After cooking a few more grilled cheese, I was almost out of mana already. It seemed like cooking with flavor boost didn''t use any, but cooking with buff baking did. I''d have to keep that in mind and use skills sparingly so I never ran out of flavor. I also wasn''t sure if the sandwiches would stay warm in my item box, so now seemed like a good time to stop.


    The blue slime tilted its head at me, staring with wide eyes as I put half a loaf of bread and a hunk of cheese back into my item box. That slime had the most ravenous appetite ever. Four grilled cheese in the past few hours and it still wanted more.


    "Sorry buddy, I''ll make you something else soon."


    The slime bounced quickly, nodding so hard it rolled over in the grass. A smile tugged at my lips as I watched the little monster, so adorable and silly. This whole situation would have been a lot more terrifying without it. Calling the slime a monster felt kind of rude at this point because it really was the best friend I had in this place.


    My only friend.


    So maybe I should stop calling it an it while I was at it too since the slime seemed to be sentient and have a personality.


    "Hey Jellybean?" I asked before it rolled too far away. "Do slimes have genders?"


    The slime blinked at me, then looked up at the ceiling.


    [The slime is a male. You would know that if you''d activated any of your awesome new slime friend skills.]


    I winced. Had I offended the system by not evenly distributing my skills? I didn''t realize it could even get offended.


    "Sorry," I called out to the empty dungeon floor. "I''ll make sure to look at those skills once I have more points."


    I waited to see if another message box appeared, but the system had gone silent. Hmmmm, I''d have to keep an eye on my skills better in the future. If the system really had made a new class and title just for me, then I should show my gratitude by using them. After all, the system was the only reason I wasn''t being forced to fight.


    As I put the pan back in my item box, a familiar cluck cluck filled the air.


    Were there...chickens in this dungeon?


    I turned around just in time to see my best little slime friend open his mouth wide and gobble a tiny chicken up.


    "No!" I shouted as the chicken bawked loudly before it disappeared. The slime looked at me innocently with a chicken feather hanging out of his mouth. "Oh, no you don''t. Spit it out. Now."


    The slime tilted his head as if he was confused, but the chicken was clearly inside the slime''s translucent body. It was flapping its wings like it was still alive, so I stormed over there and stared the slime down.


    "Spit. It. Out," I said forcefully. "We don''t eat cute baby chickens here. We just don''t." When the slime didn''t do anything, I added, "I''ll make you something tasty if you spit it out."


    Jellybean''s mouth dropped open and the chicken fluttered back to the ground, squawking up a storm and leaving slime-coated feathers everywhere.


    I patted the slime''s head. "That was nice of you. Thank you."


    He chittered, leaning into my hand and I couldn''t help but smile. I knew I should chastise him more, maybe try training him or something, but he was just too adorable. We''d work on slime manners another day. Right now, I really needed to find more ingredients. I couldn''t keep either of us safe if I couldn''t feed the monsters we''d inevitably encounter.


    I hurried to pack the rest of our stuff, shoving the portable stove back into my item box, but something felt off. The ground was vibrating. Then came the sounds. Clucking so loud I was afraid to turn around and look. But I forced myself to peek.


    Four monstrous chickens towered over me. They had to be almost five feet tall and when they opened their mouths, fire shot out, blazing past me like a warning shot.


    Fire. Breathing. Chickens.


    At their feet stood a ruffled little chicken that looked suspiciously like the one Jellybean had tried to eat. Dammit. Was I about to be a monster chicken''s revenge dinner?


    "I''m really sorry about what happened." I stood slowly with my hands out in front of me. The chickens came up to my chin, making their death stares all the more imposing. "I don''t mean you any harm. It was just a misunderstanding."


    A misunderstanding about who was on the menu tonight, but that was beside the point. We could all walk away from this in one piece, right?


    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    Except, I didn''t see the slime anywhere. I couldn''t just leave him here to be fried for a chicken''s dinner.


    One of the chickens moved closer, clucking in an angry tone as it pecked the air. I winced, picturing how painful that beak would be if it hit me. This was not how my story ended. No way. Not pecked to death by a chicken.


    I glanced around until I spotted the slime quivering in the grass behind the monsters. If I distracted these chickens long enough, we could make a run for it. I opened my item box and pulled out my trusty sandwich: [Dave''s Lunch].


    "Here chicken, chicken, chicken," I said, ripping the grilled cheese up and tossing it on the ground. "Dinner time."


    The one in front walked right over the sandwich bites, grinding them into the dirt under its talons. I gulped. That was one terrifying chicken. Thankfully the others seemed to enjoy the sandwich as they leaned down to peck at it. I tossed a large chunk of it in the air, waiting for the boss chicken to look up at it.


    The moment its eyes left me, I raced over to the slime, scooped him into my arms, and fled as fast as my legs could carry me.


    Furious squawking rose up behind us, but there was no way I was looking back. Not a chance. Not when the slime in my arms was shaking like a leaf, too terrified to make a noise. It reminded me of somebody, but I couldn''t think of who. Somebody who acted tough, but never stood up for themself, no matter how badly they were treated.


    Tears pricked my eyes again, but I wasn''t sure why. I blinked them away, holding the slime close as the chickens closed the distance between us. There was no way I was outrunning them, so we''d have to climb a tree and hope for the best.


    I tossed the slime into the nearest tree and raced after him as fast as I could, grabbing branch after branch. A chef''s coat wasn''t the best for climbing trees though and I kept slipping. This was insane. I was just a baker, so why was I getting chased by fire-breathing chickens in a dungeon?? And why had I thought climbing a very burnable tree was a good idea?


    I hauled myself up a bit higher, straddling a branch so I could catch my breath and see what the chickens were up to. They were still spitting fire, but thankfully the tree wasn''t burning. The flames seemed to roll off its bark like it was fire-proof.


    My shoulders sagged with relief as the slime jumped into my arms, still quivering. I snuggled the little guy close.


    "It''ll be okay, we''ll get out of this."


    Somehow.


    The satyr''s comment about not being able to win with a sandwich came to mind. I really didn''t want him to be right because I didn''t want to hurt anyone, not even these fire-breathing chickens. But what if my food couldn''t calm them down? Would we be stuck up here forever?


    I tried tossing down some of the new grilled cheese I''d made, but they didn''t seem to care about that either. They were too focused on trying to take the tree down with their intense pecking. I leaned my head back against the tree trunk, patting the quivering slime in my arms.


    Maybe chickens just didn''t like grilled cheese. If I had any other ingredients, I could try and make something else for them. Something that would satisfy those monsters long enough for us to get away. I squinted at the tree''s branches. Were those...apples?


    No. They looked more like strawberries, but those didn''t grow in–I shook my head. Whether strawberries grew in trees or not wasn''t my problem right now. What mattered was that this tree had fruit and I could cook something with that.


    Maybe some basic jam? I didn''t have any sugar, but strawberries were pretty sweet on their own. If I cooked them down, they''d still be tasty.


    I moved to set the slime on another branch, but he squeaked at me.


    "I''ve got a plan," I said, "I just need to gather these strawberries and cook them down. Then I''ll get us out of here."


    The slime tilted this way and that before hopping over to a bundle of strawberries and gobbling them up.


    "Wait, no!" I called out. The slime looked at me and started shaking again. My heart ached as I reached out to pet him. "Nevermind. Eat as many as you want."


    Unfortunately, the ravenous little slime devoured all the strawberries nearby in minutes. I barely got two handfuls before they were gone. Hopefully it would be enough because I didn''t want to risk moving around too much and losing my balance. If I fell, the slime wouldn''t have anyone to protect him anymore.


    Picturing the adorable creature being pecked by those chickens was just too horrible. I had to make this work.


    I positioned myself against the tree trunk to feel a little more stable. I''d been avoiding looking down as much as I could, but dizziness swept over me once in a while anyway. This tree wasn''t the tallest around, but it was tall enough to make my head spin.


    I removed the portable stove, pot, and knife from my item box, balancing them carefully on the tree branch in front of me. Then I cut each strawberry into quarters and tossed them into the pot. It was a pitiful amount that didn''t even cover the bottom. I worried my lip, looking around for any other strawberries within easy reach, but there weren''t any.


    "This will have to be good enough," I muttered to myself as the slime hopped onto my shoulder. "Are you feeling better?"


    The slime nuzzled against me and I smiled, forgetting the giant chickens for a moment. The slime really was sweet, even if he had a bottomless pit for a stomach. He fell into my lap and opened his mouth wide.


    Strawberries suddenly appeared in my arms. Lots of strawberries. So many I couldn''t even hold onto them all and a few fell to the ground.


    "What...what''s this?" I asked, eyes wide. "Did you gather all these for me?"


    The slime chirped, bouncing happily as the strawberries piled up high around him. He hadn''t been greedily devouring all the fruit, he''d been picking them. For me. So I didn''t have to risk climbing around those branches. I shoved the strawberries in my item box before more of them fell and hugged the slime tight.


    "Thank you," I said as he rubbed against my cheek. "You''re amazing."


    Being treed by monster chickens wasn''t exactly my idea of a good time, but at least we were in it together. I''d have to make good use of the gift Jellybean had brought me. I cut up more strawberries, enough to fill the bottom quarter of the pot, and then turned on the heat.


    Time to make some tasty, chicken-taming jam.