Note:

Rimuru's [Merciless] skill is also called [Heartless] in other sources, which is what I am going to refer to from now on.


"Wait, stop! I can explain!"

On the rooftops of his sister's house, Volgoa crawled away from the person who just landed beside him. Holding an exotic curved sword with both hands above him, the Blade was literally about to cut him in two. He could see the sword descending—the last of his adrenaline allowing him to see it slower and more clearly. He didn't know whether this was a blessing or a curse.

Before it touched him, however, a hand shot out and grabbed the blade of the sword from the side.

It was then he realized there were two more people on the roof. One was a man in his later years, the other was the one who saved him from being cut in half. He recognized her as the heroine who had confronted him a few days prior, Rimuru.

"Now's not the time," she said as she looked below.

That made the Blade and the other man also look down. It was then they realized what she meant.

"Felicia!" The other man shouted, horrified by the state of the kids.

He frantically looked for a way to go down before he was carried by the Blade downwards. As the man started running towards the three children, Rimuru landed before them first, followed by Volgoa, who put himself behind her to shield himself from the Blade.

Before the older man reached them, the woman held her arm upwards. "Hold it."

The man looked baffled and indignant. He looked like he was about to shout at her, but the Blade held him in place. The swordsman gazed at him deeply before shaking his head.

The Blade himself was just as worried about his disciple. The only thing stopping him from dragging Thomas out of there was the mysterious Rimuru herself. With just a look from her eyes, he knew she was about to do something. With her student also there, he was almost certain that the woman wouldn't be up to something bad. Holding onto his promise to the Archmage, he decided to trust the woman and hold still.

The three men saw a flask of glistening blue liquid taken from somewhere behind Rimuru's cloak. It was then opened and poured on the injured two of the three kids before the last of it was sprinkled onto Volgoa.

Volgoa immediately felt invigorated. The soreness of his body disappeared, replaced by a calming warmth.

"What… is this?"

"A healing potion."

The three gasped at the sight. The arm of the girl that they saw singed black started to regain its original color. The Blade's eyes widened in barely-concealed shock as he saw the holes on his disciple's feet disappear. Soon, all their injuries were nowhere to be seen.

A simple healing potion? Volgoa very much doubted it. It looked like the other two didn't believe her either. Its effects far surpassed any other potion in the market. In fact, he'd never even seen a potion with such potent effect.

Everybody knew that the most effective way to use a potion was by drinking it. Its effects didn't come instantaneously like this one did. It first had to be circulated in the body for there to be any effect. Hence, pouring one on an open wound would just waste most of it.

This potion, however, denied all knowledge of alchemy.

"What happened here?" asked the older man, getting back to the situation at hand.

The Blade answered, "A fight, most certainly."

The bluenette took a long, deep sigh and said, "I was too careless."

A sharp bang sounded behind them, making them turn around. They saw a woman holding a warhammer in one hand and a paper bag in the other. Her glaring eyes sharply scanned the area before stopping at the black clothed man.

"What the fuck did you do this time, Voltaire!?"

Damn it.


After Volgoa's explanation about all that happened with much of the twins' hyperbolic confirmations, the Blade allowed him to keep his head attached to his neck. Everyone was currently sitting inside the black-clad man's sister's room, looking over at the trio sleeping on her bed. Victoria had just put the twins in their own room earlier.

The Blade voiced out, "It doesn't make sense. How did the girl get burnt?"

Fevers did not literally burn people.

"Even though my brother is a scoundrel, my kids wouldn't lie to me about this," defended Vic.

He shook his head. "I'm not saying I don't believe them. What I don't get is how they ended up getting knocked out cold."

The adults, sans Rimuru, had tried to wake the three kids earlier to no avail. The Blade eyed the bluenette who was suspiciously too calm in this situation.

"You seem relaxed."

Nodding, she said, "There's no use panicking."

"Being relaxed and staying calm are two different things."

Rimuru sighed. "My son had no hand in this. His training currently mainly consists of melee combat. If you're looking for suspicious behaviour, pay attention to the one who's said the least words since the explanation."

All eyes slowly shifted to the nobleman in the room.

With narrowed eyes and a low voice, Rodrick mouthed, "My daughter has nothing to do with them falling unconscious. She's as much of a victim as they are."

"Not sure if that's really the case."

"...Are you calling me a liar?"

Shaking her head, she explained, "No. I just know that you're not telling us everything."

Before he could retort, Rimuru added, "I'm guessing since you know how keen the Blade's senses are, you didn't want to risk talking about your daughter's burnt arm."

A brief loss of his composure was all the Blade needed to suspect him. The swordsman's brows furrowed as Rodrick hastily questioned, "What do you mean?"

"If a parent were to see burn marks appear on their child, not to mention none of their friends have it, the parent would immediately question what caused it, no?"

At this, Rodrick shut his mouth tightly.

"If you really had no clue about this, then you would've demanded to know how she got burnt. Yet, instead you avoided it because you know you couldn't fool him." The bluenette pointed at the red-headed swordsman.

"What aren't you telling us, Rodrick?" he asked.

Rodrick refused to open his mouth.

"If I may interject, my lords," Victoria respectfully said to the Blade and the nobleman. "Would it not be easier to help these children if we share any clue we have?"

Rodrick faltered for a moment before shaking his head resolutely.

More and more mysteries just kept adding up. And he thought his return to Rabianigh would have lessened his stress. The red-head traced the scar on his nose.

"Well, if you refuse to say anything, then you really won't like the reason why they're unconscious."

...wait.

"You knew all along?"

"Why didn't you say anything??"

To that, Rimuru shrugged and answered, "I was waiting for Rodrick to say his piece so I can lead on from there. But since he didn't, I might as well just tell you."

Everyone in the room stared intently.

"So, what is it?"

"The three of them are forming a soul corridor."

After a few seconds of silence, Volgoa voiced all their thoughts, "What's that? A type of soul magic?"

"The strongest kind."

An audible gulp sounded from the nobleman.

It was common knowledge that soul magic was a specialty of the demon race. The methods of its practice and the nature of its practitioners were what made it an illegal branch of study everywhere. If word got out, these kids would be persecuted, prosecuted, and executed. Even worse, they might be tortured for intel about demons. That was how dire this news was.

"...how do you know that?" The suspicion was clear in the nobleman's voice.

"You can say I am very familiar with manipulating souls," Rimuru answered as if it were something so trivial.

With an ashen face, Rodrick threatened, "You've just revealed your true nature in front of the greatest demon slayer in our time, demon."

The Blade of the Great Nine.

With his trusty sword Orpoblitz, he had single handedly killed more demons than any other of the Great Nine.

Demons were known for being extremely hard to kill. Slay their physical bodies, and they might just wake up in another.

The Blade's sword closed off that option. As a soul-eating blade, it was able to cut down a demon through its very soul and devour it to strengthen itself and its wielder.

Rodrick fully expected the demon to be cut down by now, but to his surprise the demon slayer remained seated.

"W, what is the meaning of this?"

He looked around to see nobody trying to act against the blue haired demon.

Interrupting his stupor, Rimuru calmly said, "Did you know that Empathy is a precursor to soul related techniques?"

Rodrick's face only told confusion and apprehension.

"Empathy," she emphasized. "...is the ability to sense the emotions of others."

Slowly, a look of understanding dawned on him.

"Though all demons have it inherently, it is by no means exclusively theirs."

"So, you're saying that my daughter has that ability?"

"No," She shook her head. "If it were only that, then I wouldn't have revealed myself to you."

Rimuru continued, "However, from this ability, demons have developed a powerful technique—one which allows them to devour negative emotions and turn them into power. It is a technique only usable for those with demonic origin."

"...Never before have I heard of such a convoluted lie! My daughter was born in my manor from my very much human wife. Not to mention me, who was descended from my ancestors of the Viengrey household, who were all human!"

Ignoring his outburst, the bluenette turned towards the Blade and asked, "Do most people not know what half-demons are?"

The Blade shook his head and said, "It is somewhat of an open secret around here."

"Why are you folding into her lies!? You should--"

"She's not lying," answered the swordsman.

Seeing that words were getting them nowhere, the Blade decided to do something he hadn't done for years—unfurl his wing.

A flap of his bat-like single wing was enough to silence the nobleman.

Yes, a singular wing.

It was the symbol of the half-demons, those who were born half man, half demon. It was unknown why all half-demons shared this trait, other than the obvious fact that they were both genetic and spiritual hybrids, that is.

A flap from the side was heard. He saw Volgoa also opening his demon wing.

It was no exaggeration to say that Rodrick was way beyond shocked speechless. Just how often did people learn knowledge that flipped their world upside down?

"I hate to break it to you, Rodrick. Your daughter, and likely your wife, are half-demons." The red-head patted the disturbed man's shoulder consolingly.

As the Blade pulled the man into a conversation regarding half-demons, with Volgoa and Victoria chiming in, another conversation was happening inside Rimuru's head.

{I'm sorry, master, but there was no other way.}

Rimuru stayed silent.

{If you find it appropriate to punish me, please do so. But regardless, if I had to do it again, I wouldn't hesitate to.}

Rimuru sighed.

"I don't blame you, Ciel. You've always had my safety first and foremost in mind. There's nothing you need to apologize for."

Rimuru walked next to the bed and gazed at the three kids, before his eyes stopped on the girl.

Ciel had informed him that one of the reasons this girl, Felicia Viengrey, gained a skill was due to him. His presence was the last requirement for her to gain the unique skill, [Heartfelt].

It was, by nature, the opposite of his unique skill, [Heartless].

The unique skill may have been absorbed into a colossal amalgamation that was his current skill, but it was still there within him.

Whilst his skill allowed him to take the lives of those who gave up theirs into his hand, hers allowed her to protect the lives of those who gave their trust and were cherished by her.

Truly, an enviable skill. If in the past he could've chosen between the two, he wouldn't even have considered choosing [Heartless].

Alas, the Voice of the World deemed him a merciless monster, and he couldn't really deny it. He couldn't see them as anything more than food, after all.

Veering off his tangent, Rimuru then focused his gaze on his son.

Jack wasn't supposed to be the one connected to the soul corridor. [Heartfelt] 's real target… was Rimuru himself.

After transcending space and time, both Rimuru and Ciel noticed that the soul corridor he had with Veldora had persisted, allowing him to communicate with his brother from another period of time. This, of course, brought much curiosity to them. Rimuru had let Ciel examine and tamper with the corridor, but due to the earlier incident regarding a certain gunslinging Kondo, his partner was very hesitant in handling their bond so carelessly.

In the end, not much was learned from the examination. Rimuru and Ciel decided to shelve the experiment for another time.

It was not until Veldora forcibly cut off their soul corridor that the examination was brought up again.

Veldora foolheartedly ripped their corridor, causing great damage to both brothers.

Of course, he didn't do it due to malicious intent. He just wanted to show Ramiris he was ready to commit to their marriage by showing her that he wasn't overly reliant on Rimuru.

The damage it caused was so bad it was nothing short of a miracle that the both of them made it through with their souls intact. Ciel was so furious at the time that she lost some control over herself, causing the multiverse to disrupt. Had it not been for her master's multiple attempts to stop her, Veldora's soul wouldn't have lived to see another day, much less the multiverse.

The incident apparently took away any trust Ciel had left with Veldora and gave her several bouts of paranoia regarding Rimuru's safety.

How paranoid was she during that time?

The whole process of his recovery was handled by Ciel and Ciel alone. She didn't even let a single soul come near him until she was certain he was alright. Any attempt to defy her was dealt with viciously and instantly.

During the tearing of the corridor, some souls he had devoured in the past managed to escape him. Some from Falmuth, some from the empire, some were the monsters he killed in the early days—heck, even Clayman escaped.

But the two who he noticed were missing right off the bat were Shizu and that fucker Yuuki.

It took years to bring that false god down again. It wasn't because he was too powerful—Guy could actually overpower him in a fair fight—it was that he was too sneaky. While inside him, Yuuki had analyzed Ciel and found a way to bypass her senses, which at that point was literally multiversal. If he weren't such an asshole, Rimuru would've commended him for his ability.

Supposedly in utter spite, he also made the other escaped souls disappear from Ciel's observation.

Ciel was, predictably, outraged.

First Veldora, and then all this mess? When they finally caught him, Rimuru made the sound decision to stop Yuuki once and for all, apologizing to Shizu in his heart. Ciel voluntarily (read: demandingly) helped by tearing his soul piece by piece before permanently destroying it. She did it in the Azathoth Mass just in case he somehow lived through that.

They had eventually found a way to find the souls, though only after they died in their new life.

Somehow, the escaped souls had the tendency to cause great impact and change in their new life. By sensing the souls' extreme karmas upon arrival to the Well of Souls, Ramiris' domain, they were able to determine whether the soul was an escapee or not.

In the Well of Souls, these escaped souls were given a name: the chaotic souls.

They were the ones who escaped the void which was Rimuru's stomach.

After some meetings and talking, it was decided that the souls which were much more tame than other chaotic souls were given the chance of reincarnation, though with the erasure of their previous lives' memories. Meanwhile the worse bunch were either devoured once again by Rimuru or sent to the Azathoth Mass.

To this day, there were still a number of chaotic souls they couldn't find. It was either they never died or that they had their own reincarnation cycle.

...by the time he realized it, he had hopped into an even larger tangent than the last one.

Anyway, where was he?

Ah, yes.

Instead of Jack, Rimuru was supposed to be [Heartfelt] 's target. Due to the events he had just recollected, Ciel understandably did all she could to prevent him from forming another soul corridor with anyone.

The skill's appearance was so sudden that it almost took Ciel by surprise. She did all she could to stop the soul corridor from forming and found out a way to counter it.

Instead of the target, the corridor could be redirected to someone who the original target had an emotional bond with. Though, the physical distance between the three parties also mattered.

Essentially, Jack was used as a scapegoat by Ciel.

He would be lying if he said he was okay with it, but he couldn't really fault Ciel either.

Rimuru just had to keep a closer eye on these three kids, to make sure no soul-tearing kind of bad luck befell on them.

What Rimuru didn't know was that Ciel herself was actually the other possible choice for the corridor. It was just that she refused to be bonded with anyone other than her master.

Rimuru moved his hand to trace not Jack, but Felicia's left cheek.

On it were four reddish lines going down from her left eye. He of course remembered the other person who had the exact same markings.

The previous owner was human, though. The soul he detected within the child was mostly human, but had a smidgen of demon within it. He wondered if chaotic souls were harder to 'demonize.' This child's soul was technically chaotic, after all.

It might've been the reason why she was able to absorb emotions but was unable to properly convert it.

For the first time in a while, through his faintly smiling lips, he whispered out in the language he and the girl's previous self were native to—japanese.

"It's good to see you again, Shizue."

(A/N: Now, before you flame me for inaccuracies, OOCs, very long delays or anything else, I just want to say that it's been a long while since I last read the web novel, and the knowledge I have about the story is being mixed up with the newer sources. Yes, this fic is mainly based on the web novel, though it should've been obvious to anyone who read one of the source materials.)

(Also, I had wanted to put some action in this chapter, but it turned out to be good for info-dumping and setting up upcoming plots, and also a bit of worldbuilding if anyone was interested. Ending it on such a revelation was better than my first idea.)

Now, onto the responses:

(to Journy1006: It brings me great joy to know how you feel about the characters' relationships!)

(to Shieru190: Thanks! I like your name!)

(to Cassieissocool185: I'm happy you're happy!)

(to Anton Fire: You da real MVP!)

(to A clowns smile: I am very pleased to know that this story was able to brighten your day! May more sunny days come by!)

(to Unisun: No, the current setting was birthed by the Tensuraverse and a few of my ideas.)

(to JackTheSpades: I wholeheartedly agree! What good is calling yourself the Great Demon Lord if nobody is going to fear you?)

(to SwhoPG: A)

(to Russkij (Guest): Yes, I do feel it too. I know I could've done better than that. I'll try to write better chapters.)

(to Maou Shojou Areil chan: Thank you. I hope you're also doing well.)

(to weewtis: I can totally see that happening! In fact, count that as canon!)

(to Tears of Hearts: No, it's actually something I thought up based on the world of Tensura.)

(to YllkaYin: Yeah. We need way more Rimuru x Ciel!)

(Much love to all the reviews I have missed or yet to reply to! Hope this chapter entertains you all!)


Very short OMAKE-ish

Here's a line that was cut from the chapter that I just couldn't bear to get rid off:

"It was no exaggeration to say that Rodrick was way beyond shocked speechless. Just how often did people learn knowledge that flipped their world upside down? Rodrick's was flipped both sides twice, before it was tossed into the air and landed onto a bun. Add a few pickles and another bun to top it off and he'd have a whole mindfuck burger."