Chapter 9: The Promise to Shizue and the Shadow of Falmuth
The transition from the monster kingdom to the human city of Ingrassia was a jarring experience for Silver Tempest. While Rimuru was busy being the "fun teacher" to the five children Shizue had cared for—Kenya, Ryota, Gale, Alice, and Chloe—Silver acted as the silent guardian in the background.
To the students, Silver was the "Cool Sensei." He didn't say much, but he used [Creation] to manifest the most advanced textbooks and training gear they had ever seen.
'Solomon,' Silver thought, leaning against a tree in the school courtyard as he watched Rimuru play with the kids. 'Update on the kids' spiritual stability.'
[Answer: The elemental spirits successfully summoned by Individual Rimuru have stabilized the children's collapsing life forces. They are no longer at risk of Magicule overload.]
'Good. We fulfilled the promise. Shizue can rest easy.'
But Silver felt a persistent itch in his soul. He didn't know the plot, but his [Magicule Generator] was huming at an agitated frequency. 'Something is wrong. My [Family Link] with the village feels... muffled.'
"Silver! We're heading out!" Rimuru called out, waving a hand. "The kids are settled, and it's time to head back to Tempest. I can't wait to see how the new tavern turned out!"
"Right," Silver said, pushing off the tree. "Let's move. I have a bad feeling about the border."
The Ambush: The Holy Knight's Intervention
As the brothers traveled through the outskirts of the Kingdom of Blumund, the air suddenly crystallized. A massive, hexagonal barrier descended from the sky, shimmering with holy light.
"What the—?!" Rimuru gasped, falling to his knees. "I can't breathe!"
Silver grunted, his silver hair losing its metallic luster as the holy energy burned his slime-based essence. Even with his [Magicule Generator], he felt like he was drowning in acid.
From the shadows emerged a woman in pristine white armor. Her eyes were cold, like shards of ice, and she carried a rapier that hummed with divine retribution. This was Hinata Sakaguchi, the Captain of the Holy Empire of Lubelius's Crusaders.
"So, you are the monsters who devoured Shizue-sama," Hinata said, her voice devoid of emotion. "I do not talk to monsters. I exterminate them."
"Wait!" Rimuru shouted. "We were her friends! We saved the kids!"
"Lies," Hinata countered, moving with a speed that even Silver's [Wisdom King Solomon] struggled to track under the barrier. "Seven-and-out. Your souls belong to the Goddess now."
Silver stepped in front of Rimuru, manifesting a shield of silver light. 'Solomon! Use [Creation] to simulate a Holy-Attribute coating! If we can't beat the barrier, we have to mimic it!'
[Notice. Attempting to "Translate" Magicules into Holy Energy... Success. Temporary Holy Coat active.]
Silver's shield shattered under Hinata's strike, but it bought Rimuru time to use a decoy.
"Rimuru, go!" Silver commanded, his voice strained. "She's too strong in this field! I'll hold her!"
"I'm not leaving you!" Rimuru cried.
"Go! The village is in trouble! I can feel it now—the link is screaming!"
After a desperate struggle and a narrow escape using a body-double, the brothers managed to break away. But the delay was fatal.
The Return to a Silent City
When the twins finally warped back to the outskirts of Tempest, they didn't find the bustling, happy city they had left.
The air was thick with the smell of smoke and the cooing of a foreign barrier—the "Prison Field." As they walked through the gates, the sight that met them was a nightmare.
The stone streets were stained red. The beautiful houses Silver had helped Create were charred. And in the center of the plaza, lying under white sheets, were the bodies.
Rigur was wounded. Benimaru stood like a statue of suppressed rage. And there, kneeling over a specific shroud, was a crying Goblin girl.
Rimuru walked forward with trembling steps. He pulled back the sheet.
It was Shion. Her eyes were closed, her purple hair matted with blood. Beside her lay Gobzo and dozens of others. They hadn't fought back because the brothers had told them "not to hurt humans." They had died following the rules the twins had set.
"Lord Rimuru... Lord Silver..." Rigurd sobbed, his hulking Hobgoblin frame shaking. "The humans... the Kingdom of Falmuth... they came with a barrier that made us weak. They laughed while they did it."
Silver didn't speak. His icy silver eyes turned into a flat, terrifying white. The [Magicule Generator] in his chest began to roar, vibrating so violently that the ground beneath his feet cracked.
'Solomon,' Silver thought, his voice a whisper in his own mind. 'How many?'
[Answer: 60,000 soldiers from the Kingdom of Falmuth are currently stationed at the border, preparing for a second wave. They are led by King Edmaris and the Western Holy Church's shadows.]
"Sixty thousand," Silver repeated aloud.
Rimuru was silent, his aura leaking out in waves of grief and black lightning. "They killed them... because we told them humans were friends."
Suddenly, a woman appeared—the adventurer Eren, looking devastated. "There's a way," she whispered. "A legend. If you become a True Demon Lord, you can resurrect the dead. But it requires a sacrifice. Ten thousand souls for each of you."
Silver turned his gaze toward the horizon, toward the lights of the Falmuth camp.
"Ten thousand?" Silver said, his voice devoid of any humanity. "They sent sixty thousand. That's enough for both of us... with plenty to spare."
Silver looked at Rimuru. For the first time, the "serious" brother and the "kind" brother were perfectly in sync.
"Rimuru," Silver said. "You take the center. I'll take the flanks. Not one of them leaves this forest alive."
"Yeah," Rimuru replied, his golden eyes glowing with a murderous light. "Let's go, Silver. It's time to become the monsters they think we are."
[End of Chapter 9]