Chapter 23: 23. Slime

23. Slime

When I think about it, the best option should be confronting the Dire Wolf. Putting a stop to a threat that could interrupt me at any time is a huge boon. The last thing I want is to get jumped by a bitch in the middle of a fight, and especially not while fucking.

I clench my fist with resolve. This will be a big weight off my shoulders.

“Heading out,” I announce to the room as I reach for the doorknob.

“Where to today?” Gabby asks, getting up from her worktable.

“…Foraging to the east,” I try not to worry her by giving a half-truth.

She looks me up and down, her yellow gaze unable to help lingering on my tits and hips. I unconsciously puff up my chest with pride. “You’re going to fight that Dire Wolf you mentioned yesterday, aren’t you?”

How can she read me so well?

“I’ve been studying your body language since we met,” Gabby answers my unspoken question like a telepath. “I’m not just book smart, you know.” The little green shortstack nods to herself. “Very well, let’s go.”

“You’re coming with me?”

“Of course.”

I scratch the back of my head. “Well, I killed some Mole-men yesterday, so I kind of wanted to test myself against the Dire Wolf. See how strong I’ve gotten?”

Gabby adjusts her spectacles and meets my eyes. “That’s exactly why I should join you.”

“Huh?”

“Alex, what if you don’t get the one-on-one opportunity you’re seeking? What if there are multiple wolves or even other monsters in the way? I have Wolf’s Bane and Pepper Spray; you’re more likely to get the fight you want with me to play interference against secondary threats.”

Damn, such a logical reason… I guess I’ll have to resign myself to having a smart, beautiful, curvy, competent companion with excellent hearing and a bandolier of useful herbs. Oh, well!

Also, that lets me cross Goblin and Bunny ears off the list again today.

I have twenty marks to start, minus five Breeder marks I can’t change. Here’s my ‘stat screen’ after taking the bare essentials.

*Selected Marks - 9*

Wolf Nose (After I cross the Wolf's Bane perimeter)

Wolf Rush

Harpy Sight

Harpy Lightweight

Goblin Apprentice Fast Learner

Cancer Summon Armor

Fishman Summon Spear

Bunny Stamina

Mole-man Earth Magic

*Breeder Marks - 5*

Paternal Malleability I

Paternal Seminal Control – Volume

Paternal Seminal Potency – Sustenance

Maternal Ovarian Control

Maternal Mammary Control and Potency – Pacification

*Available Marks - 6*

Canine              – One!

Mer                    – One!

Goblinoid        – One!

Slime                 – Two!

Fuzzy                – One!

Canine: I’m holding off on Wolf Cock for now. If I make it to tonight without using the mark, I can test other options to see if they unlock anything new.

Mer: Water Magic and Slippery Foam are both contenders. I may need that mark to switch out my genitals, though.

Goblinoid: I want to test Quick Study tonight, but I’ll spend the mark on Goblin Gut or Ears if the need arises.

Slime: Constitution, Malleability, and Mutability are all mystery boxes I have no idea what they’ll give me. I’ll use these marks for emergency purchases when I’m desperate for an edge. Jellyfish Slime Tentacles could be great, but I’m afraid there may be unforeseen complications there.

Fuzzy: The Shovel is tempting, but I’ll keep that mark unassigned. I really want to test some body modifications tonight.

Gabby dons her robes, I don my crab armor, and the two of us set out. Once past her perimeter of Wolf’s Bane plants, I select my Wolf Nose mark. I don’t find anything interesting right away.

Our projected course has us zigzagging across Fuzzy Field to help me pick up a recent trail. At the same time, I’m scanning the horizon for threats, Gabby will tell us to duck beneath the grass when she hears something, and I’m beginning to get a sixth sense with my Earth Magic. Apparently, Mole-men can faintly detect tremors through the ground. That lets me steer clear of their ambushes as they burrow through the soil.

It’s not a perfect system, but I’m happy another mark is helping me become more aware of my surroundings.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

We swing by the caves beneath Harpy Mountain on one loop. Gabby shivers and tells me she can hear the click-clattering of chitin on stone inside when I ask. There must be a lot of bug monsters in there.

We find plenty of Fuzzy trails, including mouse and bunny monster tracks, on our way. Nothing so interesting as Cottontail’s scent, so I pass over them without comment.

I finally stumble across the trail I want after an hour of searching. I smell a wolf bitch.

“This way.” I increase the pace after finding the right path. It’s not that fresh, so I don’t expect to find her instantly. It’s not a straight line, either.

We trace the bitch’s scent to the brook by Charlatan Forest. If we follow this west, we’ll find Kani’s grotto… It’s a shame we’re on a mission.

My quarry didn’t cross the water, as I would have, so I don’t lose the trail. I do, however, see a dozen small figures at the stream’s edge.

They’re childlike, with translucent skin. Not unlike Olindia, but waterier, with no slime cores. As one, they all stop chatting or playing when they sense us and dive into the brook.

“Naiads,” Gabby says. “They evolve into Froglins, Eelings, and… more dangerous things.”

“Kind of like how Fuzzies can evolve into cute bunnies, tiny mice, or scary Mole-men?”

The Goblin girl grunts her agreement. We move on after getting a drink from shallow water. No telling what lurks beneath the surface where the stream deepens.

We zig-zag northeast following the trail; I guess the bitch had the same idea I did to draw lines across Fuzzy Field in her search for me. This brings us much closer to Misty Grove than I’d otherwise be comfortable with. I remember Olindia’s story…

Strangely humid air lingers perpetually in the area despite the rising sun’s heat. Only the vague shadows of trunks and canopies are visible through the fog that never dies.

Gabby’s ear twitches, and she opens her mouth to say something.

Then, a blue blur darts from the mists, and I feel a dull thud on my back. My chitinous armor hisses loudly in my ears. I reach for the thing sticking to me, but my arms can’t reach that far with my crustaceous protection restricting their flexibility.

My Goblin wife reaches into a pouch before throwing a handful of white powder at me and my attacker.

I hear a high-pitched animal scream as the weight drops from my back. Spinning about, I see a five-gallon blue Slime quivering on the ground. My armor continues hissing disconcertingly, and I’m forced to dismiss the summoned item before acid penetrates to my skin.

“Fuck, I didn’t know Slimes were this dangerous…”

“It’s not dead!” Gabby shouts as the gelatinous droplet springs at me again.

Wolf Rush!

I dodge aside, letting the jumping Slime pass. Then I summon my spear and jab into the goo when it lands.

“Gotcha!”

“Still not dead…”

I must’ve missed its core because the Slime rips itself from my point and makes another leap at me. This time, though, it’s spurting fluid from the hole in its membrane, and the flying tackle is a lackluster affair. I easily sidestep the jiggly critter, swinging my spear in a horizontal slash that ‘disembowels’ the land-dwelling amoeba.

After resummoning a fresh suit of crab armor, I survey the scene. A tiny dark gemlike core sits in an evaporating puddle at my feet. My wooden-shafted spear’s blade is merely sharpened rock, now melting into acidic sludge.

“I thought first-tier monsters weren’t supposed to be this tough?”

“Slimes are probably one of the deadliest first-tier monsters,” Gabby lectures. “Their evolutions leave something to be desired, but they make up for that by amalgamating multiple forms’ abilities.”

Nothing like a near-death experience to ingrain a lesson on underestimating monsters I assume are weaker than me into my psyche. Even low-tier monsters can be dangerous. I guess this is what happened to Olindia, right? She just got lucky, being reborn after the Slime ate her. I can’t guarantee I’d have the same fate.

I lick the corner of my mouth, where some of the gritty white powder landed.

“Rock salt?”

“Slimes, especially the blue first-tier ones, have delicate membranes that require humid environments to sustain their fluid levels. A sprinkle of salt makes them shrivel up like slugs.”

“Thanks, honey. I probably owe you my life.”

Gabby blushes dark green at the compliment and fastidiously adjusts her spectacles before answering, “O-of course, Alex. It’s my responsibility to protect my human, after all.”

Playing the scene over again in my mind, Gabby had a split-second more notice than me because of her ears. Damn, I may need those after all.

I feel the burning on my belly that indicates my tummy tattoos are changing, and eagerly remove my armor to inspect them. However, instead of a new mark, I see movement.

Olindia’s core generates a tentacle of slime visible on my uterine display window, and it heads south. I feel the slippery sensation of movement in my vagina a moment later. It’s a fucking weird feeling having an autonomous arm reaching out from inside me, especially with it being warm from my inner body temp against my thighs.

The translucent pink tentacle gropes in the grass until it finds or scents the Slime’s remains. Another second of searching locates the gemlike core, then Olindia’s tentacle retreats inside me with a quiet shlorp.

I shiver like I just took a piss.

*Pets*

*Dormant Pink Slime Core*

*Subjugated Slime Core – One!*

“What the fuck does this mean?” I say as the Pink Slime tentacle dissolves to nothing inside me, and I redon my armor.

Gabby, who can read along with me since her glasses translate the strange marks, says, “I told you Slimes have the ability to amalgamate. A single first-tier core won’t have much effect, but it’s possible a certain number will merge into a Giant Slime or assist Olindia’s next evolution.”

Hmm, I may need to spend some time around here to grind out a half-dozen slime cores. This may not have been enough to awaken Olindia, but maybe a few more…? Something to think about for tomorrow.

We don’t run into any other Slimes following the bitch’s trail, but we barely skirted the edge of the Misty Grove. Then we start heading southeast towards the edge of Charlatan Forest, Ogre Fen, and Kennel Hills.

The two of us are walking through the tall grass of Fuzzy Field when Gabby raises a hand to signal a stop. I get in front of my Goblin wife, summon a new spear, and brace to receive a charge.

I hear a scream.