Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken (LN) - Volume 13 - Chapter 2.1

INTERLUDE

GAZEL’S MELANCHOLY

Gazel, king of the dwarves, was stunned to see the scene on the big screen in front of him.

“This… This is just…”

“My liege, your agitation is showing on your face. Don’t tell me you’re still that naive about this?”

“Ah, Jaine, you say that, but how else are we supposed to react? All conventional wisdom about warfare is being thrown out the window.”

The prodding of Jaine, Dwargon’s elderly arch-wizard, was met with a rebuke not by Gazel, but by Vaughn, admiral paladin and supreme commander of the dwarven force. It was understandable. This large screen provided by Rimuru’s new technology showed warfare at its worst, projected to them as it happened. Even to the usually jaded Gazel, it was something extraordinary to witness.

“This certainly turns conventional wisdom about war on its ear, doesn’t it?”

Dolph, captain of the Pegasus Knights, breathed a tired sigh.

“Not even a legion-magic barrier could block that tank’s attack. Face up to that without knowing anything, and defeat is inevitable. But…while we have every right to be terrified by it, we can handle it by building trenches and earthen walls. Just like it was foretold to us…”

They all nodded. As they had concluded, one wall wouldn’t be enough to keep the shells at bay, but multiple layers of defensive walls could very effectively tamp down their power. That countermeasure was based on Rimuru’s knowledge, and although the battle ended before it could be put to use, based on the power they saw in the video footage, they had come to the conclusion that this was no overwhelming weapon that rendered them totally helpless.

“Looking at the Empire’s equipment, I’d say their main focus is on medium- to long-range strikes rather than close-quarters combat. It appears they’ve eliminated their heavy armor and are using light equipment instead?”

“Yes, I’ve looked into that. It seems the Empire’s invented a new type of arm called a spellgun that allows even junior foot soldiers to easily wield magic. Furthermore, some of their troops are armed with guns—an otherworlder weapon, it seems. With that, they apparently think the era of close-quarters combat is obsolete.”

“I can hardly blame the Empire for thinking the era of swords is over, then.”

Dolph nodded gravely. These so-called guns could apparently penetrate iron armor without much difficulty—and their large tank force seemed capable even against stout city walls. It all but made a mockery of the weapons and armor that were the mainstays of dwarven industry.

But:

“We are in our world—and not another one,” Gazel insisted. “Tactical theories that work over there are pointless if you can’t incorporate the presence of magic into them—is that what you’re saying?”

“Indeed I am. The spellguns are a threat, yes, but they did not match up well against their foes. Lord Rimuru has a large number of Scale Shields obtained from Charybdis. He was kind enough to give us an ample supply, but they allow us to cancel out most magic.”

“Mm…”

With magic a real presence, they had the ability to defend themselves against many modern weapons, even as they neutralized the enemy’s magic skills. And thanks to that—yes, they had drawn an inopportune opponent, but still—today was a disaster for the Empire. They had specialized way too much in mid- to long-range offense, and when the enemy came too close, their abject vulnerability became all too clear. It was a major tactical blunder.

“But it all depends on who’s controlling the reins. We have to make the most effective use we can of the intel from this war, lest we fall into the same traps.”

Such was Gazel’s conclusion, but truth be told, he felt the real issue came well before that. All this talk of tactics and weapons was well and good, but they had bigger fish to fry. However, he hadn’t quite willed himself to bring it up.

His concern lay with the individual strength each of these monsters was showing. Gobta/Ranga and Gabil went without saying, but even the monsters serving under them seemed like they had grown an incredible amount. They also made extremely liberal use of recovery potion, allowing them to engage in some pretty hazardous battle tactics. Thanks to the large-scale production of the hipokute herb, a far cry from times before, they were now cranking out huge supplies of potion. That, too, had disrupted the norms of battle on this planet.

But even more than that:

“King Gazel, may I offer you a word of advice?” said Jaine.

“Don’t say it. I know.”

“Yes, yes, I’m sure you do. But this is something I think we must bring out in the open.”

“…”

Jaine’s words were grim. Her warning needed to be shared with everyone in the room. Taking Gazel’s silence as an affirmation, she began speaking.

“Those demon girls, you know; there’s just something off about them. The one that set the flying ships afire used Nuclear Flame, which is classified as a ritual magic. It’d be damned difficult for even me to pull that off alone. But the real problem is what that white-haired girl did. That was Death Streak—a forbidden spell, one deemed uncontrollable.”

Everyone listened to Jaine’s words in silence. Just in the few days they had spent together, even the casual observer would realize just how beyond the norm these demon girls were.

Henrietta, the knight assassin and leader of the Dwarven Kingdom’s dark agents, had looked into these new hires brought on by Tempest. Diablo, Rimuru’s close adviser, had seemingly brought them in out of nowhere. They were demons, and rumor had it that they were old acquaintances of Diablo. Rimuru explained that they were intelligence officers tasked with observational duty over their various army divisions. Gazel assumed they were much more than that, and he seemed to be right.

“I… I thought this might be the case…”

“So, my lord, do you have any idea who these girls might be?”

“Mmm… Yes. But you’d be much happier not knowing.”

“What are you talking about?! After seeing such an unbelievable battle unfold, I’d be more terrified if I didn’t know!”

Jaine was right. The fighting skills of these demons was the scariest thing of all about this day—enough so that even Gazel was staring at the screen, muttering “Are you joking?” to himself.

“…Well, I’m ready for it. If you became that emotional after seeing that, King Gazel, I have a pretty good idea of what it is.”

The group nodded at Jaine’s grave foreboding.

Gazel looked at the faces of his trusted comrades-in-arms—Dolph, then Vaughn, then Henrietta—and steeled his resolve.

“Back during that one night at the festival.”

“The festival? When you were invited to the monster nation?”

“You did attend a secret meeting alone while you were there, didn’t you? We were standing by in the next room over, but what happened then?”

“Well, I saw Rimuru’s secretary…or butler, was it? You met him as well, right?”

“Ah yes, Diablo. Quite a gentleman.”

“Certainly one with a threatening air about him, though. What of him?”

Everyone who participated in the Tempest Founder’s Festival was acquainted with Diablo. Henrietta had been undercover guarding Gazel, so she knew the names and faces of Rimuru’s top staff. Only Jaine, who was holding down the fort in Dwargon back then, was wholly unaware of what was coming as Gazel dropped his bomb.

“…According to Elmesia, Diablo is a Primal.”

“““…”””

“W-wait. What? What did you just say, King Gazel?”

Jaine’s face paled at once as she spoke, hoping that she was mistaken about this all along. But reality was cruel to her.

“I said he’s a Primal. I can only assume he’s Noir, the Original Black. That’s the only one not previously bound to a claimed territory, and there’ve been sightings of him all over the world from before.”

King Gazel laid out the facts as flatly as he could. He sounded dignified as always, but Jaine wasn’t fooled.

“Wait! Wait, wait, wait! King Gazel, wait a minute!”

“What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong?! A Primal—Noir—is working for the demon lord Rimuru?!”

“That’s right.”

“That… That’s a big problem, isn’t it?! Why were you silent about it until now?!”

Jaine was screaming at the top of her lungs. But the assault wasn’t over.

“Then… What about Testarossa…and Ultima, too…?”

“Oh, come now, that’d really be too much… They’re probably just old demons under Diablo or whatnot… Right?”

Dolph and Vaughn’s hopeful conjecturing was shot down by Henrietta.

“That’s not all,” she said. “Diablo has recruited several more people from parts unknown. Hierarchically speaking, they’re meant to be his subordinates—but their diplomatic attaché Testarossa, chief prosecutor Ultima, and chief justice Carrera have known each other for a long time…and all four of them seemed to treat each other as equals.”

“Whoa, whoa, are you serious?”

“Lord Rimuru’s far too loose with his legislative appointees…”

“Th-three people on the same level as a Primal? B-but we just saw two of them do that…”

Everybody there wanted to deny it. But reflecting on what they just saw transpire, all of them had to arrive at the truth. Testarossa’s and Ultima’s strength was massive—not even Jaine could fully estimate it.

“I told you, you’d be happier not knowing…”

“““…”””

“That is to say, I feel bad that I kept quiet about Diablo, but what would telling you all have accomplished? If he was spreading evil, that’d be one thing, but I have a firm promise from Rimuru that he’ll keep him in line, and I’d like to believe my former training partner at his word. But never in my wildest dreams did I think he’d bring on more Primals!”

Bit late for that, everyone in the room thought. But as they all saw now, being aware of that wouldn’t have changed much.

“Look, when I decided to trust in Rimuru, that’s when I cast my lot with him. He’s already got the Storm Dragon; it’s a little late for regrets now. All of you need to settle this in your mind.”

It’s not that simple, but Gazel had a valid point as well.

“Well, I’ll trust in you,” said Vaughn. “If you believe in someone, I’m not going to complain about it.”

“Yes. I’ve seen Lord Rimuru with my own eyes, and I agree with my lord. He deserves our trust,” said Henrietta.

“I am your shadow, my lord, and I will follow you in your thoughts,” added Dolph.

“Sigh. I trust him, too, you know. I had an audience with Lord Rimuru, even before he became a demon lord. What I’m scared of is that he’ll assemble this vast concentration of forces that we can’t deal with any longer… But you’re right. It is a little late for that. If we can’t deal with it, there’s no point considering ways to.”

Everyone nodded deeply at Jaine’s words. If there was no way to come to a conclusion by thinking about it, the problem essentially didn’t have an answer. They had only two choices—trust in him or not.

“Well, we’ll put that topic on hold.”

With Gazel’s final statement, the issue was shelved.

Was this the end of the war? Not hardly.

The troops who had been looming large at the Dwarven Kingdom’s central entrance were now fully eradicated, but they were still locked in a standoff with the imperial army at their East gate. There were still hints of disquiet around Rimuru, the capital of Tempest, as well.

“Damn that Rimuru, though… Even after such a huge victory, he’s still not satisfied? I’d hate to get on his bad side…,” Gazel grumbled.

“This may not be Lord Rimuru’s will, though. There’s a chance the Empire still hasn’t called off the invasion because they’re unaware of this defeat…”

“Hmm… That’s a strong possibility.”

Gazel nodded at Dolph. If the Empire was aware of it, they’d definitely abort the mission at once.

“And also, King Gazel,” Jaine cut in, “I’m sure even the Empire is using magic to coordinate their forces. But well, you see how the situation has changed in an instant today. It’s hard to believe even with your own eyes, but if you receive this report about how your army was defeated, and everyone was killed out of nowhere, you’d heavily suspect it to be some sort of enemy ruse, wouldn’t you?”

“No, I’m sure I wouldn’t believe a mere report, either. The Empire’s General Caligulio is hardly incompetent, but I don’t think he’s the kind of guy who’d opt to retreat at this point. They’d treat him like a coward if he did. Those imperial fools aren’t going to shoulder their lances until they taste defeat for themselves.”

Jaine was right, and Vaughn was talking good sense as well. Gazel was convinced he’d make the same decision if he was in the Empire’s shoes. He felt pity for the poor soldiers and officers who had to come along with him… But as the invaders, that’s on them. Gazel was known as a wise king, but he had no intention of taking responsibility for an Empire currently engaging in hostilities with him. He wasn’t obligated to anyway. All he could do was coldly speculate on what the future would bring.

“Out of the nine hundred forty thousand imperial soldiers who invaded the Forest of Jura, two hundred forty thousand are already lost forever. By this point, I don’t think there’s any questioning Rimuru’s final victory.”

“That’s fair, yes. It’d be pretty cute of him if he got caught off guard at this point… But Lord Rimuru is hardly that kind of buffoon.”

Vaughn wistfully agreed with Gazel. But the question on everyone’s mind: How much more of a sacrifice was the Empire willing to tolerate?

“We will need to keep careful records of this war, so we can use it as a lesson for the future. That, and we should remember all the more that we, as humans, must never rile a demon lord.”

“““Yes, my lord!”””

The strength of these monsters—shattering conventional war strategy, even as its sheer depths remained untapped—was now clearly something that could approach a Catastrophe-size threat. Quite fortuitous, then, that the goal of Rimuru and his cohorts was to live hand in hand with humanity, not dominate the world.

The Empire was simply getting what it deserved, but to keep their sacrifice from going to waste, Gazel wanted to see this battle through to the end. That, and despite it all, he still had to prepare for the worst possible outcome.

If Rimuru was ever to turn against him…

…Well, he prayed that would never happen, but what if it did? What should they do? Gazel had boasted to his closest confidants that he trusted Rimuru, but by that, he only meant Rimuru as a person. As the leader of a nation, he also had to take the best measures possible to prevent hurting his people. Just because he didn’t have a good answer yet didn’t mean he was excused from pondering the question.

…That being said, taking on a Primal is a fool’s errand, and we’re not much more likely to ever defeat Veldora. My hands are tied, really…

Faced with a question far too difficult to ever answer, Gazel began to feel a headache coming on.