The cloaked figure just stood there, observing Alex for a while. It seemed the figure had no intention of harming him yet but Alex couldn’t be sure. This whole experience was jarring and he decided to be ready just in case the monsters decide to turn unfriendly. Of course, from the looks of it, Alex wondered whether he would be able to harm the creature at all given how strong it felt. Still, he would never go down without a fight..he was prepared for any.,.
Suddenly Alex felt a strong pull and glided towards the creature, completely paralyzed. The charged-up purifying touch snubbed in his hands. “How did a little pup like you find the Cave of Wonders?”
Alex felt his throat tighten and sweat trickle down his back. If the monster decides to kill me, I’m done. Should I tell it the truth? He realized he could talk again at the mercy of the creature. “I am in a tutorial trial and one thing led to another and I ended up in this place.”
Wisps of shadowy tendrils cascaded behind the creature's head and parted at the front to reveal a feminine figure. A beautiful face with bright red pupils, red full lips, and black hair. “It seems you are honest. Men rarely are. Good for you, I consider you a little kid.” The woman laughed.
Shit. Is it a monster or a human? I have to try to negotiate. Alex tried to think hard and come up with a plan to get out of this predicament. There was no hope of defeating this woman, she was definitely a high-level ranked human or an extremely powerful monster that could take on a human form. And, if he knew anything from playing games or reading mangas, it was best to avoid monsters that could take on a humanoid shape unless you were extremely powerful. So, his only option was to present himself as a valuable resource so that she wouldn’t kill him.
“Please, just let me be for 7 hours and I will be able to complete the tutorial trial and get out of this cave. I won’t bother you, promise.” Alex prayed in his mind to whatever god was listening to give him a skill for mind control or at least charming high-level monsters at this moment. Looks like the gods were not listening to him, busy with their own work.
The woman tilted her head, and a smirk etched into her lips. “Now, why would I let go of a cute little pup like you? I was getting bored of this place anyway.” She stretched out a long finger and touched Alex’s forehead right in the center. Alex momentarily felt a pain spread through his head and travel along the limbs of his body.
[Error!.]
[Error!. Calibration is not possible. Subject untethered to main protocol.]
Shit, What the fuck did she do?
“Oh! Looks like the little pup has some secrets.” She leaned in closer looking him right in the eye. Alex could feel the cold breath escaping from her mouth.
“I swear, I’m not hiding anything.”
Suddenly a black fractal mark appeared on Alex’s forehead and crawled along the skull and disappeared. Alex felt a hot throbbing explode in his head.
[Error! Recalibrating system host.]
[Error…Malfunction.]
Waves of pain spread through his head and his thoughts jumbled up. He felt his consciousness fading and the last thought he remembered was regretting something…whatever it was he had no memory of it now.
***
When Alex regained consciousness, he found he was lying on the ground, his face touching the ground. Ugh..where am I? Suddenly he remembered the interaction between the creature and him and jolted awake. Hmm..this is not the place I was earlier.
A blank room spread across from him and he saw the Tutorial Manager waiting for him.
“So, you are finally awake.” said the devil.
“Yes..it seems I am..” Alex pulled his body off the ground and rubbed the back of his head. He wiped the drool from his mouth with the backside of his fist and pressed a finger in the middle of his forehead to test for residual pain. There was no pain now except for a tingling vibration.
The devil stared at him, not ready to break the silence. Alex was ready to get out of this place and find a place with less monsters and devils. So, he did the only thing he could do. He asked the devil the most important question.
“So, did I pass the tutorial?” Alex gulped. He still had seven hours left before the tutorial was supposed to be completed. In the end, the intrusion of that female monster botched up the test.
“Sure you did…and you messed up a few things considerably.” The demon hissed his laugh again.
Alex didn’t like the sound of that. For whatever reason, ever since he arrived at this place, nothing seemed to go normally. There was always something that went wrong and Alex couldn’t help but wonder whether somebody cursed his luck.
“What do you mean?”
“Well..you were supposed to complete the tutorial without the aid of any external party.”
“But I did go through the tutorial alone.” Alex knew perfectly what the demon was referring to but it was not his fault.
“Yes, you did. Every instance of the tutorial trial is separate from another. So, it is impossible for other adventurers to invade tutorial trials. That is not the case for A-rank monsters.”
Shit! That creature was A rank? Still, I’m glad it didn’t kill me on sight like an annoying mosquito.
The creature got closer. “So, imagine my surprise when the records show that you were aided by a high level monster..”
Alex didn’t remember being aided by the monster in any way. “I don’t know what you are saying”.
“It is not your fault, Alex. The Vix was playing a prank on the god. She knew that if she helped you kill all the monsters in the Cave of Wonders , you would score perfect marks among the other recruits and would be tied with a karma debt to her. And, the administrators wouldn't be able to fault you since you had no knowledge of it.”
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
That was a lot to process for Alex. He didn’t remember anything after that woman touched his forehead and lost consciousness. Could it be that he killed the monsters in a sort of unconscious state? But that sounded absurd to him. All the monsters in the monster were much more powerful than him. And, there were over 200 monsters there. He couldn’t kill a single monster there let alone over 200.
Alex felt a terror rising in his chest. And what was that about karma debt? Will the creature visit him someday again to recollect the debt that he didn’t even know he accrued? How is that fair?
The demon snapped his fingers and the scenery around Alex changed once again. This time, Alex found himself up above a sand dune. A vast vista of scorching sands spread across his vision. Harsh winds buffeted his body and he was barely able to stand still without getting toppled over by the force of the wind.
“This is the final test. You will fight another creature that will test your mettle. No cheating this time”. The demon turned to look at Alex, his posture serious. “This time the threat would be real, so don’t get distracted.”
I guess I have to survive today first before I start worrying about the future. Alex straightened his back and prepared himself for a dangerous fight. But before the test started, he decided to check his stats.
Status Screen:
Name: Alex Straza
Race - Human (F) - Earth 714-G
Level - 6
Class - Locked
Strength - 10
Vitality - 9
Agility - 11
Endurance - 8
Magic - 13
Will - 12
Unassigned stat point - 30
Mana - 130
Stamina - 80
HP - 90
Titles -
Devourer - You have devoured hundreds of monsters that are above your current power level. Looks like you are blessed by the gods or demons to remain alive no matter the situation.
Effect - + 20% to all stats.
Bonded Weapon - None
Skills:
1. Fire Breath (Novice - level 1)
Abilities - Locked
Techniques - locked
So, it seemed like I had accumulated many unused stat points due to the level-ups. No point in keeping them idle. Alex decided to invest the 30 stat points equally in all the 6 attributes. So, he assigned 5 points to each point. The reasoning was simple, he didn’t have a clear idea where he was headed or how to optimize his build when he didn’t even have a class. So, there was no point in him min-maxing at the moment. Once he got a class - as he assumed he would - he would investigate how to assign stat points to maximize his power.
A wave of euphoria spread through his body that made him shiver with ecstasy. Time came to a halt and his senses stopped functioning. He got lost in an infinite ocean of bliss, savoring the delightful feeling to its every last drop. After a while, his mind regained his senses and he focused his eyes on the scenery ahead of him. I’m ready now!
Now, Alex could remain firm in the face of the gusts that tried to topple him. Looks like the increase in strength did the trick. Still, I cannot be careless. The demon looked genuinely serious so the threat might be real.
Just as Alex completed his thoughts, he felt the ground beneath him shake and engulf him in a sand dome. Alex grasped at the air, finding no purchase except for air. Hot pain shot through his ankles as the pincers of a huge desert scorpion grabbed his leg and pulled him down to its lair. Alex charged up a purified touch and aimed it at the body of the scorpion. The orange flame shattered against the thick, black chitin that covered the scorpion in a protective layer.
Shit! It’s not doing any damage. I have to try a different strategy. Alex hit solid ground a few feet below the sand dune and struggled to escape the hold of the large insect. The scorpion grew as large as a one-story house in his vision as it adjusted its body to strike him again. Alex barely avoided the strike due to his leg still being in its grasp. Blood spurted from his leg and the pain came in waves dulling his consciousness by the minute.
Aargh…I cannot give up. This time Alex touched the chitin of the scorpion and launched a purifying touch at point-blank range. Black chitin exploded in his face and he got covered with slimy scorpion blood. The monster shrieked in a high pitch and let go of his leg. Alex crawled away from the creature, blind and his ears ringing. Eat that you little shit!
When the dust cleared, he saw the scorpion twitching on the ground with a massive hole in the center of its body. The scorpions were tough but they lacked vitality. Once they got hurt and lost blood, it was over for them.
The cave was dark and Alex didn’t like the idea of spending a minute longer in the den of the scorpion. However, he was hurt and he had no idea how to get up 40 feet up in the air or jump through the opening in the ceiling to get on the ground.
[Congratulations! You defeated a desert scorpion. Difficulty level raised based on performance. Get ready for wave two.]
Are you fucking kidding me? I’m still hurt and cannot perform at my best. Alex wished he had a healing spell at the moment. But the system was ruthless and immune to his pleading. He heard two different chittering sounds from two different directions from inside the darkness of the cave.
Will this work? Alex tried to charge a purifying touch in both of his hands and immediately felt a wave of weakness wash over his body. He never tried channeling purifying touch simultaneously on both his hands but there was no other way to defend himself from two different directions.
The darkness parted and two sets of scorpion claws raked at him from both sides. Alex didn’t try to dodge them; he couldn’t. So, he did the next best thing. He moved his body slightly to the side and touched both sets of claws with a fully charged-up purifying touch. This time he was prepared for the aftermath and managed to avoid the bits of chitin from blasting in his face by looking down. Both scorpions shrieked in pain as they lost their front claws.
Alex rolled away from the spot anticipating another strike. He dodged a combined tail strike by both the scorpions, surviving the encounter. Green acid dripped from the tails of the scorpions which sizzled on the ground. Shit! Those are acidic, I cannot get hit by the tails.
Alex suddenly remembered that his purifying touch could heal him as he managed to stand up on one leg. He started healing his leg but the scorpion duo struck with their tails once more. Alex avoided a few tail strikes, dodging them by the barest of margins but finally managed to heal his leg fully.
Alex touched the ground with his purifying touch and directed a trail of blazing flames at the scorpions. The scorpions were immune to heat and fire attacks since the desert was their birthplace. Alex went into the flames, covering his body with blazing flames as he charged at the scorpions.
His vision glitched for a moment. As if remembering a memory, he sucked in a deep breath and imagined inhaling the flames with his nose and mouth. He felt the tendrils of flame enter his nose, slide down his windpipe and collect in his lungs. Then he exhaled slowly, forming a ball of purple flame inside his mouth. He repeated this process until the tiny ball of purple flame condensed to the size of a tennis ball with a watery layer of outer shell with small stars dancing on its skin.
He grabbed the condensed ball of infernal flames and threw it at one of the scorpions. The ball of infernal flames collided with a scorpion and lit it up in purple flames lighting up the whole cave. The scorpion shrieked and immediately went silent. The purple flames were far stronger when compared to the regular flames and melted the thick chitin of the scorpion without any resistance. Holy shit! What was that attack? It didn’t even register in my system menu.
[Hidden Ability Unlocked - Infernal flame breath - ???]
Hidden ability? What is that? And why doesn’t it have any description? Alex side-stepped and narrowly avoided another tail strike from the remaining scorpion. It looked like the scorpion didn’t like Alex murdering his kin. But it didn’t matter to Alex since he now had a powerful long-range skill.
Unfortunately, that single skill depleted all the mana from his core.