- Shari -

Me and my big slime mouth.

Figuratively, not literally, cause that one is relative.

Something I need to stop before my head "literally" starts to swirl.

I should've known that I'd end up being the one doing the digging.

Liqu is going to attack in the open, while my specialty resolves around infiltration.

I'm going to dissolve myself a tunnel straight into the production hall.

And because we still have to wait for Captain Soma's other soldiers to arrive, I have more than enough time to dig myself all the way to the facility.

After explaining my plan I even got a rope.

It's thought to restrain any prisoners we make, but now it will help me to determine my position.

If I reach a certain distance and am still not there then I probably went in the wrong direction.

The other telltale sign should be the different ground of the foundation of the facility and certainly the vibrations of steps on the ground.

The plan is as follows: Liqu and I will attack at two different places.

First, I'm going to clear the production hall.

While Liqu was as insisting as always that I shouldn't expose myself to any danger, I was able to convince her that this won't be an issue if I do it according to my plan.

If I have to call out one downside of my plan then it's that I, to my dismay, have once again to go naked.

There's simply no other way to dig through the earth.

Being an elongated slime worm in a tunnel that is filled to the brim with my created slime is certainly no state of being I favor.

However, I already let Liqu do the risky part by attacking the site openly.

I doubt they have any anti-monster weapons against us.

Voidstone is pretty rare and expensive, and certainly nothing you would equip the guard of a facility with in an area that has no monsters, so Liqu should be fine.

I on the other hand have to push through all my anxieties.

While I really don't like it and am constantly thinking about looking for a better offer than being a royal agent once things calm down, this might become a pretty agreeable job.

So for the sake of my brighter future, I'll endure the unsettling experience of slime worm digging.

Eventually, I reach hard stone and start to feel the steps.

Naturally, this isn't going to stop me, but it means that I'm not gaining any energy in return anymore as I do from life-filled dirt.

Fortunately, I am quite full.

And even better is that I brought two flasks of slime potions with me.

Once I think I'm directly below the complex, I ingest the first by dissolving the cork and connecting with the content that directly becomes a part of mine.

After all, I want to be full when I emerge.

The second one I prepare, so I may take it as soon as I need it.

Now I'll just wait for the agreed signal.

And there it is!

A tug on the rope.

As planned, I start to dissolve upwards.

I can somewhat determine the necessary height and when I feel cracks, telling me I might push through at any moment, the crucial part will start.

"Did you imbeciles still not prepare the last batch?! I can't believe you're so incompetent!"

Okay, some woman is quite upset up there.

"To believe I had to abandon my job at the institute where the greatest minds of our time gather and in return I get you! Fools! Cretins! Idiots!" (angry woman)

You know, I have no intention of fighting those up there head-on.

No, I'm still at most a mediocre fighter and still can't overcome myself to dissolve a living person.

That's simply a sick, cannibalistic way of torture.

However, I have a great alternative.

The poison I gathered.

The reserves aren't quite enough, so I'll simply mix two different kinds.

A mix of collarcord and razorrash.

Usually one should use the potent parts of the plants.

Yet as I don't have too many at hand I'll have to make do with what I got.

I simply have to dissolve everything until it’s just about gone and then mash it to a pulp.

This gets mixed and mashed with my slime till the only way to tell the difference with the rest of my body is the slightly different color due to the plant parts, and for me that it won't move as well.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Now, all I have to do is gather this mix in the upper part of my body.

And here I go!

"Crack"

I break through the floor, yet not fully, and see many complicated-looking machines, crates, and workplaces, but also different kinds of people.

There are some who look like cheap laborers, weird ones in odd white coats, and naturally, guards.

If I see right, the woman who threw a tantrum just before is a white coat.

"What is that? Blue gas?" (laborer)

* Slime mist (poison variant)

If you thought that getting fine slime into your eyes and not being able to see anymore is bad, then how about adding an aggressive rash on top of that?

"Aaahhh! It hurts!"

"Stay back! That's not natural!" (woman in coat)

"How can this be?"

"It's spreading!"

"I don't know what this is, so until we know what effects contact has, avoid it and evacuate the building. Try to cover your nose and mouth with anything that might stop this stuff from getting inside you!" (woman in coat)

* Slime mist

Naturally, I'm aware that one application won't suffice.

So I simply repeat it.

* Slime mist

The poison doesn't have to be concentrated at this point.

The main point is that they realize there's a peculiar effect to it.

The one who screamed before isn't dead but poses as a warning for the others.

It's enough to make them fear contact with the fine sprinkles I push into the hall.

And so I can reach my goal to clear the same of any hostiles.

The only issue is that keeping this up requires material to work with.

Fortunately, I have a whole tunnel filled with what I need.

It's just not very energetic.

Rather, it's the complete opposite, so I'm going quite quickly into the negative regarding energy when I add it to my body, but it would be even more of a waste to spray out the more energetic mass when I can still use this.

After some minutes even the last of those people got the hint that one shouldn't stay in a room that fills with poisonous fog and so I reached my goal.

I cleared out the building.

Nobody said I'd have to fight someone to make that happen.

And I'm rather sure that what I just did should pose as enough of a distraction for Liqu to catch them off-guard when she starts her assault.

Now that everyone else is gone, I can look around a bit in here.

But before this, I take the other slime potion.

Unfortunately, this one is Liqu-filled.

But there's no helping it if I'm supposed to enter and guard a hostile environment.

Also, it's not the first time I've got Liqu's slime.

So I crawl out of my hole shortly after my body accepted the new matter as its own.

The blue fog isn't restricting my vision.

Speaking of my vision, I note several odd things here.

There are some weird metals and crystals scattered everywhere in this place.

What makes them weird is a particular sheen to them.

Well, sheen might be wrong, maybe a vibration?

Feeling?

What I want to say is that I somehow just know that this must be magic.

Some hint to tell me that it's full of energy.

Especially strong is the impression around some of the machines.

There's one in particular with a giant crystal linked to it over several wires which all have the same aura?

Is this a charging station?

So what if I...

Confident in the indestructibility of slimes, I touch the big crystal.

When nothing happens I start dissolving.

"Zss-"

Huh, odd.

It doesn't work.

Why can't I dissolve this thing?

It's like... core material?

Could it be that they used the same stuff my core consists of to store the energy?

I take one of the smaller crystals.

"Zs-"

As expected this doesn't work either.

So I simply throw it to the ground.

"Crack"

"Brzaaahh"

Woah!

It directly broke and released a powerful explosion of energy.

I think... lightning element?

It was over so quickly and I barely felt anything from the distance.

Certainly odd and quite dangerous if they can store magic like this.

Such a thing won't grow by itself.

But what is clear is that I can't work with the crystals.

Then I'll try dissolving the metal instead.

"Zsch"

It works!

I was already starting to get frustrated.

However, I notice that my body can't receive the energy very well.

Much escapes as heat, or some kind of energy wave.

The gist is, while I restore slight amounts of energy, this isn't going to work as an alternative source to get back to max.

And then I see something I find extremely disturbing.

Next to another machine with some of the smaller crystals lying in some basin is a crate filled with broken marbles.

Those fuckers use slime cores to create their collars!

"Who is there?!"

* Slime mist

I shove another wave of slime fog into the room before anyone can get their eyes on me and, if possible, to repel any returners.

They should still fear the poison.

Yet then a figure approaches.

Due to my vision, I see that it's the woman from before.

Now that I get a closer look I see that she's on the older side and has straight black hair coupled with a pale complexion.

Oh, and she's wearing a weird mask.

Is this against the slime fog in the air?

"I can see you! Surrender or I'll call the guards!" (woman in coat)

Well, time for immediate measures.

* Slime dash

I rush in the direction of that woman and draw all my blades which I shoot with four tendrils in her direction.

"I'd advise against calling out. The blades are poisoned." (Shari)

With an irritant and a diarrhetic, though I'm not sure if this would convince her more or less.

"Holy shit!" (woman in coat)

Does this count as calling out?

"I'm sure you have many questions, however, we can't take more time to discuss this." (Shari)

She's just staring at me with a bewildered expression.

"Aaaaahhh!"

Because it seems like Liqu just arrived.