Refusing My God’s Advances

As Shelli and I continued through the Crystal Cavern, we encountered more monsters, but now my body was starting to catch up with my fist. Each fight I was in made me a little bit stronger and faster, to the point where after the fifth cave, I could watch the projectiles coming in slow motion. Even if an arrow was fired at close range, I could easily just use the tip of my finger to change the direction of the attack. Melee attacks were even slower.

The nice part about this was that I could basically ignore the room as I walked into it, deep in thought. With all my extra time, I started to think about what I really wanted to create with my printer. 

Shelli seemed impressed with my progress, and her earlier disappointment appeared to be replaced with a newfound respect. We continued our quest to gather materials for the blacksmith, battling various creatures along the way.

After a series of battles and successful evasion maneuvers, we reached a vast chamber deep within the cavern. The air was dense with magical energy, and an ominous presence lingered. Shelli, ever enthusiastic, pointed to a massive crystal formation at the center of the chamber.

"Leon, that's the Crystal Core! It's said to be the source of the cavern's magical energy. That isn't something we need for the blacksmith's quest, but since you are a blacksmith of sorts, " she explained, her wings fluttering with excitement.

Pulled out of my thoughts by her words, I looked around at the chamber, narrowing my eyes. I didn't see another tunnel past this one, but I also didn't see any monsters. That meant the monster was already defeated, or it was hiding. I would put money on the latter.

"How do I harvest them?" I asked, pointing to the gems.

I wasn't sure what I could use them for, but as I concentrated on the vein of glowing pink crystals, a translucent window appeared.

Name: Junior Gem Hide Crystal

Type: Crafting Material

Item Ranking: Rare

Attributes: Magic Absorption, Light Affinity

Description: A rare crystal formed on the back of a Junior Gem Hide Golem. Possesses the ability to absorb and store magical energy, making it a valuable resource for enchanting and crafting magical items.

I raised an eyebrow at the information, which mostly meant nothing to me, but one part tickling my fancy. "Magic Absorption, huh? Sounds useful. Let's harvest some."

"Is that what it is?" Shelli asked curiously as the window closed, and I nodded. "Wow, that is a highly sought-after material by golem makers. They are used to help keep magically created golems alive, allowing them to not only pull magic from the air but also from the spells used near it."

I was already walking over to the crystals, but I wasn't being stupid. I now had more of an awareness of my surroundings, and I could feel the dormant presence under my feet. Before getting close to the crystal, I slowed down and took my time making my way over to the glowing rocks.

Shelli, for her part, thankfully stayed at the entrance to the current cave. Since our talk, she hadn't tried to make any more moves on me and kept her distance. That wasn't horrible, but I actually liked her advances, I just knew I couldn't do anything about them yet.

"Who enters my cave?" A loud, and slow, but deep voice echoed through the chamber just before I got to the crystals. 

"A bit late for that?" I asked, walking up to the crystal that was a lot bigger when I got up close to it.

"Stupid humans think they are so funny and clever," The voice growled, and then the cave began to shake, forcing me to step back as a ten-foot-tall golem with even more crystals sticking out of it.

Again, I didn't know how I could use these gems, but I was starting to get some ideas. I was also cursing Garland for not giving me at least access to some basic things with the printer. This way I could have checked out how it used certain materials, and how it reacted to others.

No point in crying over spilled milk. I would just collect everything I could until my missions were over, and fantasize until then.

"You dare ignore my greatness with your thoughts?!" The golem snapped suddenly, and I looked up to see a two-foot-wide fist headed for my face.

I watched the first come closer, examining it. I casually stepped to the side as the fist past me, admiring the glowing blue lines that ran like veins all over the arm. While it looked cool, I hoped that my girls wouldn't have the same veins. something like this might be alright on a very specific type of waifu, but I was more for the prefect of a woman's body... Kind of like Shelli...

"So, you are much more powerful than you look, Flesh Bag!" The golem roared, still trying to hit me, but I wasn't paying attention and just avoided the attacks.

The attacks continued, but I was in another world. I was curious about what other materials I would even need to make a waifu. It was something I hadn't thought about yet, but after seeing the crystal, it made me start wondering.

"Stop moving around so fast, you Ant!" The golem roared and then stopped swinging at me to swing at the ground. "Dodge this!"

The moment that the creature's fist hit the ground, spikes shot out of the ground, rushing towards me. I leaped and dodged, avoiding the spikes with ease. The golem seemed frustrated, and its attacks became more relentless. 

I continued to evade, studying my environment. The golem couldn't lay a finger on me, but no matter how strong I was, no part of me wanted to punch a rock. There was also the fact that it made spikes come out of the ground. That implied that it could use it as a type of thorn or a rebuke when I tried to hit it.

"All golems have a core!" Shelli called from the cave entrance. "It should look like a glowing sphere. If you destroy it, the golem dies!"

That was some very helpful information, but the golem focused on the voice. The creature was now between Shelli and me, but it turned to her and started to rush.