NOVEL FROG Chapter 14
I have three friends I occasionally exchange greeting texts with.
One of them I used to meet often for drinking sessions right after I returned from the Other World.
In those drinking sessions, I leaned into the booze and confessed to my friend that I was a Returnee from the Other World.
Naturally, my friend didn’t believe me.
He brushed it off as a joke to make him laugh.
At first, that was the case.
But every time I got drunk and seriously talked about the Other World, his reaction started to change.
Before I knew it, my friend began to suspect my mental state.
He said he was worried I might be crazy and offered to introduce me to someone he knew.
Then one day.
A girl showed up at our drinking session just for the two of us.
Her name was Ha Yumi.
She was the friend of my friend’s biological sister’s cousin’s friend, and she worked as a psychiatrist.
“It’s been a while, Yumi.”
I met the doctor through my friend’s introduction.
From that day on, Yumi joined our drinking sessions every time.
She said she would treat my delusional disorder and compulsive lying.
Feeling pressured by that, I started to distance myself from the drinking sessions with my friend, and soon we were only exchanging greeting texts.
You did block me, didn’t you?
I probably had you blocked for about a year before unblocking.
Even after we stopped having drinking sessions, it felt burdensome to keep in touch because he kept pestering me to meet for consultations.
“To clarify our relationship, what she said is true, but it’s not a formal relationship established in a hospital. It was forced during our drinking sessions. Besides, I wasn’t even a patient in the first place.”
I hurried to explain so there wouldn’t be any misunderstandings.
“And Yumi.”
“The stories I told you about the Other World before, they are all true. They’re not delusions on my part.”
It seems Yumi’s screen isn’t showing any Monsters right now.
Before explaining the current situation and the Assistants, I decided to show her these creatures first.
“Yumi, you can’t see the Monsters next to me, can you?”
“Hey, come closer to me.”
［Shii!］
［Pii!］
【Mysticism】─
The Dog Spider and Jellyfish clung to me.
Now they should definitely be on the screen.
“What else? They’re Monsters.”
I decided to start my explanation.
*
Just like I explained to Missy before.
I slowly repeated what I had initially told Pururu.
Even so, Yumi continued to deny it.
She kept showing disbelief, suspecting that the Monsters might just be CG created with advanced technology.
Was she the kind of person who wouldn’t believe anything without seeing it? Compared to the other Assistants, she was quite picky.
But as time went on.
She slowly began to lower her suspicion.
I was providing various proofs, such as pinching the cheeks of the Monsters to show they weren’t CG or special effects.
Ultimately, there was one phenomenon that couldn’t be explained by modern technology, making it easy for her to believe.
Only Assistants can see the Broadcast.
Having confirmed this through her acquaintances, Yumi eventually began to believe my story.
“It’s okay. Honestly, it’s odd to believe that.”
“I mentioned it while drunk. I don’t bring it up normally. After all, no one would believe me and I’d just be treated like a crazy person.”
“No problem. The fact that I’m a Returnee isn’t exactly a secret.”
The Dimension Magician also said it was fine.
He told me that while I’d seal away my powers so I wouldn’t cause trouble, talking about this world was completely fine.
【Mysticism】─
Why are those two bickering?
‘By the way, those three didn’t show up in the end.’
The invitation message had already ended.
The Assistants that responded to the call were Pururu, Missy, and Ha Yumi.
The three whom I exchanged messages with didn’t come.
‘Or maybe they’re mixed in here.’
Of course, I still don’t know the identities of Pururu and Missy.
Perhaps among them, there could be close acquaintances of the three that I know.
Well, I’ll find out their identities someday.
There’s no way they’ll hide who they are until the end.
*
The hot air filled my lungs.
One step, then another.
With every footstep, the temperature around me gradually rose.
At first, it was a slight change, but soon the heat became so intense it was almost unbearable. It felt as if lava were flowing beneath my skin.
This weak body can be really inconvenient.
“Jellyfish, cast Protection Magic on me.”
［Pii!］
A transparent barrier wrapped around my body.
Only then did the wildly raging heat begin to subside, giving me some breathing space.
I continued deeper into the cave.
Then, in the distance, a Monster that was spewing fire came into view.
It was a Slime made of fire.
“That is indeed dangerous. It’s not a weakling.”
A Slime with a core is F-rank.
That’s what you call a general Slime.
It can be easily taken down by an average person since destroying the core kills the Monster.
However, that one wasn’t a regular Slime.
“That’s only in reference to general Slimes. That one isn’t a regular Slime at all. It doesn’t have a weak point, which is its core.”
Slimes are divided into two categories.
Slimes with a core and Slimes without it.
The existence of a core is the absolute measure of a Slime’s danger level and a decisive factor that shakes the very foundation of its being.
The danger level varies immensely based on whether a core exists or not.
And that Slime was one without a core.
“The core, which is the weak spot of a Slime, has a unique property that cannot be concealed by other materials. That’s why it’s a Monster that even normal people can easily eliminate. Moreover, general Slimes usually lack lethality, so they can’t control natural elements like that one.”
To be precise.
That Slime is not simply manipulating elements. It embodies the element itself. It is a living disaster that cannot be killed by conventional means.
Those without a core are referred to as Demon King Slimes.
Which means, it’s capable of S-class abilities or higher.
In my understanding, there hasn’t been a Slime without a core lower than A-class.
But…
“It’s B-class.”
That creature was B-class.