The scene I remember is rain of fire.
The hand of my mother that I had been holding was far too light.
I was afraid to look beyond it.
An incendiary bomb exploded nearby, turning everything into a sea of fire.
Where could I run?
Surrounded by flames on all sides...
Izawa
At that moment, she felt an intense light engulf her.
Ah... so I'm going to die here...
Even as a young child, she understood.
She was four years old at the time.
She had no relatives to rely on, living alone with her mother.
Her father had been conscripted into the war, and she couldn't even remember his face.
She felt neither happiness nor misery. That was simply daily life, and all she could do was accept it as such...
For her, who was fated to die consumed by flames...
"Do you wish to live? If you desire life, answer my call!"
A voice echoed in her head.
Do I want to live? What? I don't know...
She was too young to answer that question.
But still... seeing her mother, who had shielded her until nothing remained but her hands... She wanted to live! Yes, she thought so.
《Confirmed. Answering the summoner's call... Success.》 And without fear of the flames, she wanted to live!
《Confirmed. Acquired Extra Skill "Heat Manipulation"... Success.》 The next time she opened her eyes, she was in a den of monsters.
Before her stood a beautiful "Demon Lord."
Long blond hair and blue eyes. Refined features with narrow, sharp eyes.
Skin so white it seemed translucent.
He was a strikingly beautiful man, so much so he could be mistaken for a woman.
He was a human "Demon Lord." His epithet: "The Blonde Devil."
"Ah... another failure."
He murmured, and lost all interest in her.
That was precisely why he didn't kill her, even though she was covered in severe burns and on the verge of death.
She was an existence that didn't matter to him.
She resented that.
Even now, she could remember it. That beautiful face. And the despair of being looked down upon with such cold indifference.
At that time, clinging to him was the only way she had to survive.
In the end, the one who saved her was the Demon Lord's whim.
"Wait..."
The Demon Lord murmured, as if recalling something.
To her, that was ominous...
"P-please... help me..."
She reached out toward the Demon Lord, clinging to him desperately.
He was as beautiful as an angel—surely he could heal her suffering? That was what she had believed...
"I thought you were garbage, but you seem to have an aptitude for flame."
So saying, he activated the summoning formula "Flame Giant." Without even chanting. Effortlessly.
He casually ordered the summoned Flame Giant.
"I shall grant you a physical body. Master it!"
It was proof that he didn't see her as human at all.
Her frustration turned to hatred.
This became the Curse, carved into her heart.
But it was also true that through this possession, she escaped death.
How much time had passed since then...
She reigned in the Demon Lord's castle as a Flame Demon—a high-ranking demon among the Demon Lord's retainers.
*Knock, knock, knock...* A quiet sound echoed through the castle.
The Demon Lord had already fled. The castle had been abandoned.
She was the rear guard. A sacrificial pawn.
The Demon Lord had treated her as nothing but a tool until the very end. Without a shred of emotion involved.
The one who arrived was the "Hero."
Long black hair gathered at the back of her head, clad in uniformly dark, light equipment.
A beauty that rivaled the Demon Lord's. The difference: the "Hero" was a girl.
The moment she saw her, she knew instinctively.
*I can't win!* That feeling seemed to suppress the Flame Giant's consciousness, and a sliver of her self returned.
She made eye contact with the Hero.
"P-please... save me..."
It was an audacious request. There was no way a monster like her would be believed...
And yet, "It's okay now. You've done great!"
At those words, tears overflowed from her eyes.
For the first time since coming to this world, she wept with relief, clinging to the Hero.
After that, she was taken under the Hero's protection.
Using the "Anti-Magic Mask," she suppressed the Flame Giant while also hiding her burn scars.
She covered her entire body in a robe and followed the Hero.
Before long, she came to be known by the epithet "Lord of Explosive Flames."
But the Hero departed. Leaving her behind...
She didn't know the reason. Presumably, the Hero had her own unyielding convictions.
The same kind that Shizu now carried. Someday, she too would set out.
To kill the Demon Lord.
He had saved her, and then discarded her.
Even if the purpose was to kill, the "Demon Lord" Leon Cromwell had become Shizu's reason for living.
Therefore, she had no right to condemn the Hero's actions.
The only regret was that she had never seen the Hero's smile.
After that, she continued to serve as a hero on a broad stage.
She cooperated with what could be considered the predecessor of the current Free Guild—the Adventurers' Mutual Aid Association—and worked toward its development.
She mentored adventurers and was involved in cultivating the next generation.
At one point, she had the opportunity to obtain excellent students.
A boy with innocent eyes.
Kagurazaka Yuuki.
A girl with eyes colored by despair.
Sakaguchi Hinata.
Two "otherworlders"—excellent young people from the same homeland.
The two were truly contrasting.
Yuuki, with his positive and bright personality, and Hinata, who always seemed to carry the world's darkness within her.
When Hinata came to this world, she had been attacked by bandits. That was probably why.
Yes, that was what Shizu had thought.
The bandits had been killed mercilessly by someone, and Hinata had survived, but she must have been through a terrifying experience.
Shizu felt a sense of kinship with Hinata, who reminded her somewhat of herself.
However, that assumption was wrong.
"Teacher. Thank you for everything. There is nothing more for me to learn from you. We probably won't meet again."
Saying that, without even looking back, Hinata left.
In less than a month, she had surpassed Shizu in strength. With her overwhelming aptitude for learning...
Even when she later heard that Hinata had taken an important position in the Church, she could accept it naturally.
She did feel a chill, though...
In comparison, Yuuki was a kind boy.
It was Yuuki who renamed the Adventurers' Mutual Aid Association to the Free Guild and built the current system.
By introducing a rank-based evaluation system for combating monsters, the death rate dropped dramatically.
And from then until today.
Shizu had lived supporting Yuuki from behind the scenes.
Though, of course, the only thing she could really do was mentor the next generation.
And recently.
She had begun to frequently dream of the days when she was a demon.
Perhaps her lifespan was running short, or perhaps she could no longer suppress the Flame Giant's consciousness.
The "Anti-Magic Mask's" abilities hadn't been lost, after all.
She realized—she didn't have much time left!
If so, she at least wanted to strike back at the Demon Lord.
And so, she resolved to set out.
She went to visit Yuuki to tell him of her decision.
Yuuki said nothing, and gave his approval. Perhaps he had wanted to stop her, deep down...
It was then that contact came from the Free Guild branch in the Farmus Kingdom.
Veldora's disappearance had been confirmed. Investigation to continue!
Was this some kind of divine revelation?
Either way, she needed to pass through the forest.
She managed to slip in alongside three adventurers.
She had learned their characteristics from Yuuki. As she'd heard, they were a bright and friendly team.
She was grateful to have met good companions for her final journey.
A mysterious town.
A town where monsters helped her and brought her in.
Well, to be precise, only tents had been erected and there was just one building. A temporary one, at that.
But it was lively, and despite being populated by monsters, they seemed to be working happily. A strange town.
She hadn't even imagined being helped by monsters.
She could have used her flame power to incinerate the giant ants, but she felt it was better not to.
As her own power waned, the Flame Giant's consciousness grew more unruly.
If she let her guard down, there was a danger of it going berserk.
A peculiar monster was sitting there like a king, acting all high and mighty.
Interesting.
When it spoke, she almost burst out laughing.
A monster claiming it wasn't a bad slime!
Nobody in town would ever believe her if she told them.
Her pleasant time came to an abrupt end.
*I still haven't accomplished my goal...* At the moment her lifespan was about to run out, she felt the Flame Giant's consciousness seize control of her.
*Not yet... not here...* As if mocking that thought, the demon manifested.
Her consciousness went dark.
...
...
...
She checked on her condition.
She wouldn't last much longer.
She might never regain consciousness.
Even so, as a fellow person from the same homeland, she would see her through to the end. That was her resolve.
The three injured adventurers were in high spirits.
They were shouting that such serious injuries couldn't possibly be covered by just hazard pay!
But the Recovery Potions she'd given them had restored them completely.
"Wait, what's going on? There's not a single burn mark left on me...
In fact, my skin is totally smooth and silky!!!"
"Amazing... I thought we'd be bedridden for at least a week with those injuries..."
"I was shocked too. These are some really incredible Recovery Potions."
However, "But doesn't this mean we can't get hazard pay?"
"Yeah... nobody's gonna believe us..."
"Right... but well, it's better than having the wounds stick around!"
They started bickering over such a trivial concern.
Truly, they were carefree people.
When I told them I wanted to visit their town someday, "If you want, I can pass a message to the Guild Master for you!"
One of them offered.
At those words, I happily asked them to pass along the message.
I did have an admiration for adventurers. I wanted no part of tedious identity verification, and it was questionable whether a monster could even register as an adventurer.
Kabal had promised to make sure the message reached the Guild Master if the name Rimuru was mentioned.
They really were good people.
I was pleased, and prepared farewell gifts—freshly made Sticky Steel Thread Robe, Shell Scale Armor, Hard Leather Armor, along with ten Recovery Potions and provisions.
"Whoa!!! This robe, what is it?! It's lightweight yet tough! No wait, it's insanely durable!"
"Yoooosh!!! My dream Shell Scale Armor!!! This is a Master Garum piece, isn't it?! I'm making it a family heirloom!!!"
"Whoa! Are you sure?! A piece this fine is wasted on me! It even uses Fang Wolf fur!"
They were absolutely ecstatic.
Well, of course—they'd been complaining that their equipment kept breaking from the flames and they couldn't afford replacements with their rewards.
It wasn't my fault, but I did feel a slight twinge of sympathy.
I'd given them prototypes I'd made just to test things out...
But I couldn't bring myself to say "these are prototypes." They were so happy. There was no need to pour cold water on that.
No problem. Better not to tell them.
Even prototypes, the performance was excellent!
Well, they were this grateful. They'd make sure to pass along the message.
By the end, all three of them had started calling me "Boss!" and were completely attached!
They worried about Shizu until the very end, but after staying about three days, they departed.
One week passed.
Shizu opened her eyes.
"So this is... I see. I caused you trouble."
Her consciousness seemed clear.
Even after becoming a demon, her memories remained vivid.
"I was having a dream... A nostalgic dream. I can never go back... to that town."
Was it about Japan?
"Hey, Mr. Slime. What's your name again?"
She had been told it was Rimuru, but had she gone senile?
"I'm Rimuru."
She closed her eyes, seemingly thinking about something.
"Aren't you going to tell me your real name?"
She asked.
Had she noticed? He hesitated for a moment.
"Hmph. You won't be around much longer anyway. I'll tell you. My name is Mikami Satoru."
His real name. He had thought he would never use it again...
"So you really were Japanese... I had a feeling. The atmosphere... you know."
Silence. Then, "I asked my students about it too. They said it's become a beautiful town now? That town that was nothing but a sea of fire when you looked around?"
"Yeah. Want me to show you?"
So saying, he used Thought Communication to share his memories with her.
He truly appreciated how convenient that was in moments like this.
"Oh..."
Shizu shed tears. Then, "Hey, Mr. Slime... no, Satoru. I have a favor to ask. Would you hear me out?"
"What is it?"
It was probably nothing worthwhile.
But he had resolved to see her through to the end. The least he could do was hear her request.
"Eat me...!"
What did she just say? What was this old lady talking about?
"You ate the Curse that was placed on me... I was happy about that. I wanted to punch the person who cursed me, but...
Either way, it would've been impossible for me... right?
This is my last wish. Won't you let me sleep inside you?
You see... I hate this world. And yet, I can't bring myself to hate it... Just like that man...
Maybe I've been projecting that man onto this world as I look at it...
So I don't want to be returned to this world.
Please. Won't you eat me...!"
Hmph.
What a simple wish. For him, it was easy.
A wish that would bind him with a Curse. He would inherit her hatred.
Was there anything to hesitate about? To let her pass in peace... the answer was decided.
"Sure. I'll take on your hatred. What's the name of the man who tormented you?"
She widened her eyes at his words, her scarred face contorting, tears streaming down...
"Leon Cromwell. One of the strongest 'Demon Lords'..."
She gazed at him as if praying.
"I promise! In the name of Mikami Satoru—no,
I'll make sure to throw your hatred right back at Leon Cromwell and make him regret it!"
Thank you... she whispered.
Then she closed her eyes. Like falling asleep, she drew her last breath...
《Use Unique Skill "Predator"? YES/NO》 Rest peacefully inside me!
YES! He willed it. Praying for her peace of mind...
So that she could dream forever—a happy dream that would never end—within him...
Status Name: Rimuru Tempest
Race: Slime
Blessing: Seal of Storms
Title: "One Who Commands Monsters"
Magic: None
Skills: Unique Skill "Great Sage"
Unique Skill "Predator"
Unique Skill "Morpher"
Slime Intrinsic Skills: Dissolve, Absorb, Self-Regeneration
Extra Skill: Water Manipulation
Extra Skill: Heat Manipulation
Extra Skill: Magic Sense
Acquired Skills: Black Serpent: Heat Source Detection, Poison Mist Breath; Centipede: Paralytic Breath; Spider: Sticky Thread, Steel Thread; Bat: Ultrasonic Wave; Lizard: Body Armor; Black Wolf: Super Sense of Smell, Thought Communication, Intimidation, Shadow Movement, Black Lightning; Flame Giant: Split Body, Flame Form, Area Barrier
Resistances: Heat Fluctuation Resistance EX, Physical Attack Resistance,
A young, adorable face.
And she smiled with relief.
*You were here! Please, don't leave me behind again!* But the figure shook its head and pointed toward a certain spot.
The girl's face fell with sadness, and she turned to look where it pointed...
There, she saw— Mother!!!
Her entire being overflowing with joy, she ran toward her mother.
The figure confirmed this, then vanished—as if it had never existed in the first place.
Or perhaps it was merely a phantom born of the girl's own thoughts...
And so, the girl reunited with her mother.
The girl's long journey had now reached its end.