P-System Log

Huh, this one's actually got a name. A fair bit better than the previous bosses we faced, what with their DUNGEON_BOSS_NAMEs.

The name kind of sucks, but that's besides the point. The point is that Jerome has a bossfight to get through!

And it's looking like a doozy of one. The room we just entered looks pretty peculiar. If I had to chance a guess, I'd say that this place was made specifically for this boss. It's got some weird geometry, with stalactites and stalagmites coming from the ceiling and the floor as well as a lot of artificial stone obstructions and assorted obstacles--statues, poles, random crap that makes this place look like some caveman's antique store--that makes it hard to navigate this place on foot. The [Gelatin], though, seems to have no problems with it. That shit is just oozing around and through everything. It's literally just taking up space,

If it works anything like the Gelatinous Cubes from DnD, then its primary method of attack should just be rolling over Jerome. I wonder if he knows that.

I'm not going to say anything, though. I'm not going to trouble myself any more than necessary to figure out what it can do, and I'm not going to look stupid by telling Jerome the wrong thing. If he actually needs it, I'll toss him a bone and do my advanced pseudo-[Assess] to figure out what it can do, but I'm more than content to just let him do his thing for the time being.

Overcharged [Misty Strike] activating! Passive [Amorphous Body] triggered! [Misty Strike] dealt 41 damage! [Engulf] cast! P-System Log

Jerome, you fucking idiot.

Okay, maybe not that much of an idiot. If he's going off the DnD statblock, then I'm pretty sure it never mentioned anything about Gelatinous Cubes--which are the closest monster to whatever this [Gelatin] is--having the ability to lower the damage of striking attacks.

But this isn't DnD, and he should know that! For fuck's sake, it's not like we've been facing 1 to 1 replicas of Forgotten Realms so far! Just because this place has a similar roll-for-damage system doesn't mean that its monsters are lifted straight from the game, Jerome!

Actually, on second thought, I doubt he thought that far ahead. I'm pretty sure he just took his strongest skill and went for it.

Hero's Personal Log 070 Fuck! I thought that slimes weren't resistant to slashing attacks, which I'm pretty sure [Misty Strike] is. Gotta know that for the future. [Magic Missile] wasn't a great choice because that skill isn't going anywhere, and [Blazing Spear] felt too risky to use in such an enclosed space. P-System Log Never mind. He at least used some level of critical thinking. Color me surprised. Hero's Personal Log 071 Also, uh, System, is there any way you can get me out of here? Passive [Acidic Body] triggered! [Acidic Body] dealt 71 damage to you! P-System Log

Oh, shit.

That's a lot of damage.

Hero's Personal Log 072 Please? P-System Log

It's times like these that make me real grateful for my increased perception ability. This is, to put it lightly, a rather suboptimal situation.

Alright. I can perceive the ooze's body all around Jerome. The [Engulf] skill just up and sucked him into the ooze, and now he's stuck somewhere inside it. It's dealing acid damage to him just by virtue of him being there, and it's dealing a lot. Like, almost as much as those R Beasts a lot. If this keeps up for even another minute, I'm pretty sure Jerome is just going to die. Can't have that.

From the outside, Aster doesn't seem like she's helping. I have a sneaking suspicion that she won't help until Jerome is literally moments away from dying. Stupid of me, to reveal that I wasn't taking things as seriously because Jerome's life was never in real danger.

Come to think of it, I don't know what happens when HP hits 0. Does the person just die? Or does the shield that the Origin System provides just wear off, leaving them to be a completely normal human?

Okay, that's not the point right now. The point is that Jerome is getting fucking destroyed, and I need to stop that ASAP.

Alright, there's a number of ways I can tackle this. They can primarily be split into two categories--offensive and defensive. The former would be used to break out of this situation, the latter to prevent Jerome from dying because of it.

What do I want to give him? I have to admit that seeing Jerome use the same skills over and over is getting a little boring, so it might be nice to mix things up a little. Still, for what a shithead he's been so far, I don't want to just hand him everything on a silver platter.

Passive [Acidic Body] triggered! [Acidic Body] dealt 67 damage to you! Hero's Personal Log 073

Sorry I talked shit about you, System, could you please give me a hand here? I swear I'll work with you better in the future.

Ah, fuck, look at me, trying to reason with an AI. It probably doesn't give a shit.

[Misty Strike] activating! Passive [Amorphous Body] triggered! Passive [Gelatinous Body] triggered! [Misty Strike] dealt 31 damage! P-System Log

Huh, Jerome barely went anywhere with that skill. Usually, he basically disappears with how fast he's going. This time, though, he just moved forward awfully slow for like five feet before stopping. Interesting skill interaction.

That's besides the point, though. Jerome is dying, and more importantly, he actually apologized! Sure, it's definitely because he's under duress, but it's definitely something.

Y'know what? I'm feeling generous today. Jerome is going to get a fair bit of W Inertia invested into him for the purpose of Not Dying Just Yet. Here we go!

I think I should focus on defensive utility for now.

Oh wait, I should probably keep him from panicking any further.

P-System Message Request acknowledged. Employing methods to ensure survival. P-System Log

Alright, now that that's sorted...

Defensive utility. Since [Resistance]-type skills are a thing that exists here, and specifically things that I've actually observed before, I'm going to go for one of those. Not quite sure how exactly to execute it, though... maybe I focus on the acid?

I can replicate the acid now that I've perceived it for long enough, I'm pretty sure. My unique traits as a System mean that I can track all its properties down to the molecular level, though my innate skills are enough that I don't need to bother with the deep specifics on that level, but I do have that knowledge if it comes down to it.

If I structure W Inertia around that, focusing on the properties of the acid and reversing said properties, and I do it in that same way that I've been using to establish new skills...

New skill unlocked: [Acid Resistance] Decreases damage dealt to you by acid by 5%. Passive [Acidic Body] triggered! [Acidic Body] dealt 60 damage to you! Jerome Smith (abbreviated) Stat Current Maximum Health 69 562 P-System Log

Ok, yeah, that's really bad. [Acid Resistance] lowered the amount of damage Jerome just took, but it didn't lower it nearly enough. If he takes one or two more hits, it's over.

Alright, I've spent less than 10 W Inertia so far, but Jerome needs to survive. I don't want to think about what'll happen if he doesn't. Time to pull out the big guns.

I'm going to spend a thousand W Inertia. It's way more than I should be comfortable spending, but desperate times, desperate measures. Can't have Jerome dying on me, and there's no point in saving W Inertia if I'm dead with him. That'd be an awfully embarassing way to go. Died of being too stingy with XP.

...huh, I feel really calm for being in a life-threatening situation. That feels wrong, somehow, but it's not something I need to address right now.

1000 W Inertia. Here we go.

Skill leveled up! [Acid Resistance] lv. 1 -> lv. ??? Skill evolution! [Acid Resistance] -> [Greater Acid Resistance] Sharply increases resistance level. Skill evolution! [Greater Acid Resistance] -> [Superior Acid Resistance] Sharply increases resistance level. Skill evolution! [Superior Acid Resistance] -> [Lesser Acid Immunity] User takes no damage from lesser acid attacks. Sharply increases resistance level. Skill evolution! [Lesser Acid Immunity] -> [Acid Immunity] User takes no damage from acid attacks. P-System Log Well, shit, that's something. Go me?