Unexpectedly, the attackers were actually a plant.
It was his first time encountering such a creature, so he was naturally curious.
However, he did not sense a strong threat from it; it probably was not at the elite monster level.
Still, he did not take it lightly. After all, this was a creature from the maze, and since it was their first encounter, it was better to be cautious.
He pulled Aria back a few steps, completely moving out of the flower bud’s attack range, then took out the Bone Staff.
Because the flower bud twisted continuously like a snake’s head, to save effort, Gauss decisively pointed the staff tip at the root connecting the vine to the rock wall.
“Fire Bolt.”
A red glow quickly condensed at the staff tip.
“Hm?”
At the moment of casting, Gauss faintly felt a slight resistance, as if some force in the environment was weakly suppressing the flames.But since he was about to cast, he did not think too much about it and released a bright red Fire Bolt along the direction the staff pointed.
“Boom!”
The bolt precisely hit the vine’s root. Flames instantly surged, and the tough root broke under the intense heat.
The entire plant fell from the rock wall, landing on the ground with a “thud.”
After hitting the ground, the spiky flower bud continued to twitch and bounce nervously on the floor.
But Gauss had already seen the kill notification flash before his eyes.
“Snake Vine defeated *1”
“Total monster kills: 1479
Successfully unlocked the 21st common monster entry in the Monster Encyclopedia!”
“Title obtained: [Snake Vine Hunter]. This title will upgrade as the number of kills increases.”
Current effect: Danger Prediction. When a hidden Snake Vine attempts to attack you, you will be warned in advance.”
Gauss withdrew his attention from the panel.
Not long after entering the second level of the maze, his Monster Encyclopedia entries were already increasing steadily. This made him quite pleased.
However...
Looking at the quickly extinguishing flames, Gauss was somewhat concerned.
Did the fire extinguish faster than usual?
Was it because of the moist air? Or was there some force in the second maze level that suppressed fire?
The earlier hesitation during casting seemed to confirm this.
Well, it was a relief at least; no need to worry about causing a fire in this maze level full of greenery.
On the ground, the Snake Vine’s flower bud continued its unconscious twitching and bouncing.
Gauss cast a wary glance at it. Since the kill notification had already popped up on the panel, it was likely like many creatures that could still move briefly after death—just reflexes or residual stress reactions.
This Snake Vine itself was not very threatening, and its movement range was limited. Avoiding the flower bud’s direct pounce and attacking its fixed vine root could easily handle it.
It was just that the first person to encounter it without any preparation might get caught off guard.
“Looks like we need to be more careful.” Aria patted her chest. “There should be many similar disguised creatures on this level.”
Even plants that seemed harmless might suddenly open wide bloodthirsty mouths and pounce.
From now on, the two advanced more cautiously.
After the Snake Vine’s sneak attack, Aria and Gauss also kept an eye on the space above their heads.
Of course, this was not greed.
He had an “iron stomach,” so it was best for him to test it first.
He picked a plump fruit, used Prestidigitation to clean the surface dirt, then took a big bite.
“Crunch!”
The tough yet crispy skin cracked open. The extremely sweet and richly fragrant sticky juice flooded his teeth instantly, with the fruit aroma dancing rapidly on his tongue’s taste buds.
Gauss finished the Lantern Fruit whole in a few bites, skin and all.
Afterward, orange-glowing juice remained at the corners of his mouth, giving him a somewhat comical look.
Aria noticed and secretly curved her lips.
But Gauss didn’t care.
Facing Aria’s gaze, he immediately nodded, fully affirming this newly recorded food.
“Very tasty!”
He also used magic to clean another fruit and handed it to her.
Aria bit into it eagerly.
Immediately, the sweet juice overflowed her lips.
In the dim environment, a soft orange halo glowed around her lips, like she had applied glowing lip gloss.
“Haha,” Gauss laughed aloud.
The funny part was, this scene looked like usually makeup-free Aria suddenly had the whimsy to clumsily put on fluorescent lipstick.
Aria was happily eating and looked up at the sound, giving him an innocent eye roll, though she herself had held back from laughing aloud just moments ago.
But, considering how delicious the fruit was, she didn’t want to think about these things for now.
Quickly finishing the fruit in her hands, she contentedly patted her full stomach.
Then she quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe her lips.
Gauss also licked the juice at the corners of his mouth but turned to see Aria wiping her lips only to have the stained juice spread further across her face, forming a more obvious glowing area.
“What’s wrong?” Aria asked curiously, noticing Gauss’s subtle expression.
“N-nothing.”
Gauss decided not to point out her “glowing makeup” for now since she couldn’t see it herself anyway.
Carefully storing dozens of precious fruits into the Storage Bag, the two continued forward.
Not far ahead, the path abruptly ended.
A huge sunken platform appeared beneath their feet, with a drop of more than ten meters.
The platform was very spacious, and around its edges were several ponds bubbling eerie green bubbles, emitting a faint sour and rotten smell.
At the platform’s center, an object stood out dazzlingly in the dim environment—it was a huge treasure chest shining brilliantly!
“A treasure chest!”
Aria had been pondering Gauss’s meaningful smile, but her attention was quickly drawn to the glowing chest in the distance. Her eyes began to sparkle.
The chest was entirely brand new dark red, embedded with dazzling gems and shining precious metal trims, its design luxurious.
The gorgeous exterior naturally sparked more imagination about the treasures inside.
Gauss initially felt a bit excited as well.
But soon,
“Something’s off... Too... suspicious...”
The “treasure chest PTSD” accumulated from previous games and movies instantly triggered alarms in his mind. Be cautious!
But... that chest really was dazzling!
Even if the chest was empty inside, just scraping off the valuable decorations on the surface would be worth a lot, right?
Gauss and Aria exchanged a glance.
Without words, they instantly understood the sparkle in each other’s eyes.
The Labyrinth Guide did mention that the maze contained genuine treasure chests storing precious supplies but also traps disguised as chests.
Before opening the chest, it was impossible to confirm whether it was a gift from the maze or a carefully laid trap.
But since they had already entered the maze, facing a treasure chest, how could they just turn around and leave?
“How do we get down?”
Aria looked at the ten-plus meter drop and asked.
There seemed to be no strong enough anchor points nearby to fix ropes.
Gauss’s gaze swept across the rock wall at the platform’s edge and quickly found a path. In one spot, thick vines grew tightly against the rock wall, with natural stone platforms protruding every few meters, like natural steps.
“We can go down along there.”
He pointed in the descending direction.
“Should I go down first to scout?”
Their current position was too far from the platform’s center treasure chest.
Far beyond the range Gauss’s spells could reach, he planned to go down first and, upon reaching the maximum range of Mage Hand, attempt to open the chest.
“No, let’s go down together.” Aria shook her head.
Although she could support Gauss remotely, the maze’s strange environment was different from outside. If Gauss went down alone and something unexpected happened, she wouldn’t be able to help from outside the platform.
Gauss was about to say something but turned to see the determination in her eyes and swallowed his words.
Leaving her above might not be safe either.
What if the maze’s dangers ran contrary to expectations?
Better to act together, so they could watch out for each other.
“All right, we’ll go down together.” Gauss thought for a moment and nodded.
The two climbed down along the vines, resting on platforms every now and then.
The gray wolf Ulfen followed dexterously behind them, leaping toward the platform.
Before long, the two humans and the wolf reached the sunken platform.
At the platform’s center, the splendid treasure chest’s glow seemed even brighter, silently urging adventurers to approach.