The Slime Doesn't Die from Mana Transfer-Chapter 117 : The Slums

“Aristine Caroline.”
The white-haired girl suddenly spoke.
“What?”
Russell was stunned for a moment.
“My name.”
“...Wells already introduced you earlier. You don’t need to repeat it.”
“But... I didn’t know. You asked me if I had anything to say.”
Aristine’s tone was utterly flat, as if she were mechanically reading from a script.
“Hmph...”
Russell withdrew his gaze.
“From the Rhine Royal Magic Academy, an absolute genius of the commoner faction, huh…”
Since he’d never attended the academy, he couldn’t make any reckless judgments.
But at this moment, rather than a genius, she seemed more like an idiot.
As the saying went: genius on the left, madman on the right.
Russell wasn’t her teacher, so he had no need to dig further into this.
Anyway...
He had originally intended to take this opportunity to simply shake off both of these tails.
He was all for equality of the sexes—he wouldn’t show mercy just because she was a girl. But with her current harmless, innocent appearance, it was hard for Russell to actually do anything to her.
“Forget it. Anyway, from now on, you’re not allowed to comment on what I do. Even if you don’t understand, don’t ask. Don’t tell anyone either. Pretend you’re blind, deaf, and mute. Understand?”
Russell said.
“...That’s a bit difficult. I’ll try.”
Aristine looked slightly troubled.
“I don’t know what’s so difficult about it, but fine. Just follow my lead. Let’s go.”
Saying that, Russell left Fingus’ unconscious body behind and leapt toward the city’s edge.
After walking a while, Russell felt something off.
He turned back—only to find Aristine still standing in place.
“What’s wrong with you?”
Russell walked up to her.
“You’d better give me a reason. Do you have a problem with my actions, or what?”
Aristine didn’t move, as if frozen in place.
“This girl... Don’t tell me she actually took my words literally and is pretending to be mute, deaf, and blind?”
Though Russell didn’t mind leaving her there, it somehow felt a little too pitiful.
After much effort explaining, Aristine finally understood Russell’s real meaning. She stopped overthinking and obediently followed him toward their destination.
Triumphal City was massive.
In terms of scale, it was a true giant city.
During wartime, such giant cities were actually a liability—the bigger the city, the harder it was to defend. If the enemy reached the gates, it was practically doomed. But the Rhine Kingdom’s true enemy was far beyond the Muscovy Mountain Range, a long journey away with many cities in between. There was no need to treat Triumphal City as the last line of defense.
The slums were located in the southwestern corner of the city, far from the bustling commercial district and near the adventurer activity zone.
…
The moment they stepped into the slums, Aristine pinched her nose.
The air here was filled with a sour stench. Makeshift shacks built without planning blocked the light, darkening the alleys. Filthy water leaked from the bottoms of trash bins, mixing with puddles on the ground into a nauseating mess.
From the cracks of the low houses’ windows, faint peering eyes spied on the two unexpected visitors.
Both Rozelite and Aristine were exceptionally beautiful girls. Rozelite was a princess to begin with, but even Aristine carried an aura of otherworldly detachment... though to Russell, it came off more like natural airheadedness.
【Mana Perception lv8】
Russell’s eyes lit up faintly.
The flow of mana in the air was laid bare before him.
But there was no trace of the Shadow Race’s magic nearby.
He wasn’t in a hurry. Keeping【Mana Perception】active, he wandered through the slums. There was plenty of time to circle the whole area before pinpointing the Shadow Race operative.
Aristine stayed silent, quietly following behind him.
The two strolled aimlessly through the slums.
The slums were larger than Rozelite had imagined.
As they passed several alleys, they occasionally came across ragged men gathered together doing who-knew-what. Some would scatter wordlessly, while others stared at Russell and Aristine until they were out of sight.
In addition to【Mana Perception】, Russell also paid attention to status panels.
Most people here were just petty thugs, their levels in single digits. Occasionally, some had levels in the tens, but never above twenty.
In short: small fry.
Russell’s plan was simple.
The slums were indeed an excellent hiding place. The environment was complex, and guards rarely patrolled here. Even with a full-scale search, there would still be countless hiding spots.
But conversely, since this place was such an ideal hideout, and that operative chose to come here… It was highly likely they were concealed somewhere within.
Thus, if he looked at every person and every corner in the slums, he would eventually find the operative.
Disguise, transformation, stealth—none of it mattered.
After all, status panels never lied.
But there was another problem.
“This place has far too many filthy corners. I’m unfamiliar with the terrain... At this rate, two days won’t be nearly enough to search the entire slums.”
Unless someone familiar with the area led the way.
But of the people he knew, none were familiar with the slums.
Fingus was obviously useless, and Aristine...
Yeah, no point even asking her.
She clearly wasn’t going to be of much help.
No choice then—he’d just have to grab someone and ask.
Russell turned, with Aristine tiptoeing behind him.
He walked into a dark alley, eyes landing on a scruffy-bearded man, and went straight up to him.
“Hey, you.”
Russell’s voice was calm but brooked no refusal.
“Take me to the one in charge of this place.”
The man frowned, giving Russell and the nervous Aristine a sidelong glance.
“I don’t care where you little girls came from or what you’re after. It’s none of my business. Get lost. Don’t bother me.”
He tried to slip away.
But the instant he moved, Russell struck.
His hand clamped around the man’s throat with precision, lifting him single-handedly off the ground, feet dangling.
The man’s eyes bulged wide.
His throat emitted a strangled gurgle as he clawed desperately at that iron grip. His face flushed red, twisted in disbelief and terror from the suffocation, legs kicking weakly in the air.
“Looking like someone easy to underestimate does have its drawbacks. I can’t help that. So instead, I’ll make you understand with action.”
Russell’s tone was still even.
“Lead me, or die here. Choose.”
The man’s eyes rolled upward, his struggles weakening.
Just then, an urgent female voice called from the alley’s mouth.
“Hey! Stop that! Put him down!”
“If you don’t, I won’t hold back!”
At the sound, Russell didn’t loosen his grip. He only tilted his head slightly toward the source.
A small figure was approaching.
As her face became clear, a subtle ripple crossed Russell’s expression.
Because he hadn’t expected to run into an acquaintance here.
“Chris?”
“Huh?”
Chris froze, surprised to hear her name.
She studied Russell’s face carefully. The fuzzy memories in her mind gradually sharpened.
“Wait... could it be that you’re... that...”
“The fake princess?!”