“A-adventurers?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden, Boss!”

“Pfft, becoming adventurers with a s-slime? Your jokes are getting b-better, Boss. Heh!”

“I'm not joking.”

Each of his men reacted differently to the leader's words.

“Didn't you say being an adventurer was d-dangerous?” Def asked worriedly.

“How are we supposed to be adventurers with a slime!” Sgol objected.

“What have you got in mind, Boss?” Hawein asked.

The leader calmly explained his reasons to his men.

“You all know this bandit business isn't going to work out. I was hoping we could somehow hold out until they stopped hunting us... but knowing that perverted bastard, that'll take a long time. So...”

The leader slapped his knee and declared,

“We're taking this little guy along and becoming adventurers.”

“But how are we supposed to do that with a slime...”

“Hear me out, Sgol. You all saw plenty today. You saw how well this slime fights. It doesn't get in the way, and it actually killed monsters much faster than any of you. Most importantly...”

The leader picked up the slime, which had been quietly listening on the ground, and stroked it. It quivered vigorously.

“It's this well-behaved and obedient. It's perfect to take along. ... Why's it shaking, though?”

Def answered with a broad, carefree grin.

“I-I think it likes it.”

“... Right. We're lucky to have met a slime that's this strong and this friendly toward people. When luck comes your way, you've got to grab it.”

“Heh, Boss. Didn't you say you wouldn't become an adventurer because it was dangerous?”

“I wanted to avoid it if I could. But we're in no position to be picky. Right now, our best option is to become adventurers somewhere beyond that bastard's influence.”

“Boss! Then wouldn't it be better to work as mercenaries somewhere else instead?”

“Sgol, even if we get beyond his influence, you know how small the mercenary business is. Not many people will hire us now that we've gotten on a noble's bad side. In fact... some might report us to that noble bastard.”

“U-um, Chief.”

“What? Are you against it too, Def?”

“No, that's not it. I-I was just wondering something.”

“What is it?”

“Even if we become adventurers, wouldn't there be... people who'd r-report us?”

The leader, Hawein, and Sgol looked at Def in surprise.

Who knew Def could think of something like that!

“Huh? W-why's everyone staring at me?”

“It's nothing. Yes, of course some people might report us even if we're adventurers. But so what? At least as adventurers, we won't have to wait for someone to hire us. We'll pick from a whole pile of requests, so we won't have to worry about finding work. Besides... once we prove ourselves as adventurers and become famous, he won't be able to mess with us so easily.”

“Why not?”

“The more famous you are, the more weight your words carry. If he spreads nasty rumors about us... we can expose the sort of job he offered us back when we were mercenaries. Mercenaries would keep quiet to avoid upsetting nobles, but adventurers don't worry about that as much.”

In other words, adventurers could earn people's trust because they primarily undertook dangerous work such as hunting monsters.

“Any more questions?”

No one had any more questions or objections for the leader.

The bandits—no, the group of aspiring adventurers—decided to embark on their new lives with the slime.

Meanwhile, as those plans took shape...

▶Lmao, this is getting interesting lol

▶First it lives the cushy life at a mansion, now it's partying up with hoomans? lol

▶Seriously, you can't predict a thing.

[Madam Cat's Cradle]▶Being surrounded by uncute humans makes Squishy look even cuter~

▶What if the hoomans end up selling it off?

▶[Doom Enthusiast has been kicked.]

▶Cut!

▶Lmaoooo

▶Ahahaha, this room has a mod now, remember? lol

The viewers watching events unfold through the slime were thoroughly entertained.

'Should I be relieved by this, or worried?'

And the stream's moderator, the user Free Spirit—commonly known as Smartass—was utterly bewildered by the slime's latest adventures.

'I hoped it wouldn't become hostile toward humans, but I never imagined it would befriend them this easily.'

Having once been human himself, he had thought he understood the relationship between humans and monsters. Yet the slime was getting along with humans far more smoothly than he had expected.

As if spending over a month in Count Rudendion's mansion hadn't been enough, even the bandits it had met in another domain after leaving hadn't immediately killed it. Instead, they were planning to work with it and become adventurers.

'Have attitudes toward monsters changed lately? Is my thinking... too far behind the times?'

He hadn't been outside in thirty years, so the world's accepted wisdom might well have changed. Even if he could rationally accept that possibility, Smartass found it difficult to accept emotionally.

After all, even now that he was a lich, he wanted to believe words like “old,” “outdated,” and “old geezer” had nothing to do with him!

To protect his own psyche, Smartass turned his thoughts to another subject.

'More importantly, Squishy Queen hasn't said much. Is she all right with this?'

The user Squishy Queen, who called the slime her kin and worried whenever it was in danger, was saying nothing this time.

'I thought she'd at least say something like, “Forming a pack with mere humans? I shall not allow it.”'

While Smartass was thinking that...

'This is not such a bad thing.'

Squishy Queen found nothing particularly displeasing about the bandits' conversation.

'It is about time my kin fought stronger foes and laid the foundations for its next evolution.'

The slime was no longer the weak little creature whose encounters with wild animals had left her anxious that it might be killed. Not only had it evolved once, but it had also properly learned Body Slam from Fenrir, gaining a means of attack—much as she disliked that.

Above all, though she had found it absurd at the time, it had grown by living in the nest of a human of considerable standing and regularly eating nutritious meals. Monsters absorbed what they ate more effectively than humans, and were correspondingly more affected by it.

In the Slime Queen's eyes, the slime now stood overwhelmingly above ordinary slimes. Wasn't its ability to easily dispatch a dozen goblins proof enough?

She nodded as she recalled that encounter.

'Mere goblins are of little use to my kin now. It must fight stronger foes to reach its next evolution.'

She looked forward to it growing stronger, evolving further, and meeting her one day. The sooner that day came, the better. Seen in that light, the bandits' proposal wasn't bad.

From watching streams, the Slime Queen knew what adventurers were: humans obsessed with hunting monsters without a trace of fear. Humans who hurled themselves at monsters so recklessly they seemed foolish, and sometimes lost their lives through arrogance even when they had no chance of winning.

'My kin is not foolish like humans. Should it encounter a foe it cannot handle, it will be able to flee alone. Besides...'

She doubted those weak humans hoping to become adventurers by borrowing the slime's strength would charge at a powerful enemy that even the slime struggled against.

+++

Having decided to become adventurers with the slime, the former mercenaries and former bandits set out for a region beyond Viscount Pedfil's influence.

There was, however, a small problem.

The fact that they were wanted?

That could easily be dealt with by using private routes and paying a little extra. The real problem was the slime.

Weak as a slime might be, a monster was still a monster. It would be quite a problem if a carriage driver made an issue of it or refused to let it aboard. More importantly, concealing it from the outset and then being discovered during their adventuring work would put them in a very awkward position.

While they were wondering how to get through without trouble, Sgol came up with an idea.

“Why don't we just put it on this pig's head? Show people it's safe enough to sit up there!”

At first, the leader nearly blurted out that the idea was ridiculous, but...

'... It might work?'

In fact, the slime was sitting on Def's head even now. Despite his large build, Def had an innocent-looking face, and the slime sat quietly on top of it. Somehow, the sight seemed convincing.

“... We don't have another option. Let's go with that.”

And the bold aspiring adventurers' plan succeeded without a hitch, accompanied by an incredulous remark from the driver.

“Hah, now even guys like you are doing that?”

“From a count's daughter to the likes of you—is wearing a slime on your head the latest fashion?”

Their success was thanks to a rumor that had spread from the County of Rudendion: the story of Count Rudendion's daughter and her peculiar hobby.

The young lady happily toured the town with a slime on her head and guards at her side. Her slime was reputed to be very well-behaved and to have a hearty appetite.

Of course, this was news to the aspiring adventurers, who had been living outdoors as bandits and leaving the black market as soon as they finished their transactions. They had managed to board the carriage, but everyone except Def was still dazed.

“Hehe, that worked out nicely.”

“Wait, that actually worked?”

“Pfft, the world's a funny place.”

“Who'd have thought a count's daughter would do something this stupid?”

“... Well, all's well that ends well.”

After two weeks of travel, the aspiring adventurers reached a region beyond Viscount Pedfil's influence.

“This is where we're making our fresh start.”

“Th-there sure are a lot of p-people. It really is a city of adventurers.”

“Idiot! Any city has lots of people!”

“Pfft, heh, don't sound so innocent, Def. You're giving away what a country bumpkin you are.”

The slime quivered vigorously.

“Oh, Bouncy's happy to be in the city too!”

Bouncy.

That was the name Def had given the slime during their journey.

“Let's get a room and head to the guild. Got it?”

“Yes, Boss!” they chorused.

'Boss!'

The slime sprang into the air. It had come to regard jumping along with their calls as a game.

After booking a room at an inn, the aspiring adventurers headed to the guild.

“Welcome. What can I help you... A slime?”

The guild receptionist broke off the routine greeting, distracted by the slime on Def's head. By now, the leader was thoroughly used to such looks, so he ignored it and stated his business.

“We're here to register as adventurers. Me and these three. And... this slime.”

“You're registering a s-slime as an adventurer?”

“No, it doesn't need to register. It'll just be traveling with us, so put it on our party roster.”

“Oh! Its name is Bouncy!”

The slime bounced on Def's head as though confirming his words.

As Def spoke with an innocent smile, the receptionist thought that, in all their years at this job, they had never seen such an absurd adventurer registration.