Blumund Business

The snowy part of Winter ended, and Milim decided to go home now that it won't blizzard on her anymore. But not without a new bottom as Rimuru deemed her outfit too revealing for her age. She gave Milim a pair of shorts.

A sign that winter will soon end, is the now absence of snowstorms.

She made her way to Clayman's Mansion after arranging a meeting with those in on the project.

'So this is how it ended.'

In a Scrying Ball Rimuru made for Milim that details out how the Orc Disaster ended, Clayman, Frey and Karion watched the half they don't know about.

'Dino watched this too and confirmed this as fact when he asked around.' said Milim. 'Rimuru's awesome and a lot better than Gelmud's Project!'

'It's a Slime.' said Clayman in derision. 'I seriously cannot believe what I just saw.'

'Yet she got Dino's respect which very few people manage to get. Nevermind Roy and Leon at this point.' said Frey. 'What does Dino think, Milim?'

'Well, he says he vetted Rimuru enough during our time in Tempest.' said Milim. 'He says she's the kind who'll never interfere in anyone's affairs unless they start on her first and she's a busy office lady she says its good she's a Slime, Slimes never sleep so she can finish all her work. She's also about to open a school and invited me as a student...but I ran away!' the others sweatdropped.

Kids go to school and this one wouldn't.

'Oi oi, everyone needs education and up-to-date information...' Karion twitched before coughing awkwardly. 'How is Tempest power-wise?'

'Rimuru's crazy-generous with magicules when naming her subordinates...her Kijin and the Orcs are A-Class Monsters and Dragonewts are B-Classes. Hobgoblins are understandably a C but decent fighters to compensate.'

'She made Orcs A-Class?!' Karion squawked at her, wide-eyed in disbelief. That someone BOTHERED to upgrade low-class monsters when in his country, only the strong races can become stronger so this is incomprehensible to him. 'When they're just D, weaker than even Hobgoblins?'

'Like I said, crazy generous.' Milim snorted. 'She names 81 Orcs a day before melting into goo when tired. And she's not yet done naming all 135000 yet!'

That got the other three stunned. Making 81 A-Class Orcs a day, how strong can this slime be?! Stronger than them in terms of magicules, obviously, if she can create 81 A-Class Orcs per day that she even got Dino's respect!

In their history of becoming Demon Lords, he was a constant sight every Walpurgis as is Dagruel and Roy. Yet its always the youngest three who gets culled every centuries to be replaced by someone stronger and in their three-to-four centuries as Demon Lords, the sleepyhead was never attacked to be replaced not even once. Roy and Leon were already there too and they always smack down hard without effort. Thus once in a while when Walpurgis is held, Frey, Clayman and Karion often had to deal with newcomers, AND keep their posts.

They treated Walpurgis as Judgment Day on themselves actually.

Needless to say when the meeting was over, they each sent a spy in Tempest...

Karion sent Foss, Frey sent Nemu and Clayman is still deciding who to send...

Milim only told how their project ended and Tempest's Force, but none of their secrets...

xxx

Snow is beginning to melt in the forest, though in Tempest and their sub-towns, Rimuru and Benimaru were going around melting snow off of towns and warming up the farms so everyone can function again. When it no longer snowstorms, its a sign that winter will end in a few weeks. That means they can FINALLY relax. During winter, they often had to recharge the Engraving for Temperature Control to protect the farmlands from being wasted away by sheer cold, killing the plants and growing crops.

'Alright everyone!' Rimuru announced at the announcement podium. 'Winter will soon end, so let's do something different this spring! Those who cannot read and write as well as do Math, are required to attend school! We will do this one batch at a time. We will start with adults first as its us doing most of the business.'

'The school has just been finished building, so we can begin this year until EVERYONE in our coalition is educated! Based on our curriculum, everyone will graduate in four years, so let's all study hard! School will begin two months from now, six days a week! We will put up a Bulletin Board on who goes first as our school only has thirty classrooms that can even comfortably seat even forty orcs. That means there will be 1200 students every four years and our numbers as a Coalition total 155577! The Dryads and Treants are educated long before we're born so a Dryad representative will teach here as well.'

'And after two years in General Education, our fighters will proceed to Military Education that will last four years! For now we'll prioritize General Education!'

'The subjects are the following,'

General Curriculum:

Literacy and Grammar - Rigurd

Math - Benimaru

Science and Geography - Treyni

Law and Mercantilism - Rimuru

Economics - Dord

Local and Foreign Manners and Etiquette - Shuna

Social Studies - Souei

Arts and Crafts - Myrd

Physical Training - Hakurou

Monster GMRC - Shion

Military Curriculum

Combat Training - Shion

Swordsmanship - Hakurou

Archery - Rigur

Hand-to-Hand - Milim if she agrees but if she doesn't, someone else will.

Magic - Shuna

Military Tactics - Benimaru

Pharmacology and Field Treatment - Rimuru

Survival Training - Treyni

Stealth and Infiltration - Souei

'Let's do our best with school people!' Rimuru declared. 'Everyone must graduate!'

'Hai, Rimuru-sama!'

xxx

Chieftain Aldrich received word from his now-Dragonewt son Gabiru. He kept the old name out of familiarity when Rimuru named him on his request, after she deemed him 'mature and graduate' from her schooling, and he returned home to tell his father about the school program to educate everyone in the coalition.

Housing is already prepared for the Lizardmen that 800 Dragonewts can come to Tempest in the form of school dorms.

'So it's about 400 per race per annual batch, father.' said Gabiru. 'Who will you send to go to school first?'

'...I'll decide who to send.' said Aldrich. 'You and your sister are already accounted for as is our Tribal Elders and Clan Leaders and their children, the rest will be from our army. I will send them to Tempest once we got the numbers. Once they're done, I can simply have my old teacher teach me when he's done. I'm not someone who can easily leave after all.'

'Yes, father!'

Aldrich felt he can relax now. Rimuru would tell him that after exposing him to 'Office Hours Hell', Gabiru understood what it means to be a leader at long last that when he does his homework in oral recitations and she always checks if he actually understood what he says, he is growing well until she rewarded him with evolution for growing up, and exposed to people who knows how to actually support their leader.

Sure he'll retire in five more centuries, but he still wants more time for his children's growth before he can hand down the throne...and relax.

xxx

Due to well-organizing everything, the teachers began memorizing their curriculum after designing it without stress on everyone's part.

The only one who didn't was Rimuru as she has the wonder-cheat called Great Sage, but she still made plans as a precaution.

Days later in waning winter?

Cabal's Unlucky Party remained unlucky as ever despite leveling up thanks to the gear they received from Rimuru.

Only this time, Free Guild Blumund Branch's Guildmaster Fuze also suffered their bad luck.

Their mission was to head for Tempest, a monster town that signed a magical pact with King Gazel to check it out on orders from their country but Cabal thought it funny to poke a spider nest...

'NOT THIS AGAAAIIIINN!' Gido and Ellen screamed at Cabal's stupidity as they ran from an angry spider.

'YOU MORON, WHY'D YOU POKE A NIGHT SPIDER NEST?!' Fuze angrily howled at Cabal as they were running for their lives again.

'IF I DIE I'LL HAUNT YOUR BEDSIDE!' Ellen shrieked in annoyance.

'MUHAHAHAHA NOT IF I DIE FIRST!' Cabal laughed before remembering something. 'BUT HEY, DIDN'T WE DO THIS SCHTICK BEFORE?!'

'UWEEHEEHEE! I HOPE WE GET BETTER STUFF AT THE VILLAGE!' Ellen wailed. 'MY OLD GEAR IS STARTING TO SUCK REAL FAST!'

'IF WE GET THERE ALIVE, IF!' Gido howled.

'WAAAAAHHHH!'

They struggled with the spider...and they're a party of three B-class Informants - not combatants - and one A-Class retiree now Guildmaster so Fuze rusted as loath as he is to admit it.

The odds are NOT in their favor, Fuze thought sourly as they all struggled against it. He should have purchased better equipment before coming here, dammit! Their equipment are NOT enough for this!

Too late regretting about that now...

"Just one more swordsman, JUST one more...!" Fuze prayed hard while parrying those sharp legs.

'That does it, I've had enough of your nonsense!' Ellen swore, gathering magic into her staff and used it to control nearby rocks with telepathy, and rained it like bullets on the spider. 'Stone Shot!'

They paused to see if it worked as Cabal grabbed her after the spell and put her on his shoulders like a sack of potatoes...

'IT DIDN'T WORK!' cue running again.

'I THOUGHT YOU GUYS WENT TO TRAIN?!' Fuze yelled. 'PUT THAT TO GOOD USE NOW!'

'WE DID RE-TRAIN BUT OUR EQUIPMENT IS OUTCLASSED!' the boys howled.

If even his own sword won't work, this is a B-Class monster, this Night Spider thingy, Fuze thought grumpily.

'I TRIED RE-TRAINING AT THE MAGICIAN'S GUILD BUT WHEN I GOT THERE THEY'RE UNDER BUILDING RENOVATION FOR TWO YEARS! I COULDN'T TRAIN AT ALL!' Ellen wailed. Clearly with that, she really can't do anything, they thought wryly.

'Now that sucks, doesn't it?' a man's drawl spoke out of nowhere and gave them a hand. He looks like a ragamuffin' delinquent with some skill.

He and his gang were making camp, but when they heard rustling from afar, he used his skill Farsight to see what's going on...and since the unlucky quartet was headed THEIR way, he and his gang has to get involved too, but alas, equipment difference strikes...

Soon, black lightning speared and scorched the spider from the sky.

AWOOOOOO!

NOW they got nervous again.

'What, it's only you three.' Ranga came out of the shadows with his pack.

'Er...who are you?' Ellen asked Ranga who sweatdropped. The other men were wary of these huge wolves before them. That, and the wolves and three other people know each other, so they thankfully have some rapport with these guys they can only DREAM of defeating with lousy equipment, so diplomacy is a must.

'It's me, Ranga.'

'EHHH?!'

'NO WAAAY! This and that are two different things!' Cabal sputtered out while the other guys thought, "They know each other?"

'Well, my pack and I gained this handsome majestic appearance when we evolved.' said Ranga smugly, preening himself with pride, oblivious to the men who were horrified that not only was he a Named Monster, he clearly said he just evolved. 'And I can see you're as unlucky as ever.' he stated bluntly. The trio face-faulted and Fuze twitched. These idiots are famous and not in a good way. 'First a Giant Red Ant and now this. They just get bigger don't they?'

'BLAME THIS IDIOT!' Gido and Ellen angrily pointed at Cabal with comically-teary faces.

'Ranga-san we're lost and we're supposed to talk to Rimuru-danna on business...' said Cabal sheepishly.

'Well, even if we guide you back home, you won't get to talk to Rimuru-sama for a bit.' said Ranga as his pack was disassembling the Spider for easier bringing home in their shadows.

'How come?'

'She opened up a school and planning out the curriculum with everyone so the school can function smoothly this coming spring, as well as doing inventory on our latest harvest of Winter Vegetables. She's available at sundown once they ironed out the details.'

'Whoa, what the heck happened in one year since then?!' the trio squawked in shock.

Indeed, one year has passed...as it was also at spring, when they met Rimuru and lost a friend.

Fuze remembered what the idiot trio told him. Back then the town was barely stage 1 into developing. If there's now a school and farm, that means they developed to such an extent already...!

This, he gotta see!

xxx

Tempest...

Cabal's party mentally did a Before-and-After. How far had this town come in just a few months!

'Whoa...it's now a fully-developed town...' they gushed out. 'Last year it's still tents and digging everywhere...'

There's now a well-built town, complete with dreamy-smooth roads and street lamps. The people are well-dressed with a fantasy vide to it as well as well-groomed you wouldn't THINK they're uncivilized monsters. The roads are wide enough for two wagons to fit comfortably without causing traffic. There's also drains in the roads, implying they have a sewage system.

'For now do as you like as long as you don't cause trouble after we show you the inns and hotels.' said Ranga. 'A reminder that as we don't use that money-thingy until we're a fully-formed country, if you want something from the shops, its a barter trade. If you don't have something worth what you asked for, there's always working it off.'

'Er, got it...'

'Well, gotta go. Our ladies need food.' and the pack hauled off their...roasted spider. Ranga had cooked it with his black lightning in one shot just to kill it.

'Well, until school hours end, we do what we want I guess...' Cabal scratched his head.

'Let's explore since we are here on business.' said Fuze. 'What about you guys?' Fuze asked Youm's merry band.

'We're supposed to be here as disposable survey corps in this town because that asshole of a greedy Count embezzled money MEANT for upgrading his territory's safety and spent it on booze, women and auction.' Youm grumbled grumpily. 'And since we're delinquents, we're convenient.'

'Ah...I guess you're from Falmuth.' Fuze sweatdropped, immediately figuring out their origins from that alone. Youm looked sheepish before looking resigned as did his crew.

Youm sighed gloomily at how quickly Fuze figured out where they're from by his words alone.

'Falmuth's oh-so-famous for being a rotten country if even adventurers know that, they oughta be ashamed.' Youm snorted. 'But we're also not suicidal so we'll behave. We're just here for intel about the Orc Disaster thingy. For now we're lucky to make it here alive thanks to your party having a good relationship with this town, something we don't have.' he said flatly with a sigh and scratching his head. 'Going back home alive is another thing entirely once we leave the safety of this town after we got information we're here for.'

'For now since to get what we need we need to do a barter trade, we hunt down something worth forking over outside or we won't get anywhere.' said Fuze before looking at the sky. 'While it's still sunny. At this rate we won't have a hotel to sleep in and dinner.'

'Ditto that.' and they parted ways and back to going outside Tempest.

xxx

Come Nighttime...

Rimuru heard from Ranga that Cabal's party came with...a few extras, causing her to sigh a little and she told Souei to send a clone to scope out what they're doing. It's good that they hunted for their own dinner actually. No skin off their backs.

And so, in her office after dinner...

'Whoa! You've grown too Rimuru-danna!' eyes popped out as Rimuru has gotten more mature, after transforming into her human form after showing that she is indeed, a Slime. And she wasn't this womanly last they saw her too. And Fuze and Youm's crew can't believe that Rimuru was quite the exotic beauty for a slime.

(A:N if one wants a reference to how Fem!Rimuru looks, she has Shizu's hairstyle with longer hair and as far as resemblances went, its only in the eyebrows and eye shape. The rest would get her compared to beauties in video games, features real life girls WISH they have.)

'Well, everyone grows up.' said Rimuru wryly, dressed in her battle dress. 'We're a developing town and making businesses here and there that its inevitable everyone must go to school to avoid being swindled in the near future. I will teach Law and Mercantilism in class soon.'

And that alone, is very telling, they all thought. Barter Trade will soon come to an end, and accept money soon.

'So what brings the unlucky bunch here?' Rimuru's words caused red comical arrows to stab the trio.

'That's so mean!' said unlucky bunch cried comical tears.

'Ahem, well, we're here to start making business with Tempest.' said Fuze, coughing awkwardly that the idiot trio are now known with such a reputation among monsters, but at least they're welcome in the town. 'I am Fuze, the Blumund Kingdom's Branch Guildmaster of the Freedom Guild. This said unlucky bunch's boss.' he said, pointing at them with a thumb and comical anvils fell on their heads and the others in the office sweatdropped. 'Making contact with you is our mission, which we managed thanks to Ranga as if we hadn't met your friend wolf, you can see how lucky we are.' he said as sarcastically-snidely as possible, glaring at Cabal's group. The listeners got more sweatdrops.

Rimuru wondered if Shizu dealt with such luck with a sheepish smile, this guy definitely gained more wrinkles and gray hairs.

'Roughly 11 months ago, I hired this bunch to investigate the state of Jura since Veldora's disappearance and they came back with their report.' he continued. 'I would also like to extend my gratitude for memoralizing a true hero of the guild.' he said, making a pointed look at a wooden, polished pedestal that's beautifully-carved. On it is a frame where Shizu's mask was propped on, complete with an incense stick, and a small flower vase.

'I appreciate that, but I'm sure you didn't come all the way here to say that.' Rimuru pointed out.

'Umm. I'll be blunt, it's the dumbest of all dumb ideas to antagonize a town of Named Monsters of who-knows-what-class that made an alliance with Dwargon.' Fuze began again. 'Whoever did so is a soon-to-die Grade-S idiot who deserves no sympathy from even a prodigious newborn.' he said bluntly as the Kijin behind Rimuru smirked darkly at his words. Their smirk got Youm's group nervous actually. 'So the royal family of Blumund decided an alliance and trading partnership is the best choice for them. We're also here to investigate the Orc Disaster.'

'A few months ago, rumors spread through the Blumund Guild about the arrival of an Orc Lord in the area.' Fuze followed up. 'Our investigation turned up solid evidence that it's true. We were desperately planning how to deal with it back then when blue-horned man showed up in my office.' he said, looking at Souei. 'When he said its all over, as far as humans are concerned in politics, that doesn't entirely eliminate the threat.'

'Yeah, that's why King Gazel paid us a visit too to ascertain us out.' Rimuru piped. 'In the end after some talk, we became allies. Both in business and military terms in we scratch each other's backs in layman's terms.' she told him. 'As for Blumund's reach to us, for that to be feasible, a road to Blumund must be made, and for both sides to have what the other doesn't.' Rimuru told him. 'While we will handle the labor and construction, we'll leave the entry and exit toll fees to Blumund's authorities, as well as vetting who goes in and out as we don't want troublemakers pretending to be merchants getting here and we have the right to deal with the problem as we see fit for the safety of our budding country and our citizens.' Rimuru emphasized as Fuze nodded at the stipulations Rimuru decided on as she laced her fingers on her desk and rested her chin on her fingers.

'Because humans can start trouble here and when we justifiably retaliate for harming one of our own, they'll spin a different tale and tattle an excuse to start a war between us. We're aware of that tactic as well. Sooo if they're dumb enough for that...' she gave Fuze a dark smile worthy of something out of Black Lagoon manga that was utterly incongruent with her beauty. '...we will show no mercy.'

'Duly noted.' Fuze gulped. Youm and the young mage with him were shaken with the notion.

'And also, as to not interfere with livelihood as I'm sure there's Escort Missions, we will only put engraving barriers on the trading highway and street lamp posts so it doesn't get wrecked while mercenaries and adventurers fight to protect their client and their wares. Ma, to level up adventurers and mercenaries, we'll have to hold back a bit. Because if we put a full barrier on the highway, the Escort Missions will surely cease to exist when people want to travel to Tempest.' there's mischief in Rimuru's expression as she said that. 'I respect nature's balance y'see and that includes business and economics, so we'll also have to deal with signed waivers signed in two copies, one for us and one for Blumund Authorities or the Guild that if people die on our highway, we're NOT responsible and travelers are responsible for themselves.'

The humans went (O.o)

While reasonable, its also...quite scary to imagine for future hired escorts and their clients.

'Sooo regarding our town's products, we give out the same deal as we did to Dwargon. Our Hell Moth and Gehenna Moth fabrics and thread. Sets of powerful sturdy sewing kits as no cheap scissor or needle can cut that fabric. Stocks of High Potions as Full Potions can only be made-on-request as that one is tough to make because Hipokute are hard to find even for us.' Rimuru lied. 'Our smithies make rare-grade equipment made out of A-Class monster parts our wolves hunt. We also have quite unique fruits we cultivated and we're still having trouble naming some of those King Gazel helped us name some of them.'

'Riiiiight...'

'So, what are Blumund's Products?'

Fuze recited all products and services Blumund has, and Rimuru picked up goods Tempest couldn't get from Dwargon, including,

'Tempest Citizens can freely come and go without incident to travel and do business in Blumund and no discrimination upon us whatsoever as 'do not do unto others what you don't want done unto you' as our most enforced law in Tempest as mess with our own, we are free to retaliate as we see fit equivalent to the harm done unto us.' as Rimuru's final stipulation.

'These terms are satisfactory.' Fuze agreed. 'Not even the King and Queen can find any complaint with this.'

'Until the road is complete, I hope the authorities can discipline Blumund months in advance so there are no incidents.' said Rimuru. 'And also, I have something of concern.'

'What is it?'

'Shizu's last will to me.' said Rimuru grimly. 'Her students.' this was something the Kijin don't know about so they kept quiet.

'You mean those children?' Ellen piped up.

'Yes. Shizu used up her last three years of life to find the Demon Lord Leon Cromwell in hopes he can do for them what he did to her until the Ifrit Incident. Spirit Fusion to stabilize the magicules in their bodies as those children are Summoned Heroes by jackass countries wanting to exploit the Unique Skill otherworlders gained upon their summoning and force them to be their summoners' weapons of war. But if skilless people showed up, they have a countdown to their death in a few years...never knowing adulthood.' said Rimuru grimly. 'I want information on those children before I go to train those children myself once my schedule is clear long enough for that. Until then, I'll ask my connections to find a way to summon and fuse spirits into children.'

'Wait...last three years?' Youm inquired.

'Despite how young Shizu looked on the outside, her organs are that of a human elderly woman at age 74.' while the Blumund Party nodded grimly, Youm's group choked. 'This was because Shizu's fusion is incomplete. She would have become a Majin as Leon did his fusion right, but Shizu didn't want to become a Majin, so she used her Unique Skill: Degenerate to keep herself human...and die as one. Its what I got from her memories after she made that request of me.'

'Shizu joined our party last year in our Survey Jura mission...using it as an excuse to die here far away from people because if her time is up, Ifrit will come out and wreak havoc as danna and all hobgoblins know so she avoided people and places.' Gido told them. 'They'll never forget that. Defeating Ifrit was easy for danna though. Shizu then slept for several days, waking up to tell danna her dying will...and she's gone.'

'Uweee...'

'Well, that's a job for these three and I accept your request on their behalf.' said Fuze. 'And hiring a party of B-Class is one gold per day during the duration of their quest. So given a nice path out of this forest to get to Blumund and using Blumund to go to Ingrassia, it'll take a month on foot in total, as long as Cabal doesn't idiotically poke monster nests again.' Rimuru snapped her fingers and two gold coins came out for Fuze, and thirty gold coins for Cabal's group.

Fuze showed the menu of Guild Quests by rank and what kind as well as proof that he's not cheating Rimuru out of money.

'Oh yeah Rimuru, I'd want something too.' said Ellen. 'Because the Guild is undergoing renovations for two years max since that day because some moron tried getting promoted by casting an experimental spell and the building went boom, I couldn't get any training at all so my spells still suck.' she lamented. 'I'd like to learn new magic here.'

'Well, since classes will start at spring, I can accommodate you until then.' Rimuru promised Ellen to her delight. 'That's about one spell per day.' Ellen lit up with joy.

'Yay!'

'Sooo the guys will undertake my request to Ingrassia without Ellen for now.' Rimuru quipped. 'Once you're done, you can pick up Ellen.' she told the boys.

'OK!'

'Now then, it's your turn.' Rimuru faced Youm.

Youm was nervous now as its his turn to deal with the Slime Ruler of Tempest.