Tensei Shitara Yosei Datta Ken!

Chapter 2

     "I can’t believe it..." Kaijin trails off. "Is that really possible?"

     "Is it really that crazy?" Gobta jumps in, his mouth full.

     "It is bizarre. Ogres and Orcs are far apart in terms of strength." Kaijin begins, launching into an explanation. "For one thing, orcs are lower creature. They would never launch an attack. And for it to be such a devastating massacre? Well—"

     "It was not a massacre." The red one interrupts, glaring. His tone was probably about as sharp as his blade. "We are still left."

     "...You’re right, I’m sorry." Kaijin and Gobta both look thoroughly frightened by the glare, but it’s Kaijin who corrects himself.

     "I see. No wonder you were so upset." Rimuru says, appearing.

     "Are you done with your meat, Rimuru?" He questions.

     "Just taking a break..." Rimuru say, looking rather content. "Your sister is remarkable. She knows so much about herbs and spices. It took no time at all for her to get along with the Goblinas."

     "She was..." He thought about how to word it for a moment. "Over protected back home. I think she's happy to be of use to someone."

     There was a small pause before Rimuru continued.

     "So, what are you going to do now?"

     "'Do'?"

     "Your future direction. Whether you decide to rebuild... or move to some other land... the fate of your comrades still rests on your shoulders, doesn’t it?"

     "There’s no question of what’s to be done. We will regroup, gather our strength, and fight back."

     "Any idea of how to do that?"

     A long period of silence followed Rimuru’s question.

     He has no idea.

     "Here's a suggestion: do you have any interest in joining my forces?"

     "What?" He asks, obviously taken aback by the offer.

     "The only thing I can guarantee you is clothing, food, and shelter, nothing more." Rimuru begins. "But at least there's a place to call home for the time being, right?"

     "But then our quest for vengeance will involve your village..."

     "Well, I'm not just doing this for your sake." Rimuru cut him. "You said it was thousands of armed orcs, right? That's clearly an abnormal situation. We cannot assume that our town is safe either. So it’s to our benefit to have as much power as we can."

     "....Ah, I see."

     "And you don't need to stay after the problem with the orcs done, you can go and rebuild your village or go to an adventure, is up to you, this is only a temporary contract until this problem is over. Its a win win solution for all of us."

     "I... Will think about it."

     Rimuru just giving him a nod before excused himself to get more meat while thinking more about the little one situation.

—<—<—<—<—<—<—>—>—>—>—>—

     "Come in," Rimuru calls when he hears a knock at his door the next morning. In walks the red ogre, looking particularly somber.

     "Ah, good morning," Rimuru says. "Have you made your decision?"

     He takes a moment, and draws in a long breath. "The ogres are a fighting race. We are not upset by the thought of battling under another's orders and the stronger the liege, the happier we are to serve. Can the contrack last until we defeated the Orcs?"