I was happy to see that idiot go, really, but we still needed to formulate a future plan.
I gathered us together in a small hut I had built next to the largest lodging quarters in town for meeting purposes, ordering Rigurd to call for everyone else we needed.
Most of the town's important figures were there. Among hobgobs, there were Rigurd, Rigur, Rugurd, Regurd, Rogurd, and Lilina.
They were joined by the dwarf Kaijin and the ogre mages Benimaru, Shuna, Hakuro, Shion, and Soei.
Twelve in total, not counting Fubuki and I as we were the leaders, and they encompassed most of the town's managerial duties, apart from production.
Kaijin represented the town's building and production interests.
Lilina handled management, and Rigurd, Rugurd, Rogurd, and Regurd were the top political brass.
Rigurd was in charge, and the other three were his ministers,
although I hadn't assigned them concrete duties yet—better get on top of that.
Benimaru and Hakuro were our military, Soei our intelligence, and Rigur our security.
This meant our government now consisted of six departments, with the military and covert-ops sections newly founded by me.
We were still weak as an organization, but it had worked well enough so far.
Once the framework was in place, it'd be easier to fill out the details over time.
For now, at least, we had roofs over our heads and food in our bellies.
Once Soei returned from his latest recon trip, the entire gang was at the conference room. It's time to kick this off.
Fubuki: 「Alright, lay out the report.」
Soei: 「Understood.」
Soei began his report. It was generally divided into three parts—the state of things in the other goblin villages, what was going on in the marshlands, and the orcs' advance.
Each area had two Soei clones devoted to it, nimbly gathering intel. A few were still out in the field, rooting around for more.
We all fell silent, listening to his tale.
First, the goblin villages. Most had affiliated themselves with Gabiru, warrior lord of the lizardmen.
Ah, the one who just paid us a visit. They're following that idiot? Fickle bastards.
The goblins who refused to this had run for the hills in a state of panic, several attempting to flee to human territory.
No one gave them much of a chance at survival. It was one thing if they lived in humble forest villages in uncharted lands, indeed another if they crossed the border.
It's natural for anyone to want
to keep their homelands protected, and the humans would undoubtedly give them no quarter.
I didn't know what kind of firepower the nearby humans had, but I was sure it'd make quick work of exhausted goblin stragglers.
Which meant the goblins had little choice but to live hidden in secrecy, which didn't exactly paint a rosy picture for their future.
Soei had some more information on Gabil for us, too.
He had apparently gathered the fighter goblins from the assorted villages to assemble a force
some seven thousand strong.
They were now camped at the foot of the mountain range near us.
Quite a number. They had accepted the exact offer given to us—safety against the orcs in exchange for whatever food resources they had.
I suppose it was the best decision, but with all their food in the hands of others, they were
doomed to starve, regardless of how the orc battle turned out.
It was completely careless, really—thoughtless of the village elders who agreed to the proposal.
Guess they figured it was better than getting their heads caved in by an orcish axe.
Or were they betting that a substantial number would survive the war? That there'd be enough to keep going afterward?
It was something we all would have to consider, too. This town wasn't complete yet, but I couldn't bear the thought of abandoning it at this point.
If we let the orcs invade this far in, they'd ransack the surrounding forest and make it hard to keep ourselves fed.
If we wanted to retain the lives we enjoyed now, we'd have to repel the orcs—and repel them at the marshlands, not here.
Speaking of the marshes, the lizardman chief had been summoning some armies of his own.
A force of ten thousand had already been assembled, safe
and well-fed from the fish in nearby Lake Sisu.
They were holed up in a maze of natural caves and caverns, ready to resist an orcish siege for as long as necessary.
So they thought the orcs were that much of a threat, then?
The lizardmen, a strong bunch of fighters despite Gabil's little display, were already in a state of near-total war preparedness—to the point where they were even recruiting the weaker goblins in their group.
Finally, the question that had been bugging me was asked about.
Fubuki: 「Hm, what are their numbers, by the way? The orcish army.
If they were as strong as you put them to be, then there'll probably be at most, a few thousands of them, right?」
Soei: 「The orc forces number approximately two hundred thousand fighters.」
Kaijin: 「Two hundred thousand?! Wait, you've got to be kidding!」
Benimaru: 「So, you mean to say the forces used to attack our village were merely a fraction of them?」
Soei: 「Exactly. That is what I found in my investigations. We
believe the total number involved to be two hundred thousand.
The main force is working its way along the Great Ameld River from the south, covering a relatively broad range as they do.
My estimate is based strictly on the length of their marching forces and the width of the roads they are using, but based on
that, they can number no fewer than one hundred fifty thousand.
I've confirmed that some squadrons affiliated with them are making inroads here and there into the forest as well, so I would warn against lowballing our
estimate.」
A massive parade of orcs, occupying entire roads for miles on end, as far as the eye could see.
Fubuki: 「Targeted location?」
Soei: 「Yes, my lord. The force is aiming for the marshes that spread around Lake Sisu, working straight through the lizardman territory. However…」
Rimuru: 「However?」
Soei: 「However, with their current trajectory, they will reach human territory immediately afterward.
It is unclear where their ultimate objective lies, but if
they continue along a straight line, they will be unable to avoid confrontation with a number of different human kingdoms.」
Wow. What're they thinking? Wait a second… If all they wanted was control over the forest, would they simply stop once they destroyed the lizardmen?
What did they want anyway?
Rimuru: 「What do you think about all this, Soei? Are the orcs seeking to destroy the lizardmen? Or will they continue their conquest into human lands?」
Soei: 「It is hard to say as of yet, my lord.」
I suppose not. I had only a dim idea of the geography involved anyway.
Rimuru: 「Well, I think finding out about that should be the next priority. Do we have a map or something handy, Soei?」
Soei: 「What do you mean by…'map,' sir?」
Fubuki/Rimuru: 「Huh?」
◇◇◇
Fubuki: 「So, among us all, with the exception of Rimuru and I, only Kaijin knows what maps are?」
This was a bit of a surprise. The concept of a map was seemingly alien to almost everyone in the room.
Kaijin, bless his soul, knew what I was talking about. He knew, but he didn't have a lead on one we could purchase.
Apparently, the way the world was at this point in its history, maps were still considered confidential military intelligence.
Fubuki: 「Well, I do have a perfect detailed mental map of the whole forest, but I'll need some materials. You know what I mean.」
Ah, thank goodness. We were blessed with this demon, after all. How ironic.
The best we could afford at the moment we're wooden boards, but he was kind enough to compromise without any complaint.
Matching his words, it was a perfectly detailed map. Now, my suspicions are being cleared.
Everyone was impressed. Now, there were more things to do.
Hakuro started by drawing the general area around the ogre homeland, using what he heard from his grandfather as a reference.
The lack of paper was really
starting to bother me, but I had more boards brought in so we could draw up the region around our town.
Thought Communication came in handy for this, letting people pick up on exactly what one another was picturing in their minds.
Too handy, really, given how it lets people exchange accurate information without putting it down on paper.
I wouldn't necessarily call it an improvement over life on Earth.
It was a dilemma, honestly, even if it posed no hindrance to
day-to-day monster life.
Once the map was done, I made sure to introduce it to everyone and made them know the importance of it.
They all looked like kids who were told about Santa Claus coming over.
I had Soei place a small piece of wood on the orc force's current location.
I had written ORC on it in big letters, like a game piece.
From the center of the Forest of Jura, there were three basic directions an army as large as the orcs could go.
All involved tracing the Ameld River, which stretched out from the Canaat Mountains.
This river forked into two tributaries near the center of the forest, one flowing into Lake Sisu.
The larger branch moved upward in a north-south orientation, traversing nearly the entire
continent.
Toward the end, it made a slow curve before dumping out into the
ocean to the east.
The forest hugged this river for much of its outward flow, and generally speaking, the area east of it was occupied by the Eastern Empire—human lands.
After exiting the woods, the Great Ameld fed the fertile plains that were ruled over by demon lords.
That plurality was important. Shizu had said as much as
well, that the demon lord Leon was just one of them.
It sounded a bit odd, the idea of multiple demon lords, but there you go. For all I knew, Leon and the one who gave Rigurd's son his name were two different people.
The topic deserved more exploration, but that would have to wait. We were trying to suss out the orcs' invasion route and ultimate objective.
According to Soei's report, after leaving their habitat near the demon lord lands, the orcs had been making their way along the Great Ameld.
It was the only route large enough to hold an entire army, but apparently, they had also
been sending squadrons into the forest, picking off the stronger monsters that might threaten them along the way—including the ogres.
They were after food, I wagered, but it still seemed odd.
Rimuru: 「What do you think of it so far, Fubuki?」 I asked as I moved other wooden pieces around to simulate the orcs overtaking the ogre fort.
Fubuki: 「Hm?」
Rimuru: 「You know, since you're more experienced, I figured you'd have something to add. I mean, why would they send a splinter force off like this? Why couldn't they just march right through the forest?」
Fubuki: 「Moving such a large force would be very difficult, what with all the trees in the way.
Not to mention the possibility of a counterattack measure. It would be too brash of a decision.」
Benimaru: 「Why raze our homeland at all? If we weren't in the way
of the main force, why couldn't they have left us be?」
Hakuro: 「True…」
They were right. The orcs didn't seem to have any motivation for picking off higher-level foes, not directly in their path of advance.
They could seize their food stores, yes, but if that was the sole objective, they paid an extremely dear price for it.
The orcs numbered several thousand, but that was still a pittance compared to the main force.
Why devote so relatively few fighters toward such an obviously tough opponent?
Was food really the only reason they were willing to accept so many casualties?
Benimaru: 「Remember, they didn't even offer to hire us as mercenaries.
I can only conclude they were prepared to kill us all from the moment they arrived.」
Shuna: 「Very true. My Sense Threat extra skill told me as much. They were fully hostile toward us—nothing more, nothing less.」
So the orcs wanted the ogres dead. And that wasn't all.
Fubuki: 「Hmm, judging by the routes the main force and this splinter team took,」 Fubuki said, eyes focused on the map, 「they would likely regroup in the marshlands if a straight line was followed. Look.」
Everyone looked down as he moved two ORC-labeled pieces forward. He was right. Proceeding in a straight line, they met right at the marshlands the lizardmen called home.
A region large enough for the main orc force to regroup and prepare for the battle ahead—assuming they didn't mind the lack of dry land to work with.
Rimuru: 「So they'd definitely run into the lizardmen sooner or later, right? Did they want to eradicate them so they could be king of the forest or whatever?」
Fubuki: 「Put that way, I'm not so sure… It makes little sense.」
Rimuru: 「Or maybe they're in cahoots with a demon lord, like you said?」
Fubuki: 「They are receiving support, no doubt about that, but I can not say whether it is demon lord support. We had best not jump to conclusions.」
Rimuru: 「Oh, but even if they are working with someone, what does annihilating the main powerbrokers in the forest achieve?」
Kaijin: 「Perhaps they indeed look forward to conquering the forest.」
Everyone on hand offered their own response. In the end, though, no one had a definite idea about what the orcs wanted—the most important question.
Fubuki: 「Oi, hold on. Orcs aren't spiritual life-forms and all. How are the orcs feeding an army of two hundred thousand?」
The observation made everyone freeze for a moment.
Benimaru: 「How?」 Benimaru ventured. 「That's what they're seizing food supplies for, no?」
Then he fell silent, realizing how dubious that sounded.
Fubuki had a point. It seems too unreal.
Fubuki: 「Wait a minute. Did the splinter force have any food supply at all?」
Soei: 「…I did not see any, no. The main force appeared to have a caravan carrying food supplies in the rear, but…
Indeed, not nearly enough of one, in terms of size. Nowhere near enough to keep an army of two hundred thousand nourished.」
Marching near the river eliminated any worries about fresh water, but they were essentially unable to supply themselves.
Whatever food they had would
dwindle quickly. Both forces needed something, didn't they?
I doubted the orcs had perfected some just-in-time method of supplying a full military force
nobody was aware of, but I also doubted they would just let all those orcs starve while they fought.
And if they didn't bother to supply the splinter force, no way they'd seize the ogres' food, then just deliver it all back to the main army.
They had their own mouths to feed.
And "splinter" force or not, we were still talking several thousand grown orcs, and that was an awful lot of people to force into potential starvation.
Fubuki: 「I dunno if this sounds like a stupid question, but are orcs scavengers?」
I noticed Soei step up to say something, only to catch himself.
Rimuru: 「What is it? Wanted to say something?」
Soei: 「Sir Fubuki, it actually makes sense. This is just speculation on my part, but I wonder if, perhaps, they were…
foraging upon the bodies of those who died of starvation or battle wounds.
I say this because, while I conducted thorough investigations of the battlefields they fought in, I found not a single corpse.」
Benimaru: 「What?! Invluding our homeland?」
Soei: 「I'm afraid so …Yes. There was absolutely nothing, and no one left.」
Benimaru: 「How?!」
Shuna: 「Oh no…」
The ogre mages were at a loss for words. Oof… I could see why. That's what orcs are like? Just imagining it made me queasy.
Kaijin: 「That's… That's just too hard to accept…」
Rigurd: 「They are omnivorous, I know, but… Really?」
Soei eyed Rigurd and Kaijin stoically.
Soei: 「It is simply speculation. But wherever they were known to be, I found not a single corpse—and our homeland was completely devoid of anything.
That is the full truth. And that brings to mind a certain skill…」
He stopped, and his face twisted.
Benimaru: 「No! An orc lord?」
Soei: 「Indeed. I have not confirmed it, but I can not deny the chance that an orc lord has appeared.
I have, at least, confirmed the presence of high-order orc knights. Our attackers are likely.」
Hakuro: 「Indeed. There would have to be, judging by their strength. I could imagine orc generals among them, even.」
Shuna: 「That would certainly explain everything…」
The ogre mages' faces grew more and more concerned.
They seemed to know who this orc lord was—not that it meant anything to me, Kaijin, or the other hobgoblins.
Then, the million dollar question was asked.
Kaijin: 「What exactly is an Orc Lord?」
The explanation was given.
That was our first insight into exactly how fearsome the orc lord was.
To put it briefly, an orc lord was a unique monster with advanced leadership skills.
They appeared one at a time, out of the blue, once every few hundred years, to spread chaos across the world. One bad hombre, in other words.
What made them so nefarious was the skill they were born with—the unique skill known simply as Starved.
It allows the caster to make his allies devour everything around them, like a swarm of locusts, afflicting them with a severe
hunger that they never have any hope of satiating.
It sounded like torture for the
victims, but it had great benefits for the caster.
It very efficiently removed all organic matter from entire regions at once, transforming it into energy for yourself.
And even if it starved your people—hell, because it starved them, the ultimate effect was tremendously powerful.
But the scariest thing of all was that whatever monsters the hordes consumed in their mad dash for sustenance, their skills would be transferred over to the caster.
Monster powers, physical attributes, and even skills. It wasn't a sure thing every time, but the more monsters you consumed, the better your chances.
In other words…
Shuna: 「The orcs aren't trying to eradicate the forest's higher-level monsters at all?
They're trying to take their powers for their own?」
Silence fell upon the room. It indicated, once and for all, that my compatriots had already made that conclusion.
◇◇◇
For now, we needed more information. That was my watchword as I continued the conference—but suddenly, Soei stiffened, wincing.
Rimuru: 「What is it?」
Soei: 「Well, one of my Replication clones has made contact with someone who insists upon communicating with you two, Sir Rimuru, Sir Fubuki. What do you think…?」
Fubuki: 「Contact? And they name-dropped us both, even? Who the heck is that…?」
I still didn't have many acquaintances in this world, really.
Was it Kabal, maybe speak of the devil? Nah. It took them several weeks to travel here from their home base, they said.
Over a month's round trip. Not possible.
Soei: 「This contact has not given me a name, my lords. She simply seeks to send you a message, and she is quite adamant. She is a dryad.」
Everyone's eyebrows whipped up in surprise. A pretty well-known monster, I guess.
Rigurd: 「Really?! It has been several decades since a dryad has last made itself known, has it not?」
"They have practically vanished! Why would one appear now?!"
To the hobgoblins, they were all but mythical figures. And judging by the exogre Soei's response, they must've been pretty high level.
One who had spotted and made contact with Soei, despite how gifted he was at concealing his
Replications.
That proved the caliber we were dealing with. Better not get this
dryad angry, then.
Rimuru: 「Bring 'em over.」
Soei: 「Understood.」
It would appear my thought was correct. Not long after I gave consent, the conference room door opened to reveal a new figure.
It had not lost a second to the Soei Replicant, even when he used Shadow Motion to guide her back.
Calling her an "it" would be rude.
She was a woman and a beautiful one. Her hair was green, her skin light, her figure well toned—chiseled, even—like a Nordic goddess.
Her luxuriant lips were a shade of light blue, matched perfectly
with her deep-blue eyes.
She looked about twenty years old by human standards, but human, she definitely was not.
She was semitransparent, and any
observer could tell that her body had no weight or actual physical presence.
Dryads were, indeed, descended from the fairy races, as close to a form of spiritual life as one was likely to ever witness.
I later learned they served as the guardians of the treants, the living tree people that were another high-level presence around the forest.
In terms of ranking, they were easily "A" or better—up there with Ifrit, and no doubt a terrifying presence for Rigurd and the hobgobs.
But what did she want?
She turned to look at Fubuki specifically, who was staring back at her with a rather curious expression.
"It is a pleasure to meet you once again, Sar–"
Fubuki: 「—A dryad? What's a dryad like you doing here? I thought they were rarely ever seen. Why show up now of all times?」
"A-Ah, I see… Forgive me for my rudeness. It is a pleasure to meet you two, Rulers of Monsters. I am Treyni, a dryad."
Whoa—?! What a smooth transition! She understood him in an instant.
I'm sure she knows of Fubuki, or should I say Sariel, but he probably wants to stay in the shadows for the moment.
And she caught wind of the situation in an instant.
Well, that was quick. She didn't even have a confused expression with his behavioral change.
She smiled, like a bud sprouting into a flower. That was all it took for me to wonder, Am I being too wary of her, perhaps?
She had a fairylike beauty, that
was absolutely true.
Rimuru: 「Um, you too. My name's Rimuru. We can keep it casual here, okay? None of that 'Leaders of the Monsters' crap.」
I hated nicknames enough on Earth. I didn't want any here, so I made sure to do away with it before the rest of the room could introduce themselves.
Rimuru: 「What brings you here, Miss Treyni?」
Treyni: 「Thank you. I have come here to discuss the events taking place in this forest—events which, I imagine, you all are aware.
As one of the Forest of Jura's appointed wardens, I can not allow this series of calamities to go unaddressed, and so I have appeared before you. I do so because I hope to join in your conference.」
She nodded in turn to each of the participants before turning back to me.
Treyni, huh? A named monster, then. High level, no doubt.
Benimaru: 「But why here? Why not any other place? Surely, there are races more powerful than the goblins you came to seek assistance from.」
Trenyi: 「About that…」
She turned to look at Fubuki with a cute expression. Yep, this is not okay!
How come he gets a cute girl staring at him that way when I found myself being stared at in the same way by a menacing dragon?!
Fubuki: 「Hm? What's up?」
Treyni: 「N-Nothing.」
Uhh, what's going on? I don't understand it anymore.
It looks like she wants to speak to him alone, but he isn't letting up, is he?
Wait, you idiot—!!, now's your chance!
Rimuru: 「Oh, I see. If you feel like it, I'll arrange a meeting between you two later. Agreed?」
Treyni: 「—!!… Yes, thank you!」
Fubuki: 「O-Oi! What's the big idea?!」
Ha-ha-ha!!—And that's how it's done, kids. Do not try it at home.
Unless you enjoy the experience of being chased after by an enraged mom holding that one school shoe you always hated.
Rimuru: 「So, what of it? You were saying?」
Fubuki: 「Don't ignore me—damn it!!」
Treyni: 「Ah, yes. This is the most powerful outpost in the nearby region. The others no longer exist, their people now affiliated with the lizardman
known as Gabiru.
The treants are incapable of moving from location to location and thus interact little with other races.
If they were blighted by an outside enemy or natural disaster, there would be little they could do to defend themselves.
We dryads are granted permission to travel to the outside world only in these spiritual forms, and I regret there are but few of us…
If the root cause of all this were to attack the treant community we share our lives with, we lack the numbers to provide them an effective defense. That is why I wish to tap your strength, if I may.」
Rimuru: 「....」
She closed with another cheerful smile.
In contrast to her astounding looks, the way she spoke was oddly calming.
They must have been a long-lived race, indeed—she must've seen a lot over the years.
The issue was whether she could be believed. Someone as strong as Ifrit—several of them, living in this community or whatever—not even they could handle the orcs.
Did she want to use us as bait, maybe? Or was there some other goal?
Hakuro: 「You speak of root cause. Do you know of it?」
Treyni: 「An orc lord is invading with a vast force in tow.」
The freely given revelation plunged the conference room into silence once more.
Benimaru: 「So, I may take it as you confirming its existence?」
Treyni: 「You may. And if they were to turn their sights upon our community of treants, we have no effective way to resist them.
They can not move from where they are rooted, and their mystical magic can do little against an orc race unafraid of death.
We could perhaps sear them with flame magic, rendering them into ashes, but that could backfire upon the tree people, and none have mastered it anyway.
And anything more powerful than that—anything that could strike an entire army at once—would wipe the treants out with it. That…」
Treyni paused, sizing us all up before once again, focusing her gaze squarely upon Fubuki and I.
Treyni: 「In addition, we have found that a high-level majin (magic-born) is working behind the scenes to support this orc lord.
We are unsure which demon lord might be behind them all, but we are not interested in letting these intruders do whatever they like with our forest.
As dryads, we must prepare for this. It is the duty given to us by our beloved master, Sariel-sama.」
Her gaze then landed on Fubuki. He flinched a little, almost unnoticeable, but I had seen it.
Damn, this lady is really putting this poor dude in the center of the party.
Her eyes seemed to sparkle even more as she spoke. As one of the most powerful creatures of the forest, Treyni exuded a presence in the room that was electric.
Why have subordinates that could push your fingers so far? Wait! Masochism?
No, no, no, dangerous thoughts! Kill the dangerous thoughts!!
Yes, let me get this straight.
Alright, so while we're busily cracking the codes, these two are casually playing mental tag[1].
It was like energy coursed across her entire body.
Is that her a way to get revenge on him?
Well, I don't see myself proposing to a girl just to travel overseas the day after.
Smooth one, dude. You've got an angry beauty after your ass.
I definitely do not envy your circumstances. Sucks to be you.
Rimuru: 「Well, we'd like to help, but what did you want us to do exactly?」
Treyni: 「I would like you to defeat the orc lord.」 Treyni immediately replied.
Yowzy! Huh?! Say it again! You dare!?!
This rendered everyone speechless.
Rimuru: 「Oi!」 I protested, 「Isn't this monster is, like, crazy-ass strong and shit?
Why would someone like me have to take him on?!」
Treyni responded with a quizzical look.
Treyni: 「But the ogre mages here are intending to fight against the orcs, though, aren't they?
And you plan to contribute to the effort yourself, right? You were the one who extended a hand to save all those defenseless goblins, not long ago.
I had thought you would show similar kindness to us and the treants. We are elegant beauties, after all.」
Fubuki flinched. Treyni smirked. I gasped. Everyone froze.
Alright, it has been decided. Sariel is an absolute ass.
I know for a fact that it's some sort of catchphrase of the sort.
Judging from his reaction, Treyni rocked.
Benimaru: 「Hey, isn't that what Sariel-sama always said. Not that I've heard it directly—what am I even saying?
I haven't been graced with his presence before, but he always tends to say that about angels from what I've heard.」
Now, this got my attention
Rimuru: 「Ooh~, what's this about?」
Treyni: 「You haven't heard? It was something of an open secret.
According to some fellow demons of his, Sariel-sama had some sort of infatuation with beautiful angels.」
Fubuki: 「WHAT!?! (Fuck you, Rose!! You too, Guy!! I see you!! You two will regret this!!)」
Rimuru: 「Oh hell! Really?!」
Treyni: 「True.」
She smiled again.
This, this was too much.
Soei: 「Those are actually true? I thought they were just used for jokes and the likes.」
Benimaru: 「Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!! Sariel-sama must be one heck of a man.」
Rimuru: 「More like one heck of an elegant lady.」
We all burst into laughter. This was classic comedy.
I'd kill to have this. Fubuki glared silently at us.
But there was nothing he could probably do if he had his priorities straight.
Fubuki: 「Alright, that's enough for now. Let's get to the serious side.」
Oh man, what a letdown.
The others seem to have calmed down, although there were still traces of amusement on their faces, much to Fubuki's dismay.
But as he said, we needed to get back to business.
I wasn't sure what sources she was tapping, but Treyni seemed to know a remarkable amount about what happened in this forest.
She must have looked at my assorted exploits in this world and concluded that I was a sort of omnipotent good samaritan.
Perhaps the secluded lives the dryads led caused them to assume the best of everybody they met.
Did it ever occur to her that we—okay, I—might stab her in the back? Did it?
The smile made it impossible to tell, but as our eyes met, I could feel it in my gut—this was no liar in front of me.
I decided to trust my instincts.
If her story was true, we really did have an orc lord on our hands, as well as a high-level magic-born lurking around behind him.
I didn't know exactly how I could contribute to the cause yet, but if she trusted in me, I might as well repay the favor.
I took a deep breath. But before I could speak:
Shion: 「But of course! To our leaders, the orc lord is no more of a threat than a passing cockroach!」
Rimuru: 「Hey!」
Shion stole my thunder, a bold look of determination on her face. Geez.
I'm not a god or anything. Wish she could've conferred with me first.
Now I don't get to push the work over to Fubuki. What a bummer…
And why's it already a given that I'm the one doing the orc slaying around here? Hello? Look at me!!
Before I could protest, Treyni gave me another smile.
Treyni: 「Oh! Then it's settled! Just as I have heard. I wish you great luck against the orc lord, then!」
And that was that.
This woman…
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[1] Playing a mental game where the individuals involved force the other into a corner by presenting powerful arguments or by doing things that puts the opposition in a very difficult situation.
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Word Count: 「5400」.