“[Stomach] is a storage-type skill that slimes use to store items for later use. [Storage] is a storage-type skill that you use to store items for later use, but the objects stashed inside are frozen in time. Basically, they’re in a stasis-like field.”  

“Okay, so I have two skills that do the same thing. Can I combine them? Can [Storage] overtake [Stomach]?” I asked Tilde as we sat around the kitchen table. Niva looked adorable as she looked from Sekh to me to Tilde to follow our voice.  

“Yep! Just tell the AI to do it, and it’ll do it.” I obeyed Tilde, told the AI to get it done, and...  

“The properties of [Storage] have been applied to [Stomach], and the capacities of the two have been combined. Enhancement of the former applies to the latter, and enhancement of the latter applies to the former. The weight capacity has doubled, my lord.” The multicolored rectangular stone pillar jiggled continuously like jelly.   

“[Stomach] requires SP, so it’s easier to upgrade. But that’s awesome,” I said, marveling at my new capacity of 300 LBS. I was at something like 146 LBS earlier, so this was a much-needed boost.  

But it wasn’t always good news. [Mana Regeneration] and [Photosynthesis] did not work simultaneously. I didn’t know why, and neither did Tilde, the AI, or Sekh, but I was forced to choose one. And that was another easy decision. When I was in the sunlight, the latter was active. But as soon as night fell? It was time to turn on the former.   

For the next few hours, I played around with my newfound slime physiology. With practice, I figured out how to coat my body in slickly, wet slime, and since I assimilated slimes of different shades of green. I could change between them in a flash. With my new shapeshifting ability, I could mold objects from my slime and separate them from my body. 

And uhh... I could also shapeshift into a slime, which didn’t cost me any biomass if I remained as one. My vision was a full 360 degrees around me, and it felt fun to hang out in Sekh’s lap while she had her hands around my blubbery body. I couldn’t exactly walk, so I had to hop and bounce to get where I wanted to go.  

Yeah, it was kinda fun. Even though I didn’t have a mouth, I could speak.  

But upon returning to a humanoid, I was stark naked. Tilde said the solution was with clothes enchanted with {Mana Link} were the secret to not exposing my naughty bits to every tom, dick, and harry.  

Sekh didn’t mind it, though. As I was getting dressed, she licked her lips and smiled, but it wasn’t the smile I knew. Something was bothering that adorable woman. 

I’ll ask her about it tonight. She’s staying in the village created by a pet belonging to the Soul Warrior involved in her defeat. That’s bound to stir up some emotion. 

“Sekh?” 

“My liege?” She met my eyes. 

“I love you.” 

“I love you too.” 

---

"VREDI?!?!?!” Aello exclaimed while intently flapping her wings. Her eyes were so wide I thought they were about to pop out of her head. She had knocked on the door about five minutes ago, but she was like a broken record since then. Tilde quickly calmed the Harpyfolk and told her the story we had rehearsed—the one where she found me a thousand years ago in Vredi Forest but put me in a stasis-like seal until I recovered, which happened to take 1,000 years in the hidden remains of the Springfield Forest, using a special ritual to cause a ‘rebirth of my soul,’ thereby making me a Vredi and a Springfield. I didn’t know I was a Vredi because Tilde never told me, and she never expected me to find out here.  

Did it make much sense? Probably not. It was full of holes and uncertainty, but I didn’t care because it wasn’t like they could prove I wasn’t one. The mansion opened its second and third floors for me, which in Aello’s eyes, indicated I was a Vredi.  

We finally got Aello inside and sat in a chair in the kitchen. She had brought along two boxes and wanted us to open them when she caught her breath.   

“Those are specially developed moisturizing cloths only we can make with the great Eagle Yew’s help,” she said when I pulled out a brown cloth. It was as stiff as a piece of cardboard, but it became malleable when drenched with water. “It’s best used after a bath to get the most relaxation. The other box contains pink cloths that we use in place of soap. Vredi High Blessing of the Forest, I hope you find the gift suitable. Ah, the recipe is also in there.” After believing me to be a Vredi, the tone and cadence she spoke with altered drastically at the drop of a hat. She was already polite before, but her voice contained far more respect and honor than someone like me was worthy of. After a little bit of digging, I came to understand why.  

Because Vredi Forest was destroyed, no more elves could be born with that name. And since Susize was the most famous one—and a Soul Warrior for the most powerful Holy Lord—her name carried a lot of weight. Her mother and father were probably alive, and I knew she had a sister, not to mention the other elves that lived in Vredi Forest before it was ultimately destroyed. Still, if the number of High Elves was about 10,000, and its destruction came 1,000 years ago, it was likely no more than fifty Vredis were still alive. That was why I asked Aello to keep it a secret.  

She agreed far more readily than I expected, though it was probably out of some loyalty I didn’t understand. Out of curiosity, I asked about the second and third floors. She apologized for not telling me about them. It simply skipped her mind to do so, but she said it wasn’t an excuse. But the invisible walls that only opened for a Vredi was all she knew. Aello didn’t know this was Susize’s original mansion, much less realize it was Susize's home. “The Eagle Yew works in mysterious ways, Lord Vredi Springfield. Awesome? Powerful? Exotic? Mystical? Yes, to all of the above.”  

“One more thing. Is it a problem if I do a little target practice? How taboo are guns around here?” 

“Unexpected. The taste of firearms very rarely intrudes upon Aetos Village, yet there is no rule forbidding it,” Aello said. Then she thanked me for asking her first. I didn’t have a reason to not ask her first. It was in my best interest to remain on good terms with her and the rest of the village until Niva had her prosthetics. And speaking of that, I mentally commanded the AI to study Enap’s technique. That appeared as a smaller window in my vision, where he was working hard, but I pushed it off to the side and didn't focus on it.  

Seems like the smaller the window of [Map] in satellite mode, the less strain it causes for me. That’s good to know. 

After some talk, Aello excused herself and made way for the door. She had no hands, yet her long talons were dexterous enough to grip the knob and turn it. “If you need anything, please feel free to ask me. Aetos Village is a village of compassion and cooperation. We all work with each other for each other.” We thanked her for the gift, watched her away, and closed and locked the door behind her.   

Huh, she didn’t even say anything about my new outfit when I said I covered myself due to personal reasons. Eh, if she isn’t going to bring it up, that’s fine. 

There was time to kill, and Sekh and I spent it on target practice. The training room was too small, and I didn’t want to deal with broken glass in case Sekh missed, so to the backyard we went. My original plan was to make some frisbee-like objects out of my slime and throw them, but then I realized I could take out a bunch of cooking pots from [Artificer’s Arsenal]. It was infinite, after all.  

Tilde pointed to a nearby bench with a backrest, and Sekh and I carried it about 20 feet away. Once the pots were stacked, we returned to Niva. “It’s going to get loud,” I told her. “It’s just Sekh shooting her gun, so don’t be afraid.” She nodded.  

Sekh drew her gun, chambered a round, and carefully took aim.  

 Reina’s instincts were screaming in agony at Sekh’s horrible stance that I just had to step in to stop the second-hand embarrassment. She tried to copy me, but that wasn’t working. The easiest solution was to stand behind her and manually correct her stance, and I didn’t mind that because I got some quality touching in. Her elbows were too far out, her wrists were far too limp, and even the gun was slightly crooked in her grip, not to mention that there was no way she could line up the iron sight.  

The proper form was going to feel uncomfortable until she became used to it, and she understood that.   

“My liege, please adjust my form as you see fit,” she said before squeezing the trigger. A sharp, piercing gunshot rang out, causing several flocks of birds to immediately fly for safety. It was like a mass exodus of shadow and color that temporarily blanketed large portions of the sky.  

But Sekh missed her target. And she missed it again. And again. And again. On the fifth time, she managed to strike true and was rewarded with a satisfying ting. “My liege! I did it!” she happily cheered.  

“Great job!” I replied, happy that she felt joy during this tumultuous period. Maybe it was wrong for me to occupy her mind until we had a chance to talk later tonight, but I’d do anything for her to keep that smile on her face. After all she’d been through and endured? She certainly deserved it. 

After a few more adjustments to her stance, she even hit a target at 80 feet about 90% of the time. She even managed to regain the [Firearm] skill. Even at Lv. 1, it was enough to enhance her accuracy. Sekh felt that [Deadeye] was close to coming back, but we stopped before that happened because we were running out of ammo. With 38 bullets to our name, I needed to either find or make more.   

During our time at the ‘shooting’ range, I determined that the size of the map window with satellite mode enabled determined how quickly my headaches came. The AI only needed a few pixels worth of real estate to study what was being shown. I didn’t want to risk the pain coming any faster, so I trusted the AI to take care of my request. But in the meantime, we all returned to the atrium to get some physical training in our bodies. From my time with Kokan and Irisa, sparring was the best way to clear your mind since you had a specific outlet to direct that energy and stress. I knew it did wonders to freshen my irritated mind of failures when I was making Sekh’s mace.   

Tilde was concerned about destroying my pretty clothes, so I quickly changed back into my other outfit that covered my whole body and put my armor back on. I really liked my new clothes. I felt pretty and happy wearing them, probably because I looked and felt cute. I'd come to enjoy being in this body, and it felt far more like me than anything else. 

Sekh drew her mace and shield, and I retrieved my spear. Now that I had time to rest my soul and body, they had finally acclimated to the 100 SP I used the day after rescuing Niva. Tons of sparking new information was available at the tip of my brain. Leveling a weapon skill didn't automatically grant you new abilities related to the weapon skill. However, it increased your familiarity and overall knowledge of your weapon and improved your current skill while making it easier to learn and master new techniques. For example, after giving my body time to rest, I could now go through the standard flow chart of the Iron Branch Stance at about 80% of Kokan's speed. Within a few weeks, I bet I could match him. Perhaps a month or two after that, I could have a proper fight and give him a challenge.  

Increased mastery of the Iron Branch Stance danced around the tips of my fingers as I spun my weapon around my body. Everything felt nimbler and more perceivable. Tilde sat in Niva’s lap to tell her what was happening while acting as the referee.   

The moment she started the match, I made the first move. Spinning the spear above me, I used that to distract Sekh’s eyes while I went for a low sweep-- a staple misdirection of the stance, and one that worked well for me since I now had the power of slime. She saw it coming and stomped my foot down, but that broke off into a wave of slime while I used webbing to pull myself backwards and recovered in less than a second.   

The fabled Dark Lord of Tyranny grinned and flashed her canines, and our second bout began. We started with something small—just a few clashes. Meeting metal with metal and spear with shield, eliciting sharp, piercing, screeching results. Sparks flew, setting the background for our most intense dual yet. 

“Take this!!!!” I shouted. Jumping back half a step, I shifted forward and threw the spear with the palm of my hand. Sekh deftly put [Shield Parry] to swat it like an unruly fly and tried to press me against the wall with [Shield Pin].   

“It won’t work!!! I know how you fight, my liege!!”   

Shit! 

Her sharp eyes must’ve noticed the fine thread attached to the spear. The plan was to reel it back in, but she turned around, smacked the incoming weapon upwards with her shield, then bashed it with her mace to send it flying toward me. I just barely caught it, but at that point, it was too late. Sekh slammed into me with her shield out, sending me flying back to the wall.  

“GGUUUHHHHH!!!!” Tilde and I cried at the same time. The pain was pulsing, but I still managed to roll out of the way of her follow-up attack. A fraction of a second later, the upper portion of my arm would’ve been red-paste against the hardwood floor.  

Webs spewed from my head to get me back to my feet, but Sekh’s tenacity for battle knew no bounds. Once she had a foe on the defensive, she never let anyone get a chance to recover. I did all I could to avoid her powerful slams. Her sharp eyes always saw my webs before they latched onto anything. Attempting to squirm my way through her legs with my slime form intimately reunited me with her [Black Fire]. 

She’s honestly got me trapped. 

With just one idea left in my mind, I transformed all ten fingers into vines and wrapped them around her leg. Her flame-covered shield ignited the top ones, and the bottom ones managed to channel [Water Blade], which viciously tore into the boiled leather's gaps and latched onto her tunic. 

“Nice try! But it won’t work!” Steam arose when Sekh burned my water-covered vines, but that was a smoke screen. 

It’s time to put this into action. I’m sorry it took so long, Irisa. 

From my back came eight spider legs through eight holes in my armor that quietly carried me up the wall and onto the second-floor balcony. The steam vanished, and I was nowhere to be found. A chimera was a master of adaptability, and Sekh knew I could be just about anywhere with my newly upgraded shapeshifting abilities. She cautiously called out to me with her shield raised, but I continued my ascent to the ceiling and carefully lowered myself while upside down. Before making my ascent, I left behind a few droplets of slime to distract Sekh from looking up.   

“Boo...” I whispered in her ears, my head right behind her. She turned around quickly and pressed her lips to mine.  

“That was a nice try, but better luck next time.”   

“I never really stood a chance, did I?”  

“Sorry, but you didn’t.” Sekh cut my web and caught me before I hit the ground. “You thought you were quiet, but I saw through the steam. But thank you.”  

“For...?”  

“For sparring with me. It was short-lived, but I feel better.” 

“You’re welcome. We can do some more tomorrow. I don’t know when Enap is going to show up. The AI closed out of the map window because he was done forging. Suppose I should have told you to keep monitoring him. Oh well. AI, you did good. Take a break.” 

That is not necessary, my lord. 

---

It was getting somewhat late, so after a quick vegetarian dinner for me and a tasty steak for Sekh and Niva, we went out to the porch and simply relaxed on the swinging bench. We kicked off the ground and enjoyed the naturalistic, pleasant atmosphere. The giant tree occupied our eyes, but we also stared at the children playing with each other in that playground.  

When I held Sekh hand, it felt like we were a long-married couple staring at the new generation. Everything was just so tranquil... 

Before long, a shirtless man with the lower half of a spider made his way through the village. All of the children cheered and ran to jump on his eight legs. It seemed like Enap was having a grand ole time. After playing with them, he sent them on his way and resumed heading towards us.   

After some polite conversation, in which he apologized for taking too long to get to us, we discussed the job I wanted him to do. “Prosthetics?”  

“That’s right,” I replied, telling him of my failed attempt to make a leg for Niva. He noted that High Elves who liked to forge with metal were rare, but he approved that I tried to handle the problem.  

“What material do you want? Iron will be the cheapest, but it’ll also be heavy. It’s not something you want for someone not used to them. Steel is lighter, but it isn’t as tough as mythril.”  

“And I’m assuming mythril is the most expensive?”  

Enap nodded and tucked his eight legs underneath his hulking body to sit down. From a small pouch wrapped around his waist, he retrieved a journal and stenciled some designs he had in mind. “There are better metals to use than mythril, but the price-to-performance ratio isn’t worth the drastically increased cost. Now, what style do you want? I could create a near-perfect copy of her other leg. If you want to make it cheaper, I could only have the pylon that connects to the foot and the socket. What will she be doing it? I’m sorry, ma’am. What do you intend to do with these prosthetics? Fighting? Running? Jumping? Lifting?”  

Niva looked at Enap while assuring sure her hood shadowed her face, then turned to face me.  

“She’s a summoner of spirits, so fighting and running,” I replied, telling Enap that Niva-- ‘Lola’— couldn’t speak right now. 

“Ah, that’s helpful. Now, for the measurements...” 

I have them right here.” I pointed to my head. Tilde was far too busy salivating and drooling while rubbing Enap’s abs, and Sekh and Niva remained quiet. 

“Please, I mean no disrespect, but I cannot use your numbers. I want to believe they are right, but in the rare case they aren’t...” 

“I understand, but I insist you take them. Lola is under my protection, and I must make sure her identity will not get out. Surely someone with your knowledge realizes that Lola is a fake name. Why do you think she’s covered from head to toe?” 

Enap took a deep breath. “The absolute very last thing I would ever do is betray the secrecy of a High Blessing—” 

“Then what about the secrecy of a Vredi?” I asked, cutting him off. His ten eyes went wide, and a cold, nervous sweat immediately dripped down his face. 

“A... A Vredi? From the fabled Vredi Forest?!” 

Might as well put this into action. 

Standing up, I put on my most regal voice. “Swear to me—Lyudmila Vredi Springfield— that the contents you see will not divulge from your mouth. That you will tell nary a soul that is of the living or dead or of spirit or demonic origins.” 

“Of--Of course!” Enap bowed his head and placed an arm across his chest.  

“His words are true, my liege,” Sekh said. She narrowed her silver eyes and scanned him up and down. 

Standing up, I told him to follow me to the backyard while I grabbed Niva’s wheelchair. His demeanor had changed to something stressful while remaining securely behind me, like he was afraid to get close. For the hell of it, I asked him about my new tunic, then wondered what went through his mind earlier when I was covered from neck to toe. Unsurprisingly, he just thought that was how I dressed since he used to live in the desert, and you had to dress for the sandstorms that popped up. Depending on the material and style of clothing, it was a good idea to wear more to stay cool while also having an easier time keeping warm when the sun fell. Deserts had a reputation for being blisteringly hot, but it wasn't rare to die of hypothermia once the moon took its place in the sky.  

“To take her measurements, you just need to see her arms and legs, yes?”   

“That’s correct, Lady Springfield. Rather, would you like to be called Lady Vredi?”   

“The former. Please, do not divulge my true identity to anyone. If I wish people to know, I will tell them. Then it is no trouble if her face is to remain hidden?” 

“That will not be a problem, Lady Springfield,” Enap replied, pulling a measuring tape from his pouch. He asked permission twice over, and Niva nodded. She looked at me. I stood behind her while he lifted the sleeves of her robe. Gasping at the bandages, Enap retained a professional attitude and took his measurements using her remaining arm as a reference. Sometimes, he’d turn back to his sketchbook and pen down a design or two after drawing her arm and hand for reference.  

“You know,” he said when he saw the dead spots of pulsing flesh on her lower thighs. “Ruru, that Deerfolk you met before? He’s adept at mixing potions. He could probably whip up something to help encourage Lola’s scales to grow back. Could do something about this burn right here, too. It’s a stubborn thing, right?”  

“Really? And you can say that again. I did my best to make remedies with what I had, but my herbs were old and dried. I couldn’t get the good stuff.”  

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that here. The forest provides us what we need to survive. As I said, Ruru will be more than willing to help you if you want to ask him.” Enap finished his measurements, double-checked them once more, then showed me a few designs. Honestly, all of them looked really good, but I went with the ones that were more humanoid-like. He showed me one that had the socket connected to a pylon, but since I was already footing the bill for mythril, I at least wanted to get my money’s worth.  

He said that was fine, but the price would be more. I just shrugged and didn't worry until he told me the total cost for one arm, leg, and a foot.  

“54 gold?!” I exclaimed.  

“That’s correct, Lady Springfield. Mythril is a rare metal. It involves a certain amount of technique to properly forge.”  

“Shit. Okay, What about the leg and foot?” I had to make a choice. Niva had a good arm, and it wasn’t like this prosthetic would even be functional to grab things.  

“That brings it down to 46. The leg and foot are more expensive because they’re more important in giving Lola her mobility back.” I asked the AI how much gold I had, and I was lucky to have 47 because of the bed, desk, and 25 pounds of meat I’d bought for Sekh.   

“Lola, is that fine? Just the foot and leg?” I inquired. Without a second of hesitation, she nodded, and that was that. Enap closed his sketchbook and wrote me a receipt while I paid him half the bill. To let him know I had the rest, I showed him another 23 gold coins, which he appreciated.   

“It will be a few days before it is ready.”  

“That’s fine,” I replied. Enap held out his hand, I shook it, and we conversed for a few more seconds before he said his goodbyes. I’d been so engrossed in getting this prosthetic thing done that I hadn’t noticed little fireflies had come out to play. Their whimsy yellow glow flashed like lanterns as they flew and illuminated without care. In the distance, I saw Ruru and Arguna chase them around while trying to catch them in their hands. 

Maybe I should ask him for help. I have to get more sociable, right? I think I’ve been doing alright so far. It’s not nearly as hard as I thought it’d be. I can do that tomorrow.