A new beginning [4]

[Selene's Pov]

Five days had already passed since we arrived in this world, days mostly filled with us getting to know more about Terros, with all of us now getting used to carrying the surname Laowh, which pretty much just meant that we were 'born' in the capital.

Having another break from the education that we were forced to go through, where the elder that we now knew to be Beldroth Laowh taught us pretty much everything we needed to know about this world, I stood on one of the many bridges that spanned from tree to tree.

Laowh, and by extension Luprad, was an obscenely beautiful place, where the massive trees spanned high up in the air, which the native elves had used to build their homes above the ground.

Even the air itself felt fresh and invigorating, as there was nothing that had polluted it in this world.

Despite this, I still couldn't help but feel anxious about it all.

From the fact that we had been separated from the others to now getting to hear the truth about us living here. Beldroth had made it incredibly clear that although we were free to live our lives as we wished, there was a large chance that it would end up with this world getting destroyed and conquered by the demon king.

And because we were the only ones with the trait [One from another World], we were most likely the only ones that would be able to grow strong enough to stop him when he decided to invade the three nations.

'Aldric... what should I do...'

Now more than ever I wished that I had the man I trusted the most by my side, the one who always seemed to have an answer no matter what. Having known him since we were little, I knew that if there was someone who could remain calm and collected while choosing the best courses of action, it would be him.

"Selene, we have to get back to class!"

A short girl came running toward me, making me turn my head from the ground so far beneath me to the one who was trying to get my attention.

"Yes, I'm coming, Olivia."

Like all of us, Olivia had also changed quite a bit after getting transferred to this world, with her dark hair now being just as blonde as mine, and the freckles on her face completely disappearing. The trait that absolutely didn't disappear, however, was her petite stature, being almost a head shorter than me.

Also, there was the fact that she was a bit of a closeted nerd, something that had made her a lot more confident than the rest of us when getting transferred here, as she had read a lot of stories involving fantasy worlds.

'It can't be helped, can it?'

In the end, I didn't have a choice but to follow her back to the cottage-looking building sitting on the side of the tree where we got to listen to Beldroth's lectures, forcing myself to forget about the man I hoped was doing well on another side of the world.

****

[Aldric's Pov]

*Splat!*

Yet another slime had died by my hands, but at this point, I just couldn't find it in me to celebrate my victories against them. I had, however, started to borrow Gob's club while fighting them, as to make sure I wasn't covered in goo by the time we had finished our hunt.

"Gob..."

Standing on the side, now aware that he wasn't getting to fight today either, Gob was currently leisurely picking his nose while looking at me with indifference.

Every single day I had fought against slimes, killing more than any respectable being would dare to admit, simply because I was a bit too scared to go up against anything stronger before I had at least become a real demon.

And I was determined to make that happen today.

===Status===

Name: Aldric the Demon King

Race: Imp

Level: 9

Strength: 11

Agility: 11

Stamina: 11

Intelligence: 18

Free stat points: 0

Demonic energy: 78/90

Traits: [Blood of the Patriarch]

Skills: [Demon Claws]

==========

Though I had talked to Tatiana a bit about me massacring slimes, she had only looked at me like I was an idiot, seemingly not understanding why I didn't try to hunt bigger monsters, as that would allow me to grow faster.

After explaining to her that I still needed time to get used to my new body, she did seem to be a bit elated, thinking that I wasn't just a coward who was scared of challenging himself. Which, unfortunately, was more than the truth.

What she didn't understand about the matter was that I still had no fucking clue what I was doing, other than being very adamant about not dying. The most tragic part about that was that I was still aware that if I didn't grow fast enough, I would still die.

Therefore I decided that after I became a real demon, something more impressive than a measly imp, I would force myself to challenge stronger beings. For now, though, slimes were more than enough.

"Gob...? Gob, gob."

"Don't say it like that... I promise that after I reach level 10 I will act more like a demon king, okay?"

"Gob, gob."

"Fine, don't believe me then. Guess I will have to prove it with my actions instead."

Gob was currently the only one who knew of my dark secrets, that I had no idea what I was doing, and although he was honorable enough not to spill the beans to Tatiana, he more than made it known to me when we were out hunting.

It was like seeing an adorable kid grow up to be an annoying teenager, not understanding the woes of what adulthood was like.

Thus, I ignored his judging looks and kept on moving forward, still holding his club in my hands in case of a sudden slime appearing. And then, in the distance, I saw it, yet another blue slime that I now locked on to, determined to make it yet another sacrifice in my path to greatness.

"Let's go, Gob!"

"...gob."

Dashing ahead, I ran as quickly as I could, excited about getting yet another slimy achievement under my belt. As I kept dashing forward, however, I felt like something was off. Even after what felt like almost a minute of running, I had still not reached the blue slime, a creature that seemingly only got larger and larger as I approached it.

And then, as I stopped in front of my enemy, I realized my mistake.

From a distance, I hadn't seen the difference between this slime and any other, as it looked exactly the same as all the others. There was just one thing...

'It's huge!'

It was a giant slime, easily more than one and a half times my height, and as it was round, the circumference also made it extremely wide. That was why it had taken so long to get to it, as it hadn't been as close as I thought it was.

*Wobble*

Noticing my presence, the slime which was a few meters ahead wobbled a bit, almost as if to say 'Bring it on, demon!', which put me in quite a dilemma. For there was someone now looking quite intently at me, wondering how I would act in this situation.

Behind me, Gob was currently leaning himself on one of the few black trees that were spread around us, looking like he was about to light up a cigarette while enjoying the show.

For some reason, a part of me felt that if I ran away from my enemy, I would forever be remembered in Gob's mind as the demon king who fled from a slime, which made it incredibly hard for me to make a rational decision.

*Thud*

Dropping the club on the dirt-ridden ground, I took a breath as I tried to look confident in front of my underling, whose eyes now shone a bit when seeing that I didn't run away.

'[Demon Claws]'

Bringing out my claws, I turned my head a bit, connecting my eyes with Gob's, showing him my fake resolve, the confidence that I absolutely didn't have.

"Gob...!"

For the first time in a long time, or at least a couple of days, I thought I could see the respect that I had lost return to his eyes, now looking up at me like the idol he first knew.

'Look at me, Gob. This is your leader, your king!'

Switching my focus back to my huge, blue enemy, I took a breath to steel my mind.

A second later, I once again dashed forward, ready to meet my destiny, readying my clawed hands that were hanging on the sides of my body.

"Take this!"

*Glopp*

With a huge swing, I tried to tear the goopy body apart, only to a moment later feel a disgusting sensation around my entire body as I was sucked into the huge slime, with it fully intent on making me suffocate.

Which would have worked wonders if it wasn't for the fact that demons didn't need to breathe at all. So, with that, my victory had been ensured!

Because I panicked and started swinging my arms wildly, desperate to get out of there while accidentally killing the giant slime in the process...