["It seems that my...worries...were unfounded..."] thought Ciel, as she gazed at Benimaru through the system of the word.
["I did grant many of Master's subordinates a vision of what they would eventually face, so that they would not relax as much as they would in the previous timeline...but I did not expect for Benimaru to immediately try to confide in Master. Well, as expected of Master Rimuru. All of his actions so far, in some shape or form, have created waves that have aided in the development of his subordinates and allies."]
Ciel mentally groaned, walking around in circles. Though she is current intangible, so she simply walks through obstacles.
["If only Ivaraj's memories gave some sort of clue to his ability...then we could just forget about this arduous process...After analyzing his dead corpse, none of the skills he had were related to his ability...so I concluded that it was instinct. Using his aura in some way to prevent us from travelling without risking implosion of time...Something that I still cannot fully understand. How does one destroy time? Control it, sure. But destroy it? Causing it to cease to exist? Not to mention that Ivaraj was just a being of destruction with some reins put on him. And his memories always screamed 'I WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING!' I can't analyze techniques when all of his memories are corrupted. As for how his memories relate to his technique, there is no feasible explanation...no, his mindset maybe? But how? Even with the {Akashic Records}, nothing is recorded there that has the ability to destroy time! Sure, there is creation. Yes there is destruction. There is also the ability to control time. But destroy it? It should be impossible...time is necessary, and relative to each being...however it cannot exist without space...but space exists even when time is stopped...as time is something that is observed...but that doesn't help!"]
Ciel paused, taking a deep breath, before calculating more possibilities and predicting the future.
["Focus on the present Ciel. There should be no major changes in the Orc Lord fight...perhaps less casualties but that's it. And it would be my role to deal with any outliers."]
She sighed, before continuing her line of thought.
["Lord Rimuru would probably disagree with me giving his current subordinates glimpses of the future, due to both his paranoia and viewpoints...he doesn't want to shake up the timeline nor does he want to brainwash his subordinates loyalty, which I respect greatly...but unlike my Master, I do not care about his subordinates. Only him, and his happiness, which so happens to extend to said subordinates. Not to mention...the experiences that he had in the previous timeline were not fake...how would it be brainwashing if I simply gave them back their memories? But then again, I do not fully understand emotions, so I digress..."]
She then turned around to head back to her Master. She would be the one working in the dark, ensuring that no outlier influenced the timeline. At least not the early one. However, she would also ensure their loyalty. At the end of the day, her actions aimed to help Rimuru's subordinates grow...and protect her Master's happiness. Even...if it cost her her relationship and trust with Rimuru.
Unbeknownst to her, the fact remained that even if she could understand Ivaraj's technique...it's not as if she would be able to stop it. Not without understanding...or rather embracing...well, something more abstract.
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"It seems like Gabiru has made his move...again. Not that I can blame him, since he was manipulated by Laplace, but I'm still calling him an idiot." thought Rimuru.
He was currently sitting on Ranga's back, heading through the forest. With the speed at which he was going, the wind easily blew his hair back behind his head.
He closed his eyes. It seemed like everything was going according to Ciel and his predictions. They had already rescued the lizardwoman that would eventually be known as Souka, killed several orcs along the way, and were already heading towards the main battlefield.
Rimuru contemplated for a while, having already sent Souei to rescue the Lizardmen Chieftan. He thought about how to deal with the Orc Lord as swiftly as possible in order to reduce casualties, while also allowing the Kijin under his command to deal with their heightened rage. It was likely that more orcs would have to suffer as a result, but he wished to prevent that. The orcs were crucial to the rapid industrialization and modernization of Tempest, after all.
As such, he turned around to look at Benimaru, who was riding another direwolf behind him. Rimuru then spoke up.
"Benimaru, I know that this may seem redundant, but I must ask you...why is it that you want to kill the orcs?"
Benimaru turned to look at his current lord, confused as to why he was asking this sort of question. The Kijin opened his mouth, before closing it. His lord wouldn't ask an obvious question for no reason. Pondering for a bit, and not thinking of anything else, he simply responded with the obvious answer.
"It is to avenge my father, my family and my clan, Lord Rimuru."
He saw the way his new Lord pursed his lips, indicating that his answer was not the correct one.
"Is...that answer not correct?" he added, prompting his master to respond.
"Sometimes, the best path to revenge isn't an act of violence, but to simply move on in life." Rimuru started. "Revenge can consume a person, and they can be blinded to other factors beyond their control."
Rimuru then made eye contact with Benimaru, golden eyes burrowing into orange amber ones, quickly putting out any flames of anger that Benimaru may or may not have had.
"For instance, if a monster killed your father, because your father killed his father, then what would you do? Kill that man and justify it as justice? Then his son would search and kill you, and so on and so forth."
Rimuru turned away, ignoring his subordinate's now pensive and conflicted expression.
"A cycle of revenge and death. Kill or be killed. Kill and be killed. The strong prey on the weak, and it's the fault of the weak for being so. Consequently, the weak aim to get strong, and either avenge their fallen brethren...or die in the process. That is the current sense of this world... and I wish to change that. Granted, I may be hypocritical by using my own power and influence to change things...but that is the only way that this world will change. Through power, influence...and example. Please think on that, Benimaru, as you fill the hole in your heart."
Finishing his thoughts, Rimuru turned away to focus on the battle ahead, while keeping an eye on Benimaru to analyze his reaction. All he got was a pensive face.
Rimuru's thoughts eventually turned towards the battle ahead, sending a telepathic message to Ranga and the Goblin Riders to use {Shadow Step} to get to Gabiru's location, while he immediately took to the skies.
As a sidenote, he also noticed that Laplace was already retreating after his confrontation with Treyni. The stage was all set.
"Now...let's get this over with..."
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The trembling of the ground was felt throughout the battlefield, filled by the injured, the dead and the dying. The thousands of orcs, blinded by ravenous hunger, could only look on in shock as massive fiery spheres of black flames consumed their bretheren by the hundreds. Hundreds more would be cut down
It would seem as if this attack was indiscriminant at first glance, but this was far from the case. The orcs had surrounded the lizardmen and their goblin allies, painting the perfect and obvious target for a massive bombardment from above.
Eventually, the bombardment died down, before a deafening crash was heard. A large quantity of dirt and debris was launched into the air, crushing some unlucky orcs as gravity pulled the pieces back down. As the smoke and dirt cleared, it became obvious who were responsible for the sudden attack. Benimaru, Shion and Hakurou, appearing out of the dust, temporarily eyeing their opposition, before beginning their attack.
No words were needed, as hundreds were cut down, decapitated, or simply launched to their deaths. Yet Benimaru still pondered, wondering what his Master had meant. Perhaps... was it for him to question what he would do next, after his vengeance was satiated? Or...was it something else...
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As more orcs were killed or maimed across the entire battlefield, Rimuru watched everything from above, through an improved version of the {Eye of God} technique that he had used during the war with the Eastern Empire. That technique had been reliant on sunlight and refraction, while now there was no need for light at all as Ciel used Magicules instead. Similar to Magic Sense, Magicules were now being fed through the same patterns that light would have been sent, allowing for the user of the technique to see much further and more accurate pictures.
Souei had rescued the Chieftain, per future Souka's wishes, and has already cleared the caves that the lizardmen called home. Gabiru has been rescued by Gobta and the goblin riders, and had also come to the same conclusion that Gobta was somehow the secret leader of the village. Ranga had begun his rampage by calling upon the vast tornadoes, channeling his anger after an orc had insulted both him and his master.
Benimaru and the rest have already engaged the Orc Lord, who was not the Orc Disaster yet. Gelmud was still alive, after all.
["Notice. It seems that the Individual Gelmud has been killed by the Orc Lord. The Evolution of the Orc Lord into the Orc Disaster has commenced."]
"I stand corrected. Looks like things are passing by quicker than expected."
Rushing towards the action, Rimuru lands right in front of the now newly crowned Orc Disaster, cratering the ground, before immediately rushing towards his opponent.
He ignored the cries of warning from the Kijin behind him
"There is no need for banter, nor need to negotiate. As far as I am concerned, I just need to defeat the Orc Disaster without revealing too much to Clayman, Carrion, Frey and Milim. The less they know about me, the better. Only Milim is curious enough to risk the pact with Veldora at this time, despite the fact that Veldora 'no longer exists'."
["It should be noted, Master, that the Kijin have already fought with the Orc Disaster and have adjusted to their newfound power."]
"Thanks for the info, Ciel."
Taking his tachi that he had attached to his waist, he immediately slashed at the Orc Disaster, cutting a large gash into the Orc Disaster left side.
The Orc Disaster, stunned, turned around to face the newfound threat while regenerating its wounds, only to then realize that right arm was now missing; bisected at the elbow, the wound was now burning with black flames.
Not giving the Orc Disaster a chance to recover, Rimuru blasted the Unique Monster with a barrage of water blades and icicles, which either slashed through or embedded themselves within the beast's flesh.
With a mighty roar, the Orc Disaster unleashed a vast amount of aura, ending the barrage by throwing the projectiles off course, before ripping off the stump of its arm to allow its regeneration to kick in. It then launched a barrage of its own, red orbs of energy aimed towards its opponent. To no avail, as Rimuru simply recognized the path of each projectile and avoid each one, slowly walking through the barrage of energy until he was in range of the Orc Disaster.
Surprised, the Orc Disaster immediately struck at Rimuru from above, with an oversized butcher knife that seemingly came out of nowhere, only for Rimuru to sidestep the attack once again and kick the beast in the stomach, sending it flying a good distance away.
As Rimuru rushed the beast again, the Kijin that were observing the battle stood in silence and in shock. After all, it was not everyday that they saw an opponent that they could not beat be manhandled by their master. Though they would eventually get used to it, as Rimuru was not called an "Abnormality" for nothing.
"He's beating the pig back like its nothing... As expected of Lord Rimuru!" thought Shion, watching in admiration that their newfound master held this much power.
"To think he would be able to launch a being that large that far with a single kick..." Thought Benimaru. "Though, why is it that I am feeling exasperated with myself? Like I shouldn't be surprised that Lord Rimuru is able to achieve such impressive feats. Hell, why do I feel like I should be expecting more? It doesn't make sense."
"I am not done yet!"
A declaration brought all the Kijins out of their stupor, as the Orc Disaster unleashed its {Chaos Eater} attack. Deranged heads made out of reddish-brown gas shot out from behind him, aiming to bite and shred Rimuru to pieces. Some cratered into the ground, taking deep bites into the dirt, before rising back up and continuing to chase their supposed prey.
Rimuru retreated a few steps, taking a stance with his left leg slightly in front of his left. He then bent his left knee, and dashed forward, slashing at all the incoming heads one by one.
One was cut in half, the other decapitated, while a third was dodged entirely.
This pattern continued, until Rimuru had once again gotten into his opponent's guard. Only difference being that this time the Orc Disaster had expected him, and had already prepared a large swing from Rimuru left.
The butcher knife met no resistance and cut straight through, leaving a bisected blue haired majin...or so the Orc Disaster thought. In reality, the Orc Disaster had hit an after-image, missing Rimuru entirely.
Rimuru suddenly appeared in mid-air, his body upside down, behind the Orc Disaster's head. This was followed by the sound of sword cutting flesh and bone, as the leader of the Orcs' head went flying.
This technique that Rimuru had just used had been dubbed Thundering Chaos by Veldora, who had started to name Rimuru techniques out of boredom. The technique composed of multiple chained attacks, with each strike being stronger than the last. The final strike involves dashing or teleporting behind the enemy while leaving an after-image or clone, ensuring that the opponent is caught between two fronts. Usually, Rimuru's sword would be cloaked in Veldora's Storm Energy or Rimuru's Null Energy, with the former being a part of the Storm Series and the latter being a part of the Void Series, or Void Collapse. It should be noted that Veldora was also playing with the name Ascension of the Raging God for the latter version of the technique. Rimuru was completely unaware of the naming of the techniques.
In this battle, however, Rimuru only used the {Black Flames}, which were currently set ablaze at the stump of the Orc Disaster's neck.
Benimaru, noticing that their lord had done what Hakurou had tried during their own fight with the Orc Lord, immediately warned Rimuru of what was to come. Despite the black flames preventing the regeneration, Benimaru could not shake the uneasy feeling in his chest!
"Lord Rimuru! The Orc Disaster may still regenerate!"
Immediately after Benimaru said these words, the Orc Disaster grabbed its detached head with his left hand, and chopped off the stump of its neck with the weapon in its right hand, in an attempt to allow its regeneration to continue. However, it then lost its left arm to another attack made by the slime.
The reason behind Rimuru's aggression was not a conscious decision on his part. Rather due to his experiences, Rimuru had subconsciously started to show no mercy during battle, unless his opponent was someone that he cherished deeply. Ciel also ran interference, making sure that no skills or abilities that would shake up future events were used.
["Master, it would be best to let the Orc Disaster regenerate now and activate {Void God Azathoth} to absorb him. It would seem that Unique Skill {Predator} would be used instead, though I am unsure what Milim will see through her {Milim Eyes} skill."]
"Of course, Milim and her crazy skill. A skill that lets her see the truth, but only what she wants to see. Anyway to run interference?"
["Milim will want to see something interesting, so in this regard a slime with a Unique Skill is already interesting enough for her, hence it is highly likely that she will not notice until Master meets her in-person."]
"I'll deal with that when the time comes. Let's end this."
Rimuru watched as the Orc Disaster unleashed its gaseous heads once again, before the heads consumed all detached parts of its body. It then regenerated fully, turned around and move to attack Rimuru once again.
"Too slow."
Rimuru had already transformed into a diminished version of his slime form, the same size as his original self, before wrapping himself around the orc. A short struggle later, and the Orc Disaster had been completely swallowed. It had perished, and the war was over.
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He had only wanted the best for his people. His family. For that, he was willing to do anything, bear any burden. Even if he were eventually hated by his people, he was willing to do what he must for them.
He ripped off his own limbs to feed his people as they starved.
He walked across the deserted sands in search of food.
He was ready to risk the wrath of the Storm Dragon Veldora if it meant that his people were fed.
Which brought him to his position now. Eaten by another majin. After consuming countless other monsters.
Ogres.
Lizardmen.
Hundreds of other weaker races within the Jura Forest.
Countless Mindless Monsters.
And even his own kin, all in a bid to satiate this endless hunger.
His name was Geld. And now, he was dead.
"Don't worry. I will take care of your people from now on."
He turned to his left, only to see the Blue Haired Majin standing by his side.
The majin then turned to face him, and smiled.
"Rest for now. You and all those that died will be remembered. And make sure to watch over that son of yours. He will make you proud."
He had no words. All he ever wanted was for his people to live happily. And now they could.
"Thank you."
Two simple words to express his undying gratitude towards this majin. A chance to watch over his son despite his death. To welcome his people despite their actions.
He would not question it.
It seemed...that their fortune was finally looking bright.
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