I mentally retraced my footsteps and cringed upon reaching the blabber of words. That, coupled with the realization the ball of fire couldn’t even hear me was enough to make me want to scuttle back into my shell.
My shame and lack of social skills aside, there was a far more serious matter that needed attending to. I pulled up my stat screen to confirm my suspicions.
Stats:
Magic Point (MP) : 20/20
Health Point (HP) : 20/20
Strength Point (SP) : 15/15
Endurance Point (EP) : 20/20
Agility Point (AP) : 10/10
Not only were all my stats maxed out again, the maximum thresholds for all of them had been raised. And by a significant amount too. My health and endurance doubled, while both agility and strength had received a sizable boost. My magic stats grew about the same as my strength and agility, but it had already been abnormally high before this new boost.
Speaking of, where did this new boost come from? I wasn’t complaining by any means, but it did feel like it came out of the blue. I was still having trouble wrapping my head around the notion that I wasn’t going to croak any second now.
Honestly, this is what? The second time I’ve escaped death through unknown means that pop out of nowhere? What made this mystery all the more intriguing was that my stats had been the same when I last checked them after the tunnel collapsed. So sometime between then and now, I got a major improvement. The only noticeable thing that happened was getting cured by the Will-O’-Wisp, but would that really raise my threshold as well?
I should probably be focusing on the Will-O’-Wisp instead of the semantics of how I survived, but it was like an itch that wouldn’t go away. Show me my information.
Ding!
Species: Gelatinous Cube (Level 3)
Subspecies: Insectroid Slime
Stats:
Magic Point (MP) : 20/20
Health Point (HP) : 20/20
Strength Point (SP) : 15/15
Endurance Point (EP) : 20/20
Agility Point (AP) : 10/10
Species Skills:
* [Subsumption] Level 1
* [Infirm Regeneration] Level 2
Skills:
* [Body Manipulation] Level 3
* [Weapon Generation] Level 2
* [5 Skill Points]
* [Available Skill Slots:6]
Huh. Level 3? That explains why my threshold went up, but why did I level up? My mind flashed back to the pit. Whirling around while mercilessly cutting helpless slimes down, using the beams of fire to mow down more slimes, stabbing slimes with my appendages, plowing through rows of slimes…maybe that had something to do with it. Just maybe.
That aside, I focused on my skills. I’d somehow gained a new skill without my noticing, and I definitely hadn’t purchased it, that was for sure. [Weapon Generation] sounded like what I was primarily using [Body Manipulation] for. Seeing how [Weapon Generation] appears underneath [Body Manipulation], it didn’t seem completely preposterous that there was an alternative method of gaining skills.
Is it possible to get skills through your actions? If so, this was a gateway to an entirely new world of possibilities. For one, it made it much easier to receive skills. Sure, I would have to figure out what actions were enough to land me a skill, but it was better than painstakingly building up enough points, selecting a single skill, then having to renew the process all over again.
Though, what difference did having [Weapon Generation] make, compared to what I’ve normally been doing? Would it allow me to shift my body into weapons faster? With more ease? More varieties? I itched to discover the limitations of the new skill and only the fact now was neither the time nor the place was enough to placate me.
I guess that also answers my questions to what happens when I fill out all my skill slots. Although, one skill slot per level seems kind of like a ripoff to me. Depending on how fast I gain skills, I can max out the slots fairly quickly. Which means I need to prioritize the most useful skills above everything else.
Ding!
Endurance Points at 15!
What the fuck?
I snapped back to reality and glanced up. The Will-O’-Wisp was emanating a bright glow and vibrating intensely; a low hum filled the silent garden. Now that I peered at it more intensely, I could appreciate its beauty. Unlike the slimes, the apex monster, or the larva, the Wisp had an ethereal beauty to it that the other monsters just didn’t possess. If someone told me it was ripped straight from a fairy tale, I wouldn’t have doubted them for a second.
At first, I believed it was merely the appearance of the flickering blue flames that produced this imagery, but it was more than that. The Wisp was actually projecting an aura that radiated warmth and the comfort of home. It sunk into my mind and placated my worries, calming my ‘heart.’ For a brief moment, I desired nothing more than to watch the Wisp for all of eternity and wither away in peace.
Then I forced myself to snap out of the trance. Shaking my body furiously to wipe away the final remnants of the mental fog, I glared at the source. Hell no, I’m not letting you control my mind!
The Wisp didn’t react to my fury. It could have been because my slime form didn’t allow me to express my anger to any noticeable degree. Or perhaps it was because the Will-O’-Wisp seemed fairly preoccupied dousing me with sparks.
The attack—if it could even be called that—wasn’t grandiose, and paled in comparison to the battle of the pit. The Wisp’s efforts boiled down to throwing a handful of glinting blue sparks at me, which glimmered against the vibrant green of my body before sinking underneath the surface.
Pinpricks of pain registered on my senses, and I grimaced, fighting the urge to flee. The Wisp only attacked me in batches of sparks before waiting for the next barrage, presumably recharging. The sparks dealt little damage, merely reducing my Endurance Points by 1 every couple of batches, but it didn’t seem like the Wisp was running out of the pesky things soon. Besides, I was getting pissed off.
Activating [Body Manipulation], I shaped my slime into a scythe and bared it close to the Wisp as a warning. I didn’t want to take another sentient being’s life (exempt the bandits. I would love to torture them to death), especially after they rejuvenated me. If the Wisp was concerned about the weapon that was only a couple of inches from its body, it didn’t show it. The Wisp continued relentlessly showering me with the sparks.
When my Endurance Points dropped another digit, I lashed out with the scythe, cutting through the Wisp. I didn’t have the slightest notion of its biology, and whether the scythe would be enough to dissipate it. At the very least, my scythe was large enough to completely cut through the diminutive creature.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
My concerns about killing another being proved to be for naught when the scythe passed harmlessly through the Wisp. The momentum carried my swing into the ground, digging up a chunk of dirt and aggravating me even further. Glowering at the Wisp, I dared it to resume its attack.
The Wisp promptly smacked me with a smattering of sparks. Tendrils of smoke began to trail from tiny holes that were rapidly dotting across my surfaces. I hadn’t lost a significant amount of body mass but it was clear that over time, the Wisp would most likely erode my body to nothing.
My Health Points took a hit, dipping from 20 to 19. I swung at the Wisp again, this time with full intent to kill. Just like before, my self-made blade phased through the Wisp, not even shaking the blue flames. At this point, it was clear I couldn’t win.
Screw this, time to leave. I turned around and made to go. I’d barely scooted a couple of meters forward before my vision was obscured by a great mass of flickering teal. What the hell?
I recoiled and after gaining some distance, the sea of teal retracted back into a minuscule orb of fire. I gaped at the speed the Wisp had demonstrated. I hadn’t even seen it move; one second, it’d been hovering in the same position as when I left it and the next, it appeared before me.
Teleportation? Or just ludicrously fast? I eyed the Wisp with more caution than I thought it warranted before. The Wisp approached me and instinctively, I backed away. How to defeat someone who I can’t touch and who I can’t flee from?
In a fraction of a second, I employed the full capabilities of my slime vision. Detaching from my body, I swiveled in a full 360 degrees circle, scouring the entire garden. The images began to overlap themselves, resulting in a dichotomy of colors and shapes. It was disorienting, enough to send me reeling and I was sure my mind would pound me for abusing it later. Even now, my brain felt like it was stretching beyond what it should be.
After confirming there was only the single exit I’d entered from, I closed my eyes, hoping to reorient my brain and vision. All the while, the Wisp took advantage of my vulnerable state and pelted me with sparks. I withstood the series of attacks, barely, by comforting myself with the thought of what I’d do to the Wisp once I figured out how to bypass its defenses. Then who’d be laughing?!
Stats:
Magic Point (MP) : 20/20
Health Point (HP) : 18/20
Strength Point (SP) : 15/15
Endurance Point (EP) : 11/20
Agility Point (AP) : 10/10
I’d have liked to recuperate further but my hopes were dashed when I read my stats. The Wisp was dealing too much damage for me to sit by idle any longer. It was probably too soon but the instant the pulsating headache subsided a little, I acted.
Drawing upon [Weapon Generation] for the first time, I strived to create stakes. Almost before I could react, huge spikes jutted from my body in all directions and a harrowing panic overtook me when I realized my entire body had been transformed into spikes. For a split second, I was stuck between my consciousness as a Gelatinous Cube and being turned into a mindless object. My very essence was being transferred into the weapons I so casually used, and my mind felt like it was being ripped in two. My grasp on who I was quickly faded as my existence was overwritten into that of spikes. I was about to die at the hands of my Skill.
Then the moment passed and I was myself again, just in a different form and a healthy dose of terror lingering in the background. I wanted nothing more than to lay down and contemplate what the hell just happened, but I had to bottle it up and shove it down.
The spikes passed through the Wisp as expected but it did obscure its vision. But more importantly, a secondary stake slid out from behind me and struck the top of the exit, causing a chain reaction as cracks began to form.
Disengaging [Weapon Generation] as soon as my task was completed, I whirled around and made a beeline for the exit. I raced against time, throwing myself with reckless abandon towards the hole. Chunks of rocks splintered off and crashed to the ground, slowly covering the hole. It was exactly what I’d wanted, but the image of what seemed like a mini avalanche drove chills down my ‘spine.’ A primal fear of getting crushed arose and instinctively, I slowed down as I approached the crumbling exit.
Realizing my error, I pushed past the apprehension and increased my speed again, but it was too late. The last of the boulders fell and I lunged, aiming to clear the final gap that was left. It was a minuscule crevasse located in the middle, somehow miraculously unfilled despite the numerous rocks around it. If I succeeded in fitting through the hole, it would no doubt go down in history as the greatest indicator of my athleticism. I even activated [Body Manipulation] to shape my body into a protracted rod to increase my chances of getting through.
I miscalculated how light I was and overshot the hole, slamming into the boulders above. The shock of the impact snapped me back onto my cube form and I slumped to the ground in defeat even as the final boulder covered up the hole. Just as how much I’d messed up began to sink in, my back underwent a familiar tingling sensation.
I saw red.
Lashing out, I shifted between scythes, swords, and axes in a matter of seconds. Each new attempt at forging weapons was met with the same result: it passed through the Wisp like it wasn’t even there. The Will-O’-Wisp appeared undeterred by my strikes, continually dousing me with sparks.
Dodging to the left, I tried a different route, slashing vertically before following up with a slice through the creature’s equator. Completely switching my tactics, I generated blunt force objects, like hammers and cudgels and repeatedly slammed down on the Wisp. Every time, my weapons hit the ground instead and before long, the pair of us were located at the epicenter of a crater.
Ding!
Endurance Points at 10!
Shit, I’ll try dodging! Scrambling behind a bush for cover, I took the moment of respite to organize my thoughts. How do I kill something that I can’t touch!? My plan to escape and isolate it in the garden failed. I surveyed my surroundings frantically for anything that could aid me. Eventually, my gaze landed on the ripples on the surface of the water. That…could work.
A flash of teal alerted me that the Wisp had found me. Darting from behind the bush, I skirted near the edge of the lake. I prepared to dive in when at the last second, I lost control over my body and stopped in midair. I tumbled to the ground, rolling across the grass plains before coming to a halt inches away from the water.
All it’ll take is a tiny push and I would be submerged underwater, hopefully protected from the Will-O’-Wisp’s fiery nature. Yet even though my human mind was ordering me to jump in, my slime body refused to budge. It was like hands had erupted from the earth and was holding me hostage, keeping me firmly attached to the land. A peculiar sensation came upon me, somewhat resembling what it felt like when the hair on the back of my neck stood up. A premonition of death.
Wait…what happens when slimes go underwater? An image of me struggling futily as I decomposed and fell apart, getting washed away by the current, flitted through my mind. I backed away from the lake, my heart beating in my eyes. Holy damn, I almost killed myself!
A couple of sparks landed next to me and ignited the instant it touched the grass. I sent a portion of my slime towards the tiny bonfire, dousing it as quickly as possible. It stung but it was better than the entire garden being engulfed in flames; then I would definitely be in trouble.
I glowered at the Will-O’-Wisp, hovering almost angelically above me. How did something that seemed so innocent become the most troublesome foe I’ve encountered so far? Fighting proved to be a waste of time, fleeing wasn’t a choice, and I wasn’t going to give up and accept my death from a ball of fire of all things.
System? Anything you have to offer? I tried out a last-ditch attempt. I was fresh out of ideas, and while I didn’t expect the voice to answer such a roundabout question, it was better than nothing.
You have the option of getting:
* [Infrim Regeneration] Level 5
* [Analysis]
* [Super-Sensory Perception]
* [All-Tongue]
* [Firm Stance]
I had a couple of new options but nothing that particularly stood out to me. [Firm Stance] sounded like a Skill that would boost my defense but it could just as well be an entirely useless Skill. I couldn’t afford to waste my Skill Points on such a gamble. Likewise, I crossed [Super-Sensory Perception] and [Infirm Regeneration] for the same reasoning as last time.
[Analysis] could help me figure out a way to fight blow for blow with the Wisp, but there was an equal chance it would tell me there was no way of interacting with it. Alternatively, the Wisp hadn’t demonstrated much in intelligence and strategy other than having a significant amount of gumption and perseverance. [All-Tongue] may not even work on a mindless creature.
I skirted behind the tree to avoid the latest barrage of sparks. I was out of time and quite frankly, at wit’s end. Praying I wasn’t making the wrong decision, I selected [All-Tongue].
Not sticking around for the System to announce my decision, I opened my mouth and spoke for the first time since my resurrection.
“Get the fuck away from me!”