"Peaches?" Hera stared at the green apple slime that was on top of the table.

  "That's my name, kid," Peaches said.

  He was near some of the fruits that Hera had brought back from the orchard. It was easy to miss him, even though he was much bigger than the other apples, he blended well in the arrangement.

  "Yeah, I know, but what are you doing here?" Hera was still trying to process what she was seeing.

  "Well, I came here to congratulate you on beating the slime. But looking at you right now, I'm not sure who won that fight."

  "Very funny, I'm still learning how to fight, ok," she snarled.

  "Ok, ok, calm down. I was just checking up on you."

  Hera let out a lengthy sigh, "Yeah, sorry. The pain is getting to me."

  "The apex slime really did a number on you, but you managed to finish the quest."

  Hera stared at the slime.

  "How did you know that?" she asked.

  "I'm the supervisor for the test, remember? I know when you complete a quest. Because of that, I know that even if you finish the test now, it won't be at 60% anymore," he explained.

  Hera picked the tablet and looked at the quest. He was right. The quest was now at 70%. The objective completed was 'fixed the slime's odd behavior.'

  "Well, I'm above the minimum now. But I'm not sure I can keep going," she said.

  "Why is that?" Peaches asked.

  "I think I have a couple of broken ribs. It hurts to breathe and to move my right arm. I don't want to stop like this, but it might be too reckless to continue."

  As she talked, Hera lowered her head. She worked so hard to get here. She wanted to explore more, find the damn flowers for Florence, and explore the other side of the creek. There was so much to do here, and yet, because she failed to use the skills she had at the right time, she had to stop.

  If she had used [All In] earlier in the fight, maybe she could've gotten away from the monster sooner. [Hide] could have helped her not be attacked first. She could've made traps, looked for a better place to fight. There was just so much she could've done better.

  Hera felt her eyes watering while she clenched her fist.

  "Kid, you're too hard on yourself. Most recruits who do this test choose to end it as soon as they can. Most complain about the lack of bathrooms around the forest, or that is too hard to find everything. You were actually doing pretty well in comparisons. It took you only three days to get 70% on the test. Your performance is already way above average," Peaches nodded.

  "But I could've done better. I can be better," Hera said in a weak voice.

  "Kid, this is a test to see how you deal with the role. Knowing when you are out of your league is part of it. Explorers are the first ones to enter a new room, the ones that travel to uncharted territories. Being able to tell when you reached your limit is probably the one skill that will keep you alive,"

  "So you are telling me that I should finish the test now?" she asked.

  "I'm not telling you anything. I'm explaining how the role works. You can make whatever conclusion you want from it," Peaches said, winking at the recruit.

  Seeing a giant green apple wink at her, and give life advice made Hera laugh, but the movement only increased the pain.

  "Ouch," she grumble and placed a hand on her ribs as she stopped laughing, "Thanks, Peaches. I guess you are right. Even if I don't get the full reward, I'm still going to be an explorer."

  "Exactly, and it's not like you can't get the..." Peaches stopped speaking abruptly, "Nevermind."

  " It's not like you can't what?" Hera asked.

  "No, not saying, forget about that."

  "Aww, c'mon, you beautiful slime, you can tell me."

  "Zip it. You're gonna make me lose my job," he grunted.

  "Fine, but you are breaking my heart," Hera tried one more time.

  "That wasn't me. It was the apex slime," Peaches laughed.

  Hera smiled and picked her tablet, "Do you have any idea how long it will take Betty to finish my handaxe?"

  "Oh, you got some materials? It usually takes a day or two, depending on what she's doing."

  "Two days..." Hera stared at her arm, "I'm not sure if this would be an emergency or not, what do you think?"

  "Well, if you were a slime, I could tell you. But I don't know how you humans work. I can say that your right side seems a bit bigger than the left."

  "I don't think I should risk it. I got cut a few times, I tried to clean them, but I'm worried it might get infected."

  "That's a good plan, kid. Getting a high grade here won't matter if you end up dying just after finishing the test."

  "Wow, way to be grim," Hera said as she picked the tablet, "Thank you for everything, Peaches. I hope I can see you again someday."

  "Anytime, it's been a pleasure, Hera."

  Hera smiled and pressed the button to end the test, closing her eyes afterward. She didn't want to be blinded by that light again. A few moments passed, and Hera felt no change. There was no tingling sensation, no change in the lighting, nothing. Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was Peaches with a smug smile on his face.

  "Why is this not working?" she asked.

  "Who said it's not? Look behind you."

  Hera turned her head and saw that the wall behind her had vanished. She could see the village and the forest she traveled through during the last few days. The sky suddenly turned white, and the trees started to collapse as if they were made of sand. In less than one minute, Hera found herself in a familiar white room. The only things that were still here were the table that Peaches was using, the bed she was sitting on, and the door of the house.

  "Peaches, what is going on?" she asked.

  "As I said, I'm the supervisor of the test. And I'm also the one who tallies up your score," he explained.

  "They why didn't you tell me?"

  "Well, I couldn’t. Part of the rules. Also, I would miss that look on your face."

  Hera scoffed while Peaches closed his eyes. They spent a few moments like that before the almost explorer finally asked.

  "So, what now?"

  "Just give me a minute, I'm finishing up something."

  Hera stopped talking and waited, looking around she couldn't tell if this room was as big as the area she was in or if it was a different place altogether. A knock on the door interrupted Hera's thoughts. Peaches made a motion with his head, and the door opened. Betty walked in and placed a handaxe beside Hera. Without saying anything, she turned around and left through the door.

  "Sorry about that. If you end the test before an item is ready, we speed up the time inside the blacksmith's house so you can have it. It wouldn't be very fair to take away something you worked so hard for."

  Hera nodded without taking her eyes off the weapon. It had a long, dark gray handle that was about the size of her forearms and bent backward a bit. The blade had a dark purple tint. It was so well polished that she could see her reflection on it, and when the light hit it at the right angle, she could see a rainbow on the blade. The head of the axe looked like a Francisca, but as it reached the edge, it became longer, resembling a broad axe. She reached out for the weapon but stopped, activating her [Inspect]

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Nameless handaxe

  Rarity: Uncommon

  A handaxe created by Betty the Blacksmith using a purple liquid metal that came from an apex slime. The proprieties of the slime were imbued into the weapon, changing the weapon's weight to be little more than 500 grams.

  The material used also gives the weapon increased durability.

  Attribute scaling:

  Strength x 1.1

  Additional effect:

  When in contact with water, the handaxe can function as a floating device.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  As she read the description, Hera remembered the class about equipment. Most weapons that were found inside the maze could increase one attack's strength when used with a specific attribute. In this case, considering that her strength was at 12, strikes with the weapon would consider her attribute to be 13.2 as that was 1.1 times the value of her actual strength. The additional effect was an odd one, though. But it was her first equipment, and she was lucky enough to get something that scaled with her stats.

  She reached out for the axe, and the moment her hand touched it, a notification appeared.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Do you wish to name the nameless handaxe?

  [Yes] [No]

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  "Why is it asking me to name it?" she mumbled.

  "Because Betty is technically a machine. So the naming right would be to the one who looked for the materials." Peaches explained.

  "Oh... ok."

  Hera thought for a moment. When she was little, she had a stuffed bunny that she pretended to be her companion. She called it Iris. It seemed silly, but her first weapon might as well have the same name. She pressed yes and typed the name and confirmed. Immediately, the description changed the name of the handaxe.

  Hera picked the handaxe. Not only was it light, but it was also very comfortable to hold. She gave it a couple of swings using her left hand. It felt right. The weapon was different than the ones she used before. It was almost like the axe was helping with the movement.

  "Kid, I know you just got a new toy, but can we wrap this up? After you recover, I'm sure you will have plenty of opportunities to test it out," Peaches said.

  "Oh, sorry. Please, what do I need to do?"

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  "Nothing, Let's just see here."

  A notification appeared behind Peaches, showing Hera's quest.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Role test: Explorer

  The green forest and its residents hide many secrets, discover most of them to complete the test.

  This area is part of a simulation. The denizens of this place have limited interaction capabilities.

  Current discovery progress 75%

  [X] Discovered Woodland

  [X] Found Peaches

  [X] Found the materials for Betty, the blacksmith

  [X] Discovered a way to protect the village from attacks

  [X] Gazed upon the ever-blooming tree

  [X] Retrieved farmer Frank's rake

  [X] Fixed the slime's odd behavior.

  [ ]?????????????

  [ ]?????????????

  [/] Received a weapon from betty made from a rare material

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  "You did quite well, only missed two things. But you just got the rare material for the weapon, not the unique one, so that's only half complete." Peaches explained.

  "Was I close to getting the unique material?" Hera asked.

  "Not really. There were a couple of times that you were kind of going in the right direction, but you were still really far from it."

  Hera looked down. She wasn't able to find anything about that material. And she barely ever explored the area across the creek. There was still so much to explore.

  "Hey, now, don't be sad. We talked about this," Peaches said, "Your result is... that you passed with a good grade if we say it in a letter, the system gave you a C, but I would give you a B-, C+ if I'm being stingy."

  Hera looked up. She was used to getting Cs. This whole training really felt like high school, aside from the monsters, magic, and almost being eaten alive.

  "Congratulations! Now, for your first reward. I think you are going to enjoy that. Just for the record, the system makes those. I have no say in the matter, but I can explain to you how it works."

  As Peaches spoke, a small platform raised beside Hera with what looked like a black lighter on top of it. She picked the object and opened its lid. Inside there was a thread positioned in a way that reminded her of dental floss.

  "Is this your way of saying that my breath stinks?" she asked.

  "To be fair, your whole body stinks right now."

  Hera stared daggers at Peaches and then activated her [Inspect] on the object.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Yarnball - Explorer's relic

  Bound to Hera Kingsley

  An extremely resilient string that takes its strength from its owner. It can return any objects attached to it to the user, be used as a dowsing rod, or as a threat alarm.

  Passive effects:

  Returning string

  If an object is tied to the string when thrown, the object will return to the case after reaching the maximum distance of the string.

  Current maximum distance: 10 Meters.

  Danger sense

  When the object is near a monster, it pulses according to the distance of the creature. It can only detect monsters that are not hidden. The range of this effect depends on its owner's strength.

  Current range: 5 meters.

  Active effect:

  Dowsing rod

  By letting the string loose and pointing it down, you can ask about a location, item, or creature. The string will point in the direction where the query is located. The accuracy of this effect depends on its owner's strength.

  Cooldown: 168 hours

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hera read the description a few times. It seemed underwhelming, especially compared to the radar that Omar had. Seeing her frown, Peaches intervened.

  "Don't feel bad. Most explorers get something weird that seems weak at first. But the system created that item just for you, thinking about your strengths and shortcomings. If you have any questions about how that works, feel free to ask. The system gave me a rundown."

  Asking a few questions, Hera got the gist of how that the item worked. She had to admit that the returning string seemed really useful. That way, she could have some range in her attacks.

  "Ok, now for the second reward, this one has a few rules," Peaches said.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The test supervisor approves your result.

  Explorer role skill [Local Guide] acquired.

  Local Guide - Explorer Skill

  It allows you to summon the guide of the room you are in. The guide will stay for five minutes and answer any questions you have about the room. Guides can ask for the remaining time to be reduced depending on the question asked.

  You can summon the guide only once per room.

  Information about this skill can only be discussed with explorers who have the skill.

  Information about a specific guide can only be discussed with explorers who have met said guide.

  If these rules are broken three times, the skill will be removed and all memory related to the guides will be erased.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  "Am I seeing this right? Why is this an Explorer role skill?" Hera asked.

  "Because every role gets one, that's how the system made it," Peaches answered.

  Hera stared at him, confused, "But Explorers don't have a role skill. They never choose something to focus on. That's why they were left with nothing."

  "That's half right. The thing is, Explorers, focused on exploring. Then, the system gave them a skill that would help with that. But unlike the other ones, this skill won't evolve or affect other skills. To balance it out, the system created the custom gear you get," Peaches explained.

  "That doesn't make much sense. Why give a skill like that and not something like the other roles? And what is this about losing the skill if I tell someone about it?" she asked.

  "Well, complain to the system if you want, but I doubt you will get any replies. I have no clue why it chose the skill to be like that. You losing the skill is sort a punishment because of something that happened long ago. Some explorers used to set traps for the Guides, and when they started to get close to succeeding, the skill had that change. The first change was that if a Guide was about to be attacked, they would vanish. Now we also have someone who will evaluate the test, deciding if the explorer is trustworthy enough to use the skill responsibly," Peaches said.

  Hera stopped for a moment, "So does that mean you trust me?"

  "Yeah, I trust you."

  "Is this because I saved you from being stuck inside the water spring?" Hera snickered.

  Peaches coughed, "Maybe... Now anyway, a Guide is someone like me. Someone who knows pretty everything there is to know about a room and its dungeons. The only thing we can't share is personal information. If it's about someone who died, it depends on the person, how long ago they died, and what the information is. It's very case by case."

  "So you are also a Guide?" Hera asked.

  "Yep, Guide and proud. Now, back to the skill. You can't talk to people about it. And I mean can't, not shouldn't. If you try, the System will freeze you, like when you are going through a doorway."

  "So... how can I know if I can talk about it?" Hera asked

  "That's up to you. Ask questions around the subject, but avoid saying it outright. Even mentioning that the skill exists is forbidden. I think the worst part is that if you are talking with someone who has the skill, the system won't tell you even if a question would be off-limits otherwise."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Like, if you ask. 'Did you see a talking green apple in the test?' that would be a question that would count as you breaking the rules once. But if I have the skill, nothing will happen. But you don't know if the question would give you a strike or not."

  "So, it's kind of like a game of charades that you lose if you give a wrong answer?" Hera asked.

  "I would say charades where you can't mimic the actual answer, but sure."

  "That doesn't make any sense," Hera frowned.

  "That's how I played, don't like it, don't join in." Peaches scoffed as he turned around.

  "Awww don't be like that. Let me play," Hera said in a joking tone.

  "Nope, you lost your invitation. Better luck next time," Peaches replied.

  "So there is going to be a next time?" Hera asked with a smile.

  "Maybe that's up to you, kid."

  "How?" she asked.

  "Just keep being an explorer, I can't say much right now. If you play your cards right, we might meet again."

  Hera looked at her new friend. He had done so much. It was nice knowing that they could meet again. Yet, she didn't know how long it would take. Getting teary-eyed, she rubbed her face.

  "Yeah, you really need to go, kid. You must be in a lot of pain."

  Hera shook her head, "It's not that. I'm just going to miss you."

  Peaches turned away, his cheeks turning a bit brown. "I'm gonna miss you too, kid."

  A few moments passed, with Hera smiling at Peaches while the slime got increasingly more embarrassed.

  "Well, your test is done. You can go back and finish the paperwork. But in the eyes of the System, you are now officially a fully fledged Explorer."

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Role Test: Explorer

  Quest completed

  Return to the Explorer's Guild to receive your reward

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  As soon as the notification appeared, a pearl white doorway materialized behind Peaches. Hera got up and started walking towards the door, stopping by the table and giving Peaches a big hug.

  "I'm not hugging you back because, you know, no arms. But consider yourself hugged, kid," Peaches said.

  Hera laughed, "Ok, thanks for everything, Peaches."

  "Anytime, Hera."

  She walked towards the doorway and gave one last look at the slime. He was sitting on the table, smiling at her. She touched the door, and her body froze. A tingling sensation was covering her limbs. At the moment, a thought crossed her mind. What was going to happen to Peaches? Would he be alone there until someone else showed up? Or would he go someplace else?

  Before she could reach a conclusion, the light changed as she heard the bustling sounds of the MAZE reception inside the guild.

  "Yo, a recruit came out!" a tall man said.

  "Hey, congratulati.... what the hell happened to you?" a burly man asked.

  "Are you ok? Oh, girl, you need a shower," a woman wearing a leather jacket said.

  "Ok, ok, all of you give her some space. Hera, right? I'm Bianca, one of the attendants, could you come with me, please?"

  A woman with short dark hair and glasses approached Hera. She was wearing the guild uniform, a vest with a dress shirt, and black pants. As she walked, her heels made a loud clicking sound.

  "Hi, it's a pleasure to meet you," Hera put out a hand, but the pain in her abdomen made her recoil.

  "Can you walk? Do you need a wheelchair?" Bianca asked.

  "I can walk," Hera replied weakly. She felt as if it was harder to breathe in here. Her body felt heavier.

  "Ok, come with me. We will find you a healer first. Then we do the rest."

  Hera just nodded as she walked beside the attendant. They moved through a hallway towards a room that looked like an infirmary. There were various beds spread around and curtains that could be used to give someone more privacy. Only one of the beds seemed to be occupied, and a man was sitting in a chair near the door wearing light green scrubs.

  "Gérard, can you do an emergency check on her?" Bianca asked.

  The man had big bags under his eyes and a vacant expression. He stared at Hera for a moment and got up, walking towards a bed.

  "Sit here."

  The man seemed off. His mind seemed to be somewhere else. It was like looking at someone who just quit their job but has to work for one more day. Hera looked back at the clerk, who just gave her a confirming nod.

  She sat on the bed with some difficulty. Her ribs seemed to move around as she walked.

  "Stay still," Gérard said.

  He closed his eyes, and a light green glow covered his eyelids. He moved around as if he was looking at Hera with his eyes closed. The man pressed his fingers on her ribs, making Hera flinch.

  "Sorry, you seem to have fractured a couple of ribs. Your femur and tibia are also cracked, and there are some lesser tears in your arms. It looks like the injuries you see in people who were found in collapsed buildings. Those puncture wounds are not very deep, but we need to clean them. Can you take off your shirt?" Gérard asked.

  Hera's face turned red. She spent the last few days without taking a bath or changing clothes. Take off her shirt in front of a strange man was among the last things she wanted to do. Gérard let out a lengthy sigh.

  "Bianca, could you call the little one?" The man asked.

  The attendant nodded and left the room while the man walked towards a cabinet and started to prepare something.

  "Should I do something?" Hera asked.

  "Just stay there for a moment, avoid any abrupt movements," the man replied without even looking in Hera's direction.

  Hera stayed there, with Yarnball in her hand and Iris resting on her belt. It was strange. Walking around with a handaxe felt more natural now. Although the weight was different than what she was used to, holding Yarnball, on the other hand, felt familiar. Like she used to do it all the time. Hera never smoked or carried a case of floss around, but this small black container felt like part of her.

  Distracted by her new relic, Hera failed to notice when a short, chubby woman was approaching. The woman closed the drapes around the bed, making a loud noise, snapping Hera out of her meandering.

  "Mr. Kaplan, what do I need to do with this one?" the woman asked.

  She had long brown hair, with braids coming from each side of her head. She wore light green scrubs as well and had a ring in her nose.

  "Clean her wounds, be careful with her ribs. If she moves too much, they might get even more out of place."

  "Aye aye, captain."

  "Stop playing pirate and get to work," Gérard said.

  The woman pouted and proceeded to check Hera's wound.

  "Wow, something got you really bad, huh? Do you think you can raise your arms, or is it better to cut off the shirt?"

  "I think raising my arms will be too much. And honestly, I'm going to throw this shirt away. It' too dirty." Hera replied.

  "Good call, I wasn't going to say anything, but this one seems like a goner."

  The woman grabbed a pair of scissors and cut the back of Hera's shirt. Looking down, Hera could see a large dark purple mark on the side of her body. The pain she was feeling increased, making her feel dizzy.

  "No, no, no, stay with me, honey. If you pass out now, it's going to be harder to do our job. What's your name? I'm Enrica."

  "I'm Hera," she replied weakly.

  The woman kept asking various questions while she cleaned Hera's wounds to distract her from the pain. Luckily, it didn't take too long. When she was done, Enrica helped Hera to take off her pants and gave her a hospital gown. She then placed all of Hera's belongings inside a nightstand by the bed and locked it using the recruit's bracelet.

  "Is that burn something that happened inside?" Enrica asked.

  Remembering the scar caused by Ashe, the man with the pink mohawk when she got her level up, Hera felt embarrassed. She was already a sorry sight, that only added insult to injury.

  "No, that's from… before."

  Enrica nodded and didn't ask anything else, instead saying "Doc, she's ready for you,"

  "I'm a healer, not a doctor," Gérard replied as he approached Hera with a syringe filled with a neon green liquid, "Listen, this will hurt for a moment, but then I can place your bones in the right spots and start the healing. You need to be awake because I need you to tell me if the pain gets too strong. Some people have a strong reaction to this potion, but it's the best one for broken bones."

  Hera nodded, and the healer stuck the needle near her clavicle. She felt a burning sensation flooding her chest. It felt like someone had spilled hot coffee inside of her. But the pain wasn't too severe.

  Little by little, the burning sensation started to move inside her. First towards her ribs, and then it split and reached her legs and arms. Hera looked at Gérard. The man had a focused expression, and his eyes had a green glow. He seemed to be staring at the parts of the heat that were moving. After some time, when most of her body was covered with that burning sensation. The healer stopped and sat beside her.

  "If you want, you can sleep now. We can even help with that," Gérard said.

  "Yes, please. I'm tired," Hera replied.

  The healer gave a nod to Enrica, who started to sing a lullaby. Her voice was soft and melodic. It reminded Hera of when her grandma would sing her to her as a child. In just a few moments, Hera began to sleep.

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