Day Nine of Reincarnation as Rimuru

“What are you doing?”
“Lord Rimuru, we are collecting remnants from the battlefield. Although the Hilichurl weapons are crude, the materials used are top-notch. We gather them to reprocess and reuse.”
Rimuru twitched at the corner of his mouth. “I see…”
From their battered appearance, it was impossible to tell the quality of the materials!
Watching the group skillfully strip the spoils from the Hilichurl corpses, Rimuru felt a pang of sympathy for the poor creatures.
Not only did they get beaten thoroughly in life by monsters, but after death, their weapons and possessions were stripped clean.
Truly tragic, the Hilichurls.
It made him almost want to join in and take a share.
Though, collecting iron arrowheads he could understand—but Hilichurl masks? Ugh, some even bore stains of unknown food, which was rather disgusting…
Could it be that Morax’s people had some peculiar collecting fetish?
Seeing them remove the masks from the Hilichurls’ faces one by one, leaving no scrap behind, Rimuru grew genuinely curious.
[Note: Hilichurl masks contain intense emotions and can be used as alchemical materials. They also allow humans awakened to elemental power to enhance their strength.]
Oh, that explains it… Wait, alchemy?!
[Is alchemy that wondrous magic that turns stone into gold? Can I learn it? Please, please, please!]
Rimuru grew excited. If he could master alchemy, he would never be short of money again!
But Raphael’s reply soon brought him back down.
[The power to transmute gold is the great work of Morax, the God of Precious Metals, and is beyond the reach of alchemy. At present, gold is not a universal currency among the tribes of Teyvat; its value may not even surpass that of iron or white iron ore.]
—Oh.
The slime’s face instantly turned cold.
He had gotten his hopes up for nothing.
Well, if wealth were that easy to come by, no one in this world would still be struggling with survival.
Rimuru consoled himself and turned toward the carriage. “Let’s go, these scraps aren’t worth wasting more time on!”
“Yes, Lord Rimuru.”
Though Jingping felt it wasteful, he obeyed Rimuru’s orders. He removed the eyes stuck to the Hilichurl corpse and quickly began organizing the group to continue toward Guili Assembly.
After an unknown passage of time, at dawn when even the sleepless slime began to grow drowsy, a steady voice roused him.
“Lord Rimuru, we have arrived at Guili Assembly.”
“Oh… arrived? Already?!”
Rimuru snapped his eyes open to a grim scene of devastation.
Corpses of various creatures floated on the water, emitting a foul stench. Vast fields of ripe golden wheat lay toppled and soaked by seawater; the flood-drenched grain was clearly no longer edible.
Yet, despite this, some injured still braved the peril, racing to salvage whatever crops had survived due to favorable terrain.
Osial and the sea beast Bahamut had easily submerged this fertile land, never once considering whether those who lost their crops and land might starve. Wasn’t the God of War supposed to love humanity?
What kind of love was this?
No wonder they lost the battle; they deserved it.
“This is too much, absolutely too much!” Rimuru furrowed his brows fiercely, stomping angrily on the ground.
“The situation looks grim,” Jingping’s expression turned serious. “It has been at least six days and nights since the sudden assault by the Vortex God and the sea beast Bahamut, yet the waters in the Dust God’s territory have not receded.”
This meant the Dust God had not yet recovered enough strength to dispel the impact left by Osial.
She was gravely injured.
Rimuru had clearly considered this.
“It’s alright, I have a plan for that!”
Proudly puffing out his resilient slime chest, Rimuru looked around. “So where is this Dust God? Where is she?”
Jingping guessed, “Perhaps the Lady is recuperating somewhere…”
Before he finished, someone suddenly rushed forward, aiming a finely crafted crossbow bolt at Rimuru and shouting, “Monster! Another monster attack—!”
“Hey? Wait—”
I’m not an evil monster!
Rimuru quickly sucked in his belly, narrowly dodging the fiery red glowing arrow. As he evaded, he still managed a thought.
Morax, Morax, you rough fellow! Look at how exquisite their weapons are, how well maintained their farmlands—the right way to develop infrastructure is to both farm and build military arms!
Seeing Rimuru under attack, Jingping’s eyes sharpened. With the other guards, he charged forward, planting a spear made of divine bedrock before the slime.
He bellowed, “Lord Rimuru is a friend of our gods! Show respect!”
Although Morax had not allied with Guili, commercial exchanges between the peoples had tightened their relations. Many recognized Jingping and his caravan. With his intervention and assurances, the attackers finally lowered their weapons.
Still, even with Jingping’s guarantee, the Guili people, fresh from the assault, remained wary, as if fearing Rimuru might suddenly turn hostile.
“Friend of the Geo God?”
The white-haired leader stared at Rimuru for a moment, then reattached his weapon to his waist and looked at Jingping with amusement. “Are you sure?”
After all, a mere slime, even one speaking, was still just a slime. It wasn’t disdain, but the ingrained belief that “slimes are weak” was deeply rooted in his mind.
To challenge such a deeply held notion took great courage.
Jingping’s face was serious. “Absolutely sure.”
Haku Bai stared down at him for a few seconds, then shrugged as if conceding. “Alright, alright, I believe you.”
How intimidating—no wonder the people of the Geo God are known for their cold and unyielding nature; each one was like a hard stone.
He wiped the smirk off his face and bowed respectfully to Rimuru. “Our apologies for earlier. Please forgive our offense.”
Rimuru wasn’t angry at all. Good-naturedly, he waved a hand. “It’s understandable. You’ve just suffered a disaster, so being cautious is normal. I get it.”
“May I ask why Lord Rimuru has come to Guili Assembly?”
Haku Bai fixed his gaze on him, as if trying to see through the slime. “If you are here for food, I regret that we cannot trade. As you can see, our farmland has been flooded, and most crops are inedible.”
“Well, that’s exactly why we came.” Rimuru dropped a bombshell casually.
Haku Bai was stunned, clearly caught off guard. “What?”
“Oh, we’re here to help with disaster relief. And of course, to assist with rescuing the wounded.”
Including the gravely injured Dust God.
Rimuru’s attitude was clear: they were not here to exploit the situation or seek food, but simply to aid the disaster-stricken.
—Huh? Just that?
—What’s the catch?
Haku Bai couldn’t fathom Rimuru’s mindset. Nowadays, everyone looked out for themselves and swept their own doorstep. This was his first time encountering such a thing.
After a momentary mental freeze, he finally said, “I’m sorry, but I must report this to Lord Guili…”
“No need. I’m already fully informed.”
A clear, bell-like female voice spoke from behind him. Upon hearing it, Haku Bai and the other Dust God’s people brightened with delight.
“Lord Guili, are you alright? Lord Guili, these are freshly made steamed buns; would you like to try one?”
Voices buzzed, and the Dust God soon found herself surrounded by her concerned people, receiving care.
They moved so quickly that before Rimuru could see the Dust God’s face clearly, the crowd blocked his view. He couldn’t help but sigh, “The Dust God is indeed much gentler than Morax.”
Look at the treatment—this is truly what it means to walk with a god.
The gods held no lofty airs, nor did the people kneel humbly pleading for favor. Instead, they cared for each other and progressed together.
Though Morax’s relationship with his people was good, his stony-faced, hard-tempered nature could never create such a warm scene.
Witnessing this, Rimuru’s confidence swelled.
Hmph. His intuition was right. If he could ally with this Dust God, Morax’s domain could flourish greatly!
The Tianheng people were strong warriors, the Dust God’s folk expert farmers; combined with their ingenious arts, it would be a powerful fusion of military and agriculture!
Just as the slime indulged in these daydreams, a shadow suddenly struck him.
“Are you Rimuru?”
“Huh?”
Rimuru looked up in confusion and met a pair of gentle, moonlit gray-blue eyes.
—Oh wow!
—A kind and beautiful elder sister!
Curiously, Guili poked the slime with a finger, causing him to flush with two distinct pink blushes on his face.
Guili smiled softly at the sight. “Rimuru, you’re really adorable.”
It seemed this slime bore no ill will. As for his stated purpose…
“Sorry, Rimuru, and thank you for the kindness of you and the Geo God, but I must decline.”
The gentle Dust God shook her head. Though grievously injured, she refused to show weakness before Morax, a fellow god.
Though she had considered alliance with Morax, now was not the time.
As for the murky seawater flooding the farmland…
Thinking of the wasted crops, Guili’s heart filled with bitterness. Osial’s power in the water was not overwhelming; she could still push it back with effort.
If the visitor had been Morax, upon rejection, he might have left without hesitation.
But who was Rimuru? He would do anything to improve future living conditions.
A mere refusal was nothing.
“Hey, don’t be so quick to refuse.” Rimuru shook his head and looked up. “What if I told you I could heal you completely? Would you believe me?”
Guili paused. “Huh?”
“Just say yes or no!”
“…I want to believe, Rimuru, but—”
“Okay, then believe me!”
With her affirmative response, Rimuru’s spirit soared. Excitedly rubbing his hands, he opened his mouth wide—and in the next moment, he did something that left everyone dumbfounded.
The slime swallowed Guili whole.