With the Proto Slime gone, the group collapsed to the floor. Everyone was exhausted and hurt from all the fighting. Hera's court even asked to be dismissed, since most of them were tired or injured. Especially Nimbus and Lurize, it was clear that just staying in their bipedal form was a struggle for the titled blades at the moment. There were so many cuts and parts of broken armor around their bodies that any person would have bled out by now. That weighed on Hera's heart, but she knew her plan worked. Sure, they may have found a different way to beat that monster, but they could also have gotten seriously injured in the process, if not worse.

After a quick thank you, Hera let them all rest. She wasn't worried about the boss or anything for two reasons. First, the boss had vanished, and the drops were on the ground. Second, there was a notification in front of them telling them that the dungeon quest was over. Of course, that wasn't a confirmation that there would be no more monsters around, but considering the dungeon's layout, she felt it was a safe bet.

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You have completed the Dungeon Quest - Mana Creature Rampage

By defeating all the monsters inside the facility, you have returned it to a state where it can be used for its intended purpose and released Jadas' assistant from the control of the Proto Slime.

First Time Rewards:

180 000 gold

Jada's Workshop Grab Bag

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"Hey, if anyone gets a weapon they don't want to use, could you show it to me? Since I added Lurize as a titled blade, I have a free slot in my court," Hera turned to the group. They all nodded in response. In a situation like this, the more firepower they had, the better things would be. Not to mention that eventually, they might have too much stuff to carry around, so making the best out of the available resources would be very important. The fact that they were stuck in a place without a way to go home was still very much in their minds.

Before opening the grab bag, she looked at what had fallen from the Proto Slime's core. There were three items in front of her: a raw green gem that looked as if Hera was staring at an explosion, a vial with a dark red liquid with some small leaves and flowers on it. Almost like the blood of a creature that died in the forest, and something that proved once and for all that the MAZE had a sense of humor and a very twisted one at that. A pair of knee-high socks with a pattern with very cute and happy slimes in different colors playing around. If Hera wasn't in a room like this, she would find this interesting and even be reminded of peaches, but she could only see them as the creatures that turned into her friends and tried to lure her by showing them suffering.

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Wisteria Malachite

A rare gem that can be used as a conduit for mana. Doing so will create powdered mana that can be ignited by using any spell as long as the source of mana is the same. The powder mana will be consumed to increase the power of the spell.

Conversion rate 1000 > 1

Can convert up to 1 million mana every 24 hours.

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Godly Potion of Denfrenchau - Replica

A potion created by the first potion maker, Denfrenchau.

Legends say that by drinking this potion, one can recover from any ailments, can increase one's attributes, destroy any evil lurking inside and even become immortal. Unfortunately, Denfrenchau never had a chance to test this concoction, and his research was lost during an attack.

By drinking this potion, you will receive one unknown positive effect or remove the worst condition that is currently affecting you. To receive these effects, a person has to drink the entire vial.

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Chemical Runners

A pair of socks that, when worn, can create a trail of chemicals behind the user. These chemicals can be ignited and used with different types of mana for different effects. As the item of a scientist, the reactions are a mystery until experiments are made. The chemicals only react to mana, not to anything else.

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"Holy shit," Hera gasped while looking at the items. Everything seemed really interesting, even if a bit weird.

"Did we get something good?" Shane asked.

"Kind of, I mean, yeah, but at the same time, it's hard to tell. It's not any type of equipment, but some of these things have potential," Hera picked the items and showed them to the group.

After a moment of them looking over, Blue spoke up, "That potion… It says it can remove evil. Do you think that would work with the curse?"

"Or we could give it to Bonnie in hopes that it fixes her leg," Shane added.

"That's a bit of a long shot, isn't it? It says it will remove the worst condition you currently have. Can the term condition be applied to a broken leg?" Helena kept staring at the potion in her hand, swirling the liquid around.

"So, does everyone agree that we give it to one of them?" Hera asked.

"I mean, as much as getting a benefit could be good, removing a problem sounds better. Besides, it's a chance-based thing. So instead of giving to someone in hopes to trigger the good thing or fix minor issues like a bad knee or," Shane turned to Hera, "A missing piece of their ear, it would be better to give that to people who have really bad things going on."

The Empress crossed her arms, "You didn't have to go there. I was just asking if everyone was on board with this."

"Sorry," Shane tried to smile, but Hera wasn't having it. She just turned around and started walking to the door that was now open.

"Whatever, let's just get out of here. We are not that far from the exit, and we can rest back home in a comfortable place," Hera walked off, and soon, the rest of the group followed her. When she turned the corridor, she was already in the entrance, where the holographic displays were set up, and right in the middle of that room was Jadas.

He was sitting on a chair by the side, and when Hera arrived, he rolled his eyes, "Finally. What took you so long? It doesn't matter. Your reward is back in your city, so you can go collect it there. Now stop wasting my time," he waved the party off and turned to the side where there was a large wooden crate being carried by an automatic platform very similar to Adriel's drones.

"What is that?" Helena asked.

"This is the waste that the mana pool creates. After the reaction takes place, the materials used to start it burn up. We have to get rid of this, and we will be throwing it back into the ocean. Your people already know that, and everyone is warned about not going to that area before talking to us. If you get hurt because you went there, that's not my problem," Jadas turned to Blue, who was the last one to leave the dungeon, "Are there more of you there? Or are you here just to waste my time?"

"Dude, take that stick out of your ass. Why are you being such a dick now?" Blue scoffed.

"Because now you are just as useful as this waste. Just more weight that could pose a problem to Sky. You are done here, so I don't know why you are waiting around. Leave."

"No, hang on. That waste, are you sure it's safe? What will happen to those who are close to it?" Helena stepped forward.

"Nothing. I did all the tests, and even after a full month of consuming nothing but the water that shared the container with this waste, nothing happened. Everyone was fine. Honestly, do you think I wouldn't do that type of basic test?" Jadas rolled his eyes.

"But that's not enough time. Some things can take months or even years to show their effects. And you are calling it waste after this reaction, so that is very likely to be able to do something like that," Shane added.

"How the hell do you know that? Are you saying that you, who lives under a rock at the bottom of the ocean, know more than me? Please, that's not funny, even as a joke. Stop kidding yourself. I am completely sure that this is harmless, and if you think that something will happen after years of waiting, come here with proof before spouting all this nonsense."

"For fuck's sake, dude, we are telling you this to help you. Can you just fucking listen?" Blue gasped.

"I have no need to listen to people who are beneath me. And I don't mean the people of Abyssia, but everyone. Every single living being is nothing but a prawn in front of my genius. There is no reason for the sky to bother with the opinion of a grain of sand," Jadas continued.

"Oh yeah, you are so smart that you didn't realize that your assistant would end up being the victim of a giant slime. Really a stroke of genius to have a monster running around in your lab and having her killed," Hera rolled her eyes.

"You are the ones who killed her, not me. I asked you to save her, but you failed to do so. This is not on me. It's on you. You are weak and unable to complete your mission, and now I have to work without someone who trained to be by my side, so thanks for that," Jadas scoffed, "She was worth much more than you imagine. I would trade each and every one of you to have her back. That way, someone would at least be here to do some of the grunt work. But you didn't even have the decency to die after your failure. If you could only be smart enough to…."

Before he finished talking, Blue punched Jadas' face, tossing the triton to the crate and making him fall to the ground, "Fuck you," the controller said before stomping towards the exit of the warehouse. Hera felt a bit better and started following her friend.

Jadas struggled to get up, but when the party was almost at the door, he managed to get off the ground, "HOW DARE YOU? I AM A GENIUS WHO HAS BETTER THINGS TO DO THAN…"

Before he could finish his sentence, a shadow came from the ground and punched him between the legs. A bellflower appeared right by his ears and started ringing loudly. The crate suddenly sprung to life and dashed to the side, making him fall again, and a field of spores surrounded him as he sneezed uncontrollably.

The party left the room and, in unison, said, "Fuck that guy."

Now that they were out of the dungeon, the party went back to their house. Even if it only took a few hours to complete the mission, it was exhausting.

During the walk, Hera noticed that Daskka was surprisingly quiet ever since the fight against the Proto Slime, "Daskka? Are you ok?"

"I am… sorry. It's just… I feel like I'm not helping you as much during the fights. I help with the legacy, and that's about it. I want to do more than that. Before this, we would fight together and stuff. Now I don't know. I'm taking too much of a backseat," Daskka explained.

"I understand how you are feeling. I'm worried about some stuff like that too. If you want, we can try to train to make some things differently."

"I would like that, mum," Daskka smiled and snuggled on Hera's neck. When they arrived back at the house, everyone slumped on different chairs. Bonnie and the others had left, but they would soon be back, and then they could learn about the potion and decide what to do with it.