Kazuki never imagined his afterlife would involve a half-naked slime girl cuddling him while whispering things like "You're so squishy, Master!" in his head.
Yet here he was.
A floating, glowing, gender-bending magical rock at the bottom of a damp cave, being emotionally smothered by a living gelatin dessert.
And somehow… it was kinda nice.
[Dungeon Status Update]Dungeon Name: UntitledDungeon Size: 10x10 metersActive Monster Girls: 1Mana per Hour: 30Available Actions:
Expand Room
Construct Trap
Bond with Monster Girl
Access Monster Girl Menu
Kazuki mentally poked the interface. A familiar window popped up with a warm shimmer.
[Monster Girl Menu – Gel]Race: Slime NymphClass: AbsorberPersonality: Curious / Clingy / ProtectiveStats:
HP: 40
MP: 10
STR: 6
MAG: 8
VIT: 12
LUK: 999 (???)
Skills:
[Body Morph Lv. 1]
[Absorb Impact Lv. 1]
[Mimic Surface Lv. 1]
Bond Level: 1 (Cuddly Familiar)Next Bond Level: Unlock [Fusion Synergy]
"Fusion what now?!"
"Oh, that's the fun part," Gel said in his mind, twirling a translucent strand of her hair around a finger. "We can melt together~."
"I—uh. I don't even know what that means, but it sounds illegal in three dimensions."
"Master's funny." She giggled and rubbed her cheek on the pedestal again.
If Kazuki had a heartbeat, he was pretty sure it would've been playing dubstep by now.
"Okay, focus. Dungeon building. Survival first, sexy chaos later."
He pulled up the construction menu and reviewed the options available with his meager 25 Dungeon Points.
[Build Options – Tier F]
Basic Stone Room (10x10m) – 10 DP
Dirt Hallway (5m) – 5 DP
Weak Pitfall Trap – 8 DP
Basic Torchlight – 1 DP
Monster Lair (1 Slot) – 15 DP
Core Room Reinforcement – 20 DP
Kazuki calculated quickly. If this world worked anything like his games, he'd need to protect his Core Room first.
"Can't have my gooey girl and glowing rock body getting shanked by the first kobold that walks in."
"Gel, can you fight?" he asked.
"Mmhmm!" she said with a bubbly grin. "I bounce really hard."
"Okay… defensive strategy it is."
He selected Core Room Reinforcement, instantly spending 20 DP. A hum of magic rolled through the cave as stone thickened around the core chamber's walls and floor. Mana crystals fused into the corners, subtly hardening the structure.
"Whoa, that actually felt cool."
"You got taller!" Gel squealed, bouncing excitedly. "Your pedestal's shinier too!"
Kazuki checked. Sure enough, the pedestal had grown—now lined with glowing runes and a few floating shards. It was like leveling up in a JRPG but in home decor form.
That left him with 5 DP.
"Might as well light the place up."
A pair of Basic Torchlights appeared on command, flickering to life with magical fire and casting warm orange light across the walls. It gave the chamber a cozy glow—if you ignored the ominous echo and the sexy slime.
Just then, the dungeon pulsed.
A notification appeared like a red alarm blaring in his mind.
[Intruder Detected – Proximity Warning]Hostile Entity Approaching: Class – Goblin Scout]Estimated Arrival: 03:22 minutes
"Are you kidding me? I've been alive for fifteen minutes!"
"Ooooh!" Gel clapped her gooey hands. "My first fight~!"
She wobbled in front of the core, taking on a vaguely battle-ready stance. That is, if "battle-ready" included jiggling.
"You've got one job: don't die."
"Yes, Master!" she chirped.
"And maybe don't let it touch me either."
"Also yes!"
Kazuki watched through his dungeon senses as the goblin scout shuffled into view—a dirty green humanoid with a rusty dagger and a sneer. It was small, maybe three feet tall, with beady eyes and a hunched posture. Still, it radiated hostility.
"He's here for the mana," Kazuki realized. "Dungeon cores attract scavengers."
The goblin stepped inside.
Gel's body instantly lost its friendly wobble. Her eyes narrowed. Her form lowered, compacting into a lower center of gravity, her gooey fists bubbling with tension.
"Trespasser detected," she said flatly.
The goblin blinked.
Gel launched.
She moved like a spring-loaded rubber band—smacking into the goblin with a wet splat! that sent him tumbling into the wall. He screeched and lunged at her, swinging wildly.
But she was already reforming.
Kazuki watched in amazement as Gel twisted around the attack, her gelatinous body absorbing the impact and slapping back with a tendril of blue goo that cracked the goblin's nose sideways.
The fight lasted less than thirty seconds.
When it was over, the goblin was unconscious, sticky, and partially digested in a puddle of sentient girl-goo.
"That was amazing," Kazuki said.
"I protected Master!" she beamed. "And he smells so proud~!"
"Okay. That's mildly concerning but still kind of adorable."
[Victory! First Intruder Defeated!]+10 DP+1 Bond Point – GelNew Build Option Unlocked: Monster Disposal Pit
"Sweet. Now I've got enough DP to build a hallway or a lair."
"Can I eat the rest of him?" Gel asked.
"...Honestly, go ahead."
As she happily slurped the unconscious goblin into herself like some unholy Jell-O commercial, Kazuki opened the dungeon menu again. A new window flashed with excitement.
[First Milestone Achieved – Dungeon Core Level 1 Unlocked!]New Feature: Core Avatar Creation – [BETA ACCESS GRANTED]
"Wait. Avatar?! I get a body?!"
"Mmhmm," Veyna's voice purred, suddenly reappearing in his mental space. "You've earned a test version. Don't get excited though—it's mostly spectral and half-naked."
"That's already 99% better than being a rock."
With a shimmer of blue light, Kazuki's awareness split.
Suddenly, he had a shape—a translucent humanoid form hovering a foot above the pedestal. It was male, tall-ish, lean, with faint glowing lines tracing his limbs like circuitry.
He raised his hand. It moved.
"I can wave."
Gel gasped and immediately glomped him.
"Master is sooo pretty!" she squealed, rubbing her face against his chest.
Kazuki looked down and realized the beta avatar came with the classic no shirt, no shoes, very ambiguous pants design.
"Why do I look like a rejected JRPG protagonist?"
"Because aesthetics matter," Veyna said smugly. "And monster girls respond better to abs."
Kazuki sighed.
So far, he'd died, reincarnated as a magical rock, been adopted by a clingy slime girl, and beaten up a goblin using someone else's boobs.
And now he was technically alive again… sort of.
"Honestly? This is shaping up to be the best isekai I've ever read."