The cave started expanding outward and replaced the darkness with a faint orange light. Orange mushrooms with thin, downward caps were the origin of the light. Tyrus accidentally stepped on one and felt it squish beneath his feet. He watched the mushroom spring back to its original form, unaffected by the pressure applied. Although he found it neat that it remained undamaged, he put it aside when he realized he had more pressing matters to attend to.
Tyrus came to a stop as he saw where the noise was coming from. A precarious and intriguing scene unfolded before him, just beyond a small gray puddle. Facing off against a moving blob, a lone girl stood, her expression a mix of fear and caution. The creature, a squirming and squishy blob, seemed to move with an eerie fluidity, inching closer to the newcomer who had stumbled upon it.
The girl backpedaled, trying to maintain a safe distance from the enigmatic blob. The creature, seemingly undeterred, lurched briefly before launching itself toward them, a strange display of intent.
A yelp of surprise escaped her lips as she bent her body forward, just enough for the blob to soar overhead. It splattered onto the floor behind them with a loud squelch, only to reform quickly, as if the impact had barely affected it.
"I hate cave slimes!" she whimpered. "Why did teacher send me, of all people? She knows I hate these things…"
Tyrus cleared his throat and gestured. She gasped and turned her head. Tyrus managed to recognize their features after a long stare-down.
The girl appeared to be his age, or maybe a year or two older. A strand of golden hair partially covered her spectacles. She dressed in a way that made her look like a member of the Explorer Guild, wearing shorts, boots, gloves, and even a cape. By her foot, there was a large sack.
Tyrus sank into a gray liquid as he took a step forward. "You don't know me, but–"
In a frantic manner, the girl raised her arm. "That's a slime you stepped on!"
Before Tyrus could react, the puddle of gray liquid beneath his foot came to life, transforming into long, sinewy tendrils that snaked their way up his leg, ensnaring him in their squishy grip.
Panic surged through him as he desperately tried to free himself, but the tendrils were unyielding, firmly latching onto his body. He struggled to raise his leg, but it was as if the creature had him in an unbreakable hold. The flare of pain that followed had him wincing, feeling an excruciating pressure coursing through the trap that ensnared him. He quickly shifted his focus to the dagger at his side while grimacing.
To break free, Tyrus brandished his dagger and swung it at the fleshy creature, hoping to cut through the tendrils that bound him. To his dismay, his efforts seemed futile, as if he were trying to slice through gelatin with a rusty knife. The creature seemed impervious to his attacks, its fleshy mass showing no signs of damage.
With the burning pain subsiding through the power of augmentation, Tyrus regained his ability to move and lifted his leg off the ground. However, the stubborn slime still clung to him, refusing to let go. Leveling his arm near the retreating blob, he focused his mind and channeled the power of lightning. The surface of the slime responded with bubbling and writhing as an energetic surge crackled across it. The creature thrashed about, trying to free itself from the electrifying assault.
Parts of the slime's surface fizzled and melted away, leaving behind a trail of sizzling residue. With another burst of lightning, the creature finally relinquished its hold on Tyrus, slinking away as it attempted to reform itself. But he wasn't about to let it get away that easily.
"It's able to shrug off my dagger, but not lightning?" Tyrus mumbled. Moving quickly, he used his arm to tear through the slime. Then he watched the magic crackling with renewed vigor within its body. In a matter of seconds, the slime turned into an unmoving puddle of goop. Tyrus frowned as he studied his body.
His right shoe was melted off and his trousers were completely ruined. Using augmentation had allowed him to resist the slime's acidic effects. The arm remained safe, but the skin on his lower half was red. Next time he battled a slime, he'd need to steer clear of direct contact unless he had augmentation activated.
After lifting his head, Tyrus noticed the girl standing directly in front of him, their noses nearly touching. Leaping backward in surprise, he fell right onto his butt.
"Woah! How'd you sneak up on me?"
Peering at him, she tilted her head. "You look like you're around my age, yet you're an Elemental Sorcerer? Are you an elf? No, that can't be. You have normal ears, that and they only exist in fairy tales."
"An elf? What's that?"
The girl arched her eyebrow and inspected every nook and cranny of his body. Her eyes, the color of the sky, held a sense of curiosity. "You look poor. Did you wander into this cave by accident?"
Tyrus scowled at her remark. "Never mind that. The witc–uh, Selena, sent me here to look for you, I guess. I think I'm supposed to check up on you and help."
"Teacher sent you? That must mean you're my bodyguard!" She clasped her hands happily and rose. Picking up the sack, she swiftly moved her legs and trudged towards Tyrus. Half of it was filled with the mushrooms plastered all over the cave. "I've been collecting glowing mushrooms under teacher's orders. She told me they aren't edible because of their poisonous nature but are harmless when touched. Teacher also said that they're mostly used in concoctions and…"
While she prattled on, Tyrus scanned the area, not fully engaged. Behind the girl, there was a tunnel big enough for a carriage to go through. It emitted a weird, scraping noise, like rocks rubbing against each other. The ceiling was decked out with pointed stalactites staring at him menacingly. He even spotted a few more blood-sucking bats snoozing. Cave slimes were etched onto the exteriors of certain stalactites. One of them descended the structure and hit the cavern floor with a splat. It saw the duo and approached them.
"A slime is coming this way," Tyrus said. "You can collect the mushrooms while I protect you. Once you're done, we can leave."
"Sounds good to me!"
The girl, with the sack strapped to her back, shuffled to a nearby patch and began picking them by the stem as she hummed. He stood up and faced away from her. As the cave slime neared, he activated his element and used his palm to strike it. It was immediately turned into a small pool. As more slimes appeared over time, Tyrus grew ever more skeptical.
The errand was surprisingly easy to complete. Selena had expressed her dislike of Fiona's plan in a showy manner. Committing forgery for Tyrus was deemed not worth it, emphasizing heavily that the negatives outweighed the benefits. If all it took was to protect her student and bring her back safely, then what was the point of her actions? Did she find him untrustworthy, and this served as a test? He didn't believe that one bit. There had to be a hidden motive.
Selena's student shouted with delight. "I finished! That should be more than enough."
She let out a mighty groan as she hoisted the sack onto her shoulder and stumbled toward Tyrus. Her face was already beginning to redden. While shrugging, he walked up to her and snatched the sack. His knees buckled slightly from the additional weight, but it was manageable. Augmentation came to his mind, but he would only use it if the sack became too difficult to manage.
A smile spread across her face as she lowered her head. "T-Thank you very much! It would've been hard carrying that over to the Explorer Guild."
"It's no problem. What made her send you for such a burdensome task? I don't see a storage ring on you."
"There is a limit to the space of storage devices," she blurted. "What to store depends on the grade level of the item. Small, valuable items such as potions and rare ingredients are usually stored in weaker ones. Since I was tasked with collecting a lot of glowing mushrooms and lacked a high-grade storage device, a sack was the logical choice for transportation. Manual labor is necessary when gathering a large amount of items."
"Huh… That's nice to know," Tyrus said. The two turned in the direction of the cave entrance, having finished their task. "We should get moving before it gets late. Hopefully, your teacher is worried about you."
"Hopefully? Of course she's worried. Why else would you be here?"
Tyrus looked away and mumbled, "And what would happen if I weren't here?"
"Did you say something?"
"I just mentioned that it's dangerous to stand around doing nothing in an infested cave."
She crossed her arms. "Yeah, you're right. We should move before we wake up the spider beast."
"Did you say spider beast?" Tyrus asked, craning his neck.
His heart pounded in his chest as he witnessed the horrifying turn of events that happened in mere moments. From the depths of the cave tunnel, an unseen thread had struck with deadly precision, ensnaring the girl in a web and pulling her with terrifying force into the darkness.
The shock on his face mirrored the terror etched across the girl's features as the thread whisked her away. Her piercing screams echoed through the cavern. With each passing second, her cries grew fainter, swallowed by the depths of the tunnel.
Tyrus clenched his jaw and dropped the sack of mushrooms. He sprinted toward the tunnel and activated augmentation. Infusing more mana into his legs, Tyrus catapulted himself forward, chasing after the beast that had taken Selena's student.
If something happened to her, Tyrus would probably be blamed and targeted. His chances of becoming an explorer would turn to smoke, and Selena would take his head. The only way he could avoid the scenario was to bring the girl back safely. Failure was something that filled him with fear. No matter what it took, he would succeed. Handling a few spider beasts should be easy for a sorcerer.