Arc I : Ô Prometheus !

Chapitre IV : Veldra, le Dragon des Tempêtes

‹Confirmed. Partial appraisal of [Alternative] has been completed. Master can now access the Unique Skill [Alternative] , albeit in its incomplete form, which has limited power.›

‹Confirmed. Access to the research's tree of {Infinite Encyclopaedia} has been unlocked.

Oh. Ohoh! They truly were some interesting notifications. I will now be able to accomplish more interesting actions. Especially now with [Alternative]! I finally had it with me. Ahahaha. I was fairly content. After all, with it, arising difficulties will be put aside fairly easily. But the one-metre limitation was still deranging. I wished it could just disappear. Argh, it always was like that with powerful abilities; they had limitations. I had some ideas to cheat on that limitation but it needed experimentations first.

As for {Infinite Encyclopaedia}'s research tree, I decided it was best to invest everything into bettering our future military capabilities. Even in this peaceful beginning, I knew that I hadn't much time to prepare, more precisely, I only had three years. So, I will do what Prussia did in the seven years' war: investing everything into the military. After all, war loomed on the distant horizon. And it wasn't just any war— For, it will be a war deciding the very fate of this world!

Nah, I was joking. Only a fool would invest everything into the military. To build a nation, economics were far more important to achieve its continued survival. After all, the economy of a country was one of its very fundamental roots. Without it, the country would inevitably die.

To demonstrate it, I will take back my earlier example: Prussia during the Seven Years' War. Simply said, it practically died off in the war even though they invested so much into their military, they definitively hadn't an economy robust enough to survive a war of attrition. It was only through sheer bullshit luck Prussia survived. And at one point, their king Friedrich der Große even had considered suicide. Which said quite a lot about the situation at the time (which meant that situation was indeed very bad).

But in the end, Prussia triumphed and so began the recovery's phase. The process of reconstruction was one that always took years to accomplish. After all, destruction was far easier than construction. However, if they hadn't invested what they had done into their military, they would have likely perished in one year or two. But I also must admit that their victory was of a grandiloquent scale. After all, with it, Prussia consolidated their position to become one of the Great Powers of Europe.

In conclusion (not really one to be honest), ruling over a state was an incredibly complex web of delicate balance (not so much if the state was a hegemon). So, one had to keep a strong military as well as a robust economy. As for diplomacy... Hmmm. It certainly was important, of course, but... I was too often bad with it.

But Prussia's situation was indeed very similar to the one of Tempest: enemies on all sides. I wasn't really enthusiast about this situation honestly. In canon, Tempest only survived due to its incredible luck, just like Prussia. But that luck certainly was less bullshity than Prussia's one though. So, it still seemed to be a manifestly feasible victory. But only time will dictate what will wait for us. Though, I will evidently influence the outcome. After all, I wouldn't want to be at disadvantage, wouldn't I?

So. '[Mystères des Étoiles] , I order you to use {Infinite Encyclopaedia} to research gunpowder!' Then I used [Alternative] to reduce research's penalties and to accelerate its speed. The research's penalties were due in cause of this world's incredible technological delay, especially when accounting IOTL's (In Our World's Timeline) far reaching technological advances.

As to why gunpowder? The answer was indeed fairly simple: gunpowder was the very basis of every (early) modern army! Only an idiot would keep the outdated system of knights and Magic when threats surrounded them from all sides. Especially more since I held knowledge of Earth's technology, it truly would be sacrilege to not modernise and advance the Cardinal World's military technology! But it certainly will increase the intensity and dangerousness of war. And I quite liked that! It wouldn't be fun if war wasn't brutal. And it would be even more fun since there wasn't any sort of Geneva's conventions in this world! But it was not like anyone respected the Geneva's conventions back in our world... Ahem. Though, I should refrain from committing too many war crimes without cover-ups. It was bad for international reputation if I was exposed.

‹Confirmed. {Infinite Encyclopaedia} has begun researching gunpowder. Estimated time to complete is thirty days.›

Good, good. Thirty days was exactly the time I needed to exit this cave. That was just perfect timing. But after that, I would actually need to design a useable firearm. I could theoretically import our world's own ones but... I quite lacked the knowledge to do so. Thus, I probably had to rely on this research's tree to acquire a somewhat good blueprint. Hopefully not a musket.

But all of that confirmed that we were on the ninetieth day (since my reincarnation). Which meant we were on the sixteen of July twenty twenty-one. Which in turn meant we were on the first Altria of the Year I under the authority of my calendar. Yeah, in these days, I created a calendar. One that was needlessly complicated since the first day of this calendar began exactly on the seventeenth of April, the date of my death and rebirth. Which meant that I had to convert pretty much everything from the Gregorian calendar. And it was a very long and annoying process... Especially an annoying one. I sighed. But at the very least, it offered a clear dating of time which was a missing component of this world. It also would prove itself to be relevant in administrative and bureaucratic affairs. And as plus, no otherworldler would be able understand it since it wasn't the Gregorian calendar, it was my calendar! Intel-wise, it constituted a great advantage. Ahah.

As for the standardisation of other measurements units, I wouldn't change any of them from our old world because it would be useless to do so. And replicating the simple metres, litres, grams standards were frankly way easier. Same thing for the twenty-four hours standards, etc.

But it still surprised me that time flied so quickly. To be already on the ninetieth day was unexpected. Maybe I was too engulfed in my many projects? I sure was... But it seemed like that I was now sixteen years old since my anniversary already passed. But it always amazed me that I still was in my teenage years. I never truly felt like a teenager. It just was that weird. Hmmm. Maybe because most of my centres of interests were normally adult things... Whatever.

'Hey Doll-san! The area's here is now clear.' was Rimuru's communication. Ah. It meant that he recuperated all resources available in the surroundings. That was good. He always was good at farming, wasn't he? And he even became better with time.

'I also kind of always wondered but what is that?' he then pointed in my direction with his slimy features.

'It's a doll grandeur nature! A doll of numerous purposes but its fundamental function is to replicate life, life from a human perspective of course. And as now, it is somewhat complete.' I then paused a little bit. But I found that the way I answered was not really realist. After all, no one answered questions that theatrically in real life... I should really readjust my approach to conversations... But it was hard. I should try to be more casual. 'Wanna see it closer?' Like that? Maybe, maybe not.

He then approached the doll. 'So that's what you've been working in all these days? And– I must say that it's incredibly beautiful. But its features (appearance) are fairly similar to you, Doll-san.'

'Yeah. It sure is. After all, I designated it after myself, of course it had to be a beautiful product.' I smirked smugly before continuing. 'Though it does have some slight differences, namely the hair colour being silver and the eyes colour are purple. And this wasn't the only project I have been working on but indeed I worked on many other still ongoing projects. After all, it would be quite lame to take more or less eighty days to just construct a doll, wouldn't it? Especially since I have a Skill helping me.' Hmmm. That was better. Conversation-wise of course.

'If had to class the most important of all my projects, it would be–' It would be Project Vickyfication but... He didn't really need to know what it stood for. And even if I explained what it was to him, he would be severely doubtful of my intentions and there was a risk in where he trusted me less. Which was what I wanted at all. Moreover, he probably will not be able to understand what it even was. After all, it wasn't a finished product at all. To give an example, it was a little like a beginner starting for the first time the game 'Victoria II', they wouldn't understand a damned thing (even with tutorials)! Even I was like that the first time I played that game... I knew that he wouldn't fare better since he didn't play any grand strategy games in his old life.

'–the Mysticae Praestrigiae! In a simple way of putting it, it is the miniaturising and compacting process of a magical spell. It's extremely useful since it allows the fulfilment of multiples purposes and tasks but more importantly it allows the mass productions of these magical spells. Which could bring in a Magical Revolution similar to what was the Industrial Revolution back in our world. Isn't that great?'

In a way, it was similar to Anagram Magic, a Magic that Rimuru invented in the WN (extra chapters) a decade after the Great Tenma War. And similar to it, chanting wasn't required since the spell was already inscribed on the formula. But the medium wasn't a card, it simply was designed after a good-old fashioned magic circle. As for the flexibility, it was of a lesser extent than that of the Anagram Magic since the user's imagination couldn't really impact much as the pre-inscribed spell wouldn't allow it. But that was only magic-casting part, for other parts, it was way more flexible since it allowed to be operated on more fields of operations. But I also planned for a more flexible version in where the user could influence the spell with his very own imagination.

Besides that, I certainly didn't have Primitive words to back this up. Which meant that in turn, my Mysticae Praestrigiae were a lot more dangerous and especially more unstable. This was why the development of this project was a veritable struggle... And if I hadn't [Mystères des Étoiles] with me, I wouldn't be able to accomplish all of that, especially the mathematical parts. After all, miniaturising and compacting a magical spell required lots of calculations, calculations that I wasn't necessarily capable of performing since my mathematical level wasn't high enough. Blame it on Covid though. But my mathematical level was still sufficient for my age and grade.

'W–wow, that's great...' was Rimuru's reaction to this pure info-dump. He visibly had trouble understanding what a Mystica Praestrigia was. But that will certainly not last since these will certainly become common enough in the future. That was what I planned at least.

I nodded at his remark and then took out a model of a simple but finished Mystica Praestrigia. 'For example, this Mystica Praestrigia is called «Freeze» and belonged to the Spell Invocation Class. As you could have already guessed, it freezes anything that the user pinpoints. And of course, it has limitations since I based it off my [Magie des Neiges] which is only an Extra Skill.' That was BS, I just limited the power output for stability purposes. 'As for the mana consumption, it is simple, there is a limited battery that supply the Formula with magicules. It also can't be recharged and when the battery reaches its limit, the Formula will be non-applicable. Well, the user can't recharge it since it was designed as a consumable. But I can very well recharge it if necessary. Now, now, how about a little demonstration?'

To activate it, I just had to pinpoint a location onto the Formula. In this case, I wanted to freeze the ground. And that was pretty much all to do. It was pretty easy in application. That facility was its main asset. Later on, I will be able to fully integrate that system with the military. Who didn't dream of integrating sciences and Magic onto the military? It would be wonderful if done right. Fufu.

Thus, the ground froze rather easily. But that wasn't the only effect. After all I also inscribed a drawing into the ground in order to confirm a certain theory. That drawing was all the different covers of the LN. Will it be blank in his eyes like in the 'Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint' or will it be different? That was the question. I wanted to know if I could reveal the future or not. And honestly, I didn't want to reveal it since that would mean that I will lose the liberty of doing some very nasty stuff.

Generally speaking, it was always better to reveal the future to one's allies in order to gain their trust. Because, in most stories I once read, the protagonist knowing the future will be deemed untrustworthy and manipulative when his trick was revealed. Which often lead to a betrayal from its allies. But that was if they had noble goals. For my case, I hadn't noble goals. I was no hero, which meant that I will only follow to what corresponded to my interests.

'Pretty useful, isn't it?' I then carefully scrutinised his reaction.

'Oh! That's so cool! You truly are innovative and ingenious, aren't you Doll-san?' Hmmm. Visibly no suspicious reactions. And I knew that Rimuru was an honest and emotive person. So, that meant that he saw pretty much nothing. And I was thankful for that and in a way not so much. Ahah.

Thus, I discreetly removed the drawings of the covers as they weren't no longer useful. But frankly speaking, I also thought of other methods to reveal the future but I didn't want to test them now since they had substantially more chances to actually reveal the future. Which wasn't of course what I truly wanted for the moment. But I knew deep down that I would eventually have to reveal the future sooner or later. And I preferably wanted to keep it down to my conditions. I hoped that it will happen like that but I wasn't too optimistic about that honestly...

'And can it also be assimilated by [Predator]?' was his query.

'Of course it can! Why wouldn't I let you copy the Mystica Praestrigia? After all, it is a pretty useful devise which can contribute to an increase in survivability in this dangerous world.' was my answer.

I then continued. 'But «Freeze» will probably be not that useful for you though. Since you're not the main combatant. And frankly speaking, its uses are pretty limited to melee battle. But you can already take it.'

Then I handed him a copy of «Freeze». And at the same, I slipped onto him a little but invisible Formula that will mess up his [Magic Sense]'s perception. All of that in order for him to not detect Veldora. It would be problematic if he did... And of course, that Formula was set to autodestruct itself silently when Veldora was to be in sight. That wasn't very gentlemanly of my part but I needed things to process smoothly.

I could also donate him other Formulae but they weren't finished. That would be bad practice to hand over unfinished products, wouldn't it? This reminded that I should one day finish that imitation of Mystic Eyes from the Nasuverse. At the time, I thought that they were cool but I found out that wasn't easy to engrave an effect onto an eye without too much instability involved. I mentally sighed...

'Now that I think about it, you probably did use a Mystica Praestrigia to store your doll? I was always pretty curious about that.'

'Ah. Yes, that's the case. I used a Mystica Praestrigia called «Spatial Pocket» which belong to the Inventory Class.' Yes, I didn't bother at all making up these names. Why would I even struggle for that?! It just was nightmarish trying to find good names for objects and people... Ahem. 'As the name suggest, it grants a spatial pocket allowing me to stock a rather grand quantity of items. As for my part, I use it in the form of a ring to allow easier access. But this one product was incredibly difficult to create as it needed very complex spatial manoeuvres and calculations...' I sighed. I really didn't want to remember the process of fabrication of this Mystica Praestrigia... It truly was a bitter struggle to just make that work and I didn't want to be reminded of that outrageously long battle.

'Oh. It's a little like my stomach.'

'Yes, it is. After all, I inspired myself from it to create my own Mystica Praestrigia!'

'But enough about, we should probably depart from here since this area has been cleared, all thanks to you.' I smiled at him.

It was time to move out. After all, we were very near to the Underground Lake, the lieu where Veldora, the Dragon of the Storms dwelled. And it seemed that this day will be marked in history as one of the most important of all. Or that I was disillusioned. Maybe that was the case...

Unexpectedly, Rimuru fell into the Underground Lake. I nearly choked when I saw that. After all, that was exactly what happened in cannon. Frankly, that should be a war crime, no, a crime against humanity to replicate cannon in that manner! Because you had me, who planned a whole operation to just re-enact cannon in order to not be too suspect. But no, Rimuru did it himself! I really didn't expect that. But it somewhat arranged me since my plan was fairly complicated to applicate.

'Huh? Aaaaaaaaaaaarrrggggghhhhhh.' That was a very funny scene to be honest. But he was a genius to be able to be that careless in order to fall into the lake in that fashion. And honestly, he was even more careless than in cannon!

'Help, Doll-san! I'm falling into water! I will droooowwwwwwnnn and sufffffooocccatttteeee and then die!' was his plea for help. But to still be able to use the telepathic line in this relentless situation was truly special. But since when he was that emotional? Hmmm. Or he was bored? Possible.

'You idiot! Slimes don't drown since they don't even breathe in the first place! So, you will neither drown nor suffocate!' I reprimanded him. Though my severity was fake. It was indeed impossible to truly anger me.

'Ooooohhh. Oh. True. I didn't drown nor suffocate! But how do I get myself out of there?' Didn't he find the answer himself in the novels? Why would he even ask me? I mentally sighed. Even less dependable than normal...

'Maybe absorb the water nearby into your stomach and then propel yourself with it.' This was exactly a copy paste solution from the novels though. But at least, it worked!

'That easy?' was his simple reaction. Well, anyone trapped in a situation like that one would be sceptical of a solution that easy.

'Yeah. That easy.' was my simple confirmation.

Thus, he proceeded to propel himself with the water absorbed. I smiled. He proved himself to be indeed a capable individual. I hoped that would last forever. But my hopes weren't that high in the first place.

'AHHHHH! I will die like that! That's too fricking INTENSE.' Oh God, I retired what I said earlier. And my poor mind was suffering from all the screaming. How could he scream that hard when we were communicating in a telepathic line? Whatever.

'That's just irrational fear! You have a way better resistance than the one you had as a human. And it's not like I'm abandoning you!'

He was still continuing to scream. He really didn't hear me even though it was telepathy. He was strong, very strong to be able to do that... I sighed. Conversation was meaningless at this point. I needed to take action.

So, I ran towards him with [Frost Walker] and I propelled myself with [Reinforcement]. It would make the distance shorter. I could technically use other methods to go there such as spatial displacement or flying but I didn't since Veldora was just way too near. After all, I quite liked to hide my deck of cards in order to not leak any kinds of information. The worst that could actually happen would my memory leaking. It would be catastrophic to say the least.

I then caught up his body. Alalalala. What a situation.

'You're alright?' I asked.

'I– I think I am. Thanks.'

'It's nothing. But don't forget to heal yourself.' I then applied on him one of the potions he gave me in the early days. 'Since we both don't feel pain, it's actually quite a dangerous predicament to forget to heal.' He normally wasn't as damaged as in cannon since I caught him but it always was good to be at one hundred percent of HP at all times unless there were specific bonuses attached to a low level of HP.

'Oh. Yeah. I nearly forgot. Ahah.' He was becoming too careless honestly. That wouldn't do. I sighed. I really needed to remediate to it in the future.

Then—

'Can you hear me, little ones?'

It was finally time.

'Gah! A draaaaaaaggggoooonnnn!' was the not so surprising reaction of Rimuru. I would have been the same if I didn't know better (even if I would try to keep my emotions level-headed). But that finally meant that the Mystica Praestrigia destructed itself.

'Eheheheheheh. Ahahah. Hahahahahabahahahhahahahahha. Yes, I am! You're indeed facing the Storm Dragon Veldora! Part of the dragon race, and one of the only four exemplary in this world! And to top it, I am the most unique and perfect of my very own kind! I possess an unfathomable flesh as well as an infinite lifespan. Isn't that great? Ahahah!' Did he always introduce himself like that? Because that level of chūnibyō was quite incredible when he still didn't even read the 'sacred texts'. And if his sisters ever got winds of what he said here, he would be, well, in a position worse than even death. But that 'Yes, I am!' was beautiful! Muhammad Avdol would have been proud. Ahah.

'But you two definitively aroused my curiously. Indeed, it is quite rare for Monsters to even appear on my doorstep. Never would I have thought that a slime and a doll would ever come here. After all, a slime can't possibly be a sentient creature and be capable of even possessing intelligence. Since most slimes normally run through the cycle of absorption, division and then finally regeneration. Indeed, only a rare would ever leave his home. As for the doll, you are quite an abnormal one, aren't you? I never saw one of your kind. And what you demonstrated earlier was fascinating! Marching on water by freezing it, who would have thought? Intriguing. All of this is indeed definitively intriguing!' We were both silent listening to his monologue.

Then Veldora resumed his course. 'And then you rescued your friend simply by outpacing him. You truly have an immense speed, and your steps were quiet indeed. A great speed mixed with stealth? Incredible. Furthermore, you had with you a healing potion to tend to your friend. And indeed a quite potent one! Truly amazing! And you seemed quite skilled in holding a conversation. That is something quite rare for a normal monster.' He then made a small pause. 'Perhaps, you're both unique Monsters, maybe even named ones?'

Hmmm. Interesting reaction. But it didn't diverge much from cannon. And maybe I should have tone down my own intervention but it was already too late. And frankly, Rimuru healing all by himself would have been more suspicious than if I didn't apply a healing potion.

But I should as of this moment encrypt my my telepathic line with Rimuru as it seemed that Veldora could just hear us fine. Which wasn't fine at all for my privacy. Did I look like someone who liked to be intruded upon? The answer was no.

And it looked like Slime-san wanted to interject to the dragon's long monologue. 'We're sorry but I don't think so that we're getting what you mean. Truth to be told, we've only been alive for ninety days!' Maybe I should have explained him. I once did indeed explain him what a named Monster was but never what a Unique one was. But all of this looked like quite similar to cannon. Hopefully, not too much deviations to be expected.

'Ohoh. With that kind of sentience, I suppose that you weren't destined to simple Monsters, huh? Named Monsters are those who received an exclusive name by a more-or-less powerful name-granter. But just only ninety days? That is utterly ridiculous! Then, perhaps, the thesis of you being both Unique seem more plausible.' Looked like that I wouldn't have much place in this conversation honestly.

'Again. What does 'Unique' means?' was once again Slime-san interjection. But it looked like that he wasn't too surprised at Veldora's explanation of what was a named monster. It actually was good that he didn't forget what I once explained him.

'A unique monster is an individual who has suddenly attained some unusual abilities, this is somewhat akin to mutation. And occasionally they are born in areas with high magical concentrations… Like this cave. Perhaps that both of you were born from the mass of magicules that leaked out from my sublime person, then? Interesting. Very interesting indeed.' This whole section looked something out of the novels. Hmmmm. It definitively was weird to hear it in real this time since this was maybe the fifth time I encountered this situation. But I certainly appreciated all the realism that transpired here.

'Hmmm. Three hundred years, huh? Three hundred years that no one came close to my domain. Maybe, maybe that meant that if you were indeed born from my leaked magicules, then this could mean that it gave you both the necessary power to approach my domain without any sort of repercussions! This is just astonishing, just astonishing.' Ahah. It was true that it was astonishing. But there was a reason to this, we were both reincarnated otherworldlers.

'Oh… So, you're kind of, like, our dad, then?' I nearly choked at that one. I definitively forgot that one line. But how could he keep thinking of lines like that? It was just ridiculous! I mentally sighed. But they were funny lines, honestly.

'No, certainly not by blood. After all, I do not have any kind of reproductive organs. Because I am the most perfect dragon of my kind! Ahahaha. Who needs kids if you are already perfect! Ahahahaha.' That dragon... Oh, Velzard would certainly want a word with you, huh?

Maybe it was time for me to interject a little. It wouldn't be an equitable conversation if I let these two preside over me. So. 'Is this true? Wouldn't one be born naturally with reproductive organs on the onset? But maybe, maybe if one was to be born out of only magical energy, he wouldn't need them, would he?' I already knew all of that but whatever.

'Oh. This is the first time that you speak up. But indeed very few, are Monsters that possess any kind of reproductive organs. And among monsters, only Majins are capable of intelligence, meaning that they are sentient creatures such as both of you.'

'But enough about all of this, I want to know more about both of you. After all, both of you seem to hold an interesting story. So, let me hear it.'

Ah. I kind of expected him to diverge from the canonical dialogue but it sure was quick. In the end, it didn't change too much since I already accounted a possible divergence in my plans. But honestly, I didn't like to plan too far ahead of me since I quite liked the thrill of the unexpected even if sometimes it made me crawl my skin.

Thus, I will answer his query. 'We are what you call 'transmigrants' in the Cardinal World. But in true we are a little bit more special than that. After all, we are reincarnated otherworldlers. Once upon a time, we were just simple and weak humans but then the unexpected happened: we died. At the time, we thought that it truly was the cold and cruel end that awaited us and that nothing could possibly change it. But it was not. For, a miracle happened: we were seemingly reincarnated to another world, to this world as Monsters.' I made a small pause.

I then carefully scrutinised their reactions. And as expected, they were silent and were listening attentively to what I had to say. Ah. It was nostalgic to once again captivate an audience. It brought with it a sensation of... How to describe it? Yes, the word power definitively fitted the bill. That sensation of power felt good. But being drunk on power was no good. I personally experienced that when I was a class representative.

Thus, I continued. 'Upon reincarnation, we found ourselves into this gigantesque cave. At first, we were dumbstruck and couldn't possibly understand what had really happened. After all, who could have predicted that at death, there would be reincarnation? No one could. That was why the early days were a veritable struggle to adapt to this new world. But we had to quickly adapt ourselves out of necessity. We had to! If not, our sanity wouldn't no longer remain with us... And it definitively wasn't a desired outcome.' This wasn't the complete true of course. But it was sufficient for a good version of events.

'Then, upon days and days of wandering, I met Slime-san. And with it, everything changed. The pain of loneliness finally faded away as a new hope made its way. This was where our adventure began. It was a long journey staring more than two months. But it was one of fulfilling hopes and discoveries.' I paused for a moment. Then I resumed. 'And finally, on the ninetieth day, we met you: Veldora, the Storm Dragon.' And of course, I omitted many things and some were outright lies but as long as it arranged me, I didn't really care.

'Oh. I certainly didn't expect that. You sure hold a lot more information than I first presumed. But that is indeed a quite peculiar situation... Reincarnated otherworldlers, huh? Truly unique.'

I also took some time to observe Rimuru and he was quite silent. I mentally smiled. I would need to reassert his position into this conversation later on.

'But what about you, O Dragon of the Storms? How it is possible for a dragon of your might and ampler to be sealed away in this faraway cavern?' Now that he knew about us, wouldn't it be fair for us to know more about him? Or in other words, I needed justifications for my knowledge about the true hero.

'Mm. It's an old story, a story dating back from three hundred years ago. At the time, I perhaps a little bit underestimated my foe. A slightly bit. Which propelled me to fight with more seriousness and urgency. But... it was already too late!' He then made a small pause. 'After all, my opponent was not just any opponent. For, it was a hero! At least that's what humans called them; a person graced by a so-called 'divine protection'. And I must admit that she truly was strong...'

'A hero?' was Rimuru's interjection. Maybe he was interested in Chloe? I smiled smugly. That would make a fascinating battle with Leon. Though in a true fight, Leon would be beaten rather easily by Rimuru, well at least if we considered him at Demon Lord's level.

I then made my own interjection. 'It seems so. But a hero? It seemed that you hadn't much luck to fall on a hero, Dragon of the Storms.' I honestly wouldn't want to fight against a hero. I was rather strong myself but I quite lacked experience. Tactically-wise, it was better to take on a hero with an army of elites rather than challenging them alone. At least, that was what I would do if the need came to be.

'But that hero must have been quite though. I mean to achieve that kind of feat – sealing you away.' said Rimuru.

This was a little understatement though even if he wasn't wrong. After all, her Unique Skills were indeed comparable to the power of Ultimate ones. Which was odd... But whatever. Dealing with time-travel must have reinforce her skills by leaps. Especially having Hinata, an intelligent person, at her side.

'Indeed, she truly was strong for a petite human such as her. She succeeded the impossible – she overwhelmed me. And it was bewildering! I never saw something of that ampler and of that skill!' You were exaggerating Veldora. Chloe sure was admittedly strong but at this stage of the story, she wasn't that strong. She could only stop time for a couple of seconds at best. Which was not too good honestly. I could even theoretically counter that with [Alternative]. But I wasn't too optimist in defeating her with my current powers... It definitively was feasible but that demanded an ideal situation that wasn't always available... Moreover, Veldora didn't truly fight with all his might at the time since that was somewhat of a surprise attack from Chloe's part.

'But how come a hero was send to seal you? No one in its right mind would want to fight off a dragon after all. At least without a good justification.' I continued my interrogation. But the answer was already evident enough even without reading the novels. Well, at least if one held the necessary knowledge in fantasy stories.

'Ah... Well. Three hundred years ago, a certain chain of events leaded me to burn to ashes a human town. Which in turn propelled humans to send a hero to stop my invincible might! And if I remembered correctly, she had skin as pale as snow and small lips of bright red colour. Long hair of a dark shade of silver, all of this kept by a single but elegant ponytail. She was slim, and rather short, she indeed wasn't very tall. Unfortunately, her face was hidden behind a mask... But even then, I could imagine what lied behind – an incredible beauty!' Veldora, you know, I didn't ask for a description of her appearance. I already knew that she was beautiful. But I must commend on the fact that he answered the question alright.

Speaking of ponytails, I wondered if a ponytail would look good on my person, huh? I always wanted to try that but I couldn't really since I never let my hair grow enough. Moreover, it brought out some advantages, namely my hair would not be deranging my sight and it allowed a more flexible capacity of movement. Though, I will probably not opt for a side ponytail since that would make me look like a character I once created. And I wasn't keen on resembling him. Another thing to take care was my clothes, as of now, I was rather bored of the ones I currently wore, so a change of clothes could do some good. And honestly, I wanted to try that new military uniform I recently designed. That would be a dream realised! I always wanted to wear some kind of military uniform. Eheh. Ahah.

Ahem. Though, I shouldn't do that right now since that would indeed interrupt the conversation in a weird way. After all, it would truly be bizarre if I suddenly changed my coiffure like that out of nowhere.

'Oh. Ohoh. Maybe this incredible beauty was enough to distract you? Which subsequently caused your defeat?' Ouch. That was pretty snarky from Rimuru. But that was something to be expected from him. He had a rather dark humour. Not as dark as mine though. But unfortunately or maybe fortunately, I had to auto-censor myself most of the time for reasons... Well, if someone ever stumbled on what I joked, I would be in deep water... I would probably even serve a jail sentence. Yeah, that was that violent.

'What nonsense is splitting from your mind?! Something like that couldn't possibly cause my defeat! After all, I am Veldora, the Storm Dragon, a unique and invincible individual! Ahahahaha.' Yeah sure, Veldora. I believed you wholeheartedly.

'Other than that, what was her gear? And have you got a glimpse of her Skills?' I asked.

Hmmm. If my memory doesn't play turns on me, she carried something called a 'katana', a long-curved sword. She also didn't bother much for amour nor for a shield. That was indeed a very unusual and unconventional style of battle to be frank. But what truly caused me so much trouble was her plethora of magical abilities but more especially her two Unique Skills: [Absolute Severance] and [Unlimited Imprisonment]. I wasn't prepared for Skills like that...' I could imagine.

'Wait a minute, you mentioned something called a katana?' That was indeed an important clue. I mentally applauded Rimuru for figuring and pointing it out.

'Ah, yes. Now that I recall. She once said that she was 'summoned'. Perhaps, she hails from the same area as both of you?' was Veldora's confirmation.

'That's actually entirely possible. I mean that she comes from Earth. Maybe even Japan.' was Rimuru's conclusion.

'Yes. This doesn't look too farfetched. After all, this world does seem to inhabit a European setting. And what ringed European? You guessed it: knight armour. And a katana generally didn't dwell well with knight armours. Since katanas were designed to cut through flesh, which would be pretty idiotic to adopt in this world. And like Veldora said, she was unconventional in her methods. All of this points out that she likely is Japanese. At least, that's my conclusion.' There was more to be said but I didn't want to make an entire essay on that honestly. And honestly, my argument wasn't a good one since I didn't develop enough. It even was a bit bullshity. But it was good enough.

'I guess you're right, doll-san, like always. She also didn't even wear armour nor a shield, which isn't very typical of a European. Which once again reinforce your thesis. But I wonder what 'summoned' truly entails. Could you please answer that question, Veldora?'

'With pleasure. But what you call 'summoned' is a magical process in where the goal lies in trespassing time and space itself in order to bring an individual from another world. It is a tremendous process requiring at least the participation of thirty able magicians in where they conduct a ceremony taking place over three long days. And it is indeed quite rare for it to be successful. But it is seemingly perceived as a powerful weapon to guard in one's arsenal, should the need ever arise.'

'A weapon?' was Rimuru's new question. That wasn't too surprising from a world such as this one honestly. It even was to be expected.

'You see. Most otherworldlers are seen as weapons for their incredible and powerful properties. After all, they overflow with special powers, namely a Unique Skill. That great power is due to the journey their soul effected to this world. And the summoned will always bear such a skill, the minimum is one but the count could be very well higher. As the name suggest, that Skill is unique to them and them only. In contrast to the stray otherworldlers who come here by sheer accident, the summoned people bear a soul carrying a strength enough to withstand the great stress of the summoning process. Moreover, the ones summoned in that manner are to be bound by a magical curse upon their soul, a curse which render them unable to disobey any orders of their masters.'

'Whoa, whoa, really? No human rights whatsoever or anything even remotely near that?' It looked like Rimuru was still embedded in the mind-set of the modern era. Though, that mind-set was certainly lessened to a certain extent in the twenties (twenty-twenty onwards).

'Slime-san, we shouldn't expect human rights to be guaranteed in this kind of world. Especially in a fantasy world where war and devastations are sure to be common places.' Well, my answer was to be expected since I held a certain aversion towards human rights. It was hypocritical since these said rights were also guaranteed to me once upon a time but I really couldn't care less.

'Exactly. The doll is right. One shouldn't expect anything of the sort in this world where the strong crush the weak. Such fantasies aren't to be entertained in this realm, little one. The only and unique law that reigns here is the survival of the fittest. Might, as they say, makes right.' After all, no man was born equal. It was to be expected that the strong reigned over the weak. Did I truly agree to that statement? Yes and no. But my opinion didn't really matter for now.

When I turned my face towards Rimuru, he had a stinky face. It seemed that he wasn't too pleased with what Veldora and I answered. In this case, it was actually good he knew pretty much nothing of my political beliefs.

'So, you're saying that otherworldlers are slaves?' Woaw, the phrasing of that one was aggressive. And it was unexpectedly fun... Rimuru sure knew his ways with words, huh?

'No. It depends. Not all receives a domination stamp. Only the summoned otherworldlers are to be applied with domination stamps, which effectively renders them as slaves. But as for the stray otherworldlers, they are free to engage in whatever discourse they please as long as society accepts them. Many become adventurers and many of them once have sought out to vanquish my invincible and mighty person but– None succeeded! They quickly learned the lesson of their erroneous ways! Hyaaahahahahhaha.'

'So, this means that only the summoned ones are forced into servitude, huh...?' It seemed that he was slowly accepting the situation of this world.

'I wouldn't exactly say 'servitude' but I suppose that in a way, it is. I like to believe that I hold a considerable knowledge about mankind, but 'considerable' does no translate to everything.'

'No, you're right... Besides, you're a dragon. Indeed a mighty one but you're not human.'

Then, a small silence made its unsettling way into our conversation. It wasn't too deranging for me but it still was eerie and awkward.

And then—

'All right! Well, um… What do you think? Friends, then?' I didn't expect that for sure. I was rather surprised by that move... I honestly wouldn't have expected something of that sort to move out of this rather uncomfortable situation. I knew that he would eventually do it but just not now. Ah. I mentally sighed.

'Wh-what? A mere slime and a measly doll dare to seek the friendship of the mighty beast feared worldwide as Veldora the Storm Dragon?!' What a tsundere dragon.

'Oh... um, if you don't wish so, you don't have to accept our proposal, but…'

'You fool! You absolute foolish fool! Who said anything about not wishing it?!' Ahah. That dragon sure was amusing. It truly was an entertaining show. But in a way, it was rather boring since it essentially was a rehash of cannon. And I knew cannon well enough by now frankly.

'Oh, no? Okay, so, um…now what?'

'—Mmm, indeed… If you insist so…I suppose I could probably consider it…'

'Yep. I truly insist! It's indeed settled then! And if you don't like it, then watch out, 'cause we'll never come back!' was Rimuru's threat. But he didn't even consult me before using that 'we'. He always was like that...

'No!—Ah, so be it. I will become your…friend. I do hope you appreciate the gesture!' And so, Veldora finally succumbed to the pressure of the growing threats of the little slime. Ahah. But I must admit that Rimuru was a good manipulator.

As he made clear his perseverance in befriending Veldora, Rimuru turned towards me. 'You too, Doll-san, it would be good to formalise our friendship!'

That... I– I didn't expect that... Friends, huh? It had been so long since I lost mine... But it felt nice to be asked like that. It had an odd sensation of warmth that I didn't feel since a long time ago. But if he was so adamant about it, I supposed I should accept.

'If that's the case, I gratefully accept your friendship's proposal, Slime-san.' I gently smiled all the long. It was in a way nostalgic – reminiscent of ancient times, of simpler times. But if I had the occasion to go back, I would not go. After all, I eliminated my regrets long ago. It wouldn't do if I lamented the past.

'Well then, to future times!' said Rimuru.

'To future times!' I said. To future times huh? I truly was looking forward for these times. After all, the future held some interesting prospects...

'Indeed! To future times! …Ah, yes, allow me to give you both a name. In exchange, you will give one to us three.' was Veldora's proposal. And finally, I was waiting for this moment for so long.

'Huh? Why? Where'd that come from? It doesn't have anything to do with our friendship.'

'Regardless of that Slime-san, it still is a pretty interesting proposal.' I spoke.

'Well, the purpose of this is to chisel into our very souls the fact that we are of the same rank – that we are equals. Indeed this is fairly similar to the family names the humans usually practice – except that my name, for both of you, will also provide some sort of divine grace, a divine blessing. As of now, you are still nameless, but through this process, you will become a full-fledged named monster.'

'Mmmm. That's indeed pretty interesting.' was Rimuru's conclusion.

'A name fitting to the mighty dragon presiding over the storms... Tempêtes or the equivalent in English or something of the same genre. Mhmm. What do you think, Slime-san?' I was of course guiding him towards the right direction.

'Yes, yes! That's right! 'Tempest' would perfectly fit! Thanks Doll-san.'

'Perfect! So be it! It truly was an amazing and incredible melody, that superb timbre definitively fits my might! Yes, absolutely, it simply was wonderful!' That was a little bit over-exaggerated honestly. But what can I really expect from our dear Veldora?

'From this day forward, all will call me by the name of Veldora Tempest! You, little Slime... You will be known as of today under the name of Rimuru! And you, little Doll... You shall be recognised under the name of Astrellia! Yes, now, both of you, proclaim to the entire world your name are Rimuru Tempest and Astrellia Tempest!' was Veldora's great proclamation.

And it also was kind of cool hearing that. It kind of titillate my inner chūnibyō... But I was fairly content with that name, though it sounded a little bit too feminine for my tastes but it was alright. It was a good name that rang a star-filled melody – Astrellia. Besides that, I now could properly call Rimuru by his name 'Rimuru'. And that made my life so much easier!

I also wanted to verify something. So, I structurally analysed myself and– It was what I have thought of – my eyes were as of now of the golden colour. It was a rare colour representing power and a superior rank in Monsterkind. Hmmm. But I should probably conceal that to avoid arising suspicions. And I preferred the icy blue colour honestly, it simply looked better.

Thus, I brought out some magicules to my eyes to return them to their original colour – icy blue. And that was all. It wasn't really hard work.

'Hey, so I had something I wanted to ask before me and Dol– well, Astrellia left, but…isn't there anything you can do about that seal on you?' Hmmm. This was the final stage of this conversation, it seemed so. That would mean that I wouldn't see Veldora for three long years, huh?

'Ah. Unfortunately not with my current powers. So, the answer is certainly no. But someone with a unique skill on par with the hero's own one would have a better chance in successfully break off this long-lasting seal.' was Veldora's answer to Rimuru's query.

'Mmm. So, that means that you currently don't have any, Veldora?' was Rimuru's reflexion.

'In true I do, but in my actual position, one where I am sealed off, I have great difficulty in accessing them, rather I had access to none of them exactly. Well, one exception is [Telepathy] and that is pretty much all I can manage at the moment.'

In the meantime, I was just watching them. I knew I couldn't do much and even if I could, I would not act since a free Veldora's here would mess up things pretty badly. And that my knowledge of the future would be rendered useless. Moreover, Veldora would still be an aggressive and rather short-tempered since he wouldn't access what he called in the future 'sacred texts'.

'Well, here, lemme me at least try something that has the potential to help you...' Rimuru then rolled his body towards Veldora in an attempt to use [Predator]. It was already vowed to failure but... I will not interfere.

And it looked like it indeed failed. As expected. I could very see him bouncing off from the barrier. I was also pleased since he didn't rely on me. I didn't like when people relied too much on me when they were indeed capable of doing it themselves if they persisted enough.

'It doesn't seem that you're of the hero's calibre, Rimuru. But if you're adamant on finding a solution, you should probably use [Great Sage]. It's better than nothing after all.' was my simple advice. [Great Sage] was always the solution.

'Ah, yes... You're right. Thanks.'

'Hey, did you manage to lay any sort of damage on this hero at all? Or vice versa?' was Rimuru's question.

'Ah... I am really glad you asked that question! Most of my attacks were simply evaded, but I did indeed land several direct hits…which, I truly regret, had no effect whatsoever on her. [Death-Calling Wind] , [Dark Lightning] , even [Storm of Destruction] had no effect, all of them had no effects... All of this despite being Skills that are completely unavoidable! It was a total loss… A complete defeat... I could do nothing but laugh! Ahahah!' And his laugh still echoed. But he still managed to be joyful and hearty about this situation. But I still sent all of my condolences to Veldora. No one would want to be defeated in that fashion. It would be too humiliating...

'So, if we want to have a chance in liberating you, we have to at least prepare some sort of receptacle to host your soul.'

'Yes, you're right. That ought to be possible with that manner!'

'Mmm. A way of getting out of here?! Truly interesting! Ahahah. Both of you are always resourceful in finding a solution! But indeed… I can feel my magical force leaving my body by the day... It will eventually exhaust itself by no later than a century from now on. As of now, my magic still continues to flow out of me.'

'Yeah? So that's why there's such a concentration of magical power around here…' said Rimuru.

'Indeed, indeed. Even high-class monsters could not possibly dare to approach. You saw how there were no weeds on the ground? The sort of plants that can thrive in this area are very rare indeed!'

'And what will happen to you once you run out of that said-magical energy?' questioned once again Rimuru.

'Ah. That's not that much as a big deal since I will simply die.' simply said Veldora.

'Heh?! That's definitively not common sense... Argh... And it's pretty sad too.' He then paused. He was probably thinking along the lines of: 'It truly must be sorrowful to die in that manner after three entire centuries of isolation... So, I must help with all I got!' or something like that, I think. I couldn't read minds but whatever. 'So, do you want to try an escape? If we have the right receptacle, I think that'd help our chances by a not so small amount… But do you know what we'd need to accomplish that, though?'

'Ahah, you're truly a special slime, huh? But indeed, even if I was to escape in spiritual form only, it would prove itself to be quite difficult to regather magic and once again form my core. Your creating of a small rip in the prison definitively increased my chances immensely, there was no doubt. As for that receptacle—the new core, if you will—if you can bring one to me, all I'd have to do is traverse myself over to it. It was somewhat akin to transmigration, I suppose so...'

'Ah. Astrellia, what about your doll? Maybe it could work?' Tsk. Why did he had to ask me? But at least, it let me justify the why.

'Unfortunately, the Marionette I'm currently working doesn't have the necessary capacity to host a soul of the might of Veldora...' That was a plain lie. It could theoretically host his soul but I simply didn't want to. I had other plans for my product. Yeah, I was incredibly egoist. But who cared? Especially more since I was lying. Eheh.

'Ah. That's truly unfortunate...' was Veldora's lamentation.

Hmmm. That part of the conversation definitively wasn't interesting. It truly was disappointing that I hadn't a Skill to skip scenes like this... Truly unfortunate... And it was also annoying.

So. 'I have a proposal. Why don't you use [Predator] to consume Veldora in its entirety? All of this will grant you the possibility of analysing him inside your stomach and to isolate him which could in turn effectively annul [Infinite Imprisonment]. Moreover, Veldora could try to break it from inside which could accelerate the process a lot more. Furthermore, there would be no risk of Veldora dissipating inside the safe space of your stomach. With that method, it is more than certain that he will be liberated under safe conditions. Though it is enough to that this will indeed take some time.' All of that was for the sake of accelerating this conversation.

'Really, really?' asked Rimuru.

'Yes, really. If you have doubts, you can ask your Skill.' I said.

And an instant later, he confirmed it. 'Oh. You're truly right!'

Then– Veldora laughed. 'Mwahhahhahhahhah! Fascinating! Amazing! I heard what you said, please, go ahead. I leave myself at your mercy!'

'Are you truly ready to believe both of us?' asked Rimuru.

'But of course! We're friends. And it'd be infinitively far more fun to break through this prison with you than sit around doing nothing and then await your return! With the three of us together, this [Unlimited Imprisonment] could fall quicker than we thought!'

'All righty. So I'm gonna consume you, all right? Hurry up and get outta there!' said Rimuru.

'Heheheh! Right away! You shall make me wait no longer! Let us finally join together!' was Veldora's final statement.

Then Rimuru activated [Predator]. And as he did, the once massive and towering shape of the grandiose Dragon of the Storms, Veldora, disappeared into the dark abyss. Ultimately, he leaving us in that manner left me in odd state. All of this felt so weird.

'That's some good work, Rimuru. With that, we truly stand a chance of liberating our friend!' I tried to keep a joyful atmosphere and to not let him sink into loneliness. After all, he just lost contact with one of his newly acquired friends, just like me. And so, it was my duty to stir up his spirits. Or at least, I tried.

'Yes... But this better works!' said Rimuru.

'Do not doubt your capacities. If you have faith in yourself, everything will come along! Yes, with determination, you can achieve absolutely everything! So, believe in yourself and let us liberate our friend Veldora!'

He then nodded to my statement. Absolutely, it had to work or our future firepower will be severely limited and we will be left with nothing but ourselves to fend for our very own lives.

'But now, we should work our way to the surface. It wouldn't do if we dwell infinitively in this sombre cave, aren't we?' said Rimuru. Ohoh. I just noticed that when he addressed me, he tried to use a slightly more formal way of speaking. And I definitively appreciated that.

'Absolutely, partner. It is time we set out from this cave.' Yes, it was time. Time to set a new precedent over this world. It was time for a new era!

And thus, a page was turned as we finally set out to depart from what was once the prison of the Dragon of the Storms to once again embrace the magnificent light of the sun!

Et en ce jour fatidique, le monde fut à jamais bouleversé par un cataclysme d'une ampleur inimaginable (and on this fateful day, the world was forever changed by a cataclysm of an unimaginable ampler).

Changelog:

• Fixes and quality of life improvement -- 08/21/21 -- 13:59

• Some quickfixes -- 08/23/21 -- 15:49

• Some fixes and a correction to a potential plothole -- 08/23/21 -- 16:07

• Added some flavour to Prussia (looks like a HOI IV mod when I write it like that, isn't it?) -- 08/23/21 -- 17:20