That Time I Got Isekai’d Again and Befriended a Slime

I lost everything that day. More than I could ever put to words.

A long, long time ago… so many years, God, it's been so long, hasn't it? Where did the time go? I can hardly remember those days. A lifetime ago, when I was just another man.

No, I'll give myself more credit. It'd be a disservice to do otherwise.

In a city of no name and no great renown, I was king. I was a god.

With a leather overcoat my royal gown and a submachine gun my royal scepter, the city trembled. Men, women, and all, they begged at my feet, clinging, hoping, praying for their God's next, stronger blessing.

You name a substance banned under conventional law, and I controlled its flow.

Everyone needed something. Everyone needs their hit, and I had it all and more, with some left over. I controlled the mind, body, and soul of countless human lives.

Did that not make me a god?

Physically and mentally, I owned them. Their lives were in the palm of my hand, and I relished the feeling. I lived for it, a junkie in my own right, drunk on the power, the influence, the divinity flaring with every movement.

I couldn't get enough.

This was my life. This is what I believed it meant to be alive. To live for myself. To operate on my own whims, to be selfish, to be willing to ruin others if it meant my own joy. Living in the moment, living my life day by day, existing only for my own pleasure at the top of it all.

Would you call that evil? Would you call me a villain? I was merely playing hard and fast with the cards I'd been dealt. Is that not the right that humans have? Is that not life?

Not even a god, not even God, could take that away from us.

…I was no different from those under my influence, really. The only difference was the source of the supply. I thought I was better than them, being above it all, but I was them.

And naturally, when you take one too many hits, there can only be one outcome. You never know when the barrel is gonna be pointed at you instead. 

That's the problem with living in the moment. Nothing exists beyond the present, and the past that created it. There is no future to consider… which means that future you couldn't bother to imagine arrives rather abruptly, and with no warning.

I always thought the stars were beautiful. Even hidden half by smog, they shone brightly past the city night lights. Hot balls of burning fire in the sky, so desperate to fight against that dark, cold universe. Everything within them was devoted to this burn, their own existence their only concern. I emphasized with them.

They were me.

They were just looking out for themselves. Hard to blame them for that. I'd gotten to be too much, I guess. 

And as I lay on the roof, atop the tall building that had been my home and homebase not hours earlier, a dark halo of crimson pooling around me…

I couldn't see the stars.

But, oh, I could imagine them.

They were beautiful. Living only for themselves, shining against that eternal abyss. Burning for no one but themselves.

Yet, above me, the sky was clear and brutal.

I understood, then. All of those stars, burning for themselves… they were dead.

They were me.

I had everything, all for myself… and it meant nothing. I'd burned up. I'd lived for my own sake, and I'd died for my own sake. What was the point?

I didn't know. Even so…

"It was… fun. I wouldn't… have minded… staying like that…"

.

.

.

"I don't want to die like this. I'll change whatever I have to."

.

.

.

Confirmed.

-=-=-=-

Just before Noon

Streets of Ingrassia

Kingdom of Ingrassia

Heavy bootsteps stormed the paved path beneath, a glinting point of gold peeking just over a muscular shoulder. Dark pants, the top button open, and a sleeveless, somewhat torn tunic on top.

Drake scowled something half between fierce and fed up, roughly brushing his bangs into his hair's usual swept back, unkept, semi-spiked look. His entire look was spikes, rugged, single-minded. Who had the time for a haircut, a comb, a manageable braid of the hair falling past his shoulders? Not him, for certain.

…his son had always preferred long hair, at the earlier stages of his development before military life turned him towards cut-short styles. Octavius maintained short, blond semi-spikes, though he'd been known to allow it to reach his shoulders purely from forgetfulness. Eve bore a ponytail on occasion, though just as often allowed those golden strands to fall free around her.

His hand dropped back to his side.

Perhaps it was mere foolish sentiment.

It was warm, today. Uncomfortably so to the average person, especially given the main street crowd this time of say. For Drake, it was this crowd that irritated him, far more than the temperature. He couldn't even feel the temperature, not really.

He burned far too fiercely for that.

But, what he could feel was himself jostling along as he made his way through Ingrassia proper.

He reached up once more, scratching irritably at his beard and glancing down at his sleeveless attire. A cloak might have made this more bearable, reducing touch. But then again, maybe not. It would impede his movements should something arise. All it would accomplish would be existing as a slight barrier from this bumpy journey.

Well, if we are to be objective here, it was more accurate to say he was the one doing the jostling, for that he stood just a tad higher than the average man and packed more mass – condensed and functional though it was – meant his journey was guaranteed to create some level of discomfort both in and around him.

Yes, he was the one doing the jostling. Generally. To no one's surprise. And yet…

His shoulder bumped another, and his torso was the one to twist – barely, unnoticeably, but twist it did – first at the unexpected impact.

"Ah." His accidental assailant – a young woman with short brown hair, an odd coat, and a sheathed katana hanging from a rope of sorts over her shoulders – turned to face him. She raised a hand apologetically, "Sorry about that."

Drake could have snapped something irate. He could have been annoyed, or curious.

"No, I wasn't paying attention." He said brusquely, already walking away, "My mistake."

Instead, he allowed the encounter to fade from his mind. He only allotted himself so much eating time in between his self-inflicted Hell, and to linger on an irrelevant, if somewhat odd, moment was the epitome of a waste of time.

And if there was one thing Drake hated nearly as much as a certain woman, it was wasting time that could be spent learning how to kill said woman.

-=-

Mary raised an eyebrow, watching the ragged man leave. Her eyes flashed for a moment, sparing a neon glance at the golden, vicious-looking spear strapped to his back.

"Mary?" Rimuru stopped, half turning, "What's up?"

Mary looked away, falling quickly back into step with Rimuru.

"It's nothing. Just bumped shoulders on accident."

"Ah, yeah. It's pretty crowded here, isn't it?"

"Just a bit. Let's not stick around in it." The light in Mary's eyes mostly faded, a neon ring around her iris remaining. She frowned, a faint, growing pang pressing against the back of her mind.

That energy, that weapon… the way its power ebbed and flowed lashed about in an odd manner. Cold and vacant, yet it almost felt alive, in a way. But that was a ridiculous notion.

Mary pushed it from her mind. Not her problem. Something else was troubling at the moment, actually…

She raised her voice, calling to the three who had stopped just ahead.

"So, this Guild Headquarters should be nearby, right?"

"I wouldn't say nearby, per se!" Gido called back, "Cause it's right there!"

Mary and Rimuru caught up, and the group of five moved together once more. They reached the end of the block as Gido was speaking, turning busy street's corner to see an incredibly tall and modern looking building rising before them.

"If it's right there," Rimuru pointed out, "Wouldn't that still be considered nearby?"

"I mean, I guess…." Gido scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"It's more of an 'over there' than a 'nearby', I'd say." Kabal said.

"Across the street, even." Eren added brightly.

"It doesn't matter. Let's just go." Mary said shortly, already moving in that direction.

The other four exchanged glances, then hurried to catch up.

"Hey, Mary…" Rimuru began, searching for the right way to pose this question, "You sure nothing is bothering you? You're acting a bit, uh, agitated."

Searching for the right way, and ultimately failing, it seems.

Mary stopped abruptly. Rimuru stopped as well, suddenly getting the feeling he'd done something that was quite a common occurrence in both of his lives… that is, saying the wrong thing and upsetting a pretty woman.

It was probably the dangerous – yes, agitated – atmosphere, he noted.

Also noted – and quite frankly very upsetting, though understandable – was the fact that Eren, Kabal, and Gido had stepped away and were faking a whistle, twiddling their thumbs, or looking to the sky for birds or whatever respectively.

"Rimuru."

"Yes?!"

"A word of advice. If someone is agitated, don't point it out."

Rimuru nodded quickly. "Noted."

Mary sighed. "Relax. The issue isn't you."

Rimuru took this to heart. The other three did as well, easing back into frame as it were.

"What's wrong?" Eren was the one to ask.

"A lot, generally, but I'm sure you mean something else." Mary glanced around, then gestured for them to follow. "Come on."

A few seconds later found them along one of the streetside building's walls. Mary leaning against it with the other four surrounding her.

"What's wrong, Mary?" Rimuru repeated the earlier question, concerned.

Mary tilted her head, looking across the road for a moment. She raised her hand, pointing over Rimuru's shoulder in lieu of a verbal answer. The others looked in that direction, then turned back to her.

"I've- so, I've been thinking. See them? Those guys." Mary said, lowering her hand. "Church soldiers, Eren said. Right? I don't like being near them."

The huge crowd of people, either, but that's not something I'm willing to admit.

"Anyone willing to take up arms for some religious cause is dangerous." Mary's eyes flashed with something unreadable, "That's something you can take my word on. And worse, this city, and the nation too probably, is filled with them. They're everywhere."

Tanya would point out "the next logical assumption", which is… right, okay. That means this religious group, whatever they are or plan on doing, has eyes and ears everywhere in one of the largest, most important human nations on this continent.

"You're worried someone from the Church will notice we're here." Gido stated more than asked.

"Even if they do, you and Rimuru should be able to handle them." Eren pointed out, "Rimuru alone is well enough, and with you there too, there really shouldn't be too much trouble. Not even against someone like the Holy Knights' leader."

"The leader? Hinata Sake- no, Sakaguchi. You mentioned her earlier, right?" Mary said, quickly receiving a nod. She paused, then shook her head in the negative. "The leader of the Holy Knights…"

She was not of a considering, naturally strategic and thinking mind like that of Tanya, Souei, or King Gazel. They all had years of experience and natural talents in their own right for the sort of broad-thinking, intuitive leaps in logic that others simply could not reach alone.

Rather, it was as though someone had taught her, or had helped her learn to gather the information before her, cataloguing what she needed and connecting them piece by piece until they resembled familiar patterns. It was a more patient method than she'd ever been previously familiar with a world ago, but she was a much different person from then.

She needed to adapt. To learn and grow. And so, she did.

"No, it's not that. Fighting isn't- it's not the real problem, I don't think. It's more like, ideals- ideology? Whatever. The problem, really, wouldn't it be what comes after? I mean, they wouldn't just let it go if we beat up on their knights, not even in self-defense. Anti-monster doctrine, high-ranking opponents… they'd come after us. It's a matter of principle."

It really was a stupid idea to come here; as soon as we get back, I'll make sure to apologize. At the very least, for not openly, wholeheartedly backing you up on that point, Tanya. But there's no takebacks now. It's Moskstraumen already… "minimize the damage", huh? On the flurry edge, that's the best option now. I would have been way less trouble to just stay in Tempest…

-=-=-=-

Early Afternoon

Tanya's (Formerly "Unmarked") Office, Assembly Hall

Tempest, Jura Tempest Federation

The door swung open, almost violently.

Tanya looked up from the wooden tablet in her hand, sitting up slightly on one of the room's plush couches. Her boots lay off to the side, her socked feet kicked up on the coffee table.

"Shuna?" She relaxed. "Did you need something?"

"Mm." Shuna shut the door behind her, before turning and slowly wandering her way. Her eyes were mostly shut, Tanya noted with a hint of amusement. That amusement was bolstered a moment later as Tanya realized the other woman was wearing a familiar white long sleeve shirt and black shorts, along with her usual tabi socks and zori sandals.

Cute.

Tanya sat up a bit more, letting her feet slide off to the ground as Shuna neared then stopped directly in front of her. She stared down at Tanya for a moment, a quiet hum of contemplation hiding underneath her blank expression.

"Shuna, is something- whoa."

Shuna slipped forward, sliding onto the couch and straddling Tanya. Her arms quickly slipped around Tanya's lower back, her chin slotting in nicely between Tanya's shoulder and neck. She shuffled about for another moment to get comfortable, before settling and letting out a muffled, content sigh.

Tanya blinked, one arm instinctively hugging around Shuna's waist and the other held out, tablet still in hand.

"Are you Shuna Tako now?" She breathed a quiet laugh, shifting slightly and bringing the wooden tablet back into her view, "Should we update your name registry? Do we have one of those? Never mind. You're a sight better than a kraken, though. Must be your charm."

Shuna mumbled something into her shoulder.

"You're not a fan of Tako? It suits you, though. Smart, very hugging."

Shuna mumbled again.

"Registry- oh, last name? Mine?" A nod. "It's just Degurechaff, technically. The 'von' is an earned title. Why?"

Shuna huffed, not responding. Tanya scanned the rest of the tablet, flipping it over once, then back.

"Shuna?"

"Mm."

"I was wondering about expanding a bit on Tempest's recreational ability."

"Hm?" Shuna lifted her head slightly.

"Well, we don't have much in the way of entertainment, do we?"

Tanya mimicked a frisbee throwing motion once, twice, then tossed the tablet. It landed just inside the coffee's tables borders, sliding so that one corner held slightly off the table's opposite edge.

"There are festivals, but they're inconsistent and based on holiday or special occasion. Bread and circuses, Shuna. Bread and circuses keep the people happy. Conversating with your neighbors is fine, I suppose, and bars are perfectly acceptable as time off locale as well. I fully understand that sentients have an incredible level of work they can tolerate as long as the right conditions are met, but I'd be more confident in Tempest's future with a few concessions more. Hard work is crucial, but breaks are necessary to avoid burnout. Though, my 203rd was constantly on the frontline and rarely got any breaks, and even so the morale was hardly in danger of dropping too low. Then again, knowing the sort of maniacs I was leading- ah, never mind that. The point I'm trying to get at, really, is about…"

Shuna's head bobbed, dropping against her shoulder once more.

Tanya paused.

"…well, we can talk about that later." She traced circles along Shuna's back, listening as her lover's breathing slowly evened out.

The future of Tempest sports and drama can wait for another time, I suppose. There's no rush. None at all...

It's... an odd feeling.

Carefully, Tanya shifted her weight to the side, one arm still hugging Shuna close and the other pushing along the edge of the couch. After a few moments, she found herself laid on her back lengthwise along the cushions. A frilly, official-looking red and gold pillow lay under her neck, her feet kicked up on the opposite armrest and Shuna cuddling on top of her.

I'm done for the day. I should be. A short nap won't hurt.

Tanya closed her eyes, tilting her head slightly to rest her cheek against the side of Shuna's head.

It's been so long... and I'm so tired. This must be the place to be.

-=-=-=-