8 Wearing red and a Japanese schoolgirl outfit? Do I look like Rin Tohsaka by any chance?

I walked nervously through the dark corridors of the dungeon. The torch I held in my left hand seemed to do little to illuminate my path, and the torches on the walls only added to the tension in the environment.

I knew it was just a slime dungeon. Something that in any game would essentially be the tutorial, but I wasn't in a game, and I didn't know how many enemies I would face. My only relief was the screen that appeared when I started walking.

[Slime Dungeon: Classic Mode Initiated - Quick Escape Allowed, would you like to exit the dungeon? (Yes/No)]

At least I have some kind of way out.

The (CHAT) had gone silent after the initial commotion; I was thankful for that. It seemed like they realized it wasn't the time to comment on anything. Even Stark, who was a pain, had remained quiet.

It didn't take long to encounter my first enemy. Being on edge, any noise, no matter how small it was to me, could very well be a scream in my ear. So when I heard the tiny jumps coming from the corridor to my right, I might as well have broken my neck with how quickly I turned my head.

They were small slimes. Three of them, but unlike the ones outside, these were a grayish, almost metallic color.

I tensed up as I waited, using my usual strategy for dealing with slimes. To my misfortune, the three little globs stood still while their cores spun inside them. They seemed to be studying me, as if they had never seen anything like me before.

'Damn... some kind of intelligence? Just what I needed,' I couldn't help but curse in my head. Taking a deep breath, I started walking towards the slimes.

When I was less than two meters away from them, they seemed to consider me a threat and jumped in my direction. They were fast, faster than the slimes in the outside world, but still slow enough for me to dodge without much difficulty.

To my surprise, when the three little ones hit the ground, they didn't splatter like their more colorful cousins but instead bounced like a tennis ball, two of them going farther away from me, one closer than the other. However, the last one rebounded off the wall and quickly returned, flying towards my head.

I wish I could say it was skill, perhaps reflexes honed over years of training, that helped me, but the only thing that prevented the gray slime from landing on me and melting my face was the pure and simple instinct of my body to stay whole.

Before I could even realize it, I had raised my arm holding the sword toward the oncoming slime. Not a strike or a swing, I instinctively raised my arm and used the sword as an improvised shield. My luck was that these slimes, as different as they were from the usual ones, still had the same weakness.

The momentum the slime gained when it hit the wall was enough so that when it hit the side of my sword, its core cracked, not enough to split the core, but enough to stun the slime, making it go limp and slide off my sword.

I swung the sword with force, throwing its body to the ground, then I twisted my wrist as I struck at the already cracked core, splitting it in two.

"One down, two to go, they're not that different from the regular ones."

The other two didn't stand still. Seizing the opportunity that their brother's death had given them, both jumped toward me.

Feeling more confident now that I realized they weren't so special, I took a step forward, spinning my body and kicking the first slime with the protected part of my shin. I could feel and hear the "crack" of the slime's core splitting on impact.

The little monster was thrown toward the wall and fell lifeless.

Before I could confirm the second death, the third slime came hopping toward my left side. Still with one leg in the air, I raised the arm holding the torch toward the slime.

Upon contact with the fire, the slime began to hiss like a kettle; it quickly started boiling, with bubbles appearing all over its body.

Realizing where this was going, I swung the torch forcefully, throwing the slime far away, just moments before it burst into flames, lighting up the corridor with a small fire explosion.

The first thing that hit me was the light, temporarily blinding my eyes; then the noise made my ears ache, followed by the hot air and a small shockwave that made me step back.

"Damn!" I couldn't help but curse out loud.

I had read in the bestiary that slimes were weak to fire, but nothing about them EXPLODING!

Throwing the now extinguished torch to the side, I rubbed my eyes, waiting for my vision to return to normal while trying to hear something beyond the high-pitched ringing. I wasn't sure if the slime I had kicked was dead.

Forcefully opening my eyes, I ignored the spots in my vision and looked in the direction where I had kicked the slime. Luckily, it was still there, lying limp on the ground, or at least limper than usual.

I stood there for a few seconds. When I felt my senses returning to normal, I blinked my eyes. There were still spots in my vision, but it was more manageable.

I already knew slimes were flammable; in the game, torches were made from the gel they dropped, but I didn't know they were so damn flammable!

I'll make a note, 'Don't use fire against them unless you want to go out with a BANG!'

Walking up to the slime I had kicked, I could confirm it was indeed dead. Well, it looks like the battle is over; for a first serious fight, this could have been worse.

Meanwhile, the (CHAT) had come back to life.

[RedHuntressLive]: Devas! Are you okay? Are you hurt? That was quite an explosion for someone without aura!

[GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: Okay, that was awesome! Way better than the generic slimes! (Iron Man WOW! emote)

[WhiteHuntressLive]: For such small and lightweight creatures, they sure were more flammable than fire dust! Where do these little buggers come from?

Stark seemed to think it was all some kind of performance and enjoyed watching explosions, that jerk! Where's my ban button?

White seemed to want to use the slimes for something, maybe bombs?... That wasn't a bad idea. But still! I nearly blew up here!

At least Red cared, bless her happy soul.

[GeniusBillionairePlayboy] Donated 500 SP!: Art is an explosion! Here, a gift for the beautiful flames!

Maybe just muting him will be enough; I'll stop earning SP if I ban him...

"Thanks for the concern, Red, just a little dizzy, nothing major."

[RedHuntressLive]: Good to hear! And that was so... COOL! YOU WENT WOSH AND THEN BAM AND THEN HE EXPLODED! (Little Red Riding Hood emote with starry eyes).

Does she have an emote for everything?

Smiling and shaking my head at Red's playfulness, I went over to the bodies of the slain slimes, or the ones that didn't explode, and started collecting them using my inventory. Interestingly, both the red slime's body that I had killed earlier and the gray ones didn't mix, each staying in a separate container.

Before continuing my exploration, I took some of the gray slime's body and placed it on the ground. Let's see if White's idea has any merit.

It didn't.

The gray slime's gel and the red one's did the same thing when they were no longer alive, just burning for a while before being consumed.

It seems that the exploding part is exclusive to the gray slimes while they're alive, perhaps a gas produced by their bodies or something like that? From what I had read, normal slimes don't explode even if you set them on fire while they're alive.

With my failed experiment, I grabbed a new torch from the wall and resumed exploring. Encounters with slimes occurred sporadically; sometimes, I'd come across a solitary slime, other times a group of two or three, never more than five.

Finishing collecting the last slime I had killed, I took out my phone to check the time. I had been in here for over an hour, and the only things I had found were gray slimes, empty corridors, and the occasional empty room.

I knew I wasn't walking in circles because the map worked in here, mapping all the paths I had already taken. Without it, I'm sure I would have gotten lost.

[GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: So, is this it now? Dark corridors and slimes? Wasn't there something more creative? Wasn't this supposed to be an RPG? Where are the elves? (Iron Man yawning emote).

At least I had a way to pass the time. Swearing at Stark was cathartic.

"Sorry? I can't understand what you're writing; I don't read idiotic."

[GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: Ha! You wish you could understand what I say; I have more IQ in my pinky than you.

"I highly doubt that, and at least I don't have the complete collection of DSTs known to man; if they examine you, they'd find AIDS version two."

Stark and I continued our back-and-forth of insults as I walked through the dungeon. I had already gotten used to the slime patterns, so I was confident enough not to be caught off guard.

As I passed through another room, which I thought was empty, Red noticed something.

[RedHuntressLive]: Devas!! On the wall to your right! There's something there, go check it out!! (Little Red Riding Hood emote pointing).

Following her words, there was indeed something. The wall was more faded than the others, something I only noticed when I got closer. Red had good eyes, didn't she?

"Thanks, Red, I owe you one, would have missed this without you."

At first, I thought there might be some kind of button on the wall or something. But even after searching for a few minutes, I found nothing. 'I think I know where this is going.'

Placing the torch I held along with my sword next to the wall, I picked up my copper pickaxe. It wouldn't be Terraria without mining.

"Well, here goes nothing."

I had no idea how to use a pickaxe the right way, so I did the most obvious thing. Holding the handle with both hands, I spread my legs for better balance and struck the wall forcefully with the pickaxe head.

Only to have to quickly dodge a rock that flew towards my face.

Maybe a little less force. I won't even read the (CHAT), Stark must be talking nonsense.

After a few attempts and quick reflexes to avoid being hit, I got the hang of it and started digging. It didn't take long; the wall was quite thin, only a few minutes.

With one final strike from my pickaxe, I managed to open a hole large enough to pass through.

Grabbing my sword and tossing the torch inside, I could see it was a room like the others I had seen, the only difference being the wooden chest in the middle of it.

Entering the room, I got a closer look at the chest. It was made of dark brown wood, with small cracks around it. It didn't have a lock or padlock; it seemed to be open.

[RedHuntressLive]: A treasure chest! Quick! Let's see what's inside! (Excited Little Red Riding Hood emote).

You know, it was a simple room, a simple chest, there was no reason for me to doubt anything, it was even a slime dungeon, something for beginners, right?

So when I threw a stone at the chest and it swallowed it, I wasn't surprised. I've played enough Dark Souls to doubt everything!

Damn it! Do I look like an archer dressed in red by any chance? I don't remember my luck being this bad!

The creature pretending to be a chest stood up, rising on eight spider-like legs that emerged from its bottom. On the sides, two muscular human arms emerged, and the chest lid was lifted, revealing a fleshy interior with hundreds of crooked yellow teeth and a serrated tongue.

That's what I would have seen if I had looked back.

The moment the first spider legs started to appear, I had already turned around, jumped out of the hole I had made in the room, and run away.

When the mimic realized I was already gone, it let out a sharp, brittle scream, like metal nails scratching a chalkboard.

[GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: Damn! I got goosebumps all over, that was horrible!

[WhiteHuntressLive]: That's disgusting!

[RedHuntressLive]: RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN! RUN!

As if anyone needed to tell me that!

Before I could even turn the next corner, I heard the sound of a wall being broken. There go my hopes of it not fitting through the hole.

I kept running as the mimic pursued me. Sure, I could use the quick escape button to get out at any moment, but with my luck, I would need to stand still for a few seconds for the button to work, seconds I didn't have.

And even if it were instant, I wouldn't use it. I'm going to kill this thing! Mimics in Terraria dropped gold and items, two things I needed right now.

Now, where are my wimpy friends?

It didn't take long for me to find a pair of slimes wandering the dungeon, but the moment they saw me, or rather, saw what was following me, they started hopping away.

To the slimes' dismay, I was faster than them, and to my dismay, the mimic was faster than me.

I could feel its tongue trying to lick my back, along with what seemed to be small tentacles extending from it.

[GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: I think I'm going to puke...

Just as I could feel the mimic's saliva on my neck and its arms closing in around me, I managed to reach the slimes. This was a crappy idea, but here goes.

Waiting for the right moment, as the slime jumped, I stretched out my arm and closed my hand around its core. Interestingly, I found that slimes become completely inert when something other than their body touches the core.

Ignoring the pain of my skin being corroded by the slime's acid, I kept running with the other slime just inches from my side and holding my new little friend who was trying to eat my hand. This would be so much easier if it exploded when killed, but no!

I kept running until I reached a alley. Perfect, I just needed to set the time.

The mimic seemed to understand that he had stuck his prey and prepared to jump. I could feel his flattened tongue licking my back behind me, tearing my shirt and his arms closing around me.

Counting up to three in my head, I waited until the last second to get down and roll back. In the same second, the mimic jumped and opened his mouth, swallowing the other slime entirely, but hitting the wall, causing several wooden sticks to slip off his body.

Taking advantage that the mimic seemed to be stunned by the impact, I went to the wall and picked up the torch closest to me. I practically stabbed the slime that had already managed to leave my hand in live meat in the torch.

At that moment the mimic had already managed to turn around and 'look' at me. He opened his mouth and yelled again, making his saliva fly everywhere and his tongue and the little tentacles that came out of it tremble.

Seeing that my little gray friend's body had begun to bubble, I knew I didn't have much time.

In your next life, remember to wish for eyes, do I look like a Japanese schoolgirl by any chance? You foolish creature!

I moved my body into a throwing pose, holding the torch as if it were a spear and threw it towards the mimic, who, like the stone before, proudly opened his mouth and ate both.

Knowing what was going to happen, I jumped back, turning the nearest hallway and hiding. Not even two seconds later I could hear the explosion.

Waiting a few seconds, I put my head to the side and looked at the hallway where the mimic was. It looked like someone had put several bodies in a box and detonated it. The whole corridor was painted in red, with pieces of wood, scissors, and tripas attached to the walls.

It was a nasty scene, I would vomit if I didn't have enough adrenaline in my body to get an old man to run a marathon.

Speaking of that, that must be the reason I haven't fainted yet, since my leg muscles looked like jelly and my lungs were just a step from entering spontaneous burning and I'm sure I have a cut in the back that the mimic licked me.

And that if I was going to ignore my hand, which was swollen, with the muscles, meat and tendons sample for lack of skin.

Was that a bone? I think I'm gonna faint...

Feeling my vision getting black, I bit my tongue strong enough to take blood, I put my good hand in my pocket and took the potion I left there.

Knowing Terraria I should drink, then. Bite the lid and pulling I drank the potion with a single drop, for my relief the effects were instantaneous.

I could see the flesh, muscle, and skin of my hand growing with the naked eye, returning to what it was before. The cut on my back began to heal quickly and part of my fatigue passed.

Opening and closing my hand to see if it was all right, I went to the hallway where the mimic exploded.

After that shit, if you don't have anything for me there, I'm gonna blow up this whole place!