You know you've hit rock bottom when even your system roasts you before breakfast.
I was lying on my straw mattress, staring at the dawn sky through the cracked window of my shed behind the guild, when it happened.
A sudden [Ding!] nearly made me choke on my own spit.
[System Notification] [Because you are so weak and pathetic, a special feature will be granted at Level 2.]
I blinked.
"…Huh?"
[Useless and Pathetic User Ryou, as you've been so weak for three days, we're going to give you a special feature at Level 2.] Its name is [Cathedral of Summons]. Here, you can fuse two summons and choose which one keeps its memories and personality. Note: You cannot fuse Water and Fire summons. This is only for you because you are the most pathetic summoner I (system) have ever seen.
I stared at the glowing screen, words burning into my retinas.
The slimes were lined up like sleepy bubbles beside me, blinking.
The Sproutling was perched on a crate, munching on a stolen berry while peeking at the window.
"Did the system just call me pathetic?"
The Sproutling nodded slowly, chewing with judgment in its tiny eyes.
🍳 Morning: Slime Training and Breakfast
"Alright, pathetic or not, we're grinding today," I muttered, getting up.
I sent the slimes out to fetch water from the well. They bounced along, carrying a small bucket together like it was a royal carriage. They spilled half, but it was progress.
The Sproutling helped slice stale bread with a small stick, while I tore pieces for the slimes to absorb. One of them wiggled with joy, turning slightly yellow from the bread.
While we ate, I opened my Status Screen:
Name: Ryou
Level: 1 (12 / 100 EXP)
Class: Summoner (Rank F)
Mana: 40 / 67 (Recovering)
HP: 100 / 100
Attributes:
STR: 5
AGI: 6
VIT: 5
INT: 8
WIS: 9
LUK: 7
The grind was slow, but I wasn't here to get OP overnight.
(Also, I didn't have a choice.)
"Cathedral of Summons… Huh."
[Feature Locked: Unlocks at Level 2. Current Progress: 12 / 100 EXP]
Great. I wasn't even close.
The slimes stared at me.
"Hey, don't look at me like that. We're getting there," I said.
They tilted their heads in perfect sync, then bounced into each other, causing a small slime pile-up that ended in a unified "Pyo!"
The Sproutling sighed dramatically, leaf twitching.
🏙️ Guild Visit: Preparation
Later, we walked to the guild. The slimes wobbled along the road, occasionally stopping to poke at pebbles, while the Sproutling kept watch for stray cats trying to pounce on them.
Inside, the receptionist was rearranging quest slips.
"Oh, it's Slime Boy."
"Summoner."
"Slime Summoner."
"…Fine."
"I need a quest that pays and has monsters, preferably goblins," I said.
She raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you a bit under-leveled for goblins?"
"I have… a strategy."
She looked at the slimes stacked beside me, blinking.
One of them let out a "Pyo!" of intimidation.
She snorted. "Fine."
[Quest: Forest Goblin Subjugation] Target: Forest Goblins (D-Rank, weak variant) Reward: 15 Copper per goblin EXP: 18 per goblin
"We'll take it," I said, fist pumping.
Into the Forest: Tracking Goblins
We headed to the southern forest, where the grass was taller and the breeze smelled of wet leaves.
I scanned the area for tracks while the slimes practiced synchronized bouncing, forming a triangle formation to increase intimidation. (It didn't help, but it was cute.)
The Sproutling found footprints: small, three-toed, pressed into the mud.
Goblin tracks.
"Alright, team," I whispered, "we're going to take down a goblin, gain EXP, and get closer to Level 2."
The slimes wiggled with excitement, forming a tight circle.
The Sproutling cracked its tiny knuckles, leaf pointing forward.
We advanced slowly, the slimes sticking close.
⚔️ First Goblin Sighting
Through the bushes, we saw it:
A green-skinned goblin, barely the size of a teenager, with a chipped dagger and beady yellow eyes.
It was poking at the ground, trying to catch a bug to eat.
[Forest Goblin – D-Rank] HP: 35 / 35
"Alright, Sproutling, distract it. Slimes, prepare for pincer attack."
They nodded.
The Sproutling stepped out, letting out a small "Hmph!" to get its attention.
The goblin turned, confused, then hissed and charged with its dagger raised.
The Sproutling ducked, jabbing its tiny fist into the goblin's knee, causing it to stumble.
"NOW!"
The slimes executed their practiced triple pincer bounce, slamming into the goblin's back and sides while yelling "Pyo! Pyo! Pyo!"
The goblin roared, swiping with its dagger, managing to slice a small piece of slime from Slime #2, who squeaked but reformed quickly.
The Sproutling leaped over the goblin's head, landing behind it and tripping it with a sweep.
The goblin fell, and the slimes piled on, smacking it repeatedly.
[Goblin HP: 12 / 35]
"Almost there, don't let it recover!"
The goblin struggled, trying to stand, but the Sproutling jumped on its back while the slimes slammed it with a final unified body bounce.
POOF!
The goblin dissolved into sparkles, leaving behind a chipped dagger, a fang, and a small pouch of copper coins.
[Goblin defeated. +18 EXP] [Slime Horde gains 10% of foe's stats] [Sproutling gains +0.5 EXP]
[Level: 1 (30 / 100 EXP)]
I picked up the pouch, shaking it.
Three copper coins jingled inside.
The slimes did a small victory dance, wiggling in a circle while chanting "Pyo! Pyo!"
The Sproutling inspected the dagger before tossing it aside with a sigh, leaf drooping, as if saying, "Not worth."
We had a long way to go before Level 2 and unlocking the Cathedral of Summons.
But this was progress.
Real, steady progress.
As we ventured deeper into the forest, rustling in the bushes told us more goblins were nearby.
The slimes lined up, ready.
The Sproutling cracked its knuckles again.
And for the first time in three days, I felt like maybe—just maybe—I wasn't the most pathetic summoner in the world.
....
There's something strangely therapeutic about watching slimes body-slam goblins while yelling "Pyo!" with unbridled enthusiasm.
At first, I was careful—measuring distance, using the Sproutling to bait attacks, and ordering the slimes to time their pincer slaps perfectly.
The first goblin fell easily.
Then the second.
By the third, I stopped flinching when goblin claws came close.
....
"Pyo!"
Thwack!
The slimes smacked a goblin in the face, sending it rolling.
The Sproutling tripped it from behind, then the slimes pounced in a blob pile.
Poof.
[Goblin defeated. +18 EXP]
We found another goblin five minutes later.
Then another, and another.
The forest was quiet except for the occasional rustle, the soft hum of wind through the trees, and the wet splats of slime attacks.
I stopped checking the system notifications.
At one point, the slimes had learned to coordinate a "bounce chain" where one would fling itself at the goblin's legs, another at its back, and the last at its face, knocking it backward for the Sproutling to finish with a headbutt.
They were having fun.
And so was I.
[Goblin defeated. +18 EXP]
[Goblin defeated. +18 EXP]
[Goblin defeated. +18 EXP]
.....
I don't know how many we fought.
Five?
Six?
Maybe more?
All I know is that the copper coins were adding up in my pouch, the slimes were shining with excitement, and the Sproutling's leaf was wagging like a puppy tail whenever it landed the finishing blow.
"Alright, team, next goblin!" I shouted, raising my arm like a commander.
"Pyo!"
The slimes launched forward.
The goblin shrieked before getting swarmed, its dagger falling to the dirt with a soft thud.
Poof.
I wiped sweat off my forehead, grinning.
"This is it. This is the grind I read about in all those novels."
The Sproutling tossed a small fang into our loot pile, nodding with satisfaction.
I cracked my knuckles, looking around for the next goblin.
That's when a [Ding!] smacked me in the face.
I blinked.
[Level Up!] [You have reached Level 2.]
"Wait, what?"
I quickly opened my Status Screen:
> [Level: 2] [EXP: 178 / 200]
"H-Hold on, when did I…?"
I scrolled through my backlog of notifications.
Goblin after goblin.
Copper after copper.
EXP after EXP.
I had gotten so focused on massacring goblins that I hadn't even noticed my level-up.
The slimes were lined up, blinking at me, dripping goblin goo from their bodies like proud warriors.
The Sproutling was flexing its tiny arms in front of a puddle reflection.
"…You guys are insane," I muttered, feeling a weird warmth in my chest.
They had fought so hard with me, and we didn't even realize how far we'd come.
💥 Cathedral of Summons Unlocks
Then it happened.
[Ding!] [Special Feature Unlocked: Cathedral of Summons]
Another window popped open, more elaborate than before, with dark blue and gold designs, a soft light pulsing at its corners.
[Because you are the most pathetic summoner I have ever seen, this feature has been granted early. You may now fuse two summons of the same element. You may select which summon retains its memories and personality post-fusion. Note: Water and Fire summons cannot be fused because they'd evaporate, I guess. This is your only chance to become slightly less pathetic.]
"…I'm gonna fight this system one day," I muttered under my breath.
The slimes wiggled toward me, peeking at the floating screen.
The Sproutling climbed onto a stump, crossing its arms, looking at me expectantly.
[Cathedral of Summons]
Fusion of two summons of the same tier.
Combines stats, potential skills, and evolution paths
One retains memories and personality, the other merges fully
Possible to achieve higher evolutionary forms earlier
Requires Mana Payment: 20% of max mana
I checked my Mana: 60 / 77.
I had enough to perform a fusion.
The slimes turned to each other.
One of them slapped its body with a determined Pyo.
The others responded with Pyo Pyo.
They seemed ready.
The Sproutling watched silently, eyes serious.
"Alright… which two of you want to fuse?" I asked.
They looked at each other.
The smallest one bounced forward, raising a blob of itself like a hand.
The largest one followed, pressing against it in a soft splat.
"You two sure?" I asked.
They nodded.
The third slime looked relieved, bouncing happily in circles.
"…Now, who keeps the memories?"
Both slimes turned to the smallest slime.
The small one blinked, letting out a quiet, brave "Pyo."
The Sproutling placed a tiny hand on my leg, nodding solemnly.
[Confirm Fusion? Mana Cost: 15]
[Confirm which summon retains its personality?]
I tapped the small slime.
[Fusion Initiated…]
A soft glow enveloped the two slimes.
Their bodies merged, colors swirling from pale blue to a slightly deeper blue, the glow intensifying.
Mana drained from me, making me wobble, but I stayed standing.
The glow peaked, then collapsed inward, forming a slightly larger slime with a deeper sheen and a calm, steady Pyo.
[Fusion Complete!] [New Summon Acquired: Slime (F Rank)] [Stats Combined: STR, AGI, VIT increased] [Potential for Advanced Evolution: King Slime enabled upon reaching cap]
The newly fused slime bounced forward, looking at me with its shiny eyes, letting out a soft, confident "Pyo."
I knelt down, patting its smooth surface.
"Welcome back, buddy."
The Sproutling clapped softly, a proud smile on its face.
The third slime joined in, bouncing around its newly evolved sibling in circles.
We packed up our loot, the sun already starting to set through the trees.
The newly fused slime let out a calm Pyo as it bounced along.
The Sproutling walked beside me, leaf wagging with satisfaction.
We still had a long way to go.
But for the first time, it felt like we were a real team.
And maybe, just maybe,
The system would stop calling me pathetic one day.