Ancient slime, huh.
I’ve discovered something completely unexpected.
Squeak.
The slime in Ara’s hand tilted its head and stared at me.
Since this one’s a slime too, I wonder if it’ll follow my commands.
“Ara, can you put it down for a moment?”
“Okay!”
As Ara put down the ancient slime, it just looked around blankly.
“Hmm, come here.”
Squeak.
Shuffle shuffle.
Oh wow, it listens to commands!
Even though it’s an ancient slime, I guess a slime is still a slime.
“Roll.”
“Jump.”
“Stop.”
The slime flawlessly executed every command I gave it.
Watching it move so obediently, I nodded in satisfaction.
“Welcome! My subordinate!”
Squeak?
The ancient slime tilted its head in confusion.
Hmm, I think I should give it a name.
“Ara, what should we name it?”
“Hmm…”
Ara stroked her chin and pondered deeply. After a while, she looked at me and hesitantly spoke.
“Sujaebi?”
“Sujaebi? What’s that?”
“Um… alright, let’s call it Sujaebi.”
I’m sorry, Sujaebi.
Even your name couldn’t escape fate.
“When will we finish naming everything?”
“Huh? Who?”
I raised my gaze and looked at where Ara was pointing.
“Huh?”
There, besides Sujaebi, other ancient slimes were blankly staring at us.
It wasn’t just one!
Counting them, there were about nine ancient slimes. Moreover, through Ara’s interpretation, I learned that these nine weren’t the only ones.
“Great, new recruits!”
Haha, the more workers, the better.
But I was curious about one thing.
Could these guys farm too?
As my curiosity grew, the crystal slime and the new slimes gathered together and started interacting.
Blob?
Squeak!
Wiggle wiggle.
Squeak.
I wasn’t sure what they were doing, but the scene of them bonding looked quite endearing.
Especially with the ancient slimes, as they had visible eyes and mouths, their emotions were easy to read.
Squeak!
They smiled brightly.
At least, it was clear that their current emotions were positive.
“Now that I think about it, these guys are said to have liquid synthesis abilities.”
I felt intrigued.
What would happen if I tried synthesizing the ancient slime?
While I was lost in thought, the slimes suddenly began moving.
“They’re leaving!”
“Huh? To where?”
“To the village!”
“The village?”
I followed after the group of slimes.
Ara, Mammon, Ras, Ashu, Cheong, Frey.
And even the slimes.
Seon-ah, Jae-seong, and Orie were nowhere to be seen.
I wondered how far we’d go, and eventually, we arrived at a cave.
The entrance was enormous, easily dozens of meters tall.
“Wow.”
I marveled as I followed inside.
As we entered, echoes filled the air, and I could hear the faint sound of flowing water.
Simultaneously, the adorable sounds of the slimes moving could be heard.
“It’s the village!” Ara declared again.
Her words made me realize that this place was the village where the ancient slimes lived.
As we ventured further inside, a bright light came into view. Heading toward the dazzling light, the interior gradually lit up.
“Wow.”
Whoosh…
A massive waterfall was flowing.
A gigantic waterfall inside a cave—how scenic!
The ceiling was open, allowing light to stream in. Strangely, the light was a pure white color, something rarely seen in the Dungeon of Gluttony.
It was almost like sunlight.
Thanks to this, the village, centered around the enormous waterfall, was illuminated, creating a bright and lively scene.
Squeak? Squeak!
Squeak-squeak!
Despite being inside a cave, the area was surrounded by grass-like plants, with wildflowers blooming shyly in between.
Such a beautiful sight.
The scenery was breathtaking.
“You all live here, huh?”
“Kyu-seong Kyu-seong ! Can I go play?”
“Sure, go ahead.”
“Let’s gooo!”
Ara dashed straight toward the waterfall.
Following behind her were Cheong and a few slimes.
Nearby, I noticed some makeshift slime dwellings.
Covered by grass-like plants that blanketed the surroundings, these dwellings gave off a harmonious vibe, as if coexisting with nature. It suited the ancient slime species perfectly.
Wait… I don’t see any fields.
What do these guys eat?
“Kyu-seong Kyu-seong !”
“Oh, Ashu.”
“There’s food over there!”
Ashu, who was exploring nearby, tugged at my arm.
Following her lead, I found myself headed toward the waterfall.
“Wait, food? Here?”
“It’s inside there!”
I could only see kids playing enthusiastically in the waterfall.
What’s she talking about?
Before I could ask, Ashu disappeared behind the waterfall.
“Huh?”
What’s this? There’s a space behind the waterfall?
Curiosity sparked at this unexpected discovery.
Spotting an ancient slime nearby, I asked it to guide me.
Squeak!
Following the slime, I found a path leading behind the waterfall without getting wet.
“Oh wow…”
The space behind the waterfall revealed yet another surprising scene.
How should I describe this?
It’s kind of tricky.
“Look, Kyu-seong Kyu-seong , over here!”
As Ashu pointed out, there was indeed food here.
Or… should I call it food?
Honestly, I wasn’t sure what it was.
To describe it roughly: plants growing out of rocks, plants dangling from the ceiling, and mysterious floating orbs of light.
It was fascinating.
The sight felt incredibly ethereal.
Since it was behind the waterfall, there was no direct natural light, but the floating light orbs illuminated the space, creating a sparkling, magical scene.
“This is food?”
“Yes, it looks like it’s what they eat.”
“Really? This?”
The plants were truly peculiar.
And these fist-sized floating orbs of light—what were they?
Just then, one of the ancient slimes stepped forward cautiously and did something.
Pop!
I realized it was pulling up a plant rooted in the rocks.
Squeak!
“You’re giving this to me?”
Squeak-squeak!
The slime handed me a long piece of grass.
From its appearance, it resembled a green onion.
How it managed to grow roots in the rock was beyond me.
For now, I checked to see if it was an item—but it wasn’t.
I split the leek-like plant in half and gave one part to Ashu.
“Hmm?”
It had a spicy aroma.
When I cut the leek-like plant, its sap released a faint, spicy scent.
It really seemed like a green onion—no, more like a spring onion.
Crunch.
I took a bite.
A subtle sweetness accompanied by a spicy aroma spread in my mouth.
Curiously, though the scent was spicy, the taste itself wasn’t spicy at all.
“How fascinating.”
The flavor was excellent.
It wasn’t as astonishing as the crops I personally cultivated, but it was good enough to earn my approval.
It also had a unique taste and charm that I didn’t find in the usual crops I ate.
It was tangy, crunchy, and had a gentle onion-like aroma.
Honestly, I preferred this over the green onions sold in stores.
Squeak!
Meanwhile, the ancient slime was hopping around, trying to catch one of the floating orbs of light.
“Is it okay to catch that?”
“Let me do it!”
Ashu swiftly grabbed one of the orbs.
I had worried it might be a living creature, but when I saw the caught orb, I was surprised.
“It’s a plant?”
“Wow, even I’m amazed. I didn’t expect a vegetable like this!”
It turned out to have proper leaves wrapped around its glowing part.
The orb was incredibly light, which explained why it floated around.
“What kind of plant is this?”
“Let’s see what happens.”
Ashu handed the glowing orb to the slime.
The slime peeled away the leaves one by one, like peeling a banana, and ate only the glowing core inside.
Nom nom nom.
Its tiny mouth made adorable munching sounds.
“Shall we try it too?”
“I want to try it!”
We each grabbed an orb and peeled off the leafy outer layers, just like the slime.
Finally, we popped the glowing core into our mouths.
“Whoa?!”
Cotton candy!
The texture melted instantly in my mouth.
Actually, it didn’t even feel like it had texture.
But the flavor was nothing like cotton candy.
Vanilla ice cream? But without the sweetness?
At the same time, there was a rich, chocolate-like taste. Though again, it wasn’t sweet.
It was an incredibly unique flavor, so I slowly savored the taste and aroma.
If sugar were added, this could make a fantastic dessert.
“Wow, this is amazing.”
“It’s filling too!”
Surprisingly, just as Ashu said, I felt full.
It was as light as cotton but left a satisfying heaviness in my stomach after eating.
How on earth did this plant grow?
It was truly peculiar.
Squeak!!
Next, there was a vine hanging from the ceiling. On the vine were clusters of chili-like crops.
Some of them had fallen to the ground, and it seemed the slimes were eating the ones that had dropped.
Ashu and I also picked up a few fallen ones.
They looked like long beans with a sleek outer shell.
Inside, they seemed to contain actual beans.
First, we observed how the slimes handled them.
Rip.
As expected, the slime split open the outer shell.
Inside were beans.
“This seems pretty normal.”
For the first time, I thought I had encountered a relatively ordinary plant.
But then, the slime ate the outer shell and discarded the beans.
“??”
What’s this?
They eat the shell and throw away the beans?
Maybe they’re eating it wrong?
Although I was slightly confused, I decided to follow suit.
There were plenty of fallen ones on the ground, so there was no harm in trying.
“Okay, so you peel the shell like this… And then… throw away the beans?”
I put the shell in my mouth.
Crunch.
“Huh??!!”
A taste I never expected!
How could this be?
Crunch crunch.
With each bite, juice oozed out.
At the same time, there was a strangely familiar flavor.
“Jerky?”
“It tastes like meat! This is so fascinating!”
Ashu, you’re a rabbit—how do you even know what meat tastes like?
Regardless, as Ashu said, the shell of this bean-like plant tasted like meat.
And not just plain meat—it had a seasoned flavor!
“How is this even possible?”
Out of curiosity, I picked up the discarded beans.
I cautiously tasted one.
“…Now I get why they were thrown away.”
It was bitter, with a strong grassy taste, like chewing on raw weeds.
In contrast, the shell tasted like meat.
The contrast was unbelievably odd.
After sampling the three unique plants, I looked around.
The area behind the waterfall was incredibly spacious.
It seemed endless.
Now I noticed scattered slimes here and there, busily doing something.
These little guys were clearly natural-born farmers.
“I need to take this new ingredient to Jae-seong.”
“Let’s show it to Master! He’ll make a new recipe!”
The spring onion-like plant was impressive, though I already loved it.
But the floating plant and the meat-flavored shell were extraordinary.
These ingredients were nothing like Earth’s.
I imagined Jae-seong crafting a signature dish with them—it was exciting.
Ashu and I gathered some of the crops.
I felt a little guilty about taking them from the ancient slimes, but there was so much that our haul was a mere fraction.
Splash splash!
“Try to stop me!”
“Mammon! Block him!”
“Aaah, how can I stop him?”
The kids were happily playing in the lake formed by the waterfall.
Surprisingly, Ara was quiet, meditating.
“Kids, I’m stepping out for a bit!”
“Okay, Dad!”
Cheong, who was splashing in the water, answered on behalf of the group.
I waved at my adorable Cheong, who waved back energetically, and headed outside.
“Hmm, maybe I should install a portal right here.”
“That’s not a bad idea!”
Ashu and I descended to the surface.
Jae-seong wasn’t around, but Orie was.
“Huh? Where are the others?”
“Eh-to. They went out.”
“Ah, I see.”
They must have stepped out for the restaurant.
Maybe Seon-ah went to the forest again?
In any case, I took Orie to the kitchen.
Then I showed her the newly harvested ingredients.
“What is this?”
“It’s a new ingredient I brought from up there. Try tasting it.”
First, the spring onion.
Crunch.
Orie chewed on it and nodded, indicating it was quite good.
Next was the glowing orb.
Bringing it down had been tricky since it kept trying to float away. I made a mental note to collect them in a mesh bag next time.
Orie looked fascinated by the floating orb.
She peeled off the leaves, just like peeling a banana, and her eyes widened in surprise.
“Umami!”
“It’s delicious, isn’t it? Fascinating, right?”
“Yes!”
She nodded vigorously, her reaction full of enthusiasm.
But the real surprise was still to come.
“Now, try this bean shell!”
“Ehh?”
I peeled the shell, discarded the beans, and handed it to Orie. She tilted her head, clearly puzzled.
When I gestured for her to eat it, she cautiously took a bite of the shell.
And then—
“EEEEHHHHH?!!”
Her shocked exclamation echoed through the kitchen.
Cliche Novel 