Tempest's noise faded the more the moon showed itself in the sky. The room too had become more spacious as more and more vacant it because duty called for them. Right now, there's only Rimuru, Claire, Ludwig, and Shuna in the room.
The air inside the room was far less heavy then when the meeting took place. But Rimuru's and Claire's face was rigid, even the stone would have been softer compared to it.
Ludwig crossed his arms in front of himself while his back was resting on the chair. His eyes landed on the two of her friends who had fallen silent after one word from the slime.
"Yes, I'm ready." Claire's firm voice shattered the silence. "And yes, I already know I will be out of commission for a day at least."
Rimuru nodded his head, short and strong. "Okay then."
He jumped from his seat, crossing the distance between him and Claire in a step. While he morphed into his slime form, Claire looked at Ludwig.
He instantly knew what she wanted to say. Nothing sort of asking him to protect her if Tempest decided to stab her in her sleep. Her concern was only one. Cless. She wanted him to look for her while she was undergoing the evolution.
She's not yet a mother, but her love for Cless was apparent. Even though she probably knew Tempest was as safe as it could be due to Ludwig's presence and Rimuru's presence, she still worried.
Ludwig nodded to her, easing her tension a bit.
Rimuru opened his mouth at that moment. "From now on, you'll be called Claire Russel."
He could feel the magicules around him stirred. Like a flock of fish, it rushed to the room through the wall and windows. At the same time, magicules escaped from Rimuru in droves, filling the room with its presence.
He swore he could feel and see it in the air, His skin tingled and his body grew heavy. Even with his elevated version of Mana Sense, regulating so many magicules around him was no easy task.
The two magicules from different sources coalesced in the air, humming and steady. Then, they flew into Claire in one swoop.
Claire flinched, from her opened eyes it was easy to guess that she was surprised. A heart beat later, her body went limp.
The room returned to normal, air crisp with the smell of wood. Noise from insects as well as scarce footsteps once again could be heard bleeding through the wall.
Ludwig let out a long sigh before he rose to his full height. He had to admit, experiencing that many magicules or mana in one place and not feeling in danger was fascinating. Aside from regulating his own magicules to strengthen himself in order not to get crushed under its weight, he had to do none. A sharp contrast to when that kind of thing happened on a battlefield.
As Ludwig controlled his mana—or magicules—and lifted Claire to the air, an ever present presence under Rimuru finally made its appearance. Its head propped Rimuru up, nestling it on top of its head.
"Bring Rimuru-sama to his quarter, Ranga." Shuna's melodic tone rolled out of her mouth.
The wolf or Tempest Direwolf let out a low rumble as an acknowledgement. It then walked towards the door and left the room.
Still in the door, Shuna looked at Ludwig. "Let's bring Claire-sama to her room as well."
"Understood." Ludwig nodded and left the room, following Shuna's gracious footsteps through the halls of Tempest's most important building.
* * *
The pipe's smoke curled toward the ceiling, it lazily drifted in the dim hush of the Hokage's office. Hiruzen Sarutobi watched it rise without really seeing it. His mind was elsewhere, though. Focused, quiet, razor-sharp beneath the calm exterior he'd worn for decades.
Across his table, his old friend was sitting. Eyes cold and calculative. His body language was telling him he was confident. From what he heard from his mouth just a moment before, even he started to believe the chance of success of the plan his friend brought to him was quite high.
The only question he had was whether they would be able to enter the restaurant or not. However, knowing how the owner of that strange restaurant treated him when he visited, he was sure they would be able to enter as long as they paid a visit around their business hours.
But was it the correct thing to do?
No, no, no. It's the correct thing to do. If the attack was done properly and they achieved a success, Konoha would gain tremendous leverage in the negotiation about the miraculous medicine. Those five demonkin employees of the restaurant should serve as perfect pieces.
"I will authorize the mission." Hiruzen said firmly. Probably more to himself than to his friend. "But the target should only be the employee of the restaurant. No one else. Just bring them here, I will take care of the rest."
Danzo scoffed, his eyes looking at him with disdain. "You are too soft, Hiruzen. From what you told me, they are not human. Imagine things we can get from studying them."
Hiruzen let his friend's sharp words fill the silence. His eyes drifted into the dark orange sky of Konoha.
Yes. Species they had never seen before. Some of them were strong enough to be a Jounin. And some of them were not really strong enough. Even so, Hiruzen knew better. The possibility was there. And if the answer was in their blood, they would gain tremendous benefit by studying them.
But to take even the resident of another city hostage had a bigger risk. They can rush from that door inside Konoha and wreck havoc if they wanted. They couldn't afford that. Not now when they were at the brink of war and not forever.
Hiruzen let out a long sigh. This opportunity was one of a kind. Even though the risk was also tremendous, if they failed to use this window, who knew when they would get another chance.
They had the pretense with them. Kushina. Kidnapping a Jinchuriki of the village and bringing her out was a grave crime. Maybe that could be a leverage.
And about all the strong people that could gather in the restaurant when they raid it? They should just bring even stronger forces and strike when the restaurant is not in its busiest time. So maybe not around dinner.
"Prepare the Root. I'll also send Anbu and the three Sannins. We'll move tomorrow around noon. I'll personally lead the team." Hiruzen spoke, tone firm.
Danzo nodded, a smirk appeared on his face. "Good choice, Hiruzen. We really can't miss this chance. If we succeed, Konoha will rise even higher."
His clothes rustled as he stood from his seat. And with a brisk step, he left the room to Hiruzen and his lonesome.
One more puff of smoke entered his mouth and left. And then another.
All the risk he just thought could be nullified as long as they succeed. Because at that point, they would have so much leverage they could play with.
* * *
Trian's life lately had been perfect. Mundane but full of meaning. After Ilea saved him from the brinks of desperation and the never ending spiral of revenge, The Medic Sentinel Corps offered him a place of his own.
Seeing his students growing stronger and stronger everyday was fulfilling. Though when he start to see that they also start to take the craziness of Lilith, she could only sighed. The ridiculous words of Kyrian echoed in his head. 'Imagine an army of heavy hitting combatants that could regrow their head. That's scary. Really scary.'
Imagining it alone made him shake his head and sighed. Even though the kids weren't as strong as Lilith herself, they were still strong enough to fend for themselves. Some of them even showed great progress. In a year or so, he was sure he would find it hard to beat them.
But right now, those kids were not his responsibility. Claire had given him a new mission. Tightly wrapped, went straight to his hand rather than through the proper channel.
His eyes scanned around the bustling hall filled with chatter through his elevated tankards. Nothing was out of the ordinary. Well, at least everything besides what this palace considered normal.
Green bulky monsters were chugging alcohol to his mouth with a rumble in one corner. A demon waitress—, ar more humane than the demon he found in that realm with Ilea, blitzed around with extra meal and drinks. A pair of crimson and grey cats, a black dragon, a few globs of something was playing with a big black wolf around a table filled with two humans and one dark-skinned elf.
Yes elf. A species that hunted humans for fun in their world. But here, they were just another customer. Finding joy in conversation and food rather than in slaughter and human flesh.
Trian couldn't help but to chuckle when he first saw the elf, Kashi if he didn't remember it wrongly. It happened on his second visit to this restaurant. Back then, his muscles went taut and his mana started to hum the moment he saw the elf.
But before he could attack, Claire stopped him. Telling him everything about the elf. What happened after that was an apology from him to the elf and the restaurant owner. But rather than disdain, they treat him with understanding.
Later, he would come to know that in another case, he would be pinned to the ground by Ludwig.
"Why are you chuckling like that?" A heavy voice echoed from his side.
Trian looked to his side. A man who was his partner in this mission. Or to be honest, always one of his partners throughout his career in the Shadow Hand.
"I just remembered the first moment I met Kashi, Kyrian." He chuckled.
The once shy guy that had turned stoic after his disappearance in Taleen Dungeon let out a rare smile. It seemed like he also found it funny. Now he really wanted to see how he looked when he first saw the elf in Elos.
But knowing he's the one who spent most time with Lilith in the north, he doubted his reaction was as big as him.
His train of thoughts were disturbed by a sudden sound of the bell on top of the door. From the door, a man, or at least that's what his outer appearance suggested walked in. What made Trian think the man was not human was his sheer size.
He was ginormous. Even the orc in the hall felt small beside him. His muscles were all bulging, his clothes did almost nothing to conceal it.
The man frowned as his eyes swept through the restaurant. But before he could do anything, the demon waitress—Vilera he believed—greeted him with a calm and even tone.
"Welcome to Checkpoint, good sir. I have never seen you before, so can I explain about this restaurant to you?"
The man looked at the demon for a heartbeat. The picture looked so wrong. If it's not in a restaurant so weird like this one and happened in a dark alley, he would surely jump the man.
Beside his build, his overall appearance and aura was just like that. Grim and broody.
And after the man nodded, the waitress on the door opened her mouth. Letting out words that Trian always felt surreal whenever he heard it.
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Just to let you know, Pokemon World is finally joining in the latest chapter of the Highest Tier.
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