Ritsuka stood before the summoning circle. In his hands were 3 remaining Quartzs. He sighed.
"This is it. Hopefully I get at least one servant… I don't care who it is…"
He then placed the last pieces on the summoning circle, before activating it.
The summoning circle activated, but to their surprise, instead of glowing light blue, the lights were a mix of gold, platinum and black, as black lighting started to surround the area. An oppressive aura was then unleashed, an aura more powerful than anything they have ever felt before…
All of their faces then paled, as Ritsuka backed away, while Mashu stood protectively in front of him. Ritsuka then fell on his butt, the aura forcing him down. Roman quickly moved behind Ritsuka. Both could see that Mashu was barely able to stand, as the oppressiveness of the aura was way beyond what she could stand.
"Shit." thought Roman. "What is going on? Are we going to die here?! Do I have to use my noble phantasm? Da Vinci, where are you when we need you?!"
He then yelled: "Ritsuka… WHAT DID YOU DO?!"
"I DON'T KNOW!"
Two other servants then arrived. One with a red spear and blue clothing. Another with slicked-back white hair, a black bow, and a black bodysuit, topped off with a red cloak. Archer Emiya and Lancer Cú Chulainn. Both had their weapons drawn.
"Hey Kid, what the hell is going on?" asked Cú.
"I have NO CLUE!"
The tension then spiked, as the group heard sirens going off in Chaldea. Several lights started flashing red. Automatic Chaldea Protocols were going off left right and center.
ERROR! ERROR! UNKNOWN SPIRIT ORIGIN DETECTED.
LOCATION OF SUMMONING IS NOT FROM THE THRONE!
PLEASE TERMINATE THE SUMMONING RITUAL!
This announcement merely caused more servants to arrive. First was a woman with golden hair and verdant green eyes, who wore a knight's armor with red lacings. Her name was Mordred Pendragon. Behind her, Emiya Assassin appeared, followed by Caster Zhuge Liang and Berserker Lancelot, who was no longer under mad enhancement.
"It seems that we are in for a fight…" stated Lancelot.
"HAHAHA, FINALLY. I was getting bored here!" roared Mordred.
It was at this moment that they could see energy gathering around the summoning circle. A twisting mass of purple clouds, with black and yellow lighting. Black flames then erupted at the base of the mini-tornado, as the aura magnified once more.
Scáthach, Cú Chulainn teacher, then arrived on the field.
"That is one nasty aura. Whose fault is it?"
"Blame Ritsuka." answered Roman from behind Zhuge Liang.
"Hey, I didn't know that my summoning Ritual would cause this! Don't-"
Ritsuka was interrupted when the summoning circle suddenly shone brightly. Several circles of light blue then surrounded the summoning circle, as blue orbs started to spin. Then, a card appeared. A card that none of them had ever seen before. It was a figure, facing towards them, covered head to toe in a cloak.
The card then started to crackle, as it turned gold, signalling a five star servant, before dissipating.
As the light dissipated, the aura that surrounded the room suddenly lifted completely, as the alarms then stopped. Silence.
Ritsuka, then looked at the summoning circle. There stood a figure. The figure had long silver hair, a blue coat and fur scarf,and wore blue boots and beige pants. The figure also wore a white mask, with a red jewel at its center.
What followed was simply silence, as he stared at the figure, and the figure stared right back at him. What he didn't realise, however, was that each and every servant behind him were on edge, poised to strike. The tension was palpable.
The unknown servant then walked forward, and talked.
"How interesting. Or should I say surprising. To think that the last hope of humanity would fall on one single master."
As Ritsuka stood stunned, still processing what the figure had said, a dark object hurtled past his head, heading straight for the unknown servant's face. Then...
"It's not that nice to attack someone you just met."
The figure spoke menacingly, before moving the arrow aside, its shaft held between two fingers. No sound was made. No sign that his fingers moved at all.
The tension in the air then snapped, and all hell broke loose.
"How interesting. Or should I say surprising. To think that the last hope of humanity would fall on one single master."
Rimuru had said this to attempt to diffuse the situation, but it only aggravated it.
Then the arrow flew, and Rimuru caught it.
"Sheesh, these guys really are bloodthirsty…"
Rimuru observed as the servants threw who he saw as the Master behind them, as many got into battle stance. One even charged him immediately. She had blond hair and verdant green eyes, and wore a knight's armor with red lacings.
"Ok, so I could crush them with overwhelming magic or overwhelming strength, but I don't want to reveal too much yet… So I'll play along with some close combat…" thought Rimuru.
"Take this you filthy piece of shit!" roared the knight, before swinging her sword horizontally, attempting to chop off his head.
Rimuru took a step back, minimizing movement, before looking for a counter. However, he then had to dodge two more arrows, coming from a white haired archer in the back. Rimuru back pedalled, then did a backflip, before landing on the summoning circle in a crouched position.
"You're pretty good for a kid."
A guy with a red spear and blue bodysuit tried to stab him from behind. However, using {Universal Sense}, Rimuru had seen it coming a mile away, and simply dodged using minimal movement, while turning around to face him. This repeated once. Then twice. Then countless times in the span of a few seconds.
"You have got to be kidding me!" thought Cú. "HOW?"
Rimuru then grabbed him by the neck, and whipped him over his left shoulder. Cú went crashing into the wall, creating a large crack in the process.
"Hmm, yea, servants definitely are much stronger than your regular holy knight. But Hinata could give them a run for their money. Though I do remember Zelretch mentioning that they can even suffer supposed fatal blows, as long as their origin is intact, then they can regenerate as long as they have magic power. So if the master runs out of it, they disappear. Well, I do have {Void God Azathoth} and {Turn Null}, plus my magic power is infinite, so I won't be disappearing anytime soon…"
Rimuru ducked again, as 3 more arrows flew by. A woman in a purple bodysuit then attacked him, with a red spear, similar to the blue body suit man. She suddenly duplicated her spears, and sent them flying at him. Rimuru was forced to unsheath his katana (The one he used pre-demon lord awakening), and quickly deflected the barrage.
What followed was simply a pattern of attack and evasion. Servants would attack him, and he would use minimal movement to deflect or dodge the attacks. He would then counter with force.
Rimuru was starting to get annoyed. These people continued to attack him, leaving no room for negotiations. He may have to reveal some cards…
"Tsk…are you guys really going to keep attacking me?"
He was met with a purple armored man with purple hair swinging a rather large sword at him. He dodged again.
"Alright, enough is enough. Time to play around a bit more seriously..."
Rimuru then quickly jumped, before wrapping his legs around the purple armored man's neck.
"What the-Get OFF!" he said, as he tried to grab Rimuru with his left hand.
"Too slow." answered Rimuru, as he then used {Sticky Steel Thread} to quickly tie up the man's arms together. Rimuru then had an idea, and quickly strengthened the threads with multiple layers, before using the threads to manipulate Lancelot like a puppet, all while sitting on his shoulders.
"Oi, Lancelot, stop fooling around and get her off! I can't attack her if she's sitting on your shoulders!" roared the yellow haired red armor lacings girl.
"Can't you see I'm trying, Mordred?!" yelled Lancelot, as he was deflecting her blow, before roaring in pain as Rimuru twisted his arm the wrong way. "Ow! Hey, my left arm can't bend that way you brat!"
Rimuru said nothing. Most of the servants stopped attacking him at this point. Rimuru thought that they could now negotiate. He thought wrong.
"Lancelot, don't move." said the white haired archer.
"Oi Archer, don't kill me now…" responded Lancelot.
Archer didn't respond. He instead traced a peculiar sword that looked like a drill, before knocking it like an arrow.
"Altercation." he thought, as the sword thinned.
"I am the bone of my sword."
A red aura surrounded him, crackling like lighting, before suddenly turning blue. The sword that resembled a drill suddenly emitted a red light.
"Hey Ciel, that looks dangerous…" thought Rimuru.
"Analysis Complete. That is Caldebolg, a sword which can create a twisting distortion in space when fired."
"WHAT! HEY HEY HEY, I'M DEAD!"
"Master, have more confidence in yourself. It is twisting the space in front of you. You can control space. Who do you think is more powerful? Stop being a dunce."
"Oh… Well… ok…Ouch Ciel...that hurt."
No response.
It was at this moment that Archer and Lancelot's eyes met. Lancelot immediately understood what Archer was about to do.
"CALADBOLG!"
The twisting sword arrow was fired towards Rimuru from less than 15 meters away. It's destructive power was incredible. At the same time, Lancelot threw himself towards the ground, getting out of the way of the arrow's destructive path.
"Well, that's a nice plan." thought Rimuru, as he released Lancelot from the threads and jumped off his shoulders.
Rimuru then secretly manipulated the twisting space caused by Caladbolg using {Void God Azathoth}, causing its force to reduce significantly. He then deflected the arrow without much effort, allowing it to fly past him.
"How? Caladbolg is a Broken Phantasm that twists space itself. It shouldn't be that easy to deflect even with magecraft." Archer thought all the while nocking another. "Does she have a Noble Phantasm that lets her interfere with space? Does she not need chants? What other abilities does she have? How many?"
Many of the servants started to observe Rimuru, now unsure of what to do. However, one reckless knight decided to go all in. That knight was, of course, Mordred.
"HAHAHAHA! You're pretty good!" she yelled while smirking. "However, your time is up. I'll show you what TRUE POWER LOOKS LIKE!"
Mordred then raised her sword above her head. A crackling red aura surrounded her, as she powered up her sword.
"I'll say this not as a King, but as a loyal knight. Anything to disturb the King's peace will be crushed!"
Her sword was enveloped in red crackling energy, before shooting towards the roof of the building. Behind her, a large column of energy appeared.
"Take THIS! CLARENT BLOOD-"
Suddenly, Rimuru appeared right in front of her. His left hand firmly grabbed the pommel of her sword, pushing it upwards, the other was drawn to his side, in preparation for a punch.
"Do you really think I'm going to give you a chance to launch your attack? You are wide open, after all…"
"Shit." thought Mordred.
Rimuru then punched her square in the abdomen, sending her flying into the wall behind them, creating a large crater in the wall. The resulting shockwave of the punch was enough to send several of Archer EMIYA's arrows off course, while others were forced to shield their faces with their arms.
"Mordred!" yelled Gareth, who had just arrived. Mordred did not respond, instead groaning in pain, right before she threw a coughing fit. She was immediately examined by Da Vinci, who had arrived as well.
"Not fatal, but she's going to be out of commision for this fight…" murmured Da Vinci.
Many of the servants were shocked. Not only did he manhandle Mordred, one of the more powerful servants at Ritsuka's disposal, but none of them even saw Rimuru sheath his sword. However, the sword was definitely in its sheath, and it was done before Rimuru punched Mordred.
Rimuru eyed the entrance of the room. More servants had started to arrive.
"Tsk. Looks like I scared them for now, but as more and more servants arrive, the less chance I will have for a successful negotiation…" he thought. "Sheesh, why did they have to attack me in the first place? No matter, Ciel, what should I do?"
" Perhaps it would be wise to call on Shizue? More people on your side means more allies, which can influence bargaining power…"
"Nice idea, Ciel! I completely forgot I could call Shizue!"
Rimuru then turned to the group that was surrounding their Master, before raising his right hand in the air, the back of his hand facing the group.
As he did this, a list of words appeared in Rimuru's mind. Ciel quickly told him to say them out loud, to summon Shizue. Rimuru obliged.
"Let heat and light guide thy path."
As Rimuru started to chant, many of the servants flinched. However, none moved to intervene, as another oppressive aura, different from the one that had once dissipated, was unleashed. This aura was warm, like the sun, but was also similar to uncontrolled burning flames.
Archer immediately had flashbacks to what happened at Fuyuki. He grimaced, thinking it would be a fire based attack. He couldn't be more wrong...
"Let warmth and kindness, dispose of wrath."
Once these words were said, a summoning circle, not too different from the one behind Rimuru, appeared. Instead of flashing blue, however, it flashed a mixture of orange and red, as the temperature in the room skyrocketed.
"Let the eternal flame protect thyself."
The energy swirled around the newly formed summoning circle. However, what happened next drew everyone's attention. On the back of Rimuru's hand, flashing red markings had appeared. A pattern similar to his mask, with a dot in the middle, appeared. It was then surrounded by a pattern of lighting, then by a simple circle. These were red command spells, the indication of a master.
"Impossible!" yelled Da Vinci, her eyes bulging. "A servant acting as a master? RIDICULOUS!"
Many agreed. It was an absurdity that had never been heard of, to any of them. Through the grail perhaps, but never without it. And yet, it was happening, right in front of them.
"Servant Saber, heed my call! Come forth, Conqueror of Flames!"
"Servant Saber, heed my call! Come forth, Conqueror of Flames!"
"Ciel… That was embarrassing…"
"Master, you need to learn when to act badass, its to give yourself a good reputation."
"Yea, but… ugh… anyways, that was a nice chant, did you come up with that?"
"I analysed the entirety of this world, Master. All I did was come up with a chant that would fit Shizue's character!"
"As expected of Ciel-sensei!"
"Mmhmm."
"You sound more smug than usual."
"It is just your imagination."
While Rimuru was in this little back and forth with Ciel, a figure emerged from the light of the new summoning circle. The Conqueror of Flames. Raven black hair, a mask exactly the same as Rimuru.
The servants in the room quickly put their guards up. The action of summoning a servant in the midst of battle is not unheard of, but the fact that it was done so by another servant quickly makes this whole event absurd.
Rimuru then put his hand down, before placing his hand on his waist. After a few moments of waiting, Rimuru then spoke.
"I am going to assume that none of you have seen a servant summon another servant. I will consider telling you how I did this, and about myself, on one condition."
Some servants eyed him suspiciously, other's, especially Da Vinci, were more curious about his proposal. It was at this moment that another servant spoke up.
"Actually, a servant summoning another servant is not unheard of. If a Ruler-Class servant shows up in a Holy Grail War, he or she will receive Command Spells as well."
Rimuru turned to the servant that spoke.
He saw a woman with a sizable bust, long blond hair tied in a braid, amethyst-colored eyes, a navy blue battle dress with pieces of armor covering her arms, legs and abdomen. She even wore a distinct armored headpiece, shaped like an m.
Said servant flinched slightly as both Shizue and Rimuru turned their faces towards her, however, she then stared at them defiantly. Another servant, with brown hair and red eyes, wearing a black vest over a white dress shirt, with black pants and black boots to match, swiftly moved in front of her.
Rimuru smirked under his mask. He could tell the two were very close. It reminded him of the others that he had left behind. More on that later…
An input of information suddenly flowed through his brain. Something along the lines of Caster controlling a servant? Must have been Ciel analyzing more information again. However, he could use this information to his advantage.
"Right you are," said Rimuru. "Ruler-class servants are there to observe the Holy Grail War, after all. Other servants, such as Caster Medea, I believe, can use their Noble Phantasm to break contracts between Masters and Servants, and steal said contract. However, if I said that my intrinsic skill allowed me to summon a servant, would you agree to my terms? "
"Thank you so much for the information Ciel…"
["There is no problem, Master."]
Both Ritsuka and Romani stood shellshocked. A servant with skills that allowed for the summoning of other servants. As far as they could tell, it was not the unknown servant's Noble Phantasm, as Noble Phantasms usually reflected the soul of the user, and usually were a dead giveaway of the identity of the servant. Summoning another servant, however, did not really give them a clue on this servant's identity.
Caster Medea, who just entered the room, suddenly grew wary. As far as she was concerned, she had never met nor fought this unknown servant. The question in her head was: how on earth does she know my Noble Phantasm?
Da Vinci was flabbergasted. This unknown servant had so much knowledge, and stated it as if it was common sense, which it wasn't. Not every servant knew another's Noble Phantasm. At least she learned something new today, but it wasn't every day that a source of information willingly came to visit her…
As Da Vinci grew more and more tempted to strike a deal with the unknown servant, another servant, one which was punted into the wall earlier, stood back up.
"You sure did a number on me kid." said Lancer-Class Servant Cú Chulainn. "As for your deal, I will consider it, on one condition. If you can survive a strike from my Noble Phantasm, you win. If not, I win. Deal?"
"Sure, deal." said Rimuru.
Many servants winced as Rimuru accepted the deal. Rimuru, however, did not notice, instead motionning for Shizue to move out of the way.
"Are you sure, Ri-Foreigner?" asked Shizue, nearly blurting out Rimuru's real name.
"It will be fine, relax." Rimuru answered.
While Shizue was getting scolded by Ciel telepathically for almost revealing Rimuru's identity, Ritsuka and the other's were processing the new information.
The summoned servant called the summoner Foreigner. In other words, the servant's class was Foreigner.
"That doesn't make any sense. There is no such thing as a Foreigner class servant, is there?" said Romani, unconsciously voicing his inner thoughts.
Rimuru easily answered him. "I will explain, should you accept my offer, which was an explanation of everything I know, under one condition. Seeing how that blue Lancer decided to offer his own challenge, however, it seems like we will have to wait until I win."
Rimuru then faced Cú, preparing for a strike of the spear.
Cú, however, instead prepared himself, backing up to around 100 meters, before crouching low to the ground, similar to that of a runner before a race. He then smirked, before taking off, running at full speed towards Rimuru.
"He's really fast." thought Rimuru. "He may rival Apito at full speed, at least, prior to her evolution after Zegion became a True Awakened Demon Lord. Of course, she's still not as strong as Hinata, since Hinata is now a fully evolved saint… I guess I underestimated this guy."
The distance closed.
90 meters…
…
...
60 meters…
…
...
55 meters…
…
...
Suddenly, at 50 meters, Cú stopped, causing his feet to dig into the ground, tiles on the ground crumbled and gave way as he screeched to a halt. As soon as he stopped, he then jumped backwards, the right arm holding his spear winding back behind his head, preparing for a javelin-throw. His left arm pointed forwards, gauging distance between him and his target.
The red spear emitted a crimson aura, all condensing around the tip of the spear. The flow of red aura could be seen in the air, flowing into and behind Cú, like the tip of the spear itself was pushing the aura in one direction…
Energy built up within the tip of the spear. It's explosive power was nothing to scoff at, rather, the energy built up in the spear could rival that of a mini-black hole.
"Gáe... Bolg!" he roared.
As the spear was thrown, the mana in the air was consumed by it. A path of destruction was left in its wake, as a red beam headed straight for Rimuru.
Gáe Bolg, the spear of the Child of Light, the Hound of Ireland, Cú Chulainn. Obtained from his teacher Scáthach, who currently stood behind him. The descendant of Gungnir, which was wielded by Odin himself, as well as Brionac, the lance of the Celtic god of light, Lugh, who happened to also be Cú's father.
Once the spear's name has been called, it reverses the nature of causality, or cause and effect. In other words, it makes it so the cause of the "lance being thrust" causes the effect "heart is pierced". This spear determines the opponent's fate simply through its use, and is always a fatal move that pierces the heart with one thrust. An attack on the destiny of the target.
This spear was used for two techniques, the one used on Rimuru was the Soaring Spear that Strikes with Death. This was the largest and most powerful attack delivered by the spear. The "attack that unleashes countless darts at the enemy", spoken in legend. This attack converts all of Lancer's magical energy into raw energy, before releasing all accumulated power after the spear is thrown. The spear itself travels at a speed of Mach 2, and can travel to the other side of the Earth. "No matter how many times it is dodged, it will strike the enemy", the causality warping property of the technique.
This was the true identity of the spear being thrown, which was now heading straight towards Rimuru…
A cheat-like technique that would have ensured the death of anyone in front of him. This power, however, was all for naught. Sadly, those who wield Ultimate Skills can also reverse the nature of causality, as a wielder of an Ultimate Skill controls the law of nature as well. What's more, as a slime, Rimuru does not have a heart, essentially making this one shot kill technique completely useless. In other words, to Rimuru, who can control time, space, the void, the cosmos, and create and destroy anything in existence, it was just a fast spear. The person in question, Rimuru, was completely unaware of this.
As the spear flew towards him, Rimuru accelerated his thoughts by 1,000,000 times, easily watching the spear slow down as it approached him. He then quickly absorbed the energy surrounding the spear using {Void God Azathoth}, in order to prevent further destruction, before plucking the red spear right out of the air.
After he caught the spear, he tapped its tip twice on his other hand, before twirling it over his head. He then planted the tip of the spear into the ground, let go, and started to clap.
"Well, that was an amazing throw." Rimuru stated. "However, since I have withstood your technique, can you now agree to my terms? Of course, I never really had the chance to state them in the first place…"
He then observed the group in front of him. To his shock, all of them had their mouths agape, staring at him as if he was some kind of monstrosity. The ones that were the most surprised were none other than Cú Chulainn and his teacher Scáthach (the one in purple with red spears).
"How da hell did you pull that off?!" yelled Cú.
"Indeed, I would like to understand how in the world did you completely nullify the spear that warps causality…" added Scáthach.
"Warps causality?" asked Rimuru.
"Wait so you didn't even realise?" asked Romani, his hair messed up as he stared straight at Rimuru.
Meanwhile, Da Vinci was busy writing notes and theories in a notebook, muttering to herself, eyes glued to the paper.
"Hey Ciel, what are they saying, warps causality?"
["To answer Master's question, the Spear that they launched has the ability to manipulate cause and effect. In other words, once the spear is thrown and its name, Gáe Bolg, is stated, the spear will make the cause "the spear was thrust" make the effect "the heart was pierced" true. In other words, the moment the technique is launched, the heart will be pierced no matter what."]
"OI, WAIT, so I completely nullified his ace in the hole without even knowing its full capabilities. My question: why did it not affect me? Is it because of you Ciel, or because I have Ultimate Skills?"
["The Spear itself bends causality, however, those with Ultimate Skills also alter natural laws, so the spear itself is similar to that of an Ultimate Skill, except that it is much more limited, and based on the hero's legend. It can change should the hero's legend change in time. This time, however, my interference, along with the interference of your Ultimate Skills, was unnecessary, considering the fact that you have no heart. After all, you are a slime, Master. What's more, I protected your spirit origin just in case. The Spirit Origin is basically the core of a servant. Also, please stop comparing this dog to Apito, Apito can move at the speed of light, or even faster. This Lancer cannot compare."]
"In any other context, that insult, the fact that I had no heart, would've hurt… As for Apito, my bad… But don't call Lancer a dog..."
Rimuru then thought for a moment for a potential excuse to give them regarding the spear that was thrown.
"I will just tell them that I don't have a physical heart in my body and leave it at that. Also, I just thought of another thing. Why did I have to chant to call upon Shizue? Don't you have the skill {Cancel Chant} or something?"
["... … … … … …"]
"Oi, I asked a question Ciel."
["And I gave no response."]
"Ciel, you are avoiding the question, why did you make me chant when I could've avoided chanting."
Ciel then started ranting, to Rimuru's utter surprise.
["BECAUSE MASTER, it makes you look badass. You sounded perfect, acted perfectly, and freaked them ALL OUT. AS SUITED FOR MY MASTER. The moment you showed up, they should have bowed. NOT LAUNCH AN ARROW AT YOU! Not to mention that NO ONE OTHER THAN SHIZUE SAW IT! TOO BAD FOR THEM. As your first wife Master, I call dibs on every single moment that you act badass. I will save every single event for all of time, and brag about it to your other "consorts". This time, I even got a picture of you chanting! It looks amazing!"]
"OI CIEL, you can't just do that… that is so unreasonable...and SINCE WHEN DID YOU HAVE A CAMERA IN THERE? I KNOW YOU ARE HAVE PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORY AND STUFF BUT STILL!"
["Hmmm~Hmmm~Hmmm~HMMM~~~La~la~la~la~~~~"]
"OH FORGET IT!"
Rimuru then turned his attention back to the other servants. Most had not dropped their guards, but also eyed him with a bit of understanding. After all, Rimuru had stated that he wished to negotiate.
"Ok, so my condition for explaining my previous actions, though not the ones I have just taken, was to simply sit at a table, and have a discussion. Believe it or not, I rather avoid violence wherever possible."
"""WHAAAAAAT?!""" roared Ritsuka, Romani, Mashu, Emiya Archer, among others.
"You heard me. It's not my fault you guys attacked me first." said Rimuru, before pointedly staring at Emiya Archer.
Many other servants stared at him as well.
"Yo Archer, the kid has a point. Besides, aren't you a more cautious and analytical type?" asked Cú.
"Oh shut up, Cú. I would like to see you try and hold back if you see a monster in front of you, calmly stating that something was interesting. I have some bad experiences with people when they say that. Kirei...Kiara...among others. I suddenly had the urge. Not to mention that menacing aura…"
"Menacing aura?" thought Rimuru. "Wait, I thought the mask completely nullified my aura? Ciel, what happened?"
["I believe this is because you put on the mask in transit while being summoned. The aura that you were subconsciously unleashing against Zelretch, as any powerful being emits an aura to test one another, was absorbed when you were summoned in your clone. After all, your clone was still in the area where you were emitting your aura against Zelretch, while your main body left to go to {Imaginary Space}."]
"Yea, guess that makes sense. {Spirit Dragon Haki} has a lot mixed into it. There is {Menace}... I forget the rest. Same thing with Shizue and {True Hero Haki}, right? Damn it, couldn't Zelretch have blocked that off…"
["Perhaps he could have, however, even if he could, analyzing his personality, it seems like he would have not done so, to make things more interesting…"]
"DAMN THAT TROLL! Well, no point in telling them now..."
As Rimuru was pondering how to efficiently hurt Zelretch in the most painful way possible as revenge for this mess, Romani then spoke.
"How about we all calm down and have a cup of tea or something, your treat, Archer. Then we can all talk about this fiasco. Would the honorable lady that caused this ruckus be willing to wait a while before starting discussions?" Romani finished, addressing Rimuru.
Rimuru sighed, before answering.
"I would like to get something clear with all of you. My servant class is Foreigner. My sex is Male. So stop addressing me as she or her. It's he or him.
"I am technically genderless, but I identify myself as male. Not to mention I could get a son… if only Ciel let me…"
["DE-NIED!"]
"Awww…"
"""HUUUH?!""" yelled the group in front of him.
"Yes, I am a male. So please, no lady."
"Well, it's not like you are the only servant that is a male, but looks female…" muttered Ritsuka, eyeing Astolfo, who arrived just now. "The classic trap." he then thought.
"I can hear you." said Rimuru telepathically, scaring the daylights out of Ritsuka. The others, however, were unaware of this exchange.
"Alright." said Da Vinci, finally lifting her face from her notepad. "Let's prepare the treats, the drinks, the table, and meet in the Cafeteria. I assume you want to limit the amount of Servants that show up?"
"Preferably yes." stated Rimuru.
As such, the group then left the battered and broken summoning room, heading to the cafeteria...
"So this is Chaldea." thought Rimuru, as he moved his head left right and center.
As they were walking through the many hallways of Chaldea, Rimuru made sure to take note of every single advanced technology and architecture there was. After all, it wasn't everyday that you could see such fine architecture. Besides, it was also possible to recreate this back in his world, perhaps for entertainment of course.
The group of servants that were once in the summoning room had dispersed, leaving only a few that walked alongside the group. Sasaki Kojiro, with blue hair and purple traditional japanese clothes, was one of them. Another was the brown haired red eyed servant, whose name was Sieg. The others included Caster Medea, Emiya Archer, Lancer Cú, Scáthach, Da Vinci, Jeanne D'arc, and of course, Mashu. Romani, Ritsuka, Rimuru and Shizue led the front.
To all the other servants, it was quite funny, as Rimuru was no taller than 13 year old Shizue. It was like a child exploring a foreign land, looking at whatever he wanted.
To those that faced him in battle, however, it was quite dreadful, not knowing if the Foreigner servant genuinely wanted to negotiate or had something else in mind. It was quite clear that the Foreigner servant was very manipulative and cunning, but also had somewhat of a childish side. Or was it simply a facade to hide his true intentions.
Well, it wasn't like they could do much besides walk behind him.
Meanwhile, after calming down, Rimuru was in a dilemma. For some reason, he could feel a glare at his back. Not just any glare, as the servants were already eyeing him suspiciously. It was Shizue, and he could tell that she was not happy. But for what reason?
["I have no clue Master."]
"See, even Ciel has no clue!"
As Rimuru was busy in his own little world, Emiya Archer was pondering and reflecting.
"Who exactly is this… guy? From what I recall during all of my travels, I have never heard anything about him. His silver blue hair and distinct mask don't exactly ring any bells either."
Emiya then attempted to copy both Rimuru's sword and his mask. After all, he was known as Faker by a certain annoying golden King for a reason. His Reality Marble, Unlimited Blade Works, allows him to copy any weapon that he ever laid his eyes on. These weapons would then be stored in his reality marble, and he could call them out at will through his Tracing Magic, or Gradation Air. Not to mention that the skills of the owner would also be transferred to him. In other words, he could copy both the weapon as well as the fighting style of the original wielder perfectly.
Emiya attempted to copy the mask first, after all, he had never seen anything like it. However, the moment he attempted to copy the mask, a sudden burst of pain made him flinch. After composing himself, and making sure no one saw what happened, he checked to see if he could create a copy of the mask.
He could not.
He then tried copying Rimuru's sword, again, with the same result.
The same thing happened when he tried to copy Shizue's Mask and sword.
"No one has ever done that before. Whether he is doing this subconsciously or not, I can tell that he is not just a normal overpowered individual like Gilgamesh, Hercules or Darius. And his companion is just as intriguing...We should probably test her capability as well."
Emiya continued to ponder, not noticing that Rimuru had already noticed these efforts, and interrupted them for obvious reasons.
Eventually, the group arrived at the cafeteria. A few servants were present, alongside some of Chaldea's remaining staff. A few quick orders from Romani and Ritsuka were enough to scatter the servants and get the staff to bring enough food and drinks. On the left side of the table, red tea, and a decent amount of sushi was placed on the table, among other japanese delicacies. On the right side of the table were western-style hamburgers, hotdogs, and other junk foods.
Once everything was settled, and the food placed on the table, Rimuru and Shizue went around the table and sat on the opposite side, while most of Ritsuka's group sat facing the pair.
"I suggest we start by eating a bit, in order to cool down the atmosphere…" said Ritsuka, softly.
Rimuru and Shizue nodded, while Romani and Da Vinci shrugged. The rest of the servants simply eyed Rimuru and Shizue, daring them to take off their masks to show their faces.
"Itadakimasu..." muttered Shizue and Rimuru, while putting both of their hands on their laps. This action, however, was not lost on Emiya.
"Huh, so they follow Japanese style customs? At least they are not savages. I will keep that in mind." thought Emiya, as he re-evaluated the pair subconsciously.
Rimuru and Shizue then started to eat, by sucking the food straight through their masks. After a few seconds, both of them looked up, to see Ritsuka looking at them curiously, and Romani looking exacerbated.
"What?" asked Rimuru, while tilting his head. Shizue mimicked the gesture.
Romani sighed. "When I suggested we have a meal together, I wanted it to be a much more relaxed atmosphere. Enough to take off your mask? I think it would help us a lot more too if we could read your expression."
Rimuru simply stared at Romani, before answering.
"Don't think that I will be taking off my mask that fast. First, I would like to know more about Chaldea. Besides the fact that the organization has a lot of food, and that there are many other servants here, I don't know that much."
["Master, there is no need to double check the information that I have given you."] said Ciel in a pouting voice.
"I am not double checking Ciel, simply testing them. If they tell me the truth, then my evaluation of them will be good. Otherwise, we may not be able to work with them. However, my gut tells me that this guy will be just fine. I just want to make sure he doesn't turn out like another Yuuki… I mean he is wearing a white shirt and has black hair."
["I see…"]
Romani simply eyed him. However, it was Emiya that retorted first.
"Someone of your caliber, who can easily identify the Noble Phantasm of a servant he has never met, should be able to determine what this organization is for. Of course, that is excluding the possibility that you met an alternate self of Caster Medea."
Rimuru then smirked.
"You have not answered my question."
"There is no reason to, if you already know the answer." answered Emiya.
The two stared at each other for a few seconds, before Cú interfered.
"Enough! Speaking of questions, kid, you haven't answered my question on how you reflected my Noble Phantasm. I even fused both of my techniques from my spear into one!"
Cú eyed Rimuru curiously. He had never met someone that could completely nullify the causality warping properties of his spear so effortlessly.
Rimuru then responded.
"Fair enough, an answer for an answer, presuming that you used this meal to pay me back for the wonderful welcome I had into Chaldea."
Both Cú and Scáthach paid close attention to what Rimuru had to say.
"Well…" said Rimuru. "Ok, so I actually didn't do anything to the spear… rather, it's just that its ability to manipulate causality does not affect me...because I don't have a heart within my body...nor do I need one to survive. I have no intention of explaining my species to you guys. Just know that I am not human."
As Rimuru was saying this, Romani and Ritsuka took a quick glance at both Shizue's and Rimuru's bio. Surprisingly, there was not much information whatsoever.
When the pair took a look at Rimuru's bio, all they saw was this:
Name: ?
Sex: Male (Self Identifies as one)
Race: ?
Servant Class: Foreigner
Title: ?
Stats:
Strength: ?
Agility: ?
Luck: ?
Endurance: ?
Mana: ?
Noble Phantasm: ?
Skills: ?
Noble Phantasm(s): ?
Bio: "Not much is currently known about him. He is not human and is absurdly powerful."
When the pair took a look at Shizue's bio, all they saw was this:
Name: ?
Sex: Female
Race: ?
Servant Class: Saber
Title: The Conqueror of Flames
Stats:
Strength: ?
Agility: ?
Luck: ?
Endurance: ?
Mana: ?
Noble Phantasm: ?
Skills: ?
Noble Phantasm(s): ?
Bio: "The Conqueror of Flames, she uses flames in battle."
"So it seems that there really is nothing that we know about them...most of the information is given…" thought Da Vinci, eyeing the bio over the shoulders of Ritsuka and Romani.
Cú and Scáthach, on the other hand, simply nodded.
"Yes, the spear was designed specifically to kill humans. If you are not a human, or do not have a heart, then the causality warping effect will not take place properly."
"Yes." said Rimuru. "Oh, I nearly forgot, we don't know each other's names now, don't we? I guess I will introduce myself first. My name is Rimuru Tempest, Foreigner-Class Servant, and I am also known as the Chaos Creator."
Shizue then went next.
"My name is Shizue Izawa, the Conqueror of Flames, and Saber-Class Servant. I am also a close friend of Rimuru."
The members of Chaldea quickly swallowed this information, before Ritsuka finally spoke up.
"Chaos Creator huh… well, you did cause a large amount of chaos when you arrived at Chaldea…"
Rimuru then started to laugh, surprising the group, save for Shizue, who simply rolled her eyes under her mask.
"Sheesh, is Shizue that mad at me?"
"That is true, I did cause you all a large amount of commotion, though I would like the point out that it only escalated because you guys attacked me."
Emiya grimaced. Of course they would put the blame on him.
Ritsuka then interrupted.
"My name is Ritsuka Fujimaru, the current master of Chaldea. Beside me is Mashu Kyrielight, a demi-servant, and Romani Archaman, the current head and doctor of Chaldea. To my far left is Emiya Archer, the person who shot you, to his right is Scáthach, and her student Cú Chulainn. Medea is to my far right, to her left is Da Vinci, the inventor. Behind me is Sasaki Kojiro, Jeanne d'Arc and Sieg."
As Ritsuka stated each of their names, the respective servants waved their hands. Rimuru waved back.
"Alright, so to answer your question, Chaldea is an organization that was created with the goal to protect humanity. Recently, Singularities have started to pop up, deviations in the history of mankind. These deviations, across multiple timelines and even different universes, cause great harm and risk the destruction of humanity. So it is the duty of Chaldean masters to summon servants and fix these deviations in history!"
"Well it is certainly a noble goal, but having only one master for all of this work is a bit ridiculous...At least, you are the only Master I've met so far."
Ritsuka looked down, while Mashu continued.
"You see, Rimuru, this topic is a really sensitive one. There were originally 48 master candidats in total, but everyone except for Ritsuka-senpai is out of commission. This is because of a traitor that caused the death of our director, Olga Marie Animusphere, as well as the incapacitation of all the other Masters. This happened when Rayshifting, the method for transporting Masters and Demi-Servants such as myself to the timeline we need to fix. However, it seems that just the souls have been transferred when the Rayshifting process was interrupted by blowing up the technology… So they are currently out of commission."
Rimuru eyed both Mashu and Ritsuka. Both seemed inexperienced at first glance, but he could tell that they were veterans in the making. They had enough combat experience, but needed to work more on tactical decision making, especially large scale tactical decisions. Romani and Da Vinci were there to guide them through with tactical planning, but communication could be cut off. What's more, Rimuru immediately peered into the future of these two, and witnessed a large-scale battle being fought. They would have to improve, but then again, they were children.
"I see, apologies for asking then."
"Moving on, may I inquire about your companion?" asked Da Vinci. "It seems that she is a full fledged servant, despite being summoned by you, another servant."
"So?" responded Rimuru.
"Generally, the act of a servant summoning another servant is impossible, though there are a few exceptions. However, in Medea's case, as you may already know, she summoned Sasaki Kojiro here, but Sasaki was actually considered a Pseudo-Servant, and was not as strong as a fully-fledged one." continued Da Vinci, as both Sasaki and Medea nodded in the background. "Shizue, on the other hand, is a fully fledged one, and seems to not be limited by the fact that she was summoned by another servant. Not to mention that you two also appear to know one another, does that mean you two were familiar with each other in life?"
Rimuru smirked.
"Yes, we are familiar with one another in life."
"No point in correcting them on the fact that we are still alive, after all, I would rather keep Zelretch's actions a secret for now."
Rimuru then continued.
"That being said, my ability {Count on Me} allows me to summon Shizue as my "Servant", with Command Spells. This is because Shizue is a part of my legend, or story, but I won't elaborate on my legend just yet."
"It's not like they will believe that I am a Great Demon Lord who saved the world and befriended all the powerful beings in that world...As a Slime…"
His answer was met with silence.
Surprisingly, it was Emiya who spoke up first.
"Well, it would benefit us if we tested her strength in comparison to other servants. There is no problem, is there?"
Rimuru nodded.
"There is no problem, but it seems to be a bit late in the evening now, perhaps we should do that tomorrow."
"Very well then."
Romani then spoke up again.
"Finally, to address the elephant in the room… What on earth even is a Foreigner Servant? I have never heard of it in all my life!"
Rimuru leaned in to explain, using the information given by Ciel.
"To put it mildly, a Foreigner servant is basically a servant that completely flips over the laws of your world. In other words, a Foreigner servant is usually connected to foreign beings, such as Outer Gods, Outer Deities, etc… In a sense, I, as a Foreigner servant, am imbued with Divinity, in order to manifest a "miracle", so to speak. Apparently, a Foreigner servant is usually a host for an Outer God, but the host itself can also hold an ego. Also, creating a Foreigner servant usually has a very low chance of success, but here I am."
Rimuru then smiled, before eyeing the rest. Shizue, however, already had her hand on her katana. And for good reason.
Most if not all of the servants on the other side of the table were now on guard once more. Sasaki Kojiro already had his blade out, while Cú and Mashu had put themselves between Ritsuka and Rimuru.
"Sheesh, what's with you guys… I just gave you all an explanation, that's all…"
Romani then started to speak.
"I think it's obvious why we are on guard… You just revealed that you are a being that completely overturns the base laws of the world, such as causality, common sense, and the like! That's a bit ludicrous!"
Da Vinci then continued.
"Not to mention the fact that usually, according to a bit of research that I have done while still alive, those that are imbued with Divinity by outer gods generally become vessels for said outer gods, or even "crystallized evil". In other words, you, as a Foreigner servant connected to an Outer God, are considered a Threat to Humanity, and an extension of an Outer God."
Silence followed, as both Rimuru and Da Vinci had a stare down, while Shizue eyed both groups from the sideline.
"Correction." said Rimuru. "I am not just an extension of an Outer God, I technically am the Outer God, I used a clone as my medium. But yea, I guess I can see why you guys think I am a threat."
At those words, both Da Vinci and Romani paled. Ritsuka, on the other hand, was in shock.
"Wait, so you are an Outer God?!"
"Yup."
"And there is the problem. We don't know if we can control you or not, if you decide to destroy humanity. Hell, we can't even beat you back. Well, we have not tried using command spells yet…" muttered Da Vinci.
"I suggest you don't try anything to attempt to control me or my companions. I will be blunt, taking that course of action will lead to your agonizing and painful death." threatened Rimuru, suddenly glaring at the group, without taking off the mask of course.
However, the words themselves were enough to cause a very big reaction. Medea already started to chant a defensive spell, while the other servants present readied their weapons. Emiya, on the other hand, finally got a grasp of Rimuru's character.
"So he is incredibly strong, and cares about his companions. If we do not antagonize him, however, and befriend him, it seems like he can be a valuable companion. But he is also quite manipulative, so I don't know whether this is his true character or not."
Rimuru continued.
"I will not tolerate my companions, my friends, my family to be at risk of manipulation. In other words, I will not be your tool, nor will my companions be your playthings. I simply came here to visit a friend in this world, but he was dead. I found out that the reason behind it was because of these singularities. As such, I will help you fix them, and we can work together and have fun along the way. But under no circumstance will we work under you, nor be manipulated by any of you. Fair enough?"
Ritsuka immediately accepted.
"That is completely fair, and to be honest, I never treat my "servants" as servants, but rather as companions. So, as long as you promise not to run rampant killing people, or sabotage us, then we can work together."
Rimuru smiled, before standing up, as the servants relaxed.
"Very well then Ritsuka. From now on, let's work together to save humanity."
Rimuru extended out his hand, and Ritsuka stood up and grasped it. The two then shook hands.
"It is a pleasure to work with you, Rimuru-san."
"Likewise, Ritsuka-san. Speaking of which, I have no intention of actually calling you Master. So I will call you a partner or just Ritsuka. Is that alright with you?"
"That is completely fine, speaking of which, why did you suddenly start calling me -san?"
"You called me Rimuru-san first. I may be an outer deity, but I used to be japanese."
"REALLY?!"
"Yup! Modern age, I used to be your average salary man, with a love for manga! But I am not a neet!"
As Rimuru and Ritsuka immediately got into a conversation regarding manga, Sieg and Jeanne d'Arc, seeing as the situation would no longer require them, left the scene. They were followed by Scáthach, Cú Chulainn, Medea and Sasaki, as it was quite clear that no violence would take place.
Eventually, the group separated, with Ritsuka giving Rimuru a key to his room, and a key to Shizue's room, along with directions to get to said rooms.
"Well, that was an eventful day…" muttered Rimuru, Shizue following behind him.
"Now...to figure out why Shizu-san is so mad at me…"
Emiya Archer was sitting down in a chair in his own room, his hands massaging his temples. His brain went through all the information that he had gathered from Chaldea's newest servant. And it was painful.
"An otherworldly god. That we should never antagonize. How should I defeat this...by the root this is hard…"
Emiya was attempting to figure out a method to defeat Rimuru. So far, he could tell that Rimuru had space warping abilities, hence why Caladbolg was deflected so easily. Space usually warped around that Broken Phantasm, but he did not see any of it when Rimuru deflected it to the side. He also knew that Rimuru had a counter to causality-warping techniques.
"I do not trust his explanation on how he countered Lancer's Noble Phantasm. But I need to gather more information. On the off-chance that he is truly crystallized evil… this world will be doomed."
Not enough information to determine a set plan. It was painful, but he knew that he could not afford to act rashly, as shown by the battle in the summoning room. This servant was in a whole other dimension.
Rimuru was sitting in a chair, in his regular adult form, facing Shizue, who was sitting on one of the two Queen-sized beds. He pondered what he should do, and flinched every time Shizue eyed him.
What did he do wrong? He still did not understand why Shizue was so upset.
"Sheesh… I never thought I'd see Shizue pouting like this. Puffed out cheeks, facing the wall...DAMN IT SHE IS ADORABLE!"
["Master, with all due respect… please refrain from making such comments in these types of situations."]
"You jealous, Ciel?"
["Noooo~ totally nooooot~"]
"That is definite sarcasm… good to see that you have become so much more human."
["... … sp-speaking of which, I analyzed the world like you told me to, and I found some rather intriguing information."]
"Go right ahead, Ciel."
Rimuru then listened to what Ciel had to say, completely ignoring Shizue in front of him. It turns out that many magnus in this world are searching for what is known as "the root", also called Akashic Records. It seems that it holds much information that the magnus wishes to understand, and they are willing to go through any means in order to achieve their desire for information.
"Hey Ciel… quick question. Don't I have the skill {Information King Akashic Records}?"
["Yes…"]
"And you are saying that these magnus are searching for the root, also known as Akashic Records?"
["Yes…"]
"Heh… so if they find out… I will have a huge target painted on my back… how nice… can't wait to see Ritsuka's reaction!"
A pillow was thrown, hitting Rimuru in the face, knocking him out of his thoughts.
"You're getting distracted." Shizue said with a pout.
Rimuru then started to sweat, or at least felt that he was sweating. As a slime, he could not physically sweat, but he always swore that he could.
"Ok...umm… Shizu-san… why are you upset again?"
Veins popping on her forehead, Shizue whipped another pillow at Rimuru, striking him in the face. She then stood up.
"You...ARE TOO RECKLESS!"
"Hah? Wait this is what she is mad about?"
"Rimuru-san, you accepted that challenge of risking your life without knowing whether or not you could actually survive it! I understand that you are now practically invincible, that you are "GOD", but… but… UGH!"
Shizue then proceeded to lightly kick the bed repeatedly.
"You made me worry…" she pouted, then sat down.
Rimuru was stunned. He then started to smirk, then it turned to a slow chuckle, before exploding into laughter.
"PFFFFF- HAHAHAHAHA!"
"STOP LAUGHING! I WAS WORRIED!"
Shizue then proceeded to close the distance, before beginning to lightly pound Rimuru's chest with her fists. Repeatedly.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Rimuru said in between chuckles. "I just feel honored to be cared about by you, that's all!"
Shizue continued her pout, which only seemed to make Rimuru laugh harder.
After a few moments, Rimuru calmed down, before embracing Shizue in a hug.
"Don't worry about me, I will be fine… there is no risk I will take that is not calculated, or if I have a backup plan… you should know that by now."
Shizue returned the embrace.
"I know… it's just that… well I got worried… and it had been a long time since it was just me and you… you usually have so many others that can back you up… I thought that maybe I would not be enough."
Rimuru simply smiled.
"Shizu. You are a demi-goddess, a half deity, a true hero, with the Spirit King Kojin that resides within you. There is a reason why I named that Spirit King Kojin. Kojin is the japanese God of fire, the hearth and the kitchen, which represents your personality more than anything. Not to mention you have an Ultimate Skill. So don't put yourself down. You are more than enough for backup. I couldn't ask for anyone else more mature and level-headed."
Rimuru then got lost in his thoughts, missing the blush that worked up Shizue's face.
"I mean…" continued Rimuru. "If I may complain a bit. Hinata's too scary, and can't take pranks. She will be the death of me one day. Shuna and Shion, although very close to me, always call me Master or Lord, which gets tiring over time. Same goes for the rest of my subordinates… oh and don't get me started on the demon girls and Diablo… Chloe and Chorona, along with the other children, are very nice to have around, but they have their own lives to go through and explore. Milim is Milim. Ramris is Ramris. Ruminas teases me too much. Yuuki keeps on trying to get me to wear lingerie… Guy is a pain in the ass… Veldora's sisters are… well… scary. And-"
"Pfffff-" interrupted Shizue, as Rimuru looked at her. "Seems like you have your hands full."
"I do…"
Both smiled at one another. However, Rimuru then moved towards the other bed.
"It's getting late, we should sleep."
However, Rimuru was suddenly grabbed from behind, as Shizue pulled him into the same bed.
"Oi, Shizu!"
"Rimuru-san, you owe me." Rimuru turned and looked at her shocked. "Do you know how embarrassing it was when I saw you in a bunny suit running around town? Elen and the rest dreamed about it too! This is payback."
"HEY! HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT?"
"Hmmm~ I have no obligation to tell you that!"
Shizue then quickly sent a small flame to turn off the light, before dismissing it.
The room quickly went dark, as Rimuru felt two warm mounds on his back.
After a few moments of hesitation, he relaxed, and pulled the bed covers over the both of them. They then stayed in this position, Shizue's arms wrapped around Rimuru's waist. He was slightly taller than her, in this form.
"You know… I never really thanked you… Rimuru."
"What do you mean? Just you being here, happy, is all I need for a thanks. That goes the same for everyone I care about."
"True… but I should still thank you anyways. For the Cherry Blossom Festivals every year, they were amazing. The Sakura trees were beautiful."
"Yea… remember that time you got drunk?"
"Don't go there… that was too embarrassing…"
"It was funny."
"Stop."
"You should have seen Hinata's and Yuuki's reaction."
"Stoooooop…"
"Ok...ok…well, it wasn't the most embarrassing thing I saw that day. I tricked Hinata into getting drunk that day too. It was the funniest event I had that year."
"What happened?"
"Well, me and Ruminas managed to get Hinata to wear a bunny suit. Then we took a lot of photos. Sadly, Hinata sobered up a few hours later, and I nearly died…" Rimuru said with a grimace.
"Pffff- sounds just like Hinata. You still have the photos?"
"Only in my photographic memory… Hinata destroyed all of mine… I think Ruminas has some copies somewhere, I will ask her for them eventually…"
Rimuru then turned around, wrapping his arm around Shizue's neck. The both of them slowly lost consciousness. Shizue was the first to fall asleep.
"I feel like I am forgetting something… nah… I will worry about that tomorrow." thought Rimmuru.
Rimuru then proceeded to fall asleep next to Shizue, unaware of what the next day would bring.
Crimson and Gold Interlude
A figure with crimson red hair sat still on a throne made of ice. In his mouth was a popsicle stick, slowly swaying up and down as the man played with it with his tongue. He is shirtless, the only article of clothing above his waist being a necklace made out of dragon's teeth. Black pants and black shoes finished off his attire.
This man was the pinnacle of all of existence. At least he used to be, before a certain platinum blue demon lord came around. He was Guy Crimson, the former Strongest Demon Lord, now relegated to the second strongest in the public eye.
For obvious reasons, he would always keep track of that troublesome Chaos Creator. To make sure he didn't fuck the world up, to make sure he didn't do anything troublesome or stupid. Those were all excuses. His real reason for keeping track of Demon Lord Rimuru was simply because he was interested in him, and that he wanted entertainment.
It wasn't easy to keep track of Rimuru, as he would always somehow manage to catch either him or the demons that he sent, and that was to be expected. Rimuru was the Great Demon Lord that saved the world.
Instead of spying or relying on subordinates, Guy had started relying on his gut feeling whenever Rimuru did something, and for the past 10 years, that was what he had been doing. He managed to predict several extremely entertaining events: Hinata Sakaguchi in a bunny suit beating the Chaos Creator with a mug of beer, Shizue Izawa spanking both Hinata Sakaguchi and Yuuki Kagurazaka while slightly drunk, as a stupefied Luminous Valentine and Rimuru Tempest watched from the sideline, Rimuru Tempest himself prostrating in front of what Guy liked to call "his harem", to the vehement denial of all parties involved, and a whole lot more.
Suddenly, a sharp jolt went through his gut, telling him that something interesting was occuring. He smirked wryly, before breaking the popsicle stick with his mouth.
"It's about time. I was just getting bored here...heh, Rimuru, let's see what you are up to this time…"
He stood up, quickly making an image and peeking through it. It was a technique he had developed after their 4th annual fight, after the defeat of Velda. It was similar to the gates he used for Walpurgis, except that they were not as extravagant, and could be activated and deactivated extremely quickly. Why? Because if he activated it too slowly, Rimuru would catch on immediately, and shut it down before it even finished activating.
Of course, Rimuru could easily shut down this surveillance method as well, which was why Guy tended to jump through at the same time. If he was punched out of the portal, he would use that as his casus belli to intervene, and if he were not punched or pushed out, and managed to travel to his intended location...well he could just stick around until he figured out what was going to happen, or what had happened.
Guy was called a prideful jackass several times over the span of these years, which did not stop him. He only stopped after Rimuru threatened to sic Diablo on him every time he pulled a stunt like this again. That didn't mean he stopped entirely...he only stopped for a while, and teleported through the portal every so often.
The reason why Guy did not want to blindly teleport to Rimuru's location was, well, because it was impossible. Spatial interference made it near impossible. So he would always use the new technique, which he did not name yet (and he probably will never name it), to make a hole in the Spatial Interference, and then jump through.
Surprisingly, he could not locate Rimuru, even after multiple images, gates, and whatnot. It seems that Rimuru could not be found, and that was when a memory of a conversation with Milim popped into his head.
She was bragging so high and mighty that she went to another dimension, after Veldora and Ramris came back beaten and bruised by Rimuru. Long story short, dimensional travel, and the two weebs interfered a bit too much, forcing Rimuru to intervene.
Guy's smile grew wider and wider. Seems like something similar happened again. This time, he would not miss out.
Standing up, he notified Rain and Mizari, telling them that he would be gone for a while. The two didn't ask why, but simply told him to be careful, and wished him good luck. Now, a few decades back, we would have killed them for wishing him luck and telling him to be careful. He was the most prideful of all the demon lords, after all. But Rimuru forced him to treat the other two more kindly, or he would refuse to send Guy food. Namely, he would cancel the deal of sending the newest flavors of cake to Guy first. That and Rimuru threatened to visit him daily with Diablo.
He then notified Velzard. To her, he explained everything, as she was his partner, and she also wished him good luck. He was about to head to Rimuru's domain, before pausing. A new idea suddenly sprung into his head.
Yes…
He would bring someone else with him.
After all, Rimuru once said that the more the merrier, or something like that…
Creating a gate, he stepped through, straight into a luxurious room.
Golden ornate decorations, a golden chandelure, an extremely large bed and much much more. He could look around and take in the scenery a bit more, but none of this extravagance mattered to him.
No.
What mattered to him was the blond haired coward that was screaming right in front of him, as he fell backwards onto his butt.
He was wearing a white suit with blue and gold lacings, with ornate patterns similar to stems and flowers weaved across the suit. White pants matched with the suit, and a red tie finished the attire.
His blond hair, once combed smooth, was slightly messed up in his surprise, as his red eyes betrayed his shock and slight anxiety.
He smelled like tulips, for some reason. Guy assumed that this was perfume.
The history between these two ran deep. One was the oldest primordial demon, the other was the reincarnation of his best friend.
This was Masayuki Honjou, the reincarnation of Rudra Nam Ul Nasca. Guy and Rudra, who played a game of chess against each other for centuries, using the many nations and powerful figures as pawns, knights, rooks or bishops, with the queen role their respective partners. That game ended 10 years ago, as Rudra was taken over by his skill Justice King Michael. Masayuki, recognized by his partner as the new emperor of the Empire, easily came to power, and was now a sworn friend of Rimuru Tempest.
And he,the Emperor of the second-strongest nation in the entire world, was now slowly getting up to his feet.
The uncanny resemblance between him and Gilgamesh would make the latter furious, but that story...was for another time.
"Guy...what do you want?" asked Masayuki, already fearing the result of his friend's actions.
Guy smirked.
"Rimuru is up to something interesting again…"
Masayuki paled, before backing away slowly.
"G-Guy...listen...I..am...not getting...involved this time."
Guy's smile now turned dangerous.
"And since you have been cooped up here for so long, I figured that as your friend, you may as well accompany me."
Masayuki was now visibly sweating bullets.
"Guy. I...a-already said...that I am-"
Masayuki was interrupted as Guy grabbed him by the collar, before dragging him towards the gate that he came out of.
"That was not a request. It was a statement. You are coming with me."
"Guy PLEASE!"
Surprisingly, Masayuki was putting up a large amount of resistance. This could be explained due to two reasons. The first was that Guy and Masayuki were slightly equal in raw strength. Masayuki was the reincarnation of the first True Awakened Hero in this world, while Guy was the first True Awakened Demon Lord. The second reason, however, was the main reason why he could resist. Should he fail, then she would kill him. Very slowly and painfully.
"Oh...I did not think that you gained some guts, Masayu-"
Guy was interrupted as Masayuki punched him straight in the face, stunning him for a moment. Once the blond retracted his fist, he could see several veins popping across Guy's face, while a dark bruise was forming over his nose. His smiled widened, and Guy's teeth were now visible. Sharp.
"You have done it now, boy."
Guy threw a punch, which was luckily blocked by Masayuki. So was the second, but not the third, which walloped him in the side of the head.
Using this respite, Guy grabbed him by the hair, and forcefully dragged him at a much faster rate.
"GUY! I HAVE A DATE WITH VELGRYND TODAY!"
Guy stopped.
"Oh...so that was the reason...shit."
Guy let him go.
"You really should have told me sooner."
"I was panicking! You show up out of nowhere, say something is interesting, then drag me like a ragdoll!"
"Oh come on...it's not like you haven't been forced to go somewhere and do something by others before. Rimuru, for example, trolled you a lot back in the day…"
"Yea...but at least he doesn't do it when I have plans with my fiancé!"
At these words, someone else came through the door. Several followed.
"Your Highness, we heard some commotio- OH SHIT!" one soldier swore.
He was immediately smacked by a man with white gloves, black uniform with golden lacings, black hair and eyes, and a black eye patch over his left eye. This man's name was Calgurio, the Commander of the Armored Corps of the Empire.
Several other soldiers were behind them, and the one in front with a furious look was a young woman.
A sizable bust, azure blue hair tied into a single bun, connected to a pony-tail that allowed the rest of her hair to cascade down her back. Golden eyes glared hard at Guy, as her hands closed into fists. She wore a chinese dress, golden in color with crimson lacings, blue dragons sewed into the fabric. White long gloves and white thigh length boots adorned with gold ornaments finished off her attire. A black ribbon kept her hair tied up nicely.
"What do you want, Guy?" said the woman.
"What...I can't visit my friend anytime I want?" answered Guy.
"Velgrynd, that's enough. Calgurio, I leave the soldiers to you. I am alright. I will see you soon, my friend." interjected Masayuki, calming down his fiancé and dismissing his subordinates.
"Understood, your highness." answered Calgurio, who left swiftly, before closing the door.
Yes. The woman was Scorch Dragon Velgrynd, one of the current four True Dragons in existence, and the queen of Masayuki Honjou. She was known as the Marshal in the Empire, but Empress would soon be a more fitting title.
"You still have not answered my question, Guy…" said Velgrynd, once the observers had left.
"Guy thought that something was interesting, and wanted to bring me along. Seems like Rimuru did something again...but its bad timing. Guy, if you want me to go with you, then can that wait till...next week?" said Masayuki.
Guy raised his eyebrow.
"Seems like you are so much more confident when Velgrynd is around, huh… also, one week?" he asked. "How long do you plan to have fun in bed?"
The verbal jab got a much bigger reaction than he thought.
Both Masayuki and Velgrynd immediately turned a shade of crimson comparable to his hair.
Masayuki glared at Guy, before smacking his face with his hand, then groaning in frustration.
Velgrynd, on her part, now had smoke coming out of her ears, as her pupils turned into swirls.
Guy smiled.
"One week huh...well, at least these two will keep me entertained. What antics will they show me? Wait...I do have a bunny suit on me, and I think Velgrynd can wear this in her current form, although barely… and I also have a camera that I bartered with Rimuru for...oh this is going to be FUN! If they react like this to a simple jab ..."
Unbeknownst to the two lovers, the red haired demon quickly contacted his partner, White Ice Dragon Empress Velzard, the older sister of Velgrynd, through Thought Communication. It seems that the four would be going to Rimuru's location together, in a week…