Chapter 20: Extra Precautions

<Day 5 of the Tutorial>

[7:30 AM, Thursday 4th of May, 2024]

"U-urgh..."

Opening my eyes slowly, I felt the rush of the information I dreamt about enter my brain.

Unlike before, it was a sensation that didn't bring me any pain or headache.

'Is it because of my mental resistance Title? Come to think of it, this is the first time I'm using <Dream> to return to a point that is still the Tutorial.'

During the previous times, my 'save point' was the start of the day, before the Tutorial even began.

"Ahh..." I rose to my feet and stretched my body, not minding the mess that I had made as a result of my [Nightmare] earlier in the morning.

"It's a good thing I started the day. For a moment there, I thought I would return to the hotel..."

I felt relieved not to have to relive that hell again.

More importantly, though, it was amazing how composed I felt. I just died not too long ago, yet it really didn't feel like anything more than a dream.

The pain and horror I had experienced seemed not to have even existed to begin with.

I was perfectly healthy.

"Hold on a sec. Status Window."

[STATUS WINDOW]

- Name: Mikey Rael

- Race: Human

- Level: 1

- Life Force: 2/2

- Energy Level: 1/1

- Combat Ability: 2/2

- Stat Points: 0

- Currency: 100

- Role: <The Dreamer>

- Authority: <Dream/Nightmare>

- Titles: <Visionary>, <The One Who Saw The End>, <Chosen One>

- Skills (Exclusive): <Dream>, <Nightmare>

- Skills (Non-Exclusive): <Nil>

- Items Equipped: <Nil>

- Alignment: Neutral

[Additional Information]

"Haha... I guess I should have expected this much."

All my stats had been reset along with everything else. My Level Up, my Rock, and pretty much everything had gone to waste.

'Expecting all my experience from the future to follow me to the past would be too much, I suppose.'

But perhaps that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

'The Currency I'm about to get. If I calculate it well and spend wisely, I should be able to save more.'

Getting 'Rock' wasn't a bad idea, considering how useful it would be. Unfortunately, the ~Item Section~ of the <shop> didn't have any 'Rock' with unlimited durability.

The items with high durability there cost too much, so it would be preferable for me to simply try Lucky Draw and hope to get that item again.

'If I do it at exactly the same time I did in the past, I should get the same results.'

As someone whose ability had to do with going back in time, I made it my business to keep records of the time I was performing a particular action.

'I'll get Rock, and I'll save the Currency I used to buy that Basic Survival Information.'

That was the best course of action.

********

[Hours Later]

"Unbelievable..." A trembling smile formed on my face as I stared at the System Panel in front of me.

<Total Currency in User's possession: 550 C >

Out of my 600 Currency, I only spent 50, yet I already managed to get the Rock from ~Lucky Draw~

The best part? That wasn't all I managed to get!

I got one other Item!

... It was a second rock.

[Item Information]

Name: Enchanted Rock

Special Effect: Always Returns to User.

Combat Ability: +1;

Energy Level: +1

Durability: Infinite

[End Of Information]

Unlike the first Rock, which only gave me Combat Ability, this one added to my Energy Level.

So far, energy was my only Stat which still had the base figure of 1.

But now, with these two items equipped, my Stats looked more like this;

[STATUS WINDOW]

- Name: Mikey Rael

- Race: Human

- Level: 1

- Life Force: 2/2

- Energy Level: 1/1 (+1)

- Combat Ability: 2/2 (+2)

- Stat Points: 0

- Currency: 550

- Role: <The Dreamer>

- Authority: <Dream/Nightmare>

- Titles: <Visionary>, <The One Who Saw The End>, <Chosen One>

- Skills (Exclusive): <Dream>, <Nightmare>

- Skills (Non-Exclusive): <Nil>

- Items Equipped: <Rock>, <Enchanted Rock>

- Alignment: Neutral

[Additional Information]

"How did I get the second item, though? And how come I didn't need to spend as much as the last time?"

If I had to guess, I would say it was the slight difference in time I had left unaccounted for.

Even though I remembered when exactly I started the ~Lucky Draw~ in my last attempt, I didn't record how many seconds each round took me, and how long it took for me to respond to them.

The ballots were constantly shifting in ~Lucky Draw~, so even a single second interval could make or mar a person.

'To think I still managed to get Rock for the second time! I'm so lucky!'

I never thought I'd be so happy to get an item like Rock, but considering the alternative of spending so much and receiving nothing, this was far preferable. seaʀᴄh thё Novelƒire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Alright, then. Since I've gotten this much... it's time to move on to the next phase of the plan."

There was no longer any need to observe the Demons and their movements. I had been doing so for some time.

What I needed to do now was to Level Up as fast as possible.

And to do that in the most efficient way possible, I needed to buy something from the System Shop.

It was something I wanted to buy during my last run, but since I had wasted so much money already, I decided to make do without it.

However, now that I had just the right amount of spare change to use, I needed to buy the item.

[Invisibility Potion (Lowest Grade)]

<Price Per Unit: 50 C >

<Unit Selected: 3>

{Total Price is 150 C}

~Will You Proceed With The Payment?~

[Yes] [No]

Of course, my answer would be "Yes"

And with that, I purchased my guarantee for getting far better results in this round, also reducing the chances of dying.

[Item Information]

Name: Invisibility Potion (Lowest Grade)

Special Effect: Grants Invisibility For 3 Minutes

Durability: 1 Time Use

[End Of Information]

Since I couldn't afford to splurge my money on more expensive things, this Item would have to do.

'The Low Grade one gives Invisibility for 10 minutes, and it costs 150 C...'

If I calculated the cost, certainly it gave me one additional minute as a bonus. At face value, it would seem like the smart choice.

'But I'm unsure of how thing will fare once I go out. Will I really be able to hunt Demons for 10 minutes straight? What if I have to retreat before the 10 minutes are over? What if I don't encounter any Demon during the ten minutes? The effects would be wasted!'

Most importantly, however, I had to consider my physical limitations.

Throwing two Rocks with all my strength would certainly drain me, especially since I would be concentrating very hard on the target.

With that in mind, it would be better to take things one step at a time.

'With Invisibility, I can get closer to the Demons and get cheap shots at them. It should help me Level up faster.'

I wouldn't activate the Invisibility until I was certain I needed to. I wasn't going to stray too far from my base, and I would retreat once it remained ten seconds before the invisibility wore out—not too close a call.

The best part about having invisibility was that I didn't have to wait until evening to begin my hunt. I had already recognized the pattern of movements that the Demons employed in this area.

As long as they didn't see me exiting and entering my base, I would be able to hunt them down without restraint.

"Alright, Mikey. It's time for round two!"

*

*

*

[A/N]

What do you think of Mikey's journey so far? Is there anything you'd like to see?

I hope you're enjoying the story so far, so please comment your thoughts.