“Master, are you ready?”
“Yeah, I’m ready.”
It’s time…
When I learned the truth of that Gate from ‘her’, I was skeptical at first.
But… after seeing ‘that’ I had no choice but to believe it.
“Then master, this way.”
My butler, Jesif take me to an alley behind the mansion.
As I walked through the alleyway I could see some silhouettes near the Gate.
“Luci-san, are you going somewhere?”
A group of children were standing in front of me, blocking my way.
‘They are… from the orphanage, huh.’
“Yeah… don’t worry I’ll be back, I promise.”
I patted the head of the kid with a pigtail.
Suddenly she hugged me, followed by all the other kids… they were crying.
“Hey, you guys know that I really love this town of ours, right?”
‘Damn it, I feel like I wanna cry too…’
“You know that I reeeeally love… this city here right? That’s why I’m not gonna die, I’ll come back and bring you kids souvenirs, okay?”
I smiled as I said that, while struggling to hold back my own tears.
While nodding slowly, the kids started to move away from the Gate, giving me space.
I walked slowly to the Gate.
‘Well this may be the last time I’ll ever step into this town again.’
********
I’m here… in front of me is the gate, covered with carvings of a beast from the legends all over its blackened grey doors.
So mysterious and dangerous yet it exudes such an amazing aura of nobility.
There is even a religion focused on how the gate will bring humanity to the next stage of life with its divine providence.
‘Divine huh…what a load of bullshit.’
I nodded at my butler.
“Jesif, you stay here and wait for me, okay?”
“!? But master! You can’t go alone! The Gate is full of those-”
“Jesif!”
“!”
‘Really you… I guess I’ll have to break another promise.’
“Sorry Jesif.”
“Hm? Master? What are you…”
“By the power invested in me by the last crest of Xef…”
“!? Master! You promised not to-!?”
“I swore on the name of Farah the goddess of darkness and the crest of Xef,
“Master?!”
“…You cannot go and follow me. From this moment on, you are free to do anything you want. But at least protect the kids, okay?”
With a solemn look he… No, she answered me,
“… Yes… M-mas-master.”
‘Oh boy… She’s starting to cry…’
I patted her head gently.
With a surprised look she stared into my eyes.
I smiled in return.
“You will always be my one and only daughter… Jane.”
“!? *sob*… a… aa… *sob* Waaaaaah! Fa… Father… I love you… Please don’t leave me… Father… P-please… *sob*”
I patted her head again and slowly walked to the Gate.
‘Ah… I think I’ve done a great job raising her… At least she can cry properly now… Xef… I’ve done a great job… Right?’
I felt tears welling up at the edge of my eyes.
“Take care of yourself… Jane.”
After saying my farewell to her, I once again approached the supposed ‘Holy Gate’.
I placed my hand on the surface and chanted the spell.
The Gate slowly opened up…
Pure white lights came out from the door…
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And swallowed me whole.
********
*Yawn*
‘Is it morning already? I felt like I’ve forgotten something important…’
‘It’s dark… I can’t see anything.Is this a dream? This feels so real…’
‘Eh?’
‘I can’t feel my hands… Or even my legs for that matter!? What the hell is happening!?’
“……”
‘I can’t even speak, really… What is going on…?’
‘Hm? Wait, let me check my form for a bit.’
‘Okay I’ll try moving… Hmm, aha! Okay I understand! I’m round! And this squishy jiggly feeling is…
I am a Slime~!’
‘Wait! What the hell!? Why am I a slime!? Aren’t I human!?’
‘No no no! This must be a dream… yes! This must be a dream! Okay, when I wake up I’ll be sleeping inside my tent and then laugh at this weird dream I’m having. Goodnight!’
********
When I woke up this morning… I’m still a slime.
‘I guess, I must acknowledge the fact that right now… I’m no longer human, but a slime.’
‘Anyway, what should I do now? Hm? Maybe I can use magic, more like I can feel magic circulating inside my body. Maybe I can use magic perception to substitute for my vision.’
‘Oh! It works! I can see now, ugh…’
‘It looks like I’m inside a cave, I’m not good with caves… something bad happened to me once.’
‘It’s a bad omen, better look for an exit fast!’
I didn’t know how long had I been in this cave ever since I became a slime… my sense of time was practically null inside this dark cave. How could I become a slime in the first place? I remembered sleeping inside my tent after i took a [Blade Fish] subjugation quest…
‘Hm? What’s that? Oh…! A river! And at the end of it is… a light! That must be the exit. Okay! Now or never… let’s jump and go on with the flow~! Hah!’
‘So long cave, may we never meet agai-
It’s a waterfall!? And the current is uber fast!’
‘I won’t die from falling, right? I won’t die from falling in this ridiculous height, right? A slime won’t die because of this, right?’
‘Dang it! It’s so high… shiiiii~t!?’
********
I’m falling, well… It’s not as bad as I thought. The wind feels nice.
‘What’s down there? There’s something… it’s a… it’s a fish…!?’
That fish was opening its mouth…
‘How could it know that a slime was falling from the waterfall!?’
‘I’m not gonna get eaten that easily! Sorry Mr. Fish! I’m not going to die today!’
I quickly take a look around me, as I frantically moving my bodies around…my eyes found a cylindrical object.
‘Is that a log? I know! I can use this to jump to the land!’
But how can I jump from this position… scrap that idea, I need something else. Hmm…
‘Maybe… I can use magic power to launch me like a propeller! Yes, this might work!’
‘Okay, I can feel magic power gathering on my lower body…’
‘Wait for it… now! Release!’
*splash*
‘Haah haah hah…I thought my heart would stop! But… it’s a success! I landed safely! Well not so much safe since I still have to pick up my body parts that are scattered everywhere. Still, it’s better than getting eaten whole by that fish.’
After I was done collecting all the scattered parts, I slowly made my way to the nearest tree.
‘I hope nothing would appear from the bushes that want to attack me…’
*krash krash*
‘Hm? I heard something from the bushes… over there… Did I just set a death flag?’
‘A~nd I was right… I did set a death flag…’
Suddenly appearing in front of me was a monster from the [Bear Family]. It’s a rare variant with high offensive and defensive capabilities, its body was covered by sets of blades forming something like a protective garment all around its body. Its name was [Bladed Bear].
‘But why is it aiming its ferocious killing intent at a lowly slime like me? Unless I’m trespassing into its territory, it won’t even bat an-’
As I was thinking that, I finally noticed a big bird-like nest near a giant fallen tree trunk.
‘Ahhh… Shit. Just how bad is my luck? Having to encounter two life or death situation in a row…’
‘I can see my short life as a slime flashing in front of me… Not! Who the hell would accept this kind of ending!? I don’t even know why I am a slime, and will I die here!? No! I won’t accept that! I have to find a way to run the hell outta here! There must be a way! There must be!’
!?
Suddenly I could see its claws approaching my face… when suddenly-
“!!!”
In that instant, a single flash shine before me.
Cleaving the [Bladed Bear] in half, and replacing where the bear once stood was a single figure…
His flowing black hair;
his form;
his posture;
his swordsmanship.
All of it were elegant.
‘Wait… this presence is…’
“Yo! Stranger! Are you oka-”
‘He… he is a Sword Saint!’
“Whew~ To think that I can get so many groceries at a bargained price! With this we’ll be able to last till the end of the month!”
“Brother!”
‘Oh? Eris is running here, that’s rare…’
“Hey Eris! Look at what I bought, with this many ingredients I can cook anything you want for a month~!”
“Really!? Eh, no there’s an emergency, big bro! I heard somebody’s voice near the waterfall!”
“What!? Are you sure!?”
“Help him big bro! He is in a big pinch right now!”
“On it!”
‘The waterfall huh… That is quite the distance from here.’
I guess I’ll have to use ‘that’ to get there in time.
‘If there’s really someone that need my help I better run with all my might!’
‘The closer I get, the killing intent is getting stronger. So Eris wasn’t lying after all!’
‘There it is! I can see it! It’s a… [Bladed Bear]!?
I’ll have to hurry!’
‘The distance… it’s enough! Okay! Now or never!’
“
Magic power quickly covered my body as I quickly dashed and sliced the bear in half.
Normally it would be near impossible to cut [Bladed bear]’s skin, its skin was made out of swords that have magic density equal to the holy swords that was used by the Templars. But with this skill I used magic to create blades of magic that will slice the enemy 13 times when my sword makes contact with the enemy’s body.
I glanced at the bear’s corpse and nodded to myself.
“Yo! Stranger! Are you oka-”
Huh? There’s no one here…
There’s only a single slime here, well this was also rare.
‘Slimes usually only appears in caves and the like, maybe it fell to the river and flowed down here with the waterfall.’
The slime slowly approached me and then when it’s close enough it…
‘It hugged me!? Why!? Don’t tell me!? This slime wants to eat me!?’
“Sorry slime… before you eat me I’ll be the one to finish you!”
I raised my sword and then…
“Brother wait!”
I stopped just in time.
“Eris! Why are you telling me to stop! Do you want your big bro to get eaten by a slime!?”
“No! The slime isn’t trying to eat you, he is trying to say thanks to you!”
“Thanks- what!? Are you telling me that this slime is docile and is able to show gratitude like humans do!?”
‘No way, impossible! Monsters are not capable to think like humans. They only move by instincts.’
“Yes.”
She answered me with a strong look on her face…
Eris then walked and approached the slime. She picked it up and… hugged it…
‘Why!?’
“Eris, stay away from that slime! It’s dangerous!”
I brandished my sword and tried to take Eris away from that slime.
“Brother! No! Kuma is a good slime!”
She said that while hugging that slime tightly… I’m jealous…
“Wait, you named it already!?”
“I didn’t name him, he said that his name is Kuma.”
“He said… what!? You… You can talk with that slime!?”
“Yes…?”
“….”
“….”
‘Calm down… there’s got to be a logical explanation for this…’
“How do you do that? Look at me in the eyes and answer.”
‘First ask her a question, and determine if she is lying or not.’
“I… I don’t know, I just heard Kuma’s voice… like telepathy maybe…”
‘Next… this question.’
“How can you be so sure that this slime is not evil?”
“I just know.”
“You just know? Hmm…”
‘She is not lying… Her eyes are not lying… If Eris said so then… it must be her power at work.’
“Hah…”
I let out a sigh.
“I trust you, let’s go back home and have dinner… bring that slime too.”
“Un, okay!”
‘Something… is starting, I don’t know what but… let’s just hope this bad feeling is just my imagination.’