“Nice to meet you!”
Suddenly, a pure white face rushed in, causing the slimes… or more accurately, the slimes inhabiting the Hunter’s body, to feel a sense of ‘bewilderment’.
Shia was famous, but the Hunters, buried in dungeons and work, didn’t know her backstory in detail.
Especially for Hunters who were ambiguously busy chasing their livelihoods every day, Shia’s recognition was bound to be low.
“Isia? I’ve heard of her.”
“Oh, the one who resolved the Mapo District erosion incident?”
“I heard she’s the Gallery Master of Jangheon Gallery, but it’s been over four years since I became A-grade, so I don’t really know.”
They had heard the name at least, but they weren’t the type to keep up with the broadcasts.
And the Hunter occupied by the slimes had exactly that level of knowledge.
[What if we get caught?]
[Nope, judging by the reaction, we haven’t.]
[Stop calling me Oppa.]
And the slimes, rummaging through the occupied Hunters’ brains to dig up information about Isia, were having little success.
Of course, since they were aboard the ‘Hunter Train’, they had a bit of belief and strength, but these Hunters had already fallen victim to a slime wave, so they might not be that dangerous after all.
“Are you all in distress like me!?”
Look at that, with how unguarded she approached, I feel like I could immediately shove a slime into that ear and turn her into a host right now.
“…….”
“……”
“Uh, did I get too close? Sorry….”
And the slimes fell into thought as if they were in a discussion.
The infamous Brain-Eating Slimes, Balamu-Sia Fowler Slimes, were a huge colony, but each had an ego, leading to a lively discussion among their rapidly multiplying cells.
[Should we kill her here?]
[No.]
[If we act recklessly without assessing her capabilities, we’ll be eliminated.]
[You’re right, Oppa. S-grade Hunters are dangerous. Being suspected by them is risky.]
[According to the human’s information, there are 21 S-grade Hunters on the Hunter Train, plus many tricky A-grade Hunters who could easily hunt us.]
[These Hunters were just lucky to have faced us.]
While it was true that the mutated slimes were an extraordinary presence, they weren’t beyond the capabilities of veteran Hunters participating in the Hunter Train.
Just during the prelude to the slime wave, the Hunters had prevented the slimes from causing casualties. Subsequently arriving S-grade Hunters massacred the remaining thousands of slimes almost effortlessly.
The Blood Slimes had only been able to hunt these Hunters because they had ambushed those who had strayed from the group while being careless, and the Hunters’ abilities were primarily close-range enhancements, which weren’t suited for dealing with slimes.
If there had been even one fire user among them, it wouldn’t have been so easy to fully occupy the Hunters’ bodies.
Then one slime turned its eyes toward Shia.
[Let’s use that human woman.]
[How do we use her, Oppa?]
[Stop calling me Oppa… you’ve all become too deeply assimilated into that human.]
[Forget about human titles and share the method, Oppa.]
[….We join forces with that woman. We mix in with the Hunters.]
[Mix in?]
The Hunter looked at Shia, who was tilting her head in confusion.
She looked harmless, but there was no telling what danger might lurk within.
Just as humans fear unknown monsters, monsters also fear humans they don’t understand.
[I don’t know for sure, but that Isia woman is lost. We’ll pretend to rescue her like she’s stranded, so we can blend in with the humans without raising suspicion.]
[Couldn’t we just subdue her and make her one of us right away, Oppa?]
[Don’t say foolish things. Has possessing a human body made you lose your intelligence? If we attacked without knowing her capabilities, we’d all end up dead.]
The Hunters whose bodies and brains had been taken over were already stragglers from the group, and since they had confirmed that these Hunters did not possess threatening abilities, they had ambushed them.
Unfortunately, however, there was little information about Isia in these Hunters’ brains.
She’s famous.
I don’t know her exact capabilities, but she’s strong.
There are even rumors that she’s a tentative S-grade Hunter.
Even if they wanted to dig for more information, this was all they could find in the Hunters’ brains.
[I get it, Oppa. Then we have to act naturally together for now, right?]
[Exactly. For now, let’s not attack her. We’ll hide our identities and wait for a chance to discover the humans’ camp, then we’ll slowly…]
They’d take over their bodies.
As the slimes took over the human bodies, they began to gain knowledge about the Hunter Train.
A human group organized to target and resolve dungeons that spread widely around the world with powerful Hunters gathered from all over.
Of course, the relationship between Hunters and monsters was one of mutual destruction.
Survival of the fittest.
Natural selection.
If you’re weak, you die.
If you’re deceived, you die.
These mutated slimes had to smash the Hunters who came to hunt them for survival.
From the Hunters’ standpoint, they needed to exterminate the mutated slimes and the dungeon before their influence grew.
[Alright. Attacking won’t be hard, but infiltration will be quite challenging.]
If they successfully infiltrated and gradually infected individuals among the Hunters, their chances of winning would increase.
They could strike at the bathhouse, or an individual sleeping or a civilian, gradually increasing their numbers.
Even S-grade Hunters, if caught off guard while bathing or sleeping, could be invaded through the ears by the mutated slimes.
If they were really lucky enough to occupy an S-grade Hunter’s body, the slimes might really be able to wipe out the Hunter Train.
Simultaneously, if they could use the body of a strong human ability user as a host, they could potentially break out of the -Blood Swamp- dungeon and invade the human world.
“I just spoke with Mother.”
“What did she say?”
“She also gave her permission.”
“Great.”
If their Mother, who granted them intelligence and strength, allowed it, the operation’s probability of success would be quite high.
“What have you been whispering about since earlier?”
“…Ah, it’s nothing! I’m sorry, Isia Hunter.”
“You know my name?”
“Hahaha, this Oppa here has been watching your broadcasts.”
“Really!? You were part of the Mangja Group?”
Mangja Group? What’s that?
“Don’t you know the Mangja Chichi Group….?”
Shia seemed a bit embarrassed for having spoken those words herself as she twirled her hair.
Mangja…
Chichi Group…?
The slime gazed at Shia’s disproportionately large chest.
Indeed, in terms of that chest, it seemed larger and more elastic than any of their kind.
Ah, humans…
“……Unfortunately, I’m not part of the Mangja Group. I’ve just heard of it because it’s famous.”
“Ah, that’s a pity.”
Shia, looking a bit deflated, shrugged her shoulders and returned to her spirited self.
“Anyway, it’s a relief! To be honest, I was worried after getting separated when the Hunter Train started the dungeon invasion…”
“We were separated too, but you were alone, Isia Hunter…”
“You must have been really scared.”
“Excuse me, but where did you fall?”
“Right in the middle of the Blood Swamp.”
“…..?”
“Where?”
“Over there, in that black, swirling spot.”
There, our cluster of 37,423 was located…?
“Were you attacked there?”
“Haha, as you can see? I fell into the very center of the swamp, and my shoes melted away. I barely managed to keep my clothes intact, but it was a big deal.”
“……”
“Besides, I think the slimes were quite perverted? They kept trying to get into my mouth or ears. Even noticed I wasn’t wearing any underwear and attempted to go for my lower hole… Ah, sorry.”
“Ah, no, it’s fine… ahem.”
Hearing that, the slimes couldn’t help but feel ‘horror’.
Did she just burst through almost 40,000 of their swarm single-handedly?
[We must eat her…!]
[It’s dangerous!]
[We have to take possession of that woman’s body!]
[Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely!]
[Either take her life or seize her body, Oppa!]
The slimes possessing the Hunter’s flesh began to tremble as if agitated.
They weren’t sure exactly how strong an S-grade Hunter was, but if she could handle their wave alone, she must be incredibly powerful.
[Let’s create an opportunity.]
[Let’s act like humans to soothe her.]
[When that woman sleeps, we’ll invade through every hole and surely take her over.]
[She’s a strong human. A coveted one. We should try to do it without hurting her as much as possible.]
But this was also an act that was as close to suicide, laden with great risk for the slimes.
If that woman figured out they were monsters having taken over a Hunter’s body, she’d wipe them out without a second thought.
They had to do their utmost to act like humans while following her around.
No…
Mother.
Yes, it must be Mother who needs to take possession of this woman.
The mutated slimes, endowed with intelligence by possessing a human body, reached the most rational conclusion.
[I need to possess that woman.]
[Mother?]
[It’s Mother.]
[Mother has come herself.]
[Mother!]
And just like that, as if summoned by the words spoken, a great voice echoed within the minds of the slimes who occupied the Hunter’s body.
Surely, if their Mother, who had given them the intelligence and power of a mutant, came, she could take over that Isia woman without issue.
If such a powerful being existed, having Mother possess her would enable flawless control.
And in less than a second, [Mother] disseminated her orders to the mutated slimes, and without any question, they accepted [Mother]’s proposal.
Meanwhile, Shia, looking decidedly pathetic, seemed completely oblivious to the wicked and terrifying plot against her.
“Heehee, do you guys have anything…? I’m so hungry…”
With strength comes a blank stare that definitely seems a bit dumb.
No matter how powerful you are, if you’re this negligent, it’s likely that the slimes occupying this Hunter’s body see her as just another human like themselves; their plan would unfold smoothly.
The slimes maintained their most gentle and harmless expressions as they spoke to Shia.
“Then how about Isia Hunter and those others who got stranded form a party and wander around together?”
“Is that alright?”
“Yes! Of course.”
“We must help and survive as Hunters, right? Right, Oppa?”
“Thank you… honestly, I was feeling really lost. I was very hungry too.”
“In fact, we have transport drones, so we do have some food.”
“Food!!”
At the mention of drones, drool began to trickle from Shia’s mouth.
Yet, while it outwardly appeared she was simply craving food, at that moment, a surge of holy power radiated from Shia made the slimes clamp their mouths shut.
“Food, hehe… food… slurp…”
Knowing full well that the power coming from Shia wasn’t directed at them, the slimes could only be frightened.
As monsters, they were sensitive to strength and power.
If these slimes had merely been intelligent slimes, they might have found themselves bowing down to Shia in lose-lose surrender at this point.
But these slimes were not just the product of individual evolution; they were transformed into intelligent and powerful mutants by their being [Mother].
Having a ruler already in place, they wouldn’t easily declare surrender.
Of course, even so, they were aware that Isia’s strength was formidable.
‘She’s strong…!’
‘What power is this…?’
‘It’s power enough to attract Mother…!’
‘Is she starving for some time?’
It couldn’t be…
Even if they probed the Hunters’ brains, it was clear that this Isia woman had hardly fallen here for more than a couple of hours…
Ah, perhaps she hadn’t eaten much even while aboard the Hunter Train all this time.
Some Hunters deliberately go out without feeding themselves to avoid throwing up before a hunt, right?
“How about we camp here for a while?”
“Sounds good! Sounds good!”
“Yes, of course. Then for just a bit, we look forward to your kindness.”
A good start.
The slimes figured that despite Isia’s great power, she lacked a keen sense of suspicion toward humans.
In fact, given that slimes don’t usually think of hosts as fellow humans, it might actually be easier than they thought.
The plan of the slimes was simple.
While pretending to be stranded like Isia, they would wander around as much as possible, making sure not to fall too close to the ‘Hunter Train’ and its gathering of Hunters, so as not to receive help; that was the primary goal. Then they would pretend to be stranded naturally, earning trust, and eventually lead Isia to the depths where Mother awaits.
And at that moment, when Mother was about to take Isia’s body, they would betray her and incapacitate her.
That was the slimes’ plan, and surprisingly, things appeared to be on track without any issues.
No matter how strong a Hunter might be, they understood through the Hunter’s knowledge that allowing a surprise attack from a trusted human would be dangerous.
“So do you happen to have rice or flour?!”
“Flour…?”
The slime rummaging through the Hunter’s brain again realized that there was food kept in the transport drone that could last quite a while.
Waving towards the transport drone as if it were his item, the Hunter checked to see that there was neither rice nor flour as Isia had mentioned.
However, the main food sources were canned goods and preserved food, suited for extended stays in the dungeon.
Naturally, it was odd to keep various seasonings, vegetables, and cooking ingredients while transporting with the likes of Shia.
“It looks like there isn’t any.”
“That’s…hm. I see….”
Should I gnaw on raw meat?
As Shia pondered that aloud, one Hunter, having found food resembling flour or cold noodles, exclaimed.
“Hey, we do have cold noodles!”
“Oh, right, I stored everything I bought before getting on the Hunter Train!”
“Cold noodles!?”
At the mention of cold noodles, drool dripped again from Shia’s mouth.
The slimes were unsure if all humans were like this, but somehow it seemed that Isia had a remarkably high appetite.
Surely more than monsters would have.
[That human must love cold noodles.]
[Look at how she’s drooling… she’s like a goblin spotting a female human….]
[Oppa, I’m scared of this Isia.]
[Stop calling me Oppa. Hold on a little longer. We begin the luring process to offer her to Mother now.]
Of course, the slimes chatting among themselves would remain oblivious.
“Hehehe, that looks delicious….”
Shia’s drooling eyes were directed not at the package of cold noodles inside the drone, but at the back of their heads.
Amidst Shia obliviously being naive to the wicked and horrific schemes against her, it was still true that the slimes were equally unaware of the holy and appetizing, yet chilling ambitions of the Mangja Seongnyeo aimed at them.
