­ both a green and a blue arrow pointing at it.


    ¡°Uh, what? I thought green was the way forward and blue was the way back? Why are they both on the same door? Am I supposed to go back to progress?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> the illusion of choice


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it splits off behind the door now probably


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> mb you can choose which you want


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> teleport nonsense like before


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Well, let¡¯s try it, I guess.¡±


    I brought out my naginata once more and approached the door. I grabbed the handle, carefully creaked it open, and peeked on the other side.


    The dining room from before was gone, replaced by¡­ a porch next to a grassy yard surrounded by a living hedge and several colorful flower patches.


    ¡°Right¡­ I think I¡¯m starting to understand how this dungeon works. Let¡¯s see what the next boss is, then.¡±


    I walked out onto the porch, naginata in hand, and looked around. I belatedly noticed the bullseye archery targets lining the edge of the yard and realized that this had to be some kind of archery range.


    Then the door behind me slammed closed and clicked.


    I tensed up, gripped my naginata tighter, and prepared for battle once more.

 #062 - Am I the stupid one for bringing a gun to a bow fight?

    Something whizzed through the air and before I could even figure out what it was, much less dodge, it hit me to my side.


    I screamed as pain raced in my lower abdomen and I stumbled. The moment I looked down, I saw that a freaking arrow was stuck in me.


    It had pierced through my clothes.


    I instantly lit my entire body on fire in response just as another arrow flew through the air and hit my bicep I¡¯d raised just in time to block a neck shot. Both arrows were quickly burned through, their tips pushed out, and the fire damage I was causing myself began to work on healing the puncture wounds.


    Even if I felt like hyperventilating in panic that something had just stabbed me in the stomach, I instead grit my teeth, ignored the pain, and looked around for the attacker.


    It didn¡¯t take long until I spotted her. A faceless feminine figure with long green hair, bark-like skin, a long flowery skirt, and sandals, wielding a long bow in her hands and already pulling back another arrow.


    I slashed diagonally with my naginata while feeding it some Ether and shot out a slash of lightning in her direction before she could shoot again. But she deftly dodged by doing a side flip and released the arrow while mid-air.


    This time, since I could see it being fired, I attempted to actually avoid the arrow, but it still flew too fast for me to dodge completely and ended up hitting me in my forearm. Another quick burst of fire from Flameguard got rid of the arrow and began healing me again.


    My naginata was useless in this fight. Too slow and bulky for someone so agile. I needed something faster.


    I dropped it where I stood and then reached into my backpack with my left hand while summoning my key sword to my right hand, lighting it on fire, and tossing it at the archer zombie. She calmly side-stepped it and shot another arrow at me, but I¡¯d already anticipated it and jumped to the side to completely avoid it.


    As I landed, I finally pulled out the item I had been looking for from my backpack ¨C my water gun ¨C aimed it at her, and fired.


    I did not expect her to dodge even the supersonic water bullet, but she did, albeit barely. The water explosion still unbalanced her for a moment, long enough for me to take advantage of it and rush at her.


    As I ran, I fired off another water bullet to further distract her, but she managed to dodge this one completely by spinning out of the way and letting the knockback from the water explosion carry her through the air to the side. Then she nocked another arrow and fired before I could get close enough.


    I narrowly blocked it with my forearm again and prevented it from hitting my face before burning it.


    This wasn¡¯t working. I needed to get close, but she was too good at keeping me away and dodging my own shots. And I couldn¡¯t keep using the gun unless I wanted to risk running out of Ether soon.


    Then I had an idea. I passed the water gun to my right hand and pointed my gloved left hand forward. I shot a bubble out of my glove slightly to her left and watched her give it a wide breadth as she prepared yet another arrow.


    I shot another bubble to her right and kept my eyes on her hands, darting to the side as soon as they released the arrow at me. She backed off further to avoid the other bubble.


    Perfect. These bubbles weren¡¯t actually that dangerous, but because she treated them as a threat, her back was now to the hedge and the two bubbles floating to the side were caging her in.


    I rushed forward while resummoning my key sword in my left hand even as I side-stepped another arrow ¨C I was getting better at predicting their trajectory.


    Finally, I got close enough to slash at my adversary directly with my key sword. She aborted the nocking motion and instead used the arrow as a blade to block my own.


    I expected to easily break the piece of wood, but she managed to surprise me again. The whole length of the arrow got suddenly wrapped in gleaming green gems, effectively transforming it into a dagger and successfully parrying my attack.


    Before I could do anything else, she lashed out with her leg and kicked me in the stomach ¨C right where the arrow had hit me, fuck ¨C and pushed me back.


    I stumbled but managed to not fall over. Before I could recover though, my stomach got pierced again, this time by the gem-covered arrow.


    I gasped in pain and lit my body on fire again, but the gems seemed to be much more resistant to fire than the arrow itself. I had to manually reach down and rip the thing out of me before I began healing myself with the fire.


    By then, my enemy drew another arrow, converted it into an emerald dagger, and threw it at me again. Luckily, it wasn¡¯t as fast as a shot arrow and I somehow managed to smack it out of the air with my key sword.


    I was about to move in again when I realized that the area around my stomach and my bicep felt a little numb.


    Was that blood loss? Or¡­


    I deflected another emerald dagger and then quickly lit my weapon on fire and threw it at her.


    I almost toppled over as the numb feeling kept spreading through my abdomen and I couldn¡¯t help but feel terror.


    That was poison. The arrows were poisoned. I had been so busy trying to dodge that I hadn¡¯t even looked at the tips! I needed to finish this fight fast!


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    <u>Replace [Appraisal] with [Fire Breath]?


    </u>Note: [Appraisal] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I breathed in and before she could launch another projectile at me, I flooded her general position with as much fire as I could. A moment later, she came stumbling to the side in panic, her dress and hair burning. In her panic, she ran into the bubble that was still sitting there, the flames licked it, it popped, and she was violently tossed through the air and landed near me with a nasty crunch.


    I barely hesitated as I aimed the gun down at her crumpled form and before she could recover, I shot her from point blank range and let the shower of water and plant zombie archer viscera knock me away.


    I gasped as I painfully landed on my back and tried to frantically stand up again, but the numbness had spread to my thighs and on top of that, I was very low on Ether.


    I could barely move.


    ¡°C-Chat! I can¡¯t¨C¡± I gasped again as the chunks of my opponent vanished into mist and the door leading to this place clicked again. It didn¡¯t help my rising panic, though. ¡°It¡¯s¨C It¡¯s poison! I can¡¯t feel my¨C¡±


    I gasped again and looked at chat with tearful eyes. Many were saying this had been a mistake and panicking just as I was, some were suggesting to eat life ooze, others were congratulating me on beating the boss.


    I rolled to the side with a lot of effort, just so I could reach into my backpack and pry the bucket out of it. As soon as I did, I toppled it over right next to me so I could easily reach inside and begin gulping down the ooze.


    I felt my Ether return to me as expected. Unfortunately, the numb feeling didn¡¯t abate and kept spreading albeit slower than before. I was starting to feel kind of light-headed as well.


    This was really really bad.


    ¡°It¡¯s not helping¡­¡± I said with a faint voice. ¡°What do I do¡­?¡±


    I was going to die to poison. Slowly and painfully. I would have to watch as my body slowly stopped responding and my organs¨C


    <u>GonguuH:</u> try to get it into your bloodstream


    <u>GonguuH:</u> like you did once before


    Right, the poison was probably in my blood. Logic dictated that getting even more foreign stuff into it would be really bad, but I¡¯d done this before and it hadn¡¯t been a problem.


    I tried slapping the ooze on my stomach where the arrows had pierced me, hoping it would get into the wound, but then I realized that the wound had actually completely closed up thanks to my fire healing.


    Goddammit!


    I reached into my backpack, pulled out one of the sharp war shark feathers, held it carefully between my fingers, and after a moment of hesitation, made a shallow cut in my stomach again with a whimper.


    Then I shoved more life ooze at the wound, hoping it would do something.


    And it did. I felt something warming up my insides, similar to what had happened with the potion back at the spaceship except not as intense.


    It was uncomfortable, but still better than the poison¡¯s paralysis, so I endured and prayed that it would actually do something.


    It took a subjective eternity of me shoving more ooze at the wound and reopening it with the feather when it healed before the warm feeling reached all the way to my lower thighs and upper chest and slowly regained feeling again.


    The numbness in my bicep and shoulder wasn¡¯t as serious, but that too abated after a while.


    When I could finally feel my entire body again, I was left gasping on the grassy yard with a sweat-covered forehead.


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Chat, I¡­ I don¡¯t feel so good¡­¡± I moaned.


    I still felt really hot, but something told me that it wasn¡¯t the life ooze warming me up anymore. It wasn¡¯t the good kind of hot that let the blessing heal me, either. I was sweating like crazy.


    ¡­Did I have a fever? I felt like vomiting too. Shit.


    With great effort, I managed to sit up and immediately had to catch myself from flopping over again from the sudden vertigo I felt.


    ¡°Chat¡­¡± I rasped. ¡°I¨CI feel awful. I¡¯m done for today.¡±


    My eyes slid off chat and I didn¡¯t even have energy to give a proper reply to all the people who were worried or even to snap out at George, who was still joking around.


    After a few shuddering breaths, I carefully stood up on my shaky legs and looked around.


    There was the familiar black stone chest sitting in the spot where I¡¯d blasted the crap out of that archer zombie. I was so out of it that I nearly just walked right up to it to open it, but luckily, I stopped myself.


    I glanced around and saw the water gun I¡¯d dropped when I¡¯d begun treating the poison and knelt down to retrieve it.


    Another moment of vertigo found me sprawled on the grass again, groaning.


    Oh god, would I even get out of this dungeon safely?


    Did I even need to get out? Could I just stay and sleep here? The grass felt nice, the sun was shining¨C


    No. I had no idea how this dungeon worked. Just because nothing respawned at the water park dungeon didn¡¯t mean it would work the same way here. What if another archer woman spawned while I was sleeping and finished me off?


    I grabbed the gun and blearily looked around while still splayed on the ground.


    Then I aimed the gun at the chest and shot it as a way to check for mimics.


    The chest violently flew back, bounced against the doorframe, and landed on the porch with a thud. It didn¡¯t move afterwards.


    ¡°...No mimics,¡± I murmured before forcing myself to stand once more.


    I walked up to the chest, popped it open, barely even registered the emerald-green palm-sized gemstone as I put it into my backpack, and then walked to the door.


    I stopped in front of it and grit my teeth.


    I really didn¡¯t want to keep going. If this really was a boss rush, then the bosses seemed to be exponentially harder with every encounter. And if this fight had almost killed me and left me crippled even with life ooze, there was no way I would survive whatever was next.


    ¡°How do I get out¡­?¡± I moaned, certain that the door wouldn¡¯t lead back to the classroom place.


    Then I remembered the map and pulled it out of my backpack to stare at it.


    Just like the previous room, there was a red dot to indicate me in the middle of the yard-shaped rectangle, and then a space for the door where both a green and a blue arrow went.


    ¡°What does it mean¡­?!¡± I whined as my head ached just from the thought of trying to figure it out while I was in this state.


    Hadn¡¯t someone in chat suggested that the doors would know which way I wanted to go and redirect themselves accordingly or something? Should I just open the door wishing to be out of here?


    It was a risk. But so was staying here.


    I was between a rock and a hard place and I really wished I wasn¡¯t currently feeling like shit so that I could properly think about it.


    Instead, my stomach lurched, I fell to my knees, and vomited life ooze all over my map.


    Oh god, it was getting worse. I really needed to get somewhere safe.


    I forced myself to my feet again, stumbled to the door, prayed to the fucking Fate Weaver that it would lead to safety, and tore it open.


    Light shone down upon me and I blearily realized that the door now led back to the streets of the city.


    That was good¡­ as long as there weren¡¯t any zombies waiting in ambush.


    I scuttled forward, forcing my eyes open through the mental fog that began to creep into my head, and looked around. The city gate was right there next to the house I¡¯d exited.


    Great. Perfect.


    I ran toward it as fast as I could without tripping and as soon as I crossed the boundary and felt the telltale feeling of relief, I immediately collapsed on the grass just outside face first.


    I tried to push myself to my feet but it just couldn¡¯t be done.


    My vision spun, my entire body somehow felt numb again, and it was starting to become hard to form coherent thoughts.


    I blacked out shortly afterwards.

 #063 - It reminds me of getting sick as a kid, except for the whole wilderness survival thing

    Someone was groaning.


    That was me.


    I was groaning.


    I was also lying face down.


    Everything was pain.


    What was I doing again?


    Where was I?


    Had I fallen asleep on my desk again?


    I hoped I¡¯d remembered to end the stream, or chat was gonna laugh at me.


    The lights were pretty dim, though.


    I should go back to sleep.


    Good idea.


    ¡­


    Ugh, bright.


    Who¡¯d turned on the lights in the middle of the night?


    Oh, that was the sun.


    Hadn¡¯t I pulled down the blinds?


    Ugh, I didn¡¯t feel like moving. My entire body hurt.


    Why did everything hurt? Had I done another 3D stream yesterday?


    No¡­ What?


    Why did my mind feel scrambled?


    I hadn¡¯t been drinking on stream again, had I?


    God, I didn¡¯t wanna get up yet, though.


    Let¡¯s just go back to sleep.


    But the light was annoying¡­ No problem, just turn my head to the other side.


    Problem solved.


    Good night.


    ¡­


    Ooow¡­ My head¡­


    What time was it? What day was it? God, I really didn¡¯t feel like getting up, but I needed to pee.


    I forced my eyelids to part and saw grass right in front of me. I was lying face first in it.


    Confused, I pushed myself up into a sitting position with my wobbly arms and blinked the sleepiness away.


    There were trees around.


    What the hell? Where¨C


    The memories of the past few days suddenly came back to me and I froze. I looked down at my small hands, then I looked back at the trees in front of me, and then finally, I craned my head around to look at the city dungeon and its gate I had been lying in front of.


    I stared for a good few seconds as I tried to remember exactly what had happened through the pounding headache.


    I¡¯d fought the archer zombie woman, got poisoned, then¡­ tried to flush the poison out of my bloodstream by shoving life ooze into it.


    That had been so dumb, but it had kind of worked? I couldn¡¯t remember very well.


    And then what? I remembered stumbling toward the door and vomiting at some point, but not much else besides that. But considering I was out here, I must have made it back outside before I¡¯d collapsed.


    I continued staring at the gate as the horror of what I¡¯d experienced slowly sank in.


    Then I took a shuddering breath and let it out. I hugged myself, hung my head, and then took another breath. Then another and another. Before long, I was hyperventilating and tears were streaming down my face.


    Haha¡­ And I¡¯d thought I¡¯d gotten used to this world¡¯s bullshit.


    I could get lost in a dungeon for days and it was fine. I could collapse from lack of Ether in a dark locker full of sentient clothes and have a mild freakout, but otherwise be alright. I could face a flying laser shark in an arena with completely screwed-up spatial physics and it didn¡¯t even bother me that much.


    All of these had been so crazy that maybe my mind just hadn¡¯t fully registered the very real danger I¡¯d been in each time. But there was something that felt much more real about being shot with arrows and then feeling sick because of the poison.


    I didn¡¯t even know how long it had been, but I still felt like shit and I was pretty sure I had a fever.


    ¡°¡­Chat?¡± I whimpered as I finally raised my head and looked into the group chat window.


    The last few messages were cheers that I was still alive, and everything before then were various ways to say that I was dead. Great.


    ¡°How¡­ long has it been?¡± I rasped out before breaking out into coughs.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> fuck you sound awful


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> like two days


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nanaaaaaaaaa you¡¯re okay?!


    I blinked blearily, trying to keep my focus on chat, but it was getting hard. It actually reminded me of back when I¡¯d run out of Intra¡­


    ¡°Two days¡­? What?¡± I coughed again and then shivered when a wind blew past me. ¡°H-Hey, Ebi. I¡¯m¨C I¡¯m alive¡­ but probably sick. I didn¡¯t even know I could get sick.¡±


    Did that mean that at least viruses and bacteria existed in this world? Or was this the poison¡¯s doing? Was some of it still in me?


    God, my head was killing me and I was parched. I¡¯d never even needed to drink in this world. Maybe the life ooze was fluid enough for that? I should eat some of it anyway just in case it helped me recover.


    Also, I really needed the toilet.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nooooo


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.<u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I told you to build a house!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea you got poisoned two days ago


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you could have rested in it now!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> then slept the whole next day


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> and now its morning again


    I groaned and reached into my backpack to retrieve my bucket to get some more ooze.


    But I couldn¡¯t find it.


    ¡°What¡­ Where¡­¡± I muttered in annoyance before remembering that I¡¯d brought out the bucket back when I¡¯d tried to treat the poison.


    Had I just left it inside the dungeon? Fuck.


    I¡¯d left my naginata and my key sword behind too. Double fuck.


    There was no way I was going back inside right now. Not when I felt this awful. Maybe I could find another ooze lake nearby¡­?


    Hold on. This city sat on a river, didn¡¯t it? I could just drink actual water instead of eating more ooze.


    With great effort, I pushed myself to stand, took a second to decide which way to circle around the city to reach the river.


    Then I remembered that my bladder was about to burst and summoned John to look away. Sure, the stream was supposedly censored when I did my business, but it still made me feel more at easy when I did that.


    I was in a very grumpy mood, so I pissed at the dungeon¡¯s main entrance as revenge for getting me poisoned.


    That ought to teach it.


    Once done with my business ¨C washed with the glove and dried with the towel like always since I had yet to get infinite toilet paper from a dungeon ¨C I followed the city walls back around to where I¡¯d come from.


    It took a painful half an hour until I reached the river again. I knelt down by it and nearly vomited again straight into it, but managed to settle for just a pained groan.


    Luckily for me, the water level was high enough for me to reach with just my short arms. I reached in, definitely didn¡¯t almost get swept by the currents just by doing so, and quickly rinsed my hands out of habit first before pooling some of the water in my hands to drink it.


    I repeated the motion a few more times until my throat didn¡¯t feel like a desert anymore and then proceeded to lie on my back.


    Normally, the sound of the river would be soothing, but with my head pounding this much, it was anything but. Unfortunately, I also didn¡¯t really feel like moving much. Both my mind and my body were still spent even after apparently sleeping through an entire day.


    What the hell even was that poison? Some kind of Ether and Intra-draining concoction from hell? God¡­


    I lay there for a little while with my eyes closed, waiting for the nausea to abate a bit. When I opened my eyes and properly looked at the sky, I couldn¡¯t help but groan.


    Naturally, when it rained, it poured. This time, maybe literally. I watched as the giant dark cloud on the horizon slowly waltzed its way in my direction and from the look of things, I had at most an hour before it was above me. And from then on, it was anyone¡¯s guess whether it decided to dump all its water on me or not.


    Getting drenched sounded like a terrible idea when I was already sick.


    ¡­I really could have used that shelter, dammit. There was absolutely no way I was going to risk sleeping inside one of the houses in the dungeon. Especially when I was still feeling this weak and useless.


    What the hell was I going to do?


    ¡°Chat¡­ What do I do? That cloud is going to kill me.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> build a basic shelter


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> something out of sticks and leaves


    ¡°But how? I don¡¯t know anything about wilderness survival.¡±


    Well, I¡¯d played plenty of survival games, but I highly doubted much of that would apply to real life.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ok i got you


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> step one find some trees


    I narrowed my eyes in confusion. Jamie knew stuff about wilderness survival? Well, that was unexpected.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> are you strong enough to cut down trees yet?


    ¡°I don¡¯t know? Maybe? Ugh, but I left all my weapons behind like an idiot¡­¡± I moaned before remembering the key sword¡¯s innate skill.


    I wasn¡¯t sure whether there was some kind of distance limit or whether I could still summon it from within the dungeon, but I still tried.


    To my immense relief, the thing magically appeared in my outstretched hand, confirming that I could indeed still use it.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> good then you should go to the forest again


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> step two find two yshaped trees near each other


    I sighed, but forced myself to get up again and headed toward the trees.


    ¡°Y-shaped trees?¡± I mumbled. ¡°Why those?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> step three put a log on top of them


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> so like they hold it in their ys


    I blinked as I took in Jamie¡¯s crappy wording.


    ¡°Oh, I get it¡­ Alright.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> step four lean more logs on the suspended one


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> make like a tent shape with them


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> step five cover it all in branches and leaves


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> and theres ur shelter


    I nodded while looking for any trees that might work for what Jamie had described.


    ¡°I had no idea you were a survival expert, Jamie¡­¡± I murmured as I noticed two trees in the exact shape and distance from each other that I was looking for.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I read it from a guide lol


    ¡°...Oh. That makes more sense.¡± I hummed in understanding as I looked around for a tree I could cut down to serve as my roof.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hey!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> Im smart


    ¡°Smart enough to look up a guide, mhmm¡­¡± Just because my head was killing me and I wanted nothing but to drop dead into a bed didn¡¯t mean I couldn¡¯t tease my viewers. It was my duty as a streamer.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> smart to know when to ask the internet for advice!


    I huffed a laugh and narrowed my eyes at a tree that I thought could work decently well. I would just have to cut out some of its branches as well.


    Now the only question was whether I was strong enough to cut the tree down and then lift it up. All while sick and completely exhausted.


    Ugh¡­


    The key sword was actually perfect for cutting down trees since it was sort of shaped like a saw with its teeth. It took a lot of effort and a few breaks, but I did manage to slowly saw through the tree and topple it down as the orange smoke poured out of it. Once I was done, I cut off all its branches one by one as well.


    One look at the dark cloud of doom on the horizon confirmed that I didn¡¯t have much time left and I probably wouldn¡¯t be able to finish it in time.


    Well, shit.


    I was still going to try.


    I grabbed the log and began dragging it in the direction of my chosen trees. It was both easier and harder than I thought it would be. The log kept getting snagged on random rocks and branches on the ground, which was annoying, but otherwise, my arm strength seemed to be just enough to pull it off.


    To be honest, I was quite a bit stronger than I had any right to be considering my tiny child body, but then again, there was magical logic at play.


    Actually, maybe it had something to do with my Ether? Since Ether was supposed to be the physical energy or whatever, getting more Ether also made me stronger? But I hadn¡¯t increased my Ether by that much, had I?


    I grunted and fell on my butt as I finally got the log all the way to the two trees. I felt a little nauseous again. Maybe exerting myself like this was a bad idea when I already felt so terrible.


    Go figure.


    I didn¡¯t want to just give up now, though. Not after going through all the trouble to get that log. Not when the cloud was so close.


    But how the hell was I supposed to lift the log up to snag it between the tree¡¯s branches, though? I was way too short to even reach the Y intersection of the trees. I would need some kind of pulley or at least a rope, which I didn¡¯t have.


    Dammit. This wasn¡¯t going to work.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> it might be better to find a cave or a hollow tree for now


    It probably was, to be honest.


    Ugh, why the hell had I gone through the trouble of cutting down a tree? Stupid sick brain. And stupid Jamie for suggesting it.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Cave might be good,¡± I mumbled under my nose and set out to find something, leaving the log in the grass.


    God, I was so tired though. Stupid cloud. Stupid poison. Stupid log.


    By the time water began to trickle down from the sky, I hadn¡¯t yet found a good enough shelter and was forced to either keep looking or wait it out below some branches.


    I chose the latter.


    Sure, my clothes might have some anti-cold properties, but I really didn¡¯t want to risk getting even sicker. The fact that I was exhausted in more ways than one might have played a role in the decision as well.


    From the sound of things, it began to really pour over the course of the next few minutes, but the spot I¡¯d found protected me from the worst of it. I didn¡¯t even have to find a shelter. The trees were so numerous and dense that their leaves served as decent protection anyway.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even need a special shelter,¡± I mumbled as I sat next to the tree and patted its bark. ¡°Thanks, buddy¡­¡±


    Then I saw a flash of light and startled moments before I heard the thunder in the distance.


    ¡°Oh¡­ It¡¯s a thunderstorm. Great¡­¡±


    Now, usually, I loved thunderstorms. But that was assuming that I was at home, looking out of my window at one.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, chat¡­ It¡¯s gonna blow over soon¡­¡±

 #064 - I’m just glad I didn’t pay for my stupidity with my life

    The thunderstorm didn¡¯t blow over soon.


    In fact, it kept raining way past midnight according to my bracelet¡¯s built-in clock.


    I wanted nothing more than to huddle into something soft and pass out at that point. And while Mr. Gargles could provide the former, the thunderstorm made sure that as soon as my eyes began drooping, a loud bang would abruptly wake me up.


    ¡°I hate this, chat¡­¡± I whined. ¡°I just wanna sleep off the stupid poison¡­¡±


    Part of me felt like this was some kind of karma. For being stupid. For not building a proper base of operations when I could. For cutting off ties with my family. For everything else I¡¯d ever done.


    Really, why hadn¡¯t I made some kind of base? Because chat had voted to explore? That was just an excuse. It wasn¡¯t as if I always listened to whatever they voted for anyway.


    It was because I was lazy. Because I¡¯d believed myself to be invincible. Because I¡¯d thought I would find my back quickly somehow? Because¡­ I¡¯d felt like the protagonist of some epic isekai story? Well if that was the case, then right now would probably be some kind of character development moment where I stopped screwing around and began taking this seriously.


    After all, even if I had video game mechanics and chat to keep me company, this was not a game and I needed to stop treating it as such.


    Another flash and a bang nearby made me flinch and forget my train of thoughts.


    Once I confirmed that no forest fire was happening because of the lightning, I relaxed a bit and hugged Mr. Gargles tighter.


    Unfortunately, as nice as the canopy was to protect me from the worst of it, some rain still found its way down to me. I was already soaking wet and shivering even despite my cold-resistant clothes. Lightning my body on fire could only help so much, especially because I had limited Ether now that I¡¯d left my bucket in the dungeon and couldn¡¯t see any ooze lakes nearby.


    I sneezed.


    This was going from worse to absolutely awful. If I survived this, I had to make quadruple sure this would never happen again.


    Never ever again.


    Finally, at about three in the morning, according to my bracelet, the storm began to die down and I was left with just light drizzle reaching my ears.


    I probably passed out at some point, huddled with Mr. Gargles under the tree, because the next thing I knew, I was opening my eyes to bright and cheery sunlight greeting me through the canopy.


    My eyelids still felt heavy and my head was pounding.


    ¡°Morning, chat¡­¡± I managed to groan out before sneezing again. ¡°...I don¡¯t really feel any better. Ugh.¡±


    What I would give for some warm chicken soup and aspirin. The best I had was pizza and shark meat, though¡­


    I also had that tentacle. I¡¯d thought I never wanted to try eating that, but apparently, my mind was delirious enough right now that I was tempted to try it.


    Also, I felt ravenous after two days of not eating anything and couldn¡¯t soak the shark meat, nor did I want to use more Ether restoring the pizza since I was still kinda low after the stormy night of keeping myself somewhat warm.


    Tentacle it was.


    I pulled it out of the backpack without even grimacing. I looked it over with a frown and tried tearing off a chunk with my hands, but it was a bit too tough for that. I also didn¡¯t want to use my key sword that had been covered in zombie guts multiple times without disinfection. Sure, they had despawned, but it still made me leery.


    I rustled through my backpack, mentally trying to find something else that I could use as an impromptu knife. I found a gleaming green gem that looked decently sharp, although I had no idea where I¡¯d gotten that.


    ¡­It reminded me of the gem-covered arrow the archer zombie bitch had tossed at me, though.


    ¡°...Chat? Did I get this from the archer zombie?¡± I asked and then sniffled. God, I didn¡¯t even have any napkins to blow my nose into. Should I use the towel? Ugh¡­


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> you barely looked at it back then


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wait is it poisoned?


    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking, Trelip¡­¡± I mumbled before trying to appraise it, remembering that I¡¯d switch it out, switching Appraisal back in instead of Fire Breath, and finally appraising it.


    <u>Infused emerald</u>


    An emerald infused with some Ether.


    ¡°Huh. Emerald? Doesn¡¯t say anything about poison¡­¡±


    I was still a tad leery about it, but it was probably fine.


    I used the sharp edge to cut off a chunk of the tentacle ¨C it took a bit of effort, but I managed ¨C put the rest back into the bag, and then pulled out the frying pan I¡¯d gotten from the dungeon, before putting the piece of the tentacle on it.


    Then I simply shoved my other hand under the pan, made a small fire, and waited until the tentacle was sizzling.


    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    It actually smelled pretty nice.


    Naturally, I forgot that if you try to fry something without oil or butter, you just get burnt food. Chat had been warning me about that, but I was still only half-paying attention to it.


    I looked at my blackened piece of octopus tentacle, sighed, and shrugged.


    I wasn¡¯t one to waste food.


    I bit on the less burnt side and chewed. It took a few seconds for the flavor to come out, but when it did, it was surprisingly good. Maybe I should have judged tentacles so prematurely.


    Once done with my breakfast, I clambered my way to the river again, washed my face, and drank from it again.


    Luckily, there were no more clouds on the horizon waiting to make me miserable again. That didn¡¯t mean I could slack, however. I didn¡¯t want to scramble for shelter again if I remained sick for longer.


    So despite still feeling like crap, I went back to the log I¡¯d cut down yesterday and began brainstorming how to lift it up with chat.


    I was too short and weak to do it normally. I could tie the towel around it and lift it up but the towel wasn¡¯t that long. I could explode a bubble under it to throw it into the air, but that was dangerous and not guaranteed to make the log land where I needed it to¡­


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> does it fit into your backpack?


    I blinked as I thought about it and followed that train of thought to its natural conclusion. The items in my backpack didn¡¯t weigh anything, after all.


    ¡°Huh. I wonder.¡±


    I opened my magical space-time backpack as wide as I could, placed it on the ground next to one of the log¡¯s ends, painstakingly lifted the log again ¨C ugh, the underside was still wet and gross ¨C and then began slowly shoving it inside.


    To my surprise, it actually worked. I was worried that I would finally run into my cap at this point, but the entirety of the log managed to slide in. I stared at the backpack for a moment, then lifted it up, and put it on my shoulders again.


    ¡°Well, that makes things much easier,¡± I mumbled.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> wait it can store living things?


    ¡°It¡¯s not living, is it¡­? It¡¯s a log.¡±


    Although to be fair, I never tried storing a living thing inside. Or rather, there hadn¡¯t been anything living around except for me to test that and I obviously wasn¡¯t going to try and climb inside myself.


    ¡°I still don¡¯t even know if they are real trees¡­ Maybe they aren¡¯t even technically alive,¡± I mumbled, remembering the orange smoke.


    I sneezed and sniffed again.


    That aside, I used my newfound tree-climbing skills and quickly made my way up to one of the Y-shaped trees I¡¯d scouted yesterday before the storm. I thought about how I wanted to do this for a moment before deciding on my move.


    I had a pretty dumb idea, but it also felt like it could work.


    I found a decently stable spot in the tree¡¯s branch intersection, put down the backpack, and pulled out the log just a tad. I placed that log¡¯s end in the spot where I wanted it, grabbed the bag again, stepped on the log, took aim, and then hurled the bag over to the other tree.


    It worked like a charm. The rest of the log popped out of the bag as it flew and clattered on the other tree as the bag fell back on the grass below.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> uh are you sure about tossing your bag around?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> nice shot!


    ¡°Yeah, it should be fine¡­¡± I muttered with a satisfied smile as I made my way back down. ¡°The stuff inside didn¡¯t even get wet when the bag swallowed all the water, remember?¡±


    I grabbed the bag, checked it over and once I was fairly sure that it was still totally fine, I put it on my back again. Then I looked at the log suspended in the air by the two trees and nodded to myself in satisfaction.


    I spent the rest of the day finding appropriate trees and branches to lay against the main one and bracing them against the ground and each other so that they would stay put and subsequently finding smaller branches and leaves to cover the whole thing in and finish up my all-natural tent.


    It was¡­ actually nice to have a roof over my head again as I fell asleep that night. Even as scuffed as it was, it made me feel way safer than sleeping inside a dungeon or out in the open where rain could ruin my day at any moment.


    Well, rain would still ruin my day, but at least it would be as bad.


    The next day, I finally began to feel just a tad better. I didn¡¯t sniffle as much, my head felt clearer, and I only sneezed a few times. I was still hesitant to go back to the dungeon to retrieve my stuff though. After all, it had taken everything I could do to beat that stupid archer woman when I¡¯d been healthy and had all my stuff. There was no way I was risking having to fight an enemy of similar caliber while still occasionally sneezing.


    With that said, I spent the day resting again, making my new makeshift home a bit more livable with some soft grass for bedding, and brainstorming with chat on other possible dangers I was still unprepared for.


    Poison was one of those, of course. But I was also worried about a dozen other things now that I had a better idea of what this world was like. Mind-control, possession, curses, bottomless pits, teleportation traps¡­ The list went on. There were way too many things I had no answer for and it made me uneasy.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I doubt there¡¯s gonna be bottomless pits in the city


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> feels like it¡¯s about fighting random people from there


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­ (¤Ã o - o ?)


    ¡°I mean, yeah. I think so too. But you never know with these dungeons. And also, what about other dungeons? Just because this one doesn¡¯t have bottomless pits doesn¡¯t mean there won¡¯t ever be any and I doubt the slow fall effect of the sleeves is that effective in the air if I don¡¯t flap my hands like a chicken.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> there¡¯s no way you can know in advance though


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea maybe its like ur fighting famous ppl from that city


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> or maybe you can somehow?


    I shrugged.


    ¡°No idea how to find out, Ebi. Eh, you think so, Jamie? So far it feels like it¡¯s just random people¡­ Although, it did get exponentially more difficult.¡± I grimaced. ¡°The first one was barely stronger than a regular zombie from the water park, the second one used magic, and the third one nearly killed me.¡±


    I grunted in annoyance.


    ¡°How many fights are left there, even? How hard would those fights even be? I¡¯m not gonna risk going any deeper right now¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> I bet the final boss is some giant dragon lol


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> nah its the castles king


    ¡°Why dragon¡­? Feels a bit random.¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> nana?


    ¡°Hmm? Hey, Emma,¡± I said, trying not to sound too cautious. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    <u>HellEnna:</u> are you feeling better?


    ¡°Yeah, a little bit¡­¡±


    Emma had been in the chat a few times in the past few days while I¡¯d been sick. She¡¯d asked me how I felt several times, but it was hard to tell what she was thinking from her flat and emotionless style of messages, so it made me cautious.


    I could always call her personally, but¡­ I also kind of didn¡¯t want to. I wasn¡¯t comfortable with actually directly talking to her yet.


    And calls with Ebi were just more soothing.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> that¡¯s good


    <u>HellEnna:</u> I¡¯m glad


    I narrowed my eyes.


    ¡°Was there something you needed¡­?¡±


    Ugh, was that too confrontational? I still had no idea how to talk to Emma, dammit.


    <u>HellEnna:</u> well


    <u>HellEnna:</u> the police wanted to talk to you


    I froze with my mouth hanging open.


    After a few moments of silence, I sneezed.


    ¡°Uh¡­ Okay¡­?¡± I asked as I sniffled, a bit dumbfounded.

 #065 - Helping solve your own murder doesn’t happen everyday

    There were three people in the new ¡®Police¡¯ group chat. It felt incredibly surreal.


    The quest I had did involve reporting my kidnapper to the police, but I hadn¡¯t expected it to actually happen. But why not? Just because of weird isekai nonsense? If I could report it, then why wouldn¡¯t I?


    With John stowed away to look at the serene view of a flowing river ¨C which hopefully produced enough noise to muffle my voice ¨C I mentally pressed the buttons.


    <u>Initiate voice call with user: BrandonStew?


    </u><u>Y/N</u> (13245 DP available)


    <u>Call with BrandonStew


    </u>Requesting voice call. Please wait¡­


    It only took two rings until he picked up.


    ¡°Hello?¡± a deep masculine voice spoke.


    ¡°Uh, hi! Detective Stew?¡±


    ¡°It actually works?¡± said another voice.


    ¡°That is me. Am I speaking to Shawn Brown?¡± said the first voice again.


    I instinctively grimace.


    ¡°...That¡¯s my legal name, yes. Could you call me Nana instead, though?¡±


    ¡°Right¡­ Sure. Hold on¡­ Okay, better?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­?¡±


    ¡°Never mind. So, you say that you are the person we are looking for, but is there any way for you to prove it?¡±


    That caught me off guard a little.


    ¡°Uhm¡­ How would I¨Cachoo!¡± I sneezed and then groaned in annoyance as I sniffled. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m a bit sick right now.¡±


    ¡°No worries.¡±


    ¡°I, uh¡­ I could tell you my citizen ID and whatnot¡­?¡± Which felt really wrong to do, but I was pretty much certain that he really was a cop, so it shouldn¡¯t be a problem.


    ¡°Not ideal, but I guess we¡¯re not going to get anything better.¡±


    ¡°Right¡­¡±


    I rattled off my ID, my date of birth, my address, my landlord¡¯s name, the names and dates of birth of my biological parents¡­


    Ugh¡­


    ¡°Right. This is as certain as we¡¯re going to get I suppose. For now, we¡¯re going to believe you are who you say you are.¡±


    Well, that was something, I guess.


    ¡°I¡¯ll get straight down to business then. You are wanted for several crimes, including hacking into a privately owned website, breach of contract, and destruction of property¨C¡±


    ¡°Wait, wait, what?! Okay, first of all, I didn¡¯t hack anything! Secondly, what breach of contract?! What destruction of property?!¡± I yelled out before sneezing again. ¡°Ugh, stupid cold¡­¡±


    Then I remembered that I was talking to a police officer and maybe I shouldn¡¯t shout at him.


    ¡°Calm down, miss Nana. You didn¡¯t let me finish,¡± he calmly replied and I cringed at my outburst. ¡°All of these charges were filed against you by the legal department of Snitch incorporated and that¡¯s what made us launch the initial investigation.¡± I refrained from interrupting him again and simply nodded even if he couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°They cited you breaching your contract as a Snitch partner due to you showing extreme violence and potentially seizure-inducing flashing lights on your stream.¡±


    I gaped at that.


    What the hell? There were plenty of other streamers who played games that were way more violent than what I had to deal with in that waterpark dungeon. And what flashing lights? My fire skills?


    ¡°The destruction of property was apparently due to the fact that one of their data banks, on which they wanted to download your stream to present as evidence, went up in flames in a way that shouldn¡¯t be possible.¡±


    ¡°Huh?!¡± I blurted out right as I sneezed. ¡°That¡¯s bull¨C nonsense!¡± I cursed as I sniffed and rubbed my nose.


    Ugh, gross¡­


    Also, what the heck did he mean ¡®in a way that shouldn¡¯t be possible¡¯?


    ¡°Why yes. It is.¡±


    I blinked in surprise at his agreement.


    ¡°Unfortunately, they served you a subpoena via mail to your address, which you didn¡¯t respond to in any way, and so we had to get involved.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but groan.


    Why did I have to deal with legal nonsense while stuck in another world? Or rather¡­


    ¡°Well, yeah. That would be kinda hard to do since I¡¯m in another world right now,¡± I grumbled.


    ¡°Yes, about that. You understand that we were very skeptical of those claims.¡± I bristled and was about to blurt out something nasty when he continued. ¡°But then we discovered the ash in your apartment, which, according to our forensic department as well as the scientists we handed it over to for further investigation, makes absolutely no sense under normal Earth laws of physics.¡±


    I stopped and blinked.


    I managed to hold in a sneeze this time.


    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    ¡°Uh, right. The ash that was in my bed, right? I, uh, I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s¡­ my old body,¡± I said with a wince. Because wow, scientists were apparently researching my corpse.


    I never thought I would say a sentence like that.


    ¡°...Right. We¡¯ve taken the time to catch up on what was going on with your stream in the other world since then and we assumed the ash had something to do with¡­ the Phoenix.¡±


    Wow, with the way he said ¡®Phoenix¡¯, he was probably having a hard time taking that seriously.


    ¡°Which brought us to the other oddity in this case. The mysterious website with your stream that works from any device even without an Internet connection.¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah¡­ That. I have no clue what that¡¯s about,¡± I said honestly.


    ¡°We had our IT department investigate it, but it¡¯s apparently, and I quote, ¡®bullshit magic nonsense that shouldn¡¯t work¡¯.¡±


    I resisted snorting at that.


    ¡°And then, of course, there is this very call. I¡¯m speaking into thin air and yet we can communicate. And none of my colleagues could hear you until I put you on the loudspeaker.¡±


    Huh¡­ Interesting.


    ¡°Right¡­ So¡­ Where does that leave us? Will you be trying to arrest me or¡­?¡±


    It would be pretty awkward if I were to find a way back to Earth only to immediately get arrested. Especially since the charges were either total bullshit or I hadn¡¯t even done the crime they were accusing me of.


    ¡°Not exactly. Even if we could, there were clearly extenuating circumstances. And even then, this whole situation is extremely unusual.¡±


    I let out a sigh of relief.


    ¡°So the case is paused until you return. And instead, we opened a new case about your disappearance and that¡¯s why I¡¯m here now. I¡¯m the lead detective for your disappearance case.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Cool.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t usually get to speak to the disappearance victims themselves for obvious reasons. But since it¡¯s possible with you, I wanted to ask you a few questions. I¡¯m hoping to at least begin to understand what exactly happened.¡±


    ¡°Right. Yeah, sure! I also really wanna know what¡¯s going on!¡± I said with a bit of cheer finally creeping into my voice. ¡°Oh yeah! And I know you already know all this, but I also need to report my own murder, kidnapping, and reincarnation to you!¡± I sneezed. ¡°For the quest!¡±


    There was a moment of silence.


    ¡°...Right. Of course.¡±


    Yeah, you and me both buddy. I was also weirded out by this.


    I briefly checked my quests and sure enough, the ¡®Report them to the police¡¯ line had [ACHIEVED] next to it now.


    Well, progress¡­?


    ¡°Anyway, if there¡¯s nothing else¡­?¡±


    ¡°No, no, nothing. Ask away!¡±


    ¡°Right. So let me preface this by saying that I don¡¯t want to give you false hopes. I don¡¯t think we¡¯re actually going to figure out what really happened, since we are dealing with things that defy conventional physics.¡±


    My shoulders dropped a little.


    I hadn¡¯t expected them to have all the answers, but for him to outright say it¡­


    ¡°I mean¡­ That¡¯s fine.¡±


    ¡°Alright then. Let¡¯s start with what you last remember before you woke up in the other world.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­¡± I hummed and leaned back on the tree as I thought. ¡°So, this was¡­ Friday. I was streaming late into the night like usual. I think I ended it at like two AM.¡±


    It was kind of funny how my sleeping schedule was better out here in another world than back home.


    ¡°I turned off my computer, took a shower, and hopped into bed.¡± I frowned. ¡°But I couldn¡¯t sleep. It was way too hot, even though it¡¯s early March, right? So I ended up tossing the sheets and even the pajamas aside. But it was still really hot and I tossed and turned for a bit and¡­ Actually, now that I think about it, I don¡¯t really remember falling asleep. It felt more like¡­ um, like an out-of-body experience¡­? I felt kind of detached for a moment and then I felt the heat getting stronger and stronger and¡­ and then I blacked out and woke up inside an egg.¡±


    Huh. Now that I said all of that out loud, everything about it seemed incredibly suspect.


    ¡°...I see. That¡¯s all you can remember then?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Well, we later discovered that apparently the phoenix talked to me while I was in that egg, but uh, yeah. That¡¯s about it for before the egg¡­ I guess I was really burned to death in my sleep, huh?¡±


    ¡°Right. Do you have any idea on who this phoenix might be or why they were targeting you?¡±


    ¡°No clue.¡±


    ¡°Could it be someone you know?¡±


    I pursed my lips.


    The phoenix had said that she was my mother¡­ but she¡¯d also said she was a different kind of mother, so they were probably different people¡­


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    ¡°Do you think the culprit was in the room with you when you were burned?¡±


    I frowned. I had just kind of assumed yes, but on the other hand, I hadn¡¯t noticed anyone breaking in.


    But then again, they could have teleported, or even done it remotely.


    ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t think so? I live alone and I don¡¯t think anyone was there with me¡­ But I was pretty out of it by the end there, so maybe I¡¯m misremembering.¡±


    There were some grunts of acknowledgement and I heard some mutters in the background before Stew spoke again.


    ¡°Hmm. It could have been something remotely activated, then. You said that you started feeling hot even before going to sleep, so it¡¯s even possible that you were poisoned. Did you ingest something unusual before going to sleep?¡±


    ¡­Poisoned? I hadn¡¯t even thought about that. Had I accidentally eaten something that then immolated me from the inside?


    I shuddered at the thought.


    ¡°Um, I have no idea. I didn¡¯t eat anything special that night. Just some take-out like always.¡± I stopped as I remembered getting poisoned just a few days ago. ¡°But honestly? You never know with all the magic happening here¡­ Maybe someone teleported something into my drink while I wasn¡¯t paying attention.¡±


    ¡°...Right. We should probably consider something like that.¡± He grunted. ¡°But we also have no idea what is or isn¡¯t possible according to the laws of the other world. Assuming that¡¯s what we¡¯re dealing with here.¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± I grimaced.


    When put like that, it almost felt pointless trying to figure out what had happened. At least until I had more of an idea on what the limits of the whole system and the three energies were.


    ¡°Well, I guess we¡¯ll mostly be waiting for the experts to come back to us with any discoveries about the ash or even the website. For now, I have one last question.¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡±


    ¡°...How are you holding up?¡±


    I blinked and stared for a moment in surprise.


    ¡°Uh, good?¡±


    I sneezed.


    ¡°Well¡­ good, all things considered, I mean. Could have been worse¡­¡±


    I grimaced as I remembered how close I had to have been to dying to that stupid poison.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s good. Can¡¯t imagine what it¡¯s like to be in your situation. You got someone to talk to about it all?¡±


    ¡°Well, yeah? I have chat!¡±


    ¡°No, I mean¡­ a close friend. Or a therapist.¡±


    ¡°Err¡­ Well, I have a friend who comes around to chat. Not like I can get a therapist around here¡­¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about? You can talk to one just like you are talking to us right now.¡±


    I paused for a moment as I stifled another sneeze.


    ¡°Uh, I guess so? I mean, they would kinda have to come to me. I can¡¯t just call someone¡­¡±


    ¡°True enough. Well, tell you what. If you¡¯re open to the idea, I know a few shrinks and I¡¯ll tell them to stop by your stream from time to time.¡±


    ¡°...Sure, I guess?¡±


    ¡°Good. Well, that¡¯s it from me, then. Anything else you wanted to discuss?¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t think of anything right now.¡±


    ¡°Right. I¡¯ll get going then. If there¡¯s any developments, I¡¯ll let you know.¡± He chuckled. ¡°Which isn¡¯t the usual procedure. Usually, all of that info is classified. But there¡¯s nothing usual about this case. After all, we never had to contemplate whether we should let the murder victim give updates on their own case or not.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but crack a small smile at the absurdity of the statement.


    ¡°Hah, true.¡±


    ¡°Well, see you then, Ms. Nana.¡±


    The call cut off.


    I took a deep breath and let out a sigh as I leaned my head back on the tree and looked up at the leaves.


    I gave myself a few minutes to process everything Mr. Stew had told me. From the ash, to Snitch actually trying to charge me with stuff, to the idea of getting a therapist¨C


    ¡°Oh, wait¡­ Even if one visits the stream, they¡¯ll get lost in the chat.¡± I groaned. ¡°Maybe I should get that overseer subskill soon¡­ Or maybe just turn more people into mods to make it all more manageable¡­¡±


    I sneezed.


    First though, I needed to recover from this stupid cold or whatever fantasy equivalent I had.


    At least I wasn¡¯t poisoned anymore.

 #066 - Learning from mistakes is how you grow

    I yawned as I stared at the piece of shark meat being grilled.


    I felt a bit better today. Taking it slow and relaxing after building the makeshift shelter yesterday had definitely helped. Even if it had already been almost a week since I¡¯d done anything when it came to traveling or exploring dungeons¡­


    Not that I was particularly eager to get back to it after last time. I needed to prepare more. Properly prepare. Not just haphazardly walk inside and hope for the best.


    In fact, I needed to organize myself better overall and stop¡­ yoloing it all.


    That was why yesterday, after my call with the police detectives, I took the time to give some of my regulars the moderator role, made a few more group chats, and invited some new people into them. Group chats, such as ¡®Language deciphering¡¯ and ¡®World history¡¯, just to give people space right here in the stream chat to theorize and piece things together, rather than having to go off on their own community Dissonance server that I couldn¡¯t even access.


    Honestly, it was a bit difficult to keep up with all of the group chats at this point, but I didn¡¯t necessarily need to read everything at all times. People could alert me if something important was happening in one of the group chats.


    Or, you know, I could get the Stream Overseer upgrade once I had enough skill points¡­


    Yeah, maybe later.


    ¡°So, chat¡­ I¡¯ve been thinking¡­ I¡¯m gonna leave the exploration of the city dungeon for later,¡± I announced.


    Speaking of the city dungeon, I¡¯d idly mentioned the odd feeling I¡¯d had in addition to the usual dread to chat and we quickly agreed that it probably meant that this dungeon was an Intra-based one. Although we still had no idea as to what that actually meant.


    But either way, I wasn¡¯t exactly eager to run into enemies with psychic attacks in there. I would have absolutely no way of defending myself if that happened.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wtf why


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> yeah probably a good idea


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> gonna go exploring?


    I hummed.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna go back in there¡­ but only to retrieve my stuff. Then I¡¯m gonna leave. And then¡­ well, I was supposed to be trying to cross the river and then go toward that other building, right? Kinda got distracted a bit¡­¡±


    Story of my life. Constant distractions.


    I really ought to do better, though. Especially if a distraction could end up with me poisoned and suffering for three days straight.


    Oh yeah, I had plenty of time to reflect on what had happened. I¡¯d been acting incredibly reckless. From the moment I¡¯d hatched, I¡¯d just been doing whatever I pleased without thinking too much about it. And of course, save for a couple of people, most of my chat had only encouraged that.


    Well, I¡¯d learned my lesson now.


    And it only took nearly dying a few times and being poisoned and miserable in cold rain for a couple of days! Wow, incredible job, me!


    Sarcasm aside, I was serious this time. No more half-assing things.


    I didn¡¯t want to die. And it had become very obvious that I wasn¡¯t invincible. Far from it.


    In fact, chat and I had continued our heated discussion on my weaknesses and how to make up for them yesterday.


    Considering how the second dungeon¡¯s enemy¡¯s attacks had slid off of me, we had concluded that the archer¡¯s arrows were either very sharp, or they had some kind of armor-piercing effect in addition to the poison.


    Because of course they would. Why wouldn¡¯t the first dungeon I entered have the perfect counter for my new build? It was like the water park countering my fire build all over again.


    With that said, if I had to fight the archer or a similar monster again, I would probably have to resort to using my Bullet TIme and finishing it as quickly as possible before I could get poisoned again.


    Not that I was planning on trying to clear that dungeon anytime soon¡­


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> can we get more ads pls


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> did you complete the quest yet?


    ¡°Of course you want ads.¡± I rolled my eyes. ¡°Quest¡­? Oh, right. The one about building a shelter.¡±


    I brought up the quest info.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Good night¡¯s sleep¡¯ Side quest


    </u>Time left: 19d,23h,15m<u>


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find a shelter to sleep in [ACHIEVED]<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Create that shelter yourself [ACHIEVED]


    Find some bedding and a pillow [ACHIEVED]


    Have a proper door to your shelter


    <u>Rewards</u> - 3SP


    <u>Pentalty for failure</u> - 5SP debt


    ¡°I totally forgot about this. I guess I did end up building a shelter, huh¡­? Hmm, I could complete it right now¡­ Or I could try and make a door.¡±


    I glanced over to my makeshift shelter and wondered how I would even go about making a door. What would the quest even count as one? Could I just cut out a plank and then shove it in the openings?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yoooo im early today


    ¡°Hey, Jeoff,¡± I greeted as I removed the piece of meat from the fire, blew on it, and began slowly eating.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you better today?


    I hummed in affirmation.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nice


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> so more dungeon?


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    I grunted in annoyance.


    ¡°No. Like I was just saying, I¡¯m just gonna go get my stuff back and then leave. I still wanna find out what that other building is, you know?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> aww


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably another dungeon tbh


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what if ur stuff despawned tho


    ¡°Probably.¡± I grimaced. ¡°I really hope it didn¡¯t. That would really suck¡­¡±


    I didn¡¯t think it would, but I also didn¡¯t know how exactly that dungeon worked. It was clearly different from the water park one, so there was a chance that it had just eaten my items.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> are you gonna do preparations?


    ¡°Preparations?¡± I asked as I chewed.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> like craft new weapons


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> cuz you left your halberd there


    I hummed.


    ¡°That¡¯s true¡­ If more monsters jump me, that would really suck without my main weapon¡­¡± Then I paused as I thought back on what had happened in that dungeon. ¡°But then again, the naginata wasn¡¯t very useful there¡­ It was too bulky in the small room and too slow against the archer.¡±


    As cool as it was, I was starting to think that I might need a different weapon. Something smaller and faster. Well, the key sword was alright. Maybe I could soulbind it and build that up instead of the naginata? Or, actually, I could unfuse the thing and just use the base sword again.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> combine your guns


    I raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°What, because I need two heavy-hitting guns in one¡­? Actually, I wonder how that would end up working.¡± I grimaced. ¡°Like¡­ if I combine the handcannon into the water gun, am I gonna have to deal with hypersonic bouncing plasma balls? That sounds suicidal.¡±


    Or maybe it would fire plasma balls that exploded, just like the water gun¡¯s bullets did.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe idk


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> why not combine them with other stuff?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> like just random combinations


    ¡°What, like¡­ combine the water gun with the emerald? What would that even do?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> idk that¡¯s what I wanna know


    I hummed.


    ¡°You know what? You¡¯re right. I should spend some time trying to combine things again.¡±


    Although for that, I would need to swap around my skills again. And then I would have to wait for the cooldown if I didn¡¯t want to risk not being able to swap back to my other skills in the dungeon.


    Ugh, the cooldowns were so annoying.


    ¡°I guess getting my stuff back can wait a day,¡± I decided. ¡°If they could despawn, then they would have already, I think¡­ Yeah, let¡¯s make today an experimental fusion day again!¡± I looked at my shelter again. ¡°And I guess I can try making a door too.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> hell yeeeeah


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> nice!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> ad now?


    I gave Trelip in chat a look, even if they couldn¡¯t see it.


    ¡°Okay, sure. Have an ad, chat! I¡¯m gonna finish my breakfast in the meantime.¡±


    I let an ad play as I ate and idly watched it through the stream history. Without subtitles at first, just so I could watch it with subtitles together with chat later.


    It was about some guy who looked sorta human, but then had these colorful feathers growing on his forearms.


    Kinda like the lady from the other ad. Huh. Were those two related in any way?


    He was happily chattering while showing the viewers some kind of futuristic-looking sci-fi handgun. I couldn¡¯t understand the words, but it was obvious that he was explaining the gun¡¯s functions and its ¡®amazing¡¯ qualities or whatever. The scene changed and it showed him actually using the gun, shooting very thin glowing projectiles with a comet-like tail that penetrated through the blocks of metal he had prepared. The gun itself was actually silent and apparently there was barely any recoil when he fired it.


    Also, now that the camera angle changed, I could see that he also had an avian tail with the same colorful feathers.


    Was he part bird? But he had no wings¡­? Weird.


    The ad finished and I turned on the subtitles before watching it again with chat. It was exactly as I¡¯d expected. He was advertising some kind of mass-produced gun that was supposed to be perfect for any dungeons with robots in them.


    Oh boy, if only I¡¯d had that back when I¡¯d hatched.


    Interestingly, he also said something that caught the chat¡¯s attention.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh humans are making these?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> so they make them using fusion?


    ¡°Hmm, good point. I haven¡¯t really thought about it, but you could use the Fusion skill to keep creating the same stuff over and over and then sell it, huh?¡± I huffed. ¡°Not that that¡¯s useful for me.¡±


    It was interesting to think about though. If each race had its own set of skills, what kind of ¡®roles¡¯ were available to every race? With human skills, I could see a dungeon conquering-focused ¡®build¡¯, an item-crafting ¡®build¡¯, and maybe an exploration ¡®build¡¯?


    On the other hand, the phoenix skills were heavily focused on fire-based combat and¡­ perhaps traveling or hunting? Heat Vision and Featherfall would be useful for both.


    Well, that was just from the tier one skills. Who knew what else phoenixes could do?


    Damn, now I was curious what skills the various races had access to. Would I ever find out? Maybe an ad would show someone using their skills one day.


    ¡°Alright! Time to get started!¡± I exclaimed after having finished my breakfast.


    As always, I summoned John and pointed him at a random tree before sticking my hands into his view and counting down from seven.


    ¡°Goooood mooorning, my precious little Aquamarines!¡± I cheered as I finished my countdown and had John turn to face me. ¡°It¡¯s me! Aoto Nana, your favorite wilderness survivalist!¡± I coughed into my hand and looked to the side. ¡°If you¡¯ve been keeping up with my epic adventures, you might know that, uh, I¡¯m kind of terrible at that though. Nearly died to poison and all that jazz.¡±


    I forced a smile back onto my face.


    ¡°But it¡¯s all good! I¡¯m alive and I learned my lesson! Don¡¯t rush into dungeons even if they seem relatively easy at first! Preparation is key!¡±


    I began walking toward my shelter.


    ¡°With that said, even though I feel much better today, I¡¯m gonna take another day off before venturing back into that dungeon to retrieve my stuff! But don¡¯t worry! That doesn¡¯t mean that we won¡¯t be doing anything interesting this stream!¡±


    I ducked down and crawled into my amazing shelter before locating my backpack I¡¯d dropped in the corner and rummaging through it.


    ¡°Today, we¡¯re doing two things! One: Make a door for this shelter to finish the quest. And two: More experiments with Fusion! We have so much more stuff than the last time we¡¯d done this! So many exciting combinations! I hope to get something cool again!¡±


    I began pulling stuff out of the backpack and putting it on the grass bed inside my shelter.


    ¡°Well, making the door might get easier once I actually make some new stuff. Maybe I could try to fuse this emerald thing with my key sword? Or maybe I can somehow craft a knife out of it to better carve that door? Who knows! Of course, though, you guys will be helping me with all of this!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> let¡¯s gooooo


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> plastic wrapper into gloooove


    I scowled.


    ¡°George, stop trying to get me to craft garbage again. I have more Ether to work with than last time, but it¡¯s still limited!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> fuse your gun into the turtle


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> remote controled sentry gun


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> I say use the emerald on gun


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> see what happens


    ¡°...Huh. You know, that¡¯s a cool idea, Jeoff. But¡­ I¡¯m still kinda wary of controlling Gargles again like that.¡± I grimaced, remembering the little Intra episode. ¡°...But then again, it would probably be a good idea for me to get a better handle on it, just so I know my limits, huh? I mean, who knows? Maybe I¡¯ll need to actually use it one day.¡±


    Maybe I would find a small crawl space where I couldn¡¯t fit and would have to send Mr. Gargles on a quest instead.


    ¡°Alright, chat! One more item on the agenda, then! Coaching Mr. Gargles on becoming the best scout ever!¡± I paused. ¡°After John, of course.¡±


    Speaking of which, it was strange that using John didn¡¯t drain Intra. Or maybe it did, but it was much lower? Still, it was strange it worked like that considering John and Mr. Gargles fulfilled similar roles.


    Maybe it was because John¡¯s point of view was just an additional screen whereas Mr. Gargles¡¯ vision literally overlaid my own?


    Still odd.


    Anyway!


    Time to fuse stuff!

 #067 - There are certain downsides to overwhelming firepower

    I began by pulling out Mr. Gargles and making him run around.


    I was reluctant a little, but after hyping myself up, I also tried manipulating my Intra to key into his senses just like I¡¯d learned how to do last time. It took me a couple of tries to get the feeling right again, but as soon as I did, I was suddenly seeing from two points of view again.


    And this time, without instantly turning into a drooling idiot. Yay!


    It was¡­ actually not as disorienting as I thought it would be. Sure, I stumbled at first when I mixed up which view was which, but I got used to it surprisingly quickly. The best part was that it didn¡¯t seem to be draining Intra as quickly as I¡¯d feared. I could probably keep it going for quite some time.


    I must have wasted a ton of Intra on trying to get it to work the first time around, huh?


    Or maybe I just had more Intra now? I hadn¡¯t used any tickets on Intra, though.


    Hmm.


    Regardless, I could now easily control my adorable plushie friend as a mobile drone.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> add the gun to it


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> this still looks trippy


    ¡°What does it look like to you guys anyway¡­?¡± I murmured and pulled out stream history as I dismissed the shared senses to not accidentally run out of Intra again.


    I rewound it a few seconds and blinked at the odd view on screen. It was, like Trelip had said, a bit trippy. The view from my eyes was more prominent on the left side of the screen and Mr. Gargles¡¯ vision on the right, and then they were almost intertwined together in this strange gradient. where it was hard to see things in the middle and impossible to see things on the opposing side where the other view was more prominent.


    Huh.


    Well, alright.


    This was kind of like Heat Vision, wasn¡¯t it? Impossible to truly replicate the experience for the viewers, so the stream just did the best it could.


    Speaking of which¡­ I never checked out what Heat Vision looked like for myself.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± I murmured as I rewound the stream all the way back to day two where I¡¯d tested the first skills I¡¯d bought. It took me a couple of minutes to find it again, but once I did, I immediately left a marker there just so I could find it easier next time if I needed to.


    ¡°Hmm, you guys were right. Heat Vision really was just like infrared vision in the movies.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It was completely different from what I actually saw, though.¡±


    I stopped.


    I was getting distracted again.


    ¡°Anywho! Not important! It¡¯s time for more mad experiments!¡±


    I closed the stream history and took a look around me at all the items before nodding to myself.


    ¡°Alright¡­ I¡¯ll have limited tries, though, since I don¡¯t have my bucket. Or I guess I could go look for another ooze lake later if I really needed to.¡± I shook my head. ¡°But that¡¯s for later! What do you say, chat? What should I try first?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> turtle turreetttt


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> emerald on gun


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> mash the two guns


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> ultra gun ftw


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> could you make a gunsword?


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess I¡¯ll make a poll again,¡± I decided.


    This time though, I only put the first five suggestions on the poll and ignored anything I thought was stupid. Sure, it would have been funny and whatnot, but I¡¯d already decided to take this whole isekai business seriously. I wasn¡¯t going to waste time and resources by messing around too much.


    While the poll went on, I got up and decided to look around nearby, hoping to find an ooze lake. Granted, I hadn¡¯t found one when I¡¯d been looking for trees to make my shelter with, but also hadn¡¯t looked that much.


    By the time I decided to return, I hadn¡¯t found one.


    ¡°Well, that sucks¡­ Damn, you don¡¯t really appreciate things until they are gone, huh? I was so used to having free life ooze on hand whenever I needed it¡­¡± I mumbled as I got back to my shelter.


    Then I glanced at the poll results and saw that combining the two guns had won by the tiniest of margins, while putting a gun on Gargles was close in second place.


    I hummed and closed the poll.


    ¡°Alright, I guess I¡¯m making the ultimate fantasy rocket launcher or something¡­¡±


    Of course, I was still pretty concerned that the result would shoot hypersonic bouncing plasma balls and end up killing me, but I could work around that. I could use geometry to my advantage and try shooting it at a sloped rock so that the shot would bounce into the sky.


    I just had to be smart about things.


    Now, the polled option was specifically trying to fuse the plasma handcannon into the water gun, so that was exactly what I tried doing. Of course, I was curious about the reverse as well, but for now, I swapped Flameguard for Armsmaster, grabbed the handgun, and used Fusion on it.


    For some reason, it was much less exhausting to turn it into the glowing blob of Ether than I remembered. I wasn¡¯t going to complain, though.


    I admired the thing for a brief moment and then grabbed the water gun and fused the two. Once the glow subsided, I was left with something that reminded me of the steampunk aesthetic.


    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    I could clearly see the basic plastic water gun as the base, but now there were also metallic parts incorporated in the gun itself, and it also had the claw-like metal rods sticking out of it and almost cradling the muzzle, just like the handcannon had.


    ¡°...Well, this somehow looks even more dangerous than the handcannon alone,¡± I commented.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hell yeah


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> death beam ready


    <u>Uwith3dotz:</u> is this gonna be noisy again?


    To my surprise, I didn¡¯t particularly feel low on Ether after doing that. Increasing my Ether must have helped in that regard.


    ¡°Alright then, time to test this baby out! Yeah, there¡¯s probably gonna be a bang again. Sorry, I can¡¯t really make it any more quiet.¡±


    I left my shelter and went toward the collection of rocks I¡¯d seen earlier. One of the rocks was the perfect shape for me to safely test the gun just in case it was going to bounce.


    I took a stance to negate the recoil, took aim, poured my Ether into the gun, felt around it for available settings, and found out that in addition to the water, ink, and stored liquid settings, there was also a plasma setting.


    Interesting.


    I picked the new setting and pulled the trigger. Contrary to what I¡¯d expected though, instead of firing the moment I pulled the trigger down, it instead began charging a plasma ball in front of itself.


    ¡°Oh¡­ So it¡¯s literally just a different setting¡­?¡± I murmured as the ball got larger, then frowned. ¡°Wait, no¡­¡±


    As I felt around with my Ether, I could sort of tell that there were two ways of launching the ball now. Slow or fast.


    Before the ball got too big, I picked the fast option, released the trigger and fired.


    There was a bang as I stifled the recoil with my feet ¨C which felt a lot easier than I remembered ¨C and a subsequent explosion of light at the collection of rocks.


    A split second later, I blinked away the spots from my eyes and stared at the result.


    My target rock was gone, replaced by a small pool of plasma that still had sparks of lightning occasionally jump across its surface. Luckily, the pool was mostly contained by stone on all sides, so it didn¡¯t set anything on fire.


    I slowly walked closer to it as I stared with my eyes wide.


    ¡°Uh¡­ Wow, I¡­ Okay. That¡¯s¡­ something.¡±


    Combining two extremely high-damage guns resulted in an even higher-damage gun. Who would have thought?


    Then I blinked, realizing that I still had plenty of Ether. Enough for maybe two or three more shots before I drained myself.


    ¡°Wait, hold on! Why does it feel like it cost less Ether? Or wait, no¡­ It¡¯s¡­ I have more Ether than I used to? Somehow? But I didn¡¯t even do anything!¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> you grew up?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> maybe?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> lol


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> no that might be it actually


    I blinked.


    ¡°I¡­ Huh.¡± I looked down at myself. I hadn¡¯t really noticed it from moment to moment, but¡­ my hands were bigger than they used to be a week ago. I was bigger than I had been a week ago. ¡°I guess¡­ Yeah, actually, it makes sense. You grow up, your body gets stronger, and so you have more Ether¡­ which is the physical energy thingy.¡±


    I frowned and thought back on my earlier experiments with Gargles.


    ¡°Actually, probably not just Ether. More Intra too, I bet! And possibly more Tempor! Huh. Okay, cool! That means that I¡¯m stronger than before even if I just spent a few days being sick and useless!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hell yeah afk gains


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> that¡¯s so weird to think about


    At some point though, that growth would probably stop, wouldn¡¯t it? When exactly would it stop? And if we were to continue with that idea, would you get less Ether when you got too old, just like elderly people got physically weaker and more brittle?


    ¡°...You know, chat. I think I understand why that water park was a D-rank dungeon. If I could beat it in a tiny child¡¯s body, then it¡¯s probably a cakewalk for groups of grown adults.¡±


    Granted, it wasn¡¯t easy, but I had done it.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> how op are adults if you can blow up a forest tho


    I snorted.


    ¡°I just blew up some rocks. But good point, Jeoff. Just how powerful can people get in this world?¡±


    I glanced at the plasma pool as it continued to sizzle.


    ¡°I mean, this gun¡­ I feel like it¡¯s a total overkill, but what if it¡¯s not? What if this kind of firepower is normal for this world? For my ¡®level¡¯, so to speak?¡±


    Thinking back on the spaceship dungeon, I¡¯d thought the killer robot was some kind of boss monster, but what if it was just a weak mob you were meant to kill in one shot? What if having a gun like this was expected in high level dungeons? What the hell would the boss of that place even look like?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> cant wait til u come back to earth and declare war on it


    I scowled.


    ¡°I¡¯m not gonna declare war, George! I don¡¯t wanna fight anyone! I just wanna go back home and be a normal Vcuber again!¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> you might not have much of a choice


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> if you can shoot nuclear bombs on a whim by the time you return


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> people won¡¯t leave you alone


    I stared at the messages for a good few seconds as it sank in.


    They were right, weren¡¯t they? If I kept my skills and items when I returned, I would probably be strong enough to take on an army by then. There was no way I could just live peacefully as a streamer then.


    Maybe if this whole isekai thing wasn¡¯t streamed and people didn¡¯t know about me then I could hide, but now¡­


    I took a deep breath and let out a sigh.


    ¡°You know what? That¡¯s a problem for future me. Present me needs to first find a way to get back in the first place. And before that, I gotta get stronger to do the stupid Limit Break and then find that rift thing¡­¡±


    Which still felt so far away. Granted, I could just up and try to do the Limit Break right now, but considering I only had a single try, I wanted to make absolutely sure I was ready.


    I glanced at the plasma pool that didn¡¯t seem to be wanting to dissipate anytime soon, then I looked down at my gun-shaped weapon of mass destruction.


    ¡°Well, anyway. I guess I¡¯m gonna keep it in this form for now. I know you guys wanted to try turning Gargles into a mobile sentry, but¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°I kind of¡­ don¡¯t want to? I mean¡­ he¡¯s just my plushie and I wanna keep it that way. Hugging a death bot to sleep would be kinda awkward, you know?¡±


    And a remote-controlled plasma cannon of mass destruction sounded even worse if I wanted a peaceful future of Vcubing. One thing is holding the gun yourself, another is controlling the gun with your mind from afar. That would probably freak out people way more.


    ¡°And besides, my Ether is limited. Sure, I have more of it, but I still don¡¯t wanna waste it on unfusing and refusing things. I don¡¯t have free Ether anymore, you know?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> but muh turrettttttt


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> just soulbind turtle and fuse with gun


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> easy


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> so door making now?


    I scowled.


    ¡°No plushie of mass destruction, chat. Yeah, gonna try to make something that can cut wood better. The key sword is a bit awkward for anything precise.¡±


    I eyed the plasma pool again, worried that the surrounding greenery might catch on fire, but it seemed that just like with the plasma ball projectile, the sparks of lightning looked to be contained within the mass of plasma itself.


    Even if it kinda behaved like a liquid now.


    Hmm, actually¡­


    ¡°...Can I still reabsorb it?¡± I mused out loud and carefully stepped closer to the plasma lake.


    I lowered my gun and aimed the metallic claw thing at the lake as I approached. Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t feel the same pull I did when trying to reabsorb the bouncing plasma ball, even when I got close enough to touch the plasma pool with the tips of the claws.


    All that achieved was a spark and a bzzt sound, which startled me and made me jump back.


    I stared for a few seconds more before breaking out a sigh.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can, chat. Well, hopefully it doesn¡¯t burn down the forest in the meantime¡­¡±


    I shook my head and finally left the plasma pool behind.


    I walked straight back to my little shelter. There I took another look at all the items available for fusion and began brainstorming the best way to create some kind of chisel or a knife for woodworking.

 #068 - Never knew how much goes into making a door

    It was very curious what the Fusion skill considered to be ¡®one¡¯ item. A two-piece bikini counted as one item. A whole set of Vcuber clothes counted as one item. And apparently, a small pile of War Shark feathers counted as one item as well.


    In other news, I now had a very weird-looking knife with a bulky emerald handle and a thin blade made out of the aforementioned feathers.


    I had been hoping for a result like this, but I honestly hadn¡¯t expected it to actually work.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> maybe it knows what you want


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> like you can guide the result or something


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> awww no emerald caltrop


    ¡°Hmm. You know, there might be something to that,¡± I mused. ¡°But if that¡¯s true, this skill is kind of insanely versatile, isn¡¯t it? Way more than I thought it would be¡­¡±


    Just like the gun being unreasonably powerful and the dungeon being way more intense than I¡¯d expected for a D-rank¡­


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not gonna complain! Time to go make a door!¡±


    I set to work on it. First, I cut down a suitable tree with my key sword again. One far away enough that there was no chance of it falling into my home.


    Then I tested my new makeshift knife on the wood and found it quite hard, but once I channeled a bit of Ether through the knife, it went much better.


    It still took me hours to cut out a few roughly plank-shaped pieces from the trunk I¡¯d cut down.


    And then¡­


    ¡°So¡­ How do I make this into a door? I don¡¯t have nails or anything¡­¡±


    I hadn¡¯t really thought this through, had I?


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> maybe you can Fuse the planks with each other?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> time for plastic wraping to shine


    ¡°Hmm¡­ That¡¯s an idea¡­ Uh, what are you talking about, George?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuse it with the planks for plasticreinforced door lol


    I slowly raised an eyebrow and tried to put as much ¡®I¡¯m judging you energy¡¯ into it as possible even if I knew that he couldn¡¯t see me.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lmao


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you kno itmight work


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> cuz it knows what u want right?


    ¡°Eehhh¡­ I guess it might¡­?¡±


    It sounded really dumb, but¡­ Well, I should experiment with Fusion more anyway. I hadn¡¯t really done much of that besides combining a few items. Granted, I was kind of limited on Ether right now.


    ¡°Okay, fine. Let¡¯s try fusion then¡­¡±


    I picked up the plastic wrapping from the Ether bar, stopped for a moment, and then piled it together with the paper wrapping from the Ether burger as well as the empty bottle from the Tempor juice and the empty can from the Ether pop.


    In other words, a pile of trash. Sure, a variety of trash, but still, all of it was trash. Now the question was whether it would count¡­


    I touched the pile of trash and focused on using Fusion. To my delight, all of the trash successfully turned into a blob of orange energy and not just the plastic wrapping I¡¯d been touching.


    ¡°Heck yes, chat! I can even group things together with Fusion! Maybe that means I can combine more than just two items without having to soulbind things?¡±


    Which would, in retrospect, make getting that skill kind of pointless.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> there¡¯s proly some kind of disadvantage to that tho


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> maybe it dilutes the items if you use multiple at once


    ¡°Hmm, good point, actually¡­ Well, let¡¯s see what it does!¡±


    I took the set of planks laid out in front of me and shoved the glowing blob of Ether into them, specifically trying to categorize all of them as one object in my mind.


    The entire thing began glowing as it absorbed the blob and a moment later I was left with the final result.


    I stared at it.


    ¡°...Uh¡­ I guess it¡¯s a door¡­?¡±


    It looked kinda like a door. The planks were haphazardly held together by pieces of plastic and paper wrapping. The whole thing looked like it could fall apart if I breathed on it wrong.


    Well, I had used literal trash for this, so I probably shouldn¡¯t have expected anything better.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea idk


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> probably not gonna be very good


    ¡°Well¡­ I mean, the quest doesn¡¯t specify that it has to be a good door. And it¡¯s not like I need a good door that badly, so¡­¡±


    I gingerly touched the abomination and tried picking it up, fearing that it would crumble in my hands.


    Surprisingly, the whole thing held together, although it didn¡¯t quite feel like one unified whole with how parts of it moved independent of each other.


    ¡°Right¡­ Eh, good enough¡­?¡±


    I shot Appraisal at it just to see what it would say.


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    <u>Planks + Trash (fused)


    </u>A fusion of two objects.


    Yeah, I didn¡¯t know what I¡¯d expected.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lol


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> still probably counts as a door tho


    I pulled the door outside of my shelter, frowned at it for a moment, and then simply covered the entrance with the door.


    The size was a bit off and I had no way to make it swing open like an actual door. I would have to keep removing and then replacing it again instead of it opening on its hinges like a normal door would.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> 10/10 door


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> would door again


    I snorted and opened my quest window.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Good night¡¯s sleep¡¯ Side quest


    </u>Time left: 19d,17h,15m<u>


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find a shelter to sleep in [ACHIEVED]<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Create that shelter yourself [ACHIEVED]


    Find some bedding and a pillow [ACHIEVED]


    Have a proper door to your shelter [PARTIALLY ACHIEVED]


    <u>Rewards</u> - 3SP


    <u>Pentalty for failure</u> - 5SP debt


    ¡°Partially¡­ Well, I guess it¡¯s not really a proper door. But how am I supposed to make it into one?¡±


    I assumed it referred to the way I couldn¡¯t open the thing like a door, but I had no idea how to fix that issue, especially with the awkward triangular shape of my doorway.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> maybe try fusing feathers with other feathers


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> and think about making door hinges.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> just gotta believeeee maaan


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Interesting idea.¡± I rolled my eyes at Jamie¡¯s comment. ¡°Uh huh.¡±


    I reached into my backpack, pulled out a couple of the feathers, and carefully put them in one pile, before doing it again and creating another pile. Then I gingerly touched one of the piles ¨C in a way that it wouldn¡¯t cut me ¨C and activated Fusion.


    The pile turned into an orange blob as expected and I shoved it into the other pile. A moment later, the glow abated and I was left staring at¡­


    A pile of jagged sharp objects that looked like a cross between caltrops and used razors. They kinda resembled door hinges if I squinted enough and ignored the spikes, but¡­ could I even use them as such¡­? Maybe I could use the spikes as built-in nails¡­?


    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know about this, chat.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you didn¡¯t believe hard enough


    ¡°Uh huh. Since when is this about faith? Am I supposed to pray to the Fate Weaver before I use Fusion now?¡± I asked deadpan, and looked back at the mess in front of me.


    I shook my head and picked up one of the things before looking it over.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> it¡¯s crude but it could work


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> for the quest if nothing else


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess I can try it¡­¡±


    I proceeded to use my makeshift emerald knife¡¯s handle to hammer one of the things into the door near the top, one in the middle, and one at the bottom. Surprisingly, the door didn¡¯t fall apart as I jammed the things into the side of the planks.


    Then I hammered the thing into the shelter¡¯s main entrance. It was an absolute pain, since I had to constantly hold the door in the right position after I got one of the hinges right.


    After hours, the door was attached.


    Frankly speaking, I had no idea how it still held.


    I tried opening and closing the door, and although it didn¡¯t open straight, it actually worked.


    ¡°...Well, it works.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> 11/10 door


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> would door again


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re repeating jokes, George.¡±


    Regardless, I took a look at my quest window and¡­


    Have a proper door to your shelter [ACHIEVED]


    Yup, it actually counted.


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s all I needed! Mission success, I guess. Who cares if this door is a crime against nature? My job here is done!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> lol proper door my ass


    I ignored Jamie and instead mentally prodded the system and confirmed that I wanted the quest to complete.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Good night¡¯s sleep¡¯ Side quest complete!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Find a shelter to sleep in [ACHIEVED]<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Create that shelter yourself [ACHIEVED]


    Find some bedding and a pillow [ACHIEVED]


    Have a proper door to your shelter [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Hidden objectives:


    </u>???Have that shelter be very far away from any other civilization. [ACHIEVED]


    <u>Reward:</u>


    +6 SP


    Small Combo expansion ticket


    <u>¡®</u><u>Completionist quester¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    A ticket fell into my hands as the system confirmed the quest completion.


    Instead of scanning the ticket though, my attention was focused on the quest completion window.


    ¡°Shelter that¡¯s far away from any civilization¡­¡± I murmured. ¡°Chat, that¡­ That implies that there is civilization somewhere out there. The world isn¡¯t totally barren.¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh shiittt


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hell yeah aliens exist


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> that¡¯s great news!


    I felt the smallest ember of hope light up inside me¡­ and then quickly squashed it. If it was an explicit objective in a quest, then said civilization had to be really far away.


    ¡­And considering one of the tier five achievements was about jumping to another planet, said civilization wasn¡¯t even necessarily on this planet.


    I slumped again but didn¡¯t voice my thoughts.


    Instead, I checked out the achievement I¡¯d gotten along with this quest.


    <u>Completionist quester</u> - Achieve all side objectives of a quest. [COMPLETE]


    ¡°Huh, neat. I guess I haven¡¯t done that yet.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> more juicy skill points


    ¡°Mmm, yeah. Got eleven now¡­ I can afford a few things¡­¡± I mused as I opened my crappy door, got inside my shelter, and closed it behind me.


    I could get Dual Wield on Soulbound Item¡­ I could get its tier 2 variant, Soul Strike¡­ I could get Rend¡­ Hmm, I had a few options.


    I also didn¡¯t need to rush into getting anything. After all, spending the points mid-fight to give myself an edge had already saved me once, so if I had multiple options and wasn¡¯t sure which one to get yet, I could just hold onto them for now.


    Instead, I took a look at the ticket in my hands. This one was black with white text that read ¡®2%!¡¯ I scanned it with Appraisal.


    <u>Small Combo expansion ticket


    </u>A system consumable that increases your total Ether, Intra, and Tempor reserves and regeneration by 2% when consumed.


    ¡°Whoa, what?! All three of them? Nice!¡±


    I wasted no time in consuming it.


    <u>Consume 1x Small Combo expansion ticket?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> waitwaitwait


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> dontdamit


    I blinked.


    ¡°What? Something wrong?¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> I was just thinking that it¡¯s a percentage boost


    ¡°...Yes?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shit ur right


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you get more Ether as you grow right?


    I blinked again and then slapped my forehead.


    ¡°You¡¯re right! I should have waited! The more Ether and stuff I have, the more effective those tickets are!¡± I groaned. ¡°That¡¯s why the tickets exist at all, isn¡¯t it? So that you can save them for later if you want to¡­¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> and so you can trade them probably


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe it¡¯s retroactive tho


    ¡°Yeah, that too. Hmm¡­ it could be retroactive¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°But that would be really hard to tell¡­¡±


    I sighed.


    ¡°Well, what¡¯s done is done, I guess¡­ I¡¯m gonna try to hold onto any more tickets, I guess, and use them later¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°But that would make me weaker in the short run, wouldn¡¯t it? If I died in a dungeon because I didn¡¯t have enough Ether or something, then it would be pointless to save them¡­¡±


    Ugh, a classic gamer dilemma. Play it safe or be greedy with your resources? Usually, I would go for the greedy option in games, but if I was risking my own life¡­?


    ¡°...You know, what? Never mind. I¡¯m not going to save them. Don¡¯t want to get too greedy. And who knows? Maybe it¡¯s retroactive just like Jeoff said.¡±


    Then I took a deep breath and clapped my hands.


    ¡°Anyway! This door took way too long to make! So long that most of my Ether regenerated already on its own! So while I munch on my pizza, you guys give me your best Fusion suggestions!¡±

 #069 - Nice!

    The fusing spree had borne a lot of fruit.


    First, I¡¯d tried fusing the wallet into my backpack, which gave the backpack an extra pocket where money could go. It wasn¡¯t anything groundbreaking, but I didn¡¯t have anything better to fuse with the backpack, so I let it go. Some people in chat also suggested that maybe it also increased the backpack¡¯s capacity, but I just couldn¡¯t tell yet.


    Then I¡¯d fused a couple of war shark feathers into a thick stick and created a new weapon for myself, a spiked ¨C or rather, a razorful? ¨C mace. I couldn¡¯t imagine it would be better than my key sword, but it was nice to have more options just in case. And despite my naginata being inconvenient, I still preferred heavier weapons.


    Lastly, I tried combining my egg¡¯s shell and all its shards with the frying pan I¡¯d gotten in the dungeon. It¡­ felt a little wrong to do ¨C like using my own umbilical cord as a crafting ingredient ¨C but the result was well worth it. The frying pan gained this glittery quality to it along with an [INNATE] skill: Fry & Scorch. It allowed me to channel Ether into the pan to create heat. Enough to either fry food on it, or just straight up spew fire out of it.


    Which sounded useless since I had fire skills already, but the real kicker was that it was perfectly usable even when I didn¡¯t have my fire skills equipped. That meant that I could finally just stick with my human skills and might never have to switch back to the phoenix ones unless it was some kind of emergency.


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> give it a name


    ¡°The pan¡­?¡± I raised an eyebrow.


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> Nana¡¯s inferno pan<u>


    Irid123:</u> wasn¡¯t there a way to name your stuff officially?


    ¡°Oh, wait, yeah! There was! Where was it¡­ Ultimate Fusion, right. So how do I¡­¡±


    I prodded the skill while holding the pan and I soon got a new system window.


    <u>What would you like to name your item?


    </u>Note: This cannot be undone. Once named, an item cannot then be unfused, but gains the ability to absorb Ether, Intra, or Tempor, to empower itself.


    <u>WARNING: One or more of the fusion components is an incausal rift key, but the fused item is not.</u>


    I blinked in shock.


    ¡°Wait, what? It had that kind of function?! Nobody told me about that! And what¡¯s up with that warning?!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh shiiiit infinite upgrades


    <u>Irid123:</u> oh that doesn¡¯t sound good


    <u>Irid123:</u> probably shouldn¡¯t do that then


    I shot Appraisal at the pan with a frown.


    <u>Demonium Frying pan + Phoenix egg (fused)


    </u>A fusion of two items.


    [INNATE] skill: Fry & Scorch - Channel any amount of Ether to heat up this item or conjure fire.


    ¡°Right¡­ So, the phoenix egg itself had this thing about being a key, but this thing doesn¡¯t even though it¡¯s made out of the egg¡­¡± I still didn¡¯t know what any of that meant, but I should probably keep a rift key on hand for whenever I actually got to that point. ¡°Yeah, I guess we¡¯ll do without naming it¡­ Although! What about my clothes? I should totally name them something just so they can get stronger over time!¡±


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> royal garb of the mighty cuber


    I scoffed. ¡°Royal? C¡¯mon, Restart, I¡¯m not that pretentious.¡±


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> filthy potato sack of the trash-crawling cuber


    I felt my eye twitch.


    ¡°Anyway. I¡¯ll be keeping the pan for now, and I guess I can unfuse it if I need the egg as a key¡­?¡± I shook my head. ¡°We¡¯ll see how it works. As for the clothes¡­ Hmm¡­ What should I name it?¡±


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> mediocre attire of the average cuber


    ¡°All suggestions by Restart are automatically rejected from now on,¡± I said, deadpan.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> hold up you should unfuse it before you name it


    ¡°Hmm? Unfuse it? Why?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> cuz you can¡¯t unfuse then


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> gotta only put all the good stuff in it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> cuz the cost of fusion gets higher


    ¡°Eh, I guess you have a point¡­ What did I put into this again?¡± I looked down and tugged on the part of me that was shaped like a skirt before simply shooting Appraisal at it.


    <u>Vcuber garb + War shark hoodie + Ancient Lily bikini + Inflatable swimming sleeves (fused)


    </u>A fusion of several items. Soulbound.


    [INNATE] skill: Aquaport - Use a moderate amount of Tempor to teleport a short distance. Both the starting point and the destination have to be submerged in liquid.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Oh yeah, I forgot about the innate skill from the hoodie¡­ Actually, I could probably use it to cross the river in one go¡­ when I find a spot where the current isn¡¯t as strong.¡±


    I mentally recounted what each of the items in the fusion did and decided, ¡°Eh, I think it¡¯s fine to keep it fused. Some defense, some water affinity thing, the ability to float from the sleeves¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> it¡¯s too focused on water tho


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> the bikini is redundant


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    I made a face.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s fine. And hey, I have more Ether now and I¡¯m gonna keep getting even more as I go! I can still stuff a few more things into this, I¡¯m pretty sure. Once I find some more armor and whatnot, I¡¯ll just fuse that,¡± I decided. ¡°Now! Names! This needs to be good!¡±


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> fate weaver¡¯s collar


    I proceeded to mute Restart for two hours without acknowledging their message.


    Ugh, I already regretted inviting more people into the group chats. I should make some kind of interview process for being invited rather than inviting random people.


    There were a couple more suggestions after that, but in the end, I ended up going with something simple, yet fitting.


    I mentally clicked confirmation and felt a small headache before the part of me that was clothes glowed for a moment, warped around, and finally reformed into a completely new shape.


    I blinked in surprise and looked over myself.


    The shoes had grown into light blue leather boots that reached halfway up to my knees. They had white shark teeth patterns around the soles. The shorts/skirt combo turned into dark blue shorts framed by a cyan knee-length cloth with white and pink flame and floral patterns ¨C were those lilies? ¨C that was shaped like half a skirt, making it almost look like a cape that extended from my hips and covered my butt and my sides. The top was now a blue shirt ¨C matching the shorts ¨C with a stylized red picture of a phoenix on my chest and long sleeves that gradually turned from blue to cyan at the cuffs, where more white and pink flame patterns were. The collar of the shirt framed my neck and an odd instinctual feeling told me that I could pull it over my head to create a hood like the shark hoodie had.


    I was momentarily completely stunned by all of this.


    This was¡­ wow.


    Before, it was like an AI-generated mashup of all the Fusion ingredients. But this? This was as if you gave a professional artist the list of ingredients and the name of the end product and asked them to design the most kickass result possible.


    <u>Gift of the Weeping Phoenix


    </u>An outfit made by Aoto Nana through fusion, created out of various treasures she discovered on her adventures, using the gift from her phoenix mother as the base.


    Provides major increase to general defense, defense against any water-based hazards and attacks, and major protection from heat and cold. Further allows the user to control water in a small radius around them using Ether, float and teleport while submerged in water by using Tempor, and automatically adjusts its size to fit its wearer using their own Ether. Also greatly enhances the user¡¯s ability to swim, their water-based attacks, and attacks using metallic weaponry.


    Smells like ancient lilies.


    Soulbound.


    [INNATE] skill: Minor Hydrokinesis - Use a variable amount of Ether to control water in a one meter radius around you.


    [INNATE] skill: Featherfall - Use a moderate amount of Ether to make yourself fall slower. Uses less Ether underwater or in lower gravity environments.


    [INNATE] skill: Aquaport - Use a moderate amount of Tempor to teleport a short distance. Both the starting point and the destination have to be submerged in liquid.


    I stared at the Appraisal result in dumb shock for a good few moments while chat exploded with messages.


    I slowly blinked, reading the three innate skills this thing now granted me as well as the slew of other benefits.


    ¡°Oh¡­ Chat¡­ I think I know why Ultimate Fusion costs fifteen skill points¡­¡±


    I had been convinced it was because it lifted the cap on the rarity¡­ and, well, that might have been part of it. But why the hell didn¡¯t it say anywhere that naming a fused item turned it into a completely busted superitem?! The generic fused item description was gone as well! This was incredible!


    And best of all, this wasn¡¯t an item at all! It was me! Nobody could steal it off of me or anything! This outfit was part of me!


    ¡­Which still felt really weird, but hey! If this was going to only get stronger, I could get used to it.


    Oh, I could definitely get used to it.


    I had a bright grin on my face as I marched my way outside of my shelter and practically skipped all the way over to the river again. I also spotted a relatively big cloud in the darkening sky and couldn¡¯t help but yell, ¡°Come at me, bro! I¡¯m not afraid!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> vcuber yells at cloud


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> shes gone crazy


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> how did you go from full fire build to full water build


    ¡°Shush, you two! Eh, probably because I beat a water-based dungeon, Jeoff?¡±


    I made it all the way to the river while I talked to chat, and as soon as I walked down the riverbank and got close enough, I could feel the water in the river rushing by with my new hydrokinesis senses.


    I wasted no time in scooping a bit of water out of the rushing stream with my new innate skill and made it float in the air.


    Unlike what I¡¯d been expecting, the water didn¡¯t beautifully dance to my whims. Instead, it was like a whole bunch of droplets constantly being pushed up by nets. Some of the water floated, but I kept dropping some of the droplets and¡­


    ¡°Okay, this is much more difficult than I thought it would be¡­¡± I grumbled.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> could you shoot it at things?


    I attempted to do so, but it resulted in a weak spurt of water rather than an epic water bullet or what have you.


    ¡°Uhh¡­ Kinda? Gah, this is difficult! Why is it so difficult?!¡±


    Stupid water raining ¨C no pun intended ¨C on my parade. I had been hoping I could now easily cross the river with the combination of Hydrokinesis and Aquaport, but it would still probably be a bit difficult¡­


    Well, whatever. I still needed to go fetch my stuff back from the dungeon anyway¡­ and it was getting pretty late as well, so it wouldn''t be the greatest of ideas to try and cross the river right now.


    I still ended up playing around with the water for almost an hour as the sun set. By the time I returned back to my base, I realized that I could sort of feel water all around me as well. In the air, in the trees, in the dirt under my feet¡­ It was just a lot subtler than a rushing river. And also way harder to do anything with since there was either so little of it, or it was blocked by dirt or tree bark.


    I wasn¡¯t particularly fussed, though. I felt strong now. So much stronger than when I¡¯d first entered that city dungeon. Of course, I still didn¡¯t want to get cocky and chew off more than I could bite, but I felt confident now that I would win a rematch with that poison archer without nearly dying to poison this time.


    The next morning, it was time.


    After a quick breakfast of my calamari pizza ¨C I¡¯d fused the tentacle with the pizza just for variety ¨C and refreshing myself in the river again, I marched my way over to the city gates and glared inside it.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> good luck Nana!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bwoop! (????? )?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> gogogo!


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> careful of traps and poisons this time


    I nodded.


    ¡°Thanks guys. Yeah, yeah. I know, Mike. Don¡¯t want to go through that whole ordeal again, either.¡± I briefly grimaced. ¡°It¡¯s going to be fine, though! It¡¯s been almost a week! I grew a lot, I¡¯m stronger, have new skills, new items, new strategies, new everything! And it¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to try and beat the whole dungeon today, I¡¯m just getting my stuff back if I can.¡±


    I hoped I could. The naginata could be replaced since I had plenty of other weapons, but the bucket was super convenient and the map was nice to have as well.


    It wouldn¡¯t be the end of the world, especially if I could just run the water park dungeon to get them again, but¡­ yeah.


    I checked my equipment one more time, made sure I had the right skills equipped, steeled myself, and entered the city dungeon as the familiar shiver went down my spine.


    I ignored the dread and focused on the other thing ¨C the determination, the sense of unity, and cooperation.


    I could do this.


    I wasn¡¯t going to get poisoned again.

 #070 - I swear I wasn’t always this violent

    It was a bit painful to do, but I¡¯d rewatched stream history to see which building I¡¯d exited last time I¡¯d been here. Conveniently, it was the house closest to the city gates that looked like the guard station.


    Odd, considering what was inside, but I was used to doorways leading to odd places.


    I stood in front of the door, gripping my mace in my right hand and my gun of mass destruction in my left hand, ready to roll.


    Naturally, that was why I put the gun back into my backpack and politely knocked on the door instead, before pulling the gun again.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> bruh


    Just like the other house, the door unlocked and creaked open on its own after a few seconds.


    I tensed but kept vigilant as I nudged the door further open with my foot.


    I prepared my most intense glare to direct inside the building when I saw something familiar. Although, rather than the front porch and the lawn with hedges, I saw¡­ the dining room again. One table, four chairs. All made out of the black stone.


    ¡°Um¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> dungeon reset?


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­? ( ? ? ¨­ )


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ very much possible, actually,¡± I admitted. ¡°I guess, we¡¯ll see if I get jumped by a cooking demon.¡±


    I gingerly walked inside, tense like a coiled spring, and took in the rest of the room. The same furniture, the same homey smell, the same door to my right from where the cooking demon had come last time. The only difference was that everything seemed smaller than before¡­ which was because of my rapid growth from the blessing.


    And then, just like last time, the door behind me suddenly shut itself with a click and the other door opened, revealing the same faceless humanoid with horns and dark skin, holding a knife and a pan.


    It immediately charged at me without any preamble. I backed up, raised my gun, took aim, and fired.


    The demon attempted to block with the pan, but wasn¡¯t fast enough, and the water bullet completely ripped through its torso, leaving its shredded body crashing into the wall.


    A moment later, it disappeared into mist, leaving a small chest behind.


    ¡°...Well, that was much easier than last time.¡±


    <u>sunnysideways:</u> looks like she got cooked


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait appraise the chest this time


    ¡°Hmm, right. I never tried appraising the chests here last time¡­¡±


    <u>C-rank dungeon minor chest


    </u>A loot chest containing random dungeon loot.


    ¡°C-rank. Huh¡­ So this dungeon is supposed to be harder than the water park. No wonder.¡±


    I walked a bit closer to the chest and stopped a few paces away from it before narrowing my eyes.


    I used my Minor Hydrokinesis to pick up the water that now flooded the room, swirled it in the air, and then shot it at the chest.


    The water splashed on the chest. The chest didn¡¯t move at all.


    I nodded in satisfaction.


    ¡°Nobody can stay that still when you splash cold water on them. There¡¯s no way this is a mimic,¡± I concluded.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> 200IQ logic


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yeah just ignore the fact that appraisal said it¡¯s a chest


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop ¨r (. ? ? ?.) ¨q


    I ignored Jeoff and walked up to the chest. When I popped it open, I was greeted by a sharp knife made out of the black stone, identical to the one the zombie had been wielding.


    I appraised it.


    <u>Demonium Kitchen knife</u>


    A kitchen knife made out of Demonium.


    I grunted.


    ¡°Oh, I could have used you before I made that weird dagger¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°Well, whatever. This ought to be pretty useful.¡±


    I grabbed it and put it into my backpack as the chest vanished. Then I strode over to the door to continue. I grabbed the handle, opened it and¡­ yup, it was the classroom on the other side now.


    ¡°It¡¯s surprisingly linear,¡± I mused. ¡°I guess this dungeon is a boss rush you have to do in a specific order?¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I wonder what exactly makes the dungeon reset


    ¡°Hmm, who knows?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I mean, I¡¯ve been away for days. That would probably do it. Although, I am curious too¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> test it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> leave and return


    I didn¡¯t really mind having to repeat the first fight since it was pretty easy, so I decided to do some testing on how exactly this dungeon worked.


    I closed the door to the classroom, waited for a moment, wished to return back to the city streets, and opened the door.


    Lo and behold, the door now led back outside of the guardhouse near the city entrance. Even though that was where the other door had led just a minute ago.


    ¡°Okay, chat. It looks like the doors are all kinda connected? And they change based on where I want to go?¡± I theorized as I walked through the door.


    I closed it behind me, waited a second, focused on wanting to be somewhere at the plaza, and opened the door again.


    Suddenly, the door that should lead inside a building led outside and I could clearly see the familiar fountain out there.


    I walked through and closed the door behind me.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nice


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can teleport around the city


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop! ( ?£þ??£þ?)


    Then I focused on wanting to be in the archer¡¯s front porch space and opened the door again. Unfortunately, rather than the front porch, the door now led to the classroom.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Interesting¡­ So I wanted to go to the archer¡¯s room, but it leads to the second fight instead, hmm¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I guess progress saves


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> but you can¡¯t skip rooms


    ¡°Yeah, seems like it.¡± I nodded in agreement. ¡°But what exactly makes the dungeon reset? Time?¡±


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> leaving the dungeon, maybe


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> probably time yeah


    ¡°Hmm, good point¡­ Or maybe it¡¯s both? Well, let¡¯s test it.¡±


    I closed the door, wished to be near the entrance again, and opened it. The door now led outside the guardhouse once more.


    Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    I proceeded to walk through it and then all the way outside of the main gates until I felt the feeling of relief. Then I turned around and marched right back into the city, ignoring the slew of forced feelings.


    I opened the guardhouse door, wishing to continue from the classroom, but instead, the door now led to the dining room again.


    ¡°Okay, so leaving the dungeon resets it. Alright, I see¡­¡± I hummed. ¡°In other words, this dungeon is a huge boss rush that you have to do in one go without leaving the dungeon¡­ But you can take breaks in between the boss fights, as long as you don¡¯t leave the city.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> there could still be a time limit


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> like it resets if your break is too long


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s a huge gauntlet


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> that¡¯s so insidious


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> this is way more dangerous than the first dungeon


    ¡°That¡¯s also possible, yeah¡­ Ehh, debatable if this is more dangerous. I mean, I guess it kind of forces you to clear it in one go, so you could get reckless¡­?¡±


    It was very different from the water park dungeon, where I could take as long as I wanted. If it worked the way we thought it did, then this dungeon was an extreme test of endurance.


    In theory, you could probably beat it in a few hours from start to finish, depending on how long it was. But in practice, you would have to spend many attempts trying to beat it. And since apparently every cleared room seemed to award an item¡­


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m gonna get so much random junk trying to clear this dungeon.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> looooooooot


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop~ ( ? ?¦Ø?? )?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> if you get far in it you¡¯ll be less likely to quit


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> sunk cost fallacy


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> dangerous


    ¡°Okay, you do have a point, Mike.¡± I frowned. ¡°I¡¯m just a tiny bit prone to gambling, I guess, but¡­ This is my life, alright? I¡¯m not going to keep going if I don¡¯t think I can win the next fight.¡± I shook my head. ¡°And anyway, I¡¯m only here to get my stuff back! Not trying to clear it today!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh well


    With that, I pulled out my mace and the key sword this time before entering the dining room. I didn¡¯t want to waste too much more Ether on using my gun even if I had more to spare nowadays.


    The door behind me locked itself and I soon found myself fighting the same zombie demon again. I smashed my mace on their pan as if it was a shield and parried their knife with my key sword in a short scuffle, but I quickly overpowered them and ended up smashing their skull out, which granted me another small chest.


    One mimic check later and I got to looting it. This time, it contained¡­ an apron.


    <u>Moonsilk apron</u>


    An apron made out of Moonsilk.


    ¡°Uh, cool, I guess? What¡¯s moonsilk, anyway?¡± I mumbled.


    It sounded like yet another fancy fantasy-sounding word like Demonium, but I had no idea if it had any special properties or not. It felt like silk to the touch so¡­


    I shrugged.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> oh that¡¯s cute


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> cooking with nana?


    I snorted. ¡°Maybe later. When I actually have more ingredients and whatnot.¡±


    Hopefully this dungeon would drop me some. If all the monsters here were supposed inhabitants of the city and they dropped something related to them, I was bound to run into a baker¡­ or a castle maid, or something, right?


    ¡°Well, next room now,¡± I announced as I stuffed the apron into my backpack and approached the door. This time, I decided to open the entry door, just to see if it would work.


    I focused on advancing in the dungeon, opened the door, and as expected, the classroom greeted me on the other side.


    I nodded to myself.


    ¡°Okay, so it doesn¡¯t matter which door I open. What matters is where I want to go. Cool.¡±


    Then I stopped and pondered how to most effectively take care of the mage kid in the second room for a moment. If he was the same as last time, then he would have a wand and a shield. Hmm¡­


    Actually, hadn¡¯t one of his fireballs clipped me without hurting me all that much last time?


    Couldn¡¯t I just¡­ charge right in and take him out with my mace or something?


    It was kind of risky though. I had no guarantee that he didn¡¯t have any stronger moves. Yeah, I better be more careful than that.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you can just shoot him


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> use the mega gun


    ¡°I could, but that would drain my Ether. I kinda wanna save as much Ether as I can for the archer¡­¡±


    But then again, with the game plan I had for the archer, I shouldn¡¯t need that much Ether to beat her. And since I wasn¡¯t planning on continuing the dungeon afterwards, I could spend a bit of Ether on this fight.


    ¡°Eh, you know what? Sure. Let¡¯s just shoot him.¡±


    I grabbed my gun in one hand and my mace in the other and already began charging the plasma ball as I entered the classroom.


    On cue, the door closed and locked itself behind me and I was already looking at the desk from where the mage kid had come out of last time.


    To my surprise, he jumped from behind a different desk and immediately began to conjure up these black fireballs. I didn¡¯t hesitate, pointed the gun in his direction, and fired off my charged up plasma in liquid mode even as I side stepped his fireball barrage.


    The boy tried to block my shot with his shield, but the moment it hit, it exploded all over the place with scorching plasma and completely covered him.


    His entire form slumped and a moment later, I could see the familiar mist seeping through the lake of plasma in the corner of the room as the door behind me unlocked again.


    ¡­There also seemed to be a chest-shaped object submerged in the plasma.


    ¡°Uh¡­ I didn¡¯t think this through, chat¡­ How am I supposed to get my loot¡­?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> dammit you killed the loot


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> this feels much easier than last time


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I can just¡­ wait? Err¡­ Maybe I can fish the chest out somehow.¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> don¡¯t get yourself killed trying to get the loot


    ¡°Ugh, yeah¡­ That would be the dumbest way to go¡­ Maybe I should just leave this. Don¡¯t even bother trying to fish it out.¡±


    The loot from this place wasn¡¯t even anything spectacular so far. Moreover, I could literally do this as many times as I liked for more loot. There was no need to agonize over it¡­


    Even if it hurt my hoarding-inclined brain.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> what no


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> get the loot


    ¡°Nah, Mike is right. This isn¡¯t worth it. I can always come back here and grind more loot since it always resets. This is just the second room, anyway. It¡¯s easy to get back here.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> but the loooooooooooooooooot


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop¡­ (?¡ª?¡ª)


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> yeah it¡¯s not worth it


    ¡°Eh, maybe it¡¯s still gonna be here when I return, who knows?¡± I smirked. ¡°Also, good news, chat! I think that chest probably isn¡¯t a mimic since it¡¯s not screaming under all that plasma.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> goddammmiiiiiittttt


    ¡°Almost feels like someone else is screaming though. Weird¡­¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> lmao


    With a smirk, I ignored the plasma-flooded chest and returned back to the door.


    I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and let it out.


    I was not going to get poisoned again. I had a plan. There was no way the archer would get me again.


    After internally hyping myself up, I grabbed the door handle and opened it into the front porch and lawn.


    I frowned at the sight. The naginata, the bucket, and the map¡­ weren¡¯t anywhere in the room. Or at least, I couldn¡¯t see any of them.


    ¡°...Did my stuff really despawn? Dammit¡­¡±


    Well, that sucked. This was all for nothing then¡­


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> maybe it got moved somewhere


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you could still summon the key sword after all


    I stopped and thought about it.


    ¡°Huh. You¡¯re right¡­ If I could still summon it, then it had to exist somewhere¡­ Okay, maybe my stuff will be somewhere in a chest? Like if I beat the archer again, maybe the loot chest will have my stuff?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> o yeah that¡¯s true


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you would have to beat her again though


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s fine, Mike. I have a plan. A foolproof strategy. And even then, I¡¯m much stronger than I was before. I can do it.¡±


    With my determination renewed, I tightened my grip on my mace and gun again and gingerly stepped inside. I stayed on the porch and kept an eye on all the bushes, waiting for the archer to appear.


    Then the door closed and clicked and I tensed up, my eyes scanning the bushes even faster.


    At the same time though, I got distracted by a sudden system window.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Meh, don¡¯t need it¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    And then I saw movement in one of the bushes from the corner of my eye and waved the distraction away before immediately activating the Bullet Time innate skill of my bracelet. Then I rushed ahead as the archer woman creeped out of the bush in slow-motion and began drawing back her bow.


    She seemed to have registered that I was already moving toward her fairly quickly and aborted the motion to draw her bow, turning it into a blocking motion instead.


    With how quick I was, though, it didn¡¯t matter. Before I could run out of juice, I ran right next to her, my mace raised up high, and then brought it down on her head as hard as I could.


    The time quickly resumed as her body hit the ground with a nasty crunch.


    That had probably done the job, but I was taking no chances. I was not getting poisoned again!


    Never again!


    I raised my mace again and then smashed it at her prone body. Then again and again, until the body turned into a mangled pile of limbs ¨C still no blood ¨C and then until it all turned into mist and left a treasure chest behind.


    Only then did I realize that my breaths were ragged and my hands were shaking.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> NANA!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> please stop!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> um


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> holy shit


    I dropped my mace and gun as I backed up, suddenly feeling horrified.


    What the hell? What the hell?!


    Since when was I a violent maniac? Okay, sure, maybe I¡¯d gotten pretty used to killing these zombie monsters in the dungeons, but this¡­


    This was a bit overboard, wasn¡¯t it?


    I fell down on my butt and stared up at the, probably fake, sky.


    Maybe I needed a break.


    And not one where I was sick and dying¡­ or one where I was making a shelter and experimenting with Fusion.


    A real break.


    Or maybe I should stop pretending I was fine and actually speak to one of those therapists¡­

 #071 - I think I had enough internet for the day

    I took deep breaths as I sat on the grass.


    Happy thoughts. Calm thoughts. No violence. No head smashing.


    Everything was fine.


    I was safe.


    The dungeon monsters here didn¡¯t respawn unless the dungeon reset and even then, one only spawned when I entered a new room.


    It was fine.


    I was safe.


    Deep exhale.


    By the time I opened my eyes again I was relatively calm.


    Chat was also exploding with all sorts of messages, but I wasn¡¯t reading any of them right now. I couldn¡¯t, lest something push me over the edge again.


    ¡°Chat¡­ I¡­ I need a therapist,¡± I suddenly announced, even if I internally cringed at my own words. ¡°I¡­ can¡¯t keep going like this.¡±


    I knew that I couldn¡¯t. I could grin and cheer for the camera like a proper Vcuber, even when going through life or death situations once or twice¡­ But there was a limit. I couldn¡¯t do it indefinitely. And even though I could now use voice calls, I still felt so, so alone.


    I didn¡¯t want to go off the deep end completely. I didn¡¯t want to murder the first actual person I met when I actually got back to Earth.


    And I was going to get back.


    ¡°I never told you guys, but Officer Stew suggested I speak to one, but¡­ He said he would send some to watch the stream. But, well¡­¡± I glanced over to the actual stream chat from which one would probably get a seizure just by looking at all the messages coming through. ¡°...Yeah. Hard to communicate like this.¡±


    I took another breath.


    ¡°So! I need you guys¡¯ help. I want you to find a therapist who would be willing to have actual therapy sessions with me¡­ for basically free, since I can¡¯t exactly pay them from here.¡± I grimaced. ¡°Well, I would pay them once I got back to Earth, but anyway¡­ Yeah. Someone who¡¯s an actual professional and not just someone who would want clout, you know?¡±


    That was the whole pain point of it all. There would inevitably be people wanting to be my ¡®therapists¡¯ just for the fame and wouldn¡¯t even have the qualifications.


    And I couldn¡¯t realistically pick out individual people in chat and vet them myself.


    I stopped and frowned.


    ¡­Actually, I could. I just had to spend five skill points.


    <u>Stream overseer</u> - Reserve half of your Intra to become capable of reading and processing everything happening in the stream¡¯s chat.


    ¡­Should I? Was it worth it? Turning myself into some kind of supercomputer still felt kind of disturbing, though.


    Who was I kidding? I was going to get that skill eventually anyway, wasn¡¯t I? I had plenty of points right now, so might as well just get it now to start getting used to it as soon as possible.


    Speaking of skill points, I¡¯d gotten an achievement before the whole¡­ murder rage thing happened, hadn¡¯t I?


    What was it again¡­? Oh, this one.


    <u>Meh, don¡¯t need it</u> - Completely ignore a floor reward chest. [COMPLETE]


    Right, yeah. I had done that. Kind of forgotten there was an achievement for that.


    Aaand I was distracting myself again.


    ¡°So yeah. Need a therapist, chat,¡± I concluded lamely. ¡°I might actually get the Stream overseer just to chat with different people, actually.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> don¡¯t know about that Nana


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I thought you didn¡¯t want to become a supercomputer


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop¡­ (¤Å?? ? ??)¤Å


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> that really doesn¡¯t sound like a good idea


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> meh shrinks are overrated


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh hell yeah galaxy brain time


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you do need a therapist I agree


    ¡°I mean¡­ I probably need to get all tier two Streamer upgrades to unlock the next tier again, right?¡± I explained. ¡°And¡­ Well, since tier two allows calls, the higher tiers might have stuff like video calls¡­¡± I trailed off as I thought about it. ¡°...Which would mean that I could at least see back to Earth. Heck, maybe I¡¯ll even end up getting something that lets me summon people here! So¡­ Yeah. If I want that, I¡¯m gonna need to get the overseer at some point anyway.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I don¡¯t like how that logic makes sense


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I don¡¯t wanna stop you from keeping yourself sane though¡­


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> it could be a trap though


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> you don¡¯t need to get all the upgrades


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> it wants you to think you do


    I groaned.


    ¡°I mean, you¡¯re right, Mike. It could be a trap but¡­ I just¡­ I still need a therapist. And having Stream Overseer will help me find one. That ought to offset this, right?¡±


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> becoming less human isn¡¯t


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> could you turn it off later?


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> we can find you one


    I grimaced at Mike¡¯s comment.


    ¡°Being human is overrated,¡± I murmured before raising my voice. ¡°I¡¯m already part phoenix or something, right? It¡¯s gonna be fine! And, no. I don¡¯t think I can, Ebi. It¡¯s like the stream itself. Can¡¯t turn it off¡­ except for when I play ads, I guess.¡±


    <u>Purchase the [Streamer] skill upgrade [Stream Overseer] for 5 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> please reconsider


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> b-bloop (?¨®©n¨°?)


    I pursed my lips.


    Was I making another rash mistake here¡­? I was going to get this eventually anyway, wasn¡¯t I? Even if I didn¡¯t need it to unlock the next tier, it would just keep taunting me in the back of my mind.


    No, it was gonna be fine. None of the skills and upgrades had ever actually hurt me. Sure, I still wasn¡¯t thrilled that the system apparently read my mind, but other than that, it had never hurt me when I took care not to run out of Ether or Intra.


    Why would it even give me a special skill that could be upgraded into something that screwed with me and couldn¡¯t be reversed anyway?


    I hesitated for one more second before finally pressing it.


    <u>¡®Stream Overseer¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    The moment that little window appeared, I felt a huge pressure in my head as a massive barrage of information poured in.


    ¡°Oh, what the¡­¡±


    I could see everything. I could perceive everything. All the hundreds of messages being posted in the main chat every second. I could read them, evaluate them, form an opinion on them, and join the information I got from them with my greater consciousness.


    Every. Single. Message.


    It was both incredibly overwhelming, while at the same time, I had no problems at all perceiving it all. I could successfully absorb all the information and even read old messages ¨C all the old messages ¨C but it was just so much information coming in so quickly that my main thought process kept trying to go in one direction, then stuttered, then went in an entirely different direction.


    In other words, it was immensely distracting.


    And holy crap, I hadn¡¯t realized just how much spam there was in chat.


    People were posting links to random websites, advertising all sorts of things, flooding it with emojis, flooding it with ASCII art, sending generic copypastas, trying to threaten me, trying to flirt with me, trying to sexualize me, proposing to me, saying that they made a grave for me, cussing me out angrily, cussing me out in a suggestive way, reprimanding me for being inappropriate, goading me to be more degenerate, worshiping me, praying to me, saying that I was a goddess, saying that I was the devil, saying that they had sacrificed a goat for me, saying that they want my blessing for their upcoming marriage, calling me a menace to society, begging me to invite them to the group chats, complaining about not being invited to the group chats, threatening my group chat members, begging my group chat members to convince me to invite them, saying that life has no meaning and that they want to die, saying that they didn¡¯t want to be invited to the group chats anyway, saying hi, saying overly ominous things, posting riddles, pretending to be the phoenix, pretending to be the fate weaver, pretending to be me from the future, pretending to be my subconscious mind, pretending to be my sister, pretending to be my mother or father, pretending to be my long-lost brother, pretending to be my daughter from the future, pretending to be Ebiko who lost the password to her main account, wanting to buy my magical items off of me, wanting to hire me to kill someone when I return to Earth, telling me what skills to get, telling me what skills to avoid, complaining about the system in this world, praising the system in this world, suggesting what achievements I should try to complete next, commenting on how much spam there was, telling everyone else to shut up, inviting me to a talk show, inviting me to an interview, asking me if I planned on taking over the world if I returned to Earth, telling me to try lucid dreaming, asking me if I was okay with fanart, saying that they¡¯ve done fanart of me, saying that they made rule 34 fanart of me, apologizing to me, telling me to apologize to them, saying that they made an animated video recreation of my second floor water park dungeon boss fight, trying to hire me, asking for personal information, asking me if I was feeling okay, asking me to take a closer look at the plants and trees, asking me to analyze the rocks on this planet more, asking me to look at the night sky to see if they could see any recognizable constellations, asking me to drop a rock from a high place to calculate the strength of the gravitational pull of this planet, asking me to create a simple pendulum to calculate the strength of the gravitational pull of this planet, telling me to set up a trap for an animal and then leave it to see if it catches anything, telling me that they wanted to be my therapist, celebrating my survival, being annoyed that I¡¯d survived, celebrating my death, mourning my death, trying to decipher the written language of the world, trying to compare the spoken language of the world to Earth languages, threatening to kill my sister, threatening to seduce my sister, calling me transphobic slurs, saying that I was brave for being trans, saying that it was really cool that I was trans and that they are also trans, asking what it meant to be trans, asking if I was trans, calling me a pervert, advising me on which way to go, being delighted by the ads, being annoyed by the ads, saying that I was a sellout, theorizing about the phoenix and the fate weaver, theorizing about what other skills I would unlock, telling me to shoot the resetting dungeon with my gun, telling me to drink the death water, telling me to spit in the death water, telling me to piss in the death water, telling me to shoot the death water with my gun, narrating my fights like a sports commentator, reprimanding me for fighting bad, suggesting better ways to fight, being weirded out by the space-warping dungeon, being delighted by the space-warping dungeon, telling me that they¡¯d started a blog to document my journey, asking me how I¡¯d created the special website, asking how I¡¯d hacked the Snitch servers, asking what the point of this ARG was, asking what this stream was about, being annoyed that I¡¯d left the stream running when going to sleep, saying creepy things about my sleeping noises, being jealous that I didn¡¯t have to deal with insects, wondering where the animals were, wondering how the spaceship had been built¨C


    Stolen novel; please report.


    A sudden clicking noise shook me out of my thoughts. Oh, there were still tsunamis of information actively flooding my mind, but I was no longer focused on all of that. Instead, my head snapped up and at the door leading out of this room.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡± I blinked at the door. ¡°Huh?¡±


    What had happened? Had the dungeon locked me in? What the heck?


    ¡°...Hello?¡± I called out as I scrambled to stand, alarmed.


    I was still somewhat paying attention to the entirety of chat, although now I was ignoring the vast majority of it again, focused on the present.


    I did notice people in the group chat sending messages and let my mind process them though.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> I told you it would be bad<u>


    KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana you¡¯re back!


    ¡°Sorry, everyone. I got a bit lost in the¡­ everything,¡± I murmured while keeping my eye on the door and my surroundings. I didn¡¯t need to flick my eyes to the group chat anymore.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop¡­? (¨®©n¨°?)


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> damn I thought you were braindead again


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> galaxy brain successfully integrated?


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, don¡¯t worry¡­ Well, except all the creative slurs and insults I just read. I could have done without all of that,¡± I said with a grimace. ¡°Anyone know what happened? With the door? Oh and how long was I out?¡±


    To my surprise, before anyone in my group chats could answer, several people in the main chat had already posted all that information and I couldn¡¯t help but integrate it since I needed it anyway.


    But then I automatically began integrating the messages near it and¨C


    I shook my head and forced myself to focus as I shut it all out again.


    ¡°An hour? Damn, I didn¡¯t even realize. The door clicked exactly an hour after I entered the room, huh¡­? That¡¯s probably significant, yeah.¡±


    Someone reminded me of the chest the archer had dropped and I turned to see that it was still there. I was about to just walk up and open it when several people reminded me of mimics, so I once again took the water gun out of my backpack and shot the chest.


    ¡°Not a mimic! Nice!¡± I cheered after the chest tumbled and stopped without showing any signs of life.


    Of course, there were still people thinking it could totally be a mimic, and then some other people telling me I was stupid for always checking, and then more people wonder what the loot would be, and then others who¨C


    I shut it down again.


    God dammit, this was so distracting. Ugh¡­ I needed to learn how to manage my own thoughts now, didn¡¯t I? Fuck, that was so weird.


    Why had I bought this upgrade again? I¡¯d completely forgotten.


    Anyway. Loot.


    I popped the chest open and blinked in surprise at the beautiful bow laying inside. I immediately appraised it.


    <u>Infused emerald bow</u>


    A flexible emerald bow infused with some Ether.


    How did that work, exactly? How could emerald be flexible?


    I didn¡¯t ponder on it too much and just shoved the bow into my backpack. Chat was already speculating on what I could do with the bow and how it was flexible.


    I vehemently ignored it lest I got distracted again.


    ¡°Huh, you¡¯re right. My stuff isn¡¯t here either¡­ Dammit, do I have to clear the whole dungeon to get it back? I really hope not¡­ Hmm, you think there¡¯s some kind of graveyard area where all the lost stuff is? Ugh, don¡¯t say that! I don¡¯t wanna find dead adventurer corpses!¡±


    Once again, I forced myself to stop paying attention to chat and walked over to the door as the chest vanished into smoke.


    ¡°Okay, door. I really hope you didn¡¯t lock me in for the funzies. That would suck¡­ Mm, yeah it could be that the dungeon reset, we¡¯ll have to see¡­¡±


    I was about to reply to yet another chatter when I once again reminded myself to stop getting distracted.


    I slowly approached the door, wary of something jumping ¨C ugh, I hoped the archer didn¡¯t respawn ¨C placed my hand on the handle, and then opened it.


    It led back into the city.


    I frowned.


    Listening to an errant suggestion from a chatter ¨C and ignoring the others ¨C I closed the door again, thought about continuing the dungeon, and opened it again.


    The dining room greeted me on the other side of the door this time.


    I stared at it for a second and then sighed.


    ¡°Looks like the dungeon really did reset,¡± I murmured as a flood of disappointment and cussing me out for missing it flooded chat.


    I tuned it out.


    ¡°Okay, so¡­ In other words. This dungeon is a timed boss rush gauntlet of sorts. I have to beat one boss after the other without leaving the dungeon and without taking too long.¡±


    I groaned and shook my head.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not doing this right now, chat. That¡¯s way too dangerous. Especially because I get locked into the fights and can¡¯t run from them. I don¡¯t even know how long it is. It could be five fights or it could be fifty.¡±


    I ignored all the complainers and instead focused back on my good old group chats.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> yeah this dungeon is a terrible trap<u>


    KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you sure you¡¯re okay?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re spacing out


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine! Don¡¯t worry, Ebi!¡± I said as I closed the door and reopened it back into the city again. I walked through. ¡°There¡¯s just a lot I can perceive now, you know? It¡¯s¡­ very distracting. But I¡¯m learning how to manage it!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> if you say so¡­


    I bopped my head as I made my way out of the dungeon. Some people were asking how exactly the Stream Overseer worked and although I was still trying to figure it out, I had a general idea.


    ¡°Yeah, so¡­ It¡¯s like I have hundreds¡­ or even thousands of thought processes going on at the same time now. It constantly changes and is pretty hard to tell how many it is¡­¡± I paused and frowned. ¡°Actually, I would have thought I would have a lot more¡­ Oh, yeah, you¡¯re right PigMe, it¡¯s probably because my Intra is limited.¡±


    Aaand I was getting distracted again, great.


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Anyway,¡± I said as I stepped out of the dungeon and felt the relief wash over me. ¡°One of these thought processes is the main one. The one I always had, right? Me, basically. It¡¯s more advanced than all the other ones. And then the other ones each attach themselves to an individual message from chat, analyze it, and think about it, before sending that info back to my main thought process.¡±


    Which¡­ really did sound like some kind of computer system, didn¡¯t it? Like I was some kind of server.


    Well, I shouldn¡¯t think too hard about that.


    ¡°So like, at first, they sent everything back and my main thought process got completely overwhelmed by all the information. That¡¯s why I froze up like that,¡± I said with a grimace as I slowly made my way back to my base.


    ¡°Which is obviously super dangerous since only my main thought process can pay attention to my surroundings. So I figured out how to¡­ decline the information they send¡­? Or rather, I tell them what information they should send and what they should keep to themselves.¡±


    Oh fuck, now I was talking about the other thought branches like they were different people. Was I going to get some kind of split personality syndrome?


    Dammit, which chatter had said that? Now I was concerned.


    I took a deep breath and once again blocked it all.


    ¡°But¡­ apparently, sometimes they think some information is very important or too shocking not to know, so they send me that information anyway even if I told them not to.¡±


    I opened my crappy door and shuffled inside my shelter.


    ¡°So¡­ I¡¯m going to need to learn how to¡­ Err, manage my own thoughts? Manage my thought branches? Whatever you wanna call it.¡± I grimaced. ¡°Don¡¯t call them my kids! Or brain cells. Mini-mes? Eh, I guess¡­?¡±


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Anyway! Chat! You¡¯ve been¡­ seriously nasty! I had a way to ban people for a while now, but I couldn¡¯t do much since there was so much going on, but¨C¡± I summoned John and had him look at my evil grin shaded by my shelter. ¡°¨Cnow I can.¡±


    I let out an evil chuckle as some chatters began to panic.


    ¡°And guess what? My thought processes have access to the banning function, so this is going to go very quickly!¡± I grinned wider. ¡°It¡¯s banning time, chat! Thank you for volunteering to serve as a training ground for managing my thought branches!¡± I paused and hummed. ¡°Forks is a good name for them, I guess¡­ Wait, that¡¯s a programming term? Dammit, don¡¯t compare me to an AI!¡±


    I spent the rest of the day moderating my chat and learning how to¡­ exist now.


    At some point, I inevitably realized that in the span of a mere hour, I had probably changed more than in all of my other days in this world just from the sheer amount of information I¡¯d absorbed.


    I didn¡¯t dwell on it too much.

 #072 - No more distractions, time to make progress!

    ¡°Yeah, well¡­ I guess I was still really really angry with her so¡­¡± I awkwardly admitted.


    ¡°That¡¯s understandable, considering what you¡¯ve been through,¡± Jane, my therapist, told me over the voice call.


    Miraculously, I had actually remembered the reason why I¡¯d gotten the Stream Overseer upgrade yesterday and decided to open a few dozen private chats with each of the therapists who had come by the stream to vet them.


    It took me a hot minute before I figured out how to properly micromanage it, but eventually, I was able to hold dozens of conversations over DMs at the same time, as long as I focused on separating what information belonged to what chat in my main thought process.


    Jane had struck me as someone professional, with plenty of experience, yet genuinely trying to help. In fact, when I¡¯d asked her, she¡¯d told me that she¡¯d gone down this career path with the sole purpose of helping people.


    Obviously, she could have been lying, but so far, I had no reason to believe that.


    ¡°Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± I hesitated. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ about the Stream Overseer¡­ I guess.¡±


    ¡°Mmm, I understand that it worries you?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡­ I don¡¯t know. It¡¯s like¡­ I¡¯m less human now? I don¡¯t even know if I can say that considering I could already breathe fire and whatnot, but¡­ yeah. I feel like¡­ like I¡¯ve changed something fundamental about myself¡­¡±


    I hadn¡¯t had a lot of time to actually think about the implications, what with my stream chat constantly flooded, but the thought had been in the back of my mind since I¡¯d gotten the skill upgrade.


    Sure, my status screen insisted on labeling me as human, but was that still true? What did it even mean to be a human? Was it even important at all? Was I just overreacting?


    Despite only talking to Jane for about an hour after I¡¯d had my breakfast, I felt like she helped quite a bit with my perspective on things.


    Like assuring me that ¡®humanity¡¯ is subjective, and that the important thing was sticking to my ideals and moral values.


    Even as we talked, I had a hard time not getting constantly distracted by something from the chat though. Even with John a fair distance away, looking at a rock, people were relentless with their spam.


    Luckily, yesterday¡¯s banning spree had helped me a ton to learn how to properly manage my thought ¡®forks¡¯. And although I was still struggling at times, I probably didn¡¯t need to be worried about suddenly locking up like I had the first time.


    I just had to be careful not to get distracted by something in the middle of a fight. That could be deadly.


    ¡°See you later, Nana. I look forward to our next session.¡±


    ¡°See you, Jane!¡± I smiled and waved even though she couldn¡¯t see it and the call then cut off.


    I took a deep breath and exhaled.


    Yup, I really needed that. I felt so much lighter and less anxious about everything now. Sure, I was still worried, but now it at least felt like I could handle things. And if I couldn¡¯t¡­ Well, then I could ask for help. Things didn¡¯t have to feel so overwhelming anymore.


    Therapy was good.


    ¡°Alright¡­ Better get started then.¡±


    I left my crappy little shelter, stretched, took a peek at what chat was saying, grimaced, banned a few people, and then walked near John to stick my hands into his point of view to count down again.


    ¡°Goooood mooorning, my precious little Aquamarines! It¡¯s me! Aoto Nana, your favorite galaxy brain girl!¡±


    I giggled.


    ¡°For those who don¡¯t know, I finally got the Stream Overseer upgrade yesterday, and that means that I can finally read all of your degenerate messages even if they come in faster than a normal human could handle. Truly, a worthy use of inhuman processing power.¡±


    I smirked.


    ¡°Yes, that includes even your messages, JanitorSlayer54. Keep your nasty comments to yourself, okay?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Anywho, we went to the dungeon yesterday and got back to the archer, whom I¡­ uh, decimated. Not important. What I¡¯m trying to get at is that my stuff wasn¡¯t there.¡±


    I grunted in annoyance.


    ¡°Some people suggested I try to think about some kind of lost and found room when I open a door, so that¡¯s what I¡¯m going to try today. Although, if that doesn¡¯t work, well¡­ I guess I¡¯ll just have to live without my beloved bucket.¡±


    I pouted.


    ¡°The map was cool too and I¡¯ll definitely miss my naginata even if it wasn¡¯t as useful in that dungeon¡­ But, well. I can make do without all that stuff. I have backup weapons and more Ether to work with now, after all.


    ¡°But! I¡¯m not going to try and beat the dungeon right now. Nope, not happening. First, I¡¯m going to stop getting distracted and actually continue on my way to that tall building I saw before. I¡¯ll need to cross the river for that, which should hopefully be easier with my new innate skills, and then we¡¯ll beeline it straight there. And once I¡¯m there¡­? Well, hopefully it¡¯s not just another dungeon.¡±


    I paused and pursed my lips.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s probably going to be a dungeon in the end as well, but a girl can dream, okay¡­? Anyway. One last thing that I keep forgetting about. Quests!¡±


    I clapped my hands and brought up the quest screen as I dismissed John.


    ¡°I completed the good night¡¯s sleep one with my absolutely awesome base over there.¡± I gestured at my crappy shelter. ¡°And that now leaves me with two open slots for more quests. Might as well accept some of them. Sure, I might fail them, but so far, it hasn¡¯t been a problem. So¡­ let¡¯s see what quests we get this time!¡±


    <u>Generating new quests, please wait¡­</u>


    While the system did that, I picked myself up and began walking toward the city dungeon again while interacting with chat. The whole chat now, not just a few select people. Although, obviously, I only had one mouth, so I often just sent direct messages to some of them instead.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Just as I arrived at the city gates, the quests finished generating.


    <u>New quests generated:


    </u><u>Variety dungeoneer (side quest)


    Lost and found (side quest)


    Mysterious structure (side quest)


    Follow the stream (side quest)</u>


    ¡°Okaaay! Three new quests and one repeat. What do we have?¡±


    <u>Lost and found:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 59m, 43s )<u>


    </u>A dungeon ate your precious items. Get them back!


    <u>Rewards</u> - 2SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 4SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (10 days)


    Decline</u>


    I narrowed my eyes.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s convenient. That¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m about to do¡­ Except the system believes it might take me ten whole days even though I¡¯m right here already¡­?¡±


    That was one of the things chat had noticed with the quests. They tended to give me an ample amount of time to actually complete them, but never an excess amount of time. Generally speaking, as long as I actively worked on the quest, I would probably succeed.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> sounds fishy


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> don¡¯t trust it


    ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t. Hmm? You think I might need to beat the whole dungeon to get my stuff back? Or do some kind of extra challenge for it? Ugh, I hope not. That would just be mean¡­ Let¡¯s shelve this one for now.¡±


    <u>Mysterious structure:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 57m, 58s )<u>


    </u>You noticed a strange building out in the distance. Travel to it and figure out what it is.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 2SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (3 days)


    Decline</u>


    ¡°Oh, hey. I was gonna do that anyway. Probably why the duration is so short and the rewards so paltry, huh? Eh, it¡¯s still free skill points I guess. What¡¯s the last one?¡±


    <u>Follow the stream:


    </u>(Time left: 2h, 57m, 46s )<u>


    </u>You found a river in this desolate world. If you follow it, you¡¯ll inevitably find the ocean and perhaps something more¡­


    <u>Rewards</u> - 3SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 5SP debt


    <u>Accept as Side quest (21 days)


    Decline</u>


    I narrowed my eyes.


    ¡°Hold on¡­ Is the system literally telling me that there¡¯s cool stuff on the coast¡­? Or is this bait? Either way, wow. It¡¯s probably really far away if the time limit is this high.¡±


    Probably at least a few days of non-stop walking. I wasn¡¯t looking forward to when I would inevitably have to do that¡­


    Because if there really was something on the coast, then I probably would.


    <u>Irid123:</u> finally more lore?


    ¡°Eh, I guess I can try finding the ocean at some point if I start getting desperate for more clues. For now, I¡¯m going toward the tower anyway, so¡­¡±


    <u>¡®</u><u>Mysterious structure¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Travel to the mysterious structure in the distance.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Explore the mysterious structure.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 1SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 2SP


    ¡°Huh. Well, I was going to explore it anyway.¡± I paused. ¡°Unless it¡¯s like a super difficult dungeon, I guess¡­ Ugh, it¡¯s going to be a super difficult dungeon, isn¡¯t it? That¡¯s why it¡¯s a side objective at all!¡±


    I grumbled to myself.


    ¡°Whatever¡­¡±


    From the remaining three quests, I wasn¡¯t entirely sure which one to pick. Obviously, if I could get my stuff back, I would pick that one, but my hopes weren¡¯t too high.


    Speaking of¡­


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see if there¡¯s an easy way out here then, chat!¡±


    I entered the dungeon, ignoring the rush of feelings, and headed straight for the guardhouse again.


    ¡°Open¨C¡± I wished really hard to get into the lost items vault and get my stuff back. ¡°¨Csesame!¡±


    I wrenched the door open and stared inside with wide eyes.


    Then I deflated with a groan.


    It was just the stupid dining room.


    ¡°Dammit¡­ Yeah, I guess the dungeon is literally telling me to come beat it to get my stuff back, isn¡¯t it?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Oh, well. I tried. I guess I¡¯ll have to come back for this later.¡±


    I closed the door again, narrowed my eyes, and looked into the distance at the castle on the other side of the city.


    ¡°Wait for me, bucket¡­ I will rescue you one day,¡± I whispered in a dramatic tone.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> im sorry nana your bucket is in another castle


    I snorted.


    ¡°It better not have teleported my stuff to an entirely different dungeon. That would suck.¡± I huffed. ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯m done here for the moment¡­ No, I¡¯m not going to try and speedrun this place, ugh. I can barely beat the third enemy.¡±


    I shook my head with a sigh.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here, chat. Time to finally cross that river.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> finally progress!


    I felt the relief wash over me as I exited the dungeon again, and then finally, after a whole week of loitering around this place, I set off, following the river upstream once more.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> rip shelter


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I waved my hand. ¡°I can just set up a new one if I run into another dungeon¡­ Actually, that¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m going to do from now on. If I find a new dungeon, I¡¯ll make a basic shelter somewhere nearby just in case.¡±


    Although, in hindsight, staying in the city part of the dungeon would have probably been safe. Unless there was a second time limit, after the reset one, that kicked me out completely or something.


    Well, better safe than sorry. For instance, I very much doubted the spaceship dungeon would have been safe to sleep in at all.


    After about an hour of walking, I reached a spot where the river felt calm enough for me to finally try and cross it.


    Sure, I could have done it at an earlier part of the river, but again. Better safe than sorry. I was not going to take unnecessary risks again and end up sick or injured for days out here in the wilderness.


    ¡°Alright, chat! Let¡¯s finally cross this thing!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> human skipping stone lets gooo


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> goggles


    I ignored George and nodded to Jeoff¡¯s comment.


    ¡°Yeah, I was going to do just that,¡± I said as I pulled out the goggles out of my backpack and put them on.


    I walked down the river bank, glanced around the rushing river nervously, and then dipped my toe into the water.


    It felt like sticking my toe in front of a running fan.


    I nodded to myself and then finally stepped into the river entirely. The stream kept wanting to blow me downstream, but I took my time and carefully stepped forward, slowly sinking my legs, my torso, and finally my head. Subtle use of hydrokinesis also helped with not getting swept away.


    Water filled my lungs, but it felt like air.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> This will never not be weird.


    Still, it was nice that I could still communicate with chat this way even if I couldn¡¯t talk.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Okay. Time to finally test this skill!


    I concentrated and mentally prodded the complex structure in my mind tied to the part of me that was shaped like clothes.


    It was by far the most complex skill I¡¯d ever had access to. Parts of it felt similar to Quick Fetch and others were kind of like Hydrokinesis, but as a whole, it would be like comparing a rocket engine to a car.


    I wasn¡¯t entirely sure how it worked in detail, but I didn¡¯t need to know that to use the skill.


    I glanced into the distance at the other side of the river, concentrated again, and then flipped the mental switch to use the skill.


    The following sensation made me feel like I was riding inside dozens of different roller coaster carts at the same time and they were all going in different directions. All while underwater.


    I inevitably stumbled and fell on my face when I finally arrived at the end of that teleport and couldn¡¯t stay on my feet because of the currents.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Ow.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> That was not pleasant.


    I rubbed my forehead, focused on hydrokinesis to ease the current¡¯s effects on me, and stood up at the bottom of the river again.


    <u>Irid123:</u> you alright?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> that was trippy


    <u>AotoNana:</u> I¡¯m fine.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> I just didn¡¯t expect it to feel so weird.


    I glanced around and spotted the place I¡¯d wanted to use to climb out of here. From then on, it was a little awkward, but I managed to successfully clamber out of the river and onto dry land.


    As soon as I did, I coughed up the water that was still in my lungs, took off the goggles, stood up, and looked behind me.


    Since there were people suggesting that I¡¯d mixed up my directions and came out on the same side I¡¯d started, I squinted my eyes and quickly found the tree on the other side of the river I¡¯d marked with my crappy knife.


    ¡°All good, chat! We¡¯re finally across the river! Let¡¯s get going now!¡±


    Finally, after over a week, I began walking downstream, toward the mysterious building again, silently hoping that it was more than just another dungeon.

 #073 - One’s a fantasy wasteland, the other is a corporate one

    Not even a few hours later after crossing the river, I climbed up a tree and set out John above me to take a better look. To my surprise, the ¡®mysterious¡¯ structure was already visible from where I was.


    Odd. Hadn¡¯t it taken me a whole day to get to the city dungeon from when I¡¯d first reached the river?


    Ah, right. I had grown more since then because of the blessing, so my pace was probably faster now.


    Actually, did being sick for the vast majority of that stunt my growth somehow¡­? Or had the blessing somehow made up for that? How did it even work?


    I shook my head.


    Not important. If I grew up to be a midget, I would deal with it then. There would probably be all sorts of magical items that would make me taller anyway, from the ads we¡¯d seen so far.


    I jumped down from my perch on the tree and recalled John before continuing my journey.


    As I walked, I continued to talk to everyone in the stream chat. I was getting pretty good at holding multiple conversations at once, actually. I also figured out a system that allowed me to still talk to everyone without constantly changing what I was talking about by having my forks only ping me when they happened to be having a conversation about something related to what I was already talking about out loud.


    Well, okay, it still probably sounded like I was constantly getting distracted, but honestly? I didn¡¯t think I could really help that anymore. This was just my life now.


    One of the conversations I was having included deciding what to do with my leftover skill points. I still had seven of them and could get a bunch of different stuff. However, most people in the fighting group chat agreed that it would be for the best if I got the upgrade Dual Wield for my Soulbound Item skill and then created the ultimate weapon to go along with my armor.


    The only problem was that the weapon I would have soulbound for that would have probably been the naginata¡­ or the unfused sword. I didn¡¯t want to soulbind the mace since it was so crappy and I wanted to have the option to unfuse the pan for when I inevitably needed to get my egg back. Not to mention, having a pan as my main weapon would be¡­ pretty silly. And as funny as that would be, I had already decided to take this seriously.


    So in short, I either needed to wait till I went back to the city dungeon and somehow got my stuff back, or I needed to get a new decent-ish weapon I could use as the base for my Ultimate Fusion.


    And for that, I probably needed to raid a dungeon again. Unless I tried to learn blacksmithing myself. Which¡­ sounded pretty cool, actually. But in no way practical, since I would have to not only get the metals from somewhere, I would also need to create tools for everything first.


    A couple more hours later and I began to get close enough to the mysterious structure to be able to sort of tell what it was.


    ¡°...It¡¯s¡­ an office building?¡± I said as I stared incredulously at John¡¯s feed.


    Block-shaped, many stories high, featuring large windows on every floor¡­ Yep, that was an office building. And it felt incredibly out of place. Especially since it didn¡¯t seem worn down or decrepit at all.


    I grimaced and made John come back down to look at me. I stared at the invisible camera for a second, looking put out.


    ¡°...The water park was in perfect condition, too. Why do I get the feeling that that thing¡¯s a Tempor dungeon?¡± I sighed as various comments of agreement and disagreement streamed through chat. ¡°Or some other type of dungeon, yeah. But I doubt it¡¯s an actual office building.¡± I snorted and rolled my eyes. ¡°Ah, yes. You¡¯re right. Not even an apocalypse could destroy the demon that is overtime office work.¡±


    I continued talking to chat for a bit longer before a comment from someone caught my attention and I focused on it with my main thought process.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> there¡¯s something shiny


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> blue


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> to your left


    ¡°Shiny?¡± I murmured and directed John to turn.


    Sure enough, there really was something cyan visible beyond the trees that stood out from its surroundings. A large field of it. There were also some large spike-shaped structures jutting diagonally out of it. Half of them black, the other half deep blue. It was hard to see since it was pretty far away, though.


    ¡°Uh, what the heck is that?¡± I asked, but part of me began to feel excited. ¡°It looks kinda weird and¡­ both natural and unnatural at the same time¡­?¡±


    It was new stuff and that was what really mattered here. After having experienced hours of boring walking, I couldn¡¯t help but grin in anticipation.


    ¡°Another dungeon, you think? But this one looks completely different¡­ Yeah, the others were ruins or buildings. This¡­ Hmm. I know I said I wouldn¡¯t make any detours, buuutt it¡¯s basically on the way, so I might as well check it out, right?¡±


    Most people in chat were in favor, even if some of them called me lazy and a quitter.


    ¡°I¡¯m not giving up on getting to the building! I just wanna check this out!¡± I huffed. ¡°Yeah yeah, silly distractible Vcuber wants to check out the shiny thing. Shut it!¡±


    I recalled John, jumped down from my perch on the tree to continue walking, marked a nearby tree again, and then set off toward where the strange new structure lay.


    Stolen story; please report.


    I soon began to see something deep blue behind the trees and as I got closer and closer, chat began to recognize it as a¡­ gemstone. An absolutely giant piece of gemstone. Kinda reminiscent of a sapphire, but not quite, according to them. Maybe some kind of sapphire equivalent of this world, just like the infused emerald.


    A few minutes later and I was gaping at the giant piece of not-sapphire spike jutting out of the ground, surrounded by the cyan crystals all around the place. One step to the side to look beyond the spike and I couldn¡¯t help but stand there with eyes wide open.


    There was a¡­ crater of sorts. The ground inside it was covered in these cyan crystals, forming wild structures in places. The entire crater was surrounded by these sapphire spikes on one side, and the black spikes ¨C that kind of looked like flames frozen in time ¨C on the other side. There were also a handful of lava lakes all over the massive crater and straight in the middle, a hole.


    ¡°...Well¡­ This is¡­ different,¡± I managed to say, still gaping at the view.


    Since a lot of people were suggesting it, I looked back at the sapphire spike and shot Appraisal at it.


    <u>Sapphire spire


    </u>An object frozen by a Sapphire Gorgon.


    ¡°A¡­Sapphire Gorgon,¡± I said, my eyes widening at the implications. ¡°O-kaaay¡­ Gorgons are Medusas, right? Or Medusa was a Gorgon. Stone gaze lady. Yeah. Is this telling me that a Sapphire Gorgon turned something into¨C¡± I waved my hand at the giant spike. ¡°¨Cthis?!¡±


    Or rather, the implications here were quite clear, weren''t they?


    ¡°So this place is an aftermath of some epic battle, basically. Right, yeah. Gotcha. Is it a dungeon then?¡± I asked out loud as I stepped closer.


    The moment my foot touched the cyan crystal that covered the ground here, I felt the familiar chill go down my spine, and backed off again.


    ¡°Ah, yup. A dungeon,¡± I announced with a nod. ¡°But this one doesn¡¯t feel as bad as the city. I think it¡¯s the same level as the water park¡­?¡±


    It had been a few days since I¡¯d been there so it was hard to compare, but it felt about right.


    ¡°Right, so probably a D-rank dungeon¡­ Yeah, if I¡¯m going to have to clear more dungeons, I¡¯ll probably start with this one, unless there¡¯s an easier one somewhere nearby.¡±


    I was tempted to just jump right in, even if the place looked dangerous and quite alien. But no, I still needed to find out what the office building was about.


    Also, I had no idea what monsters might lurk inside that hole. What if one had a gaze that turned me into sapphire? How would I even defend against that? It was like the damn poison all over again.


    ¡°Nope, not gonna go in right away. I still gotta go to the office building.¡±


    So for like the first time in forever, I managed to resist the temptation to dive right in when faced with a shiny new thing and turned back.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> good choice


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you¡¯re finally learning!


    ¡°Don¡¯t say it like that! I can learn!¡± I said back, feeling a little insulted.


    Naturally, a wave of comments pointing out all the instances where I screwed up even though I should have known better by then flooded the chat right after I said that.


    I huffed.


    ¡°No bullying the streamer, chat! It¡¯s not fair when you gang up on me!¡± I let out a very childish whine. ¡°Stop babying me! I¡¯m an adult even if I look and sound like this now!¡±


    And like that, I continued toward the office building as I bickered with chat. Being bullied by chat was nothing new, after all. It was part of the Vcuber experience, more or less. And it did lift my mood just a little.


    Well, except for the few people who kept taking it too far and I had to ban them when telling them to stop it didn¡¯t work.


    Either way, after another hour, I made it all the way to the office building.


    It stood there all menacingly and I already felt a bit of trepidation. I did not like remembering my time in the office and sincerely hoped that if this was a dungeon, it wouldn¡¯t make me sit behind a computer all day to beat it.


    The whole building seemed to have a whopping thirty-one floors plus the ground floor. People were already arguing in the chat whether we could call it a skyscraper or not. Good to know they had their priorities straight.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Let¡¯s see, then.¡±


    I marched up to what had to be the front entrance with its fancy glass walls and an automatic door. To my surprise, the door actually opened for me, inviting me inside.


    I didn¡¯t trust it one bit, but figured that so far, every dungeon had warned me well in advance with the chilling feeling before any actual danger jumped out at me.


    So I took a step inside.


    The moment I did, I felt the absolute worst chill go down my spine alongside an overwhelming feeling of stress, exhaustion, depression, and nihilism.


    I immediately threw myself backwards out of the building and gasped for breath.


    All the chats immediately exploded, but I let my forks deal with it all while my main thought process focused on recovering from that, because what the fuck?!


    A full minute later, I finally picked myself up from the ground while continuing to slowly breathe in and out¡­


    ¡°...It¡¯s a dungeon, chat,¡± I said, probably completely unnecessarily. ¡°Probably an even harder dungeon than the spaceship, chat. And if I were to guess, it¡¯s the same type as the city. I felt¡­ ugh. So much stress.¡±


    I shook my head.


    It reminded me of being in the office. Was that the joke? Did this type of dungeon ¨C Intra, I assumed ¨C just overwhelm you with whatever feelings people had in there? The city had flooded me with pride and unity¡­ which I could definitely see if the city had been a tight community. Meanwhile, this stupid place flooded me with feelings I already associated with an office.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> rip quest?


    I opened the quest menu and saw that the main objective of travelling to the mysterious structure was already complete. Then I eyed the ¡®explore the mysterious building¡¯ side objective, deciding whether or not it would be worth it.


    It probably wouldn¡¯t.


    ¡°...Yeah, I think I¡¯ll leave this place for later, chat.¡±


    I sighed, feeling disappointed. I had really been hoping that this place would be something more than just another dungeon. And now I was faced with probably the hardest dungeon I had come across yet.


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Okay. Well, that sucks, but whatever.¡±


    I mentally clicked on the quest to complete it.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Mysterious structure¡¯ Side quest complete!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Travel to the mysterious structure in the distance. [ACHIEVED]<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Explore the mysterious structure. [FAILED]


    <u>Reward:</u>


    +1 SP


    ¡°Right, so¡­ We have three dungeons in the general area¡­ kinda. If my instincts are correct, the sapphire place is the easiest, the city is a bit harder, and this thing¨C¡± I pointed at the office building. ¡°¨Cis like way beyond me and I should stay the heck away. So! Plan of action. Go back to the sapphire place, set up a shelter nearby like last time, and then try to clear that place, since it¡¯s probably the easiest dungeon I have access to.¡±


    There was general agreement in chat; some people argued to go and get my stuff back from the city, and others goaded me to go explore the office building anyway.


    I banned the last group.


    Then I squinted up at the sky and found that I still had a couple of hours before the sun set. Probably just enough to get back to the other dungeon and set up a base.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s get going then.¡±


    I turned my back on the terrifying dungeon posing as an office building and left it behind.

 #074 - Why crabs though?

    <u>¡®</u><u>Variety dungeoneer¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Conquer at least one Intra and one Ether-based dungeon.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Complete the Intra-based dungeon in one attempt.


    Complete the Ether-based dungeon without any monsters respawning.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 4SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 6SP debt


    <u>¡®</u><u>Lost and found¡¯ Side quest accepted!


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Get your items back from the dungeon.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Complete the dungeon in one attempt.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 2SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 4SP debt


    I hummed as I stared at the newly accepted quests.


    ¡°As we thought¡­ I need to beat the city dungeon to get my stuff back¡­ But what is that about monsters respawning¡­? I guess each of the dungeon types has its own mechanics, huh?¡±


    After some discussion with chat, we¡¯d come to the conclusion that while the city and the office building were obviously Intra-based dungeons ¨C based on the whole emotion-flood thing ¨C the crystal crater and the spaceship were likely Ether-based dungeons, since they obviously had something very physical happen at them¡­ and also by the process of elimination.


    And since I was planning on conquering both the crystal crater and the city dungeons, and since I¡¯d been offered those two quests again this morning, I thought I might as well accept them.


    I had just ¡®started¡¯ the stream for the day after my breakfast, a therapy session with Jane, and some light exercise. A lot of people in chat theorized that exercising actually increased my Ether reserves, and while I had no way to easily prove or disprove it since it was hard to tell, I still did it just because¡­ you know, exercising is kinda important in general. But especially if I planned on fighting monsters all day.


    Speaking of which, I still felt nervous about trying to conquer another dungeon after that disaster with the city one. I was going to take some precautions this time. I didn¡¯t want to rush into danger like an idiot again.


    ¡°Anyone have any better ideas than to melt sand into glass¡­?¡± I asked as I made my way to the river both to refresh myself and to gather some water.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> might not help much anyway


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> glass is brittle


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s the problem, isn¡¯t it?¡± I grouched.


    How did one counter a Gorgon gaze without having to lug around a fragile object? The best answer we had right now was for me to use hydrokinesis and create a screen in front of myself using water, in just the right way that it reflected light.


    Which, as I found out when I¡¯d tried it, was incredibly difficult with my current hydrokinesis skills.


    ¡°...This is not gonna work, chat.¡±


    Not only did it take basically all of my main thought process¡¯ attention to maintain it, but I couldn¡¯t even properly keep it stable. The droplets kept moving around and creating holes in my water shield.


    Of course, I didn¡¯t know for sure whether I would have to deal with the classic Gorgon gaze in that dungeon ¨C or its sapphire edition, I guess¨C but I wasn¡¯t going to leave anything to chance, considering that it could very well end up with me instantly dead, turned into sapphire.


    ¡°Hmm, yeah, I guess my best counter would be to not look into their eyes, huh¡­? I don¡¯t like that, though. It¡¯s too risky.¡±


    Part of me thought I was being too paranoid, since this was a fairly low-level dungeon¡­ but the water park had also been a low-level dungeon and I¡¯d had to deal with a freaking cyber shark in a sextuple mirror room.


    So, no. Better to be overprepared than underprepared.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you can use ur turtle scout


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hide and send him forwrad


    I hummed and frowned.


    ¡°I guess I could use Gargles that way, yeah¡­ but probably not for long. I don¡¯t have that much more Intra, and I don¡¯t want to run out again.¡±


    But to be honest, I didn¡¯t have a better idea at the moment. Even with all the random stuff I¡¯d gotten from the dungeons, I still had nothing resembling a shield, much less a mirror shield. Obviously, I could make a crappy shield out of wood if I wanted to, but frankly speaking, that was a lot of effort for something that might break in one hit anyway.


    ¡°...Well, I guess I¡¯ll just have to take it slow then,¡± I finally said.


    After all, the Variety dungeoneer quest gave me a full sixty days and Lost and found gave me ten. And even then, it wouldn¡¯t be the end of the world even if I failed those quests.


    After all, the extra skill points were cool, but the number one priority was to stay alive.


    With that in mind, I walked back to the dungeon, pulled out my gun in my left hand, and my frying pan in my right ¨C yeah, laugh it up, jerks ¨C and plopped down Mr. Gargles. I concentrated on our connection and made him enter the dungeon first.


    Strangely enough, I still felt the chill-down-my-spine sensation second hand when he stepped over the boundary.


    ¡°...Okay, that¡¯s weird. Apparently, Mr. Gargles can feel entering a dungeon too,¡± I mumbled as I stepped in after him.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hes a real boi!


    ¡°The realest of boys,¡± I confirmed with a sage nod even as I slowly advanced, feeling the gleaming crystal under my feet.


    Even if it was visually very different, it felt very similar to my first jaunt into the spaceship dungeon. A large open area with seemingly no immediate dangers that just invited one to explore it. The hole in the middle especially looked like it was hiding treasures.


    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    Obviously, I knew better than that. As tempting as it was to go straight there, I decided to take things slow and first circle the perimeter to see if I could find anything of interest. All while constantly on the lookout for sudden monsters trying to ambush me and chests hidden in some of the crystalline formations.


    A few minutes of carefully prowling forward, Gargles stepped on a particular bump on the crystalline ground and as soon as he did, it began to move.


    I immediately made him jump back and held up my gun in anticipation.


    Weirdly enough, rather than something digging up through the crystal, it almost looked like it formed directly out of it through mitosis. It was pretty bizarre, but far from the weirdest thing I¡¯d seen in this world.


    It took about ten whole seconds for the thing to take the shape of a crab-like creature with glowing eyes ¨C that I pointedly reminded myself not to look into ¨C and then it immediately lunged at me.


    I fired my gun using its water setting without any preamble.


    The blast hit the crab thing and propelled it across the crystal fields. It bounced once, twice, and then finally landed in a broken heap with a glassy clatter. A few seconds later, it poofed into smoke.


    I was about to comment how easy that had been when three more of the same crabs began to form out of the ground where the first one had landed.


    ¡°Oh¡­ it¡¯s a minefield. Great.¡±


    I backed up a bit more, just so I could more easily run out of the dungeon if needed, and then began charging my gun on its plasma setting.


    Luckily for me, the crabs didn¡¯t seem to be the smartest and instead of spreading out to surround me, they all beelined straight toward me, grouping themselves up perfectly the next shot.


    I braced for the recoil and fired at the ground just in front of them with the liquid setting. The boom reverberated around me and the crystal under my feet trembled as the mass of plasma exploded right in front of the crabs and engulfed them all.


    A second later, as the plasma settled, I saw the three heaps of crystal submerged inside it. None of them were moving anymore, much less trying to charge me.


    They turned into smoke one by one.


    ¡°...Yeah, I guess this is a bit of an overkill, isn¡¯t it?¡± I admitted while glancing at my gun. ¡°Well, better safe than sorry.¡±


    To be fair, firing that gun wasn¡¯t that big of a drain on my Ether these days. I probably had four, maybe five more shots in me still. Although I should maybe still try to preserve it if I could.


    With that said, both my Ether and Intra levels still felt fine, so I kept going, with Mr. Gargles up front like before.


    I hadn¡¯t yet seen any chests like at the spaceship dungeon, but I was sure I would find some eventually. There weren¡¯t that many places where one could be hidden, after all.


    There was a suspicious crystalline overhang right next to a pool of lava that looked like it could be hiding something. Obviously, I was wary of falling into the lava, but that didn¡¯t mean I couldn¡¯t snoop around a little.


    As I got closer to it, still on guard from more crabs or other monsters, I got a repeat from before where Gargles stepped on a bump and a crab began to emerge from the ground.


    Since I already knew that they weren¡¯t that strong and I wanted to preserve my Ether if possible, I decided to instead charge forward and smack it over the head with my pan before it could finish forming.


    The resulting clank deafened me for a brief moment but it did its job, knocking the crab to the ground and sending a few shards of crystal flying.


    That might have been dangerous for me with how sharp they looked, but luckily, I barely felt the crystal shards as they slid off my amazing ultimate outfit.


    The crab wasn¡¯t dead yet though, so I took it upon myself to smash it with the pan a few more times. It only took five hits in total for the crab to stop struggling and poof into smoke.


    In the meantime, chat was laughing and memeing about fighting things with a pan. Someone even informed me that they would go ahead and make a funny gif with me smashing a crystal crab with a pan.


    I tried to scoff but failed and it turned into a giggle.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, chat. Pans are perfectly valid weapons. Especially ones that can spew fire.¡±


    Obviously, since I wanted to preserve Ether, I didn¡¯t want to use the fire, but there was always the option if I needed it.


    ¡°Hmm? Yeah, I guess this dungeon is quite a bit easier than the spaceship. Assuming that robot was just a common enemy and not a boss, I guess.¡±


    I ran into a couple more of these crystal crabs on my way to the overhang and easily took them all out with my trusty pan.


    When I approached the lava lake and took a look under the overhang, my eyes immediately zeroed in on the object innocently sitting on the small piece of land surrounded by lava on one side and cradled by the overhang on the other.


    ¡°Chat, look! A mimic!¡± I yelled and pointed at the cyan-blue crystalline chest.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> nana pls


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> just appraise it


    I did so.


    <u>D-rank dungeon chest


    </u>A loot chest containing random dungeon loot.


    D-rank. Just as I¡¯d thought¡­


    I hummed and rubbed my chin in an exaggerated way.


    ¡°Smart mimic. It can even trick my Appraisal.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> why are we doing this again


    ¡°But damn, how do I even get to it to smack it? I can¡¯t walk on lava!¡±


    I had some heat resistance from the blessing and my clothes, but I wasn¡¯t very eager to test whether it was enough to withstand that.


    Chat immediately came up with several solutions. Some maybe viable, some straight up suicidal.


    ¡°...Uh, no Brian. I don¡¯t think I can use Aquaport when in lava. And anyway, submerging myself in lava would probably maybe kinda sorta kill me, you know? Gonna shelve that plan, I think.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Eh, shooting my water gun into the lava and hopping on the resulting obsidian sounds cool, but I don¡¯t think that¡¯s gonna work either. You know, this world doesn¡¯t actually have video game physics, Herald.¡±


    There were a couple more insane plans like these, but I couldn¡¯t answer all of them out loud if I didn¡¯t want to be standing here all day, so I merely had my forks send them DMs and focused on potentially viable plans.


    ¡°Lemee look around if there¡¯s an opening in the overhang¡­¡±


    I approached the structure from the safe side, running into one more crab on the way, and searched for a good few minutes. Unfortunately, there were no openings. I could theoretically climb up and get on top of the overhang, but a drop from up there would land me straight into the lava pool. In theory, I could maybe try some acrobatic swing maneuver to land at the small island under the overhang where the chest was but¡­ if I missed, I was as good as dead.


    I sighed.


    ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll try Trixie¡¯s plan and hope it works.¡±


    Said plan involved me finding a spot from which I could shoot the chest with my water gun and launch it to the other side of the lava lake without snagging on the overhang. There was a spot like that, but it would be pretty tight and the chest might still land in the lava¡­ assuming the water gun had enough oomph to actually launch the chest and the chest wasn¡¯t bolted to the ground.


    This might also break whatever was inside the chest but¡­ I honestly didn¡¯t have any better plans that didn¡¯t involve recklessly jumping into danger again.


    ¡°I feel like a sniper, chat. Enemy spotted and all that.¡± I snickered as I lay down and took aim.. ¡°Take this, you filthy mimic!¡±


    I fired.


    The shot smacked into the chest with a bang and sent it tumbling through the air¡­ straight into the pool of lava.


    It kerplunked into it and disappeared under the surface.


    ¡­


    I stared at the lava lake for a moment while people cried their woes in the chat, telling me I should have done this or that instead, telling to go fish out the chest, telling me¨C


    ¡°...Mission success,¡± I announced with a satisfied nod. ¡°Mimic eliminated. No need to worry, chat. I have everything under control.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> bruh


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> don¡¯t pretend you planned that


    I ignored Jeoff and my own disappointment at losing the chest and got up again.


    ¡°Well, anyway. This dungeon isn¡¯t so bad so far¡­ I¡¯m not even sure if the crabs do actually have Gorgon gaze or whatever. I guess if this was the first dungeon I entered, I might have some trouble with it, but¡­ Eh. Not anymore than the water park.¡±


    A second after I said all of that, I realized that I was probably tempting fate and whatever I found next would make me regret my words.


    I shook my head to dismiss the thoughts.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep going then.¡±

 #075 - This feels a lot easier than the first dungeon

    I kept circling the dungeon¡¯s perimeter and eventually arrived at the half of the crater with the spires that looked like black fire stopped in time. Interestingly enough, Appraisal identified it as Sapphire spires, just like the blue structures on the other side.


    I tapped one with my pan just to see if it was safe to touch. When it clanked like it would against something made out of glass, I gingerly tried touching it with my own hand. It felt¡­ warm.


    ¡°Chat¡­ is this actual frozen fire¡­?¡± I asked, baffled. ¡°Or like¡­ sapphired fire? Damn¡­ That¡¯s gonna be the boss here, isn¡¯t it? The gorgon. Ugh¡­ I still don¡¯t have anything against it¡­¡±


    That was actually the main reason why I was so reluctant to rush straight into the hole despite easily being able to deal with the crabs so far. I was hoping I would find something around these parts that could help against a Gorgon¡¯s gaze. It was a bit of a stretch, but the water park had given me several items useful for dealing with its own challenges, like the goggles and the swimsuit, so I thought that this dungeon might do the same.


    To my delight, I did find another chest tucked away just out of sight between the frozen flames. Once I spotted it, it stood out like a sore thumb with its bright cyan coloring among the black flames.


    There was a lava lake relatively close and I didn¡¯t want to lose another chest though, so instead of sniping it with my gun, I simply smacked it over the lid with my pan.


    The clank echoed around me as chat flooded with the same onomatopoeia and other jokes. Of course, Jeoff was still whining how there were no mimics.


    ¡°Mimic. Neutralized,¡± I said in a low serious tone and then scoffed at the chest derisively.


    Before I could go and open it though, something moved in the corner of my eye and I immediately whirled around and fell back, ready to face the threat.


    To my surprise, it wasn¡¯t another crystal crab. Although it appeared similarly to them, this time, it was the black frozen flames that spat out the monster. And unlike them, it was pitch black and wriggling around like a living mass of darkness.


    ¡°What the fu¨C!¡± I shouted moments before I aimed my gun at the abomination and shot it dead.


    The black mass of¡­ stuff burst into pieces as the water bullet exploded and splattered all over its surroundings. A moment later, the pieces turned into smoke and vanished.


    I stood there for a moment, gaping at where the thing used to be before I finally relaxed.


    ¡°O-kaaay, chat. I guess the black flames were the mimic! Dammit, I should have known!¡±


    Or rather, I shouldn¡¯t have assumed that only the ground would be able to magically spit out monsters. I still barely knew anything about this type of dungeon, after all.


    Shaking my head, I approached the chest again, this time wary of more sudden ambushes.


    None appeared and I was free to plop the thing open and use Appraisal on the item inside.


    <u>Sapphire buckler


    </u>A buckler made out of infused Sapphire.


    It was a small blue shield. About the size of a pot lid.


    ¡°...Huh.¡±


    I grabbed it, immediately had a dumb idea, and put it on top of my pan. It was a bit too big for it but could still work.


    ¡°Neat! I have a lid for my pan now!¡±


    Chat immediately began yelling at me and I couldn¡¯t help but snicker.


    ¡°Just kidding. Let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    I grabbed the thing in my left hand and looked it over. It could come in handy for parrying smaller attacks, but would probably be useless for anything bigger, like the shark¡¯s lasers.


    Although¡­ it was pretty reflective. Not very useful as a hand mirror for personal use since it wasn¡¯t flat, but¡­


    ¡°Well, look at that, chat. Maybe I can use this against the Gorgons. Hmm, but it¡¯s already made out of Sapphire, would that even stop their gaze?¡± I frowned as I considered this.


    Obviously, I had no actual proof there would be Gorgons afoot and neither did I have proof that they would function the way I expected them to. So whether this shield actually did anything¡­ would be hard to tell until I actually met one and tested the shield on it.


    I huffed to myself.


    It was a D-rank dungeon, so there shouldn¡¯t be any unfair insta-kill mechanics, right? Right?!


    ¡°Well, whatever. Having a shield is better than not having one, right, chat? Even though my clothes are probably already pretty durable¡­ Wait, actually, you¡¯re right Mafu! I could totally Fuse the shield into the clothes, huh? What would that even do? Make me all shiny? Hmm, how durable is this shield anyway?¡±


    Appraisal didn¡¯t get much out of it, unfortunately. Just the material it was made out of. I had no idea what it could or couldn¡¯t do.


    Which was quite weird, to be honest. Why did Appraisal sometimes tell me so much and sometimes barely anything? It felt so arbitrary.


    I shrugged and pushed all the distracting thoughts aside again.


    Since I wanted to preserve Ether and since the enemies here seemed fairly manageable, I put away my gun for the moment and wore the shield instead. Worst case scenario, I could use the pan¡¯s innate skill or even summon my key sword in a pinch.


    I looked down at my attire and my arms and couldn¡¯t help but smirk and summon John to look at me before striking a pose.


    ¡°I am the elegant pan warrior! Fear me!¡± I announced, lifting the pan into the air as my battle dress billowed in the non-existent wind.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    I stayed like that for a moment before I recalled John and cleared my throat.


    ¡°Anyway. Let¡¯s keep going.¡±


    I kept circling the perimeter of the crater and had to fight off a few more crabs and another one of those black skittering things ¨C which the pan¡¯s fire easily took out. By the time I was approaching the blue sapphire spires again, I had three different people in chat claiming that they had made some fanart of ¡®the elegant pan warrior¡¯.


    I let out a disappointed noise.


    ¡°Man, I wish I could look at those¡­ Why don¡¯t links work for me anyway? Not like I disabled links in the chat,¡± I grumbled. ¡°Ugh, yeah, I guess the system doesn¡¯t want me accessing the internet directly¡­¡±


    The carefree chatting continued as I made it all the way to where I¡¯d begun without discovering any other chests or points of interest. It was a bit disappointing, but in the end, I decided that if I wanted anything more from this dungeon, I had no choice but to head further in.


    ¡°Okay, chat¡­ I guess it¡¯s time to go toward the hole,¡± I announced, nervously looking at said hole.


    It was surrounded by many more of the frozen flames and sapphire spires as well as several lava lakes. I could already feel it was going to be a pain to navigate though.


    Regardless, I still had plenty of Ether to work with and haven¡¯t even gotten hit by any of the monsters, much less injured. No reason not to keep going.


    I began walking toward the giant hole in the middle of the crater, still keeping an eye out for any chests.


    A few more crabs sprung up from the ground on my way there and I easily dealt with them, but at some point, when I got a bit closer, something else decided to jump out at me.


    Instead of a crab, the crystalline ground produced a giant lizard-like thing, still made out of the same cyan crystal, which immediately lunged for me.


    I reacted by swiping at it with my pan and attempting to block its claws with my shield. Unfortunately, my pan swing completely missed as the lizard curled out of the way and pummeled my shield with its claw, knocking me on my butt.


    I gasped and lit the pan on fire, preparing to roast the monster just as it closed in on me and bit down on my left arm holding the shield.


    ¡°Shi¨C¡±


    I poured a ton more Ether into the pan and the lizard burst into flames the moment I smacked it over the head.


    Naturally, since his jaw was around my forearm, it also meant that I was set ablaze. Even with the blessing, I expected to feel the same pain I¡¯d felt when I¡¯d suicide bombed the second floor boss of the water park dungeon, but¡­


    I blinked when I realized that it merely felt kinda warm.


    Or rather¡­


    It hadn¡¯t registered before but the lizard¡¯s bite didn¡¯t hurt much either.


    A few seconds later, the burnt crystal lizard turned into smoke and the fire around me gradually dissipated. I continued to lay on the ground, staring at my forearm that didn¡¯t even have a single scratch on it.


    ¡­The lizard had bitten into my forearm through the sleeve. The sleeve that was reinforced through fusing all sorts of magical clothing.


    ¡°...Chat, why didn¡¯t you remind me that I¡¯m a freaking tank? I was worrying over nothing!¡±


    To be fair, the archer in the city dungeon had pierced through my old clothing, but I was much more durable now. Not to mention, many people had theorized in chat that she could have had some kind of armor-piercing effect on her arrows.


    Well, it was still better to dodge as much as I could since I couldn¡¯t be sure whether something could get through my clothing or not. But I probably didn¡¯t need to worry as much with this in mind.


    Just as a test, I looked around for another one of those suspicious bumps and once I found one, I confidently marched forward and stepped on it on purpose.


    As expected, the moment my foot hit it, a creature began to emerge from it ¨C another lizard ¨C and as soon as it finished forming, it snapped its jaws at me. I blocked using my clothed arm. As in, I shoved my upper arm into its open maw and grit my teeth as it clamped down.


    It felt like someone gently grabbed me.


    I couldn¡¯t help but laugh out loud before I raised my pan again and pummeled the lizard to death.


    ¡°I like this, chat! Making super armor was the best decision I¡¯ve ever made. Now I just need a super weapon and I¡¯m set!¡±


    After all, everyone knew that for a hardcore run, the best offense was a good defense. It was nice to see my decisions paying off.


    The lizard vanished and I confidently continued toward the hole, smashing any lizards that emerged and weaving through the sapphire structures with ease.


    I still hadn¡¯t completely dropped my guard though. No matter how easy things seemed, it could quickly turn around in an instant, like it often did in the water park dungeon.


    My caution was justified when I walked past another one of the smaller blue sapphire spires and its surface rippled and something began growing out of it.


    I tensed up and swiftly fell into my battle stance as the thing spat out yet another type of monster. A gleaming sapphire-blue snake whose eyes were glowing just like all the crabs and the lizards. And just like those, I avoided looking directly into them and instead lit my pan on fire and swung the pan in its direction.


    To my surprise, the snake slithered out of the impromptu fireball¡¯s way and then opened its mouth to hiss loudly as I prepared to launch more fire at it.


    Then there was a gust of wind, the snake jerked its head forward, and suddenly small blue shards of sapphire began appearing on the ground, aiming in my direction, as if there was an invisible projectile creating them in its wake.


    I tensed up but parsed it as a ranged attack too late and suddenly felt something hit me. It felt like it rippled through my entire body and I couldn¡¯t help but flinch and gasp at the horrible sensation.


    It was over in a moment and I found myself covered in pieces of sapphire pointing behind me like I was a long-haired cat in the wind. I felt some minor pain all over where the shards were and my muscles felt rigid.


    Then the snake was leaping at me and I automatically let loose the fireball I had been charging with my pan. It hit the snake this time and shattered it to pieces. The pieces then vanished into smoke.


    I tried moving again but my movements felt awkward and a bit pained, like my muscles and joints had crappy glue in them now.


    ¡°...Ugh¡­ Well, it¡¯s not instant kill at least, but¡­¡±


    It felt so damn uncomfortable. Had my clothes even done anything? Had that attack bypassed my resistances? Or would I be dead if it weren¡¯t for the armor?


    Just to take a better look, I summoned John and had him look at me.


    I looked like a freaking shiny blue hedgehog with all these sapphire spikes growing out of me. Chat was already joking and laughing about it.


    ¡°Chat, this is not funny!¡±


    ¡­It was kind of funny, but still super uncomfortable.


    I tried to wrench my arm this and that way just to get it moving, and at some point, I heard a soft glassy screech. At the same time, some of the sapphire shards on my arm broke off and fell to the ground and I felt some range of movement return to the arm.


    ¡°Gah¡­ Okay. I see. I got it. It¡¯s a slowing debuff. But I can break through it with force!¡± I concluded, feeling relieved.


    From then on, it took me a few minutes as I systematically broke through the sapphire shards with all of my limbs, my torso, and my neck, and then I was finally back to normal, no worse for wear.


    And just because I was a little gremlin and because chat suggested it, I picked up some of the sapphire shards that were on me and appraised them.


    <u>Sapphire shard


    </u>A residue from a Sapphire Gorgon.


    ¡°...Uh huh. And is it useful for anything? Well, whatever. I have plenty of space in my pack.¡± I smirked and began tossing the shards into my backpack as a form of revenge.


    Once done, I stretched once more just to get the awful phantom feeling of being sapphire¡¯d out of my muscles and looked toward the hole again.


    ¡°Well¡­ The good news is that it¡¯s just an annoying debuff and not instantly deadly. The bad news is that I feel like that was a low level version and the boss might have the real deal.¡±


    Could I break through something stronger than that? I still had a child¡¯s body, so I wasn¡¯t exactly the strongest even if I was much stronger than I would be on Earth¡­ But worst case scenario, if things got dire, I could probably switch to Flameguard and burn the sapphire off.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> just dodge next time duh


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re not wrong, Jamie. Now that I know what the attack looks like, I can probably dodge it.¡± I mentally checked my Ether reserves and found them to still be fine.


    I nodded to myself.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s keep going then!¡±

 #076 - I take it back!

    I encountered a dozen more crystal lizards and three more sapphire snakes on my way to the hole. The lizards were easy and I quickly figured out how to fight the snakes and anticipate their¡­ sapphirification hiss.


    Unfortunately, even when I reacted quickly and jumped out of the way, my hand or leg or something would often still get caught anyway since the area of effect was so big.


    Worst of all, when I was surrounded by the spires and didn¡¯t have enough room to dodge at all, I got hit by the brunt of it again, which was a pain. Although, since I knew what I needed to do to overcome the sapphired state now, I shook it off much quicker than the first time.


    I huffed to myself as I eyed the hole from a fair distance.


    ¡°I feel like I¡¯m too slow, chat. Like yeah, I guess I¡¯m focusing on defense with my build right now, but since I¡¯m alone, I feel like I need to be a jack of all trades to survive. If there¡¯s ever an attack I can¡¯t tank, I need to be able to get out of the way.¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> or you can focus on long range attacks


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> cant skip leg day


    ¡°That¡¯s one option, I guess¡­ Just snipe all my problems away¡­¡± I mused. ¡°Uh huh. I mean¡­ I guess you¡¯re not wrong, Jamie. Staying in shape is the simple way. I was just hoping for some magical way.¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> hydrokinesis plus aquaport


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> you can carry teleport spots with you


    I blinked.


    ¡°Hmm. You know, that¡¯s true¡­ if I get better with hydrokinesis I can just cover myself with water and teleport around.¡± I grunted. ¡°Eventually possible. But right now, my control sucks.¡±


    It was a neat idea and I wondered if I could somehow upgrade the innate skills just to get stronger hydrokinesis for that trick. Although even if I could, it wouldn¡¯t help me much right now.


    I still felt a bit iffy about it, but approached the hole nonetheless. Hopefully, it wouldn¡¯t be impossible to scale down¡­ or back up if I accidentally fell. I really hoped this dungeon didn¡¯t require flight to navigate. That would be really annoying.


    Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t even get close enough to peek into the hole when the ground beneath began to rumble.


    I tensed up, tightened my grip on the pan and shield, and backed off, expecting another tier of crystal enemy to emerge from the ground.


    But instead of that, something emerged from the hole itself. A giant winged lizard ¨C dragon?! ¨C with scales made out of the same cyan crystal that covered the ground, clambered up with its massive claws as its wings spread out wide. The dragon also wore some sapphire-blue armor on its head, its limbs, and its torso, making it look even more menacing.


    ¡°Oh, shit,¡± I automatically said as the dragon breathed in and let out a deafening roar at the sky. ¡°It¡¯s the boss, chat!¡±


    Naturally, because I was a proper gamer ¨C and because some chatters were suggesting it ¨C I didn¡¯t wait for the boss to finish its spawning animation. I immediately shoved the buckler into my backpack and instead pulled out my gun. Just as it came down from its roar to glare at me, I fired off an ink shot straight at its head.


    The burst of black ink covered the dragon as it staggered back and let out another roar, this time a pained one.


    Naturally, that was when everything went wrong. The dragon let out an aggravated cry and stomped into the crystal, sending out a subtle shockwave through the ground that briefly lifted me off the ground and made me lose my footing.


    ¡°Ow, what the¨C¡±


    And then, something unexpected happened.


    All around me, all over the crater, crystal crabs and lizards began emerging from the ground. Dozens of them. Everywhere.


    I completely froze for a brief instant at the thought of being so utterly surrounded while facing an unknown enemy, but chat quickly knocked it out of me and then I moved.


    Just in time to dodge out of the way of the dragon smashing its claw down where I¡¯d just stood.


    My main mind already raced to figure out the best way to tackle this while my forks began consulting with everyone in the fighting group chat.


    I backed off even more out of the way of the thrashing dragon blinded by the ink, and smashed my pan in the face of the crystal crab that had been trying to sneak up on me.


    But that was just one of many and I needed to do something before I got completely overrun.


    I began charging the plasma ball with my gun and just as a crab jumped at me, I spun around, punting the crab with my pan while aligning myself in a way to shoot at the dragon.


    I fired the liquid plasma straight into its face just as it managed to claw away some of the ink from its eyes.


    I missed and hit its wing instead.


    The thing roared again and stumbled back just as one of the crystal lizards flanked me and bit down on my right arm. The one I was holding the pan with.


    ¡°Shi¨C¡±


    <u>Replace [Appraisal] with [Flameguard]?


    </u>Note: [Appraisal] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I burst into flames, pushing the lizard back just enough for me to smack it over the head with the pan. But as soon as I got it off me, two more lizards jumped at me from both sides.


    I aimed the gun into the open mouth of one and quickly gathered fire on my pan using both Flameguard and the pan¡¯s innate skill.


    One of the lizards got a water bomb down its throat while the other one exploded in flames. Both lizards hit the ground and soon vanished in a puff of smoke.


    But there were still many many more left and I was already feeling the drain on my Ether after three consecutive gun shots.


    This wasn¡¯t going to work. I needed to get out.


    I slipped between a pair of crabs and broke into a run. Quickly slipping the gun back into my backpack, I pulled out my mace instead, intending to smash my way through if I had to.


    As I ran, my forks cussed out all the people who¡¯d had the bright idea to shoot the dragon before it finished spawning after someone else suggested that this was some kind of enrage mode.


    My mace smashed a crab to the side just as another lizard tripped me by biting into my leg. My face slammed into the crystal with a grunt.


    I was about to cuss the lizard out when I lifted my gaze and saw one of the freaking sapphire snakes right in front of my face.


    ¡°Oh, come on!¡± I yelled before I lit my whole body on fire, causing the lizard to let go, and then swiped the pan in front of me, hoping to shoo off the snake.


    I was successful. But not before it let out its hiss and made my body go rigid again. Luckily, whether it was because I was already pumped with adrenaline or because I¡¯d lit myself on fire, I managed to break through the sapphirication of my muscles in record time.


    Just in time to hear another roar behind me followed by a terrifying orchestra of thousands of tiny crystal clinking sounds that quickly got closer and closer¨C


    My head instinctively whirled around to look at what was happening and I had a split second to guard my face with my arms before the tsunami of tiny crystal needles showered me.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Gyaaaaaaaaaah?!?!!¡±


    I let out an absolutely horrifying pained screech that reverbated through my entire body, but it was all completely drowned out by the sound of thousands of crystals tearing into me. I automatically huddled into a ball and for those few seconds, the only thing on my mind was ¡®PLEASE MAKE IT STOP¡¯.


    It stopped.


    My whole body was trembling. Somehow though, I hadn¡¯t been completely torn to shreds like I¡¯d thought it would have been.


    I wanted nothing more than to keep huddling and pass out, but I couldn¡¯t. I was still surrounded, and the dragon ¨C who¡¯d breathed shards of crystal at me ¨C was still around as well. If it weren¡¯t for chat shouting at me to get the hell out, I might have just accepted my fate right then and there.


    With great effort, I draped myself up on my shaky legs, fearfully looked at the ink-covered dragon with a missing wing now marching in my direction, and froze for a moment.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> Nana run!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> get ouuuut


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> oh my god please run!


    I turned around and ran as fast as I could.


    Luckily, all the random monsters that had swarmed around me were long gone, probably killed by the crystal shower, so at least I had a clear path.


    Unfortunately, I was too slow with my injuries and the dragon was pissed.


    As if some greater power was helping me survive, I threw myself out of the way moments before its claw came smashing down at me. Miraculously, I managed to keep my footing as I recovered and when I turned around, I was suddenly staring the beast down.


    Both of us were heavily injured and I still had a long way to go if I wanted to get out of this dungeon and into safety. And with how relentless the robot had been in the spaceship dungeon, I didn¡¯t expect anything less from this monster.


    So¡­ I had to fight it to death, right here, right now.


    Several people suggested ways to do just that and I complied.


    I¡¯d dropped both my weapons when the breath had hit me, but I still had backups.


    The dragon lunged, its claw ready to swipe at me again, but I, instead of running, I decided to fight.


    I activated Bullet Time ¨C because someone in chat reminded me ¨C to buy myself some time. Then I quickly summoned my key sword, covered it in flames with Flameguard, and tossed it in the same way I¡¯d done against the shark. I used the rest of the slowed time to shakily reach into my backpack and retrieve my gun again.


    When time resumed to normal speed again, the key sword managed to hit the dragon¡¯s shoulder ¨C my aim was terrible right now ¨C making the dragon flinch and abort its swiping motion.


    I didn¡¯t hesitate and shot the dragon point blank. The dragon staggered back from the resulting blast as the sizzling sound of steam filled my ears.


    But I didn¡¯t stop there. I couldn¡¯t. It was now or never.


    I fired again.


    This time though, my shot was blocked by a wall of sapphire that suddenly materialized between us.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> oh shit the dragon is the gorgon


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> run now!!


    But I could see through the sapphire. Erecting the wall must have taken a lot out of the dragon because he was now hunched down on the crystal ground, his body trembling. He was so damn close to death.


    I began charging my plasma shot and broke into a run¡­ in the opposite direction of the dungeon¡¯s border. I ran around the sapphire barrier just far enough to get a clear shot on the dragon.


    By the time I did, my enemy had somewhat recovered and was glaring at me hatefully.


    Wait, hold on. His eyes were glowing¨C


    I pulled the trigger just as the dragon let out a bark-like growl in my direction. Several things then happened in rapid succession. The plasma shot ¨C covered in sapphire?! ¨C hit the dragon head on and engulfed him, I staggered because I¡¯d run out of Ether, and then it hit me.


    All muscles in my body went completely rigid and my vision filled with blue. I couldn¡¯t move at all. Not even my eyes. Not even the tiniest of twitches. Even my mind began to feel sluggish.


    A chill went down my spine as I realized what had just happened and I immediately began to struggle to break through the sapphirication despite the sudden tiredness trying to overcome me.


    This was much stronger than the snake version though. Not to mention, I was critically low on Ether and utterly exhausted from this whole fight. My attempts to break through it were too feeble. I couldn¡¯t do it.


    Then I realized that I couldn¡¯t breathe. My lungs were sapphired too and there was a chunk of sapphire blocking my mouth as well.


    I was going to die die die.


    I rapidly began to descend into complete panic, which transferred over to my forks as well. They began barraging me with information with no filter just like the first time and it did wonders to distract me from the fact that I was suffocating to death, all while my consciousness began feeling more and more fleeting.


    But it wasn¡¯t all pointless. The chatters were coming with all sorts of weird ideas on how to get out of this situation.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> FLAMEGUARD


    Encased in sapphire. Couldn¡¯t use it.


    <u>mountchestnut:</u> use appraisal


    Swapped it out. Wouldn¡¯t help anyway.


    <u>faifofaifelefel:</u> just break it duh


    Fuck you. Banned.


    <u>brocode420:</u> phoenix fire would have worked


    Not enough points.


    <u>GonguuH:</u> use fusion on the sapphire


    I did so.


    And miracle of all miracles, it actually somehow fucking worked.


    I felt the tension in my muscles recede and the sapphire encasing me dropping away as it all congregated in my hands.


    I unceremoniously dropped to the ground on my face as the sapphire released me, a ball of smoky energy clutched in my shaky hands.


    That cost me a fair bit of Ether¡­ and I wasn¡¯t even done with it. I needed to put it into something.


    I pooled the energy in my right hand and used the other one to fish out something random out of my backpack. The black knife. That would do.


    I shoved the blob of energy into the knife, barely even looked at the result, and shoved it back into the backpack before closing my eyes and letting out a shuddering breath. It took a good moment to calm down again while chat shouted all sorts of things at me.


    When I did, I was assaulted with messages.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Wow, rude¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Fire off a duck¡¯s back¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>It¡¯s just a rock¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +8 Skill points


    I tensed for a moment before realizing what it was and then relaxing again. I completely ignored the achievements for the time being.


    ¡°Goddammit, chat¡­¡± I quietly rasped. ¡°This was supposed to be easy. What the hell¡­?¡±


    Naturally, the nosy nerds in chat immediately began explaining that this was likely a group dungeon; or that it was the enrage mode; or that technically, I tanked all of the boss¡¯s big attacks and still won; or that I wasn¡¯t supposed to fight it, similarly to the locker room monsters¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it¡¯s gonna be okay nana


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> *sends internet hugz*


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> you gotta gtfo


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> before they respawn


    <u>GonguuH:</u> are you gonna be okay?


    <u>GonguuH:</u> any leftover sapphire?


    But at least some people cared about my wellbeing instead of trying to be the smart ones in the room.


    ¡°I¡­ I think I¡¯m okay. Ugh¡­ Don¡¯t know if there¡¯s any left in my¡­ my lungs or whatever. Can¡¯t feel anything though.¡± I groaned and tried to push myself off the ground, but failed. ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ move. I¡¯m almost completely out of Ether¡­ Shit¡­¡±


    Weirdly enough though, I wasn¡¯t bleeding all over like I¡¯d thought I was. Hadn¡¯t I gotten hit by a storm of crystal needles? Had my clothing self protected even the squishy parts of me it didn¡¯t cover?


    Ugh, whatever. Not important. I really needed to get up before anything sneaks up on me again!


    <u>lovingh8ter:</u> he proly killed them all tho


    That was true. After that crystal shower, I hadn¡¯t seen any more monsters. But according to my quest, they could probably respawn in here unlike the water park dungeon, and I had no idea how long it took for them to do that.


    But then again, if the quest¡¯s side objective was to beat a dungeon before anything respawned, it probably took a while.


    But I couldn¡¯t be sure.


    ¡°Ugh¡­¡±


    <u>GonguuH:</u> send out camera while you recover


    <u>GonguuH:</u> we¡¯ll alert you if we see anything


    Oh my god. Gong was a genius.


    ¡°Gong¡­ I¡¯m modding you. Thanks¡­¡±


    I did as he suggested. Summoned John and set him to slowly spin in a circle above my prone body while using the last of my energy to navigate to the menu and give Gong mod privileges.


    Then I slumped back down, closed my eyes, and told my forks to only inform me if anyone spotted a monster.


    With that, I relaxed and waited to get some of my energy back.

 #077 - Hey, roleplaying is literally in my job description

    Miracle of all miracles, no monsters spawned while I lay there uselessly in the middle of a dangerous dungeon.


    Many people in chat theorized that it was because the dragon had triggered all the available spawns in the dungeon and then subsequently wiped all of them out with that crystal shower, so now, everything was ¡®on cooldown¡¯, so to speak.


    When I finally managed to sit up with a groan, I looked around with my real eyes instead of staring at John¡¯s screen and confirmed that I was still safe. Then I looked at the big crystal chest with a golden skull sitting exactly where the dragon had been.


    I took a deep breath and let out a sigh.


    ¡°Loot time, chat¡­ Oh, right. The achievements. What were they called again¡­?¡±


    <u>Wow, rude</u> - Deal over 25% of a dungeon boss monster¡¯s health before it even starts attacking. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Fire off a duck¡¯s back</u> - Survive being hit by an adult dragon¡¯s breath. Appropriate dungeon monsters count. [COMPLETE]


    <u>It¡¯s just a rock</u> - Survive complete petrification. Somehow. [COMPLETE]


    ¡°Oh, what?! Wait, the last one was a tier three achievement! That¡¯s so many points! I have¡­ twenty in total now!¡±


    My mood suddenly flipped and I beamed¡­ before I grimaced again.


    ¡°...Will I always get a ton of points after nearly dying?¡± I murmured. ¡°The system is seriously trying to kill me, isn¡¯t it¡­?¡±


    I shook away that thought.


    ¡°Well, whatever! I lived, I learned from my screw up, and I got a ton of points! It¡¯s perfect!¡±


    I slowly forced myself to stand, although my legs were still a bit unsteady, and then told my forks that they were allowed to relay stuff to me again. I immediately got flooded by all the know-it-alls and their play-by-play analysis of my fight and all the minute mistakes I¡¯d made.


    And now I felt depressed again.


    Wow, my mood was swinging all over the place. Okay, whatever. They did have a point that I shouldn¡¯t have turned my back on the dragon. And sure, since the common monsters weren¡¯t actually that dangerous, I should have just ignored them and focused the boss. And yes Jim42069, I could have just unloaded my gun into the dragon in the first place since that was what I¡¯d done in the end anyway.


    Okay forks, calm down. I didn¡¯t need everything. God.


    ¡°Well¡­ Let¡¯s see what we got then,¡± I murmured and hobbled my way to the chest as I hummed and nodded to people suggesting various ways to spend my points as usual. I actually had enough to get Rend, Mind shield, and Dual Wield. With plenty of points to spare. I honestly considered getting those right away, but I didn¡¯t have enough skill slots for Rend anyway, unless I wanted to swap out Flameguard and risk not having an out in a tricky situation again.


    Although, I could always just¡­ leave and come back tomorrow. I was planning on leaving anyway and I was still critically low on Ether, so it was probably gonna be for the best.


    With that in mind, I came face to face with the chest, narrowed my eyes, and stood there, with arms ready by my sides.


    I also called John just to get a good shot of this and after a few more seconds of the silent staredown, I quickly did several things in quick succession.


    <u>Purchase the skill [Rend] for 9 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Rend¡¯ skill unlocked!</u>


    <u>Replace [Flameguard] with [Rend]?


    </u>Note: [Flameguard] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    Then I quickly searched for the new mental switch in my mind, selected the chest as my target, and pushed.


    Rend!


    I felt the energy gathering directly in my mind, spinning into itself like a little ball, and then shooting out of my mind toward the chest as an invisible projectile.


    It hit the chest and rippled through it ¨C invisibly ¨C the same way a dropped stone would ripple through a lake¡¯s surface, the chest shook the tiniest amount, and then went still again.


    All the while, I had the weirdest feeling that I had ¡®missed.¡¯ Not that I¡¯d missed the target, but that the target itself turned out to be empty space with nothing in it.


    Which¡­ my best guess was that it meant there was no mind for Rend to¡­ well, rend.


    That didn¡¯t stop me from turning toward John, giving him a strained smile ¨C That blast cost quite a bit of Intra ¨C and say, ¡°Easy peasy, chat. I fried its brain. No mimic problems here.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> you didn¡¯t even do anything?!??!


    I blinked and then remembered that John couldn¡¯t see the system messages.


    ¡°Ah.¡± I recalled John. ¡°I just got Rend and shot it at the mimic. You know, this thing.¡± I summoned the little system window and pointed at it.


    <u>Rend:</u>


    Use a moderate amount of Intra to momentarily shock the target''s mind.


    ¡°I guess you can¡¯t see it from the outside?¡± I hummed and rubbed my forehead ¨C ugh, my head really hurt now, I shouldn¡¯t have done that. ¡°Anyway. I totally sniped that jerk¡­ and now I¡¯m low on Intra too, ugh¡­ Whatever, let¡¯s get the loot already!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I hope theres a bonus for killing the enrage version


    I walked right up to the chest and unceremoniously opened it. I only spent a few seconds marveling how I was tall enough to do that without too many issues now.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    Inside the chest were three objects. A shiny blue ¨C sapphire? ¨C medieval-looking horned helmet, a crystal flask filled with dark green liquid, and¡­ some kind of big crystalline gun with a wide dragon head-shaped muzzle.


    Too bad I didn¡¯t have Appraisal.


    ¡°Another gun, chat!¡± I cheered and immediately grabbed the thing. I looked it all over, trying to figure out what it was. My instincts and chat were already telling me exactly what it was, though.


    ¡°It¡¯s a flamethrower, isn¡¯t it¡­? Or maybe a¡­ crystalthrower? Would fit the theme of the boss¡­ Hmm, but it doesn¡¯t have the little torch thing that¡¯s usually in front of the muzzle¡­¡± I narrowed my eyes, aimed it away from me, put my finger on the trigger¡­


    <u>GonguuH:</u> hold on, weren¡¯t you low on ether?


    I flinched away and let go of the trigger.


    ¡°Uh, yeah. Right. This thing will definitely use Ether. Yeah. Okay. Let¡¯s try it later then.¡±


    I stashed it into my backpack and turned to the other two things. I grabbed the helmet and immediately put it on my head. Just like every other wearable loot from the dungeons, it fit me perfectly and I could feel the subtle flow of Ether inside it. The field of view was abysmal though.


    Then, when I sent out John to take a look at myself ¨C huh, the system screen was visible through the helmet ¨C I couldn¡¯t help but snort.


    Who was this cutely dressed girl sitting on top of a giant chest wearing a demon lord-esque helmet?


    The worst part was that as much as it contrasted with the dress, the color fit perfectly with the rest of my outfit. I looked like the demon king¡¯s daughter who badgered her dad to make her the same helmet he wore in her size so she could imitate him.


    I straightened up, crossed my arms, tilted my head back , and sent John lower to look up straight into my eyes through the helmet.


    Then I let out the best villain laugh I could muster.


    ¡°So, you¡¯ve finally come, feeble heroes!¡± I bellowed ¨C as much as I could with how tired I was. ¡°How bold of you! You think you can defeat me?! Aoto Nana, the demon queen of the blue nation?! Fools! You have no chance of standing up to me!¡± I pointed at the camera dramatically.


    I stayed in that position for a few seconds before I giggled, took off the helmet, and grinned at the camera.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not very practical though. I can¡¯t see anything with it on. I could maybe merge it with the dress though. I¡¯ll have to see what it even does when I appraise it.¡±


    Into the backpack it went and I looked at the last item in the chest.


    ¡°Hmm, it¡¯s a potion¡­ and it¡¯s green just like the other potion. And like life ooze¡­ So it¡¯s probably more life ooze, right? It would make sense if this is an Ether dungeon. What¡¯s up with the fancy container though?¡±


    Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t confirm anything right now, so I just shrugged and stuffed it into the backpack as well.


    There were some people in chat who wanted me to chug it to recover my Ether and I briefly considered doing just that, but I decided against it. I already nearly died once in this dungeon, I wasn¡¯t going to take unnecessary risks right now. Not like I was in a rush to conquer this dungeon right away anyway.


    With that, I got out of the chest ¨C which poofed into nothing a moment later ¨C grabbed the key sword that had been laying next to the chest, and then went to retrieve my other stuff. All while still on guard for any more monsters trying to jump me.


    I really didn¡¯t want to deal with another snake right now.


    Luckily, nothing appeared as I safely gathered up my pan, my gun, and my crappy mace, and then I walked straight out of this crystal crater the way I¡¯d come in.


    I didn¡¯t fully relax until I crossed the threshold and the relieving feeling made me relax automatically.


    I breathed out a sigh of relief and forced myself to clamber my way to my temporary shelter I¡¯d built nearby.


    ¡°Okay, we made it out, chat¡­ Next time, I¡¯m just letting my enemies finish their intro sequence before blasting them. Unless I get a lot stronger and can one shot them.¡±


    I spent the rest of the day just lying around and recovering while talking to chat.


    I also still had eleven skill points left after buying Rend and there were a couple of things I wanted to get.


    I wanted to get the Mind Shield upgrade for Rend eventually, just to have some kind of insurance that my brain wouldn¡¯t randomly get scrambled. That would cost me five points. And then I also wanted the rest of the upgrades for Soulbound item ¨C Soul Pocket and Dual Wield. Those cost two and three points respectively.


    <u>Mind Shield</u> - Use Intra to protect your own mind from basic mental attacks.


    <u>Soul Pocket</u> - Grants access to a small pocket dimension where you can store your soulbound item. Touching it is required for putting it in or bringing it out. A small amount of your Tempor reserves are locked for this sub-skill.


    <u>Dual Wield</u> - You can now have up to two soulbound items.


    In theory, I could get all three of them right now and would be left with one point. The only other things that I realistically wanted were Action hero cameraman to make John even more awesome, Soul strike to upgrade Soulbound item, and maybe some of the Appraisal upgrades.


    Huh, actually¡­ Assess only cost one skill point and sounded like it could be very helpful.


    <u>Assess</u> - You can now use appraisal on living beings.


    If it gave me any useful info at all, I could use Appraisal on every enemy I encountered and then immediately have my forks consult with chat on the best way to use that info.


    Hmm¡­


    Yeah, why not? It would cost me all of my remaining skill points, but I could get all four of these things right now. I didn¡¯t need to upgrade John right this moment and Soul Strike would have just been a neat bonus anyway.


    ¡°Alright then! Let¡¯s splurge, chat!¡±


    <u>Purchase the [Mind Shield] skill upgrade [Rend] for 5 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Mind Shield¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Soul Pocket] skill upgrade [Soulbind Item] for 2 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Soul Pocket¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Dual Wield] skill upgrade [Soulbind Item] for 3 skill points?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Dual Wield¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    <u>Purchase the [Assess] skill upgrade [Appraisal] for 1 skill point?


    </u><u>Y/N</u>


    <u>¡®Assess¡¯ skill upgrade unlocked!</u>


    ¡°Wooo! So much stuff!¡± I cheered and chat cheered with me. Well, most of the chat cheered with me. Some grumbled about me not buying what they wanted me to buy.


    ¡°Anywho. I can soulbind another item now, chat. And yeah, for those wondering, I got the Soul Pocket because bringing out a weapon on a dime sounds super useful. Especially since all my fights end up being so hectic. Now, the only question is what should I soulbind?¡±


    I tried not to think about how it might feel to soulbind another thing. I would deal with that feeling later¡­ And I would probably talk about it with Jane as well.


    ¡°Option one is a melee weapon¡­ but I don¡¯t really have anything good right now. The mace is too crappy and I don¡¯t want to use ultimate fusion on the pan since I wanna get the egg out of it eventually.¡± I huffed. ¡°Stupid city dungeon eating my naginata¡­ I mean, I guess I could soulbind the key sword but ehhh¡­ Option two is soulbinding my gun. And I guess if I do that, I can also add my brand new flamethrower into it for an ultra mega fire and water plasma gun.¡±


    I grinned, trying to imagine how chaotic that would be. I couldn¡¯t help but like the gun option. Chat seemed to be in agreement.


    ¡°Yeah, I think I¡¯ll for the gun right now. It¡¯s not like I can¡¯t get a third soulbind slot. Look, here. It¡¯s super expensive, but Soulstrike has this upgrade¡­¡±


    <u>Soul Strike:</u>


    [MERGED] with Soulbound Item. Use a moderate amount of Ether and Intra to strike at the target''s soul directly using your own.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Triumvirate (9SP)


    <u>Triumvirate</u> - You can now have up to three soulbound items.


    I winced.


    ¡°Oof. Yikes, that¡¯s even more expensive than I remembered. Ten points for Soul Strike and then nine more for Triumvirate? Jeez¡­¡±


    In other words, if I soulbound the gun, it would probably be quite a while before I could soulbind anything else.


    But, well, that didn¡¯t matter too much. I was used to cycling through all sorts of melee weapons anyway. And I only needed one gun, realistically. Having more melee weapons was useful for throwing them or blocking with them, but having more guns would just get annoying. Better to have it all in one.


    So with that in mind, I talked to chat for a little while longer to see if anyone got any good arguments against doing this, and when nothing relevant came up, I used Soulbind item on my water gun.

 #078 - I won’t neglect preparing for round two this time

    I stared at the part of me that was a water gun.


    This felt so so much weirder than the clothes. At least the clothes were vaguely me-shaped but this¡­


    ¡°Reject humanity. Become gun,¡± I automatically blurted out in a dazed whisper.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> wait what?!


    Unfortunately, chat immediately noticed my little slip up and began badgering me about what the heck I meant.


    ¡°Uh, err¡­ Never mind.¡±


    I tried to deflect, but¡­


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> no hold on


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> is soulbinding doing something to you?!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you actually gun and clothes now?!


    I cringed and let out a pained sound.


    Dammit. Guess the cat¡¯s out of the bag now.


    ¡°Okay, fine! Yes. Soulbind item¡­ is not just a figure of speech, alright? These clothes? And this gun now?¡± I gestured at them one after the other. ¡°They are me now. Part of me. Like another hand or something. Except like¡­ I don¡¯t feel through them or anything. You know, no nerves or touch receptors or whatever. But I can feel that they are part of me. It¡¯s weird but¡­ yeah. It¡¯s fine.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ????


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana how is that fine?!


    I grunted.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine! It doesn¡¯t really do anything. I got used to being clothes, I¡¯ll get used to being gun.¡± I waved my hand.


    Obviously, Ebiko and some of the people in chat weren¡¯t happy with that and we argued for a bit. There were also people who took my side, others who just wanted to know what it was like, and then those who apparently made memes with my face photoshopped on a gun.


    Hilarious.


    In the end, Ebi left chat a bit miffed that I hadn¡¯t told her and I felt sour about the whole thing as well. Like yeah, it was weird and all, but it was far from the weirdest thing in this world, right?


    Ugh, whatever¡­


    Since I¡¯d bought the upgrade, I also decided to test out Soul Pocket. Obviously, I wouldn¡¯t do that with the clothes, but I could easily do it with the gun.


    I activated the mental switch and watched as the space the gun occupied warped and swallowed my gun self in the blink of an eye, leaving me staring at my now empty hands.


    I could still feel that gun part of me. It was just¡­ somewhere else. A place I couldn¡¯t physically reach, but I knew it was there dammit. Like I¡¯d had my mouth open and my tongue out all this time, but now I pulled my tongue back and closed my mouth¡­ If the tongue was the gun and my mouth a passage to the sixth dimension that I couldn¡¯t see.


    Okay, the metaphors were getting a bit weird but it was just hard to describe.


    With that, I mostly just sulked relaxed all day and waited for my Ether to restore a bit more.


    I also finally remembered to check the bracelet¡¯s remaining juice ¨C thanks to some badgering from chat ¨C and found that¡­ it was completely out. Several people immediately reprimanded me for not merging it with my clothes before it ran out for a potential permanent skill, but I just grunted at them, saying that if it didn¡¯t turn the skill permanent, then I would just be adding junk to my clothes.


    Anyway, since there was no more point in keeping them fused, I unfused the popsicle from the bracelet again, leaving me with the original bracelet and¡­ a plastic wrapping from the Time-freezing popsicle.


    Hmm, maybe I could use the bracelet for other fusions now. Chat had pointed it out quite a bit, but everytime I used a key item in a fusion, if it didn¡¯t have one before, it would gain an innate skill¡­ Or maybe I could fuse it into my gun self?


    I frowned.


    Or maybe I could fuse my gun self into the bracelet to have some kind of utility wristband that could shoot water and plasma bullets like some kind of spy.


    Would that even work though¡­? Would the soulbound property transfer over to the bracelet if it did¡­? I kinda wanted to try, but I also knew that I couldn¡¯t unfuse it afterwards if I didn¡¯t like the result.


    In the evening, when I recovered enough Ether to be fairly sure that I wouldn¡¯t drop dead from using some, I decided to do a little testing session. First, I took out the presumed flamethrower the boss had dropped and went out to the very edge of the dungeon without entering it.


    ¡°Okay, chat¡­ Still don¡¯t have Appraisal but let¡¯s see what I can do with this¡­¡±


    I frowned and tried to feel around the thing with my Ether. Just like the water gun, there was some kind of Ether-powered mechanism tied to the trigger. And when I put my finger on it, it felt like there was a split in the ¡®path¡¯ my Ether could take. Again, similar to the ink gun, so I could only assume that this one also had two modes of discharge.


    ¡°Alright. Got it! Watch this, chat!¡±


    I pulled the trigger and pushed the Ether in one of the split paths, the one that felt warmer and more immaterial.


    Just as I¡¯d expected, a burst of flames came rushing straight out of the muzzle similarly to my Fire Breath.


    It was¡­ Well, now that I thought about it, that was just it. Fire Breath but less convenient because I needed to use a gun for it. The main advantage was that I didn¡¯t need to use a skill slot for it. But I already had a pan for that, didn¡¯t I?


    Luckily, that wasn¡¯t everything there was to this thing¡­


    ¡°It has a second setting! This one should be more exciting!¡±


    I pushed my Ether into it, this time into the path that felt more rigid and sharp. And the moment I pulled the trigger, the gun spat out a massive volley of crystal shards. They swished through the air like an angry cloud of needles, flew right across the dungeon¡¯s boundary, and then clinked one by one against the crystal floor of the dungeon.


    ¡°Oh! It¡¯s what the dragon used on me!¡± I paused and couldn¡¯t help but shudder. I still couldn¡¯t believe that I hadn¡¯t turned into a pin cushion after that. ¡°...Anyway! It¡¯s a smaller version of that. It¡¯s almost like a shotgun. Nice!¡±


    This ought to be pretty useful against unarmored monsters. A big plus was that it didn¡¯t seem to use nearly as much Ether as the water gun and nowhere near as much as the plasma setting. One shot felt like about a third of the water gun¡¯s regular water shot.


    That meant that while it didn¡¯t have as much of a punch as the water gun, it was cheap enough for me to somewhat spam and hopefully strong enough to still be useful.


    I was definitely going to add this to my gun self¡­ oh, and then I needed to name the gun something. Hmm, what should I name it¡­?


    Well, that was for later. I still wanted to Appraise this thing just to make sure it didn¡¯t have any hidden features. After the spat with Ebi¡­ I wanted to be mindful about the things I was putting into my soul.


    I spent the rest of the day talking to chat about strategies and tricks I could employ in the dungeon, so that hopefully I wouldn¡¯t nearly die again.


    The next morning, I had my breakfast, made chat watch another ad ¨C ugh, the switch between not being the gun and being the gun still felt uncomfortable ¨C and then had my session with Jane again where I mostly talked about the soulbind business.


    She didn¡¯t really understand it, but I agreed with her that I should be more careful about adding more things to myself. After all, I might get used to it after a little while, but we didn¡¯t know if it could have some kind of long-term side effects.


    And¡­ yeah. I hadn¡¯t thought about that, somehow. Would being part gun corrupt my soul or something? I really hoped not. Crap, hadn¡¯t I said to myself that I would stop being reckless? That applied outside of combat too!Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    Well, nothing I could do about it now.


    After that, I started the stream for the day.


    ¡°Goooood mooorning, my precious little Aquamarines!¡± I cheered as usual. ¡°It¡¯s me! Aoto Nana, your favorite half-girl, half-gun!¡±


    ¡­Okay, maybe I shouldn¡¯t joke about that so brazenly, but eh.


    ¡°Yes, yes, and half-clothes as well. That makes me one and a half of a person! Amazing.¡± I giggled. ¡°Anyway! For those who missed it, we started a new dungeon yesterday and uh¡­ it went okay. Better than the city dungeon for sure, but I could have done without almost dying to sapphirication¡­ Well! Lesson learned. Focus on the boss and make sure to dodge when it attacks. Wow, what revolutionary strategies! Yeah, ignoring that little blunder, we got some cool stuff from beating it. I kinda had to swap Appraisal out to survive, but I still wanna appraise the loot I got, so we¡¯re going to be hanging about for a bit until the cooldown is up.¡±


    So I spent the rest of the morning chatting. Unfortunately, Ebiko wasn¡¯t in the chat at this time¡­ I really wanted to apologize to her for not telling her about the soulbound thing sooner. Yeah, I hadn¡¯t thought it was a big deal, but that didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t. And of course, she would also be quite worried if I told her it messed with my soul.


    I may act like a buffoon on stream, but I was mature enough to admit that.


    Well, I would just have to wait till she came by the stream again.


    Once the cooldown was finally up, I swapped Rend for Appraisal and got to appraising the loot from the dragon. First was the flamethrower.


    <u>Crystal Dragon Flamethrower


    </u>A flamethrower made to emulate a certain Crystal Dragon¡¯s breath.


    This object is a Key item.


    My eyes instantly narrowed.


    ¡°Wait, what? This thing is a key item? How?¡± I tilted my head, thinking back on the three key items from the water park dungeon and wondering how this thing could be used as one of these. ¡°Do I need to use the crystal shot on something? Hmm, it says certain Crystal Dragon¡­¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> we¡¯re uncovering history here!


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe you need to reenact what happened there


    <u>Irid123:</u> to go to the next floor


    I hummed.


    ¡°You know, that¡¯s a good point, Irid. But uh¡­ I don¡¯t know about reenacting what happened there¡­¡± I glanced over to the giant crystal wasteland. ¡°I¡¯m not that powerful. Maybe a smaller version though¡­¡±


    After some theorizing with chat, it had become obvious that some kind of epic clash of two absurdly powerful beings had probably taken place here and it had ended up spawning a dungeon. We weren¡¯t certain on the exact mechanics of that, but that was our best guess.


    And with that in mind, the dragon I¡¯d fought had likely been one of the combatants in question. Going by that logic, the next boss was likely going to be the other combatant. The one responsible for the black flames that the dragon had sapphired.


    Again, that was just chat and me theorizing, but it would make sense.


    ¡°Well, I guess we¡¯ll have to see.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Next up¡­¡±


    I pulled the helmet out of my backpack and appraised it.


    <u>Sapphire Gorgon full helm


    </u>A full helm made out of a Sapphire Gorgon¡¯s sapphire. Provides moderate increase to general defense and resistance to petrification.


    I huffed.


    ¡°So in other words, this would have been super useful to have yesterday. Typical.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Well, whatever. It sounds like the perfect thing to add to my clothes. More defense and petrification resistance¡­ Yeah, I should probably add it before going to the dungeon. Ugh, but that¡¯s gonna cost a lot of Ether, isn¡¯t it? Hmm¡­¡±


    I wanted to go and continue the dungeon today, but depending on how much Ether fusing this into my clothes cost, it might not be the best of ideas.


    ¡°Anyway, how about this thing?¡±


    <u>A crystal flask of Refined Life Ooze


    </u>A crystal flask enhanced to hold five times as much liquid than it would appear. It is filled with Refined Life Ooze - A clump of highly concentrated Ether mixed with a small amount of water and Intra.


    My eyes brightened.


    ¡°Yes! It¡¯s another Ether potion! And this one even has weird space-time properties! Perfect! That means I can get to fusing and then drink this thing afterwards to recover!¡±


    I got to work immediately.


    The helmet turned into a familiar blob of orange smoke and I pushed it against my chest into the part of me that was clothes. I was quite literally shoving more power into my soul, so I had to make it dramatic for myself.


    It took a bit of effort and a lot of Ether, but eventually, I managed to complete the Fusion.


    The part of me that was clothes glowered for a brief moment before settling again. I looked over myself but saw no significant changes, so instead I tried to feel what had changed and¡­


    ¡°Oh. The hood part gained a new feature, I think.¡±


    I hadn¡¯t really used the hood before much since I didn¡¯t have a reason, but let¡¯s see now¡­


    I grabbed the back of my collar and tugged it up. It expanded into a hood and gently covered my scalp. Then I frowned, feeling like the hood gained some kind of new feature, but I couldn¡¯t quite see it like this.


    John to the rescue. I summoned him and had him look at me, and sure enough, the hood now had horns on top, just like the helmet had. Which should have felt pretty awkward, what with the hood itself being soft and light while the horns were heavy and rigid.


    It didn¡¯t though. It all felt completely natural and not like the horns were weighing the whole thing down at all.


    ¡­Also, I now had horns. It was all still part of me, after all.


    ¡°Neat,¡± I said with a grin. ¡°That¡¯s still not everything though¡­¡±


    I had the feeling like I could pull the hood even more over my head somehow, although I didn¡¯t need to use my hands for it. I could do it with a thought.


    When I did, the inside of the hood suddenly grew bluish metal plates that gently covered my face in a similar way to the helmet. I was left staring at a frankly ridiculous sight ¨C though John¡¯s PoW ¨C of a girl with a horned hoodie, wearing a metal mask under it.


    ¡°...Chat, I look like a cartoon supervillain.¡±


    Most people in chat seemed to think so as well. Some even began to come up with supervillain names.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> Lady Sapphire


    <u>jifLover67:</u> phoenix knight


    <u>UglyRestart:</u> bluebird


    I spread out my legs and arms a little and turned my palms up in a stereotypical evil laugh pose. ¡°You¡¯re too late to stop this Lady Sapphire, Heroman! You may have defeated me last time, but this time, I¡¯m the one holding all the cards! You can¡¯t stop me from turning the entire world blue! Mwahahahaha!¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°...Anyway,¡± I said while dropping the exaggerated pose and pulling the helmet and hood part off again. ¡°That Fusion took quite a bit out of me. I guess it¡¯s the perfect time to use this!¡±


    I pulled out the Crystal Flask, uncorked it, sniffed it a little with narrowed eyes, and upon confirming that the smell was exactly as I remembered the other refined ooze, I carefully tipped it toward my lips, trying to get just a drop of it out.


    Surprisingly, this liquid wasn¡¯t as viscous and a bunch of it immediately rushed out and made me jolt at the sudden surge of power.


    Luckily, it didn¡¯t leave me spasming on the floor like the last time I¡¯d tried to drink this stuff, but I could still feel myself overflowing with Ether just a little.


    ¡°Okaaaaay! I gotta¡­ I gotta do this then!¡±


    I used Fusion on the flamethrower, pulled my gun self out of the pocket dimension, and immediately shoved the flamethrower into it. Since I was fusing a third item into the mix, it took a bit of extra Ether, leaving me with no excess from the potion now.


    I let out a sigh of relief and looked at the flask in my hand and then to my new gun.


    The gun was starting to look very strange. In addition to the three metal rods, the muzzle had now also transformed into a dragon head¡¯s shape just like the flamethrower and the whole thing was longer than before.


    ¡°Well, that happened. I guess the flask must be doing some space-time nonsense to counteract the viscosity¡­? Whatever. I have a new gun and I guess I should name it too.¡±


    Just to quickly check, I used Appraisal on my gun self and found out exactly what I had been expecting. Generic Fused item name and description, along with the Key item spiel tacked at the end of it.


    ¡­Which felt kinda weird, to be honest. Was I a key item now? Since the gun was me?


    Food for thought. Later, though.


    Chat immediately began coming up with cool ¨C and very uncool ¨C names for my gun and after a bit of deliberation and consultation with the others, I settled on a name.


    <u>What would you like to name your item?


    </u>Note: This cannot be undone. Once named, an item cannot then be unfused, but gains the ability to absorb Ether, Intra, or Tempor, to empower itself.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I nodded to myself and then narrowed my eyes at the last sentence.


    ¡°Oh, chat. My clothes can absorb one of the three manas. I completely forgot about that part. Why didn¡¯t anyone remind me?¡±


    There actually was one person who had reminded me, but it had been when I¡¯d been in the middle of the crystal dungeon, so I¡¯d filed it away for later¡­ and then forgotten about it again.


    ¡°Okay¡­ I guess the obvious answer is Ether, right? Since it¡¯s supposed to be armor, it should tank physical hits, right? But then, what would the gun be¡­? Hmm? Well, the wording implies that I can only pick one. No idea if it can be all three, but I could try¡­ Anyway! Gun name. Let¡¯s do this.¡±


    The gun glowed and shifted for a moment and when it stopped, I was left with a gun shaped kind of like the plasma cannon, but with the crystal color and texture of the flamethrower, a dragon head decoration in the middle with dragon wings folded on top of it ¨C oh, that was the water gun¡¯s barrel ¨C with a muzzle coming out of its mouth. The whole thing was surprisingly small, just like the original water gun, and easily fit into my hand.


    I grinned.


    ¡°Nice! Let¡¯s see what it can do!¡±


    <u>Dragon Blaster


    </u>A gun made by Aoto Nana through fusion, created out of various treasures she discovered on her adventures.


    Provides several modes of discharge including: High-speed water bullet; high-speed ink bullet; high-speed bullet of any liquid fed into its barrel; plasma orb; liquid plasma; fire breath; crystal breath.


    Soulbound.


    [INNATE] skill: Combination Breath - Use a combination of any number of discharge modes and your own breath skills at once through this item. Ether cost scales appropriately.


    This object is a Key item.


    My eyes widened.


    ¡°A combination? Of everything?!¡±


    That sounded nuts¡­ Well, actually. Not that much. The water would probably interfere with the fire, and plasma might destroy the crystal shards¡­


    Yeah, the more I thought about it, the less useful it seemed. But hey, if I fused more stuff into this, it could become incredibly useful. Not to mention, it could apparently also use my own breath attacks¡­? Well, I only had one right now, and other than the overpriced Phoenix Breath, I didn¡¯t see how I could get more.


    ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t think that part is very useful right now. But having all of this in one place is nice! Especially since I can do this!¡± I stored the gun part of me in the Soul Pocket, spun around, held my hand toward the nearest tree, took the gun out, and immediately fired a crystal barrage at it.


    I grinned.


    ¡°Now, I¡¯ll never be without a weapon on hand.¡±


    Finally, because of the constant nagging from chat, I used Appraisal on my clothes self and found out that nothing much had changed about the description besides there now being a section that said I was more resistant to petrification.


    Well, that was the whole point of fusing it, so I was fine with it.


    The last thing I wanted to do before braving the dungeon again, was figure out how to ¡®charge¡¯ my soulbound items with one of the three manas and decide which should go into which if I couldn¡¯t do all three.

 #079 - Gravity is just an illusion anyway

    Unfortunately, both the gun and my clothes only accepted one type of mana each. I¡¯d tried testing it and they both basically worked like a battery. Or maybe a capacitor. They stored additional power and I could draw on them at any point to either restore my own reserves or to use them directly. It helped that both of them were essentially me, so it was kind of like holding something in one hand but being able to pass it to the other hand at any time.


    With that said, it was actually a binary decision as to what would be attuned to what. Obviously, I didn¡¯t want both the gun and the dress to be attuned to the same thing. I wanted to be versatile, after all. But unfortunately, I still had no idea how to manipulate Tempor directly, so the decision ended up being, which one should be Ether and which one Intra?


    In the end, since the gun used so much Ether anyway, I ended up charging it with a bit of Ether to get it going and did the same with my clothes and Intra. I could still change it in the future if I decided to, I would just have to drain them of Ether and Intra completely and then start charging them with the other thing anew.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> smartdress


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> better than smartphone


    I snorted but then nodded in agreement.


    ¡°Anyway, chat. It¡¯s finally time. I¡¯m all geared up and ready. Let¡¯s do this!¡±


    Finally, I entered the crystal crater dungeon once more.


    Since I knew from before that besides the boss, the monsters here could hardly do anything to me with their attacks, I wasn¡¯t as afraid as I had been before. Obviously, I would still be on guard though.


    I headed straight for the hole once more, and it didn¡¯t take long until I ran into my first crab. A few quick smacks over the head with the pan took care of it and I kept going.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> they respawned


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> smacc


    ¡°Seems like it, yeah¡­ I guess I failed that side objective,¡± I grumbled. ¡°Do you think the boss respawned too? Probably, right?¡±


    Regardless, I kept going, prepared to take on that dragon again.


    As I got closer, I ran into many more crabs and lizards and easily dispatched them without taking any damage whatsoever. I even ran into one of those snakes and accidentally let it use its sapphirication hiss. Luckily, the fused helmet did its job and I barely felt the effects before I quickly broke out of it and whacked the snake over the head with my pan.


    As I worked my way in, I began to get more and more nervous that the dragon hadn¡¯t appeared yet. Part of me was already cheering that it hadn¡¯t respawned yet, but the larger part of me ¨C and most of chat ¨C insisted on being vigilant.


    I made it all the way to the hole, close enough to see inside, before I somewhat relaxed and decided that there probably wasn¡¯t any dragon around.


    ¡°Okay, I guess the boss hasn¡¯t respawned¡­ yet? No idea how this works.¡± I mumbled as I stopped a meter outside of the hole and carefully peeked inside.


    ¡°Oh god¡­¡± I muttered.


    The massive, building-sized hole wasn¡¯t actually perfectly vertical. It was a bit slanted, which just made it worse in my opinion. Instead of floating down with my Featherfall, I would have to awkwardly slide down¡­ if I was even going to go down at all.


    Look, the Featherfall was really cool, but that didn¡¯t help with my inherent fear of heights. Yes, sure, I had fallen from crazy heights back in the water park dungeon, but that didn¡¯t mean I could now voluntarily throw myself into a dark pit with no visible bottom.


    ¡°How would I even get back up¡­?¡± I murmured.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe there¡¯s a path?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> shoot water back up and teleport to it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> send john to look


    I shook my head.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m pretty sure I can only teleport within the same body of water, actually. I can¡¯t just teleport to any water anywhere,¡± I explained as I summoned John and had him fly into the hole.


    There was a layer of crystals, just like the ground of the rest of the dungeon, but the hole punched straight through those and continued further underground. But¡­ It wasn¡¯t just random rock and dirt down there. It was even weirder to look at than the surface. There were lakes of shimmering lava and what looked like plasma all around the hole, hanging to the sides, casually defying gravity. There were also patches of cracked dry rocks in the dirt that seemed¡­ blurry for some reason? No, they were constantly vibrating. I could hear it when John got closer to one of them.


    ¡°...What the heck had caused all of this?¡± I murmured, still stunned at the chaotic landscape down there.


    It looked like someone had taken a whole bunch of different attacks, put them into a blender, and then punched a hole in the ground with the result.


    It actually kind of reminded me of the Combination Breath of my gun. Just with a lot more random crap added to the mix.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Well, it wouldn¡¯t be surprising if the really strong people in this world had access to the same skills I did. If all you had to do was fuse a few guns together and name them with Ultimate Fusion¡­


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> theres a path you could take


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> looks dangerous though


    ¡°Hmm? A path? Where?¡± I shook my thoughts away and refocused on John¡¯s point of view.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> to the right


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> near that lava lake


    ¡°Oh, yeah, I see it¡­ Hmm¡­ You think I could use that?¡±


    Honestly, part of me didn¡¯t want to. This looked way too dangerous and crazy and I¡¯d already almost died in this dungeon.


    But then again, if I fell, I could use Featherfall and it couldn¡¯t be that difficult if it was a D-rank dungeon as long as I didn¡¯t do anything stupid like tanking all of the boss¡¯s attacks.


    ¡­Right?


    Ugh, was I taking unnecessary risks again?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> hop in before it respawns


    I sighed.


    ¡°What if I need to run? This is a death trap, chat.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I told myself that I wouldn¡¯t take unnecessary risks anymore. It¡¯s not worth it. I¡¯m not prepared for something like this.¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> wait


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> throw something inside


    I frowned.


    ¡°Throw something? Why¡­?¡± I asked but reached into my backpack to fetch something to toss anyway. Since I still had so many of them, I grabbed one of the shark feathers and lightly tossed it inside the hole.


    I watched the scale through John¡¯s feed as it fell down into the pit and then suddenly swerved back in my direction, as if attracted by the walls of the hole.


    I blinked in surprise.


    ¡°Waaait¡­¡±


    Then I made John look around again and noted all the lava lakes that defied gravity in the exact same way the feather just did. Meaning¡­


    ¡°Okaaay, I guess that this hole messes with gravity period? Should have figured it was something like that.¡± I hummed. ¡°Why though? Is this a Tempor dungeon, after all?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe the dragon used gravity attack


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> or the thing that fought it


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> to make the hole


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> combo dungeon?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> ethertempor based


    ¡°Eh, I mean considering there¡¯s all sorts of crap inside, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if whatever made this hole also had some gravity thing as a part of it.¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°I mean, it could be? We¡¯ve barely seen any dungeons so far. Just because the first one was just Tempor-based doesn¡¯t mean other dungeons can¡¯t be based on multiple of the manas.¡±


    I eyed the hole for another moment before taking a deep breath and slowly walking closer.


    Now, I wasn¡¯t an idiot, so I didn¡¯t recklessly jump inside hoping for the best. Instead, I sat on the edge and let my legs dangle inside it ¨C god, that still felt terrifying.


    Unfortunately, the gravity changing zone seemed to be much lower down, so my legs didn¡¯t reach it. I still wasn¡¯t sure whether it would work on me, dammit.


    I could test it out with Mr. Gargles but that still wouldn¡¯t actually confirm whether it would work on me. The only way to know for sure was to drop myself in there. There was no other option.


    With that, I closed my eyes, and tried to hype myself up for what I was about to do. Even if I knew that it would probably be safe, I couldn¡¯t help but be worried that the modified gravity would suddenly turn off and I would plummet to my death along with all the lava and plasma around the walls. It would be the perfect way for this dungeon to ¡®spice things up¡¯, after all.


    If that happened, what would I even do? I would have to rely on Featherfall and hope to find a safe spot to land on. Maybe use the recoil from my gun to control my trajectory¡­


    And I was stalling again.


    Did I really need to do this?


    ¡­Chat would never leave me alone if I didn¡¯t at least try, would they?


    ¡°Okay! Let¡¯s go!¡±


    Not wanting to give myself time to come up with more excuses, I pushed myself off and mentally gripped the Featherfall skill, ready to pull the trigger.


    Luckily, after a second of freefall, gravity abruptly shifted and I unceremoniously plopped on the ground ¨C or rather, the wall.


    I let out a sigh of relief and finally relaxed. Then I looked around myself and couldn¡¯t help but think how weird it was that the sky was to the side now.


    ¡°...Yup, typical dungeon nonsense. Why am I even surprised?¡±


    Still a bit hesitant, I slowly stood up, trying to see whether there was anything weird about the gravity, like random spots where it was weaker or aimed in a different direction ¨C since some chatters thought it might be the case ¨C but there wasn''t. Not where I stood, at least.


    I sighed again.


    ¡°You know, I¡¯m going to be constantly paranoid of the gravity suddenly snapping back to normal now. This is gonna be stressful¡­¡±


    With that, I went ahead to explore what I could only guess was this dungeon¡¯s second ¡®floor¡¯.


    First order of business, I decided to walk around the hole in a circle, just to check whether the gravity really changed every step of the way. Like a reverse globe.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> a ratwheel lol


    I snorted.


    ¡°That¡¯s one big rat wheel. Like planet-sized.¡±


    I soon came across one of the shimmering lava lakes and couldn¡¯t help but observe it for a moment, even sending out John to inspect it from up close.


    It was very strange. As if the whole lake of lava was enchanted to subtly sparkle in all the colors of a rainbow. What the heck even was that? Maybe one of the skills of the race that had those colorful feathers? To make everything rainbow and sparkly? Or maybe something else entirely.


    As if to answer my question, as soon as I stepped closer, something suddenly emerged from the lava lake, causing me to jump back.


    It was a small chicken-sized creature that almost seemed to be made out of that sparkly lava. It looked vaguely like the dragon boss I¡¯d faced back on the surface, but obviously nowhere near as big and it lacked the sapphire armor.


    It let out the funniest high-pitched ¡®Waaah!¡¯ cry I¡¯d ever heard and I barely managed not to immediately burst out laughing. Instead, I materialized my gun self and shot the thing with a water bullet.


    It exploded into steam and after the steam dispersed, there were no traces of that creature.


    Then I finally let myself start laughing.


    ¡°What the heck was that?! Waaah!¡± I imitated in falsetto. ¡°Oh my god. This dungeon is trying to kill me with laughter now.¡±


    Chat was cracking up too and I had no doubt in my mind that that sound would soon become some kind of meme.


    Now, I had no idea what the little lava lizards could do ¨C besides make me laugh ¨C but it seemed smart to stay out of their way. Touching them would obviously hurt and I wasn¡¯t too sure whether my melee weapons could withstand hitting them. So, despite how easy it had been to deal with one, I still had to use Ether to shoot it and if I ran into too many of them, I would soon be out.


    Compared to the monsters of the first floor, this was definitely harder¡­ but still relatively manageable.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you forgot appraisal enemy


    ¡°...Right, I¡¯ll do that next time. Well, let¡¯s keep going, chat.¡±

 #080 - I wonder if that’s gonna stay flooded

    As I walked around the rim of the hole, feeling like I was on a ringworld, I arrived at one of those vibrating cracked rocky places I¡¯d seen before.


    It made me wonder just how the heck it could keep vibrating like this. What powered it? What had caused it to be like this?


    Unfortunately, the question would have to wait, because similarly to the first floor, when I got close to it, the vibrating rocks spat something out via mitosis.


    It was this goblin-like horned creature made entirely out of that vibrating rock. No facial features, as usual. For the first time, I used Appraisal on a monster, utilizing the Assess upgrade.


    <u>Demonic sonic golem


    </u>An imitation of a demon made out of granite. Uses touch-based sonic attacks.


    This is a dungeon monster.


    Huh, a demon? Interesting. Not all that useful though. I guess a subskill that cost a single skill point wouldn¡¯t tell me all the secrets to defeating my enemies¡­


    I tensed, readied my weapons, and as soon as the thing charged at me, I swung my pan at it to smack it over the head.


    My pan connected and flapped the creature out of the air¡­ but then I felt the recoil.


    ¡°Whooaaa¨C??!?!¡±


    A loud but dull sound resonated through my entire body, like a chill going down my spine. I ended up dropping the pan and falling on my butt as the world around me went blurry.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit wtf<u>


    SpoOo0oOon:</u> dodge!


    Instead of doing what Spoon was suggesting, I materialized my gun self and shot a barrage of crystal needles at the blurry shape charging at me again.


    I barely even heard the crystal barrage showering my opponent, what with my ears still ringing, but I could make out the golem thing being knocked away with my blurry vision.


    It bought me enough time to struggle back to my still-vibrating feet and glare at the golem thing. Unfortunately, it seemed like my crystal needle attack hadn¡¯t taken it out completely, so this wasn¡¯t over yet.


    After a very quick consultation with chat, I decided to take the easy way out and simply shot it with liquid plasma. It managed to clamber up pretty close to me, but once my shot hit it, it instantly shattered to pieces and then turned into smoke.


    I grunted in annoyance as the vibrations echoing through my body finally abated.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Chat¡­ Note to self, do not touch monsters that have touch-based powers. Jesus¡­ I didn¡¯t think it would be passive¡­¡±


    If the pattern held, and the plasma lakes also had monsters hiding in them, that would mean that all of the monsters here had to be dealt with by ranged attacks. And my only good way of attacking at range was my gun self. Well, there were also the feathers, but I wasn¡¯t sure how much those would even do against creatures made out of plasma or lava or against vibrating golems. I could also throw my key sword, but recalling it used Tempor and I still couldn¡¯t tell how much of it I had. It would suck to run out at the worst time without even realizing it until it was too late.


    I huffed.


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> are you okay?


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that was scary


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> didn¡¯t you have a bow?


    ¡°Oh yeah. You¡¯re right. The archer dropped a bow, didn¡¯t she?¡± I grimaced at the memory. ¡°I don¡¯t have any arrows though¡­ Hmm, I could probably make some.¡±


    I could just cut up some wood and then fuse it with the war shark feathers for the tips to make arrows. Although I would also need actual feathers for the backs, and I didn¡¯t have those.


    And it would be a lot of work for arrows that I would quickly use up¡­


    ¡°I need some magical infinite arrow or something. Then I could probably use it.¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> why not fuse it with the gun?


    I frowned and thought for a moment.


    ¡°I guess I could? What would that do though? Would it let me fire arrows out of the gun? Well, like I said. I don¡¯t have any arrows, so¡­¡±


    I probably had to keep using my gun to take care of the enemies here, unfortunately.


    ¡°...Well, I guess I¡¯ll add it to the list of things I need to get then. A ranged attack that doesn¡¯t use Ether.¡±


    For the time being, I kept going.


    At first, I wanted to avoid the electrified plasma pools altogether, but chat convinced me that it would be better to at least know what would jump out, just in case they all suddenly came out like during the dragon fight.


    There were also some people arguing that we didn¡¯t know for sure if anything would come out, and while they were right, my gamer senses were tingling.


    And sure enough, when I got close to one of the pools of plasma ¨C which, according to chat, should be impossible ¨C a monster emerged from it.


    This one looked like a small bird made out of the same electrified plasma, although for some reason, instead of using its wings to fly, it trotted on the ground with its chicken legs.


    <u>Ionized plasma phoenix


    </u>An imitation of a phoenix made out of ionized plasma. Uses plasma-based attacks.


    This is a dungeon monster.


    But what kind of plasma-based attacks?! Ugh, this really wasn¡¯t as useful as I¡¯d hoped.


    I backed off a little and decided to wait to see what it would do.


    To my surprise, instead of charging me like the others, the bird opened its beak, and a small electrified ball of plasma began to gather in front of it.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    A second later, that ball burst forward in a splash of plasma and I had to throw myself to the side to dodge it. Once I did, the bird began charging another one, but I didn¡¯t let it anymore.


    I materialized my gun, turned on the water setting, and shot it dead.


    One shot was all it took for the bird-shaped mass of plasma to turn into smoke and disappear.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    I stared at the spot it had stood in with a frown.


    ¡°Chat. That was¡­ very similar to my plasma setting, wasn¡¯t it? Almost a perfect replica, actually. Just a lot weaker.¡±


    Was this place somehow related to the water park dungeon? Or were the two just the same type of¡­ magic? Or something? It felt like there was a connection there.


    Well, I would let chat theorize over that. In the meantime, I had a dungeon to conquer.


    Once I made it around the hole in a circle on its rim ¨C while avoiding more lava lakes, plasma lakes, and vibrating rocks, just to preserve my Ether ¨C I then headed further into the hole.


    On my way down, I inevitably triggered a few more monster spawns when I couldn¡¯t entirely avoid the places, but easily took them out with my gun. With that said, I was beginning to run out of Ether again¡­


    Luckily, I had the potion now. One tiny sip and I was as good as new. This was so useful. Even more than the bucket.


    ¡°I wonder if I can somehow make more of the refined ooze¡­¡± I mused. ¡°Appraisal says that it¡¯s just a ton of Ether and a bit of Intra mixed with water and I already know how to manipulate Ether and Intra, so¡­ I should be able to do it, right?¡±


    Although, obviously, using my own Ether to make it would tire me out and sort of defeat the point, since this was meant to help me keep going.


    I would need to figure out how to use the regular life ooze and refine it if I wanted to make good use of this.


    And speaking of which, could I make something similar for Intra and Tempor as well? I didn¡¯t know how to manipulate Tempor, but making an Intra-restoring potion would be very useful. Especially now that I had Rend.


    Well, that was a project for later.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> there¡¯s a tunnel


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> to your left


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> between the lakes


    I perked up.


    ¡°Oh? Where?¡± I looked around and although it took me a minute, I finally found what Foux was referring to.


    There was a small opening in the wall I could maybe crawl through and it was surrounded by a plasma lake and a lava lake, far enough that they didn¡¯t seem to be dripping inside, but close enough that trying to get in would probably spawn some monsters. There was also some of that cracked vibrating rock nearby¡­


    ¡°How did you even see that? That¡¯s so subtle¡­ Hmm, you think there¡¯s something cool inside there?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> loooooot


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> prly a chest lol


    I hummed in agreement.


    ¡°Could be. Well, let¡¯s check it out then!¡±


    Since there was no way to prevent the monsters spawning if I wanted to go in, I decided to at least trigger and fight them one by one. Unfortunately, as soon as I got close to the whole setup, all three of the monsters spawned at once.


    ¡°Oh, come on!¡±


    Before they could finish their dramatic spawning sequence, I materialized my gun self and immediately shot the bird with a water bullet before it could shoot me back.


    By then, the golem began its charge toward me and the lava dragon thing Waaah!¡¯d again as it flew at me.


    I automatically snickered and it caused my second shot to completely miss the dragon thing.


    ¡°Shi¨C¡±


    The lava dragon descended on me just as the horned golem made its way to me and I scrambled to get away from both of them.


    I stored the gun and Quick Fetched the key before immediately throwing it at the golem, just to slow it down. Luckily, this one hit it head on and knocked it off its feet. In the meantime, I managed to dodge the lava dragon¡¯s claw swipe, materialized my gun again, and shot it point black with the water setting.


    As soon as I confirmed that it was dead, I turned my gun to the now-recovered golem and shot it with the water setting as well. I wasn¡¯t sure whether that would be enough, since it had a much more solid body than the other two, but luckily, the water bullet took out a chunk of its chest and the whole thing vanished into smoke a moment later.


    I breathed out a sigh of relief.


    I brought out my gun self¡¯s muzzle next to my mouth and blew on it before scoffing.


    ¡°Amateurs.¡±


    I was getting quite good at fighting, wasn¡¯t I? Ignoring my lucky streak of barely surviving some of my more dangerous encounters, I¡¯d gotten pretty good at thinking on my feet.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> hastalavista baby


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> well done!


    <u>SpoOo0oOon:</u> that was really cool!


    I smiled in satisfaction, put away the gun, grabbed my discarded key sword, stashed it away, and then walked toward the hole in the ground they had been guarding.


    I briefly stopped and looked to the side at the sky.


    ¡­A hole inside a hole in the ground? Huh. Whatever.


    I made it to the hole in a hole without any more monsters jumping me and peeked inside there. It was a bit cramped¡­ and it would probably be pretty awkward to climb back out.


    Although¡­


    ¡°Hey, chat. You think the gravity adjusts in there too?¡± I asked even as I grabbed another shark feather and dropped it inside.


    It just dropped inside without the gravity adjusting any more, though.


    I frowned.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s annoying¡­¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> send john


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> or turtle<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> mission impossible time


    I summoned John and had him crawl through the space.


    Unfortunately, despite him being an intangible cameraman, he still couldn¡¯t go through objects, so I had to navigate him carefully in the tight space. Hmm, maybe the upgrade would let him noclip?


    And sure enough, after a few seconds of crawling through the cramped space, John reached the bottom where a cyan crystalline chest lay.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> loooooooot


    ¡°Loooot! How do I get it out, though?¡±


    Chat and I thought about it for a few minutes. Some suggested simply jumping in and then figuring out how to get out, others thought it might be better to just leave it.


    In the end, one of my regulars came up with a genius idea.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> flood it with your glove


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> then aquaport


    Even then, it took quite a while to flood it enough so that the water reached the top. Spamming the bubbles that burst into a lot more water was faster than using the shower head function, but it still took almost half an hour to fill it up enough.


    ¡°Alright, finally! Let¡¯s get the loot now!¡±


    I sipped a bit of my refined ooze to restore Ether, pulled the swimming goggles over my eyes, just so I could breathe down there, and then carefully slid down into the flooded opening.


    As soon as I was fully submerged, I Aquaported down right next to the chest.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Open Sesame!


    I attempted to open the chest¡­ but it was much harder than normal. So much so that I wondered whether it was actually locked, unlike all the other chests I¡¯d found in dungeons.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> water pressure


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> it¡¯s pushing down on the lid


    I groaned, which was drowned out ¨C no pun intended ¨C by the water I was surrounded by.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> uh


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> sorry


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> haven¡¯t thought about that


    <u>AotoNana:</u> It¡¯s fine.


    I just had to do it like I¡¯d used to when I¡¯d first tried opening a dungeon chest. By bracing myself against the ground with my legs, putting both of my hands against the lid, and pushing.


    The chest finally opened and after the brief pressure change as the water flooded the chest stabilized, I took a look inside.


    It was a black leather glove¡­ for the right hand.


    <u>Demon glove


    </u>A glove with similar properties to demon¡¯s skin. Allows wielder to channel Ether through it to produce dark sparks.


    I tilted my head and picked the thing up.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Hmm.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> How very convenient.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> I only have a glove on my left hand.


    It was like the dungeon knew what I was missing. Curious.


    With that, I put the glove on ¨C which, as usual, fit perfectly ¨C held my breath, took off the goggles, and then immediately Aquaported back up. Once I heaved myself out of the hole and coughed out all the water from my lungs, I sat by the lava lake and waited to dry up a bit.


    Once I was fairly sure that I wouldn¡¯t shock myself, I extended my right arm forward, narrowed my eyes, and tried carefully directing my Ether toward the glove.


    Sure enough, I soon saw the tiny black sparks ¨C total nonsense, that wasn¡¯t how light worked ¨C jump from finger to finger.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ What can it do, though?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> maybe its like flameguard


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> try a weapon


    I hummed and resummoned my key sword and held it in my right hand.


    I channeled a bit more Ether through the glove and tried directing it a bit more¡­


    The glove lit up with black sparks and they soon climbed all over the key sword and covered it.


    ¡°Alright! A powerup for melee weapons, I guess?¡±


    I still didn¡¯t really know what it did exactly, but hey. It looked cool, so I wasn¡¯t complaining.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t feel like it has anything to do with this dungeon though,¡± I muttered. ¡°I expected something lava or plasma related¡­ Or like a super vibrating sword.¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> probably has something to do with the black flames?


    ¡°Yeah, probably.¡± I looked further down the big hole into the menacing darkness. ¡°I guess we¡¯ll find out¡­¡±


    After a short break, I continued deeper.

 #081 - Ow, my brain!

    As I got deeper and deeper into the hole, there was less and less light. And despite my new sleek glove being able to produce sparks, it actually absorbed light instead of producing them ¨C however the heck that worked ¨C so it wasn¡¯t of any help.


    My other sources of light used to be my sword¡­ which I¡¯d lost, and then Flameguard, which I didn¡¯t have equipped at the moment. I debated whether it was worth swapping Appraisal out again, but I decided not to yet, since the lava and plasma lakes still produced plenty of light.


    As I went on, though, the hole curved and I gradually lost line of sight with the sky. The lava and plasma lakes also became much less numerous. I had no choice but to either swap in Flameguard or continuously use the flamethrower mode on my gun if I didn¡¯t want to be in constant darkness.


    <u>Replace [Appraisal] with [Flameguard]?


    </u>Note: [Appraisal] will not be re-equipable for 24 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I really needed more skill slots¡­ Ugh, but the only way I knew how to get more was through the Limit Break.


    Ah, well. I just had to deal with the stupid cooldowns for now.


    I lit my left glove on fire and continued through the darkness. Since there were no more lakes or vibrating rocks, it didn¡¯t seem like more monsters would spawn, but I couldn¡¯t help the gnawing feeling of dread. It just reminded me too much of the stupid lockers.


    After a few minutes of walking through almost complete darkness, something finally changed.


    There was a rumble that shook the ground and even the air itself. A low growl that sent shivers down my spine.


    I tensed up, brought out my gun, gripped my¨C


    !@$#*&


    @&#*&$


    Pumpink dowolerea left. Dodge. Up.


    Jetlag. Claw hit my chest.


    Bounce. Acrophobia.


    ¡­What?


    My head hurt and I had no idea what was happening, but the shadowy form closing in on me needed no explanation.


    I pushed myself off the ground ¨C when had I fallen? ¨C and threw myself to the side, just in time to dodge the vicious swipe aimed at my prone form.


    A quick mental check revealed that my forks were still stunned and confused, so I forcefully terminated all of them and began creating new ones to ask chat what the heck had just happened.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> BOSS TIME


    Ugh, did I need to set up what they should return to me again?


    Regardless, I managed to quickly stand, I locked eyes with that thing already charging me again, materialized my gun self in my hand and then fired a combination of a water bullet and the crystal shards.


    The bullet hit the ground and exploded into a shower of crystals, but the thing easily dodged my shaky attempt to hit it and circled around me.


    My mind raced as the forks informed me that I must have been hit by some kind of mental attack.


    Shit.


    In that case¨C


    <u>The [Rend] skill is still not equipable for 1d20h34m12s.</u>


    Oh, crap! I¡¯d forgotten I¡¯d swapped it out only this morning!


    Dammit! I fucked up! What should¨C


    @#&^$#5*


    #^%$#&)#@


    Ufdjklekf jebelie. Off off, my fifth constellation.


    Nerd gathering, gun shoot.


    Fire hit the shadow. The shadow charged through it.


    Ugh, fuck! My head!


    My enemy closed in on me once more, and just before I got hit by its claw covered in black sparks ¨C hey those looked familiar ¨C I finally got a better look at its figure. It had wings, a tail, horns, glowing cyan eyes, and of course, sharp claws.


    Before I could do anything, it hit me square in the chest, knocking the air out of me and punting me across the place. A split second later, I felt the jolt of not-quite-electricity run through my body as I soared through the air.


    What the hell was that?!


    Regardless, I was still okay. Thank god I¡¯d invested so much into defense. I would have been minced meat by now otherwise.


    Already familiar with the pattern, I quickly rolled out of the way even if the thing wasn¡¯t anywhere close to me, just in case it wanted to psionically punch my brain again. Then I quickly reset my forks again.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> heat vision


    Now, that was an excellent idea. I¡¯d completely forgotten I had that skill.


    <u>Replace [Armsmaster] with [Heat vision]?


    </u>Note: [Armsmaster] will not be re-equipable for 48 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I immediately turned it on as soon as I swapped it in, and suddenly, I could see the vague humanoid outline ¨C with wings and tail ¨C in the darkness, charging me once more.


    I took aim once more, and this time saw how my opponent immediately swerved to the side to dodge my incoming attack. I quickly adjusted aim, and fired another fire bullet with crystal shards.


    My attack was a little off ¨C probably due to lacking Armsmaster now ¨C but it still hit the thing. I both saw and heard how the water bullet smashed into it and subsequently exploded into crystals a bit further away from me.


    I took that moment to stand again and take a deep breath to calm my shaking limbs.


    Shit. Why the hell had I swapped Rend out? Ugh, now when I most needed it, it was on cooldown! How was I supposed to deal with most of these¨C


    ^&$%&#(*


    @*#&


    Gvarysup. Gapefruit. Boulder left.


    Kicked it in the chest just as I reset my forks again.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    It staggered from the unexpected attack and I took the opportunity to summon my key sword, light it on fire, and slash at it.


    But the boss was quick enough to counter with a claw swipe of its own.


    We clashed, the boss¡¯s clawed hand against my sword, and surprisingly, our strength was almost perfectly even. Unfortunately, the fire blazing from my sword didn¡¯t seem to bother it in the slightest.


    Well, it had reptilian features and the boss before was a dragon so probably¨C


    The stalemate was broken when its claw began to give off the same black sparks as the glove I¡¯d gotten and they climbed my key sword¨C


    I countered by pouring Ether into the glove and then the sword, creating my own black sparks that clashed with theirs and stopped them from getting to me. No idea why that worked, but I wasn¡¯t going to complain.


    Once again, we were equal, even though this glove was most likely just an imitation of its own power.


    I didn¡¯t have time to think about that oddity, though, when the stalemate was broken by the boss¡¯s fifth scaly appendage suddenly coming in from my blind spot and smacking me to my side.


    ¡°Gwah?!¡±


    I bounced and rolled, confused as to what was happening, before quickly realizing it and cursing myself for forgetting that this thing also had a tail.


    I immediately rolled as I landed and instead of trying to get up, I raised my gun and shot three times in quick succession. All simple crystal barrages.


    It dodged the first few crystals, but then it lit its claws on black fire and with a burst of it, completely eradicated the rest.


    What the hell?! Another new attack?! How versatile was this boss?!


    Just as I thought that, as if to show off, the creature stopped its advance, and then suddenly, a huge surge of regular flames burst out of the darkness and rushed toward me.


    I threw myself out of the way, but some of it still managed to nick my foot.


    It¡­ didn¡¯t actually hurt all that much. I felt the heat, but other than that, it seemed like all of the resistances I had stacked up were doing good work.


    That wasn¡¯t the end of it, though. As soon as I managed to stand again, another surge of flames rushed in my direction and I scrambled to get my gun self to fire a water bullet to counter it.


    The water bullet ripped through the flames, causing an explosion of steam and then subsequent boom beyond the flames. I moved to dodge the rest of the wave of flames¨C


    *#&#$*&^


    @#(*sisukel. Sister. Owl. Soup.


    Oyster glue. Get up.


    Fire didn¡¯t hurt much. Reset forks.


    Ughhh, I was seriously getting tired of that crap! At least it felt like I was recovering faster now. Small mercies.


    And thank god for my fire resistance and healing. I still felt some residual pain from that fire attack. That could have ended very badly if I didn¡¯t have the blessing.


    With the flickering remnants of fire all over the ground, I clearly saw the boss dash to the side ¨C probably trying to get into my blind spot ¨C so I wasted no time in turning around to point my gun at it again.


    I shot another shower of crystal at it, but it waved its arm and destroyed my attack with another burst of black flames. It didn¡¯t even stop as it got close to me and prepared to swipe.


    It was too close and moving too quickly for me to shoot it. Melee attacks seemed to be useless against it as well. So¨C


    I pointed my gun down at the ground between us instead and shot twice with its water setting.


    It didn¡¯t do a whole lot of damage but did a decent job in delaying its charge. The knockback wasn¡¯t the main reason why I¡¯d done that though.


    I put my gun self away and took out my key sword again ¨C without lighting it on fire this time ¨C and then took control of the water around us.


    I somehow managed to block its claw attack while holding my key sword with both hands and in that short moment when it wasn¡¯t moving, I made all the water around it completely surround it. I tried drowning it, but it seemed like, just like every other dungeon monster, this thing had no mouth or nose.


    Dammit!


    Once again, its claw began to give off the black sparks and I had to act quick. I retracted the water, made part of it surround me and sent part of it behind the boss. Both spots were connected by a thin line of water.


    I had been practicing my hydrokinesis whenever I could, but this was still really difficult to do.


    Aquaport.


    I finally got the sweet spot and managed to teleport behind my opponent into a vaguely me-shaped blob of water. I didn¡¯t hesitate and went straight for a sword slash at its head.


    It somehow managed to react and raised its claw to block. My sword bounced off of it, but my opponent still staggered from that impact.


    I saw my chance.


    While my dominant hand holding the key sword was being knocked back, I whipped forward my left hand, materialized my gun, mashed every setting available, and fired it all.


    A mass of water, ink, fire, plasma, and crystal shards burst out of my gun self, instantly reacted with itself and further burst into steam, chunks of dried ink, and molten crystal.


    All of that slammed into the temporarily stunned boss at point blank range and completely blew it away.


    My limbs were shaking, my head was spinning from the residual mind-fuck, and my muscles were twitching from the not-electricity, but I knew this was far from over.


    I finally managed to completely calm down most of my forks as well and began properly consulting with chat on how to beat this fucking thing.


    The thing was fast. Although not as fast as the octopus boss. The main problem was how crazy versatile it seemed to be. Super strength, sharp claws, regular fire, that black fire, the black sparks, and a psychic attack on top of that all? Worse still, something told me that it still had more tricks up its sleeve. If the flashes of crystalline cyan I¡¯d seen on it were anything to go by, it could probably use those crystals as well. Worst case scenario, it could maybe even do the sapphirication like the dragon.


    I couldn¡¯t let my guard down.


    I tensed up, my eyes sharpening at the dissipating mass of steam and smoke¡­


    But then, once all the steam and smoke and fire cleared, instead of the demonic lizard thing person waiting to pounce on me, I saw a huge chest-shaped object with a soft glow around it in my heat vision.


    It took me a whole second to process what I was seeing.


    I blinked.


    ¡°Wait, what? Did I do it? Seriously? That was it?! I thought it was just getting started!¡± I complained, but inwardly, I was glad it was already over.


    Although short, that fight had been intense.


    It was my first time fighting an enemy with a mental attack, and boy was I not looking forward to fighting more of those in the future.


    I sighed and finally let myself relax and turn off my heat vision as people in chat either cheered or were disappointed at how quick it was.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Mighty adventurer¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    <u>¡®</u><u>Phase skip¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    <u>¡®</u><u>Speedrunning fan¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +1 Skill point


    I flinched at the sudden pop-ups ¨C goddammit, they got me everytime ¨C and then lowered myself to my butt with an exhausted sigh.


    Dammit, my head. Stupid psychic attacks¡­ Ugh, I hoped this wasn¡¯t going to have any lasting impacts¡­ Gah, I really shouldn¡¯t have tossed Rend this morning!


    Another sigh.


    ¡°Yes, yes. Calm down, chat. Here¡¯s your stupid achievement descriptions.¡±


    <u>Mighty adventurer</u> - Conquer an Ether-based dungeon. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Phase skip</u> - Deal damage quick enough to completely skip a dungeon boss¡¯s phase. [COMPLETE]


    <u>Speedrunning fan</u> - Conquer any dungeon in under three days after first entering it solo with no outside help. [COMPLETE]


    ¡­Hold up.


    ¡°Wait, that¡¯s it?! The dungeon¡¯s over?! It only had two floors?! That¡¯s¡­ Huh¡­ Well, alright, I guess.¡± I tilted my head. ¡°And look, it was an Ether dungeon. We were right, chat¡­ Hold on, I skipped a phase? Huh, funny. I didn¡¯t even know¡­ And wait, why are those two achievements tier one? Aren¡¯t both of those pretty hard to get?¡±


    The speedrunning one especially. Since you had to do it all on your own¡­ then it wouldn¡¯t matter even if I had teammates to party up with.


    I shook my head.


    Well, whatever. No use in arguing with how the system did things.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> I¡¯m guessing phase skip is really easy with a big party


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Maybe. I still feel kinda ripped off, though¡­¡± I grumbled.


    I sat there in the darkness, waiting to recover just a little bit before someone pointed out something strange to me.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> what was the flamethrower for?


    ¡°Hmm? What about a flamethrower, Eclipse?¡±


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> wasn¡¯t it a key item?


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> you didn¡¯t even need it


    Hmm. Good point, actually. So far, every key item from a dungeon was vital in accessing the dungeon¡¯s next floor in some way. The bracelet, the key, the map¡­


    ¡°I¡­ Well, I needed it to light this place up, I guess¡­? Feels like a stretch, doesn¡¯t it¡­? Heat Vision was more useful than the flamethrower¡­¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> it¡¯s not over yet<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> dun dun duuuuun


    I pursed my lips and looked out into the darkness. I couldn¡¯t see well, but¡­ the hole seemed to keep going for a bit. Would there be anything deeper in? If so, why would it say that I¡¯d completed the dungeon?


    Something was strange about this.


    I hummed.


    ¡°Well, I guess we can look around a bit and see what we find. First though¡­¡±


    I narrowed my eyes at the chest. Then I took out my gun self, set it to the crystal shower setting, and fired it like a shotgun.


    The shards hit the chest with hundreds of tiny clinking sounds. Some of them stuck to it and some of them were deflected and fell to the ground.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Either this mimic isn¡¯t afraid of needles or this isn¡¯t a mimic¡­¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> gee I wonder which one it could be


    I nodded seriously.


    ¡°You¡¯re right Jeoff. This thing is definitely a resilient mimic.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> god fucking dammit

 #082 – And that’s how I met my beloved weapon

    Once I got my daily required dose of Jeoff trolling and recovered a little, I went ahead and opened the big boss chest, my flaming glove lighting the way.


    Four items greeted me inside. A pile of crystalline scales, a small ring, a new type of system ticket I hadn¡¯t seen before, and¨C


    I gasped in delight.


    ¡°Chat! Look at this beauty!¡±


    I didn¡¯t hesitate and snagged the large war-axe into my hands and looked it over.


    The main shaft seemed to be made out of the same cyan crystal as everything else in this dungeon, only smoother and more pleasant to the touch. The blade itself seemed to be a combination of the crystal and some kind of black material at the edge, smoothly transitioning from one material to the other ¨C which made me wonder how the hell this would have even been made.


    It was also surprisingly light. I would probably have trouble holding it with just one hand, but with both of them, I could swing it fairly easily.


    How much did this thing weigh? Was it just naturally light or had I gotten stronger than I thought?


    Eh, irrelevant.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s perfect! I was looking for a weapon to use! I don¡¯t even know what it does, but this is definitely going to be my third Soulbind Item when I get that upgrade.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> bruh at least wait to appraise it


    I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Of course I¡¯m gonna appraise it first. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m gonna get all the nineteen skill points I need for Triumvirate before the cooldown is up.¡±


    Still, even without Appraisal, I could do a pseudo-appraisal by poking and prodding it with my Ether just to see if it had any hidden functions like most magical weapons I¡¯d used.


    Sure enough, there seemed to be two distinct sets of pathways for Ether inside this thing.


    What was with this dungeon¡¯s rewards and them having two modes of function?


    Anywho, I tried carefully pouring Ether into one of them and the edge suddenly got even darker in the already oppressive darkness. I had to squint and shine my flaming glove from a different angle to better see what was happening.


    The war-axe¡¯s edge seemed to be covered in a thin layer of the same black flames the boss had used. When I poured a bit more Ether into it, the flames got larger and seemed to consume the surrounding light just like the sparks.


    Huh, neat.


    Hold up. Didn¡¯t that mean that I could now use pretty much every attack the boss had used? Fire Breath, a psychic attack, black sparks from the glove, and now the black flames?


    Heh. Classic video game design. Stealing the boss¡¯s stick after defeating it. Although it would have been nice if I could get that psychic attack on an item as well, rather than relying on Rend.


    Anywho, since chat kept insisting, I tried lifting the axe, pouring a bit more Ether into it, and then horizontally swinging it.


    I almost accidentally launched it into the darkness since I wasn¡¯t used to swinging it yet, but I managed to hold onto it. In the meantime, the black flames left a sort of afterimage of the cut I¡¯d made through air. There was no fancy cut-shaped projectile, unfortunately, but this was still pretty cool.


    Of course, I still didn¡¯t really know what the black fire could actually do, but if it really was the same stuff the boss had used, then it could at least annihilate the crystal shards from my gun. So that was something.


    With that experiment done, I pulled my Ether back and then poured it into the other set of pathways.


    The edge turned from black to cyan, making the whole weapon monocolored.


    Neat, but¡­ it didn¡¯t really do anything at the moment. Not even when I tried swinging it through the air like before. I was a bit confused as to what I was missing and tried to feel around it a bit more with my Ether.


    Upon closer inspection, the Ether at its edge seemed ready to burst out, but it almost felt like it was missing some kind of trigger. Pouring even more Ether into it just made it accumulate more, but didn¡¯t actually let it burst out.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    I grunted in annoyance as I couldn¡¯t quite figure it out. But then, just as I read one comment about perhaps needing to hit something with it, I accidentally let the edge touch the ground.


    The resulting explosion of crystal knocked me straight back into the chest and completely scattered the pile of scales inside.


    ¡°Gah! Ow, dammit¡­ Okay, I guess we figured out what that does,¡± I said as I wryly looked at the crystalline hedgehog structure the axe had left on the ground next to the chest.


    It was actually quite the powerful attack. I just had to become strong enough to handle the recoil¡­ Or just use less Either, I guess.


    ¡°Anywho! This axe is awesome! A bit bulky to carry around all the time, but if I can soulbind it, then I can just put it into my Soul Pocket and then bring it out at any time! It¡¯s perfect!¡±


    It was also probably the most powerful melee weapon I¡¯d gotten from a dungeon so far. The lightning sword was pretty good too, but it couldn¡¯t compare to this.


    It was a bit strange, but also kind of made sense. The sword had been from a B-rank dungeon, but I didn¡¯t really have to do anything to get it. Whereas this thing was from a D-rank dungeon, but it was the reward from the final ¨C presumably ¨C boss.


    Well, regardless¡­ There was still more loot to be had.


    I shoved the axe into my backpack ¨C which was awkward enough that I had to shrug my backpack off and carefully put it in so the edge didn¡¯t damage anything ¨C and then took a look at the rest.


    I grimaced at the mess I¡¯d made when I¡¯d knocked myself back and began re-gathering the crystalline scales. Since I¡¯d learned from last time, though, I first made sure they weren¡¯t razor sharp for no good reason ¨C which they weren¡¯t ¨C before beginning to stuff them into my backpack.


    ¡°Hmm, these look like some pretty good material¡­¡± I mused as I looked at one from up close.


    They seemed to be quite durable from what I could tell. Maybe I could fuse them with my clothes for even more defense? Or maybe they had some other use. They could be a potion ingredient or something.


    Well, it was hard to tell much of anything for the time being since I didn¡¯t have Appraisal, so for now, I just stored them all.


    Next was the ring.


    I had no idea what it did and didn¡¯t want to risk it being cursed, so I threw it into my backpack as well for now.


    Finally, the system ticket.


    Unlike every other ticket I¡¯d seen so far, this one had a background with two colors ¨C a gradient of red and light blue. Its only other feature was some kind of symbol that looked vaguely like three fourths of a clock.


    ¡°Well¡­ I have no idea what this does, but it looks cool, I guess?¡±


    There were already dozens of theories in chat as to what it could do, but before I could begin to theorize along with them, a system window appeared in front of me.


    <u>Instant cooldown ticket


    </u>A system consumable that resets the equip cooldown for all your skills and titles.


    I blinked as I automatically read the text.


    ¡°Huh. Neat¡­ Wait. Why can I see this? I don¡¯t even have Appraisal equipped! Did I transcend the system and am able to use Appraisal even without having it equipped now?!¡±


    My eyes immediately snapped to my glove instead and I wished really hard to appraise it, even trying to pull at the mental switch just like usual.


    That switch just wasn¡¯t there, though, and no system window appeared.


    I frowned.


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> system items can probably be appraised by anyone


    <u>Eclipsoon:</u> to make it fair for other races


    ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess that would make sense¡­ Yeah, actually. How would races without Appraisal even know what the system stuff does? Still weird, though¡­¡± I shook my head. ¡°Anyway! This thing sounds really useful! Now I won¡¯t have to worry about being caught with my pants down. I could have really used this for that boss so I could swap Rend in¡­¡±


    Actually. Was that the reason why I¡¯d gotten this ticket as a reward? Was the dungeon mocking me?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> yoooo you can safely try that title now


    ¡°Title?¡± I blinked. ¡°Oh! You mean the fire thing I got in the water park? Hmm¡­¡±


    I quickly went and opened up its description.


    <u>Immolator:</u>


    You killed over 500 living beings or dungeon monsters using fire, and you killed 100 or more living beings or dungeon monsters in the span of ten seconds or less using fire.


    Having this title equipped grants the wielder major fire resistance, and increases the power of all fire-based attacks by 50%.


    [INNATE] skill: Immolate - Use a variable amount of Ether to immolate any target you or your weapon is touching from the inside.


    ¡°Ooo, right. I completely forgot about this thing¡­ Why did I call it useless again? Right, because swapping titles has a month long cooldown and I didn¡¯t want to risk getting rid of my phoenix skills¡­¡±


    But now I could swap to it and if I really needed to, I could use the instant cooldown ticket to swap back. It would be a waste of the ticket, but¡­


    Well, in the first place, back then, I hadn¡¯t wanted to swap to it because the phoenix skills had been my main source of fighting power, right? But nowadays, I had my gun, my clothes, my new axe¡­ I didn¡¯t necessarily need the phoenix skills that much. Sure, it was nice to have them, but¡­ Immolator also gave me a potentially useful Innate skill and I still had the flamethrower in my gun self, which combined could maybe replace the phoenix skills.


    And this was all assuming that the phoenix skills would just get disabled once I switched the titles. Some chatters theorized that only equipping the skills would become impossible, but any phoenix skills I already had would be good to go.


    Hmm¡­


    I could totally experiment with that.


    ¡­Probably not right now, though. I¡¯d already screwed up once by getting a skill upgrade with uncertain effects in the middle of a dungeon. I wasn¡¯t about to do that again in a dungeon where I knew monsters could actually respawn.


    ¡°Okay! This warrants some more investigation at some point. Later, though.¡±


    I shoved it into my backpack with the rest of the loot, hopped off the chest, and as the chest vanished into smoke, I lit up my hand on fire to use as a torch again.


    I looked around the pitch black darkness and¡­ realized that I had no idea which way I¡¯d come from. The fight must have taken me further down the hole, and because of the gravity shenanigans, I couldn¡¯t even tell which way the ground was inclined. If it even was inclined at all at this point.


    I huffed.


    ¡°Chat? Which way did I come from? I kinda wanna look around a little more¡­ See if there¡¯s any secret rooms and whatnot.¡±


    Too bad I¡¯d lost my map. That would have been super useful in this place. Oh well.

 #083 – The way back was so much easier

    Unfortunately, even after wandering around in the darkness ¨C ugh, after that boss, it really unnerved me, even with Heat Vision and the light from Flameguard ¨C for a little while, all I managed to find was the end of the hole.


    It just¡­ ended. There was nothing interesting at the end.


    Well, okay. Maybe being able to walk inside the half-sphere the hole had ended with had been pretty cool with how the gravity smoothly changed, but that didn¡¯t change the fact that I couldn¡¯t find any secret entrances or anything. I even tried firing off the two flamethrower modes around to see if it would unlock anything.


    Unfortunately, no dice.


    ¡°Well. I guess we can return once we get back the map. Assuming the map will even help¡­¡±


    With that, I turned around and began climbing out of the giant hole again.


    This dungeon¡­ was very different from the water park. A lot shorter, for one. Just two floors.


    Granted, those two floors were arguably more difficult than the water park, but still. At the very least, I was a lot stronger than I was in the water park, so I didn¡¯t have too many issues conquering this one.


    And wow, nearly dying to petrification and getting my mind scrambled apparently classified as ¡®not too many issues¡¯ for me nowadays.


    This stupid world had seriously corrupted my sense of what was normal, hadn¡¯t it?


    Another topic to talk about with Jane¡­


    On my way out, just because someone in chat had reminded me, I checked out my quest and unfortunately, the ¡®Complete the Ether-based dungeon without any monsters respawning¡¯ objective had been marked as failed.


    I grumbled about that a little, since the dragon hadn¡¯t respawned but I guess the crabs and lizards on the surface counted.


    Ugh, the system was such a cheapskate.


    Either way, I eventually managed to safely get out of the hole after quite some time walking. A short running start gave me enough speed to get out of the hole itself and grab onto the edge of it just as the gravity changed, and I easily pulled myself out.


    I idly thought about how the old me who barely exercised would never be able to pull herself from here. Hah.


    Either way, only a handful of lizards and crabs bothered me as I left the crystal plains ¨C who I took out with ease ¨C and then I was finally out of the dungeon.


    ¡°Well. That¡¯s that, I guess. Got some nice loot. Mainly the axe and the flamethrower¡­ oh, and the flask. That one¡¯s great.¡±


    Everything else was pretty minor, but still appreciated. The glove and the scales could be used for Fusion and the ring might have some neat properties. I would have to see.


    ¡°Okay! That¡¯s it for the stream today, I think. I¡¯m just gonna chill out and recover for the rest of today. And tomorrow, we¡¯re going back to the city dungeon and getting our stuff back!¡±


    I still felt a pang of anxiety whenever I thought about the archer enemy in there, but I told myself that I couldn¡¯t be a coward forever. I was stronger, and had more tools to deal with her than before. And even if I got poisoned again, I had a shelter to retreat to, as well as Rend¡¯s mindshield and the refined life ooze to help counteract the poison¡¯s Ether and Intra-draining effects.


    It was going to be fine.


    Yeah, I could tell myself that all day long, but it still didn¡¯t ease my worries.


    Anywho, now that I was out of the dungeon and in the safety of my shelter, I could safely experiment.


    The Immolator title.


    Yes, both Flameguard and Heat Vision were very useful and it would suck if I locked myself out of them for an entire month, but I wanted to see what the innate ability of the title did. And worst case scenario, I could use the ticket to reset the cooldown and get Fire Blessed back.


    That was what consumables were for. To be used.


    Even if my hoarding instincts screamed at me to save it at all costs, because what if I was gonna need it later.


    <u>Change title from [Fire Blessed] to [Immolator]?


    </u>Note: [Fire Blessed] will not be re-equipable for 30 days.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I didn¡¯t click yes just yet, and instead consulted with chat for a little longer.


    The passive effects it granted were great, but probably weren¡¯t better than the utility of Flameguard and Heat Vision. Whether this was worth it or not solely depended on how useful Immolate would be.


    Immolating things from the inside sounded kinda extreme and not something I would ever use on people¡­ But if all I needed was to touch a dungeon monster with my hand or even just a stick to kill them, that would be incredibly helpful.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    But again, it all depended on how strong it actually was.


    After a few more minutes of consulting with chat, I shrugged and finally accepted, switching my title for the very first time.


    Nothing happened.


    Or at least, nothing apparent.


    I opened my status to check if I could see anything there.


    Name: Nana Aoto


    Title: Immolator


    Race: Human


    Skill Points: 5


    <u>Racial skill</u>:<u>


    </u>Streamer


    <u>Innate skills:


    </u>Quick Fetch (Golden gate key)<u>


    </u>Minor Hydrokinesis (Gift of the Weeping Phoenix)


    Featherfall (Gift of the Weeping Phoenix)


    Aquaport (Gift of the Weeping Phoenix)<u>


    </u>Combination Breath (Dragon Blaster)<u>


    </u>Immolate (Immolator)


    <u>Other skills(3/3)</u>:


    Phoenix Blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Heat Vision


    Soulbound Item


    Flameguard


    And sure enough, the title had changed, but both of the phoenix skills were still equipped.


    I tried lighting my hand on fire and it worked without a problem. Or, in fact, the flames seemed even stronger than before, probably thanks to the title.


    I grinned.


    ¡°Nice, chat! It still works!¡±


    Finally, I opened the skill list window to check, and as expected, the phoenix section was completely gone, leaving only the human skills.


    ¡°Okay, so it¡¯s exactly as advertised. Cool.¡± I nodded to myself in satisfaction. ¡°So, about this new skill¡­¡±


    I left my little shelter, looked around, and spotted a nearby rock. I grinned and approached it while imagining the rock sweating in fear.


    I stopped just before the rock, narrowed my eyes, fell into an exaggerated stance, and sent out John to record this legendary moment.


    ¡°Ultimate move: Touch of death!¡± I yelled and dashed, right palm raised.


    I slapped the rock and pulled at the invisible switch in my mind, activating Immolate.


    At first, nothing seemed to be outwardly happening, but I could feel my Ether transforming into heat and rushing into the rock through my hand. After a moment, the rock began to faintly glow red.


    No matter how much I tried though, it wouldn¡¯t dramatically burst or melt into a puddle.


    I huffed.


    ¡°Well, I guess the skill isn¡¯t as extreme, but still, pretty good.¡±


    At least, according to chat, making a rock glow was hot enough to kill pretty much any living creature I would use this on, barring any fire resistance and magic shenanigans.


    Then, of course, people began debating about who I planned on executing this way when I returned to Earth, ruining my mood.


    Sure, I had said ¡®touch of death¡¯, but I hadn¡¯t actually meant it, dammit! Couldn¡¯t even joke and roleplay without people taking it seriously, ugh¡­


    ¡°Whatever. It¡¯s useful if I can get close enough, I guess. But that¡¯s kinda the hard part, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    Overall, it wasn¡¯t as good as Flameguard, sadly. But if I ever encountered some kind of tanky stationary boss, they were gonna be toast.


    Not much happened for the rest of the day, although I was still a bit worried about Ebiko and the little argument we¡¯d had about Soulbound Item.


    ¡­Speaking of which, I¡¯d kinda added more stuff to both the gun and the clothes since then, hadn¡¯t I? And I was also planning on soulbinding the axe once I could.


    Ugh, I wanted to apologize for being thoughtless, but then there I went continuing to be thoughtless¡­


    I hoped she would come back to the stream. Having chat around was nice, but none of them were really friends. More like fans or acquaintances at best. Parasocial relationships. Ebiko was the only real friend I had. Not even other Vcubers felt the same.


    With a sigh, I stopped brooding and finally went to sleep, ignoring chat commenting on my dramatic and wistful sigh.


    The next morning, I got some shark meat pizza for breakfast ¨C god, I really wanted different food already ¨C washed up in the river, and after a bit of deliberation, attempted to cross it right there instead of going upstream first.


    Risky? Maybe a little bit. But it wasn¡¯t going to be the end of the world even if I got washed downstream. I wouldn¡¯t drown and I could always just walk or Aquaport back, but I still had to be careful not to bang my head on the rocks and whatnot.


    I considered it training.


    The currents were pretty strong, but I stood my ground down at the bottom of the riverbank with my goggles over my eyes. The following aquaport ¨C I was getting the hang of this skill ¨C was carefully calculated so that I would end up in a half-crouching position from which it was easy to catch myself again before the stream could sweep me away. And from then on, I just had to carefully get out of the water on the other side.


    ¡°Pwah! Gah!¡± I coughed out the water out of my lungs. ¡°Alright! That was easier than I thought it would be.¡±


    What followed was a very long and boring walk back to the city dungeon. I entertained myself mostly by talking to chat and playing songs on stream. I also gave chat another ad to chew on at some point. This one was about some kind of body cream that made you glow? It was kinda weird. Not as weird as the blue-skinned lady with giant amphibian eyes, squishy skin, and a mane of feathers growing out of her scalp though.


    Why did everyone have feathers in this world? Was that some kind of fad? Or was everyone mixed race with a bird?


    Chat theorized that there was a way to do something within the system that combined your race with another. Since we¡¯d seen so many people who were seemingly from two or more races, I couldn¡¯t really dispute that theory.


    What unnerved me, though, were the theories as to what exactly caused it. The prevailing theory was¡­ the limit break.


    Of course. It was always the damn limit break.


    Would I get feathers after beating it too? I was the daughter of a phoenix, so it wasn¡¯t that big of a stretch, honestly. And as strange as that felt, it also sounded kinda cool. I¡¯d always wanted wings and the ability to fly. That was why my Vcuber avatar had them, after all.


    The new one. Not the one I currently¡­ was.


    Speaking of which, my new avatar was also part phoenix, wasn¡¯t it? It would feel pretty appropriate if I were to actually become half phoenix, honestly. The ¡®race¡¯ in my status still stubbornly said ¡®human¡¯, but I hardly felt human lately with all the soulbound stuff, Stream Overseer, or even just the ability to set myself on fire and teleport through water. I wouldn¡¯t mind getting some cool phoenix wings and flying around.


    ¡­


    Maybe that was what Jane had talked about though. About losing one¡¯s sense of self. All of this was still crazy, but I¡¯d just gotten used to everything bit by bit, and now I didn¡¯t even question things that would have made me mildly disturbed back on Earth.


    And this was only going to get worse¡­


    With these thoughts, I finally made it to the city dungeon by midday and was about to settle into my original shelter with the crappy door, when I noticed something concerning.


    Smoke on the horizon.


    I was bewildered for a moment, thinking that there might be people starting a campfire, but the closer I got, the more my heart sank when I realized what was really happening.


    A forest fire.


    ¡°No¡­Nonono. Oh, fuck this is bad!¡±


    I rushed to put it out before the whole damn world could burn down.

 #084 - All set and ready to dungeoneer!

    I gasped heavily and my entire body ached from running around and literally putting out fires for quite literally the entire day and night. It was actually the next day in the afternoon now and I hadn¡¯t even slept.


    I looked at my crystal flask to see that I¡¯d ended up drinking almost half of it just to keep going. The shower head I¡¯d gotten from the water park dungeon truly was MVP.


    I groaned and collapsed on the ground before rubbing my forehead and then glaring at the culprit of this whole incident.


    The damn plasma pool I¡¯d made when I¡¯d first experiment with my fused gun.


    Okay, fine. It had been entirely my fault this had happened. I really should have done more to prevent it from spreading, but dammit, I¡¯d thought this stuff would eventually dissipate! Why was it still here even after days?!


    I was lucky that I¡¯d caught the forest fire before it could spread too far, honestly. I shuddered thinking about the mess I would have to deal with if I¡¯d left it for much longer.


    Anywho, I had to thank the Immolator title and the added fire resistance it gave me, because although I¡¯d put it all out already, I still felt hot even with all my stacked fire resistance. This would have been so much harder without it.


    I sighed and let myself fall into a lying position, ignoring the charred landscape surrounding me.


    I¡¯d taken care of the emergency, but the root cause of the problem was still here and it didn¡¯t seem to be going anywhere. The fire had only spread from one side of the plasma pool somehow, so if I left it alone again, it could still spread to the other side¡­


    I groaned again and dragged a hand down my face.


    What the hell was I supposed to do with this?


    Could I negate it by shooting water at it? Hell no, that would probably just splatter it in all directions and ignite more trees. I could gently hose it down with my glove instead of using my water gun, but if being out in the open for so long hadn¡¯t cooled it down, I doubted a bit of water would. Stupid nonsensical magic physics.


    If only I had my bucket, so I could maybe scoop it all¡­


    <u>GonguuH:</u> fusion?


    I paused, blinked, opened my mouth, and then closed it.


    ¡°Huh. You know¡­ why not? If it worked on the sapphire, it should work on this too¡­¡±


    And since I had such crazy fire resistance, I should be fine touching it for a little bit¡­


    Probably.


    Hopefully.


    Even if not, I could heal myself with fire afterwards.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s fuse the plasma then. The only question is¡­ into what?¡±


    I pondered on it for a while and quickly rejected some suggestions from chat such as ¡®add it to the pizza to make it spicy¡¯ and ¡®towel for extra dryness¡¯ because those sounded like the ideas of Darwin award winners.


    Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t have a lot of clearly good options, so in the end, I decided to put it into the emerald bow I¡¯d gotten from my last¡­ altercation with the archer. I wasn¡¯t sure whether it would work, but I was hoping it would make it so the bow would ignite any arrow I nocked on it or maybe even magically create its own arrows out of plasma.


    That was the idea I was trying to push into the creation, anyway. If I could make door hinges out of razors when I wished for it hard enough, then why not this?


    So with that, I clutched the bow in my hand and reached out toward the plasma pool with my jaw clenched¡­ before remembering that I didn¡¯t have Armsmaster equipped.


    ¡°...Right, hold on. Uhh¡­ Hmm. What do I swap out¡­? I need to either replace Soulbind Item or one of the phoenix skills¡­¡±


    I really didn¡¯t want to replace Soulbind Item. Having it temporarily disabled during ads was already quite uncomfortable, but benching the phoenix skills would also mean that I couldn¡¯t get them back easily¡­


    I didn¡¯t have anything quite like Heat Vision and I had no idea whether it would come in handy at some point, so I didn¡¯t want to swap it out just yet. Flameguard, on the other hand¡­ Well, I had a lot of ways to produce fire nowadays, what with my gun and the pan. Flameguard was incredibly useful and had saved my butt so so many times, but I had more options now, so¡­


    <u>Replace [Flameguard] with [Armsmaster]?


    </u>Note: [Flameguard] will not be re-equippable for 24 hours.<u>


    </u>Warning: As [Flameguard] is no longer available in your skill list, it will not be re-equippable until you unlock it again.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I blinked at the warning.


    ¡°Huh¡­ Wait, why does it even say that it won¡¯t be equipable for twenty-four hours if it¡¯s just gonna say it won¡¯t be equipable at all?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> shitty programming lol


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> cooldown persists probably?


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> even if you swap back to fire bless


    ¡°Oh yeah, I guess that¡¯s true¡­ Well, alright.¡± Despite my exhaustion I decided to still make a bit of a show out of it and quickly summoned John, had him look at me from the most dramatic angle, and then saluted. ¡°Goodbye, Flameguard! You served me well! Let¡¯s meet again one day!¡±


    I pressed yes.


    Just to triple confirm, I looked one more time into the skills menu to see only human skills. Then I looked at my status and saw that I still only had five skill points. No refund for Flameguard.


    ¡°...Well, that¡¯s a bunch of skill points down the drain, I guess,¡± I murmured with a frown.


    I sighed.


    ¡°Ah, well. I¡¯ll just have to get more skill points, I guess. Don¡¯t worry about it, chat,¡± I said more to myself than chat.


    FInally, with Armsmaster now available, I reached out toward the plasma pool once more. I flinched when the pool let off a little zap near my hand, but kept going.


    When my hand touched the surface, it felt like touching pudding, except warm¡­ At least at first. Warm quickly turned to pretty dang hot, but not searing like I¡¯d expected.


    Before it got any worse, I activated Fusion and watched as the lake of plasma crawled toward my hand and turned into the familiar ball of orange¡­ which actually didn¡¯t look all that different from the plasma pool itself, funnily enough.


    I hummed and shrugged at that thought, and then carefully fused the stuff into the bow.


    Once the light show was over, I was left with a fancy green bow with bright orange markings along its limbs.


    ¡°Hmm, fancy¡­¡± I murmured and briefly looked around just to make sure I¡¯d gotten all the plasma.


    Once assured that no more forest fires would break out again, I prodded the bow with my Ether and found out that, yes, it did have some magical functionality now. Namely, I could channel my Ether through its limbs and into the arrow rest to do¡­ something.


    Since I didn¡¯t want to burn down the forest right after I¡¯d prevented that from happening, I didn¡¯t test it right away and instead walked back to the river.


    That was when I noted that the sun was actually setting again already¡­ and boy, was I tired after that all-nighter ¨C and all-dayer? ¨C of trying to stop a forest fire had completely exhausted me.


    Regardless, I managed to force myself to at least test the bow before going to sleep for the night.


    I got to the river, channeled my Ether to the arrow notch and sure enough, a glowing blob of plasma materialized and gradually turned into the shape of an arrow.


    And then it fell off because I wasn¡¯t holding it.


    ¡°Gah!¡± I jumped back to prevent it from landing on my feet.


    The vaguely arrow-shaped blob of plasma splattered on the ground, but thankfully didn¡¯t ignite anything since there wasn¡¯t any grass this close to the river.


    I frowned.


    ¡°Right. I need to actually grab it. Makes sense.¡±


    Unlike the plasma pool from before, the puddle of plasma from the arrow quickly dissipated, making me sigh in relief. No more danger of accidental forest fires.


    Anywho, I tried again.


    I sent Ether to the arrow notch and as soon as the thing began forming, I reached out with my right hand and tried grabbing it.


    It was warm¡­ then it was hot¡­ and then¨C


    ¡°Okay, apparently, this thing doesn¡¯t have innate heat protection! I can¡¯t hold the arrow for too long!¡±


    Before my fingers could start burning, I pulled the blob of plasma into the string like an arrow ¨C Why wasn¡¯t the string burning? ¨C and the thing obliged and shaped itself appropriately. And just as the heat turned into hot stinging on my fingers, I launched the thing straight into the river.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    The thing swished through the air and splashed into the river with a loud sizzle as a cloud of steam burst out of it.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> noice


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> I like it


    I hummed.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ cool. But a lot weaker than my gun, much bulkier, and can hurt my fingers in return,¡± I summarized after discussing it with a few people in chat in parallel.


    I shook my head.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> but the coolness factor


    I rolled my eyes. ¡°It¡¯s not really that useful, actually. Too impractical. Not strong enough. No reason to ever use it over the gun. But yeah, it¡¯s cool, I guess¡­¡±


    Funny how something like a bow that shot plasma arrows wasn¡¯t that impressive by my standards nowadays. What would I have given for this when I¡¯d first arrived in this world.


    <u>Irid123:</u> why not use both?


    <u>Irid123:</u> fusion


    ¡°Fuse it to the gun¡­? Huh. What would even happen if I did that? Would it just get a plasma arrow mode¡­?¡±


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> crossbow?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> its gonna shoot bows lol


    My eyes lit up.


    ¡°Ooo, I like it! Not shooting bows, that¡¯s dumb. But I probably could turn my gun into a crossbow hybrid!¡±


    Whether that would even be useful or not was still up to debate, though. And since the Ether cost got higher with every subsequent Fusion, I should be careful about what I fused, so¡­


    ¡°Maybe later. I¡¯m just gonna keep it as a backup weapon, I guess.¡±


    With that, I returned to my camp and began preparing to go to sleep when chat reminded me about my beautiful axe and the fact that I hadn¡¯t appraised it.


    ¡°Oh, right. Uh, but I don¡¯t wanna swap out Armsmaster since it has such a long cooldown¡­ Ehhh¡­¡±


    I could either swap out Heat Vision ¨C which I might regret if I suddenly needed it, like with Rend and the crater boss ¨C or Soulbound Item, which¡­ would be uncomfortable. And I would need to wait a day to swap it back if I wanted to use the Soul Pocket.


    Which¡­ wasn¡¯t that big of a deal, actually.


    Really, the main reason why I didn¡¯t want to swap it out was because it felt so uncomfortable to suddenly lose a part of myself, even if only temporarily. It was like¡­ having an arm anaesthetized or something.


    ¡°...Okay, chat. New plan. I¡¯m resting all day tomorrow. No dungeoneering,¡± I eventually declared, before gritting my teeth and swapping Soulbind Item out for Appraisal.


    Ughhh¡­


    Yeah, this felt incredibly weird now that I¡¯d gotten used to it.


    But maybe this was a good thing? Wasn¡¯t me getting used to Soulbinding the reason why Ebiko got mad? Or at least part of it?


    Speaking of her¡­ she hadn¡¯t shown up in chat in quite some time¡­


    I shook my head to shove away all the distracting thoughts. God, my tired mind just kept wandering off. I better wrap this up soon.


    ¡°Right, let¡¯s see what this awesome baby is about now!¡±


    I dropped my backpack on the ground, reached inside, and carefully pulled out the axe before shooting Appraisal at it.


    <u>Demon-dragon war axe


    </u>A war axe once wielded by the demonic mother of an ancient crystal dragon. Has Ether-reactive circuitry etched inside it, allowing the user to channel Ether through it and turn it either into demon fire or concentrated crystal dragon¡¯s breath.


    I blinked.


    ¡°Huh¡­ This thing has lore, chat! A demonic mother of a crystal dragon? Damn. I guess that explains a lot about that dungeon¡­ So, the final boss was that mother and the first boss was her dragon son, right¡­?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> looooooree


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> thats edgy as shit


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> i like it


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> how did they make the dungeon though?


    I hummed and looked the axe over.


    ¡°I mean, we still have no idea how dungeons are created, so¡­ Who knows?¡± I shrugged.


    <u>Irid123:</u> maybe they fought something together


    <u>Irid123:</u> flamethrower is key item


    <u>Irid123:</u> so secret third floor has their enemy as the boss


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> they sneezed and made the hole lol


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> maybe they just lived in that hole


    I tilted my head.


    Irid had a point that if there was some kind of secret area in that dungeon that you needed the flamethrower to access, it likely contained more clues as to what had happened and maybe even how the dungeon had been created.


    For now though, if an area like that really existed, I had no idea how to get there. And the only way to figure it out would be to get my map back.


    ¡°Well, you can keep theorizing for now, I guess. No way to know for sure until I go to that secret room¡­ if there even is one¡­ Anyway! Next!¡±


    I put the axe on the ground and pulled out the ring and a few of the scales I¡¯d gotten from the dungeon alongside the axe.


    First, the ring. I hadn¡¯t gotten a good look at it before back in the darkness, but with better visibility now ¨C although still not great since the sun had set already ¨C the ring looked like a proper magical artifact. It was shiny gray and had strange silvery patterns etched into it. The patterns were oddly familiar¡­


    I shot Appraisal at it.


    <u>Sealed ring of the larcenous demon queen


    </u>An ancient ring once worn by a demon queen.


    [INNATE] skill: Skill Snatch ¨C Use a large amount of Intra and Tempor on a person, an animal, or a dungeon monster to steal and seal one of their skills inside this item. This item will gain that skill as another [INNATE] skill. The skill can then be released at any time for no additional cost, deleting the extra [INNATE] skill and returning it to the original owner.


    This item is a relic.


    My eyes almost bulged out as I read that.


    ¡°Holy shhh¨Cshopping spree! A skill-stealing ring?! And what the heck, a demon queen¡¯s ring?! Why was something like that in a D-rank dungeon?! Is this rare loot?! And what does relic mean?!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> omfggg


    <u>Irid123:</u> oh wow


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> you should try stealing skills from every monster


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wait so monsters have system?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> and animals?


    <u>Irid123:</u> oooh I guess that dragon mom was the demon queen?


    Oh. It could steal dungeon monsters¡¯ skills! Oh my god. Could I steal the shark¡¯s space-warping nonsense? Or the octopus¡¯ portal thing? Or the sapphirication roar from the dragon?! This opened up so many options!


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> wait can you steal your own skill?


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> to have another skill slot?


    I stopped for a moment.


    Could I steal one of my own skills to have the ring act as another skill slot? Would that be safe? The description said that it could be released at any point to return it so¡­ it should be safe to try, right¡­?


    I wanted to try it really badly, but I was also wary of somehow accidentally deleting one of my skills forever. I had to first test it on someone else¡­ Meaning a dungeon monster, since I had nobody else available.


    But it said it used a large amount of both Intra and Tempor. Expensive¡­ and dangerous. And also, if stealing a skill cost too much Intra and made me into a drooling idiot again, I might just immediately release the skill again in my dumbed down state. Not to mention, running out of Intra inside a dungeon was incredibly dangerous already¡­


    Ugh, how the hell was I supposed to safely test this thing¡­?


    ¡°...Okay, let¡¯s leave this thing for later. Maybe I could try risking using that ring on the cooking demon or something,¡± I mused as I moved to slide on the ring, but then stopped when I remembered that I wore gloves. ¡°Uhh¡­ Do you wear gloves over rings or rings over gloves¡­?¡±


    Because for all the games I¡¯d played where my character would wear both gloves and rings at the same time, I had no idea how you were supposed to wear them in reality. It was the sort of thing you just¡­ didn¡¯t really think about in video games.


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> depends


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> how tight is the glove


    <u>Blouterest:</u> whatevers more comfortable I think


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuse them lol


    I blinked and then slapped my forehead.


    ¡°Duh! Of course! Let¡¯s see, then¡­¡±


    I took off my demon glove and held the ring in my hand before focusing and¨C


    I ran into a block. The ring resisted me trying to turn it into a magical blob.


    ¡°What the¡­¡± I frowned. ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ I can¡¯t? I can¡¯t use fusion on it! Why?¡±


    <u>Irid123:</u> because relic?


    <u>Irid123:</u> probably?


    I groaned.


    ¡°Right, relic. So relic just means you can¡¯t fuse it? Well, that¡¯s annoying. Oh, well¡­¡±


    I ended up wearing the ring over the glove. It fit much better that way for some reason.


    Now, I wasn¡¯t sure whether I would be using it anytime soon because of the hefty cost and the need for a dungeon monster, but it didn¡¯t hurt to have it on hand ¨C or on finger, hah ¨C in case I needed it.


    Finally, I took a look at the last item I¡¯d gotten in the crystal slash sapphire hole dungeon. The crystalline scales.


    <u>Crystal dragon scales


    </u>Scales from a crystal dragon.


    And¡­ yup. That was just about what I¡¯d expected. Not everything could be amazing like the ring or the axe, after all.


    Although even if I said that, those were still dragon scales. And if video games taught me anything, materials from a dragon were usually top quality. Could I use this to craft something? Or maybe I could just fuse it into my clothes? Hmm, but I didn¡¯t want to fuse too much random crap into it¡­


    ¡­Not to mention, the warnings from Jane and the fight I¡¯d had with Ebiko about Soulbinding random things, ugh.


    Speaking of which, Ebi hasn¡¯t been in chat since we had that fight¡­ I really hoped she would come around at some point again.


    I could also just call her, but¡­ I didn¡¯t want to seem like I was forcing her to deal with me.


    Gah! Why were friendships so difficult?! No wonder I barely talked to people outside of the Internet before this whole isekai bullshit¡­


    I shook my head and refocused as my forks delivered some theories and suggestions to me. There seemed to be a heated discussion about the axe and the benefits of fusing it into the key sword, just to make it less unwieldy.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ But I like having a giant war axe to smash my enemies with!¡± I whined.


    Secretly though, I agreed with them. Especially in the city dungeon, having a smaller and lighter weapon would be better, as demonstrated by my naginata getting stuck on things in small rooms and being too slow and heavy to ever touch the archer.


    I huffed.


    ¡°I guess I could unfuse it later if I don¡¯t like it¡­ I can¡¯t soulbind it just yet, anyway¡­ Okay, you know what? Fine! Key sword!¡± I summoned the key sword into my hand and frowned at it. ¡°I¡¯m promoting you from a crappy semi-ranged weapon to my main melee weapon! Be proud! And no, you won¡¯t be getting a raise.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuckin typical manager


    <u>PrestoFive55:</u> the office dungeon affected you?


    I snorted.


    ¡°Yes. Setting my foot near that office dungeon made me into a cruel and abusive boss. Sounds about right.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Anyway! Let¡¯s do this, then I¡¯ll go to sleep, and tomorrow, we get our revenge on the damn city dungeon!¡±


    With one more cheer, I reached out toward the axe and used Fusion.


    The mass of orange smoke it then turned into seemed larger and more energetic than anything I¡¯d ever tried fusing before.


    Well, I already knew that the axe was a cut above ¨C heh, puns ¨C all the other weapons I¡¯d ever used in this life, but this basically confirmed it.


    After admiring it for a moment, I finally brought it closer to the key sword and pushed it inside.


    ¡­But for some reason, the key sword was resisting me.


    The heck? Why? What was¨C


    As I tried pushing more, it suddenly gave in and the blob of orange slid into the key sword while at the same time a small mass of liquid squirted out of it all over me.


    ¡°Wha¨C?!¡±


    I froze and blinked a couple of times, but I soon had a bunch of people inform me of what had just happened via my forks.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> kinky


    I sighed.


    ¡°Right¡­ I totally forgot I fused the bit of spilled drink with the key sword back then¡­ Great. And George, shut up.¡±


    Well, it wasn¡¯t a big deal. There was apparently enough water in the liquid that I could still dry myself by moving it off of my person with the hydrokinesis, although it felt ¡®heavier¡¯ than normal water.


    Now that I was cleaned up, I finally took a look at the key sword.


    The golden sheen of most of it was replaced by the familiar crystalline cyan, while the teeth had been dyed black.


    I hummed, gripped the thing in my hand, and tried to channel Ether through it.


    Two sets of Ether channels, just like the axe. Perfect.


    I tested both of them and they worked exactly like the axe. Although the crystal setting was a bit more awkward to use, since the crystals would explode from all of the teeth, and unlike the axe¡¯s blade, they were a lot closer to my hand, so I would get partially caught in the blast more often than not.


    The black fire setting worked really well, though. Having the weapon be lighter fit the slashing nature of it a lot better than the bulky axe.


    Lastly, I tested throwing the key sword and then resummoning it to my hand using Quick Fetch. It worked without a problem.


    I smiled.


    ¡°There we go, chat. Finally a good weapon! Don¡¯t need to use scraps anymore.¡±


    And the best part was that even without soulbinding it, I could still quickly summon it to my hand at the drop of a hat.


    With this, my super gun, and my reinforced clothes, I felt ready to take on the city dungeon.


    Then I let out a huge yawn, which interrupted my determined thoughts.


    ¡­


    ¡­Tomorrow. I would take on the city dungeon tomorrow.


    ¡­No, wait. Tomorrow was a rest day.


    The day after tomorrow was dungeon day, dammit!

 #085 - Why do they have to be humanoid?

    ¡°I¡¯m back,¡± I growled at the gate of the city dungeon.


    With my enhanced key sword in my right hand, my gun self in my left hand, and my main body covered in my super armor self shaped like clothes, I was ready to rock this place. No damn armor-piercing poisoned arrows would stop me.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop!!!!?(^?^ )? ¡ä-


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Good luck!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> you can do iiiiit


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> got enough ether?


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I wonder what comes after the archer


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> glhf


    Ebiko still hadn¡¯t come back and it made me a little depressed, but I couldn¡¯t let that get to me. Not when I was about to enter a freaking dungeon.


    I would call her after I dealt with this dungeon.


    I cracked a small smile at all the encouragement in chat, banned the sicko who was sexualizing the archer enemy, and said, ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s do this, guys!¡±


    I stepped inside the city with confidence as the dungeon aura ¨C how we¡¯d decided to call it ¨C washed over me. The added feelings of pride and unity only spurred me forward.


    I decided not to enter the first house and instead took a short stroll through the city, just to hash out my battle strategy.


    ¡°Okay. So the first fight shouldn¡¯t be a problem. I¡¯m a lot tankier than I was before, so even if she somehow manages to hit me, I should be fine.¡±


    I also still wanted to try using the ring on the cooking demon later. Right now, though, I wanted to go in and try to get as far as possible before things got too tough. I¡¯d already swapped Appraisal for Soulbound Item again ¨C so much better like this ¨C but my plan was to swap it or Heat Vision to Rend if things got too rough. That was my trump card, even if I wasn¡¯t entirely sure if it would work on dungeon monsters. But considering the skill-stealing ring apparently did, I saw no reason for why Rend wouldn¡¯t.


    My other trump card would be my Dragon Blaster¡¯s ¡®kitchen sink¡¯ setting, as I liked to call it. Shoot everything I could at once, just like how I¡¯d defeated the dragon demon mom boss.


    With that said, I had firmly decided that if I had to use either one of my trump cards, I would leave immediately after beating whatever I was fighting.


    No need to risk my life more than I needed to.


    I made it all the way back to the main square with the dried-out fountain. The moment I spotted the etchings on the fountain, my eyes widened and then snapped to my ring.


    The symbols were the same! Well, not exactly the same. But similar enough that I had no doubt that they had to be related somehow.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> ooooooh


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> demon queen


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> this is demon city


    ¡°...Oooh, yeah! How the heck did I not realize it before?¡±


    It was so obvious in hindsight.


    This was the demon city ruled by the demon queen, who was the owner of this ring and mother of an ancient dragon, and I guess she must have fought some dangerous enemy with her son to protect her city, which had created the giant hole and crater.


    Well, the whole ¡®being a mother of a dragon¡¯ felt pretty weird and unrelated, but the rest of it fit perfectly.


    ¡°Wow, this stream still ended up being ARG, huh?¡± I giggled and shook my head. ¡°Well, neat! I bet all you lorehunters are salivating right now. I¡¯ll leave you to that! I¡¯m gonna go conquer this dungeon in the meantime! And probably discover even more lore for y''all in the process!¡±


    With that, I walked to the nearest building, looked at the looming door, took a deep breath, and then knocked on it.


    Just like the first time, the door clicked open after a moment, I grabbed the handle, and entered the dining room.


    As usual, the door behind me clicked, the other door opened, and the cooking demon launched herself at me.


    ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± I shouted as I summoned my key sword and immediately slashed in front of me.


    The zombie demon somehow parried it with her large knife, raised her pan up high, and bonked me over the head.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    ¡°Ow!¡± I yelled even though it barely hurt.


    I kicked her in retaliation, but she somehow managed to stab me in my calf with the knife just before my kick connected and pushed her back. Luckily, my knee-length boots had blocked the damage, because apparently, the entire outfit shared the damage resistance aspect.


    Since I didn¡¯t want to waste Ether on the easiest enemy, I simply rushed forward with my sword again and slashed, this time managing to cut into her arm. She dropped the knife while swinging the pan again.


    The pan connected with my head with another bonk.


    ¡°Ow! Stop it!¡± I yelled, outraged.


    I slashed again. She couldn¡¯t dodge or parry it this time and I lopped off her head.


    But not before her stupid pan connected with my head one last time.


    I let out an exaggerated half-groan half-sigh as her body vanished, leaving behind a chest.


    The demon wasn¡¯t the reason for my feigned annoyance, though.


    ¡°Chat¡­ I said stop it!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> bonk


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> bonk


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> bonk


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Bonk.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> You don¡¯t have a concussion, right?


    ¡°No, I¡¯m totally fine. It was just really loud, but barely did any damage.¡± I began silently laughing. ¡°You guys are doing more damage right now! Stop it!¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> bonk


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Bonk.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> But you like it.


    ¡°Blasphemy! What kind of streamer would like being bullied by their chat?¡±


    Most Vcubers, actually.


    Anywho, I did an exaggerated ¡®hmph¡¯ sound, turned to the tiny chest, narrowed my eyes, and then randomly remembered a meme and decided to recreate it.


    I summoned John and had him capture the scene with me on the left and the chest down to the right of me.


    I grabbed the key sword in my left hand, looked down at the chest with the most disinterested expression I could muster, and then began poking it with the tip of my key sword.


    ¡°C¡¯mon. Do something¡­¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> inb4 jumpscare


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop¡­ (? ¡Ä ?) ¡­


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> surprise mimic


    ¡°Hmm, probably not a mimic. There¡¯s no way it would have resisted being offended.¡± I nodded in satisfaction with my logic.


    I knelt down and plopped it open to gather whatever loot was inside. It was¡­ a cutting board. Made out of some dark reddish wood and a bit glossy, but still a cutting board.


    ¡°...You know. A few more runs through here and I¡¯ll be able to build my own kitchen. Already got a knife, a pan, an apron, and now a cutting board.¡± I shook my head and then stood up as I shoved it into my backpack, making a mental note to appraise it later. ¡°Well! I¡¯ll take it.¡±


    ¡°Next up¡­¡± I narrowed my eyes at the door and quickly consulted with chat on the best way to handle the second fight.


    After quick deliberation, my plan was set.


    I tugged on my hoodie and pulled it over my head before putting the mask part into place as well. I reached into my backpack with my left hand and pulled out the sapphire buckler I¡¯d gotten from the hole dungeon and brandished my key sword.


    ¡°Knight Nana, here to slay the mage!¡±


    I made a heroic pose.


    ¡­Then I rested my key sword on the ground and pulled my hood down again because, dammit, the field of view was really abysmal with that mask on.


    Anyway, that part wasn¡¯t relevant, I¡¯d just done it to complete the look. The main idea was to use the shield to deflect the wizard demon¡¯s blasts. Hopefully, it would work. And even if not, well, I could probably tank them anyway.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, chat.¡±


    I had to open the door with my elbow, but once I did, the familiar classroom greeted me.


    Once I walked in far enough, the door slammed behind me and the wizard demon kid emerged, his shield and wand setup sort of mirroring mine. I immediately dashed at him with my shield at the front and key sword raised back, ready to strike.


    My opponent quickly conjured a black fireball ¨C hey, wasn¡¯t that the same as the demon queen¡¯s? ¨C and shot it at me. Luckily, it bounced uselessly off my shield and I kept charging.


    The zombie jumped back, already conjuring another fireball, but before he could get it off, I was already in striking range, swinging my sword at him.


    He pulled up his shield and blocked my strike while at the same time firing another black fireball, which I blocked in turn.


    We were at a stalemate.


    Not.


    I kicked his exposed left side and sent him crashing on his butt. A moment later, I was on him, slashing into his chest, before he could defend again.


    He struggled and tried to shoot more fire at me, but I pinned his wand arm with my shield and stabbed him again.


    His struggles stopped and he vanished into smoke.


    I gave a tiny smile before I froze because of some comments in chat.


    <u>lifeyO:</u> used to killing kids yet?


    ¡­


    I¡­


    Was I getting used to killing child-shaped monsters¡­? Or humanoids in general?


    I¡­ I was, wasn¡¯t I?


    I should be happy, since it made dungeoneering much easier, but¡­


    I mentally shook my head.


    I wouldn¡¯t kill actual people. These were just mindless monsters¡­


    Even if they thrashed as they died.


    I mentally shook my head harder and took a deep breath.


    ¡°...Well, that was easy. These first two have always been easy I guess¡­¡±


    Fuck Stream Overseer. As useful as it was, and as used to ignoring cutting comments I¡¯d gotten, sometimes things just caught me off guard.


    I sighed and forced myself to stop thinking about this.


    ¡°Anyway¡­ Next is¡­¡±


    ¡­The archer, who I¡¯d brutalized last time.


    Fuck.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> You can do it.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> You¡¯re not going to lose yourself.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> just gun her down!


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> boss time


    I took another deep breath.


    ¡°Yeah. I can totally do it. It¡¯s gonna be fine.¡±


    Before I forgot, though, I tapped the chest the wizard kid had left behind with my key sword a few times like a drum to the beat of my favorite anime opening. Once assured that it wasn¡¯t a mimic, I opened it.


    Inside was the same shield the kid had used.


    ¡°Huh. I already have a shield though¡­ I guess I can fuse them later, yeah.¡±


    I shrugged and put it into my backpack.


    Then, I got up and walked to the door, steeling myself to face my nemesis.

 #086 - Mine now!

    My strategy was simple.


    Gun and shield.


    The first time I¡¯d faced the archer, I could only try to dodge and was too slow to do so. But now I had a shield which hopefully could block her shots. Although if they were armor-piercing as so many people in chat had theorized, I would still have to do my best to dodge.


    As for my offense, I would use my gun self¡¯s crystal shower setting.


    Why?


    Because this enemy was nimble, but ultimately squishy. It was easy for her to dodge one powerful shot, but much harder to dodge hundreds of little crystals. If enough of them hit, it would either cripple her enough to easily take down or just finish her off outright.


    That was the idea anyway.


    Sure, I wanted to preserve Ether and this strategy would use a bit of it, but it was better than risking getting poisoned again.


    It was a good plan, though. I was fairly confident that I would at least fare better than my very first attempt. And if not, I could always go with the scorched-earth strat.


    Did that mean that I wasn¡¯t afraid? Hell no. I was more anxious than if I was waiting for a job interview after realizing that I hadn¡¯t brushed my teeth.


    It was so strange, too. I¡¯d nearly died so many times already in this world, but for some reason, the stupid archer was the one that got to me the most. Probably because of the way I would have died. Stupid poison.


    I was stalling.


    ¡°Okay, here goes nothing¡­¡±


    I grabbed the door¡¯s handle and opened it, revealing the familiar porch and grassy yard that haunted my nightmares.


    I gripped my gun and shield tighter, stepped in, and immediately began scanning the bushes. This time, I didn¡¯t step closer to the bushes and instead walked sideways away from the door, hoping that would be enough to activate the encounter.


    It was.


    A few steps later, the door closed itself and clicked and at the same time, the bushes rustled and I quickly spotted movement in them.


    I tensed up and waited for the inevitable arrow to fly out. The moment it did, I lifted up my shield and dodged to the side, avoiding the arrow completely. Immediately after that, I raised my gun, and fired a shower of crystal at the emerging green-haired figure with bark-like skin.


    She threw herself to the side to dodge my barrage, but a few shards still wedged themselves into her body. I didn¡¯t give her any room to recover and shot again.


    With not enough time to dodge, she instead raised her arm in front of herself and huddled behind it. To my surprise, the arm began to grow green gemstones ¨C emeralds? ¨C as some kind of armor, similar to what she had done with arrows in the past.


    Several crystal shards still hit her bark, but a lot of them also buried themselves into the emerald.


    That was fine by me.


    If that stifled her ability to shoot arrows at me, that was only good news.


    I dashed forward and fired off another barrage. As I did that, she pulled out an arrow with her free hand and coated it with emerald, turning it into a melee weapon. She then used it in combination with her coated arm to block or deflect as much of my barrage as possible.


    She was crafty, that was for sure¡­


    Another shot. She protected herself from most of it again, but the chip damage was settling in. My strategy was working.


    That was when she hurled the emerald dagger she had been defending herself with, making me stop my advance to barely dodge the surprise attack. It gave her just enough time to produce another arrow, nock it into the bow, and fire.


    Unfortunately, my earlier dodge left me in a terrible spot to dodge again and I was forced to raise my shield and hope to the Fate Weaver that it was good enough to block the arrow.


    It was not good enough to block the arrow.


    The damn armor-piercing arrow pierced through the shield and nearly stabbed me, but luckily the shield at least managed to cancel enough of its momentum that it still protected me, even if I now had an arrowhead sticking out of my shield uncomfortably close to my hand where I held it.


    She was already pulling out another arrow, but I didn¡¯t give her the chance and shot her again. She quickly turned the arrow into another dagger and continued to block.


    This was getting a little annoying, but I had no reason to change up my strategy. Sure, it cost Ether to constantly shoot those barrages, but at least I was slowly whittling her down.


    Most people in chat were in agreement that as long as I didn¡¯t let her fire any more arrows, it should be my win.


    She threw the dagger again, but since I was more careful with my advance and was expecting it, I easily dodged without letting up with my shots this time.


    She continued to coat more and more of her body with emerald in a desperate attempt to shield herself, but it wasn¡¯t enough anymore. Two more easily-dodged dagger throws from her and five more shots from me and she finally collapsed, looking like a pin cushion.


    I wanted nothing more than to rush forward and finish her off, but didn¡¯t drop my guard since so many people in chat warned me that she could be faking it.


    I approached, my gun trained at her.


    She wasn¡¯t moving, but she also wasn¡¯t dissipating into smoke.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yoink her skills


    My eyebrow twitched.


    I was really, really tempted to do that. I didn¡¯t know what exactly her skills were, but if I were to guess, it was the poison, the armor-piercing ability, and the emerald coating. Any one of them would be a huge boon to have.


    She looked completely defenseless, too¡­


    But if using Skill Snatch left me braindead and it turned out that she was only pretending, I was as good as dead.


    No need to risk anything.


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> cut off her arms


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> then skill steal


    I grimaced.


    Why was I actually contemplating being even more brutal than last time?If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Dammit. Stupid chat. It hadn¡¯t changed from the devil on my shoulder at all!


    My mind was a whirl as I got closer. I watched her prone body like a hawk. Ready for the tiniest of twitches.


    She never moved as I got into striking distance, still wary.


    If she was really dead, then why hadn¡¯t she disappeared into smoke like usual? She had to be faking.


    Or maybe she was unconscious? Could dungeon monsters fall unconscious without despawning?


    I kicked her bow away from her, just in case, but she still just laid there, apparently defeated.


    I swallowed.


    This could still have been a trap. She could have had another skill to kill me if I got too close. But was a dungeon monster really that smart? Could I even consider her a dungeon monster with what I¡¯d seen of her so far? Her actions felt too human in so many ways.


    ¡­


    I wanted one of her skills. The temptation was too big. But it was risky and I knew it.


    Chat knew it too, and some of them proceeded to give me the best advice to make this as safe as possible while others urged me to hurry the heck up before she despawned if I was going to do any skill stealing.


    ¡°...Fine. Let¡¯s see what I get,¡± I murmured.


    Just in case she was waiting to catch me off-guard, I needed to move quickly.


    I dashed forward and pinned her prone body under me while putting my gun self away and summoning my key sword to put it to her throat.


    But before I could, her left hand whipped out at me and grabbed my wrist, stopping my sword in its tracks.


    ¡°Wha¨C¡±


    Almost immediately, I felt myself grow noticeably weaker as my mind began to cloud. I didn¡¯t hesitate to try tearing myself away from her with a yell, but her grip was too strong.


    I dropped my shield and then summoned the key sword from my right hand to my left hand, intending to finish her off. But then she grabbed my other wrist, quick like a bullet.


    ¡°Shi¨C You!¡±


    I couldn¡¯t shake her off and I was only getting weaker from whatever the hell she was doing. At the same time, I could see the wounds on her bark-like skin closing.


    She had lifestealing touch as well?! What the hell?!


    I kicked her and she staggered, but still didn¡¯t let go of me.


    Dammit!


    With not many options left, I went ahead and activated Skill Snatch.


    Immediately, I felt the haze in my brain intensify as I was offered three choices.


    One gave me the impression of squishing space, another had the feeling of converting physical energy into objects with the molecular structure of a lattice, and the last one was something about draining energies.


    The last one was currently pulsing, as if active.


    I snatched it.


    I felt the pressure inside my head intensify for a moment, but then it abruptly stopped as something shifted.


    The archer staggered but somehow still kept a grip on me.


    Before she could recover, I felt for the new mental switch and activated it.


    As soon as I did, I felt the Ether and Intra flow from her coarse fingers and back into me, reenergizing me.


    She recoiled almost immediately, but now it was my turn to grab her and drain her dry. She flailed her hands around in clear panic and managed to cut me with her fingers ¨C the armor-piercing skill? ¨C but I rammed into her, knocked her over, and somehow managed to pin her arms.


    I put my knees on her throat and chest to pin her further and keep away from her flailing legs and kept draining her until I felt clear headed again as her flailing grew weaker and weaker.


    Eventually, she stopped moving and then vanished into smoke, leaving only a chest behind.


    I sat there, staring at the chest laying in front of me in the spot where I''d been basically choking her.


    <u>lifeyO:</u> your into strangling innocent people huh?


    I twitched and grit my teeth before sending a DM to that asshole.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Shut up!


    <u>AotoNana:</u> I was defending myself!


    <u>lifeyO:</u> were you?


    <u>lifeyO:</u> you could have just finished her off


    <u>lifeyO:</u> but you decided to torture her


    <u>lifeyO:</u> you must enjoy that kind of thing


    <u>AotoNana:</u> I don¡¯t!


    <u>lifeyO:</u> im glad you arent on earth


    I banned them.


    ¡­


    I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.


    Stupid jerks in chat¡­


    I was used to this kind of nonsense. More or less. But them making me out to be some kind of hobbyist murderer just¡­


    I sighed.


    Nothing.


    I would just talk about it with Jane later.


    ¡°Okay¡­ Chat¡­ That didn¡¯t need to be that close, dammit.¡± Another sigh. ¡°Anyway. I ended up stealing her poison skill¡­ which actually isn¡¯t really a poison skill from what I can tell. Hold on, let me see¡­¡±


    Since I didn¡¯t have Appraisal to look at the ring, I instead opened my full status screen and stopped to look at all the innate skills I had accumulated. Maybe that was why you only had three skill slots at first? Because you could easily get innate skills?


    Anyway¡­


    Name: Nana Aoto


    Title: Immolator


    Race: Human


    Skill Points: 5


    <u>Racial skill</u>:<u>


    </u>Streamer


    <u>Innate skills:


    </u>Quick Fetch (Golden gate key)<u>


    </u>Minor Hydrokinesis (Gift of the Weeping Phoenix)


    Featherfall (Gift of the Weeping Phoenix)


    Aquaport (Gift of the Weeping Phoenix)<u>


    </u>Combination Breath (Dragon Blaster)<u>


    </u>Immolate (Immolator)<u>


    </u>Skill Snatch (Sealed ring of the larcenous demon queen)<u>


    </u>Essence Sap (imitation) (Sealed ring of the larcenous demon queen)


    <u>Other skills(3/3)</u>:


    Phoenix Blessing [CURSED] [FREE] [TEMPORARY]


    Heat Vision


    Soulbound Item


    Armsmaster


    ¡°...Hmm. Yeah, here. Essence Sap. An imitation, actually. Huh. Can I¡­? Here we go.¡±


    [INNATE] skill: Essence Sap (imitation) ¨C Slowly drain Ether and Intra of any target you touch to recover your own.


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Poison Touch


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Essence Drain


    <u>Upgrade:</u> Spore Sap


    I blinked.


    ¡°Oh. Upgrades. Right, makes sense. Wait, poison touch. So, it is poison!¡±


    I quickly opened up descriptions of all the sub-skills.


    <u>Poison Touch</u> - Essence Sap leaves a lasting drain on the target even when you aren¡¯t touching them anymore. You won¡¯t recover any Ether or Intra sapped this way.


    <u>Essence Drain</u> - Essence Sap works much faster and saps Tempor as well. Does not recover your Tempor.


    <u>Spore Sap</u> - Use a variable amount of Tempor to use Essence Sap through any object you touch. Tempor used depends on the size of the object and your distance from it.


    My eyes went wide.


    ¡°Wait, what? But how did¡­ Are you telling me she used both Poison Touch and Spore Sap on arrows the first time around? And the armor-piercing skills on top of that?! That¡¯s cheating! What the heck?!¡±


    I said that, but as a gamer, I had to admire her build.


    Stay at range, dodge attacks with mobility, and whittle enemies away with poison, using the armor-piercing skill to make sure the poison actually landed.


    I let out a sigh and looked at the chest sitting right in front of me.


    I shrugged and casually put my hand on top of it.


    ¡°Get poisoned. Checkmate, mimic,¡± I declared.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> utterly destroyed


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> gg mimic


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> never stood a chance


    I actually couldn¡¯t even activate that skill on the chest, but chat didn¡¯t need to know that.


    ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s see what I get from this clusterfff¡­feeerromagnetic thing.¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> why are you even trying to avoid swearing?


    I sniffed as I opened the chest.


    ¡°I¡¯m not gonna swear! I¡¯m trying to keep my stream family friendly!¡±


    Inside the chest was a log that was shaped suspiciously like a severed arm of the archer. It even had sap leaking out of it like blood.


    I slammed the chest closed again.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> but you swear anyway


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> during fights and stuff


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> family friendly loot moment


    Why was I still trying so hard not to swear? Maybe because it reminded me of being a normal streamer. Of when my biggest worries were figuring out another silly word that started with ¡®F¡¯ that I could use.


    My stream had long stopped being family friendly. What with the constant violence, several near-death experiences, and me just blurting out swears in tense situations anyway.


    I sighed and then shrugged.


    ¡°It keeps me sane,¡± I truthfully said. ¡°Or saner, I guess. I¡¯m not gonna let this world destroy my humanity, okay? And I have to do¡­ something that reminds me of my old life, at least. To keep my sanity. So why not continue my endless quest to find replacement words for the word ¡®fuck¡¯?¡±


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> omg she swore


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> whoa breaking character


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I like that you are doing that.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Don¡¯t let that world break you.


    I cracked a tiny smile.


    ¡°I mean, for the word ¡®fog¡¯! Yeah! You guys must have heard wrong!¡± I said with a smirk as I opened the chest again and tossed the wooden arm into my backpack without looking at it.


    ¡°Anyway!¡± I stood up as the chest vanished. ¡°We did it, chat! And I still feel full of energy thanks to that refill! We¡¯re good to keep going!¡±


    I was a little low on Intra because of how expensive the Skill Snatch was and my Tempor reserves were probably also pretty low, but other than that, I was good. Good Ether reserves and no injuries, thanks to me draining her.


    I grabbed my shield from the ground and eyed the arrow rammed through it that hadn¡¯t disappeared. Then I shrugged, pulled it out with some minor difficulty and put both the arrow and the shield into my backpack.


    ¡°New stuff! Finally! Feels like I¡¯ve been stuck on this one for way too long. Time to face the fourth boss of this place!¡±


    With a bit of determination, but mostly trepidation, I turned around and walked to the door, steeling myself for my next opponent.


    I grabbed the handle, took one last breath, and then opened it.

 #087 - He didn’t even show me his wares

    I furrowed my brows in confusion at the open square.


    ¡°Wait, what? No, I wanna continue, dungeon! Not go back!¡±


    I closed the door, wished really hard to continue to the next boss, and then opened the door again.


    Nothing changed.


    I stared at the scene with more confusion.


    Was¡­ that it? That couldn¡¯t be, right? As much as the archer had felt like the final boss to me, there had to be more to this dungeon.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> its different


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> the fountain


    I blinked and then narrowed my eyes.


    Sure enough, it wasn¡¯t the same city square as the one I¡¯d walked through before. Subtle changes. The stalls had goods on display instead of being empty, the buildings didn¡¯t look as dilapidated, and most importantly, as Mike had pointed out, the fountain was actually spewing out water.


    ¡°...Okay. I guess the next arena is the city square then. Or a version of it, at least.¡±


    I gave a slow nod and once again steeled myself before walking through.


    I scanned my surroundings, idly noting that the streets leading out of the square had thick fog in them, as if indicating that I wasn¡¯t supposed to go there.


    After a few steps forward, the door behind me slammed shut and clicked, and I immediately tensed and began looking for threats.


    It didn¡¯t take long for it to appear.


    A massive green-skinned man with a short fuzz of black hair dressed in a fancy shirt and pants studded with golden ornaments emerged from behind one of the stalls. As usual, he had no face.


    In one of his hands was¡­ an entire wooden cart that you would typically see being drawn by horses in medieval settings.


    My eyes widened as he hurled the whole thing at me without hesitation.


    I screamed and scrambled to dodge the massive projectile. Luckily, I had enough experience with close-call dodges by now that I managed to turn it into a roll and then a crouch.


    Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t expect the cart to violently explode the moment it hit the ground and shower me with splinters.


    ¡°Gwah!¡± I shouted as the splinters¡­ harmlessly slid off my dress for the most part. I only got a few scratches on my exposed skin.


    I was so glad for my tank build.


    When the storm passed, I looked back at the giant. Just in time to see him hurling a barrel at me.


    I grit my teeth, quickly stood up from my crouch, took out my gun self from my Soul Pocket, and shot the barrel out of the air with a basic water shot.


    Once again, the barrel exploded into splinters, but now also splashed water everywhere.


    I was beginning to understand one of this guy¡¯s skills, at least. The only question was whether he could make me explode if he touched me. Although considering he was strong enough to hurl that cart one handed, he could probably make me explode with a punch anyway.


    Before he could grab another object to toss at me, I aimed the gun at him, attempted to activate Spore Sap ¨C which actually worked! ¨C and shot a barrage of crystals at him.


    He immediately shielded himself with one of his arms and as the crystalline needles closed in on him, they abruptly changed course and scattered back in my direction.


    ¡°Wha¨C!¡±


    I jumped back, successfully dodging most of the crystals. The few that hit me harmlessly slid off my outfit.


    Just as I got my bearings again, I saw another object flying at me ¨C a chair, this time.


    I grit my teeth, but instead of dodging this time, I ducked my head and sprinted forward. Just as planned, the projectile missed me and flew right over my head because of the arc. The splinters that hit my back felt like rain.


    I continued running toward him and before he could hurl another thing at me, I snapped my hand forward and pressed the trigger on my gun self to fire off a basic water shot.


    Unlike last time, he didn¡¯t manage to do that deflection trick of his and got hit by my attack head on. He staggered, but didn¡¯t seem to suffer any significant injury, unfortunately.


    So I was dealing with a tank¡­ like myself. Now the heck was I supposed to beat him? Trying to get close to him was probably a bad idea¡­ Although maybe I could make it work. Some people in chat had some good ideas I could try¡­


    Before he could grab another random object, I fired another water bullet. This one, he managed to deflect, albeit not back at me but to the side.


    I used this distraction to close the distance between us and then shot him with the flamethrower mode of my gun. It was quite a bit larger than I remembered, probably thanks to my title¡¯s effects.


    He seemed to attempt to do the deflection trick again, but that move only seemed to activate in one instant, and so was only mildly effective against a continuous attack like the fire.


    He tried dodging to the side, but I easily adjusted my aim. Then he decided to charge me head on through the fire with his arms in front of him like a boxer.


    Perfect.


    I summoned my key sword into my offhand, channeled Ether into it to start creating the black fire, and then activated Essence Sap and all of its sub-skills.


    When the ogre got close enough, he stopped guarding with one of his arms and raised it to presumably strike at me.


    But he was too slow for me.


    I jumped to the side and just as he smashed the ground where I¡¯d stood, I slashed into his side, tearing through his fancy clothes, and feeling the Poison Touch activate.


    The giant staggered, but then turned to me, and suddenly, I felt like someone had punched every molecule in my body as I was lifted off my feet and flew back with a scream.


    I crashed into one of the stalls, making all the displayed pottery fly all over the place.


    My ears were ringing and my head was spinning, not to mention the aches all over my body, but I still did my best to recover as quickly as I could. The moment my vision cleared enough, I saw a wooden table hurling through the air moments from hitting me. I had no time to dodge this time and the damn thing landed a direct hit on me.


    It freaking hurt, but considering that the explosion of splinters would have probably shredded any normal person, it wasn¡¯t actually that bad. Like tripping and falling down the stairs, maybe.


    It did stun me for a moment, though. And that was apparently enough for the ogre to find a wooden drawer ¨C where the hell was he getting those from, anyway?! ¨C and toss it at me again.


    This time, I had enough time to raise my hand, materialize my gun self, and shoot the projectile out of the air with water. I let the splinters wash over me and quickly aimed my gun at the giant and shot again.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    He staggered and seemed to be slagging a little. The poison had to be working then.


    I just had to outlast him then.


    I crawled out of the mass of splinters and pottery shards and managed to recover just as he did. There was a moment of silence as the two of us stared at each other. Him having no face was still as creepy as ever, but I¡¯d gotten used to it at this point.


    I belatedly realized that the side where I¡¯d cut him had some gross green slime attached to it now. What the hell?


    Before I could contemplate what that was about, the giant lifted up his arms and materialized a big blob of the same green stuff ¨C wait, no, it looked a bit different ¨C before quickly tossing the thing at me.


    I reacted just like before, by aiming my gun self and shooting the blob out of the air.


    That was a mistake.


    The thing exploded and splattered all over me.


    It fucking burned as soon as it touched my skin and my clothes self.


    I screamed and backed away whilst closing my eyes to prevent any of the stuff ¨C apparently, acid ¨C from dripping into them.


    I didn¡¯t hesitate to follow the first suggestion chat had and shot a water shot right at my feet, immediately wrenched control of the water, and washed the stuff away from me as best as I could before tossing the water to the side.


    It wasn¡¯t perfect and I still had some residual burns, but I managed to get most of that gunk out.


    Just as I recovered, another blob of fucking acid was flying at me and I scrambled to run as far as possible from where it would land.


    It still splashed a little at my legs, but my boots blocked most of it. Ugh, my outfit had holes in it now, though!


    Ignoring that, I glared at the giant who was preparing another one of his acid blobs.


    Alright.


    A tank who kept throwing splinter and acid bombs at me with a close-range deflection power. How could I counter that?


    I grimaced, but decided that using a bit more Ether was worth it if I could beat him. I had no idea how long the dungeon actually was, but I didn¡¯t need to beat it all in one go.


    With my plan decided, I prepared my gun self and began charging a plasma blast.


    I dashed to the side, just in time for another one of his acid blobs to land there and splatter all over my shoes again.


    Stupid acid. Why couldn¡¯t he keep using the wooden bombs? ¡­Probably because they didn¡¯t do anything to me, huh? Stupid smart dungeon monsters.


    Regardless, I kept running while charging the shot and before he could get another acid blob off, I quickly resummoned my key sword from where I¡¯d dropped it at the pottery stall into my offhand, activated Essence Sap, and threw it at him.


    As expected, the giant stopped charging his blob for a moment, lowered his forearms, and the moment the key sword flew into his range, it suddenly reversed course.


    I¡¯d already expected it and instead of wasting time dodging it, I simply resummoned it into my hand, killing its momentum, and then fired off the plasma shot I¡¯d been charging in its liquid form straight at him.


    Thanks to my earlier distraction, he wasn¡¯t quick enough to use his reflection trick again and got hit by it head on. The mass of plasma completely engulfed him and he began thrashing in pain.


    I used the opportunity to press my advantage. I dashed forward, put away my gun self, and handed my key sword to my dominant hand.


    Then my opponent suddenly jerked and all of that plasma came splashing away from him.


    I abruptly stopped my advance and reversed course. Not wanting to lose my chance, though, I channeled Ether into the crystal function of my key sword, used Essence Sap with all of its sub-skills on it, and then tossed it into his direction.


    As some of the small splotches of plasma landed on me, the key sword flew through the air and hit the giant in his stomach before exploding into crystals.


    That actually managed to knock him on his back and I couldn¡¯t help but grin, even if the plasma splashed all over me.


    Better than acid. I could deal with heat.


    The man thrashed on the ground, but much less violently than before. He had to be running out of juice.


    Good.


    Now the only question was: Did I need to finish him off myself, or would the poison kill him?


    As if to answer my question, his struggles gradually weakened and he stopped moving.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> go drain his ass


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea you can restore ether


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bwoop¡­ (??- ?? ;)


    ¡°Sounds gross,¡± I drawled. ¡°And no, I¡¯m not going near him. I learned my lesson from the archer.¡±


    I walked close enough that his explosive projectiles would hit him too if he threw more, but not close enough that he could punch me or use that reflection skill on me, my gun trained on his prone body.


    Finally, after a minute of tense waiting, his body suddenly vanished into smoke, leaving a chest behind.


    I sagged with a relieved sigh and put away my gun self again.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> hell yeeea


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> aww no ether refill


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloooop!?(^?^ )? ¡ä-


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> good job!


    ¡°Well, there we go. Another one down. It felt¡­ easier than the archer? But only because the archer countered my build, I think¡­ Yeah, if I didn¡¯t have my clothes, I would have been toast. Speaking of which¡­¡±


    I grimaced and looked down at my beautiful dress, now riddled with holes from the acid.


    ¡°Stupid acid¡­¡± I grumbled, but then remembered that on my first round with the archer, her arrows had pierced through my dress as well, though by the time I¡¯d given the dress a Name, the hole hadn¡¯t been there anymore. ¡°Wait, does it have an auto-repair function or something?¡±


    I lifted an arm in front of myself and narrowed my eyes at one of the holes in my sleeve, trying to see if it was slowly fixing itself.


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> I think it¡¯s ether


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> the garb adjusted itself with ether


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> so that might include repairing itself


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop?( ? -?)?


    I slowly tilted my head and widened my eyes.


    ¡°...Huh. That could be it, yeah. Since the dress is pretty physical and all¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    Unfortunately, I¡¯d used the dress to store excess Intra rather than Ether. My gun was for Ether. Maybe I should switch that out? Would it automatically take the stored Ether to regenerate?


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s try this!¡±


    Slowly, carefully, I channeled a bit of Ether into the sleeve, watching closely whether anything changed.


    And sure enough, the holes began to slowly close.


    ¡­


    Very slowly.


    It also cost quite a bit of Ether.


    Dammit.


    ¡°Well, I mean, it does work, but¡­ It¡¯s expensive. I already spent a lot of Ether too¡­ Ugh¡­ I might have to go back for today and try to prepare better for this tomorrow.¡±


    Part of me was annoyed with that idea, since that would mean that I¡¯d have ¡®only¡¯ made it one more fight further than my record. I didn¡¯t know how long the dungeon was and chickening out like this every time might lead to me failing my quest.


    On the other hand, failing that quest wouldn¡¯t be the end of the world and my life was more important. I didn¡¯t need to risk my life unnecessarily.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> are you giving up already?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> awww one more?


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you could use the potion


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> It¡¯s probably wiser to back out now.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop¡­ ( ??¦ä??;)


    I hummed and thought about it for a bit while letting my forks discuss potential strategies against the giant for my next runs.


    ¡°Okay! How about this, chat? I¡¯ll sip a bit of the life ooze and then pull out all stops to beat the next fight, just to see what it is. After that though, I¡¯m going back.¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s a good idea.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> sounds good


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea ok just hit them with brain freeze


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> easy


    I snorted.


    ¡°I won¡¯t swap Rend in just yet, Jamie. I want to first see what I¡¯m dealing with.¡±


    I would have my metaphorical finger on the metaphorical trigger, though.


    I continued to talk to chat while my dress repaired itself and took out my flask to sip just a little bit of ooze to recover.


    After a while I went to open the chest, prodded by chat not to dawdle too long and let the dungeon reset.


    I belatedly realized that unlike the previous fights that had given me smaller chests, this one was the same size as the regular dungeon chests I¡¯d found in both the water park and the crystal hole.


    ¡°Are they gonna get bigger the deeper I go?¡± I asked out loud as I popped the chest open. Most of chat seemed to agree with me, some even speculated that we could guess the total length of the dungeon with that.


    I hummed at them as I took a look inside the chest.


    I blinked.


    It was¡­ a huge wheel of cheese.


    ¡°Chat¡­ It¡¯s food. Oh my god, finally more food! I was getting so sick of the pizza and shark meat!¡±


    I immediately pinched a bit off the wheel and popped it into my mouth. I automatically let out a satisfied moan as the thing melted on my tongue.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yo wtf thats not family friendly


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Yay for cheese!


    ¡°It¡¯s so good, chat! I can¡¯t help it!¡±


    I somehow resisted the urge to gobble it all up and instead stuffed it into my backpack.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> take the pots


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> free loot everywhere!


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> mwoop ??(?????)


    I blinked, then snorted.


    ¡°Okay, yeah! I should totally snag some of this stuff! I hope it doesn¡¯t magically disappear once I leave, though¡­¡±


    After all, I couldn¡¯t take stuff out of the dungeons that wasn¡¯t loot, right?


    ¡­Right?


    Wait.


    Had I ever even tested that?


    ¡­No, I hadn¡¯t. Then why did I feel like it wouldn¡¯t work?


    Hadn¡¯t someone said that it wouldn¡¯t work?


    Who had it been again¡­? And how would they know anyway?


    I furrowed my brows, but marched over to the stalls to begin stuffing all the loot into my backpack anyway.


    Something felt wrong.


    Had something messed with my mind? Or was I just being paranoid?


    I shook my head.


    Maybe Stream Overseer was starting to overwhelm me again. I was starting to mix up facts with fiction.


    That aside, I stuffed a few pots that I hadn¡¯t destroyed, along with some of the decorative statuettes on display.


    Annoyingly enough, there wasn¡¯t any food in the stalls. But, well, at least I had cheese now!


    ¡°The pots could actually be pretty useful. I just hope they don¡¯t disappear when I leave¡­¡±


    If they did though, it wouldn¡¯t be that big of a deal, at least¡­


    ¡°Alright¡­ I think I¡¯m ready. On to the last fight of today!¡±

 #088 - I’m starting to feel bad about trying to conquer this place

    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> can you go thru the fog?


    I stopped short of the building I was walking toward and turned to look into the thick fog that blocked the streets leading out of the market square.


    ¡°...I dunno. It looks like I¡¯m not supposed to go there though.¡± I hummed.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> but is it solid?


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> or can you walk thru?<u>


    JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea mb theres a secret


    I eyed the fog in one of the streets for a moment, then shrugged, and headed over there.


    ¡°Sure. Let¡¯s check it out,¡± I decided.


    The closer I got, the less confident I was that it would lead anywhere with how dense and opaque the fog was. But when I got to the unnatural mass of fog and tried reaching into it, it let my hand through like normal fog, contrary to what I expected.


    ¡°Huh. Maybe I can walk through then¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    Unlike the water park and the crystal crater, this dungeon seemed incredibly straightforward, so I hadn¡¯t expected it to hide any secrets, but¡­


    ¡°...Well, let¡¯s go, then.¡±


    I stepped into the fog, letting it engulf me.


    Even though there was no fog at all just a few steps back, it was dense enough here that I couldn¡¯t see my own hands, even if I brought them closer to my face. My footsteps were also muffled, even if normal fog shouldn¡¯t be able to do that.


    ¡°Clearly, this isn¡¯t normal fog¡­¡±


    Even my own voice sounded half like I was underwater.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> watch out for horor monsters


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop¡­ (??- ?? ;)


    I grimaced.


    ¡°Jamie, don¡¯t say that¡­ Now you¡¯re just making me paranoid.¡±


    I looked around, but still couldn¡¯t see anything but more fog. My body began tensing up all on its own in preparation for any unseen opponent.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> heat vision?


    I stopped, resisted the urge to facepalm, and turned on Heat Vision.


    ¡°Right, of course. I keep forgetting I still haven¡¯t swapped it out.¡±


    Once again, I tried looking about, but nothing really stood out to me. Either there was nothing out there or the fog blocked my heat vision as well.


    I turned it off again.


    ¡°Not that useful¡­¡± I murmured and continued walking deeper into the unknown. ¡°Ugh, chat. If I get lost, it¡¯s all your fault.¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> no way im innocent


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> were just helping!


    I just lightly shook my head and continued trekking. At some point, I tried going in different directions, but either the buildings on this street had disappeared, or my sense of direction had been fully and truly destroyed already.


    I also tried summoning John and having him fly every which way, but all it did was muffle my own voice for chat. I recalled him and continued walking, feeling more and more uncomfortable as I went.


    A subjective eternity later, something finally changed.


    I began hearing muffled sounds of metal striking other metal.


    ¡°What is that, chat¡­?¡± I murmured but kept going toward the sound. ¡°Is that¡­ chains? Or¡­ fighting?¡±


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> sounds like swords hitting each other


    Were there actual people?!


    Despite my trepidation, I sped up, eager to see what was going on.


    The sound got gradually louder and louder and it quickly got to the point where I had the feeling that I was headed straight for a battlefield. I didn¡¯t slow down, though. I was too curious about this.


    Finally, the fog abruptly ended, just as it had abruptly begun back in that alley, and I stopped in my tracks as I stared at the scene in front of me.


    It was the city square again.


    Except¡­ there were fire arrows embedded into buildings, motionless bodies laying all over the place, and countless figures running around the streets and fighting each other. All accompanied by the thick smell of smoke, blood, and¡­ something else.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    I froze in my tracks even as my eyes took in the scene.


    There were¡­ the same dark-skinned horned people ¨C demons? ¨C I¡¯d already seen in this dungeon, but they all seemed to be fighting humans. All of them were still missing faces. Demons and humans both.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> the humans are invading!


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> is this a historical event?


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> recreation of it?


    I was about to reply to chat, when suddenly a huge pillar of light struck down from the sky and completely engulfed a group of demons with a loud screech.


    I jolted and instinctively materialized my gun self and summoned my key sword to prepare for the threat.


    When the light abated, the only thing left was half a demon¡¯s body that had been outside of that beam of light.


    A chill went down my spine.


    Just as I was left staring at the carnage, a figure emerged from beyond where the light had come from. It was a faceless man with blond hair, clad in shining platinum armor, wielding a sword wreathed in golden light.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> oh shit the hero is here to slay the demon queen


    The remaining demons threw themselves at the man in desperation, but he viciously cut them all down faster than I could even begin to figure out what I should be doing.


    Once all of the demons were dead, he turned to me.


    My instincts were screaming at me that I couldn¡¯t fight this.


    WIthout thinking, I brought up my gun and shot him before he could annihilate me as well.


    But it didn¡¯t do anything. He just flicked his sword in front of him and deflected my water bullet straight back at me.


    Miraculously, I managed to dodge just enough that it missed me and exploded right behind me.


    Unfortunately, that was not a good thing, because it knocked me forward and further away from the fog. Straight toward the man who was already rushing forward at me, his sword raised and ready to decapitate me.


    I was in mid-air. I couldn¡¯t dodge. I couldn¡¯t hope to bring my sword up to block. My gun arm was angled wrong and it would be too late to try and right it.


    I needed something. Something to buy myself time.


    <u>Replace [Armsmaster] with [Rend]?


    </u>Note: [Armsmaster] will not be re-equippable for 48 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    Rend.


    He missed a step and stuttered for a brief moment, just long enough for me to whip my gun out into his face and unload everything into him.


    The resulting burst of steam and crystal shards knocked me right back and I quickly scrambled to my feet as soon as I could.


    Only to see that my double whammy of trump cards had done nothing beyond pushing the guy back a few meters. He was already adjusting his stance, ready to come after me again.


    <u>uptonMIKE:</u> into the fog!


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> run!


    I listened to chat, turned around, and sprinted the hell out of there back into the fog, hoping he wouldn¡¯t follow after me.


    Just as I broke back into the whiteness, I heard a loud boom and a familiar screech right behind me. I sped up even more, forcing myself to go as fast as I could, hoping to outrun that monster behind me.


    The sound of the battlefield gradually got quieter and quieter until I couldn¡¯t hear anything. The man never seemed to have followed me, but I still kept running regardless.


    It wasn¡¯t until I broke out of the fog and into the city square where I¡¯d fought the green giant, that I let myself stop and catch my breath.


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> secret boss proly


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> yea maybe he drops gold chests


    I carefully breathed out and looked back into the fog. I shuddered, but then shook my head and walked further away.


    ¡°Okay, chat. That was not good. Secret boss, yeah, I could see that.¡± Another breath. ¡°And yeah, if we go by the classic tropes, that might have been the humans¡¯ hero here to kill all the demons.¡±


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> this is messed up


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> it implies that all the demons had to desperately fight


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> even kids in schools


    <u>FouxMoux:</u> even grandmas with pans


    I grimaced and glanced at one of the doors, remembering the first and second fights of this dungeon.


    ¡°You think that¡¯s what it is¡­? I guess I could see it¡­¡± I paused for a second, thinking about the feeling the dungeon gave me when I entered it.


    ¡°Unity¡­ Determination¡­¡± I murmured. ¡°I think you¡¯re right, Foux. The demons were trying to desperately band together to fight off the humans.¡±


    Which meant that if this dungeon really was some kind of echo of the past, then the people trying to conquer this dungeon were¡­ like the humans, trying to kill everyone. Heck, I¡¯d already fought an elderly cook, a child, a shopkeeper, and¡­ uh, some young dryad lady?


    It still felt like I was missing something, but it sure painted a grim picture.


    ¡°Chat, am I the bad guy?¡± I murmured, trying to ingest a bit of humor into my tone and probably failing.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> well maybe the demons were evil


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> trying to take over the world or smthn


    ¡°I mean¡­ I guess?¡±


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> their not real anyway


    <u>trelipideliberitation:</u> ur not killing real people


    ¡°Well, yes, but¡­¡±


    But it still felt wrong. Now more than ever, if our theorizing was correct.


    Not to mention¡­ Going through this dungeon taught me to be comfortable with killing. And that was one of those things I wanted to avoid.


    I didn¡¯t want to become a total murderhobo by the time I made it back to Earth. But the more I learned about this dungeon and the potential history it was painting, the more uncomfortable it made me to continue.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> r u giving up?


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> what about ur stuff?


    ¡°I¡­¡± I took a moment to think about it. About whether it was worth chipping away at my humanity just to get my stuff back and get more skill points. Whether I could find my way back, even if I gave up on conquering a dungeon that made me uncomfortable.


    But that was naive, wasn¡¯t it?


    I had no guarantee that returning was even possible. I had to take every chance to get stronger to pass that Limit Break, so that I could access the incausal rifts. I had no other leads. I had to make it.


    ¡°...I¡¯m gonna keep going,¡± I finally declared.


    I quickly checked my Ether levels after pulling that combination shot stunt and found them quite drained, but it shouldn¡¯t be a problem if I sipped from the flask a little.


    Ah, but I¡¯d promised myself that I would take a break if I ever had to pull out my trump cards, hadn¡¯t I? And I had used both of them back there¡­


    ¡°...Tomorrow,¡± I finished.


    <u>JamieWasTaken3:</u> ur gonna fail the quest like this tho


    I shrugged.


    ¡°Then I guess I¡¯ll fail.¡±


    But then again, I¡¯d just told myself that I needed to get stronger in any way I could, and failing the quest would set me back quite a bit¡­


    I sighed.


    ¡°Tomorrow. We¡¯ll come up with the optimal strategy for each of the fights and then I wanna try getting at least two fights further than today, alright?¡±


    Needless to say, I wouldn¡¯t be wandering off into the fog again.


    With that, I approached one of the buildings, wished to leave the dungeon, and opened the door.

 #089 - I couldn’t have asked for a better friend

    <u>Initiate voice call with user: KaiEbikoOfficial?


    </u><u>Y/N</u> (86522 DP available)


    I stared at the confirmation message with no small amount of trepidation.


    After that little debacle with the secret area in the dungeon yesterday, I¡¯d spent a lot of the day resting¡­ but also reflecting again. Mostly on my actions and how the past me from Earth would never be able to casually decapitate even a small animal, much less dungeon monsters shaped like people.


    That, combined with how cavalier I¡¯d been about stuffing things into my soul via Soulbound Item and Fusion, began to paint a pretty grim picture for my depleting sanity.


    Oh sure, I could still pretend to be fine, just like always, but I could tell that I wasn¡¯t. In part thanks to Jane pointing certain things out to me.


    It didn¡¯t help that people in chat often goaded me into doing things that sane people wouldn¡¯t do. And in doing so, little by little, I had begun to lose something vital. My humanity¡­? My sanity¡­? My common sense¡­?


    Probably all of the above?


    Sure, Vcubers tended to be pretty eccentric. Some might even say crazy. But for most of them, that was supposed to be an act. A show for the audience.


    We were performers.


    But what if having to live through several life or death situations in a hostile, alien world blurred the line between what was my act and who I really was?


    When I¡¯d first grabbed the sword in the spaceship dungeon, I had been desperate, but maybe part of me had seen it as a prop. Or maybe like a video game power-up. I mean, swords were cool and I liked being cool, you know?


    Same went for the Soulbind Item. Even if I could feel it, I¡­ still only considered it a thematic upgrade.


    But this wasn¡¯t a game. These items and skills weren¡¯t just props, they were tools to help me survive. And just like a fire could cook your meal or burn down your house, sometimes these tools could have real consequences for using them.


    Like Soulbound Item.


    To put it simply¡­ Ebiko had been right to be worried about me fusing things into my soul like it was no big deal. Granted, I couldn¡¯t really do much about it now, unless I wanted to unequip Soulbound Item and never equip it again¡­ Which, despite everything, I was reluctant to do, since I¡¯d spent so many skill points on it and its upgrades now.


    But¡­ I could at least try to be more careful with what I fused into my soul. I should try to be more careful.


    And of course, there was the fact that Ebiko had been worried about me and I¡¯d more or less just brushed her off.


    Of course she would get pissed.


    I would be pissed too if I found out that my friend had been hurting themselves while hiding it from me, and then brushed off me being worried for them.


    Regardless, I wanted to wait for her to come back. And I¡¯d done that, but¡­ it had been four days since she had last visited my stream. I was starting to get worried that I might have screwed our friendship forever.


    I wanted to apologize.


    And, well, I could also just message her, but that kinda felt like¡­ not taking this seriously again. Like I was chickening out. I had to actually talk to her.


    I took a deep breath, checked that John was indeed far enough that he shouldn¡¯t hear what I was saying, and confirmed the call.


    <u>Call with KaiEbikoOfficial


    </u>Requesting voice call. Please wait¡­


    I immediately felt all the anxiety as I sat there and listened to the phone ringing sound, waiting for Ebiko to pick up the call.


    I waited and waited¡­


    And on the fourth ring, Ebiko¡­


    ¡­rejected the call.


    I felt my heart drop to my stomach.


    Was this really it? Had I screwed our friendship forever? What if¨C


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> busy rn


    ¡­Oh.


    ¡­I probably should have messaged her first anyway, huh?


    Well, now I just felt double stupid.


    <u>AotoNana:</u> Okay, sorry. Please let me know when you can talk.


    I mentally sent her a DM and then deflated a sigh.


    Dammit. I couldn¡¯t even apologize properly.


    Maybe this dead world eroded not just my humanity, but also my social skills.


    Hah! I had been a shut-in Vcuber! As if there had been anything to erode in the first place!


    Actually¡­ wasn¡¯t my current situation kinda similar to how I¡¯d lived back on Earth?


    I was basically just all alone here in my room with my only real social contact being chat and my Vcuber friends.


    It was just that my room was now world-sized and filled with weird dungeons.


    ¡­Yeah, that comparison didn¡¯t really work, did it?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ok you can call


    I blinked as one of my forks delivered the DM to me. Then with a bit of trepidation, I pressed the call button again.


    She picked up on the first ring.


    ¡°Hey, Nana.¡±


    Her tone sounded different from her usual cheer. It immediately tripled my anxiety.


    ¡°H-Hey, I¡­ uh¡­ I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry for¡­ being a jerk. For being so thoughtless and stupid and for just brushing you off! I¡¯m sorry!¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    There was a moment of silence after my outburst and I suddenly felt even more anxious.


    Why the hell were normal relationships so hard? The parasocial ones were so much easier¡­


    ¡°...You¡¯re talking about the soulbind thing, right?¡±


    ¡°...Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Well, I forgive you then.¡±


    Huh?


    ¡°I¡¯m still angry that you didn¡¯t say anything, but I get why you felt like you needed to use it.¡±


    ¡°Sorry¡­¡± I mumbled again.


    ¡°Nana, look, I¡­ I want you to be safe. This whole isekai thing is insane. And I¡­¡±


    There was a moment of silence as I processed the feeling of warmth that someone really cared about me.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Nana. I was being unfair. I¨C¡±


    ¡°What? No, you weren¡¯t! You were completely right! It was so dumb of me to just casually attach things to my soul!¡±


    ¡°No¡­ I¡­ That¡¯s not what I meant.¡± I frowned and made a questioning hum. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ll be honest. I was playing along, but was still skeptical about the isekai thing.¡±


    I stilled and suddenly felt very cold after that admission.


    ¡°But then¡­ a floating box appeared in front of me, saying that you were trying to call me.¡±


    Oh.


    ¡°And, I¡­ Well¡­ Yeah. Obviously, I have no doubts at all now, but back then, right after that call¡­ When I got out of the bus, I had a bit of a breakdown.¡±


    I stared blankly at the voice call window, unsure of what to say.


    ¡°I missed my appointment back then, but whatever. What I really cared about was you. I wanted to help you. For real this time. Help you survive and get back.. But I felt like there was nothing I could do. I was powerless. And then you told me that you were¡­ mutilating your soul? I panicked again. I was afraid of losing a friend to some soul infection or something. I was afraid that it had already happened since you were so blase about it. That the soul thing had corrupted you and made you okay with it all somehow.¡±


    I quietly swallowed.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ I¡­¡±


    It hadn¡¯t corrupted me¡­ had it? I wasn¡¯t entirely okay with the Soulbind thing yet. But I¡¯d gotten used to the sensation. And sure, I¡¯d told myself that I would be careful about what I soulbound from now on, but at the same time, subconsciously, I already planned on getting the Soul Strike and Triumvirate upgrades and soulbinding a third item. Because I needed all the power-ups I could get.


    But was that just my corruption speaking¡­?


    ¡°Look, Nana. I¡¯m sorry, but I talked to your sister.¡±


    I blinked.


    ¡°Uh. What?¡±


    ¡°I talked to her about your situation. She was also worried and¡­ we sort of joined this research group. It¡¯s people trying to figure out your situation. We have this Dissonance server where we discuss everything from the alien language to the skills you have.¡±


    ¡­The heck?


    Well, I¡¯d already known it existed, but I hadn¡¯t known Ebi had joined as well.


    I frowned.


    Actually, I hadn¡¯t heard much from this group beyond being told that it existed¡­ Why hadn¡¯t anyone shared their findings with me?


    ¡°We¡¯ve been trying to figure out how you could unlock all the other skills that are locked and we think you might have to complete specific achievements.¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­ locked skills?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it showed you at first, but then you made the system hide them, remember?¡±


    I opened my mouth, stopped, and then closed it.


    I felt like slapping myself.


    ¡°Oh¡­ right. I¡­ completely forgot.¡±


    I brought out the skill list with a thought and this time willed the system to show all the locked skills again.


    The window massively expanded and filled with all the locked skills. It was even bigger than the first time around since now there were also all the locked tier two skills.


    ¡°Okay, uh¡­ Hmm¡­ I never actually tried to figure out how to unlock more of these skills¡­¡±


    I mentally prodded a random locked skill to tell me what I had to do to unlock it.


    To my surprise, I actually got an answer.


    You don¡¯t have the racial skill required for this skill.


    I stared at it for a moment before trying another skill, only to get the same message. I tried a couple more, hoping some of them were locked for a different reason, but no luck.


    I sighed.


    So there was no way to unlock any of them? Well, dammit. Why even show them at all then? Stupid system¡­


    ¡°Uh, so I just checked,¡± I said out loud. ¡°It says ¡®You don¡¯t have the racial skill required for this skill¡¯ when I try to prod any of the locked skills, so¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± She sounded as disappointed as I was. ¡°Well, that sucks. I was really hoping you could unlock some other skills to use instead of soulbinding¡­¡±


    I hummed in agreement.


    ¡°Yeah, that would have been nice¡­ Ugh. That¡¯s so dumb! So the racial skill decides everything then? What does it even mean? Why is soulbinding tied to streaming?!¡± I ranted.


    Was it some kind of joke about streamers selling out their soul for sponsor deals or something?


    ¡­No, that was probably thinking too much into it.


    ¡°Wait, does that mean that you can get more racial skills?¡± Ebiko suddenly asked, halting my annoyed internal monologue.


    ¡°...Huh. Maybe?¡± My eyes went wide. ¡°Maybe that¡¯s what the rifts do! Or the limit break! They give more racial skills!¡±


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s possible! Hmm, but the limit break thing didn¡¯t say anything about giving you more racial skills, did it?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, I guess¡­. But maybe it¡¯s like quests! With hidden objectives that give extra rewards or something!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true!¡± she exclaimed before pausing for a moment. ¡°But you¡¯re not planning on doing the limit break anytime soon, are you?¡±


    I grimaced.


    ¡°Well, no¡­ I¡­ I feel like I have to do it at some point, but¡­¡±


    I still felt apprehensive about it, obviously.


    ¡°Okay. Don¡¯t do it yet. I¡¯m gonna brainstorm the locked skills thing with everyone and maybe we can even figure out what the limit break will be about, alright?¡±


    I nodded, finding myself smiling.


    ¡°Alright! That¡¯s¡­ yeah, okay.¡±


    ¡°Hmm? Something wrong?¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s just¡­ Thanks, Ebi. I¡­ You know, I was just really worried after we last talked. Worried that you never wanted to talk to me again.¡±


    ¡°Of course not! It¡¯s because I was worried about you!¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help it, I laughed a little.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad¡­ I¡¯m so glad¡­¡±


    I sniffed, blinked, and then noticed my vision getting blurrier and liquid flowing down my cheeks.


    Huh¡­?


    Why was I crying¡­?


    ¡°...Nana?¡±


    I quickly wiped my face, thankful that she couldn¡¯t see me, and did my best to hide what just happened.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I said, doing my best to keep the moisture out of my voice.


    ¡°...I¡¯m glad too.¡±


    Ah, dammit. The tears were flowing again.


    Was this what it was like to have someone truly care about you?


    It felt¡­ really nice.


    I could get used to the feeling.


    ¡°Sorry, I just¡­ thanks. Really, thanks, Ebi.¡±


    ¡°Of course, Nana. We¡¯re friends and I¡¯m getting you out of that world no matter what.¡±


    Ah, parasocial relationships had nothing on having real friends¡­


    ¡°Yeah! Screw this world! I¡¯m getting back home even if it kills me!¡± I exclaimed, probably loudly enough that John heard me.


    ¡°Nana, no! Don¡¯t die getting home!¡± she chastised me, but I could hear the joking tone in her voice.


    We laughed and talked for quite a while longer after that.


    I felt lighter, happier, and more determined than ever to succeed. Although when I brought up the incausal rifts again, Ebiko had something to say.


    ¡°Oh, right. There was something else I wanted to tell you about.¡±


    ¡°Something else?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, so we were going through the achievement list that you screenshotted for us and¡­ some of them were kind of concerning.¡±


    I frowned.


    ¡°Like, what¡­?¡±


    ¡°Umm, hold on¡­ Okay, so, look up a tier three achievement called ¡®Back in a jiffy¡¯.¡±


    I hummed and did as instructed.


    <u>Back in a jiffy</u> - Complete your first incausal rift.


    ¡°Huh. Complete? Hmm¡­ Okay¡­¡±


    There were some mildly concerning implications there.


    After all, I¡¯d thought that these rifts would let me go back in time, but ¡®completing¡¯ one would imply that I would do something in the past and then¡­ what? It would spit me back here?


    Also, ¡®your first incausal rift¡¯?


    ¡°That¡¯s not all. There¡¯s another achievement for the second rift and then the third, search for¡­¡±


    I went silent as I read the achievement name, feeling mildly disturbed, but searched for them anyway.


    <u>I hope you aren¡¯t breaking the timeline</u> - Complete your second incausal rift.


    Tier four achievement. It¡­ had more weird implications. Firstly, it more or less confirmed that these incausal rifts allowed time travel, but also¡­


    What was up with that name? Who wrote the achievements text, anyway? Who was the ¡®I¡¯ in that achievement name?


    The fate weaver, right? It had to be.


    But then¡­ That would mean¡­


    ¡°And there¡¯s a third one in tier five. Search for¡­¡±


    I felt a chill go down my spine as I heard the achievement name.


    Numbly, I scrolled to the tier five section and found the achievement anyway, though.


    <u>You could have stayed there and been happy, but now you¡¯ll never see them again</u> - Complete your third incausal rift.


    I stared at it for a while in stunned silence. Ebiko might have been talking, but I couldn¡¯t hear her. My full focus was on this absolutely cursed achievement name loaded with implications.


    ¡°Ebi¡­¡± I said, my throat dry. ¡°What the fuck does this mean?¡±

 #090 – Time to bum-rush this place!

    I didn¡¯t even shudder as I entered the city dungeon and instead leaned into the feelings of determination and comradery the dungeon injected into me. It felt that much more appropriate with Ebiko in chat again today.


    I did my best to push away the fridge horror that was the incausal rift achievement names. There was absolutely no need for me to worry about them now when I was still so far away from even unlocking access to them.


    Yeah¡­


    That was a problem for future Nana to deal with.


    ¡°Alright, chat. Here we go again!¡± I exclaimed, shoving away the lingering discomfort.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> good luck!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you got this!


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Good luck!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> time to speedrun this shit


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bloop! ??(£Þ?£Þ)??


    I walked to the nearest door inside the city and opened it, hyping myself for what I was about to do. Part of me felt like it was stupidly risky, but at the same time, I had tested this extensively, so it should be fine.


    I walked inside the dining room, waited for the door to slam behind me, and got into a ready combat stance.


    Unlike all the previous times I¡¯d handled this fight, my hands were empty. The plan was to handle this without any weapons.


    A moment later, the other door flew open and the familiar demon with a knife and a pan charged out straight at me.


    I simply stood there, feet set and hands raised, ready to intercept her attack.


    She quickly closed in on me and lunged forward with her knife. Instead of dodging, I moved my forearm to block it.


    Normally, that would be a recipe for getting a huge stab wound in my forearm, but thanks to my durable clothes, all I felt was a bit of pressure as the knife stabbed into my sleeve.


    Right as the stab finished, I whipped my other hand out and grabbed the demon¡¯s forearm before immediately activating Essence Sap.


    The demon tried jerking away from me but I held on tight ¨C I was surprisingly strong despite the young body. When getting away failed, she began to bonk me on the head with the pan.


    But again, it barely hurt. All it did was make silly sounds and get everyone to spam ¡®Bonk¡¯ in chat again.


    Meanies.


    Since I didn¡¯t need my left arm to block the knife anymore, I lowered it and then lunged to pull the demon into a hug, making sure that she couldn¡¯t escape my touch of death.


    Naturally, she kept thrashing, trying to peel me off, but I didn¡¯t let go and her struggles got weaker and weaker.


    A few minutes later, she stopped moving and then dissipated into mist.


    I let out an exhale as I looked down at the chest she left behind.


    Just according to plan.


    No Ether, Intra, or Tempor used for this fight and I wasn¡¯t even winded. The only disadvantage was that it had taken quite a bit longer than normal.


    Still, I wasn¡¯t in a rush here. This was a test of endurance, after all. I couldn¡¯t waste Ether on the early enemies if I wanted to get further into the dungeon.


    So this was the strategy we had devised for the first fight.


    I¡¯d had to test my own durability to make sure I could block her knife with my body, which¡­ Well, sure, stabbing myself with the sapphire-coated knife had made me feel like I had completely lost it, but it allowed me to gauge my limits.


    After all, I hadn¡¯t managed to make even a small tear no matter how much force I put into it. I was really damn durable.


    Also, there was another reason why I¡¯d done it the way I had. I wasn¡¯t entirely sure if this would count, but¡­


    <u>¡®</u><u>There¡¯s a dungeon here?¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    ¡°Heck, yes! It counted!¡±


    I grinned and pulled up the achievement description again.


    <u>There¡¯s a dungeon here?</u> - Beat a dungeon floor without taking any damage or expending any Ether, Intra, or Tempor. [COMPLETE]


    See, I had come to the conclusion that I was a complete idiot.


    Yes, clearing dungeons gave me a lot of tools I could use to get stronger, but I should have been focusing on hunting down achievements to get more points and upgrade my skills as well. I had only been getting the achievements I just happened to stumble into, but that wasn¡¯t enough.


    Luckily, Ebiko, Emma, and the rest of their group had painstakingly gone over the entire achievement list and made a smaller list of the achievements that could potentially be feasible for me to do. Now I just had to go down the list and get as many as I could.


    ¡°Anyway! One down!¡± I exclaimed and knelt down to open the chest the demon had left behind ¨C no need to do the mimic checking routine since Jeoff wasn¡¯t in chat.


    I blinked and raised an eyebrow at the object.


    It was a rolling pin. The wood had the same dark reddish color as the cutting board from before.


    ¡°Neat. Just a few more runs and I can finish building my kitchen,¡± I quipped as I grabbed the rolling pin and put it into my backpack.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> one step closer to cooking with nana


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop! ??( ? ?¦Ø?? )??


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> what¡¯s behind the door anyway?


    ¡°Cooking stream incoming chat. Just a little more¡­ What door, Sun? This one?¡± I glanced at the door from which the demon had come from.


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> there was something else when she opened it


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> different room


    I perked up.


    ¡°Oh yeah! I feel like I noticed that the first time but then forgot about it cuz it then opened to the classroom¡­ Hmm¡­¡±


    I walked over to the door, furrowed my brows, and attempted to open the door into the room from where the demon had come from.


    Unfortunately, it opened to the classroom instead. I tried closing and reopening the door several times, but it only ever led to either the classroom or back outside.


    My frown deepened.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> secret room


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gotta go fast


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> guess you have to barge in before it closes behind the demon?


    I hummed.


    ¡°I guess so¡­? Well, I¡¯m not gonna try and get inside there anyway, so whatever.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> why not


    ¡°Because the last secret area I entered ended with me almost getting smited, that¡¯s why,¡± I said, my tone dry. ¡°I don¡¯t have a death wish.¡±


    Although there were a lot of tier three and even some tier four achievements tied to secret rooms in dungeons¡­


    No, bad Nana. No charging into places way above what I could safely handle. Right now, I needed to beat the dungeon normally and then I would maybe try to tackle the secret rooms and bosses.


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s get going. We¡¯ll handle all the secrets later,¡± I declared and opened the door into the classroom once more.


    Before I entered though, I reached into my backpack and pulled out my Sapphire Buckler. It still had a small hole in it, but it was good enough for what I was about to do.


    I took a deep breath, crouched down a bit, and then dashed forward with my shield positioned in front of me. I beelined straight for the desk from behind which the mage kid always appeared and only a few steps in, the door behind me slammed and the kid jumped out as expected.


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    Before he could use his fireball attack, I slammed my shield into his as he quickly raised it up and completely barreled over him, causing us to sprawl into a tangle of limbs.


    Fortunately, it also knocked his wand away and us being this close meant that all I had to do was grapple him and activate Essence Sap once more.


    He thrashed in my grip just like the cooking demon, but he was physically even weaker than her. This would be even easier than the previous fight.


    Naturally, that was when his body suddenly exploded into black flames, making me flinch and let go of him.


    ¡°Gwah?!¡±


    He stumbled out of my grip as I blinked away the black fire¡­ which I barely even felt, actually.


    In fact, I recovered quicker than he did. That move must have damaged him as well, huh?


    Regardless, with him still stumbling about and me free to move, I simply summoned my key sword and beheaded him.


    I briefly grimaced, remembering the words of that one chatter about killing kids¡­ but then pushed it away. They were just dungeon monsters, echoes of the past, maybe, but not real people even if they acted like it.


    And anyway, they respawned, so¡­


    ¡°Two down! We¡¯ll beat this dungeon in no time, chat!¡± I exclaimed and opened the chest the mage boy had left behind.


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop! ??(???)??


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> lol he killed himself


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> good job!


    The chest contained a notebook. Another one.


    ¡°...Huh. A duplicate?¡± I asked, a little dumbfounded. ¡°I guess it makes sense¡­ Actually, it¡¯s weirder that this is the first time I got a duplicate, isn¡¯t it? I wonder how many possible drops there are¡­¡± I mused.


    Regardless, having a second notebook could still be useful, even though I¡¯d only used the first one to write down the achievements I wanted to go for.


    Maybe I could start writing a diary?


    ¡®My isekai diary¡¯, hah. Sounded like the name of a Japanese novel.


    ¡°Anywho, let¡¯s keep going!¡±


    I got up and walked to the door, suddenly feeling a bit of anxiety. After all, the next opponent would be¡­ the archer again.


    Ugh, why was I still scared of her? I already beat her twice! I could do it again!


    I took one last deep breath and then brought out my gun self.


    For this fight, we weren¡¯t sure whether she would still have her Essence Sap or not since I¡¯d stolen it last time. I was leaning toward yes since she was ultimately a dungeon monster that respawned, but some chatters theorized that it was technically the same person and therefore I still had her skill.


    We would have to find out.


    Well, hopefully not, actually. I didn¡¯t want to get poisoned again, if I could help it.


    With that, I finally stopped stalling and opened the door before marching into the front porch area, my gun self raised and ready.


    As soon as the door slammed behind me and I saw movement from behind one of the hedges, I fired a shower of crystals enhanced with Spore Sap three times, trying to quickly overwhelm her as I sprinted forward.


    As soon as she emerged, she began covering her forearms in emerald and raised them in front of her face to shield herself rather than going for the bow like usual.


    Which was exactly what I wanted.


    Before she could begin her counter-attack, I was already close enough to unleash a cone of flames from my gun self, which she had to scramble to dodge. Straight into the spot where I was already swinging the key sword I had summoned just a moment ago.


    She somehow managed to block my strike with her reinforced forearm in time, but it didn¡¯t matter because I had already empowered it with both the flames from the merged axe and the lightning from the glove.


    It cut through her arm like it was butter.


    And I didn¡¯t stop there.


    I let go of the sword, lifted my hand higher, and then reversed direction of my swing before resummoning it into my hand, flipped so that the teeth would be facing my opponent again.


    It was one of the tricks we had figured out ¨C using Quick Fetch set the momentum of the key sword to whatever momentum to match the hand I summoned it to, meaning that I could ignore inertia and attack faster if I kept resummoning it.


    And clearly, she hadn¡¯t been expecting it, because she couldn¡¯t block my second strike at all and I managed to cleanly cut off her head before she could do anything.


    The head went flying as the rest of her body fell into a heap.


    I stopped the third swing I was in the middle of readying and stared as the headless body dissipated into smoke.


    ¡­Huh.


    That had been¡­ easy? Why had it been so easy? What the hell?!


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you¡¯re getting really good at this!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> nohit the mob that almost killed her


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> sniff im so proud


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Nice!


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> You overcame your biggest fear!


    I huffed a laugh.


    ¡°Biggest fear? You¡¯re exaggerating, Ranger¡­ Thanks, though.¡±


    I was a bit torn on this.


    This was the same opponent that had almost killed me and had made me suffer for days the first time I¡¯d fought her. And now I¡¯d beaten her within seconds without getting hit once.


    It didn¡¯t feel entirely earned¡­ but then again, even in video games, using the right strategy could be the difference between losing horribly and an easy win.


    Or, you know, maybe I was getting pretty good at fighting, as Sun had said.


    Besides that, there was also the distant discomfort about casually decapitating a humanoid¡­ but I pushed that aside.


    <u>¡®</u><u>On a peaceful stroll¡¯ achievement unlocked!</u>


    +3 Skill points


    I perked up at the notification.


    ¡°Oh, neat! This one counted too!¡± I exclaimed before viewing the description of it again.


    <u>On a peaceful stroll</u> - Clear three consecutive dungeon floors without suffering any damage.


    I was up to eleven skill points again. Enough to get Soul Strike¡­ which I wasn¡¯t entirely sure if I still wanted, honestly.


    Well, I didn¡¯t need to decide right away.


    ¡°Alright! What do we get here?¡± I said as I crouched down and opened the chest.


    A sleek black leather quiver greeted me.


    It had no arrows in it though.


    And even if it did, the only bow I had right now had a function to create its own arrows anyway.


    ¡°...Well, that¡¯s not the most useful thing. Oh well. Not all loot can be amazing, I guess.¡±


    I tossed it into my backpack, turned around and sauntered over to the door again.


    Time for the giant ogre merchant guy or whatever the heck he was supposed to be.


    Unfortunately, unlike the first three fights, I couldn¡¯t simply rush him and take him out as quickly as possible since he was very sturdy and also had that reflection skill.


    I had other strategies, however.


    I opened the door and opened it before boldly marching onto the open town square.


    Just as the door closed behind me, I reached into my backpack, retrieved a single war shark feather, and then tossed it at the giant who had just emerged while applying Essence Sap with Spore Sap on it.


    I had actually practiced throwing these yesterday after we had figured out the strategy for this guy. That was to say, his reflection skill clearly couldn¡¯t be used in quick succession, so I just had to keep up a neverending barrage of attacks. And if every single one of my attacks carried a debilitating poison, hitting even one of them would be a huge blow to him.


    Just as predicted, the giant made the air shudder and the feather that was about to hit him reversed directions and flew straight at me.


    Luckily, since I¡¯d already expected it, I easily sidestepped it and was already pulling another feather to do the exact same thing again.


    This time, the feather struck his arm and the poison began taking its effect.


    Or so I assumed. I couldn¡¯t actually tell for sure.


    Regardless, it seemed to piss him off and he proceeded to grab a wooden cart nearby and toss it at me just like the first time.


    I was already moving before it even left his hands and managed to get far enough away that only a few splinters harmlessly washed over me.


    Then I repeated my stunt with poisoned war shark feathers and got another hit in.


    Slowly but surely, I was whittling him down. Even when he began to throw his acid blobs, I managed to either avoid them or otherwise hide behind a random barrel or a stall.


    No more burned through clothes. Not this time.


    With that said, I eventually ran into a problem with this chip damage strategy. Namely, I suddenly lost the ability to activate Spore Sap and thus use Essence Sap at range.


    I was confused for a moment before I remembered that Spore Sap actually used Tempor.


    I had run out of Tempor.


    Dammit.


    Luckily, by then, my opponent seemed quite tired and his projectiles had even gotten weaker. No acid blobs and the wooden objects didn¡¯t explode.


    Had he run out of Ether? I could only assume so.


    Regardless, it was my chance.


    I rushed forward, tried summoning my key sword to my hand, remembered that I had run out of Tempor, reached into my backpack to actually retrieve it, and then rushed him with my weapon coated in black flames.


    But then, as soon as I got close enough to slash him, I suddenly found myself flying backwards, every fiber of my body aching.


    I crashed into a stall with a pained groan ¨C even though it hurt less than the initial hit ¨C and quickly hurried to roll and get back on my feet.


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> probably a tempor skill


    I grunted in both annoyance and affirmation as I stared at my opponent.


    Then I finally gave up and materialized my gun self from my Soul Pocket, aimed, and shot a barrage of crystals.


    As soon as I saw him use his reflection to ward off the crystals, I immediately shot again. On a whim, I actually used the death water from the water park dungeon I¡¯d collected oh so long ago as the ammo.


    That was one of those things chat had reminded me of in our little strategy session.


    I wasn¡¯t entirely sure what it would do to him, so I also quickly rushed forward with my key sword while the giant was distracted.


    To my surprise though, the death water was effective.


    Very effective.


    The giant fell on his back and began violently struggling as the death water¡­ uh, devoured him, more or less.


    I stopped in my tracks and stared at the spectacle with my eyes wide.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> what the fuck


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> hooly


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> was that the death water?


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Wow, that was effective.


    No kidding.


    ¡°...Yeah, that was the death water,¡± I mumbled as the giant disappeared into smoke, leaving a chest sitting in a puddle of death water behind.


    I had honestly thought that the death water just wouldn¡¯t work very well against dungeon monsters, since the zombies in the water park had come out of it and since the octopus boss seemed to have no issue either.


    But maybe monsters from different dungeons worked differently¡­?


    Like a polar bear not having a good time anywhere but its natural habitat.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> how much of that stuff do you have anyway?


    ¡°Uh¡­¡± I frowned at my gun self, trying to figure out how much death water I had remaining.


    ¡­And then I realized, that I actually could tell.


    Huh.


    Perks of the gun being part of my soul? Or could I always tell?


    ¡°...Enough for three more shots, actually,¡± I finally said, after staring at my gun self for a second too long.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ¡­.nana?


    I shook my head.


    ¡°Never mind! Let¡¯s see what loot I got!¡± I exclaimed, turning to the chest, before stopping and heaving a sigh at the sight of the chest.


    Or more specifically, at the sight of the pool of death water the chest was covered in and surrounded by.


    ¡°This is just like the plasma situation with the mage kid¡¯s chest¡­ Ugh, do I have to leave this one too¡­?¡± I whined.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> u shouldnt spew ur liquids like that


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> all over other peoples chests


    I gave a very pointed dry look at the two messages George had posted, but otherwise completely ignored him.


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> unfortunate but at least you can keep going this time


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you still good?


    I hummed.


    ¡°...Yeah, it would be nice to get more food or something, but I guess I can make do without it.¡± I nodded. ¡°Yeah. I have basically no Tempor, but I don¡¯t need it that much anyway. Other than that, I used pretty minimal Ether and no Intra. I think I¡¯m good.¡±


    I just wouldn¡¯t be able to Quick Fetch or Aquaport, but I could make do without them.


    Or, at least I hoped I could. I didn¡¯t know what the next fight would be about.


    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s keep going, chat! We can do this!¡±


    One last look at the inaccessible chest and I turned around and headed for one of the doors, ready to face whatever came next.

 #091 – You’re projecting, I’m just here to beat the dungeon

    When I opened the door, I was faced with¡­ a bar?


    It was a large open room filled with small circular tables with chairs next to them ¨C all made out of the same black stone as everything else in this city ¨C a counter, and what looked like a giant noticeboard in the corner.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> adventurer¡¯s guild!


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> u can finally get drunk


    I blinked and scrutinized the room a bit more.


    There were no shelves for bottles or barrels of liquor anywhere, and rather than bar counters, they looked more like the counters you would see at some administration offices with enough space for people to line up to them.


    And the noticeboard could be the place where they put up quests for the adventurers to pick up.


    ¡°...Adventurer¡¯s guild. Yeah, I can see that,¡± I agreed. ¡°Does that mean that I¡¯m gonna be fighting the guildmaster or something?¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> or a receptionist whos secretly op


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> it could be some other official building


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess you¡¯re right, Ebi. It just had this feeling, you know¡­? I guess we¡¯ll find out.¡±


    Also, when I thought about it, other than the archer, all of the monsters in this dungeon so far were just regular people who didn¡¯t feel like combatants. Some random grandma, a school kid, a stall owner¡­


    Now, if I faced the guildmaster or just some adventurer ¨C or rather, the dungeon¡¯s interpretation of them ¨C it would be someone explicitly used to fighting.


    Well, I¡¯d already expected the difficulty to keep ramping up. No surprises there.


    I steeled myself and then walked inside the building. I took slow and steady steps while keeping my head on the swivel, trying to predict where my opponent would come out of this time. The stairs leading up behind the counters were my guess.


    The door slammed behind me, making me fall into my fighting stance, my key sword and gun self at the ready.


    Sure enough, a figure rushed down the stairs and stopped at the bottom before locking its non-existent eyes with me.


    It was once again a dark-skinned person with horns, just like the grandma and the kid. This one, however, was seemingly a male adult dressed in red metallic armor.


    I tensed and already began brainstorming with chat on how to take him down before even knowing what he could do.


    But then, to my surprise, instead of shooting me, charging at me, or throwing a freaking cart at me, the faceless man across the room simply reached out for the red sword at his hip, drew it, and then pointed it at me.


    And then I froze as a sudden wave of malice drowned out the air.


    I could have sworn that the man in front of me was sneering at me and cussing me out even though he had no mouth and couldn¡¯t speak. I probably stood there for a whole minute, listening to the wordless monologue spoken straight into my mind through pure feelings. Almost like telepathy.


    I couldn¡¯t make out any real words out of it, but I could tell that he was furious at me. Furious at humans in general. For invading the city. For betraying his queen. For pushing his people out in the first place.


    ¡­What?


    Then the mental pressure suddenly vanished and I recovered from my daze to see him already with his knees bent, his sword arm drawn back, and emitting the familiar black sparks of lightning.


    I snapped myself back into fight mode just quickly enough to try and dash off to the side to dodge the sweeping swing of his sword that left crackles of black sparks behind.


    Unfortunately, he was too fast for me to dodge and I had to scramble to block his swing with my own sword, holding it vertically in front of myself.


    Our weapons clashed.


    I wasn¡¯t strong enough.


    The key sword flew out of my hands and his weapon, although a bit slower, still hit me straight into my chest and my world exploded in pain.


    I blacked out for a brief moment as the black electricity surged through me and I crashed into a wall behind me.


    That was not how swords should work, flashed through my mind before I shoved the thought away and thanked the stars for my defense-oriented build for not getting sliced in half.


    When I looked up, I saw the man charging at me once more, his blade coated in black lighting.


    I hit him with Rend as I scrambled to my feet.


    He stumbled and slowed down just enough for me to finish getting up and raise my gun at him.


    I pressed the trigger and showered him in crystal shards.


    But just like the boss from the crater, he simply waved his sword in front of himself and somehow disintegrated all the projectiles with the black lightning.


    I fired a water bullet next.


    He turned his movement into a stab of his sword and shot a bolt of black lightning at the bullet, causing it to violently burst mid-air and splash me with water.


    Gah. Good thing I hadn¡¯t used death water. That would have really hurt.


    He used my momentary distraction to close the distance once more and I had to scramble to Quick Fetch my key sword and parry his slash again. This time, I actually managed to keep it in my hands, despite the sparks of lightning jumping from his sword to me.


    Both of us bounced back from the clash, but he was already preparing for another strike, this time, an overhead slash.


    Unfortunately, with how my sword arm had been deflected, I wouldn¡¯t have enough time to raise it to block again.


    So instead, I channeled Ether into it, activating its crystal burst mode, and slammed it on the ground between us, causing a hedgehog of crystals to spring up from the ground, interrupting my assailant¡¯s attack and pushing him back.


    Unfortunately, that move also kinda pinned me to the wall I¡¯d been knocked to at the very start.


    Fortunately, I could still move one of my arms, so I raised it, materialized my gun self, and shot the ground between me and my opponent twice. It knocked him even further away, but my true intentions were to get out of this pickle exactly the same way I¡¯d gotten away from the crater boss ¨C Aquaport.


    I grabbed the water, surrounded myself, and then created a roughly me-shaped blob to the side and¨C


    And I couldn¡¯t Aquaport. There was something missing. Something¨C


    Tempor.


    Fuck, I¡¯d used up all of my Tempor in the last fight! I barely had enough to use Quick Fetch!


    I briefly panicked, thinking I was boned, and proceeded to shoot the crystal itself with a combination shot of water and fire.


    That, of course, resulted in a steam explosion in my face, which wasn¡¯t pleasant in the slightest. But at the very least, it seemed to have broken the crystal, allowing me to slip away to the side just before I heard a swish of metal behind me.


    When I blinked away the scalding gas from my eyes, I realized that the steam had effectively created a smoke screen ¨C a steam screen? ¨C and the man was still floundering inside it.


    Could he not see through it¡­? Or was it because I was so much shorter than him¡­?


    ¡­Well, he didn¡¯t have eyes, so maybe whatever sense he was using was messed up by steam?


    Whatever the reason, I could use this.


    As the steam began to condense into water again, I shot another water and fire combo shot straight at him this time, creating another explosion of steam. This time, I was ready for it though and briefly closed my eyes to shield them from the initial burst.


    And then I moved.


    Half-crouched so that I would be even harder to see in all the steam, I ran forward, preparing my resummoned key sword again. I channeled some Ether into it, activating the black flame effect and then slashed at my opponent¡¯s lower half.


    It ripped through him as if he was made of smoke.


    ¡­Wait. What the fuck?


    He had literally dissipated into some smoke-like substance when I hit him.


    I quickly backed away, wary of some unknown ability. I had no idea whether that had been some kind of shadow clone or whether that smoke would reform into the guy again, but I still quickly checked my surroundings while keeping an eye on the blob of smoke.


    A few seconds of stillness and most of the steam condensed into a huge water puddle on the ground, just as the blob of smoke backed away and then reformed into the armor-wearing swordsman.


    Right.


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    So some kind of smoke form? Was he a vampire or something?


    Ugh, how was I supposed to beat him if he could go intangible, though? Wait, hold on, what would have happened if I used Rend on the smoke blob? Would it jolt him back into humanoid form? Hmm¡­


    Regardless of that theory, the two of us found ourselves face to face once more, just like at the beginning.


    The only difference was the residual steam, puddle of water, and my depleted Ether and Intra.


    But that was fine. At least I¡¯d learned what he could do. Black lightning, some mental aura thing, and the smoke form.


    Chat and I had theorized that, since these dungeon monsters seemed to be based on real people, then they likely all had exactly three skills, unless some of them had passed the limit break. So far, that had held true. Ignoring the cooking demon, who didn¡¯t use any skills, and the mage kid who only used fireballs, the archer had three skills, the merchant had three skills, and this guy also seemed to have three skills.


    ¡­Anyway.


    After a few moments of staring at me, my opponent dashed forward again, channeling lightning into his sword once more.


    Now I had his number, though.


    I steeled myself, gripped my sword, channeled Ether into it, and just before the guy reached me, I blasted him with Rend.


    He stumbled.


    I slashed at him, leaving a trail of black fire.


    But somehow, he managed to recover just in time to block my sword with his own. To my surprise though, the moment my sword hit his, his sword snapped in half where I hit it, even if it killed all of my swing¡¯s momentum.


    I let go of my sword, pulled out my gun self, and then fired a combo shot of water and crystal shards.


    It flew through him as he turned into smoke once more.


    I grit my teeth, jumped a step back ¨C just in case that smoke form was harmful to the touch ¨C and began charging a plasma ball with my gun.


    A few seconds later when I thought the plasma ball was large enough, I hit the smoke cloud with Rend again, and it suddenly rippled before converging into the shape of the guy again.


    Just like I¡¯d hoped.


    As he stumbled back into his corporeal form, I fired the plasma in its liquid form, covering him in his entirety.


    He began thrashing as he burned and I backed off a bit more just to prevent the plasma from splashing at me.


    Then he turned into smoke again.


    I used Rend again and he turned back and continued thrashing.


    Then I froze at the sudden flood of malice that swept over me.


    I failed to move out of the way as the guy tossed his broken sword at me and hit me straight in the chest.


    ¡°Ugh! Ow! Ow! Shit!¡±


    The blunt impact barely hurt, but the plasma leftovers on it actually kinda burned.


    I backed off from it and then glanced back at where the guy was.


    I only caught the glimpse of the residual orange smoke and a chest sitting in a puddle of plasma, which was sizzling and turning the surrounding water puddle into steam again.


    I stopped, relaxed, straightened up, took a deep breath, and then slumped with a sigh.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> these fights are always so quick damn


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Another inaccessible chest?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> are you okay nana?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you got hit pretty hard there


    ¡°Yeah yeah, I¡¯m good, Ebi.¡± I shook my head. ¡°How long was that fight anyway? Five minutes?¡± I glanced at the chest and pursed my lips. ¡°I hope I can still get it¡­¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> more like two


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> boop! (¡¡-_?) ¦î¥Ç¨TÒ» ?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> damn u owned him first try


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> mb u graduate from total noob to kinda noob now


    I snorted and shook my head at Booper¡¯s antics and George¡¯s words.


    ¡°Gee. Thanks, George. It¡¯s an honor.¡±


    I sighed and plopped down on the ground, already sending my forks off to discuss what went wrong, what went right, and what I could do better next time against this guy.


    Next time, because I didn¡¯t think I would be beating this dungeon on this run. Considering that this guy was the first real fighter I¡¯d fought ¨C except the archer ¨C and the fights were only getting harder, I fully expected to fight the demon queen later on. Or at least some of her strongest soldiers and generals.


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> what was the start about?


    <u>SunOfABeach:</u> you just froze


    I blinked.


    ¡°Oh, yeah. That. Uh¡­ He had some kind of mental attack too. It was pretty weird,¡± I explained as I reached into my backpack and brought out the crystal flask to recover my Ether.


    ¡°It like¡­ sent feelings at me. I think he was accusing me of betraying his queen and invading the city. No clue what that was about.¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> huh weird


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> thats kinda creepy


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> r we the baddies?


    ¡°We know we are the baddies, George. Remember the secret area¡­? Yeah¡­¡±


    Suddenly, I felt my mood sour again at the thought, but I quickly shook it away and steered the conversation elsewhere.


    After a bit of rest, I approached the chest still surrounded by plasma.


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡±


    I eyed it for a moment, shrugged, and then proceeded to grab as much of the surrounding water as I could with my hydrokinesis. I used the water to gently push the plasma off the chest.


    It actually diminished the plasma ¨C which probably wasn¡¯t plasma at all since it didn¡¯t behave like plasma, as some nerdier chatters had informed me a while back ¨C as it moved it, and after a bit of fiddling with it, the chest was now safely accessible.


    ¡°Anyway, loot time!¡± I cheered and popped the chest open.


    A sword in a scabbard greeted me. It looked very similar to the one the guy had used.


    I reached inside, pulled it slightly out of it and yep, the same red metal as the guy¡¯s armor and his sword. Cool.


    ¡°Well, I guess I got another weapon now!¡± I cheered.


    Well, I wasn¡¯t sure if it had any special properties ¨C since I didn¡¯t have Appraisal equipped ¨C and considering that guy¡¯s sword broke pretty easily, I wasn¡¯t gonna get my hopes up too much.


    Still though. I knew what it was like to lose access to good weapons now, so a spare sword couldn¡¯t hurt.


    I put it back into its sheath and put the whole thing into my backpack before watching the chest disappear.


    A few more minutes of rest later and I was ready for the next fight.


    Ether fully recovered thanks to the flask, Intra levels decent, Tempor¡­ no idea, but probably higher than what I¡¯d had for this fight.


    I could keep going.


    Worst case scenario, I still had my trump card in my gun¡¯s death water shots.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep going, chat! Sixth floor, here I come!¡±

 #092 - I’m not interested in room service!

    Floor six was a sprawling kitchen. Sinks, counters, ovens, and bags ¨C presumably filled with ingredients ¨C filled the place. It kinda reminded me of the fast food buildings in the water park dungeon. Except for the whole non-euclidean maze thing, at least.


    ¡°Kitchen? Didn¡¯t we already fight a cooking demon¡­?¡± I asked as I cautiously walked inside, eyeing the passageway on the other side.


    Sure enough, once I got far enough into the room and the door slammed behind me, the door across from me opened, revealing my next opponent.


    It was a maid.


    Huh. Alright then.


    It was a short woman ¨C or a girl? ¨C with rainbow-colored hair tied into a braid, rainbow-colored feathers decorating her forearms, wings sprouting from her back ¨C also rainbow-colored ¨C and most interestingly, very human-looking skin, unlike everyone else in this dungeon so far. Just like always, though, she had no face.


    Her weapons of choice were two giant shurikens ¨C glaives? ¨C held in her hands and she was already raising one of them to throw it.


    I didn¡¯t let her.


    I materialized my gun self and shot a simple water bullet to start things off.


    There was an explosion of water at her position as expected. What definitely wasn¡¯t expected was all the water suddenly flash freezing, moments before a glaive came flying from behind the ice structure straight at me.


    I startled and quickly crouched behind one of the counters in the middle of the room, hoping to hide from the weapon.


    Only to then hear a loud screeching noise as the counter I was leaning on shuddered and I scrambled away from it on instinct.


    Said instinct had probably saved me because the next thing I knew, there was a glaive buried in the floor where I¡¯d crouched down and the counter was split in half.


    What the hell?


    Then the glaive suddenly vanished. When I looked up, I saw the maid running around the ice, holding a glaive in each hand again.


    What the hell?!


    Did she have Quick Fetch on those things? Dammit, that was like the perfect weapon to have that skill on!


    Pushing aside my jealousy, I pointed my gun at her again and fired a shower of crystals this time, hoping to either distract her or make her waste Ether by using that ice attack again.


    Instead of doing that though, she put one of the glaives in front of her and spun it, before a sudden burst of air that surged out of it. The surge made me stumble back, clattered the utensils scattered around, and blew away the crystals.


    Some debris hit me, but it mostly slid off my clothes and didn¡¯t do any damage.


    Still, this was really troublesome. She had a deadly ranged attack, several ways to defend herself from my own, and the reflexes to make my fastest attack useless, apparently.


    I needed to get close¡­ but that didn¡¯t exactly look easy.


    Another glaive flew at me before I could figure out my course of action. This one was on fire.


    Part of me thought to just tank it since I still had my blessing skill, but then I remembered that the fire was attached to a sharp bladed weapon and probably shouldn¡¯t try testing the durability of my clothes.


    I dodged to the side, just barely because of my brief hesitation.


    Then another glaive was flying at me, this one surrounded in icy mist. I shot it out of the air with my gun. As expected though, as soon as my shot hit the glaive, it exploded into water and then flash-froze into another icy piece of modern art.


    I kept moving, hoping to get closer while both her weapons were out of her hands.


    Naturally, the moment I ran around the ice and spotted her again, she had both glaives in her hands again, preparing to throw another one. This one was letting out sparks of electricity.


    Dammit. How many elements was she going to use? Was that why she had rainbow-colored hair and feathers? Why wasn¡¯t she limited to three skills like everyone else?


    Not important.


    I ducked under the electrified glaive, but the sparks still somehow jumped to me despite that making zero sense, scientifically speaking.


    My teeth automatically clenched and my muscles seized ¨C which freaking hurt ¨C and I couldn¡¯t move for a brief moment.


    Said moment was just long enough for her to throw her other glaive ¨C this one covered in black mist ¨Cand hit me straight in the chest.


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    I gasped in pain as my mind blanked for a brief moment.


    I couldn¡¯t see, couldn¡¯t hear, couldn¡¯t think¨C


    Then I was staring at the kitchen¡¯s ceiling, hearing a sharp whizz get closer and closer to me.


    I rolled to the side just in time to hear the loud metallic screech where I¡¯d just been. One quick glance revealed a glaive buried in the floor before it vanished again.


    I grit my teeth.


    This was going horribly. But at least I¡¯d confirmed that getting hit by one of those glaives didn¡¯t completely eviscerate me.


    Although I couldn¡¯t be too sure about the super sharp floor-splitting one. What element was that anyway? Wind? Chainsaw?


    I scrambled to get up just as another ice glaive came flying at me. I growled in frustration and Quick Fetched my key sword into my hand. Then I charged it with Ether, activated the black flames, and swung it at the glaive while moving out of the way of its path just in case.


    Thankfully, I was actually good enough with the sword to successfully hit a moving target out of the air by now, and to my surprise, I cleaved right through the glaive as if it was made out of butter, the icy fog around it harmlessly poofing out a moment later.


    My eyes widened at the ruined glaive on the ground, but then I grinned and looked back at my opponent.


    She didn¡¯t summon her destroyed weapon back to her, but was already holding the other one, charging it with electricity, ready to throw it again.


    I dashed forward.


    She threw it.


    I swung again.


    I hit it.


    Two for two.


    But somehow, despite only being in contact with the glaive for a split second before it too got wrecked by my slash, the electricity coating it jumped from the glaive to my weapon and then finally to me.


    My muscles seized for one critical moment, giving my opponent enough time to literally fly at me, her right hand extending toward me. I could see the same blur around her hand that the super sharp glaives had and could guess what she was trying to do.


    Moments before she could chop my head off though, I fired off Rend.


    She stumbled for a second and the blurry aura around her hand winked out.


    The distraction was long enough for my own stun to wear off and swing with my own key sword at her. I hit her shoulder, sending her flying. She crashed into one of the bags, which made all of its contents ¨C tomatoes? ¨C spill out. She immediately hurried to get up again.


    She had no cuts on her. Even her maid dress was in pristine condition, ignoring some food stains.


    The heck? Why hadn¡¯t it cut her? Was she also super durable like me?


    After a moment of surprise, I shook it off and sprinted forward at her, covered my key sword with black flames, and prepared to strike at her again.


    Just as she stood up again, her hand whipped out, and then there was a metallic clash.


    To my surprise, she was holding one of the glaive¡¯s blades in her hand, blocking my strike.


    So she could still summon them even if they were broken.


    Sparks of electricity sprouted from the glaive blade, jumped to my key sword, and I instinctively fired another Rend at her to stun her in kind before it reached me.


    Luckily, as it hit her, it seemed to also disrupt her focus on her electricity skill and it winked off as she stumbled and loosened the grip on her glaive blade.


    It gave me enough time to adjust my weapon and quickly slash at her again, this time at the neck.


    That actually did the job this time and her head was sent flying before quickly turning into orange smoke, just like the rest of her body, leaving only a chest behind.


    I breathed out and relaxed again.


    ¡°Phew¡­ You know, chat¡­ These fights feel like they should be harder than the archer, but somehow, they are not?¡± I mused before shaking my head and crouching down to open the chest.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> probably becaus you got stronger since then


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> The archer just counters you, that¡¯s why it was harder.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> this is so nerveracking watching you


    <u>bloopbooper:</u> bwooooop! (????? )?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I thought you died when you blacked out for a sec


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> noooooo dont kill the cute maid


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> whos gonna make me lunch now


    I hummed.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess I did get stronger¡­ and yeah, armor-piercing kinda counters super armor build, doesn¡¯t it?¡± I sniffed. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t worry, Ebi! I¡¯m fine! I think that black fog was some mental attack, but it went away quickly.¡±


    Probably thanks to Mind Shield, actually. If I didn¡¯t have that, would the sharp glaive she¡¯d thrown after that kill me¡­?


    Well¡­ good thing, I had it then. Probably should keep it on at all times from now on, just in case.


    Ugh, but that meant less free skill slots¡­


    I shook these thoughts away and then read George¡¯s messages.


    ¡°Make it yourself, George! You lazy git!¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> nooooooooooo<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> those glaives were fuckin cool tho


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> i hope u get them as loot


    I rolled my eyes at the immediate topic change but secretly hoped for the same as I popped the chest open.


    Instead of the glaives, I got¡­ a pile of rainbow-colored feathers.


    Great. That was just like the archer¡¯s arm. Only a little less morbid.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> damit


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> at least you can make a hat


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ¡­


    I gave George¡¯s messages a look.


    ¡°...Right. Well, I guess I¡¯m just gonna¡­¡± I pulled off my backpack and then gradually stuffed all the feathers inside.


    Once done, I sat on the floor for a moment and sighed.


    My head kinda hurt from that encounter. Either from bumping it when I¡¯d gotten hit by that glaive or by using too much Intra¡­ I couldn¡¯t quite tell. Still, better to play it safe and not immediately rush into the next floor.


    If I was going to take it on right now anyway.


    I wasn¡¯t entirely sure if I should, honestly. Yes, this fight had been¡­ easier than I would have expected, but there was no telling when the dungeon would throw another curveball at me like the archer.


    After a few minutes of resting and recovering while talking to chat, I decided that while it was risky, my Ether levels were good enough, and my Intra ¨C and also probably Tempor ¨C levels had recovered enough to try and take on the next floor.


    Still, I couldn¡¯t help but be anxious about it, now that I¡¯d been reminded about the possibility of enemies with the perfect counter for me.


    It especially sucked since there didn¡¯t seem to be any way to retreat once the battle started.


    Well, I could try breaking down a door, but I had no idea whether that would work.


    Hmm.


    Maybe I should try that on a lower leveled floor first before I actually needed to do it.


    But for now¡­


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> gogogogogogo


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> full steam ahead!


    ¡­Just one more floor.


    I mean, what if it turned out to be the final one? Since I always had to start all over again, I didn¡¯t want to quit right before the end, right?

 #093 - I knew this skill would be useful one day

    Into my backpack the huge sack of tomatoes went.


    Just like the pots from the merchant giant''s ¨C ogre¡¯s? ¨C floor, there was no reason for me to ignore all of this juicy stuff. More food variety could only be a good thing.


    Once I pillaged as much as I could without risking passing the one hour time limit, I steeled myself, walked to the door, and opened it.


    It led outside. A large empty area with dirt ground surrounded by walls on all sides. There were also several racks of weapons scattered along the walls and what seemed to be target dummies stood in a row at the far wall.


    I eyed the area curiously without entering just yet.


    ¡°A training ground, I guess?¡± I mused. ¡°Am I gonna fight a combat instructor now¡­?¡±


    That thought honestly made me a bit wary about going into this fight. If a maid was that strong, how strong would someone actually specializing in combat be?


    ¡­But then again, the maid came after a guy with a sword, who literally looked like someone used to combat. And other than that one glaive hit ¨C which had barely scratched me ¨C I¡¯d beaten the maid without any issues.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> fuck the police<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> intstruct the instructor


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> ur better then him


    I snorted.


    ¡°Thanks for the vote of confidence, George.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana you should really go back now


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> i have a bad feeling about this


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> and i have good feeling about it


    I pursed my lips.


    Should I turn back, after all? It would be safer¡­ but if I kept turning back, I would never beat this dungeon like I wanted to.


    ¡°Last floor,¡± I finally said. ¡°No matter what happens, I¡¯ll end for today after I¡¯m done with this floor.¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I hope you know what youre doing¡­


    I walked through the door.


    Even as I made it further into the open field, I kept my head on a swivel, trying to figure out where my opponent would come from.


    There really weren¡¯t many spots one could hide behind. The dummies were too thin, the weapon racks were right up against the walls, and there weren¡¯t any other doors besides the one I¡¯d used to enter here.


    Oh, that was it, wasn¡¯t it? My opponent would come through there, just to screw with me.


    With that in mind, I turned around to keep the door in sight and slowly backed away from it.


    As expected, a few more steps later, the door slammed shut on its own and I tensed up, expecting it to open again.


    It didn¡¯t.


    Instead, I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder as something hit me.


    I gasped in pain and whirled around to face the threat.


    Only to see empty space.


    What the¨C


    Another stab of pain, this time in my back.


    I cried out again and turned around.


    There was nothing.


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> heatvison


    I turned on Heat Vision.


    It took me a brief moment to adjust to seeing on an entirely different spectrum, but as soon as I did, I spotted the humanoid outline ¨C with a tail ¨C circling around to lunge at me again.


    This time, I summoned my key sword and quickly swung it in my opponent¡¯s direction.


    Despite my haphazard attempt, it seemed to surprise them enough that they canceled their attempt to stab me and backed off.


    I didn¡¯t hesitate, pulled out my gun self, and fired a huge wave of fire at them.


    I immediately realized just how dumb of a decision that had been as I was briefly flashbanged by all the heat in my vision.


    I yelped and stumbled back, unsuccessfully trying to blink it away.


    I turned off Heat Vision, hoping it would help.


    Fortunately, it did. I was no longer blinded.


    Unfortunately, it also meant that I was back to not seeing my invisible enemy.


    Another stab, this time in my left calf. I gasped in pain and went down on my knee, but quickly turned Heat Vision on again and tried looking around for my opponent.


    Before I could find them, I felt another stab in my left wrist, causing me to drop my gun self before I could put it back into my Soul Pocket.


    I grit my teeth and stifled a scream of pain as I finally found the blob of heat¡­ perched up on a wall.


    What the fuck?


    I didn¡¯t let my surprise distract me from my next move.


    I fired off Rend at my opponent to stun them.


    But they fucking dodged it. Somehow.


    At least it bought me enough time to regrab my dropped gun self, aim it at the blob of heat now on the ground, and shoot a bullet of water at it.


    I was so damn lucky that the stab wounds hadn¡¯t done any permanent damage and I could still use my gun self.


    My opponent dodged my shot again, but I had them in my sights now and kept shooting one water bullet after another.


    They kept dodging though.


    This was like the freaking archer on steroids. And invisible.


    With that errant thought, I decided to change gears and fired off a barrage of crystals instead.


    As expected, the wider area of attack caused the blob to stop jumping around and I saw it instead shift around in place, causing the crystals to be deflected.


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    As I was about to fire off another shot, I saw an abrupt movement in the blob, and before I could decipher what that was about, I was suddenly hit in the stomach with something sharp.


    ¡°Gah?!¡±


    My eyes automatically flicked down to see an odd dagger failing to penetrate my clothes self and falling to the ground.


    Fucker had thrown it at me, huh? I guess standing still wasn¡¯t the smartest of ideas against someone like this.


    With that in mind, I locked onto my invisible enemy again and dashed to the side, trying to throw off their aim while shooting another barrage of crystals.


    Despite my best efforts though, I felt another dagger hit me. This time though, it hit me in¡­ my gun self.


    It cracked.


    I felt a very strange jolt of pain in¡­ somewhere I couldn¡¯t describe and dropped my gun self with a gasp.


    Naturally, my opponent used this chance to circle around me and stab me in the kidney, while I tried to mentally recover from that weird and unpleasant experience.


    I growled in pain and frustration, and swung my key sword at the offender while covering it with black fire.


    He jumped out of the way and my swing went wide.


    I fired off another Rend just before he could get completely away.


    This time, it hit and he stumbled.


    It gave me just enough time to let go off my sword and tackle the fucker before activating Essence Sap at max power.


    He struggled and almost immediately threw me off ¨C even if I was stronger, I still had the body of a child, after all ¨C but I leapt after him again and wrapped myself around what I assumed was his midsection to continue sapping him.


    He kicked me but I held on.


    He stabbed me in the head.


    It fucking hurt, but I somehow managed to hold on.


    I fired off Rend again, making him slip and fall on his face. I used that opportunity to Quick Fetch my key sword again, charge it up with Ether, and then bring it down on him, causing an explosion of crystal.


    For a brief moment, I thought I¡¯d won.


    Then, out of nowhere, there was pain.


    I screamed and recoiled away from my enemy as several cuts just appeared on my body, even under my clothes.


    Unfortunately, I had no time to regret not wondering what his other skills were, as the heat blob leapt away from my lifestealing touch.


    I glared at the person-shaped blob of heat as I barely stood on my two legs.


    My gun self was still broken and there was no way he would get close enough again for me to slash him or use essence sap again.


    What the hell was I supposed to do?


    They suddenly did another abrupt movement and I instinctually threw myself to the side to avoid the dagger they had thrown.


    But it still fucking hit me somehow. This time in my waist.


    Did he have some kind of aimbot skill? What the hell?!


    The pounding in my head had gotten to the point where I couldn¡¯t even hear my own strained breaths. It didn¡¯t matter though because I was entirely focused on tracking my opponent through Heat Vision as they circled me again.


    Several chatters then suggested I bring out a shield.


    I shakily reached into my backpack and pulled out the Sapphire Buckler just in time to block another dagger flying at me.


    Luckily, this guy didn¡¯t have an armor-piercing skill, so the dagger simply clanked off of it.


    I managed to somewhat stand again with my shield in front of me, constantly shifting to always face my opponent and block more of his throws.


    Three more daggers clanked off of my shield, but one still hit me in the leg where the shield didn¡¯t reach while my mind raced to find a way out of this situation.


    Luckily, the solution presented itself as my opponent seemed to abandon the sniping tactic and rushed at me once again.


    He almost managed to hit me, but I smacked him with Rend just before he would have likely slit my throat and caused him to stumble.


    I roared, threw myself at him, activated Essence Sap for one last time, and then released the skill from the ring.


    All I felt at that was a new open space I could fill again.


    Still in contact with my foe, I activated Skill Snatch.


    I almost lost myself in the overwhelming haze that I felt right afterwards, but I soldiered through it and took a look at the three choices I was offered.


    One of them bent space, the second one changed gravity, the third one obscured vibrations and electromagnetic waves.


    I snatched the third one on impulse and then immediately activated the new mental switch.


    Then, several things happened all at once.


    The figure in front of me finally entered the visible spectrum, revealing a man with dark green leathery skin, horns, and a reptilian tail. Moment later, I stopped using Heat Vision, since I was already so low on Intra. And immediately after that, I got kicked in the face, and in my already exhausted state, I didn¡¯t manage to hold onto him and got flung across the field.


    Everything hurt as I lay there. Including my head. Especially my head.


    But somehow, even as I lay there for a good few moments, I hadn¡¯t been attacked.


    When, with great effort, I finally tilted my head up to see what was going on, I saw the lizard demon guy¡­ looking all over the place, stabbing and slashing at empty space seemingly at random.


    ¡­Oh, Right.


    I was currently using his invisibility that I¡¯d snatched.


    He had no idea where I was¡­ even though it should be obvious by the way he had kicked me.


    Well, that worked in my favor. I could take my time to get close and then stealth strike him.


    But not too much. I couldn¡¯t feel my Ether or Intra draining, so I had to assume the invisibility skill used Tempor, and I couldn¡¯t tell how much I had left. Not to mention, he might eventually hit me with one of his random stabs.


    So despite my battered body protesting and feeling like my head was about to split in two, I got up, and shakily began walking in his direction.


    Right now, he was standing still in a battle-ready pose, scanning his surroundings.


    I approached slowly and carefully, trying not to make any sounds, even though the invisibility skill covered sounds as well.


    I got within an arm¡¯s reach, Quick Fetched my key sword, pulled my hand back, poured Ether into it, and then sliced in front of me as quickly as I could.


    My opponent noticed me too late to do anything about it.


    I split him in half with a clean cut at his torso thanks to the black flames apparently enhancing the cutting power of my swing, and his top half flew back and then landed with a nasty squelch.


    A moment later, both halves of his body disappeared into orange smoke, leaving a big chest behind. Unlike the other chests in this dungeon, this one had a skull on it. Like a boss skull.


    I stared at it for a moment, before remembering that I was still using up Tempor and promptly turning off the invisibility.


    Then, with the tension finally bleeding out of me, I collapsed on the spot with a pained groan.


    ¡°...Are¡­ Are we done? Was this the final boss¡­?¡± I whined.


    I didn¡¯t feel like a final boss, but it sure as hell was fucking difficult like one.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana you need to treat your wounds!


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> i told you shouldnt have gone one more


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> did you steal his invisibility?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> well fuck


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> didnt expect a ninja


    ¡°...Yeah. I¡¯m stupid. Sorry. Shouldn¡¯t have¡­ gone here¡­¡±


    I turned my head and let my eyes dart around until they found¡­ my gun self, laying broken on the ground. The lizard guy had jammed a dagger straight into the nozzle, splitting it in two and causing cracks along its entire structure.


    ¡­Fuck.


    Once again, I was reminded of the fact that this wasn¡¯t just a video game.


    My enemies could and would aim to destroy my weapons if they couldn¡¯t easily kill me instead.


    This hurt especially bad since I¡¯d invested so much into that gun. Not to mention, that gun was¡­ well, me.


    Oh, but wouldn¡¯t it repair itself like my dress¡­? It could, right¡­?


    I really really hoped it could.


    I flopped over, pushed myself to my knees and then to my feet, and proceeded to stumble my way over to my gun self. I dropped down, gathered up the pieces in my arms, gently pushed some Ether into it, and then watched it intently.


    It was absorbing the Ether¡­ but that was because it had already been charged with Ether because of Ultimate Fusion.


    I didn¡¯t think it was repairing itself at all, however.


    ¡°Chat¡­ my gun¡­¡± I whined pathetically.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> rip gun o7


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> you will be missed


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> that really sucks


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Maybe you can get a new one?


    ¡°New one? Like¡­ going back to the water park¡­?¡±


    Technically, I would also need to go back to the crater dungeon to get the flamethrower if I wanted to recreate the whole thing.


    Although¡­


    ¡°I don¡¯t even know if I¡¯ll get the same drops again¡­¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> youre bleeding nana


    I glanced over at my legs that were covered in stab and slash wounds.


    Somehow, they hurt less than looking at my destroyed gun self though.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ It¡¯s gonna magically heal on its own¡­¡± I murmured.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana


    ¡°Not like I have any bandages or anything.¡± I sighed.


    Honestly, if I was still a normal human ¨C which I was pretty sure I wasn¡¯t at this point ¨C this would have been a very concerning state to be in, but as things were¡­


    Well, as much as this wasn¡¯t a video game, getting injured and healing from those injuries was very video gamey.


    Physically hurt? Just drink Ether.


    Mentally exhausted? Just recover Intra.


    ¡­I still had no idea what running out of Tempor did. Now that I thought about it, it felt kind of concerning though. What could running out of space-time juice possibly do? Erase me from spacetime?


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> fuuuuuck i missed the fun


    I snorted as the comment knocked me out of existential thoughts again.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Jeoff. You didn¡¯t miss the most important part,¡± I announced with a growing grin as I slowly panned my head over to the boss chest still sitting on the ground where I¡¯d defeated the ninja lizard demon guy.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh for fucks sake

 #094 - Maybe he has a work phone I could try?

    The chest wasn¡¯t a mimic. A true shocker to everyone.


    Especially Jeoff.


    Anyway, the grand reward for beating the guy who¡¯d destroyed my gun self and had almost killed me?


    A pair of sandals.


    That was it.


    Now, I had no idea whether they did anything interesting, but considering shoes were already a part of my outfit, I had no reason to wear them until I had a chance to either test them or appraise them and find out more.


    Now, the chest they had been in was the same kind of chest I¡¯d gotten after boss fights in other dungeons, so¡­


    I opened the door I¡¯d come through while wishing to continue with the dungeon.


    I saw a new room. A big round table with a giant map on top of it and a bunch of scribbled notes all around. It was surrounded by chairs made out of the black stone and at the head of the table, there was a throne-esque chair, looking grand and fancy.


    I closed the door again and palmed my face.


    ¡°...It¡¯s not over yet, chat,¡± I groaned.


    The dungeon continued. Of course, it did. How long was this damn thing? Was that throne a sign that the next floor would be the last? Would I be fighting the demon queen again?


    Ugh¡­


    Well, obviously, there was no way I was going to keep going right now though.


    So instead, I just left the dungeon, beaten and battered, with my broken gun self in my Soul Pocket, and made my way to my crappy little camp to rest.


    I collapsed onto my little grass bed I¡¯d made for myself and almost instantly passed out.


    When I woke up again, my chat was flooding with messages about me being dead again.


    ¡°Not dead¡­ Just tired,¡± I murmured with a small sigh after I woke up.


    God, my head still hurt like hell¡­ Probably from using all that Intra in the fight. With Heat Vision, Rend, and Skill Snatch¡­ Yeah.


    I lay there for probably a few more hours in a half-asleep state before I felt my head clear enough to think again.


    Once I did, I had just one question on my mind.


    ¡°...What now?¡± I murmured.


    That was really the question, wasn¡¯t it?


    I had relied on my gun self a lot in all of my fights and to not have it anymore was¡­ well, not good, to say the least.


    Sure, I still had a lot of other options, between all the melee weapons I¡¯d collected, the plasma bow, my Rend skill¡­


    But by far my most powerful option had been the gun. And now it was broken and I had no way to fix it.


    Hell, how would I even go about fixing a magical item fused together from a bunch of other magical items?


    By fusing more magical items into it, maybe.


    I sighed.


    My main problem right now was that I probably wasn¡¯t going to beat the city dungeon in my current state anymore.


    Not only had I only barely scraped my way to victory against the last guy, but now my best weapon was broken. If things kept getting harder, how the hell was I going to beat whatever came next?


    So, I had a few choices¡­


    One, I gave up on beating any more dungeons for now and went for the Limit Break straight away.


    Two, I went to the office building dungeon and tried to beat that.


    Three, I tried clearing the crater dungeon again.


    Four, I went all the way back and either did a second run through of the water park, hoping to get back my gun or just something more useful for clearing the city, or tried tackling the spaceship dungeon to take revenge on the damn killer robot. Or both, if I stopped caring about getting back in time to finish the city dungeon before the retrieval quest expired.


    Now¡­


    One made me anxious and I felt like it was a bad idea. Two would mean tackling a dungeon much harder than the city dungeon, if the feeling I¡¯d gotten upon entering it was of any indication.


    Three and four¡­ seemed like the best options.


    Three was probably the safer bet, but¡­ it also had a zero chance of helping me get a new water gun.


    But it wasn¡¯t like the rewards from that place were bad. Hell, the ring was freaking insane. The axe and the flamethrower were also nice.


    But¡­ it just felt like the water park dungeon had way better loot than all the other dungeons for some reason.


    Maybe because it was a Tempor dungeon? Or maybe because there was a cooldown on the whole place, unlike the crater dungeon?


    Either way, it just felt more enticing¡­ at least if I didn¡¯t have to trek an entire day to get back there.


    And then there was the spaceship dungeon. While I didn¡¯t expect to get a water gun out of there, I could easily imagine getting some kind of laser gun instead. Sure, it would probably be much harder than the city dungeon as well, but I didn¡¯t necessarily need to clear the whole place to get some of its loot.


    Even if it would feel wrong to leave halfway.


    I sighed again.


    I had actually been debating my options with chat this whole time while I thought things over, but ultimately, the opinions were split on what I should do.


    So, of course, there was just one thing I could do.


    <u>Poll: ¡®What now?¡¯


    </u><u>Crater dungeon:</u> 0%(0)


    <u>Water park rerun:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Revenge on the spaceship dungeon:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Office building dungeon:</u> 0% (0)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    No, I didn¡¯t include an option to do the Limit Break right away, because I didn¡¯t want to. Sure, I didn¡¯t need to mindlessly follow the poll¡¯s results, but¡­ yeah.


    I closed my eyes and let the poll run for a bit as I continued to rest.


    I briefly opened my eyes and glanced at my arm to see my wounds slowly but surely closing.


    ¡­Yeah. This was not a human body, was it? No matter what my status screen said, this wasn¡¯t normal. Or were those just the effects of magical energies on the human body?


    Were those three ¨C Ether, Intra, and Tempor ¨C behind the system as well?


    Or was the system just using the energies that have always been around?


    Or did the Fate Weaver create all of these?


    If only I could ask them.


    Hah, asking them¡­


    ¡­


    Wait.


    ¡­


    I stopped, narrowed my eyes, and then casually brought up the voice call interface.


    ¡­


    <u>Initiate voice call with user: FateWeaver?


    </u><u>Y/N</u> (87753 DP available)


    I stared at the massage with a blank expression, wondering what the hell would even happen if I pressed yes.


    Would it be some random person with that username or the actual fate weaver?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana¡­?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> what are you doing?


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> uhexcusme


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> id like to speak with the manager


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> -nana bpboably


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> dude ur calling the admin?


    I snorted.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> I¡¯m not sure this is a good idea¡­


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> this feels like a bad idea


    ¡°Why not¡­?¡± I drawled. ¡°What¡¯s the worst that can happen?¡±


    Before anyone could talk me out of it, I pressed yes.


    <u>Call with FateWeaver


    </u>Requesting voice call. Please wait¡­


    It actually started ringing, implying that the handle existed, and my eyes went wide as I lay there on my grass bed.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> oh shit


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> ¡­


    One ring, two rings, three rings.


    Call rejected.


    I stared.


    What.


    ¡°...Chat? It was rejected. That¡­ That means there¡¯s someone there.¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> holy shit what


    I stared for another moment before mentally clicking on the call again.


    <u>Initiate voice call with user: FateWeaver?


    </u><u>Y/N</u> (60954 DP available)


    I eyed it, this time with a bit more hesitation.


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> This is a really really bad idea, Nana!


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> waitwaitwait wtf


    I stopped just short of pressing yes again.


    ¡°What? What¡¯s wrong Jeoff?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> your DP went like waaay down


    I blinked.


    ¡°What? DP? Oh¡­ Wait, it did? How many did I have before?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> like 87k before the call


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> then rejected call


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> now 60k


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> dude ur actually calling hte admin


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> and its expensive


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Bad idea. Bad idea. Bad idea.


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana?


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> i think ranger is right


    ¡­


    ¡°...But what else am I going to use the points on?¡± I murmured, my mind now fixated on the idea of calling the fucking Fate Weaver.


    I pressed yes, despite half the chat being concerned about it.


    It began ringing again.


    One ring, two rings¨C


    The requesting text then turned into an audio wave and I froze.


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    The audio wave was still though. Complete silence.


    ¡°H-Hello?¡± I hesitantly asked and then waited for a reply.


    There was no change in the audio wave. Not even when I spoke.


    ¡°Is¡­ anyone there?¡± I tried after a few moments of silence. ¡°Uh, if you¡¯re talking I can¡¯t hear¨C¡±


    I was interrupted in the middle of a sentence by an ethereal androgynous voice that pierced my very being.


    ¡°Too soon.¡±


    ¡°W-W-W-W-What?!¡± I stammered.


    ¡°Call after the third.¡±


    ¡°W-What do you mean?!¡± I automatically asked.


    ¡­


    But the call had already ended.


    I was utterly shellshocked.


    But I still clicked the voice call to call them again.


    <u>Not enough DP


    </u>(0 DP available)


    I stared at the message.


    ¡°Wha¨C What the fuck?!¡±


    <u>RetconRanger:</u> Told you it was a bad idea.


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> wtf horror game outa nowhere


    I stared for another moment, before closing my eyes, taking a deep breath, and then exhaling.


    ¡°Chat¡­ What¡­ What was that?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> the final boss obviously


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> he told u to stop trying to sequence break


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> nana¡­


    I scoffed.


    ¡°Okay, fine. Not doing that again until¡­ until the third?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Not like I can even do it, because apparently the admin stole all my money.¡±


    <u>GeorgeDoshington:</u> third what tho


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> third limit break?


    My lips pursed.


    ¡°...Probably the third limit break, yeah. God¡­dammit.¡±


    I deflated with a sigh.


    I had no idea what to even think about that whole interaction.


    Clearly, the fate weaver knew about me. Heck, if the phoenix¡¯s words were anything to go by, my situation was their doing. And apparently they were waiting for me to do all three limit breaks to get the fucking privilege to call their phone?


    What was their game anyway? Was I some kind of lab rat for them? I still had no idea why I had been reincarnated in another world like this. Why had they forced the phoenix to do it?


    ¡­Hold on, speaking of the phoenix¡­ Could I call her? What would her handle even be though? Just ¡®Phoenix¡¯? No, wait, she spoke a different language. Her handle was probably something in that different language, ugh¡­


    I shook those thoughts away. I probably wasn¡¯t going to get an answer to any of my questions anytime soon anyway.


    ¡°...So, how¡¯s our poll doing?¡±


    <u>Poll: ¡®What now?¡¯


    </u><u>Crater dungeon:</u> 30.59%(345 687)


    <u>Water park rerun:</u> 34.29% (387 521)


    <u>Revenge on the spaceship dungeon:</u> 26.49% (299 427)


    <u>Office building dungeon:</u> 8.63% (97 562)


    <u>Close poll</u>


    ¡°...Alright! I guess we have our game plan now, chat!¡± I forced myself to cheerfully exclaim. ¡°Time to trek back and run back the water park! Heh, maybe I can try speedrunning it! What do you all think?¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> oh hell yea


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> speedrun time


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> probably safest to do that


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> you could also just take a break again


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> you already know the dungeon and you¡¯re much stronger than before<u>


    GeorgeDoshington:</u> re we just gona ignore the horor monster tellin u to fuck off?


    I hummed.


    ¡°Well, I could take a break, but¡­¡± I brought up my quest list and narrowed my eyes at a specific line.


    <u>¡®</u><u>Lost and found¡¯ Side quest


    </u>Time left: 3d,20h,49m<u>


    </u><u>Main objective</u>:


    Get your items back from the dungeon.<u>


    </u><u>Side objectives</u>:


    Complete the dungeon in one attempt.


    <u>Rewards</u> - 2SP


    <u>Penalty for failure</u> - 4SP debt


    ¡°I only have a bit over three days left for this, so¡­ If it takes one day to go to the water park dungeon and another day to get back here, it¡¯s gonna be really tight¡­¡±


    Granted, I could just fail the quest, but it would feel wrong to not even try and complete it.


    ¡°And shut up, George. What am I supposed to do about the big bad admin shooing me off, huh?¡± I sniffed. ¡°Anyway! Here¡¯s the plan then. Today, I rest and tomorrow, I¡¯ll go back to the water park. Then I¡¯ll clear it, hope I get another water gun, and then come back here to totally steamroll the city dungeon!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> might as well swap skills now


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> appraise shit


    I hummed.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Jeoff. I won¡¯t need Rend for the water park and by the time I return here, it should be off cooldown again¡­ Yeah, alright. Time to find out what these sandals do!¡±


    <u>Replace [Rend] with [Appraisal]?


    </u>Note: [Rend] will not be re-equippable for 48 hours.


    <u>Y/N</u>


    I clicked confirm and then began pulling out all the items I¡¯d gotten in the dungeon and hadn¡¯t appraised yet.


    There was the cutting board and rolling pin from the first floor, the¡­ severed arm of the archer, the wheel of cheese ¨C which I had already cut a bit out of already ¨C from the merchant, the red sword from the adventurer guy, the colored feathers from the maid, and finally, the sandals from the invisible lizard demon.


    But then, I tried taking out the pots I¡¯d taken from the merchant guy and the sacks of vegetables from the kitchen and¡­ found out that they weren¡¯t there.


    ¡°What the heck?! Where is it?!¡±


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> told u cant steal stuff from dungeons


    I harrumphed.


    ¡°That¡¯s bullshit! Why even let me stuff it into the backpack if it¡¯s gonna vanish when I leave the dungeon?!¡±


    <u>repeaeaeat:</u> what if you fuse it while still inside?


    I narrowed my eyes.


    ¡°You think that would work? I don¡¯t know if that would even work¡­ Heck, it might just eat the fused item when I leave. I dunno if I wanna risk trying that¡­¡±


    Although, I could test it by taking a random branch from outside or something and then fusing some random pots inside the dungeon¡­ What the heck would that even make?


    ¡°Whatever, we can test that later, I guess. Now it¡¯s time to appraise all the juicy loot I actually got to keep!¡±


    It was a lot of stuff, but a lot of it was pretty mundane. The cutting board and the rolling pin were literally just that and while it was cool to know that the cheese had been made out of thorncow milk, it was still just cheese.


    Now, the severed arm¡­?


    <u>Dryad wood


    </u>Wood from the flesh of a dryad.


    ¡­Yeah, I had kinda expected this, but wow did it still feel disturbing.


    Next up were the feathers.


    <u>Rainbow Wing feathers


    </u>Feathers from a Rainbow Wing.


    From the way it was capitalized, I could only assume that Rainbow Wing was the name of the maid¡¯s species. Quite fitting¡­ but also kinda disturbing, like the arm.


    Now, the sword.


    <u>Crimson steel sword


    </u>A sword made out of crimson steel.


    ¡°Look at this pretentious material name, chat. It really feels like a fantasy world now.¡±


    It didn¡¯t seem like it had any special properties, but I still tried to prod it with a bit of Ether to see whether it would react in anyway. It didn¡¯t, unfortunately.


    ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s just a sword then. Kinda lame¡­¡±


    Unless this Crimson Steel had properties that Appraisal wasn¡¯t telling me about, at least.


    Anyway, last thing, the sandals.


    <u>Ninja sandals


    </u>Sandals that allow the wearer to jump higher, stick to surfaces, and walk on water by using Ether.


    I blinked.


    ¡°Wait, seriously¡­? That sounds¡­ awesome!¡±


    I glanced down at my fancy boots that were part of my outfit and briefly wondered whether something bad would happen if I took them off.


    But then I remembered I¡¯d stored, dropped, and even broken my gun self and was still fine. There was no need to worry about this.


    So with some reluctance, I took off the fancy shoes and instead put on the sandals.


    <u>Jeofffff:</u> why not just fuse them?


    ¡°Gotta test it first, Jeoff,¡± I absentmindedly said. ¡°Don¡¯t wanna fuse just anything I find, you know? Or rather, I promised myself not to just shove random junk into my soul because it sounds cool!¡±


    <u>KaiEbikoOfficial:</u> I¡¯m glad you¡¯re listening


    With the sandals on, I walked out of my little shelter, hopped on one foot, then the other, felt around with Ether, and found what I thought was the mechanism inside the sandals.


    ¡°Okay, I think I got it¡­¡±


    I glanced at the nearest tree, narrowed my eyes, and then ran at it like a maniac.


    I jumped, my feet touched the bark, and I channeled my Ether through the sandals to stick to the tree.


    It worked.


    I took one step up the tree trunk, two steps, three¡­


    And then I slipped, squeaked in surprise, and fell back down with an oof.


    I lay on my back, staring up the tree in a bit of a daze.


    I could climb walls like a ninja with this. That ought to be useful, right? Right?


    ¡­But I needed to learn how to do it without slipping. I¡¯d thought it would be automatic since I already knew how to channel Ether, but there seemed to be more to it.


    ¡°...Chat,¡± I spoke after a minute of silence. ¡°Resting just took a backseat today. I need to figure out this spider ninja thing first.¡±