Alright chapter two! I hope you all will enjoy
I don't own anything, if I did Jack and Arcee would have been dating by the end of the series.
[You have slept in your bed. HP, MP, and SP restored 100%. All ailments cured.]
"Well at least I know it wasn't a dream." Jack grumbled. Getting ready Jack walked out to the kitchen to see his mother June cooking.
"Morning sweetie. Breakfast will be ready in a moment." She greeted.
"How do you have so much energy, I'm pretty sure you went to bed after me last night." Jack yawned out.
"The miracles of working as a nurse. After so many long hours I can run on less sleep. You on the other hand seem to need another hour." June teased.
"I'll remember that next time I hear you snoring, besides I'm sixteen, sleeping in is what all teenagers do."
"Being a teenager or being lazy?" June smirked. Jack rolled his eyes smiling. "So, when did you get groceries? Last I check we didn't have much last night."
"I picked up a few things on the way home. Today is my day off so I'll be making dinner tonight, do you have work today?"
"Yeah, I'll be working until nine tonight. Hopefully it will be an easy day." Jack groan. It was a Friday. Fridays were normally nonstop rushes due to families having take-out or teens planning on how to spend their weekend.
"It won't be that bad sweetie. Now eat up, I made eggs and bacon for breakfast."
As Jack sat down to eat, he looked at his mother wondering if he should tell her about his new power. On one hand she may think he's joking and on the other hand June might believe him and freak out. "What do I do?" Jack thought.
[Due to your actions a new skill has been unlocked]
[Skill: Observe] [LVL: 1 (20/25)]
[Allows you to see the names and titles of people, and animals up to ten levels higher than you]
"Huh? Well, that's convenient." Jack thought. "But how do I use it? Can I just think it or…"
[June Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: ?]
[LVL: ?]
[Observe leveled up]
[Observe]
[LVL: 2 (10/50)]
[Allows you to see names, titles and stats of people and animals up to ten levels higher than you.]
"Going to need to level that." Jack muttered. Looking down at his breakfast Jack use observed.
[Scrambled eggs and Bacon]
[Stamina regenerates 10% faster]
"Well, that's useful." Jack muttered to himself. While not really useful right now due to his constitution being only two, later on it would be good to have. After eating and gathering his school supplies Jack said his goodbyes before jumping on his bike. Along the way he used observe on everyone he could see. By the time he got to school observe leveled up again.
[Observe]
[LVL: 3 (15/100)]
[Allows you to see names, titles, and stats of people and animals up to fifteen levels higher than you.]
From this Jack was able to see that children are normally level ten or lower and teenagers are higher, although how much of a difference he didn't know since some are higher than level fifteen but still aren't adults. The downside Jack felt his ego take a hit knowing he was weaker than a toddler. Upside he gained a new skill.
[Cycling][LVL: 2 (35/50)]
[You can ride a bike with a max speed of 15 mph.]
[For riding a bike for a period of time +2 CON +2 STR +3 DEX]
While annoyed by low cycling stat Jack was glad for the stat increases, he did wonder how he was going to level up the others, but he'll get to that later.
[You have entered a special zone: School]
[School Zone: while within this zone all skills increase 50% faster. If attended a full school week you gain INT points based on your current INT stat.]
[+5 INT as long INT is lower than ten]
[+3 INT as long INT is lower than twenty]
[+1 INT as long INT is lower than thirty]
Jack was certain if his jaw wasn't attached to him it would be on the ground. That was almost broken. Sure, it wasn't too helpful for someone with high intelligence but for him this was going to help immensely. Shaking his head Jack made his way to class before his teacher gives him more homework for being late or worst detention.
Stepping in his science class Jack was relieved to see he wasn't late, unfortunately he was noticed.
"Mr. Darby, how nice to see that you decided to show up on time today. Perhaps the extra assignment yesterday taught you not to waste my time with trivial antics." A voice dulled.
Jack winced and turn to see his teacher. He was a pale man with greying black hair. His three-piece black suit was cleanly pressed, and his dressed shoes were well polished. His grey eyes spoke volumes of his disdain for students. This was Dr. Vector, Jack's science teacher.
"Hello Dr. Vector, I got the assignment finished." Jack smiled nervously. Out of all the teachers at the school Dr. Vector was the meanest and most disliked teacher at the school. Even other teachers avoided him due to his attitude.
"And it must have taken you all night to do so. Place it in the bin and we'll see if it's adequate." Jack bristled at the not so subtle insult. Two major things anyone learned when meeting Dr. Vector was the man thought he was the smartest person on the planet and found anyone else beneath him.
Sitting down Jack decided to try his luck and use observed on Vector.
[Doctor Friedrich Vector]
[Race: human]
[Title: ?]
[LVL: ?]
Jack sighed; it was worth a shot, but he had a feeling his teacher wouldn't be a low level. He just sat at his desk and got ready for class. For the next few hours, the day wore on. Nothing really happened to Jack besides "gaining" skills base on his classes and using observed on every student he could, learning some things interesting and some he would rather not have known. The upside he could level his academic skills to boost his grades and his observe skill leveled again so he could see other's levels up to twenty.
So far Jack was having a good day, Dr. Vector didn't say anything to him, Vince and his cronies had a football game to go to, so they won't be bothering him. So now he was at the school's library. While "gaining" his skills from classes Jack notice something, while they weren't terrible the skills were at a low C grade understanding. Knowing his mom that wasn't going to go down well so he came to the library to increase them and with the school bonus he'll hopefully have them up to a low B instead. But another thing was bothering the young gamer.
"What do I do?" Jack groaned as he looked at his textbooks. He had no idea what he was doing. Sure, he played video games, but they were mostly racing games or first-person shooters. Now here he was with an insane ability that turned his life into a fantasy video game. A genre he had no experience with.
Sounds of suppressed laughter brought Jack out of his thoughts. Looking over to another table he saw three students talking in hush tones. Thankfully library was quiet enough for Jack to eavesdrop on them.
"I can't believe we finally slew the demon king." One of the students Laughed. "Yeah, I still remember when we first tried. We got TPK in seconds" His friend groaned. "Tell me about it. How many fiend spawns did we kill while grinding levels?" The final member asked. "A couple hundred, maybe more. The demon king was what fifty levels higher than us?" The second replied. "Yeah, but after all the grinding and farming for loot we finally brought him down." The first sighed out. The three continue to talk as Jack mulled over what he overheard.
"That sounded like a fantasy game. Maybe that's what I should do. Focus on leveling up and gaining items. I don't really have anything of use.
[Ding]
[New Quest: First steps]
[Like a great tree in a forest must start as a seed you too must grow to become stronger.]
[Objectives]
[Reach LVL 5]
[Increase five stats to 10]
[Gain three skills]
[Level one skill to LVL 3]
[Rewards]
[1000XP]
[3x common loot chest]
[1 passive perk]
[1 common skill booster]
[Quest is mandatory and been auto accepted]
"Well, that is useful if not timely. Why do I get the feeling this is to get me motivated more that I already am?"
[For seeing a (rather obvious) incentive + 1 WIS]
"Smartass."
Later
School was out and Jack was on his bike making his way to the K.O. Burger, honestly with between school and his job he doubts he'll have his quest finished in a month At least he got that school bonus to his INT . "Not unless burger flipping is counted as a skill by the system."
He was riding through town, thankfully the road was mostly empty so he probably can get to work early, which was good since his boss often took pay out of people's paychecks if they were late. Jack simply shook his head and kept pedaling until something caught his eye.
It was a manhole cover. A manhole cover with a title above it.
[Dungeon: Rat's nest]
[Recommended LVLs 1-3]
"A dungeon? Here?" Jack whispered to himself. True he knew they were out there, but he didn't expect to find one in town. He figured he would have to travel for some time. Not stumble across one by accident.
"Well looks like I'm going to explore this on my day off."
Ring. Ring.
Looking at his phone Jack saw it was his mother calling hm.
"Hey Mom."
"Jack! Jack, where are you?! Are you okay?!" came June's panicked voice.
"Mom I'm fine. I'm on Second street. What's wrong?" He was worried, June rarely panics, years of being a nurse have proven that. So, whatever it is Jack was now worried.
"The K.O. Burger is on fire!"
"What!?"
"This is Judy Tuesdale here in front of what was once the K.O. Burger. Approximately one hour ago the fast-food restaurant caught on fire. Emergency services have made it to the scene and have been battling the flames. At this point the start of the fire is unknown but luckily there have been no injuries. This is seven o'clock news reporting."
Jack just watched the news on the T.V. with a blank look. After he got the phone call from his mother, he rode to the K.O. Burger to see it himself. The place was completely engulfed in flames. After that he went home to a very relieved June. The good news he gained another level for cycling and two points each for DEX, STR, and CON.
Now he was in the living room watching the news. June was in the kitchen making dinner, happy her son wasn't at work. It took Jack nearly an hour to calm her down, but he managed. Jack was a little worried though. It was a little too convenient, after finding a dungeon his work catches on fire. Jack was a little scared the system was influencing things.
[Ding]
[The system had nothing to do with the fire. It was just as surprising to it as it was to you.]
"Okay the system is a very least somewhat sentient. Hopefully it can't lie."
Going to his room Jack decide to look for something to help with the Rat's nest. If he was going dungeon crawling, he should go prepared. His room wasn't much. Just an average or smaller than average room with a single size bed and a dresser against the wall. A desk with a laptop was in the corner with posters old and new decorating the wall.
Walking to his closet Jack opened it to find a couple of boxes and shelfs. "All right it should be in here." After rummaging around Jack found what he was looking for. In a box Jack hasn't touched in years was a bowie knife. It was twelve inches in length with the blade counting for seven inches, the blade's edge was serrated about four inches from the handle. It was a gift from his grandfather Alex Burgh, June's father. Jack remembers how his mom reacted to Alex giving Jack this knife on his tenth birthday. June forbade Jack from having it but somehow his grandfather convinced June to let his grandson to have it. On the condition that he never take it to school, public places and if he ever hurts himself with it, she will take it away. Jack only brought it with him when he and his mom would go camping but that was two years ago and even then, he never used it. Looking at it now Jack used observe on it.
[Captain Alex Burgh's Bowie Knife]
[Uncommon quality]
[Weapon durability:407/500]
[DMG Type: Slashing/ Puncturing]
[DMG Stats]
[20 – 10 + DEX slashing]
[20 – 10 + STR puncturing]
[Perks]
[Serrated: Handle with care the edges are sharp! Will cause 2 Bleed DMG over three seconds]
[Lucky Charm: This blade has saved its owners life more times than the owner remembers. 25% chance to land a critical hit]
[Worn: Years of neglect have dulled the blade. 50% less base DMG]
[A bowie knife that once belong to Jack's grandfather Captain Alex Burgh during the Vietnam war. Captain Burgh kept this close to him as a good luck charm to a point it truly became lucky. He gave this to his grandson Jack as a way to both be remembered and allow Jack to protect himself and his mother.]
"Well, I feel like an ass." Jack muttered. His grandfather gave him this and he neglected it. True his mother didn't like him having it but at the very least he could have kept it in better condition.
"Well, no point in wallowing in guilt. I'll have to find a way to repair it later. The question now is "How can I carry this around without getting into trouble?"." Last thing I need is the police to stop me and find this."
[Ding]
[Player Inventory Unlocked]
"Really?" Jack reached out his hand and activated his inventory power. He dragged his finger through the air and a small dark blue square formed. He kept pulling until it was about three feet by three feet. Looking behind its Jack saw it was nothing more than a thin line. Jack looked at the floating square, to the knife in his hand and back to the square before he slowly placed the knife inside. It felt like he was putting his hand in warm water. Letting go of the knife Jack saw an icon of it pop up in the square. He reached in again and pulled it out. The knife was it was the same as before. He repeated the process a couple times before leaving the knife inside. Looking around his room for anything useful Jack picked up his old baseball bat.
[Wooden Baseball Bat]
[Common quality]
[Weapon Durability:157/200]
[DMG type: Blunt]
[DMG Stats]
[25 + STR]
[A wooden baseball bat that is mass produce. Often used by thugs or those who are in a pinch as a weapon.]
"Not as good as grandpa's knife but it will do." Looking at the description Jack decided to check the weapon quality.
[Grade quality]
[Grade quality is the item rarity of item. They come in five grades.]
[Common Quality: The most common and easy to find they are the most useful for the beginning adventures.]
[Uncommon Quality: Slightly more rare than common grade they are still plentiful in the world.]
[Rare Quality: Hard to find items with unique attributes.]
[Epic Quality: Powerful items that are either one of a kind or very few in existence.]
[Legendary Quality: Items of myth and legend. Each brim with untold power.]
"Good to know." Taking one last look around his room Jack found a flashlight and added that to his inventory. He was going in a sewer. Wow, not once in his life did Jack thought he would be going in a sewer willingly but here he was.
"Jack! Dinner's ready!" Well eat now, plunder tomorrow.
The next morning
[You have slept in your bed. HP, MP, and SP restored 100%. All ailments cured.]
"This is going to be a thing now isn't it." If Jack was expecting a reply, he didn't get one. With how the system acts he figured it was a coin flip. Looking at his clock Jack saw it was six in the morning. Guess the system causes him to sleep eight hours since he went to bed at ten. Walking out to the living room he saw a note on the coffee table. Picking it up Jack saw it from his mother. She was called in early to the hospital and will be back around six. Checking his inventory once before more Jack headed out to the dungeon.
Dungeon entrance
Jack looked around the street which was thankfully empty. Which was really off putting. This may not have been a busy part of town, but it had a few stores that have regular business like the tool store or the butcher shop. Yet there was no one around. He had a sneaking suspicion that the system was a work here. Not that he minded really, Jack wasn't too fond of the idea of someone seeing him enter the sewer. Explaining himself would be next to impossible.
Getting his head in the game Jack looked at the title once more.
[Dungeon: Rat's nest]
[Recommended LVLs 1-3]
[Would you like to enter?]
[Y/N]
Pressing yes Jack watched the sewer grate raise and slide open on its own revealing a steel ladder for him to climb down. "Well here goes something." He muttered as he enters the depths.
Once reaching the bottom Jack pulled out his bat and looked around. Jack knew this place was being affected by the system with a mere glance. It was like any stereotypical sewer. Large half cylinder shape structure that was about twenty feet from wall to wall but that was where the normalcy ended. The place looked like it was in disrepair. The walls were missing a couple of brick or sections of wall entirely, the walkway that was only three feet in length was crumpling away into a flowing river despite it not raining in a week. Oh, and the walls had torches attached to it to give the place light. Overall, Jack was sure this was not a modern city's sewer.
Shaking his head Jack just decided check on his stats before moving forward.
[Name: Jack Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: The Gamer]
[LVL: 1 (0/300)]
[HP: 106/106]
[MP: 108/108]
[SP: 106/106]
[Con: 6]
[STR: 5]
[DEX: 6]
[INT: 8]
[WIS: 5]
[LCK: 1]
Not as bad as he was before but still pretty terrible. Moving down the walkway Jack pulled out his flashlight, despite having torches there were places that were still too dark to see and Jack wasn't about to let himself be ambushed by anything that easily.
[For thinking through things + 1 WIS]
He really was getting annoyed by that.
Moving down the walkway Jack shined his light to the water. Even with the extra light he couldn't see anything in the murk. As he passed a small alcove Jack notice a gleam in the dark. Shining his light on it revealed a small wooden chest with a broken lock. "Huh, must be something in here that can help." Opening up Jack found three red vials and a leather vambrace. Lifting up one of the vials Jack used observe on it.
[Weak Healing Potion]
[Common Grade]
[Restores 25 HP]
Nice, that will be useful later. Now for the Vambrace.
[Old Leather Vambrace (Left arm)]
[Common grade]
[Durability 50/50]
[+ 5 Defense]
[An old vambrace lost to time. Really, it's a miracle it never fell apart before now.]
Well, it's better than nothing. Placing the vambrace on his arm a new Window pop up.
[Equipment slots]
[They say clothes make the man and, in this case, they really do but there are limitations.]
[Head Slot: Empty]
[Upper body Slot 1: White long sleeve]
[Upper body Slot 2: Grey t-shirt]
[Lower Body Slot: Blue Jeans]
[Footwear Slot: Sneakers]
[Upper Body Armor slot: Empty]
[Left Arm Armor Slot: Old Leather Vambrace]
[Right Arm Armor Slot: Empty]
[Left leg armor slot: Empty]
[Right leg armor slot: Empty]
[Total Defense: 5]
[Please note that some clothing/ armor pieces will take more than one slot. For example, a large jacket will take up all upper body slots.]
Well, that is a lot. Although given how most of the slots are taken by his regular clothes it probably won't help too much. At least for a while.
Moving on Jack kept hearing scratching noises all around him. All honesty he was getting unnerved. It didn't help when he found what was making the noise.
It was a rat. A rat the size of a large house cat. The body was easily a foot long covered in blackish brown fur with its tail being about the same length of the body. Its size wasn't what worried Jack though. It was the fact it was stripping the last of the meat off what was coyote's skeleton.
[Giant Roof Rat]
[Race:Rat]
[LVL: 1]
[Title: Flesh eater]
[HP: 50/50]
[MP: 10/10]
[SP: 50/50]
[Con: 5]
[STR: 5]
[DEX: 10]
[INT: 1]
[WIS: 10]
[LCK: 2]
[Once this creature was just a regular roof rat (or better-known as the black rat) until it was exposed to ? now this beast has grown beyond its natural size and so have its hunger for flesh.]
[Perks]
[Night vison: Creatures with this perk can see well no matter how dark it its. (Note does not help if vison is obscured by dust, fog, snow, etc.)]
[Keen nose: Creature with this perk can smell others from afar and track them down.]
[Pack mate: This perk gives its owners + 15 HP and + 15 SP for every ally in twenty feet. Will loose bonus if allies are slain or too far away.]
[Ravenous: Creatures with this perk are always hungry and will attack anything that moves to satisfy its hunger.]
That is not good, not good at all. Heck that thing can track him down without trouble and with the Pack Mate and Ravenous perks he really needs to be careful with more than one of these things. Unfortunately for Jack the rat saw him and let out a growl before charging at him.
Quickly with his bat Jack swung and knocked it back. The rat landed on its feet before running away.
"Damnit. I'm not chasing that thing, for all I know its friends are around the corner." Keeping an eye out Jack inspected the skeleton. Wild animal or not, no one deserved this. Right when he was going to leave the sound of skittering caught his ears. The rat was back, and it brought friends. Six of them.
[Giant Roof Rat X6]
[140/140]
[Giant Roof Rat]
[110/140]
"Crap on a cracker." Jack mutter as they charge at him. He swung and manage to knock back the first two but one of them was able to bite his leg. "Ah!"
[You lost 15 HP]
Kicking the rat off, Jack slammed his bat down on the biter's head. Bringing his bat up to block one he swings and hits the first rat he encountered. Moving back to get some distance, he dodged one before knocking it into the water.
Jack was about continue before he started to hear panic squeaks and screeches from the rat he knocked into the water. Turning to it Jack watch as what appeared to be leeches swarm and devour all the blood in the rat. Jack shivered at the thought of being in the water himself.
Looking back at the rats Jack saw with the loss of their friend the ones unharmed were now down to hundred twenty-five and the first one being now sixty-five. Overall good for him but now he has to be extra careful because he really needs to avoid the water.
Two of the rats charged at him Jack smacked one away before kicking the other into the water. "Better them than me." Besides just because he wants to avoid the leech filled water doesn't mean he can't use it. Bring his bat up he slams it on to the back of a rat's head stunning it long enough for Jack sent it to join its friends in the water.
Unfortunately, one manages to sneak up behind him and jump onto his back, allowing it to bite his shoulder.
[You lost 20 HP]
Screaming in pain Jack slammed the rat to the wall causing it to loosen its grip and let go. Seeing the first rat about to jump at him Jack swings and strikes it mid-air. The rat proved it was lucky because it landed just on the edge of the walkway. The fact it had only five HP left annoyed Jack more than its luck did though. Acting quickly Jack hit the first rat for the final time causing it squeak out a death wail before it fell over. Looking at the last three Jack checked their HP.
[Giant Roof Rat X2]
[HP 50/80]
[Giant Roof Rat]
[HP 20/80]
The one with the lowest HP was the one who bit his shoulder, guess that wall slammed did some decent damage. Rushing the weakest rat, he slammed it into the wall, causing it to be taken out. The last two charge him aiming avenge their brothers, or more likely eat them since their INT stats is a measly one.
Jack smashes on to the side before blocking the other with the bat. Kicking it away he manages to knock it to the water. Turning to the last rat he struck it down. Breathing hard Jack look down at the rat and to his shock was a five-dollar bill in front of it. Picking it up he took a good look at it. It felt real and pulling one out his wallet he saw there was no difference. The only question was how the hell did a rat have money. The answers to that was not one Jack wanted to dwell on.
[Ding]
[You slain Giant Roof Rats X7]
[175 XP Earned]
[Through repeated actions you gained]
[Blunt Mastery Level 1 75/100]
[Since the earliest caveman picked up a branch, humans have been fighting each other with blunt force trauma for over millennia. From clubs to polearms to axes to even the baseball bat you wield, your skill with these is greater than before. ]
[Passively increase all blunt weapon damage by 5%]
[Passively increase chances to break bones by 1%]
[Passively increase critical hit chances by 1%]
[Achievement unlocked: Environmental Elimination 1]
[You defeated three enemies using the environment around you.]
[+75XP]
[+2 INT]
[+2 WIS]
[+1 LCK]
[Through specific actions you unlock]
[Stun bash LVL 1 10/ 150]
[Cost 15 SP]
[Stun an opponent with a powerful strike. No effect on opponents ten levels higher than you.]
[10% chance to stun opponent for three seconds.]
[1% chance to make opponent unconscious.]
[Would you like to auto-loot?]
[Y/N]
After pressing yes Jack noted he gain thirty-five dollars. Still not sure to feel about that but if it's real it's real.
A quick look at his stats Jack wince when he saw his health down to seventy-one. Not that bad but it was still a quarter of his health gone. He was going have to be more careful not to get surrounded but those rats again. If it wasn't for whatever it is in the water, he would have been toast. The bright side he's nearly leveled up.
Moving on Jack kept his eyes peeled for anything, honestly, he didn't think rats of all things would be bad but after that fight he's not risking anything. A couple turns and he found himself at an intersection. One way went to the right, it was the same as the rest of the dungeon, but the left corridor was different. A wooden rope bridge led to a very dark section with barely any light at all. Normally Jack would have nope out of there and continue down the lit areas but there could have been something useful that way. Besides he didn't want to risk a bunch of rats being behind him. One ambush is too many.
[For a reasonable planning +1 WIS]
Ignoring that Jack carefully stepped on the wood plank before testing it. Seeing that it could hold him, he made his way to the other side. Thankfully his flashlight wasn't damaged with in the fight or worst fell in the water. Looking around Jack notice the once brick walls slow turned to rocky cavern. So far it was quiet, which unnerved him. He expected that there be more, but he'll take it.
He would soon regret that thought. Why? Well, he finally came across a chamber. It was large, about fifteen feet wide and fifty in length. Torches once again lit the room revealing the floor to be pattern from large slabs to solid stone. At the far end was a chest with a torch on each side of it. But what got Jack's attention was the three rats in front of him. Unlike the Roof Rats before these rats where the size of germen shepherds.
[Giant Norway Rat X3]
[Race: Rat]
[LVL: 2]
[Title: Flesh eater]
[HP: (75/75)120120]
[MP: 10/10]
[SP: (75/75)120/120]
[Con: 9]
[STR: 8]
[DEX: 15]
[INT: 3]
[WIS: 12]
[LCK: 3]
[Like its roof rat cousin this Norway rat (better known as the brown rat) was expose to ? making it grow to monstrous proportions with a hunger to match it.]
[Perks]
[Night vison: Creatures with this perk can see well no matter how dark it its. (Note does not help if vison is obscured by dust, fog, snow, etc.)]
[Keen nose: Creature with this perk can smell others from afar and track them down.]
[Pack mate: This perk gives its owners + 15 HP and + 15 SP for every ally in twenty feet. Will lose bonus if allies are slain or too far away.]
[Ravenous: Creatures with this perk are always hungry and will attack anything that moves to satisfy its hunger.]
The fact there was three of them didn't sit well with Jack. True there was less than the roof rat ambush, but these guys were bigger and stronger that the roof rats that came before them.
Screeching the three charged at him. He dodges to the side avoiding one and ducking to avoid the other. Raising up he called out Stun Bash as he struck the third one. It worked the giant rat was stunned. Turning his attention back to the other two he swings and manages to hit one. Seeing the other about to pounce he swings and calls out stun bash again.
[Stun bash failed!]
"Really?!" Luckily for him he knocked one onto the giant slabs. It took one step before the ground beneath it shattered causing it fall in a pit. And judging by the squelching sound it wasn't a problem anymore. A quick check on their HP proved it too.
[Giant Norway Rat]
[70/105]
Glaring at him the last two started to circle Jack, slowly pushing him to the edge of where the other rat fell. Taking a quick peek down Jack wish he didn't, it was a classic pit fall with spikes at the bottom. Gulping he turned back to the two rats. Rushing one Jack hit one but it cost him as the other bit his leg.
[25 HP lost!]
Growling Jack used Stun bash again and thankfully it worked allowing him to beat it down, ending one of the rats. Looking at the last one he saw its health was only twenty HP left. Smirking Jack dodge it's attack and finished the fight with one last strike.
[Ding]
[You slain X3 Giant Norway Rats]
[+105 XP]
[You leveled up]
[+5 AP]
[For constant fighting and dodging]
[+2 STR]
[+2 DEX]
[Loot gain]
[+ $30]
[Blunt Mastery Level 2 51/121]
[Passively increase all blunt weapon damage by 7%]
[Passively increase chances to break bones by 2%]
[Passively increase critical hit chances by 2%]
[Observe]
[LVL: 4 (15/110)]
[Allows you to see names, titles, and stats of people and animals up to twenty levels higher than you.]
Nice he finally leveled up. Taking a moment Jack took a look at his stats.
[Name: Jack Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: The Gamer]
[LVL: 2 (55/375)]
[HP: 112/112]
[MP: 120/120]
[SP: 112/112]
[CON: 6]
[STR: 7]
[DEX: 8]
[INT: 10]
[WIS: 9]
[LCK: 2]
[AP 5]
"So, level restores HP as well the others. That's good to know. Now where to spend these points?" Overall, Jack wanted to boost his luck stat since that's the only one he doesn't know how to level up but given he has been knocked down to below half health in just two fights an investment in his constitution would be better. He put four points in constitution and the one point into strength. Now his stats read.
[Name: Jack Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: The Gamer]
[LVL: 2 (55/375)]
[HP: 120/120]
[MP: 120/120]
[SP: 120/120]
[CON: 10]
[STR: 8]
[DEX: 8]
[INT: 10]
[WIS: 9]
[LCK: 2]
[AP 0]
Good, the more health the better. Now there was the matter of the chest at the end of the cavern. He took a good look at it; the tiles were too long to simply jump over and the only thing on the walls was a small alcove with lit candles in it. Jack was sure there was only one tile that was safe to step on. But he had no way of knowing which.
"How am I going to get over there? If I chose the wrong one, I'm toast. And the only thing around are candles. Wait, why are there candles."
Looking at the alcove again there were two candles lit and three unlit. The next alcove is four lit and one unlit. It looks like there are more candles in the last alcove, but they were too far way to make out.
"Maybe it's a clue?" Looking around Jack notice a large rock, smirking he picked it up and with some effort he tossed it on one of the tiles. Jack smiled when it didn't collapse. The number of the lit candles were the placement of the safe tile. Smiling he made his way to the other side.
[Achievement Unlocked: Problem Solver]
[You solved your first puzzle]
[+50XP]
[+2 WIS]
Nice, going towards the chest Jack opened it to find a book, about a half dozen potions and a necklace. The necklace was a simple leather string with a square shape stone pendent. Carved into the stone was a symbol of a rabbit.
[Necklace of the snow hare]
[Uncommon grade]
[+ 3 DEX]
[-20% to all frost magic cost.]
[A prized trinket for the budding cryomancer.]
[Weak Mana Potion X3]
[Common Grade]
[Restores 25 MP]
[Weak Stamina Potion X3]
[Common Grade]
[Restores 25 SP]
[Spell Tome: Frost Darts]
[Cost 10 MP]
[Number of darts 3]
[Damage per dart 5]
[Would you like to learn this spell?]
[Y/N]
Quickly tapping yes Jack watch in amazement as the book burst into dozens of small lights before they entered his chest. Looking down Jack raised an eyebrow; he didn't feel any different. Raising a hand, he decided to test it out.
"Frost Darts."
From his hand a light blue circle appeared, and three small icicles formed, each being no bigger than a pencil, before they all shot out and struck the wall. Jack smiled. He can do magic, actual magic. When he was younger, he always pretended to be a wizard, tossing fireballs and shooting lightning from his fingertips but this. This was real.
Making his way back Jack equipped the necklace he got, it may have only shaved two points of mana off the cost of his only spell, but every little bit helps. When he made his way back to the rope bridge, he had a problem, there were rats. Ten rats, Four Giant Rats and six Giant Roof Rats. They were crossing the bridge towards him.
[Giant Roof Rat X6]
[185/185]
[Giant Norway Rat X4]
[210/210]
"Ah sweet honey iced tea." Thinking quickly Jack pulled out his grandfather's knife and cut the knots on the left side of the bridge. Immediately the rats on the bridge fell into the water which led to a symphony of screeches. This left two Giant Norway Rats and one Giant Roof rat on the other side. Downside this meant he couldn't cross the water now. Looking across Jack decided to try to take down the rats that are left.
"Frost Darts!" The ice shards the flew through the air and manage to hit one of the Norway rats. Jack kept up the frozen assault, even though some of them missed they were doing their job damaging the last remaining rats.
[Giant Norway Rat]
[90/120]
[Giant Norway Rat]
[110/120]
[Giant Roof Rat]
[20/95]
That amount of damage cause the remaining three the flee. Jack just knew he will need to deal with them later.
[Ding]
[You slain X5 Giant Roof Rats and X2 Giant Norway Rats]
[+195XP]
[+ $75]
[For your quick thinking]
[+2 INT]
[Frost Darts Level up]
[Frost Darts LVL 2 (21/110)]
[Cost 10 MP]
[Number of darts 4]
[Damage per dart 6]
This was good, he stills needs a new way to get to the other side but now he can do more damage than before. Looking around Jack tried to think of a way, the rope bridge was gone but that was a necessary. Sighing he turned around and drank a mana potion before he decided that to go back and try to find a new way around. After a while he found a bridge a little bit further after the puzzle cave. Crossing it he made it back to the walkway across the destroyed bridge. Unfortunately, the three rats from before were back and they brought three Giant Roof Rats. Groaning Jack shot out more Frost Darts hitting one in the one of them before he knocks one of them into the water. Using a stun bash, he struck one the Giant Norway Rats and fire a point blank Frost Darts before one struck him from behind.
[-15HP]
Growling he swung and sent the rat into the watery depths. Staring down the remaining four rats Jack charged one of the Giant Norway rats and struck it down with a Stun bash and a blast of Frost Darts. One Jumped on his back but before it could bite him Jack slams into the sewer wall making the rat loose both its grip and some HP. Deciding to end this quickly Jack kick the one, he stunned into the water before using the last of his mana to cast Frost darts at one of the Giant Roof Rats taking it out in the process. This left him with the injured Giant Norway rat and one of the Roof Rats. Growling at him the two rats charged together in an attempt to blitz him. Thinking quickly Jack jumped to the side avoiding the two before shooting Frost Darts again….
At least he tried to but all he got was a small amount of frost before he checked his stats.
[MP: 0/124]
"Crap." Both rats jumped at him, one biting down on his arm the other biting his leg.
[-15HP]
[-20HP]
"Ah!" Growling Jack pulled out his grandfather's knife and slammed it into the rat on his arm eye. It was enough to make it stop biting him. Quickly switching back to his bat Jack use a Stun Bash to free his leg from the rodent. He then procced to beat down the beast down taking it out. Groaning Jack turn to last rat. Only to see without the Pack Mate bonuses the Roof Rat Hp dropped to zero.
[Ding]
[You slain 4X Giant Roof Rats and 2X Giant Norway Rats.]
[+170 XP]
[+ $70]
[You leveled up!]
[+ 5 AP]
[Blunt Mastery leveled up!]
[Blunt Mastery Level 3 15/133]
[Passively increase all blunt weapon damage by 9%]
[Passively increase chances to break bones by 3%]
[Passively increase critical hit chances by 2%]
[Stun Bash leveled up!]
[Stun bash LVL 2 5/165]
[Cost 15 SP]
[Stun an opponent with a powerful strike. No effect on opponents ten levels higher than you.]
[15% chance to stun opponent for three seconds.]
[2% chance to make opponent unconscious.]
Bringing up his stats Jack could only smile.
[Name: Jack Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: The Gamer]
[LVL: 3 (95/468)]
[HP: 130/130]
[MP: 136/136]
[SP: 130/130]
[CON: 10]
[STR: 8]
[DEX: 8 (+3)]
[INT: 12]
[WIS: 11]
[LCK: 2]
[5 AP]
True it was still considered bad but compare to what they were a couple of hours ago it was huge. Looking at his stats he decided to invest two points in both his strength and dexterity bring both to an even ten and the last point into luck since it was his lowest attribute. Looking around to make sure there weren't any more rats, Jack notice that part of the wall was crumbling away due to slamming it earlier. What really got his attention was what looked like a small room was on the other side. Picking away at the wall he did indeed find a small room no bigger than a kitchen cabinet containing a chest. Inside he found three more health potions and leather vambrace for his right arm.
Moving forward Jack kept an eye out for more rats. In all honestly, he has been lucky so far, but he needed to be careful he has been knocked down to less than half health twice now and if it wasn't for him leveling up, he would have burn through his healing potions by now. He kept moving for a few more minutes before he came to a door.
Opening it Jack found himself in a massive octangular room with the vile sewer water pouring from each corner forming a moat around a raise octangular platform. A bridge leading to a door was on the other side, probably to the exit, and in the center was a single Roof Rat. Raising an eyebrow Jack took a step forward, if this was the boss then he had nothing to worry about. It was just then a large shadow blurred to the center and…
SLASH!
The Roof Rat didn't have a chance to even squeak as it was bisected. There standing over its remains was a monster. It looked to be a rat, but it was the size of a wolf. Parts of its body seemed to have rotted off exposing bone. Its spine was exposed from its neck down to its bone tail that ended in a large jagged bone scythe. But it was the head that almost made Jack barf. It was the head of a rat but most of its face was nothing but bone, the only flesh on it was surrounding the eyes and muscle holding on to its jaw. Deep glowing purple ooze leaked out of its maw and sizzled as it hit the floor.
[Boss Encounter!]
[Plague Spreader]
[Race: Monster Rat]
[LVL: 5]
[Title: Diseased One]
[HP: 350/350]
[MP: 110/110]
[SP: 350/350]
[Con: 15]
[STR: 10]
[DEX: 15]
[INT: 5]
[WIS: 12]
[LCK: 7]
[What once was a lab rat used to study diseases only for it to escape during a test. Near death Plague Spreader was exposed to ? causing it to mutate into its monstrous form. It now only craves to kill all living beings.]
[Perks]
[Dungeon Boss LVL 1: + 100 to HP, SP, MP.]
[Virulent Touch: +25 disease damage to all melee attacks]
[Night vison: Creatures with this perk can see well no matter how dark it its. (Note does not help if vison is obscured by dust, fog, snow, etc.)]
[Keen nose: Creature with this perk can smell others from afar and track them down.]
[Ravenous: Creatures with this perk are always hungry and will attack anything that moves to satisfy its hunger.]
'Oh crap. Oh crappity crap crap. Ok think this thing is faster than me, just as strong as me, and is dangerous up close. So maybe I can pelt it with Frost Darts and keep my distance.' Jack thought to himself. Shooting out the Frost Darts at the monstrous rat only for it to dodge all of them before charging at Jack. Panicking Jack brought both hands up and fire three more times before jumping out of the way.
The good news, he made every shot. The bad news, the damn rat managed to graze him with his claws.
[-20HP]
[-25HP]
[Plague Spreader]
[HP: 278/350]
[Name: Jack Darby]
[HP: 85/130]
"This isn't good. Just one hit brought me down to a third of my health." Quickly taking one of his Weak Healing Potions Jack readied himself. Plague Spreader got up and growled at him before once again charging. Jack deciding to move out of the way sooner was able to dodge it completely this time. Quickly he sent out three more bursts of Frost Darts. Plague Spreader screamed out in pain as it was made into a pin cushion. It whipped out its tail in retaliation cutting Jack across the chest knocking him to the ground.
[-40HP]
[-25HP]
[You gain [Bleeding] status effect for 1minute or until healed 50 points of HP.]
Groaning in pain Jack looked up to see Plague spreader already on him about to bite down. Thinking quickly Jack brought his bat up causing the rat to bite it and not him. They struggled for a moment before Jack kick the monster away. Getting up Jack quickly took two of his healing potions. Between that slash and the Bleeding status he wasn't going to last long if he hadn't. Bring his bat up he brought it down on the rat using Stun Bash as a bonus boost. Even if it didn't increase his damage the stun effect would be a great help. Unfortunately for Jack, Plague Spreader moved out of the way causing him to miss completely.
Moving back a bit Jack look at the boss. So far, he brought the damn thing down to about a third of its health, but it managed to bring him down to less than half. He already used up half of his healing potions. He really doesn't want to fight this thing without any way to heal himself. Firing another round of Frost Darts to keep the beast at a distance only for Plague Spreader to dodge again and charge at him. Panicking Jack jumped back hoping to avoid the rat, but the vile rodent managed to knock him down with its claws.
[-20HP]
[-25HP]
The monstrous rat was now on top of Jack pinning down one of his arms. It seemed to smile as it went to bite Jack's neck, ending him in a gory fashion. But right when it tried Jack swung his bat shouting Stun Bash knocking it away from him.
[Stun Bash successful!]
Crack!
Looking at his now broken bat, Jack discarded it for now before sending another barrage of Frost Darts at the boss.
[Plague Spreader]
[HP: 168/350]
[-24HP]
[-24HP]
[-24HP]
[-24HP]
[-24HP]
[-24HP]
[Plague Spreader]
[HP: 24/350]
Just as Jack was about to finish it off, Plague Spreader was no longer stunned and began to charge at him, acting quickly Jack fired another round of Frost Darts. Most of the darts landed
but one of missed! Allowing the beast to tackle Jack to the ground!
[-18HP]
[Plague Spreader]
[HP: 6/350]
[-20HP]
[-25HP]
[Name: Jack Darby]
[HP: 5/130]
Once again Jack was pinned, something he really started to hope this will be a thing in the future. Glaring down at him, Plague Spreader growled, about to finish the pesky human off only for Jack to act first and slammed his grandfather's knife into it. The monstrous rat spazzed for a second before falling over dead.
Jack let out a shaky breath. Five HP. Five. He almost died. He almost died to a rat. He laughed. He was laughing and he didn't even know why he was laughing. He just laid there laughing ignoring the notifications he got. Once he finally calms down, he looked over the notifications.
[You slain Plague Spreader]
[+300 XP]
[+$100]
[You gained a ? crystal.]
[For defeating Plague Spreader, you can pick a one-time only reward.]
[Mantle of the Plagues: A mantle made out of Plague Spreader's fur.]
[+2 CON]
[+25 Defense]
[Sickly Aura enchantment: Those with this enchantment will make others less likely to go near you believing you are diseased ridden. No effect with those with the Ravenous perk.]
[Virial Whip: A whip made from Plague Spreader's tail.]
[15 + DEX Slashing Damage]
[+ 15 Disease Damage (Only effective on living flesh)]
[Ring of the Rat: A metal band in the shape of a rat biting its tail.]
[+2 DEX]
[Gives the bearer the Night Vision perk.]
Jack was not going to lie. The first two were just nasty. He'll admit they would be useful but honestly, he wasn't going to touch anything that was made from Plague Spreader anytime soon. So, he picked the ring. Once he did a small light appeared and out drop the ring into the palm of his hand.
[Achievement unlocked: Boss Buster 1]
[You defeated your first boss!]
[+200 XP]
[+3 AP]
[Frost Darts Level up]
[Frost Darts LVL 3 (21/121)]
[Cost 10 MP]
[Number of darts 5]
[Damage per dart 6]
[Blunt Mastery leveled up!]
[Blunt Mastery Level 4 10/146]
[Passively increase all blunt weapon damage by 10%]
[Passively increase chances to break bones by 3%]
[Passively increase critical hit chances by 2%]
[For stunning your opponent at the right time.]
[+2 LCK]
[For trying (and admittedly failing) to think of a plan]
[+1 INT]
[Due to repeated actions, you gained.]
[Skill: Dodge (Passive): Why take the hit when you can avoid it all together. Dodge chance is (5 + DEX) %. (Capped at 85%)]
[You leveled up!]
[+ 5 AP]
[Name: Jack Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: The Gamer]
[LVL: 4 (127/585)]
[HP: 140/140]
[MP: 152/152]
[SP: 140/140]
[CON: 10]
[STR: 10]
[DEX: 10 (+3)]
[INT: 13]
[WIS: 11]
[LCK: 5]
[AP: 8]
"Wow, just wow. I did not think I would improve so much." Looking over his stats he saw they were much better than before. He decided to put two points in CON, STR, and DEX while splitting the last two between INT and WIS. Luck was still low but these are more important for now.
Taking a look at the crystal he got, Jack was amazed by it. It was a hexagonal prism that was about seven inches long and gave off a eerie purple glow.
[?]
[The crystalized blood of ?, often thought to be a myth among ?. Warning! Prolong exposure can lead to mutations, increase hostility, and insanity. Can animate inanimate objects, and the dead.]
Quickly Jack threw the crystal into his inventory. The amaze feeling was gone, now replaced with fear. "What the hell is that thing and how did these rats get ahold of it!"
[Ding!]
[Curious Crystals]
[You have found a strange crystal with mysterious powers and must discover what it is.]
[Objectives]
[Discover what the crystal is.]
[Find someone who can contain and or destroy it.]
[Rewards]
[500XP]
[One skill book]
[One rare weapon]
[$1000]
[Failure]
[Death]
[The world will be thrown into chaos.]
[This quest is mandatory and have been auto accepted.]
"Why the hell would it auto accept a quest that can lead to my death and the world in chaos!" Jack yell. "Alright, be cool Jack. Breathe so all I have to do is find someone to destroy this crystal and things will be alright. No big." It was big and he had no clue how he was going to complete this.
Deciding to put that on the back burner he made his way to the other side of the chamber to what looked to be a door out. Opening it Jack found a room with a ladder going up and a chest. Walking to the chest he found a few things that he was glad to see.
[Weak Healing Potions X5]
[Weak Mana Potions X2]
[Spell tome: Healing Vail.]
Stashing the potions into his inventory, Jack immediately learned the new spell.
[Healing Vail LVL 1 (0/100)]
[Cost 40 MP]
[Heals the caster 1HP each second for twenty seconds.]
Okay so it wasn't all that great but after burning so many healing potions in the last half hour he'll take what he could get. Climbing up the ladder Jack found himself in an alley way about a block away from the dungeon's entrance. A quick check on his phone he found that he was only in there for fifteen minutes. Meaning the time dilatation really does work. He put his newly acquired gear in his Inventory and made his way home. He doesn't know what he's going to do next, but one thing is for sure. His life is going to get wild.
[Name: Jack Darby]
[Race: Human]
[Title: The Gamer]
[LVL: 4 (127/585)]
[HP: 148/148]
[MP: 156/156]
[SP: 148/148]
[CON: 12]
[STR: 12]
[DEX: 12(+3)]
[INT: 14]
[WIS: 12]
[LCK: 5]
[AP: 0]
[$310]
There we are chapter two is done! Please don't forget to vote the score right now is 3 for lightning, 1 for wind and 0 for Earth and fire.
Review if you like and have a wonderful day.