Aghanim's Rubick Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Susuru was true to their word. Quickly, I received news that he wanted to accept my offer, joining our villages under my protection. Like how Ogres had heard of my settlement and migrated from all over the Great Forest to join it, the same had happened to the Goblins. This made the both of us wish to go as quickly as possible with the integration, as delaying would just make the task bigger and more difficult.

While visiting him for discussion on the merge, I was able to catch him performing a Naming. Unlike myself, Susuru did not have a hidden magical reactor to pull the required energy to Name as many monsters as he did. Instead, he apparently pulled in the ambient Magic in the air and used that to accomplish the Naming process. Having a bunch of Named Monsters in the area increased the production of Magic, due to the inherent radiation that most of them seemed to do unconsciously.

Still, it made his Naming go a lot slower than mine, to the point where he was not able to keep up with the amount of new Monsters that were flooding into the Goblin Village. I again had the advantage in this respect, as the Ogres were far less numerous in the first place.

The whole issue did leave me slightly confused, as Susuru did not seem to possess the conscious control of Magic required to do what he did. If he did have such mastery, I would have expected him to contain his leaking Magic, like I had. This pointed to some sort of Skill assisting him, but how that functioned was something I was not yet able to decipher.

Moving onto domestic matters, apparently he had already established relations with another country before even meeting me, moving quicker than I expected. The Dwarves that had agreed to work for him seemed a bit put out that he was becoming someone else’s subordinate, but I held a meeting with the brothers and assured them that they were still considered to be under Susuru’s direct supervision and responsibility.

Of course, I would still offer them the same respect and rights that I would any other member of my realm, as my Village was swiftly growing into a town, but their jobs were things that would not intersect with my own that often. Research and development, as with the rune idea for hot water taps that Susuru came up with, that was something I was more than happy to assist with.

The mind numbing production and distribution of said developed devices? I was more than happy to leave that in the hands of Kaijin and his brothers.

A happy coincidence that the blacksmith of the Ogre Village, who I had named Muramasa, was very glad to receive fellow craftsmen of their skill.

The integration went smoothly, with surprisingly little friction between the newly arrived Goblins and my Oni. Although, maybe it was not that surprising. Monsters inherently followed strength and as the guy with the biggest stick around, what I said went.

Still, maybe I should get around to naming the burgeoning settlement soon, before it ends up with some retarded name like Rubicksville.

Susuru got situated quickly and was surprised when I immediately promoted him to the position of Governor of the area I controlled. Basically, he was in charge of the operation, expansion and management of the town and its surroundings. All plans were put to me for final approval and I had absolute veto power on any laws he wanted to introduce, but aside from that he was free to go hog wild.

It rather neatly solved my major problem with being in charge, having to micromanage everything and basically being stuck into playing an IRL City Builder. That was something I was not at all interested in participating in, I wanted the freedom to travel, find strong magic users and ‘borrow’ their hard work.

Eventually I might start up a Magic academy to encourage creativity in my town and profit off of the fruits of the student’s labours, but that was something that I could only really feel comfortable with if I understood the Magic of this world at a much deeper level than I currently did. To do that, I needed to experience much more of it.

Susuru being from Earth was perfect for the Governor position, as he had a solid idea of what an actual functioning modern town looked like. For the most part, I was interested in letting him run with it and seeing how it worked out. I did retain the veto power in case he came up with something that was dumb or I disagreed with, so there was little at risk other than time.

I did have to use the Veto power quicker than I expected however, on a very specific Law…

---XXX---

“Vetoed.” I spoke, causing Susuru to stop and stare at me, askance.

“What do you mean vetoed?” Confusion was prominent in his voice, “I thought all the Laws I came up with were rather sensible.”

“They are for the most part.” I agreed, “However, ‘No harming Humans’? That is way too open ended, Susuru.”

“I think it will help in keeping us peaceful. If we can avoid pissing off Humans, then they won’t declare war on us.” He explained.

I sighed, “You are thinking in far too modern a mindset. This world is basically Mediaeval, Susuru. Imagine the diplomacy between nations not as our modern states cooperation, but as Sengoku Era lords vying for power and territory.”

“Oh.” He blinked, considering my words.

“More importantly…” I reached down, grabbing my right arm just below the elbow, squeezing through it with my left hand, severing the limb and placing it on the table in front of me without even flinching, “We are not Human, Susuru. We are Monsters, leading Monsters. We are dangerous, different. How do you think less moral Humans would react to that?”

“Not well.” He followed the thought process easily, “So what would you suggest instead?”

“Only attack Humans in self defence. Alternatively, avoid Human settlements. I personally would prefer the first.” I reattached my arm and leant my chin on it, “Of course, that will require us explaining self defence principles with our townspeople, but it would allow us to react a lot more proactively to any potential conflicts.”

“I see what you mean.” Susuru nodded, “But I feel like I can’t agree. My dream is to create a peaceful world, where we can all prosper in peace. This feels like giving up on that dream.”

“It is a beautiful dream. I’m not just saying that, I genuinely believe that it is attainable here.” I mused, making him blink at me in surprise as I continued, “Personal power is seemingly uncapped in this world. There are multiple Demon Lords that stand at the top of the world, but apparently most believe that Guy Crimson, the First Demon Lord, could defeat all the others even if they ganged up on him.”

“That sort of strength is what will be needed for your dream to come true, Susuru.” I raised a finger, “We come from a peaceful time, from peace loving countries. But even in our old world, it was not always that way. We only managed to overcome our thirst for war due to our technology advancing to the point where the destruction guaranteed in the act made it unpalatable. Even that was not perfect, wars happened all the time back there.”

“So you are saying that we need to get strong enough to deter aggression?” He skipped ahead of my thought process a bit, “If I am following your logic, that means you think that we will have to fight and struggle until we are strong enough to have that deterrence factor.”

“Correct.” I smiled at him, glad for his quickness, “A wise man once said, ‘if you wish for peace, prepare for war’. The knowledge you want to bring to this town will make us prosperous. Your mind will propel this world forwards a couple centuries, if not more.”

He blushed, looking down, “Thanks for the compliment.”

“You are welcome, however, there is a downside. If we are successful, that will engender resentment. Now, if we abide by the principles of free trade, we could alleviate some of that. However, greed will always call for people to try and take what others have built.” I sighed, “Not preparing for that possibility seems foolish to me.”

“You are such a cynic, Rubick. Why are you so pessimistic?” Susuru seemed surprised by my dour thoughts.

“I prefer to think of it as realism. Let me pose this another way, do we lose anything by being prepared?” He shook his head, causing me to nod, “Better to have it and not need it, then need it and not have it. I was telling the truth, Susuru. I will support your dream, but that means I have to protect it too.”

“Stop that.” He was flustered over my words for some reason, “You sound like some sort of Ikemen from an anime.”

“Tropes are used for a reason.” I had no idea what an Ikemen was, but I had a couple guesses.

“And that! Why are you acting so wise and sage all of a sudden? I’m older than you, dammit!” He exclaimed, causing me to chuckle.

“Mental and Physical age are different things, young grasshopper.”

He covered his face with his hands and let out a pained groan, causing a shit eating grin to grow across my face.

---XXX---

I stared at my hand, smoke gently trailing off it. Moving my gaze to the target dummy I acquired from Musashi, I observed the damage my new spell had caused.

“Fuck yesssssssss.” I hissed, shivering in excitement, “That’s the gooooood shit.”

The smouldering remains had been bisected and burned, utterly ruined. That was not even at full power! Once this was perfected, this would be a god damned terror on the battlefield. The next time someone used a piddly shield against me, they would get a big surprise.

“Everyone’s got a plan until they catch plasma to the face.” I grinned, already imagining it.

I always had an active imagination, but now faced with the prospect that I could make all the fantastical ideas I had real, it was like being a kid at a candy store.

I was broken out of my spiral by a knock on the door to my lab, the frequency and strength indicating some degree of urgency.

Flicking through my Magical senses, I called out, “Yes Hattori? What is it?”

The dour ninja Oni opened the door, bowing towards me as soon as the portal was clear, “Lord Rubick, we have received an emissary from the Lizard tribe. He is causing some… disruptions.”

I tilted my head, “Oh? Interesting. Thank you for the warning, could you please lead me to them?”

“Of course, my Lord.” He placed a hand to his chest, making me wonder if maybe I gave up on stopping them from being so formal to me too early.

Following Hattori through the streets, I could already see the difference, even from just a week. Apparently the Goblins were hard workers. With them providing the muscle behind the construction and the Oni assisting as well as adding the finishing touches and amenities, our town had almost doubled in this short time. Usually, such expansion would come at the cost of quality, but thanks to Kaijin and Susuru’’s efforts, the standard of living had actually gone up on average.

Hanako and Oda had insisted that my home be the first to be upgraded with the new amenities, but I had put my foot down and ordered the rollout to go to my subordinates instead. My body was very convenient, but its appearance occasionally caused people to forget my lack of need for food, drink and sleep.

People, Goblins and Oni alike, bowed to me as I passed them. I nodded and waved in response, trying to be friendly and approachable while hiding how awkward the whole thing was. Honestly, it was better than the alternative, but the Goblins integrated a bit too well, picking up the Oni’s respect for me and running with it.

Resigning myself to getting used to it, I was eventually led to the outskirts of the town, where a Lizardman was attempting to goad one of Susuru’s guards into a fight while he himself seemed slightly unsure of what to do about it.

“I, the Great Gabiru, am here to give you the opportunity to serve under me! Why are you not appreciating my generosity?! Bring out this ‘Grand Magus’ so that he can acknowledge my greatness!” The Lizardman gesticulated, causing Gobta to grip his sword nervously while Susuru awkwardly rubbed the back of his head.

“I already told you, we aren’t looking to serve anyon-” He was interrupted by my arrival.

“What’s all this then?” I asked, walking nonchalantly into the range of this Lizardman’s spear as he waved it about, causing him to hastily retract it, “Why are you causing such a scene?”

“Ahem, are you the ‘Grand Magus’, Rubick?” He sniffed, looking down his snout at me.

What a pompous ass.

“I am. What business do you have with me?” I crossed my arms, “Do you require assistance in a Magical matter?”

“Umu.” The Lizardman shook his head, “Far from it. I, the Great Gabiru, have come to allow you to pledge your allegiance to me!”

“Gabiru-sama! You’re so cool and confident!” His lackeys cheered behind him.

What were they supposed to be, his personal hype squad?

“Right then. I have a single question for you.” I uncrossed my arms, “Do you know any Magic?”

“No, but I am a skilled warri-” I interrupted him.

“You have three seconds to turn around and fuck off.” This rapidly ascended to the level of an ‘annoyance’, considering I couldn’t even gain anything from this.

“What?! How da-”

“One.”

He squawked, “You don’t even have any-”

“Two.”

“Your bluffs won’t wo-” I stuck my hand out.

“Three.” Lightning lanced from my fingers, connecting to each of the Lizardmen and causing them to start to convulse.

I let off the current before killing them, as they technically could count as foreign diplomats. Still, that did leave them as a smoking, twitching, unconscious scaly mass.

“Wow.” I heard Gobta mutter behind me.

“Yeah that escalated really quickly.” Susuru seemed to be in shock.

“Demanding subjugation is tantamount to a declaration of war. He’s lucky I think he’s just an idiot, rather than someone dangerous.” I huffed, annoyed that my experiments had been interrupted by this farce.

“My lord.” Hattori said, “Would you like me to clean that up?”

He indicated the pile of twitching electroshock therapy patients.

I nodded to him, “Thank you Hattori. If you could make sure they leave our lands safely.”

“It will be done.” He bowed and disappeared, taking the bodies with him.

“Damn, I thought the name Hattori was too edgy, but he’s actually really cool isn’t he?” Susuru muttered.

“Jealousy is unbecoming of you.” I teased the slime, “Just because you aren’t a super handsome hyper competent bad boy doesn’t mean you are hopeless.”

“Gee.” Susuru spoke, his voice monotone, “Thanks.”

---XXX---

Hanako hummed happily. Lord Rubick had insisted that they renovate their households before his, but his lack of attention to anything unrelated to magic had worked in her favour. Her abode was the closest to his lab after all, so her plan could still proceed with limited changes. She flowed across the new kitchen, marvelling at the new tools that Susuru and Lord Rubick had designed based on things from their original world.

That had been a surprise. The reincarnated heroes had been hailed by the Humans as gifts from the Gods, proof that they were righteous and favoured more than Monsters. What did it mean then, that two reincarnated heroes had arrived as Monsters rather than Humans?

Whatever the implications, she was greatly thankful for their lord’s arrival. Ever since he had arrived and almost absent-mindedly destroyed the orc army, their lives had vastly improved. Even if he were to leave, thanks to his insistence on naming everyone in the town, they would easily be able to handle any times the number of orcs that almost ended them.

She was not blind to the reasoning behind his actions, of course. It only made sense. If you were powerful enough to name as many monsters as you wished, using that as a bargaining chip in order to gain their loyalty was only obvious. Not only did you gain a follower, but they were vastly improved for the experience.

Just like she had been. She had been prepared to sell herself for her people, willing to do anything to ensure that this mysterious Monster stayed and continued to protect them, but it turned out that had been unnecessary. It almost annoyed her, how the thought didn’t seem to seriously be considered by the rather attractive man. She knew now, of course, that was unfair of her to think.

Rather than it having anything to do with her attractiveness, it was instead due to Lord Rubick simply being a good man. He would deny it of course, but his kindness shone through his actions.

That is why, rather than obligation, she wished to engineer the same outcome because of her own desire. Her mother, before she passed away, had taught her that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, a lesson she was employing to full effect right now.

Annoyingly, her Lord had no need to actually eat, so her chosen method of attack was not perfect. However, he retained his sense of taste and that was enough, especially as she could then focus on that exclusively and forgo any consideration to dietary balance.

Who cares how many times you had grains this week if they tasted delicious and were all going to be broken down into magic in the end?

As she placed the finishing touches on her pie, she picked up the steaming dish and began to walk towards her Lord’s lab. On the way there, she stopped briefly as a flash of light shone through the windows, followed by a clash and laughter. Shaking her head, she considered investing in a backup plan to attract her Lord’s attention.

He was obsessed with Magic, after all. She should look through her mother’s old books, see if there was an obscure or interesting spell to aid her in her designs.

For the time being however, she needed to get Lord Rubick to stop what he was doing and eat something.

It might have no effect on his physical health, but surely the single-minded obsession was not good for his mental health. As another flash sounded out and the laughter turned slightly maniacal, she reaffirmed her stance on the matter.

Breaks should be taken frequently, for his own good.