Daytime
Jura Forest
Tempest
Narrators POV
Bang!
Haruto, face filled with sweat drops, fired another bullet from his gun in his right hand, but his opponent simply dodged and aimed a strike from sideways using the great sword in his left hand. Haruto ducked and aimed a thrust to the man's stomach, his Katana closing in on the man who couldn't dodge.
Stab!
The katana pierced the man's stomach, before Haruto aimed his gun at the man's face point blank.
The man however, with swift movement, grabbed Haruto's right hand with his right hand, shocking the Oni momentarily.
Snap!
ARGH! [Haruto]
Haruto let out a pained grunt as the hand holding his gun had its bones crushed, the gun falling out of his grip.
Haruto, with precise thinking, let go of his Katana and grabbed the gun falling out of his hand. He avoided another vertical slash by sidestepping and kicking the man's stomach, before hopping backwards and creating distance.
The man pulled out Haruto's katana and stabbed it on the ground, before splitting it into half with a quick horizontal slash.
Haruto realized that the man had purposefully allowed himself to be stabbed, just so he could grab his arm and gain the advantage on the Oni. A click of the tongue clearly expressed his annoyed acknowledgment to the man's simple plan.
Haruto clicked his tongue in annoyance, slight anxiety welling up inside his stomach as he witnessed one of his two weapons break. All he could use now was the gun in his hand, that too whilst avoiding this man.
(It's only been a few minutes since we started to fight, but he has a major advantage over me. There's no doubt, he's far more skilled than me when it comes to combat. I'm in a handicap too...) [Haruto]
Despite the urge to look at his broken hand, Haruto didn't dare let his eyes lose sight of the man infront of him. Haruto was sweating buckets, knowing that the man could kill him under the slightest misstep.
Haruto, feeling nervous and even slightly fearful, could not help but compare this fight of his with the mysterious man to when he fought Charybdis's Megalodons.
These were moments he had felt despair, anguish, exhaustion and even spite.
Haruto knew that despite the similarity in terms of feelings, the situations were vastly different.
When facing the Megalodons, Haruto was surrounded by an entire army and powerful individuals whose power was far beyond their comprehension. Even if the situation was hopeless to a degree, Haruto felt assured to an extent that they still had hope to win.
However, this time...
Haruto couldn't find a shread of advantage, nor could he detect a shread of weakness. It made Haruto feel scared, fearful of the man that was Infront of him. An existence that Haruto couldn't comprehend, just like the ones at the top... After all, he was nothing but a normal Oni compared to them.
He wasn't surrounded by an army, he wasn't surrounded by powerful individuals that could destroy countries on a whim. He was nothing compared to them, and that nothingness was always overshadowed by the beings out of his league. But this time...
He was alone, against a being he failed to comprehend in the slightest. A being who surpassed him in everything, down to the thinnest fibre of his being.
Is this everything the Supreme Commander is capable of? [???]
The man commented, expressing his dissapointment on Haruto's performance in a single fight. The man dashed forward, aiming several slashes Haruto swiftly dodged by a hairs margin.
(Unbelievably fast, even the slightest misstep can kill me...) [Haruto]
Haruto brought his gun up and blocked a sword thrust, but the sheer force behind it threw Haruto several metres away from the man.
Landing on his feet, Haruto readied his gun, trying to make out any strategy he could use to gain even the slightest advantage.
(He's quick, much faster than me. Creating distance whilst keeping an eye on him will be tricky...) [Haruto]
Haruto couldn't help but let out a groan of frustration, the situation left no room for taking advantages on Haruto's side. His stamina was running low whilst his arm was broken, that too after fighting for only a while.
Worse, Haruto wasn't even able to get a single answer out of him, not that he could given the direness he was in at the moment.
Eyes unwavering, focus to the max, he didn't let a single milisecond go to waste as he stared at the intruder.
The man readied to dash forward, readying his great sword for another slash. Haruto, with a heavy breath, prepared himself for the incoming attack.
Utilizing his Unique Skill, {Manipulator}, Haruto began to make out all the possibilities that could happen. Everything that could potentially lead to his death, anything that could help him.
(The distance between me and him right now is 20 metres, and knowing how fast he moves, it will only take a split second to close the gap in-between us...) [Haruto]
Haruto's muscles tensed up as his sight witnessed the man take an unusual stance, one that gave the feeling of direct confrontation.
Haruto figured that the man intended to strike him head on, a simple dash attack with his great sword infront of him. He brought his gun up and aimed at the man's head, waiting for him to dash.
Prepare yourself, Kozo. [???]
The man's body erupted into flames as he dashed forward, a deafening sound roared through the forest which indicated the surpassing of Mach speed at that very moment. Haruto, shocked but expecting this, pulled the trigger of his bullet as the piece of metal broke the sound barrier aswell.
However, the bullet was sliced into half by the man's great sword. It quickly closed the gap between the two of them.
But... Haruto appeared unfazed.
(Good!) [Haruto]
Haruto sidestepped with a swift motion, but his broken hand was stabbed through as he wasn't quick enough to avoid the entire attack.
His entire right arm was brutally ripped off as blood began to gush out, Haruto suppressed the urge to let out a blood curdling scream due to the pain flowing through him.
(I've got you now, bastard!) [Haruto]
But he quickly ignored it for now, pointing his gun at the man's neck. Haruto caught a glimpse of the man's eyes, noticing how he seemed surprised by the sudden movement.
Constrict. [Haruto]
By an immediate pull to the trigger, Haruto's bullet pierced the man's skull instantaneously.
The man let out a pained groan, crashing into the ground as the great sword that pierced through Haruto's severed hand fell out of his hand.
(Tch... It's still not strong enough.) [Haruto]
What Haruto attempted to use was an imitation of the bullet he used against the Otherworlder back when Falmuth attacked. Haruto's bullets, despite his large magicules pool now due to his evolution, couldn't reach the same level as that one bullet he managed to pull off.
The bullet he used right now was still incomplete, but Haruto deduced that it was getting close to the level of the bullet he used back then.
Tch, you got me there... [???]
The man grabbed his head, slowly standing up before he attempted to grab his great sword. Haruto immediately fired a bullet at his hand, piercing it and stopping him.
The man grunted in pain, but his other hand went through his clothing and pulled out a small dagger. Haruto fired several bullets from his gun, but the man dodged them efficiently before running towards the Oni.
(This man...) [Haruto]
Haruto avoided the dagger slicing through a strand of his hair, firing a bullet at the man's stomach. The bullet pierced, but the man paid no heed and continued to perform an onslaught of dagger slashes.
Haruto, this time, was able to avoid them quite easily. However, there was still the lingering pain of his missing arm, which Haruto was barely able to ignore.
(He just doesn't know when to give up!) [Haruto]
The man almost missed as Haruto's cheeks were sliced as the dagger rushed through them, small drops of blood flying into the air.
Haruto fired several more bullets into the man's gut, but the person didn't pay any attention to his wounds and continued to fight by switching the course of his dagger.
(Even then...) [Haruto]
Haruto felt uneasy, finding the drop in difficulty rather concerning. He shrugged it off as the opponent weakening due to all the bullet shots he took.
However, even if he shrugged it off, there was still the lingering feeling of doubt and suspiciousness.
(He was mostly avoiding my attacks and made sure to keep his distance, that's why he was using a longsword to begin with... But now, he has resorted to going ham and hope a strike lands?) [Haruto]
Haruto flipped into the air as he dodged another upfront attack from the attacker, his expression showed off uneasiness. He fired a bullet at the man's neck, penetrating his necks bones.
The man to the ground, unmoving as Haruto landed on the ground. The Oni almost tripped as he felt his vision go blurry, almost as if he was losing consciousness.
(Shit... I didn't tie up my wound..) [Haruto]
He immediately tore off the sleeves of his remaining arm, before tightening the cloth around his missing arms area to prevent anymore leakage of blood.
Haruto, with unwavering resolve to not fall unconscious, started to think about what had just happened.
(Perhaps it was out of desperation, those strikes that lost all of their technique... I wanted to get some information out of him, but I couldn't risk dying.) [Haruto]
Haruto turned to see the corpse of his attacker, finding it unmoving as blood begun to gush out of it's neck and head.
Haruto, despite his victory, narrowed his eyes in suspicion.
(Something isn't right... A bullet to the head didn't kill him, but a bullet to the neck got the job done?) [Haruto]
Haruto continued to stare at the corpse, readying his gun Incase the man was only pretending to be dead.
However, Haruto's sensed no pulse nor any movement from the man, all of his organs begun to cease function slowly as the man's life began to either away.
(Even if the signs of death are evident, I can't tell if he's really dead...) [Haruto]
Slowly but cautiously, he made his way to the corpse whilst pointing his gun at its face. Haruto didn't even bother blinking, making sure this man was in his sights.
Even his thinking has stopped as he fully focused on the man laying dead on the ground. Upon reaching the corpse, he used his foot to slowly rotate the man.
He's dead... That's good, I guess... [Haruto]
He clicked his tongue in mild frustration, berating himself for being unsuccessful in getting any useful information out of the attacker.
Still, Haruto couldn't exactly believe that a wound as serious as a headshot didn't effectively kill the man. However, Haruto wanted to conclude that the man had probably reinforced that area using some sort of magic at the last second.
(But my Unique Skill didn't pick up anything, so perhaps that was just his own durability?) [Haruto]
Not to mention the bullet used to penetrate the man's skull was much more powerful then the bullet used to strike the man's neck.
Haruto's mind was overtaken by a plethora of questions, and despite the answer supposedly right Infront of him, he just couldn't make sense of the situation.
(Whatever... It's done, I just have to get my arm back now.) [Haruto]
Haruto let go of the man from his feet, before trying to establish a thought communication with Shadow to help him out here.
He was annoyed that he had to ask help from that Vampiress, but he'd have to let go of past grudges for now.
(In any case, I must report this to Rimuru-Sama.) [Haruto]
Far from over
Damn, it died... [???]
Haruto widened his eyes as he immediately fired a bullet after turning around, but the piece of metal shot through thin air.
Slice
The sound of flesh being pierced resounded, a new figure barely caught by Haruto's like or sight.
Haruto's body was sliced diagonally, a slash extending from his right hip all the way to his left shoulder as blood gushed out. His mind barely comprehended what happened.
What..? [Haruto]
Stumbling to the ground, blood came out of his mouth as a choked groan of pain escaped. A katana covered in blood was pointed at Haruto's throat, before shoving it's tip into the Oni's throat and piercing it.
You have dissapointed me, commander. [???]
A figure with a grey hood and robe stood Infront of him, black clothes underneath as his face was hidden by darkness.
Haruto, perhaps for the first time during the fight, felt unbridled fear as his eyes conveyed utter shock and despair.
Do you feel it? The despair running through your mind, your soul and even your weapon. [???]
Emotions began to surge through his body, one after the other at the same time began to overwhelm him.
Haruto let go of his gun and grabbed the pierced katana, trying to pull it out of his throat to no avail.
It's a tricky emotion in itself, but then again so are all the other emotions. [???]
The man's voice was dull, almost as if this wasn't worth a dime of his time.
Haruto could feel his mind going unconscious, the loss of blood began to catch up to him as his vital parts had been pierced or destroyed.
Sadly, I do not have much time to spend with you. I would've loved explaining despair, but circumstances are a bitch. [???]
...
Rimuru's Office
A declaration of War
The man in the mysterious suit declared, sending alarms inside of Rimuru's head off as he immediately understood the dire situation not only him, but all of Tempest was put in.
You may ask who we are as many times as you want, but we have no intentions of answering you. However, what I can tell you-
Rimuru didn't bother listening to the man's remaining speech, focusing his eyes on Adad as he blurred from his position to the Lizardman on the wall. The Lizardman was slowly losing his life, and Rimuru would hate losing not just a valuable asset to Tempest but also potentially useful information.
Ignoring the shocked murmurs abut his speed, Rimuru immediately attempted to heal Adad...
... What? [Rimuru]
Rimuru couldn't heal the wounds...
Or rather, according to Raphael, there were no wounds to heal at all. To Raphael, Adad was completely fine with no injuries.
Rimuru attempted to force his way through whatever spell was in play, knowing that something must've been altered...
Your attempts are futile, King of Monsters. [???]
The man who represented them spoke in a condensing manner, Rimuru slowly turned around to glare at the unwelcomed guest.
That Lizardman's constitution has been permanently altered, even with an Ultimate Skill you will not be able to change it. [???]
Rimuru widened his eyes, realizing these people were aware of the existence of Ultimate Skills...
And in an instant, Rimuru immediately concluded that the people who had done this to Adad, changing his constitution so perfectly that not even Raphael could change it...
And yes, we are aware of the skills your level of individuals possess. [???]
Although Rimuru would've said he was a fool for saying that, now was not the time to insult his enemy.
In all honesty, Rimuru should be thankful that the man practically confirmed they have Ultimate Skill wielders on their side.
Yet, even with this information...
(That just raises even more problems...) [Rimuru]
Holding such information was fruitful, no doubt. However, it bore more negativity than positivity. Rimuru understood that knowing they have Ultimate Skills is just the first step, what type of Ultimate Skills they have will be whole another issue in itself.
Moreover, it also raised the question of how many of their people have said skills. In the situation that their users outnumbered Tempests...
With a click of the tongue, Rimuru annoyingly and begrudgingly understood how much of a disadvantage Tempest had been put in. It didn't help the man seemed joyful, as if realizing that Rimuru had caught up
Although I would love to shove more information just to see how you react, I am not that big of an idiot. [???]
Rimuru, now letting go of Adad, gripped his naginata tightly as he readied to strike the figures in the room. On his other hand, a black swirl began to form as it prepared to feast upon it's new meals.
The figures began to be enveloped by a strange, glitching effect around their bodies.
Rimuru Tempest, farewell. Know that your country will be overtaken by the flames of war, and the only thing you will be surrounded with... [???]
Rimuru, not bothering to listen to his words, rushed at the representative with his naginata whilst pointing Beelzebub at the rest. The swirl of black descended upon the figures, whilst the naginata coated with Rimuru's aura raised into the air to strike the representative.
However, that did not stop the prideful man to cease his speaking. It only grew a smirk on his face, knowing that the king of monsters had finally become desperate.
Is the screams of the anguished
Slice
Rimuru's naginata cut thin air as the figures dissapeared in an instant, Beelzebub firing off into the wall and destroying it leaving a giant gaping hole in the building.
The Slime, confused yet distraught, unsheathed his naginata and retracted Beelzebub. He turned around to face the lifeless body of Adad, long passed away as the soul dissapeared from it's body.
... [Rimuru]
Rimuru continued to stare at the corpse, seriousness present on his face as his mind entered a state of deep thought.
The lives of all of Tempest were at stake, and they had already entered a state of war. What's worse is that they have suffered the first casualty, meaning whoever just declared war is not messing around...
Were they from Ruberious? That would explain the robes... [Rimuru]
Rimuru wondered if Luminous Valentine had decided to declare war on them, but for some reason she had chosen to not antagonize him at all in the part months.
So whilst there was the possibility of Luminous finally wanting to get rid of him, it was also unlikely at the same time.
(In that case...) [Rimuru]
Rimuru immediately realized that Luminous Valentine may not be the mastermind behind all of this, but someone much more sinister...
Someone who has a goal with him specifically set as the end point, and there was no doubt that him being the end point was the intended purpose. After all, based on what the representative said in the end, they wanted to wipe out all of Tempest and kill him in the end.
Or perhaps they didn't want to kill him, but capture him...
Mariabell...
Rimuru tapped his head with two fingers, looking into the sky through the giant gaping hole in the building.
Immediately, a connection to all of the executives in Tempest had been established in an instant. Uri, Kairi, Shizue and many more heard Rimuru's voice with equal surprise.
(Executive Meeting, Now.) [Rimuru]
Leaving no room to argue, he demanded each and every one of them present themselves with no exception. Although confused, they decided to obey nonetheless and make way towards the executive building.
...
Ruberious
As the glitching effects materialized in the hallways, several figures appeared out of it with their hoods pulled down. They all seemed to be filled with sweat and relief, some of them even let out a heavy breath as their shoulders relaxed.
My god, Aiden, that was a hell of unnecessary taunting. [???]
A female voice called out in a scolding tone, berating their leader revealed as Aiden for his reckless taunting. She appears as a serene-looking women with light, long hair tied up into one loose ponytail, hanging on the left side in front of her. She has her eyes closed despite staring right at Aiden's direction.
However, Aiden only chuckled amusingly. He wondered if he could stir up more reaction from that Demon Lord the next time they met.
Not really, I wanted to trash talk him even more. This will do for now though, it was rather fun to see him switch from calm to panicked. [Aiden]
With a sigh, the woman didn't bother arguing any further with the man. Snapping her fingers, a small magical circle appeared above her head. Said magical circle swiftly went through her, changing her attire completely.
She now wore a stiff hat with star shaped figures decorating the outside part, a flowy shoulderless dress with detached sleeves that opens at the side, small shoes, and a floating long piece of cloth with ends that look like wings.
Very well, we must report to Mariabell-Sama now. [???]
Indeed. Bewachen, you are all dismissed. [Aiden]
With a swift bow whilst standing, the group of soldiers behind them hastily left their presence. Aiden and the woman were the only two left over there, alone only a few moments after the soldiers were dismissed.
Say, what do you think the Mariabell-Sama will react like, Delilah? [Aiden]
After how much you decided to mess around, it won't be pretty for you, our job was to give a declaration of war and immediately leave after that Lizardman was killed. [Delilah]
The woman, now revealed as one of the apostles, Delilah, replied monotone. Her appearance was drastically different than when they were gathered in the throne room, anyone looking at her would wonder if it's the same person at all.
Delilah wanted to rebuke Aiden even further, but as she had concluded before, there was no point in doing so.
I'm sure it's not bad, Delilah. [???]
Both Aiden and Delilah widened their eyes, before turning to face the voice approaching them. Aiden curved his lips into a smile, sweatdropping a little, whilst Delilah immediately shook her surprise off.
I did expect a little bit of tomfoolery, especially from you. [Mariabell]
Staring at Aiden with an amused look, the man only nodded as if admitting he did infact, commit a little bit of trolling.
Delilah expressed distaste, sticking her tongue out before speaking.
A little bit of tomfoolery? More like trying to get us killed, that Demon Lord Rimuru was inches away from ending us. [Delilah]
If her eyes weren't closed, Aiden and Mariabell would've noticed the gesture of her rolling her eyes. Her voice laced with annoyance at Aiden's antics.
It was openly clear she was complaining to Mariabell.
I can't help it whenever I find the opportunity, it's always fun. I'm sure your other selves agree. [Aiden]
Yet, without paying any heed, Aiden continued to speak without a shread of worry. Delilah opened one of her eyes, glaring at Aiden as the man hinted towards something she disliked.
Well, I take this was mostly a success. I've already received Druella and Tirich's report, they seemed to have run into a bit of trouble. [Mariabell]
Tilting their heads with interest, they wondered what their fellow Apostles found having trouble against.
Mariabell, noticing their intrigue, replied without wasting another second.
Apparently, Druella encountered a Demon. Tirich encountered one too, he failed to kill their Supreme Commander because of it. [Mariabell]
Aiden let out a sound of interest, wondering who these two demons that could fight their fellow Apostles and force them to retreat be.
Delilah, on the other hand, was somewhat indifferent to this information as it didn't satisfy her much. For a country of Monsters, it wouldn't be surprising if there were several demons here and there.
In any case, everything seems to be going smoothly as of now, so keep yourselves prepared. I've already planned when we will attack, all that's left is you guys recovering. You're dismissed [Mariabell]
With a nod, Aiden and Delilah turned around to leave upon Mariabells orders. Mariabell also turned around to leave, ready to initiate the final steps of her plans.
However, her mind remembered something which prompted her to call out to their subordinates.
Ah, I forgot to ask. Aiden, Delilah. [Mariabell]
Abruptly stopping, both of them looked at their leader once again with confused stares.
How are your enchantments fairing? [Mariabell]
Mariabell asked with a small smile, seeing Aiden laugh a little and Delilah curve her lips into a malicious smirk.
Perfectly, not even Rimuru Tempest was able to detect me. [Aiden]
It's pretty comfortable, to say the least. It takes no time to switch unlike before, which helps alot. [Delilah]
I see, then that's all. [Mariabell]
With those last words, Mariabells presence could no longer be felt as she immediately dissapeared into thin air.
_____________________________________________
There is no shame in feeling fear, there is shame in allowing fear to rule you.
Bewachen: Guard in German.
Next chapter: Windless Squall. (P/4)
I will now die for another month, gbye silly goobers.
Edit: Discord server link for the funny, I post sneak peaks there sometimes https://discord.com/invite/RXSJSYkN7Z