by Fuse
It was backed by his natural-born fencing talents and the extra skill All-Seeing Eye. The skill allowed him to fully grasp the situation around him, as if watching the action from a video game’s camera perspective. It blasted this information straight into his eyes, boosting his reaction time—and thanks to Mind Accelerate, he could recognize and address threats three hundred times faster than normal.
With these three skill powers in hand, Kyoya had become the greatest swordsman in both Farmus and the rest of the Western Nations. Razen had ordered him to keep these powers hidden, but that order was no longer valid. Kyoya finally had his chance to unleash them all, and it made the blood surge through his body.
“Haaa-ha-ha-ha! With these kinda skills, not even that old lady Hinata could challenge me, much less some wimp like you!”
With a final hearty laugh, Kyoya descended upon Gobta.
* * *
The conference began in the meeting hall, minus Shuna and Shion.
“All right,” declared Benimaru. “Are we all ready? It is time to call for Sir Rimuru!”
He launched the Thought Communication.
Nothing happened.
The line was silent.
“I—I can’t connect to Sir Rimuru…?!”
The whisper from Benimaru plunged the meeting hall into silence. Silence then gave way to panic. The hall bustled with worried faces and hurried speech. Even Benimaru, who was scarcely ever rattled, instantly turned pale. That was how much Rimuru’s silence filled them with a sense of impending doom.
It was around that moment when Mjurran’s incantation reached its completion.
In an instant, all magic disappeared, throwing the entire town into a state of chaos. The townspeople moved to evacuate their panicked guests, but the effort didn’t last—or, really, wasn’t even possible. Because alongside Mjurran’s high magic, another secret spell launched itself—Prison Field, the result of extended research on the part of Archbishop Reyhiem. It worked on the same principle as Holy Field, the spell used on an official basis by the Church’s crusader teams, but modified so even the less-experienced Temple Knights could set it off if several of them worked together.
The buildings sagged down, creaking painfully. The merchants ran for cover, the adventurers trying to protect them. Some basked in the mayhem; others tried to save the town from it. The multiple factors tangled together to spread chaos, creating a day of disaster unlike any Tempest had seen before.
CHAPTER 3
DESPAIR AND HOPE
Ensuring the magical field was dispelled, I crept back outside, breathing a sigh of relief. I could feel my Replication-driven other half disappear.
Ranga half threw himself out of my shadow. “You are safe, my master!” Being cut off must have alarmed him beyond belief, his hair standing on end from all the nerves. I gave him a pet, trying to reassure him that everything was okay.
This time, though, it was like… Holy crap. That bit of insurance I took out at the start wound up saving my hide, but man, talk about a hairbreadth. When I was locked up in that Holy Field, that put me at one hell of a disadvantage. Trying to hold my own in combat there, with no idea who I was fighting or how strong they were, would’ve been idiotic.
Realizing that, I created a Replication and got my core slime self the hell out of there. My human-form Replication was a full magical corpus of sorts, created by slapping a whole bunch of magicules together; it couldn’t move too quickly, but it was a small price to pay if my “main” body could escape. Looking at it that way, it was a small miracle I kept that corpus going as long as I did. I wanted to pat myself on the back. That’s how rough that Holy Field was.
But hey, at least I made it. Now I was kinda glad I’d treated Hakuro’s training in the Formhide skill so seriously. If that lady Hinata had considered the possibility of a Replication in the mix, it would’ve been all over… But I guess she wasn’t that wary of me. Few people would be. And that wound up saving my life.
It sure taught me a lesson, though. I had to keep a closer eye on myself, no doubt. Oh, and I almost forgot: I was hiding my aura, since I was in combat until just now, but it might be seeping out by this point. I’m pretty sure I’m able to keep it perfectly hidden these days, but let’s just be doubly careful about buttoning that up.
With that in mind, I crafted a new mask within my Stomach. It was a copy of the first Mask of Magic Resistance I saw, but I got rid of all the traits I didn’t need and boosted its core magical resistance instead. Then I shape-shifted into human form and put it on. That should keep Hinata from picking up on my presence. I think.
Still—that Hinata lady was just way too powerful. Off the charts. If that Holy Field wasn’t there and she put her full force into it, what then? I had the creeping suspicion that, nine times outta ten, I would lose.
Such were the thoughts in my mind as I looked back at how the Glutton had fought for me back there.
………
……
…
When I awaken the Glutton inside me, it is, to put it broadly, kind of like executing a program. A highly destructive virus of sorts, one that consumes everything within eyeshot. That was why her rapier caused no pain as it slashed into my body.
The Glutton had been transforming my own physical body, as Hinata looked on in astonishment. This was a freshly harnessed “complete” form of Universal Shapeshift in action. It let me transform my body such that it boasted only the most useful aspects of every monster I had consumed in the past, creating a well-oiled battle machine. The Glutton absorbed the grass, the earth, the air around me to rebuild myself into this new physical form.
Inside the Holy Field, I hadn’t even had the magicules to create a new magical corpus for myself. But the Glutton pretty much forced it to happen, taking in regular physical objects and using them to power myself up.
Hinata brought her rapier back a bit, no doubt sensing the danger. That wound up saving her life. As out of control as it had become, the Glutton was lunging upon both the rapier and Hinata herself, using sound, heat, and scent to track down her position. If she reacted any later than she did, she would’ve been torn apart by that ravenous appetite, maybe.
As Hinata looked on in fright, the Glutton completed the transformation. Standing there now was a beast in the shape of a person. The only signs of my former self were the golden pupils and the slightly bluish-silver hair. My body rippled with malice, looking every bit like a demon from hell.
“I can’t believe it,” Hinata whispered. But the surprise was already gone from her face. She was peering intently at me, like an excited scientist making a new discovery. Her Dead End Rainbow skill slashed right into people’s spirits—but since it didn’t kill me, she understood now that the Glutton had no spirit, no will of its own. It was a soul in its purest form, the origin of the power that lies at the root of man and monster.
A soul is a consciousness, by definition, but that alone didn’t provide the consciousness any way to express itself. It still needed an astral body to operate upon and begin the thought process—but that wasn’t enough, either, since any thoughts produced would just dissipate into the wind. That’s where the spiritual body came in, to record and keep those thoughts captive. Even that was still a virtual memory, though, not any kind of permanent storage—and so we come to the material body.
If one had enough mental fortitude, they could recover all their memories even if their brain was permanently damaged. The fact that you saw spiritual life-forms among the monsters was proof enough of that. But if the spirit is damaged, that likely wounds the astral body deeply, even if the brain is left intact. If that wound reaches the soul, resurrection is no longer possible.
That applied equally to every living thing in this world—from the weakest creatures all the way up to dragons and elemental monsters.
By this point, Hinata fully understood what the Glutton was capable of. A sweet smile crossed her face, her piercing eyes shining brightly as she considered her count
ermeasures. She had lost her rapier now, but not even that seemed to bother her much. And then she removed an amulet from her pocket and threw it at me.
“Astral Bind!”
A skill that restricted the astral body, the vessel of the soul, instead of the material one. It still couldn’t stop the Glutton.
Realizing this, Hinata gave me a scornful frown. Before the Glutton, its limbs morphing and transforming in unpredictable ways as it lurched toward her, she showed not a single moment of agitation. If anything, she was still calmly observing me. Through all the Glutton’s twists and turns, she kept dodging every attack by mere millimeters. She predicted every move.
“I see,” she whispered. “So you’re already dead.” She shook her head. “You’re going to be obstinate right up to the end, aren’t you? Why are you pestering me like this? Continuing to have it attack your foe, even after death… If someone doesn’t completely wipe this thing out, it’s gonna threaten the whole world someday.”
Hinata’s face remained taut as she summoned several non-elemental spirits from thin air. They followed her orders, mobbing the Glutton. The effort did little apart from sacrificing the spirits to stop it in its tracks temporarily.
The only magic that could be used within a Holy Field involves amulets, Battlewill, spirits, and the like. Among them, Hinata now chose one of the greatest of holy magics, a powerful attack that she usually kept as one of her last resorts. Tracing complex shapes with her outstretched hands, she crafted a geometrical design in the air, stretching it out into a layered, physically present magic circle. In the middle of it was the berserk, spirit-consuming Glutton, unconscious, unthinking, and pitiful.
“Let me provide you a prayer to the divine. I hope and desire for the power of the holy spirits. Listen to my appeal and overcome all in your way! Disintegration!!”
The request, delivered in Hinata’s beautiful voice, was granted. The resulting show of force was literally divine, enough to crush all physical and spiritual presences within its defined space. It was the ultimate in targeted, destructive magic, emitting flashes of white light as it poured from Hinata’s hands to the circle. It sped out at thousands of miles per hour, almost at light speed, as its holy power made cells and souls vanish without a trace. It was more than enough to make the Glutton disappear, not affecting the space around it at all.
………
……
…
That’s what the battle record told me. I was watching from the side, as if it was on TV or something, and it was simply breathtaking.
One thing I earned from this battle was Hinata’s broken rapier. I was able to run it through the Stomach to take it for myself. More important than that, though, was the info I gleaned about her magic and skills. I had deliberately set the Glutton out of control, linking it to the Great Sage itself without going through my own spirit. I had no spiritual link to it myself; it was operating purely on its own volition. That was why, even when it took Hinata’s final Dead End Rainbow strike, it didn’t affect me at all.
I didn’t think I could win with it. Not from the start. That’s why I ordered it to gather data for me, so I could come up with a better solution—and that’s what I was poring over now.
That Disintegration, though… Wow. It was enough of a threat to send a chill up my spine. If I had taken that strike first thing, I would’ve been defenseless. It would’ve gone right through my Multilayer Barrier and made me vanish instantly. Its only weakness was the amount of time it required to cast, but with that kind of force, it was only a minor quibble. Hinata made excellent use of it.
It was definitely no joke. I wondered why Hinata even bothered with that magical barrier at all if she was that strong. I hate dealing with a foe who’s both powerful and careful. With my Replication, I couldn’t do more than slice a few hairs off her head. No wonder she was so confident, not even bothering with armor or anything. If that’s what she brought to the table, I was correct to focus on escaping that barrier from the very beginning.
Are all otherworlders and summoners that strong, the way Yuuki said? If so, I’ll have to assume that every one I encounter has a unique skill and prepare appropriately for that. I was under the impression that I was pretty strong myself, but after that experience with Hinata, my confidence was completely shattered. Maybe the wound to my pride was exactly what I needed.
Getting to experience Disintegration for myself was a windfall, too. The moment she deployed that layered magic circle, it was all over. There was simply no way to deal with it, apart from fleeing or interfering with her before the circle was complete. Would’ve been nice if I could have Analyzed and Assessed it, but I was too busy trying not to die to consider that. It can’t always be that easy. The moment I saw it, after all, my data link with the Sage cut right out and I (my non-Replicated self) got dizzy in the head. It’s impossible to avoid once you see it, and the layered barrier it emitted had a heat-seeking property as well—if you can’t get out of its trail, you can’t avoid a direct hit.
Could Milim have handled it? I’ll have to ask her next time.
I told Ranga about everything that happened as I checked up on my own body. I was physically fine, no longer affected by the Holy Field. What was up with Hinata, though? She refused to listen to me, breaking out the big guns with no provocation whatsoever. Maybe I shouldn’t have taken the bait, but I only did because I thought I could win. Sure proved me wrong. Not that I lost, exactly. Sometimes the best winning strategy you have is to run, you know? And that’s what I tried to do from the start, so if I made it out, I won.
You could, if you squinted hard enough, call this a tactical victory. Plus I gathered all this valuable data. It wouldn’t be going too far to call it a win. A tie, at least, if I wanted to be generous.
I’m definitely not being a sore loser, all right?
But enough joking around. I was worried about everyone in town, so I decided to head over at once.
Attempting to teleport myself to Tempest, I caught wind of something odd. I had tried to take a Warp Portal back to my own place, but the magic failed to activate.
Report. Impossible to specify a target location. The cause is believed to be some kind of barrier isolating the area.
Uh-oh. It sounds like someone’s trying to destroy Tempest, just as Hinata said. Better get back quick, or else I’ll have nothing to go back to.
Even as I thought that, the Great Sage was searching for places still available for teleportation. Soon, it tracked down the magic circle inside the cave that Gabil was guarding.
“Let’s go!” I shouted to Ranga as we hurriedly made the warp.
Gabil and the others were assembled at the Sealed Cave’s magic circle, waiting for us. The moment he saw us, Gabil ran up, looking visibly relieved.
“Ohhh! Sir Rimuru, you are safe!”
He then briefed me on events. “…And then, just after we received word that Lady Milim would wage war against the Beast Kingdom of Eurazania in a week’s time, I lost contact with Sir Benimaru. Concerned, I made contact with Soka, but apparently no one outside the cave could reach our leaders, either.”
“I told King Gazel as well,” Vester added, “but it was hard for us to make any concrete moves, given the lack of information at hand…”
Certainly, the king of dwarves would’ve had too little knowledge to provide any real support. He must have been terribly concerned. He had last made contact via communication crystal about an hour ago, but nothing beyond that, despite a second call being expected. Thought Communication didn’t work, either, and just as they were discussing among themselves what to do, I came back.
I guess the bad feeling I had about all this was right. No doubt about it; something terrible was taking place. But why couldn’t we even contact anyone in town?
As I thought about this, Soei leaped out of my shadow, just as Soka and his other men had jumped out of Gabil’s.
“Sir Rimuru, it is a tremendous relief to see you safe and sound.”
“Whoa, Soei, I’m a lot more worried about you than me at the moment!”
He was both wounded and exhausted. Vester jogged off to fetch him a Full Potion to drink.
“Forgive me for interrupting, but Sir Soei was injured attempting to escape the barrier deployed around Tempest.”
“Silence, Soka. I am fine. Sir Rimuru, I am afraid the situation does not bode well for us…”
The story he had for me was a shock. There was a military force from Farmus marching straight for Tempest. Soei, learning this, hurried back to tell Benimaru but was blocked by a barrier placed around town, preventing access. Bashing right into it, his “real” body got away with “just an injury” (he said in his oh-so-Soei-like way) and all his Replication copies were expended. Anyone else would’ve died in a hurry. Regardless, his men were just about to attempt to break through the barrier when they noticed I was back.
Soei’s apparent nervousness was entirely due to my disappearance, it seemed. A lot of things must’ve happened in the past half hour or so, Hinata’s attack on me being one of them.
“Well, sorry I made you worry, Soei.”
“Not at all, Sir Rimuru. As long as you are safe, there is nothing to complain about.”
I appreciated the thought, but if I had returned to Tempest faster, I might never have run into Hinata at all. I had left for my own selfish reasons, and I had better make up for it.
Before that, though:
“So if the Kingdom of Farmus is moving against us, was it them who built the barrier over town?”
“It is likely so, yes.”
“In that case, everyone in town is in danger?!”
The thought made my mind begin to race. Hinata had cost me a dear amount of time. We couldn’t sit here talking all day, I decided. I needed to head to town, fast.