The Castle in the middle of nowhere.

Hrrin'a sat near the stranger. She knew he was high level simply because the strong Zombies of Blood dungeon ignored him. She didn't expect to survive the night, so she was pleasantly surprised. The frosty morning wind caused her to sigh and shiver. Autumn was here and the first of many colder nights would soon come. The stranger was warm, so after a while, she leaned gently against him. She fell asleep, not even knowing when.

She woke up with an overwhelming sense of fear and looked around. The muscular stranger was nowhere to be found, however...

This was no longer a ruined cathedral of Blood Dungeon. Hrrin'a moved her hand around a fluffy and incredibly comfortable bed. The biggest bed she had ever seen in her entire life.

She was no expert, though. In her entire life, aside from the time her parents were still alive, she had slept only four or maybe five times in a real bed.

The second thing she noticed was the dress those bastards in Bolia Village put her in. She was still wearing it. They could've at least given her shoes. Bastards. She sighed.

So, most likely, the muscular guy from earlier must have brought her here. At least he was a decent enough man not to take advantage of her exhaustion.

She frowned. He was probably some noble, and her dress must have misled him. Hrrin'a had to explain herself before she ended up in bigger trouble.

The last and most important of her problems was her hunger. She was starving. With great hesitation, she left the giant bed and looked around. This must have been some kind of main bedroom. Everything she looked at was just screaming "Royalty". The walls were at least 3m tall and from floor to halfway up everything was covered in beautiful light-coloured wood.

Behind the wood was... Nooo way.

Real enchanted stone! With a trembling hand, she touched it and felt the warmth and strength of its construction. Hrrin'a heard legends told by her father before he died about dungeons that could trap any fool inside them with their indestructible enchanted walls. No mortal could even dream about scratching these walls.

But that means... That means she is still in the Dungeon!

However, this room was beautiful, warm and comfortable. She felt so safe here, like never before in her life. Safer than she felt back when her parents were still alive. She looked up and saw a magic chandelier similar to one that she once saw in the cathedral in one of the bigger cities of the kingdom. But this one was even more majestic and there were smaller light crystals in wonderfully beautiful fixtures on the walls. She opened the drawers in the wooden cabinet and opened the doors in the big wooden wardrobe, but they were empty.

Strange.

The time had come for the BIG test. She warily came closer to the door and turned the doorknob. To her surprise, the door opened smoothly, without a single whisper of the creak she subconsciously expected. Hrrin'a left the bedroom and entered an equally majestic corridor. The big space in the corridor was brightly lit with magic chandeliers evenly spaced on the ceiling. Armours of an unknown design decorated the wooden stands across the hall like guardians holding their posts near doors to other rooms. The walls were decorated with master-crafted gobelins depicting terrifying monsters from unknown lands or colourful sights like mountains, lakes, and waterfalls.

She wandered slowly, consumed by the serene beauty and safety of this place. But hunger was bringing her back to reality. She found a staircase and after a while, she decided to go downstairs. She reached the end of it and found herself before double doors, which she opened after some hesitation.

Then she froze in fear.

Right in front of her was standing a rare monster feared in legends. It was a very high-level Hunter Slime, at least level 50, and she knew she didn't stand a chance. She was level 1. However, instead of attacking her, the slime elongated itself upward and bowed to her.

That's it. She went insane.

Hrrin'a stood in front of the monster for a few minutes, but it was still bowed, as if waiting for her orders. A rumbling stomach pushed her deeper into insanity and she asked the Slime.

"You don't want to hurt me?" Hrrin'a asked, and the slime shook its upper part like a person would do in denial. Surprised by this discovery, she decided to ask it for help.

"Mr Slime, can you show me a way out of this building?"

To her surprise, Slime nodded hmmm... with what would be its head? It then moved quickly through brightly lit corridors and she followed it to what she supposed would be the main gate. Slime opened it for her and the bright sun of early afternoon fell on her face. Right in front of her was an empty courtyard with a gatehouse in the distance. She considered running for it, but... This Dungeon was not hostile. Its slime inhabitant was even helping her. Against her better judgement, she decided to stay here a little longer. On the left side, she saw a meadow and a water well.

She quenched her thirst with the well’s cold and wonderful water. Even the water here was great. She looked around and saw a big pond nearby, so she hoped to find some fish there. Maybe with a little luck, she could catch one and eat it. After spending a few long minutes at the shore, she gave up on finding one. Disappointed, she looked around and with sudden surprise, she saw food nodes where she could swear not so long ago was an empty patch of grass. She examined them and decided to ask.

"Excuse me, Mr Dungeon? Are these red things edible?" Hrrin'a waited a few moments and she could swear she heard the muscular man's voice from before said yes. It was so faint and distant that it could have been even the wind. She decided to try it. She picked one big red thing and sniffed it. The scent was very delicate but pleasant, so she tried to focus on the item, like her father had explained to her.

A rare grade ingredient.

Its rich taste can sate your hunger as well as quench your thirst. It can be used in many various dishes to create unrivalled food. The tomato is a vegetable you can only find in the dominion of Theon.

Replenish ?? HP over ?? time.

Cost: can not be estimated.

A rare. Grade. Ingredient. She was speechless. She had never heard about such a precious ingredient. Even raw, it replenished HP! She slowly looked up and heavily sat on the grass. There were dozens of tomato nodes here. She was hungry, so she decided to bite in.

Tears dropped from her eyes. It was so incredible! She'd never ever eaten anything even a quarter as good as this. She ate one tomato after another, filling her stomach. It was otherworldly, but soon her small happiness was interrupted by something.

Right under her, something tried to grow. "Iiiik!" She screamed, surprised.

More and more food nodes spawned right before her eyes. Food nodes she has never seen or ever heard about. With her initial hunger sated, she saw strange trees nearby and when she identified them as yet more food nodes. She decided to examine them.

An epic grade ingredient/food.

A big and sweet apple is not only tasty but also can sate your hunger. It grows only in the domain of Theon.

Sate hunger.

Replenish ?? HP over ?? time.

+? Str for ?? hour.

Cost: can not be estimated.

Another Epic. Grade. Ingredient. Her eyes were round from surprise. She wished to have a proper identification skill.

But then came a realisation.

She received details of everything she had encountered so far. They might not have been exact details, but still she knew what she ate so far. It meant that this Dungeon was allowing her to be here.

Tears flowed from her eyes while she bit into an apple without hesitation. It was sweet and juicy like nothing she could find before in forests. She ate wild fruits before, but usually they were sour or simply terrible. A few times she managed to save some money and buy genuine fruits from farmers, but they couldn't even come close to this sweetness.

She looked at the next tree. A pear? What in seven heavens is a pear? It was yellow, with a strange shape. She focused.

An epic grade ingredient/food.

A juicy and sweet pear is not only tasty, but also can sate your hunger and quench your thirst. It grows only in the domain of Theon.

Sate hunger.

Quench thirst.

Replenish ?? Mana over ?? time.

+? WIS for ?? hour.

Cost: can not be estimated.

It was so juicy that its juice covered her face and stained her dress. But it once again was delicious. After eating a few of them, she felt much, much better.

With fearful awe, she recognized a legendary monster standing atop the guard tower of this strange castle, but it vanished as quickly as it appeared.

The entire area was filled with a feeling of joy and playfulness, like she had felt when she was a child so long ago. It was so strange, as everything she faced in her life since then was filled with the struggle for survival, leading to outright misery.

The fruits of the last tree looked familiar. Her mom brought her a similar one from her home forest when she was young. It was yet another time when the memory of her parents came to her today. Without hesitation, Hrrin'a picked one of the yellow-red fruits.

An epic grade food/ingredient.

A nectarine is sweet and juicy. Its mysterious properties wait to be discovered. It grows only in the domain of Theon.

Sate hunger.

??

??

??

Cost: can not be estimated.

That was a strange description, and all properties were hidden... But she ate it nonetheless. It was delicious and nothing like the fruits her mother brought back then.

She could eat all the fruits from this garden for the rest of her life. She was full, but now she was also tired. She folded her dress and put a few apples, pears and nectarines in it. If she survived the night, they would make a very nice breakfast. She didn't even need to drink water on her way back to the room she woke up in.

With surprise, she noticed that the outside of the castle changed a bit. Previously, it was simple with just some windows, but now it had many big balconies. Also, the Hunter Slime was waiting for her at the door.

"Oh... Hello? Can you show me the way to the room I woke up in today?" she asked him politely, and it nodded while moving inside. She happily followed the mighty creature.

Hrrin'a recognized the doors to the room she woke up in. The bed was no longer inside, but instead, the big room now contained a table made from precious wood, large enough for twelve people. There was also a fireplace with a smaller table and a cosy sofa to sit on, along with giant sitting cushions. She could hardly believe the descriptions of everything that she was seeing. She placed fruits on the table, and with slight hesitation, she took one apple and gave it to Slime.

"Thank you for your help." It was strange to speak to the monster, but she somehow knew it was harmless, at least to her. Slime accepted the apple with a strange sound she couldn't even describe. But it looked happy in her opinion. She genuinely smiled and looked around.

"Do you know where the bed is?" She asked Slime, who opened one of the doors. She brightened with a smile when she entered the unchanged bedroom. But sudden thoughts stopped her from jumping into bed. She felt she should wash herself before going to sleep in such a wonderful bed. "I should wash myself in the pond..."

Slime twisted its head and extended its tentacle-like appendages to tap her softly on the shoulder. Hrrin'a jolted, but when Slime opened the next door, she just gasped.

It was a bathroom. A real bathroom like the one they had in their home so long ago. But this one was strange, like everything else in this place. Grandiose and impressive was its floor, and its walls and ceiling were covered in what had to be marble tiles with blue, green and gold veins in them. When she took a step inside, she felt that the floor was pleasantly warm. She could tell immediately since she was barefooted, as shoes were a too expensive item for her to have. She gasped in admiration and looked at Slime.

"Can I really use it?" Slime simply nodded, and once again extended its tentacle to open a small cabinet. From inside, it took out a few things and gave them to her. After that, it showed her how to turn on and off the water. It was as strange as everything else was in this Dungeon.

When Slime closed the doors and left her alone, she examined the things she received. She received three things. The first was...

"Oh!" she yelped in surprise. But Slime gave her this precious item to use.

Excellent grade item.

This soap will clean your body and wash away any grime. No stain can withstand its power.

Cost: ??

Excellent grade item.

A fluffy towel made from soft and delicate material.

Cost: ??

Well, it's a towel. What had she expected? But she felt how incredibly soft and fluffy it was. The last thing was strange.

Rare grade item.

This master crafted bathrobe made from silk will cover your body like a delicate mist. While it does not provide any bonus defence or attributes, it will for sure provide rest for your body before sleep.

?? Stamina recovery over time.

Cost: ??

She delicately placed these royal gifts on the cabinet, took off her dress, and entered the bathtub. There were two...valves? What a strange name. She doubted she would ever obtain the Identify skill, but it would be very useful now. Anyway, the valves. One with a red dot and one with a blue dot. She first turned one with a blue dot and cold water started flowing in. She turned it off and tried one with red instead. The water was steaming hot, and she screamed in panic.

Hrrin'a quickly turned it off, surprised to find a Dungeon trap.

But... But this was strange. This dungeon could have killed her countless times today. Without much effort either, since a level 50 Hunter Slime was serving it. She looked at valves again. Even though there were two valves, there was only one faucet.

She turned on the cold water and slowly turned on the hot one as well until the water was warm and perfect. She smiled and found a round black cork attached to the bathtub on a very fine chain. She plugged it into a drain and waited until the tub filled to the brim with hot water. She submerged herself fully under wonderful water. She re-emerged with a laughter of unbridled happiness.

"Thank you Dungeon! I want to stay with you forever!" Hrrin'a relaxed a bit in the warm water, feeling better and better as each minute passed. She did not know how long she was there playing and singing while she washed herself with soap. But when she finally pulled out the plug, the water inside was already cold. She carefully turned on the warm water again and accidentally touched a strange protrusion on top of the faucet. The warm water started pouring on her from above, startling her at first, but then she understood it as just one more of the wonderfully strange things this Dungeon had to offer. She laughed once again.

She allowed the warm rain to clean off all remains of soap and turned off the water. She smelled a very delicate floral scent she couldn't identify at first, but then she sniffed the soap. That’s what it was! Floral soap! What an incredible dungeon.

Hrrin'a dried herself using the most incredible towel she ever used. It was so fluffy and soft that she could use it as her cloth material. She laughed at the idea when she came to the mirror and saw her own reflection. For a few minutes, she stood in silence and couldn't believe her own eyes. She was so ... Beautiful. But how? Her eyes shone like stars and her hair somehow looked better than ever before. Soft, strong and shining, her long red hair looked like a raging fire. Surprised and even a little scared, she examined her own body. All the scars, bruises, and lacerations were gone without a trace. And her skin...

Her skin was soft and shining when she looked at herself in the mirror one more time and she silently came to terms with the thought that she looked much, much better than most noble women she had seen so far. And that actually was quite a number.

She put on a bathrobe and sighed. It was incredible. She was sure that not even nobles could afford such luxury. That was a bit scary. However, this time she felt a bit strange since that bathrobe came only down to mid-thigh. It was not uncomfortable, but kinda embarrassing. Not that she wanted to put on that dress she almost died in. However, as far as she knew, she was alone here. She sighed again.

It was a shame that the muscular guy was killed by the Dungeon. Hopefully, maybe he just ran away. He was kinda hot. She almost opened the door to the rest of the apartment when the door opened itself.

And then, he entered. The muscular guy from the other day.

"Elf Lady! We must talk!"

In shock, she slapped him right in the face.