I can tell she has something to add, but I don't wait. The prey on the left is waiting to be attacked.

  As I approach, it extends a tentacle in my direction. I use my weapon to parry, pushing it away. I take the chance to get into range. Out of my inventory, a health potion follows, dipping the creature with it. Its body quickly melts, the tentacle retracts, and the level three slime gets quickly erased with two potions.

  Notification: You've received 100 experience for soloing the level 3 dark slime.

  Notification: Your name has been registered in the rankings as the first pyer with enough experience to level up.

  'Alone, I would need a corpse to distract the other one,' I look sideways before allowing myself to bask in a little bit of glory.

  The tentacle catches Alice's leg. She failed to parry it. Quickly, she attempts to slice it with her sword but it has no effect. These creatures are absurdly sturdy against physical attacks. Without the potions, a pyer would generally be turned into slime food. Alice takes out a potion and sprays it on the tentacle that is hurting her, forcing the creature to retract it, allowing the potion effect to spread faster. She then immediately follows with another.

  "Wait! The effects don't stack!"

  She looks at me confused.

  "Look at the glow around the slime or even below his name."

  She does as I say, finding a timer below the slime with a crown. A three and a small S next to it appear.

  "3 seconds left then you can use another, otherwise, it won't die."

  "Thank you for teaching me," she adds in a neutral tone feeling rather enlightened, potentially surprised too.

  After the slime dies, I get hold of both fragments and keys.

  "Shall I put my name on the rankings?"

  "Why not? With your name there, it should give you some fame. For a future guild leader, it could be good."

  "I'll do just that." She smiles at my words following my advice. Even though we cannot yet see the ranking.

  "I'll be taking the shards, you can have what's in the chest."

  "Shards..." her eyes investigate it for a bit.

  "Remember during the trailer about many side systems, one of them called crafting, another itemization? It's for that."

  "Sounds like one of those complicated things I don't generally bother with," she sticks her tongue out making me ugh.

  "That's fine. I should be able to handle it when the time comes," I head for the dead slimes grabbing the materials and the hidden keys in their liquid corpses.

  "Gross," she peeks her head above my shoulder.

  "I found two keys. You can have them," I say, ughing, which makes her expression even funnier.

  "You don't want to be a gentleman, do you?"

  "If you insist," after collecting the shards and storing them among the rest. I walk to the treasure chest and remove the lockers with the sticky keys. I feel no difficulty whatsoever opening them. They're simply a perfect fit.

  "It's all yours," I step aside, luring her in with a waving gesture, just like a host would to welcome a patron.

  "Now that's more like it," she lets out what feels like a sincere giggle. Her eyes quickly fixate on the treasure chest, the first one she's ever seen in this world.

  "You sure you don't want anything?"

  "For now, I just want some shards. It would be nice to find some skills but those are a little rare."

  "Fine," I see her hand going into somewhere and from within she pulls two kobold shards. "Fee for teaching and helping me out."

  "Oh. What a generous dy," I get hold of them storing them with the rest. "Appreciated," I leave the brown treasure chest behind—a worthy prize, considering the difficulty to obtain it.

  As I make my way to the exit, following the blue arrow by my feet, I hear Alice scream.

  "A race box and a skill book!"

  I turn back, my eyes widening at the odds of that happening. I almost regret having given the chest away, controlling myself back not to do anything stupid.

  'Right. I should just think of this as a lesson as an investment even,' feeling stressed, I rub the top of my nose with two fingers, closing my eyes at the same time.

  "I'm so lucky!" Alice innocently shouts.

  'What a loss. What a loss,' at the end, I can't help but panic a tad.

  Even the worst skills could turn around a losing combat.

  She walks to me and extends a book in my direction, "you said you were looking for skills. I'll give it to you."

  "What?" I hold myself back from falling on my knees, feeling defeated by her kindness. My eyes fixate on the valuable item.

  Skill book.

  Level 1 dash.

  Info: the pyer will be able to dash for the total movement speed plus 10% for one second. Cooldown 10 minutes. Cost: 5 Stamina.

  Usages: 1.

  It cannot be used if you already have a css.

  'What? Does this mean, I will not be able to get any of the good skills from the tutorial?'

  "Raziel, are you okay?"

  My heart twitches in pain. 'This isn't part of what I signed up for.'

  "Hey? Raziel?" Her hand gently touches my shoulder, resting on it for a bit.

  "I... I'm sorry. " I put the palm on my eyes, covering them from the light of this pce.

  "It's alright. You haven't done anything wrong," she caresses it allowing for me to catch my breath.

  At that, I pce my own on hers, feeling disgusted about myself—believing that I almost betrayed my humanity for a mere skill book. That I almost went for the kill—to sy this poor girl. I let out a sigh, recovering my composure.

  "Considering you're wielding a sword, you should use that skill for yourself. You'll be able to surprise your foes or even dodge a fatal attack or a nasty skill."

  "Oh, really? That sounds amazing!" She looks at it, left and right turning it upside-down.

  "Wait," she halts at my advice but I push the book against her chest causing it to bounce. It shines as it enters her body.

  "Focus, Alice."

  "Oh! I can see it!"

  I smile faintly without her noticing.

  The first time I got a skill, was also pretty exciting. In our mind, we see the most basic example of how it is used.

  For dash, she sees herself in 3D making a short accelerated run from one point to another.

  "This looks amazing!" She leans slightly and then a blue light follows as she chants the word dash.

  I notice her acceleration is good enough to surprise one of the lesser species like kobolds and even new pyers.

  "Next time, try to swing as you dash."

  "Alright!" Her excitement feels contagious.

  I don't know what's she's like outside of the game world or how she used to be but I have the feeling she was loved by many. If they got to meet her in this manner.