Chapter 18 The Hut

Elysia crept forward, eyes glued to the oblivious crabs. I need to lure a crab one at a time. No way could I face them all. Is killing them even worth it? They are all similarly sized, so I’m assuming the boss crab isn’t here. Unless the completion requirements are different here. Maybe I need to exterminate the crabs instead of facing a boss. I wish Sereia was here. She would know what to do.

At the thought of her sister, Elysia gazed westward with tears brimming in her eyes. After a moment, she wiped them away to refocus on the task at hand. I’m sure she is fine. Even if she couldn’t handle something herself, she would gather help. I could never understand her ability to get people to follow her.

She zeroed in on the nearest crab a little further from the main group. If only I had quieter magic. Lightning may be pretty, but it’s anything but subtle.

Elysia tossed a stone, impacting the crab’s back from a dozen meters away. After the crab turned her way, she quietly back peddled to avoid detection from the other crabs. To her relief, the crab followed, leaving the rest on the beach. Take that Samantha! You can’t tease me for my weak arm anymore. She was probably jealous I could run faster. The approaching crab snapped her back into focus on the task at hand, retreating from the beach.

Once she got some distance from the beach, she turned to sprint. Her lungs strained to process the dense humid air, killing her endurance.

The clicking of approaching metallic feet caused her to slow to a stop and turn back. While panting, she grasped a thick thread from her core, releasing it through her outstretched hands. The stream of violet lightning streamed out of her hands, shooting toward the crab five meters away like a heat-seeking missile.

-80 Charge.

11 Charge.

A deafening crack sounded on impact with the crab’s right front leg. The crab immediately seized before collapsing to the algae covered road, twitching several times before stilling.

Killed Giant crab Level 17.

Elysia swayed on her feet for a moment before dropping to her knees, vision spinning. Her gaze gravitated to the fried crab, prompting her to crawl toward it. With trembling hands, she pried off the scorched claw before devouring the blackened meat inside in a frenzy.

+40 charge.

+1 Max Charge.

The empty leg dropped the pavement as Elysia’s face greened. She leaned down, wrenching, but nothing came out. Fortunately, the nausea passed within seconds, but with its passing came the memory of what she did.

Elysia stared at the crab corpse in shock for several seconds before shaking her head with disgust. Did I really eat some random crab meat I fried? Not only did I eat it, I acted like a wild animal. A shiver ran through her body as she climbed to her feet. Let’s not repeat that. I like crab but I need to cook it first. Who knows what I could get from eating this crab? At least I know I can lure a crab away from the group. The problem is, it isn’t sustainable to kill one at a time. Unless I can a level from each kill, the charge cost is too high. Should I try a multi-kill? I don’t even have enough charge to use the same attack I did on a single crab, let alone multiple. I wish I could just stab them with an electrified spear like the zombies. They are way too fast to fight head on, even if I had a weapon capable of cracking their shell. I wonder if there is a power source nearby. If I could lure some crabs to it, I could score multi-kills easily.

With a new plan of action, Elysia set off, following power lines along Bayview Avenue westward. She tiptoed past the surprisingly oblivious crabs on the beach, just past the beach road split. She chose the road along the shore but ran into a barrier blocking her way. Curious, she traveled south inland only to find a barrier blocking her way once again, only one street over. The dungeon is much smaller than the zombie filled one. Just a thin strip of land along the shore. I didn’t check the east end, but I’m assuming it ended soon after the coastguard station. I’m all for a smaller area, but I don’t see an electrical substation or anything else to jack into. I could maybe try a circuit breaker in a building, but since everything is dark, I doubt there is power. The cars are probably the same, algae probably covered the battery ruining it.

Elysia stared back at the crab infested beach at a loss for several seconds before an insane idea formed when her eyes landed on a concrete building at the edge of the beach. While monitoring the crabs, she snuck up to the steel door covered in surface rust, giving it a tug, but it refused to budge. She stared down at the latch to find an old padlock. After a glance at the crabs, she grabbed two crab daggers, one in each hand, then squeezed them inside the rusted padlock shackle. With a sharp jerk, she pushed the blades outward, snapping the brittle metal of the shackle. The moment the padlock dropped to the ground, her head sprang up to find several crab antennas twitching before turning toward the building.

Before the crabs reached the building, she yanked the door open and dove inside. A stained window provided dim light, allowing her to scan the interior, finding several old tools resting on the wall, but not much else.

A razor-sharp leg speared through the door like a knife through butter, eliciting a squeak as she scrambled back. Another leg followed a moment later before a pincer joined in, ripping off the door with ease. A pair of black, beady eyes and powerful mandibles peered through the narrow doorway.

With a determined expression, Elysia grasped a crab dagger, chucking it into the open mouth of the crab only two meters away. The dagger struck home, eliciting a screech as the crab jerked back. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Elysia focused on the dagger while drawing on her core.

-20 charge.

A small stream of violet electricity jumped from her right hand to the dagger, dropping the crab instantly with a fried brain.

Killed Giant Crab level 18.

Level up! Level 15 Channeler.

New skill learned! Lightning rod. Would you like to slot the skilled?

A rush of energy pushed Elysia on as she extracted her dagger before turning her attention to another crab approaching her hut. With the first crab blocking most of the doorway, she failed to get a clear angle for a dagger throw, so instead, she grasped at her core once more before striking down the approaching crab. The lightning jumped from the stilling crab to another nearby, delivering the same fate before dissipating.

-80 charge.

Killed Giant Crab Level 16.

Killed Giant Crab Level 17.

Unlike the first nearly silent kill, the deafening strike drew the attention of all crabs on the beach. Elysia retreated into her hut as the crabs rapidly surrounded her. The moment a crab pushed its dead brethren out of the way of the door and peeked inside, she let another dagger fly, lodging it in its vulnerable mouth. Without hesitation, she unleashed a stream of electricity into the dagger, instantly dropping the crab.

-20 Charge.

Killed Giant Crab Level 17.

Level up! Channeler Level 16.

Her vision blanked for a moment as her charge dropped below 25 before a warmth recharged her. She grasped another crab dagger awaiting the next arrival, lightning brimming under the surface, ready to be unleashed on the giant crustations.

The next crab didn’t leave her waiting long, earning itself a quick death by an electrified dagger.

-20 Charge.

Proficiency Gained! Novice Throwing knives.

Only novice? I’m nailing these crabs! Elysia commented mentally, bouncing with excitement.

As if to prove the system right, the next dagger bounced off the newest arrival’s mandible, but a second dagger struck true, killing it a second later with a jolt of electricity.

-20 Charge.

Elysia grasped two more daggers, one in each hand frowning toward the throw daggers lodged in crabs only a couple of meters away. If this keeps up, I’ll run out of daggers before crabs. Should I risk diving for one?

The idea stalled when yet another crab shoved the previous crab out of the way. A dagger streaked toward its mouth, but a claw knocked it away. Elysia growled in annoyance as she unleashed a stream of lightning jumping from her hands to the left front foot of the crab.

-80 Charge.

Her hand shot out to the concrete wall to steady herself, only for her eyes to widen as notifications rolled in.

Killed Giant Crab Level 15.

Killed Giant Crab level 17.

Killed Giant Crab Level 17.

Killed Giant Crab Level 16.

Level up! Level 17 Channeler.

Achievement! Quad.

“Two wasn’t enough for you?”

Reward: Two Attribute Points.

Silence descended on the hut, prompted her to peek outside over the latest fried crab to find no other crabs. Wow, did that really happen? I didn’t expect it to be that easy.

Just in case, she extracted her daggers from the crab corpses, sliding them into their places in her backpack. Her nose crinkled at the overpowering scent of crab now that she had a moment to breathe.

This moment didn’t last long as a rumbling shook her hut. A loud splash directed her attention out the stained window, but she wished she hadn’t. A colossal blurry shape rose from the water, dwarfing the previous crabs by several times. Without thinking twice, she jumped over the crab corpse blocking the doorway and sprinted away from shore, frantically glancing over her shoulder every second. Before she could make it a dozen meters, a shadow towered over her. She threw a crab dagger behind her, but the massive mandibles crushed it without effort.

Her heart pounded as she pumped her arms, sprinting with all her might, but her tiny legs compared to the crab proved incapable as the crab easily gained ground with every stride. She drove into a restaurant at the edge of the beach out of desperation. The roof sheared off a moment later, but it gave her just enough time to reach the other side, hiding in the neighboring building.

Elysia stood as still as possible while holding her breath as the ground shook with each step of the monster. She dared a peek out the window to find the restaurant razed to the ground while the crab searched for its prey. Her breath hitched, retreating away from the window, thoughts rambling. Please tell me I don’t have to kill that! There’s no way. I thought the other crabs were big, but that thing is beyond massive. How could something be that big be in a low-level dungeon? At least I think it’s low level for all I know I’m already high leveled. I mean, I’ve been fighting things nonstop for days. Well, mostly running, but still.

The rumbling steps crunched away, either figuring it eliminated its target or decided to move on, allowing Elysia to release a strained breath. The gatekeeper to my escape is a massive crab. How will I kill it? My dagger trick is useless. I could try the brute force method, but if it fails, I doubt I could escape. I have the elemental advantage, but do I have the power to back it up?

A smile bloomed as an idea formed, prompting her to peek out the window at the retreating crab. Before the crab could return to the open beach, she dashed after it while trying to keep her strides as silent as possible. She hopped over the ruined building, tossing a crab dagger toward the crab. Just as it passed the crab, she sent a stream of electricity through to the dagger, causing it to jump to the rear left leg of the crab.

-30 Charge.

Skilled learned! Ranged Arc. Would you like to slot the skilled?

The crab’s leg buckled, causing it to stumble for a moment before recovering by favoring its other legs. It spun to the left, scanning the buildings and road as Elysia threw another dagger, performing the same trick.

-30 Charge.

The stream of electricity disabled another leg, this time a middle leg on its right side. Without letting up, she launched a third dagger toward the left side of the crab once again while the crab scanned the beach for its attacker.

-30 Charge.

The crab teetered as its left front leg fried, but remained standing. Uncaring about getting spotted, Elysia sent another dagger to the crab’s left side, disabling the last leg, sending the crab tumbling to the pavement.

-30 Charge.

11 Charge.

Elysia’s vision swam as she swayed on her feet but buoyant from her success, she pushed through. She stumbled toward the downed crab with stiff strides as the crab futilely tried to stand up with its two healthy right legs. Distracted by its struggling, Elysia sneaked up behind it. She climbed on its back, causing the crab to flail, but with its limited mobility, it failed to knock her off.

She grabbed a dagger, electrifying it before ramming it between the joints near its head.

-10 Charge.

1 Charge.

All strength left her body, tumbling off the crab falling hard on the pavement. Her vision dimmed, but she held on, waiting for the notification.

Killed Red King Crab Level 22

Level up! Level 18 Channeler.

Level up! Level 19 Channeler.

Warmth spread through her body, instantly washing away her weakness. Recharged, she jumped to her feet with a radiant smile. “Take that stupid crab!”

After the rush passed a minute later, her gaze turned analytical as she scanned the crab. Should I try to cut off those legs? They are way too big to throw, but they could make a good spear tip. I wonder if I can bring my raft to the beach now that I killed the boss. At least I am assuming that was the boss. How could a crab get any bigger than that? Please, please be the boss.

Just in case, she jogged down the street, retrieving her crab daggers. Her OCD forced her to scan the beach, finding her crushed eighth dagger. She twisted the intact handle while pulling hard to dislodge it from the crushed blade. With the handle reacquired, she turned her attention to one of the many smaller giant crab corpses, extracting a leg to even her dagger stash back to eight.

Elysia glanced back at the Red King Crab corpse. I’ve eaten King Crab before. That thing is not a King Crab! Sure, it looks the same if you enlarged it by like a hundred times, but I stand by my statement. Though I wonder if it tastes as good. I definitely have to extract some meat once I know I finished the dungeon to find out.

As she turned to leave, something glowing near the crab drew her attention. Elysia trotted over, bending down to pick up the palm sized metallic sphere, warming her hand. Wanting to leave as soon as possible, she stashed the metallic crystal and the eight smaller bluish crystals in her backpack before jogging back down the street.

Upon returning the first blood puddle, she turned to the pier and walked forward. She walked onto the pier unimpeded, causing a triumphant smile as notifications appeared.

Congratulations! Neah Bay conquered! As the first to complete this dungeon, your name and date will be displayed to all who come after.

Reward: +10% damage to all crabs.

Neah Bay: First conquered by Elysia Arashi May 21 AS 1.