17 Battle for the Jura Forest

"So you're going to be fighting against 200,000 orcs and an Orc Lord!" Shizue asked me as I walked through the palace towards the courtyard.

"Yes. I am bringing most of the Seven Earthly Wonders along to deal with the massive number of Orcs here in the forest. I'll personally kill the Orc Lord and force the other Orcs to become my subordinates."

"Impossible! If you kill their leader then the orcs will never trust you!" Shizue protested.

"Unlike humans. Monsters rarely lie or betray their masters once they swear fealty, especially if they are given a name by their master. Once they are given homes in my Kingdom, there will be no room for betrayal." I say as I jump on Ranga's back.

I look down at the worried face of Shizue and bend down to pat her head. Shizue immediately tenses before blushing extremely. "Don't worry. Stay here with your mother. I will be back by tomorrow evening, then we can go get the kids in Ingrassia."

"You better not lie to me. I'm a lot older than I look and you should respect your elders!" She says as she crosses her arms and pouts.

According to [Athena]. Ultimate Existences such as Human Heroes will have their personality mostly locked in place and they won't succumb to the apathy of time as they grow older like a mortal would. I suppose this makes sense because Shizue is much more energetic and friendly than she was when she was still just a regular human, so I guess this is the personality she is going to stick with for the rest of her existence.

"Don't worry, Lady Shizue! Rimuru-sama could wipe out all the Orcs in a single shot if he wished! So just facing down an Orc Lord will be nothing to him!" Benimaru said as he walked towards us. "Rimuru-sama. Are you sure you want me to lead the troops and not Shiroe-san or Demiurge-sama?"

"Yeah, I do. Shiroe is my Grand Strategist and will be the one to create tactics for our entire military during wartime, but he isn't as suited for battlefield commanding since he can be easily distracted if he thinks about something too hard. Demiurge is an expert in defensive tactics, not offensive tactics. The only other person who can do it is Esdeath, but I will have multiple armies in the future and there need to be capable generals in each. You will lead one of these armies and you require experience, which this battle will provide for you."

"Thank you for your great trust Rimuru-sama! I shall do everything in my power to live up to your expectations!" Benimaru said as he bowed deeply.

"You don't have to worry about anything. Remember your new Unique Skill? Just trust in that and you'll do fine."

"Yes!"

"Souei," I said as the blue kijin appeared from Benimaru's shadow.

"Yes, Lord Rimuru?"

"Scout ahead and ensure our path is clear. Under normal circumstances, I would use {Gate} but we all need experience traveling."

"It will be done." He said as he disappeared.

Shuna and Shion then entered the area and began to bicker about certain things while climbing on Ranga's back. There was no need to hide his size when we were in battle, so he was definitely big enough.

"Rimuru-sama. Sorry about this." Shuna said with a blush as she put her arms around my waist to hang on to me.

"Hey-now, princess... You don't need to be holding onto Rimuru-sama when we haven't left yet!" Shion stated annoyed.

"It's fine Shion. You can hold onto me on the way back," I said as I made the 'let's round 'em up' gesture with my hands to get the other members ready to leave.

While I had haven't created the Hobgoblin Riders like Rimuru in canon, we still use Direwolves as our mounts. Artoria is particularly fond of this and frequently uses Fenrir as her personal mount while wielding [Rhongomyniad]. Although she won't be participating in this battle along with Shiroe and her daughter Mordred, since they need to prepare for their trip to Estonia, Nyanta is taking Shiroe's place while Esdeath will be protecting the Tengu observers who will be arriving with {Gate}.

"Alright lads. Let's go show those pigs who the true master of the Jura Forest is!" Benimaru yells as we set off.

"Please be careful, Rimuru-san..." Shizue says to herself.

"My my. You seem to like that Rimuru-boy, don't you, Shizu-chan?" Asagi says as she comes from behind.

"Mother!" Shizue yells as Asagi laughs to herself.

...

It only took about an hour for us to arrive at Lake Shisu. As we approached, I saw Gabiru standing alongside his father and sister, though he was wielding the Vortex Spear instead of his father. Beside them stood Esdeath and three Tengu observers.

"Rimuru-sama! I see you have arrived. Esdeath said bowing before me. I could see future Momiji and two other Tengu looking at me closely. They were probably using some sort of analysis or sensory skill to observe my strength, because, after a moment, all three of them tensed and paled. Gabiru's father had a similar reaction, though he was able to mask his shock and begin a dialogue.

"You are the Great Rimuru? It is an honor to meet you. I am the leader of the Lizardmen of the lake. It is a pleasure to meet with you."

"And I am the leader of the Tengu of the mountains. It is a pleasure to meet you as well."

"The honor is all mine. I hope that the three of us can become close after this war is over, but now is not the time for pleasantries. This is Benimaru..." I say gesturing to him as he rode up beside me. "He shall be the supreme commander of this operation. As one of my more powerful subordinates, I hope you all will treat him well."

I didn't need to create a mind-reading skill to hear the voices of the Tengu Elder and Lizardman Chieftan. 'One of your more powerful subordinates my ass! He's clearly stranger than the Orc Lord!'

"It is a pleasure to meet you all. I am Benimaru. Even though I am inexperienced, I hope to prove to you all, and to my master, that his faith in me is not misplaced." Benimaru said as we began to set up camp.

I could see Momiji stealing glances at Benimaru the entire time we were setting up. I shook my head before pulling out Atlas. "Reform World: Create Solid Ground" I commanded and the swampy riverbed instantly became hardened stone flooring that was perfect for setting up camp.

As I ignored the gasps and gaping mouths of the Lizardmen and the Tengu observers, I created a table out of wood from my storage and placed a map of the region on it. Esdeath, Benimaru, Gabiru, and the Lizardmen Chieftan all eventually came up to it and we began planning.

Benimaru came up with a similar plan to what I used against the Dire wolves. Esdeath would create a massive wall of ice that surrounds the advancing orcs in three directions with the only escape being the marshy terrain close to the lake's edge. The Lizardmen would herd the orcs into smaller groups in the marsh and gang up on lone packs of orcs while Benimaru, Shuna, and I stood atop the Ice walls, firing magic down from them, thinning their numbers.

Once a good amount of them had been culled or forced into the marshy terrain, Shion, Hakuro, and Nyanta would create a line between me and the Orc Lord so that no one could get in our way. The Lizardman chieftain was slightly upset because this was extremely inefficient at killing them off, which would waste time and possibly lead to more Lizardmen casualties, but when he found out that this was to minimize casualties on all sides since I planned to take the Orcs as my subordinates, he couldn't say anything more.

It's not like he wanted to anger a being he was sure had an aura around that of a demon lord, though he seemed to have overestimated the average aura of demon lords.

"Very well. We shall go with your plan. However, I feel like there is still a lot of room for improvement in safety." He said as he helped refine the plan. Esdeath just commented that I should just nuke them all and be done with it, but then no one would gain experience.

After an hour of planning, we settled on a plan in which I would revive any of the Lizardmen who were killed while fighting the Orc Lord. The chieftain at first didn't believe I had the power to do so, but we were short on time, so he reluctantly agreed. Let's just say, he was extremely confused when I placed a huge multi-layered barrier over the battlefield.

...

Another hour later, the plan went into effect. The orcs didn't know it when the walls went up, but they had all just signed their death warrant. The trap was chaotic and frightening. Most who saw the opening in the ice wall ran straight for it and into the razor wire of Souei and the other spy-kijin. After the razor-wire trap was a line of magic mines that looked like Skyrim Magic runes but were unable to be seen since they were below the surface of the water in the marsh. Explosions tore through thousands of Orcs. After that, the gauntlet continued as the Lizardmen archers and slingers pelted them from a range. If the Orcs survived all of that, they would still be met with the spear-line of the Lizardmen who were being commanded by Gabiru.

Ranga used [Death Strorm] to further shock and awe the dazed and confused Orcs and prevent them from organizing, while Shuna had used sleeping magic on large swaths of the Orc lines, making them fall unconscious. To the confused and terrified orcs who couldn't think correctly, it appeared as though their brethren were just falling over dead.

Needless to say, Benimaru passed with flying colors. I jumped down from the Ice Wall and in front of the Orc Lord who was starring daggers at me.

"Hungry. Need to feed."

"I bet you are. Of all the Unique Skills to obtain, you had to get the only one with a downside." I said as I drew Yoru.

I must have looked badass. I was wearing robes similar to Toneri Otsutsuki's wedding robes from 'Naruto the Last,' but without the Tomoe and ridiculous headdress. My black katana gleamed dangerously in the afternoon light.

Just before I charged, everyone heard a whistling noise and looked to the sky. A red glint appeared briefly before a majin came slamming into the ground at supersonic speeds. He stood between me and the Orc Lord.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?!" Gelmud yelled. "How dare you ruin the plans of the Great Gelmud!"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot you were still here. I was going to ask Treyni to kill you, but she left before I got the chance." I said while stroking my non-existent beard.

"A new Demon Lord who would have done my bidding was about to be born, but you all just had to ruin it!" Gelmud yelled, completely ignoring my comment.

"A new Demon Lord!?!" Gabiru said as he appeared to the left of us.

'It seems the left flank of the Orcs had completely fallen apart if he could penetrate this deep. He probably wanted the glory of defeating the Orc Lord himself.'

"Yes! That's why I spent so long in this shithole, throwing away so many magicules by naming so many pathetic beings!"

"Eh!" Gabiru yelled.

Gelmud looked to Gabiru before pointing his cane. "Useless Lizard! Just become food for the Orc Lord already!"

"Gel-" Gabiru tried to say something but his words were caught in his throat.

"{Deathmarch Dance}!" Gelmud yelled as he fired off several magic bolts of red energy.

"[Carnivore]" I said as I intercepted the shots just before they hit Gabiru.

"Your...! Why did you save me?"

"Well if he has no use for you're loyalty, then I'll take you for myself, right Gabiru-san," I said as I used [Namer] with [Rule Breaker] to forcefully rename Gabiru using my power.

Gabiru began to glow golden with golden sparkles emitting from his body.

"Rimuru-sama! I shall serve you for the rest of existence!" Gabiru yelled in happiness as he was embraced by his men.

"That's Gabiru-sama for you!"

"Yeah! He was named twice!"

"No one has ever received a name twice before!" said the ninja-looking lizardman.

"HOW!?!" Gelmud yelled in astonishment. It should be impossible for someone to overwrite names while the original name-giver is still alive.

"Well, that's simple really," I say before pointing to Gelmud. "Even the Voice of the World knows the answer."

"Wha-"

"Your already dead," I say as Gelmud explodes into a million bloody pieces.

I had seen Souei use his razor wire attack on him while Gelmud was busy gawking at Gabiru's renaming, so I decided to play it up for a bit. 'I think I still might be slightly chunni' I think to myself.

[Master will remain chunni for all time since he was chunni since before he evolved into a Celestial].

'Oh right. There was that thing about Ultimate Existances wasn't there?'

As I was having this conversation with myself, the Orc Lord stepped forward and began slurping up Gelmud's remains much to the shock of everyone there.

*BOOOMMMMM!!!!*

A wave of sinister magicules blasts off from the Orc Lord as he super-evolves into an Ord Disaster. I am not sure why he didn't need to have an Evolutionary slumber, but I pushed it to the back of my mind.

[Confirmed. The Orc Lord's magicules have vastly increased. Evolution into a Demon Lord's seed has begun. He is using the processing power of all of his subordinate's minds to speed up his evolution.]

"He's becoming an Orc Disaster then..." I say as I watch the Orc regain clarity in his eyes and begin growling while the smog that surrounds him clears away.

"I am Geld! The Demon Lord Geld!" He says as he glares at me.

"Curb your ego! The only one who is fit for that title in this forest is Rimuru-sama!" Shion yells as she jumps forward and strikes with her buster sword towards the Orc Disaster.

*Clang!*

"It is as you say!" Esdeath says having disappeared from her original position and having reappeared behind the Orc Disaster. As she sheathed her Katana, a large cut opens up on his belly and immediately freezes over, giving his entire core frostbite.

Benimaru walks over to stand beside me while scoffing. "Even after evolving. He was still so easily beaten."

"I wouldn't be so sure," I said as the Orc Disaster's [Regeneration EX] kicks in. He quickly grabs Shion out of the air and throws her at Esdeath who catches her but is knocked down from the force of the throw.

"I did say I'd handle him, but you girls don't seem to get that," I say as I begin pumping more magicules into Yoru.

By now, the remaining 100,000 or so Orcs have all gathered on one side, while my allies' force gathered on the other. It now appeared to be a showdown between myself and the new Demon Lord Seed.

"You are strong, so I shall eat you first!" Geld screamed as he ran towards me at a speed too fast for the Lizardmen, Orcs, and even Tengu to tell. He appears by my side and reaches for me, but I simply twirl my blade and vanish from sight.

"What? Impossible!" Geld says to himself before he notices that his vision is funny. It seems his vision has been cut in half. Then he realizes he can't seem to feel the left side of his body at all.

Geld then falls into two halves, cleanly cut through both ends. "Divine Dividing" I say as I sheath my katana.

I turn to the thoroughly confused and panicking Geld. For some reason, he isn't regenerating. I then decide to end this little play and use [Carnivor] on him.

Unlike [Predetor], Carnivore is much faster and has a much greater range. My consumption of the Orc Disaster doesn't even take a single second. There is no battle, no speech about whose going to devour who, none of that. It's over in an instant.

(Inside the Mindscape)

"Impossible! For me, a Demon Lord, to lose so quickly to one such as you!" Geld yells.

"It was inevitable. Please don't fret."

"I cannot lose. No! I refuse to lose!"

"You've already lost. If not for me consuming you, you would have already departed from this world."

"No! I can't lose! If I lose, no one will be there for my people! They will suffer the consequences of my sins!"

"I told you already, don't fret. Your people will be fine. I promise" I say as I open a viewing panel of the outside world.

(Outside World)

"Rimuru-sama was victorious!" Gabiru yells.

"Of course. That is to be expected of Rimuru-sama!" Shuna states as she makes her way towards me.

"No. I haven't won just yet." I say as I begin to float over the battlefield.

I wave my hand and the ice walls instantly vaporize into magicules.

[Operation Complete. [Hephestus] has completed the reforging of Unique Skill [Carnivor] and Unique Skill [Starved] to create the Unique Skill [Gluttony]]

[Beginning Operation]

[Operation Complete. [Hephestus] has recreated Unique Skill [Merciless]]

[Beginning Operation]

[Operation Complete. [Hephestus] has completed the reforging of Unique Skill [Merciless] and Unique Skill [Gluttony] to create the Ultimate Skill [Beelzebuth]]

'Now let's knock the socks off of my future subordinates' I smirk.

"[Beelzebuth]" I say as I gather all of the magicules within the barrier I had set up earlier.

"Super Tier Magic {Secret Art of Rebirth}" I say as tens of thousands of orbs of lights appear over the bodies of the fallen monsters.

'While normal resurrection with Yggdrasil items is possible, it will result in the Orcs and Lizardmen who are revived to lose a rank in terms of power, while this method completely revives them just as strong as they were when they were alive.' I think.

"No way!" Shuna says in disbelief.

"What's going on?" Gabiru says from the side.

"This is the Ultimate Form of Resurrection Magic! Above the tenth tier!" one of the Tengu says from the sidelines.

The bodies of the countless fallen monsters begin to rapidly heal as small sparks of magical power shoot off of the orbs. The souls trapped in the orbs gently lower into the bodies of their former owners.

It starts with one, then a few dozen. Finally, tens of thousands of Orcs and hundreds of Lizardmen awaken and look around at each other with confusion. After a minute or two, both sides understand what had happened. The orcs begin to mourn the loss of their king while the Lizardmen celebrate the revival of their comrades

(Back in the Mindscape)

"This power!"

"I told you, right. Your people will be fine. I am not one who breaks my promises so easily."

Geld begins to teer up. "Great one. Please. I beg of you. Take care of my people!"

I walk over to the Orc Disaster, kneeling with his face to the floor, and put my hand on his shoulder.

"They will be as my own people from this day forth. I promise."

"I thank you... great one... my hunger has at last been... satiated...." He says as he becomes a cloud of particles and floats off to rest eternally inside my stomach.