A cataclysm shook the world on that day.
It was the only way to describe the reaction when the disappearance of the storm dragon Veldora was confirmed. It wasn't every day that a Special S-ranked monster simply vanished without a trace.
The Special S rank combined the S rank, which comprised demon lord–class foes that deserved more than simply an A, with the "Special" tag reserved for those above even that class—monsters capable of single-handedly engineering calamities or natural disasters. A scale-breaking rank, existing wholly outside the six traditional ones. Normally, an A-ranked monster alone would be dreadful enough to threaten the existence of a nation—someone like Veldora was dangerous enough to plunge it into despair.
Three hundred years of penance had done nothing to affect the dragon's rank as a natural disaster–level threat. Just because he had disappeared didn't mean he couldn't be reborn somewhere, posing a new menace before long.
••••••
Word spread first in the area around the Forest of Jura, a broad plain dotted with a large number of minor countries. Once Veldora's fate had been broadly reported, each one of them sprang to their feet, the proverbial hornet's nest stimulated to action. Every king and every minister of every nation held day after day of emergency meetings, gathering information and debating what to do next.
On a private chamber that day, located in the small kingdom of Blumund, a semi-meeting was held by Baron Veryand—a minister—and Fuze, the guild master of Blumund.
"I believe you know why I summoned you here," the baron began the moment Fuze walked through the archway. "You have heard about the storm dragon by now, have you not?" Fuze nodded.
"Of course, my baron," he said in his low, hoarse voice.
"Hmph," Veryard spat out in response. "I suppose I should expect nothing less of you, my good guild master. Now, may I ask about how the guild intends to respond?"
"We have no particular plans at this time, sir."
"...I'm sorry, did I hear you correctly? You have no intention to take action?"
"Yes, sir," Fuze replied with a voice devoid of emotion, silently asking the baron what he was so perturbed about. "I do not feel any action is necessary."
The baron, not a great fan of this response, chose to keep those feelings hidden. "Rather a strange thing to say, is it not? Not necessary? The disappearance of Veldora the Storm Dragon may portend further monster activity in the space of days, even hours! And you are taking no measure at all against it?"
"It would strike me as rather strange to do so, sir, for taking such measures is the job of the state. I am responsible for the Free Guild, not for providing volunteer work when bidden."
This was the truth, as far as Fuze was concerned. The Free Guild was an independent, nongovernmental agency. Its members were afforded no special guarantees of security or comfort. To put it another way, the Free Guild was a group that operated outside the framework of any nation—and one far more unified than a single government as well. It was a fact that some of their operations occurred without the knowledge or consent of these nations, whether the guild intended it to be seen that way or not.
Fuze wasn't sure whether he had imagined the blue vein that had just popped up on Veryard's forehead or not.
He hadn't. The baron knew his position was being probed.
"Enough pretense, Guild Master! How many mercenaries can you provide us? How many adventurers with combat experience? What is the size of the defense force you can provide in service? I need numbers!"
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First Firmament (Tensei Slime Fanfiction)
Fanfiction(August 2023: This was something written back on August 2022, a whole year ago. I took it down not long after it was published but I thought about reuploading it. No plans to update it, however.) Satoru Mikami was an individual difficult to pin down...
