A quiet, damp cave.
From the ceiling, droplets of dew trickled down, and moss sprouted across the floor—a sign that life was about to be born inside the cave.
Among the world's vast and ever-present mana, a faintly condensed fragment formed a shape and conceived a “monster.”
[A slime has been created.]
A slime.
A low-tier monster that required an almost negligible amount of mana to be born.
The light green slime, soft and squishy in appearance, gently wobbled in place, instinctively searching for food.
Wobbling and swaying, the light green slime slowly moved.
Before long, it reached the moss.
Sensing instinctively that it could nourish itself with it, the slime absorbed the moss—its color not unlike its own—into its body and digested it.
In that moment.
The slime had a thought.
"I want... to eat more."
The first thought the slime had upon being born.
[A being with intelligence above a certain threshold has been detected.]
That thought caught the attention of the system that governed the world.
"Huh?"
The newly born slime reacted to the sudden voice.
[Criteria met. Broadcasting permission granted.]
[Point-of-view adjustment permission granted.]
[Chat feature enabled.]
A voice continued to speak to the slime.
But the slime did not understand what it was.
Rather than paying attention to something it didn’t understand, the slime focused solely on eating moss to replenish its nutrients.
Meanwhile, the flat, monotonous voice of the system continued.
[Subject has no visual ability.]
[Locked in third-person view until vision is obtained.]
[Would you like to begin broadcasting?]
The slime didn’t respond to the question and simply kept eating all the moss around it.
The moss was steadily absorbed into the slime’s body.
And with every bit of nourishment it absorbed, the slime’s thoughts became more complex.
"Tasty… I'm full. I don’t want to eat anymore."
No longer just acting on instinct, the slime now recognized its condition and intentionally limited its actions.
Having filled its belly, the slime finally took “interest” in the voice it had heard.
Detecting the slime’s intent, the system asked again.
[Would you like to begin broadcasting?]
"Broadcasting… what is that?"
A natural question.
The slime had never even heard the word "broadcasting" before.
To the slime’s question, the system replied.
[Broadcasting means showing your existence to others.]
"Show?"
To the slime, which had no vision, the concept of “seeing” didn’t exist.
At this rate, even a proper explanation wouldn’t work.
[Assessing subject’s unique circumstances.]
[Initiating knowledge injection.]
ZAP!
A tiny spark flickered as the concepts of “seeing,” “hearing,” and “speaking” along with basic knowledge about broadcasting were implanted into the slime.
With the new knowledge, curiosity stirred within the slime.
"Why is it dark?"
It wondered why it couldn’t see anything.
To the slime’s question, the system responded.
[Subject currently has no visual ability.]
[You can acquire vision through growth.]
The system, having provided the answer the slime wanted, asked again.
[Would you like to begin broadcasting?]
The slime still couldn’t fully understand what broadcasting really was.
More than that, it wanted to directly experience what it meant to “see.”
Recognizing the system as a being that could teach it many things, the slime vaguely agreed to follow its guidance.
"Okay."
[Beginning broadcast.]
[Please set a nickname.]
A nickname is the name used to refer to oneself when broadcasting.
While anonymous mode can be used when watching other broadcasts, a nickname is required to host one.
"What should I pick?"
The slime asked the system without choosing anything.
Acknowledging the slime’s unique situation, the system reviewed past nickname input records and presented the slime with some options.
[Here are your recommended nicknames:
Puts everything in its mouth
Squishy
Future Kaiser]
The system-injected knowledge about broadcasting.
Among that knowledge was not only how to use the broadcast but also the concept of nicknames used within broadcasts.
And among the three suggested names, the slime chose the one that sounded the most interesting.
"Squishy?"
[Would you like to go with 'Squishy'? You can change your nickname later.]
"Yep! Squishy!"
[Nickname has been set to Squishy.]
[What would you like the title to be?]
With the basic knowledge of broadcasting that had been implanted, the slime decided on a title.
"I want to see."
It was the desire the slime longed for the most at that moment.
And so, the slime’s broadcast began.
***
“Ugh, isn’t there anything worth watching?”
A volcano flowing with bubbling lava.
Atop a place where no ordinary creature could survive, the Fire Dragon ruled—and was, once again, bored.
It had been a long time since anyone dared enter its territory to challenge it.
The only way to pass the time was to watch other monsters' broadcasts through the system.
But at the moment, none of the available broadcasts appealed to the Fire Dragon.
No wonder.
It had been over 600 years stuck in the volcano, watching nothing but broadcasts—finding something fresh now would be strange.
“They’re all the same. So boring. So, so boring.”
With a quick flick, the Fire Dragon manipulated the system window to view the list of broadcasts.
Most of the list was filled with lower-tier monsters hunting their prey.
Or, in some cases, those with nothing better to do performing absurd stunts.
“That stupid troll is smashing ice again today.”
The Fire Dragon frowned at the title: [Today's Ice-Smashing Challenge by Blizzard Troll].
“They really have nothing better to do. No guts these days, no guts.”
In the past, there were monsters who would storm the center of two warring nations and do a full-extermination broadcast, only to be defeated in the end.
But such monsters had long disappeared.
Bored, the Fire Dragon continued browsing the broadcast rooms with a dull expression.
And then, a strange title caught its eye.
“‘I want to see’? What’s that?”
A room title with only four characters.
A vague, cryptic title.
Usually, broadcast titles are packed with over-the-top phrases and stuffed with special characters like ☆★@ to attract attention.
But this simple title stood out among the clutter.
“Don’t tell me… Is there a new pervert? Why would someone post that here?!”
What popped into the Fire Dragon’s mind was a distasteful memory of one of its kin’s bizarre broadcasts.
『Hehe~ What I’ll show you today is~ my reverse scale~』
▶Ohh! Oooooh! Sis! Sis!!! Heuuu~ I’m dying~
▶"I’m dying" lmaooo are you getting excited over that scale lmaoo
▶Begone!!!!!! You cowardly anon, how dare you insult the beauty of the reverse scale!!! A young virgin dragon’s reverse scale is practically sacred!!!
▶Sacred my tail lmaoooo
▶You—
▶[User Anonymous563 has been kicked]
[User: Noblesse Fire] ▶ Tsk tsk! Kids these days! No shame at all! Showing your reverse scale like that…
▶Boomer alert!!! BOOOOMER!!!
▶[User Noblesse Fire has been kicked]
『Oh my~ thanks, guys~ but now that you’ve seen my reverse scale... I’m blushing~』
▶Ahh! I love you, sis! Really love you!
▶Wing dance, let’s go~!
▶[User GentlemanPhoenix has donated 50,000 coins]
『Kyaa~ Phoenix! I’m so happy~』
And the sad, idiotic responses of those who raved over that broadcast.
Of course, such content that might offend other species was usually confined to a specific, separate broadcast list due to a tacit agreement.
But the broadcast the Fire Dragon was looking at now had clearly broken that unspoken rule—it was listed in the general broadcast list.
—How dare they!
A shameless broadcast in the sacred general list was unforgivable.
Fueled by righteous fury and the intent to teach a lesson with his seasoned 'backseating,' the Fire Dragon entered the [I Want to See] broadcast room.
And what the Fire Dragon saw was—
—…What the? A slime?
A video showing a slime in a cave, from a third-person point of view.
For a moment, the Fire Dragon wondered if he had clicked the wrong broadcast.
On the far right of the broadcast screen, there was an icon indicating whether the current view was in first-person or third-person.
First-person showed the broadcast from the broadcaster’s point of view, while third-person displayed the broadcaster within the scene.
This was a third-person view.
But what was shown on screen was just a tiny slime.
—Is this slime really the one broadcasting?
It was hard to believe and utterly baffling.
Because it was a slime.
Not a Slime King or Queen, but an ordinary slime shouldn't be capable of broadcasting.
Broadcasting usually required a certain level of intelligence.
But a typical slime lived purely on instinct and was practically brainless.
‘And that kind of slime is broadcasting?’
The Fire Dragon immediately activated the chat system.
It was a system where, if you typed a message, a translucent window would appear in front of the broadcaster, visible only to them.
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ What kind of BS concept is this? You blind or what?
The Fire Dragon immediately began provoking.
With 600 years of chat experience, the idea that a slime could broadcast was utterly impossible.
So it started by trolling the room, aiming to shut down what it saw as a crappy concept broadcast.
However, the slime just squirmed its soft body.
It was hard to believe it was reacting to the chat—more likely, it was just a natural movement.
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ Playing dumb, huh? You think someone’s actually gonna go easy on you for this crap?
Even after typing more provocative lines to get a reaction, the slime didn’t respond to the Fire Dragon at all.
‘Still ignoring me?’
No reaction at all, not even to direct trolling, left the Fire Dragon puzzled.
And no wonder.
The chat messages were displayed in system-recognized text that monsters could comprehend.
In other words, they had to "see" them to understand them.
And since the slime hadn’t gained visual ability yet, it was impossible for it to see the chat and respond.
That’s when it happened.
[Gothic Luxury Bone] ▶ Hah, look at this heated-floor shut-in boomer dragon acting out in a no-viewer stream.
A snarky message appeared, indirectly mocking the Fire Dragon.
But the Fire Dragon instantly recognized the speaker from their tone.
Broadcast nickname: Gothic Luxury Bone.
An undead dragon—Bone Dragon.
Since it didn’t need to eat, sleep, or poop, it spent even more time hopping between broadcasts than the Fire Dragon.
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ LMAO, look at this toothless sack of bones barking again.
[Gothic Luxury Bone] ▶ Been in that hot floor room so long your brain’s melted? I still got all my pearly whites, thank you.
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ "Pearly whites" my tail. A stubborn old bag of bones who won’t die trying to talk big.
It was the usual banter, ending with the Bone Dragon claiming undead discrimination.
But the Bone Dragon had something far more important to deal with.
That was securing a fresh newbie.
To the Bone Dragon, who felt even more bored than the Fire Dragon, a newbie was a rare gem and a new source of stimulation.
So it immediately began newbie-wrangling.
[Gothic Luxury Bone] ▶ Squishy-sama, I apologize. That shut-in dragon is always like that—just ignore his toxic nonsense…
Of course, this chat didn’t reach the slime either.
[Gothic Luxury Bone] ▶ Squishy-sama?
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ I’ve been trolling hard, but it’s totally ignoring me.
The Bone Dragon started wondering—Is this some new monster with orichalcum-tier mental fortitude?
Then it finally realized what was on screen.
??? Wait, a slime? A slime is broadcasting?
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ Took you long enough.
—Tsk, tsk, with an empty head like that, no wonder you’re so scatterbrained.
While the Bone Dragon was in shock and the Fire Dragon clicked its tongue, the slime jiggled slightly and began to move.
It had finished digesting the moss it had absorbed and was looking for the next source of nutrients.
The Fire Dragon and Bone Dragon watched that scene for a while.
An entire hour passed like that.
[Noblesse Fire] ▶ It’s a real slime.
[Gothic Luxury Bone] ▶ Just a plain slime.
The Bone Dragon and the Fire Dragon both admitted it—it was just a slime.
—Has the system lost its mind?
As the Fire Dragon voiced new doubts in a different direction—
New viewers started trickling into the chatroom, curious about this strange broadcast.
▶???? A slime? What the heck?
▶Is someone in disguise?
▶Ah! It’s X-something!
▶What kind of slime does a broadcast? LOL
A strange room title and a strange room owner—the slime.
The newcomers, curious about it all, didn’t leave the broadcast but stayed to keep watching the slime.
While various comments and guesses flew around, the slime gently jiggled and continued eating moss at regular intervals.
Watching the slime, one viewer spoke up.
▶……This is kind of… soothing.
Soothing.
Not healing physical wounds, but something that brings peace to the heart.
As soon as one person said it, others who agreed began chiming in through the chat.
▶ Ugh, it's so cute.
▶Hmm… is it that cute?
▶ What if a wild animal comes by and gulps it down?
▶ Ugh, chaos trolls get lost already.
▶Nope, LOL.
As one, then another person kept watching the gently jiggling slime, someone finally brought up a reasonable theory.
▶ Maybe… it can’t see the chat window?
▶No brain? How’s it streaming if it can’t see?
▶ Yeah~ but it did open a stream, right? So we can watch it?
▶Here we go again—another self-proclaimed expert shows up.
▶ Ah! X-s!
Some random knowledge about slime behavior, which wasn’t taken seriously before due to lack of interest in other species.
But when the most convincing theory so far popped up, someone quick to act replied.
▶Hold up, I’m gonna go ask Squishy Queen real quick.