The box waited, and waited. For a moment, it thought it heard sounds coming from another part of the dungeon, but they faded soon after. It was growing hungrier, and knew it wouldn’t last much longer. But there was nothing it could do. If it left its hiding place, it would be immediately killed. The beast outside attacked anything that moved. Finally, when the box thought it could wait no longer, it felt the vibrations signaling that something was approaching. The newcomer opened the door, then entered a moment later.
[Human {Offensive Powerhouse} Marksman](lvl 7)
The box shuddered in fear. Its mother had taught it about humans. They were very dangerous, but also very good prey, if they could be brought down. The box knew it was far too weak to fight the human, even if it had a low level. But maybe the human could slay the beast, or at least hurt it enough that it would ignore the box long enough to escape.
The box watched as the human threw something small into the water just below its hiding spot, and then the beast came. The thing that had killed the box’s mother and siblings. The thing that had forced it to hide in a crack in the wall, slowly starving to death, unable to leave. It attacked viciously, but the human managed to avoid it. The second time, the human wasn’t so lucky, and it got pinned between the beast’s jaws.
The slight flame of hope that this human might be able to slay the beast guttered and died. It was all over. The human was going to die, just like-
What? The human was still fighting back! It suddenly thrust a sword into the beasts mouth and was free! The box’s hope reignited with a vengeance, and it silently cheered the human on. The human stood up from where it had landed, and pointed a weird metal item at the beast. The beast charged, and the human dodged. A loud boom filled the cave, and blood spurted from the beast’s eye.
The human… had won! It had avenged the box’s mother and siblings! And the box’s senses locked onto food on the human’s back! But what if the human decided to kill it?
It didn’t matter. If the box waited any longer, it would die of hunger. Mustering up its courage, it shifted its form and made its way out of the crack it was hiding in, and across the wall to dry ground. Slowly, so as to not attract the human’s attention or seem threatening, it crawled across the ground until it reached the meal it could sense.
It was time to feast.
***
Jared stared at the title he had just gained. What does that mean? Is there something else here? He looked around, but didn’t see any other creatures. Shaking his head, he sat down and took off his rucksack. If there was something else here, the system said it would be friendly, so he shouldn’t be in immediate danger. He needed to rest for a few minutes and figure out what had broken during the fight. It didn’t take long to find it. There, strapped to the top of his ruck, where it always was when he wasn’t using it, was his rifle. Except now, it was in three pieces.
He gingerly unstrapped the gun and lifted the pieces, setting them on the ground. The breaks were relatively clean, but not in places the gun should have separated. Additionally, there were punctures in all three pieces, where the afanc’s teeth had hit.
It might be possible to repair it, especially with magic, but as he was, he didn’t have the tools or expertise to do so. Setting the pieces of his rifle aside, he opened his ruck and went through the rest of his equipment to make sure nothing else was broken. He didn’t find anything, so he turned back to where he had laid his rifle pieces, but it was just… gone. In its place was a small wooden chest, about the size of a cat.
For a moment, he just stared, completely baffled. Where had his gun gone, and why was there suddenly a chest here? The system hadn’t said anything about an item reward. Curiosity overtook his caution, and he stretched his hand out to open the box.
As soon as he moved, the box lifted slightly, scurrying backwards on many tiny feet. Almost before he realized, he had drawn his sidearm, and aimed at the box. He was pretty sure he had pulled the trigger too, but he hadn’t reloaded yet, so it just clicked. The chest immediately froze in place. After a moment, it started trembling.
Is it…scared?
Slowly, he lowered his sidearm and holstered it, never taking his eyes off the box. Finally, it seemed the system decided to throw him a bone, and Identify activated
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
[Juvenile Mimic](lvl 2) - Friendly, Severely Starved
Skill Identify upgraded from (Unskilled II) to (Unskilled III)
Jared blinked. Huh, I guess this is what the system was talking about with that last title. And if it’s friendly…
He slowly reached out his hand, palm up, and tried to look as non-threatening as possible.
“Hey there, little guy. Did you do something with my rifle?” The mimic moved a little closer, seeming to sniff at him, then backed away again as he voiced his question. A long red tongue emerged from the chest and absently licked its lock, and it looked almost… sheepish. In a flash, Jared understood.
“That’s alright. It was broken anyway. You must have been really hungry to eat a whole rifle and still be severely starving. Let’s see what we can get ya.”
What all can mimics eat? It didn’t seem to have any trouble with my rifle.
Deciding to give it a few options, he pulled out his last MRE and opened it, laying it on the ground between him and the mimic, then did the same with the rest of his bullet casings, a few pieces of ceramic from his nearly destroyed vest, and a pencil that he found at the bottom of his ruck, which had been shattered at some point and was useless to him. Not willing to part with much more as of yet, he backed off, gesturing at the assortment. “Go ahead.”
The mimic approached, seeming to examine each item. It quickly moved on from his MRE, more interested in the other offerings. As it arrived at each other item, though, the top opened, revealing small teeth and a large red tongue, which scooped the offering up, then retreated within the chest.
After it finished the pencil, it seemed to be looking around for more, and Jared identified it again.
[Juvenile Mimic](lvl 2) - Friendly, Mildly Starved
Well, that was progress. Looking around for anything else he could feed the thing, his eyes caught on the mana crystals. If they were useful for crafting…
He stood, grabbing his trusty survival trowel and walked over to the cave wall. Examining the point where the crystal met the stone of the cave wall, he found a small seam. He applied the point of the trowel to the seam, and started levering it back and forth, trying to widen the crack enough for his tool to fit. After a few moments, he had made sufficient progress, the stone next to the crystal proving very brittle. With the application of a little pressure, the crystal popped out of the wall.
Strange, that was way easier than it should have been. It’s almost like the dungeon wants me to take them.
Shrugging, he worked a few more crystals free, then turned to go back to the mimic, finding it only a few paces away. He wasn’t sure how he could tell, since it didn’t have eyes, but he was pretty sure it was watching him. Thinking about it, there was no way he should have been able to interpret anything it did. It was a box, for heaven’s sake. And yet, its emotions were fairly clear to Jared.
Dismissing yet another mystery, he crouched down again and proffered his hand, full of mana crystals. “What about these? Can you eat them?”
The mimic approached, examined the crystals for a split second, then snatched them off his hand so quickly he had barely seen it.
Jared stared for a moment, then chuckled. “I guess that means you like them. Hold on, let me get you some more.”
Jared spent the next ten minutes collecting more crystals and tossing them to the mimic. After it caught the first couple throws, Jared started getting creative, throwing them at different trajectories. Almost like a dog going after a ball, the mimic moved to catch each crystal he threw, not missing one. Watching a small wooden chest chase after glowing crystals and snatch them with its bright red tongue was such a bizarre sight, he couldn’t help but laugh. Up until now, he had been in life or death situations almost constantly, with barely a chance to rest. Watching the mimic play and laughing lifted a weight off his chest that he hadn't realized was there.
It felt good.
Finally, it seemed the mimic was satisfied, as it slowed to the point of nearly missing one of the crystals Jared tossed. He identified it again, then nodded to himself at what he saw.
[Juvenile Mimic](lvl 2) - Extremely Friendly, Satiated.
He walked back over to the box and sat beside it, resting his hand on its lid. It froze for a second, then seemed to relax when he showed no signs of aggression. Again, he wasn’t sure how he could tell it relaxed, as the wood beneath his hand felt no different. It was just the impression he got.
“Well, if we’re going to be friends, I’m gonna need something to call you besides ‘mimic’. How about Mimi? I know it’s really close to mimic, but it can be short for Naomi. How about it?” He didn’t know what gender it was, if it even had one, but it seemed slightly more female than male. He didn’t know why.
The mimic seemed confused for a moment, before practically vibrating with excitement. As he watched, the nameplate above its head changed.
[Juvenile Mimic{Naomi}](lvl 5) - Closer than Family, Satiated.
Title Avenger changed to Naomi’s Savior
Naomi’s Savior - After accidentally saving the life of a juvenile mimic and avenging the deaths of its family, you did what no sane delver would do, and filled its starving stomach, even using rare and expensive High Quality Mana Crystals. Not only that, but you played with it like a pet, and finally, gave it a name. It now reveres you above all other existences, and will do its best to please you. Whether this is a boon or a curse has yet to be determined.
Effect: Mimic-type monsters and their close relatives will be able to sense your care for one of their kind, and will be more friendly towards you in return.
Congratulations, you have completed [Clandestine Caverns: Floor 1]!
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