Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken (LN)

PROLOGUE

THE MAGIC-BORN MEMORIAL

Clayman was dead. And when Laplace delivered the news to the group assembled before him, the reaction was stunned silence.

You lie! There is no way that could happen!

This was Footman frantically shouting now, but no one could find it in themselves to see things his way. Laplace was always so aloof, easygoing, never one to express any of his true emotions. But his face said it all. This was not the joker all of them knewhe was literally hanging his head in shame before them. It was all they needed to see to know that Clayman was really and truly dead.

Last night, the night of that Walpurgis Council, I lost my connection with Clayman, Kazalim ponderously stated as Teare sobbed nearby. My connection with someone I viewed as my own child. It could only mean one thing for himdeath. I hardly wanted to admit it to myself. Even now, Laplace, after what you told us, I am filled with a stubborn refusal to admit it

This was my mistake, a boy with black hair regretfully lamented. I thought the demon lords were kid stuff. I needed to be more careful. Gather more intelligence and then take action.

There were ten demon lords in all, looking down upon the world from atop their lofty peaks. But even in such heady territory, each of them bore different strengths and weaknesses. Claymans apparently successful application of Demon Dominate on the mind of the demon lord Milim caused him to forget that vital factand even worse, led him to believe he could rule over all his fellow lords. It was much too rash of him.

If youre gonna put it that way, replied Laplace, lightening the mood with a joking tone, Im the one who suggested it to the guy. I never thought for a moment itd turn out like this, no, not that it matters now. Plus, you have to admit itClayman was too stupid for his own good this time. I told him not to let his guard down, but he got carried away with it, and it blew up on him. All there is to it.

Laplace! snarled Footman. You cant speak of him like that!

Im only tellin the truth. He was weak, he got carried away, and now hes dead.

Laplace!!

Letting his anger overcome him, Footman took a swing at Laplace. His fist dug into the cheek of its target; Laplace didnt bother to dodge it. But that was all. Laplace remained where he stood, his eyes swiveling toward his attacker.

Oh, what, you wanna go, Footman? Well, be my guest!

He let slip an easygoing smile as he taunted Footman, all but daring him to focus his anger upon him. Kazalim saw right through it.

Stop it, you two! she roared, halting them both. This is a sad occasion for each of us.

Shes right, the boy added. Why are you playing the bad guy all by yourself here, Laplace? Thats not like you. If anyone should play that role, it oughtta be me for hiring all of you.

Ah Now Footman realized it. Laplace was goading him on purpose. My apologies, Laplace.

Nah, its fine. But you know, paland you too, Presidentyou sure are mean, aintcha? I am trying to be the bad guy here, so how bout not letting the cat out of the bag?

He rubbed his cheek as he continued to complain. And something about the sight was so comical that it really did lighten the moodif only a little.

Back in control of their emotions, the magic-born discussed what to do next. Wailing about the misfortune of it all, Kazalim reasoned, would do nothing to realize Claymans goals. Their talks grew sterner, more serious.

I couldnt tell you what happened in there, but as the demon lord Valentine put it, Clayman definitely died during the Council. He didnt mention who did it, though

Too bad I couldnt have beaten it outta him

No, Laplace. I am glad to see you still breathing, at least.

Ahh, I was just lucky. It happened to be the new moon, and bein a vampire, Valentine was at the low end of his strength. We were in a holy place to boot. Lotsa holiness fillin up the atmosphere. Thats the only reason my attacks worked at all.

Nobody doubted Laplaces words. Laplace only managed to defeat Valentine, whose strength was on a par with the Kazalim of the past, thanks to several overlapping factors working out in his favor. Plus, Laplace was second only to Kazalim in brute force. His role as vice president of the Moderate Jesters was no empty titlehe had the strength to back it up. That was why everyone in the room so readily accepted Laplaces astonishing victoryand thus, the talks continued, with nobody noticing the lie lurking between his words.

This is quite the conundrum, however

You could say that, Kazalim muttered. We lost the base of operations we granted Clayman, his forces, his treasureeverything. A staggering loss.

The boy nodded his agreement.

Wh-what do you mean? Teare asked. Whether the demon lords killed Clayman or not, we still have his headquarters, dont we?

I know that Claymans forces were routed, added Footman, but we still have every chance to regroup and attack once again, no? We still have Adalmann, that crazed Saint, patrolling the lands. A wight king like him is just as strong as any of usand the curse youve laid upon him is as active as ever, isnt it, President?

Kazalim exchanged glances with the boy before slowly, painfully, opening his mouth. The complex I granted Clayman fell yesterday, in the course of a single evening. That slime, of all people, sent a small assault force to capture it.

Huhhh? Laplace reacted.

No! Teare shouted.

Youre kidding me! protested Footman. So the magic-born I saw on that battlefield wasnt even the full force at that Rimurus disposal Ah, wait a minute. He looked up for a moment. Hold on, hold on, I remember that crystal

Right. The boy nodded. The images Laplace took You saw the ogre mages in there, didnt you? I think its safe to say that each of them alone is a Special A-grade threat in the battlefield.

Footman fell silent, mouth agape.

Really? Teare whispered. Nobody answered.

Regardless, reported Kazalim, that slime Rimuru was at the battle. I suppose he sprang that fight upon us as a ruse so he could capture Claymans quarters himself. For a slime of his caliber, its not impossible to imagine him breaking through our defensive lines.

Now the rest of the room was beginning to realize just how ominous the situation was.

Which is why, the boy said, I think we need to reconsider our objective.

With the majority of their military forces gone, he reasoned, any strategic moves needed to be avoided for now. Claymans death alone was a serious psychological blow to everybody who knew him. But fortunately, they had not lost everything. They still had resources left untapped in order to spread out the risk, as well as the group they had implanted deep inside the Western Nations. Plus, the political influence they wielded behind the scenes with those two groups was still as strong as ever. Perhaps they lacked physical might, but they had intelligence-gathering experts deployed across the land, laying out feelers to gauge every nations direction.

To the boy, who had started with nothing and come this far, it was still possible to stage a comeback. And that was why

For the time being, we need to lay low. Its a shame about Clayman, but we dont have enough power to try to exact revenge upon the demon lords. If we want to reach our ultimate goal of conquering the world, I think we need to be patient for now.

His audience nodded their agreement.

True enough. Weve made major strides over the past ten years. Perhaps it planted the seeds of arrogance inside all of us.

Yep. Hence why Clayman got it in his head to pull all that nonsense

Right. I hate to say it, but doing anything rash right now is likely to make things even worse.

I hesitate to accept it myself, but I concede it is our best option for now

The boy giggled a little as the magic-born all offered their agreement. Ha-ha-ha! Oh, cut me a break, Footman, he chuckled, patting him on the shoulder. Ive still got all of youthe best cards in my hand. I cant afford to lose you guys over some reckless shot in the dark, too.

This was something he truly meant and also the main reason behind his decision. He needed to be sure everyone was on the same page as him, or else he feared at least one would let their anger get the best of them. Footman knew that perfectly welland he knew he had to accept it.

I know, pal. Better to bottle it up inside for now, so we can let it fully erupt later.

He did understand that. Losing his cool and picking a fight with a cadre of demon lords would simply spell the end of his life. He had to accept the boys reasoning.

The boy, appreciating this, looked at the magic-born assembled before him. But hey, its no fun to be the punching bag all the time, right? Maybe we wont do anything, but we can say a lot of things. That slime took Clayman for everything he had, and I think I know how to get back at him a bit.

He gave an ominous little grin.

How do you mean? Kazalim asked.

There is something unusual about that slime, the boy replied, grinning with glee. In just a few years, he has built up a new, and massive, force. Its hard for me to believe, and in any normal situation, wed never want to defy him. So lets wait and see a little, huh? And to do that, Ive got something I want to deploy.

Oh, great. Laplace shrugged. Another little scheme of yours? At least it beats you ordering me to pull off some other insane trick, as you usually do. Hopefully I can stay in the audience for this one, thanks.

For now, the magic-born were withdrawing from the public eye, descending into a sort of primordial darknesssharpening their fangs for the fated day of revenge, whenever it may come.