Chapter 7

007 . First Battle

Empowerment Arc

Chapter 07 – First Battle

A path leading out of from the underground lake .
It was a single tunnel .
With a *boyo boyo*, I ascend the path .
Moving around is actually more pleasant than you’d expect .
Even places that light fails to reach are perfectly visible to [Magic Perception] .
I would more around slowly–checking every step–when I was blind; and, slimes aren’t that fast to begin with .
Now, I normally move at a walking pace, but can also run . Nor do I get tired .
But, since I don’t have any reason to hurry, I move at a moderate pace .
I swear this is not the result of a trauma from the first time I ran and fell into the lake!

A short while after, a giant gate had appeared before my eyes .
A human made structure inside the cave .
Nothing that strange about it . But, that’s because this development is common in RPGs .
It’s normal to have a door in front of the boss’s room .
So… how should I get it open?
Should I cut it with the [Water Blade]?
When I though that,

Gigigiiiiiii!!!

With a creaking noise, the door is opening .
A little flustered, I hid by the edge of the path, and observed the situation .

「It finally opened, huh . Lock fell apart and the doors rusted…」

「Hey, that’s only to be expected . Don’t they say that no one entered here in 300 years?」

「Not on record, at least . But more importantly, are we really going to be fine? We won’t be attacked suddenly, right?」

「Gahahaha! Don’t worry .  He might have been unrivaled 300 years ago, but times have changed . I mean, ain’t he just a big lizard! I’ve subjugated Basilisks by myself . Leave it to me!!!」

「About that, I’ve wondered for a while, but that’s a lie, isn’t it? Basilisks are ranked B+, right? Solo subjugation would be impossible for Cabal-san, wouldn’t it?」

「Fool! I am a B rank myself! They are just big lizards; no trouble at all!」

「Okay, okay, I got it, so would you please not let your guard down? Well, if it comes down to it, I’ll just escape using “Forced Withdrawal”…」

「Guys, I got the extent of your friendship, so could you please be quiet? You’ll blow my “Camouflage Skill”」

Somehow, a boisterous trio had entered .
I wonder why…
Actually… why do I understand their words?

＜＜Solution . In cases where intentions are vocalized, [Magic Perception] converts them to appropriate words and transmits them to the brain . ＞＞

I see .
I can’t talk to them, but at least I can understand them .
Thank goodness . I had always been bad with English .
I think that if you live in Japan there should be no need to study foreign languages .
Those who plan to go abroad can struggle by themselves .
But that excuse won’t work here . I’ll probably have to learn eventually .

Well, that matter can rest for now .


What should I do?
This dilemma is worse than the previous one–how to open the door .
I don’t know what they came to do… but they seem like adventurers .
Did they come searching for treasures and stuff?
They are the first humans I meet in this world . sort of want to go and greet them .
But… if a mute monster slime (a . k . a I) were to go out there…
I’d be killed without questions .
Let’s wait for now .
Meeting humans will have to wait until I can talk .

For now, I observed this situation in hiding .
After the skinny man had done something, the appearance of the three has dimmer . But, I can still see them .
Did he call this… camouflage?
Probably a type of skill .
Is he just trying to peek? What an outrageous guy… Does he even know why they came here?
Probably should get to know him later .

When the three had finally left, I started moving again .
Nothing to worry about .
Not like I won’t meet people anymore .
I’ll move while checking every step . As people have always said, “haste makes waste” .
Leaving these matters for later, I quickly went through the gate in case the three had returned .

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A little while past the gates the path diverged and became rather complex .
I wonder which way leads to the surface?
Though even if I thought about it, there’s no way for me to know .
I chose a path and went down it .

*Chiro chirori!*

Our eyes met .
Just a bit above the ground… in front of my eyes, there was a giant serpent .
Like the past world’s snakes, you could consider it cute . It was harder, covered in scales, and pitch black in color .
Like a frog in front of snake? Nope, I am a slime, not a frog .
Let’s pretend I’m air . It would be best, though, if it doesn’t notice me .
Well, let’s just try to slither away .

*Kisha–!!!*

I was threatened .
No good .  I won’t let you go! Or so it would probably say if I could hear it .
A fight, huh…!
I have a secret skill that I gained from a week’s long practice!
But even so… you’ve got to be resolved to die if you want to fight this beast .
To summarize, I’m pretty darn scared!
Don’t panic . If I think hard enough, I can imagine something far scarier .
Yes, Veldora . Let’s compare it to that dragon .
Oh? Doesn’t seem that scary now .
Can’t I do this?
After calming myself, I began quietly observing the serpent .
The snake seems to have let its guard down, thinking I was so afraid I that I couldn’t move .
Probably planning on how it will cook me .
Yeah .


Well then, let’s not hold back either…

*Bishun!*

Without hesitation I fired a “water blade” at the serpent’s neck .

*Zuban!!! Hyuuuun, dosu . Gorogoro… zun . *

It was but a moment .
I couldn’t believe my eyes .
Without even a hint of resistance the “water blade” beheaded the serpent .
I could only gulp; up until a second ago, there was an ominous sneak right there .
This… is even more powerful than I had thought .
Had I been forced to use it on the adventures, it would end gory . Good thing my first enemy was a monster .
Oh and by the way, my stomach is currently occupied at 30%: Veldora 15%, Water 10%, Medicine and other crap 2%, metals and resources 3% .
“Water Bullet” uses less than a cup of water (and I can regulate the size–with the intention of increasing it, of course) .
Thus even if I fire thousands of these, I won’t have to worry about the amount left .
This just might be better than magic .
If monsters come out, let’s meet them with a “water blade” .

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Now, about this snake .
If I eat and analyze it, would I steal its powers?
Well, let’s try it .
The result…

Inherent skill [Heat Detection]… the ability to see nearby heat sources . Furthermore, camouflage skills are nullified .
Inherent skill [Noxious Mist Breath]… the ability to release a powerful toxic (corrosive) breath . Released at 120 degrees for a distance of 7 meters .
(TL Note: 22 feet)

Along with these two skills, I could also mimic the snake .
The poison’s main effect seems to be corrosive damage (damage to both equipment and flesh) . Would be pretty effective against normal adventurers, eh?
Though with this world’s magic, it just might be an easy win .
And so I spent some time analyzing the snake’s skills .
Best to increase my hand while I can .

Things I’ve confirmed:
1 . I’ve gained the ability to transform into the snake .
2 . I can use the acquired skills even without transforming . But, their strength decreases .

Those two things .
If I had to explain them,

1 . … I can stock up on the bodies of monsters I ate and analyzed .
My body had repaired the section I previously damaged, but it kind of has the feel of stitches… made with cells .

2 . … Inherent skills are skills specific to that monster race . Similar to my [Dissolve, Absorb, and Regenerate] .
Regarding the skill, if I am not transformed into the appropriate monster, I cannot use it with 100% effectiveness .
However, there also skills like [Heat Detection], which I can make completely my own .

To summarize, it’s like this .
I totally dig [Predator] .
It’s another skill which is super useful .

3 days have passed since I fought the snake .
I’m still inside the cavern .


I don’t feel cold, but it’s probably below freezing in here .
Sunlight doesn’t reach here at all .

And so, I kept worrying over one fear .
I know, I know . . there’s no way it’s true .
But no matter what, I just couldn’t get it out of my head .
Yeah… what if…

I am lost?

No, no, there’s no way .
I mean… right? Who’s heard of someone getting lost in the beginner’s cave?
Isn’t this supposed to be the easiest part?
Besides, even those three adventurers got this far without being lost .
I should be fine . It’s probably just a long path .

But, it’s probably a good thing I was reborn as a slime .
Had I come here as a normal “World Traveler”, I’d definitely collapse from hunger by now .
Who would have thought that I’d be thankful for being a slime .
However, not knowing the way is troubling .
Isn’t there like a map of this place or something?

＜＜Solution . Should I display the current location? [YES]/[NO]?＞＞

Replay the current narration . . ?
Just couldn’t help making a pun .
But seriously, what the hell! Let me know sooner if I have such a useful ability!!!
Absolutely [YES]!
Curse you auto-mapping!
I also had a time when I thought that .
Back in old games, you’d sit down with a pencil and a piece of paper, and record every step to get to the goal .
It was fun to plan every step .
However, many people began relying on game guides, and eventually mapping became a standard game feature .
No more pleasure of the hunt…
Moreover, had you gotten used to that feature once, you can never go back again .
Well, it’s also true that without this feature, you’d be stuck in most recent games .

Anyways, let’s put this useful skill to use .
I look at the map displayed in my head .
This has got to be some mistake… I’ve been walking in circles .
For me, who has compiled game guides before, to have been lost?! Impossible!

…………

…… .

…

Definitely possible .
According to the map, I’ve entered previously unexplored regions .
So, I’ve spent three days looking at the world no one has seen before .
Fufufu .
To have mislead me… the dungeon is a worthy opponent!
Let’s pointlessly praise the dungeon .
And don’t even begin to think that I have no sense of direction!

Is the entrance close by?
There is various moss and weed growing around here .
The light reaches from somewhere, bathing the grass in light and color .
So it must be day .

I’ve fought many battles to come this far .
A centipede monster (Evil centipede: rank B+)
Big, black spider (Black spider: rank B)
Vampire bat (Giant Bat: Rank C+)
Carapace Lizard (Ammosaurus: rank B-)

Those are the four species I encountered .
There was that one serpent, but I haven’t seen another .
They were all powerful foes .
Defeated with one “Water Blade”…
Well, the bat evaded it a few times, and the shooting angle was bad for the centipede .
Can’t relax just yet .
For example, the centipede erased its presence and attacked from behind .
Luckily, that kind of attack wouldn’t work on someone with [Magic Perception] and [Heat Detection] .
So I shot out a few water blades from my back .
The big spider was pretty dangerous .
In the first place, I’m no good with spiders .
It’s a psychological thing . Just a sight of one makes me want to cower .
But, maybe due to my heart become stronger through reincarnation, I somehow managed to fight without running away .
My bad, but I’m going full force! With that thought, I cut it up with five water blades .
It wasn’t an opponent I wanted to look at, after all .

And of course, I ate them all .
It’s survival of the fittest in this world . If you lose, you get eaten .
And well, I did hesitate to eat the centipede and the spider .
But I did do my best .
But, if a cockroach monster exists, I’ll absolutely run away without eating it .
There’s these wonderful words in this world: he who fights and runs away will live to see another day .

Here’s the skills I got as a result,

Centipede monster [Paralysis Breath]
Big spider [Sticky Thread, Steel Thread]
Vampire Bat [Vampirism, Ultrasound Waves]
Carapace Lizard [Body Armor]

And so, having gotten my hands on new powers, I successfully left the cave .
For the first time since being reborn, I was bathed in the light of the sun .

Status

Name: Rimuru Tempest
Species: Slime
Divine Protection: the Storm Crest
Titles: None
Magic: None
Skills: Unique Skill [Great Sage], Unique Skill [Predator], Slime-Specific Skills [Dissolve, Absorb, Regenerate], Extra Skill [Water Manipulation], Extra Skill [Magic Perception], Acquired Skill–Serpent [Heat Detection, Noxious Breath], etc .
Resistances: Thermal Fluctuation Resistance, Physical Attack Resistance, Pain Resistance, Electricity Resistance, Paralysis Resistance .

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