Slime Mania

The type of magic Noir just learned was called body reinforcement magic. It's a spell that allows the user to possess a stronger physique by embedding mana around the conjurer's body or limb.

Although this type of magic is technically classified as unique magic, as it doesn't have a natural 'element' per se, almost everyone can learn it. Even someone without an affinity, as long as they have the necessary mana for it, can learn it.

However, it is commonly referred to as a technique rather than a magic type, which magical scholars debate on. As such, the more common name for the technique is Aura while some experts would refer to it as body reinforcement magic.

And although everyone can learn this skill, every technique differs somewhat from another. Some are more speed-focused and others are defence focused. It simply depends on the person.

Most adventurers use the most basic version of this skill, gained through years of adventuring and hard work, but martial artists can use a superior version of this through training. That's not to say adventurers can't reach the same level, but martial artists tend to focus on this aspect.

'As for myself, my Aura is very unstable and not reliable, but I think mine's speed orientated,' saying that, Noir's Aura could barely be considered as one. The reason for that was because of his low mana reserves. He could barely maintain his Aura for four minutes before he loses control and it fades away.

'Though if I focus on using my mana on just my legs, I can double the time but the rest of my body would be at risk, which is to be expected,' Still, even with its limited use and mana consumption, it was diamond in the rough to Noir.

'Now I don't have to worry about my legs too much,' Noir was happy about that fact. For him, he has been holding himself back in his kicks thanks to the worry he has about his legs. He's been taking extra care of them whenever he's injured or tired as he's scared of being immobilised again.

He had just come out of being crippled so it was understandable, but he became somewhat of an irrational fear for Noir to become immobilised again.

'You don't know how important something is until you lose it after all.'

He had such sombre thoughts as he was still walking through the first floor of the dungeon. It only took a couple more minutes for him to finally find something new to change in the scenery

"Frii~."

In front of him was another Slime, but this time it was a light shade of green as opposed to the earlier blue. It was jumping around with a peaceful expression on its face, but Noir knew its facade wasn't real.

It was a wind slime this time and One of the more annoying slimes for adventurers to deal with.

'They tend to fly in the air and attack with wind attacks or just fly away,' Not only that but they're able to repeatedly attack in the air. The only positive note is that the damage they do isn't much, however they tend to knock people backwards.

At least that's what the normal Wind Slimes are. With how the dungeon acts, this could be completely different.

'Let's try gauging its attack patterns for now,' Noir thought as he was watching the Wind Slime peacefully hopping around without much care of its surroundings. Although its body was made out of wind, it was still tangible, which was perfect for Noir.

Noir picked up a nearby sturdy-looking rock before enhancing his legs with his Aura. Once he was finished with his preparations he kicked the rock towards the Slime

"Friiii?" With a clean arc, the rock hit the slimes back and knocked it forward, making it collide with the wall. It made a loud confused noise in what seemed like anger as its peaceful expression replaced with anger.

Green ripples of wind started to appear as Noir immediately hid behind the cover of a nearby large rock. Loud noises were followed before it soon died down.

Those were wind slashes the slime was making and if any of those made contact with him then it would most likely rip him to shred.

'Yup, not your average slime,' Noir commented as he looked at the marks left behind the boulder he was hiding behind. If any of those hit him then it would most likely rip him to shred. Just like the Water Slime, it caused about an inch deep cut on it.

Which confirms that these Slimes are stronger than their brethren, but that doesn't mean they're undefeatable. Thanks to Noir's years playing football, he's able to kick the rocks with near-perfect accuracy, albeit he is rusty. Added with the fact he can protect his legs with Aura, he doesn't have to worry about kicking the rocks at all.

After a few more stones to the face did the wind slime finally perish and in return, he received a lime green core.

'And wind slime core secured.'

Noir quickly picked up the item before finding some cover to rest up. He was a little exhausted from using his mana. Fortunately, since he had so little mana, it didn't take long for him to regain it. After some rest, he stared at the lime green mana core and applied some of his mana to it.

A small breeze formed in Noir's hand as he looked slightly impressed.

'It's like a fan but it could still be useful. Maybe if I have a couple more of them then I could make something with these?'

Noir thought that as he placed the slime cores in his pocket. He was finally ready to explore the rest of the floor.

>\/<

After a few more minutes, there was finally a change in the scenery. The dim tunnel that had nothing but rocky walls and random large stones now had a light at the end of it.

'Something else that's different from what I remember,' Noir thought as he carefully approached the room. His eyes were stinging from the light thanks to how dim the tunnel was prior.

After some time his eyes finally adjusted and he was able to see what was in front of him properly. From just the entrance, the room looked as though it was split into two parts.

On the left side, it was full of trees and greenery. On the right side, there was rocky terrain with pools of water nearby. It was a mismatch of environments that looked like they were taken from different jigsaw puzzles and placed together.

As for the ceiling, when Noir looked up he saw it was a couple of metres high. The ceiling was made out of the same stone as earlier but every ten or so metres there was a stone that was shining and most likely creating the artificial cave light.

'I should stop being surprised now huh. Even so, this is fucking awesome,' Although he already knew the chances of the dungeon floor itself changing was likely, the scenery he was looking at was just that amazing for him. Much different than seeing it behind a monitor.

'Even so, it really begs the question: What kind of world is this and how much of canon would change?' Although everything before was Noir being suspicious of this world, what he was seeing was a slap of reality he needed to believe he was in some kind of alternative universe. Which begs another question.

"Does Olivia even exist?"

It was something that's been burning in him while he was walking to the dungeon. If Olivia wasn't in the dungeon, then his chance to get her skills would disappear entirely. That means he wouldn't be able to do half of the things he wanted to accomplish.

'If that happens then it sucks. I'll have to ask the Great Sage once I get back, but that doesn't mean I can't do some of my projects.'

Although some of his plans would be ruined without Olivia, there are other ways to accomplish them by using his Great Sage skill.

It just means it would take significantly longer

'Welp, let's go explore for the time being. I don't think it's possible for me to go to the second floor today, but let's get-,' While Noir was thinking of what he could do, for the time being, he heard the sound of rocks falling before he put his guard up. He unsheathed his longsword and waited to see if any other sounds followed but nothing was there.

Though that wasn't enough to make him think it was the wind or something. As such he slowly shifted to his left side to get a better view while using the trees as covers.

It was there he finally found out the reason for the sounds. There were three rock-like creatures that are in the shape of a blob with protruding rock stalagmites on top of them and the same cheerful expression the Water and Wind Slime had. Although, unlike the other Slimes, these were noticeably shorter than their kind.

'Rock slimes. I fucking knew it,' Noir mentally sighed as he stared at the Slimes. They're smaller than the rest of its kind but that doesn't mean their strength is less. They're usually the toughest to deal with due to their hard exterior. Not to mention that getting hit by one of their attacks would literally feel like getting hit by a rock.

"!!!"

Just when Noir was thinking of a way to get around them to explore the rest of the area, they slimes noticed him. Instantly afterwards, they made a shrew noise before they started rolling towards him. If they hit Noir, the chances of breaking a bone are high.

"And they're fast too," Noir just barely rolled to the side to dodge their rollout attack before quickly getting back on his two feet as they weren't finished with just one attack.

'Fucking hell they're quick. Using my sword against them won't do me any favours. This ain't a game where weapon durability doesn't exist. If I use my sword it most likely would dull or break as time goes on against them,' While dodging the three slimes attacks, Noir was looking for an opportunity to run but they weren't giving him any chances. They would either all pincer attack him or go after him one at a time. If it wasn't for him applying his aura into his legs, he wouldn't have been able to dodge against them in the first place.

"Chrriiiri!"

One of the slimes made a weird noise, but Noir didn't have a chance to see what it was doing as he was busy dodging the other two slimes. He kicked a nearby stone that hit a nearby rock slime, causing a shift in its momentum.

'So I can disturb their attacks,' Noir smirked at the prospect before his instincts started ringing as he tried rolling to the side to avoid a rock the size of a car tyre. However, he was a little slow in moving and thanks to his poor footing, he got lightly grazed by it.

'Fuck, that hurts,' But getting grazed by rocks isn't something to laugh about. This battle was already a lot tougher than any of his previous fights.

"Kch kch," another sound came up as two of the slimes started rolling again with one at the back lines to conjure up more earth attacks. Noir ran behind a boulder and climbed above it as he tried something a little risky to get out of his current predicament.

He ran towards one of the trees and waited there to let the slimes catch up to him. Two of the slimes were coming from the same direction this time. Once they both got close by, Noir kicked a nearby stone as hard as he could. It hit one of the Rock Slimes which caused it to redirect its trajectory, making it hit into its ally.

The two of them collided, but their momentum was still heading towards a tree. As a result, they crashed into the tree and took a chunk of wood out of it.

Without looking back, Noir slid to the side to pick up a nearby rock and kicked it while in the middle of sliding at the Rock Slime in the backline. His accuracy was a little rusty, but he was able to hit it while it was in the middle of gathering mana to make another attack.

Thanks to this, it wasn't able to complete its attack and misfired onto itself. The large boulder above its body landed onto it, causing the Slime to take damage and become disorientated.

'Good, I have a chance now,' Noir smirked before dashing towards the unbalanced Rock Slime. When it finally regained grip of its situation, it was already too late as it got kicked up in the air.

'Chrriiiiii?' The Slime made a confused noise as its body was lifted up by a simple touch from Noir's foot, but that wasn't the end. While it was still in the air, Noir performed a roundhouse kick, sending the Slime flying like a pinball. It ricocheted on one of the boulders before crashing into its Slime brethren.

Seeing that as a perfect chance, Noir started running.

'Fuck that hurts!' Noir complained as his right leg started to bruise. His Aura was nearly expended and if he didn't run now he'd be screwed. He couldn't go through the tunnel as that would make him vulnerable to the slimes that could simply run after him, so he had no choice but to go deeper in the room while using the trees as some form of cover.

"Chrriiiii!"

While he was limply running away, the Rock Slimes were still targeting him, but thanks to the damage they've taken but they weren't as fast as before. Eventually, he was able to escape from them, but in turn, he collapsed as soon as he found cover.

'Jesus that was tougher than I thought,' Noir was breathing heavily from escaping. Even when considering his fights in his past life, this was the closest experience he had to death. Had he made a single mistake and not escaped from the Slimes attacks, he would've been beaten to a pulp.

Not to mention he was beginning to get low on mana. If not for his Aura, he wouldn't have been able to dodge as accurately as he did.

'I have to be more careful around those rock slimes. If I want to defeat one, I have to break into their rock shell and pierce through their innards,' After regaining some of his breath, Noir started thinking of ways he could deal with the rock slimes. Normally using a weapon would be ideal against them, but as they're made by the dungeon itself, the current Noir couldn't fight against them with just his swordsmanship.

He didn't want to just rely on kicking either. His mana reserves are too small currently. If he makes a mistake with how much mana he has left, the chances of his legs breaking from the stress are high.

'I need to level up if I want to deal with the rock slimes. Unless…' It was then Noir made a smirk on his face as he recalled a little strategy he used to do whenever he was playing his videogames.

'Good old guerilla tactics. That's something I could do whenever I see the Rock Slimes. It's a slow process, but as I level up the more options I'd have to deal with them,' It was one of his favourite tactics. One, because it was easy to administrate as long as you know the layout of the area, and two, because the more targets there are, the more chaos there would be, which makes guerilla tactics perfect for him.

'That being said, that's something later down the line. I should focus on hunting Water or Wind Slimes. Ideally Water Slimes since those are less annoying compared to Wind Slimes,' For the time being it would be unwise for him to hunt rock slimes when they easily overpower him. Grinding up his level was more of a priority if he wanted to go deeper into the dungeon.

He had already met three of the four basic elemental slimes and he knew the last one was arguably the most dangerous.

'Now the only one remaining is a Fire Slim-'

*BOOOOM!*

And just as if the universe was reading what Noir was thinking, a loud explosion could be heard north-west from where Noir. Lime green and red lights soon followed, much like the echoing sounds of explosions and unruly winds.

Noir didn't stand still as those noises were taking place. He quickly got up and leaned against the boulder he was using for cover as he peered over to see what caused this sudden uproar but he could more or less figure out what was the cause of it.

"Fire and a Wind Slime..."

And as he thought, the source of this battle was Fire and Wind Slimes. They were fighting between each other as elemental attacks were thrown at each other without a care of the surroundings. The trees were burning thanks to the Fire Slimes misfires and the rocks were either damaged or sliced in half by the Wind Slimes attacks.

The scene looked surreal from an outsider's perspective, but to Noir, it looked like animals quarrel of territory.

'Looks like they're battling over something. Sorta reminds me of how animals fight for territory. Where slimes are always territorial like that?'

He tried recalling some of the knowledge the previous Noir had about slimes. They're usually harmless unless aggravated and can only use weak elemental attacks. They usually don't fight amongst themselves and only stay in the area that matches their element. All of which doesn't make to what Noir is currently seeing.

The Fire Slimes don't appear near forests and normally only spawn in hot climates. It goes without saying that the firepower of both slimes are completely different to what the average Slime is capable of and their seemingly dislike for each other is another reason to find them odd.

But even if it was odd, it could also be seen as an opportunity for Noir.

'I wonder if I could use this to my advantage?'

Unlike how he was worried for his life before, Noir was smiling. He could wait for one of the Slimes to die or both be wounded before he snipes them and steals the exp. With how the situations have been so far, it seems like this would be the best option for Noir to survive while exploring the floor.

The two Slimes didn't even notice Noir's presence as he had a rock in his hand, ready to kick at when it seems like either side would lose.

"Chriiiiiiiririri," Unfortunately for him, he heard a familiar cry followed by the sound of rocks rumbling as he made a displeased face.

"Tch and they're back already."

Noir complained before unsheathing his longsword again. Although he doesn't want to use it against the Rock Slimes, he hadn't recovered enough mana to deal with them. But just like him, they shouldn't have recovered much either. Either way, if he moved from his spot he'd gain the attention of the wind and fire slimes, which would potentially get him attacked from all directions instead of helping him.

'Actually, wait, I have an idea,' Noir quickly thought of a plan after he quickly went through what he learned about the Slimes. They seemed to be more aggressive than their normal brethren which he could use to his advantage against these Rock Slimes.

With such thoughts, he got ready to run as soon as the Rock Slimes appear. Unfortunately, there was something he didn't consider in his plan.

"Ffuuuuuussssshhhhhhh."

The fact that the Wind Slime, which was busy fighting the fire slime, suddenly turned its back and started rushing towards the Rock Slimes. With a loud burst of wind, the Rock Slimes were pushed away as they now fight against the Wind Slime.

Noir, who wasn't expecting the Wind Slime to suddenly arrive, was let muddled by the situation.

'Eh? Did the Wind Slime defeat the Fire Slime?'

But he quickly snapped back to reality when he felt the air around him sizzle before he rolled to the side. In front of him was now the Fire Slime who seemed angrier than when it was fighting against the Wind Slime.

"What the? Why did they stop fighting each other and switch!?"

Noir wasn't expecting his sniping plan would fail this badly, but he had to put that thought to the back of his head as he was fighting something more dangerous than the other slimes he fought before. He wasn't sure of how to fight against it with the equipment he currently had. If he kicked it or use his longsword then it's likely either of them will burn or melt.

As such, he used the rock from before and kicked it at the Slime.

'Hriiii!'

The Slime had some reaction to the hit, but other than that it seemed relatively fine. In response to that, the Fire Slime started gathering fire mana as Noir could feel his body start burning up. It was making a fireball and it was ready to fight back.

'Now!'

Once it finally fired the fireball, it was Noir's chance to attack. He kicked the floor with everything he got and run towards one of the boulders. Just before he got in front of it, he filled his legs with mana as his speed doubled. It was at this time the fireball was closeby, but Noir didn't worry as he kicked the boulder to propel him in the other direction, avoiding the fireball in turn.

While in the air, he didn't let the Fire Slime make another attack as he got a rock out of his pocket and kicked it at the Slime. His body was horizontal instead of vertical, making it a difficult shot for Noir to pull off as he just barely misses the hit, but luckily it was enough to scare the slime to not finish its fireball as the mana dispersed.

Once he finally landed, he didn't give it another chance to form another fireball as he bolted towards it. While running he put his free hand into his pocket and picked up the water slimes core from earlier before applying some of his mana into it to make water form and splashed it at the slime.

"HRIII!" The Slime screamed from making contact with the water as some of its blobby red skin became slightly dim. Noir didn't miss that small detail as he used his longsword to target that spot in hopes to deal a lot of damage to it.

Another sound came from the Slime as it sounded like it was hurt, but because Noir was still new to the sword, he wasn't able to target the area with the water patch properly. Even so, it was a lot better than using his legs to kick the mass of heat in front of him.

He quickly backstepped after confirming his strike landed on the Fire Slime as he was getting accustomed to fighting it. He had a lot of stress building up thanks to what the Rock Slimes did to him earlier so he was going to let it out on the monster in front of him.

However, just when things were looking up for Noir, a water ball followed by a gust of wind was set off and hit the Fire Slime. Its body burst upon impact as a bright red mana core was left in its place.

"What the?" Noir could only make a confused noise before annoyance started forming in him. His prey had just gotten stolen, but he quickly pulled himself together when he heard more slimes coming.

'I gotta run for now,' Noir could barely see a water slime hiding behind one of the trees, but he didn't want to deal with it at the moment. Instead, he picked up the Fire Slimes Core before running back towards the entrance of the tunnel.

'Thanks to the loud noise, it must've attracted these slimes. Dammit, why are they stupidly stronger than anime or manga make them out to be?'

Noir had such thoughts as he ran towards the entrance. Behind him, it was only a slime battlefield where each variant was against one another with no care for the environment they were affecting.

Such was the norm for the first floor in this hidden dungeon.

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