"You didn't tell me I had an expiration date!" Sean snapped, unable to get his fear at discovering he had a time limit hanging over him now from turning into anger.
Gel’s eyes stopped rolling around the room and refocused on Sean. "What? Yes I did. That part about necromancers and wasting mana, remember? You were the waste of mana in that metaphor. I thought that was obvious."
Sean paused, processing that and searching his memory of their conversations. Sure enough, Gel was right, the slime had said something about that. But Gel had left out a rather key point.
"You said I had a day or two, not hours! I could be dead before–" Sean trailed off, pulling up his status.
He had used two MP killing the giant rat, and he currently had a total of 6 HP. So, with a bit of simple math…
"I only have 3 hours left?!" Sean suddenly felt like he had been wasting far too much of his dwindling life stumbling around in the dark down here. A hundred and eighty minutes was not a long time.
Gel's eyeballs bobbed up and down again. "Well, technically, sure. But you've got me!"
Sean lifted the slime-in-a-jar up to eye socket level to peer at him. "And that means what, exactly?"
"It means if you keep killing things and feeding them to me, then we can share in the mana from our endless slaughter!” Gel’s voice was bright, as if reveling in carnage only the slime could see. “Once I eat you, that is. I doubt you'll be able to get any mana from me until then."
"I didn't get any mana when you ate the rat." Sean said, trying and failing to raise an eyebrow at the slime.
"Well yeah, our flesh bond isn't as strong as it could be because you're still hoarding all the flesh we need to strengthen it." Gel’s eyes managed a concerned expression, a thicker layer of slime manifesting as raised eyebrows. "What part of 'let me eat your face' have you not been getting, because I feel like I have been very clear."
"So, essentially, if I let you eat me." Sean couldn't believe he'd just uttered that phrase. "I get to keep living?"
Again, the slime’s eyes did a little flip of excitement, completely oblivious to the absurdness of the situation.
"Yep! You do all the hard work, I eat all the rewards, and we both get stronger! It’s the perfect plan. Plus, it lets you keep doing… whatever it is you want to do! Provided you keep killing things along the way, that is. And feeding them to me, that’s a crucial part."
Sean nodded, then silently put Gel down and started walking towards the hallway where the rat had first appeared. He had gotten only about a half dozen paces when the slime’s voice spoke up in his mind.
"Uh… Sean?" Gel asked, a hint of worry in his tone. "Everything okay, big guy?"
"Yup.” Sean answered, his mind made up. “I'm going to go kill something, then bring it back here and feed it to you.”
"Oh.” Gel sounded surprised, but quickly perked right back up. “Well then I whole-heartedly endorse this plan."
"I thought you might."
"It could use one note of improvement though, if you’re open to suggestions."
Sean paused, turned back towards the jar. “Oh?”
“You could feed me your heart first, before you go off and lose it.”
Sean rolled his non-existent eyes. "I need my… ‘armor’ first, just in case. That rat was tough, and I'm fragile enough as it is right now."
"Fair point." Gel acknowledged, then the slime’s voice turned to one of panic. "Just don't lose any of it! And if you do, bring it back here with you!"
Shaking his head at the notion of bringing his own mangled arm back in a doggy bag, Sean turned once more and headed back down the hallway. Peering around the corner at its end, he saw another hallway that eventually branched into two opposing directions. Roughly midway down the hall were two more corpse piles, one with another mud-brown giant rat nearby gnawing furiously on what looked to be a ragged femur.
Sean could hear its tiny heartbeat so clearly the creature almost pulsed in his vision.
Perfect. Sean thought, as he began slowly creeping his way towards his prey. I've only got one more use of Slash, so I need to make it count. I wonder if this world gives bonuses for sneak attacks…
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Resolving to find the answer to that very thing right now, Sean crept up to the first corpse pile as carefully as he could. He had to admit it was a little bit easier walking now that he had some feeling in at least one foot. It also helped that the squishy meat wrapped around the rest of his decaying feet didn't appear to make much noise as he crossed the ichor-covered floor.
Stalking up to the second pile, Sean got to what he instinctually felt was within striking range of his quarry. Then he dove out for it – or at least, he tried. Stumbling over his own feet Sean fell in a clumsy heap directly on top of the rat. He tried to slash down with his right arm as best he could at the oversized rodent's neck as he fell and by what felt like sheer luck, he managed to connect.
Arterial blood sprayed high out of a deep wound as Sean’s fingers scored deep into his prey’s neck. His haphazard triumph quickly followed by a now-familiar bright red prompt appearing in the corner of his vision.
You have used the ability ‘Slash’ on Giant Rat for 6 damage (6 total, 1 base unarmed + 1 from the ‘Slash’ ability multiplied 300% due to a sneak attack combined with a critical strike!).
The creature he had struck managed a pitiful dying squeal, before it collapsed. Which earned Sean another one of those golden prompts from before.
You have defeated a Giant Rat! You have gained 10 experience points.
Ha-hah! Sean thought triumphantly, standing back up and raising his bloodied arms to celebrate his overwhelming victory. Sneak attacks for the wi–
Another tiny thumping sound rushed towards Sean from behind, the sudden rhythmic beat his only warning before something heavy latched onto him from behind. There was no pain, but the attack brought with it a rather surprising dark red prompt.
You have been bitten by Giant Rat for 1 damage (3 total, 2 base multiplied by 150% due to a sneak attack, minus 2 due to armor).
Wait, did I just get bit in the--?! Sean thought as he twisted around to get a better look.
Another giant rat, a dull grey one he must have missed before, was busy savaging his now-sagging rear end! Its small, yet sharp paws dug tracks in his skin as the creature struggled to hold on while it attempted to rip an entire cheek off with its oversized teeth.
Sean struck at the thing immediately in a panic, trying to dislodge its grip– when he felt his awareness begin to slip away. A frozen darkness descended upon his thoughts and the edges of his vision blackened. Soon, the only visible object in Sean’s world was his attacker.
His challenger.
His prey.
Immediately, Sean twisted his entire upper body around in an attempt to tear off the creature’s face and gain access to the faintly glowing red light within. Bloodstained, bony fingers attempted to penetrate its fur – but failed to find purchase. Unable to force the rat to relinquish its grip on him, Sean twisted again and slammed the rat bodily into the stone wall.
The rodent let go, squealing in protest, and tried to run – but Sean pounced on it. This time, one hand managed to catch its throat and hold it in place as the other began systematically tearing it to long, crimson strips of fur. Red prompts both bright and dark flashed in his vision, but Sean ignored them.
You have dealt 1 damage to Giant Rat (1 base unarmed).
You have been bitten by--
You have dealt---
You have defeated a Giant Rat! You have gained 10 experience points.
It wasn’t until the golden ‘defeated enemy’ prompt had hovered in his vision for several moments before something snapped in his mind. The dark curtain of ice that had entombed all rational thought retreated, and Sean came back to his senses.
Staring down, he saw that the rat beneath him had been reduced to a splattered mess of shorn, furry meat. The white bone at the ends of his hands were covered in gore, and somewhere during the fight he had lost even more of his remaining fingers.
What… the hell was that? Sean wondered, even as his memory of the event faded away. That’s the second time I’ve just… lost it.
Sean waited for a long moment, staring down at his dull-red hands, before finally standing back up. Sean hadn’t even realized he was sitting on the other one. Shaking his head at himself, Sean collected the two carcasses and made his way back over to Gel. The slime cheered as Sean rounded the corner.
“Woohooho! Two foes at once?! You’re a natural at this, I love it. Now toss them over here if you don’t mind, because I have been literally starving to death ever since you left.”
Unable to help himself, Sean smiled. The slime could be annoying at times, but Gel’s enthusiasm was infectious. He tossed the two carcasses down next to Gel’s jar then reached down and picked it up. Gel’s eyes flipped around the jar and positively vibrated with excitement.
Sean laughed heartily at the sight, and even the lack of any sound coming from his chest didn’t stop him. The slime’s good cheer was really taking the edge off of his earlier encounter.
“You’ll have to wait, you’re supposed to–” Sean began, before his witty response was rudely interrupted by what felt like a ham falling halfway down his legs.
A loud, wet ripping sound accompanied the sensation, immediately followed by a meaty slap as something weighty fell off of Sean’s posterior and onto the floor. Sean tried to close non-existent eyelids, praying to the heavens above – and whoever else might be listening – that that had not just happened.
“Uh… Sean?” Gel asked in Sean’s mind, the slime’s voice far too amused for his liking.
“Yes, Gel?” Sean replied, his voice tightly controlled, like a man holding onto the very last vestige of his pride.
“Did you just laugh your ass off?”