First floor: Goblins

I woke up ... and moved out fast in serpent form. Full speed, before the guards switch at the gates.

I reach the forest unseen ... and change my form ... only the hair remains ... the rest doesn't look like Sonja. I wait hidden, in my new weak form, covered in clothes from my inventory. I look young, but my eyes show that I'm not here to play ... This time I'll pretend to be an amateur ... walking out from the safe side of the forest ... and stopping at the gate. The same old man looks at me ... again, for the first time. But this time I'm ready, I trained my speech.

" Show me your papers. "

" I want to be an adventurer. "

This is enough to make him, smile. My young adult legal age, lack of muscle mass, and a couple of daggers tied at the waist are enough to convince him. He repeats the same speech.

" Follow that road. The guild is the last building ... "

I follow the same path, so far so good. I enter the guild, and my scan detects all eyes on me ... but not like when they looked at Sonja ... I walk towards the counter, and continue to follow the plan.

" I want to become an adventurer. "

A small sentence that makes the receptionist looks at the old lady, seated at a table eating.

" I see ... and what is your name, and class ? "

" I'm Ru. And I have no class. "

This is enough to make the receptionist look once more to the old lady. The Guild Master nods again. And the receptionist hands me the wood plate with my name. She explains all about the ranks, and finally asks the gold. I take out one gold coin from my pouch on the right side, and receive my plate. A few moments looking at the quest board, and I return to the counter. The receptionist smiles.

" The Maze ... is a good choice for a beginner ... but you will have problems finding a party to go there. "

" Ru, come with us. We are going to the forest. "

My bait worked ... the same group of rats are already aiming at Ru ... **** traders probably ... or worse ...

" Thank you, but I prefer the Maze. The forest is very dangerous."

A simple sentence, and I walk out of the Guild before anyone can say anything ... Now I can walk on the city ... and here is the market ... All kind of things to buy ... and not to buy ... Ru is classless, so thief is always a good idea. Nothing important, come near the pottery ... and snatch a bag of clay ... it's cheap, but I'm testing my ability, and also being watched by other thieves ... no inventory, no tentacles ... just grab a small bag, and hide under the cloak.

It worked ... all eyes following me, are now moving away ... They think I'm like them ... A young adventurer is always a problem ... some think they will be heroes, and need to be taught a lesson ... but a new thief in town ... it's a future worker for them ... Joining the Thieves is an idea for later ... but now is time to go back to my Maze.

Clay ... mixed with the fur of the rabbit ... moulded properly on my small chamber ... drip some oil ... go near the exit, toss a few clothes from the inventory to fuel the flames ... ignite the fire with my ring ... and close the opening with rocks ... leaving a little space for the air to enter ... My own fire pit is a success ... It looked easy ... one of my meals knew how to do this ... And another was a thief ... Playing Ru is going to be interesting ... Now wait ... and hunt a few rabbits ... no need for them to be here anymore ... and Ru needs to show some results on the guild ...

Too clean ... that was for Sonja ... Ruby is sloppy ... let me ruin this perfect hunt ... First remove the organs, especially the bladders ... they will provide a good test ... While the clay is getting burned. It's simple ... I can't spread the oil far enough ... but filling this bladder ... and a little glue to keep it sealed ... a little more oil outside to provide a fuse ... and its' done ... A way to toss oil at my enemies unseen ... The acid coating is eating the bladder ... the scan shows it's thin enough ... all inside the inventory. They will burst after hitting anything now ...

The fire pit keeps burning ... And scan is showing ... temperature ... this is going to be interesting to use with my new idea to toss fire bladders ... And while I wait, I clean this chamber ... Rabbits, waste, rocks ... all goes away ... on this side ... The main path is still untouched ... I already sealed my tunnel with plenty of rocks, that I can remove in an instant collecting them into my inventory ... a perfect wall to hunt undisturbed while I clean the Maze.

Without seeing the sun, and not using a torch ... time passes without I realise ... Based on my need for rest, I can still keep a little more ... All adventurers never carry all they have, because they are afraid of being ended, and drop the loot ... But I don't do that ... I like the idea to carry always all I have ... And I'm not sure if I can revive ...

All adventurers lose levels after reviving ... but for monsters ... they return to the basic level ... Monsters are not supposed to level up on this world ... So every time I fight ... can be my last fight ... unless I can train this idea.

From pile of slime to Bones worked well ... and the opposite is also true ... If Bones is getting beaten, I can send part of my slime, and my whole conscience there ... an emergency path to escape ... sacrificing Bones ... That gives me an idea ... Amazing ... Ru can fight Bones ... One is me, the other my puppet ... no tentacles showing ... Telekinesis does all ... This opens a whole new spectrum of possibilities ... for Ru get hurt ... My idea is never make Ru another Sonja.

A few Rabbits is all she can aspire ... The best way to pass unnoticed is playing low ... And if someone tries to **** Ru ... I'll show how weak she is ... A stairwell ... My scan showed me the path, and Ru is following it. Since the rest of the Maze is full of lost adventurers and escaping rabbits, going down makes sense ... A few more piles of rocks to close the entrance ... and hide my fire pit ... there are other stairwells to go down, and enter the first floor of the Maze ... but this one is mine ... A forest ... the Maze is surprising ... Scan shows all ... but lacks details ... So Ru explores ... but there is no need to use my legs ... Using the rope properly coated with thin tentacles ... Ru climbs faster then a human ... Scan reveals that no one is watching ... So is time to train ... No cheating ... just normal adventurer skills ... reduce the power ... adjust ... and here we go. I jump from branch to branch ... like a rabbit ...

A simple idea to not scare potential prey ... and also uses Ru lightweight. A good training for Ru, the thief ... Need to find something to sell. The guild can have the fur of one rabbit ... but I want to visit the black market ... This looks interesting ... goblins ... a village of goblins.

Chaos, and noise ... two signs that adventurers are not here ... My scan is showing me a different part of the Maze. They wear only small loincloths ... and I feel a little envy of their freedom ... But there is no chief in sight ... It's easy to spot the chief, even he hadn't level up ... Leaders always make sure to use something to mark their rank ... and become an easy target. Maybe some adventurer passed here before ... Or maybe he is hunting ...

Goblin's techniques to build is easy to grasp, they pound things on the ground, and use it has a foundation ... That is not very effective. My thin tentacle climbs down the tree, and goes closer ... Having a big tree near your camp ... is asking to be raided, my little friends ... Someone is getting closer, is best to retrieve my tentacle ... and continue observing.

An older goblin ... female, is entering the village, and receiving loud noises from the clan ... The leader arrived. The feathers on her head suggests she is ... a Mage ... Shaman probably ... and the first thing she does is to slap a goblin close to her ... Dominance ... she is getting old, and needs to confirm her power ... But she didn't use any magic ... She is dividing them in groups ... one group is moving out ... with some kind of bags ... the other group is guarding the gate ... and one last group is taking care of other things ... They can't work without her command ... But the village looks empty ... considering the number of the huts ... there should be more goblins here.

This means only one thing ... they are not spawning back for some reason ... But that is for later ... now I see a big bear preparing the enter the path that leads to the village .... Is time to test Ru's capacity.

Not much to start ... the mouth full of sharp teeth against my face shows that, let me use one of the daggers on your throat big guy ... just a slice ... not deep, but made you step back ... And now you are roaring ... Sorry, I don't get scared easily ... Again you mouth inches from my face ? Have another cut, bear guy ... stepping back again ... You are not used to get hurt ... Here comes what I was waiting ... The bear paw hits me directly on the chest ... I make Ru spill some stored blood ... directly into the Bear's eyes ... Now use my thin tentacles to stand up ... Ru's body is broken, so she is now my puppet ... and it works like I planed.

The big bear moves the claws, but only hits air. My blood is blinding him ... and is time to continue the fight. Grab the dagger, and toss it ... directly on the throat ... not enough to end the beast ... but now it's stepping back again. Gaining balance ... and charging blindly ... open the mouth ... third time ... same move ... Fighting like an adventurer makes this so easy ... Beasts follow patterns ... and I was waiting for this ... Eat a rock, big guy.

Pulling the head back will not help ... you opened too much your mouth ... using the claws is a good idea ... have another dagger on your throat ... always the same area to make your blood spill faster, and make you slower. If I use a sword from my inventory it would be faster ... but I'm using Ru mode. The stone is gone, and the blood is gone from his eyes ... the beast is looking at me.

Proud takes over fear, and here he comes ... There is no way the big bear would run from fragile Ru ... And eats another rock. One more dagger on his throat ... but this time I don't toss it. Swing, back swing, and a several blows on a damaged area are enough. The beast finally falls into the ground, and closes the eyes. I move forward fast, one final cut ... a quick ending is the reward for our battle.

" Who are you ? "

Asks the Goblin Shaman, and I understand her ... What for adventurers is a series of noises ... I can hear like a perfect language ... But not the bear ... Need to check how this works after ...

" No one. I was never here. "

A simple sentence that surprises her, while I crouch to get some materials. A few fangs from his mouth, and claws from his paws, while my thin tentacles absorb some of the blood, and the meat ... Enough to rebuild Ru. Then I say.

" You did this. "

" Several of our hunters fall every time the bear attacks ... You saved our village. "

" Is time for you to save yourselves. Use the bones of the bear to make stronger weapons. Some can be used has clubs, others can be sharped to become spears. The claws make good tips for your arrows. "

" What about the meat ? "

" Feast, your clan needs food. "

" Since the Dragon left, our land had no peace, many clans are being attacked ... Will you guide us ? "

" Call all the clans. I will not be your guide, but you need to grow stronger. They will arrive soon. "

" They enter uninvited, steal all we have, and call themselves heroes ... Why you dress like them ? "

" To hunt them. "

" Hahahaha ... the prophecy finally is fulfilled ... A monster will walk between them, and trim their forces unseen. Growing stronger, feeding on their blood, and leading a revolution. "

" That's not me, I feast on both sides. "

" All that don't follow, fall ... The prophecy mentions that. I'll keep this area strong, until you return. "

" If I return with someone ... attack ... don't have mercy ... "

" Yes, after seeing you face a bear ... we will not hold back ... bring us sweet prey, master ... We will allow some of them to run ... including you ... "

" If you do that ... they will return in greater numbers. "

" They do that always ... Deep inside, in a place no one knows ... there is an egg. The Dragon left it, and while it is there, the land will remain here. Will you protect the egg ? "

" If I find the egg, I will eat it. "

" Hahaha ... the prophecy does not speaks details ... but tells all about a dragon eater ... Preying on an egg ... Many of us tried to find it ... no one returned ... Maybe they got lost on the Maze, maybe they were hunted by the heroes ... "

" And maybe the egg has a guardian ... "

" Yes ... that young face, hides old wisdom ... Our secret ruler has many faces ... "

" I need to go now ... The battle was long ... "

" Eat well. If you return alone, seek me, and I'll provide whatever I can. And if you return with heroes ... They will all fall under the new Goblin Queen. "

" All conditions met. Clan meeting scenario unlocked. "

The sound is heard on my mind, but I don't feel nothing ... Then I look at the Shaman ... and she is glowing.

" The voices ... My Grandmother told me that they were real ... I'm feeling it ... It's level up. "

She grows in size, and strength, and I move away after seeing the result. When she enters the village dragging the bear, all call her Queen. My small action changed this floor ... is best to move out, before the other clans arrive. My scan is showing that from all directions several goblins are moving ... and coming here ...

I go up the stairwell ... and close it with all the rocks I can ... Then I return to my secret chamber, moving the rocks into my inventory while walking forward, and closing the path behind me ... Digging mode unlocked ...

Here is my fire pit , buried under several rocks ... a good place to rest ... Ru goes to the inventory, and I become a small pool of slime. The fumes are all gathered on a side tunnel empty ... that I'll clean after ... now is time to sleep.