My Slime Wife: Training and Pampering Her Makes Me Stronger
Chapter 19: The Value of a Stone

Chapter 19: The Value of a Stone

Liam carefully set his bag down on the counter.

The leather made a soft thud as it rested on the polished wood.

Adeline looked at the bag for a few seconds.

Then she raised an eyebrow.

"I have to admit... I was expecting something... bigger."

Liam smiled.

"Bigger?"

"If you’re here to sell dungeon materials, people usually show up with crates, military backpacks, or even pickup trucks."

She folded her arms.

"But you only brought a bag."

Liam chuckled.

"That’s because I’m not the one carrying the items."

Adeline tilted her head.

"You’re not?"

"No. My wife carries them."

The merchant glanced discreetly toward the shop’s entrance.

"Will your wife be arriving soon?"

Liam shook his head.

"She’s already here."

Adeline looked back at him.

"...Excuse me?"

Without answering, Liam slowly opened the bag.

The woman leaned forward slightly to look inside.

All she saw was a small, round, glossy green slime.

Adeline blinked.

"I’ve... never seen a creature like that before."

Liam smiled.

She rested both hands on the counter.

"Did you bring it straight out of a dungeon?"

Liam couldn’t help laughing.

"Sorry, but that’s my wife."

For several seconds, Adeline had no idea how to respond.

The two simply stared at each other.

"..."

"..."

"...Your wife?"

Before Adeline could ask another question...

The little slime hopped out of the bag.

Boing.

Then again.

Boing.

And one more time until she landed on top of the counter.

[Lydia: Hello.]

Liam smiled.

"I don’t think she can read your messages."

[Lydia: Right.]

"You can start whenever you’re ready."

The little slime began to move.

Her body rippled slightly, and then...

Objects started pouring out from inside her.

Wooden spears.

Stone spearheads.

Broken shields.

Herbs.

Colored vines.

Crystals.

Dark stones.

Within seconds, the entire counter was covered with loot.

Adeline stood frozen.

"..."

Finally, she exhaled.

"I have... so many questions."

Liam smiled.

"I figured."

The merchant pointed at the slime.

"To begin with... how can a creature that stores objects possibly be your wife?"

Liam scratched his cheek.

"It’s a long and very strange story. Maybe another day."

Then he gestured toward the pile of items.

"Today we just want to know how much they’re worth."

Adeline immediately regained her professional demeanor.

"Very well."

She pulled out a small notebook and a pencil before beginning her inspection.

She picked up one of the wooden spears, turned it over in her hands, and frowned slightly.

"These spears..."

She tapped the wood lightly.

"They’re far too damaged."

"I might be able to sell them as training equipment, but don’t expect much."

She set them aside.

Then she picked up the colorful vines and herbs.

Her eyes brightened a little.

"Now these are interesting. Or rather... I know exactly who would buy them."

She lifted one of the plants.

"There’s a botanist who purchases almost any species that comes out of dungeons."

"He doesn’t pay much, but he’ll definitely take them."

She placed them into a separate pile.

Finally, she picked up one of the dark stones and frowned.

Opening a drawer, she took out a magnifying glass and examined it carefully.

Meanwhile...

A message appeared before Liam.

[Lydia: I don’t think she’s going to pay us very much.]

Another followed immediately.

[Lydia: If I hadn’t dissolved the dragon...]

[Lydia: Maybe we could have sold its scales.]

[Lydia: Or its fangs.]

[Lydia: I’m sorry...]

Liam discreetly looked at the little slime.

He activated Call.

Don’t say silly things.

[Lydia: But...]

’It wasn’t your fault.’

’Besides...’

He looked back at Adeline.

’I think she’s much more interested in those stones.’

Lydia fell silent.

Adeline continued cleaning each stone carefully with a small cloth.

She rotated them under the light.

She even scratched one lightly with a metal needle.

Nearly two minutes passed before she finally sighed.

"Well..."

She held up one of the stones.

"I think you’ve brought me something truly valuable."

Liam smiled.

"Oh?"

"How much would you offer for everything?"

Adeline quickly scribbled some calculations onto a sheet of paper.

Then she looked up.

"I can offer you one thousand dollars for each of these stones."

She pointed to the pile.

"And five hundred dollars for everything else."

Liam didn’t react.

Neither did Lydia.

The two of them slowly turned their eyes toward the pile of stones.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four...

Liam counted them in his head.

There were exactly twenty stones.

Plus five hundred dollars for the remaining items.

That meant...

Twenty thousand five hundred dollars.

Liam felt as though his brain had stopped working.

’Lydia...’

[Lydia: Accept it, honey!]

[Lydia: Don’t think twice!]

[Lydia: Say yes before she changes her mind!]

Adeline watched them silently.

When neither of them answered, she misunderstood the silence.

"I understand."

She sighed.

"I suppose you were expecting a little more."

Liam snapped out of his daze.

"Huh?"

The merchant rested both hands on the counter.

"But you have to understand my position. I need to make a profit when I resell everything. I can’t offer you any more than that."

Liam kept staring at the stones.

Twenty thousand five hundred dollars...

It was an incredible amount of money.

Far more than he had ever imagined.

He never would have guessed that the simple stones the goblins used to make weapons, or even fuel their campfire, could be worth so much.

He looked back at the slime.

’Lydia...’

[Lydia: Say yes.]

[Lydia: Please.]

[Lydia: Before she changes her mind.]

At last, Liam raised his head and smiled.

"I think that’s a fair price."

Adeline smiled back.

"Perfect."

"Please wait here for a moment."

She gathered her tools and disappeared through a door.

◇◆◇

While they waited...

Liam rested both hands on the counter.

"I can’t believe this."

[Lydia: Neither can I.]

"With this money... We can pay the rent. The electricity. The water. Even part of the loan."

[Lydia: And buy all kinds of food.]

Liam laughed.

"Yeah."

"Even meat."

[Lydia: Lots of meat.]

He looked once more at the remaining pile of items.

"If we’d known those stones were worth this much..."

[Lydia: We would’ve brought way more of them.]

The two of them started laughing.

Just then...

The bell above the door rang again.

Ding.

Liam turned his head.

A woman had just entered the shop.

She had long white hair, perfectly groomed.

She wore an elegant violet suit.

There was an unmistakable air of authority about her.

She calmly walked over to the counter.

At that moment, Adeline returned from the back office.

She carried a thick envelope in her hands.

"Here you are."

She handed it to Liam.

"Twenty thousand five hundred dollars."

Liam accepted it with both hands.

"Thank you very much."

He carefully tucked the money into his bag.

"When you see Ted..."

"Tell him I said hello."

Adeline smiled.

"I will."

Liam picked up his bag once more.

Lydia gave a little hop back inside.

Together, they left the shop.

The bell rang again.

Ding.

◇◆◇

The door closed.

Then...

The woman in the violet suit slowly approached the counter.

She looked over the stones Adeline had just purchased and smiled.

"I see you’ve acquired more forging stones."

Adeline nodded.

"I have."

The woman tucked a strand of white hair behind her ear.

"How much?"

"Five thousand dollars each."

She didn’t hesitate for even a second.

"I’ll take all of them."

Adeline smiled naturally.

"As always."

The woman took an elegant fountain pen from her purse.

"Charge them to the Ouroboros Guild account."