Chapter 46: <Phoenix Mask Slime>

A plain room containing nothing but a bed made by attaching several <Pillow Slimes> and a TV embedded in the wall. The walls are entirely covered with <Pack Slime>.

Inside, there is a child wearing plain clothes made of white fabric.

There was not a hint of emotion on the child’s face.

The door opened and a doll in the shape of a woman entered, carrying a tray of food.

On the tray, a vegetable sandwich cut into bite-sized pieces is covered with <Pack Slime>.

The child wiped their hands with <Pack Slime>, then took a piece of sandwich from under the <Pack Slime> and put it in their mouth.

Still with a blank expression, they chewed the food.

After finishing the meal, the child started watching the TV embedded in the wall.

On the screen, a mukbanger dressed as Penguin Slime put an entire large hairtail fish into their mouth.

Wiggle.

Like a solar flare, a flame flickered from the child’s body, licking out with its tongue.

Just as it seemed the flame was subsiding.

Penguin Slime pulled out a crispy fried hairtail from its mouth.

A storm of fire swept through the room.

The <Pack Slime> that received the flame glowed red for a moment.

Penguin Slime cooked several pieces of hairtail with a batter like rust and began chewing them one by one.

Crunch. Crunch.

Each time the sound tickled the ears, the flames stirred.

There was someone watching all of this through a magic mirror in the wall.

***

I went to the Seoul Central Alchemy Center in my fashion terrorist outfit, then changed into SLimelove’s outfit and got into the car the client sent.

The fact that SLimelove and Alchemy Slime are the same person is basically already acknowledged.

And there was a request to come in fire-resistant clothing. The fashion terrorist outfit wouldn’t survive.

I arrived at a single-family house shaped like a fortress. It’s not as nice as my place, but it’s still a pretty wealthy home.

Well, <Mimic Doll> is an item you can only get when luck and money align.

Four repairs. The time frame is twenty years.

With those conditions, you can get the <Mimic Doll>.

“Welcome. Thank you for accepting the request.”

A woman with a peculiar voice greeted me. Even though it’s summer, she wore long sleeves, a long skirt, white gloves, and even a hat. And on her face, a mask.

She revealed almost as little skin as I do.

She looks like a member of a secret society.

This isn’t a trap, right?

“Hello. Where is the child?”

Maybe because it’s awkward meeting strangers like this, my words came out rather stiff.

Well, I’m not here for small talk anyway, so it doesn’t matter.

“This way.”

The woman led me down to the basement.

She opened a door that looked very thick.

Inside, there was a small room and a door.

“You did prepare for the fire, right?”

“Yes. No problem.”

“Please take care of Yeonwoo.”

The woman closed the door and stepped back.

I knocked on the door with a thud, then opened it.

The child’s eyes widened when they saw me.

Flames engulfed me.

Well, that’s quite a rough greeting.

I pushed through the flames and lifted the kid up high.

The force of the flames, as if trying to burn me up, grew even stronger.

Well, it doesn’t feel malicious-more like a reaction of pure surprise.

Are their emotions and flames linked in series?

That must be tough.

Water poured down from the sprinkler.

At the same time, I heard the air purifier kick on.

The flames that had been spewing from the child’s body finally stopped.

Maybe it’s the chill of the water, or maybe it’s from overusing their power.

Or maybe it’s due to a lack of oxygen.

The child’s lips turned pale.

I covered the child with slime to remove the moisture.

I also put a <Special Jelly Slime> in their mouth.

Then, a bit of color returned to the child’s face.

Though the flames revived as well.

I picked the child up with one arm and used a slime umbrella to block the pouring water.

From time to time, I put another <Special Jelly Slime> in the child’s mouth while waiting.

Gradually, the flames pouring from the child’s body calmed down.

“Are you okay?”

The first thing they say is to check how I am. So mature.

“I’m fine.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. No matter how much fire you breathe, it doesn’t hurt me at all. So don’t worry.”

The child opened their mouth, then shut it tight.

The flames flared up again.

“You don’t have to hold it in. Just let it out.”

Flames mixed with sobs engulfed me once more.

Since mana depletion and lack of oxygen are bad for the body, I kept putting <Special Jelly Slime> into their open mouth.

Crying and eating, crying and eating. It’s a busy time.

Eventually, the child cried themselves to sleep.

Even after falling asleep, the child was desperately clutching the slime mask with their tiny fist, so I held them in both arms and sat down.

What a desolate room.

The only furniture is a bed made from <Pillow Slime> and a TV embedded in the wall.

SLimelove appears on the TV.

Maybe they’re a fan of mine?

Is that why they were so startled?

Their fan spirit is burning a bit too hot.

Not only the TV screen but even the walls are covered with <Pack Slime>.

I guess they had no choice, since everything else would just get burned.

The clothes are made from fireproof fabric, processed into something like a dress.

The texture isn’t very pleasant.

Still, I’m impressed they managed to get so many <Slimes>.

No matter how much you try to block secondhand trading, you can’t stop it completely.

You can only catch idiots trading online or open-run proxy services.

If you hire people to buy for personal use, it’s realistically hard to catch.

I don’t really want to punish anyone anyway.

It only bothers me when people sell my <Slimes> to make money-if they’re buying in bulk to use them, I don’t mind much.

A fan of SLimelove and a regular customer of Alchemy Slime, maybe.

Maybe I should repay them by firing up my motivation.

The flames are expelled directly from the skin. The spot they erupt from is near the shoulder blades.

After being emitted, the flames move according to emotions.

It’s more like a power to spew out giant tentacles of fire from the back and swing them around.

Suddenly, I feel a sense of closeness.

Since it’s pitiful, let’s call them wings of flame instead of flame tentacles.

If it were just emitting wings of flame, that would be fine, but the problem is that it instinctively wraps around its own body and swells in size.

Even without any intent to attack, the surroundings are scorched.

Still, it’s a relief that their own flames don’t hurt them.

Sometimes, there are people who get hurt by their own abilities.

If this kid had been one of those, they would have turned to ashes and vanished long ago.

Not being hurt by your own flames is a blessing.

If they grow up safely, they’ll become someone great.

If the flames only come out from the back, a Slime mask made like a hoodie should be enough.

But a method that completely isolates from the outside, like my Slime mask, would be more comfortable mentally.

After all, the kid worries most about burning other people.

And maybe even a hoodie won’t be enough.

Who knows if they’ll breathe fire from their mouth when they’re angry?

I’ve got the design ready, but where and how should I make it?

If I make it here, I should at least show the minimum process.

It would be weird to just spit out a finished product from my mouth.

How did they even know and prepare for this?

Making it at home versus renting a suitable place to make it.

Which is better?

Maybe I’ll just make it here.

I let some Awakening Slime flow into the sleeping kid’s mouth.

Not long after, the kid woke up with a groan.

Blink, blink.

Flames wrapped around us.

“What a flashy morning greeting.”

I put some Special Jelly Slime into the kid’s mouth.

“From now on, I’m going to make you clothes to wrap your wings of flame.”

“Really….”

I lifted the kid up, holding their stomach.

The kid’s back touched my Slime mask, and the flames that burst out were instantly swallowed up without resistance.

As they say, seeing is believing. The kid’s question about whether it’s really possible disappeared.

I opened a bag made of Slime. Inside, it was filled with Slimes of various colors.

“Wow…. Ah.”

I put some Special Jelly Slime into their open mouth.

“It’s okay. Be as surprised as you want. Hold this for me. Yes, like that. Now this side.”

I picked out a gray Slime, stretched it out, and pressed the middle to make it like a pot with an open lid.

After tossing in the Slimes I brought, I closed the lid and kicked it.

“You try kicking it too.”

The kid smiled and kicked the Slime ball with all their might.

“Does PengRhyme always make Slimes like this?”

“Of course not. This is a special service.”

I took out the mixed Slime from the ball.

“Uh-uh. You shouldn’t touch that.”

“Sorry.”

“Here, play with this.”

I handed the kid a roughly made Toy Slime.

I touched the mixed Slime.

I poked a hole in the Slime mask. Pretending to knead it, I swapped the Slime through the hole in the mask.

“Kneading done. Now we just need to shape it. Covering the whole body is better, right?”

“…Yes. Please make it with no gaps at all, like PengRhyme.”

“Alright. What animal should we use?”

“Can it be a penguin?”

I put some Special Jelly Slime into their questioning mouth.

“Nope. Penguin Slime is mine. How about a phoenix?”

I made a tiny Phoenix Slime for them.

“Wow….”

“We’ll use this.”

I placed the kid on top of the Slime dough.

I grabbed the Slime dough with both hands and stretched it upward.

As the Slime stuck to the kid’s body, the Phoenix Mask Slime was completed.

The kid tried moving around, then beamed and started running around the room.

“It’s so comfortable!”

As the kid quickly got tired and panted, I put some Special Jelly Slime into their mouth.

“There are four modes, so remember them. See the numbers on the bracelet on your wrist?”

“Yes!”

“Shall we press each one with your index finger?”

The hood attached to the Phoenix Mask Slime automatically covered the kid’s head.

“First is the invincible mode, where no matter what happens around you, there will never be any gaps.”

“Never?”

“Never. Now, shall we press the second button?”

The hood and collar, which had been tightly attached, separated.

I pulled the kid’s hood back and lowered the collar.

“Second is eating mode, where you can pull the hood back and lower the collar. You have to eat, right?”

The kid immediately touched their neck. After confirming that the Slime mask was snug on their neck, they relaxed.

“Third is bathroom mode, where only the hoodie remains. Try pressing it.”

The kid hesitated, then pressed it. The hoodie-only mode looked pretty insecure.

“Fourth is bracelet mode.”

The kid just checked, then quickly pressed the first button to return to invincible mode.

“Don’t worry, the bracelet buttons won’t react if someone else presses them. Do you like it?”

“Yes, yes…. Really…. Really…. Hrk….”

The kid burst into tears. As they did, their wings of flame blazed with all their might, but the Phoenix Mask Slime remained perfectly stable.

I pressed the second button, took off the hood, and fed them Special Jelly Slime.

Weren’t the buttons supposed to not react to other people?

Manager mode.

I’m not a person anyway.

I lifted the kid and patted their back.

“Don’t hate your ability too much. It’s a very beautiful and wonderful power. Any ability can be used well.”

I kept patting their back until the kid calmed down.

After a long while, the kid finally calmed down.

“This Phoenix Mask Slime can be used for a long time even without doing anything special, but it’s good to get a lot of sun.”

Since this kid supplies flames, it’ll never lose effectiveness from energy shortage.

“The sun…?”

“Yeah. The sun in the sky.”

You can’t stay in this bleak room forever, right?

You should go outside.

“Can I go out?”

“Of course. Trust the Phoenix Mask Slime I made.”

When the kid’s gaze turned toward the door.

The door slowly opened, and a woman with her face covered by a mask entered.

The expression vanished from the child’s face.

As the woman approached, the child retreated.

Slowly backing away, the child was eventually cornered.

Anyone watching would suspect abuse.

There’s still a long way to go.

“It’s okay. Yeonwoo. It’s okay.”

The woman knelt down and hugged the child tightly.

“Mom… Mom!”

The child cried again.

Just how much is this kid going to cry?

***

The woman, who had cried again, brought the now sleeping child up from the basement.

After laying the child on the bed, she turned to me.

“Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

She spoke in a voice wet with tears and bowed deeply at the waist.

“I only did it for the payment.”

“Still, I’m truly grateful. The payment is here. Please take it.”

The Mimic Doll walked over and stopped.

“Is it really okay for me to accept this?”

Judging by the burn marks and other damage, it’s pretty worn out.

In terms of value, it’s probably the lowest among Class A artifacts. Still, it’s a Class A artifact.

On the other hand, the Phoenix Mask Slime was something I made in just a few minutes.

She saw how easily I made the slime, so it wouldn’t be strange if she thought the deal was unfair.

She answered while stroking the child’s hair.

“From now on, I can hug her myself.”

“I see.”

“Yes. Really. Truly. Thank you. Thanks to you, I can finally hold Yeonwoo in my arms.”

There was no hint of a lie in the way she kept stroking the child’s hair.

“I’ve definitely received my payment. If there’s any problem with the Phoenix Mask Slime, let me know. And this is the manual.”

After picking up the Mimic Doll, I left behind the Card Slime and the change, then stepped outside.

Should I call it the presence of Slime? If there’s a Slime nearby, I can sense it. That’s how I know just how much Slime the child’s mother is using.

Not that many.

Even though she used so many in the child’s room.

Clothes not suited for the season.

The child suppressing her feelings and avoiding her mother.

The burn marks left on the Mimic Doll.

It’s not a difficult problem.

Full-body burns. And pretty severe ones at that.

Alchemy potions can heal even serious burns.

But a powerful potion can also be a powerful poison.

If an ordinary person takes a potion with strong effects, it alone could kill them.

A potion with no side effects?

There are plenty of rich people in the world, and many of them want exceptional medicine.

Even if there is an alchemist who can make a burn remedy without side effects, they’re busy handling other requests. If you don’t have the right connections, it’s hard to obtain.

Even if you have money, it would be impossible to get it in our country, which is an alchemy wasteland.

Just like sticking Pack Slime on your head won’t revive dead hair roots.

None of my Slimes can regenerate cells that have been burned away.

Still, if you put Pack Slime on a burned area, it would greatly reduce the pain.

Judging by how much Pack Slime was used in the child’s room, she could have covered her entire body in it. She prioritized the child’s room over her own body.

Even now, that’s still true.

She could have commissioned me for a burn remedy, but she didn’t.

She was satisfied just knowing the child got the Phoenix Mask Slime.

She was so happy to be able to hug her child that she handed over the precious Mimic Doll without hesitation.

To have someone love you that much.

I’m jealous of that kid.

***

I connected my mind to Mimic Doll No. 82.

“Kiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!”

“Where have I seen this before?”

I think it’s like someone possessed by a ghost in a movie about exorcists.

Its neck and arms twisted in bizarre directions, convulsing as if plugged into an electrical outlet.

Is the voltage not right?