44th Move | Universal Supremacy

In the Private Lounge of Grandmaster Yuuki Kagurazaka.

The private lounge of Yuuki Kagurazaka holds a special place in the Otherworlder's heart. As the guild master of the Freedom Association, Yuuki hardly has any free time or privacy, especially from spies from different nations that wish to gain intel on the Association.

As such, when he funded the construction of a new headquarter for the Freedom Association, Yuuki made sure to edit the final design of the blueprint so that there was a secret space adjacent to his official office containing this lounge area. This lounge was layered with the best anti-information magic field that money can buy, resulting in a room that will slip out of any unauthorized person's mind the moment they leave it like water from a cracked bowl.

It was the very peak of man-made memetic weapons, thusly, Yuuki was particularly proud of it.

"The Moderate Harlequin Alliance has been waiting for you, Lady Kazaream." A clown who stood by the secret doorway bowed gently with an arm over his chest and the other spread out, "In fact, all of us have missed you terribly, including Tear, Footman, and Clayman."

In total, three people are in the room including Yuuki: ex-Demon Lord Kazaream and Laplace the clown.

The Otherworlder then glanced at Kazaream's reaction to Laplace's words, finding her to be blushing furiously. Well, Yuuki did intentionally choose a female body for Kazaream.

Demon Lord Kazaream, the Curse Lord, was once a Demon Lord who was active way before the last Great Tenma War. Kazaream ruled the present nation of Jistav, and being the King of all Dark Elves, he had a mortal rivalry with Sorcerer's Dynasty Sarion. Both were bitter enemies, and both resulted in all sorts of subversive tactics inside each other's countries.

Things like assassinations, sponsoring of banditry, torture of important individuals, and even more brutal tactics were all commonly employed by Kazaream. In turn, Sarion responded in kind by supplying rebel groups within Jistav with homunculus suicide bombers that can take out whole sections of a castle.

Like so many other petty conflicts, the cold war between Sarion and Jistav paused during the last Great Tenma War and petered off permanently in the aftermath since the damage brought about by the Angels was so great that both sides couldn't afford to continue to wage that secret conflict anymore. In an unprecedented move, such peace between two long-time enemies actually lasted.

During the Demon Lord Civil War that happened in the aftermath of the last Great Tenma War, Kazaream, who had murdered close to half a dozen other smaller Demon Lords and took over their domain, was feeling confident and so decided to snub the growing Kingdom of Nightrose and its Demon Lord Valentin by launching an assault led personally by the King of the Dark Elves.

However, instead of an easy victory, the battle between Demon Lord Valentin and Kazaream was said to have created a dozen valleys and a hundred new tributaries for the mighty Ameld River. At the end of this battle, it was concluded in a tie.

After the Consolidation, a new custom was passed among the Demon Lord Council— any disputes will be first decided by a majority vote. This was done because of how devastating the Civil War was.

It was so devastating that many historians point to the Civil War as the main reason why the monster nations were so slow to react to Relentless's Rampage. During the start of the Rampage, the monster nations were still recovering, so most closed their borders and ignored everything until Relentless brought destruction onto their doorsteps and forced them to join the great resistance against the Perfect Homunculus.

It was said that so many died during the Rampage a hundred Demon Lords were made from the collected souls and all died under the crushing might of Relentless.

After the final battle, Kazaream, presumably upon seeing the sheer destruction, closed Jistav off from the rest of the world for close to three centuries, only supporting the claim of Frey and his subordinate Clayman who spoke with Kazaream's authority within the Ten Great Demon Lords.

Many historians also believe the peace between Jistav and Sarion was cemented eternally when Kazaream sent ships full of food into the destroyed territory of the Elven Nation.

The only and last time that Demon Lord Kazaream left Jistav after Relentless's Rampage was to deal with the upstart Leon Cromwell when he proclaimed himself a Demon Lord and claimed the entirety of El Dorado as his territory.

No one really knows why Kazaream left to deal with Leon Cromwell. Some thought that perhaps it was Kazaream returning to his old habits and killing off fresh rivals. A more popular theory within Dwargon was that Kazaream was offended by Leon Cromwell's betrayal. Yuuki did ask, but Kazaream chose not to respond.

Whatever the reason, the battle between the two ended in Kazaream's defeat and Leon Cromwell's full entrance into the ranks of the Ten Great Demon Lords.

While defeat did spell the end for Kazaream's physical body, it didn't for his soul. Right before Leon stabbed Kazaream with his Mythical-grade sword Flame Pillar, Kazaream used magic and turned himself into a disembodied spirit that wandered the world for close to a century before encountering Yuuki Kagurazaka about a decade ago.

The ex-Demon Lord wanted to possess the Japanese Otherworlder but failed and instead became a voice inside Yuuki's head. Over the decade, the two grew close since Kazaream taught Yuuki some magic while also helping him out in exchange for eventually being given an actual body.

Now little over a decade after the two first met, Yuuki made good on that promise and bought a female elf homunculus while Kazaream became Kagali, Yuuki's secretary.

"Not that I'm not grateful, Yuuki, but did you seriously have to give me this body?" Kagali asked once more.

Yuuki shrugged while trying to hide how such a sweet reunion made his skin crawl, "Well, it was the best one they had on the market. Cost me a fortune to buy that homunculus from Sarion. Apparently, that model was very popular amongst the higher nobilities because of its immortal nature as well as being able to regenerate from a lot of things."

The grandmaster of the Freedom Association originally contracted Laplace in an effort to see if there were anything corrupt with the Western Holy Church that he can use.

Because of the backward nature of this world's society, even in spite of Yuuki's best attempt at advancing it, the act of a Priest touching a child is seen as somewhat taboo not because of the inherently disgusting act, but because a Priest is supposed to be chaste individuals who devote themselves fully to the glory of God Luminous.

However, given that in this world where a female is seen as a viable bride as soon as she bleeds her first period-blood, child-protection laws are especially lacking and are more prone to vigilantism for justice. Teen marriages are especially prevalent among all levels of society, with those between nobles trending toward the younger side than the peasants.

"Oh, and by the way, I should probably give you all a heads-up: the current Kagali has nowhere near the level of power of Kazaream. If you attempt to use the full might of the Curse Lord, that body you currently inhabit is going to be destroyed. Best case scenario..." Yuuki trailed off as he spots the annoyed look on Kagali's face, "The best case is you return to being a wandering spirit. Worst case, you die for real this time."

Yuuki munched on some pastries despite the horrified look from Laplace. Kagali's lips thinned as she is once again reminded of her weakness.

"Must you always remind me of that fact?"

"Of course!" Yuuki responded enthusiastically, "The first thing you said when I gave you that expensive homunculus body was to swear bloody vengeance against Leon Cromwell. That's suicide. Leon Cromwell was seen as a member of the Triumvirate for a reason, and time has only made him stronger."

Laplace supported Yuuki's point, "Indeed if I recall correctly, Cromwell's fortified himself quite well inside his El Dorado. His crystal city has protections that stand as a peer to those of places like Lura. They do have to stand up against the periodic bombardment made by the Yellow Primordial."

Yuuki snapped his fingers.

"Exactly! I ain't helping you twice." The Otherworlder then adopted a more business-like stance, "Now, about Hinata..."

Yuuki's spies within the Western Holy Church said how the higher-ups were going nuts over Hinata going AWOL. They tried to keep it down and were mostly successful before they suddenly found Hinata in the border town of Cont, apparently beaten and battered, with signs of torture all over her body.

Things went ballistic not soon after. Hinata was the Church's golden child, the future light of humanity, who could have possibly done this?

Laplace sighed, "Fair enough. For letting our leader walk the material plane once again, I'll give you this information for free."

The clown then looked around the room as if trying to see if anyone is spying on the trio before walking up to Yuuki's desk and gesturing for him to lean closer.

Once they're no more than a centimeter apart, Laplace finally reported the information.

"That thing is not Hinata."

Yuuki's body became completely still as the new information registered inside his mind.

Originally, Yuuki first learned of a new nation being established in the Jura Forest right after when the Orc Disaster was dealt with. Using some divination magic and clairvoyant Skills, Yuuki hoped to scout out this unforeseen element on the geopolitical stage, only for any surveillance attempt to be shorted out.

In essence, the whole Jura Forest became an informational black hole.

This unprecedented counter-intelligence ability forced Yuuki to reply on spies, who had reported a city of glass and steel, with towering structures that seem to touch the sky, where each can house tens of thousands. All of this was done without any magic.

Needless to say, he quickly cut off all ties with those informants, clearly, they were compromised if they think such a thing was possible.

Yuuki dismissed the Jura Forest since the secretly developing coup attempt in Ingrassia required more of his attention.

This dismissal backfired immensely when he was greeted with the sight of his old teacher's new body when she visited him during that humanoid slime's negotiation with Ingrassia. His jaw dropped, his human teacher had now been given a new body— one that has a constantly refreshing stasis effect. It definitely wasn't because of Magic or Skill because his [Anti-Skill] would've canceled out the time-locking effect.

For someone to be able to make such a technology capable of stopping time and thereby causality in an object... using pure scientific principle no less!

Yuuki Kagurazaka was someone who kept tabs on all Disaster-level and above threats in the world. The moment any Demon Lords moved, he would be one of the first to know outside of those in the immediate area.

So for something like this to pop up within the Jura Forest... that warranted further investigation.

Thus, using his contacts, Yuuki manipulated Hinata into attacking the slime, hoping that such an attack would lure out whoever was responsible for Shizue Izawa's new body.

Obviously, looking back now, that plan was more born out of desperation for at least some information on this new player on the world stage. Without thinking it through, this poorly thought-out plan backfired when his [Clairvoyance] failed and Hinata alongside the body of the slime and Shizue was gone.

A ravaged grassy field was all that remained after the clash.

Even now, Yuuki only has a name on this new player. Scientia Tempest. That's all he knows.

"What do you mean by that?" Yuuki cautiously asked as he silently applied another field of privacy, to better ensure that no one would be able to spy on them.

"Exactly what I meant. That thing looks like Hinata, talks like Hinata, behaves like Hinata, hell, its magicule signature can easily be mistaken for Hinata."

"And how do you know that's not Hinata?"

Soul-based identification was common for the upper tier of the World. At this level, physical identification methods like fingerprints, biometrics, and DNA can all be faked with ease, but not magicule signature since it's reliant upon the individual's Soul.

As such, Laplace has long learned how to secretly scan someone's passive magicule signature without tripping any alarms, so to hear Yuuki doubt his words attacked his pride.

Though if it were only his pride that was under attack, he could still rein himself in.

"Listen here you little shit—" Laplace growled out as his patience wore thin.

Fear and disgust followed the memories of what 'Hinata' did. The clown felt the urge to scratch his body with how much his skin is crawling underneath the costume.

Just as Laplace reached over the desk to grab Yuuki's collar, he was stopped when the newly incarnated Kazaream placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

"He is my boss, please act respectfully."

Biting his tongue, Laplace bowed apologetically, "Sorry about that. Please forgive my transgressions, I'll explain why 'Hinata' isn't Hinata quickly." The clown jaunted over to the wall and leaned on it, appearing like a brooding fella.

"How do I know Hinata isn't human despite everything pointing her to being a human? A human's chest doesn't just fucking burst open like a set of mouths with razor-sharp teeth. A human can't just silence a fellow human by stabbing their fingers into their mouth and, get this, instead of bleeding, start to merge together like they were two pieces of fucking chewing gum! Like HOLY SHIT MAN!"

Yuuki recoiled at how the usually in control Laplace was acting this panicked.

"I mean hell! I think with the way Hinata dispatched a whole hospital ward of people silently like an assassin, I think whatever possessed Hinata probably also consumed her Soul and gained her Skills. I barely got out of there! What's worse, when I came back to check on the inevitable bloodbath, everything was clean and pristine! But I could tell that the nurses were different. They were... too perfect. I didn't stick around for too long after that."

Laplace's fingers twitched to signal how jumpy he was, how much this new Hinata affected him.

"Now, I may be a Deathman, but when I kill someone, I at least do it cleanly and efficiently, unlike the horror show that is the new Hinata Sakaguchi. Whatever infected her, it's spreading on an unprecedented scale. I think it's a new type of disease. A new plague that maybe a Demon from the North conjured up. This new Hinata plague appears to have the ability to amalgamate and assimilate whoever they come into contact with, turning them into new assimilators that then spread out more and more."

Finally, Laplace stared Yuuki Kagurazaka dead in the eyes, "Yuuki, I'm telling you now, if you ignore this threat, it will grow out of hand. In fact, for the first time in the history of the Moderate Harlequin Alliance, I, Laplace, will give this information to the world for free if you don't have a solution to contain this... this relentless cascading virus."

"Laplace!" Kagali suddenly stood up in shock.

"I'm sorry President. But this is a threat that'll affect us too. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but sometime in the near future, this disease will affect us. It'll be a new Relentless."

"..." Kagali's mouth was agape.

Yuuki brooded on this new information that was given to him. His worriedness about the future increased tremendously.

"I see. Looks like you were right, Chronoa." He whispered to himself before chuckling, "Right on time."

_____________________________________________

The Sword of Control hovered in front of me. At the moment, it was a 1.4-meter-long claymore that was almost as tall as Rimuru's humanoid body. Since it's adjustable, I didn't bother changing the size.

Currently, the Sword was suspended in mid-air within an antigravity field, and all around it were hundreds of tiny different tools that I used to engineer, refine, and build this piece of magical tinkertech.

Truly, I do not understand magic. The way it can manipulate physics and the fundamental constants that explains reality defies all expectations.

I took the claymore that's almost as tall as I am and brought it to a barren world on the next galaxy over. With massive machines overhead in orbit and an ever-dimming sun, as it's being encased in a metal tomb, I embed the Sword with my own magicules and swung.

The result was fantastic. I chose the element of 'kinetic force' and the planet itself shook as a magnitude 9 earthquake rocked the area around me.

While Rimuru won't be sending earthquakes equal to the one that caused the mega-tsunami back in 2011, it should be sufficient for now.

So overall, the field test was successful.

After the Sword of Control's completion, I decided that it was high time to return Shizue to a functioning state. Since the Digital Lich was unconscious this whole time out of her War Chassis, I set up an info packet to update Shizue on everything that happened before placing her inside the Central Terminal of the Citadel.

As she catches herself up to speed, I decided to create plans for upgrading Shizue's War Chassis. Clearly, time-lock alone wasn't enough, so I turned to the other 'invincible' material in my possession: Siberium.

Creating a chassis made out of Siberium will ensure Shizue's as much of an unmovable object and unstoppable force as the Citadel itself.

Just as with Static Matter, Siberium messes horribly with light cones and worldlines, so all conventional and unconventional transmissions like radio, neutrinos, and even gravitational waves are rendered ineffective. Therefore to maximize her combat potential, Shizue will have to insert her Soul Orb into the new War Chassis just like her old one.

Inputting the blueprint for such a chassis into the Noosphere, I set the production value to '1' and had the automated programs and dumb AI start making the War Chassis without any more input from me.

With that done, I materialized another hologram panel displaying the time and found that it was noon.

I couldn't help but recall how in the past when I first went to space, it was jarring how it could be full noon on a planet, and with a single Doorway transition, it was midnight.

Using another Doorway, I moved millions of lightyears in an instant and popped back into one of the more luxurious hotels within the capital.

Sounds of birds chirping and people talking filled my ears, chasing away the silence that always accompanied me whenever I went to space. My eyes were greeted by a hallway made not of the typical utilitarian style that populates each and every single one of my constructs in the Noosphere, but instead neoclassical architecture that resembled Buckingham Palace.

With gold, potted plants dotting the side of the hallway, red velvet carpet filling the floor alongside extremely detailed carvings on the ceiling, and patterned wallpaper, this place was the definition of luxury. It was made this way to cater to any state guest and visiting nobility.

With a single thought, the Block-Form Singularity shifted itself into formal wear, namely a rather gothic dress.

"Hmm..." I look down at this dress, finding it to be a bit too revealing.

I'm not Milim, so I changed it to cover more of myself.

Recalling the room where this state banquet was being held, I stroll towards it. Very soon, I'm greeted by two goblins dressed sharply in fine butler clothing that possess a deadly elegance but with no ostentation. There's an underlayer of militarism alongside corporatism, focusing on substance over style.

They looked like clothing that people in the near future of my old World would wear.

As I neared, the two bowed before opening the door.

"Director of Research and Development, Scientia Tempest, is here." The goblin on my left announced to the banquet room.

The large banquet room continued the neoclassical architectural style of the hallway, with luxury filling every corner. At the center of this room was a round dining table that appeared almost oppressively tiny in comparison to how large the banquet room was. It was out of place being so alone here in a room meant to hold large gatherings.

Around the tablet sat Rimuru in a suit that screamed sophistication and another armored tanned, bearded man which I can only assume is King Gazel.

Engaging in eye contact with the slime, I subtly nodded before taking my seat, "President Rimuru, King Gazel. I am Scientia Tempest, Director of Research and Development and the Commander of the Grand Republic Military."

Several more butler goblins who stood at the edge of the room out of sight, out of mind, moved toward a small cart. Taking out numerous plates and silverware, they then started setting up the table for the meal.

The gentle clinks of metal and chinas interrupted the silence in the room. The sound of wine flowing into glasses took up the remains.

"Well met, Miss Tempest," Gazel said after observing me for a few moments. Taking the glass of wine, he swirled it inside his hand, "I've never heard of a position of 'Research and Development' before, what is it that you do?"

Ah, the words Gazel chose were careful, with nothing like 'please' or 'may', it sounded almost like the Dwarven King was demanding instead of asking. Well, he may be peeved at how I didn't use 'your majesty' and thus, didn't recognize his authority.

"I am responsible for all the technology you see before you, your majesty. I research the lost art of science and churn out these incredible technologies you see before you."

Gazel took a long thoughtful sip of his wine, savoring the flavor.

"This is some interesting wine. Unique. I've never tasted it before. How did you make it?"

I smirked, then casually shrugged, "Some basic genetic engineering. I changed the information that tells how life is supposed to develop, making the grapes used to make that wine contain larger, more sugar, and ferment more easily."

In truth, this was a wine distilled from a blueberry-like fruit that contain one of the highest alcohol concentrations within the known universe. It had so much alcohol that the primitives of that planet were known to farm the fruit and drink it how we would drink wine.

Being one of the rare primitives that seem to have at least some basic tribal structure, I had to personally come down and see them with my own eyes.

The Narbarians was a near eusocial carbon-based lifeform with six limbs for movement and another two for manipulating objects. They're three-digit crustaceans with near-pitch-black shells to blend in with the dark colors of their plants. Their plants are also nearly pitch black to absorb as much sunlight as possible, as the planet is a tidally locked one confining most of the living organisms to live across a narrow bandwidth among the twilight and evening zones.

It took a while to decipher their scent-based communication, and when I did, I performed a long-term experiment by gifting the tribe I visited a cube-shaped puzzle, saying that if they managed to solve it then it would grant them the power of the gods themselves.

It should be interesting to see how the Narbarians develop.

"Control the information of life? Are you talking about the method employed by Sarion with their homunculus or a Lifemolder's?"

Sarion has mastered a magical version of cheap genetic engineering. By the product they offer, I think Sarion only has the ability to control the genetics of an organism only in their infancy, and can't change it later on in life.

The genetic engineering employed by Lifemolders can either be as sharp as CRISPR or as blunt as radiation. The caveat of this is the more precise a Lifemolder wishes to manipulate, the longer it'll take for the desired effect to take hold. In a way, it's similar to choosing to either use a broad or thin brush to paint a canvas; the wider brush doesn't allow details while the thinner brush will take a long time.

Due to this, most Lifemolders spend their entire lifetime editing a single organism to perfection, one cell at a time, akin to a Renaissance artist carefully carving a single block of stone to make their perfect statue.

I have none of those problems. I can mass produce 'statues'.

"None of them. My method of controlling life is far superior to those of Lifemolders and Sarion. I have the speed of Lifemolders without disregarding any precision. In fact, my speed is so quick that heat becomes an issue."

Gazel hummed at my response. "I see. And what's your limit? Can you change the internal information of existing people?"

My smirk widened. The limit of Sarion's genetic engineering.

"If there is a limit, I haven't found it yet. I can edit the genome of living humans and, say, give them new appendages, cat ears, or even eternal youth. Life, at its most basic form, is just a set of self-replicating constant chemical reactions. These self-replicating chemical reactions will persistently grow larger and larger so long as there are appropriate resources to permit more of those reactions."

Just then, another door opened.

A chef came in through the doorway. Behind him was another waiter pushing along a cart carrying many plates each covered by a metal cloche.

This state lunch was going to be a seven-course formal French meal.

Placing three covered plates in front of each of us, the chef clapped loudly to gain our attention.

"First course; the appetizers. A small piece of toast with a fresh Jingleberry and Amberflower spread alongside light snacks of roasted peanuts and salted olives from Eurazania served alongside Bubble Wine from Ingrassia."

A waiter placed a tall empty glass next to the newly revealed dish composed of a single toast with a dark-colored spread and sides of peanuts and green olives like a garden beside a scenic house. Pouring the golden-colored drink in, the Bubble Wine fizzed akin to a mug of beer before dissipating entirely.

I took a sip while discreetly glancing at Gazel. [Biology] and [Psychology] extrapolated all kinds of information from the simple way that the dwarf drank his wine based on his posture, the movement of his facial muscles, and micro-expressions. What the two specialties gave me was the image of a tired man next to burnout.

Hrmm. I then focused on the alcohol in front of me. The Bubble Wine was sweet, and its gaseous composition made me think of champagne.

Next, I took a bite of the toast. A single crunch and my mouth exploded with sweetness and sourness from the spread mixed with the rough texture of the perfectly toasted bread.

Unlike the bread of places outside of Tempest, these ones are of higher quality simply because of the better equipment and knowledge concerning yeasts and the like. Although I have heard of mages using magic to make fine loaves of bread, I think those are only for the higher echelons of society. Plus, magic-made bread isn't mass-producible.

Swallowing the bite of toast, I took ahold of a wooden toothpick and started working on those green olives larger than your typical grapes marinated in salt water to give a taste of the vast blue oceans.

"So, your majesty, how has the industrialization effort going for your country?" Rimuru spoke without touching his dish while I absentmindedly ate the peanuts and olives.

King Gazel must've really liked the toast because he finished it in a few bites. "Your corporations have helped us immensely by providing starting capital for industrialization. Many smiths are very happy with the new furnaces you provided, what with them being able to reach higher temperatures. Though it's only been two months, my Ministers have told me productions across all places that incorporated these machines of yours have increased at an extreme level."

As they began to talk about the industrialization revolution that was slowly going underway in Dwargon, I noticed how the many social upheavals that industrialization would bring has already started to rear their ugly head.

Things like dangerous workplaces, child labor, and factory jobs pay better thus depriving other jobs of workers: these may be a passing mention by King Gazel on the level of a normal person talking about tomorrow's weather, but I know they're going to occupy more and more of Gazel's thoughts.

The coming years are going to be very interesting. Dwargon will probably experience growth like China but over an even shorter period of time since Tempest is holding their hands and helping them progress through the proverbial civilizational tech tree at a rapid, almost rocket speed.

As the talks continued, I couldn't help but recall how untumultuous our own advancement was.

Personally, I theorize Metropolis was able to advert most of the problems that come with advancing a Medieval civilization into a Modern one primarily because of how flexible goblins are. Like, humans are stubborn creatures, they cling to their culture like a man dying of thirst in an oasis. Though I also imagine I and Rimuru being there the whole way also helped.

In all honesty, I expected to encounter at least some friction considering the differences between modern liberalism and your typical conservative traditionalism but surprisingly, that doesn't exist.

Seriously, barring a few examples, there hasn't been much inter-tribal violence between different groups of goblins. I really did think this was going to be like an African situation where there are hundreds of warring tribes within just an area the size of the Congo.

Maybe it's because of our open nature and the fact we had the biggest stick in the forest?

Hmm, food for future thoughts. Speaking of that...

I wiped my mouth with the given handkerchief after finishing everything.

Realizing that I and King Gazel have all finished, Rimuru used his Unique Skill and consumed the dish in one swoop.

Seeing how everyone was done, the empty plate and wine glass in front of me were removed and the chef rolled in a new cart of plates covered by metal cloches.

"For the second dish," Servants came and placed a new plate in front of me while filling up my original glass with more red wine, "The entree, a soup made from eastern onions particularly prized for their rich flavor. Please, enjoy each sip alongside a taste of wine to wash everything down."

The metal cloche was removed to unveil a small bowl of a runny brown soup with rings of deeply colored caramelized onion floating on the surface like icebergs. Additionally, a servant next to me then used a grater and dropped bits of shredded cheese to melt into the soup.

"So, I heard that Metropolis was attacked, yet when I arrived, I saw no evidence of such a thing. Was it a false alarm?"

Gazel probably saw the steams of white gas overflowing out of the bowl, signaling just how hot it is. Thus, he took the opportunity to start another round of talks.

"Well, yes, we were attacked. Director Scientia can probably tell you the whole story since I wasn't there." There was a tone of shame in Rimuru's voice.

Before Gazel could derail the conversation by asking what did Rimuru mean by that, I added to Rimuru's words, "The attack came from an agent employed by Demon Lord Clayman. When we analyzed the attack, we found that it was a magic field designed to displace every single silicon particle within a radius of several dozen kilometers. It took a day for everything to resume functioning, and to stabilize the market."

"Silicon? Which type of matter is that?"

"The one with 14 negative polarities."

This World has a really advanced version of the atomic theory and periodic table for a low-tech civilization. If what Eren said is correct, it seems that due to the existence and study of Nuclear Magic, these people were able to get a glimpse into the power held within atoms as well as their internal structure.

"Why did Demon Lord Clayman target specifically that one? I know the 14 negative polarities are what constitute glass and sand so I could see the potential appeal, but it couldn't have made that much damage compared to a simple explosive, could it?"

Fishing for critical information, are we?

My mind split apart as [Multitasking] was called up. Normally, I wouldn't use [Multitasking] as it's using my mind as a resource, to literally divvy it up is bound to cause future problems like potentially giving birth to a split personality if I use it too often.

Using two sets of thoughts, I started simultaneously collecting information about King Gazel that'll give me a lead in this negotiation while replying.

"Our electronics— the thing that's responsible for much of our technology, controls the flow of loose negative polarities to perform various tasks like communication, computation, and controlling machines. You can also imagine them as controlling micro-lightnings. One of the cheapest and best materials to use as the primary component for these things is the one with 14 negative polarities."

You know, in my past life, I don't think I've ever thought of having to explain what modern electronics are to a medieval person.

"Fascinating."

I then waved my right hand in a dismissive way, "Have no worry, we've already replaced most of our silicon-based components with different types of room-temperature superconductors— an overall more expensive but superior base component for electronics."

I grabbed a spoon and took a sip of the soup. The soup's beef stock is rather plain, though that's mostly offset by the heavy flavor of the onion leaking into the watery stock itself. much of the cheese has already melted and what bits of the dairy product that remains have clung onto the pieces of caramelized onion, further diluting the heavy flavor into something that's more palpable.

We finished the soup, prompting the chef to roll in the next course as I wiped my mouth with the handkerchief.

"The Third Course, the fish. Salmon caught off the shores of Lake Shisu, rolled in salt, cooked crisp, and garnished in vegetables."

The fish itself was cooked until the meat could fall apart at the slightest touch, as such I found it best to use a spoon to cut into the meat bundled by crispy skin, scoop it up like rice, and eat it that way rather than the typical knife and fork. Taste-wise, the fish was salty, and the skin added a bit of crunch to the mix.

"I've been talking with Kaijin," Gazel said between bites, "He said that you'll only take him on as an apprentice if he created a sword that's worthy in your eyes."

Who?

With [Acting], I was able to keep my poker face on.

"Indeed I have."

No, I don't. Who was this Kaijin person again?

Looking back through my memories, the name 'Kaijin' triggers the image of three dwarves.

Oh yeah, weren't they the three to give me that 100 Stellar Gold Coins? I'd almost forgotten about them with all the things that happened!

"They did say how the technology here allowed them to refine all metals to a much greater degree than in Dwargon. I am glad you aren't just sending them on a wild goose chase, that would be a terrible use of time."

I could practically hear what hasn't been said. Gazel wants me to just accept them as apprentices, or else the diplomatic relationship between us and Dwargon is going to be strained since we did take that 100 Stellar Gold Coins.

The King then looked down at the fish once he was finished.

"You like the fish?" Rimuru asked, trying to engage in small talk.

"The simpleness in its cooking gives it a homely feel."

"The main course!" The chef announced after we finished the fish, "Prime cut steak garnished with flavorful herbs and more vegetables from Eurazania."

As the main course, this one was the largest in terms of portion size. A five-pound slab of high protein meat cooked to medium rare, soaked in all kinds of condiments like salt and butter to ensure the bland beef contains a rainbow of flavors. The vegetables were much simpler, just carrots and a type of greens that resembles broccoli except the stem is much thinner.

"I was told you became a new Demon Lord, Miss Scientia. According to Rimuru, with the souls of those 50,000 Falmuth soldiers who marched along the border of Blumund?" There was a subtle edge of cautiousness in his voice, not really surprising given how poor the reputations of all the Demon Lords are.

I was about to speak before pausing. How should I go about explaining myself...?

"I did." I decided to be frank, "But power isn't my end goal, it never is, nor should it be. Power is a means to achieve an end, and that end is Rimuru's revival."

Gazel quirked an eyebrow.

My hands started to get really animated as [Orator] took an advisory role, "Now, we kept this as a state secret, but in truth, during Rimuru's return from Ingrassia, he was intercepted by a Church's agent. If you ask the Church's upper management, oh they'll say it's 'rogue elements' but the fact remains: Rimuru was assassinated by them."

Telling him, or anyone for that matter that we are responsible for the decimation of Corbin would only isolate us on the world stage, in a fashion similar to North Korea in my old world. The only reason America wasn't penalized as hard as we could've been for dropping the two atomic bombs was due to the sheer scale of World War II. Me killing 450,000 civilians would be like if America used nuclear weapons during the Vietnam War; it's a massive escalation of force that's uncalled for.

Thus, it will remain forever a secret that those who participated will take to the graves, no more shall know as it's something classified as beyond top-secret, a Directive-level secret.

"And you becoming a Demon Lord somehow revived him?" Gazel turned to face Rimuru, "Like that fairy tale?"

There was a harshness in his voice. He was criticizing me as if he couldn't believe I would believe a fairy tale and use that as a method to revive someone.

Logically, Gazel's correct. I wouldn't trust someone who believes wholeheartedly in fairy tales enough to kill people over it, those are like horror movie cultists.

In a calm tone, "I have a Unique Skill called [Great Sage]. That Unique Skill gave me the option of either becoming a Demon Lord or a True Hero and since Falmuth's army was right there, I chose the much faster method."

"...Or a True Hero?"

"I am a homunculus, King Gazel. A homunculus by its lonesome is recognized by the Voice of the World as an existence that blurred the line between Man and Monsters."

Gazel cupped his chip in deep thought.

"... There's never been a Homunculus becoming a True Hero or a Demon Lord before."

"Well, there's a first time for everything."

Rimuru winced at how callous I was being.

"Speaking of first time for everything..." Gazel used his fork and stabbed into the vegetables imported from Eurazania, "Milim ravaged Eurazania."

"Oh yes, that." This time it was Rimuru who spoke up, "We're planning on sending disaster relief aids to Eurazania, and we're taking as many of the refugees as we can process by border patrols right now. Though, our main focus is on the sudden build-up of forces on Eurazania's border, specifically, Clayman's forces."

"The Marionette Master..."

"Yes. Clayman is an active opportunist, he hides in the shadow, and manipulate things from behind the scene just as his title suggests." I replied, collapsing the dual mode of thinking made by [Multitasking], "He's almost certain to be the one controlling Milim. Given how he has his army, I think he's going to invade very soon, probably in the following week at the latest. Clayman is hoping to invade Eurazania while we are distracted with Falmuth, to capture the breadbasket of the Southern Coast would yield him a tremendous amount of leverage over other nations."

"So he's trying to grab a chokehold over the food that Eurazania produces... but that doesn't make any sense. Why did he destroy the capital?"

"Milim is a very destructive individual. Clayman probably messed up and underestimated her. Though don't worry, Tempest has ways of dealing with people like Milim." I said ominously before finally digging into the meat.

The meat was juicy and flavorful, just as how I liked it. In particular, a touch of pepper gave it a nice kick.

"The fifth and sixth courses served together, a collection of leafy greens and solid dairy products— salad and cheese!"

I didn't bother touching the elaborate salad and instead focused more on the collection of cheese served on a wooden board. Gazel returned to chat with Rimuru while I focused on how to deal with Falmuth.

I think overthrowing the monarch and establishing a republic similar to ours would be detrimental. We are this World's Napoleon, establishing and spreading the ideals of democracy on a continent that's only really known monarchy.

One may think we'll go along well with Ulgrasia considering they call themselves a republic but the truth is far different.

I cannot say this enough: I despise Ulgrasia. That farce of a republic practicing a form of magic eugenics by determining who could or who couldn't be a citizen solely based on whether they get a spirit or not. That republic would've been first on the chopping block had it not been for their close relationship with Sarion.

Beyond moral issues, eugenics is fundamentally an idea that causes inefficiency. The total productivity of a nation is based on how productive its people are, and one of the main ways to increase GDP is by having more people, be it with natural birth or immigration. This was also why I introduced hard the idea of multicultural and multi-specism.

"Miss Scientia," Gazel called out to me, "Rimuru once told me his ultimate goal is to live a comfortable and peaceful life. An admirable goal. Being a Demon Lord, I would like to know if your ultimate ambition is world domination or something similar."

World domination?

"You majesty, to that I ask: what kind? Do you mean a globe-spanning hegemony with Tempest at the center? Or do you mean a geopolitical Hyperpower? Or perhaps one that has conquered and integrated every state in the world into oneself?"

King Gazel clearly wasn't expecting my answer, if his stumped look is anything to go by.

"Any."

I laughed.

It was a genuine laugh of amusement.

I chewed my thumb.

"Your majesty," I said it in the way that a parent might humor the demands of a child, "No one would tell you their ultimate goal, but to humor you, I shall tell you."

A single snap of my fingers, and the whole room fell apart as holograms replaced it.

We were surrounded by an image of the cosmos. Bright, points of starlight surrounded us, with galaxies swirling like a vortex.

Gazel was alarmed and was about to jump out of his seat, "Calm your legs, your majesty, you're thinking too small if you think world domination is all there is."

I plucked a single pinprick of light that flew around me before enlargening it until the fiery star encompassed the palm of my hand in the same manner that a baseball might.

"This is Main Sequence Star GX-0482-LV, and it has approximately five planets orbiting around it at different orbitals."

The star shone a shade of yellow before I threw it to the side as if it was garbage and grabbed one of the even tinier planets that orbited the star.

Enlargening the planet until it encompassed the space above us, I continued, "Did you know that almost every star— every point of light you see in the night sky has at least one world orbiting around it? In total, there are 405,196,543,951 stars within the stellar river that runs across the sky at night. On the best and darkest nights, you can see only around a couple thousand because almost all of those 400 billion stars are too far and thus too dim for their light to pass through the huge amounts of interstellar gas and our planet's atmosphere to reach us."

My tone was one of awe, like a kid talking about something they're passionate about.

"Of those 400 billion stars, there are over a trillion planets with a size comparable to or larger than our own, and if you add the filter size of our own moon, that number jumps up by several magnitudes. So many worlds out there, and so many chances for life... King Gazel, I have touched the very stars themselves, I have looked beyond at each and every one of those worlds and found none with life, found no superadvanced civilizations of giants in the cosmic playground."

I spoke with melancholy. Reading so much sci-fi in my last life made me excited about meeting a peer or even a superior civilization, but I was never granted that chance. The most I have is some groups that have just entered into their industrial age and an even smaller handful entering into their atomic age.

"What I seek isn't world domination, but universal supremacy. I want for us all to become the giants ourselves." My hands came up from my side, making me look like a prophet preaching the truth, "I seek to forge an empire spanning the cosmos, to build a civilization whose territory isn't measured in kilometers squared, but in the number of galactic clusters they contain, to fill the night sky itself, where its population is only dwarfed by the number of atoms in the universe, whose industrial might makes the creation of stars a trivial task, whose feats of engineering lasts an eternity, serving as an inspiration for future aliens that also, might eventually touch the stars themselves."

I was facing the holographic representation of the cosmos. Then, my head dropped until I was again facing Gazel.

"So, King Gazel, to answer your question. What I seek isn't world domination. I want to grab onto our fate, our destiny, our very future, and embrace it, embrace the stars, embrace that Final Frontier. Over the next hundred or maybe thousand years, things will change drastically. Over that minuscule amount of time on a galactic scale, I will drag this entire world and everyone on it kicking or screaming into the future, into the stars, to spread across the void between, and become a fully-fledged galactic empire."

"..." Gazel had an indecipherable look.

Perhaps [Acting] got too carried away? That specialty rivals [Threater] in terms of how much it loves theatrics and drama.

Then I added, "Do stay for the dessert, I hear the Chocolate Profiteroles they make are to die for."

_____________________________________________

AN: Walpurgis encroaches ever closer...

the death of 450,000 will haunt Scientia for the rest of this story, in less obvious ways, I wonder if you guys will see how it affects Scientia.

Clarification on Noosphere: in this fanfic, the Noosphere is a biomechanical telepathic network that connects every single piece of Scientia's technology, think of it as a collective consciousness but more digital than psychic.

If you want a Worm CYOA v1 comparison, imagine a digital version of Shaper's control over all the organic mass.

Oh and here's a teaser for the name of the final arc.

Final Arc: The War to end all Wars.

See if you guys can decipher the meaning behind it.