The slime continued its quiet life for a time, and on one particular day, the forest was quite noisy. That in itself wasn’t unusual—the forest was always stirring with the sound of some strong creature chasing around a weaker one in an attempt to hunt its prey. However, on this day, the slime that lived alone in the forest was the one being chased.
This is my fault! I totally let my guard down! I didn’t think that thing would be here!!!
The slime lamented its choices, taking peeks behind it as it ran. It had been carefully eating weeds outside of its hole as it often did when it had suddenly sensed an unsettling presence. The slime had turned around to find a monster known as a green snake. It wasn’t fully grown, but the serpent was plenty strong enough to be a threat to the slime.
The slime desperately ran for its life, and it eventually made it safely into the hole it called home.
I made it... I’m so glad...
Just as that thought crossed its mind, the green snake’s tongue slithered in from the opening of the hole and licked it.
Eek?!
The slime was taken by surprise and began trembling with fear. It tried to flee deeper into the hole, but unfortunately, the hole wasn’t very deep. All it could do was wait for the snake to leave. It continued to tremble and wait while holding its breath. Eventually, the green snake seemed to give up and left the hole.
Phew, I somehow managed to survive...
The very next moment, the dull sound of a wall crumbling filled the hole, and before it could process what was happening, the slime was bathed in sunlight.
O-Oh no...
The green snake hadn’t fled. It had simply slithered back to destroy the hole. It had its sights set on the slime, which was completely frozen. The slime sensed it was going to die, which overwhelmed it with despair and fear. The green snake licked its lips as it stared at the trembling creature, then opened its mouth wide, preparing to swallow the slime. With its mouth wide open, the snake lunged forward.
No! I don’t want to die!!!
The green snake failed to eat the slime. Just as it had lunged, something had attacked it from behind, dragging it away.
Huh?
The slime couldn’t comprehend what was going on, and it cautiously and hesitantly looked over at the spot where the green snake had been. It found the serpent and a giant cat menacing each other. The snake hissed loudly at the cat, and the cat growled back.
The snake no longer had the capacity to go after the slime. It was now in the same position as the slime: prey. It did its best to make itself look as big as possible, and it extended the flaps of skin around its neck while staring down the cat. Unfortunately for the snake, the cat seemed undaunted by the green snake’s threats, and it continued to glare. The green snake trembled when it realized that the large cat was unbothered by its threats. Despite its fear, it opened its mouth wide and launched an attack on the cat.
It all happened in the blink of an eye. The snake hissed and lunged forward, and the cat roared and dodged the attack. Then, the cat used the sharp claws on its front paw to tear open the green snake’s throat. Blood sprayed out of the snake’s neck, and it turned back and continued to maintain a battle stance, staring the cat down. However, it wasn’t long before the snake took its final breath and collapsed to the ground. The slime had watched all of this happen, and it was moved by the fight.
Th-That was amazing! That big cat is so cool!!!
✦ ✦ ✦
The large cat began to eat the snake as if nothing of significance had just happened, and as it was eating, it sensed something was watching. It scanned the area and saw the spot where the snake had previously stuck its head into, and found there was a slime there.
Why is there a slime out here all on its own? the cat wondered.
Slimes traveled in herds. It was unusual to find one all alone in this part of the forest. The cat felt that the slime seemed to want something, so it shared some of its kill with it. Though they were both monsters, they couldn’t communicate, so the cat simply tore off a piece of the snake and casually placed it in front of the slime as if to say, Eat it.
The slime was surprised by the gesture. It understood what the cat intended, and it happily munched on the snake’s flesh. That was how the two met.
✦ ✦ ✦
Ugh, why is it following me?
The large cat had a problem. Ever since it had unintentionally saved the slime, the slime had been following it around. Even if the cat threatened or menaced it, it wouldn’t leave. The cat couldn’t just leave the slime alone, because that would leave it susceptible to being preyed on by other creatures. This issue was weighing on the cat’s conscience, and it was at a loss for what to do.
The slime ended up following it all the way to its den: a spacious cave nestled at the base of a giant tree. The cat entered its den, and the slime stayed by the entrance, seemingly unsure whether it should go inside. The cat sighed and gestured with its neck as if to say, “Get in.” The slime immediately understood and happily dashed into the cave.
This was the beginning of the strange life the two came to share.