Ren transferred them into another pseudo-space by saying several key phrases. Assuming the boy wasn't lying, all of them had the potential to learn the same skills. The new pseudo-space was similar to the previous, except for the presence of Imps. There was a cluster of the small red creatures within view. Sasha licked her lips.

"Time for some grinding," Ren said, and proceeded to sprint towards the imp. He held up his hand and a bright blue orb shot out of it like a bullet. It struck an Imp square in the chest and punched through cleanly, defeating it in an instant. He fired another one, but it merely injured the second Imp. Seems like he got a lucky shot off on the first try, but it was obvious a difference of eight levels was a big deal.

At the same moment Ren killed the Imp, a window popped up. It read, 'Your Level has gone up by 1'. Sasha dismissed it. The fact that she leveled up without doing anything meant that exp was shared in a party. With how things are turning out, anything that was common in mmorpgs would most likely apply to the gamer system.

Sasha joined the fray as the other guys rushed forward. Instead of meeting them head on, Sasha ducked to the side, running along the side of the school building where the pillars and shrubbery hid her from sight. She had always been a cloak-and-dagger player in video games, preferring stealth and ambushes over a direct confrontation. There was no reason it wouldn't work in real life, especially since she didn't have the athleticism to win in a fair fight.

She burst out of cover from behind, her heart already beating wildly. She really needed to work out more often, she thought as she brought her baseball bat down on an Imp. Ren and the guy's charge had taken their full attention, leaving them open to a side-attack.

Sasha decided to take a more stealthier approach as the others charged forward towards the Imps, opting to sneak towards the Imps while they were both surprised by the group's sudden onslaught and distracted by their attack. It was a bit of a long distance to sneak, so it would be somewhat harder with more ground to cover and would give the imps a longer chance to see Sasha.

---

Sasha Sneak: 2 Critical!

---

The distractions all seemed to provide Sasha with excellent cover and allowed her to sneak up on an unsuspecting Imp with impressive skill and speed. The Imp didn't even see Sasha coming nor did it even know she was there as she began to bring her baseball bat down onto its skull.

---

Sasha Baseball Bat: 59 - 8 Melee Weaponry - 25 (Blank Range) - 25 (Critical Stealth Bonus) = 1 (Lucky!: 1 - 1 LUK = 0)

Imp Dodge: 36

Hit! (Lucky)

Damage: 13!

---

The bat slammed into the Imp with ease, the attack feeling like it connected very well. In fact, it felt as though Sasha luckily hit a weak spot on the Imp since it hit with all of the force Sasha could put into it, the surprise she got on the creature allowing her attack to deal more damage since it couldn't defend at all. Right after her attack the Imp, which seemed banged up already thanks to Ren's and Lucian's attacks, fell down right as it let out a pained chitter. Right as it fell down the Imp vanished into thin air, having been dispatched by Sasha's attack.

Right after it fell a few windows appeared for Sasha, five appearing first and right after those five appeared, then disappeared, two more appeared, explaining the two new Skills that Sasha just received.















Sasha would feel as though her ability to sneak around stealthily increased and would feel as though the bat now fit a little better in her hand thanks to the new Blunt Weapon Mastery skill. The Gamer power seeming to increase her abilities in accordance to the skills she received, these literally being able to be felt.

Snow had been paying attention, for the most part. He had no questions throughout the lecture, except for spell casting, but that would've cost him.
He was really intent on the lesson, until the weapons were scattered across the ground. Naturally, Snow's first choice would've been the staff, but it was someone else's first pick, as well. The bookend looked interesting, but it wasn't his thing, and someone took it. His only decent choice was...
"I've read how to use on of these..." he said, picking up the bow and arrows. He tested it out, and began firing a few empty practice shots at the wall. When he turned to look at the group, he saw them, in a field, already engrossed in fighting imps.
"Ah crap." he muttered wondering how he spent so much time just trying to pick a weapon. "Hey guys, here I come!" He ran a decent way into the field, but stopped several feet from an untouched imp, and shot an arrow right at it.

Tim stopped right a short distance away from an Imp, not close enough to be in danger of it leaping to counterattack, but not far enough away either to make the shot more difficult. The bow seemed to be in really good shape as if it was brand new as were the arrows. They didn't look too sharp, due to belonging to a school club after all, but they could still deal some decent damage if shot right.

---

Timothy Arrow Shot: 11 - 5 Projectile Weaponry = 6

Imp: 100 (Fumble)

Critical Strike!

Damage Dealt: 18 Damage

---

Timothy's shot was spot on, whatever reading he did on how to use a bow seeming to work well for him as the shot was quite accurate. What made it deal much more damage was the creature stumbling as it only noticed Tim shooting at it at the last second. This caused the creature to trip up and cause its neck to be exposed, the arrow piercing right through the softer part of its tough body. It let out a loud cry of pain as it seemed to be really hurt, but the creature was still up and going, the attack being a critical strike judging by the critical that had appeared when the damage was dealt along with how much damage it did.

Two windows appeared in front of Tim now, reading as such.





Then those two windows disappeared and after that another one appeared, explaining the new skill that Tim received.

Unfortunately for the Party the Imps were able to begin a counterattack, snapping out of their surprised state and quickly beginning their counterattack. One Imp quickly turned itself, it having been near Sasha when she stealthily destroyed that one Imp. It barreled at her, charging quickly with claws bared and growling angrily. As it charged towards her it aimed its claws at her, attempting to slash at her, which if successful would probably hurt alot.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 57

Sasha Parry: 78 - 8 Melee Weaponry - 5 Skill Bonus = 63

Hit...

Damage Dealt: 12

---

The claws, unfortunately, struck true, getting past Sasha's guard and slashing her pretty badly. A red 12 appeared over her head for a moment before vanishing, indicating the amount of damage she took. It appeared that whenever anyone took damage, whether them or their enemies, numbers would indeed appear. The party were probably the only ones who could see them though. Still Sasha didn't appear to be bleeding from that strong strike, but it certainly did hurt. It was strange indeed. Was it something to do with the Gamer's Body skill? There was no time to contemplate it though since it was in the middle of combat.

Something good did come out of it though. A window appeared in front of Sasha, reading as thus. A second window appearing after that one to explain the new skill she received.





Another Imp, seeing one of them attack Sasha, charged at Sasha as well, claws bared as it attempted to strike at her as well, something that would probably be rather fatal or dangerous of it hit one more time.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 9

Sasha Parry: 20 - 8 Melee Weaponry - 5 Skill Bonus = 7

Miss.

---

This Imp wasn't so successful though. The attack was very close, but luckily Sasha was able to parry it with her bat to avoid getting hit once again, which probably would be pretty bad since Sasha would be able to tell that she didn't have a whole lot of HP left.

The Imp that was shot by Tim was quite angered by him, having pulled the arrow out and growling angry. It moved quickly on its feet and charged at Tim, who luckily was far enough away to get ready to dodge in time. While the bow really couldn't be used to parry the mp's claws the distance between Tim and the Imp was a good enough substitute.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 38

Timothy Dodge: 3 (Critical!)

Miss

---

With how far away the Imp was stepping out of the way of its sudden rush was a breeze to the point where Timothy would be able to even get back further away from the Imp so that he could set himself up for another arrow shot if he wanted to. As he performed his rather agile dodge a window appeared in front of him.



One Imp turned its attention to Ren who quickly noticed this. Right as the Imp was about to charge he quickly said "MP Armor". Suddenly a very thin, blue glow appeared just over his skin like some kind of armor. Unfortunately Ren's quick usage of the skill wouldn't give him the extra time to get ready to dodge the Imp's attack, but that seemed to be something he was prepared for anyway.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 55

Ren Dodge: 25 - 23 Acrobatics = 2

Miss

---

Ren was quite agile on his feet, easily dodging out of the way of the Imp's claw attack as its claws harmlessly slashed through the air Ren was in when he dodge its attack.

There were quite a few imps in this area, the one that Rainer had kicked was looking towards Rainer now. With a glare and a snarl it charged forward, ducking low for a moment before attempting to slash at Rainer's chest. These Imps were intelligent and not just feral beasts, seeming to possess some basic combat skills. Despite seeming like small fry enemies, these creatures were really tough nonetheless. It was also quite close to Rainer, so it would be somewhat hard to dodge its rather quick strike, a block seeming like the best option at this point.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 48

Rainer Parry (Unarmed): 54 - 16 Fisticuffs = 38

Miss

---

Despite being rather quick and the Imp already being very close Rainer was able to block the Imp's sudden and quick strike. It may have hurt Rainer's arm a little bit, but it did no real damage.

Seeing one Imp attack Rainer another followed suit, aiding what may or may not be considered its comrade, it was rather hard to tell what these Imps thought about each other as it also charged at Rainer. This one wasn't as close, so Rainer could prepare to block in time, not that the other Imp's distance advantage had helped it before.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 35

Rainer Parry: 62 - 16 Fisticuffs = 46

Hit...

Damage Dealt: 11

---

Unfortunately distance didn't matter this time as the Imp managed to slip past Rainer's guard this time and claw right at him, its claws striking deep and true and probably hurting alot. Just like with Sasha though they didn't seem to draw blood, it only just hurt and did 11 points of damage. It was clear that something strange was going on with how the Gamers themselves took damage, but destroying the Imps and living through this encounter was more important. Still something good did come out of it though. A window appeared in front of Rainer, reading as thus. A second window appearing after that one to explain the new skill he received.





There was one more Imp who now this time charged at Ren, who still was slightly shrouded in that 'skin' of blue energy. An Imp that was pretty close to Ren quickly charged right at him, giving a very loud snarl as it did so, claws bared and teeth gnashing as it aimed its claws right towards Ren's neck, Ren quickly attempting to dodge out of the way of the imp's vicious attack with all of his quick agility.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 22

Ren Dodge: 88 - 23 Acrobatics = 55

Hit! (Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 6

---

Unfortunately his fast agility wasn't good enough as the Imp seemed to move in very quickly and get a really good strike on him. A cry of pain escaped him, but the claws didn't seem to strike as deep as the blow should have allowed, the strike not seeming to do too much damage. It was probably thanks to the strange skill that Ren used, it seeming to give him some kind of armor made of energy that protected him from the majority of the blow.

"You'll pay for that!" Ren gritted his teeth to ignore the pain of the blow as he quickly tried to jump backwards away from the Imp, it taking a swipe at Ren as the white haired boy as Ren quickly moved back from it since Ren left an opening as he moved backwards to get out of the close proximity between him and the Imp, the other Imp that had attacked him as well also taking a swipe as Ren moved back.

---

Imp Free Strike: 59

Ren Dodge: 51 - 23 Acrobatics = 28

Miss

Second Imp Free Strike: 32

Ren Dodge: 19 - 23 Acrobatics = 0

Miss

---

Ren luckily managed to step back from the Imp before the sudden blow could make contact, aiming his palms at the beast. "Mana Bolt!" As he said this and aimed his palm at the creature two bolts of blue energy shot right at the first Imp that had attacked him from his palm.

---

Ren Mana Bolt: 33 - 25 Projectile Weaponry - 25 (Close Range) = 0

Imp Dodge: 29

Hit! (Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 15 Damage

Second Mana Bolt: 21 - 25 - 25 (Close Range) = 0

Imp Dodge: 43

Hit! (Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 15

---

The Imp was hit by both bolts, both of of them slamming into the creature, it crying out as it was hit by both bolts before falling down onto its back. The moment it fell it vanished into thin air, indicating that the creature had been defeated. The party could now begin their own counterattack if they wanted to, or see if they could get away somehow.

The baseball bat smashed straight into the unsuspecting Imp, striking it right at a weak spot. Sasha felt the Imp give way with a sickening crunch. The system showed that she had dealt '13' damage. Just enough to defeat the Imp.

Her joy was short lived however. She didn’t have time to recover from the heavy swing before a nearby Imp tore into her with its claws. Sasha screamed and leapt back. It felt like several lines of white hot pain were drawn across her chest, but her clothes were still intact. A red 12 appeared over her head.

"Shit, how much HP do we have?" she yelled.

"And fuck off! I don't need this right now!" Sasha cursed at the new window that popped up in her vision. She had obtained a skill called physical endurance that leveled up whenever she took damage. Great. Doesn't that mean she had to endure masochistic activities to become more durable?

Out of the corner of her eye she caught movement. The girl swung her baseball bat wildly to fend another Imp off. It connected with its claws, managing to stop it from attacking her temporarily. This was looking bad, Sasha thought. She pulled out the pepper spray from her inventory swiftly and fired it in an arc towards the Imps. Then she simply backed away until she was behind Ren and Lucian again, bat held up high to parry any attacks.

While it may not be as effective or accurate as a direct spray, an arc of the pepper spray would still have a chance to blind multiple imps since they were right next to her. It would take a little more of the spray then one direct squirt, but the results would most likely be worth it.

---

Sasha Arc Spray Attack: 27 - 8 Projectile Weaponry - 5 Skill Bonus = 14

Imp 1 Dodge: 9

Miss...

Imp 2 Dodge: 44

Hit! Blind Status Caused

---

One Imp managed to duck away in time to avoid the blast of pepper spray, but another wasn't so lucky. It got hit in the eyes, causing it to snarl and growl loudly in pain, allowing Sasha to back away to both Ren and Lucian to sort of get the group back together. As she backed away a window appeared in front of her, mentioning that her Spray Weapon Mastery skill's level increased by one.

"Observe". Ren said this as Sasha came towards them, looking at Sasha now. "You just took twelve damage, you only have 7 HP left. Ill heal you some the moment I get the chance". Despite Ren's earlier cold demeanor and clear dislike of the company of any person he wasn't heartless and did not want any of them to die. "For now just stick back behind us".

After Lucian managed to shove the imp back, he felt a strange tingling sensation course through out his body, it was like the feeling he got from that one time he went to the gym, but without his muscles feel sore...they just felt, stronger. Which all made sense as he saw the window pop up, "Oh hell yeah!" he cheered for joy, Not only had his trick worked, but he also got a strength stat increase from it, which meant that he could increase stats, without putting any points into them. Maybe I should try to push myself more often? Lucian grinned, this day just kept getting better and better.

He kind just watched as the imps decided to strike back, maybe he should of tried to block for that one chick? That would have been the nice thing to do, not like he could take any more 2 hits probably though...

"Well time for round two!" Charging at the imp that had been blinded by Sasha's pepper spray, Lucian went for a full out thrust aimed for the Imp's face. He knew he would be in some dangerous territory for when the imps decided to strike again, but he hopped to strike fear in their tiny hearts, and more importantly, gain another stat. He let out a battle cry, "AIIYAAAAHHHH!"

Lucian would easily be able to get a jump on the blind Imp as he charged forward, able to use the reach of his staff to his advantage to get a better attack on the Imp despite the short distance he was away from the Imp. The Skill Staff Mastery seemed to be doing justice here, making Lucian a little more proficient with the staff he was wielding at the current moment.

---

Lucian Staff Attack: 79 - 25 (Distance) - 4 Melee Weaponry - 5 (Skill Bonus) = 44

Imp Dodge: 97 (Fumble)

Critical Strike

Damage Dealt: 22

---

In its blind stumbling it managed to expose its weaker neck, which was right where the blow struck. The Imp fell backwards onto the ground, still clutching its hands to its face in pain from both the pepper spray and the very strong Critical Strike. Two windows appeared in front of Lucian stating that his Critical Strike and Staff Mastery skills had gone up a level by 1. The Imp was down on the ground now though allowing Lucian to get in a strike thanks to this opening and hopefully finishing the beast off.

---

Lucian Free Strike: 11 + 25 (Free Strike) - 4 Melee Weaponry - 6 (Skill Bonus) = 26

Imp Dodge: 27

Hit

Damage Dealt: 5

---

Thanks to its sudden thrashes of pain Lucian's attack almost missed. Luckily it did not though, the staff blow being able to strike true (in whatever awesome fashion you see fit Ominal). With that last strike the Imp let out one more loud screech of pain before it disappeared into thin air, implying that the beast had been defeated. There were only five more Imps now, two of them looking quite beat up and some of them seeming a little unnerved by the party of humans, but since their numbers were still equal they were still ready to fight the good fight.

Unfortunately these Imps were now being quite aggressive. Despite being unnerved by the human's sudden show in combat strength they were not backing down and before any of the others could act they were quickly on the offensive once again. Luckily there were only 5 left with two of them being quite beaten up. Of course the Imps weren't the only ones beaten up either. Sasha had taken some heavy damage and Ren was down some health as well. One imp though, seeing Lucian take down one of them with his Bo Staff, quickly rushed at him from about a few yards away, its speed allowing it to close the short distance between them quickly and aim its claws for Lucian's neck.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 57

Lucian Parry: 4 (Critical)

Miss

---

Fortunately the Staff Mastery Skill seemed to be in full affect here. Lucian would be able to easily brush the claw attack aside with a skilled movement of his staff. In fact it was skilled enough to where it actually knocked the weakened Imp down onto its back with how sudden it was, allowing Lucian an opening that would allow him to strike the now downed creature. Of course his skill with the staff seemed a little higher right now as two windows appeared in front of him. The first said that his Staff Mastery Skill's Level had increased by 1 and the other said thus:

---

Lucian Free Strike: 30 + 25 (Free Strike) - 5 Melee Weaponry - 7 Skill Bonus = 42

Imp Dodge: 72

Hit!

Damage Dealt: 7

---

It must have been thanks to the newly leveled Staff Mastery Skill, but Lucian's attack hit straight dead on, right in the creature's chest. It let out a loud 'aaagh' of pain the moment the blow connected, vanishing as if the weight and strength of the blow destroyed it. Right after Lucian destroyed the creature yet another two windows appeared, one appearing first and then disappearing, giving way to another window.





The new skill seemed strong, but also seemed to take a small chunk of MP. Still the ability to counter attack would come in handy, but how to use Active Skills was still something that was a bit unclear to all of the Gamers except for Ren. And speaking of Ren as Lucian destroyed the Imp with his skilled counter attack another Imp seemed to head straight for the young boy, teeth gnashing and claws raised. It was one of the weakened ones, but it still seemed quite angry and wasn't letting any signs of its weakness show as it barreled right towards him, aiming to strike the boy down with a powerful strike of its claws.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 13

Ren Dodge: 37 - 23 Dodge = 14

Hit!

Damage Dealt: 0 Damage (Nullified by Resilience)

---

The Imp's charge was dreadfully accurate, as was its strike, which barely managed to hit the very agile Ren. Unfortunately though the strike seemed to bounce harmlessly off of Ren, feeling more like a common scratch rather than tearing claws thanks to both his own physical resistance plus the glowing blue 'armor' of Mana around him. Another Imp though, one of these not being weakened, decided to aid what could be called a comrade, again it was unclear of how these creatures thought of one another. It also charged at Ren, the two Imps now in front of Ren making it harder for the agile boy to dodge this next oncoming strike.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 14

Ren Dodge: 2 Critical

Miss

---

Luckily Ren was ready this time. With incredible agility he managed to not only dodge out of the way with ease, but managed to get into the Imp's blindside as well. The moment he was there he saw the opening and quickly brought his knife down upon the Imp, hoping to end this creature quickly with this sudden counterattack.

---

Ren Free Strike: 18 + 25 (Free Strike) - 19 Melee Weaponry - 10 Skill Bonus = 14

Imp Dodge: 29

Hit by Half (Auto Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 15

---

Ren's counterattack was quite effective, the boy getting close to the enemy and slashing the knife along the creature's side. It let out a loud cry of pain as it clutched its side, which didn't bleed at all, and now glared angrily at Ren as it was certainly weakened, but not out.

Unfortunately another Imp saw Sasha as the 'weakest' link right now, being quite hurt herself, and charged towards her. Luckily she had backed away towards the others, so it had to cover a short distance to get to her. Still the beast was on the charge and if Sasha got hit then it certainly wouldn't be pretty.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 22

Sasha Dodge: 99 (Fumble)

Critical!

Damage Dealt: 38

---

And quite unfortunately it wasn't pretty at all. Perhaps she tripped or just wasn't prepared, it was hard to say. Suddenly the Imp was in front of her, the little beast being quite quick. Its claws suddenly tore into Sasha like an otaku would tear into a newly released video game. The claws hurt, alot, and the quite deadly strike would cause Sasha to fall backwards, all of her HP being taken away by that one Critical strike.

---

Staying Alive? (Focus): 15 - 10 Focus = 5

---

Somehow or another, despite the incredibly painful and rending blow Sasha was still standing, if not by the skin of her teeth, literally. A very strong will allowed her to stay standing, but unfortunately above her head in dark red, ominous looking text was the word 'Deadly', that had a small skull next to it. Something allowed her to still survive an attack of that strength, but surviving again would probably be impossible, so Sasha retreating for now would probably be the most advised strategy. Still if one good thing came out of that a window appeared saying that her Physical Endurance Skill had increased by 2 levels.

Luckily no other Imps went after Sasha during those few seconds. Instead another rushed Lucian, as it had seen Lucian destroy yet another Imp with his staff, its claws also bearing down towards Lucian's neck in a bestial fury.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 98 (Fumble)

Lucian Parry: 65 - 6 Melee Weaponry - 7 Skill Bonus - 53

Miss

---

Luckily Lucian didn't need to know how to use his brand new Skill. The Imp's attack was so uncoordinated thanks to its rage that it stumbled itself, allowing Lucian to easily brush aside the stupid creature and knock it down with his staff in the process. This, once again, opened up Lucian to another counterattack without even needing to use his newly acquired Riposte skill.

---

Lucian Free Strike: 61 + 25 (Free Strike) - 6 Melee Weaponry - 7 Skill Bonus = 72

Imp Dodge: 80

Hit!

Damage Dealt: 6

---

The strike hit dead on. Unfortunately it wasn't entirely accurate and the Imp's tough skin seemed to reflect most of the attack. Still a window appeared for Lucian, stating that his Riposte Skill had increased in Level by 1. Unfortunately this wasn't the time to celebrate, especially with Sasha in the condition she was in, despite still being standing.

"Get back Sasha, its too dangerous for you right now!" Ren shouted this out, his usual chill in his voice not there. If anything it cracked a little bit. Ren may have hated people but by no means did he wish any ill will or death on others, so seeing Sasha in what he assumed to be some critical state where even a bee sting could be deadly was enough to get Ren in a panic. Unfortunately he had his own problems to deal with, namely the two weakened Imps right in front of his face, so he couldn't get to Sasha to help right now. Instead he jumped backwards quickly, not even caring that he opened himself up to two free attacks from the Imps.

---

Imp 1 Free Attack: 31

Imp 2 Free Attack: 32

Ren Dodge: 79 - 25 Dodge = 54

Hit!

Hit!

Damage Dealt: 3

Damage Dealt: 0 (Nullified)

---

Ren took both hits, the first one seeming to get a cringe of pain out of him as it got through his glowing armor, but the second one bounced harmlessly off the glowing barrier of Mana around his skin. Instead he focused now with all of his might, crying out "Mana Bolt!" as two bolts of energy shot from Ren's palm and straight at the Imps.

---

Ren Mana Bolt 1: 47 - 9 Projectile Weaponry = 38

Imp 1 Dodge: 76

Hit! (Half below, auto Max damage)

Damage Dealt: 12

Ren Mana Bolt 2: 89 - 9 Projectile Weaponry = 80

Imp Dodge: 2 (Critical!)

---

The first bolt targeted the Imp that Ren struck with his knife, hitting dead on and in a small explosion of blue energy the Imp vanished into thin air. The second one, however; was far off the mark. In fact the Imp, using its agility, used the moment that Ren fired both bolts to actually get close to Ren, actually getting off a counterattack of its own against the young boy.

---

Imp Claw Attack: 12 (Got a Critical on the Roll, Free Strike penalty brought it to 12)

Ren Dodge: 37 - 25 Dodge = 12

Critical Strike! (Double damage, but not max damage)

Damage Dealt: 14

---

The Imp's slight distance and it attacking suddenly on an opening gave Ren just the edge he needed. Still the attack was deadly accurate and managed to get through Ren's defenses regardless, dealing quite a nasty blow that could have been real nasty if Ren hadn't gotten lucky. Luckily Ren's 'MP Armor' served its purpose and seemed to prevent Ren from being in serious danger, but still things were pretty bad right now for him though since there was still an Imp right in front of him and Ren was pretty wounded. Things were looking pretty bad for the small party despite their only being 3 Imps left with two of them being wounded.

Still if there was anymore solace out of all of this right now, its that everyone's Level, except for Ren's, increased by 1, making them all Level 3 now.

Lucian was doing good, so good it was almost scarring him. With his charge on the imp hitting true, he had managed to shove the end of the staff into an imps face and drive it to the ground, taking this opportunity, he twirled the staff and slammed it into the poor little imp's neck as it writhed on the ground in agony. It let out its final squeal then dissipated.

"Oh yeah!" He cheered, he had noticed a few windows pop up during this rumble, which made him all the happier. This happiness though, was a bit short lived as he turned in time to see another imp charging straight at him.

"Oh no you don't!" As the imp lunged at him hoping to get at his neck, Lucian parried using his Bo staff, catching the imp off guard and giving him a chance to spin around and smash it in its gut. The movement almost felt surreal, like it was something he knew how to do all along, but just never tried before. This imp as well, gave way after it cried out in pain.

Things went from good to bad quickly though Lucian noticed, as Sasha seemed to take a few too many beatings, but before he could move to help in any way, another little imp made an attempt at him, failing a bit more then they usually would, he took the chance to counter again, feeling though that the blow was not nearly as strong. "Sasha, don't die on us please, I'll protect you for what it is worth." He stepped between her and the closest imp to her, Making sure he had all the imps in his sight so as to be ready to intervene should one go for her again. He quickly eyed up the closest imp then and charged at it, trying for a new approach, he swung the staff downward with all his might hoping to slam another imp into oblivion.

Luckily for Lucian the closest Imp to him was the one he had knocked down. This time though it was wide open and Lucian had plenty of time to implement a well placed strike right onto the grounded Imp, the downward slam with the staff looking potentially dangerous for the grounded Imp.

---

Lucian Staff Strike: 18 - 6 Melee Weaponry - 7 Attack Speed = 5 (Lucky)

Imp Dodge: 37

Hit! (Lucky) (Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 12 Damage

---

Lucian somehow managed to luckily hit the Imp on a weaker part of its tough skinned body, a 'Lucky Strike' having been performed judging by the 'Lucky' that appeared next to the 12 that appeared to show how much damage he dealt with his heavy strike. Unfortunately for Lucian though the Imp was still alive. It indeed looked pretty beaten up, but it was still quite alive. Luckily though two windows appeared before Lucian now, granting him yet another skill.





Still despite the new Skill Lucian gained it still was not time to celebrate since there were still three Imps left with one still looking quite unwounded.

Hearing Ren's answer made the blood drain from her face. She was that close to losing all her health points. Would she die if that happened? For a moment fear gripped her and she weakened her grip on her bat. From the chaotic melee in front of her, an Imp broke through and charged at her.

"Sh-shit!" she screamed, swinging her bat in panic. The wide swing missed the Imp by a mile. It raked into her legs and abdomen with its claw. Sasha saw the number 38 appear. 38. Didn't Ren say she had only 7 left?

The girl cried out in agony and fell backwards, landing on her butt. She held on to the bat, trying desperately to get back on her feet. Her vision was blood red and dimming. There was an overwhelming fatigue, like all the energy had been sucked out of her in that one attack. This was really really really bad, she thought.

"I-I'm… not going to… die!" she screamed through gritted teeth. The words came out only as a guttural growl. Her vision returned slightly. After several moments, it seemed as if she wasn't about to expire at that instant. There was the words "Deadly" hanging over the top of her vision, with a small skull icon beside it. What it meant eluded her.

"Fuuuck!" Sasha cried. She aimed the pepper spray at the Imp and held on to the trigger for dear life, while scrambling to get away from the tiny monster.

Sasha poured another blast of pepper spray at the Imp with all that she could, her body still being able to move pretty well despite the fact that she had just taken a blow that should have killed her on the spot, while hoping that the Imp being blinded would allow her to scramble away.

---

Sasha Pepper Spray: 16 - 8 Projectile Weaponry - 6 Skill Bonus = 2 (Lucky!)

Imp Dodge: 65

Hit! (Lucky)

Affect: Blinded and Prone

---

As Sasha blasted the Imp it hit it directly in the eyes, it stumbling back and letting out loud growls and cries of pain as it covered its now blinded eyes. In its pain induced stumbling around as Sasha frantically scrambled to get back away from the creature the beast would trip over pretty much nothing, falling onto the ground onto its back, making it even more vulnerable since it was also blind, allowing Sasha to easily escape the beast and retreat back since she was in no condition to fight. One good thing came though. As Sasha retreated back two windows appeared, one mentioning that her Spray Weapon Mastery Skill had gone up a level and the other mentioning that her Lucky Strike skill had gone up a level.

The Imp that Lucian had struck while it was on the ground seemed to get up rather quickly, leaving itself wide opened while it got up, allowing Lucian another opening to strike the creature with his staff.

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Lucian Free Strike: 34 + 25 (Free Strike) - 6 Melee Weaponry - 7 Skill Bonus = 46

Imp Dodge: 58

Hit!

Damage Dealt: 5 Damage

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The strike hit the creature, but unfortunately the blow wasn't strong enough to knock the creature back to its feet. It tanked the blow and instead now slashed at Lucian with its claws, having to of course lunge forward since Lucian wasn't right next to the Imp thanks to the reach of his staff.

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Imp Claw Attack: 77

Lucian Parry: 89 - 6 Melee Weaponry - 7 Skill Bonus = 76

Miss

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Luckily Lucian was able to parry the creature's blow aside in time. Unfortunately the Imp wasn't open for counterattack after what was a very close miss. Unfortuantely as well Lucian would still have no idea how to use that new Skill he received that would allow him to counterattack the Imp's attack, but now was not the time for wondering such things since this beast was still up and ready to fight.

There was still one other Imp that was up and standing and this one was the one that had raked into him beforehand. It now attacked at Ren once again, being in close proximity so it would be a little harder for him to dodge the creature's attack.

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Imp Claw Attack: 32

Ren Dodge: 23 - 25 Dodge = 0

Miss...

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Ren was easily able to dodge the blow, stepping out of the way with good agility. Suddenly he called out "Riposte!" and, as if propelled by some unseen force, right as he dodged he seemed to slash right at the Imp right after his dodge with his knife in a movement quick enough that should be impossible by normal standards. Perhaps this was also the power of the Gamer Ability as game characters often had movements or abilities that did indeed go beyond normal human limitations.

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Ren Riposte: 34 + 25 (Riposte Penalty) - 20 Melee Weaponry - 10 Skill Bonus = 29

Imp Dodge: 63

Hit (Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 10 Damage

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Ren's blade slashed right into the Imp, it letting out a cry of pain as the blade slashed right down its torso with that quick movement. Unfortunately, despite how well placed the slash was, the beast was still up but not out.

Luckily though the other Imp that Sasha had blinded had just stood up, having a slightly hard time doing so since it was still blinded and it also had no idea where Sasha was since its senses were thrown off of her when it had fallen, so luckily she would be able to get further away from the beast if she wanted to.

And as for getting away, Ren did just that as he quickly attempted to back away from the Imp, unfortunately having to go for speed instead of safety in his retreat, leaving the young boy open for a rake of the Imp's claws.

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Imp Free Strike: 53

Ren Dodge: 83 - 25 Dodge = 58

Hit...

Damage Dealt: Nullified

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Luckily the strike seemed to completely bounce off of the glowing blue energy that was still surrounding Ren's skin so whatever Ren felt from any of the strike was completely unnoticeable as he quickly stepped away from the Imp. Suddenly the boy pointed one hand at the Imp that was currently in front of him and another, as his knife vanished from his hand, at the Imp that Lucian was fighting. A blast of glowing blue energy erupted from each hand, one aiming straight at the Imp in front of him and the other at the Imp Lucian was fighting, Ren really hoping that it wouldn't hit Lucian.

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Ren Mana Bolt 1: 62 - 25 (Medium Distance) - 26 (Projectile Weaponry) = 11

Ren Mana Bolt 2: 29 - 25 (Close Distance) - 26 (Projectile Weaponry) = 0 (Lucky)

Imp 1 Dodge: 43

Hit! (Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 18

Imp 2 Dodge: 59

Hit! (Lucky)

Damage Dealt: 23 Damage

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The two bolts slammed right into both creature's as they moved at a pretty fast speed. Both of them let out cries of pain as both bolts slammed into them as they both fell over from the impact. The moment they fell over both Imp's vanished into thin air, signifying that they had been vanquished. "Go help Sasha!" Ren yelled frantically to Lucian, motioning to both the Imp blindly stumbling around and Sasha who was quickly getting away from it.

"I'm starting to think that grinding these might not be a good idea, "He spoke as he made a strike at the downed imp the downed imp, then parrying its attempt to hit him back using the bo, "As entertaining as it is, they are a bit of a challenge."

He watched as the imp dissolved after being him by one of Ren's magic bolts, then heard him shout to help Sasha.

"On it!" Lucian charged at the blind imp in a sprint, with the Bo gripped firmly in his right hand, and supporting his grip with his left, he had a plan. He was going to run the thing down with a charge, he knew he wasn't really fast, but with it's head not being all there, the surprise would give him the hopeful edge he needed to end its miserable little life.

The Imp was blind and stumbling around in pain as it clutched its eyes. As such, even with Lucian charging the Imp in a blind sprint it had no idea that Lucian was even approaching, giving Lucian the element of surprise against the Imp without the Imp even having a chance to prepare for Lucian's charge, making it as though Lucian would have been right next to the Imp when he attacked.

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Lucian Bo Staff Strike: 69 - 25 (Surprise) - 6 Melee Weaponry - 7 Skill Bonus = 31

Imp Dodge: 70

Hit! (Half below, Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 7

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The hit was a success, smashing the blind Imp with the staff and making it reel back in pain, it screeching as it had little to no idea where the attack came from. Unfortunately for the Imp it was strong enough to stay on its feet despite being blind and in alot of pain, meaning that it was still standing and Lucian wouldn't be able to get another attack in as it was flailing around a little widly, trying to figure out where the humans were, which it still had yet to figure out. Fortunately for Lucian though a window appeared in front of him, mentioning that his Staff Mastery Skill's level had increased by 1.

With Sasha still retreating, essentially keeping a safe distance at this point, and Lucian just having beat the last one with his staff it was time to nip this fight in the bud. Ren didn't remember fights against these creatures being this difficult, but nonetheless this one seemed to be alot tougher for some reason. Ren guessed that it must have been bad luck or something. Regardless the young gamer aimed his palm at the beast, his MP Armor skill having finally worn off and Ren not wanting to get near the Imp with the small amount of HP he had left, so he opted for a ranged attack.

"Mana Bolt!" With that one shout two bolts of energy shot from Ren's palm, heading straight for the beast as he aimed to end its miserable little existence.

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Ren Mana Bolt 1: 46 - 26 Projectile = 20

Imp Dodge: 83

Hit! (Auto Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 15

Mana Bolt 2: 58 - 26 Projectile = 32

Imp Dodge: 70

Hit! (Auto Max Damage)

Damage Dealt: 15

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That did it right there. The first slammed into it, knocking it backwards but letting it stay on its feet by just the skin of its teeth. The next bolt though hit dead on, right in the creature's chest. In a small explosion of energy it fell back onto the ground, letting out a pained screech as it did so, vanishing into thin air in the same manner all the other Imps did the moment it hit the ground. There were no more Imps in sight, the area finally being clear and safe, Ren heaving a small sigh of relief as he wiped his brow, looking at the others. Everyone still seemed to be alive, although Sasha definitely looked worse for wear.

"Is...everyone alright?" Even if Ren didn't like other people he still didn't want anyone to get hurt so hoped that everyone was still alright.

"Inventory." Lucian spoke as the battle ended, and placed the bo staff in a small space in the window, kind of blowing his mind in the process, but still expecting it. He held his composure then addressed Ren, "Well, I didn't get so much as a scratch on me, which is a god thing since these are tailor made, and other than feeling strangely stronger due to leveling up I would assume, everything is perfect on my end." He turned and looked at Sasha, worry in his eyes, "How are you doing? Do you think you think...you will make it?" He knew her health dropped a lot, past the normal place of death, but she seemed to still be standing there, so Lucian was slightly confused.

Sasha caught her breath and surveyed the battlefield. The rest of the group had managed to clean up the last of the Imps while she was running away. She dragged the baseball bat along the ground as she walked back, clearly pissed off. Her hands were still shaking from the adrenaline rush. Despite how dangerous the situation was, it felt… exhilarating.

"Hell yeah," she replied to Lucian. "Did you think I'd die that easily? Though that was… really close. Too close. This game is pretty dangerous, isn't it? I think it's safe to assume we die when our HP goes below 0?"

Seeing Lucian keep his weapon away, Sasha followed suit. Her pepper spray was significantly lighter now- she must have used up a lot in the battle. These things weren't cheap… perhaps a weapon without ammunition would be a wise choice. Sasha turned to Ren.

"Say… can you teach us magic now? It seems really powerful."

Everyone looked ok, which caused a small sigh of relief to escape from Ren. Even though Sasha was apparently inflicted by a status called 'Deadly' she still seemed alright. That made Ren curious though as he looked at Sasha, deciding to inquire more about this. After all Sasha did get hit by a blow that should have killed her, especially since it did 38 damage and was a Critical Hit. That was a beyond fatal blow. He seemed to stare at her for a few long moments, as if trying to discern something. She should be bleeding as well, heavily, but she wasn't.

Ren seemed to be pretty observational, looking at Sasha's body language and posture and everything else. "It is clear that you should be dead. You should have been torn to shreds, but you are not. Judging by how exhilarated you seem, your fast breathing, and the fact that you still seem like you can move just fine it is clear that you are probably standing up thanks to sheer willpower". Ren looked up after making that observation, a window probably appearing in front of him and a small smirk following it. "Alright, lets see what I can see now...". He closed the window with a wave of his hand and then looked at Sasha.

"Observe." With that single command Ren now seemed to be looking at a window, reading over it and nodding as he did so. "It seems right now you have the Deadly Status, which I seemed to be right about. Thanks to both your Focus Skill and your own sheer force of will power you are still able to stand after taking a blow that should have dropped you. You are also at -31 HP right now, which is well below the -150% HP threshold that signifies death, so if you were to take one more point of damage you would die. It also appears that if our HP does drop to 0 we don't die immediately, but probably will after a short bit, like a bleeding out type of thing".

Ren closed the window that was probably displaying who knows what about Sasha. "That's good to know". Then came the questions about magic and Ren just nodded. "Ill see if I can. I learned Mana Bolt on accident though, so teaching it might be hard. First though, you guys should open your Stat and Talent Windows and apply your new Level Ups. While INT and WIS seem to be good for magic, right now it seems like VIT and STR might do good for some more HP as I am Level 9 and I only have 30 HP, as it seems the higher your VIT the more your HP increases as you level. Of course, you don't want to be a Random Character but you don't want to be completely unbalanced either as this is real life as well and low HP, STR, and VIT makes you more vulnerable to physical attacks, which seems to be the bane of us all right now. Still, I shall leave what you want to make your Stats be up to you. So apply your points first then I shall teach you what I can".

With that Ren waited for the others to apply their level ups.