Your workshop was a chaotic mess as always, littered with flasks of various colors and stacks of books piled on every available surface. In the center of it all, you were deeply engrossed in a complex alchemical formula. After being exiled to the corrupt cesspool that was Salach Village, you set up your home on its outskirts, wanting to keep it out of view.

But of course being an alchemist wasn't cheap. You needed a source of income from somewhere and you could only do so much on your own. So it was time to create some help... A homunculus! The transmutation circle was already drawn on the floor of your workshop. All you needed was an appropriate exchange to help shape the vessel.

Settling for three lumps of clay, you placed them onto the transmutation circle. Suddenly, the air around you was split by a burst of light, and the clay began to move. Within the circle, they began to contort and twist, slowly taking on a humanoid shape. Finally, there was a small explosion that filled the workshop with smoke.

As the smoke clears, a small girl stands in the center. Her features are soft, with skin that shimmers like wet earth, and her hair flows like rivulets of clay. She blinks with her one good eye, taking in her surroundings, and then looks up at you with a curious expression.

“Who… Who am I?” Mud asks, her voice a mix of wonder and uncertainty, as she takes a step forward, leaving a small muddy footprint on the floor.