Chapter 52

From early morning, the entire expeditionary force was in a flurry. While walking with Zara, I muttered, "Something must have happened," and continued on my way.

At the main gate, I happened to meet Liselotte.

"Busy from the morning, huh?"

"Yes."

I prayed, "I hope it's not something that concerns our unit," and headed to the morning assembly. However, my prayers were in vain, and the captain conveyed an urgent mission.

"Suddenly, we have a mission."

"Yeah, I figured as much," I thought to myself.

Apparently, an incident occurred at a food factory on the outskirts of the capital.

"Our destination is the gelatin factory."

Gelatin is made from animal proteins and is used for various purposes, such as making jelly and marshmallows, adhesives for wood, medical plasters, and lipsticks in cosmetics.

Here, a shocking fact was revealed. It turned out that the factory was raising the living creatures used as raw materials on its premises. Some of them had escaped. I had always thought that the raw materials for gelatin were sourced from other regions.

The expeditionary force was almost entirely involved in the recovery operation.

"Recovery, not capture?"

"Yes. They're slimes. Capturing them alive is difficult."

"Huh, what?"

I thought I heard "slimes."

Slimes are gel-like monsters. They can be formed from swamp mud absorbing surrounding magic, or from the corpses of other monsters gaining new biological nuclei, among other variations.

Imagining their appearance made me feel queasy, but the slimes at the factory seemed to be different.

"The slimes made at the factory are artificial, created from a clean lake."

"Really?"

The raw material for gelatin was slimes. The thought that I had been eating jelly and marshmallows with slime components was unsettling, even though they were artificial and different from natural slimes.

"It's a miraculous ingredient created by the Magic Research Bureau and the Monster Research Bureau. Thanks to this, even commoners can enjoy jelly easily."

"Is that so..."

The country's leading, albeit suspicious, research bureaus seemed to be producing tangible results. I shouldn't call them suspicious anymore.

Apparently, this incident was not due to a factory equipment failure but was caused by human error, possibly with the intent to disrupt the knight squad. We were warned to be cautious in our actions.

"We'll head out on horseback first. Liselette, Lichtenberger, and Amelia, please come by carriage. There's a headquarters at our destination, and I want you to receive instructions from the commander there."

The captain is great. He even gives instructions to Amelia.

Recently, our team spirit has been strong, and she gets angry if her name is omitted.

"That's all."

"Understood."

"Got it."

"Quack!"

Each person is responsible for their own food: biscuits, dried meat, and dried fruits. There's no time for cooking.

We packed the food into leather bags attached to our belts and distributed them to everyone.

At the command of Deputy Captain Berry, everyone began their respective tasks.

I hurried to the knight squad's carriage area with Liselette and Amelia. The support team members were being transported together.

The carriage provided was a simple covered wagon, just a flatbed with a cover. It was probably prepared to transport a large number of people, but it looked like something used to transport prisoners.

"It looks like a platform for transporting captured bandits."

Liselette honestly expressed her thoughts, and the knights boarding the carriage seemed to have a more somber expression.

We couldn't afford to dawdle. We had to board the carriage.

Inside, long wooden benches were placed on both sides. About twenty people could fit.

I claimed a spot at the end and suggested that Liselette sit by the wall. I made sure Amelia sat as close to the front as possible.

As the carriage filled up, it started moving.

It seemed we were the only female knights. I felt their gazes, but Amelia's low "Quack!" helped us avoid unwanted attention.

There was no door at the entrance, so the wind blew through. Cold air rushed into the carriage.

After about an hour, we arrived at the gelatin factory.

The factory wasn't very large, about the size of the fountain square in the central city.

It was a brick row house where a few workers were diligently making gelatin.

The scene was chaotic.

"Hey, give us a hand!"

We were immediately called to help.

The knight who had been brought to the aid station had both feet swallowed by a slime. A transparent gel-like substance was clinging to the young knight's feet, pulsating and wriggling.

"Ugh... so gross..."

Liselette said what I was thinking.

"If we don't act quickly, he'll be digested. Cut the slime with a knife!"

Liselette and I, along with Amelia, were handed buckets.

The slime was quickly cut from the knight's feet, who groaned in pain.

Slimes, once they engulf their target, integrate it into themselves, which is terrifying.

The slimy, gel-like substance was thrown into the buckets.

"Run to the pot!"

In the center of the aid station was a large pot. We ran at full speed and threw the slimes into it.

Slimes don't die when split, but their only weakness is heat.

In the boiling water, the slimes were completely destroyed. A factory worker scooped them out with a large mesh spoon.

"Yep, this can still be sold as a product."

The idea of selling slimes that had consumed knights was terrifying.

"Wouldn't eating the gelatin that consumed a knight make you stronger?"

"No, not at all."

I was asked to agree by a raised thumb but shook my head in refusal.

After that, more knights who had been swallowed by slimes were brought in.

Each time, we had to cut them free and throw them into the boiling water. Amelia also helped a lot.

Still, I hope the captain and the others are doing well. I'm worried.

But it's hard to imagine them losing.

At noon, the factory staff provided us with a meal.

They served hot soup, bread, and candied fruit.

The soup was a milky white with noodles. The ingredients seemed to be beans and wild boar?

The bread was a hard, crispy type. The candied fruit was a light pink with a sweet and sour smell.

I started with the noodle soup. The soup was unusually thick.

I blew on it to cool it down and took a sip.

It was a light, slightly spicy soup. The noodles didn't seem to be made from wheat. They had a smooth texture.

The warm soup felt soothing in my cold body.

I spread the candied fruit on the bread. When I bit into it, I felt a strong sourness and a subtle sweetness. The texture was interesting, like little seeds. I wondered what fruit it was.

Liselette ate with a suspicious look on her face.

When I asked her what was wrong, she said she didn't know.

After finishing the meal, I returned the dishes.

"Did you enjoy it?"

The man who had earlier suggested selling the slimes that had consumed knights asked while stirring the pot.

"Yes, it was delicious. The noodles were strange, though. What were they?"

"They're our company's prototype."

I had a bad feeling. Liselette shouted, "I knew it!"

"Ta-da, slime noodles!"

"Aaaah!"

"And... candied slimes!"

"No, stop it!"

Liselette and I screamed when shown a package with a slime illustration and the words "prototype" written on it.

Amelia, the only one who hadn't eaten the slimes, tilted her head in confusion.