Round 25

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After separating from Young-seong, I returned to the dungeon.

Fortunately, the newly made vegetable juice was much more effective, and considerable progress was seen in his wife’s treatment.

“I’m back.”

The slimes wobbled towards me and acted cutely. Their plump bodies bouncing and dancing around was quite a sight.

Squish!

“Yes, yes. Good job, everyone.”

Mark2, wearing a straw hat, clung to my pants leg, squishing in anticipation. I sat down and fiddled with Mark2 affectionately.

“Was everything okay today?”

Gurgle!

“Oh? It’s time to harvest?”

I was gradually understanding the language of the slimes.

Well, more accurately, I was faintly grasping their gestures.

“But what needs to be harvested?”

After playing with a slime in my hand for a while, I reluctantly stood up. I wanted to stay like this forever, but I couldn’t afford to be lazy.

“Alright, let’s go.”

The slimes followed me in a line, with Mark2 leading the way.

We arrived at a spot where some potatoes had been left unharvested last time.

Maybe this time the potatoes imbued with magic would appear. Excited, I dug into the ground with my hands.

“It might seem foolish to ignore a perfectly good hoe, but…”

I couldn’t wait to go up and get a hoe. Since my body was exceptionally sturdy due to a dual awakening, I decided to act as a human excavator.

Crunch-crunch-

As I dug up the ridge, plump potatoes revealed themselves. Their free-formed shapes looked quite appetizing.

“First, let’s check!”

I immediately checked if the harvested potato brought up an item window.

[Magically Enriched Potato LV.1]

[Contains faint magical power.]

[When consumed, increases health for 3 minutes depending on the amount of mana held. Temporarily reduces the feeling of hunger.]

Perfect!

Unlike last time, the item label appeared properly.

I danced with joy and continued to unearth more potatoes, which soon covered the field.

Meanwhile, the slimes diligently wobbled around, moving the potatoes or trimming the stems and leaves.

After a long while of turning over the field, it finally came to an end. As I stretched my back, I realized how large the plot of land was where we planted the potatoes.

Squish!

“Oh! Are we done?”

The slimes that had just gathered the potatoes bubbled. Among them, Mark2 respectfully approached with a potato.

Gurgle!

“Hmm? What’s that?”

Gurgle! Gurgle!

Mark2 seemed to be pleading, “I want to eat boiled potatoes! Please cook the potatoes!” The slimes gathered around him, their eyes seemingly sparkling.

Of course, these creatures had neither mouths nor eyes.

“Ha, no helping it. I’ll have to do it again.”

I boasted as I picked up the potato Mark2 offered. Considering the amount the slimes ate, these potatoes were ridiculously insufficient, so I ended up bringing down the gas burner from above.

Standing by the storage, I watched the slimes gather around as I did last time, fetching water from the pond and starting to boil the potatoes.

The difference from last time was that I knew exactly how long to boil them, so I didn’t need to check by poking them.

“Jae-seong said doing so allows water to seep into the potatoes, making them less tasty.”

Because I was precisely informed of the boiling time, I didn’t forget about it.

When the time came, the boiled potatoes were ready, accompanied by a rich aroma.

Pop! Pop!

Wriggle! Wiggle!

The excited creatures shook their bodies from side to side.

Nonetheless, I patiently transferred the potatoes into a bowl with composure.

I had to set aside my portion in advance; otherwise, those insensible creatures would definitely devour everything due to their inability to feel the heat.

After moving my portion, I handed the rest to the creatures, who rushed to eat the potatoes.

“Ugh.”

The slimes that quickly surrounded me soon began to devour the potatoes.

The potatoes-eating creatures trembled with joy one by one.

“There are still plenty of potatoes, so eat slowly.”

The creatures’ appetites were indeed formidable.

I immediately prepared more potatoes.

This time, I used a steamer that Jae-seong had left behind.

Behold, steamed potatoes!

Although steamed and boiled potatoes aren’t that different, wouldn’t the taste change if the ingredients are my crops?

I prepared the steamer as Jae-seong taught me and started steaming the potatoes.

Meanwhile, I decided to eat the boiled potatoes I had set aside for myself.

“Bon appétit.”

The potatoes had cooled down enough for me to eat, so I slowly peeled them.

Still, they were hot enough to roll around in my hands.

“Ho, ho.”

It might have been just salt on the potatoes, but I couldn’t resist the vibrating savory aroma.

Having already proven the taste with potatoes I had eaten before, I actually didn’t need any seasoning.

Yawn!

I took a big bite.

Then, the savory taste and aroma spread throughout every corner of my mouth, moistening the corners of my eyes.

“Heh, ha! So delicious!”

Even as I blew on the hot food, I couldn’t stop.

The slimes, having finished their portion, looked at me as if envious.

The fluffy texture felt upon first entering my mouth, and unlike before, the potatoes enchanted with magic melted away.

It wasn’t just a metaphor; they literally melted away.

Thus, the liquid state of the potatoes became a thick and savory juice that comfortably warmed my stomach as it went down.

“Ah…”

It felt like stepping into a warm bath.

My body became lethargic, filled with contentment.

“Huh?”

I suddenly realized one potato had disappeared.

Did I eat it all already?

As I picked up another potato, I felt full.

“Wow, this thing is something.”

It seemed to have an effect related to fullness, which appeared to be working well, although it didn’t seem to affect those gluttonous slimes.

“Here, you eat.”

I gave all the potatoes I had set aside for myself to the slimes.

Since I was also steaming some potatoes, one more would be enough to fill me up.

Admirably, the slimes split the potatoes and shared them among themselves.

As it was about time, I checked the steamer.

“Done, done.”

I turned off the heat and opened the steamer.

The steamed potatoes, looking not much different from the boiled ones, appeared.

“They look the same?”

How about the taste?

I carefully removed the hot potatoes, transferred them just like before, and distributed the rest to the slimes.

Once again, they swarmed over and devoured the steamed potatoes while I blew hard on them.

After cooling down the potatoes for a while, I slowly examined one and then took a bite.

“Hmm?!”

It wasn’t much different from the boiled ones.

If there was a difference, it was that the boiled potatoes had a richer flavor because I had added a bit of salt to the water they were boiled in, whereas this time they tasted somewhat bland.

However, the texture had become firmer, which strangely suited me well, and I found myself continuously chewing.

“I could eat more of these. Actually, they’d probably still taste good if I kept eating.”

Two potatoes were enough to fill me up.

Could this be a contender for the next generation staple food?

“Dad!”

“?”

What was that?

I just heard a human voice…

“I want some too, Dad!”

I slowly turned my head.

And there, appearing suddenly without a trace, was a naked blonde toddler.

“Eh?”

I involuntarily made a strange noise and couldn’t respond properly. Regardless, the toddler in front of me stretched out the hands widely toward me.

“I want to eat it too!”

Who are you?

* * *

Perk! Perk!

Ears that looked like those of a tiger fluttered happily. Watching the ears move without pause, I slowly looked over the child.

“So you’re… Poooh, right?”

“That’s right! More importantly, this is delicious! I want to eat more, Dad!”

“I’m not your dad…”

Level 10 ?? Slime Poooh.

The form it had taken after synthesis was human-like.

Honestly, I still couldn’t believe that this little kid was Poooh…

[Named Slime ‘Gluttony of Gula’ has been completed.]

[Due to the synthesizer’s influence, it appears in a form similar to the synthesizer’s race.]

Messages appeared as I looked at the child.

The system doesn’t lie, even if it hides information. So this little one must definitely be a synthesized slime that turned into Poooh.

‘But a named slime? And Gluttony of Gula?’

It couldn’t be… It couldn’t be.

If it’s gluttony, it’s definitely one of the Seven Deadly Sins. A title that shouldn’t belong to a slime, so why?

“Dad! More!”

“Poooh, I’m not your dad…”

“Then what are you?”

“I’m, uh…”

Master? No, that sounds weird.

It’s not right to ask to be called a lord either…

“My name is Lee Kyu-seong. Just call me Kyu-seong.”

“Understood! Kyu-seong Kyu-seong!”

“Just Kyu-seong is fine.”

“Kyu-seong Kyu-seong! I want to eat more of this!”

The potato had vanished along with its peel.

Poooh spread the tiny hands wide, waiting for the next potato.

“I’ll get it ready soon. Just wait a bit.”

“Understood!”

While I was cooking the potatoes, I went upstairs to look for something for Poooh to wear. Thinking I’d at least dress Poooh in my clothes, I came down with them, only to find Poooh giving a grand speech to the assembled slimes.

“Kyu-seong Kyu-seong is mine! And all these delicious things are mine too! But don’t worry! We will share everything nicely! I am a good slime!”

What is it talking about?

But the slimes, led by Mark2, were earnestly listening to it.

“Poooh.”

“Oh! Kyu-seong Kyu-seong! Where did you go?”

I welcomed Poooh, who had its arms wide open, by putting the clothes I brought on it. Then Poooh scanned its body from side to side and tilted its head.

“Kyu-seong Kyu-seong! What is this?”

“You have to wear clothes.”

Apparently, since it’s a slime, there wasn’t anything to distinguish gender(?), but it felt wrong to leave it naked.

“Oh! This smells like Kyu-seong Kyu-seong! This is mine alone! I cannot share this!”

Poooh’s ears perked up as it threatened the other slimes.

Of course, it might have seemed like a threat, but outwardly, it just looked cute.

Now, what do we do with this?

Although clearly a slime, it was difficult to treat this talking, human-like creature the same as the others.

“Shall we check your stats first? Come here, Poooh.”

Since it’s a slime, its stats should be visible, right?

And when I have time, I should change its name too. It feels a bit awkward to keep calling it Poooh.

“Is the tasty stuff ready?”

“Not yet. Let’s just check something first.”

I checked the status window, leaving behind Poooh’s sparkling eyes and drooling mouth.

Ding!

“Oh, a slime is still a slime, for sure. The status window is up…”

My thoughts slowly halted as I checked Poooh’s status window.

[Gluttony of Gula (Poooh)]

[One of the Seven Deadly Sins and a demon responsible for gluttony. ]

[A slime with unknown potential.]

[Abilities: Gluttony, Breath.]

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