Chapter 21: Entry
Author’s Note: The second volume begins.
We will turn time back a bit from the extra chapter.
Translated by Soyokaze Translations: soyokazetranslation . Com
A few days have passed since Yig started traveling with us.
The theater troupe took to the girl with carefree behavior surprisingly quickly, but the biggest reason for that is probably how kind the troupe is.
Most of all the troupe leader, Mister Morgan’s inclinations are a big part of it.
“So, little Yig, how would you like to join my theater…”
“No way~”
“If you were to join us, our breadth of theatrical possibilities would increase.”
“Sound like a pain~”
“We would absolutely love to recruit someone who can transform.”
“Don’t care~”
Well, they’ve been repeating this kind of exchange every day.
I’m really glad his target has switched away from me.
I also managed to find time for some gift verification and the like, which is helpful.
“So, what’s it like?”
“Seems I can pull in anything within a range I can perceive, even if it’s not a solid object. I guess if you think about it, it should have been obvious when I took in ‘water’.”
“Then does that mean ‘fire’ would be possible too?”
“Probably.”
Right now I’m reconfirming my abilities. I knew I could pull ‘breath’ in now, so I’m experimenting with what else is possible.
Knowing that gathering gas was possible, I wonder of pulling in enough ‘fire’ to be suitable as a fire starter is possible?
Time doesn’t pass inside the “Dimensional Storage,” so the ‘fire’ taken in wouldn’t disappear or weaken.
If necessary it could even be used as a distraction or a replacement for magic.
“Might be a good idea to take in two or three of Yig’s breath attacks to use as an ace up our sleeve for later.”
“Hrm, that takes a whole lot of concentration; it wears me out.”
Unlike flames, Yig’s breath would more appropriately be called a flash of plasma.
It goes faster than any normal object, and is extremely hot.
If I were to mess up, there wouldn’t even be cinders left of me.
“Having you disappear on me would be problematic, so just keep it within what you can manage, Eir.”
“Got it, I’ll use discretion.”
“Forget two or three shots, I’d be fine with ten really. But that gift of yours sure is convenient.”
“To be honest, it’s hard to know just how far it goes.”
“Now I know why my dad said “keep it a secret” to me.”
“Are living things okay with it?”
In response to Yig’s carefree question, Master and I looked at each other.
Now that she mentions it, we’ve never tried that.
“Will it work?”
“Guess we’ll try… Let’s test it on that frog over there first.”
Master fetches a croaking frog from the side of the road.
After making sure it was healthy, I tried stowing it away in “Dimensional Storage”.
“Humm… Guess pulling it in is fine. Only question now is whether it’s still alive in there or not.”
Master confirms the situation and takes notes.
After seeing he’s done with that, I make the frog reappear.
As far as we could see, the frog seemed just fine.
“It’s alive, huh?”
“Yup, guess it’s possible with living things too?”
“But, I mean… There could be a problem we can’t see.”
“Yeah, there is that possibility… Maybe we should try it on Yig.”
“Ueh! Why me?!”
“’cause you’re the toughest one.”
“You’re actually merciless, huh Boss?”
Yig complains with a pitiable look while I try to forcibly stow her away, but… I can’t?
“Huh?”
“Can’t do it?”
“Nope, can’t do it.”
“Ah, maybe it’s because I fought against it on reflex? Can you try one more time?”
So it might not be possible to pull someone in if they don’t want to accept it.
This time I managed to drag her into “Dimensional Storage” with no problems. After about thirty seconds I toss pull her back out.
“Eh? Huh? Is it over already?”
“Mm, I tried putting you in there for about thirty seconds. What was it like inside?”
This is actually what I want to know about the most.
I’m really very curious about what the space I send things to is like.
“Eh, dunno. Heck, I couldn’t even tell when I was pulled in.”
“Say what?”
“Thirty seconds you said? I don’t remember anything from the moment I was pulled in to now though?”
“Oh right, ’cause time was stopped while you were in there… Anything wrong with you?”
“Nope.”
Yig answers in less than a moment.
“You can’t just so simply…”
“It’s because I’m a dragon. I can at least tell what’s going on with my body. It actually seems pretty inconvenient for humans not knowing everything about your bodies.”
“Is that how it works? For now we can test it out on Kevin later.”
“Master Rimuru, you’re a tyrant.”
Truthfully, he treats Kevin horribly.
“So next, about you, Eir…”
“Me?”
“Not feeling off anywhere? I could tell from your battle with Yig before; it seems like your physical abilities have improved quite a bit.”
“I’m sure it’s because of the dragon meat I ate.”
“That wouldn’t be it. You haven’t eaten the dragon meat since being buried alive, have you Chief?”
“No.”
“Dragon meat’s effects are immediate. Any strengthening is gonna happen right when you eat it. So it’s not gonna start taking effect long after the fact.”
“Then… Why?”
In fighting Yig, I was giving my all in moving around, and swinging my sword, yet there’s not a single wound from it all.
“It’s because you’ve ‘grown’ probably?”
“grown?”
“Your body, Chief. Eating the dragon meat built some groundwork in you. At first you couldn’t handle that groundwork, so it hurt your body, you must have created the foundations of dealing with it when you defeated the grand hedgehog, kinda like… A level up or something?”
“That reminds me, I’ve heard fighting in the labyrinth is supposed to rapidly increase your abilities.”
“Ah, Amy.”
We got overly heated in our discussion, and didn’t notice Amy coming up from behind.
She brought tea for all of us with her, which lets us take a moment’s break.
“The World Tree’s labyrinth?”
“Yeah, if you fight inside it, they say your abilities raise several times faster than outside.”
“That’s amazing.”
“I heard it’s probably because the inside is filled with the World Tree’s air, so efficiency increases or something.”
“Wow… But in that case, shouldn’t everyone go in a build up some experience?”
“Not really the best idea. From the very first floor in there, ogres, trolls and things of that difficulty saunter around, so it’s not to be challenged lightly.”
“That’s… Pretty tough.”
Master’s parents were killed by trolls, so he’s well aware of how fearsome they are.
Normally trolls can’t be taken on without around ten soldiers to meet them, after all.
“The ones who can go inside get stronger. The ones who can’t gradually get left behind. Sokaris is becoming a stratified society with just a few elites.”
“And there’s no guarantee those few will always be fine either…”
“Yeah, it’s hard for new talent to join in, so if their numbers decrease they can’t find replacements. Which makes the elites get fewer in number. It’s a vicious cycle.”
“So that’s why you’re distancing yourself from Sokaris?”
“Well yeah, depending on whether you can go into the labyrinth or not over there, your growth changes dramatically. Unfortunately I don’t have the skills to do that. So I figured I’d look for a change in environment. It’s not like I’ve given up, y’know?”
“So you plan on going for round two some day?”
“Of course! I’m still too young to call it quits!”
She strikes a pose, pumping her fists, which looks cute even from my womanly perspective.
The gesture itself more than her appearance.
“That sure is nice…”
If I took that pose, it would actually be scary. The pressure of my left arm is nothing to scoff at.
“Hm? Then how ’bout you try training, Chief?”
“Training… Aren’t you the only one that could provide a decent experience for Eir?”
“That’s not what I mean, I can do swordsmanship and martial arts too y’know? I haven’t lived this long for nothing!”
“… Eh? I’d heard dragons didn’t like those types of things though.”
“The god of destruction is the type who enjoys ‘tricks’ like those. It influenced me, and I studied too.”
The heck are you adding to the strongest creature alive…? That’s just overkill.
“But you didn’t use anything like that when you fought me.”
“Yeah, I didn’t think I would have to. If we’re just talking physical abilities, I’m the stronger one.”
Thinking back on that battle, after the initial lazy charge and punch, all she did was get in close and attack.
“You’re top class quality, Chief, so I figure there’s value in teaching you.”
Seeing the little girl smiling so happily, I began to doubt she could use a sword, and yet… I learned the basics of wielding swords from Burns, but I didn’t have time to get a firmer grasp of how to fight, so I didn’t learn that part.
From now on I may need those techniques to protect Master.
“Okay. I’m in your hands.”
“Oh, me too! I wanna learn swordsmanship!”
“Amy, aren’t you a magician?”
“I want to learn just in case the need arises.”
Come to think of it, when we first met her she was being pinned down by a man. She probably thought ‘if only I could use a sword’ or something right then.
“Hm, okaaay. I’ll look after both of ya!”
“Hey… Could I join in?”
A voice brakes into the conversation… It’s Kevin.
“Can I get stronger too? If I can, then please.”
Saying that, Kevin bowed his head. Just a little while ago I wouldn’t have believed my eyes.
After experiencing a number of unusual fights, he must have become keenly aware of his lack of strength, I guess?
“One or two more people doesn’t change much anyway~. Sure, why not. In your case you seem like you waste a lot of power too~.”
“Hey now, no fair! Teach me too!”
“And me! I can’t stay orange rank forever!”
One after another the escorts announced their participation.
“Uwah, now this is definitely becoming a pain…”
“You sowed the seeds though?”
“Guess I have to~.”
And so Yig’s swordsmanship dojo began holding classes along the way.
~*~
Translated by Soyokaze Translations: soyokazetranslation . Com
Another three weeks after that. After passing through the checking station at the border, we entered the country of Raum.
Raum is a country of forests and mountains. Sixty percent of the country is comprised of woodlands, thirty percent is mountains, and between all those are the scattered cities where people live.
Naturally the major highways weave a path through those forests and mountains too, meaning there aren’t many prying eyes nearby.
Which is exactly the kind of place where bandits loiter around…
“If ya enjoy living, drop yer valuables an’ git!”
“Don’t go thinkin’ ye be a match fer the Dazrad Thieves just ’cause ye got a lot of ye!”
“Hyeehehehe, they got some nice women too.”
So, well, these types show up.
“… … …”
The members of the lead group, Crimson, are silent.
Catching up from behind, we look at them with pity in our eyes.
In the rear, Moonlight are also facing thieves who are cutting off our escape route; we have no path to retreat on.
“Well, already knew we were surrounded though.”
“This’ll be some good genuine battle experience~.”
Yig and I mutter without a care in the world. There are no magicians among them, so my magic power detection wasn’t set off, but even I could see through their pathetic attempts at concealment.
“Whoa, hey, them escorts are shakin’ in their boots.”
“Sure hired the worst of ’em, eh? GYAHAHAHA!”
Crimson remains silent, and the thieves get uppity.
“Teacher…?”
Crimson’s leader calls over to Yig. He’s asking for permission.
“Hm, go eat ’em up.”
“HELL YEEEEEEEAH! TIME FOR A REAL FIIIIIGHT!”
“C-c-c-c-can I cut ’em up? I’ll cut ’em? GONNA CUT ‘EEEEEEEM!”
“Blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood…”
They, uhh, seem to have surpassed the thieves in madness.
“Why’d it turn out like this…?”
“Maybe I overdid it~?”
Translated by Soyokaze Translations: soyokazetranslation . Com
After that, the thirty bandits were annihilated in a just a few minutes.
Chapter 21: Entry
Author’s Note: The second volume begins.
We will turn time back a bit from the extra chapter.
Translated by Soyokaze Translations: soyokazetranslation . Com
A few days have passed since Yig started traveling with us.
The theater troupe took to the girl with carefree behavior surprisingly quickly, but the biggest reason for that is probably how kind the troupe is.
Most of all the troupe leader, Mister Morgan’s inclinations are a big part of it.
“So, little Yig, how would you like to join my theater…”
“No way~”
“If you were to join us, our breadth of theatrical possibilities would increase.”
“Sound like a pain~”
“We would absolutely love to recruit someone who can transform.”
“Don’t care~”
Well, they’ve been repeating this kind of exchange every day.
I’m really glad his target has switched away from me.
I also managed to find time for some gift verification and the like, which is helpful.
“So, what’s it like?”
“Seems I can pull in anything within a range I can perceive, even if it’s not a solid object. I guess if you think about it, it should have been obvious when I took in ‘water’.”
“Then does that mean ‘fire’ would be possible too?”
“Probably.”
Right now I’m reconfirming my abilities. I knew I could pull ‘breath’ in now, so I’m experimenting with what else is possible.
Knowing that gathering gas was possible, I wonder of pulling in enough ‘fire’ to be suitable as a fire starter is possible?
Time doesn’t pass inside the “Dimensional Storage,” so the ‘fire’ taken in wouldn’t disappear or weaken.
If necessary it could even be used as a distraction or a replacement for magic.
“Might be a good idea to take in two or three of Yig’s breath attacks to use as an ace up our sleeve for later.”
“Hrm, that takes a whole lot of concentration; it wears me out.”
Unlike flames, Yig’s breath would more appropriately be called a flash of plasma.
It goes faster than any normal object, and is extremely hot.
If I were to mess up, there wouldn’t even be cinders left of me.
“Having you disappear on me would be problematic, so just keep it within what you can manage, Eir.”
“Got it, I’ll use discretion.”
“Forget two or three shots, I’d be fine with ten really. But that gift of yours sure is convenient.”
“To be honest, it’s hard to know just how far it goes.”
“Now I know why my dad said “keep it a secret” to me.”
“Are living things okay with it?”
In response to Yig’s carefree question, Master and I looked at each other.
Now that she mentions it, we’ve never tried that.
“Will it work?”
“Guess we’ll try… Let’s test it on that frog over there first.”
Master fetches a croaking frog from the side of the road.
After making sure it was healthy, I tried stowing it away in “Dimensional Storage”.
“Humm… Guess pulling it in is fine. Only question now is whether it’s still alive in there or not.”
Master confirms the situation and takes notes.
After seeing he’s done with that, I make the frog reappear.
As far as we could see, the frog seemed just fine.
“It’s alive, huh?”
“Yup, guess it’s possible with living things too?”
“But, I mean… There could be a problem we can’t see.”
“Yeah, there is that possibility… Maybe we should try it on Yig.”
“Ueh! Why me?!”
“’cause you’re the toughest one.”
“You’re actually merciless, huh Boss?”
Yig complains with a pitiable look while I try to forcibly stow her away, but… I can’t?
“Huh?”
“Can’t do it?”
“Nope, can’t do it.”
“Ah, maybe it’s because I fought against it on reflex? Can you try one more time?”
So it might not be possible to pull someone in if they don’t want to accept it.
This time I managed to drag her into “Dimensional Storage” with no problems. After about thirty seconds I toss pull her back out.
“Eh? Huh? Is it over already?”
“Mm, I tried putting you in there for about thirty seconds. What was it like inside?”
This is actually what I want to know about the most.
I’m really very curious about what the space I send things to is like.
“Eh, dunno. Heck, I couldn’t even tell when I was pulled in.”
“Say what?”
“Thirty seconds you said? I don’t remember anything from the moment I was pulled in to now though?”
“Oh right, ’cause time was stopped while you were in there… Anything wrong with you?”
“Nope.”
Yig answers in less than a moment.
“You can’t just so simply…”
“It’s because I’m a dragon. I can at least tell what’s going on with my body. It actually seems pretty inconvenient for humans not knowing everything about your bodies.”
“Is that how it works? For now we can test it out on Kevin later.”
“Master Rimuru, you’re a tyrant.”
Truthfully, he treats Kevin horribly.
“So next, about you, Eir…”
“Me?”
“Not feeling off anywhere? I could tell from your battle with Yig before; it seems like your physical abilities have improved quite a bit.”
“I’m sure it’s because of the dragon meat I ate.”
“That wouldn’t be it. You haven’t eaten the dragon meat since being buried alive, have you Chief?”
“No.”
“Dragon meat’s effects are immediate. Any strengthening is gonna happen right when you eat it. So it’s not gonna start taking effect long after the fact.”
“Then… Why?”
In fighting Yig, I was giving my all in moving around, and swinging my sword, yet there’s not a single wound from it all.
“It’s because you’ve ‘grown’ probably?”
“grown?”
“Your body, Chief. Eating the dragon meat built some groundwork in you. At first you couldn’t handle that groundwork, so it hurt your body, you must have created the foundations of dealing with it when you defeated the grand hedgehog, kinda like… A level up or something?”
“That reminds me, I’ve heard fighting in the labyrinth is supposed to rapidly increase your abilities.”
“Ah, Amy.”
We got overly heated in our discussion, and didn’t notice Amy coming up from behind.
She brought tea for all of us with her, which lets us take a moment’s break.
“The World Tree’s labyrinth?”
“Yeah, if you fight inside it, they say your abilities raise several times faster than outside.”
“That’s amazing.”
“I heard it’s probably because the inside is filled with the World Tree’s air, so efficiency increases or something.”
“Wow… But in that case, shouldn’t everyone go in a build up some experience?”
“Not really the best idea. From the very first floor in there, ogres, trolls and things of that difficulty saunter around, so it’s not to be challenged lightly.”
“That’s… Pretty tough.”
Master’s parents were killed by trolls, so he’s well aware of how fearsome they are.
Normally trolls can’t be taken on without around ten soldiers to meet them, after all.
“The ones who can go inside get stronger. The ones who can’t gradually get left behind. Sokaris is becoming a stratified society with just a few elites.”
“And there’s no guarantee those few will always be fine either…”
“Yeah, it’s hard for new talent to join in, so if their numbers decrease they can’t find replacements. Which makes the elites get fewer in number. It’s a vicious cycle.”
“So that’s why you’re distancing yourself from Sokaris?”
“Well yeah, depending on whether you can go into the labyrinth or not over there, your growth changes dramatically. Unfortunately I don’t have the skills to do that. So I figured I’d look for a change in environment. It’s not like I’ve given up, y’know?”
“So you plan on going for round two some day?”
“Of course! I’m still too young to call it quits!”
She strikes a pose, pumping her fists, which looks cute even from my womanly perspective.
The gesture itself more than her appearance.
“That sure is nice…”
If I took that pose, it would actually be scary. The pressure of my left arm is nothing to scoff at.
“Hm? Then how ’bout you try training, Chief?”
“Training… Aren’t you the only one that could provide a decent experience for Eir?”
“That’s not what I mean, I can do swordsmanship and martial arts too y’know? I haven’t lived this long for nothing!”
“… Eh? I’d heard dragons didn’t like those types of things though.”
“The god of destruction is the type who enjoys ‘tricks’ like those. It influenced me, and I studied too.”
The heck are you adding to the strongest creature alive…? That’s just overkill.
“But you didn’t use anything like that when you fought me.”
“Yeah, I didn’t think I would have to. If we’re just talking physical abilities, I’m the stronger one.”
Thinking back on that battle, after the initial lazy charge and punch, all she did was get in close and attack.
“You’re top class quality, Chief, so I figure there’s value in teaching you.”
Seeing the little girl smiling so happily, I began to doubt she could use a sword, and yet… I learned the basics of wielding swords from Burns, but I didn’t have time to get a firmer grasp of how to fight, so I didn’t learn that part.
From now on I may need those techniques to protect Master.
“Okay. I’m in your hands.”
“Oh, me too! I wanna learn swordsmanship!”
“Amy, aren’t you a magician?”
“I want to learn just in case the need arises.”
Come to think of it, when we first met her she was being pinned down by a man. She probably thought ‘if only I could use a sword’ or something right then.
“Hm, okaaay. I’ll look after both of ya!”
“Hey… Could I join in?”
A voice brakes into the conversation… It’s Kevin.
“Can I get stronger too? If I can, then please.”
Saying that, Kevin bowed his head. Just a little while ago I wouldn’t have believed my eyes.
After experiencing a number of unusual fights, he must have become keenly aware of his lack of strength, I guess?
“One or two more people doesn’t change much anyway~. Sure, why not. In your case you seem like you waste a lot of power too~.”
“Hey now, no fair! Teach me too!”
“And me! I can’t stay orange rank forever!”
One after another the escorts announced their participation.
“Uwah, now this is definitely becoming a pain…”
“You sowed the seeds though?”
“Guess I have to~.”
And so Yig’s swordsmanship dojo began holding classes along the way.
~*~
Translated by Soyokaze Translations: soyokazetranslation . Com
Another three weeks after that. After passing through the checking station at the border, we entered the country of Raum.
Raum is a country of forests and mountains. Sixty percent of the country is comprised of woodlands, thirty percent is mountains, and between all those are the scattered cities where people live.
Naturally the major highways weave a path through those forests and mountains too, meaning there aren’t many prying eyes nearby.
Which is exactly the kind of place where bandits loiter around…
“If ya enjoy living, drop yer valuables an’ git!”
“Don’t go thinkin’ ye be a match fer the Dazrad Thieves just ’cause ye got a lot of ye!”
“Hyeehehehe, they got some nice women too.”
So, well, these types show up.
“… … …”
The members of the lead group, Crimson, are silent.
Catching up from behind, we look at them with pity in our eyes.
In the rear, Moonlight are also facing thieves who are cutting off our escape route; we have no path to retreat on.
“Well, already knew we were surrounded though.”
“This’ll be some good genuine battle experience~.”
Yig and I mutter without a care in the world. There are no magicians among them, so my magic power detection wasn’t set off, but even I could see through their pathetic attempts at concealment.
“Whoa, hey, them escorts are shakin’ in their boots.”
“Sure hired the worst of ’em, eh? GYAHAHAHA!”
Crimson remains silent, and the thieves get uppity.
“Teacher…?”
Crimson’s leader calls over to Yig. He’s asking for permission.
“Hm, go eat ’em up.”
“HELL YEEEEEEEAH! TIME FOR A REAL FIIIIIGHT!”
“C-c-c-c-can I cut ’em up? I’ll cut ’em? GONNA CUT ‘EEEEEEEM!”
“Blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood blood…”
They, uhh, seem to have surpassed the thieves in madness.
“Why’d it turn out like this…?”
“Maybe I overdid it~?”
Translated by Soyokaze Translations: soyokazetranslation . Com
After that, the thirty bandits were annihilated in a just a few minutes.
