Published: July 31, 2025
"Ryoma, what are you doing here?"
As I was spacing out with the slimes away from the carriage boarding area, Mr. Jeff called out to me. Behind him stood the group of people gathered for cleaning the cesspool.
"Aren't you heading back?"
"Thank you all for your hard work. Even if we wanted to leave, the shared carriage is packed with people, so I thought I'd take the last carriage and go leisurely."
"You too, huh?"
"You say 'you too,' does that mean everyone else as well?"
"Everyone's tired today, so no one feels like joining that crowd."
"Seriously... even though we were hired for times like this, today was tough."
"It really was. Taking on the Goblin King plus that many hordes is usually a job you prepare thoroughly for. While fighting, I remembered that story... about not letting your guard down even against weak magical beasts."
"Oh, the true story about a country that was wiped out by an invasion of 100,000 goblins? I thought of that too. Honestly, it’s a miracle no one died today."
Is there really such a story?
Mr. Gordon grumbled, putting his thick arm around his neck, and Ms. Miseria nodded in agreement. They all seemed exhausted... Listening to them, Cher brought up that story.
"Huh? Ryoma-kun, you didn't know this story? I thought it was quite famous..."
"I don't recall hearing it..."
"You're probably one of those kids who only read complicated books, not fairy tales."
Everyone nodded in agreement at Mr. Jeff's words. My ignorance was being misunderstood in strange ways.
Among them, I had apparently become the studious character.
"The soldiers and adventurers who tried to defend the country fought valiantly but were overwhelmed because the defenses couldn’t cover everything. Now we can laugh about it, but if not for you and the slimes, the ambush team probably would have ended up like that."
No matter how strong your arms are, they’re useless if the enemy is out of reach... They say numbers are power, and that’s true.
"I’ve just remembered!"
As I mulled over Mr. Gordon’s words, Mr. Reipin suddenly shouted.
"What’s gotten into you all of a sudden, old man Reipin?"
"Ryoma, could you show me those heal slimes from earlier? I’ve only heard about heal slimes in stories."
"Sure."
I called over two heal slimes and lifted them so he could get a good look.
"Thank you. Hmm, their bodies are white and relatively small even among slime species. I saw with my own eyes that they use healing magic... just as the stories say. Do they eat like ordinary slimes?"
"Actually, they don’t eat or drink anything except water. Cleaner slimes usually don’t eat meat either, but they will if ordered. I think it’s just preference... but heal slimes truly only drink water. That’s a big difference."
"Oh, is that so?"
"How do they survive on just water?"
"They have a skill called photosynthesis. It seems they can absorb light and produce the nutrients they need to live inside their bodies thanks to that skill. That’s why they survive on water alone."
"They really have such a skill!? Hmm, fascinating... Actually, I think I remember some magical beasts in the plant-type beast compendium that have this skill..."
"Are those slimes strong?"
While Mr. Reipin started to get lost in thought, Ms. Miya asked.
"They’re very weak. They don’t have any combat ability and would lose to a regular slime in a fight."
"That’s quite weak..."
"I suppose that’s why heal slimes are so rare. Even if they’re born, they get killed quickly by other beasts or monsters, so people rarely notice them."
"That makes sense. In the wild, the weak don’t survive. Do heal slimes have any means of self-defense?"
Ah, so he heard that, Reipin-san.
"They specialize purely in endurance. Besides healing magic, they even have a skill that strengthens their vitality, so when attacked, they heal themselves while trying to escape."
"So they endure, heal, and run away."
"They’re surprisingly tough, but they probably wouldn’t live long in the wild. Maybe because they know this, even when I let them roam freely, they won’t stray far from me or my familiar slimes. They’re very helpful because they heal me and others quickly when injured, but I never let them fight — they’re purely assigned to healing."