"So... what's going on exactly?" I asked as I walked alongside Shion.
Rimuru, who was currently sitting in Shion's arms in his slime form, was the first to answer. "It seems we have visitors. Lizardmen, to be exact."
"One of Souei's clones saw them coming a while ago," Benimaru explained, causing me to nod.
"I wonder why they're here..." I mused thoughtfully.
"We'll know soon enough I guess. Now then, let's hurry up and get over there so we can meet them." Rimuru hummed as everyone picked up their pace.
As I walked I couldn't help but think to myself. (Hopefully this doesn't end up in a fight; I have enough stress thinking about the orcs invading, let alone adding potential lizard people into the mix as well.)
To put the current situation in the simplest way, a group of lizardmen had apparently arrived and were currently gathered just outside of town. They didn't seem to be hostile from what I was told; in fact, they seemed to be a diplomatic delegation of some kind. And so, Rimuru, Benimaru, Hakurou, Shion, Rigurd, Yin, Yang and myself were now all making our way over.
Additionally, I also had Zeref enter my shadow for two reasons: one, I wanted him close by in case things took an undiplomatic turn; and two, just in case things actually ended up going well I didn't want him scaring the visitors. And yes, the mental image of having a massive terrifying serpent emerge from my shadow to glare down my enemies had passed through my head at some point. In fact, I would be lying if I said that I didn't find such an idea kind of cool, to say the least.
Anyway, it wasn't long before we arrived at the entrance to the town, and immediately I saw the crowd of bipedal creatures standing on the dirt path leading into the forest. I immediately took note of the fact that they were wearing mostly clothes made of cloth with some brown leather and hide armor mixed in and were all holding wooden spears with sharpened metal tips.
Three of them stood in front while about twenty or so stood in formation at the back. They looked like what you'd expect for humanoid lizard people: they had tails, reptilian eyes and sharp teeth, that kind of thing. They were, of course, covered in scales that ranged from greens to browns with paler coloring around the front half of their chest and neck areas. There was also one, however, that had blue scales and was dressed like a ninja for some reason; other than that though there wasn't really much difference between him and the others.
"Which one is the envoy?" Rimuru asked as we stood several feet away from them.
"Probably the one far in the back, the one on the mount," I muttered, feeling the movements of the lizardman in question with magic sense.
"Huh?" Before Rimuru could notice what I was talking about, the lizardmen began slamming the butts of their spears into the ground rhythmically.
(It seems that they are coming forward now.) I thought as I watched the squad of twenty or so split down the middle, stepping aside to make room for the one in the back to pass.
Walking forward towards us was, well, a brownish-green dinosaur-looking creature of all things, one with metal armor running down its back and a leather saddle strapped to it. It resembled some kind of slightly draconic, velociraptor-like beast; however, it was the being on its back who was the current center of attention.
I don't even know where to start with his appearance, as honestly it was a little odd I'm not gonna lie. He had dark green scales and looked similar to the other lizardmen, although he did stand out with his longer horns and somewhat more triangular-shaped head. He also had long black hair, which was a fact that I honestly wasn't expecting. However, it was his outfit that really threw me for a loop. He wore brown cloth pants and a dark blue top over what I think was a green shirt with red stripes. He also had a brown chest plate on, one that had protruding shoulder pads as well as white fur around the neck area and a short blue cape attached to it.
(What... what is he doing?) I thought as the lizardman, who I assumed to be the envoy, jumped into the air off of his mount and landed in front of us.
For a split second there was silence that settled over the area, and then he spoke. "Ho there, fellow monsters, I am Gabiru of the lizardmen!"
(He has a name?) This was the first time that I had met a monster with a name who hadn't received it by either me or Rimuru. (Also, where is that light... coming from... oh.) My thoughts then slowly trailed off as I noticed exactly where it was coming from a moment later.
"From now on, you will all serve under me and consider it a great honour!" he suddenly announced, spinning in place before striking a pose as his apparent subordinates clapped and cheered while some of them used reflective shields to shine light at him to make his speech seem more dramatic.
(I... I... just wow... I don't even know how to respond to that...) I muttered internally, my brain short-circuiting for a second or two.
"Huh?" those around me said in unison, clearly just as baffled as I was.
"Pay close attention and savor this moment forever," one of the lizardmen, the blue one dressed like a ninja, said as he stepped forward slightly. "You have the great privilege of speaking to the future chieftain of the lizardmen personally. You may bow!"
(Are... are they stupid?) I asked myself genuinely. (Because from what I'm sensing, they actually believe this will work.) I thought, reading their emotional signatures while feeling completely bewildered.
And it wasn't just the lizardmen's emotions I was feeling, as I could also feel the disbelief and anger coming from my companions. The kijin looked enraged, Rigurd looked stunned, Yin and Yang were hissing slightly, and I could feel a murderous aura coming from within my shadow.
"Shion, please, calm down." Rimuru's sudden words, however, caught my attention; it turns out that Shion was unconsciously increasing the tightness of her grip in anger. "You're going to make me go from slime to sim if you don't stop squeezing!" he yelled in panic.
Sighing, I walked over and took Rimuru from her arms before she could accidentally crush him. "Careful, I'd rather you not turn him into a puddle, thank you very much," I said, causing Shion to begin rapidly bowing and apologizing.
"You okay?" I asked, causing him to breathe out in relief as I held his squishy form in my arms.
"Yeah, thanks Suu, you're a real lifesaver."
(Now then, how are we going to deal with this situation?) I breathed, glancing back at the lizardmen blankly.
"Ahm." Just then, the seemingly most diplomatic member of our group, Rigurd, coughed and stepped forward. "Uh anyway, you said your name was Gabiru, correct? This request to serve under you seems a bit sudden."
The reasonable words of the muscular hobgoblin only made Gabiru shake his head like he was talking to an idiot, which honestly was rather insulting coming from him. "Seriously, are you really gonna make me spell things out for you? You must have heard the rumours by now."
"Rumours?" I asked curiously, pulling the lizardman's attention to me.
"If you must know, weak little girl, my people have witnessed the beginning of an orc invasion," he explained before, grinning smugly and adding, "But do not worry, so long as the people of this town fight with me you will have no reason to cower under your bed in fear of the coming horde." He laughed, striking a heroic pose, completely unaware that his words had only served to anger those around me more. In fact, Hakurou seemed to have taken it as an indirect insult toward himself; he was my teacher after all.
(Why do I suddenly have the urge to punch him in the face?) I thought, my eyes narrowing slightly in both irritation and slight confusion at the annoyance that I was feeling.
"After all, I, the glorious Gabiru, can easily protect you weaklings from the orcs!" His laugh grew even louder at his own words.
However, his stance shifted slightly when he finally took a second to properly look everyone present over. "Because... I am... much... stronger... than you..."
"Hummm..." He paused, lowering his arms before turning to his subordinates and saying in a not-so-quiet tone, "I don't see any goblins."
"How strange." One of them responded in surprise.
Another stepped forward, looking just as confused. "This is supposed to be a goblin village, right?"
"I don't think we're in the wrong place... maybe the goblins are hiding in the houses?" The blue one thought aloud.
For a moment, I just stared at them blankly before glancing down at Rimuru in my arms. "They... they can't be this stupid... right...?"
"There's always a possibility for someone to be far more moronic than you were expecting," he sighed, and I took his words to heart.
(I guess you really do learn something new every day...) I thought to myself.
Just then Gabiru turned back to us, still with that arrogant demeanour of his. "It doesn't matter, whether your goblins or not is no concern, you'll join my forces either way." He hummed confidently, the thought that we would possibly reject him not even crossing his mind for a second. "Now then, I've heard that some of you have manag-"
"Shouldn't you show more respect to those you are asking for help?" Yang huffed suddenly, puffing out her cheeks as she cut him off.
"Ah! Come now, little runt, do I look like someone who needs help from the likes of you?" He laughed loudly while shifting his posture to that of someone who believed they stood at the top of the world.
"But you are, though. If you could defeat the orcs all by yourself then you wouldn't be here; you clearly need help from others to deal with this situation, but your pride won't let you admit it," I said bluntly, kind of surprised by my own words and the sharpness behind them.
"Yeah, you dumb lizard," Yin hissed in agreement, nodding her head to my words.
"How dare you speak to the great Gabiru in such a manner! You weaklings should show him respect and be awed by his presence!" One of the lizardmen said, clearly offended.
Before I could respond to that, a familiar feeling reached out to my mind. <
(Hey Great Sage, if I let Zeref fight him what are the chances of him dying?) I asked, only half jokingly, as I felt the malicious aura from my shadow intensify with every mocking word that came from the lizardmen.
[Answer. The possibility of the entity "Gabiru" perishing in such a situation is one hundred percent.]
(Dang...)