Ch 15: The last tutorial begins [pt2]

"This place looks the same as the last I visited it."

In simpler words - this place still looked terrifying.

The pillars of scrap covered the whole expanse of the place, and it was hard to see anything past the mountain of scrap that covered the entire area.

Only one entrance to this yard existed, and a monkey-looking creature guarded it.

[Mini boss: Scrap monkey. It has poisonous sharp claws that can leave its victim paralyzed. Be careful if you come across it in the wild.]

The system was begging generous when it came to this description.

Soma knew of at least ten people who died because of that "Monkey-looking" creature's poison.

The past trauma of facing this creature was still itched in Soma's mind, so he was careful with it now.

He tried to walk past the monkey, but that thing noticed Soma as soon as he was in its sensory range.

-shrekkkkk

The claw headed toward Soma's face, and he barely dodged it.

A string pulled Soma back in time before the poisonous claw nicked him.

[You resisted Mechanical Monkey's poison with your poison resistance.]

'Shit! Did I not manage to dodge the attack? I am sure I did not get hit by that attack.'

The monkey flexed its claw before trying to kill Soma again.

Soma's dodging looked like a dance as he evaded the incoming claw and tried to attack with Ice Jewel.

But his attack did not have much force behind him compared to the gigantic ape before him.

Moreover, the Mechanical Monkey was made of machinery, so the cold did not hinder its moments.

'I need to freeze the moisture inside the circuits somehow, and for that, I need to stop this monkey from moving for a minute.'

Soma took in a deep breath before he looked determined.

The Monkey rushed toward him again, and a web of strings fell on top of its mechanical body.

The sudden burst of mana stopped the boss from moving.

'Now'

Soma ran forward, and his knife cut through the Mechanical Monkey's wiring.

He did not cut through it all but got his sword past a crack and into it.

Icy Mana poured into the Icy Jewel at an alarming rate.

-Skechhhhhh

The Monkey did not like it, and it instantly began to move.

Every move the monkey made was in hopes of throwing Soma away from its chest and getting free.

The strings began to cut into Soma's fingers, and he had no choice but to let go before he lost his fingers.

Soma ended up with cuts on all his fingers even when he let the strings go in time.

"Ouch, it hurts."

Soma complained and quickly took out a healing potion.

He was about to take it when the beast attacked him once more.

The Monkey was fast, and suddenly, rushing caused Soma to drop the potion he was about to drink.

'That healing potion was 1000 coins worth. This stupid boss just made me waste 1000 coins.'

Soma was pissed now.

If there was one thing he had learned about the tower in his previous life, money = power.

Soma was grinding the tutorial stages so hard to get as much money as possible before going to floor 1.

-Kekekeke.

The boss noticed Soma's frustration, and it instantly took advantage of Soma's vulnerability to attack.

[Mind's eye activated. You can now see stats and mana flow]

[Master of Sword activated.]

Soma rushed toward the Monkey, and Icy Jewel flashed with the aura.

The Monkey dodged out of the way of Soma's attack once it felt the killing intent Soma let out.

"Kek! Looks like you are finally afraid of me now! Don't worry! I will make your death as painful as possible."

Soma had a disturbing grin on his face, and it made the Monkey step back.

As a mechanical beast, it had no concept of fear or instincts.

And yet, its working system told it was in danger.

The temperature around the surroundings dropped in an instant.

Soma was using the last of his mana to slow the monkey down.

His mind's eye could see the exact spot Soma needed to attack if he wanted to kill this monster once he got past its defense.

Soma took a step forward, and the Monkey took one back.

This continued until the Monkey was backed away into a corner.

Filled with fear, the monkey finally attacked Soma.

Soma moved his finger, and a string attached to it moved.

It hurt to move his hand, but Soma bore the pain, and it worked out.

The sudden touch of the string distracted the low-intelligence monster, and Soma was able to finish it off in a single strike.

The freezing liquid inside the Monkey was starting to build pressure. 

So, when it was attacked from the outside, it burst the monkey apart and killed its power supply.

Apart from the damaged chest side, the Mechanical beast was in perfect shape, giving Soma some ideas about how to use it.

"Hmm, let me see if I can control this body."

Soma commanded his strings to straighten out the body before him, and the tug on his fingers felt painful.

Blood flowed freely down Soma's fingers, and it even got in the string as Soma tugged the Mechanical Monkey to stand up.

The body did move, but its moments were not as smooth as Soma had wanted.

"Well, this is better than nothing. Oh fuck! I should treat my hand before I lose any motor function in it."

Soma sighed before letting the strings fall and drinking a healing potion.

He was happy with his overall results and had a trophy to show for it.

"It's a shame that I will not be able to take you with me once I am done dealing with the scrap yard. I need a storage space for my puppets as soon as possible."

Soma sighed as he waited for his hand to recover.

Once he was ready to head forward, he used his strings to move the dead Mechanical Monkey and used it as a ride.

Moving the monkey while letting it carry Soma along was tricky but faster than moving on foot.

[Master of strings has leveled. 2% -> 5%. An additional bonus: You are less likely to get injured by your technique. Damage reduction 5%]

'Am I supposed to be happy because I got damage reduction for my technique? I should not receive any damage in the first place!'

Soma muffled his yells and took what the system was granting him.

This message indicated that he was one step closer to getting back his technique.

The smaller monsters walked out of Soma's way when he commanded the monkey to walk through the yard.

Beams of lights scanned the Mechanical monkey Soma was riding on, and Soma got ready to fight in case he needed to.

But there was to be so cautious.

The other machines were not scanning for the signs of life but for the bar code on the Mechanical Monkey's body.

Once they realized that the Mechanical Monkey was one of their own, the other machines let their guard down.

They even ignored Soma, who was standing on the Mechanical Monkey's paw.

"These robots are different from those inside the tower. These have no signs of life or individuality. I don't know if I should feel fascinated or sad for these robots.:

Soma sighed before he tugged the Mechanical monkey to move toward the middle of the scarp yard.

The location of the key was random, but it had to be somewhere inside the Scarp yard.

That was the only information Soma knew before he walked around to try and find it.

The more he walked around, the more Soma relaxed.

So, the tutorial decided to wake Soma up from his pleasant time and try to punch him in the face.

Another Mechanical Monkey decided to attack the one Soma was moving forward with as soon as it noticed Soma.

Strings kept Soma connected to his Mechanical Monkey, but the heavy unit had been thrown sideways because of the sudden attack.

-Screech

The enemy monkey growled as it attacked again.

Soma tried to move out of the way, but controlling a 10-foot-tall mechanical monkey was difficult.

Both mechanical monkeys collided, causing Soma to be thrown back.

He hung in the air because of the string and managed to absorb the impact the fall would have had.

The string cut into Soma's hand and arm this time, but a quick potion cured it.

Soma cut the strings and landed on his feet. He observed the agitated monster in front of him with a tired sigh.

"Great! I just dealt with one, and now I must deal with another so soon. Let's just get this over with so that I can find the key to the control room."

Soma took out his Icy Jewel and held it at ready.

The monster noticed Soma and attacked him, but Soma was ready and commanded his Mechanical monkey to defend himself.