Bofuri (The Strongest Shield Of Tensura)-Chapter 97 - Ninety Seven

"This seems a little... unwise, don't you think?" Tomokashi murmured, standing at the edge of a small crater.

To an ordinary person, the crater would've appeared empty, just a harmless depression in the earth. But to her eyes, faint wisps of color drifted lazily from within, lingering remnants of a devastating strike.

The energy was unmistakable, traces of Dead End Rainbow, the unique sword wielded by none other than Hinata Sakaguchi, the strongest of the Holy Saints.

Beside Tomokashi, a pink-haired girl crouched low, two slender antennae flickering atop her head as she attuned herself to the multicolored energy.

"Unwise?" the girl repeated, crunching into a chip as she spoke. "I don't think so. That woman's an affront to Lady Kaede's empire. She even had the nerve to ambush one of Maple Tree's allies. Who's to say she won't come after us next?"

"A fair point," Tomokashi admitted with a small, squinting smile. "But you're overlooking one thing, she's stronger than you. Someone like that doesn't stay blind to being watched. You could lose your life."

Crunch.

The pink-haired girl paused, then turned her head toward Tomokashi, casually holding a half-empty bag of chips.

"I'm listening," she said, popping another chip into her mouth.

Crunch.

Tomokashi sighed, though the corner of her lips tugged upward in a fond smile.

"Try not to get yourself killed, Pito. Lady Kaede would be more than a little upset."

Pito swallowed, then grinned wide. "Hehehe, relax. I'm the leader of The Leaf. Even that brat Soei's still a babe next to my awesome self."

Tomokashi chuckled softly. "Of course. How could I forget?" She gestured ahead. "Just be careful, alright?"

"Yeah, yeah. No worries." Pito stood, her bag of chips vanishing into thin air with a flick of her wrist. "Alright, I'm off to spy on those stiff, self-righteous Saints. Make sure to tell Lady Kaede that I'm being super awesome in her name."

"Of course," Tomokashi replied with a nod. "Oh, Pito?"

"Yeah?"

A green glow formed in Tomokashi's hand as she produced a small, shimmering marble-like orb.

"Hold onto this for me, will you?" she asked, tossing it lightly.

Pito caught it with one hand and inspected it curiously. "Oh? What's this? Jewelry? Trying to flatter me, Tomo?" She grinned mischievously. "Keep this up and you might just become my second-in-command. Until then, though, you're still under Charlotte! Mwahahaha!"

With a burst of light, Pito vanished, her laughter echoing faintly as it faded into the distance.

Tomokashi remained alone, shaking her head fondly.

"At least she's spirited," she murmured, turning her gaze back to the still-flickering crater.

—

Kanade and Shion made their way through the halls of the largest mansion in Tempest, heading toward the infirmary. After carefully laying the unconscious Soei to rest, they turned and moved on to the war room.

As they approached, a voice called out from the direction of the meeting room.

"And how many of them were you able to scout?"

Kanade tilted his head, puzzled. "Huh? Did I leave a clone with Benimaru or something?"

Before he could say anything, Shion's face lit up with joy. "It's Lord Rimuru! He's back!" she cried, dashing ahead and throwing the doors open with a loud slam.

"Lord Rimuru!"

Kanade let out a small sigh, trailing in after her. Stepping into the meeting room, he immediately noticed the room was far more crowded than before. Seated around the large conference table were more of Tempest's leaders, and off to the side, he spotted an excited Shion embracing a silver-haired... boy? Girl?

Kanade raised an eyebrow. "Huh. And I thought I looked feminine." He chuckled, drawing everyone's attention as the room went still.

"Yo," he greeted casually.

The silver-haired figure gently pushed Shion aside, then turned to face Kanade. "I'm guessing you must be Kanade."

Kanade blinked, his head tilting slightly. "That is so weird... you sound just like me."

Rimuru blinked as well. "Holy cow... why do you sound like me?"

"What are you talking about?" Kanade grinned, crossing his arms. "You're the one who sounds like me. I'm pretty sure I'm older."

"Aha, that's where you're wrong!" Rimuru laughed. "Though I may look human, in truth..." He suddenly leapt into the air, morphing into a small, bouncing blue slime that Shion immediately scooped up, hugging tightly.

"I'm a slime."

Kanade's eyes widened. "So it's true... you really are a slime."

"Yep!" Rimuru chirped from within Shion's arms. "So don't go thinking for a second that you're older than me. Back when I was human, I lived into my thirties before dying and getting reincarnated as a slime monster."

He bounced free of Shion's grasp, much to her pouty displeasure, and shifted back into his human form.

Kanade gave a sly smile. "Then technically... that means you sound like me, right? You must've sounded different when you were human."

Rimuru opened his mouth to argue, then paused as the words sank in. "Wait... no... nooooo!" he cried in defeat.

"Mwahahaha!" Kanade laughed, reveling in his small, victorious moment.

Around the conference room, everyone exchanged bewildered, slightly amused glances as they watched the bizarre, lively exchange unfold.

"Lord Rimuru," Kaijin, the dwarven blacksmith and leader of Tempest's arms department, tilted his head curiously. "Who is this young man?"

"Oh, right," Rimuru smiled, gesturing toward Kanade. "Everyone, this is Kanade and he's..." Rimuru paused, blinking. "Actually, I have no idea who he is."

Kanade chuckled softly and gave a slight bow. "Allow me to introduce myself properly. My name is Kanade, and I'm the ArchMage of the Maple Tree Guild."

Gasps filled the room as murmurs spread quickly among the gathered leaders.

"Maple Tree has a guild?" Rimuru asked, confused. "I don't remember hearing about anything like that."

"Well," Kanade grinned, "not in this world."

Rimuru's expression turned thoughtful. "This world? Wait... you mentioned that you're an otherworlder, didn't you?"

"Yes," Kanade nodded.

"And you were part of Maple Tree back on Earth?" Rimuru asked again.

"Correct," Kanade replied with a smile.

Rimuru's eyes widened. "Then... Kaede-san?"

Kanade nodded once more. "Yes. Maple Tree was the name of our guild in a VR game we played, led by Maple, whose real name is Kaede."

"Whoa... so you guys are from the same time? Seriously?" Rimuru said, clearly surprised.

"Yeah," Kanade confirmed, smiling fondly.

"Then... the person you wanted my help to meet," Rimuru ventured.

"Yes," Kanade said, his voice softening. "It's Kaede-san."

"I see," Rimuru nodded, leaning forward slightly. "Well, I have no issue with that. A friend of Kaede is a friend of mine."

Rimuru clapped his hands lightly. "Now that we've learned a little about Kanade here..."

"We didn't learn anything though," Gobta's familiar, annoying voice cut in.

Everyone turned toward the small goblin, who froze under the sudden attention. "Uhh... what?"

Kanade chuckled. "Fair point. Well, for what it's worth, I was summoned by Falmuth a little over a year ago. They placed a curse on me, one that would've enslaved me to the summoner for the rest of my life."

A heavy silence fell over the room.

"Damn," Rimuru muttered.

"We're truly sorry to hear that," Shuna said, her voice gentle.

Across the room, seated next to Youm, the green-haired Myulan stared down at the floor, guilt written plainly on her face.

Kanade grinned. "Well, I broke free from the curse a day later."

Everyone blinked in surprise at his sudden bright, carefree tone.

Myulan's head snapped up, eyes wide. "What? You... broke free?"

Kanade shrugged. "Of course. I'm the ArchMage of Maple Tree, remember? I might not be as ridiculously overpowered as Maple herself, but a measly curse? Barely even a challenge."

"Then, maybe..." Myulan hesitated, then leaned forward slightly, her expression almost hopeful, before quickly masking it and leaning back, guilt clouding her features once more.

Kanade's gaze softened as he looked at her. "You're talking about your cursed heart, aren't you?"

Myulan let out a quiet, surprised gasp.

"What's this about a cursed heart?" Youm asked, frowning as he turned to her.

Rimuru's expression darkened as he looked at Myulan. He was calm, too calm, as he spoke. "Yes, Myulan... it seems we'll need to discuss your possible betrayal, the reason why you messed with us, and the connection to this cursed heart of yours. Don't leave out any details."

Youm turned to Myulan. "Myulan." He said.

"It's alright." The green haired Majin said with a small smile. "I have nothing left to hide now."

"Very well." Myulan said with a small nod. "My name is Myulan... and I serve the Demon Lord Clayman."

Once again, gasps echoed through the room.

"A Demon Lord...?" Rigur whispered, his voice tight with disbelief.

Youm lowered his head in guilt, while beside him sat the downcast figure of Grucius, the youngest of the Beastketeers.

Rimuru kept his expression neutral as he spoke. "I see. So it's Demon Lord Clayman pulling the strings."

Myulan took a steadying breath and began her confession. "Demon Lord Clayman lives up to his title, the Marionette Master. He controls the actions of his subordinates. Unfortunately... I am one of them."

Her voice was heavy as she continued. "The task Lord Clayman gave me was to infiltrate your nation as a spy. I used Youm to gain entry into the city. Not long after, he contacted me again and ordered me to deploy an [Anti-Magic Area] spell immediately."

She placed a hand over her chest, her gaze falling. "Clayman took my heart with a secret skill, [Marionette Heart]. As long as he holds it, I have no choice but to obey his every command."

A tense silence followed.

"I get it now," Rimuru muttered, leaning forward, his hands clasped. "He literally holds your life in his hands. The bigger question is... what does he gain from this?"

Myulan hesitated before answering. "Recently, he said something... ominous. 'Things are getting rather interesting. A grand war is about to break out, although unexpected events have led to some wonderful developments.' At first, I thought he was referring to the conflict between Demon Lords Milim and Carrion... but now, I suspect he meant a war between the Jura Nations and the Western Holy Church."

Rimuru let out a quiet sigh, leaning his head into his hands. "What are the chances he's already sent a spy into Maple Tree?"

"I... I wouldn't know," Myulan admitted. "He never once mentioned Maple Tree in my presence."

"I see." Rimuru nodded slowly. "We can't rule it out, though. If what Benimaru said is correct, Kaede's currently facing Milim and isn't in Maple Tree right now."

"Hopefully," Kanade spoke up, "Maple Tree isn't as overdependent on Kaede as Tempest is on you."

Shion immediately scowled. "How dare you..!"

"No," Benimaru cut in, his voice low. "Kanade is right. When we lost contact with Lord Rimuru... it was as if all our confidence, our sense of invincibility, vanished. I... I was lost. I'm a sorry excuse for a general."

Kanade gave a firm nod. "Yes, you are."

The room collectively blinked, stunned by the blunt remark.

"Really, dude?" Rimuru gave him a sideways look.

Kanade shrugged. "What? He made his mistake. All that's left is to learn from it. Trust me, this is exactly what he needs. He'll be better for it."

Rimuru sighed, but a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Alright then. Benimaru, you have no choice but to learn from this. I still believe making you general was the right call."

A sudden alert from [Great Sage] chimed in Rimuru's mind.

<>Notice. High-level auras detected. It's possible that these are the Holy Saints alongside their army.<>

Rimuru narrowed his eyes. "It seems the Saints are already at our doorstep."

Kanade raised an eyebrow. 'He noticed it before me?' He extended his magic sense, searching for familiar signatures. 'Only Shogo...?'

Benimaru stepped forward. "I've already placed most of our forces on standby. Since it was Falmuth who initiated this fight, with support from the church, we're well within our rights to defend ourselves."

"Good." Rimuru nodded. "Soei!"

Silence.

Rimuru frowned. "Where's Soei?"

Shion clenched her fists. "He was injured during his scouting mission on the Saints. He's been healed... but he's still unconscious."

"I see," Rimuru said with a nod. His gaze turned firm as he addressed the room.

"Benimaru! Shion! Geld! Gabiru! Prepare for battle."

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"Yes, sir!"