A/N: Halloo, back with another chapter. This one's a bit longer than the others.
Betaread by Fiablo and Leizniz.
Enjoy.
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The house was a relatively small, decrepit place which had served as Old Tony's hideout. It was located in a lower-class neighbourhood, far removed from any other houses. It reeked of alcohol and rotten food, and its walls were covered with cracks and stains.
As a pirate, Old Tony must have come here only occasionally, spending most of his time aboard ships or in whorehouses… Even so, he could have maintained this place atleast a bit better. Rimuru thought—annoyed—as he entered accompanied by Jonathan.
He had brought the young man here because it was the only place he knew to lay low. Being identified wasn't an issue for him, owing to his [Mimicry], but Jonathan was being actively sought, and Rimuru had taken on the task of keeping him safe.
From Old Tony's memories, he knew that no one apart from his lackeys had known about this place, and those were all dead, so he wasn't really concerned.
There was always the possibility that someone could find this place or track Jonathan using supernatural means, but that was actually a scenario Rimuru welcomed. It would bring him into direct contact with the secret world he so wished to learn more about.
"You live here??" Rimuru heard from behind him. He turned around to see Jonathan looking around with narrowed eyes and a scrunched nose. He noticed Rimuru's gaze and straightened up, "Oh uhh… I meant no disrespect, it's just, that, uh—no, nevermind, there's no issues here."
Rimuru felt a small grin form on his face. This guy reminds me of Tamura when he'd first joined the company.
His smile quickly turned melancholic as his mind drifted to his first life. I wonder if he married Sawatari or not. He better have named his first kid after me.
"I don't live here," he answered Jonathan, clearing his thoughts. He then observed the insides of the house carefully, noting the layout and details.
Looking back at Jonathan, he gestured to an old sofa in the corner of the room, "Sit."
As the young man nodded and sunk into the sofa, running his fingers through his dirty brown hair, Rimuru walked towards him.
"Are you thirsty?" He asked, coming to a stop right in front of the seated man.
Jonathan looked up at him warily, "Uhh, yeah, I guess."
Rimuru reached into his vest pocket—really just activating his [Predator] skill—and pulled out a metallic flask he had acquired the previous night, handing it to Jonathan.
"I don't want…" he gulped nervously, "I don't want alcohol."
"It's water," Rimuru replied casually. He had emptied the alcohol in it inside his [Stomach] and filled it with the water he had taken from the sea and desalinated.
Jonathan looked surprised, "O-Oh."
After he finished drinking, he fidgeted with the flask, hesitating about where to put it.
How'd this guy even survive as an information broker this long being so… jittery. Rimuru thought as he watched Jonathan frantically look around. He extended his hand, asking for the flask back, and Jonathan was quick to comply.
"So, explain the situation to me," Rimuru said, cutting to the chase. "Who is after you, and why?"
Jonathan froze up, his eyes roaming everywhere but at Rimuru. After an awkward silence of a few seconds, he finally spoke up, "Uhm, before I answer that, can I… Can I, err, use the washroom?"
This guy…
"First door to the right," Rimuru replied, keeping his voice even as he pointed to the dark hallway across the room.
Jonathan quickly got up and rushed to the washroom, his steps small but many.
Rimuru wasn't worried about him escaping—there was no incentive for him to. Jonathan knew Rimuru was dangerous, and he likely had nowhere else to go. And even in the small chance that he did escape, it would be no work for Rimuru to track him down again.
In the meantime, while he was doing his business, Rimuru decided to give the house a quick makeover.
He extended his arms, which transformed into silvery-blue slime and poured onto the floor, rapidly spreading all over the walls and ceiling. It reached every corner and crevice of the house—except the bathroom—and covered the house in a slight glow.
Rimuru activated [Predator], consuming all the waste, mold and dirt, fixing the broken furniture, and purging all the insects and rodents.
In under a minute, the slime was already retreating back into Rimuru's arms.
Just as the last of the slime morphed back into human hands, he heard the bathroom door click open as Jonathan walked out, hands dripping with water. He looked significantly less frantic than he did a minute before.
He haphazardly wiped his hands on his pants as he walked back into the living room. The moment he stepped out of the dark hallway into the room, he stopped.
"What the fuck…" he muttered, looking around in astonishment, before remembering Rimuru's presence. "Sorry, but uhhh… How—"
"Some minor renovations, don't mind them," Rimuru said with a small smile on his face. That should keep him honest.
Jonathan's brown eyes widened, "You—you're a Beyonder! I had suspicions before, but now I'm sure!" He said with abrupt vigour. Immediately after, his eyes became increasingly wary and slightly fearful.
Should have expected an information dealer to know about Beyonders…
"Something like that," Rimuru said. "Now sit down so we can talk."
Jonathan let a moment pass, before nodding and sitting down on the sofa.
He then looked up at Rimuru, his gaze inquisitive, "Can I ask you questions too?"
Rimuru held his gaze for a second, before affirming, "After I've learned what I want."
"Alright… thanks."
"Now," Rimuru urged. "Explain your situation."
Jonathan fidgeted for a second—seemingly having an internal battle on what to say—before gathering himself and taking a deep breath. "Okay, yeah. It goes back a few years—back when my dad died. He was an… adventurer; more importantly, he was a Beyonder. And when he died, the rest of his crew claimed all his treasures. All except one."
He paused, before continuing, his voice harder. "The recipes for his Beyonder potions. His crewmates never found them, and that's because he never wrote them down. Boss—my father's right hand—believes that he only told me about them."
"Did he?" Rimuru interjected.
Jonathan gave him a long and hard look, his expression uncharacteristically grim. "Yes."
Rimuru blinked. "I see."
"That's… that's not all," Jonathan said. "You see, my father had contacts in MI9, and they are perhaps the only reason I'm not strung up to a pole being tortured for information."
Jonathan's voice became sardonic. "But while I'm protected from physical means of torture, doesn't mean those fuckers can't make my life hell in other ways."
He ran his hands through his hair. "I—I… didn't have any other family apart from my father, and when he died, I was lost, and young, and impressionable. Stupid, really," he sighed, "I racked up a whole lot of debt, to guess who—"
"Boss."
"Exactly…"
"Hmm… I presume he wants you to give him the recipes in exchange for clearing the debt?"
"Yeah."
"So why don't you do it?"
He got scornful look in his eyes. "He… he betrayed my father."
With his jaw clenched, he spoke, "That bastard sold him out to some pirates, so he could take the treasures and the crew for himself."
He took a deep breath to center himself.
"I found this out from Watson—Watson's my friend, only one I've got—and he's in Boss' crew."
"And now he's dead," Rimuru stated, recalling one of Jonathan's pursuers' words.
"No, I don't think so… Boss wouldn't kill him like this."
"What makes you so confident?"
"Well, Boss is many things, but he's not dumb or rash. He knows I'd do something irrational and dangerous if he killed Watson. Plus, Watson's one of the best in his crew, not exactly disposable."
Rimuru nodded in understanding, before asking, "Why haven't you just left? Boarded a ship and sailed away?"
Jonathan scoffed, resigned, "That's exactly what Boss is hoping I'll do. Once I'm out of my father's contacts' jurisdiction, I'm basically free meat."
"Dozens of ships set sail from the various ports of Bayam every day, it shouldn't be too hard for you to leave without him finding out," Rimuru stated, information from Old Tony's memories surfacing.
"There's several problems with that. Boss' influence is large, he has eyes in most ports here. And even if I do manage to find a way to go unnoticed, I'd need money. Which I don't have; because Boss takes all my income. The one time I tried to set some cash aside secretly to save up, he found out within a day."
Jonathan became more agitated the more he spoke.
"And… it's not that I had discarded that plan altogether. That was actually the final resort. That was why I was in that bar, waiting for Watson…"
"What were you trying to do?"
"Watson—he was saving up money for both of us to leave. Today, he was going to give that money to me—which I would then use to buy tickets out for us, while he would distract Boss and the crew."
"But he got caught."
Jonathan didn't reply with words, just a nod. He looked sombre, with a hopeless look in his eyes.
Poor kid…
Rimuru had a slight frown on his face as he stared at Jonathan. Then he broke the silence, "What do you plan to do now?"
"Hah… I don't know… What can I do?"
Rimuru crouched down in front of the sofa, coming to level with Jonathan, "Tell me, how many Beyonders are there in Boss' crew?"
Jonathan looked slightly surprised at the question, but answered, "Boss himself is a Beyonder for sure, and then he's got 3 more under him, including Watson."
Rimuru's eyes gleamed. "Do you know how powerful they are?"
"I… No, I don't. I mean—I know how strong Watson is, but you can't really describe a Beyonder's power," Jonathan replied.
Rimuru nodded, "What else do you know about Beyonders?"
Jonathan looked even more surprised now, "Uhhm, well… For one, MI9 and the Churches are always on the lookout for them, so it's really rare to find one who's not associated with any group…"
Rimuru sensed the subtle question in that statement, choosing to ignore it.
"I've heard whispers about special gatherings of Beyonders, but I never dared pry into those."
That got Rimuru's interest. Definitely something to look into later.
Jonathan continued, "And then there's the actual method to become one… There's Beyonder potions, made from rare and expensive ingredients. You can drink more and more of those to gain power, but apparently you need specific recipes. Which are just as, if not rarer than the potion ingredients."
Rimuru nodded along, listening carefully. Then, he stood back up. "You can ask me your questions now," he said casually.
Jonathan's brown eyes locked with his, narrowing slightly.
"Who are you?"
What can I even answer? Technically, I don't have a legal identity till tomorrow. Should I show him the form I'm going to use as 'Rimuru Tempest'? He's been pretty forthcoming with information so far, and he can't really do anything to me either, so I suppose there's no harm.
"The answer to that ques—"
Rimuru suddenly paused.
Jonathan looked confused, but then Rimuru pointed toward the door, gesturing at his ears.
There were voices coming from outside.
Several voices.
Rimuru gestured for Jonathan to follow him, walking to the inner room. There, he peeked out of the window, and Jonathan mirrored his actions.
On the road leading up to the house, there was a small group of men approaching. Eight of them.
Jonathan stiffened, and he whispered to Rimuru, "Those are Boss' men. The one in the front, that's Big Matt. He takes care of Boss' dirty work. Dirtier than the work the rest of the crew does."
Rimuru didn't say anything, merely watching.
How did they find us? There were no traces to follow. There doesn't seem to be any tracking technology in this world either. Were we tailed the whole time? That seems unlikely… The only other possibility is supernatural abilities—Man, I really hope it's supernatural abilities.
"Is Big Matt a Beyonder?" He asked Jonathan.
"No, he's not."
Rimuru didn't bother hiding his disappointment.
Meanwhile, Jonathan was dealing with a different set of emotions. "W—what should we do?"
Rimuru looked at the men, drawing closer by the second, and then at Jonathan, giving him a small smile. "We go greet them."
Jonathan had an incredulous expression on his face as he listened to Rimuru's answer, before shifting into one of anxious contemplation.
"You will be the one to deal with them. I won't interfere unless they try to attack or abduct you," Rimuru added.
Jonathan's face scrunched up, but his eyes held reluctant acceptance. He hesitated, then nodded silently, clenching his fists tightly to restrict the quivers. He then looked out of the window again, his eyes clouded by thoughts as he stared at the approaching men, now only a few dozen meters from the house.
Slowly, his countenance morphed—eyes hardened and filled with emotion and nascent resolve.
Seeing that, Rimuru got a slight smirk on his face. Seems this kid does have some fire beneath all those nerves. Recounting his past must have roused something within him.
He gestured for Jonathan to follow, and two of them walked out of the front door, Jonathan trailing slightly behind him.
Before them, a few meters away, stood Big Matt and his men, watching. They had quietened down, their attention drawn to Rimuru and Jonathan.
Big Matt, a huge man of over 190 cm, wearing a sleeveless vest, put his hand on his waist as he said, "The fuck are ya thinkin', Jonny?"
His voice was gruff, and his mouth had a few teeth missing, others rotten. Annoyance was plastered clearly on his face.
Jonathan's body jolted, eyes wavering slightly as he stood beside Rimuru, but he held strong. "I… I—"
"Nevermind, I don't really care. Boss wants you, and the fucker who's with you too," Big Matt interrupted, impatient.
Rimuru chose to remain quite, simply watching, his attention split between Jonathan and Big Matt. Meanwhile, Jonathan was battling against himself. His fingers dug deep into his palm and sweat rolled down his brows. He took a deep breath.
"I'm… not coming with you."
"What was that?" Big Matt growled dubiously, taking a step forward. A few of the men behind him snickered. "I think Jonny over here is trying to be brave," one of them quipped.
"Stop playing, Jonny. Boss is already pissed," Big Matt said, simple annoyance giving way to irritation.
"I—I told you… I'm not coming. You can tell that to Boss," uttered Jonathan.
Big Matt took several threatening steps toward him, hand leaving his waist, and said, "Boss told me to bring you in alive. He didn't say shit about broken bones. I'll fucking drag you there after breaking your legs, Jonny, don't tempt me!"
Rimuru could see the effect those words had on Jonathan. His feet shuffled back slightly and his breathing became erratic. He didn't reply, but there was still resistance between all the fear—declining rapidly though it may be.
Rimuru turned to Jonathan and said softly, "Don't fear them. They can't do anything to you."
Jonathan turned to him with tense eyes. Rimuru held his gaze, unmoving and with a confident look about him, which in turn seemed to have an effect on the distressed man. He seemed to stabilize a bit more.
"Yeah, y—you're right," he said, and then took a deep breath before turning back to face Big Matt.
It's probably very hard for him to overcome his long-standing fear and rely on a stranger he knows for less than a day. What's surprising is he's still trying. That's kind of admirable… and flattering.
"What the fuck did you just say?" Big Matt shouted at Rimuru, his eyes turning to anger. "You punk bitch— who do you think you are messing with Boss' business and trying to steal Boss' goods?"
His men were turning restless, their hands edging to their weapons as frowns marred their faces.
Rimuru decided to finally speak up, "Listen here—"
"WHY DON'T YOU JUST FUCK OFF!!"
Rimuru looked to Jonathan in surprise. The young man had fury and protest in his eyes, and his body was shaking. "I don't fucking belong to Boss!"
Rimuru smiled. I guess he didn't take too kindly to being called "Boss' goods"; probably pushed him over his breaking point. This is giving me some sort of second hand satisfaction on his behalf.
Big Matt turned to his men, "You four, get that other fucker. Rest of you, with me."
They were quick to act, but Rimuru was quicker.
He instantly deployed a dome shaped [Multilayered Barrier] around Jonathan, before rushing towards the men coming for him.
It was over before they even realised it, their heads separated from their bodies, and Rimuru's [Stomach] growing four corpses fuller.
Meanwhile with Jonathan; he had perhaps never before been as close to death yet so far from it in his life. Big Matt and four of his thugs were mere meters away from him, yet none could take another step forward.
There was an invisible wall separating them, standing between him and a terrible fate. The thugs tried to encircle him and attack from other directions, but to no avail. He was covered from all sides.
He vaguely noticed the four other thugs heading another way, but he wasn't worried about that—he had more pressing concerns.
Big Matt pulled out a revolver from the inside of his shirt, pointing it at his legs.
Jonathan froze up. Logically, he knew that the invisible wall protecting him should also stop a bullet.
But what if it doesn't?
To him, the next moment felt like an eternity, watching as Big Matt aimed and cocked the revolver, each movement telegraphed in slow motion.
Bang!
The bullet ricocheted off the invisible wall, and Jonathan exhaled a breath he didn't know he was holding, his relief palpable. A small, nervous chuckle escaped his lips—he couldn't help himself.
"Fuck! What the fuck is this!" Big Matt roared, his voice resounding in Jonathan's ears. "Is this that guy's doing? He's like Boss?"
Big Matt and his thugs turned toward his… companion? Ally? Whatever he was.
They expected to see him being beaten or restrained, but instead, he was simply standing there, his attackers nowhere to be found.
Wide-eyed, Big Matt asked as he subconsciously backed away, "W-what did you do?"
The man started walking toward them, his stride casual. "I ate them."
Big Matt and his four thugs were frantic now, stumbling away from the man, who merely watched.
But as they tried increasing the distance between them and the man, they hit an invisible wall.
They were stuck. A second circular wall had enclosed them in with the man. The scene was spread out in front of Jonathan, the group to his left and the man to his right, slowly closing the gap.
He watched as panic and dread took over the group, the man stepping closer and closer. The group grappled and scuffled among themselves, clawing and punching the invisible wall, trying to dig into the ground and climbing on each other to search for the top of the wall.
But it was all futile. All they achieved was exhaustion and despair. Tired and desperate, with snot and sweat coating his face, one of the thugs pulled out his revolver and shot blindly at the man.
The bullet sank just harmlessly into the his chest, his walk unhindered.
In moments, the whole group had their guns raised and frantic fingers shooting at him.
But the bullets simply disappeared one after the other.
Then the man's hands started melting, dripping down on the ground in the form of a silver goo. Jonathan feared for him for a second, but his calm reaction placated his worries.
The men were now scrambling for space against the invisible wall, shouting profanities and trying to get away from the man.
The man kept pace, and as he passed by Jonathan, he turned his head and their eyes met. "You wanted to know who I am?"
The man's arms melted even further, the silver goo moving and edging toward the group of men.
The screams got louder.
Slowly, even the man's torso began transforming into goo, his form collapsing bit by bit. And when his whole body had turned into a puddle of goo, it extended toward the group.
Their hysterical screams barely registered in Jonathan's ears as he watched with a dropped jaw.
Guns lay forgotten on the ground, hope already lost as only fear remained.
Despite all their efforts to get away, there was no escape. The silver goo got to them, engulfing a man's foot first, before rapidly extending to swallow his whole leg.
Jonathan heard the snapping of bones and the tearing of muscles amidst the screams.
Within seconds, the whole body was engulfed in silver, accompanied by sounds of crunching and squelching.
And it didn't show any signs of stopping, burgeoning and creating slimy tendrils.
It's next target was gone even faster, disappearing into the goo as one tendril shot out and grabbed his face.
One by one, the group was predated.
Big Matt was the last to go, sitting on the ground with a horrified look, his back to the invisible wall, watching all his men get consumed.
Jonathan could see as well as smell the piss dripping between his legs as the large man trembled.
He was put out of his misery the very next second.
The goo covered a huge area now, having wiped clean the whole group of men.
Jonathan simply stood petrified, his heart filled with a mixture of morbid satisfaction and apprehension.
The goo moved again, but not outward. This time, it shrunk, its tendrils retreating into itself as it rose in height.
Within moments, the goo resembled a humanoid shape.
Jonathan's eyes widened.
The goo slowly morphed into a human, forming facial features and clothes.
It stood tall, its figure slender but not thin. Long, silver hair flowed from its head; its face was androgynous, yet undeniably beautiful.
Simple black clothes adorned its body, and the goo was soon nowhere to be found.
Then, the being opened its radiant, golden eyes and spoke, "My name is Rimuru Tempest."
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A/N: Lemme know your thoughts in the comments.
Dunno when the next chap will be ready. Imma try to be more consistent though.