Her throat went dry. The way Rimuru said "cooperate" made it sound way scarier than it probably should've. Her brain was screaming at her to say the right thing before she ended up a pile of ash on the grass.
She threw her hands up. "Okay okay—cooperate, sure! Totally on board with that. I don't exactly have anywhere else to go anyway." She laughed weakly, trying to play it cool, but her voice cracked halfway through.
Rimuru didn't laugh. He just kept staring.
"Look," she tried again, softer this time, "I don't wanna fight. I don't even know how to fight. I'm just… here. I don't know why, or how, or what's gonna happen to me now. All I know is… if I can help, I will. If I can't, then I'll stay out of the way. Deal?"
Rimuru's eyes flickered. For a second, she thought she saw him ease up, but then—
"…Prove it," he said simply.
Her stomach dropped. "Prove it? How the hell am I supposed to do that?"
"You said you know the future," Rimuru said, his tone calm but sharp. "Fine. Then tell me something that's about to happen. Something only someone who knows the future would know."
Her brain scrambled. Crap. Crap crap crap. Okay think. What happens around this time? Ifrit. Shizu. The whole fire disaster thing…
She licked her lips nervously. "Okay… uh. Soon—like, really soon—you're gonna meet a woman named Shizu. She's… human. Kinda. She wears this really creepy-looking mask. You'll know her when you see her."
Rimuru didn't move, didn't blink. He was impossible to read.
She kept going anyway, words spilling out before she lost her nerve. "She's not just some random person. She's a big deal. She's connected to Ifrit, and when the time comes, you're the one who's gonna have to stop him. It's… not gonna be pretty, but you win. And after that…" she hesitated, voice softening, "you're gonna take care of her. Until the end."
The silence that followed felt like a blade hanging over her head. The goblins had gone completely quiet now, not even whispering. They just stared, wide-eyed, as if the entire village was holding its breath.
Finally, Rimuru spoke. "…You know Shizu."
Her shoulders sagged in relief. "Yes! That's what I've been trying to tell you, I—"
He cut her off with a raised hand. "But how?" His eyes narrowed again. "How do you know her name? Her mask? Ifrit? No one here knows that. Not even me. So how could you possibly know?"
Her chest tightened. "Because…" She looked down, fingers twisting nervously. "Because I don't belong here. Where I come from… you, Shizu, all of this—it's a story. That's the only way I can explain it."
The word "story" seemed to hang in the air like poison.
Rimuru was silent again, studying her like she was the weirdest puzzle in existence. "…A story," he repeated slowly. "So you're saying my life—this village, everyone here—it's all… entertainment for you?"
She froze. "No! Not like that!" She took a shaky step forward, desperate for him to understand. "I didn't watch because I thought it was fake—I didn't know! I loved it. I loved seeing how you helped these goblins, how you built this place, how you protected everyone. That's why I recognized it, that's why I recognized you."
Rimuru's aura pulsed, just for a second, like a warning. "Careful what you say next."
She swallowed hard, her voice dropping to almost a whisper. "…I don't see this place as entertainment anymore. I see it as real. Because it is real. You're standing right in front of me, aren't you? These goblins are real, this village is real, this whole world is real. So maybe it started as a story where I come from, but right now… this is my reality too."
That seemed to land. Rimuru's expression shifted—still guarded, but less icy. His aura softened a little, like the storm clouds were thinning just a bit.
"…You're either completely insane," he said finally, "or you're telling the truth. And I honestly can't decide which is scarier."
She let out a nervous laugh, shoulders dropping with tension. "Trust me, same."
For the first time since they started talking, Rimuru's lips twitched like he might actually smile. Just a tiny one.
"Alright, Nia," he said, turning slightly toward the village. "You're coming with me. If what you say is true, then we'll figure out what to do with you. But just so we're clear…" His golden eyes flicked back to her, sharp again. "…if you so much as try to hurt anyone here, I'll know. And I won't hesitate."
She gulped. "Y-yeah, understood. Totally. 100%. No hurting. Got it."
"Good." Rimuru gestured for her to follow. "Now come on. We've got a lot to talk about."
As they started walking toward the village, the goblins scattered out of the way, bowing nervously as Rimuru passed. Their eyes darted toward her, filled with a mix of fear and awe, like they weren't sure if she was some kind of savior or a walking disaster waiting to happen.
She kept her head down, cheeks burning, muttering under her breath, "What the hell did I just get myself into…"
(I swear this isn't like a evil Rimuru stuff like I said he's just being cautious don't misunderstand)