DIE TRYING [A Roguelite Extraction LitRPG]

Two whole levels from this one fight. None of his stats had improved, other than mana going up another tick. But next to all the stats was a yellow plus sign flashing. And at the very top of the screen was an equally glowing number two.

Two stat points to distribute.

If he was stuck here in this world, he'd need to take it all seriously. As absurd as stat points in reality might look like, the game system was clearly present and had measurable effects on the world. Namely, the (truly) dead skeleton in front of him. He sighed, limped to the wall and sank down against it.

Against his better judgement, he took out the phone. A text was already there.

Wowow, that's almost straight cheating. Love it ⸜(ˊᗜˋ)⸝

"Thought a god of games would want people to play by the rules."

Bending rules is a game on its own Michael. I'd even say it's the best game of them all.

So, Play was that kind of god. Made more sense why they ended up picking Wade instead of some olympian spec-ops military soldier. He looked over his stats again. "How powerful are these stat points?"

We won't know till you give it a try right? Go on, give it a swing ＼(٥⁀▽⁀ )／

"If I distribute my stats out, can I reset them later?" - No, there was a better way to phrase that question given the rules of the game: "How many coins does it cost to respec?"

The text changed, overwritten.

Hmmmmmmm, it just shows me three question marks where the cost should be. Interesting.

Question marks? "The hell does that even mean?"

Might be based on how many you spent? Tough to plan around until we know more.

Goddamn it. If it ended up being a single coin per point, that could be crippling. None of the quests were getting done anytime soon. He had two coins to his name, enough to buy a better than average weapon of some kind if he got out of this dungeon. Would the system consider redistributing points to be about the same value as a weapon? He needed to know in order to plan ahead for it.

He sighed, and looked up into the ceiling as he mulled over what he could do. "I just want to go home, I'm missing my work shifts. Fuck."

Bruh. You're being chased by skeletons in a brand new world, and you're thinking about work?

"Of course I am, do you know how hard I worked for that fulltime position? I'm getting those hours one way or another, and if I have to strangle you to get out of here, I will."

Wowowow, with that perfectly normal and healthy logic you sound almost a little... manic?
(ง ื▿ ื)ว

He shoved the phone back in his pocket, not wanting to hear more. He had to get out of here fast before his gas station shift started. This entire fantasy world could wait until after he got his hours in.

Vitality. He wasn't sure how far 100 health points would carry him. What did it even represent? Raw survivability, or something more nuanced?

Extra health might not save him in a deadly situation - if he was down to 20 HP out of 270, he'd probably be too injured to escape anyway. But for gradual damage over time? That could help. Plus the increased resilience and mana resistance might keep enemy spells from one-shotting him. On the other hand, if he remained at full operation even when running around at 1 HP total like a video game character might, then additional health was arguably one of the best stats he could use. He just really didn't want to have to test that out.

Stamina could have been an option, especially given how fast the skeletons moved. But his bad leg complicated things. Extra endurance meant nothing if he was too crippled to use it. The same reflex that jerked a hand from a hot stove would make his leg give out. He had to mentally prepare to grind through the pain so it wouldn't take him by surprise.

Strength seemed mediocre. The skeletons were basically immune to physical damage, their bones like steel. Even sledgehammers barely scratched them. Though maybe he just hadn't been strong enough? There were non-combat applications too, like moving heavy objects.

Intelligence sat at zero, and he had no clue what mana even meant here. Until he encountered something magical, points there seemed wasted. But there might be a way to know… "Play, what's mana?"

Mana's magic.

Wade rolled his eyes, before staring daggers back at the screen.

"Play."

Michael.

There was a beat of silence as he took a deep calming breath. Wade wasn't going to do this bit with someone who called themselves the literal god of games. "I need information to make things work out here Play. Tell me what mana is, and I can do more things you find entertaining. Win-win right?"

I wouldn't mess with mana right now, not until you get a teacher. Trust me.

That was both completely unhelpful, and helpful at the same time. "Elaborate?"

Mana's super toxic. Hold more than your body can naturally process or use it just the wrong way once and… RIP ✖╭╮✖

Wade stared at the phone, frowning. That somewhat fit what he'd read from when he identified his own mana bar. "Mana necrosis?"

yeh. Mana poisoning basically. It doesn't kill immediately, but you'll wish it was immediate (￣▽￣*)ゞ

"And a teacher helps with that? Is there some safety lessons I need to know? Or it is hard to learn?"

The opposite, it's super easy to learn. But you can't easily tell when you're close to your body's limits. When the pain starts - it's way, way too late.

The phone continued, text wiping out the prior one.

Use too much or channel it through an important organ by accident… well you're gonna have a real bad time. And then die. Horribly. Did I mention it'll be painful the entire time?

Wade heard all that. And the warnings. But all he heard was that he could learn it fast. And if it was on the table, his head inevitably dove down to one and only one focus: "Is there healing magic? Even if mana's toxic, can you use it to cure things or fix legs?"

Play was a god, magic was real here, so holy or divine magic seemed like it should be in the cards. If healing magic was a thing, he had to learn it. He had to. Wade felt like he was holding his breath as the text finally popped up on his phone.

It does. But it's like using poison to cure poison, too much and… you know. The whole RIP thing? ┐(￣ヮ￣)┌

He opened up his stats, looking at his mana. If the hard part to being a mage was just knowing where the limits was, didn't he already have something right in his stats for that? Given what it said about mana.... Exposure remaining before general mana necrosis.

"I think the system can help gauge where I'm at, it's probably what the mana stat is for. If I got that going for me, how fast can I learn magic?"

If it works like a built-in pressure tester for mana then yeah you'd get to arch-mage status preeeeetty fast. That's a big IF. But even with the system helping, there's a lot more finesse to it than 'Just don't channel it through your heart' (눈_눈)

"I don't care, teach me how to cast a healing spell, even a basic one would be fine."

I get you're a desperate to fix up your leg and neck here, but trust me Michael, don't mess with mana until someone's there to guide you. You will die. And it's not going to be fun to watch.

Play had the wrong idea. "It's not for me asshole, it's for people back home." Wade couldn't give a single fuck right now about fixing his own leg and neck. He'd been the lucky one. The lucky one.

The memory came up again. Running through his head.

"Mr. Wade, I've reviewed your claim again, and I'm afraid our position hasn't changed." The voice on the other end was professionally sympathetic, in that practiced way that meant nothing. "The incident occurred while you were a passenger in a vehicle operated by someone outside your immediate family. That falls under our exclusion clause 7.3-B."

Wade pressed the phone harder against his ear. "But I've been paying premiums for four entire years up to then and never needed to use any of it even once! My sister needs-"

"I understand this is frustrating, but the policy is very clear. Additionally, since the other driver fled the scene, this becomes a matter for your uninsured motorist coverage, not our department. Please take it up with them."

"They told me they have nothing to do with it and to talk to you instead! This is literally a health issue, how could-"

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Wade, but the rules are clear on this matter and your claim remains denied. If there is anything more you wish to discuss, please send it through email and I will get back to you shortly. Thank you, and have a great day."

Have a great day. He seethed inside, but what was done was done.

"Can healing in this world work for anything? Like, seizures? How much can you use it?"

Why do you even care about some NPC mortals? They're mortals.

Wade sucked in a breath, feeling the rage deep inside, fueled by an even deeper self-loathing. "Because I'm the reason two of the best pe-- you know what, fuck off. Just answer my question. Can magic fix unhealable injuries? Stuff surgery can't fix? Yes, or no?!" The hyperfixation came back, bubbling under all his emotions. He couldn't end up trapped in this world, he had to get back to Earth. They deserved better than some asshole who vanished like his parents had. Especially her. If he didn't get back home... "I'm getting back home one way or another. Are you going to tell me what I need or just going to piss me off?"

There was a pause in the texts, and Wade thought for a moment he'd pushed the god too far. Until the notification pinged.

I could see you doing one small scale healing spell every four hours as a sustainable thing.

Healing every four hours sucked by fantasy standards, but in modern Earth? Wade could feel the self loathing bubbling up, but he wiped it away with a thought of what he could potentially bring back.

Every four hours of healing would be stupidly good in comparison to any physical therapy on Earth. And a thousand times less expensive too if he could do it himself. "I'll take those drawbacks any day. How do I learn healing?"

No way, I'm not telling you. You'd just wanna end all this early and head home instead of winning the game here.

"You think I'm not already doing exactly that? Fuck you and your game, TELL ME how to use a healing spell," He outright shook the phone now, as if he could strangle the god in person. But this wasn't going to work this way. Wade knew that. His head clicked into gear. "...Or I swear I'm going to just sit here and do nothing for hours until you do."

He couldn't hurt Play in any way that mattered. But keeping that god bored to tears? Doable. And he'd goddamn do it too.

You trying to blackmail me? Me?

Wade laughed, "You think I won't?"

I'm sure you'd be dumb enough to try and strangle the only god on your side, but in this case I really can't help you

Wade didn't say a word, he stared down at his phone with a mix of fury, and utter single-minded fixation.

No really, I can't help you. Magic specialization requires, you know, specialists.

"Figure it out. Or else this is where the adventure and fun end Play. I sit down here and do nothing."

(≖､≖╬)

Wade stayed silent, fully committed to waiting here for all eternity if he had to. Ten seconds later, another text replaced the last.

You could find a healing trinket of some kind around, non-living material has no limit to how much mana it can hold.

A healing trinket? Gear? "There's magical equipment out here?"

You think there wouldn't be? But fyi gear still works with mana, it's all just as dangerous. Like a bomb. If you don't learn how to use it right, you die. Like I've been telling you. Repeatedly.

Wade wasn't listening to that. In his head, there was only one thing that mattered: "Buffs." He called out, and then cast identify, eyes looking over for one in specific.

Market's blessings (Language, Passage, Luck) - Allows you to read, write and speak fluently in any language used by general trade. Allows passage into Azdrial with all currently equipped gear or independent beings, and allows return passage in the same manner. Increased overall luck and success in gambling.

With all currently equipped gear, and return passage in the same manner.

Which meant if he got something that could do healing for him, he could bring it back to Earth. He could use it on Earth. "Can stuff from Azdrial work in Earth?"

Little bit tougher since there's no ambient mana on Earth. But if you bring a mana crystal to power it with you, should work in theory?

"In theory? You're not sure?"

Plenty of places in Azdrial are drained of mana now, mana crystals fix that problem. That's my best guess mortal, I'm not the god of magic
(;￣Д￣)

Best guess was better than nothing. That's what he was going to do then. Find a healing item, a way to power it, and head home in one piece. He felt the mission wrap over his shoulders like a soft blanket. A way out of this darkness.

New Personal Quest: Atonement - Find the means to heal the only real family you have left. Rewards: Greatly reduced self-loathing.

A half insane chuckle bubbled out of his mouth. Even the system could recognize it. And if he had to dive back into this clown show again to find what he needed, he'd goddamn do it as many times as it took.

Wade stopped laughing, then slapped his cheeks a few times over, taking a few breaths in between, getting his head back into the game. He looked over his stats again. "What does three out of a hundred mana mean? It's been slowly ticking up, is that a time limit of some kind before my body has too much mana?"

If it was a toxic thing... then that's probably how this entire city had died off. Was he walking around magical fantasy Chernobyl?

Idk, like I said, I'm new to the system same as you are, but I'd guess you're on the right track. Def would give you a huge advantage over mages here if you just knew how close to death you could get

"How long do I have?"

Good news for once! Unless you walk into a zone with really dense mana in the area, you don't have a time limit. Ambient mana is fine.

No time limit? Wade's head shot through the reasoning. If Play talked about ambient mana as if it wasn't dangerous - wait, he could think of it from a different angle: If mana was so toxic all life couldn't survive it for long, then there wouldn't be life at all in the first place. And one of his stats mentioned mana resistance. "We all have natural mana resistance, right? Is that it?"

Yep, you're like a dry sponge atm so you're sucking in mana naturally. Once you're as saturated as your surroundings, you'll equalize and be fine.

"And the surroundings here are at a safe level?"

Very dry and safe down here. Can't say the same for the rest of the world lmao

Wade nodded, filing that detail for another time, more happy that his earlier assumption about this city being irradiated to death wasn't the case. Once he got out of this dungeon, he could worry more about it. Mana sounded like half radiation, half atmosphere pressure. And the system had given him what was probably a built-in geiger counter.

He looked over the other stat options now. Agility was after Intelligence, and that landed on the 'maybe' list. The system basically claimed one point equaled having perfect vision without glasses if he thought of the debuff in the opposite direction.

His eyes lingered on Luck. Three question marks for a description, yet it had already triggered several times, improved his identify a bit, and possibly saved his life. Great. Make the mysterious stat actually useful, but never tell exactly how.

His base luck was terrible - accurate given his life so far - but that +10 modifier had done work. A critical hit had shattered the skeleton's skull when normal strikes barely scratched it, and let him snap the boss skeleton's spine in one hit. He experimentally stabbed his dagger into the bones. Unlike before, it sunk through completely, splintering them like twigs.

There really is something keeping these assholes so tanky. Probably magic and mana. Maybe if he got saturated up, he could learn how to be as tanky as they were?

Wade sighed. He didn't have enough data yet - no idea about equipment slots, enchantments, consumables or if these choices were permanent. He'd just learned about mana and that already opened up so many different future options if he could get his hands on stuff. Even the impact of a single point was unclear.

The safest option was holding onto the points. Retail had taught him that rushing decisions usually led to angry people looking for someone to blame. Having unspent points could be critical if he encountered something requiring specific stat thresholds.

He looked down at his leg and came to one conclusion: None of this would matter if he couldn't run at all. He lost points in vitality for his condition, maybe putting points back in might negate them? Fuck it, he still needed to take some advantages with what he'd earned immediately. If only to test the system out.

He opened up the character menu, and pressed the golden plus sign next to vitality, bringing it from its current total of four after modifiers, to a total of five.

Vitality increased!

Vitality: 4 -> 5

The change was immediate, drastic, and surged through every nerve in his body.