Clown: Just look outside! The blue sky, clean air, and so many opportunities!
Pierrot: Itâs night, the air is polluted, and the world can end in a thousand different ways tomorrow.
Clown: Then⌠you can see the stars!
Pierrot: Itâs raining.
Clown: Pollution makes water pretty!
Pierrot: And toxic.
Clown: An end is just the beginning!
Pierrot: Thatâs only true for a circle. But wait, if what you say is true⌠life is like a circle. We go around and around the same point, accomplishing nothing. Living accomplishes nothing. Nothing gets done, so there is no meaning. Life is meaningless⌠Haha⌠I guess itâs just like that joke said.
Clown: Do I dare ask?
Pierrot: What did the triangle say to the circle? Youâre pointless.
.
Empowerment Arc
Chapter 09 â Negotiating with the Goblins
I glanced at the goblin.
The goblins are, from what I can see, pretty desperate. They are on guard, weapon in hand; and are politely calling out to me.
Unfortunately, many seem to have run away already.
But as expected of the leader,
He looks me straight in the eye⌠err, straight at me.
Alright.
I feel some intelligence from this one. Might be able to talk properly.
Will my voice reach..?
I tried attaching thought to the spoken words and sending them to goblin.
ăShould I say, pleased to meet you? I am the slime, Rimuru.ă
The goblins began murmuring among themselves.
Were they surprised that a slime spoke? Or so I thought, butâŚ
Among them, a few wearing plain clothing threw away their weapons.
I donât really get it.
ăGuga, O strong one! We very understand your great power! We beg, lower your voice!!!ă
Mu? Were the thoughts I attached too strong?
So I guess telepathy is a no go. Theyâd just be more afraid.
ăMy bad. I still canât regulate it very well.ă
I guess Iâll apologize.
ăWe unworthy. No need apologize to us!ă
Seems like my words are reaching them.
This is some good practice.
Oh and by the way, Iâm speaking Japanese, yet somehow, they are understanding.
ăSo, what do you need from me? I donât have any particular reason to be going this way, either.ă
Since they have politely asked questions, I guess Iâll politely answer.
And maybe it was too much, but to make sure they continued fearing me, I said that rather forcefully.
ăSo it like that. On this path, stand our village. We felt strong monster, so came as precaution.ă
ăA strong monsterâs presence? One that I have not detected..?ă
ăGuga, gugaga, you joke! Even clothed in that form, we will not be fooled!ă
It seems like theyâve completely got the wrong idea. (Warning! The one whoâs mistaken is Rimuru!)
They are completely convinced that a powerful monster took the shape of a slime.
As would be expected from goblins, who are famous for being low ranking monsters.
After talking to the goblins for a while, it seems like Iâll be imposing on their village.
That is, it seems like Iâm staying over.
Though they look shabby, it seems they have a big heart.
And though I donât need to sleep, taking a break might be a good idea.
With that thought, I decided to accept the offer and go to their village.
.
We discussed many things.
That, the god they worshiped had recently disappeared.
That, along with his disappearance, various monsters begun moving.
That, the number of powerful adventurers had increased.
And so on.
And, during the conversation, I finally became able to clearly hear their words.
That I can probably attribute to having gotten used to listening with [Magic Perception].
Itâs probably a good thing I practiced with goblins before talking to people.
Such was the conversation in the company of goblins.
The village is⌠where? Is what I wanted to say, considering how dirty it was.
After all, I hadnât expected goblin dig up their dens.
Even so, they guided me to the best looking building.
The roof was made of rotting straw, and so was full of holes; the walls were just piled plywoodâŚ
By my worldâs standards, even slum housing is preferable! Thatâs how bad it was.
ăWe apologize for making you wait, honored guest.ă
A goblin said while entering the structure.
The goblin leader who had been showing me around until now then moved to attend to this one.
ăAh⌠donât mind it. I hadnât been waiting that longă
I tried to respond with the best business-like smile I could foster.
Of course, the best slime-smile possible.
They say that a single smile can turn negotiation in oneâs favor. Got to say, even I am susceptible to that skill.
Not that I know what we are negotiating about..
ăWe humbly apologize for the inability to provide better accommodations. I currently have the pleasure of serving as this villageâs chief.ă
Having said that, the goblins placed before me a tea-like drink.
Which I have to admit, was rather surprising.
I sip the tea. (To the onlookers, it probably looked like I toppled the cup over.)
It had no taste. Which was obvious, considering I had no taste buds.
Whether that was good thing or notâI donât know⌠after checking the ingredients, I confirmed that it was not poisonous.
Moreover, I could feel their sincere attempt at hospitality from this cup.
ăSo, for what reason have you gone out of your way to invite me here?ă
I went straight to the point.
âLetâs become friends with a fellow monster!â ⌠it probably wasnât that kind of benevolent reason.
Although the chief tensed and began to tremble, he seemed to have steeled himself and proceeded to ask.
And this is what he said,
ăIf I may, you are aware of the recent increase in activity among the monsters, correct?ă
That I heard on the way here.
ăWe have lived till now peacefully due to the protection from our god; however, He seems to have hidden himself about a month agoâŚ
Due to his disappearance, the nearby monsters have begun invading these landsâŚ
We, ourselves, did not welcome their incursion, and responded with force; but, our forcesâŚă
Hmmmm.
Would the god be⌠Veldora? Fits time wiseâŚ
In any case, it seems the goblins want my help.
ăI understand your request. However, being a slime, I doubt I can live up to your expectations.ă
ăHahaha, how modest! A slime could never radiate such strong demonic aura!
We are not so presumptuous as to try guess at why you have taken that appearance, but we are awareâyou are a Named Monster, are you not?ă
Demonic aura⌠he said?
Whatâs that? I donât remember emitting thatâŚ
So, I tried to observe myself with [Magic Perception].
There was some kind of ominous aura drifting about me.
Ugh⌠I should have noticed it when mimicking monsters or trying out [Body Armor]âŚ
How embarrassingâŚ.
This feels just like walking down main street with your fly wide open.
The caveâs high magical energy concentration probably confused my senses.
But, this is no good! Totally out of the question!
Now, I finally understand the monstersâ fear of meâŚ
What monster would want to make an enemy of this dangerous looking guy?
âNo idiots getting fooled by appearance here!â kind of thing.
WelpâŚ
ăFufufu. As expected of the chief, thou understands?ă
ăIt was obvious, your grace! Your wondrous persona cannot be hidden!ă
ăI see, I was found out. Thou seems to be a promising bunch.ă
Iâm getting carried away, arenât I.
Letâs play along with their misconceptions and manipulate them a bit.
At the same time, letâs try to erase that ominous aura (demonic aura).
As if absorbing the aura, I tried to direct the outer magical energy inside.
ăOoh! You have been testing us! And let us thank you. There were many who feared your great aura.ă
Looks like the aura successfully dissipated.
From what I can see, I now look just like a normal slime.
But.
Had I been wandering around as a normal slimeâŚ
I probably would have been annoyed with all the fights by nowâŚ
So isnât this aura a good thing?
ăIt is so! Having beheld my aura and yet spake before I, wonderfully done!ă
(TL Note: spake is an archaic (traditional) form of spoke, just imagine Rimuru speaking like Veldora)
Whatâs wonderful about itâŚ? Am I looking for trouble? Well, Iâll bear with it for now.
Like an actor,
ăAy! Your kindness is wasted on us. If You will, we shall not inquire regarding Your true visage. Lest You anger, we wish for you to hearken to our request. Could we hope for such a favor?ă
(TL Note: hearken is archaic for listen, imagine the goblins being groveling-level polite)
Well, probably.
ăDonât avoid the subject. Let me hear it!ă
While maintaining my haughty attitude, I pressed the chief for details.
The story goes as thus.
Coming from the eastern lands, new monsters threaten the balance of this region.
Further, it seems that there are a few goblin villages around here.
This village being but one of them, but they have had many battles with the newcomers and lost many good warriors.
But the real problem was the named warrior.
He served as the guardian of this village; and, when he was lost, the village found itself in a perilous situation.
Other goblin communities have abandoned it.
âWhile the newcomers ravage that village, weâll come up with a plan!â So the other villages thought.
And no matter how much the Goblin Chief and Leader begged them, they were coldly rebuked.
Such is the bitter story the goblins conveyed.
ăI see⌠how many live in this village? Among those, how many can fight?ă
ăYes, there are a hundred denizens. If we include females, sixty are able to fightă
Sounds rather unreliable.
However, to even comprehend basic mathematics⌠the goblins are rather intelligent.
ăHmph. What about the opponent? How many and of what race? ă
ăAh, yes. From the wolf species, the Fang Wolf family. At the moment, even ten of us could hardly match one of themâŚ
And there are a hundred of themâŚă
Ha..? Who set this to game to Impossible difficulty?!
I stared the chief in the eyes.
No, he is not lying. His eyes are earnest.
There are few dubious points, but I can probably believe his words for the most part.
ăAbout those goblin warriors. They knew they couldnât win and still threw their lives away pointlessly?ă
ă⌠No, this intel is the product of the lives they gave away.ă
His next words made me regret my question.
Named Goblin was the Chiefâs son, and Goblin Leaderâs older brother.
Having heard the situation, I stopped to think.
Without a word, the Chief awaits my decision.
Did I just see a tear in his eyes? ⌠probably just imagined it.
Tears donât suit monsters.
Arrogance does. Thatâs the proper appearance of the feared monsters.
ăChief, there is but one thing I wish to confirm. If I save this village, what be my reward? What will thee do for me?ă
Not that I wouldnât do this without a reward.
But, weâre talking about a hundred enemies as strong as ten goblins each.
This will be no walk in the park.
If I mimic the black serpent I can probably manage, butâŚ
Itâs not a deal I can just easily accept.
ăWe offer our loyalty! Please protect us. If You do, we shall forever serve You!!!ă
Honestly, I can do without their loyalty.
But, having endured 90 days of solitude, I truly enjoyed talking with the goblins.
Had I been human, I might have been repulsed by their filthiness.
But, I am now a monster. I fear no disease.
Moreover, the chiefâs eyes. Iâm their only hope, they say.
Just like in the past world, Iâm weak to dependent types.
While grumbling to myself, listening to complains from my kouhai, and fulfilling the requests of customers and senpaiâŚ
(TL Note: kouhai is a member of an organization who started there after the person in question, senpai is person who was there before)
ăVery well! I shall accept that request!ă
I accepted with an exaggerated bow.
And so, I became the master of goblins, and their guardian.