Maddy’s cheeks flushed red—not from the heat, but from the sight in front of her.

"A group of red slimes?!" she squealed. "They’re so adorable. I just want to dive in and squish them!"

The creatures wobbled innocently in the smoke, though the way they gathered for another coordinated breath suggested otherwise. Maddy shook her head, fighting the urge to indulge her obsession with the local wildlife.

"Argh, you look just like the toys I’d buy for Sephiran," she muttered. "I know he’d love to stretch and squish you... but you’re deadly."

Disappointment clouded her face as she tightened her grip.

"Sword Rush!"

She launched. As she hurtled forward, she realized the limitation of the move; it was a perfect surprise attack, but it only killed what lay directly in its path. She needed more range.

"And Clean Cut!"

In a single, fluid motion honed by her Greatsword Mastery, Maddy delivered a decisive slash. The blade arced with perfect precision, transferring every ounce of her strength into the strike. The cluster of Fire Slimes before her collapsed instantly, each one finished off with lethal efficiency.

Her years of kitchen work, her motherly instincts, and her honed sword skills all converged in that moment.

"Oh my gosh!"

She gasped, staring at the perfectly processed remains.

"Did that skill just pop into my head? I’m becoming way too used to this... even a slime looks like an ingredient for the children’s dinner now."

[System Notice]

[Congratulations! You acquired a skill: Clean Cut]

[Clean Cut: Deliver a single, decisive slash that prioritizes efficiency and lethality. Minimal movement maximizes energy transfer to the target, capable of finishing off weakened foes instantly. Effect scales with precision, strength, and sharpness of the weapon.]

Maddy’s map flared. Her sensing skill pinged in sync with the interface as a swarm of red dots converged on her position.

"The sign at the entrance wasn’t lying," she muttered, tightening her grip on her sword. "They really are welcoming me. Slime Village, here we go."

She braced herself to finish them off, but her resolve wavered. Her own knees felt as wobbly as the monsters before her. Coming from every direction, hundreds of slimes were hopping, rolling, and inching toward her in a relentless, gelatinous tide.

"Why are they... so cute?!"

They were all wobbly and round... perfectly squishable.

"No, no, Maddy, focus! They ate the people in this village. You have to resist. You have to resist... and eat them too!"

To anyone else, this was a graveyard. To Maddy, it was a kitchen full of ingredients that needed to be prepped.

"Okay, Maddy. Focus. Stop letting your bones turn to jelly just because they’re adorable. They’re killers! You’re going to be an adventurer, so start acting like one. This is the perfect practice. It’s time to clean up this mess."

The first wave closed in. These slimes coated the ground in frost, sliding across the ice to accelerate their charge. They were eager to taste the first meal of the day. Maddy’s heart melted, even as the air around her turned frigid.

"Oh, you’re just like the little cold packs I put in the fridge to keep the mold away," she cooed.

The Ice Slimes didn’t share her fascination. To them, she was nothing more than a potential meal. They launched a volley of frozen shards that whistled through the air, aimed directly at Maddy’s chest.

At the same time, a Sludge Slime lunged from a nearby puddle, its toxic body bubbling with acid that could melt steel. Maddy didn’t flinch. The moment she stopped adoring the monsters and started focusing, her sensing skills ensured she had no blind spot.

She drew on the traits she had acquired from the monsters of Shellgrave Forest—the Blade Bunny, Dao Deer, and Bomb Boar. With her Greatsword Mastery active, her mind calculated a way to clear the entire wave in a single stroke.

"To clear this much space... what culinary technique fits best?"

The slimes closed in. Her Reflexive Body Control, inherited from the Blade Bunny, kicked in.

"Wide Slice!"

She swung her short sword in a massive horizontal arc. The ice shards shattered into dust, and the Sludge Slime was sliced perfectly in half before it could even touch her shield.

[System Notice]

[Congratulations! You acquired a skill: Wide Slice]

[Wide Slice: Perform a broad, sweeping horizontal slash designed to clear space around the user. Effective for striking multiple enemies in a single arc and maintaining battlefield control. Effect scales with the user’s strength, blade reach, and momentum.]

Maddy watched the remaining Elemental Slimes (Ice) as they skated across the frozen street, their jagged bodies picking up speed. She didn’t wait for their next volley. Instead, she gripped the edge of her battered round shield, her muscles coiling with the refined power of the Bomb Boar.

"Let’s see if this has the right ’spin’ for the job!"

She flicked her wrist with a violent, snapping motion, sending the shield whistling through the air like a lethal disc. The mana-infused rim caught the lead Ice Slime directly in its frozen core, splitting the creature in two before bouncing toward the next. The shield carved a path through the pack, leaving behind a trail of shattered blue crystal.

As the shield reached the end of its arc, Maddy’s legs tensed. She activated Thumping Locomotion, her feet striking the cobblestones with enough force to crack the rock. The impact launched her skyward, her body soaring above the rooftops of the slime choked stalls.

"Coming back to Mama!"

While suspended in mid-air, she flicked her wrist again. A nearly invisible strand of reinforced thread erupted from her palm—a gift from her Silk Production trait. The gossamer line snagged the handle of the spinning shield with unerring accuracy. With a sharp tug, she reeled the heavy metal disc back, the shield snapping firmly against her palm just as she began her descent.

But as she dropped, she locked eyes with a cluster of Elemental Slimes (Lightning) crackling with yellow energy. They had been charging, waiting for the perfect moment. Now that she was at eye level, they discharged, sending a jagged bolt straight at her.