Night fell and crowds gathered at the bar. It was a long building, consisting of no more than tables and chairs. They were all made out of wood, which gave the place a simple, almost toy-house-like touch.

At the end of the longest table was a samurai, his battle-worn attire illuminated by the light of torches on the wall. Raising his heavy arms, he wiped the mucus off his face. Then suddenly, bang! He slapped his hands together.

“Yooosh! I’m ready! Bring me your best food, mushroom men! Play me your best music, bring me your most fertile woman! I mean… fertile, like in plants and… WELL WHATEVER, bring me some food!”

The bartender waltzed between the other tables, evading the many men and women ready for the feast of victory. The celebration was well deserved, after all, the battle was a huge success. Not one of their people suffered any casualties. A rare occasion for their village.

As Sunny noticed the large plate in the bartender’s hands, he felt a great hunger emerge in his shroomy stomach.

“Come, bartender, come! Let me feast on your…”

His voice went away as a large ball of moss was placed in front of him. Sunny took his fork and poked the thing. He could swear it moved.

“Oh… uh, well! Thank you, bartender! Your food truly is the most… uh… ANYWAYS, I haven’t seen my trusty steed, Luna! I wonder where she might be? Oh, feel free to eat my food while I’m away, yesthatwouldbeniceokaybye!”

He disappeared faster than my father for milk. On his way out, he saw a glimpse of his slimy friend surrounded by children. They tried teaching it football, but the slime was too dumb to understand. Instead, it almost ate their ball.

“Jeez, you’re such a dummy.” Sunny smiled, leaning to the doorframe. “You have outdone yourself today, my friend. How about as a gift I let you have a name?”

[ Naming Requirements ]

[ Your Essence is at Least 1 ]

[ Creature is at Least Level 1 ]

[ Creature Accepts Name Willingly ]

“Well, Mr. Slime? Do you want a name?”

It didn’t hear him from the sound of the ball being tossed around. Sunny felt a calm joy from that. Such a simple creature, allowed to be conscious. What will its first thoughts be?

[ Conditions Met ]

[ What Do You Want to Name Creature? ]

“Well… I didn’t really have any plans for him when we’ve met. He was just an ordinary blob of glue. Heh, oddly enough, that was all he needed to be. Alright! As the king of all that’s liquid, I shall name you Seidon!

[ Name has been Given to Ghost Slime: ‘Seidon’ ]

[ Seidon has Joined Your Party ]

[ Seidon has Gained: ‘Soul-gifted’ ]

[ Seidon Now Bears a Soul ]

[ Evolutions are Unlocked for: ‘Seidon’ ]

The slime stopped. He looked around, observing his surroundings. There were houses, children, spores in the sky… so many new things to observe! He felt so excited, he ran in circles around the children. Then he saw the ball rolling next to them and an idea struck his mind!

Pow!

He plunged towards the ball, kicking it into the air! The children watched as it flew, and flew, and flew, and…

Bang!

He kicked off a window! Quickly the children fled the crime scene, but not Seidon. He looked back at the broken window one last time. A cozy warmth ran through his bubbly body.

“Gonyo!” Was the sound he made, before following his friends with a new set of purpose.

On the other end of town walked Sunny. He snatched one of the public torches and went out of the village.

“Luna! Are you there?” He shouted, but got no answer. “Jeez, where’s that girl…”

Suddenly, he bumped into a cloaked figure. It had black clothes hide most of its body, making it hard to be spotted.

“Oh, sorry, I wasn’t…”

His heart made a loud thump as he realized: that figure… it had no mushroom cape!

“Hold on!” He grabbed the mysterious man by his shoulder. “You’re not one of the village folks. Show me your face!”

The cloaked man stopped. He let out a loud sigh before…

Slash!

Two blades came forth, cutting at Sunny! He jumped away, but not before one of the daggers cut a hole through his uniform.

“Not easy in a stolen body, eh?” Said the man with a snotty voice.

“The hell are you—“ His eyes widened from disbelief. “You can talk!”

Dark hid the man’s face. Only his sharp yellow eyes could be seen from below the hood. A mouse tail wiggled on his back.

“Yes.” Said what Sunny thought to be a mouse. “And soon enough, I’ll be the only one to talk.”

“Yeah? Well…” He smugly smiled. “Too bad I won’t let you talk! That’s because… well… the weather’s pretty nice, don’t you think?”

“Huh?”

Sunny knew this battle would be unfair. He could defend himself from mindless ants, but not from someone with actual fighting skills. Thus, he tried to buy some time and come up with a plan.

“Well, I was just thinking about going for a walk…”

“A walk?”

“Yeah, you know… maybe visit one of those beaches, watch the sunset…”

“What nonsense are you rambling about?”

“Take my moth girlfriend on joyride… listen to Miku on the radio… you know, just kick the road and—“

A flash of inspiration hit Sunny! He knew what to do!

“Hmpf, I had enough.” Said the mouse before plunging towards Sunny!

“Heh, what a dumbass.” He said before quickly unsheathing his katana and….

Kicking the man in the knee.

“Gahh!” The mouse retaliated, dropping his weapons to the ground. “What the— Gahh! What is wrong with you?!”

“Huh?”

“I trained so much for this moment! We were supposed to have an epic clash of arms that would end with me revealing crucial information! Kahh! But you ruined it! All that hard training went to waste!”

“Sucks for you! Next time be smart and don’t ambush random people on the street, asshole!”

Without wasting any more time, he headed back towards the bar.

“W-Wait!” The rodent grabbed his pants. “Where are you going?”

“What do you think? I’ll bring the guards to arrest you!”

“Heheheh, like that would ever—“ Sunny kicked his other knee. “Gahhah! Stop it, idiot! You’ll break my legs!”

“Yeah, that’s kind of my plan.”

“You—“ He deepened his voice and equipped a confident smile. “Don’t you want to hear my tragic backstory? Why a mouse like myself fits so perfectly in the realm of bugs?”

“Nope, you’re mean.”

“Then are you interested in my employer?”

“Employer? What, some kind of stinkbug?”

“Well, heheheh… perhaps you remember a certain spider?”

“Wait, you mean…”

Images flashed through his mind. Those long arms, those huge mandibles, and that arrogant voice... he hated many things, but only a few more than that beast.

“Did that monster send you? Does it know where I am?”

“Heheheh… there are much larger powers at play here, my frie—“

Sunny kicked him in the knee, again.

“KUHH! You asshole, that was all I could say! No more! That would ruin the—“

Sunny kicked him in the knee, again-again.

“GYAAHAHAH! IT’S A CORE! Another core sent me!”

“Huh?” His voice turned soft.

“You heard me right! It was another core! Lady Aeron! She sent me! She’s the queen of all ants! She gave me and that spider the ability to talk! Just please, don’t hurt me anymore!”

“But wait, why did that person send you?”

“I can’t—“

Sunny raised his leg.

“ALRIGHT-ALRIGHT! Originally I was sent to burn down the village. But since she’s realized there’s another core here, I was sent to intimidate you! She knows no ordinary mushroom could slay an army of ants, no matter how weak ants might be.”

“But why? Isn’t she happy she’s not alone? That there’s another human?”

The mouse ignored his questions and continued.

“As you must already know, mushrooms survive on waste. You can find them growing on various corpses, such as animals, plants, and… well… magical beings.”

“Get to the point already or I’ll kick you again!”

“We’ve been observing this village for quite a while. The development of these mushrooms outshines what their kin is usually capable of. As such, it was clear they built the town on the remains of a magical creature. But which one exactly? A flying snake? A wendigo? No… this much development only comes from a being far superior! An elemental!”

“What, like those flying fart tornadoes?”

“That’s one way to describe them, but we’re not so sure. And that is very important. For you see, Lady Aeron suspects it might be an emerald elemental.”

Sunny clenched his fists.

“So she wants to burn this place to crisp then mine it for her own benefits?”

“Jewelry, to be exact. But yes, you’re smarter than you look.”

He grabbed the mouse’s cloak and pulled him up from the ground. His opponent wanted to back away, but he didn’t let go. For a brief moment, he observed the mouse’s eyes, deciding what fate he deserves.

“Hmpf.” Sunny pushed him away. “Go tell that Lady Asshole of yours to come and meet me tomorrow. I’ll teach her some manners about burning down others’ home.”

The mouse smugly laughed. His legs numb from pain, he hopped out of the village without picking up his knives.

Sunny walked back, straight through the crowd. He wanted nothing more to do, neither with friends or opponents. A good sleep, that’s what he wanted. Even though he knew no dream would set sail by his bed tonight.

“Alright, Mr. Samurai. You’re free to go. I’ll take back my own body now.”

And all the while the mushrooms joyfully danced to their sweet lyres and lutes. The children played football with their newfound friend. The samurais enjoyed the company of their prettiest women.

Only two souls were lonely tonight. One hid in a dark corner of the temple, swimming in his crystal prison with unanswered questions racing through his mind. The other was far from home, hiding behind a rock on the moss field, succumbing to her emotions.