Wriggle wriggle.
Beep.
Ancient slimes and regular slimes.
Gathering in one place, they seemed to communicate among themselves.
It was adorable.
They appeared to be sharing various opinions about their farming techniques, which felt quite endearing.
“Guys, make sure you’re eating while you work! Don’t overdo it.”
Studying is good, but take it easy and have some fun while doing it.
As expected, I am a slime welfare advocate. Who else cares for our little ones as much as I do?
The number of slimes kept increasing.
Although I summoned and synthesized daily, sometimes the slimes’ liquid synthesis ability was used on crops, relatively increasing their numbers.
This resulted in over 300 slimes being present in the dungeon.
That number didn’t quite feel real.
Some raised Meluca in the fairy village, some were sent to Gnoll Village, and others were dispatched to the Breeding Tribe village, scattering them all around.
Even Poispois, a founding member, was on a mission, making it hard to see him often.
“I should check on Poispois and perhaps synthesize Bokkeum to level 6.”
Recently, there were more slimes leveling up.
It wasn’t uncommon to spot ones at level 5.
Despite trying to synthesize them evenly, there were quite a few high-level slimes.
Bokkeum’s level was still 5 for now.
This time, I’ll synthesize it to level 6.
And there was one other slime I was particularly interested in.
It was none other than Headbutt.
It seemed like Headbutt had been learning diligently from the drunken-style slime.
By now, would the training have shown results?
First, I decided to look for Poispois.
After asking around, I got the expected information that Poispois was at Meluca flower field.
“Kya-ha!”
“Come here!”
Looking to the side, the kids were having fun playing amongst themselves.
Just in case, I asked them.
“Is there anyone who wants to come with me to see Poispois? I’m also planning to synthesize Bokkeum to level 6.”
“Ooh! Let’s go!”
Ara, who had been running around excitedly, quickly dashed over to me.
Following behind were Emily and Cheong. Soon, from far away, I heard Kyler’s voice calling out.
“Ah! I’m going somewhere with Dad for a bit.”
“We’ll be at the fairy village, so come by if you have time.”
“Okay!”
For now, I took Ara and Cheong with me to where Poispois was.
It hadn’t actually been that long—just about four days since I’d last seen him.
Of course, four days could still be considered a long time, so I figured I should check in on him before he sulks.
“But both Woofy and Purr aren’t here.”
Looks like someone else took them.
In the end, we decided to run all the way to the fairy village for the first time in a while.
“You’re faster!”
“I’m a Level 3 Awakener now!”
Level 3!
Ah, the resonance of that number felt entirely different from being Level 1.
If Levels 1 and 2 were close to the limits of human capability, Level 3 marked the start of being a true Awakener.
As I wasn’t an Awakener who subjugated dungeons, I rarely got to feel the impact of this power. But this time, I planned to enjoy it thoroughly.
“Whoooosh!”
With Cheong on my back, I ran with all my might.
The strength I felt through my feet was clearly on a different level from before.
“Amazing! Faster, faster!”
“Can I catch up to Ara now?”
“Try me!”
Ara ran alongside me effortlessly before increasing her speed.
Not wanting to lose, I pushed myself to go faster, but Ara steadily pulled ahead.
“Ughh.”
Of course, I couldn’t beat Ara.
Her growth speed from eating was far quicker than my speed of leveling up through golden crops.
I guessed that Ara’s physical abilities were now comparable to a Level 9 Awakener.
What was even more terrifying, though, was this:
Ara had only grown for about two years and had already reached this level.
When we first tested her, she was around a Level 4 Awakener. What would she be like in another three, five, or ten years?
“She wouldn’t destroy the Earth with a single punch, right…?”
I thought of a certain cartoon featuring Son Goku.
Its protagonist and villains shattered planets with universe-level powers.
Lost in those thoughts, I realized we’d already arrived at the fairy village.
“So this is where Purr is.”
Arriving, I saw the fairies along with Purr.
In one corner, Jae-seong was receiving honey and mushrooms from the fairies.
“So it was Jae-seong.”
“Ah, Brother, you’re here?”
Familiar faces were scattered here and there.
Or rather, there were unfamiliar ones among the fairies.
They seemed to be Soo’s subordinates.
-Krooom.
-Kyuu-it.
At that moment, Gomgom and Soo came out with their arms full of World Tree mushrooms. Frey followed behind them.
It seemed they were delivering mushrooms to Jae-seong.
“Hi, everyone.”
-My Lord! Lord!
Frey flew toward me excitedly.
With teary eyes, Frey pointed at the herbs.
-Soo dared to plan a rebellion!
-Soooo!?
Soo’s flustered expression was absolutely adorable.
The once innocent Soo has grown so much. As for me, it’s truly touching.
“Soo!”
Ara, carrying her side pack, approached Soo.
Soo began sweating profusely.
-Sooo!
Then, as if protesting, Soo shouted something.
Ara responded with a contemplative “Hmm!” and nodded as if Soo had made a valid point.
What exactly were they talking about?
As I blankly observed the scene, Jae-seong spoke to me.
“These little ones have some pretty fascinating abilities.”
“Huh? What kind of abilities?”
“They can make honey.”
“…Honey?”
Wait, are you saying they don’t just collect honey, but actually produce it themselves?
Right on cue, one of them pointed to a flower blooming on its head, as if to prove Jae-seong’s words.
-Bzzz.
Could that buzzing sound mean “honey”?
Either way, a fairy came over with an adorable tool and began extracting honey from the little herb creature’s flower.
“Wow, what is this…?”
Something about it was… peculiar.
I continued watching, and soon enough, the honey extraction was complete.
The amount was barely half the size of a pinky nail—just enough to vanish with a single lick.
“The quantity isn’t small at all.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It seems like they can extract it once every hour.”
“Wait, once every hour?”
“I’m not sure of the exact timing, but roughly once an hour. That adds up to a lot.”
Jae-seong was right.
Even if it was just half a pinky nail’s worth, being able to harvest it over 20 times a day made a big difference.
Plus, thanks to Soo, the number of these herb creatures was steadily increasing.
Even now, there were about 20 of them.
If their numbers reached a hundred, a honey factory wouldn’t even be necessary.
“Hmm, I wonder how much we could gather in a day.”
“Why don’t you try tasting it first, brother?”
“Oh! Good idea.”
I was curious about how it would compare to Alfheim’s honey.
I tasted the freshly harvested honey.
It had a sweet and tangy flavor.
“Oh, this is a unique taste.”
It wasn’t the thick, rich honey I was used to but had a lighter, more refreshing quality.
“Now try this one.”
“And this is…?”
Jae-seong handed me another sample of honey.
When I tasted it, the original honey’s flavor and aroma were preserved, but the overall feel was much cleaner.
The flavor had greatly improved.
“This is amazing! What’s the secret?”
“The fairies processed it. That’s their version of the honey you just tried.”
“Wow!”
I clapped my hands in admiration, prompting the fairy and the herb creature who had provided the honey to puff out their chests proudly.
-Kyu!
-(‘w`)/
The processed honey from Alfheim was already a more refined version of ordinary honey.
But this honey felt entirely different—an entirely new kind of flavor and aroma. Each had its own charm.
“Just thinking about cooking with this makes me excited, brother. Hehe.”
“Wow, I’m looking forward to it! Can we try some today?”
“There’s not enough yet. I’ll cook something after gathering more over a few days.”
“Alright, sounds good.”
I was immensely satisfied.
Who would have thought Soo’s creations had the ability to produce honey?
“I thought they were just cute…”
Ah, I almost forgot the reason I came here.
I quickly set off with Ara and Cheong to Meluca’s flower field.
“Wow.”
“It’s beautiful!”
Meluca’s flower field, shaded and exuding a mystical and dreamy vibe.
In the middle of it all, Poispois greeted us.
Wriggle!
“Hello, Poispois! Have you been doing well?”
Poispois, whom I hadn’t seen in four days, was the same as ever.
Even after becoming a slime of greed, Poispois remained diligent as the caretaker of Meluca’s flower field.
“I used to rely on Mammon’s poison back then.”
Now, Poispois’s poison alone was enough.
It felt a bit like assigning high-level talent to something as mundane as tending flowers, but entrusting it to Mammon wasn’t an option either.
After all, Mammon could only create poison and couldn’t handle plants.
In many ways, Poispois was perfect for the job.
And these weren’t just ordinary flowers—the fairies’ food supply depended on them, making this an extremely important task.
“Here, I brought you a gift.”
Wriggle?
Poispois tilted his head as I handed over the item.
It was none other than armor—an actual item.
I’d picked up something random while out and about and wanted Poispois to try it.
Poispois had gained the ability of greed upon becoming a slime of avarice.
[Greed LV.??]
He could absorb valuable items.
His abilities grew based on what he absorbed.
It was similar to Ara’s devouring ability.
But I’d never tested it before.
“This is super expensive.”
Wriggle?!
The item cost a whopping 5 billion.
While that was objectively a significant sum, in relative terms, it wasn’t that exorbitant.
Among items, some are worth hundreds of billions or even reach trillions in value.
Take Ara’s mythic-grade artifact of devouring stored in her hat warehouse—its value was literally incalculable.
Still, for testing purposes, I decided to go with a 5-billion-won item.
“Ah, Lee Kyu-seong, you’ve come a long way!”
The fact that I could buy a 5-billion-won item as casually as buying a bottle of water was mind-blowing.
Thinking back to the days when my daily wage was 100,000 won made this moment surreal.
Wriggle wriggle.
Poispois began wrapping itself around the armor I handed over.
The armor emitted a faint light and was gradually absorbed into Poispois.
“Oh! Whoa!”
What now? Would Poispois gain an ability like Ara?
“Did you absorb it?”
Wriggle!
“Great, let me check!”
[Poispois (Slime of Greed) LV.6]
A unique slime. A familiar of Lee Kyu-seong.
It has awakened unknown potential.
‘Capable of liquid synthesis.’
Abilities: All-Purpose Poison LV.5, Mana Detection LV.2, Greed.
I widened my eyes and carefully read the description.
However, nothing particularly noteworthy stood out.
Well, that was asking too much.
Even Ara’s devouring ability required consuming hundreds of the same type of crop to awaken new abilities.
If Poispois gained abilities just from eating a single item, it would essentially become the strongest entity in this world.
Or… would that make Mammon the strongest instead?
Gulp!
But Poispois seemed eager to assert itself, as if something had indeed changed.
[The All-Purpose Poison has become even more versatile!]
“More versatile? What does that even mean?”
What a bizarre statement.
Still, I could vaguely guess the implication.
It likely meant that the variety or effects of poison Poispois could use had increased.
From this, I could roughly deduce the ability granted by Greed.
“The poison’s abilities grow!”
It wasn’t as overpowered as Ara’s devouring ability.
The growth was limited to poison, but that was still impressive.
It seemed Mammon, too, had negligible physical abilities but focused entirely on poison—likely a similar principle.
Even so, this was an ability worth investing in.
If the variety of poisons expanded and they became more versatile, it felt like even the impossible could become achievable.
“Alright, let’s make it official: the Poispois Poison Enhancement Project is a go!”
“Whoa! Poispois Growth Project it is!”
Incidentally, I was planning to visit the Skyscraper Guild soon, and there might be a situation where Poispois’s abilities would come in handy.
Until then, I’d make sure to diligently feed Poispois and help it grow as much as possible.
Cliche Novel 