Great Jura Forest, One Week Later
A full week had passed since Rimuru had given names to Benimaru and the others. The Kijin had gradually settled into life in the village, and a fragile sense of normalcy had begun to take hold. Until it didn't.
Swish.
A figure in a dark blue bodysuit appeared in the conference room without warning, dropping to one knee in a single fluid motion.
"Kaito-sama. Rimuru-sama. My reconnaissance has confirmed a large Orc force, estimated at 200,000, with their main body advancing north along the great river."
"Their detached units are moving to converge. Based on their trajectories, the rendezvous point appears to be the wetlands to the east."
"Good work, Souei. Take a seat before you continue."
"Yes."
As Souei rose and found a chair, Rigurd leaned forward. The village chief was seated at the head of the left side of the conference table, and his expression was already grim.
"The wetlands to the east... that would be Lizardmen territory."
"Correct."
Rimuru rested her chin on her left hand, cradling a teacup in the other, and stared at nothing in particular.
"200,000. That number doesn't feel real." She tapped her cheek with one finger. "What's their objective? Kai-chan, what do you think?"
She glanced across the table at Kaito.
"Hear everyone else out first."
Kaito already knew the answer. That was exactly why he held back. He wanted to see how the room would work through it on their own. There were far more people at this table than in the original story: the Demon Slayer Corps members, Kagaya among them, and Shizu herself.
On a separate note, Kaval's party had already left town. Their departure had been louder than expected. Elyun in particular had cried until her face was red, clinging to both Shizu and Rimuru for a good ten minutes.
The moment Rimuru revealed the equipment Kaijin had personally crafted for them, however, the tears dried up immediately. They left in high spirits, practically skipping down the road.
Back at the table, Kaijin, seated beside Rigurd, stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Orcs aren't known for organized thinking. If this isn't pure instinct driving them, then someone is pushing them from behind."
Kurobe, his expression as straightforward as always, picked up on that immediately.
"A mastermind?"
The word hung in the air. Rimuru's brow furrowed.
"Like a Demon Lord?"
She paused, then turned to Shizu.
"I know it's a stretch, but do you think Leon might have a hand in this?"
Shizu considered it. The Leon she knew was many things, but orchestrating an Orc invasion wasn't his style. She shook her head.
"It's not him. Something like this wouldn't hold his interest."
"Didn't think so." Rimuru set her teacup down. "So putting Demon Lord involvement aside, how do you organize 200,000 Orcs? What pulls that many of them together?"
Shizu's expression shifted. She had seen enough of this world to recognize the shape of certain threats.
"If we're talking about a force that size moving with any degree of coordination... it's almost certainly because an Orc Lord has appeared."
Kaito watched her without comment. Eighty-plus years of experience. The woman known as the Conqueror of Flames. She had landed on the answer almost immediately.
As expected.
"An Orc Lord?"
Rimuru looked genuinely unfamiliar with the term. Benimaru answered before anyone else could.
"Rimuru-sama, an Orc Lord is a special-class monster. One only emerges once every few centuries. Without one, no individual Orc could command a force of this scale." He paused. "I believe her assessment is correct."
Rimuru absorbed this with a slow nod. Before she could respond, Kagaya spoke up from further down the table, both hands folded beneath his chin, his voice unhurried.
"Then we should prepare. Many of our Corps members haven't been integrated into the Security Force yet, but they can be mobilized when the time comes."
Since arriving in this world, the Corps had been doing two things: training and building. The ones who had joined the Security Force had handled forest patrols and dealt with the occasional monster. But under Kaito's instruction their strength had grown considerably, and there was a restlessness to them now, the quiet kind that comes from being ready and waiting for something real.
Kaito ran through the numbers in his head.
The nine Hashira had all reached B+ rank, one step below A. Benimaru and Hakurou, both named by Rimuru, had broken into A rank proper, with both of them pushing into A+. Hakurou's real ceiling was harder to pin down than a simple rank could capture, but even the baseline was impressive.
When the Corps first arrived, the Hashira were sitting at C rank. Now even the ordinary members cleared D rank without effort.
Full roster:
Special A rank: 3 individuals. Rimuru, Shizu, Izayoi Sakuya.
A rank: 5 individuals. Benimaru, Shuna, Souei, Shion, and Hakurou, with Benimaru and Hakurou at A+. Kurobe was not included; his specialty didn't translate the same way on a combat scale.
B rank: 12 individuals. Rigurd, Gobta, Rigur, and the nine Hashira.
C rank: 330+. The Security Force, without exception.
D rank: 2000+. The majority of the Goblin population and the broader Corps membership.
And then there was himself. Kaito stared at the ceiling for a brief moment.
SS rank, at minimum. Rimuru, let's just go solve this ourselves.
He pulled his attention back to the room.
"I can also begin conscripting the Goblins! We are always ready to fight for Rimuru-sama and Kaito-sama!"
Rigurd had apparently been building to this. He was on his feet now, fist raised, practically vibrating with enthusiasm.
Rimuru waved both hands.
"No, no. Rigurd, sit down. Nobody is conscripting anyone yet. Calm down first."
"Yes! Rimuru-sama!"
It took a moment, but the village chief lowered himself back into his seat. Rimuru exhaled quietly.
Sometimes subordinates being too loyal was its own kind of problem.
She opened her mouth to steer the conversation back on track. Then she stopped. Kaito had raised one hand slightly.
"Rimuru. Hold on."
"Hm?"
"We have a guest."
A breeze moved through the conference room. There were no open windows.
It carried leaves with it, emerald green, catching the light as they drifted in slow and deliberate arcs. The leaves and the air began to coil together, gathering shape, filling in from nothing.
When the last leaf settled, a woman stood at the center of the room.
She wore a dark green dress that shifted like gauze in a wind that had already stopped. Her hair was long and pale green, her ears tapered to a point. Her eyes were calm in the way that only comes from watching a forest for a very long time.
Benimaru was on his feet before anyone else had processed what they were seeing.
"A Dryad!"