The Great One's Journey

Pain - What Connects You Separates Another

"...you're using words, but the thing about this world, Tommy, is that the only universal language is violence. And we've had that conversation."

- Alexander the Pig

...

If she were asked for easiest way to bait her master into doing things on a whim, then Ciel would say that food was the answer. The sentient AI sighed internally as she observed him going into one of the other towers circling the Last Tower. Her master caught the smell of stew from inside the blue roofed tower like a canine to the scent of meat. She wondered that if her master hadn't been reborn as a slime, he probably would've been reborn as a dog-like monster.

It had been five days since the festival. The reason her master was here in the first place was that the human child had requested to meet his other child allies here. The child had asked to meet them in front of the Last Tower everyday since the day after he was adopted. Ciel still wasn't sure on what to make of the individual named Jack and his adoption. While this was hardly the most questionable thing her master had ever done, this was perhaps one of the things he almost never did. While her master considered his allies and subordinates as family, he almost never went out of his way to tie them into his family tree. The only instance of it happening was the time when her master was named by his now sworn brother Veldora Tempest. Not even Zegion, who arguably could be considered as a pseudo-offspring due to her master giving him his own essence, had been put in the Tempest family line.

Ciel had observed her master much more closely these last few days. If it were a month ago, her master would've simply let the child go on his own. But, after adopting said child, her master had become much more watchful over him and almost never let him out of his sight whenever the child was without anyone that her master knew. It felt similar to the time they had started their war against Rudra's Empire. If it weren't for the reassurance and plea of his subordinates, then he would've gone to shield his soldiers and stand against the empire by himself. The amount of worry he felt when the child was left alone was parallel to the earlier event.

Her master had only amounted this much worry over his other students when they were on the risk of facing danger. While the AI couldn't figure out exactly why he felt this way, she was able to make a guess. Her best one was that it might possibly be an awakening of his maternal (or paternal; whichever was the case) instincts that had led him to feel this way. Ciel thought it was only a matter of time until he revealed his surname to the child. But, she wasn't sure what would come after that. Would the child also mantle the name of Tempest or not?

{Insufficient data. More must be collected to simulate the outcome.}

"Hmm? What was that?" questioned Rimuru as he reached the kitchen floor of the Blue Tower.

{It's nothing. I was simply pondering.}

The demon lord just nodded and said inwardly, "Okay. Just don't overwork yourself." He knew the severity of his Manas' "ponderings." He had no doubt that even a quantum supercomputer would fry itself just by trying to process even a fraction of her most basic thoughts.

{I doubt that will ever happen, master.}

Rimuru shrugged his shoulders. He had to agree with her. His companion wasn't one to ever tire herself out from working too much. He even doubted she was capable of that in the first place.

The kitchen had smooth stone as its flooring; the same was the case with the walls. He could see kitchen utensils neatly hung on one side, with many others sprawled around the room. The wide open windows shone across the entire place, illuminating it clearly. Near one of the stoves was a cooking pot, and in front of it was a girl in her late teens with long hair colored like the leaves of autumn. The heated pot wafted out a delicious smell from inside, confirming to the gluttonous king that this was what led him here. The girl looked to be taste testing the stew while she continued stirring and adding more ingredients into it. Her body moved a little according to her rhythmic singing.