Chapter 33: Fine Steel Dagger

Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Fine Steel Dagger

Thank goodness, the fire worked!

Seraphina Sinclair stared intently at the monster writhing violently in the flames. It could no longer attack, lying on the floor and panting weakly.

’At a time like this...’

’Of course, I have to press my advantage!’

’Kick it while it’s down!’

Seraphina Sinclair gripped her military knife and advanced slowly. The wound on her back ached with every move. She furrowed her brow, grimacing as she shuffled closer.

Her clothes were nearly soaked in blood, plastered to her back and tugging at the wound with every motion.

Pain.

’Boo hoo.’

Seraphina Sinclair wiped her tearless eyes, then mercilessly thrust her military knife into the weak point revealed by Insight.

The Six-Armed Corruptor didn’t even let out a scream before it dissolved into specks and vanished.

After its massive body disappeared, a puddle of noticeably thicker, greenish slime remained on the ground, along with an E-level Supply Box.

The flames vanished as well, but the floorboards were now charred and sunken, the surface a pure, deep black. If the wooden boards hadn’t been so thick, they probably would have burned straight through.

Seraphina Sinclair breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to tend to her wound, she heard Sunflower’s voice in her head: ’So fragrant...! Something smells so good!’

’Right, I have to feed it the slime first.’

’The slime will leak through the floorboards soon.’

’I nearly died for this!’

Seraphina Sinclair scraped up the slime and fed it to Sunflower.

Sunflower showed more interest in this puddle of slime than ever before, which was made clear by the voice in her head.

It kept making strange noises. Seraphina Sinclair guessed they were like the happy whimpers of a puppy enjoying a favorite treat.

[Current Sunflower Growth Rate: 60/1000]

’This one monster increased its Growth Rate by 60 points?!’

’No wonder it’s called a Six-Armed Corruptor.’

’Alright, that’s taken care of. Now, for my wound.’

Her brow furrowed as she took out a Healing Potion.

[Healing Potion (E-level)]

[Description: Relieves pain, disinfects, and heals wounds. In a pinch, perhaps you could also use it to quench your thirst.]

’It doesn’t say how to use it.’

To be safe, Seraphina Sinclair reached behind her back and poured a little onto the wound.

She waited patiently for a moment. When she saw no change in the wound, she gave a wry smile and took a small sip.

The instant the Healing Potion entered her mouth, it felt as if a mint drop had dissolved on her tongue.

A cool tingle exploded on her tongue and shot down her spine, zinging all the way to the wound and making her shiver.

The burning pain on her back suddenly transformed into an itching, tingling sensation, as if a million ants were crawling over it.

She was stunned. She wanted to turn her head to look, but then realized with exasperation that she couldn’t possibly see it from this angle.

She carefully reached a hand back to touch it. Her fingertips brushed against a thin, web-like film. New tissue seemed to be forming over the wound at a visible rate.

But the process stopped just as quickly.

Seraphina Sinclair quickly realized the problem: she hadn’t drunk enough.

She tilted her head back and took another gulp, and the wound on her back immediately began to mend again.

Seraphina Sinclair had hoped to save some of the Healing Potion for later. She continued to sip from the vial while feeling her back, carefully gauging the extent of its recovery.

But just as it healed enough not to impede her movement, the vial of Healing Potion was empty.

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

’So it was that little bit I poured on the wound at the start that made the difference?’

’If I’d drunk that part, too, the wound would have healed completely.’

Even though she’d already encountered plenty of things that defied comprehension, she was still floored by the potion’s effectiveness.

She took a deep breath. Two more black fog surges remained for the day. She hoped no more powerful monsters would appear.

Perhaps monsters didn’t tend to swarm. The next two surges were tamer: one brought Seraphina an F-level Supply Box, and the other involved two monsters that left behind an E-level Supply Box.

’I guess that’s lucky.’

Seraphina Sinclair sighed. Given the choice, she would rather face several F-level monsters than a single E-level one again.

Without a Healing Potion as a fallback, she had to be far more cautious.

Seraphina Sinclair lifted the lid of the E-level Supply Box left behind by the Six-Armed Corruptor.

[Congratulations, you have obtained: Fine Steel Dagger (E+ Level), Black Fog Crystal x1 (E-level), Sunshine Crystal x1 (E+ Level)]

’Another weapon.’

Seraphina Sinclair gripped the dagger and glanced at its description.

[Fine Steel Dagger (E+ Level)]

[Description: A tactical dagger forged from high-purity fine steel. Tempered in black fog, the blade has a muted, cold-gray finish. The spine is finely serrated, perfect for severing tough tendons and bone. The hilt is wrapped in non-slip tactical fiber, ensuring a stable grip even when slick with slime. While equipped: Strength Attribute +2.]

’That last line is what’s important!’

’It actually adds 2 to my Strength Attribute!’

She gripped the Fine Steel Dagger and pulled up her status panel to check.

[Name]: Seraphina Sinclair

[Zone]: Drakonia, Third Major Zone, Zone 888

[Intelligence]: 10

[Strength]: 11 (9+2, Fine Steel Dagger effect active)

[Constitution]: 10

[Speed]: 9

[Evaluation]: A human with top-tier physical attributes. (The average for a normal human is 10.)

’It really did go up by two points!’

Seraphina Sinclair gave the dagger a few test swings. It felt good in her hand. Satisfied, she unequipped her military knife and switched to the dagger.

’I can trade the military knife later.’

’It’s an E-level weapon. I can definitely trade it for something good!’

Seraphina Sinclair moved on to the other items.

’I’ve gotten a Black Fog Crystal before, and now I have another. I wonder if they have any other uses.’

As for this next one...

[Sunshine Crystal (E+ Level)]

[Description: An exceptionally rare material in this world. As for its current use... oh, you don’t have the clearance to know that yet.]

Seraphina Sinclair: "..."

’That line is so annoying.’

Seraphina Sinclair opened the second E-level Supply Box.

[Congratulations, you have obtained: Basic Training Uniform x1, Handsome Master Instant Noodles x24 (one case)]

This box only contained two things: a set of clothes and a case of instant noodles.

’Not bad.’

Seraphina Sinclair wasn’t picky. She picked up the training uniform.

The uniform was only black and white, but the design was quite striking.

In any case, it was much better than her current tracksuit, which had a huge hole torn in the back.

She didn’t rush to change. She was still covered in blood and grime; the Healing Potion had closed the wound, but it didn’t offer any cleaning properties.

’I’ll change into the new clothes after I get a shower.’

’As for the instant noodles... at least I won’t have to worry about food for a while.’

However, Seraphina Sinclair’s gaze fell on the Fine Steel Dagger. ’Could it be that even among E-level Supply Boxes, there are differences in drop rates?’

The Six-Armed Corruptor was an E+ monster, and its E-level Supply Box yielded two E+ items.

But the E-level Supply Box dropped from killing multiple monsters had only yielded food and daily necessities, just like the previous one.