30 - A Necessary Action

I am broke.

Like, I didn't have much money after the first exam because I spent quite a lot getting those fire bullets to fight Khione, which, turned out quite better than I expected.

Although I didn't manage to beat her, at least I didn't die thanks to that, that's the only thing good about it.

Before, I was contemplating whether I should just spend everything on Khione or not and I decided to do it. Although, it wasn't until the fight with her that I realized I don't want to risk my life even though I don't know what would happen if I die, whether I'm 'really' gonna die or just be sent back to where I actually belong.

So yeah, decisions made, 'not really' a stupid mistake, but it's something I can learn from. And I make up for my idiotic mistake with my own creativity and by adapting to the current conditions and situations.

I know this body is weak, I get easily tired after working out. So I wasn't hoping much to depend on physical abilities. But I have a great mind and I'm creative. So I learned about other things that might be useful for me. Like magic and potions.

I suck at magic. This body does not have innate ability to possess magic even at the beginner level. The best I can do in magic is only harnessing just a thin layer of protection over my hands. That's it. So I turned to potions.

Now, my knowledge in chemistry only applies to boiling water and making healthy soup for myself. That was, however, before I learned about potion brewing in class. It's not that hard if you have the right tools and ingredients, and the right sane mind to realize the potions into something that is actually useful.

When Rufus said that my carefully planned list was just 'grocery list', he wasn't lying or exaggerating. It was true. I really was only listing the things I learned from my potion brewing class in how to make a simple tear-inducing substance from… Well, kitchen ingredients.

Yes. Kitchen ingredients. Like spices, fruit and vegetables, and herbs, those ingredients that housewives would use as cooking for their family. They're cheap, easy to find, and easily processed.

Like I said, I'm broke. So those are the only thing I can buy with my then-current saving.

The potion's effect made from those ingredients is not that much, but with the right herbs and extracts available in the laboratory, I've managed to tweak it a little bit into something more potent for humans. I wanted it to have an area of effect and really stun people for just well, a few seconds.

AGAIN, for humans. I have NEVER even considered on throwing it to the monsters that will spawn in this mission, so I didn't research what kind of effect it would have on them. I don't exactly have the time to anyway. But this thing that is displayed in front of me isn't something I have ever thought of as well.

The smaller Sujins which sizes range from adult crow to adult seagulls, are all lying on the floor without moving. Not even a single flap from any of them, not even a soft screech. The hallway is full of them and it is as if the hallway had just been turned into a graveyard with yellow miasma covering it.

To me who was already used to seeing many monsters die on screen, it's only a little spooky. Only in the sense that I didn't expect my bomb is incredibly useful to fight them. If only I had known, I would've drawn their attention to me a bit faster. But Jake doesn't seem fond of the scene.

"J-Junior, did you throw your smoke bomb at them?" Jake asked, his voice is trembling.

The yellow smoke is thin by now, and of course he would know because I've thrown one at him before. He must've been scared.

"Yeah?" I look at him and I was right, he looked horrified.

"… I-It's a different one from which you threw at me before, right?"

I pause for a moment because I don't understand the question. But then I realized that if I were in his shoes, I would be horrified to know something thrown at me can cause this much damage to others. It would make me doubt the side effect for my own body.

"Yeah." I answered. He's still going to be around me for a while, better not get on his bad side to reduce point decrease.

He heaves a sigh of relief. "Hooh… Okay." He sucks in a huge breath and covers his nose. "Let's go."

I don't want to ruin his relieved state, so I pretend. I suck in my breath and we trudge forward. Of course, it's a tear gas, so we go in with our eyes closed. But since we know that the Sujins are all dead and the hallway is straight, it's not a big deal for us to navigate. We carefully dodge and walk over the dead Sujins on the floor.

The smoke has a distinctive smell that is faint to the nose, but it's there. So when we finally get out of the smoke, we know immediately because the air suddenly smells clearer.

I knock on the door and told the survivors that it's safe, and when the door opens, Jake immediately goes in while I in the hall.

I don't want to see that female cadet's face even for a second. I don't want to get mad again. It's tiring and annoying. She's annoying and rude.

The male worker is kind enough to accompany me, although it's very obvious that he's very scared being in that hallway because of the dead Sujins are scattered on the floor.

"W-We were so surprised the monsters were flocking the hallway! I immediately closed the door to protect ourselves! What happened, Terry boy? Are you alright?" The man asked.

I was examining one of the dead Sujins, just to make sure they're really dead, before I answer. "Me happened. I throw a bomb at them and they fall down dead one by one."

"Oh… Well… I did hear something like whistle. So that was you, huh?"

I nod.

The explosion did sound like a loud whistle. It would be scary especially when it explodes in front of you.

Not me though, I feel awesome. Like heroes in any game would. Fufu.

"Are you alright? You look tattered." The man asked, looking at me with concern.

I rub my hands off the dusty feathers and stand up. "Not as tattered as the ones inside. Don't worry about me."

The man looked sad for a moment, then he asked. "Why did you yell—"

"Don't ask. I prefer you don't ask." I give him a smile. I know what he's going to ask, and I don't want to talk about it.

The man stares at me with a frown. Then he looked a bit sad for some reason. I don't know what he's thinking, but I don't care enough to ask.

Then the female workers exit the room, followed by Jake and the female cadet. She's leaning on him as she walks while he's holding her to make sure she didn't fall. Well, she did have a sprain in her ankle, so she'll be limp for a while. Potion cannot directly heal sprain because the wound is inside, so she'll have to wait until the potion works.

Our eyes meet for a brief moment, but I divert my gaze instantly. My annoyance is still there.

"Junior, let's go back to the others. The remaining Sujins should be taken care of." Jake said.

"Yes, Senior Jake. Please watch your steps, ladies and sir." I let the workers go before me.

Jake was right. The Sujins are no longer in the office area. Although, a few of them are still flying outside the window and their visible presence worries the workers. Even when I take out my gun, they still look a bit hesitant. But I urge them anyway cause we've wasted enough time already.

Rean and Patrick are already waiting by the hallway near the normal stairs. Since Patrick set the hovercraft to crash from 15th floor downward, we can only use the emergency stairs in the next floor.

After the 15th floor, players are allowed to use either use the normal staircase or emergency stairs. The only difference they had is that there are items the players can get if they use the normal one, because it's closer to the offices and players can get by easily. Although, it will be more prone to meet monsters because they're using it too, and the player's time is already consumed in collecting the items with the thought that it might be useful later.

I'm quite curious whether those items are there like in the game. But this is not a game anymore, and I only have little time before the monsters join us.

I personally don't like using the normal stairs because it's a walled stairway. I can't see if there's any enemies waiting upstairs unless I reach halfway up each floor. On the contrary, the emergency floor is designed like a spiral. It's not narrow either and there are wide spaces between each floors that I can see anything coming from below or upstairs. It's a better path for me as a gunner, because I can get more vision.

However, there 'is' actually something that I absolutely have to pick up in one of the floors upstairs. It's something very important that I cannot pass by. So we'll be using the normal stairs until then.

I just hope that we won't be stopping too long on each floor like I did with Jake before the 10th floor. It's really time wasting. But I also don't know how to say it in front of them.

"Are you alright, Terrence?" Rean asked, making me startled. "Was that a poisonous smoke bomb?"

"It must be. You saw the monsters, didn't you?" Patrick asked.

Rean nods. "I did. That's why I'm asking if Terrence is alright. He did explode the bomb in front of him."

"You did?! It's making me teary eyed just passing its dispersed form. You actually exploded it in front of yourself?! How stupid are you?!" Jake reprimands me.

I sigh. "It's necessary. And, I'm fine. It's just, I've been thinking about something else."

"What is it?"

The four cadets, including the female cadet leaning on Jake, are staring at me curiously. So I drop the bomb.

"Let's skip the floors and just go straight up."