Each of Their Reactions
At the same time as the strategy was decided, Milim said that she is going to use Dragon Nova, her strongest magic.
Under the cover of the extremely dangerous attack, indeed befitting to be called a mass extinction magic, she told me that she'll let me go.
She once said that she wanted to show it to me and Ciel also has an interest in it, so I accepted her suggestion...
I thought I was going to die.
No, I'm serious.
I wish that she mentioned what kind of magic it is.
Milim doesn't boast this as her strongest magic for nothing. I stopped time[1], so I was safe, since I escaped right away, but Diablo was in a terrible situation since he lost half of his body.
Oh dear, he's acting as if he's dying, what should I do with him, geez…
I can't make fun of Milim ever again, I now see her in a new light.
But as the result, Milim made herself more trustworthy towards Lucia.
Milim shot a Dragon Nova and killed the body which was pretending to be me, and retrieved it to Lucia. Then, in order to make her think that I'm dead, I canceled "Eternal Pain" which had ensnared Lucia.
In that way, Milim succeeded in making Lucia trust her as well as infiltrate into the enemy's stronghold.
As I hid myself, waiting for Milim's signal, I slipped into the darkness with teleport.
Well then, while staying somewhere calm, I begin to think about various things.
The first is the change in Ciel that I felt a while ago.
About "Eternal pain" too, but I believe that Ciel's ability has increased greatly.
Yet, I'm more bothered about my miscalculations on Gobuta's growth limit.
(Hey, don't you think that Gobuta's rapid growth is a bit abnormal?
How much has he surpassed your calculations? And, isn't the calculation deviation too extreme?)
That is the what I'm worried about.
Because up till recently, at the time when I still called her Raphael-sensei, it was rare for her predictions go awry.
I mean, as far as I remember, the only mistake in Raphael-sensei's calculations was the nature of Veldora's attack.
And yet, she incorrectly predicted Gobuta's growth speed, isn't this disappointing coming from Ciel? No matter how much of a genius Gobuta is, I wasn't convinced at all.
Because I was so doubtful, I asked Ciel but,
"That is...whilst performing the calculation, deeper information was detected... as a result, a large deviation has occurred."
So I was informed.
In other words, since Gobuta's ability increased so much, conversely the accuracy fell huh.
No, rather than that――
Isn't the fluctuation happening due to the appearance of her emotions?
――The idea flashed in my mind.
This might not be a good example, but just like when taking a test, the more you check your answer, the more you question yourself.
It is often the case that the first answer will be the correct one.
In other words, what Ciel is feeling is none other than the emotion called "Anxiety".
A human is a creature who makes mistakes.
Why is that?
It is because a human is an emotional creature.
Machines never make mistakes. Because they never feel anxiety.
If a machine makes a mistake, the cause may be that there was an error during the input of the data or the machine is broken.
As Ciel evolved, she obtained "Emotions".
It means that a perfect being has fallen into an imperfect state.
Experiencing anxiety, she wavers, and so she made a mistake.
Is this a degeneration?
No.
This's unmistakably, an evolution.
Ciel, despite being an existence that had reached perfection, wished for emotions.
A baby feels they're almighty whilst inside their mother's womb, but they lose that feeling as soon as they are born.
Thus, they feel insecure and cry.
Ciel is the same as the newborn baby.
From a perfect situation, like a perfect sphere, she had been transferred into a bigger container.
The vessel was so big, that her own existence became indeterminate.
Therefore, to fill that container, a large surge of emotion was produced.
But I feel relieved because that container, is me.
The chipped container for her indeterminate form is my soul. And, because Ciel was born inside of me, my heart is stable.
The emotions are like waves, they fill the cracks of my heart and become small.
Ciel was bewildered as she hadn't produced a wave of emotion before, so it might take time before she becomes used to it, as for me, my uneasiness became tiny as my heart was filled.
In other words, Ciel felt the anxiety in my place.
(It is not a problem, so don't worry about it. Have confidence in yourself!
You keep on analyzing even while in that state, if it's you I'm sure you can arrive at the correct answer.
Therefore, believe it.
We complement each other, you're not alone!)
"Master――"
Ciel remained silent to my words.
However, the waves of emotion became calm as my chipped heart was filled.
Then, Ciel also calmed down as her anxiety changed into relief.
"Yes, my lord! Everything will follow your heart's desires!"
Ciel properly understood my words.
And while hiding under the cover of darkness, she will be reflecting on her meaning of life.
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
Velgrind flew into the sky with speed that holds up to the title of fastest. Her body feels light and her power seems to have increased.
With a heavy heart, and a mind that is tangled she thought to herself.
In the first place, what the hell is that person?
She, who is one of the strongest, a "True Dragon", was unable to so much as scratch him.
An individual with a soul compatible with the dragon's element and a body that is comparable to the "True Dragons" that stand at the summit of this world.
And that individual, possessing such enormous energy, stood firmly while being capable of absorbing a "True Dragon".
Moreover, two of them.
Can such a being exist?
No, it must exist. It is undeniable that such a being exists.
However, for it to be a Unique Monster who was born from a collection of magic essences leaked from Veldora, by chance, is impossible.
Even if she looked at herself right now, compared to before, her condition is more optimized and in better shape.
She has a feeling that her energy levels has somehow increased.
So in other words, that slime, who manifested her, has a container that simply surpasses the total amount of her energy.
(I can't believe it. Such a being... as far as I know, there's only one――）
She continued thinking.
While continuing to fly around the continent at high speed.
Her speed reached a dozen times the speed of sound and became a flying object which emitted extreme heat and without aiming to, blew away a flock of angels who crowded the sky.
The soul corridor that bound her, was closed.
There was no influence on her, that means, something happened to the person she bonded to.
But, she didn't pay attention to that.
(Humph. That person wouldn't be killed so easily. What is he planing now...)
So, she just fleetingly thought about it.
There is no point in worrying about it.
In the first place, there is no need for her to worry about it, or so she thought.
She is free right now.
Even though she buried it in her deepest thoughts, she was still in a fog of doubt.
She has been caught in the whirlpool of her own thoughts for a while now.
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
The report made the executives of Tempest shudder.
On the first day of the Great War, the angels' attacks had ended and the evening had come.
The monsters had even prepared for an ongoing battle, but the angels had withdrawn by the time night fell.
This is because for the light attributed angels, they had an advantage under the light of the sun.
As there is a need to eat, the loss of the energy is intense.
For the monsters, a short time of peace is a blessing.
Thus, it's the time for dinner.
The report was brought by the people who returned at the time when the soldiers were taking their rest.
In the control room established inside the labyrinth.
The executives of Tempest, including the Guardian Lords, had gathered.
「Is it true that Rimuru-sama disappeared?」
「Yes... that is correct.
He received a direct hit of Milim-sama's Dragon Nova...」
To Benimaru's question, Testarossa responded.
To that answer, silence descended to the room.
Then Testarossa explained the situation in detail.
「――Then, what did Diablo do? Where did that guy go?」
Benimaru asked while suppressing his anger.
――It is true that Diablo didn't participate in this meeting.
There was a reason behind this.
Diablo is the only subordinate who knows that Rimuru is alive.
For this reason, Diablo can't explain why he failed to defend Rimuru even though he was there.
Not seeing the reactions of the executives was regrettable for Diablo, although that isn't important, he's concerned with it, anyway this much is necessary to conceal Rimuru's survival.
That being the case, he decided that it would be a problem if he, who had survived, participated in the conference.
Anyway, "Why didn't you protect Rimuru-sama?", he predicted that question would be directed at him.
Diablo figured that if he was in Benimaru and Co's position, he surely wouldn't be able to forgive him even if he tore apart Rimuru's bodyguard.
Because he thought so, he displayed his current state, where he had lost half of his body, to Testarossa and Co who had rushed over at the time.
And whilst healing himself, he departed from the site, (in other words, escaped) leaving behind a message which said that he had left in order to observe Milim.
As for the content, it was something along the lines of,「I lost half of my body and thus shall not prove to be a useful combatant, I will be more useful for observing. 」.
Testa and Co believed Diablo's explanation without any doubts, since Diablo's condition displayed that his current energy had decreased sharply.
... No, Testarossa seemed to doubt him a little, however, she was uncertain about her doubt. Therefore, she decided to accept Diablo's reasoning.
By the way, what he meant by observation was that the strategy required him to pass information from Milim to Rimuru.
Thus, Diablo continued as Rimuru's guard whilst under the cover of darkness――
Testarossa let out a sigh and,
「Diablo is performing an infiltration operation.
He expressed regret towards his inability to protect Rimuru-sama, but because he received an order he can't even commit suicide.
It seems Diablo's duty is to free Milim-sama from their control.」
She explained the story Diablo had told them.
Although Testa herself thought that it was dubious, it was also more or less coherent. Anyway, she remembered what she heard.
When she was about to question him, Diablo suddenly teleported after Milim. (He's actually with Rimuru.)
Even though she found it doubtful, since she had let him get away, she couldn't explain it to the others.
Because she feels that she has always talked subjectively, it would only bring confusion to the surroundings if she spreads such uncertain information.
Testarossa told it as it was, restraining herself from mixing her feelings into it.
Silence ruled the control room.
Even Gerudo and Gabil, who should have been tired due to the combat during the day, didn't open their mouths as they had serious expressions.
Kumara had a dreadful pale face and was trembling.
Benimaru strongly grasped his fist while suppressing his anger.
Ramiris looked like she was about to cry while facing toward the floor.
It might be a good thing that Shion, who has the shortest temper of them all, was absent at this time.
In such a situation,
「If I had come along, such a thing wouldn't have――」
The one who is usually calm, Souei, who would never become enraged in any situation, broke a desk in anger.
Testarossa closed her eyes as she agreed with Souei's words.
That way of thinking is common. She herself was feeling anguish as she was unable to do anything.
Therefore, she can't rebut Souei's words.
She only thought deeply about her own powerlessness.
At that time, Zegion who had crossed his arms and kept silent moved.
He stood up,
「Fools. What are you all pointlessly worried about?
Rimuru-sama cannot possibly be dead.
Oh Testarossa, do you think that Diablo is a fighter whose power would drop by such a degree only because he lost half his body?
Along those lines, is he a fool who would give up on avenging his master?
Why don't you think that there is some kind of reason?
Too childish.
Why don't you notice that he is trying to deceive us?」
He declared as such towards those in the room.
And, seeing each of their reactions, he continued talking.
「Think about it carefully. Then feel it.
Even now we are still receiving Rimuru-sama's divine protection.
The connection has been interrupted, but that doesn't mean it has disappeared.
You should all calm down and deeply feel for it.
All of you should be able to understand that we are being tested by Rimuru-sama.
We are not weak, to the degree that we need to depend on Rimuru-sama for everything.
In spite of that, if someone says that he can't do anything if Rimuru-sama is gone――
Such a weak individual should just die.
Am I wrong, Benimaru-dono?」
Saying all of that in one breath, Zegion waited for Benimaru's answer.
Testarossa, who had thought what Zegion had said, had a slight smile sprout on her lips.
It was not only Testarossa who felt that way. Everyone in the room agreed to Zegion's words.
「That's right-ssu! There must be some kind of reason for Rimuru-sama to disappear-ssu.
It's no good for us to keep relying on him all the time-ssu!」
「Certainly, we have relied on Rimuru-sama far too much.
I think we are always entrusting everything to that personage.」(Gerudo)
「That's right. Even I became uneasy just because Rimuru-sama is not here.
In such a state, we would be laughed at by Rimuru-sama!」(Gabil)
「That's right! Well, since I always believed in Rimuru, I was absolutely not worried at all!」 (Ramirirs)
「Yes! For Rimuru-sama to be defeated, that's impossible!」(Kumara)
Vigor returned to the room immediately.
Benimaru also agreed as he saw the situation. Certainly, we all have been too dependent on the Great Demon Lord, Rimuru.
If he thought back, it had been that way since they first met.
For it to be pointed out by the newcomer, Zegion, Benimaru has failed as Rimuru's retainer.
「Sorry, Zegion.
It is certainly as you said. We can still fight even if Rimuru-sama is not here.
Rather than that...
I think we should quickly conquer this world and give it to Rimuru-sama once he returns.
Surely, we are not such mere children that we cannot do anything without Rimuru-sama!
Alright, we shall quickly end this war and then give this world to Rimuru-sama!」
Benimaru declared so.
Whilst agreeing to it,
「Good grief... For me, of all other people, to lose my composure...
As someone who governs the shadows, I still have a long way to go.
Thank you, Zegion. Thanks to you, I have regained my calm.」
Souei nods while expressing his gratitude to Zegion.
「Don't worry about it.
I will return to my position.
Benimaru-dono, leave the labyrinth to me, you can go on the attack at ease.
I swear that I will certainly protect Ramiris-sama and the people taking refuge within the labyrinth until the end.」
Benimaru nodded to Zegion's words.
Yes, that's right. They have the strongest guardian, that is Zegion, for their defense.
There is nothing to be afraid of.
And so, Tempest's executives began to move.
Wiping out the anxiety from before, their expressions are filled with power.
And their determination shone as they wish for their strength be recognized by their master, the Great Demon Lord Rimuru.
Right now, they have reached the moment where they shall take flight from the protection of the Great Demon Lord[2].