Infinite Adaptation: Starting As A Level 1 Slime-Chapter 15: Lunaris

Night had fallen over the village.

But it was almost like day.

A massive moon hung in the sky, impossibly bright, casting silver light across every surface. It dominated the heavens - larger and more luminous than any moon had a right to be.

In the center of the village stood an altar. And upon that altar lay a slime.

He was draped in jewelry. Necklaces of polished stones. Bracelets of woven silver. A small crown of flowers rested atop his form. Around him, arranged in careful patterns, were offerings of fruits and vegetables. Apples. Grapes. Root vegetables he couldn’t identify.

The villagers surrounded the altar in concentric circles, all kneeling. Their heads were bowed, their voices lifted in unified prayer.

At the front knelt the Princess, leading the chant.

"O Eternal Moon, hear our prayers. Bless us with your divine light. Guide us through the darkness..."

The slime stirred.

His Mana Sense activated, expanding outward. Sounds began to reach him first - the murmur of voices, the rustle of clothing, the whisper of wind. Then shapes emerged from the darkness. Faint outlines. Blurry forms.

He activated Mana Manipulation.

The world snapped into focus.

"What the heck?!"

The villagers’ eyes shot open. Gasps rippled through the crowd. Then...

"The Moon has heard our prayers!"

"She has awakened!"

"Praise be to Lunaris!"

Cheers erupted. People wept with joy. Some collapsed to the ground, overwhelmed with emotion.

I’ve only been out for about an hour. What the hell is happening here?

He scanned the crowd frantically.

Also, where’s Luna?

He couldn’t see her anywhere among the celebrating villagers.

"You at the front," he called out to the Princess. "Explain what is happening."

The Princess’s face lit up with joy at being acknowledged. She rose gracefully, her hands clasped before her chest.

"O Great One, tonight is the Night of the Brightest Moon," she said, her voice trembling with reverence. "It occurs only once every one thousand years. It is said that on this sacred night, the Eternal Moon Lunaris and the Young Moon Luna shall return to bless those who believe in them."

One thousand years?

He shifted awkwardly on the altar, causing the jewelry to clink.

"I’m not the Eternal Moon," he said plainly. "You must be mistaken."

"That cannot be."

He was taken aback by her confidence.

She seemed quite certain. Could she have sensed something?

She did appear more intelligent than the others.

"How so?" he asked.

The Princess raised a finger and pointed directly at him.

He waited for an explanation.

"You look just like the moon," she said.

"..."

"If the Goddess wished to test us, she should have chosen a better disguise."

"What?"

She looked at him with a smug expression.

Then he noticed his own form.

The moonlight was hitting his body and bouncing off in all directions. His naturally reflective membrane was catching every ray from that massive moon above, making him glow like a small celestial body.

"Wait...my body is naturally reflective," he tried to explain. "The light from the moon is simply bouncing off my surface. Light reflection is..."

He paused.

Why am I explaining this?

"Do you just believe anyone who is round and resembles the moon?"

The celebration seemed to pause at his words. The villagers exchanged uncertain glances with one another.

The Princess’s smug expression didn’t waver.

"It is not just because of your appearance," she said calmly. "I can also feel your mana radiating in all directions. It is definitely the mana of the Eternal Moon. There is no mistaking it."

Well...

He didn’t have a counter for that.

He had absorbed her mana after all.

Fine then.

He decided to pull back the mana and use what he had learned during his analysis.

Instantly, his slime form began to twist and turn.

The villagers gasped. Some cried out in alarm.

"What’s happening?!"

"Is she hurt?!"

"The Goddess...!"

His body stretched. Expanded. Reshaped itself completely.

Limbs formed. A tail sprouted. Fur - bright as moonlight - spread across his surface.

When the transformation completed, a Fenrir stood upon the altar.

Similar to Luna in appearance, though much larger in size. Not quite as massive as the Eternal Moon had been, but imposing nonetheless.

He looked at the scene before him.

Not through Mana Sense, but through his eyes.

Actual eyes.

This was the new ability he had acquired. After analyzing the body of the Eternal Moon and attempting to recreate her eye functionality, his innate skill Shape Flexibility had evolved into the extra skill Shapeshifting.

He hadn’t found a way to embed the eyes specifically into his slime body. He could only use the full transformation. Perhaps the eyes had dependencies that the slime form couldn’t support, causing them to malfunction when isolated.

Now that he thought about it, that was probably it.

Mmh. Why have they suddenly gone silent?

He looked at the villagers.

They were frozen. Every single one of them. Eyes wide. Mouths agape. Some had tears streaming down their faces.

Then the Princess fell to her knees once more.

"We have passed the test!" she cried out. "The Eternal Moon is showing us her true divine form!"

Wait, that’s not...

"ALL HAIL LORD LUNARIS!"

The chant exploded from the crowd.

"ALL HAIL LORD LUNARIS!"

"ALL HAIL LORD LUNARIS!"

"Wait..." he tried to stop them.

Then he froze.

He couldn’t move.

What?

Even his magic felt as though it had solidified.

He felt something - some sort of thread - wrap around him. Around his very being. It seeped into him, binding itself to his core.

And just as fast as it had come, the sensation disappeared.

What was that?

He stood motionless, processing what had just occurred.

Something had changed. He could feel it. A deep and profound shift within himself. As if something fundamental had been rewritten.

He quickly ran an analysis on himself.

[ Analysis Complete ]

Name: Lunaris

Race: Moonlight Slime

"What?"