★100
THIRD POV
A few months later, Asteri visited Tempest and was informed that Rimuru would be visiting Ingrassia. A letter of apology was left.
"I'm sorry, Asteri-san."
Shuna bowed. Ba—badum. Asteri's heart skipped a beat before proceeding to beat faster.
'What the hell? This feeling is...'
'Ah, love at first sight.'
"It's all right. I'm sure he'll be back in no time. I'll give it some time. Tell him to prepare for a duel in a month." I managed to stay focused, preventing my emotions from leaking out.
"A d—duel?"
"Don't get the wrong idea, Lady Shuna. Just tell him, he'll know what I'm talking about." He winked, waved, and left.
'You charming divine snake.'
After Rimuru came back the following day, he got the message.
"Ah—finally."
"Finally? What is it, Great Rimuru?" Shuna asked.
"It's a simple, harmless duel, Shuna. No need to worry."
In the next two weeks, Rimuru went back to Ingrassia, so the children left Shizu, having no clue his country was set for doom. After attending to the children for a week, he was ready to head home and prepare for the due date tomorrow.
On his way back, he was attacked by the Saint Hinata Sakaguchi and was barely able to escape after faking his death. He trained with Asteri, but they didn't dive into threatening skills, so he let the Saint overpower him.
He arrived home when the calamity was over. A lot of his subordinates were killed. Yami and his party coincidentally came to the village that fateful day. Rimuru was enraged, and as he was about to devour the corpses of his fallen comrades, Eren stopped him.
At midnight, Asteri, the all-knowing, visited Tempest after sensing Rimuru's signature where they usually met, and joined him.
"Saw the horrific scene through Yami. I let you down even after promising not to let history repeat itself." I said, standing behind him.
"Heh, don't you guys have an Art that twists fate?"
'From his voice, one can point out that he's broken beyond repair. If ignored, a new villain—or something worse—might be born. Poor slime, I don't know what he's feeling right now.'
I raised my palm, thinking.
'Maybe, maybe if I'd let everything go naturally, I'd be experiencing the real thing. Real rage and malice.'
I made a mistake, fabricating rage and hatred instead of learning them naturally. That said, maybe I'll try a different route in the future.
"Mega Art: Wyrd Shaper. It's responsible for playing with fate. Even with my True Body, I can only use it once every nine hundred and ninety-nine years. Besides, I've used it twice with a vessel when facing Red. That's too much of an overdose."
'You can't say that after watching everything unfold without intervening.'
'I don't know, Enta. Maybe this is fate. Maybe this is how his story should progress, but more importantly, I want to see him grow. Zhou-sensei wasn't always there for me either.'
'Meanwhile, your story's progression was forced.'
He's right. I should try acting naturally and observe the result. But the thing is, I simply can't. Patience isn't my virtue.
"Sensei, did you manage to save your people, or did you leave them dead?"
"Are you thinking about Eren's tale?" (Yeah, Eren told him about Milim's stuff.)
"Yes. I knew you'd come, so I waited. Since you had a similar experience, I'd like to hear your perspective."
Asteri walked over and sat next to him, embracing him with one arm. His first physical emotional connection.
"Her story aligned with what I did, but it's a different process. On my island, there exists an artefact that absorbed all the souls and stored them. I didn't craft it for such a purpose, but it did a great job. With their souls trapped and bodies present, revival was 100% guaranteed. All that was left was to release my wrath on those responsible."
"Did you kill them? Punishment, or confinement?"
"We massacred two kingdoms, gaining over a million body count. I absorbed all the corpses of the kingdom I annihilated on my end. I don't know, nor do I care, what the others did with the second kingdom. All I knew was that I gave them the instruction to kill."
"We? You didn't do it alone?"
"Yeah. I took on a kingdom. My demons took on the Kingdom of Harley Clown. Ban and Atlas were supposed to clear Leon's domain, but they figured out Leon was set up."
"Leon... Demon Lord Leon?"
"Yes. You know him?"
"He's the one who summoned Shizu-san into this world."
"Hmm, he never changed."
"Tell me, Sensei. What am I supposed to do?"
"I don't want to be the one who pushes you into darkness—but you must choose what you believe is right. They attacked you because they believed monsters were evil, something to be erased, not understood and lived with.
But you? You're just a slime who got a second chance at life and wanted a quiet, happy life. From that alone, any god they claim to follow is already false.
Peace is the duty of a deity. Hope, shelter, and protection for those who trust in you. And whether you accept it or not—you are that deity.
You gave monsters a home when the world rejected them. You gave them freedom when no one else would."
Without another word, I stood up, taking my leave.
"You're my pupil. No matter what you choose, I'll always agree with you. From now on, I'll send my army to this—"
"That's generous of you, Sensei, but this is something I must do."
He interrupted my kindness.
"I'd be a coward to let another person have my revenge."
Rimuru's colourful aura flickered, radiating immensely for a few seconds before turning it off. I calmly watched with a smile.
'Just like me.'
"I see. Someone did offer me a hand when I was in that situation, and surprisingly, I turned them down just like you did. I'll be watching, Rimuru. Make them pay. Don't let a single one of them escape." I said before finally disappearing into the night.
"Yeah, just sit down and watch. I'll make sure to resurrect the hell you've once brought unto this land."
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To be continued...