Chapter 40: Prelims Day 2 (Part 2)

[And that's a wrap ladies and gentlemen! We'll be back tomorrow to finish up this exciting Preliminary Tournament with our last batch of fighters! What an exciting event this is turning out to be! Now just a few reminders of our...] - Judico

[Phew! It's finally over! None of my fights were interesting at all but the damn crowd staring at me made them exhausting.] - Karen

[Well you seemed to be dealing with it pretty well all things considered.] - Malaise

[Yeah you only looked a little pale! Hahahaha! Ow!] - Veronica

[She's see-through you moron!] - Malaise

[Hahaha, you guys have a good relationship. It reminds me of me and Aust... ummm Rose when we were younger.] - Karen

[Really? I can't imagine her being good at such a casual relationship honestly. She always struck me and the shy and innocent type.] - Malaise

[Shy and innocent?!? Hahaha! That gu... girl is an enormous pervert! You wouldn't believe some of the stories I have from... oh.] - Karen

[Ha? So met when you were young huh?] - Malaise

Realizing her mistake Karen immediately covered her mouth but it was too late as Malaise narrowed her eyes suspiciously while Veronica looked between the two of them in confusion. Shade, for her part, seemed completely unmoved by the current situation.

[I know I said that I would leave it until Rose made it back but I just have to ask. How exactly do you know Rose?] - Malaise

[Umm... I-I... Well...] - Karen

[You're... not originally a slime are you?] - Malaise

Faux-eye's rolling around in her head as she tried to think of a suitable response her panic got the better of her as she stumbled over her words. Malaise's next question made her freeze up instantly however with her mouth hanging open.

[W-W-What are you talking about? That's ridiculous isn't it?] - Karen

[I've been suspicious of your origin since you showed up if I'm being honest, everything I've read on slime's indicate that before reaching humanoid status they only have vague recollections of memories and basic responses and feelings but you act like you have been fully conscious during that time. On top of that after you talked about throwing up because of your phobia I went and researched whether slimes had that ability and found that there was absolutely no mention of it in any research papers.] - Malaise

[M-Maybe they just got their information wrong?!?] - Karen

[That is definitely a possibility, honestly not much is known about humanoid slimes because of how rare a non-hostile one is. However your story and the way you act as if your body is completely new to you makes me doubt that, you seem to know next to nothing about your body. You also seem to keep almost calling Rose by another name every time you talk about her.] - Malaise

[...!] - Karen

Shit Shit SHIT SHIT!!! Panic had completely set in at this point and Karen had basically given up on trying to convince her that she was wrong. Fight or flight mode had kicked in.

[So that leaves me with only 2 options! One: You don't know Rose all that well and this is a ploy of some kind.] - Malaise

[Wait but I...!] - Karen

[This one is extremely unlikely considering Rose herself confirmed that she knew you in her childhood.] - Malaise

[E-Exactly!] - Karen

[The second option is that you are like this because of some kind of magic and that you knew Rose in whatever form you were in previously.] - Malaise

[Huh...?] - Karen

[I'm right aren't I?] - Malaise

[U-Umm y-yeah...] - Karen

Well that was... anticlimactic. After all that build-up and she guessed wrong? Karen felt relief flow through her body as all the tension flowed from her. I mean sure she was close but she hadn't guessed that she was from a different world or that Rose was really Austin just reincarnated here as a... lamia girl? Wait doesn't that mean that Austin is now in her ballpark? Previously she'd only teased her a little about her new body but she'd been focused on eventually finding a way for the both of them to return to their own world after contacting Master Lao Shi and then on waiting for her to return that she hadn't really considered the situation she now found herself in. Now however she was considering the idea that it might be better staying, it was like this world was tailor made for her fantasies afterall.

There had always been a disconnect in her mind between love and attraction. She was a hardcore lesbian, she was fine using Austin as a living sex toy for some of her dalliances with women but the thought of actually taking a dick was so repulsive to her to be completely out of the question. At the same time however she had completely fallen in love with Austin, her heart throbbed when she thought of him, now her, and she had always felt sad at the fact that she could never be physically together with him. But now? It was free game!!!

Completely distracted by the thought of having her own monster girl to play with that had the mind of the love of her life she didn't even notice the looks of concern from Malaise and the other two until she was shook violently out of her reverie.

[Huh? What? What?] - Karen

[I said are you okay? You fazed out after I confronted you.] - Malaise

[Yeah your eyes went all glassy-like and you looked completely out of it.] - Veronica

[O-Oh. Yeah I'm fine, I was just thinking of something unrelated. Sorry.] - Karen

[Well whatever, as long as you're okay. Anyway why did you go to such great length's to hide that you weren't always a slime? I can't imagine it being something that you needed to hide from us.] - Malaise

[W-Well at first I didn't know you well enough and after that I couldn't think of the right time to bring it up... sorry. <For this too...>] - Karen

[Apology accepted, I'll chew Rose out when she gets back though. I know she didn't really have time to let us know about your situation but she didn't have to be so vague about it either.] - Malaise

[Hahahaha...] - Karen

Nervously laughing while sweating? bullets I internally let out a sigh of relief at the fact that I hadn't been caught, and more importantly that Austin hadn't been figured out. Unfortunately I didn't notice the look of realization on Shade's face as her own suspicions were confirmed in her mind.

[Hey want to go look around the festival? We haven't really done that yet and we'd love to include you.] - Malaise

[I'd love to! Escorting a bunch of cutie's like you guys would be my pleasure!] - Karen

[Hahahaha! This girl is definitely my kind of woman! So what's your preference, the giver or the taker? You okay with a few at a... OW!] - Veronica

[Quiet Ver. What the horndog meant to say is we appreciate your compliment and would love to show you around.] - Malaise

[No I didn't I meant I'd fu... OW OW OW!!! Not the face!] - Veronica

Winking at the three cute women she was surprised when Veronica made such an explicit comment, she'd interacted with them before certainly but it had always been in the context of training and while the succubi had come off as a flirt it was like she was holding herself back during her previous encounter's. Malaise, of course, immediately shut that sort of talk down with a heavy book to the horny succubus's skull only for her to try and continue only seconds later, ending in several hit's from said book.

[Hahahaha! So we have the tsundere 1Tsundere is a Japanese term for a character development process that depicts a character with a personality who is initially polarized warm/soft, cold, temperamental, hotheaded before gradually showing a warmer, friendlier side over time. Foxgirl, the genki 2English words for 元気 include healthy, energy, vitality, spirit, vigor, pep, robust, courage, stamina and vim. Basically means a girl that's excitable, generally in reference to tomboy-type character's with a lot of energy. Succubus and a Kuudere Shapeshifter. You guys have a great dynamic!] - Karen

[Tsundere? Genki?] - Malaise

[...!] - Shade

[Kuudere? What what?!? What are those? Are they naughty?] - Veronica

[O-Oh! Umm, R-Rose taught me them s-so ask her when she get's back.] - Karen

[A-Anyway you said you wanted to show me around the festival?] - Karen

Apologizing internally for the pain she just brought Austin she immediately changed the subject to try and gloss over her slip of the tongue and while Malaise didn't look fully convinced she seemed willing to let it go for now.

[So you really taste everything that you touch? Doesn't that get a bit...] - Malaise

[Gross? Yes sometimes but I'm able to tune out a lot of things at will, it's almost like my entire body is every sensory organ at the same time. In a way every part of me is eye's, tongue, ears and fingers. If I focus on blocking out something I can basically ignore it for the most part.] - Karen

[But you have eyes?] - Veronica

[Technically these are fake, I formed them to look more... humanoid. I don't actually need them to see and have no blind spots... theoretically anyway.] - Karen

After leaving the arena the 4 of them had left to wander around the various booths and vendors spread throughout the town, picking up a huge volume of food products along the way. This of course led to the current conversation with Karen basically nerding out about her current form. Malaise, for her part, was just as interested, with a multitude of questions that she'd previously held back for fear of being rude.

[Huh? What do you mean theoretically?] - Malaise

[Well, while I can technically see in every direction I have a hard time focusing on more than about 4 or 5 objects at a time. If I focused entirely on what was in front of me I would probably miss most information coming from the opposite direction and get caught flat-footed. Not sure what to do about that honestly so I'm hoping I get some kind of skill to deal with it.] - Karen

[Good to know!] - Random Assailant

Barely catching a blur as someone from the surrounding crowd suddenly swung a blade at her Karen hissed in unexpected pain as heat flared across her back. Rolling her fluid body forward before reforming into her humanoid shape she noted that all 4 of them were surrounded by double their own number, all dressed in dark black clothing with each sporting a heavy mask in the shape of various animals. Springing into action as soon as Karen had reacted to their assailants Shade formed scythe-like blades immediately and seconds later was locked in combat with both of her foes while both Malaise and Veronica took several seconds to respond. Seeing the late reactions from the two their own assassin's took advantage of their distraction and immediately rushed forwards to finish them only to be blocked with a whip-like tendril impacted one of them in the face.

[LEAVE THEM ALONE!!!] - Karen

Satisfied that she had given the other two enough time to respond to the situation Karen was about to turn to once more face her foes but was instantly beset by a massive amount of pain as a blade pierced her slimy body all the way through. Wasn't she supposed to be nearly immune to swords? Each strike caused a burning sensation to spread out from the blade, feeling like each of her cells were dying slowly. Karen, completely unused to pain of this magnitude was quickly starting to panic, only forcing down her feelings because of the people with her.

[Get... OFF OF ME YOU BASTARD!!!] - Karen

Forming a spear shaped tendril of slime she attempted to return the favor to the man that had stabbed her only for him to immediately let go of his weapon, leaving it in her body as he did so. Not letting the opportunity past the second assailant immediately dodged around the outstretched tentacle and attempted to slash Karen with his own weapon, his partner's still being lodged in her body. Luckily Karen was expected something like this and instead of freezing in surprise she angled his strike to impact the weapon still stuck in her slime. Not expecting her to forgo dodging for something so dangerous the assassin was unable to react when a drill made of slime pierced through his eye, instantly taking her opponents down to only one. No longer sparing the fallen man a glance Karen immediately rushed forward to deal with her last opponent only for a massive amount of pain to erupt from her lower back.

[H-How?] - Karen

Staring down at the new blade now lodged through her stomach Karen stared in shock at the sight of the man she'd assumed was dead holding onto said blade, his smiling face caked with weeks old blood, gore and exposed teeth underneath the mask.

[Ma'am we're ready for you now.] - Well-dressed Butler

[Is the train set aside for the Royal Motorcade, I'd hate to inconvenience the Rail Master on such short notice afterall.] - Queen Laura

[There's no problem with travel arrangement's my lady. We are set to arrive within 2 days of our departure.] - Well-dressed Butler

[And the Duke's procession? Do we know where it is located?] - Queen Laura

[Last contact had them crossing the Crossroads bridge and only half a day from arrival. We expect that they had arrived and as no contact has been attempted they are still in the process of setting up a forward base.] - Well-dressed Butler

[Good job Sebas, fantastic work as always. And the status of your true master's?] - Queen Laura

The butler, previously stone-faced while he dealt with his mistress, immediately felt a bead of sweat roll down his back at her unexpected question.

[M-Ma'am?] - Well-dressed Butler

[Your true master's. The one's that you betrayed me for. What's their status?] - Queen Laura

Snapping her finger's as she reiterated her question the butler's arms were seized by the Royal Guard that was always on standby within sight. A completely female unit, the Queen was even attended to within the bath and as such was never vulnerable to enemy attack. As such the loyalty of these individuals was above reproach and they only answered to the current Queen, immediately resigning when her reign ended. The same however could not be said for her other attendants and even her long-time servants were suspect at any given time.

Take her butler for instance, once a staunch ally, he'd been lured into betraying her when his brother lost everything to gambling. Luckily her agents had caught wind of his treachery when he'd been approached by a Church operative and she'd made sure that any information he was privy to was unable to be used for their advantage afterwards. His usefulness had reached it's end however.

[Please don't! I never meant to betray you! They made...!] - Well-dressed Butler

[They made you an offer you couldn't refuse. And you turned your back on the woman that employed you for the last 20 years. By the Goddess I was present for your Granddaughter's birth Sebas! I expected better from you... take him away.] - Queen Laura

[No! Please my Queen! Don't do this! My family!] - Well-dressed Butler

[Will be well taken care of. I don't betray my people Sebas. I thought you of all people would understand that. I guess I never truly knew you.] - Queen Laura

Biting back tears from condemning a long-time friend to a lifetime in prison the Queen resolutely pushed back her emotions, the current crisis taking precedent under the circumstances.