~ 💎 WEEKLY POWER GOALS 💎🔥 60→1ch | 100→2ch | 200→5ch ⏰ Resets Monday!
Thanks!
Alpha, Beta, and Shino had all turned eighteen.
Now that she knew everything, Alpha practiced controlling the Slime Bodysuit under Shino’s guidance.
After both Shino and Cid improved it, the Slime Bodysuit allowed magic to flow more smoothly.
In simple terms: faster attacks, higher efficiency.
Alpha’s talent was excellent.
She mastered the Slime Bodysuit in one day.
The next day, she mastered the Slime Sword.
On the third day, her strength surpassed Shino’s sister, Claire.
During this time, Cid kept disappearing.
Over and over.
Shino knew exactly what he was doing.
He was hunting for art pieces — all for his grand plan of looking cool.
Alpha’s talent was excellent.
Even without Shino’s guidance, she could have reached this level on her own.
It just would have taken longer.
“Alpha, your strength is already enough.
I’ve taught you everything I can.
How you grow stronger from here — that’s up to you.”
Shino felt that if he kept teaching like this, Alpha would eventually surpass him.
But that was only if her own strength stayed stagnant.
For a while after that, Alpha was just like Cid — showing her face, then vanishing without a trace.
She’d appear occasionally, then disappear completely.
With nothing else to do, Shino renovated their temporary base.
The old, rundown houses were transformed through his efforts into something brand new.
A full standalone villa.
With magic helping, Shino made it all very simple.
About half a month later, Alpha brought back a white-haired elf.
Her skin was severely ulcerated.
Flesh writhed in the wounds, and black lines covered her entire body.
Alpha hadn’t learned how to cure Demonic Possession yet, so she could only leave it to Shino.
And Cid was still nowhere to be found.
Alpha mistakenly believed Cid was off fighting evil in some unknown place, that’s why he kept disappearing.
The reality was he was finding bad guys, stealing their money, and using the art pieces to elevate his own style.
“Phantom-sama?
What has Shadow-sama been doing lately?
Could you tell me?” Alpha asked.
“I don’t know exactly what he’s doing.
It must be something very important.”
Shino wasn’t lying.
Collecting art pieces really was important to Shadow.
“I see…” Alpha felt even more respect for Cid.
Of course, it was only respect.
Nothing more.
Compared to Cid, Alpha felt Shino was the better person.
Someone with immense power who had no airs, was approachable, and even taught her how to fight and control magic.
“Phantom-sama, did you renovate this house?”
“Of course.
A nicer place means you all live more comfortably.”
“Phantom-sama, you’re too good to us.
A simple shelter would have been fine.
This is such a waste of your time!” Alpha was a little flattered.
Shino could lift the curse of Demonic Possession; he was clearly a major figure.
For someone like that to build a house with his own hands…
it was hard to believe.
But it was real.
“Your feelings matter too.
We’re not some heartless organization that makes you risk your life without giving you a decent place to live.”
“Her name will be Beta, right?
Leave her in my care.
You must have other things to do,” Shino said.
Alpha had been verifying Cid and Shino’s words during this time.
She’d already found some clues.
But she encountered Beta and brought her back instead.
Beta was unconscious but still aware, like a person in a vegetative state.
Her condition was different from Alpha’s.
Only the surface of her body was ulcerated.
The treatment was fast, only four or five hours.
Transformed back into human form, Beta found her own appearance hard to believe.
“Thank you.
May I ask your name?”
Beta looked at this child, who wasn’t even as tall as her, with immense gratitude.
“My name is Phantom.
The person who brought you here is Alpha.
My organization is Shadow Garden.
We formed to resist the Cult of Diablos…”
After that, Phantom told Beta everything.
“So, are you willing to join Shadow Garden?”
“I am.
You and Alpha saved me from hell and gave me a new life.
I’ll give everything I have and fight for Shadow Garden for the rest of my life.”
“Very well.
From now on, you must abandon your former self.
Starting now, your name is Beta.”
Shino extended his hand to Beta.
Beta grasped it.
The magic-converted Slime Bodysuit covered her body.
Beta spoke with conviction.
But when night came, she lay alone on her bed, shivering.
Her body trembled uncontrollably.
The scenes of the past were vivid before her eyes.
She was afraid of becoming what she was before, that inhuman, ghostly state.
Everyone thought she was possessed by a demon.
They spat on her, loathed her.
Even her parents, who had always loved her, looked at her with hostility.
They wished she were dead.
Every time Beta closed her eyes, everything that had happened to her flooded her mind.
“Can’t sleep, Beta?” Shino pushed the door open.
“Phantom-sama, I’m fine.”
Beta didn’t want anyone to see her shame.
“Your body is trembling uncontrollably, and you say you’re fine?”
“I…”
Shino came to Beta’s bedside.
“How about I tell you a bedtime story?”
“The name of this story is ‘Snow White.'”
“Once upon a time, there was a princess named Snow White…”
Beta listened, immersing herself in the tale, and unknowingly fell asleep.
It was the first time she had slept so peacefully.
Seeing her asleep, Shino quietly left Beta’s room.
Outside, he used magic to set up a barrier, one that only allowed those wearing a Slime Bodysuit to pass through.
Claire waited in the forest for a long time.
Her master didn’t come.
She finally decided to train on her own.
She repeated the drills from the day before.
After training for the same amount of time as usual, Claire headed home.
At that moment, her master, Shino, appeared.
“Claire, your master has something very important to attend to.
I have to leave.
The path to becoming stronger is yours to walk from now on.”
“Yes, Master.
I will.”
➤ Next: Strolling Around — The Fight Begins