‘Coins! 100 of them!’
These were the coins he occasionally received as support.
If the total reached 100, the shop would open.
Having learned this new fact, the slime asked the system another question.
‘How many do I have now?’
[Currently acquired coins: 47. Total coins: 62.]
‘Wow!’
The shop hadn’t opened yet, but the slime was happy that more than half had been reached.
The slime shared his joy with the viewers.
▷ Coins! I got them! 10 coins! Got them!
▶ You got coins?
▶ You can really get coins from that red goblin?
▶ It’s relative. Depending on the situation, you can get coins. Man, I miss the days I used to earn a ton.
▶ I gotta bust my ass just to get a few coins lolol
▶ Still, 10 coins for a goblin is a pretty good haul.
[Just Slam First] ▶ Hahaha! That Body Slam was satisfying! Squishy!
[Thread-Lady] ▶ Squishy always looks so cute when it’s excited~.
While the slime was watching the chat, Godrick’s party cut off the scarlet goblin’s ear and put it in the bag.
If it were another monster, different body parts might’ve been valuable, but the goblin’s body had no use.
However, as proof of subjugation, cutting the ears off could earn a reward.
Upon returning, Godrick’s party placed the bag with goblin ears on the reception counter at the adventurer’s guild.
“Here, the proof.”
“You’ve caught quite a few. Please wait a moment.”
One of the receptionist’s duties was to quickly and accurately count the trophies, which also served as evidence of subjugation.
With three years of experience, she confidently opened the bag to count the goblin ears.
“Huh?”
And the moment she opened it, her eyes widened in shock.
“A red ear... could this be a Scarlet Goblin?”
“Yeah, we ran into it on the way.”
At Godrick’s words, the receptionist asked with a serious expression.
“Was there any other goblin near the Scarlet Goblin?”
“Nope, just the one.”
“I see.”
At Godrick’s answer, the receptionist let out a big sigh of relief.
“That’s really fortunate.”
“What is?”
“It seems the Scarlet Goblin you found had only recently appeared.”
Setting the scarlet goblin’s ear aside, the receptionist checked the remaining number of ears in the bag and continued.
“Mutants like the Scarlet Goblin are especially prone to evolving into higher species. And because goblins are naturally strong, they can form groups more easily.”
“You mean…?”
“You might think it’s just a goblin, but the most troublesome thing about a Scarlet Goblin is its high reproductive rate compared to normal ones. Or rather, they produce many goblins with high reproductive ability.”
Sighing again, the receptionist concluded firmly.
“If that Scarlet Goblin had survived, over 200 goblins could’ve appeared within a month. Even if this city might have been safe, the goblins could’ve spread and attacked other villages, so eliminating it now is a huge relief.”
“R-Really?”
Realizing they had resolved a potentially serious problem, Godrick glanced at Hawane.
“Ahem, I didn’t know it was that serious either, sir.”
“Hehe, but that goblin, it was our Tongtong who...”
As Def grinned and started bragging about the slime, slap! Skol smacked Def on the thigh.
“Ouch!”
“This slime really helped distract that goblin!”
“Really?”
As the curious receptionist looked on, the slime jumped once from Def’s head.
Boing!
‘Goblin! Defeated!’
“It’s great to see how well you all work together.”
Having confirmed all the goblin ears, the receptionist handed over the reward with a smile.
The value of the Scarlet Goblin was equivalent to 20 regular goblins.
Its strength was about three times greater, but the reward also reflected its potential future threat.
A totally unexpected jackpot.
On top of that, they practically had the Scarlet Goblin handed to them, making it feel like free money.
With more money than expected flowing in, it was only natural that Godrick’s party would burst into smiles.
“Skol, why’d you hit me earlier?”
Def asked as they left the guild. Skol lightly smacked his thigh again and answered.
“Idiot! If you spoke too honestly there, this slime would attract too much attention! What if someone tries to steal it?”
At first, he underestimated the slime and wanted to get rid of it because it was annoying.
But now, things had changed.
‘Turns out this thing’s way more useful than I thought!’
He thought it was just quick and nimble, but it had taken down a Scarlet Goblin—which was said to be three times stronger than a regular goblin—with a single blow.
A blow strong enough to flatten its face.
At this point, even Skol had to admit the slime was stronger than him.
Thanks to the slime, they had also received an unexpected bonus, making it no longer a nuisance but a source of profit in many ways.
So the fewer chances anyone had of stealing it, the better.
His usually irritable and stubborn personality had become quite flexible in the face of profit.
Godrick and Hawane noticed what Skol was thinking and looked at him with an exasperated expression.
“Hehehe, hey you guys. How about selling the slime now…”
“Get lost!”
“Eek! W-What! Why are you so mad all of a sudden?!”
“Our Tongtong isn’t for sale to anyone!”
When the robed man who wanted to buy the slime appeared, Skol immediately got mad and rejected the idea, fully recognizing the slime as a party member.
“Wow! Skol finally called it Tongtong, sir!”
“Yeah, good for you.”
“Heh, I like how honest Skol is.”
***
In the center of the Blue Elven Forest, in the elf village.
Nellin, the elf hero also known as the Starlight Archer, was at home, munching on jerky while inspecting her bow and arrows.
“Munch munch... Ugh, seriously, there’s nothing to do.”
These days, the only thing she did was hunt animals around the village and sell them there.
Deep down, she wanted to run off into the elf forest and wander around like she used to.
However, the elder didn’t allow it.
“Hero Nellin must set an example for the village! Besides, haven’t you wandered enough already?”
Because of that, she hadn’t left the Ludendion territory except for attending the funeral of a comrade who had once fought alongside her to stop a disaster.
Thanks to that, Nellin was always bored and itching for action.
‘The only fun thing lately was that slime. Tch, such a shame.’
A strangely unguarded and intelligent slime that understood words.
If she had raised that slime, she wouldn’t be feeling this bored.
However, because the elf elder was against it, Nellin had no choice but to release the slime back into the wild.
‘That slime really did seem quiet though……?’
While feeling regret and tending to her bow, someone knocked on the door—knock, knock, knock.
“Who is it?”
Nellin stopped what she was doing and got up to open the front door.
“Nellin, the Elder is calling for you.”
The one who knocked was an elf assigned as the elder’s personal guard.
“Granny? What for?”
“I was only told she has something to discuss.”
“Really?”
‘What’s this about now? I didn’t cause any trouble, did I?’
Since releasing the slime into the wild, she truly believed she had been behaving herself.
The only times she usually summoned her were to nag or announce some seasonal event, so she found it odd.
“Alright.”
Nellin followed the guard to the elder’s home to hear what she had to say.
“Granny, you called for me?”
“You’ve arrived, Nellin.”
“What’s this about? I didn’t cause any trouble.”
“I didn’t summon you to scold you. I have news to deliver.”
“News? Don’t tell me… Presia or Katshal passed away?”
Presia, in human years, was nearly 70, so it wouldn’t be surprising.
The dwarf Katshal probably had at least another 50 years in him, but one never knows what might happen, so she asked cautiously.
The elder shook her head, dismissing her concern.
“No, it’s not news of anyone’s passing.”
“Then what is it?”
“A letter arrived from the Count of Ludendion.”
“Ludendion?”
Nellin was even more confused upon hearing that name out of nowhere.
The only thing that came to mind was—
“Oh, do they want me to drop by the mansion again?”
‘That wouldn’t be bad. The meat and alcohol I had there were pretty decent.’
“No.”
“No? Tsk.”
Unable to hide her disappointment, Nellin clicked her tongue.
The elder frowned at her but chose to continue without scolding her—for now.
“The contents of this letter were truly bizarre.”
“Bizarre?”
“The Count’s daughter picked up a slime.”
“Daughter? At her age?”
“I’m not talking about the previous Count of Ludendion.”
“Oh, so the son has already inherited the title? And even has a daughter now… I guess the timing adds up. Wait, did you say a slime?”
“Yes. A slime. Apparently, the Count’s daughter picked it up while riding in her carriage. They said the slime was very gentle and affectionate.”
“Don’t tell me that slime—”
“Based on the circumstances, it seems to be the same one you brought back to our village.”
“That really happened?”
She had thought that if the slime hadn’t been attacked by wild animals, she might run into it again during patrol.
But she never imagined it would turn up in the Ludendion domain.
“You should read the letter yourself.”
Nellin took the letter the elder pulled from her robe and began reading it on the spot.
Its contents were enough to surprise even her.
The letter described how the slime lived at the mansion.
It ate meals with them, rode quietly on the Count’s daughter’s head when traveling, and at night, she even read books to it.
Even when taken out under the pretext of inspections, it didn’t get startled or misbehave, remaining perfectly calm.
Though it was still a monster, the slime’s curious nature led the Count’s daughter to agree to release it back into the wild.
And lastly, the letter described the moment of its release.
The slime had defeated twelve goblins on its own and, unbelievably, used ‘written words’ to say farewell to the Count’s daughter.
After reading everything, Nellin looked up and spoke to the elder.
“Granny.”
“Yes, it seems you’ve finished reading. Then you know—that slime…”
“We could’ve just raised it here.”
“It’s not something we can be complacent about…… huh?”
“I mean, if it was that well-behaved, there wouldn’t have been any problem keeping it in our village. You were just worrying for no reason.”
“What are you saying, Nellin?! Did you even read the letter? That slime can understand written language! What I’m saying is, if it keeps growing stronger, it could become a threat someday! So why are you being so casual about it?”
“Sigh, there you go again, Granny. Always jumping to the worst conclusions and ignoring everything else.”
“W-What did you just say?”
Holding the folded letter, Nellin tapped her palm and spoke.
“A slime smart enough to learn letters lived peacefully in the Count’s estate for an entire month. What does that tell you? It can tell when someone is being kind to it.”
“That’s…”
“Ugh, if I’d raised that thing, it would’ve been so much fun. Anyway, it’s no longer in Ludendion territory, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Hmm.”
She quietly stared at the letter, then smirked.
‘I really want to meet her—the Count’s daughter who liked that slime as much as I did.’