Very nice! Clever use of the single picture (the hero slime can be seen at multiple places, as in the old adventure books).
I like how the shortcut makes you go back but not too much and you can go on from there (a metaphor for “there is no shortcut in improving?”).
Each slime seems to represent an emotion or state of mind in the journey of progressing toward the top. I thought they’d be more dialogues with each of them but I suppose that has to fit in 1000 words including the branching!
Also, I can’t believe I’m the first one to post here!