The moment I realized it was a slime, I tried to throw it. But my eyes met its own bright pair, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Besides, if it were hostile, it would’ve attacked me already. Also, we were inside city limits. Monsters couldn’t enter because of the great mage’s barrier, meaning that this slime must’ve been tamed. Its owner was probably nearby.
The slime and I stared at each other for a while, but we obviously couldn’t stay like that forever. I figured I had nothing to lose from questioning it.
“Excuse me, where is your owner?”
“I dunnooo.”
“I-It talked!” I nearly fell down in shock. In fact, I ought to have been praised for not screaming.
“W-Water...”
“Water?”
“Gonna dry up...”
“What?! You’re going to dry up? H-Hang in there for a minute!”
The orphanage was nearby. I put the slime in my basket, which was no longer full of pastries, and rushed there, slipping in quietly through the back so the children wouldn’t see me. I headed to the well and drew some water. Unsure of what to do with it, I poured it into the open basket.
“Phew, I feel alive again!”
The mud came off, and the creature was renewed as a shiny, wobbly slime. I patted my chest in relief. It still wanted water, so I filled the bucket and put the slime inside. It began to swim around while humming a song. Looking at it this way, it was really cute. I wanted to poke it, but I stopped myself at the last second. Even if it was adorable, it was still a monster. You could never be too careful.
My knowledge of monsters came from the story of the monster dukes, which the children at the orphanage loved. It was more of a historical record than a fictional tale. It was said that most of the events had really occurred in the past, with only a few embellishments. I’d read the book over a hundred times, so I knew it by heart.
As I watched the slime swim around, I recalled the story of the seven grand monster dukes.
Once upon a time, there were seven evil monsters wreaking havoc on the world.
The Dragon burned cities to the ground in an instant with its powerful breath.
The Siren drowned valiant fighters at sea with a single song.
The Harpy brought sword-wielding sky knights down from their wyverns with its spells.
The Ogre devoured people to gain strength and intelligence.
The Treant lured people into a huge forest with no exit.
The Fenrir led a pack of beasts in its attacks.
The Slime swallowed people up like a bottomless swamp.
The dark age did not last long, for individuals rose up to defeat the monsters.
The king declared these people heroes and bestowed them with the highest rank after royalty.
The prince who had slain the Dragon was given the title of Grand Dragon Duke.
The fisherman who had slain the Siren was given the title of Grand Siren Duke.
The adventurer who had slain the Ogre was given the title of Grand Ogre Duke.
The charcoal maker who had slain the Treant was given the title of Grand Treant Duke.
The knight who had slain the Fenrir was given the title of Grand Fenrir Duke.
The priest who had slain the Harpy was given the title of Grand Harpy Duke.
The lord who had slain the Slime was given the title of Grand Slime Duke.
The monster dukes still existed now, a millennium later. “Grand Dragon Duke” had become a courtesy title given to the most skilled swordsman in the royal family. The current dragon duke was Prince Axel, a serious and honest man of virtue and grace, with an education to boot. He was only the second prince, but I felt that my sister would’ve been better off marrying him instead.
Prince Axel had been kind to me as well, probably because I was related to his future sister-in-law. After the fall of our family, he had even offered to take me in if I had nowhere else to go. I obviously wasn’t going to burden him like that, so I had politely declined.
“Ahhh, that was good water.”
I snapped back to the present at the sound of the slime’s satisfied voice. Laying a handkerchief over my skirt, I tapped my thigh and it jumped up into my lap. I’d wanted to wipe off its wet body, but apparently that wasn’t necessary for a slime. Still, it seemed to like the handkerchief, so I wrapped it up and put it back in the basket.
The orphanage director happened to pass by, so I mentioned that I had used the well.
“Feel free to use it anytime,” the director said with a smile.
“I’m busy today, but I’ll come by again,” I said. “Sorry.”
“We’ll be looking forward to your visit.”
I left and jogged over to the nearby knights’ station. A man and woman were there, and upon spotting me, the lady knight came up to me.
“How may I help you?” she asked.
“Um, I found a tamed slime, and I wanted to ask if its owner reported it lost.”
“A slime...?”
“I have it right here.”
“Well, I’ll be.” The knight took a book labeled “Lost Items (Unresolved)” from the shelf and scanned it for a slime owner. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to have been reported,” she said.
“I see.”
“Could you please fill out this form?”
“Oh, yes.” I wrote down details such as where I’d found the slime and the condition it was in, but when I returned the form to the knight along with the slime, she only took the form.
“I’m sorry, but the knights can’t take custody of living things. We’ll contact you if the owner comes forward, so, um...”
“Are you saying that I have to take care of the slime myself?”
“Yes.”
Apparently I’d opened a can of worms by picking up this creature. I immediately accepted my fate. It’s my fault for picking it up, so I guess I’ll have to look after it for a while.
Just to be sure, I asked the slime, “Um, are you all right with staying at my place until they find your owner?”
“Okay.”
That’s that, then. And so, for the first time in my life, I went home with a slime.
When I opened the gate, the duck flew at me.
“Wh-Whoa!”
She had flown high enough to clear the fence. I thought ducks couldn’t fly... Rather, if she could reach that height, she could escape at any time. I guess she can but chooses not to. I’m glad she likes it enough here to make it her permanent home instead of menacing the neighbors.
The duck squawked as she hung around my feet. I gently petted her and gave her a spare carrot from the garden, which she happily ate. I decided to make cheese gratin for lunch, but first, I had to figure out where to put the slime.
“Hey, you... Oh, I never got its name.”
“Slime” was a species name, so calling it that would have been akin to calling a person “Human.” Since communication was possible, it was better to ask for its name.
I peered at the slime in the basket and poked it. Its eyes snapped open.
“What’s your name?” I asked.
“My name is Wibble!”
“Wibble... Well, I can see why.” It certainly was wibbly-wobbly. Not wanting this to sound like an interrogation, I introduced myself as well. “I’m Francette.”
“Fran.”
“No, Francette!”
“Fra!”
It didn’t seem to be able to remember long names. Oh well. Now that I know its name, I can ask my question. “Wibble, is there anywhere that would be comfortable for you?”
“Bath!”
“Oh, of course. The bathtub.”
I brought Wibble straight to the bathroom and turned the magicite-powered tap, filling the tub with water. The slime gleefully leaped inside.