章 67: Fate

My fated One.

Wait..

That's not the important thing right now...

Let's check her well-being because that spell was awfully close to her.

So, I put aside my brimming curiosity among many other things for the moment and asked her.

Nowadays, I only have questions and none of the answers for some reasons. Sigh...

"Sorry about that. I'm not used to using that skill, so I didn't have a good grasp on its power. You aren't hurt, are you?"

Well, I didn't have a single idea that skill even existed before Great Sage told me, so I had no way of knowing the full extent of the power the skill exuded.

Like seriously, you should've told me, Great Sage.

<You are the one who fired it by using an excessive amount of magicules. How is it my fault now?>

..Damn! You didn't have to take it to heart, y'know, I was just joking. You know I trust you fully, right? So, come on, don't be angry.

<Answer: I am not angry.>

Yup, not angry at all.

Sigh~

Anyways, getting back on the topic.

My fated one was very beautiful.

She had long black hair that swayed down to her waist, a pretty face, and a very slender figure. She wasn't very tall, but not too short either, which, to be honest, I thought suited her quite well.

She replied in a soft and low voice filled with surprise and shock.

"No, I'm fine."

Hmm?

Oh, right! I forgot. She sees me as one of the monsters—a slime.

Surprisingly enough though, that wasn't the cause for concern. Because, the next moment, she responded with a gentle smile, free of malice, distrust, or any negative sentiments.

"You saved me. Thank you!"

Woah!

For a moment, her smile left me utterly speechless and still.

If I weren't a slime, I'd probably be standing here blushing with my entire face—like a teenage boy who just got the chance to talk to his crush for the first time.

Thank goodness, that I'm a slime.

Maybe that's why she wore the mask. Her smile was so captivating that it rendered even someone like me motionless for a moment. I think I understand how Veldora felt now.

<Answer: The mask serves to suppress the aura.>

....Whatever.

Come on! Snap out of it. You are an adult who just happens to resemble a slime. You're in your forties (almost), for goodness' sake.

As I shook off my reverie while gazing at her, her companions behind her stirred and hurriedly ran toward her.

"Shizu, are you alright?"

A blond man with long hair and a lengthy sword at his back inquired.

So, her name is Shizu. How fitting—it suits her perfectly.

But,

This blondie, hey, watch out. Don't touch my fated one willy-nilly in front of me. You wanna die, is that it, huh? Huh??

<....>

I threatened the blondie in my mind using the yakuza style back from my world. I could almost feel the judging, condescending, and cold stare from the Great Sage telling me, 'What the hell are you doing?'.

I mean, would you mind toning it down a bit? I was just joking, you know.

<Answer: I am not capable of judging anyone's character for what they fantasize in their mind, no matter the intensity of their desire.>

Yup, not judging at all.

The guy who created Great Sage, he was probably a masochist, I tell ya.

Anyways, about the blondie, I couldn't say that aloud; otherwise, the chances of me being perceived as a creep were extremely high, which I definitely wanted to avoid.

I don't want to ruin my image now, do I?

But more than that, is it just me, or are these guys totally ignoring me?

"Did that look like black lightning to you as well?"

A guy wearing a bandana on his head comes up behind the blondie and asks him as such.

"Who did that...."

A female could be seen running toward us as well.

Hmm...

Why do they look so familiar?

<Answer: These are the same individuals you met while exiting Veldora's cave.>

Ohhh!! Now I remember.

The same idiots who used the Invisible skill and couldn't even sense my aura, which was leaking like a fountain then.

But why are these idiots with Shizu?

And more importantly, how long were they planning to ignore me?

Oh! I still had her mask. Let's use this as an excuse.

I called out to her, making my presence known to the three idiots in the process.

"Here's your mask. This belongs to you, right, miss?"

As I handed over the mask to her, the idiots, who were finally aware of me, looked at me with their eyes wide open.

What?? Have you never seen a slime before?

I wanted to yell out, but refrained from doing so.

But it seems they were too dense to notice my annoyance because the blondie, in particular, immediately threw a question unconsciously.

"....A slime?"

Snap.

"Is there something wrong with being a slime?"

I retorted back with a question in a very, very cold tone.

"Er... No...."

The blondie was clearly panicked, but hey, it was his fault for getting touchy—Ahem!—for questioning my species.

For touching my fated one? I don't know what you are talking about.

<...>

But anyway, I finally met her.

One of the girls from the pub I visited with Kaijin and the other dwarves had used a crystal orb to look for my fated person in my life. She was undeniably the same person I saw on the orb.

There she is—my fated one...

Welp, I met her sooner than I'd expected.

***