uncharacteristic for the System to say nothing insulting for that last
achievement panel. When I claimed it, it simply disappeared just like
the other achievements with nothing happening. I crossed my arms as I
fell deep in thought. I know it
essentially put my soul on the line with someone named “The Deliverer,"
but the fact that I didn't know what the clauses entailed is a bit
problematic, other than we’ll both die if I died…
The Deliverer was making a grave mistake if he (or she) created the
contract while being aware that if I die, they’d die as well. I knew it
implied that it needed something from me too, and that it was giving me
a sense of dread the more I tried to think about it, but I shook my
head. What’s important was I was finally out of that damned purgatory
and that I still needed to finish this EVENT if I didn’t want to go back
to that place.
I opened my status panel.
(Tutorial Citizen) Devon Crocus | LVL 1
[You gained +5 to all stats, three skills, two items, and one artifact since your last open.]
Strength (STR): 10
Intelligence (INT): 15
Dexterity (DEX): 9
Skill Power (SKL): 5
Constitution (CON): 7
Skills held: 3/10
-
(A-Tier Skill) Conjure Fireball
-
(C-Tier Skill) Overpower
-
(V-Tier Skill) Forced Casting
Inventory Space: 1/10
- (B-Tier Item) Ammonium Nitrate Cube
This was great! Most of my stats had nearly doubled after claiming
all my Afterlife Achievements. Though it gave me the sense that I was
getting stronger, I still couldn’t afford to let my guard down. not when
I haven't had my first real fight yet.
I glanced over the railing. Goblins were practically everywhere.
Every street, every block was filled with goblins looking for their
unusually absent human prey, including the alley where the fire escape
ladder sat on. There was probably a hundred of them in this area alone.
Three goblins were also posted right under the ladder. One looked
unconscious, still out cold from probably running into the wall earlier,
while the remaining two kept trying to copy that vertical wall run I
pulled off.
I could cast [Conjure Fireball] to kill those goblins in the way, but... My eyes darted to the group of patrolling goblins across the street from the alley. ...If I make too much noise, I’ll attract too much attention.
[EVENT: Wave Tutorial (1/5)]
0:23:07 Remaining
0/25 Monsters Killed
I’m running out of time.
I began descending the ladder, formulating a plan as I went.
The two goblins noticed me climbing down the ladder. That much was
obvious from the way they threw their weapons at me, clanging against
the metal cage encircling it. And when they realized it was ineffective,
they posted themselves at the directly at the bottom of the ladder
instead, ready to swing their bats the moment I step on the ground.
I psyched up myself. Don't disappoint me, skills.
I let go of the ladder a few rungs early, dropping nearly ten feet onto
the unconscious goblin. My gray Crocs came down hard on its skull with a
wet crunch. The sound of its skull cracking was followed by a
disgusting squelch, its innards bursting through the eye sockets like a
cracked egg under pressure.
[1/25 Monsters Killed]
Their bodies were just as brittle as I expected. Their bones couldn’t
even handle the weight of a human. To add, I jumped from at least ten
feet high and my landing was solid, clean, and painless. I wouldn't have
been able to do before, so my stats were already proving themselves!
The goblin on the right shrieked, baring its spiky teeth as it leapt at
me with its nail-covered bat. It was swinging a bit high, so I ducked
just enough to let its weapon swing through empty air. I watched that
goblin fly past my head after its strong leap.
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For a goblin, they're pretty agile!
I mused. Although the goblins weren't slow by any measure, I could
still react their movements fast enough to avoid any potential injury.
From the corner of my eye, I saw the other goblin preparing to swing its
bat at me. Compared to that earlier one, this goblin seemed a little
timid and scared.
He was within arm's reach, so I took advantage of the distance when
it hesitated to attack me. I snatched the bat off its hands mid-swing,
carefully avoiding the nails on the head of the club. The timid goblin’s
eyes went wide in shock after witnessing its weaponless fingers, but I
didn’t give it time to recover. I quickly kicked it away.
The one I’d dodged earlier was already turning faster than I
expected. It swept low this time, trying to take out my legs from
behind.
I vaulted forward, just barely avoiding the swing. I was honestly surprised at how fast I reacted.
That momentum carried me straight into the weaponless goblin who was
just starting to recover. My knee slammed into its chest, pinning it on
the ground. In retaliation, that goblin's nails dug into my thigh. Its
spiky teeth bit and tore through the fabric of my cotton pants.
But before I could deal with the goblin I just kneed, the other one
almost scored a direct swing at me. It hit way harder than I thought a
creature of that size could manage.
While I managed to block its attack with my bat, one of the rusted nails came dangerously close to embedding itself on my elbow.
The goblin I’d just kneed wasn’t done yet. It nails dug through my
thigh, gnashing its teeth and tearing into my joggers until it ripped a
gaping hole through the fabric. I grabbed it by the scalp and slammed
its head into the nearest wall. Blood smeared across the bricks in a
thick, wet trail.
The counter didn’t update. I wasn’t done with that one just yet.
The remaining goblin charged with another menacing shriek again. This
time, I didn't try to parry. It moved at such a predictable manner, I
was able to read its swing and dodge its attack at the last second.
As the agile goblin went past me again, I primed both fists into the
handle of my nail-splintered weapon, and I drove it at the back of its
neck like I was hitting a baseball. It slammed face-first into ground
with a crack and a smack, leaving a streak of blood as it slid unmoving
across the concrete.
[2/25 Monsters Killed]
I backed up against the wall, sucking in air through clenched teeth,
trying to ignore the already-rotting stench coming off the corpses of
these monsters. The one I'd tossed into the wall suddenly twitched,
dragging itself away with bloodied and calloused fingers.
It’s afraid.
But I didn't feel any pity for it. I put it out of its misery.
[3/25 Monsters Killed]
Leaning against the wall, I caught my breath.
Those were just three goblins. I can't believe I'm already this tired, I mused. I need to get stronger. Suddenly, a new icon appeared beside my inbox. It was a medal icon, and what followed it were three new achievements.
[Achievement Unlocked: (A-Tier) Goblin Killer]
I know you feel bad for them even
if they stink like hell. Kill twenty-four and you might get a better
reward than this useless trash of a reward! Or maybe you consider this
as a reward already? I don't know. You people get sicker with each
passing day.
Reward: (A-Tier Item) A used goblin groin belt
[Achievement Unlocked: (A-Tier) Apparently, No Takebacks]
You stole a weapon from a monster
and used it to kill said monster. Now, let me see you do that to a
person! I really wanna see, try it next time!
Reward: (A-Tier Scroll) Scroll of Crude Weapon Reparation
[Achievement Unlocked: (B-Tier) You Survived!]
You survived your first combat
encounter AND defeated the ones you were in combat with. You better make
sure you keep it up, because the longer you live, the more entertaining
your death will be!
Reward: (B-Tier Potion) 1x Potion of Lesser Healing
At least the last two achievements offered rewards that were useful. I
also realized that these were different from my Afterlife
Achievements—with a separate menu and granting conditions. Still, it
would've been helpful keeping a healing potion on standby.
Unfortunately...
[Level 2 is required to claim rewards from your Achievements menu.]
Seems like I could claim my Afterlife Achievements from the get-go as
I demonstrated earlier, but not the actual achievements I’d get from
this world. I sighed. I made it my next goal to level up fast.
And now, that opportunity presented itself to me.
A patrolling group of five goblins had just spotted the carnage I
caused in this alley. All five goblins, including that bulky female
goblin who chased me when that portal appeared, stood frozen at the
alleyway’s mouth. They were glancing at each other, weapons raised,
spiky teeth bared.
They didn’t charge in mindlessly, though. I glanced down at the corpses around me and smirked. Cautious now, are we? But they had made a mistake. They kept their distance, just far enough to test out one of my skills.
I pictured a blazing orb forming in my palm, concentrating on
releasing a fiery explosion. And the moment I thought of it, I felt a
surge of heat and power coalesce at the palm of my hand. I aimed my palm
at them, uttered the words with complete confidence, and cast,
"[Conjure Fireball]!"
What happened next… wasn’t exactly what I’d imagined.
The fireball plopped out of my hand like a blob of slime. It dropped
to the ground and fizzled out almost instantly. "What the fuck was
that," I blankly toned in disappointment as the goblins took that as
their cue. With a unified shriek, the four smaller goblins charged
straight at me with their weapons raised.