The Leviathan System

Chapter 25: Purple Goop

Silas and his companions turned to face the woman who had called out to them. She was dressed in plain, unassuming clothes, her face etched with desperation. As they took a step towards her, Silas noticed the thin layer of purple goop that coated the floor, their boots making soft squelching sounds with each movement.

"Please, you have to help me," the woman pleaded. "I've been trapped in her by those...those things."

Silas exchanged a wary glance with his friends. Something about the situation didn't feel right.

As they moved to the center of the room, the woman's demeanor shifted. She smiled, saying, "Thank you for walking into my trap."

With that, the woman turned into purple slime and was absorbed into the puddle on the ground. The purple goop began to rise, swirling around their legs. It clung to their armor, pulling them down, threatening to engulf them entirely.

[Entering combat: Defeat Boss Slime]

Silas struggled against the goop, his claws tearing at the sticky substance. Beside him, Jace and Rowan hacked at the slime with their weapons, while Nadia and Lyra tried to pull themselves free.

Silas activated his berserker rage, and with a roar of effort, he managed to break through the layer of goop that had formed around them.

He pulled his friends free. They gasped for air as they emerged from the suffocating mass.

But their relief was short-lived. The goop came together, forming a massive, pulsating creature that towered over them. Its surface was covered in dozens of grasping hands, like people were trying to get out of it.

The slime creature reached out with its arms of goop, seeking to ensnare them once more. Silas dodged to the side, his claws severing some of the arms.

Jace and Rowan flanked the monster, their blades flashing as they struck at its gelatinous form. Nadia loosed arrow after arrow. Lyra's rapier darted in and out, piercing the slime.

Despite their efforts, it seemed to absorb their attacks, its wounds closing almost as quickly as they were inflicted. They needed a new strategy, and fast.

Focusing, Silas activated his essence revelation skill, to see if their was anything he could use. The things that stood out were [Immunities: Bludgeoning, slicing, and piercing damage] and [Weaknesses: Fire].

"Fire! Its weakness is fire! Use any fire spells you know!"

Jace and Rowan unleashed a barrage of fireballs at the creature. Nadia lit her arrows on fire mid-flight.

Lyra wrapped her rapier in flame and thrust it into the monster's side. Silas only knew beginner spells, so he summoned fireballs the size of his fist and threw them at the slime.

The slime recoiled from the onslaught of flames, its surface bubbling and hissing.

Despite their efforts, the battle was far from over. The giant slime crashed into Jace and Rowan like a tidal wave and swallowed them up.

Silas could see inside the slime, trying to swim out of it, but to no avail.

"Just shoot it with fire! As much as you can produce at once!" Silas yelled.

Lyra and Nadia dropped their weapons, and put their hands together. In front of their hands, a large stream of fire formed and sprayed the creature with flames. Silas added to their combined salvo.

The slime writhed and thrashed, its screams echoing through the chamber. Slowly but surely, it began to shrink, its form collapsing in on itself.

Eventually it got small enough that they were able to pull Jace and Rowan out before they suffocated. With a final desperate lunge, the slime tried to attach itself to Lyra, but she sidestepped its attack. Seizing the opportunity, she scooped the diminished creature into a glass jar, sealing it tightly.

The group watched in silence as the once-massive slime was reduced to an apple-sized glob, swirling angrily within its prison.

[Boss Slime defeated! +100 Exp]

Silas checked his current level and exp and it said Lv 7 (240/640). He had leveled up again. This gave him 3 attribute points and 20 affinity points.

He put 3 points into his intelligence, because he had noticed that some neuromancy skills were locked behind an intelligence requirement of 15 and higher.

Biomancy and Essomancy had attribute requirements as well but his stats already met the requirements. He decided to wait on using his affinity points until he knew what he might need.

Now that they had the opportunity to look around, they realized they were in an alchemy lab. Lyra approached the alchemy set with a determined stride.

She ran her fingers along the beakers and alembics. "This is perfect," she said. "With these supplies, I can make us a stockpile of health potions. It'll be fairly high quality too, with the supplies here."

Lyra set to work, gathering the necessary ingredients. She measured out precise amounts of herbs and powders, combining them in a large cauldron that sat atop a flickering flame.

The room filled with the pungent aroma of brewing potions, a mixture of earthy scents and sharp, medicinal notes. Silas watched in fascination as Lyra worked, stirring the bubbling mixture.

Hours passed, and Lyra's efforts began to bear fruit. She filled dozens of glass vials with a deep red liquid.

Silas was in awe of the sheer number of potions Lyra had managed to create. The table was lined with neat rows of vials.

"Lyra, this is incredible," Silas said.

"Yeah great job Lyra!" Jace said.

"Good job," Rowan said.

"You're the best," Nadia said.

"It was my pleasure," Lyra smiled, as she started handing out health potions. "Each of you take two."

She carefully packed the remaining potions into her pocket dimension.

"I hate to leave this place behind. There are so many rare ingredients here," Lyra said. After a few moments, she said, "I guess I don't have to. Everyone, help me put the ingredients in my storage."

They all began opening and emptying drawers into Lyra's pocket dimension.

When they were done, Silas looked around and said, "So how do we get out of here?" He looked down at the luxurious rug that covered the floor near some chairs. Lifting the rug, revealed a trap door.

Silas opened it. It led to a long hole with a ladder against the wall.

"Shall we?" Silas said.

They followed Silas down the ladder. About 100 rungs down, they reached a ledge with a door. The ladder continued further down the hole.

As Silas opened the door, he was greeted by an enchanting sight. Beyond the threshold lay a magnificent garden, filled with an array of vibrant flowers and lush greenery. The air was heavy with the sweet fragrance of blooming blossoms, and a gentle breeze carried the soothing sound of rustling leaves.

In the center of this paradise stood an impossibly beautiful woman. Her long, flowing hair shimmered like spun gold, and her porcelain skin seemed to glow. She was dressed in a gown of the finest silk, its delicate fabric clinging to her curves in a way that was both alluring and elegant.

As the woman's gaze fell upon the group, Silas felt a strange sensation wash over him. It was as if he was being drawn towards her, an irresistible force compelling him to step into the garden and bask in her presence. He could see that his companions were experiencing a similar pull, their eyes glazed over with a dreamy expression.

Suddenly, realization dawned on Silas. This was fairy glamour, a powerful magic designed to ensnare the unsuspecting. He shook his head, trying to clear the fog that had settled over his mind. Looking around, he saw that Rowan, Lyra, and Nadia had also managed to snap out of the trance, their faces etched with a mixture of confusion and alarm.

Jace, however, was not so fortunate. He had already taken a step towards the garden, his hand outstretched as if to touch the beautiful woman. "Pretty lady," he murmured.

Acting quickly, Silas reached out and grabbed Jace by the arm, yanking him back from the doorway. Jace struggled against his grip, still entranced by the fairy's spell. Without hesitation, Silas raised his hand and delivered a sharp slap across Jace's face.

The sound of the slap echoed through the chamber, and Jace blinked rapidly, his eyes clearing as he regained his senses. He looked around. "What...what happened?" he asked, rubbing his cheek.

"It's a trap," Silas explained. "That woman is a fairy. Her glamour almost got us."

The group exchanged uneasy glances. They knew that entering the garden would have been a grave mistake.

"We don't have what it takes to fight a fairy yet," Silas said.

With a collective nod, they decided to continue their descent down the ladder, leaving the temptation of the fairy's garden behind. They came to multiple other doors on the way down the ladder, but opted not to open them, lest they run into more dangers that they would rather avoid.

As Silas and his companions reached the bottom of the ladder, they were met with a peculiar sight. The door at the base was propped open by a stone statue, its face frozen in an expression of shock and horror. The statue's eyes were wide, its mouth agape, as if it had witnessed something truly terrifying in its final moments.

Silas approached the statue cautiously. He reached out and tentatively touched the cold, smooth surface of the stone, half-expecting the statue to spring to life at any moment. But it remained motionless, its gaze fixed on some unseen terror.

"What do you think happened to them?" Jace asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"This can only mean one thing. A basilisk," Lyra said.