Before we enter into this new chapter, I just want to say that I am sorry for the typing errors that occurred in the previous chapter.

I only realized it a few days ago that the words of Great Sage had not been transferred when I transferred my word document onto my fanfic application.

Rest assured the issue has been taken care off and I will make sure to proof read my chapters from now on.

(Chapter 1 has been edited)

Chapter 2: Storm Dragon Veredia!

I don't really know what I was expecting when I reached the end of the tunnel, thus far this world had been full of one surprise after another.

I died in my world, K.I.A as a cop on the field, and was reborn as a dragon. Learned that I had a ton of awesome skills with the potential to gain more as time went on.

It was safe to assume that anything could have been at the end of this tunnel. And yet the last thing that I expected to see…

… was another freaking dragon!!!

"Aaahh a dragon!!" I couldn't help but shout in alarm I backed up a little.

Before me stood a massive midnight blue dragon that was at the very least a hundred times bigger than I was. Its bright golden eyes glowing as they looked down at me with what was clearly amusement.

"You are a dragon as well, little one." Her voice, because it definitely feminine, alone shook the walls of the cave.

"Oh…right!!" I responded sheepishly, if I could rub the back of my head I would have, "I'm still getting used to being a dragon." It was something I would have to get used to quickly, this was my new life now. "Besides , it's not like I saw you or anything, I just followed the light at the end of that tunnel."

"I see, so you weren't able to sense my presence, even as you approached me?" The Dragon asked, a statement that confused me a little. Mainly because I was unfamiliar with the term.

" 'Sense your presence'? What does that mean?" I asked for clarification.

"Makes sense you do not know, you are a newborn after all." I decided not to ask the dragon how she knew that. Probably common sense since I looked like a baby compared to her. "Most, if not all, monsters possess the ability to sense the magicules in the air around them, this skill is called [Magic Sense]. For those without eyes or poor eyesight, this skill serves as their eyes and has a far greater range than what normal eyes can grant."

"Woah that sounds like it be super helpful!!" I shouted. Being able to sense monsters and magic all around you over a wide range was something I wanted, it would definitely come in handy.

"Oh, would you like me to teach it to you?" The larger dragon asked much to my shock. "It's a very easy skill to grasp."

The offer was obviously a tad bit too good to be true, so naturally I was wary of there being ulterior motives.

"Uh what's the catch?" I asked. Being taught a skill, no matter how basic it was, was something that someone wouldn't do on a whim.

"You must promise not to take what I wish to share negatively?" The dragon said, I couldn't help but tilt my head in minor confusion. Sure they were a lot of things that she could say that I may not take kindly to, but the fact that she was warning me…

"Uh, okay sure." I responded, not too sure how else I was supposed to respond to the terms of the agreement.

"Very well then. Now to learn this skill you must close your eyes and focus. Feel the small particles floating all around you, those are magicules. If you manage to gain control over them you should be able to 'see' with them." The large dragon explained, I nodded my head and did as I had been instructed. Closing my eyes and focusing on feeling the magicules all around me.

It took me a few minutes but I eventually got the hang of it. My head aching from the sudden rush of information and the perspective it all, fortunately great sage was able to help me process that inflow.

《Notice: You have acquired the Extra Skill [Magic Sense]. 》

"Woah, the world certainly looks more different when you look at it from this perspective." I noted as I used my newly acquired skill to look at my surroundings. The magistone ores all around us certainly looked more vibrant than they did through my eyes alone. This was most likely due to the magicules they had absorbed over time.

"It does, doesn't it. This skill will serve you well so make sure to put it to good use." The dragon explained to which I nodded my head in understanding.

"Will do!" I said as I turned to face the dragon only for my eyes to widen once more, "What the heck!! Your aura is huge!!"

"Ahahahaha-Ahahahah-hahaha!! So you finally noticed did you!" The dragon said after letting out a roar of laughter that vibrated throughout my entire body.

Honestly looking at her through magic sense made me wonder how in the seven levels of hell I hadn't felt such an overwhelming presence before. Still I couldn't help but wonder if all dragons had this much power, and if I'd grow this strong as well.

It would also explain why I hadn't encountered any monsters as I ventured deeper into the cave. If other living creatures could sense this aura using [Magic Sense] or any other method then obviously they would do their best to stay clear of the source of it all!!

Well I suppose it's to be expected, I am the Storm Dragon Veredia! One of only four True Dragons in existence! Ahahahaha!!" The Dragon, whom I guess was called Veredia, shouted with a bellowed laugh . It took a moment before she finally calmed down and looked down at me once more, "Now about our agreement, little one."

"Yeah, you said there was something that you wanted to tell me." I said as I thought back to the terms of Veredia teaching me [Magic Sense]. I couldn't react badly to whatever it is was she was about to tell me, and honestly that made me a bit nervous.

"Well…how do I put this into words." Veredia mumbled to herself as she suddenly seemed a bit shy and embarrassed and shy to me, though I had no clue why, "I suppose being blunt in this situation is for the best. Little one…I'm your mother."

"…"

"…"

"…"

My eyes simply remained on hers as I tried to process what had just been shared. My mind was running a thousand miles. My first instinct naturally was to deny it, but the more I thought about it the more I realized there was no point in holding onto the ties of my previous life.

I may have had a human family in my previous life, but that meant nothing now in this new world I had been born into. The only thing I could do was keep the experiences of my old life and the values I learnt as a result and carry them into this knew life.

The chances actually being my mother in this world were far too high for me to deny. She was the only living creature I'd come across since entering this world. Not to mention that she was also a dragon. So it only made sense.

"I guess…that makes sense." I said after a moment as my gaze shifted back to the floor before looking back at the dragon.

"Really, I assumed you'd put up more of a fight as a reincarnated soul?" Veredia said as my whole body tensed up while my eyes widened in alarm. My reaction seemed to amuse my 'mother', it would take some getting used to call her that. "Did you assume I wouldn't notice?"

"H-how did you kn-know?!" How the hell did someone know when another person was reincarnated?! That was just absurd!! Was it a skill or something?!

Either way this could very well turn out to be bad. If Veredia felt I had possessed her child's body then I very well could be in a shit load of trouble here!! I couldn't blow this off as a mere incident!!

"Fret not young one, there is no need to fear." Veredia said as she let out a chuckle at seeing my distress. I certainly didn't see anything funny about it, I thought for sure that I was going to die!! "If I'm being honest I saw this coming."

"Really, how?!" I asked, I was relieved that I wasn't in any trouble or anything, but I was still curious as to how she knew I had been reincarnated.

"Well…how should I put it." Veredia said as she closed her eyes in thought, "Dragon eggs take a period of 80 days to hatch, with some stretching to over a hundred due to the potency of their dragon factor."

"Dragon factor?"

"That's right, 'Dragon Factor' is a term used to determine how strong the dragon genome is within an individual, with us True Dragons possessing the highest factor and being the strongest of species in this world!!" Veredia said boastfully, the pride she held in her strength audible. She then went on to clear her throat as if to wash away the awkwardness of what she just did, "Anyway, there are lesser creatures such as Lizardmen or Wyverns that have a smaller dragon factor being descendants of the dragons and having mixed bloodlines."

"I see…" I nodded my head.

"Anyways your egg took abnormally long to hatch little one, so much so that it worried this poor old dragon greatly! We're talking millenniums here!!" Veredia said in distress and concern, "It took me a while to realize that even though your body had fully matured within the egg, it had no soul so to speak. And so because of it the egg never hatched."

"Oh…that must have been hard." I didn't know what to say to all that. I couldn't imagine expecting a child only for that child not to wake due to the body not having a soul. I didn't know if female dragons were as maternal as humans, or maybe even more so, but it had to hurt either way.

"…it was, agonizing in fact. There were times where I lashed out at the world around me, destroying cities for the sake of entertainment and the likes. It's kinda how I ended up getting sealed in this cave." Veredia admitted, I couldn't help but chuckle nervously at how casually she spoke about laying waste to several cities, but I still sympathized with all that she went through, "But I held onto the hope that a soul would emerge in that body and my child would wake, reincarnated soul or otherwise. I was willing to accept it all."

"I…get it. Or at least I think I do." I admitted as I thought my next words over carefully, "I was human in my previous life, and I wasn't from this world either. When I first woke up here I admit that I was a bit shocked to find myself in the form of a baby dragon, and actually hatching out of an egg was quite the experience. But now that I've gotten time to actually think about it I'm glad for this opportunity, to have a new life. To start all over again, and if the gods permit it to make an actual difference in the world."

I really was looking forward to whatever this new life had in store for me, both the good and the bad. Life as a dragon was going to be very different to the life I had before, and it was something that both excited me and concerned me. Whatever the case I would face the challenge head on and continue to grow as an individual.

"I see…" Veredia said as she studied me for a few minutes, maybe processing what I had just told her about my prev-, "Does that mean you're going to call me mommy?!"

Whatever thought process I'd been having in that moment immediately shut down as I literally fell face first into the dirt at the absurdity of that question. The fact that Vere- my mother seemed to look towards me with hopeful and expectant eyes certainly didn't make this any easier!!.

"That's…a bit much. Can I settle for 'mother' instead?" I asked, no way I was reverting to a child's language of addressing their parents, I still had some pride left in me.

"I suppose that may have been a bit much." Veredia said with a sigh, though it was clear she understood where I was coming from, "Still, 'mother' seems too formal for me. How about this, you call me 'mom' when it's the two of us, but 'mother' in the presence of others.

Doable, and much less embarrassing than actually having to all her mommy. I don't think I'd ever be able to live it down if I did. Still, Veredia was my mother by blood now, and after everything she had gone through to protect her egg just so she could await the day it would hatch, calling her 'mom' was the least I could do.

"Yeah, mom sounds great!!" I responded with a smile, testing the way the word in itself rolled out of my mouth.

"Oh, how wonderful! If it weren't detestable barrier I would have nuzzled into your cute little face!!" Veredia squealed in absolute joy.

It was…beyond strange to see what was supposed to be a mighty dragon acting so feminine. But for the sake of my sanity I decided to just ignore it for the time being and focus on the important part of what my mother had just said.

"Wait, how long have you been sealed inside this cave?" I asked as I glanced at the barrier that surrounded the enormous figure of my mother.

"It was a little over three hundred years ago. During my attacks on one of the human settlements, one of them stepped forward to fight me. A hero, is what they called her." Veredia said.

"Wait, they are heroes in this world?!!" I asked in excitement. This place was turning out to be your typical medieval fantasy world. Magic, monsters, heroes and who knows what else was out there! It all just made eager to go out there to explore it all.

Though now that I actually think about it, it would probably be best if I avoid any human settlements for the foreseeable future.

"Indeed, we call them Other Worlders. People summoned from your original world to come and serve as weapons." Veredia explained, I couldn't help but frown at that.

"Well that doesn't sound nice." I said, the fact that there may be other individuals from my world as well was awesome!! However the fact that they were only brought here to serve as the weapons and tools of people certainly didn't seem fair. If anything it sounded a lot like slavery.

"Is that right." Veredia said as she looked down at me, her expression strangely serious for the first time, "Listen well my child. I don't know how things operated in your previous world, but here there's an unspoken rule amongst all creatures. 'Survival of the Fittest.' That is the rule all creatures in this world follow. Fairness isn't a thing you can expect, as long as one has power then they have the right to rule over the weak however they wish."

Veredia was absolutely serious the whole time she spoke. She wasn't just telling me this, she was warning me of what I was to expect. I made sure to take those words to heart.

'Survival of the fittest huh.' I thought to myself. If that was the case then I had to get stronger, a lot stronger than anyone else in this world. 'I have no desire to be someone else's pawn or slave.'

"Anyway, back to my story. The hero I fought that day was extremely powerful, more so than I though she would be. I even ended unleashing the full might of my power about half way through our fight." Veredia said as she closed her eyes, more than likely recalling the battle between them, "Unfortunately at some point during our battle, I let my guard down for a moment, and it was in that moment that the hero cast this seal, the heroes [Unique Skill: Unlimited Imprisonment]. And because of my carelessness I've been sealed for over three hundred years. My skills locked by the effects of the skill and my magicules slowly leaking out of my body."

That certainly explained why this place was filled with magicules and why magistone ores and hipokute herbs were growing out everywhere!! Still, the fact that my mothers magicules were leaking out of her body was very worrying to me

"What happens when you've run out of magicules?" I asked in concern, based of what [Great Sage] had told me about how magicules were essential to the survival of monsters I already had my own suspicions.

"Oh nothing major. I'll probably just die." Veredia responded flippantly.

"That sounds like a major problem!!" I shouted in both shock and anger at how she could just speak so casually about dying!!

"You must understand little one, I've had three hundred years to come to terms with eventual death." My mother spoke calmly, so much so that it kinda infuriated me even more! "I probably only have a hundred years or so before I run out."

"Nope!!" I shouted in denial and anger, drawing Veredia's attention towards me. Without another word I approached the rainbow colored barrier, "Predator!!" I shouted as a small vortex appeared from my mouth and made contact with the [Unlimited Imprisonment] and began to grow wider and wider in an attempt to breakdown the skill. However before any notable progress could be made, the vortex stopped growing and vanished entirely.

《Notice: Attempt to devour [Unlimited Imprisonment] has failed.》

"I should have known it wouldn't be that easy." I muttered, cursing silently, I'd assumed that since both [Unlimited Imprisonment] and [Predator] were unique skills I could devour or at the very least weaken the seal to allow my mother to escape. But this seal wouldn't have held for three hundred years if it was that easy to break it. 'Great Sage, analyze the Unlimited Imprisonment.'

"It's hopeless young one, I appreciate the sentiment but you shouldn't waste your time like this." Veredia said, but I merely ignored her as I waited for the results on the analysis.

《Analysis Failed!!》

'Damn it all!! Just what kind of skill is [Unlimited Imprisonment]. There should be a way to break it, but how?!!' I mentally vented.

《Answer: It may be possible to analyze the [Unlimited Imprisonment] with assistance of information gathered from both inside and outside the barrier. 》

'I see, that means that means mom would have to analyze the barrier from within while I did it from the outside.' I thought to myself.

"Hey! It's very rude to ignore someone to talk to your own skill!!" Veredia shouted pulling me from the conversation with [Great Sage].

"Sorry mom, but thanks to said skill I may have figured out a way to set you free!!" I quickly revealed, hoping to placate her sudden agitation.

"Oh? Do tell." Veredia said as she leaned closer to me.

"Well the [Unlimited Imprisonment] needs to be examined from both sides in order for my skill to break it down, you working from the inside whilst I work from the outside." I explained, "The process will naturally take time given the complexity of the seals almost a hundred years give or take."

"That's cutting it a bit close isn't it? Not to mention there is no way I'll allow you to bind yourself to this place for my sake. As a mother I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that were the case." Veredia said, and through the emotion sensing abilities of my [Desire] unique skill I could tell that she meant what she said about not wanting to tie me down, but that she was also pretty hopeful about being able to be free and return to the world of the living again.

"Fortunately I might have a solution to that, in the form of my other unique skill [Predator]. Using it to destroy the barrier earlier failed, but by consuming both you and the seal and storing you in the hyperspace of the [Stomach] sub-skill, I can go about my daily life while still analyzing the prison from the outside." I explained, I wasn't sure how Veredia was going to take that idea. She may be my mother but I was basically telling her that I'd have to eat her in order to analyze the seal and be able to go about my life.

"I see…" She said with a serious expression as she nodded her head, I couldn't help the bead of sweat that made its was down the side of my face. She then raised her head and took in a deep breath of air before a thunderous roaring laughter came out, a booming laughter that shook the entire cave, "Wonderful!! Just wonderful, for a small hatchling to devour the mighty Storm Dragon! Even if you are my son the idea is just outlandish!! Let's try it!"

"W-wait seriously?! Just like that?!" I asked surprised by how willing she was to just go with my idea. Perhaps it was the fact that she had nothing more to lose.

"Of course!! You are my flesh and blood, I trust you completely. Besides it's a lot better than waiting all alone for my demise for the next hundred years." Veredia responded, and I honestly couldn't argue with that kind of logic.

"Okay then." I said with a nod of my head in understanding as I once more stepped towards the barrier in preparation to swallow it along with my mother whole. "Here goes no-"

"Wait!!" Veredia suddenly shouted just before I could use my [Predator] skill. Good thing too, cause I doubt I would have been able to stop once the process had started.

"What is it mom?" I asked, I couldn't help but wonder if she was second guessing her choice to go through with this.

"As your mother it's my duty to give you a name." Veredia said almost smugly, "I wont allow some other lowly being to grant you a name. But before I do, you must know what it means to receive or give a name."

"What do you mean." To be honest I'd totally forgotten that I'd more or less been going around without a name. I guess I'd just subconsciously been referring to myself by my old name.

"Monsters do not particularly have names in this world. Monsters can only be named by individuals that are stronger than them, and in doing so they not only gain more power but also the divine protection of the one who gave them the name." Veredia explained, "For the individual who grants the monster a name, the process consumes magicules. The stronger the monster you name, the more magicules it will take. Name a monster too powerful for you and the process would kill you, the same applies if a monster tried to name itself."

I could feel the pointed stare at me in that last statement. I supposed I'd dodged a major bullet by not introducing myself with the name from my previous life.

Still the fact that monsters didn't have names was something that seemed weird, especially if some of them were supposed to be intelligent. If that was the case then how did they address each other? I decided not to question that too much right now, I'd cross that particular bridge when I came across it.

"That being said as you are now, you're already stronger than pretty much any creature you may encounter in the forest outside of this cave. And with my divine protection your power will only grow that much more." Veredia said, I could tell she was trying to build up the suspense. And if I was being honest she was doing a pretty good job at it too. Getting a name sounded way cooler in this world!! "So are you ready?"

"Totally, just make sure it's something respectable." I said, didn't want to end up with a dorky name or something of the sort just because my mother wanted to have a laugh.

"Of course, nothing but the best. Though if that's how its going to be, perhaps you should be the one to choose our shared name, you would know it better as a family name." Veredia suddenly said, I was genuinely surprised that she'd ask me to do something like that. Giving one of the strongest beings in this world a family name was bound to be a major deal, one that I'd have to take seriously.

'Well…she is the Storm Dragon, and I'm her son. At the very least it should have something to do with that.' I said as I let various ideas go in and out of my mind, 'Storm would be too obvious…storm, thunder, hurricane, tempest…? That's another word for Storm isn't it?! And it sound awesome too!!

"Tempest!! Our family name will be tempest!" I shouted excitedly hoping she would like the name.

"Tempest hhmmm? Veredia Tempest…" my mother mumbled as she rolled the name on her lips to test it out. After the pause she turned back to me "I LIKE IT!! FROM THIS DAY FORTH, I SHALL BE KNOWN AS VEREDIA TEMPEST!!"

The declaration, accompanied by a loud roar, shook the cave walls along with the ground I was standing on. I was glad she liked it though, it was certainly a fitting name for a being of her caliber.

"Glad you like it." I said as I let out a relieved sigh.

"And now it is your turn." My mother said as she now turned her full attention towards me. I couldn't help but start to feel a little bit anxious, this was a big moment in my new life. This new name was something that I would carry with me for the rest of my life so of course I wanted it to sound at least decent, "Hmm…how about Rimuru. Yes, from now on your name is Rimuru Tempest!!"

In that moment I felt something deep within me change, as if that name, Rimuru Tempest, had been engraved into my very soul. My eyes instinctively closed as my very nature began to change, and with that change came strength, an unbelievable amount of power!!

"I am Rimuru Tempest!!!" I declared to the world, mimicking my mother.

《 Notice: The individual known as Rimuru Tempest has evolved into an Elemental Dragon. Physical capabilities and magicule reserves have increased drastically. Beginning analysis of skills and resistances.》

Woah really?! I knew my mom had said than naming a monster may result in its evolution but I hadn't been expecting much since Veredia was my mother and all. But the rush of power in my body right now was almost euphoric, I felt way lighter than I did a moment ago and I could tell that the amount of magicules within me had risen as well.

Curious to see if my evolution had led to any physical changes I went over to see my reflection in the nearby pond. I had grown a tad bit bigger than I had been before. While before I'd been about the size if a house cat, I grown to the size of a fully grown dog. Not much of a growth I know, but at least I could look more imposing now. My appearance for the most part remained the same save for the white horns atop my head growing slightly longer and a royal blue diamond shaped gem appearing on my forehead.

"As expected you evolved. How do you like your new form?" Veredia asked, the pride was audible in her voice. She could more than likely sense the power that was within me.

"I don't look that different to before, but I definitely feel a lot stronger. So much so that's it's like night and day!!" I said as I moved back towards my mother, "I also like the name you gave me, Rimuru Tempest."

"Very good Rimuru." Veredia said as she pressed her claw to the edge of the barrier.

I mimicked the action with my own little claw. And though we were divided by the barrier between us, in that moment it felt as though we were actually in contact with one another.

We allowed ourselves to bask in the moment as a bright golden light filled the cave.

"Alright mom, are you ready?" I asked her once I was satisfied.

"Yes, though before you proceed I feel there is one more skill I should pass on to you. It should come in handy if you come across humans, it's called [Shapeshift]." Veredia explained, my attention was immediately drawn to the skill.

"Wait does that mean I'd be able to get a human form?" I asked, cause that would totally be awesome, being able to blend in with other humans or even having a more flexible body.

"Yes, that's the idea. However you can only use this skill to switch between two forms, you true form and your human form. And the appearance of your human form is based on both the state of your dragon form as well as your state of mind. To freely adjust your human form you'd need the evolved version of [Shapeshift] called [Universal Shapeshift, but that's a bit too much to learn in the time we have." Veredia explained.

There were pros and cons to this. The good news was that I'd get a human body, something far more familiar to me than the one I had now. The bad news being I wouldn't be able to decide on my appearance or anything. Still, it wasn't something to cry over, nobody gets to choose how they look when they are born.

"Anyways, the skill is relatively easy to learn. Just envision a humanoid form and gather the surrounding magicules to compensate for the missing mass." Veredia explained, I nodded my head in understanding and began to focus on the magicules around me once more, drawing them towards me as I made a mental image of a basic humanoid.

《Notice: The individual Veredia Tempest is attempting to teach you the skill [Shapeshift]. Would you like to learn this skill? 》

《Y/N》

"Yes." As soon as I uttered my response the effect. A black mass of magicules immediately swirled around me, and I felt my body change both in shape and in size.

By the time it all stopped I was standing on two legs, my line of sight significantly higher than it had been seconds ago. I immediately turned to the pond once more, and while initially shocked by my reflection, I really shouldn't have.

For staring back at me was the figure of a young boy no older than fourteen at the most. I had pale colored skin, short black hair streaks of blue mixed in and emerald green eyes. The only thing that looked out of the ordinary was the blue diamond shaped gem that was still on my forehead despite my transformation.

《You have successfully acquired the extra skill [Shapeshift] 》

One thing that I was late to take note of however, was the fact that I… didn't have any clothes on!!

"Ggaahhh!!" I shouted as I swiftly reverted to my dragon hatchling form as to avoid further embarrassment before turning to my mother with an annoyed glare, "Why didn't you tell me I'd pop naked?!!"

"I don't see what's to be ashamed of, it's just the two of us here." Veredia said as she giggled in amusement.

I however was not amused, mother or not, teens body or not, I had the mind of a thirty seven year old man and there was no way I was going to just stand there as a woman stared at me butt naked!!

"Is there anything else or can we move on with this?!" I shouted, wanting desperately to move away from the topic of my nudity.

"Well there is one last thing. But it's more of a request than anything else." Veredia said as her expression became serious once more, prompting me to calm down and pay attention, "You see, the land surrounding this cave is actually my domain. It's known as the Great Forest of Jura, and is home to various kinds of monsters. Prior to my sealing I was the protector of this land, and in a manner of speaking I still am."

"I see… so you want me to watch over the place until you're free." It wasn't really a question but a statement.

"Watch over it, take over it, your choice really. You are my only child, what's mine is yours." Veredia said with the shrug, I couldn't help but feel a little touched by that, but I still didn't know if I was willing to take over an entire forest of monsters. Keeping the peace was one thing but ruling it was an entirely differently matter, "However I must warn you, once my presence vanishes, there will most likely be a great shift of balance in the forest. Not to mention the surrounding nations."

"It's fine, I'll figure it out." I said with a grin.

Sure I knew that it would most likely be tougher than what I was making it out to be, but then again it gave me something to look forward to in this new world. A sense of purpose if you will.

"Is that it then? Are you ready now mom?" I asked as I turned to my mother once more.

"As ready as I'll ever be. Let's do this Rimuru!!" Her excitement for this was somewhat unexpected, but I wasn't going to complain.

"Alright then, [Predator]!!" With my declaration came the activation of my skill, a blue vortex of magicules appearing in front of my open mouth, making contact with the barrier

The vortex grew and expanded as it encased the entire barrier, shocking even my mother as it went over her. Within seconds the entire barrier was engulfed and began to shrink, being rapidly absorbed into the hyperspace of my [stomach].

Within seconds, the barrier that once held the mighty Storm Dragon, along with the Dragon itself, were gone. And with that came the sense of loneliness I had felt before.

I took a few seconds to rest, already missing the loud and somewhat boisterous voice of my mother in the now quiet cave. The only sounds available now, other than my breathing, was the water dripping along the walls of the now empty cave.

I suddenly felt a strong pulse vibrate through my entire body, coming from deep within my being. Without a doubt I knew it was my mother, it couldn't be anyone else.

'She's still here...' I mentally told myself as I took a deep breath, 'It may take some time, but one day you'll be free.'

With that decided I made my way out, to search for the exit to the cave. Leaving behind the chamber that held my mother for over three hundred years.

Authors Notes:

Well that's a wrap for this chapter. Naturally as a dragon Rimuru is obviously going to be a lot stronger than he was as a slime, though I'm sure the skill listing in the previous chapter gave that much away. I'll try not to make him OP or anything, but they were instances where I felt there should have been more of a fight in the anime, so yeah, just look forward to that.

Anyways, I hope I was able to do a decent job in creating a feminine version of Veldora. It was tricky to maintain both his aloof nature as well as adding a motherly vibe to that.

All in all I hope you enjoyed the chapter and look forward to you thoughts!!