Jayr POV - Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken Universe, Central World, Magic Continent, Jura Forest - 2013 AMB
Paul's initial reaction to my revelation is obviously one of stunned shock, of course, he isn't the only one, all the other people present, barring Nikita, Zandeer and their Digimon Partners who already have a vague idea of my capabilities, are also shocked and baffled by the fact that it is actually possible for someone to restore an entire universe after it was completely destroyed.
However, the shock on Paul's face is quickly replaced by a face full of firm determination as he declares in an incisive and passionate tone, "Good... So all I have to do to restore my destroyed universe and bring back my loved ones is simply rip apart those mechanical bastards until nothing but piles of junk is left? This is perfect, because that is what I was going to do anyway."
At the same time, the curious Aletha also snaps out of her stunned state and starts launching a barrage of questions, "Hay, Jayr... Can you tell me how you are going to restore an entire universe? Are you going to use some kind of ultra-powerful magic? Some unique power? Wait! I remember that Paul told us that his home universe contains countless parallel universes. This means that the Invincible Universe is actually a multiverse! Can you restore the whole Invivible Multiverse or only Paul's single universe?"
At this point, I hastily interrupt her before she floods me with even more questions, "Wait! Wait! Wait! Calm down... Give me at least the time to answer."
Hearing that, Aletha stops firing out questions like a machine gun, which makes me sigh before I say, "Well, to answer your first very first question, I actually have a couple of ways to restore a destroyed universe."
Seeing the shining curiosity in her eyes, I continue by explaining, "I could use a combination of my Blessing, my abilities, and powers to actually restore either Paul's home universe or the whole Invincible Universe. Or, even simpler and more direct, I could use a very special and powerful magical object I created during my last adventure. Obviously, since the end result is the same, I'm leaning more toward the last option."
After sating Aletha's curiosity, Nikita steps in and finally resumes introducing the rest of their group to us, starting with Rimuru, Ragna, and Rigurd before moving on to Shizu and the adventurer group formed by Kaval, Gido, and Ellen/Elyun Grimwald.
Shortly after that, we all move toward the budding, busy town where Rigurd leaves the group to direct the Hobgoblins and Goblina's construction effort while the adventurer group formed by Kaval, Gido, Ellen/Elyun Grimwald, and Shizu go to their tent to prepare to return to the Free Guild to report.
Meanwhile, Ragna hides in Rimuru's shadow, and Rimuru leads the rest of us toward one of the already completed buildings in this town, the one used as his home, and once there, Rimuru gives us a brief recount of his story.
He tells us that he was a former human named Satoru Mikami who woke up finding that he had been reincarnated as a Slime, which took him some getting used to.
The reason for that is that slimes don't sleep, can't see, and only have the sense of touch. He ate nearby grass to pass the time.
After 90 days of boredom, the skill Great Sage finally finishes integrating the slime's desire to have a "conversation partner," which caused him to learn about the world with the new question and answers feature of the skill.
It turned out that the grass he ate out of boredom is actually Hipokute herbs, a material for high-grade health restorative Potion.
During his time inside the cave, he met another lifeform, the Storm Dragon Veldora, who was trapped there by the Chosen Hero's Infinity Prison.
The Storm Dragon proved himself friendly and taught him how to perceive the surroundings via Magicules through the use of the Extra skill Mana Perception, which soon granted him the ability to see.
Veldora also reminisces about the peerless beauty of a Chosen Hero that defeated him 300 years ago, and then the two of them became friends and named each other as equals.
Veldora becomes Veldora Tempest, and the slime is named Rimuru Tempest.
To break the unbreakable Infinity Prison, they agree to stake Veldora's freedom on Rimuru's Unique Skill, and Veldora was stored in Predator's inescapable storage space, stuck in time, and undergoing the Great Sage's analysis.
With a new goal in mind and a friend in heart, Rimuru eventually gets out of the cave with some unintentional help from three adventurers who were sent to investigate Veldora's disappearance.
It was only after using the Great Sage's mapping function that he succeeded, though.
During the 30 days after meeting Veldora, Rimuru ate more grass and rocks, namely Hipokute herbs and Magic ore, as well as other monsters that he fought and killed, and developed some personal fighting skills to defend himself, such as the Common skill Water Blade.
Whilst exploring the forest outside the cave, Rimuru plays around with a sound-emitting skill acquired from predating a cave bat and achieves speech.
He met a group of goblins and got invited to their village, but it turned out the Goblins were being threatened by a pack of Direwolves.
After hearing the situation from the village chief and being promised eternal loyalty, the good-natured Rimuru helps them, defeats the wolf pack's leader, and acquires the rest of the pack as subordinates.
He tells the goblins and wolves to get along with each other, and thus the new village is born under his rule.
In this world, most monsters are nameless, with only high-level Majin being able to bestow names on others.
When Rimuru realizes that there is no convenient way to get their attention beyond addressing them as "you," he names them all.
Among them, the village chief is named Rigurd, the chief's son is named Rigur, the new wolf leader is named Ranga, and a natural bloke goblin is named Gobta, who later becomes a remarkable figure among Rimuru's top retainers.
All the named monsters evolve, becoming stronger, but they no longer fit their clothes or their door frames, so Rimuru, along with Gobta, Rigur, Ranga, and a group of Hobgoblins and Tempest Wolves, goes to the Dwarven Kingdom Dwargon to acquire clothes and a skilled house builder.
Rimuru, after some misunderstandings, helps out a masterful blacksmith, Kaijin, to fill his quota on swords per the King's request.
It turns out the Magic ore that Rimuru ate in the 'Sealed Cave' is a high-class smithing material.
In return for helping him out, Kaijin promises to procure Rimuru a good blacksmith, and Rimuru offers to help Kaijin's friends, Garm, Dord, and Myrd, who are very skilled at their crafts but bad at business.
They soon pay a visit to a bar where they meet some female elves who become attached to the slime.
However, a certain Minister, Minister Vesta, ruins this due to his resentment of Rimuru, and Kaijin, after delivering his quota, is exiled from the country along with Rimuru and the three dwarven brothers.
The four dwarves, Rimuru, and the company then return to the village.
Upon returning, some other goblin villages join Rimuru's new village after hearing of his grandeur and Rimuru names and evolves them afterward.
The Dwarves and Hobgoblins immediately start working on building housing.
As they are constructing the new town, Rimuru meets with Aletha and Nellika who were searching the Great Jura Forest for him and learned that they were from another universe and that they were actually searching for Nellika's boyfriend but decided that finding Rimuru would be the fastest way to find him as he too would surely search for him since he was the Main Character and in doing so they also revealed the existance of the Omniverse to him.
At first, Rimuru was shocked by their revelation, but then quickly calmed down and accepted the idea thanks to his Unique Skill, Great Sage, analyzing the situation, and since Aletha and Nellika were friendly and upfront about it, he decided to invite them into his budding town and help them in exchange for them helping protect his people.
The two agreed, and soon they joined Rimuru in protecting and helping the working Hobgoblins, Goblina, and Dwarves.
A few weeks later, the group composed of Nikita, Zandeer, Agumon, Blucomon, Jouichi, and Iggy also arrived in this universe and found their way to Rimuru's town, where the two lovers finally reunited.
But soon the situation became very tense as the two still active Champions met one another and obviously were very wary and suspicious.
Luckily, before the situation could escalate, Nellika and Jouichi stepped forward and mediated the situation while vouching for their companion's character.
Thanks to that, they decided to work together and agreed to sign a Concept-enforced Contract to ensure that no foul play happens.
The very same day, after Nellika and Jouichi reunited, they all sensed the opening of a rip in the fabric of time and space in an area close to the town's location, and without any hesitation, they all rushed to check what was happening, only to find a young man who had apparently come out from that opening.
That young man was obviously Paul, who, after a few tense moments, realized where he was and that he was outnumbered and opted for a peaceful approach by introducing himself and narrating his story.
Rimuru, Zandeer, Nikita, Joutaro, Nellika, and Aletha were all moved by his story and decided to help him, especially since they realized that Paul's enemies are a real threat to everyone in the Omniverse, as it was clear that they won't stop at anything to reach their objectives.
This is the part of his story that I know best, as Nikita and Zandeer have already informed me of what happened with Aletha recklessly using her Divination to scry information about the Champion of Power, and ended up putting a target on this universe while also being harmed by the Champion's backer, the multiverse-ending entity Unicron.
Luckily, Aletha has some form of immortality, and Rimuru's potions also helped a lot, so she recovered quickly and informed them of what she saw and learned, forcing them to start preparing for a possible invasion, and my friends started to consider the idea of contacting me to request my help.
After that, they all decided to go back to Rimuru's town, but on their way back, they saw four adventurers being attacked by some giant ants; three of them were the same ones whom Rimuru saw earlier when leaving the cave.
These adventures were surveying the land in front of Veldora's cave on behalf of the Free Guild Branch in the small country Blumund, and after saving them from some giant ant monsters, Rimuru discovers that one of them was an otherworlder, originally from Japan, going by the name of Shizu.
After spending some time together and learning about each other, Shizu loses control of the Elemental Ifrit, but Rimuru manages to beat and separate it from Shizu, trapping it inside his stomach along with Veldora.
Unfortunately, Shizu was now dying of old age without her elemental spirit and told them that her full name was Shizue Izawa, also known as the Conqueror of Flames.
She explained her situation to Rimuru and the others, telling them that she was summoned by Demon Lord Leon Cromwell and now she asks Rimuru to "remind the Demon Lord of her existence" and help her students, asking him to absorb her corpse because she does not want to be buried in this world.
Rimuru agreed, and after absorbing Shizu, Rimuru could now mimic a human form, a beautifully androgynous human that looks similar to Shizue with the head of a woman and the body of a man.
Other key abilities acquired from absorbing Shizu and Ifrit include Body Double, Flame Manipulation, and a new Unique skill, Degenerate.
However, Aletha and Nikita did feel quite bad for the way Shizu's fate reached its conclusion and decided to do something to change it, and requested Rimuru's help.
Rimuru didn't hesitate to collaborate with them and with the combination of his Unique Skills, Great Sage and Predator, Aletha wast array of magical knowledge, Nikita's more esoteric magic from her Witch heritage, and a bit of Zandeer's mastery over Souls, they were able to find a way to safely restore Shizu's damaged soul, revilatize her aged body that was further damaged by the nature of her summoning, and copy and reimprint her Skills into her newly formed essence, basically allowing Shizu to have a second chance, living her life as a regular human.
Listening to Rimuru's summary of the events, confirmed some of my guesses on how it was possible for Shizu to still be alive while Rimuru gained a Human Form so similar to hers, at the same time making me smirk while thinking, 'I was mostly right... The reason why Shizu is still alive is related to the presence of Nikita and the others. Only I didn't think they would straight up revive her... I mean, with their abilities, they could have easily prevented Ifrit from rampaging and Shizu from dying. It is simply likely that they let the events follow their "canon" trajectory to empower Rimuru so that he could have a chance to actually take part in the battle during the eventual invasion of the Champion of Power and his army.'
While I'm thinking that, Rimuru continues to tell us how, after saving Shizu, the group returned to Rimuru's town, where they started to discuss how to prepare for the incoming invasion when Nikita and Zandeer told them about their alliance with me and the idea of contacting me.
Reaching an agreement, they quickly did it, and shortly after that, I arrived in this universe, and the rest is history.
At this point, Rimuru calmly looks at us and says, "Now that everyone is up to speed about the series of events that led to this moment, I'd like to ask if any of you has any plans on how to deal with the imminent threat of this invasion."
Hearing that, Aletha immediately speaks up, "The first major issue is without any doubt our numbers. From what I've been able to see, the army under the Champion of Power is frightfully immense. We are talking about numbers that are able to invade an entire solar system, maybe even more. I have absolutely no idea how he can bring with him such unbelievably huge numbers. I mean, it is impossible for his Soulbound Territory to contain all of them."
In response, Paul snorts and says, "It isn't all that far-fetched. I mean, who says that he and his army use the same means to travel the Omniverse? I mean, the Unigate isn't the only way to travel across the Omniverse; it is only the safest."
This is followed by Nikita, who agrees, "Paul is right. I also know a few other ways to travel across the Omniverse without the use of the Unigate."
I also nod and say, "Indeed. I also regularly use other means to travel from one universe to another. I mostly use the Unigate to travel to new, unexplored Universes. But after I've been to one place once, I mostly use my own abilities to go from one universe to another."
At this point, Nellika speaks up, "Yeah, all that isn't important for the moment. Our most pressing issue is how to deal with the Champion's army. I'm mostly of the idea that quality is better than quantity, but when quantity is just so overwhelming, then it becomes a quality on its own."
Jouichi then suggests, "Well, first of all, we have all the people living in this world. I'm pretty sure that in front of such a hostile force that wants to completely erase their home, most of them will surely fight back. The high-tier powers in this universe are quite impressive already and will surely be a huge help."
Paul snorts out loud and says, "Hmpf. We can't rely only on them. That guy and his army aren't only numerous, but they are also quite powerful themselves. My own universe was quite massive and had quite a few powerful entities, some even capable of destroying an entire universe, but still, the end result was that we all lost! Especially when Unicron made its move!"
At this point, Zandeer raises his arm and announces, "Well, I can help reduce the gap between our numbers and theirs. With enough time, I can use my powers to create a Grim Hollow Pool that can produce an almost endless number of Grim Hollow under my control. Then I should be able to evolve the most promising of them into Grim Arrancar, if I use the power I gained in this Universe and name them."
Seeing the confusion on the faces of many people present, Zandeer explains, "The Grimm Hollows are a personal creation of mine. They fuse the physical, immortal body that grows stronger the older they are, of the Grimms from the RWBY Universe, to the sheer power and abilities of the Hollows of my home universe. The Grimm Hollows are much better than regular Hollows, as they lose their endless hunger and the need to consume souls to maintain their existence and grow stronger. Instead, they can grow stronger and evolve by simply growing older. And of course, they are completely loyal to their creator, me."
After saying that, Zandeer adds, "I already have a Grimm Hollow Pool in my Soulbound Territory with thousands of Grimm Hollows who have already emerged from it, and the oldest of them have already evolved to a level of power equal to Gillians."
Hearing that, Jouichi nods and says in a somber tone, "Indeed. Those creatures are quite powerful. I've personally experienced their power and relentless nature. Maybe I can help make them even stronger by using my Stand to fuse them together. Since their origin is the same, it is likely that the resulting fusion may have some surprising but welcomed results."
At this point, I also do my part and say, "I can also give you a hand in making you Grimm Hollow stronger. If, as you say, they truly grow stronger as they age, then I can create and give you access to a special dimension where time flows much faster, making them age hundreds of years in a single day."
My words shock everyone but Nikita, Zandeer, and our Digimon Partners, who already know quite a bit about my capabilities to the point that many of them exclaim out loud.
"Wait! What!?"
"Incredible!"
"Can you truly do that!?"
"Is such a thing even possible!?"
I smile and confidently explain, "Yes, I can do it. Creating such a dimension isn't all that difficult if you know what you are doing. In fact, creating such a dimension for the Grimm Hollow is actually quite easy, as I don't even have to worry too much about the details while making the dimension, as the Grimm Hollow can barely be considered lifeforms..."
While saying that, I suddenly pause for a moment, as I'm not actually sure if what I just said is true.
The reason for that is that while neither the Grimms nor the Hollows are true living being, as the former are more like souless constructs who do not need sustenance and whose only objective is destruction and the latter are basically corrupt spirits with supernatural powers which devour the souls of both living and deceased humans, the same may not be true for the combination of the two.
Because of that, after stopping for a moment, I look at my friend Zandeer and ask in an almost embarrassed tone, "... Are they considered lifeforms? Do I need to worry about basic things like air, food, water, and so on?"
Zendeer chuckles and replies, "Heh. Don't worry, Jayr. The Grimm Hollows do not need to eat, drink water, or breathe air to live. But even if they do not need it, they do still prefer to live in spaces where there is air to breathe and water to drink. After all, they aren't completely mindless creatures."
Hearing that, I nod and say, "Got it," before I quickly focus and start to urge and manipulate my Spiral Cosmo to create what Zandeer needs.
First, I take a page from the many cultivation novels and start by materializing a simple black ring made of the usual mixture of energy conductive materials and impossibly hard materials to ensure that it does not break with a simple universe-ending blow.
After that, I use Creation Magic to infuse the newly materialized ring with Spatial Magic and Restoration Magic.
The Spatial Magic is used to create a separate dimension connected to the ring and give the ring the capacity to store and release whatever the owner of the ring wants.
On the other hand, the Restoration Magic is used to regulate the Time of the separate dimension within the ring, making sure that it moves much faster than the one outside.
Then, I use my Spiral Cosmo to create an immense Earth-like planet, filling it with basic plant lifeforms and the ecosystem needed for them to thrive.
In the end, I bind the ring to Zandeer's spiritual signature to make sure that only he can make use of it.
The whole process only took a few seconds, and after giving the ring a quick glance to make sure that the end result worked as intended, I threw the ring at Zandeer while saying with a grin on my face, "Think fast."
Zandeer catches the ring and sends me a questioning look, making me explain, "That is the Kosmos Ring... Well, if you don't like the Greek, you can also call it World Ring. Anyway, that ring contains a separate dimension with an immense habitable world inside where time moves much faster. A single day outside is equal to a hundred years in the world inside the ring."
Hearing that, Zandeer grins and says, "Thanks, Jayr. This is perfect, with this, I should be able to make many of my Grimm Hollow evolve into Vasto Lorde."
At this point, the energetic Aletha exclaims, "Wait! Wait! Waaait! Did he just create something outright outrageous out of nowhere in just a few seconds!?" Which makes Nellika plainly confirm, "I think he did..."
In response to that, I smile and explain, "Is it all that outrageous as you say? In fact, the Kosmos Ring is quite a rough work. The separate dimension isn't infinite but a limited space. The same can be said for actually creating an entire world, while it is indeed an impressive act, it isn't all that over the top, especially when there are entities capable of destroying and creating an infinite number of universes out there..."
This is followed by Rimuru, who calmly comments, "Even so, this is still quite impressive... Zandeer and Nikita did tell us that you were quite powerful... But now, I'd like to know just how powerful they were talking about..."
But then he quickly changes the subject, "Oh well, the stronger you are, the better it is for us all. Now, let's focus back on our most pressing issue. How are we going to deal with the invasion that threatens to destroy my entire universe? After all, even with the presence of Zandeer's Grimm Hollow, I still don't feel very confident."
This is followed by Aletha, who frowns and comments, "Rimuru is right... From what I've been able to see, the Champion of Power's army seemed almost endless as it spanned over many worlds. I'm not sure we can still match their numbers even with the help of the Grimm Hollows created by Zandeer."
At this point, I look at the rest of the people present and seeing the concern on their faces, I tell them, "If Zendeer's Grimm Hollows still aren't enough, I also a quite a few friends and allies that I can contact and bring here. They may not match the enemy in numbers, but they are more than able to match them with sheer quality and awesomeness."