19 Ruined Flower Field
"Hey!"
The voice of Lyrica broke the silence in the flower field, the three earth slimes nearby heard her call.
"You idiots like throwing yourselves and destroying whatever's in your way, right?" Lyrica beckoned. "Then try and break me!"
Boing~! Boing~! Boing~!
There's no telling if creatures such as slimes can understand human language. But as soon as Lyrica provoked them, the earth slides did not hesitate to charge at her.
"They're Lv. 5 slimes, Lyrica." The voice warned. "They can destroy things that are even bigger than them."
"I know."
Lyrica saw what each slime can do and how powerful they are before. She only put more attention to the flare and lightning slimes because they appear more dangerous.
Earth slimes are capable of turning boulders or any solid objects into rubble. But its attack patterns are so linear and easy to read like the aqua slime, hence she didn't give the brown slime much attention.
But now, Lyrica's new ability, heavy metal, looked as though it was calling for the earth slimes' incredible strength and simplicity.
Boing~! Boing~! Boing~!
"That's right, come!"
Lyrica didn't raise any guard, intending to take the first strike head-on.
One of the three slimes she called upon went and tackled Lyrica right in her stomach.
"Ugh–!"
Lyrica groaned softly as she got pushed back by the earth slime.
HP: 92.5%
After witnessing her HP being reduced by 2%, Lyrica immediately raised her arms to protect herself from the other two brown monsters.
Zzoom! Zzoom!
Lyrica got pushed back once again, and the rough sound of her shoes scraping through the ground filled the land.
HP: 91%
Again, Lyrica stole a glance at her HP and saw that it got reduced to 91% after receiving a simultaneous attack from the earth slimes. Fortunately, she had her guard up. Otherwise, the damage could be more than what she initially received.
[Heavy Metal Will End In Five Seconds]
Lyrica watched as the countdown of Heavy Metal appeared in the corner of her sight.
"Time's up."
Five seconds later, Heavy Metal stopped playing. The magic barrier wore off, and the weight that was slowing her down as well as the increased durability disappeared.
After that, Lyrica started jumping out of nowhere, and a smile formed on her lips.
"I feel light."
It's all because the barrier was no longer putting weight on her body, and her strength have greatly increased, making her feel lighter.
Boing~!
"Crap!"
One of the earth slimes came and threw itself at Lyrica.
Zzoom!
The earth slime went straight for Lyrica's head.
"Woah!"
But she's able to dodge the slime by lunging to the ground.
Boing~! Boing~!
The other two slimes, however, seemed like they were waiting for that exact moment.
"...!"
Zzoom! Zzoom!
Gritting her teeth, Lyrica rolled out of the way, avoiding the brown slimes' attacks successfully.
The two earth slimes pulled themselves out of the hole they created. But again, Lyrica's attention was not on them.
Lyrica looked at her agility stat. "So this is the speed of 20 AGI."
It was only after Heavy Metal finished playing that Lyrica got to see the effect of 20 AGI. Without AGI reduction, she was able to quickly avoid the slime trying to hit her head, as well as the other two looking to pound her to the grassland.
The three earth slimes approach Lyrica all at once. It doesn't look like they're giving up with their assault anytime soon. Stubborn creatures.
Growwwwll~!!
"Huh? What's that?"
A growling noise was heard so loud, that the voice and even the slimes were left wondering where it came from.
"There should be no other monsters in the flower field except for the slimes." The voice paused after noticing that Lyrica isn't moving a muscle. "Hmm? Lyrica?"
The voice wondered why, but she can't find a reason as to why Lyrica just froze in one spot like a statue. But when she added the loud growling noise in the picture, a thought struck the voice's mind.
"Lyrica... that loud, growling noise..."
"I can't help it, I haven't eaten since the night before I came here." Said Lyrica with a blank face.
Just like what the voice suspected, the growling noise came from Lyrica. More specifically, within her stomach.
Lyrica left her part-time job due to all the stress she was getting from hearing about other people's troubles. Since then, she tried to spend her savings as little as she could, eating only instant noodles all day and night. On the day before she encountered the voice, Lyrica had used up all the money she saved, leaving her no choice but to go through the night without eating anything.
"I see. Sounds like you need to gas up."
Lyrica looked around. "It doesn't look like there's anything to eat here though."
Boing~! Zzoom!
Boing~! Zzoom!
As the three earth slimes continue their futile attacks against her, Lyrica came up with an idea.
"The aqua slimes!" Lyrica uttered. "They can help quench both my hunger and thirst."
"Perhaps they can. But to do that, you have to endure getting hit by a strong water vortex in the face."
"You're right." Lyrica grew despondent. "How troublesome..."
The girl crouched, avoiding the earth slimes' unending assault.
"If only the aqua slimes weren't so violent..."
Lyrica looked at her HP once more.
HP: 91.1%
"I also need to find a way to heal up fast."
Lyrica's body can heal by itself, just like any living being. But seeing how slow the process was, having something to help her heal fast would be ideal.
"That's enough playing with you guys."
She grabbed one of the slimes in mid-air, soon after dodging its attack with a quick sidestep.
"Ha!"
Crash!
Lyrica slammed the creature on the ground so hard, that it sounded like she created a mini earthquake, sending tiny rocks and dirt flying. After that, the slime dissipated, as if the land swallowed the creature.
[You Have Defeated An Earth Slime - Lv. 5!]
[You Received 550 EXP!]
Zzoom!
"...!"
Another slime tried to hit Lyrica, but the girl simply stood up and took a few steps back to avoid the earth slime.
Boing~! Boing~!
"Fly!"
Without wasting any moment, Lyrica went and kicked the slime like a soccer ball before it could even go at her again.
Whooosh!
"Crap..." Lyrica's face turned sour as she watched the slime flying straight for the array of flowers.
Lyrica wanted to send the earth slime flying in the sky, but with her lacking the skill to do a proper high soccer kick, she ended up sending the slime at the blooming flowers.
The sound of plants being torn apart as the earth slime skimmed through the flower field rang through Lyrica's ears.
[You Have Defeated An Earth Slime - Lv. 5!]
[You Received 550 EXP!]
Lyrica let out a sigh of relief after hearing the system speak. "Finally it died."
"Thank goodness."
"But still, the damage is quite extensive." Lyrica looked at the spoiled flower field with guilt in her eyes.
"It's all right." The voice told Lyrica. "It does happen sometimes. No need to concern yourself over it."
Lyrica turned around, facing the last earth slime.
Zzoom! Zzoom! Zzoom!
The girl dodged the earth slime three times before grabbing the creature after its last futile attack.
"This time, you're flying for real."
Lyrica threw the earth slime to the sky with great force. And as the creature started descending, Lyrica clasped her hand into a fist.
"Fly!"
The girl went and gave the earth slime a powerful left. The collision between the slime and Lyrica's fist sent it flying one more time. This time, however, the earth slime disappeared before it could fall back to land.
[You Have Defeated An Earth Slime - Lv. 5!]
[You Received 550 EXP!]
Lyrica exhaled after finally getting rid of the monsters.
> Acquired EXP: 3,499
> Required EXP: 10,750
> Total EXP Earned: 59,049
Exhausted and starving, Lyrica sat on the ground, checking over her EXP.
"It still needs around 7k EXP." Said Lyrica, panting. "I could go for more, but I'm quite exhausted and hungry, and the fact that my HP is not at 100% bothers me."
"It bothers you that much?" The voice asked in wonder.
"I don't like the idea of not having full HP, especially the fact that it indicates my well-being. My health." Lyrica stated.
Lyrica's always cautious when it comes to her character's HP in video games. She doesn't let them fall below 50% because it makes her feel vulnerable, weak, and easy to beat.
Now that her HP indicates her own life, Lyrica could not help but be more cautious about it.
"I think I can understand." The voice told Lyrica. "But having your HP shown can also help you in some way."
"Hey, can't you just use Hymn of Life on me again?"
Lyrica asked the voice as she remembered her Hymn of Life ability.
"I know my condition wasn't as serious as before, but surely you can do that again, right?"
The girl understood how powerful the Hymn of Life was. Who doesn't? Her exhaustion was doubled, and the pain felt like she was dying, but the instant the voice chanted her ability, Lyrica's health was brought back to top condition.
Lyrica thought using such a powerful ability on a mere 9% missing HP would be a waste. And so, if the voice were to refuse or say she cannot do it anymore, Lyrica will simply accept it.
"I'm sorry, but I can't do that anymore." The voice apologized.
"I see, It can't be helped, then."
Lyrica accepted the voice's apology just like she said she would. After that, the voice added:
"To tell you the truth, my only purpose is to bring you in Alteria and let you figure out things on your own." The voice mouthed. "Helping you out is against our rules."
"Rules, you say? Then why help me?"
The voice paused as the girl asked her another question. A question that made the voice seem like she was trying to find the right words to respond.
The voice breathed air. "Let's just say that I took a liking to you."
In response to the voice's answer, Lyrica crossed her arms and began shaking her head in decline. "Sorry, but I don't swing that way."
"No, that's not what I meant!" The voice denied. "Anyway, you said your HP bothers you, right?"
Lyrica nodded in agreement.
"I know a place where you can eat, heal, and get more EXP."
