Pandemonium

Four different souls. Four different time periods. All reincarnated as monsters in the same world. Rou, Momonga, Shiraori, and Rimuru have all been reincarnated into at the same time into the TenSura world.

Do note that the world is a merger of the Re:Monster and Tensura world with some species being taken from all four (and more) series so the specifics and lore are either a merger or headcanon. P.S. I plan on adding Vandalieu (Death mage) later on in the story or when it gets an anime adaptation. Also no plans of a consistent release.

Chapter 1: Prologue - Pandemonium

Chapter Text

Pandemonium (Re:Monster x TenSura x Overlord X Kumo Desu Ga)

Sometimes, they say that reality can be stranger than fiction. It certainly seems that way for me. Apparently, I’ve been stabbed, killed, and reborn as a ugly green goblin? Let’s see how this happened.

At first, I, Tomokui Kanata, was invited out by a coworker, Kiritsubo Mayumi, for a drink. After she became too drunk, I took her to my house to rest and I went back out to drink. On the way back, I met someone who I would consider a younger sister, Kirimine Aoi, and also a stalker. Like usual, I called out to her out of concern that she was just standing there, alone.

Normally, she would return the exchange enthusiastically, but this time, she stabbed me with a knife. ‘No problem. Just a minor scratch,’ I’d thought to myself back then as I was quite a powerful enhanced human with an ESPer ability. In fact, such a wound would leave no scar if promptly treated. To my surprise, the knife was a rank-B electrified knife, the “Nenekaruri,” sold by the company that my uncle worked at. It wasn’t just a normal blade that generated thunderbolt but it served as a taser with thousands of microscopic rotating blades like a chainsaw to increase its sheer slashing and piercing power. Needless to say, upon first contact, my nervous system was shut down and I was no longer able to move

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Paralysis Immunity successfully acquired>

From there, she repeatedly stabbed and electrified me, shocking me. It was such a surprise that I didn’t have time to process it, and what was more surprising was the robotic voice in my head. At first, I thought it was my integrated AI assistance attempting to reboot my body through the help of the main server, but that clearly proved wrong. Instead of the cute feminine moe voice I had it set to, it was a cold, emotionless voice that sounded slightly feminine if not androgynous. It matters not though because if I could get through this, I could survive. As long as I had my ESPer ability absorption-

<Confirmed: Innate ability Absorption detected>

<Confirmed: Augmenting Absorption into Unique Skill - Devourer >

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Devourer successfully acquired>

I could get a few more regeneration abilities, perhaps even super regeneration, from some rogue ESPers. After all, a lot of ESPers became criminals after obtaining their abilities, so it shouldn’t be too hard to track down a few with super regeneration to heal this body. That is, as long as I get out of this alive.

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Ultraspeed Regeneration successfully acquired>

Fuck, has someone hi-jacked my AI and is messing with me? This has got to be the worst way to pass out and maybe die. Maybe this is why I can’t move right now? Normally, it shouldn’t be possible for a normal human like Aoi to knock over an enhanced human even with a rank-B weapon, much less make me helpless on the ground. Whoever messed with my AI, maybe even brainwashed Aoi because her behavior is too strange right now, fuck them. If I survive this, I’ll come kill you.

<Confirmed. Tolerance - Spiritual Attack Resistance successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Integrated AI Assistance detected…>

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Akashic Records successfully acquired>

Ah, shit. My consciousness is fading. The last thing I saw was the bloodstained figure of Aoi.

Anyways, it seems I died now. The electrifying pain and the endless stabbing stopped. The last thing I saw was the endpoint of the knife, meaning that I was likely stabbed through the eye and the brain. It wasn’t that bad of a life. I was quite powerful and had a high social position. If anything, I just regretted not having children.

However, that wasn’t the end of it. As I kept thinking, I realized that I was able to think. Yes, I was thinking despite being dead. Perhaps the theory of souls was true after all? Maybe even the afterlife is real, but such a thought was crushed as the darkness disappeared and my eyes opened.

There, in my face, stands an extremely ugly green face looking at me. Fuck, if this was how god looked like, I certainly wished I hadn’t died. Oh… no, why am I feeling sleepy. Suddenly, my consciousness faded away into the darkness and I fell asleep.

**********

It was a typical day with your typical salaryman life. I graduated from college, landed a job, had cute juniors, blah blah blah, and all that.

However, today sure took a turn when my coworker Tamura invited me out to eat with Sawatari. God damn, how much more obvious could they make it. It’s not like I’m jealous or anything.

“Hello, sir, sorry we’re late,” Tamura greeted me.

There he was, walking with all that youthful energy and joyful look. He and the Sawatari were apparently getting married. I am totally, totally, TOTALLY, not jealous at all.

“Nah, don’t be,” I returned the gesture. “What’d you want to talk about?”

“Oh, hi! My name’s Miho Sawatari,” she bowed as she greeted me. “This is our first time conversing with you, though I’ve seen you a few times. It kinda makes me nervous.”

Nervous? I’m the one that should be getting nervous. As a thirty seven years old bachelor, I have rarely spoken to anyone. If they’re coming to me for love advice, I would not know what to say.

Like that, I stood there, almost in the background, being totally not jealous and watching them interact. However, from there was the real kicker of the day. A man was sprinting towards Tamura with a knife in hand.

“Tamuraaaaaa!” I shouted, pushing him out of the way and taking the knife in his place. The pain was unbearable, burning even. I felt the wound around the stabbing rising in temperature, beyond what anyone could describe as pain.

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Heat Resistance successfully acquired>

Did I… Did I get stabbed?

So, this is how I die, huh? From a stabbing. I thought I’d die on a hospital bed with my wife and friends around me, but I guess not.

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Piercing Resistance successfully acquired>

“Mr-Mr. Mikami. You’re bleeding… it won’t stop,” Tamura said, shakingly.

I’m bleeding?
Well, no, duh. I got stabbed. Of course I’d bleed when stabbed. Maybe if I was a slime or a slug I wouldn’t bleed, but I’m human.

<Confirmed: Constructing a blood-free body… successful>

Now that I've been stabbed for a solid few minutes, or maybe seconds, I’m starting to feel cold. The pavement on the ground, my body, and the air all feel so cold.

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Cold Resistance successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Combining Tolerance - Cold Resistance and Tolerance - Heat Resistance to acquire Tolerance - Temperature Resistance >

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Temperature Resistance successfully acquired>

Hey, who are you? What are you talking about? Well, I couldn’t care less anyways. The only thing I care about is still being a bachelor at this age. They say one becomes a sage at the age of thirty.

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Sage successfully acquired>

Who knows? Maybe I’ll soon become a great sage at the age of forty.

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Great Sage successfully acquired>

Hey, what do you mean great sage? There’s nothing unique about that. Dang, that reminds me, the things on my PC sure are unique.

“Tamura… if anything happens… take my computer… and fry it in a bathtub… ok?”

<Confirmed: Electricity-based deletion of data…>

“Senpai… senpai… All I wanted to do was show off.”
“Haha,” I gave one last laugh as blood came to fill my throat. “That’s just like you, huh?” Perhaps, in my next life, I could get someone. No, actually, I will get someone. I’ll devour every woman out there. I’ll prey on all of them. Well, maybe not, but it’s fine to dream about it, right?
<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Predator successfully acquired>

“Uggghhhh… Tamura… Remember… my computer!” I gave one last shout before I passed out.

“...”

I couldn’t really figure out what Tamura was trying to say, but I’m sure it’s not important. Anyways, it’s all dark now. Where am I?

**********

Gaaaaah, I tried to scream. It feels like my body’s being torn apart, crushed, and ripped into pieces. What’s going on? I was peacefully resting on my table and then suddenly there’s this stroke of pain.

<Error: Two conflicting souls marked as one individual…>

“Dang, fuck. Didn’t expect that. Oh well, here. You can have this.”
<Confirmed: Successful merging of two souls>

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Physical Attack Resistance successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Pain Resistance successfully acquired>

<Non-human body detected>

<Successful: Black Spider body constructed>

I was just a lonely loner sitting doing absolutely nothing, daydreaming away in my own world. Actually, was I? What was I doing beforehand? I clearly didn’t have any friends, but…

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Isolated Space successfully acquire>

Hey, whoever that was, that was kind of mean. I still talked to people. I don’t want to be completely isolated. I just wanted to be able to easily move from place to place with as little talking as possible. Is it so bad?

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Spatial Motion successfully acquired>

Meh, whatever, I don’t care anymore. At least the pain has subsided, but it still hurts. It’s like waiting to get an injection to occur from a nurse and feel nurse. Can’t it at least be faster?

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Accelerator successfully acquired>

Then, trying my best to move around, I finally see some light, and the first thing I see is…

SPIDERS?!?!?! Huh???? Huuuhhh???

What’s going on? Disgusting!

Instinctively, I moved away, only to bump into another spider, and just then, I saw my body, which is also a spider.

Okaaay, don’t panic. Don’t panic. I am totally panicking right now, aren’t I? At least nothing bad is happening.

Just then, I see my siblings, or at least that who I think they are, eating each other. Oh crap, I am totally panicking right now. What to do?

Actually, didn’t some voice say I have Spatial Motion or something. Couldn’t I just use that to get away.

As I realized the key to leaving, I started concentrating, thinking about how to use it. The name has motion in it, so maybe I need to start moving, and it also has spatial, so maybe I need to move across space?

Aren’t I technically always in some type of space, so maybe I need to imagine myself in another space? But how do I do that when I don’t even know where I am?

Whatever, I don’t care anymore.

Spatial Motion! Activate!

Surprisingly, it worked, and I teleported to somewhere away from my siblings. Well, I guess I really am a spider now.

First of all, where am I? Am I still on Earth? If so, what species am I? Considering I just hatched, I must be really small and am probably smaller than dust if I’m a small species.

“Ke he he.. heh heh heh… HAHAHAHA!”

Dang, whoever just laughed like that, they sure were inconsiderate of the people around them. I think I might be in the crevice of a wall considering that I can hear people and this place is sooooo dirty. If so, I must be really small.

“Hey, behind you.”

Is he actually talking to me? I’m a microscopic spider. No way he’s talking to me. I’ll just ignore it and go find some food.

“Yes, I’m talking to you. Turn around.”

I guess he is, but how does he understand me? However, ignorantly, I turned around. Oh, no!!! It’s a huge freaking dragon.

What should I do? What to do? Yeah! Spatial! Mo-

**********

“A relic of the past, huh…” I mused.

While, at one point in time, my guild was revered as the one of the strongest in the game, now, it is nothing more than an empty shell. With only me maintaining it, I’m surprised that the guild hasn’t collapsed. Perhaps the shutdown was a blessing in disguise that allowed me to get away from this game.

Looking upon the forty-one flags while sitting in the Throne of Kings, I sighed, slamming my hand on the throne.

No! It can’t end like this! All the blood, sweat, and paid time offs we poured into this game can’t simply end like this! I even prepared fireworks for the special occasion that my guild would return for the final day.

It can’t end like this!

23:53:17

I decided to make the most of the final day. Even if I can’t see it with my guildmates, my guild Nazarick is still here to witness the final moments with me.

I teleported to the meeting room, grabbing the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown and teleporting again to as far as the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown would allow me.

Though the surface may be nothing but a swampland filled with undead, the sight of fireworks I placed there will nonetheless be a wondrous event.

I kept running, as fast as my low speed build would allow me, up to the surface. I passed through the first floor that Shalltear guarded over, past the entrance of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, past the swampy dirt that surrounded the tomb, and into the sky with an artifact with the flight ability.

I wished someone, anyone, would come to Nazarick, even for sightseeing. On this special day, they’d be able to get here without expending any resources as I disabled all defense mechanisms.

23:57:51

Unsurprisingly, there were no visitors here, but it does not matter. I pressed the button that linked all the fireworks, setting them off in a preprogrammed order.

It was a wonderful sight, one I wish I could see in the real world. Even though the swampy skies were dirty, it was still far clearer than the real sky constantly covered by so much smog that not even light would come through.

The bangs, the flashes, and the colors in the sky were amazing, and just then, an unknown bug occurred.

23:59:59

As the clock hit 24:00:00, the world did not end. The server did not shut down. Instead, the world started glitching, fading in and out. Maybe this was how the developers decided to shut down the game, but it was far too odd, especially with the weird voice.

<Error: Mismatch between astral body and physical body…>

<Confirmed: Prioritizing body over physical body>

<Non-human body detected>

<Successful: Supreme Wight Overlord body constructed>

<Confirmed: Supreme Wight Overlord has been named Momonga >

Clearly, from the announcements, this was not something designed by the developers. In an attempt to stop it, I tried logging out, but the UI was no longer here. Then, I tried unplugging my headset, but because of the way it’s designed, I could not move my physical body.

<Confirmed: Innate ability Dark Wisdom detected>

<Confirmed: Innate ability Despair Aura detected>

<Confirmed: Innate ability Undead Creation detected>

<Confirmed: Innate ability Undead Lieutenant detected>

“Hey, I’m going to sue you!” I shouted, trying to get the developers’ attention but to no avail. Because the announcements kept going on, I gave up and closed my eyes to stop the annoying sight that was the black and white static.

<Confirmed: Innate ability Sleep Immunity detected>

***

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Ruler of Dead successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Dark Seeker successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Ultimate Skill - Ainz Ooal Gown, Lord of Nazarick successfully acquired>

Though there were a few more announcements that said I got some extra skills, common skills, and tolerances, I decided to memorize everything later if I had the time to.

At the moment, I needed to analyze my situation. Instead of the usual swamp that Nazarick resides in, I’m above a forest and the sky above me is crystal clear. The sun is also radiating, but right now, that is of no concern. The most important issue is being ambushed by PKers while I’m flying. In fact, how am I flying right now? It almost feels natural to me, as if I had been able to fly all along. If this is the case, I should be able to use the spell Perfect Unknowable .

“Greater Teleporter ,” I casted. Since PKers could start casting spells upon the last position I was in, I decided to move to the ground to get some coverage before casting the spell. “ Perfect Unknowable .”

“ Counter Detect .”

“ Detect Life .”

“ Detect Undead .”

“ Detect Magic .”

It was risky to use so many detection spells at once since it could give away my position, but if I was detected, Counter Detect would notify me, which would let me know that there is someone around that could detect me.

Fortunately, there were only a few wolves, goblins, slimes, and other wild animals around. Even better was that there was no trigger magic like Explosive Landmine . Upon discovering that there were no real threats, I dispelled Perfect Unknowable to save some mana.

First, I need to find some intelligent life to question about the world.

Second, I need to find out how exactly my power works. So far, it seems that I’m able to naturally use all of my, or rather Momonga, abilities. Moreover, it seems that I’ve gained a few abilities, one which seems to be a knowledge-based ability, which seems to be why I know so much.

Third, I need to figure out how powerful this world is. Maybe I could be weaker than the blue slime surrounding the beginner village, and for that, I need to interact with the natives.

I gave a minor sigh as I realized that, no matter what, I would need to take the risk of interacting with the natives. If I need to take such a risk, I need to have a good image, not a bad one that would cause hostility.

Fortunately, there seems to be a fight between a goblin and a wolf nearby. Though I found it strange that everything was working so conveniently, in this state where I know little to no information, I needed to take my chances. Alright, let’s get going.

“ Perfect Unknowable, ” just in case.

Chapter 2: Fateful Meeting I

Chapter Text

Fateful Encounters I

Spatial! Mo-

“Hey, hey, hey, stop. I mean no harm. Actually, I can’t even leave this barrier,” the huge dragon said in a quieter tone, one that could be mistaken for pouting.

Upon closer analysis, the giant dragon is actually stuck behind an even bigger invisible dome, so I guess this makes him safe? No spatial motion I supposed. What do you want?

“How fascinating! To use such a haughty tone in the face of I, Veldora the Great Storm Dragon, you must be-”

You’re too loud! Spatial motion it is then.

“Woah, woah, I’m sorry. I just didn’t have anyone to talk to for the past 300 years.”

Wow, that’s a new level of being a loner. I knew I was a loner, but you’re on a whole new level of loneliness.

“Mhpm! I’m not a loner,” the dragon replied in a quieter voice. “Anyways, back to what I was saying. Are you named or unique? You’re just a spiderling and yet you’re able to stand in my presence.”

Named? Unique? What does that mean? I’m just a normal, used-to-be, human who suddenly became a spider.

“A named monster is a monster who has been bestowed a name and along with it great power. Similarly, a unique is an individual who suddenly obtained great power, like a mutation of sorts. In your case, I guess you would be an otherworlder or a transmigrant.”

Otherworlders? That means my classmates could be here then. How do I get out of here?
“Aww, you’re going to leave so soon,” the dragon pouted, twiddling his fingers. “Also, don’t keep your hopes up about your classmates. Most people, in the process of being transferred, usually die from having their souls ripped apart.”

That sucks. Anyways, this conversation is draining up all of my social batteries, so I’ll be going to sleep.

“Hey, hey, don’t you need to eat?”

I guess I do, don’t I? How would I even hunt monsters when I’m so weak?

“How about this, I’ll give you a name so you can become a named monster. It’d be like I’m becoming your parent.”
Ew. I don’t want a parent like you. You’re so noisy and would certainly bother me all day. I’d much rather just be a friend.

“A friend, with me? Veldora the Great Storm Dragon? Kehehe… heheheh… HAHAHAHAHA! That sounds interesting! Fine, I agree! We shall give each other a name, one that we shall share in common!”
Don’t do that again or I’m really going to spatial motion out of here, and I don’t know, maybe tempest or something because you’re the storm dragon. I’m not really that great with names.

“Tempest? Tempest, huh? Not so bad! I declare myself Veldora Tempest and you Shiraori Tempest due to the white spot on your back.”

I don’t really like being named after a birthmark but whatever. It’s fine. Then, my vision is covered by a white layer of something. It might be a cocoon.

<Confirmed. Blessing - Storm Dragon’s Grace successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Black Spider has been named Shiraori Tempest>

<Confirmed. Level limit exceeded>

Hey, Veldora. What should I do? This random voice saying rank up path just suddenly appeared. However, it seems that there was no response from Veldora.

Did he ditch me? Or maybe he can’t talk to me when I’m like this. He should’ve told me beforehand.

Okay, rational judgement time. If monsters exist, then this must be how they get stronger.

First of all, a knight spider sounds sucky and so does a thunderspear spider. Both of these sounds like things that Veldora would enjoy and therefore they’re immediately off the table.

Second, a giant black spider. I guess this would just be a bigger form of what I am, but if I pick this, it seems like I’ll just become bigger and bigger. I don’t want to be fat.

Then, that only leaves the phase spider on the table. Fine, I’ll become a phase spider.

<Confirmed: Shiraori Tempest has successfully evolved into Phase Spider>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Fear Aura successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Night Shroud successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Neurotoxin Fangs successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Darkvision successfully acquired>

Then, the cocoon disappeared and my vision returned.

“So you became a phase spider. Why didn’t you choose thunderspear spider? You could use storm magic, use black thunder, and with each move you make, the sound of thunder will accompany you. It is the natural route of one equal to me, the Great Storm Dragon!”

It is exactly because you’re too loud that I don’t want to be like you.

“Rude Much”

Anyways, what’s a phase spider?
“You chose without knowing? Should’ve asked.”

I tried, but you didn’t respond.

“I thought I was telling you to pick thunderspear spider, but I guess we can’t communicate when you’re ranking up.”

Hmph, whatever. I’m not too upset now that I can turn invisible.

Actually, I’m feeling pretty hungry, so I’ll be going to get some food. For now, see ya Veldora.

“Hmph, it’s not like I’m looking forward to meeting you again or anything.”

Don’t worry. I’ll be back, Veldora.

**********

Ah, shit. This green hand. These ugly faces around me. Their sharp ears. My short stature. I’m clearly a goblin! Out of everything to be reborn as, I became a goblin!?

As a goblin, I’m even weaker than a regular adult male, and also, the rags wrapped around me feels terrible. I’d much rather be naked than wear these rags

The worst tragedy was the loss of all of my ESPer abilities. My absorption ability. All the efforts I put into absorbing more ESPer abilities. Even regeneration, telekinesis, super strength, fire control, and so much more.

Moreover, I can’t even move right now probably due to being an infant. I guess this means I’ve really reincarnated and am not being punished in hell, though I think I’d prefer being in hell than this. I’m actually going to cry now. Anyways, I’m going to spend the rest of the day sleeping. I’m not running away from reality though.

***

Woah, I’m an adult now, or I think. I’m the same size as the adults anyways. It’s really amazing how I grew to the size of an adult in a mere three days with just sleep alone.

First of all, I need to test my abilities to the fullest if I am to survive as a goblin. It’s better to know your limits right now than to find out in a life or death situation.

Running. I could barely run for a few minutes.

Push-ups. I couldn’t even do one.

Punching. Actually not so bad as long as I control my strength.

Holding a rock. A medium size rock around 30 pounds was my limit.

I did a few more exercises to figure out the limit of my body, and in conclusion, I am seriously weak, probably around the strength of an untrained, if not malnourished, teenage human.

Anyways, I’m really exhausted right now, so I’ll go back to sleep. I can at least survive with this body and that’s good enough for now

***

“He who doesn't work doesn't eat,” one of the adult goblins said to me.

Well, that’s true, and so, today, I will go hunt for some food. The newborns are eating caterpillars, nuts, and fruits, but though I may be a goblin, I will not stoop that low. Well, the real reason is that they’ll run out eventually and since they actually taste delicious, they taste good, but to starve was not within my options, so I’m going to go hunt.

However, hunting alone is dangerous, so I need a sacrificial pawn, I mean companion. For this reason, I selected this round-headed, round-nosed goblin that looks a little dumb. With some mere flattery, I managed to get this goblin under my wing. I found it weird that none of us have names but I chalked up that to an undeveloped culture. I certainly was not going to stand out by making up names.

After finding a solid branch on the ground for me and the dumb goblin, who I’ll dub Gobbum from now on, we went out looking for some prey.

After some searching, we found a horned rabbit with a plan we agreed on before. First, Gobbum will get its attention and chase it around for a bit. Then, after it tires itself out, I’ll finish it. Simple, right?

Well, except for the fact that Gobbum is the one being chased by the rabbit, everything is going totally okay. As a matter of fact, the charging rabbit accidently felled a tree in the process. Though there’s no way I’d get hit by such a dumb attack, Gobbum almost got hit.

Anyways, now that it’s dazed, I can easily finish it off. Indeed, hunting was far better in a group, except for the fact that Gobbum tried to start eating the rabbit the moment it died. For this, I beat up Gobbum a little to settle the hierarchy before skinning the rabbit and giving some of the meat to Gobbum.

As I ate the rabbit, a weird announcement came up in my head.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Charge successfully acquired>

Considering that Gobbum didn’t say anything, I can assume this is due to my ability, absorption, which has been renamed, according to the voice I heard before I died, into Devourer.

If the ability stayed the name, I should be able to eat anything and gain the skills and ability of the ones I ate. Moreover, if the voice I heard before my death is to be believed, I should have regeneration and something called Akashic Records.

For now, let’s try out Akashic Records. Somehow, the way to activate it came instinctively, and when it was activated, my mind split into thousands of fragments. I suddenly became aware of everything that has happened, is happening, and could happen.

“Ah, fuck!” I shouted from the pain in my brain.

“Something wrong?” Gobbum said to me.

“Nah, nothing.”

I guess this skill is sealed off for now until I can properly understand it.

One last thing is that the rabbit’s horn seems to be the perfect weapon for me right now. With this, I finally have a proper weapon

**********

Mhmm. So, it seems that the goblin, equipped with armor made of horns, a large wooden club, and a shield, is currently engaged with a wolf. Moreover, there is another goblin in hiding with a sharp horn as weapon and similar armor. On the other hand, the wolf seems to be a straggler that is kicked out from the group either due to being too old or too weak.

In this situation, it would be right to help out the goblin as they seem to be somewhat intelligent and likely hold more information than the wolf. However, the problem is that they don’t appear to be struggling against the wolf, and if I were to intervene, it could be seen as stealing their prey, which would be unfavorable.

Actually, what if this is a beta test for Yggdrasil II and these goblins are beta testers. After all, it is possible to select goblins as a starting race, but if so, what is this realism I feel? I can’t even contact the GM, therefore the chances of this being a different world is quite high. Now, I just need some confirmation in the form of illegal content.

Currently, the wolf is in a deadlock with the tanking goblin. If I were to intervene, this would be the best opportunity, but the chances of the goblins and wolf being as strong as a world enemy still remains.

Sigh. I really can’t stand here draining mana maintaining Perfect Unknowable the whole day. For now, let’s start with Grasp Heart and if that fails, the stun effect should allow me to teleport out with Gate.

Then, with my course of actions decided, I moved a little further away to maintain some distance between the entrance and exit of the Gate in case things go awry.

After dispelling Perfect Unknowable , I casted, “ Gate.”

“Grasp Heart,” I reached out my hand, crushing the heart of the wolf. Fortunately, it seems that the wolf has no instant death resistances. Then, it could be assumed that the goblins, who were roughly equal in power to the wolf, also have no resistance to instant death.

Perhaps I could use Dominate to extract information, but that could be considered rude. Moreover, if the other goblin has some sort of long range communication skill, it could expose my location and draw their ire. Therefore, the best course of action is to be polite.

“Good evening, such a beautiful day we have,” I gave as polite a greeting as possible. It doesn’t seem like the goblin is scared of me. Are undeads not considered the enemies of the living here or is the goblin just that strong? Maybe the wolf just happened to not have death resistance and actually had very high stats. I berated myself for my carelessness, but I decided to continue nonetheless.

However, it seems that the goblin isn’t responding for some reason. Maybe there’s a language barrier, so to show my friendliness, I decided to give the lowest level potion to the goblin. Hopefully they don’t interpret this as poison.

“It’s a health potion,” I said, knowing very well that the goblin probably did not understand. However, whether because he knew it was a potion or he understood me, the goblin drank the potion, healing the minor wounds he had. Though I’m the one saying this, should he really be trusting someone he just met?

Soon, the goblin in hiding decided to come out of the foliage and spoke.

“Who are you?”

So they can understand me after all, so why didn’t this one speak? Maybe he’s deaf or mute, or maybe his teammate instructed him not to do so. Whatever’s the case, it seems that this goblin is the leader.

“Mhmm, yes, I am…” then, almost as if the world decided which name he should speak. “Momonga. May I ask for your name?”

Then, the goblin’s face lost all its tension, looking as if he was trying to hold back laughter. Either he knows what my name means, meaning that Japanese is a common language here, or something else is occurring.

“Greetings sir Momonga, I’m just a nameless goblin. What do you want?”

So, from the way his mouth moves, it seems that words are automatically translated. Is this a player-exclusive or does this world auto translate everything?

Wait, if everything is translated, was my name automatically translated as “Flying Squirrel?” If so, I should’ve introduced myself as Suzuki Satoru. Whatever, it’s too late to change my name.

“First, are you a player?”

The smart-looking goblin appeared shocked for a mere moment but otherwise, his expression stayed neutral, almost as if to hide his knowledge. This implies that he is either a player or knows what a player is. I can likely extract a lot of knowledge from this one.

On the other hand, the goblin who didn’t speak looks baffled, confirming that he doesn’t know what a player is. At least this confirms that goblins, in general, can understand spoken language.

“I don’t believe I am.”

Negative? Or he could be lying, but for what reason would he lie about not being a player? Whatever’s the case, even if this may be a beta test for Yggdrasil II or a prank by the developers, I should probably use Dominate to ascertain the truth, but for now, I’ll just take his words as the truth.

“How do you know about players then? Your companion here seems to be completely unaware.”

From that question, the goblin appears conflicted. He has been silent for quite some time, pondering how to answer the question. If he lies or attempts to run, I may need to use Dominate to gather more information. Actually, I might need to kill him to prevent any information leak if he appears hostile.

“How about this? Because I believe I don’t have enough information to answer your questions, I can lead you back to my village to ask the elder questions.”

“May I use Dominate on you to ensure there are no traps awaiting me in the village?”

“...” The goblin started pondering, thinking real hard, and finally came up with an answer after two minutes of silence. “If you promise to do us no harm.”

“Very well, I promise, in the name of Momonga, to do you no harm while Dominate is casted.”

“Alright, go ahead.”

“Dominate.”

The goblin’s eyes turned blank, almost as if it had just lost its soul.

“Is there a trap or an ambush at the village?”
“No.”

“Is there any chance of me being attacked at the village?”

“Maybe.”

“Is there anyone stronger than you in the village?”

“Yes.”

“Name every unique monster in your village and the highest level of each unique species.”

“Goblin. I’m unaware of their levels. There is also a single hobgoblin with an unknown level.”

“Punch me as hard as you can”

After the punch bounced off my body, it confirmed that my High Tier Physical Immunity III was in effect. This confirms that the goblin and hobgoblin species he refers to corresponds with one of the lower level goblin monsters in Yggdrasil, meaning that his village should mean relatively no harm.

Though the goblin hasn’t answered my question, I judged that the village is a safe place for me to obtain some knowledge and released Dominate.

“Thank you for your cooperation. Please, lead me to your village.”

Chapter 3: Fateful Meeting II

Notes:

3 chapters have been released as part of initial release. It is encouraged to start from the beginning or chapter 2 if you're fine with skipping the pre-death part.

Chapter Text

Fateful Encounters II

Munch. Munch. Munch. Munch. Munch.

What am I doing, you ask?

<Answer: You are eating hipokute grass>

Hey! I wanted to answer that. Anyways, not much to do when I’m a slime that can’t even see. I got to stay alive somehow, though I’m not even if I need to eat.

<Negative. Slimes do not need to consume matter to survive>

Well, whatever. At least I’m doing something.

I wonder if I’ll ever get out of this cave? This is soooo boring.

**********

“O great one, what brings you here?”

The moment Momonga entered the tent, Grandpa Goblin started trembling, bowing down in his presence.

Who the hell is this skeleton dude, or Momonga as he calls himself?

From the looks of it, he’s a lich, if that exists here. Actually, from his name, he might be reincarnated like me because unless the native language here is Japanese, which clearly it isn’t the case from what Grandp Goblin told me, or it’s just a coincidence that his name is flying squirrel.

“Please, just call me Momonga. I just need some information. Create Greater Item, ” the skeleton chanted. Then, suddenly, two black chairs appeared, which he gestured for Grandpa Goblin to sit on.

However, Grandpa Goblin refused, saying how he can not be at the same level as the skeleton. Even though the skeleton kept trying to convince him, all he got was to get him to stop bowing and sit properly, so he gave up and started asking questions.

“Alright, first, do you know what players are?”

“No, this humble monster has never heard such a word before.”

Dang, there goes my cover. This skeleton will most certainly ask me about it later. In fact, I can see him turning his head to me, staring me daggers.

“Then, do you know of anyone who retains memories of their previous life or comes from another world?”

“No, this humble one has no personal connection to anyone who may be an otherworlder. For reference, an otherworlder is exactly what you described.”

Again, the skeleton started looking at me before returning his attention to Grandpa Goblin.

“Why is there a hobgoblin in the goblin village?”

“The hobgoblin is this humble one’s son. Before he was named, he used to be a goblin.”

“Alright, two questions, how did he become a hobgoblin and what’s so special about a name?”

“You see, Lord Momonga, if a monster were to receive a name, they would become stronger and potentially rank up, which is becoming a stronger species. However, the namer suffers some risk, including becoming weaker to losing their life. Another way to rank up is to reach level 100, but not everyone can evolve this way. This humble one does not know why.”

Oooh, so this is why nobody has a name in this village except for one. Maybe if I can convince the skeleton to name me, I can become stronger. Actually, what other things can naming do? If it enslaves the named monster, I certainly do not want to be named.

Wait, this skeleton has the name Momonga. Does this mean that there is more than one way to get a name or some stronger freak named this skeleton?

“Do you have a map?”

“No, apologies, Lord Momonga, for this humble goblin has never gone outside the Great Jura Forest in his whole life nor has he stumbled upon any maps. However, I do know that the Warrior Nation Dwargon is near here.”

If I could read the skeleton’s expression, I can call that face disappointment and it is evident by the short silence he gave.

“Name the strongest forces you are aware of.”

“All I know is that the strongest monsters are the demon lords and I know of no other forces. However, the strongest monsters in the forest include the ogres and dryads. There might be some stronger monster on the other side of the forest but I’ve no knowledge of that area.”

“Thank you, your knowledge has been useful. As a reward, I shall name you.”

“Oh, really, Lord Momonga. Please reconsider doing such a dangerous act. If you really were to give us a reward, all I ask for is just protection.”

“Worry not. This is an appropriate reward for your efforts. For namesake, what is your son called?”

“He is called Rigur, Lord Momonga.”

“Very well, I shall name you Rigurd, the father of Rigur.”

As he said that, Grandpa Goblin started glowing, but nothing really happened.

Such a shame. I thought I’d see an evolution in real time, but I guess I’ll have to wait for tonight when I rank up.

Then, since the room became silent, I assumed that everything was over and I could leave, hoping that the skeleton would forget about me

“And you, the goblin over there,” the skeleton pointed to me. “I’d like to converse with you in private.”

Oh, this sucks. I really might die if he felt endangered by my presence.

“Uh, Lord Momonga,” I forced out in the most polite tone I could muster. “What do you need?”

“You’re like me, aren’t you? You’ve got to be a player like me.”

The skeleton dropped the polite tone he was using with Grandpa Goblin, now dubbed Rigurd, before. In fact, his tone feels almost menacing. If I were to answer wrong, I feel like I could die.

Maybe he thinks I’m stronger than I actually am? It doesn’t matter, though. Even if he thinks I’m strong, the moment we engage, I am bound to die.

“Sigghh,” I heaved a long sigh before taking a seat on the chair that Rigurd never sat on and dropping the subservient pretense. “One, yes, I am reincarnated like you, but two, no, I do not know if I am a player.”

“Do you know the game Yggdrasil?”

Yggdrasil must be the game he came from if he’s asking that.

“No, never heard of it. In case you’re curious, since I know you’re going to ask anyway, I was dying before I reincarnated, so I can safely assume that I reincarnated due to being dead.”

Upon hearing that, the skeleton’s mouth started hanging open for a brief moment before closing. It seems that he was greatly shocked by the news, and rightfully so. If there are two of us, that can only mean there’s more of us as Grandpa Goblin said.

“Alright, what’s your old name?”

“I was called Tomokui Kanata,” and though I’d named myself, nothing happened. I guess it only matters if another person names you.

“So it is true. Then, would you like to be named as well?”

Nah, I don’t want to be enslaved by someone, but that would come off as too rude, so I gave a better response. “What about the risk to your power?”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s well worth the risk for someone from the same place as me.”

“Ok, fine, but I don’t want to be enslaved.”

“Let me check with Rigurd if that’s possible.”

With that, the skeleton walked out the tent, quickly returning after a few minutes.

“So, it is possible to name you as an equal. However, the problem is that you won’t rank up, or at least the chances aren’t as high”

“Well, that's fine. Go ahead, give me a name.”

“You know, it’d be weird to call you Tomokui Kanata, so I shall give you a new name myself,” the skeleton said in a mischievous tone, and before I could say something, he named me. “You shall be named Rou.”

<Confirmed: Blessing - Protection of Ainz Ooal Gown successfully acquired>

Sadly, it’s spoiled milk now. Nothing I could do about it. At least I received something in return.

“Also, making sure, you’re an otherworlder too, right?”

“Yeah, I came from 2138, Japan.”

“Oooooh, you’re from that era. Must’ve been tough to live in the era of the Great Slump.”

“The Great Slump?”

“Heh,” I smirked, now knowing I knew something he didn’t. “It lasted from 2118 to 2187. It was the greatest economic downturn in history that occurred right after World War III. Some even call it the Second Cold War.”

Upon hearing such a fact, Momonga started staring down on the ground, seeming depressed. Not soon after, he managed to regain his posture. I’m not sure if he’s just really bad at handling his emotions or it’s because he’s a skeleton, but it is really funny to watch his emotions flip like that. I probably shouldn’t tell him this.

“What about you then? Where are you from?”

“I was last alive during 2251, an era of superpowers and space exploration. Unlike other people who moved to other planets, I decided to stay on Earth and lived in Japan.”

“All that superpower and now you’re a goblin,” Momonga laughed but quickly stopped. At this point, I’m convinced that it’s due to his species.

After we had a few more exchanges, with both me and Momonga trying to hide our skills since our trust was not that deep yet, the day ended.

Actually, there was one more thing that occurred before the day ended.

<Confirmed: Level limit exceeded>

So, this must be the rank up that Rigurd was talking about.

My instincts seemed to be drawing me towards the Hobgoblin Variant, so I chose that.

<Confirmed: Rou has successfully evolved into Hobgoblin Variant>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Darkvision has evolved into Intrinsic Skill - Night Vision>

<Confirmed: Blessing - Divine Protection of Grand God of Demise Origin successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Demise Manipulation successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Great Origin successfully acquired>

**********

So, everyone’s going to sleep now. It’s a little lonely that I can’t sleep so I’d have to just stay awake for the night.

However! This is a great opportunity, for today at least. I can finally take some time to figure out my skills.

First, let’s list all of them. Starting with ultimate skills, I have Ainz Ooal Gown, Master of Nazarick. Is it a coincidence that it shares both the name of the tomb and my guild? Probably not, therefore it likely relates to my guild itself and the base.

After some pondering, the activation method came naturally. It seems that I have access to the treasury, NPCs, and even the base itself. I’m not too sure if it consumes mana, or magicules as it’s called here, so I’ll start out with a safe choice.

Yuri Alpha! I choose you! Feels a little like Pok*mon.

As I thought about that, Yuri Alpha appeared before me out of a black fog. This confirms that I don’t need to actually say the name to activate it.

“Greetings, Lord Momonga,” Yuri said as she kneeled.

“How’s the situation in Nazarick?”
“Albedo, Shalltear, and Demiurge are panicking since you suddenly disappear, while Cocytus and Mare are trying their best to calm the three down. What should I say to them?

“Inform them I’m fine and was suddenly transported to another world. If need be, I’ll inform them myself.”

“Very well. Lord Momonga, do you have any more commands?”

“Mhmm… yes, could you try activating a buff skill?”
“As you wish. Iron Skin.”

“Thank you, Yuri Alpha. You are dismissed.”

With the final command, Yuri Alpha disappeared into a black fog. Her interaction seems far too realistic, so this means all the NPC came to life.

Moreover, it seems that using magicules drains magicules from the user itself, not me as I suspected it’d be. This means that, if I wanted, I could bring Nazarick itself into existence, but for now, without certainty that this area is safe, I should hold off on the option.

Now, onto the next skills, Dark Seeker and Ruler of Death.

So far, it seems that I’ve been using Dark Seeker to cast my spell, so I could assume that it consists of my spellcasting abilities.

Maybe…

Greater Full Potential

I knew it. In this world, spellcasting no longer requires a chant, but that’s a bit of a shame, isn’t it? It feels so much cooler to chant when casting a spell, and plus, it adds a layer of deception into it. Therefore, I shall continue chanting.

However, if all chants are silent, then how does silent magic work?

Silent Magic - False Data Life

I see. When a spell has the silent metamagic, the spell becomes instant. Moreover, from these two experiments, it seems that instead of having a tiered system, there is a minimum magicule requirement and I can increase the spell’s power by spending more magicule with casting time scaling with the magicules spent.

This should mean, in theory, a 1st level spell can be as strong as a super tier spell as long as enough magicule is used. If so, then…

Maximize Boost Magic - Repair

Just as I thought, the maximize metamagic has the same effect of guaranteeing the best possible effect and the boost metamagic has instead changed to increase the potency of a spell in exchange for more magicules.

Not only does Dark Seeker carry over my spellcasting, it seems that it also allows me to copy spells from people I kill and understand new spells at a quicker pace.

Alright, the last important skill, Ruler of Death. From feelings alone, this seems to incorporate my racial levels and most of my undead and death-related class levels.

Create Middle Tier Undead

Soon, a black goop was formed and a death knight was spawned. I wonder what would happen if I were to use an actual corpse or name the summon? Would it get strong or would it stay indefinitely? Actually, would it stay indefinitely right now?

***

Nope, it reverted back into a black goop and disappeared.

Then, suddenly, the room started glowing a little, and as I looked to my side…

Woah… WOAH! What’s going on? Both Rou and Rigurd are suddenly surrounded by a magical cocoon.

Is this what a rank up look like? Maybe even I could get stronger? They said you can rank up once you reach level 100, then what level am I?

Somehow, some way, my number suddenly appeared in my mind.

I was level 100. Am I really one of those that can’t evolve by reaching level 100? This really sucks since I already had a name, so that’s not an option either.

Soon, the magical cocoon disappeared and both Rigurd and Rou came out looking very different.

Rou looked far more human, almost handsome, and the only differences are that his skin is black, ears are pointy, and he has a single sharp tusk.

On the other hand, Rigurd came out looking really, really different! He to a point where I can barely recognize him. Instead of the old crippled goblin he was, he is a big bodybuilder with green skin, pointy ears, and two small tusks.

It also seems that, in the meantime, my magicules have recovered back to their max capacity, indicating that I was either lucky or that naming would do no harm as long as it didn’t decrease below a certain amount.

Whatever that amount is, I’m not willing to find out so the limit will be 80% for now, which is enough considering that naming Rigurd didn’t even take 0.1% of my magicules. In reality, it was an amount that recovered within a few seconds, but now that I’ve confirmed that my magicule regeneration hasn’t slowed down, I safely conclude that naming Rigurd did no harm.

If so, I should name all of the goblins in this village to gain more loyal servants and increase the safety of the base.

Now that all of my skills are confirmed, I need to practice a little to prepare for the eventuality that I’ll bring Nazarick into this world.

Silence!

I waved my arm in the most elegant manner I could think of. I would say it as well to check the tone, but i wouldn’t want to wake these two.

Silence!

The arm seems too high.

Silence!

Present Status

Momonga

Race - Supreme Wight Overlord

Protection - Protection of Ainz Ooal Gown

Title - None

Magic - Grasp Heart, La Shub Niggurath, Gate, Greater Teleportation, Perfect Unknowable, See Through…

Instrinctic Skill - Overlord Haki

Ultimate Skills - Ainz Ooal Gown - Lord of Nazarick

Unique Skills - Ruler of Death, Dark Seeker

Extra Skill - None

Common Skills - None

Tolerance - Pain Nullification, Abnormal Condition Nullification, Spiritual Attack Nullification, Natural Effect Nullification, Physical Attack Resistance

Ruler of Death: Undeath Charisma, Create Undead, Undead Blessing, Miasma Domination, Great Despair Aura…

Dark Seeker: Mana Manipulation, Chant Annulment, All of Creation, Thought Acceleration, Forced Magic Takeover, Magic Creation

Chapter 4: Fateful Meeting III

Chapter Text

Fateful Encounters III

Heheheheheh, what am I doing you ask?

Well, I’ve been stalking this serpent for the past week or so, maybe? Cut me some slack, okay? It's really hard to track time here.

The first time I found this serpent, it sneaked up on me and almost ate me, but thankfully, my Night Shroud skill allowed me a quick escape.

This time, however, will be different! I have diligently tracked the serpent’s every movement, down from the place it drinks water to when it goes to sleep.

Using its daily schedule, I set up an ambush using the environment, Steel Strings , and Sticky Strings.

In two more minutes, the snake will fall asleep and that is exactly when I’ll launch my assault.

Ninety seconds…

Fifty seconds…

Three…

Now!

First comes a layer of falling rocks that’s released by my Steel Strings. As I watched in anticipation of the most climatic falling rocks I’ve ever seen, I prepared to release the second trap.

Then, above the rocks, I set up a layer of Sticky String reinforced with Steel Strings. By covering it up with some dirt, it is effectively unnoticeable.

Once the rocks reached the serpent, I released the web to force the serpent to.

Ohohoho! You can no longer move now, can you?

What a shame!

Since my claws and fangs aren’t exactly strong enough to cut off his head, I bit into the underbelly of the snake to inject it with the venom from my Neurotoxin Fangs.

Once the serpent is effectively disabled, I take my time dismantling the snake, starting by removing its head to make doubly sure it's dead.

Playing dirty? So what, I’m a spider, not a human.

**********

When I woke up, my body had changed so much that I couldn’t even be compared to before.

Looking over my body, I realized that, over a single night, I grew to the size of the average human adult, became multiple times stronger, and had my skin turned black.

I see, so this is a rank up, in 14 days of being born no less. If I became this powerful after a single rank up, how many times must this Momonga fellow have ranked up for him to be this strong, or was he simply born as is? Nonetheless, the pace this happened is extremely abnormal.

In my previous life, the closest thing to a rank up was the artificial human strengthening surgery, involving a lengthy and expensive surgery and an extensive recovery time afterwards. For the world to simply change my body like this without any drawbacks really sets in the reality of being reborn.

Right now, I’m feeling overconfident, almost as if I can take on anything, a sense of omnipotence in a way. However, after some rationalization, I became afraid of this euphoria. If I were to be drowned in this sensation, I may lose touch with reality and overestimate myself.

Putting this aside, the bigger shock came when Rigurd entered the hut. Apparently, he had been making rounds around the village with his newfound strength to ensure everything was running fine, but that was not the shocker. The real surprise came when I saw his body.

Compared to me, who is the same as an average human adult, Rigurd is a whole head taller and his body was far more muscular than mine. Unlike me, who ranked up by reaching level 100, it seems Rigurd ranked up through naming.

If I were to assume from the muscular and big body, it seems that Rigurd had the blessing of a god, likely some god related to war, since that huge size is just nonsensical. It also seems that Rigurd had deaged, now looking like a young bodybuilder.

Thank god my lifespan is longer than 20 years now.

“Oh, Rou, it seems you’ve finally awakened.”

“Yes, Rigurd, I have. By the way, do you know why my skin has turned black?”

“It seems that you’ve become a variant. One’s skin color typically displays characteristics of the god they received a blessing from. Usually, the deeper the color means the higher rank the god. In your case, it seems that you’ve received a blessing from a grand god. From the black color, it looks to be the Grand God of Demise Origin. In my opinion, you should…”

He went on rambling on for a loooonnggg time. Though it was boring, it was valuable information that I could not afford to overlook, information so important that it looks like even Momonga is seriously engaged.

To summarize the content briefly:

Variants are apparently extremely rare and one can only become one upon clearing certain conditions or directly blessed by a god. Also, Rigurd noted that he wasn’t a Rigurd, showing how rare it actually is.
The deep shade of black of my skin is from the Grand God of Demise Origin. If so, I should be able to use Demise magic. As a side note for myself, I should probably try to hide my divine protection because as the story goes, whenever there’s a religion, there are fanatics.
Monsters, in their whole lives, typically never rank up, so for me to do so within 14 days is extremely rare. Among the current goblin community, there is only one other hobgoblin other than us that ranked up through naming.

After talking for almost twenty minutes, Rigurd finally ended his speech. I had responded a few times to show that I was engaged, but other than that, Rigurd was the one talking most of the time. Though most information he said would be things I’d learn in time, it’s still valuable to learn ahead of time.

Anyways, the real task right now is to test out my power and learn how to use Demise magic. Fortunately, there is a perfect man right beside me to achieve both of these.

“Momonga!”

“Huh…” His red eyes suddenly became more lively. “Yeah?”

“Can you teach me magic and test my power?”

The best way to humble yourself is to test your power against an overwhelmingly powerful foe, and Momonga just happens to be a friendly spellcaster who fulfills the requirement.

“Sure, no problem. Life Essence . Mana Essence,” he said while staring blankly. Though he always appears to be staring ahead with his two red eyes that are just dots, this time, he looks to be staring more intensively. If I didn’t know how skillful he was, I might just mistake it as nervousness. I think he’s measuring me up and looking for the best approach to my request.

After a minute of silent contemplation, Ainz started by summoning two monsters.

“Create Low Undead . Summon Narberal Gamma. Rigurd, leave us alone for a moment. The tent is about to get messy.”

One of them was a skeleton with a shield and a sword, a skeleton warrior, and the other one was a maid that looked Japanese wearing a battle maid outfit, presumably the person that will be teaching me magic.

“Let’s get started,” I readied myself into a battle position, activating all of my resistances, Shell Defense from the armored tanuki, Echolocation from the rainbow bat, and Heat Source Perception from the night viper.

Unfortunately, the skeleton has no body heat, so after confirming that, I deactivated Heat Source Perception.

Then, I activated Akashic Records , a unique skill that is a little underwhelming considering that this world rated it on the same rank as my Devourer ability. Nonetheless, the skill, at least the function that didn’t overheat my brain, boosted my calculation abilities. If I were to activate any of the other abilities, I would almost instantly faint or the skill would forcefully shut off.

I can see the potential in the skill, but at the moment, it’s just not suitable for me.

Lastly, Electrokinesis I got after eating a shiny rock from the ground and Evil Eyes from the night viper. Normally, I would use Intimidating Howl from the direwolf but since it’s a skeleton, I highly doubt it’ll do anything.

Though expected, the Evil Eyes didn’t even make the skeleton flinch, and as the distance was closing, I shot out the lightning ball I was charging up.

Ignoring the lightning, the skeleton winded up his attack and unleashed a single slash downwards.

I could see the swing and process it, but I couldn’t move my body in time. However, by activating the Charge skill from the horned rabbit, I could gain a speed boost and mess up the tempo of the fight, evading the blow by tackling into the skeleton.

Clink!

Oh no, this was bad news, extremely bad news. I managed to slash the skeleton’s spine with my blade, but there was little damage. In reality, it had just bounced off after making a small chip.

Then, a shield came bashing into me from the side, knocking me away. Even though the skeleton looked less intimidating than the wolf, it was leagues stronger.

However, I can win this. It’s definitely doable. If I could chip the same place, I could sever the spine and immobilize the skeleton.

Actually, upon further thinking, if this was a real fight, I’d be long dead. Instead of using the shield, the skeleton could’ve severed my head in that instance and I would be gone.

Calm down.

Analyze and find a path.

Don’t just recklessly dash in again.

However, I’m too slow. How could I move faster?

Even Electrokinesis, a skill that has been saving me before, seemed useless.

Wait…

Electrokinesis…

I can use it to simulate my muscles and move faster than I can manually move my body! How come I never thought of this before despite having a similar ability in my previous life?

After deciding on the course of action, I engaged in a series of sword clashes and parries with the skeleton, waiting for it to make a mistake.

When the skeleton made the mistake of wide swinging, I decided to take the opportunity to activate Electrokinesis and Charge.

In a flash, I severed the spine of the skeleton in two and similarly, the blade I made from the direwolf's fang broke in two halves.

Contrary to my expectations, the skeleton could still move. Well, more like crawl, but move nonetheless. I, on the other hand, could not move a single muscle in my lower body.

Even with Ultraspeed Regeneration, the skeleton would crawl towards me faster than I could heal.

It was a grave miscalculation to think the skeleton would die from having its body severed in two.

“Good, you may stop now,” Momonga said.

With that single phase, the skeleton crawling on the ground stopped moving and I could finally rest from the muscle soreness.

Phew… I totally forgot that it was a mock battle. I got too immersed.

**********

“Lord Momonga, Floor Guardian Demiurge and Guardian Overseer Albedo would like an opportunity to speak to you soon,” Narberal Gamma casually commented, not caring for the ongoing fight between Rou and the heavy skeleton warrior.

Demiurge and Albedo… I would love to meet them right now, but again, am I truly ready? However, delaying too long wouldn’t be great. After all, any plans they can make surely will be far better than mine, so the longer I delay the inevitable conversation, the more mistakes I will make.

For now, I must do my best to upkeep my image at least in front of Narberal and I can worry about the inevitable when it comes.

“Inform them I’ll be calling them when the situation is properly settled.”

“Understood. What is your request for summoning me?”

“I would like you to teach the hobgoblin, Rou, magic.”

“To bestow the knowledge of Nazarick to the likes of an inferior hobgoblin,” Narberal tried her best to hold back her emotions but her face could not cause one to mistake it for anything other than disgust. “Lord Momonga, you need not care so much for such inferior creatures.”

Oh, right. I can’t believe I forgot about such an important detail. Though creating settings and background for NPCs—kinda rude to call them NPCs when they’re so alive—wasn’t exactly my expertise, I still extensively asked my guildmates for details and made sure to thoroughly remember each and every important detail about their character settings.

One of said details that was common across almost each and every NPC was that they believed any life form outside the Great Tomb of Nazarick to be inferior and humans to be much more inferior.

God… how am I going to navigate this question? I can’t exactly just say “oh, this goblin is a friend of mine, so please teach him” nor can I say “I can’t teach him so I’m leaving it up to you.” Both of these will lower my image and eventually it might lead to a betrayal from Nazarick if they learn of my lack of abilities.

In times like this, there is only one correct answer!

“Narberal Gamma! Do you really not understand my intentions!”

That’s right! The trump card of forcefully silencing your subordinates.

“Yes! I’m sorry, Lord Momonga. I’m sure there must be some reason that I can not understand with my inferior intelligence,” Narberal deeply bowed while apologizing. “I will make sure to teach the hobgoblin to the best of my abilities.”

“Umu.”

Phew, thankfully she didn’t further question me. Maybe if it was Demiurge or Albedo, they would have been able to see through the fallacies of my plan and question me more. If I had muscles, I would be sighing in relief right now, but thankfully, being a skeleton means I don’t feel much emotions.

However, in the future, I would like to not resort to such tactics and properly answer their questions.

Anyways, focusing back on Rou. It seems that he managed to eke out a victory against the heavy skeleton warrior, or so it would seem.

In Yggdrasil, severing the spine of a skeleton would classify as a critical hit, instantly killing them if they’re an inferior mob, like the heavy skeleton warrior. However, in this world, it seems that critical hits are classified differently for each species and seemingly fatal injuries could likely be mitigated with magic.

Well, that’s enough of the spar for now and it seems that Rou can’t move anymore after pulling off that slash.

“Good, you may stop now,” I commanded the heavy skeleton warrior.

Rou puffed a sigh of relief, huffing from the exhaustion.

Then, a few moments later, Rou stopped showing signs of soreness, speaking in a perfectly fine voice, “Hey, Momonga, can I eat that skeleton?”

Eat the skeleton? Could it be related to his abilities?

“Why?”

Rou, hesitating to answer, stayed silent for a few moments. However, Rou decided to answer my question after all.

“It’s my Unique Skill - Devourer. I can gain the ability of whatever I eat.”

Devourer, huh? Such a simple-sounding ability, but at the same time, overpowered. If I could copy that ability somehow or even mimic the effect of it, maybe I can get even stronger.

Actually, am I still hindered by Yggdrasil’s level cap of 100 if this is another world?

Even if this world deems my level to still be 100 and I could not sense an option to rank up to a higher species, maybe I could still increase my magicule capacity in some other way. Maybe I could even create new spells and learn spells that are considered job-exclusive in Yggdrasil.

“Very well, permission granted. However, you must tell me what abilities you gain from the heavy skeleton warrior.”

“Sure.”

Rou took no time to get back on his feet, seemingly now healed from the battle, and started chewing on the still alive skeleton.

“Intrinsic Skill - Anaerobic.”

As Rou continued eating more and more of the skeleton, he started listing more abilities.

“Tolerance - Slash Resistance . Tolerance - Pierce Resistance . Tolerance - Sunlight Weakness.”

Huh, weird, sunlight weakness? I understand the reason why he obtained such a skill, but why was it classified as a tolerance when it's a weakness?

“Tolerance - Blunt Weakness . Intrinsic Skill - Tireless . Intrinsic Skill - Bone Union . Tolerance - Abnormal Condition Nullification . Tolerance - Corrosion Resistance . Tolerance - Holy Weakness . Tolerance - Fire Weakness . Tolerance - Light Weakness.”

Rou stopped listing any abilities after eating a whole arm from the skeleton. Even when Rou ate the ribcage and the skull, he didn’t announce a single more skill as he watched the skeleton turn into a black goop.

“Hey, what happened?” Rou questioned.

“It seems that it died after you ate its skull. It doesn’t matter, does it? After all, it seems you gained all the abilities you can.”

“Yeah, but it tasted good.”

How could a skeleton, smelling like rotten fish and worn socks, or so I assumed, and carrying moss on its body taste any good? I was not slightly interested in finding out, not that I can because I highly doubt that, as a skeleton, I can taste anything.

“Well, whatever. Narberal Gamma, it’s time for you to teach Rou magic,” and it’s also time for me to learn how my magic works as well.

Even if me and Narberal have different kits, the overlap in arcane spellcasting should teach me a lot about my abilities, maybe even enough to learn more about my undead abilities.

“Understood,” Narberal immediately changed her tone to a much harsher one when addressing Rou. “You, hobgoblin, better pay attention to everything.”

Narberal… your tone… I felt the urge to sign, but resisted it to maintain my image.

“Okay, Miss maid,” Rou casually said, clearly not a fan of the voice Narberal was using.

“Now, the most important thing to note is that there are multiple systems of magic. In this world, it seems that while the magical systems have altered a little, perhaps there are even more systems here than in Yggdrasil, but fear not, I am still able to fulfill Lord Momonga’s request.

While there are many magic systems, I will only go in-depth on the arcane system since it is the one I am the most proficient in. Arcane magic involves the usage of mana to manipulate the laws of the world to create the caster’s desired effect. Moreover, there are many specializations of this magic, including elemental magic, necromancy, spatial magic, and more.

Next is how magic itself works. All in all, the only step that’s needed is the manipulation of internal mana into a desired shape. First, the mana must be given an attribute and then given shape via precise handling of mana. For example, a fireball is given the attribute of heat and shaped into a ball.

However, doing so is very difficult, so difficult that even I, Narberal Gamma, a creation of the Supreme Ones, is not able to do so, but I am very positive that Lord Momonga is able to,” Narberal took a slight pause, looking at Momonga for affirmation.

“Thank you for the praise, but please continue.”

“Very well. Since such a method is very difficult, the process is eased by the systems of magic, which I’ve mentioned before. In the case of arcane magic, it is managed by magical circles. In some cases, the casting is eased by chanting, external mana manipulation, imbuement of magic into an object, and more.

This should be all you need to know for magic,” Narberal finished.

Yawwwwnnn , Rou gave a tired snooze. “Thanks, Miss maid, I’ll be going now.”

“How dare you!” Narberal started to prepare a spell. “To yawn in the presence of-”

“That’ll be all, Narberal Gamma. You are dismissed,” I interrupted her and sent her back to Nazarick the moment I saw her readying a spell. If it was a low-tier spell, it would be no problem, but her magic circle suggested that she was going to cast Investiture of Wind, a spell that often served as both a wall of defense and minor damage. It was weak, but the main problem was that it created an AoE effect that would likely kill all the goblins here.

Siggghhhh , I finally relaxed my bones and slouched down on the chair I was sitting on now that I’m out of the presence of everyone. While I had expected Narberal’s temperament from her first appearance, it finally struck me how tiring it’ll be if I am to do this everyday and listen to every being of Nazarick deify me like I’m some sort of god to this extent.

Sigh . Whatever, I still have things to do. It’s time to name the goblins.

Chapter 5: Building the Village I

Notes:

"Common Skill - Tireless" from previous chapter has been changed to "Intrinsic Skill - Tireless." There is a reason for this and it is due to Rou's Devourer's skill differing from Rimuru's Predator skill

Chapter Text

“Lord Momonga! Do you need anything?” Rigurd inquired as I exited out of the tent. Had he been waiting outside the whole time after I told him to leave? I meant to call him in after cleaning up the tent when Rou finished fighting, but Narberal’s blabbering caused it slipped my mind. Like, imagine being told to leave your house by a superior and then come back to find the insides of your house in ruins. This was exactly what I had just done.

“Ahem! Rigurd, gather all the goblins. I shall bestow all of you a name,” I commanded him.

“Yes, Lord Momonga! I will make the utmost haste and gather all the goblins!”

Not even a minute later, all of the goblins, except a single one, had gathered.

“Hey, what do you think Lord Momonga will ask of us?”

“Probably to hunt for some food, right?”

“Nah, he probably wants some women.”

Though Rigurd had readily gathered them all, it seems that the goblins don't have the smallest bit of courtesy to stay silent and the most they could do was sit on the ground. If only I could merge the goblin’s personality with the denizens of Nazarick’s personality to even out the negatives a little.

“Rigurd, where is Rou?” I inquired, giving the goblins a few more minutes to chatter amongst themselves.

“Apologies, Lord Momonga. I will go out and search for him right away,” Rigurd, immediately afterwards, started walking in the direction outside the village.

“Wait!” I shouted in an unsightly manner, breaking the presence I worked so hard to maintain. Though it may not matter in front of the goblins, doing so in front of the guardians could be a very different story. “Is there anyone stronger than Rou in this forest?”

“While I’m not too sure about his exact strength, there are a lot of monsters stronger than a hobgoblin variant in this forest. However, it is not to the point where Rou would be unable to escape.”
“Umu… Then, no worries. Silence the goblins. I have a few announcements to make.”

“As you will, Lord Momonga. Goblins!” Rigurd took on a more intense voice, a tone befitting of his muscular body. If I gave him a drill sergeant outfit right now, it’d make for the perfect moment. “Silence yourself! Lord Momonga requires your attention!”

In an instant, the goblins stopped chattering, focusing their full attention onto me. Though informal and very improvised, this would serve as the perfect practice for a speech.

“As I’m sure you’ve already known, your chief has received the name Rigurd in honor of his son named Rigur,” I started with a pleasant news. All the politicians from my world started with some sort of news, usually positive, so I decided to follow suit.

“Woooo!” The goblins cheered, actually having the manners to know when to stop this time.

“Some of you may have seen me yesterday, but I am here to make a formal introduction. My name is Momonga, and I wish to take all of you under my protection and become denizens of Nazarick.”

Another round of cheer, but this time, someone stood up, objecting to my decision.

“Lord Momonga, I am grateful that you have named my father, but we can not become subservient to you without knowing your purpose.”

It was Rigur, the son of Rigurd. Since he was the protector of the village, I completely understood his concern. If some random barged into your city and called themselves the governor, I would be mad too. However, establishing a foothold in this world, even if it is a goblin village, is necessary to have a peaceful life, especially if the reputation of heteromorphs is the same as it was in Yggdrasil.

“Worry not. I will not force you to follow my decision nor will I force you into impossible battles. As a gift, I would like to bestow each and every one of you a name. In return, I wish to establish my presence in this village just like I said before.”

Satisfied, Rigur sat back down.

“Lord Momonga! Though I am thankful, are you sure about this? To warn you again, your power could decrease as a result,” Rigurd warned.

“Don’t worry. I will be fine,” I waved Rigurd away. “Now, we shall begin the naming ceremony. Form a single file line in front of me.”

Scurrying around, the goblins lined up, one of them tripping over a small rock on the way over.

First in line was Rigurd’s other son. Out of everyone here, he was probably the most serious goblin here.

“Like your brother, I shall name you Rigurd II.”

“Lord Momonga, thank you!”

***

“Gobta. Gobtsu. Gobna. Gobte,” I kept naming them one after another. At first, I gave them actual names, but after realizing how hard it would be to name the hundred or so goblins, I gave up and slapped some syllables on the end and called it a day. Lazy? Undignified? I couldn’t care for that right now. “Gobchi. Gobtsu. Gobsuke. Gobemon.”

“Now, I have a few more things to say,” I stated. By now, the goblins seem to have learned some manners as they sat down in silence without any explicit directions. “I shall introduce a few of my friends.”

As I reached out my hand, it disappeared into a black void. Rather than the inventory I once knew it to be, this ability seems to be part of my Ainz Ooal Gown, Lord of Nazarick skill. Not only could it summon the NPCs from the guild base, it could also access my personal inventory and the guild’s treasury as it seems.

Then, pulling out my hand, the artifact Horn of the Goblin General appeared. Though I could’ve chosen any other item, this was the best choice. Not only are goblins more approachable than my usual undead summons, I could compare the strength of this world’s goblins to Yggdrasil’s goblins to see where I truly stood in this world.

Blowing the horn, 19 goblins appeared besides me. Like how it was in the game, the horn summoned 12 goblin soldiers, 2 goblin wolf riders, 2 goblin archers, 1 goblin cleric, 1 goblin mage, and 1 goblin leader. In the game, the player could choose whether to give them names or autoset them, but it might not be true in this world.

“Do you guys have names?” I inquired.

“No, Lord Momonga. We, part of the goblin troop, do not have names. However, we would be joyous if you named us,” the goblin leader replied in a formal way, much more than the normal goblin could ever manage.

“I will bestow all of you a name tomorrow,” I intentionally delayed the ceremony. By naming the hundreds of goblins, my magicules had barely dropped. If I were to wait a few minutes, it would naturally regenerate. However, I needed to know the strength of the Yggdrasil’s goblin to this world’s goblins. “I hope all of you will accept them.”

Some of the goblins appeared dumbfounded, some looked in amazement, while others cheered. Summoning goblins out of thin air was clearly not a feat they had expected. If summoning abilities are abnormal in this world, I may need to limit my usage of them.

“Join the crowd,” I commanded the goblin troop. “One last thing. I will make an absolute for all of you to follow.

All of you are equal. No matter how strong you are, how early you were here, and how high of a position you hold, you are all equal in my eyes. No belittling each other, and you must help each other in times of need,” I enforced one of the rules of Nazarick upon them

“Question,” Rigur II raised his hand.

“Speak.”

“What about people outside the village?”

“Treat them accordingly. If they are strong, treat them like they are the strongest. If they are smart, assume they’re smarter than you. If they’re arrogant, conclude they have a reason to be. Caution is always needed,” I gave them advice taken from the Pking for Dummies book written by Punnito Moe. If possible, I want to recreate the book and have them read it or at least have someone teach them.

“Alright, you are dismissed,” I ended the meeting at long last, and the goblins returned to their daily activities.

“Also,” I called out to Rigurd. “If you need a temporary place to sleep, you are welcome to take up rooms in my fortress.”

“Fortress?” Rigurd questioned.

“ Create Fortress ,” I casted. After all, it would be faster to show than to explain each and every detail.

“Though I don’t mind companionship in the fortress, do try your best to construct new houses as soon as possible,” I requested of him, knowing that their current huts would not suit them if all the goblins were to become the size of Rou or Rigurd.

“I will let all the other goblins know,” Rigurd replied, accepting the fact that I just summoned a whole fortress and hurried off into the distance.

Sigh . I didn’t expect them to gather so fast. Anyways,though I can’t sleep and don’t feel any physical exhaustion, resting on my bed should still relieve some of my mental fatigue.

**********

That maid looked so pissed. Anyways, now that I’m away from the village, I need to hunt some monsters. Though I was lacking Gobbum, it should be easier since I evolved into a hobgoblin variant and have a lot more abilities since my first hunt.

Oh! A slime. So they do exist in this world. Instead of looking like grotesque goo-like sludge, it looked almost cute. It was a blue, jiggly blob, moving around and eating grass without a care in the world.

I squatted down and poked the slime. Not only is it not aggressive, it also doesn’t seem to be harmful, so without much caution, I picked up the slime, slurping it. It didn’t taste like much, but it was a pleasing taste. It’s like cold water, a drink especially good in this hot weather.

Unfortunately, it didn’t give me any abilities, so I would need to eat much more.

Oh! Another slime. And another. And another. Isn’t this too many slimes? Where are they popping up from anyways? Well, the more there are, the better it is for me.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Absorb successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Dissolve successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Self-Regeneration successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Self-Body Fluid Property Manipulation successfully acquired>

Well, I’ve run out of slimes now. It seems like I could obtain more abilities from the slime, but the amount I’ll need to eat to get everything seems annoying, especially when they’re so weak. If they were stronger, the absorption rate would be faster.

Though, this time, the results seem pretty good. While the Absorb and Dissolve skill might appear useless at first glance since my Devourer ability already comprises similar abilities, it might have its own uses. Moreover, with Self-Body Fluid Property Manipulation , I could liquify my body to some extent. Lastly, the most important skill was the Self-Regeneration I obtained. Though I have Ultraspeed Regeneration , it’s never bad to have more regeneration abilities.

Actually, now that I have more regeneration abilities and even ranked up, I might be able to use my Akashic Records skill.

Picking up a few blades of grass, I activated my skill while looking at it. In an instant, information about the grass in front of me flooded into my brain.

Most of the information was extremely useless, starting from the species it was, the uses it had, the places it’s grown in, and even every moment of its life. Basically, it gave me a massive flashback starting from the seed’s germination to the current time where I’m holding it in my hand.

“Holy shit!” I unintentionally cursed from the headache the skill caused me, dropping the blade of grass. In only six seconds, it gave me everything I needed to know about the grass and even more. Though I want to seal this skill away so badly, I can finally understand how useful this skill was. Not only did it tell me about the grass’ life, it also told me that I would drop it and the grass would witness an orc passing by here in three hours before being trampled and withering away. In a way, this skill might actually be on par with my Devourer skill.

“An orc, huh,” I smirked, feeling happy at the sight of a new prey. Considering it to be the first humanoid species I’ve encountered, other than the undead and the goblins, it should be a pretty feisty prey.

First, let’s set up a trap here. Since I don’t have any metals nor bear traps, I’ll set up some spikes. If only I could find another night viper, I could probably obtain venom skills if it has one. Then, I’ll cover it up with some dirt. Lastly, I’ll go hunt some other beasts since waiting for three hours isn’t exactly my style.

Half an hour later, I found two wolves. Unlike the stray I was fighting last time, these two seem to be in a pack. Not a pack of two, mind you, but an actual pack. These two should be the scouts or watchers, while their whole pack should be spread out in a nearby area.

Let’s try out my Spear of the End , a demise spell that I automatically learned when I became a hobgoblin variant. Then, let’s start with external mana manipulation…

Actually, how do I do that? I should’ve asked for a live demonstration. Putting aside my regrets, I started the hunt with a more normal tactic.

With a combination of Charge , Evil Eyes , and my newly crafted knife from the fangs of the previous wolf I hunted, the first wolf died without any chance of retaliating. The second one howled, but in response, I activated Intimidating Howl , the same skill as the wolf.

ROARRRR .

Seemingly stunned by my howl, I charged in, finishing it off much like the first one. However, the real trouble starts now.

With Echolocation and Heat Source Perception , I noticed the other wolves in the pack had encircled me. If Gobbum was with me, I’d employ the usual tactic of having him charge in to distract the wolves, while I finish the other enemies.

However, taking into account the wolves’ hierarchy and my newfound strength, I should be able to end this by just taking out the leader.

Using the same strategy I did for my first attack, I used Charge but with Electrokinesis this time to accelerate far faster. By limiting the voltage, Electrokinesis actually becomes a usable skill in combat. While it might not be extremely useful when directly discharged, it’s extremely potent when used on one’s own body. With the aid of regeneration skills, I can effectively maintain this speed with little effort.

Leaving a charred path as I rush forward, I dig my knife into the biggest direwolf in the pack.

“How could a mere hobgoblin-”

I heard the pack leader say something, but paid it no mind as I slit its throat. Actually, this was one of the traits I found weird, or maybe not? While I understand how humanoid monsters like me are able to speak, how do monsters like direwolves, deers, and even horned rabbits speak without the proper vocal cords? Oh well, it doesn't matter.

After finishing off the pack leader, the rest of the direwolves ran away. Weird… Usually, monsters would stay and fight till the end if the opponent is of relative strength. Maybe it was because I let out an unconscious smile as I thought about the taste of the leader I’m about to eat.

Though I did think about giving chase, the direwolf leader was more than enough. Plus, I’d have to chase an orc later, so I shouldn’t waste too much time chasing the wolves.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Intimidating Howl has been upgraded into Intrinsic Skill Coercion >

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Thought Communication successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Ultra Smell successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Leadership successfully acquired>

That was good. Though the taste is like that of chicken, the lean muscles give it a taste like beef. No, that's not quite right. If anything, it's like dry aged chicken. The best thing was that compared to the stray direwolf I ate before, the leader gave me a lot more skills. Overall, good outcome. Though the orc was likely weaker than the wolf, the thought of eating something resembling pork filled my mind.

Aaah… I can't wait.

Chapter 6: Building the Village II

Chapter Text

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Improved Digestion successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Thick Hide successfully acquired>

“Holy-,” whoops. I shouldn’t be shouting like this in the forest. The skills weren’t particularly interesting but they should have their uses. However, the taste! This is the highest grade of pork I’ve ever eaten. Even though the orc looked more like a boar than a domesticated pig, it had no hint of the gamey taste the boar in my world did. To describe the taste, there was a heavy flavor of fattiness that was complemented by the savouriness and slight flavor of nuts that was released as I chewed the meat more. If it existed, I would definitely call this the wagyu of the pig world.

Anyways, the fight was far more of a bore than I expected it to be. Since the orc was hindered by my trap, the fight was more of a massacre as I finished it off with a single attack. As a result, I obtained some very delicious spoils, which includes the meat and the small hunting dagger made of iron. There was also a strange book he was carrying, but that’s just an extra gift for Momonga.

The orc did seem to shout something about starving and a drought, but I didn’t really care. If the orc truly did want to save his people from a drought or whatever, they would’ve sent more people into the forest or asked for aid from a country rather than foraging.

***

Yawwwwnnn , that was a nice sleep. After I hunted the orc, I carried its spoils back home and finally rested in my tent, which I shared with Gobbum.

Looking to my left, I realized that Gobbum had evolved. Was this a rank up via reaching level 100 or naming? Either way, despite not changing how he looked in any way in the slightest, he felt far more reliable than before. With our recent increase in strength, it might just be time to add a new member to the team to hunt more efficiently.

Ignoring the fact that Gobbum was snoring like a lion and scratching his belly in his sleep, I stepped outside, only to find Rigurd fighting with… an unknown goblin? Moreover, the goblin was fully equipped with armor and even had a properly forged sword. Was this an invader or a new ally?

“Hey, Rou!” Momonga called out to me from a distance. “Come over and watch.”

“What’s this about?” I inquired, wondering about the number of hobgoblins in the village, the fight, and the new people.

“I commanded them to fight to test their strength.”

“Let me join!” I demanded, putting aside my curiosity. Though I didn’t find answers to my questions, an opportunity to solidify my position in the village is far more important.

In the past, Rigur was regarded as the strongest being purely due to being a superior race. Though goblins did care about strength, they didn’t have any infighting to prove their strength, hence the lack of chances to prove myself. If I could participate in this fight, I could launch myself to a top position.

“This is the finals,” Momonga placed his bony fingers on his chin, pondering about what to say. “You can fight the winner.”

Soon after, Rigurd defeated the armored goblin. Though it was natural that a hobgoblin would win, I realized that the goblin was still fairly strong. Since he made it to the finals, he must’ve defeated other hobgoblins who were all half a feet taller than him.

“Rigurd,” I called out. “Let’s brawl!”

***

I won? Though Rigurd had a strong body, one slightly stronger than mine, his techniques were unrefined, almost like that of a white belt martial artist. I expected him to be more refined considering the twenty long years he’s been alive for, but I’ve clearly been proven wrong. Was he more proficient with a sword or a club like Rigur was?

After a series of somewhat equally-matched exchanges, I started to ramp it up a little by activating my skills one by one. When I activated all of my abilities, the fight became boorish since all damages were minimized and any damage I did take was regenerated. Moreover, I quickly learned Rigurd’s fighting pattern, which made the fight even more boring. All in all, it was an unsatisfactory fight.

If anything, the armored goblin looked like he could give a far better display of power, but since he lost, I couldn’t fight against him. Maybe I could if I forced it, but I decided not to.

“Rou, that was a good fight!” Rigurd patted me on my shoulder rather strongly.

“Thanks, you were strong too,” I returned the compliment. If I, or anyone else skilled, taught Rigurd to take advantage of his body, he'd make for quite a formidable foe.

“Hey, Momonga,” I walked towards him. “I've got a gift for you.”

From my crotch—hey, I didn’t have any pockets—I pulled out the orc’s book. After reading three pages on the way back, I realized that it was just the orc’s dairy and gave up reading it since every character I read required the use of my unique skill, which was far too draining to be used on such a trivial task. If given more time and if I was alone, I would most definitely dedicate all of my resources to decoding it, but I could use a convenient someone—I mean, someone smarter than me—that would be able to see some uses for it.

“Oh?” Momonga stared at the book with a strange intensity. Even after snatching the book, albeit a little forcefully, from my hand, Momonga’s gaze didn’t waver a single bit. Was the book really that important? “Thank you, Rou.”

“Sure… No problem. Just be sure to tell me what it's about after you finish reading it.”

“What will you be doing next?”

“Nothing, really. I’ll just be hunting more monsters.”

“In that case, would you mind helping me build some houses first?”

“I don’t mind, but I have zero knowledge about architecture.”

“I’m sure you know more than the hobgoblins.”

“Maybe…” Though I’ve been ignoring it for a while, the newly goblin faces were burning holes into my back. They had been patiently standing behind me, awaiting their turn to speak to Momonga. As a result, I decided to quickly finish this up. “I’ll try my best.”

Without giving him a chance to reply, I ran off.

**********

“Lord Momonga!” A fully armored goblin shouted with enthusiasm. “What are your next commands?”

These goblins are still here?

The time limit of 1 hour had clearly passed, but unlike my undead summon, the goblins stayed. At first, I just summoned them to test the functionality of my items and expected them to disappear after some time, which I would justify by saying that they just returned to where they came from. However, they clearly didn’t have a time limit.

What was the reason? Is this the difference between a racial skill and an artifact?

However, it would be odd to assume that one type of summon would be permanent while another would be temporary. Are there conditions to be met like I assumed before?

“You shall live in this village and be members of it.”

“Yes! We will do so!”

“As a reward and to fulfill yesterday’s promise, I will give you all a name.”

“Thank you! We will be eternally grateful, Lord Momonga!”

“Starting from the leader, you will be called Gobkichi. Then, from left to right, Gobji, Gobe, Gobsato, Gobfu, Gobsei, Gobmi.”

Maybe I should keep track of their names, or else I might give the same name to someone else. At times like these, I really wished I had a component secretary.

“As for the wolves, I will name them Inukuro and Inukatsu.”

Compared to the hundreds of goblins I named before, merely naming the twenty or so monsters I summoned cost far more magicules. It took roughly two percent of my magicules.

More specifically, the goblin leader Gobkichi itself took half of that amount. If naming a level twelve monster took one percentage, while level ten took less than a decimal, doesn’t this mean that magicule cost for naming scales exponentially rather than linearly?

If this was the case, how costly would a level forty death knight be, much less a high level summon like Grim Reaper Thanatos? At the moment, I’ll be restricting myself to naming anything that is considered a high-tier summon in Yggdrasil out of the possibility I might permanently lose some of my magicules like Rigurd warned.

“Thank you, Lord Momonga!” All the goblins shouted in unison.

“One last command. Bring me the fresh corpse of a wild animal or monster. Ensure it is as intact as possible. That will be all.”

“Yes!” All the goblins shouted at once. Even the wolves joined in by howling.

Though I’ve been wanting to test out this theory for a few days, I put it on the backburner due to the lack of concrete evidence. However, the permanent duration on summoned goblins ignited the idea again. I could get a corpse myself, but without knowing the true threats of the forest, it was best to delegate the responsibilities to a subordinate.

Anyways, it might be time to check up on Rou and the goblins on the progress of the houses they’re making. I don’t expect much, but they should at least have a plan done by now, right?

***

Boom! The building, as the hobgoblins called it, collapsed and kicked up a storm of dust. When the debris faded, Rigurd stood in the center of it.

Though the tent works perfectly fine while they were goblins, said tents were no longer the appropriate size and quickly fell from the slightest bit of activity from the hobgoblins. Such activity included waking up or dressing themselves, which was undesirable for a permanent living quarter.

“If I may suggest something, Lord Momonga,” one of the shorter, more goblin-looking hobgoblins spoke up.

“Permission granted.”

“We could ask for assistance from the Armed Nation of Dwargon. The main residents there are dwarves and they should have skilled artisans.”

The one that spoke up was Rigur, the first son of Rigurd. Unlike other goblins, he already had a name when I arrived in the village. Though he was a hobgoblin for the longest, he was by far the weakest member of the village, weaker than even the goblins I summoned. I’ve heard that he ranked up by being named. If the only difference is the namer, then perhaps the namer has an influence on how strong the named monster becomes?

“Rejected.”

His suggestion bears some merit, but it would be unwise to reveal my existence at the moment, especially when I am unaware of this world’s perception of undead. Sure, the goblins don’t consider me to be the eternal enemies of the living, but the same can not be said for an actual civilization, specifically those made of humans.

Continuing on, “I will assemble a team to assist in the building of new houses and to educate you all. Is that satisfactory?”

Regardless of the fact that I still don’t feel prepared, it should be about time I stop putting off summoning more prominent members of Nazarick.

“Yes.”

Though less enthusiastic compared to the goblins I named, he still very clearly has some level of loyalty to me. It wasn’t at a level where the question of insubordination or betrayal would pop up, and the lack of such high expectations made him much more preferable compared to the other goblins.

Now, into the more important subject. I need to summon someone reasonable, preferably aligned towards neutral or good. Then, if I could, I'll need to enter Nazarick myself to assess the situation

“Summon Sebas Tian .”

Like how Narberal Gamma was summoned before, Sebas just appeared from a black substance that suddenly rose from the ground. It grew until it reached the size of an adult male and then the black goop took shape, becoming Sebas.

“What is your command? Lord Momonga?”

“Gather a list of people to teach the hobgoblin architecture, manufacturing, weaving, leatherworking and other skills needed to create a proper society. Then, you will survey the surrounding land.”

“As you will, Lord Momonga. I also have a message from Lady Albedo and Sir Demiurge. Lady Albedo wishes to meet you in person, while Sir Demiurge desires to discuss future plans.”

“Umu. I’ll fulfill their request after summoning the team.”

“In that case, I would suggest Lady Aura and Lady Pestonya as your teaching assistants, while around twenty greater demons serving under Sir Demiurge would serve as a decent labor force.”

That was really fast, scarily fast in fact, as one would expect as the head of the Pleiades.

Giving only a single nod as thanks, I started summoning the suggested team, “ Summon Aura Bella Fiora. Summon Pestonya Shortcake Wanko. Mass Summon Greater Demon. ”

“Greetings! Lord Momonga!” Aura gave a deep, ninety degree, bow the moment she realized she was in front of me. It was a rather childish bow with little sign of elegance, but it was exactly at times like these that they felt like actual people instead of NPCs.

“Sebas will explain the situation to you and I will head to Nazarick to assess the situation.”

“Okay!”

Just like how the use of spells came naturally, I naturally came to know the method to enter Nazarick. Sometimes, I question if I should allow myself to get content with such convenience, and my answer would always be no. Just like how there are questions about the summon duration, there must surely be some strange inner-workings to my abilities that I do not know about.

Though I expected my vision to be covered by a black goop and then summoned into Nazarick, the reality was different. The scenery instantly changed with no signs of any spells, not even magical effects as one would expect of a typical teleportation spell. If it worked like the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown , it would make sense, but the black goop that I saw when I summoned Sebas, Narberal, and Yuri did not. Therefore, this definitely requires more testing later, specifically the safety of the use of such an ability.

Currently, a more serious dilemma stands before me. I was in front of the entrance to the throne room.

To prepare myself and increase my dignity, I took out the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown , checked my gear for any creases, and straightened my posture before walking into the throne room.

**********

“Lord Momonga! We were so worried about your sudden disappearance!” I shouted at a volume unbefitting of my usual demeanor. I wanted to dress up a little more, impress Momonga, but my hair was disheveled and my press had tons of wrinkles.

“Lord Momonga, I am glad you have returned,” Demiurge, on the other hand, calmly greeted Momonga, or so it would seem. Just moments prior, he was panicking just as much as me. Such a fact could not be hidden due to the cracks in his glasses and the improperly worn tie.

Without even a greeting, Lord Momonga walked past us and sat on the Game of Thrones with elegance as one would expect of a Supreme Being. Unlike the other forty Supreme Beings, he was truly befitting of his title of the Supreme Overlord with all of his wisdom and power.

Finally, he spoke up, “Albedo. Demiurge. What is the purpose of this meeting?”

“Apologies,” I realized my mistake. Though I was the Guardian Overseer, I was being disrespectful by standing in his presence, so I immediately took a knee, which was similarly followed by Demiurge. “We were concerned about your sudden disappearance.”

“Is that all?” Lord Momonga spoke with a hint of disappointment. Did I, by calling him here, somehow ruin his plan?

Though the pop monsters and automatically generated resources stopped spawning, such a problem was trivial for the denizens of Nazaricks who could sustain themselves without eating food. Moreover, I am more than positive that Lord Momonga would already be aware of such a fact without being here himself. If so, then there is truly no other reason to call Lord Momonga.

Even Demiurge, who I hate to deem my equal, is blanking out on a response right now, so out of my desperation, I gave the only reply I could in this situation. “Yes.”

A moment of dreadful silence passed by. The pressure in the air was so immense that I could feel sweat dripping down my forehead. I am sure that Momonga must be beyond angered by being called here due to such an insignificant reason.

“At the moment, I, and most likely Nazarick, have been transported to another world. I’ve sent Sebas Tian to investigate the surroundings after assessing the risk level myself.”

Sebas Tian? Lord Momonga sent a fighter stronger than even I for the mere task of investigating? If that’s the case, then what have I been doing for the past few weeks while Lord Momonga was critically analyzing the situation? Such a failure on my part!

“Gather all the Floor Guardians on the colosseum of the Sixth Floor within an hour. I and Sebas will inform you of the situation there.”

“Yes!”

The next instance, Lord Momonga disappeared into a black goop. It was an ability unheard of. No such teleportation ability had such a visual effect. Such a feat to be expected of the Lord Momonga!

“Demiurge, you know what to do,” I snickered at him with my newfound composure.

“Of course, Albedo. However, I must ask you to tidy yourself first.”

“I will do that even without your input.”

Chapter 7: Building the Village III

Notes:

To address some of the comments, this world is a merger of the Re:Monster world and Tensura world with Tensura being the main settings and Re:Monster acting as an addition.
To summarize the changes: Re:Monster level cap and rank up system exists, Re:Monster gods also exist, and some characters (TBD) from Re:Monster also exist.
Other than that, most of Tensura's worldbuilding have stayed intact,

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Hey, Veldora, I attempted to communicate with him while resting in my newly made cocoon home. Previously, I made one out in the middle of nowhere, but that damned serpent destroyed it.

I ate him, but I should’ve let the fear sink in some more before doing so. Therefore, I decided that, though annoying, the best place to rest is next to Veldora.

“Hohoho! To awaken me from my-”

Yeah, yeah. Anyways, is there any other intelligent life around here?

“If you were any other monster, I would not simply let you interrupt me like that. However! Because you are-”

Yeah, thank you, but can you answer my question?

“Ugh… I don’t know. I’d consider the monsters spawned from my magicules pretty intelligent.”

They were not. I tried waving to one of my siblings, or so I assumed they were because they were a black spider, but they just saw me as food and charged after me. Of course, I ate them in return, however bland their meat might be.

“Do you know how to use Telepathy?”

No, what’s that?

“How do you not- Actually, you’re an otherworlder, so I guess it makes sense.”

Rude much.

“Now! Listen!” Veldora started to shout in an overly dramatic manner once again. Since he was actually going to say something useful this time, I allowed him. “Telepathy is a skill that almost every monster knows, whether it be by instinct when they were born or when their parents teach them. You, however, because you’re an otheworlder do not possess such instinct! Moreover, since you ran away from your brood, you had no one to teach you. In this sense, I shall take on the tedious task of your parents and teach you important skills that you need to know!”

Skills? Multiple skills? What are they?

“First, Telepathy. Try sending some of your magicules towards me.”

How do I “send” magicules? In fact, what is “magicules?”

“How have you survived so far without knowing such basic stuff? Anyways, to put it in the terms of otherworlders, you could call it mana. It’s like… pulling something out of yourself and releasing it.”

So, it’s like taking a piss? Such a rude thing to ask a lady to do.

“No,” Veldora started to scratch his head, pondering exactly how to explain it. It’s understandable that Veldora, someone who's been able to manipulate magicule since birth, would have difficulties explaining it. Afterwards, it’s like if I was asked to explain how to breathe to someone who can’t breathe. I wouldn’t be able to do it. “You have unique skills, don’t you?”

Yeah, I have Unique Skill - Isolated Space and Unique Skill - Accelerator. I’m using Isolated Space right now to make my home bigger, while I use Accelerator to run away and chase monsters.

“Recall the times you used them and then try mimicking that sense without activating the skill.”

Mhmmm! Ughhh!!! Oooh!!!! I’m releasing something!

“Now, send that towards me.”

Though slow, I’ve gotten the hang of this skill.

“You want to know what you sent?”

Yeah, tell me! It’s the first time I’ve been so excited. Is this what it feels like to understand a complicated subject on your first try?

“*F&V^@KCM)!” Some ungodly noise came out of Veldora’s mouse, a noise so ungodly that I wouldn’t even dare register it as sound.

Hey! Don’t do that again!

“It’s what you sent me. Now, onto the next lesson. Do you know what frequency and sound waves are? Apparently, it’s common knowledge amongst otherworlders.”

Well, sort of. I learned about that in school.

“If you simply relax and send your magicules towards me, you can get your intentions across.”

Alright, so I need to relax. What should I send though? Mhm… Right, this is perfect!

…

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Telepathy successfully acquired>

“Hey! I’m not ugly!”

What, no? I called you bald.

“I’m not bald either! Ahem! Anyways, you understand how it works now, right?”

Yeah! So, what are the other skills you wanted to teach me?

“There’s Thought Communication, a more advanced form of Telepathy. By precisely calculating the waves you create, you can send out precise commands and sentences. Then, there’s also Magic Perception, a skill that allows you to perceive things in a 360 degree perspective. To do this, you must thinly spread your magicules, calculate the waves and reflection of the magicules, and then you must formulate that information into an image. Then, through mastering both of these skills, you are able to read other people’s mind through the skill Thought Interference like I’m doing right now. There are more advanced versions, but they’re the least of your worries right now.”

This sounds really complicated. Isn’t there a simpler method?

“Well, you must acquire the extra skill Thought Acceleration, Analytical Appraisal, All of Creation, or something similar. However, in most cases, the user acquires Magic Perception before acquiring any of these skills.”

So, this becomes a problem of whether chicken or the egg came first. For me, who is unproficient in magicule, I must acquire an extra skill to help with the process, but to acquire such a skill, I must become proficient in magicule.

But Thought Acceleration ? Don’t I have something similar? Though I’ve just been using Accelerator just for movement, wouldn’t it be possible to focus it on just my brain as well.

Yes! It’s working! I can think faster! It’s almost as if one second became ten seconds, and then ten seconds became a thousand!

Though my knowledge hadn’t changed, I became able to perceive magicules far better. Rather, it’s more like because my perception sped up, I could focus on the smaller details that I usually miss out on, such as the magicules in the air.

To give a comparison, it’s almost like watching rain in slow motion. At regular speed, it would just be streaks of white, but when slowed, I could actually see the individual droplets.

Then, through various trial and errors, I tried manipulating the magicule around and within me, trying to form it into some sensical words.

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Telepathy has evolved into Extra Skill - Thought Communication>

“VELDORA!”

“You’re kinda loud. Tone it down.”

“ME! GENIUS!”

“I preferred it when I was just reading your mind. Also, your speech sounds like that of a baby’s.”

Fine, I’ll go practice some more alone and then I’ll surprise you.

Also, I’m starting to get hungry, so I’ll check on that trap I’ve set up to see if I caught any more prey.

“Goodbye for now. I will not miss you when you’re gone.”

Veldora sounded like a househusband whenever he says stuff like this. Nonetheless, I decided to not tell him since it’s obvious he’ll start pouting again.

**********

Arriving on the colosseum of the Sixth Floor, I was greeted by a rather timid Mare. “Gr-greetings, Lord Momonga.”

Since I sent Aura away to assist the hobgoblins, it was expected that she was not present, and maybe it was for the better. With only Mare here, I feel like I could finally relax.

“Hello, Mare. Don’t be so stiff. I’m just here for a visit,” I expressed my true thoughts. Though I asked for it myself, even I know it was a rather impossible task. If the CEO suddenly came to my house without any prior notice and asked me to relax, wouldn’t it be quite impossible to do so? In fact, wouldn’t it make me even more nervous as I try to hide it?

“Ye-yes! I will try my best to not be st-stiff.”

I gave a silent apologies to Mare who was the complete opposite from Aura.

“Mare, I would like to test my power. Could I ask you to participate?”

“Any-anything you ask, Lord Momonga.”

“Summon Primal Fire Elemental.”

A fire was set ablaze on the ground, growing in size and swirling chaotically. After it grew to the size of a few meters, the flame dispersed, and within it, a primal flame elemental appeared.

Though I admired the summoning animation when I saw it in Yggdrasil, it felt far more impressive seeing it in reality even if I lacked the muscles to express my joy. Moreover, the success also meant that my items worked as intended. If this was the case, how would the world items work?

“Would you like to start?”

“Uwwaahh, ye-yeah,” Mare gave a nervous nod. Despite his nervousness, Mare should have no problem dealing with a primal elemental. After all, he possesses the strongest area of effect (AOE) potential out of all the NPCs.

Within a single minute, the fight ended. At the start, Mare casted the buffs Nature’s Providence, Power of Gaia, and Aspect of Elemental. Then, without the use of a single spell, Mare smacked the elemental to death. Had Mare casted his strongest spell, the elemental would’ve died within a single attack even without any active buffs.

“Good job, Mare,” I walked up to him, instinctively patted him on his head.

Moments later, Mare’s body started to shiver. Oh, crap! Even though Mare looked young, he was over a hundred years old, so he might find this unpleasant.

“My apologies, Mare.”

“N-no, I don’t mind, Lord Momonga.”

“Here, you must be tired,” I grabbed a water pitcher and a glass from my inventory. The pitcher was a magic item that produced endless water. In Yggdrasil, any decent player had at least one of these to fill their thirst bar. Even I, an undead, carried it around despite not needing to drink because it was just that convenient.

“Th-thank you, Lord Momonga,” Mare’s voice brightened up and the nervousness in his voice faded slightly.

“Ara,” a high-pitched, almost childish, voice came from the distance. “Am I the first one here, arinsu? Where’s that pipsqueak Aura?”

“She’ll arrive soon,” I answered her question.

“Lord Momonga, my one and only master whom I can not rule over~” Shalltear started to place her hands on my side, fondling my clothes in a suggestive manner.

She pressed her chest unto mine, licking her lips as if she was not an undead devoid of… life? Why does she have a heartbeat? Aren’t vampires supposed to be undead like me? Did this world change her biology like it changed my skills?

Putting that question aside, was she always like this? I know Peroroncino was a massive degenerate who fulfilled his fantasies through “True Vampire” Guardian of the First to Third Floor, Shalltear, but was it really this bad?

As it continued, the uneasiness started to creep up on me. This much contact with a girl wasn’t really comfortable, especially with one who I painstakingly watched over for the past 12 years and could almost consider my children. Yes, it doesn’t feel bad in the slightest, but it just doesn’t feel real. Moreover, I couldn’t exactly tell her to just not do it. Not only would it be disrespectful towards her, but the supposed Supreme Being I am shouldn’t be bothered by such trivialities.

“Enough. Shalltear. You. Are. In. The. Presence. Of. Lord. Momonga,” Cocytus spoke in a stern voice as he appeared.

“Tch, alright. Alright,” Shalltear finally released herself from my body.

“Message. Aura Bella Fiora,” I attempted. I wasn’t positive this would work, but if the message ability carried over like the rest of my abilities, it should be possible. “Are you busy at the moment?”

“Lo-lord Momonga! No! I am not busy! The hobgoblins are currently laying the foundation for housing.”

“Then, do you mind if I summon you?”

“Of course not!”

“Summon Aura Bella Fiora.”

“Greetings! Lord Momo-”

“Ho~, the pipsqueak is here.”

“Hah, fake breasts.”

“What’d you-!”

“Lord. Momonga. Stands. Before. You,” Cocytus steely reprimanded Shalltear and Aura.”

Ignoring their arguing, I messaged Sebas. “Message. Sebas Tian. I will summon you in five minutes. Move yourself into a safe and hidden location.”

“I will do so, Lord Momonga.”

Then, soon after, Demiurge and Albedo arrived simultaneously, appearing prim and proper this time. Within the short span of an hour, they managed to fix their appearances.

“Lord Momonga, the Guardians with the exception of the Fourth Floor Guardian Gargantua, and the Eighth Floor Guardian Victim have gathered to pledge our loyalty,” Albedo announced as they all took a knee in front of me.

Maybe this was the reason people became religious. With the gaze of the six people under me, I felt incredibly nervous, an emotion that topped the one I had when I was speaking to just Albedo and Demiurge. Even with the countless simulations I had in my head, the real meeting was nothing like the practice.

I had no idea how to proceed.

I was a salaryman my whole life. I never bossed around anyone, much less six level 100 individuals capable of destroying countries. Out of my nervousness, I unconsciously activated one of my skills, causing a dreadful aura to spill out of me.

“Raise your heads.”

Almost as if they coordinated, they raised their heads simultaneously, almost as if they had practiced it beforehand.

“First… I thank you all for coming here.”

“There is no need for thanks,” Albedo spoke up with an elegance unfound in her previous appearance. “We are all Lord Momonga’s loyal subordinates. To us, your mere presence is a blessing.”

Once I heard this, the reality of the situation dawned upon me once more. Not only had I been reincarnated into another world with unknown dangers, I now bear the responsibility of being the leader of Nazarick. Could I really make decisions that would not lead them to ruin?

“Lord Momonga, I apologize for my dismayed behavior for the past few weeks. However incompetent we may seem, we are able to accomplish anything you command if you will,” Albedo continued on without giving me the opportunity to speak.

“This we swear!” All the Guardians promised after Albedo.

“Excellent. Guardians, I know that you understand my aim and will carry out my wishes. There may be some difficult things that you can not understand, but I hope you will listen. First, I will summon Sebas before elaborating. Summon Sebas Tian.”

After appearing, Sebas took a knee, or rather, it would be more accurate to say that Sebas appeared taking a knee almost as if he knew the exact pose he needed to be in.

“I believe that I, and the Great Tomb of Nazarick, have been transported to another world through unknown means. In the process, our abilities from Yggdrasil have been converted to match the system of this world. Fear not, since the abilities remained the same for the most part. However, I will still assign you all to experiment with your abilities and report any changes. Ensure your subordinates hear of this too. Now, I will have Sebas share his findings.”

Phew! That was great… maybe. It was such a long speech and now I could finally hand it off to someone more competent.

“As Lord Momonga said, I have confirmed that our surroundings are no longer that of the marshes of Helheim. Instead, there is a forest around us with a muddy swamp housing lizardmen to the east of us. Moreover, while the monsters seem to resemble those of Yggdrasil, it would be more accurate to classify them differently. Out of the monsters present, I’ve confirmed the presence of lizardman, ogre, horn rabbits, direwolves, dryads, and other beast-type monsters. If given more time, I could gather a list of every species in this world.”

“Thank you, Sebas. Now, a question for the Guardians. Have there been any abnormalities on your Floors?”

After hearing this, each of the Guardian replied, starting from Albedo and ending with Shalltear.

“Up until recently, I and the Pleiades were unable to exit the throne room. Similarly, after Demiurge entered the room, he became stuck with me. It was only after you appeared was I able to leave. However, I apologize for being unaware of the situation on my Floors other than what Demiurge informed me.”

“The POP monsters on the Seventh Floor have stopped spawning and the field hazard has become inactive. Also, food and natural resources have also stopped respawning.”

“Same with the Sixth Floor.”

“I-It’s as big sis says.”

“The. Situation. Is. The. Same. On. My. Floor. Monsters. Resources. And. Field. Hazards. Became. Inactive.”

“Everything is the same on my Floor, arinsu. However, I do note that the entrance to the surface has been sealed off with some strange barrier.”

“Lord Momonga, I will swiftly investigate the situation on the rest of the Floors.”

“Then, I will leave that in your hands. However, you must take the utmost caution on the Eighth Floor.”

I had no idea… Was this why Albedo and Demiurge kept insisting to see me? Maybe, from now on, I need to listen to their thoughts more seriously. After all, the less input I have, the less mistakes would be made.

“Guardians, I am now aware of the situation. On my next outing, not only will Sebas and Aura continue their previous mission, I will bring most of the Guardians and assign them a task, one of which is to solve the current predicament”

I had a guess the reason why was that the Great Tomb of Nazarick was not in the physical world and all I needed to do was to summon it. However, carelessly doing so would create more problems.
“Then, I will warn you of one of the dangers of the world. Do not give monsters a name. In the world we are summoned to, naming a monster grants it great power at the cost of your powers. Weak monsters below the level of 30 seem to be fine, but caution must be taken.”

All the Guardians acknowledged this and nodded in unison.

“Next, I would like to understand the administrative operations of each Floor. Albedo, how is the exchange of information between each Floor handled?”

“Each Floor is directly overseen by its respective Floor Guardian, but since Demiurge is the overall defense commander, everyone can freely share information with him.”

“Excellent! Nazarick’s defense command, Demiurge. Guardian Overseer, Albedo. The two of you will work together to devise a more comprehensive administration system for Nazarick.”

“Will this include the Eight, Ninth, and Tenth Floor?”

“The Eighth Floor is managed by Victim, so it’ll be fine… Actually, I prohibit entry into the Eighth Floor. I rescind the order I gave earlier as well. In short, access to the Eighth Floor is only allowed with my permission. I will soon undo the seal to allow travel from the Seventh Floor to the Ninth Floor. After that, plan for the Ninth and Tenth Floor.”

“Is-is that your will?” Albedo questioned.

“Must the underlings really be allowed to step foot onto the Floor of the Supreme Beings?”

Underlings? Demiurge must be referring to the POP monsters that naturally respawn over time as if they were resources in Nazarick.

“It will be fine. It will only be for the duration of the emergency.”

“Understood. I will select the most potent troop for this mission.”

“Now, Mare. Could I ask you to evaluate the land and find a suitable hidden place to summon the Great Tomb of Nazarick unto?”

“Could I terraform the land if no such location is found?”

“I will leave that to your discretion.”

“Shalltear. You are to stand guard to ensure no abnormalities occur.”

“I will ensure no underlings act out of place, arinsu.”

“Cocytus. You are assigned to train the hobgoblins I have named after I summon the Great Tomb of Nazarick. In the meantime, join Shalltear in guarding the Tomb.”

“I. Will. Train. Them. To. Be. The. Finest. Warriors. Fitting. Of. Your. Name. Lord. Momonga.”

“Finally, I have one last question for the Guardians. To begin, Shalltear. What sort of being am I to you?”

Each one of them gave their most honest description of me, each one unique in their own ways. Not only was I somehow the most beautiful without flesh, I was also the wisest and strongest despite only being a salaryman. If it was someone like Touch Me or Ulbert, I would understand, but I have quite a weak build all things considered and my intelligence is not the highest either.

“I see… I have heard and understand your opinions. Then, I shall hand the tasks that were once performed by my former comrades to you. Carry them out faithfully.”

With that final speech, I teleported to the chamber of the Golem of Lemegeton. I needed to immediately return to the surface and summon Mare, Aura, and Sebas, but I wanted to take a small break before doing so.

Sigh. “Those guys… Why do they think so highly of me?!”

Then, when I finally relaxed a little, I realized that my Despair Aura V was active. No wonder the Guardians had looks of fear. Needless to say, I immediately cancelled the effects of it.

“Well, that’s enough resting,” I tried to convince myself even though only five minutes had passed. “Time to become the Supreme Overlord again.”

Notes:

Apologies for the fact that Mare uses some non-canon skills, but I felt that these suits him pretty well considering his build and could make sense as head canon.
Ainz will likely also use some non-canon (or yet to be shown canon) spells in the future since there is simply no way the anime/LN can show all 718 spells and using only the spells he shown in the anime feels restrictive.

Chapter 8: The Strange Majin I

Chapter Text

In the Great Jura Forest, there walks a majin wearing a leather mask resembling the bird of a peak in the field of trees. Trekking through the tall grass and tree roots that can cause someone to trip with a single misstep, I am always aware of my posture. I do my utmost best to upkeep my elegance. After all, I am Gelmud, the greatest of them all.

In an attempt to get closer to my idol, Clayman, I wore this plague doctor mask and even mimicked his mannerisms. Though, sometimes people would mistake it for a bird mask and it is very annoying when they do so. To make it worse, even Clayman mistaken my mask for a bird, but since he is Clayman, he is forgiven.

Currently, I have been assigned a great mission, one that I proposed myself and received the grace of Clayman to proceed, to create a new demon lord that can be used as Clayman pleases. Of course, such a request requires great planning that no other could possibly pull off other than the great me! I’ve named several monsters, including goblins, lizardmen, wolves, and I even tried to name an ogre but they dared to refuse a name from the great me. All I need to do now is to find a suitable candidate to become the demon lord.

I was going to use the ogre tribe for this purpose, but no matter. Apparently, I’ve heard rumors of a high orc born recently with the Self-Regeneration skill. If suspicions prove right, I could create an orc lord to make the great me even greater!

Now, where was I? Oh, right, I was walking through the forest and going to check up on the monsters I named to see if any of them has the potential to become the demon lord candidate before I go ahead with my orc naming plan. While my great foresight hasn’t noticed noteworthy from the goblin, especially since that inferior goblin I named barely grew, it never hurts to check.

Nothing can get past the eye of the great Gelmud!

“Rigur! Come greet your great master, Gelmud!” I shouted at the entrance of the village. It was very possible that Rigur was out hunting for food, but it does not matter. Because if someone as great as me visits, it should be basic courtesy to put aside everything they are doing to give me the best reception.

Off in the distance, I see a black goblin. Could it be a variant? Could a variant truly be born in this lowly goblin village? Depending on the god who blessed him, he could very well be the demon lord or serve as nourishment.

As the black goblin closes in, I realized that the goblin was actually a hobgoblin. Perhaps Rigur evolved once again or received the protection of some god while in my absence. Sometimes, inferior beings could prove useful from time to time.

Judging from the lustrous black skin, defined features, and menacing aura. All of the hobgoblin’s features indicate that the god that blessed him is not on the level of a demigod. It must at least be a fully fledged god. While it is not as great as my great aura, it is certainly in no way inferior to a hypothetical high orc with the Self-Regeneration skill. If I were to compare the two, I dare say that this useless hobgoblin has a better chance at becoming the demon lord than the high orc.

Then, when I finally see this damned hobgoblin, he exudes the most arrogant aura to ever exist! Such a rude display! Has he forgotten who his master is? Why does he not kneel before me?!

“Rigur! Have you lost your-” manners, as I was about to say, but I was rudely cut off by the goblin.

“Who are you?” The black hobgoblin spoke in a slow, agitated voice while picking his nose.

Upon hearing his voice and the magicule wave associated with it, this damned mannerless hobgoblin was clearly not Rigur. If it weren’t for the fact that he’s needed for my demon lord plan, I would’ve-

Deep breaths, Gelmud. He is an inferior hobgoblin who feels like he’s at the top of the world because he just evolved and received a blessing from a god. If not for the black skin, I would’ve clearly mistaken his blessing to be from the demigod of war due to his arrogance.

All I need to do now is to properly educate him since naturally evolved individuals, while not exceptionally rare, are still rare nonetheless.

“Clearly! You don’t know who I am! It should only be expected that useless goblins like Rigur are incapable of passing on information! You shall! And I repeat! You shall engrave this name forever in your soul! I am-”

“Gelmud, right? I’ve heard.”

Interrupted yet again. It’s fine. Goblins are uneducated after all.

“I will forgive you for your rudeness. Now,” I was going to ask him to reveal what god blessed him, but soon, I received my answer as a greater demon walked past him. It is impossible for a goblin to learn the methods, much less conduct the proper summoning due to the lack of sacrifice in the forest. Therefore, I can only conclude that such an act must be due to a gift from his god. “Tell me. Was the god who blessed you the God of the Netherworld.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Great! I shall grant you a name and you shall serve me as your master! Be grateful for such a gift!” As I said this, I saw one more goblin approach from a distance, and then more. All of them were hobgoblins, and among the hobgoblins, one of them was a face I somewhat recognized.

“Lord Gelmud! What-” Rigur tried to speak, but he was forcefully silenced due to the black hobgoblin shoving his hand in front of him.

“You know, I’ve been patient. Either you get the hell out of here or you can die.”

“I’m really sorry, Lord Gelmud. He just doesn’t know his place,” a buffer hobgoblin spoke up. Judging from the magicule, this was Rigur’s father. To think such a weak welp could become so strong. Fate must really be on my side.

Nonetheless, to tell the great and powerful Gelmud to “get the hell out?”

“I was going to make you my servant, but screw that. To insult the great and powerful majin, Gelmud! You-”

Whack! Ah, such disrespect. To think he would dare punch me in the face while I was still speaking. I was going to give him the mercy of becoming nourishment for the high orc, but clearly, I must kill him now to preserve my honor.

The rest of the hobgoblins? I’ll spare them out of the last bit of mercy I have. The greater demons? They don’t matter. They must be weak considering their summoner is this unintelligent black hobgoblin.

“Death-March-!”

Another punch to my face while I was about to fire my attack?!

“Don’t you know it’s-” basic courtesy to wait while I fire my attack, was what I was going to say before another punch actually drew blood from my precious face. It even broke off bits of my great mask! Unforgivable!

“Who waits for their opponent to cast their strongest move?”

I didn’t want to exert too much effort in this battle, but it appears I must.

“Barrier!” I casted the quickest defensive spell I knew. “Haha! Get past this, you pathetic monster!”

“Spear of Demise.” The black hobgoblin chanted an unknown spell. Consequently, a black javelin appeared in his right hand, almost as if he was holding it.

What a useless attempt! I have never heard of such a spell before, so he must be getting desperate by using a spell so useless I have never heard of before. Struggle all you want, but you will never beat me!

“Throw that useless spell! I’ll allow one last struggle!”

To my surprise, the spear went right by the barrier, shattering it upon impact. It was such a shock that I forgot to cast Teleport to evade the attack and all I could do was slightly shift my body to avoid the spell hitting my head.

Argh! No way… How could this useless hobgoblin pierce my Barrier and even pierce my arm! My arm? My arm is gone?!

“Flight.”

Gaining a height advantage, I am sure that the great me will never lose to this useless hobgoblin in a million years! Sure, he might've pulled out an unknown powerful spell, but there's no way he could fly.

“Death-March Dance.”

Above my head, dozens of magic bullets formed. Even if he could evade one, there's no chance he can evade this many. As I launched the bullets, I screamed, “Die!

The battlefield starts to dust up with all the debris created by my Death-March Dance. I've taken great care to not kill the other hobgoblin for the high orc, concentrating all of my firepower on that single hobgoblin.

As the dust clears, the grassland beneath me has all turned to a pile of dirt with no signs of vegetation.

Then, as the black hobgoblin comes into view, I can't help it as I feel my lips curve up into a slight smirk. Though I missed his head, he lost both of his arms.

In this state, he can't attack me. He has no hands to punch with, no hands to hold a weapon, and judging on the way his spell activated, no hands to cast his spell again. Though I took a punch from such a pathetic whelp, his death will more than repent for it.

Ahem! I cleared my throat in an attempt to regain my composure. After all, as Clayman said, “ a great majin should maintain his composure at all cost. ”

“Nameless hobgoblin, I will give you the honor of ending your own life,” I gave him a final piece of mercy before descending to the ground, but his face was clearly not one of gratitude.

Even though… Even though I gave this hobgoblin mercy, I still see him charging at me at a speed slower than before. Clearly, he exhausted himself far too much trying to survive. Oh well, such is the fate of fools and you can't blame fools for their natural stupidity.

“So, this is how you'll choose to die,” I gave one final speech to the rude hobgoblin. What did I expect from one blessed by god? Of course they're as arrogant as they come.

Then, surprising me yet again, the goblins sped up to a speed I could not perceive and by the time I saw him again, he was biting down on my neck. It didn't penetrate deeply nor did I feel much pain from it.

I'm unsure of how he achieved such speed, but I'm sure it must've been yet another blessing from his god and this bite must be his last struggle. Nonetheless, to dirty my clothes with his filthy mouth, it is a struggle befitting such a creature.

To remove such a creature from my premise, all I needed to do was to shove him away. Though I hate to use my strength, it is still superior to this hobgoblin because a great majin such as me can not possibly be weaker than a hobgoblin.

“Mana-”

Badump … Badump … badump…

Why can't I speak? Why can't I move all of a sudden? Why can't I use my aura? Did I get poisoned?

“Round two,” the hobgoblin started to form a grin so wide that I could believe he had a chance of killing me. He has no way of attacking, and eventually, this poison will wear off and I'll kill him!

However, the surprises didn't end here. The hobgoblin’s arm grew back! Both of them grew back as if nothing ever happened! This can't just be Self-Regeneration. How does he have Ultraspeed Regeneration?!

However humiliating it might be, I must flee to survive another day. Luckily, my Flight spell is still active, so even without the use of my body, I can escape!

“You will pay for this!” I shouted using Though Communication as I fled.

“Spear of Demise.”

Another one of those black spears flew towards me. Though it took away my arm, it was useless if I knew the trajectory of the spear and could easily avoid it.

“You will be one of the first I kill when I create a demon lord!”

**********

“Fuck!” I roared as I slammed my fist onto the newly constructed wooden support pole for the house. The only times I have seen such an ignorant and arrogant man was when I was confronted by upper management and politicians. Every damn one of them believes themselves to be at the top of the world while having no real power.

If only that bird mask fell into the stereotype he’s supposed to, I would’ve beheaded him and ate him right then and there, but his magicules. I could sense a clear difference in our magicules, a difference so stark that I even hesitated to fight him and wanted to wait for Momonga to return. What’s more embarrassing was that when I lost my patience, I still lost!

“Shit!” I need to get stronger, eat more, and rank up. Even if this is the end of my evolution, I can still obtain more skills through eating.

“Rou! Are you okay?” Rigurd’s shouting finally got through to me as I slightly calmed down.

“Yeah… yeah, I’m fine.”

Though I lost the fight, I still gained something from it. Now, I know more of the capability of Ultraspeed Regeneration and was able to use the Venomous Fangs skill from the night viper for the first time. More importantly, from the fight, I learned how to use magic. That… powerful majin, which I hate to admit, has been greatly helpful by demonstrating how to use magic.

The most important thing, however, is his arm. Even without the levels, the skills obtained from his arm will more than make up for the loss this time. It’s a shame it’s not the heart or the brain, which has a higher absorption rate, but it should be a great delicacy nonetheless.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Magic Perception successfully acquired>

Ugh! I felt like I wanted to puke upon the first bite.

<Confirmed. Tolerance - Magic Resistance successfully acquired>

Disgusting. It’s like I’m eating rotten meat.

<Confirmed. Tolerance - Pain Resistance successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Tolerance - Spiritual Attack Resistance successfully acquired>

Was he a zombie? That’d be an insult to the skeleton I ate because that tasted quite decent.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Internal Mana Manipulation successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Magic Perception successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Magic Hide successfully acquired>

Huh? What’s this skill? Magic Hide? This bastard clearly didn’t have any hide, so was it from his equipment?

Of course he had enhanced equipment. It should be expected that such a boisterous man should have equipment to match.

But seriously, this sounds like another defensive skill. While I’m not complaining, I would appreciate more offensive ones, like that guy’s big magic balls.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Mana Bullet Proficiency successfully acquired>

As I ate the last bit of flesh, I was disappointed. Though I was physically dominating the whole fight, the minor push from him clearly proved that he was physically stronger than me, but he had no strength-related skills?

Sigh… I guess this means that there must be some way to manipulate magicule to strengthen the body. Though I know that skills aren’t everything and mastery still makes up a majority of my strength, I just don’t have a good weapon to be able to exert my skills properly.

Sure, weapons can make things better and I’m actually quite good at it if I do say so myself, but close-quarter-combat is my main field of expertise. With a weapon, I needed a proper one, preferably one with a long reach unlike the iron knife I had forgotten inside my tent due to the fight I had with Rigurd this morning.

“Rigurd, would you like to hunt some monsters with me?”

“Sorry, Rou, but I need to await Lord Momonga’s return.”

“See ya,” I patted him on his back as I walked away, searching for a new party to hunt with.

The first candidate would be that armored goblin, now named Gobkichi, I saw fight Rigurd.

“Hey, Gobkichi! Would you like to hunt with me?”

“Mhmm…” Gobkichi started to contemplate the choice, but seconds after, he arrived at a conclusion. “Sure. How would we bring along Gobmi as well? She’s a goblin archer who can scout.”

“Sure, let me get one more person.”

***

“Gobta!” I shaked him in his bed. It’s a surprise he’s still asleep with everything that’s happened outside. He was truly befitting of the nickname Gobbum I gave him before. “Wake up!”

If sloth was a skill, he would certainly have it.

In an attempt to wake him up, I started to slap him.
“Huh?!?! Rou? What-”

Slap.

“Are-”

Smack.

“You-”

Swoosh.

“Doing?”

“I just felt like it. Anyways, let’s go hunt and level up.”

In a matter of seconds, Gobta’s eyes turned from sleepy and half closed to fully open and very serious.

“Rou! Look! Momonga!” Gobta pointed at the entrance.

Momonga? He’s back this fast?

Least to say, he was not.

However, someone who did disappear was Gobta. He wasn’t nearly this rebellious when he was a goblin.

Rebellious… He stole my food.

Rebellious… huh? He left me to fight a snake alone that one time.

I guess he just gained enough strength to become rebellious after ranking up.

I didn’t want to spend so much effort convincing him, but he was very strong. In the few times he did fight, I could tell that he was a natural prodigy. With the few tips I gave him, he began to shine even more and was eventually able to fight a direwolf by himself even as a goblin.

“I guess you don’t value your bed anymore…” I taunted him since I knew that he spent days making the perfect bed from direwolf fur, leaves, and other soft material.

“Oi! Wait! I’ll go!” Gobta shouted from outside the tent as he rushed back in.

If only he wasn't so lazy, he could've ranked up without the use of naming.

“Here, have my knife. I don't need it anymore.”

I threw the iron knife I got from the orc towards Gobta. It's a shame, but he could shine more than me with a properly made weapon.

In the meantime, I'll just use the rabbit horn I used before.

With the whole time gathered, it's finally time to head out, or so I'd like to, but Rigurd was probably right. I should inform Momonga of everything that transpired here before leaving.

Chapter 9: The Strange Majin II

Chapter Text

The great majin, or so he called himself, wearing the plague doctor's mask lands on marshland surrounded by mangrove trees, murky water, and muddy soil. While it isn't the safest option, it is certainly a terrain that goblins, and likely hobgoblins as well, would have difficulty traversing, making it a decent hiding spot for recovery, which would be believable if not for the fact that said majin was no longer in any imminent threat.

It's been many days, a little over two weeks, since his encounter with Rou and his bleeding has long since stopped. Even his poisoned status has worn off within a few dozen minutes. To make it less convincing, the majin was wandering around the forest for a few days, pacing around as if he was panicking.

It was hard to tell what face he was making, but judging from his recent actions, it was safe to conclude he was panicking. Perhaps this was related to the demon lord he was talking about? Was his superior a demon lord? If so, his words of making a new demon lord didn't make much sense unless multiple demon lords could exist. Such an extravagant title almost seemed insignificant when spoken by such a haughty majin, but if such a title was to be taken at face value, would they be the strongest existent in this world?

Putting aside the question of demon lords to be debated later, the next action of the majin would be far more intriguing. Just like he called out to Rigur, he called out another name.

“Gabiru! Get out here, now!”

The majin, in a manner unbefitting of his elegant appearance and his tone when he first appeared in the village, violently demanded the presence of the individual named Gabiru.

Out from an unsuspecting cave, a green lizardman, or perhaps a dragonoid since it was difficult to tell someone’s race just from appearance alone, came running out at full speed wielding a spear made of a white metal. From appearance alone, it looked to be iron but it could be any other white metal like cold steel. Even if it was iron, it would mean that their military strength is far above that of the goblins when comparing equipment alone.

“Lord Gelmud! What’s the problem?”

The green humanoid, which he will be dubbed from now on due to certainties, addressed the masked majin as “lord.” While it would be typical to assume that the green humanoid was weaker than the majin as apparent by the master-servant relationship, there were many examples where the opposite would be true.

I, myself, would be the very example of such a relationship.

Even if my guild members were closer to friends rather than servants, it was not wrong to say that the guildmaster was the master, while the guild members were the servants. In this scenario, Touch Me always won against me whenever we engaged in PvP.

If I were to exclude this vague relationship, the strength difference between me and the NPCs were certainly an example of this, especially with Shalltear and Rubedo being far stronger than me. If I were to engage with any of them, I was almost certain I would lose to them just as embarrassingly I lost to Touch Me.

“Demiurge, what do you make of this?” I asked the most intelligent member in the room for his opinion.

It’s been fifteen days since I met the Guardians and eight since I summoned Nazarick onto the physical plane. By doing so, it resolved all of Nazarick’s problems—specifically the one where monsters and resources stopped spawning—except for the lack of methods to farm gold.

While Mare suggested summoning Nazarick inside a cave we found nearby, said idea was rejected due to Rigurd informing us that that was the place where the Storm Dragon Veldora was sealed. If dragons in Yggdrasil were anything to go by, this Storm Dragon Veldora could be on the level of a World Enemy and such a risk was too high to take. As an alternative, Mare suggested terraforming the surroundings into hills and summoning Nazarick within the village.

While I wanted to object to this due to the lack of defense against an invasion, Demiurge and Albedo both accepted it, saying how “It was the perfect spot. As to be expected of Mare to choose the very village Lord Momonga chose. ”

Demiurge, who analyzed the situation for only a few seconds through the Mirror of Remote Viewing, answered, “I suggest we send a few scouts to gauge their strength and then a representative. If they do not give the proper response, allow me to make full use of their bodies.”

“You may do as you please should that scenario occur.”

The majin, Gelmud, changed his demeanor when the green humanoid came within sight in almost an instant. It's hard to tell whether he's prone to mood swings or if he has borderline personality disorder.

Ahem! “Gabiru, bring me to your chieftain.”

“I will gladly do so!”

Much like the goblin village prior to my arrival, they had a chieftain and a named individual. Was he attempting to silently take over each tribe in the forest through creating strong and loyal servants? If such was the case, it was only right to assume that the green humanoid would be the strongest individual within the settlement much like how Rigur was the strongest prior to every goblin being named.

Entering the throne room, there stands several similar humanoids with similar weaponry. The soldier’s weakness was evident by their lack of horns, which proved that they were in a lower evolutionary stage compared to Gabiru.

However, the same could not be said for the chieftain. The humanoid sitting up on the throne, which was more like a big chair compared to the makeshift throne that Demiurge created, shined a brilliant blue and had horns like Gabiru. Even without speaking a single word, the blue humanoid carried a presence that, unlike the hobgoblin chieftain Rigurd, could not be mistaken for anything but that of a leader.

“Lizardman chieftain, heed the command of the great Gelmud! You will attack the goblin villages west of the swamp and as a reward, I will grant you a name.”

“No,” the chieftain gave a stern rejection. “Disappear from my presence this instance.”

“Father,” the green humanoid, likely a lizardman as well judging from his words, spoke in defense of Gelmud. “Lord Gelmud must have a reason for asking so. I say we follow his orders and accept the name.”

“My son, you and I may believe in the survival of the fittest, but as a chieftain, I've come to understand that fitness is not defined by just power. Your blind loyalty to that majin is making you blind.”

“Fine, either you do with the reward or I force you to,” Gelmud started to lose his patience far faster than he did back in the hobgoblin village. Perhaps his missing arm caused his short temper?

“Watch your words,” the Lizardman chieftain stood up, reaching for the blue trident shining next to him. “I'm not sure about before, but now, with your missing arm and internal damages, I'm sure you won't come out unscathed if we were to fight.”

Tch! “Fools!”

Gelmud stomped out of the room as Gabiru followed behind him.

“Demiurge, have someone watch his actions at all times”

“I'll make sure they don't miss even a blink.”

“No…” I immediately realized the implication of such a phrase, so I decided to correct him for the sake of Nazarick’s NPCs. “Make sure they rest and take shifts to watch him.”

Ending the matter on Gelmud for now, I walked out of the promptly made throne room, onto the reception room, and finally onto the streets of the city. In reality, it was more like a desire path, a walkway made by people walking wherever they wanted until a compacted dirt path without any grass was stomped, that connected the various single-storied wooden houses.

These houses had been, to my surprise, constructed in less than half a month. More surprisingly, the first house they constructed was mine and it was more than quadruple the size of any other house, making it more like a castle or a fortress rather than a house. It was unnecessary, nerve-wracking almost, to say the least, especially for someone like me who's just a salaryman.

Such a feat was only possible not only due to the physical prowess of Nazarick but also the few hundreds of goblins that joined us, causing me to have another intense bout of figuring out what names to give them. It’d be nice if this was the only struggle, but clearly, there were forces likely far more powerful than me, and while there is no concrete evidence, it is better to assume that there are some individuals likely able to treat Touch Me as if he were a low level goblin than not. One such example is probably the demon lords, and likely heroes too if demon lords exist.

“Lord Momonga, how do you do?” Gobti, one of the new hobgoblins, greeted me as I walked along the street with a bit of formality.

“I’m fine.”

At first, Demiurge, currently walking alongside me, and the rest of the Guardians would react with a fiery tone whenever a hobgoblin addressed me with anything but the highest level of respect. Now, after some thorough convincing, they started to bicker less whenever something like this happened.

Now, back onto the topic of heroes and demon lords. It’d be safe to assume they’d be at least on the level of an evil lord, demons whose levels range in the 80s, and are likely far stronger. Thus, even if my level is capped at 100, my first priority is to understand all of my abilities and how they’ve changed before attempting to obtain more power.

So far, from my experiments over the past two weeks, I’ve understood a few things.

First, my undead summons can be permanent as long as I use a corpse to summon it. However, there seems to be a limit on the types of undead I can summon with different corpses, such as horned rabbit corpses being able to summon low level undeads but not middle level undeads, while black spider corpses are able to summon middle level undeads but not high level undeads. Perhaps this has something to do with the level cap and the relative strength of the corpse?

Second, naming a temporary summon has a chance of evolving it and will turn it into a permanent summon with a weak ego imbued into it. I’ve tested this with a death knight summoned without a corpse, and it evolved into a permanent stronger version of itself, which was never seen before in Yggdrasil but seems to be around level 55, after taking up 30 percent of my magicules. However, evolution is not guaranteed as it sometimes just stays the same. If only Rou was present, then I could have him identify the monster using his skill.

Third, if one is attacked while being summoned by Ainz Ooal Gown - Lord of Nazarick, they suffer no damage and the summoned simply gets cancelled. Albedo was a little shocked when I told I was going to summon her but then nothing happened for the next half hour, saying “ How could you keep me in anticipation like that?! ”

Fourth, I seemed to have obtained a new skill that never existed in Yggdrasil called Overlord Haki, which has the basic effect of buffing the overall power of allies, increasing my own strength by a decent amount, and overwhelming opponents with an unknown pressure.

Fifth, after casting every single spell I have multiple times over the course of five days, I concluded that most of my spells remained relatively the same but some have changed to better suit the rules of this world as it seems. One such example is that resurrection magic no longer works after a period of time even if the corpse had not decomposed.

Sixth, I can not name any of Nazarick’s NPCs likely due to them already having a name. On the topic of names, weaker beings seem to be unable to name stronger ones as I tested by having a lich attempt to name a doom lord. Any attempt to do so would result in the weaker being’s magicules exhausted and then they would eventually die. If the two beings are relatively equal, naming is possible, but the namer would tank a drastic decrease in power as Rigurd said, while the named would not obtain much power at all.

Seventh, and the last thing I tested in the past two weeks, was my unique skills. Ruler of Death turned out to be what I assumed, but Dark Seeker was far more interesting. It allows me to create my own spells using the inherent systems of this world, which I seem to have an innate understanding of. The first spell, and the only spell I created so far, was a spell that will cause necrosis on the target, spread like fire, and turn the target into undead if they die to it. I decided to name this spell Necrotic Flames.

“Rigurd,” I called out to him as he was talking to hobgoblins, greater demons, undead, and other monsters about the construction of new houses. While he isn’t the most proficient in it, he gained enough understanding to lead projects like this. “Has Rou returned?”

“My apologies, Lord Momonga. Rou has not been seen by anyone recently. The last time I saw him was when he invited me out to hunt.”

“It’s fine. Just let him know I need to see him once he returns.”

“Lord Momonga, may I inquire about your relationship to the hobgoblin Rou?” Demiurge asked.

“Something like a friend,” I carelessly replied, not realizing the implications this would have down the line.

“A friend? I see… I see! To think you would humble yourself to call something like a hobgoblin your friend to achieve your goals!”

“Umu!” I agreed with whatever false assumption Demiurge just made in his head.

But, seriously though, where was Rou?

**********

“Rou! You're being far too careless!” The armored goblin, now dubbed Gobkichi and also a hobgoblin, screamed at me as I charged forward into the swarm of giant red ants.

Was this really carelessness? Not really. When comparing my power with the ants, I was superior in every aspect. Defense, strength, regeneration, resistances, and everything really. The only part of me that was inferior was the size, but being bigger doesn't always mean stronger.

Aiming for the soft joint between the head and the thorax, I beheaded the ant in a single slice, then another, and another one using the tail of a blade tiger.

In a matter of minutes, thirteen ants were dead, leaving only five left in the swarm, which the rest of my team took care of.

“We’re in a dungeon!” Gobkichi immediately reprimanded me. “How could you just disregard formation and recklessly charge in!?”

Currently, we’re in a giant red ant’s nest, a naturally-formed dungeon. Out of the three types of dungeons—which includes natural dungeons, man-made dungeons, and dungeons of gods—this type of dungeon was the safest due to the low range of difficulty and the predictable nature of the monsters that appear in it. Often, the dungeon's monsters aren’t much stronger than the surrounding monsters and the type of monster in it can be predicted by the appearance of the entrance, making it by far the safest type. However, dungeons are still dungeons nonetheless and dungeons are dangerous, so Gobkichi’s concern is valid.

“I’ll be more careful once more powerful monsters appear,” I waved aside his concern.

“Rou, if you can’t cooperate. How do we expect us to trust you with our backs when real danger strikes?”

Gobkichi, the most reasonable and mature of the group likely due to his age, created a sound argument. Even though he was summoned days ago, it appears that his age is not the same as his time of summoning. In fact, I, who was twenty-five years old, am the older one since goblins can not live past the age of twenty but I was still being more hot-headed. If anything, Gobkichi seems like an overly concerned friend right now.

“Yes…” I agreed with a hint of reluctance. Perhaps I was too rash. “I’ll keep in mind the formation.”

The formation, as I mentioned and as Gobkichi demanded, composed of Gobkichi as the vanguard due to being the most sturdy and the only one with real armor, me and Gobta behind the vanguard to finish the monster as Gobkichi grab their attention, and Gobmi as the rear guard who would ensure no traps surprise us as well as to delay any enemies that Gobkichi missed.

While I argued I could be an vanguard just as well as Gobkichi due to my newly required skills—Enhanced Leg Strength from an odd deer creature that was also a cow, Hard Caraprice from the giant red ant, and Voice Cannon from a blade tiger—Gobkichi was against it due to my, how should I put it, recklessness as I’ve already demonstrated. If I were to activate all of my defensive skills at once, which included Hard Caraprice, Thick Hide, Magic Hide, Shell Defense, and the two regeneration skills I have, I would look like an extra hairy humanoid tarantula, which looked “extremely ugly and as hideous as the diarrhea I had last morning” as Gobta put it. Of course, I smacked him for it.

“So when are we going to be done…” Gobta complained, looking at Gobkichi.

In turn, Gobkichi looked at me since I was the one who started the hunt.

“We’ll be done after we conquer this dungeon.”

And after that, I’ll be exploring the sealed cave that Rigurd warned me to not go near. He said something about a storm dragon being in there, but it was sealed, so it didn’t really matter. However, what did matter was that the monsters in there were likely stronger than the ones in this ant nest, making it a more suitable place for me to grow stronger and evolve. Only a few dozen more levels to go until I can evolve.

Also, while not exactly noteworthy, I obtained Corrosive Acid and Create Low Tier Insects from the ant queen.

Chapter 10: Slime Troubles I

Chapter Text

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Hydraulic Propulsion successfully acquired>

Weeeeeeeee! Now, what am I doing, you ask again?

Splash!

Recently, I came across this body of water. At first, it was surprising to feel my body sinking, but as I started to calm down, I realized it was just water. Then, a brilliant idea came into my mind!

Splash!

By absorbing the water into my stomach using Predator, I could release the water at a high speed to create a jet propulsion effect. I’m not exactly a rocket scientist, but I dare say I am a rocket slime-cientist.

Splash!

My bad… that wasn’t a good joke, but in the three months… Great Sage, it’s been three months, right?

<Confirmed: It has been 87 days since your birth>

In the roughly three months I’ve been alive, it’s been extremely boring, doing nothing but eating rocks, grass, and maybe even ores. It’s hard to tell what I’m eating when I can’t see.

Splash!

<Confirmed: The content in your stomach consists of iron, magic ore, gold, hipokute grass, dirt, water, copper, stone, and an insignificant amount of other minerals>

Yeah, that about does it. Whenever I need something answered, Great Sage is always here.

Great Sage, you’ll always be here, right?

<...>

And again, Great Sage doesn’t respond. Any attempt to initiate a conversation ends in dead silence. In a way, it kind of feels like a search engine.

Splash!

Anyways, what should I do once I get out of this cave? There’s no way I’m the only person in this world, right? Rather, the only monster in this world since I haven’t encountered a single other living being yet.

Once I leave, I’ll take the standard adventurer route! Go into a guild. Start off as the lowest rank adventurer and then work my way up by killing some slimes.

Splash!

Nevermind, I’m a slime myself, so maybe I’ll kill some goblins instead. Actually, would I even be allowed into a human town with this appearance? Maybe I Should befriend the goblins and slimes I see. If they’re as smart as I am, I could make some new friends.

Plop!

Ouch! Or so I’m supposed to feel whenever I crash into a solid wall. Maybe it’s because I’m a slime, but I don’t really feel any pain.

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Water Current Motion successfully acquired>

“Little one…”

A deep voice came from the wall I crashed into. Maybe I crashed into a person instead? If I really did, I apologize.

“Apology accepted.”

You kind of sound like a bald uncle.

“Hey! That’s the second time I’ve been called that. I will not let that pass! Normally, I would eradicate you on the spot, but I’m feeling generous today since you’re someone new I could converse with!”

Putting aside your preposterous attitude, who are you? It’s not like it matters since I can’t see you, but it’s basic courtesy to ask.

“I’ll teach you how to see, but promise to not be afraid when you see me.”

Sure, whatever you want. Not like I’d be afraid of a balding uncle with a bear belly who sounds like he could barely run a mile.

“Anyways, what you want to do is…”

***

“You got it?”

Yeah, that sounds really simple.

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Magic Perception successfully acquired>

Woah… Everything looks so clear, so rocky, so big, So… So… So beautiful!

Thank you! I focused my attention to meet the balding uncle, and when I saw him, I found a full-blown giant dragon.

Oh… Heheh… Thank you, I think I’ll take my leave now.

“Stop! You made a promise, didn’t you. Plus, I can’t harm you when I’m trapped in this prison.”

Prison? Upon closer inspection, it seems that there is a layer of magicules around him. How did anyone manage to seal such a massive dragon? If this was the case, was he just really lonely since he couldn’t talk to anyone?

“Now, it’s time for some introductions. I AM VELDORA! THE STORM DRAGON! YOU SHOULD BE GRATEFUL FOR BEING IN MY- Hey, don’t shout into my ear while I’m speaking”

Then, all of sudden, it seems like the dragon named Veldora started to speak to himself for some reason. Does he have schizophrenia?

“No, I do not have any illness.”

That was directed at me, but afterwards, Veldora’s attention returned to someone else.

“Anyways, I’m meeting someone new for the first time, can’t you just let me do my thing.”

“No, really. Please? You sleep 20 hours a day. Do you really need to sleep more?”

“I am not calling you lazy, but since you sleep so much, I don’t have much of a conversation partner.”

Hey, Veldora, who are you talking to? I asked out of curiosity. It seemed odd to hear that Veldora was talking to himself.

“I’m talking to a friend of mine. Give me a second.”

<Confirmed: Individual Veldora is communicating to an individual with the Common Skill - Telepathy>

Really? Telepathy? Could I do something similar? If I could analyze the information around me using magicules, couldn't I do the same thing in reverse?

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Telepathy successfully acquired>

“Why don’t you come out and greet him instead of sleeping all day? He seems to be intelligent just like him. He could even be similar to you.”

After that line, a boulder in the distance started to shift every so slightly, revealing a thin white arm behind it. As the gap grew bigger and bigger, more of the person’s figure was revealed.

When their figure was fully revealed, it was then I came to realize that they were a spider, a white spider that almost looks like a ghost almost three times my size. Great Sage, how big is that spider?

<Confirmed: The monster in front of you is roughly 1.5 meters tall.>

1.5 meters?! Isn’t that as big as a fully grown human?! If such a spider existed in real life, it would surely kill anyone with arachnophobia in an instant. Luckily, it seems to be passive considering how Veldora described them.

“Hey.. ho-how are you?” A feminine voice appeared in my head. It was that of a woman that just woke up after a long day of work or a woman that didn’t have much social skills. To think such a menacing spider would have such a cutesy voice.

“Pft ! He called you menacing,” Veldora snickered.

I’m doing just fine! I’m just a slime! I spoke to the white spider using my newly acquired telepathy skill. It felt odd speaking to someone using just my mind and not my mouth, but it’s the small things like these that really makes this another world.

“Otherworlder?”

I do possess memories of my past life if that’s what you mean.

“Oooooh!” The spider’s eight red eyes seem to light up as if it was a human crying in joy. “Japan?”

Oddly, the spider spoke in short phrases, using single words instead of full sentences. Rather than being shut, doesn’t she just feel like a neet with how Veldora said she slept 20 hours a day inside a small, or so I think it’s quite tiny as there’s not much to be seen from the outside, cave without going outside.

Yeah, I’m from Japan.

“Oooooooh!!!” The spider exclaimed in excitement. “Me. Shiraori. You?”

Perhaps she had some sort of speech impediment in her old world and her way of speaking simply carried over? As I was thinking about this, Veldora started to make a really funny face, which likely confirmed that my conjunction was false and she probably just lacked social interactions.

Since this is a new world, I decided to ditch my old name. After all, what spells a greater sense of adventure than making up a great name? But what name should I make for myself?

“This one was born recently. He does not have a name,” Veldora interjected. “As a note, you should not give out names willy-nilly. In this world, naming a monster can make you weaker and potentially endanger yourself.”

Really? Was I about to off myself after three months of being born by naming myself.

<Negative: Self-naming has no effect unless it is acknowledged by many>

Ooooh, I see! Thank you, Great Sage.

“Hey, stop talking to your skill. I was about to explain it.”

I guess from his perspective, I would seem weird as well. Like how he was talking to Shiraori and I was unable to hear Shiraori, Veldora probably couldn’t hear my skill.

“Ahem! Anyways, I shall take on the burden of naming you! BE GRATEFUL THAT YOU, A NEWLY BORN SLIME-”

Veldora suddenly stopped in the middle of his speech just like before, almost as if he was cut off by someone else. This time, and just like the last, it was likely that Veldora was interpreted by Shiraori. If that’s the case, I should make note that Shiraori doesn’t like loud noises.

“Mhm?!”

“You really want that? To be called this great Veldora’s friend isn’t something I could just hand out like free candy.”

“Fine…”

“Fine! You do make a good point. Now, how do you like the sound of becoming friends?” Veldora proposed.

Sure! It’d be lonely to be here without anyone else.

“Very well, I shall bestow you the name Rimuru Tempest.”

<Confirmed: Blessing - Storm Dragon’s Grace successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Slime has been named Rimuru Tempest>

<Confirmed: Level limit exceeded>

That’s a lot of censorship. What did I do in my past life to have all of my information censored like this? Like, whose interest do I have and whose favor do I have?

A rare species? That sounds cool, so I’ll just go with that.

<Confirmed: Rimuru Tempest has successfully evolved into High Slime (Rare Species)>

Really? That was all? After all that flashy fireworks, I didn’t get anything except becoming a rare species?

Veldora, what’s a rare species?

“What did you become? You didn’t change in the slightest… or maybe you did. I can’t tell from inside my barrier.”

I became a high slime. What’s that?

“Hmm…”

Veldora placed his two sausage fingers on his dragon chin, mimicking the pose of thinking like a human world.

“Kehehe… heh heh heh… KEHAHAHA! I have no idea. I feel like I’ve seen it before, but that was so long ago that I’ve forgotten.”

All that build-up… and all I get is no new information. Then, Great Sage, do you know anything about a high slime?

<Confirmed: High Slime (Rare Species) is a superior species of the species Slime>

So, you don’t know anything either. What a shame, but I’ll just figure it out as I go.

“Hey, hey, I do know something about it."

Why didn't you say so before?

Hmph! Veldora pouted while crossing his arms. “I was about to get to it. Alright, listen up. In the past, there existed a race of high humans, and currently, though I’m not sure if they’ve gone extinct, there also exist high elves. In both cases, the high prefix in their name indicates a longer lifespan, greater soul power, and greater potential for growth.”

Ooooh! I didn’t understand any of that except for the lifespan part, which I’m not even sure matters for me since I don’t believe slimes have a lifespan.

<Confirmed: Slimes are able to live indefinitely as long as there is a supply of magicules>

Basically this just means all I got out of that was just being able to grow faster.

Sigh… I should’ve become a metal slime instead.

Moving onto a different topic since I don’t want to regret my life choices any more, Veldora, how did you get sealed?

“Well, you see, it was three hundred years ago. I was destroying the city of some vampire girl-”

Oi, that’s pretty mean. I guess you do deserve to be sealed after all.

“Continuing on. Because I was destroying a city, a masked hero came-”

“No, I was not ogling, and both of you, stop interpreting me.”

“Now, a masked hero came after I was destroying…”

**********

The door came crashing down as I sat in my office sorting through paperwork. It was the fourth time today and the total number of times likely numbered in the hundreds by now. Every time he came in, he came in with the same request every time, and every time, I replied the same way.

“Again, Rou, before you say anything, I do not permit your entry into the sealed cave,” I reprimanded Rou as I laid down the paperwork in my hands.

At first, I was slightly thankful that Rou’s complaints took my mind off the trivial and boring paperwork, which was either requests for mundane tasks like the public toilet stinking too much or extreme tasks like requests to form a team to search for beings similar to me. I didn’t know who made these requests since they were all anonymous, but that latter request was almost certainly from someone in Nazarick. Nonetheless, as Rou’s antics repeated daily, it became annoying rather than the breather it was. Perhaps I should take a vacation or something by acting as an adventurer after everything calms down.

“Nah, I’m not asking this time,” Rou slammed his hand on the table. He was fully decked out with the new equipment crafted by the blacksmiths of Nazarick. He carried around the Desolate Halberd—a weapon that can be imbued with the various elemental abilities that Rou has—and a set of grey leather armor made from the skin of mountain basilisks, a subspecies of basilisks in Yggdrasil that lived near the bottoms of ravines and had a decently high physical resistance for its level. “I’m just letting you know that I’m going.”

Sigh. His stubbornness and lack of communication is just like Luci★Fer’s.

“Alright, at least carry this scroll of teleportation.”

Rou looked at the scroll curiously, questioning, “How do I use this?”

“Just imbue your mana into it and it’ll activate.”

“Alright, thanks.”

With those final words, Rou decided to finally leave… before reentering the room to have one final say.

“Momonga, if you need anything, just say it,” Rou commented, staring at the documents in my hands before disappearing. He could be suggesting to help with the paperwork, but at the moment, there’s really no need. After a few dozen minutes, I’ll be done.

Despite all my complaining, the work I have is relatively minimal compared to Albedo and Demiurge’s daily tasks. As a matter of fact, I spend over a third of the day just walking around and checking on things. If only there was some form of entertainment in this world, which I’m sure there are.

“Message Sebas. Send a group of eight edge assassins to protect Rou. He is entering the sealed cave.”

“I will select the finest guards, Lord Momonga.”

Though I could send some stronger guards, there were drawbacks to each of them. The stronger POP monsters lacked stealth, so they were more easily discovered. If they were found by Rou, it’d be fine, but he would very likely be discontent with the overprotection, and if they were discovered by onlookers, it eliminates the purpose of hidden guards altogether. On the other hand, stronger mercenaries such as the hanzos and the NPCs were not expendable and I would like to not run the risk of sacrificing them in the case that someone strong does appear.

In the scenario that a strong individual, like the supposedly sealed storm dragon, does engage with Rou, it’s very safe to assume that Rou could make it out safely with his newfound strength. Compared to the time when he struggled against a heavy skeleton warrior, Rou’s strength seemed to rest comfortably in the early 40s since he was able to defeat a death knight in his most recent sparring. In the said spar, he likely acquired the death knight’s ability called Last One Standing, so he should be able to survive at the very least.

Oh! That marks the last of the paperwork.

Now, onto the next task of checking in with the team monitoring that masked majin. The last time I checked, he was roaming a desert, likely searching for something.

“Message Demiurge. Any updates with the majin named Gelmud?”

“Lord Momonga, there has been no significant changes in his movement. However, we discovered a connection between him and a demon lord called Clayman. Shall I send a team to investigate them?”
“Proceed with the caution that they might be as strong as a World Enemy and prioritize not exposing ourselves rather than gathering information.”

“Thank you, Lord Momonga. Then, would you like updates about the lizardmen?”

“Do explain the current situation.”

“A messenger was sent to explain their two choices: to submit or to be subjugated. So far, it seems that they are unwilling to submit.”
“Umu.”

“Is that anything else, Lord Momonga?”

“I’m sure you know this, but make absolutely sure that when subjugating the lizardmen, ensure that it appears as a natural conflict between monsters and can not be traced back to us.”

“Of course! Your word is my command.”

What a shame… If possible, I wanted to expand our forces a little more, but it seems that it isn’t possible at the moment. If I or any of the higher leveled NPCs showed up, it was very likely that the lizardmen would submit due to the survival of the fittest rule. However, this only meant that if someone stronger showed up, the lizardmen would be the first to betray us.

Sigh … I’m going to go take a walk real quick.

Walking out the office room, I couldn’t help but admire yet again the overbearing decorations in the hallways. It was nowhere comparable to that of the throne room in Nazarick, but it was still a bit too much for someone who used to be a salaryman in the past.

By now, the village started to resemble a rural or medieval town. If possible, I wanted to keep this style and not create full-on industrial cities to protect the environment. After all, it’d be such a shame to let such beautiful scenery die out like the big corporations did back in my world.

“Good afternoon, Lord Momonga!” Rigur, the second son of Rigurd, shouted.

Out of the hobgoblins, he was the fifth strongest, falling behind only his father, Rou, Gobkichi, and Gobta. In terms of Yggdrasil levels, he seems to be in the range of early 20s, while his Gobkichi was in the early 30s after his evolution.

“Pay me no mind,” I waved him off. “I’m just taking a walk.”

“Yoooo, Momonga!” A snob-faced hobgoblin called from a distance. “Did you accept my suggestion to create a unisex bath at the hot spring?”

It was Gobta, the only hobgoblin other than Rou to address me so casually. I didn’t mind it in any particular sense and he seemed to only do it when nobody from Nazarick was around, so there was really no harm. In fact, it was rather preferable to be treated as a normal person.

“Lord Momonga, I apologize for his attitude!” Rigurd placed his hand on Gobta, forcing him to bow.

“Haha, I don’t mind. And, Gobta, that was rejected.”
“See, Rigur, you’re too rigid.”

“Now, you two, how’s the training with Cocytus?”

Currently, Cocytus’ subordinate is training all of the hobgoblins, while Cocytus himself picked out a few promising ones to give personal training to. In total, Cocytus selected the two in front of me and two other goblins named Gobwa and Gob’emon. I suggested Rigurd and his first son, but Rigurd’s style was closer to a monk’s and therefore should instead be trained by Sebas instead, while his first son, Rigur I, simply wasn’t strong enough to endure the training.

“Erm… It’s been…”

Gobta was very clearly slacking off as shown by his hesitation to answer. Despite his laziness and foolishness, he was surprisingly honest.

“How about this? If you can beat Rou, I will give you a weapon like I did Rou.”

“Mhmmm… How about Gobkichi instead?”

“Sure.”

I was going to give them all a weapon eventually once Cocytus said they were ready, but it’s never bad to give the lazy ones a motivator.

“Thank you, Momonga!”

I waved them goodbye as I walked towards the warehouse containing the corpses of the monsters we killed for food. Out of concern for the environment, I tasked Demiurge to source the corpses domestically, whether it be from a farm or inside of Nazarick. Though I’m not sure what monster exactly these corpses came from, I was glad that I had a good source to at least expend my uses on Create Middle Tier Undead everyday.

From my experiments, I found out that as long as the skull was present, it was equivalent to summoning with the whole body. This meant that the other body parts could be used as food, fertilizers, medicines, and much more.

“Create Middle Tier Undead. Gate. All of you, go inside and wait for further commands.”

As I commanded them, the death knights walked inside the Gate into a temporary location to house all of the summoned undeads. When the time comes and my strength inevitably gets exposed, I’ll just have them roam around on the surface to farm, build, and perform other tasks that require labor.

After all, if I were to reveal myself, it would be best to fully showcase my power to prevent any funny ideas another faction may have, and if I were to stay hidden, it’s best to stay as hidden as I could.

Man… This really feels like I’m back being a low-leveled player being carried by Touch Me except I’m the one doing the carrying. Back then, we would secretly scurry around the large guilds and try our best to help out the heteromorph players. We even organized the raid on Nazarick in secret and PKed any players that tried to even get close to the dungeon before we were fully prepared.

Haha … Such fun times I had.

Lastly, now that the important tasks are done, it’s time for my daily slime bath. It was wonderful how these little slimy creatures were able to clean every nook and cranny of my skeletal body. Luckily, they were not intelligent like Solution or else it would feel extremely weird.

In the recently constructed hot spring, there was a section meant only for me. However, one time, Gobta sneaked in and quickly regretted it. Another time, Rou joined me and also regretted it. It’s a shame they’re missing out on such a great feeling, but I guess slimes just weren’t for the living.

Aaah~ “That’s life,” I let out a breath as I lowered myself into the spring. “Now, what to do next?”

Chapter 11: Slime Troubles II

Notes:

Sorry if you received an update half an hour prior. I accidently posted the chapter without giving a final spellcheck/revision.

Chapter Text

“Chieftain! The skeleton we killed was carrying a letter!” A green lizardman donning an iron spear and leather armor spoke up.

“Bring it over,” I gestured towards the lizardman who was part of the hunting squad.

Upon receiving the letter, I silently read its contents.

“Greetings lizardmen of the marshes, you are given two choices at the moment to either become subservient to the sender of this letter or to be massacred. The chieftain alone is to come to the location marked on the map accompanying this letter.”

On the backside of the letter, there was a map of the Great Jura Forest and a red “x” mark next to the marshes. To my knowledge, there was no known species that resides in this area, so the sender likely wanted to hide his affiliation.

“Should you not arrive by tomorrow noon, a force will be sent to subjugate every lizardman in the forest ten days from now.”

That was the last of the letter. It was the first time that such a bold provocation was ever seen in my life. It was odd that their messenger was an undead, much less an undead that was easily killed by a hunting squad. Even when I was given a similar offer by the ogres in my younger years, they appeared personally to send the request as a way to show some respect.

From this, it could be safely assumed that necromancy is among their abilities, but their strength is hard to gauge. Possibly, it could be that they lack physical strength, but such an assumption is extremely presumptuous. If a mistake is made, I could very well be leading us to our doom.

“Guard captain,” I called out to my daughter who was standing next to me. Subsequently, I handed her the letter. “What are your thoughts?”

In my older years, age has caught up to me and caused decision fatigue. Had I been younger, I would’ve very readily rejected the submission offer and fought till my last breath just like my foolish son. However, now, with a whole tribe to lead, I could no longer be so selfish.

“If the sender of the letter is stronger than us, I say we should submit.”

“Right, and that’s the problem. We have no idea how strong they are.”

“Father! I say we fight,” my son shouted from across the room. “They must be weak if they aren’t willing to show themselves!”

“Yeah!” His squad affirmed my son’s actions.

From the atmosphere, it seems that my people don't want to submit to an unknown master. Oh, how they remind me of my younger years.

Though foolish, I suppose it is better than indecision. If only I was given more time, I could send someone to investigate the sender and their strength, but at the moment, I must do what I must.

“My son, send a message to every lizardman tribe that we must band together to face the oncoming threat.”

“Of course! It is a task suited only for the strongest warrior!”

For the first time in years, I need to wield the Vortex Spear once again. If the god who blessed me is watched, I pray my tribe makes it out of this alive and well.

**********

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Gravity Flight successfully acquired>

I’ve eaten a bat before, but this one was extraordinarily big. It doesn’t taste much different from a typical bat, which tastes like chicken but tougher. It would make a good snack to go with booze.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Ultrasonic Waves successfully acquired>

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Vampirism successfully acquired>

Surprisingly, the giant bat had a lot of skills. Most of the new ones seem obvious in the way they’re used. In fact, if my theory proves right, then Vampirism combined with Self-Body Fluid Property Manipulation should mean I can now regenerate as long as there is a source of water. Doesn’t this make me effectively immortal if I’m in a humid area?

After some searching around, I found this ankylosaurus-looking monster sleeping in the open. It had magnificent scales, a massive tail club, and two whiskers that also seem to serve as clubs. Moreover, it had a short horn.

According to Akashic Records, this monster is a tempest drake, making this monster the first dragon I’ve encountered. If the name proves right, it should be able to manipulate the element of storm much like the storm dragon that was sealed here.

To test out a new combo, I activated Self Ignition from barghest, Bear Strength from giant beat, Sharp Blades from blade tiger, Death Aura from death knight, and lastly, Pyrokinesis from a red shiny rock on the ground to concentrate the flames from Self Ignition onto the halberd and increase its output.

In an instant, a tattoo-like pattern appeared on my body as I streamlined the flames produced by my body onto the halberd in the most efficient method. Thus, the flames on the halberd turned white. After a while, the halberd, which Momonga stated to have the ability to absorb natural elements and amplify it, started to release its own flame, making the flame and the blade itself turn blue. It was odd how the blade managed to not melt or soften in a heat this intense, but I suppose that can be chalked up to Momonga’s craftsmanship abilities.

Does this hurt? Of course it does, but Pain Resistance negates the pain to some extent, while Ultraspeed Regeneration and Fire Resistance obtained from the barghest makes the damage nonexistent.

Surprisingly, the armored drake was beheaded in a single strike. The tough-looking scales were not only sliced through, but it melted like butter before even coming in contact with the blade.

“What a shame,” I murmured to myself. If only there was a monster stronger, then I likely would have reached level 100 far faster. At the moment, I am only level 98. I was relatively close, but those last two levels were disgustingly hard to gap.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Body Armor successfully acquired>

After running through a golden spider, a black snake, and another giant bat, I reached level 100. I obtained the skills Sticky Thread, Steel Thread, Golden Thread, and Poison Breath from these monsters. It was disappointing how these last few levels were increased by a grind instead of fighting strong boss-level monsters, but there really isn't much to do. Maybe I should raid that ogre village I found earlier?

Nah, no point. Apparently, according to Rigurd, after a hobgoblin evolves, they would become an ogre themselves, and according to Rigurd again, ogres, on average, are weaker than a knight spider, which is weaker than a tempest drake. If that was really the case, then I would not level up much even after eating everyone from their village. Maybe, just maybe, I could subjugate them to gain some useful subordinates?

Like my last rank up, it occurred when I was sleeping.

<Confirmed: Level limit exceeded>

For some reason, my instinct was warning me to not pick the gibbering mouther no matter what even if it was a new species. The word “gibbering” indicates that I would become unintelligent. Moreover, a new species does not always mean strong. If anything, it could be weaker than the other options.

Putting aside that choice, I assume that half chaos oni would be the stronger of the two. However, should I really be getting so strong so fast? There was no point in getting so strong if it meant that my Devourer ability would be limited. After all, the rate at which I absorb new abilities decreases the stronger I am and the rate I level up would likely also decrease.

Therefore, I should wait until the next rank up or even the one after that to pick the strongest option. This means that the best choice is…

<Confirmed: Rou has successfully evolved into Black Ogre (Rare Species)>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Black Ogre’s Strength successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Enhanced Leg Strength, Intrinsic Skill - Charge, and Intrinsic Skill - Bear Strength has successfully merged into Intrinsic Skill - Black Ogre’s Strength>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Magic Hide, Intrinsic Skill - Thick Hide, Intrinsic Skill - Shell Defense, Intrinsic Skill - Hard Carapace, Intrinsic Skill - Sharp Blades, and Intrinsic Skill - Body Armor, successfully evolved into Intrinsic Skill - Black Ogre’s Steel Body>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Ultra Smell, Intrinsic Skill - Echolocation, Intrinsic Skill - Heat Source Perception, Intrinsic Skill - Magic Perception, Intrinsic Skill - Leadership, Intrinsic Skill - Thought Communication, and Intrinsic Skill - Ultrasonic Waves successfully evolved into Intrinsic Skill - Black Ogre’s Enhanced Senses>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Tireless, Intrinsic Skill - Improved Digestion, Intrinsic Skill - Bone Union, Intrinsic Skill - Self-Body Fluid, Intrinsic Skill - Self Regeneration, Intrinsic Skill - Self-Body Fluid Property Manipulation, Intrinsic Skill - Last One Standing, Intrinsic Skill - Corrosive Acid, Intrinsic Skill - Venomous Fangs, Intrinsic Skill - Poisonous Breath, Intrinsic Skill - Paralyzing Breath, Intrinsic Skill - Vampirism, Intrinsic Skill - Self-Ignition, and Intrinsic Skill - Anaerobic has successfully evolved into Intrinsic Skill - Black Ogre’s Undying Body>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Voice Cannon, Intrinsic Skill - Coercion, and Intrinsic Skill - Death Aura has successfully evolved into Extra Skill - Demise Haki>

***

That was the first time I woke up with a headache. All of those messages played for a dozen or so minutes before finally ending.

Anyways, just like when I became a hobgoblin, I felt like I had overwhelming strength, almost as if I could do anything. Last time, it might’ve just been the adrenaline from ranking up, but now, I truly felt strong. However insignificant I might be in the grand scheme of things, in this forest at the very least, I was one of the strongest. Perhaps, it might be time to ask one of the Floor Guardians, or so Momonga said that’s what their titles were, for a proper fight.

Onto the physical features. Not only did my body grow more than a meter in height, I had two black horns protruding out from my head and my hair turned gray, almost silvery. Then, there was also the red tattoo that spread across my whole body, reaching from head to toe. Least to say, I was no longer a hobgoblin.

Even my equipment had evolved alongside me. My halberd grew to match my newfound size, while my leather armor similarly grew in size, but that was likely attributed to the size-changing function the armor already had. The most notable changes was how the leather armor gained some red highlights, the grey color it once had became darker, and there was a whole new red waist cape. It was certainly more fashionable than before.

The strangest thing of all was that a new spell just popped into my head. It was called the All-Ending Demise. It certainly sounds like a powerful spell, and upon using it, it turned everything around me in a one meter radius into absolute nothingness, including the ground I was sitting on.

Never using this again unless I’m in a desperate situation since it would make my food disappear with everything else.

Now, it’s time to test out my other new powers.

Using the newly found Intrinsic Skill - Black Ogre’s Enhanced Senses, I searched for the most powerful magical energy present. While magicules aren't everything there is to strength, it is a pretty decent indicator of it.

Compared to my old capabilities, I was able to extend my detection abilities for around half a mile unlike my old record of a few meters. If I shortened the range, I could almost predict future moves. In fact, I could actually predict the future using Akashic Records now since it seems that my processing abilities increased with the rank up.

However, I likely won’t be relying on this ability too much since, in my past life, ESPers with precognitions became too confident and often died to attacks they didn’t see. Even if their ability was more powerful and could foresee everything, any changes they do would cause a change in the battle, making it difficult to rely on the old prediction.

Now, let’s head off to where this supposed storm dragon is to gauge his strength.

**********

“My pack!” A large direwolf with a scar on his face shouted to the other direwolves. “Today, Veldora’s presence has disappeared, and so, we shall expand our territory.”

“Father!” I, the son of the pack leader, called out to him. “I suggest staying within our boundaries. Our pack members keep disappearing. It is far too risky.”

“ HA! They were just weaklings bound to die. First, we will conquer the goblin villages.”

My father, who is the strongest of the pack, has gotten overconfident with his recent victories. Because the stronger monsters had entered hibernation and were mysteriously dwindling in number, he suddenly gained the confidence and is now seeking to make the direwolves the strongest species in the forest. If only I was stronger, then I could overthrow him and lead our pack onto a more prosperous path.

Not knowing what to respond with, I conceded with a weak whimper. It was a pathetic show of weakness, but the weak die and the strong rules.

Following my father’s lead through the plains and into the forests, all of the direwolves marched together, heading towards one of the goblin villages we know the location of. It was an arduous two day journey, but the cattledeers we hunted along the way made the trek bearable.

Upon arriving, all we found was an abandoned village. Maybe one of the goblins knew we were going to invade in advance and fled to another village?

Nonetheless, my father decided to continue his reckless expansion of territory by rampaging one village through another. His actions were only stopped upon spotting an beastly army consisting of barghests, direwolves, blade rabbits, and various other monsters.

“Father! This must be why the villages were empty! All of the goblins were killed or fled to a different village! We must retreat!”

“No!” He gave a firm rejection. “We will drive these monsters out of our territory!”

Such a foolish action, a decision that my father would not normally make. Even if these beasts were far weaker than we were, the fact that their numbers were triple, maybe even five times ours made them far more troublesome than if they simply just wanted to overtake our territory. Said large size must indicate a leader, likely a monster born with a unique skill since even monsters that typically don’t work together were coordinating to destroy the goblin villages. Disregarding the obvious numbers disadvantage, my father ordered all of us to charge in, and so, we did.

It was odd that my father, the calm minded and slightly arrogant individual, would order such a reckless charge. In usual circumstances, he would more than readily make a retreat, staying behind himself even to ensure all members of the pack made it out alive.

Even I, someone my father usually called a coward, charged in disregarding the disadvantages. It almost felt like all of my emotions were heightened to the limit and there was a fire burning in my head. Like the rest of the pack, I used my claws, fangs, and even body to destroy the body of these beasts. After days of traveling without rest, I was already exhausted. To put to work like this, I was not fighting in the most optimal way.

In my exhaustion, I allowed my whole body and fur to be smudged in their bloody flesh and smeared with their half oxidized blood. Half of my vision was covered by a blood splatter that fell right on my left eye.

In the heat of the situation, I could not care for anyone’s survival but mine. At the moment, all I could wish for was either the death of my father, a swift death, or the destruction of all of the monsters present.

Upon seeing a blade tiger, I soon realized that the last option was not possible, but such a realization had not occurred until much later. Much like what was happening to my father, I ignored the disparity between us and the blade tiger, continuing my charge as normal.

Even watching my own father die in front of me to the blade tiger, my recklessness was not fazed in the slightest.

It was only when my father, in his last breath, issued one final command to retreat did I regain my composure.

I realized that, with my newfound calmness, that I was far more reckless than my father. Though we were all entranced by a mysterious maddening effect, my father had regained his composure in his last breath to ensure the survival of the pack. However, the damages were done and the survivors numbered less than a dozen.

With blood running through my teeth, I repeated the command as the new alpha of the group, “Retreat!”

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Leadership successfully acquired>

As I ran away from the danger, I saw a more dreadful figure in the distance. It was a massive black knight, wielding a massive tower shield and a jagged short sword. It looked like an undead, but it didn’t make such sense that an undead would be in the center of all these beasts. Then, there was also the silhouette of a red, translucent figure floating above the knight. It was hard to make out what it was, but when I stared at it long enough, it induced the same irrational mental state I once had a few moments prior.

Both of these creatures were clearly not native to the Great Jura Forest, so could they be summoned by the monster’s grudges or even be demons. Whatever the case may be, I decided to not focus on them any longer on the off chance the same effect occurs again.

Running through the forest with the rest of my pack, it was nothing short of a miracle that we managed to make it out alive, but the challenges did not end there. If we returned to our original territory, we were likely to be driven out due to our decreased numbers, and if we decided to take up the goblin villages, other monsters or the monsters swarm might attack, causing us to move. Therefore, the best choice was to…

“As the new alpha, my first command is to ally ourselves with the lizardmen.”

Our only way to survive was to submit to the fit. While there were options like the tengu, gozus, or even the ogres, our difference in strength would make us closer to slaves rather than comrades. Therefore, we needed to pick a species with similar strength to us.

“Must we really submit?!” One of the direwolves shouted his concerns.

It was a reasonable concern. After all, to submit meant to place your fate in the hands of the stronger. It meant limiting yourself to the whims of the strong, so submission is usually done with careful consideration.

“Yes. I’ve heard that there was a lizardman known for his wisdom blessed by god. I’m sure the information we bring will warrant fair treatment.”

It was the first time I’ve given such a long-winded explanation, one that not even my father ever gave. When I was just a simple packmate, my father ruled with his strength and his decisions were made with careful consideration. He was truly an inspirational direwolf albeit a bit cocky at times. Now, without adequate strength or experience like my father once had, I need to make long explanations like these, almost as if I was convincing myself rather than my pack.

“Follow my lead!”

In a few days time, this would come to be the best decision I’ve made, but that time has yet to come.

Chapter 12: Slime Troubles III

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

“Shiro, Shiro, Shiraori!”

Fwoosh!

My new friend, Rimuru, has been pestering me for the past three hours. While, yes, I am thankful for the company, I feel like this guy talks too much. He’s been going on and on about his day, previous life, and even about what he wants to do once he gets out of here.

“What?”

Swisssssh!

“What do you want to do once you get out?”

What I want to do, huh? I guess, just like Rimuru, I want to make some friends, but in my past life, I didn’t really have many friends and I was totally fine with that. Maybe I should set my goal to just live a modest life then?

Sling!

To be honest, I felt like the life I was living before was just fine. I had Veldora, who was one of the loudest individuals I’ve ever known, to keep me company and my comfy little cobweb home. It was, honestly, a pretty good life even without any modern entertainment, so what would I want to do once I get out?

At times like these, it’s best to just be honest.

“Don’t know.”

“Really? Well, you see, I want to make some friends, become an adventurer, and live a good life. I want to create a world where I can just laze around and do what I want like I did in my past life. First, I would-”

Swish fwosssh!

Ah… there he goes again.

Did he inherit Veldora’s talkativeness or something when he ate Veldora?

Speaking of Veldora, I kind of miss him. Even though he was loud and obnoxious, he always had something interesting to talk about in the apparent thousands of years he’s lived. Then, in my free time, I would mess around with my Sticky String and Steel String abilities to make constructs, clothes, and other fun stuff. What’s even better was that, back when Veldora was around, Rimuru wasn’t nearly as talkative.

So, now, what was I doing again?

Wooosh~

Ah! I was trying to leave this cave since Veldora disappeared and Rimuru wanted to.

I’ve been travelling for two weeks now, or maybe three weeks.

Heh… I have no idea. There’s nothing fun to do here, so all I’ve had on my mind is just boredom. Any monster that does appear Rimuru takes care of. Even though we’re supposed to be born at the same time as I just found out and even have the same number of unique skills, why is he so much stronger than me?

Fuuuh-woooosh~

Huh? What’s this sound you’ve been hearing constantly? Well, let’s let Rimuru explain it.

“Can you stop playing with your yoyo!?” Rimuru shouted as loud as he could.

Yep, that’s right. I was playing with a yoyo. I made one using my skills and it turned out to be pretty fun.

“You… jealous. No arms,” I attempted to taunt him.

It wasn’t even a good one because Rimuru could just turn into a spider himself and then use a yoyo like I’m doing, so fine, I’m putting away my yoyo for now.

Also, I’ve found out that a phase spider, the species that I am, is apparently far smaller than the black spider that it evolved from and that the more common evolution is a knight spider. Therefore, 1.5 meters is as big as I’ll ever get.

It’s not like I’m complaining, and in fact, I’m actually grateful that this is the biggest I’ll be. It’s just… doesn’t this mean that my next evolution could become really big just like my previous evolution?

“Shiro, why not try becoming more humanoid? According to Veldora, humanoid insects called insectars apparently existed.”

Becoming something like an arachne would certainly be interesting, but again, according to Veldora, becoming an insectar is apparently something like the final evolutionary step of an insect?

Do I really want to put in all that effort when monsters exist and I could just befriend them instead of humans?

With humans as the topic, Rimuru seems to have some weird attachment to being human, or maybe I’m the weird one for not caring much about humans? Nonetheless, I’ll still try my best to support him in whatever human-befriending endeavors he might have.

“Sure,” I finally haphazardly reply to Rimuru’s question after a few minutes of pondering.

Then, Rimuru started talking some more, almost as if to fill the silence that is this empty cave.

“Did you know, that in my past life, I died to-”

This time, he was talking about the way he died. It was a really dramatic death compared to mine where I was ripped to shreds without even knowing how I died. It was like there was some greater power that just came without a knock and took me by surprise… just like the voice that appeared from behind me.

“Woah, that’s a new one.”

…the voice that appeared behind me.

wait… WHO'S BEHIND ME?

It wasn’t Rimuru’s childish voice nor was it Veldora’s obnoxious voice. It also couldn’t be the voice of any other monsters in this cave since they never initiate a conversation.

Therefore, that can mean only one thing. It’s either an intelligent monster, a human, or an otherworlder just like me.

Considering the fact that he said “that’s a new one,” it couldn’t be a monster since they don’t care for species. Then, it must be a human or an otherworlder.

Enthusiastically, I turned around, only to find…

A blue blade… halberd? No, that was a regular halberd blade heated to the point where it appeared blue?!

Go! Steel strings!

I sent out a web of steel strings like I was throwing out a fishing net in an attempt to catch the blade.

Unsurprisingly, and I should have expected this from the temperature of the blade, the string was immediately melted even before contact.

Uwaaah! What should I do? What do I do?!

Ah ! I should give myself more time first.

Activate! Accelerator!

This does not help at all. All I see is the blade slowly falling towards me as I realize that my doom is inevitable.

Off in the distance, I see Rimuru launching a water blade but that’s clearly not reaching before this blade slices me clean in half.

Then, almost as if a light bulb lit inside my head, I remembered I had the Spatial Motion skill. It’s been so long since I used it that I forgot it even existed.

Spaaaattiaaa-

Nevermind, I don’t have time to dramatically say it in my head, so I just activated it like any other skill.

Spatial Motion.

I teleported three meters behind Rimuru.

Am I hiding behind Rimuru?

Of course I am. All my skills are useless here.

I have no long ranged skills. Even if my mind and body can accelerate, it doesn’t mean my reflex can catch up to it, so if I try going in to bite him to use my toxin, he would likely slice me in half as I’m biting him.

Then, Rimuru’s water blade finally landed on the person who tried assaulting me from behind and it only resulted in a small cut.

Now that I’m outside the path of his attack, I realized that it wasn’t human. It was as black ogre with red tattoos and two horns. The ogre was twice my size, so he must be a giant in terms of human standards.

Focusing back on the fight, I activated my Night Shroud skill so as to not become an obstacle for Rimuru.

Over the course of two minutes, the two have been exchanging blows left and right. Rather, they were exchanging slices and water blades left and right.

As Rimuru fired a water blade, the ogre used his halberd to perfectly block the blade, evaporating it as it came into contact.

Since Rimuru realized water wasn’t working, he switched to using the various skills he absorbed from the monsters he ate.

Steel Thread? Of course it didn’t work. I had a higher proficiency in the skill than Rimuru and even mine didn’t work.

Paralyzing Breath? It worked momentarily. The ogre stopped moving for a few milliseconds and then returned to normal again.

Body Armor? Well, that’s a no shot too. Rimuru sent out a slime tentacle covered in body armor and the ogre didn’t even bother blocking that.

Eating him like he did the other monsters? Rimuru didn’t dare try that. If that ogre was unfazed by most of his attack and his halberd was burning at well over a thousand degrees, Rimuru would die before even getting close.

“Use spatial motion and get out of here,” Rimuru communicated with me using Thought Communication when, at the same time, the ogre fired a black spear almost as if he was tired of the constant chasing.

“And you?”

“I can escape one way or another.”

What is he talking about? As far as I know, he has no escape abilities.

Out of the two of us, I have the most suitable abilities for running away, so if anything, Rimuru should run away first while I distract him.

But there’s the problem. Because I’m only good at assassination and running away, I don’t have any decent offensive skills.

“Stop lying!” I let out the loudest voice and longest sentence I ever made the whole day. “Spatial Motion. Both of us.”

“Alright.”

To finish the fight, Rimuru let out a whole wall of water, covering the ogre’s vision, and flew towards me as fast as he could.

The moment he arrived, I used Spatial Motion to teleport somewhere, anywhere.

I didn’t know where I was teleporting to.

It was like the first time I used it when I hatched out of my egg to teleport to a random location. Luckily, I teleported right next to Veldora instead of a monster. This time, however, I wasn’t sure if I would be so lucky.

For all I know, I could be teleporting us into the jaws of an even stronger monster.

However, it was better than dying meaninglessly without even achieving any of our goals.

In almost an instant, my vision faded to white as the light from the teleportation blocked my eyes.

In the next instant, the light disappeared and we were surrounded by a darkness that hid all the details of the surroundings. There was no magiore to light our path nor was there any natural sunlight. Fortunately, my Darkvision skill allowed me to see and Rimuru likely should have no problem seeing since he never needed eyes to begin with.
Again, I realized once again how dangerous this world is.

At first, I had Veldora whose mere presence drove off the dangerous monster. Then, I had Rimuru who was strong enough to protect me.

But then what?

What if Rimuru isn’t around?

What if someone stronger appeared?

I need to get stronger, but how?

**********

As the wall of water disappeared, the slime and the white spider both disappeared.

That spider seemed to have a camouflage skill, but my skill Black Ogre’s Enhanced Senses could still detect it even when hidden. Then, was it a teleportation skill? After all, that spider did disappear and reappear when I tried to attack it from behind. Another possibility is that the spider moved so fast I couldn’t perceive it, but then there’s no reason for it to stay hidden motionless.

Tch! I kicked a pebble on the ground.

What a shame. Originally, I thought I found a new food on the menu and tried attacking the weird spider. Then, I changed my target to the slime once the spider started hiding since I thought it’d be troublesome to face two opponents at once, but clearly, I should’ve gone for the spider first.

Lesson learned. If someone’s hiding in a fight, kill them first if possible.

What. A. Massive. Fucking. Shame. Though. That slime also looked mighty delicious. Even though it looked like a regular slime, it used the abilities of various monsters within the cave.

Maybe he had a skill similar to my Devourer?

If that’s the case, I might be able to make up for the low absorption rate when I’m stronger by obtaining skills similar to Devourer.

Now, all I have is a hungry stomach and an unquenchable thirst to eat more.

At the very least, these shiny crystals and weird-looking grass makes great chew snacks. The ore has the texture of a really crumbly cookie with a hint of vanilla, while the grass is almost a one to one replica of honey.

Unfortunately, these rocks and grass don't seem to carry any special skill like the shiny rocks I ate before, but rather, I can feel my magicule and regenerative ability increase whenever I snack on them despite the lack of notification from the Voice of the World.

If this is unaccounted for by the system, what other skill could be outside it? The magic bullet that the masked bastard was using seemed to be inside the system since I absorbed that ability, or at least something similar to it since I only gained proficiency in the skill.

It's a shame that, despite my numerous attempts, I couldn't figure out how exactly to use that skill to the same degree as that masked bastard. At the moment, all I could manifest is a single magic bullet, and even then, it was far weaker than my Spear of Demise skill.

It was just a regular mana bullet without any special properties. Moreover, it tired me out far more than using my spells. It felt like…

Like…

Like the wrong power cord is being used to connect a computer’s parts or a really trash engine was placed in a top-performing formula 1 car.

No, that doesn't feel right either.

Ugh! Whatever! Less thinking, more finding food.

However, I’ve already eaten every species listed on the list Akashic Records provided me, so what should I do next?

Maybe I should check out that sealed dragon? All I've eaten is a subspecies of a dragon, so I haven't eaten a proper dragon yet.

Maybe I could search around for more rocks? This place seems to be filled to the brim with these rocks with magical properties even if every rock I've found so far is purple. If only I can gain skills similar to Electrokinesis, like Hydrokinesis, Aerokinesis, or Geokinesis to name a few. It's odd that they're named something element kinesis instead of something element manipulation, but who am I to judge this world.

After a decent few hours of travelling, I stumbled upon the place where Akashic Records said the apparent sealed dragon was.

To my surprise, the dragon wasn't here.

Did my skill lie to me? No, that couldn't be the case. Every time I've used it, the information it told was always true excluding its prediction about the future.

Did someone with a higher-leveled skill falsify the information? This was certainly a possiblity since after some testing with Momonga, we found out that my skill could be deceived by someone with a stronger skill. Said classification of stronger skills were the ultimate skills, which Momonga seemed to possess one of. If it was the fabled storm dragon, he could possess one such skill.

However, the traces would say otherwise. There's a spider's nest nearby and a circular surface that appears as if a dome was recently removed.

This must mean the third possibility that something changed between the time I checked the dragon’s location and the present. Even if Akashic Records is able to provide an accurate retelling of past events, any changes that happen between the time I checked and present are not provided.

By activating Akashic Records with one of the rocks nearby as the target, I confirmed my suspicions by viewing what the rock saw.

…

That DAMNED slime ate the dragon?! I don't know exactly what transpired here due to another downside of Akashic Records. Its ability of viewing the past was limited to what the target object knew, so if the target was a rock without the ability to perceive magicules or spy on telepathic messages, I would not know what transpired. The case was the same if the target possessed an ultimate skill or something that prevented me from peeking into their past.

That slime… I swear I'll devour you one day.

Rou

Race - Black Ogre (Rare Species)

Protection - Protection of Ainz Ooal Gown, Divine Protection of Grand God of Demise and Origin

Title - None

Magic - Demise Magic (Spear of Demise, All-Ending Demise)

Instrinsic Skill - Demise Manipulation, Great Origin, Electrokinesis, Absorb, Dissolve, Mana Bullet Proficiency, Create Low Tier Insects, Sticky Thread, Steel Thread, Golden Thread, Pyrokinesis, Black Ogre’s Strength, Black Ogre’s Enhanced Senses, Black Ogre’s Steel Skin, Black Ogre’s Undying Body

Ultimate Skills -None

Unique Skills - Devourer, Akashic Records

Extra Skill - Ultraspeed Regeneration, Demise Haki

Common Skills - None

Tolerance - Slash Resistance, Pain Resistance, Pierce Resistance, Sunlight Weakness, Blunt Weakness, Abnormal Condition Nullification, Corrosion Resistance, Holy Weakness, Fire Weakness, Light Weakness, Magic Resistance, Spiritual Attack Resistance, Fire Resistance, Paralysis Immunity

Black Ogre’s Undying Body: Deadly Blood, Self Regeneration, Fluid-Blood Conversion, Reborn From Ashes, Last One Standing, Surpass Limits

Black Ogre’s Steel Body: Greatly enhances the user’s defensive abilities

Black Ogre’s Enhanced Senses: Ultra Smell, Echolocation, Heat Source Perception, Magic Perception, Thought Communication, King’s Voice

Devourer: Devour, Steel Guts, Incorporation

Devour: Eaten targets are incorporated into the user’s body as if it was part of their intrinsic abilities. Incorporation rate depends on the target’s power relative to the user. Valid targets include anything that can be put in the user’s stomach.
Steel Guts: Anything and everything that is eaten is rendered harmless to the user’s body.
Incorporation: Any abilities incorporated by Devourer can be activated and deactivated at will.

Akashic Records: Thought Acceleration, Historical Appraisal, Analytical Appraisal, All of Creation, Future Prediction

Historical Appraisal: Searches for any past information on a target via accessing the system.

Notes:

Hi everyone! This marks the end of the prologue/exposition since most of the character have met each other, excluding Momonga and the two cave dwellers. It's been exciting to write out the these chapters and reading all the fun comments. To properly plan out the details, next chapter will be shorter and will serve as an intermission.

Chapter 13: Intermission - An Orc's Plea

Notes:

The intermission takes place sometime between Building the Village III and The Strange Majin I.
I've gotten a pretty solid grasp of the plot, so be prepared... well, the next few chapters are more buildup than anything else since it's the start of a new arc and it's supposed to be Shiro and Rimuru's start in a way, so it'll take some time before the exciting parts.

Chapter Text

In an overly luxurious bedchamber that I never would have thought would ever come to live, I fall on perhaps the softest bed I have ever felt in my whole life. It was a softness unlike that of any other bed I’ve used in my previous world as a salaryman. Sometimes, this singular bed makes me glad I’m not in that smog-filled world anymore, but other times, I miss the fun adventures I once had in Yggdrasil.

Well, not like that mattered since Yggdrasil was shutting down.

Lying on my personal bed in Nazarick, I pulled out a ragged book and pair of glasses out of the black void that is my inventory. It was mysterious as to how I manage to select the right item out of the thousands I have, but it is a feature I'm grateful for. It might be something similar to Yggdrasil where it reads my brainwaves to figure out what I need.

On any other nights, I would read a more useful book, like ones about human resources, upper management, the basics of starting a company, and whatnot. Today, however, is a bit of a special day, one where I’m reading the book that Rou gave me.

Rou told me that it was a diary, one he picked up from an orc he killed. If possible, I wanted to hear the orc’s story directly, but oh well, something is better than nothing.

Even with the limited information the diary provided, it would be a great source of knowledge for someone like me who was reincarnated with zero knowledge of the writing systems and language here.

Without further ado, let's get right into it.

***

I start ta keep journey. BeCause our king ill. I journeyer. Journey the world. Learn lots. Need learn cure for ill.

Been 26 knights. I go beast village. Beast chief say no. We orc not he citizen, he say. We orc too weak, he say.

Oh, hi, journal. I forgot to write. I travel many villages. I go to demon lord ClayMan. He say he con sid der help us. Maybe I find help for ill?

It been good. ClayMan give me food and home n I tell him our ill. I tell him our king special. Our king no die. He feed us he arm and heal. ClayMan very good

ClayMan still think if he help or not. I try talk him to help.

YamZa say I stole food. ClayMan very angry. I have bontee on me head. I sleep in the Jura Forest. Lots of food here for my kind but Veldora no permit orcs.

I walk north to dwarf village. I hear they accept orcs and other races. But I scare of the hero king GaZel.

They let me in village. It is very big compared to orc village. It bigger than ClayMan village. They have this thing called “money” here and I need work to earn money. How I earn money?

Food.

A dwarf pick me up. He said me body strong and make good laborer. I train with spear and armor to protect village. He said I fight bad guy and I get money.

Today, dwarf man found me journey. It was sad but I eat a lot now. He give me lot of money. If I make more then I can send food back to village. Dwarf man also teach me writing. He said I need write and read better to be guard.

Dear diary… it what dwarf man KaiDou Kaidou said I should do when I write journal. I been learning proper phrase and words. He said if I write better, I can coinvince convince people to help us. He said dwarf village is not village. It is called Armed Nation of Dwargon.

ear diary, today, I killed a four-armed bear monster. Kaidou gave me a bonus for saving people and said I was very strong. Maybe my kind can migrate here as refugees.

Dear diary, I tried requesting an audience with the king to file an official request for asylum. However, they said the king was busy and had no time for someone like me. On the way out, some tall dwarf man with a twirly mustache called me dirty. Then, from Kaijin, I learned that most people, humans especially, dislike monsters like orcs, but orcs aren’t monsters. Orcs are closer to demi-humans like dwarves are, so I don’t understand why even dwarves would dislike us.

Dear diary, Kaidou told me that people just like to discriminate against others not of the same race in an attempt to assert their superiority. He said that I shouldn’t hold it against them because they are just ignorant people that shut themselves off from the truth of the world. He said that, if I were to hate them, I would be putting myself on the same level as them and I should just let things pass and not act rash.

Dear diary, I finally got an audience with the Hero King Gazel. He gave permission for my kind to migrate over so long as they could move here on their own without assistance. It seems that there is finally some hope for my people. I can not wait to bring the good news to my king.

Dear diary, I am preparing to travel back to Orcbic and inform them of the news. Unfortunately, I am not allowed to bring the armor and the spear I had while I was a guard, so I brought as much food as I could and a small dagger to protect myself. I’m a bit nervous travelling through the forest with so much food on hand, but it should turn out all good.

Dear diary, I was attacked by a sword grizzly and had to abandon my food to save myself. It was a massive shame, a great one, but I should be able to sustain myself using fruits and nuts from the forest itself. I just hope that the forest dryads would be kind enough to allow my race the same privilege to take food while travelling back to Dwargon.

***

That was the last written page of the diary. As I flipped through the rest of the journal, a small note fell out from the last page that read:

“To whoever may be reading this, whether you killed me, stole my diary, or if I gifted it to you, I bear no grudges. I hadn’t expected to make it as far as I had. There were so many times I thought I would die and so many more times I thought I would starve to death. It was truly a miracle I even found a place to stay within Dwargon. Now, all I need to do is wait for permission from the hero king.

Onto the main point, I hope you’ll be able to save my kind. I know it’s a big ask, but if this letter fell into your hands, it clearly shows that I failed with whatever endeavor I attempted. I have nothing to give you except my knowledge, so I've engraved everything I know on the backside of this page. It may be nothing, but it is all I can give in exchange.”

On the back, like the letter stated, there was a whole list of information. It ranged from the name of every demon king and their abilities as far the orc knew to a rough sketch of the world map.

Starting in the North, there was the Atarakua Demon Empire, a nation that had monsters as its inhabitants. It was the place where the orc likely wanted to go but was unable to due to being the other side of the continent. Another factor was that, according to what the orc knew, it was in constant war with the Holy Empire of Ruberius. Said empire apparently had a doctrine that stated all monsters were evil and must be exterminated.

There was also Falmus, Blumund, and the other human nations, but there wasn’t much information about them since it doesn’t appear the orc studied about human nations or because they weren’t that prominent.

In the South, there was the Sorcerer’s Dynasty of Sarion, which didn’t really have much details except that it was ruled by elves.

Out of the remaining kingdoms, the ones that were the most detailed were the Armed Nation of Dwargon, Puppet Nation of Jistav, and the Estgrand Beast Kingdom. How boisterous was this guy to have grand as part of his name.

In the demon lord section, the information was honestly disappointing. All it said was that Clayman was the wealthiest and that Milim Nova was the strongest. Other than that, the names of the other demon lords were just mentioned and literally no useful information was said.

Perhaps the most useful information was that Roy Valentin was a vampire, Guy Crimson was a demon, Dagruel was a giant, Leon Cromwell was a human, Lionel Gualo Estgrand was a lycanthrope, Hyulton Gascloud Atarakua was an undead, and that there were ten demon lords total.

Anything else that was jotted down was extremely useless in my eyes, but maybe in the eyes of Albedo or Demiurge they might find more worth. Well, I’ll just give them all the information I could find and they might find something that I couldn’t.

While everything could be misinformation in an attempt to trick the reader into thinking they have more information to offer than they actually did, I could just check in with Rou to cross-reference the information.

Speaking of Rou, I could probably just have him use his skill to check the object’s memory and I could use Control Amnesia to read his memories. Therefore, I could have a flawless retelling of exactly what the orc, or rather, his diary, witnessed. Of course, I had no way of checking any of the events that the diary itself did not witness and were merely jotted down in it, but it was still a good way to gain more information.

Sigh.

I wanted this night to be relaxing as I peeked into someone’s life, but clearly, it seems my laundry list has only gotten bigger.

Chapter 14: Battle in the Lizardman Village I

Chapter Text

Stab!

"Hohoho! These lowly beasts are nothing for the Great Gabiru!”

It is only to be expected that we, lizardmen, when fighting in a swampland would hold the homeland advantage. In the face of our superior weaponry and agility, these monsters are nothing!

As boisterous as I am at the moment, I knew that such ease was only possible due to a combination of many coincidences and strategy. The first coincidence was the appearance of the direwolves. At first, I was a little taken aback when direwolves, monsters that weren’t supposed to be native to the swamp, appeared, but the information and force they brought was a welcomed addition. It was because of them that we knew what to prepare and didn’t suffer many casualties.

According to the intel that the direwolves brought, there was a commanding knight, a black one with an aura that sent fear to those that looked in its direction. Then, there was also a hazy red figure floating above the black one. At the time, they thought that these two were one figure, but my father, without even witnessing the creatures firsthand, concluded them to be two different creatures.

Slash!

Then, he also concluded that neither of their appearances were natural phenomena but were acts deliberately started by someone. With reasoning, he concluded that one of the suspects could be Adalmann who currently serves Clayman, but it could just as easily be another majin with necromancy abilities who wishes to overtake the Great Jura Forest in Veldora’s absence.

“Retreat!” I shouted to my squad, running away from the large group of beasts through the muddy swamplands.

In preparation for the scuffle, we managed to gain the cooperation of eight other tribes. The rest of the tribes were either already all wiped out by the time we got there or chose to flee instead. Those who ran away are simply prideless.

Splash.

Nonetheless, the plan roughly started a few days walk away from our base, which allowed us to properly utilize the terrain. The first phrase started by eliminating any fast and agile monsters in the swift and short assault. Then, we would repeatedly use hit and run tactics and traps to avoid the stronger monsters and eliminate the weaker ones. Lastly, we would group up on the strong ones, such as the blade tigers, while the chieftain himself would take on the task of delivering the final blow to the commander that is the black knight.

“Gabiru,” the direwolf boss addressed me. “We’ve finished the ones on our side.”

Taking into consideration the different speciality between us and the direwolves, they were assigned to kill the monsters that we would have trouble dealing with, such as the horned rabbits. Unlike the lizardmen who were bipedal, the direwolves were much better suited to taking down foes low on the ground. Coincidentally, because the direwolves were on our side, any stray direwolves that were in the swarm were integrated into our forces.

By now, we should be commencing the second phrase of the plan. If everything goes according to plan, the invading army should be properly thinned out enough by the time we reach our base.

“Keep running! We’ll rest once we reach the first camp!”

Along the way, we set up checkpoints to conserve our stamina and recover. Had I done this my way, I would have selected a few elites and set out to eliminate the commander. In many similar cases, monsters that were forced to work together would self-sabotage the moment the commander died. Therefore, It was more than pointless to be wasting stamina on disposable pawns, much less resorting to such cowardly tactics.

Sadly, the truth is that I am not in command. My father was the chieftain, and even though he was once a great warrior, it is clear that he is weighed down by old age. Even after being chosen by a god, he lacked the decisiveness and boldness he once had in his prime. Though Lord Gelmud may not have granted me the same power a god would have, I should still be able to overtake my father with a few more years of training.

“Gabiru, status of our force?” The direwolf leader inquired.

“Two injured. No deaths. How about your pack?”

“Nobody is injured. It’s going pretty well so far.”

Everything’s going as planned. Perhaps I should reevaluate my view of my father's cowardly behaviorism? If everything truly goes as he planned, we would lose less men than had we just charged recklessly in hopes to eliminate the commander who might not even be present.

“Gabiru! Sir!” A panicked shout came from the distant “One lizardman from the fifth squad is heavily injured!”

On the lizardman’s back, there was a green lizardman missing an arm, one of his eyes, and half of his tail. Fortunately, or unfortunately as some might say, the lizardman was alive and his tail wound was already cauterized, which was likely the work of an barghest. His arm, on the other hand, was dripping a whole fountain worth of blood, but with urgent care, he should live to see another day.

Argh!

Just as things seemed like they were going well…

Someone from another tribe just had to get injured. Of course they weren’t as cautious as we would.

Scratching my head, I searched for knowledge on what to do.

There was no proper medical equipment on field as the checkpoint was hastily set up.

“Anyone with medical knowledge?!” I shouted to the crowd.

Silence. To think that none of them know even the most basic of basics, but who am I to say such things. After all, I spent too much time on training to learn such things.

It was the worst possibility. Since the situation was urgent, we had to utilize all our forces, so any and all lizardmen with medical knowledge still hadn’t returned from the battlefield.

If only my sister was here, then she could’ve made a tourniquet with cloth and other materials we have on hand.

If only my father was here, then he would’ve known what to do instead of standing in a daze like I am.

If only…

“Gabiru!” Another shout brought me back into reality. “What should we do?!”

Right…

I refuse to lose one of my men like this. Even if he was from a different tribe, he was still a lizardman.

Think…

Think, Gabiru, think!

You are the greatest of them all.

There’s no way such a minor setback will cause you to lose someone.

Examining his wounds again, a bulb lit up in head.

Like how his tail was cauterized by a barghest, I could cauterize his arm as well to prevent further bleeding. It was a risky move that could worsen the injury, but I would much rather take my chances than waiting for his eventual death.

Searching around for a torch, there was none to be found.

Of course there weren’t any. It would to stupid to have lit torches laying around as heat sources attracted any monsters that can perceive heat. If we had any heat source, our checkpoints could be ambushed and we would be surrounded on all four sides.

Therefore, I turned to the only option available even though I knew that none among us can do the following.

“Any of you know fire magic?”

“I know how to start a fire,” one of the lizardmen behind me raised his hand.

“Good, start one and we’ll cauterize his wound. In the meantime, I’ll decrease the bleeding by applying some pressure to the arteries.”

Upon applying pressure to the few arteries I knew the location of from my experience as a warrior, the blood coming out from his arm splattered onto my hand. It wasn’t a sensation I was unused to, but it certainly did not feel pleasant to have the blood of a fellow lizardman on me.

Almost miraculously, the lizardman who volunteered managed to create a small fire in less than a minute, transferring it over to a nearby branch as the fire grew to the appropriate size. It was a speed that could be designated as a world record if it was ever recorded.

To prevent the lizardman from biting his own tongue, I grabbed his spear and shoved it into his mouth.

“Deep breath,” I warned the lizardman of the upcoming pain as I reached for the lit branch.

Tsss~

The sound of the flame crackled in the air.

Without further hesitation, I set the lizardman’s arm ablaze.

Mhmphhmmm! The injured lizardman attempted to scream out, but all sounds were muffled by the spear in his mouth.

The smell of burnt lizardman flesh hovered in the air as the lizardman continued screaming. It was an odd mixture of rotten fish, sludge, and iron from all the muscle, fat, blood, and the water boiling off from his skin.

It was certainly not my first time seeing someone being burnt since barghests are a common sight, but unlike those times, adrenaline did not cloud my senses nor was I ever this close. Simply put, it was something I would rather not smell at this close of a distance ever again.

The more I thought about the potential mess ups, the more I started sweating at the potential of his death, a fatality that could’ve been prevented had we been more cautious. Up until this point, I didn’t know lizardman could sweat, or maybe it wasn’t sweat, but the weight on my nerves that feels like sweating.

I should’ve just charged in with a small squad of elite and eliminated the summoner, but at the moment, precious lives are at stake so let’s focus on this instead of letting my thoughts wander off to god knows where.

Fortunately, it seemed the bleeding stopped and the eye had properly formed a clot. If nothing happens, the lizardman should survive in time to receive proper medical treatment as more parties arrive.

“Gabiru! Will he survive?!”

“Of course!” I gave the answer as if I was not sweating just moments ago on the verge of a breakdown, but it would be bad to be bringing down morale in such a dire situation.

In turn, the surrounding lizardmen cheered my name, shouting so loud that none in the camp could ignore it. Such loud noise was a dangerous act in the midst of an incoming army, but it shouldn’t matter much when our position would be exposed either way in our next assault.

**********

Arriving back in the village, which felt more like a prim and proper city now, I was greeted with a varying degree of reaction.

“Rou?!” Gobta shouted. “You’re UGLY! Like, REALLY UGLY. I guess your evolution didn’t really-”

After a bout of beating, I will henceforth and forever be ignoring the name Momonga gave him and refer to him as Gobbum.

“Greetings. Rou.” Cocytus, one of Momonga’s subordinates and a Floor Guardian, came to greet me afterwards. “You. Evolved. Into. What?”

He had an odd way of speaking, but as a warrior, his strength was second to none. The most surprising aspect was the fact that he was able to use both magic, specifically of the ice attribute, and multitudes of weapons at the same time with a high degree of mastery. The strongest aspect about him is the fact he is able to wield four weapons simultaneously.

At one point, I tried training under him due to Momonga’s request after he got annoyed with my countless requests to explore the sealed cave, but it just didn’t pan out the way I wanted. Though I’ve gotten more skillful with the various weapons I have, I wasn’t able to gain any new abilities through sparring. However, I might need to return to his training now that I’ve evolved.

“I’m a black ogre now as you can see. I want to try fighting you seriously for once.”

“Confident. I. See. Respectable. Will. You. Return. To. Training. With. Us?”

“I’ll be joining you in my free time,” I agreed to his proposal since my absorption rate is slower than before. “Now, when shall we spar?”

“Tomorrow. When. The. Dawn. Break. I. Will. Request. Momonga. To. Spectate.”

“Alright, thanks.”

Walking further into the village, I encountered the one and only bathhouse in the entirety of the city. It was a massive shame when I found out that goblins didn’t have the culture of bathing and a further shame when the only bath was inside Nazarick, so I requested for a bathhouse to be made outside Nazarick for sanitation purposes.

I have nothing against Nazarick since Momonga treasures it greatly as I can tell from the stories he told me, but their denizens were… freaky, to say the least. They worship Momonga as if he were some sort of god. It wouldn’t be surprising if he said his goal was to become a god.

Entering the bathhouse, I could smell the slight scent of sulfur and feel the texture of the wooden floor beneath me. When I first saw Momonga create a hot spring out of nowhere, it truly made me wonder if he was just a Japanese salaryman in his previous life.

Perhaps I should’ve played more VR games back when I was a human so I could reincarnate as my character instead of a goblin. Nonetheless, the past is the past, and what matters now is a hot bath accompanied by a bottle of alcohol!

Yes! Alcohol! It was another one of the joys Momonga brought when he appeared! I was too busy focusing on getting stronger the past few weeks to have free time drinking, but I believe this new evolution calls for a celebration!

It’s such a shame that Momonga can’t enjoy tasty beverages or food, so I guess one of the ways I could assist him is to help him regain his sense of taste.

I’m not exactly sure how a boney man like him could regain his taste, but if convenient things like skills exist, I’m sure there must exist a skill that can give or share with another person a skill. If so, I could probably share my sensory skill with him.

Entering the male section of the bath, the scenery reminded me of the hot spring bath I used to take frequently back on Earth. The thick steam in the air, the rocks surrounding the bath, and the planted bamboo all seemed to create the illusion that I never reincarnated in the first place.

Said illusion was ruined by the numerous hobgoblins and a… huge humanoid cockroach?

Am I really seeing things right? There is giant cockroach bathing?

Very clearly, it was a denizen from Nazarick like Cocytus was, but the sight of such a big roach freaked me out a bit.

“Ah! Rou, welcome,” Rigurd greeted me with the most relaxed face I've ever seen him with. No wonder I didn't see the busiest man in the village when I returned. He was taking a bath. “Did you become an ogre?”

“I have,” I replied to the best of my ability, while ignoring the cockroach in the distance and entering the bath at the same time. Considering he’s from Nazarick, he must clean himself regularly, right?

“Such an amazing achievement. I've heard of rumors that goblins are able to evolve into ogres, but I've never actually seen it occur. Maybe you'll be able to become an oni one day?”

“Maybe, but I want to be stronger than that.“

“Stronger? Huh… Rou, could I confide in you for a bit.”

“Of course, you're like a father to me.”

I didn't know my father since Rigurd told me that my father died to a direwolf before I was born, while my mother died shortly after I was born so I didn't have much time to know her. Such was the case for many of the goblin generations before Momonga appeared.

“Before, when I was a goblin, I felt so powerless, but I could still do something by directing the goblins. Now, even after growing stronger, I feel like my role has gotten smaller. So many people are stronger than me and there are minds greater than mine. Sure, I’m grateful for everything Lord Momonga has brought, but I feel like I’m not doing enough.”

Is this man a workaholic or something? If only Gobbum had half of his dedication, he would be stronger than Gobkichi.

Putting aside intrusive thoughts, I found his worries understandable. Just recently, I had a minor inferiority complex being surrounded by so many stronger foes, leading to a reckless attempt to grow stronger.

So, what would be the best thing to say here? Focus on sharpening your mind or growing your strength?

“Rigurd, I believe each of us has our own path. Look at Gobb- I mean Gobta for instance, he's just laying around as much as he could. On the other hand, I’m self-centered, focused on growing my power. I don’t think there’s any other goblin here as selfish as I am. Of course, this goes without saying, but I want to protect all of us just as much as I want to get stronger like you do. If you want to become smarter, start by reading books from Nazarick, and if you want more power, I'll teach you my martial arts. From my perspective, I think you're already doing more than any of us, so don’t pressure yourself into doing everything.”

“Thanks…”

“Now, stop ruining the mood and start drinking,” I grabbed one of the bottles on the shelf nearby, popping open the cork and pouring the clear liquid into two shot glasses. “Cheers!”

Chapter 15: Battle in the Lizardman Village II

Chapter Text

“Their struggle is truly fascinating,” Albedo commented as she watched the lizardmen’s battle through the Mirror of Remote Viewing.

Currently, Demiurge’s plan is being executed by using mind control and fear skills of a wailing banshee, a middle tier undead summon, to force monsters in the forest to attack the lizardmen. For safety’s sake, a death knight was stationed to ensure the banshee didn't die. It was truly a devious plan, one that, according to a mind multitudes smarter than mine own, should have an almost nil chance to be traced back to us. The only instance where such a case might occur is if the banshee and we were discovered at the same time, which was highly unlikely.

“Umu.”

Surprisingly, the lizardmen are holding out quite well and there have been zero deaths on their front so far, but around a third of their forces are heavily injured and unable to engage in combat anymore. A single individual named Gabiru, who seems to have the strongest connection to Gelmud, is holding out the frontline the best. He was most certainly the strongest individual in their species, matching even the strength of a singular death knight.

Then, there was also his father, who appears to be an individual blessed by god as apparent by the rare color of his scales. It could just be a mutation, but in this world, skin color seems to indicate a type of blessing. If only I had a list of every god in this world, then I would be able to deduce the god who blessed him so much quicker.

Actually, would killing him incur the wrath of the god? Clearly, they do exist since Rou received a blessing from the Great God of Origin and Demise, but why would they bless someone this weak. Could it be sheer boredom or to expand their power? How does a god come to be in the first place?

Though there is not a single answer at the moment, I believe I could do some experiments to find out what a god truly is.

“Albedo, wouldn’t it be interesting to become a god?” I jokingly spoke my thoughts out loud.

“If it’s you, Lord Momonga, I believe you could do it.”

“That would be fun.”

Focusing back on the mirror, the sight in front of me only further cemented how much of a shame it was to not be able to add them to our forces. Clearly, they were capable of rational thoughts unlike the POP monster and were of a moderate strength level. Another fact was that I was curious about what they would become if they happened to evolve. Would they become more lizard-like and become monsters like nagas or would they evolve to be more dragon-like such as dragonewts? Or, maybe, they would take on a completely different path and forgo their reptile traits altogether.

Just like when I first discovered the countless racial jobs in Yggdrasil, it was fascinating to watch the evolutionary direction of monsters in this world and theorize what they could become.

For now, all I know is that goblins become hobgoblins and hobgoblins can become ogres. Rigurd has also told me that ogres can become onis, and goblins, on rare occasions, also evolved into bugbears if they possessed an affinity with earth.

Out in the hallway, there was a loud stomping noise, one that didn’t match any of Nazarick’s NPCs nor was it a noise that matched the size of any monsters that resided in the village. As it approached my room, it resembled that of a thunder’s rumbling or a 300 pound powerlifter stomping his way through the halls.

“Lord Momonga, should I deal with the intruder?” Albedo requested.

“No, no, leave it be. I believe I know who it is.”

Bursting through the door without any respect for the infrastructure, it could only be one person.

“Rou… Doors exist for a reason.”

“Oh,” Rou turned his head around to glance at the now-destroyed door. “Sorry, I swear it wasn’t on purpose this time. I got too used to busting down your door in the past few weeks.”

“Sigh…” At least I can just use Create Greater Item to replace the door, but it seems that Albedo, standing behind me, clearly was not okay with his behavior and was attempting her best to hold back her emotions. “I see you evolved. Are you an ogre? Oni? Demon?”

“I’m a black ogre.”

“Black? I guess it’s a subspecies of ogres then. Now, would you like to watch this battle with us?”

“Battle?” Rou snuggled over to the side that Albedo was not on. “Seems interesting, but I got real shocking news.”

“Umu… Albedo, make sure to jot down everything.”

“Of course!” Albedo enthusiastically replied.

“So, first of all, the storm dragon doesn’t exist anymore.”

WHAT! was what I wanted to shout, but my emotion suppression kicked in and allowed me to keep my dignity.

“Anymore?”

“Right… I should probably give you a full rundown of what happened.”

***

“Ho-how careless can you be!?” Albedo finally snapped at last after Rou finished his story, breaking the pen she was holding in half. “You let the slime who could have the power of the storm dragon escape?!”

“Albedo! Silence!” I shouted to prevent any more rambunctious actions. “However, I do share her sentiment. Either you engage and see it through or not show yourself at all. At the very least, we should be glad we have some information about it. What was it again? You said he had a skill to…”

“To absorb or mimic the ability of monsters. There’s simply no way a slime could coincidentally use the abilities of every creature within the cave without an ability similar to mine. However, we should be fortunate that he either hasn’t fully absorbed the storm dragon’s ability or that he is unable to.”

“And the spider? Anything odd about that?”

“Nothing much. It just had teleportation, strings, and camouflage. Because it was likely a rare species, it was hard to tell if those abilities are due to her race or certain skills she has.”

“Lord Momonga,” Albedo interjected. “Could I receive permission capture some spider and slime specimens”

“Umu.”

“Really? What’s this for,” Rou asked a question that I was thinking of as well.

“Think for a second,” Albedo replied in a mocking tone “Do you believe spiders and slimes normally work together? Their mutual encounter with the storm dragon might suggest that they are his servants, but the slime’s action says otherwise. It seems more likely that they are mutant specimens capable of rational thoughts. Therefore, we must examine other individuals from their species to find out more about their strengths and weaknesses.”

“Information? If you want that, then I have some. Usually, slimes are weak, even weaker than goblins, while the white spider seems to be an evolution of black spider or knight spider considering that these two are the only spider species within the cave. Also, neither of these species possess any teleportation or camouflage skills.”

“So, Rou,” Albedo returned to her usual charming voice. “What about you? How has your evolution benefitted you?”

“Heh… I’ll be taking on Cocytus in sparring tomorrow. I’m confident I can take him on evenly for at least a while.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” I encouraged Rou. His statement could mean he’s being overconfident from his evolution or he really is that strong. Either way, he is clearly no doubt stronger than the average Area Guardian from Nazarick now, and if he really is somewhat relative to Cocytus, I might need to spend more resources into evolving the monsters.

Actually, it might just be because Rou is an individual blessed by god and that’s the reason for him being so strong. I’m actually curious as to what level Rou would be if he was in Yggdrasil.

“By the way,” I continued. “Has your outfit changed?”

“Yeah, it seems they evolved with me as I evolved into an ogre.”

Hmm!? Really?! To think equipment would evolve alongside the user! What an amazing discovery! Even if there’s some special conditions that need to be fulfilled, it would be best to equip everyone with magic items at the very least. I should also try to distribute the world items to see if they could evolve as well, but the risk of them being stolen by exposing them to the outside world is far too great.

For now, the first experiment is to evolve my world item, the one I have equipped all the time. The first step would be to figure out how exactly to evolve, which on many occasions, Rou has described as a voice directing your evolution while you sleep.

“Hey, Momonga,” Rou pointed at the mirror. “That's the slime I was talking about.”

Through the Mirror of Remote Viewing, just when the Lizardmen were about to suffer their first casualty, a blue slime appeared. Unlike the grotesque and formless slimes in Yggdrasil, the slime that appeared was blue, round, jiggly, and almost cute in an odd sense of the word. Its appearance was in every way akin to the slimes of this world that would occasionally appear around the village, which was to say, it appeared very weak.

Contrary to its appearance and supposed weak strength, it demonstrated both speed and power far above that of the average slime. If slimes were level 1 Yggdrasil creatures near the beginner village, this slime would be a hidden boss around the upper 30s.

Even then, it has only used two abilities so far, which were its string ability and water blades. If it was truly able to use the other abilities described by Rou, it would most certainly be in the upper 40s, potentially even 50s. Had Rou fought the slime prior to his evolution, he would've very likely lost due to his lack of strong long distance abilities and his prior weak stats.

“Rou, could you beat him had you not evolved?”

“Probably? I’m not too sure, but I believe I had a higher chance of winning than not.”

“Albedo?”

“I believe Rou would have lost nine out of ten times. The slime’s usage of its strings suggests it is a strategic mastermind. Had Rou’s evolution not rendered the majority of his ability ineffective, I believe the slime would've drawn out the fight, exhausted his stamina, and laid an immobilizing trap before delivering the finishing blow.”

On the other side of the mirror, the slime was utilizing his Steel String to finish off the monsters with weaker defenses and Sticky String to immobilize the stronger ones. On the off chance neither works, the string serves as a tripwire to notify the slime of an invading enemy’s presence. Then, almost like an automatic rifle, the slime fires a water blade at a speed well above a hundred miles per hour at the enemy. With these two skills alone, the slime appears like a menacing fortress.

“Oh, really? Horned lady, you wanna go?”

“Anyday. I would love to crush that skull of yours.”

Sigh … These two and their antics. She doesn't act like this around any other hobgoblins and nor does Rou around anyone else from Nazarick. Even Nabarel has gotten over her disdain for Rou.

“Albedo, Rou… mind your tone.”

“Yes, Lord Momonga!”

“Haha,” Rou laughed. “Look at you cowering.”

“Rou…” I called his name as if to scold him. “Let’s focus on the battle.”

**********

“Rimuru…” I called out to him. I hadn't tested whether I could teleport more than one individual before, so for all I know, Rimuru could've been teleported to somewhere separate from me.

“Yes? Why are you panicking?”

Looking behind, I realized that Rimuru was slouching on my back like a melted puddle. The transition from jiggly to melty would be funny if not for the fact that we almost kissed our lives goodbye.

“I’m not.”

Now that I’m less distressed, it appears that we are still in the cave. However, I have zero clues as to exactly where we are since not only have I never been here, everywhere in this place looks much too similar, making navigation far harder than it needs to be.

“Shiro,” Rimuru called out to me all of a sudden. With a strength unlike what his small stature might suggest, he pushed me down under a rock. “There’s humans.”

A few meters away from out, the sound of a creaking door could be heard. While I haven't directly seen the new entrants, Rimuru’s superior sense should be correct. Does this mean that we were teleported to a great location by coincidence?

By sneaking past the human, we could escape this cave and make it much harder for that ogre to chase us.

Without hesitation, I activated Night Shroud, camouflaging my body. Surprisingly, Rimuru was also turned invisible. Before, when I tried to drag the serpent back home to eat it, the body wasn't cloaked, forcing me to eat it on the spot I killed it. However, things like rocks, sticks, herbs, or small objects that I’m carrying were turned invisible. Does this mean that there's some sort of weight limit or radius to my skill?

Whatever. What concerns me the most right now is escaping.

“Shiro, go go go!!”

“...”

“Why aren’t you moving?”

“Where exit?”

Though Rimuru knows the exact location of the exit, I don't have any sensory skills to locate it.

What? I may have eight eyes, but it's not like I can see through a solid object. I really need whatever skill Rimuru is using to see.

Soon, Rimuru pointed northeast, signalling to me that it's safe to go. Without much trouble, we officially made it outside the cave.

Aaah … Sunlight! For the first time in three months and then some, I'm being burned alive by the intense rays of the sun.

It feels so hot.

It feels so pleasant.

It feels so… so… great!

I know I’m not one for going outside, and I'll likely never do so ever again, but not seeing the sun does something to your psyche. Everything, though I have already seen them all in my past life, seems to give me a newfound sense of bewilderment.

Anyways, enough admiring the scenery for now. It's time to get moving and find civilization.

From what Veldora described, the technology here seems pretty medieval, but 300-ish years should be enough for the industrial revolution, right?

“Shiro, where do you want to go?”

“People. Meet people.”

“Sure! Let's just wander around and see if we find any living soul.”

After more than an hour of wandering, we have not found a single soul, not even monsters or carcasses. Was the outside world really more empty than where Veldora was sealed?

Sure, there were trees and all, but how could we not find anything? Is it too much to just ask for another companion?

Clearly, there were signs of life evident by the broken tree branches and the footprints on the ground.. Heck, I even found white and black fur on the ground, indicating that animals do live here.

Wait…

No…

No.

No, no, no.

It can’t be.

***

Back in a time when I was the sole companion of Veldora, resting in the desolate cave he was sealed with, I asked him the question, “Why does this place have no monsters?”

“Heh… Kehehe… KEHAHA! It looks like you’re finally starting to understand my real powers!!!”

The point?

“It’s because I’m too strong! You see, unintelligent monsters instinctively flee whenever they sense a strong magicule presence. This is because they can die of magicule poisoning if the difference in strength is too big. It’s actually weirder that you, who was even weaker than a regular adult black spider, was able to stand in my presence when you were just born.”

So, if I was just a normal monster that’s not an otherworlder, I would’ve died just by teleporting here? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Well, yeah, something like that.”

***

For the rest of that day, I no longer spoke to Veldora since he implied that I was weak. Rimuru, who was also an otherworlder, was able to stand in Veldora’s presence like I was, so does this mean that otherworlders reborn as monsters are simply able to withstand magicules better?

Anyways, I’m getting side-tracked. Back to the topic on hand.

Doesn’t this mean that I’m actually really strong?! And that’s why every monster is avoiding me?

Hehehe! I guess I am strong after all!

…

Only if you exclude the brief encounter I had with the grim reaper moments before. If I’m already strong enough to be scaring off the local monsters, just how strong was that black ogre to be easily defeating Rimuru who is stronger than me.

So, now’s the question. How exactly do I stop leaking so much magicules?

If Veldora described Telepathy as pissing, then is suppressing your magicules the equivalent of holding back your piss? Actually, I’m pretty sure spiders don’t even piss since I’ve never done so before. I’m not sure how exactly Earth spiders released the waste in their bodies, but all I’m doing right now is the equivalent of taking a dump.

Now, taking Veldora’s advice, I attempted to hold myself back.

Somewhere, somehow, I feel like I could hear Veldora shouting that he never said such advice, but I’m sure I’m just imagining things.

When attempting to do so, it felt unnatural, almost to the point of discomfort. It is exactly the feeling I would get in the past when the bathroom was full and I’d need to hold back my excretions to preserve my dignity. Perhaps Veldora’s analogy wasn't that wrong after all.

“Shiro, what are you doing?” Rimuru inquired after I started decreasing my magicule output.

“Monsters scared. I limit myself.”

“Really?” Rimuru paused for a second, almost as if he was checking something. “Oh, whoops! Teehee! I didn’t realize I was leaking so much.”

Moments after, likely because Rimuru restrained his magicules, monsters started appearing before I even fully held mine back. The first monster to appear was a rabbit with a horn. Then, a deer with pointy horns appeared from the bushes. Lastly, another slime appeared from behind us.

To test something out, I fully released my magicules, and surprisingly, none of the monsters went into hiding. Doesn’t this mean, that all long, Rimuru was the reason that we found no monsters along the way?

Perhaps I should’ve chosen thunderspear spider as my evolution path instead. If so, I might’ve been able to help in that fight against the ogre.

Sigh …

It’s a shame, but I can’t really complain. Now, where were we again?

Right, we were searching for intelligent, and most importantly, friendly lifeforms around here.

Chapter 16: Battle in the Lizardman Village III

Chapter Text

Heeeeeeeey! It’s been about four days since we escaped from that ogre. To be honest, I had absolutely zero idea on what I was doing in that fight, so I just asked Great Sage to fight for me.

Teehee!

Cowardly? Dishonorable? Unfair? Well, it doesn’t really matter. He was the one to ambush us first after all. If he really cared about any of these things, he would’ve appeared in front of us, challenged us to a fight loud and proud, and had a long conversation with us before becoming our friends.

If I ever see him again, I’ll be sure to give him a stern talking to if he’s willing to become friends. If he tries to kill us again, well, I’m sure Great Sage can handle the fight then, and even if it can’t, I’m sure Shiro could just teleport us out in the scenario we lose again.

Anyways, are we really in a marshland now? After all that searching, all we found was two abandoned villages and the only other intelligent lifeform tried eating us. Said intelligent life looked to be a smaller and more green version of the ogre we encountered? With how it appeared, it looked like a goblin, but it wasn’t ugly like the common media back in my world would suggest. It was rather muscular, looking like an average man. Could it be possible that it was a goblin and ogres can evolve into each other?

<Confirmed: The green humanoid you encountered 47 hours prior was a hobgoblin>

It’s really mean, you know! Just when I thought I encountered someone friendly, he tried to eat us without even giving us the opportunity to talk and make peace.

I did try to talk using Ultrasonic Waves, which worked pretty well since the hobgoblin stopped moving for a few seconds. It looked like he was finally going to make peace with us, but he tricked us and kept attacking us. Are monsters just born aggressive and tries to eat everything they eat? It was how the monsters were back in Veldora’s cave.

Nonetheless, we manage to escape without killing the guy. If we angered his people, it would make our chances of befriending them effectively nil.

<Notice: Signs of intelligent life noticed thirty-eight meters South of your current location>

In the past few days, not only did I realize that Great Sage could perform various tasks, I could also ask it to keep track of things and search for me. It’s really so great that I don’t have to check myself.

“Shiro! I found people close to us!”

“Where?”

Pointing South, Shiro carried me on her back as she moved like she’s been doing the whole time. Though, for some reason, Shiro looks to be dejected for the past few days. Despite not speaking much nor being able to express herself facially, it’s very obvious that it relates to the ogre in some way, but what could it be?

We made it out just fine even if we had a minor scuffle with that ogre. In fact, I don’t really think what the ogre did was bad. From our perspective, we were just on the receiving end of what we’ve been doing the whole time. Just like how I’ve been eating monsters in the cave, the ogre was looking to eat us.

Of course, it’d be a very different story if Shiro died because I’d likely hold a grudge forever and try to kill him, but in the end, no one really got harmed. I dare say the outcome was on the better side because had that ogre started the ambush with whatever that black spear war, Shiro most likely would’ve been sent to the next world without even knowing what happened.

It was really scary that Great Sage started freaking out when she saw the thing. I really wonder what that could be for my partner to be panicking so much.

Arriving on the scene where Great Sage said there was intelligent life, I spotted a dozen lizardmen and a variety of monsters that should not belong in a swamp. I’m no biologist, but I’m pretty sure beasts like a red tiger with blades, a giant bear, a direwolf, and a wyvern should not be living in the swamp.

Nonetheless, I hopped off Shiro’s back, removing the camouflage ability that she was using to hide us, and charged into the fight.

I wasn’t exactly sure if the lizardmen would become our friends, but it would certainly look good if I saved him first and then asked to befriend them. It would be unreasonable to assume ill intent from a saviour.

Great Sage, I’m leaving it up to you. Try your best to not harm the lizardmen.

<Confirmed: Activating automatic battle mode>

In an instant, Great Sage spewed out both Steel String and Sticky String all around us, hanging onto the ground, trees, and anything else it could attach to.

Next, it released small amounts of Paralyzing Breath in all directions. The amount released was so little that it could not be seen with the naked eye.

Lastly, as the monsters recklessly charged forward, Water Blades were launched to behead monsters that wouldn’t be cut with the strings. Since we were in a swamp, Great Sage utilized Water Manipulation to further the power of the Water Blade.

I wasn’t exactly sure what Great Sage was doing nor how they’re doing it, but I was one hundred percent positive that they were doing well enough that all the surrounding monsters disappeared within minutes.

Well, disappear might be a strong word since the oncoming waves of monsters seem to never end, but it was being culled enough to the point where I had enough breathing room to initiate a conversation.

“Heya!” I called out to the blue lizardman in front of me using Ultrasonic Waves. He wore a cape, a silver crown that appears to have lost its luster, and a blue spear that shined brighter than anything else nearby. It was a little odd to be blue since it offers no camouflage in this swampy environment, but if my intuition serves me right, this tough-looking guy should be the leader around here. “Want to be friends?”

“Friends… Hah… Hahaha!” The lizardman suddenly busted into a bout of uncontrollable laughter, holding his stomach as he tried to hold it back. Though I can’t read his expressions well, it was very obvious his mood had a sudden change. Was what I said that funny? “Of course! If a great being such as yourself wants to be friends, who am I to say no?”

Reaching out my hand, I offered a handshake as a gesture of kindness. Without any hesitation, the blue lizardman reciprocated the gesture. While it was nice that I wasn’t left hanging, the way the handshake that was done was potentially the weirdest one I’ve ever had. Not only was the lizardman two or three heads taller than I was, he was taking a knee in an attempt to match my level. In a way, it looked like an adult handing out candy to children rather than a formal exchange of friendliness.

Disregarding the weirdness, I noticed that Shiro had jumped into battle, attempting to use her strings the same way I was. To be honest, it was surprising how well she was able to mimic the setup I had. Without Great Sage, she would have to manage all of the incoming information by herself. With a single slip up, a monster could bypass the strings and catch her off guard. I would never let that happen of course.

After a while, I turned my attention to the other lizardmen, most of which were injured and covered in bandages that looked to have been reused several dozen times. To be honest, it looked really weird to see reptiles with hair. It looked especially weird for the ones that weren’t wearing any sort of head garments since the hair could not be mistaken for garment.

Well, whatever. This is a fantasy world, so I guess it doesn’t have to follow the conventions of my old world. It was actually weirder that giant dragons like Veldora were able to exist since the gravity of this world seems to be similar to my original world’s.

“Hey, everyone! Let’s all be-”

“Friend,” the blue lizardman interrupted me. “While I may be able to handle your voice, it seems my warriors aren’t able to, so could you spare them and lower your voice?”

Really? I was shouting that loud the whole time?

Teehee! Whoops! Could this be why the goblin attacked me when I approached him?

After adjusting my volume, I started speaking again, “Everyone! Let’s all be friends. First, let’s head off to somewhere safer. Also, I’d like to introduce my other friend.”

With all the lizardmen’s attention on me, I called over Shiro, who came flying over in a flash. Rather, she teleported over, saving the time and energy she would’ve used by walking.

At first, the lizardmen jumped back a little, but after realizing that she meant no harm, they settled down.

“He-hi…” Shiro spoke using Thought Communication. Compared to when she was talking to me, she sounded far more nervous.

“Let’s go now,” I asked them to guide us to their base.

**********

Arriving back at the lizardman’s base, it looked a bit disappointing. Compared to the room I made out of string back in Veldora’s cave, the base here looks rather lackluster. There were no beds, no food, and no houses. I don’t even think this is meant to be livable at all.

On the way here, Rimuru healed all of the lizardmen using the potions he stored within his kindness. To think he would heal them so carelessly when they could easily backstab us. Then, there was one lizardman missing an arm that refused to be healed, saying how “ It was a scar of honor. ”

To make matters worse, I missed a chance to level up and grow stronger. If I killed every monster there, I think I could’ve fulfilled half the level requirements for evolving, but now, I am stuck at level 37. When I first left the cave, I was level 32, so all the monsters I killed only gave me 5 levels. All in all, it was slightly disappointing.

Looking around more closely, there were around two hundred lizardmen along with a couple of wolves in the back. While I’m not exactly a dog hater, the wolves here look far scarier than they did on Earth, but it didn’t really matter. After all, I’m a spider and they aren’t exactly the cutest creature.

I wish I was more humanoid, maybe something like an arachnid. Then, I could express myself better.

“So, my name’s Rimuru!” Rimuru started speaking out of nowhere, giving me a small scare. “What’s all your names?”

Sometimes, moments like these make me question if he’s stupid. Very obviously, they would not have names. Even he should know since Veldora clearly warned him of the danger of giving a name to a monster. Moreover, monsters don’t even need names in the first place. We can just identify who’s speaking just by the magicule signature.

While it did take me a few tries to properly identify them, I did it nonetheless. I guess I could be considered more of a prodigy than Rimuru in this aspect, huh?

Stepping out from the crowd, a slightly stronger-looking lizardman spoke up, “I am Gabiru! Son of the chieftain!”

As he announced himself, the crowd cheered for him as if he was some celebrity. Instead of feeling embarrassed, it seems he’s fully engrossed in their cheers. This one is definitely egotistical.

“Ahem!” The blue lizardman faked a cough to silence the crowd. “Yes, he is my son. However, he just happens to have a name. We, the lizardmen, usually do not have a name.”

“Would you…”

Oi… Oi. Oi. Oi Oi Oi! There’s no way he’s going to say what I think he is, right?

“...like to receive a name?”

Argggh!!! Why?! If I had arms, I would be shaking his body back and forth right now, but unfortunately, I do not have any ways to do so, so I just sent a telepathic message.

“Stop! Dangerous!”

“Eyy~” Rimuru secretly replied back in a relaxed tone. “How dangerous could it be? Veldora had no problem, so I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

What doesn’t he get about the severity of his actions? He could die! In the short time I’ve spent with Veldora, the single thing he emphasized the most was the dangers of recklessly naming a monster.

Whatever! Any actions he takes next is not my problem.

“Lord Rimuru,” the blue lizardman spoke up to warn Rimuru. “While I am grateful, naming is an extremely dangerous process.”

Having been warned yet again, Rimuru waves aside their worries like he did mine. If Veldora was here, he’d surely be freaking out.

As he started the naming process, the lizardmen formed a single file line, while the direwolves similarly followed behind the lizardmen. The only exception was Gabiru who already had a name and didn’t bother staying in line.

The first person in line was the blue lizardman, the chieftain and father of Gabiru. In honor of Gabiru, he was named Abiru.

Next, a stern-looking feminine lizardman walked over. Apparently, she was the daughter of the chieftain and sister of Gabiru. Though I half-jokingly expected Rimuru to name her Biru, she was given the name Souka, meaning blue flower.

Afterwards, a one-armed and one-eyed lizardman who refused to be healed stepped up. Rather than appearing like a seasoned warrior, he just looked like a dumb idiot who could not get past his trauma. Since he was so unique, Rimuru actually took some time to think of a decent name. In the end, he decided on the name Sujichi, meaning blood dragon.

Eventually, after a hundred or so lizardmen, the direwolves’ turn finally came. Somehow, the direwolf leader’s appearance took a 180 when he was in front of Rimuru. Instead of being the intimidating dog he was, he looked like a cute dog in front of Rimuru. However, whether because Rimuru took some special interest or he was just careless, he gave the direwolf our family name Tempest, making his full name Ranga Tempest.

That was the last name he would give for the next week or so because he fainted immediately afterwards. When he lost consciousness, he looked like melted jelly, looking as if he lost all signs of life. If I hadn’t known he was a slime, I’d assume he was just a puddle of water on the ground.

Sigh… I suppose it’s my job to carry him to somewhere safe.

**********

Omph!

The grainy feel of the dry sand is no longer just below my feet. After collapsing from exhaustion, my body plummeted onto the ground. Though I have so many more of my kind to save, my body is refusing to move. I’ve abused my undying body far too much and my magicule regeneration can’t keep up. I can only pray that some unfortunate orc stumbles upon my dying body before it rots into bones so I could save one last person.

“I finally found you!” A man boring a mask stood before me. His mask was haggard and he was missing an arm. His elegant white suit was tattered and looked like it had seen water in half a year. Like his appearance, his speech was rushed, panicking, almost as if he was afraid of something. He seemed unable to keep his composure even in front of someone on death’s door.

If he was starving like me, I would not mind saving him even if he may not be an orc. Even one less person dying would be better.

“Be grateful because I, the Great Gelmud, will save you from your fate!”

Save… me? How is that possible? As far as I know, transfer of magicules is extremely dangerous without high proficiency in the process. Doing so may cause one’s magicuels to go haywire and extreme internal damage, leading to the death of both parties involved.

Does this mean he has recovery magic, but does it even matter at this point? Recovery magic can’t solve starvation and nor can it recover magicules. All it would do is delay my death for an hour or two.

“You will become an Orc Disaster, one that will eventually become a demon lord!”

Orc disaster? What’s that? I don’t want to be a disaster. I wanted to follow in the steps of my father and save my kind who are struggling. If only we managed to fend off the otherworldly invasion, we could’ve been in a much better place.

“I will grant you the name Geld!”

<Confirmed: High Orc has been named Geld>

<Confirmed: Level limit exceeded>

Orc Lord? Is this the rank up that occurs to select individuals out of thousands of monsters. If the new power allows me to save my kind, I don’t mind becoming someone else’s puppet.

<Confirmed: Geld has successfully evolved into Orc Lord>

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Strengthen has evolved into Extra Skill - Steel Strength>

<Confirmed: Common Skill - Coercion successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Starved successfully acquired>

I’m hungry.

Chapter 17: Monsters in the Kingdom I

Chapter Text

Today’s the day, the one where Cocytus fights seriously for the first time in this world. Ever since I transmigrated here from Yggdrasil, I've wanted an opportunity to test my and the Floor Guardian's strength. Compared to the goblins that are considered pretty weak, ogres are a relatively strong species in this world according to Rigurd. Therefore, not only would it serve as a good benchmark of this world's average, it would serve as a great motivator for those around us to get stronger. I'm sure many hobgoblins would feel motivated after witnessing such a great battle.

Standing in the dojo constructed a month prior, Cocytus and Rou stands in opposite corners, eyeing each other down. While Cocytus’ expressions are hard to make out, Rou is bearing a grin wider than humanly possible, likely thanks to a combination of his skills and ogre body. It was very obvious that Rou has been looking forward to this moment ever since he saw Cocytus.

Prior to this fight, Rou and Cocytus had sparred on several occasions, but due to Cocytus’ immunity to non-magical items and his overall strength, Rou was unable to deal a single scratch on him. While Rou has a new weapon, his halberd was specially designed for those with the job class magic warrior, so instead of having magical properties, it amplifies the enchants and effects applied to it. Therefore, without any skills activated, the Desolate Halberd is just a normal blade with a slightly sharper edge. I don’t believe this fact changed much even after the evolution.

For such a reason, even though it has the potential to be on par with a relic class item, the fact that it's an item meant for those in the mid-game coupled with the expensive investment required to maximize its potential made it a rather unpopular choice of weapon. In other words, if a mid-game warrior was able to bring out the weapon's power with minimal investment, it would be the best weapon one could have in that stage. Such is the reason why Rou was the best user of it.

Starting the fight, Cocytus allowed Rou some time to activate his skills, a luxury that can not be affordable in a real life or death situation.

The first skill Rou activated was likely his racial abilities, which he described as being able to boost both his strength and defense. Though there were no physical changes, something about him was definitely different

Next, a flame in the shape of his tattoo engulfed his body. Prior to his evolution, he described the pattern as more erratic, less patterned in a sense. Now, it seemed more controlled, following the same path every time as if it was blood flowing through his veins and arteries. Though I'm unsure of the exact combination of skills that allowed for this, I'm sure the Pyrokinesis skill he showcased before is one of them.

Lastly, Rou, inspired by the slime’s fighting style, spread Golden String, Steel String, and Sticky String all across the dojo. This is going to be such a pain in the ass to clean up.

As Rou finished, Cocytus signaled him to try his best to grasp at victory. Without another word exchange, Rou started his assault on Cocytus.

In terms of elemental matchup, it’s a question who has the higher output, and at the moment, it seems Cocytus’ ice is dominating Rou’s flames. Whenever Rou would attack, Cocytus’ Frost Aura, which is now part of his newly created unique skill Tundra Warlord, would cancel out Rou’s intense flame, making the flames relatively ineffective. Instead of having two unique skills and an ultimate skill like I do, Cocytus had only a single one, but that was because his weapon mastery was not converted into a skill.

After a while, Rou started to lose the momentum in the war of attrition. To be honest, it was really surprising to see him last even a few minutes against Cocytus. Had he been equipped with better gear, he probably could’ve left some damage on Cocytus.

“It appears Rou will lose this battle without Cocytus ever trying,” Albedo, who has been watching the whole time, commented. Like her, many denizens of Nazarick and the goblin town came to spectate as well. Among them, there were Gobkichi, Demiurge, Mare, Gobta, Rigurd, and so much more. Out of consideration for them, Cocytus decided to not use any ability that could indiscriminately harm allies since friendly fire is a possibility.

“Really, Albedo? In my eyes, it is far from over. Rou hasn’t even showcased his full strength yet.”

Such a statement was the truth. Before the match even started, we decided to ban Rou’s demise magic. In the various experiments we had done, we found out that one of the effects of Demise Spear was the complete and utter nullification of any and all defenses, which for some reason did not apply to me. It could be reasoned that my ultimate skill is the cause for this. The same effect should also apply to All-Ending Demise, which seems to be a stronger version of my Negative Burst spell. If done wrong, it could mean Cocytus’ death, a risk I would much rather not take. To make things fair, we decided that it would be Rou’s victory if Cocytus used all four of his weapons or if he moved a single step, while Rou would only lose if he surrendered or was about to be hit by a killing blow.

Even without this restriction, it was true that Rou was not exhibiting his full power. Just as the thought came into my mind, he started zapping around the dojo at fast speeds. While nowhere near the speed of lightning, it was a speed that would give Cocytus some trouble.

“Well, nothing impressive,” Albedo sneered in an attempt to hide her flustered face. “His movement path is restricted by the strings he laid out.”

Haha! I snickered at Albedo’s expressive emotions that were unlike that of her typical self. “You might want to look closer.”

As he accelerated, he left behind scorch marks on the ground, and while not exactly obvious, he was starting to get through Cocytus’ aura and inflict some real damage on him. By reducing the time his flames could be extinguished, each attack left burn and slash marks on Cocytus’ exoskeleton.

Even when Cocytus attempted to use his martial abilities, Rou would mitigate the damage by ever-so-slightly moving his vitality out of the trajectory or the strings that Rou set up prior would change its trajectory. Of course, such a tactic was highly dangerous at the speed Rou was moving since not even Rou could fully process the speed he was moving at. As a result, Rou lost a leg and three arms so far, all of which were on the ground for everyone to see.

Well, it doesn't matter. He said he had a skill that grants him an undying body and he already regenerated all his lost limbs. One of such skills should be the death knight’s Last One Standing ability.

“Excellent.” Cocytus compliment as he pulled out his second weapon, the God Slaying Emperor Blade.

With a second blade, Cocytus was no longer being overwhelmed by the oncoming barrage of slashes. Rather, Cocytus regained the flow of the battle. Moreover, with two weapons, Cocytus became able to use more of his martial abilities, specifically those with an AOE effect, destroying the strings that Rou scattered. Almost instantly, Rou slowed down a drastic amount and the battle started to turn in Cocytus’ favor much more.

With every one of Rou’s futile retaliation, the battle only became more and more dire. Much like Albedo predicted earlier, it would seem to end in Cocytus’ victory with him even trying, but there was still something I know that Rou could pull off.

During Cocytus’ training with the hobgoblins, they exhibited a power unbetting of their current strength. It was a strange resource that hadn't existed in Yggdrasil, but if Rou’s peer could pull it off, I’m more than positive this fight will serve as an awakening for Rou.

“ROU!” Gobta shouted from the side. “Were you always this pathetic!?”

Perhaps in response to Gobta’s cheap provocation or perhaps due to the dire situation, Rou attempted more desperate tactics. He threw himself into Cocytus’ katana, lodging it within his flesh and bones. Then, he sacrificed his left arm, which quickly regenerated, in exchange for a small crack in Cocytus’ exoskeleton.

“So. This. Is. Your. Answer. Excellent.”

The bloody exchange lasted for a dozen or so minutes until it became apparent that Rou’s regeneration was slowing down.

“Rou,” I called out. With such a struggle, it's impressive that Rou managed to last so long. Despite it not exactly being the cinematic fight he promised, it was certainly not a bad one. From his performance, he should be in the 70s according to Yggdrasil’s levels. “That will be-”

“Momonga, I'm fine.”

All of sudden, Cocytus' movement started slowing down. Clearly, the golden strings binding him were only part of it since Cocytus could easily shrug off such thin and fragile strings. Was this another one of Rou’s skills? Did he have some type of paralysis debuff?

“Got you,” Rou murmured as he started his onslaught of attacks, or rather, bites. Since Rou could no longer accelerate himself, he decided to use his only other weapon at his disposal, which is his jaws. Truly, it was a fight befitting of the skill Devouerer.

“Sp, this is how it feels to use the power of ice,” Rou smirked as the flames on his body became stronger. Rather than using the ice element directly, he applied the cold resistance effect onto his flames to make it harder to extinguish.

“Rou. You. Have. Become. A. Formidable. Warrior.” Cocytus gave one last compliment before equipping his third blade, a black and white spear that was a few meters long. Instead of using the usual equipment that harmonized with his wind damage type, he equipped one that was out of everyone’s expectation. It was a dangerous last stand type of weapon crafted as a replica of a weapon a World Enemy once used. What makes it such a dangerous weapon was the fact that it dealt damage to the user equivalent to the damage dealt, a drawback the original did not have. The benefit was that it ignored 99 percent of the opponent’s defense, almost dealing true damage much like Rou’s demise spells. Such was the duality of the divine class weapon named Two-Sided Bisector.

As Cocytus’ weapon became fully revealed, Rou took a step back, instinctively feeling the dreadful presence of the weapon.

“Albedo, be ready to save Rou in case anything happens.”

“Of course, Lord Momonga!”

“Brace. Yourself.”

Cocytus, ready to finish the fight within the next turn, grasped Two-Sided Bisector with two of his four hands.

Rou, slightly healed from his recent struggle, needed a plan to either survive the attack or dodge it.

With a single downswing, Cocytus turned the dojo into two half-dojos. Though he had many other choices, all of them would mean he needed to take a step, which would result in his loss. All in all, he chose a simple but deadly move.

Out from the dust, Rou’s half wrecked body was revealed. He had a new wound that revealed both flesh and bones. It also appears some of his organs were damaged, but miraculously, perhaps due to the death knight’s ability, he survived. Also, the handle of his halberd was broken in half since it looked like he attempted to block the attack.

On the brink of death, it looked like Rou discovered something new, an ability he always had but could never fully draw out due to the lack of challenge.

Even without eating, Rou learned a new way to use his magicules. In this world, it was known as aura. It was a method of manipulating magicules to enhance the physical body.

“So… Huff… puff… This was what that masked bastard was using,” a smile contradicting the current situation grew on Rou’s face as he formed a mass of black energy in his hand. Could he have suddenly unlocked a new demise spell in the middle of the battle?

Impossible?! If it was the case, it would most certainly mean Rou’s victory since Cocytus would be forced to dodge.

As Rou launched the black mass of energy towards Cocytus, it floated at an astonishingly slow speed towards him. Perhaps it was due to Rou’s lack of energy or his critically injured state, but nonetheless, it meant that Cocytus could easily dodge it.

As Cocytus turned his body to the side, the energy turned a sharp ninety degrees, almost as if it was tracking onto him. It rendered any and all dodges he attempted useless. In most cases, it would be useless since such a slow projectile could be outmaneuvered. Even in the case that it was fast, a simple dodge would cause it to crash into the surrounding area, making the spell disappear upon contact. Due to a series of fortunate circumstances, Rou used the perfect spell for the situation.

To make things worse, Rou fired another bullet, making movement all the more difficult. Whether he was manually controlling them or not, the situation was definitely in his favor since any attempts to attack him would result in Cocytus being assaulted by both the bullets, which could effectively render him unable to continue the fight.

Just when it seemed they were about to collide, both of the bullets disappeared.

Looking back at Rou, it seems he had fainted from forcing himself to keep moving with his injured body.

“Well, it seems like Cocytus won,” Albedo commented.

“Lady. Albedo. I. Can. Not. Say. I. Have. Won.”

Turning my attention back to Cocytus, it was finally revealed that Cocytus was forced to move from his original spot to dodge the two oncoming bullets.

Certainly, it truly seems like Rou’s claim was not just boisterous. He was truly able to make Cocytus fight somewhat seriously even if it was for a few seconds. While I’m sure that Rou would lose 10 out of 10 times if both of them fought with their full power from the start, it was still an impressive feat to make a Floor Guardian exert this much of their power.

However, how strong does this mean demon lords and heroes are? If Rou was this strong, could demon lords and heroes truly be as strong as a World Enemy just as I feared? Maybe they’re even stronger than one considering how strong Rou got within a few months?

There is no way that beings alive for decades, potentially centuries, could be weaker than an ogre that wasn’t even alive for a year. To them, we might truly be as weak as the goblins that spawns near the beginner town.

At the very least I should be thankful that Demiurge informed me of some unique movements from Gelmud, the majin serving under Demon Lord Clayman.

After wandering alone in a desert for nearly a month, he named a strange-looking orc lying on the ground, causing it to evolve into what the majin claimed to be an orc disaster. From the starved state it once was in, it became a rather menacing orc. While there have been no instances of a named monster becoming stronger than the name giver from my experiments, I can not cross that possibility off for certain since I haven't named a high-tier summon like a doom lord or a grim reaper Thanatos. If I was willing to tank the loss in power, there is a non-null chance that the summon could be stronger than me.

At the moment, I could assume that the orc disaster individual is on the same level as a demon lord since Gelmud’s goal is to create one. If possible, instead of exterminating it, I wish to save it and make it serve under me as it doesn’t seem exactly loyal to Gelmud nor Clayman. Not only should it be strong, it’s not a bad way to repay debt I owe to the writer of the diary. All things considered, it should be doable if I solve the famine plaguing their race, a problem I will be leaving to Demiurge, Albedo, or even Mare.

Actually… should I try to assess its power? Since it’s a newly-born demon lord, it should be fairly weak compared to the already-established ones. Then, I could intentionally take the loss and reassess its power after a while to better understand the natural growth rate of demon lords.

Then, who should I set as the commander of this operation? It would be a valuable learning opportunity for the guardians, especially the ones who are confident in their power and lack experience. It would be a great chance to adapt to this unknown world.

Demiurge? He would certainly be the best choice, but what would he really learn from it? He's already smart enough to properly assess the opponent. Moreover, I'd feel bad for putting more on his plate when he already has so much.

Cocytus? Certainly, another extremely favorable choice. While he has an abundance of battle experience, I don't believe he's quite suitable for the commanding role, which makes him quite an excellent choice for this mission.

However, the best choice seems to be Shalltear, a Floor Guardian that lacks both commanding and battle experience. Because her creator was Peroroncino, her setting was filled with descriptions of his fetishes with little useful information. Coupled with her being the strongest Floor Guardian, it resulted in her being rather arrogant. A loss would do her much good at the moment.

“Message Shalltear. Are you free at the moment?”

“Uwaaah!!? Of course, Lord Momonga! I am always free if it’s you!” Shalltear replied in a panic. Suddenly, her tone changed and so did the person she seemed to be speaking to. “Hey, Aura, shut up for a second! I’m talking to Momonga!”

Ignoring the second part, I continued, “I’m sure Demiurge has updated you on the majin’s activities.”

“You mean that masked majin named Gelmud, arinsu? I’ve lost interest ever since he started wandering around that desert.”

Sigh… Such an important thing and to think she’s already forgetting it.

“Ask Demiurge for updates when you can. In the meantime, I’ll send you a detached force from Nazarick to defeat Gelmud and his new forces. As a side note, you may not request help from anyone else from Nazarick. You may attempt to ask the goblins for help, but they can not be involved in the battle.”

“I’ll be sure to defeat them as swiftly as possible, arinsu!”

**********

“Hmm~ Mmm~”

Resting in a tree close to the goblin village, which is definitely a bonafide town now, I hummed alongside the birds singing. Like every other day, today is a peaceful one, a day where nothing much happens except Gobbum’s occasional screams.

“OUGGAAYAAAA!!!!”

Yep, that’s his signature scream. He’s probably being disciplined by Cocytus after trying to skip out on training.

After regaining consciousness, I requested Cocytus to increase the difficulty of Gobbum’s training. I was not going to let that remark he made during the fight be forgotten. Anyways, as evident by his screams, Cocytus readily accepted it, saying how he sees “ the potential of a great warrior within him. ” Whether or not Gobbum will be able to hold up to that statement, I certainly agree with him to a certain extent.

Thinking back on the fight, I was really reckless. To think I was too absorbed in the heat of the battle and hadn’t surrendered when my last hit ability activities.

Oh well, at least I got something out of it. I finally learned how to utilize aura. I’ve always been using it, but not to its full extent like Gobbum had. To think someone like Gobbum was one head ahead of me.

“Ahem!”

This meant that I finally learned how to efficiently use Mana Bullet. It still wasn’t as efficient as that masked bastard’s, but it wasn’t bad. I even managed to somehow add the demise element to it.

Oh well, that’s enough lazing around for the day. Time to hop off this tree and eat some more prey.

“Ugh!”

My chest! It hurts! No, I’m not getting a heart attack. The wound I received from Cocytus still aches despite having Ultraspeed Regeneration and an undying body. This might be due to the fact that I completely emptied my magicules during the fights. Out of options, I asked Momonga for a recovery potion, but he rejected it, saying how it’s about time I deal with the consequences of my actions and then reprimanded me for how reckless I was.

So, here I am now, three days after the spar, still injured and lacking magicules. Though if I had to guess, I’m about thirty percent recovered, which is oddly slow considering I used to fully recover in one or two days. Could this be a side effect of Black Ogre’s Undying Body? After all, there must be a cost for having such a strong body.

Well, all things considered, I got off pretty light. I should be able to make a full recovery if I just play around and rest. It’s a bit of a shame, though. I wanted to meet the ogre tribe after the fight and eat so much more.

There’s the slime and lizardmen in the spawn. Coincidentally, direwolves are also there for some reason. Then, there’s a whole other half of the forest I haven’t yet explored. Moreover, a fabled race called the dryads exists in this forest, and while I haven’t seen any of them, Rigurd claims he has seen one before. Lastly, I still need to find more shiny rocks to stockpile elemental abilities.

Perhaps…

Gosh, I’m grinning just thinking about the possibilities.

Perhaps I can even find a human and eat them?

Actually, nevermind. Momonga warned me to not make our presence known to any civilization just yet. At times, he appears to be a worrywart, but this time, I share a similar sentiment. Even if Momonga has the Floor Guardians at his disposal, antagonizing humanity by eating them would be such an irreparably stupid move when I might’ve already accidentally angered a demon lord.

Well, I’ll just go take a walk around the known area of the forest and fill my stomach.

Chapter 18: Monsters in the Kindgom II

Chapter Text

Uwwaaaahhh, I woke up screaming, but in reality, I just woke up like any other person would. It seems I was asleep for a night? It’s hard to tell considering that there’s no visible sunlight nor did I feel the passage of time.

I must say. Shiro and Veldora were greatly exaggerating the effects of naming if a night’s rest is all I need. It’s just like an extended power nap.

Anyways, this is a rather unfamiliar location. The humidity, the moss on the walls, the hay lying underneath me, the rocky roof, and the lizardmen wiping my body with a wet leaf. Actually, isn't this just a bonafide cave?

Considering the flow of events prior to my sleep, this must be where the lizardmen live.

<Confirmed: You are currently resting in the bedchambers of the lizardmen>

“Lord Rimuru, I will inform the chieftain of your awakening. Please excuse me,” the dual-colored lizardmen behind me stood up, gently placing me down on the hay. She, or I think it’s a she, had red scales with blue horns and highlights running down her whole body.

As she stood and walked away, I realized that there was a pair of magnificent wings attached to her back. It was large, covered in scales like her body was, and almost like that of a dragon’s.

Walking in from the tunnel was the lizardman who I hadn't gotten the name of. He was the blue lizardman who I asked to be friends and the one I first saved. Unlike before, he wasn't wielding his trident and he also grew a pair of wings from his back.

It might just be me, but did he always look this blue and shiny before? When I first met him, his scales were a dull blue, but now, it felt more like that of sapphire, shining a radiant glow. It seems his complexion might have gotten better? Did his hunched back disappear or did he simply grow a few inches.

“Lord Rimuru! It's great to see you!”

What did I name him again? Gabiru? Oh! I named him Abiru!

“Hey, Abiru! Why did you grow wings?”

“Well, you see, Lord Rimuru, after you named us, we gained newfound strength through the names and evolved into a new species known as the dragonewts.”

“Ooooooh. That's so cool.”

“Haha! I’m glad you think so!”

“So, how's the monster swarm?”

“They were of no issue! We took care of them with the power you bestowed on us,” Abiru flexed his biceps, which were hardly visible considering the scales covering them. Still, I could tell that he was trying to impress me.

“Abiru, who was that person earlier?”

“She was my daughter, Souka. I believe you’ve met her before you fainted. Does she… meet your fancy?” Abiru teased in a slightly suggestive tone.

That was Souka? She looked so different prior to her evolution. When she evolved, her scales turned from teal to a light red. She even has blue highlights on her horns like her father.

“Hey,” I signaled him to follow me as I jumped from my resting place to the tunnel. Though the cave felt very much like the one I shared with Veldora, I wanted to meet the other lizardmen and get some fresh air. Then, thinking of the other lizardmen, I realized something strange. “Why are you blue?”

Though Souka changed color after evolving, Abiru was already a unique color prior to evolution. Despite all the others being gray, brown, or some other color, his scales were an odd blue.

“I’m glad you noticed. Before I was named by you, I was granted the Divine Protection of the Demigod of Clean Water.”

“Gods? What are they?”

“To be honest, I have no idea. They just grant us powers from time to time and we’re grateful for that.”

Coming out of the tunnel and then out the cave, we were greeted by the sight of dozens of dragonewts and direwolves sitting by the entrance. Out of everyone, Gabiru, the only person I couldn’t name due to already having a name, stood out because he didn’t have a pair of wings. Sitting in the corner, there was a giant wolf with a blue star birthmark and a single horn on his head.

It was kind of weird that a wolf would live in a swamp, but I suppose it’s even weirder that a pair of slime and spider would suddenly appear like knights in shining armor, saving monsters fighting for their lives against raging beasts. Speaking of spiders, I don’t see Shiro anywhere?

“Hey, where’s Shiro?”

“Lord Shiraori is currently out hunting for food and levels.”

“Can you get her?”

“Of course!” Abiru turned to the crowd of dragonewts. “Souka! Request Lord Shiraori to return!”

Without a moment’s delay, Souka spread her wings and took off.

From below, it looked like a wondrous sight. To think such small wings could lift so much weight by itself. Well, it is a different world, so I guess physics don’t really apply here.

“Lord Rimuru!” The huge dog wagging his tail approached me. What did I name him again? I kind of don’t remember since he was the last person I named before fainting. “You named me Ranga, Ranga Tempest!”

From the sheer pressure of the wagging alone, it created a small tornado, blowing the swampy water and mud into the air, creating a short shower. It wasn’t pleasant to say the least, but it’s not like I can actually feel much with this body. I do feel the pressure and texture, but I already feel the dirt all the time, so there’s really not much difference.

“What race are you?”

“I’ve become a tempest wolf!”

“Ranga, can you-”

Just as I was about to ask him to stop, the wind pressure created by his tail started lifting me off the ground, blowing me away into the air. Fortunately, I managed to land safely as Abiru flew up to catch me before I was blasted too far away.

After a while, Souka returned too, teleporting back to base right next to Shiro. To be honest, it was a little hard to tell the females apart from the males, especially when they are all covered in scales. I supposed it’d be equatable to being unable to tell an animal’s gender without looking at their genitals or knowing oddly specific facts about their species.

“Alright, everyone! Gather around!”

Not even a minute later, all the dragonewts and direwolves sat around in a circle and silenced themselves. If only my workplace subordinates were able to quiet themselves this quickly whenever there was a meeting, but oh well, not like it matters now in this world.

“I’m going to create three rules. First, do not attack humans.”

“Hey,” Shiro interrupted me. “Stupid Rule.”

In truth, it was probably dumb, but perhaps due to some prior attachment as being human, I had some slight favoritism towards them and wanted to be friends with them. Therefore, I came up with a rushed but somewhat logical reason on the spot.

“We’re pretty weak at the moment, so if we recklessly attack them, they might retaliate and wipe all of us out.”

“Whatever…” Shiro retreated, seemingly dissatisfied with the answer, but it seems that even with a simple reason, the rest of the monsters were satisfied.

“Now, the second rule. Do not attack your own. We’re all supposed to be friends here.”

Unlike the previous rule, everyone seems to readily agree to this one.

“Third, do not look down on other races. Just because you’ve become stronger doesn’t mean you get to look down on others.”

With a quick look around, it seems that everyone, excluding Shiro, are neutral or happy with these rules.

“Done?” Shiro asked.

“Yeah.”

Without saying anything else, Shiraori disappeared in a white light, likely teleporting to where she was before. Compared to when I first met her, it feels like she’s changed slightly ever since the encounter with that black ogre. It’s almost like she became obsessed with power.

I understand her since power is important, but there are other things in life to enjoy, such as food, games, and handicrafts. Well, I can’t exactly eat stuff, but I guess I can do the other stuff.

“Now, everyone! One last thing. Let’s renovate the caves,” I requested. Though it wasn’t so bad to live in a cave-like structure, it felt a little uncivilized. If I wanted to implement the entertainment I wanted, I should start by advancing the standards of living, beginning with the buildings.

**********

“I’m bored,” I muttered to myself, looking down at the stack of paperwork beneath me. Some of them were from me since I wanted the unfiltered opinion of Demiurge and Albedo, while others were from the monsters. “I’m soooooo bored.”

Now that Rou doesn’t bust through the door anymore nor is Albedo by my side due to being busy, I’m extremely bored just filling out paperwork. It’s not really that much, but the fact that I have to sit here everyday, declining or accepting monotonous paperwork really drains my soul like my job did.

What should I-

Stamp.

Wait… No! I just accidentally used the accept stamp on Gobta’s dumb request to live in Nazarick. While it was just an anonymous request to allow the hobgoblins free entry into Nazarick, it was clear as day that such a request could be made up by Gobta. In this scenario, there is only one solution.

Rippp~ Tears… Sissshh~

Firebolt.

That’s right. I just need to tear the paper, burn it, and pretend it never existed. If Gobta asks about it, I can just say that it got lost or something.

One day, when Nazarick’s denizens are more used to the hobgoblins, I do plan on unlimited access for the hobgoblins in and out of Nazarick, but today’s not the day, especially not when they could carelessly set off one of the traps and die.

Ahem!

Anyways, I think it’d be pretty fun to be an adventurer. Now that things have settled down a bit, I could use this time to relieve some stress and make some money along the way. Then, if I get popular enough, I could spread the name Ainz Ooal Gown to let any of my friends know that I’m here if they happen to reincarnate like I did.

So, here’s the question. Who should I bring along with me?

Narberal? She looks the most passable as a human, but her disdain for humans is far too obvious and could get her easily exposed as a monster. If that happens, I could only dream of becoming an adventurer, much less becoming popular enough to spread my name.

Rou? He’d be a great choice, considering I don’t have to upkeep my image around him. Despite his short-temper with Gelmud, he’s able to act quite well when the situation demands it. I bet he would even love to come along considering the new food he’ll eat. I’ll consider him for now.

The Floor Guardians? Most of them would instantly get recognized as monsters. Even if I were to bring along Mare or Aura, I would feel bad taking up so much of their time when they’re already busy creating fertile land and creating a bestiary of native monsters.

Actually, what rule states an adventurer party must consist of two people? Couldn’t I just bring two people so they can compensate for each other’s flaws? If that’s the case, I could have Rou pretend to be a battle mage and have someone else be the healer. Doesn’t this make Lupusregina the ideal person considering the party combination?

I am the warrior, Rou is the mage, and Lupusregina is the priest.

This is perfect! Of course, it isn’t the most perfect party combination considering that each member isn’t used to their assigned roles except Lupusregina, but it should be a valuable learning experience for each of us.

Then, if we happen to encounter a strong enemy, we could just stop holding back and ensure our safety by either escaping or outright defeating the enemy.

“Message Demiurge! Demiurge, inform Rou and Lupusregina for an outing."

“Lord Momonga, may I inquire about the purpose of this outing?”

Ah… Of course… I still need to face the final boss of explaining to Demiurge before following through with my plan. What do I say to convince him without making it seem like other people could take on the role?

Thinking for an amount of time I believe to be appropriate, I gave the only reasonable answer in this situation.

“Must I explain my every action?”

“Of course not, Lord Momonga! However, I wish to understand just the slightest bit of your thought process.”

“I suppose the simplest answer is that I wish to assess this world myself.”

“I see! I see! To think you would see right through my plan! While we’re on this topic, might I propose to allow some of Nazarick’s denizens to blend into the world for a similar purpose?”

“Umu! Is there anything else?”

“No, I wouldn’t dare take up so much of your time. I will inform Rou and Lupusregina to arrive before you in an instance.”

And with that, I ended the message. Had it gone on longer, I really might just be grasping straws on how to explain myself. At first, I thought of just leaving without explaining myself, but then it would lead to a whole bunch of problems down the lane.

Not even a moment later, in fact I don't even think it's been three minutes, Rou and Lupusregina came bursting through the door. Thankfully, the door is fully intact unlike the previous time.

“Are we finally going to eat some humans? Or maybe you found a new dungeon?” Rou inquired.

“Yeah, it must be something amazing for Sir Demiurge to call us to get ready in an instant.”

“We're going to become adventurers,” I said in potentially the least enthusiastic voice ever to hide my excitement. It would be terrible if they think this is some sort of fun trip, which it is supposed to be, and blow our covers.

“Woah! Adventurers?! I'd never expect the stuck-up and cautious Momonga would be the first to suggest this!” Rou shouted out of shock.

Cautious I understand, but stuck-up? Did I really appear that way? Maybe around the people of Nazarick I did, but around Rou? I don't think I was ever like that.

Putting that side, Rou suddenly grabbed my collar, excitedly shouting, “What are you waiting for! Let's go!”

For some reason, it seemed like Lupusregina wanted to join in on Rou’s actions, but due to the status difference between me and her, she reluctantly held herself back.

“Wait, wait, wait. We must disguise ourselves. We cannot have an undead and an ogre roaming around the city. We could be seen as invaders.”

“I should be fine, but you? It's a bit hard to disguise a huge skeleton.”

“Umu!” I tried to hold myself back but was unable to when I thought of all the things I’d do. “Here are the roles. I, the warrior clad in black, you, the mage blessed by god, and Lupusregina, the priestess.”

As I stated our roles, I used Create Greater Item to equip a set of black armor and two twin great swords.

“You? A war- hehehaha,” Rou mocked while unable to hold back his laughter. He was covering his mouth to hide it, but it was clearly not having any effects. “A warrior?”

“If Lord Momonga sets his mind to it, I’m sure he can be as strong as Lord Touch Me.”

“Haha… Yeah, sure, sure. His sword skills are even worse than Gobbum- I mean Gobta’s.”

“Ahem! Anyways, change into appropriate outfits. For Rou, all you need is just a staff.”

“So, Momonga… What about my halberd? Is it fixed yet?”

“Uhm? Of course! The blacksmiths also upgraded the weapon using magisteel, a material native to this world.”

As I handed the halberd to Rou, he stared at it in a daze, admiring the new shine it had. Before, it looked dull, almost like a normal halberd when it wasn’t enhanced. Now, it had a slight glow at all times, but that was all it had. It was just a slight glow due to the magisteel alloy.

Of course, it wasn’t all that it did. By using magisteel, it made the halberd more adept to magicules. Simply put, magicule or aura can now be channeled into the blade to unleash blade-related arts more efficiently, something that Cocytus’ students can already do at a master level. It was odd to watch Rou fall behind in this aspect, but he’ll get better with time.

After a while, Rou attempted to use the skills he copied… maybe stole? from Cocytus, coating the blade in a transparent layer of white ice. I believe Rou’s skill is closer to the act of stealing. After the fight, Cocytus noted some difficulties with his usage of ice, but after some training, it returned back to normal like nothing happened.

Focusing back on the blade in front of me. Very clearly, it was below the temperature of dry ice, maybe even approaching that of absolute zero. It was hard to make an exact statement without testing it out, but it was what it felt like from a distance.

Next, Rou changed the shape of the ice coating the blade into a long spear tip. In an instance, the halberd was transformed into a naginata. Then, it became a large battle axe. Least to say, it was certainly useful in a different way compared to his flames.

“Why not use electricity?”

“Well…”

Without saying another word, the ice disappeared and in turn purple sparks of electricity danced around the blade. Though I haven’t seen it used, it was clearly inferior to the flame version. Not only did it neglect electricity’s best property, which was its speed, the consistency was also terrible. Because the sparks flew all over, it was hard to perfectly time the hit for critical damage even though it had the potential to be more deadly than the flame. Perhaps a swordmaster could make use of its full potential, but Rou clearly was not at that level.

“Anyways, we will depart in an hour. I’ll get all of your gear ready.”

**********

“Stupid Rimuru,” I commented on his dumb attempts to create proper furniture, roads, and a proper sewage system without any knowledge on how to make any of these things.

Even I, a spider with zero hands and no prior knowledge of woodworking, was able to make proper furniture out of string. Did he seriously not build a single IKEA table in his 40 or so years of life.

Out of everything made, the tables, chairs, and beds were properly made, but the slightly more complicated ones like drawers were made haphazardly. They were made so badly that when I gave it the slightest push, the drawer slid out of its frame, falling right onto the floor.

“Teehee!” Rimuru tried to brush it off.

“Find dwarves?” I asked to see if we could just put this off for now. Instead, we could leave the task to someone more proficient in crafting, such as dwarves, a race that must exist in this fantasy world.

“Dwarves?” Abiru joined in on the conversation. “I recall they lived in Dwargon. Elves, humans, lycanthropes, and various other races also frequent there.”

“Oooooooh!” Rimuru shouted with excitement. “EIL-” Ahem!

Was he about to say eilf? Putting that aside, it seems we have our destination. Without further ado, Rimuru dragged us out of the cave and into the open.

After a while, we decided on a guide to take us to Dwargon. Though we wanted Abiru to guide us at first, he apologized due to being the chieftain, meaning he can’t leave the tribe for an extended period of time until he has a proper successor.

“Hohohoho! Worry not, Lord Rimuru and Lord Shiraori! I will be sure to guide you on the most comfortable trip you’ll ever have! Then, maybe… you could grant me a new name?”

Man, at this point, I just want to stay behind. To think we would get one of the most obnoxious dragonewt, or maybe he’s still a lizardmen, to be assisting us. His loud-mouthed personality is almost like that of Veldora’s without having the thousands of years of knowledge Veldora had. Therefore, it could only be concluded he is less than worthless.

Whatever! At least be thankful I might be going somewhere with more experience points. After all, the monster swarm has died down and the native monsters here are so weak they barely grant any levels. According to Abiru, the stronger monsters live within the forest. I could go there, but that’s likely where that damned ogre lived.

Uggghhhh!!! Just thinking about that guy makes me angry.

Anyways, let’s enjoy this trip for all that it is.

Thank you Rimuru for putting my sanity at risk by forcing me to accompany this lesser Veldora clone!

Chapter 19: Monsters in the Kingdom III

Chapter Text

“Yawwwwnnnn~!” What a peaceful afternoon just like every other day on this boring job.

I’m not complaining or anything, but I really wish some adventurer in shining armor would ask me out for a date. Then, we would get married, so I could finally quit this boring job and live out my dream life. It's the main reason why I and most other girls take up this job.

However, none of that matters in this adventurer guild’s branch. Only newbies ever come here due it being located in the middle of the city. If someone wanted harder quests, they would go to another branch.

Then, almost as if Lord Gazel himself had listened to my complaints, a trio of strong-looking adventurers appeared from the entrance. There was the lycanthrope girl, but I don't really care about her. The real selling point was the man in the full-black armor. He must be some rich guy considering he could afford a full plate armor made of rare materials. There was also an ogre, but he wasn’t my type.

“Welcome!” I gave the warmest greeting I could in hopes of attracting the rich guy.

“Tch!” Unfortunately, it was the black ogre that came up. Since he held a staff, he should be a mage, but really, a mage? To think these brutish ogres could learn to do a job as intelligent as mages. He must've learned magic through his blessing and not studying anyways. If only Dwargon wasn't trying to maintain neutrality, then these ogres would've long been targeted as extermination targets.

With a pompous attitude, the ogre slammed down the extermination request for the lesser dragons that were around Dwargon, specifically the wyverns that fly at the mountaintop and the drakes that reside within the mining cave.

“May I see your adventurer’s license?”

Perhaps it was because he was unintelligent or arrogant, he thought I would know him enough to fill out the request without knowing his information. While I may do it for famous parties for that black warrior, he certainly wasn't on the list.

“Ah, shit,” the black ogre cursed. Of course he throws around profanity like it's nothing. “I need to register, don't I? So, could you register me and my partners?”

He pointed at the lycanthrope and black warrior behind him. To think such rich-looking people were merely unregistered ruffians.

Sigh…

It probably meant that the black warrior was just another runaway rich kid who spent his family’s fortune to purchase that armor. While it would set me up for life if I eloped with him, I'd rather not take the risk and mess around with nobles.

“Yes, yes,” I sighed as I pulled out the papers. “Fill out your information. If you are unable to read, just fill out your name here, age here, class-”

“I can read,” the ogre rudely interrupted me as I was graciously explaining it to him. “Hey, all of you, did you hear that?”

He called over his team members, instructing them on how to fill out everything. Considering how he was the only one who knew how to write, could it be possible that he’s the smartest? He is a mage after all.

Even if he is a rude and arrogant ogre, I am willing to settle for him.

“Sir… Maou?”

What an uncommon name.

“Yes?”

“Apologies, but the lesser dragon extermination quest is only available for B-rank adventurers and above.”

“So?”

“So I suggest you take the rank-up test at the guild to skip a few ranks,” I ignored the rude way he replied to me. With a gentle smile, I continued, “I’m confident that you are able to become a B-rank adventurer easily with your power.”

“Alright, let’s do it right away.”

**********

Standing in the middle of the examination ground, a haggard middle-aged man wielding a large battleaxe stood before me. He was certainly a formidable warrior judging from his muscular body that looked as hard as steel. Then, there was his red hair that looked like it hadn’t seen a touch of soap in months. Somehow, his hygiene looked worse than the goblins prior to our evolutions.

“Rou,” Momonga sent me a telepathic message. “Remember, no melee combat, no demise spells, and no skill a normal ogre wouldn’t have. Just pretend to be an ogre blessed by the Demigod of Color who can use elemental abilities.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know what to do.”

After careful consideration, we decided to change my god to Demigod of Color, which has never had apostles of the same color before. Therefore, it was totally probable that I could be black and say that I received elemental abilities and magic from him.

“Are you ready?” Pilluth the examiner warned me. He was a B-rank adventurer, so if I defeated him, I would be named a B-rank adventurer. Coincidentally, because he was free, he decided to do all of our rank evaluations on the same day.

“Yeah, let’s go,” I tightened my grip on the handle of the staff, pointing it forward just like I would a halberd or a spear.

Was I supposed to wield the staff like a spear? Well, I never used one before, so it shouldn’t really matter all that much. Actually, how did Momonga say a mage should fight again?

Even though I know games typically depict mages as backliners, I’m sure it doesn’t matter, so I’ll just fight however I want.

Rushing forward like I believe an ogre mage would do, I maintained the direction of the staff, pointing it forwards like I would a spear. They are both weapons with a long handle, so I’m sure I’m not doing anything wrong.

“Woah, woah, woah!” The examiner started to panic slightly, clearly not expecting a mage to rush in.

“Fireball,” I chanted as I closed the distance. It wasn’t a real fireball since I didn’t know how to use one, but I created a fake one using my Pyrokinesis skill.

On our journey here, we practiced our skills. I learned how to fake the Fireball, Thunderbolt, and Icicle Lance spells using their respective elemental skills. Then, I taught Momonga the basics of swordsmanship, and while he learned at a quick pace, his skill level was still inferior to most of the hobgoblins’. Lastly, Lupusregina didn’t really need any help with learning to fit into her role since she was already perfect for her designated role. All we did was help her hold back her physical strength so she doesn’t accidentally expose herself.

“Well,” the examiner smirked as he blocked my Fireball with his large battleaxe. “I guess that’s to be expected.”

Then, he swung his battleaxe down… very… very… very slowly. It was even slower than the slime’s projectiles. To be honest, it was probably because I’ve just faced Cocytus, so everything else seems to be really disappointing.

Of course, I can’t just expose myself, so I decided to disable part of Black Ogre’s Enhanced Sense and the thought acceleration aspect of Akashic Records. After nerfing myself, things seem more fair, but if I lightly punch him, I’m more than positive he would be sent flying.

Acting like I barely dodged the attack, I held back the urge to punch him and instead casted another spell.

“Iclce Lance.”

“Not bad!” Pilluth’s smirk grew larger, but it diminished when he saw dozens of other Icicle Lances heading in his direction.

“Icicle Lance. Icicle Lance. Icicle Lance. Icicle Lance,” I started to spam Icicle Lance without giving him a chance to react. The speed I casted spells was at a rate that was impossible for even Momonga, and of course it was. After all, I’m not casting any spells. It was just creating projectiles roughly in the shape of Icicle Lance using Ice Manipulation.

To be honest, I found it weird that this skill wasn’t called Cryokinesis unlike the other elemental skills I had. I was almost certain that Cryokinesis existed and I just needed to find a magical rock containing the ability. Similarly, it would also imply Fire Manipulation and Thunder Manipulation also existed.

After a few solid minutes of Icicle Lances, I gave up when I saw the examiner rush through my fake spells with a single charge.

Did I give up the fight? Of course not! I gave up pretending to be a mage and decided to just smack him with my staff, knocking the examiner out cold.

“Rou…” Momonga messaged me with a hint of annoyance. “What did I say about physical combat?”

“Hey, real mages would do it too if they were forced into a corner. Plus, it’d seem more suspicious if a physically strong ogre like me refuses any and all melee confrontation.”

After it seemed like Pilluth wasn’t going to wake up, I called over Lupusregina to heal him.

“Puree!”

It was the name we decided for Lupusregina by taking the middle syllables of her name. At first, it was just Pusre, but after realizing it sounded like Puree, I suggested the name and it was accepted by Lupusregina since she liked it more.

She knew exactly what it meant, but she had no qualms about it. Maybe she’s a foodie just like me? I need to take her out to eat something nice and see her reaction sometime in the future.

Anyways, Lupusregina healed the examiner in an instant. It wasn’t that bad of an injury, but the sudden blow to his skull managed to cause a concussion and knocked him out cold.

“Woah! I pass you as a B-rank. Also, the healer girl is at a C-rank. Now, onto that warrior in black.”

Looking at Momonga, he finally introduced himself. “I am Musasabi the dark warrior!”

Pft! Even after hearing it dozens of times, I still could not get over how both of his names are based on flying squirrels. It’s basically advertising that we are otherworlders. Well, it’s not like it matters unless people are familiar with the naming scheme of Japanese people or are otherworlders themselves.

“Also, by the way, you weren’t supposed to fight me. You were supposed to fight a summon,” Pilluth commented. “Either way, that black ogre is strong and intelligent enough to be a B-rank.”

Soon after, Pilluth summoned a wyvern, which I wanted to eat so badly. Sadly, I was forced to hold back my appetite.

A few exchanges later, Momonga managed to find an opening and finish the fight. It wasn't exactly a pretty victory since Momonga was tanking a lot of hits, but it was a victory nonetheless. If it was a spar instead, Momonga would’ve likely lost due to his immunity being useless. Even if a hit would be nullified, if it looked lethal enough, it would’ve ended in Momonga loss.

“Almost B-rank. Polish your skills more and you’ll get there. C-rank at the moment.”

“Heheh… Musasabi, it looks like you’re not as great as you thought,” Lupusregina teased Momonga using one of the few chances she will ever have in her entire life. It did not take long for her to drop the pretenses of respect she had for Momonga.

“So, are we able to accept the lesser dragon extermination request?”

“Lesser dragon extermination?” Pilluth started to laugh like a maniac. “Of course you can!”

“Sir Pilluth,” the receptionist girl spoke up after a long spout of silence. “You’re not one to make such decisions. However, I do agree that they are qualified.”

Lesser dragon meat… Here I come!

**********

It seems our journey might finally meet its end at last. At the end of our journey, instead of meeting elves, we were locked away in a dark and humid place. The ground underneath was clearly not cleaned regularly and nor were the walls. Then, there was the supposed smell of rotting flesh and food in the cells around us.

“Worry not, Lord Rimuru! I will ensure we spend not a second longer in this place!” Gabiru broke the somber mood that I was going for with his sudden shout.

Well, not like any of the things I said were true anyways. This prison cell was surprisingly well lit and cleaned for what it is. The scariest thing in here was actually Shiro burning holes in my back with her glare.

Even without speaking, I could tell that she was thinking something along the lines of “You really did that and got us in prison, huh? Look at that. Isn't it so great?”

Such a line would refer to the fact that while we were waiting in line to enter Dwargon, a couple of adventurers approached us and taunted us, saying how we were weak and pathetic monsters. They threatened to capture and sell us to the blackmarket for a large sum of gold.

At first, I just wanted to give them a little scare by transforming into a wyvern and using the Voice Cannon skill from the blade tiger, but that immediately backfired. Instead of scaring just the adventurers away, I even scared everyone else in the line away.

Sigh…

Well anyways, Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, and a life-sized cat, all of which were created using Steel String. With all the free time I got on the journey, I started practicing with my skills more.

I would say I'm better than Shiro, but very clearly, I am not. She was able to create a whole room and functional furniture with her strings, while I, on the other hand, can barely manipulate the shape to make the things I want.

“Escape?” Shiro suggested

“No, let’s be civil. I don't want to get a bad reputation,” I declined her suggestion. Though it would be very easy to slip out of the cell with my slime body or teleport out using Shiro’s skills, becoming an escapee is the last thing I want to do. If it happens, any and all chances of befriending humans would effectively become zero.

“Kaidou!” A dwarf shouted while running down the prison hall. “The miners encountered an armorsaurus and became fatally wounded!”

“What!? What are their conditions?”

“They’ve lost several limbs and some of them even lost organs!”

Isn't this the perfect opportunity to gain the dwarves’ favor

Slipping past the bars, I filled one of the empty barrels nearby with a gallon or so of full potion, a healing potion concocted by Great Sage with hipokte grass.

“Hey!” I shouted to call over the guard’s attention. “Wouldn't this be helpful?”

“A barrel of healing potion? And wait… how did you get out of your cell!”

“Is that really the important part? Go heal those dwarves with this potion.”

“Erghhh”, the dwarf Kaidou groaned while contemplating what he should do next. “Alright, you guys better stay in your cell!”

“Sir, yes, sir!” I gave my reply like a soldier would. I found it quite fun to roleplay from time to time.

Anyways, slipping back into the cell, Shiro complimented me on my quick thinking.

“Good job.”

It was the first compliment she had ever given to me in the whole time I've known her. Has the value of Rimuru stocks finally gone up in her eyes? Meanwhile, on the other hand, Gabiru did not care in the slightest and continued his rambling about escaping.

A day later, three dwarves appear in front of us, each of them thanking me for saving their life.

“Yo, I’m Garm. You really saved my hide there.”

Well, no problem! It's to be expected of a friendly slime.

“I’m Dord. I give you my thanks too. Call upon us whenever you need something,” Dord paused for a while before pointing at the bald dwarf besides him. “He’s Myrd. He doesn’t really speak.”

Really? Don't mind me when I ask you to build some roads and houses later for my people.

“Mhmm. Mhm!” Myrd hummed in a respectful tone, probably trying to give his thanks as well.

Say something!

“Anyways,” Kaidou interrupted. “This clears you guys of any and all suspicions… though you should probably try to hide your spider friend because people will get scared easily.”

Following the four dwarves out of the prison cell, I took a closer look at the nation. Compared to the shabby cave we were living in, this city is on a different scale. From the lights to the building, it all screamed of a fantasy world in the medieval ages. Even Gabiru was stupefied to the point where he was no longer bolstering, and Shiro, well, she’s quiet like she’s always been.

After satisfying my curiosity, I asked them a question, “Do you know any skilled craftsmen? We're trying to build housing and roads.”

“Mhmm,” Kaidou placed his fingers on his chin, stroking it as he pondered. “I know just the guy. He might be a bit busy though.”

Walking past the red light district, I felt a bit of regret since I couldn’t break away from the sweaty dwarves to meet some elves. It’s a big disappointment, but worry not, I’ll embrace everyone there eventually!

Soon, we arrived at a blacksmith, and inside, there was a real dwarf! Not to say any of the dwarves we were talking with before didn’t look like dwarves, but this was a bonafide dwarf! Short, stubby, muscular, and has an extremely long beard. It was truly how one would expect a dwarf to look like.

“Hey, can’t you see I’m busy?” The dwarf shouted in a non-threatening way. It really just sounds like he was stressed.

“Kaijin, this is the slime we told you about.”

“When we were hurt yesterday.”

“Mhmm mhmm!”

“Really?” The hammering dwarf placed down his hammer and stopped forging. After taking off goggles, he sat down and took a bow. “I’m Kaijin. You have my thanks.”

“Ayee~, it’s nothing. Really.”

“Also, you should probably take your friend out. It looks like he fainted in the heat.”

Behind me, it appears that Gabiru was sleeping on the floor, drenching the floor full with a bucket of sweat. Very clearly, he had a heat stroke and fainted. It was the first time I’ve ever seen him be so silent, but if he stays in this place for too long, he might just die.

“Shiro, can you take him out?”

Without saying much, Shiro dragged Gabiru outside like he was a piece of luggage. Accidentally, or maybe purposefully, Shiro wasn’t considerate enough and caused Gabiru to bump his head on the stairs. If he was conscious before, he was certainly gone by now.

“Anyways, what can I do for you as thanks?”

“We need a skilled craftsman, one that can build roads, buildings, furniture, proper weapons, and basically anything else. I would greatly appreciate it if you're the one.”

“I get what you’re saying, but I’m really busy at the moment. I’ve been slapped with an order of 20 magisteel longswords in a week. Damn Vesta forcing me to work just because he’s a noble. Not only am I short on material, it takes me two weeks to make twenty swords. I’ve only made one in two days.”

Magiore? Haven’t I been devouring a whole lot of that when I was in Veldora’s cave?

“Hey,” I spit out a lump of magiore. “Is this what you’re talking about?”

“Magiore?! No… It’s a cluster of magisteel!”

“You can have it!”

“Oi, oi, are you really sure I can have this?”
“Of course! Just get a couple of artisans to help me!”

“Hahaha! That will be easy work. Boys! Let’s get working!”

Just as when they were about to start hammering again, I asked them a somewhat out of place question, “Didn’t you say you already made one?”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“Can I see it?”

Woah!!!! Even with an untrained eye like mine, I could easily tell that this was the work of a master craftsman. Everything from the subtle glow to the engravings that looked like it took days to make just screams majestic.

If I could help him fulfill his quota, I could probably get him on my side.

“Don’t mind me,” I said as I jumped onto the sword, absorbing it.

Great Sage, analyze it.

<Analyzing: Magisteel Longsword>

Make 20 copies of it.

In my stomach, I could suddenly feel 20 copies of the longsword, each one crafted to the same perfection as the first one.

“Oi! What are yo-”

Just as Kaijin was able to shout and likely set my jiggly body ablaze, I spit out 20 magisteel longswords.

“Oi! OI! OI! OI OI OI!”

“You should be able to make your delivery now, right?”

“HAHAHA!” Kaijin started laughing like he heard the funniest joke in his whole life. It lasted for a solid minute before he was able to hold himself back and continue. “OF COURSE! I'll deliver this and we can go party!”

Chapter 20: Monsters in the Kingdom IV

Chapter Text

Somewhere above the Armed Nation of Dwargon in the Great Kanaat Mountains, there were numerous wyvern corpses, three of which were fully stripped to their bare bones and some only had their skulls remaining. It was a terrific sight with blood scattered across the rocky mountains and chopped vestiges lying in a radius of a few dozen meters. Compared to the ones who killed them, it was truly a sight that would make one wonder how it was possible.

Back in Yggdrasil, there were several classifications of wyverns, including ones that could easily defeat a max level player. Even though they were often subspecies of the superior dragons, they were still a force to be reckoned with. Still, it was surprising that they would have little to no physical resistance.

In the middle of it all, I stood there with two of my comrades. Rou killed five wyverns, Lupusregina created a new record of eight wyverns, while I, on the other hand, barely managed to defeat one. In total, we killed a whole flock of fourteen wyverns. It wasn't exactly a commendable amount, but it was still far more than the three that the extermination request asked of.

Not being salty or anything, but had I not been forced to stick to my identity of Musasabi, I could've easily defeated all fourteen by myself in under a minute. Well, none of these would be a challenge for any of us if we went all out.

“Heuh, Mo-sun-sah-bai!” Rou attempted to communicate while chewing the heart of one of the wyverns. Because we killed so much, we decided it was fine for him to eat some of their corpses.

“Call me Musasabi please. Someone might be watching us.”

“Rug-ight” Gulp! Rou finally managed to swallow his food at last. “You think this is sufficient for us to become famous?”

“Maou, of course not!” Lupusregina replied in my place.”If it's Musasabi, he must be aiming to kill a dragon lord. It must be why we accepted this quest. We need to accidentally encounter one.”

Dragon lords? Do they exist here as well? Either way, when was this my goal? Sure… my goal might've been to become famous, but doing it this way seems like I'm just recklessly destroying the ecosystem.

Even if they do exist here, what guarantee is there that I'll even be able to defeat them? In Yggdrasil, they were the strongest enemies, and even then, I could only solo them after I spent a few hours preparing consumables. It may be tedious, but it was a great way to farm gold in Yggdrasil when considering the market value of their materials.

In the heat of the moment, I decided to just say, “Umu.”

“Mhmm~ A dragon lord? I wonder how it would taste.”

“Gosh, Maou. All you have on your mind is food,” Lupusregina teased.

“Rou,” I switched over to communicating via Ainz Ooal Gown, Lord of Nazarick just in case someone might be eavesdropping on us. This feature was something I've been utilizing the whole time but only realized the functionality of recently. “What skills did you get?”

At first, I thought it was just the messaging ability in Yggdrasil, but in reality, it was due to my ultimate skill that I was able to telepathically communicate with the people I know, a condition that seems to be extremely vague. So far, I noticed that those I’m able to communicate with were either named by me or were denizens of Nazarick.

To make it seem less suspicious, I spoke normally as well.

“You might make wyverns extinct at this point.”

“Fire Breath, Dragon Scales, and Dragon Eye. To be honest, I was a little disappointed. I expected something like Dragon Heart that's supposed to be present in all dragons, but I guess a wyvern is still a lesser dragon in the end,” Rou answered my first question. At the same time, Rou responded to my fake commentary, “Well, we're just making the city more safe, aren't we?”

He wasn't just answering because we were friends, but also because we had an exchange going on. By providing Rou with monsters to eat, such as my summons and Nazarick’s POP monsters, he provided me with information about any and all skills he has. In fact, I dare say we know everything about each other at this point except for my ultimate skill, which even I have no idea the full capabilities of.

Without Rou, I may as well be a beginner in this world due to my lack of information. Though Dark Seeker does provide me information to some extent, it is nowhere near as potent as Rou’s skill when excluding spells. Combined with his other unique skill that allows him to absorb skills, he might as well be a walking encyclopedia, a fact that I am more than jealous of.

Though I suppose I do have a leg up when it comes to magical knowledge. With more time, I might be able to replicate his demise spells. I’ve already managed to recreate several new spells in this world, including healing spells that I normally shouldn’t be able to use.

“I suppose you are right that we must traverse higher up the mountains,” I attempted to maintain the fake speech. “Haha! I guess you're right!”

Switching back to regular speech, we started travelling higher up in search of more prey to hunt. It's a massive shame I'm not able to taste something so delicious, which was worsened by the fact that both Rou and Lupusregina looked like they just ate something out of the world.

Could wyvern meat grilled over an open flame really taste that good? Actually, since Rou is swallowing it uncooked, could raw wyvern meat even taste any good in the first place?

As for the remaining wyvern corpses, I pretended to place them inside a magic bag that was really just connected to my storage to serve as proof for the quest. I couldn't just be using my skills in the open since it'd be weird for a warrior to know spatial magic.

After rampaging through another two hordes of wyverns, we finally found something better, one that had four limbs, two wings, and horns that resembled a crown. It was truly accurate to the depiction of a western dragon.

Unlike its appearance, however, it was quite weak, not weak in the sense that we easily beat it, but weak in the sense that there was no difficulty. It wasn't strong enough to bypass my High Tier Physical Attack Nullification, which was rebranded to Physical Attack Resistance by this world’s system, nor were its breaths strong enough to inflict any meaningful damage. Though if it were just a bit stronger, it might've surpassed the level 60 limitations of my resistance.

However, just because I think it to be weak doesn't mean it was weak compared to my party members. If it was a one on one against a full power Lupusregina, she would've likely lost, while if it was against the adventurer Maou, Rou would've lost as well. Neither of them have the defense necessary to hold out against the dragon. On the other hand, I didn't have the offensive necessary to finish the dragon, so instead of being the warrior clad in shining black armor, I was a black tank smeared in grime, char, and dirt.

Well, it wasn't so bad all things considered. It felt exciting to overcome a challenge that we wouldn't be able to normally, but it was odd that our priest was the main DPS and our mage was more of a support.

“Hey, Momonga,” Rou activated telepathy to speak. “I got Magic Resistance. It also feels like the skills I got from the wyvern got stronger.”

“Rou, just to double check, you can eat items as well, right?”

“Yeah? It's how I got Pyrokinesis, Electrokinesis, and Magic Hide.”

“Alright, let's go find one of their nests. Then, we'll sell their treasures and mix in some from Nazarick as well. Afterwards, we'll have you go around the city buffet-style.”

“MOMONGA!”

Shi- that was loud.

“You know exactly what I’m thinking! Thanks pal!”

If he's truly able to get the ability of the item he eats, I wonder where the limit lies? Do consumables like potions and cash shop items become abilities for him or do they not due to being single use? Could he eat indestructible items such as the World Items? Could he obtain abilities from crafting materials or items only with a lore but no actual usable features?

Putting that thought aside, we decided it was finally time to descend the mountain and claim our reward.

**********

“Rimuru~ you're too idealistic, you know that right? I find it hard to believe you're twice as old as I am when you act like a child all the time~”

Oi! Who gave Shiro alcohol?!

So, you're probably wondering how I ended up having to deal with a drunk spider?

After I helped Kaijin meet his delivery deadline by a whole 4 or so days, he decided to thank us by showing us around. He said he'd “show us a good time.”

One of said places was a bar manned by elves in the red light district. Least to say, I was more than excited, especially without the presence of Gabiru, who is still fainted at this moment. Instead of taking him along, we just decided to leave him in a cooler area of Kaijin’s smithy, and to make sure he doesn’t cause a ruckus by waking up earlier than intended, Shiro masterfully tied him with her Steel Strings. It was one of those bondages you'd see in those kink videos on a website I shall not disclose.

I wonder where she learned to do such things?

After arriving, we were greeted by big titt- I mean, elves and given alcohol. It didn't taste like much nor did I get drunk, but it felt nice being served by such beauties while sitting on their laps.

Then, one of them offered to divine who my fated one would be. To be honest, I didn't really think much of it because I'm supposed to be an asexual slime, so any and all partners I'd have in the future would be useless.

I'm not saying I rejected her offer. It'd be a massive shame to turn down such an offer from a gorgeous pair of ti- gorgeous elf. Surprisingly, there was actually a result. It was a beautiful, slightly petite, Japanese woman that bore a resemblance to the little girl I had a dream about prior to my reincarnation. Does this mean that the blue-haired girl was our child?

Hehehe~

Putting aside those perverted thoughts, I guess reproduction via self replication like normal slimes do is feasible.

Then, that brings us to where we're at now.

“Oi, Rimuru, who’s that beautiful girl?” Shiro mumbled in her drunken stupor. “You certainly can't be daydreaming about the impossible. Stick to reality, please.”

When drunk, she becomes a totally different person. Due to being drunk, she isn't able to control Thought Communication as finely as she did before, so everyone here can hear her.

“Woah! Rimuru!” Kaijin exclaimed in surprise. “Your spider friend can speak.”

“Ooooof~ course~ I can! Wh-whooo do you take me for~? I am Shiro, the cutest and strongest and smartest and… and… and… spider-est spider to ever exist~”

“Of course!” I tried to brush it off. “She’s just very shy and doesn't speak often.”

“Mr. Slime,” the fortuneteller elf tried to call me, but because I was too busy dealing with Shiro, everything she said was drowned out by the noise. Then, to make things worse, I missed any and all chances to know what she was going to say when a mustached man came bursting in.

“Hoooo~ Kaijin, should you really be slacking off when you have a delivery to make?”

“I've just delivered it.”

“Yes, yes, of course you gave- wait what?! You delivered it? Bulls-” the mustached man managed to barely hold himself back from cursing.

“Vesta, you can check with Gazel if you want.”

“Ahem! Well, putting that aside, how far has your pride fallen to be accompanying two monsters?” Vesta twirled his long mustache, walking towards us in the most arrogant way possible. Midway, he grabbed a pitcher of water, and unexpectedly, he poured it on me.

“Mr. Slime! Are you okay?” The elf that was holding me gasped.

“Yeah, I'm just glad you didn't get wet,” I absorbed the water as I replied.

“‘HOw fAr HaS Yo-yOUR pRiDE FaLLeN~’ Look who’s tawking. The most dubious guy waltz in and thinks heh can do whatever he wanna.”

In the short duration Vesta walked in, it appears Shiro had another glass of wine and gotten even more drunk.

Clearly not taking it well, Vesta started shouting, “Take your dirty and inferior pets out of here, Kaijin! You should be thankful I can't bring you to court for bringing in wild beasts!”

“Vesta…” Kaijin stood up, slowly walking towards Vesta before picking up the pace. “I'll give you a reason to sue me!”

As he said that, Kaijin winded up a punch and smacked Vesta in the face so hard that it looked like his jaws popped out of their sockets.

“You dare punch me!? Watch your back, Kaijin!” Vesta shouted as he ran out of the establishment. On his way out, Shiro used her Steel Strings to tie his legs together, causing him to trip and hit his face on the door.

“I’ll have you all executed!!!” Vesta turned around to shout before bunny-hopping his way out. Due to this, his face turns as red as the amount of dignity he just lost.

“Sir Rimuru, you said you were looking for craftsmen, right?”

“Yes?”

“I believe you just found the perfect man for the job,” Kaijin pointed at himself with his thumb as he said that. It was a moment that almost brought tears to my eyes… if only I could do that with my body. It was truly unbelievable to think he would not only stand up for me, but also leave his hometown.

“Hey, Mr. Slime,” the black-skinned elf’s call to me finally got through after everything settled down a little. “Another person appeared in my divination.”

“Really! Doesn't a person only have one fated person?”

“Most cases, yes, but sometimes, they could have two.”

“So, who is it?”

“It was a dark-skinned muscular man with two horns on his head. Then, it looks like he was a mage judging from his robed appearance and staff. I couldn't really make out any other features since he appeared for only a brief moment.”

Dark skin…

Muscular…

Two horns…

Could it be that black ogre I encountered?

Nah, impossible. The ogre wielded a halberd and his appearance was nothing like a mage’s. Even then, the only spell he used was a black spear, so he doesn't have enough spells to be properly classified as a mage. Then, it might be a demon or an old hermit?

Putting aside the fact that my second fated one is a man, I'm really looking forward to meeting the Japanese girl even if it may take years for that to occur. I’m not complaining about Shiro’s shyness, but I'd much rather converse with someone who talks more.

When Veldora spoke to Shiro, it felt more like a real conversation, one where they were exchanging complete sentences. If only I could read her mind, then we could have a far more in-depth conversation.

“Mr. Slime, would you like me to divine it again?”

“Thanks, but I'll have to say no. I think our stay is just going to cause more trouble.”

“Awww, do come back whenever you need our service again, okay?”

“Of course!”

Well, how am I supposed to get this drunken mess of a spider out of here is the real question?

I don't believe Steel Strings will be strong enough to restrain her nor do I want to go through the trouble of dragging her out of here.

Mhmmm…

Right! Couldn't I just put her in my stomach like I did to Veldora? The fact that Veldora hasn't made any complaints so far means the environment in my stomach must be suitable, yeah?

Without much thought, I swallowed the rambling spider without the intent to absorb her. Even if I could gain a few extra skills, it was completely not worth losing one of my best pals over. Moreover, I already have her main combat skills, which were Sticky String and Steel String. The only other skill I might get was her camouflage and space manipulating skill.

Either way, I'm sure this trip to my stomach will be beneficial to her. Not only would she save the shame of being dragged down the street drunk, she might just learn to speak a bit more with Veldora accompanying her.

Anyways, just as I was leaving, Kaidou, the guard that led us to Kaijin, stood in front of the door and arrested us.

“Bro, what were you doing?”

“Nothing much… I just punched that bastard Vesta.”

“Sigh… Don’t hold it against me. It’s just the law.”

To think not even an hour later, Vesta managed to run to a guard and get us arrested. Not only did he fit the stereotypical trope of an incompetent villain, he complains as fast as one, too.

Chapter 21: Monsters in the Kingdom V

Chapter Text

“Heh heh heh… kehehehe…. KEHAHAHAHA!! To think you would dare enter the Great Storm Dragon’s territory!”

“Eh? Weldowa? Yow’re as bald as eweeer~”

“Sigh… How does a spider get drunk?”

Though it may be entertaining to tease Shiro while she's drunk, I think I'll hold off for not. Anything I say she would not remember once she sobered up, and if I do anything to her, she’ll just give me the silent treatment.

If only Rimuru could visit from time to time or provide me some sort of entertainment, but I guess communication is hard. Because I can glimpse into his life through this large screen, the endless void doesn’t really bother me all that much. It was really frustrating to see Rimuru lose to that ogre and even more so when he acted so naive in front of the dwarves. If it was me, I would’ve stomped on both the dwarves and ogre and called it a day. Even if it was Rimuru, he should’ve been able to use my storm magic due to our connection, so why the hell didn’t he use it?

What’s more frustrating is the way he spoke to me. Whenever he could communicate, he would always sound cold, almost robotic. The worst was when he forcibly took magicules from me to name the lizardmen and direwolves, but it’s fine. After all, he’s my best friend and it’s not like my magicules have decreased after he took so much. I just hope he doesn’t carelessly give a name to a strong monster, such as an archdemon, cryptid, or dragon.

Ooooooh!!! Here comes the best part!

Through the magical viewing window that allows me a peek into the outside world, something interesting is finally starting after all the boring exchanges between the dwarves and Rimuru in his prison. This is like those k-drama… reality TV shows? Anime? Well, whatever this would be classified as, it is certainly very exciting to watch.

“Lord Rimuru! I have come to rescue you!” Gabiru shouted while bursting through the prison gate. From his appearance alone, it was very clear he had been fighting off several guards while scavenging both high and low trying to find Rimuru.

Though he may act idiotic at times, I really like this guy. Compared to his father who’s just a dull leader, he has a great personality able to bolster morale among his troops and turns everything he’s involved with into a comedy. Under his mask of arrogance, I can see great potential, and I, the Great Storm Dragon Veldora, shall do my best to bring out his potential!

Though I may be unable to grant him my divine protection due to this damned barrier trapping me, I’m sure I can still grant him my blessing as a storm dragon like how I was able to for both Shiro and Rimuru. It’s a shame he isn’t able to form a proper connection with Rimuru due to already being named, but I’m sure he’ll be able to do that and more with my blessing.

“Woah, Gabiru! Quiet down!!!” Rimuru shouted at the top of his lungs to stop Gabiru’s antics.

What a kill-joy Rimuru is, ruining fun moments at every opportunity he gets. At moments like these, I wish that ogre would come and give me some fun time.

“Rimuru! Worry not!! None of these dwarves are a match for the Great Gabiru!!!”

Yes! Yesss! YESSSSSS! That is exactly how someone strong should behave! Just like the sacred texts suggested, you should know your strength and display it proudly so that others don’t underestimate you! Even though some of them suggest humbleness, they must be blasphemous texts disguised as sacred!

“Gabiru, if you want a name, stay quiet.”

“Yes, sir!” Gabiru saluted Rimuru in a voice even louder than his previous shouts. While Rimuru was his superior, it was disappointing to see him shriveling in fear at an empty threat. Back in my days, I would disobey my sister all the time and I would not care about it.

Well, yes, I did become scared of them ever so slightly, but fear will not hold back my greatness.

Sigh… looks like things will be boring once again. The worst moments are when they have drawn out conversations or when Rimuru is sleeping.

**********

Arriving inside the adventurer’s guild, I was greeted with enthusiasm. Unlike the adventurer’s haggard appearance, they were typically an uppity bunch with a few outliers that ruins the experience for everyone, such as the dude that tried picking a fight with me.

However, it was fun every time I entered the guild by myself. Every time, they would either ready themselves thinking an ogre invaded the guild or welcome me with open arms. All in all, their reactions were understandably amusing.

But why am I the one coming instead of Momonga or Lupusregina you ask? Well, it's just a simple process of elimination. Neither Momonga nor Lupuregina can read. To make things worse, Momonga might be exposed as an undead, while Lupusregina’s carefree personality might lead to some unforeseen trouble. One of the guys tried flirting with her and she socked him right in the jaw.

A round of examining the request board later, there were no monster extermination requests that peeked my interest. There was the typical lesser dragon subjugation like always, but there were no A ranked requests. Is it because they don't make requests to subjugate stronger monsters out of fear of retaliation? Or maybe there's just simply no reason to waste resources on a monster that's not acting out?

Either way, this place is boring me now, so I decided to return to the inn after another round in the marketplace. It was the eighth time going around the same district, searching every nook and cranny and asking for magic items.

While I want to eat them so badly, Momonga said I should only do so once we return home. Really, why must such a powerful guy be so paranoid? With my skills, I could probably detect them the moment they get close to me.

Unsurprisingly, there was nothing new to be brought after I purchased basically everything on my first go around.

At last, I decided to return to my room at the inn and was greeted by Lupusregina in her adventurer outfit, which was just some leather armor with chainmail underneath, and Momonga in his full plate armor.

“Yo, Momonga,” I sent a telepathic message to Momonga as I entered the room. To outsiders, all they would see is Momonga reading a book, Lupusregina eating food, and I cooking some wyvern meat. “There's nothing new.”

“Well, that's expected. Did you go around any black markets? They should have some goods that can't be found in the common area.”

“I tried, but I couldn't find one.”

“Exotic animals?”

“None…”

Zing!

“Actually,” I quickly corrected myself. “I believe one of my insects found something interesting.”

To better gather information, I spread small critters made by Create Low Tier Insects to look for anything that could be of interest, including but not limited to rare monsters, gemstones, or special news.

One of such things they found was a special rock containing the power of earth. Like how my Akashic Records classified it as “a shiny rock with the power of elementals,” the dwarven libraries said something similar. There are various theories on how such a rock is formed, such as the intense concentration of an element in an area, a dead spirit dwelling in the rock, or even it being created by dragon lords.

This is to say that my crickets have found something similarly interesting.

“It appears to be a summoning ritual of some kind.”

“Is it just a normal contracting summon?” Momonga inquired.

“Well, maybe, but my instincts put this as the more malicious type of summoning.”

“If it truly is the case, we could wait around the area until the damage worsens and save them before the nation’s military appears. If it's nothing, all we've lost is just some time.”

“I can manipulate the spread of information through my poison and insects to delay the information even more. The worse the damage, the greater our reputation will become.”

“That's a great plan. Also, Rou, why haven't you been purchasing monster carcasses? Isn't half your ability absorption from other beings?”

“Well… I don't want to say this, but there's a restriction on my ability. My absorption rate depends on how strong the opponent is relative to me and how fresh their meat is. It was this way in my world at least.”

“Isn't there a chance that it could've changed? It's arrogant to believe nothing has changed after reincarnating into a whole new world. Recently, I even found out that False Data Life and similar spells have no effect if the opponent has ultimate skills. I only found out due to Akashic Records not being able to access my information. Of course, while it's a bit difficult, I'm learning to manipulate my leakage of magicules to fool the opponents without relying on said spells.”

“You have a point, so I'll do a quick search around the butcher’s area and maybe even put in a request at the adventurer's guild.”

“So, let's depart.”

***

Walking around the commercial district with Lupusregina, we tried a whole lot of different food. While we tried to convince Momonga to come along, he gave the reason that he needed to do some investigating, but we all know that the real reason is that he can't taste any food.

“Hey, Maou, try this out!” Lupusregina handed me an extremely large piece of bread with some meat in the middle. Somehow, the bread resembled a beef wellington except the meat inside was extremely scarce and there was nothing but the beard and meat. I guess it made sense that something filling like this would become a common food item where mass production is nigh-impossible.

“It's not as good as the ones I've had before.”

“Yeah, our Head Chef makes way better stuff."

Strolling around each vendor, we picked up a few other items, including a cup of milk, beef jerky, fruits, and other things.

“About that Head Chef, where is he located?”

“Mhmmm? Well… I'll just show you around later. You don't really explore the place much,” Lupusregina answered while trying her best to avoid any direct mentions of Nazarick.

<Confirmed. Intrinsic Skill - Sweet Fluids successfully acquired>

In the meantime, it seems that Momonga’s theory proved to be correct. After consuming roughly a hundred meat skewers, I finally obtained a skill, one that seems slightly odd.

“What is this made of?” I asked the vendor.

“Cattledeer, sir. I’m glad to see you’re really enjoying this! They say the milk from this species is especially sweet, hence why their meat tastes slightly sweet like milk.”

“Sure…”

While the vendor’s explanation for the taste of the meat was certainly just a marketing scheme because I know for a fact that sweet milk does not cause the meat to taste like milk, it certainly does answer why I obtained this skill. I’ll certainly find a use for this skill at some point, but I can’t exactly think of any uses for it at the moment other than disguising the taste of poison. Either way, this confirms that there’s no longer a time restriction on the time.

Boom!

Off in the distance, an explosion was set off. Fortunately, it seems this might truly be our ticket to fame. Almost as if fate was on my side, the size of the explosion was quite small and so was the sound. It should be possible to mitigate the spread of information for a solid half an hour or so if I knock all the witnesses unconscious.

“Momonga,” I initiated the telepathic communication. “there’s been an incident.”

“Estimated strength of the summon?”

Looking through the eyes of my insects, a red silhouette boring a lion face appeared. It’s hard to make out the appearance, but it was certainly demonic with the two horns on its head.

“It appears to be a demon, and I can’t confirm it from my location, but its destructive capabilities seem to be around the dragon we faced before.”

“So, we’d barely win in our current circumstances?”

“If you put it that way… I suppose so?”

“Alright, depending on the circumstances, I might be forced to use Perfect Warrior, so protect me after the spell duration runs out. Also, as a reminder, we must not reveal our true identities no matter what.”

“Yeah, yeah, no need to tell me twice.”

Heading over to the battlefield, I could get a better grasp of the opponent’s strength. Upon closer inspection, it was a demon with a leopard-like head, red skin instead of the usual yellow leopard color, a pair of sharp claws, and two small horns. Most certainly, it would make for an excellent meal if I could sneakily eat some of it without others noticing.

Drool…

I wonder what skills this demon could have. Considering its power and the fact it probably comes from some spiritual or demon world or something like that, I think I can look forward to eating this one.

“Don't worry!” I shouted as I jumped in front of a family of dwarves to shield them from the demon’s attack, blocking the would-be fatal attack with a shield of ice. “I've come to save you!”

“Uwwaahhh!!!” One of the women in the group, which I presume to be the mother, screamed in fear. Was it out of fear of me or the fact that they were almost killed. Either way, it was certainly not the reaction I wanted if I wanted to build up fame.

“An ogre variant?” The demon questioned. “What god have you been blessed by?”

I’m a rare species, not a variant, but I didn't feel the need to clear up the misunderstanding if it meant he would underestimate me.

“Demigod of Colors.”

“Hahahahaha!” The demon became slightly distracted, falling into uncontrollable laughter for a while. “Haha… bullshit, but if you don't want to reveal your affiliation, so be it.”

Running around in circles, I started unloading a barrage of various spells, all of which were fake versions of Fireball, Icicle Lance, and Thunderbolt.

“Pathetic,” the demon muttered as he blew away all of the spells with a single swipe of his hand, turning the ice and flames into a thick layer of mist. “You have such great abilities and yet none of it is refined.”

Unrefined? Of course it's unrefined. Not only am I using it in a way I'm not supposed to, I'm purposefully holding back to create a smokescreen.

From behind the demon, Momonga came flying in, cutting the demon precisely in half.

Almost certainly, it was dead… it should be dead, but the two halves of its body fused back together. Was it Self-Regeneration? Ultraspeed Regeneration? An evolved version?

No, it can't be. While I haven't exactly confirmed whether I can survive without my vitals, I know those with only Self-Regeneration certainly can't, or else I wouldn't be able to kill slimes. Does this mean that even though the demon appears humanoid, its vitals aren't located in the same place.

The next to give a shot at killing the demon was Lupusregina, which, considering that she was weaker than the dragon we faced, was a fruitless attempt. Her punch connected, but it dealt minimal damage. In normal circumstances, we would stall for time and find a weak point, but we must finish this battle before the hero king arrives. If only I was permitted usage of the Demise Bullet, the move I used against Cocytus in my last struggle. Not only does it have the magical properties of Demise magic, it has the almost-nonexistent casting time of the aura-based Mana Bullet, which is apparently classified as battlewills as I've recently found out by reading in the library.

After giving the demon a dozen more should-be fatal injuries, something about the tide of the battle started to change.

“Stop wasting time!” A mustached man with patches of grey hair walked out of a nearby building shouting. From what my ants relayed to me, this man was the summoner. “Go kill that slime and spider instead of wasting time on the ogre!”

“Tch! Do you really think someone of your caliber could summon me? I came by choice because I thought there'd be someone fun to fight… and oh how right I was,” the demon relaxed his voice ever so slightly before raising it once again. “Now, SHUT YOUR TRAP before I come down there and kill you!”

In the brief moment he was distracted, I decided that the current battle of attrition was clearly not in our favor. In due time, news of the battle would reach the hero king’s ears and he would steal our fame.

“Musasabi! It's time to stop holding back!”

In response, Momonga decided to put himself in a more vulnerable state by activating Perfect Warrior. During the spell’s duration, Momonga would be unable to activate spells, but in exchange, his proficiency in aura and physical abilities would skyrocket.

“Puree! Buffs!”

In accordance with the haphazardly-made plans, Lupusregina applied all the buffs she had onto Momonga, including Greater Dexterity, Greater Strength, Draconic Power, Elemental Attack: Holy, and Heart of Wild.

The final step to all this was to ensure the demon stays in one place. Through a barrage of spells, the demon was rendered helpless to anything beyond defending himself from our attacks.

“Well, I suppose that's enough messing around,” the demon smirked as he started to display his true power. Though his magicule amount may not be much different from that of the dragon we fought prior, his mastery over it was on a whole other level.

Without even moving, the air in the freeze started to freeze, forming a layer of mist from the rapid drop in temperature and ice crystals, and the ground formed a thin layer of black ice.

“This is how you properly use the power of ice!”

In a moment, the environment became one that suited the needs of the demon. From the ground, ice soldiers rose up, taking the shape of a demonic creature resembling a goat with a variety of weapons in their hands.

Even though they were created in an instant, each ice soldier was almost on the level of the wyverns we fought prior. Despite having Cold Resistance and Ice Attack Resistance, it didn't matter when I was stabbed with their ice weapons. All it does is negate the frostbite, not the physical damage caused by the stab. Due to this, all I and Lupusregina could do was to ensure the soldiers don't approach Momonga while he's engaged with the demon.

It felt horrible to be delegated to a backseat role like this…

No, where is my train of thought going. Don't get distracted and focus on your role…

But if the difference in power is truly a difference in proficiency, doesn't this mean that I've been wrong in my assessment that skills can't grow. Aren't I so stupid to be confined by my previous world’s logic that ESPer abilities can't grow, while Momonga has already adapted more to this world's abilities.

Focus! I'll contemplate all I want once we get back, but now's not the time.

Oh shi- I just got a message from my insects.

“Musasabi! The hero king-”

Just as I was about to relay the message, a brown-skinned man wearing shining white armor that could barely be called a dwarf came crashing down from the sky, ending the dramatic battle in an instance.

Whether it was from the force of his landing or simply due to the fact that the demon died, the most instantly dissipated and the ground became easier to walk on.

“Adventurers,” the hero king reached out for a handshake. “As the king of this nation, I, Gazel Dwargo, thank you for mitigating the damage.”

Tch! We would've finished it without your interference, but there's no good in antagonizing someone who instantly took down a demon we were struggling with as a whole group, much less the king of the nation. I'm not sure if Momonga himself could match the king.

“Your welcome,” Momonga returned the handshake. “One should always try to do good when they can.”

“Hahahaha! Of course, of course! May I ask for your names?”

“I am Musasabi. These, here, are my companions Maou and Puree.”

“Hooo… an ogre? Anyways, as the king, I must award you something for protecting my people.”

“In that case, all we need is a voucher from you to state that we're proper adventurers and of no harm to humans. After all, some nations don't take favorably to my ogre and lycanthrope companions.”

“Such a humble request! Very well, consider it done!”

After the brief encounter, it seems that the hero king is a pretty chill guy, but something about his demeanor rubs me the wrong way. My experience in dealing with corporate higher-ups leads me to suggest there's something behind that simple-minded persona he puts up, almost like he's measuring our worth with every exchange we had. While he is certainly strong, there must be something else that led him to become a hero king.

Nonetheless, after we all got a promotion to B-rank due to his very kind suggestion, we decided it was finally time to return home.

**********

Alone in a dark prison cell with the demon summoner known as Vesta, I let my presence be known. It was uncommon for a nation’s king to personally visit a prisoner, especially one that could've caused major damages to the nation, but I believe it's well worth the effort in reforming Vesta considering his intellectual worth.

“Vesta, I’m truly disappointed in you,” I sneered as I looked down at the locked up Vesta from the other side of the cell. Despite putting in years of work into maintaining his appearance, his skin was oddly wrinkled and hair was gray. It looked like hundreds of years passed in a matter of seconds.

Was his life the price he paid for the summon? That can’t be… Even with all of his life, it would not be a fair price for such a strong demon, one whose strength is almost on the level of a viscount.

“Lo-lord Gazel, I can explain! Don't you think you let off the slime and spider too lightly with just being exiled? What would other nations think seeing our king being so soft!”

“Excuses. Did you know that the slime brought us a new discovery called the full potion? We should be thankful that your antics haven't ruined the possibility of a relationship beyond repair.”

“Bullshit! All I'm doing is serving justice! Whatever these inferior monsters brought in, I could've recreated!”

“Sigh…” where did the humble and bright kid from back then go? “That's enough out of you. I'll think about your punishment.”

Knocking Vesta out cold with a single chop on the neck, I started contemplating the connection between the ogre and the slime. While it could very well be a coincidence that two very intelligent and friendly monsters just happened to enter my nation at the time, the circumstances would suggest otherwise.

I don't believe Vesta ever learned demon summoning magic nor were there enough offerings to summon a demon of that caliber. Had the demon focused on escaping and was not distracted by the adventurers, its kills could've easily numbered in the thousands.

All this seems like it was deliberately set up by someone to cause chaos in my nation.

Moreover, It's odd that Vesta would not only coincidentally visit a bar and just happen to meet a pair of monsters, but also be irrational enough to learn demon summon magic to enact his petty revenge. Then, there was the oddity that I was unable to read any of the adventurers’ thoughts nor the deep thoughts of the slime. If they were strong enough to block my unique skill Tyrant, they should've been able to easily kill the demon.

Whatever the case is, it seems I might need to attach some spies onto both Musasabi and Rimuru just in case one of them is related to the perpetrator.

Chapter 22: Starved One

Notes:

A short chapter. It didn't fit appropriate to fit this as part of the next chapter, so it's its own chapter now.

Chapter Text

I’m hungry…

There isn't enough food for my brethren in this dried up land. With each passing day, at least a dozen orcs die by starvation or thirst, forcing us to resort to cannibalism.

I’m hungry…

“Hurry up, dimwits!” Gelmud, the master whom I was forced to serve, yelled at me and my group. As orc, we are a naturally immobile species unable to migrate across long distances. Moreover, the armor he provided us with further slowed us down. Normally, it wouldn't be much, but in our starved state, it felt dozens of times heavier. “Your first priority is to kill the black ogre!”

Pretending like I understood what he meant by black ogre, I nodded and slightly sped up the march. It wouldn't make us arrive at our destination even the slightest bit earlier, but since the order came from Gelmud, I couldn't disobey it.

After a while, various corpses appeared in the distance, varying from undead beasts to fully-armored skeletons. Even excluding those without flesh, the sheer number of undead should be enough to sate our stomach for a few days.

I’m hungry…

Even without any commands, all of the orcs charged forward at a maddening speed that was impossible for the typical orc. With the armor that Gelmud supplied and the strength we’ve built up through Starved, a dozen of us can easily take down an ogre, and compared to ogres, these undeads are naught but a light snack.

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Abnormal Condition Nullification successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Physical Attack Resistance successfully acquired>

With each undead consumed, Starved analyzes their abilities and copies it, making it part of us. Even if no skills were gained, we were able to absorb their magicules and bolster our strength.

“King!” One of the orc generals shouted from the frontlines. “There’s something wrong with this undead!”

Marching forward, I bore witness to the sight of orcs preying upon each other. It wasn’t abnormal for dead orcs to become food for the living, but for live orcs to prey upon each other is unheard of. Then, behind all of the carnage was a giant black undead boring a tower shield and a shortsword. If my evolution hadn’t increased my size, this one would be nearly two heads taller than me.

I’m hungry…

With each orc killed by the black one, their corpses were raised and turned against their own kind. It was certainly some sort of necromancy, but I’ve never heard of one that works so instantaneously. It was likely some sort of skill.

“Orcs, deal with the remaining undead. Orc generals, prevent more undead orcs from appearing. As for this one, I’ll devour him myself.”

Engaging in the fight myself, I swung my Meat Crusher from the right side intending to behead it, but the blow was easily blocked by its giant shield.

In response, the black one stabbed with its shortsword, very clearly aiming at my heart. With such a straightforward attempt, it was easy to block with my blade. If this was all it amounted to, killing him should be relatively light.

By simply locking the sword with mine and grabbing ahold of the shield with my freehand, we were locked into a standstill, or so it would appear. Even without the use of my arm, I can leverage Chaos Eater to devour him.

As the black one started to become corroded, it started to flail around in an attempt to shake off Chaos Eater, but it was a fruitless effort, one that worsened the situation for it as its panicked movements left dozens of openings.

Taking advantage of the moment, I swung my blade with the flat side like a club, shattering its skull into hundreds of bone fragments.

What a delicious-looking meal.

Grabbing a hold of its arm in preparation to eat it, the corpse suddenly started moving and swung its blade right down the middle of my chest, cleaving a wound so wide that my internal organs spilled out. Panicking, I fell backwards onto the desert as the undead prepared one final stab.

“How stupid are you!” Gelmud, who had been watching from the side the entire time, finally intervened and shot a Mana Bullet and finished off the black one. “How will you deal with that ogre if you can’t deal with one measly undead!”

Ignoring his antics, I reached for the fallen corpse and started snacking on it.

Crunch!

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Last One Standing successfully acquired>

***********

“Fuck…”

Watching the scene unfold in front of me with the Mirror of Remote Viewing, I threw all the paperwork that Albedo and Demiurge assigned me onto the ground. It wasn’t intentional, but there was no better way to express my anger at the moment.

“Fuck fuck fuck fuck!”

How could the forces given to me by Lord Momonga fail to defeat a bunch of low-leveled orcs?! There’s no way Lord Momonga could miscalculate their strength and give me the wrong fighting force, could he?

Turning my attention to the closest vampire bride, I knocked her down onto the ground before stomping on her to relieve my anger.

“Useless bunch!”

With each kick, the sound of crushed bones and splattering meat could be heard. It was like music to my ears. To make things better, the bride regenerated whenever a wound was inflicted, meaning I could keep this up for just that much longer.

“Of shits!”

After beating the servant such a bloody pulp that her face contorted, I felt much better about the situation. If I left her be, she would regenerate within an hour’s time, so it isn’t something to be concerned about. She should be grateful that she’s alive in the first place. Without me, she wouldn’t even exist.

“Message Demiurge. Demiurge, what should I do now that I’ve failed to subjugate the orcs?”

“Ah, though a little late Shalltear, you finally noticed the lackluster force.”

“Answer me, Demiurge.”

“Well, what can I say except to owe up to your mistake.”

“And bring shame to Lord Momonga’s name? Demiurge, as servants of the Supreme Ones, we must not fail whatever task we were given.”

“You are correct, but perhaps such a result was intended by Lord Momonga. If you think about it a bit more, then it should be obvious that- oh apologies, it seems the stage Lord Momonga set up for me has finally started. I must prepare the demon summoning ritual for the fool whose sole purpose is to serve as a stepping stone to Musasabi’s rise to fame.”

With that, Demiurge cut the connection and went on his merry way to Dwargon.

Out of all the Floor Guardians, Demiugre was assigned with the most tasks and he was perfectly completing each one without a single mistake. On the other hand, I, who was tasked with low-level mobs, couldn’t even accomplish it.

Wait… what if I secretly kill them all? It’s not like anyone except Lord Momonga would know, but what excuse should I make such that Lord Momonga allows an outing.

No, no, no. How could I do something without Lord Momonga’s permission? It would be the highest level of treason.

Actually, there is one way out of this. I could request the hobgoblins for help. As weak as they may be, Rou is decently strong. Even if he isn’t allowed to be in the battle as per Lord Momonga’s instructions, he could just use a scroll in my place to wipe out all of the orcs.

What a genius plan I’ve concocted!

…or so I thought, but Rou is slated to return on the same day as Lord Momonga, so if I ask him for help, I would inadvertently expose my failure to Lord Momonga.

Must I really take Demiurge’s advice to just fess up…

Walking out of my private quarters to Nazarick’s bar, I gave the vampire bride on the ground one final kick before leaving.

Chapter 23: Inherited Will I

Chapter Text

Accompanied by Kaidou, Kaijin, and the three dwarven brothers out of Dwargon, it felt like I'm forgetting someone, maybe a certain somebody that resembled Veldora’s boisterous nature. I have Shiro inside my stomach, but I don’t really want to summon her at the moment because she’s drunk. I’ll just let her sober up for a few days since monsters don’t really need much food to survive. Either way, if it's something important, I'm sure I'll remember it.

Summoning Ranga from my Shadow, we travelled for a few days until we finally arrived back home. Unsurprisingly, there was no technological revolution and everything looked the same from the time we left. If I didn't know lizardmen lived here, the cave would look like a normal cave due to no signs of life nearby.

“Sir Rimuru,” Kaijin addressed me. Contrary to his statement, his face bore a rather wide smile. Was it the artisan's soul that screamed for a challenge? “This will be a tough task, but I suppose it's my fault for coming.”

“Thanks, I'm really relying on you here.”

Not soon after, Abiru appeared from within the cave and yelled with excitement, “Lord Rimuru! It's great to see you return!”

Upon seeing him, I finally realized what I had forgotten. I forgot to bring his son back from Dwargon! He won't hold it against me, would he?

“Abiru… I forgot to bring your son back.”

“Hahaha! Don't worry, Lord Rimuru. If it's that boy, he'll make it back even if he was sent to the demon realm. If he doesn't make it back, he probably deserved it.”

“Ehem!” Kaijin interrupted with a cough. “Sorry to interject, but shouldn’t you be bringing Lady Shiro out? She’s been inside you for quite a while now for almost six days by now I believe.”

“Oh…” I muttered as the dreadful truth dawned upon me. Though Shiro doesn’t talk much, it’s very obvious she’ll get mad for staying in my stomach for almost a week. “Do you know any ways to calm her anger?”

“Sir Rimuru, a lady’s heart is as complicated as a dwarf’s relationship with their hammer. There is no easy way to treat them right. You must listen closely and give them what they want.”

Urgghhh! I don’t understand! Why is it so hard for a 37 year old bachelor to understand a woman’s heart? Whatever the case is, I’m sure there’ll be little to no consequences if she’s left in there for one more day. After all, it’s not like she can see what’s going on outside. I’ll just find something nice to make up for the days she spent inside when I do eventually release her today.

“Anyways,” Abiru took my mind off the apocalypse that is about to be Shiro. “We should hold a festival in honors of you completing the mission!”

“Ehhh… There’s no need,” I rejected his offer, trying my best to leave out the real reason why I didn’t want to do it. It’s a little embarrassing, but I can’t really taste much of anything with this slime body.

“Really? Lord Rimuru, most of the meat from the beast swarm will rot soon if we don’t eat them. While my powers could keep them clean, it does not prevent the process of decay,” Abiru displayed his water powers at the same time. Through the Divine Protection of the Demigod of Clean Water, he obtained the extra skill Water Manipulation. It isn’t exactly the most flashy of skills, it is certainly a useful one.

“Mhmm…” I pondered for a while, thinking how I could avoid the festivities. It isn’t bad to have, but it’s slightly sad being unable to participate in them. Sadly, I wasn’t able to dodge it like I did last time. Moreover, I could use the excuse of not wanting Shiro to drink in the party as an excuse as to why I didn’t summon her. “Fine, we’ll hold one.”

“Bring out the food!” Abiru shouted to the dragonewts inside the cave.

In almost an instant, as if they were prepared for this very moment, dozens of dragonewts came spewing out from the small opening carrying two plates of food in each hand. Some of them were even lugging out a whole table of food above their head, and others were carrying a whole corpse of uncooked beasts.

Wow… They had this all planned, didn’t they? It sure looked like they were extremely excited for this.

“Woah!” Kaijin jumped out of both surprise and joy. “Could we really take part in this?”

“Hahaha! What are you talking about?!” Abiru replied in my stead despite very obviously not speaking to him. “You’ve come with Lord Rimuru! We serve the same lord, and now, we’re as good as family!”

“And,” Abiru continued in a more serious tone. Maybe it was from his decades of experience, but he sure knows what type of voice to use and when. “Lord Rimuru, do try to enjoy yourself too. We’ve seen you low in spirits the past few dozens of days. While I’m unable to understand your feelings much, I know you care very much for all of us, so if this could cheer you up the slightest bit, it’d raise all of our spirits.”

“Alright, let’s get started,” I raised my wooden glass that Abiru presented me with in the air. It was just a cup filled with a concoction of juice from fruits that the lizardmen found tasty, which was mainly raspberries as they claim. There were probably some other fruits, but it’s not like I can taste them.

<Confirmed: The content of the alcoholic beverage in front of you consists of 63% raspberry, 20% pineapple, 10% orange, 5% blueberry, and 2% dry treant>

Well, that about sums it up. I’m sure this would taste really good if I could actually taste it, but at the moment it’s more bland than water. At the very least you can taste water by its temperature back when I was a human, but now all this just feels like sucking up dense air.

Then, there was the wyvern meat, which the lizardmen were roasting over a humongous open flame. Through teamwork, they skinned the wyvern, albeit a bit poorly since the skin still had some meat on them, in a matter of minutes. Nonetheless, the fat rendering from the red meat turning brown onto the open flame along with the visible smoke that likely smelled like meat made me extremely jealous.

With each bite the lizardmen takes from the meat, it only affirms my belief that I’m absolutely, double-solutely sure that it wouldn’t taste like much because there was no salt or any seasoning used. There’s no way it’d taste good when all of them are smiling and laughing so loudly, right? I’m sure it’d be like just an overcooked steak… right?

To say I obtained nothing from this would be a lie since I got Dragon Scales, Dragon Eye, Flame Breath, and wyvern mimicry just from consuming the head when I first slayed it, but yeah, I admit it, to be unable to taste the meat is extremely saddening. If only I had tastebuds, I would be able to enjoy this so much more.

Though the food is a bit disappointing, I’m happy as long as they’re happy. Without them, I’d still be living as cavemen wandering around the forest without a goal in sight.

**********

Alone in a room in Nazarick with Momonga, I started to eat the equipment we purchased in Dwargon. He made it an absolute necessity for me to eat abnormal stuff, like weaponry, in this room to not leak my ability. He said it was a sound-proof, divination-proof, something else-proof, and something something else-proof room. All in all, it’s really hard to spy on us in this room.

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Shadow Motion successfully acquired>

This cloak tasted absolutely horrendous, almost like seaweed that wasn’t properly dried. This one is a two out of ten.

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Geokinesis successfully acquired>

Well, it tasted like a navy biscuit, which is to say that it was extremely dry and crumbly. It wasn’t a bad taste, so I’ll give it a six.

Chewing through a normal-looking armor that was advertised to resist magic, I gained no new skill. It must’ve been a duplicate of a skill I already have. Well, this one tastes a bit like beef jerky, so I’ll also give it a six.

“It probably contained a duplicate skill, so I obtained nothing.”

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Flame Enchant successfully acquired>

This blade tasted a bit like a jalapeno. If it wasn’t for the fact that it was a blade, it’d make for great seasoning. I’ll deduct a point and give it a four.

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Smokescreen successfully acquired>

Oddly enough, it tasted like nothing. It wasn’t bad, but it just felt disappointing for a smoke bomb to taste like nothing.

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Amplify Senses successfully acquired>

To think such a boring mask would hold such an amazing skill. It was truly a great discovery. To add on, it tasted like dried persimmon, which I really liked.

Well, going over each one and giving a review is getting a bit boring, so I’ll just speedrun through the rest.

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Poison Resistance successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Chant Nullification successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Riding successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Enhanced Vitality successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Shapeshift successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Waterwalking successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Tolerance - Heat Resistance successfully acquired>

Well, that’s about all for the buffet that Momonga prepared for me. While I was certainly satisfied with the result, there were more than a few pieces of equipment that didn’t give me any skills at all, which meant we wasted a ton of money buying them.

Soon after, I told Momonga about all the skills I obtained and gave him a brief showcase of each of them. The one he took the most interest in was the Shapeshift skill, which allowed me to change the whole structure of my body and even transform into a human. Compared to the original item that only allowed the changing of skin color, it was certainly a huge improvement.

“Now, Momonga, let me eat one of your summons.”

“Summon Undead 10th. Doom lord, do not attack back no matter what happens.”

Without any resistance, I took a bit into the doom lord’s body, starting from its body and ending with its head. Much like the skeleton I ate before, it carried a crumbly texture and tasted like unflavored gum. However, the more chewed, hidden flavor started coming out. It was buttery, savory, and extremely salty. Afterwards, it carried a pungent punch like stinky socks that only grew with each bite. This was perhaps the worst food I’ve eaten so far.

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Ruinous Night successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Undeath Commander successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Intrinsic Skill - Soul Eater successfully acquired>

“Momonga, one more thing. Do you know how to combine skills?”

“That’s a great question,” Momonga placed his boney fingers on his chin, scratching it unconsciously as he thought of a response. Just when it looked like he was about to speak, he closed his mouth again before reopening it. “No, but I can give you a comparison.”

“Go ahead.”

“If you remember from Narbarel’s explanation, magic is simply a manifestation of one’s imagination using their magicules. However, many are not able to do this, so they use various methods to aid them, such as magic circles, incantations, or enchantments. I believe skills may also be a way of utilizing magicules, but we’ll need more testing to see what differentiates skills from magic. After scanning through grimoires and comparing them to Yggdrasil's magic, I realize this world's magic is boring. Rather than innovating, the book just suggests the caster to memorize the circles and cast them, so I broke them down. I studied them to understand magic better.”

Raising his finger in the air, a dark and thick fog started emitting from the tip of his fingers, almost as if he was drawing in the air.

☄

“This is the first symbol I created. It stands for fire. It is the most basic component that can produce a small flame.”

⟆

“This is earth. Together, they mean life, holy, or light depending on the interpretation. Even if the same symbol is used, the effect would differ depending on the user’s imagination.”

︾

“This is negate. It reverses the effects of the symbol used.

☄ ⟆ ︾

“Now, I pose the question. What does this mean?”

“Uh…” I fumbled while struggling to come up with a question. When he started talking about combining the symbols, I just lost it all, so I just gave a random answer that seems somewhat correct. “Corrosion?”

“Good, but in my definition, this is death. It is the symbol that represents death. There are no set definitions, so don’t limit yourself to what others say. Find what works best for you and stick with that.”

“So, how does this relate to skills?”

“Like magic, I believe you could break them down into their simplest components and then recombine them to form a new skill, one that is more powerful. I believe Akashic Records may be of help. Try setting your skills as the target rather than an external object.”

“Alright! This talk is making me tired, so you want to take a walk around?”

“Sure,” Momonga ended the conversation as he rose from his seat, teleporting us to the entrance of Nazarick. Since we returned via his skills, this was the first time we saw the town in a long time.

Right by Nazarick, which is situated in the center of the town, there was a giant statue of Momonga, one that towered over us multiple times. Last time I checked, a statue the size of a two-story building did not exist here.

“Well, would you look at that,” I started to tease Momonga a little. “It seems you’ve gotten even greater.”

“I can say the same for you.”

Next to Momonga’s statue, there was a statue of me, albeit it was only a one to one scale rather than a gigantified version. However, it seemed rather small when standing next to Momonga’s absurdly massive statue.

“Lowd Momunga,” a tiny goblin girl walked up to us, stretching out her hands and presenting us with a crown of flowers. “For yow.”

“Thank you,” Momonga accepted the gift as he placed it on his head. “Do you have a name?”

“No? Mah pawents say they want yow to name me.”

“Umu. I’ll hold a ceremony soon to name you.”

In the short time that we were away, it seems that the hobgoblins had reproduced. Considering that we were gone for a dozen days, her growth was rather slow unless she was born just yesterday.

In my experience as a goblin, I became fully grown in just three days. Does this mean that she was born as a hobgoblin rather than goblin, but if so, would naming cause an evolution or would it not? Well, whatever the case is, I’m just glad we started repopulating. It was rather sad to see the goblin population so low in numbers and basically consisting of only adults.

Speaking of goblins, I better pay Gobbum a visit.

“Sorry Momonga, it seems I’ll be taking a short leave.”

“Hey, wai-” Momonga’s voice faded into the distance as I dashed towards the four locations that Gobbum could be.

The first place to check was his house, which he was always in unless training demanded his presence or he was in trouble. Considering how much our technology advanced, it was truly remarkable to see Gobbum’s house still be on the verge of breaking down. From the walls to the floor, there was not a single flat surface without a hole or a stain.

Unfortunately, I did not find him, so I headed off to the dojo next.

Like always, the Dojo was filled with a bunch of hobgoblins training with death knights and other natives of Nazarick. Overseeing this whole operation was Cocytus, the most proficient sword user. Occasionally, he would take some extra time to train his disciples, one of whom is Gobbum.

“Rou. We. Ought. To. Spar. Again. Sometime. Soon.” Cocytus called out to me.

“Of course, let's do it again soon. By the way, have you seen Gobbum?”

“No. Today. Is. Not. A. Day. To. Train. Rest. Of. The. Mind. Is. Just. As. Important. As. The. Body.”

“Alright, see you.”

Though I've scanned the whole area, there were no signs of Gobbum, so excluding the hot spring, which is the third area he frequents the most, he must either be in a tree or he is actually out hunting for food.

Unless he's somehow fooling my detection skills, I did not detect him in any of the trees along the way, so he must be in the forest.

What a pain he is. All this work he's making me do just for a minor favor.

It pains me to do this, but I'll really have to search the vast forest for him.

Compared to when I was a hobgoblin or a goblin, travelling in the forest is really different. Before, I had to hide my presence to not get chased around by the top predators, but now. I have to hide my presence so as to not cause a disturbance. Despite having no skills to directly help with hiding myself, I managed to learn a trick or two after using my skills so many times and observing Gobbbum in his training.

Just as a note, Gobbum has really advanced his hiding skill. I believe out of everyone here, excluding those in Nazarick, he might just be the most advanced at masking himself without the aid of skills. As I tried to find him each time, my magicule manipulation proficiency eventually became better as well.

“Uwwaaaahhh!” A somewhat masculine shout came from around half a mile away in the distance. It wasn't particularly one I recognized, but considering how many things changed in the short time I was away, one of the goblin’s voices could've changed as well. It was odd considering there was no magicule signature to identify, but they could've just ran out. “Help!!!!”

“Hey! If I'm dying, I'll come back and haunt you as a ghost!” A feminine-sounding voice shouted back in reply.

“Hahahah! Too bad you can't because I'll be dying first!”

Just in case one of them happens to be Gobbum, which could be the case considering the jovial nature of their conversation, I rushed over as fast as I could.

Upon arriving at the scene in around ten seconds, I found four humans being chased by a bunch of giant ants. There was also someone else lurking in the foliage nearby, but I believe I know exactly who this is.

Just as I leaped in from above and chopped the ants in half, burning the other barely-alive ants to death, I saw a group of four humans. Two men and two women, one of which seems to be an otherworlder due to the rare black hair, petite figure, and the make-out of her face seeming Japanese. Next to me, there was a mask that was just dropped by the Japanese woman.

Then, two of the humans bore their swords at me. It was a great chance to eat them and justify this as self-defense. It didn’t matter that one of them could be from the same world as me. It just meant they could have a unique skill I could steal. However, for some odd reason, I started reconsidering my actions and decided to not eat them. It was probably because Momonga’s mercifulness rubbed off on me somewhat, but who’s to say the real reason why.

“Hey, I just saved you, and you dare point your swords at me?” I posed a rather condescending question. It was rather unfriendly, but there’s no benefits to appearing as a pushover.

“Uh… Sorry?” one of the men apologized and sheathed his sword.

On the other hand, the Japanese woman was far more polite, bearing a beautiful smile and thanking me.

“You want to come to my place? I’m sure they’ll treat you well,” I said knowing full well that if I brought them back I would never be able to ever consider the possibility of eating them again. Considering Momonga’s personality, he’ll likely try to shield them since he has a weird attachment to people from our original world.

“We’ll pas-” the other man attempted to decline, but was swiftly cut off by the blonde mage-looking girl.

“Of course! I haven’t showered in days nor have we had any food! If he wanted to do us harm, he wouldn’t have saved us!”

Therefore, without much complications, we headed back, and somehow, while I was distracted by the conversation, the presence nearby disappeared.

Chapter 24: Inherited Will II

Chapter Text

Now that I've been ditched by Rou, what am I supposed to be doing standing in the center of the town in front of a giant statue of myself.

With how big this statue is, one would mistake me as some sort of deity or think of me as arrogant. Either way, it was extremely embarrassing, but I doubt I could convince any of the citizens, much less the Floor Guardians, to remove it.

Well, I'll start doing my daily tasks that I've neglected for so long, starting by expending my uses of undead creation.

***

That was boring, but I don't really get mentally fatigued anymore. Even if the task is monotonous, my brain somehow always operates at at least 80 percent capacity, an ability that is both a curse and a blessing.

Maybe I could delegate the task to Pandora’s Actor since he can mimic my abilities. I haven't seen him once ever since the transmigration, but I'm sure I'll soon need to visit the treasury, which is the area he guards, when I eventually confront Clayman. It'd be reckless to not use top-tier equipment and even world items when facing a serious threat. Then, I might also have to deploy Rubedo, who I have only caught minor glimpses of. Luckily, it doesn't seem like she gained consciousness like Gargantua, so that's one less ticking time bomb I have to deal with.

Taking another walk around the square because I have nothing better to do, I met Rigurd, who looked very different from before we left. Rather than the leather outfit he wore before, he was donning an overly-formal butler uniform, a clear indication that he started training under Sebas.

“Good morning, Lord Momonga!” Rigurd greeted me as he placed his right arm near his head for a salute. It was odd that he would do a soldier’s salute, especially one that looked suspiciously German, but it might've been something he picked up before meeting us.

I'm sure he'll grow out of it and eventually learn proper etiquette soon.

“It's a fine day. How are the hobgoblins and new inhabitants?" I questioned. The inhabitants referred to Nazarick denizens who decided to migrate outside, POP monsters, and any of my summons that gained sentience. These ranged from random elementals and undead to even beasts. Despite this, goblins still remain a high percentage of the population due to their high fertility.

“Cocytus' disciples are doing fine, some hobgoblins gave birth to new kids, and the new monsters have been integrating well. However, I'd be grateful if you could build more suitable housing for them. Some have trouble living in humanoid housing.”

“Noted, I'll inform the builders of that. Have there been any new evolutions?”

“Haha… sorry to disappoint, but evolution doesn't really occur that often. It'd be considered often if one individual evolves every other year. The one closest to evolution are Gobkichi and Rigur I, who are both respectively level 55 and 48. I, on the other hand, am only level 21.”

“Then, even discounting the difference in experience, why are you so much stronger than Rigur?”

“That… I'm not so sure. Levels have always existed for us, so we never questioned why they exist.”

Great, that's another mystery for me to figure out. It could just be due to experience points, but it's be stupid to apply Yggdrasil logic to this especially when monsters could evolve upon reaching level 100, a feature that did not exist back in Yggdrasil.

“It's fine,” I gave a neutral response while stepping away from the conversation by waving him goodbye. “I hope you make progress in your training.”

As I was about to walk off, Rou reappeared with a group of humans. Three of them looked like a ragtag group of adventurers, while the masked one had a more lady-like presence. There was also the fact that her hair was black, a rare color in this world, which could mean she's an otherworlder.

Just in case, I silent-casted Life Essence and Mana Essence to check their strength. Out of the four, the two men were about as strong as Rigur, while the woman in the mage outfit had about as much magicules as a lich. Considering the fact that the adventurers in Dwargon weren’t anywhere near this level, they could be considered a top-level force in this world.

The real oddity was the masked woman who has zero health but bore an astounding amount of magicule, almost as much as Rou. How is it even possible she's alive with no hit points? Could she be some sort of ghost-like lifeform sustained by mana?

“An undead!?” One of the men exclaimed, not even attempting to hide his shock.

“Hey, that's rude,” his shorter female companion punched him on the arm to silence him.

“My name is Momonga. It's sudden, but would you like some food?”

“Pft~” the black hair girl laughed upon my introduction. This reaction all but confirmed that she's an otherworlder just like me, but her stats are really throwing me off. “Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh. It's just that your name reminded me of something.”

“Worry not. No offense taken.”

“Hey, Momonga,” Rou telepathically communicated with me. “Should we really be revealing ourselves as otherworlders? It feels like this'll bite our ass back in the future.”

“It’ll get revealed either way, so there's no point in hiding it,” I secretly replied back to Rou.

“I’m Shizu, but you can call me Shizue. These three are…” Shizue attempted to introduce them, but was rudely, likely unintentionally as well, cut off by the blonde-brown long-haired man.

“I’m Kaval! The most reliable swordsman in the party!”

“Hey! You’re the furthest thing from reliable! Remember how you almost got all of us killed by poking th-”

“Ahem!” I faked a dry cough to remind them of the current situation.

“Ah! Sorry! I’m Ellen, the mage of the party. Our leader’s a little foolish sometimes.”

“Putting these two idiots aside, you can call me Gido,” the messy brown-haired man threw in a snarky comment with his introduction, making it sound natural.

Looking at them, it felt like watching my old guildmates from afar. Even though they might look nothing alike, the bickering sounds like that of close friends who've been together for years on end.

At times like these, I wish I could’ve had at least one more party member stay with me. If only Herohero showed up like he promised to or if any of the other guildmates I sent messages to appeared, then, could we have been enjoying life in a new world?

No… I shouldn’t drag them away from reality. All of them moved on from Yggdrasil because they had something important to attend to. If I forced them to transmigrate with me, I’d be doing them a major disservice.

“Tch! Whatever, I’ll tell you a fun fact about ogres.” Rou spouted some awkward nonsense seemingly in a fit of frustration. It was the strangest thing to ever come out of his mouth ever since I knew him. Maybe it was a reference to something, but I hadn’t watched enough movies to get it. “Did you know that ogres are like onions?”

“Uhh…” Kaval pondered for a moment before quickly arriving at an answer. “You guys both stink?”

“Haha,” Shizue gave another lady-like snicker while maintaining her refined appearance. “Kaval, it isn’t like that. He meant ogres have layers like onions.”

“That… doesn’t make sense? Don’t we all have skin, bones, muscles, and blood? Do ogres have a second layer of skin?”

“Sure, let’s leave it at that,” Rou clumsily weaseled his way out of the badly-timed joke.

“Rou, would you mind bringing them to the dining hall? It’d be a great time to get to know them better.”

“Why not,” he easily agreed without a moment’s hesitation. It seemed like he was dying to change the mood.

“And Shizue,” I called out to her as they were walking away. “Could you stay behind for a bit?”

“Of course, Sir Momonga,” Shizue quickly turned around.

Opening my storage, I pulled out two chairs of the highest quality. It was a waste of storage to store random things like these in there, but surprisingly, my storage didn’t hit its limits even after I transferred everything from the guild into to. Rather, it was more like everything I put in there was automatically transferred to the guild storage, making my storage as big as the guild’s treasury.

“I’ll be blunt…”

**********

“Ugh…” I groaned due to the drinks I had the day prior… the week prior? How long was I out for anyways? Why is it so dark in here? It’s just a limitless expanse of darkness with nobody in sight. Where am I?

Wherever I am, I’m sure Spatial Motion can get me out.

…

Okay, this isn’t working for some reason. I can teleport, but the space around me isn't changing.

“SHIRO!!!” A loud and obnoxious shout came from behind me. It was a voice I could not forget in a million years, one that would wake me up from my nap every time I tried to get some shut eyes in my caves. “I see you’ve finally come to!”

Even though I found his voice so annoying, I seemed to find myself somehow missing it. It was probably just some neurons misfiring, but the relief in my heart was definitely an indication I’ve missed him the past few months we’ve been apart.

Yeah, thanks, Veldora.

“Uh… Shiro? Are you okay?” Veldora expressed his concerns for me, something he’s never done before. “Normally, you’d tell me to shut up.”

Urghh! Then, you can tell yourself to shut up! I communicated through my mind. Like he did before, he spoke loudly through shouting and I replied back through my mind. It was an exchange of shouts and mind-reading.

“Pft…” We both attempted to hold in our laughter but to no avail as we started bursting out laughing. It was an unexpected but welcomed reunion. Whatever magical tricks Rimuru pulled to get this to happen, I’m grateful for it, but I’m not going to express it.

“Shiro, you’re speaking a lot more than before. Did something good happen?”

Well… I suppose so. Just when I thought myself to be happy after I’d gotten rid of a lazy and fat cat that demanded my constant attention, I found myself missing it. This situation feels like that, you know.

“Hey! Did you call me fat and lazy?!”

What have you been up to?

“Don’t dodge the question!”

I’ve been having a decent amount of fun outside.

“Sigh… forget it. Anyways, I can tell.”

Rimuru’s been a little stupid… extremely stupid… naming all those monsters, but luckily there doesn’t seem to have been any side effects so far.

“Yeah, because he’s been sucking me dry of magicules.”

After that, we went to the dwarven kingdom and made a little trouble, but it looked like everything worked out fine considering I’m here in Rimuru’s stomach with you and haven’t disappeared into the afterlife.

“I’ve been watching from the wide-screen TV. It’s been a really crazy journey, but it kind of died down after the Lizardmen party ended.”

Oh, right, also, I almost died to a black ogre, but I don’t seem to run into him again after the cave incident.

“But you did?”

What?! When?!?!

“I guess you wouldn’t remember since you were drunk, but remember when that fortuneteller elf used divination? The black ogre appeared then as Rimuru’s second fated person.”

Doesn’t this mean we’re going to run into him again at some point!!! If I meet him again, I could really die! Also, as a side note, does this mean Rimuru’s going to marry Rou at some point?!

“No, divinations are usually inaccurate, and on the subject of fate, it is more so a person you’re strongly intertwined with. Mhmm…? It’s kinda complicated. Well anyways, anything else?”

Alright, next one. Do you have some ultra-secret super duper technique that can one shot a black ogre?

“HAHAHAHA!!! I’m glad you asked! In the time I was here, I developed a ‘ultra-secret super duper technique’ that can kill anyone and everyone! I dub this technique… THE VELDORA-STYLE KILLING ARTS!!!”

The Veldora-Style… Killing Arts? What a cringe name, but if it’s powerful, it doesn’t matter how cringe this is if it helps me.

“Before we start, you should know your goals.”

Isn’t my goal just to get strong enough to kill the black ogre? Is there something special about him other than him being an ogre blessed by god? He can’t possibly be that much stronger than the average ogre considering the relative power of Abiru compared to Gabiru.

“No, no, no, you’re completely wrong. He’s been blessed by █, and if I’m correct, he will one day become an ██.”

Huh? What did you say?

“█”

Again?
“Ughh…” Veldora scratched his head for a second, looking like he was annoyed. “Simply put, he’s been blessed by the Great God of Demise and Origin, and he will one day become incomprehensibly stronger.”

A great god is great and all, but is there really that much of a difference between Abiru who's been blessed by a demigod and him who’s been blessed by a great god?

“█████████”

“█████”

“██████████,” Veldora grew increasingly frustrated each time his words came out illegible. “If I wasn’t sealed, I’d be able to bypass this dumb system restriction.”

Considering how the world itself is trying to hide this information, it must be groundbreaking news that average people like me shouldn’t know about. Nonetheless, I needed to know everything relevant to the upcoming foe.

Could you put it in layman’s terms for me?

“The third moniker of Demise and Origin is fate, or in other words, the reversal of cause and effect. If that ogre’s talent fully blossoms, he’ll be able to topple you from the other side of the planet.”

Uhhh… isn’t that an extremely powerful ability? How exactly would I overcome it?

“You need to become an ██”

Again with the censored words. Can’t you just say it in a different way?

“Godhood, you need to attain godhood.”

**********

“I’ll be blunt with you. You’re about to die, aren’t you?” Momonga suddenly blurted out an odd phrase that I didn’t expect him to know. It was a fact that I hadn’t let anyone know, not even my students.

Even if he’s an otherworlder like I am, he’s clearly far more intellectual than I am. If he’s able to identify such things at a glance, I’m sure he must know other things about me, such as how my body is in conflict with itself and the pain I occasionally suffer as Ifirit attempts to take control.

“Well… I guess so?”

“How can you be so casual about it!?” Momonga half-shouted his sentence, keeping his voice down to prevent others from overhearing too much of the conversation.

“I’ve long accepted it. It’s a miracle I’ve been alive for this long,” I whispered in a gentle voice, hiding my fear of dying and leaving the otherworldly kids behind to suffer the same fate.

“What if… I offered you a solution?

“What do you mean?”

Out of the air, like he did prior with the chair, he pulled out a glass bottle full of red liquid. It looked like wine, but the bottle’s design would suggest it to be a healing potion of some kind. Soon, my suspicions were confirmed by his next words.

“I’m sure you’ve seen them before, but this potion is different from the ones you know of.”

It was a kind gesture, but it didn’t matter at this point. I’ve tried high potions, but that didn’t work in the slightest, so I shouldn’t expect much from this one either.

“Thanks, but I’ll have to refuse. If it’s something as simple as that, I’d have solved my problem long ago.”

“It’s rude to refuse a gift,” Momonga spoke in a stern voice, not taking no for an answer.

Therefore, albeit a bit forced, I gulped down the red potion that cost at least several dozen silver pieces. It was a waste of a potion that could’ve saved a life in the future, but it was hard to refuse the faint hope that is this red potion.

As the red liquid travelled down my throat, I could feel a feeling of rejuvenation, almost as if I was being healed from the inside out. It was a feeling not many would feel, but likely because I was a half-majin at this point, I’m more in tune with my bodily sense.

Oddly enough, the burning pain in my chest that has been present for the past decades suddenly subsided. It wasn’t completely gone, but I could feel my condition slightly improve. It was almost as if I regained the vigor to suppress Ifirit once more.

However, even if this worked for me, I’m not too sure it’d work for the children because my problem is different from theirs. Mine stem from Ifirt, while their issue stems from their overabundance of magicules that could explode at any time, but hope is still hope.

“Thank you…” I mumbled in a low voice, almost on the verge of tears. It wasn’t confirmation that the kids would be saved, but this otherworlder… undead overlord… might be able to save them. For some reason, he reminds me of my master, both so calm and kind in nature yet carries a power beyond reason within them.

“If you stay longer, I might be able to figure out a more permanent solution.”

“For now,” I contemplated, thinking about the best course of action. It was certain that the one who summoned me into this world would have the solution, but I can’t be sure he’ll even answer my calls. On the other hand, I could wait here, but time simply wouldn’t allow that. “I'm sorry, but I’ll have to refuse. I know kids who are in similar conditions to me and have far less time to live. If, by some chance, you discover the cure before I’m able to find it myself, could I ask you to save them?”

“Sure,” Momonga replied back with a voice of confidence. It was a tone that sounded genuine and almost impossible to fake.

In response, I told him all I could about the children and their conditions, including the fact that they were otherworlders just like us. It was hard to tell if he's sympathetic towards them from his boney facial expressions, but his tone and mannerisms certainly suggested so.

Before long, we finished our discussion and started heading towards the dining hall ourselves.

Chapter 25: Inherited Will III

Chapter Text

In the middle of a hot room, a war was being waged. Each man and woman must secure their own portion for none were spared for others. To be slow here means to starve.

Without a moment’s hesitation or care for the three adventurers around me, I snatched all of the meat that just finished cooking, but I wasn’t that merciless. I left some of the inferior meats for them to eat, including those from the cattledeers and horned rabbits. All I did was simply eat the wyvern meat before they could.

“Hey! Let us have some of that as well,” Ellen screamed and raised her fists at the same time. It looked like she was going to punch me, but would she really punch her savior, much less someone so much stronger than her?

“Nah,” I briefly replied as I was about to swallow another piece. It wasn’t because I needed its skills since I already obtained all of it nor was it about the scarcity of the meat. It’s just petty revenge because they kept snatching up all the prized meat at first.

Whack…

Surprisingly, she did punch me. It wasn’t painful in the slightest, but the surprise caused me to drop the meat on the grill, which she promptly picked up and ate.

“Woah~” Ellen gave a slight moan as she tasted how good the meat was. Of course it’d be good, but it was unforgivable that she stole my meat. “To think you’d be keeping something so awesome for yourself.”

“Alright, you asked for this,” I snickered as I started activating all of my skills to boost my agility. It was overkill to use Black Ogre’s Enhanced Senses, Amplify Senses, and Akashic Records on something so trivial, but I can’t just go knocking them out when they’re supposed to be guests.

Like that, the grill turned into a battlefield where one fought for supremacy over the wyvern meat chunks.

“Rou,” Momonga walked into the room at potentially the worst moment. Standing behind him was Shizue, who was still wearing her mask. “And all three of you. I expected more maturity.”

Like that, the war ended albeit a bit forcefully. With Momonga around, the whole mood seemed to change, like he was some sort of CEO that shouldn’t be messed with despite him being the very one who asked to be casual.

“While we’re all here,” Momonga continued as he sat down with Shizue right by me. Was it by choice that he sat down by the only other otherworlders or by choice? Either way, it was a little odd for Shizue to not sit beside her party. “Might I ask about why you’re in this forest?”

The three adventurers looked at each other without saying anything. If they did, I would easily pick it up, so they must have built enough understanding with each other to communicate through silent means. After a while, they all nodded their heads as if they agreed to something.

“Well,” Kaval, the supposed leader of the group, spoke up. It was odd for the most eccentric member to be the leader, but oddly enough, his goofiness might be a trait that draws others in. “We’re here for a quest.”

“What quest exactly?” Momonga glared at them with an intensity never seen before.

“Oh, no, don’t worry. It isn’t anything related to you guys. We’re just on an investigation quest after we found out about Veldora’s disappearance.”

“I think I’ve had enough,” I excused myself out of the conversation. After hearing about their objective, I realized it to be worthless information. Everything they would’ve known about here I would likely also know about. Moreover, there was close to zero chance they knew any massive political news in the human kingdoms considering how none of the adventurers in Dwargon knew much about politics. Now, there was something far more urgent I had to do before I was distracted by them.

First of all, I still needed to find Gobbum so I could harass- I mean, train with him to combine my skills. Even Gobkichi would work if I couldn’t find Gobbum.

Then, I need to get used to my newly-found skills.

Lastly, there was that odd presence I felt when I saved them. At first, I thought it to be Gobbum, but that clearly wasn’t the case because I still haven’t found him. There’s simply no way he’s out hunting for that long.

“Sir Rou, do you mind if I accompany you?” Shizue asked out of nowhere.

Without saying anything, we both walked out of the dining hall and out the castle, taking a stroll around until we were in a place with nobody around. On the way, we walked past several hobgoblins and heteromorphs, all of which somehow surprised Shizue.

Even on the way over, she was surprised at the diversity of monsters living within the town. Least to say, it wasn’t normal for such strong monsters to be present, much less treating weak ones as if they were equals. If we were actually discovered by humans, I wonder how they’d see us. Would we be seen as allies or extermination targets?

Finally, we arrived at the edge of a tall cliff where it would be hard to hide, so I doubt I’d need to worry about eavesdropping.

“We come from the same place, right?” Shizue posed the question that was probably on the tip of her tongue for ages.

“Well…” I sat down on the cliff, contemplating on what to say. I already exposed myself with the “ogres are like onions” joke, but should I really be so carelessly revealing everything about myself? At this point, I don’t believe it’d matter anymore. Let’s just put aside whatever worries I have and speak. “Something like that.”

Soon after, Shizue sat down alongside me with the sun setting in front of us. To think so much time had passed since meeting them. From my original goal of training to being side tracked by saving these four, it really felt like I’ve gotten nothing done at all. It’s fine to enjoy myself once in a while, but there’s simply too much on my to-do list to be relaxing.

“I was summoned here roughly 70 years ago.”

Really? She barely looks like she’s in her 20s.

“What a face you’re making,” Shizue commented on my expression, one that I was not able to see. If I could see myself however, I’d probably be laughing to death and wish I’d never existed. “Well, you must be wondering how I knew the joke then. One of my colleagues that was summoned after me told me about the joke you made prior.”

“Are otherworlders common?”

“No, not particularly, but we somehow managed to find each other. It’s as if an invisible string draws us together, whether for the worse or good”

“What was your story,” I asked a second question. It wasn’t like me to be so nosy, digging into her story as if I care. Normally, I wouldn’t care much about others, much less one I just met. One of the two people I did care about actually killed me, so I don’t really see why I should care. After all, caring for others when I myself am so weak only puts myself in danger.

In a strange turn of event, she revealed that prior to being summoned, she was about to die during the Bombing of Tokyo. Miraciously, she gained newfound power through this demon lord called Leon.

Afterwards, it was a story of how she was taught by many others and eventually became a teacher herself. She even revealed how she obtained the moniker Conqueror of Flames due to possessing the great spirit Ifrit and the good deeds she went around doing..

Then, it was my turn to share my story.

“Well, let’s start at the very beginning, shall we? I died. I was killed by one I thought to be a younger sister, but it doesn’t matter,” I brushed it aside like it was nothing, like it didn’t matter I was betrayed. It wasn’t the first time nor will it be the first, so there’s no need to agonize over it. I just made the dumb mistake of trusting, that’s all.

Thinking about it again, maybe the reason why I’m a monster is because I died. After all, Shizue was still alive when she was transported. Momonga’s case was special, but if I assume that his headset malfunctioned and he died during the closing, it would align with my story.

“Then, I woke up as an ugly goblin. Before evolving, I somehow met Momonga, someone who I thought would just kill me. I really thought that would be the end of my second life, but somehow, we became acquaintances, friends even. From there, he took the center stage and I backstage.”

I recounted how I evolved into a hobgoblin, carelessly revealed my divine protection, and how I met a strange slime after evolving into an ogre. I even told her about how I obtained so many abilities.

It really wasn’t like me to be talking so much, but something about her presence made me feel slightly more relaxed, almost as if I returned to the time before I obtained my ESPer ability, the time where I was just a naive kid unaware of bloodshed.

“Looking back, I had a little inferiority complex with all the strong people around. Even now, I believe I still do, but it isn’t holding me back anymore.”

“What a story!” Shizue shouted. “You’ve experienced and done so much in just a few months. If I was in your place, I would’ve still been a goblin and gotten killed by some wild monster or something. However, I must advise you to be kinder, won’t you? This world isn’t so black and white. There’s so much more to take in and do.”

“I know…” I gave a weak reply of half agreement, but I couldn’t really truly agree with her idealism. If one’s an enemy, they must be eliminated before they have the chance to get stronger, and if one’s an ally, they must be strong enough to assist me. Then, in an attempt to break away from the mood and the conversation itself, I shouted, “Anyways! I’ll go off to train now.”

**********

“Shiro, I’m really sorry…” I apologized for trapping her inside my stomach for the past week and a half. “Look, at least you met Veldora, right?”

Sticking my head as far in the ground as I could in the private quarters the dwarves and lizardmen made for us, Shiro was standing in front me with her two spider forearms crossed and staring down at me with the angriest expression she could muster. It was hard to see how she felt due to her exoskeleton, but I could feel it in my nonexistent bones that she was angry.

“I forgive,” Shiro muttered in a low tone. Could it be that she’s not angry? Hooray! “B. u. t. Teach me skills.”

Teach her skills? How do I do that? I just kind of… use them? I’ve been trying to tinker with them and improve them myself in the meantime without relying on Great Sage, but improving is different from learning how to do something in the first place.

Then, could I teach her how to better use her strings? I could, but she’s using them better than I could if we exclude Great Sage. Actually! I have an interesting idea that I’ve been trying to tinker with for some time but have been unsuccessful in doing so.

“Why not try combining some of your skills? You have Sticky String and Steel String, so why not combine them?”

“Thanks,” Shiro expressed her gratitude before leaving to her personal quarter made from her unique skill. If an unauthorized person were to enter, it would simply appear as a small cave donned with nothing but a hay mattress, but with her skill, she makes it into a room large enough to encompass a whole mansion and then some.

Couldn’t there be some sort of combat application to this? I would suggest some, but I didn’t want to raise false hopes since I didn’t know the ins and outs of her skills.

On the topic of training, I myself should really get training as well. I’ve been putting off training my skills since I felt lazy, but seeing Shiro all motivated gives me some motivation as well. I kind of want to use some type of sword, like a katana? But I don’t really have the skills to use it… much less the arms to wield it.

Maybe a brief walk outside will relieve my thoughts.

“Lord Rimuru!” Ranga greeted me with puppy-like eyes as I exited my dwelling. “Should I accompany you?”

By his side was Sujichi, the one-armed and red-scaled dragonewt, who approached me silently. He hadn’t spoken much since he was named, but I’ve heard he’s been steadily improving in getting used to it since being named. In fact, he’s somehow the fourth strongest dragonewt right behind Abiru and his two children, but his Fire Breath is somehow the strongest out of everyone here.

“Sure!” I replied as I got on Ranga’s back for a ride in the swamp. Similarly, Sujichi walked alongside us.

Compared to how the town was before, it has definitely improved a lot. Since the surrounding is extremely swampy, it was a tough task, but it looked like the dwarven brother’s mind along with the dragonewt’s brawns really brought out the full potential of this place.

Of course, I tried considering the environment since I didn’t want the environment to be destroyed too badly, but it was a tough ask when this place was so unsuitable for a town. All in all, we created a dam to hold the water and canals to direct the flow of it, transforming the swamp into marshland. However, it does seem like it is on its way to becoming a grassland with dozens of rivers running between it.

Then, we made some houses on the newly-emerged land, mainly multi-story ones since we needed to make the most efficient use of the little land we have. It was a tough task, but this place has finally become livelier with the dragonewts moving out of the caves and into actual houses. It was an odd transition for them, but it worked in the end.

“L. O. R. D. R. I. M. U. R. U!!!” An elongated and distorted yet unforgettable shout came from the distance. It was an annoying one full of pompous arrogance, one that bickered me almost everyday in Dwargon. “The Great Gabiru has returned!”

Instead of running in from the ground, he was flying in from above with a glorious pair of purple dragonic wings. His features sharpened and his scales gained a new luster. Somehow, in the short time he was abandoned, he achieved amazing growth.

“Hey…” I called out as I noticed something under him. “What’s that behind you?”

From the left to right, I could name an ogre bear, a blade tiger, a wyvern, a whole swarm of black spiders, a couple other monsters, and four humans running in front of all those monsters right below Gabiru. One of them was a petite girl wearing a mask.

Ignoring the monsters and Gabiru, that masked person’s shilouette looked like the fated one I saw in the crystal orb.

I could probably tackle every monster here, but it’d be a shame to monopolize all the experience points to myself when other people clearly need it so much more than me. This is especially considering the fact that I’m only level 17 at the moment while Shiro said she was close to evolving. For some reason, I seem to be leveling up extremely slowly.

“Ranga, call Shiro and the strongest fighters here. We’re having a feast tonight.”

With an energetic bark, Ranga leaped away.

Chapter 26: Inherited Will IV

Chapter Text

Inherited Will IV

Despite being unable to sweat, with these two standing beside me at the same time makes me able to feel the invisible sweat dripping down from my skeletal body. While I doubt a rebellion could ever happen with how loyal the Floor Guardians have been the past months, I don’t want to destroy the perfect image of a Supreme Being in their mind. With each passing minute, all that is happening is just me becoming more nervous.

Why did they both enter my office at the same time?

I know I’ve been messing around and posing as an adventurer, but it’s not like I’m even of much help here. All I have is just decent battle experience, but I’m sure Cocytus has more due to his settings.

Actually, could it be possible that they were waiting for me to start the conversation since I have the highest position here?

“So, what’s the orc disaster’s status?”

“Why not have Shalltear report it herself? I have her ready on standby right outside,” Demiurge replied.

“Umu,” I affirmed his suggestion.

Soon, Demiurge sent a small signal through Message to gesture Shalltear to enter. Contrary to her first appearance, she appeared rather meekish with her head down, hair all messed up, a few layers of dark circles under her eyes. Even if it was negative, this state is proof that NPCs aren’t restricted to their settings and can change to some degree.

“Shalltear, report,” Demiurge spoke in my place.

“A-ah! Lo-lord Momonga, I’m ashamed to say I’ve lost with the forces you provided.”

Instead of replying, I accidently gave her a silent stare a second too long. It was because I found it the slightest bit amusing to watch her panic, but my goal here is to make her think. If possible, I want her to realize her mistakes herself, hence the choice to stay silent.

“Th-the orcs were stronger than expected. Demiurge’s intel didn’t indicate that they were wearing armor, much less any of their strength,” Shalltear attempted to explain her mistakes instead of taking accountability. Unintentionally, she also shifted some of the blame onto Demiurge, but oddly enough, he didn’t mind taking part of the fault.

“Anything else?” I spoke up at last.

“Uuuh…” Shalltear thought for a long minute before coming to an answer. “Lord Momonga, please punish me.”

“Shalltear, what could you have done to win?”

“Uhh… Uhmm… I-if I was allowed to engage in battle, I could’ve massacred all of them.”

Sigh… Perhaps I really should’ve assigned the task to Cocytus instead. It might be due to her arrogance as the strongest Floor Guardian, but she doesn’t really see a problem if the loss isn’t a personal one. What she needs right now is someone outside of Nazarick’s that’s stronger than her to set her straight, but this is a good enough start. At some point, we might need to really announce ourselves before we get discovered and set as an evil force.

“Why did you not investigate their strength and growth yourself?”

“Because they’re just weak orcs, arinsu~?”

“Shalltear,” Demiurge interjected at last, growing frustrated with her dull responses. “I believe Lord Momonga is trying to say we are not infallible in this world. Unlike you, Cocytus who has personally witnessed how terrifyingly fast this world’s denizens can grow. If anything, I would recommend you confer with him about your mistakes.”

“Thank you, Demiurge. Now, putting your punishment aside to a later date, how strong did you believe this orc disaster to be?”

“Though Demiurge’s intel did say he was a level 40 tank, he looked to be a level 50 tank, while his generals are around the 20s to 30s.”

“If I may,” Albedo added. “The orc disaster appears to be utilizing DOT and regeneration as its main abilities. Additionally, if we consider his abilities to lead hundreds of thousands of orcs, he should have skills related to commanding.”

Well, all of these conclusions seem to be around the same as the one I came to, but it really feels like we’re missing out on something? Why are they eating everything, including their own allies? Starvation doesn’t seem to be that severe of a reason to resort to cannibalism. It might be just a coincidence or my overthinking, but could he possess a similar ability to Rou?

Worse case scenario, if I were to assume that he has absorption abilities, it would be best to keep track of everything he has consumed so far. All this thinking, and it felt like Albedo and Demiurge already knew why, but if I asked, it would probably make me look less like a Supreme Being.

“So, are we just going to let this guy be, arinsu?” Shalltear looked at me for a response. I want to say that my desire is to save them, but how could I articulate it without sounding too weak. Therefore, believing Demiugre knows of my plans, I allowed him to explain it.

“Demiurge, explain it to Shalltear.”

“Of course, Lord Momonga. You see, Shalltear, Lord Momonga possesses many grand ambitions, but I could only grasp three intents. One, they are monsters we can convert into subjects of great faith if we can alleviate their starvation. Two, we will be converting or absorbing a few of the surrounding nations by allowing the orc disaster to wreck havoc upon them. Even if he’s not strong enough, we have more than enough resources to accelerate his growth. Three, we can use this as an excuse to officially declare the founding of our kingdom and religion. After all, every kingdom needs a founding myth, and what better one is there than defeating a newly-born demon lord?” Demiurge finished at last before looking at me for approval.

“Umu! Yes, good job, Demiurge. I’m glad you picked up on my plan so fast,” I praised him. I didn’t even know I was doing half of those things nor were half of those objectives part of my plan, but it seems like I need to keep with these tasks to maintain my image. “Now, Shalltear, you are dismissed.”

After Shalltear left the room, I decided it was the best time to dismiss myself as well before I complicate internal affairs any longer.

“Lord Momonga,” Demiurge caught me off-guard as I left. Might I ask for your opinion on what we should do about the rats?”

Rats? I don’t believe there’s any rat-like heteromorph in Nazarick, so could there be a rat infestation in the town?

“It’s not like they can do any harm, but if they spread diseases or steal our food, I’ll leave it to you to decide what should be done,” I finally saw myself out of the room, walking outside of my office and into my personal research laboratory.

Due to the recent demon summon I encountered at Dwargon, I decided it was finally time to step up my growth. Rather than putting it off as a secondary task, it is now the main task. Despite not being able to level up or evolve, my magicules can still increase albeit at a slower pace and spell research can be done.

To do so, I’m using Dark Seeker as my main basis for creating spells. Not only can it steal magical knowledge from dead bodies, it assists me in the creation and usage of spells.

To name a few, Necrotic Flames turns living beings into undead after killing them and Walking Legion summons hordes of undeads similar to the way Armageddon - Evil functions are some of the spells I created. Also, I managed to create a spell similar to Dante’s Inferno in Yggdrassil that inflicted constant fire damage as a way to counter that red demon’s ice abilities, dubbing it Dante’s Lesser Inferno.

Really, can I just note how unfair it was for that demon to cast an ability similar to the super tier magic Creation in an instant. I don’t believe even Cocytus could pull off something like that.

Well, I suppose I must get started and create a spell to fill in for my weak spots. If Rou was here, he’d be testing things with me since his learning rate is exceptionally great, but he’s been gone for the past month by now. It’s a really long time compared to the past time he’s left

Nothing I could do except complain, so I’ll get started for now.

**********

Hell yeah!

Alcohol!

Rimuru may have withheld this from me by keeping me within his stomach for the past two weeks, but this festival has got to call for alcohol, right? Even when the dragonewts were celebrating Rimuru’s return, they brought out alcohol, so there’s no way they don’t bring it out now, right?

As the dragonewts started to bring out the firewood to roast the just-defeated beasts, there were no signs of any beverages in sight. Out of everything they brought out, the only liquid they brought were just jugs of water.

“Abiru,” I called for the one who has the second most say in the village. “Where alcohol?”

It was after that day, the day in Dwargon, where I discovered the true joy of life. Revenge on the black ogre will taste even sweeter, but in substitution of that, alcohol and food will become my new motivation to live.

No, I am not an alcoholic. It’s not like monsters suffer the downsides of alcohol nor can we grow an addiction, right? Either way, I’m just looking to eat some good food.

Because the monsters in Veldora’s cave tasted bland, I disregarded the dragonewt’s cooking as boring too and didn’t even bother joining them in meals. Least to say, I missed out.

“Ah… Lord Shiraori, sorry…” Abiru paused for a slight second, debating about what should be said. “Lord Rimuru said we were not allowed to bring out alcohol in your presence.”

What? Rimuru dares hold back such joy from me. I forgave him for trapping me inside him because he allowed me to meet Veldora and learn the Veldora-Style- Actually, nevermind. That name is far too embarrassing to even mutter in my mind.

Either way, I need to search the storage and rummage it for alcohol.

Walking into Rimuru’s residence, which was also mine and is coincidentally the biggest building here, I saw an unbelievable sight.

Sitting at the opposite side of the table, there was an unbelievably beautiful Japanese girl, a bunch of irrelevant bandit-looking people, and a Gabiru that's currently shoving his head into the ground. I wasn’t able to see her face due to the strange mask, but her petite figure, long black hair, and the way she seiza sits must indicate nothing else but the fact that she’s a proper Japanese lady.

As for the three other bandits-like guys, I’m going to ignore them since they didn’t look interesting.

“Hey, everyone! I’m Rimuru! I’m not a bad slime!” Rimuru greeted all four of them with enthusiasm.

For the three ruffians, it seemed like they didn’t really understand the Dragon Quest reference, but for the Japanese woman, she gave a small snicker.

As I attempted to follow them, I saw a strange horned insect following them as well. It certainly wasn’t a species I’ve encountered before, but the fact that it was black and had two horns reminded me of the black ogre, so I got slightly pissed off and squashed it with my legs.

Then, as they arrived, Rimuru and the Japanese girl sat down by the edge of the water. Meanwhile, the Japanese girl took off her mask and confirmed my suspicions. Her beauty might just cause Rimuru to lose the Great Sage. It was a sad farewell to one that felt like a third partner, especially one that helped me train and refine my skills together with Veldora, but it seems like Rimuru might really be graduating at last.

“Mr. Slime, are you an otherworlder as well?”

“Um, yeah! Where do you come from?” Rimuru posed a question to initiate the conversation. What are you doing, Rimuru?! It wasn’t a bad choice, but it was a dead question that leaves no space for further talk unless they happen to share the same place of origin.

“I’m from Tokyo, Japan. It probably isn’t the Japan you’re thinking of since I came here earlier than you did.”
“Really? You look so young though?” Rimuru gave the first good reply in a long time. If he was trying to charm her, it’s a good move to compliment her youthfulness.

“Haha… Thanks, I miraculously survived the Bombing of Tokyo by being teleported here. If I hadn’t been transmigrated, I would’ve died”

Then, silence fell upon them as they sat looking at their own reflection. Keep the conversation going, will ya?!

“Hey, want to see something cool?” Rimuru broke the ice. I wasn’t exactly sure what he was trying to do, but I don’t think the eiffel tower string trick will do the job here.

“Sure,” the girl softly replied.

Instead of doing anything, they were just sitting there. Unless Rimuru was preparing something really cool, I don’t believe sitting in silence counts as something cool.

“Hey, hey, hey, don’t look at that,” Rimuru panicked.

“Wow, Mr. Slime, she’s so beautiful.”

Judging from their conversation, it seems Rimuru is showing her some pictures, but unfortunately, it was obscured by the angle I’m stalking- I mean, secretly watching them from.

“Ahem! Anyways, this is Tokyo in the 21st century.”

“Wooaahh… I’m glad everything turned out alright,” the girl said without any spark of enthusiasm, but the attempt to put some juice in her voice could be very clearly heard. It wasn’t a disappointing tone, just a tired one.

After a while of picture-sharing, it got slightly boring, so I decided to return to my headquarters and hang out with the bandits.

On the way back, there was yet another two-horned black insect that I squashed. Upon closer inspection, they kind of looked like ants, so could it be possible that they’re a mutated or lesser species of the giant red ants?

“Hey,” I announced my presence upon arriving in the meal room.

“Oh! It’s Sir Rimuru’s pet spider!” The man with blonde hair shouted and pointed at me at the same time. It was rude to call someone by their species, much less call someone else’s pet.

To pay respect to his oh-so-rude behavior, I shut his mouth with Sticky String.

“Oh, well, looks like your meat’s mine now!” The other man in the party reached over to grab the meat in the blond man’s bowl.

“Mhmm! MPHMM!!!”

“Anyways,” the lady of the group started speaking like a proper human at last. “I’m Ellen. This one’s Gido, and the one who’s mouth you just shut is Kaval.”

“I, Shiro.”

“Oh, what a beautiful voice you have,” Ellen crawled over to me, patting me on my head before laying on my abdomen. If it was one of those men, I would’ve slapped them off, but this could be the first female friend I’m about to have. Rimuru is an old-timer, while all the dragonewts do is just train all day, never engaging in anything resembling femininity.

“You know,” Ellen continued. “You’re the second monster civilization we’ve come across that’s been friendly to us. It’s odd, really. Most monsters would kill humans on sight.”

“Who?”

“Oh? Your architectures were too abnormally similar, so I assume you guys must’ve had some connections. Anyways, there were a wide variety of monsters, including hobgoblins, demons, undead, insects, elves, ogres, and-”

“What. Ogre?” I unintentionally interrupted a little rudely her upon the mention of an ogre. If they truly bore a resemblance to our village, could this ogre be the one I was thinking of?

“Mhmm… He introduced himself as Rou. It looked like he was a blessed individual due to his black skin. He was really powerful, so strong I don’t think even Shizu could take him on.”

Rou, huh? So, this is the name of the one I must take my revenge on.

Maybe I might be unable to defeat him right now, but if I were to master Veldora-Style… SHIRO-Style Killing Arts, I could have a chance, or so Veldora suggested. Though, in the long term, he did say I’d need to attain godhood, something I really do not want to think about at the moment if I’m being honest.

“Oh, yeah, there was also this really overwhelming yet gentle wight guy. From his appearance, he looked like a superior species, like a wight king. Compared to his harsh demeanor, his actions were surprisingly gentle. He might just be the lord of that town considering how everyone acted around him.”

Ah… that just shot my difficulty up by ten times. To think that black ogre guy, Rou, wasn’t the leader but rather a subordinate. Best case scenario, the black ogre is the second strongest guy, and worse case, there are dozens of stronger guys in the village.

Man… this sucks… and I was in a really good mood until now. I reunited with Veldora, learned martial arts, merged Sticky String with Steel String into Sticky-Steel String, and there’s even a party outside. I even managed to learn a new application of my unique skill Isolated Space, a technique suggested by Veldora who took inspiration from an anime I used to watch. What a party-pooper that news was.

However, I’m positive I’ll get strong enough to kill that black ogre soon enough. At the moment, I’m level 99, just one level away from evolution. After thoroughly discussing with Veldora about various spider monsters, I’ve gained a solid understanding of many species and now know what to pick for my evolution, assuming the one that I want does show up.

“Come,” I signaled for Ellen to follow me, leading her into my super duper secret room. Though I want to just sleep the day away, it’d be a shame to not spend this time bonding.

Unlike the traditional Japanese room that we were in earlier, this room was like that of a princess’, or rather, a whole different world. It took three whole days of trying to communicate with the dwarves, but I dare say the effort was worth it.

By pushing Isolated Space to its limit, I was able to create a field the size of a football court. It felt like I could push it further, but any bigger would actively drain my magicules.

“Holy… it’s so big here,” Ellen gasped in surprise.

“Try,” I gave her one of the kimonos I made with Sticky-Steel String out of boredom. I wanted to wear them myself, but it’s kind of hard with my spider body. Maybe I should set my goal to become human after I get revenge on that ogre.

“Thanks… uh, what’s your name?”

“Shiro.”

We attempted to talk a bit more, but a loud noise came from outside the room. It was possible to cut off all noises, but Rimuru complained about how often I’d stay inside, so he forced me to remove the noise-proof feature to expose me to the outside world.

All in all, this was to say that something bad likely happened outside, forcing us to cut our girl talk short and rush outside, joining Gido and Kaval on the way as they, too, made their way outside.

“Mhmm! Mhmmm! Phmm!” Kaval pointed at the string around his mouth as he ran.

It was hard, and I mean really, extremely, severely hard to make out what he was trying to say. I doubt he’d say something trivial along the lines of “remove this gag” when something so horrible could be happening outside. Therefore, he must be telling us to hurry up!

“MHMMM!!!!”

Chapter 27: Inherited Will V

Chapter Text

Floating a few meters in the air, there were a bunch of small red dragons with flames surrounding their body along with a brown humanoid figure with flames for hair. Through a quick analysis, it was revealed that the dragons were medium flame elementals dubbed salamanders, while the brown figure was the greater flame elemental dubbed Ifrit.

“Is that Ifrit?” Ellen screamed out of surprise. “Could it be… Shizu the Conqueror of Flames? She was active fifty years ago.”

“Wait, who?” The slime standing right below the Ifrit exclaimed. Prior to Ifrit’s appearance, the slime hadn’t attempted to do anything to help her and merely stood there as the transformation took place.

If he cared, he would’ve thrown some sort of healing potion on her at the very least even if it didn’t work. If he didn’t, he should’ve attacked before the transformation finished. It was a prime example of personal feelings being only a hindrance on the battlefield. If they’re not an ally, they’re an enemy and vice versa.

“She’s an A-rank adventurer who’s the closest thing to a hero,” Ellen continued, but it doesn’t look like Ifrit was willing to give them any more time to breathe as he commanded the salamanders to charge forward and blast the grounded adventurers with fireballs from the air.

The spider, who followed Ellen on the way out, blocked the fireball with a wall of strings before shooting the wall forward like a net, capturing the salamander in it.

It worked out surprisingly well as it caught two of the salamanders. Taking advantage of the situation, the spider swung the captured salamanders like a flail, slamming the salamanders down to the ground.

However, it doesn’t seem like they took any damage. Even when the slime attempted to shoot a water blade, it instantly evaporated before it could deal any damage. Similarly, its poison had no effect as the slime ran around in an attempt to dodge the blast.

Soon, the salamanders were able to free themselves from the net and rejoin the battlefield.

“Icicle Lance!” Ellen, the mage of the party, finally started acting. Unlike Rimuru’s water, it was able to penetrate through the heat and finally deal some damage to the salamanders. Rather, it was more like the heat didn’t affect the icicle. a trait likely due to the fact that it's magical.

“Lord Rimuru!!!” A loud shout came from a purple dragonewt from the distance. “Allow me to assist you!”

As he joined the battle, shots of thunder rained from the sky, purging the salamanders in an instance. It was shocking to think the lightning power could hold such destructive power, but it didn’t do much harm to the main threat that was Ifrit.

In his arrogance, he attempted to throw his spear towards Ifrit only for it to go straight through the spirit. Dumbfounded, the dragonewt left himself wide and was promptly turned into burned chicken. He has great skills, and if he disappeared from the battlefield at this very moment, it was possible for the others to not notice the chaos.

The opportunity to drag him away never came as the slime arrived by his side, throwing a blue liquid onto him and healing all of his injuries. If he had something this good, shouldn’t he have at least tried using it on Shizue instead of looking all stupid standing there.

“Gabiru, leave this to me,” the slime commanded.

“Yes! Lord Rimuru!” The dragonewt shouted before flying away, but not so far that he was unable to see what’s going on.

Through this brief exchange, both of their names were revealed. It was meaningless to assign names to enemies who may one day become enemies, but it was good to at least know their names to keep track of their activities through the news and any other media that may exist in this world.

“Ellen, fire the Icicle Lance!” Rimuru commanded the mage girl.

“Su-sure? Icicle Lance!” Ellen fired the spell in Ifrit’s direction, but it was immediately swallowed by Rimuru.

In the next instance, Rimuru managed to copy the spell and shoot out a barrage of Icicle Lance like a shotgun. For onlookers, it may look like a simple duplication ability, but through past interactions, it was obvious that it was a type of absorption ability related to eating.

Though the spell might have worked on the salamanders, it proved to be of no difficulty to Ifrit as it swiftly managed to negate the attack with a wall of fire. As the flames settled, the single Ifrit turned into multiple Ifrits, all of whom were able to create fireballs and shoot them.

The main Ifrit, which was the one with the highest elevation, prepared a large-scale attack as the clones restricted Rimuru’s movement options.

Compared to the fights he had prior, it was rather amateurish, almost as if he didn’t have a full grasp of his own skillset. Even if his strings burned in the flames or his poison were rendered useless, there were still many ways to utilize them as distraction or movement options until an opening was found.

However, it seems that there was one thing unaccounted for in this fight, which was the spider by Ellen’s side. Ifrit, distracted by Rimuru, was caught up by the most obvious string trap to ever exist and was forced to stay in a single location.

Not missing the opportunity, Rimuru flew above Ifrit, summoning a gigantic Icicle Lance the size of a small building above Ifrit. If the spell itself didn’t kill Ifrit, the sheer mass of the lance would certainly render Ifrit grounded.

Once Ifrit was rendered both immobile and grounded, Rimuru walked up to it… only to be swallowed in a sea of flames. Despite being trapped, Ifrit’s proficiency in flame magic was so high that it could invoke magic without the use of its hands, mouth, or body parts in general. It would’ve been more costly, but it was more than worth it considering the situation.

Despite having the upper hand, Rimuru’s carelessness made him lose the flow of the battlefield. There were so many chances to kill Ifrit, such as when Gabiru appeared or during his summoning, but he let go of all these opportunities… for what? So what if killing Ifrit might kill Shizue, shouldn’t one prioritize their friends over someone they met just a month ago, much less a week?

So, out of frustration, I shot a Demise Spear aimed right at Ifrit’s arm to end the fight once and for all. I should’ve aimed for its heart or head, but it’s not like Ifrit would ever be a danger to me. Moreover, I needed to leave the vital organs to devour, so I couldn’t just reckless destroy it.

Well, at least those were the pointless justifications I used since it’s not like I can eat Ifrit without exposing myself. All in all, Rimuru stole the meal and devoured Ifrit whole after the fire pillar was dissipated due to the Demise Spear. Judging from his unharmed appearance, it looked like he’d be fine even without my interference, so I just wound up needlessly exposing myself for no reason.

A while after, Shizue was spat out from Rimuru’s body like vomited food without a single spot of damage on her.

Just like that, the fight ended and Shizue was dragged back into Rimuru’s mansion. Of course, I followed him just so I could eat both of them. Why else would I be trailing Shizue and the adventurers for the past month?

As Shizue was being gently carried into the bedchamber, it was obvious that her complexion was becoming stranger. It wasn’t worse since there were no signs of any fatigue, pain, or fever. Rather, her skin became wrinklier and she slowly lost weight.

“Mr. Slime, would you tell me your name?” Shizue spoke with a voice that was unlike her usual voice. It was more mature now, one that of a fully glorified middle aged woman.

“Rimuru.”

“Your real name.”

“Mikami, Mikami Satoru.”

“Satoru,” Shizue’s voice finally turned husky as she laid upon the bedsheets. “Would you mind leaving me alone for a second? I have something to say to Rou.”

“Rou?”
“Please…?”

“Sure,” Rimuru slowly exited the room, standing right outside the door.

Even though I made sure to hide myself, my presence was still somehow revealed. Did she know all along? Was it the spell I chucked at the end? What was I doing in enemy territory? It was a fatal mistake, but if I could kill them before-

“Rou, this world isn’t so black and white,” she muttered to me the very same phrase she said to me before at the cliffside conversation. “I could make a guess, but I don’t really know what made you turn your back against the world.”

“Why…” I deactivated Shadow Motion at last to reveal myself. There was an unknown emotion burning in my chest. It certainly wasn’t love since I’ve had a girlfriend before. Rather, it was more akin to rage, a feeling that I want to let go and destroy everything around me. “If you stayed, you could’ve lived longer!”

“I would’ve, but now, I’m lost. I couldn’t find him anywhere here, even after searching the whole forest. However, now that I know Momonga will help the kids, I have no more regrets.”

“This,” I pulled out one of Yggdrassil’s potions from my bag. Because Momonga is a worrywort, I always have one on me, and from what Momonga told me, it could extend her life. “Drink this!”

“Sorry… but I don’t believe it’d help. The circumstances are different.”

“Then… this,” I pulled out yet another item from my bag. It was a scroll that Momonga gave me when I was a hobgoblin. Upon using it, a resurrection timer would be set, and if the individual died within that time frame, it would automatically revive them in a weakened state.

“Rou, you’ve done enough.”

I was going to attempt to get another item, one that could change her race, but I realized I didn’t have it on me. According to Momonga’s random ramblings, there were items that do that. If it was a problem with her lifespan, she could just become a race with a longer life. With Shadow Motion, I could probably go and be back in an instant, but I wasn’t sure if Momonga would permit its usage.

Even if not, I doubt he’d notice a single one that’s gone missing-

Then, the noisy thoughts in my head suddenly cleared up as Shizue interrupted, “I know it’s selfish, but would you mind telling me your real name?”

“Rou, just Rou,” I answered despite knowing what she really meant. She already knew I was an otherworlder, but I didn’t feel like connecting this life with my past.

At the same time, I didn’t feel like continuing this conversation any longer, so I left. I slammed the door open, destroying the door frames before taking a glance at the blue slime named Rimuru. Surprisingly, the white spider that was with him the whole time wasn’t with him.

From his reaction and the fact his body is half-melted, he clearly wasn’t expecting me to be here. If anything, I could eat him right now. In fact, it’d be an easy meal. Compared to the last time I met him, I’m so much stronger that it’s laughable how weak my old self was. Despite having the same ability as me, he stagnates and doesn’t make full use of it.

“Go inside,” I hummed in a low voice after I decided to let him be for another day. Even with this burning sensation that tells me to destroy, I didn’t have the courage to carry it out, so all I could do was disappear with Shadow Motion.

**********

In the bedchamber, Shizu’s crippled body lies motionless. In the few minutes I was gone, her body aged by at least two decades and her hair was starting to turn grayish white, and it really did feel like two decades had passed.

I was sitting outside in dreadful silence, waiting nervously for them to be done with their conversation. I wanted to listen in so badly, but out of respect for her wishes, I decided not to and turned off my skills.

There were just so many questions to ask. What was her relationship with that ogre? How did she know he was trailing us? What was her life story? What was the flame spirit that came out of her?

“Mr. Satoru… would you mind fulfilling one last request of mine?”

“Sure,” I put aside the questions I had for now to answer her.

“Could you consume me? I wish to die there instead of this world.”

“...” I hesitated for a minute, thinking whether it was really right of me to consume a human, much less someone from the same country as me. At times like these, I don’t really feel much like a Predator.

“Haha… I’m sorry… It must be cruel of me to ask this of you.”

“No, no, I’ll do it.”

<Confirmed: Unique Skill - Degenerate successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Flame Manipulation successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Ranged Barrier successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Explosive Flames successfully acquired>

<Confirmed: Extra Skill - Heat Wave successfully acquired>

Off in the distance, a little girl was running towards a small house and her mother. It was a place free from the chaos created by the Bombing of Tokyo. It was a peaceful time, one where Shizu would be able to rest easily.

Then, an unknown feeling sprouted in me, one that I hadn’t experienced my whole life and was lost after I reincarnated. It was akin to the emotion I would feel whenever a major character in a movie would die, but it felt wrong to downplay this emotion like that.

Sadness? Grief? Bitterness?

It was an emotion I’ve heard through my friends, an unknown feeling that occurred whenever they broke up with their girlfriends or lost someone important to them. Despite never having a girlfriend once in my life nor lost anyone significant, it felt like this was the emotion they were describing.

drip…

Looking down, a stain was left by a water droplet. It shouldn’t be possible for a slime to cry, but from what it seems like, I unconsciously transformed into a human. Moreover, judging from the position and the sensation of water running down my cheeks, it would be reasonable to conclude that I’m crying. Through Shziu’s body, I felt this emotion for the first time in fourty-ish years.

It wouldn’t do to cry over someone’s death, especially someone who’s already burdened with enough guilt due to her odd request. I should’ve seen her off with a smile… show her that I’ll be fine even in her absence.

Doing my best to look at things more positively, I skimmed through Shizu’s momentos. It wasn’t just the mask she left behind or the skills I obtained through absorbing her, but the memories she left behind with me.

It seems her final will was to save the otherworldly children who suffer the same conditions as her. Unlike most otherworlders, Shizu wasn’t blessed with a unique skill upon transmigration. She only chanced upon Degenerate throughout her long lifetime. For otherworlders like her, they should’ve died in a few years due to her rampaging magicule, but for some reason, she lived.

Therefore, she wanted to meet Demon Lord Leon Cromwell who summoned her into this world and similarly cursed her with the fate of dealing with Ifrit. She bore no ill will against Leon since he saved her from the bombing, but his acts were simply too outrageous.

Forcing a child to become a bodyguard by assimilating her with Ifrit, forcing her to deal with Ifrit for almost a century, and forcing her to do crimes against her wills were some of the terrible things he’s done to her. However, it does seem odd that Shizu doesn’t seem to have many memories of him?

Well, whatever the case is, I’ll beat him up and find the answers to get closure for Shizu.

“Rimuru!” The adventurer trio entered the tent with Shiro.

“U-uhhh…” Ellen stuttered for a moment. “This is Rimuru, right?”

“Yes,” I replied as I shifted into my slime body. “I am Rimuru.”

“Did you eat Shizu?”

“Yes, I did. It was her final request.”

“If Shizu wanted it, I’m sure it’s fine,” Ellen started twiddling her fingers a little and bore a sad expression. It was obvious that they were attached to Shizu, so her abrupt departure must’ve been much more saddening than the one I just had.

“Rimuru, could you become human again?” Kaval requested.

“Sur-”

“Shizu!!” Ellen came in for a hug and as did the two other adventurers. On the other hand, Shiro left the room at some point, likely back to her room. “You were like a bi-big sister to me!’

“Thank you so much, Shizu!” The three of them shouted simultaneously.

For a while, all three of them were bawling so hard that their faces contorted into something inhuman. Their snot and tears were all over me. While it was easy to just absorb it into my body, it felt gross taking in stuff like snot.

Just for today, I’ll let them have their fill.

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Demowo on Chapter 1 Mon 26 May 2025 06:55PM UTC

i feel Shiro might have hard time (WHY MAKE HER BLACK SHE GONNA BE KURO??? [this mean black right?] XDDDDDDDDDDDDDD )
She is weakest here how you going make her strong
and Vandalieu has same growth speed as Shiro i want see they interact

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AinzSama (Guest) on Chapter 1 Sun 01 Jun 2025 05:41AM UTC

When you enter tensura you get skills depending on your soul and your will. Ainz is a level 100 monster and he should get ultimate skills . Also what about his world items . They are too broken especially his red orb. It keeps getting stronger the longer he wears it and it's very effective against dragons.Those world items will make him break level cap and be from top 10 in tensura.

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AinzSama (Guest) on Chapter 1 Sun 01 Jun 2025 04:26PM UTC

Can Ainz kill true dragons if he used his Red Orb ?

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IncubusLord (Guest) on Chapter 1 Fri 06 Jun 2025 05:21PM UTC

Once the person enters tensura,the VOTW( voice of the world) will analyse him and give him skills and if his will was strong he will get ultimate skills and Ainz is an overlord who rules over death and can summon high tier undead so he should get the US (ultimate skill)God Of Death by VOTW. Also as the ruler of the great tomp of nazarick, he will be able to use world break of Touch Me or Grand catastrophe of Ulbert and they both destroy big places and that means he will get ultimate skill God of destruction or something similar.
Also Ainz knows more than 718 spells and 25 super tier spells and most of them will be translated to unique spells and some to ultimate skills. So giving Ainz only one ultimate skill means you don't understand how tensura system works.
I hope you focus on Ainz and his powers in the next chapters

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1. Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 1 Thu 17 Jul 2025 11:53PM UTC
  
  I don't get why he would be able to use the abilitys of his guildmates. while that would cool that just doesn't make since, but if were theorizing here maybe his ultimate skill could since it can access all Nazaricks resources, including it's npc's and items, but I doubt he can use their abilitys himself, let alone those of his guildmates, even if that would be sick
  him getting a single ultimate skill is fitting since you can evolve into a true demon lord and still not even come out with an ultimate skill, so him getting a single ultimate skill without any of the special ranks of this new world is already generous, yet you have the gall to claim he should get more?
  if anyone doesn't understand either of these franchises, it's you
  
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2. 1. IncubusLord (Guest) on Chapter 1 Fri 18 Jul 2025 02:00PM UTC
    
    He should be able to use all his guild members skills as he is the supreme ruler of Nazarick Also he has shooting star to steal any ultimate skills.
    BTW I have read tensura till vol 16
    
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  2. 1. Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 1 Fri 18 Jul 2025 03:10PM UTC
      
      Shooting Star is debatable, since it can't interfere with anything on the level of a World Item—which Ultimate Skills most certainly would be. We see it fail specifically because of Downfall of Castle and Country, and most (if not all) Ultimate Skills are definitely more powerful than that.
      Being the "Supreme Ruler" doesn’t mean much in this instance. Sure, Ainz can access all of his collection of items, NPCs, and the guild itself—but that doesn’t mean he can use his guildmates’ abilities, at least not directly.
      Sure, Rimuru can use his subordinates’ abilities, but that’s through Food Chain, which only came about due to Great Sage/Raphael/Ciel’s careful handling of the abilities offered. That’s not something just anyone can do. We never see someone casually use their subordinates’ abilities without having the proper skills or sub-skills to facilitate it.
      We also never see Guy Crimson use his subordinates’ abilities, and he’s definitely more powerful than Ainz—at least as of now.
      And Ainz’s guildmates aren’t even his subordinates—they're partners, friends. That would be like saying Rimuru could use Milim’s skills just because they're friends. Sure, he can use Veldora’s, but that was thanks to a Soul Corridor.
      Even if Ainz could access the skills of his guildmates and subordinates (and I do have a theory that his Ultimate Skill might let him access his subordinates’ abilities), his guildmates aren’t even in the same universe—so they’re off the table for that reason alone.
      Then there’s the issue of how many Ultimate Skills someone can even handle. There’s a reason Ciel fused a bunch of Rimuru’s Ultimate Skills into a single one—La Shub-Niggurath—to avoid damaging his soul. There’s clearly a limit to how many Ultimate Skills a soul can bear.
      There is some supporting evidence that Ainz might be able to access his subordinates’ skills in some way. We haven’t seen the full scope of his Ultimate Skill yet. It seems like it can access everything in Nazarick—subordinates, resources, etc.—so maybe that extends to skills too. But we can’t just assume that without further evidence.
      BTW, it doesn’t matter how far you are into the series if you don’t have the necessary context for certain things—or forget important facts. That stuff makes all the difference.
      
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MulanLieValkirye on Chapter 1 Fri 15 Aug 2025 02:57AM UTC

Hi, have you read the part about Goblin to Goblin God? I'm asking because I thought of a fic combining it with Re-Monster.
Protagonist - Rou
Extra Characters - Rou's Subordinates
World and Story - Goblin to Goblin God

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Psycho829 on Chapter 1 Wed 24 Sep 2025 03:36PM UTC

Yes, Momonga, you're weaker than the blue slime. Sadge

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SLUBEREGDUAR on Chapter 1 Sun 05 Oct 2025 01:19AM UTC

Since you're waiting for the anime to be released from that Isekai Monster, ¿Can I suggest alternatives?
These that I have, basically give a balance in the characters because both are protagonists who reincarnated as avatars of their game just like Ainz.
This would be an even situation of 3 players and 3 transmigrants, ¡And together they create the 100th Sentai team! Jajajaja

Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo Dorei Majutstu:
Just so you know, the protagonist who is called Takuma (or Devil) has an artifact that allows him to get his spouse pregnant despite the racial differences that prevent it, a comedy scenario can be created where Albedo tries to take him, fails and then begs him to have Ainz's offspring, and it could also be used for Rimuru to devour it, replicate its effects in addition to duplicating the artifact, I feel that way I would have Shizu's children.

Skeleton Knight in Another World: His protagonist suffers from a curse that made him a bony (because that's how he set up his character), he will get along very well with Ainz since he would feel nostalgic since Arc's attitude is very SIMILAR to his companion in the tomb TouchMe, in a crossover I saw of these skeletons they made as hints that one of Arc's family may be his ancestor (Since Ainz of the future)

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Aptom345 on Chapter 3 Sun 27 Apr 2025 03:00PM UTC

So our spider meet the dragon and both or re:monster mc and momonga meet. Now Rimaru need to enter the scene and meet our other three mc. This is going to be interesting.

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MuertoAlma on Chapter 3 Fri 04 Jul 2025 12:48PM UTC

I actually love this concept, a monster quartet!

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Nilava_Sinistar on Chapter 4 Tue 27 May 2025 05:41AM UTC

Ouch, you dodge the bullet there Momonga

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Ainz (Guest) on Chapter 4 Sun 01 Jun 2025 04:41AM UTC

Ainz can level up in the new world by using shooting star. Also this is a new world where you can break your level cap not a digital game

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1. Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 4 Wed 06 Aug 2025 12:21AM UTC
  
  Normally, the concept of levels wouldn’t even exist if this crossover were just between Tensura and Overlord. But since this fic is a crossover with Tensura, Overlord, Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?, and most importantly, Re:Monster, the level cap becomes relevant. In Re:Monster, the level cap is firmly set at 100. So even if he can continue growing stronger through other means, they won’t be able to surpass that cap via traditional leveling. It’s already been established in this fic that he also can’t evolve through level-ups like others can, which further reinforces that limit.
  Also, people tend to overestimate how powerful Shooting Star really is. The spell allows you to cast Wish Upon a Star three times without suffering the usual XP cost, yes — but it doesn’t let you break the fundamental laws of Yggdrasil. You can’t use it to interfere with a World Item, for example. And that restriction would logically carry over into this new world, meaning Ainz wouldn’t be able to alter the system created by Veldanava with it. He could still wish for something powerful — as long as it’s within the bounds of the world’s rules — but he can’t rewrite reality.
  If he had a World Item like Ouroboros, now that’s a different story. Ouroboros could bend or break those laws entirely — it’s a World Item, not a Super Tier spell, and is on a whole other level of authority.
  
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2. 1. Skyfall1 on Chapter 4 Thu 16 Oct 2025 08:18PM UTC
    
    So why the author added Momonga and co if he will use Re: Monster system instead of tensura? He should use the system of the world they were sent to not another world. That doesn't make sense
    
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  2. 1. Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 4 Thu 16 Oct 2025 10:48PM UTC
      
      he did a mix between the two system, which I think is a pretty fresh take
      
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RicardoPokeMaster on Chapter 5 Sun 25 May 2025 11:42PM UTC

This su interesting, With Shiraori having not earing Veldora the forest is still in a peaceful manner, nit inly that the canon Goblin village now has a governor in Momonga and Rimurj is still not named.
Wondering how that is going to change canon, since with the exception of Rimuru who its blinded by idealism, Ron and Momonga are not and Shiraori while not a fan of murder, has priority beocming strong to survive, wondering how that changes the canon

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Just1Reader on Chapter 5 Mon 26 May 2025 03:01AM UTC

Nothing like world building to a story that already looks to be an amazing crossover, I will admit that my favorite characters are Rimuru and Shiro, so I wished they met already. But I do understand the importance of semi following timelines, it took a bit for Rimuru to leave the cave in canon, Shiro back when she was Kumoko even longer. Still awesome to see another chapter done well, and that just makes the future meeting that more sweeter I suppose. Especially since you would have a semi-survival hardened Shiro, a Rimuru with Great Sage and Veldora magicules in their pocket, meeting a "Divine being" Ainz, and whatever Rou does in his canon, don't know yet I got to read that manga or watch that anime.

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Demowo on Chapter 5 Mon 26 May 2025 07:30PM UTC

if you add Vandalieu what side he be? i reading and it seams that they will be sides
For noe there is Momonga with Rou in goblon village
then in cave we have most loved Shiraori with Veldora blessing and maybey Rimuru
he alive but timeline is strange why? here answer:
-Rimuru Tempest shuld be alive and named beacuse Rou dont get predator but timeline say that rimuru not met Veldora yet
if you can anser why ten i be happy and will Vandalieu be with Shiro becuse there is no Sophia? i mean in team or somthing not anything else and they be smillar age i think

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1. Just1Reader on Chapter 5 Mon 26 May 2025 08:05PM UTC
  
  I don't think there will be "sides" at the core of all the mc's they are reincarnated, and Japanese, so with their mannerisms they should notice each other as a reincarnated, and Rimuru will want their city and easy lifestyle, best Spider Shiro will want that as well, Van wants what other people take for granted and would certainly join Rimuru and Shiro in that prospect. Ainz and Rou however do seem much more combat oriented and focused, so while the slime, spider, and drampir focus on luxury,(while still being immensely powerful), Ainz and Rou seem to be the type that would be like Tanya and focus military might to defend forest and nation. But yea I can see what you mean be sides, at first when they all meet they might fight, only to go wait, you're doing some odd humanlike things that a spider/slime wouldn't do, and great sage telling Rimuru straight up they're reincarnated, and Shiro simply going we done for some reason? Cool got any food? Anyways sorry about all the yapping, we can only look ahead to when the next chapter appears to know for sure huh.
  
  Last Edited Mon 26 May 2025 08:05PM UTC
  
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2. 1. Demowo on Chapter 5 Tue 27 May 2025 03:39AM UTC
    
    I have one important question still
    What is Shiro she is spider or she is wakaba and what about marge in souls in start if I remember correctly
    Is there D?
    Can she talk normaly not when someone reading her mind?
    I like Shiro most next is Vandalou but thing is that Shiro has like most complicated circustamces in her story
    
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  2. 1. Just1Reader on Chapter 5 Tue 27 May 2025 04:31AM UTC
      
      In canon Shiro is the pet spider of the classroom that gets reincarnated with the false memories of Wakaba by D, but with how the system in Tensura worked I can only guess that Shiro will be more centered in her identity as Wakaba because of D adding to her soul bit. Honestly the best way I can think of it is that D is basically the creator of Shiro, as Shiro gets that memory and knowledge installed, she experiences life as human through the memories, she had no problem with using her hands when she became an arachne in canon, and even after knowing the truth she seemed to take it in stride and continue enjoying "human" comforts. But now in the far future I wonder what Shiro's reaction would be to our favorite yuri vampire Luminous, Shiro is introverted, due to the memories that D gave Shiro, but also blessed with a beautiful body thanks to D, so that will be fun. And the way communication worked through talking was magicule sense I believe, not exactly mind reading, just the sense of meaning through magicules which is not reading because that is what the canon says for some reason. Yet I am not the writer of this wonderful story so we can only wait and see, hope this helps.
      
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    2. 1. Demowo on Chapter 5 Tue 27 May 2025 07:07AM UTC
        
        Well Shiro is my favorite character and i think what she thikn of others its be like:
        Vandalou- hes personality is most comfortable to Shiro of them all i imagine she just enjoing life and sometimes just staying with Van he is just chill nor many emotikon
        Rimuru- greatest enemy of Shiro she would avoid him most times beacuse his personality
        Ainz- Shiro try avoid beacuse his servants in guild gonna be mad
        Rou- this is person i don't have to much to siad
        
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      2. Just1Reader on Chapter 5 Tue 27 May 2025 01:25PM UTC
        
        The best spider girl is very introverted with close friends and allies, and when the ogres/oni show up Shuna would probably actually be great friends with Shiro, because of food, and clothes, the biggest way to bond with Shiro is her stomach after all, which probably makes Shion public enemy No.1 to food in her eyes. But yeah, likes Van, she seems to get along in some form with vampires usually, can't wait for Luminous to meet human Shiro.
        Rimuru is someone she tries to avoid to avoid work but gets bribed with food and snacks all the time, plus Shuna.
        Ainz is the one she tries to avoid but Shalltear is somehow hi best buddy, Albedo dislikes until learning Shiro doesn't want Ainz, which then transfers to pestering about clothes for Albedo in Nazerick because she is a spider that makes magic thread.
        And Rou... maybe tries to avoid because she's strong and he wants to get stronger? That's my take on it anyways.
        And that's all I got, but once again we can only speculate on this story, it's the author that brings it to life after all.
        I just realized that Rimuru and Shiro are probably going to be like siblings thanks to Veldora naming them both.
        
        Last Edited Tue 27 May 2025 01:35PM UTC
        
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        Demowo on Chapter 5 Wed 28 May 2025 12:59PM UTC
        
        More like Veldora Rimuru and Shiro are siblings.
        Veldora is not Shiro father
        And Shiro probably be harrased by weldora in her free time just like it was with Sophia (but even More) XD
        
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3. ZukDragonic on Chapter 5 Tue 27 May 2025 10:09PM UTC
  
  That was a small mistake on my part. I should've written Satoru Mikami instead of Rimuru but Rimuru is more familiar with the readers. However, the reason Rou gets Devourer and not predator is just due to a difference in their skills that will be hinted/explained later in the story.
  Also, while I'd like to incorporate Shiro's classmates, they'd be irrelevant by the point they'd be able to fight and interact with the main cast, so if you like a canonical reason, it can just be that all Shiro's classmate's soul couldn't handle the transmigration and died. Remember, transmigration in Tensura is not 100% safe. If plot allows, I'll attempt to incorporate Sophia at least due to her being a vampire or Fei (dragon girl).
  Also no comment on the "sides" since that'll be explored later.
  
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4. 1. Demowo on Chapter 5 Wed 28 May 2025 12:56PM UTC
    
    So Sophia lives thats good
    And by sides i think like that beacuse rimuru not gonna be leader of that village (for now i guess) and Shiro is well Shiro she free to do what whe want like always
    
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  2. Just1Reader on Chapter 5 Wed 28 May 2025 01:13PM UTC
    
    No more discussions on sides, understood, it's your awesome story and as it is your wish for this it shall be respected.
    
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  3. 1. ZukDragonic on Chapter 5 Wed 28 May 2025 06:59PM UTC
      
      Thank you for the praise, but there's a slight misunderstanding. I meant that I'm not making any comments on the side things. I do welcome theorizing and your opinions in the form of comments.
      
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  4. Demowo on Chapter 5 Sat 21 Jun 2025 06:25PM UTC
    
    i just rememberd so i say it
    Sophia was reincarnated as human but skill make her born as vampire (both parents humans, skill vampire make her vampire, born as vampire due to skill she get progenitor title or skill i don't remember)
    Wrath Feirune and Shiro are only monster reincarnations
    so if you want add monster you can add Sophia and no one care if its wrong (i too) but if you want add true monster you can add Wrath (as goblin or oni or something smillar) or Fei (earth wyrm)
    
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AldrichOfTheAstralClocktower on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 12:41AM UTC

This is fun.

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Arad (Guest) on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 04:53AM UTC

A level cap ? Are you stupid or what ? Ainz can level up easily if he kills monsters and gain EXP . That's not the game . It's tensura world. I came here to see OP Ainz but you placed many restrictions on him

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1. Demowo on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 09:29AM UTC
  
  you know that Ainz is one of strongest creatures in tensura right? and he was max lvl max evolve species so how he gonna be stronger that beafore sure he can get few skill and all but Rimuru AND Shiraori have potencial and probably will be stronger than Ainz i mean RIMURU HAS FRICKINN AI WITH CAN GIVE WISSIBLE INFO (don't know but can't tell who was reincarnated she share info that with perception anyone smart can say if they know world) AND GIVE ANY SKILLS (method to accuaried or somthing like that i don't know how to say that but you know) AND Shiro has part of god in her (that don't doing anything to her she just have it) and she gonna be op if she have same mindset like in her series and even mabey she will beacome a TRUE GOD wictout system not like Rimuru who is inside system forrever if he leave system grate sage ( raphael or ciel if you like) will not be able to give him informations and Rimuru was gonna have harder time than Shiro in hacking and gaining acces to power without system he gonna lose his powers
  
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2. 1. Arad (Guest) on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 01:16PM UTC
    
    The author Maruyama himself said that Ainz can break level cap so I don't understand why you places level cap on Ainz . Also Ainz has wish upon a star that can grant him any wish ,his friends gears and world items . His red orb keeps getting stronger the longer he wields it and very effective against dragons and he used it before to kill 600 players and that was in the game . In real world it gets more dangerous. So level cap is just a bullshit from the author. Also why Ainz is stupid in this story? He was going to ask everyone you are a player ? What is this bullshit?
    
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  2. 1. Demowo on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 01:49PM UTC
      
      well this world don't have level and he have very long time to even fight someone strong end theres no items like he has items and such but in tensura there nothing like items or somethink like in game was
      Ainz mostly don't even use op powers that much anyway
      end we want to see op Shiro and Rimuru (I want Shiro she better character than Rimuru)
      
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    2. ZukDragonic on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 03:18PM UTC
      
      This world is not just the Tensura world but rather a merger of Re:Monster and Tensura with notable kingdoms/figure from both. The level cap is a feature introduced from the Re:Monster canon, and while the level cap theoretically does exist, one could still get stronger in Re:Monster even while at level 100. It's just that evolution wouldn't occur anymore. Think of it like Gobta not evolving into an ogre but still able to get stronger.
      Also, I don't really see the the problem with the restrictions. In the original series, I dare say that Momonga has similar restrictions in the aspect that he can not get stronger via increasing his stat. While, yes, he can get stronger via expanding his army, learning other trades/techniques, refining his already-existing technique, nowhere in the series was it shown that Momonga can increase his stats.
      In regard to Momonga's alleged stupidity in this series, I mixed his character from the bonus volume Vampire Princess of the Lost Country and his main timeline self. While his main timeline self might not directly ask someone if they're a player, Momonga, or rather Suzuki Satoru as he's known as in the bonus volume, has done something similar.
      
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    3. 1. Arad (Guest) on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 04:21PM UTC
        
        . I mean he will have to face strong enemies sooner or later and he has to increase his level . If he evolves as a demon lord, he will be on par with Guy Crimson . Also Ainz appreciates his npcs more than anything. They are his friends children and he will destroy a whole country ( Slane Theocracy) just because they brainwashed shalltear and he had to kill her .
        
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      2. LordAinz (Guest) on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 04:50PM UTC
        
        We didn't see Ainz increasing his level as he doesn't have to as he can kill everyone just by walking. Also if Ainz faces a dragon lord like PDL, he will kill him and use dark wisdom on his body to learn wild magic and gain the passive skill that allows him to get more powerful by time . Also you forget that Ainz has shooting star , the staff of AOG and the world items . Ainz is not stupid but he is just paranoid and overthinking things .
        
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      3. Skyfall1 on Chapter 6 Thu 16 Oct 2025 08:21PM UTC
        
        That's is Tensura world bro not Overlord or Re:Monster world. If you will make the max level is 100 then Rimuru demon lords and true dragons should not be able to surpass it
        
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Demowo on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 09:19AM UTC

still no info about Shiro and Rimuru
Shiro probably eating not bad meat from cave cus not poisonus or acidus and maybe meet Veldora (i deubt it she be irritated somehow by him) and chilling
Rimuru is nothing know besides eating things rock and grass (he is not strong for monster now i don't remember right if he fight monsters beafore being named and to lazy to open manga on shelf to check) maybe he ate Veldora but that will be probably on screen
We all allowed to talko about sides then Rimuru and Momonga have diffrent idea about world (Ainz was set tu rule by his stupidity [you can't argue with that he never has succesful plan mostly he aggred to what Demiurg said]. And Rimuru is stupid too [you can dissagree Shiro is smartest one here she chose to follow if she don't have choice or its for her benefits] he want coexsist with everyone) so i don't know how they can team up i will need to think on scenario like that right now i don't have any idea.
One more thing PLS realy I BEG YOU tell me you said in first chapter in notes that you think on adding Vandalou SO PLS TELL IF HE GONNA BE HERE OR NOT PLSSSS. anyway i can't wait to see if they all meet and Shiro is youngest one here even with Vandalou spider isn't for sure more than 10 years old good luck with writing its gonna be interesting in future :)

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1. ZukDragonic on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 03:23PM UTC
  
  Vandalieu is planned to be added, but not for a dozen chapters at least. I'm not going to spoil his introduction, but just remember that he is a dhampir (half-vampire).
  
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2. 1. Just1Reader on Chapter 6 Sun 01 Jun 2025 06:19PM UTC
    
    Also just real quick, Shiro has already met Veldora, and received a name, and ranked up to a phase spider, and is indeed eating monsters. It's Rimuru we don't know much at the moment but in the canon he ate ores and herbs before meeting Veldora, then learns to see, then eats Veldora,(honestly that might be how Shiro and Rimuru meet since Shiro said she would visit Veldora), then Rimuru eats monsters. It just seems we're seeing the Ainz and Rou side first, there hasn't been any sudden take overs in the forest yet either,(besides ainz and the village), so Veldora still has a presence outside the stomach of Rimuru. But that's my take and we will have to wait and see on that bit.
    
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  2. 1. Demowo on Chapter 6 Mon 09 Jun 2025 04:31AM UTC
      
      i don't see that Shiro herself would go wisit him she may just beacuse she has not better things to doand want get some info
      
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  3. Demowo on Chapter 6 Mon 09 Jun 2025 04:33AM UTC
    
    i just happy that he gonna be here i need nothing more than this. i just wanten to be shure :)
    
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Skyfall1 on Chapter 6 Sat 07 Jun 2025 09:26PM UTC

There are no levels in tensura world and no racial restrictions so Momonga can increase his power and use swords, shields or any weapon out of his class . Also Momonga can ask the 8th floor npcs to name him and then his power will increase tremendously. After that he can start naming floor guardians and area guardians. Also Momonga has shooting star. He can wish to have powerful ultimate skills . And what about dark wisdom as it works like the skill predator of Rimuru(absorbing the body) and his skill great sage ( analysing the skills of his enemy) . I think dark wisdom will evolve to ultimate skill if Momonga evolved to demon lord .

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1. Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 6 Wed 06 Aug 2025 12:42AM UTC
  
  People tend to overestimate how powerful Shooting Star really is. The item lets you cast Wish Upon a Star three times without losing XP, sure — but it doesn’t let you break the fundamental laws of Yggdrasil. For example, you can’t use it to mess with a World Item. That kind of restriction would logically carry over into this new world too, meaning Ainz wouldn’t be able to change the system created by Veldanava. He could still wish for something powerful, as long as it fits within the world’s rules — but he can’t rewrite reality itself.
  Dark Wisdom only has to do with stealing spells after killing them — nothing else.
  And about naming — it's still debatable whether even the 8th Floor hierarchy could name him. Naming only causes small side effects if you’re way more powerful than the one you’re naming. Ainz has an Ultimate Skill in this fic, and we’ve never seen anyone with an Ultimate Skill get named before. On top of that, Ainz has already been warned that naming could be dangerous — so it makes total sense that he’d avoid the risk and stop his subordinates from trying.
  There’s also a level cap because this fic is pulling from Re:Monster, where the level cap is still 100. Usually people evolve at that point, but Ainz is one of the few who can’t evolve through leveling. Though yes, he can now use weapons outside of his class — that part is correct.
  
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2. 1. Eropy on Chapter 6 Sun 07 Sep 2025 07:44PM UTC
    
    So why can Rimuru surpass level cap and Momonga can't?
    
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  2. 1. Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 6 Sun 07 Sep 2025 08:33PM UTC
      
      there was no level in Tensura at all usually, but this fic in particular pulls in the level system from Re:monster
      
      in this fic, it was explained that some can't evolve through level like most can, and Momonga is one of these individuals. it was just a creative choice by the author to make sure the other three protags can catch up to him before he starts getting cracked.
      
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Zway on Chapter 6 Wed 22 Oct 2025 01:30PM UTC

I think Ainz was Max and he need the Demonlord ceremony to advance

Last Edited Wed 22 Oct 2025 01:31PM UTC

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Lord_Lathiathen on Chapter 7 Tue 10 Jun 2025 02:29AM UTC

I love this story and NEED to see more of it, 4 of my favorite anime put together, yes please.

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Work Header

Pandemonium

ZukDragonic

Summary:

Chapter 1: Prologue - Pandemonium

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Chapter 2: Fateful Meeting I

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Chapter 3: Fateful Meeting II

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Chapter 4: Fateful Meeting III

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Chapter 5: Building the Village I

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Chapter 6: Building the Village II

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Chapter 7: Building the Village III

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Chapter 8: The Strange Majin I

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Chapter 9: The Strange Majin II

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Chapter 10: Slime Troubles I

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Chapter 11: Slime Troubles II

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Chapter 12: Slime Troubles III

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Chapter 13: Intermission - An Orc's Plea

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Chapter 14: Battle in the Lizardman Village I

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Chapter 15: Battle in the Lizardman Village II

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Chapter 16: Battle in the Lizardman Village III

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Chapter 17: Monsters in the Kingdom I

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Chapter 18: Monsters in the Kindgom II

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Chapter 19: Monsters in the Kingdom III

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Chapter 20: Monsters in the Kingdom IV

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Chapter 21: Monsters in the Kingdom V

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Chapter 22: Starved One

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Chapter 23: Inherited Will I

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Chapter 24: Inherited Will II

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Chapter 25: Inherited Will III

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Chapter 26: Inherited Will IV

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Chapter 27: Inherited Will V

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Demowo on Chapter 1 Mon 26 May 2025 06:55PM UTC

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IncubusLord (Guest) on Chapter 1 Fri 06 Jun 2025 05:21PM UTC

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