Chapter 19. Choice
I spent a long time pondering who to evolve.
Which one of them should I use the Evolution Ticket on?
The Dog Spider with its immobilization ability.
The Jellyfish that provides powerful buffs.
The Fire Slime, which has the greatest raw strength.
Even after carefully considering these options, the result of the evolution ultimately depended on luck.
Usually, the current form and abilities influence the evolution, but there’s always the chance that they could evolve into a completely different being, with no connection to their current form.
In other words, their appearance or abilities might change entirely.
Ah, what should I do?
I just couldn’t make a decision.
If only I had three tickets instead of one.
As I continued to stroke my chin and think, the assistants started voicing their opinions.
【Pururu】─No evolving the little one.
【Pururu】─The little one is cute as it is. What if it turns into something weird after evolving?
The little one referred to the Dog Spider. Pururu didn’t want it to evolve.
【003】─Wasn’t the Dog Spider the first monster you tamed?
【003】─Then let’s evolve the Dog Spider.
【003】─Respect your elders.
On the other hand, Ha Yumi wanted the Dog Spider to evolve, simply because it was the first monster I had tamed.
【Mysticism】─🫠
【Mysticism】─🫠
【Mysticism】─🫠
What’s with you? Just say something useful already.
【Pururu】─Don’t evolve the little one.
【003】─Evolve the Dog Spider. I’m sure it wants to evolve too.
【Mysticism】─🫠
The opinions of the assistants were divided.
【Pururu】─What do you know? The little one doesn’t want to evolve. 😒
【003】─Fine. Then let’s go with the second monster you tamed, the Jellyfish.
【Mysticism】─🫠
【Pururu】─I’ve already seen the evolved form of the Jellyfish.
【003】─I haven’t seen it.
【Pururu】─You have. When Geon showed that drawing he made, you saw it for a moment.
【003】─Oh, you mean that monster called the Jellyfish Queen?
【Pururu】─Yep, so it makes sense to evolve the Fire Slime.
Pururu was a bit mistaken about evolution.
There’s no guarantee the Jellyfish would evolve into the Jellyfish Queen.
They might not be related at all, and even if they are, a monster’s evolution path isn’t fixed.
The Jellyfish might evolve into something entirely different, not the Jellyfish Queen.
But I decided not to mention that. No need to spark another debate.
【Mysticism】─🫠
【Pururu】─See? Even Mysti has been suggesting evolving the Slime this whole time.
【003】─Oh, that’s supposed to be a Slime emoji?
I didn’t realize that.
So, that’s a Slime emoji, huh.
【003】─Well then, I’ll also agree to evolving the Slime. But ultimately, it’s Geon’s decision.
【Pururu】─Haha, Geon, go with the Slime.
【Mysticism】─🫠
After a brief discussion, everyone’s opinion aligned.
***
I gathered the monsters in front of me.
I needed to hear their opinions too.
“Guys, I’m going to evolve one of you now. If anyone really wants to evolve, step forward.”
The monsters glanced at each other but stayed silent.
None of them stepped forward to volunteer for evolution.
They all seemed to be holding back.
“You all don’t dislike the idea of evolving, right?”
[Hiss.]
[Pii.]
[Sss.]
Judging from their reactions, none of them were opposed to evolution.
【003】─It looks like they’re all trying to give up the evolution ticket to each other. They’re such selfless and kind kids, hehe.
【Pururu】─I guess taming them makes them nicer.
【Mysticism】─😇
“If any of you want to evolve, just say so… no need to hesitate.”
Still, they remained reluctant, so I gently encouraged them again.
“Don’t be shy. If you want to evolve, just take one step forward.”
After a moment of silence, the Dog Spider, Jellyfish, and Fire Slime all cautiously stepped forward at the same time.
[Hiss?]
[Pii?]
[Sss?]
They looked at each other in surprise.
Then, as if they had planned it, they all retreated at the same time.
【Pururu】─Hahaha, what are they doing?
【003】─How cute.
【Mysticism】─🤣
Even though their indecision was frustrating, it was an adorable sight.
I could sense their warmth, their desire to look out for one another.
“…I’ll just make the decision myself, then. Don’t get upset that I didn’t pick you, okay?”
They all nodded in agreement.
Dog Spider.
If I evolve it, it might lose its immobilization ability.
Jellyfish.
Similarly, the useful buff magic might disappear. And even if it’s enhanced, I don’t plan on going to the frontlines myself, so it wouldn’t be of much use.
If I’m going to stay out of direct combat and watch from a safe distance, the current buff is more than enough.
Considering these reasons and taking the assistants’ opinions into account, I decided to evolve the Fire Slime.
It had the strongest basic combat ability.
While evolving might develop other abilities and reduce its raw strength, that was a risk I’d have to take.
I took a deep breath and prepared to use the Evolution Ticket.
The ticket didn’t have a physical form.
It was a special privilege that I could activate with my will.
【Pururu】─I’m expecting an SS-ranked monster!
【003】─Isn’t it A-ranked?
【Pururu】─That’s just the nerfed danger level. The actual danger is SS-rank.
Evolution doesn’t necessarily increase the danger level.
The monster could become a higher-tier creature within the same danger level, or it might even weaken.
I didn’t bother explaining that.
【Pururu】─There’s no chance of the evolution failing, right?
【003】─No way.
【Mysticism】─🫠
I mentally declared that I would use the Evolution Ticket.
The target: the Fire Slime.
Saaaaa—
Suddenly, light began to gather around the Slime.
A brilliant white light enveloped the Fire Slime.
I closed my eyes for a moment and opened them again.
The intense light started to shift.
From pure white to silver, and then to a faint golden hue.
Finally, the light condensed into the shape of an egg.
【003】─It’s not an instant evolution, huh?
【Pururu】─Does that egg look like a cocoon?
【Mysticism】─😋
【Pururu】─Stop licking your lips.
How long will this take?
As I wondered, text appeared before my eyes.
『Time until evolution is complete: 12:00:00』
It’s not going to take that long.
I could just sleep and wait for it to hatch.
***
Third day in the labyrinth.
There were no monster attacks again.
Also, the Poison Apple I had kidnapped for food died.
It seemed that they die after a certain amount of time once they fall from the tree.
If it had met the special conditions to fully use its power, would it have stayed alive?
I don’t know.
But it’s not something I need to worry about.
Since I lost my food generator, I’ll have to go back to Passage No. 5 later to get a new one.
I glanced slightly to the left.
『Time until evolution is complete: 02:55:31』
Now that I had woken up, there were roughly three hours left until the evolution was done.
I wasn’t planning to explore the labyrinth while waiting for the egg to hatch.
If I left the area and the egg got attacked by a monster, it would be a disaster.
And I couldn’t leave the Jellyfish and Dog Spider behind to go exploring either.
Even though there hadn’t been any monster attacks so far, I couldn’t let my guard down.
Most labyrinth monsters seemed to guard their own territories, but there could always be exceptions. I couldn’t afford to relax.
There was no telling when a wandering monster might invade.
So, while waiting for the evolution to finish, I examined the tickets I had purchased yesterday.
Since the tickets didn’t have physical forms, only I could see them, like the text floating in the air.
Dispatch Ticket.
It allowed me to send a monster to another dimension for 24 hours.
What benefits could there be from sending a monster on dispatch?
Could it bring back items from other worlds?
If so, it could prove to be a very useful ticket.
I’ll try dispatching a monster on a day when I’m taking a break from exploring.
Designated Dispatch Ticket.
It was the same as the Dispatch Ticket, but with one difference: I could choose which world to send the monster to.
Since it said the dimension had to have a connection to me, I could probably send it to a world I’ve visited, like Earth.
I wondered, though, if using a regular Dispatch Ticket could also create a link to the dimension the monster visited?
Well, I’ll find out eventually.
Transferable Return Ticket.
This one allows someone else to return to the world they came from. I can’t use it myself.
This ticket could be materialized.
When I meet a drifter, I’ll hand it over.
Of course, I’ll demand that they hand over everything they own first.
If I’m sending them home, they should at least pay me back for it, right?
I’m not a charity.
I bought the ticket with my own money, after all. I can’t just give it away for free.
Reverse Support Ticket.
This allows me to send an item back to an assistant.
Currently, I can only use it with Pururu.
I’ll think more about how to make the most of it later.
***
『Time until evolution is complete: 00:45:39』
『RED-ranked assistant “Mysticism” has torn through the dimensions and is staring at you.』
【Mysticism】─🥱
Mysti showed up when there were 45 minutes left.
And then, time passed.
『Time until evolution is complete: 00:05:30』
When there were about five minutes left.
『GOLD-ranked assistant “Pururu” crawls toward you, wriggling, watching you closely.』
『RED-ranked assistant “Yumi” stomps over to watch you.』
Pururu and Ha Yumi arrived, one after the other.
They must have set alarms to remind them of the evolution’s timing.
【Pururu】─Yo. Hey, Undertaker. You changed your nickname and entrance message.
【Yumi】─I’m not the Undertaker. I’ll only be an undertaker for you, Pururu.
【Pururu】─Haha;;
【Yumi】─How did you know it was me?
【Pururu】─You used the same name you revealed yesterday. Duh, are you dumb?
【Yumi】─Ah, I see.
【Pururu】─How did you become a doctor with that brain?
【Yumi】─Because I’m smarter than you.
【Pururu】─Fair point.
【Mysticism】─🤭
The chat became lively.
Talking with the assistants made the five minutes pass by in the blink of an eye.
And then,
Crack—!
At last, the egg began to crack.