Chapter 26
After weighing the pros and cons, the party wound up returning to the slime room to finish up their exploration there. The potential downside was that they'd be passing up double loot by not waiting to finish their room exploration quest. However, it was argued that they'd end up exploring rooms no matter what, and an even more lucrative quest could be offered once this one was cleared.
It ended up being a walk in the park. Sloan summoned Blossom to lead them through it. Blossom also emitted a pheromone that kept any slimes that descended from her docile. The ones that did attack were quickly put down without any qualms from Blossom.
Most luckily of all, no other slime girls came out for a fight. The issue would be less about the threat they posed, and more about how awkward of a confrontation it would be after Blossom's betrayal. At least, that's what Sabrina guessed.
>Quest complete: (3/3) rooms explored!
>Rewards:
>Inventory expanded! Personal inventories now have 48 slots. Shared inventory has 144 slots.
>4 silver bars (10 oz ea.)
>Rare item: Astronomer's Specs. At will, these eyeglasses can zoom and refocus. This can allow viewing over vast distances or getting a macro view of small objects.
New quest category unlocked: hunts.
New hunt: Lurking Ivy Queen (mini boss). 4 Lurking Ivies marked on map. Defeat 4/4 to reveal location of their Queen. (0/4) defeated.
New hunt: Corrupted Hellgrazer. Grazing grounds marked on map.
New hunt (capture): imp sire. Nearest imp breeding grounds marked on map. Capturing any imp sire will satisfy the requirements of the hunt.
"Thank fucking god," Jade said with a sigh. She set a stuffed tote bag down on the floor and began loading things into her inventory.
"You're telling me," Alice remarked with sass. "I've got like fifteen vibrators rolling around in my slime suit. It's like duct taping rocks all over my body."
Rolling past that vibrator statement, Sabrina asked Jade, "what are you complaining about? You've got the biggest boob-pockets I've ever seen. You could get tipped the GDP of Ireland and it'd still be chi-chi money."
"Oh yeah, that reminds me," Jade said, before pulling a quarter-gallon jar of pink salt from under her breasts. Sabrina snorted a laugh at this.
"Who gets the glasses?" Alice asked.
"Let me see them on you," Jade said.
Alice pulled the cute rounded glasses from the shared inventory and tried them on.
"Gorgeous! I vote that you should keep them," Jade said. Sabrina and Sloan agreed.
"Next up, we've got these monster quests," Sabrina declared. "Which means we need you to explain what the hell any of it means, Red." Red rolled her eyes, but subtly grinned. "Lurking Ivy?"
"Plant monster."
"Hellgrazer?"
"The big goats."
"Imp sires?"
If Red could blush, she would have been. "They're sexy imp girls with dicks. Big orgies form around them and that's how we breed new imps. They're a lot stronger and more aggressive than other imps. They live to fight and fuck."
"Don't we all," Sloan joked.
After talking it over, the party decided to get a start on the Lurking Ivy hunt for now, and then return to the safe room. They checked the map for the nearest Lurking Ivy in the opposite direction of the orcs. Past the safe room and into the next mall plaza they trekked. There were a lot more vines in this section, blanketing the floor and walls.
It was strangely beautiful. It reminded Sabrina of post-apocalyptic fiction wherein nature had overtaken artificial environments. Green and purple vines we spread out beautiful multicolored floral blooms. The spring-scented humid air was evocative of a fae meadow.
"I'll go scout ahead," Sabrina declared, before teleporting further up.
The hanging creeper plants and jutting banana leaves made line of sight fairly short. That meant Sabrina needed to poof ahead in short lurches. Finally, when brushed passed a plant that had obscured her view of the central fountain of this plaza. There, a massive plant encompassed the fountain. It had writhing tentacle-like vines, and a pink-and-orange water lily the size of a tool-shed in the middle.
"Found it," she told Jade mentally.
She then turned back to go to her team, and suddenly felt her ankle caught in something. She tried to teleport but was completely unable. She looked to the vine wrapping around her that seemed to disable teleportation. "Help," the pleaded telepathically. Something was wrong, though, as the connection seemed cut-off.