11 10th Move | Cover Story
AN: before you say anything, I think it should be obvious that this is a more realistic AU, of course, some elements (namely Milim) stayed the same as from canon.
Milim offered me way too many laughs for me to change her.
I personally felt that any crossover with Worm, be it in its CYOA form or otherwise should have some amount of darkness in it.
Also due to the amount of negative backlash I got from the last chapter, I decided to review several plot points and move them up or alter them entirely. Expect the seeds I sowed in this chapter and before to bloom faster than originally intended.
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While Rimuru got the trio of adventurers settled in inside the Egg, I had Shizu follow me into a small medical clinic.
[Automation], [Architecture], [Structural Engineering], [Artificial Intelligence], and [Nanotechnology] made it so that for creating buildings, all I had to do was program the instructions for how to build the required structure into the nanites and the rest will be done.
It was a delegation and near-complete automation of work because let's be honest here, I'm wasted if I personally spend time constructing a building.
I had Shizu checked into the clinic and was about to give her an injection of anesthetics to relieve her from the pain of surgery.
But she refused.
Shizu doesn't trust me yet, even if the anesthetics are local instead of general anesthetics where the whole body is put into a state of unconsciousness.
In the end, it was decided by her that she'd bite on a clean towel to endure the pain as I got to work. The superhuman moved her mask up enough to reveal her mouth but not her nose and eyes, and I wanted to ask whether or not that was comfortable before stopping myself.
She stabbed me, she could at least endure some discomfort as I got to work.
I wore a lab coat as Shizu lay there on the operating table, her bloodied hand wrapped in bandages she made herself while I organized all the tools I was going to need to perform a reconnection. I didn't bother to get the M.A.N.A., I think there's no way she would accept me trying to heal her if that's the case.
"Your severed fingers," I asked and Shizu hesitantly handed me the pouch that contained her fingers. Then, I dumped the whole thing inside a jar of bluish chemicals that'll help preserve what cells that are still alive.
I don't have any stem cells to replace the already dead cells at the moment, and I think my harvesting some from unborn hobgoblins would be seen as monstrous at best, as such I'm forced to use the ones from Shizu's own body.
I then took out a syringe, carefully stabbed into a blood vessel inside Shizu's shoulder, and drew out blood.
"What are you doing?" Shizu asked, her voice somewhat mumbled by the towel in her mouth.
"I'm going to need some of your blood," I explained my actions, "you may not know this but many of the cells within your severed fingers have already died off. I'm currently extracting your blood to try and, through a process known as 'Apheresis' (though it should've required a machine), collect stem cells that'll replace the dead ones. With this, your fingers should return to at least 99% of what it was capable of before."
Honestly, I planned to extract some stem cells from Shizu's bone marrow via surgery but after seeing how determined the superhuman was to not get put under, I chose a less painful method.
I have ethics.
"... you're able to do what only High Potions and the [Recovery] Holy Magic are able to do?" Her voice didn't sound distorted like before.
I was about to inject the extracted blood into another test tube filled with a chemical that'll separate different cells before stopping once I heard the words 'High Potion'.
"A High Potion? And Holy Magic?" I asked before pushing on the plunger of the syringe and inputting the blood into the long test tube.
"How do you not know what Holy Magic and High Potions are? Everyone knows about the healing that the Western Holy Church provides to its believers."
That specist Church again. I guess they must be really popular in the West... a problem I'll need to deal with. I thought before pushing in a stopper at the mouth of the test tube.
"Humor me," I asked before I started shaking the glass test tube like it was a glow stick in a concert.
"Holy Magic is a rare type of magic most commonly used by those who have great faith in a God. Most practitioners of the magic belong to the Western Holy Church as they're the largest religion in the West. Holy Magic is especially deadly against monsters since they purify the magicules."
Fascinating, does that mean gods exist here? The test tube shaking slowed down once the full implication hit me.
If gods exist... then perhaps it makes sense that the people here are so primitive. Faith is inherently anathema to scientific progress since it entails the unsubstantiated belief that something will happen. Whereas Science requires definitive proof of something.
If the Black Death hadn't happened and didn't destroy people's belief in the Church, then the Renaissance and its humanism wouldn't have occurred, and Europe would still be in its backward, feudal medieval state.
I pulled out the stopper before grabbing a new sterile syringe. After settling down, the test tube now has multiple layers as everything within the blood has finally gotten separated. Using the new syringe, I stabbed into the thin second layer of the test tube and started extracting adult stem cells.
I turned to face the masked woman, "now I will reattach your fingers. This will be painful, are you absolutely sure that you won't need any anesthetics?"
Shizu bit down on a towel and in a tone that left no uncertainty, "Yes."
It is actually impressive to have such an unbending will and endurance... it makes me question what kind of trauma she must have gone through to accept surgery without any anesthetics readily.
I don't think I myself could've faced such pain. Like seriously, to willingly endure the pain of reopening the stumps of the severed fingers and stitches without any anesthetics...
I sighed before I got to work with [Surgery] guiding my hands and performing another miracle.
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Later.
[Silenced Emotion: 50%]
I walked out of the surgery room with my hands bloodied, my pure white lab coat dyed partially red. Without any context, I would almost look like a horror movie's psychopathic murderer after they had killed someone.
Looking down at my hands, I saw how it was shaking slightly. Her muffled screams, and the way her body would twitch still make me cringe in slight discomfort. If I had to measure it, I would say the discomfort is about the same as the wet clothing that would cling to my skin after a workout.
Shizu's action also made me realize just how much of the modern world I've taken for granted. Anesthetics, liberty, economic growth, clean streets, even as I introduce these modern concepts to these primitives, I'm left with the answer of just how far will I go to see them accept my modern sensibilities.
These goblins are easy since they are highly adaptable, but humans... one needs to look at history to know just how stubborn and rigid the humans are.
Images of Residential Schools flash across my mind. Even after over a hundred years of constant attempts by the Canadian government to erase First Nation culture, it still persists to the modern day right before I died. While many people may see that as a tragedy, I see it as the human spirit to never give up even in the face of such adversity.
I stared at my bloody, crimson hand as if it were the only thing that mattered right now. The redness made me ask just how much blood am I willing to spill to realize my dreams. How far am I willing to go to institute modernity into this Tolkien-esque world?
Dipping my hands in acid, I waited several seconds for the sterilization process to complete before taking my hands out, now free of any blood. The surface of my hands became the most sterile place on the entire planet aside from deep underground.
Looking down at my lab coat, I decided that it was best to change it before meeting with the trio of adventurers.
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"I'm assuming you all want answers?" I opened the door to the Kaval and his party's residency, causing all three to shout in surprise. With a single glance, I was able to tell their burns were all healed, presumably thanks to the mage.
I wore my military clothing, as none would really fit the formal setting.
As I changed my clothes, I constructed several different false stories with the aid of [Literature] to tell as my 'backstory' before settling on this one that my gut was screaming at me to use.
"Hell yeah, I want answers! How the hell did you create the crystal knife without any magic?!" Kaval said explosively, appearing to be the hot-headed one of the group.
Planning my next moves, I decided to try and appeal to their sense of empathy. In a frank tone that seemed genuine, "I... I am a creation of a particularly cruel family of very powerful artificers," I said while eying Rimuru, subtly reminding him that, NO, we are NOT gonna tell them anything related to a Perfect Homunculus.
The trio's eyes widen at my response, with Kaval wilting like a flower in autumn as the winds were taken out of his sails.
I looked around the room, appearing very reluctant. With two charges into [Acting], I am one of, if not the best actor in the entire world.
"You see, within certain Magic Houses, there exists a VERY secret tradition of... of carrying the family legacy in the event where every member was to die. It's where Homunculus like me comes to play. I am what is essentially a 'record doll', a mobile library containing everything a family of magicians has been working on." My frank tone continued as I told them the false story I constructed.
Before the advent of telecommunication, the fastest way that information could travel was the speed at which a horse could run. Thus, information traveled exceedingly slowly. I was banking on the fact that these adventurers do not know every artificer family out there.
Rimuru looked increasingly bewildered as I told my story. However, I don't think he'll backstab me and reveal the truth.
"For the centuries I was alive, I was mindless, a mere doll for others to command... and do with as they see fit." I emphasized the 'do' word to cause a bit of discomfort with the unspoken implications, "However, whether by a miracle from God or pure chance, I was given the ability to have my own free will, a mind of my own, an ego, sapience. The family that owned me didn't like that. So they prepared to transfer all my knowledge into a new Homunculus and then destroy me like a broken toy."
To fully be able to act or lie, you need to fully embrace the mask that you put on, and truly act as if you've always had that mask for your entire life, "But the Young Master..." False tears pooled around the edge of my eyes, surprising even myself with how much [Acting] is capable of, "He ensured that I would get out alive, and when I asked why he would say 'live. You've never had a chance to, so as my final order as the Heir to the House you once served for too long, I order you to LIVE!'"
I covered my mouth with my right hand.
The story affects the adventurers as a solemn look falls like a curtain, Eren getting extra emotional.
"And so, I decided to live, to live on, to see the world. Eventually, I met up with this group of small goblins with a blue slime by my side, and upon taking pity on their situation I decided to help them build the things you see around me. That is why you cannot tell anyone of this, of my existence. I apologize for trying to kill you but please, see things from my perspective."
I ended the beautiful story, a beautiful fiction for them to gobble up. Every step of the way I made sure my story had no loopholes.
"What's the family's name?" Kaval asked, just as planned.
"I do not know, for I didn't have my own will for long before the family decided to replace me. What I do know looking back at it now is that the family was situated in the West. Knowing that I ran in the opposite direction into the West and stumbled across Rimuru the slime."
Whatever possible objection to my story died in their throats as Eren, the mage girl, actively sobbed, completely moved by my story. I had to look away as I grimaced, breaking my mask.
I can't stand people crying. For some reason, I really just can't. It makes me extremely uncomfortable, so the last time I cried— truly sobbed like what Eren was doing— was during high school.
Just how moving was my story? I expected it to shed a few tears but my god, I would've believed if a family member had died with how seriously Eren was crying!
The girl then fully enraptured me in a hug.
I had to control myself to not push Eren away, as she was sobbing into my clothes. My military officer clothing.
"Listen, I know how you feel," the mage girl said, her lips trembling as she released her hold on my body, "My—"
A hand fell on her shoulder. Gido's expression showed caring concern, his eyes saying all that needed to be said.
"Yes, yes I'm ready to say it. I NEED to say it, it's been bottled up for so long," She closed her eyes before opening them, tears dripping down her cheeks akin to raindrops sliding down the side window of a car. "I am an Elf. My name— my true name is Elyune H. Grimwald. I am— I was the daughter of Archduke Erald Grimwald of Sorcerous Dynasty of Sarion before escaping that life, that that that—" she gritted her teeth as if the very mention of something pained her on a physical level. Her knuckles were white from how hard she was compressing them.
My eyes widen when I had an epiphany: I almost killed the daughter of a Duke. An Archduke. The rank of 'Duke', according to the books that Rimuru had brought from Dwargon, said how it's known as the highest rank of Nobility, and an Archduke is a special rank that sits right below the King or Emperor. If not war, then gaining the enmity of an Archduke would at the very least be very troublesome.
"My Father," she spits out the words like it was poison, "wants me to marry one of the Princes, nay, he forces me to marry a prince, supposedly for my own 'good' or some random crap like that."
Surprisingly, [Psychology] is saying that everything the girl said is the truth. There's an uncanny parallel between her story and the one I constructed it seems I've struck an emotional cord with the girl. Now she's latching onto me like a lost man latching onto an oasis in the desert.
"But the Prince is known to be someone who's... strange, and his servants are replaced every month. The court gossip said he was a dreamy gentleman, the target of maidens everywhere. Of course, I don't listen to such things but..." She collapsed into my arm and cried softly much more softly compared to before, "I... I saw THINGS that day, things that a prince should not be doing, things that an elf should not be doing...I tried to talk to father but he refuses to budge on the marriage proposal unless I had proof, and to have to marry such a monster for the rest of my life..."
Instinctively, I raised a hand and started patting her on her back. It seemed her situation was similar to that of my sister. Before reincarnating, I had a younger sister. For the longest time in my life, we were close, but after... If I remember correctly, she had an infatuation with this one boy and wouldn't stop talking about him all day and all night.
However, one night when she went out, she returned home crying. When I asked what was wrong, she said it was nothing.
It took me a while to piece everything together, but once the truth came out, I was furious.
And I took revenge, but afterward, instead of being glad at the revenge, we had a falling out. I blame everything on the boy, so using my strings in the business world, I made sure he would never get a high-paying job.
"And—And... and so..." My hand rose until I was patting the back of her head.
"Shh..." I shushed her because it seemed to me the memory was too painful. It was only then that I realized Rimuru had given me the appropriate amount of privacy and quietly left the room alongside Kaval and Gido.
How thoughtful.
"It's alright," I felt an odd sense of happiness, the type that one would feel when one connected to someone else. "I get it, you ran away from your father's influence in order to escape that monster of a prince, isn't it?"
[Silenced Emotion: 60%]
She nodded, and then I had her move over to sit on the couch in the now-emptied room and then joined her. Now that things have calmed down, I'm left with what to do now. Eren is a powder keg just waiting to blow, and I've read too many books and seen too many movies where a small lie at the beginning would backfire hugely later down the line, it's one of the reasons why I prefer to stay honest in my personal relationships.
"Zzzzz"
"Wha—" I placed a hand over my mouth as I realized Eren fell asleep from the sheer emotional exhaustion telling me about her past must've taken her.
Carefully, I laid her out on the couch in a comfortable position.
I gazed upon her sleeping visage on the couch, her elven ears fully revealed as her human disguise fell apart. My eyes drank in her admittedly beautiful form, which was only further accentuated by how vulnerable she looked. If I had to compare her with women I've seen and slept with, she'd definitely outrank most of them in terms of looks.
"Daughter of an Archduke huh?"
So that's why Eren's teammates are so protective of her: she's the daughter of an Archduke and they're either friends who ran away with her or they're her bodyguards.
I crossed my arms before strutting over to Rimuru's desk, [Steath] ensured my movements were almost soundless. Looking around, I took a slip of paper and pencil and wrote Eren a note for when she would wake up.
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Later, the Clinic.
"..."
"You regret not taking anesthetics, didn't you?" I said while crossing my arms and a smirk of superiority on my face.
"...yes..." Shizu had said quietly, the mask on her face blocking me from seeing her features. The superhuman then idly looked around the operating room where she was situated in.
"Well, your fingers should return to full function within a day or two. It really is fortunate that your digits were healed on the same day as I doubt I could return it to full function without come machine I don't access to right now." I rambled before turning around to walk out of the operation room, "well, I'd recommend you drink lots of water and get lots of sleep. Although, you're an otherworlder, aren't you?"
"Yes indeed. Though, how did you know?" Shizu replied immediately without any hesitation.
Hmm, it seems I can't use that fact.
"Well, the fact that you seemed to know whatever Rimuru was doing when he bowed was the smoking gun, however, you confirming it was the nail in the coffin."
An uncomfortable silence fell into the room like an avalanche as Shizu tried to get up before sitting on the hospital bed. Her muscles were tense and could blitz at a moment's notice. Even while in the hospital, a warrior's spirit still lingers in Shizu's body.
It'd been admirable if the act wasn't so foolish.
Breaking the ice, Shizu spoke up, "I was told of your backstory from Kaval."
[Acting] instantly activated to make sure I don't screw this up. I doubt a superhuman as strong as Shizu isn't well known, well if Kaval and his teammates were the benchmarks for baseline humans. It's even possible that Shizu has fame that crosses borders. Gaining her help and support will aid the Republic in gaining legitimacy and recognition on the international stage.
A mysterious smile appeared on my face.
Ah, the bane of all new nations. In my old world, to exist, to simply be recognized as a 'nation' would require other nations to recognize you. Otherwise, even if you have all the properties of a nation like a functioning government, military, and public utilities like Taiwan or Somaliland, you still won't be a 'nation' in the eyes of the international community.
However, in the Republic's case, it would be like if a new nation arose in the middle of Africa or the Ocean that has spacefaring capacities.
We would have a huge target on our back, yet at the same time, I do not doubt many would also come to our aid in hopes of getting a piece of our technology.
"I... there were rumors and conspiracy theories of some well-known mage families doing something similar to what you described, so I wouldn't say it's out of the ordinary for a family to transcribe everything they've learned into a Homunculus' brain." She said.
The best lies in the world are those that have a sprinkle of truths mixed in. Once I heard about the existence of homunculus and how mental magic works, I knew there was an albeit minor possibility for at least one family to use the dolls as the ultimate hidden library, after all, who could've imagined this servant contains the secrets to creating artifacts that boggle the mind?
But I heard and understood what she didn't say, which compounded to 'you have your secrets, and I want something in return for me keeping them'.
"As enlightening as your story is, I must ask, do you have the capacity to... remove spiritual possession?"
I raised an eyebrow to express confusion, I was not expecting that. "What do you mean? Like an exorcism?" Jokingly, I placed a charge in [Exorcism] and found out that, yes, there are so many ways to banish demons, and combined with [Magicule] gave me several different spells I can use to completely destroy a Baron rank demon while also seriously harming a Viscount.
Shizu looked reluctant, "... Well sort of. You've created magic-less technological miracles I've never seen before, even beyond that of my own world. I don't know if you know this, but the country I was born in went from a nation on the same technological level as one of the Western states into a contemporary modern industrial power on par with Europe in the span of a single generation."
I wasn't too familiar with Japanese history, but I knew she was born in sometime after the Meiji Restoration, presumably sometime around the two World Wars. Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised but... Shizu looked so young it's not even funny!
"How old are you?" I blurted out without thinking and received a reply in the form of a pillow getting thrown at me.
"How rude, didn't you learn any manners from your stay at the 'Noble House'?"
I caught the pillow midair, "Apologies, so you want me to banish a spirit inside you?"
Shizu seemed to be silent as if she wasn't allowed to actually say it. As if an everpresent eye is always watching, ready to strike if any of the terms are broken, completely devoid of privacy.
What a frightening concept.
"You... want me to banish a spirit from a friend?"
Taking her silence as yes, I continued, "The family I stayed with did have some entries on removing spiritual possessions. but...from my knowledge, there are many forms of spiritual possession, what kind of possession do you potentially want to remove from this... hypothetical person?" I framed the question in such a way as for the 'eye' to see Shizu referring to a friend instead of herself.
"This person is being possessed by a Greater Spirit."
[Exorcism] was silent on the matter as the being wasn't a demon. So instead I placed enough charges into [Spiritual Removal] before finally stumbling on a way to remove it, although it would be extremely expensive.
"The process to remove a Greater Spirit is very expensive and not everyone can afford it, are you sure this 'friend' of yours can pay for it?"
"I'll pay for them. I have connections. Connections that would undoubtedly help a homunculus on the run such as yourself, personal wealth that can buy an estate in the upper section of Corbin in the Kingdom of Falmuth, and a squeaky clean reputation as the Conqueror of Flame. These will ensure it is worth it."
I had a smile on my face, yes this is indeed good. "Yes, but... you see, I am more in need of a strong bodyguard in the future to protect myself against the many threats that'll surely come, a shield that'll protect me loyally."
Her mouth thinned to a line at the implication of what I want, which is loyalty enforced through a contract, a 'Geas' these primitives are so fondly of calling it. The silence persisted until Shizu draped her head in submission, her lips thinned into a line in unwillingness, "Very well, a contract then? For how long?"
Putting a finger on my chin, [Spiritual Removal] states that to remove the possession of a Greater Spirit, I would need many technologies currently not built. Yet the thought of gaining someone as strong as the Conqueror of Flame as a bodyguard is just too tempting. Long-term goals, Scientia.
"How long are you willing?"
Shizu's body language says she was in deep thought before turning to me and taking off her mask, allowing me to view her properly. Despite being older than my grandpa, Shizu looked like she wasn't a day older than 25.
Shizu's eyes were filled with determination as she stared unflinchingly into my own. The burn scar underneath her left eye only emphasized her warrior spirit.
"I... I will become your bodyguard for as long as I shall live, as long as you help this 'friend' of mine and save her from the spirit possessing her, and you'll complete one of my requests in the future."
I had a truly wide grin at that, [Planning] and [Economic Design] all rejoicing at the things the Conqueror of Flame could bring, [Strategy] thinking that Shizu could definitely help train the security guard in hand-to-hand combat.
But most importantly, I now have a superhuman as my bodyguard.
"I accept this contract, under the condition that I reserve the right to reject your request if it's too outlandish."
"The request is about saving some children."
"... fine, I accept this contract of your lifelong service and will complete your request."
"Deal."
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[Guide to Victory]- a subconscious skill that guides the user to victory through mental suggestions and odd feelings they'll have every now and then. The ability is less useful for those of stronger wills as they are more likely to reject whatever advice the Guide gives them.
-[All the Possibilities]: whenever the Guide tries to think of advice, the power will go through every single possibility and select a range of options that result in at least some form of victory. Then it selects the options most likely to succeed.
-[Into the Unknown]: This Skill will passively simulate countless futures using the magicule within the host's body and collect data for what the user finds most satisfying before trying to nudge them towards that future.
-[Unseeable Future]: This skill cannot guide the user against any Ultimate Skill users as their future is too chaotic to be known, however, it does also have the effect of making the user a blindspot to any divination or precognition magic, skills, or artifacts. This effect can be extended if the Guide sees it as necessary for victory.
-[Conflict Drive]: The Guide seeks conflict as a secondary goal, so oftentimes, it will attempt to achieve victory through the most conflict-driven way unless it counteracts the user's safety or its primary goal of attaining victory.
AN: I felt the 3 adventurers were WAY underused, and so I offered them to have some character depth beyond just helpful background characters.
If you guys are confused as to why Shizu didn't get overpowered when she had her mask off, recall what I said about the Vesta incident, I sped up the timeline by months so Shizu still could contain Ifrit somewhat.
and I need to somehow deal with Chloe Aubert and her stupid Grey Boy+ Time Looping.
Also, believe it or not, the false back story of Scientia was actually one of the first drafts. The first version was going to be in Worm and Scientia was originally going to be a Bonesaw creation before eventually escaping.
By the way, if you guys still couldn't understand what Guide to Victory is, then just imagine Jack Slash's secondary power of subconsciously knowing what other Parahuman wants but instead for the future.
Several of Chekhov's guns are primed and ready.
