Someone There? If No One's Here, I'll Come In

Chapter 25 · Someone There? If No One's Here, I'll Come In

That night, Sally felt a long-lost warmth, as if she were once again lying in Grandma Oran's arms, a blissful smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"Hey, hey! Your drool—it's dripping on me!"

At dawn, when the first ray of sunlight illuminated the forest, the sleeping girl inside the wooden cabin was covered by a sky-blue blanket. Her little hands clutched the jelly-like blanket tightly, while a glistening strand slowly dripped from the corner of her mouth.

Drip!

Just as the glistening droplet was about to fall, Lu Minghao hurriedly shrank that part of his body back, and the sudden movement startled the sleeping girl awake.

Sally looked at the slime that had completely wrapped itself around her. Recalling the long-lost warmth from the previous night, an indescribable light bloomed in her large purple eyes, and her heart became a tangled mess of emotions.

From childhood to now, apart from her deceased parents and Grandma Oran, this was the first time Sally had known what it felt like to be cared for. After her parents died, she had survived by scavenging for food in garbage heaps, sometimes even fighting wild dogs over scraps.

Later, she had finally met Grandma Oran, but before long, Grandma Oran had died. Sally had once again become all alone, driven out of the village by its villagers and forced to fill her stomach with wild fruit and all kinds of insects.

Sometimes, Sally wondered if being born into this world had been a mistake, and whether it would have been better if she had died.

But now, for the first time since Grandma Oran's death, Sally felt that staying alive was wonderful.

"Thank you, Slime. Sally is really happy to have met you!"

Sally hugged Lu Minghao tightly, burying her face in his jelly-like body as she spoke softly.

Lu Minghao returned to his round, streamlined form and said nothing. He merely extended an arm and gently stroked Sally's long hair. The morning sunlight shone through the gaps in the wooden cabin onto them, their shadows overlapping on the ground.

A half-human, half-ghost girl and a slime embraced each other, leaning against one another.

Together, they formed an exquisite scene.

Warm and beautiful.

A few minutes later, Sally released Lu Minghao and raised her hand to pat her little face vigorously. A trace of red appeared on her sallow skin, and she revealed a radiant smile.

"Sally is going to prepare today's food, including your share, Slime."

As she spoke, Sally gently placed Lu Minghao on the bed. Then she nimbly jumped down, felt around in a corner for a while, and found a tattered little basket. After skillfully hanging it over her arm, Sally turned back, waved at Lu Minghao, and reminded him to wait obediently at home and not run outside.

"Then, I'm heading out. Slime, you have to stay home and wait obediently for Sally to come back, okay?"

Accompanied by her lively voice, Sally's thin figure walked out of the little wooden cabin. After carefully closing the door, she ran toward the place where she often gathered wild fruit, facing the morning sun.

"She really is just a child. Anyone with a normal mind would have noticed something was wrong by now."

Looking at the tightly closed wooden door, Lu Minghao's springy body easily jumped down from the bed. He opened the door and watched Sally's back disappear into the depths of the forest, sighing softly. Any ordinary person with even a little common sense could have easily noticed something strange from Lu Minghao's series of actions, none of which were remotely typical of an ordinary slime.

After all, when could an ordinary slime turn itself into a blanket, complete with a built-in heating function? And when Sally woke up, Lu Minghao still hadn't undone the shadow manipulation he had used to seal the gaps in the cabin. Not to mention the way he had stroked Sally's head afterward.

"Forget it. If Sally still hasn't figured it out after a few days, I'll just tell her."

The next second, Lu Minghao turned around and walked back into the cabin. He had never intended to hide the fact that he possessed complete intelligence from Sally. After all, if he had truly wanted to keep it secret, he would not have quietly brought his main body here.

What Lu Minghao did not know was that a pair of large eyes was watching him from the distant forest as he returned to the cabin. In particular, when those eyes saw Lu Minghao's humanlike movements, their owner could not help but leap up.

Smack!

"Ouch! But Sally really wasn't wrong. Slime, you really are different from ordinary slimes!"

In the low bushes, Sally lay on the ground, clutching her little head, which had a bump rising from it. Her little face was filled with excitement as she happily watched her home. Though she looked not even ten years old, her experiences since childhood had given her keen senses. Otherwise, she could never have survived until now.

Actually, Sally had already sensed that Lu Minghao was different from ordinary slimes when he had refused to leave the previous day. Then, after waking that morning, she had seen Lu Minghao transformed into the blanket covering her, as well as the shadows sealing the gaps in the cabin.

Especially when Lu Minghao stroked her hair, Sally had already confirmed at that moment that Lu Minghao possessed complete intelligence. However, she had not said anything. Instead, she had used gathering wild fruit as an excuse to come here and secretly observe the cabin.

"Heehee, Sally has a family now too!"

The next second, Sally sat up and stared blankly at her wooden cabin, giggling foolishly. Though she did not know why Lu Minghao had chosen to stay by her side, Sally could feel that he meant her no harm. Rather, he seemed to pity her, as if they were each other's only kindred in the world.

And when Sally had discovered everything Lu Minghao had done for her that morning, she had already decided that the slime in her arms was her family. For Sally, who had suffered countless acts of malice since childhood and been trapped in loneliness and despair, Lu Minghao's sudden appearance was the only light illuminating her world.

"Sally, you have to work hard! Today, you need to prepare food for two!"

Sally stood up and carefully brushed the weeds and dead leaves off her skirt. She raised her head toward the sun in the sky, a smile appearing on her little face. The sun felt especially warm today.

Meanwhile, inside the rickety wooden cabin,

Lu Minghao was looking at a thumb-sized clone across from him. Today, he planned to continue the task Sally had interrupted the previous day: figuring out where he was. As for why he was using a clone instead of his main body—

Of course, Lu Minghao was still worried that there might be a hidden schemer lurking in the village. Although he had tested the waters the previous day, what if it had all been a scheme by the hidden schemer in the village?

"Go, Number Three."

The next second, Number Three slipped out through a gap in the wooden cabin and quickly headed toward the nearby village. Before long, the fence outside the village appeared in front of the clone.

However, this time, Number Three was only thumb-sized, and it had continuously changed its color to match its surroundings. The villagers on the watchtower in the distance did not notice its presence at all.

"Anyone there? If no one's here, I'm coming in!"