Not only that, if the Tempest Serpent hadn't been slain by Shizue but devoured by Rimuru, her magicules could've risen to 20,000–30,000.
A Slime with over 20,000 magicules.
Good grief, was this even a Slime anymore?
It was practically a brand-new species unseen in this world!
"Um…"
Shizue looked at Damien, puzzled. "Do you know this child?"
"Sort of."
As Damien spoke, Rimuru hopped forward, landing in front of them.
"Ah, ahh~"
A cute, feminine voice came from the Slime. "I'm not a bad Slime, you know."
"It spoke!!!"
Shizue stared in shock at Rimuru, her masked face full of disbelief.
'Wait, no, that's not right!'
In her shock, Shizue realized Rimuru hadn't actually spoken.
She heard the voice because the Slime's mental fluctuations were picked up and translated into language.
Even so, it was utterly astonishing.
A Slime with self-awareness?
And it could "talk"?
What kind of cosmic joke was this?
Since when did Slimes, of all creatures, gain intelligence?
"What are you?"
"Some kind of illusion-casting monster?"
Suddenly, Shizue's expression shifted, her gaze sharpening as she stared at Rimuru, hand ready to draw her sword.
'S-so scary…'
The magicules radiating from Shizue terrified Rimuru, who had just barely crossed the 10,000 mark into A-rank.
"Enough."
Before Rimuru could explain, Damien gently pressed down Shizue's hand on her sword hilt. "She's like you... a reincarnator from Japan."
"A reincarnator?!"
Learning Rimuru's identity, especially that they came from the same place, Shizue was thrilled.
She didn't doubt Damien's words.
With his status and strength, there was no need to lie about such things.
"You know about me?!"
Hearing Damien reveal her origins, Rimuru bounced three feet high in excitement. "Um, hi! Are you a reincarnator too?"
"Sort of."
Damien didn't deny it.
In essence, his situation was similar to Rimuru's and Shizue's.
He was just a bit more special, inheriting the Star Dragon King's bloodline and possessing the overpowered Unique Skill [Planeswalker] that let him traverse worlds.
Plus, coming from Earth, he'd read the original novel and knew about this world.
"Oooh!"
Rimuru let out a relieved sigh. "That's great! I didn't expect to meet other reincarnators besides me."
Reincarnating as a Slime had left her deeply uneasy.
Now, finding kindred spirits felt like finding a home, and she instantly warmed to them.
"I'm Damien."
Damien crouched down, patting Rimuru's body.
Smooth and slippery, like touching jelly, but not sticky... releasing it left no residue.
In short, perfect for cuddling on a summer night.
"I'm Shizue Izawa. You can call me Shizu."
Shizue crouched too, patting Rimuru's head. "Nice to meet you, Slime-san."
"Mm-hmm! Hi, Shizu-san!"
Rimuru turned to Damien. "And Mr. Damien? Are you from Europe?"
"Sort of."
Damien didn't elaborate, letting them assume what they wanted.
Next, Rimuru asked where they were headed.
Upon learning they were going to the cave's depths, she hesitated only briefly before requesting to join them.
Damien agreed.
Meeting the protagonist of the original story naturally piqued his interest.
However, as he analyzed Rimuru further, he noticed something odd.
This Rimuru was a girl!
Yes, a girl!
Damien initially thought her feminine voice was due to reincarnation.
But by tracing her reincarnation, he saw her past life as a 25- or 26-year-old female office worker.
"What's going on?"
"A parallel world?"
Damien asked Violet why Rimuru was a girl.
"Upon analysis, her body carries traces of multiple conceptual forces: time, fate, and causality."
"Hm?"
Damien paused, then asked, "So, what does that mean?"
"It's hard to explain precisely."
Violet couldn't elaborate fully. "The only certainty is that this change is related to you."
"…"
In the original story, Chloe's God of the Spacetime could travel through time and alter Rimuru's fate of death.
Damien didn't have a God of the Spacetime but possessed a God of the Void.
The God of the Void similarly had the power to alter the past and reshape fate.
"I think I get it."
Damien didn't dwell on it. All he needed to know was that Rimuru's transformation into a girl was tied to him.
"By the way, Miss Satoru."
"Hm?"
Rimuru looked at Damien curiously. "What's up, Damien-senpai?"
Right, Damien had taught her how to use magicule perception to mimic human vision.
This boosted her fondness for him, already viewing him as a dependable, seasoned reincarnator.
"Want to become my familiar?"
Damien had developed a habit of recruiting any monster with potential.
"Familiar?"
Rimuru asked inwardly, 'Great Sage, what does it mean to become Mr. Damien's familiar?'
[Notice: Without clear reference, the following judgments can be made:]
[1. Accept a name, becoming a follower of the individual named 'Damien.']
[2. Through a special skill, form a contract and establish a connection.]
[3…]
The Great Sage rambled on, but Rimuru barely understood.
"It's somewhere between the first and second options."
Damien cut off the Great Sage, defining the familiar role clearly.
"Eh?"
Rimuru's big, watery eyes widened as she realized something. "Mr. Damien, you can hear my talks with Great Sage?"
"Yup."
"That's amazing!!"
Rimuru wasn't wary.
If anything, she was just embarrassed that Damien could hear her inner thoughts.
"Can I ask why you want me as a familiar, Damien-senpai?"
To her, being a familiar sounded like a summoner-summon relationship.
***
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