That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime

Everyone who heard Veldora's words felt something different.

And then it happened. Before any of them could put their feelings into action.

The attack.

There was an explosive sound as the ceiling of the underground shelter, that was the resistance's base, collapsed.

"What!?"

Zaza shouted as he frantically looked up towards the ceiling.

Black smoke rose into the air. He could see the grey sky between the cracks.

He was stunned.

Sharma ignored him and was the first to react.

"This is bad! The toxic fumes will come in!!"

Sharma shouted. Rindo quickly moved.

He gathered together the adults and children and led them to the lower floors that were used as an emergency refuge.

As they had trained for such an event in the past, they moved with impressive speed.

Only the youngest of the children cried or screamed.

But for the most part, everyone disappeared from the top floor without much in the way of chaos.

"How can…but this is a shelter that withstood a nuclear blast…!? What kind of power would it have taken to pierce through to here…no-is it a Bunker Buster!?"

Zaza was frozen with shock.

If he was right about it, this meant that the Empire was finally putting its full weight behind the attacks.

And they had been the first to strike. There was now a danger of them all being slaughtered down here.

However, Zaza had one doubt.

"…No, wait a minute… If that really was a Bunker Buster, this floor would be a sea of scorching heat…"

And yet the blast seemed to have stopped as soon as it hit their ceiling.

Zaza was so puzzled that he said this out loud.

Veldora looked at him and smirked.

After all, it had been Veldora's power that had saved them right now.

He had just become popular with the people, and he wasn't about to let these intruders interfere with that. That is what was on Veldora's mind when he cast a barrier around this floor.

"Kekehehehe. Oh, Zaza. As for that…"

This was the time to show that confused Zaza how wonderful he really was-it was just as Veldora thought this and began to explain, that it happened.

Five mobile weapons dropped down from the opening in the ceiling.

"Master. Something just came in!?"

"Tsk. How much must they pester me…"

Veldora said in frustration.

Even when he tried to be good, no one appreciated him. It happened all of the time.

"What shall we do, Lord Veldora?"

"Hm? Beretta. We'll do as we discussed. I shall protect Ramiris over here and you deal with them."

"Understood."

They said casually, and then Beretta stepped forward to face the five enemies.

Zaza saw this and frantically tried to stop him.

"Wa-wait-wait-wait-wait-wait! Those things are dangerous! Judging by their silhouette-they are the armored troops led by that bastard, Karman. I think he was a second lieutenant or sergeant, but he is also a highly experienced cyborg. He's insane. There are rumors of him annihilating several mercenary groups. You won't stand a chance against him if you're alone!"

Zaza knew Karman.

How aggressive and cruel he was.

There were mercenary groups that he knew personally who were destroyed by just a few of these mobile weapons.

Some had been let go on purpose, and they all spoke with fear in their hearts.

This man who was said to be the worst of the south was here in front of them.

And so it was no surprise that Zaza was worried.

"Be careful now, Beretta!"

"Don't kill them, alright? I think Rimuru would get really angry if you did that."

"I understand."

The three of them showed no signs of having heard Zaza's words.

Zaza could not hide his alarm as he said,

"Don't kill them… Are you serious? What are you talking about!? I will admit that Mister Beretta is very strong, but these guys are not the same as Murder Dogs. They are real anti-army weapons! And there are five of them. We have no hope of winning. We have to escape now or we'll be wiped out…"

"Zaza. Calm down. I am here too. How could we lose?"

"And what the hell do you think you're going to do!? They won't let you go just because you cooked them some okonomiyaki!!"

Veldora had only been trying to calm Zaza down, but it had no effect.

It could not be helped.

After all, to him, Veldora was the least useful of the group.

"What!? What you just said…I…that kind of hurt…"

Veldora was shocked by how little they thought of him.

Ramiris tried to comfort him.

—And then.

Leaving Veldora's stupid conversation behind him, Beretta faced Karman.

◇◇◇

The five mobile weapons advanced towards Beretta-the Powered Suits, led by Second Lieutenant Karman-but Beretta stood his ground.

They had landed on the ground from above.

As the ground shook when this happened, it was clear that they were quite heavy.

They were at least three meters tall.

Humanoid knights in heavy, thick armor.

"Giants?"

Beretta whispered as he took a step forward.

The machine that stood in the front addressed Beretta first.

"Oh. Jackpot already, eh? So you must be the resistance's new weapon. The one that killed our Murder Dogs. I am Karman. A second lieutenant. I lead this troop."

It was second lieutenant Karman.

He held a cigar infused with emotion-suppressing agents. And he introduced himself while inhaling deeply.

"I don't know what you mean by 'new weapon.' But it was I who killed the three dogs."

"I see. Bingo. We've been quite lucky. And what is your name?"

"-Beretta."

"Hoho. Odd name. As you are no famous terrorist, are you a newcomer? Well, that doesn't matter. I just want you to answer me one question—"

"-What?"

"It's nothing, really. We used the Bunker Blaster with the intent of destroying this underground shelter… So why isn't it destroyed? What little trick did you use? I am just curious."

"Hmm. The answer is simple. Lord Veldora over there, he protected us…"

Beretta said honestly.

However, this only made Karman laugh.

According to the energy calculations, Veldora was nothing remarkable. The data said so.

And so he did not believe Beretta's answer.

"I see. So you won't tell me then. Well, fine. By the way…"

Smoke rose from his cigar.

It was just as the smoke was directed towards Beretta's vision, that Karman moved.

He was fast.

The Powered Suits represented the height of their technology. In spite of its hefty appearance, they could go from standing still to moving at 1,000m/s in just ten seconds.

However, this action was not about attacking.

To Karman, it was merely a casual walk. A kind of greeting in order to witness Beretta's reaction.

Karman's hand was placed on Beretta's shoulder.

The movement was so fast that a shockwave hit Beretta, but otherwise, he stood still as if nothing had happened.

It had been less than a light breeze to him.

"Oh? So that is not enough to phase you then. I am impressed. It will make destroying you all the more interesting. But first, I must listen to this order from Colonel Gratham. You should just surrender and tell us your secrets. Then you may be able to live in the city. I will give you ten seconds, so think about your answer!"

Karman said as he blew smoke into Beretta's face.

He wanted to fight him, but he had to follow orders. And so he made this offer.

"Karman, was it? Do not give me orders."

While his mask hid any expression, Beretta's voice was oozing with irritation.

Inwardly, Karman was enjoying Beretta's reaction.

He tightened his grip on Beretta's shoulder and continued.

"Well, if you insist on defending these scum, you must be an enemy to me."

And then he smiled viciously and tried to crush Beretta's shoulder by applying more pressure…

But Beretta just lightly brushed his hand away.

The hand of a Powered Suit that was applying intense pressure. And with just one hand.

Karman lost his balance and fell back towards his troops.

His shoulders shook with fury and shame over this unbelievable reality. And then he let out a great roar.

"Kukuku-kahahahahaha!! Yes. This is very amusing. It's been a while since I faced an enemy that was worth fighting, however…"

Karman paused here and inhaled from his cigar.

All the anger then dispersed and he regained his calm.

He continued.

"I will tell you about reality before we fight. It seems that you have an internal high-power reactor exceeding 100,000kWh. It's your best feature, isn't it? Indeed, it is rather impressive for something created outside of the city laboratories, but not quite good enough. The nuclear fusion reactors inside of our Powered Suits can output as much as 817,000kWh. Do you see? Do you despair at this difference? Do you see that there are five of us? You never had a chance against us. So I will say this one last time. Surrender to us!"

He said as if repressing his natural tendencies. He would obey the order from headquarters. Karman was like a problem child, but he was not an outlaw.

However, he was difficult to control once he started fighting.

This came from his intense hatred of the resistance and had nothing to do with his original personality.

And so it was not possible for him to stop himself.

"Surrender? I have no intention of obeying someone who is weaker than me. But more than anything, I already have a master. I do not like what you are saying."

"Hah! Then be ready. You will soon know reality and regret this!!"

"Hmph. Don't worry, I will not kill you."

The cigar had now burned away.

That was the signal.

"Ridiculous! I know what you are capable of. I hope you won't break on me?"

Karman shouted after laughing confidently.

There was no reason for Karman to doubt that he could defeat this enemy in front of them.

And yet…

"Hmm. Perhaps you will put up more of a fight than I thought. Maybe I will have to take this thing seriously.'

Was Beretta's reply.

At this, Karman's emotions exploded.

The suppression drug's effects had ended.

Karman's ability to reason was now gone. And the only thing to do was to unleash his anger.

The Powered Suit was a part of him and moved according to his will.

The heat and pressure that was usually sealed by the electromagnetic force field now lit up the nuclear fusion reactor. The resulting plasma stream rushed through his body like blood.

It was directly converted to electricity through the generator, giving Karman frightening strength.

The strength to go wild.

While he was human, he would become like the sun.

Exceed what he was as a cyborg and transform into a weapon.

At the same time, Karman's subordinates finished preparing.

Like Karman, they embodied the sun and released their great power.

While they were a team, individually, they would have been able to fight a whole division of soldiers from one generation ago.

They would surely win this battle.

Karman and the others could imagine no other outcome.

Currently, Karman was just a single, mad machine…

"I will crush you. I will crush you with my own hands, Beretta…!!"

-He would not stop until this operation was complete.

And that was how the fight began.

◇◇◇

Intense shockwaves blasted the area as the incredibly heavy Karman charged into Beretta.

He was in complete combat mode and intended to crush Beretta.

The great energy from the reactor was compressed as Karman raised his fist.

Hyper Impact-the Powered Suit's thick plating covered Karman's fist, giving it immense destructive force.

The power would be overwhelming.

It exceeded a million horsepower. It would surely turn its target into dust.

However-

Beretta saw the attack coming.

Instead of directly blocking the flow of power, he parried it, throwing Karman off balance and into the air.

In other words, a one-arm shoulder throw.

They say that soft methods often trump brute force, but that was just an illusion.

It was not possible to control the direction of Hyper Impact's power with just knowledge of how it worked.

You would only get swallowed up with such lukewarm strength.

So there was really only one reason that Beretta was able to throw Karman-it was that Beretta's power reached that of Karman's.

"What!?"

"He threw Commander Karman!?"

His subordinates were stunned.

He had moved faster than the speed of sound. They would never have imagined that he would be stopped in such a fashion.

Karman was just as surprised.

However, he quickly rose up and admitted his error.

He did not like to admit that he had underestimated his opponent, but he now remonstrated himself for relying on his own power alone.

"Don't' fret! He has combat arts. He is an expert that can react at the speed of sound! Avoid fighting him one on one or at close-range!!"

Karman said without panicking.

His subordinates obeyed, and they surrounded Beretta in an instant.

As for Beretta…

"…Well, well. This is turning out to be quite a hassle. The lack of energy means that 'Universal Perception' is not very accurate. The light, wind, heat, sound and my other senses. This fight will be harder than I thought."

That's what he had determined just now.

This was because part of his chest and both arms were not deformed by the heat and impact after parrying Karman's attack.

That meant that even with Beretta's 'Physical Attack Nullification' and 'Natural Elements Nullification,' that he had taken some damage.

Had he been slower in reading the information, that blow may have been fatal.

So the lack of energy was effecting him in those ways.

And so Beretta used 'Mineral Manipulation' to liquefy his body.

It healed his body and protected him from attacks.

Still, Beretta kept his eyes on the enemy.

"Hmph. 'Universal Perception,' you say? Is that your sensor? It seems quite advanced, but can you dodge this?"

Karman laughed confidently and signaled to his men.

The four Powered Suits that surrounded him immediately went into an offensive posture.

Their next attack would come in waves.

On the surface, the Powered Suits could move at three times the speed of sound.

It was the same as the Murder Dogs, but the internal conditions were very different.

The Powered Suits were much more advanced when it came to standing still and then moving at full speed. But it wasn't just that.

The Murder Dogs were not good at precise turns. It was like how jet planes were weak against attacks from the side, due to their structure.

Sudden changes in direction would cause both the plane and the pilot to be subject to intense centrifugal force. While Murder Dogs were controlled by computers, they were not built to be able to withstand this from the side.

On the other hand, the Powered Suits allowed them to move freely while going at a high speed.

Of course, moving at three times the speed of sound would have an effect on the person inside.

However, Karman and the others were cyborgs, so there was no problem.

They also had the aid of a support calculation device, allowing them to make the most of their speed and to synchronize with each other.

"Tsk…"

Beretta clicked his tongue as he dealt with their attacks.

His arms and legs were not enough.

And so Beretta used the Ultimate Gift, Deus Ex Machina, to take in the surrounding matter and create several tentacles that were thicker than his arms.

Each of them represented his will and could move freely.

Each of them were sensors and could make decisions immediately.

The sound came later.

So much power was focused in one spot, and anything that got caught inside was turned into dust.

Karman's men moved while staying out of each others' way. But Beretta showed he could deal with them, even though he was facing them for the first time. Both sides had to admit the strengths of the other as the chaotic battle continued.

◆◆◆

"…This is pretty crazy."

"Hmm. That Beretta. He is trying to take my spotlight…"

"No-no-no! That's not the problem now, is it!?"

Ramiris was impressed. But Veldora had begun to complain after misinterpreting the situation.

As for Zaza, he felt frustrated enough to shout at them.

The information that his senses allowed him to gather was now being replayed in his head through the analysis device in his brain. It was only after seeing this that Zaza fully understood what was happening.

He had never seen a fight at such speed before.

And so he could not understand Veldora's reaction while watching this.

"Pretty crazy? Can you even see what is happening, Ramiris?"

"Uh, it's a little hard. But I can see it."

"Of course, I can see it. It is clear and crisp for me!"

"No, I am not asking you, Mister Veldora. You don't need to try and show off."

"…!?"

If Ramiris said she could see it, she probably could. That was what Zaza thought.

He could not imagine how advanced she was, but clearly there was some unknown technology being used in her small frame.

There was no room for doubt after seeing Beretta.

Karman's troops were like gods of death, and yet Beretta was fighting them without giving in an inch.

This was much more than Zaza had been expecting, and he had to change his perception of Beretta.

(So a weapon that can take on the best of what the city had to offer had been made outside of the city laboratories… It was hard to believe, but had to be accepted.)

And this truth was a ray of hope for the resistance.

Zaza thought.

If Beretta was with them, then they might have a chance of winning with the plan they had discussed.

Zaza could sense that he was becoming excited, and so turned his attention to the battle.

Veldora looked at Zaza sadly.

Why am I being treated like this? He thought. He continued to stare at Zaza, but was ignored.

"Ah, Ramiris…"

"What? Master?"

"Perhaps I should have fought after all."

"Why?"

"Why…"

Veldora couldn't say it was because he wanted attention.

He was an unfortunate dragon. No, he was currently in human form.

"Hmph! Watch, Ramiris. That person is trying to do something to Beretta!!"

Veldora could not stand Ramiris's inquisitive gaze and he tried to distract her.

"Oh, you're right. Hey, isn't that dangerous?"

"Hmm. I think Beretta should be fine…"

As Veldora pointed out, Karman, who had not joined in yet, was about to do something.

The two arms of the Powered Suit were now joined like a single cannon.

Zaza overheard Veldora and Ramiris and looked towards Karman as well.

And he knew.

"That…"

Through his own knowledge and what he had heard from surviving mercenaries, Zaza was able to guess what it was.

However, just then…

"Spread out!!"

Karman shouted angrily.

At the same time, in one smooth movement, the four Power Suits moved away from Beretta.

"…What?"

Just as Beretta looked at Karman, it was complete.

His tentacles could not react in time, and they were blown away. A hole then appeared in Beretta's adamantine body.

And then a stream of light hit Beretta in the face.

Splat. Beretta's face fell to the floor…

"BERETTTAAAA!!"

But before Ramiris's scream could reach him, his body crumbled…

◆◆◆

Karman smirked.

It was just as he had planned.

No matter how strong the enemy, he had been sure of his victory. And it was so satisfying.

"Whoops. Did I just kill him? Oh, well. As long as we take the body back with us, Hiragi should forgive us."

He said with a laugh.

Karman's plan had been to use his subordinates as a distraction as he prepared his most powerful main cannon.

It was the Neutron Launcher.

It utilized technology that could both accelerate and decelerate neutrons through arranging the high-frequency magnetic field. The neutron beam that was created in the nuclear fusion reactor was gathered inside of the cannon that was the combined arms. And then it was released all at once.

The speed exceeded 10,000km/s-it was close to the speed of light.

Even if the atmosphere caused it to slow down a little, it was still not something that could be dodged.

As for power, that needed no explanation.

Regardless of your strength, it would be impossible to remain unharmed after being hit by the destructive force of the Neutron Launcher.

There was only one way to deal with it. Stop it before it launched.

Karman was sure of his victory now, and he took out another cigar.

"Well, you fought well enough. I almost believed that my men could do it alone, but you fended them off. You made me use my trump card. And for that, you should be proud."

He said, before laughing pleasantly.

He rarely went all out like this. And he had won.

It was a feeling he had not felt since becoming a cyborg.

He laughed until he was satisfied. And then he moved to have his men collect Beretta's body…

And then stopped.

There was a twitch.

Beretta should have been dead, but it looked as if he had moved.

"…Wait. No, he can't…"

Karman told his men to stop.

It was then that Beretta's hand moved under their watchful eyes.

◆◆◆

Beretta shook as he picked it up.

Perhaps the shaking was because of the damage he had taken.

No, that was wrong.

It wasn't from the damage—

"This is bad. Master…"

"Y-yes. Beretta. He seems to have really blown a fuse…"

"He-hey? Is Mister Beretta alright? How can he be fine after that… What, blown a fuse? What do you mean…?"

Beretta raised it into the air and inspected the damage.

It was his mask.

The mask that he and Rimuru both had. The mask that hid his true face.

His long, bright silver hair was now free. Though, it covered his face now…

"This is bad. Rimuru said that he made Beretta's face to fit his own tastes. And he made him wear that mask because knowledge of it would cause trouble. Perhaps Rimuru has already forgotten about it-but the face and mask were treasures to Beretta…"

"I see. Beretta rarely shows any emotion, but now, his expression is full of anger…"

Beretta had been wearing a mask that covered his head.

It was a mask that Rimuru had put on him and was meant to hide his true face.

Beretta had continued to faithfully obey this order that Rimuru had playfully given to him.

And now it was destroyed.

Beretta's anger now exceeded his ability to hold back. It burst through in a second.

—Now, it was time for his revenge.