Chapter 15: Fool's Fight and Flying Sandals
Evan tried to stay calm—even though he was, quite literally, one bite away from becoming snake snacks. But panic wouldn't help him now.
While dodging the gaping maw of the anaconda, a grin crept across Evan's face. Maybe... just maybe, this situation wasn't all that bad. Opportunity in disguise, right?
After narrowly avoiding another strike, Evan jammed his sword into the serpent's thick hide and tried to slice. But to his dismay—no dice. The blade didn't go all the way through. Guess his strength stat still had room for improvement.
HISSSSSSSSSSSS!
The agonized screech of the conda echoed through the jungle. But Evan's momentary pause gave the writhing reptile just what it needed—a second chance. It lunged again, this time full of rage and pain and "I'm gonna eat this punk" energy.
Evan, still reeling from his failed slice, found himself directly in the snake's path. No time to dodge. No time to think.
He did the only thing that came to mind: improvise and hope for the best.
He planted one foot on the conda's lower jaw, raised his sword, and stabbed through its upper jaw—eliciting a fresh hiss of pain. But the snake wasn't done. Despite the blade embedded in its face, it started clamping down.
Crunch time. Literally.
In a test of brute strength, Evan was clearly outmatched. The conda's jaw began closing in, ready to turn him into a very messy sandwich.
Without hesitation, Evan slammed his remaining 5 unallocated stat points into Strength.
A surge of power pulsed through his muscles.
"Alright, you oversized belt, ROUND TWO!"
Fueled by desperation and stat juice, Evan slashed with renewed ferocity. The blade sliced deeper, nearly cleaving through the snake's jaw and into its head.
This time, the conda backed off—whipping its head violently to shake him off.
Evan didn't argue. He yanked his sword free just before being flung five meters through the air like a ragdoll at a concert mosh pit.
He landed hard, skidding across the jungle floor, but quickly spun to face the snake.
The conda glared back—bleeding, furious… and scared.
It was badly wounded. Slices all over its body. A half-mangled face. Its vitality was shot. And it knew… if this continued, it wouldn't survive.
So it did what any smart creature would do.
It ran.
But Evan wasn't having that.
"Oh no you don't! After all that trouble? You're not slithering out of this one!"
He gave chase.
The snake's massive body made it hard to escape fast, and Evan took advantage. He plunged his sword into its side and dragged it along, slicing flesh as he ran. The conda writhed in agony but could only keep fleeing, its strength slipping with every meter.
Finally, Evan caught up to its head. It was barely alive, twitching.
He didn't waste time.
A swift strike to the neck—deep, but not fatal. The conda thrashed violently, fighting to the end. Evan seized the opening and finished the job with a second, cleaner cut.
[You have killed Green Anaconda (Level 10) : +235 EXP]
Evan's eye twitched.
"Level 10? That's it?! I almost became a jungle protein shake for a level 10 snake?!"
He rubbed his forehead.
"So… those Shadow Drifters I clapped like mosquitoes… were just glass cannons?"
More questions buzzed through his head. One thing became clear—level isn't everything. The snake's base stats must've been stacked. Compared to the average human's strength of 5, Evan's stats—Strength: 28, Agility: 25—gave him a solid edge. But even that wasn't enough at first.
As he turned back toward the wormhole, a familiar puppy-like squeal rang out.
Luma.
The shape-shifting dragon-thing launched itself at him and started licking the blood off his face like a hungry dog with a ketchup addiction.
"Hey hey buddy, calm down—I'm alive!"
Evan laughed and lifted the fuzzy chaos gremlin. Seeing Luma's big, innocent eyes made him forget about the pain for a moment.
He sat down under a nearby tree and opened his status window.
---
[Status]
Name: Evan
Level: 9
EXP: 535 / 900 (59%)
Race: Human
Class: {None}
Titles: {None}
Health: 260 / 280
Energy: 120 / 240
Stamina: 280 / 420
Hunger: 29 / 100
Fatigue: 45 / 100
Strength: 28
Agility: 25
Vitality: 14
Defense: 15
Spirit: 12
Unallocated Stat Points: 0
Coins: 1200
Skills:
• Energy Blast (E) – Level 1
Pet: Luma (Level 4)
---
"I'm almost at level 10… nice," Evan muttered, then paused.
His eyes locked onto the Skills section.
And froze.
"...Wait a second."
A whisper left his lips.
"Fool."
Then again, louder.
"Fool."
Then louder still—
"I AM SUCH A FOOL!"
He grabbed his head.
"Fool fool fool—ARGHHH!"
His voice echoed through the jungle. Luma tilted its head in confusion.
"How could I be this foolish?"
He looked up to the sky, as if his mom was watching from heaven.
"Mom, did you lie to me? I don't think I deserve to be called a genius…"
"If you were here, a sandal would already be flying at my face."
In case you're wondering what prompted the self-roast session: Evan had an Energy Blast skill this whole time... and never used it. Not once.
If that's not peak "main character forgetting he has powers" energy, I don't know what is.
---
Author's Note:
Yeah, yeah, I know. You guys noticed. You were probably yelling at your screens, "USE YOUR DAMN SKILL!" I know. I forgot too. But it's not my fault—Evan forgot first! Blame him! cue evil author laugh
---
Evan sat sulking beneath the tree, sighing every few minutes. Luma, being the emotional support creature that it was, climbed into his lap with puppy eyes—and yeah, it worked.
Before long, Evan was chuckling and cuddling Luma like nothing happened.
But there was no time to slack. He stood up, brushed off the dirt, and faced the wormhole again.
It was time to clear it out. This one was red—nothing he couldn't handle now.
Without hesitation, he stepped through.
His vision blurred. For a moment, it felt like floating. Then he landed—feet first—on the jungle floor.
Another jungle? Great. More trees.
Evan cracked his neck, tightened his grip on his sword, and muttered,
"Let's do this. And this time… I'm not forgetting I have a freakin' skill."