Chapter 80 - Recollection 1

A/N: so this flashback is just my interpretation of what happened on the past timeline. You can disagree with it because we don't really have much to go on to. I skimmed through the novel with as much info as I can find like who died, who met, who fought.

Ah...

I remember everything clearly now...

Those days...

My comrades...

My regrets...

Raphael...

I remember them all.

Five children could be seen crying as I was about to leave. They tried to act tough, but it was all in vain as they all hugged me tightly.

"Take care of them," I smiled, looking towards Yuuki. He should be able to care for the children until they have grown up and can stand on their own.

"I will, you can count on me, Rimuru-san." Yuuki smiled back. We had already discussed letting the children stay at the academy until they graduated and giving them IDs from the Freedom Association if they wished to join.

I finally let go of the hug and walked toward Ranga, who was waiting near the entrance.

"Sensei!" I turned and was hit by Chloe, who was hugging me tightly. The others came closer as well. I patted her head, feeling a pang of sadness. I'll miss them all.

"Jeez, Chloe, you're such a crybaby," Kenya said, though he was crying as well.

"Sensei... Sensei..." Chloe pushed her head deeper into my chest. This lasted for a few minutes until she finally let go, and the others said their goodbyes to Yuuki.

Originally, I wanted to get a bit further away before using transportation magic. However, since we were near the city, it took longer to say goodbye to the children.

"Ranga, let's go right here," I said, patting Ranga, who looked at me with concern.

"Rimuru-sama, isn't it dangerous?" he asked, echoing my own worry that we might be seen on our way to Tempest.

"That's true, but we're a bit off schedule."

"Understood, Rimuru-sama." Ranga followed my order. I smiled and activated spatial motion.

<<Report. Impossible to specify a target location. The cause is believed to be some kind of barrier isolating the area.>>

Barrier? What's this about a barrier? Hey Great Sage, what's this about a barrier?

<<Report. As stated, the area is believed to be isolated inside a barrier. Searching for coordinates near the area... Confirmed.>>

Great Sage transported us to the cave where Vesta and his laboratory were making Hipokute potions and cultivating herbs.

"R-Rimuru-sama," Vesta stammered, talking with one of Souei's subordinates, who kneeled upon seeing me.

"Report," I ordered Saika.

"Understood. Rimuru-sama, we currently have enemies invading Tempest. More specifically, the Capital, Rimuru," Saika said as she bowed.

"Invaded!?" Tempest is being invaded? By who? And why? Is it another demon lord?

These thoughts swirled in my mind.

"The Capital is enveloped inside a barrier that hinders us from entering. Souei-sama is trying to enter the Capital in any possible way he can."

I needed to confirm something first. "Do we know who the enemy is? Is it a Demon Lord and their army?" I'm not confident I could take on someone like Milim, but if it's someone like Carrion, I could resist until the others escape.

Saika paused and hesitated at first. "...The enemies are humans, Rimuru-sama," Saika said. "It is still speculation, but Souei-sama believes it to be the Kingdom of Falmuth."

Kingdom of Falmuth? The one where Youm is from? I should have listened to Gazel and Myourmile when they said it could be an enemy.

(Souei, can you hear me?)

(Rimuru-sama?)

(Meet me at the entrance of Tempest.)

(Understood.)

Ranga and I went to the entrance, where Souei was waiting with Souka. The two kneeled after seeing me.

"Is this the barrier?" I asked, looking at the barrier enclosing Tempest.

"Yes, it is a two-layered barrier. I've sent scouts to monitor the army currently on their way to the forest. An advance party seems to be causing trouble inside. I could not contact Benimaru; the barrier is hindering me," Souei explained briefly.

I placed my palm on the barrier. Great Sage!

<<Report. It is a two-layered barrier consisting of an Anti-Magic Area as well as a magicule-reducing barrier.>>

"Magicule-reducing barrier? Why's that?"

<<Report. It is believed to be a way to fight against monsters that rely on Magicules to survive.>>

Then the people inside are weakened by the barrier while they're fighting?

<<Correct.>>

Then I have to help them. Great Sage, can I go in?

<<Report. Barriers could be resisted.>>

Thank goodness, that means I can go in. I looked towards Souei. "I'll go in and help them. Investigate the incoming army and anything suspicious."

"Understood, Rimuru-sama. However, how could I contact you?"

That's right, the barrier hinders communication as well. Oh, I know! I wrapped my wrist in sticky steel thread and passed the other end to Souei.

"This will work."

Souei bowed and disappeared with Souka.

I enveloped myself with my barriers and passed through the barrier. I could see some soldiers attacking the residents of my city.

The Hobgoblins tried resisting their attacks, even though they weren't part of the military of Tempest, just to let the others escape.

"Gahh!" One of the Hobgoblins groaned as he fell down with a slash to his stomach.

The soldier planning to finish him off swung his sword down. Ting It was blocked and the soldier was pushed backward.

"Are you okay?" I asked as I threw a full potion to the Hobgoblin.

"Rimuru-sama!" The other Hobgoblins cheered as they saw me. Their morale raised, and with my help, they knocked out the humans.

I didn't have time to ask them what happened. If this is happening everywhere, I need to be fast.

(Everyone!) I contacted everyone inside the barrier.

((((Rimuru-sama!!))))

(Hold on, I'm in Tempest right now. Prioritize the safety of the residents. Don't die.)

((((Understood, Rimuru-sama!))))

I then rushed in and took out the soldiers that I passed through. I threw healing potions to the injured residents of Tempest before leaving.

Then I finally saw Shion. She seemed to be fighting someone in hand-to-hand combat. Shion was being pushed back, probably because of the barrier.

"What is happening here?" A soldier, probably from Falmuth, shouted. He, along with his hundred knights, started charging as he shouted.

"Tsk, out of time, huh. Hey! Help us!" The man who fought Shion shouted mockingly as he saw the knights.

"In accordance with human laws, we have come to assist all of you innocent citizens!" the lead soldier shouted as he raised his sword.

Shion rushed in to save a young Hobgoblin in the soldier's path. "Run away!"

She grabbed her and ran, but the soldiers rushed after them and caught up. The lead soldier, planning to slash Shion, shouted as he swung down.

He was then pushed back as I intervened. These guys piss me off... So, so much.

"R-Rimuru-sama!" Shion shouted as she noticed me.

"Hey, who are you?" The man who previously fought Shion said as he rushed towards me with his fist.

This one pisses me off as well. What did he say earlier? They need help? And these soldiers would save the innocent citizens? What a farce.

As he came near me, I punched him in the gut and he flew towards the soldiers.

"Listen here, I'll only say this once. Turn back now and never return, or else I will not be merciful." I told them as I pressured them with my aura. The horses they were riding started to panic, causing several of the knights to fall.

"Rimuru-sama," I heard Benimaru behind me. Two bodies were then thrown to the knights. From what I could see, it was a boy and a girl, probably together with the one that Shion fought.

"Good, you're all here." I said as I sensed everyone that was present. They may be weakened, but they are still strong enough to fight these guys if they work together.

Benimaru, Shion, Hakurou, Shuna, Gobta with the Goblin Riders, and Geld with the Orcs in armor. The lead knight seemed to realize the disadvantage he was facing as he started to sweat.

"Do you think you can get away with this? A citizen of our nation was harmed because of your barbarous nature! Humans and monsters are never meant to coexist with each other!" The knight tried to scare us. Did he think that had any value right now?

"No need to lie. I know that this is all a farce to start a fight with Tempest while I am out." He flinched a little, only slightly, but it was noticeable to me. Did he take me for an idiot? Obviously, the communication and barriers were set up so they wouldn't be able to contact me.

"Those three were probably sent to cause problems to have justifications, right?" I added. I saw the guy mockingly ask for help, anybody could guess that it was preplanned.

"That's right! Those three picked on Gobzo!" Gobta yelled from behind. See? It was pretty obvious if you think clearly.

"Maybe you're right. I'm an idiot for wanting to coexist with humans," I said as I walked forward towards them. My subordinates followed every step I took. "Then let's see your resolve. Fight these barbarous monsters and face the consequences if you lose. You wouldn't mind the consequences, right? After all, monsters are barbarous," I smiled.

Soon, a clash between the two groups erupted. It was no exaggeration to say that even if they were weakened, my friends could defeat normal knights easily.

"What should we do with them, Rimuru-sama?" Benimaru asked as they restrained all 100 knights, including the three otherworlders.

What should we do? "We'll bring them back to their home nation. Leave a message that if they don't retreat, we will retaliate." This should be enough, right, Great Sage? I mean, these hundred should be elites, and with the three otherworlders, that should leave a strong impression.

<<Answer. Returning them will leave an impact on the other group. However, it is disadvantageous to return powerful enemies.>>

Ah, that is true.

What should I do then?

<<Answer. Recommendation: devouring the otherworlders and crippling the knights.>>

Yikes! Great Sage, isn't that too heartless? They are still people, you know?

<<...>>

Great Sage?

<<Understood. Alternative: sealing the skills of the otherworlders would be a major blow for them.>>

Can you seal their skills? Huh, I didn't know I could do that. As expected of Great Sage, you could leave everything to it.

<<Answer. The female otherworlder seems to have a seal that controls when she can use her unique skill. Using this as a reference, a more efficient magic could be created to seal their skills much more effectively.>>

She had a seal? If I recall, that one had a skill that can control a crowd with her voice, right? That is something you wouldn't want someone to use freely, whether an enemy or ally.

With that, I sealed the unique skills of the three otherworlders.

We held a meeting to decide how we would proceed with dropping them off to the army that would reach the capital in two weeks.

In the end, the conclusion was to bring only the strong ones and give the army a final warning. Basically, trying to scare them into retreating so that everything could be resolved without bloodshed.

But first, we removed the barrier that was weakening us. I had them send groups to knock out the company at each corner of the barrier.

Currently, we have five hundred prisoners, and we will only bring the important ones for now: the commander and the otherworlders.

As the army of Falmuth rested, awaiting the return of their Knight Commander Folgen, the king was basking in alcohol with Archbishop Reyheim, imagining the riches that would soon fill their pockets.

"Razen, is Folgen still not back yet?" The king asked, slurring slightly, showing the effects of the alcohol in his system.

Razen, the old man who was the chief court mage of Falmuth, bowed. "He seems to be taking his time, My Lord."

"Hmp, probably because of those damn otherworlders complaining again. Bunch of ungrateful brats!" King Edmaris drank as he complained.

Soon, a knight came to the tent and kneeled in front.

"Reporting! A group of monsters is currently rushing in this direction. They number less than five hundred. From our analysis, the weakest among them are classified as B+, and their strongest to be around A+."

"Hahahaha! That is all? We have a hundred A-minus royal knights. Our knights and mages range from B-minus to B, and they number in the thousands. Not to mention the Templar knights that the church gave us that are all B-plus. Our twenty thousand strong army versus their puny five hundred."

"They seem to be underestimating us, My Lord." Reyheim joined his king in laughing at the monsters' stupidity.

But if they are here and Folgen is still not back... Razen thought cautiously.

"My Lord, if you would let me intercept them," he asked Edmaris, wanting to make sure of his speculation.

"Hm? Sure, show those monsters their rightful place!"

Razen and a fraction of the army, consisting of three thousand men, followed him.

As they marched, the two groups finally met up.

"Hold it, monsters," Razen shouted as he finally got them in his vision. "If you come here to surrender, lower your weapons."

He saw them talking with each other. Then, three people walked towards them, each having a different shade of hair color. A female with purple hair carried two bodies, and similarly, a male with red hair also carried two people.

In front of them was a girl with long silvery blue hair, wearing a mask over her face.

...

"I believe these are yours," I signaled, and Benimaru and Shion threw the four to the ground, revealing their faces.

The four were the three otherworlders and the commander of the knights.

"These are..." The old man who looked like a mage reacted, looking at the knight commander and sighing with relief, realizing he was alive.

"Leave now, and I will overlook this incident," I spoke in a cold tone as I unleashed my aura.

Simultaneously, the others did the same. They had been holding it in the capital as humans find thick magicules to be poisonous.

A quick shockwave spread everywhere. The men behind the old man flinched, especially the mages. They seemed to be shaking with fear.

"Do not panic!" the old man shouted. "We outnumber them and are much stronger than them!" He was raising the morale to ensure no deserters appeared.

"You must be Rimuru Tempest, the ruler of monsters. I'm surprised you escaped that witch Hinata."

Witch? Hinata? Who's that? Oh wait, isn't that one of the names of Shizu-san's students?

"What about this Hinata?" I asked, trying to gather information. From what he said, was Hinata supposed to dispose of me?

<<Answer. It could be theorized that Hinata was planning your elimination back in Engrassia.>>

Back then, huh? Yikes. Good thing I escaped. That was a close one. It would have been bad if I hadn't managed to make it in time.

"Hm... you don't know? Or are you playing dumb? Well, for what it's worth, Ruler of Monsters, if I dispose of you, we win!" He exclaimed as he activated his magic.

"Nuclear Magic: Nuclear Cannon!"

"Devour it all, Gluttony." I ate the attack that the old man unleashed at me.

From the side, I could sense that the fighting had started. The enemy knights and mages fired at my people, and we fired back.

"Hahh!"

Not surprising, Shion was bulldozing through the group of knights and sending them flying. I think she's overdoing it again...

"You... the attack disappeared."

Ah, that's right, I was fighting someone.

Personally, I wasn't in the mood to talk with him, so I just drew my blade.

"Tsk, Summoning Magic: War Gnome." A glowing knight came out of the ground and blocked my blow.

It swung at me, continuously attacking. The hell, this thing is strong—at least Ifrit-level strong.

Not only that.

"Fire lance."

This bastard is firing at me from long range, and it's annoying.

He probably thinks I'll dodge the attack, but instead, I ignore it and rush towards the War Gnome.

Using a similar concept to when I defeated that lesser demon, I create an aura blade and slash at it. The old man is shocked that I didn't dodge, but even more so that it was not effective.

The Gnome receives some damage from the attack, but not enough to defeat it. Hmm... the armor is tough. Can I use Hellflare on it? Maybe Black Lightning would work.

<<Suggestion: Use Black Flame and aim for the stomach of the War Gnome. Its core seems to be located there after analysis.>>

I see, I could defeat it by destroying the core. As expected of Great Sage!

"This ends here," I invoke Black Flame onto my sword and stab at the stomach of the Earth Spirit.

"Impossible, that was a superior spirit!" the old man shouts in disbelief.

I get behind him and knock him out as he is surprised by the defeat of his summoned creature.

"Your leader is defeated! Surrender now or face me!" I shout to the army that is still fighting us.

Once they see Razen lying on the ground, they immediately surrender, knowing the difference in strength.

Tying them up is a hassle, so we instead confiscate their weapons like swords and staffs and put them to sleep.

"How are our side?" I ask, worried. It seems it shows in my expression as Benimaru smiles and notes that there were no casualties.

"However, at most half of our men are heavily injured. It's mostly done by the Temple Knights of the church," Benimaru gestures, showing me as they pour and drink full potions. "What you'd expect from the masters of monster extermination." He nods with his arms crossed.

Was he complimenting them?

"What should we do now, Rimuru-sama?" Souei asks as he appears beside us.

Well, I plan on continuing the plan but... I look at my people; they seem exhausted. We couldn't exactly win fighting fair, so we mostly used terrain advantage and hit-and-run tactics. Shion as a distraction also worked nicely! Yes, her running into the middle of the army was part of the plan. Hahaha...

"We'll have the rest retreat. Benimaru, Souei, Shion, Ranga, Geld, Gobta, and Gabil will be coming with me. Hakurou, I'm sorry but could you lead them to retreat?"

"Hoho, no problem, Rimuru-sama." He smiles as he strokes his beard.

"Good, everyone, let's go."

Shion, Geld, and Gabil carry the four with the addition of the old mage.

Hey, Great Sage, could I also seal the old man's abilities?

<<Answer. It is possible to seal the individual's magical abilities using curse magic.>>

Wow, since when did I have that?

<<It was in the Engrassia Library.>>

It was just there?! Isn't that dangerous?

<<Negative. It was undecipherable, so they simply placed it there.>>

Ah...

<<Sealing of individual's magic capability, yes or no?>>

Of course, it's a yes.

<<Error. Unfortunately, the individual has high enough resistance to cancel the curse. Alternative: sealing the individual's ability to use Nuclear Magic and removing the nuclear strike magic set in the body... Successful.>>

He rigged himself, huh...

Thus, we walk towards the army.

Once the army notices us, they try to fight us. We show them who we are carrying, and immediately their morale drops to the floor.

Of course, the entire time I am releasing my aura. Some of the less accustomed soldiers are on the ground, breathing heavily from the intake of a large amount of magicules in the air. Others give up and simply faint.

As we walk, I notice with magic sense that the one in the fancy tent is trying to escape.

"Soeui," I order. He disappears after that.

Once we get to the tent, two people are on their knees, tied with sticky steel. One is pleading for his life while the other is basically having a heart attack from fear.

"Who are those?" I ask the other knights tied down. They are either knocked out or bleeding heavily.

"They are the king's royal knights," Souei answers calmly. And you took them down like that.

"Good work." I walk towards the two old men, assuming the one in the obvious royal clothing and having a crown to be the king.

"Anything you wanna say?" I ask the King of Falmuth.

"T-this is all a misunderstanding! I didn't come here to fight you all. It was those otherworlders that started it; we were both victims of their actions."

This guy thinks I'm stupid, doesn't he? I sigh; dealing with this type of people is a pain.

"Listen," I grab him by the hair and pull him close to my masked face. "I'll only say this once: take your army and leave Tempest. If you don't, we will not show you mercy and will be the monsters you wish we weren't."

A bit of threatening should do the work!

Wait! Did he...? Ew...

He peed himself...

I let go of him and have the five people we were carrying dropped to the ground.

"Let's go." I walk with my friends and plan on leaving.

"Oh yeah, King of Falmuth, you have until nightfall to leave this place... or else we will come while you sleep!" I say as I fire black lightning on an empty area near their camp.

After that, we use transport magic and leave the place. Of course, I have Souei observe their movements, and if they try anything suspicious, we will really eliminate them.

"What about the enemy soldiers imprisoned in our dungeon, Rimuru-sama?" Shion asks as if she just recalled them.

Ah... I forgot about them... I'll just ask Vesta and Kaijin what to do with POWs.

"Rimuru-danna, how was the fight?" A man asks me as I return, a familiar face arriving.

"Hey, Mjormille. Sorry that this happened while you were here." He was supposed to visit the town as a merchant that I hired to see what else we could sell outside.

"No, no. It's fine." Mjormille smiles, then his eyes turn serious. "Does Danna know why this happened?"

"Unfortunately, no. I personally don't know; we plan on having a meeting for that, actually."

That was the plan, after having Falmuth retreat. We'll discuss the origin of their assault on our country.

Of course, this could be done by just interrogating the POWs.

"Mind if I join in?" Mjormille wants to join; does he have something to add?

"I don't mind," I shrug and turn to Rigurd.

He nods and guides Mjormille to the meeting room.

"Ah, Rimuru-sama," Benimaru comes rushing to me. "We found the one that invoked the anti-magic area."

I follow Benimaru and he brings me to where the perpetrator and two other individuals are imprisoned.

Once Youm notices me, he starts to beg. "Boss, listen to me. Please forgive Mjurran, please. I-I'll do anything you want. Please don't hurt her!"

Mjurran? Is that the girl beside her? Looks like she has already given up on life, to me.

"Rimuru-sama, this one is the one that did it," Benimaru gestures to Mjurran.

I see, that's why Youm is begging for her life.

"Rimuru-sama, please spare her life," Grucius, who is the third one imprisoned, finally speaks.

Why the hell is he in there?

"He tried to let the girl escape, Rimuru-sama." Benimaru notices my confusion and tells me the reason for his imprisonment.

"Quiet for now, you two," I order. Personally, I'm not that mad. Nor do I plan on killing her.

"Can I ask why you did it, Mjurran-san?" I sit down in front of their cell and listen to her side of the story.

Long story short, she was a pawn of Demon Lord Clayman who ordered her to create the barrier to hinder my arrival. She seems to have had her heart taken by Clayman; otherwise, she would have long betrayed the Demon Lord titled Marionette Master.

"So you valued your life that highly, huh." Benimaru, who was listening, comments as he glares at the girl.

"Now, now, Benimaru."

"I have long since given up hope of my heart returning," Mjurran corrects Benimaru, basically saying she doesn't care if she dies.

"However..." She takes a quick side glance at Youm.

I see...

Hey, Great Sage, if Clayman gave Mjurran the fake heart, can we recreate it and replace it?

<<Answer: Once the fake heart is consumed and analyzed, recreation is possible.>>

So we take it from her body? Wouldn't that kill her?

<<Negative. Analysis will only take 2-3 seconds before recreation is done.>>

Ah, I see. We could do that; we'll also have the trio owe us for this.

That's why I walk inside their cell and simply walk towards the chained Mjurran.

"B-Boss? H-hey! Please, kill me instead!"

"Youm, take Mjurran with you. I'll—" Grucius tries to escape by using beastification, but Benimaru stops him in his tracks.

I keep quiet and pierce her chest with my hand. She looks like she has really resigned her fate to my hands.

Then she is surprised to find herself still alive after I stab her chest.

"Huh?"

"Boss? Mjurran, are you okay?!"

I have Benimaru unlock their chains. Youm quickly hugs Mjurran, and Grucius stands in front of the two, guarding them from us.

"Here, you're free now." I show the fake heart that is in my hand. "You have a new heart now, one I made."

The trio looks at me in disbelief. "If someone had died, I would have been much more unforgiving. However, no one died, and this was a valuable lesson for me moving forward, so only this time, you are forgiven, but you must repay for your crimes."

There's no way I'm just letting her go after what she did. Even if no one died, a lot of people almost died.

"Mjurran will be working for Tempest for a decade. After that, she is free to live her life however she wants," Benimaru announces to the trio, with a tone that says no one has the right to complain.

"I mean, it's not that bad, right? Unlike with Clayman, as long as you do your part, you can basically wander freely in Tempest." I reassure them that I won't treat her like a pawn but more like a temporary subordinate. Her skills could be useful after all, especially her knowledge of Demon Lord Clayman.

"I thank you for this life, Rimuru-sama," she bows once Youm lets go of her. "I will be sure to repay this benevolence of yours."

"Thanks, Boss." Youm kneels and has his head on the floor, crying, thankful that Mjurran is still alive. Grucius sighs in relief and finally stops staring at Benimaru.

Benimaru and I leave the cell and have someone give the trio a better place for their heartfelt happiness.

I finally go to the meeting room where everyone is waiting for me. As I walk to my place, everyone stands up. I gesture at them, and they all sit down.

"First things first, I would like to apologize to everyone." I give a quick bow, to everyone's surprise. "This happened because I left Tempest to do something selfish. If only I arrived sooner, we could have prepared much better."

"That's not true, Rimuru-sama."

"That's right!"

"It was our fault for always relying on you."

Hakurou stands up from his seat, his presence demanding attention. "Rimuru-sama," he begins, causing a hush to fall over the room as everyone turns to him.

"Even if you did something out of selfishness, it is not your fault for this event. It was due to our negligence that the enemy caught us by surprise. Is it not, everyone?"

The others nod in agreement. You guys...

"We do not mind if Rimuru-sama does things out of selfishness," Rigurd says, rising from his seat as well. "We follow Rimuru-sama out of our own volition. It does not matter what Rimuru-sama does; we follow you no matter what."

"Everyone..." I almost want to cry. They really are like family to me. "Thanks."

Now I need to return everyone to a more serious atmosphere. "What does everyone think of this situation? I want honest opinions, no matter what they are." I first need to know what they think of the invasion, after all, the enemy forces were humans that we welcomed.

With the otherworlders pretending to be adventurers to cause trouble, I'm sure the trust in humans will drop.

Benimaru speaks first, lowering his head. "As stated before by Hakurou, it was our negligence that this happened. Honestly, when we couldn't contact Rimuru-sama, I was shaken. I didn't know what to do. This is something I, no, we need to improve."

"As Benimaru-sama said," Rigur adds, "we as the guards should have been more vigilant and cautious of every person that enters our city."

Gobta, trembling slightly, admits, "This might be because I egged them on when they came here."

"Anything else? What about the enemy in question?" I ask, wanting to hear their thoughts on the human enemy. I've been doing some self-reflecting on how I run things.

"If I may, Rimuru-sama," Rigurd raises his hand. "I think some of the monsters will have a hard time mingling and interacting with our human visitors after this event."

That's true. While they didn't show any hate towards the entire race, the fact that we never know who our enemies are will terrify just about anyone.

Gobta raises his hand, surprising me with his attentiveness. "Here, Rimuru-sama."

"Go, Gobta-kun."

"I hate the humans that invaded us!" he openly states. "However, Youm and the other adventurers are not like them."

He did try defending Mjurran, but that's not really the point I want right now.

"I am of the same opinion, Rimuru-sama," Rigur backs Gobta. "While anger towards the enemy humans is sure to appear, I believe it is not wise to generalize all humans to this behavior."

Good, good. To think Gobta would actually say something that could help me with what I'm about to say makes me proud of him. My view of Gobta has risen a bit.

"Yes, while the Falmuth nation are people that we must never forgive, the other humans, like those from Blumund, have been very nice to us," Shuna happily agrees. "Some even helped evacuate the civilians."

"I am happy with the conclusion that you have made," I smile. "I actually also came to the same conclusion. And to add on, I've done some self-reflecting."

I look around the meeting room, take a deep breath, and voice what I have in mind. "Does everyone remember my old three rules?" I say old, but it's only been what? Two years or less.

Everyone nods their heads, of course they do.

"And does everyone follow it?" Again, they all nod. I sigh, this is really my fault.

"Did my third rule hinder you in any way when fighting the invaders?"

Some of them jolt in their seats; I didn't fail to notice that. They have been holding back on the enemy since I told them no harming humans. No one wants to answer my question, so I turn to Shion.

"Shion, I noticed you didn't use your sword when you were fighting. Did you do it because you were in the city or because of my rule?"

"T-that is... Uhm..." Shion tries to look for help from the others. "B-because of Rimuru-sama's rule..."

"I see. Everyone, from now on, forget about that rule." I openly declare to everyone, and they all look shocked. "I don't mean to slaughter them without reason, but if they try to harm or kill you, fight with all your might, with the intent to kill if necessary."

"Understand, everyone!"

"Yes! Rimuru-sama!"

With that, the meeting finishes.

Luckily for us, the army really followed my warning and ran as fast as they could. Heck, the three thousand that we left are desperately trying to rejoin the fast-paced retreating army.

"Good work, Souei," I say to Souei, who keeps watch on the army even now.

A knock is heard on the door to my office. "Come in." It should be them.

"Danna, you called for us?" Kaijin and Vesta enter. The duo that in the past would have been a bad match.

"Do you guys have any idea how to handle POWs? We currently have one hundred Falmuth soldiers and four hundred church soldiers." That's the problem I currently have. What should we do with them?

Kill them? I'm already quite satisfied with the revenge that I got. Can't let my personal feelings be the destruction of my nation here. That would look bad in any nation.

"What about asking King Gazel for advice?" Vesta suggests, raising his hand.

That's actually a good idea! And with that, I throw the problem to Vesta.

"Rimuru-sama, if I may?" Benimaru asks, raising his hand.

I nod for him to continue.

"Earlier today, Golden Horn of the Beastketeers, Albis, requested us to take their refugees." Benimaru pauses for a bit, swallowing before continuing. "It seems Demon Lord Milim has declared war on Eurazania."

"What!? Milim? As in that Milim?" I stand up, surprised. What the heck is that idiot doing now?!

"We got caught off earlier because of the barrier," Rigurd adds. "We were able to reconfirm with them while Rimuru-sama and the others were away. Milim-sama has indeed declared war. The reason... they did not know either. We are expecting to receive them here in less than five days."

"I'll have Touka keep a lookout on the border of Jura, in the direction of Eurazania," Souei adds to the conversation, ensuring we can guide the refugees properly.

But still... refugees? Isn't that a lot of people? I mean, we do have space... but to feed and house several thousands of lycanthropes... No point in overthinking it.

"I'll leave it to you, Rigurd!"

"Yes, leave it to me, Rimuru-sama!"

Alright! That could have gone ugly for me. What? You didn't actually think I could handle that work, did you?

With those matters settled, for the next few days we have been rebuilding the damages and reforming a few things.

Gazel and his Pegasus knights arrive after three days.

"Rimuru-yo, you seem to be having quite the problem on your hands." Gazel shakes hands with me as we meet up. They just arrived with their Pegasi, all one hundred of them.

We have them guided inside, and me and King Gazel sit in my office.

"About the prisoners? Hmm..." Gazel thinks with his fingers on his chin. "The obvious and best action would be to return them to Falmuth. It could give you a better impression as both a monster and a nation. They can't criticize you for being heartless for returning them."

"That's what we had thought up too... but we aren't quite sure that just returning them would be beneficial. We could just be returning forces to the enemy that wants us dead after all." I shrug. Returning them and being good monsters is good.

But if returning them means boosting Falmuth's military, it would be just fine to let them rot in their cells.

I take a sip of my tea. "But there are people from the church there... they could be used as an excuse if we don't return them." I sigh at the complicated situation.

"How are you treating them?"

"Normal," I casually say. I'm not really into torturing prisoners. "Imprisoned, then we give them food twice a day."

"Twice? You sure are forgiving on them." King Gazel raises a brow. "Any nation would be considered nice if you give them food once a day. Even my nation of Dwargo only gives prisoners of war one meal a day. And considering how good your food here is..."

Aren't they living in luxury here? Is what King Gazel is implying.

"I'm not really good at this war politics..." I scratch my head, simply admitting the fact. Actually, isn't that why I asked for his help here? "So, King Gazel, do you have any suggestions?"

He goes silent again.

I sip my tea quietly as I wait for his decision.

"Rimuru-yo, this may sound unappealing, but what about handing them to us?" King Gazel looks at me, analyzing my expression, thinking of my response.

"Hm? Sure." Sweet! I don't have to deal with them anymore!

King Gazel looked at me with a frown. "I know I shouldn't say this, as the person who suggested it, but... you should first know why before agreeing too quickly. We will act as a third party, known to be neutral. We will handle the exchange of prisoners and compensations, among other things. Luckily, you have been generous to them, which we can use as leverage to boost your reputation as a kind king and nation."

King Gazel began to explain everything in detail.

Basically, he'll act as an intermediary between our two nations. Since Dwargon is representing, there won't be any complaints about trustworthiness. It will show that not only does Dwargon trust Tempest, but Tempest also feels the same by entrusting valuable prisoners of war to them.

Both nations stand to gain from this action, increasing their reputation and value in the eyes of the world. Tempest will be seen as a kind nation, even when attacked, and Dwargon will back this new nation.

With those talks, we shook hands and handed over the prisoners.

King Gazel gave me a smirk. "We'll give them only one meal a day, and it won't be a delicious meal. This way, they can compare how they were treated here to the 'normal' treatment of POWs." He laughed as he returned to Dwargon.

Fuze and some adventurers came to support us. They saw the whole transportation of prisoners and concluded everything was already over by then.

He was given a rough explanation of the entire plan and gave a thumbs-up, pledging his nation's support. Isn't he a nice guy? I handed him some of our brandy and let him relax in the hot spring after that.

Later that day, we received a report from Touka that the Lycanthropes were less than a day away. Rigurd, with Geld's help, had already set up a camp for them to rest on. Ririna was taking care of the food distribution.

"Rimuru-sama," Albis bowed to me, with Sophia a little behind her, also bowing. "Thank you for accepting us. Eurazania will never forget this debt."

"Right! If Rimuru-sama is ever in trouble, we will help in any way we can," Sophia added with a fist pump, her grin wide.

"It's fine, but still, what happened? Is Karion-san going to be okay?" I asked, sitting on Rigurd's shoulder, with the goblin riders and guards guiding the refugees to their camp.

"Of course, Karion-sama would not be defeated," Sophia nodded confidently.

That's nice and all, but we're talking about Milim. According to Great Sage's analysis, I had a 50-70% chance of winning against Karion if I got serious. But Milim? That's a no-go in any simulation.

<<Correction. The percentage was analyzed with magicules as the only factor; it does not take into account the individual's skills and patterns.>>

Well, I guess I shouldn't have been too arrogant in thinking I had a fighting chance with Karion. He is a Demon Lord, after all. Luckily, Great Sage corrected my misunderstanding; Karion is still an unknown in terms of combat but is stronger than me.

<<...>>

I had them guided to Tempest and explained the entire situation in more detail, retelling some facts for confirmation.

The next day, I felt a minor earthquake. Maybe a volcano erupted far from here. Several minutes later, there was a knock on my office door.

"Rimuru-sama!" Vesta came in with an exhausted-looking Phobio.

"Hey, are you okay?" I had Phobio sit him down on the sofa. "I thought you stayed in Eurazania?"

"I need to report something urgently to my friends and to Rimuru-sama!"

A/N: This was originally a 5-6 long chapter arc with 3k words each, but I guess that would be too much even for me, you might get pissed at the long flashback. So I just combined them into 2-3 chapter arc.

This is already a 6800+ word chapter, and the next one is also 6k I think?