A massive shockwave resounded through the forest over several dozen kilometers away from the capital. The source of the disturbance was a monster that resembled a large boar. However, it happened to be the size of a small truck, and had the ability to generate a massive directional shockwave out of its snout. A Shock Hog, as it was known. It was also known as one of the strongest monsters in the Western Forests of Lithallin. Right now, the Shock Hog was in a fury. For some reason, it couldn't defeat a human. A human clad in black mist and purple goo. That human, of course, was Hirai Katsumi.
The boar turned once more and charged. Katsumi dodged just in the nick of time, and looked over his shoulder to see the Shock Hog crush multiple trees in a straight line with its charge.
The boar turned once more, intent on killing the human that dared invade its domain. However, the human was nowhere to be seen.
"Where are ya looking, you dumb brute?"
Katumi dropped from above the boar, landing on its back and using his momentum to drive a spike made out of slime material into the boar's back. The boar bucked, trying to shake Katsumi off. However, Katsumi was long gone.
With what appeared to be a tentacle, Katsumi had pulled himself up onto a tree.
Obviously, the boar wasn't in the best state of mind, but if it had been more attentive, it would have noticed that the "tentacle" was a tendril of mist wrapped with a layer of semi-hardened slime material.
Katsumi had continuously fed excess material he got from slain monsters to Purple, until Purple now had almost twenty slime cores. Then, Katsumi had stored almost all of the cores into Pocket, leaving only two cores for defence. With that, he could summon the slimes at any point within Pocket's range, and by using Pocket's mist tendrils as a "support" of sorts, he could form long tentacles. In combat, Katsumi kept Pocket's core right behind his back.
By the way, the current stats of Purple and Pocket were as such:
---
Type: Slime
Variant: Purple
Current Mass: 186kg
Aspects:
Viscosity: 12
Speed: 13
Digestion Speed: 10
Glow: 1
Stickiness: 20
Hardening: 57
Range: 10
---
Type: Wraith
Current Volume (Mist): 5.44m3
Aspects:
Volume-per-Mass: 91
Absorption: 7
Core Movement Speed: 16
Range: 17
---
Katsumi had continually improved both as he progressed deeper into the forest. After a week and a half, both monsters now had their usefulness greatly enhanced.
The boar let loose a shockwave. As it hit the trees, leaves went scattering. However, Katsumi was already gone.
This time, Katsumi charged the boar. Using Pocket's mist as a cloak to hide his exact position and avoid the boar's swipes, Katsumi managed to slip under the boar and stabbed up with a hardened slime spike. The boar squealed in pain as Katsumi got out from under the boar between its hind legs.
Furious, the boar tried to turn around, but found that it couldn't. The reason was because it had already been immobilized by slime. When Katsumi slid under it, he had dropped off all the slime cores he had at his disposal. They slithered up the boar's legs and rooted it to the spot. The boar writhed, but only managed to destroy one or two slime cores. As the Shock Hog futilely tried to struggle, a few slimes encircled its neck and forced its snout into the ground, making its shockwave attack useless. Then as the boar watched, the human slowly circled in front of it.
"You're weak, and I'm strong. Therefore you belong under me."
Katsumi had said all he had to say. As the boar glared at him, a snake-like tendril of mist writhed its way forward and slowly bore itself into the skull of the Shock Hog.
---
The next morning, Katsumi woke to the sight of the boar completely stripped of flesh down to the bone. He had cut out a few major chunks of flesh and stored them in Pocket, leaving Purple to digest the rest.
Overnight, three new slime cores had formed. Purple was getting closer and closer to a small army.
As Katsumi sleepily stood up, the almost-transparent, semicircular protective dome he had two of Purple's subunits from over him retracted.
Katsumi had accomplished what he had come to do: to subjugate the strongest monster in the Western Forest. All that was left for him was to return. Katsumi stretched out his arms and several tendrils of Wraith mist shot out and formed a vertical surface several meters from the carcass. One-by-one, the slimes entered the mist and returned into Pocket, except one that coiled protectively around Katsumi's arm.
It was time to return to Lithallin. To prove that he was no longer weak to those who looked down on him. As long as nothing else occurred, of course.
---
The streets of Lithallin were in a frenzy. Hundreds of guards, in groups of five, were roaming the streets. Dozens of people had been rounded up and were being herded intothe castle, presumably to the dungeons.
"You know what's happening, Bridgette?" A young shop owner asked his neighbour, an old lady, as he looked over the city from the roof of his house. The streets throughout the city were lit up with the light of the torches held by the guards.
"I heard that they're arresting rebels! Goodness me, at least it'll be over soon."
---
-A week later-
In a dark alley, a solitary figure was crouching. The person was breathing heavily, and was obviously in distress.
That person was Kimoto Mari.
Her contact with the rest of the organization had reached her, covered in wounds.
"Your cover's blown! Run!" The hooded figure had then collapsed. Mari didn't have the luxury of checking if they were dead or merely unconscious. She did as she was told and ran.
Obviously, the empire was not planning to let her go unhindered. The Guard Force had been sent out at scale. As Mari weaved between the shadows on the streets, she had somehow managed to stay unnoticed.
She was getting closer to safety. The West gate. Once she left through there and got to the Western Forest, she would be safe. They wouldn't be able to find her, and she could make the long journey to the place they had told her to go to in the case of an emergency.
She had to escape. She looked down at the notebook her contact had entrusted to her. She had to get out.