The slimes oozed into view, their bodies pulsing with an eerie red glow that made his stomach twist. These weren't the cute, bouncy blobs from the games he'd played back home.
One slime lunged. Krad's fist shot forward, connecting with a satisfying squelch. The impact sent the creature flying backward into a tree trunk with a wet splat.
"Yes! Did you see that, Buddy?" Krad grinned at the empty air. "That was awesome!"
His celebration died in his throat. The slime's body shimmered, then pulled itself back together like nothing had happened. Its red core pulsed brighter, angrier.
"Oh, come on!" Krad's eyes widened. "That's so unfair! I hit you perfectly!"
The slime launched itself at him again. Krad barely managed to twist away, feeling the creature's acidic surface graze his arm. His skin burned where it touched.
DING!
[ Warning! Health Points: 80/100 ]
"Ow, ow, ow!" Krad hissed, clutching his arm. But instead of backing down, he glared at the slime. "Okay, now I'm mad! You can't just ignore my awesome punch like that!"
More slimes emerged from the undergrowth, surrounding him in a loose circle. Their cores pulsed in sync, like they were communicating.
"Oh great, you guys have a group chat?" Krad muttered, shifting his stance. "That's just perfect."
They attacked together.
"Whoa!" Krad ducked under one, spun away from another, but a third caught his shoulder. The acidic burn tore through his tunic, and pain exploded across his skin.
DING!
[ Warning! Health Points: 60/100 ]
"Okay, okay, that really hurt!" Krad gasped, stumbling back. The slimes reformed their circle, and he could swear they looked smug. "Stop looking so proud of yourselves!"
His interface flickered in his vision. With a thought, he pulled up his inventory. One emergency flare—not helpful right now. And one potion labeled Power Booster.
He grabbed the vial, reading the description that appeared:
Power Booster
[ Instantly increases physical strength by 200% for 15 minutes. One-time use. ]
The slimes tensed, preparing for another coordinated strike.
"You know what? I didn't want to use this yet, but you guys are being really annoying!" Krad yanked the cork out with his teeth and downed the potion in one gulp. "Let's see how you like me at 200%!"
Heat exploded through his body. It started in his chest and raced outward, filling every muscle with raw power. His fists trembled, not from fear this time, but from the sheer energy coursing through him.
"Whoa, this feels amazing!" He flexed his fingers, watching tiny sparks of energy dance across his knuckles. "Buddy, are you seeing this?"
A slime didn't wait for him to finish admiring his power-up. It lunged straight at his face.
Krad pivoted and drove his fist into its center. The impact was nothing like before. The slime's body rippled violently before exploding in a shower of light, its core shattering into glittering fragments.
[ Critical Hit! Devourer Slime Defeated: 1/10 ]
"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Krad pumped his fist in the air. "Who's the boss now?"
The remaining slimes hesitated, their movements suddenly erratic. But they didn't run. Two charged from opposite sides.
"Oh, trying to be smart?" Krad ducked under the first one and slammed his fist upward into the second. It exploded on impact. He spun and backhanded the first slime before it could recover, then stomped on its core as it hit the ground. "Not smart enough!"
[ Merciless Hit! Devourer Slimes Defeated: 3/10 ]
"Three down!" Krad's grin was fierce. "Come on, who's next?"
The remaining slimes circled him more cautiously now, like wolves reassessing their prey. Krad bounced on his feet, fists raised.
"What's wrong? Scared?" He waved them forward. "Come on, I don't bite! Well, I might punch you into particles, but same thing!"
One slime darted in faster than the others. Krad shifted his weight, narrowly avoiding its acidic tendril, and countered with a brutal uppercut. The slime rocketed skyward, its core shattering before gravity even pulled it back down.
[ Critical Hit! Devourer Slime Defeated: 4/10 ]
"Four!" Krad counted on his fingers. "Six more to go! This is actually getting fun!"
DING!
A notification blazed across his vision:
[ Dodge Skill Unlocked. Please name your skill to activate its effect. ]
"Huh?" Krad blinked at the glowing text just as another slime whipped toward him. He twisted sideways on instinct, but something felt different. For a split second, a ghostly version of himself flickered where he'd been standing.
"Did I just... leave a ghost behind?" His eyes lit up. "That's so cool!"
The system pulsed, waiting for input. Another slime launched itself at his head.
"Okay, okay! Uh..." Krad rolled away, his mind racing. "What should I call it? Something awesome, something that sounds really---"
The word hit him like lightning.
"Evade!" he shouted.
[ Dodge Skill Registered: Evade ]
[ Effect: When evading an attack, a ghostly afterimage lingers for 0.5 seconds, confusing enemies and increasing dodge speed by 10%. ]
Energy coiled around Krad's legs like spring-loaded wire. The next slime struck, but he moved faster than before. His body blurred, leaving a shimmering afterimage, and the creature's tendril passed through empty air.
The slime recoiled, confused by the ghost.
"Ha! You fell for it!" Krad appeared behind it and drove his fist through its core. "That's what you get for being slow!"
[ Devourer Slime Defeated: 5/10 ]
His confidence soared. With renewed energy, he charged the remaining slimes. His body flickered, afterimages scattering in his wake, and the creatures spun in confusion.
He reappeared behind a cluster of three, both fists glowing with residual power. One sweeping punch shattered two cores simultaneously. The third tried to escape, but Krad was already moving.
"Oh no you don't!" He closed the distance in two strides and delivered a devastating straight punch. The ground cracked beneath them from the impact.
[ Brutal Hit! Devourer Slimes Defeated: 7/10 ]
Only three slimes remained. They huddled together, their movements desperate and uncoordinated. Krad felt the potion's power beginning to fade, his muscles growing heavy.
"Not yet," he growled through gritted teeth. "Just three more!"
He charged forward. One slime lashed out, its tendril catching his shoulder. Fresh pain bloomed, and his health bar dropped dangerously.
DING!
[ Warning! Health Points: 30/100 ]
"That all you got?" Krad ignored the burning pain and unleashed a flurry of punches. His fists became a blur. The first slime crumbled. Then the second.
The final slime trembled before him, its red glow flickering weakly. It didn't attack. It just... stayed there, pulsing with a dim, fading light.
Krad raised his fist for the finishing blow. "Alright, last one! This was actually pretty---"
DING!
A notification appeared, but this time it was different. The text wasn't in the usual crisp font. It looked... hesitant. Shaky, almost.
[ Wait. ]
Krad paused, fist still raised. "Buddy? What's wrong?"
The system was silent for a long moment. Then, slowly, text began to appear:
[ These creatures... they weren't always Devourer Slimes. ]
Krad blinked. "What do you mean?"
[ They were once Pure Slimes. Peaceful creatures. They lived in harmony in these forests, feeding on residual magic and sunlight. They didn't hurt anyone. They couldn't hurt anyone. ]
The final slime pulsed weakly, and Krad noticed something he hadn't before. Beneath the angry red glow, there was a faint shimmer of blue, like a memory of something gentler.
"Then... what happened to them?" Krad's voice came out quieter than he intended.
[ A corrupted mage came through these woods three months ago, his soul blackened by forbidden arts. With calculated cruelty, he infected the Pure Slimes with dark magic, transforming them into Devourer Slimes. He left them here, festering and multiplying in the shadows, biding his time until the moment comes to unleash them as his weapons... an army of corruption waiting for their master's call. ]
The slime in front of Krad shuddered, its core flickering between red and blue.
[ They transformed. But they never wanted this. They were protectors trying to save their home, and it destroyed them. ]
"No..." Krad's fist slowly dropped to his side.
[ They're still aware. Trapped inside these corrupted forms, watching themselves attack travelers, unable to stop. Unable to return to what they were. ]
Krad stared at the slime. Now that he was really looking, he could see it trembling. Not with aggression, but with something that looked almost like... fear.
[ They attack because the corruption drives them to. But deep down, they're still trying to protect this forest. Still trying to fulfill their purpose, even though it hurts them. ]
"Buddy, why..." Krad's voice cracked. "Why didn't you tell me this before?"
[ Would it have changed anything? The quest must be completed. They're too far gone to be saved. This is mercy, not murder. ]
"Mercy?" Krad's eyes were burning now. "This is... this is..."
The slime pulsed again, and for just a moment, its red glow faded completely. Krad saw it as it truly was—a small, gentle creature, terrified and in pain, begging for release it couldn't ask for.
[ They've been suffering for three months. Every day, fighting against the corruption. Every day, losing a little more of themselves. You're not their enemy. You're their salvation. ]
A tear rolled down Krad's cheek. Then another. "That's not fair! That's not fair at all!"
[ Life rarely is. ]
"They were just trying to help!" Krad's voice rose, cracking with emotion. "They were heroes, and they got turned into monsters for it! How is that right?"
[ It isn't. ]
"Then why?" Tears were streaming freely down Krad's face now. "Why do I have to be the one to... to..."
[ Because no one else will. And they deserve peace. ]
The slime moved closer, not attacking. Just... approaching. Its core pulsed with that faint blue light again, stronger this time, like it was using every ounce of its remaining will to show Krad who it really was.
Krad dropped to his knees, his whole body shaking. "I'm so sorry, you were just trying to protect your home. You didn't deserve this."
The slime's core glowed bright blue for one beautiful moment, and Krad could have sworn he felt warmth radiating from it. Gratitude, forgiveness... relief.
"I'll make it quick," Krad whispered, raising his trembling fist one last time. "I promise it won't hurt."
Krad's vision blurred with tears as he brought his fist down. But it wasn't a brutal strike. It was gentle, almost a caress, as he touched the slime's core.
It shattered like glass, but the fragments glowed pure blue before they dissolved into light—soft, warm light that drifted upward like freed spirits.
[ Devourer Slime Defeated: 10/10 ]
Krad sat there in the dirt, tears pouring down his face like an idiot, watching the last particles of light fade into the sky.
"They were heroes," he choked out. "All of them. They were heroes, and I... I..."
[ You gave them peace. That makes you a hero too. ]
"I don't feel like a hero!" Krad shouted at the sky, his voice breaking. "I feel like a jerk! They saved their forest and got punished for it! How is that okay?"
The system was quiet for a moment.
[ It's not okay. But that's the world you're in now. Not everything has a happy ending. Sometimes the best you can do is end someone's suffering. ]
Krad wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, but the tears kept coming. "This game sucks, Buddy. This game really, really sucks."
[ I know. ]
"I'm sorry I called you Kevin," Krad whispered. "And Steve. And Gerald. You're not any of those. You're... you're actually trying to help me understand this place, aren't you?"
[ ...Perhaps. ]
Another tear rolled down Krad's cheek. "The next time something like this happens, tell me before I start fighting, okay? I want to know. I need to know."
[ .... ]
Krad pushed himself to his feet, his legs shaky. His health bar was critical, his body was battered, but somehow that felt insignificant compared to the weight in his chest.
DING!
[ Quest Completed! ]
Devourer Slimes Defeated: 10/10
Rewards: 100 Pesos, 50 XP
He stared at the notification with red, puffy eyes. "I don't want the reward."
[ You need it to survive. ]
"I know, but..." Krad's voice dropped to barely a whisper. "It feels wrong. Like I'm getting paid for... for..."
[ For granting mercy to suffering souls. There's no shame in that. ]
Krad took a shuddering breath. "I'm going to get stronger. Strong enough that next time something like this happens, I can save them. Not just end their pain, but actually save them. Is that possible?"
The system hesitated.
[ ...I don't know. But if anyone's stubborn enough to try, it's probably you. ]
A weak smile tugged at Krad's lips despite everything. "Damn right I am."
DING!
[ Warning! Health Points: 10/100 ]
[ Return to Ustina. Buy a Healing Potion from any Potion Shop. ]
"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." Krad wiped his eyes one more time and started walking back toward town. His body was weak, his health critical, and his heart felt like it had been put through a blender.
But as he walked, he looked up at the sky where the blue lights had drifted.
"I'll remember you," he said softly. "All of you. I promise."
The forest was quiet, but somehow, it felt a little lighter.
And Krad walked on, crying like an idiot the whole way back to Ustina.