— THIRD POV —
"Hello my name is rimuru tempest. I am not a bad slime "
The daemon's lips curved into a faint smile "Name's Jin-Woo " he replied, his voice resonant and confident. He looked down at the slime before him and tilted his head, as if appraising a curious specimen. "You're not from around here, I take it. A slime… and yet…" He trailed off, staring intently at Rimuru's core.
Rimuru noted Jin woo's intense gaze. This man's eyes were not merely taking in appearances: they seemed to penetrate right into Rimuru's very essence. In that piercing stare, Rimuru felt exposed, as if some secret of his nature was being read by unseen eyes.
"You are a human aren't you , I had my suspicion because of the reference . Your source is the of a human although a little different maybe due to reincarnation "
Rimuru blinked . No one on the forest seems to know his true identity . He was a slime , that much they recognized but this guy seems to see right through him
" I feel violated " muttered rimuru inflated , then as if recalling something he excitedly asked " wait you recognized that reference does that mean you are from Japan like me"
The young man chuckled at the slimes mood swings " You are mostly correct while I am a human reincarnated as a daemon, I came from Korea "
For a moment Rimuru's face went slack with astonishment.He felt strangely comforted that someone else, even a strange demon like man, had recognized the truth about him and shared similar circumstances.
Rimuru saw a flicker of wistfulness in Jin Woo's dark eyes. "In my old life," Jin Woo continued quietly, " I had a family a mother, a sister. I thought I was safe after escaping those dungeons in Korea, but something here brought me into this world. I feel as lost as you must have felt. Another world, another life… I suppose we are kindred spirits in that way."
There it was: honest vulnerability. Rimuru blinked back shame at glimpsing Jin Woo's hidden pain. Here was a man of tremendous power, indeed a Daemon, yet he confessed the fear and loneliness of an exile from his own time
A soft silence fell between them, a moment of understanding bridging two souls from different worlds. Finally, Jin-Woo's eyes gave rimuru a long look before he asked
" Can't you take a human form, I doubt you wanna stay as slime for ever?"
"I wish I could but I need a human body to do that "
Jin-Woo's eyes brightened with a new idea. " I can help,"he said. " You look like you can talk just fine, but the forest is tense with danger. Let me do something."
Before Rimuru could ask what he meant, Jin-Woo raised a hand and called upon his Daemon arts. From the swirling magicules around him, he drew a faint, smoky shapeless form a magic body and began to weave it. At first it was nothing but a dim silhouette; then, inch by inch, it solidified into flesh, bone, and clothing.
Rimuru watched as a perfect human form took shape: a teenage boy of about fifteen or sixteen he instinctively approached it reaching out to absorb it then in a glimmer of light the slime took on his new form
The magic settled, and where once stood a bouncing slime, now stood a boy bathed in sunlight and quiet grace.
Rimuru's human form was youthful and striking.a perfect balance between innocence and ethereal beauty. His hair, a vivid ocean blue, fell messily across his forehead in damp strands, . It shimmered subtly under the soft light, like threads spun from liquid sapphire.
His eyes, large and glowing a rich golden hue, held a gentle radiance like twin suns flickering behind glass. They shimmered with curiosity,
He raised a hand to his face delicate, almost porcelain in appearance and studied his own fingers in quiet awe.
He wore a black hoodie lined with deep yellow accents, its fabric snug yet casual, The hood was lowered, and faint threads of magic still clung to his frame, like glowing wisps being drawn into his newly formed vessel.
Image here (…)
Jin woo stepped back admiring his creation He had used his innate Daemon skill,
Material Creation, infused with pure magicules, to craft this body for Rimuru."what do you think"he said.
Rimuru stepped forward marveling at the feeling of legs , and even a heartbeat
In mid-stride he paused and touched his jaw, incredulous. "I… feel alive," he said. "Jin Woo, this is amazing "
Jin Woo chuckled and patted Rimuru's shoulder. " it's pretty neat, huh? Glad you enjoyed it"
" I can change back into a slime " he noted already marveling at the sensations he kept feeling " l owe you"
"Don't sweat it " Jin woo waved it off," I am just glad to help out a friend
Rimuru smiled at the his words" right we are friends . How about you come to my village , it is still under development but I am sure you will like it "
" Since I have nowhere to go , I see no harm in staying at your village"
" Alright let's head back then "
———————————————————
— Jin woo pov—
Rimuru wasn't joking when he said that the village is still underdeveloped
Rimuru bounced back to the goblin settlement "you can stay as long as you need"
Nodding as I kept pace with him we were greeted with a lively scene hundreds of goblins new and old , bustled around makeshift huts. Under Rimuru's guidance, Kaijin and the dwarven brothers had taught the goblins crafts and construction. Now the goblins were building houses, forging tools, and learning rudimentary architecture, chatting and laughing all the while.
"Woah," Jin-Woo breathed softly. "I've never seen so many goblins just… getting along."
Rimuru grinned" they are part of the family now even if most of them just appeared out of nowhere " all of them became loyal to him seeking protection after he named them
" You know naming monsters recklessly is dangerous right? "
"Yeah I feinted for three days after naming the five hundred goblins, but don't worry I have a living battery of magicules "
"Even so you can't keep relying on that dragon " a few goblin children run around playing some even collecting berries
as a goblin scurried up to present them. The goblin froze. It looked up at the tall, dark haired human and then down at Rimuru's slime form, blinking.
"Rimuru-sama!" the goblin chittered. "You have a lppfriend!"
Rimuru rolled forward, proud. "That is right Jin woo here is my friend," he said, . Jin-Woo noticed Gobta the ever energatic goblin chattering excitedly to friends. Rigurd, the newly crowned Goblin King, approached, he recognized Rimuru from before; but who was this human? Jin-Woo gave a slight nod.
"Rimuru sama ! "He called out respectfully" we are happy for your return."
"Rigurd I was just looking for you. Meet Jin woo my friend, I want everyone in the village to treat him nicely "
"Of course rimuru sama ," he nodded before turning to face me and bowed" we are happy to have you Jin woo sama, also rimuru sama we received a message from the security team, they spotted suspicion beings"
"Monsters ?"
" No humans my lord "
" Humans ? "
"Yes it is possible they scouts send her from another nation to expand their land "
— THIRD POV —
A group of four adventurers was running for their lives bickering as a colony of giant ants followed them ants . Suddenly the masked girl halted to a stop and drew her blade igniting it in flames she blasted the ants on the front, but that didn't stop the other ones from advancing
In a Swift dance the masked figure glided through the giant monsters slicing them like butter , killing all the ants in seconds much to the surprise of her companions
All of a sudden an ant supposedly dead twitched and rose up again
The blonde haired girl cried out " quick behind you"
As the masked girl attempted to defend against the threat she suddenly froze up and knelt down clutching her chest
Quick do something the same girl screamed again but to no avail
Just as the attack almost reached the girl a figure appeared above the ant and delivered a Swift punch that sent shockwaves across the land that caused the girl mask to fall off
And throwing dust in the air
As the adventurers waited for the smoke to disappear they saw a figure of a handsome young man sitting on the head of the ant he killed relaxed like its nothing holding the fallen mask in his hand
A/N : this guy never stops aura farming
As if waiting for their eyes he stood up and walked towards the fallen beauty : She was a young woman of average height with black eyes and black hair, as well as red burn scars under one of her eyes.
"Are you alright"he said as he handed her the mask" I hope I didn't go too far "
Absolute silence
She smiled gently" I am alright "
Then as if he can't read the room rimuru barged in " hi I am rimuru tempest, and I am not a bad slime"
A small smile plastered on shizue face only noticed by Jin woo
'she recognized that reference, and her source is similar to rimuru. She must be an otherwolder ' sung realized in his mind
"It's a slime" commented the three other adventurers
"Yup, you got a problem with slimes "
"no I just never heard one talk"
" It is kinda hard to believe "
The black haired girl then turned to Jin woo
"You saved me thank you"
He nodded then turned towards the three idiots"Why don't you follow us towards ower the village I am sure you are starving "
Hearing about food they straightened up
And prepared to run
—JIN WOO'S POV—
The road back to the village was lively and filled with chatter
Walking in the back of the group with shizue and noticing the attention of the others was not on us I approached her " shizue san,"hearing my call she turned to me curious " are you an otherwolder as well "
She froze for a second before continuing to walk
" What gave me away" she asked conforming my theory
"You reacted to that game reference, and your source is special like rimuru and mine "
She brightened up hearing my words" does that mean you both are otherworlders"
I nodded in conformation we can continue this talk later, you need to rest for now"
I say as we reached the village
—time skip—
Late in the evening, I found Shizue alone on a hill, her eyes locked on the golden sunset bleeding across the sky.
"Something on your mind?" I asked softly, settling beside her.
She turned to face me, her expression guarded but not cold. "Are you from Japan too?"
I shook my head. "No… Korea."
Her brow lifted in surprise. " Korea, huh… That's unexpected. How did you die?"
There was a moment of silence as I remembered. "I was a Hunter in my world. The weakest. When our party got trapped in a double dungeon, I was sacrificed—left behind so they could escape. I still remember the statues... how they impaled me over and over"
Shizue was silent at that , a hint of understanding and sadnesses flashed in her eyes
"Anyway how did get summoned "
"It was a while ago , there was fire , the town was burning , bombs were falling "
'A war, most likely The second world war' I concluded
"My mother and I tried to get to safety but she didn't make it "
We stayed silent for a moment before an idea came to mind
"Hey shizue" she looked up at me " don't resiste the illusion"
In a flash, she stood inside a living memory modern Japan, thriving and vibrant. Cities glowed with life. People walked without fear. Children laughed under cherry blossom trees.
"Japan recovered," I said. "It's now one of the most advanced, peaceful nations in the world."
" How beautiful, I wish my mother could have scene this " Shizue smiled through trembling lips.
Suddenly she fell to the floor clutching her chest in agony
" Shizue!" I caught her quickly " that fire spirit is acting again, how annoying "
"He's fighting again," she gasped, writhing. "I can barely stop him."
Shizue's fists clenched. The silence that followed was raw. Finally, her voice wavered. "When I was awakened in this world… I remember a man. The demon lord Leon Cromwell called me forth from the flames of war. I was nothing, a girl alone in a ruined Tokyo… until Leon summoned me and gave me ifrit " Her voice cracked "He forced him into my body, and I became a puppet of fire. I lost everything. My home… my life. And the only family I had, I destroyed myself "
Shizue sobbed quietly. " Pizu …prinio…Ifrit broke me. When I took back control, it was too late."
Jin-Woo's chest ached with empathy. He placed a steadying hand on her shoulder. " None of that was your fault. You were given power and controled against your will."
Shizue shook her head, pulling her arms in. "I wasn't strong enough. My friend died because of me. We named that baby fox Pizu . Ifrit took them both. The memories… they haunt me."
I just realized how quiet the forest had become around us. , the moon peeked through clouds. I neede to restore her hope.
"I know you feel alone," I said softly. "But you're not. You have people who care, still."
Shizue lifted angry, tear streaked eyes. "What good is that? I have a fire spirit inside me that I can't control…and is about to break out"
" I know that feeling of helplessness. Being so weak that you have no choice but to wait for death." I looked her in the eyes" the weak have no right, the weak get always gets looked down on , no matter how smart, kind or creative they are, the weak always loses . I always loses. But now that I have got this second chance I won't waste. To protect everything dear to me I will become the strongest and I want you to be with me when I do that. So will you burn everything in your path even your weak self or would rather stay here and wait for death like a coward and throw away the bonds you have"
"I'm willing to become powerful " i said quietly, " powerful enough to carve a path back to our home someday. I've been called things in my world… but here, if I something stands in my way, I will clear that path. I will not stop until I can protect the people I care about."
"I… I just feel so alone,"she whispered.
"I know," I said. "But you're not alone now." He gently squeezed her shoulder. "You have your students, Rimuru, and now me so tell me shizue what Is it that your hearts desire"
After a long moment, Shizue breathed out shakily,tears streaming . pulling together her torn composure.
" I want to live."
"Then let me."
I placed my hand on her chest gently. Using Anos' Gaze, I reached past her body, past her soul… to her source.
The true essence of who she was.
I grasped it.
And pulled.
A sphere of molten crimson light tore free. Ifrit's roar echoed from it as he emerged in his full spirit form, writhing in fury.
Shizue collapsed into my arms, weakened by the extraction. Without hesitation, I channeled a portion of my magicules into her enough to keep her stable.
"I'm free " she breathed, relief flooding her voice. " Thank you…"
But Ifrit wasn't finished. Screaming, he charged. I raised a single hand.
"Kneel."
Ruler's Authority pulsed outward. The fire spirit slammed face-first into the ground with enough force to shatter the earth. He tried to rise only to be slammed down again.
"Igris,"I called.
A shadow burst upward beside me. Igris stepped forward, sword drawn, his crimson plume swaying.
With one slash, Ifrit was cut down.
"Wh-what was that?" Shizue asked, stunned.
"One of my soldiers. Igris" I said. "Now rest. I'm not done yet."
Cradling her in my arms, I turned to Ifrit's remains and extended a hand.
" Arise."
Dark flames engulfed the ruined spirit. Shadows twisted, binding his soul. When the smoke cleared, he knelt a shadow elemental, black with burning red eyes.
"Your name shall be Pizu. You are assigned to Shizue. You will protect her. And give her your power ."
He bowed deeply, then dissolved into particles merging back into Shizue's body. But this time, she didn't scream. She didn't fall.
She simply blinked, surprised… calm.
<
'Yes.'
A burst of magic surged from me, flooding into her. She gasped, stumbling as her body began to evolve.
"It's okay" I said gently, catching her again. "That was just the blessing I gave you . You'll be fine. Let it happen."
Her eyelids fluttered as she whispered, "You… you really are something else…"
Then she closed her eyes, falling asleep peacefully for the first time in years.
That's when Rimuru finally arrived, panting.
"Jin-Woo! What the heck was that massive magicule spike?"
"Handled it," I replied. "She needs rest . No one disturbs her."
Rimuru blinked, then nodded. "Got it."
We turned toward the village, the weight of the night slowly fading