After tracing and counting the slime trails for a moment, Vallis stood up.
"There are probably more than twenty slimes in this pack. No wonder the water supply was contaminated."
Slimes constantly secreted toxic fluids and favored damp places, especially rivers.
There had been numerous cases of people going for a swim in a river only to be swarmed and killed by slimes.
One or two slimes were manageable, but once their numbers climbed, quantity bred a qualitative shift, causing severe damage to the local ecosystem's water resources.
Drinking contaminated water resulted in diarrhea and dehydration at best, and life-threatening danger at worst.
More than twenty slimes was manageable, but they had to mind their formation.
They needed to keep the creatures' attacks contained strictly to their front; getting surrounded from all sides would be troublesome.
Positioning was therefore crucial.
"I'll take the lead. Vallis, you take the center and handle lighting with a torch. Zelier, bring up the rear."
Marcus began laying out their tactics. "When I advance, you advance. When I fall back, you fall back. Don't push ahead of my position."
"Understood."
Vallis nodded. He drew a pitch-pine torch over half a meter long from his pack, preparing to have Zelier ignite it.
"No need for a torch. I can handle the light," Zelier said.
Gathering his focus, after a brief casting time, a bright sphere of light materialized at the tip of his ash staff.
Zelier gave the ash staff a light flick upward, sending the sphere of light hovering above the trio's heads.
Its illumination spanned a wide radius, far outshining a torch, and it could automatically follow Zelier.
"You learned a new spell?" Marcus looked up.
"Naturally, I have to expand my repertoire," Zelier replied with a smile.
Vallis was also somewhat surprised.
Then again, it made sense; everyone had received four gold coins from the last quest, so buying a magic scroll or two was only normal.
Besides, not having to hold a torch freed up one hand, making it easier to enter combat readiness at any moment and enhancing safety.
The party began making their way into the abandoned cave.
At the entrance, the uneven ground formed small hollows where thin trickles of water seeped from rock crevices and pooled together.
The water in the puddles was visibly viscous and carried the sour, rotting stench characteristic of slimes—clearly contaminated.
Thick clusters of vines and unnamed ferns hung from the ceiling, partially veiling the darkness ahead. The sphere of light drifted forward with the party, illuminating their path.
Marcus held his shield ready in one hand and gripped his sword in the other, maintaining a steady marching pace. Vallis had also unslung his bow from his back, arrows at the ready.
The deeper they pushed into the cavern, the clearer the sound of the subterranean river became, waves crashing against stone in an echoing, rumbling roar.
"Wait. Do you hear that?" Vallis spoke up suddenly.
Marcus halted in his tracks. He and Zelier pricked up their ears, listening intently.
*Plop...*
*Plop, plop...*
*Plop...*
It sounded like jelly dropping onto the floor. Faint, but unmistakable.
"That's the sound of slimes moving. They're right ahead."
Marcus issued a curt order. "Prepare for battle. Stick to the plan."
Rounding a massive stalagmite, the view opened up before them.
It was a vast karst cavern as broad as a plaza, where the subterranean river gathered into a pool.
Around the pool squirmed a dense swarm of grayish-green, translucent gelatin—slimes!
*Adventurers' Association General Monster Compendium*
[Sequence 2]: Slime
Individual Threat Rating: [Simple]
Physical Characteristics:
A translucent, gelatinous creature with a faint mana crystal at its core, which serves as the source of its life and instincts.
Slime coloration varies depending on habitat, ranging from the grayish-green commonly found in caves to the dark brownish-black seen in swamplands.
Habits and Ecology:
Prefers dark, damp environments. Among the lowest tier of monsters, it possesses virtually no intelligence and acts purely on instinct.
Special Abilities:
Due to its gelatinous physical structure, it possesses a certain degree of physical resistance. Its secreted mucus causes corrosive damage to human flesh, but is ineffective against iron.
Core Weaknesses:
Striking the magic core in the center of a slime's body will kill it instantly.
Additionally, fire is an effective option; under sustained burning, a slime's body will rapidly melt.
Association Notes:
These gelatinous low-tier monsters do not pose much threat to humans.
Slow-moving, their sole form of attack is jumping onto a target's face to suffocate them while corroding the skin with mucus. Merely dodging them is sufficient.
Furthermore, when resting in swamps or damp areas, be sure to thoroughly check your surroundings; slimes are very likely to crawl onto your face while you sleep.
Marcus glanced back at the other two and gave a slow nod.
These creatures were the targets of their quest.
No words were needed—the battle began!
Vallis's arrow was, as always, the first to leave the bowstring. He singled out a slime closest to the party.
*Squelch!*
The arrowhead punched into the gelatinous body and struck its core with pinpoint accuracy. The slime burst apart instantly, splattering viscous semi-solid gel everywhere.
That single shot sent the slime colony into an uproar. Realizing an enemy was present, more than twenty slimes began bouncing and leaping, surging swiftly toward the party.
"Come on!"
Marcus took the lead, stepping forward decisively to hold the front line.
One slime coiled and sprang, aiming straight for Marcus's face.
Marcus bashed it back with his shield and followed up with a slash!
When the blade struck the slime's body, a noticeable amount of its force was deflected.
Yet Marcus possessed immense strength; the edge bit deep regardless, striking the core and slaying it.
Marcus swung backhanded at another slime.
This time, however, his slash was slightly off, missing the core.
After biting dozens of centimeters into the slime's body, the blade could penetrate no further, merely knocking it back some distance. The slime remained fully capable of movement.
Meanwhile, Vallis loosed arrow after arrow.
With the slimes hopping and bounding about, however, his accuracy dropped noticeably.
Most arrows only lodged in the slimes' bodies without hitting the cores to kill them.
Zelier observed the situation.
In circumstances like these, Fireball didn't seem particularly useful.
After all, Fireball only delivered an instantaneous burst, and slimes carried nothing flammable to sustain a burn.
Water Ball went without saying—it would be purely counterproductive.
As for Fire Dragon... that felt rather wasteful.
The spell consumed an enormous amount of mana, and the slimes were scattered far apart, making it impossible to catch them all in a single sweep.
After a moment's thought, Zelier decided on a countermeasure. Raising his ash staff, he began tracing the spell formula.
Chapter 21