The enormous double gates towered over Iris, who looked up and felt the oppressive gloom pressing on her heart. The gap between the gates blew out a freezing wind, which spun into multiple pale whirlpools as it crashed against the warm air. The currents danced, resembling countless beckoning hands. They waved and flicked, inviting Iris into the unending darkness.

Behind the gates, the impenetrable mystery consumed all radiance, showing only a tiny path that descended into the unknown depth. Faint, indescribable sounds echoed, clicking, knocking. Iris tensed but didn't falter. Though it was dangerous, she had already made up her mind to take the risk.

Holding her breath, Iris stepped through a thin layer of blackness. Her membrane slightly compressed as her hypersensitive skin pressed against a transparent curtain. She shivered as her perception range rapidly dropped, confined within the wayward where darkness parted. Her awareness of the outside world vanished as if she had always existed inside the Legacy Ground.

Unlike the massive gates, the descending path was narrow and plain. As Iris steadily walked down, the soft knocking of her bare feet echoed throughout the corridor. The messy, chaotic noises of machinery abruptly cut off after she entered the darkness's embrace. Only the serene dimness and the empty atmosphere remained.

Iris quickly entered the Legacy Ground after the Monster Girls in front of her, but she couldn't sense their presence. Inside the stretching hallway, only the sound of her footstep and her occasional breathes, which she only did to hear the other sound, reverberated. The loneliness permeated the air, seeping into her membrane, tainting her mind.

"Vilia, you're with me, right?" Iris whispered, but she couldn't hear anything. "Where did you go?"

Fearing that she might lose herself, Iris sprinted down the corridor. Its steep slope couldn't hinder her body as she splashed and reformed as a perfect figure, flickering under the dim ambient, rising and falling like a tidal wave.

The sounds of her footsteps abruptly disappeared. Despite how she stomped the floor, the vibration and the impact never arrived. Iris’s perception rapidly faded as darkness surrounded her front and back, creeping in slowly, steadily. Iris shouted, but her voice wasn't there. The silence drowned all sounds and crushed all ripples, permitting only the emptiness to remain.

In Iris's abdomen, the Shadow Heart Core glowed dark purple and exuded a soft fragrance which circulated inside her. The strange loneliness gradually dispersed as calmness washed over her, yet Iris frowned and rushed faster than ever. She didn't stop and couldn't stop. Her speed went above her control as bits of her slime would fail to catch up and get consumed by the darkness, its connection severed.

Despite the lack of danger, Iris could feel an intense gaze watching over her, so she sacrificed her lost mass and dashed downwards, yet the depth always stretched forward, showing no sign of its end. As her mind screamed and trembled, Iris crashed into an invisible film. It enveloped her body, instantly confining her senses inside her membrane. The corridor descended into utter blackness.

Iris tumbled and fell headfirst into the earth. The moist ground rippled, tainting her quivering membrane. She caught her chest and pulled, tearing off the thin film. Her vision quickly rebound as she threw the mysterious film away, watching it disintegrated into particles of light.

The apprehension had already vanished, along with the infinite corridor and the suffocating darkness. Iris stood up and surveyed the surrounding. The soft sounds of wildlife and winds tickled her ears. The brightness of the sun charmed her eyes. The lush scenery warmed her body.

Iris stood in the middle of an abandoned road, surrounded by dense, therapeutic woods. Behind her, the dark brown trail extended beyond her view, merging with the sky at the horizon, where faint silhouettes of mountain ranges and forests persisted.

As Iris breathed in, a puff of fresh air circulated her body, caressing her slime. The earthy fragrance enveloped the atmosphere as butterflies and insects fluttered along with the breezes. Though the pressure had dissipated, a discomfort premonition still lingered in Iris's mind. She didn't dare to relax her guard, yet she also had no choice but to advance with the road.

The gentle sun hanged above the sky and radiated a warmth that the trees and flowers greedily absorbed. There was no trace of illusion nor any magical formation; it was like Iris had come to another world, another dimension separated from the material plane. She thought it was Gulia's doing but then discarded her foolish assumption.

Gulia was too powerful; her mysterious power would elude Iris, but the creator of this world couldn't hide its observation from the Shadow Heart Core. At least it was something weaker, something that could be resisted.

Ahead of Iris, the forest gradually diverged, revealing a crossroad that spread into two paths. On the side, a humble wooden house stood two stories tall. Its foundation raised above the ground, having a small set of wooden stairs connected to the front door. Despite how ancient the store should be, it was clean without a speck of dust, almost glittering like polished metals.

Iris could sense an orderly movement inside the store. The mug-shaped sign hanging over an extension indicated that it was a bar, yet there was no outdoor tables or counter. Still, a big red arrow protruded from the wall and pointed at the entrance, inviting Iris to enter and relax after a tiring journey.

Iris didn’t know which path to take, but she could ask the being inside the bar. Knowing that she was treading in an unknown world, Iris placed her hand on the door and softly pushed it, the other hand conjuring her slime into a tiny whirlpool, small enough to hide in her palm. She tensed as the door rotated open, allowing the cold air to whirl past her.

"Welcome to Merrily Isolated Bar, Customer," an emotionless yet lively voice rang. "Please take a seat. We haven't had a new customer for a long time."

Iris turned to the origin of the voice. The interior of the bar was primarily coloured black with subtle hints of other colours blending in. At the counter in the middle of the room, a lady stood with her back against Iris, drying a crystal glass. Her steadfast manner carried professionalism that compelled Iris to listen to her words and take a seat at the counter.

"What did you do?" Iris said as she narrowed her eyes. "I don't remember learning this language."

"Dear Customer, our Merrily Isolated Bar has a special function of automatic language translation, one of the high-grade programs of our time." The bartender held the mixer, raised it over her head, and poured the content into a martini glass. "Because you're the first customer in a long time, please accept our special, free-of-charge drink."

Iris leant on the marble bar counter and peeked at what the bartender was doing. The light pink liquid flowed gracefully from the mixer, then it swirled in the air before resting lightly inside the martini glass, sending a melodious noise like muffled orchestral music. Despite the height from which the drink fell, not a single drop leaked out of the glass.

Turning to Iris, the bartender, a smiling, elegant, strict maiden, stuck a slice of lemon on the glass and placed it in front of Iris. Her mechanical movement reflected her cold beauty, which captivated Iris, who kept staring at her bartender.

"You are an android?" Iris said. "Are you alive?"

"Customer, I'm an automaton, but I’m also alive and the master of my destiny." The automaton pulled a chair to her and seated opposite of Iris, smiling. "Though I can hardly express my emotions, I'll still feel embarrassed if you stare too intensely."

Embarrassed, Iris grabbed the spirit and smelt the bubbling fragrance. Her eyes still lingered on the automaton. Though there were black joint lines and gaps along her body, her fair skin exuded the dainty quality of the flesh body. Her carefree, inefficient movements built an impression of a living being, full of imperfection, yet marvellous.

Knowing that she had been staring for too long, Iris raised the glass and tasted the drink, closing her eyes.

The subtle sweetness rushed inside her and permeated her mind. The exhaustion and anxiety dissolved into a lukewarm feeling inside her chest. She shivered as her body relaxed, sinking into the peace she hadn't felt for a long time. When she opened her eyes, she had already emptied the drink, but the soothing sensation still circulated her slime.

"I've been to another high-quality bar, but I must confess that your drink is a mile above what I had there," Iris said. "Miss, can I know what this is?"

"It is called The First Experience. We give it to the customer from afar, like you, Dear Lady." The automaton snapped her fingers. "It will grant you the knowledge of our language. For those with a weak constitution, they might experience disorientation, but you're special, Dear Lady. Your mystical body can seemingly absorb everything."

Despite not realising anything, Iris could grasp the meaning of the new language. Not just the meaning, but also the connotation and the fluency. She immediately looked at the empty glass she was holding, then turned to the smiling bartender.

"This is just a free drink, something this valuable?" Iris said. "The place I'm from, there is no such magnificent drink. There is also no automaton like you, Miss Bartender."

"My apology for not introducing myself; I was too excited for a new customer after a long, long time." The bartender took out a slice of cake and placed it together with another glass of spirit. "My name is Quasi, and I'm the owner of this bar. I'm sure my story will bore you, so I'll let you have the pleasure of introducing yourself, Dear Lady."

"My name is Iris, a Slime Girl who got lost and wanted to ask for a direction." Iris eyed the cake and the new drink, thinking about what benefits they might bring. "Your bar is directly beside the crossroad. Could you be so kind to give me the direction?"

"You must be a special traveller, Iris. I've never seen anything like you before." Quasi placed a dessert fork on the plate for Iris and watched her, urging her to have a taste. "Back in the golden day, I have many customers, but they're mostly the local, the mundane people. Even the wanderers are still the same race, mortals."

"You have never seen a Monster Girl before? Though people called us Monster Girls, we come in various appearances and only have our origin in common."

"The world must have changed a lot since then." Quasi gently leant forward and sniffed Iris, placing her face uncomfortably close to Iris's. "Your power is peculiar indeed. Its essence departs from the order of the world, not coming from the Deities but opposing them."

"You can tell just from my smell?" Iris said before she blushed. "Do I smell bad?"

"Your scent is wonderful, Iris. A wisp of it carries the air of the outside world, the places where I've never been."

"But aren't you scared of me? The people outside hate us Monster Girls. They called our power Corruption Power and our races Corrupted Races."

"Because you corrupt them until they fall, right?" Quasi held her hands upward. A black sphere and a white sphere manifested. "Contamination is the power of your Corruption Power. You corrupt the pure souls and shatter their restraints. With their existence contaminated, they gradually accept their fall and become one of you."

"This power has given me the freedom I never had. I don't know about the others, but I’ve never regretted becoming a Monster Girl."

"It might be a blessing for some, and it might be a curse for others." Quasi placed her hand on Iris's. "I'm not interested in your power, but I'm interested in you, Iris."

GDLiZy

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