"Caw!"

A piercing crow cry cut through the camp's silence, startling Count Bran so much he nearly toppled off his wooden perch, his glossy black feathers instantly puffing up in a circle.

"Your Majesty, are you saying that blockhead Arthur has gotten himself lost again? And in that kind of ghostly place?!"

"Brainless! Reckless!"

He flapped his wings, looking like a launched black furball, and landed with a "thump" on a nearby rock, anxiously pecking the wooden perch with his sharp beak, creating a rapid "tock tock tock" sound.

"This is bad, completely finished."

"Without my keen, all-seeing eyes to guide him, this foolish retainer will definitely never return. If he bumps into the Goblin Army's fortress, or charges into a cave spider's nest, his bones will be used as table wedges."

Chen Yu gently nudged the puffed-up wing with his gel body.

"It's not that exaggerated yet. My little slime is watching over him."

"Ah! Right, right! And there's Your Majesty."

The anxiety in Count Bran's eyes faded considerably as he chirped happily, immediately smoothing down his ruffled feathers and restoring his usual haughty posture.

"Then let that reckless fellow stay there temporarily as a lesson."

"Your Majesty, my retainer is trapped in that gloomy forest, surely feeling very lonely and scared, missing me terribly."

"Whatever he wants to say, he can definitely entrust you to convey it to me. My mere presence here boosts the Kingdom's morale, let alone comforting a knight's wounded heart."

"Actually..."

Through the little slime's perspective, Chen Yu saw Arthur sitting by the campfire, fingers stroking the silver badge Alice left him, looking up at the pitch-black tree canopy, lost in thought.

But he probably wasn't missing Count Bran...

"He doesn't seem very talkative."

Hearing this, Count Bran showed no disappointment whatsoever. Instead, he suddenly spread his wings and let out a series of high-pitched, triumphant cackles, as if he'd heard the funniest joke in the world.

"Caw hahaha! Young undead care about face, unwilling to reveal their inner fragility easily, putting on a brave front and holding back tears. I understand it all too well."

"Arthur, my retainer - I know every bone seam in his body, let alone a little psychological issue."

"Your Majesty, please keep him calm. I shall depart tomorrow to find him in that Western Swamp."

"With me on the case, finding a pile of bones lost in the forest will be a breeze."

In the dark forest, firewood crackled as it burned by the campfire.

After hearing the message conveyed by Chen Yu, Arthur nodded and said, "Arthur understands. Please reassure the Count."

Chen Yu, warmed by the cozy fire, narrowed his eyes.

"This is the territory of those goblins. We'd better keep a low profile. Tomorrow, after we cut down the trees, Count Bran should be able to spot us from the sky."

"Understood, Your Majesty."

Arthur marveled at His Majesty's wisdom, then extinguished the campfire, quietly leaned against a tree, stared into the pitch-black darkness, and passed the night by spacing out.

He felt as if he had returned to the time when he guarded the ruins in the Dark Realm.

Back then, he didn't know what thinking was, nor why he was guarding a collapsed ruin.

He just patrolled year after year, day after day, driving away adventurers and magical creatures that approached the ruins.

Until one day, Count Bran appeared...

It brought miraculous color.

That white flower stubbornly growing in the darkness touched his non-existent heart.

From that moment on, he seemed to come alive.

And now, he had gained something even more important than life itself.

Arthur took out the dried flower stigma, long devoid of petals, from his chest and placed it together with the shiny silver family badge.

They were like the lingering afterglow of his life, giving him something to rely on during the long nights.

He thought dazedly, suddenly feeling the little slime in his chest armor gently undulating, as if asleep.

Of course, his reliance also included this little slime.

...

The night slipped away silently like a faded old cloth.

Last night, Count Bran had still been pretending to be calm, pacing in his nest with an "if the sky falls, the tall will hold it up" attitude.

But as soon as a faint, gray dawn broke on the horizon, he couldn't stay put anymore. He flapped into flight and plunged headfirst into the misty swamp to the west, urgently rushing to find Arthur.

To be honest, this guy wasn't usually this diligent even when picking up stones by the river.

It seemed he was genuinely anxious this time, so anxious he forgot all about noble elegance and dignity.

However, given Arthur's capabilities and his little slime partner, as long as he didn't foolishly charge headlong into the goblin army's embrace...

In this perilous swamp, there really weren't many magical creatures that could seriously harm him.

Instead, it was those goblin squads peeking and sneaking around in the forest, fond of ambushes, who should be worried sick.

What kingdom sends its general to wander around the enemy camp before the war even starts?

Can't outrun him, can't defeat him.

Looks like some goblins are about to have bad luck.

...

Dungeon, Sulfur Hot Spring Area.

The air was thick with the pungent smell of sulfur and dense, lingering steam. Beside the bubbling, murky hot spring, a round, chubby green jelly was busy having the time of its life.

"Whoosh! Plop!"

The chubby little slime retrieved its spoils, "crunch crunch" swallowed an unlucky thermal mosquito, and "Mana Explosion" finally settled at Lv.3.

The summer magical creature tide was no joke.

Relying solely on one stone fortress to block those frenzied beast hordes wasn't enough.

More preparations were needed, more magical creatures needed to be devoured, more talents needed to be acquired, more cultivation methods and techniques needed to be learned.

Time was tight, the mission was heavy!

Thus, the diligent little slime once again transformed into the gourmet hunter of the hot spring area. In half a day, it had almost completely cleared out the magical creatures in these sulfur pools.

[Devour Digestion Lv.6 triggered—Complete record of Thermal Crawler characteristics obtained, talent acquired: Fire Resistance Lv.1]

[Magic Stripping Lv.2 → Lv.3]

[Resilient Carapace Lv.4 → Lv.5]

Fire Resistance?

This is good stuff.

Chen Yu's small eyes lit up.

Once he leveled up this resistance... hehe, he could go take a bath in the bubbling lava well next door.

There must be loads of strange and exotic, delicious-looking food hiding in there.

He suddenly grew very curious.

What would fire-type magical creatures taste like?

Would they be scalding and stimulating like lava, or come in numbing spicy and fragrant spicy flavors?

The more he thought about it, the more he uncontrollably drooled.

However, the magical creatures in the outer area of the sulfur hot springs had almost all been cleared out by him.

To venture deeper inside, he needed to return and equip the chubby one with "Fire Resistance."

He stood there dazedly, suddenly feeling the little slime in his chest armor gently undulating, as if asleep.

He hadn't originally planned to go in, but he saw several strange elemental magical creatures blocking the nest entrance.

Judging by their appearance...

It seemed they were here to collect protection money?