Evelyn had now spent two days in the forest, wandering around trying to find any monster that might trigger a quest from the system.
"Haa… Does this forest ever end?" She questioned out into the air.
"I've been walking around for what feels like forever, and there is no end in sight. There is only forest and vegetation. My ability has gone up a level, but that's about it. No quest from the system, no monster or even insect in sight, just endless forest…"
Evelyn could feel her frustration build up, as nothing was working how she had expected.
"This was not the plan! I was supposed to find companions, or at the very least one, and then we would hunt monsters together. Instead, I was thrown into the portal, ended up in the middle of nowhere and there is no monster in sight!"
"If it wasn't for my ability, I would probably have starved by now… This is not what I had in mind when I decided to enter the tower!"
In hindsight, Evelyn noticed that she had been entirely too unprepared. She had not packed enough food, or any food at all for that matter, and she had not prepared for getting stuck in the tower.
"I should probably have made a more detailed plan than; enter the tower, find companions and levelling up…"
Sighting at her own brash actions, she stopped using her ability and simply walked forward. Her head was swarming with the thoughts of how unprepared she had been and her own unfounded confidence.
"I took entering the tower to lightly," she sighted upset, "and got too confident simply because I got a new chance at life."
"But!" she started, clenching her fists, "I can at least use this experience to better myself. There is much I don't know, but I can just learn from here on out!"
As she was getting her low spirits back up, she stumbled her foot on a root and crashed down to the ground, catching herself with her hands.
Hissing from the pain in her palms, Evelyn sat up and brushed her hair away from her face.
"At least there is no one here to see me stumbling over roots," she murmured to herself while brushing off her hands.
Looking at the root she had fallen over, she followed it with her sight towards the tree it shot out from. And there she saw it. A large burrow going into and underneath the tree.
Evelyn moved towards it. As she got closer, she noticed that it was actually quite large. It was partly hidden by the grass surrounding it.
"I could probably fit inside…" she murmured as she parted the grass to peer into the burrow. As she did, a system notification pinged, and a message appeared before her.
*Congratulation!You are the first to discover the hidden burrow on the first floor! *
Using the message to confirm her thoughts, she crawled into the burrow. It led to a small, long dirt tunnel, and before long Evelyn could no longer see before her. Using her hands to feel in front of her, she felt her heart beating faster.
There were dirt walls all around her, moist and cold to the touch. It sent shivers down her spine, and she could feel her body temperature sinking. It was endlessly cold in the tunnel, a stark contrast to the warm sunny weather she had experienced in the forest.
"What if I run into a monster? I won't be able to see it before it attacks me…" she quietly whispered to herself as she moved forward. She could feel the cold sweat run down her back as the tension in her body increased with every second.
After crawling for what felt like forever, Evelyn started to doubt her choices. What if there really were monsters in the tunnel? What if she died deep down here where no one would ever find her? What if these were her last moments? What if-
Just as her thought were spinning out of control and her courage was leaving her, she finally saw light in front of her.
"An exit!" She exclaimed, forgetting to keep her voice low. She quickly slapped a hand to her mouth, her body freezing up as she listened for any sounds coming from the front.
But there were none. No sounds indicating that she had been heard or that monsters were coming for her.
She breathed a quiet sight of relief, before continuing to advance further. Seeing light at last, after traversing the cold tunnels for far too long, she felt her rigid body begin to ease with expectations.
'What will I find once I enter?' she thought gleefully to herself. 'Will I finally get a quest from the system? Will I get any special rewards? The message said I was the first to find the burrow, so there might be treasures inside, right?'
Having quickly forgotten her frightened feelings from before, Evelyn was getting more and more excited as she neared the exit of the tunnel. The thoughts of what riches might be waiting for her, was too sweet to let go of.
"I guess this is why climbers continue exploring the tower despite the dangers," she murmured to herself, making sure to keep her voice low. "The excitement and thrill of finding undiscovered locations amidst the suspense of monsters that may be laying in hiding, is addicting."
Mulling over her new experiences, with the new feelings she was feeling for the first time, Evelyn soon found herself smiling as she exited the tunnel.
As she was, she found herself standing in a dimly lit stone hall, decorated with murals along the walls. Standing in what seemed like the entrance to the hallway, she studied the murals as she slowly made her way forward.
The murals were of slimes in different colours, seemingly showing different stories.
The first mural showed slimes working in groups to fight other monsters. Both wolves and serpents of different colours were surrounded by slimes and defeated.
The next mural depicted multiple colourless slimes devouring a large red wolf, and them themselves turning red.
The third showcased a large blue slime surrounded by many smaller slimes that were either transparent or blue in colour.
Yet another mural showed a golden slime surrounded by a halo of light.
Evelyn studied them all carefully and cautiously, not wanting to miss any details.
"This must be the slimes origin story," she murmured in a soft voice, mesmerised by the murals as she walked along the hall.
"And these shining crystals embedded in the wall," she started, as she tried to pry one out, "are they the only light source in here? How do they keep shining? Are they magical items?"
She kept trying to pry out one of the stones, but it didn't budge.
"Haa… it's really stuck. Even my dagger can't pry it out." She sighed before moving towards the remaining murals.
She looked at them all, trying to decipher them as she went along the hall. They all showed different scenarios and what Evelyn reasoned had to be significant events through time.
Reaching the end of the hall, and having looked at all the murals, Evelyn was met with large, closed double doors.
The sheer size of the doors made her involuntarily gulp, clenching her fists.
"Haa… If there ever were a boss door in a dungeon, this would be it. Why are the doors wooden when the hall's walls, floor and ceiling are all made of stone? And why would you have a wooden door underground? Is there no fear of moisture and mold?"
Grumbling to herself, Evelyn's hands unclenched as she tried to push open the doors. They opened easily with a low creak, as a low humming sound made its way towards her.
*Congratulations on being the first tower climber to enter the hidden Slime Creation Chamber! As the first to discover the Slime Creation Chamber, you have received the title 'First to Enter the Hidden Slime Creation Chamber'*
*New Title - First to Enter the Hidden Slime Creation Chamber
Permanent bonus to stats: +2 Luck*