NOVEL SIMPLE Book 1: Chapter 19
Once Felix was all washed up he looked around for any signs of an approaching enemy but found none. Felix was about to drink from the fountain when he noticed the water in the fountain still had a slight red tint to it. He watched as the blood in the water was slowly diluted until it was undetectable. Felix leaned forwards to take a drink and saw the reflection of a young man, maybe even a teenager, in the fountain casually walking towards him.
[E - Uncommon] Young Vampire (Lvl 42)
That's oddly coincidental, either it really is a coincidence, or this guy is an idiot. He waited until the blood was all undetectable, didn't he? I only have about a third of my health left, I don't really want to gamble it, but I guess I can keep that in my back pocket, just in case.
"I was really hoping the thralls would either weaken you, or feast and grow stronger. However, you don't seem to have suffered quite enough. Not yet." The Young Vampire said as he licked his lips then lunged forwards and started running across the courtyard at Felix.
Felix cast two Flame Thrower's at the vampire from either side causing him to quickly jump back then to the side to continue his pursuit.
So he's smart enough and definitely fast enough to dodge.
The vampire got within melee range very quickly because it was much faster than Felix was. The Young Vampire quickly grabbed Felix's Throat with both hands and lifted him into the air. Felix cast a Flame Thrower into the vampire's face, an instant Gust to push himself back and a Fire Blast with a large outer ring to blast him away. It all happened at once, the vampire was drenched in flames and knocked back with a Fire Blast to his chest which loosened his grip just enough for Felix's Gust to completely separate them. The vampire's claw like nails still managed to open a bloody gash on Felix's neck as they separated though.
The effects were immediate. Felix got to his feet a couple meters away from the vampire and looked up. The vampire was rushing him and running right into the Flame Thrower, completely ignoring it. It's body language was the same as the thrall's, crazed and single minded. Unfortunately, this vampire was almost twice as fast as the thralls.
Felix cast a massive instant Gust to push himself back as far and as fast as he could manage while casting another Flame Thrower to join the first in showering the vampire during it's reckless pursuit. Felix fell onto his back from his gust but kept the Flame Throwers firing towards where the vampire should be. He pumped as much mana as he could into the spells and tried to force more into them, he silently wished he had made them bigger. Suddenly, Felix felt the spells grow, just as he had wanted, and accept exponentially more mana.
Ding You have slain 5 [E - Common] Vampire's Thrall (Lvl 35)
Ding You have slain a [E - Uncommon] Young Vampire (Lvl 42)
Ding You have gained 5 levels in [E - Common] Caster
Ding You have gained 4 levels in [E - Special] Arcane Engineer
Doesn't seem it was even necessary. Why the hell didn't I try that before? You can modify spell forms while they're being channeled? I guess anything more complicated than just changing the size might cause the spell to crumble, or explode. I'll have to test it more later.
Ding You have reached the prerequisite race level for a minor evolution. Please stand by… Complete.
Felix opened his eyes a second later and didn't immediately notice anything, other than the fact that his wounds hadn't just closed, but were completely gone.
Combat Dungeon C
You have chosen to claim rewards, you will not be able to continue further rounds.
You have successfully completed 3 rounds of +10 - +15 difficulty.
Congratulations.
Combat Dungeon C
Calculating Rewards
Bonuses:
Difficulty
Time
Solo
Reward Tier: Highest
Huh, I got a bonus for time? I stalled out the first round though? Does that not count, or was I still faster than expected even with that? Highest reward tier though, definitely can't complain. Unfortunately it will be tailored for Lvl 19 and now I am Caster Lvl 35. Hopefully it's still useful to me. It's kind of annoying I need to complete bonuses at a difficulty tailored to my level, then the rewards get maxed out at 19. It seems like, even if I walked in here at Lvl 100, I would need to beat a much higher difficulty, and do it fast, and struggle in general to get the highest reward tier. Then it would still be tailored to a Lvl 19 character, which would make it essentially useless. I should really go hit the next combat dungeon soon, since my level is already so much higher.
Combat Dungeon C
Rewards
[Epic] Tutorial Spell Book
[E - Special] Traveler's Pants of Protection
[E - Special] Traveler's Shirt of Protection
[E - Arcane] Skill Test Cube: Mana Control
100,000 Tutorial Credits
Felix was transported to a room not dissimilar from the pre tutorial preparation room. In the middle of the room there was a simple wooden table with five items laying atop.
Felix got to his feet and immediately noticed his body felt different. He felt, heavier but also more in control of his own body. He felt stronger, like he had been trying to move underwater but now he had surfaced. He also felt more dexterous, like he had been trying to perform dexterous activities with big gloves on, but now he had removed them.
Woah, weird. It's like my body and everything is just better, like qualitatively more? I don't know how to describe it. Increasing my stats, I can punch harder, but it was like I didn't have full access to everything, and now it feels like I do.
Felix stood up and got distracted by the table in the center of the room.
Finally, pants.
Felix identified the items one by one.
[Epic] Tutorial Spell Book
A book containing spells appropriate for the tutorial.
[E - Special] Traveler's Pants of Protection
Doubles your walking movement speed.
These pants are enchanted to partially resist incoming physical and magical damage.
Lessening damage or status conditions above the E tier may damage the pants, permanently.
[E - Special] Traveler's Shirt of Protection
Doubles your walking movement speed.
This shirt is enchanted to partially resist incoming physical and magical damage.
Lessening damage or status conditions above the E tier may damage the shirt, permanently.
The pants were a simple brown color with no pockets. They were made of a soft cotton like material that was thicker than Felix expected, almost as thick as leather. The shirt was a simple white cotton shirt with long sleeves and three buttons starting on the collar.
[E - Arcane] Skill Test Cube: Mana Control
A skill testing cube to test mana control.
AKA: Puzzle Box, Enigma Cube etc.
100,000 Tutorial Credits
Placing this item in your inventory will cause it to disappear and you will gain the designated number of credits.
Felix placed the simple palm sized disc at the end of the table into his inventory, gaining 100,000 Tutorial Credits. Then he removed his makeshift underwear and put on his new pants. The pants were extraordinarily comfortable and unexpectedly breathable, in a similar fashion to his boots. They fit relatively tight, in a tailored way, rather than a skin tight way. As soon as he fastened them around his waist, the pants and the boots both glowed briefly. Identifying the pants again, something had changed.
[E - Special] Traveler's Pants of Protection
Doubles your walking movement speed.
These pants are enchanted to partially resist incoming physical and magical damage.
Lessening damage or status conditions above the E tier may damage the pants, permanently.
Set Effect (2): Injecting mana into this item will cause it to regenerate from almost any damage and clean itself.
He identified the boots and the same set effect appeared on them as well. Felix excitedly picked up the shirt and put it on as well. The shirt, like the boots and pants, were comfortable, breathable and fit perfectly. It fit loosely and hung with plenty of room around his arms and chest, more due to the style than the fit, as it closed itself snugly around his waist and wrists. As soon as he had it on, all three pieces glowed. He identified the shirt.
[E - Special] Traveler's Shirt of Protection
Doubles your movement speed.
This shirt is enchanted to partially resist incoming physical and magical damage.
Lessening damage or status conditions above the E tier may damage the shirt, permanently.
Set Effect (2): Injecting mana into this item will cause it to regenerate from almost any damage and clean itself.
Set Effect (3): Walking restriction removed, combined bonus increased to 10x. The combined bonus is only applied outside of combat. In combat, your speed is reduced to 2x.
Warning: Your agility, intelligence and perception will dictate how well your body, senses and mind can process and react to your movement speed.
Holy shit. This is insane. I am going to be so fast. If I run at full speed… I'm going to kill myself running into a tree, aren't I?
Felix picked up the Spell Book and stowed it in his inventory. This one was much thicker and bigger than the Mana Bolt and Gust Spell Books. He quickly flipped through the pages, not reading any of it then stowed it in his inventory. He was excited to open it up and start learning more spells, but he would have time to go through it later.
Finally, Felix picked up the oddest item on the table, the puzzle box. It was a simple palm sized cube made of a reflective, almost black material with slightly rounded edges. It was cool to the touch but other than that, Felix couldn't discern anything from it. Shrugging, he placed it in his inventory.
Combat Dungeon C
All Rewards Collected
Would you like to leave this room?
Warning: You may only remain in this room for a maximum of 15 minutes.
Yes.
No.
Yes. It's not really worth meditating in here, assuming the boars and what not are still low level… Maybe I should have.
Felix found himself outside the stone archway around the entrance to the dungeon. He turned around and touched the door but nothing happened.
Well shit, my free grind spot is gone. Guess I have to go hunt down the other dungeons in the tutorial.
Felix found himself looking out across an almost pitch black field. It was clearly night time, but any light the night sky may have offered was hidden behind the thick layer of clouds. Felix took some time gradually increasing his walking speed to get used to his new Traveler's Set.
I can barely see, I probably wouldn't be able to if my perception wasn't so high. I really hope it doesn't start raining. I figure if I am running full speed with the Traveler's set bonus, rain drops would feel like bullets. Oh shit, what about bugs?
Felix walked north, slowly, which meant he was traveling really fast. Almost twice his previous speed, while he tested out using Gust as a shield against any small stationary objects that could now kill him. Turns out, it was unnecessary, whether through System intervention or something else, Felix saw droplets of water, as it had started raining, pushed to the side as he passed by them. With renewed confidence, Felix pushed his speed gradually higher. Though he didn't even reach his maximum speed before he spotted the entrance to his fort nestled in the edge of the mountain range.
He redirected himself slightly towards it and headed inside. He couldn't see much so he decided to just head straight to his room and call it for the night. . . . . .