Status recovery items—buy early or not?
Gamers have diverse playstyles: self-imposed restrictions, prioritizing strong gear, or collecting varied items for any scenario. Pepper's a cautious type, favoring recovery and status-cure items over weapons or armor. Though costly early-game, antidotes for poison or paralysis are non-negotiable for them.
Preparing for all possibilities is Pepper's way. Gulping an antidote, the Poison status vanishes, and their HP, down from poison's chip damage, stabilizes at 7. "Detox done! Round two, let's go!"
Munching herbs from the inventory, Pepper restores max HP, resuming the fight. Poison came from the tail, so track head and tail positions. Lure it into a straight line to avoid more poison shots.
Dodging the serpent's charge with Step Work's sidesteps, Pepper lands a Swing Strike on its flank. "SHAAAA!" The serpent's tail quivers again. Expecting poison, Pepper equips a knife, throwing it with Boom Throw at the tail's opening—but no poison comes. Instead, the tail lashes out at blinding speed to ensnare them.
"Seriously?!" The knife ricochets off, falling into the canyon. As the tail closes in, Pepper shouts, "One-Leap Jump!" Enhanced jump height lets them land atop the serpent's writhing body.
"KISHAAAA!" the serpent hisses.
"Running Cobra Way!" Using Accel for agility, Pepper sprints along the unstable serpent, closing in on its head. As it rears to bite, Pepper targets its movement: the left eye tilts upward, white fur rising. "One-Leap Jump's still active!"
Leaping to dodge the bite, Pepper grabs the fur with their right hand, slamming Lock-on Breaker into the serpent's left eye. "GIJAAAA!" The critical hit triggers a destruction state on the eye. The serpent thrashes, slamming itself to shake Pepper off.
"Take this, snake!" Gripping the fur tightly, Pepper channels the Rock-Eating Worm fight, combining Raise Impact with Boot Attack's speed boost to hammer the damaged eye.
Critical hit on a vital.
Damage boost on a destroyed part.
Unique weapon's attack increase.
The synergy shatters the serpent's head into polygons, its massive body exploding. A level-up sound rings as Pepper gains one level. "Yes! Down! Level up!"
Elated, Pepper leaps, but the sky reveals night's arrival—a mustard crescent moon, faint stars invisible in city lights, and a fleeting shooting star paint a breathtaking canvas. "Beautiful…" Activating the camera, Pepper snaps a screenshot, staring skyward.
"Wait, it's night?! Took too long! Gotta hit Secondil to update my respawn!" With the serpent defeated, the path to Secondil is clear. Pepper races through the night toward the town's inn.
But they don't notice—the darkness behind them laughs.