Early morning. We left the abandoned village and wandered through the withered grasslands.
The sky was perpetually stuck in twilight — without a day-night stone, you'd go crazy.
The endless expanse of dead grass was tedious and uninteresting.
We scattered bone wolves, bone boars, and bone rabbits out of our way.
Juicy did most of the work. He was always out front, chasing after bones and taking down monsters ahead of everyone else.
I'd get a little nervous wondering when he'd show up with one clamped in his mouth.
"It's all stuff you can't eat, huh."
"Well, we've got tons of food in the pouch."
Agaro's pouch could hold as much as an entire warehouse.
But more than half of it was liquor.
"I know, I know. I totally get that feeling."
It was in the witch's pouch too — the one with a completely unknown storage capacity.
There was food in there, plus six sofas that were gentle on red and black tails, and herbs and whatnot.
It also seemed to be crammed with tons of other unnecessary and unwanted stuff. No idea what she used any of it for.
The witch was a compulsive collector. She was actually picking up undead bones and tossing them in.
Eventually, a broken tower came into view.
The tower — a remnant of some facility — was snapped clean in half at the middle, its remains scattered everywhere.
Near the tower, something massive was moving. What was that? A slime?
A giant, semi-transparent black slime was writhing as it absorbed masses of skulls and zombies.
Fine red characters were etched across the slime's surface, and all sorts of things floated inside it.
Did this slime have a collecting habit, too? Or was it simply an omnivore — or worse, something that ate just about anything.
"A slime?"
"Na?"
"Th-there — it's eating the undead!"
"Oh my, oh my. That's a curse slime, that is."
"The cursed kind?"
"That's right. A slime created by followers of Yomido who use undead as nutrients."
"An artificial monster?"
"Look, look — see the characters inside its body? Those are curse characters. The method is simple enough. You feed a regular slime a Relic plate containing a curse Relic, and it becomes a curse slime."
"You use a Relic plate for that?"
That seemed awfully wasteful.
I guess it was only possible because it was a slime. That's what I figured.
"Ho — but this is a first for me. A curse slime."
"Even for you, Agaro?"
That surprised me. Agaro scratched at his eyepatch with a finger.
"Of course it's a first. I mean, this is my first time in the Tomb of the Dead, too. Who'd willingly walk into the worst dungeon there is?"
He looked at the witch and threw out the line, sarcastic. Fair point. The witch gave a wry smile.
"Th-there, I can't see any weaknesses at all."
"So it's stronger than Juicy?"
Juicy's Relic, Weakness Appraisal, can't identify a target's weaknesses unless it's weaker than her.
"Still, that thing is way too big. Curse slimes are normally the same size as regular slimes, so that one's probably some kind of subspecies."
"A subspecies? I was sure that size was what curse slimes actually were. Come on. No way I'm fighting something like that. It's obviously bad news."
"Oh… Agaro. Look inside the tower."
I looked. The crumbling tower where curse slimes were prowling had no door.
So I saw the staircase leading down into it.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
"Well, well, stairs in a place like that."
There might be other staircases if we looked for them, but this dried-up grassland was bigger than I'd expected.
We didn't have time to waste on aimless searching. And we were still on the upper floors.
"Um, um, um, there's a treasure chest inside the curse slime!"
"Huh? Oh, you're right."
"Nah!"
There was a box inside the curse slime's body.
A metal box adorned with decorations. It definitely looked like a treasure chest.
"Well, well, in a place like that."
"Stairs and a treasure chest, huh… Hmm."
I decided to check that treasure chest with the Wheel of Fortune, just in case. Oh, wow. It was yellow.
A super rare. The rarity tier that had been causing a stir among us lately.
So my excitement dropped. Ah, another troublesome yellow one.
Then the witch gave me a wink like some kind of prostitute. What's even that about.
Oh, right. She wants to know the rarity tier.
"That's quite a nice treasure chest you have there."
"Wof. Do you know what it is?"
"Yeah, it's a good one. It's glowing yellow."
"Oh my, oh my. I see~"
"Hm. Not gold, is it? Just the decoration, though."
"Um, um, woof! I... I'm so excited to see what's inside!"
"Arf!"
Juicy. Already planning to claim it. Though I suppose I am curious about the contents too.
Agaro asked the witch.
"Do you know the weakness of a Cursed Slime?"
"Of course, of course. Holy water and healing items. But if it's too strong, it'll burst, so moderately-powered holy water and potions are recommended. By the way, fire is absolutely forbidden. It'll explode, you know~"
"Agaro. Did you decide to take it on?"
"Yeah. A delver who passes up a treasure chest isn't a delver."
"And, and also~! Regular blades will get dissolved too~"
Dangerous, dangerous. I was thinking an elixir knife might work.
Wait — with an elixir, it would burst, wouldn't it?
"So what should we do?"
"My my, the Doom Sword Agaro — have you forgotten the basics of how to kill a slime?"
"Oh? Slimes have cores that need to be destroyed... so that's it. That means the curse slime has a core too."
"Um, um, um, I found the core. But, woof. That core is really troublesome."
"Tricky... hey, hold on. That's the core?"
"Hmm, hmm. I see, I see."
"...Why?"
"Huh?"
We figured out the core Juushii had found right away.
It was above the treasure chest, where all the skulls had gathered. That was where the core sat.
Except it was surrounded by thick iron armor plates in a perfect arrangement. Almost too perfect of a layout.
Was the curse slime guarding it on purpose? Did it have that much intelligence?
Or was it just a plain coincidence?
"Hey, witch. If it explodes, how big are we talking?"
"Let's see. Let's see. With a body that size, this whole area would definitely be caught in the blast. And since it's a curse slime, it'd be a cursed explosion. On top of that, the blast wave would scatter the curse everywhere, and the entire grassland would definitely be cursed. Of course. You'd all be cursed too. The rupture itself wouldn't be that massive, but you'd all be cursed."
"We'd be done for."
"Um, um, um, woof. So touching the curse slime means getting cursed?"
"Yep, yep. If you had a Relic or Legendary that could resist curses, that'd be a different story. For reference, Con doesn't have one. And holy water can't dispel curses either."
"Me neither."
"Um, um, um, I don't have one either."
"I don't have one either."
Agaro muttered in disappointment.
"...So how am I supposed to beat it?"
How, indeed.
Blades are useless. Fire is strictly forbidden. An elixir too powerful risks making it burst.
To top it off, touching it curses you. You'd probably end up with one more debuff Relic.
Its weaknesses are liquid-based attacks — holy water, potions, that sort of thing. And its core.
But the thing protects its core with iron plates.
"..."
The iron plates are a problem, but the body itself is what's really thick. That curse slime.
A way to beat it... Hmm, let me think.
Simply shave away the thick slime body to expose the iron plates underneath.
Then cut through those plates and pierce the core. That's the only way.
For the shaving and exposing part, I've got Banish for emergencies.
Cutting through and piercing the core — that'll have to be someone else's job.
"Oh my, oh my. Young Wof, have you come up with something?"
"Hm? Well, sort of, but..."
"Never mind that, never mind — just say it, why don't you."
"But there are missing pieces."
"Even so, even so — if you say it out loud, something might just come together."
"Right now, every angle's blocked. I'll take any idea, no matter how small."
"Um, um, um, Lord Wof, please lend us your wisdom!"
If they were going to push that hard, I had no choice but to speak up.
"Um, I can handle the Cursed Slime's thick body. After that, we need someone who can cut through iron plates and someone who can snipe the core from a distance."
"You can deal with that cursed body? Ah — a Relic, right?"
"Yes. A Relic."
When I stated it plainly, Agaro said:
"Then I'll handle the iron plates."
"So we need someone to shoot the core."
"Even so, that's easier said than done."
"Um, um, um — I... I can use a bow."
"Huh?"
"Hmm, hmm. Now that you mention it — I've heard that before. The Tassan Marquis household is a renowned hunting family, you know."
"Come to think of it, Rel used a bow as well."
"You can use one too, young lady?"
"Um, um — w-well. Yes. Not as well as my brother Rel, but I can handle one. It's just that I don't have my own bow."
"Or arrows."
"I've got arrows."
"Hmm, hmm. As for a bow, Kon has one."
The witch pulled a pure-white bow from her pouch as she spoke.
Agaro produced several arrows as well.
"This should be enough, right?"
"Um, um, thank you so much."
"Sure thing."
"Why were you carrying arrows of all things?"
"No idea. For some reason they just keep showing up. Every time I drink myself into a stupor, I feel like there's more of them."
That reminded me of... something similar. Oh right, a memory from my past life.
Back when I worked at that black company, they held drinking parties about once a week.
Mandatory attendance, of course. And the department manager when he got blackout drunk — yes, the department manager.
He was always trying to steal the store mascot dolls from burger chain restaurants.
Naturally I stopped him, but apparently his house already had three pharmacy mascot dolls.
Plus signs, traffic cones, poles — you name it. Man, I really wanted to tell him to give those back.
Still, even if you're completely wasted, how exactly do arrows multiply?
They don't just lie around on the roadside in this world either.
"Hmm, hmm. Mm-hm, mm-hm. Hmm hmm hmm."
"Um, um, hey, woof woof. Um...?"
"Na?"
What the — the witch was staring at Juicy, looking her up and down like she was licking her with her eyes.
What was she doing? I watched carefully, ready to step in if things got dangerous.
After a moment, the witch looked away from Juicy and removed the string from the bow she'd taken out.
"Hey, hey, young Wof. Could you cut right through the middle of this for me?"
"Huh, the bowstring?"
"Right, right. It's wooden, so just slice clean through, won't you. I'll adjust it after."
"Here I go."
"Meow!"
I cut the bow in half with my knife. The usual double-edged blade. Great cutting power, as expected.
The witch thanked me and pulled all sorts of things out of her pouch.
Materials. She set them on a nearby rock. Pulled out more. A tool box.
With practiced hands, she used tools from the box on the two halves of the bow, combining materials together.
I got the sense — just a vague sense — that she was building a composite bow.
Click-clack, click-clack, and then she strung it. Done.
"Well, well, something like this, I suppose."
The witch handed the bow to Juicy.
It was slightly shorter, with a black line running through it. There was also red cloth wrapped around the center.
That was it. Well, there wasn't much to be done, I supposed.
Juicy thanked her and accepted the bow, then slowly drew the string back.
Looking closely, the bow had been symmetrical before, but now the top and bottom were different lengths — the top shorter, the bottom longer.
In that brief burst of clicking, she'd completely reshaped the bow? How did she manage that?
"Um, um, um, it's easy to draw."
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. Hold it just like that, and if you feel even a little off, let me know."
"Um, yes. I understand. Um, the top wobbles a bit."
"Oh my, oh my. Already, are we?"
The witch adjusted with a wry smile. She repeated this about three times.
And then came the test shots. Jushi's skill with the bow was impressive.
Four arrows were loosed.
Every single one hit dead center in the makeshift target the witch had carved from bone.
Maybe it was because they were the same Tasan, but her bow stance and aura reminded me of Rel.
If there was one difference, it was that her form was so beautiful you couldn't help but be captivated by it.
"With this, we should be able to pull it off."
"Yes. I agree."
"Now we just need to dip the arrowheads in holy water, right?"
The witch grinned when she heard that.
Whenever she had that particular smile, she was absolutely brimming with the urge to play some prank.
"Young Wof, could you lend me that thing?"
"That thing?"
"That thing, that thing. The thing — you know, the container for those eggs."
"Wha— wait, but if we use that, it'll crack and break!"
"No, no. I was thinking we might as well coat the whole bow with it."
"Coat it…? Well, I suppose that's fine."
The witch said "Well then, it's settled!" and pulled an old workbench out of her pouch.
It was the workbench she liked to use, but it was probably just a spare, same as the sofa.
"Huh— whoa!?"
"Oh, what's this?"
"Here we go. Hey there, puppy — mind if I borrow your bow for a sec?"
"Um, um, sure, go ahead."
I took the bow from Juicy and set it on the workbench, securing it with the built-in clamps.
Then she pulled out a slim case. Inside were brushes of various sizes.
"Come on, come on, young Wof. I'll need that egg, if you don't mind."
Prompted, I pulled the egg from the very back of my pouch.
An exquisitely crafted egg-shaped container, so realistic it could pass for the real thing.
The Sacred Egg of the Legendary Elixir. I handed it over carefully.
The witch took it, popped the lid, dipped a small brush in the elixir, and began painting the bow.
A glittering, viscous liquid coated the surface, shimmering as it went on.
"What are you painting on it?"
"It's, um, the witch's secret thing. I was holding onto it for her."
"Ohh — the secret thing, huh?"
"Um, um, it's beautiful. It's all sparkly."
Juicy's eyes were shining just as brightly.
"Alright, listen up. I'll explain now. For both of you — the fight is going to be over in an instant. Wof punches a hole, I slice through the iron plate, and you, miss, shoot the core. Simple, but we have to nail it in one shot. There won't be a second time. You ready for that?"
"Yes!"
"Um, um, I understand!"
"Nah!"
The witch finished coating the bow. It was the second elixir-coated weapon.
Unlike my knife, which I'd splattered on haphazardly, this one had been coated carefully and thoroughly.
Then again, a bow was a launching medium for arrows, so it might differ from a knife in that regard too.
The witch handed the bow to Juisy. Juisy received it, deeply moved.
"S-so, it's sparkling. I... I will absolutely pierce through the Curse Slime's core!"
Juisy steeled her resolve. Her eyes were burning with a fierce gleam.
Alright. Let's do this. Curse Slime.
"Well, well. Let's see how this goes, hmm."
"Nah?"
The witch stayed behind.
Just in case something went wrong, I left Dagaa in her care.
"We're going in all at once. I'm counting on you, Wof!"
"Yes!"
"M-master Wof. Please do your very best!"
"Yes!"
Fully pumped up. First, I cranked [Banish] to max and channeled it into my fist, then threw a punch with everything I had!
"BANISH KNUCKLE!!!"
A hole opened in the Curse Slime.