An unknown amount of time had passed, yet the flames in the fireplace continued to burn tirelessly, filling the wooden cabin with a cozy warmth.
Yano returned from outside, carrying the slight chill of the night dew. He skillfully added a few more dry pine logs to the fireplace, raising the indoor temperature once more.
He was about to report the situation to Chen Yu when, in the corner shadows untouched by the firelight, the deep darkness rippled like water. Nilly walked out, yawning.
"I heard you two were looking all over for me. Well, I'm back."
She shook the damp dew from her black robe, casually removed her hood to reveal a small, tired face, and without ceremony, squeezed into the best spot in front of the fireplace, sitting down and comfortably narrowing her eyes.
"Whatever you have to say, say it quickly. Your auntie here still needs to hurry back and catch up on sleep. You guys might not sleep at night, but I do."
Yano didn't say much else and got straight to the point. "The Boss says there's an important piece of information that needs to be told to you immediately."
Chen Yu hopped around to face Nilly. "I happen to have some information about the vampire clan. Interested?"
"The vampire clan?"
"You slimes can actually get information on the vampire clan? And it's something even we Stone Descendants don't know?"
Chen Yu confidently puffed out his round belly. "Of course. Don't underestimate the intelligence-gathering capabilities of our Slime Kingdom."
"Without exaggeration, even the every move of that Goblin Army at Riftrock Pass is under our close watch."
Hearing this little guy talk so big, Nilly's interest was immediately piqued, and her sleepiness was mostly dispelled.
She crossed her legs, propping her chin on her hand. "Oh? Well then, tell me. But ordinary news won't fool me. It needs to have some real substance."
Chen Yu didn't speak, just stared at her with his round, beady eyes.
"What's the meaning of this? You're not willing to say it now?" Nilly felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze and poked him with a finger.
Chen Yu said righteously, "Important things need to be said three times: payment! Payment! Payment!"
"Miss Nilly, if you want to know exclusive, important information, please pay the corresponding fee first."
"Hey! You little guy even knows how to jack up the price on the spot. In all my years, I've never seen a slime so obsessed with money."
"Hmph, no. I'm poor, don't have a single coin."
She turned her head away, seemingly indicating she wasn't interested.
As if you've ever seen a talking slime before, Chen Yu internally grumbled.
Chen Yu turned his gaze to Yano sitting beside him. "Well, considering Yano is related to you, how about a friends-and-family discount?"
Nilly's eyes rolled, thinking it over for a moment. The proposal seemed acceptable, and she nodded with satisfaction. "That's more like it, sounds like doing business. But..."
She said slyly, "I need to hear your information first, confirm its value, and *then* decide how much to pay you. That's reasonable, right?"
Slime Alert.jpg
"You're not planning to... get it for free, are you?" Chen Yu's tone was full of distrust.
"For free? What does that mean?"
Nilly expressed confusion at the unfamiliar term but quickly put her hands on her hips. "Hey, your auntie here is a respected elder back at the Stone Fortress. How could I possibly be someone who doesn't keep their word? Besides, Yano is right here as a witness."
Hearing this, Yano immediately nodded seriously, playing along. "Mm. Auntie, rest assured, if you go back on your word afterward, I'll help spread the news."
"S-see! Yano is the witness!" Nilly's tone held a hint of guilt, her voice unconsciously rising a bit.
Chen Yu understood.
This person was genuinely planning to get something for nothing earlier.
She wanted to get his information for free!
"I'll just say it then. Those vampires also seem to be closely watching tomorrow's Shadow Trial."
"That mage, what's his name, Salacha, used some unknown method to modify a shadow creature and has already secretly released it into Gore."
"Looks like they plan to cause some trouble during the trial."
"Impossible!" Nilly instinctively denied it.
She was absolutely certain that she had repeatedly searched the Fluorescent Forest and even the surrounding areas of Gore several times before and hadn't found any shadow creatures with abnormal behavior.
If a foreign shadow creature really had entered, given her keen perception of shadows, she should have detected the anomaly immediately.
That's strange... she thought to herself.
But this little guy doesn't seem to be lying, and lying about something like this doesn't seem to benefit them either...
"Where did you get this information from?" Nilly cautiously probed, trying to judge the truth and source of the intelligence.
Chen Yu thought for a moment. To make his words more credible, he said, "We have a mole within the vampire clan. This is the information he brought back."
A vampire mole?
These slimes have the ability to turn vampires?
What a strange Slime Kingdom. First Stone Descendants, now vampires. Are you sure they won't fight each other?
She thought for a moment and said, "Alright then. This news of yours doesn't sound very believable. I'll go verify it personally first."
"As for the payment, I'll owe it to you. After I verify and confirm the value of the information, I'll come back and settle with you."
She emphasized, "Of course, it's absolutely not that I won't pay. I just need a little time to verify."
With that, she didn't give Chen Yu a chance to react, quickly stood up, and "whoosh" - merged back into the shadows in the corner, disappearing without a trace in an instant.
Afraid that if she was a second slower, Chen Yu would grab her and demand payment.
Chen Yu speechlessly bubbled a few times.
He was still too careless.
He had underestimated the thickness of this person's skin and ended up giving away information for free.
Forget it. He still had his eye on the secret of the Stone Descendants controlling the gargoyle army. Consider it an advance payment.
"Yano, it's getting late. Get some rest early. Build up your energy and prepare for tomorrow's trial."
"Alright, Boss," Yano replied.
He fetched bedding from the room, laid out a makeshift bed on the still-warm floor in front of the fireplace, and lay down.
But his mind couldn't help but dwell on the earlier information, and he couldn't resist asking, "Boss, do you think... tomorrow's trial might be suddenly canceled or postponed because of this news?"
Chen Yu had already squeezed into the warm bedding. Hearing his question, he poked his head out to look at him. "What, you're all eager and worried the trial won't happen?"
Yano scratched his head, smiling a bit sheepishly. "A little... After all, I've absorbed so many talent orbs, my strength has improved a lot. I really want to find an opportunity to see what level I'm at now."
"Relax. Tomorrow is just a formality for you," Chen Yu said, full of confidence.
With that, he comfortably burrowed back into the warm bedding, leaving only a small lump visible.
Hearing this, Yano's expression relaxed considerably. He also lay down, hands behind his head, gazing at the ceiling flickering in the firelight, his thoughts gradually drifting far away.
At first, he was seriously thinking about possible tactics for tomorrow's trial and route planning.
But as he thought, his thoughts uncontrollably flew to more distant places—he remembered the Slime Kingdom he hadn't returned to in a long time, remembered his wife and young child in the big city of the White Horse Kingdom far away...
Looking back on the past few months, he couldn't help but wonder: if he hadn't encountered that accident during his merchant trip, if he hadn't stepped into that legendary dangerous swamp, if he hadn't met the Boss... what would he be like now?
Maybe still running around trying to make money. Maybe already turned into a statue long ago.
But fortunately, he was lucky.
He met an angel who called himself a demon...
Yano's thoughts wandered, sinking into soft, warm clouds, deeper and deeper, until he fell into a deep sleep, emitting light snores.
...
Early the next morning, the Stone Fortress town was still shrouded under the eternal sky of the Dark Realm. Only the fluorescent moss and glowing mushrooms scattered in every corner persistently emitted a faint glow, providing enough light for the sleeping town to see.
The morning temperature in the town was very low;
residents' exhaled breath could instantly condense into mist. But the town was already bustling with activity.
Stone Descendants preparing to participate in the trial, family members seeing them off, and some curious Cave-dweller residents were everywhere.
Yano had a simple breakfast. Returning to the wooden cabin and seeing the pastry shop that had opened early, he specifically bought a piece of delicious-looking night-blueberry cake for the Boss.
Afterward, he put on his neat, hard-leather waistcoat, layered a lightweight leather armor over it, securely fastened the broadsword to his back, and inserted two short blades at his waist. Guided by an enthusiastic early-rising Cave-dweller resident, he arrived at the gathering point at the edge of the Fluorescent Forest.
Even though he had gotten up plenty early, when he arrived, he saw many Stone Descendants wearing leather armor and cloaks who had been waiting here for a long time. The three Stone Descendants who had returned to Gore with him were also among them.
Elara was quietly chatting with other familiar Stone Descendants when Max beside her gently nudged her shoulder with his elbow, signaling her to look behind.
Elara turned around in confusion. When she saw it was Yano and the familiar green slime on his shoulder, she waved enthusiastically.
"Uncle Yano! Little Envoy! Good morning!"
Yano also waved back. "Good morning. I hope I'm not too late?"
The tall, sturdy Max beside him shook his head, his voice deep. "Not late. The trial won't officially start for a while yet."
"It's just that we were a bit nervous and excited last night, didn't sleep much, so we simply came early to wait."
"Is that so?" Yano instinctively scratched his head.
He felt like he had slept quite soundly last night.
Chen Yu, perched on his shoulder, glanced at him, as if guessing his thoughts.
Of course you slept soundly. You were even snoring.
Last night, half-asleep, he heard that snoring and thought the vampires had attacked the Stone Fortress. Turned out to be a false alarm.
Elara leaned in, lowering her voice and asking curiously, "Uncle, how are your preparations? Everyone is spreading the news that you passed the Knight Trial. You're quite the celebrity in town now."
Leon, arms crossed, chuckled and reminded her, "Elara, didn't you say before the trial starts, we're all competitors, and it's best not to casually probe each other for information?"
Hearing this, Elara's cheeks flushed slightly, and she defended herself somewhat guiltily. "I-I was just a little curious, that's all. I wasn't deliberately trying to gather intelligence."
"Besides, I went through several days of devilish training. I guarantee you'll be impressed. I don't even bother gathering intelligence, hmph!"
Max, listening nearby, remained silent.
He remembered Elara's mother saying that Elara's so-called "devilish training" meant half the time spent training, the other half spent frequenting the town's dessert shops. She visited the pastry shop more often than the training ground.
Yano hadn't expected the news of him passing the Knight Trial to spread throughout the entire town so quickly.
Looking at it now, it seemed all the Stone Descendants knew about it. No wonder, when he came over earlier, he felt many Stone Descendants were secretly sizing him up.
Being young and lively, Elara's guilt didn't last long. Her attention soon shifted to the slime on Yano's shoulder.
She extended her index finger and curiously poked the slime's soft, bouncy belly.
"Is the little Envoy going to accompany Uncle to this trial? That would be a bit against the rules, you know."
They had personally witnessed how this seemingly small slime easily dealt with those troublesome gargoyles.
Don't let its size fool you;
it's actually very powerful.
Chen Yu wobbled from the poke. He puffed out his belly, imitating a hands-behind-back posture, and said calmly, "Miss Nilly won't let me go along. You youngsters' trial, I won't interfere."
Elara giggled and poked him again. "Yes, yes, thank you, Envoy, for giving us a chance."
Just as the group was chatting pleasantly, a blurry shadow gradually coalesced and manifested beside the trunk of a nearby Star-Glow Poplar.
Nilly walked out, yawning, with slightly disheveled short hair and heavy dark circles under her eyes, looking like she hadn't woken up properly. She casually waved at the young Stone Descendants around her.
"Good morning, kiddos."
Seeing her, the young Stone Descendants immediately showed the kind of flustered look one gets when seeing a parent. They all straightened their backs and greeted her properly:
"Good morning, Auntie."
"Good morning, Auntie. Did you rest well yesterday?"
Watching this scene, Yano couldn't help but be curious. He quietly asked Leon beside him, "Speaking of which... just how old *is* Auntie?"
Before Leon could answer, Nilly's gaze swept over. She slowly walked closer.
"Discussing a lady's age behind her back isn't a gentlemanly habit, you know."
She didn't pursue it further, clapped her hands to gather everyone's attention, and her tone became slightly more formal.
"Alright, that's enough chit-chat. Follow me. Your ancestors are already waiting for you inside the Fluorescent Forest."