Home/How to Survive as a Slime in Another World/ch85

Chapter 85

A…… fairy?

Elija averted his eyes briefly.

"Or a dragon from the Forest of Darkness that can change its form……."

Maybe you took pity on me and decided to stay by my side and help. Elija fidgeted with his fingers for no reason.

"……Cute."

Unable to resist, my hand reached out and squished his cheeks.

"Muaang!"

You're doing this on purpose, aren't you! You've been stimulating my protective instincts from the start like this!

This is why I couldn't help but follow you around. And now you ask why I stick with you, pretending not to know? Is this how fantasy protagonists charm beautiful women?

Looking at Elija, who stared down at me incredulously with his cheeks in my hands, I smiled so wide my mouth almost split.

"Hehe."

"……Echo, why are you just laughing instead of answering?"

He pulled my hands away and paused. Could it really be……. Elija's golden eyes trembled.

"Pfft, as if."

Ahaha. Throwing my head back with laughter, I collapsed onto the floor.

"A dragon! Me!"

Mu-ha-hat, mu-ha-hat.

If only. Then I wouldn't have had to struggle so much. I slapped the floor with my squishy slime hands, cackling.

"……Is that so funny?"

Ah, maybe I laughed too much. Lying down, I quickly covered my mouth with my hand.

"Th-then what. You're just Echo, right?"

Elija scratched his slightly reddened ear.

"Hmm."

Sitting back up, I scooted close to Elija and crouched beside him.

"I'm obviously just myself, but I think it's true that I'm not just an ordinary slime."

At my nonsensical words, Elija widened his eyes and looked down at me.

"Honestly, I really don't remember."

Ah. Elija nodded.

"You don't remember before you gained intelligence. That makes sense."

Hmm, hesitating, I bowed my head and drew a circle on the floor with my finger. After drawing a small, round circle, I poked eyes into it. A slime. Such a simple thing is what I am.

Scratching at the wooden floor, I felt as if I were facing that small slime like a mirror. Is this really me? Are you satisfied just being a slime?

The dot-like slime eyes spun round and round. Round and round……. Spinning, spinning—just like my heart.

Whatever. Forget it.

"It's not that. I think…… I wasn't originally a slime."

"……Huh?"

Elija's golden eyes, which had softened, stiffened again.

Everything Elija said was right. A slime with this much intelligence doesn't make sense.

Now that I've grown as big as a human, pretending not to know won't work anymore. Even if Elija lets it slide, once Melden and the others find out, I'll definitely be suspected.

'……Can I tell him?'

Even if he knows I'm different from a real slime, will he still treat me the same way?

As I hesitated to continue, a warm presence suddenly drew near. A familiar scent, like grass from somewhere in the forest. Elija's face was close.

He leaned down, bowing his head like me. No, even lower.

Lowering himself, Elija gently looked up at my face, which had been staring at the floor.

Concerned that something was wrong with me, his eyes busily scanned my face. Elija's worried eyes blinked. That brief moment of eye contact felt impossibly slow.

'I don't want to lose this.'

But at the same time, a strange feeling wrapped around me. For some reason, it felt like I could trust these sun-like eyes—an inexplicable pull.

I squeezed my eyes shut and opened my mouth.

"I have memories of being human before, but I don't remember anything else."

"Eh?"

The shoulders of Elija, who had been quietly watching me, twitched.

"W-wait. You were human? Echo, you?"

Nervous. My black eyes stared only at my blue fingers scratching the floor.

"Yeah. I was definitely human, but I don't know my name or where I lived."

I just opened my eyes and I was there. I mumbled and buried my face in my knees. Would he think it's strange? Surely not. We've gotten this close—he wouldn't abandon me.

"That's why I was so happy to meet you, Elija."

I meant it. Meeting you in a forest full of monsters felt like a miracle. Peeking my eyes up to glance at Elija, who had fallen silent, I lowered my head again. Ugh, my heart's pounding.

"All the monsters were scary, but meeting you made me so happy. I wanted to stay with you forever."

So I pretended not to know. After saying that, I bit my lip hard. I let my body droop pitifully.

"……."

……Of course, that speech was slightly embellished. By the time I met Elija, I was a thuggish slime who could beat up most monsters. But ahem, Elija doesn't know that, right?

I trembled my black eyes pitifully. This is the acting skill of a veteran slime, honed over months of companion-monster life. How's that for my special move?

"……Echo."

Elija's hand gently rested on my shoulder, which had been staring intently at the floor.

"……You must have been lonely."

Top, top. Elija's long fingers awkwardly patted my shoulder.

"Now that I think of it, you were smart enough to be mistaken for a human even when we first met. It's not hard to believe, but……."

It's, surprising.

He trailed off with a dazed expression. It was absurd, but he seemed to be making sense of my behavior in retrospect.

Now's my chance. I tilted my head and rubbed it against Elija's hand.

"But I'm so glad I met you."

He flinched for a moment, then slowly stroked my head. Elija's eyes, which had been lost in the confusion, gradually regained their focus.

"It must have been frustrating. Because I didn't realize."

Hmm, more frustrating than you can imagine.

But I kept my mouth shut and smiled.

"It's okay! Just being by your side gives me strength!"

Eu-ssha, I clenched my fists and made a show of strength.

Oops, I mustn't forget to widen my black eyes.

And as expected, Elija's touch grew gentler. Seuk-seuk. He stroked my head as freely as when I was a slime, not a human form.

Heu-heut. The secret to not losing affection even after suddenly turning human?

It's charm and flattery.

"To think you might have originally been human."

Huh? I looked up at him with wide eyes, and Elija sighed.

"Then how did you end up like this?"

That's what I'd like to know. Smiling bashfully under Elija's touch, I looked down at my translucent sky-blue hand again. Did I die in my original world? I don't know.

"My memory is just waking up in that hut—that's all. It seemed like some kind of experiment was going on, but…… I don't really know."

Thoughts of my past, which I'd deliberately pushed away, resurfaced, and I shook my head vigorously.

"……An experiment?"

Elija's hand, which had been touching my head, stiffened.

"You were experimented on?"

"Ah, no. I don't remember anything!"

It's just that the hut had some lab equipment on display……. I scratched the back of my head and looked at Elija.

"It's just a guess, a guess. It might not be true!"

But Elija's golden eyes had already turned cold.

"Are you saying you might have become a monster because of an experiment?"

Th-that's what I'm saying, I don't know either.

Caught in the suddenly tense atmosphere, I rolled my eyes.

Isn't he taking my words a bit too literally? I just said it!

"If that's really the case, that's terrible."

Elija clenched his fist in indignation. He gritted his teeth, saying that if someone had really made me like this, he wouldn't let it slide.

Even if I'm not a cute slime but a human, he's angry for me? A little touching.

I wiped my nose with my hand.

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