Slime Subjugation

After entering the forest and walking for a while, slimes and magical beasts appeared, just as the investigation had suggested.

“Leave the magical beasts to us! Master Vim, please handle the slimes!”

“Roger that.”

Grand Master Camille spoke while slicing through a beast that wasn’t a slime with his sword. Hana, too, was swinging her blade to counter the monsters.

“Burn.”

As soon as Vim spoke, the slimes were engulfed in flames. The dozens of slimes were wiped out in an instant.

“That level of firepower with chantless magic…”

the rookie mage muttered, looking utterly shocked.

“If you’re surprised by this, you’ll be wearing that expression for the rest of the day,” Grand Master Camille said while cleaning the monster blood off his sword. “After all, his mana control is on a completely different level.”

He was right. Vim could deploy twelve spells simultaneously in parallel. To put into perspective how far outside the norm this was, even the Head of the Royal Magic Division could only manage three at most. Vim was capable of four times that level of mana manipulation.

“Now, let’s move on. I sense more magical beasts over here.”

Once the slimes and beasts were cleared, Vim headed toward the next group of slimes caught by his search magic. The other squads also seemed to be engaged with slimes elsewhere. At this level of strength, the slimes shouldn’t pose a problem. As for the magical beasts, leaving them to the Knights was fine for now. Vim’s squad pushed deeper into the forest.

“I’ll leave the beasts to you.”

Vim continued to blast away at any slime that appeared. He had used a fair amount of magic, but he still had plenty of energy to spare.

“I’m finished over here.”

“We’ll be done in just a moment as well!”

Despite the short time they had worked together, Grand Master Camille and Hana were coordinating effectively. With a swing of their swords, they lopped off the heads of the beasts.

“Impressive, impressive.”

“You don’t look fatigued at all either, Master Vim.”

“I suppose not. I still have about eighty percent of my mana left.”

Even as they spoke, his mana was regenerating. At this rate, he would likely be fully recovered in another thirty minutes.

“Truly remarkable.”

“Hm? This is…”

At that moment, Vim’s search magic picked up a reaction from a magical lifeform that was different from the ordinary slimes or beasts.

“Master Vim, is something wrong?”

“Yes. I sense a massive magical beast. Gather the nearby squads.”

“Understood!”

At Vim’s direction, the other squads in the vicinity were summoned. Among them was the Representative of the Head Mage.

“Master Vim has detected a large magical beast. We are heading toward it. Everyone, stay sharp and remain on high alert!”

Grand Master Camille issued orders in a voice that commanded the entire group.

“Camille, let’s go.”

“Understood.”

With Vim and Camille in the lead, they advanced cautiously.

“It’s just ahead.”

They reached a somewhat open clearing within the forest.

“This is…”

Grand Master Camille let out an involuntary gasp. Standing there was a slime that far exceeded Vim’s height, surrounded by a massive horde of magical beasts.

“This is likely the cause of the mass slime outbreak.”

Vim concluded that this Giant Slime was the source of the trouble. Slimes multiply by dividing themselves. This giant one had probably spawned a vast number of offspring. As evidence, the mana levels surrounding the Giant Slime were unnaturally high. It was likely gathering the mana necessary to continue dividing and increasing its numbers.

“It looks like I can finally get serious for the first time in a while.”

Vim said, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly. He took a step forward.

“Master Vim, what do you intend to do?”

Camille’s voice came from behind him.

“Please step back. You’ll get caught in it.”

Vim spoke in a calm, steady voice. At those words, the Knights and Mages retreated several paces.

“Inferno.”

Vim commanded in a low, resonant tone.