I cried out as the orb began to crack.
Veins were popping out of my forehead as I squeezed even harder, and then,
CRACK
The orb burst.
But, I didn't have time to celebrate as I continued down the scattered line of orbs while the slime could do absolutely nothing but await its impending doom.
CRACK CRACK CRACK CRACK
I was becoming more proficient in breaking the orbs with my hands.
CRACK CRACK CRACK CRACK
I didn't even glance at my dwindling mana as I continued, almost in a trance for survival.
CRACK CRACK CRACK CRACK
I repeated the process a few more times until,
"*gasp*... HUFF HUFF HUFF HUFF,"
I gasped for air while on my hands and knees, feeling the slime around me slowly drip down onto the rocky floor.
[You have leveled up]
[You have leveled up]
[You have leveled up]
Upon catching my breath, I turn over onto my back and glance at the empty glass vial which had saved me.
"Thank you," I muttered, hugging the vial against my chest before checking my body for any wounds.
Initially, I was going to drink the vial upon swallowing the ring, but everything had melted too fast… but I still managed to survive somehow.
I knew it was possible to gain skills like this, but it was extremely deadly and challenging, so I never tried any of it.
And suddenly, a new notification popped up in front of me.
[You have completed The Hidden Quest: Acquire a Skill Through Items]
[Reward has been granted]
[Hidden Reward has been granted]
A familiar leather book appeared in my hands, getting soaked in the green slime but not eroding, unlike everything else.
Also, the vial I had placed on my chest was refilled with a golden liquid, and a new cork held it in.
"*sigh*... I wish there were a way I could see what these things are…." I muttered before standing up and wiping off any excess slime from my body.
My clothes had been completely melted, leaving me stark naked in this dungeon.
But to make matters even worse… somebody entered the dungeon and saw me standing in the middle of a pile of green slime, holding a book and a vial of golden liquid.
"I-I can explain,"
…
Thankfully, the man was kind enough to inform me that I should bring multiple pairs of clothes and armor the next time I came to this dungeon, as all the toxic-resistant armor and clothes were expensive.
And after that, he gave me some clothes and drove me back to school, where I quickly ran through the dorm, hoping nobody would see me.
SLAM
"Fooooo… Safe," I muttered before hopping into the shower and staring into the mirror placed against the tiled wall.
I noticed every blemish on my face from puberty was gone entirely, and my skin was as smooth as a baby.
After the shower, I changed into some more casual clothes as my next class was Gun Theory, which doesn't require any physical activity.
I also opened up the backpack the man had given me and took out both the book and the vial filled with a golden liquid.
First, I raised the vial to my face before muttering,
"It kind of looks like piss,"
I then popped open the cork before smelling it and thankfully didn't regret it, as it smelt precisely like peaches.
I then chugged the entire vial while smelling its sweet aroma.
[Five Points have been added to your Mana Pool]
"Oh, nice,"
I then opened up the book, which was a bit thinner than the previous ones, and began to read it.
Strangely, it had no chapters or titles, but I didn't have time to care about it as the pages quickly captured me.
[You have acquired The Passive Skill: Night Vision]
"Oooohhh… That's pretty good,"
This skill would be helpful for my sniper rather than my spear, for which I was only getting skills for…
After trying to test out my new passive skill, I decided to leave it for later as switching off the light in my room did absolutely nothing.
Everything was still dark.
『Status』
[Name: Orion]
[Race: Human]
[Class: Spearsman]
[Level: 4/25] (32/100) XP Needed
[HP: 35/35 MP: 15/15 SP: 15/15] - Normal Human
[Strength: 20] - Normal Human
[Defense: 10] - Normal Human
[Magic: 14] - Normal Human
[Speed: 20] - Normal Human
[Skills: [Tangible Bloodlust] [Spear Coating]
[Passive Skills: [Toxic Immunity] [Toxic Body] [Night Vision]
[Equipment: [Toxic Barrier Necklace]
…
I checked my status on my way to the gun theory classroom as the bell just rang as soon as I finished reading the skill book.
My status wasn't looking too bad now…
But, I forgot one crucial thing...
"Oh wait, I didn't have lunch," I muttered upon arriving at the front of the classroom.
The adrenaline had finally washed out of my body and what it left me with was an unpleasant present that I had never asked for.
My stomach grumbled as I entered the classroom and picked up the same sniper from yesterday.
The bell for the end of the transition period rang, so the teacher gathered us towards the middle of the classroom.
"Alright, yesterday we learned a lot about our guns, such as how to disassemble them, but today, we're going to be actually learning how to use them," Mr. G spoke up as everybody created a circle around him.
Suddenly, a few white and red circle targets appeared at the end of the room.
"Mr. G! I thought you said we'd learn how to use our guns in tandem with our other weapons!" A boy spoke up with a question everybody had.
"Ah, that was my bad. I actually forgot I had to teach you boys and girls how to use your guns… So, line up with your respective weapons, and I'll come by to teach all of you how to use them. Also, don't clown around with your guns when I'm not there, and make sure to keep the safety on," Mr. G says as we all gather into our groups, a few meters away from the targets.
We were actually the first ones to be taught, so my excitement wasn't edged as he took one of the snipers from a girl in our group.
"Okay, I'm gonna be honest,"
Bam… Ding
After muttering a few words, he raised the sniper to his shoulder, placed it against it, looked into the scope, and then fired, hitting the very edge of the target.
"I'm not that great with snipers, but I do know a lot about them… Like, I have really shaky hands, and as you can see, my concentration isn't the best… but you'll have to bear with it for now," He finishes his sentence before flipping the sniper around and switching the safety back on.
It seems she accidentally flipped off the safety… somehow.