The Slime Doesn't Die from Mana Transfer-Chapter 48 : Clayman

The cold wind carried snowflakes, slamming hard against the tavern’s thick wooden shutters.
The fire crackled in the hearth, filling the room with a tense and chilly silence.
Winnie sat alone in the shadows of a corner, a half-filled mug of ale in front of her.
Her chin rested on one hand, her long fingers absently stroking the rim of the cup, her gaze unfocused as she stared at the flames in the fireplace.
The tavern was not empty.
A few scattered adventurers huddled in their own corners, whispering quietly.
On any other day, with a beauty like Winnie present, someone would surely have approached to strike up a conversation.
But today was clearly not a normal day.
Her cool, detached face radiated one message: stay away.
Creak—
The wooden door slowly swung open, letting in a blast of biting wind and swirling snow.
A figure in dark fur-lined light armor stepped inside. The insignia on his shoulder plate gleamed coldly in the firelight. His eyes scanned the room once before locking onto Winnie in the corner. Without hesitation, he strode over, his boots thudding sharply against the rough wooden floor.
“Drinking alone? In this weather, your teammates still haven’t come back?”
Clayman asked as he slid casually into the empty bench across from her.
“Mind if I share the table?”
“Are you sick in the head? There are plenty of seats, and you just had to sit here?”
Winnie snapped.
“I came specifically to find you,” Clayman said lightly.
“So, those teammates of yours—still not done with their commission?”
“No need for your concern. They’ll be back soon.”
Winnie raised her mug and took a sip of the cheap ale, its harsh bite burning down her throat.
“No need to be so guarded. I was just asking. It’s not like I’m going to do anything to you.”
He leaned closer, lowering his voice near her ear.
“I have no desire to get on the Charlotte family’s bad side…”
“I have nothing to do with the Charlotte family anymore. They don’t acknowledge me, and I won’t return to them,” Winnie said with a frown.
“Do you actually believe that yourself? Do you think the Charlotte family would let someone who received the Sword Saint System just wander outside, free? Sorry, but I don’t buy it.”
Clayman chuckled.
Winnie’s expression darkened visibly.
“So you came all the way here just to spout this crap? Maybe I’ve been far too polite to you.”
“Alright, alright, let’s get to business then.”
Clayman shrugged.
“Remember that blonde little girl who was with you at the city gates that day? I want to know who she really is.”
Winnie shot him a glance.
“And what’s that got to do with you?”
“Official duty.”
Clayman raised his hand.
“Boss, I’ll have the same as her.”
“Drink all you want. I’m not interested.”
Winnie stood up abruptly.
But just as she was about to leave, Clayman suddenly grabbed her arm.
Winnie spun back, her eyes colder than ever.
“You looking for trouble?”
“I went to the church and spoke to the nun who examined her,” Clayman said quickly.
“The results weren’t what I expected. Her body is much healthier than it should’ve been. Then I checked the city records—no missing persons in this period. So where exactly did she come from?”
“You brought her back from the forest. Did you ever actually confirm her identity? What makes you so sure she told you the truth? When you entered the city, why did the magic detection device sound off? Have you even considered that?”
Winnie yanked her arm free with force.
“And what does that have to do with me? I just brought her back from the forest. Was I supposed to leave her there to die?”
“Not your concern—but it is mine.”
Clayman’s tone hardened.
“An unknown girl, claiming to have been attacked by monsters and lost her memory—yet the very same day she’s hopping around like nothing happened. Don’t forget, this is the borderlands. North of here lies the Great Barrier. No level of caution is excessive.”
“You…”
Winnie frowned deeply.
And yet, when she thought about it carefully, Clayman’s words weren’t without reason.
Rozelite was suspicious in many ways. Even Winnie herself had no idea why the Seventh Princess of all people would appear out here on the distant frontier.
But why should she tell Clayman that?
She hesitated, her instincts whispering that something dangerous was hidden beneath all of this.
But it had nothing to do with her. And she had no intention of getting involved.
“Arghhh—!”
Winnie scratched her hair irritably.
“Don’t come asking me about this crap! If you want answers, investigate yourself! She registered an identity at the Adventurer’s Guild. You want information, go look at her registration file. With your status, that shouldn’t be too hard, right?”
“…That actually reminds me.”
Clayman stood, tossing a few copper coins onto the table.
“You can sit back down and keep drinking. I’ll be taking my leave.”
Winnie stared in shock as Clayman walked straight out without a backward glance.
“This guy… He really had come just to dig up information on Rozelite?”
After he left, even the air inside the tavern seemed lighter.
Winnie remained in the shadows, her empty mug on the table, her fingers tapping idly against the wood, her gaze clouded with uncertainty.
She couldn’t help but regret it—why had she gotten tangled in all this mess again?
And yet, a part of her felt it wasn’t so bad.
The Alexander family’s influence in the north, especially in a border fortress like Ato City, was deeply entrenched. Clayman didn’t even need special writs or papers—just his face and the insignia on his shoulder were enough to make the Adventurer’s Guild staff tremble as they unlocked the archives for him.
If she remembered correctly, the Alexanders were aligned with the Second Prince’s faction.
Let them fight among themselves. As for her…
“It has nothing to do with me.”
…
…
Leaving the tavern, Clayman headed straight for the Adventurer’s Guild. By showing his credentials, he easily obtained the recent records of all newly registered adventurers.
It didn’t take him long to find Rozelite’s entry.
After all, the flow of people here was sparse, and adventurer numbers few. Rarely did anyone come from the interior to work out here.
“Rozelite…”
The unusual name instantly made his brows knit.
No surname.
Was it truly absent, or deliberately hidden?
He recalled the girl’s polite demeanor.
It wasn’t just training. It was the kind of mannerism that came from being raised in such an environment since birth.
Her age was listed as fifteen. That also seemed to match.
Everything else, however, was blank.
After a moment of hesitation, Clayman tucked the record away and walked out of the Adventurer’s Guild.
He mounted his horse, tugged on the reins, and galloped toward the lord’s mansion at the center of town, built from gray limestone.
He had never seen the Seventh Princess, who so rarely appeared in the public eye.
But his uncle—the lord of Ato City, appointed from the Alexander family—surely had.