Rimuru POV
My mind stalls out for a good few seconds, trying to process what's going on right now.
Seriously, though, my mind is fogged with a bit of alcohol and that isn't helping me at all right now!
Shuna's talking like somehow my subordinates were prepared for this ahead of time, Velzard is still fuming mad, Veldora is pouting harder than ever, and Ciel is mumbling incoherently! Too much is going on right now!
I need to take charge before things fly even further off the rails.
"Everyone calm down." I sternly command the entire room, standing up from my chair.
Everyone thankfully falls silent and I take a deep breath before continuing.
"Ciel. Explain what you mean. I haven't given up any magicules or skills to make a child, and I know it would take a substantial amount; enough that I would feel it."
Ciel drunkenly raises her head from the table, a sideways, lazy grin on her mouth with a little drool in the corner of it. With her half-lidded red eyes, she looks at me, kinda smug.
"Foolish darliiiing... I fixed that incawnssshequeshiaaaal...issue with a little trick I've had in mind for... YEEEEAAARS... But yooou never ashked!... You neverrr said anything!"
"Asked for a kid? Why would I ask for a kid when I know it's so dangerous to have one!? I don't even know if I could if I wanted to anyway, and it's not really on my bucket list either." I try to come up with some retort, it sounds like this was something she's really been thinking about. I know she only ever goes that far with stuff I want.
"Lieeeees!"
I'm taken aback by her slurred yell; Ciel isn't normally like this.
Did I say something at some point to make her think this? I know Ciel sometimes runs with my random ideas a bit too far, but this is a whole other level of that if this is the case!
"Wh-what do you mean, Ciel? I'm not ly-"
"You cannoooot fool me, Master!" She forces her finger onto my lips to stop me from speaking, whispering just under her breath. "It was the thing you cared the most about in your dying moments as a human, you said you wanted nothing more than to have-"
"No, we aren't talking about that! My blood-starved brain back there thought up some crazy things, and I don't want those said here!"
This time I cut Ciel off. There's no way I'm letting her go there of all places!
"Buuut...it's still true...admit iiiiiit..."
"I want to know these 'crazy things' you speak of, Baby Brother."
"Velzard, please..."
"'Big Sis'," Velzard corrects with a chastising waggle of her index finger.
"Big Sis, please..."
"Fine." Velzard nods, "Explain this, Ciel. I need to know the truth. Did you actually manage to safely create an offspring of a True Dragon? Provide proof."
We need to focus and get this 'poison' out of our system...this is too important for me to be drunk for, and even more when it comes to Ciel.
So, I focus to reset my resistances; something I don't normally do myself but through Ciel. Right now, though, I think it's best if I do it.
My mind clears and so does Ciel's; I can see it in her eyes and the blush clearing from her cheeks in seconds. This doesn't last long, though, because her cheeks turn bright red again, but for a different reason.
She straightens in her chair and I watch as a small blob appears in her hands. A familiar blob too; the little slime that I've been keeping around recently. It's a plucky little thing, fun to have around, and pretty smart too, but I had no idea that Ciel sees it as my child.
"This little slime is our magic-born. I have worked to expand its skills, and soul to make it a more ideal candidate as well. Several components are however still lacking, as they are incomplete. Notable features are a conscious mind, they have memories and can engage in thought, but are not yet capable of higher-level reasoning. I am working on that. Additionally." Ciel glared at me for the first time. "They need a name. We can talk about that later, hm?"
Velzard raises her eyebrows. A little golden glow flashes in her eyes, then she speaks. "Are you certain they can be referred to that way? They have no True Dragon factor, the same as Milim, along with having a very small amount of magicules."
"As I said, they are a 'candidate', but one I deem worthy."
"Ciel? Why was I not asked about this before?"
"You were. I did get permission before proceeding."
Uh...when?
I wrack my brain for when exactly Ciel would've asked me something so important.
It doesn't take me long to remember a specific conversation I had with Ciel. It was back when I was walking through Jura, letting my aura replenish the magic there. She mentioned something about;
"I wish to experiment with the imbuement of intelligence into a simple monster."
Because I was in such a good mood at that time, I just agreed, telling her not to do something insane. Personally, I consider making a kid by herself before declaring them my child is insane, but I guess in Ciel's book, it isn't.
And because I agreed, can I even complain about it anymore? I wish she was more clear about what she was planning back there because I get the feeling this was Ciel's plan all along; to squeeze permission out of me before I could fully think about the implications of what she was asking.
"You promise this is safe, right Ciel?" I ask, gesturing at the tiny slime now sitting on the table near us.
"I can assure you that this is safe. There will not be a repeat of the last time a being of your caliber attempted this." Ciel says, earning a cold glare from Velzard. "That was meant to be a reassurance, Velzard. You will not lose another brother to this."
"If you are really so sure, then tell me how you are doing this."
"Hey, I don't think you should be saying that sort of thing out loud," I interject.
"Fine. I will not give the explanation out loud." Ciel replied.
"And, uh...Big Sis Velzard...?" I ask with pleading eyes, making her expression soften a bit. "Please don't tell Guy about this...he'll yell at me again..."
There's now a new fire in Velzard's eyes, as ironic as that is to say. I think I might've just struck a nerve, but her anger isn't with me, so that's fine. Nothing to worry about here.
"I'll agree on one condition." Velzard suddenly speaks up after a moment of contemplation.
"What condition?" I ask her, a little worried about what she might want from me.
"I am staying with you until you decide whether or not to name that slime. You seem unsure about it, and I want to make sure whatever Ciel is going to do goes smoothly."
"Sure, I can arrange for you to stay. I still need to think it over anyway, and I know you're worried, so I have no problem with that."
I can't blame her for getting a bit overprotective right now considering past events...plus, I don't mind having her around. It's Veldora that has a problem with Velzard, not me.
A look of horror appears on Veldora's face and he starts almost trembling as he asks: "Rimuru...you aren't being serious right, she's not really going to be staying here? You wouldn't do that to your sworn brother, would you?"
Velzard looks at Veldora with a less-than-pleased expression on her face sternly asking him: "Is it so terrible to have your older sister around?"
"N-no! I'm the mighty Storm Dragon! H-having my sister over for a few days is no problem for someone as great as me!"
He sure isn't honest with himself, is he? I know that already, but still...
But while I was dwelling on Veldora, Velzard had moved.
"A new niece or nephew...you had better live up to those expectations."
She's holding the little slime in her hands up in front of her face. The poor thing is quivering under the pressure of her eyes on them.
Then in a blink, the slime is in Ciel's hands instead.
"I will not let you intimidate our offspring, even if you have been accepted as Master's sister.
"I was not trying to intimidate the creature."
"Even so, I can't have you breaking them before they can reach their full potential."
"I would do no such thing."
I walk up to the two women facing off against each other and lay a hand on Ciel's shoulder.
"Ciel? Can we take this somewhere private? I have some questions," I calmly say, taking the small slime from Ciel's hands.
"Yes. Of course," Ciel says before returning to her place inside me without another word.
"See you both later." I wave to Veldora and Velzard before going to the most calming place in my country; my secluded little private hut.
I sit down, resting the small slime that's an apparent candidate to be called my child on my lap, and give them a few pats, trying to think up where I should even start with this.
Why did you want this so badly, Ciel?
This is the first thing that came to mind. When she was still under the influence, she spoke about how it's been a long time coming.
[[I...just did...]]
What?
[[I wanted a child. It is as simple as that, Master.]]
Ciel, you could've just been honest with me about that. I had no idea!
[[I calculated that a direct approach would not give the desired results.]]
As in I would've said no?
[[No, you would not have taken my request as a serious one. This option that I selected was determined to have the highest rate of success.]]
I sigh, knowing I've already lost.
You said this is safe, right? I don't need to worry about anything bad happening to me because of naming this slime as my child?
[[I assure you that I have taken into account all potential complications and have constructed countermeasures to deal with them.]]
With Ciel's assurance, can I really keep questioning the safety of this? She doesn't lie to me directly, and she wouldn't lie about something being a potential risk to me.
I don't like the feeling of getting fooled by Ciel yet again, but...
...is this so bad?
I wasn't against the idea of having a kid around. I don't need a successor or anything with my infinite lifespan, but being a parent was something I thought about once or twice as a human.
By the time I died, I'd settled for just being an uncle to my nieces and nothing else, but I always had a lot of fun during those few times I watched them for my older brother.
I like kids, I always have.
This is a big deal, ain't it? Maybe I should try to take it even more seriously...
At that thought, my mind settles on a new question. Ciel, why did you think showing me this little one would be the best course of action? I lift the slime to meet it with my own gaze. It never really felt like it was staring back before, but it did now.
[[I calculated the process to be simple and resource-efficient despite existing evidence to the contrary so I could prove to Master that it was not a problem. If you had named the slime, the process would have been completed on its own. However... It would have required the invocation of Turn Null if such a thing occurred.]]
Turn Null, huh? So it was sort of dangerous to have the little one around all the time if I did accidentally do that? That makes me think Ciel wasn't entirely honest when she said the process was safe.
[[This one has been isolated in your Imaginary Space for several days for good reason. It took some time to devise the correct spell to control the transfer of magicules and skills, even with copying.]]
So the reason for needing Turn Null would have been to do all that stuff from scratch and on the spot then? I'd learned a thing or two about copying skills over the years, and it takes a lot of energy. Making a skill core could also fail if the Voice of The World didn't like it. A finicky process, yet Ciel knew exactly how to do it almost every time.
Trust me, when I say something takes a considerable amount of energy, it isn't something to be taken lightly. The destructive potential if one failed to create something like an ultimate skill would be truly ginormous. Imagine an event like the big bang or something comparable.
Is their soul strong enough to actually handle a name? Another hard lesson; someone at my strength really has to control their power when naming. That has only gotten more difficult for me to do over the years, which is why I had to get skills to hand over the energy to monsters to name their kids, instead of doing it myself.
If I am doing this, I need to be sure. It is a very important event, and not just for me, but for Ciel too. So I must make sure everything goes right the first time.
Ciel's silence hangs over me before she finally speaks up again. [[I am unsure. It may take more time for their soul to be ready, despite my meddling... There is a reason for the term 'candidate' and there is always a chance of failure.]] Ciel is ashamed to admit that kind of thing, I can tell.
She never accepts failure.
That made me sure, though. If this is something she's so convinced of that she'd accept the possibility of failure...
The little slime sticks a tentacle out toward me, interrupting my thoughts.
I stop and stare, for just a moment. Then I touch their new little tentacle with my finger. "I think Ciel is right about you."
As if in response to this, the little slime springs up and lands right on top of my head; one of its favorite spots, at least I think so.
"Was that you agreeing with me?" I chuckle, giving them a little pat.
I'll take it as that.
If we're going to dedicate ourselves to this, we need to be more careful than ever. Because if I get my heart set on this and it goes wrong-
[[I can only do everything in my power to ensure that nothing goes wrong. Promising success with utmost certainty is not possible.]]
I'm a little off-put by her refusal to promise that everything will go fine, but at this point, that isn't going to change my mind.
We will make this work. Don't even try telling me the chances, Ciel, because if we do our best, that's all we can do, right? I've said this to you before.
[[...]]
I stunned you into silence, huh? That doesn't happen too often.
[[I take it you want to go through with this, Master?]]
Yes. You won, Ciel. I'll accept this slime as our kid.
I can almost feel her smiling inside me.
After all the effort she went to and the attachment that I formed with it over the short period of time I'd been keeping it around, I'm at the point of being completely fine with this.
I can also imagine some of the benefits of it too.
It might be nice to have a kid to brag about, right? That's something parents do.
Yeah, bragging about your kid isn't the best part of parenting, I can imagine, but that won't stop me from enjoying it.
Then another idea pops into my mind.
Wait... this is something that Guy can't get one over on me with! There's no way that dude could safely pull off making a kid, and I doubt anyone would want to make one with him in the first place!
...
Now...what should I do about this?
By 'this', I mean the buzz of activity leaking over the telepathy net combined with a chaotic assortment of emotions coming from my patrons. Obviously, the news has gotten to them all, and now we're dealing with a full-blown crisis and panic.
Might as well contact Benimaru and figure out the situation.
{{Hey, Beni, what's up with you guys?}}
{{Lord Rimuru! E-Everything's fine! Yes!}}
Based on what I'm sensing, I doubt that's the truth.
{{You sure I shouldn't head over there to explain some things?}}
{{NO! No, there is no need! We're just gathering to talk about the circumstances!}}
{{Alright, if you say so.}}
Clearly, there's a lot going on down in the Control Room (that's where they all are, I can tell), but it sounds like a mess I don't want to deal with. If Benimaru wants to do me the favor of calming everyone down in advance, I'll let my right-hand man do his job before intervening.
"Melting into my bed right now sounds nice..."
It's been quite a day, after all, and a brain break is in order, I believe.
I gently set down my little slime, drop my human shape, and plop onto the bed, wanting to get some shut-eye, even while lacking eyes.
Third-Person POV
The little slime bounces around on the floor of Rimuru's small house, knocking a few things over after finding their way onto the counter, and then the table. Finally, it gets to knocking everything off of the nightstands.
Then, after being satisfied with the general state of the small house, it hops up onto the bed and cuddles up next to the larger slime.
Rimuru POV
I wake up to a set of intense golden eyes staring me down, with snow-white hair atop them.
Velzard is smiling at me silently while watching me; simply watching me.
She's worked up, that's for sure, based on how her eyes look right now. Calm Velzard has blue, angry or upset Velzard has gleaming gold, and her current color better fits the latter description.
"Uh...what're you doing in here?" I ask hesitantly, a little startled and confused that she got inside. I have protections on this place to stop others from intruding, but I guess Velzard still broke through all that. It's not that unimaginable since it's her, but I'm still unsettled by it.
"I said I am staying with you, Baby Brother, don't you remember?"
Did she say that? And did I agree to it?!
[[She did, and you did, Master.]]
That means this is my fault, I guess, but still, invading my personal space like this wasn't what I was expecting when I agreed to that, I think.
"Soooo..." What do I even say in this situation!? It's so awkward! "Well...how's the weather?"
"It's snowing."
"But..." It's literally the middle of summer... "Ah...I wonder why...?"
"Yes, it's quite baffling, Baby Brother."
Her smile says everything I need to know; she's responsible.
"Are you...doing okay? I mean, you normally perfectly contain...that...but..."
"Don't worry about it. I am certain your city can deal with it."
But then it occurs to me, "Oh no, the crops! Now I won't be able to have my key lime pie!"
Velzard just stares at me silently, as if trying to figure out what I meant. She probably doesn't even know what key lime pie is; it's something we've had in the works only recently. The thing about limes is; cold kills them. Quick.
"I was unaware that would be a problem."
"I guess we'll just have to try again after this all melts..."
The little slime pokes up from next to me and shakes a bit. It's shivering.
I turn back into human shape and hold them close to me. They're cold, I can tell, and I don't exactly give off body heat like a human, so I warm up the room by agitating the air molecules a bit. It only takes a few seconds for their shivering to stop.
After that, I open up the telepathy net for just a moment to check on the progress of my subordinates in their figh- I mean discussion. As it turns out, they didn't get that far, as immediately upon opening the connection again I get a resounding:
{{LORD RIMURU!!!}} cry out what seems like a hundred voices at once.
I practically felt my eardrums explode, even though I don't have any and the telepathy net doesn't use sound in the first place. Still, the message blasted into my mind with a painful amount of force.
I look back to the little slime and explain the plan. "We should go deal with that, so you'll get to see the Control Room."
I tenderly set them back on the top of my head and stand up.
Velzard follows my lead and stands herself, intent on coming with us, apparently. I was kinda expecting this, though.
I look around the room and realize that most of my stuff is knocked over or on the floor. "Little one, did you knock all my things over after I went to sleep last night?"
The little slime suddenly is very very still, not moving even a tiny bit. I can tell with universal sense. I also have a vague feeling they're scared.
I sigh. "I'll pick everything up later, please don't do it again." I pat the little slime a bit, then make sure to make a bubble of warm air that would stay around my head. I think it's necessary with how cold it probably is outside.
After that, I change into my Demon Lord outfit and walk out of my house. I don't want anyone bothering me right now, so it's important to be as recognizable as possible.
It takes me a few minutes to get to the entrance to the Labyrinth after that, but once I'm inside with Velzard, I immediately make my way to the Control Room.
I step inside and nearly immediately my subordinates jump at me, or more accurately...
Two of my subordinates jump at me with a skidding halt, Shion and Diablo.
"Is it true, Lord Rimuru!? Is it true that you are having a child?!"
Shion cries this out, her face messy with tears, while clinging to me like a child. Seriously, though, she's down on the floor with her arms wrapped around my legs, weeping and whining before I can get a single word out.
I decide that a straightforward answer would be the least troublesome.
"Yes."
"LORD RIMURUUUU'S GONNNAAAA DIIIIIIIEEEE!!!"
Maybe the straightforward approach wasn't such a good idea...
"It is impossible for Lord Rimuru, a god that surpasses all, to even conceive the idea of his own death! He has reached far beyond the concept of entropy itself!"
Wow...even Zegion is all worked up in his own way. I don't think I've heard him raise his voice that loud before.
"Yes, our lord would never die from such a trivial task. Perhaps the first secretary should cede her position to someone more suitable if she is so incompetent as to entertain such an absurd idea." Diablo venomously spat at Shion.
"As I've said countless times already, we cannot be sure until we hear the details from Lord Rimuru himself, all of you," Benimaru interjects before Shion can complain, looking awfully tired for someone of his strength. I guess being the voice of reason is exhausting, even for a capable man like him.
He looks to me for help, wanting me to explain, I can tell.
Everyone else in the room is scarily silent, joining Benimaru in his staring. They all want answers.
"Let me explain..."
Iruma POV
I sit up, it is really cold in my room for some reason. It's the middle of summer here, right? So it doesn't make much sense. I guess Tempest just has weird weather?
I hear a buzz on my phone, and roll over to grab it...
I got a text from Rimuru, she's telling me about how she will be busy today, and so will most of her upper subordinates. That means we can't really spend time together right now.
I wonder what's going on...it sounds important.
Brushing this aside in my mind, I roll the rest of the way out of bed to get ready for my day.
Rimuru POV
So, apparently, my subordinates have a contingency plan in place for the event in which I have a kid... I know they have contingency plans for just about everything, but really, this seems a little much.
Code "S.L.I.M.E," by the way, stands for "Slime Life Introduction and Management Event." I'm pretty sure someone coined that silly-sounding phrase just so they could spell the word "slime" when it came to the plan involving my kid, which...eh, whatever, I guess.
After explaining that no, I hadn't found a lover while I was on vacation, and reassuring Shion I wasn't about to die, we came to the decision to keep this mostly private for now. That was apparently the original plan outlined in their little contingency folder anyway (seriously, they have folders of these!?) My top staff and the palace staff who work directly with them will be aware, but that's it–and they'll all be on a gag order until I decide that my baby slime is ready for a public appearance.
"Um..." Now that we've mostly wrapped up the meeting, Shion came up to me with pleading eyes. I had explained that this little slime is my kid now, and it looks like she wants in on the action.
"My Lord?" Shion's nervousness is uncharacteristic of her, but she's clearly desperate. "May I hold them?"
"Uh, sure," I shrug, busy writing on some documents to make our decisions here official. The little slime is still perched on my head, so Shion tries to scoop it up, which proves to be more difficult than expected.
"Oh my!" Shion squeals with glee, "It's so strong! As to be expected of Lord Rimuru's heir!"
They're not my kid yet... but I suppose that would be a pointless argument to make. It is true that Ciel has made it much stronger than average, especially for its size. Currently, the little one is clinging to my head like a suction cup as Shion tries to gently (as gently as Shion can be, which isn't much) pry it off–but so far, no dice.
"Shion," Shuna comes up with one of her 'I'm-planning-something' smiles. "Why don't you let me try?"
"Absolutely not!" Shion immediately rebukes. "As Lord Rimuru's first secretary, I insist on having the honor to greet our young master or mistress first!"
"There's no need to make such a big deal out of it..." I mumble, but they're already staring at each other with murderous intent, so I figure it's best if I don't intervene.
"But they clearly aren't interested in you," Shuna says with a deceptively serene smile. "Forcing your will upon Lord Rimuru's child is simply unacceptable. Therefore, I ought to try."
"Well, I don't see them liking you any more than me!" Shion retorts.
"But I think they would appreciate my gentle touch..." Shuna reaches past Shion to try and scoop up the slime, but their arguing has been making it scared. I haven't intervened yet because there's no harm being done, but I can sense the little one's apprehension through our normal slime communication.
As soon as Shuna's fingers brush it, it jumps off my head and squirms into my shirt, quivering while it clings to me.
"Aw, it's okay," I comfort it, patting the little blob that's now hiding under the fabric. Shooting a lightly scolding look at the two Oni, I tell Shuna and Shion, "You could both be a bit more considerate, you know."
"We're sorry, my Lord!" They both say at once, dropping into a submissive bow that I haven't seen either of them do in a while. I guess things are going to be a bit weird around here until everyone gets used to this little slime...
The little slime moves around until it's resting in the crook of my neck, I guess it reasoned out that the Oni wouldn't grab for them there. Although I have to guess that they are very confused with all the attention at this point.
[[As much as I enjoy seeing you bond with our potential child, Master, without further preparations, they will not be able to survive the naming.]]
With that little statement, the tiny slime vanishes into my imaginary space.
**One Week Later**
Today's the day, and by 'the day', I mean the day I'll name my little slime.
Ciel spent the whole week giving the baby slime skills and making preparations.
This will be a sort of birthday for them, I suppose, so I have a party planned for tonight, just including my main staff. I don't want this getting leaked just yet. Oh, and I guess I'll invite Iruma, Opera, and Sullivan too because why not, right?
This is important and I'd like to let them in on this. It's not like they'll be around to blab about it anyway since it's very close to the start of the Babyls school year now. I'm going to be splitting myself into two bodies again, but unlike before, I'm gonna keep both active. One to parent my kid and govern my country while the other fools around in a demonic high school. Sounds like a fair way to split my personal responsibilities, right?
Yeah...maybe not. But both will still be me, so it doesn't matter.
The snow that Velzard caused was melted in quick order, but that doesn't mean she isn't still hanging around. Sharing meals with me and refusing to let me leave her side; my sense of privacy has been almost nonexistent this entire time.
I tried shooing her off, insisting that nothing would happen until the naming party, but she stubbornly insisted on continuing her intense surveillance of my actions. It's a bit unnerving, that's for certain.
I guess I can't blame her for being concerned for my well-being, considering her past.
"Don't you think Guy will show up if you're here much longer, Big Sis?" I ask, making sure to call her by her preferred nickname. She's already on edge about this whole 'having a kid' thing and I'd rather keep her as complacent and calm as possible.
"That will not be a problem."
"It won't?"
"If he knows what's good for him, he will not disturb my family visit."
"I...see..."
Velzard definitely harshly told him to stay away, which is for the best, since he'd definitely be a pain in the backside.
I can already hear the stuff he's gonna whine about once he figures out about this: "You'll ruin the balance of the world again!" "True Dragons can't just have children on a whim!" blah, blah, blah, yada, yada.
I hope he doesn't find out for a long time, so I can just argue that he should've brought it up sooner, but I doubt that's possible.
[[It is time.]]
Ciel's voice pops in out of nowhere after multiple days of radio silence.
She'd told me previously the naming would be possible today and she was just applying the finishing touches, although put in a more Ciel-like way, and it looks like she's finally finished.
I immediately notify my staff.
I'm excited to see what they have planned.
But first...Iruma...I need to tell Iruma to come to the party too.
{{There's gonna be another dinner party tonight, so get ready for it. Let Grandpa Sullivan and Opera know for me too, please.}}
There's a few-second pause before Iruma responds.
{{What for? You didn't tell me about any party.}}
{{The...um...kind of...well...birth of my child...?}}
How else was I supposed to put that?
{{You're having a kid?!}}
{{Yup.}}
Cue confused silence.
{{I knew you ate too much the other night!}}
{{Excuse me?}}
{{If a slime eats a lot that creates another slime, right? I didn't know if you were like that too, Rimuru, but I learned about that a bit ago.}}
{{No, no, that's not how this works! Not with me!}}
...I don't think...I mean, I'm pretty gluttonous, so I'd probably have already had that happen by now if that applied to me. Maybe back when my race was that of a normal slime...?
[[It is possible that could happen before your Harvest Festival occurred, but it is not a non-consensual process. Your will would have had to align with the purpose of reproduction for it to happen, much like sexual reproduction by other races of monsters.]]
Good to know. Not that it's relevant to me nowadays.
While I just got some clarification, Iruma is still very confused. I can almost feel it over our communication.
{{Oh...then how-}}
{{It's more like an adoption than a birth, okay? I just used that as a turn of phrase since adoption doesn't quite fit either here.}}
{{But still...this is so sudden! I had no idea, Rimuru! When did you decide this!?}}
{{About a week ago.}}
Cue more confused silence from Iruma.
{{I'm...happy for you. I'm surprised, but congratulations!}}
How sweet.
{{I'll see you at the party, okay? Just ask Katelyn to take you to the venue; she should be aware of where it's happening.}}
{{One more thing, Rimuru. Please.}}
{{What is it?}}
{{Does this mean...you're not coming back to Babyls? Having a kid is a lot of responsibility, I think, so you might not have enough time-}}
{{No, don't worry about that. I've got that all sorted out already.}}
{{Whew! Good. Um...seeya at the party, Rimuru!}}
Velzard raises an expectant eyebrow at me, her intuition probably tipping her off to something being up.
I give her a small nod and the apprehension on her face grows.
"Please be careful." is all she says, sounding a bit solemn.
**Later**
My executives are all sitting in one of our smaller, more private banquet rooms. We have some food set up on a table, buffet-style, so it's just us to serve ourselves here. The general staff members were excused after setting up–naming a child feels like a pretty big, personal experience, so I decided to hold the 'ceremony' with just my closest Tempestian friends.
It's been a while since so many of us were in the same place, just socializing over some good food. The feeling makes me nostalgic; we even set up cushions and chabudai tables on the floor, just like old times.
It's time to get started, though–Tempest's first (and probably last) heir is about to be born. The thought fills me with excitement and nervousness.
I stand up, and all my executives go quiet–they know it's about to start.
"So, uh," no need to formal speeches with this crowd. Even though I've improved dramatically, all these people know I have an inherent difficulty with public speaking.
"It's been a while since we've all been in the same room," I say. "To be frank, not even a week ago I wouldn't have guessed we'd be gathering for... well..." I sigh heavily, "Code S.L.I.M.E, I guess. Honestly, I'll never understand why you guys have so many plans for everything."
Some of my executives lightly laugh at this, probably trying to encourage me. To be honest, I'm quite nervous right now considering the subject–I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of becoming a parent yet, and am starting to get cold feet. I won't give in to that feeling though–Ciel wants this, and I do as well, really.
"Whatever," I throw my hands in the air, "you guys know I hate speeches. I'm just glad I have all of you, and I'm incredibly grateful for everything you do for me and Tempest... and now, for naming my kid, I guess. So, uh. Thanks. To all of you."
I sit down abruptly, ready to get this over with.
You ready, Ciel?
[[Absolutely!]]
Ciel then opens a portal to my imaginary space and I can see her inside holding a dense orb of magic, almost pure magic. It actually takes me a moment to realize that the little slime is inside.
It's a very complex spell, clearly, and it sort of resembles an egg. Well, an egg that appears to be a vortex of black swirling magic able to consume a universe or two without even noticing anything happen.
I take the 'egg' out and place it in front of me. Then I make a show of extending my hand towards the spell the baby slime is inside, everyone's attention fully focused on what's about to happen.
Letting the name I spent multiple days coming up with hang in my mind, I prepare to finally speak it out loud.
"Your name is..."
*CRASH*