Chapter 102 - Seeking Expertise in Dwargon

"I'm coming with you." Velgrynd replied after hearing Rimuru's words.

After having discussed the plans with the others, it was concluded that they needed an expert in the construction being done in such a large scale. Rimuru decided to visit Dwargon to meet Gazel and negotiate for professionals.

It wasn't like Rimuru was planning to kidnap or force the dwarves to come here. He was simply employing them with compensation for working outside of their territory. They can return after finishing their work.

Meeting with the king of the dwarves to make such a request makes this a national level request. Gazel would be forced to make sure to bring out some of his best craftsmen and engineers to satisfy Rimuru's request.

"Are you sure? It's going to be just talking and I don't think you even care about Gazel or Guran in that matter." Rimuru inquired as she expressed desire to accompany him.

"Yeah, I got a feeling that I need to watch over you or something." Velgrynd answered vaguely, "Like something in that place might tempt you."

Rimuru tilted his head in confusion, was there such a powerful being in the land of the dwarves that can even tempt someone like him. "Okay..? I'm not sure what you mean but I guess If you want too."

He shrugged his shoulders not really seeing any reason to deny her request. It wasn't like she was planning on causing trouble, which was more of her brother's antics, and he was quite curios what she meant about that.

"Something in that place can tempt me. That's interesting to know." He muttered as a grin formed in his expression. So far, the only people that has managed to tempt him are his wives, even then the closest would be Hinata who he loves to tease more than really anything carnal.

Velgrynd turned to him with a glare, "Don't even try looking for it."

Rimuru laughed raising his hands like he was caught, "Okay, okay not like anyone can tempt me just like that." He smirked hugging Velgrynd from behind.

"I have the most beautiful temptress right here after all." He whispered at her ear causing her to stiffen in place. "Then why don't you make sure I don't look at anyone else but you."

It took three days before they started to leave the place and march to Dwargo. The two of them decided to fly leisurely enjoying the wind and the joy of flying side by side.

As they flew through the sky, Velgrynd turned to Rimuru.

"How many are you planning to employ? If the blueprint you showed was genuine, then you need at least hundreds, if not thousands. I doubt the dwarf king would be willing to just give that many to you. It would disrupt their production, considering they rely on exporting goods to other countries."

"We don't need that many," Rimuru shook his head, sitting up as he usually did while flying. He was using flight magic, so while his posture could affect his speed, it didn't necessarily need to be rigid or fixed. One could fly standing straight, sitting cross-legged, or even lying down as if there were ground beneath them.

"I don't plan on building everything that fast. First, I'll focus on the main district in the center of the capital. The necessary buildings and lodgings will be the main priority, and nothing else. It's not like the monsters use money, anyway. As long as there's food, clothing, and shelter, that's good enough for now."

"You say that, but that's still thousands of monsters living in one city. Assuming all the goblins come to the city, that would already reach a hundred thousand. Not to mention the other species, like the lizardmen, who number at least half of that. And then there are the rest of the monsters, ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands," Velgrynd replied, her tone thoughtful.

While she didn't care much for the monsters living in the forest, she at least had a rough idea of their numbers. She could sense the closest villages to get an accurate count, and she had picked up the rest when she and Rimuru traveled around. Sometimes, she even accompanied Rimuru when he spoke with the villages, so she had a general grasp of their populations over the centuries, especially when they expanded.

"I mean, it's not like I plan on taking all of them to the capital." Rimuru lightly laughed, thinking Velgrynd had somehow expected him to literally bring every monster in the forest into the city he was building.

Velgrynd tilted her head in confusion. "Wasn't that the plan?"

Rimuru shook his head, "I mean, look at the lizardmen. They thrive in the marshes, places that are damp with water. That's their ideal environment. That's why it's called the Capital—I plan on building other cities or towns near places where there's a dense population of monsters. From what I've gathered so far, I plan on building cities near the marshes, one near the edge of the southern forest, and one in the east."

Velgrynd considered the locations Rimuru mentioned. "So, near Amarita, and near the other Demon Lords?"

Rimuru nodded.

They continued their conversation until they finally reached their destination. They landed about a kilometer away from the entrance.

"Should we go through incognito, or get ourselves a proper welcome?" Rimuru turned to Velgrynd, who merely shrugged.

"I don't particularly care for the theatrics and formalities. As long as they're respectful, then everything is good for me."

Rimuru nodded. "Then let's go through normally. I'm sure Gazel's spies would tail us eventually."

They walked through the proper entrance, joining others who were planning to enter the nation. Their appearance drew attention, especially with Velgrynd's beauty, which turned heads as she walked by.

"Welcome to the Armed Nation of Dwargon," the dwarven security officer greeted, gesturing for them to enter.

After going through the necessary procedures, Rimuru and Velgrynd began inspecting the structures of the city—how they were built, what materials were used, and the expected time to construct everything. They occasionally asked local blacksmiths and carpenters about the logistics and mechanics of the thousand-year-old nation, gaining a general understanding of the buildings and systems that kept everything running smoothly.

As they continued their walk, a blonde elf with half of her face covered appeared before them. "Rimuru-sama, Velgrynd-sama, if you would be so kind, Gazel-sama requests your attendance."

Rimuru and Velgrynd turned to each other.

"See? Told you," Rimuru grinned, accepting the invitation.

They entered the castle of the Dwarf King with confidence. Inside, they were guided to an office-like room, where the Dwarf King, Gazel Dwargo, grandson of Guran, awaited them behind a desk.

Standing to receive his guests, Gazel smiled warmly. "Rimuru-sama, Velgrynd-sama, please, take a seat."

While there was formality when addressing the Scorch Dragon, there was a more casual atmosphere with the Silver Primordial, as Rimuru had insisted on in the past.

"Did Guran tell you anything about my plan to build a monster nation?" Rimuru asked, his voice steady.

Gazel took a sharp breath at Rimuru's words, muttering something under his breath about the chaos this would cause and the potential upheaval of the balance of power in the world.

The two beings heard his murmurs but chose to ignore them. After all, Gazel and his father were hardworking rulers who had been burdened by Guran, who had a freer spirit than them, leaving them stressed about governing the nation.

"...Grandfather did tell me and Father about it," Gazel finally spoke. He took a deep breath before continuing. "He gave us a blueprint that was supposed to be handed to you if ever you came and spoke about it."

"Oh," Rimuru said, slightly surprised. "I never knew he had something like that for me. He should have given it to me sooner."

Gazel averted his gaze before answering, "Grandfather said that Rimuru is capable of creating complex blueprints, so it wasn't necessary to give it to you. But he did leave this, which he said is more realistic and grounded, as the one you showed might be too complex for the monsters to build."

Velgrynd covered her mouth as she let out a small chuckle at Gazel's explanation. "Looks like he knew you well, Rimuru."

Rimuru joined in the laughter. "I see. That's good to hear."

Gazel ordered someone to bring the blueprint while the group continued their conversation. "Rimuru still hasn't mentioned why you came to Dwargon. It seems you didn't know about the blueprint, so can I assume you want some dwarves to help build your nation?"

Rimuru nodded. "Yeah, more like I'm making an official request to Dwargon. I want to employ dwarves of different crafts to come with us and help build a nation from scratch."

"We'll be paying compensation, of course," Velgrynd added. "We already have the laborers, so you dwarves would just need to lead them and take charge of the things they can't do on their own."

Gazel placed his hand on his chin, deep in thought. "May I ask how many you expect to employ? Too many professionals disappearing from Dwargon could cause a massive drop in production and affect the economy—not just locally, but internationally as well."

As a nation known for producing high-quality merchandise, the Western nations were regular customers of the dwarves. A sudden drop in quantity and quality could disrupt their economies.

"You don't have to give us your best craftsmen," Rimuru said. "We only need about thirty dwarves at minimum, with various skills."

"Thirty or so dwarves..." Gazel muttered. "Can I assume they'll come from different occupations as well?"

Rimuru nodded. "Yeah, engineers, carpenters, blacksmiths, and so on."

"I could gather them, but I'd need at least two to three days for screening and explaining everything to them," Gazel said.

"Fine by us," Rimuru shrugged. "We're not really in a rush."

Gazel sighed in relief. "How much should I tell them you're paying them?" Normally, only a few dwarves would be willing to venture outside their homeland for a job request.

Rimuru smirked. "You decide what to pay them, because the payment I plan to give is more for Dwargon itself, and it's not exactly currency."

With confidence, Rimuru pulled out several shards of different materials. "Magisteel, mithril, adamantite, and even orichalcum." He handed the small shards to Gazel, who received them with wide eyes and trembling hands.

"I'll pay with these—a down payment of tons of magisteel, several kilograms of mithril, five kilograms of adamantite, and one kilogram of orichalcum. That's about 30% of the total compensation I plan to give. Depending on how satisfied I am with their work, it might increase."

Gazel nearly collapsed on the spot. However, he maintained his composure as king, keeping his posture and expression controlled.

This could solve their problem—there had been signs that the mines where magical ores were usually found had started to deplete. With these shards alone, they could combine small pieces with regular ores and still produce high-quality goods.

"I understand," Gazel said, finally standing up. He shook Rimuru's hand. "I'll make sure to provide the best of the best."

The group then moved to an open space where Rimuru would present the down payment. Gazel had to wait outside, not wanting to lose his composure again at the sight of so much valuable material.

Rimuru hooked his arm around his shoulder. "You're being too stiff. Let's have a drink. Vaughn, you're coming with, right?"

Vaughn, the supreme commander of Dwargon's military, who had been beside Gazel the entire time, smirked. "If Rimuru-sama says so, who am I to refuse?"

Gazel sighed, internally wishing for a drink after everything that had just transpired.

"Rimuru-sama," Vaughn whispered, "want me to get the elves from that famous bar to serve us later?"

"Elves from a bar?" Rimuru tilted his head. What was so special about that? He'd already met Silvia and Elmesia, both of whom were beautiful even by elven standards.

Then, he felt something stir within him. What? He placed a hand on his chest as if his inner self had something to say to him.

'That's surprising. Looks like Hinata's teasing about me having a thing for elves was true.'

While he would have liked to humor his other self, the glare Velgrynd was giving him was far too intense to give such an answer. It wasn't that he was planning to do anything—he was just curious whether his current self would feel anything for elves.

"Not interested. Let's just drink on our own." He finally replied. 'If I had a thing for elves, I would have gone for Silvia. Anything lower in standards is beneath me.'

Velgrynd nodded approvingly at his choice, and they drank and partied until sunrise

Over the next few days, Rimuru and Velgrynd had their time in Dwargon, staying active in their room. Mostly, it was Velgrynd making sure that Rimuru didn't stray too far from her, and Rimuru, in turn, did his best to appease her moods.

Finally, the time came for the dwarves who would be working for Rimuru to arrive. In the throne room, Gazel, Rimuru, and Velgrynd stood together, observing the fifty dwarves kneeling before them.

"These dwarves are the top of their respective professions," Gazel announced, gesturing to one of the dwarves. "This here is Kaijin." With the king's words, one of the dwarves stood up and bowed his head toward Rimuru and Velgrynd.

"He was a former commanding officer of my engineering corps. He will oversee most of the work that you give them." After the introduction, Kaijin returned to his position alongside the others.

Gazel continued, "Other notable dwarves are the three brothers, each specializing in a different area, who will serve under Kaijin."

Rimuru nodded in satisfaction. "They all look very talented. Very well, let us go." He snapped his fingers, and a gate appeared before them.

The room fell silent in shock as the gate suddenly materialized. Rimuru and Velgrynd waved at Gazel before stepping through the portal.

Kaijin and the other dwarves exchanged wary glances before bracing themselves and following through the gate.

When their eyes adjusted, they found themselves standing in the middle of what appeared to be a forest—or what was left of one. There were no trees in sight, just large piles of wood and rocks scattered across the area, evidence of the work that had already been done.

Rimuru turned to Kaijin. "Kaijin, set up your stations and workspaces first. You can organize the others for that. Once that's done, start with the foundation for the lodging buildings." He handed him a detailed blueprint before introducing the goblins, ogres, kijins, and fair onis who would be the main labor force for now.

As Rimuru finished speaking, he heard a soft thud behind him. Turning around, he saw that several of the dwarves had passed out upon seeing the monsters.

"Ah..." Rimuru muttered, watching the dwarves' shocked faces as they lay on the ground.

A/N: Slime Rimuru inside Demon Rimuru "Go to the bar! EILF!"