35th Move | Other Bloodlust

Woman's washroom

After gathering the guards and reaching the library, Mjurran had to excuse herself under the pretense of 'taking a leak'. Sitting down in the stalls, the woman made sure that there wasn't anyone in the washroom before answering the call from her true master.

"Mjurran," Clayman's voice came into her mind, "it's time. Place the city under a disruption field. Specifically, a field that disrupts all particles with 14 negative electric polarities. After you've done this, as per the geas we both signed, you are now freed from my services eternally. Enjoy your freedom."

"Yes, Lord Clayman."

_____________________________________________

Metropolis, the National Library. A bit earlier.

The heavily armored SUV stopped right by the steps leading toward the main entrance of the National Library. The car's door was a heavy thing, so it took a bit of force for Youm to get it open.

Stepping out, Youm looked at the main entrance. The doors were made up of glass, just like so many other doors in Metropolis. Through the glass, Youm could see rolls upon rolls of half-empty bookshelves.

Despite the Director's best attempts, she still wasn't able to fill up the library.

Trekking up the stairs and strolling through the entrance, a human librarian approached them with a look of worry on her face.

"Can I help you, gentlemen?" She said with a look of well-hidden nervousness. The name tag on her breast displayed her name as 'Sara O'Bell'.

The Ambassador can sympathize with Sara. Anyone would be instantly nervous the moment they see over two dozen armed security personnel walking through the front door.

"Hi there Miss. I'm Youm, no last name yet. I'm here under a direct mission from the Director herself," Youm then took out a badge, displaying Scientia's insignia, "I'm here to retrieve Miss Arcueid Brunestud."

Though Code-TA is a clandestine operation, as his boss prefers not to cause too much of a stir, Youm thinks that by asking for outside help, he can quickly get Arcueid out of here, causing less of a scene than just going to search for her themselves.

A look of contemplation dawned upon the face of the librarian. The Director was an almost mythical figure with the Jura Tempest Republic mostly due to her secrecy and the complete lack of any public appearances, in contrast to President Rimuru Tempest who the people can see all the time thanks to him talking with the press.

This air of mystery's only compounded by how Director Scientia is responsible for most of the technologies that allow the Republic to function.

"Miss Brunestud? Well, she told us to make sure she's left alone, but if it's the Director..." Sara bit her lower lips, "Okay, she's currently in Room 405 and should still be there for the rest of the day. Do you need me to call her?"

Youm shook his head.

"That's alright. We can do the remaining ourselves." With that, Youm flashed her his well-practiced smile to put to rest any nervousness. Just as the man was about to leave, he was suddenly stopped when the librarian spoke up again.

"I'm going with you guys."

Youm's mouth was agape before taking control of himself again. "Miss O'Bell, we really don't need you to—"

"As the head librarian, it is my duty to supervise. Thus, I am going with you guys."

_____________________________________________

With head librarian Sara O'Bell, Youm was able to quickly get to the right room on the fourth floor of this massive library.

Supposedly, the Special Guest of the Director would often book a private room, pick out a large selection of books, and stay in that room, oftentimes reading for hours on end before stopping.

This happened frequently enough that the library always reserved a room just for her.

Sliding the door open, Youm stopped breathing.

Right there, in front of him, was the Special Guest sprawled out on a couch, reading a book, with stacks of more books that were up to his waist sitting right beside the woman.

Arcueid was a true beauty among beauties. She was a flower that stands above every flower that Youm had seen before. Even the Four Flowers of the West, who were considered by most the four most beautiful women in the Western States, were nothing compared to Arcueid.

The only one who can possibly compare was Princess Adelheid von Thele of the Thelium Kingdom from 400 years ago. Legends say that she was so beautiful that she enthralled Relentless for a few seconds to allow the rest of her family to escape.

The veracity of that legend is disputable, as the main line of the Thelium Royal Family were all murdered when Relentless descended upon the capital.

Youm quickly turned away to look elsewhere. Trying to keep his mind on something other than how ethereally beautiful the Special Guest of the Director was.

He was wrong, those artists online could never truly capture Arcueid Brunestud's beauty. Hers was a natural beauty, like those you'd find after a long hike in a forest, while the Director was an unnatural one.

Glancing all around the room, Youm found it personally rather boring. The walls were painted a simple orange color, there was a circular table perfect for a meeting and three sets of chairs, a couch off to one side of the wall, and a large window situated on the opposite wall to the entrance.

Adjusting his tie— he was wearing a rather expensive three-piece suit— Youm cleared his throat to get the Special Guest's attention.

Letting out his well-practiced smile, "Miss Brunestud. Hi, my name is Youm, you may know me as Tempest's Ambassador to Blumund and the West."

He received no response. Arcueid didn't even let out any signal that says she was aware that Youm spoke and continued to read her book. She didn't even acknowledge Youm's very existence.

The silence started by Youm in waiting for a response turned awkward, causing the man to cough into his closed fist, "Well, According to Director Scientia—"

That caught Arcueid's attention. Instantly, the blonde woman sat right up and turned her body, depositing her feet on the floor instead of on the couch.

"Scientia? What does she need me to do?"

"She doesn't need you to do anything. Rather, the Director asked me to entertain you for the next 12 hours since she's apparently quite busy and doesn't want any interruptions."

Arcueid wilted. Her shoulder slumped as she frowned. The heartbreaking sight was enough to almost cause Youm to stagger. He wants to see such a beautiful woman smile and be happy, not sad.

Clearing his throat again, "Well do not worry! I'm sure I can entertain you enough that you'll forget about Director Scientia! In fact—!"

Youm silenced himself under the glare that Arcueid gave him. He felt incomparably tiny in front of Arcueid, where instead of a woman in front of him, it was a whole goddamn World. He could easily imagine himself falling into that World, burning up in the atmosphere—

"After reading so many books, I know that you're just trying to make me feel better, so I will forgive you this one time, but do not. I repeat: do not go there. Do not attempt to make me forget about Scientia."

Youm gulped. He could hear the ruffling of clothing coming from his security detail, probably going for their tasers.

Ha, he could almost laugh, what's a taser going to do to the Special Guest?

"Riiiiiight, apologies on my part. Sorry, didn't know that's a sensitive issue. But moving on," Youm quickly said, "my point is, the Director wanted me to entertain you, and I shall do exactly that."

Arcueid's expression returned to disinterest. Like before, Arcueid is an individual who acknowledges common sense but doesn't participate in them. A normal person would at least give Youm a chance, but on anything not related to Scientia or maybe books, the blonde woman is extremely disinterested in it.

"Uh..." Youm wracked his brain for an answer to how to ignite Arcueid's interest. The white book!

Reaching into a pocket and fumbling around for a bit, Youm took out the white book and flipped through its pages, "I do have a book from the Director telling me what you like and don't like. We can go—"

*Beep, beep, beep*

Whatever Youm was about to say was halted when a loud alarm came from his belt area.

Flashing a look of annoyance, "Sorry about this, Miss Brunestud," Youm took out a small capsule and popped it open. Using his thumb, the Ambassador pushed out the head of an earpiece before taking it with his other hand and inserting the earpiece into his right ear channel.

"What's the situation, OSS? I'm on a direct mission from the Director herself."

The Overwatch Security System (OSS) is the premier police program for the entirety of Metropolis. Beyond serving as an overview directory system for Autonomous Security Drones, the OSS is also responsible for alerting emergency services like ambulances, firefighters, and government-only alerts.

Usually, Youm would hurriedly answer the alert made by the OSS, since they're meant to be emergencies. However, due to him being on a mission given by Scientia, the man imagined that whatever it is, it probably doesn't need him.

A synthesized voice spoke up on the other end, "Unauthorized use of undocumented Skill by two individuals detected on the East of Barthers, around Unit 1134 to 1150. This is a Euclid-class emergency with a potential upgrade to Keter. All nearby Security Drones have been dispatched and all civilians are instructed to evacuate the immediate area with due haste.

That's near the edge of the city, Youm noted inside his mind.

"As a Rank-III government official, you are recommended to stay in official governmental buildings until the situation passes or have been downgraded to Safe-class."

Youm sucked in his lips.

"I can't do that. As I said, I'm on a mission from Director Scientia."

The man glanced at Arcueid, who was looking at him with a quizzed look.

"Your response has been noted." There was a buzz on the other end to signify the OSS has stopped talking.

Just as Youm was about to take out the earpiece, the OSS spoke up again, "Update: the situation has been upgraded to a Keter-class emergency. The two individuals have exhibited possible Unique Skills and Influencer-type abilities."

"What? That serious?"

Influencer-type abilities refer to Skills that have the capacity to affect another's mind. Due to the potential for subversion, this type of ability is one of a few that is given an instant Keter-class threat rating.

In such a serious situation, Youm is required to also go to the nearest shelter, so the man turned to look at Arcueid with a pained look on his face. He doesn't want to go to the shelter, since he was given a mission by the fucking Director herself, but at the same time, Keter-class stuff isn't a joke, with the most prominent example of a Keter being the Fire Spirit Ifrit.

"Alert." That broadcast was from a speaker and from outside. The Emergency Alert System. "This is not a drill. A Keter-class emergency has been declared. All civilians within Metropolis are to stay indoors. All civilians currently situated in Sector 23 are required to evacuate toward your nearest safety shelter and await our clearance. The east of Barthers is to be avoided at all costs."

A grim look overcame the Ambassador's face. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

Youm kicked the wall before taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

Is this what the Director meant by having a 'bad feeling'? Youm wondered. He really doesn't want to know what would happen to him if he fails.

Turning to face Arcueid with his eyes aiming toward the ground, the man further thought that at least Arcueid is seemingly content at staying here to read her books. So long as she stays out of trouble, that should be enough for the Director, right?

"Well Miss Brunestud, it appears that we'll stay here instead of going—" As Youm was speaking, the True Ancestor closed the book she was reading before and walked over to the window, "—to an Arcade."

Youm then started gesturing toward the stack of books, unaware that Arcueid was turning the handle that was responsible for locking the window. "I've never read too many books, so I gotta ask: what's so good about them?"

Keeping someone engaged was a skill Youm had long learned even before being employed by Director Scientia. When he was young, Youm was a purse-snatcher, and the best way to snatch a purse was to keep a person's occupied, and the best way to do that is to talk about the other person's hobby— to keep a conversation going.

It was only when Arcueid opened the window to its absolute largest that Youm started to get a bit worried. Subconsciously, he wanted to approach her, but because of that glare from before, he was honestly scared of the woman.

"Miss Brunestud?"

The True Ancestor placed a leg onto the window frame and prepared to jump out.

"Miss Brunestud!"

Youm rushed forward but failed to reach the blonde woman as she jumped out the window, the tip of his hand mere centimeters away.

"NO—!"

Youm stopped by the window to look down, expecting to see the Special Guest on the ground, either dead or injured since no human could possibly survive such a fall.

What he didn't expect was to feel a rush of air and the sight of Arcueid leaping up again, only this time reaching a height of hundreds of meters before falling down and repeating this process.

"Huh... so she wasn't a human."

The Ambassador could only watch dumbfoundedly as Arcueid leaped toward the city, the white figure quickly disappearing within the steel and glass jungle.

This continued for a few more seconds before the head of his security detail, Rommel with his thin black armor, tapped him on the shoulder.

"Sir, we noticed how Mjurran took a long time in the washroom, so we tried to contact her but failed. Following that, we discovered Mjurran's tracker's gone offline."

That caused Youm to instantly whip his head around and grabbed the collar of Rommel's shirt.

"What the hell do you mean? That she's missing?"

Youm would usually be more cordial, but after everything that's happened, it's been a stressful day.

Rommel looked hesitant, but a second glance at the 'do not mess with me' expression on Youm's face made him nod.

"Yes. I'm having one of our female guards look around at all the female washrooms here but we're not having any luck.

Youm let go of Rommel's collar and thumbed the bridge of his nose. Squeezing his eyes shut, the Ambassador chuckled a bit.

"Damn it all to hell. 'Bad feeling', you really meant prelude to disaster huh?"

Finally, Youm placed a finger on the still attached earpiece, "OSS, I have my security team with me, what can we do to help?"

_____________________________________________

Shogo Taguchi was angry.

No, scratch that, he was furious. Bloody livid.

Everything had gone to hell the moment he stepped into this place, this city that reminds him so much of his past that it hurts to look at.

He refuses to be reminded of the fact of how weak he was in that past life.

The teen desperately tried to bury the memories. And yet, they come rushing out of the crack that was formed by this city.

He was a weak person in his old World. Though he came from a well-off family, Shogo was often neglected, as both his parents were too busy with their work. The kids at school often bullied him for it, but after fighting back physically and his parents finally paying him attention, Shogo realized the best way to get his parents to notice him was by being bad.

Thus Shogo Taguchi became a delinquent.

He acted out, bullied people, blackmailed girls to go on dates, and he created a mask. Very that mask became his actual face, and Shogo could no longer identify where 'he' began and the 'delinquent' persona ended.

One day, he went too far. The delinquent friends he had abandoned him, and he realized just how much of a facade his strength truly was.

He was weak, and just as he ran out of the hospital, Shogo Taguchi was transported into another World.

In that other World, he became truly strong. He could crush a man's skull as if it was an egg.

So Shogo Taguchi promised himself right before he slept his first sleep in this new World: he will never be weak.

"Grrr..."

Shogo stared at the half-broken street flanked by sidewalks and different shops, with skyscrapers off in the distance clustered around a single truly titanic metal structure like they were mushrooms on a rotten log.

Around the streets were filled with hardened blobs of foam that forcibly stopped the people that Kirara had commanded to kill themselves for mocking her.

The girl didn't take too kindly to being looked down upon.

Two seconds after Kirara had issued that command, several drones came from all over the place and sprayed everyone with that white foam.

Shogo could get out of that foamy jail with ease, but he had to rescue Kirara.

Which was an absolute waste of strength and effort as the girl was just laying down on the ground in a fetal position, seemingly afraid of everything in the world, and started sobbing.

"USELESS!" Shogo screamed.

In response, the girl just cried louder.

"Get up!" Shogo kicked Kirara in an attempt to get to move— to use her Unique Skill— to do SOMETHING more useful than just laying down and crying.

Just then, one of these cross-shaped robots that hovered in the air blasted out a stream of that hardening foam to cease Shogo's attack, making the young teen glare at them.

"Fucking hell!" Shogo reached down and ripped out a chunk of the broken streets before all together throwing it at the drones like it was a baseball at almost the speed of sound.

The drones dodged.

"God damn it stop dodging!" In a kick with his confined leg, Shogo Taguchi escaped out of the foam. He then let out a scream, "Where the hell is Kyoya!?"

Kirara screamed like a banshee.

"Dumb bitch!" That finally. That finally pushed Shogo over the edge.

At the end of his patience, Shogo finally grabs Kirara by her throat with his two hands and hoists her up high like a flag. The difference in their heights prevented the scared girl's feet from reaching the ground as they flailed about uselessly, "I've had enough of your pitiful whining. All this time, all your complaining about your phones, and the lack of entertainment— just die and give me your Skills! Hey, Voice of the World? Get ready to receive this dumb bitch!"

He started to press down on his thumb, causing Kirara to suddenly quiet down as she couldn't scream anymore. The girl tried to use her nails to stab into Shogo's arms, but that only caused Shogo to squeeze even harder.

"Gr— Grk! —Kr—!"

The Overwatch Security System isn't a truly sentient AI. It doesn't feel anything. It has no empathy. It's just designed to do a single job, and that is to capture those who break parameters. It is an extremely advanced machine learning algorithm AI, a 'System', and it took a millisecond for the OSS to come up with a solution to stop this murder attempt.

After all, it was designed to capture all law-breakers, and it can't do its job if one of the law-breakers is dead.

>Change status of Designated: Alpha: into 'Subhuman'.

Spikes came out of the nearby drones. Before, these security drones possessed a geometrically pleasing design, but now, one could almost call the drones 'scary'.

>Drastic measure: authorized. Temporarily blindness measures: insufficient. Mutilation: permitted. Execute.

One of the four arms on the drone closest to the scene of the crime split open, peeling away like the skins of a banana away to reveal a single bright bulb—

*VZZZ*

A coherent stream of high-intensity photons cut right through Shogo's elbows, immediately dropping an unconscious Kirara alongside Shogo's forearms into the ground.

There was a brief silence. Shogo stared down at the ground in front of him. His expression didn't change for a few seconds.

Then it finally hit him that his arms are missing.

"AAAAAAAAAAArrrrrffff!" The Otherworlder was cut off when both he and Kirara was once again sprayed with another stream of Containment Foam.

Before the foam could harden, Shogo burst out of that hill of white foam, his mouth wide as he screamed, tumbling forward, unable to keep his balance as his arms bled.

"It hurts! It huuuuuuurts!!!"

Shogo's face fell to the ground. The rubbles and gravels scratching and bitting into his skin were nothing compared to the white-hot pain that was radiating up his arm, his severed arm.

The reality of the situation hits him like a truck. The Otherworlder finally realized why Kyoya had abandoned them and run away despite the potential repercussions.

'I'm going to die.'

That thought had rung out in his mind like Big Ben on New Year's Eve.

He's... really going to die today.

"I don't wanna die—"

His sightlines were once again blocked by the foam that was sprayed out by the Autonomous Security Drones.

>All Containment Foam nozzle spent: requesting backup.

Shogo's survival instincts kicked in. Using his Unique Skill [Berserker], the teen exploded out of the foamy mess that consumed him.

>Backup request: denied. Suggest usage of taser darts.

"HELP! Please! Folgen! Razen! Save me!" Shogo yelled out as he ran, his arms and his pride shattered beyond repair with the drones rapidly closing in on him.

Despite his best effort, Shogo could only maintain a trotting speed, so the drones were easily able to aim and shoot out a small black taser dart at the criminal.

The darts were aerodynamic in their shapes, with two parallel pairs of fins for stabilization. The moment those taser darts reached within less than 30 centimeters of Shogo Taguchi, the tip split into two, appearing like a fork as they sunk into the back of Shogo's neck.

*Bzzzzzt*

The moment those darts turned on, Shogo fell onto the ground, "GRRRRRRRRKKKKK! Grraaaaaaah!"

Nonetheless, the teen still tried to crawl away even as the electric shock coursed through his body and caused neuromuscular incapacitation.

White, bubbly foams came out of the corner of Shogo's mouth.

"He... lp... Meee..."

Finally, Shogo gave up and accepted his death. Like a beaten dog, he went limp, not moving even after the darts ran out of power.

>Mission success. Begin retrieval of Designated: Alpha.

Before the drones could move further than an inch, the thunderous sound of hundreds of horses filled the streets. These sounds echoed off the walls of the stores that flanked everything, making hundreds seem like thousands.

Off in the distance, an army of unprecedented proportions which was hidden thanks to the best stealth magic that money can buy unveiled itself.

>Alert: Unauthorized foreign army detected on Tempest soil. Declaration of war: automatically assumed. Proceed with the mobilization of all military assets. Execute Contingency Plan D-34-98 Code Name: 'Vietnam Tactics'. Lethal measures: authorized.

The sound of horses caused Shogo to use what was left of his strength to turn his head toward the source. His eyes widened as the sight ignited a flame of hope in the Otherworlder's heart.

Reinforcements!

The fatigue from the tasers became a thing of the past as Shogo stood up, or at least tried to. The teen tried to use his arm to help himself up, only to fail as he no longer had any.

"Help me! These monsters sicced their golem at us and sprayed this horrible goo! They took my fucking arms! Using lasers! Hurry!"

None of the flying Autonomous Security Drones were paying Shogo any attention. Instead, all of them were staring at the approaching army.

>Target count: 500 humans. Execute euthanization procedure.

Those cross-shaped drones changed their posture and shape. Each of its 'arms' came inward like the fingers on a hand, and the center was replaced by a glowing red light.

The knights further sped up as the Knight Captain of Falmuth, Folgen, declared in a self-righteous tone, "I come to see the supposed 'Land of Opportunities' yet I'm met with such savagery?! The Kingdom of Falmuth will not stand for this!"

In truth, all of this was just for show. It was a show given to Reyheim, to, if not fool him, at least give Falmuth plausible deniability by saying 'We've done our best'.

Every knight's order by the King was clear: cause a ruckus but DON'T KILL anyone, maim them a bit but never take a life. If they encounter any enemy forces, the knights are to surrender at the first opportunity.

Everyone saw the moving pictures presented to them by Folgen, of the willingness of the Republic in using pseudo-nuclear magic that bordered on S-rank: capable of annihilating a city. So even the most glory-seeking knights would go along with this plan.

"You're breaking human laws, and thus, the Knights of Falmuth have seen fit to enact justice!"

The red light at the center of each Autonomous Security Drones glowed brighter and brighter. They were moments away from unleashing a hellish barrage of the highest-intensity laser in their arsenal—

*Buzz*

—A sudden barrier erupted from deep within the city. Once that barrier overcame the Drones, they fell lifelessly onto the ground with a loud metallic 'clank'.

It wasn't just the drones that became lifeless. The once vibrant and colorful city that was filled with light became lifeless. More than that, every single panel of glass within Metropolis cracked and came out of its frames as the field passes by, making each building a veritable avalanche of tiny pieces of broken glass.

To any observer, it would've been an oddly beautiful sight. Billions of tiny shards rain down from defaced buildings, in an exfoliated city. Those tiny shards of glass twinkled as they reflected the sunlight, like the stars at night.

"Ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! I'm saved! I'm saved—gk!" Shogo laughed at the turn of the event, before suddenly freezing as he felt a new presence behind him.

Quickly turning around, the Otherworlder saw another utterly gorgeous teen around his age of 17-18 years old. The girl had the blondest hair he'd ever seen, and equally, the eyes with the brightest crimson. Had this been in any other situation, like say perhaps in his old World, Shogo Taguchi would've assumed her to be a foreign supermodel and tried to flirt with her.

However, right now, in the present moment in time, his instincts are SCREAMING at him to just run. Run and don't look back.

That made Shogo feel confused. Why? He wanted to ask. There was a beautiful smile on the girl's face, one that was filled with an innocence that for some odd reason, unsettled Shogo to an unusual degree.

Upon a closer inspection, a chill went down his spine as Shogo realized the smile wouldn't look out of place on a child. Equally, it shouldn't be anywhere near a battlefield.

"Hmm," the girl placed a finger to her chin and had a puzzled expression on her face.

Speaking in an innocent and silver-bell-like voice, "The books I've read told me that killing was wrong unless it's truly justified, justifications like to protect someone. So wouldn't this constitute a 'proper reason'? To protect the citizens of Scientia's precious Republic."

Despite how innocent the girl appeared, there was an oppressive atmosphere that seems to just trickle off of her like water from a melting ice cube. The sound of those horses stopped, all of them stopped as though they had seen their natural predator.

The knights were confused. They tried to get their horses to move, but they refused to take another step.

In nature, animals can often predict when natural disasters like earthquakes were about to strike because of their heightened senses. Similarly, the horses were able to sense their impending doom if they take another step.

The girl then smacked her closed right hand into the other palm while nodding, "mmhmm! Yep yep! This would definitely be a good place to cut loose!"

The girl looked cheerful as if she was a teenage girl whose confession had just been accepted.

Never before had Shogo imagined something as disturbing as what was happening in front of him. It was so wrong. It feels so wrong— everything was wrong!

Shogo's mouth hung ajar. It then dawned upon him that his salvation might not come after all, as the silent street that was once filled with the sound of horses trotting was now covered by a blanket of bloodlust so heavy the Otherworlder can't breathe— his very heart ached as if he had a heart attack.

The girl— the thing— then turned its gaze at Shogo.

"EEEEEEE!" Immediately, the teen screamed in a manner not too dissimilar to Kirara's and looked away, his body turned and tried to be as small as possible in the face of humanity's natural predator.

"Oh don't worry, foreigner," Shogo's heart pounded, he could feel the thing's voice no more than half a meter away, "Your nature is similar to mine."

No, no it definitely isn't, Shogo wanted to scream. The very idea that Shogo was similar to this entity in human skin was blasphemous.

"So I think Scientia would be as curious. Don't run away, the people you associate with are all stuck after all." The blonde beast let out a wide smile that revealed its fangs.

Huh? Shogo turned to look at the knights who were charging at them seconds ago, only to find them bound in green vines that had come out of the ground.

The girl thing was like a spider, and it had just bound her prey in its webs.

"Yeah, I know, the vines are overkill, but I haven't fought in a while," the girl said nonchalantly and cracked her neck. Then, her eyes widened and her mouth formed into an 'o', "Oh wait, I haven't introduced myself, haven't I? Ah..."

The girl then playfully knocked herself on the head.

"How improper of a princess. My name is Arcueid, Arcueid Brunestud, the White Princess of the True Ancestors."

The sheer casualness in Arcueid's tone caused the Japanese teen to fall into a pit of despair deeper than anything before it. Here, in this World, True Ancestors are seen as the epitome of vampiric power, the highest evolution that a vampire majin can attain. It was said that the previous vampire Demon Lord was a True Ancestor who managed to go toe-to-toe with Veldora for a while before the latter destroyed Nightrose 300 years ago.

So then... that vampire Demon Lord didn't die but instead chose a new name and secretly built up this nation...

The fact that Arcueid's clothing changed into a formal dress that wouldn't look out of place in a castle's ballroom was completely lost on him.

Such a lack of reaction made the Princess scoff, "Hmph, I see I guess you wouldn't know fashion when you see it, do you?"

"Haha..." Shogo started to laugh. The laugh wasn't joyous or full of happiness, but instead, it was one that belonged to a broken soul at how the events of today had happened: betrayal of everyone he knew, Kyoya had run away, Kirara was absolutely useless, and Razen had sent them to die.

And now... he'll die alone. His parents would never pay attention to him again.

"How dull, completely unlike Scientia," Arcueid looked at the teen now with empty eyes, before turning to the crowd of knights, "Well I guess I should now defend the Republic now before I go and check up on her."

Placing a hand above her chest, Arcueid closed her eyes before opening them, revealing a pair of yellow eyes that saw those in front of it as mere cattle for the butcher.

The True Ancestor then dropped her arm before raising them slowly, giving the appearance that she was about to hug a long-lost friend.

Then, she disappeared.

*BOOM*

There was a sonic boom.

Arcueid suddenly appeared behind the last knight in the army. Her posture was straight, her arms formed an 'x' across her chest as if to comfort herself. She stopped immediately without regard to inertia.

Akin to the buffering found in a 4K video running off bad wifi, at first almost nothing seemed to have happened. For a brief moment in time, it was as if the very World itself was confused.

Then, the buffering stopped, and the video time stamp moved.

*Splat*

A trail of exploded bodies ran right through Falmuth's army. Half a hundred knights that were seen as some of the West's finest were pulverized into a fine red mist, with those who were off to the side merely having either their fingers removed or half their body disintegrated.

Arcueid's dress remained untouched, remained a pristine whiteness, even as the blood mist falls all around her like a cloud descending from the sky. The knights looked at her with raw, primordial terror in their eyes. It was the same terror in a gazelle as lions chase it down.

"Wait!" Folgen yelled out, half of his body dyed red with the blood of his comrade, "We surrender! We give up! This was never a part of the— Urk!"

Arcueid suddenly appeared right in front of Folgen before running her right arm right through his armor like it was made out of air.

The original Arcueid Brunestud was a weapon. She was made for the sole purpose to eliminate rogue True Ancestors who were turned into Demon Lords, and as such, she was made to be the strongest True Ancestor.

The current Arcueid temporarily returned to being a 'weapon', a merciless, unrelenting, unstoppable missile that would still kill its target even if they were begging or a defenseless baby.

Before anyone could scream or even react, Arcueid drew her arm back before throwing the dead Folgen like a cannonball.

And just like a cannonball, Folgen barreled through several more of his fellow knights.

"RAAAAAAH! DIE DEMON!"

Finally, one of the knights took hold of his nerves and chose to fight.

*Swoosh*

He was diced instantly into five pieces like sashimi.

Their armor was completely useless at the claws of a Disaster-rank being that bordered on Catastrophe.

"RRRRAAAAH, NO! PISCES! DIE YOU DEMON!" Another knight rushed forward.

"NOOOO! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" Another knight jumped off his horse and ran in the opposite direction to Arcueid.

A white pond lily drifting amidst a churning pond of scarlet.

Arcueid reached out and grabbed the throat of one of the knights that were trying to attack her before unleashing another casual swipe with her free hand that sliced half a dozen knights apart.

Bringing him close, the True Ancestor could see the fear in his eyes through the helmet.

Then Arcueid took a chunk out of the knight's neck before throwing him at another knight that tried to escape.

Savoring the taste and feeding a hunger she never knew she had, the Princess temporarily halted her slaughter for half a second and noticed how she didn't possess the same repulsion against blood as her old self.

Then her focus narrowed in on this 'hunger', her mind worried that— No, it wasn't that Vampiric Impulse which plagued other True Ancestors in her old world, as being in this new World detached from Gaia changed her so that she'll never have it again.

The blonde beast completely lost herself to this feeling, immersing in this urge to kill as she slaughtered the knights each in a fashion more brutal than the last.

That event would later be known as 'The Metropolis Bloodbath', as each foreign knight was dismembered in a fashion that caused Scientia to later classify this as an 'Executive-level secret'.

It was really fortunate that the Foam which covered the civilians blocked out both sound and vision.

_____________________________________________

Meanwhile, on the same day, Ingrassia, Lura.

The sun shone through the window beautifully, yet it was the chirps of the birds outside which caused Rimuru to wake up.

Sitting on the bed, Rimuru stretched his limbs as he yawned. Today was the day he was supposed to head home. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, the humanoid slime now often slept in his more comfortable human form.

Hearing the sound of writing, Rimuru looked to the source and found Shizue sitting by this room's writing desk and busily writing on many pieces of paper. There were several burnt-out candles on one end of the table, showcasing how the silver woman had worked all night.

Realizing that she was being watched, Shizue stopped writing and smiled at an awakened Rimuru.

"Good morning, Mr. President. I take it you had a good sleep?"

"Yes, I did." The slime sighed, "Man, I had a crazy few weeks, didn't I?"

Shizue merely nodded sagely. Getting up from her seat, the woman went into the closet and picked out a set of fancy suits for him to wear.

Laying that suit on the bed, Shizue then asked, "What would you like for breakfast?"

"Something light, something that'll pull me up."

"Right away, Mr. President." With that, Shizue dropped a folded piece of paper before quietly leaving the room.

Being a slime, Rimuru returned to his original form and slid out of his pajamas before sliding into the suit.

Looking at himself in the mirror, Rimuru couldn't help but be reminiscent of how he had started a new fashion trend. Various nobles would now often wear offshoots that were clearly inspired by his crisp and sterile suit.

It made him feel like one of those popular kids at school.

Sitting down by the writing desk, Rimuru unfolded the piece of paper and read its content. It was a timetable for the day alongside a daily briefing.

As he read, Shizue came back through the doorway with a tray full of light but pull-me-up breakfast.

"Thank you Shizue."

The woman only bowed in response before leaving.

As Rimuru ate, he read the daily briefing that gave him an overview of everything going on in Tempest alongside the rest of the world. It was a general briefing since as the President, he's supposed to be the generalist.

"'Congress approves the building of a hyperloop to Trantor'... 'Budget deficit covered by Research and Development'... 'Omniversity expansion'... 'Troop movement by Falmuth'... 'The disappearance of Hinata Sakaguchi'..."

It was just like any other day: a calm one which Rimuru was thankful for. Truthfully, he didn't know what he had signed up for when he agreed to be President. Being isekai-ed doesn't just suddenly give you the magical ability to instantly be able to manage a country.

Seeing how there wasn't really anything that required his attention, and that his departure is scheduled for after one final lunch with the King, Rimuru realized he had around four hours all to himself.

He's gonna be so bored. So to avert that boredom, Rimuru consulted his Unique Skill [Great Sage].

'What can I do that's a time killer [Great Sage]?'

<Suggestion: the individual known as Shizue Aizawa is holding a farewell party today in the institution she is teaching at, you could stop by and introduce yourself to the kids>

"Hrmm... I knew I could count on you [Great Sage]!" Rimuru complimented the disembodied voice that resided deep within his Soul. His Unique Skill [Great Sage] always knows how to solve his problems!

Deciding to fly over to the school that Shizue taught at, Rimuru was greeted with the sight of an academy that seems to jump straight out of a picture book about 19th Century England, what with the design and all resembling Oxford University.

According to Shizue, Freedom Academy was founded by a rogue Otherworlder. It made the slime wonder what else in this World had been influenced by people from other Worlds, and furthermore, how far back had the Otherworlders been summoned.

Ingrassia is the melting pot of the West. They're like America but with a King, and are probably the most progressive out of all the Western states, though there are definitely elements within the government and ruling class that are disgruntled by the change brought about by King Aegil, evident by the coup attempt.

Entering the main door of the school, Rimuru stared in awe at the works of art present within.

The polished floor made it so he could see his own reflection. The ceiling was tall and had beautifully decorated arches and spires that drop from above. The walls were filled with paintings of presumably famous people with statues (busts) of people's heads situated in between each painting.

Momentarily, Rimuru pondered if he had been transported back into his old World's Britain.

Marching up to the front desk, Rimuru found the countertop to be a bit higher than he was.

"..."

The humanoid slime extended his leg and saw the front desk was manned by an old lady who was writing things down with an expensive golden pen.

"Hello."

The old lady looked up with a pair of glasses that hung right under her eyes, the wrinkles on her face stretching out a bit, "Shizue? So quick? I'm sure the kids wouldn't mind you staying longer."

"Ah...? No... I'm Rimuru."

Adjusting her glasses so that it's in between her eyes and the slime, a look of astonishment appeared on the old lady's face, making Rimuru see her in a grandmotherly light.

"Oh, apologies Mister Rimuru, it's just you looked really similar to one of our faculties."

"Oh that's alright," the slime looked up a the ceiling and thought about how he used Shizue's old body as a template for his current one, "I get that a lot. I'm also looking for Shizue Aizawa."

"Oh? I see she's gotten popular huh?" There was a light that gleamed in the old lady's eyes, "has that girl finally settled down?"

Girl? Rimuru looked confused, wasn't Shizue older than his own parents? Wait— settled down? She doesn't mean—

"NO! Me and Miss Shizue don't have that kind of relationship! We're friends at best!" Rimuru's cheeks almost glowed.

The old receptionist chuckled.

"Oh, I'm just messing with ya! But really though, that girl should settle down already. I know she's some big-shot adventurer who's retired but you'd think she'll start a family in a quiet place like Ingrassia just as so many other adventurers did."

The old lady was just like Rimuru's parents in his past life who would always call every month asking him if he'd met a girl yet.

"It's always the same with her type... a kid who grew up on fanciful tales of stories of heroes like Chronoa or Granbell fighting against Relentless in a battle for the future of the World... they then decide to take up a sword and join up with the Adventurer's Guild... and if they thrive in there, the boy or girl either unfortunately takes too big of a bite or realizes the dangerous line of work and retires into the calm and peaceful life of a farmer..."

The tone the receptionist used was full of nostalgia as if she was reminiscing about a time long ago.

"Anyway, enough about jolly ol' me, Mister Rimuru...?"

Realizing he was asked about his last name, the humanoid slime replied, "Tempest. Rimuru Tempest."

Hearing his last name, the old receptionist's eyes lit up in recognition, "Oh you're the leader of that Republic who claimed the entirety of the Great Jura Forest?"

Rimuru nodded proudly, "Yep that's us!"

The receptionist sighed a great one, like an old grandma handing back a phone after playing around with it, "Well, I gotta say I'm impressed! You caused the most excitement here in Lura ever since the ascension of King Aegil! I mean, according to those merchants, building a grandiose nation from scratch in less than a year? I don't think even the Demon Lords were able to do such a thing!"

The old lady then brought a pen up, "I gotta say, I'm a bit intrigued at the possibility of co-existence with monsters," she then leaned forward and spoke quietly, "I've never been one to buy up the propaganda of the Western Holy Church. The fact that we humans still live despite real powerhouses like Demon Lords running around is already proof of that."

Rimuru's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing he's got a supporter all the way here, thousands of kilometers away from Metropolis.

Even if it's just one, it's really heart-warming.

"So I've taken enough of your time, whaddya need?"

"I'm here to get Shizue,"

The old lady nodded, "Of course. It's her last day today, she's holding a small party with her students down in Classroom-115. Though..." the woman looked hesitant, "please give the girl a chance to say a proper farewell to her students before taking her away, will you? The poor girl looked especially distraught coming in today."

The slime could sympathize with Shizue. Satoru Mikami moved schools once, and on his final day, he enjoyed a tearful goodbye with his friends at that school, with the promise of seeing each other again.

That never happened.

"I will," Rimuru nodded before heading inside.

The door to Room 115 was exactly like others: a tall brown wooden door, it was extremely bland which made Rimuru recoil a bit since his eyes are used to the unique and varied designs of both the Capitol building and the Royal Castle of Ingrassia.

He thinned his lips before heading inside, finding a room decorated with plenty of colorful balloons that were clumped into a bundle, a large jar of freshly squeezed orange juice alongside cakes on a table situated by the wall. The windows and ceilings all had sliver and purple ribbons strung about with a 'Farewell Miss Shizue' banner on top of the chalkboard. Five students sat around Shizue who was, in turn, sitting on a chair, seemingly in the middle of telling them a story.

Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at the newcomer. The silence continued before Shizue suddenly stood up and bowed, "President Rimuru."

Temporarily, the President's mind blanked at what to do next.

What did the Presidential Manual say to do? Rimuru tried to recall before figuring out the answer.

"At ease, Shizue. I'm just here to join you guys."

Instantly, Shizue's arms fell off to the sides as her body relaxed.

Scientia's servant introduced Rimuru to the rest of her class, and instantly, everyone bombarded the President of a nation with all kinds of questions.

The party continued on, and in Rimuru's personal opinion, it was a very enjoyable before-noon break.

Though the end could be a bit better.

The childrens were in tears at how Shizue had to go. There was a pained expression on the latter's face, as she too, doesn't really want to leave her students behind. Interestingly, there was a single girl who had stuck out from the rest to him, [Great Sage] said her name was 'Chloe Aubert'. Chloe was particularly clingy to him, like how someone would cling to their beloved right before they go on a month-long voyage.

The walk back to the Royal Castle was entirely uneventful, which caused Rimuru to fantasize about space as Scientia had promised him to take up and explore the Final Frontier after his return.

In his past life, he had watched all the shows relating to space when he was young, from Gundam to Space Battleship Yamato—heck, he's even watched the Japanese sub of Star Wars and some Star Trek when he was young.

Of course, as with all things, his dream of one day becoming an astronaut died when he realized just how pitiful and unrealistic those ideas of sailing across the stars were.

So nowadays, he's not too familiar with anything related to sci-fi because it's too unrealistic.

Yet because Scientia had managed to make the unrealistic into a reality, that sense of child-like wonder about space was reignited.

The lunch with King Aegil was basically just both him and the King reaffirming their commitments and ideals.

After everything was all said and done, Rimuru looked down at the beautiful city of Lura on top of a hill outside of its outermost walls. He surveyed the place, the surrounding great rolling grassy plain with the odd tree here and there, the white-stoned Royal Castle that peaks above all other buildings in the city, the lake from which the castle sits at the center of...

"'Beauty like Lura' indeed."

He'll miss the place, but since he'll get to see space, Rimuru's more excited than ever to go back home.

A large black Doorway with a purple outline appeared behind the slime.

Shizue stood vigilantly behind Rimuru. Even if her posture spoke of the perfect professionalism coming from someone who had dedicated decades to being a maid, the slime could sense sadness permeate her body, bubbling into the forefront of her mind.

"You miss your students, don't you?"

Shizue looked away for a few seconds before turning to face him, "Yes. If I could, I would try to bring them to Tempest, a place that's very close to their old World. But these Otherworldly childrens are the wards of the Crown. Until they become adults, the Kingdom will look after them. The Kingdom are their guardians."

It spoke volumes of how progressive Ingrassia was compared to its neighbors when it's the only nation other than Tempest to even have such state-sponsored safety nets. Of course, orphanages exist, but those are usually run by the Church and are more like indoctrination camps where childrens are raised by adults and caretakers believing in the Luminous Faith.

Cupping his cheeks, the slime thought about a way to cheer Shizue up, "... Well, I could ask the King whether or not it's possible for him to transfer some of those kids into our care."

"Thank you, Mr. President, but only if it won't be too much of an issue," Shizue bowed deeply.

With that, the duo walked through the Doorway and appeared inside another field of grass surrounded by curtains of a forest. There were mountains off in the distance.

This was unexpected, they were supposed to be surrounded by manmade structures instead of nature.

"Wh—"

Faster than Rimuru's unaccelerated mind could perceive, Shizue touched his shoulder and projected stasis all over his humanoid body. The slime alongside the War Chassis became an almost unbreakable object.

"Door me!" Rimuru yelled out a command, yet nothing is happening. After a second, the slime's face turned into confusion and disbelief, "What is happening?"

Rimuru wasn't too familiar with Doormaker, so just like a non-tech-savvy person playing around with a phone for the first time and somehow changed their language setting into Spanish and suddenly started panicking, he was starting to feel like something had gone horribly wrong.

He was sure Scientia had granted him Doorway privileges for the day!

"Mr. President, it appears we're in a kind of pocket dimension since I don't think anything else could possibly be blocking all of my mundane sensors and Subspace-based communication array. Though it could equally be a really powerful magic field. Gravitational waves are being echoed off a wall half a kilometer away. I could try to use transdimensional gravity waves but I don't have the equipment."

"What does that mean?"

Staring up at the sky, Shizue shot out a laser from her wrist before facing the President once more, "The sky is a false one, I tried to tell a geosynchronous satellite overhead using a laser but it couldn't travel more than 400 meters. Basically, it means that we're stuck here, my connection to Metropolis, the Citadel, and Doormaker has ceased."

"But, wouldn't Scientia know that something is wrong?"

Shizue shook her head sadly.

"No, she wouldn't. Stasis messes horribly with worldlines, so all forms of communication from my internal computer to external are blocked or are so scrambled they're unreadable. This is why I need to insert my Soul Orb into this War Chassis to pilot it. Therefore, it wouldn't look out of place if I dropped off the 'radar' for a few hours."

"Damn!" Rimuru looked around him, scrutinizing the whole area before stopping when he saw a gorgeous woman appearing out of nowhere.

'Who is that?!'

Rimuru mentally yelled to [Great Sage].

<That individual goes by the name of— >

"Hinata Sakaguchi—!" Shizue breathed out in sheer shock.

"The God's Right Hand?" Is this the one who's responsible for intersecting their spacetime portal?

The silver woman looked incredibly tense. Her mind was quickly trying to deduce just what kind of magic or artifact was skilled enough in the manipulation of spacetime to fool Doormaker.

"She's... an old student of mine."

"She's an old student of yours?!"

Being the President of a nation, you kinda have to keep tabs on all the potential threats around the planet. Though he mostly focused on Demon Lords, Rimuru did read about God's Right Hand, Hinata Sakaguchi, the most powerful woman in the World and one who was rumored to have slain the most monsters.

The woman had a cold look of determination on her face, her violet eyes glared into Shizue as if she is an abomination of the highest order. Hinata gripped the handle on the sword strapped to her belt tightly.

"I see that he was correct," Hinata's voice was sharp, as though it could cut through any deception. The woman then pulled out her sword, and Shizue couldn't help but notice how it was different from her usual rapier, "I will free you Sensei, I swear I will free you from your enslavement— even if I must kill you."

God's Right Hand then pulled out another rapier— 'Moonlight', [Great Sage] provided Rimuru— from seemingly nowhere and pointed it at the duo, "and I will kill every monster that is responsible for your bondage, starting with that slime!"