I knelt in silence for a while before composing myself. Clutching and squeezing my injured shoulder, the wave of pain that followed woke me up.
Shaking my head, I refocused. I couldn't stay like this. I had killed several slimes before and the mimic too. The only difference between them and the Mother slime was that the first two seemed to just want to kill and eat me. The latter wanted revenge for its dead children...
Damn it, I need to get my focus off this, put my mind somewhere else. I quickly pulled up the system notifications. I needed to focus on something else.
(First boss defeated: Achievement unlocked - Beginner Predator - 1000 SP)
More SP, always welcome.
(First boss defeated: Unlocked feature - Analyzer: Item.)
Another feature. Glancing quickly, it was essentially what it said, basically analyzing the item I wanted with a price, varying from item to item.
And lastly, it was another type of screen.
[Dungeon boss defeated, would you like to exit the dungeon?
(Yes/no)
Note: The dungeon on your first run is different from the others, exiting it without completing 100% may result in decreased rewards.]
Some kind of reward system based on completion? Probably exploring all the rooms and killing all the enemies. That would include the mimic. If I wanted to do one hundred percent, I'd have to kill it anyway.
If I wanted to do that, I would waste time. Also, kill the rest of the gray slimes in the dungeon. Did I really need to? Even after all this?
The same image from before appeared in my mind... I needed to, didn't I? If I wanted to survive, this world wouldn't let me rest, would it?
Sighing, I got up. My shoulder hurt, the cut on my face hurt, the cut on my back had reopened, making it hurt again. I felt like crap, my mind was sluggish, and I wanted to sleep.
Taking my phone from my inventory, I checked the time; it wasn't even two in the afternoon, and I already wanted the day to end, great.
I put the phone away again; I didn't have time for self-pity; I had to finish this dungeon, then I'd figure out what to do. Walking to the chain that the Mother slime had collided with, I could see that it was intact, not even a scratch or dent at the impact site.
Grabbing the chain, I began to put it in my inventory. I had already planned to take them, but this just reinforced that thought.
After putting all the chains in my inventory, I went to the Mother slime's body and collected the two parts, along with what I could find of its core. I'll see what to do with this later.
Searching the entire room, I didn't find anything else. The pillars were normal, just stone, with no minerals or inscriptions like the chains, so I left them alone.
Taking my map from my inventory, I placed it on the ground and picked up my phone.
[Live Map LV2: 1000 SP]
[VoidBag LV2: 1000 SP]
(SP: 4562)
Even after spending SP to close the stream, I still had plenty left. Most of it came from Stark. Would it be wrong of me to ask for SP in exchange for the knowledge I have? If I knew Red's future, I would help her for free, but Stark...
Putting that thought aside, I pressed the button to update the map.
This time the map glowed, similar to the previous inventory update, and then quickly returned to normal, with no apparent changes.
Fiddling with it a bit, I discovered that the changes were minimal this time, adding a kind of marking I could place on the map and name as I pleased. A waypoint.
But the most important part I found when I was looking at the corners of the dungeon I hadn't been to yet. A little red dot appeared, moving, and behind it were two more.
Even with my troubled state of mind, I couldn't help but smile. Knowing where my enemies were was an incredible update, especially if it could distinguish enemies from friends. I could tell if someone was a traitor before they revealed themselves.
Waving, I put the map down and picked up my phone.
[Live Map LV3: 5000 SP]
[VoidBag LV2: 1000 SP]
(SP: 3562)
It wasn't ten times the price as I expected. It had still become significantly more expensive, but I guess it was worth the price. I'll update the inventory later. My current one was good enough.
Tearing a piece of my shirt, I tied it around my face to cover the cut, and the rest I tied around my back. I'll save my last potion. I don't know if I'll get one when I complete the dungeon. It's better to save it for an emergency.
I probably looked like a maniac, covered in blood, precariously bandaged, with an incomplete armor and torn chainmail.
I laughed at the thought, making the cut on my face hurt. Speaking of appearance, I hadn't seen myself in the mirror since I arrived in this world. Taking my phone out of my pocket, I turned on the front camera.
First of all, my eyes were still the same dark brown as always. I thought I might have gained some kind of colorful anime eyes, maybe red or purple, but it seemed the stream didn't want to turn me into some kind of isekai harem protagonist.
The rest was basically the same but in worse condition than before. My hair, still black by the way, not white or blood red, was sticky with the mimic's blood, giving it a reddish tint.
My eyes were a bit swollen, clearly from the dust and not for any other reason someone might suggest, and my skin was pale. Not the healthy white I had, but a sickly white.
Overall, I looked as bad as I felt. Pulling off the makeshift bandage I had made, I could see that the cut on my face was a bit deeper than I thought. I could see my skull in some places if I paid attention.
Finishing my inspection, when I went to put the phone away, I hesitated. Should I start the stream again? Red must be worried. I turned off the stream without explaining much, in front of an enemy who had just hurt me. Maybe she thinks I'm dead?
Would it change anything if I started it now or tomorrow? She wouldn't know I was still alive then, would she?...
Sighing, I pressed the button to start the stream. I may not have met her in person, but I knew she was the kind of person who would lose sleep over this. I wouldn't do that to her.
Putting a simple title on the stream. (Sorry. I'm alive!), I waited.
It didn't even take ten seconds for the first viewer to enter. No surprises, it was Red.
[RedHuntressLive]: DEVAS! WHAT HAPPENED? WHY DID YOU TURN OFF THE STREAM OUT OF NOWHERE! ARE YOU OKAY? OH MY GOD, YOU LOOK TERRIBLE! WHAT HAPPENED?
It didn't even take half a second for her to send that message. She's quick.
Shaking my head, a small smile appeared on my face. I did the right thing; she would have worried for no reason.
"I'm fine, Red, I just..." I hesitated. Should I tell the truth? "I did something I'm not proud of to kill the dungeon boss; I didn't want anyone to see." That you would see, screw you, Stark, and I didn't even know White.
[RedHuntressLive]: DON'T DO THAT AGAIN! I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU DID TO KILL THAT THING! I WAS SO, SO WORRIED. I THOUGHT YOU HAD DIED!! I THOUGHT I HAD LOST MY FIRST FRIEND!!
That hurt more than the Mother slime's acid. Damn it, I didn't know what to say. First friend? How do I respond to something like that?
Sighing in defeat, I picked up my phone. Red was my first viewer, and in a way, my first friend too. In Terraria, at least, I owed her that much.
Going to the missions section on the stream, I used the request missions feature. I could ask for something, and if a viewer had what I wanted, they could ask for something of equal value in return, and they could only accept the mission if they actually had the item in question.
I could only use this feature once a day, and since it was something I, the streamer, specifically requested, the viewer could ask for more than just something I had to do on the stream, like an item or information I possessed.
It wasn't like Member Missions, where the viewer initiated the mission and could only ask me to do something on the stream.
Interestingly, I could ask for anything, even something like forgiveness.
(The Streamer requested the item: [Ruby Rose's Forgiveness], if anyone has this item, they can ask for something of equal value in return - Time limit: ∞ )
Now it was waiting. I hope I didn't get her name wrong; that would make things weird.
After standing still for a few minutes, when I was starting to think she wouldn't accept the mission, a notification appeared.
(The Viewer [RedHuntressLive] has the item [Ruby Rose's Forgiveness], she requests in return the item: [Promise of Devas Asura: I will not die until I meet Ruby Rose in person])
After I read that message, I couldn't help myself. I started laughing, laughing without caring that my face hurt and my back wound throbbed.
I couldn't help it. She could have asked for something else, like a weapon from this world, some rare metal I found, or some kind of magical treasure, but no, a promise, she asked me for a promise.
And on top of that, it was a promise I could break; if I died before meeting her, nothing would happen, what could I do? I'd be dead!
With this, she basically said, 'I forgive you.' So, I couldn't help it; I really laughed at that, my sour mood practically evaporating. Red had really helped me a lot since I arrived in this world, even if she didn't know it; I was grateful.
It must have been a strange scene to watch, a beaten-up guy, covered in blood, precariously bandaged, with incomplete armor and torn chainmail, laughing alone in the middle of a giant room.
But I couldn't care less! Since I arrived on this planet, I hadn't relaxed for a moment; that was even more true after I found out I was in the damn Terraria universe. So, I didn't care if I looked like a maniac laughing alone; this was the first time I had been happy since I arrived in this place.
Ignoring the pain in my shoulder, I turned my head and looked to where I knew the camera that filmed the stream was, and I said with the happiest voice I had heard come out of my body in a long time.
"I, Devas Asura, promise that as long as I don't meet Ruby Rose in person, I will not die."
I didn't have to wait long; her message came right after.
[RedHuntressLive]: I forgive you, you idiot! You promised; you can't die now, not before finding a way to come here. (Emote of Little Red Riding Hood sticking her tongue out with one eye closed).
Indeed, I felt lighter, as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. While I laughed, I didn't realize that the number of viewers had increased to an incredible six people.
[GeniusBillionairePlayboy]: Wow, that was so sweet I got diabetes; I think I'm going to vomit from all the sweetness. (Iron Man vomiting rainbow emote).
I froze, my body turning to stone. Unfortunately, Stark wasn't the only one.
[YellowHuntressLive]: So, this was the guy who made my little sister cry? (Emote of an angry yellow bear with red eyes). I'll let this one pass since it was the sweetest thing I've ever seen, I'd even say sweetastic! (Emote of a yellow bear eating honey)
[BlakeHuntressLive]: Really, I'm going to need to see a dentist after this; I think I may have gotten cavities from all the sweetness.
[WhiteHuntressLive]: Finally! You idiot! Buffoon! Do you know how much she cried when you turned this off? I had to calm her down until everyone arrived! (Angry dwarf emoji cursing).
It seemed like Red had invited her entire team. They must have accepted the invitation while I was talking to her.
It looks like I'm going to break the promise I made to Red; I don't think I can live with so much shame, especially since we had a new viewer in the stream.
[WiseWizardGleam]: What a curious object! Am I interrupting something? I can come back later if needed.
Someone kill me now...