CRACK!
The ancient stone split down the middle, the preservation runes flickered and died. The door fell inward with a crash.
[ System Buddy: Yes! Food time! ]
[ System Alpha: Successful breach confirmed. Proceeding to nutritional acquisition phase. ]
"One of you sounds like we're raiding a pantry, the other sounds like we're conducting a military operation," Krad muttered.
[ System Buddy: Because we are raiding a pantry! And it's awesome! ]
[ System Alpha: Precision in terminology prevents miscommunication. ]
They peered into the vault. Inside, preserved by ancient magic, were sealed containers and wrapped packages. Dried meats, preserved fruits, even what looked like bread that should have been dust centuries ago but remained perfectly edible thanks to the enchantments.
[ System Alpha: Scanning contents. Protein sources: Detected. Carbohydrates: Detected. Essential nutrients: Present. ]
[ System Buddy: Translation: There's food! Lots of It! Eat eat eat! ]
Krad didn't wait for permission. He grabbed the nearest package and tore it open, revealing strips of some kind of jerky. He shoved a piece into his mouth.
"Oh my god," he moaned through the mouthful. "This is the best thing I've ever tasted."
[ System Alpha: Taste satisfaction is result of extreme caloric deficit, not exceptional food quality. ]
[ System Buddy: Let him enjoy it, you party pooper! ]
[ System Alpha: I am not a party pooper. I am providing contextual data. ]
[ System Buddy: Party. Pooper. ]
Mist was already reaching for his own portion, a slight smile on his face. "I have to admit, having two system personalities arguing is oddly entertaining."
"Glad you think so," Krad said between bites. "I have to live with it."
[ System Buddy: You love us! Admit it! ]
[ System Alpha: User affection is irrelevant to system function. ]
[ System Buddy: But it makes everything better! ]
[ System Alpha: Better is subjective. ]
[ System Buddy: You're subjectively annoying! ]
They ate in comfortable silence for a few minutes, both too hungry to bother with conversation. The systems, however, continued their running commentary:
[ System Alpha: Caloric intake: 4,200 calories. Deficit reduction: 9%. Continue consumption. ]
[ System Alpha: That dried fruit is really good! Try the blue one! ]
[ System Alpha: Nutritional value of blue fruit: Adequate. Taste preference: Irrelevant. ]
[ System Buddy: Taste is totally relevant! Life isn't just about surviving, it's about enjoying stuff! ]
[ System Alpha: Enjoyment is secondary to survival. ]
[ System Buddy: You're secondary to fun! ]
Krad worked his way through three packages of jerky, two fruits that tasted like a cross between apples and pears, and something that might have been cheese but was delicious regardless.
Finally, his stomach stopped trying to eat itself. He leaned back against the wall with a satisfied sigh. "I think I'm going to live... but I'm not done."
[ System Alpha: Vital signs stabilizing. Caloric deficit reduced to manageable levels. ]
[ System Buddy: See? Food fixes everything! Well, almost everything! ]
Mist watched Krad demolish another strip of jerky, a faint smirk playing at his lips. The kid had gone from fighting for his life to eating like he'd never seen food before. It was almost amusing enough to make him forget about the hole Barbara had torn through his side.
Almost.
"So," Mist said casually, picking at his own portion of preserved bread. "What now?"
Krad paused mid-bite, the question hanging in the air between them. His golden eyes lost some of their hunger-driven gleam, replaced by something sharper. Harder.
"Now?" Krad set down the food, his jaw tightening. "Now I find that bastard."
Mist's eyebrow rose. "Bastard?"
"The corrupted mage." The words came out cold, each syllable carrying weight. "The one who did this to the Pure Slimes. The one who turned them into Devourer Slimes and left them to suffer for three months."
The temperature in the ruined mess hall seemed to drop. Krad's fists clenched on his knees, knuckles going white.
"They were trying to protect their home," Krad continued, his voice quiet but intense. "They were heroes. Peaceful creatures who never hurt anyone, and that bastard corrupted them. Twisted them into monsters. Made them watch themselves attack travelers while they were trapped inside, unable to stop, unable to die, just... suffering."
Mist studied him carefully. This wasn't the hyperactive kid who'd been shouting at his system notifications five minutes ago. This was someone who'd seen something unforgivable and refused to let it go.
"Three months," Krad repeated, his voice cracking slightly. "Three months they lived like that. And I had to be the one to end them. I had to look them in the eyes and see them begging for release they couldn't ask for."
[ System Buddy: Krad... ]
Even the usually cheerful system fragment sounded subdued.
"The last one," Krad whispered, his eyes distant. "The last slime showed me who it really was. Just for a moment, it fought through the corruption long enough to let me see the truth. It was blue. Gentle. Grateful that someone finally..." He swallowed hard. "That someone finally cared enough to set them free."
Mist was silent, watching emotions war across the kid's face. This wasn't just anger or vengeance. This was something deeper, a wound that had cut straight through to his core.
"I made them a promise," Krad said, his voice steadying with resolve. "All of them, I told them I'd remember them. That they were heroes." His golden eyes lifted to meet Mist's, and there was fire burning in those depths now. "But that's not enough. Remembering isn't enough... that mage needs to answer for what he did."
"You want revenge," Mist stated flatly.
"No." Krad shook his head. "I want justice, there's a difference."
"Is there?" Mist leaned forward, his pink eyes sharp. "Because from where I'm sitting, it sounds like you want to hurt him as badly as he hurt those slimes."
"Maybe I do." Krad didn't flinch from the observation. "But it's not just about making him suffer. It's about making sure he can't do it again. To anyone else... to any other innocent creatures just trying to protect their homes."
[ System Alpha: Locating corrupted mage. Threat level: Unknown. Current user level: Insufficient for confrontation. ]
[ System Buddy: But that doesn't mean you can't prepare! And get stronger! And totally kick his butt when you're ready! ]
Mist was quiet for a long moment, studying Krad with an unreadable expression. Finally, he spoke.
"You know what you remind me of?"
"What?" Krad asked warily.
"Someone I used to know." Mist's gaze went distant, his voice taking on a different quality. "My best friend, actually. Kashima."
The name hung in the air like a bell that had been struck.
"Kashima was..." Mist paused, searching for words. "He was intense. Driven. When he saw something wrong, something unjust, he couldn't let it go. It would eat at him until he did something about it."
Krad waited, sensing this was important.
"There was this mission," Mist continued, his voice dropping. "We were supposed to clear out a nest of corrupted beasts. Standard extermination contract. But when we got there, Kashima realized something was off. The beasts weren't naturally corrupted, someone had done it to them. Deliberately infected them with dark magic and used them as test subjects."
Mist's jaw tightened. "The contractor who hired us? He was the one who'd corrupted them in the first place. He wanted us to clean up his failed experiments so no one would find out what he'd done."
"What did Kashima do?" Krad asked quietly.
"He went ballistic." A ghost of a smile crossed Mist's face, but there was no humor in it. "Refused to complete the mission. Instead, he tracked down every single person involved in the experiments. Spent six months hunting them across two kingdoms. Didn't stop until every last one of them was brought to justice."
"And you?" Krad asked. "What did you do?"
"I followed him." Mist's smile turned genuine for just a moment. "Because that's what you do for your best friend. Even when they're being reckless, stubborn idiots who refuse to let things go."
Krad felt something shift in his chest. It wasn't just about the slimes anymore. It was about what they represented, about standing up for those who couldn't stand up for themselves. About refusing to let cruelty go unanswered.
"You think I'm being stupid," Krad said, but it wasn't really a question.
"I think you're being human," Mist corrected. "Or elf... or whatever you are." He waved a hand dismissively.
"But?" Krad sensed there was more.
"But being human isn't enough." Mist's voice turned serious. "You want to hunt down that corrupted mage? Fine. I won't stop you. Hell, I'll help you. But you're going to do it smart. You're going to train, get stronger... learn how to control that Moon Eater power instead of letting it control you."
"How long will that take?" Krad asked, frustration creeping into his voice.
"However long it takes." Mist's tone left no room for argument. "Because if you go after him now, at Level 150, you'll die. And then who's going to keep that promise to those slimes?"
The words hit like a kick in the butt. Krad wanted to argue, wanted to insist he could do it, but the memory of fighting Barbara was too fresh. The feeling of helplessness when his skills ran dry. The terror of watching Mist nearly die because Krad hadn't been strong enough to control his own power.
[ System Alpha: Captain Mist's assessment is correct. Current probability of defeating corrupted mage: 0.01%. ]
[ System Buddy: But! But you can totally get stronger! We just gotta work hard! ]
"I hate waiting," Krad muttered.
"I know." Mist's voice softened slightly. "Kashima hated it too. But you know what? The times he waited, prepared, planned? Those were the times he actually succeeded. The times he charged in hot-headed? Those were the times people got hurt."
Krad took a deep breath, forcing himself to think past the anger and grief. "Okay. You're right. I need to get stronger first."
"Good." Mist nodded approvingly. "Because that mage? He's going to be a hell of a lot harder than Barbara was."
"You know about him?" Krad's eyes widened. "I mean, you mentioned he was last seen near these lands..."
"I've been tracking him," Mist admitted. "Or rather, Tiger Squad has. He's wanted for multiple crimes across three kingdoms. Corruption of natural beasts, illegal dark magic experimentation, murder of at least six registered Slayers who tried to stop him."
Krad's blood ran cold. "Six Slayers?"
"Six that we know of." Mist's expression was grim. "He's dangerous, Krad. Not just powerful, but smart. Cruel. He doesn't just kill... he makes his victims suffer first. Those slimes? That was one of his milder experiments."
Krad wanted to scream. Wanted to punch something. But instead, he forced himself to breathe, to think. "What's the plan?"
A smile crossed Mist's face—approval, maybe even pride. "Now you're talking like a real Slayer. First step: We get you properly trained. You've got raw power, sure, but you fight like a street brawler."
"Hey, my aggression worked pretty well against Barbara," Krad protested.
"You nearly died three times against Barbara," Mist countered. "And you only won because you made a deal with an ancient cosmic horror. That's not a sustainable strategy."
[ System Alpha: Statistical analysis confirms: Current combat efficiency: 34%. Room for improvement: Significant. ]
[ System Buddy: Translation: You need training, buddy! ]
"Second step," Mist continued, "we gather intelligence on the mage. Find out his patterns, his weaknesses, his next target. Knowledge is just as important as strength."
"And third?" Krad asked.
"Third, we pray to whatever gods will listen that you can control the Moon Eater by the time we find him." Mist's expression turned deadly serious. "Because that thing inside you? It's the only reason you're still alive. But it's also the most dangerous weapon you've got. Use it wrong, and you'll end up killing everyone around you, including yourself."
The weight of those words settled over Krad like a shroud. He thought about the deal he'd made to save Mist. About the debt he now owed to something ancient and hungry.
"I won't let it control me," Krad said quietly.
"Good." Mist pushed himself to his feet, wincing slightly as his healing ribs protested.
[ System Buddy: Aww, you guys are bonding! This is so wholesome! ]
[ System Alpha: Bonding has no measurable impact on combat effectiveness. ]
[ System Buddy: It totally does! Friends fight better together! ]
[ System Alpha: Citation needed. ]
[ System Buddy: My citation is common sense! ]
"Alright," Krad said, feeling something settle in his chest. Not peace, he was too angry for that. "First goal: Train until I'm strong enough to face that corrupted bastard without dying."
"Second goal?" Mist prompted.
"Make sure he can never hurt anyone else again." Krad's voice was steel. "Those slimes were heroes."
"Third goal?"
Krad paused, thinking. "Figure out how to live with this power inside me. Learn to control it instead of letting it control me."
"Good goals." Mist nodded approvingly. "Ambitious, potentially suicidal, but good. You really do remind me of Kashima."
"Is that a compliment or an insult?"
"Both." Mist's grin was crooked. "Definitely both."
They stood there in the ruined mess hall, surrounded by the wreckage of their battle, the preserved food scattered around them like offerings to some forgotten god. Two Slayers bound by circumstance, by shared pain, by the understanding that sometimes the right thing to do was also the hardest.
"Hey, Captain?" Krad asked after a moment.
"Yeah?"
"Thanks. For believing in me. For... for everything."
Mist's expression softened just slightly. "Don't thank me yet, kid. Training with me is going to make fighting Barbara look like a vacation. I'm going to push you harder than you've ever been pushed. I'm going to make you want to quit every single day."
"Bring it on," Krad said, and he meant it. "I've got promises to keep."
"That you do." Mist clapped him on the shoulder, surprisingly gentle despite his earlier threats. "That you do."
Above them, the fractured sky of the Kingdom of Darkness began to clear, rays of actual sunlight breaking through the eternal gloom for the first time in what might have been centuries. It felt almost symbolic, like the world itself was acknowledging what had happened here.
Krad looked up at that light, feeling it warm his face, and thought of ten slimes who'd never see the sun again. Who'd died asking for mercy from a world that had forgotten them.
"I won't forget," he whispered to the light. "I promise."