Chapter 20

♪ Liquid + Light = Refraction ♪

Hmm depending on how strong these [Red Moon Berry]s make me, I should be able to hit the first Tr level. If that happens, I don’t want to accept a class until I hit max level with all my skills… same goes for Masada. But I’ll need to somehow pause the battle to transform after everything is maxed out. Don’t want to go wasting the valuable experience points.

These thoughts course through my mind as we proceed on the day long trek towards the ocean of grass. Most of the trip was silent, excluding Braska’s occasional drunken outbursts. He claims it’s tradition to drink before a big fight, but that just sounds moronic. In combat, you definitely want to be able to think clearly and react at the drop of a hat.

Malady is pretty quiet, but I think she is still a little upset with me. It’s really hard to tell what’s wrong since she won’t say anything. This is why the silent treatment doesn’t help anyone, but it probably has something to do with me suddenly disappearing with the slaves.

“Y’all seem tired. Should we take a rest?” the dashing Rellen Esstral suggests after getting a look at Malady and his two companions. The other two members of Cry of the Banshee had been whispering to Malady about something before they all started acting gloomy. This isn’t how you should prepare for a major fight, right? Aren’t we all supposed to be getting along and be on the same page to wade through combat without needless distractions or drama? Apparently, it doesn’t matter to them.

As though to sweep away the grim air hanging over everyone’s head, Braska continued in a completely different tone, “Yeah, cheer up lassies! You’re gonna witness a powerful ability before the battle’s over *hic*,” Braska said in an attempt to lighten the mood. I assume that’s partly why it’s tradition to drink before a battle? I can’t really tell.

Rellen extended on the dwarf’s comment, “I understand the journey can be annoying, considering that Valleyport has such a sturdy wall, and it would be nice to just attack them from safety rather than bring the fight to them. The problem lies with the type of slime we’re up against. Valleyport’s wall could be severely damaged or even completely destroyed if we let them get too close. Typically, slimes can’t think for themselves and just wander aimlessly, but given the unprecedented coordination of the flood, we can’t risk letting intellectual acid get close to the town.”

Elaine remarked with an annoyed expression, “Yeah, yeah. I get it. But it would have been nice if we could at least bring some wagons. I mean, it’s just on the [Human Plains]. Walking so far after that last quest is just too annoying.” Smiling wryly, Rellen retorts, “We can’t bring wagons or horses due to the large scale of our quarry. The guild isn’t about to waste perfectly good commodities when they will likely end up as acid slime food. And to be honest, I’d rather not have to worry about protecting them too.”

I guess I could have gotten some SP if I volunteered to store the wagons in my ring... But horses couldn't go in so, I guess it's a good thing I didn't flaunt the ring.

Elaine pouted and turned her head away, remaining silent. Rellen took that queue to change the direction of the conversation, “Considering how our last quest went, I’m rather grateful to have such a lucrative opportunity. I know that you’re used to having all the funds you’d ever need back with the Corvusis family, but we are adventurers now and our funds are running dry.”

I could hear Malady sigh quietly before she regained her composure, “*Sigh* Though it may be tedious, I believe Sir Esstral is correct.”

Elaine: “Awe, you’re taking his side now?”

Malady: “It isn’t that I’m taking sides. If anything, we should all be on the same side against the slimes.”

Elaine: “Boooo. You’re no fun.”

After a while, our pace gradually slowed to a leisurely saunter. The slimes could be seen clearly now that we’re just a football field’s length away. Braska had sobered up and reaffirmed the plan we agreed on back at the guild, “*AHEM* Like we said earlier, as a temporary party for this request, Tru, Malady and Avelian will be the forward attack unit, while the rest of us head back to the max range of my skill to start channeling it. Since we’ll be so far apart, I’ll send a party [Message] out in advance so that y’all can retreat after I finish building up [Song of Annihilation].”

[Message] is a skill that comes attached to guild cards along with the [Evaluation] passive skill. Since they are not item skills, they don’t say [name: …] or [description: …]. But they also aren’t skills you learn, which means they can’t be leveled up.

[Message: Once a day, send a message to all the members of your current party.]

Definitely handy during a battle like we have now. I wonder if there was some system engineer that came up with the system layout. Meh, I’ll get nowhere speculating over it.

[Song of Annihilation] is the skill Braska referred to earlier as his ‘big boy’ spell. Basically, it instantly raises the level of radiation in a determined area. He said the more radiation that is condensed and the larger the area is, the more mana it will consume. In order to envelop the entire enemy force, he’ll need to spend time channeling while also being fed [Mana Potion]s to pull it off. That’ll be Maki’s primary role with the secondary responsibility of healing us in the vanguard if an emergency arises. She can’t possibly reach us so far though, so it’s our responsibility to fall back if we need the heals. Before we start, the rear group will retreat to the maximum distance, then Tsai and Elaine will launch flaming arrows and a fire bolt to signal the front line at the start of the attack. Rellen’ll stay back to protect the back line just in case, while Tsai and Elaine continue with their volleys. I’ll be waiting for the start to eat my berries, which makes me also think, Should I give ten [Red Moon Berry]s to Malady too?

Me: “Malady, here take these. Eat them all right as the battle starts.”

‘bling’

‘You have given Supernatural consumables to another for their safety.’

'+100 SP is granted to Spirit and +20 SP is granted to Intellect.'

Wait! What?! It went from ‘my only source of food’ to ‘a Supernatural Item’ and gives 100 spirit instead of 1?! This… But why? Ugh now is not the time to think about it. Malady accepted them with appreciating eyes when her jaw dropped. She couldn’t seem to get any words out, so I answered the question I assumed she was attempting to ask, “I found these on my journey. I’ve got plenty more, so don’t try to be reserved about using them.”

I could hear an audible gulp that appeared to snap her out of it, “Y-yes, Sir Tru. I am… overwhelmed by your generosity.” Uh, I just gave you berries… whatever, “Hahaha, for a second there I was afraid you swallowed your tongue. Think nothing of it.”

Braska started to speak obnoxiously again, “It’s too bad nobody has a flying skill or tamed monster. It’d be brilliant if we could more thoroughly scout our targets. I may pass out from the blast, considering the amount of mana such a huge spell will cost.”

Me: “Don’t you worry. We’ll trim down their numbers. You just be sure to let us know before you’re ready. Me and Masada would really appreciate it if you could let us at least get a few Tr levels before making the plains uninhabitable.”

Braska: “Bahaha! Sure thing, kid. It’ll take me… probably half a day to belt out the song.”

Not much more time trails on before our ranged team gets back to the max range of Braska’s spell. Cold silence fell and the weight of our quandary covered us as a thick blanket of snow lays on the grass of a field in winter. Avelian had led the way as me and Malady followed closely behind. Small mounds dotted the plains, providing us just enough cover to go undetected while still being able to track the slimes by eye. We continued to run in a crouch, closing in on a decent position about a mile away from our ranged friends. So, I can imagine spells having this kind of range, but a bow? Tsai must have specialized in ranged archery as her pure class. She’s basically a sniper if she can pull that kind of distance off.

Am I even good enough to be here? What if they end up relying on me and my inexperience gets them killed? How can a loser like me hold the lives of others in my hands? Just as I finished that thought, a still, small voice sounded for only me to hear, “If you call yourself a loser too much, you’ll end up turning into one.” Hahaha, thanks for the pick-me-up Yahweh. I can’t just accept that kind of attitude, so it’s time for a change.

We reached a hill no more than 10 meters from the first line of the flood. Now that I’m close enough, I can tell that it’s not even close to actually looking like a flood. A ton of slimes are just rolling along the grass, slowly absorbing everything they touch. Bushes, grass, even the dirt isn’t spared from disintegration. The moment anything entered their goo, the object would start to wilt, turn black until it turned white and completely disappeared. The front line was made up of almost only typical blobs of what looks like green flubbery globs of gloop. Kinda like jell-o, but jigglier and more malleable. One other thing that I can see now, is the slimes are breaking apart into smaller Tr level slimes. On the flip side, some are grouping into larger slimes and increasing in Tr level.

[name: Acid Slime. Slime consisting of 75% Sulfuric Acid and 25% Mahaoric Magicid. Easily avoidable due to slow movement. Don't be deceived, contact will disintegrate any organic matter.”]

Using [Evaluate] gives me less information than [Analyze], but at least it’s new info.

[Acid Slime Tr 4]

The fused slimes are obviously bigger than the non-fused and the separated slimes are even smaller than the standard size. A bit late now, Avelian interrupts my investigation to question my capability, much like I had earlier, “How is it that you’re Tr 0, Tru?” Nervous about how realistic my answer is, I riposte, “Well, I did train before I ever accepted a class. In other words, I have some combat awareness and natural ability not granted by the world system.”

Avelian chuckled in a suppressed laugh, “Even so, at Tr 0, I bet you won’t even be able to kill 10 slimes.”

Me: “Oh-ho, you sure you want to bet on that?”

Avelian: “Without a doubt. Hmmm, I’ll bet half my earnings from completing this request. What say you?”

Me: “You’ve got yourself a bet, oh valiant sir Avelian.” I’d imagine he’s just trying to alleviate some of the tension in the air. Well, thanks for making this more interesting haha.

Picking up on my sarcasm, Avelian grew a sinister smile in anticipation for the battle to commence. In the field, our melee unit hid behind the crest of a small mound, awaiting the signal to begin. Meanwhile, the artillerists firmly positioned themselves atop a taller hill somewhere between a half mile and one mile away. I doubt I'll be able to hear the [Song of Annihilation] from this far away. Oh well. Adrenaline began to flow through my veins at the sight of a red glow coming from the hill my team-mates were on. Anticipation continued to build until time seemed to stop. The spark of a flaming arrow accompanied by an exquisite bolt of pure fire, that burned the air alone as fuel to fly straight, soared above my vision. What broke the lapse in time caused my ears to ring. A wave of pure force could be felt pushing and passing through my whole body the instant following the blast. Reality hit me all at once to steal away my focus from the radiant lights as I shoveled ten [Red Moon Berry]s into my mouth. At the same time, Avelian cried out, “Charge!”

[name: Truck Coon]

[~Status~]

[Health: 304,128 / 304,128]

[Mana: 3,919,872 / 3,919,872]

[Energy: 991,232 / 991,232]

[~General Stats~]

[Strength: 27,648 + 46,080]

[Agility: 84,992 + 95,232]

[Stamina: 53,248 + 2,048]

[Intellect: 27,648 + 28,672]

[Spirit: 43,008 + 669,696]

Avelian got a big head start along with Malady thanks to my chowing down, but DANG, they won’t be ahead for long with them stat boosts I just got! In Avelian’s case, he had some skill that allowed him to run at such a fast pace for an instant that his entire form blurred and then reappeared a few meters away. Like a shadow boxer, the pugilist started beating the air in front of him. Nothing could be seen passing through the air, but one of the slimes exploded like a ripe pomegranate getting stomped on. *whew* Contactless punches are a thing here too, noted. Before my amazement from the sight faded, Malady stole the spotlight. She appeared faster than I could blink from one slime to the next three times in succession. I bet those berries I gave her made her dumb fast, “Hahaha!” But that wasn’t what shocked me. No, rather than using her weapons, she ‘cleaned’ each slime with one of her maid skills. It’s amazing! She just wiped them with a rag at light-speed and all the slime disappeared, leaving only the slime core, which she promptly crushed underfoot.

I can’t just let them do all the work. Wanting to test out my new upgrades, I dashed forward, casting [Weight Up(minor)] on Masada. My first victim happens to be a lowly Tr 2. When I swung Masada, I cleaved the slime in half, but couldn’t feel a thing. Masada informed me, “Kuru kuru! Kururu.” letting me know that it reformed itself as soon as Masada cut it. He also confirmed my theory that [Hone] would protect Masada from the acidic damage. Being just a blob, I may as well have been fighting a literal living hunk of jell-o; it barely even reacted to being cut by Masada.

Following through with the next idea that popped in my mind, I twisted Masada in hand with the flat of his blade facing the slime. This time when I lazily batted the goo, it just exploded into a spray of green slime. My excitement didn’t even last a split second before I realized I made a mistake. The core of the slime, a black ball about the size of my fist with a crack going halfway through it, got batted into the slime next to it. That just so happens to be how slimes fuse, by combining two cores into one slime. Dang it! Even broken cores can be absorbed by the other slimes? That evolved slime started to morph into a shape that didn’t resemble its former self. Rather than a pile of glop in the shape of a large ball, it started to take a shape like the kind of swamp monster you’d see in a horror movie.

[Acid Ooze Tr 6]

[name: Acid Ooze. Similar to [Acid Slime] except with increased intelligence, giving its thoughts shape.]

Okay, lets see how it holds up to a thousand-pound club! I decided to take a more serious stance for more power behind Masada. *SHWOOSH* the air resistance was non-existent to me, aside from that foreboding sound, and this time, I swung at a downward angle. I can’t just go making even bigger flubbers. I can’t swing vertically either though. Imagine that huge splash accidentally hitting my legs; just the thought makes me cringe. My solution is to swing mostly downwards, but slightly to the side in order to direct the slime away from myself. The black globe made a solid *crack* sound after the blade connected, then bounced once before making a solid *thud* on the ground and splitting open. Watching it smack into the ground I became confused. I tried to store the now fused core into the [Ring of Space] at the moment of the first contact, but it didn't work. What are you thinking? Obviously, it can't just be stored the moment BEFORE it was cracked. Mentally, I facepalmed myself for being so dumb that I forgot living creatures can’t be stored, and if the core is still mostly in tact, the slime is technically still alive. No matter, there’s an easy solution. Now that it's broken on the ground, they can be stored. I'll just need to be careful where the cores land from now on... or I can just make bigger monsters and kill them anyway, I think while shrugging my shoulders.

‘bling’

'You have defeated [Acid Ooze] Tr 6 Lvl 1.'

'Defeating a monster with 1 or more class transformations above your own grants 1 level for each transformation.'

'bling'

'Beast-Master, Synergist has increased to level 7.'

'5 General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'Summoned Saboteur has increased to level 7.'

'No General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 3.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 3.'

'bling'

'Beast-Master, Synergist has increased to level 8.'

'5 General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'Summoned Saboteur has increased to level 8.'

'No General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 4.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 4.'

'bling'

'Beast-Master, Synergist has increased to level 9.'

'5 General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'Summoned Saboteur has increased to level 9.'

'No General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 5.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 5.'

'bling'

'Beast-Master, Synergist has increased to level 10.'

'5 General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'Summoned Saboteur has increased to level 10.'

'No General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 6.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 6.'

'bling'

'Beast-Master, Synergist has increased to level MAX.'

'5 General Stat points have been awarded.'

‘bling’

'Beast-Master, Synergist has reached the MAX level.'

‘You may transform or continue as a Beast-Master, Synergist.’

‘Transform / Continue’

'bling'

'Summoned Saboteur has reached MAX level.'

‘You may transform or continue as a Summoned Saboteur.’

‘Transform / Continue’

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 7.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 7.'

I just glanced over the messages to see if I hit MAX level, but quickly swipe them away, being that I’m in the midst of a battle. "Time to start using our other skills, Masada," I declare. Masada responded in the affirmative, "Ku." I’m too slow at killing these things… How can I kill em’ more efficiently and use our other skills? But after my brief attempt at deliberating with myself, I can’t seem to find an easy solution. I guess I just need to find the core and aim for it with the [Hone]d edge. There doesn't seem to be any other way around it. With that in mind, I look closely at the slime closest to me. Blurred much like my vision is after opening my eyes underwater in a pool back in Louisiana, I can see a dark spot within the slime. With no other indication that there is anything but a core in the ooze, Masada cuts cleanly through the stuff at the swift wave of my arms, directly aimed at the core. Needless to say, my first attempt was in vain, and my second, and third as well. This was when I realized that the light refraction through the mucus is warping my own perceived location of the target. If I remember correctly, light is what’s making me miss. I remember going bow-fishing back home and since I was in a boat, the different elevation was being warped by the light. I needed to aim lower than the fish to land a shot, so I’ll just aim below where I think I see the core.

My next attempt cleaved just the tip of the nucleus and like a snowman being placed into a thousand-degree oven, the slime dissolved into the ground at once.

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 8.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 8.'

'bling'

'[Weight Up(minor)] has increased to level 9.'

'bling'

'[Hone] has increased to level 9.'

“HAHAAAA! I win!” Overcome by adrenaline, I shout before becoming slightly embarrassed at my outburst. “*Ahem* Now the real hunt begins.” I say with a forced smile, trying to look threateningly at my prey in a failed attempt thanks to my joy from successfully proving my theory this time. The next try ended in the same way, minus the childish jubilation of course. As I gained experience in severing the cores while casting all my available skills whenever they weren’t on cooldown, I missed many more times but hit more than I missed. Suddenly, though, my killing spree was halted by a new notification that I haven’t seen before.

‘bling’

‘All skills have reached Max level at the MAX level of Beast Master, Synergist.’

‘It is recommended to advance your class before taking any further action.’