Chapter 48: Slimy Fight (1/2)
”Okay, first of all, let's set up the parties,” Gray said and snapped his fingers.
Rakna raised an eyebrow at the prompt that followed.
⠀
❮ ◈ ❯
⠀
Gray Whisles invites you to join his Party.
⠀
Do you accept?
Yes/No
⠀
❮ ◈ ❯
⠀
”Yes,” he whispered and a new icon appeared in his field of vision. A quick mental input showed him the current members of the party, which currently were Gray and him.
”What about you three?” The clown turned toward Flavia, Nyx, and Allan. ”Normally, new recruits would form a party with the Guild they joined. But there isn't much good in separating your little group. You're fine with that, right?” He looked over Vera and Quill.
”I don't mind,” the beautiful witch shook her head. ”At least this way I can make a single party instead of two.”
”I don't mind either,” Quill replied simply.
”Good!” Gray smiled and forwarded the invitations to the trio who accepted without needing much convincing. ”Now, here's how it's going to go; we overseers will watch you from the rear lines as you head to your first Trial and if the need arises, we will intervene.”
”Question!” One of the girls from the Wiccan Guild raised her hand. ”Where is the Trial?”
”Good question,” Gray nodded. ”There are two ways to navigate on a Plateau. Dumb luck and map.”
”…?” Everyone looked at the clown weirdly.
Vera shook her head with a sigh. ”Just tell your AI to open your map.”
Heeding her words, the new Hosts mentally prompted their AIs and a System window appeared in front of them; one that they hadn't seen before.
Rakna looked closely at the image in front of him. In the center, a red light was flashing and was surrounded by five others, though white in color. The window was also obviously depicting their surroundings with the train's rails being very recognizable. Other than that, the virtual screen had a compass with it and three arrowheads were pointing in three different directions.
”The red dot is yourself. The white dots are the members of your party,” Quill took over for the explanation. ”The map will be filled as you explore the Plateau. In other words, a location cannot appear on your map if you haven't been there previously. But, the most important thing is the arrows; each one of them points you toward a Trial. This is something you'll quickly get used to as it is recurrent on every Plateau.”
”However, I have to clarify the clown's words,” Vera continued and Gray chuckled. ”Dumb luck isn't a bad way of putting. Trials are not the only thing Hosts aim for. Dungeons, Exploration Quests, Bounties, World Bosses, Ruins, Treasures… You get it. Many things can be found on a Plateau, and Hosts tend to explore randomly until they find something of value.”
”I guess that means the System has a reset mechanic?” Rakna spoke up, which confused most of the other recruits.
Vera smiled. ”You're sharp. Yes. Every month Plateaus are reset and the natural formations on them are randomly regenerated. Dungeons and Quests are never located in the same place. Though, it doesn't necessarily mean that the contents themselves change as well. Do you understand?” She asked Rakna as well as everyone else at the same time who simultaneously nodded.
”Splendid. Now, be on your way, greenhorns,” Gray said. ”I'm sure all of this explaining has bored more than one of you. Head to one of the Trials and get wild. We'll be right behind you.”
Rakna looked at his group and they shrugged at each other before following an arrow that pointed roughly to the north. They were the first ones to move and getting caught in the initiative, the rest simply went after them without raising any questions.
Fortunately, the Hosts recruited by Quill were not the type to try to lead in the first place. It applied to Vera's recruits as well. Those future witches were actually giddy to follow.
After jogging for a few minutes through the tall grass, passing by a few 'dinosaurs' which appeared to be peaceful, Rakna sensed something and stopped. He looked at his left, where the beginnings of a forest laid along with very thick bushes.
Before anyone behind him could ask why he stopped, the leaves rattled and something emerged before flopping on the ground before them.
”Really?” Allan uttered as they all stared at the thing. ”I mean, sure, this is game, but come on. This just makes me feel like a mob.”
The creature in front of them was in fact a big, round, transparent cyan slime. It had bubble-like patterns inside of it as well as a very small red stone.
Watching from the back, Gray snickered which was only picked up by Rakna who glanced at him with a blank look.
”Don't underestimate slimes,” Quill said taciturnly. ”They are more dangerous than you think.”
As he spoke, more and more slimes started coming out from the bushes, slowly forming a small army of blobs as they approached the parties. When their number got over fifty, some people began to feel apprehensive and what Quill added afterward didn't help.
”They are near impervious to physical attacks. If they catch you, you will have trouble escaping its grasp. If you attack without a plan, you-”
He was interrupted as five slimes were abruptly lifted into the air and slammed against the ground with a force strong enough to make them splatter and die. Quill stood motionlessly with his arms crossed and the new Hosts all turned toward Flavia who had her hand extended.