Zeke placed his shield in front, deflecting the attacks as he backed away from the goblins.
"Usually, a game is supposed to start with a bit of dialogue you know, teaching the player the controls and all those stuffs." He thought to himself, already having one thing to advise the developers of the game.
"Poison Cloud." He said, not knowing how the skill could be activated otherwise. There are no instructions on how to use the skill, all that is indicated is the effect of poison cloud.
[Skill Name: Poison Cloud]
[Rank: F]
[Skill Type: Active]
[Mana Consumed: 70]
[Information: Creates a cloud of poison on the intended location for the caster. The skill is effective on all kinds of opponents. Damage varies depending on the monster's rank. Enemies who leave the area of the Poison Cloud's effect will have it wear off after a minute.]
This is the reason why Zeke chose shields as his weapon. With it, he can both defend himself from attacks and, stop his enemies from leaving the Poison Cloud's area of effect. Buying the second skill which is [Lesser Poison Resistance] gives him enough durability to last even if he goes inside the Poison Cloud.
[Skill Name: Lesser Poison Resistance]
[Rank: F]
[Skill Type: Passive]
[Mana Consumed: None]
[Information: Enables the wearer to tolerate a certain amount of poison. Rank goes up with the usage of the skill.]
Topping it all off is the 8 points he allotted to his endurance, making his body more resilient to every form of damage and, giving him a better regeneration rate. However, the passive regeneration he gains from his attribute does not heal his injuries.
This is why he placed the remaining 2 points on his speed attribute. If he moves quickly enough, he'd be able to dodge blows that his shield cannot cover him from. But he also thought that wounds won't matter since it's only a game.
On the battle, the goblins started squirming as the poison took effect. The monsters attacked Zeke using their wooden clubs but, their weapons didn't even dent his shield. He stood in place, taking the hits to his shield until…the blows weakened.
He saw some of them trying to crawl out of the Poison Gas' area of effect so he dived in, bashing their heads with his shield. As he did this, the poison took effect and hurt his lungs. He immediately went out, ensuring that all 10 goblins are now dead.
[You have been poisoned.]
{Your passive skill - Lesser Poison Resistance will reduce all poison damage.]
"What the hell?" Zeke said, wheezing in pain. There is a burning feeling creeping within his body. Suddenly, he can't breathe properly and his movements are all a bit more difficult to perform.
[The effect of the poison has worn off.]
[Poison cloud has ranked up.]
[Lesser Poison Resistance has ranked up.]
[You leveled up! You are now level 3.]
[3 skill points are given as reward.]
[3 attribute points are given as reward.]
"No, this isn't normal." Zeke told himself, remembering the excruciating amount of pain he just went through. He then tried hitting a tree with his bare hands and, sure enough, he felt pain. Real human pain, rushing from his fist.
"Ack!" He said, punching the tree harder than he intended.
"What the hell is going on here?" He thought, realizing that this is not a game anymore. This is reality, whatever this is or wherever this might be.
[Congratulations! You have cleared the first trial.] The system displayed in front of him.
He immediately went into the options and settings of the game. All the basic elements of the game are there except for one crucial button.
There's no log out, quit, exit, or close button on the game. The only thing displayed are ten stages of trials, the first of which have been completed with a rank of SSS. The second stage is unlocked, displaying what needs to be done but, other than that, every other trial has the symbol [???] appearing on them.
"None of this makes sense." Zeke said to himself. There are no scientific discoveries on earth that could explain what he is experiencing and then, he remembered the introduction of the game Mythos.
"There are worlds unlike our own. There are worlds where humans get summoned." He remembered the lines from the game.
It didn't take him long to process the current situation. After all, he has already quit being a normal person, living in complete isolation from everyone else except his parents. He is used to feeling the virtual world being his reality and, with all the realization that came with him is a smile on his face.
"A world of monsters and magic huh." He thought, smiling as he stood from the ground.
"Okay then. Whoever it is that summoned me, I hope you're a better game developer." He said out loud, thinking that those who summoned him could probably hear him at the moment.
He clicked on the mission list, reading the next one which needs to be accomplished.
[Second Trial: Destroy the Northern Goblin Encampment]
[Information: There are goblins that have formed a settlement at the northern parts of this forest. Find it and kill the goblins residing there.]
"No problem." He said, looking at the minimap displayed and following the [N] symbol's direction. Along the way, he got hungry so he ate some fruits which he saw normal looking animals eating. There is no analysis that comes with his game system so he needs to guess properly. Every tree and plant he has encountered in the forest all look different so, he can't just pick out fruits because they look safe.
As for the new skills. He decided to choose later, knowing that the skills should be compatible with the monsters or the trials which he will face. However, he allotted the 3 skill points he gained to his endurance. Making him even sturdier and, making his regeneration even faster.
At around noon, he reached the encampment or rather, what it looks like on the outside. There are two goblins guarding the entrance to a cave. With that in mind, Zeke knew that his enemies would all be inside and so, he decided on the next skill he would get.
After gaining his new skill, Zeke went inside the forest again and created a layer of poison cloud. This made the wild animals back away, some of them appearing on where the goblins are. The two guards immediately went after the animals, killing them off and eating them.
What they do no know however is that, the animals are actually poisoned. With the meat of the animals inside their bodies, they began squirming in pain as the poison took effect. Soon after, Zeke went out of hiding and bashed their heads. This stunned both goblins which he then bashed continually until they didn't move anymore.
He knew that, if he ran out and faced the goblins directly, there is a chance that one of the two would go inside the cave and get reinforcements. Without any idea how strong the enemies inside are, he can't allow this to happen. That's why he created multiple decoys which worked perfectly.
He placed the bodies of the dead goblins in front of the cave's entrance. Seeing as how no other goblin came to their aide, the cave must go a long way inside before reaching the area where the other goblins are.
Zeke's mana has been reduced because he used the poison cloud once. At full mana, Zeke has 485 all in all. He calculated that, both stats increase by 10% every time they go up. If there are decimals included then, they are simply removed.
"Poison cloud." He said, casting the skill directly inside the cave. With the condensed space it has, the poison would have nowhere to go except either inside or outside. This is where his other skill came into play.
"Breeze." Zeke casted a breath of wind which pushed the poison cloud further inside the cave. The skill costs only a single skill point and, is a useful skill for manipulating the poison cloud.
He then used the poison cloud two more times and added the skill breeze once more. This made sure that, the goblins will only get a whiff of the poison and, if they try to run away after feeling its effects then they will only be met by a stronger poison.
Zeke waited on the entrance with both shields covering him. He made enough gap for his eyes to peek between the shields. Surely enough, the screams began to echo from the depths of the cave. Some goblins even made it through near the entrance of the cave. However, that's all they ever reached. No goblin was able to make their way to Zeke. He simply stood in place, waiting for the screams to die off.
[Poison cloud has ranked up.]
[You leveled up! You are now level 8.]
[5 skill points are given as reward.]
[5 attribute points are given as reward.]
[Congratulations! You have cleared the second trial.]
[Third Trial: Eliminate the Goblin Commander.]