1…2…3.. It lunged. 1… I dodged.

  Three seconds to prepare an attack and almost two to reach me.

  Now, I needed to confirm.

  1…2…3.. It lunged. 1… I dodged.

  “Okay!” I could feel the grin forming on my face. I knew how to counter it. Now, my battle would be much easier to manage.

  I hated that I had to time a creature as low as slime. It made me feel as though I was dropped into the world on Dark Souls difficulty, where any enemy could kill you if you rushed into it. Don’t get me wrong, I loved those games, but I saw the other NEWBIE adventurers fighting the slimes with no issues. I was the only one who had to fight like this.

  Whatever. My grin widened. If I have to play this game on Critical Mode, then so be it!

  “I don’t care if you take all day to defeat!” I dodged an attack as I spoke, countering with one of my own. My fist made contact, and the slime crashed to the ground with a jiggle. “I will win!”

  The slime flung itself at me again. This time, I didn’t dodge but instead hit it with a jab right before it reached me. My fist connected, and I unleashed an uppercut as it recoiled back. The attack sent it high into the air.

  “Got you, you son of a-“ I stopped as I watched it’s body stretch apart before slamming back together, causing it to fly back at me. “HUGH!” It slammed into my face, sending me flying back. I bounced several times before sliding to a stop.

  LUCK:

  You have survived with one HP.

  What was that!? It hadn’t done that attack before, so it caught me off guard. Was that a counterattack? It had to be. There was no other explanation. Also, how did I survive with one HP when I only had one to begin with? Not that I cared.

  I was grateful not to have died from a slime. After all, this world may have been reminiscent to a game, but it was real, and I was alive. If I died, I would die for real. There was no respawn, no redo, no save point. I thanked my luck stat for keeping me alive before painfully rising to my feet.

  “Cheap bastard,” I grunted. “You’re just a slime. You should have shown me all your moves already. Why the hell are you all of a sudden using new ones? Whatever. Let’s try this again.”

  I waited for it to attack, countered, and then watched to see if it would. It didn’t. It only hit the ground before preparing another strike. It lunged, I countered, it was sent flying back, and its body stretched again.

  It’s not a counter! My eyes widened as I stopped my punch mid-swing. It’s a retaliation! I dodged just as it flew back at me. It hit the ground and bounced like a ball, slamming into my back.

  “HN!” I was flung once again and informed I had survived with one HP. “What…What the hell!? Am I seriously getting my ass handed to me by a slime?” I hissed as I pushed myself up. A shadow appeared above me, and I quickly rolled out of the way as the slime came crashing down. “One more time!” I readied myself in a stance as I waited for it to attack.

  Lunge, jab, step back. Lunge, jab, hook. Its body stretched. I dodged, and when it hit the ground, I quickly turned, executing a spinning backhand that sent the slime flying away.

  Notice:

  You have adapted

  Skill Martial Arts is now level 2

  The slime jiggled before slowly melting and dissolving into a blue puddle.

  “Let’s….GO!” I screamed to the sky. I had won. I killed my first slime, and I had leveled up doing so.

  The excitement kicked in my adrenaline, and I began searching for more to fight. I wanted to reach at least level fifteen before ending the day. I didn’t know how long it would take to farm the experience, but I didn’t care. Now that I knew the slimes attack patterns, the others would be easy.

  ???????????????

  The sun had set by the time I finished farming and returned to town. There had always been something about the nightlife I found appealing. The streets, which were busy during the day, were dead now, with the only souls out being drunken adventurers making their way home or couples that had decided to go on a late-night walk.

  I scowled as one said couple walked past me.

  “By the Seven,” the man said. “The moon’s light truly highlights your beauty.”

  “Paul, stop it!” The woman giggled.

  I shivered at how cringe it all was and quickly turned down an ally to escape the torrent of cringeness known as flirting that followed.

  “Psst.”

  “EEE!” I jumped as a shadow appeared behind me.

  “Hmmm.” The man inspected me.

  He was round, almost circular, and his gut hung low. The handlebar mustache on his lip curled up as he smiled. He wore a top hat, probably to hide his receding hairline, and his clothes led me to think he was some sort of butler. But the air around him told me he was no butler but something else.

  “Those eyes of yours,” his unsettling smile did nothing to ease my nerves as he spoke. He had already approached me in a dark alley. That was shady enough on its own. The least he could have done was act a bit more charming. “So rotten.”

  “The hell does that mean?” I scowled at him.

  “I mean that you most definitely would take a liking to my wares.”

  Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Ho?”

  A black market?

  “I see I’ve piqued your interest already. I knew you were my type of customer.” He rested his hands on his gut. “Those eyes of yours tell me all I need to know. You are most definitely a man of culture. One who would take quite the interest in my wares.”

  “Heh. What kind of shady shit do you sell, geezer?” I smirked as I rested a hand on my hip. “We talking black market weapons? Possibly stolen legendary ones? Oh, or maybe sex slaves.” I nodded. “Mmm. Yeah. That seems right down your alley.” I looked around. “Er…this alley.”

  “AHEHE!” His laugh sent a shiver down my spine. “My. You are quite the fellow. Come.” He motioned for me to follow. “Let me show you what I sell. BUT!” He quickly turned, making me stop in my tracks. “You mustn’t tell a soul about what you see tonight.” His eyes glowed a fierce red, and his demeanor completely shifted. “Otherwise, I will find you.”

  “Huh?” I scoffed, my eyes glowing brightly as I did so. “Is that a threat, old man?” I placed my hands in my coat pockets and leaned forward to be at eye level. His face was highlighted in a vile yellow light. “I’ll rip that eighteenth-century shit stain off your lip if it was.”

  I may have been weak, and I may have been a shut-in, but I never let anyone walk over me like that. Especially not some round basketball-looking eel like him. I guess you could say it was the gamer talk in me. It was normal for us to talk shit online. The only difference with me was that I would do it in person. It was why I was so disliked by people in school.

  It wasn’t my fault I refused to be bullied (I was), but I didn’t stand there and take it (I did). I at least popped my mouth off as they beat my ass. Of course, I eventually dropped out, but that was because of more than just the bullying.

  The man shivered before composing himself, smiling once more as he spoke. “Interesting. Very interesting. Come! Come!” He grabbed my hand. “I’m sure I have something you’ll wish to purchase.”

  “H-Hey!” I cried out. “Let me-Uhh…H-Hey! Th-That’s a wall! A w-AHHhhhh…Eh?” I opened my eyes to see that we were no longer in the alley but in a strange warehouse-like space. “What the…” I looked around wide-eyed. “Where…are we?”

  “Why, my shop, of course.” The man cackled as he let me go, motioning for me to follow. I did as told, all while looking around.

  His shop was a labyrinth of narrow aisles cluttered with an eclectic mix of items. On one side were racks of weapons—gleaming swords, ancient daggers, and crossbows with intricate carvings. The metal glinted ominously in the flickering light of oil lamps hanging from the ceiling.

  Shelves lined the walls, which were filled with dusty tomes and grimoires. Their leather-bound covers were cracked with age, and some were secured with heavy chains as if to contain the dark secrets within.

  In the back, where he led me, large iron cages housed various wild animals. Wolves with piercing eyes paced restlessly, their low growls echoing through the room. Hawks perched silently, their sharp talons gripping the bars and eyes watching every movement. Among the cages, I saw creatures I never thought possible to exist—tiny dragons with iridescent scales, a griffin with majestic wings folded tightly, and a phoenix, its feathers glowing faintly with an inner fire.

  “No way,” I muttered as I inspected it. The phoenix let out a screech before it was consumed in flame, burning to ash. I jumped back at the sudden blast of heat.

  “Don’t worry.” The man chuckled. “It’s not dead. You see, those birds are unique. They-“

  “From the ashes, you shall be born anew,” I whispered as a baby chick poked itself from the phoenix's ashes. “So cool!” My eyes sparkled.

  “You’re more interesting by the minute.” The man guffawed. “How does one such as yourself know of the legend of the phoenix?”

  “I used to do a lot of research on mythological creatures,” I answered.

  “There’s nothing mythological about them. They’re real and loyal as one could get.”

  No way. Am I about to get a phoenix!

  “It could be yours for the price of nine hundred fifty gold coins.”

  “Hngh!”

  I GAVE LILITH AND CAZ TOO MUCH!

  “I-I can’t afford that,” I laughed meekly. “I only have nine hundred. Could you do it for that?”

  “Sure.”

  “REALLY!”

  “If you throw in that legendary dagger you have hidden underneath your coat.”

  Well, seeing as how she’s useless…

  “De-AAAHHHHHHH!” Rei shocked me as I went to grab her. “S-Sorry. I can’t do that, either.” I smiled like nothing happened as he gave me an awkward stare. “W-What can you do for nine hundred?”

  “Mmm. Well, I was hoping you’d have enough to buy one of these familiars.” He grumbled. “I saw the old man give you that money.”

  “Huh?”

  He was watching me? No...the way he spoke about the old man. Was he watching him?

  “What did you spend the other hundred on?”

  “….I was scammed.” I averted my gaze. It wasn't exactly a lie. I scammed myself out of the money.

  “Poor soul,” he sighed. “Well, I suppose I have some other stuff in here you may like.”

  “Do you have any daggers?”

  “You already have one. Besides, it’s as you said out there. I sell legendary weapons, though not stolen, just…collected from the dead.”

  “So?” I frowned. “Sell me one, then.”

  “No can do. You can only have one legendary weapon at a time. You know they have souls, yes?” I nodded. “Well, they’re clingy and picky with who they choose. So, if another weapon attempted to bond with you, the souls would battle each other, resulting in your demise.”

  “I don’t think she’d mind,” I grumbled as I reached back and touched Rei. “She hates me.”

  “Does she?” He rested his hands on his gut with a smile. “Cause it seemed to me she didn’t want to leave your side a second ago.”

  “….Do you have any magic books or items? Something that can teach me magic or help me learn to cast it?”

  “Pointless.”

  “Huh?”

  “You have no magic power.” He scowled. “Why would you waste your money on that? It would be a waste to give a spell book to you.”

  “No magic power!” I squeaked. “W-Wait. What do you mean?”

  “I mean just that. You have no magic power. No aptitude for magic. You are unable to cast spells.”

  “N-No…This…this can’t be.” I fell to my knees as tears fell from my eyes like a river. “No magic?”