James checked his status. That final burst of experience was enough to push him to level 30, which meant he had skill points to spend! He looked over his status and thought about his next skill.

  Name: James

  Race: Human

  Class: Hero

  Level: 30

  HP: 400/400

  MP: 710/710

  EXP: 13,000/76,000

  Stat Points Available: 0

  STR: 80

  AGI: 90

  INT: 71

  WIS: 70

  CON: 70

  Skill Points Available: 6

  Skills: Meditation 1, Mana Bolt 2, Vital Pulse 1, Fireball 2, Immobile 1, Dip 1, Dive 1, Dodge 2, Duck 1, Battle Axe 1

  Fire Affinity: 9

  Earth Affinity: 2

  Infernal Affinity: 46

  James had enough skill points to upgrade a couple spells or gain a few new ones. The question was, what did he need? Where was he weak? It was tempting to get a water-based skill (like Underwater Kick or Superfast Swim, or something), but that would only be helpful for the rest of this floor. He doubted there’d be much underwater combat after the dungeon.

  He was leaning more and more into his Battle Axe. His stats, at least, reflected that choice. It was disappointing, since James had liked the idea of becoming a badass wizard staying safe at the edge of the battlefield, but in practice he found he couldn’t help himself from rushing in to protect his teammates. Since Inara was a front-line fighter, that was all the more reason for him to pick up the slack from range, but despite that logic, he couldn’t stand leaving her on the front lines without any immediate backup. He just couldn’t do it.

  So that was a tempting and more realistic option.

  James could spend his points on a better healing spell, but he hated the idea of letting anything go to waste, and Desiree had said she would take on the role of healer. She hadn’t done it yet, which was annoying, but she’d had a good reason to spend her skill points against the Librarian. Besides, the experience from the Garden should have pushed her over the edge of level 30 too, so she should have enough points to get a holy healing spell before their next fight, now.

  In any case, though they’d had a couple close calls, their previous fights had been…

  Well, he didn’t want to say “easy.” He didn’t even want to think “easy,” in case Fate was in a mood, but he couldn’t help thinking sometimes that the Hero class, with its elevated stat gains, was grossly overpowered. It was almost like the System expected him to be a bumbling incompetent who’d never held a sword before — which, granted, he kinda was — and gave him the extra stats as a handicap more than anything else. He certainly hadn’t earned those stats, yet he was twice as strong as Desiree.

  Well, she was a bad example since she was like, ten years old.

  But the point stood! Inara was effectively level zero, Virgil didn’t remember how half his spells worked, and Desiree was a child. Either anyone could wander into a dungeon and do just fine, or the System was deliberately helping.

  Before he could follow that thought any further, a splitting scream pierced even the thick soundlessness of the water, and the light dimmed.

  James looked up. He could see the hole in the ceiling that marked the tunnel they’d fallen in from, and it looked like something — something large — was swimming down towards them and blocking all light in the process.

  You have been affected by Siren’s Scream! Spell Accuracy decreased by 30% for the next three turns!

  Psychic Damage! HP -25

  Oh. Oh. They had just destroyed the Garden of the Siren, and here she came, enraged.

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  James was frozen — entranced — by her approach. The Siren screeched into view, first as a dark shape racing through the tunnel entrance, then becoming more visible as the light returned, and she looked like the sea herself. When she finally settled, she stood at the center of the party.

  The Siren’s hair was a huge, tangled mass of black-brown seaweed. Her skin was deep blue, and her eyes glowed pink-purple. Dark green shells covered her breasts, which were large and buoyant in the water. Her upper body was otherwise bare, and a few inches below her belly button, skin transitioned to scales, and she had a mermaid’s tail.

  The Siren took in the carnage of her garden and shrieked again.

  You have been affected by Siren’s Scream x2! Physical Accuracy decreased by 30% for the next three turns!

  Psychic Damage! HP-25

  Your party has entered combat!

  James swore. Why hadn’t they entered combat when the Siren first attacked? This was bullshit!

  Your turn!

  There was no more time to complain. If James cast fireball, he knew it would fizzle long before it reached the Siren. If he swam towards her — well, he could admit he wasn’t the fastest swimmer. Even with his stats, stumbling through the garden had taught him that water resistance was still a very real thing.

  So James decided to do something risky. YOLO, right?

  He hefted his axe, swung it as far back as he could go, and flung it forward like a throwing knife.

  James held his breath as the heavy weapon tumbled end over end. There were so many things that could go wrong. It could hit her with the handle instead of the blade. It could swing wide due to the weirdness of water currents, or because of the Siren’s Scream debuff on accuracy.

  So he held his breath and he wished really hard, and sure enough! The blade plunged right between her breasts, carving a thick dark line that oozed something that wasn’t quite blood.

  Critical Hit!

  The Silken Siren is Bleeding!

  He pumped his fist. Not only did that knock out a decent chunk of the Siren’s health, there was a steady trickle as blood continued to ooze around the axe blade.

  Inara went next. She charged forward, slowed heavily by water resistance, and swept her scythe across the floor before sliding her blade against the Siren’s tail.

  There was a painful screech of metal on scales, and the damage dealt was minimal.

  James winced. The stronger their enemies became, the more pronounced their stat differences became. While he and Desiree rapidly progressed, Inara was stuck with base stats. He almost wanted… Well, he wanted her to hang back. He hated that her poor strength meant her blade, powerful though it would, couldn’t penetrate the Siren’s natural armor. He hated that her low agility meant she was so slow in the water that she was now the closest to their enemy, and therefore most endangered. She didn’t even have the highest health anymore, since he’d been pouring his own stats into CON.

  Difficult as it might be, that was a conversation they would have to have — and soon.

  Desiree kicked smoothly through the water. Of them all, she was the one who had practiced her swimming the most while they tore through the garden. James had to admit some admiration for the girl. She had a way of seeing the joy in their circumstances, despite the life and death stakes. He worried sometimes that she was too carefree, but he also had to admit that she single-handedly kept their party from being too doom and gloom.

  Desiree shoved her staff forward like a spear, taking advantage of her own momentum, and the glowing head of the staff smacked directly into the Siren’s angry face.

  Critical Hit!

  It didn’t do quite as much damage as James’s axe, but it was still a respectable blow.

  With her last few seconds, Desiree positioned herself between her mother and the Siren, with her staff raised in a defensive stance.

  Then it was Virgil’s turn. He lifted his palm toward the Siren. Bubbles rose from his lips as he spoke. James couldn’t understand what he said, but he saw the result.

  Golden runes spilled from the scholar’s mouth and darted like eels towards the Siren, where individual words split off from each other and wrapped around each of her limps. The Siren’s arms were forced against her sides like she was wrapped in golden chains, and no matter how she struggled, they would not budge.

  The Silken Siren is ScriptBound! Target’s damage is reduced by 25-40% for three turns!

  James’s eyebrows climbed up his face. Where did that come from?! Could Virgil have done that the whole time? Was it a new skill or just something he’d remembered how to use?

  Add that to the list of things he needed to talk to his party about.

  Enemy turn!

  Virgil’s golden chains disappeared once the Siren’s turn began, though the effect remained. With a snarl that showed her viciously sharp teeth, the Siren grabbed the axe by its head and yanked it out of her chest.

  The Silken Siren is no longer Bleeding.

  Then she shifted her grip on the weapon so she had it by the handle, and she reared up to swing the axe at Desiree.

  James blanched. Whoops.