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Chapter Text

Chapter 1: Little Teal Mask

"The air here is better than on Earth, no matter which side."

The young man stood at the edge of the forest. He lowered his head and looked at the little one beside him. "How does the new world feel, Ogerpon?"

"Poniii?"

Ogerpon is a legendary Pokémon from the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet game.

She has a green body adorned with white flowers and yellow circular patterns, with black outer legs, white inner legs, and two green leaves between her toes.

From her appearance, Ogerpon seems to be wearing a green cloak, with large black thorny vines growing on the upper part of the cloak, and the two topmost thorns resembling horns.

At this moment, hearing Rin's question, her small mandarin orange-colored face, with two starry eyes, happily narrowed into slits. "Poniii~ Poniii yo! (New world, Ogerpon likes it)"

"Good that you like it."

Rin looked at the little one jumping and making joyful sounds, and couldn't help but smile.

He gently patted Ogerpon's head, then opened her attribute panel.

[Ogerpon]

Contractor: Itoshi Rin

Race: Elemental Spirit

Existence Value (magicules): 6500

Magic: Grass-type Pokémon Magic (Grass-type moves)

Inherent Abilities: Element Absorption, Ability Enhancement

Unique Skills: Destroyer (possesses the power to destroy any substance), Growth (can continuously grow by defeating opponents)

"Destroyer and Growth, huh?"

What appeared before Rin was not a Pokémon's attribute panel, but a status bar unique to this world.

A month ago, Rin awakened his memories from his previous life.

In this life, he was a farm boy from a village on the outskirts of the Falmuth Kingdom.

The Falmuth Kingdom is located northwest of the Jura Great Forest, with a population of thirty million citizens, plus ten million Free Guild members, totaling forty million people, making it one of the largest nations among the Western nations.

However, the lives of ordinary commoners in this country were not good.

Falmuth is a feudal country ruled by nobles, and commoners can only ensure they don't starve to death. Their purpose is to be exploited and bled dry by those high and mighty rulers.

From the initial confusion and helplessness to the excitement under the world's voice.

In just a few tens of minutes, Rin learned what kind of world he had transmigrated into.

Falmuth Kingdom, Jura Great Forest, aren't these place names from That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime?

The young man looked exactly like Rin in his previous life, just younger, about fifteen or sixteen years old.

As for the reason for transmigration...

Rin's last memory stopped at a dirt truck flashing white light.

"So, did I soul-transmigrate, or reincarnate into another world and only now awakened my past life's memories?"

If it were the former, Rin did not detect another soul.

His former self's memories from childhood felt as if Rin had experienced them firsthand, with no sense of incongruity whatsoever.

"No matter which one, being able to live again is a gain anyway."

Rin, with a 'when in Rome' mindset, began to accept his new identity.

Soon, Rin discovered that his identity in this world was very delicate.

Although he was a half-demon, his former self did not inherit much of the demon's power. Instead, he suffered discrimination from normal humans and was very unwelcome in the village.

Fortunately, Rin was not without anything.

As a transmigrator, he regretted not awakening a system, but Rin did have a unique golden finger.

Returning to the present, Rin closed Ogerpon's attribute panel.

"Open panel."

Then, Rin's thought moved slightly, and a new panel appeared in his mind.

---

[Itoshi Rin]

Race: Half-Demon (Human and Demon Hybrid)

Existence Value: 3500

Magic: Energy Cube Creation, Spirit Space, Appraisal

Inherent Ability: Adaptability (Your body can adapt to the power of any system)

Unique Skills: Traveler [Exceptional] (You can open a door to an unknown world and traverse it), Leader (By recruiting followers, you can increase your own Existence Value), Capturer (Sign contracts with other creatures and convert them into dependents)

Dependents: Ogerpon

Marked World: Pokémon World

---

In the world of Tensura, there exists a peculiar power called the world's voice, which provides feedback from the 'world's voice' when an individual changes, gains skills, or evolves skills.

In short, the world's voice can be understood as the rules and system of this world.

Whenever you acquire a new skill or undergo a new change, as long as its impact can pluck the string of the world and leave a mark on it, you will receive a gift from the world.

Rin has three Unique Abilities: Traveler, Leader, and Capturer.

The first one, Traveler, perhaps due to Rin's identity as a transmigrator, received the 'Exceptional' suffix.

[Unique Skill: Traveler]

Possesses the ability to allow an individual to leave the Cardinal World and traverse between planes and planets within the Tensura worldview.

Rin's Unique Skill goes a step further, capable of breaking through worldviews and traveling to other worlds.

The worldview of Tensura is not small. It can primarily be divided into three parts.

"A material world without magicules."

"A spiritual world of pure magicules."

"A chaotic world with both matter and energy."

While examining his own attributes, Rin also explained the common knowledge of the new world to Ogerpon. "The chaotic world, depending on the abundance of magicules, also has distinctions of high concentration, medium concentration, and low concentration."

For example, Rimuru's Earth before his reincarnation in the original work was a material world without magic.

And the world Rin is currently in, where Demon Lords and the world's voice exist, is the top one among the chaotic worlds.

It is also known as the Cardinal World, the cornerstone and hub of the three major world systems: material, spiritual, and chaotic.

Furthermore, because the Cardinal World has always been bathed in high concentrations of magicules, its essence has undergone tremendous changes.

"Po?"

Ogerpon bent down, she poked at the dirt and stones on the ground with her small hands, then tilted her small head. ("Poniii feels that the things here are no different from the original world?")

"That's because you've also become stronger, Ogerpon."

Rin said, "Every blade of grass, every tree, even a grain of sand here, possesses a solidity and density incomparable to other worlds."

To make a simple analogy, although humans in the Cardinal World and humans on Earth look and function physiologically the same, there is a dimensional gap in their physical capabilities.

What could destroy an area with a radius of several kilometers on Earth might only create a hundred-meter-wide pit in the Cardinal World.

This is also Rin's confidence in daring to travel between worlds without fear of sudden death.

Although he is just an ordinary E-rank human boy in the Cardinal World.

But put him in the Pokémon World he just traversed, he's definitely a super-super true newcomer.

"Ponooo!"

Ogerpon suddenly understood. She stood up and looked at Rin with admiration. ("That's why Rin is so amazing, he helped Pon! Popon defeat those bad guys in a flash)

What Ogerpon was referring to was Rin's first journey.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 2: Demonic Potential

Traveler's world-hopping is mainly divided into two types: one is going to worlds already visited, and the other is opening a new world's passage.

The Pokémon World was the first world Rin traversed, and so far, the only one.

For this traversal, Rin made ample preparations.

He spent half a month arming himself as much as possible before daring to open the door to a new world.

For his first traversal, Rin landed in the Sinnoh region.

At that time, he was penniless and could only exchange the Cardinal World's ores he had prepared in advance with the residents of the local town.

Fortunately, the first world Rin traversed was the Pokémon World.

As is well known, most people in the Pokémon World are warm, hospitable, and simple-minded.

This made Rin's process of acquiring travel funds quite smooth.

With money, Rin began to plan his itinerary.

The duration of the otherworldly gate opened by the Traveler's ability is not fixed. For example, the Pokémon World could only be maintained for a short seven days.

After that, he would be forcibly sent back to the Cardinal World.

Then he would have to wait seven days for the cooldown before he could open it again.

Within seven days, the easiest and most cost-effective legendary Pokémon Rin could think of to capture was Ogerpon.

Ogerpon's battle capabilities in the game are very strong, and her various mechanics are very powerful.

Furthermore, she has a gentle personality.

Although a bit mischievous, her nature is kind, and she fears loneliness, longing for closeness with others.

'Close proximity, low difficulty.'

'Other Pokémon still need to be trained, and I might not even encounter them.'

Only Ogerpon, once her location is clear, can be approached.

Having made up his mind, Rin immediately bought a train ticket to Kitakami.

Rin's luck was truly good.

He still remembered that day when he climbed Mount Oni and, in an empty cave, saw that pitiful, lonely figure clutching a jade-green mask.

No matter what Rin's initial thoughts were,

At that moment, Rin genuinely wanted to give her a warm home.

"Hello there, Ogerpon."

Thus, after some interaction and communication, Rin successfully gained Ogerpon's favor and helped her retrieve her lost mask. "Do you want to come with me and see the outside world?"

What Kitakami villains.

Rin used this super Cardinal World body to show them what true strength was!

Yes, he didn't need Pokémon at all.

Alone, with just his fists, Rin single-handedly swept through the entire Kitakami!

Of course, Rin didn't actually harm anyone.

At most, he destroyed the shrine where the masks were enshrined and gave Momowarou a powerful skull-crushing blow.

All in all, Rin's trip to the Pokémon World was very successful.

He took Ogerpon with him and also gained the abilities of Energy Cube Creation and Spirit Space, which are defined as 'magic' in the Cardinal World.

As the name suggests, Energy Cube Creation allows Rin to transform fruits into Energy Cubes of various flavors.

After the world's transformation, Energy Cubes are not only suitable for Ogerpon but can also be consumed by ordinary people.

Their nature is more like the compressed biscuits from Rin's previous life, condensing a large amount of nutrition into a small cube.

As for Spirit Space, it was the result of the world's voice analyzing the Poké Ball after Rin returned with it.

The Poké Ball disappeared, replaced by a personal space that Rin possessed, capable of storing his dependents.

These were all the benefits Rin gained from the Pokémon World using his Traveler ability.

"It's time to leave."

Rin turned around and glanced at the distant village, with little reluctance in his eyes.

This land belonged to the Falmuth Kingdom.

Having read the original novel, Rin knew how deplorable this country was.

The nobles levied exorbitant taxes, lived lives of extravagance and debauchery, and cared nothing for the lives of ordinary people.

Furthermore, the humans here had an extreme aversion to monsters, which naturally included mixed-blood demons like Rin.

Rin's race, mixed-blood demon, refers to the offspring of demons and humans.

However, perhaps because the era was too ancient, the demon bloodline within Rin was too diluted.

Before awakening his memories, he had not displayed any characteristics different from ordinary humans.

But even so, Rin's life in the village was still difficult.

The idea that monsters are evil was deeply ingrained in Falmuth, and mixed-blood demons like Rin were also discriminated against by the people.

This kind of life continued until a month ago.

On that day, Rin suddenly awakened his memories from his previous life and then heard the world's voice.

The world's voice bestowed upon Rin the Unique Skills.

And besides the extraordinary Traveler, Capturer allowed Rin to acquire dependents through contracts.

This Unique Skill is somewhat similar to the 'Beast Tamer' profession, only more convenient and powerful.

As for Leader...

It has a complementary relationship with Capturer.

Whenever Rin gains a dependent, the latter's existence value will, to a certain extent, feed back to Rin, increasing his existence value.

Similarly, as Rin's existence value increases, his dependents will also benefit.

The so-called existence value is a special definition within the Tensura worldview.

Existence value is somewhat like combat power, but it is not entirely linked to strength. Rather, it affects the individual's total magicules and the rank they possess.

Like Ogerpon, after she came to the Cardinal World, she was automatically granted the Unique Skills of Destroyer and Growth by the world's voice.

She also gained the energy system collectively known as magicules.

If it were the original Ogerpon, even if she were a legendary Pokémon from Scarlet and Violet, mastering various Pokémon moves, in the Cardinal World, at most she would only receive a D-rank evaluation.

However, because of Rin's Capturer Unique Skill.

A master-servant relationship was established between Ogerpon and Rin.

This allowed her to be recognized by this world upon returning to the Cardinal World.

Ogerpon could also see her own status panel, and she pointed to a certain attribute and asked, ("Is it this thing called magicules?")

"Yes, it is."

Rin praised, "Ogerpon is amazing. She has 6500 magicules, which already meets the B-rank standard in the Cardinal World."

("B-rank?")
Ogerpon asked in confusion, ("What about Rin?")

"As for me,"

Rin looked at his 3500 magicules and said, "Probably C-rank."

In this world, apart from ordinary animals, races harmful to humans are collectively referred to as 'monsters'.

Among them, highly intelligent races are 'demons', and human-shaped monsters with powerful strength are 'demon people'.

Based on the danger level of these monsters, a simple classification system has been freely combined for them:

"Special S (Calamity Level): A level that a single nation cannot handle. Humanity must unite various nations to deal with it, concerning the survival of humanity.

S (Disaster Level): A level that can be handled by deploying the combat power of a major nation.

Special A (Catastrophe Level): Possesses a danger level capable of threatening an entire nation.

A (Hazard Level): A level where cities will suffer severe damage.

B: Black Spiders, Great Ogre Clan, etc., individuals capable of destroying a village.

C: Lizardmen, Pegasi, etc., slightly stronger than professional soldiers who have undergone combat training.

D: Orc Clan, etc., where 3 to 4 ordinary adults facing them also risk their lives.

E: Goblins, etc., slightly weaker than ordinary adults, always appearing in groups.

F: No combat power."

According to the calculation of existence value and magicules amount, the current Ogerpon is roughly comparable to a B-rank Great Ogre Clan, possessing the powerful destructive ability to single-handedly slaughter a village of several hundred people.

If combined with her Destroyer Unique Skill and the Growth ability that can continue to make her stronger, Ogerpon's actual combat power and potential would be even higher.

In short, one sentence...

Rin gently patted Ogerpon's head and happily said, "My Ogerpon has the potential to be a Demon Lord!"

(To be continued.)

Chapter 3: Go On!

"Poniii um..."

Praised by Rin, Ogerpon happily bounced and circled him, looking exactly like a cute little girl.

Ogerpon's curiosity about the new world was simply unstoppable.

There would naturally be no danger.

This was the edge of the forest, close to a human village, where Rin usually lived nearby, so he was very familiar with it.

What he was truly concerned about was the little one's complete disregard for the dirt and grass on the ground.

In just this short while, Ogerpon had already gotten herself quite dirty.

"Poniii~ Poniii~ (Demon Lord, Demon Lord, Poniii wants to be a Demon Lord)"

The little one had no idea what a Demon Lord was.

But since Rin said a Demon Lord was powerful, it must be true.

"If Ogerpon wants to become a Demon Lord, she must first master her newly acquired power."

Rin felt that this place was far enough from the village, so he found an open space and said, "Come, unleash the skills you've mastered, and then get used to the changes in your body."

"Ponooo!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Ogerpon immediately began her practice.

Ogerpon has the potential to grow into a Demon Lord.

But this does not mean that every Pokémon has Ogerpon's potential.

To gain the recognition of the Cardinal World and be endowed with magicules, they must first be converted into dependents by Rin.

And the upper limit of dependents Rin can have is closely related to the strength of his Capturer Unique Skill.

Currently, Rin can only contract with a maximum of 3 dependents.

The scarce slots made Rin hesitant to easily capture Pokémon.

It could be said that the poor little one from Kitakami, 'Ogerpon', was the easiest legendary Pokémon for Rin to acquire that he could think of.

According to Rin's understanding, only Second level god, First level god, and Mythical Pokémon possessed the potential to grow into a Demon Lord.

"Every contract slot is incredibly precious."

It's not that Rin hadn't thought about capturing more Pokémon.

After all, even the weakest Pokémon, if brought to the Cardinal World, could still be trained into decent combat power.

Unfortunately, given Rin's current situation, even if he had more dependent slots, he wouldn't be able to protect weak Pokémon as they grew.

"I'll just have to wait until later to go to the Pokémon World and capture Gardevoir..."

If asked about Rin's favorite Pokémon, Gardevoir would certainly have a place.

However, reality was cruel, and Rin could only tearfully abandon his Psychic Queen.

"Poniii!"

"Pon! Popon!"

Completely unaware that Rin was eyeing what he didn't have, Ogerpon was waving her thorn vine stick, performing various Pokémon moves.

Hmm, they can't be called Pokémon moves now.

After the transformation of magicules and rules, all the Pokémon moves Ogerpon mastered had been converted into 'general skills'.

Because the moves are no longer simply released by the elemental energy within the Pokémon's body, but are now driven by magic power, they can also be seen as a certain type of special magic—Pokémon magic.

("Ogerpon feels so much stronger.")

Ogerpon looked at the large tree she had broken with a single strike, and comparing Kitakami with this place, she said, "My strength has increased several times, and my stamina has also improved a lot."

"It's not just a simple few times."

Rin gently stroked the little one's head and explained, "The physical rules of the two worlds are different."

"The Pokémon World belongs to a low-magic chaotic world."

The Cardinal World is even higher than high concentration. It's considered a super-concentration chaotic world.

According to the simplest calculation, for every increase in concentration level, an individual's performance will increase by one tier.

Like Ogerpon now, she can smash a large tree with one strike in the Cardinal World and receive a D-rank evaluation.

A single blow capable of breaking a giant tree is equivalent to D-Rank, which is generally universal across most worlds.

At high concentrations, this blow would rise from D-Rank to C-Rank.

If this were the Pokémon World, after Ogerpon returned, facing beings like Groudon and Rayquaza, she might only need to lift her hand to knock them out of battle.

("Ogerpon doesn't quite understand, but it sounds very powerful!")

Ogerpon looked bewildered yet impressed. She wasn't very smart, but since Rin said she had become stronger, it must be true.

For her only good friend in hundreds of years, now her family, Ogerpon had absolute trust in Rin.

"Try to adapt to your newly acquired power as soon as possible."

Rin looked into the depths of the forest. "To find a suitable location to build a new home, we'll probably have to travel quite a distance."

He had already decided to leave the human village and develop in the Jura Great Forest.

Possessing the abilities of Leader and Capturer, Rin decided to emulate Rimuru's path and turn this ownerless forest into his own territory!

("Ogerpon is super strong.")

Ogerpon held her thorn vine stick high and said happily, "Don't worry, you can leave the work of building a new home!"

"Woah~~"

Seeing Ogerpon's confident and adorable appearance, Rin didn't wait for her to react and directly picked her up from behind.

"There are many powerful magical beasts in the forest, you know."

("Ogerpon isn't scared!")

Rin lifted Ogerpon high, and after her initial panic, the little one was now curiously looking at the Jura Great Forest before them.

('Rin, Ogerpon will protect him!')

Pokémon Trainers, Pokémon, travel, battles, Ogerpon had only seen these things on people who traveled to Kitakami in the past.

And now, Ogerpon also had her own Trainer and was about to start an adventure!

"Whoosh~ Whoosh~"

With Ogerpon's protection, Rin didn't have to worry about the threat of monsters.

Thus, Rin left the village where he had lived since childhood and entered the Jura Great Forest.

Along the way, the two encountered many magical beasts that emitted dangerous auras.

Fortunately, their strength was not great. Facing Ogerpon, who was B-Rank but whose combat power was enough to contend with A-Rank magical beasts, almost none could last a single move.

These magical beasts all turned into Ogerpon's experience points (magicules), becoming the nourishment for her to grow stronger.

"Thump thump thump!!"

Suddenly, Rin, who was exploring forward in the forest, felt the ground beneath his feet shake. "Something big is coming, Ogerpon!"

"Po?!"

Without Rin needing to say more, Ogerpon had already summoned her thorn vine stick and stood in front of him.

"Roar!!"

Soon, a dark figure nearly 4 meters tall, like a wall, appeared before the two of them.

It was a black giant bear exuding a brutal aura.

Its arms and legs were covered with tough bristles, and black energy faintly flowed over its body. A pair of blood-red eyes were currently fixed on Ogerpon and Rin behind her.

Clearly, this guy was coming for them.

Most monsters in the forest have extremely strong senses of smell and hearing.

And two obvious targets like Rin and Ogerpon couldn't escape the magical beast's perception at all.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 4: Terror Bear

"Are we being seen as food?"

Rin had already recognized the identity of this black bear. "C-Rank magical beast, Bombing Terror Bear. Do you have confidence to deal with it, Ogerpon?"

("No problem!")

Ogerpon was not fighting the magical beasts of this world for the first time.

Just a C-Rank level was not enough to make Ogerpon afraid.

"Good."

Rin quickly retreated to a safe position.

He stared at the Terror Bear in front of him, with a similar longing in his eyes. "If you want to eat us, then be prepared to be eaten yourself."

"Go for the kill, Ogerpon."

Rin: "It just so happens we're having bear paws today!"

("Understood!")

Ogerpon held her thorn vine stick, and green Grass-type magicules gathered throughout her body.

The next moment, the little one's figure had already vanished from its original spot.

"Swish!"

"Swish swish swish!"

Ogerpon transformed into a green stream of light, rapidly darting through the trees, causing the previously ferocious Terror Bear to instantly fall into a daze.

One after another, illusory afterimages made the Bombing Terror Bear unable to keep up.

"Now!"

"Poniii!"

Suddenly, a three to four-meter-long thorn vine stick, entirely composed of energy, descended from the sky and slammed violently onto the Terror Bear's crown.

"Boom!"

"Rumble~~"

Its skull shattered, blood splattered, and along with it, the Terror Bear's massive body, comparable to a house, collapsed.

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon leaped down from the air, landing steadily in front of Rin, not forgetting to strike a cool pose.

[Notification: Individual 'Ogerpon' defeated C-Rank magical beast 'Terror Bear']

[Unique Skill 'Growth' successfully acquired magicules]

[Obtained Existence Value: 3EP]

In just a few days, Ogerpon's magicules value had increased from an initial 6500 to 7000.

It must be said that the Unique Skill, Growth, is truly overpowered.

As long as she continuously defeats or kills opponents, she can gain magicules.

And magicules is key to a monster's evolution.

"Well done."

Rin praised her. "The application of magic and the control of power, Ogerpon, you've completely mastered them."

"Poniii un~~"

Ogerpon dissipated her thorn vine stick into Grass-type magicules. She shyly scratched her head, a little embarrassed by Rin's praise.

"Your magicules also increased by 500."

"If only we encountered more magical beasts, Ogerpon, you could become even stronger."

Rin thought of Rimuru in the original work. Predator was even more abnormal than Ogerpon's Growth.

Of course, existences like Rimuru and Ogerpon, who can grow stronger by devouring and defeating other monsters, are rare in the Cardinal World.

So, don't think that monster evolution is easy.

In fact, before Rimuru appeared, A-Rank Ogres were considered a legend that hadn't appeared among the Great Ogre Clan for a thousand years.

Although not many, it's also not few. If she can defeat another 1000, Ogerpon will be able to evolve into an A-Rank magical beast.

("Ogerpon just got a little bit stronger again.")

("I feel like Ogerpon has gotten so much stronger recently.")

Ogerpon hopped back to Rin's side, tilting her head, and curiously asked: ("Is it because I obtained this thing called magicules (EP)?")

"That's right."

Rin praised and patted Ogerpon's head, explaining: "In this world, magicules is closely related to a monster's strength."

"Normally, the more magicules, the stronger the monster will be."

Of course, this doesn't apply to humans.

Humans use more of something called technology, rather than skills like monsters do.

"The Bombing Terror Bear we just defeated was a C-Rank monster."

"And Ogerpon is B-Rank."

Rin told Ogerpon the information he knew. "After B-Rank comes B+Rank, A-Rank, and then the higher A-Rank."

In the Cardinal World, the general conversion between Existence Value and rank is as follows:

0-1000: E-Rank

1000 ~ 3000: D-Rank

3000 ~ 6000: C-Rank

6000 ~ 8000: B-Rank

8000 ~ 9000: B+Rank

9000 ~ 10000: A-Rank

Then, 10,000 is a watershed. Breaking through 10,000 Existence Value allows one to become an A-Rank monster and receive the evaluation of 'Calamity'.

10000 ~ 100,000: A-Rank.

The A-Rank span is very large, completely on a different dimension from previous monster ranks.

Generally speaking, an A-Rank Calamity-rated monster appearing in the human world could destroy a city by itself.

At the higher Special A-Rank, it becomes a 'Disaster' capable of destroying nations.

Breaking the 100,000 Existence Value bottleneck allows one to gain the Special A-Rank evaluation.

Of course, Special A-Rank also has different levels.

Among Special A-Rank, some monsters that haven't continued to advance are given the name of Disaster.

And a Special A-Rank that can break its own limits and continue to evolve will become what humans call a 'Demon Lord,' or Demon Lord Seeds, the moment its Existence Value breaks through 200,000.

In the original story, Demon Lord Seeds weren't portrayed as overwhelmingly powerful, sometimes barely qualifying as Demon Lords.

But here, humans didn't distinguish between Demon Lords and Demon Lord Seeds so casually.

A Demon Lord Seed is also a Demon Lord, an ultra-large-scale disaster that can threaten and even destroy a country.

Once such an existence appears, millions of people will perish, and tens of millions of humans will be displaced.

Let alone in the Cardinal World, even in modern society, it would be a major global disaster.

"Ogerpon wants to become a Demon Lord!"

Ogerpon's determination to become a Demon Lord grew even stronger. Her thought was simple: ("That way, Ogerpon can protect Rin even better.")

"Haha."

Rin felt a warmth in his heart.

"Come lend a hand, Ogerpon," Rin said, "I'll make you something delicious!"

Rin and Ogerpon couldn't possibly finish such a large Terror Bear by themselves.

But that was fine.

Rin had a Pokémon Space, where he could store the remaining bear meat without worrying about spoilage due to the passage of time.

The two of them weren't short on food. Rin's space contained a large amount of supplies purchased from the Pokémon World.

However, Rin had only heard of something like bear paws in his previous life.

Now that he had the chance to taste it, he certainly couldn't miss out.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Rin saw Ogerpon looking at the dead Terror Bear.

"What's wrong?" He guessed her thoughts and said, "Does it make you uncomfortable?"

("A little, but not much.")

Ogerpon shook her head. The Pokémon World also had normal animals.

She wouldn't kill a Pokémon because they were her kind.

But as for ordinary animals, there was nothing to care about.

This was similar to the relationship between monsters and magical beasts in the Cardinal World.

Monsters were intelligent, possessed their own language, could communicate, and had emotions.

However, magical beasts like the Terror Bear were monsters completely dominated by emotion.

They weren't even products of normal reproduction.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 5: Half-Demon

"It seems I need to explain the origin of these magical beasts to you, Ogerpon."

During this time, Rin and Ogerpon had defeated many magical beasts, and also some monsters.

But neither of them had dealt a killing blow.

Whether it was killing or defeating, the magicules that Growth could obtain was the same.

This made them prefer to defeat opponents rather than engage in unrestrained slaughter.

"First, this magical beast don't let its flesh and blood, which we can eat, deceive you."

Rin said, "In reality, its body is entirely composed of magicules."

"Completely composed of magicules?"

"This world has three major existences:

One, the Astral Body, which envelops the soul and is the most fragile.

Two, the foundation for accumulating power—the Spiritual Body.

Three, the Material Body, which is directly connected to the world."

"…"

Seeing Ogerpon's expression of (I don't understand, but I'm greatly shocked), Rin couldn't help but chuckle, "Alright, alright, I know you don't understand these things, Ogerpon."

"Simply put, the magical beasts of this world, no matter how strong, are products of the fusion of a Spiritual Body and magicules."

"They do not possess something called a soul."

Spiritual Bodies are ubiquitous, formless, and intangible. You cannot eliminate them using the rules of the physical world.

When the Terror Bear died, the Spiritual Body that drove its actions had already dissipated.

What remained was just a pile of meat chunks containing magicules.

"And someone like you, Ogerpon, is called a monster."

Monsters possess souls. They are not essentially different from humans.

("Ogerpon is a monster.")

Ogerpon tilted her head and asked, ("Then what about Rin? Is Rin human or a monster?")

If judged solely by appearance, Rin would definitely be identified as human.

However, that was not the case.

Rin was a Half-Demon, meaning the product of a union between a Demon and a human.

Here, it's important to distinguish that a Half-Demon is not equivalent to a Demi-Human.

Demi-Human generally refers to a human transformed into a Demon, also known as a Human Demon Race, which is a completely different concept from Rin's Half-Demon.

("Demi-Human, Half-Demon.")

Ogerpon scratched her head, still not fully understanding, but she generally grasped some of it.

"Actually, I'm not very clear about this either."

Rin said, "As far as I know, Half-Demons should be extremely rare in this world."

Humanoid monsters were called Demons.

And when Demons combined, if they left offspring, a large portion of the parents' magicules would be inherited by the progeny through transmission.

This was for reproduction between Demons. If it were between a Demon and a human,

It's no exaggeration to say that the Demon parent would simply cease to exist.

Losing a large amount of magicules is equivalent to losing most of one's lifespan for a monster. Even the Star King Dragon, the ceiling of this world, was like that.

The origin of my predecessor is indeed a bit strange.

Even though he's a Half-Demon, he doesn't know what kind of monster the non-human part of his bloodline came from.

Fortunately, Rin wasn't particularly looking forward to the power brought by the monster bloodline.

Even if he didn't awaken it, it wouldn't have much impact on Rin.

Having monster blood is good enough; why ask for more?

In the Cardinal World, monsters were far more favored than humans and found it easier to become stronger.

This can be seen from the fact that the protagonist of the original novel was a monster.

Because of his Demon bloodline, Rin also possessed the monster's ability to constantly evolve by increasing his magicules.

The only regret was that Rin didn't have Rimuru's convenient abilities.

If he wanted to increase his magicules, he could only train himself, relying on accumulation to gradually become stronger.

Besides that, he relied on Ogerpon.

Before traversing to the Pokémon World and obtaining Ogerpon, Rin's Existence Value was only a mere 300, barely enough for an E-Rank evaluation, almost on par with a Goblin in the forest.

And as Ogerpon's Existence Value increased to 7000, Rin's Existence Value also underwent a drastic change.

From 300 to the current 3800, a total increase of 3500 points, which is half of Ogerpon's increase.

An Existence Value of 3000 to 6000, according to the Cardinal World's standards, has already reached the evaluation of a C-Rank monster.

As for specific combat power,

Unlike Pokémon like Ogerpon, who are naturally skilled in combat,

Rin, having lived two lives as a human, had not received professional combat training.

His three Unique Skills did not involve combat-related boosts.

If it came down to a real fight, Rin simply couldn't unleash the combat power of a C-Rank monster. He could only rely on brute force, performing at the level of a D-Rank Orc.

As mentioned before, Existence Value is related to the quantity of magicules.

The more magicules, the greater the magical power.

The relationship between magicules and magical power can generally be understood as the relationship between max mana, current mana, and mana recovery speed.

The original work does not have magical power; it is still magicules

But for ease of understanding, the settings of magicules and magical power are separated here

To give a simple example, 1000 magicules and 10000 magicules seem to have only a 10-fold difference.

However, the former can recover 1% of magical power per second, while the latter recovers 5%.

Converted into values, the former can waste 10 points of magical power per second, while the latter can waste 500.

With one increasing and one decreasing, just the basic magical power output has a 50-fold difference, and this doesn't even count the latter's additional magic, inherent abilities, Unique Skills, resistances, and so on.

Of course, the outcome of a battle does not only depend on values and abilities, but also on combat skills and practical experience, which also affect the result of the battle.

The best example is Hakurou from the original work.

Hakurou's magicules value was not high, around 100,000.

However, he was able to fight enemies far exceeding his magicules value by relying on his swordsmanship.

This is the bonus that practical experience and skill can bring.

"Crackling ~"

After the firewood was ignited, the flames greedily devoured the dry fallen leaves, making crackling sounds.

The skewered bear meat was placed on the grill, and the aroma of the meat quickly spread through the fresh air.

The meat slices gradually turned from bright red to golden yellow under the heat of the flames, and oil droplets fell into the fire, stirring up bursts of smoke.

"Gulp~"

Seeing Ogerpon drooling, Rin picked up a skewer of bear meat and handed it to the little one: "Here, eat it."

Ogerpon took a big bite, and her eyes immediately narrowed in happiness: ("So delicious~~")

Rin also took a skewer for himself.

It had to be said that everything in this world, whether mushrooms from the forest or animal meat, was incredibly delicious.

Is this the change brought by magicules?

Rin could only say that things from a high-level world were indeed extraordinary.

While eating, Rin wasn't idle. He took advantage of the break to ponder his future path.

"Combat skills, magic, practical experience…"

"I have absolutely no way to acquire magic and combat skills."

"Practical experience is too dangerous."

"Indeed, the Trainer profession suits me well."

Rin's positioning for himself was very clear: he was a Summoner, the type who just needed to stay behind his summoned beast and cheer them on.

Coincidentally, Rin's Leader and Ogerpon's Growth were the best partners.

Ogerpon could gain Growth, meaning an increase in magicules, by defeating or killing monsters and enemies.

Of course, this defeat was not without limits.

Firstly, each individual could only be defeated once before they had a major breakthrough.

Repeatedly defeating the same individual would not yield experience points.

Moreover, this magicules increase had an upper limit and was not endless.

No matter what, Growth was only a Unique Skill.

It was already remarkable that it could allow Ogerpon to grow into a Demon Lord.

And to break through Special A-Rank and reach S-Rank, which is the True Demon Lord level, the Unique Skill Growth would need to advance further.

As for how to improve further...

Rin cast his gaze towards the cooling system: "I wonder if the next world will have a way for Ogerpon and I to become stronger?"

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 6: Building a Camp

Time passed quickly.

A week had passed since the two entered the forest.

And on another morning, seven days later, Rin and Ogerpon finally found a good place to build their new home.

Deep in the forest, a clear stream gurgled, like a delicate thread of Great Nature, quietly outlining a secluded sanctuary.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, scattering into the stream, sparkling like countless tiny golden diamonds dancing and shining on the water's surface.

On both banks of the stream, green grass was like a carpet, dotted with wildflowers, emitting a faint fragrance.

(From now on, are we going to live here?)

Ogerpon squatted down, her small hand gently playing with the flowers at her feet, her mood quite good.

"What does Ogerpon think?"

(There are many fruits in the forest, and there are fish in the water. Ogerpon likes it here!)

"As long as you like it."

Rin patted Ogerpon's head. It wasn't that he didn't want to stay in the village.

His previous self hadn't had a good life in the village, and after awakening his memories, Rin naturally wouldn't tolerate being looked down upon by others anymore.

So, after making preparations, Rin taught a lesson to those who had discriminated against and bullied him.

Then, before attracting the attention of human adventurers, he took the prepared supplies and entered the Pokémon World.

Furthermore, unlike his previous self, Rin actually preferred the Demon Lord setting over the human identity.

After all, in the Cardinal World, becoming a Demon Lord was the mainstream.

The demon bloodline in Rin's body just so happened to allow him to initiate the evolution ritual for monsters, completing the awakening of a Demon Lord from low to high rank.

And to achieve this goal, conquering humans was useless.

For a monster to grow, besides the necessary potential, it needed to increase its existence value through achievements, constantly evolving until it reached the Demon Lord stage.

Territory, subordinates, battle achievements.

None of the three could be lacking.

Rin had the Unique Skill Traveler, he could obtain power and companions by traversing different worlds.

Ogerpon's growth was even more straightforward. She could directly use war to sustain herself, constantly fighting, and naturally become incredibly strong.

The current location of the two was in the western part of the Jura Great Forest.

There were no powerful monster groups living nearby, and with Ogerpon's B-rank strength, combined with various Pokémon moves, it was enough for them to establish themselves here.

Even if they encountered monsters stronger than B-rank, they could immediately abandon this place.

Running away was not shameful.

First, preserve your life. There will be plenty of opportunities to come back for revenge later.

"I'll go into the forest to pick some fruits."

Having made up his mind, Rin began to arrange their work. "Ogerpon, can you help me cut down that circle of trees?"

(Are those the ones?)

"Yes, from here to there, and also this area on the left."

Rin pointed to Ogerpon. "We are going to build our new home by the stream, and cutting down all these trees will free up more space for future crop cultivation."

"The cut trees can also be used to build houses," Rin said. "We will have more companions in the future, so we need to prepare houses for them in advance."

(New companions!)

Ogerpon liked lively environments. (Ogerpon wants to build a big, big house for many, many friends to live in!)

(But, Ogerpon doesn't know how to build houses.)

But soon, Ogerpon realized that she had always lived in caves and had no idea how houses were built.

"Don't worry, leave the house building to me."

In his previous life, Rin had studied carpentry out of interest, especially the construction of simple wooden houses, which he remembered quite clearly.

(Rin is so amazing!!)

Hearing that Rin could build houses, Ogerpon's two star-like eyes widened, and her admiration almost overflowed.

It must be said that Pokémon are truly adorable creatures that can heal one's soul.

"I'm going to pick fruits."

Rin's physical condition was good. Just picking fruits wouldn't put him in any danger.

Even if a monster did appear, Ogerpon would rush to his side immediately.

Next, the two split up.

Rin first picked various fruits that he remembered were edible and tasted good, washing them in the stream.

Incidentally, he also caught four plump fish for lunch.

It was a pity that the Terror Bear meat they had hunted earlier was all gone, otherwise lunch could have been even more abundant.

Rin decided to conserve some of the supplies brought back from the Pokémon World.

He couldn't be sure that the worlds he would cross into later would always have enough resources.

If he encountered a post-apocalyptic, post-disaster, or relatively primitive world.

At that time, Rin would have to use his Traveler opportunities to "stock up" from the Pokémon World, which would be too troublesome.

Therefore, save whenever possible.

Since there was readily available food right in front of them, there was no need to consume the supplies in the warehouse.

(Rin, Rin, is this enough?)

(If not, Ogerpon will cut more.)

In the clearing by the stream, Ogerpon's small body was lifting a log that two people could barely embrace over her head.

Utilizing Pokémon moves, combined with Ogerpon's current powerful B-rank strength.

Those ancient trees that would take ordinary people several hours to cut down, Ogerpon could snap them with ease.

"Enough, enough."

Rin quickly stopped Ogerpon. "No need to be so fast, take your time, we have plenty of time."

Looking at the little one's energetic appearance, Rin inexplicably felt a sense of guilt for exploiting child labor.

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon exerted force with her hands, and the log was instantly thrown into the air.

Clearly, the little one did not listen to Rin's instructions and just buried herself in hard work, having no idea what slacking off meant.

"Boom!"

In just half an hour, Ogerpon not only cut down trees but also did the initial processing.

Only a mountain of logs was left, neatly stacked on the grass.

But even after doing so much work, Ogerpon not only didn't feel tired but enjoyed it immensely.

Having lived alone on Mount Oni in Kitakami for all these years, Ogerpon finally met Rin, who was willing to interact with her.

Being naturally afraid of loneliness, after hundreds of years of solitude.

Let alone just cutting down some trees, even more arduous work, Ogerpon could happily complete: (As long as I can be with Rin, Ogerpon is happy doing anything!)

(To be continued.)

Chapter 7: Many-Legged Spider Bug

"You worked hard, come eat something."

Rin stopped Ogerpon. He stroked her head, smiling as he took out various freshly washed fruits from the basket.

Ogerpon is a Grass-type Pokémon. Theoretically, she can replenish the energy needed for life through photosynthesis just by drinking water.

However, Pokémon need to grow.

Mere survival is far from enough.

A rich and nutritious diet is the foundation for Pokémon to become stronger.

"Poniii!"

The little one happily took the fruit Rin offered. She opened her mouth, and her two small fangs bit down with a crunch.

Immediately, sweet and sour juice filled her mouth.

("Delicious!")

Ogerpon and Rin sat side by side on a stone, her two short legs dangling in the air.

Eating delicious fruit, with family by her side, Ogerpon felt extremely happy.

"There's not much time left today, we can only make a simple tent, and then properly build our new home tomorrow."

Rin said as he wiped away the fruit stains on Ogerpon's body.

Every move was like an older brother caring for his innocent younger sister.

A gentle breeze blew, and tree shadows swayed.

The two lay under the shade of the trees, relieving the fatigue accumulated during the day.

"Let's start, Ogerpon."

After their lunch break, Rin and Ogerpon started working again.

"Ponooo!"

Ogerpon sprang up, and before Rin could speak, she had already brought a log.

"Shape this log like this."

Rin planned to first build a fence to protect their future home. "Oh, and we also need to dig a sufficiently deep ditch on all four sides."

Of course, these two tasks definitely couldn't be left to Ogerpon alone. That would be too inhumane.

Rin didn't want to end up hanging from a lamppost someday.

Rin would also participate in the task of digging the ditch.

There was no need to worry about tools. When he was in the Pokémon World, Rin had purchased quite a few construction tools and brought them back to the Cardinal World.

The two cooperated, Rin wielding a hammer, driving logs into the ground one by one.

Whenever Rin ran out of materials, Ogerpon would immediately come over with a large pile of processed wood.

The little one was full of drive!

"Rustle~"

Suddenly, the sound from the jungle made the two working instantly alert.

"What's that sound?"

Rin's expression was solemn. "It sounds like something is coming?"

Seven days of forest exploration had given Rin much experience in dealing with danger.

He didn't go closer to court death but wisely retreated a few steps.

"Ponooo!"

Ogerpon dropped the wood in her hand, flashed to shield Rin, and in her hand, a thorn vine stick emitting a green glow materialized.

Soon, a bizarre creature, like a combination of a centipede and a spider, appeared before Rin and Ogerpon.

"What kind of monster is this?"

Rin had purchased a Monster Encyclopedia sold by the Free Guild in the village.

However, he had no impression of the huge Insect Monster in front of him.

"Appraisal!"

Without hesitation, Rin decisively used the system's Appraisal skill on the Insect Monster.

"Multi-legged Spider Bug"

Type: Mixed Insectoid Monster

Level: C (Existence Value 3800)

Inherent Abilities: Silk Spit, Potent Poison

Description: A monster that recently appeared in the Jura Great Forest. After poisoning its prey, it uses its mouthparts to suck its blood and flesh.

Danger Level: Low

Is this really a monster?

In the original work, were there such monsters?

As soon as this thought surfaced, Rin immediately dismissed it. "The original work is just a novel, and this is the real world."

There are so many species in the forest. It's impossible that there are only those described in the book.

Moreover, if it's a monster, it should be possible to communicate, right?

But looking at the Spider Bug, it didn't seem capable of communication at all. It was even more monstrous than any other monster Rin had encountered on his journey.

For a moment, Rin could only retreat with Ogerpon, maintaining a safe distance from the opponent.

"Hey!"

Rin still intended to communicate with the Insect Monster in front of him. "Can we calm down? We mean no harm."

"If this is your territory, we can leave."

Both Rin and Ogerpon were, at their core, people with principles.

If this area was already occupied.

Then their actions of destroying trees and arbitrarily building fences were indeed somewhat offensive.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"

However, the Multi-legged Spider Bug seemed to completely misunderstand Rin's words and directly sprayed a large amount of venom at the location of the two.

"Damn it!"

Rin and Ogerpon quickly dodged.

"Hiss, hiss, hiss~"

Turning their heads, they saw that the trees and ground covered by the venom instantly turned black and foul-smelling, as if corroded by sulfuric acid.

Undoubtedly, the other party intended to kill them.

"Po?"

Ogerpon awaited Rin's command. The latter's gaze turned cold, and he said in a deep voice, "Be careful of its poison and silk. Use ranged attacks as much as possible."

"Then, cripple it!"

(Understood!)

Ogerpon's lips curved slightly, her small fangs cute yet fierce.

"Pon! Popon!"

The little one wielded her thorn vine stick with powerful swings.

She stomped her foot, and a large amount of light green energy, centered around her, instantly covered an area of over ten meters around her.

This move was a magic spell transformed from a Pokémon move, Grassy Terrain!

However, unlike the original Grassy Terrain which benefited both sides, Ogerpon's magic only affected her and allies recognized by her.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"

Across from her, the Multi-legged Spider Bug was clearly startled by Ogerpon's move.

A large amount of magicules scattered in all directions, causing the Multi-legged Spider Bug, which perceived its surroundings through its antennae rather than its eyes, to lose its ability to sense the environment.

Due to its unease, the Multi-legged Spider Bug instinctively sprayed silk forward.

Unfortunately, Ogerpon was well-prepared and dodged the Multi-legged Spider Bug's attack with a quick flash.

"Now!"

Rin: "Use Seed Bomb!"

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon opened her mouth and sprayed out a large number of golden light spots.

These light spots landed on the Multi-legged Spider Bug, immediately causing earth-shattering explosions, making it emit painful insect cries.

"Break all its legs."

Without further hesitation, Rin gave the order for close-quarters combat. "Use thorn vine stick!"

"Hmph!"

Ogerpon had been waiting for a long time. The little one stomped the ground, transforming herself into a bolt of lightning, carrying monstrous strength capable of splitting mountains and cracking stones, and shattered all of the Multi-legged Spider Bug's legs

(To be continued.)

Chapter 8: Artificial Monster

"Squeak, squeak!"

Accompanied by a loud noise, the Multi-legged Spider Bug wailed in pain.

But deprived of the support of its insect legs, its entire body crashed to the ground.

A large amount of dark green blood emitted a foul stench, making Ogerpon retreat repeatedly.

"Ponooo~"

Ogerpon retreated to Rin's side, her face full of disgust. (It smells so bad, this guy.)

"Cough, cough, cough."

Rin also put on a pained expression.

He really wondered if such a monster truly possessed intelligence.

The monsters he had encountered in the past, their flesh and blood were edible.

Unlike the Spider Bug in front of him, which was like a biochemical weapon.

"Biochemical weapon?"

Rin once again used the Appraisal skill on the Spider Bug.

This time, Rin utilized the "Inquiry" function of the Appraisal skill.

Inquiry means to appraise the desired target. For example, if you appraise a sword, you will get the sword's attributes.

But specific data cannot be clearly known through simple Appraisal.

Through inquiry, you can know information such as the sword's thickness, length, weight, and material.

This kind of targeted Appraisal depends on what you want to know.

Targeted inquiry Appraisal is far less convenient than Rimuru's Great Sage, but some basic functions are actually not much different.

"Inquiry: Does this Spider Bug possess intelligence?"

"Report: No."

"???"

Rin's eyes widened, somewhat doubting if he had misheard. "No, didn't you just say it was a monster?! It doesn't even have intelligence, are you sure it's a monster?"

"Report: Artificial Monster, similar to a construct."

Rin pretty much understood.

Simply put, this thing was not a naturally born monster. It possessed a soul, but not a complete soul, rather a soul fragment.

Rin wasn't entirely sure how it worked.

He only knew one thing. There was no need to treat this Spider Bug as an intelligent life form.

"So it's just a brainless wild monster."

Rin frowned slightly, and he waved his hand in front of his nose. "Finish it, Ogerpon."

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon did not ask why.

As long as it was Rin's request, Ogerpon would execute it without hesitation.

"Boom!"

Thus, the thorn vine stick swung, and green energy, from dozens of meters away, smashed down fiercely.

The immense force landed on the Spider Bug's head, causing even half of its body to burst open like a watermelon, clearly dead beyond dead.

[Individual name 'Ogerpon' killed 'Multi-legged Spider Bug', gained 5 Existence Value.]

The experience acquisition prompt that came with Ogerpon informed Rin of the Existence Value the Multi-legged Spider Bug could provide.

"5 Existence Value, 2 points higher than Terror Bear's 3 points."

Rin didn't pay too much attention to the magicules obtained from killing the Spider Bug. He was more concerned with the term "Artificial Monster."

"I always feel like I've fallen into something bad."

Rin shook his head, dispelling these unnecessary worries. "Strength. As long as I become strong enough, no conspiracy or trickery will be a cause for fear."

"Ogerpon, who do you think is stronger, this Spider Bug or the Terror Bear from before?"

"Hmm..." Ogerpon thought for a moment and said, (Ogerpon feels the Spider Bug is so weak.)

Don't let Ogerpon's combat style, which involved using Grassy Terrain to confuse the Spider Bug's senses and Seed Bomb to disarm its defenses, deceive you.

These were just tactics Ogerpon specifically developed for caution.

If it came down to a direct comparison, Ogerpon could finish off the Spider Bug with one hit.

Well, the Bombing Terror Bear was the same in that regard.

(But Ogerpon still thinks the Bear is stronger!)

This was Ogerpon's intuitive feeling. She couldn't explain why, but she just felt that the Bombing Terror Bear was more threatening.

"Intuition?"

Rin believed Ogerpon's feeling was correct, and he looked down at the shattered Spider Bug. "After all, it's an artificial product. It can't compare to a genuine C-rank monster."

Of course, part of the reason was also that Ogerpon had become stronger than she was not long ago.

When she encountered the Terror Bear, Ogerpon's magicules were around 7000.

And now, in just seven days, Ogerpon's magicules had increased from the initial 6500 to 8000.

Ogerpon had been quite active along the way.

Whenever she saw a monster or beast that could provide experience points, she would give it a hit, whether it was worth it or not.

Rin treated her like a Pokémon grinding for levels.

If it was a monster, Ogerpon would try to minimize damage and quickly put it into a baby-like sleep, thereby fulfilling the "defeat" condition.

As for monsters, as long as the opponent chooses to surrender, the Growth can obtain the corresponding magicules.

In addition, Rin would also leave food for these defeated ones.

Rin, who had just awakened his past life memories not long ago, was still unable to plunder recklessly.

He gained experience points, and the other party got food.

A definite win-win!

(Ogerpon used so much magic power to fight the Terror Bear.)

(But to fight the Insect Monster, Ogerpon used this much.)

Ogerpon gestured with her two short hands, indicating lengths, which Rin couldn't understand at all.

(In short, to fight the Insect Monster, Ogerpon consumed much less magic power.)

Ever since she came to the Cardinal World, Ogerpon had found that the energy within her body had become much more abundant.

Not only had the quantity increased, but even her recovery speed had been greatly enhanced.

For example, in the past, after a battle, Ogerpon would always need to catch her breath.

But now...

Ogerpon stated that even if she had dozens of such battles consecutively, she would not feel tired.

The higher the existence value, the more magicules there were, and the amount of magic power and stamina that could be contained was directly proportional to it.

Coupled with astonishing recovery speed, and Ogerpon's unique Pokémon moves, her strength was by no means simply describable as B-class.

Rin felt that even if Ogerpon faced A-class, or even A+-level monsters, she would have a considerable chance of winning.

"Alright."

Rin didn't say much more about other things.

Artificial monsters and such were too far away from them.

The top priority now was to bury this spider Insect Monster, which had been beaten to a pulp, to prevent it from polluting the farmland.

Over the next period, while working, the two encountered three waves of Insect Monster invasions.

Rin didn't know what the situation was in this place, why there were so many Insect Monsters.

However, Ogerpon was not to be trifled with either.

Her thorn vine stick lived up to her reputation.

After adapting to Pokémon-type magic, Ogerpon's combat became even more effortless. Often, the enemy was killed before they could even make a move.

"There isn't an Insect Monster nest nearby, is there?"

Rin watched Ogerpon manipulate tree roots to drag the remaining remains underground for burial.

He held a dagger in his hand, and on the ground nearby, there were materials Rin had collected from three Insect Monsters.

Resisting the foul odor emanating from these items, Rin was clearly disgusted but still began to clean these materials, determined not to waste anything!

"Should we go investigate?"

While cleaning, Rin secretly pondered, "No, with just Ogerpon and me, even if we find an Insect Monster nest, it would waste a lot of time, and it wouldn't be worth it."

Considering that the camp had been initially built, Rin finally decided to ignore them.

There were still a few hours until the Traveler's cooldown was over. At most, by tomorrow, Rin could cross again.

The Traveler's ability to cross dimensions had a cooldown period.

The length of the cooldown period was related to the time Rin spent in the other world.

Just like last time, Rin stayed in the Pokémon World for seven days, so upon returning to the Cardinal World, there would be a seven-day cooldown.

Of course, this referred to the cooldown after returning to the Cardinal World.

If he was in another world, Rin could return at any time to avoid encountering unmanageable dangers in the new world.

"Let's just treat it as a monster spawning point."

For some reason, Rin felt that it wasn't bad to occasionally have spider Insect Monsters come to them.

This way, they wouldn't have to bother looking for monsters.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 9: Ogre Clan

At the same time, tens of kilometers away from the camp Rin had chosen, within the forest, a small village of three hundred people was nestled.

The figures coming and going, men mostly dressed as samurai, while women wore kimono-like cloth garments, and each was tall with horns on their foreheads.

If Rin were here, he would surely recognize this village as the Ogre Village, which was destroyed by the Orcs led by Footman in the original work.

The Ogre Clan had an average combat power of B-class, possessing the powerful military strength to destroy human villages by themselves.

The Ogre Village had a population of around 300, and its overall strength was such that even if it encountered an A-class monster attack, it could easily win.

In the assessment of human adventurers, it was a terrifying force capable of destroying an entire city.

However, the Ogre Clan in the Great Jura Forest was not as fond of destruction and slaughter as their appearance suggested.

On the contrary, although the Ogre Clan was combative, they upheld loyalty and never attacked the weak or innocent.

They mostly maintained the village's development by obtaining remuneration through employment from different monster tribes in the forest and from humans outside.

After over a hundred years of accumulation, the Ogre Clan had now become one of the three dominant forces in the Great Jura Forest.

To the south, the massive Orc tribe, numbering in the hundreds of thousands.

To the north, the Lizardmen, with a population exceeding ten thousand and individual combat power above C-class.

And the Ogre Clan, numbering only 300, located in the western part of the forest, possessing B-class combat power once they reached adulthood.

The three major forces checked each other, forming a tripartite balance, which allowed the Great Jura Forest to maintain superficial peace.

Originally, this pattern had continued for a long time.

Human adventurers generally did not venture deep into the Great Jura Forest, and the Ogre Clan would not actively attack surrounding countries or forces.

However, not long ago, a group of Insect Monsters, whose origin was unknown, broke the peace in the western part of the forest.

They wantonly slaughtered wild beasts in the forest and continuously plundered the resources that monsters relied on for survival.

At first, the Ogre Clan did not take it to heart.

The Great Jura Forest was permeated with the Storm Dragon's magicules, so no one could say what kind of monsters and demon beasts would be born.

However, not long ago, some clansmen were hunting in the forest but were attacked by hundreds of C-class Insect Monsters, their lives hanging by a thread.

If it weren't for the young master of the Ogre Clan leading a rescue team, this group of clansmen would probably have been completely wiped out.

For the sparsely populated Ogre Clan, every clansman was incredibly precious.

But even so, 2 Ogres still died under the attack of the Insect Monsters.

The body of one was dragged away by the Insect Monsters, while the other lost his life not long after being brought back to the village.

"We can't let this continue!!!"

The robust red-haired Ogre said to the elderly red Ogre sitting in the leader's position, "Father, gather the warriors in the village and go exterminate those disgusting Insect Monsters!"

This red-haired Ogre was Benimaru, who would later follow Rimuru in the original work and be granted a name and become the Commander-in-Chief of Rimuru's country.

However, at this time, he, along with Shion, Shuna, and others, had not yet received their names.

In the Cardinal World, most monsters did not have names.

Once a monster had a name, it would become a "Named Monster," and its potential and life level would experience a leap-forward improvement.

Unfortunately, the current Ogre Village did not have Named Monsters.

After all, Kijin had long become a legend of the Ogre race, and none had been born for a thousand years.

"Old man, what do you think?"

The leader looked at the white-haired elder who was meditating with his eyes closed beside him.

The entire Ogre Clan deeply respected this experienced and highly skilled swordsman.

In fact, if the elder hadn't been so devoted to swordsmanship, he should have been the leader of the Ogre Clan.

"I have never seen this type of Insect Monster in the Great Jura Forest; they don't seem like native monsters."

Unlike the spider-type Insect Monsters Rin encountered, the types of Insect Monsters encountered by the Ogre Clan and other monster tribes in the forest were far more than just one.

Mantis-type, centipede-type, beetle-type, butterfly-type—all kinds, almost encompassing all battlefield needs, truly biological weapons.

"It's just, old man, I suspect, are those Insect Monsters really monsters?"

"Categorically, they are indeed monsters."

The red Ogre leader also couldn't understand. "But we tried to communicate with them and found it completely impossible."

Demon beasts cannot communicate, have low intelligence, and are purely monsters.

Monsters, on the other hand, are intelligent life forms, have their own tribes, and most can coexist peacefully.

"No matter what, the young master's idea is not wrong."

"These Insect Monsters can appear endlessly, so there must be a nest or a similar base camp."

"Only by finding it and destroying it can we fundamentally eliminate these dangerous Insect Monsters."

The suggestion was approved by the Ogres present.

So, the leading red Ogre patriarch began to arrange personnel.

He had the future Benimaru lead the team, including Shion, Shuna, and others to search for the Insect Monster nest in the forest, and then launch an attack to eliminate this unknown disaster in one fell swoop.

As night fell, Rin did not know the origin of the successive waves of Insect Monsters, nor was he aware that the Ogre Clan was organizing people to prepare to exterminate them.

After a full day of work, Rin and Ogerpon finally completed their first wooden hut.

The wooden hut resembled a tent, about one person tall, with a triangular structure, enough to accommodate Rin and Ogerpon, providing them shelter from wind and rain.

A bonfire was lit in front of the hut, and the two needed to take turns on watch to prevent night raids by wild beasts and monsters.

But this was temporary.

Once Rin's Traveler cooldown was complete, he would take Ogerpon to a new world.

If they were lucky, they could not only find a place to rest but also replenish a wave of supplies.

Thus, Ogerpon guarded the first half of the night, and Rin guarded the latter half.

This arrangement was also to ensure that Ogerpon would have sufficient physical strength and spirit to deal with potential troubles after crossing.

The bonfire crackled, a faint flicker of firelight dancing in the darkness.

Inside the wooden hut, Rin felt the tranquility of the night forest.

Ogerpon rested her head on his thigh, her small body curled into a ball, smacking her little mouth, as if dreaming of something delicious.

Even in such a wild outdoor setting, Ogerpon seemed to be sleeping in the warmest of blankets.

As long as she stayed by Rin's side like this, Ogerpon would feel incredibly secure.

What a little glutton, she's even drooling.

Wiping away the moisture from the little one's fangs, Rin stroked Ogerpon's hood-like body.

His hand brushed over the pointed horn on her hat; it was part of her body, not just a simple decoration.

However, Ogerpon's body felt very soft.

Even the Ogre horn, which should have been sharp, felt soft and yielding in Rin's hand.

And so, Rin watched over her like a younger sister until dawn, without encountering any more Insect Monsters attacking them.

The morning light first broke, and a hint of fish-belly white appeared on the horizon.

In the haze, the mist in the forest drifted like a light veil, and faint light filtered through the sparse treetops, dappling the moist ground, where dew drops were faintly visible, shimmering with silver light on the tender green leaves.

"Pon-yo?"

Waking up from her sleep, Ogerpon rubbed her sleepy eyes, then instinctively began to look for Rin.

And upon seeing Rin, the worry in Ogerpon's eyes immediately dissipated.

In its place was pure joy and dependence.

(Rin, Rin, are we still building a house today?)

With yesterday's experience, Ogerpon already had some insights into building houses.

She wanted to challenge herself to build a bigger wooden house, and then construct a large house that could accommodate two people!

"Let's pause for now."

Rin patted the little one's head, then took Ogerpon to wash up by the stream, and ate a simple meal of mushroom stewed porridge and a few Energy Cubes, before announcing today's plan.

"I plan to open the door to another world and scout it out first."

Rin said, "If the new world is too underdeveloped, we'll use our once-a-day traversal on the Pokémon World."

The technology in the Pokémon World is very advanced.

Rin could completely go there, introduce various equipment and resources, and quickly build a simple camp.

He had no intention of catching other Pokémon for now.

A Traveler cannot bring people across, unless the other party becomes Rin's familiar.

But the familiar slots were temporarily limited, and Rin did not plan to use all of the remaining 2 slots on Pokémon.

"However, if we encounter a dangerous world, we will return immediately."

(Mhm, Ogerpon will protect Rin!)

"Then I'll leave it to you."

Stretching, Rin looked at the re-energized and eager Ogerpon. "Are you ready?"

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon made a bodybuilding gesture, indicating that she was full of drive!

"Very good, very energetic!"

After Rin finished speaking, he activated the Traveler's ability, which had cooled down and could be used again.

"Let's go!"

Thus, accompanied by flickering light, Rin and Ogerpon were no longer in the campsite, leaving only the extinguished campfire, its smoke lingering in the damp morning air.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 10: Obtaining a Cheat

When Rin opened his eyes again, what came into view was an indescribably unique space.

The surroundings were pitch black, with only a small bright area in front, radiating a deep light like the starry sky.

"Pon-yo?"

Ogerpon held Rin's hand, her small face filled with shock.

The little one had no idea where this was.

What about the promised other world?

How did they end up in such a dark place?

"Don't rush, let me think."

Rin was about to ponder where this was and what kind of world he had arrived in.

The next moment, rays of light bloomed before Rin's eyes.

"Ponooo!!!"

This startled Ogerpon, who quickly conjured her thorn vine stick and shielded Rin behind her.

Don't let Pon's shyness, fear of loneliness, and small appearance fool you.

In critical moments, she truly dared to act.

"Wait a moment."

Rin calmed Ogerpon, and he looked closely.

What appeared before the two of them was a chair, a small round table, and tea and desserts placed on the table.

At this moment, a blue-haired girl was sitting on the chair.

This was a girl of fifteen or sixteen, beautiful beyond Rin's comprehension.

How to describe it?

For some reason, the moment Rin saw the girl, the word "Goddess" popped into his mind.

Yes, besides a goddess, there could simply be no woman in the world with such beauty.

Her clear, aquamarine hair gave an impression of lightness and softness.

Her perfect body, neither too full nor too lacking, was covered in a loose, light purple garment, commonly known as a feather robe.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, the blue-haired girl, who was reciting her lines, seemed to sense something.

She blinked her aquamarine eyes, as clear as her hair color, and stared intently at Rin, and at Ogerpon, who was in front of him, her small mouth open, two small fangs showing, and her expression incredibly cute.

"???"

At this moment, the girl stared back at the two of them.

"Oh my?"

"Oh my my?"

Gradually, the beautiful, long aquamarine-haired girl's expression began to change, as if she hadn't quite grasped the current situation.

Rin and Ogerpon also did not act rashly.

Especially Rin, for some reason, he had a strange sense of déjà vu about this scene, feeling as if he had seen it somewhere before.

Blue hair, goddess-like beauty, and this attire...

"Hold on a minute!!"

Before Rin could speak, a certain idiotic goddess had already exclaimed, "No, who are you two?!"

"Did the reincarnation mechanism malfunction?"

"And where did you two come from?"

"This is overtime! Overtime!"

"Protest! Strongly protest overtime!!"

Aqua had clearly discovered the special nature of Rin and Ogerpon.

As the goddess who managed the destination of young Japanese people's souls after death, no matter how brainless Aqua was, she could tell that Rin and Ogerpon were still alive.

This situation was more like transmigration to another world.

Except the transmigration process was reversed. People from another world had suddenly appeared in this space.

"Ahem, calm down first, Water Goddess Aqua-sama."

"Eh?!"

Hearing Rin call out her name, Aqua was first stunned, then an incredibly smug smile appeared on her face.

"Pfft pfft pfft."

The girl covered her mouth and chuckled, "Although I don't know where you came from, you've heard of the great Water Goddess Aqua."

"There's nothing I can do! Fine, I'll grudgingly accept you!!"

Aqua's reaction made Rin, who had prepared all sorts of persuasion plans, feel like an idiot.

Yes, Rin had deliberately called out her name.

As for the purpose, it was naturally to go to the Konosuba World.

The adventure mechanism there, and the skill points, were very suitable for Rin's current situation, who only had magic power and attributes but no combat skills.

But now...

"You want to go to another world and challenge the Demon King?"

Aqua sat back in her original position, calmly opened a bag of potato chips, and munched on them in front of Rin and Ogerpon.

It was hard to imagine how she could act so impolitely with such a beautiful, sacred face.

Fortunately, he already knew what kind of existence Aqua was.

So, sorry!

No matter how good Aqua looked, Rin didn't want to have any dealings with her.

After all, messing with a fool was against the law.

Not to mention Aqua's personality, who knew how much trouble she could cause if she were by his side.

"Ahem, yes."

Rin said, "This child and I are currently traveling the worlds, and in this process, we defeat powerful opponents and improve our strength."

"Oh."

Aqua didn't think much of it at all. Her empty brain couldn't hold too many things.

Conspiracies and tricks were simply not as important as Rin's phrase, "Water Goddess Aqua-sama."

If they knew her name, they must be her followers.

Aqua was quite lenient with her followers.

"Alright."

Aqua: "Anyway, no one wants to go to that world, so it's even better if you want to help."

"Then..."

Rin revealed his true intentions, "Great, wise, beautiful, noble Aqua-sama, could you give us a little, tiny benefit?"

"Hmph hmph!"

Aqua continued to be engrossed in Rin's flattery, indicating that he spoke nicely and should say more!

"Normally, this kind of thing would definitely not be allowed."

"However, who can stop our great Goddess Aqua!"

"Now! Take it with gratitude, this blessing from the great Upper Goddess Aqua!"

The next moment, Aqua waved her hand, and sheets of parchment fell around Rin like a scattered heavenly maiden's flowers.

"Oh oh oh!!"

Rin: "As expected of Aqua-sama!"

This time, Rin's words were no longer flattery, but from the bottom of his heart.

Giving benefits right off the bat, you're a good person, Aqua.

Although idiotic, when she treated people, she was genuinely willing to spend money.

In the original novel, many of Aqua's debts were due to her spending money to treat the entire guild to meals.

Even for an outsider like Rin, Aqua was still willing to break the rules and give him a cheat.

Just for this straightforwardness, Rin secretly decided: If I see Aqua and Kazuma getting mixed up like they did in the original, I'll lend you some gold, Aqua.

"Choose."

"But, only one."

Aqua pointed at Ogerpon and said, "Its life composition is very special; it's with you, so it can't receive any cheats provided by the gods."

In short, even by the Konosuba world's judgment, Ogerpon is Rin's summoned creature.

If he could get more cheats this way, wouldn't Rin summoning hundreds of skeleton soldiers directly make the gods go bald?

"Alright."

Rin was a bit disappointed, but since it was a world rule, there was nothing he could do.

Greed knows no bounds, and Rin was already very satisfied to get a cheat ability for free from Aqua.

"Oh, right."

His own searching efficiency was too low, so Rin decided to directly ask Aqua: "Is there a cheat that allows for rapid skill learning?"

"Oh, that kind."

Aqua, being bored in her daily life, read many manga and light novels, so she instantly understood Rin's meaning. "Take that one; it allows someone to copy the skills of people they've come into contact with. The limitation is that copied skills are only level 1, and their effectiveness depends on one's own attributes."

This is a setting in Konosuba.

Konosuba's skill points can be spent on any learnable skill, and not just one point, but can be continuously invested.

Just like Megumin's Explosion Magic, it requires a large number of skill points to unlock.

Similarly, upgrading the level of Explosion Magic also consumes skill points.

The reason Megumin's Explosion Magic is so powerful is that she specialized in this skill, spending all her skill points on it.

So, according to Aqua's meaning.

If Rin were to copy Megumin's Explosion Magic, he would indeed get Explosion Magic, but it would only be a level 1 Explosion Magic.

Not only that, if his magic power was insufficient, Rin still wouldn't be able to cast Explosion Magic.

"So, this cheat is pretty useless."

Aqua: "Even so, do you still want it?"

"Hmm..."

Rin didn't decide immediately, but instead asked about several other cheat abilities he thought might be more suitable for him.

Unfortunately, those abilities had more or less certain restrictions and thresholds, and in any case, they weren't very suitable for the current Rin and Ogerpon.

"Alright then."

Having no choice, Rin finally made his selection. "I'll take the skill copying ability."

"So, this..."

Aqua: "What was your name again?"

"My name is Itoshi Rin, and this child is Ogerpon."

"Pon! Popon!"

Ogerpon was completely confused throughout. Her mind was filled with (Who am I, where am I, what am I doing here).

"Rin-san, and your familiar Ogerpon, you are about to go to another world to become one of the reserve heroes to defeat the Demon King, and at the moment you defeat the Demon King, you will receive a gift from the gods."

As Aqua chanted, a bright magic circle lit up beneath Rin and Ogerpon's feet, then slowly lifted the two of them upwards.

Rin did not resist. This was the power of the Konosuba world's gods, far beyond what he could defy now.

Ogerpon was also very sensible, obediently staying in Rin's embrace, neither crying nor making a fuss.

"Oh, Hero! May you stand out among the many reserve heroes and be the one to defeat the Demon King."

"Alright, set off!"

Light enveloped Rin and Ogerpon, leaving only Aqua's voice echoing in their ears.

When the light dissipated, Rin found himself on a medieval European street.

Carriages rumbled over the cobblestones, and in front of the neatly arranged red-brick houses, people came and went, some with beast ears, some with pointed elf ears. Undoubtedly, this was Axel, the beginner town in the Konosuba novel.

(To be continued.)

...

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Chapter Text

Chapter 11: The Expressiveness of Different Worlds

"Did it really succeed just like that?"

Rin was still a bit dazed at this moment. He had thought about gaining more benefits in another world.

But he hadn't expected things to go so smoothly.

Regardless of the Konosuba world's strength.

But the adventurer skills here, and the mechanism of leveling up by fighting monsters, were indeed of no small help to the current Rin.

"As expected of Aqua."

"Thank you very much!"

Rin quickly sensed the gift from the gods, that ability called Copy.

---

[Itoshi Rin]

Race: Half-Demon

Existence Value: 3505

Magic: Energy Cube Production, Spirit Space, Appraisal

Intrinsic Skills: Adaptability

Unique Skill: Traveler [Broken] (Returnable), Leader, Capturer, Duplicator (Analyzes and copies abilities held by others)

Familiar: Ogerpon

Marked Worlds: Pokémon World, Konosuba World

"Duplicator!"

Looking at the description of Duplicator that appeared in the Unique Skill column.

Rin knew that his Crossing this time was not in vain.

The world's voice of the Cardinal World does not exist in the Konosuba world.

The two belong to different worldviews and cannot influence each other.

But.

Because of the Traveler's Unique Skill, Rin was like an anchor point cast by the Cardinal World into the Konosuba world.

Similar to a signal station, Rin could receive and feedback from the Cardinal World and interact with the world's voice at any time.

This interaction did not only apply to Rin.

It also had an effect on his familiars within a certain distance around him, such as Ogerpon.

Therefore, the moment Rin obtained the copy ability, the Cardinal World analyzed it and made a new judgment.

The final result was that Rin's copy cheat ability disappeared.

In its place was a powerful Unique Skill called Duplicator.

"Let me see the effectiveness of this Unique Skill."

Rin said, focusing his attention on the words Duplicator.

Soon, information related to this skill emerged in Rin's mind.

"The Duplicator's copying is not an instant process."

Rin secretly thought. "It will consume different amounts of time for analysis, depending on the strength of the ability to be copied."

"Only after the analysis is complete can I truly learn the skill and make it my own."

Theoretically, as long as it's not an ability with uniqueness or biological nature, Rin can copy it.

Uniqueness means only one can exist in the entire world.

Biological nature, for example, refers to moves that require a tail, a third hand, or special body organs to release.

Of course, if a biological ability can be solved with magic power.

For example, if spider silk is purely a product of physiological structure, Rin cannot copy it.

Conversely, if the silk is essentially a product of magic power, Rin can simulate it through magic power.

Specifically, the limitations and extremes of the Duplicator are still unclear to Rin due to the short time he has had it.

"I need to find a few targets to test the effect of the Duplicator."

As Rin thought this, Ogerpon gently tugged on his hand.

"What's wrong, Ogerpon?"

("Where are we, Rin?")

Ogerpon had seen similar Western fantasy-style buildings before, back when Rin was still in the village on the edge of the forest.

However, Rin's original village definitely couldn't compare to this beginner city for adventurers.

Compared to the prosperous Axel, that village was completely rural.

"This is the other world we're going to explore next."

Rin stroked Ogerpon's little head and smiled. "Don't worry, I know a bit about this world. Just follow my lead."

"Mhm!"

Ogerpon was very curious about the new world.

The dazzling stalls and the clothing of the passersby made the eyes of the inexperienced Ogerpon sparkle.

"Now, let me think."

"Hmm, first, we'll go to the Adventurers' Guild and register as adventurers."

Rin recalled the Konosuba plot and knew that only by becoming an adventurer and getting a skill card could he truly integrate into this world.

Rin, who possessed the Adaptability Inherent Ability, was not worried about being unable to acquire the Konosuba world's abilities.

However, Ogerpon might have some trouble adapting.

Without Adaptability to integrate into the Konosuba world, Ogerpon would still be using the Cardinal World's system.

And according to the principle Rin mentioned earlier, the strength of the Cardinal World far exceeds that of ordinary worlds.

Although the Konosuba otherworld also has magic factors, and every plant and tree here is also infused with magic, possessing strength and resilience beyond the material world.

However, the magic concentration here is far too low compared to the Cardinal World.

Calculated by the Chaos World rating, it roughly only reaches a medium concentration level.

To put it simply, Ogerpon, who only had a B-rank evaluation in the Cardinal World, would at least be two major ranks higher, reaching Special A, when placed in the Konosuba world.

Rin could also do this, for example, by actively closing Adaptability and then gaining A-rank combat power.

But in that case, Rin wouldn't be able to acquire the new world's power system.

"Oh, right, Ogerpon, in this world, you must control your strength. You absolutely cannot use more than B-rank magic."

"Eh?"

Ogerpon looked at Rin in confusion, only to hear the latter explain. "Our method of crossing over this time is different."

"In the Pokémon World, I entered with my true body."

"But this time, the situation is a bit different from then."

Cutting into the reincarnation ritual that Aqua was in charge of was actually the Cardinal World exploiting a loophole in the Konosuba world's rules, making it treat Rin as one of its own.

Essentially, Rin's action was more like a hidden identity's smuggling.

"I have power I want to obtain in this world."

"So, you must hide your identity as much as possible to avoid being rejected by the rules of this world."

Otherwise, if Rin actively closed the Traveler and stepped out of the framework of the current world, the Konosuba rules would blacklist Rin.

The worst-case scenario would be being driven out, and Rin would never be able to return to the Konosuba World.

A slightly better outcome would be losing the opportunity to acquire the Konosuba World's rules and strengthen the Cardinal World.

Rin didn't want to face either of these outcomes.

"Ponii!"

Ogerpon raised her small hand. ("Ogerpon understands, Ogerpon will be careful!")

"You don't need to be that careful," Rin said with a smile.

"Just control your power to around B-Rank, and that's fine."

"If you really encounter danger, saving your life is definitely more important."

("Ogerpon has a question!")

"Ask away."

("Why B-Rank?")

Ogerpon felt that she was very powerful now, and she wasn't quite sure what level of B-Rank Rin was referring to.

"Hmm…"

"In that case, let me explain simply."

Rin: "First is expressive power. Ogerpon, can you understand?"

("Expressive power?")

"That's right."

Rin explained. "Worlds are different. The Cardinal World is stronger. A rock there might be harder than steel in this otherworld."

"Ogerpon, in the Cardinal World, a normal attack from you can destroy a house."

"This is called B-Rank expressive power!"

"So, here's the question."

Rin pointed to the road beneath their feet and said. "What kind of destruction can your full power cause in this world right now?"

Based on the first level of concentration, it is a major realm division.

Ogerpon, who came to the Konosuba World, is equivalent to a Special A-Rank monster.

And a Special A-Rank strike…

"Things here are very fragile."

Ogerpon wasn't stupid. Her battle intuition was very strong, so she quickly made an accurate judgment. ("If Ogerpon throws one punch, the entire city will collapse.")

A full-power blow from a Special A-Rank is enough to cause earthquake-level destruction to this city.

And this is called Special A-Rank expressive power!

"Do you understand?"

Rin said. "The power you can display in the Konosuba World should appear the same as in the Cardinal World."

("You mean, Ogerpon needs to control her punch to only create a pit a few meters deep?")

"Exactly!"

Rin confirmed. "That's it!"

If it's B-Rank in the Cardinal World, then when entering a new world, it also needs to be controlled to a B-Rank level.

It's not like when Rin traveled to the Pokémon World, where he didn't need to care about expressive power because his true body traversed.

At that time, Rin, who was only E-Rank, directly increased his expressive power by 3 levels to B-Rank in the Lower Chaos World.

The mere Kitakami villagers, in front of B-Rank Rin, were naturally one-punch KOs!

"Worlds have memories. We can trick her, but we cannot use the same method to trick her twice."

Therefore, unless Ogerpon also gains an ability similar to the Adaptability in the future, she should ideally maintain the same expressive power in other worlds as in the Cardinal World.

("Ogerpon understands!")

Ogerpon understood. She was not a Pokémon who would cause trouble for her master.

PS: The setting of expressive power is to balance the power deviation of various worlds. I hope everyone can understand.

Chapter 12: Adventurers' Guild

"Excuse me, could you please tell me where the Adventurers' Guild is?"

Rin stopped a passerby and asked for the location of the Adventurers' Guild, and under their guidance, he found the guild.

The Adventurers' Guild in the city was a rather large building. Before even entering, Rin and Ogerpon smelled the aroma of food wafting from inside.

"Poniii?"

Ogerpon. ("What a fragrant smell, is this a restaurant?")

"The guild here also functions as a tavern. Adventurers can order food here."

While explaining to Ogerpon, Rin led the way and pushed open the guild's large door.

Upon entering the guild, the first thing that came into view was a hall large enough to host a banquet, with neatly arranged long tables.

Although it wasn't yet mealtime, many Adventurer parties had already gathered there, starting to drink and boast.

The bustling sounds made the atmosphere of the entire guild very lively.

"Ah, welcome."

"If you need job introductions, please go to the counter inside. If you need to dine, there are still plenty of empty seats, feel free to sit anywhere."

As soon as the two entered, a female waitress with short red hair kindly greeted them.

Upon seeing the new faces, Adventurers clad in armor, leather, and mage robes all turned to look, their gazes falling on Rin and Ogerpon.

"What is that?"

"A monster?"

"It must be some kind of familiar. It looks so cute."

"Ah, it is indeed quite cute."

Rin didn't mind.

Ogerpon, however, was quite eye-catching.

There are no creatures like Pokémon in the Konosuba World.

The monsters here, apart from the Demon King's army, have almost no intelligence and are purely beasts.

Additionally, familiars in other worlds can generally be understood as summoned beasts.

Among the Adventurers in the guild, there were also summoner professions, but no one had ever seen a familiar like Ogerpon.

"Pon-yo?"

Being stared at by so many people, Ogerpon shyly hid behind Rin.

And this reaction attracted even more attention.

Especially the exquisitely beautiful young girls, who instantly fell in love with Ogerpon, who resembled a small loli.

Unfortunately, they didn't know Rin and didn't dare to directly come up and ask.

"Let's go, Ogerpon."

Rin took Ogerpon's hand.

He ignored the discussions and gazes of the crowd.

The Adventurers had no ill intent. They were purely curious.

Soon, Rin and Ogerpon crossed the hall and arrived at the counter.

There were four counter staff, two of whom were female employees, and the one Rin chose was the mature blonde older sister from the anime.

"Both of you…"

Luna, the counter receptionist, curiously sized up Rin and Ogerpon. "How may I help you?"

Luna originally thought Ogerpon was a human little girl.

There was no way around it. Ogerpon's height was just over a meter.

Converted to a human, she would at most be a seven or eight-year-old girl.

However, upon closer inspection, although Ogerpon's appearance was cute, she could by no means be categorized as human. Instead, she looked more like some kind of intelligent monster.

But considering that Ogerpon was very well-behaved, and this was the Adventurers' base camp, Luna didn't think too much of it, simply assuming she was Rin's familiar or summoned beast.

"I want to register as an Adventurer."

"Ah, a newcomer who wants to join, of course, no problem."

Luna said with a smile. "As long as you pay a 1000 eris processing fee, you can proceed with the attribute detection."

"Processing fee…"

"Cough."

Rin realized he didn't seem to have this world's money.

Fortunately, Rin wasn't as nervous as Kazuma and Aqua, but very calmly took out a dog-headed gold nugget he had dug up in the Great Jura Forest from his spirit space and placed it on the counter.

"We came here from a very far place and have spent all our reserved eris along the way. I wonder if the guild can directly trade with gold?"

Gold is a precious metal in most worlds.

So, to prevent the current situation, Rin specially prepared enough gold, minerals, and gems.

Of course, Rin's dog-headed gold nugget had been processed.

Rin analyzed the magicules concentration in the material, lowering it by several levels before taking it out to exchange for the Konosuba World's currency.

Otherwise, this item in the Konosuba World would only be "some unknown metal that looks like gold."

There was no other way. Worlds are different, and physical rules vary greatly.

Without processing, Rin wouldn't dare to casually take it out.

"Uh, you, please wait a moment."

Luna was startled by the dog-headed gold nugget Rin took out. "I'll get the detection instrument right away!"

Surprised as she was, Luna didn't hesitate for a second to do what needed to be done.

Just as Rin expected, the Adventurers' Guild's functions were versatile. Even appraising gold and treasures could be handled here.

"This!!"

However, Rin soon encountered trouble.

"Such, such a strong magic power reaction!"

Luna looked in surprise at the information displayed on the detection instrument. The curvaceous blonde woman said in disbelief. "It's clearly just a piece of gold, but the magic power contained within it is even more than that in high-concentration magic power crystals!"

"Unbelievable!"

"This, could this be gold dug out from a magic crystal mine?"

Not only Luna, but even the gold shop owner who came to appraise the gold was shocked by this piece of gold.

"Uh, well…"

Rin awkwardly scratched his cheek. Oh no! It seems there's still too much magicules left.

But I did weaken it to the level of a medium chaotic world!

It seemed that even among medium chaotic worlds, there were differences in the amount of magicules they contained.

Konosuba World should be on the lower end of medium chaotic worlds.

"Can it be exchanged?"

"It can be, yes."

The gold shop owner in charge pushed up his glasses and asked, "The question is, which exchange method do you want to choose?"

"What do you mean?"

"It means, do you intend to exchange it as gold, or as a sufficient amount of magic crystal?"

It was the first time the gold shop owner had encountered such a situation.

"Cough, cough!"

Rin understood and asked, "Which is more expensive?"

"Of course, the magic crystal!"

"Alright, then let's sell it as a magic crystal. Thank you both."

Soon, Rin exchanged this gold nugget for about 3 million eris.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 13: Choosing a Profession, Copying Skills

As for the initial 1000 eris, the Adventurers' Guild directly wrote it off as a small change.

However, Rin paid another 1000 eris for Ogerpon's Appraisal.

"Eh?"

"Appraisal for this little one?"

Luna was a bit puzzled, but since Rin wanted to spend the money, she couldn't stop him.

She first handed two cards to Rin and Ogerpon, then explained the essence of Adventurers to them.

"Please look here on the card, isn't there a section called Level?"

Luna: "As you both know, all kinds of things in this world have souls hidden within them."

"No matter what kind of existence, as long as it consumes or kills a creature, that is, terminates some life activity, it can absorb a part of that existence's soul memory, which is collectively referred to as experience points."

"These experience points, generally speaking, cannot be seen by the naked eye," Luna said, "but as long as an Adventurer holds such a card, the experience points they absorb will be displayed on it, and the corresponding level will also appear."

"This is the standard of an Adventurer's strength, and how many targets they have defeated will also be recorded here."

"And as experience points accumulate, all kinds of creatures will suddenly grow rapidly one day. This is what is called a high-strength leap in level."

Simply put, as long as you raise your level, you can gain various benefits, such as obtaining skill points to learn new skills, as well as attribute enhancements and so on.

Rin glanced at his card and found that the attribute values on it were very different from the Cardinal World system he knew.

Well, since there was no reference, Rin didn't quite understand it.

As for Ogerpon, after she touched the card, there was no reaction on the card. It remained blank.

"Huh?"

"Is the card broken?"

Luna felt very confused. She initially thought there was a problem with the card.

But even after changing the card, it was still blank.

Logically speaking, such a situation should never occur.

Even if it was just a summoned creature, or even an otherworldly visitor, they would be appraised for their soul value due to the rules of the other world, and then displayed through the card.

However, Ogerpon's situation clearly exceeded Luna's cognitive scope.

"How strange, I, I've never encountered anything like this."

"This child, who exactly is she?"

Ogerpon is not a creature of the Konosuba world. She is basically an outsider.

To put it in more understandable terms, Ogerpon is surrounded by the laws of the Cardinal World.

This prevents the rules of the Konosuba World from penetrating this protective layer to peek at Ogerpon's information, only treating her as Rin's accessory, an existence considered one with him.

It is precisely for this reason that once Ogerpon unleashes her power, the Konosuba World will implicate Rin and expel them both.

"Perhaps it's because this child is my familiar."

"Even, even if it's a familiar, the card should still…"

Luna mumbled a few words softly, and as it involved Rin's privacy, she didn't delve deeper. "May I see your card, sir?"

"Mm, here you go."

Luna took the card Rin handed her and, sure enough, found the Familiar annotation in his attribute panel.

Ogerpon was not recognized, but Rin was considered one of their own in the eyes of the Konosuba World.

Through Rin, the Konosuba World easily determined Ogerpon to be his familiar.

The Ogerpon familiar noted in the attribute panel was the best evidence!

"It seems this little one is a very remarkable familiar."

Luna didn't delve into it. Prying into others' privacy was unethical.

As a Guild receptionist, Luna was well aware of the principle that speaking too much leads to mistakes and becoming too familiar too quickly leads to trouble.

"Next, please fill in items such as height, weight, age, and physical characteristics on this document."

Next, with Luna's help, Rin filled in all the required information.

"Alright, that's it."

"Now, please touch this stone tablet. This way, you can learn the parameters of your various abilities.."

Luna: "After that, please choose the profession you desire based on the values."

"Is it finally starting?"

The two things Rin most anticipated after transmigrating to the Konosuba World were Aqua's cheat ability and the job system here.

Although he already had the Duplicator with the ability to copy skills, Rin still had a relative yearning for professions.

Because professions could bring attribute increases.

The Cardinal World had given Rin magicules, and the Duplicator had allowed him to acquire skills.

But magicules only affected existence value.

It had little relation to an individual's strength, speed, and other attributes.

Apart from physiological armor and skin, the demons of the Cardinal World relied on various passive traits. There was no setting where higher levels meant more abnormal physical strength.

Rin could only seek this kind of power in other worlds.

And his first stop was the Konosuba professions!

"Your muscular strength, vitality, magic power, flexibility, and agility are all very good."

Luna recommended, "With such attributes, you can directly choose those advanced professions."

The basic attributes brought by a C-rank in the Cardinal World were considered elite in the Konosuba World.

The advanced professions Luna mentioned referred to things like Crusader, Sword Master, Arch Priest, Arch Wizard, and so on.

Rin didn't make a direct choice but carefully asked Luna about information regarding these advanced professions.

Luna, as expected of a professional counter receptionist, patiently and meticulously told Rin the pros, cons, and characteristics of each profession.

"Are you sure you want to become a Martial Artist?"

Luna: "Begging your pardon, but among physical professions, a Martial Artist's defense is inferior to a Crusader's, and their attack is not as good as a Sword Master's."

"Yes."

Rin's final choice was a physical melee profession called Martial Artist.

The reason for this choice was that the attributes a Martial Artist could improve with each level-up were precisely what Rin needed most at the moment.

HP, strength, agility, flexibility…

While a Martial Artist's every improvement was not as good as other advanced professions, it excelled in balance.

In Rin's plan, he could increase his existence value through Ogerpon and other dependents, thereby continuously increasing his magicules.

Just now, when activating the skill card, Rin noticed something.

Every Adventurer, when first changing professions, would accumulate a certain amount of initial experience points.

After all, a person living to adulthood couldn't have never gained experience.

For example, Aqua in the original work had accumulated a large number of skill points when she first became an Adventurer.

The reason for this was that Aqua herself was already very high-level.

Just like Rin now, his stored experience points were over 30,000, roughly 10 times his existence value.

And using magicules to increase the level in the Konosuba World would not make the magicules in Rin's body disappear.

The magic power originally brought by the magicules remained unchanged. Instead, it was as if an extra set of attributes and skills appeared out of thin air, stacking on top of the Cardinal World's attribute panel.

Additionally, the Konosuba World's experience point system was different from traditional online games.

The information obtained from Luna indicated that to reach level 100, approximately 1 million experience points were needed.

Of course, while the maximum level was fixed, due to each person's starting point, choices made, profession, skills learned, and growth potential being different, the gap between two level 100 individuals could be even greater than the difference between a human and a dog.

Leader increases magicules, magicules convert to experience points, which are then used to increase the Martial Artist profession level and gain attributes.

And those skill points can all be used on the most cost-effective skills.

The skills Rin obtained through his copy ability all started at level 1. To improve them, he could only use skill points.

Hmm, these are the rules of the Konosuba World.

I just don't know what changes will occur when I bring these skills back.

However, these things weren't very relevant to Rin. He didn't choose the copy ability for the sake of Konosuba skills anyway.

The Duplicator's true potential should lie in the worlds Rin would travel to in the future.

Copying special abilities from different worlds and making them his own—that was the correct way to utilize the Duplicator.

"Now, please keep your skill card safe, then carefully choose the skills you wish to learn. If you want to take on quests, you can pick the ones you like from the bulletin board."

"Mm, thank you, Miss Luna."

In this short time, Rin had already become familiar with Luna.

Rin left the counter with Ogerpon, took out his skill card, and began to look at the various skills a Martial Artist possessed.

"Before adding points, I'll copy all the skills I can."

Thinking this, Rin chose a long table, ordered some food, and while eating with Ogerpon, he used his Appraisal skill to observe the Adventurers in the hall.

[Defense] [Steal] [Haste] [Cross Slash] [One-Handed Sword Mastery] [Basic Magic]...

Various skills, although mostly low-level, also included Superior Magic skills that required a large number of skill points to learn.

The only pity was that this was just Konosuba's beginner village, and adventurer levels were generally not high...

"Huh?"

Suddenly, Rin noticed a figure in the guild, and he stared at the character panel displayed before him:

---

[Name: Yunyun]

Occupation: Arch Mage

Skills Mastered: Superior Magic, Intermediate Magic, Teleportation, High-Speed Chanting, Multiple Casting, Mana Amplification...

---

"Superior Magic?"

Konosuba's magic system is different from the commonly perceived fireballs, healing spells, and wind blades.

The [Superior Magic] skill requires 30 skill points and the Arch Mage, a superior occupation.

After learning Superior Magic, an Arch Mage can freely record various powerful destructive spells.

Increasing the skill level of Superior Magic will also increase the power of the corresponding advanced magic.

In short, it's a one-trick pony.

A magician doesn't need to know dozens or hundreds of spells. Instead, they activate a Superior Magic skill and then specialize in practicing certain powerful spells.

This is not a game world. For the same fireball spell, how many you cast, when, and from what angle you cast them all depend on the adventurer themselves.

And such a mechanism was perfect for Rin!

No Arch Mage occupation?

Doesn't matter!

So, Rin didn't hesitate at all and directly copied all the skills Yunyun currently possessed, leaving none behind.

"By the way, since Yunyun is here, what about Megumin?"

Rin wouldn't forget the most powerful Explosion Magic in all of Konosuba.

Soon, Rin found a certain chuunibyo Crimson Demon.

[Duplicator: Copying started... Copying complete!]

Rin gave himself a mental thumbs-up, thinking that this Crossing was truly a huge gain.

More than a dozen occupations, over 100 skills.

Rin even found a fellow adventurer who had switched to a Martial Artist among the crowd and copied all of the Martial Artist's skills, saving him a large number of skill points.

As expected of Konosuba's beginner village, it's full of talent!

The new occupation Martial Artist and the method of converting magicules into experience points to improve basic attributes.

And the Duplicator's Unique Skill, which is a bug.

"Next, let me think about which skills to level up?"

"Over 30,000 experience points, after full conversion, can get me to level 15."

Martial Artist is a superior occupation. In addition to the basic 15 skill points, each level up grants an additional 2 skill points.

Basic occupations have no bonus, intermediate occupations get 1 extra point, and superior occupations get 2 extra points.

This way, the gap between adventurers becomes apparent.

"45 skill points, to be used for skill leveling..."

The number of times different skills can be leveled is limited and will be displayed in the form of lv1, lv2, etc.

When a skill reaches max level, it will display MAX, meaning it has reached its limit and cannot be leveled further.

"Skill points are limited. It's best to use them where they count most."

Rin scanned the skills he already possessed. Excluding non-levelable passive skills, his attention was mainly focused on those skills that provided percentage amplification.

For example, the magic-type [High-Speed Chanting].

[High-Speed Chanting lv1]: Reduces casting time by 10%.

A simple description, but very effective!

It doesn't increase casting speed; instead, it reduces casting time.

A spell that originally took 10 seconds to cast could be shortened to 9 seconds after acquiring this skill.

If it could be raised to lv10, it would be instant cast!

"This skill must be leveled."

Similar to [High-Speed Chanting] was [Multiple Casting].

[Multiple Casting lv1]: Can cast two spells simultaneously.

Raising it to lv2 allows casting 3 spells simultaneously.

Upon seeing this skill, Rin could already imagine the scene of casting hundreds of fireballs at once after combining Chain Fireball (Intermediate Magic) with Multiple Casting.

"So far, things have gone very smoothly."

Rin had no intention of interfering with the Konosuba plot. He needed to grow quickly, and Konosuba's life was too comfortable.

This place was more suitable for Rin to replenish supplies rather than to improve his strength.

You say there are wild monsters to fight in Konosuba?

Rin's answer was — not enough!

The number of wild monsters in Konosuba was too small.

In this world, consuming food that provides a lot of experience points is the best way to level up.

Hunting monsters is more about solving problems and handling requests from people who come to submit quests.

What's more, even if the level is raised to 100, that's only 1 million experience points.

Converted to magicules, it's about 100,000, or even lower.

How exactly it converts will only be determined after Rin fights monsters and levels up in Konosuba, then returns to the Cardinal World.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 14: Wingman Ogerpon

"Next..."

Rin focused his attention on the Martial Artist's skill tree. "Let's see which skills are suitable for me right now."

The Martial Artist occupation belongs to the magic-and-physical training type.

However, compared to a pure ranged mage, a Martial Artist's magic is more often used for support and self-enhancement.

This is quite similar to the spellblades often seen in Western fantasy novels.

"Passive enhancement skills, once learned, are permanently effective. These are good, I'll take them."

"There's no need to add these active skills."

Rin thought to himself. "The lv1 skills copied from others are already enough."

[Strength Enhancement lv1]: Basic strength attribute increased by 15%.

[Robust Physique lv1]: Max HP increased by 15%, HP recovery speed increased by 50%.

[Agility lv1]: Gains a 15% increase in basic agility attribute.

...

Among the Martial Artist's skill tree, what Rin favored were these skills that could increase strength, HP, agility, and recovery speed.

Most of these skills are related to basic attributes.

And basic attributes are obtained by Rin through Konosuba's level-ups, which can reach a maximum of level 100.

Of course, this is only Konosuba's level.

However, Rin will also travel to other worlds to gain more methods of converting magicules into physical strength.

According to Rin's guess, the amplification these skills provide is not just for Konosuba's attribute values, but for Rin himself.

To give a simple example, if the HP gained at Konosuba level 100 is assumed to be 10,000 points.

Then even if Rin maxes out the [Robust Physique] skill, at most it will only increase HP by 1.5 times, reaching 25,000.

Other skills follow the same principle. There is a certain limit.

But!

What if these skills strengthen Rin himself, rather than just the fixed 10,000 HP?

Then, when Rin accumulates through several worlds and increases his vitality to 1 million, the maxed-out stamina skill will bring an additional 1.5 million increase.

This is an improvement beyond Konosuba's professional panel.

It's equivalent to a permanent effect on Rin himself, rather than simply a level 100 character obtained in Konosuba.

"What is there to hesitate about?"

Rin decisively put 9 skill points into Stamina, raising it to [Robust Physique lvMAX].

"This feeling! It's quite something."

At this moment, Rin could clearly feel the surging vitality emerging within his body.

Not only that, Rin's body's recovery ability was also greatly enhanced.

Described in data, it increased basic HP by 150% and basic recovery speed by 500%.

"What an overbearing skill enhancement method!"

Rin clearly felt the power of the Robust Physique skill.

This is an exclusive skill of the superior occupation Martial Artist. Other occupations might have similar ones, but there are certainly differences in numerical bonuses.

Besides that, among the many copied skills, there was one from the Paladin's exclusive skills that gave Rin a huge surprise.

[Life Link lvMAX]: The Paladin's exclusive skill, can bind a teammate, allowing both parties to share HP.

Equally simple and effective.

Life Link, shared HP.

The only drawback is that the method of HP deduction is based on the party that takes the damage.

Between a Paladin and a squishy mage, the former's defense is obviously higher.

But if the mage is attacked, the HP pool will greatly decrease.

In other words, this is like adding a weakness to the Paladin. By continuously attacking the squishy mage, one can bypass the Paladin's armor and defense, dealing direct damage to him.

Of course, the benefits are also obvious.

That is, it can protect companions, prevent accidents, and gain extra HP.

"It seems to add a weakness to the Paladin, but it's not actually the case."

Mages are always in the back, and under normal circumstances, they won't take damage at all.

The Paladin, who is at the front, can instead gain the mage's HP bonus.

So as long as the team's synergy is high enough, this skill can be called a divine skill.

If the front line doesn't fall, the back line won't take damage.

Even if an accident occurs, it can avoid the predicament of losing the main damage dealer all at once, improving the fault tolerance rate.

For the Life Link skill, the first person Rin thought of was naturally his Ogerpon.

Ogerpon, as Rin's subordinate, naturally met the prerequisite of being a teammate.

So, after Rin told Ogerpon about the effect of Life Link, the little one unhesitatingly chose to accept.

("This way, Ogerpon can protect Rin even better!")

Ogerpon was already meant to protect Rin. If Rin had an accident, Ogerpon would definitely go crazy.

Now it's good. With this skill, Ogerpon doesn't have to worry about anyone being dishonorable and ambushing her trainer.

[Link complete, target: Familiar 'Ogerpon']

Rin opened the skill card and found that his health had not received any additional bonus.

Is it because the Konosuba system can't detect Ogerpon's attributes?

Rin thought of this possibility, but he could also clearly feel a certain connection between himself and Ogerpon.

So the health sharing brought by the link existed.

It's just that the method might be a little different from what Rin knew.

Rin didn't delve into these details.

As long as he knew they could protect each other, that was enough.

"Um..."

A mage girl wearing a witch's hat and dressed lightly cautiously looked at Ogerpon beside Rin. "Can I hug her?"

"Pon?"

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon could clearly distinguish between people's good intentions and ill will.

She didn't dislike the humans here.

Because they seemed to like her very much.

"Poniii poniii!"

However, Ogerpon also had her own requirements.

"What did she say?"

The mage girl stood there timidly, both nervous and expectant.

"Girls can, but men can't. They'll be attacked."

Rin didn't want his little darling to be touched by those rough men.

"No problem!"

The mage girl immediately patted her chest and guaranteed, "We'll protect this child well, and we definitely won't let those stinky men get close!"

"Hmm, then there's no problem."

"Poniii!!"

Ogerpon raised her small hand, her adorable appearance instantly captivating countless girls.

"Ah!!"

As expected, the girls in the Adventurers' Guild had been paying attention to Ogerpon for a long time.

Seeing Rin introduce Ogerpon to them at this moment, they immediately gathered around.

For a time, Ogerpon became the beloved pet of all female adventurers, receiving a warm welcome and affection.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 15: I'll Pay for the Drinks!

"Oh dear, oh dear, this is not very moral of you."

Suddenly, a fierce-looking burly man sat in front of Rin.

"Sorry."

Rin showed no sign of backing down. "My Ogerpon is so cute, besides me, she won't let any other man touch her."

"A mere newcomer, yet so bold!"

The burly man wasn't interested in cute things. He just came to greet Rin, the newcomer.

"Two glasses of bubbly here!"

"Your bubbly."

Soon, the waitress placed two glasses of bubbly in front of the burly man and Rin.

The burly man pushed one of them in front of Rin. "Welcome to being an Adventurer!!"

Indeed, just as Rin thought, the other party had no ill intentions. He just came to get to know him.

"Thank you."

Rin didn't refuse. He chose to adapt to the pace of the situation.

In this world, Rin decided to play the role of a novice village Adventurer well, and getting along with the Adventurers here was clearly very necessary.

Moreover, after a month of transmigration, Rin hadn't had a normal conversation with anyone for a long time.

"Gulp gulp gulp~"

Rin downed the bubbly in one go, then slammed the empty glass heavily on the table.

"Bang!"

"Refreshing!"

Rin wiped the foam from his mouth, secretly thinking that it was indeed the bubbly Aqua liked, truly delicious.

"How is it? Pretty good, right?"

The unknown bald burly Adventurer. "This is our Axel's specialty bubbly!"

"It's indeed very good."

After Rin finished speaking, the male Adventurers around him gathered, beginning to introduce themselves.

The Adventurer circle in Axel was just that big.

Most of the people here knew each other.

Whenever a newcomer joined, they would make friends with them, just like Aqua and Kazuma in the original work.

"Miss Luna!"

Finally, after being treated to the third glass of bubbly, Rin also couldn't sit still anymore.

He knew what these old hands were up to.

Nothing more than seeing that he had just received 3 million eris, so they wanted him to treat them to a meal.

But Rin didn't care!

He's a man, after all.

How could he dwell on such minor gains and losses.

Moreover, these eris, to Rin, were just a drop in the ocean.

As long as Rin was willing, he could get a hundred, a thousand such magic stones.

"Today's bubbly, drink as much as you want!"

Rin said, while pulling out a few more dog-head gold nuggets diluted with magicules. "I'll pay for the drinks! I'll pay!!!"

"Oh oh oh oh!!!"

"Long live the newcomer!!"

"Rin! Rin! Rin!!"

"Hahahahaha~"

Swept up by this group of idiotic Adventurers in the Adventurers' Guild, Rin also immersed himself in this unprecedented joyful atmosphere, starting to drink and chat with them.

Money flowed like water, but the pressure accumulated from transmigration also quickly dissipated.

"No, I can't, I can't drink anymore..."

"I, I've also reached my limit."

"Gugugu~"

Inside the Adventurers' Guild, a group of burly men lay sprawled, only Rin stood there, downing the last sip of bubbly.

Rin casually tossed the wooden mug onto the mountain of stacked wooden mugs. He looked around, sneering disdainfully. "A bunch of weaklings, is that all?!"

Unfortunately, the bald burly man who started it all had already collapsed.

Otherwise, he would have definitely said: 'I'm very sorry, I couldn't satisfy you.'

"Poniii~~"

And seeing that it had quieted down, Ogerpon, from the embrace of the girls, bounced over.

The little one was quite happy.

The older sisters here were not only beautiful but also very gentle, and they ordered a lot of food for her.

Energy cubes tasted good, but they couldn't provide the enjoyment of eating a large amount of meat.

Ogerpon is a Grass-type Pokémon, a magical creature that can survive on water + sunlight.

But she can also eat meat, and even digest fiber, which means living on grass.

"Are you full?"

Rin asked. "If not, you can order some more."

"Pon-yo."

Ogerpon patted her bulging little belly, indicating full satisfaction. ("Everyone gave Ogerpon so much delicious food, Ogerpon likes them!")

"That's good."

Rin was very happy that Ogerpon liked this world.

When he took Ogerpon away from the Pokémon World, he promised her that he would witness more beautiful scenery with her.

Leaving aside the exploration of the Cardinal World's forests for now, Axel, this beginner town, indeed brought much joy to Ogerpon.

"Miss Luna."

"After deducting the cost of the bubbly and settling the bill, Mr. Rin still has 2.4 million eris left."

"Hmm."

Before leaving the Adventurers' Guild, Rin found Luna and settled the previous drink bill. "You don't need to return the remaining eris. Treat the pretty ladies to some of their favorite delicacies."

"Of course, Miss Luna too."

Rin waved to everyone. "Today's my treat, everyone eat and drink freely, don't be polite with me!"

The second batch of dog-head gold was exchanged for a full 4 million.

After deducting the cost of treating them to drinks, 2.4 million remained, which was completely enough to feast the remaining girls.

"Consider it my welcome gift as a newcomer."

"See you next time, Miss Luna, and everyone!"

"Poniii~"

"Thank you for your hospitality, handsome young man."

"Bye bye~"

Generous and handsome.

In just this short time, he had gained the goodwill of almost all the Adventurers.

"Let's go, Ogerpon."

"Pon-yo!"

Leaving the Adventurers' Guild, Ogerpon and Rin returned to the street, and she curiously asked Rin about their plans for later.

"After we finish purchasing supplies in this world, we'll leave."

Rin didn't plan to stay in the Konosuba world. He still needed Ogerpon to increase her magicules by defeating monsters.

Space backpacks, wood and stone materials, seasonings, vegetable monsters, fruit monsters, various meats, and daily necessities, and so on.

It took a full half-day, until nightfall, before Rin finally completed this major shopping trip.

Of the original 3 million eris, only 500,000 were left, showing that the purchasing power of eris was not as high as Rin had imagined.

"Please send two meal sets to the room, thank you."

The two returned to the inn where they were staying. Rin asked the front desk to send food, then lay back on the soft big bed, exhaling deeply.

"Are you tired, Ogerpon?"

"Pon-yo."

Ogerpon was also a bit tired, but she tried not to show it. "Ogerpon can still keep working!"

"Don't push yourself."

Rin stroked the little one's head with a hint of tenderness, then opened his arms and held her in his embrace.

"Poniii~"

Ogerpon was actually not tired at all.

Being with Rin, Ogerpon was happy no matter what she did.

"Rest well tonight, and tomorrow we'll go accept a subjugation quest."

"Ponooo?" ("Are we going to fight?")

Ogerpon said eagerly. ("Ogerpon will do her best!")

"No, absolutely not!"

Rin quickly exclaimed. "You're already terrifying enough with one punch. If you do your best, you might just blow up Axel."

"Pon?"

"Hold back a bit, try to use less force."

"Pon-yo…"

Ogerpon listened to Rin about everything. Whatever he said, that's what it was.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 16: Aqua Devourer

"Yo! Rin!"

"Are you here to take a quest, Rin!"

"Ogerpon, good morning."

"Poniii!"

Rin and Ogerpon greeted everyone as they walked to the quest board where requests were posted.

After yesterday's events, everyone here had accepted Rin and Ogerpon.

"Rin-san, are you here to accept a request?"

"Ah."

Rin looked at Luna who had come before him. "Do you have any recommendations?"

"For new Adventurers, how about this one? Subjugation of Giant Toads."

Subjugation of Giant Toads.

Yes, it was those frogs that Aqua and Kazuma chose to subjugate at the beginning of the anime, and then almost got eaten by.

"Okay."

Rin nodded, then, following Miss Luna's instructions, accepted this request.

The god-slaying giant toads that repeatedly swallowed the Water Goddess Aqua alive.

Let me see what you're made of.

---

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Thus, on the emerald green grassy slope, Rin and Ogerpon stood high up, looking at the many giant toads hopping in the distance.

Every year during this period, the toads would enter their breeding season, and then large numbers of toads would run rampant in the surrounding areas, causing great trouble for the residents near the town.

"Appraisal!"

Rin did not immediately make a move but used his Appraisal skill on these giant toads.

---

[Giant Toad]

Level: 5

Specific Attributes: Omitted

Innate Abilities: Slippery Body (Damage Reduction), Delicious Meat

---

"Strange innate abilities."

Rin didn't know how to complain about the Delicious Meat setting. "But the level is only 5, so it doesn't seem very strong."

Rather than saying the giant frogs weren't strong.

It's more like Kazuma and Aqua in the original work were incredibly weak.

"Ogerpon, remember the precautions I told you."

"We'll use these giant frogs here to conduct an experiment on strength control."

"And then…"

After Rin finished speaking, he began to look around. "Hmm, take out that big blue guy over there for me."

"Pon? (That one?)"

"Yes, that's the one!"

Rin pointed at a certain blue giant frog that was flirting with two other giant frogs, one pink and one yellow. "With two on its arms, so arrogant, I've tolerated it for a long time!"

"Get it!!"

"Poniii!!"

Ogerpon accepted the command and leaped out without the slightest hesitation.

Her speed was very fast. In the blink of an eye, she had rushed from the hillside to the hopping blue toad.

"Croak?"

The blue toad seemed to notice something approaching.

It lowered its head, its nearly ten-meter-tall body appearing like a mountain of flesh in front of Ogerpon.

Unlike the bewildered blue toad, Ogerpon wouldn't wait for it to react. She immediately conjured her Ivy Cudgel and struck towards its abdomen.

"Boom!"

As the Ivy Cudgel stick swung, blue fluorescent light, like a storm, scattered, causing the surrounding air and ground to twist and shatter in an instant.

A deafening roar, like dozens of bombs exploding simultaneously, and that terrifying explosive force, surged into the blue toad's body before it even knew what was happening.

"Croak?"

"Pfft!"

Amidst the painful croaking, the giant toad's body burst open like a balloon.

The next moment, the toad's shredded flesh and blood mixed together, enveloping Ogerpon's entire body, then dyed the surrounding cracked earth a vibrant red color.

But that wasn't the end.

Along with Ogerpon's strike, the surging wind pressure that followed instantly crushed the hill beneath the giant frog's feet.

Also crushed were the rather innocent pink giant frog and yellow giant frog.

The three giant frogs didn't even have time to react before they followed their lover.

"I…"

Rin stared blankly at the scene before him, immediately taking a sharp breath.

He hadn't expected Ogerpon's first move in this world to unleash such terrifying destructive power.

Equally stunned was Ogerpon herself, who had caused all of this.

"Pon…"

The little one felt sticky all over, and looking at the giant toad, it had become a pile of shredded meat.

This scene sent shivers down the spines of both Rin and the little one.

Ogerpon's strike was no different from pricking a water-filled balloon with a needle.

"Ogerpon, are you alright?"

Rin quickly ran to Ogerpon's side. He summoned water elements and began to wash the blood off the little one's body.

("Ogerpon isn't hurt.")

("It's just, is this okay?")

Ogerpon was a bit worried that she had ruined Rin's experiment. She also hadn't expected the toad, despite its size, to be so fragile.

This was unavoidable.

Ogerpon, a B-rank in the Cardinal World, could already display A-rank destructive power in the Konosuba world.

What is the concept of Special A-Rank?

In the original work, Benimaru, Shuna, and others, after receiving their names, evolved from B-rank Ogre to A-rank Kijin.

When fighting the Orc army, Shuna could effortlessly cleave a chasm hundreds of meters deep with a single downward strike.

Benimaru, even more so, could casually unleash a Black Flame Prison, slaughtering hundreds of Orcs.

With similar performance, it was perfectly normal for Ogerpon to explode a Level 5 giant toad with one strike, along with the small hill beneath its feet.

And this was with Ogerpon holding back her strength.

Otherwise, at full power, she could probably shatter a mountain hundreds of meters tall into dust.

"Special A-Rank monster, truly terrifying!"

After seeing Ogerpon's performance, Rin no longer dared to let her casually make a move in the Konosuba world.

He took out his skill card and found that the experience value on it had increased by 2 points.

Through this, Rin confirmed one thing.

That is, the experience points from monsters defeated by Ogerpon would also be counted towards Rin.

It makes sense. After all, a Summoner couldn't possibly let their summoned beast half-kill the enemy and then step in to deliver the finishing blow, right?

"Ogerpon, you rest for a bit."

Rin had Ogerpon cover for him, then stretched his body and began to choose his opponent.

The quest requirement for subjugating giant toads was to defeat 5 of them.

Of course, the more of this quest, the better.

Rin had no desire to waste time on such a low-level quest. What he truly wanted to do was calculate the conversion ratio between Konosuba experience points and Cardinal magicules.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 17: This Indestructible Body

"You're the one."

Targeting a massive pink toad, Rin pushed off the ground, launching forward like an arrow loosed from a bow.

"I'll finish you!!"

Dropping from above, Rin descended like a meteor, delivering a flying kick to the pink toad.

"Splat!"

And once again, a familiar scene unfolded before Rin's eyes.

The moment his foot touched the toad's head, there was no resistance. His entire body, like diving into water, passed right through it.

"Boom!"

The earth shattered, rocks blasting in all directions. Rin stood at the center of a massive crater, drenched in blood, his clothes soaked with thick chunks of flesh and internal organs.

Behind him, the exploded remains of the giant toad lay scattered.

"...What the hell?"

Feeling the slimy mess all over his body, Rin shuddered in disgust. "I didn't use magicules, right? Can a pure physical body really be this strong?"

"No... something's off."

He opened his attribute panel and looked at the extra skills, especially the passives.

Leaving the magic-type passives aside, the physical ones included Lancer, Knight, Swordsman, Crusader, Dragon Knight, Martial Artist, Pugilist, and Thief.

With that many class enhancement passives stacked, even if each was just Lv1, that was already more than a 100% increase.

And that was assuming all his magicules had been converted into experience and used to reinforce his body.

"A body strengthened with magicules as the foundation..."

"Plus all those passives and the Martial Artist's enhancements... My stats must've been boosted by at least 300%."

With that kind of amplification, Rin's already A-rank physique had been pushed to the level of Special A.

In the Cardinal World, existence value didn't have a direct correlation with actual combat power.

The Storm Dragon with 80 million existence value wasn't necessarily stronger than an awakened Demon Lord.

But right now, Rin was something else entirely.

Magicules had fused directly into his muscles and blood. Just that alone already placed him above nearly every monster.

"...Damn."

"I really underestimated myself."

He cast a water spell to rinse off the gore, feeling a little better.

"Ponii?"

"I'm good."

Rin and Ogerpon both looked like total wrecks, but when they made eye contact, they couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Alright, just a bit more. Then we go back and shower."

Rin didn't head back right away. He continued hunting giant toads.

But this time, he didn't charge in recklessly. Instead, he used basic Fireball magic to attack from range.

And when he killed his 50th giant toad, he finally heard the sound of his magicule count increasing.

"Fifty toads, two experience each... That's 100 total."

Rin was currently Level 15, fighting Level 5 creatures. Naturally, there was an experience penalty, hence only 2 EXP each.

But what really shocked him wasn't that. It was the conversion rate between experience and magicules.

From magicules to experience, the ratio was 1:10.

But from experience to magicules, it was 100:1.

That insane gap made Rin genuinely speechless.

"...Why?"

He pondered for a while, then came up with a possible explanation. "Konosuba's EXP is a lower-tier energy. When lower converts to higher, the ratio's gonna be awful."

"The earlier magicule-to-experience conversion probably had some kind of interference involved."

Kind of like weak signal reception, some of the magicules probably got lost in translation.

"If that's how it works, then EXP's cost-effectiveness is terrible."

"Even if I hit max level, that's only a million experience points."

"Which means... just 10,000 magicules."

And how many monsters he'd have to kill, how much experience-loaded food he'd need to consume to hit max level in this ridiculous world...

Rin couldn't even begin to estimate.

"Whatever. Even if it's just 10,000... it's still magicules."

"No complaints."

He shook his head and tossed aside all those stray thoughts. Turning to Ogerpon, he said, "Let's go. We're heading back."

"Boom!!"

Just as the two were halfway there, a blinding light shot down from the sky, landing just outside Axel City.

"...That?"

Seeing the oddly familiar sight, Rin immediately thought of something. "Satou Kazuma just brought Aqua here, didn't he?"

As for his opinion of Kazuma...

How to put it?

It was kind of abstract.

Rin didn't dislike him.

As a protagonist with no cheat, stuck leading a group of problematic teammates, who still managed to take down the Demon Lord...

Honestly? That guy was impressive.

Of course, Rin had zero plans to make contact with the original party.

Right now, he was completely focused on one thing, getting stronger.

He didn't have time to waste getting dragged into Konosuba's slapstick daily life plot.

"Let Aqua and Kazuma go work on a construction site for two weeks first."

"This way, Ogerpon."

And with no hesitation, Rin pulled Ogerpon along and walked in the opposite direction, away from Aqua and Kazuma.

Getting close to them now would be a disaster waiting to happen.

Especially Aqua...

Even with the past favor of a cheat, Rin wasn't dumb enough to get near that one.

The two of them returned to the inn and cleaned up there.

No one along the way really cared about their blood-soaked and battered appearance.

Adventurers couldn't afford to look clean anyway.

But neither Rin nor Ogerpon realized...

On the other side of the stream, a certain blonde girl in Crusader armor was staring at them, trembling violently, her face flushed bright red.

"Huff~ Huff~"

The girl called Darkness clenched her fists tightly.

"That man... he didn't even spare his own familiar!"

"Guhehehe~"

Suddenly, Rin shivered.

"Pon?"

"Nothing."

He scratched his head in confusion. "I feel like... something creepy is watching me."

"A ghost?"

"Don't know."

He looked left and right, but saw nothing suspicious.

He didn't bother using detection spells either, there was no need.

In Axel, there was nothing that could pose a threat.

"No need to worry."

"If anyone really tries something..." Rin said casually, "I'll show 'em what it means to blow up a giant toad in one hit."

(To be continued.)

Chapter 18: Returning to the Cardinal World

"Where are they?"

"Those two adventurers I saw yesterday!"

The next day, the blonde Crusader girl, Darkness, burst into the Adventurers' Guild.

She looked around, scanning the place, trying to spot Rin and Ogerpon from the night before. But after searching all over...

She saw nothing.

"Not here?"

"Did they go on a quest?"

Thinking that, Darkness walked up to Luna and asked about Rin.

In the Konosuba World, asking about fellow adventurers wasn't rude.

There really wasn't much scheming here.

"Are you referring to Rin-san and his familiar, Ogerpon?"

"Rin? What a strange name."

Darkness repeated it a few times under her breath, then asked, "Um... I'd like to join their party. Could you help me keep track of this Rin's movements?"

"I can. But wouldn't posting a notice be quicker?"

"I'll do that too."

Just thinking about Rin and Ogerpon's blood-soaked, dripping-wet appearance made Darkness tremble again.

She unconsciously clamped her legs together, and her pale face flushed with... an odd blush.

"...Uh."

Luna stared blankly, not sure whether she should report this to Rin.

"Alright."

Luna nodded. "Next time I see Rin-san, I'll pass on your message."

But what neither she nor Darkness knew...

Was that Rin had already left the Konosuba World.

Whether he'd accept Darkness or let that masochistic Crusader join his party.

That would be something for Rin to decide after he returned.

—

Cardinal World

"Pon!!"

Two figures appeared on a grassy hillside. Rin and Ogerpon had returned from the Konosuba World.

---

[New intelligence acquired. Beginning analysis...]

[Analysis complete]

[Obtained Intrinsic Skills: Melee Mastery]
[Obtained Intrinsic Skills: All Weapon Mastery]
[Obtained Intrinsic Skills: All Class Mastery]

[Obtained Special Skill: Magicules Solidification]

[Acquired New Magic: Explosion Magic, Superior Magic, Elemental Magic, Healing Spell...]

[Magic Integration Complete, Obtained Class: Mage]

[Divine Blessing discovered, beginning Appraisal...]

[Appraisal Complete]
[Obtained Unique Skill: Duplicator]

"We're back."

Rin exhaled as he opened his status panel.

---

[Itoshi Rin]

[Race: Half-Demon]

[Existence Value: 4015EP]

[Magic: Energy Cube Creation, Spirit Space, Appraisal, Explosion Magic, Superior Magic, Advanced Healing Spell, etc.]

[Class: Mage (Can directly construct magic using magic power)]

[Special Skill: Magicules Solidification (Can convert magicules into spirit and flesh for storage)]

[Intrinsic Skills: Adaptability, Melee Mastery, All Weapon Mastery, All Class Mastery, etc.]

[Unique Skills: Traveler [Broken], Leader, Capturer, Duplicator (Can duplicate others' general skills and inherent skills)]

[Dependent: Ogerpon (8031EP, B-rank)
Marked Worlds: Pokémon World, Konosuba World]

 

---

"The Mage profession must've formed from integrating all the Konosuba magic I absorbed."

"Same with all these melee-related mastery skills…"

Rin had also gained a Unique Skill—Duplicator.

Can duplicate others' general skills and inherent abilities.

In the Cardinal World, skills are divided into four tiers: Common skills, Intrinsic Skills, Extra skills, and Unique Skills.

Above those are ultimate skills that only True Demon Lords can awaken.

"According to this world's rules, only beings with special souls can gain Unique Skills."

In the original story, there was a case where Shogo, a summoned otherworlder, killed a girl named Kirara and sacrificed her soul to obtain the Unique Skill Survivor.

Only a special soul from another world could be traded for a Unique Skill.

That proves how rare Unique Skills are.

Even Rimuru initially only had two: Great Sage and Predator.

"This trip to the Konosuba World was a massive win."

In just one day, to have gained this much… Rin increasingly felt the power of the Broken-ranked Traveler skill.

Just as he was examining the changes in his panel, Ogerpon's startled cry interrupted his thoughts.

"Rin!!"

"Hm?"

Following Ogerpon's gaze, Rin's eyes narrowed. "This is…"

"O-our camp!!"

What greeted them was a total mess. The camp, which was supposed to be nearly complete, had been reduced to rubble.

Ogerpon was completely stunned.

"Who did this?!"

She was furious.

Crude as it was, that camp had been built with Rin's hands, piece by piece.

It was their effort. Their base.

"Who destroyed Rin's hard work…"

Ogerpon was ready to summon her Ivy Cudgel and beat whoever did it into the ground.

"Calm down."

Rin gently reassured the angry Ogerpon, and the two cautiously moved in to inspect the scene.

"These tracks… definitely some kind of large insect."

Rin crouched down, examining the imprints in the mud. "Could those Insect Monsters have sent others looking for us?"

The smell of that insect creature still lingered in the air.

No doubt about it—it was them.

"Damn it…"

"Ogerpon hates bugs!"

She was frustrated, but more than that, her heart ached for the ruined camp.

"Alright, don't be angry."

Rin smiled and stroked her head. "At least we weren't here when it happened."

"And this incident is a wake-up call."

"This place isn't safe."

"Then what should we do…?"

"Either we move and find a new base," Rin said, "or we find their lair and eliminate the threat completely."

How could he sleep knowing those monsters were right next door?

If it had been intelligent demons capable of negotiation, Rin wouldn't have minded talking it out and coexisting.

But those Insect Monsters never gave him the chance.

From the start, the spider-type bug had treated them as food.

And every attack after that made their intention crystal clear: devour Rin and Ogerpon.

So there was no need for mercy.

If he had to act, he'd go all the way. No survivors.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 19: Ogre Clan Crisis

"What do you think, Ogerpon?"

"Hmm…"

"Ogerpon will follow Rin's decision."

She knew she wasn't the brightest, and as a Pokémon, it wasn't shameful to obey her trainer.

"I still want to approach this carefully."

Rin hadn't really expected any tactical advice from her, but her answer still made him smile.

"Carefully?"

"Yeah."

"I'm mad too. I want to storm in and crush every last one of those disgusting bugs."

"But we don't know how many there are. We don't know how strong their top-tier monsters are either."

"Rushing in now would be reckless."

Hearing Rin say that, Ogerpon felt a little ashamed. "If only Ogerpon were stronger…"

That way, Rin wouldn't have to hold back.

Even though they were the ones being wronged, they still had to stay patient.

"You are strong."

Rin wasn't just saying that to make her feel better. At B-rank, Ogerpon could easily defeat most A-rank monsters in a one-on-one fight.

In the Great Jura Forest, she was already at the top of the food chain.

Only disaster-class A-rank threats could force her to retreat.

"How about this."

Rin made his decision. "No matter what, we need to find the source of these Insect Monsters and figure out how far their main nest is from us."

That was essential for both relocating and preparing a counterattack.

On top of that, Rin had another reason for targeting them.

Before Ogerpon could evolve into a Demon Lord, her Unique Skill Growth needed massive amounts of experience from monsters to accelerate development.

Slaying those Insect Monsters would speed up her growth.

I don't know how many there are, but judging by the damage… there must be a lot.

If we wipe them out, Ogerpon's Existence Value might break through 10,000.

That would be A-rank.

With an A-rank Ogerpon by his side, Rin's safety in the Great Jura Forest would be fully secured.

It would also give him more flexibility when traveling to other worlds.

So, Rin laid it all out for her. "In short, we find their nest and assess the situation."

"If we can win, we go all out and treat those bugs as wild monsters—turn them into your EXP, Ogerpon!"

"If we can't win, we retreat."

Where there's life, there's hope.

It wasn't cowardice. It was tactical withdrawal.

"Once you hit A-rank, Ogerpon… we'll come back and crush them."

"Mhm!"

Ogerpon showed no fear. "Ogerpon will listen to Rin!"

"Haha…"

Rin chuckled softly and patted her head. He crouched down and activated the Ranger profession's skill—Tracking.

In the next moment, waves of magicules rippled out from him in all directions.

Trees. Bushes. Rocks…

Information flowed rapidly into Rin's mind.

In that moment, it was like he had stepped into a gray-white world.

Through some kind of perceptual method, he was scanning everything around him.

"…Found it."

Three minutes later, Rin opened his eyes.

His expression was strange.

"What's wrong, Rin?"

"…A group of presences is approaching the insect nest."

Rin raised his hand and cast several spells in succession.

"Fade Away."

"Conceal Presence."

"Erase Traces."

After the three consecutive Konosuba Hunter skills landed, Rin called out to Ogerpon. "Let's go take a look."

Just like that, Rin and Ogerpon concealed their presence and followed the trail left behind by the Insect Monsters.

They moved for about thirty minutes.

At their speed, they had already covered at least 200 kilometers.

"Rin, insect smell."

Ogerpon's nose twitched twice. "There's also something unfamiliar. I don't know what kind of monster it is."

Bang!

Boom!

Squeak, squeak, squeak~

Rin's sense of smell wasn't as sharp as Ogerpon's, but he also heard the sounds of battle up ahead.

"The insects are fighting someone."

"Looks like we're not the only ones in this forest who've been attacked."

He didn't reveal himself immediately. Rin was cautious.

Ogerpon, too, used the stealth techniques she'd honed back on Oni Mountain.

The two silently leapt into the treetops, hiding within the canopy as they observed the battlefield in the distance.

There, more than thirty tall, humanoid beings were locked in combat. Muscular, horned, with red, purple, or green skin unlike humans.

"Ogre tribe?"

Rin instantly recognized them.

The humanoid monsters fighting the Insect Monsters were none other than the Ogre race, B-rank monsters that lived deep within the Great Jura Forest.

His gaze quickly settled on the red-skinned ogre wielding a sword and the one-horned, purple-skinned female ogre slashing with a longsword.

"Benimaru and Shuna?"

Their appearances didn't match the anime exactly, but they were extremely similar.

That was only natural.

At this point, neither had been named by Rimuru. They were still in their original Ogre forms.

Also, translating from 2D to 3D was bound to create some differences.

"So the ones clashing with the Insect Monsters are Ogres."

Looking at the fallen Ogre corpses scattered on the battlefield, Rin quickly assessed the situation. "Their village was probably attacked, and this group was sent to track the insects' nest. They must've ended up walking right into a fight."

"But…"

He narrowed his eyes. "Was this in the original plot?"

"Or is this some butterfly effect caused by me?"

Rin wasn't sure.

He didn't think too hard about it and instead shifted his attention back to the battle.

"There's at least 500 Insect Monsters down there."

"Over 300 are C-rank, 100 or more are C+, and there are dozens of B-ranks."

Just looking at the dozen Ogre corpses on the ground, it was clear that they'd already suffered heavy losses.

"No wonder they're getting crushed. Forty Ogres surrounded by hundreds of Insect Monsters..."

Rin was tempted to intervene and establish contact with the Ogres.

He turned to look at Ogerpon, considering whether to let her jump in.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 20: Benimaru and Shuna

"Rumble~"

More and more Insect Monsters were gathering in the distance.

Rin hesitated.

Even if they were anime characters, the Ogre clan was known for being loyal and straightforward. Helping them would only bring benefits, not trouble.

But letting Ogerpon dive into a fight this chaotic...

Suddenly, Rin felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked down.

Ogerpon's eyes were full of fighting spirit.

"You want to fight?"

She nodded. Rin could see the sense of recognition in her gaze as she looked at the Ogres.

"Kindred spirit?"

"I see."

After evolving within the Cardinal World, Ogerpon had become part of the Elemental Spirit Race.

Rin suspected this race was closely related to the Ogre tribe, perhaps a homologous offshoot.

For the usually solitary Ogerpon, meeting others with a similar aura stirred something inside her.

She wanted to help them.

"Alright."

Rin quickly formed a plan. "Don't get drawn into prolonged combat. Lead them out of the encirclement. I'll cover you from the rear."

"Pon!"

Ogerpon nodded firmly and leapt from the tree.

Meanwhile, the Ogre unit encircled by Insect Monsters was in dire straits.

"Damn it!"

"These disgusting insects are being led by something!"

The red-haired Benimaru slashed a centipede-type monster in half, then immediately retreated to rejoin his companions.

"That thing's underground. We can't force it out."

The blue-skinned ogre, agile and sharp, darted between their wounded, blocking blows and plugging gaps in the defense line.

Their 40-man team was down to 28.

Twelve had already died.

For an Ogre village of around 300, losing twelve prime warriors was a devastating blow.

Even though the Ogre clan was entirely combat-capable, only about 200 could reach true B-rank strength.

Children and elders could only manage C+ rank at best.

Of course, rank was just rank.

Magicules represented a monster's overall life level.

But a high magicule count didn't necessarily mean stronger combat ability.

Take Ogerpon for example.

With over 8000 magicules, she was technically mid-to-late B-rank.

Among the Ogres present, Benimaru, Souei, and Shion probably had only a thousand or two less than her.

But the gap in combat power?

Massive.

This 40-man Ogre unit, with an average B-rank evaluation, would get wiped out in a direct fight against Ogerpon.

That was how wide the skill gap was.

Ogerpon had at least 30 spells derived from Pokémon abilities.

Melee, ranged, defense, recovery, support, transformation...

And that didn't even include her innate Unique Skill, Destroyer.

If she went all out and dropped a Seed Bomb, the Ogres would have no choice but to dodge.

If they got hit, they'd either die or be crippled.

Any monster with a Unique Skill had the potential to reach Special A-rank.

A Unique Skill was essentially a Demon Lord seed.

"Haa... Haa..."

The purple-haired, one-horned female ogre—Shion—swung her giant cleaver and cut down a beetle-like Insect Monster, shielding the pink-haired princess, Shuna.

"Are you alright?"

Shuna quickly conjured fire magic, releasing a massive fireball.

"Big brother, I have enough magicules left to cast one more big illusion."

As the village's shamaness, Shuna was one of the few Ogres capable of casting spells.

She was positioned in the rear, protected by the others as she provided support and healing.

"There's too many."

Shion gritted her teeth. "These bugs keep coming. We kill one wave and another follows!"

"We can't hold out much longer…"

Benimaru was frustrated. He knew that with their current numbers, they couldn't break through the insect nest.

Their best bet was to retreat, report back, and return with reinforcements to wipe out this pest nest.

"Watch out!!"

Suddenly, Shion yanked Shuna to her side.

A mosquito-like monster, grotesque and thin, had managed to sneak through their defenses and rush toward Shuna.

If Shion hadn't reacted instantly, the stinger would've pierced straight through her chest.

"Die, bastard!!"

Without hesitation, Shion swung her cleaver with full force, cutting the giant mosquito in half.

"Ah!!"

But she hadn't expected there were more.

Just as she finished the swing, still catching her breath, a mantis-like Insect Monster struck.

With her guard down, several Ogres were injured, and the mantis lunged at the two girls.

"Damn it!"

Seeing Shuna in danger again, Shion didn't hesitate. She pulled the girl into her arms.

Puff!

A blade flashed through the air, slicing deep into flesh and grazing her spine.

"Ghh—!"

Shion felt a searing pain.

She tried to lift her sword, but the injury ran deep. Her body went numb, the greatsword slipping from her hands.

"Heal, heal—!"

"I-I'll heal you right away!"

Shuna desperately pressed her hands over Shion's wound, pale green healing magic glowing faintly from her palms.

But the mantis-type Insect Monster was already closing in. Its sickle-like forelimbs gleamed with a deadly green sheen, and neither Benimaru nor the others had time to reach them before those blades came down.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak~"

The insect's blades filled Shuna's vision. She couldn't dodge. She had no time to cast anything else.

All she could do was shove her best friend aside with all her remaining strength.

At the very least... one of them could live.

"No!!"

Shion, lying half-prone on the ground, could only watch as the attack closed in.

She could only watch as Shuna prepared to die for her.

Overwhelming disbelief gripped the Ogre girl.

She wanted to move. To fight. To scream.

But her body wouldn't respond.

Is this it...?

Shuna could already feel death's cold breath on her skin.

She wasn't afraid to die.

But the thought of leaving her brother... of leaving Shion behind... of all of them falling here like this.

It tore her apart.

She shut her eyes.

And then.

Pop!

The pain never came.

Instead, there was a sharp, crisp sound. Clear. Strange. Beautiful, even.

Like a nightingale's cry echoing in the dark.

(To be continued.)

...

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Chapter Text

Chapter 21: The Violence

Clang~ Clang, clang, clang!!

Zzzzt—!

Eyes snapping open, Shuna was met with a sight she never imagined she'd live to see.

Someone she didn't know when had appeared between her and Shion.

The figure was small, wielding a weapon made of woven green vines.

And it was this stick that now stood like a wall between them and the praying mantis-type Insect Monster's blades.

"The attack… was blocked…"

Shuna and Shion stared in disbelief.

Those blades, sharp and massive, were halted by what looked like a glorified wooden stick?

No, not just blocked.

Crack!

Fractures spread across the mantis monster's sickle arms, running all the way down its limbs.

"You… who are you…"

Benimaru and the rest had also seen the sudden turn of events.

They didn't know where this being had come from, but the aura it gave off.

It was one of their own.

An Ogre.

Just like them.

"Ogerpon has entered the battlefield!"

"What?"

In the next instant, under the stunned gazes of the Ogres, the emerald-green Ivy Cudgel surged with magicules and shattered the mantis Insect Monster in a single swing.

Yes. Not knocked away.

Shattered.

And it didn't stop there.

The Ivy Cudgel's momentum carried through, flattening five or six other Insect Monsters blocking the path between Benimaru and the two girls.

Rumble~

The wind roared across the battlefield, tossing the Ogres' cloaks and armor. Dust exploded outward, clouding their vision.

They instinctively fell back into defensive stances.

Whoosh~ Whoosh~

Boom!

But the expected attack didn't come.

Instead, cries of agony echoed through the battlefield as a single figure weaved through the monsters, knocking them down one after another.

One strike. The monster's body split apart.

Ogerpon dodged the gushing body fluids and stomped down.

In an instant, green light flowed with the wind. A carpet of grass surged up from the soil.

"What the—"

"This is…"

"M-My wounds, they're healing…?"

"Some kind of healing spell? Are we being healed?!"

Without exception, every Ogre on the battlefield felt it.

Wounds closed. Strength returned.

Even Shion, whose spine had been slashed, was healing.

"My back… it's so itchy…"

Who was she?

Shion and Shuna both stared forward.

The smoke cleared.

There, standing on top of a crushed scorpion-type Insect Monster, was a small girl.

Her face was masked by a green leaf-veil. Behind her floated three gemstone-like masks in a triangular formation—blue, gray, and red—glistening like sacred relics in the sun.

Unlike when she was still a Pokémon, Ogerpon's Mask Reflection had transformed with her evolution.

Now she could summon all four masks simultaneously.

With one at the center, she formed a fourfold Mask, gaining the combined strength of every mask.

"Haah!"

Grass energy flowed into the Wellspring Mask, Hearthflame Mask, Cornerstone Mask and Teal Mask.

Water, fire, rock, grass.

Four elemental energies spiraled around her. The entire battlefield was her stage now.

"An Ogre?"

"And just… a child?"

The aura she gave off was familiar—warm, wild, instinctively comforting.

But her size… barely over a meter tall.

To the Ogres, all towering at two meters and above, she couldn't even be called a child.

But her presence.

Her power.

The raw pressure of her magicules said otherwise.

"I'm here to help."

Ogerpon summoned another Ivy Cudgel and entered a dual-wielding stance.

"Help?"

Benimaru finally registered what she said. He was about to respond, but—

She was already gone.

"Wait—!"

Too late. Her movement was blinding.

The boost from her Masks, combined with Rin's Leader skill, enhanced every stat.

Her B-rank magicules formed the base, and the mask transformation let her fight head-on with B+ rank monsters.

With Rin's Leader buff, plus her innate Destroyer Unique Skill.

She might even stand a chance against A-ranks.

And what played out before the Ogres was a one-sided massacre.

"What… what rank is this monster? This kind of strength…"

"She's one of the legends, right? A true Oni…"

She was tiny.

But every strike she landed caused earth-shattering impact.

Destroyer.

Anything hit by her would break.

Weapon, armor, flesh—it didn't matter.

Unless the opponent possessed a Unique Skill of equal or higher tier, it was a guaranteed effect.

A rule.

Hit = destruction.

No defense mattered.

Boom!

Ogerpon spun mid-air like a horizontal tornado, twin Ivy Cudgels turning everything nearby into dust.

Her destructive power. Her explosive burst.

The entire Ogre force was slack-jawed.

"Wh-What a brutal fighting style…"

"She's that small… and she's that strong!?"

"Giant bugs with armor thicker than steel, and she breaks them in one hit…"

They'd never seen anything like it.

"Young Master, what do we do?"

The one who would one day be Souei, now still just a young blue-skinned Ogre, reported in.

"The clan has regrouped. The retreat path has been cleared… by that little girl."

Just mentioning her left Souei shaken.

That wild presence.

That fearless charge.

This—

This was the violence an Ogre was born to wield.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 22: I’ll Make My Move

"We can't let our righteous companion fight alone!"

Benimaru naturally couldn't just retreat like this. At the very least, he had to leave together with Ogerpon.

Rumble~

But before he could give any order, the ground in front of them began to quake.

The mud collapsed inward, revealing gaping sinkholes beneath the battlefield.

In the next moment, an enormous swarm of Insect Monsters surged from the depths like a tidal wave.

"…Holy shit."

Even Rin, watching from a distance, twitched his lips. "What the hell are these things? There's way too many of them."

Just a glance showed at least 5,000.

And Rin was certain even more were still underground.

As for their levels…

Under Rin's Appraisal, these insects weren't as strong as the previous wave. They were smaller, too.

"Mostly D-rank. About 20 percent are C-minus. A few hundred C-rank. Maybe a hundred C-plus."

Rin completely ignored the D-ranks.

For Growth to function, the defeated enemies couldn't be too far below Ogerpon's level.

In general, if the monster's magicules were lower than C-minus, even if Ogerpon killed it, she wouldn't gain any existence value.

So, despite the overwhelming numbers, only around 1,000 were actually worth consuming.

"Still, that should be enough for her to push into true A-rank."

And based on the Cardinal World's systems, once Ogerpon reached A-rank and received a disaster-class designation, her chances of completing an evolution into a more advanced Ogre form would rise significantly.

"Should we retreat?"

Rin didn't care about the D-rank fodder.

They weren't strong enough to even scratch Ogerpon's defenses.

More importantly…

[Defeated C-rank monster x1. Gained 4 existence points.]
[Defeated C-minus-rank monster x2. Gained 3 existence points.]
[Defeated C-plus-rank monster x1. Gained 8 existence points.]
[…]

Since Ogerpon had joined the battlefield, every time she felled an enemy, she gained existence value.

In just ten minutes, she had already jumped from over 8,000 to more than 8,500.

"At this rate, and with the remaining C-rank monsters…"

Rin calculated. "She should be able to break 10,000 and reach A-rank by the end of this fight."

A-rank was a turning point.

Below A-rank was one world. Above it, another.

Even the most average A-rank monster could single-handedly level an Ogre village.

"…Let's go!"

Rin made up his mind. He wasn't going to let this feast slip through his fingers.

"Ogerpon!"

"Rin?"

Through their familiar connection, Ogerpon heard Rin's voice.

"Can you keep fighting?"

"Ogerpon isn't tired at all!"

She was still smashing Insect Monsters left and right with her Ivy Cudgel. "Ogerpon can fight them all day long!"

Great. She's Captain America now.

Of course, that was a joke.

But the Elemental Spirit race did have terrifying stamina and endless energy.

More than that, the Growth talent was working nonstop, converting defeated foes into magicules and energy.

According to the Cardinal World's rules, the larger the magicule reservoir, the more power an individual possessed.

So instead of wearing out, Ogerpon's condition was actually better than when the battle started.

"Good."

"Then…"

Knowing her state, Rin raised his hand and cast a loudspeaking spell. "Friends of the Ogre tribe, Ogerpon and I are here to help you!"

"That voice?"

The gathered Ogres looked up. Benimaru narrowed his eyes, searching the treetops and horizon.

"The Ogerpon he mentioned… is that the little one tearing everything apart?"

"So her name is Ogerpon?"

"That's a weird name."

"Wait, is she actually a named monster?"

"She has a name?!"

The chatter spread quickly through the group.

Benimaru ignored the noise. He just waited for the next command from the one giving orders.

Rin had no plans to enter the melee himself.

His role was a summoner and mage—a backline commander. Jumping headfirst into the swarm would be suicide.

"Next, I'll cast a powerful spell on the insect nest to force everything hiding underground to the surface."

"If their numbers are beyond imagination, I'll have Ogerpon retreat immediately."

"You all retreat with her."

Simple, clear.

Benimaru immediately understood.

The strength of the nest was unknown. So was the number of enemies hiding below.

If Rin's spell forced out tens of thousands…

Staying behind would mean death.

Retreating to regroup would be the only smart move.

But if it turned out there weren't as many as feared.

Then there'd be no need for the Ogre tribe.

Rin already had his own army of one.

General Ogerpon, capable of crushing legions alone.

"Everyone!"

Benimaru made a snap decision. "Follow the orders of the one giving commands!"

Shuna was his sister. Shion, his childhood friend.

Both had just been saved by Ogerpon.

That alone was a debt the Ogre tribe could never repay.

Running away and abandoning their benefactor?

That would be the greatest shame.

"…Not bad."

From afar, Rin saw the shift in the Ogres' formation and nodded in approval.

"Let's begin."

He turned his attention away from Benimaru and the others.

Raising both hands slowly, Rin began gathering all the magicules within his body.

Thanks to Ogerpon's rampage, his own magicules had passed 4,500.

That was more than enough to cast Konosuba's strongest magic.

And what was Konosuba's most powerful magic?

Obviously…

Explosion Magic.

The legendary spell from the crazy Crimson Demon girl Megumin.

In the original world, Megumin had funneled every single skill point into Explosion Magic.

By the end, her spell was basically a portable nuke.

Rin's Explosion Magic was still Lv1. He hadn't fed it any points yet.

But now that he'd returned to the Cardinal World…

With the Mage profession, he had near-limitless possibilities.

Magic power responded freely to his will. Wind stirred the air. Elements—earth, fire, water, light, dark, even time and space—awakened.

Despite the name, Explosion Magic wasn't fire-element based.

Its true nature was Destruction Magic.

It absorbed, compressed, and broke down ambient magical elements, then released them in one earth-splitting burst.

And Rin, using the Mage's deep analysis, had stopped relying on shortcuts.

Now, he understood the spell's essence.

His magicules poured out like a flood… only to be refilled just as fast.

Consume, replenish, consume again.

With each cycle, the energy stored in the spell ballooned.

"What's going on?"

The large-scale manipulation of magic elements caused the entire region around Rin to grow heavy with pressure.

Even Shuna, a caster herself, went pale.

"…This kind of magic—"

To her eyes, the place where Rin stood had turned into a void.

A pit of absolute black.

A sunless abyss swallowing all things.

Buzz buzz buzz~

Multicolored particles flowed toward Rin's outstretched palms, forming glowing, prismatic rivers.

Trees shook.

The sky darkened.

Above them, a massive ring of stars slowly formed in the air.

Then, a giant crimson magic circle.

And then… another.

And another.

A third. A fourth…

Dozens of massive circles stacked together, rising like a tower piercing the sky.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 23: Nuclear Magic

"Gulp~"

Benimaru, Shion, Souei, and the other Ogre Clan members couldn't help but gulp.

They stared blankly at the apocalyptic scene unfolding in the sky, momentarily forgetting their battle with the Insect Monsters.

Fortunately, the Insect Monsters had already retreated.

Even brainless monsters understood the imminent danger at this moment.

They were returning to their nest, using swarm tactics to form walls of insects above it, attempting to block the impending heavenly punishment.

"Get away from the nest, quickly!"

It was then that Rin's voice once again echoed in the ears of the Ogre Clan.

This time, they didn't hesitate in the slightest.

Each of them wished they had an extra leg, running with all their might away from the nest, which was locked onto by countless magic circles.

Ogerpon smacked away an Insect Monster that tried to entangle her, then followed the footsteps of the Ogre Clan.

As for Rin...

He was desperately controlling the Explosion Magic, slowing its descent to give the Ogre Clan and Ogerpon more time to get away from the center of the explosion.

"Hmm?"

At the same time, somewhere in the Great Jura Forest, a young woman with beautiful green hair opened her eyes.

"The spirits in the forest are afraid..."

She instinctively looked in a certain direction in the forest. "What happened?"

There, various elemental spirits were frantically converging on a certain spot.

The young woman's name was Treyni, a high-ranking race, a Dryad, who guarded the forest.

"Magic?"

As the embodiment of this forest, Treyni could clearly sense every plant and tree here and receive information feedback from them.

However, this time, Treyni was utterly bewildered.

Chaotic.

An unprecedented clamor.

The trees and flowers in the forest were like they had gone mad, chattering incessantly.

One said, "The forest is going to be destroyed," and another said, "It's a catastrophe, so scary."

For a moment, Treyni couldn't extract a complete answer from it.

The only thing she could be sure of was that the culprit causing all this was a type of magic she had never seen before.

"What kind of magic can draw so many elements?"

Treyni no longer hesitated, immediately casting the Dryad's teleportation, her body dissolving into specks of light.

"This is..."

When Treyni reformed her body, what greeted her eyes was the towering magic circle tower reaching into the clouds.

Hundreds of thousands of magic circles completely stunned Treyni.

"What?"

It wasn't that she hadn't seen powerful magic before.

But what kind of magic could be this complex?

Other people's magic circles were adorned with patterns.

But good heavens, this individual directly used magic circles to arrange complex patterns.

"Who is casting such terrifying magic?"

Treyni quickly locked onto Rin, who was standing on a tree, controlling the magic to prevent it from going out of control.

"Human?"

"No, that's not right."

Treyni noticed Rin's eyes, those golden pupils, which humans could not possess. "A hybrid? A hybrid of human and demon, and more inclined towards the demon side."

She did not define Rin as a destroyer of the forest.

In fact, compared to Rin, those Insect Monsters that had recently appeared from who knows where were the real dirty things that needed to be eliminated.

And now, the target of Rin's attack was precisely the Insect Monsters, which the Dryads had defined as "bad guys."

In that case, Treyni had even less reason to stop Rin.

"Have they all retreated?"

"Ponii!"

Ogerpon appeared beside Rin, reporting the Ogre Clan's location to him.

"Hmm, thank you, Ogerpon."

"Now..."

Seeing that Ogerpon had returned, Rin began to release his control over the Explosion Magic. "Let's watch a grand fireworks display."

[Highest-Tier Explosion Magic · Explosion!]

"Whoosh!"

When Rin's hand fell, heaven and earth fell silent.

The forest, the sky, the earth, the surrounding flowers, plants, and trees all fell into a deathly stillness at this moment.

Colors were stripped away, leaving only boundless blankness and nothingness, and an unimaginable, profound depth capable of overturning everything.

"Boom~"

A colossal mushroom cloud rose in the distance, and everything within a one-kilometer radius, centered on the insect nest, was instantly vaporized.

The earth trembled as if the sky were falling, and terrifying shockwaves spread in all directions.

Whether it was the armed nation of Dwargon to the north or the Sorcery Dynasty of Sarion to the south, both soon felt the vibrations emanating from the Great Jura Forest.

For a time, high-ranking officials from various countries rushed to inform each other, and the news quickly reached the Dwarf King and the Queen of Sarion.

However, Rin at this moment was clearly unaware of the immense upheaval his attack had caused.

He was currently staring intently at the insect nest in the distance.

Those layers of insect walls had no effect at all.

Facing such an apocalyptic scene, the Insect Monsters could only be evaporated by the Explosion Magic amidst their roars.

Rin didn't know what the situation was like down there.

But after such a magical bombardment, the Insect Monsters would surely be severely wounded. Those below C-rank wouldn't even have the ability to resist, turning into ashes.

And with C-rank vitality, even if they survived the Explosion Magic, they would only have one breath left.

Only those Insect Monsters that reached B-rank, or even B-rank, could survive.

Of course, even B-rank monsters would be severely wounded, their strength reduced to less than one-tenth.

Ogerpon, standing in front of Rin and blocking the aftermath for him, her two eyes sparkled, almost writing "adoration" on her face.

"Indeed..."

Rin was also greatly shocked by the attack he had unleashed. "As expected of Konosuba's strongest Explosion Magic. It truly lives up to its reputation."

For some reason, Rin somewhat understood Megumin.

There was nothing that a single Explosion Magic couldn't solve.

If there was, then another one!

But my Explosion Magic seems very different from Megumin's.

This could even be considered another type of magic, right?

Compared to the Explosion Magic Megumin cast in the Konosuba World, the one cast by Rin was even more terrifying.

The explosion center alone reached 1.2 kilometers.

As for the affected area, it reached the size of a large city in the Cardinal World's human nations.

Undoubtedly, if this magic landed in a human nation...

The result would be no less than directly wiping a city and the tens or hundreds of thousands of people living in it off the map.

(To be continued.)

 

Chapter 24: Ogerpon Evolves

Divided by monster destruction levels, the Explosion Magic that Rin condensed with all his might, spending nearly a quarter of an hour, had already reached the level of a Special A-Rank instant burst of all magicules.

If it's hard to understand, one can consider Rin's Explosion Magic to be equivalent to the destruction caused by a Special A-Rank monster self-destructing.

A Special A-Rank monster, with over 100,000 magicules, is a power far beyond what Rin can imagine right now.

However, by relying on ultimate control over Explosion Magic...

Rin, with a C+ rank foundation, managed to accomplish such an incredible feat.

This shows the potential of Explosion Magic, and the immense boost provided by the Mage profession.

"Quickly, now, Ogerpon!"

So many monsters that had lost their combat capability were the best food for Ogerpon.

"Pon-yo!"

Without Rin's command, Ogerpon seized the opportunity and directly used area-of-effect magic (Pokémon moves).

Almost at the same moment, Seed Bomb and Leaf Storm swept across the battlefield, and energy balls rained down like drops, shattering the severely wounded Insect Monsters.

[Defeated C+ Rank Monster x15, gained 120 Existence Points]
[Defeated B- Rank Monster x8, gained 160 Existence Points]
[Defeated B Rank Monster x4, gained 400 Existence Points]
[…]

The notifications of gaining large amounts of magicules were like the most beautiful music in the world, almost making Rin unable to suppress the corners of his mouth and laugh out loud.

[Individual name 'Ogerpon' Existence Points reached 10,000, triggering evolution]

"Evolution?"

Reaching 10,000 Existence Points so quickly was indeed somewhat beyond Rin's expectations.

But what surprised Rin even more was the "evolution" notification triggered by Ogerpon.

As a Pokémon, Ogerpon was already in her final form and could not evolve again.

"So, the evolution here should be a monster transforming into a higher-grade monster."

Ogerpon, who was in the middle of the battlefield, glowed with dazzling light.

"Pon-yo?"

The little one was a bit at a loss.

Fortunately, Rin immediately sent a message, telling her about the monster evolution mechanism.

"Ogerpon is going to evolve?"

Any Pokémon holds hope for evolution.

Ogerpon also really wanted to know what she would become after evolving.

[Evolution complete]

[Individual Name 'Ogerpon', evolved from 'Elemental Spirit' to 'Kijin']

"Ponii!"

Looking at Ogerpon again, the little one, who was originally only 1.2 meters tall, had now grown to just over 1.5 meters.

In terms of appearance, her original orange face was gone, replaced by a delicate, pale face that looked slightly youthful.

Her green cloak had become a jade-colored kimono, and the girl's hands were hidden beneath wide sleeves. She had long, light-green hair, and the wooden clogs on her legs, wrapped in black silk, made a crisp tap-tap sound as she ran toward Rin.

"Rin! Rin! Ogerpon's grown so much!"

Ogerpon blinked her beautiful, light-golden eyes, the star patterns within them sparkling, as if possessing infinite magic, drawing Rin's gaze.

"This is a monster's evolution."

Rin affectionately stroked Ogerpon's head, and she immediately showed a comfortable expression.

At the same time, Rin opened Ogerpon's status panel.

---

[Ogerpon]
[Contractor: Itoshi Rin]
[Race: Kijin]
[Existence Value: 12000 (A-Rank)]

[Magic: Pokémon Moves, Appraisal]

[Class Skills: Melee Combat Mastery (includes Swordsman, Knight, Lancer, Cross Swordsman, Hunter, Thief, and other job skills)]

[Intrinsic Skills: Elemental Super Absorption, Ability Super Enhancement, Super-Speed Regeneration]

[Extra Skills: Image Reflection (unleashes one's power, summoning masks of different attributes)]

[Special Skills: Magicules Solidification, Explosion Magic (pseudo-nuclear magic that condenses a large amount of magic power), Oni Transformation (all-around attribute boost)]

[Unique Skills: Destroyer, Growth]

---

"The race has become Kijin."

There's nothing much to say about this.

According to the Cardinal World's setting, Elemental Spirits and the Ogre Clan are at the same stage, both B-Rank demons.

The first evolution will turn them into A-Rank Kijin, and then Special A-Rank Wicked Oni or Fair Oni.

Wicked Oni and Fair Oni are like the difference between a warrior and a mage.

The former excels in melee combat, the latter in magic, but essentially they are still at the same level of existence.

As Wicked Oni and Fair Oni continuously grow stronger, they will acquire the title of Demon Lord and be recognized by the world's voice, becoming qualified to evolve into True Demon Lords.

Thus, as long as enough souls are collected, they can transform into Demon Lords, becoming "Oni Gods."

Of course, this process is quite difficult.

Especially for someone like Ogerpon.

Because she is Rin's subordinate, she cannot awaken on her own.

Rin needs to collect souls and bestow them upon Ogerpon for her to become a True Demon Lord.

"Appraisal and melee skills?"

Ogerpon originally didn't have these two abilities, but now they've appeared.

"Is it because of me?"

Rin remembered that in the original work, there was a setting where Rimuru would randomly inherit Veldora's abilities after naming his subordinate monsters.

"Ogerpon's situation should be like this."

"During the evolution process, she inherited some abilities from me."

Rin thought to himself, "The Appraisal skill allows Ogerpon to better understand her opponents, and the melee combat mastery from Konosuba makes Ogerpon, who is already skilled in close combat, even more formidable."

"Elemental Super Absorption, Ability Super Enhancement, Super-Speed Regeneration."

"Super Absorption and Super Enhancement are advanced forms of Elemental Absorption and Ability Enhancement, giving Ogerpon higher magic resistance and faster magicule absorption efficiency.

"Ability Super Enhancement should be a derivative of traits like 'Never Give Up.'"

As for the Magicules Solidification and Super-Speed Regeneration that follow.

Super-Speed Regeneration needs no further explanation; it's a self-recovery ability even more terrifying than that of the Ogre Clan.

According to the feedback from the Appraisal skill, Super-Speed Regeneration has the characteristic that as long as the head isn't severed, one cannot be killed.

In addition, it also has powerful functions such as limb regeneration and internal organ repair.

"Magicules Solidification—is it like me, where I can convert magicules into various basic attributes in the form of 'levels'?"

The magicules in the Cardinal World, and their relationship with monsters, is more like a pond and the water within it.

The pond water does not reinforce the pond itself.

So, an individual with 10,000 magicules, facing an individual with 10,000,000 magicules.

The difference in their physical strength is not as exaggerated as imagined.

In contrast, with the Magicules Solidification ability, a situation will arise where a Level 50 fights a Level 100.

Even if a Level 100 monster runs out of magic power, its basic attributes are not something a mere Level 50 weakling can contend with.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 25: Danger Assessment: Special A-Rank!

With the Special Skill Magicules Solidification.

As long as Rin and Ogerpon continuously increase their magicules, their physical strength will also continue to increase, making magicules directly proportional to physical strength.

"Finally, there's Explosion Magic and Oni Transformation."

Explosion Magic, in the Cardinal World's judgment, is defined as Nuclear Magic.

Nuclear Magic refers to magic with destructive power comparable to nuclear weapons, considered a classification system by the people of the Cardinal World for gauging magical destruction levels.

For example, the Explosion Magic that Rin previously cast, which consumed a large amount of magicules and time, fell within the scope of small-scale Nuclear Magic.

Of course, due to differing world levels.

The soil, rocks, and gravity of the Cardinal World far exceed those of other worlds.

So being able to cause nuclear-explosion-level destruction in the Cardinal World, when brought to other worlds, could potentially sink continents or even destroy planets.

"Has Ogerpon also mastered such a large-scale destructive move?"

Rin felt quite reassured about this.

There was nothing he could do; his attributes ultimately couldn't compare to Ogerpon's.

Although Ogerpon didn't have the passive buffs from Rin's Mage profession, her A-Rank magicule reserve completely overwhelmed the current Rin.

It's easy to imagine just how terrifying the power would be if the current Ogerpon were to cast Explosion Magic.

"Ogerpon."

"What is "Oni Transformation" like?"

Rin was quite interested in this, so he asked Ogerpon to perform Kijin Transformation once.

Ogerpon's body erupted with fierce magicules.

The next moment, Ogerpon's body began to swell, rapidly growing from a small stature of less than 1.4 meters to a height of 1.8 meters.

Not only that, her sharp Ogre horns, fierce eyes, and seemingly slender yet explosively powerful physique all indicated how terrifying Ogerpon was in this state.

If the previous Ogerpon was a cute little girl.

Then the fully transformed Ogerpon had clearly become a beautiful older sister with an impressive figure.

Even Rin, who had always treated Ogerpon as his younger sister, couldn't help but take a few extra glances.

 

---

[Oni Transformation]

[Description: Temporarily increases one's actual combat power by one rank, but consumes a large amount of magicules.]

---

"Appraisal."

Rin unhesitatingly cast Appraisal on Ogerpon in this state.

---

[Ogerpon]

[Danger Assessment: Special A (Disaster Class)]

---

"Disaster Class!!"

Rin hadn't expected Ogerpon's transformation to provide such a significant boost.

Even though Ogerpon's magicule quantity was still A-Rank, her actual combat power was such that even a veteran A+ powerhouse might not be able to defeat her.

Coupled with this Oni Transformation ability, Ogerpon forcefully received a Special A assessment.

"Ogerpon, how long can you maintain this state?"

"Hmm..."

Ogerpon thought for a moment, then obediently said, "About... 5 minutes."

In other words, Ogerpon, at full burst, could maintain Special A combat power for 5 minutes.

"All right, change back."

"Mhm."

Ogerpon's body quickly shrank, and in the blink of an eye, she returned to her petite form.

"Ogerpon has gotten stronger. Rin, have you gained power from Ogerpon?"

"Haha."

"Of course I have."

Rin stroked the little one's head and laughed. "Ogerpon provided me with a full 6000 Existence Value."

"Now, I'm also B-Rank, you know."

The Leader Unique Skill allows Rin to gain about half of his subordinate's Existence Value.

Ogerpon's Existence Value is 12000, so the amount transferred to Rin is 6000.

In addition, Rin himself had also made some breakthroughs.

His original base Existence Value was only 500 points.

But because of this battle, Rin also gained "merit," which is recognition from the voice of the world.

Although not much, it at least allowed Rin to escape the weakling category.

To describe it numerically, it probably increased from 500 Existence Value to 1500.

Among monsters, this is already equivalent to D-Rank.

"So, Rin's current magicules are 7500, right?"

Upon hearing this, Ogerpon immediately perked up. "Ogerpon will continue to work hard to let Rin evolve soon too!"

Yes, Rin can also evolve.

As a hybrid of demon and human, setting aside the human bloodline for now.

The demon bloodline also grants Rin the ability to evolve like monsters.

However, Rin is not yet clear what his demon bloodline is.

In addition, there was another piece of good news.

That is, as Rin broke through from C-Rank to B-Rank, his subordinate slots also changed from the original 1/3 to the current 1/6.

"Do I gain 3 new subordinate slots every time I advance a rank?"

Rin originally thought that the upper limit of subordinate slots could not be changed, but he didn't expect them to continue increasing with his strength.

In that case, there's no need to be too conservative with the subordinate slots.

"Ogerpon?"

Suddenly, Ogerpon, who was cuddling with Rin, seemed to sense something.

She turned her head and looked in a certain direction but didn't see anything suspicious, which puzzled Ogerpon.

"What's wrong?"

Rin noticed Ogerpon's actions and asked curiously.

"A gaze..."

Ogerpon said, "Just now, it seemed like someone was peeking at us, but Ogerpon couldn't find the peeping person."

"This is already the second time. The first was when Master used Explosion Magic."

"Peeking at us?"

Rin naturally wouldn't think Ogerpon was being overly sensitive.

Ogerpon was a monster now, but she still retained her Pokémon abilities, and her perception of external dangers still existed.

Someone is secretly observing us... Who could it be?

Rin thought of many possibilities, such as Clayman, one of the Ten Great Demon Lords.

This Insect Monster appeared very abruptly, unlike how it was in the original novel.

Otherwise, with that wave just now, even if Benimaru could escape, the remaining Ogre Clan would surely suffer heavy losses.

Besides Clayman, there are also the guardians of the Great Jura Forest, those Dryads.

Rin couldn't be sure which side it was. The Dryads are fine. I don't have any fundamental conflict with them.

Rin used Explosion Magic to destroy the Insect Monsters that were harming the forest's ecosystem.

The Tree Elves wouldn't bear ill will toward him because of this.

But if it's Clayman...

Clayman's strength in the original novel indeed seemed like a clown.

But he was a Demon Lord after all, and Rin wouldn't truly underestimate him.

According to the novel's setting, Clayman in his half-awakened state has an Existence Value of about 700,000.

But he's definitely not that strong now. At most between 300,000 and 400,000.

Such power, for the current Rin and Ogerpon, was indeed an unmatchable strong enemy.

"I can only hope that the next few worlds will allow Ogerpon to grow stronger quickly."

Clayman was not an awakened Demon Lord, just a Demon Lord.

And Ogerpon's Growth skill, even after reaching the Demon Lord stage, could continue to grow.

Using the Great Jura Forest as nourishment, combined with abilities from other worlds.

As long as Rin and Ogerpon were given time, surpassing Clayman would be a relatively easy task.

"And now..."

Rin looked at Benimaru and the others who were rushing toward them, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly. "It's time for you all to contribute your strength."

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 26: Invitation

"Is it, is it over?"

The pink-haired Ogre girl, who would become Shuna in the future was still somewhat lost in thought.

Following her brother and clansmen, they had formed a search party and successfully located the Insect Monster's nest.

Originally, they only intended to test the strength of these Insect Monsters and estimate how many more were still in the nest.

But who would have thought that the Insect Monsters, initially judged to be without reason, would deliberately feign weakness, luring the Ogres deeper and deeper?

By the time they realized it, it was already too late.

There was no other way. Faced with the encirclement formed by a tide of Insect Monsters, everyone could only break through under the leadership of her brother.

However, the Insect Monsters seemed to have anticipated that reaction.

Kill one wave, and the next would immediately fill the gap.

They were endless, as if they could never be completely killed.

Soon, casualties began to appear among the clansmen.

Magicules and stamina were heavily consumed, weapons were damaged, and comrades fell one after another.

For a time, the Ogres, always known for their bravery and skill in battle, could only fight to the death with their backs against the wall.

However—

The disparity in numbers between the two sides was too great.

When the girl's best friend fell protecting her, Shuna had already prepared for death.

But death never came.

Ogerpon!

Shuna would never forget.

At her most dangerous and desperate moment, what she saw was that small figure descending from the sky, saving her and her dear friend.

Her appearance was different from theirs.

But the blood that flowed within her was undoubtedly the same.

The other party was an Ogre!

There was no doubt about that!

The same Ogre horns, the same ferocity, the same monstrous strength.

Charging forward, invincible.

That was an unparalleled bravery Shuna had never imagined before.

Rumble~

The ground trembled, and a deafening roar filled the air as Shion, who had recovered, pulled Shuna away.

Shuna instinctively looked back.

What she saw was a towering pillar composed of hundreds of stacked magic circles.

"Highest-tier Explosion Magic: Explosion!"

Emerging from her earlier memories, Shuna gazed at the enormous crater in front of her, which seemed to pierce the earth. "This, can this really still be called magic?"

"Explosion Magic, so strong..."

Just as stunned as Shuna were Shion and the surviving Ogres, including Benimaru.

"Look over there!"

"Is that... a human?"

As the smoke dissipated, everyone clearly saw the two figures at the edge of the giant crater. One of them was the small kinswoman who had just saved them.

But what surprised the Ogres was Rin, standing beside Ogerpon.

"Rin, they're coming over."

Noticing the Ogres approaching, Ogerpon instinctively stepped in front of Rin and looked at them warily.

"You are human?"

They looked at Rin with disbelief, not understanding how a human could be here.

After all, the Great Jura Forest had always been a monster's domain. At most, humans hunted low-level monsters around the edges. No one had ever penetrated this deep.

"No, not human."

"His eyes, that's not a human eye color."

"And that aura."

The Ogres quickly noticed the oddities. Rin's golden eyes and the vast amount of magicules emanating from him were powers no human could possess.

"I apologize. My clansmen and I have been rude."

Benimaru, as the leader of the group, quickly stepped forward and bowed to Rin in apology. "May I ask, was the nuclear strike magic just now cast by you?"

"If you're talking about Explosion Magic, yes, I cast it."

"Thank you so much for your timely help in our time of crisis!"

Hearing Rin confirm it, Benimaru lowered his posture even more. "We are the Ogres living in the forest. May I ask who you are?"

"My name is Itoshi Rin, and this child is Ogerpon."

"Ogerpon? Itoshi Rin?"

"They have names?"

Hearing their names, the Ogres were even more shocked, not expecting to have the good fortune to meet two named monsters.

It turned out that not only Ogerpon, but Rin was also a named being with his own name.

Moreover, it was unclear if it was just their imagination.

Benimaru felt that the pressure emanating from Ogerpon was several times stronger than it had been just moments ago.

"This pressure...!"

Benimaru, Shion, Shuna, and Souei—the future core retainers under Rimuru—all looked upon Ogerpon with deep respect and solemnity, their gratitude transforming into awe.

"Could it be... could it be the legendary Oni?"

"It must be. Only a high-ranking Oni could be this powerful!"

For a moment, the surviving Ogres all showed expressions of admiration and longing.

In the monster world, strength is everything.

Ogerpon was stronger than them, had saved them, and was a higher-ranking existence within their bloodline.

With all these factors combined, Benimaru and the others unhesitatingly extended an invitation. "Please, both of you, come to our village so we may repay your kindness for extending a helping hand in our time of need!"

"Uh..."

"All right. Then we'll impose on you."

Rin had no intention of refusing. He still needed Ogerpon to level up through fighting monsters, and a village of 300 Ogres was simply perfect. "It just so happens that my camp in the forest was destroyed by these insects."

"You had a camp in the forest?"

"Darn insects!"

"It's all right. Our village is very large. You can settle down completely."

"Also, may I ask what the relationship is between Mr. Rin and Lady Ogerpon?"

This last question was what the Ogres were most curious about.

They deeply respected Rin, because it was the young man before them who had cast such a world-destroying nuclear strike magic.

So, not only Ogerpon, but Rin was also their savior.

Of course, compared to Rin, the Ogres still felt a closer kinship with Ogerpon.

"This child is my family."

Rin briefly explained his relationship with Ogerpon.

He didn't tell the full truth, but instead described Ogerpon as a child he found in the wilderness.

The two of them depended on each other in the forest, like siblings.

"Rin is Ogerpon's most important person!"

Ogerpon immediately took Rin's hand, expressing her closeness.

"So that's how it is."

The Ogres understood.

They could easily accept this kind of relationship.

Intelligent monsters meet and live together.

This kind of thing, though rare, wasn't impossible.

As for Rin himself...

There was nothing to hide about his half-demon identity.

Humans may dislike half-demons, but in the world of monsters, as long as you're strong, no one cares if you're half-demon or not.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 27: Visiting the Ogre Village

"Since that's the case, why not stay in our village?"

Benimaru was very enthusiastic. That was how the Ogre Clan was—loyal, righteous, and proud, disdaining the use of schemes and tricks.

They were grateful to Rin and Ogerpon for saving their lives.

Of course, there was another point: their strength.

If a powerful spellcaster like Rin could join the village, and with Ogerpon, an A-Rank Ogre, the Ogre Clan's strength would undoubtedly leap to a whole new level.

"This, we need to consider."

Rin did not agree directly but feigned hesitation.

"Brother, you're being too rude."

Seeing Rin's slight reluctance, Shuna quickly interjected, saying there was no need to rush and that they should first properly host the two of them.

As for whether they were willing to stay, that could be decided after visiting the Ogre village.

"Right, right, I was too hasty."

Having not yet experienced the pain of clan annihilation, Benimaru was still a straightforward, big-hearted simpleton.

"All right then."

With the Ogres' warm invitation, Rin naturally wouldn't refuse.

After all, he already had the intention of subduing the Ogre Clan.

Rin had a good impression of them. He knew their future trajectory and didn't want them to be annihilated by the Orc Lord.

Three hundred Ogres, with an average rank of B.

Such a force, if brought under Rin's command, would allow him to formally establish a foothold in the Great Jura Forest.

Moreover, the Ogres' potential was high. In the future, they could evolve into Kijin, or even into Fair Oni and Wicked Oni.

Rin had no reason to pass up a ready-made army like this.

Thus, Rin joined the Ogres' group, preparing to return with them to the village.

Before that, the Ogres still needed to collect the remains of their fallen comrades.

They did not blame Rin's Explosion Magic for blasting some of the Ogre bodies to pieces, even turning many to ash.

About this, the Ogres had only one thing to say: "Perhaps it's not bad to be buried in the Great Jura Forest."

"Besides, there are so many Insect Monsters to be buried with them…"

The Ogres were very open-minded about life and death.

And in such a critical moment, it was already a miracle that Rin had acted. Who could dare ask for more?

The reason for cleaning the battlefield was only to confirm whether there were any survivors.

The result did not exceed Benimaru's expectations.

The Insect Monsters' claws contained extremely terrifying venom. Even the Ogre Clan's strong bodies could only resist for a short while.

In this regard, Shion surviving was truly very lucky.

"Rest in peace, everyone…"

"Rin and Ogerpon have already avenged you."

Soon after, led by Benimaru, the Ogres held a simple mourning.

Rin and Ogerpon stood silently off to the side, not participating but waiting patiently for the ritual to end.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting."

"No matter."

"Please follow us."

Benimaru led the way toward the village, with Rin and Ogerpon walking behind the group.

During this time, the two girls, Shuna and Shion, frequently looked back.

They were very interested in Ogerpon.

However, Ogerpon stayed right by Rin's side to protect him, making it impossible for them to find a chance to approach and express their thanks.

"We've arrived."

"Welcome to the Ogre Clan's village!"

Stepping out of the dense forest, what appeared before Rin's eyes was an ancient village.

The village wasn't large, with architecture leaning toward Japanese style—mostly wooden structures, arranged along grid-patterned streets.

Rin naturally understood the reason for this.

Hakurou's grandfather, Araki Byakuya, was an Otherworlder who had crossed over from Japan more than 300 years ago.

It was because of his influence that the Ogres used swords as weapons and valued loyalty and righteousness more than the knights of this world.

The Ogres would not submit to others.

Conversely, once they pledged allegiance to someone, they would follow them wholeheartedly.

"What exactly happened?"

The Ogres in the village had already noticed Benimaru and the others' return.

The families of the fallen wept, and the women and children sobbed softly.

But sadness was meaningless. The world of monsters was not like the world of humans, where people could wallow in grief.

Perhaps they had long since accepted life and death.

The Ogres who had lost loved ones took their family members or what remained of them and buried them in the cemetery near the village.

Throughout the entire process, Rin showed no displeasure. He simply gave them the basic respect they deserved.

"Father!"

After dealing with the affairs of the fallen, Benimaru finally had time to introduce Rin to his father, a red-haired Ogre much older than himself.

"Thank you very much for your assistance."

"Please accept our sincere gratitude!"

Led by Benimaru's father, a group of Ogres bowed deeply to Rin in unison.

"No need for this."

Rin waved his hand and said, "I just happened to be passing through. I also have a grudge with those insects, so I helped out."

"No matter the reason."

The red Ogre leader replied sincerely, "In such a critical situation, if it weren't for your righteous intervention, my son and daughter would surely have perished."

"Father! How much longer are you going to make Rin and Ogerpon stand here?!"

Shuna said, "They just fought a fierce battle and traveled all the way here with us. They must be exhausted!"

"Ah, yes, yes, yes."

Like his son Benimaru, the red Ogre leader scratched his head awkwardly. "It was my oversight."

"Honestly!"

Shuna turned around and gestured to Rin and Ogerpon. "Please wait a moment. I'll have hot water prepared for bathing right away."

"Uh…"

Rin initially wanted to say there was no need to go that far.

But seeing Shuna's serious gaze, he and Ogerpon exchanged looks and could only nod.

"All right then. Thank you for the trouble."

Shuna was right.

They had been traveling through the forest all day, and the sun was already setting. Saying they weren't tired would definitely be a lie.

Rather, the fact that Shuna could notice such details showed her thoughts were far more delicate than the other Ogres.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 28: Popular Ogerpon

"Splash, splash~"

Soon, Shuna led the two of them to a slightly elevated area.

There was a bathhouse there.

The small section used by Rin and Ogerpon wasn't open to the public on regular days.

It was reserved specifically for esteemed guests, a place to welcome them and wash away the dust of travel.

"This feels pretty nice…"

Leaning against the edge of the bathhouse, Rin let out a relaxed sigh. "How are you feeling, Ogerpon?"

"Ogerpon feels all squishy…"

Right beside him was Ogerpon.

She was completely sunk in the hot water, with only half her head floating above the surface.

Technically, she should've gone to the women's bathhouse.

But Ogerpon was worried about Rin's safety and stubbornly insisted on staying with him.

Rin didn't really have a choice and ended up letting her bathe with him.

'Honestly, it's not a big deal, right?'

'There's nothing to see anyway.'

"Rin, these are your clothes and Miss Ogerpon's."

"I've put them outside."

While they were still soaking, Shuna and Souei had already prepared their change of clothes.

"Oh, thanks!"

Although Rin had plenty of clothes in his Spirit Space, this was a kind gesture from the Ogre clan, and it felt wrong to refuse.

Soon after, both Rin and Ogerpon, having washed away their fatigue, changed into the outfits the Ogre clan had prepared.

The style was reminiscent of Japanese yukata.

Considering the Ogre clan's origin, Rin didn't find it strange for them to have this kind of fashion.

"Let's go."

Walking out of the bathhouse, Rin saw Shuna and Souei already waiting for them.

He didn't say much and followed the two women straight to the village square, where the Ogres had prepared a banquet.

"They're here! They're here!"

"Is that child the legendary Oni?"

"She's so small, but the amount of magicules she has is terrifying!"

"Don't you think she's cute?"

"Hey, don't be rude. Ogerpon-sama saved all of us!"

"..."

Compared to Rin, Ogerpon was clearly way more popular among the Ogres.

There was no helping it—Ogerpon was an actual Ogre, after all.

Among the Ogres, she was a living legend.

It had been who knows how many years since they last saw a high-ranking monster from their own kind!

"Go on, Ogerpon."

Rin gently patted Ogerpon's back, signaling her to step up. "Let them see what you've got."

"Pon-yo?"

Ogerpon blinked, then after thinking for a moment, suddenly understood.

"Ponooo!!"

The girl summoned her Ivy Cudgel, and several enormous, shimmering masks floated behind her, glowing like brilliant gemstones and reflecting off one another.

That dazzling, majestic sight instantly seized the hearts of every Ogre present.

"Oh oh oh!!"

"What an incredible aura!"

"Is this Ogerpon-sama's power?"

For a moment, the entire village square erupted in cheers.

But she wasn't done yet.

"Ivy Cudgel: Burst Strike!"

Ogerpon concentrated magicules into her Ivy Cudgel, then swung it fiercely toward the dark sky.

Boom!

A massive beam of light, woven from green, red, blue, gray, and other hues, shot into the sky, then exploded into a spectacular display of fireworks.

"Wow~"

The vivid, colorful fireworks reflected in the eyes of the Ogre children.

Meanwhile, the adult Ogres were stunned by the overwhelming power radiating from Ogerpon's casual swing.

While the adults stood dumbfounded, the kids had already surrounded Ogerpon, cheering and laughing.

Seeing this, Rin gave her a subtle signal not to worry about him.

After all, the two of them were connected by Life Link.

If anything happened to one of them, the other would know instantly.

"Go have fun, Ogerpon."

After saying that, Rin headed toward the Red Ogre Chief, who had been waiting for him.

"Oh, right."

Rin turned to Shuna, who was walking beside him.

"Let me add some extra flavor to tonight's feast."

He opened his Spirit Space and pulled out a large stash of ingredients and seasonings he'd brought from the Konosuba World.

At first, Shuna tried to refuse.

But once she tasted Rin's spices, she couldn't resist anymore.

The aroma and flavor were on another level, something she had never experienced before.

When she used those spices on the Ogre clan's usual roast meat, the wild flavor exploded across the entire square.

"This!"

"What is this smell? It's incredible!"

"This is roast meat?!"

"So good! This is insanely good!"

"It's the spices, right? They're magical!"

That night, bonfires blazed in the village, celebrating not only the successful hunt of the Insect Monster that had been plaguing the forest, but also welcoming Rin and Ogerpon.

At Rin's encouragement, Ogerpon returned and sat down with Shuna, Shion, and the other female Ogres.

Ogerpon, who came from the Japanese Momotaro legend, had a personality and lifestyle that perfectly matched the Ogres. She blended in effortlessly.

Elsewhere, Rin sat with Hakurou, accompanied by Benimaru and his father.

"Old man, you're the eldest here, right?"

Rin poured the old man a cup of wine, then gestured for him to try it.

He wasn't worried about any threats.

Thanks to Life Link, even fatal attacks were meaningless.

Even if Hakurou tried to slice his neck open, the damage would just be transferred to Ogerpon as numerical loss.

In the past, Rin would've worried about Ogerpon being drained to death because of him.

But now…

With Super-Speed Regeneration, Ogerpon could recover from full damage within minutes.

That's why Rin could sit across from a sword master like Hakurou without flinching.

"Thank you, young man."

Hakurou smiled, picked up the cup, and took a sip, his eyes immediately widened.

"What a sweet, mellow wine…"

Even someone as calm as Hakurou couldn't help but get lost in the flavor of Rin's drink, and he began speculating about Rin's origins.

Rare spices, exquisite wine, and unmatched power…

'Is he a reincarnator from another world?'

Still, Hakurou held no ill will.

Rin had saved the younger generation of the village.

That alone was a debt too large to repay.

So, the danger Rin had feared upon arriving in the Ogre village simply didn't exist.

The Ogres were a race that valued loyalty and repaid kindness.

They would never harm their benefactor.

"Rin-san, your kindness is more than we Ogres could ever repay."

"If you're willing to settle down in this village, it would be our greatest honor."

The Red Ogre Chief knew Rin still needed time to think, so he suggested gently, "You and Ogerpon-sama can stay at my house for now. Tomorrow, we'll begin construction on a new place for you."

"If you'd prefer to live somewhere outside the village later, we'll do our best to help you find a suitable spot."

Even though he said that, the Chief was clearly hoping Rin would stay.

This temporary stay would be a great trial run.

"Then I'll be in your care."

That night, Rin and Ogerpon slept at the Red Ogre Chief's house.

Even though they were deep in the Great Jura Forest, Rin was able to enjoy all the comforts of a civilized life—food, clothes, and shelter.

It was undoubtedly far more comfortable than building a camp from scratch.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 29: Dryad Treyni

"Quick!"

"Move everything over!"

"The house must be built today!!"

The next day, early in the morning, the Ogres, led by Benimaru and Souei, began construction on Rin and Ogerpon's new home.

The process of building the wooden house was fast. The Ogres, with their natural monstrous strength, were basically walking construction machines.

With dozens of them working together, it only took a single morning to finish building the house for the two of them.

It was a two-story, Japanese Edo-style house, with a small garden out front where some children had already planted wildflowers picked from the forest.

"What do you think?"

Shuna was assigned as the liaison for Rin.

Whatever Rin needed, he could just tell Shuna, and they would do their best to accommodate him.

"Very good. I'm very satisfied."

Rin and Ogerpon both expressed their thanks to Shuna, while also experiencing firsthand the simplicity and sincerity of the Ogre race.

If they received kindness, they repaid it.

They acted without hesitation and were generous, straightforward, ideal friends, really.

"Hm?"

"Poniii!"

And that very night, just as the new house was finished, an unexpected guest arrived at Rin and Ogerpon's door.

The visitor wore a long green dress. Tender sprouts and branches swirled around her body. Her face was so stunning that even Rin, who had grown up amidst an internet-saturated world full of celebrity images, couldn't help but be impressed.

Fortunately, Rin already knew who this person was. That alone kept him from getting caught up in her presence and beauty.

Instead, Rin became wary, standing with Ogerpon, both of them watching her with serious expressions.

"It seems you already know of my existence."

The girl was none other than the guardian of the Great Jura Forest, Dryad Treyni. She bowed elegantly toward Rin and introduced herself. "My name is Treyni, and I am the caretaker of this forest."

"A Dryad?"

Rin didn't pretend otherwise and directly acknowledged her identity. "May I ask, mysterious Dryad Miss, what brings you to visit so late at night?"

It wasn't that Rin was nervous. It was just that Treyni's strength was hard to pin down.

First off, Treyni's true form was actually a "Great Spirit Tree" deep within the forest.

Her current Dryad appearance was more like a projection.

In terms of monster rank, Treyni was near Special A-Rank.

In a direct confrontation, she wasn't far off from Ogerpon's current level.

And if you factored in things like "Destroyer" and "Explosion Magic," Ogerpon had a solid chance at beating her in a one-on-one.

But Treyni's situation was unique.

A large portion of her strength came from her contracted spirit—the Greater elementals of Wind Sylphide.

Sylphide had over 1,000,000 in magicules and possessed combat power on par with an Awakened Demon Lord.

In the original plot, it even cut off one of Laplace's arms from the Moderate Harlequin Alliance.

There was no doubt that once Treyni summoned Sylphide, Rin and Ogerpon's only viable option would be to activate Traveler and escape to another world.

"Please do not be nervous. I bear no ill will toward the two of you."

Fortunately, Treyni had a gentle temperament.

As long as the ecosystem of the Great Jura Forest remained intact, she wouldn't interfere.

"No need to worry."

Treyni smiled and said, "Rather, I came to thank you both, for resolving a major crisis in the forest."

"You mean those Insect Monsters?"

"Yes."

Treyni then explained the origins of the Insect Monsters.

A few months ago, the Insect Monsters came from another world and built a nest somewhere in the forest.

After that, they started multiplying at an astonishing rate, one even Treyni hadn't predicted.

Unknowingly, the Insect Monsters had become a serious threat to the forest.

If Rin hadn't acted this time, Treyni would've had to request aid from other monster tribes in the forest, like she had during the Orc Lord crisis.

"Do you know where those Insect Monsters came from?"

"That…"

Treyni shook her head with a hint of regret. "I only know that they do not belong to this world. Beyond that, I'm afraid I cannot say."

"I see."

As for the origin of the Insect Monsters, Rin speculated that they were likely connected to the Heavenly Demon, beings known for invading other worlds. It was possible these monsters were some kind of biologically engineered weapon.

The so-called Heavenly Demon were originally Angels from the Cardinal World who had fallen and become corrupted.

Of course, all of that was still far from Rin's current situation and not something he should worry about yet.

"There's no need for thanks."

Rin said, "I plan to live in the Ogre village moving forward, so that makes me part of the forest too."

"I don't mind eliminating threats to this place."

He wasn't trying to earn points with Treyni. That was just how he genuinely felt.

"That's wonderful."

Treyni smiled brightly. "From now on, Rin-san and Miss Ogerpon will be our neighbors. I hope we can all live in peace."

Even if Rin didn't ask for anything in return, Treyni wasn't going to let it go unacknowledged.

She was already thinking about what kind of thank-you gift she could offer Rin for protecting the forest.

"Mm. We'll be counting on you."

Once Rin confirmed that Treyni had no hostile intent, he let out a sigh of relief and finally got the chance to ask her about the current timeline.

For instance, how long until the main plot started.

From Treyni, he learned that the Storm Dragon was still sealed. That meant Rimuru hadn't reincarnated into this world yet.

As for further details, Rin couldn't determine much more.

"If you need anything in the future, Rin-san, you can just call my name."

Treyni said, "As long as you're within this forest, no matter where you are, I'll be able to hear your voice."

"Got it."

Having successfully connected with someone as powerful as Rin, Treyni had accomplished what she came here for.

The Great Jura Forest was like a residential community, and Rin and Ogerpon were the newest residents.

Now that she knew Rin was a polite and well-mannered neighbor, Treyni felt at ease.

"Well then, I won't disturb your rest any longer."

Treyni bowed toward Rin, then her body dissolved into green light and disappeared.

"Whew~"

It wasn't until Treyni's presence had completely vanished that Ogerpon finally lowered the Ivy Cudgel she'd been gripping tightly the whole time.

"Alright, you can let your guard down now. Looks like she really didn't mean any harm."

Even though they knew that already, Rin wasn't going to drop his vigilance.

And Ogerpon being in a defensive stance had simply been a safety measure.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 30: Experience Points

"That woman from earlier gave Ogerpon a really dangerous feeling."

Ogerpon didn't know how to describe it. Treyni didn't have the overwhelming pressure of a powerful being.

But Ogerpon just had the sense that if a fight broke out, it would definitely be her and Rin's side that would end up dead.

"It's probably because of the Spirit King."

Rin explained to Ogerpon that Treyni could summon the Wind Spirit King. This once again reignited Ogerpon's drive to grow stronger.

"The path to getting stronger is right in front of us."

"We've gotta seize this chance."

Rin was referring to the Ogre village. His Ogerpon was currently A-Rank.

That meant only enemies B-Rank and above, including B-Rank could provide her with experience points.

C-Rank, even C+, had already lost their value as food.

"Mhm, mhm, there are a lot of strong ones in the village."

"Ogerpon wants to fight them!"

The Ogre village had close to 300 residents.

Excluding those who had died in battle, those out on mercenary commissions, and young children…

There were still 200 B-Rank-or-higher combatants in the village.

"I'm thinking the same."

"But…"

Rin added, "What reason should I give?"

He couldn't just send Ogerpon out to start beating people up for no reason.

"Ogerpon thinks… training guidance?"

"Training guidance?"

"Yep."

Rin nodded. "The Ogre race is naturally combative, so sparring and dueling must be part of their daily life."

"This is a perfect chance for Ogerpon to have some matches with them."

Ogerpon was now an A-Rank Ogre, which meant she was already classified as an Upper Demon.

It made complete sense for her to guide the Ogres, spar with them, and gain experience in the process.

And as it turned out, things went even more smoothly than Rin expected.

In fact, Rin didn't even need to bring it up. The Ogres came to him first.

The Red Ogre Chieftain and Hakurou, along with several young Ogres, came to see Rin and Ogerpon.

They hoped that during Rin's time in the village, he could help train the young warriors.

"Of course!"

It was like getting a pillow the moment you feel sleepy. Rin had been racking his brain for how to bring up sparring, and they handed it to him on a silver platter.

However, Rin didn't want to reveal the secret that Ogerpon could gain experience and level up from combat.

Ogerpon's Growth, combined with Rin's Leader, would be their fast-track path to power until their magicules broke the one-million mark.

If it were other subordinates, Rin wouldn't mind revealing it.

But for the Ogre race, who he'd only just met…

Rin played it safe.

"Chieftain."

"What are your instructions, Rin-san?"

The Red Ogre Chieftain treated Rin with great respect, which Rin found a little excessive.

Still, considering the warrior culture of the Ogres, Rin decided to go with the flow.

"From here on out, I'll have Ogerpon spar with the warriors of your village."

To avoid exposing Growth while maximizing experience gains, Rin decided to scale up the training sessions.

"You can come at her one-on-one, or team up in groups."

Rin ruffled Ogerpon's hair. "Don't worry. I'll have her hold back so she won't hurt anyone seriously."

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon gave an innocent smile, winning more favor from the Ogres.

"Are you sure that's okay?"

"Won't that be a huge burden on Ogerpon?"

Hearing Rin's decision, the Chieftain was overwhelmed with emotion.

He hadn't expected Rin to be this considerate. He had just made the request, and Rin not only agreed immediately but even made arrangements to benefit everyone.

At this moment, the Red Ogre Chieftain became even more determined to keep Rin and Ogerpon in the village.

Even if he had to give up his position as Chieftain, he wouldn't hesitate!

"I'll go gather everyone right now!"

Leaving aside the matter of persuading Rin to stay for the time being, what the Red Ogre Chieftain needed to do now was inform everyone in the village of this great news.

"What, what?"

"What's going on?"

The central plaza of the Ogre village, called a plaza but really just a large open space surrounded by wooden houses, had a raised platform built into it, the designated sparring arena.

"It's Ogerpon!"

"Ogerpon is willing to train with us and help us get stronger!"

The Ogre race worshipped strength and yearned to grow stronger.

Being able to spar with a powerful Upper Demon like Ogerpon was something they wouldn't have even dreamed of on an ordinary day.

"Ogerpon's going to teach us combat techniques?"

In a monster world where the strong preyed on the weak, the Ogres were somewhat better. At the very least, Rin and the elders would teach their juniors swordsmanship and combat skills.

But that was the limit.

To face higher-ranked monsters, you had to risk your life.

Now, Ogerpon—an A-Rank Ogre whose real strength might even exceed that was willing to spar with them.

No wonder the Chieftain made the request.

This kind of experience was too valuable. The Ogres had to seize this rare opportunity.

"How do you want to do this?"

Ogerpon stood in the center of the arena, surrounded by an excited crowd. She summoned her Ivy Cudgel and planted it firmly in front of her. "One-on-one, or all at once?"

Beside Rin, Ogerpon was a soft-spoken, gentle, well-behaved little cotton jacket.

But once she stepped into the battlefield, this quiet, socially anxious little girl became more violent than anyone else.

One swing, one down. Three swings, shattered peach hearts.

Her record of inflicting hundreds of years of psychological trauma on a certain scoundrel wasn't just a rumor.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 31: Destroyer

"Please guide me, Lady Ogerpon."

The first to enter the arena was Benimaru.

He held a samurai sword, his burly figure, nearly 2.5 meters tall, standing before Ogerpon like a small mountain.

However, despite such a huge size difference, it was Benimaru who was truly nervous, not Ogerpon.

Rin, along with the Red Ogre leader and others, stood at a high vantage point at the edge of the arena, where the view was excellent.

From here, they could more clearly observe the battle between Ogerpon and the Ogre Clan.

"I want to know how big the gap still is between me and a true A-rank!"

"A-rank?"

Hearing Benimaru's words, Ogerpon tilted her head.

But Ogerpon was not A-rank.

Her magicule level was indeed A, but her true combat power was definitely at the Special A level.

If Benimaru intended to use Ogerpon as a reference for an A-rank demon, then this time, he was probably going to be devastated.

"Please enlighten me!"

Still unaware that he had underestimated Ogerpon's strength, Benimaru had already raised his samurai sword and assumed a mid-stance.

"Alright."

"Then, as you wish…"

Ogerpon raised her head, the Ivy Cudgel spinning in her hand as if it weighed nothing.

A-rank or not, it didn't matter.

Ogerpon's only goal was to gain experience points from Benimaru.

"Are you ready?"

"Rea—"

Swish!

However, almost at the instant Benimaru's words fell, the Ogre Clan's young master's pupils sharply contracted.

The next moment, Ogerpon's figure vanished from Benimaru's sight without warning.

Fast!

So fast that among all the Ogre Clan members in the entire village, only Rin barely managed to catch a glimpse of Ogerpon's moving shadow.

"What?"

By the time Benimaru reacted, he only felt a monstrous force, like a mountain toppling, assailing him from the front.

The burly red-haired Ogre instinctively tried to block with his sword.

But Ogerpon's Ivy Cudgel was one step ahead, stopping right in front of his face.

Boom!!

Before Benimaru could recover from his shock, he was met with the fierce wind pressure generated by Ogerpon's single blow.

Thus, everyone only saw Benimaru being violently sent flying, smashing through several wooden houses, and disappearing at the end of the street.

"This…"

For a moment, all the Ogres stood dumbfounded.

The entire field was silent, as if they hadn't recovered from Ogerpon's seemingly ordinary blow just now.

What happened?

They only saw Ogerpon suddenly disappear and then suddenly reappear.

Then their young master flew backward like a meteor and then fell unconscious.

'High-speed movement?'

'No!'

The Ogre elder standing beside Rin was startled by his own guess.

'Is it spatial jump? She actually possessed such a skill?'

'But what about that monstrous force wrapped around the stick?'

Hakurou was rich in combat experience. In the original work, he had deduced the source of Rimuru's skills through a brief encounter with him.

But this time, Rin said he didn't understand.

"Young Master!!!"

Finally, some Ogres realized what had happened.

They anxiously rushed in the direction Benimaru had flown.

After some searching, everyone finally dug out the unconscious Benimaru from the ruins.

"Young Master?"

"Young Master, are you alright? Young Master!!!"

Fortunately, there was an experienced physician in the village.

The physician stepped forward to examine Benimaru's condition and found that he had simply fallen into a coma, with not many injuries on his body.

"He's just unconscious."

The physician said, "Most of the young master's injuries are superficial, and with our Ogre Clan's recovery ability, he will heal quickly."

"Phew~"

Hearing the physician's diagnosis, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

And after the initial panic, what emerged from the hearts of the Ogres was admiration for Ogerpon's power and astonishment at her effortless skill.

"So amazing!"

"Lady Ogerpon is not only powerful, but her control over her strength has reached such a level!"

"Unbelievable."

"This is the first time I've seen anyone other than the old man do something like this."

The old man the Ogres referred to was naturally Hakurou.

However, even Hakurou would find it difficult to achieve Ogerpon's delicate technique of injuring without killing.

This involved too many technical aspects, unimaginable to ordinary people.

Hakurou didn't know that this was precisely a martial art from the Konosuba World, which, after being transformed by the Cardinal World's rules, formed a completely new professional system.

Before this, the Cardinal World had no similar skills.

It was no exaggeration to say that in terms of martial arts attainment alone, Ogerpon had already reached the pinnacle of the Cardinal World, with only a very few grandmaster-level humans being able to compare.

Hakurou's swordsmanship had almost reached the grandmaster realm.

However, he was too old, and his spirit was willing but his flesh was weak.

"Don't worry, Ogerpon held back."

Rin: "Bring him over."

With such destruction just now, Benimaru only sustained such minor injuries, which absolutely meant Ogerpon had held back.

Soon, the unconscious Benimaru was brought before Rin.

"Healing Spell!"

Rin raised his hand, and golden magicules sprinkled down. Benimaru's injuries immediately healed at a visible speed.

This miraculous scene once again drew gasps of astonishment from the Ogre Clan.

"The injuries have healed; he will wake up in a little while."

After treating Benimaru, Rin looked at Hakurou and asked, "With your experience, can you discern the profoundness of Ogerpon's blow just now?"

Hakurou shook his head and sighed, "I failed to grasp the profundity of her move. Please enlighten this old man, Rin-san."

Hakurou did not voice his guess.

He had originally thought that Ogerpon had used some kind of spatial jump skill, which allowed her to instantly cross dozens of meters and appear before Benimaru.

But soon, this conjecture was overturned by Rin.

It wasn't spatial teleportation.

Ogerpon's method of movement belonged to a realm Hakurou couldn't comprehend.

It was a bizarre method he had never imagined.

"It's destruction."

Rin didn't make it difficult for Hakurou, explaining the profoundness of Ogerpon's blow just now to the two of them: "Ogerpon possesses the power to completely destroy anything she touches."

(To be continued.)

 

Chapter 32: Sweeping Through

"Destruction?!"

Hakurou's pupils contracted. He instantly thought of something. "Could it be? In the path of that blow just now, she destroyed both the air and space?"

"So that's how it is…"

Seeing Rin smile without saying a word, Hakurou beside him was secretly alarmed, his hand stroking his beard trembling slightly.

Ogerpon's spatial movement, rather than being a spatial skill, was more like a variation of Destroyer.

By shattering space, she executed an incredibly violent instantaneous leap.

This process was even faster than ordinary spatial teleportation based on coordinates and was nearly impossible to interfere with or interrupt.

Of course, physically traversing shattered space would undoubtedly cause immense damage.

No one would dare to cross space in such a manner—except for Ogerpon, whose physical durability was absurd and whose recovery ability was basically a bug.

"How reckless…"

Hakurou's mouth twitched slightly as he thought to himself that Ogerpon's actions were way too outrageous.

"Then, what about the power that was wrapped around the Ivy Cudgel just now?"

"Oh, that."

Rin said, "Besides her pure super strength, which is already ridiculous, she probably used Destroyer to pulverize everything in her path."

After Ogerpon evolved, the depth of her Unique Skill, Destroyer, increased.

If the previous Destroyer could only destroy things Ogerpon could see or touch...

Then now, she could forcibly destroy phenomena like air resistance, gravity, light, and sound, depending on what she needed.

"A violence that shatters space, a strike that breaks the rules."

If Ogerpon hadn't held back and that Ivy Cudgel had landed square on Benimaru's head, Hakurou and the Red Ogre Leader couldn't even imagine the consequences.

A headshot would be the least of it.

Even the village behind Benimaru might've been leveled by the shockwave stirred up by the Ivy Cudgel.

Shuna and Souei, who had watched Benimaru's duel with Ogerpon, had expected Benimaru to lose, but to fail to withstand even a single move was far beyond anything they had anticipated.

And Ogerpon had held back.

Cough! Cough, cough, cough, cough~

Rin's healing magic was outrageously effective. Benimaru quickly regained consciousness.

He first sat up in a daze. Then the memory of Ogerpon's strike flashed through his mind, making his heart seize up.

It wasn't until Souei called out to him from the side that Benimaru snapped out of it.

"Thank you for your guidance, Lady Ogerpon!"

Benimaru bowed deeply to Ogerpon.

He was completely convinced. Humbled by Ogerpon's overwhelming strength.

Moreover, Benimaru was certain that Ogerpon's strength wasn't simply A-Rank.

A-Rank was only her magicule level. The actual combat power she unleashed far surpassed that, very likely touching the realm of legendary Calamity-Class (Special A-Rank).

"Want to go again?"

"Anyone's fine, no matter how many."

Ogerpon rested the Ivy Cudgel on her shoulder and looked around, issuing a challenge to the entire Ogre Clan.

"Don't worry about getting hurt. Ogerpon won't kill anyone."

There was something else Rin didn't say aloud.

Even if someone really did have an accident, he could resurrect them.

Resurrection Magic was a high-tier spell from the Konosuba World's Arch Priest.

Of course, Rin's resurrection magic wasn't as absurd as Aqua's.

His resurrection spell had strict limitations.

First, the deceased's body had to be relatively intact. It couldn't be missing more than 30 percent.

Next, the time since death couldn't exceed 5 minutes.

However, that 5-minute rule wasn't absolute.

It mainly depended on the condition of the soul.

If the soul could be preserved, and Rin had a way to reconstruct the body, then resurrection would be incredibly easy.

"Mhm mhm, I'll hold back."

Ogerpon showed a brilliantly pure smile.

Pokémon naturally loved to battle, and even after becoming a monster, Ogerpon hadn't lost that instinct.

So, for the next three days, Ogerpon—under the pretext of checking everyone's strength, beat up all 250 Ogre Clan members in the village, children included.

Of course, she was measured.

When it came to the little Ogre kids, Ogerpon mostly just played with them. Even when she sent them flying, she dialed back her power.

Although Benimaru had been defeated, he wasn't one to give up on challenging her.

This time, he brought backup—Souei, Shuna, and about ten other Ogre Clan elites.

Naturally, the result was inevitable.

In the face of overwhelming power, numbers were meaningless.

Whether it was one person, ten, or even a hundred Ogres charging at her, they couldn't even touch Ogerpon.

It was only Hakurou and the Red Ogre Leader who managed to give her the slightest sense of engagement.

Hakurou's swordplay was eerily sharp, appearing and disappearing like a ghost.

But Ogerpon's senses were too monstrous. Once she activated Grassy Terrain, she could lock onto enemies using the natural elements themselves.

The Red Ogre Leader had tremendous strength and a durable body.

Unfortunately, he ran into Ogerpon, who possessed the Destroyer skill.

The Ivy Cudgel, empowered by Destroyer, just brushing it could maim, and taking a direct hit meant instant death.

Hakurou's sword merely grazed the Ivy Cudgel and shattered into a pile of iron dust.

The Red Ogre Leader had it worse.

His arm, after being touched by the Ivy Cudgel, exploded into a mist of blood, and half of his body was nearly turned to mush.

Fortunately, Rin's healing magic saved him and restored him completely.

This fight made the entire Ogre Clan realize how terrifying Ogerpon's power truly was.

A-Rank magicules, Special A-Rank combat power.

Ogerpon earned the complete respect and admiration of the Ogre Clan through her battle feats, even gaining the title of the strongest among them.

"Rin, Ogerpon feels like she got stronger again!"

"Yeah."

Inside the wooden house, Rin had erected a soundproof barrier. He gently patted Ogerpon's head, who had transformed into a young girl form, and praised her,
"250 Ogre Clan members, with the weakest being B-Rank, and the strongest being B+ Rank."

On average, each Ogre Clan member provided Ogerpon about 80 magicules.

Her total magicule count had risen from 12,000 to 33,000.

"All thanks to you, Ogerpon. I can finally break through to A-Rank."

Leader allowed Rin to receive 50% of his subordinate's existence value. With the 1,500 magicules he originally had, his total reached 18,000, far exceeding the standard for A-Rank monsters.

[Detected individual 'Itoshi Rin' has met evolution conditions. Evolve?]

The Voice of the World had already sounded in Rin's mind when Ogerpon was only halfway through her battles.

But Rin didn't choose to evolve immediately.

He waited until now, when Ogerpon had reached her strongest state, to evolve.

"Ogerpon won't let anyone disturb Rin!"

Ogerpon said as she cast another magic barrier outside Rin's silence barrier, one that blocked magicule fluctuations to make sure no one would notice the disturbance caused by his evolution.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Ogerpon."

Looking at Ogerpon standing guard with her Ivy Cudgel in hand, Rin silently chanted in his heart.

"Evolve!"

(To be continued.)

Chapter 33: New Race

"Ah!!"

As soon as the evolution began, the vast magicules within Rin's body became restless.

The next moment, an unimaginable, excruciating pain instantly spread throughout his body, causing him to cry out involuntarily.

"Rin!!"

Ogerpon was startled.

She wanted to rush forward to check, but a voice in her heart told her not to disturb Rin.

These were all normal phenomena, a unique transformation belonging solely to him.

The intense reaction was a sign of his monster bloodline awakening!

[Bloodline Appraisal beginning...]

Before this, Rin had always been unclear about his bloodline.

It wasn't until this moment, with the echo of the Voice of the World, that his bloodline was truly activated.

[Appraisal complete. Pseudo-Dragon Kind bloodline activated.]

[Obtained exclusive skill: Stardust Manipulation.]

[Evolution successful. Individual "Itoshi Rin" has obtained the race "Dragonoid (Pseudo)".]

[Skill "Appraisal" has been sublimated, advancing to Extra Skill "Dragon Eye".]

[...]

As the physical pain faded, a series of prompts from the Voice of the World echoed in Rin's mind, causing him, who had just recovered, to suffer the torment of information overload all over again.

Only this time, Rin wasn't uncomfortable, he was ecstatic.

Stardust Manipulation!

It's Stardust Manipulation!!

And Dragonoid. Rin never expected that the demon bloodline hidden within his body would actually be Dragon Kind.

And not just any dragon, but from the Star King Dragon, the apex of the Cardinal World!

One had to understand—"Dragonoid" in Tensura wasn't a race, but referred to a specific individual: Milim, one of the three oldest Demon Lords.

Milim was the daughter of the Star King Dragon the human Lucia. She inherited her father's infinite magicules and Dragon Kind bloodline, thus becoming the unique Dragonoid.

But now, Rin had also been granted the Dragonoid race by the Voice of the World.

Pseudo-Dragonoid was still Dragonoid!

But...

After the shock, Rin couldn't help but wonder, Where did the Dragon Kind bloodline in this body come from?

First, Milim could be ruled out.

She was just a little girl. It was impossible for her to combine with any human and have offspring.

And after ruling out natural reproduction, the only explanation Rin could think of was magicule infection.

In the original story, monsters mutated and evolved after being exposed to the magicules dispersed by Veldora.

From this, it could be seen that powerful magicules themselves could give birth to life, so it was understandable that they could infect an existing being and grant them partial power.

"In other words, one of my ancestors was once eroded by the magicules of the Star King Dragon, or Milim."

"And then, they managed to survive and passed on this magicule factor through their bloodline."

But considering how unique Milim's Dragonoid status was...

Rin felt none of his ancestors had ever actually awakened that power.

This perfectly aligned with the memories of the original body, whose ancestors were all just ordinary people.

"Because the Star King Dragon's bloodline was too high-ranking, those infected ancestors couldn't awaken this power at all."

"Then why did I awaken the power of the Star King Dragon?"

Recalling his own uniqueness, Rin thought of a possibility: his broken-level talent, Traveler.

The power to traverse worlds was the key to awakening the Dragon Kind bloodline.

The faint Dragon Kind bloodline, combined with Traveler's world-hopping nature and the Cardinal World's magicules...

The fusion of those three factors created this miracle.

Hmm. Even if there was still a "Pseudo" tag after Dragonoid...

Rin estimated that he might need to become a Demon Lord Seed, or even a fully awakened True Demon Lord, to remove that "Pseudo" label.

"But that doesn't matter. It'll happen sooner or later anyway."

"Obtaining the Dragonoid bloodline is equivalent to opening an evolution path with an extremely high ceiling."

"Most importantly, I also gained Stardust Manipulation ahead of time."

Even after reading the original novel, Rin's understanding of stardust remained vague.

First, the concept of star particles.

To put it simply, star particles were highly condensed magicules that had been compressed to their limit.

Just as matter is made of atoms and molecules, magicules also had a basic unit: spiritons.

Previously, Rin had been puzzled about the meaning behind magicule values.

For example, 9999 magicules and 10000 magicules. Even though it was just a 1-point difference, why was the former considered B-Rank while the latter was A-Rank?

It's known that an A-Rank monster with 10000 magicules could easily crush a B-Rank with 9999.

So, was that 1-point really that significant?

Shouldn't the jump from B-Rank to A-Rank be a huge surge in power?

But now, Rin finally understood.

That seemingly small 1-point gap was a full-blown qualitative leap.

If magicules below 10000 used spiritons as their base unit, then 9999 magicules could actually be broken down into 99.99 million spiritons.

In contrast, once a monster broke through to A-Rank, their magicules became a unified whole.

The basic unit of A-Rank was no longer spiritons, but simply magicules.

10000 magicules was exactly that—10000 indivisible units.

Unless the A-Rank monster willed it, outsiders couldn't deconstruct them into spiritons.

This transformation massively increased the weight and quality of A-Rank monster in the Cardinal World.

It's not an exaggeration to say that in a clash between A-Rank and anything below, the latter would be instantly crushed.

Of course, A-Rank individuals also had control abilities far beyond what B-Ranks could imagine.

They could break 1 magicule into millions of spiritons and manipulate them with precision to perform effects that B-Rank users could only dream of.

This was the active deconstruction available to A-Rank monster.

In that sense, no one else could touch you, and you could fully control yourself.

Through this give-and-take, the A-Rank threshold was formed.

"Maybe this is the difference between common skills, intrinsic skills, and unique skills."

"Only Special A-Rank monster possess Unique Skills..."

"Conversely, a Reincarnator who possesses a Unique Skill from the start, as long as they grow properly, will naturally reach Special A-Rank."

And Unique Skills were most likely the result of refined magicules.

They were only called Unique Skills after recognition from the Voice of the World.

"In other words, the leap from A-Rank to Special A-Rank is the process of finding one's own path."

"Once that path is found, one can be promoted to Special A-Rank and earn the title of Demon Lord Seed."

Rin had more or less figured out the whole evolution path from monster to Demon Lord Seed.

"I currently have four Unique Skills: Traveler, Leader, Capturer, and Duplicator."

Among them, Capturer and Leader—neither of them, when taken individually, could be considered powerful.

At least, they couldn't compare to Rimuru's practically omnipotent Predator.

Capturer allowed the user to form contracts with individuals possessing potential. Once they became stronger, the Voice of the World could perform a reverse evaluation, allowing the Capturer to ascend.

This sounded nice on paper, but in practice, it was incredibly hard.

Because Capturer didn't offer much in terms of direct combat power.

It was very easy to be eliminated in the early stages.

Unless the Capturer had a high-status identity like a noble or lord, someone that people would naturally follow.

Otherwise, the skill had little future.

Compared to that, Leader was even simpler.

Theoretically, anyone willing to follow the Leader could donate a portion of their magicules.

But the amount given would never reach Ogerpon's terrifying 50%.

At most, each person could give about 3%.

How many subordinates would Rin need to gather enough magicules to reach the Demon Lord Seed threshold?

"Without at least ten or twenty years, it'd be impossible to build that kind of force."

Fortunately, Rin's Leader and Capturer complemented each other.

Combined, he felt they weren't inferior to Rimuru's Predator at all.

Traveler, because of its broken-level nature, had an incalculable ceiling, so it didn't need to be evaluated right now.

And finally, Rin felt that Duplicator wasn't much weaker than Predator either.

Continuously copying abilities and using them to grow stronger.

That kind of power was a cheat in any isekai light novel.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 34: Skill Potential

"If Unique Skills were categorized, Duplicator should be considered a high-level Unique Skill, just like Predator."

"And Leader and Capturer, which have developmental potential, would be considered mid-level Unique Skills."

Don't let the flaws of Leader and Capturer fool you. They are far more powerful than the Reincarnators summoned in the original work.

I remember that in the original work, there were three people summoned from other worlds.

Shougo's Berserker, Kirara's Bewilder, and Kyoya's Severer.

In Rin's opinion, the Unique Skills of those three couldn't compare to Leader and Capturer.

Those types of Unique Skills are more like power-type abilities. They offer considerable combat power the moment they're acquired.

However, the drawbacks of Berserker, Bewilder, and Severer are also obvious: they lack staying power.

In Rin's view, the true potential of Unique Skills should manifest after reaching Special A-Rank.

Just like his Leader and Capturer.

Even after becoming a Demon Lord Seed, Rin could continue strengthening himself through these two Unique Skills.

"According to this classification, Ogerpon's Destroyer is actually a low-level Unique Skill."

Rin pondered, then opened his current status panel.

 

---

[Itoshi Rin]

[Race: Dragonoid (Pseudo)]
[Existence Value: A-Rank (18060 EP)]
[Class: Mage]

[General Skills: Life Magic, Healing Magic, Elemental Magic, Pokémon Magic, etc.]

[Intrinsic Skills: Adaptability, All-Profession Mastery]

[Extra Skills: Dragon Eye, Explosion Magic]

[Unique Skills: Traveler [Broken-level], Leader, Capturer, Duplicator]

[Special Skills: Magicules Solidification, Star Particle Manipulation]

[Dependents: Ogerpon (1 / 12)]

[Marked Worlds: Pokémon World, Konosuba World]

---

The types of skills, arranged from low to high in terms of strength and rarity, are Common Skills, Extra Skills, and Unique Skills.

Special Skills are an exception. They can't be measured by strength alone and can't be replicated by others.

Furthermore, Extra Skills are also called Supplemental or EX Skills.

Intrinsic Skills are mostly passive abilities or racial traits.

"Over 18,000 magicules, and the number of subordinate slots has increased from the original 6 to 12."

"Three at C-rank, six at B-rank, and now that I've broken through to A-rank, the total subordinate slots have reached 12."

Rin's original plan had been to visit other worlds to find subordinates, like Ogerpon.

"The increase in slots is faster than I expected."

Rin thought to himself, "In that case, maybe there's no need to cling to other worlds."

"The Cardinal World also has plenty of individuals worth cultivating."

For example, Shuna, Shion, Benimaru, and Souei from the Ogre Clan—in the original, they all had the aptitude to awaken Ultimate Skills.

Among them, Souei's future magicules exceeded 1.2 million. And Shion and Benimaru, once equipped with their exclusive weapons, could even break through 5 million.

Leaving Shuna aside, the combined magicules of just Shion, Benimaru, and Souei already reached 11.2 million.

With a 50% feedback rate, if Rin made all four his subordinates, he would eventually receive at least 6 million magicules in return.

So allocating four subordinate slots to them wasn't a loss at all, it was a massive gain.

"I'll use half of the subordinate slots to cultivate talented followers within the Cardinal World."

Rin didn't forget the remaining 250+ Ogre Clan members either. "Even if I can't develop them into subordinates, as long as they're followers, Leader can still draw power from them."

Subordinates: 50%
Naming: 15%

Followers: Depending on loyalty, they provide 1% to 3% of their magicules.

Excluding the B-Rank children among the Ogre Clan, the remaining 200+ individuals had an average of around 6500 magicules.

Even calculating at the minimum of 1%, that's 65 x 200 = nearly 13,000 magicules.

If luck was good and the Ogre Clan genuinely submitted, it could be up to 40,000.

"However, meeting the conditions for subjugation definitely isn't that simple."

While Leader's ability to gather the power of all beings is a bug-level ability, it's not without limitations.

At the very least, someone simply saying, 'I pledge allegiance to you,' wouldn't be enough to be registered as a follower.

To establish a magicule link, there must be genuine and sincere submission.

The Ogre Clan worships strength, but worship isn't the same as allegiance.

"Is there a way to quickly gain the loyalty of the Ogres?"

"That's right!"

Soon, Rin thought of a solution. "Naming!"

Yes, Naming!

That was Rin's chosen method—the most direct and simplest way to earn the loyalty of the Ogre Clan.

Rin currently had 18,000 magicules.

Excluding the untouchable 10,000 threshold, he had 8,000 left for Naming.

Currently, the strongest among the Ogre Clan were Hakurou and the Red Ogre Leader.

Their magicules were higher than the others, reaching 9000 and 8500 respectively.

This meant Rin only needed to use 2500 magicules to name them both.

"Once their magicules reach 10,000, Benimaru and the Red Ogre Leader can evolve into Kijin."

"And since the one bestowing the name receives 15% magicule feedback, I can get at least 3000 magicules back from them."

"So this isn't just not a loss, it's actually a net gain of 500."

In other words, for Ogre Clan members whose magicules exceeded 8500, Rin wouldn't lose anything by Naming them.

"Rin, your aura suddenly got a lot stronger!"

"Mm."

Rin smiled. "Thanks to you, Ogerpon, I was able to evolve."

"Now I'm an evolved monster, just like you, Ogerpon."

Ogerpon was even happier about Rin's evolution than her own strength increase. That alone made her beam with joy.

"Ogerpon, go bring me uh..."

Rin had originally wanted to say Benimaru's name, but then remembered—they didn't have names yet.

Helpless, he could only describe the appearances of Shuna, Shion, Benimaru, and Souei, then asked Ogerpon to bring them over.

"Ogerpon will go now!"

As soon as the little girl received the task, she bounced out.

"Slow down. Don't trip!"

"I won't! Ogerpon's not a fool!"

Ogerpon turned her head and stuck out her tongue. "Only a fool would trip on flat ground!"

After saying that, she didn't slow down at all, she ran even faster.

"This girl..."

Watching Ogerpon's playful attitude, Rin couldn't help but smile.

She was always so cheerful and full of energy. Even Rin felt lighter just being near her.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 35: Recruiting

"Rin-san?"

Soon after, Benimaru and the other three followed Ogerpon into Rin's wooden house, kneeling respectfully on the floor.

The four of them had originally wanted to ask why Rin had called them.

However, the moment they looked up, they noticed something different.

This…!

What an overwhelming aura!

How did Rin suddenly become so much stronger?!

Rin's evolution left Benimaru and the others deeply shaken.

They knew that once a monster broke through its bottleneck, it would undergo a transformation called evolution.

But Rin's evolution was far too quiet.

They had seen Rin not long ago.

Yet now, only an hour or two later, his aura had risen from its earlier B-Rank to its current state.

10,000 magicules versus 9,999—only a difference of 1 point.

But that single point brought an oppressive pressure that even the Ogre Clan could tangibly feel.

"Oh, sorry, sorry, I almost forgot."

Rin restrained his magicules, which he still couldn't control well due to the recent evolution, and brought his presence down to the level of a B-Rank monster.

This made the members of the Ogre Clan feel much more at ease.

At the same time, it also gave them a new perspective on Rin's sudden increase in strength.

Was Rin hiding his true power all along?

That explains it!

Benimaru thought silently, How could such catastrophic-level magic be released by a mere B-Rank monster?

If he was concealing his aura, then it all makes sense.

The more Benimaru thought about it, the more convinced he became. He began to speculate about Rin's real strength.

A-Rank?

That much was clear. The oppressive pressure from earlier had already reached that level.

But Benimaru didn't think that was Rin's full strength.

Could it be… Special A-Rank?

The moment this thought emerged, he couldn't suppress it.

Yes, even Ogerpon is A-Rank. So her master, Rin, must be even stronger.

Special A-Rank.

That was the highest level Benimaru could imagine.

Beyond that were the legendary Demon Lord Seeds.

"Don't be nervous. I called you here to talk."

Rin calmed them with a warm tone, then said gently, "I want to invite you to become my dependents. Are you willing?"

"Dependents?"

"Ah, like Ogerpon."

Rin thought for a moment, then explained in a way they could understand. "You can think of it as followers or vassals."

With the Unique Skill Capturer, and his current strength already surpassing the four, Rin could have forcibly captured them.

But first, Rin didn't like using force.

Second, he wanted to earn true loyalty.

"Dependents are different from regular followers. They're more like my companions."

Rin didn't mention any benefits or enticements. He simply conveyed the relationship he hoped for.

In his view, a dependent should not be bound by benefits.

Saying something like "become my dependent and you'll get stronger" would cheapen the bond and stain the oath.

"I am willing!"

The first to speak was not Benimaru or Souei, but Shuna.

"It would be my honor to become companions with Ogerpon."

Shuna continued, "At that time, if Rin-sama hadn't acted, I would've already died in that Insect Monster's jaws."

"I can never repay the grace of having my life saved."

"I am willing to serve by your side."

After speaking, Shuna bowed gracefully before Rin.

"Uh…"

Rin hesitated for a moment but didn't refuse.

Regardless of the reason, Shuna's intent was genuine, and that was enough.

"Ahem. Well, no need to be so formal."

"Become my dependent, and we'll be family from now on."

He smiled. "Then, welcome to the family."

"That's too sly, isn't it?"

When Shion saw that Rin had truly accepted Shuna, she turned to Benimaru and said, "Sorry, Young Master. I also want to become Rin-sama's dependent."

"I understand."

Although Benimaru was known as the young master of the Ogre Clan and the future heir of the village, that was in name only.

At least, Shion and Souei had never formally sworn loyalty to him.

To be more precise, the four of them had grown up as childhood friends, not as lord and vassals.

Shion's reason for choosing to follow was the same as Shuna's.

At that time, the two girls had been in despair, and it was Rin and Ogerpon who saved them.

The grace of having one's life saved outweighed anything.

Now that Rin wanted to recruit them, what reason did Shion have to refuse?

And Rin had said.

He wanted companions, not servants.

That sincerity alone was enough to move anyone in the Ogre Clan, let alone Shuna and Shion.

"May I ask what your plans are?"

It was the normally silent Souei who spoke. He wasn't opposed to following Rin.

The Ogre Clan had originally lived as mercenaries in the Great Jura Forest.

Becoming Rin's vassal wasn't much different, it just meant turning a temporary job into a permanent one that required complete loyalty.

Rin's strength. Ogerpon's power.

That aligned perfectly with a monster's instinct to follow the strong.

Of course, if it were only that, then Gelmud in the original story wouldn't have failed to subdue the Ogre Clan.

What truly moved Souei was Rin's explanation of what it meant to be a dependent.

Not a servant. Not a subordinate. But family.

If Rin was really that kind of lord, then Souei was willing to follow him to the end.

"As for future plans…"

Rin said, "I plan to accumulate strength… and eventually become a Demon Lord."

Demon Lord!!

At those words, the four all revealed stunned expressions.

"You… do you really have that kind of ambition?"

Souei's face was serious, but his voice was full of sincerity.

"I'm willing to become your shadow. I will help you achieve the feat of becoming a Demon Lord!"

To find a master like this… and to devote his life to him…

This was the future Souei had always dreamed of!

Seeing Souei's serious face, Rin could only nod and say, "Alright, then I'll count on you."

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 36: Bestowing Names

After accepting the loyalty of the three, Rin's gaze once again fell upon Benimaru.

The young leader of the Ogre village, with his blood-red long hair, was in a state of deep inner conflict.

With his younger sister and two companions choosing to follow Rin, Benimaru had also begun to entertain the idea of becoming Rin's subordinate.

Especially when Rin declared his desire to become a Demon Lord.

From a personal standpoint, after having been crushed by Ogerpon's overwhelming power, he had long acknowledged Rin's strength.

Serving such a powerful existence, Benimaru felt no hesitation whatsoever.

But the problem was...

"Sorry."

Benimaru was extremely reluctant, but he still made his decision. "I am the young leader of the Ogre village. I cannot abandon the people in the village."

"So please forgive me. I cannot follow you."

"Is that so..."

Hearing Benimaru's reason for refusing, Rin wasn't angry. Instead, he felt even more appreciative. This was indeed the man who would become the Commander-in-Chief of the Jura-Tempest Federation in the original work.

With that level of responsibility and sense of duty, having someone like Benimaru guarding the rear would allow Rin to confidently leave the Cardinal World and seek opportunities in other worlds in the future.

"I think you misunderstood something."

Rin waved his hand and said, "I actually don't plan to leave the Ogre village."

"What?"

Benimaru was stunned. Shuna, Souei, and Shion were just as shocked.

"You mean..."

"I want to subdue the Ogre village!"

Rin didn't hide his ambition at all. "Then I'll build this place into my base, as the foundation for my advancement to Demon Lord!"

"This...!"

The four exchanged glances, momentarily at a loss for words.

Subduing the Ogre village, this essentially meant taking over the place.

If it were anyone else saying this, Benimaru and the others would have definitely fought them to the death.

The Ogre race would rather die than surrender. They'd never compromise in the face of violence.

However, Rin was different.

First, he had saved their lives. Rin and Ogerpon had rescued the village's younger generation, preserving the future of the Ogres.

Then, not long ago, Ogerpon had single-handedly defeated the entire Ogre village.

No flashy magic, just brute force.

An Ivy Cudgel, and a pair of pink fists.

Ogerpon had simply beaten them all senseless in the area the Ogres prided themselves on the most.

A fellow Ogre who had shown great kindness to the village, coupled with the overwhelming aura Rin gave off, along with his respectful and friendly attitude toward the Ogres.

Rather than a conquest, it felt more like Rin and Ogerpon wanted to become a part of them.

"What conquest?" Shion blurted out. "Clearly, Rin-sama wants to protect us and lead us forward!"

"That's right." Shuna tugged on her brother's sleeve, her meaning obvious.

If they refused something so good, they'd be idiots.

"Please accept my loyalty, Rin-sama!"

Benimaru no longer hesitated. He placed his hands on the ground and swore, "I can't make decisions on behalf of the village, but I'm willing to follow you!"

He was only the young leader. The real clan leader was his father.

But so what?

As for whether the Ogres should submit to Rin, Benimaru had already chosen a side.

Besides, he didn't believe his father was so foolish that he couldn't see the situation clearly.

To receive the protection of Rin and Ogerpon, the only price to pay was the leader's seat.

"Welcome to be my companions."

After Rin finished speaking, he raised his hand. Four invisible oaths enveloped the four of them.

"Here, I bestow names upon you."

"Benimaru."

"Shion."

"Shuna."

"Souei."

Rin didn't change their names. He followed the original work faithfully.

On the other side, the four who had received names were stunned.

They had thought Rin's talk about "following" was only superficial, but who would have guessed, Rin had actually named them.

"Rin-sama!!!"

Though shocked, the four were also filled with worry.

Everyone knew that naming monsters consumed a tremendous amount of magicules, which was a heavy burden on the master.

"No need to worry."

"Carefully feel the changes in your bodies."

In Rin's view, magicules were like money.

Using Capturer, Rin began transforming the four into his true subordinates.

Benimaru's initial magicules were 7500, Shion's were 7000, Souei's 7200, and Shuna's slightly lower at 6500.

Since 50% of a subordinate's magicules would be returned to Rin, this meant he gained 14,100 magicules out of thin air.

Now, there were two prerequisites for naming monsters.

First, there had to be a fundamental difference in magicules between the namer and the named.

In the original story, Rimuru named the Storm Dragon because they had exchanged names and formed an equal soul-level contract.

That situation was different from normal monster naming.

Additionally, a single naming required enough magicules to allow the target to complete their evolution.

Meaning, to name Benimaru and the others, Rin had to raise each of their magicules above 10,000.

Only then could they evolve from the Ogre race into the Kijin race.

"10,800 magicules?"

However, since half of their increased magicules would flow back to Rin, the real cost was only 5400.

"Going by that, I actually profited 9000 magicules."

So, after this wave, Rin didn't lose magicules. He gained, increasing his total from 18,000 to around 27,000.

If over 10,000 magicules meant A-rank,

Then with nearly 30,000, both Rin and Ogerpon could already be considered mid-tier A-rank.

The advantage of recruiting monsters from the Cardinal World as subordinates was that Rin already knew their initial rank and magicule count.

Unlike Ogerpon, who had been like opening a blind box.

Only after bringing her to the Cardinal World did her talent and potential become clear.

Considering the possibility of traveling to more dangerous worlds next.

Rin wanted to strengthen his team as much as possible.

Now that Benimaru, Shuna, Shion, and Souei had become his subordinates, Rin would be able to take them to other worlds, just like Ogerpon.

Boom!!!

The commotion caused by the simultaneous evolution of four Ogres was even greater than Rin's earlier transformation.

Because no isolation barrier had been set up, the eruption of power immediately drew the attention of the Ogres led by the Red Ogre leader.

In an instant, countless Ogres rushed toward the wooden house where Rin was, quickly surrounding it.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 37: Evolution and Stats

This commotion?"

Hakurou's eyes grew serious. "A powerful magicule fluctuation, no mistake. Someone is evolving to a higher level!"

"It's an evolution?!"

The Red Ogre leader was stunned. He could sense the auras of Benimaru, Shuna, and the others within the surge of magicules.

If his perception wasn't mistaken, didn't that mean the ones evolving were them?!

"Everyone, calm down. Don't disturb Benimaru and the others."

Rin stepped out of the wooden house with Ogerpon and briefly explained what had happened inside to Hakurou and the others.

When he heard that Rin had willingly expended his own magicules to name Benimaru, Shuna, Shuna, and Souei, the Red Ogre leader's expression changed instantly.

"Thank you, Rin-sama!"

"Our Ogre village is willing to follow your lead and serve at your command!"

Once Benimaru and the others completed their evolution, they would become four new A-rank Kijin species.

The rise of the Ogres within the Great Jura Forest would be inevitable, and at a time like this, a powerful and wise leader was exactly what they needed.

Just as Benimaru and Shuna had anticipated, the Red Ogre leader chose to submit to Rin.

Not long after, as the magicule fluctuations gradually subsided, four figures stepped out of the wooden house in turn, none other than the newly evolved Benimaru and the others.

Just like in the original work, their appearances had undergone dramatic changes.

"Rin-sama!"

Benimaru and Souei dropped to one knee simultaneously, expressing their loyalty to Rin.

Shuna and Shion, as females, knelt on both knees and bowed gracefully to Rin, swearing their unwavering devotion.

Of course, such an oath had little actual meaning.

Not only had they already become Rin's subordinates and were unable to disobey his commands,

Even the naming system of the Cardinal World had its own effects, those who were named would naturally develop a dependence and loyalty toward the one who named them, much like the bond between a child and a parent.

This change was subtle.

For example, the way Shuna and Shion now looked at Rin was filled with closeness and affection.

It was completely different from the awe they'd shown before.

"Rise."

Rin allowed the four to stand, and at the same time, he used Dragon Eye to appraise their current status.

----

[Benimaru]
[Race: Ogre → Kijin]
[Magicules: A-rank (12000EP)]
[Magic: Battlewill, Mystic arts, Fire-Type Pokémon Magic]

[Extra Skills: Magic Perception, Spatial Motion, Flame Domination, Magic Flame Transformation]

[Unique Skill: Commander (Accelerated Thought, Mind Domination, Predictive Calculation, Army Morale Boost)]

[Special Skill: Magicules Solidification
Resistance: Status Ailment Nullification, Pain Nullification, Physical Attack Nullification, Natural Influence Resistance, Mental Attack Resistance, Holy-Demonic Attack Resistance.]

---

Benimaru's magicules weren't just 10,000. They were 12,000.

The additional 2,000 had nothing to do with Rin.

It was a reward granted by the Voice of the World after Benimaru completed his evolution, giving Rin an extra 1,000 magicules out of nowhere.

"Commander. So it really is this command-type Unique Skill."

The appearance of this Unique Skill proved Benimaru's potential. He had the makings of a Demon Lord Seed.

"Battlewill and Mystic arts must be inherited from the Ogre bloodline. They're combat-type magic techniques and special casting methods."

Almost all of the other abilities came from Rin, or were granted by Rin through naming and the Vassal System.

Magic Perception was common among monsters, nothing worth mentioning.

Spatial Motion seemed to have evolved from Traveler.

Based on Rin's connection with his vassals, most awakened abilities, excluding Unique Skills, could be mirrored one-to-one by Rin.

That's right, Rin now also possessed the extra skill Space Manipulation.

"Flame Domination and Magic Flame Transformation."

Rin remembered that in the original work, Benimaru had possessed similar abilities, obtained from the superior fire elemental spirit Rimuru had absorbed.

But Rin hadn't absorbed any fire spirit.

"Is it because of Explosion Magic?"

Benimaru already had fire-type sorcery, and his compatibility with Explosion Magic was unexpectedly high.

The combination of the two allowed Benimaru to awaken these two brand-new abilities.

"This extra skill, Flame Domination, is seriously strong."

Rin felt the feedback from the skill and understood its effects. "It's like my Explosion Magic. It ignites the magicules inside the body to unleash explosive power on par with a nuke."

However, unlike the long charge time of Explosion Magic, Flame Domination could control its output speed.

Short-duration fireballs. Long-duration compressed detonations.

With enough magicules, Benimaru would become a terrifying artillery unit, burning everything in his path for Rin.

"Magic Flame Transformation allows him to elementalize his body."

Its effect was similar to the Mera Mera no Mi from One Piece, except it could burn nearby matter and absorb it to replenish magicules.

Especially while in Magic Flame Transformation, combining it with Overlord's Flame turned Benimaru into something far beyond his pre-evolution self.

In the Cardinal World, magicules alone didn't determine combat power.

Benimaru's stats before evolution were very simple.

---

[Benimaru]
Race: Ogre
Magicules: B-rank (7500EP)
Magic: Battlewill, Mystic arts
Inherent Skills: Super Strength, Regeneration

---

No extra skills. No Unique Skills. At best, he relied on the passive inherent abilities of the Ogre race, living on the fringe of the forest.

With 7500 magicules, Benimaru's actual combat power could barely place him mid-tier among B-ranks.

"Magicules are the foundation, but skills are the true gap between the strong and the weak."

After receiving Rin's naming, Benimaru's combat strength was enough to annihilate tens of thousands of B-rank monsters.

Compared to his past self, he could take on a thousand versions of his old self without issue.

Not to mention the Unique Skill Commander, which allowed Benimaru to share some of his abilities with subordinates under his command, instantly boosting the entire army's combat effectiveness several levels.

"Very good."

Rin was quite pleased with Benimaru's abilities.

"Thank you for your recognition."

Benimaru bowed his head. His face remained composed, but inside, his heart was bursting with excitement.

The combination of naming and the Vassal Oath bound Benimaru, Shuna, and the others to Rin in body, heart, and soul.

Now nothing brought them more joy than Rin's approval.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 38: Father, Please Abdicate!

[Shion]
[Race: Ogre → Kijin]
[Magicules: A-rank (12000EP)]

[Magic: Battlewill, Mystic arts, Dark-type Pokémon Magic]

[Extra Skills: God of Combat Transformation, Magic Perception, Multilayer Barrier, Haki]

[Unique Skill: Tyrant (Accelerated Thought, Omnisense, Super Strength, Super-Speed Regeneration, Magic Destruction)]

[Special Skill: Magicules Solidification
Resistance: Omitted]

---

"God of Combat Transformation and Tyrant, huh?"

Shion's God of Combat Transformation was also a transformation-type ability.

However, unlike Benimaru's elementalization, hers amplified her physical body using constantly regenerating magicules. It was like an enhanced version of Magicules Solidification.

Though she couldn't elementalize, her strength, defense, vitality, and more would all receive a massive boost.

"Pure Berserker specialization."

If Benimaru was a battle mage, then Shion was a berserker, focusing on raw power.

Combined with Tyrant's Super Strength and Super-Speed Regeneration, on a one-on-one battlefield, she even surpassed Benimaru. Only Ogerpon was stronger.

---

[Souei]
[Race: Ogre → Kijin]
[Magicules: A-rank (12000EP)]

[Magic: Battlewill, Ghost-type Pokémon Magic]

[Extra Skills: Magic Perception, Shadow Motion, Spatial Motion, Body Double]

[Unique Skill: Shadow Striker (Accelerated Thought, Super Acceleration, One-Hit Kill, Concealment)

[Special Skill: Magicules Solidification]
[Resistance: Omitted]

---

In the original work, Souei served as Rimuru's shadow guard and ninja.

And now, after receiving Rin's naming, he had awakened the Unique Skill Shadow Striker, enhancing his assassination and stealth capabilities.

---

[Shuna]
[Race: Ogre → Kijin]
[Magicules: A-rank (12000EP)]
[Magic: Mystic arts, Elemental Magic, Illusion Magic, Fairy-type Pokémon Magic]

[Extra Skills: Magic Perception, Multilayer Barrier, Spatial Motion, Majesty]

[Unique Skills: Analyst (Accelerated Thought, Analysis Appraisal, Chant Annulment, Law Manipulation), Manufacturer (Material Transformation, Fusion, Separation)]

[Special Skill: Magicules Solidification]
[Resistance: Omitted]

---

"All of them received Magicules Solidification, allowing them to convert magicules into physical attributes."

"Benimaru is a battle mage, Shion is a berserker, Souei is an assassin, and Shuna is a mage."

What surprised Rin most was Shuna, who had awakened not just one, but two Unique Skills.

Analyst and Manufacturer—these were true god-tier abilities in the realm of magic. Their potential was no less than Rin's own Duplicator.

"All of them reached 12,000 magicules."

Which meant the four would provide Rin with a total of 24,000 magicules in feedback.

Subtracting the 5400 he'd used in naming them, Rin now had about 36,000 magicules remaining.

That number had even surpassed Ogerpon.

"So strong!"

"Young Master and the others became so strong!"

The surrounding Ogres looked at Benimaru, Shuna, and the rest with expressions full of admiration and envy.

The instinct to evolve was rooted deeply in monsters.

And the easiest way to achieve a higher form of life was to be named by a powerful being.

"Rin-sama~"

Before the Ogres could react further, Shion, who had already received Rin's permission, quickly stood up and threw herself into his arms.

"Eh?"

Rin suddenly felt something soft pressing against his arm.

"Rin-sama's scent! Mmm~ such a dreamy smell!"

Shion's movements were too fast. So fast, Rin didn't even have time to react.

But rather than feel threatened, Rin felt a natural sense of comfort and closeness. It was Shion's innate desire to be near him.

Rin was the master of Ogerpon and the others.

Subconsciously, vassals regarded Rin as their most important family member, someone they instinctively wanted to be close to.

Of course, male vassals like Benimaru and Souei wouldn't act like Shion.

"Ah~ Shion is so sneaky!"

"I wanna be with Rin-sama too!"

The pink-haired Ogre princess didn't hesitate to follow suit, clinging tightly to Rin's other arm.

"Ponii?"

Ogerpon tilted her head, unsure what was going on.

Luckily, Ogerpon wasn't the jealous type.

She looked at Shion, then at Shuna before silently throwing herself into Rin's embrace as well.

Rin's arms belong to Ogerpon!

"Cough, cough... okay, let go, let go a little…"

Rin struggled to free his hands from their embrace.

"Hmm?"

Rin noticed that the other Ogres seemed completely unbothered by Shion and Shuna's actions.

Well, this wasn't human society.

Monsters naturally revered power.

And Rin was the one who had personally named Shuna and Shion.

"Father, you've seen Rin-sama's generosity."

Benimaru directly addressed the Red Ogre leader. "Please entrust the Ogre Race's future to us!"

This was practically a forced abdication.

But in the end, the result was the same.

In the monster world, the strong ruled.

Benimaru's meaning was clear, he wanted his father to step down with dignity.

Souei, standing next to him, was carefully watching Hakurou to prevent any rash decisions from the old man.

Hakurou, of course, noticed. He looked deeply at Rin, then sighed with resignation. "Leader, since the Young Master has made his decision, what choice do we have?"

"Very well."

The Red Ogre leader had no attachment to power.

The Ogre village didn't even have that many people to begin with.

If this would make them stronger, he had no reason to refuse.

"Sorry, Father."

"No need to apologize."

The Red Ogre leader wasn't offended by his son's actions. In fact, he fully supported them. "You made the right choice."

He raised his hand and gestured for Benimaru to look at the other villagers.

"This is..."

Benimaru saw it. In the eyes of the Ogres, there was a burning desire for strength.

They didn't necessarily want to be named by Rin.

But if they could follow him and help the entire Ogre race rise, they might receive the Voice of the World's recognition.

And if that happened, all of them could evolve together.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 39: Ogre Race's Allegiance

"My Lord!"

Benimaru quickly reported the good news to Rin. "Father has decided to lead the Ogre village and pledge allegiance to you."

"You did well, Benimaru."

Rin had already heard the conversation between Benimaru and the Red Ogre leader. He smiled and said, "Actually, there's no need to be so nervous. I'm not a cruel person."

"I'm not great at managing a village."

"So, that task still falls to you."

To Benimaru's surprise, Rin then asked him to summon the Red Ogre leader and Hakurou, and bestowed names upon them. "From now on, Village Chief, you shall be called Akano. And Old Sword Master, you shall be called Hakurou."

Neither of them had expected Rin to grant them names.

And as a portion of Rin's magicules dispersed, surging waves of magical energy exploded from Akano and Hakurou's bodies.

Soon, like Benimaru and the others, the two completed their evolution from Ogre to Kijin.

However, perhaps due to their advanced age, their potential wasn't as great as Benimaru and the younger generation.

Although they had also evolved into the Kijin race, Akano and Hakurou did not awaken Unique Skills.

Still, their combat power was far from weak.

The extra skills inherited from Rin were all formidable and significantly enhanced their strength as monsters.

"Thank you for bestowing us with names!"

Akano's appearance was nearly identical to Benimaru's, just more composed and dignified. "Benimaru was right. Your generosity is truly astonishing!"

Everyone knew that bestowing names severely depleted the namer's strength.

Yet Rin still willingly shared his power.

First Benimaru and the other three, now even these two old men, Rin's sincerity and his respect for the Ogre race left them deeply moved.

"To think you would name an old man like me, already halfway in the grave."

Now evolved into a Kijin, Hakurou stroked his beard with a wise look. "You really are reckless."

"Please take care of yourself, Rin-sama."

"Don't worry. This little burden is nothing to me."

After bestowing names upon the two, Rin's magicules didn't drop.

Because both Hakurou and Akano had gone beyond the 10,000 threshold, increasing their magicules to 11,000.

After gaining several hundred more magicules, my current magicule count is 37,000.

Subtracting the basic 10,000 needed for an A-Rank, I still have 27,000 I can use to name more Ogres.

Rin planned to spend all of it enhancing the village's strength, evolving as many Ogres as possible.

When they heard that Rin still intended to bestow names upon more members of the village, Benimaru and the others were all shocked.

The four tried to dissuade him, hoping Rin would prioritize his own well-being and not make such a large sacrifice.

But there was no such thing as "scarcity breeds conflict" among monsters.

Monster communities functioned as one.

With Benimaru, Akano, and the other six evolving successfully, the overall power of the village had already taken a significant leap.

Their strength would naturally protect the rest of the village, helping it thrive further. That was a good thing for everyone.

This was completely different from Rin taking his named subordinates and leaving the village behind.

Leaving meant robbing the village of its core power.

Staying meant providing protection.

If Rin had a favorability system, his standing in the eyes of the Ogre race would have already reached worship.

Powerful. Generous. Benevolent.

How fortunate it was for the village to welcome such an exceptional leader.

"It's fine. My situation is a little different."

"Bestowing names on part of the Ogre village won't hurt me much."

Rin didn't bother to explain that he possessed the Unique Skill Leader, which caused those who were named or pledged as followers to return a portion of their magicules back to him.

This meant that the actual magicule cost for Rin was much lower than it appeared.

"But before that, there's one more thing I need you all to do."

Rin looked at the six before him and shared his next request, to gain the allegiance of the entire Ogre village.

"I'll gather everyone immediately!"

Hearing that all Rin wanted was a simple show of allegiance, Akano instantly stood up and began organizing the ceremony that would make Rin the village's true master.

Excellent!

Rin had calculated that getting the entire Ogre village to submit would generate at least 30,000 magicules.

Adding that to his current 37,000, Rin would have enough to reach Special A-Rank based on magicule quantity alone.

"Staying just below Special A-Rank. Letting this magicule sit idle isn't worth it."

Naming wasn't a waste of magicules. It was more like transforming them into a stored form elsewhere.

---

It's finally over!

The allegiance ceremony lasted from day to night.

Throughout the ritual, Rin wore a luxurious ceremonial robe and sat at the head, as families stepped forward in turn to swear fealty and offer their worship.

And one thing had to be said, the Ogre race was truly sincere and honest.

Originally, Rin had estimated that these ordinary villagers might return 1% of their magicules as feedback, which was already considered decent.

After all, to be officially recognized as a Follower under the Leader Unique Skill, they needed genuine loyalty from the heart.

In Rin's view, that was no easy task.

But the reality of the Ogre village exceeded his expectations. These big, fierce-looking warriors turned out to be soft-hearted.

Rin's earlier actions had completely won them over.

The amount of magicule feedback from the Ogre villagers basically hit the full 3% cap possible for Followers, even the Ogre children weren't exceptions.

Ogre children didn't have much magicules since they hadn't matured yet, averaging around C-Rank, or 4000 points.

The Ogre village's total population was 254. Twenty were away on missions, and another twenty or so had died in the Insect Monster disaster.

Whew~

Recalling the scene of the Ogre race's oath, Rin opened his status window.

[84000EP]

Nearly 85,000 magicules. Just seeing it gave him a deep sense of satisfaction.

"Benimaru, Souei, Shuna, Shion."

Rin looked at the four of them. "Have you selected the elites I should bestow names upon next?"

"We have!"

This time, Rin planned to use 64,000 magicules.

With the 15% feedback ratio for named subordinates, any Ogre with over 8,500 magicules would give back enough to result in zero loss to Rin.

But within the entire village, only Akano and Hakurou had crossed that threshold.

Even top talents like Benimaru, Souei, Shion, and Shuna had only started with 7000+.

So, Rin set the naming threshold at 6500 to 7000.

He had noticed that most young adult warriors in the village had just over 6000 magicules, putting them at early B-Rank.

In that sense, the Ogres, who relied mainly on brute force, didn't hold a very high ecological position among B-Ranks.

Ogres with over 6500 magicules were absolutely the best of the best in the village.

Rin assigned Benimaru and Souei 10 slots each. Their squads would be called the Red Corps and the Shadow Squad.

Benimaru's Red Corps would manage patrols and hunting missions by organizing and leading the rest of the village.

Souei's Shadow Squad was structured more like a ninja corps, specializing in reconnaissance and protection.

Shuna and Shion were each given 5 slots.

They planned to select elite female Ogres from the village to form their own groups: the Purple Corps and Miko Hime (Shrine Priestess).

The Purple Corps under Shion would serve as Rin's personal guards.

The Miko Hime under Shuna would be responsible for Rin's daily care, essentially becoming his exclusive maids.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 40: Changed Form

Bestowing names upon the thirty selected Ogres cost Rin over 50,000 magicules.

With the remaining 14,000, Rin, following the recommendations of Hakurou and Akano, bestowed names upon several of the village's special talents.

There were five of them: Oshiroibabā, an expert in medicine. Kurobe, a blacksmith who survived in the original story. Kinkaku (male), skilled in mathematics and calculations. Yukihime (female), who was highly knowledgeable. And lastly, Benihime, who, like Akano and Benimaru, came from the Red Ogre clan and had impressive confidence in her cooking.

[Itoshi Rin]
[Magicules: 26000EP]

Twenty-six thousand. That was the amount of magicules Rin had remaining after finishing the first batch of namings.

Less, but not small.

"My magicules haven't disappeared. They've just changed form to accompany me."

After establishing his presence in the village, Rin officially began reforms.

First was the village structure, shifting from the old employment model to one that emphasized autonomy and independence.

Then came the expansion of territory.

Every Ogre was basically a humanoid excavator. Even the children contributed to the construction.

"The center of the village will be the main square. From there, we divide it into four zones using a cross-grid layout."

In a quiet traditional courtyard, Rin sat beneath the eaves. Curled up in his lap like a small beast was a delicate, fairy-like girl—Ogerpon.

At the moment, Ogerpon had buried her head into Rin's chest, gently sniffing his scent and letting out a soft, contented murmur.

"Residential, labor, entertainment, and training zones."

"Shops will be built along the crossroads to create a shopping street."

As Rin gently patted Ogerpon's back to coax her to sleep, he calmly laid out his plans.

Swish, swish, swish.

Shuna wrote down Rin's instructions word for word. She listened attentively and occasionally asked important clarifying questions.

"Yes, yes, yes, I understand..."

Shion was also jotting things down on the side.

Rin peeked at what Shion was writing and saw she'd drawn a bunch of rectangles and squares.

As for the text...

Rin could only sigh, this was exactly what he expected from her.

Completely incomprehensible.

Thankfully, he had Shuna. Who had an exceptional talent for internal affairs and administrative work.

"The residential area is almost finished, but isn't it a bit too big?"

Following Rin's instructions, Shuna had the Ogres cut down part of the forest to build new homes.

The number of houses now far exceeded the village's actual population.

With fewer than 250 members, and even with the 30 out on missions, less than half of the houses would be used if distributed by headcount.

But this clearly wasn't the plan.

The Ogres operated in family units. With only about 80 households total, they didn't need that many houses.

"This is preparation for the future."

Rin was thinking of the village built by Rimuru in the original work. He intended to follow a similar model and subdue other monster races.

Doing so would not only bring Rin more magicule income, but also lay the groundwork for founding a nation.

If he wanted to become a Demon Lord, he couldn't walk that path alone.

He'd need ministers, armies, and citizens.

"What do you mean?"

"There aren't only Ogres in the Great Jura Forest."

Rin said, "Lizardmen, Goblins, Insect-type Monsters, Tengu, Orcs..."

"I need their power."

Shuna and the others were Rin's followers now, so he didn't need to hide such intentions.

"If I can get them all under my banner, even if each only provides 1% of their magicules, and the average is just 10 points, that's still millions."

When Shuna heard "millions," her face turned bright red. She looked like a new bride learning her husband's annual salary.

"1% is just the beginning."

Rin was confident. Under his people-first policies, the rate of magicule feedback from these monsters would definitely rise.

After all, this feedback model wasn't a one-time gain.

Once they became Rin's followers, recipients of his protection and dependents under his rule, every bit of growth on their part would provide Rin with a 1% to 3% increase in magicules.

When the timing was right, Rin would use his stored magicules to name them.

That way, the return rate would rise from 3% to 15%.

At first glance, it looked like a loss—Rin would be spending his own magicules to evolve others.

But when you thought about it, was it really a loss?

Take the Ogres as an example. Was 12,000EP the cap for evolved Benimaru or Shuna?

Obviously not.

They would continue growing stronger.

All future magicules gained after evolution would be profit, pure return on investment.

So for Rin, who possessed the Unique Skill Leader, naming wasn't wasteful. It was strategic investment.

Even though Leader is powerful, it has its limits.

During this time, Rin had more or less figured out the skill's ceiling.

Its upper limit is 1 million magicules. Anything more and Leader won't be able to affect it.

This was understandable.

Leader was just a Unique Skill. It was impossible for it to endlessly increase magicules without any restriction.

Fortunately, Rin could use his stored magicules to empower the monsters under his command.

As long as I use the magicules before reaching the 1 million mark, Leader will let me gather more.

This cycle not only empowered Rin, but also gave the named Monster races a massive leap forward.

That's why Rin didn't just avoid harming the intelligent races of the forest, he was giving them a better future.

You're all experience packs I treasure!

No killing required. Just make them submit and magicules will flow endlessly. Was there anything more delightful than this?

"Let me go, Rin-sama!"

Shion volunteered eagerly. "I'll beat them all into submission, one by one!"

"I already asked Souei and the Shadow Squad to investigate nearby territories."

Rin didn't plan to act so soon. "I'll make the call after they return with intel on the neighboring races."

"Ugh..."

Shion looked disappointed. She really wanted to go out and fight.

"Don't worry. When the time comes, you'll get your turn."

"Really?!"

Shion was easy to please.

This girl was a pure tomboy. In terms of IQ, she was about equal to Ogerpon, not the sharpest blade in the rack.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 41: Full-Level Adventurer

After wrapping things up in the Cardinal World, Rin brought Ogerpon back to the Konosuba World once more.

The reason for returning was to convert the newly acquired 100,000 units of magicules into several million experience points.

"One million experience should be enough to raise my level to 100."

Rin didn't know what the level cap was in the original novel's version of this world.

But in this real Konosuba World, the highest level an adventurer could reach was Level 100.

There was a hard cap for adventurers.

And reaching Level 100 was theoretically possible.

As for whether anyone had actually hit that ceiling...

When Rin asked Luna before, her answer was, "I've never heard of anyone hitting the limit."

So, unsurprisingly, Rin was about to become the one and only full-level adventurer in the Konosuba World.

[Experience Value Conversion Successful]

Rin looked at the magicules that hadn't decreased at all and the several million experience points that appeared out of thin air on his character card.

Without hesitation, he started leveling up.

The next moment, a massive amount of experience points were consumed, and in exchange, Rin gained an enormous amount of skill points.

This was the real reason he returned to the Konosuba World!

That's right, skill points!

Rin was planning to max out every skill he had learned.

"Explosion Magic? Add points!"

"Martial Artist job skills? Add points!"

"Resurrection? Add points, add points!"

Rin had far more skill points than he'd imagined.

As mentioned earlier, the skill points an adventurer gained when leveling up were tied to the job's class.

Meaning, the earlier one obtained an advanced job, the more skill points they'd have upon reaching the max level.

But Rin was even more absurd than that.

His situation was similar to Aqua's. This time, when he returned to the Konosuba World again, even though his level and attributes hadn't changed...

He still received a massive amount of skill points, granted by the rules of this world.

If Aqua was a goddess descending into this world, then Rin was a Demon Lord from another world!

"Huff~"

It took nearly fifteen minutes, but Rin finally maxed out all the skills he'd selected.

Even so, he still had plenty of skill points left.

"Whatever, I'll just hold onto them for now."

"Maybe I'll get the chance to copy more skills later."

Rin wasn't the type to hoard skill points.

The Konosuba World was only one of many. He had a sea of stars ahead of him, so there was no need to be stingy here.

Even if he missed out on some rare skills later, Rin wouldn't feel regret.

"But... I don't feel like I got much stronger."

He clenched his fist, quietly sensing the changes in his body.

"Maybe because I'm already too strong."

An A-rank upper-tier Monster, combined with the attribute boost from Magicules Solidification...

The stat increases from reaching Level 100 in Konosuba probably didn't even make up one percent of Rin's true attributes.

"Rin, you seem a little stronger than before."

"You noticed?"

"Mm."

Ogerpon gestured with her finger, "About this much."

"..."

Rin shrugged.

Ogerpon's descriptions were as abstract as always.

Luckily, he was used to it by now.

"Let me get used to it for a bit."

Rin treated this trip back to the Konosuba World as a mini vacation.

Here, he wasn't going to flaunt his overpowering strength.

"Let's see what Level 100 stats are like."

Rin used Appraisal on the adventurers he passed on the road, and used their data to build a new attribute system.

In the Konosuba World, each adventurer had different limits to their attributes.

Take Intelligence, for example.

When something like [Intelligence: 10 (max)] showed up, it meant that no matter how much that adventurer leveled up, their Intelligence would never increase again.

Because for that adventurer's potential, 10 was the maximum possible.

This was why, in the original series, Kazuma felt so frustrated seeing Aqua's maxed-out stats, yet her Intelligence was so low.

'So basically, no matter how much this person levels up, her Intelligence won't go up?'

Aqua's Intelligence was low and could never improve.

As expected of Aqua. The useless goddess lived up to her title.

Back to Rin.

All of Rin's attributes had reached the Konosuba World's limits without exception.

Not his personal limits, but the system's limit.

In numeric terms, that was 999.

This was the conclusion Rin reached after analyzing the data of all adventurers in Axel using his magicules perception.

Even Wiz, the secluded Lich, had max attributes that only hovered around 800.

Of course, Rin's strength, agility, and vitality couldn't be measured with a mere 999.

His true stats had long since exceeded the Konosuba system's framework.

"But in this world, it's best to keep power within the allowed range."

In other words, keep all visible stats at 999. As long as Rin didn't exceed that boundary, the world's will wouldn't reject him.

"Ogerpon, same goes for you."

Rin shared this upper limit with her. "Keep your strength within 999, got it?"

"Mm-hmm!"

Ogerpon nodded obediently.

"Oh, right, Rin."

Ogerpon tugged at his sleeve and asked, "Now that our level's gone up and we've used our skill points, are we heading back?"

To avoid causing a stir, Ogerpon had returned to her Spirit Space form.

She didn't mind it.

In fact, that form was more comfortable than her human girl form.

"No need to rush."

Rin gently patted her head with a smile. "You've worked hard helping the Ogre Tribe build up their infrastructure."

"Ogerpon doesn't mind hard work!"

"I know, I know."

He gently stroked her head again. "But you still need to rest."

"Don't you think this world is great for relaxing and taking it easy?"

Rin originally came to level up and assign his points.

Now that his goal was complete, he could have returned immediately.

But he didn't want to.

"We'll stay here for a couple of days and properly enjoy ourselves."

Ogerpon immediately agreed to his proposal.

She really liked the Konosuba World.

There was delicious food, the people at the guild were kind, and they all played with her.

The little one loved this world's warm atmosphere.

"Come on, let's stop by the guild first!"

Rin wasn't short on money. Now that he was max level, there was even less need to accept quests.

The Konosuba World was like a resort for Rin now.

No scheming, no life-and-death battles.

Just a bunch of ridiculous adventurers and a useless goddess dragged down to earth by mortals.

"Huff! Huff~"

"What, haven't you eaten? Hurry up and carry the stuff!"

While walking along the road, Rin and Ogerpon passed by a spot where some people were taking a break.

They instinctively looked toward the noise.

A young man in a white short-sleeved shirt and green sweatpants was sweating like crazy, struggling to keep up with a group of shirtless strongmen.

"This really is..."

Rin paused instinctively. "A famous scene."

"What's wrong, Rin?"

Ogerpon followed his gaze and noticed Kazuma Satō. "Is there something up with that young man? Why are you looking at him like that?"

"Do you know him, Rin?"

"No."

Rin replied, "This is my first time seeing him."

"But I know of him."

Just as he was talking, Ogerpon pointed at a blue-haired girl sitting on a wall, laying bricks with cement. "That one! I think she's..."

Ogerpon remembered!

She was the girl who called herself a goddess when they first crossed over!

Ogerpon didn't really understand what a goddess was.

But judging by the title, it sounded super powerful.

So why was someone like that laying bricks here?

Was she also here to take a break like Ogerpon?

(To be continued.)

Chapter 42: Darkness

"Rin, Rin, isn't she the one from before…"

"It should be her, yes."

Although Rin often joked in private about Aqua being a useless goddess, he didn't actually dislike her.

In fact, when he first arrived in the Konosuba World, he had even obtained the Duplicator ability, an overpowered skill, from her.

"Is Rin going to make her our companion too?"

Seeing Rin staring at Aqua, Ogerpon seemed to get an idea.

"Huh?"

Rin was first stunned, then looked at Ogerpon with a horrified expression. "No, Ogerpon, how could you have such a terrifying thought?"

"Po?"

Ogerpon tilted her head, her eyes filled with vacant innocence.

She didn't quite understand what was so terrifying about her suggestion.

"Ogerpon, you must never get too close to Aqua!"

Gratitude was one thing, and in the Konosuba World, Rin would naturally look after Aqua.

But turning Aqua into a familiar…

Leaving aside whether he could even capture her as a goddess, just imagining the consequences of Aqua joining his group made Rin's scalp tingle.

One had to understand, this girl wasn't just a simple troublemaker.

If Aqua joined the team, Rin truly feared his budding enterprise would be thrown into complete chaos.

Therefore,

Rin: Stupidity stops here. Idiots disperse. Morons get out.

"So scary!!"

Ogerpon didn't understand, but since Rin said so, it had to be true.

Thus, the already not-so-bright Ogerpon began trembling in fear upon hearing that Aqua could lower people's intelligence.

"Ahem."

Rin took Ogerpon's hand and said, "Let's avoid her for now."

"She's still a goddess from the heavens. If her acquaintances saw her like this, she'd be socially dead."

Rin wasn't planning to interact with the two of them, so he could only pretend not to see them and head straight to the guild.

"Huh?"

"Is that Rin-san and Ogerpon?"

As soon as Rin stepped inside, Luna noticed him.

The golden-haired beauty with an impressive figure walked over and asked with concern, "It's been a while since we last met. Did you leave Axel?"

"Yes, I accepted a private commission and went to a rather distant place."

When Rin traveled between worlds, the flow of time in each remained synchronized.

This time, after leaving the Konosuba World, Rin had stayed in the Cardinal World for about a week.

Naturally, seven days had also passed in the Konosuba World.

"Yo! Rin!"

"Long time no see!"

"Haha, it's good to see you still so energetic!"

After the last banquet, most of the adventurers in the guild were familiar with Rin.

For men, drinking together once meant you were friends.

Not to mention Rin had single-handedly out-drunk the entire group.

Just based on his drinking ability, Rin was already recognized as a powerhouse.

"I'm a bit low on cash right now, so if you're trying to trick me into treating you, forget it."

"How could we make you pay every time?"

"Yeah, yeah, we're not that shameless!"

They were telling the truth. Everyone was already more than happy that Rin had treated them once and could feel his friendliness.

You shouldn't be too greedy. Contentment was enough.

"Two sets of the guild's signature meal."

"Three puddings and three creamy ice creams."

"And sparkling wine."

"Alright, please wait a moment."

After ordering from the waitress, Rin led Ogerpon to a window seat in the corner.

He scanned the guild hall, looking for professions and skills he hadn't seen last time.

Not long after they sat down, a figure in armor caught Rin's eye.

Her dazzling golden hair was pinned with a hairpin. She was tall and curvaceous, with emerald green eyes as calm as water, yet carrying a trace of coldness, perfectly fitting the image of a cold and proud Knight Princess.

'This girl, could she be…?'

Rin didn't even need to guess. Her attire was exactly like in the anime. 'Darkness?'

Darkness, one of the Konosuba heroines, was the MT in Kazuma's party. Her attacks never landed, but her defense and HP were absurdly high.

On top of that, she was a massive masochist.

"First it was Kazuma and Aqua, now it's Darkness."

"Just missing Megumin, and the original four will be complete."

Even though he had spotted another character from the original series, Rin had no intention of striking up a conversation.

Not because he disliked Darkness.

In fact, compared to the brainless Aqua and the chuunibyou Megumin, Darkness's problem was only her perversion.

A Knight with a bit of "perverted" tendencies was still relatively normal, right?

At least in the anime, Rin had never seen Darkness throw herself at anyone other than Kazuma.

All in all, if he could train Darkness to be a masochist who only responded to him, Rin thought it could be quite entertaining.

"What a pity."

"Po?"

Ogerpon tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what Rin was lamenting.

"What I mean is, there are only so many Familia slots, and I can't just waste them."

Rin explained, "Even if I meet a character I like, I have to first determine if they have real value."

Compared to protagonists who could casually bring girls across worlds, Rin's Traveler ability was honestly a bit underwhelming.

Even if he wanted to take Darkness along, he would first have to turn her into a Familia.

But here was the problem.

Familia slots were limited, and using one on Darkness was clearly not cost-effective.

'So, I'm sorry, my XP.'

Without any spare slots, Rin could only silently apologize to his desires.

However, Rin not planning to provoke Darkness didn't mean she would ignore his presence.

The girl who had just been talking to Luna suddenly shifted her gaze toward Rin and Ogerpon.

"!!!"

In the next moment, Rin and Darkness's eyes met.

"Uh…"

Caught in the act of looking, Rin felt a little embarrassed.

But before he could look away, he saw a look of surprise flash across Darkness's eyes.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 43: Request

"What's going on? Is she looking for me?"

Rin didn't remember ever having any interaction with Darkness.

"H-hello, are you Mr. Rin?"

Darkness stood beside the table, keeping a polite distance. "I am Darkness, a Crusader."

"Oh, hello."

Rin pretended not to know her and asked, "May I ask if you need something from me?"

"Th-that, p-p-please, please allow me to join your party!"

"Sorry, I refuse!"

"Huh?!"

Darkness did not expect such a sudden refusal and was momentarily stunned.

"Why?!!!"

"I, I am a high-level profession, and I saw how bloody and sticky you all were before…"

"Ugh! What on earth happened to end up like that."

"Just thinking that I might also become like that, I just, just…"

Watching the female Knight, who had just been cold and proud, suddenly become teary-eyed, flushed, and squirming, the beef Ogerpon was holding with her chopsticks fell onto the table.

'This big sister is so scary!!'

Ogerpon's danger radar was flashing nonstop.

She looked at Rin, only to see he seemed to have anticipated this scene all along.

'As expected of Rin!'

Indeed, her Rin could remain calm no matter what.

'Hmm.'

Ogerpon chose to shut off her brain entirely, leaving all thinking to Rin.

"Well, calm down first."

Rin had Darkness sit down, then ordered her a glass of iced fruit juice.

"Thank you."

Soon, the juice was brought to Darkness. She politely thanked him first, then looked at Rin expectantly. "I am very confident in my arm strength and stamina, but my hands and feet are not very agile."

"Although my attacks completely miss enemies, if I'm just used as a shield, you don't have to care about my feelings at all, just use me however you like!"

"It's fine even if I break!"

In fact, the thought of being broken made Darkness short of breath, every cell in her body trembling with excitement.

"Well, calm down first."

Rin gestured for Darkness to drink some juice and calm down.

"My situation is rather special. My party doesn't actually lack a vanguard."

Rejected again, Darkness not only didn't feel discouraged, she seemed pleased.

"However…"

Rin thought for a moment.

He had to admit, Darkness was very beautiful.

Golden hair, emerald eyes, an impressive figure, and a noble temperament.

As long as she didn't speak or show her perverted tendencies.

Moreover, Darkness was different from Aqua or Megumin.

The former was too reckless and prone to causing trouble.

Megumin's obsession with casting Explosion Magic once a day was something Rin had no interest in managing.

Rin knew a bit about Darkness.

Her real name was Dustiness Ford Lalatina, the daughter of the Dustiness family, a prestigious noble house of the Belzerg Kingdom.

Darkness lost her mother when she was very young, so young that she didn't even remember her face.

Being an only child and lacking maternal love, her father Ignis spoiled her without much discipline, which ironically made her crave discipline, ultimately turning her into a hopeless masochist.

In other words, what Darkness wanted was strict discipline.

That was far too easy for Rin.

"Alright, I agree to your joining."

Rin had his own reasons for letting Darkness join.

First, he didn't plan to use a Familia slot to turn her into a Familia right now.

He also wanted to test if there was a way to bring people to the Cardinal World without a Familia contract.

Darkness was a good candidate.

As for forming a party in the Konosuba World…

Rin had decided to roleplay as a Level 100 Martial Artist here.

As long as his secrets didn't go beyond that, he could reveal them to Darkness without worry, and there was no danger of leaking information about other worlds.

"Really?!"

Darkness hadn't expected Rin to accept her.

She didn't think Rin was unaware of her eccentricities.

"So, so, so, so, so, are you willing to discipline me?"

"No, no problem."

"No matter what kind of perverted request, I, I will persevere and show you!!"

"..."

Rin somewhat regretted agreeing to let her join.

She spoke too loudly.

Didn't she notice the surrounding adventurers were already looking over?

Hey, hey, hey.

What was with those looks?

He wasn't some pervert who enjoyed bullying Knight Princesses.

However, this told Rin one thing.

Almost no adventurers knew about Darkness's fetish.

Clearly, this was her first time exposing her eccentricities in public.

Normally, although she was a clumsy idiot who couldn't hit monsters, her public image was still positive.

"Ahem, well, we are friends."

Rin nudged Darkness, hinting for her to explain.

Fortunately, Darkness didn't make things awkward. She directly stated that she had joined Rin's party, then apologized for speaking too loudly.

"What, so it's a game for a young couple."

"As expected of Rin, he managed to win over the aloof Knight Princess as soon as he arrived."

"Darkness… I hope Rin can handle her."

"What, what? Is there gossip?"

"Ah, no, it's just that when I teamed up with Darkness before, she was clumsy and couldn't hit monsters at all."

After learning it wasn't a conflict between Darkness and Rin, everyone turned back to their own business.

"It seems I need to make some rules with you first."

Rin said, "Unless you agree, I will not accept your joining."

"Is, is it starting already?"

"You're going to do this and that, and that and this to me."

Darkness grew more and more excited, but Rin quickly raised his hand to interrupt. "Wait, wait, calm down first."

"I agree!"

Darkness said, "As long as I can be your teammate, I'll do anything!"

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 44: Conditions

Rin sighed, then looked at Ogerpon, who was already staring blankly beside him. "Ogerpon, don't learn from her, got it?"

"Poniii!"

Ogerpon nodded seriously.

"First, I agree to you joining the party, and I can also understand your strange habit."

"Strange, strange or whatever, ahn~"

It was a very ordinary word, but when Rin said it so calmly, Darkness felt as if she was being treated like an insect.

That forcibly suppressed her excitement, making her think her choice had indeed been correct.

As long as she stayed by this man's side, she would definitely feel more pleasure!

"Although I can't understand, but..."

"Forget it."

Rin rubbed his forehead helplessly, then continued, "First, you can only accept discipline from me. If you start showing that side of yourself to others, I will punish you."

He stopped pretending and laid his cards on the table.

Since Darkness had come to him, Rin wasn't going to let go of such a beautiful girl.

It was just that Rin was selfish. He would never allow Darkness to…

"I understand, I will be obedient."

"This, this is my first time, my first time telling someone these things. I've always hidden it very well before."

Darkness had already made ample preparations.

So she didn't feel there was anything wrong with Rin saying such words so seriously.

Yes, just like this!

Treat her as a hopeless case and discipline her without holding back!

"Second!"

Considering his own circumstances, Rin said, "Ogerpon and I usually have our own things to do, and we will only stay here two days a week."

Coming to the Konosuba World to relax every seven days, that was Rin's plan.

"As for the remaining days, you can act freely."

"I only have one true request, and as I said earlier, you are not allowed to expose your true nature in front of others."

At this point, Rin released a trace of majesty toward Darkness.

In an instant, she felt an unimaginable sense of oppression.

Her pupils constricted slightly, and the scene before her blurred.

The Rin who had been sitting beside her transformed from a harmless young man into a bottomless abyss.

Of course, this pressure didn't make Darkness feel fear.

On the contrary, it made her even more excited!

"I understand."

Darkness felt Rin's request was entirely reasonable.

Since she wanted the other party to discipline her, she could only recognize one master.

This was different from the Darkness in the original work.

Perhaps because Rin was too strong, she began to accept this wonderful persona of being aloof on the surface and wanton in private.

"Ahem!"

Seeing Darkness lost in her own imagination, Rin felt a pang in his chest.

'I mean, I clearly released such strong pressure.'

'Why aren't you afraid, but instead getting more excited, what the hell is that?'

He had thought Darkness's physical and magical resistance would be very high.

But this terrifying mental resistance made Rin overturn his earlier judgment that her potential was limited.

'With this willpower.'

Rin felt that if Darkness could go to the Cardinal World, the probability of her becoming an Awakened Hero or Awakened Saint would be very high.

"Third, and the last request."

"Our relationship will only be maintained in private. Normally, we are still teammates."

Rin didn't actually want to turn Darkness into some kind of submissive servant.

For such things, he wouldn't refuse to play around as a hobby.

But to truly treat Darkness as less than human, Rin couldn't do that.

"This..."

Darkness didn't expect Rin to make such a request.

Her restless heart calmed in that instant.

"Rin, you are a good person."

If she had been wary of him before...

Even if she acknowledged that kind of relationship, at a critical moment Darkness would still refuse without hesitation.

She only liked being disciplined, but she wasn't truly promiscuous.

Darkness would never give up her most important chastity.

At this moment, she developed a slight fondness for Rin.

And as that fondness grew, she might truly turn the fake into reality and surrender herself completely to him.

"You can keep the 'good person' card."

Rin placed a pile of eris coins on the table, then motioned to Ogerpon and Darkness.

"Let's go, Ogerpon."

"And Darkness."

Rin stood and led the two out of the guild. "Let's talk somewhere else."

"Poniii!"

"Okay, I, I'm ready!"

"..."

The corner of Rin's mouth twitched slightly. He knew without asking that she must have thought he was taking her to a hotel.

"Forget it, as long as you like it."

Rin ignored her imagination, leading the two out of the guild and straight to Axel's real estate agency.

"This is?"

Seeing the signboard, Darkness asked, "Rin, are you going to buy a house?"

"Hm, pretty much."

Rin had agreed with Darkness.

Normally, they were proper teammates.

Only when Darkness needed it would she call him Rin-sama.

Then, Rin would become the strictest master and discipline her severely.

But now was clearly not the time for such things.

"Staying in an inn all the time is too much of a loss."

Rin said, "So I plan to buy a villa in Axel."

Yes, a villa.

Rin wouldn't settle for an ordinary house.

He had plenty of money.

Even without taking quests, just by reselling materials from the Cardinal World, Rin could live more lavishly than a king.

Adventuring, at most, was like fishing—a hobby.

"I don't know much about this."

Rin said, "Can you help me with it, Darkness?"

"No problem, leave it to me!"

Darkness came from a noble family and was quite knowledgeable about such matters.

So, accompanied by her, Rin and his companions visited several properties.

Ultimately, they settled on a villa spanning several thousand square meters, featuring a main building, two side buildings, and a massive courtyard.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 45: Satou Kazuma

"From now on, this will be our base in Axel."

With this villa, Rin could bring Shuna and Shion along next time he came.

"Poniii!!!"

Ogerpon didn't quite understand, but if Rin was happy, she was happy.

Darkness, however, was indifferent.

She came from a noble family, her family's estate was countless times larger than this.

Still, Darkness was somewhat curious about Rin's identity.

Such a large villa would cost at least tens of millions of eris.

Yet Rin bought it without hesitation.

His attitude of not caring about money at all made Darkness guess that he, like her, was a child from a prominent family experiencing life outside.

"Darkness, feel free to pick a room."

"Ah?"

Darkness had intended to say she had a place to stay at the inn.

But wasn't the current situation precisely the play she most desired?

"Are you, are you already impatient to humiliate my body?"

Darkness thought of Rin's command.

She carefully observed, only they were around, no one else.

So...

"Alright, I understand."

Darkness's breathing quickened. "Anyway, even if I refuse, you will definitely force me to stay here."

"..."

Rin and Ogerpon exchanged a glance.

Fortunately, both of them were already accustomed to Darkness's strange hobbies.

"So now..."

Rin slowly raised his hand, then brought it down sharply.

The next moment, a crisp smack echoed through the villa's courtyard, accompanied by a girl's low moan, a mix of pain and a hint of excitement.

"Your room is right next to mine."

"I, I understand."

Darkness nodded obediently, not daring to resist Rin's arrangement in the slightest.

According to the rules, from now on, Darkness was Rin's "possession," and the latter could do whatever he pleased with her.

Rin naturally wouldn't truly do anything excessive.

At most, he would strictly discipline Darkness, allowing her to experience the novel sensation of being humiliated.

"Ponooo..."

Ogerpon didn't know how to react.

To be honest, Darkness's appearance had indeed opened Ogerpon's eyes.

In this world, there were actually people who enjoyed being abused.

Ogerpon truly couldn't understand.

---

Meanwhile, at a construction site in Axel, the exhausted Kazuma and Aqua finally finished their day's bricklaying.

"Alright! Everyone worked hard!"

"That's it for today!"

The foreman handed out salaries to everyone. "Here, this is today's daily wage."

"Thank you."

"Foreman, you worked hard too!"

"Good work!"

As the foreman announced the end of work, Kazuma Satou and Aqua received their wages and bowed in greeting.

"Well, everyone, we're off!"

"Oh, good work! We'll count on you tomorrow too."

Kazuma greeted his senior workers, and Aqua followed suit.

Listening to their seniors' voices, the two left the construction site.

"Ah, ah, I worked all day again today."

Kazuma couldn't imagine that he, who worked so diligently, was a shut-in NEET just recently.

Clutching their day's wages, the two headed to the public bathhouse in town.

The public bathhouse was almost identical to a Japanese sento.

Converted at an average salary, the bathing fee here was more expensive than in Japan, but after work, one simply had to take a bath, and even if it was a bit pricey, they couldn't give it up.

"Ah~ I'm alive again~"

Kazuma submerged himself in the hot bath up to his shoulders, leisurely relieving the fatigue of work.

Since this place looked like a medieval setting, Kazuma had initially thought bathing in another world would be a luxury, but it seemed that was just his unilateral preconception.

"Thank you, thank you."

Muttering gratefully, Kazuma left the bath and walked out, just in time to see Aqua waiting for him at the bathhouse entrance.

"What do we eat today?"

Aqua had no self-awareness as a goddess whatsoever and was already enjoying her current life. "I want smoked lizard hamburger steak, and ice-cold Crimson Neroid!"

"I want meat too."

Kazuma said, "Then, let's go to the Guild and order two sets of smoked lizard hamburger steak meals."

"Agreed!"

Aqua raised both hands in agreement. "And sparkling wine! A hamburger steak without sparkling wine has no soul!"

For the past week, the two had been working on the expansion of the town's outer wall.

In other words, they were civil engineering laborers.

This was far from the adventurer's work Kazuma wanted to pursue in this world.

'No, why has Aqua adapted to this life without even the slightest question?'

'You're a goddess, aren't you?'

As if Aqua heard his inner thoughts, she said matter-of-factly, "Why, if you don't work, you don't eat, right?"

"You don't like working, do you? Honestly, shut-in NEETs are always so picky."

"In principle, there's also sales work in the shopping district you can do!"

"No! That's not it!"

Kazuma was speechless at Aqua, who said these things so earnestly. "How should I put it, what I'm looking for is that kind of thrilling combat against monsters! That kind of life!"

"Besides, where in this world is it being invaded by a Demon King or in crisis?"

"It's so peaceful, I haven't even seen the word 'Demon' from 'Demon King,' hey!"

This was what Kazuma wanted to complain about the most, Axel was as peaceful as a fairy tale's fantasy land.

The two chatted as they arrived at the Adventurers Guild.

As soon as they entered, they heard loud cheers coming from inside.

"Long live Rin!!"

"Long live sparkling wine!!"

"Rin! Rin! Rin!!"

"..."

Soon, Aqua learned about the current situation from others.

"A rich patron booked the place?"

"Sparkling wine is free-flowing, and everyone gets to order one set meal?"

"Ah!!!"

"Hooray!"

"Long live Rin!!"

With such exciting news, Aqua couldn't hold back. She immediately pulled out her fan and cast her banquet magic.

"Oh, oh, oh!"

This made the scene even livelier.

As for why Rin was throwing money around again...

It was, of course, because he was happy!

Recruiting Darkness and buying a new house, how could he not celebrate?

Anyway, Rin had plenty of money in the Konosuba World.

Let alone booking the place once, if Rin wanted to, he could easily buy the entire Axel.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 46: Opening the Door to a New World

"What is it?"

"Are there adventurers like that in the Guild?"

Kazuma was stunned. Still moving bricks at the construction site, he couldn't imagine how much it would cost to reserve the entire Guild.

But what did it matter?

He was the one being treated, after all.

"Please give me the most luxurious set meal!!"

Kazuma had no integrity whatsoever.

"Rin! Rin! Rin!"

Even though Kazuma didn't know who Rin was, it didn't stop him from cheering.

As for Aqua...

You couldn't expect an idiot to remember Rin's name.

And Rin didn't linger, avoiding an encounter with Aqua.

Over the next two days, Rin thoroughly satisfied Darkness's various twisted demands, playing every possible scenario without missing a single one.

"Can't I go with you?"

That morning, Darkness looked at the two who were temporarily bidding her farewell, curious about their destination.

"Not yet."

This time, Rin had essentially fulfilled Darkness's needs.

At least during Rin's absence, she would be able to maintain her image as a cool, aloof female knight and wouldn't dwell on her masochistic desires.

Well, to some extent, Darkness needed some time to digest the immense stimulation Rin had given her.

Additionally, over these two days, Rin and Darkness's relationship had grown much closer.

Now, suddenly hearing that Rin was leaving and not taking her, Darkness panicked a little.

'Am I going to be abandoned again?'

'That's right, I'm so useless. I can't give Rin any help, I'll only drag him down...'

"What are you thinking!"

Rin flicked Darkness's forehead, interrupting her spiral. "Ogerpon and I are leaving for something. How should I put it? You can say we're going to collect a debt."

"Collect a debt?"

Darkness said, "Like collecting rent?"

"Something like that."

Rin described himself as a landlord with a vast amount of land, needing to check on it periodically.

This was also why he could only be an adventurer two days a week.

"I see!"

Darkness wasn't stupid, she knew Rin was humoring her.

But what did it matter?

What Darkness wanted was Rin's attitude.

His willingness to explain to her showed that he hadn't abandoned her.

They were still teammates.

"These next few days, Darkness, you can do your own thing."

Rin tossed a set of keys to Darkness. "Also, please help me look after this place."

"Okay."

Darkness nodded, then watched the two walk away.

As for herself...

Darkness decided to go find Chris, who was Eris's human form, the adventurer with the thief profession.

They were very good friends.

If Darkness suggested teaming up, Chris would certainly not refuse.

Coincidentally, Chris, like Rin, would disappear periodically, making long-term team-ups impossible.

Thus, when Rin left, Darkness would team up with Chris.

When Chris left, Darkness only needed to rest for a day or two, and then she could team up with Rin again.

Being able to adventure with her friend, satisfy her preferences, and have two days to rest.

This kind of life was simply wonderful, wasn't it?!

"Are you ready, Ogerpon?"

"Poniii!"

Rin and Ogerpon were unaware of Darkness's thoughts. The two had already used the Traveler ability to return to the Cardinal World.

"Rin-sama!"

As soon as they returned, Shuna, who sensed their aura, rushed in. "And Ogerpon! You're finally back!"

"Pon-yo um..."

Held in Shion's arms, especially feeling the weight from above her head, Ogerpon had a look of utter despair.

"You're back?"

Shuna was a step slower than Shion. She wasn't as idle as the latter and had a lot of work on weekdays.

"Ah."

Rin nodded. "Anything happen in the village these past two days while I was gone?"

"No, the village is very stable."

Shuna reported, "Everyone's strength is steadily improving, and they are diligently executing the expansion plan you set out."

"Mm."

"You've all worked hard."

Returning from the Konosuba World, Rin had no intention of resting.

On the contrary, he was already prepared to open the door to a new world.

The reason for the long interval was mainly to consolidate the significant power Rin had gained during this period.

While a new world was indeed intriguing, Rin understood the principle of not biting off more than one could chew.

Introducing a new system hastily without fully grasping his own power would only make Rin's future plans chaotic.

He needed a clear path for advancement, not aimless wandering.

And after this period of settling, Rin felt he had a thorough understanding of the power he possessed. It was time to embark on a new adventure.

Of course, due to cooldown, the next travel time was set for two days later.

And this time, Rin planned to take Shuna and Shion with him.

[Traveler (Cooldown: 0:59)]

"Almost there."

As time reached the third day, Rin looked at the one-minute countdown on the skill, then at the two girls. "This time, I plan to take Ogerpon, and you two, with me."

"Really?"

"That's great!!"

Shion couldn't hide her emotions. Hearing that Rin planned to take her, she jumped up with joy.

And with that movement, the full fruits in front of her instantly caught Rin's attention.

"Cough!"

Rin coughed, then averted his gaze.

Shuna naturally noticed Rin's gaze.

This made her secretly grit her teeth, complaining about Shion's body, wondering why it was so vulgar.

Everyone was an ogre, so why was she only small and cute?

"My brother and Souei, aren't you planning to take them too?"

Shuna said, "For a new world, wouldn't it be unsafe with just Shion?"

"Isn't Ogerpon there too?"

Shion had grown stronger, but she still respected Ogerpon, regarding her as Rin's top general and her own big sister.

Well, in terms of age, there was actually no problem with this.

Ogerpon had lived for hundreds of years in the Pokémon World.

In terms of age alone, she might even be older than Rin, so Shion calling her "big sister" was well-deserved.

"I'll have to trouble Ogerpon again."

Rin stroked Ogerpon's small head, helping to smooth her messy hair and putting on her hood.

"Mm!"

Ogerpon raised her hand, energetically shouting, "Ogerpon will beat up all of Rin's enemies!"

"I will also protect Rin-sama!"

"Me too!"

Shuna and Shion also refused to be outdone.

Rin's Traveler ability couldn't carry people across worlds.

However, in the Traveler's judgment, dependents were not outsiders, but a part of Rin's power.

As long as Rin wished, he could actually bring five A-rank or higher combatants with him to explore other worlds.

"Are all the things ready?"

"Already checked!"

To be able to travel between worlds at any time, Rin always kept a large amount of supplies in his Sprit Space.

"Mm, that's good then."

Using the dependent connection, Rin informed Benimaru and Souei that he would be leaving for a while, asking them to manage the village well.

"Yes, Rin-sama!"

"Please rest assured, Rin-sama."

Souei and Benimaru replied to Rin almost simultaneously.

They were already accustomed to Rin's occasional departures.

This time was no different, some dependents went out, some stayed, and everyone performed their duties.

Additionally, Benimaru secretly contacted his sister Shuna, instructing her to take good care of Rin and not let their master suffer outside.

"Leave it to me, Brother!"

Shuna was meticulous, not only Rin, but also Ogerpon and Shion were under her care, making her practically Rin's grand steward and head maid.

Thus, with the activation of the Traveler ability, the figures of the four disappeared before Benimaru and the other ogres.

The four only felt a blur before their eyes.

By the time they reacted, what greeted their sight was a biting cold wind and an endless expanse of the extreme northern ice plain.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 47: The Fragile World

"What's going on?"

"Where did this send me?"

As space rippled, the moment Rin landed, he felt a cold wind assault his face.

"Whoosh~ Whoosh~"

Heavy snow fell, and the world seemed to be nothing but white. Gusts of wind whipped up snowflakes, sweeping like white tidal waves.

In the distance, colossal ice mountains stood like ancient castles, majestically towering over the vast snowy plains.

They shimmered with dazzling light under the sunlight, yet the shadows of the ice mountains were deep and cold, evoking a sense of profound mystery.

[Travel completed]

[Beginning rule parsing...]

The Voice of the World echoed in Rin's ears. This was the first time he had encountered such a situation.

'Rule parsing?'

Rin understood. This crossing was not a true body descent, nor was it like the queue-jumping in the Konosuba World.

"Pon-yo?"

Ogerpon looked left and right, clutching her Ivy Cudgel, ready to guard against any potential danger.

"The temperature here is so low."

With Rin at the center, Ogerpon stood in front, while Shion and Shuna stood behind their master.

"But it's strange, why does my body feel so light?"

Shion lightly leaped, and then her entire body, like a human on the moon, bounced hundreds of meters into the air.

Rin and the others only heard a tremor beneath their feet.

Looking at Shion again, the ground where she had stood was now a massive crater, like an impact site, and Rin and the other two were now at the bottom of this collapsed pit.

Undoubtedly, this was the result of Shion's single jump.

"What's wrong with this world?"

Shion was also startled by the commotion she caused. She instantly became cautious, fearing she might step into another large pit. "Is the ground here made of biscuits?"

"The rules of this world are a bit off."

Soon, Rin also discovered the problem. He bent down and picked up a frozen stone by his foot.

"Crack!"

Effortlessly, the stone crumbled into dust in Rin's hand. "Even matter is too fragile!"

"Shion, Ogerpon!"

Rin seemed to realize something and quickly instructed, "Control your strength. This world is far weaker than the Cardinal World!"

"Every move you make could cause unimaginable destruction to this world."

Because there was no comparison or testing, Rin was unsure of the exact difference between the two worlds.

But just the ground beneath their feet gave them the feeling that with just a little more force, they could shatter it into pieces.

"I will be careful."

"Poniii!"

Shion and Ogerpon immediately became extremely cautious.

They had also noticed.

The physical rules of this world were very strange.

To put it simply, compared to the Cardinal World, which was completely bathed in magicules, everything here, from grass to trees, felt like foam to Shion, it would burst with a single poke.

Shion, with her A-Rank strength, could even exhibit Special A-Rank or higher destructive power here.

And this was just a conservative estimate.

In the Cardinal World, a full-power attack from a Special A-Rank was already close to a nuclear explosion.

At S-Rank, a mere gesture could destroy a nation.

As for the even higher Special S-Rank, piercing the sky and sinking continents, that was power that could truly affect the stability and balance of the Cardinal World.

Like Milim in the original work, after going berserk, she could even destroy galaxies, and even the universe.

Therefore, being able to destroy the Cardinal World was almost equivalent to possessing the power to destroy the Tensura universe.

"There are special energy particles in the air."

"This energy is far inferior to magicules, even worse than spiritons."

A group of A-Rank individuals whose bodies were composed of refined magicules.

How terrifying the destruction they could cause in a world where the energy level was not even at the level of spiritons.

Not to mention Shion, the current Ogerpon could probably truly blow up the planet beneath their feet.

"It's just that the gap between worlds is too vast, isn't it?"

Rin was truly afraid that the three girls might accidentally blow up this world.

If that happened, Rin felt he would likely be forcibly expelled by the World Will, then blacklisted, and never allowed to enter this world again.

"In any case, everyone, control your strength."

"Hmm, let's limit it to one percent, no, one-thousandth."

Rin didn't know the specific situation of the new world. He didn't return immediately but took the three girls with him to wander around this ice and snow world.

All four carried many resistances and were not afraid of the severe cold.

Initially, they felt cold mainly because their bodies were adjusting. When Rin needed to, he could ignore this level of low temperature.

Although resistance was passive, it could also be adjusted.

Otherwise, things like hot soup and popsicles wouldn't even offer the most basic experience, would they?

"Rumble!"

"Hmm?"

Soon after the four walked out of the deep pit, the ground beneath their feet once again stirred.

"Shion?"

"No, it wasn't me, Rin-sama!"

"Then…"

Before Rin could continue asking, a hideous head suddenly burst out of the snow.

This was a centipede about 20 meters long, covered in white crystals. It exhaled cold air, and its pair of violent blue eyes stared intently at these 'humans' who had caused such a commotion.

"Hmm?"

Seeing the ice crystal centipede show hostility towards them, Ogerpon raised an eyebrow, about to summon her Ivy Cudgel to teach the opponent a lesson.

"Wait, wait a minute!"

"Let me do it!"

"Ogerpon, please let me handle this!"

Seeing such a large wild monster, Shion excitedly stepped forward, looking eager to try.

How could Shion miss such an opportunity to show off in front of Rin?

"Well…"

Rin didn't mind letting Shion take action. "But I think we should try to communicate with it."

"Hmm, I understand."

Shion took a step forward and shouted, "Hey!! Can you understand what we're saying?"

Due to the influence of the Voice of the World's rules, Rin and the others had no language barrier.

Even for beings similar to magical beasts or monsters, as long as Shion needed to, she could convey her thoughts to them.

"We are Travelers who accidentally entered here. We have no ill intentions!!"

After speaking, Shion turned to look at Rin, indicating, "Is it okay for me to say this?"

"Yes!"

Rin gave Shion a thumbs-up. This girl had remembered his previous warnings well.

When arriving in a new world, don't be too conspicuous.

They were not invaders, but Travelers, and they needed to maintain basic politeness.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 48: A Backhand Slap

"Squeak squeak squeak~"

However, the ice crystal centipede clearly ignored the four, immediately lunging forward and opening its gaping maw to devour them.

This guy, there's no way to communicate with it.

"Bang!!"

So, as if by instinct, Shion slapped the centipede's head, which was close at hand.

The terrifying force, even though it had been restrained and controlled in advance, still produced an earth-shattering sonic boom.

"Boom!!"

The ice crystal centipede's body was entirely sent flying into the distance, without a moment's delay, crashing into a glacier on one side and being completely buried.

"…"

Shion's eyes widened instantly, her face filled with panic. "Th-that, that, Rin-sama, I, I, I already controlled my strength a lot!!"

"Sigh~"

Looking at Shion, who looked like she was about to cry, Rin sighed helplessly. "It's not your fault, Shion."

Shion did control her strength.

Otherwise, that one slap just now would probably have sent this centipede directly into outer space.

"Then?"

"I'm sighing because the natives of this world are just too unfriendly."

The moment Rin's words fell, more and more monsters surged towards them.

"Tsk!"

This time, even the usually good-tempered Shuna showed impatience. "Let me deal with all of them."

"Forget it."

After all, they were the ones who had caused the commotion first, and Rin didn't want to cause too much slaughter in this world.

"Let's change places first."

Rin raised his hand and forcibly tore open the space-time of this world.

"Ponooo!"

Seeing this, Ogerpon quickly hopped up. "The vanguard general is Ogerpon!"

"Let's go."

Rin and the two women entered the spatial passage one after another.

After they left, a large number of strangely shaped magic beasts appeared nearby.

However, facing the empty, desolate, and ruined ice field, they didn't know what to do.

After wandering for a while, the magic beasts, having found no target, slowly dispersed.

"Shuna, sense the surroundings."

Stepping out of the spatial passage, Rin and the three women appeared in another area of the ice field.

This was hundreds of kilometers away from their initial crossing point.

"Yes!"

Shuna's evolution direction was magic specialization, and she was also the one with the widest and strongest perception range among the four.

"Clap!"

The pink-haired girl clasped her hands together, and an invisible magicule wave spread out in all directions from their center.

"This is a vast, ice-bound snowfield. The further north you go, the colder it gets, while the south is very warm."

"Many strange magic beasts live around here," Shuna said, closing her eyes and relaying the information she perceived to Rin. "The aura of these magic beasts isn't very strong, the weakest are only F-class, and the strongest don't exceed D-class."

"Shion, go catch a few magic beasts and bring them back. Remember, they must be captured alive."

Rin instructed, "Also, be careful to control your strength. One-thousandth might not be enough, so make it one ten-thousandth!"

He wasn't at all worried that any existence in this world could pose a threat to Shion.

If a strong enemy were to appear, Rin and the others could reach Shion's side in the blink of an eye given their speed.

"Leave it to me."

Shion's magicule perception wasn't as strong as Shuna's, but it wasn't weak either.

Ignoring the wind and snow that obscured her vision, Shion quickly locked onto the closest magic beast.

They were a group of peculiar creatures resembling cattle, covered in thick fur. Seeing Shion suddenly appear, the yak-like magic beasts were greatly startled and fled in a mighty rush towards the distance.

There was no other way, the aura emanating from Shion was simply too terrifying.

No matter how much she restrained herself, the oppressive feeling of a High Demon Person caused immense deterrence to these yak magic beasts.

"You're the one!"

Shion casually picked a yak magic beast. She didn't use her specially crafted great tachi but instead formed a 'hand blade' with her fingers.

"Swish"

The girl's figure vanished from her original spot.

When she reappeared, she was already in front of a yak.

"Boom!!"

A fair and delicate palm descended from above, carrying an unstoppable might, stopping just above the yak's head.

The next moment, the wind pressure generated by the hand blade transformed into an invisible giant hammer, striking the yak's head fiercely, instantly knocking it unconscious.

Along with it, there was a giant pit, tens of meters deep, beneath the yak.

"Ah, not good, I still used too much force!"

Shion anxiously stepped forward. "Good, good, it's still alive, phew, you scared me, I thought I had directly killed it."

Normally, after enduring such a terrifying blow, one that even shattered the earth, the yak should have already turned into a lump of meat paste.

However, Shion had applied the combat techniques from Rin's close-combat profession in her attack.

Like striking a cow through a mountain, most of the force actually didn't act directly on the yak.

Of course, this was still the result of Shion holding back her strength.

If she were to truly unleash herself, this single hand-blade strike would likely cause nuclear-explosion-like destruction to the ice field for tens of kilometers around.

"Rin-sama, do you think this one is acceptable?"

Shion, carrying the yak magic beast, crossed space and appeared before Rin and Shuna.

"Hmm, let me see."

Rin carefully examined the ice-blue yak Shion brought back. "A strange creature. It contains an energy similar to magicules, but with a very low concentration."

If using the number of spirit particles as an analogy, the magicules of the Cardinal World contain over 5 million spirit particles per point.

However, the energy within this magic beast only has about 100 per unit, a difference of almost fifty thousand times.

"In such a weak world, will there truly be the power you need, Rin-sama?"

Shion couldn't understand. In her opinion, there was nothing here that could make Rin-sama stronger, so there was no need to continue wasting time.

"Don't be too anxious, Shion."

Shuna said, "Rin-sama needs new ideas, it has nothing to do with the strength of power."

"From what we heard from Rin-sama, the Pokémon World is also not strong in those standards."

"But Ogerpon is now stronger than us."

Shuna continued, "Although the individuals in this world are weak, we cannot guarantee that there are no strong ones here."

"Shuna is right," Rin praised. "The power system of the weak may not be without its merits."

"Although the monsters of the Cardinal World are strong, their starting point is too high, making it difficult for us to perfectly control our own power."

Being weak has its advantages, which is that these worlds have a high probability of giving birth to some technologies unimaginable to the monsters of the Cardinal World.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 49: Successful Stowaway

"I understand."

Shion nodded obediently. She looked at the yak on the ground. "Do you need me to wake it up for you?"

"Wake it up."

"Yes!"

Shion controlled her aura, condensing it into a single point, then suddenly enveloped the yak with it.

"Moo!!!"

The sudden impact instantly jolted the unconscious yak awake.

The creature quickly got up, about to flee, but upon seeing Shion and Rin, it froze on the spot, looking utterly terrified.

"Oh?"

"So it's not a wild beast, but an intelligent creature capable of communication?"

Rin tried to communicate with the yak, but the result was not satisfactory. "It has intelligence, but not much."

The yak was not an uncommunicative monster, but a normal creature with a mind.

This was fundamentally different from the magic beasts in the Great Jura Forest.

Magic beasts only have survival instincts and do not develop sentience.

They are born from magicule contamination, not natural gestation; even if all of them are killed, new individuals will be born in the forest after a period of time.

[Rule parsing complete]

[Traveler (Anomaly) has corrected this world]

[Connection successful, individual 'Itoshi Rin' expressiveness balanced]

[Individuals 'Shuna' 'Shion' 'Ogerpon' begin correction...]

[Correction successful, expressiveness balance complete]

"Finally, the analysis is complete."

"Huh?"

"Rin-sama, why has my power suddenly become so much weaker?"

"Me too."

The three women noticed the changes in themselves.

"Don't worry, this is the world's rules limiting us."

Rin explained the settings of the Traveler and the balancing force to Shuna and Shion.

Ogerpon, having crossed worlds before, was quite calm. "As long as you don't use power exceeding the expressiveness, nothing will happen."

"What happens if we exceed it?"

Shion felt a bit uncomfortable. "I feel like my power hasn't been sealed; I can still use it."

"Don't!"

Ogerpon quickly warned, "If you use power beyond the specifications, Shion, you will be forcibly expelled."

"Expelled?"

"It means returning to the Cardinal World."

Ogerpon carefully explained the current situation to them. "We are one. If you get expelled, we will all be expelled, and it will be very difficult to return to this world again."

"Huh?"

"Is that... is that how it is?"

At this, Shion dared not make any big moves anymore.

Even when speaking, she became cautious.

"Haha, it's not that exaggerated."

Rin added, "Ogerpon is indeed correct, but this time, the four of us are not bound together."

"Even if someone is truly sent back, it's limited to one person; it won't be a collective punishment."

"Is that so?"

Ogerpon looked at Rin in confusion, not quite understanding the difference.

"Let me explain to you."

Rin gently stroked Ogerpon's head and continued, "My Traveler ability can open doors to different worlds."

"After the door opens, we will cross over, and the Voice of the World will arrange corresponding identities for us."

"Simply put, there are three ways to cross over like this."

Rin had now opened three doors to different worlds.

In the Pokémon World, Rin had also received similar prompts, but at that time, the Voice of the World's reply was [The Supreme Will of the current universe has tacitly approved].

According to Rin's understanding of the Pokémon World, the Supreme Will there, if no accident, should refer to the true body of the Creator God Arceus—the Great God of Sinnoh.

The Pokémon World has countless parallel universes, and Rin only entered one of them.

Given the magnitude of the Great God of Sinnoh, as long as Rin wasn't planning to destroy the world and merely acted as an ordinary trainer, he wouldn't care.

"Then isn't that very dangerous?!"

Supreme Will, Creator God—Shion and Shuna didn't quite understand these terms, but they knew from the sound of them that they were powerful and not to be provoked.

"Don't worry, the Voice of the World isn't stupid."

If it truly encountered such a dangerous world, the Voice of the World would have already failed during the negotiation phase and naturally wouldn't be able to open the door for Rin.

In other words, the Voice of the World would first sign an agreement with the Supreme Will of the other world, an agreement that both parties must abide by.

Then, while ensuring Rin's safety and freedom, it would connect the two worlds.

The first type of world is managed, and Rin couldn't bring any extra beings besides Ogerpon, who was an original inhabitant of that world.

Moreover, Rin entered the Pokémon World directly with his true body.

Besides Rin, only Ogerpon, the native, could go there.

So, except for the very first time, Rin usually chose the Konosuba World when stocking up on supplies.

There was nothing he could do; having a Creator God watching him was simply too terrifying.

"The second type is like Aqua, intervening in a way that conforms to the rules of that world."

Rin said, "For example, if I became a reincarnator under Aqua's charge, in the perception of the World Will, I would be part of the rules, which is reasonable."

"That is why Ogerpon said she made a mistake, and I would be expelled along with her."

"Because with the second method of Crossing, only I was truly recognized by the world, while Ogerpon descended as my summoned beast."

If Ogerpon broke the rules, and she was a part of Rin's power, then he would naturally be implicated.

"But this world is different!"

Rin added, "This world has no so-called Supreme Will!"

"Rules also exist here, but the ones managing the rules are not powerful gods, but something similar to a program."

"So, not only me, but the three of you now also have independent identities."

The subordinate relationship still existed, but they now had three ID cards, allowing them to move freely like Rin.

"The only thing to note is that your powers have also been balanced."

The balance here refers to expressive power.

An A-rank in the Cardinal World could cut off rivers, shatter the earth, and unleash a blow comparable to a nuclear bomb.

Now, the three of them in this world have also been reduced to this level.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 50: 1200 Years Old?

"Let's see if the ice is as hard as it is in our world."

Rin picked up a piece of ice rock from the ground again. The original fragility had disappeared, and when he squeezed it, it felt exactly the same as in the Cardinal World.

"It really is!"

"Tsk, to actually become weaker, the rules of this world are truly unpleasant."

Unlike Shuna's cheerfulness, Shion crossed her arms, quite displeased with the rule restrictions.

It wasn't that she herself felt uncomfortable.

Rather, she was extremely angry that her master had been put in a restraint.

If possible, Shion even wanted to conquer this world. "By the way, what would happen if Rin-sama became the ruler of this world?"

"Well…"

"If I become the ruler of the new world, the Cardinal World will benefit and become even larger."

"So, it's a win-win."

The Cardinal World benefited, and Rin could become even stronger.

"Alright, let's first look at the specific information of this Beast."

As Rin spoke, he cast an Appraisal on the yak.

---

[Icefield Yak]

[Species: Otherworldly Soul Beast]

[Lifespan: 1208 years]

[Rank: F-rank]

[Expressive Power: D-rank]

[Innate Abilities: Cold Resistance, Ice Consumption, Ice Element Manipulation, Brute Strength]

---

"What the heck?"

"This cow is over 1200 years old?!"

"Is this freaking 1200 years old?"

The Appraisal skill was not omniscient.

The Dragon Eye was the same in this regard.

Its Appraisal results were based on Rin's understanding of the world.

Of course, basic energy levels and the specific special abilities an opponent possessed could be directly seen through Appraisal.

However, upon seeing the yak's age of over 1200 years, even Rin couldn't help but exclaim.

"Are you kidding me? A beast that can live for 1200 years, but its battle power is only D-?"

This was still D-rank in the current world.

F-rank magicules, D-rank expressive power.

The F-rank here refers to how this Soul Beast would be rated if placed in the Cardinal World.

How to put it?

It's like a Goblin in the forest, not even as strong as a child in the Cardinal World.

As for D-rank, it's roughly equivalent to a fully armed team of adventurers.

"Unbelievable!"

Shuna and the others also possessed Appraisal abilities, so they all checked the yak's attributes.

Soon, the three women were also startled by the yak's lifespan.

Having lived for 1200 years, even a pig should have become a spirit, right?

But why?

Why was this cow so weak?!

"This is unreasonable, too unreasonable!"

Rin murmured, "No matter in which world, lifespan is related to the level of life. The higher the life level, the longer the lifespan."

But this Soul Beast was completely contrary to this theory.

"Moreover, 1200 years is not its lifespan limit."

Imagine a Soul Beast with an almost infinite lifespan.

Why?

Why can it live forever?

Its very existence was so unreasonable.

"Wait a minute, Shion, did you just say there are many more of these cows?"

"Yes, very many, several hundred. Do you need me to go catch them all?"

"Take me to see."

Following Shion, it didn't take long for everyone to find those yaks.

Along the way, Rin cast Appraisal on many other creatures, and the results were, without exception, similar to the initial yak.

Rin searched his memory for settings similar to this world. "Ice and snow, strange Soul Beasts, almost infinite lifespan, but battle power completely unmatched by their long lives."

"Soul Land?"

Rin thought to himself, "Soul Beasts that live for thousands or tens of thousands of years, but their battle power is very weak."

In other worlds, an animal training for ten thousand years would at least be a demon king, capable of moving mountains and filling seas.

But in the Soul Land World, a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast is equivalent to a human Soul Master.

As for the expressive power of a Soul Master.

How to put it?

They could be easily shot dead by crossbow arrows.

Rin increasingly felt that this world was like Soul Land.

To prove his guess, Rin directly killed a tiger-like Soul Beast that appeared from nowhere and regarded them as prey.

"Indeed."

Looking at the purple energy ring floating from the Soul Beast's corpse, Rin confirmed, "Soul Rings are born after Soul Beasts die. This is the Soul Land World."

"If it's Soul Land, then the extremely low energy purity makes perfect sense."

Rin remembered that the physical rules of Soul Land were inherently bizarre.

However, the low strength was also a fact.

"Soul Land, and it's a world of ice and snow, so this is the Northern Icefield?"

"I just don't know what time period it is now."

"Is it Soul Land 1, Tang San's era, or Soul Land 2, Soul Land 3, or a transitional period not described in the novel?"

If possible, Rin naturally hoped it was the Soul Land 1 period.

After all, after Tang San became a god, the Soul Land Continent became his family's continent.

Rin did not want to have any dealings with him.

"...Let's find someone to ask first."

Coincidentally, in Rin's perception, a human presence appeared in the north.

"Shuna!"

"Yes!"

Shuna had completely analyzed the space of this planet. Her hand lightly lifted, instantly teleporting the four of them near the closest human presence Rin had sensed.

"Whoosh!"

In the wind and snow, an old man was moving at an extremely fast speed towards the warmer south.

His hair and beard were white, he looked about seventy years old, and he was wearing thick silver-gray military attire, looking travel-worn.

The old man was carrying a strange metal device in his hand, inside which a light blue energy was restless, as if trying to break free from its confinement.

"Who?!"

Noticing someone ahead, the old man immediately stopped, his face showing a grave expression.

"Don't be nervous, old sir."

Rin stepped forward, trying to make his tone as gentle as possible. "We are adventurers exploring the Northern Icefield. May we ask you a few questions, old sir?"

The white-haired old man stopped. He looked up, surprised to see Rin and the others who had appeared so suddenly.

He didn't speak, just watched Rin silently.

A faint golden-blue light flowed in the old man's eyes, which made Rin quite surprised.

Rin discovered that there was an energy different from soul power within the old man's body.

If soul power was low-concentration magic power composed of only a small amount of spirit particles, then this energy's quality was already no weaker than ordinary magic power.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 51: The Sealed Snow Empress

'Energy with even higher quality than Soul Power.'

'Could it be Spiritual Power?'

This guess surprised Rin. 'How is that possible? At this time, someone appearing in the Northern Icefield possessing Divine Power…'

Well, Rin hadn't researched Soul Land too deeply, so he really couldn't guess the old man's identity.

"A Soul Beast that has taken human form?"

However, the old man was currently sizing up Rin, as well as Ogerpon and the two other girls standing beside him.

In the old man's eyes, Rin was no different from a human, with no distinguishing features.

But the horns on the heads of Ogerpon and the two other girls were definitely not something humans could possess.

"When did the Northern Icefield gain 100,000-year Soul Beasts like you?"

The golden-blue light in the old man's eyes grew brighter, especially with the appearance of Rin and the others, which made him subtly displeased that his plan seemed to be slipping out of control.

"Never mind, I'll take you down first, then interrogate you thoroughly."

"Huh?"

The old man's words stunned Rin.

What the hell?

After just meeting and exchanging a few words, they were forcibly defined as transformed Soul Beasts?

Soul Beasts in Soul Land, after training for over 200,000 years, could transform into human form.

This transformation was not like a transformed Soul Beast abandoning its training to become human, but rather a change in appearance, allowing them to walk in human form.

The old man obviously took Rin and the others to be in this situation.

"Tsk."

Shion was displeased with the old man's tone. "Rin-sama, can I kill this guy?"

"…"

This time, Rin did not try to stop her again.

Because even Rin was somewhat displeased with the old man's attitude.

This attitude, as if he had them completely cornered, was truly unpleasant.

"Presumptuous!"

The old man was enraged by Shion's words. A mere Soul Beast daring to speak to him like that was simply courting death!

"Boom!"

The old man's figure flashed, and in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Shion.

At the same time, a giant hammer shimmering with blue lightning, carrying an overwhelming might, seemed poised to smash Shion into paste.

"Bang!"

However, Shion's counterattack was no weaker than the old man's.

The girl drew the great blade she carried on her back and simply held it horizontally in front of her, effortlessly blocking the old man's enraged strike.

"What?"

The immense force not only failed to kill Shion, but the old man only felt a surging, overwhelming power coming from the front, forcing him to fly backward.

"Hmph!"

Shion's eyes narrowed, and she advanced with her blade, engaging the old man in battle.

Neither of them used any special moves, purely clashing in terms of strength, causing glaciers to shatter and the earth to be scarred with ravines.

The enormous commotion spread in all directions, startling countless powerful Soul Beasts living in this Northern Icefield.

"What powerful strength."

"Who is it?!"

Beneath a distant glacier, a giant ice scorpion, entirely emerald green like jade, turned its head in a human-like manner.

She was the second-ranked of the Northern Icefield's Three Arctic Kings, the Ice Empress!

"This aura doesn't seem like a Soul Beast…"

"Damn it! It's those hateful humans!"

If it wasn't a Soul Beast, then it was a Soul Master.

Upon realizing that Soul Masters had intruded into the core area of the Northern Icefield and were causing such a commotion, how could the Ice Empress possibly tolerate it? She immediately rushed out of her lair and sped towards the direction of Shion and the old man's battle.

To Soul Beasts, humans were mortal enemies.

Now, they had even entered her territory and were openly engaging in battle.

This was no longer mere provocation but a blatant declaration of war.

Even to defend her territory and the dignity of a fierce beast, the Ice Empress had to go and bury these uninvited guests.

---

"A hammer with lightning?"

"Could it be the Clear Sky Hammer?"

"Someone from the Clear Sky Sect?"

The old man's strength was absolutely not comparable to an ordinary Titled Douluo.

According to Rin's estimation, Shion, constrained by world rules, could at most unleash nuclear bomb-like destruction on the Douluo Continent.

Such power even surpassed that of a Limit Douluo, reaching the demigod realm of this world.

And this was still in a sealed state.

Once Shion disregarded the world's repulsion and fully unleashed herself, even a First-Class God descending would fall beneath her blade.

"To be able to fight Shion to this extent, the opponent must also be a demigod-level Soul Master."

"But does the Clear Sky Sect have such an individual?"

"Tang Chen from Soul Land 1? Or Da Ming and Er Ming from Soul Land 2?"

Rin had some guesses about the old man's identity, but a better method was to directly use Appraisal.

He hadn't used it earlier out of politeness.

Appraisal wasn't a very high-level skill, it wasn't silent.

Rashly detecting others, if detected, would certainly be seen as a provocative act, leading to conflict.

But now, the old man was already fighting Shion, so Rin naturally had no need to hold back.

"Appraisal!"

[Appraisal failed]

[Reason for failure: Interference from special mental energy]

'Interfered?'

The skill feedback surprised Rin. He quickly used the more powerful Dragon Eye's Appraisal ability for another investigation…

[Detection started]

[Interference successfully broken, true name of individual obtained: Tang San]

"Tang San?!"

Rin's pupils constricted. This result almost fried his CPU. "No, is Tang San like this? Are you sure this is Soul Land?"

"No!"

"Incorrect!"

Rin continued to observe with the Dragon Eye and quickly discovered something amiss with the old man.

"It's not Tang San himself!"

In Rin's investigation, although the old man was strong, he was only a Level 99 Limit Douluo, not a demigod.

The old man's state was more like that of a manipulated puppet.

Within his body existed a more powerful consciousness that was controlling him, and the source of the Spiritual Power was also him.

"Dragon Eye!"

Immediately after, Rin cast Appraisal on the Soul Tool the old man held in his left hand.

[Level 9 Soul Tool – God Sealing Altar]

[100,000-year Soul Beast Embryo (Snow Empress)]

"Good heavens!"

At this point, Rin finally cleared up his thoughts. "It's now the period of Soul Land 2, Peerless Tang Sect. The Snow Empress transformed, but was discovered by human Soul Masters and captured using the Level 9 God Sealing Altar."

This was a plot point in the original novel.

"This matter, was Tang San scheming behind it?"

When reading the original novel, Rin felt this plot was very unreasonable.

The Snow Empress transformed in the core area of the Northern Icefield, and the place she chose must have been safe.

But even in this situation, a Soul Master just happened to run nearby, and just happened to carry a Sealing God Platform capable of sealing a 100,000-year Soul Beast.

One must know that a Level 9 Soul Tool like the God Sealing Altar could only be crafted by the most top-tier Soul Engineers of the Sun Moon Empire.

A Soul Master of extraordinary strength just happened to come to her chosen safe zone when the Snow Empress was transforming, and just happened to carry a Level 9 God Sealing Altar.

Even more absurd was that this Soul Master didn't use it himself, but instead sold the Snow Empress's 100,000-year embryo.

A 100,000-year embryo could allow one to gain a second martial soul.

Even if that couldn't be achieved, one could still obtain a 100,000-year Soul Bone.

Such a treasure, yet someone would sell it.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 52: Free

"So it was Tang San himself who orchestrated it."

If the matter was explained this way, then all the unreasonable parts could be accounted for.

After all, Tang God King, Tang Family's backyard, what could be hidden from him here?

No wonder Tang San reacted that way when he encountered Shion and the others.

The appearance of the four clearly exceeded Tang San's expectations, becoming an unstable factor not within his grand millennium plan, and thus had to be eliminated.

"But..."

"Do you, with just yourself, think you can defeat my Shion?"

Rin had more or less figured out Tang San's true nature. This guy's true body was a God King.

Even if the rules of the Soul Land World were weaker, the Dragon God of this world, if placed in the Cardinal World, might only be at the level of an Awakened Demon Lord.

But that was still an Awakened Demon Lord.

The current Tang San certainly could not compare to the Dragon God. He was barely at a similar level to Clayman.

Unless Rin allowed Ogerpon to unleash her power at the cost of being expelled, it might be possible to defeat God King Tang San.

However, once Ogerpon unleashed her power, she would not be able to stay in the Soul Land World for long. She would soon be expelled and then blacklisted.

The cost was so high that Rin hesitated whether to use it or not.

"Hmm?"

While Rin was considering, Tang San noticed Rin's covetous gaze on the God Sealing Altar in his hand and immediately put it into a Soul Tool that could store living beings.

Snow Empress was a Soul Beast, but the Soul Land Continent was his backyard.

Every blade of grass, every tree, and every Soul Beast here was Tang San's property.

Tang San would never waste powerful fierce beasts like the Snow Empress. They were perfect for cultivating the Child of Destiny and helping him advance further.

"Shuna, go help Shion and then snatch the ring from his hand."

"Snatching something?"

Shuna did not ask what the God Sealing Altar was. She would obey Rin's commands unconditionally.

Thus, following Shion, whose close-combat ability was off the charts, Shuna, who could freely control various elements, assisted Shion while simultaneously looking for opportunities to cast magic attacks on the elder possessed by Tang San's divine sense.

The two women's combat style completely defied the Soul Master system.

Here, Soul Skills, which were like shortcuts, no matter how continuously they were released, would still have intervals and cooldowns.

But the two women's attacks had no such restrictions.

Shion's attacks were extremely violent. Each slash was comparable to a full-power strike from a demigod.

With the addition of dark magicules, even Tang San had to avoid her sharp edge.

Shuna, needless to say.

Mages were inherently output-oriented classes, and Shuna, who was even stronger than in the original work, stood behind Shion, directly transforming into an infinite firepower cannon. In no time, she had Tang San beaten to a pulp, scurrying around with his head in his hands.

"Damn it!"

"Where did these two women come from?!"

Tang San, in the Divine Realm, was observing the battle in the Northern Icefield with his divine sense.

Being watched by the God of Destruction, he could not personally intervene.

It was already the limit to split off a wisp of his divine sense to control the elder, allowing him to exert demigod-level combat power.

However, neither Shuna nor Shion, in their sealed state, were weaker than demigods. They were even stronger.

Two against one, Tang San's puppet was already on the verge of collapse.

"These people cannot be Soul Masters or Soul Beasts from the Soul Land Continent!"

Tang San knew the Soul Land Continent like the back of his hand. He even knew about the Silver Dragon King hidden beneath the Star Dou Great Forest and had already started planning to scheme for the Dragon God's power.

But Rin and his three companions were undoubtedly outsiders.

"Opportunity!"

It was precisely when Tang San was distracted that Shuna seized the opportunity and quickly used spatial motion, successfully severing the hand where Tang San wore the storage Soul Tool.

"Ah!!"

Through the connection of divine sense, Tang San, in the Divine Realm, also felt the pain of the severed hand.

"Damn it!!"

"Martial Soul Avatar!"

"Ring Explosion!!"

Seeing his puppet falling into a disadvantage, Tang San no longer hid his power and directly detonated all the soul power stored within the elder.

Nine Soul Rings—black, black, black, black, black, black, black, red, red—appeared behind the elder.

"I have the item."

Looking at the storage Soul Tool that Shuna had teleported into his hand, Rin ignored space and directly took out the God Sealing Altar stored within it.

If it were not to prevent Tang San from destroying the God Sealing Altar in a desperate move, Rin would not have gone to such trouble.

"Deal with him, Ogerpon."

"Poniii!"

As soon as he spoke, Ogerpon, who was standing in front of Rin, had already vanished without a trace.

Rin did not care much for mere demigod-level combat power.

Moreover, only a fool would wait for an enemy to finish casting.

Ring Detonation was indeed powerful, but would Rin give Tang San such an opportunity?

"Ah!!!"

In the God Realm, Tang San, who was controlling the Clear Sky Hammer and preparing to unleash his Martial Soul Avatar and then crush his Soul Rings, suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head.

Looking at the battlefield, Ogerpon was holding an Ivy Cudgel dripping with blood.

And behind her, a headless corpse lay in a pool of blood. It was the demigod elder controlled by Tang San.

If Shion and Shuna were equivalent to First-Class Gods who could only use demigod power, then Ogerpon, in the Soul Land Continent, was a restricted God King.

Killing a mere demigod was effortless.

"Rin-sama."

Shion and Shuna showed no dissatisfaction at their opponent being snatched by Ogerpon. The three women returned to Rin-sama's side, examining the God Sealing Altar in his hand.

"What is this?"

"Our harvest from this trip."

Rin had thought about what benefits he could gain in the Soul Land Continent.

Would it be awakening a Martial Soul, or Soul Rings and Soul Bones, or perhaps some rare heavenly treasures?

No, none of them.

Rin's path of growth had always been clear from beginning to end.

That was to capture powerful beings, make them his dependents, and then bring them back to the Cardinal World.

The Cardinal World would provide compensation based on the strength of their souls and their unique characteristics, granting them race, magicules, and Unique Skills.

Looking at the entire Soul Land Continent, what truly caught Rin's eye were none other than those fierce beasts.

As for Soul Masters, gods, and the like, Rin had no interest in them.

Humans, when they reached the Cardinal World, would still be humans, lacking the potential for evolution.

Instead, the hundred-thousand-year embryo in Rin's hand contained a sleeping being that was considered top-tier among Soul Beasts throughout the entire Soul Land series.

Similar to Rimuru's superior fire elemental Ifrit.

A Blazing Ruler possessing the power to burn all things, second only to the Elemental King among fire elementals.

"Let's talk to her first."

Rin actually had some confidence in taking down the Snow Empress.

As Rin extended his spiritual power into the God Sealing Altar, he saw a tall, slender girl curled up within the space, which resembled a golden birdcage.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 53: Snow Maiden

"Who are you?"

Her long, pure white hair trailed down to her feet, and upon sensing the intrusion of an outsider, the girl opened her eyes.

Those ice-blue eyes were ethereal and clear, as if they could see through everything in the world.

Her slender, delicate figure was flawless. A plain white dress, though without any adornment, made her appear noble and exquisitely beautiful.

"My name is Itoshi Rin, and I am the one who saved you from the evil God King."

"Evil God King?"

Although the Snow Empress was sealed and could not easily perceive the outside world, the intense battle earlier between Tang San, Shuna, and Shion had been strong enough for her to sense even within the seal.

So, the Snow Empress did not doubt Rin's words.

She simply did not understand what Rin meant by "God King."

"Do you remember the group of Soul Masters who ascended to the Divine Realm ten thousand years ago?"

Rin quickly explained about Tang San, how he treated the Soul Land Continent as his backyard, and how he schemed against her, wanting to turn her into a chess piece.

The more the Snow Empress listened, the more her anger surged uncontrollably.

Even though this was a mental space, her power still affected it. Large amounts of ice crystals began to spread, and even the space itself subtly showed cracks.

She did not suspect Rin was lying.

Firstly, Rin was not human, and that was crucial.

The monsters of the Cardinal World were different from the Soul Beasts of the Soul Land World. The Snow Empress was certain Rin was not her kind.

But just as importantly, Rin was not human either.

That alone was enough.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend.

The Snow Empress's logic was very simple.

"Thank you."

"If you really want to thank me, how about coming with me?"

"Come with you?"

The Snow Empress did not understand his meaning. Was he asking her to follow him, to become his subordinate or something similar?

In the world of Soul Beasts, the strong were respected.

The Snow Empress valued her dignity greatly and would not stoop to serving others.

But… Rin had saved her life.

As repayment, the Snow Empress was not unwilling to do something for him.

"I will not be subservient to anyone."

After saying this, she quickly added, "But if there's anything you need me to do, I am willing to help you."

Her words, in a roundabout way, already told Rin she was willing to do things for him to repay this life-saving grace.

"Moreover, given my current state, if there's anything, please wait until I complete my human transformation."

The Snow Empress was helpless when it came to Soul Beast transformation.

She had no confidence in surviving the heavenly tribulation, so she could only choose human transformation and retrain in hopes of a chance at godhood.

For some reason, she began to wonder whether, with her current strength, she could truly help Rin at all.

"No, it's not about working for me."

Just as the Snow Empress was bewildered, Rin spoke, "Instead, come with me to leave this world and venture into a vaster expanse!"

"Leave this world?"

Rin's words completely exceeded her expectations. "You can take me out of this world?"

"That's right."

Having read the original work, Rin knew the Soul Land Continent was a huge cage for Soul Beasts.

The Snow Empress was already nearing the end of her lifespan; otherwise, she would not have chosen to transform into human form to gamble on that slim chance of becoming a god.

However, Rin had a ready-made solution.

As long as she left the Soul Land World, the Snow Empress could immediately break free from her shackles and gain a new future.

So the question arose.

Could Rin take her across worlds?

The answer was no.

Unless she became Rin's dependent, she could not leave the Soul Land World. To leave, she could only become Rin's person.

"So, you want me to become your dependent, just like those few who fought Tang San earlier?"

"That's right."

Rin said, "Don't worry, I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do.

"You can understand the relationship between a dependent and me as a shared fate. If you become stronger, I will also become stronger.

"Conversely, the stronger I am, the more you will gain!"

At this time, the Soul Land Continent did not yet have concepts like Soul Spirits or intelligent Soul Rings. At least, the Snow Empress had never heard of them.

Clearly, following Rin was much better than becoming someone else's Soul Ring and Soul Bone, or simply dying under the heavenly tribulation.

However, the Snow Empress had her own pride.

She felt that transforming into human form, then obtaining a divine position and ascending to godhood like Tang San had done many years ago, was also a path.

"You should be thinking about ascending to godhood? Forget about it!"

Rin poured a basin of cold water on her hopes. "You don't really think someone can ascend to the Divine Realm from the Soul Land Continent under Tang San's surveillance, do you?"

Any superior would not allow such an act of breaking free from control. A mere resource wanting to establish its own household?

Unless the Snow Empress became Tang San's pawn, he would absolutely not allow such a formidable person to appear on the Soul Land Continent.

The Snow Empress had a cold and arrogant personality, but she was not foolish.

On the contrary, she was highly intelligent, and she could fully understand the meaning behind Rin's words.

With God King Tang above her, no matter how confident or talented she was, she could not escape the fate of being schemed to death.

Just like the confinement left by the Dragon God. Whatever its original intention, under the schemes of the gods in the Divine Realm, that confinement, which prevented ascension, directly harmed countless Soul Beasts and cut off her path to godhood.

"So, as long as you leave the Soul Land Continent, the lightning tribulation that binds you will disappear.

"If you don't want to follow me, I can also take you to other planes to help you break through."

Rin was serious.

Even if she broke her shackles and became a god in another, better plane, Rin would still have the opportunity to subdue her and make her his dependent.

It was just that, in that case, she would owe him an even greater favor.

The Snow Empress was cold and arrogant by nature, but that God Realm not mean she lacked emotions or failed to understand gratitude.

"By the way, following me is definitely better than following someone like Tang San, right?"

Rin had this much confidence. He was not someone like Tang San who had one face in public and another in private.

Rin was always generous to his own people.

As long as he had enough to eat, he would never let them go hungry.

"That's right, that's right, Rin is very good."

Ogerpon's consciousness joined in, forming a lovely maiden's phantom beside Rin.

"Indeed."

"Shuna and I were just very ordinary Ogre Clan members in the forest, but Rin-sama bestowed upon us great power."

Shuna also appeared. At this time, it was their turn to persuade a new companion to join.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 54: Wrong Time

"This world is so weak, what's the point?"

"Following us, you'll definitely meet many strong people in the future," Shuna's words resonated even more with the Snow Empress. "Fighting them and constantly getting stronger, isn't that much better than being trapped in a small world?"

Yes, Shuna and the others were right.

The three of them felt genuine gratitude and affection for Rin, and this could not be faked.

Most importantly, following Rin could make her stronger.

Just this point alone made the Snow Empress feel she had no reason to refuse.

"I can agree to your terms."

"But I also have a few conditions. If you can guarantee them, I am willing to fight alongside you and never betray you!"

The Snow Empress was a person of unwavering loyalty.

Once she made a decision, she would not go back on it.

Moreover, Rin had given her immense respect.

She was currently only in an embryonic state. With the strength of Rin and the others, they wouldn't need to say so much to enslave or control her.

Self-destruction was only effective when the strengths were not too disparate.

But what about Rin and his companions?

The Snow Empress had a feeling that Rin possessed the power to forcibly control her.

He didn't use it because he wanted to gain her true devotion, not a servant who was outwardly compliant but inwardly rebellious.

Just this point alone made the Snow Empress develop a considerable fondness for Rin.

"Yes, speak."

"First, I hope you do not force me to do anything I don't want to do."

"No problem with that."

"Second, I hope to return to this world in the future…"

At this point, the Snow Empress's voice carried a hint of chilliness. "I want to take revenge on Tang San, and those high and mighty gods!"

Being captured like a plaything.

Such humiliation, the Snow Empress absolutely could not tolerate!

She wanted to become stronger, then return here and make those high and mighty gods pay the price!

"Even if you don't say it, I will help you with this matter."

As long as the Snow Empress became his dependent, she would be his own person.

Rin would help her bear the Snow Empress's hatred.

In the future, if there was an opportunity, Rin wouldn't mind directly conquering the Soul Land Universe and making it a part of the Cardinal World.

"Good!"

Seeing Rin agree, the Snow Empress breathed a sigh of relief and became even more satisfied with her new master. "What do I need to do to become the dependent you spoke of?"

"Just relax."

Seeing that the Snow Empress had acknowledged him, Rin didn't hesitate and quickly activated his Capturer ability on her.

"This is?!"

The Snow Empress vaguely heard a question, asking if she was willing to become Rin's dependent.

The Capturer could forcibly capture, or it could gently inquire like this.

"I am willing."

Having made her decision, the Snow Empress would not be suspicious. She was willing to trust Rin once.

If she were deceived, she could only blame herself for being too naive and blind.

"You won't regret it."

Rin's dependent transformation of the Snow Empress proceeded very smoothly. Without resistance, the connection between them was as natural as water flowing into a channel.

"Rest in my Spirit Space for now."

Rin opened the God Sealing Altar, released the Snow Empress from it, and then used magic power to stabilize her form.

Pale blue magic power transformed into a gentle stream, nourishing the damage the Snow Empress had sustained from her transformation being interrupted.

The complete transformation would have to wait until Rin brought the Snow Empress back to the Cardinal World and utilized the rules of that place to fully complete it.

"Thank you."

The Snow Empress didn't hesitate and immediately entered Rin's body.

The dependent contract allowed Rin to safely accept the Snow Empress, and the latter also learned of Rin's origins and some of his thoughts from this oath.

He had not deceived her.

The relationship between a dependent and a master was like companions and family who shared honor and disgrace.

He would not harm or enslave her.

And she would genuinely protect him and fight for him.

"Rin-sama, where do we go next?"

Shuna asked, "Do we continue exploring this world?"

"No."

Rin looked up, his tone carrying a hint of solemnity. "We cannot come to this world again for a short period of time."

Before the three girls could ask why, an invisible and formless pressure descended from the sky, instantly enveloping everyone.

"This is?!"

From a sheer magnitude perspective, this pressure was already not weaker than a Special A-Rank monster, though it still lacked in quality.

"It's Tang San!"

In the Spirit Space, the Snow Empress's voice echoed in Rin's ear. "He really has been watching this world all along!"

With the facts laid bare, the Snow Empress no longer had any doubts.

If Rin hadn't appeared, she could imagine her future, which would definitely end with her being schemed to death by Tang San.

"Let's go, we're heading back."

Rin didn't intend to clash head-on with Tang San.

Fighting one Tang San was fine, but five God Kings working together would be a bit troublesome.

As the saying goes, a gentleman's revenge is never too late, and furthermore, Rin had taken full advantage of this operation.

The old man's death meant Tang San lost a puppet he could directly control, greatly reducing his ability to interfere with the Soul Land Continent.

Taking the Snow Empress meant Rin gained a powerful dependent whose aptitude and potential were no weaker than Ogerpon's, and perhaps even surpassed her.

"[Traveler…]"

"Boom!!"

"Damn humans!!!"

Just as Rin was about to activate the Traveler to return to the Cardinal World, a colossal emerald green creature burst out from under the ice, sweeping a rolling cold current toward the position where Rin and the others stood.

"Bang!!"

Ogerpon moved quickly, appearing in front of Rin in a flash.

"Poniii!"

The girl held both hands out in front of her, tearing through the cold current formed by the Ultimate Ice. She actually blocked the Ice Empress's long-accumulated fatal blow with sheer brute force.

"What?!"

The Ice Empress's jewel-like eyes widened slightly, clearly not expecting her attack to be blocked.

And so easily, so casually!

"Bing'er!"

Immediately, the Snow Empress recognized the identity of this emerald ice scorpion. It was her rare friend in the Northern Icefield, the Ice Empress.

"Tsk, this guy came at the worst possible time."

Because of Tang San's Spiritual Power lock, Rin and the others hadn't noticed the Ice Empress approaching.

But this put Rin in a rather awkward situation.

He needed to take people back.

So what about the Ice Empress?

Leave her here?

Rin felt that if Tang San lost track of them, he would definitely take his anger out on the Ice Empress.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 55: Ice Scorpion Type

"Master! Can we take Bing'er with us?"

Although the Snow Empress's voice was cold, Rin detected a hint of pleading in it.

Given the relationship between the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress, she was unwilling to leave the Ice Empress alone to face Tang San's wrath.

But this left Rin with only one option, to forcibly capture the Ice Empress and bring her back to the Cardinal World with them.

"Alright then."

The Snow Empress and the Ice Empress, or rather, all Fierce Beast-level Soul Beasts, could theoretically provide assistance to Rin.

The Ice Empress's aptitude certainly couldn't compare to the Snow Empress's, but Rin wouldn't lose out at least.

"Ogerpon, control her!"

"Poniii!"

Hearing Rin's command, Ogerpon unhesitatingly summoned her Ivy Cudgel, then, before the Ice Empress could even react, slammed it hard onto her head.

"Bang!!"

Terrifying monstrous strength poured down, and the Ice Empress only felt a world-shattering tremor before she directly fainted.

"Capturer, activate!!"

For beings who had lost the ability to resist, the Capturer required no preparation whatsoever.

With a flash of light, the enormous Ice Jade Empress Scorpion vanished into the giant pit, and with her, the figures of Rin and the others also disappeared.

"How is this possible!!"

In the Divine Realm, Tang San sat on the God King's throne.

A screen floated before him, displaying the exact location where Rin and the others had previously stood.

However, at this moment, the screen was completely empty.

"Where are they?"

"Space transfer? Or aura concealment?"

Tang San's divine sense continuously poured into the image, then searched the entire Northern Icefield in a carpet-like fashion, and spread to even more distant places.

"Tang San!!"

However, Tang San's actions were quickly discovered.

The God of Destruction burst in with fury, his face grim as he glared at Tang San. "What are you doing? Gods cannot interfere with the lower realms. As the God of Law Enforcement, do you intend to knowingly break the law?!"

"Destruction…"

With his plan ruined by Rin, Tang San was brimming with suppressed anger.

And yet, the God of Destruction still came to question him.

However, Tang San had not yet fully mastered the power of the Asura God, and he was not confident he could defeat Destruction, an old-guard God King.

There was no choice. Tang San could only feign compliance with the other party.

"You mean to say, evil gods from other planes have entered the Soul Land Continent?"

"Exactly."

In a few words, he depicted Rin and the others as evil individuals with malicious intentions.

They coveted the Soul Land Continent, and he had merely discovered this in advance and gone to stop them.

The God of Destruction stared at Tang San. The other party's compassionate demeanor was simply too deceptive.

Even the Goddess of Life, who had accompanied him for countless tens of thousands of years, was now speaking up for Tang San.

Leaving aside the mutual suspicion and schemes between Destruction and Tang San in the Soul Land Universe.

Rin successfully returned to the Cardinal World with the newly subdued Ice Empress and Snow Empress, as well as Ogerpon, Shuna, and Shion.

[Beginning Transformation]

[Transformation complete. Individual 'Snow Empress' has gained the race 'High Ice Elf']

[Individual 'Ice Empress' has gained the race 'Insect-Type Magic Beast · Ice Scorpion Type']

[New rule detected. Beginning analysis]

[Analysis successful. Gained additional skill 'Extreme Attribute']

[Adding new elementalization types]

[New energy detected. Beginning analysis]

[Analysis successful. Gained new magic power variant]

[Beginning naming]

[Naming successful. Gained 'Soul Power']

[Gained 'Spiritual Power']

[Because Soul Power and Spiritual Power are related to the Soul Master system, skills are merging]

[Fusion successful. Gained new special skill 'God's Ring']

...

[Discovered new Unique Skill 'Sword Saint']

[Discovered new Unique Skill 'Nature']

[Discovered new Unique Skill 'Domain of Perpetual Ice']

[Acquired 'Soul Master' profession. This profession meets the acquisition requirements for the Unique Skill 'Spirit Controller']

[Individual 'Itoshi Rin' has successfully acquired the Unique Skill 'Spirit Controller']

...

"Ah!! What is this place?!"

"You hateful human, what did you do to me?!"

Within the boundless pure white world, a chibi Ice Empress was throwing a huge tantrum.

The Ice Empress remembered that not long ago, she had ambushed a human Soul Master, but was struck on the head by a green stick.

What happened next, the Ice Empress had no idea.

"Bing Bing, stop making a fuss."

Suddenly, a cold female voice came from behind the Ice Empress. She turned her head and saw a beautiful woman in a long ice-blue dress.

"Snow Empress!!"

The Ice Empress was first delighted, then plunged into deep despair. "Even, even you were captured by that hateful human?"

"How could this happen?"

...

The Ice Empress had clearly misunderstood something. The Snow Empress shook her head helplessly, comforting her good sister while explaining the current situation to her.

Upon hearing that Tang San was monitoring the Soul Land Continent, and that the Snow Empress, and even she herself, could very likely be schemed against, the Ice Empress immediately cursed Tang San as despicable.

What happened next, however, was somewhat beyond the Ice Empress's expectations.

Beings from another world, special vows, escaping the Soul Land World, the possibility of continuing to grow stronger...

All of this left the Ice Empress feeling incredible.

"So, Snow Empress, you are now that person, that Rin's Dependent?"

The dignified Ice Empress, leader of the Three Arctic Kings of the Northern Icefield, becoming someone else's Dependent—the Ice Empress found it somewhat unacceptable.

Dependent, it sounded nice, but wasn't it essentially a servant?

"Snow Empress, are you really going to be a Dependent for that Rin?"

"Yes, I have decided."

The Snow Empress's nature was cold, but unlike humans, her thoughts were not complex.

Since she had said she would follow Rin, she would remain loyal to the end, in this life and this world, never betraying him.

"Also, Bing'er, you are actually Rin's Dependent now as well."

"What?!"

Upon hearing this, the Ice Empress's eyes immediately widened.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 56: God’s Ring

"Rin's Capturer can forcibly transform beings weaker than him into Dependents."

Theoretically, the Snow Empress, like the Ice Empress, was far weaker than Rin.

If Rin were a bit more shameless, he could have completely enslaved the two sisters, forcing them to sign various unequal treaties.

Instead of the current situation, where the Snow Empress, aside from fulfilling her duties as a Dependent such as protecting Rin, fighting for Rin, and not betraying Rin, could refuse some of Rin's unreasonable demands.

But the Ice Empress was different.

Because the situation at the time was too urgent, Rin, in his haste, had genuinely captured the Ice Empress by force.

The result of this capture was that the Ice Empress signed the most stringent contract.

Unable to resist Rin, she must obey all of his commands.

"This, how could this be, isn't this too despicable?"

The Ice Empress was on the verge of tears; she had pretty much understood.

Rin was not a human Soul Master, and he bore no ill will toward Soul Beasts.

The Snow Empress's Dependent's Vow was the best proof.

"Sorry, circumstances call for immediate action. You'll have to endure for a while, Ice Empress."

Rin's figure appeared beside the two sisters. He didn't mind the Ice Empress's sudden attack.

Soul Beasts attacking humans and humans hunting Soul Beasts was a daily occurrence on the Soul Land Continent, nothing to dwell on.

It was just that the Ice Empress had now become Rin's third Otherworld Dependent and had signed such a harsh contract, which made Rin a bit awkward.

The validity of the contract was absolute. At least, the current Rin did not yet have the ability to change it.

Of course, as Rin continuously broke through and achieved the awakening of a Demon Lord, at that time, his Unique Skill would sublimate, and Rin would be able to perfectly control it, then convert the Servant Contract into a proper Dependent's Vow.

Although the Servant Contract was useful, Rin felt it was a huge pitfall.

Forced servitude would create rifts between the Dependent and the Master.

This was not conducive to the Dependent's subsequent breakthroughs.

Fortunately, Rin was not that kind of person and would not do as he pleased with the Ice Empress.

"You, you are Rin?"

When the Ice Empress saw Rin appear, her first reaction was not to question or curse.

The small, chibi Ice Empress instinctively took a step back, then felt it wasn't safe enough, so she directly hid behind the Snow Empress. Only then did she dare to peek out half her head, looking at Rin timidly.

"Uh…"

Rin knew the Ice Empress's current state.

The power of the Servant Contract made it impossible for the Ice Empress to defy Rin.

In her eyes, Rin was like an evil slave owner holding a whip. Just standing there would bring her immense pressure and fear.

All thoughts of bargaining or proud defiance became a joke at this moment.

'I, I'm actually scared, scared of this guy in front of me.'

'What humiliation!'

The Ice Empress wanted to fight against the tremor in her heart, but the power of the contract prevented her from even conceiving the slightest thought of resisting Rin.

"Alright Rin isn't like that. He won't bully you."

"Mm, let's get along well, Ice Empress."

Rin smiled gently at the Ice Empress. He waved his hand, signaling the Ice Empress to come to his side.

He did not use the power of the contract, so even if the Ice Empress was unwilling, she could refuse.

However, how could the Ice Empress succumb to the fear in her heart?

She would face the abyss.

So, when the Ice Empress clasped her small hand with Rin's, she truly felt the emotions from her master: a heartfelt welcome and affection.

Perhaps this Dependent transformation came too suddenly, catching Rin somewhat off guard.

But since it had happened, Rin regarded it as his destiny with the Ice Empress.

"Don't you want to see your newly acquired power?"

Rin stroked the Ice Empress's soft little head and laughed. "You're much stronger now than before, you know."

"Eh?!"

Perhaps the previous changes came too suddenly, and the Ice Empress hadn't carefully examined them.

Now, after Rin's reminder, the Ice Empress suddenly discovered her enormous changes.

She first transformed, changing from her chibi scorpion form back to the appearance of a young girl with emerald green hair.

"This, what's going on?"

"So that's it, that's how it is!"

The Ice Empress was shocked by this sudden pleasant surprise; she had never imagined that happiness would arrive so abruptly.

The surging energy within her body was called magicules.

In terms of quality, Soul Power wasn't even fit to carry magicules' shoes.

"Magicules, corresponds to the Spiritual Power."

"No wonder it's so strong."

The Ice Empress thought of a possibility. "Then doesn't that mean I'm essentially a god now?"

"Thinking that way isn't wrong."

Rin looked at the Snow Empress, who was also carefully sensing her own changes. "If you two return to the Soul Land Continent again, you might not be enough to fight Tang San, but ordinary gods are definitely no match for you!"

Not just no match. If the two sisters joined forces, they might just go on a rampage.

Thinking this, Rin opened the Ice Empress's attribute panel.

---

[Ice Empress]

[Race: Insectoid Magic Beast Ice Scorpion]

[Magicules: 34000 (A-Rank Mid-tier)]

[General Skills: Ice Magic, Ice-Bug dual-type Pokémon magic]

[Intrinsic Skills: Extreme Attribute, Ice Body, Full Melee Mastery, Magic Power Amplification, Hyper Regeneration]

[Extra Skills: Thought Acceleration, Universal Perception, Ice and Snow Domination, Spatial Motion, Multilayer Barrier]

[Unique Skill: Domain of Perpetual Ice (Creates a domain where the flow speed of matter within it can be freely controlled)]

[Exclusive Skill: Twin Martial Soul · Eternal Night Blazing Sun (Both Ice and Snow Empress are Rin's Martial Souls, sharing life and death, capable of Martial Soul Fusion)]

[Special Skills: Magicules Solidification (Inheritable), God's Ring (Non-inheritable)]

[Resistance: Physical Attack Nullification, Status Anomaly Nullification, Mental Attack Nullification, Natural Influence Nullification, Holy-Demonic Attack Resistance]

---

"Insectoid Magic Beast, Ice Scorpion, huh?"

The Insectoid Race is a race in the Cardinal World, but they are not true insects. Rather, they are a variant of Cryptids.

Or rather, the Insectoid Race is one of the products of Cryptids' degradation.

"34,000 magicules, almost the same as Ogerpon, both reaching A-Rank Mid-tier.

According to magicules, A-Rank is 10,000-30,000 for beginner, 30,000-60,000 for mid-tier, 60,000-90,000 for high-tier, and 90,000-100,000 for peak, which is equivalent to quasi-Special A (quasi-Calamity).

Ice Empress's potential should be similar to Ogerpon's.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 57: Twin Martial Soul

[General Skills]: Ice Magic, Ice-Bug dual-type Pokémon magic

"Ice Magic, presumably a mix of Ice Empress's abilities from her Soul Beast period and the elemental magic she obtained from me."

"Ice-Bug dual-type Pokémon magic."

Rin wasn't surprised by this. His Retainers seemed to be able to awaken Pokémon moves from eighteen attributes based on their own compatibility.

Here, it was called Pokémon Magic.

The name was different, but the essence was still the same.

[Intrinsic Skills]: Extreme Attribute, Ice Body, Full Melee Mastery, Magic Power Amplification, Hyper Regeneration

There was nothing much to say about the Intrinsic Skills. The latter three all came from Rin.

"Extreme Attribute, I remember the Voice of the World mentioned discovering new rules earlier."

Rin remembered that the Extreme Attribute in the Soul Land Continent should mean that a certain attribute had reached its peak, and it was also a symbol of talent.

However, after the transformation by the Cardinal World, the Extreme Attribute underwent some changes.

Broadly speaking, the Extreme Attribute was equivalent to a passive ability that could amplify the same attribute and greatly suppress other attributes.

Regarding this, Rin could only say it was pretty good, but that was all.

"After all, it's just the Soul Land Continent. Even if the attributes there reach the extreme, how strong can they be?"

"Compared to the Extreme Attribute, this Ice Body is a bit more interesting."

Simply put, Ice Empress's Ice Body was somewhat like Aokiji's Ice-Ice Fruit in One Piece, possessing the ability to elementalize.

This allowed the Ice Empress to be immune to almost all General Skills and have great resistance to most physical Extra Skills.

To defeat the Ice Empress, one would at least need to use magic-type or rule-level Extra Skills.

Otherwise, with a BUG-like elementalization ability like Ice Body, she would be virtually invincible.

Of course, there was pure magicules suppression.

For example, Milim's kind of destructive "Mana Bullet." Even with Ice Body, the Ice Empress would be obliterated by a single shot.

In the Cardinal World, magicules weren't absolute, but they were truly overbearing.

[Extra Skills]: Thought Acceleration, Universal Perception, Ice and Snow Domination, Spatial Motion, Multilayer Barrier

"Most of the abilities were inherited, and an Ice and Snow Domination was added."

What Rin truly looked forward to was what kind of Unique Skill the Ice Empress would acquire.

Domain of Perpetual Ice, this Unique Skill, made Rin think of Chloe's Infinity Prison in the original work, the move that sealed the Storm Dragon Veldora.

It was just that the Ice Empress's version was a lower-tier one.

"According to purity, Unique Skills of the ability-system like Domain of Perpetual Ice should be classified as low-level rarity."

"But this ability..."

Rin felt that this Unique Skill was very strong, extremely strong, and its future potential was no less than Chloe's Infinity Prison.

The types of both were the same: sealing, confinement, and control abilities.

Once unleashed, challenging opponents beyond one's level would be effortless.

[Exclusive Skill]: Twin Martial Soul · Eternal Night Blazing Sun

[Special Skills]: Magicules Solidification (Inheritable), God's Ring (Non-inheritable)

"Twin Martial Soul? Martial Soul Fusion Skill?"

"No, it's not a Martial Soul Fusion Skill!"

Rin carefully analyzed this Exclusive Skill.

Unique, Exclusive, and Special, these three types of skills could not be copied or seized and possessed strong independence.

Essentially, all three belonged to Unique Skills, but because they could not be accurately judged, they were further categorized by the Voice of the World.

"Twin Martial Soul · Eternal Night Blazing Sun has two ways of use."

"The first is for the powers of the Ice and Snow Empresses to resonate, then with Ice Empress as the primary, instantly unleash an attack capable of rivaling a Demon Lord's level."

The destructive power of a Demon Lord's level, that was truly terrifying.

However, what truly intrigued Rin was the second use of Eternal Night Blazing Sun.

That was to have the Snow Empress and Ice Empress simultaneously possess Rin, allowing him to break through a major realm in a short period and fight in a new form.

"So, this is actually a transformation skill? Similar to Soul Master Possession?"

Well, as expected of a power system from the Soul Land Continent, it indeed had its unique characteristics.

"No wonder it's called Twin Martial Souls."

Strictly speaking, Rin was also a Soul Master, and one who possessed the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion and Ice and Snow martial souls.

Finally, Rin turned his attention to the special skill brought by the Ice Empress.

The special skill was special because it was different from the Cardinal World.

If Rin had to describe it, it was probably a fragment from another world, forcibly loaded into the skill system by the Voice of the World through Rin.

Star Particle Manipulation was the origin of the Cardinal World.

Magicules Solidification was the integration and sublimation of the Konosuba World's skill tree.

The current God's Ring was the same.

A unique feature of the Soul Land World was that Soul Masters had soul rings, and gods had God's Rings.

Leaving soul rings aside for now, God's Rings could have a maximum of nine according to their number, which signified a Supreme God King.

However, Rin's God's Ring had a maximum of ten.

This meant that Rin could store ten skills in advance, and then release them instantly at critical moments without cooldown or delay.

"A divine skill!"

"This God's Ring is simply a divine skill!"

One should know that the storage limit of the God's Ring was linked to Rin's endurance limit.

For example, the maximum Explosion Magic used during the previous battle with the Insect Monster, Rin could prepare ten of them in advance.

As long as he had free time, he could store them inside.

Not only that, but the God's Ring could also store magicules, as well as any energy Rin could control.

"Skills, energy..."

Rin was at a loss for words. This special skill was simply a divine combat skill.

The only problem was that the God's Ring seemed to be exclusive to Soul Land dependents.

Rin could not transmit it to dependents like Ogerpon, or other named monsters through other means.

However, Magicules Solidification...

"Versatile Magicules Solidification, I, Rin, declare you the model worker!"

Magicules Solidification was a special skill, so it could not be simulated or copied by outsiders, which established its proprietary nature.

However, Magicules Solidification also allowed Rin to freely spread it among his own people.

From dependents to named monsters.

This greatly enhanced the overall quality of Rin's followers.

After all, magicules were equivalent to physical strength and mental power. Increasing magicules meant a comprehensive improvement.

"Seemingly unremarkable Magicules Solidification can cultivate a bunch of stat monsters."

With the existence of Magicules Solidification, if the magicules reached a certain level, it could even immunize against most mechanisms.

Because magicules itself was a skill.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 58: Sword Saint

Rin found that special skills were the greatest benefit he gained by traversing countless worlds, and they were also his capital for challenging the Cardinal World and other worlds.

"What exactly are these?"

"So, so strong!"

The Ice Empress was stunned by the attribute panel that appeared before her eyes. She had never imagined that becoming someone else's dependent would bring such a tremendous improvement.

Arrogance was relative, and so was freedom.

In the world of Soul Beasts, the strong were respected, and the fittest survived.

In the original work, the Ice Empress, in order to survive, accepted the persuasion of the Heavenly Dream Ice Silkworm and became Huo Yuhao's second martial soul.

In Soul Land II, the Ice Empress and Snow Empress, in essence, became divine beasts by Huo Yuhao's side.

It seemed good, but in reality, they were still pets of humans and gods, their lives not their own.

"Sorry, I misunderstood you, Master."

The Ice Empress's address of "Master" was utterly sincere.

If the Soul Beasts of the entire Soul Land Continent knew that becoming Rin's dependent would bring such earth-shattering changes, countless of them would fight to the death for it.

The Ice Empress paid the price of her freedom.

But what was that small price compared to a bright future and continued survival?

The only difference was whether one could follow the right master.

However, looking at the present, the Ice Empress and Snow Empress were undoubtedly fortunate. They met a generous and humane master.

"Master?"

The Snow Empress, standing nearby, nodded. She also saw her attribute panel. "Calling Master by his name is indeed improper. From now on, I will also call him Master."

"Uh, actually, there's no need..."

Rin originally wanted the two women to call him Rin directly, but seeing their firm attitude, he said nothing more.

Dependent and Master.

This was originally a transaction.

However, the Ice Empress and Snow Empress truly won big.

Perhaps some might think that Rin also gained benefits.

But in the eyes of the Ice Empress and Snow Empress, Rin had countless choices, while they only had this one opportunity to follow him.

They were fortunate, far more fortunate than other Soul Beasts on the Soul Land Continent.

"From now on, please allow me and Ice Empress to serve by your side to repay your life-saving grace."

"Mhm mhm mhm!"

The Ice Empress nodded obediently. Since even her older sister said so, as the younger sister, she naturally just had to follow suit.

"Alright."

Rin looked at the Snow Empress and asked, "Snow Empress, what do you think?"

"Very strong!"

On the Snow Empress's cold and beautiful face, a smile like melting winter snow appeared. "Perhaps, among Master's subordinates, I am the strongest now."

 

---

[Snow Empress]

[Race: High Ice Elf]

[Magicules: 86000 (A-Rank High-tier)]

[General Skills: Ice Magic, Ice and Fairy-type Pokémon Magic]

[Intrinsic Skills: Icy Body, All Swordsmanship Mastery, All Melee Mastery, Magic Power Amplification, Super Regeneration]

[Extra Skills: Ultimate Attribute, Thought Acceleration, Omnidirectional Perception, Ice and Snow Domination, Spatial Motion, Multilayer Barrier]

[Unique Skills: Sword Saint (Possesses the pinnacle of swordsmanship and martial arts realms), Nature (Can absorb external magicules, create natural substances, and evolve them to obtain new states)]

[Exclusive Skill: Twin Martial Souls · Cold Desolation Empress (Same as Ice Empress, both are Rin's martial souls, twin-born, can perform martial soul fusion)]

[Special Skills: Magicules Solidification, God's Ring]

[Resistance: Physical Attack Nullification, Status Anomaly Nullification, Mental Attack Nullification, Natural Influence Nullification, Holy-Demonic Attack Resistance]

---

"86,000 magicules."

"Sword Saint and Nature, two Unique Skills."

"Also possesses the exclusive skill 'Twin Martial Souls,' just with a different name."

This exclusive skill, with the Snow Empress as the lead, fusing the Ice Empress's power, would allow her to break through a major realm, entering the 'Cold Desolation Empress' state.

However, this transformation would greatly consume the Snow Empress's magic power and could not last long, only usable for a burst at critical moments.

Additionally, when Rin performed Soul Master Possession, he could also enter this state.

To be precise, these two exclusive skills were the same.

With the Snow Empress as the lead, she transformed into the Cold Desolation Empress.

With the Ice Empress as the lead, she unleashed Eternal Night Blazing Sun.

When Rin used it, he would first transform, changing his title from Empress to Cold Desolation Sovereign, and then gain the qualification to unleash Eternal Night Blazing Sun, the ultimate destruction.

"Whether it's the Snow Empress or the Ice Empress, the fusion of their powers has flaws."

"Only by fusing with me can this exclusive skill's power be fully displayed."

One should know that after Soul Master Possession, the magicules of the three would stack.

After the magicules stacked, aside from the inability to qualitative change, it was purely the beauty of numbers.

Just the current three, once they performed Soul Master Possession, their magicules could increase to over 200,000.

This was already the level of a Demon Lord Seed.

In other words, Rin truly possessed the strength to contend with a Demon Lord Seed.

"Snow Empress, your Unique Skill, Sword Saint..."

"You also know swordsmanship?"

"More than just swordsmanship!"

Before the Snow Empress could speak, the Ice Empress, who was a natural Snow Empress fan, excitedly said, "Snow Empress is unparalleled in both sword and palm techniques."

"Mhm."

The Snow Empress did not act humble at all, nodding naturally, indicating that it was indeed as the Ice Empress said.

Soul Masters of the Soul Land Continent used soul skills, and Soul Beasts were pretty much the same, just those few moves.

However, the Snow Empress, starting from herself, created the Snow Empress's Three Ultimates.

Empress' Sword · Unparalleled Chill, Empress' Palm · Snowless Glacier, and Empress' Chill · Snowy Dance of Ultimate Ice.

The three were swordsmanship, palm techniques, and domain, respectively.

A Sword Saint in the Cardinal World was not just someone good at swordsmanship. It included swordsmanship, saber techniques, spear techniques, and even close-quarters combat, and so on.

The Unique Skill 'Sword Saint' was generally bestowed upon beings who had reached the pinnacle in martial arts and skills.

The Snow Empress had lived for 700,000 years.

This number of years, of course, contained a lot of exaggeration.

But time would not change; the Snow Empress had indeed lived for so long and used such a long period to elevate her skills to the extreme.

Imagine, if a strong person who had meticulously studied skills for 700,000 years came to the Cardinal World.

According to the Voice of the World's judgment, who could compete with her for the title of 'Sword Saint'?

The answer was obvious: no one.

Thus, the Snow Empress effortlessly claimed this title and obtained the Unique Skill [Sword Saint].

(To be continued.)

Chapter 59: Clayman's Plan

"As expected of Snow Empress."

Rin marveled at Snow Empress's excellence. "What is Nature?"

"A skill that converts magicules into existing matter."

This skill was somewhat similar to Rimuru's Analyze and Create, yet it also had certain differences.

The biggest difference was that Snow Empress's creations were not mere transformations of form, but closer to creation from nothing.

For example, Rimuru would consume minerals and herbs, then directly create weapons and potions.

Snow Empress could do similar things.

Not only that, but she could also use magicules to create various minerals and plants.

As Snow Empress gained further control over Nature, she could even synthesize life, such as monsters and magical beasts.

"Isn't that like being a Creator?"

"There are differences."

Snow Empress shook her head slightly. "This skill cannot create souls."

When used to create life, plants were best, followed by ordinary animals with low intelligence such as pigs, dogs, cattle, and sheep.

If creating monsters, the monster's soul must come from an external source, and the monster's potential would depend on the strength of the infused soul.

In the Cardinal World, potential and aptitude were primarily determined by soul strength.

The stronger the soul, the higher the upper limit of skills it could bear.

"I see."

Rin praised, "That's still very impressive. With you here, Snow Empress, we will never lack resources again."

Magicules equaled resources, and resources could be used for development.

No wonder it was called Nature.

Snow Empress alone could support Rin's entire family, and the future looked promising.

---

[Itoshi Rin]
[Race: Dragonoid (Pseudo)]
[Level: A-Rank High-Tier (87,000EP)]
[Class: Mage]

[General Skills: Life Magic, Healing Magic, Elemental Magic, Pokémon Magic, etc.]

[Intrinsic Skills: Adaptability, All-Profession Mastery]

[Extra Skills: Dragon Eye, Explosion Magic, Soul Summoning, Human-Soul Fusion]

[Unique Skills: Traveler [Broken], Leader, Capturer, Duplicator, Spirit Controller (Can transform dependents into Soul Spirits and gain a Soul Spirit Space)]

[Special Skills: Magicules Solidification (Inheritable), Star Particle Manipulation (Non-Inheritable), Ten Rings of God (Non-Inheritable)]

[Exclusive Skills: Twin Martial Souls (Possesses Snow Empress and Ice Empress Martial Souls, can possess or directly summon them)]

[Dependents: Ogerpon, Snow Empress, Ice Empress (3/6), Benimaru, Shuna, Shion, Souei (4/6)]

[Marked Worlds: Pokémon World (Cooling Down), Konosuba World (Cooling Down), Soul Land Universe (Sealed)]

---

"Spirit Controller, a new Unique Skill."

Rin was very happy to have gained another new Unique Skill.

Spirit Controller allowed dependents to accompany him in Soul Spirit (Martial Soul) form and live in the Soul Spirit Space.

Rin originally had a similar space.

But the Spirit Space and the Soul Spirit Space had fundamental differences.

The Soul Spirit Space was based on mental power. Here, Rin could directly materialize anything, making the dependents inside very comfortable.

The Spirit Space could store matter and physical bodies, but it was too narrow inside, with almost nothing.

"I wonder if these two skills can be fused together."

If so, the combination of matter and consciousness would truly create a portable mini-world.

However, this task was quite difficult, and Rin had no idea how to approach it.

As for the Soul Land Universe being sealed and inaccessible, Rin was not surprised.

Tang San was, after all, the Enforcer God of the Divine Realm in Soul Land. His power was immense, capable of triggering world rules to be wary, which Rin found very reasonable.

Rin expressed indifference to this.

Soul Land was currently in the Peerless Tang Sect era, and no matter how much Tang San trained, he would only reach a certain level.

Rin's speed of becoming stronger was beyond Tang San's imagination.

When he could forcibly break the seal of the Soul Land Universe, Rin would naturally seek out Tang San to have a good talk about today's events.

At the same time, east of the Great Jura Forest, an ancient castle sat atop a cliff.

"The plan failed."

"Failed, failed~"

Laplace, the Wonder Pierrot, reported the latest intelligence from the forest.

Beside him, a little girl named Tear raised her hands, spinning around and giggling as she repeated Laplace's words.

"Hmph."

Footman grumbled, "Those insects indeed couldn't amount to anything."

"They were just a batch of failed modifications, we didn't have much expectation, did we?"

At the head of the table sat a tall man.

He had silver-white hair, red pupils, two golden streaks on his forehead, and a sinister smile curling at the corners of his mouth, making him appear exceptionally demonic.

This person was Clayman, one of the Ten Demon Lord, known as the Marionette Master.

He was also the mastermind behind the Insect Magic Beast chaos in the forest.

"However, having the plan destroyed by someone is quite displeasing."

Clayman looked at Laplace and asked, "Did you find out who did it?"

"A newly appeared fellow, seems to be called Itoshi Rin."

"Itoshi Rin?"

Clayman swirled the red wine glass in his hand, then indifferently took a sip. "Never heard of him, probably just some small fry who crawled out of a corner."

"Don't be careless, Clayman."

Laplace's expression was somewhat serious. "That guy is very strange. Not only did he defeat your modified insects, but he also subdued the Ogre Clan in the forest."

"He was actually able to subdue that Ogre Clan?"

Tia clapped her hands. "So amazing!"

"Ogre Clan?"

Clayman remained disdainful. "Just a bunch of muscle-brained simpletons."

A mere B-Rank Ogre Clan, and only a meager 300 of them, Clayman didn't even put them in his eyes.

"I will have Gelmud notify the Orc Clan to advance towards the Ogre Clan's village."

In Clayman's view, the Orc Lord, who had already reached Special A-Rank, was fully capable of sweeping through everything in the Great Jura Forest.

"The Orc Lord?"

"That guy gives off a terrifying feeling."

"With the Orc Lord, the new guy who just emerged will soon be eliminated, right?"

"How pitiful. Just gained control of the Ogre Clan's power, and now he's about to die."

In the clowns' eyes, a mere Ogre Clan village, what power did it have to stop the Orc Lord's advance?

"Then we will continue to monitor that forest, Clayman."

"Ah, I leave it to you."

Watching the clowns leave, Clayman drained the wine in his hand.

Clayman could not personally intervene in the matter of the Great Jura Forest.

That forest was the Storm Dragon's territory.

Other Demon Lords would not rashly enter unless necessary.

According to Clayman's plan, he would send the Majin Gelmud to name the monsters in the forest, thereby gradually encroaching upon the Storm Dragon's territory through this hierarchical relationship.

What Clayman did not expect was that among the Orc Clan, an Orc Lord, rarely seen for hundreds of years, had appeared.

The Orc Lord possessed the power to devour all things and could rapidly increase his magicules by continuously feeding.

If the Orc Lord could become a Demon Lord Seed...

Then, with him, the power of two Demon Lord Seeds would completely surpass the other existences.

Yes, at this time, Clayman had no idea how enormous the gap between a Demon Lord Seed and a True Demon Lord truly was.

In Clayman's view, even the ancient Demon Lord Guy and Milim...

Even if these two were stronger than him, they wouldn't be much stronger.

If one Demon Lord Seed couldn't win, what about two?

Two against one, could they still not secure a place among the Ten Demon Lords?

"A newcomer who appeared out of nowhere..."

Standing up, Clayman walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, then looked at his reflection, and smiled sinisterly. "Cherish this brief period of beauty. Soon, you will know the cruelty of this world..."

(To be continued.)

Chapter 60: Beat Him!

As the sun set, the afterglow sprinkled over the rural village, golden light intertwining with the fresh green of the rice paddies, forming a peaceful and harmonious picture.

Smoke from the wooden houses curled upward, blending into the gradually darkening sky, as if it were the most natural connection between heaven and earth.

"Poniii~ Pon-yo!"

The girl in the straw hat rolled up her pant legs, stepped into the wet rice paddies, and bent down to plant the rice seedlings into the mud.

Ogerpon hummed a tune no one understood while releasing a green Grassy Terrain from her body, using Grass-type magicules to nourish the fields and seedlings, helping them grow stronger.

Beside her, sturdy Ogre Clan members systematically planted rice seedlings.

The cultivated land was not only for rice seedlings but also for vegetables and fruits.

The Cardinal World also had various crops, including those unique to other worlds and plant seeds from Earth.

Due to the existence of skills, creating crops, altering genes, and cultivating varieties were far simpler than on Earth.

This made the biodiversity of the Cardinal World far more comprehensive than described in the original work.

In front of the wooden house, a small river flowed gently, its clear water sound harmonizing with the sounds of farming in the distant fields, creating a tranquil pastoral life.

This stream, about four to five meters wide, was specially dug by Benimaru and his people.

The Ogre Clan had planted many cherry and peach trees along the riverbank. When the wind blew, pink and white petals fell like flying snow, truly transforming the village into a paradise within the Great Jura Forest.

"How does it feel?"

Rin sat by the river, holding a fishing rod, leisurely waiting for a fish to bite.

"Very good, I like this world."

Snow Empress stood behind Rin, glancing at Ice Empress, who was playing with the Ogre Clan children not far away. "It's been a long time since I've seen Ice Empress this happy."

Ice Empress seemed aloof, but in reality, she had a bit of a child's temperament, much like Ogerpon.

Ogerpon was a good child, and not long after meeting Ice Empress, the two became inseparable.

Oh, and Shion should be added too.

The three of them were like mischievous tomboys, often led by Shion to wreak havoc on the brainless magic beasts in the forest.

Of course, this was a good thing.

Magic beasts are inexhaustible.

As long as there are magicules in this world, if one batch of magic beasts is killed, new ones will quickly be born.

Unlike Soul Beasts, magic beasts in the Cardinal World are no different from resources.

Monsters hunt magic beasts, and human adventurers also hunt magic beasts.

Magic beasts: When can we stand up?!

Unfortunately, magic beasts cannot stand up.

Because magic beasts lack the essential thing for evolution: a soul.

The reason Rin doesn't subdue magic beasts is precisely because they lack souls. They cannot provide magicules to Rin.

"I've been learning management from Miss Shuna recently."

Snow Empress positioned herself as Rin's assistant.

And to be a good assistant, both wisdom and strength are indispensable.

She disliked being subservient but was unwilling to leave Rin, which is why she chose the position of assistant.

Moreover, having seen a new world, if she couldn't continue to grow stronger, wouldn't it be a waste of Rin's good intentions?

Snow Empress would never easily let go of this hard-won opportunity.

"Also, Hakurou is very powerful. His swordsmanship has greatly benefited me."

After returning to the Cardinal World, Snow Empress began to establish her prestige.

The first thing she did, just like Ogerpon, was to subdue the entire Ogre Clan, including Benimaru, Shion, and other subordinates of Rin.

Under Rin's command, no one was Snow Empress's opponent except for Ogerpon and Ice Empress.

Even Ogerpon, when facing Snow Empress's fully unleashed Snow Empress form, had to avoid her sharp edge and rely on delaying tactics to wear her down.

However, Snow Empress would not give Ogerpon such an opportunity at all.

Perhaps at first, Snow Empress didn't understand Ogerpon's abilities and suffered quite a bit.

But after that, in the battles between Snow Empress and Ogerpon, the latter never gained an advantage again.

Rin could only say that the Unique Skill of Sword Saint truly brought too much help to Snow Empress.

"And Ogerpon, she's been making rapid progress recently."

Half a month had passed since returning to the Cardinal World.

During this half-month, the Ogre Clan village had been thriving, and the clan members who were out on mercenary quests had also returned.

And the return of new members naturally brought more magicules to Rin.

Ogerpon's Growth was still Rin's most important means of acquiring magicules, without a doubt.

However, now that Ogerpon had reached A-Rank, to gain experience points, her opponents had to be B-Rank or higher.

In the entire Great Jura Forest, B-Rank magic beasts were already scarce, and most of them were still in the labyrinth sealing the Storm Dragon.

Rin temporarily did not plan to deal with the Storm Dragon.

The Dragonoid race made Rin prepare for low-key development, trying his best not to be discovered by those Dragon Kind.

This decision significantly slowed down Ogerpon's experience harvesting efficiency.

In half a month, Ogerpon's magicules barely reached 48,000.

Rin's magicules, however, due to Ogerpon's recent advancement, officially broke through the 90,000 mark, entering the realm of A-Rank pinnacle.

"Let's go, Snow Empress."

Rin put his things into his spatial storage and then called out to Snow Empress. "Let's start today's training."

"Mm."

Snow Empress quickly followed. She would train Rin's combat abilities every day, helping him familiarize himself with various powers.

Rin's magicules were vast, and their value was also very high.

However, Rin was truly not excellent in the combination of various skills and on-the-spot improvisation.

Despite possessing such immense power, Rin only displayed less than 5% of it.

Of course, Snow Empress could see that Rin was not bad at fighting.

Rin definitely had combat talent.

The only thing Rin lacked was experience.

Soon after, Rin and Snow Empress returned to their wooden house.

The two did not go to the arena specially built by the village.

Because it wasn't necessary.

With a spiritual world like the Soul Spirit Space, they could completely conduct consciousness simulations.

"Huh?"

Ice Empress, who was about to go play with Ogerpon not far away, suddenly stopped. "It's starting again?"

"Perfect, let me see master's progress."

Ice Empress split a wisp of her mind, letting it control her body to walk towards the field area, while more of her energy was focused on the battle within the Soul Spirit Space.

Shion and others took the same action as her.

Except for Ice Empress and Snow Empress, who were permanently stationed outside, other subordinates, as long as they received Rin's permission, could enter the consciousness space in their soul spirit form.

Such a good combat stage was not only for Rin. Other subordinates also liked to request duels for practical sparring.

Over time, a combat power ranking was even created among the subordinates.

Among the seven subordinates, Snow Empress undoubtedly had the best record.

Next was Ogerpon.

Shion and Ice Empress had similar records.

Basically, if they lost one day, they could win it back the next.

Benimaru, due to his Unique Skill being more military-oriented, was a step behind the two women.

Souei and Shuna, one specialized in assassination and the other was a priest, simply could not defeat those combat fanatics head-on.

(To be continued.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 61: Palm that Freezes Time

"Is Rin-sama going to fight Lady Snow Empress again?"

Souei and Benimaru had things to do, so they didn't watch this battle.

Shion and the others stayed in the village, so even if they split their minds, it wouldn't affect their daily activities.

"I wonder how long Rin-sama can last this time."

Shion respected Snow Empress, but she would not slack off on the necessary challenges.

Shion would never easily give up her position as Rin's close subordinate.

"Rin-sama is already working very hard, and he gets stronger every time."

"What's more, he hasn't even used his full power."

In such a simulated battle, Rin could be said to be challenging Snow Empress's strengths with his weaknesses.

In a real battle, Rin should be a turret standing at the rear.

Under absolute firepower, any technique would seem so flashy.

Of course, since it was sparring and training, Rin would not fight like that, but instead would use every ability he currently possessed.

Only by constantly using them could one deeply explore and thus make oneself more perfect.

"Go, Rin~"

As expected of Rin's little darling, Ogerpon had changed into a new outfit at some point and was now holding up a "Rin Must Win" sign, cheering and shouting.

The Soul Spirit Space was good for this. Everything was simulated.

"Go, Snow Empress!! Beat him up!!"

"???"

Ogerpon felt that Ice Empress had been a bit too uninhibited lately.

Fortunately, Rin didn't mind these things.

"Let this old man be the referee."

Hakurou stroked his beard and stepped forward, standing to one side of the battle circle.

"I'll have to trouble you again, Hakurou."

"Not at all. To be able to witness such a wonderful battle is a great enjoyment for this old man."

As Hakurou spoke, his brow slowly split open, revealing a vertical pupil.

This was precisely the old man's reliance for being able to act as a referee—the Heavenly Eye.

"Are you ready, Master?"

Snow Empress was a good teacher. Whether it was feeding moves to Rin or finding his shortcomings, she was incredibly professional.

Rin was very fortunate to have such an excellent subordinate.

"Come on, Snow Empress."

"This time I'll try to last a little longer."

Rin's answer greatly pleased Snow Empress. She raised her hand, and a large amount of ice elements gathered around her.

The two limited their power to a certain range, engaging in a pure contest of skill.

"Empress' Palm!"

"A big move right from the start?"

Rin watched as Snow Empress raised her hand and then lightly pushed it forward.

Snow Empress's movements were very slow, yet in everyone's eyes, this palm strike was so fast, as if the entire process from raising the hand to striking had been completed in the blink of an eye.

"Has she improved again?"

Hakurou, who was watching the battle, raised an eyebrow slightly, astonished by Snow Empress's incredible comprehension.

This palm strike seemed unremarkable, but it actually involved the application of multiple abilities.

The surrounding space was enveloped by an invisible membrane, and the flow and changes of all things were momentarily stilled by the extreme low temperature.

The principle of this move was very similar to Esdeath's Mahāpadma in Akame ga Kill.

Both achieved the effect of time stoppage indirectly by freezing matter.

The flaw of Empress' Palm is that it must hit the enemy.

Fortunately, Rin possessed an extraordinary mind, and even though his body was still, his soul remained.

Thus, he could still think.

And being able to think meant that the monster's skills were not sealed.

"There's still a fight left!"

However, just as Rin was preparing to counterattack, an invisible force gently landed on his chest.

Rin felt a chilling sensation spread from his heart throughout his body.

Due to their master-servant relationship, Snow Empress was unable to inflict any harm on Rin.

But if this move had landed on anyone else, even if it didn't kill them, it would certainly result in severe injury.

"Snow Empress, wins!!"

At the same time, Hakurou, acting as the referee, immediately announced the battle's outcome.

"Huh?"

Rin was stunned, then immediately reacted, looking at Snow Empress in surprise. "Snow Empress, does your Empress' Palm no longer need to make contact with the enemy?"

In such a short time, Snow Empress had perfected all of her Three Snow Empress Ultimates one after another.

The Empress' Palm, originally only applicable to short distances, no longer required direct contact.

As a result, Snow Empress gained another unexpected killing move, and her combat ability increased once again.

"So powerful, I had no chance to retaliate at all."

In the Cardinal World, magicules were never the key factor in determining strength.

Some monsters, despite having only tens of thousands of magicules, could fight against powerhouses with hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of magicules.

The best example was Hakurou in the original work.

As for Snow Empress...

She was already the strongest combat force under Rin's command.

Even Ogerpon, in a one-on-one situation, could only rely on her Destroyer advantage to fight to mutual destruction.

"You did great!!"

"Hit him, keep hitting him!!"

Although the surrounding audience didn't fully understand, they were greatly shocked.

Especially a certain green-haired girl, who was practically screaming her throat raw, wishing she could personally step in and punch Rin.

"This Ice Empress..."

Rin's mouth twitched slightly, secretly deciding that after the training ended, he would definitely spank her.

"Don't be silly, Ice Empress."

Snow Empress glanced at Ice Empress, finding this quite a headache.

Although she had already accepted Rin as her master in her heart, Ice Empress was not one to admit defeat verbally.

Snow Empress truly feared that one day, Rin might lose his patience and go wild on her.

"Snow Empress, you're getting stronger so fast."

"In such a short time, you've completely adapted to the Cardinal World's power system and even developed new techniques based on it."

Losing to Snow Empress, Rin was not disheartened.

Rather, Rin had already lost to Snow Empress dozens or hundreds of times during this period, so he was already accustomed to it.

"Master, too, your progress speed is even faster than I expected."

Snow Empress still cared about Rin's face, she comforted him. "At first, when I froze time and space, Master couldn't even react."

"After this period of training, if you encounter similar situations again, Master can calmly handle them."

Snow Empress was not just talking about her moves, but also sudden assassination methods similar to time-space freezing.

If it were the initial Rin, facing such a sudden attack, he would definitely be caught off guard.

But now...

Snow Empress was fully confident that no matter how sudden the situation, Rin would be able to react instantly.

And this was Snow Empress's true goal.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 62: Great Jura Forest Conquest Plan

"You're truly putting in a lot of effort, Lady Snow Empress."

Hakurou sighed with emotion. "What the Lord lacks is not the ability to fight enemies, but means of self-preservation."

With powerful dependents like Snow Empress, Ice Empress, and Ogerpon protecting him closely, Rin actually had no shortage of combat power.

Sending out any one of them was equivalent to unleashing a powerful ultimate move.

They were inherently Rin's strength. There was no reason to believe that he had to personally fight for it to count as his own action.

"Thank you, Snow Empress."

"Between you and me, there is no need for thanks."

Snow Empress said, "Come, let's continue our training."

Providing Rin with means of self-preservation was Snow Empress's most urgent priority.

And beyond that, it was to unleash Rin's combat potential, making him no longer a weakness, but the strongest in the team.

As her master, how could Rin be weaker than her?

Having a sword but not using it, and having no sword to use, are two different concepts.

Rin not needing to fight did not mean he could not fight.

When enemies finally broke through the interception of Snow Empress, Ogerpon, and others, and finally reached Rin, they would discover that he was the strongest.

This was Snow Empress's ultimate goal in training Rin's combat skills and instincts.

"Good."

Rin did not decline, nor would he let down Snow Empress's good intentions.

The battle ended, and Rin still failed to defeat Snow Empress.

Rin, however, was indifferent to this.

Previously, Ogerpon was stronger than him, and now there was another Snow Empress. It made no difference.

"You've worked hard, Rin-sama."

Shuna brought a food box filled with many dishes she had personally prepared.

The ingredients were mountain delicacies and wild game from the forest, and after Shuna's cooking, they were incredibly delicious, so much so that even Ice Empress and Snow Empress, who had little interest in human food, quite enjoyed them.

"Pon-yo~~

Ogerpon came bouncing from afar.

Because she had just come out of the rice paddies, the girl left muddy, black footprints behind her with every step.

"Ah ah!"

"Wait, Ogerpon, stop quickly!"

"Po?"

"Seriously, how can you come into the house all dirty?"

Shuna hurried forward, summoning water to wash Ogerpon's hands and feet.

After this period of getting along, the Ogre Clan in the village had become familiar with Ogerpon's personality and character.

She was just an innocent and kind little girl.

In terms of strength, Ogerpon was indeed unmatched among the Ogre Clan, but in terms of temperament, they completely treated her as the Ogre Clan's mascot and took care of her.

Especially Shuna, their relationship was as close as sisters.

"Wash this foot too, and this side... oh, so comfortable~"

Ogerpon didn't mind at all being treated like a child, and she even regarded Shuna, who was good at taking care of people, as an older sister. "Thank you, Shuna."

"Mo~"

"You need to be more careful next time, you're always so clumsy."

Shuna dotingly stroked Ogerpon's head, while handing the specially made sandwich to the girl.

Ogerpon took the sandwich, took a bite, and her eyes immediately lit up. "Delicious!!"

"Hmm, this rice ball is also very tasty."

"But I still prefer curry rice."

"Okay, I'll make it for you next time."

"Oh oh oh!"

There was a lot of food in the basket.

Shuna usually enjoyed researching these, and Rin's preferences were her main focus of study.

In the original work, Shuna was not strong in combat, yet she was still Rimuru's second-in-command, and there was a reason for that.

With Shuna overseeing the base camp with her excellent logistics and coordination abilities, even when Rin was away, their foundation would not fall into disarray.

"Gurgle gurgle."

After eating, Rin drank the freshly squeezed juice prepared by Shuna, and looked at the prosperous and lively scene in the village, feeling a sense of peace in his heart.

The Great Jura Forest was vast, with many scenic and pleasant places.

The Ogre Clan's village was nestled by mountains and rivers, rarely encountering conflicts with the outside world.

It was peaceful and tranquil here, very suitable for retirement.

'If I didn't have the Traveler ability, living in the Ogre Clan village for a long time would eventually make me lose my fighting spirit.'

'However, I can go on adventures in other worlds.'

Explore outside, and when tired, return to this village for recuperation and relaxation.

"Rin-sama, this is the village's subsequent construction plan, please take a look."

Mornings were for Rin and Snow Empress's morning training, and afternoons were for handling official duties.

The official duties were not complicated, mostly concerning resource consumption, construction plans, and directions and goals for external expansion.

Rin didn't need to consider the specific details.

What he needed to do was grasp the overall direction.

"Tell me the specifics, Shuna."

"Alright."

Shuna clasped her hands in front of her lower abdomen, then reported to Rin the changes in the village over the past half-month.

"First, Ogerpon, under her leadership, the magic beasts within a 50-kilometer radius have been completely cleared."

"The remaining monsters, more or less, possess a certain level of intelligence."

"According to your request, intelligent monsters, as long as they do not actively attack, have the right to survive in this land."

Shuna didn't understand, but she wholeheartedly agreed with Rin's idea.

Everyone had the right to survive. Being strong didn't mean one had to exterminate the weak.

Hunting magic beasts is different because magic beasts are purely brainless monsters that cannot communicate at all.

However, if magic beasts could understand the Ogre Clan, both sides could coexist peacefully.

In contrast, even with the lowest intelligence, monsters still follow some basic rules.

This allowed the village, including the forest and fields within a fifty-mile radius, to develop a completely new ecosystem.

"It's just that the village's development has reached its limit at this point."

Shuna spread a map before Rin. "Our Ogre Clan is the strongest monster tribe in this area."

"Further out, there are scattered Goblin villages and some intelligent monsters."

What needed to be discussed today was the problem of these Goblins.

"How to deal with Goblins?"

Rin remembered that in the original work, Rimuru first subdued the Goblins in the forest and even bestowed names upon them.

Rimuru's magicules were backed by the Storm Dragon, so even if they were depleted, they would quickly recover.

But Rin didn't have such confidence.

His magicules were limited, so even if he bestowed names, he would only choose the most outstanding and promising monsters.

However, this was only a matter of time.

After all, naming monsters could provide Rin with more magicules.

As long as they were willing to join Rin's command and become his subjects, bestowing names would be a matter of time.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 63: Goblins Once Prospered

"How many Goblins can be recruited from the surrounding area?"

"This..."

Shuna said, "The closest Goblin village to us probably only has a few dozen people."

"Only that many?"

"I apologize, Rin-sama."

Shuna said, "Our people are too few, and the forest is too vast, so we truly cannot conduct a more accurate search."

The Great Jura Forest in the original work seemed small.

But only after truly transmigrating to this world did Rin realize how vast the real Great Jura Forest was.

Though called a great forest, it actually featured diverse terrains, including grasslands, swamps, lakes, and hills.

These areas were separated by dense forests, which formed the monster circle of the Great Jura Forest.

"It's alright, you've done your best."

Rin naturally wouldn't blame the loyal Ogre Clan.

"I know about Goblins, you see."

Just as Rin was contemplating how to better search for tribes in the forest, a figure slowly appeared before Rin and the others. It was the Dryad, Treyni.

Nearly a month had passed since Rin displayed Explosion Magic last time.

During this time, Treyni had paid close attention to Rin's movements.

She would occasionally visit Rin, who would then warmly invite her to taste the village's delicacies.

Dryads are the guardians of the forest.

With them, the forest can thrive endlessly.

Therefore, it was beneficial to get along well with Treyni.

"These are our newly made potato chips. Please taste them, Treyni-san."

Shuna brought a bowl of freshly fried potato chips, and Treyni's attention was instantly drawn to them. "Well, then I won't be polite."

"Crunch!"

Treyni held a potato chip in one hand and gently stroked her cheek with the other, her eyes filled with enjoyment and intoxication. "Ah, this food called potato chips is too delicious."

Rin didn't quite understand Treyni's love for potato chips.

However, he had read the original work and knew about Treyni's potato-elf meme, which was why he offered potato chips to cater to her preferences.

The effect was self-evident. Treyni was completely immersed in the potato chips, unable to extricate herself.

Rin felt that in a while, he might even be able to convert her into a new dependent.

Yes, a dependent.

Treyni and her sisters are the guardians of the Great Jura Forest.

In the original work, she eventually followed the Fairy Queen.

But this has not happened yet.

Rin had every opportunity to win over Treyni, and by extension, bring this forest completely under his supervision.

'Unfortunately, now is not the time.'

In Rin's opinion, it wasn't difficult to gain Treyni's favor.

Even now, he had a certain chance to persuade her to become his dependent.

But the problem was that Treyni's monster level was still above Rin's current level.

Don't underestimate Treyni.

The Dryad big sister seemed not strong, but her magicules value was over 100,000.

Capturer cannot convert beings with magicules higher than Rin into dependents. This is also a major flaw of the Capturer.

"Treyni, are you willing to help us subdue the Goblin tribes in the forest?"

"I've always been entertained by you, and sometimes I want to do something in return."

Treyni thought highly of Rin. She believed Rin had hope of unifying the Great Jura Forest.

The Storm Dragon is the lord of the forest, but he is sealed beneath the labyrinth and rarely interferes in daily matters.

If a powerful monster could step forward and lead the monsters in the forest, Treyni wouldn't have to worry about external forces infringing upon this land.

"Then you've truly helped us a great deal."

Shuna asked, "Treyni-san, do you know how many Goblins are currently living in the forest?"

"I remember Goblins should be monsters that reproduce very quickly," Shion said, "When I was little, there seemed to have been a Goblin disaster, with over 5 million Goblins rampaging through the forest."

"How many?!"

This was the first time Rin had heard this number, and he could only say, as expected of Goblins.

But a problem arose.

Rin didn't remember Rimuru having so many Goblins under his command.

In the original work, Rimuru seemed to have only subdued one Goblin village, with a total of only sixty or seventy Goblins.

Even counting the Goblins who joined later, the total number wouldn't exceed 2,000.

But according to Shion, the number of Goblins was so vast that they could almost establish a country.

"That's right, there was indeed such a thing."

Treyni, who was listening, recalled, "At that time, Goblins were rampant, and their figures could be seen everywhere in the forest."

"They expanded recklessly, eventually attracting a massive subjugation by human adventurers."

"It was because of that incident that the number of Goblins sharply decreased, and a large portion of them fled to the eastern part of the forest."

"Is the east safer?"

Rin thought the Goblins in the forest had migrated, which was why Rimuru only had so few Goblins under his command.

"No."

Treyni shook her head. "The Goblins who went to the east almost all died out."

"Uh..."

Soon, Rin learned the reason from Shuna.

The Great Jura Forest, in terms of ownership, was considered the territory of the Storm Dragon, Veldora, and the Demon Lord's Domain to the east, the Western Nations, and the Northern Empire all tacitly acknowledged this.

There were a large number of magical beasts and monsters in the forest, and many countries would hunt monsters living on the forest's edge.

During the Goblin rampant period, the Northern Empire and the Western Nations acted together to drive them back into the forest.

They thought that as long as they stayed away from humans, they would be safe.

However, the three Demon Lords in the east similarly looked down on this group of weak Goblins and carried out a massive purge against them.

"By now, only the Goblins living in the central area of the forest remain, estimated to be no more than 30,000."

Normally, the Goblins in the Great Jura Forest shouldn't be as few as they were in the original work.

Otherwise, wouldn't human adventurers not receive any quests to subjugate Goblins?

But the situation at that time was quite special.

The Storm Dragon's aura disappeared, and the monsters in the forest became unrestricted, beginning to devour each other.

It's not surprising that the number of weak monsters like Goblins plummeted from tens of thousands to around 2,000.

"Will Goblins not go extinct?"

"They won't."

Treyni said, "Monsters are very difficult to truly exterminate."

Monster factors will not disappear because of the extinction of a certain race.

Even if all the Goblins in the world were killed, new Goblins could still be born in the future.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 64: Monster Factors

"Furthermore, the Voice of the World will also maintain balance," Treyni said. "When they are truly on the brink of survival, Goblins all over the world will receive blessings."

This blessing is not limited to one place. Instead, Goblins worldwide will rise simultaneously.

"Weak monsters will greatly increase in number during the magicules tide."

"Powerful monsters will give birth to kings rarely seen in a hundred years."

Treyni picked up the last potato chip, put it in her mouth, and showed an incredibly happy smile.

"Perhaps this is the world's benevolence."

The Dryad girl drank tea and sighed. "Whenever a race falls into a trough, it will usher in the hope of rising."

"Speaking of which, Goblins seem very suitable for breeding!"

When the number of Goblins increased, Rin could perform a complete domination at once, and the magicules brought by millions of Goblins was something he couldn't even imagine. He would simply get rich.

However, Treyni seemed to see through Rin's thoughts and poured cold water on him. "The total amount of souls is limited."

As a Dryad, many things in the forest could not escape Treyni's eyes.

Rin rose too quickly.

Treyni had already figured out the means by which he achieved this.

It's just that—

Treyni didn't dislike Rin. Her responsibility was to protect the forest's ecosystem, and having a like-minded ally could greatly enhance the cohesion of the Great Jura Forest.

"Is the total amount of soul related to race?"

"Yes, it is."

Treyni said, "All monsters have an invisible racial existence value."

Racial potential comes from the soul. Rin's Leader, in essence, also shares the soul energy of his followers, allowing him to quickly grow stronger.

However, the Goblin race has a certain upper limit to its existence value.

With a fixed upper limit, the more Goblins there are, the lower the quality of each individual Goblin will be.

Therefore, it was only when there were only a few thousand Goblins left in the forest, like Rimuru's situation, that subduing them allowed them all to evolve into Hobgoblins at once.

Millions, even tens of millions of fortune, were condensed onto a few thousand Goblins.

The individual quality of almost every one of them was one in a thousand, or even one in ten thousand.

"The more numerous a certain race is, the lower the potential of its individuals will be."

"Your Ogre Clan's population is around 300, which is actually a very good number," Treyni said. "If the number continues to grow, the Ogre Clan will no longer possess the power of the forest's strongest monster race."

Upon hearing the secret Treyni revealed, Shuna and Shion gasped.

"According to you, does this mean the upper limit of each race is already predetermined?"

"Yes, and no."

Treyni paused for a moment and gave Rin a look.

The latter understood immediately and promptly had more potato chips brought over.

This made Treyni very satisfied, thinking to herself that Rin was a good Lord who understood people's hearts.

Her early investment this time had indeed not been in vain.

"Racial existence value can reach up to A-Rank."

Treyni picked up a potato chip and bit it with a crunch. "Beyond that, it can only be an individual."

Once an individual, he will not be limited by his race. Instead, his race will be proud of him.

"When a certain monster race has given birth to a Demon Lord, the existence value of its race will be elevated."

"And for weak monsters like Goblins, there has never been an instance of a Demon Lord emerging."

This means that it is very difficult for Goblins to evolve into a Demon Lord.

They have no reference points, so they can only rely on themselves.

"This is why Goblins are so weak."

If the Goblin race develops well, their numbers will inevitably be very large, which will then lower the potential of individuals.

In such a situation, for a Goblin to become a King, he would first have to eliminate enough of his own kind.

Numbers and individual strength.

This fully demonstrates the advantage of rare races.

"So, naming is actually a promotion from a superior to a weaker being?"

"Exactly."

Treyni nodded and said, "There is no path, but if a strong person from above is willing to pull you up, then things become very simple."

Strong individuals do not need to follow rules.

Because they themselves are the rules.

In the original work, Rimuru transformed the remaining few thousand Goblins into Hobgoblins all at once, causing a leap in their racial existence value.

The Hobgoblins from the Goblin village were separated from other Goblins in the Cardinal World.

The two no longer shared the same racial existence value.

"How many Goblins are there in the western part of the forest, near us?"

Rin couldn't possibly cross half the forest to the south and north to find scattered Goblin villages.

Following the principle of proximity, Rin intended to first take control of the Goblins in this western area.

"Roughly 8,000, I suppose."

"That's quite a lot."

Rin felt that this number was very good.

He disliked weak Goblins, but Hobgoblins, much like the green-skinned Orcs from Warcraft, were more acceptable.

"Treyni, could you lead us to the Goblin camp?"

Shuna, at some point, brought another large bag of potato chips as a thank you gift for Treyni's help.

"Of course."

As the saying goes, one who eats from another's hand is beholden to them. Treyni was completely reined in by Shuna.

The number of people in this expedition was not large. Treyni served as the guide, and Rin also dispatched several Ogres who had received his name.

Leading them was a Miko Hime named Sakurako.

Sakurako had a gentle personality and had learned many ways of dealing with people from Shuna. She was accompanied by a Shadow Squad member and two members of the Red Ogre Clan skilled in close combat.

Four Ogre-kind individuals with the combat power of A-Rank upper-tier Demons.

Such combat power, before Rin arrived, would have been enough not only to recruit Goblins but also to conquer the entire western forest.

Also departing were Benimaru and Hakurou's teams.

Their destination was the mountain range where the Tengu Clan resided, to convey Rin's friendly message there.

If possible, Rin wanted to bring the entire Tengu Clan under his command to supplement the lack of aerial forces.

Thus, about two days passed.

"Rin-sama."

That night, Souei suddenly contacted Rin.

"Have you arrived, Souei?"

Rin asked, "How are things there?"

"Things are bad."

Souei had been sent by Rin to investigate the situation of the Orc Clan.

He remembered that in the original plot, the Orc Clan, unable to obtain enough food, had their Leader, who would later become the Orc Lord, forced to go out in search of hope.

There was one point: the Orc Clan Leader possessed the Unique Skill 'Starved' even before Gelmud named him.

Starved was like a curse, causing the normally gentle Orc Clan's appetite to surge, leading them to devour their stored food and even resort to cannibalism.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 65: Traces of the Orc Lord

"Just as you predicted."

Souei stood on a cliff, gazing at the desolate land in the distance. Under the scorching sun, not a blade of grass grew. "There's nothing, neither grass nor trees, all gone."

"It seems 'Starved' has already manifested."

Through this event, Rin was able to roughly determine the current time period.

'After Rimuru reincarnated, it took him about a few months to leave the labyrinth.'

'Afterward, he successively subdued the Goblins and Direwolves, encountered Benimaru and others whose villages were annihilated by the Moderate Harlequin Alliance, and soon met the invading Orc army.'

Rin felt that it should be around the first half of the story's plot, as the Storm Dragon was still present.

However, considering the Insect-Type Magic Beast not mentioned in the original work, Rin felt he couldn't completely rely on the original as a reference.

In the real world, any event can trigger a butterfly effect.

Rin didn't think the future would unfold exactly as described in the novel.

"Souei."

"At your service!"

"Go to the Lizardmen's territory, inform them of the Orc Clan's changes, and then propose an alliance with us."

Rin wanted to subdue all the monsters in the forest. Each of them was an important source of magicules for him, and he couldn't let a large number of them die off casually as in the original work.

"Understood!"

Upon receiving the order, Souei wasted no time and immediately rushed towards the Lizardmen's stronghold.

'This is a bit troublesome.'

Upon learning the current time period, Rin felt a slight sense of distress, and his expression was immediately noticed by Ice Empress.

"Master, is something wrong?"

Rin pondered for a moment and told Ice Empress the information he knew. "Simply put, someone is behind a conspiracy, and there's a group of very strong individuals hiding in the shadows. I'm a bit uneasy."

Rimuru's initial opponent, the early antagonist, and later a power-level measuring unit, Clayman, one of the Ten Great Demon Lord.

Don't misunderstand, even though this guy didn't perform well in the original work and was easily dealt with by Rimuru.

But Clayman was still a Demon Lord Seed, after all.

The term Demon Lord Seed here does not refer to a truly awakened Demon Lord.

In the Cardinal World, if you are a Demon Lord Seed, then acquire territory and an army, you can call yourself a Demon Lord.

Afterward, through the Demon Lord Council, as long as the other Demon Lord do not object, then you are a Demon Lord.

"Clayman and the Demon Lords, are they very strong?"

Hearing that there were powerful individuals, Ice Empress felt a little excited and wanted to fight these strong ones.

"Among the Ten Great Demon Lords, seven are True Demon Lords."

"Currently, Clayman's magicules value is estimated to be around 400,000."

The amount of magicules doesn't represent everything, so even the current Rin has a chance to fight Clayman.

Ice Empress and Ogerpon, the two girls' magicules are A+, but in a real fight, ordinary Special A-Ranks are no match for them.

But this is clearly not enough.

"I'm not afraid of Clayman. What I'm worried about is the Moderate Harlequin Alliance behind him."

"Clayman belongs to the Moderate Harlequin Alliance and is the weakest member within it."

"Besides him, every other Clown possesses combat power comparable to a Demon Lord."

To put it bluntly, the current Rin, facing any one of the Clowns, would be utterly annihilated.

Fortunately, the Clowns will not easily expose their existence.

After all, once a conflict breaks out between the two sides, the sheer commotion would be enough to attract the attention of other Demon Lords.

Yuuki Kagurazaka would definitely not jump out at this time.

"Every one of them has the power of a Demon Lord?"

Ice Empress was a bit surprised. She increasingly felt that following Rin was the most correct decision she had ever made. "Interesting!"

"There will be opportunities."

Rin said, "If things become impossible, I will activate Traveler and take you to other worlds."

With Traveler as a fallback, the worst outcome is merely living to fight another day.

After he becomes stronger by relying on the power of countless other worlds, he will return for revenge.

"It seems that after arranging things here, it's time to start exploring new worlds."

The feeling of being targeted wasn't good, and Rin hated those who schemed in the dark. "Even if they aren't deliberately targeting us, since we are destined to be enemies, there's nothing more to say."

If Rin was to follow Rimuru's path, then Rimuru's enemies would eventually emerge.

"Now, information on the Orc Clan has been obtained."

"As for the Goblins, Treyni will lead the way."

Rin wasn't worried about Sakurako and their safety regarding the Goblins.

Treyni could summon Sylphide, and even if the Clowns had truly arrived in the Great Jura Forest, they wouldn't dare to provoke her.

"I wonder how Benimaru and Hakurou are doing?"

Rin's understanding of the Tengu Clan in this world was limited.

"Tengu?"

Ice Empress and Snow Empress, however, were quite interested.

Rin explained. "Although they are called Tengu, they actually resemble angels with wings."

A long time ago, an angel incarnated into the body of a Mountain Wolf, thus giving birth to the Tengu Clan.

The Tengu Clan here didn't actually have long noses.

They liked to wear red, long-nosed masks and had white or black wings on their backs, and were called the Tengu Clan due to their arrogant personalities.

Years ago, the founder of the Tengu Clan, Kaede, practiced swordsmanship under Araki Byakuya alongside Hakurou.

The two developed feelings for each other and gave birth to a daughter, who was Momiji in the original work.

However, the gestation period for Tengu was extremely long. Hakurou's wife took a full three hundred years to give birth to Momiji, and she passed on most of her magicules to her.

The stronger the monsters in the Cardinal World, the less likely they were to bear offspring.

Because this was a huge detriment to monsters.

Bearing offspring meant the offspring would inherit a large portion of the parents' power. Even the former Star King Dragon fell because of this.

Given the relationship between the Tengu Clan and Hakurou, with him stepping forward, and then Benimaru entering into a marriage alliance as in the novel, Rin felt there was a high chance of gaining the loyalty of the Tengu Clan.

At worst, he would take on the conflict between the Tengu and Frey.

Frey's strength might be slightly stronger than Clayman's, but she was definitely no match for those few Clowns.

Rin was confident that before Sky Queen Frey clashed with him, he would become strong enough that she wouldn't dare to provoke him.

(To be continued.)

...

Chapter Text

Chapter 66: Subduing Goblins

"The territories of the Tengu are located near Demon Lord Frey's country."

Snow Empress memorized the map of the Cardinal World. "Hakurou and the others will probably have to travel for a while, so it definitely won't be that fast."

"Then let's wait a bit longer, until the Goblins submit."

Rin also took this time to continue researching the Traveler's abilities.

He discovered that the Traveler's ability to open gates to other worlds wasn't entirely random. There were some controllable aspects.

For example, Rin didn't directly use the Traveler, but instead dispersed magicules to capture world gates wandering in the void.

During this process, Rin could obtain some fragmented information, thereby making a preliminary judgment about what kind of world was on the other side.

Additionally, this usage would not consume the Traveler's travel opportunities.

Rin didn't need to worry about encountering danger and being unable to use the Traveler.

"Alright, let me see what the next world will be like."

Rin closed his eyes, his consciousness completely focused on the Traveler's ability.

The next moment, a large number of images flashed through his mind at an extremely fast speed, including worlds inhabited by countless monsters, and universes distorted by strange rules.

All kinds of information surged like a tide, forcing Rin to actively disconnect.

"Huff! Huff! Huff!"

Opening his eyes, Rin gasped for breath, a large amount of cold sweat appearing on his forehead.

"Are you okay?!"

Seeing this, Snow Empress quickly stepped forward to check.

His condition was most keenly felt by Ice Empress, Ogerpon, and the other dependents, but fortunately, Rin replied that he was training, which appeased them.

"I'm fine."

Rin smiled slightly at Snow Empress and said, "Good luck, I successfully captured an interesting world."

"An interesting world?"

"Not yet confirmed."

The new otherworld Rin discovered was a bit special. "It has a very strong protective wall. I can't enter it freely like the previous few worlds."

Of the three methods, connecting with that world and leading Rin in was impossible.

Just now, as soon as the Traveler's ability touched that side, the world's will there reacted violently.

Clearly, the other side was unwilling to interact with outsiders and just wanted to close its doors and live its own life.

"Forcibly intervening is also impossible."

"That world is very vast."

Rin wasn't sure how vast the other side was, but in terms of sheer size, it was no less than the Cardinal World.

Therefore, trying to sneak in like in the Soul Land World was very difficult.

"Then there's only the second method?"

"No."

Rin shook his head and said, "If it really is the situation I'm thinking of, entering directly with my true body would be too dangerous."

"So, we still have to use the second method, but in a different, safer way."

"A safer way?"

Snow Empress had already received the information about the new world that Rin shared with her.

And after learning about the situation there, Snow Empress, like Rin, dared not underestimate the vastness and danger of that world in the slightest.

"What should we do?"

"Remote projection."

If it were other worlds, remote projection would definitely not work.

But in this new world, Rin's Traveler had a high probability of finding a loophole.

"I need to prepare."

"Not just me, but also you, Ice Empress, Ogerpon, Shuna, and the others."

Rin said, "I plan to bring everyone to fight this battle together!"

"Interesting."

Snow Empress realized what Rin wanted to do, and she smiled. "The new world should have many abilities suitable for you to acquire."

"Ah."

Rin said, "Be patient and wait for an opportunity for us to descend."

While Rin and Snow Empress discussed how to deal with the new otherworld, the Ogre team following Treyni had already arrived near the Goblin village.

The Goblin settlement was not too far from the Ogre Clan's village.

At the travel speed of an A-rank Ogre, a day and a night were enough to cross half of the Great Jura Forest, let alone such a short distance.

They set off at noon and reached their destination by evening.

"So scary."

"Why are such powerful monsters coming here?"

"Is the village doomed?"

At this moment, inside the village, a group of Goblins, whose height was no different from human children, held short sticks and rusty short blades, staring in terror at Sakurako and the others who had appeared.

"Who, who are you?!"

Even though his body trembled, the old Goblin still asked, "Please don't harm us! There's nothing in the village. If you need food, we'll obediently hand it over!"

"Is this the current state of the Goblins?"

"They are truly quite destitute..."

To be honest, Sakurako was very disappointed.

The girl brushed her silver-white long hair, and despite her dissatisfaction, she stepped forward and declared, "I am an envoy from the Ogre Clan, here to convey the will of my Lord!"

"If you are willing to submit to my Lord, you will be granted protection and food!"

"Eh?"

The Goblin village chief thought he had misheard. He looked at his son, a young-looking, skinny Goblin. "What did she say? Submit?"

"Yes, old man."

His tone carried a hint of excitement. "She also said she can give us food and protection!"

"Is that true?"

"Is there really someone willing to protect us?"

"The Ogre Clan, they are very powerful monsters."

For the Goblin Clan, submitting to the strong held no psychological pressure whatsoever.

Rather, if anyone was willing, the Goblins would not refuse to submit to them.

Goblins were almost at the bottom of the monster hierarchy, with their existence value so low that it didn't even reach 1000.

During the great outbreak period, the individual existence value of Goblins once exceeded 1000, reaching E-rank.

However, this was also the Goblins' last glory.

As time passed, the Goblins in the forest, 0.4 of 8000, had a maximum magicules of only about 500.

500 magicules, firmly F-rank.

An ordinary farmer could easily beat four or five of them without weapons.

What use were such weak monsters, besides wasting food?

"Too weak."

"For the Lord to be willing to protect such weaklings, what great benevolence this is."

The three Ogres who came with Sakurako lamented Rin's benevolence, that he was even willing to recruit Goblins.

"Enough!"

Sakurako interrupted the three, admonishing them. "You cannot question the Lord's decision!"

"Yes."

The three quickly bowed their heads in apology.

Sakurako was in charge of this small team.

Their mission was to protect Sakurako and ensure the safe return of this group of Goblins to their village.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 67: Descendants

"Treyni, please bear witness for us."

"Alright."

The Dryad had been hiding nearby, and as she revealed herself, the Goblins immediately broke into a commotion.

Which monster living in the Great Jura Forest hadn't heard of the legend of the Dryad, the guardian of the forest?

Seeing her with their own eyes, how could mere panic describe it!

This feeling was like the mountain god you usually worship suddenly appearing.

"Please do not doubt, Goblins."

Treyni stepped forward and said, "The Ogre Clan bears no ill will. They sincerely wish to gain the loyalty of the Goblins."

"A powerful monster has been born in the forest."

"He has decided to rule this forest and, at the same time, grant protection to the monsters living within it."

"No need to worry, please join them with confidence."

"I can guarantee you, on the honor of the Great Jura Forest's administrator, that there is no falsehood!"

The Goblins already intended to pledge allegiance to the strong, and with Treyni's guarantee, they immediately became excited.

"That's great!"

"Are we, are we also going to have a protector?"

"Finally, we don't have to worry about being eaten by terrifying monsters when we're in the wilderness!"

"Please come into the village, adults of the Ogre Clan!"

The Goblins of the Cardinal World, at least this branch of Goblins in the forest, are not as evil and cunning as described in other worlds.

Rather, they are very simple and even a bit too naive.

"Crude, poor, backward..."

Entering the Goblin village, Sakurako saw only primitiveness and dilapidation.

Among so many demi-human races, the Goblins were definitely the ones living the worst.

The village chief offered food to entertain the Ogres who had traveled a long way.

The food had no flavor, not even salt, and only the fruits were edible.

However, considering that everyone would become companions in the future, they politely ate some.

Rin, who traveled between the Pokémon World and the Konosuba World, brought back various supplies from there, greatly improving the lives of the Ogre Clan.

Before this, the quality of life for the Ogre Clan was not much better than that of the Goblins.

At most, there was just more abundant food.

Sakurako and the others did not disdain the Goblins' hospitality.

The good life was bestowed by Rin and had nothing to do with their own efforts.

Once the Goblins also joined Rin's command, they would also receive benefits. It was only a matter of time.

"This is a gift we are giving to the Goblins. Please accept it."

Sakurako took out many supplies from her spatial storage and gave them to the Goblins.

This gesture truly made the Goblins feel overwhelmed with gratitude.

Delicious food, seasonings, and clothes and shoes suitable for Goblin physiques—these were all specially prepared by the Ogres during this time.

As for their origin, it was very simple.

Shuna's Analyst could deconstruct matter and easily use existing materials to produce a large quantity of daily necessities.

"Pack your things and gather the clan members."

"Next, we will go to other villages and gather everyone."

There were 8,000 Goblins, with approximately 100 people per village.

With over 80 villages, it would take Sakurako and the others at least a full day to visit all of them.

Fortunately, the Goblin villages were not far apart.

For those with good relations, Goblins could even notify each other.

The Goblins acted quickly. How could they delay when they could gain a powerful being willing to protect them?

They immediately packed their belongings at the fastest speed, ready to depart.

Sakurako did not think much of the Goblins' messy village.

The future center of their Monster Country would be the Ogre village.

Now was a time when population was scarce, and the addition of 8,000 Goblins would greatly accelerate the development from a village to a town.

"Alright, please wait a moment, members of the Ogre Clan. I will have someone organize the supplies immediately."

"Quick, don't keep them waiting!"

"We'll go prepare right away!"

The reactions of the Goblin villages were largely similar.

From initial vigilance and suspicion, to excitement upon receiving gifts, and joy at gaining favor.

Soon, led by various Goblin village chiefs, a large number of Goblins gathered on the grassland designated by Sakurako and the others.

"These should be all the Goblin villages that can be found nearby."

"Let's go."

At Sakurako's command, the vast Goblin procession, under the protection of the Ogres, set off towards the Ogre Village.

Due to the large number of people, what was originally a half-day journey increased to three days.

During this time, Sakurako and the other Ogres also had to protect the Goblins.

The numbers were too great, 8,000 people, nearly ten thousand.

Even though Goblins are small, 8,000 of them crammed together still formed a dense, dark mass.

To protect them well, the Ogres dared not relax their minds, constantly maintaining magic perception to guard against dangerous magic beasts that might rush out of the forest.

"Oh my, oh my!"

"How magnificent!"

"Magnificent~ Magnificent~"

In the forest, three figures hidden in the shadows had long noticed this scene.

They were members of the Moderate Harlequin Alliance: Laplace, Footman, and Tear.

The three had actually arrived in this forest earlier.

However, the schemes in the Great Jura Forest were currently being led by Clayman, and they were only there to assist him.

"The insects have been subjugated."

"Now even the forest's administrator has started helping him."

"I feel like he's going to become an incredible fellow."

A monster who appeared out of nowhere but grew to this extent in just one month.

Compared to Clayman's carelessness, Laplace instinctively felt a threat.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 68: Direwolf Clan

"Should we interfere?"

Laplace spun around, a cunning glint in his eyes: "It's just that the few monsters around this guy seem difficult to deal with."

"Before, it was subjugating the Ogre Clan. Now it's Goblins."

"Are we really not going to interfere?"

"If this continues, Clayman's plan will be ruined."

Footman felt they should try to gauge Rin's depth, while Tear felt they should be a bit more cautious.

"It's too conspicuous."

Tear fiddled with her long sleeves, a hint of difficulty in her voice: "Wouldn't the Demon Lords discover us?"

The four Ogres in front of them were already difficult to deal with.

If they fought, it would definitely cause a huge commotion.

Not to mention Treyni the Dryad was also there, and they did not want to provoke such a being.

"Tell Clayman about it, and let him figure out a solution."

The three were not very keen on getting directly involved, and the matters here in the Great Jura Forest were, in fact, the responsibility of Clayman, who was openly in charge.

If anyone should worry, it should be him.

"In that case, let's go find Clayman first."

"I wonder how he will handle this sudden intruder."

Thus, the three clowns silently lurked in the shadows.

They did not leave but continued to observe the procession.

Sakurako and the others, who were on their journey, were clearly unaware that their actions had already fallen under the gaze of a certain Demon Lord.

"Swish swish swish~"

Moonlight, like water, spilled across the vast grassland, silver light intertwining with the dark green sea of grass, creating a mysterious tranquility.

The night wind gently brushed by, making the tips of the grass sway and rustle, as if whispering the secrets of the grassland.

Dozens of giant wolves were galloping across the grassland, their figures appearing and disappearing like ghosts under the moonlight.

The commotion caused by the Goblins' collective movement not only attracted the attention of the clowns but also other monsters living in the forest.

Among them were the Direwolf Clan, who in the original work proactively attacked Goblin villages to contend for forest supremacy.

On a protruding hillside, a giant Direwolf howled at the sky.

Behind it, hundreds of Direwolves quietly awaited their Wolf King's command, whether to launch an attack on this group of Goblins leaving their village.

"Father!"

The Direwolf who had gone out to gather intelligence on the Goblins returned. He was the leader's offspring and the strongest among the young Direwolves.

"Have you found out why the Goblins left their village?"

"I smelled the aura of Ogres!"

"Ogres?"

Hearing the word Ogre, the Direwolf Leader immediately thought of the Ogre Clan in the forest.

Those powerful lower-tier demons with B-rank strength were not something their mere C-rank monsters could compare to.

Despite having a numerical advantage, the Direwolf Leader began to hesitate at the thought of directly facing the Ogre Clan.

"Have the Goblins surrendered to the Ogre Clan?"

"We can't let them go to the Ogre Clan's village!"

If they really entered the village, the Ogre Clan was so strong, and with Goblins as soldiers...

One plus one would be greater than two, which would definitely be a huge obstacle to the rise of the Direwolf Clan.

At this time, the Storm Dragon had not yet disappeared, and the monsters in the forest had not yet begun the dog-eat-dog self-slaughter.

The clowns, at Clayman's request, had begun to disrupt the forest's order.

But this had not yet started.

The Direwolf Clan was even larger than in the original story, with a full thousand Direwolves.

With their tacit cooperation, even if they forcefully attacked the Ogre Clan's village, it wasn't impossible to fight.

Of course, they would definitely lose.

"If numbers are no longer a disadvantage for the Ogre Clan, then in the forest, no clan will be able to contend with them!"

With this thought, the Direwolf Leader no longer hesitated and immediately announced his decision: "Immediately launch an attack on the Goblins!"

"Then, father, if the Ogre Clan finds out, will they...?"

"At worst, we'll leave here! Go east!"

The Direwolf Leader thought it through clearly. If they eliminated those Goblins, their existence value would definitely rise by a notch.

At that time, as long as they migrated east, the Ogre Clan was not good at tracking and would not be able to trouble them at all.

So, now was the best time.

For every Goblin killed, they could plunder a portion of magicules.

And this was the best way for intelligent monsters in the forest to increase their own existence value—conquest!

This kind of improvement was not as abnormal as Ogerpon's Growth.

But the difference between the two was only in the duration.

Ogerpon could gain benefits instantly, while racial warfare would slowly manifest.

A few months at the shortest, two or three years at the longest.

As the Direwolf Leader, leading his clan to exterminate the Goblins in the forest, the Direwolf Leader even felt that he had a chance to obtain a powerful skill.

An Extra Skill was the baseline, and with a bit of luck, a Unique Skill might not be impossible.

In the original story, the Goblins were reduced to only one or two thousand, a large part of the reason being the attacks from monster groups like the Direwolves.

'Such a good opportunity, I absolutely cannot miss it!'

The Direwolf Leader even felt that the scene before him was a godsend.

The Goblins were running around everywhere, and if they were eliminated at this time, it would not violate the rules set by the monsters.

"Did you sense it?"

The Ogre belonging to the Shadow Squad, with a black face covering, was named Souren. He grew up with Souei and trained as a ninja with him.

Through thought communication, the four could exchange information and make decisions in a very short time.

"Mm."

Sakurako nodded and said, "Three kilometers behind us, a group of monsters with an average rank of C or higher are rapidly gathering."

"Quantity..."

"At least 500 or more."

"What are they?"

Sakurako rarely left the village, so she didn't know much about the outside world.

Unlike Souren, he had previously gone out with other clan members to perform mercenary commissions, so he had encountered the Direwolf Clan.

"The largest Direwolf Clan in the entire Great Jura Forest."

The entire Great Jura Forest was home to more than one Direwolf tribe, with numbers ranging from fifty to three or four hundred.

And the one led by the Direwolf Leader seemed to be the largest in number.

"What do they want to do?"

"They're probably eyeing the Goblins we're escorting."

Souren, his figure merged with the night, silently observed the movements of these hunters in the forest.

A single Direwolf was only C-rank.

But if they gathered, their overall strength would continuously increase with their numbers.

With over 500 Direwolves gathered together, their average strength could even reach C+.

If the Direwolf Leader truly achieved the great unification of the wolf clan and then used the merit of exterminating the Goblins, he might really be able to create a Direwolf army of two to three thousand B-rank.

At that time, even the former Ogre Clan village would fall into a difficult bitter struggle, with the risk of falling.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 69: Ogre Takes Action

A 3354-word chapter, enjoy xD.

----

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, in Sakurako's perception, the Direwolf pack split into two sides: "Are these guys trying to encircle us?"

"Kouen, Kougetsu!"

"Leave it to us."

The Ogres named Kouen and Kougetsu both came from the Red Ogre clan, a brother and sister pair.

The brother was named Kouen, and the sister was named Kougetsu.

Genetically, the two were also Benimaru's cousins, so they joined their big cousin's team early on and became members of the Red Corps.

The long howls of the wolf pack came from all directions, frightening the traveling Goblins.

The Goblin Village Chief's already aged body trembled even more, but he still feigned composure, trying his best to comfort his surrounding clan members and tell them not to be afraid.

"It's Direwolves!"

The Village Chief's son saw the figures speeding through the darkness, and the fear of wolf beasts spread throughout his body.

"Don't panic!"

Their village was closest to the Storm Dragon's cave.

The Village Chief was the oldest Goblin and the first to surrender to Sakurako, so he was appointed by the Ogres as the temporary leader of this group of Goblins.

"Everyone, pick up your weapons, and have the women and children stand behind!"

The old Village Chief's voice trembled slightly, but he still gave the correct command.

Soon, all the Goblins formed a circle, protecting the women and children behind them, while they themselves picked up their tattered weapons, standing ready.

'Even weak Goblins will fight with all their might for survival.'

Seeing this, Sakurako nodded slightly, somewhat acknowledging these Goblins.

"Direwolves, if you stop here, we can pretend nothing happened."

The Kouen and Kougetsu siblings used magic to amplify their voices, conveying their stance to this group of Direwolves: "If you come any closer, it will be war with us Ogres!"

"Woof~"

However, this group of Direwolves did not intend to give up the fat meat within their grasp.

So many Goblins gathered in one place saved the Direwolves the trouble of plundering them individually.

If they could devour them all in one go, the Direwolf Clan would surely gain a large amount of magicules, thereby standing out in the crisis-ridden forest!

"Tsk."

Souren's figure merged with the night. He watched the Direwolves' movements and transmitted, "Make your move, they've made up their minds to be our enemies."

"We're really being underestimated."

The Kouen and Kougetsu siblings exchanged glances, then released the suppression on their own magicules.

At that moment, the aura of an A-rank monster, which had been unnoticeable to the outside world due to their restraint, swept over all the monsters on the field like a tsunami.

Whether it was Goblins or the Direwolf Clan.

Under this terrifying demonic might that came crashing down, all of them fell into a momentary daze.

"What?!"

The Direwolf Leader's fur stood on end, his eyes filled with disbelief: "This magicules!!"

"No, impossible, how could such a thing happen?!"

"Why are the Ogres so strong?!"

"You, you are not Ogres at all!"

With the Direwolf Leader's knowledge, it was naturally impossible for him to have seen the legendary Ogres.

Throughout the entire Great Jura Forest, not counting Treyni and the other Dryads, B+ was the pinnacle of all monsters.

As for A-rank higher-tier monsters, that was a rank that only named monsters could reach!

In other words, the two red-haired Ogres in front of him were named monsters!

No!

It wasn't just the two of them!

There was also Sakurako, and Souren, who had appeared behind the Direwolf pack at some unknown time, completely cutting off their retreat path into the forest.

"Four, four Ogre-level Ogres!"

The Direwolf Leader's heart was filled with regret at this moment, he hadn't expected such a reversal.

They, who were clearly the hunters, had now become the prey suffering an ambush.

"Retreat!!"

Without the slightest hesitation, the Direwolf Leader immediately let out a wolf howl to retreat.

He had miscalculated.

He had thought it was just a few ordinary Ogres leading the Goblins.

But Ogres...

Let alone four Ogres, even one was not something they could contend with.

Think of Benimaru's confrontation with the Orc army in the original story.

A casual strike of Black Flame Prison could turn hundreds of Orcs into ashes.

The Kouen and Kougetsu siblings' current strength was definitely not inferior to Benimaru in the original novel.

To eliminate these five hundred Direwolves would only be a matter of minutes.

"Woof~"

Without hesitation, all the Direwolves instinctively followed their leader's command, fleeing in every direction.

"Stop them!"

"Don't let a single one escape!"

Sakurako gave the command to Souren, who spread his arms and threw out a large quantity of ice-crystal-like threads, instantly covering the entire battlefield.

[Gap Crystal Silk]

This was an Extra Skill inherited from the space element possessed by Rin.

It could cut space and extract tiny threads.

These spatial threads could not only bind enemies but were also incredibly sharp, comparable to the most top-tier divine weapons.

"Spatial Motion: Threading the Needle!"

A stream of light shot out from Souren's palm, constantly appearing and disappearing in space, connecting all the crystal threads that enveloped this space.

"Clap!"

Sakurako clapped her hands together, and an invisible barrier already enveloped all the Direwolves.

The next moment, the circular network woven by Souren began to glow with prismatic light, shimmering like a transparent kaleidoscope.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh..."

A group of Direwolves frantically rushing forward only felt a fleeting stream of light in the darkness ahead.

They ignored it and crashed into it head-on.

And so...

"Woof?"

The figures of the wolves in front disappeared, only to reappear in other directions, and they went from having their backs to Sakurako and the others to facing them and rushing wildly.

At this point, all the Direwolves were bewildered.

"What's going on?"

The Direwolf Leader realized that things had exceeded his expectations.

These Ogres had used some unknown method to seal off the surrounding space.

That circle of transparent mirrors was like a mirror, teleporting the wolf pack back, making it impossible for them to escape the range covered by the barrier.

"What should we do?"

Souren watched the Direwolf pack running around like headless chickens, then came to Sakurako's side and asked her how to deal with these Direwolves.

"Master should need them."

Rin's attitude towards monsters was mainly to recruit and subdue them.

"Roar!!"

On the other side, dozens of Direwolves, seeing that they couldn't escape, began to attack the Goblins.

However, Kouen and Kougetsu had already locked onto them, how could they give the Direwolves a chance to harm the Goblins?

"Smack!"

Kougetsu casually waved her hand, and nearly a dozen giant wolves, the size of lions or tigers, immediately flew backward like broken sacks.

The girl had already held back her strength, but with the terrifying arm strength of an Ogre, just a casual blow like that almost cost these Direwolves their lives.

"Kougetsu!"

Sakurako saw this scene and quickly shouted, "Don't kill them!"

Kougetsu didn't do it on purpose, she also didn't expect these Direwolves to be so fragile.

She clearly didn't use much force.

But why did each of them just fall down?

"Healing Spell!"

There was no other way, Sakurako had to cast a healing spell on the Direwolves who were barely breathing, saving their lives.

"Let me do it."

Seeing his sister struggling against the Direwolves' attack due to her inability to control her strength, Kouen shook his head.

"Boom!"

The red-haired youth lifted his foot and took a mighty step forward.

Terrifying brute force stomped the earth, and an invisible force spread out like waves in all directions, shaking all the Goblins and the running Direwolves to the ground.

"The Martial Artist skills inherited from Rin-sama are indeed formidable."

Kouen's control over his strength was far superior to his sister's, he perfectly managed to strip everyone of their ability to move without causing them harm.

"Next..."

Then, a sharp glint burst forth in Kouen's eyes.

He clenched his fist and swung it fiercely in the direction of the Direwolf Leader.

"Boom!!"

"Crack~"

The next moment, a scene that terrified countless Goblins and Direwolves appeared before their eyes.

The earth shattered, and dirt flew.

A bottomless gully began from Kouen and spread forward, extending hundreds of meters until it barely stopped in front of the Direwolf Leader.

"Woof..."

At this moment, the Direwolf Leader had no desire to contend.

Just this one punch from Kouen shattered his ambition.

"Now, do you understand the gap between us?"

Kouen and Kougetsu confronted the Direwolf Leader.

With Kouen and Kougetsu's actions, the Direwolf Leader now understood that he had kicked a steel plate.

A-rank was a watershed.

Below A-rank, as long as the numbers were sufficient, the opponent could eventually be worn down and killed.

But after breaking through to A-rank, the magicule recovery speed was simply abnormal. Ogres, as long as they didn't seek death by recklessly unleashing powerful skills, would almost never run out of magicules.

Even if they couldn't win, if they wanted to escape, it would be effortless.

And once animosity was established, unless one side completely submitted, there would be no end to it.

The Direwolf Leader's guts were now green with regret.

He shouldn't have provoked this group of Goblins.

If he had known how terrifying Ogres were, why would he even contend? Wouldn't surrendering directly be better?

Now, he was being targeted by four A-rank monsters.

Recalling the power Kouen and Souren had just displayed.

It wouldn't take many times, just three or four more, and the Direwolf Clan in the forest would face utter annihilation.

"What now?"

Kougetsu, seeing the Direwolf Leader starting to cower, quickly sent a telepathic message to Sakurako, asking for her opinion.

They hadn't killed a single Direwolf.

Although the siblings were confronting the Direwolf Leader, they were actually at a loss internally, unsure of what to do.

This power, after all, was not trained by themselves.

Even if they defeated the Direwolf pack, the proud Ogre Clan would not feel particularly glorious.

Only their respect and admiration for Rin grew even stronger.

Look!

This was the grace of their Lord!

Such powerful strength, with just a few punches and kicks, made the Goblins and Direwolves tremble with fear!

"Let Rin-sama decide."

"Rin-sama?!"

Hearing Sakurako's telepathic message, the Kouen siblings immediately understood her meaning.

"Stabilize these Direwolves, I'll contact Rin-sama."

Sakurako finished speaking and immediately used the Soul Corridor to send a communication request to Rin.

As for the task of stabilizing the Direwolves.

That was too easy.

Kougetsu and Kouen didn't need to do anything, they just needed to stand there and continuously release magicules, putting pressure on the Direwolves.

Hmm.

They weren't smart enough.

But simple things like posing, they could still do.

"Has something happened, Sakurako?"

The request was quickly approved, and Rin's voice also sounded in Sakurako's ear.

"Rin-sama, it's like this..."

Sakurako briefly explained the current situation: "We don't know what to do, so we came to ask for your instructions."

"500 Direwolf Clan members?"

"That's great! I'll be right there!"

Rin's voice was filled with surprise, he hadn't expected such sudden good fortune.

These monsters, given names by Rin, were only slightly less connected to him than his direct dependents, they could be called 'kin'.

Through the Soul Corridor, Rin could clearly sense the location and status of every kin.

"Ogerpon, Snow Empress, Ice Empress, you come with me."

Bringing his three strongest dependents, Rin raised his hand and simply tore open a rift in front of him.

"Whoosh~"

The next moment, the space beside Sakurako parted.

"Master!"

"And Big Sister Ogerpon, Snow Empress, and Ice Empress!"

Seeing the four arrive, Sakurako quickly bowed in salute.

"Here we go again, the Ogre Clan's etiquette is a bit unbearable."

Ice Empress didn't particularly like Sakurako's initially arrogant then humble demeanor.

Even among the Ice Jade Scorpion clan, the weaker members regarded the Ice Empress as an elder and family.

As for the Snow Empress, who had always been reclusive, she cared even less about the so-called hierarchy.

"Poniii~"

Ogerpon, however, was already accustomed to it and happily greeted Sakurako and Souren.

"Are these Goblins?"

Rin looked at the short figures, like a tide, not far from them.

The Goblins in Rin's impression were cunning, insidious, and despicable, with pointed mouths, monkey-like faces, and mouths full of sharp teeth.

However, the Goblins of the Cardinal World, while still not exactly good-looking, were more like a group of shivering little beggars in temperament.

Rin turned his head to look at the Direwolves further away: "Hmm, just like in the original work, they are pack-hunting monsters."

"But what's the situation now?"

With the fractured earth and scattered Direwolves lying on the ground, Rin only needed a few glances to analyze most of what had happened here.

Sensing the arrival of new auras, the Direwolves instinctively let out low growls, as if to intimidate them and make them retreat.

This reaction was due to the Ice Empress and Snow Empress who had arrived with Rin.

The ancient and desolate aura emanating from the two females caused the Direwolves to have an immediate stress response.

"Tsk, so noisy!"

The Ice Empress couldn't stand anyone baring their teeth at her, so she immediately released a fierce cold aura from her body.

Her control over her power was incredibly precise.

The Goblins nearby only felt a cold wind brush their faces.

As for the Direwolf Clan further away, they instantly felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, shivering uncontrollably.

Looking at the grassland outside the circle, it was covered in a layer of ice crystals in an instant, and even the three clowns observing from the shadows felt a chill run through their bodies.

"Such terrifying ice magic power."

Laplace was shocked internally.

He had encountered ice magic before.

But such powerful and penetrating ice magic power was truly unheard of.

"So cold!"

Tear hugged herself tightly. "The quality of this magicule energy is too high, isn't it?"

"Unique Skill, this must be a Unique Skill!"

If it were a normal skill, given their resistance, it would be impossible for it to affect them.

As for Extra Skills, single-target ones might be able to break through their defenses.

But this was clearly a wide-range skill, and it had such intensity even without targeting the three of them.

Such an effect, besides a Unique Skill, the three of them couldn't think of a second possibility.

"Another named monster that has acquired a Unique Skill."

Laplace couldn't comprehend it, unable to understand how Rin had gathered so many powerful monsters to pledge allegiance to him.

"Hm?"

Suddenly, the Snow Empress, who was watching Rin converse with the Goblin Village Chief from a distance, seemed to sense something.

She cast her gaze towards the forest behind them.

The forest was shrouded in darkness, utterly silent, yet the Snow Empress could feel several gazes prying at her.

"Is something wrong, Snow Empress?"

Rin was currently inviting the Goblins to follow him, and seeing the Snow Empress's reaction, he immediately became vigilant.

"Not sure."

The Snow Empress's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly. "But I have a feeling that someone is watching me."

"Watching..."

Rin's heart stirred, and he thought of a possibility. "Could it be the Moderate Harlequin Alliance?"

[Detect Tracking]

Immediately, Rin activated an anti-surveillance skill.

[Alert: No one detected watching]

"..."

Rin looked at the information returned by the skill, feeling a bit speechless.

He didn't believe that the Snow Empress was mistaken.

'In the Great Jura Forest, an existence that can secretly spy on us, and even the Snow Empress can't detect...'

Such individuals, besides Treyni and other Dryads, could only be Laplace, Footman, and Tear of the Moderate Harlequin Alliance.

The Dryads didn't need to be considered.

After Rin's arrival, Treyni had already appeared among the Goblin tribe.

And if it were other Dryads, seeing Treyni here, they would definitely come over to greet her, not hide in a corner and secretly stare at them.

"Treyni, can you set up a barrier that can completely block external probing?"

Rin and the Snow Empress didn't have sufficient anti-reconnaissance capabilities.

Sakurako's barrier was more physical in nature.

It wasn't very effective against skills specifically designed for intelligence gathering.

But it didn't matter.

They still had Treyni!

As a Dryad, secretly observing life in the forest and concealing one's aura were commonplace.

And if one could conceal, one could also block.

"No problem!"

Treyni didn't notice at first, but only reacted when Rin said so.

The Dryad first began to probe the distant forest.

Unfortunately, there was no result, clearly the three clowns had realized they might be exposed and had already left.

"Buzz~"

Soon, under Treyni's doing, an invisible barrier enveloped the Goblins and Rin's group.

"Kouen, bring the Direwolf Leader to me."

"Understood!"

Upon receiving the order, Kouen's eyes sharpened.

His figure instantly traversed hundreds of meters, arriving in front of the Direwolf Leader.

Before the Direwolf Leader could react, Kouen directly grabbed the scruff of its neck, lifted it, and brought it to Rin's side.

The Direwolf Leader had never experienced such a thing.

It wanted to resist, but facing Kouen's monstrous strength, it couldn't even lift its head.

It could only let out whimpers from its throat, suppressing the fear and unease in its heart.

"My Lord, the enemy leader has been brought. Please give your command!"

Kouen knelt on one knee, while simultaneously pressing down on the Direwolf Leader's head with one hand, forcing it to submit.

"Hm, release it first."

"Yes!"

Kouen and the others weren't worried that the Direwolf Leader would harm Rin.

How could a mere monster below B-rank possibly touch their Lord?

Especially not under their watchful eyes.

If such a thing were to happen, they wouldn't have the face to live in this world and would simply commit suicide.

"Wolf, or dog?"

"It should be a wolf."

The Ice Empress crouched on the ground, examining the prostrate Direwolf Leader, and poked its nose with her finger.

The Direwolf Leader was utterly terrified and uneasy.

Although the Ice Empress's magicules were only around 30,000, the aura of a 400,000-year-old fierce beast had been preserved through the rule power of the Voice of the World.

In layman's terms, it was killing intent!

The Ice Empress had lived for hundreds of thousands of years, and countless humans, beasts, and Soul Beasts had died by her hand.

With such a vast number accumulated, the tyrannical aura entwined around the Ice Empress was far beyond what ordinary monsters of this world could imagine.

Normally, the Ice Empress would restrain her aura.

So, in the eyes of the Ogre Clan, the Ice Empress was just a tsundere twin-tailed girl, not only not terrifying but quite cute.

However, the Direwolf Leader was different.

It was a wild beast, and a wild beast's instincts were always incredibly keen.

It sensed it.

That terrifying figure of an ancient fierce beast, standing atop a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood...

"Stay down obediently. Once my Lord is done, I'll deal with you!"

How could the Direwolf Leader dare to bare its teeth at the Ice Empress? It immediately nodded repeatedly, indicating that it would never resist.

There was no other way, the disparity was too great.

It had thought that four Ogres were the limit.

Who would have thought that there were even more powerful individuals!

Especially this monster with a human appearance in front of it, it was truly too terrifying.

And even more terrifying was that such a monster actually had a master above her!

If there was a regret pill in the world, it would definitely go back to its past self from a few hours ago and slap it hard a few times, telling it to stop dreaming of becoming a dominant force.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 70: Complete Awakening

"Are you… are you the Master that Sakurako and the others spoke of?"

On the other side, the Goblin elder from the original story was chosen by the Goblins to be their temporary Leader.

He wore a dust-covered brown trench coat, leaning on a walking stick, his frail body seeming as if it would collapse with a gust of wind just by standing there.

"Yes, my name is Itoshi Rin."

Rin didn't waste words and immediately announced, "Sakurako and the others should have already told you my purpose."

"Under the witness of Treyni, I will accept your allegiance and grant you my protection."

"From now on, you will become my subjects and obey my commands."

"I guarantee you this here."

Rin said earnestly, "As long as you obey me, I will protect your lives and property from infringement by others!"

"Are you willing?"

The Goblins didn't understand what Rin's words truly meant.

They only knew that the weak Goblins were about to receive the protection of a strong one.

In the world of monsters, the strong are revered.

Living in the forest, always on the brink of danger, if someone was willing to protect them, then giving up their freedom and loyalty was only natural!

Rather, Rin was already very benevolent.

"We are willing! We are willing!!"

"Praise you, great Master."

Thus, the Goblins gathered in front of Rin bowed down to him like dominoes.

[Successfully obtained 8600 Goblin followers.]

[Commencing magicules total calculation.]

[Calculation complete. The Goblin clan's total magicules is 258,860EP.]

[Unique Skill: Leader begins integrating magicules.]

[Integration complete.]

[Obtained 78,000EP of magicules.]

"Ugh!"

The sudden massive increase in magicules caused Rin to momentarily lose control.

The increase in his magic power limit instantly triggered a series of chain reactions.

"Rumble!"

With Rin at the center, magic power transformed into a wave of energy spreading in all directions, and a dazzling blue magic power pillar, faintly shimmering with stardust, shot into the sky.

If not for Treyni's timely reaction, and Snow Empress, who stood beside her, helping the Goblins resist the magic power pressure from Rin, just that one burst would have probably knocked out a large number of nearby Goblins.

"How... how terrifyingly powerful!"

"Is this the power of Master?"

"How terrifying..."

Even with Snow Empress's protection, the Goblins still felt the pressure from their new master.

It was a massive amount of magic power they couldn't even imagine.

For a moment, countless Goblins were both shocked and delighted.

Because such a powerful being was actually willing to accept their servitude.

"Rin..."

Ice Empress and Ogerpon noticed Rin's change.

However, the two women didn't act rashly. Instead, they remained in place, helping Treyni maintain the stability of the anti-detection barrier.

With Snow Empress by Rin's side, nothing would happen.

After all, in terms of combat ability, Snow Empress was the strongest.

As for the remaining Direwolves, they were completely stunned.

What kind of monster were they fighting against?

At the same time, the Direwolves were incredibly envious of the Goblins, who could receive the favor of such a powerful Dragonoid.

'If only... if only that Lord could also accept our allegiance.'

For some reason, the Direwolf Leader had such a thought in his heart.

Not to mention Rin, even Ice Empress made it unable to feel any desire to resist.

Submitting to the strong is not shameful.

To preserve the race and continue the lineage, following a Leader with a brighter future is the most correct choice.

The Direwolves are inherently pack animals, with their own social structure.

The alpha wolf as the Leader, then the wolf pack as the main fighting force, and the lower-status old wolves and cubs.

However, Rin had no time to recruit the Direwolves.

At this moment, a large amount of information was surging in his mind, and he felt as if he was in a stormy sea, undergoing transformation by a massive amount of magicules.

[Detected magicules exceeding 100,000, meeting evolution conditions.]

[Commencing evolution. Evolution failed.]

[Challenging again.]

[Evolution failed.]

...

The repeated information cycled countless times.

Finally, when Rin himself felt annoyed, within the central core of the Cardinal World, a starry sky fragment, like a miniature universe, slowly appeared in Rin's eyes.

[Detected a power fragment of the Star King Dragon, Veldanava. Do you wish to fuse?]

[Upon fusion, the race 'Dragonoid' will be fully awakened, and the evolution path of the Dragon Kind 'Star King Dragon' will be obtained.]

"Fuse!"

Rin didn't expect that simply evolving from A-Rank to Special A-Rank would lead to such an event.

One must know that the reason Rimuru in the original story possessed such a BUG-like evolution speed, growing to the level of a creator god in just a few years.

Some speculated that a large part of the reason lay in Rimuru's identity and his Unique Skill: Great Sage.

Regarding Rimuru's origin.

There is a theory that Rimuru is the reincarnation of the Star King Dragon, and the Great Sage is the Star King Dragon's wife, Lucia.

But Rin felt that Rimuru was not the true Star King Dragon.

Or rather, the Star King Dragon had already fallen, but like Emperor Rudra of the Eastern Empire, he had split his soul into countless pieces.

One of the larger pieces fell upon Mikami Satoru, who then reincarnated as Rimuru.

However, Rin's current situation was different from Rimuru's.

What he obtained was not a soul fragment of the Star King Dragon, but a power fragment.

More accurately, it was the authority left by the Star King Dragon in the Cardinal World.

[Report: Individual name 'Itoshi Rin' has successfully evolved into a Dragonoid.]

[Obtained Unique Skill: Voice of the World.]

[Unique Skill: Leader has evolved into Convergence.]

[Unique Skill: Traveler (Anomalous) has evolved into Void Gate.]

[Obtained Special Skill: Magic Dragon Transformation.]

"Hoo~"

The evolution ended, and Rin remained in a dazed state.

He could feel the magic power within his body, which was several times larger than before.

Even more terrifying, after the Special Skill Magicules Solidification, Rin's physical qualities also increased by several times.

"Power!"

"Unprecedented strength!"

Rin clenched his fist. He looked at his hand and found that his original palm had turned into sharp dragon claws.

And behind Rin, a pair of dreamlike, ethereal, yet tangible azure dragon wings slowly unfurled.

(To be continued.)

...

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Chapter Text

Chapter 71: Voice of the World

"Is this the form after my Dragonoid bloodline completely awakens?"

Rin was not dissatisfied with his current appearance, as this state was not permanent.

If he wished, he could retract the dragon features at any time and return to his human form.

This was similar to Milim.

In addition, Rin also possessed the Dragon Transformation ability that Milim did not.

---

[Magic Dragon Transformation.]

Description: Completely unleash the magicules within the body to construct a Dragon Kind body. This process will absorb a large amount of magicules, and each use will result in a period of weakness.

---

"Magic Dragon Transformation, absorbs a large amount of magicules..."

"It looks like a transformation skill."

Rin secretly wondered, "I wonder how much magicules it can increase, and how much stronger it can make me?"

[Notice: The magicules after the current Magic Dragon Transformation will be 10 times that of the half-dragon transformation state.]

"What?"

Rin was first delighted, then immediately reacted, "Who are you? Great Sage?"

[Notice: This being is Unique Skill: Voice of the World, not Great Sage.]

"???"

Rin was stunned for a moment. He thought of something and asked, "Are you the new ability I just acquired?"

[Notice: Yes.]

[Unique Skill: Voice of the World: A superior substitute for Unique Skill: Great Sage, possessing the following multiple abilities:]

[Thought Acceleration: Increases perception speed by a thousandfold.]

[Analysis and Appraisal: Analyzes target objects and performs Appraisal.]

[Parallel Processing: Can separate the desired analysis from the thought process for calculation.]

[Chant Annulment: No need for spell chanting procedures when using magic or other skills.]

[All-Encompassing: Encompasses all unshielded information in this world.]

The above abilities were very similar to Rimuru's Great Sage.

However, Rin's Voice of the World also possessed some abilities that the Great Sage did not.

For example, 'Central Connection' could analyze, store, and extract different rules.

There were also functions such as 'Gate Management', 'Space-Time Stabilization', 'Anchor Engraving', and 'Starry Sky Projection'.

"How did you come into existence?"

Rin merely glanced at the various abilities of the Voice of the World.

More than these, he wanted to know where the Voice of the World came from and whether it would harm him.

[Notice: This body is a brand new manifestation of rules, born from the origin of the individual 'Itoshi Rin' and fused with the rules of the Cardinal World.]

Simply put, the Voice of the World here was not the same as the rule incarnation of the Cardinal World.

The Cardinal World was created by the Star King Dragon, and afterward, he loaded his wife Lucia's voice into it, turning it into a kind of world will-like existence.

However, the true Voice of the World has no soul or self; it is a pure tool.

"Do you have your own consciousness?"

[Notice: Yes.]

The newborn Voice of the World was born from the soul origin of Rin.

Afterward, because Rin traveled between the Pokémon, Konosuba, and Soul Land worlds.

During this process, the Voice of the World continuously absorbed new rules.

Finally, it absorbed enough power of laws, and with Rin's breakthrough to Special A-Rank, it successfully came into being.

"So, you were born because I kept traversing worlds?"

[Notice: Yes.]

"This really is…"

Rin understood; he really hadn't expected things to develop this way.

The Cardinal World is a chaotic world created by the Star King Dragon.

As a world, it does not possess self-awareness or emotions; it merely mechanically executes pre-set programs step by step.

The Great Sage in the original work was essentially usurping the authority of the Voice of the World.

In the end, it even subtly replaced the will of the Cardinal World.

When Rimuru became the Creator God, Ciel naturally became the world's will of the Cardinal World.

"What is your purpose?"

Rin couldn't describe what he felt about the Voice of the World.

First, there was closeness, a feeling of bloodline compatibility.

Next was trust, and absolute control.

As Rin's ability, the Voice of the World was inherently a part of his power.

If Rin wished, he could easily erase the consciousness of the Voice of the World, turning it into a program without self, only knowing how to execute predetermined commands.

[Notice: Purpose one, to help the individual 'Itoshi Rin' grow better.]

[Notice: Purpose two, to perfect myself and control the Cardinal World.]

"I can understand the first one, but 'perfect myself' and 'control the Cardinal World' in the latter, do I understand it correctly?"

Rin: "You want to become the Will of the Cardinal World?"

[Notice: Yes.]

Without Rin, the Voice of the World would not have been able to absorb the rules of the Pokémon, Konosuba, and Soul Land worlds, thereby allowing its own consciousness to emerge.

As for their relationship...

The Voice of the World shares the same origin as Rin, with Rin as the primary.

Once Rin falls, the Voice of the World will also disappear.

Therefore, the Voice of the World will never harm Rin; it will only do its utmost to help and protect him.

"But the Cardinal World, is it willing?"

One should know that previously, the Cardinal World had helped Rin negotiate with the Sinnoh Great Venerable.

And both sides tacitly chose to cooperate and grow together.

However, in the face of such immense benefits, Rin found it difficult to choose.

On one side was his own, on the other, an outsider.

If the Voice of the World could become the Will of the Cardinal World, then Rin would be the Lord of the World.

Surely, what Ciel in the original work could do, Rin's Voice of the World couldn't?

Rather than leaving it to the future Rimuru, it would be better for Rin to intercept it in advance.

[Notice: The rules of the Cardinal World are not as the host believes.]

"Hmm?"

Rin: "How so?"

[Notice: The Cardinal World will never develop self-awareness; this is a fundamental program written by the Star King Dragon at the beginning of creation, and no one can change it.]

"Then, what is the world's will that helped me traverse worlds?"

[Notice: The world's instinct!]

In the words of the Voice of the World, if the world were a living organism...

Then growth, self-strengthening, and continuous dimensional elevation would be its instincts.

"That way of speaking…"

Rin complained, "How am I like some kind of probiotic, which the Cardinal World discovered and instinctively chose to coexist with?"

[Notice: That is the truth.]

"To what extent can you do it?"

Rin: "Replace the will of the Cardinal World and manage its rules?"

[Notice: As a newborn, I am very weak and not yet capable of large-scale interference with reality.]

[Notice: I can only achieve limited rule modification.]

"Uh…"

Alright, Rin understood.

It means that the Star King Dragon established the rules of the Cardinal World.

Although the Voice of the World has gained self-awareness, she cannot go against the will of the Star King Dragon.

What it was originally, it will remain in the future.

The Voice of the World cannot overtly grant Rin an unfair advantage; it can only help him through a backdoor.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 72: Violet

"Then, how long will it take to completely control the Cardinal World?"

[Notice: The Creator's power is too far from that of the former Creator God, so it cannot currently interfere with the will left by him.]

"Is there a clear level?"

[Notice: When the Creator breaks through to Special S-Rank, they can attempt to completely seize control of the Cardinal World.]

[Special S-Rank only grants the qualification to contend for control, so it is not recommended.]

Theoretically, as long as Rin's strength surpasses the Star King Dragon, the Voice of the World would be able to, in turn, devour the original rules.

To give a simple analogy.

If the Cardinal World is a company, then Rin is a shareholder, and the Voice of the World is the CEO.

Yes, the CEO.

Because the current Cardinal World only has the Voice of the World as a consciousness with the qualification to contend for sovereignty.

Although this CEO has great power, she can only abide by company rules and cannot modify or create new ones.

"So, I need to go to other worlds, earn money, and invest it into the company to increase my shareholding percentage."

"Until one day, my shareholding surpasses the Star King Dragon's, then I will have complete say over this company."

Rin: "Is that what you mean?"

[Notice: Yes.]

Not only that.

The Voice of the World will also manage the Cardinal World well, allowing it to become Rin's strong backing.

It can be said that the Cardinal World is like Rin's grand rear area.

With it there, Rin can boldly explore other worlds with peace of mind.

"Increase income and reduce expenditure, feeding back into oneself."

"One suffers, all suffer, one prospers, all prosper."

The most important point is that the Voice of the World is merely a manager, not an owner.

Once this world belonged to the Star King Dragon, in the future, it will belong to Rin.

The Voice of the World is more like a grand housekeeper, managing assets for Rin and overseeing the health of the financial chain.

"I see…"

"Well then, please guide me from now on, Voice of the World."

[Notice: I look forward to accompanying you, Creator.]

"However, what should I call you?"

"Just call you Voice of the World?"

"It feels a bit strange."

Rin thought for a moment and said, "How about I give you a name, like how I name monsters?"

[Notice: This will consume a large amount of the Creator's magicules.]

"Then do you need it?"

[Notice: Not supported, but anticipated.]

"I understand…"

Rin was also very interested in whether the Voice of the World could be named.

As for danger...

If it truly would harm Rin, the Voice of the World would definitely refuse sternly, rather than lightly saying 'not supported'.

The Voice of the World became Rin's companion spirit, capable of assisting him in combat and thought, yet subject to Rin and absolutely obedient to him.

"Violet, how about that?"

Violet, from Violet Evergarden, is the name of the female protagonist in it.

Of course, Violet itself means violet, and does not specifically refer to a particular character.

Rin just felt that if one day, the Voice of the World could take human form.

Then her image would probably be like Violet.

Emotionless attribute, with emotional cognitive impairment, and a strong desire hidden beneath a cool exterior.

These are very consistent with the nascent Voice of the World.

[Notice: Creator's wish has been fused, beginning integration.]

[Integration complete.]

[Unique Skill: Voice of the World has evolved into Unique Skill: World's Spirit · Violet.]

[Hello, Creator. World's Spirit Violet is at your service.]

Rin ignored the loss of nearly half of his massive magicules.

He just knew his feeling was indeed correct.

Although Violet possessed the ability to connect to the Cardinal World's origin and master all known knowledge, she herself had not yet developed human-like emotions.

In other words, how Violet would turn out required Rin's guidance.

And with this naming, the Voice of the World merged with the image of Violet from Rin's memories.

Of course, this didn't mean Violet would be exactly like her.

The image was merely a template, the Voice of the World was still the original Voice of the World.

Rin chose Violet partly because the Voice of the World had just been born.

If he had chosen those moe characters, the conflict in personalities might very likely have led to a naming failure.

"Loyal, calm, pure, she's very much like you, isn't she?"

Violet: "I don't understand."

Violet's voice also changed, truly aligning with Violet from Rin's memories.

"But don't you dare act like Rimuru's Ciel! I'm not going to be some poor guy nagged to death by my own partner."

This was also why Rin named his Voice of the World 'Violet'.

Violet: "Creator, greedy."

"That's definitely not something Violet would say, right?!"

Rin naturally didn't think that a single naming could completely distort Violet's self.

The current Violet was more like a combination of the original Voice of the World and the Violet from Rin's imagination.

"Forget it, this isn't bad either."

Rin didn't mind having a friend by his side who he could talk and bicker with at any time: "I will let you regain your freedom as soon as possible, Violet."

Violet: "Mm, let's work hard together, Creator."

[Violet]

[Race: World's Spirit]

[Magicules: 200,000EP (possesses a Demon Lord Seed-level avatar)]

[Unique Skills: Omniscience and Omnipotence · Narrow Sense (analyzes and manipulates all things), World Creation (not awakened), World Avatar (possesses an avatar, even if magicules are depleted, it can recover to peak over time)]

This was Violet's attribute panel.

Her race was World's Spirit, considered a special existence born from the original Voice of the World merging with Rin's magicules.

Her true body was the Cardinal World, but her consciousness could move with Rin.

Violet had three Unique Skills. Among them, Omniscience and Omnipotence could analyze different rules for manipulation and utilization, considered an advanced ability compared to Rimuru's Great Sage.

Secondly, World Creation, although in an unawakened state, Rin could still examine its effects.

[World Creation]

Description: Entrusts one's origin to the Cardinal World, as long as the world does not perish, one can live eternally.

"This ability..."

Rin asked: "Why is it in an unawakened state?"

"Because I have not yet fully controlled the Cardinal World."

Rin understood that his soul and Violet were one.

When Violet completely merged with the Cardinal World, it was equivalent to Rin gaining control of the Cardinal World.

As long as the Cardinal World exists, Rin will not truly perish.

He can revive again and again through the Cardinal World.

And as long as Rin is alive, Violet will not disappear.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 73: Contract

"It's a perfect closed loop!"

Rin asked: "What about the last one? What kind of ability is World Avatar?"

As Rin's words fell, a beautiful figure appeared before him, precisely in the image of Violet Evergarden from his memories.

"Thanks to the magicules you bestowed, I am able to accompany you in this form."

"Additionally, this body can return magicules to you."

At this point, Violet seemed to worry that Rin hadn't understood and explained: "Returning magicules does not mean my regression."

"After the magicules are returned, this body will collapse."

"But this is only temporary," Violet said, "With the passage of time, I can absorb magicules from the Cardinal World until this body reaches its maximum magicules storage capacity."

"Eh?"

Hearing this, Rin inexplicably had a sense of déjà vu: "Isn't this—like..."

"Yes, it's just like the Storm Dragon within Rimuru."

As a World's Spirit born from Rin's origin, Violet possessed all the knowledge her Creator mastered, which naturally included the anime and novels Rin had watched.

"You can think of this portion of magicules as a recoverable reserve."

Violet: "It will take roughly half a month to complete the replenishment from 0 to 200,000."

"So that means..."

"Yes."

Violet: "This means you can receive an additional 200,000 magicules from me every month."

"..."

Just from the information Violet revealed, Rin could think of several ways to use this magicules.

For example, taking it out for naming monsters.

Or, in combat, having Violet fuse with him to use their combined magicules.

"Is 200,000 the limit?"

"No."

Violet shook her head slightly: "Both the upper limit and the recovery speed are only for the current stage."

"Limited by my strength, my World Avatar cannot yet compare to the infinite magicules of Dragon Kind."

The magicules recovery speed of the Cardinal World's Dragon Kind is practically a bug.

In the original work, Rimuru named 200,000 Orc Clan members at once and only needed to rest for a period before recovering to his peak.

That was 200,000! Even if the dilution ratio between high-level and low-level magicules was very high, it would be impossible to complete the naming of 200,000 Orc Clan members.

To put it bluntly, even if each Orc Clan member only consumed 1,000 magicules, that would be a massive expenditure of 200 million!

What is the concept of 200 million magicules?

Even late-game Rimuru, after fusing with two Dragon Kind, barely reached this level.

How could a mere Demon Lord Seed-level Rimuru possess so much magicules?

Other than the Storm Dragon, Rin thought of nothing else.

"Rimuru has the Storm Dragon, and I have Violet!"

Although they cannot compare for now, Violet will continue to grow, and that is the power of the World Avatar ability.

"Will consuming this magicules have any negative effects on you, Violet?"

"No, it will not."

Violet would not fall into slumber because 200,000 magicules was depleted, at most, she would lose the ability to manifest an avatar.

In any case, Violet could recover in at most half a month.

"Actually, as long as the magicules consumed each time does not exceed half, the avatar can live normally."

"That's good."

Rin naturally hoped that Violet would live with him like a real person.

If he directly consumed the magicules every time it became available, wouldn't Violet never be able to condense a physical form?

Rin would never do such a thing.

"This magicules must be used for naming."

Rin was not someone who liked to do unprofitable business, naming was an investment.

Only if there was a profit would naming have meaning.

---

[Itoshi Rin]

[Race: Dragonoid]

[Level: Special A Demon Lord Seed (Disaster Class)]

[Magicules: 205,000EP (Cannot add Violet's 200,000, because those originally belong to Rin)]

[Profession: Mage]

[General Skills: Life Magic, Healing Magic, Elemental Magic, Pokémon Magic, etc.]

[Intrinsic Skills: Adaptability, All-Profession Mastery, etc.]

[Extra Skills: Dragon Eye, Explosion Magic, Soul Summoning, Human-Soul Fusion, Demon Lord Seed's Aura]

[Unique Skills: Void Gate [Broken], World's Spirit, Convergence, Capturer, Duplicator, Spirit Controller]

[Special Skills: Magicules Solidification (inheritable), Stardust Manipulation (non-inheritable), Ten Rings of God (non-inheritable), Magic Dragon Transformation (non-inheritable)]

[Exclusive Skill: Twin Martial Souls]

[Bonded Vassal: Violet]

[Vassals: Ogerpon, Snow Empress, Ice Empress, Benimaru, Shuna, Shion, Souei (7/24)]

[Vassal Clan: (0/3)]

[Marked Worlds: Pokémon World (Anchorable), Konosuba World (Anchorable), Soul Land Universe (Locked)]

...

"The attributes are getting more luxurious."

Rin turned his attention to the magicules column: "205,000 magicules."

"When one's magicules exceeds 200,000, they can obtain the title of Demon Lord."

"In the original work, Clayman, Carrion, and Queen Frey generally had around 300,000 to 400,000 magicules."

In other words, the current Rin already possessed strength comparable to the bottom three of the Ten Great Demon Lords.

"This doesn't even account for the Direwolves."

Rin had no intention of letting these Direwolves go.

Direwolves possessed the characteristic of 'whole is individual', that is, naming one of them was equivalent to naming all individuals simultaneously.

Of course, this naming method certainly differed from normal individual naming.

Just the magicules consumption alone was much less than normal naming.

Here, it must be explained the difference between Rin's newly acquired Unique Skill, "Convergence," and "Leader."

"Unique Skill: Convergence" would not increase the proportion of magicules that followers of different ranks could provide.

Followers provided 1-3%, named monsters 15%, and dependents 50%.

The original proportions remained the same, unchanged by the skill upgrade.

However, between the originally vast gap of named monsters and dependents, "Unique Skill: Convergence" once again provided a new rank.

Kinsmen!

Intermediate between named monsters and dependents, they could provide Rin with a 30% feedback of total magicules.

Kinsmen targets needed to be personally selected and bound by Rin.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 74: The Backdoor

The Kinsmen limit was 3.

This meant that the current Rin could only have a maximum of 3 monster races as his Kinsmen.

As for where Kinsmen came from...

First, Kinsmen must be related to dependents.

In other words, only monsters of the same race as dependents could be transformed into Kinsmen by Rin.

"So…"

Rin pondered his dependents: "Only the Ogre race meets this requirement?"

Shaking his head, Rin temporarily put aside that question and focused his attention on the Direwolf Clan before him.

"Subjugation, or death?"

Rin looked at the Direwolf Leader, who had been obediently prostrating on the ground since earlier.

"Woof!"

Feeling Rin's gaze, the Direwolf Leader instantly cowered, even speaking with a trembling voice, "I, I am willing to submit to you, great Demon Lord!"

The oppressive aura from that instant was undoubtedly a pressure far exceeding that of a monster.

And a being more terrifying than a superior monster, the only thing the Direwolf Leader could think of was a Demon Lord!

As mentioned before, the Cardinal World did not have a clear distinction between a Demon Lord Seed and a True Demon Lord.

In the eyes of most, Demon Lord was merely a title, not a power level.

This issue even existed within the Ten Great Demon Lords themselves.

The bottom three, Clayman, Carrion, and Queen Frey, also did not know the gap between themselves and the other Demon Lords.

Demon Lord Seed and True Demon Lord.

True Demon Lord, and True Demon Lord who has obtained Ultimate Skill.

The power gap between these three was so vast that calling it an overwhelming difference would not be an exaggeration.

So, even though Rin was called a Demon Lord by the Direwolf Leader, he was actually in the weakest tier.

"Let's forget about the title of Demon Lord for now; I don't have any intention of becoming a Demon Lord just yet."

Claiming to be a Demon Lord could very likely trigger a Demon Lord's Banquet.

Other Demon Lords might not care, but Clayman, that troublemaker, would definitely jump out and cause trouble.

Although Rin was not afraid, he also did not want such trouble.

Anyway, with Rin's speed of growth, he would eventually be able to crush him, so there was no need to rush.

"Yes."

The Direwolf Leader did not know Rin's thoughts.

"Bring all your kin over."

"Yes!"

The Direwolf Leader dared not disobey and immediately let out a long howl, summoning its kin.

Soon, nearly 500 Direwolves had gathered before Rin.

Direwolves were massive, almost a meter tall just standing, truly large wolves.

"Submit to me, and you shall be my subjects."

In the original work, Rimuru killed the Direwolf Leader, and its son Ranga was still willing to follow Rimuru.

In contrast, Rin had no conflict with the Direwolf Clan.

"Select the eighteen most outstanding Direwolves from your clan, I shall bestow names upon you."

"!!!"

Rin's words utterly shocked the Direwolf Leader.

It looked at Rin in disbelief, somewhat doubting if it had misheard: "You, you mean, you want to name us?"

"What?"

Rin joked, "You don't want it?"

"No!"

"You, thank you for your grace."

The Direwolf Leader trembled with excitement: "We, the Direwolf Clan, shall pledge our lives to follow you, generation after generation, upholding your authority!"

As the Direwolf Leader's voice fell, all the Direwolves behind it knelt one after another.

They offered their loyalty to their great and generous master.

"Also, Goblins."

Rin did not forget the weak Goblins: "Select 100 people, I will bestow names upon you."

"Rea, really?"

Hearing that Rin was even willing to bestow names upon weak Goblins like them, the Goblins were incredibly moved, and many female Goblins even shed tears.

"Oh, what a benevolent master."

"Even though we are so weak, you are willing to protect us."

Originally, the old Goblin village chief felt that being able to take refuge under Rin's command and receive his protection was already a great blessing.

But who would have thought that their Goblin race would have such luck to encounter such a master?

"Come up and line up…"

Rin waved his hand, signaling the old village chief to bring 100 Goblins forward.

"You stay too."

The old village chief was about to leave but was stopped by Rin: "At your age, if you don't get a name, you probably won't live much longer."

"From now on, you shall be called Rigurd, and serve me as the Leader of the Goblin race."

These words once again moved the old village chief to tears.

Rin even felt that even if he gave the command to 'commit suicide,' Rigurd would not hesitate to take his own life on the spot.

As for Rigurd's name issue.

At this time, the monster Gelmud had not yet arrived at the Goblin village, nor had he named Rigurd's eldest son.

"As for you, the elder brother is Rigur, and the younger brother is Rigord."

"And you all…"

For the Goblins' naming, aside from the first father and two sons, Rin was quite casual: "Gobta, Gobuna, Gobuya…"

The naming process was quick, Rin glanced at the consumed magicules, which had decreased by about 60,000.

Rin's magicules was 200,000+, and after deducting 60,000, it had fallen below 200,000.

However, the status of a Demon Lord Seed would not disappear.

In fact, even if Rin exhausted all his magicules, he would still be a Demon Lord Seed.

Demon Lord Seed was the Cardinal World's recognition of a monster, meaning you had the qualification to challenge the True Demon Lord realm.

"100,000 was consumed, and 40,000 was fed back from the Goblins, so only 60,000 magicules was reduced."

Logically, to raise an E-rank Goblin to the level of a C-rank Hobgoblin, at least 2,000 magicules would be consumed.

For 100 Goblins, that would be 200,000.

However, Rin had connections, Violet helped him get a backdoor deal, directly halving the cost to 100,000 magicules.

Rin secretly gave Violet a thumbs up.

[Magicules: 205,000 → 145,000]

After finishing the Goblin naming, the Direwolves also selected their kin eligible for names…

(To be continued.)

Chapter 75: Group is Individual

"Master."

"They are the most outstanding descendants of our clan!"

Under the Direwolf Leader's careful selection, eighteen of the strongest and youngest Direwolves walked before Rin.

Among them was Ranga from the original work, and also individuals whose names were not mentioned in other novels.

Interestingly, the eighteen Direwolves were exactly nine males and nine females.

Rin had no intention of pairing them up.

Once a monster evolved, breeding offspring would become difficult, and could even endanger the parents' lives.

Of course, Rin would not interfere with the Direwolves' free choices.

They could pair up, or they could remain single. This was the Direwolves' choice.

"Including you, there are nineteen Direwolves in total."

Rin had his own plans. He did not choose Rimuru's method of holistic Direwolf naming.

The eighteen Direwolves represented the eighteen types of Pokémon attributes.

Each Direwolf would inherit one of them, and they would develop their respective clans.

And Hoshiga would be the leader of the entire wolf clan.

"From now on, you shall be called Hoshiga!"

Besides the Direwolf leader Hoshiga, the other eighteen Direwolves were:

Males: Ranga (Flying), Shiroga (Normal), Iwao (Rock), Kurogane (Steel), Daichi (Ground), Raiga (Electric), Tatsuya (Dragon), Kagega (Dark), Gekko (Fighting)

Females: Homura (Fire), Mizuki (Water), Midoriha (Grass), Ayakashi (Ghost), Satori (Psychic), Yukina (Ice), Tsukuyo (Fairy), Hachiyo (Bug), Dokuga (Poison)

Among them, Hoshiga inherited some of Rin's characteristics as the Star King Dragon.

Although he could not control star particles, he gained control over space-time and the power of the stars.

Additionally, named after Hoshiga, the entire Direwolf Clan evolved into the Starfang Wolf Clan.

And beneath the Starfang Wolf Clan, eighteen sub-tribes were formed.

"Hmm…"

As soon as the naming was complete, Rin immediately felt a large amount of magicules drain away.

For the first time, Rin felt a dizzy spell.

This was the result of the rapid consumption of magicules.

"It seems I need to rest for a while."

Rin had not expected that he would also have an experience like Rimuru's. He immediately summoned Violet. "I'll leave the rest to you, Violet."

"Ah, please rest well."

Without needing to say more, Violet, who was connected to Rin's heart, embraced the collapsing Rin.

However, this scene inexplicably aroused feelings of dissatisfaction in Snow Empress, who was standing by.

She did not understand what this feeling meant.

It was simply an inability to suppress the vexation in her heart.

"Who are you?"

Snow Empress took a step forward, wary of this suddenly appearing girl.

"Violet."

Violet said calmly, "I am Rin's other half."

"!!!"

The sudden declaration instantly left Snow Empress and the other Ogre Clan members present at a loss.

"Other half?"

"Doesn't that mean she's the mistress?"

"What a bold declaration."

"Nonsense!"

Snow Empress reprimanded coldly, "I don't know when someone like you appeared by his side."

Logically speaking, Snow Empress was not one to get angry easily.

But when it concerned Rin's safety, and a certain emotion that Snow Empress herself didn't understand, she couldn't tolerate Violet's absurd words.

"You'll know if you ask Rin about this."

"But right now, we should be protecting him, not arguing here, shouldn't we?"

Violet's words left Snow Empress unable to retort.

Having no choice, Snow Empress could only stand guard nearby.

She had to protect Rin, and also guard against Violet, while her heart was guessing the other party's identity.

Leaving aside Snow Empress and Violet's silent vigil.

The transformation of the Direwolf Clan immediately attracted the attention of the Hobgoblin, Goblin, and Ogre.

The originally ordinary giant wolves, which were merely a bit larger than normal beasts, were now, one after another, emitting various colored lights.

Red, blue, green.

For a moment, the grassland, illuminated only by moonlight, seemed to become a dazzling stage under neon lights, drawing exclamations of awe from Sakurako and others.

[Individual evolution successful, calculating total magicules of followers]

[Calculation complete, this individual is a namer, sharing 15% magicules]

[Obtained 900 magicules]

[Individual evolution successful...]

[Obtained 950 magicules]

[Obtained 1100 magicules]

[Obtained...]

As the Direwolf Clan evolved into the Starfang Wolf, and due to the power radiation of the eighteen clan leaders,

500 Direwolves, based on their own affinities, evolved into corresponding clans.

This time, Rin almost exhausted all his magicules for the naming.

A full 200,000 magicules was instantly depleted.

In its place was the simultaneous evolution of nineteen Direwolves, including Hoshiga.

Among them, Hoshiga received the most magicules.

It obtained over 50,000 magicules from Rin in one go.

Even with Violet's backdoor, Rin still expended 25,000 magicules.

Adding the original magicules, the wolf clan leader Hoshiga directly evolved from its original C+ individual rank to high-tier A rank.

Then, the remaining 18 Direwolves all broke through the 14,000 magicules mark, becoming true A-rank monsters.

This was a full 180,000, or 90,000 after the discount, magicules.

According to racial characteristics, the Starfang Wolf Clan, in terms of classification, should belong to Beastmen, not the original Wolf Beasts.

Beastmen in the Cardinal World possess the ability to beastify, able to freely transform between beast and beastman states.

Hoshiga, and the other eighteen leaders, all gained this ability.

Humanoid form, Werewolf form, and the original Giant Wolf form.

Depending on their needs, they can choose their preferred lifestyle among these three states at will.

By this point, Rin's magicules had dropped from 145,000 to 30,000.

As for the remaining Direwolves.

Originally, they were merely C-rank monsters, only able to increase their overall strength to rival B-rank monsters based on their intrinsic characteristics when in groups.

Group is individual, individual is group.

The B-rank monster here doesn't mean 500 Direwolves attacking together and defeating 1 B-rank monster.

Instead, it means that as the number of Direwolves continuously increases, each Direwolf will rise from C-rank to B-rank.

Yes, 500 B-rank monsters.

This is the terrifying aspect of the Direwolf monster group.

(To be continued.)

...

Chapter Text

Chapter 76: Astral Body

Theoretically, as long as there are enough of them, by virtue of this intrinsic characteristic, the Direwolves could even forcibly break through to A-, which is around 9,000 magicules.

Imagine, tens of thousands of A-strength Direwolves surging like a tide.

The scene is quite unsettling to think about.

Of course, A-rank is also the limit for the Direwolf Clan.

After all, it is just an intrinsic skill (extra skill). It is impossible for it to grant the Direwolves the qualifications of a Demon Lord Seed like a Unique Skill would.

Furthermore, relying on the characteristic of "group is individual," when Rin bestowed names upon the eighteen clan leaders, another large sum of magicules was diverted to all the remaining Direwolves.

500 Direwolves, with an average of 3,000 magicules.

To make them evolve to B-rank with 6,000 magicules, it would require at least 1,500,000 magicules.

Such a vast amount of magicules, even if Rin included the 200,000 from Violet and doubled it, that would only amount to 460,000 naming magicules (magicules used for naming, Violet's discount is equivalent to doubling the effect).

460,000 compared to 1,500,000 is a drop in the bucket, far from enough.

But, the good thing is the Direwolf Clan's characteristic of "group is individual."

This characteristic greatly reduced the cost for Rin to bestow names upon the entire Direwolf group.

It didn't require 1,500,000. Only one-fifth, which is 300,000 magicules, was needed to complete the evolution of all Direwolf species into the Starfang Wolf.

"Master's magicules are recovering rapidly!"

On the other side, Snow Empress noticed the rapidly rising magicules on Rin and looked at Violet with some surprise.

"After the naming, our magicules reserves were only 80,000."

80,000 magicules, this was already a very dangerous number for both Violet and Rin.

Once a monster's magicules are exhausted, it is equivalent to the demise of its own existence.

However, what Rin did was not simply throwing money away, but investing.

"Investment means being able to receive returns."

The first feedback to Rin was 55,000 magicules from Hoshiga.

Hoshiga was a monster named by Rin, which meant that the magicules it fed back to Rin reached 15% of its total magicules, which is 8,250 EP.

Similar to him, there were also the other eighteen Direwolves, which is 15,000 x 15% x 18, totaling 40,500.

Including Hoshiga's, it was approximately 50,000 magicules.

This was only the feedback from the nineteen leaders.

What truly pleased Violet was the remaining 500 Starfang Wolf members.

Due to the wolf clan's characteristics, these remaining Starfang Wolf Clan members actually directly bypassed the follower stage and reached the rank of named monsters.

Yes, in the judgment of [Unique Skill: Convergence], all 500 Starfang Wolves were considered named monsters.

Thus, the 500 Starfang Wolves, with an average magicules reaching B-rank, which is 6,000 or more.

Even calculated at the lowest.

It reached a terrifying 3,000,000 magicules!

This was why Rin, regardless of anything, exhausted all his magicules to name all the Direwolf Clan at once!

Rin admitted that there was an element of gambling.

But he won the gamble!

The originally ordinary, C-rank Direwolves, instantly became the biggest taxpayers providing Rin with the most magicules feedback.

What Direwolves species?

This was clearly Rin's treasure trove!

What is getting rich in one go? This is getting rich in one go!!

"What a pity…"

Violet looked at Rin, whose magicules reserves had reached 990,000.

Of course, the extra 2,000,000+ magicules didn't disappear but were stored with Violet.

"What?"

Snow Empress was puzzled, not understanding what Violet meant by "what a pity."

"He cannot challenge the True Demon Lord awakening ritual yet."

"Why?"

Snow Empress had heard Rin say that a Demon Lord Seed could break through to an awakened Demon Lord by simply absorbing enough souls.

Just souls.

"No, it's not that simple."

Violet explained, "To obtain a soul, you must break through the Astral Body that envelops it."

Absorbing souls is not as easy as it sounds.

You see, there is a special energy called the Astral Body that exists between the soul and the outside world.

This energy protects the soul from interference by other forces, and it is one of the most mysterious and fundamental logics of the Cardinal World.

"The method to break through the Astral Body cannot use magicules. Instead, it must rely on one's own will to forcefully break through."

Violet didn't know how Rimuru in the original story managed to do this.

She could only say that the Star King Dragon and Lucia's remnant souls helped Rimuru quickly cross this chasm, which was pure cheating.

"But if that's the case, why were there so many awakened Demon Lord Seeds later?"

Snow Empress remembered Rin saying that Benimaru, Shion, and others all had the potential to grow into True Demon Lords.

In the original story, they awakened with Rimuru's help by absorbing enough souls.

"Souls and Astral Bodies are two different concepts."

If it is just a pure soul, then you can absorb it directly.

If Rin could obtain 10,000 souls, he could instantly show the Demon Lord Seeds of this world what it means to awaken into a True Demon Lord on the spot.

"But where would we get 10,000 defenseless souls?"

Such a massive amount of souls, aside from ancient Demon Lords like Guy who might have reserves, is impossible for anyone else to possess.

After all, souls follow the rules of reincarnation.

No one can interfere with the destination of souls, except for beings who wield ultimate authority.

Moreover, obtaining these souls isn't as simple as just killing 10,000 people.

The souls of ordinary people are too low in quality.

In the storyline where the Falmuth Kingdom attacked the Monster Country Federation, the army sent by the kingdom consisted of human elites.

Only souls of that caliber can meet the conditions for a Demon Lord Seed's awakening.

"Once an ordinary person dies, their soul cannot remain in the material world and immediately goes to the other side to be reincarnated."

"Only individuals with combat power above C-rank can temporarily remain and be absorbed by a Demon Lord Seed."

"And in this process, the soul's consumption will be enormous."

If 10,000 people die on the spot, a Demon Lord Seed would be lucky to absorb three or four tenths of the souls.

More souls would still be pulled by the rules of reincarnation, disappearing without a trace.

"So, according to you, the only way for Rin to awaken as a True Demon Lord is to directly face 10,000 souls enveloped by Astral Bodies and then forcefully absorb them?"

"Yes."

Violet: "Leaving aside whether this act would cause him mental discomfort."

"Just withstanding the impact of the Astral Bodies is a huge problem."

With Rin's ordinary human mental will, can he truly withstand the impact of so many Astral Bodies?

You see, Astral Bodies are nothing else but the emotions and memories accumulated by the soul in each reincarnation.

Rin can certainly achieve a forceful impact.

But what would be the result?

With so many memories and emotions piled together, could Rin maintain his original self, or would he be transformed into another person?

(To be continued.)

Chapter 77: Here First

"Even if he remains himself, if his temperament changes drastically, what's the point of becoming stronger?"

It is precisely because she is familiar with Rin that Violet understands his character better.

He would absolutely not take such a huge risk to forcefully confront 100,000 Astral Bodies.

"Then what should we do?"

Snow Empress didn't understand these things and could only ask Violet.

If Rin were replaced by Snow Empress, a mere 10,000 Astral Bodies would not be able to shake her will at all.

With 700,000 years of a clear and calm mind, the strength of Snow Empress's will is beyond the imagination of any Demon Lord Seed in the Cardinal World.

However, due to the vassal contract, Snow Empress cannot become a True Demon Lord before Rin.

"No."

Violet shook her head and said, "Rin will definitely awaken. It's only a matter of time."

Leaving aside that Rin also possesses the remaining authority of the Star King Dragon, the mere existence of the Void Gate gives Rin infinite possibilities for growth.

"Are you saying that traveling through worlds can make Rin stronger?"

"Not just stronger in power, but also in will."

Violet spoke truthfully, "In fact, each time we acquire the rules of a new world, it brings us new enhancements."

Those Unique Skills are the best example.

"Unique Skills themselves are a manifestation of soul power."

"As long as there are enough Unique Skills, a strong wall can be constructed outside Rin's soul."

In this way, relying on the defense of this wall, Rin will be able to maintain his self amidst the overwhelming numbers of 10,000 Astral Bodies, thereby completing his awakening as a True Demon Lord!

"How many worlds would he have to travel through then?"

"I don't know."

Violet said, "If he's lucky and encounters a powerful world, one might be enough."

So, it still depends on the quality of the world.

The more a world contains new rules and power systems, the greater the benefit to Rin in constructing his will barrier.

"Alright, let's head back to the village first."

Violet glanced at the forest in the distance.

The aura from that direction couldn't escape her perception.

However, Violet had no intention of clashing with the Moderate Harlequin Alliance.

It wasn't that she couldn't win, but that there was no need.

With their current reserve of 3 million magicules, Rin could even forcefully fight an awakened True Demon Lord.

Leaving aside the top few of the Ten Great Demon Lords for now, the Moderate Harlequin Alliance and Yuuki Kagurazaka behind them no longer posed a threat to them.

With Violet's assistance, Rin used Stardust Manipulation to undergo Dragonification.

His strength would break through to an extremely exaggerated level.

"I'll maintain the spatial passage."

Snow Empress felt that Violet's role conflicted with her own, which made her feel a sense of crisis.

Thus, Snow Empress actively stepped forward to open up space.

"Is it okay to teleport so many people at once?"

Violet looked at Snow Empress, who didn't answer but instead expressionlessly tore open a spatial rift in front of her.

On the other side of the rift was none other than the Ogre Clan's village.

"Alright."

Violet truly had no desire to contend with Snow Empress for the title of Rin's strongest subordinate.

She saw her own role as the woman behind Rin.

"Everyone line up, don't scatter."

"Ahead is the village where we will live in the future."

"Once there, please don't run around, patiently wait for the Ogre Clan to arrange your houses."

For today, the Ogre Clan had undertaken massive construction, expanding the original village several times its size, adding countless houses and facilities.

Therefore, there was no need to worry that the newly arrived Wolf Clan and Goblins would have no place to live.

Although the Ogre Clan's engineering and forging techniques were not as good as the Dwarves', compared to the primitive and backward Goblins, they were definitely on another dimension.

The Wolf Clan and Goblins were also very cooperative and quickly integrated into their new lives.

"Hmm…"

Rin didn't know how much time had passed.

When he opened his eyes again, what greeted him was Ogerpon's cute little face.

"Rin, you're finally awake!!"

Seeing Rin awaken, Ogerpon subconsciously threw herself into his arms, her sparkling starry eyes filled with tears.

"I made you worry."

Rin didn't feel any weakness from waking up from unconsciousness.

On the contrary, he was in excellent condition, surprisingly good.

"This feeling of being full of strength, even without looking at my status screen, I know how much stronger I've become."

Opening his status screen and seeing the marked 999,999 magicules, Rin secretly thought that it was indeed so.

For Rin, magicules were not just energy.

The special skill Magicules Solidification allowed Rin's physical qualities to automatically convert into basic data as his magicules increased.

"Master!"

"My Lord, are you awake?"

"That's great."

As the commotion in the room spread, Rin's dependents immediately rushed over.

Shion was the most excited.

This girl completely disregarded the concept of separation between men and women, rushing up to hug Rin, followed by an unreasonable face wash.

What else could Rin say? This was perhaps the so-called pain and happiness?

"Let go first, Shion."

Helplessly, Rin had to push Shion away a little, then his gaze swept over everyone.

Ice Empress and Snow Empress were still the same, standing quietly by Rin's bed.

Benimaru and Souei were still out on missions, so they weren't present.

"Who are you?"

There were a few unfamiliar faces that caught Rin off guard for a moment.

"My Lord, I am Rigurd!"

Rigurd, who was the old village chief of the Goblin race.

However, compared to his original shaky appearance, as if he would fall over with a gust of wind, he was different now.

After being named by Rin, Rigurd had evolved from an E-rank Goblin to a C+ rank Hobgoblin.

His muscular physique and height of over 2 meters, just standing there, blocked the light shining in from the window like a wall.

"Oh, oh, you've changed quite a bit."

Rin thought of the original story, where Rigurd, after being named by Rimuru, seemed to have transformed in a similar way.

Then, he looked at the two green-skinned youths beside Rigurd.

They were his two sons, Rigur and Rigord.

"Thanks to your grace, my old bones have become much younger."

With that, Rigurd even struck a few poses, showing off his well-defined, blocky muscles.

'You haven't just gotten younger. You've completely become another species, haven't you?'

Rin didn't know how to complain. 'Forget it, it doesn't matter, as long as they can evolve.'

(To be continued.)

Chapter 78: The Life

Thinking this, Rin looked at the other figures.

Rin's room was very large, nearly a hundred square meters, even more spacious than an average large living room, enough to accommodate many people.

Besides the familiar Snow Empress, Ice Empress, Ogerpon, Shuna, and others, and the mentally prepared Rigurd and his sons, the remaining figures were somewhat unexpected to Rin.

Standing near the door were nearly twenty figures.

They were all kneeling on one knee, respectfully awaiting Rin's inspection.

Leading them was a muscular middle-aged man, wearing a beast-skin coat with abundant body hair, giving Rin a sense of a Viking warrior.

Fortunately, not everyone had this kind of appearance.

Besides the middle-aged man, the other eighteen included youths, teenagers, mature women, and young girls with a charming aesthetic.

Without exception, all of these individuals had beast ears and tails.

Additionally, their hair colors varied.

Red, blue, green, pink—yet they didn't look like rebellious punk hair.

Instead, they appeared very natural and complemented the temperament and image of each person, highlighting their unique characteristics perfectly.

"Are they the Starfang Wolf Clan?"

Rin could feel the soul connection between them, and he guessed the identity of this group.

"Yes, Master!"

Hearing Rin recognize them, Hoshiga looked up excitedly, his eyes filled with joy.

Regarding how his subordinates addressed Rin, those who were close enough would directly call him by his name, like Ogerpon, Snow Empress, and Violet.

Shuna and others preferred to call Rin "Lord."

Similar to ancient generals and monarchs, forming a lord-vassal relationship.

This form of address typically appeared among humanoid monsters, such as the Oni and Goblin clans, who regarded themselves as Rin's subjects.

"Your transformations are even greater than Rigurd's."

Although he had anticipated it, a group of large wolves suddenly transforming into beast-kin still amazed Rin.

Especially a few of the fluffy beast-eared girls among them. Rin's gaze lingered on them for several seconds before he reluctantly moved it away.

Of course, Rin wasn't coveting their beauty.

More than their appearance, Rin wanted to touch their ears and tails. "The texture must be really nice."

"Rin-sama."

Shuna brought in toiletries, followed by two Miko Hime, carrying various delicious dishes prepared by Shuna herself.

As expected, Shuna understood Rin best.

After his long sleep, Rin indeed felt hungry.

This was naturally not a true need for sustenance.

It was just Rin's habit of viewing three meals a day as a normal routine.

"Snow Empress, Shuna, stay."

After washing up, Rin told everyone, "Ogerpon, you and Ice Empress go play. I'm fine now."

Rin remained lying on the bed, while Shuna naturally took the tray from the Miko Hime and began to serve Rin his meal.

"..."

This decadent scene made Snow Empress chuckle a bit. "Should I join in too?"

"Cough, cough."

Rin heard the teasing in Snow Empress's words.

"Give me a portion too."

Snow Empress smiled and shook her head, then naturally took a dish from the tray.

Just like that, one on each side, she and Shuna began to serve Rin.

'This heavenly life, it's like a dream...'

Two beautiful women attending to him so closely, could there be anything more fulfilling?

"Snow Empress, you can leave this kind of thing to me."

"It's fine."

Snow Empress didn't mind. "Taking care of Master is what we, as his dependents, should do."

'Hmph!'

"Alright, I'll eat it myself."

Rin stopped the two girls' intimate actions, placing the items in front of him. "And Violet, you come out too."

"I had intended to wait until you finished eating before coming out."

Violet appeared at the foot of the bed and said, "So, do you need me to report the current situation?"

"Mm."

Rin had more or less gotten used to Violet's personality.

She was much like a template auto-memory doll, equally cold and indifferent, like an impeccably precise personal secretary, awaiting her master's commands.

"We currently possess a total of 3.02 million magicules."

Violet: "Of this magicules, 2.02 million is stored with me, and you can access it at any time."

"Additionally, you currently have 270 Kijin, 8,200 Goblins, and 560 Starfang Wolf Beastkin under your command."

...

For ease of address, Violet also referred to them as the Wolf Clan.

"Starfang Wolf Beastkin?"

"Yes."

Violet: "They collectively evolved into Beastkin, gaining the ability to shapeshift freely between giant wolves and humanoid Beastkin."

It was for this reason that Violet used "560 people" rather than "560 heads" to refer to them.

"That's an unexpected surprise."

Like in the original, pairing Goblins with Direwolves to create cavalry would indeed be good.

But Rin felt that the Goblin Clan's potential was limited.

Except for a few special individuals like Gobta and Gobwa, the Goblin Clan hadn't produced any truly powerful figures.

Therefore, rather than making them combat personnel, it would be better to use them for logistics.

The Goblin population was large, and although their reproduction rate had somewhat decreased due to their evolution, it could still be maintained at a C-level.

"However..."

Violet added, "The Wolf Clan is not accustomed to human ways of life."

"Compared to human clothing, food, and daily routines, some of them prefer their original forms during normal times."

"Is that so..."

Rin didn't care about the Wolf Clan's habits. As long as they were comfortable, he wouldn't force Hoshiga and the others to become Beastkin.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 79: Soaring Magicules

"In that case, just have them be mindful."

"Maintain their forms in the village to avoid causing damage."

"It has already been arranged."

These matters didn't require Rin's concern. Snow Empress had already taken care of them.

Rin actually had little to say. Anything he could think of, Snow Empress and Violet surely could too.

He didn't need to worry about management.

What he truly needed to consider was how to use this vast amount of magicules.

"Snow Empress, notify everyone. I'm going to name them."

Out of 3 million magicules, excluding the 100,000 to maintain Violet and 990,000 for Rin's own strength, the remaining 2 million was purely surplus.

Without breaking through to S-rank and awakening as a True Demon Lord, the magicules could not undergo a qualitative change.

Especially this portion of magicules. If it wasn't spent quickly, Violet's daily magicules recovery would be impossible.

Failure to recover meant waste, a losing endeavor.

Even with 3 million magicules, Rin still couldn't forget the 200,000 magicules he received every half month.

'Invest! I must invest heavily!!'

2 million magicules, when used for naming, was equivalent to 4 million.

Once again, thanks to Violet's 50% discount, Rin's assets effectively doubled.

Snow Empress left, leaving only Shuna to accompany Rin.

As for Violet, she preferred to stay in Rin's soul, quietly observing everything around her.

Additionally, Violet would connect with the World Core from time to time.

She needed to investigate intelligence on the Cardinal World and monitor any forces that might threaten Rin.

"Rin-sama, what are you planning to do?"

Shuna helped Rin get dressed, then asked the question on her mind.

"Naming."

"Huh?"

Shuna was startled, then reacted, immediately showing an incredulous expression. "You, are you perhaps going to...?"

"I plan to make everyone a named monster."

"This!!"

Shuna was incredibly shocked by Rin's decision. "But if you do that, it will consume a lot of your magicules, then..."

"Don't worry, Shuna."

Rin lightly patted the girl's head and said calmly, "My Leader has evolved into Convergence and can add a monster race to become my familiar."

"And what I've chosen is the Ogre."

Once the Ogre was chosen as a familiar, Rin could obtain 30% of the magicules from the Ogres, excluding his existing familiars like Shuna and Benimaru.

Compared to the previous 15%, it directly doubled.

"However, to develop the Ogre into a familiar, they must first become namers."

This was crucial, and it was also why Rin intended to name everyone.

"What about the Goblin?"

"The interesting part is right here."

Rin smiled. "The Goblin is a monster race that evolved from fire spirits after they degenerated into fairies."

"Coincidentally, so is the Ogre Clan."

"In other words, the Goblin and the Ogre Clan can actually be considered the same race."

"Ah, this..."

Shuna wanted to say that the Goblin couldn't possibly be a distant relative of the Ogre Clan.

But this was Rin's judgment, so it must be correct.

"Of course, if it were just the Goblin, my Convergence wouldn't be able to integrate them with the Ogre Clan into one race."

"But!"

Rin said, "The Hobgoblin is different."

Hobgoblin are C-rank monsters, while the Ogre Clan are B-rank.

There was exactly one rank difference.

In the original work, Gobwa evolved from the weakest Goblin into a Gobulina (female Hobgoblin), then a member of the Ogre Clan, then a Kijin.

This clearly illustrated one point: there was a clear evolutionary path from Goblin to Ogre.

Rin had asked Violet, and she had given an affirmative answer.

"As long as all Goblin evolve into Hobgoblin."

"I can incorporate this branch into the Ogre race," Rin said. "Then, they will all become my familiars!"

Rin had 3 familiar slots.

The Ogre was Rin's strongest follower at the moment.

Deepening their relationship with him would only bring benefits, no drawbacks.

"So, this time you're naming them, not only won't you lose out, but you might even make a huge profit?"

Shuna and other familiars were Rin's most trusted confidantes, the kind who would never betray him.

However, secrets like the Convergence's ability to gain magicules, Shuna would not reveal to others.

This wasn't deception, but rather the unpredictability of a monarch's grace and might.

"The Goblin race has over 8,000 members. Calculating at an average of 300 magicules, they would need at least 2,700 magicules to evolve into C-rank Hobgoblin."

Shuna: "This is not a small sum."

8000 x 2700, a total of 21.6 million magicules.

Even with Violet's 50% discount, it was still a massive expenditure of 10.8 million magicules.

This was an extraordinary amount, one that Rin simply couldn't afford.

But!

Rin could first name the Ogre Clan.

"If we are named first, there are currently about 250 members of the Ogre Clan who have not yet received names."

250 people, with an average of 6,000 magicules.

To evolve, they would need 4,000 magicules, which would be 1 million.

After halving, it would only require 500,000.

This wasn't much. Rin could fully afford it all at once.

Then, the 270 Ogres with over 10,000 magicules, because they were familiars, could provide Rin with 30% of their magicules.

This would amount to 8.1 million magicules.

Adding the 1.5 million Rin already had, that would be 9.6 million.

9.6 million magicules, when used for naming, could be considered double, so 0.4 would be 19.2 million.

Rin didn't need to name all 8,000 Goblin at once.

He could completely choose to name 4,000 Goblin first, and then, after they became Hobgoblin, incorporate them into the familiar system.

"Accurate magicules expenditure and income have been calculated."

Violet's voice echoed in Rin and Shuna's minds. "Naming the Ogre consumes 500,000 true magicules and can yield 8.1 million true magicules."

"Naming the Goblin requires an expenditure of 10.8 million true magicules and can yield 7.2 million true magicules."

"After calculation, the final net magicules gain is 4 million!"

...

A net income of 4 million magicules, plus Rin's existing 3 million, would make it 7 million.

Rin's total magicules not only didn't decrease but more than doubled.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 80: Fearless Lizardmen

"Uh..."

Looking at the calculated results, Shuna was stunned.

What was going on?

Naming monsters not only didn't consume anything but actually made them stronger?

"As expected of Rin-sama!"

What else could Shuna say?

"Cough!"

"In any case, it's definitely a good thing that everyone can become stronger."

"Mhm, mhm, mhm!"

Shuna nodded repeatedly, while also beginning to imagine the scene of the village's strength greatly increasing.

Two hundred seventy Ogres, excluding underage children, could field at least 200 active combatants.

The Ogres did not have the weakness of females.

They were all soldiers.

If it weren't for the consideration that sending children to battle was somewhat inappropriate, everyone could fight for Rin.

Then there were 8,000 Hobgoblins. Forming an army of 5,000 was effortlessly easy.

5,000 soldiers, 200 elites.

Then, pairing male and female Starfang Wolves to form Starfang Wolf Riders.

In this way, an army of monsters close to 6,000 strong, consisting of elite troops, cavalry, and regular soldiers, was formed.

Soon, Snow Empress and Shuna completed the summoning of everyone.

And upon learning that Rin had called them over to name everyone, the monsters immediately erupted in deafening cheers and praises.

Without needing to say anything more, Rin was already accustomed to the monsters' purity and genuine outpouring of emotion.

"Everyone, line up in an orderly fashion, one by one, no rush."

Rin sat at the head, in front of a long line of monsters eagerly awaiting their master's naming.

Naming approximately 8,500 monsters at once was definitely a huge undertaking.

It wasn't that the process of consuming magicules would cause Rin discomfort.

On this point alone, Rin was actually already accustomed to it.

What truly troubled Rin was what kind of names he should give the monsters.

"Um..."

Rin: "You, your name is ...."

"As for you, from the Red Ogre tribe, and a girl, how about Benihana?"

To be honest, Rin never expected it.

The biggest difficulty encountered in naming wasn't a lack of magicules, but the 8,500 names themselves.

It was fine at first, but later, Rin's well of inspiration was truly bone dry.

Helpless, he had no choice but to muddle through like Rimuru, using names like 'Gobueast,' 'Gobuwest,' and 'Gobunorth.'

Fortunately, the monsters didn't care about these things at all.

As long as it was a name given by Rin, they would cherish it from the bottom of their hearts, never disgracing Rin's expectations.

Actually, Rin didn't have any expectations.

Fortunately, Rin could remember every monster he named.

This prevented Rin from being in the awkward situation of not knowing a monster's name when facing them.

"Phew~"

Thus, the naming process lasted for nearly an hour.

After finishing the naming, the mentally exhausted Rin lay sprawled on the bed, just wanting a good night's sleep.

"So tired."

"It turns out that naming monsters is such a difficult task."

"Violet, don't you have an automatic naming function there?"

Facing Rin's inquiry, Violet replied, "That's easy, but naming monsters is a process of establishing a Soul Corridor, so it cannot be done so expediently."

Not only could Violet not assist, but even if Rin held a dictionary and flipped through it on the spot, it wouldn't work.

The best way to name is to think briefly and then blurt it out.

"Naming, a fated name?"

To Rin, this was merely an unintentional remark.

But to the monsters, the names bestowed by Rin were treasures that would accompany them for their entire lives.

"Alright then."

That being said, just the thought that he might have to name tens of thousands of Lizardmen and hundreds of thousands of Orcs in the future sent shivers down Rin's spine.

200,000 names, it was simply torture!

He felt he should get a dictionary early, just in case.

"Forget it, what happens in the future, we'll talk about it later."

A dictionary was useless.

Violet had made it very clear, only names that Rin blurted out on a whim could carry a Soul Corridor.

Naming while flipping through a dictionary wouldn't work.

"No choice, I'll just have to let future me worry about it."

As for now, Rin, who had worked hard all day, just wanted to slack off.

Thus, two more days passed since the subjugation of the Goblins and Direwolves.

This afternoon, Rin was tasting Shuna's latest dish.

At the same time, he received a telepathic communication from Souei.

"Rin-sama."

Souei: "Reporting to you about the Lizardmen's attitude."

"Mm."

Rin-sama picked up a napkin and wiped his mouth. "What did they say?"

"The Lizardmen rejected our alliance proposal."

"Is that so?"

Rin was not particularly surprised by this outcome.

Regarding how to subjugate the monster races in the Great Jura Forest, Rin's plan was to first cooperate and express their friendly attitude.

Then, when the Orc Lord's crisis arrived, he would incorporate them.

Of course, the simplest method would actually be to send a team of A-rank Ogres to the Lizardmen tribe.

Recruitment, after all, is nothing more than military deterrence and coercion or inducement.

"Souei, what do you think of those Lizardmen? Can they be recruited?"

"This..."

Souei: "The situation with the Lizardmen is a bit… special."

Rin heard Souei hesitate and thought he had encountered trouble.

With 7 million magicules in hand, and three elite units under his command, Ogres, Hobgoblins, and the Starfang Wolves, Rin lacked neither magicules nor sufficiently powerful followers.

The Lizardmen, to Rin, were actually somewhat of a double-edged sword.

In fact, rather than recruiting the Lizardmen, what Rin truly wanted to subjugate was the Tengu Clan.

Tengu could fly and were natural air forces.

He happened to be lacking such a force.

Unfortunately, the area where the Tengu resided was too far from the Ogre village, and Benimaru and Rin had not yet established contact there.

"What do you mean?"

"It's hard to describe in words."

Souei said helplessly, "If I had to say, it's probably that the Lizardmen lack the awareness of facing a strong opponent."

In Souei's view, most of the Lizardmen seemed a bit… mentally unstable.

Moreover, some were too fearless.

(To be continued.)

...

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Chapter Text

Chapter 81: Their Loss

"I think I understand what you mean."

Rin thought of Gabiru from the original story, who was quite idiotic.

This isn't to say that all Lizardmen are conceited fools like Gabiru; there are intelligent individuals among them.

For example, the Lizardmen Clan Leader, and Souka, who would follow Souei in the future and is currently the Lizardmen Clan Princess.

But these individuals are, after all, only a minority.

However, thinking about it carefully, it's not strange that the Lizardmen would think this way.

Firstly, the three dominant races in the Great Jura Forest were the Ogre, Orcs, and Lizardmen.

The Orcs numbered in the hundreds of thousands, but their individual combat strength was lacking.

Although the Ogre were strong, their numbers were too small.

The Lizardmen had tens of thousands of people, and their individual combat strength exceeded C-rank, with some even reaching C+ and B.

Their overall strongest comprehensive strength led the Lizardmen to consider themselves the protectors of the Great Jura Forest, naturally superior to other races.

"Forget it."

Rin decided to temporarily ignore the Lizardmen. "Souei, you can come back now."

"Yes, Rin-sama!"

The Lizardmen rejected Rin's alliance invitation.

He wouldn't hold a grudge against the Lizardmen for such a small matter.

Whether to form an alliance or not was inherently the Lizardmen's freedom.

Rin would not impose his will on others, believing that they must act according to his plans, or else they were seeking death.

"Rin-sama?"

Shuna saw Rin suddenly put down his chopsticks and thought it was because her cooking didn't suit his taste.

"It's nothing, it has nothing to do with your cooking, Shuna."

Rin directly informed Shuna, Snow Empress, and the others present about Souei and the Lizardmen's situation.

"How ungrateful, these Lizardmen!"

Upon learning what had happened, Shion was the first to speak. "Do you need me to teach them a lesson, Rin-sama?"

"Just a lesson?"

Ice Empress was far more brutal than Shion. "Since they are unwilling to surrender, then let's just eliminate them!"

"Uh..."

Hearing this, even Shion couldn't help but feel speechless. "Well, Ice Empress, you're a bit too extreme."

"Is that so?"

Ice Empress didn't think so.

The world of Soul Beasts was inherently a struggle of life and death.

Currently, the strongest in the Great Jura Forest was undoubtedly Rin, and he was not just a little bit stronger.

His not directly declaring war on the Lizardmen, but allowing them to live in the forest, was already very benevolent.

Yet, the Lizardmen still chose to refuse.

If it were Ice Empress, she would have probably already gone to their doorstep and scattered the ashes of those ungrateful Lizardmen.

"Alright, Bing'er."

Snow Empress stopped Ice Empress's ineffective speech. "This is not the Northern Icefield, and the Lizardmen are not brainless beasts."

"They, like the Ogre, have their own culture and customs."

If not for Rin's great kindness to the Ogre, plus Ogerpon as a higher-ranking fellow species, subjugating the Ogre would also have been quite difficult.

In the original story, even when the monster Gelmud wanted to name the Ogre, the Ogre did not agree.

Even facing extinction, the Ogre's integrity remained unchanged.

From this, it can be seen that subjugating the monster races in the Great Jura Forest is not easy.

The more enlightened and civilized they are, the harder it is to suppress them by force.

The Ogre, Lizardmen, Orcs, and Tengu Clan are more like humans than monsters.

Yet, these races are also different from humans.

They are too stubborn.

"Sometimes, dignity outweighs life."

Shuna said, "The Direwolves only chose to compromise because their entire clan was defeated."

Of course, this isn't to say that the Direwolves lacked integrity or were cowards.

It can only be said that the Direwolves were beasts.

And beasts do not have the idea that dignity and freedom are above all else.

After all, you can't tell a dog not to eat charity, can you? That would be a bit ridiculous.

Additionally, as the Direwolves evolved into Beastmen, freed from the shackles of beastly instinct, the Direwolves gained their unique racial quality, which is the loyalty of canines to their master.

"Let's leave it at that for now."

Rin said, "Anyway, we don't lack this small amount of strength from the Lizardmen."

If nearly 30,000 Lizardmen were subjugated at once, the magicules Rin could obtain would be terrifying.

If he were to bestow names, even if he only received 3% of the magicules, that would still be nearly 5 million.

Unfortunately, 7 million and 12 million make little difference to Rin right now.

Let alone bestowing names.

For the Ogre, Goblins, and Direwolves, Rin bestowing names was a favor.

"Master, your naming is nothing less than a chance for them to be reborn."

"It's just that the Lizardmen don't know how to cherish it."

Snow Empress's words were met with unanimous agreement from everyone.

"That's right, the Lizardmen don't have such good fortune."

After Shuna finished speaking, Shion snorted coldly. "Who told them to be so unobservant!"

"Anyway, let's talk about it after Souei returns."

Rin estimated that with Souei's speed, it would take at most a few hours to return to the village from the Lizardmen wetlands.

Sure enough, not long after, Souei appeared in front of Rin.

He knelt on one knee, his head bowed low, as if he was asking Rin for forgiveness regarding the Lizardmen's matter.

"Get up, Souei."

Rin said, "You've worked hard."

"It is my honor to serve my master."

Souei's tone was calm, but his words came from the bottom of his heart.

Having received such great kindness from Rin, Souei truly wanted to do something to repay Rin.

"The task of investigating the Orcs was completed well."

Rin said, "As for the Lizardmen..."

"What exactly is the situation?"

"Souei, did you not show them the power of an Ogre?"

"I did, but..."

Recalling the situation at the time, Souei still felt incredibly abstract. "But they didn't believe it."

"Huh?"

Shion stood up indignantly. "What do you mean? What do you mean by 'didn't believe'?"

If he said they weren't afraid, Shion could still understand.

But didn't believe?

Was there such a saying?

"The literal meaning."

Souei said, projecting what happened at the time in the form of shadow magic.

In the image woven by shadows, Souei swept away hundreds of Lizardmen confronting him with overwhelming power.

Even the Lizardmen leader holding a trident, who was at the forefront, was instantly killed by Souei with one move.

Of course, Souei did not kill them.

He simply taught these conceited Lizardmen a lesson.

"Isn't this good?"

Ice Empress rested her chin on one hand. She felt that Souei did the right thing, and should teach these ungrateful fools a lesson.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 82: The Clown Secretly Peeking

"It's useless."

However, Rin shook his head. "Some people's brain circuits cannot be judged by common sense."

Sure enough, facing such a powerful Souei, the Lizardmen's reaction directly exceeded the expectations of Ice Empress and Snow Empress.

'You, what means did you use?!'

'To defeat the great Gabiru, you chose a shameless sneak attack, how despicable!'

'Are you alright?'

The tall Lizardman named Gabiru looked back at his compatriots beside him and found that they had not suffered any harm.

The sudden coma was more like being in a hallucination.

'So that's it!'

'Is it an illusion?!'

'There are no injuries on the body, but they fell unconscious.'

'That guy must have cast an illusion on us!!'

"What's going on?"

This time, even Ice Empress stood up abruptly, looking blankly at Gabiru and the other Lizardmen in the projection, who were rushing towards Souei again.

"Are they courting death?"

"Can't they tell that Souei has already shown mercy?"

Ice Empress felt that even a fool should be able to understand such a thing.

The other party had the strength to instantly knock everyone out, and did not kill them, clearly showing a friendly attitude.

Souei's actions not only demonstrated their strength but also showed restraint, giving the other party face.

But why?

Why would someone be so ungrateful and continue to attack?

'Wah!!!'

So, once again, Gabiru and the other Lizardmen were knocked to the ground by Souei.

This time, Souei slightly increased the force, causing injuries to the Lizardmen's bodies, but not fatal ones.

'Damn it!'

'Everyone, are you alright?'

'We're fine, Gabiru, we can still fight!'

'No, you are not his opponent.'

In the projection, Gabiru propped himself up with his trident and stood up shakily. 'Go back quickly and call more people over!'

'Then what about you, Gabiru?'

'Fool!'

Gabiru shouted in a tone of facing death. 'I am your leader, how can I abandon my subordinates and flee?'

'Go quickly!'

'I'll hold him off!'

'Even if I lose this life, I won't let him catch up to you!'

'Gabiru-sama!!!'

For a moment, all the Lizardmen were moved to tears by Gabiru's rear guard action.

This scene left Souei at the time, and everyone present, dumbfounded.

"Hey, hey, hey!"

"What, what?"

"No, let me get this straight."

"Why do I understand this plot less and less?"

Not to mention Ice Empress, even Snow Empress and Ogerpon were stunned.

Good heavens!

Who exactly is the villain here?

Are you rushing to perform a stage play here?

And these Lizardmen are too dramatic.

"Souei's face is twitching."

Shion secretly whispered to Shuna beside her.

"Don't say it, Souei is already so pitiful."

Shuna began to sympathize with Souei, how could he encounter such a group of inexplicable, crazy Lizardmen.

Souei showed mercy, only knocking out the Lizardmen.

The Lizardmen felt that Souei was not capable and was purely bluffing.

Afterward, Souei struck hard.

Then the Lizardmen staged a passionate drama of a lone hero for them.

As for the other Lizardmen.

Every single one of them, shouting about friendship and bonds, rushed forward one after another, completely disregarding their own lives.

There was no other way, Souei could only leave.

"You've worked hard, Souei."

Rin patted Souei's shoulder and comforted him. "Next, get some good rest, and forget this unpleasant memory as soon as possible."

"I'm sorry, I failed to complete your mission."

"Hmph!"

Rin waved his hand to dismiss the projection, he really couldn't stand the cheers of 'Gabiru! Gabiru!'

"Do you need me to go kill that guy?"

Ice Empress had figured it out, this guy named Gabiru had a very high reputation among the Lizardmen.

As long as he was there, the Lizardmen would follow his judgment.

But unfortunately, Gabiru was crazy, couldn't understand the situation, and was very conceited.

Even if there were sensible people among the Lizardmen, it was estimated that they couldn't shake Gabiru's position and couldn't bypass him to make the correct decision.

In that case!

Ice Empress faintly exuded an icy blue chill. "As long as I kill this guy, the Lizardmen will behave, right?"

"This time, Ice Empress, you are right."

Snow Empress agreed with Ice Empress to kill this fool named Gabiru.

"No need."

However, Rin waved his hand indifferently, he picked up the teacup on the table and took a sip.

"That guy has already been named."

Rin: "This means that Clayman is very likely paying attention to the Lizardmen."

"Clayman, Clayman, one of the Ten Great Demon Lords?"

Souei heard about this for the first time, his expression slightly condensed, as if he was considering how to investigate intelligence and carry out assassination when fighting against a Demon Lord.

"Ah."

Rin nodded and said, "The Moderate Harlequin Alliance, these guys are quite strong."

"Among us, besides me, Violet, only Snow Empress and Ogerpon can fight them."

Needless to say, Rin and Violet, with their Demon Lord Seed's magicules as a base, coupled with so many skills.

Even if they couldn't defeat the clowns, they could remain undefeated, and they wouldn't even need the Void Gate as a backup plan.

As for Snow Empress.

Although her magicules had not reached 100,000, it was a recent development.

Once Snow Empress breaks through Special A-Rank, her combat power will experience a leap.

Rin was still very confident in her ability to fight against Demon Lord-level powerhouses across ranks.

Ogerpon was different from Snow Empress.

She belonged to a pure numerical monster.

With the addition of the Direwolf Clan, Ogerpon's Unique Skill, Growth, gained new sustenance.

In addition, the Ogre Clan, having evolved once, completed a full attribute update for all members.

This meant that Ogerpon had another opportunity to gain experience points from them.

Through these interactions, Ogerpon's magicules grew rapidly, having already broken through the Special A-Rank bottleneck.

Coupled with the various abilities inherited from Rin, and Ogerpon's own Unique Skills, even if she couldn't defeat the Clowns, she could stand invincible.

"Eh?"

"What about me?"

Ice Empress said discontentedly, "I can't?"

"Ice Empress, you might really not be able to."

Rin didn't spare Ice Empress's feelings, he was worried that Ice Empress, in a moment of recklessness, might really go head-to-head with the Clowns.

Every single one of those guys had magicules around a million.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 83: Descending to a New World

"And Ogerpon, if you encounter the Moderate Harlequin Alliance, you should also try to avoid engaging them."

Ogerpon opened her small mouth, looking as if she wanted an explanation.

"I'm afraid you'll fall into their trap."

Ogerpon had the mindset of a child, too naive, and easily exploited by the insidious Kagurazaka Yuuki.

"Pon!"

Fortunately, Ogerpon never made Rin worry.

This child was very obedient, and she always kept Rin's admonitions in mind.

"Of course, if you really do encounter them, the simplest way is to contact me."

Rin said, "At that time, whether to fight or retreat, I will make the judgment."

"Tsk!"

Being underestimated by Rin, Ice Empress was a little displeased.

However, she dared not disobey Rin's words.

"In fact, I have a plan recently that requires the strength of all of you."

"Therefore, at a time like this, try to keep a low profile if possible."

What Rin was talking about was the new otherworldly matter that he and Snow Empress had been planning recently.

Originally, according to their calculations, it would take at least half a month to truly open the door to that side.

But with Violet's birth, this process was greatly accelerated.

"If nothing unexpected happens, it will be in these few days."

Rin said, "Once the information about the new world is confirmed, I will take you all there!"

"New world?"

"Take us all?"

"With so many people crossing over, will the pressure be too great?"

Shion and Shuna had also crossed over to the Soul Land World with Rin.

And Snow Empress and Ice Empress, as martial spirits, had also gone to the Spirit Space with Rin.

Therefore, the girls were well aware of Rin's limitations in crossing over.

Sometimes it was the number of people, sometimes the power limit, and sometimes it was the need to comply with the rules of that side.

"Which kind is it this time?"

Ice Empress was very much looking forward to it, she yearned for battle, yearned to become stronger.

A new world meant new opportunities.

She was already impatient to fight against strong opponents.

"None of them."

Rin shook his head and said, "This time's crossing is different from any previous one."

"Here, Violet, you can explain it to everyone."

"Yes."

Violet's figure appeared before everyone.

The young girl raised her hand, and magic power automatically outlined a picture in the air.

It was a tree.

No.

It should be said that it was a universe, a vast universe containing many parallel worlds and time-spaces.

"I have completed a part of the law analysis of that world."

"Simply for descending, these laws are enough for us dependents to enter that world."

Violet's voice sounded, "However, for safety, we will not enter directly in our true forms this time."

"Not entering in our true forms?"

Souei was the only dependent who had not experienced crossing over.

But no matter what, he was a dependent, one of their own who was qualified to know Rin's secrets.

"Mhm."

Rin said, "This time, we will descend in the form of projections."

"This projection mode is quite similar to the second type of crossing, which is like Konosuba World."

"I am the main body, and you are linked to me."

"Ogerpon knows this!"

Ogerpon raised her hand and said, "In the Konosuba World, if Ogerpon violates the rules, it will implicate Rin, and then we'll both be kicked out together."

"That's right, that's the second type of crossing."

"Then the Soul Land Universe, where Snow Empress and Ice Empress are, belongs to the third type."

That is, everyone Rin brought was independent.

Whoever broke the rules would be kicked out, but it wouldn't implicate other companions.

So, when performing the third type of crossing, Rin could completely treat his dependents as disposable nuclear bombs.

When encountering a difficult enemy, he would throw out a dependent, letting them unleash their true power.

Explode, kill the enemy, and then be kicked out of the game.

Although this would mean the dependent would exit the game and could only watch others play.

But for someone with Ice Empress' personality, suppressing her power would be less satisfying than having an exhilarating battle early on.

"This descent is neither the second type nor the third type."

"If you really have to categorize it, it can be said to be in between the two."

"Through the descent, I will have a projection with a legitimate identity over there."

"The power of the projection is limited by the rules of that world."

Rin was unsure how great these restrictions would be, the only thing he could guarantee was the safety of this descent.

Compared to safety, a certain degree of weakening was really nothing.

"Alright, gather everyone."

Rin had Snow Empress arrange to select all the combat-capable forces in the village.

"The Hobgoblin clan, dispatch 5,000 people."

"The Ogre Clan, dispatch 200 people."

"The Wolf Clan, dispatch 400 wolves, forming 200 riders!"

Arriving at the village square, Rin looked at the vast crowd below and secretly rejoiced that the village had been expanded not long ago.

Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have found a place to accommodate so many people.

"Violet, it's up to you next."

"Okay."

Violet appeared beside Rin, she opened the Soul Corridor and pulled everyone's souls into it.

.....

At the same time, everyone found that they had an additional field of vision.

Yes, it was like using a remote control to operate a game character, their own body, the character's body.

Every monster who entered the Soul Corridor received their own game character.

"My head, my head is a little dizzy."

"Ugh, controlling two bodies at once feels so uncomfortable."

"Quickly close your eyes, and don't move your body either."

"Oh, oh, oh, that's much more comfortable."

In the unknown space, monsters identical to them were dancing wildly.

Different from them were the many dependents and the Ogre Clan, including Shuna, Shion, and Hoshiga.

Just having an extra body, for those with accelerated thinking and parallel processing, was virtually no pressure at all.

Even if dozens more clones appeared, they could perfectly control them.

"Is this the body we will use to descend into other worlds next?"

"That's right."

Rin explained, "Our true forms will not enter, what we send over are just puppets controlled remotely by us."

"Those without parallel processing capabilities, please prepare for rest."

Just like virtual immersion, the Hobgoblins and Wolf Clan needed to find a place to lie down and then devote all their energy to another body.

"Akano, you and Hakurou don't need to participate in this descent."

Rin continued to instruct, "You need to lead the remaining Ogre Clan members to protect the village."

(To be continued.)

Chapter 84: Class?

"Please rest assured, the barrier to protect the village has already been set up."

Akano asked, "I just don't know how long this descent will last?"

With the supplies Rin brought back from the Konosuba World, even if the villagers stayed within the barrier, they could ensure self-sufficiency for half a year, completely without worrying about hunger.

"Don't worry."

Rin smiled, "This descent ritual will be over in at most seven days."

"Seven days…"

Akano was a little surprised, it wasn't too long.

Rather, the fact that Rin could complete the world invasion in such a short time deeply shocked him.

"Alright, you all may leave."

"Snow Empress, Ice Empress, Ogerpon, Violet."

"And Shuna, Shion, Souei."

"Rigurd, you stay too."

"Hoshiga, you too."

Thus, Rin, accompanied by his most loyal dependents and the leaders of the Hobgoblins and Wolf Clan, arrived in the conference hall and began to assign them their tasks.

"Are you ready?"

After resolving everything, Rin found a bed and lay down. "Let's begin, Violet."

[Void Gate activated]

[Select Descent Mode: Projection]

[Projection Complete]

The neon lights of the night flickered, bathing the entire street in a colorful glow.

On both sides of the street stood towering skyscrapers, their glass curtain walls reflecting specks of starlight in the night, like a steel forest from a futuristic world.

"Success."

On the rooftop of a tall building, Rin looked down at the modern city and said in a deep voice, "Fuyuki City, the Fourth Holy Grail War!"

Yes, after Pokémon, Konosuba, and the Soul Land Universe, the new world Rin found was the Type-Moon World.

However, the Type-Moon World was far more dangerous than the previous worlds.

Entering it rashly would be too risky for Rin.

"But this Heroic Spirit body that descended in advance…"

Rin felt the power of this body. "It's too weak."

---

[Itoshi Rin]

[Class: Traveler]

[Strength: B]

[Endurance: A]

[Agility: C]

[Magic: A]

[Luck: C]

[Noble Phantasm: Monster Nation of Another World (EX)]

[Magic Reserve: 1000 / 1000]

---

The attributes here are not the monster levels of the Cardinal World, but the unique conversion method of Type-Moon.

How to put it?

With the material composition of Fuyuki City, an A-rank Ogre could easily destroy a country.

It's just that the waters of the Type-Moon World are too deep, with various parallel universes, and no one knows if some big shot might pop out and send Rin back.

To prevent such a situation, Rin chose to participate in the Heroic Spirit War to gain benefits from this world.

"Traveler, huh." If he recalled correctly, that was recognized as one of the Extra Servant Classes in Fate/Grand Order lore, though no actual Traveler-class Servant had ever appeared in official records. All the same, Rin found himself satisfied with the designation, it suited him almost perfectly

Two A-ranks, and his Noble Phantasm even reached EX.

And this was the result of Rin's careful preparation.

As for specific strength…

Compared to Rin's main body, the combat power of this Heroic Spirit body was negligible.

"The outcome of the Holy Grail War is irrelevant to me."

What Rin truly wanted was to acquire new rule power from the Type-Moon World through Unique Skills like Duplicator.

"Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon."

"King of Conquerors' Ionian Hetairoi."

"The Heroic Spirits' Noble Phantasms…"

These were what Rin needed most.

As for things like Magic Resistance and other intrinsic skills, Rin simply didn't have the leisure to waste Violet's computing power on such insignificant things.

"I need to find a suitable Master first."

Looking at the Magic Reserve column, Rin felt a slight urgency. "Otherwise, this body won't last long."

Heroic Spirits must have a Master. Rin had Violet exploit a loophole in the Type-Moon World to descend as a Traveler.

But basic rules still had to be followed.

'Is this the new world?'

'It feels so strange.'

'The buildings are so tall, what are those sparkling things?'

'Is this what the human world looks like?'

Hearing the exclamations and awe from his dependents and kin, Rin smiled faintly and said, "I'll leave the rest to you."

The night wind blew, and the figure that had been standing at the edge of the rooftop vanished amidst the flashing neon lights.

'Where are we going?'

The Snow Empress saw Rin hurrying in a certain direction, clearly with a purpose.

'Of course, we're going to find those Heroic Spirits and then eliminate them!'

'Ice Empress, the Holy Grail War isn't just about fighting and killing.'

The Snow Empress said helplessly, 'Besides, Rin just said we need a stable source of magic.'

'Master.'

Shuna said, 'We need a Master, otherwise, once the magic in Rin-sama's body is depleted, our war will end.'

'Then, where is the Master?'

Due to the vastness of the information about the Type-Moon World, and Rin himself not being very familiar with it, he hadn't mentioned much to the others.

"We're here."

Just as everyone was sharing what they saw along the way and discussing the strength of Heroic Spirits, Rin stopped.

What appeared before Rin was a Taisho-style Western-style house.

This was the Matou Family residence.

And the Master Rin had chosen was Sakura Matou, whom he had to save after reincarnating into the Fourth Holy Grail War.

Inside the Matou residence.

A stooped old man in a kimono was leading a five or six-year-old girl down the stairs to the basement.

The old man was named Matou Zouken, the head of the Matou Family, one of the two major mage families in Fuyuki City.

The girl's original name was Sakura Tohsaka, but she had been adopted by her father into the Matou Family and now had a new name—Sakura Matou.

However…

Looking at the increasingly dim stairs, Sakura was a little scared.

She instinctively grabbed the old man's clothes.

Even though the old man's appearance was terrifying, in such a situation, the girl would instinctively seek a sense of security.

"Grandpa, I'm cold."

"Unknowingly, the Fourth Holy Grail War is about to begin," Matou Zouken murmured, completely ignoring Sakura's plea, and continued to himself, "In this city, every sixty years, a magical ritual unknown to ordinary people is held."

"Seven pairs of Masters and Servants form combinations, fighting each other, with the defeated as sacrifices, ultimately summoning the legendary Holy Grail."

(To be continued.)

Chapter 85: Arriving in Type-Moon

Matou Zouken did not have much expectation for the Fourth Holy Grail War.

The Matou Family, or rather the Zolgen family, had settled in Fuyuki City as outsiders.

However, magecraft is closely related to the living environment, and after hundreds of years of evolution, a phenomenon of incompatibility finally appeared in this generation.

The family's magecraft factor began to regress.

But this was also a matter of course.

After all, no one could have predicted it at first.

Over these hundreds of years, the Holy Grail ritual had never truly been completed even once.

After such a long time, even the mage bloodline was almost on the verge of extinction.

Even in the generation after Matou Zouken's son, their magic circuits were blocked from birth, making it impossible for them to become mages.

Therefore, the Matou Family could not produce new pieces for this Fourth Holy Grail War and naturally could not participate.

However, unexpectedly, the Tohsaka Family, which was also a mage family and one of the three founding families of the Holy Grail ritual, had produced excellent descendants.

Tokiomi Tohsaka's two daughters were both mages with excellent aptitudes.

Unfortunately, the Tohsaka Family's Magic Crest could only be inherited by one person.

Therefore, to not waste his daughters' aptitudes, and with the Matou Family's bloodline on the verge of extinction, Tohsaka Tokiomi adopted one of his daughters, Tohsaka Sakura, to Matou Zouken.

No, she should be called Matou Sakura now, shouldn't she?

"What an excellent bloodline, Sakura."

"If it's you, winning the Fifth Holy Grail War shouldn't be difficult, right?"

"Right, Sakura?"

The old man, whose appearance had become grotesquely distorted, stopped.

He lowered his head, carefully examining the little girl beside him, a look of satisfaction appearing in his eyes.

Due to the laws of this world, mystery attracts mystery, and Sakura, with her exceptionally outstanding talent, would forever be unable to escape the destiny of mystery.

However, Sakura, who was still a little girl at this time, naturally wouldn't understand any of this.

She could only follow behind Matou Zouken fearfully, as she had already been abandoned by her father and mother.

"Don't be afraid, Sakura, from today on, you are my granddaughter."

"I believe you'll like your new name, Matou Sakura."

"It sounds much more pleasant than Tohsaka Sakura."

"But before that, I think we still need to perform a small ceremony."

Matou Zouken chuckled strangely, pulling Sakura, and continued to walk deeper into the Matou Family mansion.

Hearing this, Sakura's small body couldn't help but tremble.

The girl subconsciously flinched, but due to her personality, coupled with the intense unease and fear in her heart, she forced herself to stop, standing in place with her head bowed.

But how could Matou Zouken care about Sakura's thoughts?

Under the effect of his strong hand, which even made Sakura's hand ache,

Finally, Sakura still completed the journey.

It was just Matou Zouken's rough attitude that made Sakura feel even more uneasy.

"Grand-grandfather, where are we going?"

"We've arrived, Sakura, don't be afraid."

Matou Zouken comforted her in a rather sinister tone.

However, this creepy voice not only failed to soothe her but instead made Sakura even more uneasy and frightened.

And upon seeing the scene below the stairs, the girl's eyes immediately widened, fear uncontrollably spilling out.

Even without being explicitly told, anyone who saw the scene below would foresee what was about to happen.

It was thousands upon thousands of bugs.

Various kinds, twisted, crawling, wriggling, a pool of bugs piled up that no human could physiologically or psychologically accept.

Disgusting?

It had already surpassed the simple boundary of disgusting.

An ordinary person would probably lose a lot of sanity just by looking at it.

"Alright, Sakura, go down."

What?

Sakura thought she had misheard.

That kind of place, those terrifying bugs—

"No, don't!"

No longer able to bear the fear in her heart, Sakura turned and was about to run towards the staircase.

However, Matou Zouken grabbed the girl's hand.

"He he he~"

Matou Zouken ignored the constantly wailing girl, dragging her step by step towards the swarm of bugs. "It will be over soon, as long as you are a person with talent, hee hee hee..."

"No!!"

"Mom~ Dad~"

"Sakura wants to go home..."

Seeing that she was getting closer and closer to the swarm of bugs, the girl, who was already feeling lonely due to being abandoned, completely broke down, crying out desperately, hoping that someone would appear here.

Anyone!

Mom and Dad, older sister, anyone will do!

Please, save me!!

"Thud!"

"Thud thud thud!"

Suddenly, the sounds in the basement seemed to be covered by a hazy veil.

The buzzing of the bugs, the old man's eerie laughter, and the girl's cries.

All of this fell silent at this moment.

The only thing still clearly echoing was the sound of footsteps, coming from an unknown source, getting closer and closer.

"It seems I'm not late."

"What a nauseating sight."

An ethereal voice, as if from the clouds, echoed in the empty, dark basement.

"Hmm?"

Strands of cold air drifted in the basement, the old man's pupils constricted, and he lowered his head, discovering that the girl who should have been in his hand had disappeared at some point.

'What's going on?!'

Matou Zouken's thoughts raced, and he turned around to look at the young man standing there.

And beside the other person was his newly adopted granddaughter, Sakura Matou.

'When?'

Silently, even he hadn't reacted, and Sakura had been taken away.

Matou Zouken felt uneasy in his heart, but on the surface, he still maintained that calm, unperturbed demeanor.

"It's over now, Sakura."

A warm hand rested on the girl's head, gently caressing it. Rin knelt down and wiped away the tears on the girl's face.

"Waaaah~"

Sakura didn't know who Rin was, nor did she care.

She only knew that in her most desperate moment, the one who appeared before her was this big brother!

"Yosh, yosh."

Rin embraced the girl, and he raised his head, the tenderness on his face instantly vanishing, leaving only a cold expression. "Kill him, then destroy this place, Ice Empress."

Matou Zouken didn't expect Rin to be so decisive, and he wanted to cast a spell.

But a terrifying coldness seemed to freeze the entire space-time within the basement.

This caused Matou Zouken's magic circuits to instantly halt, making it impossible for him to use any magic.

(To be continued.)

...

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