Chapter 22—Ritual
Timeline 78521452224.21...
[ —Masteries—
—Fist Mastery—
—Tier One
—Proficiency: 2/100
—Fire Magic Rune—
—Tier Zero
—Proficiency: 98/100 ]
'Finally… finally.' The young slime felt tears swell in his tiny eyes just seeing that Fist Mastery moveagain.
Death by kick.
He'd long gone numb to dying.
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Timeline 78521452224.21...
"Fire," the young slime muttered, activating the flame magic rune.
A red circle flashed on his tiny palm as a spark of flame appeared. The spark grew slightly, becoming the size of a coin.
Gzz!
The flame burned vigorously, and the young slime played with it—shapingit into a fist, a spear, a pen, a sword—different forms one by one.
[ Ding! Fire Magic Rune Proficiency +1 ]
[ Ding! Fire Magic Rune tiered up to Tier One! ]
"Finally…" He burst out laughing as the panel shimmered in front of his eyes. He quickly opened the Masteries panel.
[ —Masteries—
—Fire Magic Rune—
—Tier One
—Proficiency: 1/100
—Increases the fire-type spells' power by 500%
—Reduces the mana cost of fire spells by 5% ]
'Good… finally another mastery tier up,' he grinned and activated the magic rune again. "Fireball!"
A basketball-sized burning sphere surged into existence.
"What an incredible heat…" He could feel the tremendous increase in its power just from the air temperature rising around him.
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"They're coming," Elder Slime warned, pointing at the entrance.
Thud! Thud! — A bulky man stepped into the farm.
"Rock Spike!" Mama Slime bellowed, activating her spell. A brown rune shone in her tiny palm, and a sharp, one-meter spike of rock materialized from the earth and—Whoosh!—The spike pierced the man from below, and he collapsed—Thud!—dead.
"Fire Lance!" Old Slime yelled, hurling a flaming lance at the next man charging in.
Thud! — He fell instantly, lifeless, with his face melted.
"Fireball!" the young slime yelled, activating his rune and slinging the blazing sphere at the red-haired woman as she jumped in.
'Come on… work this time,' he begged internally.
Gzz!
The woman's red aura—shimmering like fire around her body—cracked slightly, but the fireball itself was snuffed out instantly.
'All that flash… just a crack? You've got to be kidding me,' he thought, grimacing in disappointment over the fire rune mastery.
Puk!
Death by sword again.
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Nothingness!
'Great….what now?... To reach the next tier will take… hundreds of loops,' he sighed hopelessly.
Even if he'd grown numb to dying, the painwas still real every time.
He felt lost for minutes in the dark void until Mama Slime's gentle smile and Elder Slime's strict yet patient face flashed through his mind.
'Yeah… I can do it. They have to survive. I'll save those sweet creatures,' he vowed quietly, remembering Mama Slime's soft hugs and Elder Slime's tough love for teaching him relentlessly.
'Yes… I'm coming next loop...,' He tapped —Y— to begin the next timeline.
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Timeline 78521452224.22...
"Elder, any way—any way—to getstronger?" the young slime pleaded instantly after some discussion over the intellect.
If anyone could know the answer, it was Elder Slime.
'Please, old slime… tell me there's one,' he hoped desperately.
If there wasn't, he would be stuck looping for hundreds of lives, pushing his masteries to Tier Two just to maybe stand a chance against her.
And watching Mama Slime and Elder Slime die hundreds of times wasn't something he could take.
"Hmmm, there is indeed one…" Elder Slime said, voice turning heavy, and this time his tone lost all its usual kindness. His eyes hardened—grim and serious.
"What is it?" The young slime leaned closer, impatient.
'One day, in a distant future, after you have reincarnated, one of our kin will come to you requesting power. Then, teach him the forbidden path....' Elder Slime's body trembled as he recalled an ancient memory. 'He will have the ability to withstand that unholy power.'
It was an order he still remembered, and he had to, as it was his destiny—told by the Seventeenth Demon King Remora himself.
"The Path of the Unholy Ritual…" Elder Slime muttered bitterly.
"Unholy..Ritual?" Slime#47 tilted his head in confusion.
"Ritual magic—and forming contracts with unholy creatures… like those in the sky." Elder Slime glanced upward, his expression cold and heavy.
"Wait… Eldritch ritual?" the young slime blurted out in disbelief. He hadn't expected Elder Slime to even know about such beings.
"Eldritch?... Yes, I've heard that name. Some otherworlders use it," Elder Slime nodded, his eyes dim with memory. "You've met one of them—otherworlders; haven't you?"
"Yes, I met one," Slime#47 nodded. His body wobbled slightly.
He'd explained that he had a trait that let him return to his birth point every time he died—but he didn't mention being an otherworlder or a being bound by time loops. He didn't risk speaking of Time God, fearing that the Eldritch might appear if named.
"Spider… octopus…" Elder Slime murmured, clicking his tongue. "That's it. Child, we'll use ritual magic tonight."
Despite his burning curiosity, the young slime could only wait until nightfall.
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The sky turned purple, ten blood-red moons hanging high. Crimson light bathed the world in haunting radiance.
In the language training area of the farm…
"What weird symbols…" the young slime murmured, watching the elder carve magic sigils into the soil with a thin wooden stick.
The sigils were drawn in connected circles, centered around a large emblem shaped like a droplet.
"Done," Elder Slime said, patting his tiny hands together.
"What's next?" The young slime leaned closer, eyes gleaming with excitement, his body wobbled.
"This is ritual magic—used to form a contract with the moon in the sky and gain its power," Elder Slime said gravely, glancing upward with dread.
'I swear if it's an insect…I'm out,' Slime#47 mused as he felt spooky.
Even in his previous life, he'd hated insects—especially spiders, scorpions, anything that crawled. Just thinking of them made him creepy, and he'd feel itchy. He had an uncontrollable urge to stompthem flat.
"Now, follow my words and complete the ritual," Elder Slime instructed, pointing for him to stand near the circle while he stepped back.
"Is there a risk with this, Elder?" the young slime asked warily. It was called 'forbidden' and 'unholy' for a reason. Surely there was something truly dark about it.
"Yes... First, your body will be tainted by the aura of unholy beings. Without enough willpower, you'll be enslaved by them forever." Elder Slime's voice fell heavy. "And no one should believe that their will is unbreakable…"
'Wait… that curse—the Holy Purification—but how does this old slime know I had them to overcome it?' Slime#47's core quivered as he realized something startling, so he wanted to confirm.
He asked sharply. "Why teach me this if it's forbidden? Do you think I can withstand it?"
"Someone long ago ordered me to," Elder Slime said quietly.
The words made Slime#47's thoughts explode.
'What… who the hell? They knew I'd survive it? They know about the loop and holy purification?!'
His mind spun like crazy, too many questions slamming into him at once—someone might have planned his arrival to their advantage!
End of the chapter.
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