Pulling her robe tighter around herself, Violet looked around, wondering which direction she should take.

Alright, let’s see… It shouldn’t be that hard to find rats down here.

Deciding to follow the flow of the current, Violet started walking, looking around as she went.

How strange. On the surface there are tons of those disgusting things…

Other than the sound of water, there were no other noises.

Several meters above her, at regular intervals, were grate openings where pale light filtered down. Violet stopped for a moment to look at them.

Many sounds drifted in from outside.

It was still morning, and Violet could hear the wheels of carts rumbling along the streets toward the markets, and the snorting of horses pulling them.

Amazing…

Violet continued walking, delving deeper and deeper into the maze of channels that stretched on endlessly, not realizing she had completely lost track of time.

Then, suddenly, a distant noise—something scraping against stone, like claws dragging along the walls of the tunnels.

Violet raised her staff, extending it forward to illuminate the darkness ahead.

A shadow stood motionless on the path a short distance away.
She took a few steps closer to see better, feeling her heart begin to pound faster in her chest.

Once she was close enough, Violet saw a small, fur-covered shape with a long tail, sniffing the ground with its back turned to her.

“A rat!”

Her voice echoed off the walls, catching the creature’s attention—it whipped around instantly.

The monster, curious, lifted itself onto its hind legs and sniffed the air, staring at her before dropping back down and bolting away.

“Hey, wait!!!”

Without hesitation, Violet sprinted after it.

Gods, it’s fast!

She watched its silhouette grow smaller and smaller.

I’m going to lose it…

Falling behind, she kept running, following the creature’s distant sounds echoing through the canals.

She turned corner after corner without paying attention to where she was going, and when she passed through a wider archway, she found herself suddenly in a much larger space.

The chamber was the meeting point of several tunnels whose waters merged into a massive canal that crossed the entire room before continuing on.

And there, before her, was a sight that made her tremble.

The rat she’d been chasing had stopped and turned toward her with a threatening look.
Around it, many others gathered.
And worse—among them was one of terrifying size.

Violet watched as the rats, noticing her presence, gathered around their leader, fixing their eyes on her and emitting chilling sounds.

The giant rat opened its jaws wide, staring her down and unleashing a horrifying roar, displaying long fangs and razor-sharp claws.

Panicked, Violet gripped her staff tightly and retreated until her back pressed against the wall.

“Damn it! What do I do now?!”

The rats crept forward slowly, watching her, weighing her every move.
Then suddenly, another blood-curdling scream burst from the largest beast.

Violet watched them lower themselves onto their legs, ready to pounce on her.
She tried to move, but her fear-softened legs refused to respond, forcing her to stand there, helpless and frozen.

Then a deep, sudden sound echoed through the chamber, drawing the rats’ attention and making them turn around.
The water in the canal behind them began to churn violently, then rose, unleashing a large wave that revealed something even more monstrous.

Violet began to tremble as she stared at the enormous shape emerging slowly from the water and approaching the shore.

And now where did THAT come from???

Once the creature reached the bank, it climbed up, revealing the form of a massive Slime that advanced straight toward the rats—who, terrified, began retreating.

After a brief exchange of glances, the leader of the rats let out another horrifying screech, and at its command the smaller rats hurled themselves at the huge slime, biting and scratching at it.

The giant gelatinous creature did not react, letting the monsters crash into its soft, wobbling body.

Caught up in their frenzy, the rats didn’t realize the slime’s body was slowly absorbing them, giving them no escape.

One by one, the small rats were engulfed by the slime and began dissolving inside the gelatinous mass.

Seeing its pack swallowed whole, the leader threw itself at the enemy, shrieking in rage.

Violet watched as the monster was swallowed as well, thrashing and dissolving until it vanished completely.

Suddenly, silence fell.

Ghghghghghghg!
Violet trembled violently, gripping her staff so tightly she thought she might collapse.

The slime stared at her—its enormous, expressionless eyes fixed on her figure.

Then, slowly… the monster began to move toward her.

Violet wanted to run, but her legs wouldn’t budge. She was trapped.

The slime dragged itself closer until it was only a short distance from her, then stopped, still staring at her.

“Please… don’t eat me…”

The slime stared deeply into her eyes.

Then, from within the gelatinous mass, bubbles formed—growing larger and rising through its body until they reached its mouth.

The slime opened its jaws wide, and Violet squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for what she believed was inevitable: being devoured and absorbed, just like the smaller monsters moments before.

With her eyes closed, Violet saw her entire life flash before her…
Then she suddenly felt herself being engulfed by warm, thick, foul-smelling gelatin that covered her completely.

Sguashhhhh…

For a moment there was silence. Then Violet opened her eyes.

I’m… still alive?

She looked down at her body, coated in sticky slime, then lifted her gaze.

The slime was staring down at her, expressionless.

Then a sound.

“Buuuuuuuuuurp!”

With a horrifying, echoing retch, the slime spit something out, splattering it onto the ground right at Violet’s feet.

Eyes wide in shock, she stared at the monster as it slowly turned away without a sound, dragging itself back toward the canal and sliding into the water until it disappeared completely.

Left frozen in place, unsure of what to say or do, Violet finally lowered her gaze to the ground to look at what the monster had deposited before her.

At her feet lay the bones of the poor rats the gelatinous creature had devoured—white, and completely stripped clean.

Gross…

The danger, just as suddenly as it had come, was gone. Feeling her strength leave her, Violet collapsed to her knees.

She stayed like that for a long time, unable to erase from her mind the terrifying scene she had just witnessed.

Why me… Why always me…

After what felt like ages lying on the cold floor of that awful place, Violet forced herself to move, though her legs were still trembling from fear.

She pushed herself upright, staring blankly into the distance. She glanced once more at the canal the slime had submerged into, and a sudden shiver ran down her spine, snapping her back to reality.

I need to get out of here. Now—before that thing changes its mind.

Turning into the tunnel behind her, Violet forced herself forward again, dragging her feet and her staff with her—its tip scraping across the stone floor.

She wandered through the tunnels for a long while, encountering no more monsters, until she noticed a recessed area with a small staircase leading upward.

Please… let that be the exit…

Climbing the steps with difficulty, she felt cooler air brushing against her face, and saw a bright light farther ahead.

Violet hurried toward it, finally stepping outside—only to be nearly blinded by the harsh mid-morning sunlight.

She looked around and realized that the opening behind her wasn’t the same one she had used to enter the city sewers.

She was somewhere in the central districts of the town.

Where am I now?

She simply climbed up to street level, finding herself on a deserted road.

A little farther ahead, set into the wall of a tall building, there was a fountain.

Still covered in foul-smelling slime, Violet headed toward it and instinctively dunked her entire head into the water, shaking her hair with her hands, trying to clean it.

Stupid, stupid Violet! You almost died in there!

Once she came back up and made sure no one was nearby, she quickly removed her robe, plunging it into the water and scrubbing it. The slime peeled off and floated to the surface in thick blobs.

Brilliant idea, Violet. Next time you might as well throw yourself into a pack of wolves—at least you’d get it over with faster…

After rinsing the robe one last time and wringing it with all the strength she had left, she put it back on—still dripping wet.

It still smelled, but at least most of the slime the monster had vomited onto her was gone.

She felt drained, exhausted, and disappointed at how things had turned out.

I guess I should be grateful I’m even alive…

The guild, the rats, the slime—without realizing it, she had been swept away by excitement and had jumped into that mission completely unprepared.

“The life of an adventurer is really tough…”

Those words, spoken under her breath, felt like a sudden realization.

“…I’ve been foolish. Next time I’ll make sure I’m properly prepared before taking on another mission.”