The Chronicles of Dwynveia - a Slimeling LitRPG

Aki

There was something oppressive about the air in the West Wing. It made me doubt my decision to leave most of our extra gear outside. We just packed what was necessary, and what we would want to take in case we needed to run away fast. I was sad about having to leave the light machine gun, but Lilyth was right. The thing was too heavy and impractical for our purposes. The idea to take all the stuff was initially good, but it was before we realised we had to go into the West Wing. Our packs were close to bursting, but what other option did we have?

This Wing had a slightly different layout than the main building and the East one. There were two rooms accessible from the side corridors by the entrance and the intersection in the middle looked to be three-way rather than four-way, as we originally assumed. The part of this span of the corridor behind the crossing also seemed to be behind another door, which we didn't notice when hiding from the big monster. I decided we should check out the side corridors here first. This place was something called “Trauma Ward and Anesthesiology”. The first part I understood, but this “anesthesiology” thing sounded like some kind of magic.

I asked Lilyth to go in front of me and Caei. I would have to figure out if there is a specific term for that on Earth. It seemed they had terms for everything there. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be as complicated as the helicoubaackt thingie that caused oolsyrs. I could only half-follow Lilyth’s explanation of what that was. I think, though she would never admit it, Caei had issues with understanding this whole “jerm theory” too. It did fill in some blanks for me though, like Lilyth’s insistence I drank from her canteen rather than other water sources. I never really got sick - maybe those jerms didn’t like my Abyssal heritage, but I couldn’t blame her. I’ve seen what bad water could do to a person once. A boy in Dan-Hem drank from a puddle of water in one of the pockets of quiet. You could hear his screams from the other end of the village. Not much was left of him by the morning. Then again, I doubted water on Earth could do that. I would have to ask her.

Anyway, when we were by the first door of the two I stood at a difficult choice. Do we enter? And if so… how do we do it? There was that big monster somewhere around. We didn’t want to draw its attention by making too much noise. So using guns was out. But we needed someone to keep watch in case something sneaked up at us from the main corridor. Caei was our only healer, but we did have those potions in case she got wounded again. And Lilyth was definitely a close-range fighter, even before she lost her magic. So… Lil on the rooms with knives, and Caei watching the main corridor with her glaive? I would serve as the backup for them in case either of them needed help. Yup. That sounded like a plan.

Lilyth

Having been made the official point man… woman… slime? by Aki, I had to admit that, so far, she was doing a much better job than I ever could. I would do my best to support her and that was that. I didn’t lie when I told Caei that I was a much better follower than leader, and based on the royal mess I’ve made.

All in all, the whole situation made me reconsider a lot of things. Slowly realising my days of relying on magic to get by were somewhat over, I realised I would need to play to my actual strengths to get by. And what were those? I was durable, had armour and a natural affinity for sneaking. The last one I had been neglecting hard, so I used the two perk points I got for the level up to bump my Stealth skill to level six.

Level 12 Rotting Thrall has been slain.

You have received 1200 experience points (5982/5500 total experience points progress to level 11),

You are now Level 11 (482/6000 total experience points progress to level 12)

Your total health has increased

Your total stamina has increased

Your total mana has increased

You have received 2 perk points (Current Number of Perk Points: 2)

You have spent 2 Perk Points (Current Number of Perk Points: 2)

Your Stealth skill has increased to level 6 (0% total progress to level 7)

You have spent 2 Perk Points (Current Number of Perk Points: 0)

I would probably need to pick up this Silent Step ability I had unlocked for purchase for those two I would get if we get out of here.

Purchasable ability: Silent Step

Type: Umbral - Magical - Mastery

Duration: 30 seconds

Description: Reduces the volume of the user's steps. Consumes mana.

Synergies: Knowledge of Umbral Arcana may improve the effects of this ability

Cost to learn: 2 Perk Points

Note 1: If purchased cannot be currently used

This made me wonder whether I was actually missing out on some class skills and features due to me completely ignoring the ones I had, but that one required investigation. It kind of felt like a waste to buy that ability now, since I wouldn’t be able to use it for two whole months, but it would be one of those “just in case” things after I recover from the burnout.

Boosting Stealth proved to be the right choice when Aki asked me to investigate the rooms. I drew one of my knives, I went with Luna, and slowly approached the door. I listened through it but could hear nothing but the breathing of my companions. There was a bit of a pungent smell in the air though. I slowly pressed on the door handle and pushed the door open. It opened silently and I peeked inside. Nothing immediately jumped out to eat my face and the room was deathly silent. Though the smell got stronger… ugh. I crept inside and looked around. There was a body mid-decay lying on a cot by one of the walls. That made me pause. It shouldn’t be here. Even in places preserved by magic actual fucking corpses decayed normally.

That meant…

Whatever the undead fuck was, it wasn’t moving. Meaning it was probably lying in wait. For someone to approach. I wanted to sneak up on it… but no. No more playing cowslime. Carefully watching it, I backed out of the room. Aki looked at me. I raised one finger and pointed in the rough direction where the undead was. Then I indicated Caeileera’s Glaive. Aki nodded and whispered to Caei, who jumped upon hearing her name, barely suppressing a yelp. She looked at us questioningly. I repeated my gestures. She then pointed in the vague direction of the other end of the room. It was hidden from me by the door. And I didn’t check. Fuck.

Get it together you fucking moron.

I shrugged. She simply nodded, apparently content that at least I didn’t do anything rash. Which was a really low bar to climb. She carefully approached the door, wrinkled her nose at the smell, looked where the undead was and stabbed it with the end of her glaive. A low groan reached us so she stabbed it again. She then backed out and pointed at me and the other end of the room. Then she went to resume her station

“Finish your job, you fucking idiot,” I thought she was saying.

I nodded and peeked behind the door. There was just an empty cot there. One more room to go.

Aki

I would have to talk to Lilyth about those hand gestures she was using. They were really intuitive, so we would need to establish a little more complex system to help communicate better when having to stay silent.

Are those something she learned on Earth, I wonder? Or is she coming up with them on the fly?

I was also happy to see her thinking as a team member. I thought that she really needed to have direction given to her to excel. She was still learning, but that was true of all of us, wasn’t it?

When Lilyth finished checking the other room which proved to be empty I heard some growling coming from the distance, followed by slow and heavy footsteps. Lilyth didn’t wait to act, she pointed at my Abyssal Spark and the room she just finished checking and then she rushed to Caei who was slowly backing away and pulled her in my direction. We barely managed to close the door behind us, when the footsteps entered the side corridor we were in. The room had this stale dusty quality to it. In sunlight coming from the sigil-blocked window, I saw there were two skeletons with us in the room. They were both slumped against the wall and had holes in their foreheads.

More executions. What happened here? Were those people killed by the traitors? Were these some of the traitors?

The bodies had no clothes on them, they had long since rotted away, so it would probably remain a mystery. I remembered our situation when I heard loud sniffing coming from just outside the door, followed by a long and deep growl. The monster was just outside. Then, to my horror, I heard a wet and raspy voice.

‘Where are those tasty morsels? I know they were here. I am sooo hungry.’