That Time Rimuru Got a Daughter!

Chapter 16: Happiness

(Third Person's Perspective)

The stage was set.

All the actors were in their positions.

The orcs were slowly making their way through the vast swamp of the lizardmen. The water was proving to be a good defensive measure, effectively winning enough time for the side forced into defense to prepare countermeasures.

Gelmud, Laplace, and the Demon Lords were all waiting for the spectacle—no, the massacre—to begin in earnest. From their viewpoint, there was no reason to feel this was a battle. To them, this was a one-sided slaughter. That's all. But who could blame them for believing such a thing?

Sure, there had been some unexpected developments, such as Gabiru not being able to seize the lizardmen's throne due to the interference of a mysterious blue-haired horned individual. However, even considering such things, the difference in combat strength was too overwhelming to overlook. An army of orcs a hundred thousand strong that made the lizardmen's numbers pale in comparison. The ability to obtain the strength of the enemies they consumed. The blessing of having an orc lord—a rare monster—on their side. Saying that the lizardmen had a chance to win would be nothing more than mere words.

Still...

"It's time for us to go. It's starting."

...there was a certain bluish-silvered individual who didn't care about the overwhelming disadvantage. No, it would be more appropriate to say that, "it didn't mean anything in front of him," or that he can, "overwhelm even such disgraceful odds."

The man who had triumphed even before the one who had created this world, and now stood at his place.

The one who fought adversity after adversity with an overwhelming determination, and ended up victorious.

The slime who had changed the natural course of history of this world with his arrival.

The Ruler of Monsters, and the one and only worthy of being called, "the strongest."

"Yes, Rimuru-sama!"

Rimuru Tempest... was about to enter the fight.

What new developments would come with his arrival?

◇◇◇

(Rimuru's Perspective)

The game was starting. Or well, I guess it is a bit inappropriate to call it a game, considering lives are at stake, but... well, anyway.

In less than an hour, the orc army would reach the lizardmen stronghold, and thus the fight would begin. That's why it was important to plan ahead on this event, considering that things might go quite off track compared to the main timeline.

With those thoughts in mind, I finally arrived at the lizardmen's village. I gently kicked Ranga's side to indicate to him to stop. He slowly began to reduce his speed. His fur peacefully came to a rest as his speed and the air resistance decreased. I got off from Ranga's and stood still, carefully glancing all over the scene that spreaded across me.

The battlefield doesn't seem any different from the main timeline... There was swamp as far as the eye could see; a flooded flatland colored in a dark shade of muddy green. It wasn't a pretty scene by any means. Rather, it gave off an eerie feeling of death, for some reason. Was it the sense of the imminent conflict drawing closer? No, that's definitely not it.

Something felt off from this landscape. Something was... different from last time. Although I couldn't really point out what it was. Ah, that's it... a few seconds went by before I finally pictured out the sense of my discomfort. Using my [Universal Perception], I closely observed a hill far away in the horizon. It was nearly flat at its top, with a green carpet of grass lying over it as a soft blanket. And on top of it, a gorgeous woman stood arrogantly.