Chapter 4: Slimy plans Investigating his completed layout for the first floor, Lethe realized that he had accomplished one of the first milestones of a dungeon core in only a few hours since he was 'born.' Understanding the system itself was intuitive for him and looking out from the entrance of his dungeon, he saw that the sun had only started to sink on the horizon. Quickly inspecting his surroundings, Lethe also realized that he needed to work on a way for his adventurers to reach his entrance, seeing as the cave was almost at the top of a 130 meter hill. The hill itself was covered in greenery, with an almost barren top, shrubs and saplings growing along the middle, gradually tapering into tall spindly birch trees meeting the forest around him. It was an idyllic scenery all things considered. The climb to the hill itself was not 'steep' per se, but it would be a chore for most. Perhaps he should make a path from his dungeon entrance leading to the edge of the forest; however, that was for later. Moving his focus to the first room once more, Lethe was finally ready to inspect his mobs, his [Slimes]. And as soon as he willed it to be, the description for each type were now available to him. [Acid Slime 1 | Rank 1 | Cost: 1 MP (mob point) | Drops: 1-3 Copper Coins | Type: Common] [The most common variation of a [Slime], generally spawned from pools of stagnant acidic water. [Slime] type mobs are able to combine with other [Slime] type mobs and have the inherent ability to control their gelatinous body to harden, soften, or expand.] [Stone Slime 1 | Rank 1 | Cost: 2 MP | Drops: 25% 1 Hardened Stone, 3-5 Copper Coins | Type: Uncommon] [A [Slime] birthed and shielded by stone. Can integrate into stone structures. [Slime] type mobs are able to combine with other [Slime] type mobs and have the inherent ability to control their gelatinous body to harden, soften, or expand.] [Treasure Slime | Cost: No cost | Drops: 33% ???, 33% ???, 33% ???, 1% ??? | Type: Special] [The [Treasure Slime] does not attack but is exceptionally good at running away. Will spawn only in treasure chests and escape once opened. Any treasure that is in the chest will be consumed by the slime and enhanced. Will also randomly generate loot when captured or defeated. Cannot be taken out of the dungeon.] The [Treasure Slime] was a surprise for Lethe, but one he would gladly take. It would serve as a good incentive for adventurers. On the other hand, the [Acid Slimes] and [Stone Slimes] would prove to be a fair challenge for the first floor. Shifting his attention to the first room, Lethe placed 3 [Acid Pool]s, two of them flanking the tunnel that lead into the room and one more hidden in a nest of thick stalagmites near the curved tunnel leading further into the dungeon. Crude shallow pools of transparent bubbling water, measuring at about 2 meters at their widest, appeared in the designated locations. Changing gears, Lethe invoked [Creation - Mob 1] and spawned his first [Acid Slime] in one of the pools. As soon as the skill had finished casting, the water in the pool itself started to absorb the ambient mana, creating a membrane on the surface of the pond followed by a distinct 'plop' sound at the bottom of the shallow pool indicating that the slime had spawned. A transparent gelatinous body with a thick membrane and a small rock at the center slowly rose and started to float on top of the pond itself. Lethe marveled at the creature he had created. The slime that spawned wasn't a small ball as he had initially though; instead, it was a large 1 meter droplet. The bobbing slime could possibly even swallow one of the shorter races in this world. Some might say that [Slimes] were too bland of a base, too simple and ineffective. However, for Lethe, the simple structure of its body meant a lot more opportunities for him to experiment. Quickly spawning two more [Acid Slime]s in the other pools, Lethe shifted his focus to the first tunnel. This time, instead of creating a structure, Lethe aimed [Creation - Mob 1] at the wall of the tunnel. He attentively observed as a large part of the wall started to ballooning out into a large bubble before another 'plop' sounded and a large piece of stone, again about 1 meter in size, fell to the floor of the tunnel. Initially, he had thought that the [Stone Slime] would actually be made off of stone instead of the acidic substance of an [Acid Slime]. Looking closer though, he realized that the [Stone Slime] had a layer of stone as its membrane in addition to its acidic insides, somewhat similar to stone armor. He could still make out the small core at the center of its body and wondered how much more difficult these would be to slay for adventurers. This time, he directed the [Stone Slime] to shift into the middle of the ceiling of the tunnel and he watched as it spread itself into a sheet of stone and almost completely camouflaging itself. Before moving on to the center room, Lethe decided to establish a [Rule]. He pictured the scenario for the rule, where if there is an adventurer, or more, passing through the tunnel below, the [Stone Slime] would retract onto itself and then fall down, on top of an adventurer if possible. Rule Established Subject Stone Slime 1 (F1-T1) Rule Fall from station Trigger >=1 enemies Optional condition Fall on enemy Designation Mob Fall Trap - Stone Slime Investigating the new screen in front of him, Lethe started to understand that these [Rule]s would be a fundamental aspect of his dungeon. He had expected that [Rule]s would only be available for setting up traps but since his mobs can be affected by them, then would the adventurers also be affected by them? Would he be able to set up rules for the whole of his dungeon or specific floor based rules? So far, he could not see anything that would contradict this line of thought, but perhaps he should set them up after his first party. Checking in on the [Stone Slime], he also saw that there was a small chain-like mark next to its name, most likely indicating that it has been tied into a rule. Since he was able to set up a [Rule] here, Lethe shifted his attention to the [Acid Slime] in the hidden pool of his first room, and willed it to only come out if an adventurer is close enough for it to jump to it. Rule Established Subject Acid Slime 3 (F1-R1) Rule Ambush enemy Trigger 1 enemy within 3 meters Optional condition Fall on enemy Designation Ambush Trap - Acid Slime Deciding that this would be enough for the first leg of his dungeon, Lethe focused in on the 2nd room. He set up another [Acid Pool] directly at the center of the room and spawned another [Acid Slime]. Looking at the moss he set up for people to get in and out of the room, he created another 2 [Stone Slime]s and ordered both of them to hide behind the mossy and only attack if the [Acid Slime] in the middle of the room is being attacked. Rule Established Subject Floor 1 Room 2 Mobs Rule Ambush once ally is threatened Trigger Ally Acid Slime 1 (F1-R2) is being attacked Optional condition --- Designation Ambush - Room This time, Lethe noted how the rule did not only apply to the [Stone Slimes] but rather the whole room, which proves that he can set up room based rules. Checking his mob points of which he only had 15 left, he decided to rank up the difficulty for the last leg of the floor. He created 2 [Acid Slime]s, placing the acid pools on the sloped walls of the second tunnel as well 2 [Stone Slime]s from the walls of themselves, their stony texture seemingly covered in the greens of the tunnel. Mentally commanding the slimes to gather together, Lethe willed for all of them to combine. As soon as he had ordered it, the slimes started pushing against each other until an acid slime devoured its neighbor, growing to almost 2 meters in size. Their stone-based counterparts did the same, creating a [Stone Slime] about 2 meters in size as well. [Ding! New Sub Skill Generated]

[Combine | Sub Skill] [Ding! Skill Rank Up! Creation - Mob 2] [Creation - Mob 2| Rank: 2/10 | Sub Skills: [Combine] | Allows user to generate mobs based on mob points. Mobs can increase in rank by consuming or defeating mobs of equal rank.] [Combine: 2x[Stone Slime]]

[Ding! Mob has ranked up!]

[Stone Slime 2 | Rank 2 | Drops: 25% 1-2 Hardened Stone, 6-10 Copper Coins] [Combine: 2x[Acid Slime]] [Ding! Mob has ranked up!] [Acid Slime 2 | Rank 2 | Drops: 25% 1 Bottle of Acid, 2-6 Copper Coins] A new skill rank and also two stronger slimes for any party delving into his dungeon. Watching the two 2nd rank slimes, Lethe felt that they were not enough. He didn't want just a couple of stronger [Slime]s for this part of the dungeon; so he decided to experiment further. He willed the two different slimes to [Combine] this time and saw how the [Stone Slime] started to absorb the [Acid Slime] almost instantly. The thin membrane of the [Acid Slime] had been crushed as soon as the tougher stone membrane started to dig through it. What came out was not something Lethe had expected though. [Combine: [Stone Slime 2] x [Acid Slime 2]] [Ding! Mob has ranked up!] [Stone Slime 3 | Rank 3 | Skill: Stone Shield | Drops: 10% Stone Shield, 25% 1-3 Hardened Stone, 9-15 Copper Coins] The new rank 3 [Stone Slime] spanned almost the whole width of the heavily sloped tunnel it was spawned in. Almost 3 meters in size, it continued to have the stone membrane from the lower ranks, however, the stone itself seemed to be much denser. The slime had also developed a spherical shield-like object that seemed to hover right above its membrane, which Lethe assumed had to be the Stone Shield skill that was also added to it's drop list. An interesting development, as he had thought that the new slime would have to be an amalgamation of the [Acid Slime] and [Stone Slime]. Instead, it seemed that one of the slime's were treated as the base and it had simply ranked up instead; although the new skill was a nice surprise. He wondered if it would've been better if two rank 2 [Stone Slime]s were combined instead. He would have to hold off on trying that for now though as he only had 9 mob points left. Instructing the [Stone Slime] to always be visible and at the middle of the path, which for some reason did not create a [Rule], he turned to the final room for what would most likely be his final experiment. At the center of the room, right next to where the mossy overhand led to the floor, Lethe created 9 [Acid Pool]s and combined them to make a large oval basin spanning through the center of the room and digging itself into the wall at the end to create a hollow cavity in the wall. He also created small ridges along the basin with breaks, which would allow adventurers to reach the cavity, albeit they would have to be careful not to fall in. Looking at the large basin full of acid, Lethe create 8 [Acid Slime]s and willed them to [Combine] in pairs until he had 2 Rank 3 [Acid Slime]s. [Combine: 2x[Acid Slime 2]] [Ding! Mob has ranked up!] [Acid Slime 3 | Rank 3 | Skill: Acid Splash | Drops: 25% 2-3 Bottles of Acid, 2-6 Copper Coins] Looking at the 3 meter blobs of partially sentient acid, Lethe felt a thrill rise in him. He could see that there was a hazy green vapor now rising off of the two slimes, which he guessed would be due to the new skill that they developed. Thinking back, creating these rooms and mobs was a cathartic experience for him after his traumatic descent into this world. He found that the enjoyment from experimenting and creating helped soothe his emotions. Granted, the experiments themselves were fun by themselves as well. Gleefully looking back to the rank 3 [Acid Slime]s, Lethe began his final experiment, willing the two to [Combine]. He watched as a green glow started to exude from in between their membranes as the hazy green vapor began to turn more solid, reaching up towards the ceiling. He witnessed as the two slimes seem to melt into each other, finally combining into a towering monstrosity about 5 meters high from the floor of the dungeon. The additional increase of a meter in size was a surprise for Lethe; but what had caught his attention was that it had two cores now, instead of the previous single core it had during prior rank ups. [Combine: 2x[Acid Slime 3]] [Ding! Mob has ranked up! Mob has mutated! [Mutated Acid Slime 4 | Rank 4 | Skill: Acid Rain, Dual Mind | Drops: 2% Skill Book: Acid Rain, 5% Acid Resistance Potion, 25% 4-6 Bottles of Acid, 8-16 Copper Coins] The new mutated [Acid Slime] had the same gelatinous membrane as its lower ranked brethren; however, the strong vapors coming off of it were proof that getting close to this monster would not be a pleasant experience. The two cores at its center seemed to be glowing in a greenish haze and even without his command, the slime started to sink into the large basin he had created, making the acidic water sizzle and bubble as if it was cooking. Lethe himself was quite pleased with this new mob, which he believed to be exactly what he needed for his final room. He had been hoping for a larger than usual [Acid Slime], but the mutation now allowed him to consider it as a [Boss]. Looking at his mob list now, Lethe realized that he only had 1 point left. Looking at the cavity he had created at the end of the room, he spawned the [Locked Chest] structure, which he hoped will contain the [Treasure Slime], and spawned 1 more [Acid Slime] right in front of it, simply giving it the command to defend the chest. Thinking maniacally, Lethe decided to set a floor [Rule] where the [Mutated Acid Slime] would spawn after the small [Acid Slime] in front of the chest was killed. Just imagining the face people would make as the large slimy mob unveils itself from the acid pool while they would be distracted over trying to open the locked chest sent him into an exuberant mood. Rule Established Subject Mutated Acid Slime(F1-R3) Rule Ambush once ally is defeated/killed Trigger Ally Acid Slime 1 (F1-R3) is being defeated/killed Optional condition --- Designation Floor 1 Boss Fight - Room]