A/N: This chapter is pretty lacking in comedy (although there is some) and is a serious one, please read it as such.
-----
She feels hurt whenever she thinks I feel hurt?
She doesnât hate me?
How? I practically ruined her life, I gave her something that is not so easily taken away.
Sure, she was going through an evolution even without my help, but she wouldnât have become a Demon Lord, nor would she have become so strong.
I'm the one that pushed her onto that path.
I could ask Illya to take everything away, should Mikoto wish for such a thing, but it doesnât change the fact that I did it, and I most likely hurt her.
So if I hurt herâ¦
Rimuru- âWhy do you not hate me?â
As my words enter her ears, confusion passes through Mikotoâs eyes. In under a second, her mind begins working, wondering what the hell I'm talking about.
Seeing her confusion, I also become slightly confused.
Almost immediately, she finished thinking, formulating a response.
And she spoke.
Mikoto- âWhy would I hate you?â
.
.
.
Rimuru- âEh?â
Mikoto- âEh?â
It seems we both have some explaining to do.
Rimuru- âSo⦠you donât hate me?â
I say, with slight hope in my voice.
Mikoto shakes her head in denial as relief washes over me.
That means our relationship isn't irreparable. I definitely donât want to break the bond we have.
But then⦠the silence returned. I donât know what to say past this.
Mikoto- âI⦠was scared. Fighting Bryce, I mean. I didnât think I could win.â
I donât say anything. I donât THINK I should say anything either. So I just listen.
Mikoto- âI was scared of losing. I was scared of dying. I was mostly scared of someone else dying due to my weakness. In fact, someone DID die due to my weakness.â
I want to say something, to deny her self-deprecating claims, but I donât.
Itâs true. She was weak. Or rather, she wasnât weak, she was just weaker than Bryce.
If she were stronger, she couldâve taken care of Bryce before he got to Shion, before he could hurt anyone else.
And that is why I gave her strength. I evolved her into an overpowered existence because I didnât want her to be âweakâ anymore.
More than anything, I was also afraid that something like this would happen again. If I didnât give Avalon to Mikoto⦠she most likely wouldâve died too.
Regardless of my powers, I donât want her to go through something like that.
I mean, sheâs main character material, you know? What if she gets isekaiâd by some ROB before I could resurrect her?
Speaking of which, I could probably be considered a ROB myself, with my power levels. Although I can't compare to Meat Bun ROB thoughâ¦
Mikoto- â⦠I was also scared that I would disappoint youâ¦â
It was a whisper, but she purposely let me hear it.
Mikoto- âYou sent me back to Avalon to take care of any threat, but I failed. I had to depend on you again⦠just like every other timeâ¦â
Now that at the end was a whisper I wasnât meant to hear, but I felt some interference from Illya that enhanced my hearing for that small moment.
âJust like every other timeâ⦠is she frustrated with my help? But I only mean the best. Did she not want my help?
She wouldâve died if I didnât step in⦠maybe I'm misunderstanding something? I donât think Mikoto is suicidal.
Ok, what are the facts?
Mikoto doesnât hate me. Itâs not like she hates the strength she has either, but sheâs annoyed at the fact that she has it. Most importantly, she doesnât want to depend on me.
I think. And I think. And I think some more. Using my sped up perception and enhanced mental capacity, I continue to create theories and throw them away. I mean, most of the theories are just absolutely wrong, but there are a few that stick around.
Taking into account her previous actions from the months I knew her, the one that sticks out to me the most isâ¦
Rimuru- âYou donât want to be given everything on a silver platter.â
Thatâs the conclusion I came to. Judging by how Mikoto flinched ever so slightly, it seems I hit the mark⦠or at least, I got part of it right.
Rimuru- âMikoto. I care for you. You care for me. I want to keep you safe, and as much as I would like to stay around you 24/7, I can't do that without depriving you of your personal space. That is why I gave you your strength. So please, Mikoto⦠open up to me. Tell me what to do.â
As much as the words âTell me what to doâ makes me look like a simp (I already am though), I said that for Mikoto to tell me whatâs going on in her mind.
But⦠that might not have been the best words to choose.
Standing up spontaneously with tears threatening to spill from her eyes, she shouts.
Mikoto- âI donât WANT you to do anything!â
That⦠wasnât the response I was looking for.
Mikoto- âAgain and again and again, you ALWAYS did whatâs best for me! Whatâs best for everyone! Sure, sometimes you made a mistake, and we had to deal with the consequencesâ¦â
Images of the burnt down village of the Ogres come into mind. I got lazy and the families of my subordinates died as a consequence, their souls long having dissipated by now.
Mikoto- â⦠But the things you did for me, for ALL of us, far outweigh those mistakes! Thatâs why! Thatâs why⦠why I canât catch up to youâ¦â
Mikotoâs intensity slowly sank. She grits her teeth and could do nothing but look towards the carpeted floor as tears dropped from her eyes at a slow pace, her knuckles whitened from her clenched hand.
Those words were vague, yet it seemed as if everything became clear to me now.
Mikoto is just looking to prove herself.
She doesnât want to be GIVEN power, she wants to earn it.
Earn it for herself, with her own strength.
That way she can prove that she can catch up to me, that she is an equal and not someone to be coddled.
Mikoto- âYou asked me to protect Avalon, but I failed. If you didnât arrive when you did, we all would have died. Even my first evolution was only triggered through [Raphael]⦠nothing came from myselfâ¦â
Her words are nothing more than a strained whisper at this point.
Mikoto- âI donât deserve any of this.â
Those were her quietest words yet, but I felt the sharpest pain flash through my chest at those words.
But sheâs wrong.
Rimuru- â⦠I gave you a book a long time ago. A grimoire, you could say. Inside it contained training methods you could use to grow stronger.â
Mikotoâs head sunk even lower.
Rimuru- âI also gave you that broken [Raphael] core. From what Illya told me, itâs true you wouldnât have evolved without it.â
I take a deep breath and look straight at her.
Rimuru- âDid you know? Every day since I gave you that grimoire, I always dropped by the experiment site to look at you practice your esper ability. Every day, for at least a few seconds each time. Every time, I always had the same thought⦠âYou are magnificent. So fascinating⦠So hardworking.ââ
Mikotoâs clenched fist slowly loosens.
Rimuru- âI saw you train every day. You never once stopped. You always sought to get stronger. You also sparred with everyone once or twice to measure yourself against them. At first, you were on par with Shion. But recently, I saw you win without a scratch.â
Her tears stopped.
Rimuru- âThat broken [Raphael] core too. Itâs literally just that, a broken core. Something useless to me. Yet⦠you made it work. You used it to grow stronger. I, nor anyone else, told you what to do. With nothing but pure emotions and willpower, you pushed into the mythical Level 6. YOU did all that, not anyone else.â
Mikoto just stood there loosely, staring at the ground in disbelief.
*Jingle*
Hearing that familiar sound, she looks up.
Held gently in my open hand is her gekota bracelet.
It broke during the fight against Bryce, but I picked up its fragments and fixed it.
Although I couldâve used my skills to easily repair it, I sought to fix it manually, if only for the sentimental value. So I created the necessary tools and restored the bracelet in the mirror dimension before everyone woke up.
Rimuru- âThe power you hold now may not be something you earned by yourself. BUT⦠You took the first step yourself. Donât say you donât deserve it.â
I stand up and walk towards her as I continue talking.
Rimuru- âYou donât need to use that power for yourself if you insist on being stubborn. Just⦠keep it as insurance in case another Bryce incident occurs. Continue your path until you can truly call that power your own. I know youâll reach it.â
I hold out the bracelet towards her. Her brown eyes that crackle with the faintest hint of electricity glance towards the bracelet before staring into my golden eyes.
Rimuru- âAfter all⦠you are my equal! My other half!â
I grab her wrist and slide the bracelet onto her, the gekota accessory shining ever so slightly.
Immediately after, however, I feel a tug from my collar.
After that, I feel pressure on my lips, Mikotoâs face infinitesimally close to my own, her own eyes closed with a healthy blush in her cheeks.
I close my own eyes and just savour the moment.
My first kiss⦠tastes sweet.
Like cookies.
-----
Name: Rimuru
Race: Origin Slime
Protection: Crest of Space
Title: Highest Tier Spirit, Leader of the Monsters, Onii-chan, King of Avalon, Master of Headpats, Procrastinator King, The Nutcracker, socially awkward cringe slightly chuuni slime, True Dragon Slayer, Sensei, World's Strongest, Overpowered to a stupid degree, Mikotoâs Equal
???: [Codex: Illyasviel]
Ultimate Skills: [Yahweh, God of Creation], [Odin, God of Runes], [Azathoth, God of Void (Alternative)]
Equipment: Yamato â Genesis
-----
Name: Mikoto
Title: Level 6, Number Three, Tokiwadai's Ace, Strongest Electromaster, Electric Princess, Oneesama (for Shirai Kuroko), Biri-Biri, Tsundere, Waifu, Limitless, Rimuru's Equal
Equipment: Gekota Bracelet (Repaired)
DJDAN
A/N: My favourite chapter to date. Might be cringe, but I'm really proud of this and I really enjoyed writing this.
Although I was starving while I was writing this so I might've messed up somewhere.
Let me know if I missed anything.
https://discord.gg/Pmjx5trH