After we closed our statuses, a new panel appeared:
{ First Floor: Maze }
{ Objective: Find the stairs. There are monsters scattered throughout the maze. Recommended Level: 1 }
"Oh, okay, that's not hard; just find the stairs," Frey said, looking at me. "It's quite easy… too easy."
"Don't you guys find it weird how calm we are?" Geomi interjected.
"You're right. I have a title skill called [Adaptable] that helps me with this kind of thing, but you guys don't have it, right?" The girls shook their heads. "I thought so. Maybe we've been desensitized to this kind of thing due to anime, manga, and novels."
We started walking through the cave until we entered the maze. It was filled with 10-foot-tall stone shelves, and there were books lying everywhere on the ground.
{ Due to your higher-than-average Insight stat, you have discovered the first floor's hidden subquest: "The Secret of the Forgotten Library." }
"Huh?! Did any of you get that quest notification too?" I blurted out, surprised by the sudden message.
Frey turned to me and gave me an annoyed look. "Let me guess, you thought to yourself, 'Oh, it seems like something happened here,' and randomly got a hidden subquest."
"What? No, my insight stat detected it. This isn't a poorly written novel."
Geomi chuckled. "Seems like you're the lucky one this time, Rika. What's the quest about?"
I glanced around, trying to make sense of the surroundings. "It says something about 'The Secret of the Forgotten Library.' Maybe there's something important hidden here?"
Frey sighed. "Great, more distractions. Let's just hope it leads to something useful."
As we continued deeper into the maze, I couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and apprehension. This hidden quest could either be a great opportunity or a dangerous detour.
"We should keep an eye out for anything unusual," I suggested. "Books out of place, strange symbols, anything that might give us a clue."
"Got it," Frey said, scanning the shelves with renewed focus.
Geomi nodded. "Let's stay alert. We don't know what kind of monsters could be lurking around here either."
The atmosphere grew tense as we moved forward, each of us on high alert for any signs of the hidden secrets the library might hold.
As we walked, I decided to check the hidden quest's information.
{ The Secret of the Forgotten Library }
{ Description: The library was once filled with almost all the knowledge in the world but was destroyed when forbidden knowledge entered it, erasing all records and history. }
{ First Task: Find the 10 shards. }
{ Shards: 0/10 }
{ The rest of the tasks are currently hidden. }
I shared the information with the group, and Frey nodded thoughtfully. "Sounds like we need to keep an eye out for these shards while we navigate the maze."
"Agreed," I replied. "Let's stay focused and gather any shards we find. This quest might reveal something valuable."
As we navigated the maze, my 9th Sense skill suddenly tingled, warning me of something up ahead. Trusting my instincts, I sprinted ahead of the group, leaving Frey and Geomi behind.
Turning a corner, I stumbled upon a goblin, standing alone in a dimly lit section of the maze. It stood about four feet tall, with green, warty skin and beady red eyes that gleamed with malice. It held a crude, rusty dagger in its clawed hand and was intently reading something when it noticed me. The goblin seemed unusually excited for some reason.
{ Goblin: Level 2 }
I froze, realizing I was far from my friends. The goblin let out a guttural growl and lunged at me, brandishing its rusty dagger. I couldn't move, paralyzed by fear. At the last second, I managed to dodge, but not completely. The goblin's swipe cut into my arm, drawing blood. The pain was sharp and immediate, snapping me out of my paralysis.
The adrenaline surged, and something inside me shifted.
{ [Adaptable] has activated }
Suddenly, the fear dissipated, replaced by a heightened awareness. I felt my body adjusting to the pain, my movements becoming more fluid and precise. I spotted a large, jagged rock nearby and grabbed it.
The goblin lunged at me again, and this time I was ready. I dodged its attack and countered with the rock, smashing it into the goblin's face. The goblin staggered but didn't fall, snarling angrily.
I pressed the advantage, hitting it again and again. The goblin managed to cut my leg, but the pain felt distant, almost irrelevant. I could feel myself growing stronger, more resilient. With a final, desperate swing, I struck the goblin's head, and it collapsed to the ground.
I didn't stop. I kept smashing the rock into its head over and over, blue blood splattering my face. I hit it until a notification popped up.
{ You have killed a Tomesnatch Goblin Scout. }
{ XP gained: 5 }
{ Level up! }
{ You and the skills [Basic Martial Arts], [Evasion Techniques], and the title skill [Adaptable] have reached level: 2 }
{ Lvl: [2/5], XP: [0/10] }
I stood there, trembling, breathing heavily, blood dripping from my wounds. I felt something wet and warm dripping down my face; apparently, I had started crying somewhere during the fight. But I had done it; I killed a goblin. But the reality of what had just happened slowly sank in, and I felt a mix of triumph and horror.
Looking down at what was left of the goblin, I saw its body with a bit of its neck still intact and a shattered skull. Chunks of its head were sitting in a pool of its own blue blood, with pieces of brain, flesh, and bone scattered everywhere.
I stumbled back, overwhelmed by the gruesome sight. I ran to a corner and threw up, my body shaking uncontrollably. I sank to the ground, hugging my knees and crying into them. I made sure to sit in a corner that could see both entrances into the small alcove I had just fought in, trying to regain some sense of safety.
After a few minutes, I heard hurried footsteps. Frey and Geomi ran into the alcove and froze, shocked by the sight.
"Rika!" Frey shouted, rushing over to check on me. "Are you okay?"
Geomi inspected the corpse, her face grim. "What happened here?" she murmured, more to herself.
Frey knelt beside me, her eyes full of concern. "Rika, talk to me. Are you hurt badly?"
I sniffled, trying to compose myself. "I-I think I'll be okay. The goblin... it attacked me, and I just... I had to fight back."
She gently examined my wounds, noticing that they looked worse than they actually were. "You're bleeding pretty badly, but it looks like the bleeding has stopped. We need to get these cleaned and bandaged." She paused, looking at my tear-streaked face. "It's okay, Rika. You did what you had to do. This place... it's not like anything we've dealt with before."
"I know," I whispered, feeling a mix of relief and lingering fear. "I didn't want to, but it was going to kill me."
Frey hugged me tightly. "I'm glad you're okay. We'll get through this together, I promise."
Suddenly, I noticed Geomi reaching for the goblin's rusty knife. "Geomi, be careful!" I shouted. "Don't cut yourself. I've been feeling off ever since it cut me. My senses feel dull, and I'm lethargic. I think it might be poison."
Just then, a notification appeared.
{ Title skill [Adaptable] has neutralized the foreign substance in your body. }
{ You have gained the skill [Weak Poison Resistance]. }
I stared at the panel. "Oh... I guess it really was poison..."
Frey's eyes widened as she started to do a thorough inspection of my body. "Oh my god, Rika, are you sure you're okay?! You were poisoned, please don't die! I'll suck the poison out!" She proceeded to try to suck the poison from my wounds.
"Were you hurt anywhere else?"
"No-" I was cut off as Frey lifted my shirt to check.
Geomi continued to inspect the corpse with a nosebleed, trying her best not to look at the scene unfolding just a few feet away from her.