"I'm very Sorry!"
". . . Disgusting"
"Truly! I won't say something stupid like that to your face again"
". . . But you will still have these thoughts"
"No comments"
". . ."
On the way to Dwargon, Shizu and Rimuru are having a conversation about Rimuru's previous statement. Rimuru feels very sorry about speaking such a sentence to Shizu, but he doesn't regret it, not a bit.
Although Sylvia is a mother, she doesn't look like one from what he had seen. She looks quite the same as her daughter, so it won't necessarily be the same.
'I mean, is it wrong? Veldora?'
'. . . Spiritual Beings feel love different to what you have experienced in your previous life. Although you don't have many memories of your previous life, why do you only remember the useless ones?'
'What do you mean 'Useless'? The memories I have had helped us until now in many ways, and aren't they the base for 'Veldora Killing Arts'?'
'I mean, yeah. But it's kind of weird that you remembered a lot about anime and manga but not about the rest of your life. You don't even remember your name, right?'
'. . . True. I never thought about it in this way. But I think we are straying from the topic.'
'Love, for spiritual beings, is kind of, etched into the soul in a way. It might not be literal, I don't have any experience regarding this, but the meaning is close. Do you understand now? Don't think about Netori or something.'
'I see . . . But that's not the reason Shizu is angry at me, though.'
'And you know what that reason is. Don't play like a fool in front of me. I know about you a lot better than you think.'
'. . . I need to get you out of me as fast as I can.'
'Good Luck'
Rimuru stopped communicating with Veldora and turned to look at Shizu who was walking beside him. Honestly, he is just attracted to her, but he doesn't know if he loves her. And Shizu is just grateful to him, and she is putting up with him just because of this.
They continued to walk towards Dwargon. The atmosphere between them is a bit strange because Rimuru messed up, but he diverted her attention by talking about the modern world.
Although he himself doesn't remember about the world he came from for some reason, he remembers about the world from a lot of anime and movies. Using [Thought Acceleration] and [Super Memory] , he quickly compiled all the different worlds and analyzed what the modern world would probably look like.
"So yeah, that's how we found the presence of water on the moon."
". . . I don't really understand what you are saying, but it's probably a good thing right?"
"I thought I kept it very clear, but it seems it is not enough"
"No No No!! Whatever you said until now is very clear to me, but it's too much for me to understand nearly 8 decades of history in a couple of minutes. And I don't understand some of your words."
Rimuru understood the first reason. It really is taxing for her to understand all of that with her Skill Set. But he doesn't understand why she is not able to understand some of his words.
'Hey, Veldora! Did I speak some other language or some gibberish subconsciously?'
'You didn't speak any unknown language, heck, you don't even have any memory about different languages, at least enough to speak using them. But you did speak some Gibberish.'
'Really? What did I say? Did I use 'Bla Bla Bla' or something?'
'. . . You used some GenZ terms . . . '
'. . . Oh~'
Rimuru realized that although Shizu is able to understand some words, a lot of words have been introduced during the times. It's understandable that Shizu wasn't able to interpret them.
"Sorry about that, Shizu"
". . . It's fine. . ."
". . ."
". . ."
'Did I say something wrong?'
'Way to go, Rimuru!'
'No, seriously, what did I say?'
'. . . You didn't realize? You called her name without any honorifics.'
'Oh~. That IS smooth. Unexpected but not Unwelcome. And it looks like she isn't against it too.'
Rimuru and Shizu engaged in casual conversation while continuing on their way to Dwargon. They are currently passing through the Jura Forest, since Rimuru wanted to travel at ease, enjoying what nature has to offer.
Unable to find any topics to converse on, they started traveling in silence. It is then that Rimuru started to pay attention to his surroundings. To him, Forest travels are completely new.
Moreover, he is influenced by how they portray the beauty of nature in anime. He wanted to experience this splendor by himself. He probably might have done it in his previous life, but he doesn't remember them now.
This silence lasted for quite a while before they heard a soft sound from a very far away place.
'Veldora, do you know what that sound is?'
'. . . No. And why should I?'
'You are the strongest one here, and you probably have a greater range in sensing what's happening.'
'. . . Are you an Idiot?'
'In a way, yeah. But why do you ask?'
'Nevermind. I am currently trapped inside of you. How do you expect me to use my skill?'
'Ah? Weren't you using it until now?'
'And how did I do so?'
'. . . Fair point. So, why were you able to locate people while I can't?'
'Quite simple, actually. I am just reading your memories whenever you are using Magic Sense. You are not used to using the Skill yet. You are neglecting anything you are not focused on.'
'I see. That makes sense. But what is that sound?'
'Don't ask me for something so trivial. Where would be fun in that? If you want to have an adventure of your own, don't rely on me for everything.'
'Hmm, Fine.'
The sound kept getting louder and louder. It is then they realized that it is a rustling sound, and someone, or something is getting closer to them.
Rimuru soon saw the picture using his Skill. It was something being chased by some other beings. As these creatures get closer and closer, Rimuru is able to identify them properly.
It is a goblin being chased by some wolves. This scene made him think of the fate of the goblins he has missed changing. The goblin being chased in front of him could be the survivor of the goblins in the Canon. So, he is completely relaxed about the approaching entities.
Shizu also knows about what is approaching them, but she is slightly vary of these creatures, as someone with a basic reasoning ability should do. She doesn't know them like Rimuru does, and even if she did, she would still be vary, since the beings in front of her don't know her.
Shizu looked at Rimuru who was standing relaxed beside her and shook her head slightly. But she can understand it, Considering that he did not experience these kinds of situations before.
As the goblin and dire wolves kept getting closer to them, they could already see their appearances. Rimuru is slightly surprised by the goblin running towards him.
It is heavily wounded but still running very fast. He is impressed by its tenacity. The goblin also noticed the two humans in front of him. Realizing its fate, it ran towards the humans for that slim chance of survival.
Rimuru looked at the goblin which got faster and understood its thoughts. Shizu quietly put her hand on the handle of her blade, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
'Hey Veldora, I think that goblin has some potential.'
'You can train harder if it doesn't have enough potential. The point is, do you want to take it under your command? Goblins, in general, tend to have lower potential.'
'Doesn't matter. I just want to save it. Maybe it a nave and it evolves too.'
'True'
'Heck, who knows, it might even be a female.'
'. . . I think you should start using your head soon.'
'. . .'
Rimuru looked at the desperate expression on the goblin's face and decided to help it out of 'goodwill'. He used Sticky Thread to pull it towards him, and blocked Shizu who wanted to follow up his 'attack'.
"Why are you stopping me?"
"I want to recruit it."
"A Goblin? But Goblins generally are-"
"Don't Care. I just want to recruit it."
". . . Fine"
Rimuru looked at the Dire Wolves looking at him with Caution because of his previous move. Rimuru observed the Dire Wolves and realized . . . nothing. He has no clue about who they are in the Canon.
"I do not care about the reason why you are chasing this Goblin, but I want to save it. Name your condition."
"Grr..."
"I don't speak 'Wolf'. Normal language please."
"Leave it here, Human. And don't interfere in our Affairs."
Although the leading Dire Wolf was speaking with him, it kept glancing at Shizu. Wolves have much better senses in comparison with other monsters, and can feel Shizu's strength even though Shizu is hiding it.
As for Rimuru, he is too weak in it's eyes. Someone who barely has anything to tick it's senses off is not worth mentioning. It even thought that there was only one human before coming close.
Rimuru understood the look in the Wolf's eyes and sent a thought communication to Shizu.
'Talk with it. Convince it to leave behind the Goblin for us.'
'Why are you talking so much with it? You can just kill them.'
'I also maybe kind of want to recruit them too.'
'Fine, Rimuru-san. But you just want to make things difficult for me, right?'
'. . . Rimuru, You can just call me Rimuru.'
"That wolf over there, leave this Goblin with us. I will kill you if you don't leave quickly."
'. . .'
'Give her some time, Rimuru. You need to take things slowly.'
'When did you get so good at giving advice?'
'Oh! That's just a line from this manga I am reading now.'
'You're into romance?'
'Nope. But I feel like I need to read them if I don't want you to mess up.'
'. . . Thanks'
The Dire Wolf looked carefully at Shizu. It doesn't want to fight with her now. It estimates that it's chance of victory against her is none. But it has to, as it has been ordered not long ago.
"Although I too don't want to fight now, this Goblin is my ticket for redemption if I want to join my father's pack again."
"You got kicked out?"
The leading wolf looked at Rimuru and then again towards Shizu. Seeing her not saying anything, it was understood that Rimuru would most likely be the leader of this duo. So it decided to answer him,
"No, I decided to leave by myself. After we attacked a Goblin Village a few days ago, our leader has grown more and more Manic. I did not want to be under his command anymore.
So I challenged him for leadership. Although we couldn't decide on the victor, I could feel that most of my comrades wanted to be under him. And even though my father forgave me, I still couldn't stay there."
"Woah, you got a sad story, don't you?"
'It's not, Rimuru. And you speaking in such a way makes this much worse.'
Fortunately for Rimuru, the Wolf wasn't much cleverer than him, so it didn't consider any hidden meaning.
"Yes. But I think that it's better for me to stay under him. I am not a leader. I could be one if I trained under him, but I didn't have much of a chance. Now, I just want to go back and join the pack."
It looked at the goblin that got slightly better because of it's rest, but started shivering when it looked at it.
"This goblin escaped from the village we attacked. I am very surprised at how it managed to pull it off, but if I hunt it down and bring it back, I might have a chance to go back. Even if I didn't, I want those who are following me currently to join."
"That's a bummer. You see, I really want this Goblin. I want to take it under my command."
"Then I can only take it by force."
". . . Seriously? You want to fight me? And by me, I mean her."
"No, I will escape."
". . ."
The wolf took a deep glance at Rimuru and turned towards Shizu. Seeing her getting ready to draw her sword, it starts Shivering, before hurriedly speaking, "Fine, Fine. You can have the Goblin. We'll leave!!"
"On second thought, stay. I think my Goblin would need a few companions."
". . ."
The Wolf is shocked by the words spoken by the human in front of it. It couldn't understand why they wanted it too.
"Fine, I'll stay if that's what you want. But let my brothers leave."
"Consider it done. Welcome!!"
The wolf didn't respond to Rimuru's words and turned back to look at its comrades. It can see the uneasiness in their eyes, so it quickly spoke to comfort them.
"Don't Worry. You still have a chance. I think my Father will allow you to join the Pack after you take this Goblin back."
"Awoo~"
"Hold IT!!!"
Rimuru is speechless hearing the words. He wants to confirm with Veldora about what he heard.
'Did I say something about letting them have the Goblin, Veldora?'
'No. I think it thinks that you want to exchange it for the goblin.'
'But I think I made it very clear though'
'True. And for a moment there, I really thought that the Wolf was better at using it's brain than you'
'. . .'
Rimuru looked at the Wolf in front of him and spoke slowly, "I think you misunderstood my words, or didn't understand them at all. I want the goblin and also you. It's not an exchange."
"No! What about my brothers then? What will happen to them if I leave?"
". . . Well, they don't really need to leave, you know. They can tag along with us. Heck, I will take all your tribe under me."
"But the leader wouldn't agree to be under you."
"Not your problem. I have my way to convince him. Lead the way"
Rimuru and his group followed the small pack of wolves to meet with the leader of the larger pack. Shizu took the opportunity to ask him about his decision.
'Why do you want to take all of them under you?'
'I won't'
'Then why did you . . .'
'Why did I tell him that? Well, I do have a reason for that. It's a bit of a hassle for now, so I'll tell you about it when it is in motion.'
'. . . Fine'
Rimuru and Shizu kept talking with each other when he felt a tug on his clothes. Rimuru looked down to see the goblin looking at him with a pitiful expression.
"What's wrong?"
"Why did you save me?"
"I already answered that"
"When?"
"Hah~ . . . I just want to bring you under my command."
"Really?!"
"Yes"
"Ok!"
". . ."
'Are Goblins as simple as this one in general, Veldora?'
'Probably? I don't deal with them, you know. They won't even be able to get close to me previously'
'Oh'
Rimuru walked in silence wondering on how to convince the Dire Wolves leader to serve him. He has a few ideas, and he is sure that he can convince them using those, but they are generally intimidation tactics, and he wants to see if he can resolve it without violence.
After walking for a while, the group has reached the main hideout of the Dire Wolves. It is the location of the Goblins previously, now occupied by them temporarily.
The wooden fence looks worn out from recent battles, and there are 4 wolves on guard outside. The guards found the group walking towards them and growled vigilantly.
The leader wolf beside Rimuru went to the Guarding Wolves and howled, communicating with them. After a while, one of the guarding wolves ran inside to inform the leader.
Shortly after, the leader of the wolves ran out with its entourage and looked at the group in front of it with a cold expression, and spoke, "If you want to come back, you shouldn't bring humans with you. Looking at them, they didn't come here as captives."
"Father, these humans want to take us under their command!"
". . . And you just brought them to me? What if they kill all of us?"
"Ah?!"
The young Wolf is shocked by the question and swiftly turns around to look at Rimuru, more specifically at Shizu. They smiled at it and gently shook their heads.
Relieved, the wolf turned around to look at it's father with a smug expression. It then started wagging its tail under its father's expression of looking at an Idiot.
'Hey Veldora, get ready to release your Haki again.'
'I suggest you do not think of it, Rimuru. Although being 'Veldora' would help you in conquering them since I am the guardian of the forest, there probably are scouts monitoring this area right now searching for the Storm Dragon that appeared yesterday.'
'Fine, I'll do it myself'
'Did you just-'
Gloom~
The wolf leader is shocked by the sudden outburst of energy/presence from one of the humans in front of it. Although it hates to do so, it still lowered it's head and asked Rimuru his purpose.
"I originally wanted to take you under my command, but I changed my mind. I only want to take this wolf under me now, but I won't kill you. Leave, and if fate wills it and we meet again, I'll consider it again."
"Yes! As you wish!"
The Wolf leader looked at its stupid son and then the wolves behind his son. It spoke, "Those behind, come back and join the pack"
The wolves, although resistant, slowly made their way and joined the pack, leaving the young wolf alone with Rimuru.
Rimuru looked at the wolf leader and his gaze clashed with its own. He nodded slightly, turned around and left the wolf Group, followed by Shizu, the Goblin and the reluctant wolf.
Rimuru slowly murmured in his heart, Don't worry! I will take care of your son, son, . . . Son?
'Hey Veldora, is the wolf beside me Ranga before he was named in the original?'
'You just realized? I thought you wanted to recruit it because you knew.'
'Nah! It didn't hit me until now'
'. . .'
The group walked for a while until they reached a river. Rimuru decided to name them here and wait here while they evolve.
"So, you are a female, right?"
"A-Ah? Y-Yes, I am."
'Now that's a bit troubling. If it is a male, I wanted to name it Bob. Simple and elegant'
'When did 'Bob' become elegant?'
'Because I said so. Anyway, I think I'll just change it a bit.'
Rimuru looked at the Goblin before him, his expression serious, and he slowly spoke
"I am impressed by your will, young goblin, your will to survive. And I want to train you to be my confidant. It will be an arduous path. I want you to be a strong, capable and heroic person. I hope you will live up to my expectations. So I want to name you, give you a name synonymous with bravery and heroism, and I want you to live up to it."
"Th-Thank you very much!!! I will be eternally grateful to you, my master!!"
"Umu, From now on, you shall be called Bobetta, Bobetta Pendragon"
'Pfft-!!, What the hell did you add at the end?!'
Rimuru had no time to answer as he was trying to feel the magicules flowing out of him. It won't cause much of a problem to him though.
He then turned around to look at the eagerly waiting Wolf and spoke, "And you, Wolf, . . . Ranga!"
". . ? That's it?"
It didn't receive an answer since it got busy with its evolution. Rimuru looked at the two of them who were drowsy and smiled. They are his next subordinates. He didn't want to take the rest of the wolves under him because he wanted to take the elite route.
"We'll wait here for a while, Shizu. We'll start again after their evolution is over."
"Ok"
'What was that name, Rimuru?'
'Ah? I think it's great, though'
'. . . Whatever'
Rimuru stopped his conversation with Veldora, and gazed at the evening sky wondering about how to convince the dwarves to work for him.