--
At his decision, all five monsters he faced earlier appeared at once. The slime, goblin, kobold, tiger, and polar bear materialized before him in a line.
Grr!
[Combat Initiated! ]
[All applicable skill perks are active! ]
There were no preludes or preambles, no grand speeches, or staredowns. As soon as they appeared, they attacked. And somehow, they're working together.
The goblin and the kobold rode the tiger's back; meanwhile, the slime attached itself to the polar bear's head, turning solid from its temperature and almost turning into a helmet made of snow.
TJ saw flaming arrows heading his way, it came from the goblin and the kobold. The former was responsible for loading the arrow and shooting TJ, while the latter lit it on fire. The kobold had a rough and jagged spear, one that gleamed dangerously as the tiger charged forward.
The polar bear remained relatively normal aside from its new helmet. All enemies moved as a unit, displaying a surprising level of teamwork that made TJ's face complicated.
He evaded the flaming arrows coming his way, and instead of running away to gain distance, he instead rushed forward to meet the enemy.
This time, TJ truly held nothing back. He used Flash Steps to their utmost potential, turning into a blur of speed unlike he had ever displayed before.
He droned around the enemies, phasing in and out like a ghost. His attacks were like a rain of needles, poking everybody without discrimination.
Like this, TJ accumulated stacks of [Combo III] very fast, meaning that his strength and speed were becoming even stronger.
He moved so fast that the tiger itself couldn't follow his movements at all. Whenever it tried to pounce on him, it always missed. TJ would be gone from his previous position before it arrived.
TJ left wounds and scars on the monsters. His ministrations invoked their irritation, causing them to use their skills accordingly, yet none of them managed to hurt him.
He's simply too fast for them, so much so that they can't even catch the hem of his clothes. And with how fast he's attacking them, especially with this many targets, TJ's [Combo III] skill perk has accumulated fast.
It's already at three stacks, increasing his combat stats by 120%.
One by one they fell. First were the weak ones, and then followed by the tiger and the bear.
It happened too fast. It hasn't even been five minutes since he summoned them out, yet he's already done with them.
**
[Monsters killed! ]
[+100 exp! ]
[Quest Updated! ]
[Kill Slime 1/1]
[Kill Goblin 1/1]
[Kill Kobold 1/1]
[Kill Tiger 1/1]
[Kill Polar Bear 1/1]
[Kill all five monsters at the same time: 5/5]
[Quest Complete! ]
[Congratulations, Novice! You have met the requirements.]
[Your progress has been saved.]
[You can choose to leave now or stay and summon more monsters to fight until the time limit is up.]
[Leave or not? ]
**
TJ's eyes lit up for multiple reasons.
First of all, +100 exp? That's insane. He thought he'd only get 85, but you won't hear him complaining. That bumped up his total exp count by 195 points, almost halfway through advancing to 5☆ Novice.
Second, it said that his progress has been saved, meaning that the system has already submitted his complicated quest to the student database. Even if he dies here now, it wouldn't change the outcome anymore.
He passed this practical exam. He wouldn't need to repeat a year. He made it. And he passed it with flying colors too!
TJ could exit the VR world with peace of mind. He could start choosing a university to attend, preferably with his friends.
And finally, it was confirmed that his initial guess was correct. He was indeed allowed to stay within the VR world to keep fighting monsters. Meaning that he could continue earning exp so long as he keeps killing them.
See, TJ wasn't really sure.
All he got were vague hints from Mr. Eden, especially when he said, 'If you're good, we'd see each other again after six hours.'
It was cryptic but also a hint. He's subtly telling them to stay inside and keep killing monsters for as long as they can, because it's very likely that they won't be allowed to use the VR pod again.
It's like telling them to gain as much exp as they can now because there will be no next time, at least not from the school's side. They need to take advantage of it now, or they'll miss out on a lot.
This wasn't said directly, of course. And maybe there's a good reason for that. This was also why he only informed his friends at the last moment.
But now, it's pretty much confirmed.
"Those two should also catch on. I should be worried," TJ muttered to himself.
Obviously, he chose to remain inside. Now that the opportunity presented itself to him, how could anybody expect him to run away from it?
He sat down for a bit to catch his breath again, and when he was good, he stood up and summoned monsters to kill.
TJ wasn't given any choice. When he summons monsters, all five appear at the same time.
And like before, he didn't hold back. The difference this time is that TJ used his gun.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Five quick shots, all hitting their respective targets, killing all of them within mere seconds. These poor monsters never saw it coming. TJ was too quick with his draw and acted very decisively.
[Monsters killed! ]
[+100 exp! ]
Just like that, his exp pool accumulated a total of 295 points.
It was too easy. So much so that TJ didn't even wait for the next prompt. He immediately asked the system to summon the next batch. And that too had been killed way too easily.
TJ chuckled before kissing Hotshot's barrel, saying, "Gosh, I should've used you since the start."
Compared to his practice rapier, Hotshot was just way better. She has more penetrative power, one that these monsters couldn't even resist. His shooting skill also allowed him to essentially kill them without missing or breaking a sweat.
"Alright, girl. Help Papa reach the pinnacle of the Novice Rank."
**
"Oh right, he has a gun."
Back in the VR room, the teaching staff that was monitoring the students' progress was all looking at TJ's screen, stunned when they heard gunshots coming from it.
Most of them recognize him as one of the kids who fought the deranged vampire. It was him who repelled that man and the only one who got injured. They knew that he had a gun, but honestly, they had forgotten about it after that incident.
"This...this is alright?" One of the staff asked.
"Well, yeah. There are no rules indicating that he can't shoot the monsters," another one answered.
"I meant his gun. Are guns allowed in there?"
"The program would've flagged it by now if it wasn't. In fact, it wouldn't even replicate the gun at all if it wasn't allowed." The same staff replied once more.
"Don't be shocked, Dude. Let it be. The kid didn't violate any rules. Everything he did was acceptable. He already relied on his main weapons alone to complete his quest; he's good and clean. Let the rest be a bonus for the little guy; it's fine."
"If you say so..." the staff replied, feeling strangely relieved. "At the rate he's going, he's actually going to fill up enough exp to reach the Apprentice Rank."
"Kind of a given already. But with how hard that kid trains on a daily basis, he deserves it. His eyes are hungry for opportunities and recognition; that's not something we can stop."
"Hah! A hardworking genius, eh? It seems that our district's about to see another monster."
Mr. Eden hung on the back, silent and observing. He didn't speak because honestly, what's there to say?
He'd look down on that kid if he didn't catch the subtle hint he said earlier. Fortunately, the kid did catch the hint; he even subtly informed his friends about it, so it's all good.
As for TJ and his friends exploiting the VR world? What's that got to do with him?
It's not like he's the one who proposed this arrangement. He's just a coach and trainer. He relays information, not making it.
Generating monsters like this aren't free by the way. The VR Pods consume a lot of energy when producing them, and since the energy source wasn't free, then it's safe to assume that the monsters aren't either.
TJ could easily be costing them at least 50,000 - 100,000 geos per monster he killed, depending on the type. All for some mere trickles of exp. And with how fast he's culling them with that gun of his, he's draining millions already.
But like what was stated earlier, this has nothing to do with Mr. Eden. In fact, not only did he not contradict this behavior, he even supported it.
Dean Skywind was filthy rich. She had more money than she knew what to do with, so these mere millions being spent to replenish the monsters were nothing to her. She won't even feel it.
What's important is that this money was going somewhere. And it is. They're turning to exp in TJ's pool to make him stronger.