Spring had arrived.
This year, my primary goal was to complete the waterway. I also planned to build a new cabin for my own sleeping quarters. Beyond that, there was one task I had been putting off for far too long: cleaning the pit beneath the outhouse where the waste was stored. I had learned the hard way that even dust, when left to pile up, truly does become a mountain.
I consulted Lu and Tia to see if they could handle it with magic, but it didn't look promising. They did mention, however, that it was possible to use magic to ferment and decompose the waste. I decided to give that a try, but the fermentation process released a stench so foul that I couldn't even get close to the building.
I was in a real bind. Since the smell wafted right up through the toilet seat, I needed to find a countermeasure immediately. That was when the idea of using slimes was proposed.
"They digest and absorb that kind of thing, so they’re actually utilized quite often in urban areas," Tia explained.
I see. So creatures like that existed in this world. Slimes. They were a staple of fantasy worlds, though their level of ferocity tended to vary depending on the story. I wouldn't mind if they were just the kind of low-level monsters a Hero used for initial training, but if they were the sort of "first-encounter-killers" found in a Labyrinth, I wanted nothing to do with them.
In this world, however, it seemed slimes were viewed as convenient sewage cleaners.
"Where exactly do you catch them?" I asked.
"I believe they live near swamps and ponds, but..."
"Could you go and catch some for us?"
"Please, leave it to me," Tia said confidently. "I’ll have them here within ten days."
Since she sounded so sure of herself, I decided to leave the task to her. "I’m counting on you."
In the meantime, I abandoned the current outhouse. I sealed up the hole to trap the odor and set about building a temporary outhouse elsewhere. There was no way I could endure that smell for ten days. Since I only had to dig a new hole and repurpose the existing shack, the job was finished quickly. It was a relief.
The slimes Tia eventually brought back were small, each one about the size of a fist.
"Is this their average size?" I asked.
"They’re a wild species, so this is about right," she replied.
In my mind, I had imagined them being a bit larger, but these felt more like soft baseballs.
"Because they consume carcasses and excrement, they’re known as the Scavenger of the Forest, the Scavenger of the Plains, or the Scavenger of the Dungeon."
Tia had managed to fit dozens of them into a jar for the trip home.
"Do I just leave them to it?"
"Basically, yes... but, well..." Tia looked a bit hesitant.
"What is it?"
"I realized while I was out catching them that Kuro-san and his pack, or perhaps even Zabuton-san, might try to eat them."
My brain must have been addled by the outhouse fumes earlier; I hadn't even considered that possibility.
"Hmm..."
For the time being, I called Kuro and Zabuton over.
"Do you plan on eating these?"
Both Kuro and Zabuton indicated "No" in response to my question. The impression I got was that since they already had plenty of delicious food to eat, they saw no reason to bother with something like a slime. I wondered if slimes just tasted bad. Then again, considering what they ate, I certainly didn't have any desire to put them on the menu either.
"In that case, these are our new residents. I want you to get along with them. Please pass the word along to the children as well."
Kuro and Zabuton both signaled their understanding. They really were quite clever.
In total, Tia had brought back seventeen slimes. I placed two in the new outhouse and two in the one used by Ria and the other high elves. I put three more in the area designated for Kuro’s pack—the Dog Area. As for the remaining ten, I unsealed the old outhouse pit and dropped them inside.
The stench that hit me when I opened the hole filled me with a sudden, sharp sense of guilt for the poor slimes... but in the end, I prioritized my own comfort.
"I’m counting on you guys," I muttered.
There was, however, one unforeseen downside to the slimes. Relieving oneself while knowing there were slimes waiting right beneath you required a surprising amount of courage. The others didn't seem to care at all, so I was the only one who struggled to get used to it.