Map of an Underground Heart

"Professor!" Tanuki turned towards him. "I've earned some kind of boss token. Have you heard about anything like that before?"

The Professor nodded.

"Indeed I have, Mister Hachiro! Those tokens are magical artifacts one can strengthen by defeating its original bearer once again. But beware, for they come back with vengeance fueling their veins, empowering their capabilities."

"I see... so I can resurrect and defeat previous bosses to gain stronger bonuses for my token?"

"That is true, Mister Hachiro. Tokens start with a single dull bonus, contributing little to one's world. But as they gain power, so do their rewards blossom with more benefits. Tokens can only be upgraded twice under normal circumstances, first revealing something to thy world, then blooming secondly as they reveal something magical. That is what I'd need to ask you, Mister Hachiro. I need you make this token bloom."

"Those are some pretty big words", Tanuki thought to himself. Still, it sounded for ensuring the safety of his world.

But where could those tokens be observed? He had an idea.

Opening 'Achievements' again, he noticed that 'Trophies' were only a third of that menu. Next to them, he could choose to observe his 'Tokens' and 'Relics'.

"Relics? I got something called a Relic Orb, but I think it can wait for now."

Unlike trophies, only the defeated bosses' tokens could be seen.

There was only one, displaying a goblin who wore blue minotaur fur as a headdress. It was Soup's boss token.

Observing it revealed three different tiers. Each one of them had stars next to them according to their level.

Below every tier were various rewards displayed.

[ Tier 1 – The Brutal ]

[ Goblins perform 5% better with melee piercing-type weapons ]

[ – – –

[ Tier 2 – The Cruel ]

[ Goblins perform 10% better with melee piercing-type weapons ]

[ Goblins have a chance to be born with Rare [ Horned Goblin ] attribute ]

[ – – – ]

[ Tier 3 – The Sadist ]

[ Goblins perform 15% better with melee piercing-type weapons ]

[ Goblins have a chance to be born with a Rare [ Horned Goblin ] attribute ]

[ 'Giant Ant Cemetery' is now available for placement ]

This token seemed to give a small bonus to certain goblin fighters. If Tanuki would've had an army of goblin spearmen, this could've provided them a nice, then crucial bonus as he would unlock new tiers.

"So long I own this token, its bonuses apply to everyone in my world. I wonder, should I focus my attention on befriending a goblin tribe to maximize this token's bonuses?"

Besides the horned feature, which seemed to provide some kind of boost to its bearer, there was still something Tanuki didn't fully understand. The 'Giant Ant Cemetery' seemed to be some kind of structure or tile, but Tanuki didn't understand what connection it had to Soup, the leader of a goblin tribe.

"Hey, Maduka!" Tanuki called out to her. "Do you know any giant ants?"

Upon hearing his question, a shiver ran down Maduka's spine. She trembled from the cold, terrifying memories that came into her mind.

"Once Maduka wandered far from da tribe. She saw a large hole in da wall! Maduka went inside and took a look. Guess what! Maduka saw large bugz underground! They were dis big!"

She extended her arms to both sides and tried to mimic the size of an overgrown ant. By what little information she successfully got across, Tanuki got a good idea of the danger those bugs represent.

The Professor crouched down before Maduka. He pulled out a map from his dirty backpack.

The map was a yellow papyrus. It was full of black squares used to measure the length between two landscapes.

The interesting thing about the map was that it didn't follow the X and Z axis, but rather X and Y, as this map showed items underground.

"Huh? This is Maduka's home! B-But, what are thoze lines?"

"Hidden paths in the ground, Miss." The Professor answered, running his finger across the map. "Roots that reach below the world we know."

What the map displayed was the entirety of the hole in which Maduka and Tanuki first met. One half of the large map was the incredibly deep hole, including the thick roots which ran through it.

The other half was something they haven't seen before. The roots reached below the ground, where instead of branching into many different paths, they gathered at a certain point and formed something that resembled a large human heart.

"What the hell is that?!" Tanuki recoiled from the grotesque sight.

"What thy witnessed is a secret told to me by the mirage. This is but a mere reconstruction of a cosmic horror incapable even to my mind."

"This 'Thing' lives underground? Why would I want it in my world?!"

"Remember thy enemy, Mister Hachiro. Remember her."

Soup? It is true that she wasn't more than a slightly strong goblin. Her challenge rating barely reached above one, and even with four other monsters assisting her, she was still defeatable.

Her token reflects that. It gives other goblins slight bonuses, but nothing too powerful. Even the tier two bonus of having a chance to be born stronger doesn't really change the game. Could it be, that this gigantic looking heart was nothing more than a monster with a challenge rating of one?

Then it hit him. What if the gigantic heart wasn't the true enemy? Maduka said she had seen giant ants underground. Could it be that that heart is actually the home of an ant hive?

"Why?" Tanuki raised his head. "What do you want with that heart?"

The Professor gazed at him for a moment. He clearly didn't want to talk about his reason, but being met with such a confrontational response, he had no other choice.

He coughed and adjusted his backpack.

"I guess it is time, Mister Hachiro, that I tell you about the Gods…"