novelraw Chapter 57 : Monsters Are Living Beings Too?
Chapter 57 : Monsters Are Living Beings Too?
Monsters Are Living Beings Too?
A thick liquid flowed out from beyond the door, accompanied by murmuring voices.
"What, what on earth is that?"
"It must be a minion of the evil god!"
"Step back, Girinil-nim!"
It was understandable that they would react that way. The liquid pouring out through the crack of the opening door was such a massive amount that it could have easily swept us away.
I was extremely surprised at first, too. But then, I noticed a faint core visible through the liquid. The moment I saw that, I realized the truth.
This wasn't water, but a slime.
Squelch.
As the door fully opened, the pouring slime crashed onto the ground.
An enormous slime. As it stretched its body as if to yawn, tension spread through the room.
Serena, in particular, seemed horrified by the 'slime.'
Is this her first time seeing this kind of monster?
"It... it doesn't have any bones."
That's not really a problem you should be worried about though.
I observed the sluggishly moving slime. Judging by its size and golden hue, it was clear that this was no ordinary slime.
〈Dungeon Master〉
Z-Avava
As expected.
It was the master of the dungeon.
Squish.
A huge spot at the center of Z-Avava. The 'core' moved around restlessly, stopping and then starting again.
It felt as if it was examining each of us in turn.
"We have to strike before it moves!"
Roland, daunted by the gruesome sight, was the first to speak. Clutching his mace with both hands, he looked ready to rush out and bash Z-Avava at any moment.
Yet something felt odd. Z-Avava, as the 'Dungeon Master,' did nothing but roll its 'core' like eyes. It showed no other reaction.
"Wait!"
So, I held everyone back.
I didn't feel any hostility from the 'Dungeon Master.' It could have simply been a trait of slimes, but that's genuinely how it felt.
"If we stand still, we'll be attacked!"
"Wait."
Ignoring Roland's loud complaints, I approached 'Z-Avava.'
Then, the massive creature shifted toward me.
Squish.
Z-Avava didn't attack me. Instead, as if to show friendliness, it began to rub its 'core' against my hand.
If I reached out and crushed the 'core' now, the slime would surely die. But I could feel that it had no intention of harming us.
"What on earth is that slime?"
"I-I'm not sure, either."
Leaving Girinil's flustered response behind, z-Avava floated up and started heading back into the door it had come from.
Afterward, it gestured at us, wriggling its core as if to beckon us to follow. Was it inviting us in?
Z-Avava wriggled even more intensely.
It appeared that it indeed wanted us to enter.
In the blink of an eye, we became guests at 'Z-Avava's Love House.'
Squish!
Z-Avava puffed up its body and pointed toward the wall.
There, something sticky-looking covered the surface as if it had been smeared with goo. Upon closer look, glowing pebbles and a few mushrooms picked up from around the area had been embedded in the slime.
To anyone else, it might have looked like a pile of trash, but Z-Avava seemed to treasure it as if it were a collection of precious things.
Squish!
This time, it pointed to a sticky pool of liquid that had collected in the corner of the room. This must be its bedroom or maybe its bathroom.
"Wh-what should we do?"
Watching Z-Avava give a tour of its home, Serena looked troubled.
"If it's the dungeon master, don't we have to kill that slime to finish this dungeon quest?"
Now that she mentioned it, she had a point.
'Z-Avava' was kindly showing us its home, but in reality, we were here to kill it.
Only by clearing the dungeon could we officially be promoted to a 'Silver-ranked Adventurer Party,' and that would also help us progress in our search for the 'Necromancer'.
"But it just isn't hostile at all..."
I agreed with Serena's feelings.
Squish.
Even as Serena and I talked about the Dungeon Master, 'Z-Avava' continued to show us around its home.
This time, 'Z-Avava' pointed deeper inside. There stood a statue, wriggling with multiple bubbles and eyes.
The god of Absorption and Transformation, the statue of 'Ji-Avba.'
Seeing it, I was convinced.
This was a Pantheon.
* * *
The God of Slimes.
Z-Avava excitedly pulsed its core as it pointed at the statue of 'Ji-Avba.'
It really did seem like it was showing us the thing it loved most, so I slowly approached the statue.
"So this is the evil god's Pantheon."
Having quietly examined the area, Girinil murmured as he looked at the statue of Ji-Avba.
As he said, Ji-Avba is called an evil god. But if asked if it's truly evil, I'm not so sure.
In 《Dungeon God》, only beings with 'intelligence' can worship gods, but most 'slimes' lack intelligence.
Sometimes their instinctual behavior can harm humans, but it's just instinct—it's not the intention of the god 'Ji-Avba.'
"Hm?"
Thinking this, I examined 'Ji-Avba's statue. The wriggling, fading bubbles and eyeballs. The cycle was very slow.
It felt completely different from what I'd seen at the Pantheons of 'Thrag' and 'Mortis'. There was this odd sense of weakness.
Ah.
I think I understand why.
"Are you the last believer?"
I muttered while watching the undulating Z-Avava. Not understanding my words, z-Avava continued expanding and shrinking its body.
If this creature dies, the 'God of Slimes' would lose all its followers and disappear from the world.
"If so, then there's no need to purify the Pantheon—just killing this one would do."
Now that I remembered, Girinil came here to purify the evil god's Pantheon.
But is that really necessary? Even if it's an evil god, it only has one follower.
Besides, that follower doesn't even seem bad.
Squish.
While I hesitated, z-Avava's slime touched my 'red wolf hide armor.'
The armor, full of holes from Tanis' attack, was quickly filled as Z-Avava's slime seeped into the gaps.
Hey, what are you doing? Stop making more holes! I planned to get that fixed!
Z-Avava's Red Hide
Grade: special-grade
【Sturdiness】 1
【Lightness】 2
【Shock Absorption】 1
【Slime Elasticity】 2
Wait a second.
I examined the 'hide armor' that had gained a new trait.
Contrary to my expectation that the holes would just get bigger and damage the armor, its durability returned to normal.
No, it actually improved. The armor class, which was 'rare,' was now 'special-grade'!
Could it be that this is the power of the Z-Avava's slime? That thought immediately brought to mind the scent of money.
"Is there a way to leave the dungeon with the dungeon master?"
It clearly wanted to get close to me, seeing as it clung to me.
Z-Avava.
There's a way for us to become friends.
"Wh-what are you saying?"
"Even slimes can become friends."
I said it, even though I wasn't quite sure what I meant myself.
But think about it.
A slime that can repair clothes and grant special abilities.
If it gets out into the world, it'll be a fortune-maker in no time!
"You guys should say something too. Aren't we comrades?"
A flustered Girinil looked at Barkal and Serena.
Barkal shrugged and said,
"He is the wisest barbarian in our tribe! If he has an idea, I just follow it!"
Since Barkal made it clear he wouldn't oppose me, Girinil turned to Serena. She then spoke up too.
"If, if we go with what Brother Dmihtan says, we never seem to lose out."
Oh, finally. You guys acknowledge the hardships I went through until now.
Girinil frowned, still looking like he couldn't understand, and his guards seemed to feel the same way.
"Do you really think that makes sense?"
When Roland spoke up, Girinil nodded.
'Doesn't make sense'? Then does it make sense that there's a world with dungeons where you make a living off of mana stones?
"Impossible, that's nothing."
I threw out a famous quote, but the reaction was still cold.
As our mood grew tense, z-Avava carefully rolled its core around, as if gauging the situation.
"One of the adventurers' duties is to keep monsters from escaping outside."
"To be precise, the job is to close off the dungeon."
Also—
If there's something you can use, even if it's a monster, use it.
That's what adventurers do.
"Adventurers use monster byproducts to enhance their gear, and the mana stones from their bodies hugely help daily life. But using them alive, that's just nonsense."
Girinil shook his head and then pointed at Barkal's neck, where an animal-tooth necklace hung.
"Even that necklace was made by killing a monster, wasn't it?"
"That's right! This necklace was made by killing a monster!"
Barkal puffed his chest with pride and laughed, and Girinil smiled as well.
"Heh. By the size of those teeth, it must have been a monstrous wolf. Catching that couldn't have been easy."
"This necklace is only given to those who return home in glory and become a great barbarian of the tribe!"
So when I, or Barkal, return to the 'Red Wolf Tribe', we'll receive such a necklace too.
But Barkal already had one. Thinking about its meaning, I realized why he was stroking it as if lost in nostalgia.
"The necklace is made from the teeth of the first monster a barbarian catches upon return!"
"That's quite a valuable thing. For a tribe that makes such necklaces to release a dungeon master..."
"Old man."
Barkal glared fiercely at Girinil.
"I'm not finished yet."
All of a sudden, an intense murderous aura swept over the area. Serena, standing beside us, looked at Barkal in bewilderment.
I was fine. I knew something like this would happen.
To be honest, the idea of releasing a 'dungeon master' is absurd. I knew that.
I just wanted to talk about it.
"The Red Wolf's fangs are big. To survive the Red Wastes, they don't form packs, but instead grow fangs like lions or tigers."
"Girinil."
As Barkal finished, I interjected. Barkal continued to glare silently at Girinil.
"You guessed well that these are a wolf's fangs."