Morning.
As the first light of dawn pierced through the darkness, dewdrops rolled off the grass blades and shattered on the ground. Inside her tent, Liyana slowly opened her eyes.
It was a shame she couldn’t share a tent with Mo Lini last night.
Liyana stepped out of the tent, wearing nothing but a white shirt. She stretched lazily, her figure outlining a breathtaking curve. The buttons on her shirt strained dangerously, though sadly, there was no one around to appreciate the sight.
She had woken up a bit early today. After all, they were camping in the wild, and the novelty of it had worn off quickly. After dinner last night, they’d all turned in early.
Xia Lun and Aina’s tent was nearby, seemingly still quiet. Who knew what was going on inside?
Well… best to assume they were still asleep.
The aura of the magic circle Aina had set up sent a shiver down Liyana’s spine. Though it wasn’t an offensive spell, the sheer intensity of the mana fluctuations made it impossible to gauge just how powerful Aina had become.
Liyana wasn’t about to wake those two up—she valued her life too much.
"Mo Lini, time to get up," Liyana whispered as she sneaked into Mo Lini’s tent.
Mo Lini was already awake, in the middle of changing clothes. Spotting Liyana, she hurled a pillow straight at her face, hitting her square in the nose.
"You brought that little thing with you?" Liyana gasped, noticing the slime curled up beside Mo Lini.
Mo Lini blushed slightly and nodded. "I couldn’t bring myself to leave it behind last night… so I took it in."
Mo Lini, disheveled and rubbing sleep from her eyes, and the smooth, round slime beside her… Liyana couldn’t help but let her imagination run wild.
After all, slimes were like fluids—they could take any shape…
"Liyana, why are you bleeding from your nose?" Mo Lini asked, puzzled.
"N-nothing! Heh heh… sorry, Mo Lini." Liyana pressed a handkerchief to her nose, chastising herself for her impure thoughts.
"You’re weird," Mo Lini muttered.
Hugging the slime, she crawled out of the tent.
"Planning to keep it with you from now on?" Liyana yawned, rubbing her eyes.
It wasn’t unheard of for people to keep slimes as pets—these cheap little creatures could be bought for just a few copper coins in the market. The kind of thing adventurers wouldn’t even bother bending down to pick up if it fell on the ground.
But slimes were dumb, acting purely on instinct. They couldn’t interact meaningfully, making them boring pets. Most people tossed them aside after a few days.
"I’ll… keep it for a few days and see," Mo Lini said, nodding to herself.
Liyana led Mo Lini to the lakeside.
A thin morning mist hung over the water, and in the center of the lake, the faint silhouette of a girl flickered in and out of view.
Noticing the two on the shore, the girl fixed them with an unblinking stare.
"Whee-eeew!" Liyana let out a long, teasing whistle—the kind a street ruffian might use to catcall a pretty girl.
"Liyana, what are you doing?" Mo Lini asked, startled.
"What does it look like? Washing up, of course," Liyana replied matter-of-factly.
The lake girl blinked in confusion, then seemed to grow angry. Ripples formed on the water’s surface, coalescing into a column that shot straight at Liyana.
Splash—
Liyana was drenched from head to toe.
Seizing the opportunity, she quickly scrubbed her hair, finishing her impromptu wash in no time.
"Eek! Ee-eeek! Aa-eeek!" The lake girl jabbed a slender finger at Liyana, chattering away in a high-pitched voice.
Though Mo Lini couldn’t understand the words, she could tell the lake girl was cursing up a storm.
Liyana, seemingly unsatisfied with the amount of water, whistled again.
A massive water orb crashed down on her.
With that, Liyana successfully washed her hair—and took a bath in the process.
Mo Lini, caught in the splash zone, groaned as her skirt got soaked. She should’ve known better than to stand so close.
"Eek! Ee-eeek! Eek-eeek!" The lake girl ranted and raved at Liyana once more before vanishing beneath the water.
Liyana cheerfully waved goodbye, then turned to Mo Lini. "Adorable, isn’t she?"
Mo Lini gave her a look of utter disdain.
"Look, you like slimes, I like lake girls. They’re both monsters—we’re not so different," Liyana defended herself. "In fact, some say lake girls share anatomical similarities with slimes. Maybe they’re the final evolved form."
"R-really?" Mo Lini glanced at the slime hopping around her feet, as if imagining it transforming into a beautiful lake girl.
Of course, it was all nonsense—Liyana had made it up on the spot to mess with Mo Lini. The "some say" she referred to was, in fact, herself.
But the truth would likely never come to light.
Aina emerged from her tent, joining Xia Lun as they made their way to the lake.
"Whoosh—"
Aina stretched her bat-like wings behind her, unfurling them like a crimson cape.
"Mmm—" She interlaced her fingers and stretched her arms overhead, looking thoroughly refreshed. Clearly, she’d slept well.
Xia Lun, too, seemed in high spirits.
Mo Lini gaped at Aina’s back. "Aina… Aina has wings!"
"Of course. She’s from the Blood Clan. Didn’t we tell you?" Liyana said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"No!" Mo Lini shook her head vigorously.
"Really? But it’s easy to guess. Look at her—silver hair, crimson eyes. Most people would assume she’s from the Blood Clan at a glance," Liyana reasoned.
"That’s something only well-traveled adventurers would know. Ordinary folks rarely encounter the Blood Clan," Aina explained gently.
What was common knowledge to Liyana might not be so for others.
"Blop blop blop—"
The slime suddenly rolled away from Mo Lini’s feet, circling excitedly around Aina.
Mo Lini gulped, half-expecting Aina to crush the little thing underfoot in annoyance.
Instead, Aina bent down and lightly tapped the slime with a slender finger.
Covering her mouth, Aina giggled softly, as if recalling something amusing.
She casually pulled out a tiny shard of ice—no larger than a fingernail—and slipped it into the slime’s gelatinous body. If Mida were here and saw her mother feeding such a precious treat to a mere slime, she’d… well, she wouldn’t dare say anything, but she’d definitely sulk in secret.
"Aina, what’s so funny?" Xia Lun asked with a smile.
Aina merely narrowed her eyes, refusing to explain.
Back when she and Xia Lun had first started dating, he’d been just like that slime—bouncing around her in excitement.