The corrupted queen slime loomed in the misty morning light, a grotesque, pulsating mound of dark purple.
Thick, viscous trails marked its path, leaving behind patches of forest floor stripped bare of life, the earth beneath shriveled and blackened.
It gave the slime a look both mesmerizing and deeply unsettling, like an oversized organ throbbing to its own twisted heartbeat.
High above, the sky was shedding its midnight cloak, giving way to a slight pale hues of violet.
Caelum must be fighting the demon responsible for the rift, he thought.
That was good, when he's finished they all could go back to the Academy.
But that hasn't done a thing to weaken this monster who before long will find their hiding spot.
"It's best to deal with this as soon as possible."
He crouched low in the cave's entrance, a shroud of darkness concealing both him and his companion.
Beside him, Valeria's face was set in tense lines as she eyed the queen slime oozing across the forest floor, steadily devouring everything in its path.
A mixture of trepidation and frustration was written across her features.
Valeria broke the silence, her voice a whisper. "Do–Do we really have to deal with it? Can't we just stay here until it's gone?"
Eclipse gave a faint, half-smile. "You can do that."
"Really? Then…"
"..."
"Uh..."
Valeria clearly sensed he wasn't telling her the full story, "There's something else to that, isn't it?"
Eclipse answered, "The slime is going to eat everything that is breathing until there's nothing left.
"When all the animals in this area are gone, we're next. And I don't like the idea of being trapped in a cave when that happens."
"You!" she shouted in a whisper, "If I never asked, you'd just let me go through that?"
Valeria bit her lip, her gaze fixed on the slime. Beneath her tough exterior, the nervous clenching of her fists betrayed her unease.
"So we do have to do something then…"
Eclipse noticed and tilted his head, scrutinizing her.
"Let's go through what we have first. Do you have anything?" he asked, his tone deceptively light.
"Anything… like what?" she said, glancing at him, confused.
"Anything at all."
Valeria's face colored slightly. She rifled through her bag, muttering, "I… I might have something."
She opened her pack, revealing a messy assortment of items.
Eclipse leaned closer, barely able to hold back a sigh.
The bag was crammed with an assortment of mismatched snacks, half-crushed pastries, and crumbles of sweet biscuits. There was also a small knife and a small glass ornament.
Valeria flushed under his unimpressed stare, turning the bag to reveal a row of tiny bottles stuffed near the bottom.
But then Eclipse spotted something amidst the chaos. A pair of small potion vials, glass flasks shimmering.
He crouched, reaching forward, and lifted one of the vials delicately, turning it in his hands.
The liquid inside was thick and dark, tinged with a violet glow that almost seemed to writhe in the light.
Valeria stiffened, clutching her bag close to her chest.
"H-Hey! That's mine!" she stammered, her voice edged with a mixture of indignation and uncertainty.
Eclipse raised an eyebrow. "Are you an alchemist?"
"Uh, no…" She looked down.
Eclipse eyed the potion with renewed interest, noting the way the liquid swirled.
It wasn't just a typical elixir.
He recognized the subtle iridescent shimmer, the thickness of the mana condensed within.
"That's… poison," Valeria muttered, her voice wavering as she searched his face for a reaction, "I think?"
Eclipse's expression didn't change, though a glimmer of something keen flickered in his gaze.
He held the potion up to the faint morning light, letting it catch the warm glow filtering into the cave.
Well, she thought wrong.
As he inspected it, a familiar blue screen finally blinked into view.
Item:Draught
Properties:Condensed Dark Mana Essence
Effect:Grants the consumer Playing In The Dark trait for a brief period, boosting strength, agility, and speed.
Warning: 60% of having the consumer affected by dark mana corruption.
A potion infused with dark mana—a highly illegal and dangerous practice in the Kingdom.
Its very existence was forbidden; those who wielded such dark arts were hunted down as demon followers.
Eclipse shot a sidelong glance at Valeria, suspicion sharpening his gaze. "If you didn't make it, where exactly did you get this?" he asked, his tone measured.
Valeria's eyes widened. "What? I didn't steal it, if that's what you're thinking!"
She absolutely stole it.
She shook her head adamantly. "I got it from… someone. A kind of friend."
Eclipse's lips thinned.
She was a curious mystery, this girl.
First, he'd found her wandering the deadly Mist Forest alone, and now she carried an illicit potion of dark mana in her bag like it was no more than a simple snack. Yet her naivete seemed genuine.
"Wh, What are you looking at…"
But there was no time to dig deeper.
Today marked the third day of the trial, and he had yet to find the last herb, the Bloodfern, necessary to complete it.
Time was running short.
Sixty-percent, huh…
He stood, clutching the vial thoughtfully. Valeria looked at him, bewildered.
"Wait—are you… are you thinking of throwing that at the slime?" she whispered, incredulity mingling with a trace of hope. "Because I already tried that. It didn't work."
Are you serious? She has more than one of these? He shook his head, bemused.
"No, throwing it is a waste. It's not a weapon like that."
Valeria frowned. "It looks like poison. Just holding it gives me chills."
She clearly didn't have any idea what was sitting in her bag all this time. If the Kingdom Guard found her first, she'd be behind the cell for her entire life.
He cast her a sidelong look. "How much?"
"Eh?"
"How much do you sell this for?"
Valeria's mouth wide-open for a moment before showing him three fingers, "Three hundred coins."
"Then," Eclipse handed her the dagger he brought, "This at least cost a thousand golds."
Valeria took the dagger with her hand shaking, "Tho–Thousand golds? Are you serious?"
After letting her inspect the dagger and bit it once, Eclipse took it away.
"My Thousand gold!"
She reacted like a child just lost its candy.
"As you can tell by its cost, I'm paying you more than just this potion. You're going out there with me."
Valeria sucked her lips as if deciding but as soon as her eyes met the dagger again she instantly folded. "Agreed."
That's good. Eclipse let out a sigh of relief internally. He can't do this alone and he knew that. It was both misfortune and miracle that Valeria was here as an unexpected ally.
"Say… Eclipse."
Dignity+ activated.
"Master Eclipse," he corrected her.
She tilted her head, her curiosity flaring. "Why're you willing to pay so much gold for that weird potion? Is it like a buff or something? "
"You can say that."
He looked at the thing-he-will-soon-consume for a moment. His stomach twists harder the longer he watches. It was as if the liquid was staring at him back.
He probably shouldn't do it.
Man corruption is a big deal. A clear evidence of its effect was right there. The Queen Slime. Obviously the monster didn't look like that originally. After being corrupted you'd lose yourself, you won't even be human again.
But a demon. A slave of one of the deadly sins.
Eclipse chuckled.
If Eclipse turned into a demon, he wondered what sin among the seven he would inherit.
Pride, maybe.
Rumble… Rumble…
Valeria stiffened, her eyes narrowing slightly. "So what's the plan?"
Her voice was unsteady, but her expression conveyed suspicion. She doesn't fully trust Eclipse, of course. So if something goes awry, she won't hesitate to run away.
And her running was exactly what Eclipse had in mind.