Chapter 126 - Briefing

A/N: Random question, Yuuki is over 40?! I was reading the wiki for Yuuki and I read that he was over 40, it even had lore about him doing things for decades etc. Anyway, I read in a comment that it is from a spin-off, can anyone tell me which spin-off it is? (If not spin-off, which volume)

Chloe and Shizu had been regularly visiting El Dorado since then. Months had passed since that time, and as Rimuru had expected the effect of holding Falmuth as a vassal state had made significant changes to the economy of the West.

Some of the smaller nations had bowed their heads and asked permission to use the Falmuth route to continue trading with Dwargon. Unlike Ingrassia and a few other nations that could remain self-reliant for years, those that were weaker and smaller in power had to face the repercussions of supply and demand.

With materials and products made in Dwargon now cut off, the products from the other nations, while not as good in quality, had skyrocketed in price doubling, in most cases, from their original prices as the quantity continued to decrease.

In the end, one nation took the risk and visited Falmuth to beg for permission to pass through and trade. Ultima, who had mostly been loitering and observing as the humans managed Falmuth, gave them permission to trade.

As rumors spread, more nations began to visit Falmuth, requesting the same thing. Being given passage to Dwargon and allowed to trade made their lives easier. They no longer had to buy overpriced products from the other Western nations, and the best part was that Falmuth's tariffs were halved, thanks to Rimuru's orders.

So not only were they able to buy from Dwargon, but the tariffs were also cheaper.

"You want to trade with Falmuth?" Ultima smirked as she sat on the throne in the castle in Falmuth. In front of her stood an envoy from Ingrassia. He had an awkward smile on his face as he nervously looked at her.

"Yes, as Ultima-sama has done with many nations from the West," he bowed, gesturing for her kindness. "I believe that our Great Nation could be a better trading partner than them."

"Is that so?" Ultima tilted her head, her expression one of barely concealed disinterest. She sat on the throne with her feet dangling, small as she was. She gestured to the servant beside her, who handed the envoy a contract.

After receiving it, the envoy read through the contract. His eyes widened, and his grip on the paper tightened. "This is..."

"A contract to allow Ingrassia trading rights in Falmuth," Ultima said with a smile. "It also allows you to use our route to travel to Dwargon yourself, if you wish."

"But this is..." He trailed off, unable to risk angering her. After all, he had been informed that the rumored demons who had annihilated the allied army were young girls, and the one in front of him matched the description of the purple demon who loved to torture, poison, and create plagues.

"Is something wrong?" Ultima smirked, fully aware of the envoy's hesitation. The contract stated that Ingrassia must pay three times the normal tariffs, which was more than half of what the original Falmuth had been taking from Ingrassia and other countries.

"I do believe I need to discuss a few things back home before signing this," the envoy cleared his throat, putting the contract away to take back to Ingrassia.

"Sure, sure. Just a heads-up for you, discussion of the tariff price is non-negotiable," Ultima said casually.

The envoy took a deep breath and bowed before leaving the castle. Only once he had left the capital did he feel the courage to sigh. He held his head in his hands and sat quietly in his carriage.

Then, a loud horn sounded from afar. The envoy looked out to see the rumored invention of the Demon of the Forest, Rimuru.

"Let's hope they realize how beneficial that 'magitrain' is for us," he muttered as he watched the magitrain, a massive train with over a hundred carts attached. Each cart carried more supplies than any wagon or carriage could ever manage. The speed was mind-blowing, and it had taken a while for people to actually believe in its existence.

The magitrain had first been installed in the Forest, in the Demon's Capital, Sear. It was rumored to be connected to both Dwargon and Eurazania, which was the reason why the dwarves had not faced a food shortage, even though they had relied on the West for food for a thousand years.

"Ingrassia is already falling from its grace," the envoy shook his head as he watched humans working on the railroads, connecting the magitrain station in Falmuth to some of the minor nations, like Raja.

The worst part was, they couldn't use the 'rescue Falmuth' card anymore. The citizens had found themselves treated far better, with their lives safe as long as they obeyed Rimuru. They had welcomed their new rulers after seeing how Rimuru cared for those under his rule.

....

The Eastern Empire, one of the oldest nations in the world. Officially known as Nasca Namrium Ulmeria United Eastern Empire. An empire with a rich history spanning over two thousand years. From the former minor kingdom of Nasca, it grew stronger and larger under the leadership of their Emperor.

They managed to absorb every other nation, whether major or minor, without regard for their status. In the end, every last one of them submitted and became part of the foundations of what is now collectively known as the Eastern Empire.

An Empire with its main philosophy and motto being, "Power is everything," a system that allowed those with strength to climb the ranks and gain recognition for what they were truly worth.

More than a few hundred years ago, an attempt to invade the West began. Unfortunately for the soldiers of the time, they met a massive catastrophic wall named Storm Dragon Veldora, which wiped out almost all of them.

Only the lucky few thousand out of the hundreds of thousands returned home to tell the tale of the horrors they had witnessed that day. The stories passed down from generation to generation, a grudge born from the humiliation they felt during their failed crusade to unite all the nations, which ended before it even started.

Time has passed, and the Empire has grown stronger since then, dare one say, stronger than ever before. The blow Veldora dealt them has been recovered from; their "wounds" healed. Now, they are prepared, simply waiting for the Emperor's words.

Inside the Imperial Castle, a conference was about to begin. Officers from every department of the empire, both civil and military, sat in their respective positions, tense, waiting for the arrival of their Great Emperor.

Present were the three commanders of each military corps and their subordinates, the elite imperial guards, and the cabinet ministers, who administered the government of the country. Every single figure that mattered had been given their spot to attend.

"The Imperial Majesty has arrived!" The Marshal, a man with black hair tinged with a red shade, announced. He was a well-known figure, said to have guarded the Emperor for almost as long as the Empire itself.

With that, the discussions and debates began.

As expected by everyone involved, the discussion started with the plan to invade the West, just as it had been willed by both the Empire and the Emperor long before anyone present had been born.

"I suggest against it with all my being," Gadra interjected, his voice cutting through the heated debate. His words immediately caught the attention of everyone in the room, as his suggestion directly opposed the desires of the Emperor and the Empire itself.

"Gadra-dono," Calgurio called, his voice laced with disdain. He was the commander of one of the three military departments, the Armored Corps. "Such cowardice. Are you still going on about not wanting to attack the forest and that Evil Dragon?"

If the Empire ever desired to invade and conquer the West, marching through the forest was the only reasonable choice. Other routes were too risky to even consider.

"And you should too," Gadra fired back, his tone firm as though reprimanding a child who had not learned his lesson. "Most of you weren't there to experience the horror of facing the Evil Dragon. You'd do well to listen to the advice of your elder."

Calgurio scoffed, looking at Gadra with disgust. "Gadra-dono, are you sure it's the wisdom of the elderly and not the senile ramblings of an old veteran?"

"Calgurio-dono is right. We are more than prepared to face the Evil Dragon!"

"That's right, as Calgurio-sama says, this is just Gadra-dono's cowardice showing once again."

"Gadra-dono, please mind your words. Those are the Emperor's will you are arguing with."

Many other voices from the military began to pour in, each one adding fuel to the fire. Gadra looked at them with contempt and disappointment; they were inexperienced, none had felt the fear he had during that battle.

"Uhm," a hand raised from the new commander of the Hybrid Corps. "While I understand everyone's sentiment, aren't we ignoring the fact that the Forest of Jura is home to both the Scorch Dragon and a Primordial Demon?"

"That's right!" Gadra's eyes flickered with motivation at the words spoken. "Yuuki-kun's words are true. The Forest has two True Dragons and a Primordial Demon, for god's sake!"

"Gadra-dono," a white tiger lycanthrope shook his head, his ears twitching. "The Storm Dragon is still sealed, as everyone knows, and a Primordial Demon? Aside from Guy Crimson, there have been no sightings of such beings for thousands of years."

"Not to mention we have the Marshal, who is said to rival a True Dragon." Kanzis added, lighting his cigar. "An ancient demon at most claiming to be a Primordial, a sealed True Dragon, and the Scorch Dragon, we have also developed some weapons specifically to combat such beings, haven't we?"

Fragga snorted at his words. "You say that as if you'll be the one facing her. The airships of our Corps will be the ones to face the Scorch Dragon."

"Are you all mad?!" Gadra slammed his fist on the table, garnering unpleasant stares from everyone. "That is a True Dragon! Even with my help in developing that machine, I cannot see it defeating such catastrophic beings!"

"Gadra-dono has truly gone senile," Calgurio chuckled to himself, his tone dripping with mockery. The former Corps commander of the Magic Division, now heading the Armored Division, was no longer being taken seriously. "I believe your presence here is dampening the mood for our glorious advancement and is a stain on the Emperor's will."

With that, Gadra was escorted out of the conference room. He protested, but eventually conceded, as his words fell on deaf ears.

"Well, that took a turn," Yuuki commented, his voice light as the talks began again. They quickly resumed with strategy discussions, who would face the forest, who would take down the Scorch Dragon, and how they would conquer the West. Such words were being thrown around as if it was a given that they would win.

Yuuki could only chuckle and scratch his cheek as he listened carefully. His eyes flickered to the man known as the Marshal, said to be as strong as a True Dragon. Then, he recalled Rimuru's words before he was given the order to infiltrate the place.

"Hm? Marshal? Ah, yeah, he's not that strong. Velgrynd managed to beat him, and he ran away during that ambush with Hinata," Rimuru had said casually, as if discussing an ordinary matter.

"Rimuru-san it is still dangerous for me!" He protested though his words were more of a complaint than an actual argument. He knew that Rimuru would not care about his opinion.

"You should have thought of that when you told Leon about Chloe," Rimuru laughed pointing at Yuuki. "Besides, I have other moles in the Empire hiding away waiting for the right time."

"Oh?" Yuuki grew curious, there were others beside him already there. "Who are they?"

Rimuru smirked, "If you knew that would break the illusion, the fact that you don't know makes it look much more genuine that they are loyal to the Empire."

Yuuki smiled wryly as he watched the officers and officials talk with such confidence, much like Granbell and Damrada had before attempting to assassinate Rimuru.

Though Yuuki was curious. Damrada was the link he used to get into the Empire. He should have information about how strong Rimuru was, not to mention the fact that Damrada managed to get Double 0-Numbers (single-digit) Imperial Guards to attack Rimuru and die trying.

He was sure such information would be relevant, especially at this time. Yet, it was never mentioned, and the people here still referred to Rimuru as an Ancient Demon claiming to be a Primordial, even when they had already lost some of their most powerful soldiers to said demon.

He could only nod and smile as his Hybrid Corps was pushed to face Dwargon while the others fought over who would attack the Forest.

....

"The East is planning to march by the start of summer, which is just a few months from now." Rimuru leaned back in his seat, yawning as he informed the others.

They were currently having a Walpurgis to discuss what to do about the Empire's invasion.

"I can have the humans start preparing for war by then, though I doubt they can even be that useful during the conflict," Luminas pointed out. She was planning to use her Holy Empire Lubelious to gather strength and people for the inevitable war.

"My country seems to be safe for now," Kagali muttered as Rimuru explained their desire to push through the Forest and not through her territory. "I'll stay vigilant and reinforce the borders."

"Same here," Dagruel nodded in agreement with the High Elf. "We are the farthest to the East, so I doubt I need to even prepare for their advancement."

"Uh..." Milim grumbled as she turned to Rimuru. "I want to help Uncle, but..."

"You have your people to take care of," Rimuru interjected, causing Milim to slump her shoulders. "Don't worry, if I need your help, I'll ask for it, Milim."

"Really?" Her face brightened upon hearing Rimuru's words.

"Yes, I promise." He chuckled, seeing Milim's starry eyes, excited to be relied upon.

Guy sat there, his arms crossed, a vein popping on his forehead. "Why the hell are you taking charge?! You're not even a Demon Lord, damn it, Rimuru."

Rimuru shrugged. "The Empire literally plans to go through my territory to invade the West. Unless you want me to let them pass, I'm participating here."

A/N: Lakeshore dyed red incident does not exist because Testarossa hasn't been in the Cardinal world for thousands of years.

Okay so in all transparency, I'm starting the East Empire arc.