Chapter 56: Slime

As we cautiously made our way along the forest path, we soon spotted something in the grass at the forest’s edge.

“Huh? What’s that?”

Sua pointed at the bushes with her finger.

Turning my head, I followed her gaze.

Nestled in the grass was something round and glistening.

As I stepped closer, I realized—it was a slime with a transparent, jelly-like body.

“That’s… a monster?”

I muttered, staring at the slime.

It hardly looked dangerous. In fact, it seemed rather peaceful.

It was about half my height, curled up as if resting. Its stillness made it look as though it was sleeping.

“Whoa… It’s a slime!”

Liel’s eyes sparkled with fascination.

I watched the slime with a strange mix of emotions.

There was a small sense of wonder—realizing that slimes, too, could sleep.

A hint of unease—this was my first time seeing a monster up close rather than from a distance.

And a slight concern—was this slime still here because Alex hadn’t started his usual monster cleanup yet?

Lost in thought, I silently observed the creature.

Its round, translucent body reflected the light filtering through the leaves, giving it an oddly cute appearance.

Just then, Sua suddenly picked up a rock and smirked.

“Hmm… Are we just gonna sit here and stare? I’ll take care of it in one shot!”

“Wait, Sua! Maybe we should just leave it alon—”

Before I could stop her, Sua had already thrown the rock with all her strength.

“Take this! Strike of Justice!”

The rock struck the slime directly in the center.

And at that moment—

“Kkuuueeeeng!”

The slime let out a bizarre sound before—

POP!

It exploded.

“Wha—?!”

I stumbled back in shock.

Clear liquid splattered in all directions, scattering over the grass.

Liel, standing nearby, gaped in disbelief.

“I-It exploded…?”

Harp let out a deep sigh and shot a glare at Sua.

“Sua, was that really necessary? It was just sleeping. We could’ve just left it alone.”

But instead of her usual confidence, Sua mumbled in a strangely dejected tone.

“I… I just wanted to wake it up. Geez, rural slimes have such low stats.”

I pressed my fingers against my forehead in frustration.

“Sua, please don’t do that again. You might end up attracting other monsters.”

Sua waved her hand dismissively, grinning.

“Oh, don’t worry, Teacher! Even if more monsters show up, I’ll take care of them all!”

But despite her reassurances, I couldn’t shake off my unease.

Our first encounter with a monster had ended in the most anticlimactic way possible…

But something told me this wasn’t truly over.

After the slime burst, an awkward silence settled over us.

The transparent slime fluid shimmered on the grass, reflecting the sunlight.

“Uh… Is this slime… dead?”

Liel asked cautiously.

“I think so…?”

I glanced around uncertainly.

Meanwhile, Sua crossed her arms and grumbled.

“Ugh, I thought we’d run into powerful monsters. This is so underwhelming.”

Just then.

A rustling sound came from the grass.

“Huh? There’s something else over there!”

Liel pointed toward another patch of grass.

Tensing, I slowly turned my head.

And there.

Another slime.

“…Another slime.”

This one was even smaller than the last.

It was barely the size of my palm, sluggishly crawling along the ground.

“What the—? This one’s even tinier.”

Sua sighed in disappointment.

“I geared up and hyped myself up for this? This is ridiculous!”

“Sua, let’s just leave them alone.”

But before I could finish speaking.

Another rustling sound came from the grass.

And this time, it wasn’t just one.

“Huh? Look over there!”

Liel shouted, pointing in another direction.

More tiny slimes were crawling out of the bushes.

“…Uh, they’re multiplying.”

I muttered.

Harp frowned slightly.

“They’re all baby slimes. They don’t seem dangerous…”

Indeed, the creatures emerging around us were minuscule.

Some were the size of my palm, others even smaller—one was no bigger than a piece of candy.

They wobbled around aimlessly, bumping into each other and clumsily climbing onto the grass.

“…They’re actually kind of cute.”

Liel giggled as she watched them.

“What the heck, they’re all so weak!”

Sua crossed her arms in frustration, stomping her foot.

I stood still, deep in thought.

‘These don’t seem like monsters at all… More like peaceful little creatures.
Does Alex really clear out even these tiny things…?’

“Teacher, what’s wrong? Don’t tell me you’re scared of baby slimes?”

Sua smirked at me.

“No, I just think they’re interesting.”

I continued observing the slimes.

They really didn’t seem dangerous—if anything, they just looked like small, harmless animals.

“Let’s just leave them be. There’s no reason to bother them.”

Harp nodded in agreement with me.

“That’s right. It’s better to leave them alone and just keep walking.”

“Hmph, fine! I’ll listen to you, Teacher! Not like those little things would even give any experience points.”

Grumbling, Sua stomped her foot before turning back toward the path.

Leaving the tiny, waddling slimes behind, we resumed our walk along the forest trail.

But as we continued, I started sensing something strange behind us.

At first, I ignored it.

I assumed it was just the wind rustling the leaves or small animals moving through the underbrush.

But as time passed, the presence behind us grew closer.

“Teacher, doesn’t it feel like something’s following us?”

Liel asked, her voice slightly tense.

I instinctively stopped and turned around.

And what I saw made me freeze in surprise.

“…Huh? What the—?”

A trail of tiny slimes was following us.

From palm-sized ones to candy-sized ones, the very same slimes we had seen earlier were now waddling after us.

“Why are they following us?”

Sua, equally surprised, turned back to stare at them.

Narrowing her eyes, she observed them carefully.

“What’s going on? Are they trying to attack us?”

She picked up a rock, wary of any sudden aggression.

But the slimes showed no hostility whatsoever.

They simply dragged their round, jiggly bodies forward at a slow, waddling pace.

“…This is so weird.”

Liel chuckled.

“But why are they following us?”

Intrigued, I paused to observe the slimes more closely.

And soon enough, I noticed something unusual.

“Wait… They’re only following me.”

Sure enough, the slimes weren’t paying attention to anyone else in our group.

They were focused entirely on me.

When I stopped walking, they stopped.

When I moved, they waddled after me.

…What is this, The Pied Piper?

“What? Just Teacher?”

Sua’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Maybe Teacher smells… delicious?”

“There’s no way… right?”

Flustered, I quickly checked my clothes.

Maybe I had some bread crumbs on me?

But no—there were no traces of food anywhere.

Harp crossed her arms, observing the slimes closely.

“…Slimes don’t normally follow people like this. This is strange.”

“Teacher, are you holding anything special?”

Liel asked curiously.

I shook my head and checked my pockets.

Nothing.

“I don’t think so. They’re just… following me.”

“Gasp! Maybe you’re the King of Slimes!”

Sua gasped dramatically.

“The Master of the Slime Throne—Slime Eve! Wow, that sounds like an awesome title!”

“I don’t need a title like that.”

I sighed and looked back at the slimes.

“Well… at least they don’t seem hostile. Maybe they’re just curious.”

“It really is fascinating.”

Liel giggled and waved at them.

A few slimes glanced at her briefly.

Then immediately turned back toward me.

“See? Only me.”

I said, exasperated.

“Well, since it’s come to this, why not keep them around?”

Grinning mischievously, Sua declared,

“Slime Army! March! Muahaha, I feel like a Demon Lord!”

“If you’re the Demon Lord, then I’m the Hero, you airhead.”

“Huh?! Then I’ll be the Saint!”

“…You are actually a Saint.”

“Oh—right!”

I couldn’t shake off a strange sense of unease.

Why were they only following me?

Did the slimes have a reason for this?

Even as I pondered, the tiny slimes continued trailing behind me, as if I were someone important to them.

‘What is going on…?’

I glanced at the slimes again.

Something about this situation felt off.

As if there was a hidden reason we weren’t aware of.

Could there be something deeper inside the forest?

I had no way of knowing yet…

But for some reason, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were about to find out.