Yes, now there are three slimes. Might not seem like much, but they are clearly very acidic, considering how the alkaline cleaning fluid reacted, and are damn near invulnerable little buggers. And now I have to face three of them, with my only weapon being a half-full bottle of cleaning fluid. 'Great, just bloody great.' And then I have to worry about the final slime - probably some boss or another - with probably little to none of my only weapon left.

*Hiss*

'I don't know whether to be pissed or pleased right now.' They really are acidic. 'It appears like one of them ran into some floating 'solids' in the water, and the 'solids' practically disappeared instantly. Mostly inference, of course, but that is pretty much all it could've been.' I approach the slimes, or rather we approach each other, and then I crouch down. After I identify the three slimes, for the skill XP, I squirt more controlled bursts of cleaning fluid than I did last time, whilst backing away, and emptying the bottle in the process.

-2hp - 6/8hp Remaining - Chemical Burn Debuff Applied - -1hp/second (2 seconds) -2hp - 6/8hp Remaining - Chemical Burn Debuff Applied - -1hp/second (6 seconds) -2hp - 6/8hp Remaining - Chemical Burn Debuff Applied - -1hp/second (1 seconds) -1hp x9 Sewer Slime - lvl 1 Has Died

+50XP

Drops;

Vial of neutralised slime x2

'Ok, so now I have two very much alive slimes, with one dead. One has four hp remaining, while the other has five.' I back away quickly to the mop bucket, where I once again collect the broken mop handle. 'So, if I hit their core they should take damage, right? so, sweep the slimes with a broom until I hit the core... sounds doable... not...' I once again approach the slimes, and begin sweeping the handle through the water where the slimes are.

-2hp - 2/8hp Remaining -2hp - 8/10hp Remaining

'OUCH! That fucking HURTS' A burning pain flashes out from my lower left leg as a slime tentacle slaps me. 'Who knew they could do that? They have done nothing other than move so far!' Backing away, I look at the new hole my shop uniform has, and the indented burn beneath it. I stumble with each step, as it causes pain to shoot up my injured leg with each step. I, personally, have not really been exposed to large amounts of pain - although I have a couple of times - and this was a whole new level above large amounts of pain. 'Seriously, that must be some damn strong acid to react with my skin that quickly - or it's just magic logic - who cares.' Realizing that limping backwards will achieve nothing except more pain, I grit my teeth and close the distance between me and the slimes once again, this time just within the striking range of the mop handle. Swiping the handle through the moving mass of slime, I once again hit one of the slimes.

-2hp - 0/8hp Remaining Sewer Slime - lvl 1 Has Died

+50XP

Drops;

Vial of neutralised slime x1

Vial of sewer slime x1

Damaged slime core x1

'It seems I was lucky and hit the weakened one. Phew, that makes things easier! Also, I got quite a few more drops this way - it seems that killing them without destroying them entirely gives more drops. Neat feature' I continue swiping the handle through the other slime, and manage to hit it once solidly, dealing three damage, and begin to back away at the same pace as the slimes once again, limping as I go. After a few seconds, I lose all resistance from moving the handle through a liquid, so I pull it back up so I can look at it. 'Goddamn it - the slime is breaking down the wood as well! I must've lost about half a foot of length from that!' Yes, my handle had grown shorter and less jagged at the tip, which had stopped it from striking the slime. I begin swinging once more, however now I begin to lean forward as I swing. This gives me more reach, and allows me to swipe through the slime, and hopefully stay out of tentacle range. Soon, as the handle begins to lose length once again, I hit the slime core, and the slime disappears back into the sewer water around it.

Sewer Slime - lvl 1 Has Died

+50XP

Drops;

Vial of sewer slime x2

Damaged slime core x1

Level Up!

You are now level 1!

You now have [5] stat points to distribute!

XP to next level : 0/600

'Ah hah! So it took 300XP to reach level 1, and takes 600XP to reach level 2. So this means that it probably - ouch - takes double the amount of the previous level's experience to get to the next level. Also, level 1? Does that mean I was basically an NPC before now?' As I come to this revelation, I stumble again in the shallow water, and flinch at the pain it causes from my bad leg. Taking the now nearly-useless mop handle, I use it to support the left side of my body by using it as essentially a walking stick. I stagger towards the row of sinks and heave myself up onto the platform, taking the weight off of my bad leg - and with it a large amount of the pain I was in, although the pain of the burn was still omnipresent. 'Let's hope the dungeon is kind and gives me a few minutes respite between fights. 'Assuming that injuries work off of hit points now, I should heal a minor burn like this quickly. Still, knowing games, I will probably have some sort of hp regen debuff from the burn.' For a few moments, I just sit on the sink counter and take a breather from this unbelievable set of events, before beginning to plan for the what-will-probably-be-a-boss. 'Well, I probably want to turn off battle notifications. When I hit something, I don't want to be distracted by being told that I dealt 5 damage, unless I want to specifically test the power of my attacks.'

'System - turn off battle notifications!'

Battle Notifications Disabled. Damage Values Can Be Found In The [Damage Log]. Notifications Will Be Received After A Battle Has Finished.

'Ah, good! Less distractions while fighting. Especially good in a RPG-like world where survival hinges on clearing a dungeon... When it's put like that, it sounds like a pile of bullshit, doesn't it?' I stand back up on the floor to test out my leg again. Surprisingly, it's much better than it was before, although quite painful. I hobble over to the mop bucket, still using the mop handle as a walking stick, and then back to the sinks, to see how easily I can walk. Now, I can actually walk without hobbling much - although that is only with a walking stick. It should fully heal soon however.

*Gurgle* *Hiss* *Crash*

'Ah, it seems that the luxury of time is no longer an option. Well, fuck... Or rather, I'm fucked. Take your pick.' It seems that this is indeed a boss. For something to make those sounds, it must be much larger than the ones before it. There is also an omnipresent quiet hiss, presumably as debris comes into contact with the slime. About a second later, a large bulge in the water, near a meter tall, emerges from the final toilet cubicle. The slime boss. 'I had problems with level one normal mobs about a foot tall. And now a meter-tall monstrosity wants to kill me and I no longer have any weapons, really. Could I be more fucked? I don't believe that it's possible.' As any sensible person would do, I identify the boss slime;

Sewer Slime Queen - level 5 - [BOSS]

The sewer slimes are a common breed of slime found practically everywhere in the world of Terrae. As they form naturally in sewage, they are always present in places like city cesspits, and so are known to all. When sewer slimes spawn in large numbers, there is a chance many will fuse together, forming a Slime Queen.

This monster is more powerful in every way than a normal slime, with it's own unique abilities and talents. Queen Slimes also have increased intelligence, allowing them to command normal sewer slimes, as well as utilize basic tactics, and counter yours.

+50%

'Could they have at least tried to tone down how fucked it would seem I am? Like, seriously? A slime with a form of pseudo-intelligence, and which is incredibly powerful - not to mention immune to all forms of damage I have at my disposal!' I rage internally, looking at the slime. 'At least I got that 50%XP for my identify skill... Sadly it seems I won't need any XP for anything soon enough...' Fighting against all my instincts, I slowly approach the slime, even though it is already quickly approaching me, and try to test the waters. Once it comes withing swinging range for me, I start backing away, slightly faster that it's approaching, and swing my 'walking stick' through the slime.

*Hiss!*

'Of course it's also more fucking acidic. Really? Now my 'walking stick' is another few inches shorter, and it was short to begin with!' Backing away quickly, I start to kite the boss around the very small room as best I can while I try to figure out a plan. Although the boss does appear to be catching onto what I'm doing, and tries to move to where I will be, I just turn the opposite way and loop back around. 'So... I have a plastic mop bucket, a highly damaged broken mop handle... and myself... and that's all...' I continue kiting the boss, the gears turning within my brain. 'Well... plastic corrodes slower than wood, right? So it should last longer in acid, even if it still gets broken down. So, I could use the mop bucket for something...' Still kiting the boss, I pass by the mop bucket, and drag it by it's extendable handle behind me. Looking over my shoulder, the slime passes under one of the still functioning lights, it's core is backlit in the center of the slime. 'A core is a slimes' weak spot, so it should die if I remove it, right? So, what if I hooked out the core with the mop bucket, then crush it with my feet or something...' Deciding that I will not be able to think of a better plan - at least before my left leg gives out - I turn around and let the slime approach. Moving backward slowly until it reaches striking distance, I drop the 'walking stick', and swipe the mop bucket through the slime with both hands. The mop bucket goes straight through - with no more resistance than water - before breaking before reaching the end of it's swing.

*Crash* *Splash* *Hiss*

The bucket goes flying into the opposite wall, and the slime collapses. However, I imagine it's not dead yet, as I should get notifications at the end of a battle. My ankles and feet begin to feel itchy and like they are burning slightly, but the pain is minor compared to the pain of walking on my bad leg, so I put it out of my mind for now. I hobble-run over to the now broken-down mop bucket, and upon seeing the gathering mass of slime slightly away from the wall, I jump off my good leg and land on the slime, hoping to crush the core with my hands as I land. My hands slip through the water and sideways against the slimy tiles with little resistance, leaving me to impact the ground chest and face first.

*Crunch* *Crack*

Darkness envelopes me.