by Fuse
“Well, if you don’t like it, I’ll be glad to take it away—”
“I’m not talking about that,” she snapped back, protecting her bowl with her life. Geez, don’t get too worked up about this crap. Not that I’d say that to her. “I just mean… Being able to so perfectly re-create food from that other world? It’s more exasperating than surprising, in a way. I can’t believe you’ve created such a life of luxury for yourself, in the space of just two years. Just casually achieving all these things none of us ever would’ve hoped to manage…”
“Hey, praise me all you want. I’m here all night.”
“Don’t be stupid. I mean, I heard stories about you from Yuuki, but I took them all with a grain of salt. He was just relaying the reports he heard from his spies, after all. But this…” She shrugged. “I don’t think I’d ever believe it if I wasn’t seeing it with my own eyes.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond. I was nowhere near the finish line.
“Well, I’m far from done yet. Transport’s still super-slow, and it takes forever to transmit information from one place to the other. With magic, though, it was straightforward enough to improve our food and living conditions, more or less.”
“More or less…? That’s how you describe re-creating all this delicious food? You realize it makes you sound like you’re ridiculing all our hard work and sweat up to now?!”
I managed to set her off again. But really, if I was satisfied with this, then I’d never develop things any further. I’m a king, pretty much, and a king needs to be at least a little greedy. Not “king” so much as demon lord, but same difference.
“Well, I mean, we’re pretty good in the forest food-wise, you know? The real issue is the culture. There’s just way too little entertainment. I want to build the foundation for things like…you know, manga. Like what Veldora’s reading.”
“Entertainment? Do you realize how harsh a world this is? A world where the majority of people have to fight tooth and nail to see another day?”
“Yeah, I know. And that’s why we’re gonna make sure monsters and things are no longer a threat. I mean, I’m just gonna come out and say this ’cause there’s no point hiding it, but we’re trying to install Yohm as king, build a new kingdom from his domain, and use that to draw the Western Nations into our sphere of influence.”
“Just what exactly are you planning? I’d like to know more details.”
Does she? Well, let’s tell her.
“I’m thinking about a lot, actually. For starters…”
I pecked at the hot pot as I explained my vision of the future to her.
Our current project involved getting the human world to recognize us, and this was already halfway done, with the leaders of many nations aware of who I was. I’d received reports of apparent spies going in and out of Tempest, so I’d taken a few measures to show them how harmless we were. The merchants and adventurers were spreading rumors of their own, and before long, even the common people would know we could coexist with them. It’d take time for that to really take root, yes, but we were on the path. No need to hurry it along.
After that came our road infrastructure. This was also well underway, as we had worked to build safe, efficient trade routes across our territory. Highways to Blumund and the Dwarven Kingdom were now open, and plans were in progress for a new road linking us to the Sorcerous Dynasty of Thalion. There were no paved roads to Eurazania at the moment, so I thought we could tackle that afterward.
Running in parallel with all this was experimentation with communication methods. I didn’t know how radios and stuff worked, so I had to give up on that. Raphael could tell me if I asked, but I didn’t have the brainpower to help everyone else understand it. Kaijin and the three dwarven brothers might, maybe, but I didn’t want to rely on them for everything. Thus, I decided to leave that issue to the next generation and build schools to provide education for our children. These were simple one-room affairs for now, but I was having them learn basic reading, writing, and arithmetic. Before long, I intended to bring in some humans to provide more in-depth instruction.
But getting back to the subject, the communication crystals that served the world now could only be used by the magically inclined. They were magical items themselves, which meant they were vulnerable to theft. That was hardly a theoretical problem, and more to the point, if you needed to send out an emergency message, you’d never know if a wizard was nearby to help.
We needed a system that anyone could use and where theft wasn’t an issue. It seemed beyond all probability, but it was actually pretty within reach. My idea involved the use of Sticky Steel Thread and magisteel. I tried the first out with Soei, but my transmission skills over the thread were honestly pretty astounding. Since it worked with magicules, you could get your voice and thoughts across with remarkable clarity.
Magisteel was packed with those same magicules as well, so I thought it could work largely the same way—and after some experimentation, it did. What we could do is work magisteel into wires about a half an inch thick, run them through the dimension used by Shadow Motion, and connect the world’s cities together with it. That alone wouldn’t accomplish anything, but attaching this network to the device Vester and his team were developing could convert waves of passing thought into real-life sights and sounds. This device required no magical force to use, so I wanted to get it running as soon as it was complete. In the meantime, we needed to gather the requisite amount of magisteel and get ready.
With the amount of monsters we had in this nation, regular iron ore kept in storage would transform itself into magic ore. This could then be processed into magisteel wire, with Shadow Motion practitioners doing the wiring work. Nothing would really serve as physical obstacles to this network, so installation wouldn’t be that terribly difficult. Once we really had the ball rolling, I also had plans to expand the network from the cities to the smaller villages. Now all we had to do was develop the necessary receivers.
Really, as someone who had lived in a data-driven society, communication speed was seriously important to me.
“What do you think? That’ll be super-useful when it’s done, won’t it?”
I couldn’t help but sound a little full of myself in front of Hinata.
Once this network was complete, it was time to start transmitting entertainment and nurturing a nascent culture. There were so many dreams I had and a mountain of things left to do—and if I wanted to get any of it done, I had to provide safe and comfortable lives for my people.
Somewhere along the line, the meeting hall had grown quiet. The paladins were frozen in place, perhaps enraptured by my speech. My own officials, meanwhile, were practically smoldering with anticipation; listening to me inspired them more than ever before.
Then Hinata rolled her eyes. “Look,” she muttered. “That kind of information is normally kept confidential by governments, did you know that? I mean, matters related to communications, in particular… You just don’t go telling that to outsiders. Not that I’m complaining, but…”
Hmm. If you phrased it like that, then okay, maybe that was a mistake. Maybe I got carried away and said a little too much. Must have been the alcohol talking.
But even considering the possibility was a mistake. The moment I thought Uh-oh, did I screw up? Raphael jumped to conclusions.
Report. Resetting Cancel Ailments. This resistance cannot be adjusted for the time being.
Wh-what?!
But it was already too late. Even worse, a “reset” wasn’t something you could do all the time. Whether I wanted it or not, the poison was being cleansed from my body. But booze isn’t poison! I thought to no avail. My skills were just merciless.
Of course, I suppose this happened because I still had a pounding headache from getting wildly drunk the day before. I cut a little too loose for my own good, and that was the cause of it. Maybe I’d be more tight-lipped toward Hinata if I wasn’t inebriated. Let’s just call it my just deserts and move on.
“Now, now, what’s the big deal, Lady Hinata? That just shows how much he trusts us! Oh hey, and if you aren’t eating that, I’ll take the rest!”
I think he was a top officer in this force. He certainly robbed Hinata’s plate with lightning-fast dexterity, at least. Still, it must have taken a few drinky-drinks to decide it was worth the risk.
The moment Fritz tossed the morsel into his mouth, I could see a vein throb in the vicinity of Hinata’s temple. Her natural paleness made it all the more visible, although it would’ve been impossible to miss no matter what color her skin was.
“Fritz… Were you looking to die today?”
“Um…? Lady Hinata, you’re looking so…serious…”
Now Fritz’s mind was perfectly clear, as he shot to his feet and attempted to run for it. But he couldn’t escape Hinata, who promptly landed a chop on his jaw that instantly sent him to the floor with a concussion.
Let this be a lesson on how to enjoy a drink responsibly.
The next day:
“Back to our conversation yesterday, you realize that if you draw too much attention with all of that, the angels are going to attack you, right?”
Hinata blurted it out just before leaving, as if she had just thought of it. It wasn’t really the kind of thing you could bring up at the drunken, festive feast we had last night, but since we weren’t going to be strangers any longer, I suppose she thought it important to mention.
Erald and Gazel mentioned those guys to me before—the angelic army. Each one of these “angels” or whatever, according to Hinata, was a B-plus threat, and they had a force that numbered a million strong, all ready to swarm me. It was quite a bit beyond what I pictured, and that was just the infantry—there were captains and commanders above them, with a full chain of command between. The generals in their force—yes, there were generals—had even tangled with demon lords, if you went far enough back in history. Their ability in battle was a question mark, but if they were a good match for a demon lord, they must’ve been pretty strong.
The angels targeted monsters and cities with advanced civilizations. Not even the Western Holy Church saw them as allies of humankind—which made sense, given that their god, Luminus, was actually a demon lord.
“To me,” Luminus told me, “they are little more than annoying flies. I would love to do away with them all, but then everyone would know my identity…and that lizard’s already betrayed me to the paladins, as you know.”
The paladins, by the way, had sworn to keep this revelation a secret. Hopefully, they’d be a bit more accommodating with one another—and me—in the future.
“Yeah, I’ve heard about these angels. If they are out to poke at me, I’m ready to fight back.”
I had no intention of holding back, no. That angel force was free to think and do whatever they wanted, but if they thought they could force their will upon us, fending them off would be my only choice.
Hinata chuckled at me. “I thought you would say that. We might even be fighting on the same side, when the time comes.”
“That you may, and that we may,” Luminus said. “I have no intention of watching my city be destroyed a second time—not by those flies and not by that lizard. Rimuru, unless you enjoy having me as an enemy, I would recommend giving your lizard a strict education.”
This has been a very useful meeting, I thought as they departed. I think we could build a pretty friendly relationship with Hinata and her forces, to say nothing of Luminus. The battle between us, Lubelius, and part of the Western Nations was over, and I’d say every side walked away happy from it.
Before long, and with next to no warning, Lubelius would give the Dwarven Kingdom more than tacit approval and officially recognize the nation as a land of humans it could potentially become allies with. They also formally announced diplomatic relations with the Jura-Tempest Federation, a nation of monsters—one that included a nonaggression pact, albeit one with a time limit.
Now, in one fell swoop, both demi-humans and monsters had been granted acceptance by human minds. It was time to explore how to build our relations from there.
Diablo and Hakuro, by the way, still weren’t back from Farmus. According to Gobta, Ranga, and Gabil (who came home before them), they said they’d wrap everything up before the Founder’s Festival. Apparently, they were pretty disappointed that they couldn’t see me make my royal debut like this—but they had Yohm’s own coronation to handle over there. With it, Farmus would be reborn as a new country, and I’m sure they had a million things to do, so I couldn’t blame them for missing out. Even Diablo was showing up here only on rare occasions, and Hakuro didn’t have access to Spatial Motion, so I hadn’t seen him at all lately. I’d definitely need to thank them once they’re back.
I wasn’t the only one suffering right now. It was all so tremendously embarrassing, but I resolved to put up with it and get this stupid, exaggerated, bombastic presentation ceremony over with.
What was funny was how each of the monster races reacted to me. I had nothing to do, so I sat there like the conversation piece I was and looked down at the assorted monsters giving speeches.
Generally, the monster reactions were divided into three camps—worship, observation, or fear. On the observation side were a few people who openly looked down on me. The new guys from the other side of the Great Ameld River were particularly notable on this front. But it was no big problem. Show off some of my strength, and I’m sure they’ll acquiesce to me.
The monsters who feared me, however, were the real issue…
Here, for example, was a contingent of rabbitfolk in front of me right now, a race of demi-humans who were honestly pretty cute—human, basically, but with long, pointy rabbitlike ears. Unlike lycanthropes, they were degraded beastmen, unable to transform and possessing the same amount of strength as an average human. The equipment they had on didn’t look too sturdy, either, but they were all gifted in the Detect Danger skill, which I’m sure was a must to survive in the Forest of Jura. My own cutesy exterior must not have fooled them at all.
“Um, tha-thank you for i-inviting us here today…”
Dealing with someone who was petrified of you was kind of tough. Some of the rabbitfolk were visibly quaking, so we had to calm them down before they could begin.
“Very well,” echoed Rigurd’s voice. “You are hereby granted an audience with our ruler, the great demon lord Rimuru. Lift your head up!”
The rabbitfolk leader didn’t move. Or maybe he couldn’t. This darling little slime was simply too much of a threatening presence to look in the eye—not that I had eyes. But that wasn’t the issue. I didn’t want to oversee a reign of terror with these guys; I wanted a frank and open relationship…but to races like this, a demon lord who looked wimpy on the outside was nothing short of horrifying. Too much of a gap, I suppose. We had worked hard with guys like these, earning their support for our transportation and logistical efforts all over the forest. Maybe it wasn’t possible from the outset, but I really wished I could interact normally with them sometime.
The halflings and kobolds were like this when I first launched the federation, although the kobolds started trusting us once we agreed to let them continue their merchant trade. Koby, their representative, and I were old war buddies by now, constantly sharing potential business leads with each other.
These rabbitfolk were equals to me, and so was every other weaker race in the forest. I’d just have to stick to my guns and try to explain that I didn’t value my citizenry strictly on their ability to fight. Maybe they wouldn’t believe me at first, but we could work it out. So I sat, looking at the twitching ears of the rabbitfolk kowtowing to me.
“There is nothing to fear. Sir Rimuru is a fair, generous leader, one who says he will treat everyone
in his domain as equal. Please, feel free to share a few words with him,” intoned Rigurd.
The representative finally held his head up. He was young and fairly handsome, but there were deep rings under his eyes. Out of overwork or nervousness?
“O—O great demon lord Rimuru, please accept the sincere loyalty of the rabbitfolk…”
I gave him a firm nod. It seemed to relieve the guy. I could practically see a literal weight lift from his shoulders.
“See?” Rigurd beamed. “I told you. There is no need to be nervous!”
“Ha…ha-ha…! Um, I’ve actually brought my daughter along, but she got so restless once we entered town, I’m afraid I’ve lost sight of her…”
“Ha-ha-ha! Yes, the whole town’s in a festival frenzy right now. I can imagine a young girl would let her curiosity get the best of her!”
“Ah, this is so embarrassing… I let her out of my sight for a single moment, and she runs away to who knows where. I had wanted to leave her behind in the village, lest she offend Lord Rimuru, but she insisted…”
This leader must’ve been panicking about his daughter causing some kind of ruckus in town. So all those nerves weren’t just from being in awe of me? That’s good to know. I didn’t want the weaker races any more scared of me than they already were. But a young rabbitfolk girl, huh…? A pretty lass with rabbit ears would be a sight to see, I bet. Hopefully I’d get a chance.
As I thought over it, I began speaking a bit more honestly than I perhaps should have.
“If she’s that curious, then she must be taking in all the trends and different things around here, isn’t she? I bet she’ll make a wonderfully reliable successor to you.”
The direct compliment from me visibly moved the leader.
“Such…such kind words, my lord! If I have the chance, I would be delighted to introduce my daughter Framea to you.”
He bowed to me. It seemed like we had broken the ice a little. Rigurd then briefed him on political matters a bit, and they agreed on the spot that the rabbitfolk were officially part of my domain. He bowed several times again before finally leaving the altar. Hopefully, I thought as the next visitor was brought to me, this’ll show people that I’m not such a scary guy.