Meanwhile, in the Jura Forest, the Lizardman envoy, Gabiru, after rallying a number of small goblins, arrived at the goblin city under Rimuru's rule.
The moment the Lizardmen's arrival was detected, the Village Chief, Rigurd swiftly reported to Rimuru. Benimaru and the others, alerted by Souei, voluntarily requested to accompany him, wishing to ascertain the Lizardmen's intentions.
Soon, Rimuru, accompanied by Rigurd, Benimaru, Shion, Hakuro, and Takeru's shadow clone, arrived at the forest's edge near the city.
The Lizardman army stood in orderly formation, watching Rimuru and the others approach.
"Who is the envoy?" Rimuru, held by Shion, looked around curiously.
At Rimuru's inquiry, the Lizardman army rapidly parted, creating a central passage. They began rhythmically striking the ground with their spear-like weapons. Then, Gabiru emerged, riding a lizard-like monster.
'Quite the dramatic entrance.' Watching Gabiru's actions, Rimuru found it amusing.
Subsequently, Gabiru made a halting gesture and leaped down from his lizard mount.
"I am the Lizardman, Gabiru! I permit you to become my subordinates. Rejoice in this honor!" As he spoke, Gabiru tilted his head back ninety degrees, gazing at the sky, both arms raised high.
"Gabiru-sama, magnificent!"
"So cool!"
Below, three Lizardmen used their shields as mirrors, reflecting sunlight onto Gabiru, making him appear even more radiant. The army knelt, clapping continuously.
"Commit this man to memory! He is the warrior destined to become the next Lizardman chief, haughty and proud!" At this moment, a Lizardman clad in ninja attire spoke earnestly to Rimuru and the others, who stood dumbfounded.
Takeru found it exasperating, 'Indeed, the weaker the existence, the more they enjoyed showing off.'
Setting Takeru aside, anyone present could effortlessly grind Gabiru into the dirt, or easily annihilate the entire Lizardman army before them.
"Permit me to become your subordinate? Rejoice in this honor?" Hearing his words, Rimuru murmured repeatedly.
'What an air of superiority. Who does he think he is? Even Takeru never spoke to me like that.'
Thinking this, Rimuru glared angrily at Gabiru. Shion, holding Rimuru, was even more furious. Her mana began to surge violently, and Rimuru, in her grasp, was subjected to terrifying constriction.
"Wait, Shion, stop! My slime body is turning into a slim figure!" Sensing his body deforming, Rimuru struggled and shouted at Shion.
Perceiving Rimuru's struggle, Shion snapped out of it, staring blankly at Rimuru, then frantically apologized. Rimuru promptly leaped into Benimaru's arms.
"Apologies. You are Gabiru-sama, I presume? Suddenly demanding we become your subordinates..." At this moment, Rigurd hesitantly addressed Gabiru. Adhering to Rimuru's admonitions, Rigurd was extremely polite, almost obsequious.
"Yare yare, truly. Must I spell everything out for you dimwits to understand? Surely you've heard… the Orc tribe is conquering this Jura Forest. Therefore, become my subordinates! I, Gabiru, shall protect you weaklings from the Orcs' harm!"
"Weak... weaklings? Whoa!" Suddenly, amidst his posturing, Gabiru noticed a rather serious problem: there didn't seem to be any so-called weak goblins present.
Moreover, little perception was needed. Just glancing at Rigurd, Benimaru, and the others, one could sense they were not to be trifled with.
"There don't seem to be any goblins here!" Realizing this, he hastily gathered with his three confidants, discussing openly as if no one else was present.
"Huh, this is supposed to be a goblin village, right?"
"Come to think of it, not a single weak one here!"
"Well, if the Orcs attack, fighting alongside the Lizardmen is an option. But I wouldn't trust him with my back. He looks so stupid!"
"What truly warrants fear is not a capable enemy, but an incompetent ally. Napoleon said that, didn't he?" Watching Gabiru and his group, Rimuru looked helplessly toward Benimaru and Takeru.
"Exactly. What constitutes an alliance is only when both parties possess equivalent strength or can mutually benefit each other. Furthermore, it is unnecessary to slaughter every Orc. Eliminate the Orc Lord, and the Orc army's offensive will directly collapse."
"Thus, there is little need for extensive discourse with these arrogant Lizardmen who fail to recognize their position. Rimuru, as the leader here, gentleness is permissible, but weakness is not… especially when facing those you could annihilate with a single hand." Hearing Rimuru's words, Takeru spoke calmly to him.
Hearing Takeru's words, Benimaru and the others nodded slightly in agreement.
Takeru did not deny that Gabiru would grow considerably through the Orc Lord incident. However, at this moment, Takeru thoroughly disliked him.
If not for Rimuru's excessively gentle nature, any other capable leader would have already expelled him.
Hearing Takeru's words, Rimuru chuckled dryly.
"Cough. I hear there is one here who has tamed the Direwolves. I shall promote him to executive. Bring him forth!" At this moment, Gabiru, utterly lacking situational awareness, continued commanding Rimuru and the others.
Hearing his words, Shion's anger once more surged. The one most acutely sensing this was Rimuru, who is still in her arms.
"May I kill this one?" Even Benimaru, smiling warmly, inquired of Rimuru.
"Sure, you can… wait, no, no! Absolutely not!" Hearing Benimaru's cheerful tone, Rimuru initially thought he was making casual conversation. He never expected Benimaru, with such a gentle smile, to utter the most ruthless words.
Seeing Benimaru preparing to act, Rimuru hastily intervened.
Though Takeru's words had somewhat resonated with him, he could not directly comply. His gentle nature made him reluctant to antagonize any being capable of communication.
Especially now, reincarnated as a slime, he was even more determined not to be mistaken for an evil overlord and exterminated.
After stopping Benimaru, Rimuru slowly spoke: "Rather than taming the Direwolf Tribe, I should say it was I who made them my companions."
"A slime? Don't be ridiculous!" Hearing Rimuru's words, Gabiru mocked him again.
"Ranga!" Facing Gabiru's derision, Rimuru felt a flicker of anger and called out into the air.
"Yes!" From the shadows beneath Rimuru and Shion, Ranga emerged, landing directly before Gabiru. His towering stature allowed Ranga to look down upon him.
"He seems to have something to say to you. Hear him out." With a hint of retaliation, Rimuru spoke mischievously.
"As you command!" Ranga responded, releasing his Fear skill. Sensing the terrifying oppression, the Lizardman army behind him began to waver with timidity.
Takeru shook his head and departed. This farce was not worth further observation.
Rather than waste time here, he would better spend it training in the new magic acquired from the Kingdom of Falmuth and developing his newly acquired unique skill, Space-Time Manipulation.
Through Space-Time Manipulation, Takeru discovered he could develop a unique, personal spatial dimension. Currently, however, this space measured less than fifty cubic meters.
Moreover, it was utterly void and, most critically, unstable, occasionally collapsing and losing stored objects. Utilizing it as a new storage space required further refinement.
As Takeru returned to training and experimentation, Gabiru's outcome mirrored the original work.
Upon seeing Ranga, Gabiru instantly concluded Rimuru had employed special means to control him. He proclaimed he would defeat Rimuru, the one manipulating Ranga.
Hearing Gabiru's declaration, his confidants chimed in enthusiastically.
'This mere lizard dares insult my master!' Hearing Gabiru's words and the Lizardman army's cheering, Ranga was completely enraged.
To Ranga, Rimuru was the most important existence. Yet this mere Lizardman dared falsely accuse and mock him. His fury rapidly ignited, and his mana surged forth. The oblivious Gabiru remained utterly unaware of the approaching danger.