I dedicated my morning to honoring the five slimes from the slime boxes that had turned into liquid for the sake of magical creature research. All five had sacrificed themselves unnecessarily for my curiosity, and I was paying my respects. I buried their remains near the entrance of the tunnel so that I’d always remember them whenever I went digging.

  While I was at it, I also put down several stone carvings in the shape of mini pig, slime, kanalele, and snake nearby as memorials for all the animals and magical creatures I’ve consumed for my survival in this place.

  Objectively, the stone carvings weren’t that good and were full of flaws. The snake statue had an awkward bend, making it look more like a worm. The Kanalele statue had uneven proportions, so it would wobble only with a slight push. The mini pig statue had a snout that was too big, giving it a comically exaggerated face. The slime statue was just a piece of rock that I polished until it was somewhat round. However, despite all those glaring flaws, at the very least, I could say that I did my best in carving them using my limited skills.

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  What am I doing trying to be cheeky—no one else aside from me going to read this diary, anyway.

  Well, maybe not just me, since there are these cute nut spirits currently accompanying me as I’m writing this sentence. But, in the first place, can spirits read?

  "Nope," they gestured to me after I asked them.

  Hmmm… I wonder if I can teach these nut spirits to read. I maybe can, considering they could understand me speaking to them with no problem, but should I? What kind of benefit would they gain from being able to read? Would it even help them in their work? I’m not sure about that, but if there’s anything I’m sure of, it’s that this could serve as an interesting experiment to pass the time.

  Today’s menu.

  Breakfast: A bowl of eternal soup 4.1.

  Lunch: A bowl of eternal soup 4.1 + a cup of cherry tomato juice.

  Dinner: A bowl of eternal soup 4.1

  Reinforcing Tunnel Project: 4600 / 7300