“Well, they might not be the same serpent. Though this one’s using venom as well.”

The serpent slapped one of the seals trying to grab onto its tail and bit down at another that tried to reach its neck. The seal dodged down and the fangs missed.

Henry wondered if the seal coat would have stopped them.

The serpent wasn’t much longer than before, but had definitely grown in circumference. Its spines were sharper. Its scales had a vibrant jade-like sheen to them. The serpent opened a fanged maw and spat out a green ray which dyed the water it shot through a baleful green that slowly spread out like smoke.

The two seals swam out of the affected water, unharmed. The coating Skill was pretty effective against the serpent.

Henry eyed the spines of the green reptile–was it even a reptile? It definitely looked like one.

“And I wonder if those things are venomous.”

Henry paused. “Do I want to fight this thing? I mean, it’s a guaranteed Evolutionary point on the next rank up. It does seem dangerous, though.”

The serpent screeched at the dozen seals surrounding it.

“What if it’s intelligent? Would I kill it for its Tokens if it is?”

Henry watched the fight rage on from his flat gravely seat and looked through his interface for quick purchases he could make.

“Telekinesis’ targeting upgrade is possible, but I don’t think that would make much of a difference. And I feel like trying to stop the serpent would give me an aneurysm. What are we working with… I have 11,068 left from the other core, and the three seal cores are worth 88,360 Tokens. Damn.”

That would be a nice chunk of levels and stats. Which might be the efficient choice. But as he had decided previously, the huge level difference would pay off when he got to his next evolution. The level difference would net him at least one extra point for evolving his Traits later. Maybe even more. On the other hand, the Class levels weren’t going anywhere. Hell, he’d get them and more by consuming the serpent’s Core. That thing would most certainly have extra stats on top of the levels.

“Well, Constitution hasn’t failed me yet. More points invested there won’t hurt.”

Henry exhaled, hoping to calm the sense of trepidation that jolted through his nerves. He converted the remaining cores to Tokens. He looked at the prices and sighed. “Those are a lot of zeros. Is there an option to round these up or something?”

As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes were drawn to a customization option that he was sure hadn’t been there before. He clicked it.

Enable Ranked Token Denomination

View your Tokens by rank. Rounding can be disabled separately.

Example: 1102 F-Token = 1 E-Token

Yes | No

“Sure.”

Henry accepted the prompt and the prices became much more manageable. The fight ahead continued to rage, but he wasn’t in a rush.

He would go after whoever survived. It was ruthless and opportunistic, but he wasn’t one to turn his nose up at a free buffet.

Henry started with the first Constitution point for 9 E-Tokens. The next one cost 15, so he decided to go all in. He got the second point, then the third one at 30 E-Tokens.

The next one cost 1 D-Token. “If 1 E-Token is around 1000 F-Token, then 1 D-Token is…” Henry began making the simple conversion and bailed halfway through when he realized it wasn’t anything he could afford right now.

“Alright then. I have 55 E-Tokens left.”

With those Henry got two Strength points and one Spirit. As he confirmed the changes, he realized his mistake; the lights might give him away.

Henry thought about it for a moment, then mentally shrugged. “I’m about to throw my hat in the ring anyway. It shouldn’t matter if they think someone else is around.”

A few seals turned toward the coalescing lights, and Henry noticed the serpent glancing his way as well, but all they could see was a large boulder that seemed to be attracting lights for some reason.

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After a couple of seconds they turned back on each other. Henry watched as he waited for the changes to fully take effect. Then, because he knew how dangerous what he was attempting was, Henry decided to invest one of his Evolutionary points in Toxin Resistance.

“Can’t be safe enough. Especially with something a rank above my own.”

After a few minutes, the seals became less interested in the fight. A few were hovering further and further away, and with every seal that died or got seriously injured their hesitation to attack grew. The ones who got hit by the ray attacks had convulsed, their defense overloaded, while those touched by the runoff had lost their luster and were forced to wait further away until their Skill recovered.

The battle was about to end, and the serpent was winning. It was in control, balefully glaring down at the seals as if they were merely gnats that dared stand in its presence.

“It’s strong. But it can’t have unlimited mana. I doubt that’s even possible.”

Henry eyed it. He wanted the Skill levels he’d get from such a battle. He wanted its Core because he knew it would be a launchpad, rocketing his abilities higher and pushing him closer toward his goal of eventually finding civilization. Henry loved oceans, but he also liked to have a warm meal and sleep in a comfortable bed at the end of the day.

He wanted the achievement of besting such a monster–and this time, the term applied. It was a monster out of maritime legends. Still. Even though Henry wanted the levels, he felt a bit iffy about attacking it.

What if it was intelligent? What if it was merely defending itself? The two times he had met this serpent–if it was the same specimen–it had been mostly responding to hostilities.

So Henry would give it a chance. If it was intelligent enough to communicate or understand him, he’d maybe leave it be. If it was hostile and tried to go for him, then he would fight.

“And if it goes bad… I skedaddle,” Henry told himself, trying to speak over the voice telling him that running might not be an option.

He knew he could win. Or at least he’d have a real good shot, but he would be injured. And he’d need to recover.

Its poison–or venom–was terrifying, but with Toxin Resistance in E-Rank and with so much invested in Constitution, Henry thought he could take a few doses of what it could dish. Though he should try to end it as fast as possible, and to do that, he decided its throat was the spot to target.

Its back had too many spines and there was no way those things weren’t dangerous, while its underbelly was mostly smooth. He might get pricked through the tentacles while attached to it, but that should allow him to stay away from its mouth and its death rays.

Some new calls began to spread between the seals, with most of them backing away. It looked like they called a retreat.

Henry waited for them to swim away–which barely took a minute–then dropped his disguise.

The serpent’s eye immediately swiveled to him.

Henry swam forward then upward until he was facing the serpent, not allowing the monster to look down at him. When he got within 30 yards, the serpent’s mouth opened up and a hiss filled the surrounding waters.

Henry stared back at the serpent. “[Do you understand me?]”

The yellow slitted eyes narrowed. The lips pulled back further, revealing his mouth full of needle-like fangs that were most certainly similar to a snake’s.

It didn't seem to understand him. And for the first time since getting the Trait, he got something useful out of Telepathic sense.

A clear and obvious emotion: Greed and hunger.

Henry didn’t waste any more mana trying to communicate and got ready.

A sickly green light shone in the back of a purple-pink throat. Henry disappeared into a cloud of ink and dove down, simultaneously sending an Ink Clone upward and to the right.

The serpent tracked the clone and shot its green ray, pulverizing the clone to nothing. It stared for a second before it caught the movement. By then, Henry was almost upon it.

He triggered Slick Coat, and immediately regretted it. He forgot how expensive it was.

He began swimming up toward the serpent’s neck when a rope of sinew and scale slapped him back down to the seabed.

Henry slammed against the rocks hard, but not as hard as the impact of the tail had been. His world was upside down for a moment, but as brutal as the hit had been, the damage hadn’t been too bad. Barely 4%. It definitely stunned him for a second though, even through the protective effect of Slick Coat.

Henry disappeared into another cloud of ink and sent a clone forward. The serpent screeched at it and almost shot before it realized it wasn’t the real target. At the last moment its head swiveled.

The serpent spat out its ray and Henry scrambled to get out of the way. He barely had time to hide in a cloud of ink and swim away in hope it would miss. The water was lit green near where he’d been, and the green magic shone through the ink like thunder through clouds.

Henry thought he was safe when he felt a burning sensation in his gills. The Slick Coat had lasted no longer than a soap bubble.

“Shit. The runoff from the ray.”

Henry circled around the serpent, eyes peeled, and assessed the damage. He could feel the poison in his system. It made him feel uncomfortably warm. Some of his muscles began to twitch, but it was mild. His health dipped by a few points, but it was already slowing and the effect began to fade as he swam.

“Neurotoxin? Maybe.”

He was right. His stats and resistances were pulling through, though he hadn’t been hit by the main attack.

Henry and the serpent eyed each other. Henry prepared his Skills. The serpent coiled and pulled his head back. The familiar green light began to collect.

Both were readied for the second salvo.

Henry exhaled. The ray might not be a death sentence, but Henry couldn’t afford a direct hit. And he would have to be careful. He’d only taken a whiff of poison, but he could still feel it in his system. Mostly neutralized, but that wouldn’t be the case if he got a larger dose.

Henry circled closer. The serpent aimed.

Then all hell broke loose.

A/N: Updated stats didn’t fit in the chapter, so here they are:

Strength: 18 [3 Base][4 Class][11 Purchased] (0 Purchasable)

Constitution: 24 [3 Base][9 Class][1 Consumption][11 Purchased] (6 Purchasable)

Spirit: 18 [6 Base][4 Class][2 Consumption][6 Purchased] (2 Purchasable)

Perception: 14 [4 Base][4 Class][6 Purchased] (4 Purchasable)

Dexterity: 9 [4 Base][1 Consumption][4 Purchased] (0 Purchasable)