3 – First Battle

"Monster like that are usually for higher-level players, right?" Celia asked. "We can't see the monster's level, so I'm asking."

Alan checked the game UI, which displayed [Level 1] text. "Yeah, I think so."

The Wyvern drew closer.

"Why the hell don't we meet cute slimes instead?" The woman snorted.

"As I said, we spawned in a random place." Alan turned around. "And because this game contains survival elements, it seems like running is encouraged."

Alan jumped into a chunk of concrete, leaving still frozen Celia, and her eyes widened at him. They will respawn if they die in this game, but Alan doesn't want to lose his goods, even if it's just a starter kit.

Celia started to follow the young man. "Well, I'll follow you, boss. I'm not used to games like this…. Damn, this is difficult."

Alan looked back and found Celia had trouble jumping from one rubble to another. Meanwhile, the Wyvern was already quite close.

The young man had just met this woman. But having an ally in a survival game like this was important. So, Alan chose to stop, then pressed the skill option, which had been twinkling from the beginning in his game UI. 

The gray skill icons then appeared. At the top are the basic skills with the four elements; fire, water, air, and earth. Apart from that, there are also sections on support, non-elemental, and passive skills. Those things then branched down, similar to a family tree.

"So, you decided to fight it, huh?" Celia smirked, landing on another wreckage, but lost her balance and almost fell again. "Finally, some actions."

The most logical choice would be to choose the elements of fire or wind. Fire is usually an offensive element, while wind seems to suit this environment well.

Just as Alan was about to choose one of the elements, the Wyvern turned a corner. It turned out that there was another monster that was chasing it.

"That's a bee?" Celia, already pointed her spear forward, raised an eyebrow. "How can a monster like that chase a wyvern?"

"No, it's a wasp. A big wasp." Alan corrected the woman. A bee's body will be hairy, while this wasp is bald, and its body is shiny.

Yes, the Insect is roughly three times the size of a human head.

"We have to stay alert, Celia." The young man added.

Those monsters were still chasing each other and doing it all around Celia and Alan. One of the monsters could win, then attack them.

Running was also an option, but the monsters' movements were so fast. Alan didn't want to get hit by them and fell down.

But at least Alan would have more time to choose his first magic skill. After reading all the basic skills available, Alan's attention was drawn to one of the advanced skills from the earth element.

"Interesting." The young man muttered. He felt that the skill would be handy in the future.

So, Alan picked the earth element for his first skill as a condition for getting the skill that caught his attention. He had to level up before he could choose that thing.

[Ground bullet: uses a chunk of soil for ranged attacks]

[You need to focus on the ground you want to use, move your staff forward, and imagine this skill to execute it]

"Ah, that wyvern lost." Celia hissed.

The wasp managed to sting the Wyvern's back, causing the dragon-like creature's body to dive, then land hard onto a chunk of land.

"Beware." Alan is ready with his magic staff. "I don't think that wasp would be friendly."

The black and yellow Insect faced Alan and Celia, though it didn't attack immediately.

"Have you changed your mind, Al?" Celia chuckled while twirling her spear around. "Well, whichever you decide, I'm in."

"You noticed that too, right?" Alan started his explanation. "That Wyvern could still get closer to us, even if we fled. The wasp should also be able to catch up with us too…."

Alan didn't finish talking yet. That monster darted toward them.

"Well, that makes sense." Celia jumped elsewhere and again lost her balance.

"Be careful. I will provide ranged attack assistance, Celia."

That woman jumped again and tried to stab the wasp with her spear, but that monster could still dodge. Alan focused on a lump of soil not far from him, then moved his staff at the Insect. In less than a second, the chunks flew fast and hit the wasp, making it stunned.

"Earth elements, huh?" Celia jumped for the umpteenth time, but her opponent was still able to evade, albeit barely. "A unique choice with a setting like this, for sure."

Alan and Celia continued to make combination attacks. There are no significant problems. Celia made sure to keep her distance from time to time, so Alan could shoot the monster without fear of hitting that woman.

But over time, the wasp's movements became increasingly aggressive, and Celia became too overwhelmed. She mostly dodged.

"Come on!" Celia snorted because her spear thurst didn't hit that monster again. "Can you sit pretty so I can kill you, cute bee!?"

"That's a wasp…. Celia!!!"

The wasp's stinger hit Celia, who was in the air, preventing her from landing properly on the wreckage. She barely held onto the edge of that thing with one hand.

"It's okay. This armor protected me! The sting had no effect on me." Celia's hand started to slip. She then looked down. "No, I'm not okay!"

"I'll help you! Just wait, Celia!"

Celia grimaced as her hand that was holding onto the rubble slipped again a little. "I'm waiting patiently, Al. I'm used to waiting, though not in this circumstance."

However, Alan could not immediately do that. The wasp started flying towards him. The HP bar of that monster was low due to Alan's attacks, and the young man guessed it would only take two hits to defeat that creature.

"Okay, then." Alan fired his earthen bullet again.