Wyrm VS Slyme

Now, if I had been human and on Earth, I would only have been mildly surprised by the rustling. After all, such rustling usually meant some kind of small animal, nothing more.

This is not so when you are a 12 inch worm who has only lived for a few hours. What I felt was not not surprise or shock. It was fear.

They say fear is the most basic and primal of all emotions. Some even claim that, if robots ever develop the ability to feel, the first emotion they would learn to feel would be fear. As such, I think you would believe me when I say that not only did my human mind feel fear, but my worm body felt it as well.

When the grass parted, all I saw was a round, translucent blob oozing toward me. I just turned tail and ran.

"Guide! What is that thing?" I shouted, doing my best to run.

'That is a slime. Humans regard it as weak and easy to defeat, but it might be difficult for you to do so.'

"Yeah, difficult is an understatement," I snorted, "It'd kill me long before I could do anything to it."

'Not quite. If you eat it before it eats you, you can win. Furthermore, you could try to use your magic or hide underground where it can't touch you.'

"Huh, that doesn't actually sound too bad," I said, "except for the fact that, y'know, I have no idea how to use that magic? That would pose a problem, wouldn't it?"

'Understandable. Still, try diving underground. After all, the slime is gaining on you right now. You would move faster underground.'

Glancing back, I saw that she was right. The slime was indeed oozing closer and closer. Cursing, I glanced down before haphazardly shoving my head into the dirt and pushing myself down. As soon as I entered, I felt an abrupt sense of belonging. In the back of my mind, some kind of instinct taught me how to move, and I practically flew through the earth. Opening my mouth wide, I started to swallow some dirt as I went.

'You have gained 1 Earth Experience. You have gained 1 Earth Experience…'

Experience piled up as I dug deeper into the ground. Eventually, I stopped and took a break.

"That was rather stressful," I complained, "And besides that, I need to go to the bathroom."

'You are a worm. You can go the bathroom whenever and wherever.'

"Oh. Right," I laughed, "Hey, do you think I can weaponize my poop? It's full of dirt, wood, and magical fibers, right?"

'You can certainly try to. However, it is up to you to figure out how to do so.'

"Yeah, I figured. Anyway, now that I'm safe from the slime, I'm feeling kinda embarrassed," I sighed, "I called myself a Wyrm, and then ran away from a slime. This won't do!" Gathering my courage, I turned around and dug my way back to the surface, going to the bathroom as I went. Poking an inch of my head out, I looked around.

"There. Guide, what can you tell me about the slime?" I asked, surveying the blob. It didn't look too threatening, perhaps the size of a large watermelon. Right in the middle, there was a red ball the size of an apple. I guessed that it was probably the slime's core.

'Simple slimes like this one are regarded as one of the weakest monsters, but have quite a bit of potential to grow. If many combine, they can create Big Slimes, which are fairly powerful, and if they eat certain things, they can obtain extra powers. There are two ways to defeat a slime. You can either remove enough of the liquid to render it powerless, or you can destroy the core. Right now, you do not have the ability to destroy the core. I would recommend that you try to eat the slime.'

"Alright. Thanks Guide," I replied. I watched it ooze around slowly before diving back underground and worming my way over to where it was. Steeling my nerves, I thrust my head out of the dirt - and directly into the slime. Opening my mouth wide, I took a bite out of the slime. It felt terrible when I swallowed it, and I mentally grimaced as I dove back into the dirt.

'You have gained 1 Monster Experience, Subset Slime. 163 more points until Evolution is possible.'

"Cool, Monster Experience. Maybe I'll turn into a gummy worm next time," I joked, carefully peeking out of the dirt to see what happened to the slime. To my surprise, my head went right into its body. Taking advantage of the situation, I bite the slime again.

No reaction.

"Uh, Guide? Why did the slime stop moving?" I asked, eating a little more slime.

'Simple. Your bites are too small to quickly cause appreciable damage, but it can tell that something happened. Basically, it doesn't even realize you're here.'

"That's… kinda hurtful," I said, rather irritated. I was a proud Earth Wyrm, and I wasn't going about to be ignored by a slime! Opening my mouth as wide as I can, I tried to "suck" it down my throat. Suddenly, a low "click" rang out in my mind.

'Congratulations. You have met the prerequisites for unlocking a Hidden Skill: Infinity Devouring (I). Would you like to see a description of it?'

"Sure, anything to help me eat this stupid thing," I mentally grumbled. With a flash, yet another screen appeared in my mind's eye.

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Skill: Infinity Devouring (I)

Prerequisites:

Attempt to eat a monster in a way that is impossible through physical means alone: Complete.

Passive Effects:

10% Increased Consumption Speed.

The action [Bite] will now have a 5% chance to inflict a weak paralysis effect.

The action [Spit] will now have a 5% chance to inflict poison damage.

Active Effects:

Over the course of 5 seconds, everything within a 1 foot radius of the user's mouth is dissolved into particulates and consumed by the user.

For 30 seconds after the initial effect ends, consumption speed is increased by 20%.

For 60 seconds after the secondary effect ends, consumption speed is decreased by 50%.

Requires 10 MP to activate.

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"Guide, we're gonna need to have a long talk. I need to know more about this world," I sighed, "but for now… Infinity Devouring! Activate!"