Chapter 17 – The Spring in my Step

I’ve been running for god knows how long. Has it been an hour? Maybe two? I don’t know and I'm doing my best not to care. On my way, I saw a fair few villages, and while I tried not to pay too much attention as I passed them, even then I couldn’t help but feel jealousy.

The villager's life looked to be basic at best, but the people seemed to be more than content with their lives. Children were climbing the trees, playing tag and fighting each other with wooden swords. The men were working the fields or patrolling around, making sure that monsters wouldn’t invade while the women were washing clothes near the riverbed, humming a pleasant tune. They happily waved at me as I ran past. Such a simple, yet fulfilling life…

It didn’t take long after passing the last village until I reached the so-called inhabitable territory. Though several monsters roamed about in the in the habitable territory, they barely posed a threat. Both the quantity and quality of the monsters I came across seemed to increase by the minute, but not to the point where advancing would become impossible. They were still few enough in numbers for me to maneuver around.

Maybe Trails will show up soon enough? Actually, I have no idea how to identify them, without even mentioning finding them! Maybe just some magical gateway to a trail will show up from the middle of nowhere.

No way!?

Surprisingly enough, that’s precisely what happened!

…

Except it didn’t.

I was lost. Totally lost. The forest I was currently rummaging through looked the same everywhere I went. I probably couldn’t find the way back if I tried, much less find an entrance to a Trail. I guess it's a given that a city boy like me can't find his destination without an abundance of street signs.

I’m probably going insane. I’m starting to hear sloshing sounds, but there last water source I saw was a river by the village that I passed half an hour ago…

The noise is coming closer!? I’m really losing it... I shouldn’t mind that and just keep going. I’ll find something eventually.

*squish*

My leg was tightly hugged by an unknown entity. Or rather, an extremely familiar entity.

It was Lime!?

*squish squish*

It seemed to be awfully happy! Wait… I don’t remember seeing Lime after breakfast. Everyone else had their companions with them though... Did I really forget Lime? Am I really that bad of an owner?

⌈I’m sorry buddy... I shouldn’t have left you.⌋

I said as I pat Lime's... head? Do slimes have a head? Are slimes the head?

I slowly drifted away in thought, as I began to remember the times Lime and I had. It all came back to me in vivid detail. Rather than remembering pen on paper, the pictures painted in my mind were nothing but real memories of actual events. It's really Lime, huh? And I'm really... me? I'm honestly beginning to question my existence. Did the timelines merge? I'm confused...

⌈*No worries, master! Do you not remember my abilities? I can access multiple dimensions, y’know!? I locked an alternate dimension to your location, and I can bring myself to you from anywhere! There is no escape! Ehehe... I can also store anything in the alternate dimension if you so wish!*⌋

A high pitched androgynous voice reached out to me.

It didn't resonate nor echo across the forest, no, it pierced right through into my thoughts. It was as if a child tried his best to be polite in front of a king. The result wasn't exactly the most respectful of speeches, but somehow it came off as nothing short of adorable... For a second I was startled, but I quickly came to realize what was going on.

⌈WHO!?! W-Wait.. O-Oi… Lime, was that you just now?⌋

⌈*Indeed! I’ve become an S-Rarity monster while you were gone, y’know!? It’d be shameful if I couldn’t at least communicate with my master!*⌋

⌈Is this... telepathy?⌋

*boun boun*

Lime seemed really cheerful as he bounced around.

⌈*Correct! As expected, you recognized the phenomena in an instant! You really are my old master!*⌋

⌈Old master?⌋

The bouncy ball of happiness started to dissolve into a sad puddle and I suddenly felt regret surging through me...

⌈*Did you forget all the adventures we used to have decades ago? Oh no... Maybe the Gods of the new age get your memories too…*⌋

⌈Are you really the Lime? Did all those adventures really take place!?⌋

The sad puddle quickly regained its bulbous shape and started to lively bounce all around the place.

*squish squish*

⌈*YES! Master remembers!! It’s a happy day!*⌋

⌈Oh man, I could never forget..⌋

It was me that wrote you into existence in the first place. Although what I had in mind was a little different...

⌈*Are you perhaps having troubles with finding Trails?*⌋

⌈Please don’t tell me you can also read my thoughts.⌋

⌈*Sorry, master. That I cannot do. I had observed you for a while and saw you wandering around the forest with a puzzled look on your face. From that, I deduced that perhaps you’re trying to search for something.*⌋

⌈You’re perceptive for a damn slime, that's for sure. Yes, I’m trying to find a Trail, but I haven’t had much luck.⌋

⌈*Finding Trails isn’t about luck, y’know? You need to feel their magical currents in the air!*⌋

⌈And how does one do that?⌋

⌈*It seems you haven’t quite escaped the God-orchestrated mass murder of memories… You do it by focusing, of course!*⌋

What do you mean by ‘you do it by focusing!’ Dumb slime. I’ve been trying to focus a good while now…

⌈*Close your eyes and try to sense your surroundings… The magical energy in the air is much unlike regular wind, y’know! It won’t circle around you, it will pierce right through! The magic emits from the Trail entrances in massive quantities and master's race is highly compatible with magic, so it should be a piece of cake!*⌋

I think I’m starting to feel it. It's faint, but it's there...

Warm wind, that pierces right through. I can feel it!

If I was currently to the east of the capital, in front of me would be east too, so... To the north? Not quite…

Northeast? That’s it!

⌈*Can you feel it?*⌋

⌈Yeah, I think I can!⌋

⌈*So, where to?*⌋

⌈Northeast from here, I think.⌋

⌈*Correct! Amazing! I knew you’d be able to get it soon, but I didn’t think it’d be this easy!*⌋

⌈Correct? What do you mean correct? Oi!⌋

Lime began to bounce away as a criminal would make his escape from the scene! That bastard knew how to do this himself all along...

⌈*Teehee~... you used to be damn near omnipotent back then, y’know!? I couldn’t resist messing around a bit now that I finally have the chance!*⌋

⌈I can’t believe I was done in by a dumb blob like you..⌋

Lime started to playfully bob around, flaunting his victory over me.

⌈Anyhow, shall we get going?⌋

*squish*

⌈*Yes!*⌋

Searching for a Trail took way longer than I had expected. Though the rough direction was clear, there certainly was plenty of room for error. In the end, we did end up finding an entrance to a Trail.

Much like the one during the trials, there stood a passageway to the unknown, only this one formed between two twisting birch-like trees woven into each other.

【Spring Path – Rank: Usual – Objective: Reach】

Interesting. I can actually somewhat decipher what the Trail is like before entering it. The information is really limited though...

⌈Hey, Lime! Can you enter with me or am I going in solo?⌋

⌈*I can enter with you indeed! Do you want me to join?*⌋

⌈Sure. Shall we go?⌋

*squish*

What a happy little blob.

I hopped into the glowing portal in front of me. Once again, I fell through the endless space. This time it didn’t quite have the same impact on me as the first time did.

Once again I felt my feet planted firmly on the grass covered ground. Contrary to the thick forest from before, around me was a seemingly endless open plain, with a few trees here and there. In the middle laid a beaten path...

【Spring Path – Rank: Usual】

Time Limit: 2:00

Rewards: Random

›Armor Piece, Accessory or Weapon ( – of Spring)

›Spell Tome

› – Potion

›Random Material (Forest Biome)

Objective: Reach the Hilltop Tree

Rewards!? Is that like a drop table? And what does ' – of Spring' mean?

Time Limit: 1:59

What?

Time Limit: 1:58

Alright, alright! No need to rub it in!

Time Limit: 1:57

⌈Goddammit! Let’s go, Lime! Try to keep up!⌋

⌈*Yes!*⌋

I started running forwards. Even though I ran for nearly two hours prior, I didn’t feel any fatigue. The wind calmly blew against me as I dashed across the plains.

This time, I wasn't burdened by pressure as on the trials. It reminded me of the time when I was jumping down the cliffs with Seth when we first arrived at the outskirts of the capital...

Soon after, I saw a group of familiar monsters standing in front of me in wait. Yet something seemed different from them this time.

【Spring Kobold – Affinity: Nature – Rank: Usual – Rarity: D】

Ah! Nature affinity Kobolds! No wonder they looked so similar. This time, their skin was just a shade greener and the fur a tone darker. Their features were also ever so slightly more primal. Someone has been slacking on the design.

⌈*Master! There are monsters in the vicinity. Shall we jump over?*⌋

⌈Sure! Let’s… Wait! OVER!?⌋

⌈*Leave it to me! Here I go!*⌋

⌈!?!⌋

Lime split into two and his two halves of covered my feet. Unable to stop in my tracks, my now Lime-covered foot struck the ground. The insane rebound of the slimy mucus and the additional manual movements from Lime sprung me right over the Spring Kobold unit.

Needless to say, the bounce caught me off guard and as a result, the fall was quite the spectacle to say the least. Who knew handling your balance two meters in the air wasn't the easiest of tasks... Lime didn’t seem to have a care in the world though.

⌈*Wasn't that great?*⌋

⌈WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!?! When you decide to do something insane like that you need to let me know beforehand! Is that clear!?⌋

⌈*But I asked and you said yes… I-I’m sorry, master.*⌋

Time Limit: 1:06

A couple hundred meters in front of me on the top of a hill stood a lonely old tree.

⌈*Master, Is that the objective?*⌋

⌈Yeah, I think it is. Let’s pick up the pace!⌋

Time Limit: 0:38

【Spring Path – Status: Clear】

›Reach: 1/1

›Rewards:

›【Boots of Spring – Rank: Usual – Rarity: D】

›Shard of Knowledge:

›【Practical Knowledge: Containers】

Back on the other side, huh? Wasn’t that a bit too fast? Or rather, wasn’t the trial way too long!?

Wait just a moment…

⌈’Practical Knowledge: Containers’!? Do these people not know what containers are?⌋

I accidentally expressed my disbelief out loud as I held a bright white stone shard in my hands.

My thoughts were quickly filled with concepts of wooden buckets and boxes alike as arcane knowledge flowed straight from the crystal into my mind. Call me a grandma but I really feel like weaving some baskets right now...

⌈*Master, that’s the Shard of Knowledge, y’know!? That one seems to contain the knowledge of making and utilizing containers!*⌋

⌈Yeah, it's pretty amazing... But do the people not know how to make containers!? Are the people of this world monkeys?⌋

⌈*At present time, no species worthy of the name of Race descending from the monkey-type monsters have been discovered, but you should know that!*⌋

⌈That’s not what I meant and you should know that...⌋

⌈*Ah, master! What about the other reward? You received a pair of boots did you not?*⌋

⌈Yeah I did, they’re right here.⌋

⌈*Have you analyzed the effect they have yet?*⌋

⌈An effect?⌋

⌈*Yes! Gear received from Trails usually has an effect once they’re above the D-Rarity, y’know!? Maybe two if they're good enough!*⌋

Alright, let’s give it a go! The Boots of Spring that materialized before me, were earthy brown leather boots, that had leaf patterns craved on the surface. The bootstraps were made of twisting vines. If these Usual-Rank boots are this amazing, I wonder what something with a higher rank and rarity looks like…

【Boots of Spring – Rank: Usual – Rarity: D – Effect: Spring Breeze】

【Spring Breeze: Minor increase in Speed and Stamina. Highly increased effect when paired with other items of the same effect.】

⌈Th-This is fucking amazing! I gotta collect the whole set now...⌋

⌈*Isn't it?*⌋

Maybe I can check the scarf too? It always did feel a bit different from all my other clothes.

My eyes widened in surprise as I began to realize that what was wrapped around my neck was no ordinary rag, oh no.

【Ashen Scarf of Tireless Wind – Rank: Extraordinary – Rarity: A – Effects: Grey Veil, Tireless Wind】

【Grey Veil: Medium increase in Evasion and Reflection. Highly increased effect when against monsters of Flame or Void Affinity.】

【Tireless Wind: Major increase in Speed and Stamina.】

⌈A-An Extraordinary!?! And of an A-Rarity too!?⌋

Goddamn! Well, ain't that a surprise and a half!? I guess I won’t be changing my scarf for a good while... Though, while Speed, Stamina, and Evasion are quite obvious, what on earth does Reflection mean?

⌈Lime! Do you happen to know what Reflection means?⌋

⌈*Do you mean when the light gets sent back instead of absorbed by a surface?*⌋

⌈No, you daft blob. I meant as an effect.⌋

⌈*OH! Reflection is a subcategory of the Defense attribute. It affects one's defenses against magic! Unlike Resilience, which will defend against physical attacks!*⌋

⌈That's... pretty damn cool!? What about Speed, Stamina, and Evasion?⌋

⌈*Speed is a subcategory of Agility, as is Evasion. Stamina, on the other hand, belongs to the Health branch. Which is a general measure of one's physical health!*⌋

⌈Alright! Thanks. That clears a thing or two up.⌋

Subcategories of attributes? I'm both confused and intrigued. I wonder just how much is a 'major increase'... As I began putting on my new leather boots, which are rather stylish might I add, Lime called out to me.

⌈*Master! Should I store your old boots in my dimensional storage?*⌋

⌈Uh, sure. Go ahead.⌋

Surely enough, he soon started to happily devour my old boots!

…

He started to do WHAT!?

⌈OI! Lime! Why are you eating my boots!? Have you lost your mind!? Do you even have a mind?⌋

⌈*This is how I transport the items between dimensions, y’know?*⌋

I take back what I said. He’s amazing, isn't he? He? Hold on, I've been calling Lime a he all this time, but is Lime a he or a she?

⌈Oi, Lime!⌋

⌈*Yes, master?*⌋

Alright, this is my moment!

⌈Are you a boy? Or are you a girl?⌋

⌈*Lime is a Slime!*⌋

⌈Figures... Goddammit, there goes my moment.⌋

⌈*But if I really had to think about it, Lime would be a girl!*⌋

⌈Eh?⌋

⌈*Yes! Lime will be a girl from here on out! I hope I can be master’s bride one day!*⌋

⌈Please don't do this to me... What the hell is that supposed to mean? Really!? You’re twisted in more ways than one, that’s for sure. Anyhow, we should start looking for new Trails now!⌋

⌈*That we should!*⌋