My Slime Wife: Training and Pampering Her Makes Me Stronger
Chapter 25: The Mountain Above the Clouds

Chapter 25: The Mountain Above the Clouds

The fog grew thicker with every step.

Liam could barely see a few meters ahead as he continued climbing the mountain path. On both sides, dense clouds completely concealed the abyss below, making the road seem as though it floated in the middle of the sky.

Each step was slower than the last.

A message appeared from Lydia, perched on his shoulder.

[Lydia: This dungeon is starting to get difficult.]

Liam smiled calmly.

"It’s not that bad. It’s just a little fog."

As if the dungeon had decided to answer him...

A powerful gust of wind swept down from the summit.

"Ugh!"

Liam immediately leaned forward and dug his boots into the stone path.

The wind slammed into his chest with such force that it felt as though someone was trying to shove him down the mountain.

[Lydia: Liam, watch out!]

"I can still... still..."

Another gust.

Even stronger.

The wind whistled through the rocks.

Small stones began rolling down the trail.

Liam swallowed.

"...Okay, now it’s actually getting dangerous."

The wind showed no signs of weakening.

It only kept growing stronger.

Then...

"Krii..."

The sound echoed through the fog.

"Kriii..."

It was high-pitched and strange.

Like the cry of a bird...

Or the desperate plea of some unknown creature.

Liam looked up.

"Did you hear that?"

[Lydia: Yeah.]

[Lydia: It’s coming from above.]

It seemed to be coming from somewhere near the summit.

If the cry was already this clear...

Then they couldn’t be far from the end of the climb.

"Let’s go."

He pressed onward.

Every step demanded more effort.

He raised both arms in front of his face to keep the wind from forcing his eyes shut.

His boots slipped over loose gravel.

The path was still wide.

But one wrong step would be enough to send him tumbling into the clouds.

"Kriiiii..."

The cry rang out again.

Closer.

Louder.

Liam narrowed his eyes, trying to see through the fog.

He could make out nothing but shifting shadows.

Then...

A massive silhouette emerged from the clouds.

It had enormous wings.

The creature was impossible to see clearly.

It was only a shadow.

But a single flap of those wings...

FWOOOOSH!!

A violent blast of wind exploded straight toward Liam.

"What?!"

His boots lost their grip.

The loose stones beneath his feet began sliding.

"No...!"

His body skidded sideways.

The edge of the path rushed dangerously close.

The wind partially lifted him off the ground.

"Lydia!"

One of his feet slipped completely off the trail.

For a single instant...

He knew he was going to fall.

Instinctively, he threw both arms forward, desperately searching for something to grab.

His fingers caught hold of a small tree trunk jutting out from the rocky edge.

"AGH!!"

His entire body dangled over the void.

Below him...

There was nothing but clouds.

He couldn’t even see the bottom.

He panted heavily.

His heart felt ready to burst from his chest.

"I... I made it..."

His arms trembled.

He had no idea how much longer he could hold on.

Then he noticed something strange.

Several thin branches grew from the little trunk, each bearing small, perfectly round blue-violet berries.

They shimmered faintly in the light.

’Fruit...?’

’Up here...?’

He didn’t know if they were valuable.

But after everything they’d been through...

He had learned one thing.

Everything could be useful.

Keeping one hand firmly locked around the trunk, he quickly began plucking the berries with the other.

[Lydia: Liam.]

[Your skill "Danger Detection" remains active.]

[Lydia: I’m going to try something.]

He barely managed a mental reply.

’Be careful.’

The little slime leaped from his shoulder.

Liam watched as the wind nearly swept her away.

But Lydia’s body began stretching farther...

And farther...

Until she resembled a long, elastic rope searching desperately for something to anchor herself to.

Finally...

Part of her body wrapped around a massive boulder embedded in the trail.

[Lydia: Got it!]

Another part of the slime extended downward toward Liam.

It slowly wrapped itself around his waist.

Then across his chest.

Like a living safety harness.

[Lydia: Get ready.]

Liam nodded.

"Whenever you’re ready, honey."

Lydia’s body began contracting.

Slowly.

Steadily.

Liam felt himself being pulled back toward the path.

His boots scraped against solid rock once more.

One foot.

Then the other.

Finally, he collapsed to his knees on the trail, breathing heavily.

"W-We did it..."

Lydia shrank back to her usual size.

She bounced several times before stopping in front of him.

[Lydia: Are you okay?]

Liam let out a shaky laugh.

"I think I should stop thanking you."

[Lydia: Huh?]

"I’ve already lost count of how many times you’ve saved my life."

The little slime gave a proud hop.

[Lydia: That’s what I’m here for.]

[Lydia: I’m your wife.]

Liam smiled.

"And the best adventure partner I could ever ask for."

He looked at the berries still clutched in his hand.

"By the way... let’s store these. We might be able to sell them later."

[Lydia: Yes!]

The little slime opened part of her body, and Liam dropped the berries inside.

They slowly disappeared, stored away thanks to her newly evolved ability.

[Storage Slime has stored an item.]

Liam looked at the notification.

"This ability has become incredibly useful."

[Lydia: We don’t have to carry a huge backpack anymore.]

"Or worry about running out of space."

[Lydia: I like it.]

Liam slowly got to his feet and brushed the dust from his clothes.

He took a deep breath.

Then looked toward the summit once more.

The fog continued to drift across the mountainside.

And then...

He saw it again.

The enormous silhouette.

This time it remained perfectly still.

As if it were watching them.

He couldn’t make out its eyes.

Or its face.

Only those massive wings spread wide among the clouds.

A chill ran down Liam’s spine.

’I don’t think that’s just an ordinary bird.’

The radio on his belt crackled.

"Liam?"

It was Instructor James.

"We detected a spike in your vital signs."

"Is everything all right?"

Liam picked up the radio and pressed the button.

"Yeah. I almost fell off the mountain, but Lydia saved me again."

Silence answered him for a moment.

Then Millie’s voice came through.

"I knew you’d be okay!"

"Just be careful."

James spoke again.

"Our sensors are detecting a large lifeform near your position."

"We can’t identify it clearly."

"But we strongly recommend extreme caution."

Liam slowly raised his eyes.

"You don’t have to recommend it. I can already see it."

He clipped the radio back onto his belt.

Another message appeared.

[Lydia: What do we do?]

Liam looked at the path.

Then at the silhouette.

Finally, at the summit.

’We’re close.’

’If that creature is waiting there...’

’Then it’s probably the floor guardian.’

He took a deep breath.

"We keep going."

[Lydia: Are you sure?]

"Yeah. We came all this way to become hunters."

The shadow remained motionless.

Waiting.

The wind continued to grow stronger.

And that eerie cry echoed through the mountains once again.

"Kriiiii..."

This time...

It sounded much closer.