It's been thirty days since I devoured Veldora.
What have I been doing all this time?
You idiot — think about it!
I've turned into a slime, for crying out loud!
If a monster attacked me, how would I even fight?!
And running away isn't exactly easy either!!!
So, that's what I've been working on — figuring out a way to fight.
Along the way, I also devoured the conspicuous plants and suspiciously glowing minerals in the area.
This was, as Veldora put it, a place with a high concentration of Magicules.
Almost all the plants that grew here turned out to be Hippokute herbs.
Just as I expected.
Now my stock of Recovery Potions will keep growing.
As for the suspiciously glowing minerals, they turned out to be "Magic Ore."
Apparently, they're harder than steel and can be forged into a flexible metallic material — one that pairs well with magic.
I'd been hoping for something rarer, but come to think of it, I don't even know whether famous materials like orichalcum or hihiirokane actually exist in this world.
This might very well be rare enough. Maybe I was just being a bit too greedy.
Anyway, while munching on the plants and ore (they don't actually have a taste, you know?), it hit me!
If I can shoot water out, couldn't I make something like a water jet cutter?
Yeah, yeah — I know what you're thinking without you even saying it.
You all expect me to screw up again, don't you?
Don't underestimate me so much!
I'm a man who delivers when it counts.
My report cards always said, "He can do it if he puts his mind to it."
So, in other words — I can do this if I try.
Right. Let's get to it. I made my way to the underground lake.
In the pitch-dark, just as I'd imagined, a vast underground lake stretched out before me.
More mystical and serene than I'd pictured. The air was still and quiet.
No sign of living creatures — it was overwhelmingly silent.
The Magicules had probably permeated the water, so no living things could survive here.
A pristine realm of untouched nature!
It was a beautiful sight.
But enough of that...
Last time, I'd gone all-out without even doing a test shot, which didn't end well.
The nozzle had been sized haphazardly, so the propulsion was way too powerful.
This time, I'd imagine a squirt gun — just letting out a tiny bit of water.
I filled my mouth with water and pictured blowing it out with a little "peww."
The water wouldn't come out.
Was the nozzle too small?
I widened it slightly, and the water shot out with a splash.
It drenched the target rock.
Good, good.
Next, I'd increase the pressure a notch and open the nozzle wider.
...
...
...
I practiced my water gun, gradually increasing the power as I aimed at the target rock.
It was starting to take shape.
But it'd probably sting if it hit someone — calling it a decisive weapon felt like a stretch.
What to do...
Mulling it over, I slipped into the underground lake.
When you're tired, a bath is the answer.
This isn't just water play, mind you!
Using Magic Sense, I observed my body floating and sinking in the water.
I kind of look like a jellyfish.
What if I vibrated my body surface to create water currents?
I ran Magicules through my squishy body and manipulated the Magicules to generate vibrations.
Bwoyoyon bwoyoyon, bwoooooyon! Tiny vibrations rippled outward. And just like that — I was moving through the water.
It worked!!!
I had a blast swimming around underwater.
It was a great change of pace!
《Skill "Water Current Movement" acquired.》 For a split second I thought it was the Great Sage, but it turned out to be the Voice of the World.
Looks like that little play session earned me a skill.
I could now move through water or across its surface in any direction at a decent speed.
And if it came down to it, there was also acceleration via Water Pressure Propulsion.
Considering I didn't need to breathe, fighting underwater might actually be easier than I thought.
It'd also be great for escaping.
Thinking these thoughts, I climbed out of the underground lake.
Break was over.
Now — the problem of an offensive method.
The change of pace had given me a new idea.
The water gun method required me to continuously push pressure into the water.
This time, I'd try "pressurizing inside a cylinder and firing out a small amount of water."
Adjusting the caliber and pressure to control the power — same principle as before.
Pshhhh!!!
A thin, sharp stream of water shot out and hit the target rock.
The spot where it struck cracked slightly.
That might've been a success...
Before I lost the feeling, I kept practicing.
Adjusting caliber and pressure.
Practicing firing while imagining adding rotation to the water.
Tweaking not just the size but the shape of the nozzle, making it narrower.
Yes — the image I wanted was "cutting with water."
Pshuuun!!!
The blade of water sliced clean through the target rock!!!
Even I was shocked by the power.
A week of training (ha!) had finally borne fruit!
《Skill "Water Blade" acquired.》 《Due to acquiring skills "Water Pressure Propulsion," "Water Current Movement," and "Water Blade," Extra Skill "Water Manipulation" has evolved.》 Oh!
It really did bear fruit.
Extra Skills were apparently in a completely different league from normal Skills — both in power and performance.
Now I had a means to fight.
Just like that, I was ready to set off on my journey.
Finally.
It had been one hundred and twenty days since I was reincarnated beside this underground lake.
The day had finally come to leave this dwelling.
I was nervous. I couldn't speak.
I'd practiced trying to reshape my body to mimic vocal cords, but I still hadn't succeeded.
I'd considered staying here until I got it right, but I couldn't even picture it working.
For now, telepathy — "thought communication" — was my only option for conveying meaning.
It all depended on the other party, of course, but until I figured out how to produce sound, there was no helping it.
No point hanging around here forever.
I wanted to see the outside world, and if I could, meet a fellow "otherworlder."
Learning magic sounded like fun too!
When I thought about it like that, I really should get moving.
"When the mood strikes, it's a lucky day" — that's how the saying goes.
There was no response from Veldora.
It was as if he'd vanished, but I knew that wasn't the case.
After all, we'd made a promise.
Next time we met, I'd have some funny stories ready to make him laugh.
I stepped onto the sole path leading from the familiar depths of the underground up to the surface.
Imagining the world I'd yet to see, filled with anticipation for what was to come...
Status Name:
Unique Skill "Predator"
Slime-Unique Skills "Dissolve," "Absorb," "Self-Regeneration"
Extra Skill "Water Manipulation"
Extra Skill "Magic Sense"
Resistances: Thermal Fluctuation Resistance EX Physical Attack Resistance
In a despair no one ever visited— Veldora sat alone with his thoughts once more.
The "Calamity"-class monster, "Storm Dragon Veldora."
A Special S-Rank monster.
Monster ranks used the same A through F six-tier system as adventurer ranks.
Sometimes a "+" was appended for "somewhat stronger," or a "−" for "somewhat weaker" or sub-class.
This classification had been devised by a man called
It was clearer and more popular than the old system of Beginner → Intermediate → Advanced → Expert.
For reference: Advanced equaled C-Rank or above, Intermediate was D-Rank, Lower was E-Rank, and Beginner was F-Rank.
By hunting monsters of the appropriate rank, death tolls had plummeted.
If two combatants were the same rank, it meant they were evenly matched in a one-on-one fight.
So if you fought as a party, you had a solid benchmark for staying safe.
Special S-Rank referred to monsters that exceeded even the A-Rank designation — the Demon Lord-class S-Rank, and beyond that, the "Calamity" or "Disaster" tier.
Beings that fell completely outside the A through F framework. Off the charts.
Even a single A-Rank monster could threaten the very survival of a nation. The danger was unthinkable.
You could sense just how terrifying that was.
That said, Veldora himself was completely oblivious to all of this.
He sat thinking, as he always did.
Bored out of his mind...
Three hundred years since his defeat at the hands of the "Hero."
He replayed that battle in his mind countless times.
There was frustration. But hatred? Somehow, he never really felt it.
He'd fought on a whim and lived on a whim.
Few could stand in his way.
This wasn't his first defeat — not truly.
But it was his first loss in a proper one-on-one fight under equal conditions.
White skin.
Crimson, delicate lips.
Long, jet-black hair.
Not particularly tall — a slender, petite build.
Her eyes had been hidden behind a mask, but from her silhouette he could tell she was a woman. A beautiful girl, at that.
He couldn't read her emotions because her eyes were concealed.
Was that why? There had been no fear, no hatred — just the cold edge of a blade pointed at him. That, more than anything, was a shame...
If he could get out of this prison?
Sometimes he wondered.
Would he take revenge on that girl? He didn't even resent her...
If there was a chance, he wanted to fight her again.
That was Veldora's honest desire — unvarnished and true.
But not just a mechanical battle. He wanted to fight with his very existence on the line!
To make that girl — the "Hero" — acknowledge his existence. To draw out her full power.
Somewhere along the way, that became what Veldora wished for.
Human lives were short.
Veldora understood perfectly well that his wish could never come true.
And yet... Veldora's thoughts kept looping...
How many years had it been...
One day— CRASH, BOOM!!!
A pale blue object slammed into him.
This area was saturated with the dense Magicules he himself had released — ordinary creatures couldn't survive here.
Even high-ranking monsters would struggle to touch him, a living mass of Magicules.
Veldora grew curious and observed the object.
That was how they met.
For Veldora, who had nearly given up on life itself, this strange creature felt like hope.
This encounter was destined to bring something — he was sure of it.
Veldora had a premonition.
A premonition that had never once been wrong...
(Can you hear me? Little one?)
Veldora called out with absolute conviction!
And with that — Veldora's turn in the spotlight comes to an end.
Don't worry, his name will pop up again before long.