Fortunately for him, the first wave was just one monster. While Alex was on the floor, his phone rang and displayed the following message:

  [Congratulations! Wave 1 complete. Reward earned]

  A copper box was delivered via dumbwaiter through a slit in the floor. After the dumbwaiter made some mechanical noises, it went back down and the floor slid shut. Alex looked at the box curiously, grabbed it, and said in a shaky voice, "I need a break. I'm going to head back to the adventurer's guild and try to work through this trauma." He turned to leave, but then an idea struck him.

  Alex came to understand that the doll on the tower had saved him by continuing to assail the siren. He held the small clockwork doll, which he had previously thought of as a throwaway prototype, with great respect. Overwhelmed with emotion, he said, "You are the best doll. I didn't even give you hair or a proper outfit, but you protected me. Thank you." He bowed his head to the little doll.

  [You have unlocked the feat: Empower Doll. +1 to all of a doll's primary attributes for 15 minutes, cooldown 1 day]

  Alex returned to the sewing station, where he began cutting cloth for a new outfit for the doll. He knew he should have done this earlier, but now he would have to make the dress from scratch using only the materials in the workshop. He realized that making something out of fabric was extremely difficult because dolls were so small. Perhaps he could do some research on doll fashion by reading one of the books in the workshop. Maybe if he made something cute enough, the doll would do better in battle next time. A part of him knew that a cute outfit would make no difference to how the clockwork doll could shoot arrows, but another part of him knew that this was a world of magic. Fufi's constant stressing of the importance of cuteness also weighed on his thoughts.

  Alex picked up a book titled "Doll Clothes" to learn about the process of making clothes for dolls. He believed that the advice and tips in the book would not be applicable to his own doll clothes, but he was still interested in learning more about the process. As he read, he was reminded that making doll clothes is more challenging than making clothes for humans due to the small scale. The artistry demands a higher level of precision, accuracy, and care. Each stitch must be perfectly aligned with the even smaller thread or yarn used in doll clothes. Although there are many patterns available, each design must be carefully tailored to the doll's proportions. Even the selection of fabric is important: cotton or silk are both popular choices, but they require different handling when sewing.

  After reading the entire book for three hours, Alex felt he had only just begun to grasp the potential drawbacks and advantages of his project. He decided to start with something simple, a sleeveless black dress. He used tiny tools and a magnifying glass to see his work. He believed he had it right, but when he tried to put it on the prototype doll, it caught on the gears of the torso when it moved back and forth and up and down. His second attempt was also a failure, as the dress was too tight and tore when he tested the range of motion. The third attempt was a success. After confirming that the dress would not be a problem, he added a bit of pizzazz by tying a ribbon around the neckline and adding frills to the bottom. He admired his work from a distance.

  That was when his phone rang out:

  [Skill acquired: tailoring]

  He tapped the skill on his phone and read the description.

  Tailoring - Level 1: You have learned the basics of sewing and creating outfits.

  Tailoring Skill: Your ability to create new clothes is now limited only by your skill in this craft. With this skill, you can create any garment from simple clothes to ceremonial attire.

  Alex sighed and spoke to no one, “I know I wanted to avoid learning this skill, but now that I have it, it feels right. Fufi is going to be so smug when she finds out.”

  Exhausted from completing the doll dress, Alex’s mind was still reeling from the experience of being charmed. It felt like he had been replaced by someone else, and the sensation was terrifying. He never wanted to feel that way again. As a novice, shouldn’t this dungeon be simple? Or was his definition of simple different from the world’s? If so, what kind of challenges would he face in the real world?

  After cleaning the crafting table, Alex returned to the adventurer's guild through the portal, carrying a now-cutely-dressed doll in one hand and a copper treasure box in the other. Upon entering the lobby, he saw Fufi talking to Merumeru behind the stone counter. Against the wall was a stone display etched with pictures of pipes and mushrooms.

  A ceramic plate with various mushrooms was in front of the slime girl. She picked one up and put it in her mouth. She stood there for a few seconds with a look of intense concentration on her face. The mushroom dissolved in her slime body, but nothing else happened. Merumeru looked disappointed. Additionally, the adventurer's guild did not have a counter before. The ground floor was different than he remembered. It looked like remodeling had been done while he was away.

  "Oh, hello Alex," Fufi greeted him as he came up the stairs from the basement. "Did you see any adventurers?" she asked Merumeru.

  The slime girl shook her head.

  "I guess we'll just have to wait or do the quests on the job board ourselves," Fufi told her matter-of-factly.

  "What are you two doing?" Alex asked.

  Fufi explained the situation. "Merumeru and I were playing a game of adventurer's guild. See, that is the current quest board." Fufi pointed to the board, which was etched with pipes and mushrooms. "No one has accepted any quests yet."

  Alex squinted at the board. Merumeru’s attempt was endearing, but not what he expected to see at an adventurer’s guild. Then again, she was only a week old and likely couldn’t read. Perhaps that wasn’t so bad. It was all pretend, and if she wanted to be an adventurer when she grew up, he was fine with that.

  The slime girl popped a new mushroom into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully. She waited for something to happen, but when nothing did, she frowned.

  "She's acting weird today," Alex thought to himself.

  "What are you holding Alex?" Fufi asked.

  "I found this in the dungeon." Alex handed over the doll along with the copper treasure box.

  "I see you made her some adorable clothes. How did the process go? Also, what treasure did you find?" Fufi inquired, gesturing at the now-dressed clockwork doll.

  Alex described his fight with the siren and how she had bewitched him. The final portion was tough to tell, since the painful memory was still raw. He could barely discuss it without breaking down. Still, he felt obligated to explain everything that had transpired. When he got to the part about the tailoring skill and the empower doll feat, Fufi simply listened attentively. He was grateful that the flamingo did not take the chance to make a quick joke about his stubbornness.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  After Alex finished speaking, Fufi stared at him, trying to make sense of what he had said. After a moment, she looked at him with concern. “Are you okay?” she asked. “You don’t seem like yourself.” She paused, considering her words carefully. “Do you want to talk about it? Mental effects can be very difficult to overcome.”

  "I am fine." Alex lied through his teeth. Being mind-controlled was deeply disturbing but he felt he had to man up and keep quiet about it.

  Fufi was unconvinced, but she let it go. Instead, she turned her attention to Merumeru.

  The slime girl had not shown much interest in anything other than eating mushrooms since they had spoken to Alex earlier, and she kept glancing back and forth between Alex and Fufi.

  "Meru!" The slime girl pointed to the copper treasure box.

  Merumeru scurried across the desk and reached out a hand. Her fingers brushed against the smooth surface of the box. She brought her fingertips closer to inspect her new find. As soon as her slimy fingers touched it, she pulled away with a start. The moment of fright seemed to have cleared up some of her confusion, as she tried again to touch the box with curiosity. This time she managed it better. She lifted the lid open so she could see inside.

  She looked inside and gestured for Alex and Fufi to look also. Inside there was a big pile of parts: tiny gears and springs of various sizes, a set of small tools, some glue, several doll-sized limbs, and tiny tufts of hair in sorted packets. Everyone recognized the treasure: it was a complete doll repair kit!

  "Hey this is a lot more useful than a box full of stuffed animals," Alex said with fake excitement.

  "That is good news indeed. Though those stuffed animals are really cute too." Fufi agreed wholeheartedly except for the prior treasure part.

  Merumeru stared at the box for a long time, then closed it and handed it back to Alex. She had been staring at it intently ever since he opened it, but now she returned to her plate of mushrooms as if nothing had happened.

  "We should keep this in the basement until we need it," Alex said. "I can't use the workshop in the dungeon forever." He put the copper treasure chest in the basement with the other items. They were starting to amass a large collection of random things down there.

  "Alex, would you like to play adventurer's guild with us?" Fufi asked, gesturing to the clockwork doll that had saved him. "Would she like to join the guild?"

  Observing Fufi calling the doll her “new” friend, Merumeru quickly turned her head around and stared at Fufi. After a moment of contemplation, she began nodding and squeaking to herself. Her eyes were focused on Fufi, as if she was waiting for something.

  Noticing Merumeru’s actions, Fufi tilted her head in curiosity. “I think Merumeru wants to form an adventuring party with this little one. What is your name?” she asked the doll, who did not respond. Fufi then looked at Alex, who understood that she was asking him to name the doll.

  "Her name is Lily," Alex said aloud, making up the name on the spot.

  Fufi smiled and nodded, not in approval but to acknowledge that Lily was now a member of the adventuring party. She continued playing the role of an adventuring guild receptionist, asking questions such as how long they had known each other, why they wanted to adventure together, and any past experiences they might have. "So, what will be the official name of this adventuring party?" Fufi asked. "I'll need to know this before I can create the record entry," She pretended to write things down.

  "The party has no official name yet." Alex told her honestly. He felt really pressed for information he hadn’t considered.

  "That just won't do." Fufi crossed her wings. "We must give a name to the team in order to enter it into the guild's records!"

  Alex paused to come up with a good name for the slime girl’s party. He tried a few ideas, but none of them seemed right. He could go with something based on the dungeon, like “Lily and friends,” or something more original. After a few moments, Fufi cleared her throat and began poking him on the shoulder with her beak. Alex looked up and saw Fufi squawking impatiently.

  Meremru moved closer and tugged on his sleeve. Alex knew what she wanted, but none of the names he had come up with seemed good enough. He thought about the characters’ personalities, skills, weapons, and relationships with each other. There had to be something that would fit!

  Alex thought for a moment, then snapped his fingers. "How about calling this party the Lilypad?" he asked Fufi and the others.

  They looked at him in surprise.

  "It's not perfect," he admitted, "but it's better than Lily's Slimes, or slimy lilies." He winced at how that sounded out loud. "At least it's not one of my worst ideas."

  Fufi gave Merumeru a quizzical look, then returned her attention to Alex. Merumeru slowly turned her head from side to side, then smiled widely. Her eyes widened with delight and then sparkled with mischief.

  "It is now official that Merumeru and Lily are members of the new adventuring party, Lilypad," Fufi declared, finishing the official entry into the guild records with a flourish. Fufi was apparently quite skilled at pretending.

  Being a toy, Lily was as stoic as ever. It would be weird if a clockwork doll that could only move when on a mount designed for it did anything else other than sit still.

  "So which quest does your team want to accept for their first mission?" Fufi asked Merumeru and Lily.

  The slime girl looked to Lily and said, "Me ruru ru Meru." After giving Lily a second to respond she looked to Fufi and pointed at the board, "Meru meru me."

  "Oh so you want to do the pipe quest. I think that is a good choice. It is up by the river at the dam." Fufi nodded sagely.

  Merumeru gently grabbed Lily and they headed towards the exit.

  Alex agreed to go with the group to the dam, where the repairs were nearly complete. When they arrived, Merumeru placed Lily on a rock with a clear view of the area. Merumeru then jumped into the water and began working on creating blocks to finish the last section of the dam.

  Alex sat with Fufi by the river.

  After a while the bird spoke softly, "So, do you want to talk about it?"

  Alex inhaled deeply before speaking. "I suppose I should talk about it. I've come to terms with the fact that I was charmed. It's not something that happens in my world, so it was difficult to accept at first. But now that I've experienced it, I can't deny it."

  He paused to think. "Torture is one of the worst things that can happen to someone. You'll say or do anything to make it stop. But I imagine that a torture victim doesn't lose their sense of self. When I was charmed, it was like I was gone, replaced by a different person. Even though it was only for a short time, I remember what it was like and how they felt. It's like my whole sense of self has been shaken."

  "That sounds terrible," Fufi said softly, her voice full of sympathy.

  "It was," Alex said, his head bowed. “I hope I never run into something with a similar power again.”

  Unsettled, Fufi shifted her weight and looked down at the ground. After a moment, she lifted her head and stared into space, a habit of hers. "I had hoped you would never have to experience being charmed," she said. "But now I realize that was wishful thinking, given the demon queen's many succubus minions." Fufi shook her head a few times, attempting to clear her thoughts.

  "I suppose coming to this world was never going to be easy. The sooner I can accept that the better, maybe the dungeon is trying to teach me not to be reckless." Alex mused.

  After that, there was little conversation between them. They watched Merumeru finish repairing the last section of the dam, and then the water level began to rise upstream. It took a while, but the water began to flow through the pipes that Merumeru had installed along the dam. The little slime girl tried them all out several times, as if they were a water slide. She seemed delighted that all of her work had created such a fun little playground, perfect for a slime.

  Lilypad's first mission was a success. Upon returning to the adventurer's guild, Fufi pretended to stamp a non-existent form and dropped some mushrooms in Merumeru’s hands she had gathered along the way as payment.

  "Good job team Lilypad, here is your reward." Fufi flapped her wings in celebration.