Chapter 3:
The First Battle In The Dungeon
Another week has passed. It was for work, so it was unavoidable.
And after work, I went to the dungeon lightly, but don't underestimate dungeons. The news reported that the number of missing people in dungeons has been increasing.
Furthermore, the world's major powers are becoming increasingly tense, fearing that this might trigger a war.
Japan is in a similar state of confusion, with the JSDF in various areas working at near full capacity in response to the dungeon, and the wide variety of commentators on the TV show was arguing amongst themselves about how the government should be firm in times like these, against commentators who said that this was overkill.
In any case, everyone felt fear and anxiety, and the situation seemed perilous as if they were about to fall into a state of doubt and anxiety.
I had a secret dungeon in my possession, and while working diligently on my daily tasks, I used the time I didn't spend in the dungeon to gather information. Specifically, I went online to search for information. As a friendless commusho, that was the only way to get information.
However, it seems that regulations are now being imposed in various areas. If you try to upload a video of the inside of a dungeon, the goverment will delete your account immediately. However, some people still persistently upload videos about dungeons on the Internet, and I could get some information from those videos.
And they are very informative.
Those videos said that anyone who enters a dungeon automatically acquires a skill called [Status]. That is an excellent way to see how strong yourself at a glance.
Naturally, I was qualified for this because I had entered the dungeon, and I could use my status. So here is my current status.
Level 1
Race: Human
Strength: 12
Stamina: 10
Knowledge: 8
Mental Strength: 13
Agility: 10
Luck: 3
Motivation: 120
Yeah, it's hard to say since there is no comparison, but adult male status at level 1 is around 10.
Let's look at them one by one.
First, let's look at muscle power. Yes, strength is power. The value is 12, which is not bad considering it is above 10. Next is stamina or endurance. That is almost the same as the RPG games I've been familiar with since elementary school, so it's easy to understand. The number is 10. Not too bad. Perhaps my numerical value was higher because I was involved in club activities during my school days.
Knowledge is probably erudition or intelligence. The number is 8. A single digit. What a fool I am! It makes me sad for me to see numbers like that. But I have a lot of mental strength. The number is 13. Oh, that's the highest number I've ever seen! Combined with my knowledge, it's barely double digits, I think it's not bad.
Agility is speed. The number is 10, which is also neither good nor bad. And what's with the luck of 3? I'm so unlucky! I wonder if it's because I'm so unlucky that my mental strength has naturally increased. Oh, I'm starting to cry.
And finally, helplessness is 120. I feel sadness. Yeah, hey, why is it like that? And it's so high by far. What's with the three digits? I wonder if they all have this ability value. Is it just me? Is it just me?
If it's different for some people, is it love or sadness?
Well, that's all I have right now. I have many thoughts about my ability level, but let's accept reality. The fact that it's low now means there is plenty of room for growth in the future. Think positively.
"Hmmm…that's right. I have the dungeon all to myself! Then there are plenty of chances to improve my abilities!"
I clenched my fists and looked up to the heavens with tears in my eyes.
Then it's time to dive into the dungeon.
But I think I was right to keep my distance from the dungeon for the past week because there is dungeon in my house. I have a dungeon at my home for myself.
It is not unusual for me to have trouble sleeping at night because of the mental tension and fear. And then, while I was sleeping, the refrigerator would open. And a big black monster would crawl out of the refrigerator and bite me on the head! I would wake up to a nightmare. How many times did that happen?
I was sleeping right next to the refrigerator in my 6-mat room.
However, thanks to these experiences, I gradually became accustomed to the fear and felt prepared to dive into the dungeon.
Furthermore, although we did not enter the combat zone, I had already brought the parts and materials I purchased last week into the front room. I have also confirmed that it is safe to leave things here.
First, I put on the equipment I had left in the front room. In addition to the motorcycle helmet, I put on a piece of armor covering the lower half of my body made of vinyl chloride pipe and bent down to make sure there were no defects. Yes, I had made and adjusted it many times, so there was no problem.
It may look a little poor, but no one is looking at it. So there is no need to worry about it.
Let's go to battle with monsters to become stronger!
["Puru-puru-puru…ting ting ting"].
After advancing through a stone passageway about 4 meters high and 4 meters wide, I soon found a slime. It was time for a battle. I immediately got into a fighting stance.
Specifically, I took down the blue plastic bucket with a lid that I had brought on my back, opened the lid, and put it down. Next, I quickly approached with two clotheslines with bird nets strapped to the ends, scooped up the slime, and tossed it into the trash can.
Then, I quickly put the lid on it.
"Pyuuigiiiiiii!"
[Boom! Bakko! Gosu!"}
The slime trapped in the polyethylene bucket is violently rampaging inside.
I had put a lot of undiluted strong acid toilet cleaner in the polyethylene bucket with the slime in it. Yes, in other words, an acid attack. But the slime was still going wild. Maybe acid attack is not so effective against slime.
After a minute or two, the slime is still in good health. It is still alive and well.
Even so, it seems that it cannot so easily destroy the trash can made of thick polypropylene, which is a relief. After four minutes, the attack gradually weakened, and it became quiet.
I gently took off the lid of the trash can to see what had happened and found a blue slime soaked in a greenish strong acidic toilet cleaner. I saw the slime was soaked in green acid toilet detergent, but although it was a little tired and weak, it did not seem to have been harmed by the acid. And when it realizes that the lid has been opened, it goes berserk again.
[Boom! Boom! …"]]
"Unnuh? Then how about this!"
I crushed the container and poured chlorine bleach into it through the small opening, then pushed the bucket's lid down.
["(Juuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"]
"(Pyuuugiiiiiii! Pyuugiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
Oh…! This time it seems to have worked. The unpleasant pungent smell of chlorine and acid mixed leaking through the cracks was a bit of a stench to the nose, but I persevered.
I wanted to try this in order, but the slime got out of control, so I got impatient and mixed the acid and chlorine. By mixing acid and chlorine, I made chlorine gas, which is dangerous.
Finally, the slime died and the polyethylene bucket became quiet.
Yes, a very egregious method of attack, even for me. But I think there is no need to go head-to-head with a monster. After all, since I was going to challenge dungeon monsters solo, I had to defeat the enemies as efficiently as possible. Well, this is an experiment for that purpose.
I had already learned from the internet that monsters attack humans as soon as they see us.
If that is the case, when I'm sandwiched between two monsters, even if I ask them to wait for me because it is not fair to play two against one, they will not wait for me even a single time. So this is not inhumane at all.
After enough time had elapsed and the scene had quieted down. I check for any poking and prodding, then opened the polyethylene bucket lid to find that the slime had disappeared, not even a shadow. Instead, I could see a single piece of what looked like a BB gun pellet sinking to the bottom of the bucket.
"Ho-ho-holy crap… It looks like we've defeated it!"
I have successfully defeated the slime.
The slime was still alive and well even after being soaked in strong toilet acid detergent for a while, but it was no match for the sodium hypochlorite contained in chlorine bleach. But, well, the acid didn't seem to work at all, and I should have tried chlorine first.
But it was a good decision, although I thought the result would be neutralization, which would have halved the effect. So it was still effective enough.
The mixture of hydrochloric acid and chlorine should have produced chlorine gas. However, it is hard to imagine that slime, which is like a protozoan amoeba, breathes through its lungs. The decisive factor was sodium hypochlorite, a strong alkali found in chlorine bleach. It dissolves fats and proteins very strongly.
When I picked up the object at the bottom with tongs, I found it to be a red translucent stone. Well, it must be a drop from the slime I defeated. I rinsed it with water from a plastic bottle I had prepared and put it in my pocket as my first loot of the dungeon.
……….
"Pyugiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
Then I caught the slime again and threw it in the bin. I throw away the liquid used earlier, and this time I use chlorine from the beginning. It's a sodium hypochlorite attack. Chlorine bleach is usually diluted with water to disinfect rags and remove stains. But this time, since I was dealing with a monster, I used the undiluted chlorine solution.
When I opened the lid, I found the slime had lost its original shape and only the nucleus was floating in the bleach. I poked it with tongs to destroy it. A puff of smoke appeared, the volume of the liquid that the slime had melted into decreased, and I saw a red, translucent BB bullet again.
"Same again…"
I picked them up with tongs and dropped them directly into a plastic water bottle since it was too much trouble to wash them. I had defeated two slimes, but my level had not increased when I checked my status.
"Hmmm… maybe I need to hunt a little more?"
But after defeating the slime twice, I got the hang of it. The attack power of sodium hypochlorite against slimes is also perfect. Then let's go hunting like a champ!
…….
And so I killed 12 slimes.
It is an easy job to capture slimes with a catching net and throw them into a polyethylene bucket. A complete victory, taking no damage from the slime's attacks. The best I could do was to get a little pain in my nose and throat from the chemicals I handled.
I decided it was time to call up my status then checked it, and found that my level had reached 3 before I knew it.
I didn't pay special attention to it, but there was no fanfare like in a video game, nor was there any system message in my brain. I was not particularly bothered by this. I can't help but think that it would be nice is that I'm completely addicted to that kind of game.
"Okay, let's go back to the front room to check the status carefully…"
Well, I'm happy to have made a successful first impression. The first time I went back to the front room, I carried a clothesline on my shoulder and dragged the trash cans with me.