“Self-Disciplined Puppet is a doll… so the material is wood… wood comes from trees… trees are nature… the guardian of nature…”
Lin Ran stroked his chin, his brain spinning rapidly.
He felt that naming this important partner required depth and meaning!
“I’ve decided, you’ll be called—Cenarius?”
“Please allow me to reject that.”
“The database points to a game character, a male night elf with antlers and a strong build. It severely conflicts with my image.”
Hearing this name, An Mengyue at the side let out a “pfft,” almost spitting out the beer she had just drunk, then burst into laughter.
“Come, little ones, let me tell you what kind of godly name your game nerd master just came up with.”
She laughed as she pulled the little slimes over and explained the meaning.
It wasn’t strange that An Mengyue knew about this kind of thing.
After all, she and the Self-Disciplined Puppet were both Mental-type Monsters, both having read his memories.
Lin Ran’s old face flushed red. He cleared his throat and announced again—
“Then, Malfurion?”
“Mm… I’m very sorry, but I might still have to reject this name.”
Lin Ran scratched his head, completely falling into self-doubt.
He just wanted to give the Self-Disciplined Puppet a name that fit its essential traits. Why was it rejected again? It clearly matched!
Ah… This is bad, the slimes are all showing disgusted expressions. Are these two names really that unsuitable?
Where’s Lim? Lim, help! Didn’t you like the name I gave you the most?!
“What do you mean, you’re even starting to doubt if the name Lim was a bad choice?”
Beside him, An Mengyue laughed so hard she could barely breathe, finally collapsing on the floor, gasping for air.
Lin Ran felt like he had been hit with three critical blows.
The puppet’s rejection, the bystander’s ridicule, and even a loyal fan turning away.
He took a deep breath and, like lifting a little chick, picked up An Mengyue, who was laughing the loudest, from the floor.
“If you can do it, you do it. You say, what’s a good name?”
“Just a normal girl’s name. Girls want cute names, too.”
An Mengyue finally caught her breath, wiping away tears of laughter as she answered.
“That’s true.”
Lin Ran was a bit speechless.
He’d been too focused on the character’s traits and had overlooked the most basic issue—gender.
Looking at the Self-Disciplined Puppet, she really did seem to agree with An Mengyue’s comment about wanting a cute name.
In that case—
“Vera, it symbolizes elegance. It suits her appearance, right!”
This time, it finally received widespread approval.
An Mengyue watched this scene and, for some reason, felt comforted, like a master watching a clueless disciple finally succeed, with an “auntie smile” on her face.
The Self-Disciplined Puppet—or rather, Vera—also shyly turned her head away, a wisp of white smoke floating above her head.
Unfortunately, his moment of glory lasted only a second.
The next moment, his vision went dark and he fainted.
“Wha-wha-wha-what happened! Why did Master faint!”
“Don’t worry, he just ran out of Magic Power. Rather, it’s a miracle he held on this long.”
Listening to the voices outside, it seemed there was no serious problem.
Lin Ran drifted into a deep sleep—
Before his consciousness completely faded, he felt himself being carefully lifted and placed on a soft bed.
But even in his dreams, the commotion beside him didn’t stop—
“Lim, how do you slimes reproduce~”
It was An Mengyue’s voice.
“Um… If we want to reproduce with Master, we have to… um…”
Lim’s voice was so shy it sounded like a mosquito, hoping she would behave and not imitate a certain puppet.
“Not that, I mean slimes with other slimes.”
“Oh, oh! That’s much simpler. Once we eat enough grass from our homeland, we split! Oh, right, that grass is in the dorm. Should I bring some over?”
“Sure~”
“Wait… This is! It’s that grass!”
An Mengyue’s voice suddenly turned incredibly shocked.
…..
…..
“So what kind of grass is it! Is it so hard to explain! Stop talking in riddles!!”
When Lin Ran woke up, it was already the early morning of the next day.
The first thing he said after waking up was actually a complaint about what he’d overheard before fainting.
“Oh~ You’re awake.”
The Self-Disciplined Puppet Vera saw Lin Ran wake and immediately walked over to perform a series of checks.
“Body temperature 36.7 degrees Celsius, normal. Mental state stable, Magic Power has recovered to 80%…”
“Then, without further delay, please provide me with more genetic samples.”
Lin Ran’s face darkened.
So this was the first thing he heard after waking up?
But looking at Lim, sleeping soundly beside him, and the swarm of little slimes, he felt comforted.
Thank goodness for these healing little creatures—
But many of them were holding a few stalks of grass from the dorm, which left Lin Ran even more confused.
“This grass…”
Seeing Lin Ran’s confusion, Vera immediately explained:
“Also known as Slime Grass. It contains abundant Magic Power, and keeping it nearby aids in your Magic Power recovery.”
Lin Ran had a revelation.
So the weeds he’d picked up were actually a valuable treasure.
Speaking of Magic Power, during his two days of unconsciousness, he had heard An Mengyue and Vera mention that naming consumes Magic Power, which explained why he’d fainted.
But…
“The effect isn’t obvious… Vera, do you feel any signs of evolution?”
“I am a high-level monster. The conditions required for evolution are not limited to naming. If you wish to observe evolution…”
Vera clapped her hands, and a group of little puppets marched in.
This scene, like a parade of little lolis, was healing and adorable.
But when Lin Ran saw it, his heart stopped, nearly sending him to the afterlife.
The reason was simple.
The evolved little puppets were each holding a weapon.
A Fire Axe.
Yes… After evolving, the little puppets became exactly like the first evolved puppet in his dream, the one that chased him with a Fire Axe.
“Um… Vera, doesn’t that mean if they keep evolving…”
Lin Ran’s voice trembled.
He began to imagine the dorm-sized, multi-armed, all-skilled puppets from his dreams appearing before him…
“Yes, you’re absolutely right.”
Lin Ran’s vision darkened again.
“If you must faint, please wait a moment while I prepare for genetic sample collection. It’s not too late to pass out after I’m ready.”
Lin Ran had doubts.
After getting a name, did Vera gain not just the human emotion of shyness but also a hidden dark side?
But at that moment, hurried footsteps echoed from downstairs, moving fast and urgent.
Soon after, the wooden door was flung open, waking all the slimes.
An Mengyue clung to the doorframe, gasping for breath.
“N-no… Not good! Lin Ran! Outside… there’s a huge crowd!”
“They… They said there are monsters here, that you’re harboring monsters, and they’re coming to kill monsters and take the Crystal Cores!”
Lin Ran instantly got up, dressed, and asked in a low voice.
“Combat strength?”
“Average. Most are ordinary people. Probably… a few evolved Battle Puppets could handle them.”
Hearing this, Lin Ran’s frown deepened.
He glanced at the nearby Fire Axe-wielding, eager little puppet army.
“That might actually be more troublesome…”