My Refrigerator Turned Into A Dungeon

Chapter 168:

Jungle Of Paintball Field 4

""Gyu… Gyu-chi… i…!""

Both the boss Red Bloodsucking Carrot and its entourage of Blue Bloodsucking Carrots charged boldly into the suddenly appearing slime wall and got deeply buried.

Hehehe. Then, a thick slime wall that's about 80cm thick. Once firmly buried like that, there's no way they can move at all. How's that? No matter if it's a boss-level monster, once caught in the [Slime] skill, this is what happens.

Yes, one must absolutely avoid a head-on battle with a boss-level monster.

That's because boss-level monsters have fatal attacks. Like the King Cockroach's body slam or the Fly Queen's maggot tsunami. You get it.

Overcoming tough battles with formidable enemies and growing stronger is a staple of battle manga.

But trying to do that in real life would mean not having enough lives. Therefore, the risk remains a risk and nothing but a disadvantage. Hoping for growth during battle or not dying due to the protagonist's luck, or sudden reversals, are just wishful thinking.

So it's ideal to completely shut down the boss without taking any attacks. That's the ideal way to fight.

"W-Wow… Is this the power of slime!?"

""…!""

Serai-san was amazed by the overwhelming power of the slime, her surprise evident as she gasped. Ruu and Nina-san were also surprised, staring at the slime wall towering before them with mouths slightly agape.

Hehehe, that's right, young ladies. That's Mucus! This is the power of [Slime].

You all thought the [Slime] skill was a bit lame, belittling it? Oh no, even if you didn't say it out loud. I knew.

Because whenever I used [Slime], everyone made a slightly disgusted face.

Whether it was training my body with slime ropes, or injecting lubricating slime to improve suit movement. ‘There's no such thing as [Slime] skill~' was written all over your faces.

Does that mean if it was a skill like [Fire] or [Lightning], or even something incomprehensible like [Darkness] without any logic or rules, everyone would have thought it was cool?

But wait a minute.

[Fire] is a classic skill indeed. But fire refers to a state of combustion, not a substance. It probably requires tremendous energy to maintain that state?josei

That's because combustion involves extremely high energy levels.

Yeah, that means terrible fuel efficiency. While my Fire Wand is designed for high efficiency, using it with my own magic would probably require a lot of energy.

Plus, it's hot and can cause fires, you know?

Because fire emits intense infrared rays and reflects heat a lot. You can get burned without direct contact. Even if you say ‘I can neutralize what I create', controlling that magic would be very advanced. Even if you managed it, neutralizing the heat waves like reflection heat might be impossible, right? That's just heat waves. Yeah, it's not just fire itself.

[Lightning] is similar. There's no guarantee that you won't get electrocuted when using it.

Of course not. That's because it's electricity. High-voltage sparking. How do you control its direction toward enemies? Is that something you can do with magic? That's my opinion, it's impossible. Yeah, when you use it, I feel like lightning would strike at my feet, and it's over.

Let's leave out skills like [Darkness] with completely incomprehensible phenomena…

Every seemingly powerful skill has its pros and cons. Compared to that, how versatile is the [Slime] skill?

Absolutely outstanding.

It's good for defense, and offense. Sorry, it was supposed to be ‘good for offense'. Why did I get that wrong? Well, whether for defense or offense. That's depending on how you use it. The [Slime] skill is exceptionally good.

Once you get the hang of using it, you'll say, ‘I can't let go of this anymore!', that feeling, madam.

"""Gyu… Gyu-chii…!"""

"W-wow, I can't move at all."

"This is amazing, Coach!"

Indeed, the bloodsucking carrots wrapped in slime had lost their ability to move. Because being enveloped in slime, and floating deprives them of all leverage and stability points.

Hard to understand? Let's say a person's legs get stuck in quicksand, making it impossible to get out. That's because the balance between the body's center of gravity and leverage points gets disrupted, preventing smooth movements and escape.

But with quicksand, it's just the legs. When completely stuck in slime, it affects the entire body. It means struggling only wastes more energy and sinks deeper. Leading to a situation where getting out requires ‘a skill with immense force to blow it away'. But such a solution is not impossible.

But it would likely be very difficult. Since the slime gets filled with my magic, direct interference is challenging, and blowing it away would require enormous energy. Furthermore, one must be prepared for the recoil shock returning back to oneself.

"Huh…? But we're not dying at all, right?"

Indeed, you noticed something good, Serai-san. That's because we're carrots.

For a breathing organism, just this much would likely result in suffocation and being out of commission. Just like the attack of the Yokai Nuri-Kabe. But since plants can produce oxygen through photosynthesis, getting wrapped in slime doesn't easily lead to death.

So, here comes the role of [Salt]. Take this!

[Pish… Crackling… Crackle…!]

The surface of the slime-covered bloodsucking carrots is gradually covered by spreading white salt crystals.

Due to its nature, directly interfering with the body of a magical being through a skill requires a significant power difference. However, when it comes to the outside of the body, covering it like this is entirely possible.

"""Gitch…! Gitchitchi…! Milli-milli…!!""""

The salt-covered bloodsucking carrots get further tightened by the hardened slime, causing them discomfort.

Yes, that's the state of pickling. The pressure causes moisture to seep out of its body, while conversely, salt permeates into its system, weakening the blood-sucking carrots.

"Guuchii…! (Bofun!… Bufun!)"

"Hmm, the blue carrots are at this level. Ah, I forgot something important! Rock salt stake creation, Create Salt Pile…"

To deliver a final blow by thrusting the created rock salt stake deep into the red blood-sucking carrot.

With an attack against an immobilized enemy, there is no worry of missing. The stake pierced through the red blood-sucking carrot with a "squish!" and transmitted an unpleasant feeling akin to piercing flesh rather than a root vegetable.

"Now, I honor all that is put forth to me, and here shall you meet your end. Snatch it away! Skill [Usurpation]… activate!! (Gin!)"

"Gyuaaaa!!"

The strike of the rock salt stake diminishes the life flame of the red blood-sucking carrot.

The red blood-sucking carrot opens its eyes and mouth like a cavern, letting out a final scream with a face reminiscent of Munch's "The Scream", and perishes.

And…

"(Po… Powaa…)"

(Here it comes! The torrent of golden life energy…!)

Golden light particles surge from the carcass of the red blood-sucking carrot, rising in layers like bands. That's the proof of a boss-level monster. Indeed, the amount of life energy it holds is different from ordinary monsters.

Hmm, but it seems a bit less. Well, it was on the 3rd underground level, so it's not comparable to the life energy of a King Goki-class on the 5th underground level.

"…Alright! Everyone, gather up! Hold hands tightly!!"

While holding the rock salt stake in my right hand, I reach out my left hand to Ruu.

"H-Here!"

"What's going on?"

"Do we need to hold hands?"

Despite the sudden instruction, the three hurriedly hold hands. Ruu grips my hand. Ruus's hand is held by Serai-san. Serai-san holds Nina-san's hand, linking the four hands in a straight line.

"(Powaa…)"

"Wow, what's this?"

"It's beautiful…"

Yes, that's how it is. The golden life energy surging from the carcass of the red blood-sucking carrot flows through me into Ruri and the others.

The question of the monster's life energy distribution had always been a puzzle. It wasn't distributed equally like splitting a bill in a game, even when fighting alongside a monster.

But by holding hands like this, it seems possible to distribute life energy. Good, it worked out well. I don't know if it will work in other cases, but as a teacher and with them as my special students, there seemed to be a harmony that could make distribution work smoothly.

…..

Thus, the battle came to an end.

Though it was an encounter with an irregular boss-level monster, it was a flawless victory. It can be said that the experience gained from previous battles with boss-level monsters is fully utilized in this fight.

The red blood-sucking carrot disappeared, leaving behind a moderately sized magic stone as a drop and several "small black seeds."

"Hmm, seeds, huh…"

"Yeah, seems like it."

Serai-san suggested upon seeing the seed picked up and placed in her hand.

"Hey, why not try eating it? Since that monster earlier was fast, it might increase your agility?"

"I see, so it's the ‘Seed of Swiftness'… but let's not try that. It would be troublesome if a sprout came from my belly button."

"Haha, that's true!"

"Rather than that, everyone, let's check our status. Did our levels go up from the last battle?"

"Wow! Mine is now 15!"

"Me too!"

"Eh?! So suddenly!? .h! It's true!"

Hmm, it seems like the life energy distribution was a great success. Alright, let me check my status.

Current Previous

Level:  12 12

Race: Human

Occupation: Teacher

Stats

Strength:  266 266

Endurance:  258 258

Intelligence:  251 251

Spirit:  265 265

Agility:  253 253

Luck:  390 390

Melancholy:  554 554

Protection:

[Salt's Blessing] Miracle Spirit, [Pixie Queen's Blessing] Lucky Spirit

Skills:

[Strong Acid 2], [Agility 2], [Disease Resistance 7], [Usurpation], [Slime 7], [Space 6], [Strong Luck 1.4], [Footwork], [Meditation], [Salt 5], [Art], [Maggot], [Female], [Fighting 6], [Paralysis 4], [Jumping 9], [Sturdy 8], [Charm]

Titles:

[Bug King], [Saltmate], [Salty Guy], [Bug Queen], [Woman Slayer]

Hmm, what's this? It hasn't changed at all. What's going on??

"Oh, Egetu-san! I learned a skill! [Agility]!"

"Really?"

"Oh, I have [Agility] too."

"What? Even Nina-san, that's amazing."

Hmm? Now that I look closely, my [Agility] is at 2. My skill level has increased subtly. It would be nice if there were system logs or something to make it clearer.

Ah, could it be that the skill the red blood-sucking carrot had was [Agility]? And not just life energy, but did it also affect Sekai-san and the others with the skill usurpation effect…?

But why hasn't only my level gone up? I should also level up since my level is lower than Ruu and the others now.

(Oh, could it be!?)

Turning my consciousness inward towards Shiotaro and the Pixie Queen, they return a consciousness of "You'll get there.". Ah, I see.

(Huh…?)

Suddenly noticing something touching my feet, I look down to see a Red Slime poking its head out of the prosthetic leg's slime injection port, waving its hands excitedly.

Wait, what's this? Could it mean that now I need four times more experience points to level up than before!?

Come on, please tell me properly!!