by Fuse
And with that cold rejoinder, Mjurran began to cast. There was no more time left to waver. The tears she felt on her cheeks surely must have been her imagination.
“No! Stop, you fool! You’re really…?!”
“What’s going on, Gruecith?”
With a beautiful, lilting voice, the spell unfurled itself—and the laws of the world began to be rewritten. Yohm and Gruecith were already powerless to stop it. If they could, the only real way would be to kill her. And if that happened, she was okay with it. But she simply had to complete this spell.
She continued to chant, as if in prayer—with her heart and soul, aching to protect the man she loved.
The scene in Tempest was even more chaotic than Gruecith thought—even before everything went to pieces, just as Mjurran neared the end of her work.
Benimaru, drowning under a deluge of hurried reports, already looked sick of it all. The most worrying one had come from a sentry posted at a substation a few days ago, by way of Gobta. “Uh, Benimaru,” he’d said, “I guess there’s this bunch of humans in full armor, and they’re headed right this way. The sentry asked what they wanted, and they just said, ‘We have no need to speak with underlings!’ and marched on.”
Soei had quickly been dispatched to investigate. It was a group of knights, over a hundred in number, and Benimaru decided they could no longer be ignored. Soei kept gathering intel, along with Soka and his other men. Soon, they’d pinpointed the group’s origin: the Kingdom of Farmus.
As long as the Farmus platoon’s goals were unclear, working with them had been difficult. Thus, Benimaru had Soei’s team keep a close eye on them as he’d discussed the increasingly worrisome issue with Rigurd.
“Perhaps we should inform Sir Rimuru?”
“Ah,” Rigurd had replied, “after he left us to watch this town, is it really good to keep pestering him?”
“Perhaps. He makes frequent return trips at night, so we could inform him then.”
That brought them to now. Rimuru, after all, could use his Warp Portal to come back here any time he wanted. So Benimaru left his briefing for later and worked on the medley of other issues awaiting his attention. It was all very unfamiliar work, and being chased constantly by it made the days pass like lightning.
In the midst of all this, Soei’s team sent a report from Farmus itself. The kingdom was apparently engaging in rapid preparations for war. It made Benimaru wrinkle his eyebrows.
“This might be bad news for us, Rigurd.”
“I’m afraid so. Not something we can afford to take so casually. I think we had best have Sir Rimuru back here at once.”
The two looked at each other. They both concluded that handling this brigade of knights the wrong way could very well lead to war. So Benimaru tried contacting Rimuru—but before he could, he received an emergency magical communication from Alvis, the Golden Snakehorn and one of Eurazania’s Three Lycanthropeers.
“The Beast Kingdom will enter hostilities with the demon lord Milim in one week’s time. As a result, I want you to accept the citizens we are evacuating.”
The delays Mjurran experienced in deploying her anti-magic zone allowed this message to squeak its way through. Although Clayman himself should take some of the blame—Milim’s flight speed was so fast that she reached Eurazania far ahead of his planned schedule. Not that it mattered to Benimaru. No, the portent of this news was so vital that it seemed to change the very air around them.
“You must be joking!”
At once, the top leaders of Tempest were gathered—Rigurd and Rigur, Lilina and the other chief hobgoblins, Kaijin as a special adviser, Shuna as secretary, Shion as Rimuru’s representative, plus Hakuro and Geld. Nearly a dozen people crammed into the meeting hall. Gabil was not in attendance, not having been appointed to this level of leadership yet. Instead, he was simply advised that an emergency was underway and to stand by until further orders. Kaijin also informed Vester of the news, telling him to maintain regular contact with King Gazel of Dwargon as needed.
And in the midst of all this, the very party of humans who had vexed Benimaru earlier arrived, disguised as merchants.
Dude! This town’s more advanced than the capital of Farmus!
Shogo couldn’t hide his surprise.
He and his otherworlder friends were trundling into town, a single knight serving as their coachman while the rest of the hundred-strong team kept their distance. The unexpected sight of the town rendered him speechless. It was amazing. Nothing about the term monster town had prepared him for this. The sewer system kept all foul-smelling odors at bay—and, really, the monsters walking around seemed more identifiably human than any other species. They were clean, bathed, and wearing more proper clothing than many of the merchants and townspeople around Farmus.
One look was all it took to confirm that life here was far more bountiful than life over there. It was packed with adventurers, merchants briskly running to and fro as they carried out their business.
Goddamn! I’ve been ripped off this whole time! Why the hell’re the monsters livin’ better than we are?!
The initial waves of shock were wearing off. Now, within Shogo, a darker well of anger was beginning to rise. The same was true with Kirara.
“Um, what’s the deal with this? Like, why’re these guys living way swankier than we are? Something’s got to be wrong here.”
“Ahh, don’t get too angry,” Kyoya said—but even he couldn’t help but feel it was unfair. His eyes were squinted, brooding with resentment.
“And this whole place is run by a slime, yeah? If we kick its ass, we can take over this joint, can’t we?”
“That’s, like, the best damn idea I ever heard, Shogo! Let’s do it!”
“I’m fine with that, too, but we can’t stray from our orders too much.”
“Oh, it’ll be fine! I’m just sayin’—they told us to kick up a ruckus before the rest of the knights showed up, right? Everything’ll work out great!”
“Totally. Like, they wanna stage it like we’re a bunch of lawful citizens and the monsters attacked us out of nowhere, yeah? I can just use Bewilder to set up some kinda pretext, and all the non-monster adventurers will do whatever I want.”
Kirara liked her chances, and she had reason to. It was the main reason why the three of them were here. And neither of her friends saw much to worry about, either.
“Yeah,” Kyoya agreed, “that’s pretty much what Sir Razen told us to do.”
“Pfft. Quit callin’ that asshole ‘sir’ around me!”
“Totally. I hope that dude gets a heart attack or something. Then we’d be, like, free and stuff.”
“Ha-ha-ha! Sorry, just a habit,” Kyoya said. “We can’t really dis him to his face, you know?”
His lighter approach had a distinct motivation behind it. Kyoya, unlike the others, was still hiding his true character in this world to some extent. For now, he felt, it was best to play the loyal student around Farmus circles.
As they spoke, Shogo mentally went over his orders one more time, growing increasingly impatient to kick some ass. “I don’t care what kind of excuse you have to make,” Razen had told them. “Just start some kind of trouble—then you, Kirara, use your power to get the adventurers on your side! We’ll begin taking action once you do.”
Farmus was currently engaged with a total of three otherworlders. That alone was enough war power to decimate a smaller country. It was rare to deploy three at once, but the government wanted to cover for the possibility that another otherworlder was aiding the monsters.
Once Shogo and his friends began their business, the coachman driving their wagon would send off a signal to begin the rest of the operation. The otherworlders weren’t informed of the exact details, but nothing they’d do would be any hindrance to them, and presumably it’d make things even more favorable for victory. Shogo despised Razen, but even he had to praise his talents. If he weren’t a gifted magic-user, all three of them would’ve been free long ago.
Now he ran a hand through his well-oiled hair, lifting it up like the comb of a chicken.
“All right. How ’bout we get things moving?”
Kirara was the first to take action.
“Aaahhhhh!! You—you touched my butt just now, didn’t you? You tryin’ to do somethin’ to me?”
She had deliberately bumped herself against what seemed to be the perfect target—a kind of dopey-looking sentry who was staring into space. This was Gobzo, a guard under Gobta’s command and a hobgoblin known even among his own species for being a bit special.
“Unhhh? I—I didn’t do anything!”
He lifted up his arms, head swiveling around in search of some kind of support.
“Hey! Don’t, like, play dumb with me! Just tell me what you slapped me there for. All right?”
Kirara drew closer to him as she spoke—then, suddenly, she jerked her body backward and tumbled to the ground.
“Owww!! Help! Somebody call the guards!”
“Wh-wha—? No! I didn’t even do nothin’! I, uh…I am a guard…”
Gobzo was already starting to tear up a bit. He was the victim here, but frankly, he didn’t have a lot of allies nearby. The sheer dopiness of his act did little to turn the suspicion away from him—and Kirara was already deploying Bewilder, letting it sink in to the minds of human passersby.
“Whoa, the hobgoblin attacked that girl?”
“That’s a town sentry, isn’t it? What kind of sentry would pull that crap? I can’t believe it.”
“But he just knocked her to the ground, man.”
“Really? I thought the monsters here were supposed to be nice.”
“They are. Usually. So what’s the deal with this guy?”
The locals were still a bit incredulous, but few to none of the adventurers and merchant types nearby were willing to stick up for Gobzo. Nobody had a full grasp of the events, and it wouldn’t be long before Kirara’s skill had their minds completely under her control.
Shogo and Kyoya grinned at each other, then took a step forward to drive the dagger down.
“Whoa, dude, so this town just attacks its visitors without warning?”
“That’s their plan, huh? Invite merchants and people over and then strike when they least expect it?”
They shouted as loudly as they could as they walked over to protect the frightened-looking Kirara. Their trumped-up charges were lodged. The real show would begin only when this sentry’s supervisor showed up. If he was apologetic, they could just ratchet their beef up the ranks, with the crowd on their side. If he got angry and started throwing his weight around, that’d be a godsend. Even if he didn’t, it’d grow into a huge hullabaloo, the rest of the knights would storm in, and then they’d serve as judge and jury.
Shogo was therefore hoping whoever showed up next was just as stupid as their first target. He was disappointed.
“So what’s up?”
Gobta, apparent captain of the sentries, cheerfully strolled onto the scene—then did something Shogo wasn’t expecting at all.
“Oh man, Gobzo, not you again! I swear, every single time something happens, you’re in the middle of it!”
He gave him a bop on the forehead before turning back toward the otherworlders. “Hey, sorry about that, guys,” he said with a friendly nod. “I’ll try to educate ’im better.”
“G-Gobta, I, but, I…”
“You didn’t do it? Doesn’t matter. If you’re under suspicion, you’ve already lost.” He ominously raised an eyebrow. “Remember what Sir Rimuru said about the horrors of being falsely accused of assault on the street?”
This raised some eyebrows among the onlookers as well.
“S-so you believe me, Gobta?”
The sentry’s boss sighed. “Why d’you have to ask me that? You wouldn’t have the guts to do anything anyway.”
Gobzo rewarded him with a hug and a hearty “I’ll follow you wherever you go, sir!!” as tears streamed down his cheeks. This didn’t particularly delight Gobta, judging by the look on his face, but he still patted his sentry’s shoulders to calm him down.
It wasn’t a sight that pleased Kirara much.
“Whoa, what the hell? Are you saying that I’m, like, lying or something?”
“Oh, it didn’t sound that way?” a surprised Gobta asked. It was more than enough to set the girl off.
“Don’t give me that, you piece of shit! You got a lot of balls, tryin’ to pick a fight with me! Why do you trust this guy right off? You weren’t even here to see it!”
The shouting did little to affect the unbothered Gobta. “It’s simple,” he said. “It’s natural for us to trust our friends.”
“What?! You want me to accept that lame excuse?!”
“Well,” he calmly explained, “if you want me to explain further, the only girl Gobzo’s got a thing for is Shion, y’see. Everybody in Tempest knows this, so there’s no way he’d try puttin’ his hands on a young girl like you, no.”
There was a moment of silence as everyone digested this.
“Oh, that’s just mean, Gobta!” Gobzo’s face turned bright red.
“Yeah, yeah. Everyone already knows, remember?”
“Everyone…?”
Gobta shrugged. “Yeah, everyone. Deal with it, Gobzo.”
“I—I think I won’t follow you wherever you go anymore, Gobta!”
Now Gobzo was almost as angry as Kirara. Almost.
“Will you stop with this stupid crap?! I’m still here, you bastards! All of you should just die!!”
There was no longer any plan of action. All Kirara wanted to do was take everyone making her into a laughingstock and kill them. Shogo and Kyoya would be the only ones left standing in this street intersection, probably, but Kirara was too furious to care. It wasn’t like those guys cared about Razen’s orders that much. So she screamed it out without reserve, half smiling as she did. Thanks to living fairly restricted lives in Farmus, the three otherworlders were near the ends of their ropes mentally—and now the rebound was happening.
Already, Kirara could picture the stabbed, mangled bodies that would litter the street shortly.
But nothing happened.
“Wha…? Huh…?”
““—?!””
The adventurers and merchants looking on were too busy laughing at Gobzo to die for her. It visibly unnerved Kirara, as it did Shogo and Kyoya.
“I see,” a gentle but firm voice said to them. “Your skill converts your voice into streams of force that interfere with your targets’ brain waves. That’s quite a powerful one, so I’ll have to prohibit you from using it in our territory.”
It was Shuna. A pair of hobgoblins had reached her to relay the events just before the conference began. It had sounded like bad news to her, so she’d run over with Shion as her bodyguard.
Shuna revealed a breezy smile as her eyes focused upon Kirara. Her unique Parser skill provided a complete analysis of the girl’s ability, letting her unleash an aura that matched and neutralized the waves of force. One look from her discerning, fearsome eyes was all it took.
“You do not appear to be suitable for this nation. Please take your leave at once.”
She smiled again—but her eyes were frigid. She could tell Kirara had meant to kill with that attack, and she wasn’t about to take that lightly.
“Like…no way…”
Kirara sat weakly upon the ground. Now she knew it. She was completely outside her element. This woman was different. Not just another face in the crowd. She was a real monster.
Her two companions, however, had yet to pick up on this—or they did, perhaps, but didn’t find it worthy of note. Kirara had lost, but the violence her friends could mete out wouldn’t be suppressed by any weird mystic force. They had absolute confidence in their powers, and now they had the ideal opportunity to test them out. Besides, the plan was in full swing, and there was no canceling it at this point.
“Hmm…”
Shuna’s beauty att
racted Shogo’s eye for a moment. Then he recalled why they were here. To enslave them. And if a woman as beautiful as this was a monster, there was no reason not to treat her as a slave.
“That’s your attitude, huh? Well, all right. If you’re up for it, I’m ready for you!”
His desirous eyes turned to Shuna, analyzing how best to tackle her. He looked forward to bellowing with laughter as she lay on the ground, bruised and crying, and continuing the torment until she begged for mercy.
Then a quiet voice broke his concentration.
“Your licentious thoughts are written all over your face, lowlife. March straight out of this town, and we’ll let you live. Refuse to obey, and your life will be forfeit!”
Shion’s slim, well-proportioned body was attired in a business suit, the epitome of cool beauty as she stepped in front of Shuna. Her eyes were furious as she strode forward.
Shogo flashed a ferocious smile. He stood strong, never even contemplating defeat. “Ha! I like it! Get in my way, and I’ll crush you!”
“I see. It appears you will not understand until you are smashed to the ground. Very well. Allow me to engage you!”
Then the two of them collided.
Kyoya couldn’t wait for this moment. There was no meddling referee overseeing this sparring match and thus no need for him to play the star-pupil role. And with Shogo wrecking things first, he had no reason to be patient any longer.
“If that’s how it is,” he said with a twisted smile and drawn sword, “I get free rein, too, don’t I? I was hoping I’d get to test this out sometime.”
Ever since he’d come to this world, Kyoya had been waiting for the tides to turn in his favor. Now, the time had come. Before his eyes was Shuna, with Gobta and Gobzo behind her.
Heh-heh-heh… I can’t wait to see how much I can do!
“Hoo boy. Gobzo, protect Lady Shuna for me.”
“Yes, sir, Gobta!”
Gobta drew his dagger and lowered himself for combat. Kyoya did the same, sword straight ahead of his eyes. He was a talent in kendo, and his unique skill—known as Severer—was focused entirely on slicing and dicing.