Escalating Difficulty
It's been, if my wristwatch still tells the truth, half an hour since I left the [Safe Zone] and I think I'm going insane. There's just a whole load of nothing in the hallways, other than lockers and doors that I can't open.
I sighed. Winslow, for me, has always been dreary on normal days. An uncaring faculty and a downright malicious student body ensured that I felt that way towards the school every time I have to wake up and enter its double doors. The depressing atmosphere just increased when the only sounds I can hear are my footsteps and my breathing. When the only things I see is a hallway lined with lockers and locked classroom doors.
When the only things I have for company are actively trying to kill me.
If this had happened a few months ago, I would have preferred Emma and her dogs over crystal monsters.
I would have, if they didn't try to kill me too. Oh sure, I was only in the filthy locker for an hour, give or take, but it would be easy for them to conveniently forget that they shoved me in there. It would be easy for them to make alibis, to twist the event against me. They've done it before, and I had no doubt that they would do it again.
And even if it gets investigated, Emma's dad is a lawyer. Sophia's the track star of Winslow. Madison was a... well she was a rich and pretty girl. Who cares about some loner, trouble-making, worthless loser? It's just one dead girl that allegedly uses drugs, sells herself out, uglier than a Merchant, and hundreds of insults that they spent their brain cells on.
Which brings me to the question: how come I have 10s as base stats? Their insults may be dumb but, personally, I found some of them to be true. I looked terrible, like a twig with hair and glasses, and I've been extremely unlucky as of late. I don't do sports, don't exercise, and I haven't been eating much lately.
[The Game is currently using placeholder statistics. Spent stat points will be added to the user's true statistics after dungeon clearance.]
So my stats were probably lower than 10, except for my INT stat. That one I'm sure deserves at least a 15.
A loud bang interrupted my depressing thoughts, coming from a locker ahead of me. I prepared my bat the moment I saw large dents appear on the locker's door, an [Observe] already at the tip of my tongue.
A crystalline creature burst through the metal, roaring.
[Crystal Minion] LVL 4
60 HP
10 MP
Just a bit stronger than the last one. It was still screaming its lungs out when I ran towards it and hit it with a [Heavy Swing].
[Hit! -30HP!]
No stun, no critical. Of course it wouldn't be easy. It turned towards me and swung its right fist. I took a step back to dodge, but I was a bit too slow. It hit my left arm, making me wince at the sensations of phantom pain.
[-10HP! Glancing Blow!]
That's ten percent of my HP. On a glancing blow. I scrambled back, raising my bat. The minion followed and when I was in its range, it swung again. I'd call it a one trick pony, but so was I. I ducked under its swing, and when its fist hit nothing but the locker beside me, I counter-attacked.
[Critical Hit! -40 HP!]
It shattered into motes of light, but my heart still thundered. My mind was calm, thoughts almost clinical, but the adrenaline was still pumping. What the hell is [Gamer's Mind] doing to me?
[Post Action Results:]
+75 XP
+$20
[Skills Gained:]
[Physical Resistance] LVL 1 (Passive)
1% Physical Damage Reduction
It's not a concern yet. If it- if it helps me, I'll let it do whatever it wants.
I approached the locker it came from, previous worries pushed to the side. I pulled the broken door away to reveal its loot.
[Granola Bar – Common] x 4
Restores 10 HP and 20 SP.
I wonder if I can break locker doors down instead? Even if it didn't work, it would probably be cathartic. I hefted my bat and approached the locker beside the broken one. Bat met locker and, much to my surprise, nothing happened except for a loud sound of wood hitting metal.
Maybe it has an HP too? I cast [Observe] on the locker.
[Locker]
5/25 HP
0 MP
May contain something, nothing, or a cause of death.
Well that doesn't sound ominous.
[Skill Created and Activated: Danger Sense.]
A ping broke the silence. The metal door in front of me broke as a fist emerged from the locker it was attached to, hitting me in the chest. I gasped as I flew back, impacting the row of lockers opposite of the one with a slowly emerging creature.
[-49 HP! Critical Hit!]
Shit! 50% of my health points gone in an instant! I scrambled to get up, to make distance between me and the thing that can kill me in 2 more hits.
If the pattern holds up, at least. I'm pretty sure critical hits double the damage dealt. That means that it deals 25 as base damage. 25 HP as its basic damage. I felt my legs pump a little bit harder.
[+1 INT and WIS for knowing when to run.]
God, I wish I could use those points. I don't have any magical spell or skill, so all of my MP and regen have all been left untouched ever since I came here.
It roared, like its thunderous footsteps wasn't enough to remind me that it was still there and chasing after me. I continued running and then, when I heard it stop and when I felt like I made enough distance, I turned around to look at it.
The crystal monster looked different. Well, it still looked like a human made out of a bunch of crystals, but this time, it looked like it was a man made out of pure muscle turned into a jagged pile of shiny rocks. It was standing a few meters away from me, staring at me. Mocking me.
I glared and cast [Observe].
[Crystal Brute] LVL 6
150 HP
0 MP
A defender of the Shard. High Physical Resistance.
90 more HP than the minion I destroyed earlier and, if its Physical Resistance works like mine, any damage that I'd do against it with my bat would be negated. I can't fight that. I have to retreat, maybe find loot or weaker monsters, or a way to find out how to beat it without getting close.
The feeling of failure and weakness still stung deep, despite the aid of the [Gamer's Mind],and it welled as I ran back towards the [Safe Zone].
After twenty minutes of running, I finally made it. My Health Points were restored sometime along the way.
[+1 VIT and END for continuous running.]
[You have now entered the Safe Zone.]
I glared at the words floating in front of me. I glared as I saw the pristine locker I was shoved into. The same kind of locker that now hides things that can kill me faster than I would have in the locker Sophia and Emma shoved me into.
Those two. I growled. They're the reason I'm in here. They're the reason why I'm suffering.
If- no, when. When I get out of here, I'm going to find those two and I'll... I'll...
The anger I felt died inside me. What could I do? Even with my powers, I wouldn't be able to do anything. I'd just be the villain who assaulted two students for reasons unknown. They'd twist it against me, like they did before. They'd get out battered and bruised, but they'd be the winners.
As for me? I'd be imprisoned or worse, sent to the Birdcage. And even if I wasn't, I don't think I can go home and see dad again. I can't go home and see him shut down again, see him pretend that nothing's wrong when everything is going wrong in the world.
[+1 WIS and CHA]
Enough wallowing. Even if I can't see dad anymore, I'll fight. No matter how many times I have to run back to this [Safe Zone], I'll fight and I'll get out of here.
Now, how do I deal with a creature than can tank physical damage?
I mulled over my options. I felt a metaphorical light bulb ding above my head. I have to use something else.
I turned my attention inwards, towards the blood flowing through my veins, towards the energy that somehow felt blue as it flowed throughout my body.
Mana.
[Skill Gained: Meditation] LVL 1 (0 Cost)(Passive/Active)
Passive: +10% Increase to INT and WIS.
Active: User receives [Trance]. +200% MP Regen, +100% SP Regen, +50% HP Regen.
[Skill Gained: Mana Attuned] LVL 1 (Passive)
+10% Mana Regen, Mana Points, and Magical Damage.
I felt the corners of my mouth twitch upwards.
I sat down on the floor of the locker room, legs crossed and palms placed on my knees facing up, and [Meditated].
I began to think of ways of turning my mana pool into an attack as I played with the eager, but surprisingly easy to control, energy. I felt it rush inside me, going to different parts of my body with minimal coaxing.
I directed it towards my right palm, pooling it, watching as a blue light coalesced on it. I watched as it grew brighter, almost becoming white.
It then blew up on my face.
[-33 HP]
[Skill Created: Mana Bomb] LVL 1 (Active) (50MP)
Deals 10 * INT Magical Damage.
75% Reduced damage against allies and self.
I grinned despite the damage I took. Sure, it's a double bladed sword, but progress is progress. And I have [Meditation] on.
I tried it again, pooling my mana into my palm. I tried to push it outwards, to move beyond my body. I saw the orb try and break free but-
[-33 HP]
It blew up again.
I glared at my palm. I pooled mana again before stopping when it looked like it was going to blow up. I held the mana orb in my palm, mentally pushing it to move forwards, to move away from me.
There was a bright flash and a boom, so I closed my eyes and feared the worst.
A ping. I blinked the bright spots from my vision before gaping at the lockers across from the place I sat. The doors were gone.
[Skill Modified: Mana Bomb to Mana Cannon] LVL 1 (Active) (60 MP)
Deals 8* INT Magical Damage.
Deals 75% less damage on allies and self.
Finally, a ranged option! MP Cost is literally my entire mana pool, and the reduced damage in exchange for range kind of sucks, but I'm pretty sure I'll need it soon enough. Since [Mana Cannon] drained my pool, I'll have to wait before trying anything else. A weaker variation, but uses less mana.
[GUI Updated.]
Four bars and some text appeared on the upper right hand corner of my vision, colored red, black- no, blue, yellow, and white. The second bar was black because it was empty, but it was quickly getting filled by blue. My Health, Mana, and Stamina. My Health Bar had 110 HP, my Mana was steadily trickling upwards, and my Stamina was still sitting at a full 55. The last bar, I think, contains my Experience Points, which currently displays 125/150.
[Notice: The System only displays whole numbers.]
I smiled. Good to know. Now, back to spell-crafting.
This time, I gathered a small amount of mana instead of the amount of I put in creating [Mana Cannon]. Then, I pushed it the same way I pushed the other spell.
The dim blue light flew from my hands and into the already broken locker. Success!
[Skill Created: Mana Bolt] LVL 1 (Active) (10 MP)
Deals 3* INT Magical Damage.
I can cast it 6 times, dealing 216 damage to a single target. I grinned. That smug little [Crystal Brute] won't know what's going to hit him.
But first, loot.
There were a grand total of 25 lockers in the locker room. Out of those, 8 had consumables, 2 had clothes, and one had a knife.
Winslow finally living up to its reputation.
[Water Bottle – Common] x 4
Restores 10 HP and 20 MP.
[Ham and Cheese Sandwich – Common] x 2
Restores 30 HP and 10 SP.
[Granola Bar – Common] x 2
Restores 10 HP and 20 SP.
[Lab Coat – Uncommon] x 1
A Lab Coat for Chemistry Class.
+2 INT
[Black Turtleneck Sweater – Common] x 1
A Sweater. Looks fashionable in some cases.
+ 1 CHA
[SS Honor Dagger – Rare]
Used by the Nazis during WW2.
Deals 3 * STR damage.
Inflicts [Bleeding].
Yeah, no, I'm not using that one, even if it's the first rare thing I've found.
Although... I can probably sell it.
Everything went into my inventory, but the clothes...
I looked down at my hoodie.
[Taylor's Hoodie – Common]
It's Taylor's Hoodie. It's been through worse.
+1 CHA
[Taylor's T-Shirt – Common]
It's Taylor's T-Shirt. It's just a t-shirt.
Well the choice was easy. I looked at my inventory again and unequipped my clothes before promptly screaming. My clothes just disappeared! I hastily dragged the sweater towards a chest slot, then the lab coat over the second slot.
I sighed in relief.
I might as well check my stats before I leave, just to get some of my math straight.
"[Statistics]."
[Taylor Hebert – The Gamer]
Level – 1 (125/150 EXP until Level Up)
HP – 110/110 (11 HP/Min)
MP – 70/70 (6.5 MP/Min)
SP – 55/55 (5.5 SP/Min)
Statistics
STR – 10
VIT – 11
END – 11
INT – 12 (+2) = 14
WIS – 13
CHA – 11
LUK – 11
Points – 0
Status Effects:
[Gamer's Mind] – Passive resistance to [Mental Attacks] and [Mental Ailments]. Ḿ̵̨̡̢̞̞͍͚̥̪̗̗͍̜̪̜̿̑̾̄̈́͛́̎̑̅̽̕͘͝á̷̬̞̯̯͌̈́̚ņ̷̧̧̛̹͇͎̹̠͍͙͉̳̝̯̰̮̖̘̅͑͂̌̇͊̔̏̎͒̃̽̑̔̏̇͌̿̓̀̚̚̚̕ͅͅi̴̡̢̯̝̭̼̰̟͓̦̮̝͙̖̖̟̹͕̹̦̱̞̩̋̐̅̓̊͜p̵̳̘̟̩̬͔̹̆̈́̈́̂͂̈́̓͋͌̽̂͘u̶̢̢̧͉̥̣̯͚̼͓̤͇̟̘̯̟͉͒̉͌̾͆̄ĺ̷̡̛͍̩̦̣̘̖̣͙̈́͂̍̒̾͒̈́ą̶̧̗̺̫͎̝̜͖̙̬̜̱͎̱̫͆͋͋̋͑̉̾̎͂̑͆̽̈́̔͂̑̐̿̇͒̚͜͝͝͝ͅͅţ̵̨̯̪̝̲̹̦̭̩̻̻̫͙̌̂̾̀̿̀̈́́̔͑̑͐̔̇̅̉̑̿̒̚̕̚͜͝ě̷̺̗̰̤̠̅̽̎̂ş̴̱̺̼͓̥͔̦̦͎̻̤͈̰̺̗̈́͋̈̒̊̐͒̀̓͑̾̓̾̏̀̀̄͝ ̵̤̭̙͕̻̒̽̅͠ͅŢ̶̛̬̙̤̫͍̯͈̯͍̥͉́͂̓̆̈́̐̍̄̍̏̈́̊̊͗̚̚h̵̨̩͎̣̼̾̃̈̌̄̋͂̉́́͋͛̕é̵̡̛͇̺̫̘̼͉͊̽̾̅͋͒̂̐͋ ̶̧̢̞̙̦̪͙̪̲̘̯͙͈̌̊́̀̓͂̒̑͗̈́͝͠͝ͅŰ̵̢̨̻̤̰͈̦͓͍͇̥͎͍̐̅̒̅̈́͑̏̕͜͝͝s̷̪̣̤͓͎̪͕͎̮̠̜̼͓͖̝͛͆ĕ̷̡̛̤̟͇͓̰͇͎͇̹̬̍̈̈́̎͋̿̒͜͝ṛ̶͚̠̠̪͚̜̤̖̜̦̥̱̦̥̳̞͔̼̥̻̓̀̓̿́'̵̨̧̡̝̳̦͍̺͖̜̱̼̩͍̫̱̪̦͇̟̤̳͕̱̇͋̽͌̇́̽͊̃̀̂͗͒̋͊̃͂̚̚͝ͅs̷̹̺̹͎͔̺̦̯͚̖̰͓̻͚̫͎͇̮̮̼͕̫̿̏̓̉́̋̔̃̽͆̚͝ͅͅ ̵̢̦̼̥̇̀̈́͒́͗̑͒̓̒̐͑́͝͝t̴̨̻̘͓̰̪̣̫̗̿̐̄̾̉̓̃̽̈́̈͌́̒̈́͂̂̊̎̆̉̌͋͘͝͠h̵̢̖̤͚̦̀̃͛̀̊͆͗̓̆̎̔̈́̓̈́͒͌́͊̋̈͗̒̂̿̔̽̎͐̈́̕ơ̵̡̧̬̮̰͙͙͕̻͈̗̪̺̱̹͚͈̥̮̣̹͓̫̗̄̍̒̍́̈̄̂͌̌̂̈́͛̒͌̔̆͗̽̓͆̈̀͊̽͘ͅu̸̧̳̪̜̥̳͇͚̬̰̳͚͕̤̞̫̼̳̿̄́̃̋̎́̌̑̄ģ̸̧͖͕̤̙̗̰̘͍͚̬̯̰̟̮̩̬̠͖̋͂͂̃͌ḫ̴̨̧̙̲̝̦͓͓̰̩͉̦̗͕̠͈̹̳͇̦̞́̆̽̂̉͆͆̓́͐̊́͂̋̀͐̅͆͌̎̇͂̾̈̀̾̾͗̚͠͝͠ț̶̡̭̗̮̱͖̮̮͇̠̺̂͋͑̾́͊͜ș̵̡̛̦̰̬̻̬̹̭̱͖͕̹̥̤̭̻̱͊̀̍̽̎̊̔̍͋̐̊̀̒͗̽̅͆̾͗̐̒̅̈́̈͊̓̓̿͘͜ͅ a̴̪͔̺̘̒̕͘͜ņ̸̪͈̹̤̞̬̲̱͓͔̥́̔͗̍ͅd̵̹͒̿̐̈̊͒̃͗̂̆̊͠ Ę̶̡̡̛̛̹̱̜͖͓̬̯͈͇̲̬͍̬̳͚̦̟̺̜͋̍́̉́̾̌̈̽̿̓̑͋̏͜͠ͅm̶̡̛̜̗̺̬̻̘͔̬̝̤̯̫̖̽̂̉̎͗̀̄͊́̇̏̍̿̉͂̆̈́̃̓̓͆ͅo̸̼̤̪̦̟͂̇͑̓͑̑̐́̊̎̊̏͒̈́̀͊̈͛͛͠t̶͖͖͈̲͍͈̠̤̘͉̳͇͊ĩ̸͉͕̠̗͈͈̘̩̖͕̹̰̘͉͕̝̀̋̃̊͛̚o̶̧̧̗̻͈͖̩̹̫̰̠͍̹͎̳̯͛̅̀̑̇̓̽̂͜͠n̸̡̨̢̡̡̻̱͎̫̬̼̪̻̠̝̫̖͍͉̙͔̞̯̬͉̓͋̿̂̔́̄̏͊̋͘s̴̛̫̙̫̮̲̳̺̤̗̞̠͖̞̠̣̖̖̝̟̪̭͇͒̃̈́̀̃̒̌̐͑́̾͐̅̿̓͝ͅ. (Permanent)
[Gamer's Body] – Converts the body into a video game character. Debilitating effects turn into [Status Effects]. (Permanent)
[Blessings of Gaia] - +100% EXP received upon [Monster] kills. +100% EXP for Main Quest Completion. (Temporary - 4 Months)
[Gaia's Shroud] – Protects the user from [Scrying] and [Precognition]. (Temporary - 4 Months)
What the hell happened to [Gamer's Mind]?
A/N: Late upload, had to revise this chapter thrice. Sorry, lol. Thank you so much for the reviews! I tried to fix them in this chapter, and I'm planning on rewriting the first chapter too. Thank you again! Reviews and thoughts appreciated, but please be kind. My heart thunders every time I upload something.