Chapter 4: The Mushroom and the Slime

The Mendelair Great Labyrinth was exactly as its name suggested—not only was it vast, but it was also incredibly easy to lose one’s way.

This wasn’t like a spiritual wall where one simply walked in circles around the same spot.

Although everything in sight consisted of caves and tunnels of similar shapes and sizes, Ning Lan was certain she hadn’t traveled the same path twice.

After all, she hadn’t seen a single one of the simple marks she had left along the way.

She even wondered if someone was clearing them out on purpose to mess with her.

‘See?’

The Labyrinth was so large it was nearly giving her persecution mania.

Fortunately, the journey had been relatively smooth.

With the help of the System Panel, she could sense enemies in advance.

She would hide whenever possible and take detours when she couldn’t.

Since her priority was leaving this area, she hadn’t even engaged in a direct confrontation with the slimes, even though they looked like monsters she could easily handle.

Until…

**[Screaming Wood]: Common trees found in the Gloomy Forest Land. Named for their claw-like branches and trunk patterns that resemble terrified human faces.**

Ning Lan jumped in fright when she left the cave and saw those trees with their brandished claws.

Fortunately, they weren’t moving Treants; they were just naturally terrifying to look at.

Still, they made her feel incredibly uncomfortable.

If she hadn’t confirmed through the System Panel that these things had no health bars and were merely decorative scenery like rocks, she would have rather turned back to the cavern to face the Wolf King than enter this forest.

‘These are just inanimate objects, they only look scary…’

***

After muttering a few self-hypnotizing words, Ning Lan left the cavern and stepped into a new area.

‘The Gloomy Forest Land, a forested region on the Second Floor of the Mendelair Great Labyrinth.’

The Wolf King still felt more pressuring.

Although there might be an area boss like the Shadow Wolf King in this forest, she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, so she would assume it didn’t exist for now.

Rather than staying in a cavern she knew was dangerous, she was willing to bet that the outside world was safer.

Regardless, she was still on the Second Floor.

‘Any danger shouldn’t be too ridiculous, and besides, was anywhere truly safe for her?’

Come to think of it, this world really was like a game—skills, the System Panel, leveling up by killing monsters…

She didn’t know if this was her exclusive ability or the underlying logic of this world.

Since she had a wealth of knowledge regarding similar works from her past life, she could accept the setting quickly, but it was best not to be too presumptuous.

She especially shouldn’t harbor the idea that she was special or the protagonist.

After all, many failures began with arrogance, and as an ordinary person, she was not immune to it.

She could only warn herself early and practice daily self-reflection.

Forget it, there’s no use thinking so much.

She needed to confirm the current situation first.

Because she had been afraid the Wolf King would return, many questions hadn’t been cleared up yet.

Now that she had finally found a safe place, she had the time to figure things out.

‘For example, could her other main body connect across such a long distance?’

Ning Lan closed her eyes and tried to sense the other existence.

The familiar mushroom vision appeared in her mind, giving her a precise answer.

Perfect.

This way, she didn’t have to worry about her life as a mushroom ending so easily.

This was double insurance.

It was just that the process of switching back and forth was a bit troublesome.

‘If she could divide her mind, would she be able to use both bodies at once?’

Even if she couldn’t, it would be good to figure out the conditions for increasing her “main bodies” to add a few more layers of insurance.

Unfortunately, Ning Lan had no clues regarding those two points for the time being.

Next was checking the body.

It wasn’t because she was curious—well, that was part of it—but more importantly, she had to confirm the current state of this Elven body.

It had a temperature, a heartbeat, and it needed to breathe.

By all accounts, it was alive.

However, Ning Lan was certain that the Priest lady had been dead before—cold and gone.

There was a piercing wound in the chest and abdomen that you could see through from one side of the sleeve to the other, along with massive blood loss that had left the person shriveled.

In her original world, a combination of those two injuries would have resulted in being buried on the spot, and it was likely the same in this world.

Therefore, why the body was still alive remained a mystery.

She lowered her head and carefully peeled back the shredded strips of cloth on her abdomen.

It was a bloody mess, covered in dried blood clots and scabs.

Every time she tore off a piece of cloth, large chunks of scabs fell with it.

It looked as excruciatingly painful as a bamboo skewer being driven under a fingernail.

But aside from a slight itch, Ning Lan didn’t feel anything.

This situation actually worried her.

She felt as though the scabs and clothes were acting as a barrier, and once she peeled it away, there would be a gaping hole straight through her, which was why she couldn’t feel anything.

Because it concerned whether she could use this Elf’s identity to return to human society, she was very concerned.

Otherwise, she would have been satisfied even with a moving skeleton.

The result surprised the mushroom.

Ning Lan had considered many possibilities, but she never imagined the wound would be completely healed.

Like peeling an eggshell, the skin on the abdomen was as smooth and tender as egg white.

The color was a cool, milky white, distinctly different from the surrounding skin which had a bloody hue.

After thinking it over, such a change could only have come from her, yet Ning Lan herself was baffled.

Her fingertips repeatedly rubbed her navel, feeling the difference between the filler and the flesh.

She bent her waist as far as possible, wishing she could press her eyes against her stomach.

If she had a knife on her, she would probably have decisively cut an opening to perform a more detailed observation.

The Elf maintained a strange posture.

It was a good thing no one else was here; otherwise, rumors of a monster would have spread among adventurers by the next day.

***

After staring for a long time, she finally found a trace of evidence—a milky-white filament that was nearly invisible to the naked eye.

It was similar to spider silk, or more accurately, it was Mycelium.

It covered the Elf’s skin, and perhaps there were traces of it deep within the flesh as well.

The moment she discovered the Mycelium, Ning Lan understood a few things… the biological material that repaired and filled the wound, the reason for occupying the Priest lady’s body, and the uniqueness of the mushroom’s vision.

In the end, Mycelium was a component of a mushroom, which meant it was a part of her.

Rather than saying the mushroom was her main body, it was more accurate to say that the entire Mycelium network was her true self.

Therefore, this special state couldn’t be judged on an individual basis.

Expanding her vision meant expanding the Mycelium.

Limited by the observer effect—probably—the Mycelium was what provided the vision, which was why she hadn’t noticed its existence before.

As for the Elf lady, she had likely become a host for the Mycelium.

‘Was her current state something between half-mushroom and half-Elf?’

It was too strange.

It wasn’t scientific, but it was very magical.

Anyway, after figuring this out, the next steps were to kill monsters, level up, plunder skills, and find an exit.

She couldn’t stay in the Labyrinth forever and keep monsters company.

Wait, was there something above her head?

[Slime]

[Level 9]

[Skills]: Decomposition Level 3, Magic Storage Level 9.

It was a round, azure, translucent body—a Slime.

She probably had PTSD from the Wolf King; no matter what sound she heard, she assumed that giant wolf was stalking her through the shadows.

Ning Lan wiped the non-existent sweat from her forehead.

It was just a Slime.

She could handle it easily.

Looking at its attributes, which were about ten points lower than the mushroom’s, she lamented how trashy the mushroom was.

At the same time, she picked up the staff the Elf had used for casting.

Although she had inherited the Elf lady’s body and attributes, her skills seemed to be bound to the original person, as they appeared gray on the System Panel.

Since she couldn’t use magic, it was time for the Battle Priest to make an appearance.

Against this thing, one strike with the staff would be enough.

The Elf held the staff and pointed it toward the round Slime in the tree.

The latter, seemingly provoked by the challenge, leaped down.

Ning Lan timed it and swung the staff.

She missed.

But it was fine.

Against a Slime, this mistake wasn’t fatal.

Wait, why did it land on her head?

No, her nose and mouth…

A sensation of being wrapped in slime traveled from the top of her head down, engulfing the Elf’s entire head within the Slime’s body.

Only then did she realize the little creature’s shocking intelligence.

No wonder the Slimes she had seen earlier were mostly Level 2 or Level 3, while this individual was Level 9.

Apparently, this one had stopped eating grass and started hunting.

Gurgle… ‘Can we settle this peacefully?’

Gurgle.