67 Battle Between Ants

(Alaster POV)

"So why am I doing this again?" Rimuru complained as he stood before the red ogre warily.

"I've got high hopes for you and you need to humble them before they all run off to their deaths," I said sagely to him in response.

"Why do 'I' have to be the one to do that!?!" He yells back.

"Obviously if Shizue or I fight them we'd win. We're famous Heroes, but if you win, they'd be more willing to cooperate." I said with a smug face. Velzard even added a small twinkle for dramatic effect.

"Oy bastard!" Rimuru called back but I had already retreated to the sidelines to avoid his attempts to get out of this situation.

Rimuru gave a tired sigh and looked at the Ogre who was eyeing him somewhat wearily. The Ogre already had his sword drawn and had taken a stance. Rimuru, on the other hand, stood there sort of dorkily. No stance, full of openings, and extremely casual. The Ogre grit his teeth seeing this, thinking that a slime of all things was looking down on him as a non-threat. I could practically read his mind his emotions were so obvious on his face.

'This damn slime! He might be a Unique, but I'll rip him apart.' Or something to that effect.

<<He isn't a cultivation villain... I think.>> Velzard chirped from inside me.

'Oh-hoh? Has my dear Velzard been snooping around my memories?' I teased.

I didn't mind, and as a matter of fact, knew she was doing just that, as her scanning them is how I recalled so much information on canon recently. It WAS over 2000 years ago since I last saw any media on it, and I wasn't even caught up with the Light Novel when I was still alive, so I wasn't sure just how the 'story' would have gone.

Also, Velzard was aware she was a fictional character. I didn't try to hide it from her, not after being married for 2,000 years. She didn't particularly care too much about that revelation, only saying it was 'neat', though she did seem a bit miffed when she read some of the fanfics which featured her as one of the character's many waifus.

She was strictly monogamous, and when people wrote her as being just 'ok' with being one of the dozens of women who rode these MC's dicks, she was storming. She wanted to edit my skills to give me [Dimensional Leap] so that we could go back to my original world and she could freeze those authors solid for the insult.

There was also a brief period of time where she thought I might have used my meta knowledge to woo her initially but determined that that wasn't possible, as the original work didn't mention her personality, likes or dislikes at all as she was just an 'accessory' to Guy as she put it. Most fanfics also got her personality wrong or only wrote her one-dimensionally, as attracted to any strong guy with a pulse and big dick energy. I got a laugh out of her when I told her I was a strong guy with a pulse and big dick energy too, so the whole experience served as a way for us to bond and get even closer than before, which was nice.

She even took a liking to manga and anime, though surprisingly enough, she was much more interested in Comics like Marvel than anime like Attack on Titan or Tensura. We did briefly wonder if it was possible to visit these places, but decided against it, as being blinked out of existence by the One Above All for intruding on his multiverse was a non-zero possibility, and we weren't sure we could come back from that with just the World System's authority.

By the time I finished reflecting on the bonding time I had with my wife, Rimuru had already laid out all the Ogres. The only one who was still standing was future Shuna, probably because she didn't attack him. Future Benimaru was also still conscious, along with future Hakurou, but both were firmly tied up in sticky-steel thread and couldn't escape on their own.

Seeing Rimuru's overwhelming ability, I chuckled slightly and walked into the arena, approaching the Ogre leader. "See? He's strong huh?" I said.

The Ogre clicked his tongue for a moment before nodding. "Yeah. I can see the benefit of following him." He said as Rimuru let all the tied-up Ogres down and healed the ones who'd been knocked out with his full potions.

"Excellent! Then I suppose it's time to plan on how to deal with this issue, right?" I replied with a merry tone of voice.

The Red ogre sighed. "Can I... have some time alone?" he asked, to which Rimuru and I nodded.

As he trudged off, I turned to Rimuru, only to be given a glare. "Sorry. Sorry!" I said holding my hands in the air in surrender.

Rimuru sighed. "Now what? You seemed to have a plan before. Mind sharing it?" He asked.

"Well, there is a band of Lizardmen wondering around nearby who is attempting to gather allies from the nearby Goblin Villages, so I suggest that you wait until they arrive and try to form an alliance with their representative, even if he is a bit egotistical," I suggested, using [Clairvoyance] to double check. "From what I'm seeing the Orcs are taking a rest right now, probably due to losing so many of them in the Ogre village assault, so you should have a few days to a week at best."

"You say that like you aren't going to help," Rimuru said, taken aback slightly.

"Hey, I'm giving you the plan, it's up to you to see it through. You don't see parents taking their kid's tests for them, do you?" I replied.

"I'm not your kid!" Rimuru shot back, to which I laughed.

...

It had been a few days since then. The Ogres were all named by Rimuru, but he didn't fall into sleep mode during it, probably due to the body I gave him doubling his magicule count. The Eight Ogres were all given names like they were supposed to. The two new ones were also named. The man was named Ronin while the woman was named Raiden.

Gabil arrived in the village and gave his 'alliance' proposal, which amounted to everyone becoming the battle slaves to the Lizardmen temporarily before being driven off. Ramiris was given permission by Rimuru to set up shop in his territory after I mentioned the isolated space would be immune to most observation magic and was kind of like a dungeon in video games, which got his gears going.

He then used some of the materials collected by the now Kijin to fashion himself a snazzy new outfit to wear for his first real battle in this world. I told him I'd tag along to help if he really needed it, but didn't expect to have to do anything major here. I was going to leave after he settled things. I hadn't seen Yumina in almost a year and wanted to see how things had been with her recently. I also wanted to see Milim, as the populous was starting to debate whether the Dragon Princess should really still be considered a 'Hero' or a 'Demon Lord'. The recent repelling of an attack on the Dragon's nesting site in her territory by some 'heroes' from the Guild wasn't helping things either.

<<Knowing Milim, she'd love being called a Demon Lord, as people would come from all over to challenge her.>> Velzard chuckled

'Yeah but Id rather people weren't attacking our child all the time.' I rebutted.

<<Eh~ She probably needs it. She isn't an Awakened Demon Lord like she was in the story yet.>>

'Yes, but due to our raising her and her rivalry with our little snowflake (Yumina), she's just as strong, if not stronger than her canonical self. She still rivals Guy in combat after all.' I replied.

<<Thats fair.>>

After finishing our pointless debate on how to deal with our 2,000+-year-old daughter's safety, we finally arrived at the battlefield. The lizardmen were currently engaged in a phalanx formation against a seemingly endless horde of Orc Berzerkers and were rapidly deteriorating. The one Lizardman, Gabil, was already engaged in a battle against an Orc General and barely holding his own.

If it was me, I could take them all out in a single shot spanning a wide area, but for someone like Rimuru, who wasn't aware of his own strength already being Demon Lord Seed level, this looked to be a problem. He quickly issued orders to the Goblin Riders he brought with him and allowed the Kijin to fight freely until the Orc Lord had been found.

Once Rimuru's forces arrived at the battlefield, the hard-fought battle of attrition was instantly reversed, with the side of the Slime steamrolling the Orcs without issue. This went on for several minutes and the Orc army was reduced to almost half of its initial size before the masterminds decided to show up.

"Damn you all! How dare you mess with the plans of the almighty Gelmud!" He declared, shooting a number of magic bullets into the Lizardman and Goblin Rider formations. Thankfully, due to a bit of divine intervention (my meddling), no one was killed by the attack, though some were injured.

Seeing the injured, Rimuru himself approached and began beating on the Majin. The other mastermind, who I couldn't quite place but looked like an old woman did give him a few buffs, but I could clearly see she was just doing it out of obligation, as the buffs were minor compared to the amount of magic power she had at her disposal.

Rimuru also seemed to notice this, as while he did send a side-long glance her way, he didn't say anything and continued whaling on him until Gabil came to his rescue. There was some minor drama before Gelmud ordered gabil to sacrifice himself to the Orc Lord for him, which broke any illusion the Lizardman had for his former master/namer.

To be honest, my eyes kinda glazed over for most of this, as a fight of this level was so pitiful in my eyes. If I wasn't careful a fart of mine could blast Gelmud's soul into pieces, so people at or below his level fighting wasn't exactly riveting and attention-grabbing for me. It was like a battle between ants. Interesting for a few moments during your lunch break, but not so captivating that you'd risk being late to work over.

Halfway through the fight, Velzard and I began debating the merits of Peter parker's love life. I was a solid Mary Jane fan, but Velzard was team Gwen and I had to remind her that Gwenpool and Spider Gwen were different characters to Peter Parker's girlfriend version and to not let her bias from those characters affect the judgment. We were so heated by this fact I nearly missed the ending of the conflict.

(Rimuru POV)

"Telling Gabil to sacrifice himself to feed your monster... don't you have any shame?" I asked the majin in front of me with disgust and anger in my voice.

"Shut up! A superior majin is not someone who can die in a filthy place like this to some nobody elf like you!" He said, pointing his cane at me, though his dirty clothes and the bloodied mask didn't look intimidating at all.

I smiled somewhat menacingly as I took a step toward him. "Really? Tell me where I can find this 'Superior Majin' then because I don't see him at all."

"Damn it! Don't come any closer!" Gelmud yelped before turning and running towards the intimidating Orc Lord and his allied witch. "Damn it Mjurran! Do something!"

"It's no use. If you can't beat him, neither can I." She said.

I could tell she was lying. [Great Sage] had already confirmed she was pulling her punches with the magical buffs she was giving him. If possible, I wanted to recruit her to my village after this, as she seemed pretty talented and wasn't particularly hostile. I just hoped the Kijin wouldn't take it personally if I did so.

"Damn it! Why is everyone so useless!" Gelmud yelled before stopping and looking at Mjurran for a moment.

I felt a chill go up my spine and was about to move when Gelmud immediately reached forward and shot a {Magic Missile} into Mjurran's stomach, causing her to double over in pain. Gelmud then began to laugh.

"Ge-hehehe! If you can't be useful for your magic anymore, you can be useful as this monster's food!" He said, grabbing her by the hair and then roughly throwing her over in front of the Orc Lord.

"Oy! That's your own ally!" I yelled, disgusted by his actions.

"Shut up! All that matters, in the end, is who wins!" He said as he took a step toward the Orc Lord. "Come! eat your fill, Orc Lord!, no Geld!" He yelled.

"G-Geld?" The Orc Lord asked hesitantly. It was at that moment I realized that maybe the Orc Lord was also in some kind of Berzerker state like the other Orcs, as he didn't seem to be making any moves before this.

<<Answer! It is the effect of the Unique Skill [Starved]>>

'Oh! That's Sensei for you! It already knows all about it!' I thought.

"That's right! Your name is Geld, the Orc which will become the Orc Disaster and rule over the Jura Forest as a Demon Lord! Now, fulfill my ambition and eat the Majin in front of you!" Gelmud commanded.

Geld seemed to be thinking something to himself for a moment before he gave a grunt of acknowledgment and a nod. He raised his giant meat cleaver into the air and passed his Aura through it, preparing to bring it down.

'Damn, I should stop this!' I thought.

<<Answer. There is no need.>>

[Great Sage] stopped me and I decided on instinct to listen to it, and I was glad I did. The next moment, the Orc Lord brought down its blade on Gelmud's neck. The hapless majin did notice the attack coming once it was underway but wasn't able to dodge in time completely, so his neck was half cut open and the rest of his head flopped backward off his neck, being clung to his body only by a few strands of muscle and skin.

I wasn't sure why, but it reminded me a bit of a hoodie when it was down and I felt a bit squeezy. The entire battlefield fell silent at the betrayal of Gelmud. Geld then picked up the wavering body of the now-dead Majin with one of his large hands before swiftly biting off the entire top half of his torso in one bite.

"He's eating him." I unconsciously cringed.

After another few moments of munching down the rest of his body, the Orc Lord began to glow. Torrents of dark magical energy began to gather and swirl around him for a few moments before dissipating.

<<Confirmed. The Orc Lord's Magicules have vastly increased. Evolution into a Demon Lord Seed is beginning... successful.>>

<<Geld has evolved into an Orc Disaster.>>

"A Demon Lord huh? If he got that much power from just eating Gelmud, I can't let him eat that Mjurran woman either." I said, activating my [Sticky Steel Thread] and pulling her over to my side.

"Whoah- easy there," I said, catching her and applying a full potion to her wound.

"You... what are you helping me?" She asked.

"From what I could tell, you may be an antagonist, but you aren't an enemy, so if you sit back and surrender, I don't mind letting you live. Besides..." I paused as I looked at the Orc Disaster Geld as he finished basking in his newfound power. "After this is over, I might have a job for you."

The old woman seemed to be stunned by my proposal but I left her to Gobta to look after for the moment and stepped forward to fight. Judging by the fact that that bastard Alaster hasn't stepped in yet, I assume he thinks I can handle this, which is a slight confidence booster.

<<Confirmed. Alaster's [Universal Perception] has not been active for some time. Speculation is that he is day-dreaming.>>

'Damn it, man! A Demon Lord's been born in front of you and you can still be relaxed like that! So much for a confidence boost!' I yelled in my mind as I felt a bit of uncertainty well up in my stomach.

.~.~.~.

A/N: Despite only being at the beginning of Canon, we are almost at the end of the story. After this story is done, I think I'll focus mostly on my other stories like Heart of the Universe, which I've been neglecting lately, and a re-write for the original route of this fanfic.

I also have to write at least four side stories for this work. One about Lilith's life from her perspective and eventual friendship with Aria. One is about Milim and Yumina's adventures. One would be a collection of short stories about Alaster and Velzard's relationship-building during his time training under Veldanava. And the last one would be a 'what if' about Evelyn being Alaster's second wife.

I'm unsure if I'll end this fic with the MC going to other fictional worlds (it would be implied but I wouldn't actually write the story, leaving it ambiguous) or not yet, as Alaster's final powerup will be ridiculous.

A/N2: Also, I got back into One Piece recently and began writing a fanfic about it in my spare time. It's not been posted yet, as I want to see if this is a sudden phase or not, so I'm not posting it yet as I can't delete a story once it's been posted on webnovel, and don't want to start any more stories unless I intend to finish them.

It's about someone who was isekai'ed into the One Piece world with the Goro-Goro no mi in the North Blue. Right now it's all about North Blue stuff as the main cast are still young teenagers and the MC has just recruited Lawko (genderbent Law) into his crew as the vice-captain along with Baby 5 and a One-Piece version of Mirko from MHA.

It will be a harem of only 3, with Baby 5, Mirko (called Rumi in the fic), and Lawko (because gender-bent Law was cute AF and I'm down bad). I know a lot of people don't like that kind of thing, but it's a fic about pirates who don't give a damn about the rules. They will also be the main characters, so it's easier to juggle it all that way.

The entire reason I made that fic in the first place was that I thought it was a bit sad that Law didn't have a 'Zoro/Killer' figure on his crew like Luffy and Kid did despite being seen as on par with them in Wano, so I decided to make Law that figure and my OC as the captain of the Heartbeat Pirates.

I've got the whole story planned out up until the Egghead Arc but since I don't know what the One Piece is and don't want to make an assumption about the void-century lore only to be wrong in one or two years when it's all revealed, I'm unsure if I'll proceed.

Plus, as evidenced by my Fate fanfic, having the whole fic planned out isn't a lot of help when you just don't have the motivation to write anymore.

Anyway, sorry for the long Author's note at the end! Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a wish you a Happy New Year!