The chimera moved fast for a creature of its size.
Its tail crushed the crystal behind Soma, and the light disappeared from that corner of the cave.
The plan was simple - lead the chimera into the water and let it freeze slowly.
But the stupid mix of animals did not cooperate with Soma's intentions.
'I've got no other choice. I will use my body as the bait to lure the chimera to its destination.'
"Hey, you fat and ugly piece of shit! Come and follow me."
Yelling these words did not achieve anything.
The Chimera was a monster that could not understand words; it could only understand the tone of the voice.
But yelling such words caused Soma to feel lighter.
Since Soma's loud voice, the Chimera instantly perceived it as dangerous and ran after him.
Soma ran through the narrow passage, and the Chimera followed behind him, keeping itself on Soma's trail.
The huge body crashed into the narrow walls several times during this endeavor, causing the Chimera to sustain damage.
The sharp crystals might not be able to hold the Chimera back, but their sharp ends did an excellent job of injuring it.
And finally, Soma noticed the body of water right before him.
He removed Jewel Ice and froze the water just hard enough that it would take his weight correctly.
So, when the Chimera tried to step on the ice, it broke, and the Chimera was submerged in water.
It tried to swim out, and that was when Soma acted.
He dropped a few icy crystals into the lake, and the water froze.
His Icy Jewel helped fasten the process, causing the Chimera to cry in pain.
The freezing water caused the Chimera's injuries to get worse, and it also caused the water in the Chimera's body to start freezing.
-Rawrrrr
The Chimera tried to escape the ice one last time, but Soma was ready for it.
This time, cutting through that frozen fresh with his Mana-coated strings was easy.
A harsh tug was enough to break the Chimera, but the force caused the strings to cut through Soma's fingers.
Thankfully, a single potion was enough to heal him.
But Soma was beginning to see the shortcomings of his current technique as well as the limitations of his body.
"Tsk, my stats are not high enough to endure the physical strain of my ability. I will need to get an artifact to protect my hands."
Soma sighed while adding another thing to his 'to collect' list.
The more time he spent thinking, the larger that list grew.
[Congrulations: you are the first to defeat the tutorial stage's hidden boss. Additional rewards are being computed for this 'unbelievable achievement']
[10,000 coins are rewarded.]
[You have received a legendary - Redo ticket.]
[Redo ticket: Oh my! You don't like your reward from the gatcha pool? Don't worry! Now you can redo your spin in a heartbeat!]
Soma shook his head as he read the description of the item.
'Just who comes up with such ridiculous shit in the tower? Don't they feel any shame?'
Soma pocketed the ticket and pulled himself up.
All his goals in this tutorial stage had been achieved, and now it was time to head forward.
There was a single day left before this tutorial would end, and Soma had to try to find the exit.
The location was half a day away on foot and was guarded by a level 20 mini-boss.
It was a one-time boss, so it would not respawn once you defeat it.
Once Soma crossed to the other floor, all other players who survived and found the exit could cross.
But there was no time to spare, so Soma started walking.
And in half a day, he found the mini-boss guarding this tutorial's exit.
The mini-boss noticed Soma and attacked him.
Sharp claws headed toward his head, but Soma was too fast for the boss.
[Swift steps have been activated: You gain 10% movement speed.]
[Angle of agility has been activated: You gain 1% agility]
[Master of Stealth: Your presence has been diminished, and your speed increased by 10%]
All these bonuses were excessive when dealing with a single level 20 mini-boss, but they were all passives that could not be turned off…yet.
The option to modulate one's skill-set was a reward given once you cleared the first floor.
There was still a long way to go until Soma reached the tower's first floor.
The mini-boss died in a single stroke of Soma's Icy Jewel, and the notification of clearance finally appeared.
[Congrulations. The tutorial world has been cleared. 10,000 coins have been rewarded. The portal to the next tutorial will open in 5…4…3…2…1…]
A blue light shone in front of Soma, and he crossed across.
[Congrulations. You are the first one to cross the tutorial. Safe space has been activated until the start of the next trial.]
Some finally allowed his body to relax.
His body is achieved due to constantly moving around.
The past week had been one fight after another, and Soma did not get a chance to relax until now.
'Still, I should take a few precautions before sleeping.'
"Shopkeeper, I want to buy something."
Soma called, and the sulking fairy appeared in front of him.
"What do you want? Do you not feel satisfied after robbing me of everything I had? I had to be demoted because of you."
The shopkeeper was being dramatic, and Soma ignored his complaints.
The fairy would go normal when it smelled the scent of coins.
"I want to buy protection space for the next 24 hours. I want one that includes protection from not only monsters but humans as well."
For the first time in a while, Soma voiced out his request.
He knew from experience that some unique items were only available in the story if you asked for them.
And the 'absolute protection space' was one such item.
The incredible thing about these 'special' items was that the shopkeeper could not refuse to see them to the player.
If you knew such an item existed and you wanted to buy it, the shopkeeper was cursed to sell it to you.
"W-Where did you get such information from? I have no such-ahhh."
The shopkeeper tried to deny Soma this sale, but it instantly got punished by the curse.
Soma did not say anything and continued to watch the punishment unfold in front of his eyes.
"F-Fine! I will sell it! I will sell that item."
Finally, the shopkeeper gave in, unable to take the pain anymore.
The pain was slow to go away, but the shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief once it stopped.
A small potion bottle appeared in the shopkeeper's hands, and it drank it all in one go.
"Tsk, this stupid curse, and that stupid dragon. Why do we have to deal with this bullshit."
The shopkeeper cursed the 'Dragon.'
Dragon king of gluttony was a deity put in charge of the shop by the system and was an entity no one had seen before.
Even when the tower ended, the Dragon King of Gluttony never showed himself, causing many to think it was not a 'person' but an object that kept the shop running.
But its existence in the tower could not be denied.
All shopkeepers cursed the same 'entity' when they were in trouble and gave the same answer when asked about their owner.
One of Soma's missions was to find the Dragon king of gluttony and ask for their help.
"Fine! Here. I will see the Absolute protection space for you. It will be 500 coins for a single use and cannot be used during combat. I hope you die soon."
The fairy cursed before it disappeared.
Soma was used to these death threats, so he did not react to them.
Instead, he used the Absolute protection space, and a light dome appeared around his body.
[Absolute protection space: Pay 500 coins for a single use. Expires 24-hours. It will expire if you step out of the unit's area.]
It was a simple explanation, and Soma activated its protection.
Finally, Soma was safe, and he closed his eyes to sleep.
His body was tired, and Soma felt his body relax.
Small noises surrounded him as people poured into the fourth tutorial's space.
Soon, the time passed, and it was time for Soma to open his eyes and face the following tutorial.
[Congrulations on concluding the third tutorial safely. Now, it is time for the Fourth tutorial. What you need to do is simple- show your worth by collecting coins.]
[Those who have 50,000 coins by the end of the day can pass this trial.]
It was a reasonably simple trial, and Soma did not need to lift a finger to pass it.
But it was a different case for others.
Most people could never dream of having 50,000 coins at this tutorial stage.
And thus, most people will die here.